Flying at up to Mach 16 could become reality with UCF's developing propulsion system

ORLANDO, May 10, 2021 -University of Central Florida researchers are building on their technology that could pave the way for hypersonic flight, such as travel from New York to Los Angeles in under 30 minutes.

In their latest research published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers discovered a way to stabilize the detonation needed for hypersonic propulsion by creating a special hypersonic reaction chamber for jet engines.

"There is an intensifying international effort to develop robust propulsion systems for hypersonic and supersonic flight that would allow flight through our atmosphere at very high speeds and also allow efficient entry and exit from planetary atmospheres," says study co-author Kareem Ahmed, an associate professor in UCF's Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. "The discovery of stabilizing a detonation -- the most powerful form of intense reaction and energy release -- has the potential to revolutionize hypersonic propulsion and energy systems."

The system could allow for air travel at speeds of Mach 6 to 17, which is more than 4,600 to 13,000 miles per hour. The technology harnesses the power of an oblique detonation wave, which they formed by using an angled ramp inside the reaction chamber to create a detonation-inducing shock wave for propulsion.

Unlike rotating detonation waves that spin, oblique detonation waves are stationary and stabilized.

The technology improves jet propulsion engine efficiency so that more power is generated while using less fuel than traditional propulsion engines, thus lightening the fuel load and reducing costs and emissions.

In addition to faster air travel, the technology could also be used in rockets for space missions to make them lighter by requiring less fuel, travel farther and burn more cleanly.

Detonation propulsion systems have been studied for more than half a century but had not been successful due to the chemical propellants used or the ways they were mixed. Previous work by Ahmed's group overcame this problem by carefully balancing the rate of the propellants hydrogen and oxygen released into the engine to create the first experimental evidence of a rotating detonation.

However, the short duration of the detonation, often occurring for only micro or milliseconds, makes them difficult to study and impractical for use.

In the new study, however, the UCF researchers were able to sustain the duration of a detonation wave for three seconds by creating a new hypersonic reaction chamber, known as a hypersonic high-enthalpy reaction, or HyperREACT, facility. The facility contains a chamber with a 30-degree angle ramp near the propellent mixing chamber that stabilizes the oblique detonation wave.

"This is the first time a detonation has been shown to be stabilized experimentally," Ahmed says. "We are finally able to hold the detonation in space in oblique detonation form. It's almost like freezing an intense explosion in physical space."

Gabriel Goodwin, an aerospace engineer with the Naval Research Laboratory's Naval Center for Space Technology and study co-author, says their research is helping to answer many of the fundamental questions that surround oblique detonation wave engines.

Goodwin's role in the study was to use the Naval Research Laboratory's computational fluid dynamics codes to simulate the experiments performed by Ahmed's group.

"Studies such as this one are crucial to advancing our understanding of these complex phenomena and bringing us closer to developing engineering-scale systems," Goodwin says.

"This work is exciting and pushing the boundaries of both simulation and experiment," Goodwin says. "I'm honored to be a part of it."

The study's lead author is Daniel Rosato '19 '20MS, a graduate research assistant and a recipient of UCF's Presidential Doctoral Fellowship.

Rosato has been working on the project since he was an aerospace engineering undergraduate student and is responsible for experiment design, fabrication, and operation, as well as data analysis, with assistance from Mason Thorton, a study co-author and an undergraduate research assistant.

Rosato says the next steps for the research are the addition of new diagnostics and measurement tools to gain a deeper understanding of the phenomena they are studying.

"After that, we will continue exploring more experimental configurations to determine in more detail the criteria with which an oblique detonation wave can be stabilized," Rosato says.

If successful in advancing this technology, detonation-based hypersonic propulsion could be implemented into human atmospheric and space travel in the coming decades, the researchers say.

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The study was funded by the long-term support of the Energy, Combustion and Non-Equilibrium Thermodynamics Portfolio of the Air Force Office of Scientific Research in the area of detonation via grants 16RT0673/FA9550-16-1-0441 and 19RT0258/FA9550-19-0322 (Program Manager: Chiping Li), the National Science Foundation and the NASA Florida Space Grant Consortium.

Co-authors of the study included Jonathan Sosa '15 '18 '19PhD, a postdoctoral research scientist with UCF's Propulsion and Energy Research Laboratory and currently an aerospace engineer at U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, and Christian Bachman, an aerospace engineer at U.S. Naval Research Laboratory.

Ahmed is an associate professor in UCF's Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, part of UCF's College of Engineering and Computer Science. He is also a faculty member of the Center for Advanced Turbomachinery and Energy Research and the Florida Center for Advanced Aero-Propulsion. He served more than three years as a senior aero/thermo engineer at Pratt & Whitney military engines working on advanced engine programs and technologies. He also served as a faculty member at Old Dominion University and Florida State University. At UCF, he is leading research in propulsion and energy with applications for power generation and gas-turbine engines, propulsion-jet engines, hypersonics and fire safety, as well as research related to supernova science and COVID-19 transmission control. He earned his doctoral degree in mechanical engineering from the State University of New York at Buffalo. He is an American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics associate fellow and a U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and Office of Naval Research faculty fellow.

CONTACT: Robert H. Wells, Office of Research, robert.wells@ucf.edu

This story has been published on: 2021-05-10. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Moscow, ID (83843)

Today

A shower or two possible this morning with partly cloudy skies for the afternoon. High near 65F. Winds W at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. Low 43F. SW winds shifting to E at 10 to 15 mph.
CLEWISTON (AP)  A Florida elementary school principal will not be prosecuted for spanking a 6-year-old girl in front of her mother last month, officials said.

The State Attorneys Office that covers Hendry County released a memo Friday explaining that corporal punishment is legal in Florida and that the principal of Central Elementary School in Clewiston appeared to have explicit permission from the childs mother. Clewiston is located near the southwestern shore of Lake Okeechobee.

A school staff member called the girls mother on April 13 to report that the first grader had damaged some computer equipment and that the mother would have to pay for it, officials said. The mother reportedly told the staff member that the girl was also causing damage at home, but she was afraid to spank the child. The mother then asked whether a school staff member could spank the girl, officials said. The staff member explained that the mother would have to give permission in person and be present for the punishment, officials said.
Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after a cyberattack had affected some of its systems. The operator said Monday that it hoped to have services mostly restored by the end of the week as the FBI identified the culprits as a gang of criminal hackers known as DarkSide.

In response to the attack, the administration loosened regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an all-hands-on-deck effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.

The time of the outage is now approaching critical levels and if it continues to remain down we do expect an increase in East Coast gasoline and diesel prices, said Debnil Chowdhury, IHS Markit Executive Director. The last time there was an outage of this magnitude was in 2016, he said, when gas prices rose 15 to 20 cents per gallon. The Northeast had significantly more local refining capacity at that time.

Alabama is listed among the states in the Southeast that was expected to be affected by the downed operation, but panic-buying has prematurely brought on statewide shortages that could last longer if Colonial Pipelines operations are not restored in the next few days and excessive purchasing persists.
Hurricane season is right around the corner, and this week is being recognized as National Hurricane Preparedness Week to remind residents to be ready for the possibility of dangerous storms.

Many areas across the Wiregrass and Florida Panhandle are still recovering and rebuilding from Hurricane Michael, the Category 5 storm that slammed the area in October 2018.

There were a record total of 30 storms during the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, according to John De Block, the warning coordination meteorologist at the National Weather Service (NWS) in Birmingham.

Officially hurricane season starts June 1, but Mother Nature doesnt know the calendar, De Block said. If the circumstances are there  warm water, the right wind conditions  theres a good chance a storm will form.

De Block advises people be ready by the middle of May at the latest, as the formation of hurricanes and tropical storms in May have become more of a common occurrence throughout the past few years.

You should never let your guard down in Alabama, especially south Alabama near the coast. You just change your focus, De Block said. Anyone around the coast should always have an evacuation plan just in case.
An investor looks at stock prices on a smartphone at a brokerage in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran.

Exchange traded funds attracted VND8.7 trillion ($377 million) in April, a new monthly high, making Vietnam an investment bright spot in Asia.

A single investor, Taiwanese fund Fubon FTSE Vietnam, accounted for VND7.8 trillion, according to a note by leading brokerage SSI Securities Corporation.

Fubon is now the fifth largest investor in ETFs in Vietnam with a total of VND8.2 trillion.

Other notable buyers in April were VFM VNDiamond with VND612 billion, VanEck Vectors Vietnam (VND196 billion) and SSIAM FINLead (VND180 billion).

In the first four months, ETFs attracted VND13.2 trillion.

Foreign investors ended a streak of six straight months of selling with net buying worth VND273 billion last month, with real estate giant Vinhomes VHM share being a major contributor.

The VN-Index has gained over 14 percent this year, touching several new peaks in April as the number of new domestic trading accounts tripling year-on-year during the month to almost 110,000.
Sign saying Land for sale in Hon Quan District in the southern province of Binh Phuoc in February 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Phuoc Tuan.

The State Bank of Vietnam has instructed banks to be cautious about lending against securities and to the property sector in areas where speculation has driven up prices.

They need to ensure that collateral reflects true value, especially in places where land prices have skyrocketed.

Prices have risen by an average of 10 percent in the last two months, though in some places they have even doubled or tripled, according to the Vietnam Association of Realtors.

The central bank also called for curbing lending for stock market investment to mitigate risks.

Loans outstanding to both the real estate and stock markets have been increasing.

Loans for buying property grew by 2.13 percent during the quarter ending March 31 as against the overall 2.04 percent, according to the Director General of the SBVs Monetary Policy Department, Pham Thanh Ha.

They account for over 19 percent of total outstanding loans, vice chairman of HDBank, Nguyen Thanh Do, said.

Margin loans rose by 0.7 percent during the quarter, according to the SBV.

The central bank noted that non-performing loans at consumer finance companies have increased.

It said for instance they were up 1 percentage point last year to 6.6 percent at FE Credit, Vietnam's largest consumer finance company.

For HD Saison, they rose 0.4 percentage points to 5.8 percent, it said.

It called on consumer lending companies to thoroughly check all documents and generally tighten lending conditions.
Invest in Dubai (IID), an integrated digital business set-up platform, has recorded robust growth in its use, reflecting Dubais growing position as a leading global business destination for investors and entrepreneurs locally and globally.



IID offers a unique business set-up experience backed by Dubais advanced smart solutions. The largest one-stop-shop platform of its kind, it enables investors to obtain trade licenses and launch their business in a matter of minutes.



The growth of the platform supports the goal of the General Secretariat of The Executive Council of Dubai to ensure the smooth integration of government operations in line with the leaderships objective of ensuring high global standards in facilitating business activity. The 'Invest in Dubai' platform contributes to unifying, facilitating, and speeding up business set-up procedures effortlessly, serving investors and business leaders.



The platform seeks to enhance the customer experience and government service pathways based on feedback received from customers and government agencies. IID offers commercial licensing services as part of which over 15 government permits and approvals can be obtained without the need to visit any service centre. IID also offers value-added services that support businesses in launching commercial projects.



Providing a comprehensive platform covering the entire business cycle, IID assists businesses in searching for opportunities, registering trade names; getting initial approvals to issue a license; ensuring all government requirements are met; and obtaining trade licenses, said Sami Al Qamzi, Director General of Dubai Economy.



According to the latest data, since the launch of the IID platform in the beginning of February, the total number of business registration and licensing transactions on the platform has reached 5,747. A total of 3,464 commercial licenses were issued, while 1,448 trade names were reserved. The number of initial approvals provided through the platform was 830 while 275 approvals were issued for starting a business.



IID also licensed 485 activities. The top 15 of these activities, which represent 46% of the total include project management services, technical works and maintenance, electronic complexes, social media marketing services, engraving and decoration, installation of suspended ceilings and light partitions, perfumes and cosmetics, and tailoring and sewing of women's clothing.



Saif Ahmed Al Suwaidi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE) for Human Resources Affairs, said: MOHRE helped facilitate the creation of new jobs through the Invest in Dubai platform. The latest data showed that 9,181 jobs were created by businesses for whom licences were issued, based on the link with the Ministry on IID.



IID facilitates all types of Dubai Municipality services, especially food-related activities. The procedures for obtaining a licence have been simplified and the customer journey shortened. Approvals are obtained automatically through the platform. The activities related to Dubai Municipality are licensed on the IID platform, said Dawood Al Hajri, Director General of Dubai Municipality,



Major General Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri, Director General, General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai, said: The latest statistics showed that IID attracted 3,746 investors representing 77 different countries, while 10 nationalities accounted for 90% of the total number of foreign investors, which include British, Russian, French, Jordanian, Egyptian, Indian, Pakistani, and Filipino.



The average age of the investors was 37 years. The 26-35 age group represented 37%, of investments followed by the 36-45 age group at 35%. We constantly check the data on registered customers on the IID platform to make sure it is credible, added Al Marri.



Younus Al Nasser, Assistant Director General of the Smart Dubai Department and CEO of the Dubai Data Establishment, confirmed that the team is working on the future plan for IID services especially those related to the second phase, which will be implemented in 2021. These include several additional services for commercial licences, amendments to licences, opening of bank accounts in a wider set of banks, renewing commercial licences, and opening traffic files for vehicles. He added that the platform facilitated the opening of 87 instant bank accounts with Emirates NBD.



The platform enables investors to gain insights into investment opportunities for key sectors; information on investment opportunities in commercial zones or free zones, competitiveness assessments, locations of businesses in the city, key economic sectors; and cost of incubating businesses; in addition to sector reports and statistics on foreign direct investment (FDI), said Al Nasser.



The platform offers a range of packages and value-added services to facilitate the launch of commercial projects. These include opening a ticket for the new establishment as required by the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship, allocating labour quotas, opening a ticket at the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, notarising the establishment contract by Dubai Economy, and obtaining a membership in the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry.



Other services include opening a bank account with Emirates NBD and Commercial Bank of Dubai. The platform also provides initial approval, reservation of a trade name, issuance of instant licences, Dubai SME licences, Intelaq licences and DED Trader licences, in addition to electronic Memorandum of Association and the renewal of commercial licences.



IID also allows investors to access information regarding the requirements, conditions and fees for issuing trade licences in Dubai for more than 2,000 commercial activities. They can also immediately obtain licences for their companies, as well as other commercial licences. A seamless, integrated, and customer-centered digital process allows users to save time and effort, sparing them the need to visit service centres and reduce the paperwork required to establish companies. The platform also enables them to manage their business using a personalised dashboard that provides an overview of active and expired licenses and tradenames, and other useful insights.  TradeArabia News Service
Of the new patients, 20 were recorded in the northern province of Bac Ninh. Hanoi and the provinces of Bac Giang and Thai Binh had two cases each and the remaining one was in Thua Thien Hue Province.

In the fourth coronavirus wave that started April 27, Vietnam has recorded 529 domestic cases in 26 cities and provinces.

No new cluster has been detected as of Tuesday.

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, head of the National Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control, told the press Tuesday morning that under current circumstances, a national social distancing order was not yet necessary.

"We have to make careful considerations for the sake of the dual goals we have been pursuing, that is fighting the pandemic while maintaining socio-economic development," he said after being asked if a nationwide social distancing was needed with 26 of 63 localities recording infections.

Of these, major cities Hanoi and Da Nang have become hotspots.

For now, Dam said, Vietnam will fight the new wave by sticking to the protocols it has applied since the beginning of the pandemic: take steps to prevent possible sources of transmission; detect infections and isolate them; locate infected areas and put out clusters; and treat all Covid-19 patients in dedicated facilities.
One of President Joe Bidens first official acts was to sign the instrument to rejoin the Paris Agreement. This document calls on signatory countries to cut their emissions so as to keep the increase in global average temperature to well below 2 Celsius above pre-industrial levels, and to make every effort to limit that increase to 1.5 Celsius.

However, said Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a recent speech, The world has already fallen behind on the targets we set six years ago with the Paris Agreement.

And we now know those targets didnt go far enough to begin with. Today, the science is unequivocal: We need to keep the Earths warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid catastrophe.

America, the worlds second biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, can make a significant contribution to addressing this crisis.

But that wont be enough. Even if the United States gets to net zero emissions tomorrow, well lose the fight against climate change if we cant address the more than 85 percent of emissions coming from the rest of the world. And coming up short will have major repercussions. Pick a security challenge, said Secretary Blinken. Climate change is likely to make it worse.

Climate change exacerbates existing conflicts and increases the chances of new ones  particularly in countries where governments are weak and resources are scarce. Of the 20 countries the Red Cross considers most vulnerable to climate change, 12 are already experiencing armed conflicts.

Climate change can also create new theaters of conflict, such as the Arctic, where Russia is positioning itself to exert control over new spaces, said Secretary Blinken. It is modernizing its bases in the Arctic and building new ones, including one just 300 miles from Alaska. China is increasing its presence in the Arctic, too.

Finally, climate change can also be a driver of migration.  There were 13 Atlantic hurricanes in 2020  the highest number on record. Central America was hit especially hard. . . .When disasters strike people who are already living in poverty and insecurity, it can often be the final straw, pushing them to abandon their communities in search of a better place to live.

The Biden-Harris administration will do more than any in history to meet our climate crisis, said Secretary Blinken. This is already an all-hands-on-deck effort across our government and across our nation. Our future depends on the choices we make today.
Denver-based SSR Mining operates the Marigold Mine, the Seabee in Canada, Copler in Turkey and Puna in Argentina, with gold equivalent production of 196,004, much higher than the 107,331 ounces in the first quarter of last year. Puna is a silver mine, producing 1.8 million ounces in the first quarter.

The average realized gold price was $1,798 per ounce up from $1,597 last year, and the average realized silver price was $26.02 per ounce, up from $17.47 in the 2020 quarter.

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Marigolds record was movement of 23.8 million metric tons of material in the first quarter despite a 35-day scheduled maintenance shutdown of the P&H electric shovel on site. Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Stewart Beckman said in the earnings call that two new hydraulic shovels stepped up and filled the gap.

Marigold produced 67,936 ounces of gold in the quarter, the second highest amount for the mine, and the company reported that indicated mineral resources at the mine increased by 9% to 5.4 million ounces of gold at the end of 2020, compared with 4.9 million ounces at the end of 2019.
Government imposter scams are prevalent, even in the solar industry, said Ford. Nevadans, Im encouraging all of you to be cautious before inviting someone into your home or purchasing any services. If a company or service sounds suspicious, it probably is. Check out some helpful tips from my office to protect yourself from these scams especially as temperature and solar sales increase in the upcoming summer months.

In 2020, the Office of the Nevada Attorney General entered into an Assurance of Discontinuance with a solar company that had marketed itself as being connected with Clark County. This company not only used Clary County in its name but distributed approximately 10,000 flyers that contained Clark Countys official seal in attempt to sell solar.

Do not fall victim to this or other similar scams. Instead, our Bureau of Consumer Protection suggests that you consider the following tips:

A government entity will not go door to door to sell you solar. If a solar sales representative says they are with the government, consider it a red flag;

Always verify the legitimacy of the company that the solar sales representative says he or she is affiliated with. Doing your own research is so important;

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RENO (AP)  A Sparks police officer who is accusing the city of violating his free speech rights is seeking $1 million in damages after he was suspended for four days for making comments on his private social media account that the city says constituted threats to Black Lives Matters activists and others.

The City Council voted Monday to hire independent counsel to defend Sparks against the federal lawsuit filed last month by George Forbush, a bomb squad technician who has served 19 years on the force.

It alleges the city violated his First Amendment rights when it punished him because of his particular viewpoint of his political opinions as expressed on his personal social media.

The four Twitter posts cited last summer included his comments about tossing gasoline toward protesters seen in a video trying to burn a fire-resistant American flag and his plan to build a couple AR pistols just for BLM, Antifa or active shooters who cross my path and cant maintain social distancing.

The citys disciplinary investigation, which launched after an anonymous complaint, confirmed all Forbushs posts were made on his own time, as a private citizen and that nowhere in the posts or on his Twitter feed did he identify himself as a Sparks police officer, the lawsuit said.
The U.S. is fortunate to have a rich mineral endowment and could produce most of the minerals we need from domestic mines. Our current inability to get our minerals from U.S. mines is mainly due to unfavorable policies that make securing permits for mining projects difficult and time-consuming compared to other countries.

Obtaining minerals from foreign countries  even from allied nations  is misguided for several reasons. First, the pandemic highlighted the urgent need to strengthen our domestic supply chains for many goods, including critical minerals. President Bidens Executive Order on Americas Supply Chains recognizes the importance of strengthening domestic supply chains for critical minerals, other raw materials, and products.

Second, the U.S. has the most effective and comprehensive environmental protection and worker health and safety laws in the world, which require miners to use state-of-the-art environmental safeguards, provide financial assurances to federal and state regulators to guarantee that mines will be reclaimed when mining is completed, and ensure safe working conditions. This focus on protecting the environment and maintaining a safe and healthy workplace sets U.S. mining apart from other countries with less stringent requirements  or no requirements at all.
Facing a recall election, Governor Gavin Newsom is eager to increase his public favorability. On Monday, 10 May, Gov. Newsom announced that the state would see a historic budget surplus of over 75 billion dollars for the next fiscal year. This week Newsom is unveiling key pieces of stimulus legislation that will be presented to the state legislature on Friday. Dubbed the California Comeback Plan, the $100 billion proposal includes funding to send $600 direct payments to 80% of California residents. The checks will be more significant for those with children as they qualify for an additional payment of $500.

Returning money to taxpayers during a budget surplus forms part of California law. In 1970, voters in the state approved a measure mandating that if a state surplus reaches a specific limit, the government must return money to taxpayers. A state finance officer, H.D. Palmer, believes the surplus is about $16 billion over the limit. While the state law does not obligate the government to act immediately, Newsom has.

Who would qualify for these payments?

Unlike the first round of Golden State stimulus checks, which recipients must make under $30,000 to receive, the new payments have a higher income limit of $75,000. The governor has said that two in three California residents would be eligible to receive a check by increasing the income threshold.

The payments in California are not based solely based on social security numbers. Instead, the legislature opted to use the taxpayer identification number, to ensure immigrants can also receive payments. Using the ITIN allows payments to be sent to undocumented residents who make up about ten percent of the workforce and who have been categorically left out of all federal support.

Details on the additional $500 check for those with children

During the governors announcement, he announced that families with children would see larger checks worth $1100. Newsom touched on the specific toll the pandemic has had on working parents, specifically single moms, who have been forced into impossible situations. To support these individuals and others, the California Comeback Plan includes an additional $500 check for those with children. Additionally, the bill includes billions for rent and utility relief to help families reset their finances.

What is next for this legislation?

Many states have taken different approaches to stimulate their economies. Direct payments are one tool at the governments disposal to increase spending within the economy. When responding to questions on why the governor favors this approach over targeted spending for various programs, Newsom said We believe people are better suited than we are to make determinations for themselves on how best to use these dollars."

The full bill will be presented to state lawmakers on Friday, 14 May, and the group will have one month to negotiate and get it passed. If the legislature moves forward and approves the measure, California residents could begin seeing payments as soon as this summer.
The grave epidemic situation in India, the world's largest vaccine producer, the WHO's approval of Chinese vaccines for emergency use, lingering questions on whether the US can really deliver its promise to provide vaccines to the world, all these have led to a widely acknowledged situation that China could be a much more reliable global vaccine supplier, especially as domestic vaccine producers vowed to ramp up production to meet domestic immunity targets and overseas demand.

After the WHO approved the Sinopharm vaccine for emergency use, Yang Xiaoming, chairman of Sinopharm China National Biotec Group (CNBG), said in a recent interview with Chinese media outlets that the Chinese vaccine manufacturer has been ramping up efforts to expand production capacity in the third-phase of production to 3 billion doses per year.

With accelerating inoculation pace in China, which has reached 10 million doses per day, the country has administered over 300 million doses domestically, and Yang believes the immune barrier of 1 billion people can be achieved by around the end of 2021 or the start of next year.

Another major vaccine producer in China, Sinovac, is aiming to reach an annual capacity of 2 billion, according to media reports.

Vaccines are believed to be the best way to overcome COVID-19, with which cross-border travel is expected to resume gradually and normal life restored. Some media outlets called it "the biggest vaccination campaign in history is underway," and according to Bloomberg's vaccine tracker, China has surpassed the US in the daily rate of doses administered and topped the list by about 6.7 million doses administered every day, though the average inoculation rate remained lower at 11.3 percent.

Chinese-made vaccines are expected to play a bigger role in supplying other countries, especially as the world's largest vaccine producer India faces a shortfall. After the Biden administration announced its support to waiving intellectual property rules on vaccines, t conflicting views emerged among industry representatives who said such a move may damage US competitive advantage. Questions are thus raised as to whether the US could really play a more active rolein global vaccine supply, according to media reports.

China has exported half of its produced vaccines, while the US and the UK have exported very few doses, roughly 1 to 3 percent of the total doses, respectively, according to a graphic of the Global Times. The EU and India have exported less than half of the overall vaccines made locally, the graphic showed.

Role of Chinese vaccines

Earlier media reports said China had exported 240 million doses of vaccines, making it the world's top exporter, and the number is expected to grow as Chinese manufacturers transferred their production lines and technologies to more developing countries, actively working with the UN-backed COVAX initiative in making the vaccines "global public goods" with the aim of ensuring vaccine distribution equity.

China will continue working with the international community in pushing forward fair access to vaccines in developing countries, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a press conference on Monday, in response to the WHO approval of the Sinopharm vaccine for emergency use.

China has already announced to provide 10 million doses of vaccines for COVAX for emergency use in developing countries, and China puts its words into action, Hua said, adding that the country is currently keeping close communication with the WHO on the matter.

China has provided the largest amount of vaccines to developing countries, Hua said, noting that the country has provided vaccine aid to more than 80 countries, exported vaccines to over 50 countries in order to eliminate the immunity gap.

Rather than only exporting vaccines, Chinese producers like Sinovac have been working with other countries to localize vaccine production - an effective way to ensure local supply.

Egyptian Health Minister Hala Zayed said on Sunday that Egypt will start producing China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine in June, according to the Xinhua News Agency. The first 2 million doses will be produced in June, Zayed was quoted as saying in the report, noting that the first shipment of the raw materials needed to manufacture the vaccine will be received on May 18. Forty million will be produced in the first year, he said. It also made Egypt the first African country to produce vaccines locally, according to media reports.

India, the world's largest vaccine producer, has been severely affected by the pandemic, which also heavily weighed on its vaccine production and exports, Zhuang Shilihe, a Guangzhou-based vaccine expert, told the Global Times on Monday, when he explained how China has been taking a much more important role in global vaccine supplies.

As the outbreak reached new heights, India's vaccination campaign has slowed down, marred by supply shortages and competition among states, according to the New York Times. And even though the Indian government has promised to fast-track approvals of foreign-made vaccines, the waiver of patent protections backed by the Biden administration still needs the WTO's approval, the report said.

Vaccine producers in India have been previously struggling with a shortage of critical raw materials for COVID-19 vaccines, and the method to solve this dilemma was lifting the export ban imposed by the US, according to some Indian media reports in April.

"The core issue with vaccine supply is about the supply chain, or whether raw materials could be sufficiently provided, and a major advantage with China's inactivated vaccine production is the model of production could be copied in many other developing countries, like Egypt and Brazil," Zhuang said, noting that on the contrary, the US' mRNA vaccine production relies on a more complex supply chain.

Pfizer, for instance, needs over 200 types of raw materials from various countries, Zhuang said, noting that even in the US, the process needs to be completed in three different factories.

Chinese vaccine manufacturers have been localizing production lines in other countries and regions. For example, Sinopharm reached an agreement with Argentina to jointly produce vaccines, according to media reports in May, after Serbia planned to start manufacturing Sinopharm.

Sinovac chairman Yin Weidong also told the Boao forum in April that Sinovac would continue working with other countries, soon choosing 10 countries for tech transfer and vaccine research and development, according to media reports.

Meeting the goals

While China is filling the supply gaps left by countries like the US and India in global vaccine distribution, industry representatives vowed to expand the capacity to meet the growing domestic and overseas demand of inoculation.

"The current vaccine production capacities could meet the domestic inoculation targets previously set by the National Health Commission, but we need to cover 1 billion people by the end of the year, and Chinese manufacturers have to further expand their production," Feng Duojia, president of the China Vaccine Industry Association, told the Global Times on Monday.

For now, the overall vaccine production capacity is about 3 billion doses, half of which are exported, and in addition to the WHO putting more Chinese vaccines into emergency use, exports of Chinese vaccines will further grow, Feng said, noting that as a result, domestic producers have been adjusting production plans in expanding the production.

Given the accelerated inoculation campaign in the country, China is expected to achieve its previous target of vaccinating 560 million people, or 40 percent of China's population, by the end of June, and another 330 million people by the end of the year, covering 64 percent of the population, the Global Times previously learned.

China's annual vaccine supplies are dynamic as some other vaccine producers are ramping up their efforts to speed up their clinical trials and waiting to be approved, according to industry representatives. For instance, if CanSino Biologics' inhaled COVID-19 vaccine is approved this year, its annual production capacity is expected to increase fivefold, reaching about 1 billion doses, Feng said.




A location in Laos is locked down (Photo: NDO)

According to the embassy, the patient, who is a 52-year-old woman, is the first Vietnamese COVID-19 patient in Laos and also the first COVID-19 patient in the country to die of the disease.

She went to Laos early last year and worked at a karaoke bar in Vientiane, one of the locations connected to patient No. 59, who was believed to have caused this outbreak of COVID-19 in Laos, said the Vietnam News Agency.

The patient tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 virus on April 28 and had other medical conditions. On April 30, the patient was admitted for treatment at Setthathirath Hospital in Vientiane.

On May 8, when the patient had a bad prognosis, the Vietnamese Embassy in Laos asked Vietnams Ministry of Health to support Setthathirath Hospital through a remote medical examination and treatment system.

However, the patient died at about 1 a.m on May 9.

The Vietnamese Embassy in Laos is cooperating with the Overseas Vietnamese Association in Vientiane and the local agencies to support the patient's family./.
BEIJING, May 9 (Xinhua) -- An exhibition on China's achievements in cultural heritage preservation will be held in Beijing in celebration of the upcoming International Museum Day (IMD).

Under the theme of this year's IMD, "The Future of Museums: Recover and Reimagine," the exhibition will take place from May 17 to May 18 at the Capital Museum of China in Beijing, the main venue for China's celebrations.

The exhibition will bring together over 50 cultural artifacts from 23 cultural heritage institutions and museums nationwide, including the Palace Museum, to showcase China's latest practices and progress in cultural heritage protection and restoration, said Guan Qiang, deputy head of the National Cultural Heritage Administration.

The exhibition will also introduce the latest preservation methods and technologies, said Guan.

Other museums and memorial halls in Beijing and other parts of China will also organize multiple shows, activities and seminars to enrich public interaction, said the administration on Saturday.

According to the International Council of Museums, IMD is held on May 18 every year. Enditem

[ Editor: JYZ ]
Bahrain-based Bank ABC Islamic has posted a net profit of $10.4 million in the first quarter (Q1) of the year compared to $5.8 million reported in Q1 2020, marking an increase of 79.3% after the bank absorbed the fraud related losses in 2020.



Total operating income of $11.7 Million, 13% lower than the same period 2020 mainly on account of low profit rate environment and slightly lower fee income, a bank statement said.



Total operating expenses 13.6% lower than same period last year as a result of cost rationalization programs and staff / client activity not having reverted to pre-pandemic level, while balance sheet remains strong with capital adequacy ratio of 40.7%.



ABC Islamic Banks total assets stood at $1.906 billion as of March 31, 2021 compared to $2.314 billion at 2020 year-end.



Shareholders equity at March 31, 2021stood at $303 million, compared to $293 million at 2020 year-end.



The banks capital base remains very strong with a capital adequacy ratio of 40.7%, predominantly Tier 1, which totalled 39.7%.



Hammad Hassan, Managing Director of Bank ABC Islamic, said: The first quarter result is encouraging and reflective of a positive start to the year having been impacted by the combined effect of fraud related losses in 2020 and the pandemic.



The operating environment is still not back to the pre-pandemic times. However, there is positive hope for recovery after the first half of the year albeit dependent on completion of successful vaccination programs in the region and subject to no further unexpected breakouts of the virus.  TradeArabia News Service
BEIJING, May 9 (Xinhua) -- Filming recently wrapped for "Formed Police Unit," a movie spotlighting Chinese police units on overseas United Nations peacekeeping missions.

The film's executive producer is Andrew Lau Wai-Keung, the helmsman of the 2019 disaster blockbuster "The Captain," and it stars Huang Jingyu, Wang Yibo and Zhong Chuxi.

Lau says "Formed Police Unit" shows how Chinese people treasure and love peace, and it pays tribute to all the peacekeepers.

A release date has not yet been announced, but a Thursday post via the film's social media says it will hit theaters in 2022.

2020 marked the 20th year of Chinese police participation in UN peacekeeping missions. China's police forces have sent over 2,600 peacekeeping officers on the missions over the past 20 years, according to data released in January. Enditem

[ Editor: JYZ ]
Experts of a Chinese medical team visit a COVID-19 testing site in Vientiane, Laos, May 7, 2021. (Photo by Nong Lichun/Xinhua)

by Chanthaphaphone Mixayboua, Zhang Jianhua

VIENTIANE, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The Lao people have expressed their heartfelt thanks to a Chinese medical team as the Chinese experts have been working closely with their Lao counterparts to assist in the country's fight against COVID-19.

A team of anti-epidemic professionals sent by the Chinese government to Laos, along with medical materials, arrived here on May 4, to help Laos fighting the pandemic.

"It warms my heart to see that the Chinese government took the concerns of Laos as its own and the Chinese team has acted swiftly and effectively," Phouvieng Phetchalern, 28, a resident of the Lao capital Vientiane, told Xinhua.

Phouvieng said that China's timely delivery of the medical supplies and the arrival of Chinese medical experts helping fight COVID-19 outbreak in Laos have demonstrated the profound friendship between the two countries.

She added, "I am impressed by China's speed in fighting COVID-19. We should learn from them!"

The Chinese specialists will help the Lao side in upgrading the precaution and treatment scheme, improving the technical level and response capabilities, studying the trend of the epidemic and making corresponding recommendations.

Loun Vongviengkham, a 20-year-old student in the Lao capital Vientiane, told Xinhua that Chinese medics have won over his heart with their dedication to assisting Laos fight COVID-19.

"I saw pictures of Chinese medical team when visiting designated hospitals and temporary field hospitals to assist in treating COVID-19 patients. It really touched my heart. They deserve our applause," Loun said.

The Chinese medical expert team has been coordinating with the Lao Ministry of Health and participating in regular disease prevention and control meetings, as well as on-site working conferences.

The team has visited designated hospitals and field hospitals to help cure COVID-19 patients, assist with virus sample collection, and visit labs and border checkpoints.

"I sincerely thanks the Chinese government, military and people for providing timely and invaluable support in the fight against the pandemic," Latsamy Chanthalard, a 23-year-old woman, a local resident, told Xinhua on Sunday.

"I hope this assistance will help Laos in its efforts to fight the COVID-19 outbreak. I hope this pandemic will soon come to an end and life will return to normal," Latsamy said.

The aid shipment from China included COVID-19 testing kits, protective clothing and face masks, among others, along with Chinese medical experts in infection prevention and control, intensive care, epidemics and laboratory testing.

Additionally, many people expressed their appreciation to the Chinese experts' assistance on social media platforms.

A netizen named Maitham Thavonekham said, "Welcome to Laos and thank you for your continued support."

"Thank you from the bottom of our heart, such a good timing for this difficult situation. We won't forget your great support," said Sylvia Keo.

Laos has been seeing a surge of COVID-19 infections recently. The country confirmed 69 new cases and its first COVID-19 death on Sunday, bringing the total number of cases to 1,302.

Laos detected its first two COVID-19 cases on March 24 last year. Enditem

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[ Editor: GSY ]
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (L) welcomes Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez at Greek Prime Minister's Office in Athens, Greece, on May 10, 2021. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visited Greece on Monday to attend the 6th Delphi Economic Forum. (Photo by Michalis Karayannis/Xinhua)

ATHENS, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday called for waiving intellectual property rights protected by patents for COVID-19 vaccines in order to speed up production to assist countries in need.

"The health crisis has highlighted more than anything the need for joint action to address threats," Mitsotakis said following a meeting with his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez in Athens.

"The main issue today is how we will allow, using all the means at our disposal, the production of more vaccines and export them without hindrance to the countries in need," Greek national broadcaster ERT quoted him as saying.

"Thanks to vaccination we can feel more optimistic about the pandemic," the Spanish leader said, adding that the vaccinations are opening the road to economic recovery.

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, vaccination is underway in an increasing number of countries with already-authorized coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, 280 candidate vaccines are still being developed worldwide -- 97 of them in clinical trials -- in countries including Germany, China, Russia, Britain, and the United States, according to the World Health Organization.

Mitsotakis and Sanchez, as well as Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa who also visited the Greek capital on Monday, expressed their strong support for the Digital Green Certificate, introduced by the European Commission and expected to be implemented from June to help ease restrictions on non-essential travels to the European Union (EU).

The "green pass" will be given to EU residents who can prove they have been vaccinated and to those who have a recent negative test result, or can prove they have recovered from the infection.

The three prime ministers, along with other leaders, participated in the Delphi Economic Forum VI that takes place in Athens and online from Monday until Saturday.

Over 1,000 guest speakers from some 40 countries are expected to take part in the discussions on themes such as global economy, climate change, technology and health. Enditem

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[ Editor: GSY ]
A Jingdezhen ceramic is on display in Jiangxi Pavilion of the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/Cui Nan)

Dragon Quilts of Li ethnic group in Hainan debut at the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/Luo Yunfei)

The Eye of Time, a diamond necklace worth 188 million yuan (about $29 million), is on display at the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/Luo Yunfei)

Jiang Manzong, the fourth-generation inheritor of the Dragon and Phoenix Cheongsam, shows the exquisite cheongsam buttons at the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/Luo Yunfei)

Cotton bouquets are seen in Xinjiang Pavilion of the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/Cui Nan)

The Xinjiang Day activity was held at the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8 to promote Xinjiang products.

The "Explore Dream" exhibition stand is seen at the stand of Hubei Province at the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 7, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Cui Nan)

A set of wedding box is seen at the Caibai jewelry stand at the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/Luo Yunfei)

A Sichuan Opera facial makeup themed Boot is on display in Sichaun Pavilion of the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/Cui Nan)

Caibai Jewelry launches the Temple of Heaven theme gold ornaments at the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 7, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/Cui Nan)

An exhibitor shows silk scarves inspired by Shaanxi cuisine "BiangBiang Noodles" at the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/Cui Nan)

A set of Jewelry brand LARWINER's green emerald diamond necklaces and earrings worth nearly 38 million dollars are on display at the China International Consumer Products Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Luo Yunfei)

Hainan Huanghuali wood handicrafts debut in Hainan Pavilion of the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Luo Yunfei)

An exhibitor dressed in traditional Miao costumes promotes products to visitors at the China International Consumer Products Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Luo Yunfei)

The cute Tang Dynasty Girls minifigures are on display in Shaanxi Pavilion of the First China International Consumer Goods Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Cui Nan)

Ru kiln porcelain handicrafts unveil in Henan Pavilion, attracting visitors' attention at the China International Consumer Products Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Luo Yunfei)

A Dragon robe made of Beijing embroidery technique is on display in Hebei Pavilion of the China International Consumer Products Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Luo Yunfei)

A young girl experiences the traditional weaving skills of Tujia nationality in Hunan Pavilion of the China International Consumer Products Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Cui Nan)

Huaguang Chinese Porcelains are on display in Shandong Pavilion of the China International Consumer Products Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Luo Yunfei)

Wooden ship model made by Panjin Yuanhang Shipyard is on display in Liaoning Pavilion of the China International Consumer Products Expo in Haikou, Hainan Province on May 8, 2021. (Photo: China News Service/ Cui Nan)

[ Editor: WPY ]
NJSC Naftogaz Ukrainy has postponed the issue of eurobonds due to market conditions, but intends to be ready for their placement in September 2021, Naftogaz Head Yuriy Vitrenko has said.

"Due to market conditions, the issue was postponed. This was not my decision, it was made by Chief Financial Officer of Naftogaz Petrus van Driel. We will now do everything to be ready to issue bonds in September," he said in an interview with Novoye Vremia

Vitrenko said the issue of eurobonds was also postponed in 2020 due to unfavorable market conditions.

He also said that Naftogaz borrows money more expensive than the Ukrainian government.

"Eating this money is a double crime. If a company borrows money at a higher price than the government, it must show the government that this money will be invested profitably," the head of the company's board said.

Vitrenko said the key task is to invest this money profitably.

Former head of the board of Naftogaz Ukrainy Andriy Kobolev in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine at the end of April said that his team was planning to issue eurobonds in the first half of May, a conference call with investors was scheduled for April 29.

He said the issue was delayed due to the position of the Finance Ministry, which refused to give appropriate permission.

The former head of the board said the placement of eurobonds was a very important element for providing a "financial cushion" that would allow Naftogaz to ensure the energy security of Ukraine by increasing gas reserves in underground storage facilities.
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) in June 202 will launch flights to Ras al-Khaimah (United Arab Emirates).

An airline's representative told Interfax-Ukraine on Tuesday that the flights will be operated twice a week  on Mondays and Thursdays  by Boeing 737-800 (NG). The aircraft is designed for 186 seats.

The company plans to fly to Ras al-Khaimah until the start of the winter season.

Tickets will be sold both through tour operators (TUI, ALF, Kompas, TPG) and through the UIA website.

Currently, Ukrainian airlines do not fly to Ras al-Khaimah.

The international airport in Ras al-Khaimah is located forty minutes from Dubai and three hours from Abu Dhabi.
From May 11 to May 13, the Ukraine 30 All-Ukrainian Forum will continue its work, its objective will be "National Security."

As the organizers of the forum say, "Ukraine is a European state that resists armed aggression from Russia; Russia remains a source of long-term systemic threats to Ukraine's national security, world stability and international democratic values."

"This necessitates the implementation of an effective strategy, which should ensure the cessation of aggression and the restoration of the territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized state border on the basis of international law. That is why the National Security Strategy of Ukraine is based on three basic principles of state policy: containment; stability; interaction," the organizers said.

On May 11, the forum will be opened by President, Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky

There are three sessions. As part of the session "National Security Strategy of Ukraine," Deputy Head of the President's Office Roman Mashovets; Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Oleksiy Danilov; Defense Minister of Ukraine Andriy Taran; Interior Minister Arsen Avakov; Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories Oleksiy Reznikov; Head of NATO Representation in Ukraine Oleksandr Vinnikov; U.S. Charge d'Affaires in Ukraine Kristina Kvien; EU Ambassador to Ukraine Matti Maasikas and others will speak.

On the same day, the sessions "Ukraine's Policy for NATO Membership" and "National Security Strategy of Ukraine" are working. Among the participants in the discussions are Head of the State Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) Ivan Bakanov; Director of the National Institute for Strategic Studies Oleksandr Lytvynenko; Deputy Head of the President's Office Ihor Zhovkva; First Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova; Head of the Center for Countering Disinformation Polina Lysenko, and others.

On May 12, three sessions of the forum are dedicated to the Ukrainian army. The discussions will be attended by Minister of Defense of Ukraine Andriy Taran; Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Ruslan Khomchak; Commander of the Airborne Assault Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Yevhen Moisiuk; Deputy Prime Minister for Strategic Industries Oleh Urusky; Director of the Ukroboronprom State Concern Yuriy Husev and others.

On May 13, the forum will discuss the security challenges of Ukraine and the prospects for overcoming them, border security, cyber security strategy, civil protection and public security issues.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry condemns the worsening situation in East Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, and calls on all parties to refrain from escalating violence.

"Ukraine condemns the escalation in East Jerusalem, in & around Gaza & West Bank, leading to multiple casualties. Rocket attacks at Israel from Gaza must stop immediately. Recognizing the right of Israel to self-defense, we call upon all parties to refrain from escalating violence," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said on Twitter on Tuesday.

As reported, in recent days, Palestinian protests have been taking place in Jerusalem. Thus, earlier on Monday, clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police broke out on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. According to the Palestinian Red Cross, hundreds of Palestinians were injured.

On Monday, dozens of rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip at Israel. In response, the Israel Defense Forces launched airstrikes against the enclave, killing at least eight Hamas militants. Rocket launchers were also hit. In turn, the Palestinian media reported the deaths of 20 people, including nine children, as a result of these strikes. Another 65 people were injured.
Membership in the EU and NATO is the strategic course of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.

"The strategic course of our state is to obtain full membership in the European Union [...] We must also ensure the strengthening of a special partnership with NATO and obtaining full membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization," the president said on Tuesday in Kyiv, speaking at the Ukraine 30. National Security forum.

A bit later, during a conversation with reporters, Zelensky expressed the hope that in June Ukraine will see a "powerful signal" from the Alliance countries.

He also noted the importance of the visit of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Ukraine.

"The first official visit of the U.S. Secretary of State was to Ukraine. I think that this is not an accident. We talked about a lot of things. And about increasing military aid, not only in money, but also in equipment. About a powerful treaty on the future of Ukraine's fleet. And we also talked about the probable future bilateral agreement between Ukraine and the United States," the head of state said.

He said that this document will be "very important" both for the Ukrainian army and for the national security of Ukraine.
H.E. Mr. Yevhen Korniychuk, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the State of Israel took part in a special session of the Knesset to mark the Day of Victory over Nazism in World War II. The head of diplomatic mission reported this at Facebook.

It is vitally important on this day to honor the contribution of the Jewish people who fought in the Allied armies and to honor the memory of the heroes, and to express sincere gratitude to the veterans for their courage and heroism in the fight against Nazism, - he said.

A special meeting attended by veterans, deputies, representatives of the diplomatic corps and other guests took place on May 10.
Al Salam Bank-Bahrain has reported net profit attributable to shareholders of BD6.1 million ($16.15million) in the first quarter of 2021 compared to BD2.5 million ($6.7million) in the first quarter of 2020, reflecting an increase of 144%.



The increase in net profit was attributable to higher growth within the banks core activities, Al Salam said in a statement.



Correspondingly, earnings per share stood at 2.6 fils in the first quarter compared to 1.1 fils for the same period in 2020, reflecting an increase of 136%. Total operating income for the quarter stood at BD28 million ($74.3 million)  a 17% increase from BD23.9 million ($63.4 million) recorded in Q1 2020.



Total shareholders equity increased by2.1% from BD280.8 million ($744.8million) in2020 to BD286.7 million ($760.5 million) at the end of March 2021, primarily due to the profit earned during the period.



Total assets recorded strong growth in 2021, increasing by 3.6% to BD2,343million ($6,217million) fromBD2,261 million ($5,998 million) in 2020. The growth was accompanied with a robust improvement in asset quality during the first quarter of 2021 with the Banks non-performing facilities ratio decreasing to 4.95%, driven by effective recovery initiatives and quality new asset bookings. The Bank also maintained a strong capital adequacy ratio of 25.97% as at 31 March 2021, compared to 26.46% as at 31 December 2020.



Despite the ongoing challenges of Covid-19, the key business segments of the Bank sustained continuous growth, owing in part to the focus on client relationships. The first quarter also saw the launch of the first of its kind Loyalty Rewards Scheme, corporate deposit cards, and an automated financing application, enhancing customer experience.



Shaikh Khalid bin Mustahil Al Mashani, the Chairman of Al Salam Bank-Bahrain, said: We witnessed positive financial results during the first quarter of 2021 in all operating segments, which marks a promising strong start to this year. Al Salam Bank has confidently maintained its resilience in mitigating risks and adapting to shifting market dynamics through the adherence to prudent business policies. Further growth is anticipated in our balance sheet, driven by the emphasis on the booking of quality assets and in turn, increased market share.



Rafik Nayed, Group Chief Executive Officer of Al Salam Bank-Bahrain added: We are incredibly proud of the results achieved in the first quarter of 2021. As a result of the Banks agility and strategic focus, the robust impetus gained during 2020will successfully carry us forward into 2021 and beyond.



The groundwork has already been effectively laid and a solid foundation is in place to build on the successes already achieved in the first quarter. Alongside sustained digital roll-outs to meet rising customer expectations, which were accelerated during the period, we will soon inaugurate the roll out of a new holistic 3-year strategy focusing on core banking, digital, brand and marketing initiatives.  TradeArabia News Service
Employees of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) are conducting searches in the office of MP Viktor Medvedchuk (the Opposition Platform - For Life faction) in the office of the faction, as well as in his houses in Kyiv.

"Right now, SBU investigators are conducting searches in the office of the Opposition Platform - For Life, in the offices of Viktor Medvedchuk on Velyka Vasylkivska in Kyiv and another two residential buildings of the MP in Kyiv," a law enforcement source told Interfax-Ukraine.

As reported, Prosecutor General of Ukraine Iryna Venediktova signed suspicion notices of high treason and attempted theft of national resources in Crimea to MPs Viktor Medvedchuk and Taras Kozak.

Also, the SBU conducted searches in the offices of the All-Ukrainian public movement Ukrainian Choice - the Right of the People, whose leader is Medvedchuk, a law enforcement source told Interfax-Ukraine.

"There is reason to believe that the leadership of the Ukrainian Choice, which is located in Kyiv, continues to coordinate the activities of its members in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, despite attempts to publicly distance themselves from the illegal actions of their colleagues on the peninsula," the agency's interlocutor said at the time.

On March 26, Ukrainian law enforcement officers notified three leaders of the initiative groups of the public movement Ukrainian Choice about suspicion of high treason (Part 1 of Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) and encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine (Part 2 of Article 110 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine), whose leader is Medvedchuk.

According to law enforcement officers, the suspects participated in the organization and conduct of the so-called "referendum" on the territory of the Crimean peninsula, which contributed to its further occupation by the Russian Federation.
Ukrainian parliamentarian from the Opposition Platform - For Life faction Taras Kozak, notified of suspicion of high treason, is currently, most likely, in the Russian Federation and does not plan to return to Ukraine, while his colleague from the faction Viktor Medvedchuk is in Ukraine, said head of the Security Service of Ukraine Ivan Bakanov.

"Today, if we are talking about Mr. Kozak, he is, according to our information, in the Russian Federation. Temporarily, perhaps, he left the territory of the Russian Federation on vacation, but unfortunately he does not plan to return to Ukraine. As for Viktor Medvedchuk, today his whereabouts are being established, but according to our information, he is in Ukraine, since he entered the territory of Ukraine, it seems to me, on May 8 of this year and has not left Ukraine yet," Bakanov said at a briefing on Tuesday evening.
A pipe transporting jet fuel offloaded from barges in seen at Kinder Morgan's Westridge Terminal on Burrard Inlet in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada (Photo : REUTERS/Chris Helgren)

Oil prices settled higher on Monday after a major U.S. fuel pipeline said it could largely restart within the week after a cyberattack forced its shutdown.



Potential U.S. demand growth boosted crude prices, offsetting fears that a resurgent coronavirus pandemic in India would cut demand in Asia.



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Colonial Pipeline, the largest fuel pipeline in the United States, said on Monday it expects to "substantially" restore operational service by the end of the week.



The system was shut by a cyberattack on Friday, and by Sunday some minor conduits had been reopened while the main lines remained shut.



Last week, traders' focus had shifted to supportive factors around the U.S. opening. "Now the market will be watching the pipeline story," said Phil Flynn, a senior analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.



Brent crude settled up 4 cents, or 0.1%, at $68.32 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude settled up 2 cents, or 0.03% at $64.92. Both benchmarks rose more than 1% last week, their second consecutive weekly gain.



"If the pipelines were to remain out of action for any length of time, this would have far-reaching effects on the oil market not only in the U.S., but also in Europe," said Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch.



"That said, it is currently assumed that the disruption to the pipelines will be resolved in a matter of days, so the impact should be limited."



The White House was working with Colonial to help it recover. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said the pipeline fix was a top priority.



The U.S. government has not received any requests to waive the Jones Act in response to the pipeline shutdown, a spokesman for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection said on Monday.



A top White House national security official said the U.S. intelligence community is working to determine whether the hackers of the Colonial Pipeline have ties to the Russian government.



Anne Neuberger, deputy national security adviser for cyber, told reporters at a White House briefing that the FBI has been tracking the ransomware group DarkSide since at least last October. A news release issued in the name of DarkSide said its goal was to make money and not create problems for society.



Brent crude has risen more than 30% this year, supported by supply cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, known as OPEC+, and easing coronavirus movement restrictions in the United States and Europe.



But the worsening pandemic in Asia has weighed. Indian coronavirus infections and deaths held close to record daily highs on Monday.


Taiwan fights to attend WHO meeting, but China says no

Chinese and Taiwanese national flags are displayed alongside military airplanes in this illustration taken (Photo : REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration)

Taiwan will fight to the end for an invitation to a World Health Organization (WHO) meeting this month, its foreign ministry said on Monday, but China said there was no room for compromise over the island that Beijing claims as its own.



The rich-nation Group of Seven (G7) has called for Chinese-claimed but democratically-ruled Taiwan to attend the WHO's decision-making body, the World Health Assembly, which meets from May 24.



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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated that on Sunday and Taiwan says it is urgent during the COVID-19 pandemic.



Taiwan Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou said they had yet to receive an invite.



"But the Foreign Ministry will continue to work together with the Ministry of Health and Welfare to fight to the last minute and do everything possible for our right to participate in the meeting," she said in a statement.



Taiwan is locked out of most global organisations such as the WHO due to the objections of China, which considers the island one of its provinces not a country.



While the WHO cooperates with Taiwan's technical experts on COVID-19, it is up to member states whether to invite Taiwan to observe the WHO meeting, the WHO's principal legal officer Steve Solomon said at a news briefing on Monday.



Such an invite would need a vote, and China can easily corral enough friendly countries to block it, according to diplomats.



Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying condemned the United States for its "political manipulation" of the issue, and said Taiwan had to accept it was part of China if it wanted access to global bodies, something the government will not do.



"I want to emphasise once again that the Taiwan issue concerns China's core interests. China has no room for compromise," Hua told reporters.



Taiwan says it is nonsense for China to claim it has the right to speak for it on the international stage when Beijing has no say in how it is governed.



The WHO says it has cooperated with Taiwan during the pandemic and that the island has received help needed.


Self-confessed French serial killer Michel Fourniret leaves Charleville-Mezieres courthouse (Photo : REUTERS/Yves Herman)

Michel Fourniret, one of France's most notorious serial killers, has died in a hospital jail, the public prosecutor said on Monday.



Fourniret, dubbed the "Ogre of the Ardennes" by French media, was convicted in 2008 of raping or attempting to rape seven women and girls aged between 12 and 22 and then killing them. His murderous spree lasted from 1987 to 2001.



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Fourniret, who was 79 and had been in jail for nearly two decades, had been in hospital since Saturday and had been placed in a coma due to heart and respiratory problems.



He was serving two life sentences after a court in 2018 handed him a second jail term for the killing of a mobster's companion. While in jail, he had been investigated for several other unsolved murder cases.



Fourniret, who admitted a fascination with virgins, was arrested in 2003 after a 13-year-old girl escaped from his van and called the police.



He committed most of his crimes in the wooded Ardennes region of northern France and in Belgium.



At the time, police missed a series of opportunities to snare him and the lessons learned helped bring about reforms in the way French police investigate serial murders.



Fourniret's ex-wife and accomplice Monique Olivier remains in jail. The couple became acquainted after Fourniret had placed an advertisement for someone to write to while serving a prison sentence for sex crimes in the 1980s.



Based on Olivier' indications, French police have been digging up large tracts of woodland in the French Ardennes in recent weeks, looking for the remains of Estelle Mouzin, who disappeared in 2003 at the age of nine. Fourniret had confessed to her killing in 2020.


A truck passes holding tanks at Colonial Pipeline's Linden Junction Tank Farm in Woodbridge, New Jersey, U.S., (Photo : REUTERS/Hussein Waaile)

The ransomware group linked to the extortion attempt that has snared fuel deliveries across the U.S. East Coast may be new, but that doesn't mean its hackers are amateurs.



Who precisely is behind the disruptive intrusion into Colonial Pipeline hasn't been made officially known and digital attribution can be tricky, especially early on in an investigation. A former U.S. official and two industry sources have told Reuters that the group DarkSide is among the suspects.



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Cybersecurity experts who have tracked DarkSide said it appears to be composed of veteran cybercriminals who are focused on squeezing out as much money as they can from their targets.



"They're very new but they're very organized," Lior Div, the chief executive of Boston-based security firm Cybereason, said on Sunday.



"It looks like someone who's been there, done that."



DarkSide is one of a number of increasingly professionalized groups of digital extortionists, with a mailing list, a press center, a victim hotline and even a supposed code of conduct intended to spin the group as reliable, if ruthless, business partners.



Experts like Div said DarkSide was likely composed of ransomware veterans and that it came out of nowhere in the middle of last year and immediately unleashed a digital crimewave.



"It's as if someone turned on the switch," said Div, who noted that more than 10 of his company's customers have fought off break-in attempts from the group in the past few months.



Ransom software works by encrypting victims' data; typically hackers will offer the victim a key in return for cryptocurrency payments that can run into the hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars. If the victim resists, hackers are increasingly threatening to leak confidential data in a bid to pile on the pressure.



DarkSide's site on the dark web hints at their hackers' past crimes, claims they previously made millions from extortion and that just because their software was new "that does not mean that we have no experience and we came from nowhere."



The site also features a Hall of Shame-style gallery of leaked data from victims who haven't paid up, advertising stolen documents from more than 80 companies across the United States and Europe.



Reuters was not immediately able to verify the group's various claims but one of the more recent victims featured on its list was Georgia-based rugmaker Dixie Group Inc which publicly disclosed a digital shakedown attempt affecting "portions of its information technology systems" last month.



A Dixie executive did not immediately return a message seeking further comment.



In some ways DarkSide is hard to distinguish from the increasingly crowded field of internet extortionists. Like many others it seems to spare Russian, Kazakh and Ukrainian-speaking companies, suggesting a link to the former Soviet republics.



It also has a public relations program, as others do, inviting journalists to check out its haul of leaked data and claiming to make anonymous donations to charity. Even its tech savvy is nothing special, according to Georgia Tech computer science student Chuong Dong, who published an analysis http://chuongdong.com/reverse%20engineering/2021/05/06/DarksideRansomware of its programming.



According to Dong, DarkSide's code was "pretty standard ransomware."



Div said that what does set them apart is the intelligence work they carry out against their targets beforehand.



Typically "they know who is the manager, they know who they're speaking with, they know where the money is, they know who is the decision maker," said Div.



In that respect, Div said that the targeting of Colonial Pipeline, with its potentially massive knock-on consequences for Americans up and down the Eastern seaboard - may have been a miscalculation.



"It's not good for business for them when the U.S. government becomes involved, when the FBI becomes involved," he said. "It's the last thing they need."



As for DarkSide, which usually isn't shy about putting out press releases and promises registered journalists "fast replies within 24 hours," the group has stayed uncharacteristically silent.



The reason is not clear. Requests for comment Reuters left via its main site and their media center have gone unanswered.


The brother of Palestinian man Ahmed Al-Shenbari, who was killed amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence (Photo : REUTERS/Mohammed Salem TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

A 13-storey residential block in the Gaza Strip collapsed on Tuesday night after being hit by an Israeli air strike, witnesses said, and three people were wounded in a retaliatory rocket attack from Gaza on Tel Aviv.



Video footage showed three plumes of thick, black smoke rising from the Gaza tower, its upper storeys still intact as they fell. The building houses an office used by the political leadership of the enclave's Islamist rulers, Hamas.



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Electricity in the surrounding area went out, and residents were using flashlights.



Shortly after the attack, Hamas and the Islamic Jihad group said they would respond by firing rockets at Tel Aviv.



Air raid sirens and explosions were heard around the city, and the skies were lit up by the streaks of multiple interceptor missiles launched towards the incoming rockets.



Pedestrians ran for shelter, and diners streamed out of Tel Aviv restaurants while others flattened themselves on pavements as the sirens sounded. Israeli television stations said three people had been wounded in the suburb of Holon.



The Israel Airports Authority said it had halted take-offs at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport "to allow defence of (the) nation's skies".



The U.S. State Department urged restraint on both sides.



"We are now carrying out our promise," Hamas's armed wing said in a statement. "The Qassam Brigades are launching their biggest rocket strike against Tel Aviv and its suburbs, with 130 rockets, in response to the enemy's targeting of residential towers."



Hours earlier, Israel had sent 80 jets to bomb Gaza and massed tanks on the border as rocket barrages hit Israeli towns for a second day, deepening a conflict in which at least 28 people in the Palestinian enclave and two in Israel have been killed.



Residents of the block and people living nearby had been warned to evacuate the area around an hour before the air strike, according to witnesses, and there were no reports of casualties two hours after it collapsed.



AL-AQSA CLASHES



The most serious outbreak of fighting since 2019 between Israel and armed factions in Gaza was triggered by clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police at Jerusalem's al-Aqsa Mosque on Monday.



The city, holy to Jews, Muslims and Christians, has been tense during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, with the threat of a court ruling evicting Palestinians from homes claimed by Jewish settlers adding to the friction.



Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would step up its strikes on Gaza, an enclave of 2 million people, in response to the rocket attacks.



"Both the strength of the attacks and the frequency of the attacks will be increased," he said in a video statement.



Within an hour, Israel said it had deployed jets to bomb rocket launch sites in and around Gaza City.



Officials said infantry and armour were being dispatched to reinforce the tanks already gathered on the border, evoking memories of the last Israeli ground incursion into Gaza to stop rocket attacks, in 2014.



More than 2,100 Gazans were killed in the seven-week war that followed, according to the Gaza health ministry, along with 73 Israelis, and thousands of homes in Gaza were razed.



On Tuesday, before the block collapsed, the Gaza health ministry said at least 28 Palestinians, including 10 children, had been killed and 152 wounded by Israeli strikes since Hamas on Monday fired rockets towards Jerusalem for the first time since 2014.



Israel's national ambulance service said two women had been killed in rocket strikes on the southern city of Ashkelon.



The International Committee of the Red Cross urged all sides to step back, and reminded them of the requirement in international law to try to avoid civilian casualties.


A Palestinian man gestures as he inspects a damaged building following an Israeli air strike, amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence, in Gaza City (Photo : REUTERS/Mohammed Salem)

The Arab League on Tuesday condemned deadly Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip and called on the international community to move urgently to stop escalating violence that it blamed on Israeli actions against Palestinians in Jerusalem.



The violence began with confrontations between Palestinian protesters and Israeli security forces at al Aqsa Mosque, a compound known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, in the heart of Jerusalem's walled Old City.



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Israel carried out air strikes on Gaza, killing at least 28 people, after Palestinian militant groups based there unleashed barrages of rockets, some close to Jerusalem. Two people have been killed in Israel from rocket fire.



In a statement before the Arab League's meeting, its chairman Ahmed Aboul Gheit said: "Israeli violations in Jerusalem, and the government's tolerance of Jewish extremists hostile to Palestinians and Arabs, is what led to the ignition of the situation in this dangerous way."



The holy city has been tense during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, with sporadic unrest and the possibility of evictions of Palestinians from homes in East Jerusalem claimed by Jewish settlers in a court case adding fuel to the friction.



In a statement concluding their meeting, Arab League foreign ministers said they held Israel "fully responsible for whatever follows due to its crimes, which constitute glaring violations of U.N. decrees, international law and human rights law."



It called on international organizations including the U.N. Security Council to "immediately stop the Israeli aggression and provide the necessary protection for the Palestinian people and uphold their right to worship freely and safely".



The United Nations is working urgently to defuse tensions between Israel and the Palestinians, a U.N. spokesman said. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, he said, was saddened by the increasing numbers of casualties on both sides.



In light of events in Jerusalem, Egypt declared its "total rejection and condemnation of these oppressive Israeli practices," Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told the League.



The head of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which held an emergency meeting in Jeddah, "praised the steadfastness of the Palestinian people stationed in the occupied city of Jerusalem and their response to the Israeli attacks on the holy sites", Saudi state agency SPA reported.



Turkey also condemned the Israeli air strikes.



"The Israeli government must finally understand that it will not be able to suppress the Palestinian people's legitimate rights and demands by using indiscriminate and disproportionate power," a Turkish foreign ministry statement said.



The Gaza health ministry said at least 28 Palestinians, including 10 children, had been killed. Israel disputed that account, saying it had killed at least 20 Hamas fighters and that a third of the hundreds of rockets launched by militants had fallen short, causing Palestinian civilian casualties.


The emergency powers used by Spain to fight the spread of the coronavirus have been a source of political friction ever since the first state of alarm was declared in March 2020. But now that this legal framework has expired, the confrontation shows no signs of letting up.

Meanwhile, the legal vacuum has transferred responsibility for approving or rejecting containment measures to the courts, which have been making contradictory decisions in recent days.

The central government has reiterated that there will be no further extension of the emergency powers that have for months allowed authorities to seal off territories, impose curfews, limit social gatherings and shorten business opening hours.

The state of alarm is the past. We must look to the future, and vaccination is the future, said Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez of the Socialist Party (PSOE) on Tuesday. A day earlier, the Spanish leader had announced that Spain is 100 days away from group immunity, meaning that 70% of the population is expected to be vaccinated by August 18.

Sanchez also asked the opposition for consistency in its criticism. They cant ask for a state of alarm now when they voted against it in the past, he said, alluding to earlier extensions of the emergency powers that were voted through by parliament. According to the PSOE leader, regional governments already have the necessary tools to impose the restrictions they see fit.

Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez at a news conference on Tuesday. Ballesteros / EFE

But the main opposition Popular Party (PP) has accused Sanchez of effectively permitting the scenes that were on display in many Spanish cities on Saturday night, when the state of alarm expired and crowds came out to celebrate into the early hours of Sunday morning without social distancing. The conservatives want the government to approve a reform that would provide a broad legal framework for the restrictions being called for by regional governments.

The government is always going to defend citizens freedom, said government spokesperson Maria Jesus Montero on Tuesday, shortly after Sanchezs statements. The PP is now defending something very dangerous: that governments should all by themselves be able to put limits on fundamental freedoms.

Instead, the Sanchez administration has issued a decree allowing regional governments to appeal negative rulings before the Supreme Court, which will have to make fast-track decisions unifying the legal criteria.

In the meantime, regional High Courts have been issuing contradictory decisions on requests by regional governments to introduce or maintain restrictions on fundamental rights. In the Valencia region and the Balearic Islands, judges have backed these measures, while in the Basque Country and the Canary Islands, similar initiatives have been rejected.

On Tuesday, the High Court of Navarre struck down a request by the regional government for a night curfew to prevent binge drinking on the streets. The judges said that the need for such a move is not justified and that there are already regular laws in place that need only be enforced.

In Andalusia, the High Court has authorized the confinement of three municipalities but refused to confine a fourth, even though all four have a 14-day cumulative incidence rate of above 1,000 per 100,000 people.

English version by Susana Urra.
Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez in Athens on Monday. YANNIS KOLESIDIS / EFE

After struggling with some of the worlds highest coronavirus infection and death rates since the beginning of the pandemic last year, Spain will achieve something resembling herd immunity 100 days from now, according to remarks made on Monday by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.

We are just 100 days away from achieving group immunity, that is, from getting 70% of the Spanish population vaccinated and thus immunized, said the Spanish leader of the Socialist Party (PSOE) during an official visit to Greece.

This means that by August 18 the government would have reached its stated goal of ensuring that 70% of adults are vaccinated. So far, Spain has administered 19 million doses and 28% of the population has received at least one dose, while 12.6% have completed the treatment.

This is the first time that the Sanchez administration has come up with a specific date, after repeatedly pledging to have 70% of adults vaccinated by late summer. We are starting to overcome this calamity, said the prime minister.

The vaccination campaign ran into several hurdles during the first weeks: there were shipment delays, and the administration of some vaccines was temporarily suspended while European authorities investigated reports of blood clotting.

But the rollout has hit cruising speed in recent weeks, and the governments first goal of vaccinating five million people by the first week of May has been met. More doses were injected during the month of April than during the first three months of the year combined: 8.33 million compared with 8.04 million.

The 80-and-over age group is almost completely vaccinated, and regional authorities  which are in charge of the vaccination drive  are now focusing on the second dose for the 70-79 group and the first dose for the 60-69 group. A few regions, including Madrid, have also begun giving shots to people under 60.

Plan B or Plan C

Pablo Casado at a European People's Party event in Madrid on Monday. ALBERTO ORTEGA / Europa Press

The figures are an invitation to optimism, said Sanchez. But opposition parties and regional governments could be said to be feeling less than optimistic a day after Spains state of alarm expired, giving way to legal uncertainty as to the best way to contain the spread of the coronavirus now that the constitutional framework underpinning measures such as the curfew or the lockdowns has been lifted.

The central government has placed the onus on the Supreme Court, which will receive appeals from regional governments if the latter try to introduce restrictions but have them struck down by lower courts. The high tribunal will have to unify criteria at a confusing time when some regional courts are allowing restrictions while others are not.

Also on Monday, the main opposition Popular Party (PP) offered to talk with the government about the possibility of making legal changes to help the regions manage coronavirus restrictions now that the national state of alarm has been lifted.

The PP is proposing an alternative plan that it registered in Congress a month ago. Its very easy. The PP has registered a bill and it could go into effect in 15 days, said PP Secretary General Teodoro Garcia Egea. The government doesnt even have to do the work, its already registered and weve consulted with the main jurists in the country.

PP president Pablo Casado has blamed the government for the large crowds seen across Spain on Sunday night as the state of alarm expired. We are very saddened to see crowded scenes on the streets and the only person to blame is Pedro Sanchez, because he refused to approve a pandemics law as weve been asking him to do for a year, said Casado in Madrid. If there is no Plan B right now and weve moved to Plan C, as in C for chaos, the only blame lies with the government of Spain. The government of Spains absolute lack of responsibility is costing lives.

English version by Susana Urra.
Leading Dubai contractor Khansaheb said its interiors unit has been awarded a 5,500-sq-m high-end fit-out contract for The Link, one of the worlds longest cantilevered buildings at One Zaabeel, a mixed-use luxury project being developed by Ithraa Dubai.

Centrally located and adjacent to the Dubai World Trade Centre, One Zaabeel comprises three key components - Towers A and B and The Link, which bridges the towers at a height of 100 m. It is being constructed by Alec Engineering and Contracting (Alec), a part of Investment Corporation of Dubai.

A masterpiece of modern design and luxury, One Za'abeel along with its icon, The Link, covers a total area of 470,700 sq m and is set to redefine the mixed-use concept in the region by providing the finest in retail, residential and office space and claiming the worlds first urban vertical resort under the One&Only brand.

On completion, One Zaabeel will boast 263 high-end residential units, three floors of high-end retail and leisure experiences at The Gallery, 497 ultra-luxury hotel rooms and serviced apartments, and premium Grade A offices.

Khansaheb said the scope of work includes two packages, spread across five levels at The Link.

It includes the complete interior fit-out works of 6 celebrity/specialty restaurants, VIP bars and lounges, a destination bar, and a visitors experience in the Link bridge connecting the hotel and residential towers, said the company in a statement.

In addition to the fit-out works, Khansaheb will also carry out joinery and metalworks in-house, it added.-TradeArabia News Service
More than six million people in Spain now have the full protection offered by the Covid-19 vaccines being used by the countrys health authorities. After a slow start to the campaign in the first quarter of the year, the speed of the process is getting faster every week, and yesterday saw Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez venture to put a date on the end of the health crisis: August 18. We are just 100 days from achieving group immunity, he announced. Thats to say, managing to vaccinate 70% of the Spanish population, thus immunizing them. Group or herd immunity refers to a situation where sufficient levels of the population are protected against the virus so as to impede its circulation.

Spain has administered 19 million doses of the four vaccines being used so far, and 29% of the population has received at least one shot. The government is due to receive 30 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech medication, 18 million doses of the Moderna, seven million of the Oxford-AstraZeneca and 17 million doses of the Janssen, all of which are expected to arrive before the end of the third quarter. All require two doses for full protection apart from the latter, which is a single-shot pharmaceutical.

In recent weeks the campaign has reached cruising speed, and in the month of April more doses were injected than in the first three months of the year: 8.33 million shots compared to 8.04 million in January, February and March. We are starting to overcome this disaster, added the prime minister, who was speaking during an official visit to Greece.

The first objective of the Spanish government, that of fully inoculating five million people by the first week of May, has been met  but the battle is far from over. Fernando Simon, the director of the Health Ministrys Coordination Center for Health Alerts (CCAES), held a press conference on Monday evening to present the latest coronavirus data for the country. The governments chief epidemiologist was clearly annoyed and said he was disappointed by scenes of partying crowds across Spain on Saturday night, after the state of alarm expired and the toughest restrictions on mobility and socializing lapsed.

If we manage to have the [vaccine] coverage that we hope to have within 100 days, and if in that intervening period the population manages to maintain adequate prevention measures, we could have more normal social interaction. But that is not to say that we can no longer continue with some precautions until there is global coverage, he said.

According to the Health Ministry report released last night, the 14-day cumulative number of coronavirus cases per 100,000 inhabitants is still falling, coming in at 189 on Monday. This, however, is still a relatively high level, and the situation in five of Spains regions  Aragon, Madrid, Navarre, Basque Country and La Rioja  continues to be very serious, with the rate above 250.

Until a few days ago I would have said that we were going to continue with a downward trend, but now I dont know, Simon continued on Monday, in reference to the scenes of partying from the weekend. Neither I nor anyone in Spain knows what is going to happen in the coming days, or how many people will end up being admitted to [intensive care units], he complained.

The progress of the vaccine campaign is already having an effect on the epidemiological curve of the health crisis in Spain

In contrast to his unease with the situation after the state of alarm, Simon celebrated the progress of the vaccination campaign, one of the factors, he explained, that is going to help to combat the virus. The regions  which are in charge of their own campaigns  have now administered at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine to most of the vulnerable groups, specifically 87% of the over-60s. In fact, 40% of this segment are now fully protected.

By target group, residents of care homes and the over-80s are already fully protected. Meanwhile, 92.5% of the over-70s have received a single dose, while the percentage is as high as 75% among the 60-to-69 group.

In fact, the regional administrations have decided to speed ahead of the central governments own strategy, and have already begun to use the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines on the under-60s. The central Public Health Commission will be studying the possibility of lowering the target age groups for the Janssen vaccine, which until now is only being used on the over-60s due to the fear of rare blood clots among younger age groups. There have been similar issues with the AstraZeneca vaccine, something that has limited its use among the Spanish population so far.

The progress of the vaccine campaign is already having an effect on the epidemiological curve in Spain, and on the countrys hospitals. According to the Health Ministry report released on Tuesday, the effectiveness of the vaccine on residents of care homes is 80%, while the process has avoided 71% of hospitalizations and 82% of deaths. Whats more, the ministry has confirmed that the average age of positive cases since the third wave, which took place during the start of the vaccination campaign, has fallen from 42 to 40, while the average age of intensive care unit patients has gone down from 63 to 60.

Despite the good pace of the vaccination drive, the experts are still calling for caution. Group immunity is measured by the reproduction rate [the so-called R number], and the infectivity of the virus, explained Marcos Lopez Hoyos, the president of the Spanish Society of Immunology. For the measles, you need to have more than 90% [of the population] vaccinated. With Covid they are saying 70% or 80%. We will see what happens according to the rates of infection and incidence. The important thing is to vaccinate and for the incidence to stay low. If people see announcements about group immunity and the state of alarm is lifted, people could relax and this mustnt happen, he continued.

Take nothing for granted

Jose Luis Barranco, spokesperson for the Spanish Society of Preventive Medicine, Public Health and Hygiene, agrees with this thinking. We are very worried about the weekend, he said, in reference to the scenes of crowds on the streets partying. If people get infected now it wont overwhelm our health system, but it will mean that the virus is circulating for longer. And that is an opportunity for the disease to reach a vulnerable person, even if they are vaccinated, because the virus may not respond to that vaccine.

Nothing can be taken for granted, the experts agree. There are a lot of variables that could still interrupt the speed of vaccination, such as problems in the supply chain or the appearance of new variants that evade the protection offered by the inoculations. Vaccines appear to be offering protection from variants, by humoral [antibody-mediated] and cellular immunity, explained Lopez Hoyos. But apart from quickly vaccinating here [in Spain], we mustnt forget to vaccinate the rest of the world so that new variants do not arrive and give us a shock.

Barranco insisted that the key will be that vaccines arrive when they need to arrive and that there is the operational might to administer them.

English version by Simon Hunter.

Errata An earlier version of this story mistakenly stated in the headline that six million people in Spain had received their first Covid-19 dose, when in fact six million people now have the full protection offered by the vaccines.




The death sentences of Bruno Barros, 29, and his nephew Yan Barros, 19, were signed on April 26 in the supermarket Atakadao Atakarejo. The pair tried to steal four trays of meat and were caught in the act, and staff did not hesitate to hand the two men over to a notorious criminal gang, who tortured and murdered them. Their bodies were left in the trunk of a car, echoing the words of Brazilian artist Elza Soares on her 2002 album Do Coccix Ate o Pescoco: The cheapest meat in the market is Black.

Violent deaths linked to supermarkets are far from unusual in Brazil. Joao Alberto and Pedro Gonzaga died last year at the hands of security guards in Porto Alegre and Rio de Janeiro from the Carrefour and Extra supermarket chains respectively. In all three cases, the victims were Black. But the incident at Atakarejo has another component: the link between the company and a gang allegedly involved in drug trafficking.

Family and friends dont know why Yan and Bruno left the Fazenda Coutos neighborhood of Salvador where they lived and went to the Nordeste de Amaralina area that day. But the first sign that something was amiss came around 1.30pm. Bruno sent a WhatsApp audio to a friend asking her for 700 Brazilian reals (about $130 or 110) to pay for the meat he had stolen in Atakarejo. But she was at a beauty salon at the time, and didnt see the message.

These people condemned them to death. My son lost his life, just 19 years old, for four trays of meat Elaine Costa Silva, mother of Yan Barros

Bruno then called her at 1.46pm and managed to speak to her. He and his nephew had been caught trying to steal meat, he said, and the manager and security guards had taken them to the supermarket parking lot, where they were assaulted. The employees were demanding they pay the 700 reals the meat had cost to let them go. If they did not, they would be handed over to gang members in an area dominated by Comando da Paz (or Peace Command), which is allegedly associated with the Rio de Janeiro outfit Comando Vermelho (or Red Command), a known criminal arms and drug trafficking organization. The local security forces in Bahia deny this link.

Brunos friend contacted relatives and friends to raise the money. She managed to scrape together 250 reals ($46 or 39). I called him and asked one of the guards to send the account number to deposit the money, while we tried to get the rest. It would be a guarantee that we would pay. But the employees didnt accept it, they wanted everything at once, the friend tells EL PAIS. Bruno got desperate and contacted other people to ask them for money. In an audio message shared with this newspaper, he can be heard saying: She already has 200 reals, see if you can get the money. His friend recalls him saying: Time is passing, theyre going to turn me in, theyre serious. If they turn me in, Im going to die.

Despite their efforts, they did not have time to raise all the money. At 2.02pm, the friend received another call, and Bruno told her the employees had decided to hand them over to gang members. It was the last time they spoke. He told me, Call the police to arrest me, the security guard is handing me over to the dealers in the parking lot. Im going to die. I went so far as to call 190 [Brazils police emergency number], and reported that there were several armed men in the supermarket, but that didnt achieve anything, she says.

Eyewitnesses told relatives that the young men were dragged through the streets of Northeast Amaralina while being beaten. Meanwhile, photos of the victims circulated on WhatsApp groups. Their family had no news but were forced to watch the pair suffering in public on phone screens. The images circulating on social media showed the uncle and nephew in three distinct moments. The first, just after they were caught stealing meat, portrays them crouched down inside the building next to the stolen items, as a man identified as a security guard watches them. Then the two are seen seated with the gang members. The final images show their dead bodies, their faces deformed by gunshots.

Photo of Bruno and Yan Barros taken by workers at the supermarket. Reproducao

The bodies of the young men were abandoned in the trunk of a car. Yans mother Elaine Costa Silva says that rumors of their murder appeared on social media, and a search began. First we called the DPT [Department of Technical Police], but they hadnt found any bodies at the Institute of Forensic Medicine. I got the number of the DHPP [Department of Homicide and Protection of the Person], and they told me that there was no news in Nordeste de Amaralina, but that they had found two bodies in the trunk of a car in Polemica, she recalls. Elaine identified her sons body only by the clothes he was wearing, and Bruno by a scar on his abdomen. Their faces were so badly disfigured that the wake was held with the coffins closed, which is not customary in Brazil.

Food for food

Brunos friend believes he wanted to sell the meat to buy food for himself, as the 29-year-old was unemployed and struggling. He borrowed money from friends to pay his bills and could not pay the child support for his 12-year-old daughter. If he ate three meals a day, that was thanks to his mother, who always fed him whatever she was cooking. Bruno had lived in a house owned by his nephew Yans grandmother since he separated from the mother of his daughter. With a police record, again for stealing food, Bruno struggled to find a job. That situation was made even worse with the coronavirus pandemic. He hoped to get the 600 reals ($110 or 94) emergency basic income from the government, but he never received it.

Elaine still doesnt understand why Yan participated in the theft, nor can she say what he would do with the meat. She had never known her son to be involved in any kind of crime, but the familys financial situation is difficult. Elaine had to raise her four children alone, and she lives in a house built of plywood and recycled materials in a slum area of Fazenda Coutos. Her main source of income comes from selling cleaning materials at traffic lights, but her work was also affected by the pandemic.

Yan was still finishing high school and was a member of Projeto Axe, an NGO internationally recognized for its work in education and children and adolescent rights. He sold peanuts on public transportation to help out at home, but had to stop because of the pandemic. His mother says he was always hungry: He was always texting me to check if I had made something to eat, to know when the food would be ready. I would send him lunch boxes. His grandmother helped, too.

The teenager lived with his uncle and older brother in his grandmothers house, a precarious place with five rooms and little furniture. The paint on the walls was coming off in the humidity, and the smell of mould permeated the house. Elaine shows EL PAIS one of the rooms, where two pairs of shorts were laid out on a stained mattress where Bruno slept.

Atakarejo are killers

Yan and his mother were in contact primarily via their cellphones. Her WhatsApp is full of pictures and videos of her son, and voice messages saying hello. I have to use this to see his smile now, she says, pointing at her phone. It had been a long day of interviews as Elaine raises awareness of her fight for justice. Brunos mother declined to be interviewed for this article, and is taking medication following the brutal murder of her son, and the circulation of images of his torture and murder.

There have been protests over the death of the young men, and one took place in Fazenda Coutos, organized by the favela itself. Amid cries of Atakarejo are killers! the demonstrators blocked off the street and demanded arrests and a trial as soon as possible. Several groups held a rally at the gates of the Atakarejo supermarket in Nordeste de Amaralina, where the mens ordeal began.

As Yans mother, Elaine feels pain and anger, shifting between the two. She asks why the supermarket employees did not give the men a chance to pay for the meat. Was it wrong what they did? Yes, no one should do that. But what is the point of the police if these people can just send others off to be murdered? These people condemned them to death. My son lost his life, just 19 years old, for four trays of meat, she says.

Elaine says she will never be able to erase the images from her mind of her sons panicked face, and his hand bathed in blood: I cant cry anymore from so much rage. They ended my life on that Monday. They have destroyed me. She has not received any kind of aid from Atakarejo, whether financial or psychological. Back on WhatsApp, she shows videos of her son joking around at his last birthday party on April 4. I will never see that again, she says.

The faces of the victim were so badly disfigured that the wake was held with the coffins closed, which is not customary in Brazil

Atakarejo, the supermarket chain, is owned by Teobaldo Costa, a businessman who ran for mayor of the city of Lauro de Freitas, in Salvador, in the last election. He declared 341,286,567 reals (about $62,750,000 or 53,756,318) in assets to the electoral authorities, and is also well known for advertising his own supermarket chain on television. Atakarejo says in a statement that it does not tolerate any type of violence and is committed to human rights and the defense of dignified human life. The retail group is collaborating with the police investigation, and says it has handed over security camera footage and relevant documentation. The statement does not say whether the employees involved have been fired. [We] comply with legal regulations and do not consent to any criminal action [...] The company stresses that it vehemently repudiates any kind of violence and sympathizes with the family of the victims at this very difficult time. The group hopes that the investigations to clarify the case and punish all the culprits will be resolved, the statement reads.

According to a statement from Brazils police, several witnesses have already testified and investigations are at an advanced stage. The statement explains that more details cannot be given without interfering with the progress of the investigation.

Jaco Lula da Silva, president of the Human Rights Commission of Bahias Legislative Assembly, wants the supermarket to explain if it has a relationship with drug traffickers or gang members. If the manager called them, its because there was some kind of authorization from Atakarejo, he says. This incident occurred, and the management took a cowardly stance. Had it been the owner of some bar, he would have been arrested by now, but its the owner of a supermarket chain who refuses to comment on the case. Atakarejo is pretending it doesnt exist. So, are drug traffickers informally in charge of Atakarejos security? The commission is following the case and has requested the Bahia Public Security Secretariat assign a special commissioner to direct the investigation.

Meanwhile, Elaine Costa Silva is readying herself for another battle, this time with the justice system. I want everyone at Atakarejo to pay, she says.
KYODO NEWS - May 11, 2021 - 22:48 | All, Japan, Coronavirus

A central Japan city admitted Tuesday it initially gave a pharmacy chain chief and his wife priority bookings for COVID-19 vaccinations, in a revelation likely to anger seniors struggling to make reservations amid Japan's slow vaccine rollout.

Yoshihide Kondo, the deputy mayor of Nishio in Aichi Prefecture, apologized at a press conference Tuesday for the "lack of fairness" and said the city has already canceled the reservations for Sugi Holdings Co. Chairman Hirokazu Sugiura, 70, and his 67-year-old wife Akiko.

In what would have been special treatment, Sugiura and his wife had been scheduled to receive their first shots on Monday, but the city canceled their bookings after a local newspaper made an inquiry into the matter. The Sugi drugstore chain Sugiura heads operates in many areas of the country.

Japan started inoculating people aged 65 or older on April 12, but the slow vaccine rollout has triggered confusion at many municipalities in charge of the vaccination campaign. Telephone lines and websites to make reservations have been overwhelmed with traffic, with both becoming unreachable in some cases.

According to Kondo and other city officials, Sugi Holdings made repeated requests in April for the chairman and his wife to be given priority in receiving shots. The couple live in Nishio, while the company is headquartered in Obu in Aichi Prefecture.

The Nishio city government started taking reservations last Thursday for vaccinations for elderly residents. Bookings must be made by phone or through its website or the Line messaging app.

Although a city government section in charge of inoculations rejected Sugi Holdings' requests, the deputy mayor and the top official overseeing the vaccination program eventually decided to accept them and secured access without requiring the couple to book through conventional means.

The Nishio city has a partnership accord with Sugi Holdings over efforts to improve the health of elderly residents. "As the company has supported the municipal government, I was wondering if we could return the favor some way. So we couldn't firmly reject its strong request" for a priority booking for the couple, Kondo said at the news conference.

Nishio Mayor Ken Nakamura also apologized at the same event for "severely hurting public trust."

Sugi Holdings later said in a statement it "offers a deep apology to people across Japan for causing displeasure."

Taro Kono, the minister in charge of the country's vaccination efforts, criticized the Nishio city government, saying at a press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday it had made "a completely unnecessary response" to the request.

A 70-year-old woman in Nishio expressed anger over the preferential booking, saying, "It's wrong that people in a powerful position can be given priority."

Of about 36 million elderly people in Japan, only some 240,000 had received the first of two shots as of last Thursday, according to government data. Japan aims to inoculate all senior citizens by the end of July amid a fourth wave of coronavirus infections.
By Reito Kaneko, KYODO NEWS - May 11, 2021 - 18:50 | All, World, Japan

Japan's ground troops began Tuesday a large-scale joint exercise with the United States and France for the first time on Japanese soil to increase cooperation in the face of China's growing assertiveness.

"ARC21" will be held through next Monday as Tokyo seeks to deepen defense cooperation beyond its U.S. ally with "like-minded countries," Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said ahead of the drill.

France "is the only European country with a permanent military presence in the Indo-Pacific region," Kishi told a press conference in Tokyo. "It is also a like-minded country that shares with Japan the vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific."

The move comes as Tokyo and Washington boost their alliance over regional issues including the Japan-controlled Senkaku Islands, which are claimed by Beijing, in the East China Sea amid an escalation of China's maritime assertiveness in the East and South China seas.

France has strategic interests in the Indo-Pacific where it has territories, including the French island of Reunion in the Indian Ocean and French Polynesia in the South Pacific.

The forces of the three countries will engage in urban warfare drills followed by amphibious operation exercises, according to Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force.

On the first three days until Thursday, the troops will be stationed at GSDF Camp Ainoura in Nagasaki Prefecture in southwestern Japan, where they will work together to plan the operations.

On Friday and Saturday, the troops will be sent by aircraft to the GSDF Kirishima training ground that straddles Miyazaki and Kagoshima prefectures to engage in an urban warfare drill at the facility, which is designed to look like a remote island.

The GSDF rapid amphibious deployment brigade, dubbed "Japanese Marines," will be among the units participating in the exercises. Around 100 troops from the GSDF and 60 personnel each from the French army and U.S. Marine Corps will participate.

Japan has been trying to strengthen the Self-Defense Forces' abilities to defend remote islands at a time of increased maritime actions by China, especially around the Senkaku Islands.

Four of the U.S. Marines' Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft stationed at the Maritime Self-Defense Force's Kanoya Air Base in Kagoshima Prefecture will join the drills.

In line with the drills, the three countries are joined by Australia in exercises in the East China Sea through next Monday.

The exercises involve GSDF helicopters landing and taking off from ships of the MSDF and the French navy staying off the west coast of Kyushu, Japan's southwestern main island.

The French army units arrived at Sasebo in Nagasaki Prefecture aboard France's Jeanne d'Arc training fleet.

As Asia has become a center of global economic growth with China's clout increasing, European nations have adopted Indo-Pacific policies. Britain said in its recent defense and foreign policy review that it will be "deeply engaged" in the region.

Britain's aircraft carrier Queen Elizabeth and its strike group, including a frigate from the Netherlands, left Britain earlier this month. During the seven-month voyage, the group of ships is due to make several port visits including Japan to show its presence in the Indo-Pacific region.

Germany has also said it plans to send a frigate to the region.

Japan is eyeing conducting drills with the two countries during the visits by their vessels, according to the Japanese Defense Ministry.
KYODO NEWS - May 11, 2021 - 23:02 | All, Japan, Coronavirus

The number of COVID-19 patients with severe symptoms in Japan rose to a record 1,176, the health ministry said Tuesday, amid growing concerns over an increasing number of infections caused by highly contagious variants of the virus.

Daily infections reported by prefectural and local governments also increased, with Osaka Prefecture reporting 974 cases and a record 55 deaths from the novel coronavirus on a daily basis.

The previous record for severely ill patients nationwide was 1,152 reported on Monday.

Tokyo logged 925 new coronavirus cases, up from the 573 infections confirmed Monday, bringing the cumulative total in the capital to 148,092, the metropolitan government said.

Tokyo and Osaka are among four areas currently under Japan's third state of emergency over the pandemic in an attempt to bring down infections and ease the strain of hospitals ahead of the Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer.

Aichi and Fukuoka prefectures are slated to come under the emergency declaration from Wednesday. The National Governors' Association on Monday asked the government to consider expanding the declaration nationwide to introduce stronger measures against more contagious variants.

But Yasutoshi Nishimura, the minister in charge of the government's coronavirus response, said Tuesday the government has no plans to do so at present out of concerns over restricting private rights, adding new cases have not surged in some prefectures.

In an online meeting, the governors of all 47 prefectures also voiced disapproval that the government has been slow to implement quasi-states of emergency, to which Nishimura responded that decisions would be made "as soon as possible."

"It's important that (prefectures) implement stronger measures ahead of these decisions," he added.
KYODO NEWS - May 11, 2021 - 22:22 | All, Japan, Coronavirus

Japan has started making arrangements to allow adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15 to be vaccinated against COVID-19 amid a rising number of coronavirus infections among young people, the top government spokesman said Tuesday.

At present, a vaccine developed by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. and its German partner BioNTech SE is the only authorized product in Japan, and it has so far only been administered to those 16 and older.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told a press conference that Pfizer has been in talks with the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency, a Japanese vaccine screening body, about expanding the use of its vaccine.

"If the efficacy and safety (for administering to adolescents) is confirmed, the guidelines will be amended" to enable the vaccination for those under 16, Kato said.

A health ministry official said the benefit of inoculating those between 12 and 15 to reduce their infection risk will be significant amid the spread of highly transmissible coronavirus variants in the country.

Details in the plan such as whether children can receive free shots like individuals aged 16 and above with the government covering the costs, as well as whether they will be compensated in the event of a severe impact on their health, need to be discussed further, according to the Health, Labor, and Welfare Ministry.

In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration expanded the emergency use authorization for the Pfizer vaccine to adolescents 12 through 15 years of age on Monday after analyzing the results of clinical trials.

During the studies, the subjects received the same dosage given to those aged 16 and older three weeks apart. A week after their second shots, no cases of COVID-19 occurred among 1,005 vaccine recipients, and 16 infection cases occurred among 978 individuals who received a placebo, according to the FDA.

Regarding side effects, no significant difference between the younger and older populations was observed, it said.

Since Pfizer has not conducted any clinical studies on individuals aged 12 to 15 in Japan, the PMDA will rely on vaccination records of people aged 16 and older in the country and abroad, as well as the results of clinical trials in the United States.

If the body under the health ministry decides it has collected enough data, it is expected to authorize the vaccine use expansion without conducting new clinical trials in Japan.
New Delhi:

In a tragic incident a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Shiva Kumar was shot dead by two bike-borne assailants in Greater Noida on Thursday evening. Shiva Kumar has been identified as a headman of Tigri village in Bisrakh.

Shiva Kumar's driver too was also killed in the incident. As per sources, two bike-borne assailants came close to the car in which the BJP leader was travelling and fired gunshots. After the shots were fired, the driver lost control over the car and rammed it into a divider. A security guard accompanying Kumar was injured and has been admitted to a Delhi hospital.

BJP leader Shiva Kumar and his security guard shot dead by bike borne assailants in Greater Noida's Bisrakh pic.twitter.com/wZT8RbSvWI  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) November 16, 2017

Reports claim that two other occupants from the car were also severely injured and were later admitted in a private hospital nearby. Following the accident, the locals present at the spot informed the concerned authorities. A police officer said that the driver lost control of the car which then rammed into another vehicle. A girl also died after succumbing to her injuries when the BJP leader's car rammed into her during the attack.

#SpotVisuals: BJP leader Shiva Kumar and his security guard shot dead by bike borne assailants in Greater Noida's Bisrakh; Kumar's car lost balance & hit a divider after shots were fired. pic.twitter.com/GlvrMWJP0h

 ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) November 16, 2017

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New Delhi:

The BJP on Friday released its first list of candidates for the Gujarat elections, to be held in two phases on December 9 and 14.

The list comprises 70 candidates for elections to the 182-member Gujarat Assembly. The party has named Chief Minister Vijaybhai Rupani as its candidate from Rajkot West. Deputy Chief Minister Nitinbhai Patel will contest from Mahesana and state party president Jitubhai Vaghani from Bhavnagar West.

The names were finalised by BJP's Central Election Committee, which met on Wednesday. The meeting, chaired by BJP president Amit Shah, was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj among others, party leaders said.
New Delhi:

The Delhi government is all set to provide 40 public services including driving license and caste certificates at the doorstep within stimulated time period at doorsteps.

The decision to launch the scheme was taken during Thursdays Cabinet meeting chaired by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia.

Sisodia said, The scheme is a home delivery of governance. The initiative is first of its kind in the country.

To implement the scheme on ground the Delhi government will hire a private agency. Mobile Sayak ) facilitators will be hired through the agency. The agency will set up call centres, added Sisodia.

The deputy chief minister explaining the scheme said, A person who wants to apply for a driving licence, he or she will have to call a designated call centre and register their details. The Mobile Sahyak will visit the applicants residence get the required documents.

He added that the Mobile Sahyak will be equipped with all necessary machines such as biometric devices and a camera. The applicant would be charged nominal fee for the facility. We have yet not decided the fee, added Sisodia.

According to the Delhi deputy chief minister people can avail various certificates like caste certificate, a new water connection, ration cards, domicila, marriage registration, duplicate RC and change of address in RC.

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New Delhi:

The higher mountainous ranges of Pir Panjal region have received heavy snowfall on Saturday morning forcing authorities to close traffic on Mughal Road.

The fresh snowfall in the higher region on Saturday has brought down the temperature across Jammu and Kashmir and people have been seen wearing warm clothes yet again.

Night temperatures at most of the places in Kashmir division stayed above the freezing point last night.

"Jammu and Kashmir: Pir Panjal Range experienced heavy snowfall this morning, Mughal road closed," news agency ANI tweeted a couple of minutes back.

The visuals of rooftops and roads covered in snow have added to the scenic beauty of the valley.

However, the traffic movement along several areas came to a temporary halt after heavy snowfall blocked the roads.

Also Read | Pew Survey: Military force in Jammu and Kashmir finds massive support

Jammu and Kashmir: Pir Panjal Range experienced heavy snowfall this morning, Mughal road closed pic.twitter.com/090IhDpcPV  ANI (@ANI) November 18, 2017

A bunch of vehicles lined up on the route as rescue workers removed the vehicle and cleared the way for the traffic. The electric and water supply services have also been disrupted due to the blockage. However, no injury has been reported in the incident till the time.

The MeT Department forecasts heavy snowfall at higher mountainous ranges till November 18.

#WATCH: Pir Panjal Range in Jammu & Kashmir experienced heavy snowfall this morning, Mughal road closed pic.twitter.com/RKVTLMGvgq  ANI (@ANI) November 18, 2017

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World-leading coatings manufacturer Hempel said it has reached an agreement with Ares Management Corporation, a leading global alternative investment manager, to acquire Farrow & Ball, a luxury decorative paint and wallpaper company with an annual turnover of over euro 100 million, from one of its private equity groups.

With Hempels strong global presence and long-term trade credentials, the intention is to grow and expand Farrow & Ball globally, said its top official.

"Farrow & Ball is an iconic, luxury, decorative paint and wallpaper company. It is used by consumers, designers and cultural institutions around the world  all who have a passion for rich colours in an eco-friendly paint," remarked Hempel Group President & CEO Lars Petersson.

"I am very proud to welcome our new colleagues to the Hempel family. Together we will ensure that Farrow & Ball continues its strong growth journey," he added.

According to him, with this deal, Hempel is taking the next, large step to double its revenue to euro 3 billion by 2025.

The acquisition is a good strategic match, supporting Hempels growth ambitions within the decorative segment, stated Petersson.

"I am proud that we have already taken the next step on our journey to double our business. The addition of Farrow & Ball to our branded portfolio is another proof point that we are going for leadership positions in key segments and geographies," he added.

Farrow & Ball CEO Anthony Davey said: "We are looking forward to taking our growth journey to the next level as part of the Hempel Group with whom we share strong sustainability principles."

"As part of the Hempel Group, we have an exciting opportunity to extend our brand in new markets through a strong global distribution network and longstanding trade relationships," he added.

The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approval and is expected to close during the second half.-TradeArabia News Service
New Delhi:

Seven security personnel have suffered serious injuries in a landmine explosion triggered by banned left wing outfit CPI-Maoist cadres in bordering areas of Jharkhand and Chattisgarh on Thursday evening.

A senior Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) official not authorised to talk to the media said, Five jawans of CRPF and two jawans of Jharkhand Jaguar have been injured in the landmine blast.

The officer added that the Maoists triggered the landmine as the force was nearing their base camp. The Maoists indefinitely opened fire at the team engaged in the anti-insurgency operation.

A senior officer of Jharkhand Police said, a joint anti-insurgency operation including CRPF and Jharkhand Jaguar, specialised anti-insurgency troop, were conducting combing operation in Buda Pahar area.

Police said Buda Pahar is located in bordering areas of Jharkhand Bihar and Chhattisgarh. The Maoist consider it to be a safe haven after Chhattisgarhs Bastar.

According to sources in the police department, joint operations are being conducted in the Buda Pahar from last one week to flush out Maoist rebels from the area.

The seven injured jawans were airlifted to Ranchi for immediate medical attention. Forces in large numbers have been pushed into the area to nab the Maoists.

Till the time report was filed gunbattle was going on between Maoist rebels and joint security forces.

Earlier on November 10, four jawans of CoBRA  elite commando guerrilla warfare troop of CRPF  were injured in an landmine blast triggered by the Naxals in Latehar. The Maoists in 2013 had surgically implanted a can-bomb in CRPF troopers abdomen. More than 50 security personnel have lost their lives in the district fighting Maoists in the last one decade.

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New Delhi:

In a pot calling the kettle black situation, Pakistan national security advisor Nasser Khan Janjua on Friday accused India against creating a two-front situation for his country.

NSA Janjua warned India that such a policy would be detrimental for the peace and tranquillity in the region.

"India is self-seeking a two front situation which does not auger well for the region. All major powers of the world need to play their role in keeping the region stable and balanced," he said.

With two-front situation Janjua meant increasing militant activities near Afghanistan border and while Indian army on the eastern border.

Pakistan has long been accusing India of supporting militancy in Pakistan through Afghanistan border, a charge India deny.

Janjuas statement came during his talks with German ambassador Martin Kobler and special representative of Germany for Afghanistan and Pakistan Markus Potzel.

During their talks, Pakistan NSA office said, the two sides discussed regional security issues including increasing tensions in Afghanistan.

Janjua said, Pakistan wanted a political settlement of the Afghanistan issue and peace in the region.

"To end miseries of Afghanistan and its people, warring sides should seek a political solution to the conflict as the perpetual war of last 16 years has given us nothing but human miseries and sufferings," Janjua added.

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New Delhi:

Spiritual leader and Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, who has offered to mediate in the Ayodhya dispute, said on Friday that there was a ray of hope in resolving the Ram temple issue. He added that he would meet Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat to discuss the issue with him.

Asha ki kiran dikh rahi hai. Bahut achha mahol banta ja raha hai (There is a ray of hope. A positive atmosphere is in the making), he told reporters in response to a query after his arrival at the airport in Nagpur.

Asked whether he would meet Bhagwat over the Ayodhya issue, Ravi Shankar said, I will meet and discuss the issue of Ram mandir with him.

The spiritual leader is in the city as part of a three-day Anta Ranga programme organised by the Art of Living. A couple of days back, he had met various people and claimed to have received very good and positive signs from both Hindus and Muslims, even though the stakeholders in the dispute were less hopeful.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also did not sound very positive on the outcome of Ravi Shankars efforts. Adityanath, who met Ravi Shankar two days back, had said that everyone knew where the talks would lead, especially when the Supreme Court was going to hear the matter from December 5 on a day-to-day basis.

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) have also voiced reservations about Ravi Shankars role as a mediator in the protracted dispute.

With PTI inputs

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Lucknow:

The Yogi Adityanath led Uttar Pradesh government apprised the Centre that Sanjay Leela Bhansali directorial Padmavati's release on December 1 can cause law and order problem for the state.

In a letter written to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, UP Principal Secretary (Home), Arvind Kumar said the Censor board should be apprised about the public resentment over the alleged distortion of facts in the movie.

"The Censor Board members should take a decision after taking into account people's views. They should be apprised about it.

"It has come to the notice through intelligence reports that the film's producers have presented the movie for Censor Board clearance. After the release of the trailer of the movie on October 9, various social and other organisations opposed the film," the letter said.

Kumar said such strong protests have created law and order problems in the state.

The letter further stated that "in view of the civic polls, polling for which is scheduled on November 22, November 26 and November 29 and the counting on December 1, and also the 'Barawafat' procession by Muslims on December 2, the film's release can pose serious security issues".

Taking precautionary measures ahead of the scheduled release of the Sanjay Leela Bhansali-directed movie, Uttar Pradesh DGP Sulkhan Singh had earlier asked the force to remain extra vigilant.

"Keeping in view the protests against the movie by some organisations, the force should remain alert, especially at all malls and cinema halls with anti-riot equipment," Singh said in his directives to all district police chiefs.

"Enough police force should be kept in reserve so that it can be deployed when needed. Local intelligence units should also be alerted to keep an eye on unscrupulous elements so that effective timely action is taken," he said.

All the SHOs and senior police officers should do patrolling and keep an eye on the situation to avoid any untoward incident. "In view of the (possible) dharna, agitation, traffic jam, arsoning - all measures should be taken in advance and strict legal action initiated against those involved in such acts," he said.

Bhansali is facing the ire of various groups, who allege improper "depiction" of legendary queen Rani Padmavati in the movie.

"Padmavati" stars Deepika Padukone in the titular role. Shahid Kapoor essays the role of Maharawal Ratan Singh and Ranveer Singh plays Alauddin Khilji.

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New Delhi:

Growing instances of sexual harassment in the form of rape, molestation have been a major concern for women in our society.

Such horrific offences are on the rise as many culprits go untouched because most women are still unaware of their rights to protect them against such heinous crimes.

The concept of a Zero FIR originated after many incidents were reported where the female victims were not aware of their right jurisdiction and were told to lodge the FIRs at their respective police stations.

The main purpose of the Zero FIR is to initiate the investigation of any criminal act at the earliest. As per a Supreme Court ruling, under Zero FIR, a rape or molestation victim can register her complaint from any police station irrespective of place of incident/jurisdiction.

The Justice Verma Committee Report in 2013 recommended a provision of Zero FIR in the new Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 after the heinous Nirbhaya case that shook the country in December 2012.

However after lodging an FIR, one must ensure that the police do not transfer the case to the appropriate police station without doing any investigation or taking legal action.

How to file a Zero FIR?

 Like all regular FIRs, a statement of the victim is recorded while registering the Zero FIR.

 The victim records details of the crime (murder, rape, accident, etc) with the police in a written form.

 To make his/her statement official, the victim signs the register.

 The victim has a right to get a copy of his/her complaint.

Zero FIR makes it easy for the victim to register his/her complaint. It also assists the police to investigate the case appropriately.
New Delhi:

Heart patients are usually worried that they may suddenly die while having sex, but a new study suggests otherwise. As per the study sexual activity seldom cause cardiac arrest in a person.

The research found out that sex is linked to mere one percent of all the cardiac cases.

Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute had analysed cardiac arrest cases that took place in Portland, Oregon from the year 2002 to 2015.

The results indicated that only 34 out of the about 4,550 cases of cardiac arrests were actually linked to sexual activity.

It was revealed that sudden cardiac arrests took during sexual intercourse in 18 such cases. Fifteen cardiac arrests cases were reported after the intercourse took place.

As a matter of fact, only two cases involved women. This indicated that men are at higher risk to experience cardiac arrests during a sexual activity.

Overall, the team of researchers found out that sexual activity was associated with less than one percent of the cases of cardiac arrest.

The study was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

As per Dr. Sumeet Chugh, the research aimed to raise public awareness regarding the importance of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for a sudden cardiac arrest.
Mumbai:

Mumbai Police on Thursday has beefed up the security of actor Deepika Padukone after Shri Rajput Karni Sena (SRKS) announced to cut her nose incase she did not refrain from inciting public sentiments.

We have increased actor Deepika Padukones security after the outfit issued the nose chopping threat, said Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Deven Bharti.

He added that the Mumbai Police is providing adequate security after the threat. The police will even provide her security at her residence and office in Mumbai, said Bharti.

The joint commissioner of police also said,  We have already provided protection to filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali after the Rajput community outfit protested outside his office in Juhu accusing him of distorting historical facts in the history drama. We have beefed up security at Bhansali's residence in Versova in the city.

Also read| Padmavati: Ranveer Singh's look as Alauddin Khilji is the scariest of them all!



Karni Sena leader Mahipal Singh Makrana earlier on the day had announced to chop the actors nose like Lakshman did to Surpanakha in epic Ramayana. He then said, If film Padmavati was not banned and Padukone does not refrain from fanning sentiments with her provocative language, the Rajputs will not lag behind in acting.

Also read: Padmavati: Film associations back Deepika Padukone starrer, question goverment's silence



The Karni Sena has called for a country-wide bandh on December 1, the day the film slated to be released. The group had attacked sets of the movie in Jaipur and even slapped Bhansali.

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New Delhi:

Amid questions raised by the Congress party over purchase of French fighter aircraft Rafale by the Centre, the Indian Air Force (IAF) on Thursday asserted that no overpricing was done in buying the aircraft and the government had negotiated a very good deal.

While talking to media at the Adampur Air Force station, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa said, It is not overpricing... We have negotiated for 36 French fighter aircraft Rafale (at a price) lower than that in the contract. The government has negotiated a very good deal.

Pitching it as a great deal, Dhanoa told that it was a government-to-government contract and the IAF was getting 36 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) at a greatly negotiated price.

There is no controversy. What is the controversy I don't understand? It is not overpriced. The government has negotiated a very good deal: IAF Chief BS Dhanoa on Rafale deal pic.twitter.com/osFwieXvGh  ANI (@ANI) November 16, 2017

It is definitely a better deal. It is lower than what was there in the MRMCA contract, he said without going into specifics.

The Rafale deal has been the focus of debate with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accusing the Prime Minister of changing the entire deal to benefit a businessman, a charge debunked by the ruling BJP.

The Congress also claims technology is not being transferred to India under the deal.

Dhanoa said two aircraft had been purchased in a fly-away condition as an emergency measure.

We are getting 50 per cent offset, he said, without elaborating.

On technology transfer, he said, Technology may not be going to the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) but it is coming to the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and then to a lot of Indians.

The IAF chief said a plan was in place to deal with the drop-downor dipin IAF squadrons.

He said the government had ordered two squadrons of Su 30.

The drop-down will be made up by two Rafale, two Su 30, two LCA squadrons and 80 more aircraft which will give four more squadrons, he said.

The government has authorised 42 squadrons to the IAF and at present there are 33.

He, however, added that the drop-down did not affect the performance of the force.

I think we have negotiated a better deal in the Rafale contract than what we did in MMRCA (Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft): IAF Chief Birender Singh Dhanoa pic.twitter.com/ikltLB7ExJ  ANI (@ANI) November 16, 2017

It does not mean that we cannot carry out operations. We can do restricted operations. For carrying out full-spectrum operations the IAF needs a certain amount of force, he said.

There was an order of 272 aircraft and once again we were 35 short by March 2017, he said.

Dhanoa said a contract was signed in March 2006 for 20 Tejas aircraft to be delivered between April 2009 and December 2010.

Out of these 20 aircraft, only five were received ... Again a contract was signed in December 2010 for 20 more aircraft to be delivered between June 2014 and December 2016. So we have already committed to 40 aircraft in addition to 83 more Tejas, he said.

He said the IAF would induct Mark 2 fighters with higher thrust engines and new weapons by 2027.

Shortcomings in LCA Mark 1 will be removed in the LCA Mark 1A aircraft and then Mark 2 will be manufactured, he said.

Gradually we will make advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, moving from low medium to high technology aircraft, he said.

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New Delhi:

A 21-year-old Indian student was shot dead allegedly by four armed robbers at a grocery store in United States. According to US police the incident occurred in Fresno city of California on Tuesday.

According to reports the deceased has been identified as 21-year-old Dharampreet Singh Jasser. At the time of the incident he was on duty at a grocery shop next to a gas station.

The police told the local media that the four armed robbers including an Indian-origin man barged in to loot the store. Jasser hid behind a cash counter but was shot dead by one of the robber while they were leaving after the looting spree.

Jasser is a from Punjab and was in United States from the last three years on student visa.

"Dharampreet was a completely innocent victim, just doing his job, when he was senselessly killed during this robbery," Madera Sheriff Jay Varney said.

Police have arrested one 22-year-old boy Amitraj Singh Athwal in connection to the loot and murder. He is believed to be one of the four suspects who looted the gas station and fired multiple shots one of which hit Jasser.

Shocked at the gruesome killing of Nawanshahrs Dharampreet Singh in California. @SushmaSwaraj ji, request to you to take up the issue at highest levels with US authorities to ensure justice for the family.  Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) November 16, 2017

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh tweeted, Shocked at the gruesome killing of Nawanshahrs Dharampreet Singh in California. @SushmaSwaraj ji, request to you to take up the issue at highest levels with US authorities to ensure justice for the family.

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New Delhi :

Pakistani troops on Friday violated ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir. Indian army strongly retaliated to unprovoked and indiscriminate firing of small arms, automatics and mortars.

On Wednesday, November 15 cases of ceasefire violation surfaced in the Shahpur Kirni Sector of Poonch in Jammu and Kashmir.

#Visuals from J&K: Pakistan Army initiated unprovoked and indiscriminate firing of small arms, automatics and mortars In Poonch sector along the Line of Control (visuals deferred by unspecified time). pic.twitter.com/Q6goIE6PGw  ANI (@ANI) November 17, 2017

As per sources from the Home Ministry, Pakistan has violated the ceasefire over 600 times so far this year, the highest in the last one decade, an official said. Pakistani troops have opened fire on Indian territories more than 600 times till September 30.

Eight civilians and 16security personnel were killed in the firing, a Home Ministry official said. It is the highest number of ceasefire violations in nearly a decade, the official said.

There were nearly 450 ceasefire violations in 2016 in which 13 civilians and as many security personnel were killed. India shares a 3,323-km-long border with Pakistan of which 221 km of the IB and 740 km of the LoC fall in Jammu andKashmir.

(With PTI inputs)

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The Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park (SRTI Park) has recently launched Sharjah Advanced Industry Accelerator 2.0 (SAIA) to boost the diversification of the national industrial base.



In line with Industry 4.0, the accelerator programme will provide local and regional start-ups with innovative solutions and a strong support system within the thriving SRTI Park ecosystem, reported Emirates news agency Wam.



SAIA 2.0 is also in line with the UAEs industrial strategy "Operation 300bn", a 10-year comprehensive policy aimed at empowering and expanding the industrial sector to become the driving force of a sustainable national economy, increasing its contribution to the GDP from the current AED133 billion ($36.2 billion) to AED300 billion by 2031.



Hussain Al Mahmoudi, CEO of the Sharjah RTI Park, said: "The SAIA will focus on supporting early and growth stage start-ups to scale up in the UAE and Mena region, thereby further supporting UAEs goal to attract world-class talent and innovation.



"The SAIA is also in line with the UAEs Unified Industrial Brand Identity, Make It in the Emirates, an integrated industrial system that leverages advanced technologies and Fourth Industrial Revolution solutions to contribute to building a sustainable, knowledge-based economy."



Fostering advanced technologies SAIA 2.0 will likewise transform Sharjah into a testbed of advanced technologies in research, the manufacturing sector, including petrochemicals, plastics, metals, food, agriculture, water, and healthcare, space, biotech, medi-tech, pharmaceuticals, clean and renewable energy, including hydrogen production, machinery and equipment, rubber and plastic and electronics and electrical gadgets.



Al Mahmoudi noted: "SAIA 2.0 will result in the limitless potential for growth and establish local start-ups as an integral part of the UAEs unique success story and a key contributor to the countrys development journey."



SAIA 2.0 is a part of the endeavour to set up the pillars of the UAE Strategy of Industrial Transaction and Transformation.



"The accelerator programme reflects the vision of H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, to position the UAE as a global industrial hub by focusing primarily on industries in the future that implement advanced technology and the 4th Industrial Revolution solutions and technology, Al Mahmoudi explained.



SAIA 2.0 provides a comprehensive package of facilities and incentives to position the UAE as a global industrial hub that attracts talents, developers and experts from all over the world.



Al Mahmoudi said: "The SRTI Park ecosystem is thriving with many success stories that work in a distinctive creative environment and co-locate to cope with Industry 4.0. We are aspiring to further promote innovation by providing start-ups with a wide spectrum of support, founded on innovation."



"We are developing an integrated ecosystem for intelligent industries in Sharjah in cooperation with world-class bodies. SRTI Park hosts smart businesses, Industry 4.0 developers, integrated digital technologies and manufacturers in robotics, artificial intelligence technologies, 3D Printing, autonomous vehicles and other advanced technologies," he added.



Al Mahmoudi said SAIA 2.0 will focus on supporting early-stage businesses in smart construction management, smart materials, green building, modularisation/prefabrication, building information modelling, additive manufacturing, connected infrastructures and connected ecosystems.
New Delhi:

A Gurugram court on Thursday posted the bail plea hearing of Ashok Kumar, an accused in the murder of Ryan International School student Pradhuman Thakur, to November 20.

The matter was placed in court of Additional Sessions Judge Rajni Yadav which remained inconclusive.

The judge heard the CBI counsel and the Kumars defence lawyer over bail application and deferred the matter for next Monday.

Sushil Tekriwal, counsel of Pradyumans father Barun Chandra, argued for rejecting Kumars bail.

Tekriwal said the court deferred the hearing on Kumars bail plea to November 20.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) which is investigating the case submitted its probe report, including the CCTV footage.

The CBI counsel said Kumars role in the crime has not been ascertained yet, but a decision on giving him a clean chit could be taken only when scientific reports were out.

Meanwhile, the accuseds counsel, Mohit Verma, argued that his client was being framed.

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New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday lauded the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) for its airport duty.



According to a survey, an overwhelming 81.72 per cent of the flyers at India's several airports graded the performance of CISF personnel as "excellent".



"Happy to know," the prime minister tweeted from his Twitter handle @narendramodi.



The survey was conducted by the airport guarding force at eight major civil airports in the country in October.



The sample size was over 3.30 lakh people, travelling to international and domestic destinations.



The flyers found "very heartening" the recent initiative of stopping the stamping and tagging of cabin baggage and it was suggested that the practice be emulated at all airports.



(With PTI inputs)

ALSO READ: Hindu Yuva Vahini activists recite 'Shiva Chalisa' in Taj Mahal, detained by CISF

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New Delhi:

After 5 days of strike, private doctors in Karnataka on Friday called off their strike against Karnataka Private Medical Establishment (Amendment) Bill 2017. This decision was taken after representatives of various associations of private doctors held a three-hour meeting with Chief Minister Siddharamaiah in Belgavi.

Immediately after the meeting, Chief Minister took it to Twitter and said, "I am happy my meeting with the representatives of Doctors was successful. We have succeeded in resolving all issues around KPME Bill".

Dr. Sudarshan Balal, Chairman of Manipal hospital said, "We had a very successful meeting with Chief Minister and all concerns were discussed. Instead of District Redressal committee, the district registration committee will handle grievances. Medical cases will be referred to Karnataka Medical Council, criminal cases will be based on existing laws."

The main concern of the private doctors was the amendment regarding the price cap which as per Dr. C Jayanna, president PHANA is now sorted out. Dr. C Jayanna said, "It was made clear to us that it was not a general cap but only for certain procedures for BPL patients. This cap will be decided by the experts committee. Additionally APL patients will receive 30% reimbursement for certain procedures.Penalty will also be graded with repeat offenders getting higher quantum.

Earlier, Karnataka High Court while hearing PIL against private doctors strike, came down heavily on them and directed them to withdraw the strike immediately.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people belonging to various social organizations gathered at town hall Bengaluru on Friday and demonstrated their support to Karnataka Private Medical Establishment Bill and State government.

ALSO READ | Karnataka: Private doctors protesting medical bill go on indefinite strike in Bengaluru

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New Delhi:

A Patna-bound GoAir flight carrying 174 passengers on-board returned to New Delhi after it suffered a bird hit on Saturday, the airline said.



The incident happened soon after the flight took off from the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport, it added.



GoAir issued a statement on the incident that the Airbus A320 neo plane suffered the bird hit when it was on the climb, forcing the pilot to discontinue the journey and return to New Delhi for an inspection of the plane.



"GoAir Flight G8 140 from Delhi to Patna had a bird hit as the aircraft was climbing after take-off, " the airline said.

ALSO READ: Chennai-Doha IndiGo flight suffers bird hit after take off, passengers accommodated on different plane



The pilot decided to return to the Delhi airport for an inspection of the aircraft as a precautionary measure.



The stranded passengers were immediately accommodated to another aircraft to Patna, it added. The incident took place at 10.30 am.



(With PTI inputs)

ALSO READ: Air Arabia flight G9 413 from Sharjah to Coimbatore, hit by a peacock

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Chandigarh:

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has claimed that efforts were being made to revive Khalistani elements with backing from Pakistan's spy agency ISI and batted for a tough law such as the Punjab Control of Organised Crime Act (PCOCA) to contain such forces.



The Punjab government this month had claimed to have achieved major success in solving targeted killing cases, including that of RSS leader Jagdish Gagneja with the arrest of five people, and had alleged that a major conspiracy to fan communal disturbance and destabilise the state was being hatched by the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).



"Definitely, attempts are being made, mostly from foreign soils, to destabilise Punjab and our country. Indications of this had started emerging a long time ago, with several leads suggesting that radical forces were out to destroy the states peace and harmony, in nexus with criminal gangs. The recent arrests have more than proved this," the chief minister told PTI in an interview here.



He claimed that the ISI operatives were working not only from Pakistani soil, but also from other countries, including the UK, Canada and Italy "to fan communal unrest".



"Efforts are clearly being made to revive Khalistani elements, which also have the backing of the ISI," Singh said when asked if efforts were being made to revive terrorism in Punjab.



The chief minister said security agencies, including the state intelligence, were working in close coordination with central agencies to counter such attempts.



"Apart from measures on the ground, a close eye is being kept on the social media to prevent attempts at radicalising the youth," Singh said.



Several terror modules have been busted since the Congress government had taken over, the chief minister claimed.



"I assure the people of Punjab that we will not allow the state to be again plunged into the kind of devastation which it suffered during the peak of terrorism in the 1980s," he said.



On organisations such as the SGPC opposing PCOCA, claiming it could be misused, the chief minister said, "PCOCA or some special law on similar lines has become necessary for Punjab in view of the widespread efforts being made by ISI through various radical forces and criminal gangs, to fan communal unrest in the state."



"But at the same time, we are mindful of the concerns of misuse of such legislation, given the experience of some other states," he said.



He said he had issued "clear instructions" for incorporating the tightest possible controls in the law to ensure that there was no misuse and nobody was harassed or victimised under it.



A cabinet meeting slated on November 17 is expected to discuss the PCOCA.



The proposed legislation is aimed at empowering police officers of the DIG rank or above to invoke the Act with a detailed note on reasons why the Indian Penal Code was not sufficient to deal with such crime.



"The police will get a lot of powers to tackle extremist and criminal forces under this legislation, and stringent provisions to check abuse of these powers will also be ensured," he said.



The cabinet sub-committee headed by minister Brahm Mohindra to draft the PCOCA legislation was examining all these aspects, he said.



"A fool-proof law will help the state control criminal and radical forces, while at the same time, also protect innocent people from victimisation," the chief minister said.



The previous SAD-BJP government had also proposed introducing the PCOCA, but some of the ministers had then apprehended that it could be misused for political vendetta.

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New Delhi:

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Friday failed to adopt a resolution on the mandate of an international panel investigating the alleged use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime.



This happened consecutively for the third time in two days, due to a negative vote by Russia.



Ever since Russia vetoed the UN resolution, it has become difficult to attribute the deaths of hundreds of civilians to any particular party privy to the civil war that has been going on for almost seven years and arrive to a conducive conclusion for all the concerned parties.



The mandate of the Joint Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)-UN panel, the Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) expires on November 18. However, had the Japanese resolution been adopted, the mandate of the JIM would have been renewed for a period of 30 days to allow time for negotiations on a wider compromise.



The JIM was established by the Council, unanimously, in 2015 to identify to the greatest extent feasible individuals, entities, groups, or governments perpetrating, organizing, sponsoring or otherwise involved in the use of chemical weapons in Syria.



It is the 11th time that Russia has used its veto power to stop council action targeting its ally Syria. After the vote, Nikki Haley, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations told the council: "Russia has no interest in saving the JIM. It will not agree to any mechanism that might shine a spotlight on the use of chemical weapons by its ally, the Syrian regime."



"It is as simple and shameful as that," she said.



In addition to Russia, Boliviaanother permanent member, also voted against the draft. A negative vote  or veto  from one of the Council's five permanent members (China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, and the United States) means a resolution cannot be adopted.

(With PTI inputs)

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New Delhi:

The Union Cabinet on Thursday gave its consent to constitute a National Anti-profiteering Authority under the GST, as it wants to ensure that the benefit of reduced prices must be passed to the consumer under the new indirect tax regime.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad asserted there are only 50 items which fall under the ambit of 28 per cent tax slab but several rates on many items have been deducted to 5 per cent as well.

While talking to reporters, Prasad said, "The National Anti-Profiteering Authority is an assurance to consumers of India. If any consumer feels that the benefit of tax rate cut is not being passed on, then he can complaint to the authority."

This reflects government's full commitment to take all possible steps to ensure benefits of implementation of GST to the common man, the minister said.

The approval by the Cabinet paves the way for the immediate establishment of the apex body, which is mandated to ensure that the benefits of GST rate reduction is passed on to consumers.

The GST Council, chaired by Union Finance Minister and comprising state counterparts, had last week decided to slash tax rates of over 200 items in the GST regime as well as lowered tax rates on AC and non-AC restaurants to 5 per cent.

Also Read: Rahul Gandhi says aim of GST is to break backbone of India, strengthen 5-6 industrialists

The Council had earlier approved setting up of a five-member National Anti-Profiteering Authority to enable consumers to file complaint in case price reduction is not passed on.

A five-member committee, headed by Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha, comprising Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia, CBEC Chairman Vanaja Sarna and chief secretaries from two states, has been entrusted to finalise the chairman and members of the authority.

The authority will have a sunset date of two years from the date on which the chairman assumes charge. The chairman and the four members of the authority have to be less than 62 years.

As per the structure of the anti-profiteering mechanism in the GST regime, complaints of local nature will be first sent to the state-level 'screening committee', while those of national level will be marked for the 'Standing Committee'.

If the complaints have merit, the respective committees would refer the cases for further investigation to the Directorate General of Safeguards (DGS). The DG Safeguards would generally take about three months to complete the investigation and send the report to the anti-profiteering authority.

Also Read: Chidambaram hits out at Modi govt on GST, says thanks to Gujarat elections

If the authority finds that a company has not passed on GST benefits, it will either direct the entity to pass on the benefits to consumers or if the beneficiary cannot be identified will ask the company to transfer the amount to the 'consumer welfare fund' within a specified timeline.

The authority will have the power to cancel registration of any entity or business if it fails to pass on to consumers the benefit of lower taxes under the GST regime, but it would probably be the last step against any violator. According to the anti?profiteering rules, the authority will suggest return of the undue profit earned from not passing on the reduction in incidence of tax to consumers along with an 18 per cent interest, as also impose penalty. (With PTI)

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New Delhi:

A Doha-bound IndiGo flight suffered a bird hit just after it took off from Chennai airport on Thursday at 2:15 AM. The Chennai-Doha IndiGo flight was carrying 134 passengers and seven crew members.

Soon after the plane was hit by a bird the plane returned to Chennai. It could have caused a major disaster but the pilot was successful in safe landing the flight. Meanwhile, the IndiGo's engineers were assessing the extent of the damage the passengers and cabin crew was shifted to another flight to Doha by 4:30 AM.

Last month, a Delhi-Raipur Air India flight made an emergency landing in Uttar Pradeshs Lucknow after a technical issue. However, there was no casualty reported and the passengers & crew members were all safe.

Earlier, aviation regulator DGCA had asked engine maker Pratt & Whitney to fix the snags in its engines powering Airbus 320 neo planes operated by IndiGo and GoAir within a "specified time".

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A shocking incident reported from New York , here an Indian-origin man has been charged with killing and sexually assaulting his 65-year-old mother at their on the eve of Mother's Day.

Let us share here that Accused name Pushkar Sharma, 28. He was allegedly carried out the deadly attack on Soraj Sharma at their home in Jamaica in Bellerose Manor on Saturday morning. The suspect is accused of grabbing his mother from behind, choking and punching her until she fell to the floor, prosecutors said. The New York Post quoted the officials as saying "Once down, the son allegedly continued the attack, strangling and punching his mother before sexually assaulting her. The victim lost consciousness and then died,".

While on investigation Pushkar Sharma told police, he continued choking her (mother) until he was pretty sure she was dead, the criminal complaint alleges. Covered in blood, Sharma gathered his wallet and keys and walked to the 105th Precinct, where he confessed to the unimaginable violence.

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The cases of cheque bouncing are rampant in Nepal nowadays. Cheque bouncing is regarded as a condition in which the receiver will not be able to exchange the issued cheque due to various reasons such as insufficient fund, overwriting in the cheque, mismatch of signature, among others. As per the law, cheque bouncing is regarded as one of the causes for dishonouring of the cheque.

Here is everything you need to know about laws related to cheque bouncing and/or dishonouring in Nepal.

In Nepal, the following two acts regulate this issue:

Provisions in the Negotiable Instruments Act

Conditions of cheque dishonouring

The Negotiable Instruments Act, 1977, regards the following acts as a dishonouring of a cheque:

Overwritten cheque If no signature is affixed or does not match with the specimen signature kept by the bank If the name of the drawee (one who accepts and, cashes the cheque) is absent or not clearly mentioned If the amounts written in words and figures do not match with each other If the account number is not mentioned or not mentioned clearly If the drawer (one who draws and, provides the cheque) asks the bank to stop the payment on the cheque If a court has given an order to the bank to stop the payment If the drawer has closed the account before presenting the cheque If the fund in the account is insufficient to meet the payment mentioned in the cheque If the bank receives information regarding the death or lunacy or insolvency of the drawer If the alteration made on the cheque is not proved by the drawer by giving his/her signature If the date is not mentioned or the cheque has expired

Filing a case against cheque dishonouring

Section 108 of the Negotiable Instrument Act, 1977, mentions that a complaint shall be filed within five years from the date of the cause of action to file such a complaint. The process for filing the case at the concerned district court is listed below:

Step 1: Filing of a statement of claim (phiradpatra) by the party

Step 2: Reply by other party on the statement of claim, which is regarded as pratyuttarpatra.

Step 3: Collection of evidence and examination of witnesses

Step 4: Hearing and final decision by the district court

Step 5: Filing an appeal at a high court, if the any of the party is not satisfied with the decision rendered by the district court

Remedies

Section 107A of Negotiable Instrument Act, 1977, provides the following remedy to the affected party.

Recovery of the amount mentioned in the cheque with interest Imprisonment not exceeding three months or fine up to Rs 3,000 or both

Photo: Wannapik

Provisions in the Banking Offence and Punishment Act

Definition

Section 3(c) of Banking Offence and Punishment Act, 2008, has it that if drawer draws a cheque knowingly to make a payment from an account where he/she has an apparent knowledge that the account does not have sufficient balance to cover the amount of the cheque drawn, it is regarded as an act of dishonouring the cheque.

Procedure to file a case

Section 7(1) of the Banking Offence and Punishment Act, 2064, mentions a complaint shall be filed within one year from the date of cause of action to file such a complaint. The process for filing the case in the concerned high court is listed below:

Step 1: Submission of the first information report (FIR) at the concerned police station

Step 2: Police will carry out investigation, which they will submit to government attorney.

Step 3: Filing of a charge sheet at the high court by the government attorney

Step 4: Hearing for bail at the high court: It is the first hearing in that particular case

Step 5: Examination of witness

Step 6: Hearing when the high court will render it decision

Step 7: Filing an appeal at the Supreme Court, if any of the parties is not satisfied with the decision rendered by the high court

Remedies

The Banking Offence and Punishment Act, 2008, provides the following remedy to the affected party:
Saudi Arabias moon sighting committee has confirmed that the first day of Eid Al Fitr would be on Thursday (May 13) as the crescent moon marking the beginning of Shawwal had not been sighted from the Tamir observatory, reported Arab News.

It means the Ramadan month this year will be 30 days and Eid Al-Fitr celebrations will begin on Thursday, it added.

Bahrain has declared a three-day holiday to mark the occasion. Qatar has already announced that Thursday will mark the first day of Eid.
Roshan Roka, 28, a resident of Dhumbarahi in Kathmandu, was in a relationship with Soniya Budhathoki, 26, of Kalanki, for the past few years. Last year, they had a plan to wed.

However, there were a few lagans (auspicious dates) for weddings last year, hence they postponed it until this spring. With the beginning of the Nepali new year, the wedding season began with so many auspicious dates, which marriageable young men and women such as Roka and Budhathoki were waiting for to tie the conjugal knot.

But, soon, their dream wedding was hit by the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. Yet, this couple say this lockdown wedding turned into a forgettable one, although they are sure they will not forget.

Groom Roshan Roka and bride Soniya Budhathoki. Photo courtesy: Roshan Roka

Read their story below to know why.

Behind the scene

Actually, the talks of our wedding started in the winter last year. By then, all my family members, as well as her family, had known about our courtship, remembers Roka, Meanwhile, the talks of my younger sisters wedding with her long-term boyfriend began. And, we all decided to get her wedded first and postponed our wedding.

Then, Roka says his family priest decided the date of April 30 for the wedding after studying the birth charts of the couple. The priest of the Budhathoki family also agreed on the date.

According to Roka, during his sisters wedding, he purchased all the jewellery for his bride also. Later, Rokas family also completed the rest of the shopping in the third week of April.

However, shopping from the bride side had not even started. Although we started late, we got it done two days before the prohibitory order was announced. However, we forgot to buy three major things required for the wedding ritual which we remembered just a day before the wedding, opens Budhathoki.

Troubles overloaded

Hence, it was huge trouble getting those utensils that the family needed for the goda-dhuwai (the ritual of washing the feet of the wedding couple by the bridges family) on time during the strict lockdown. They contacted many online stores and nearby shops. Luckily, one of their relatives who owns a utensils shop helped them manage these copper utensils, according to Budhathoki.

Goda-dhuwai ritual of Budhathoki-Roka wedding ceremony. Photo courtesy: Roshan Roka

Another problem that the couple and their families faced was huge traffic congestion after the prohibitory order was announced and before it was imposed. Budhathokis cousin Sushma who had gone to the grooms house to send them invitations and gifts, remembers, While returning from the grooms house, we had to sit in a taxi for about three hours. Also, one of our gifts to the couple, a washing machine, got stuck in its way due to the jam. It hasnt reached till date.

Roka also talks about his share of troubles, My sisters in-laws and other relatives had come all the way from Tehrathum for my wedding on April 26, but they had to return two days before the wedding as the transportation would be suspended the next day.

Like Rokas relatives, Budhathokis elder brother and sister-in-law, who have been living in Qatar for six years, could not make up for the wedding as they were not allowed to travel anywhere by their respective employers, grimaces Budhathoki.

Dilemma over the guest list

In the meantime, before the lockdown was announced, the guests list kept on changing several times as they were not sure what was going to happen next. Even amidst this uncertainty, the brides family had reserved a venue for the wedding at a temple in Balkhu. However, that went in vain after the lockdown was imposed in the Kathmandu valley.

Groom Roshan Roka with his guests. Photo courtesy: Roshan Roka

On the other hand, Roka says, Till the third week of April, my family and I had decided to invite about 100 guests for the wedding procession. We had estimated about 200 guests from both sides altogether.

But, soon, the groom got a call from the brides family for another round of discussion about conducting the wedding as the media outlets were flooded with the contents about the second wave of Covid-19 in Nepal. It was the last week of April.

After the discussion, we all together decided to conduct a wedding, inviting only 25 people from both sides in total to a temple, says Roka.

But, after many discussions, it was decided to conduct the ceremony on a rooftop, and considering all health protocols.

The big day

Then, the wedding day finally came and as ordered by the District Administration Office, Roka and his family limited the invitees up to 20 and left for the bridges house on two vehicles with shubha bibaha (happy weddings) banners. Thus, they faced no problem in reaching the brides house.



Sindoor ritual and pheras ritual. Photo courtesy: Roshan Roka

But, Budhathoki, who had dreamt of a fairytale wedding since her childhood, never wanted the wedding she had. I was really upset. I could not invite my extended family members, relatives, my friends, and dear ones who never miss inviting me and my family on any occasion. More than that, I missed my mothers mother, my elder brother and my sister-in-laws presence at my wedding.

Nonetheless, she consoles herself, What could we do? We all were and still are chained by the circumstances.

What turned her down, even more, was the attitude of her family priest, shares Budhathoki. My house did not even look like a brides home as our priest didnt make us perform all these rituals citing the fear of spreading the coronavirus.

When our family urged him to at least set up the mandap on the morning of the wedding day, he clearly rejected and asked to find another priest if we wanted to do so, laments Budhathoki.

She says it also left the grooms family dissatisfied, hence, they made up it the next day.

Roka and Budhathoki have put their reception and the traditional ritual of the in-laws meeting on hold until the lockdown will be over.
Cybersecurity

CISA's Wales backs new response, recovery fund

Following four major cybersecurity attacks on the federal government in recent months, the acting head of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency on Tuesday enthusiastically backed a bipartisan bill to establish a "response and recovery" fund for cybersecurity incidents.

The bill, introduced in April by Sens. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio) would allow the homeland security secretary and national cyber director to declare a "significant cyber incident." After doing so, DHS and CISA would have immediate access to funds to begin helping federal and private sector entities respond to incidents. The two senators, who lead the Senate's Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, proposed establishing the fund with $20 million to be used over seven years.

The fund was also included in the Biden administration's initial 2022 budget plan.

"We think that this is an absolutely instrumental advancement in the country's ability to respond to significant and catastrophic cyber incidents," CISA's acting director Brandon Wales told the Senate committee on Tuesday. "We have seen that our adversaries are increasingly focused on broad campaigns -- campaigns that do not focus on any individual sector."

Wales said the funding would go toward expanding CISA's incident response teams with additional contractors, developing and deploying new technologies to be used by those teams and reimbursing other agencies, such as the Defense Department's U.S. Cyber Command, when CISA requests their assistance with a response effort.

Most of the congressional hearings about the government's recovery post-SolarWinds has focused on what went wrong and potential cybersecurity modernization. However, the Senate panel's hearing today featured the chief information security officers of two federal agencies that were compromised.

Ryan Higgins and Janet Vogel, CISOs for Commerce and Health and Human Services Departments, respectively, outlined immediate steps their agencies took after learning that Russian intelligence agents had breached their networks.

Peters questioned the CISOs about the level of detail included in the congressional notification sent by Commerce and the lack of a notification by HHS.

Higgins said Commerce notified lawmakers of a "major incident" at the time and said the lack of detail was due to the department's own lack of information in the moment. Vogel said HHS at the time did not feel the intrusion met that standard of a major incident and confirmed its decision with CISA not to declare an incident.

"When we received notice and the details of an incident, we were able to respond very quickly with an assessment of whether we had been compromised and the impact of that," said Vogel. "As we looked at the impact against the criteria, we felt that we had not lost any data, we had also firewalled everything appropriately, that there wouldn't be follow-up activity."

Vogel's response prompted Portman to float the idea of "tightening up" the requirement for agencies to report incidents, citing the equivalent requirements for CISA and the Office of Management and Budget as being "far more specific."

Colonial Pipelines response

Lawmakers framed many of their questions in light of the Darkside ransomware attack that has shut down a key natural gas pipeline for the East Coast for several days.

Portman asked Wales a series of questions about the level of communication Colonial Pipelines, the company operating that pipeline, has had with the federal government since being victimized on Friday. Wales told lawmakers that CISA had been brought into the investigation through the FBI. Wales also said he did not believe Colonial would have contacted CISA directly had the FBI not acted as an intermediary.

Asked if "that's a problem," Wales didn't answer directly, but said that there is "benefit" when CISA is brought into situations quickly because it can distribute relevant information to other critical infrastructure providers.

"It seems to me we also have to worry about these attacks, whether they are direct cyberattacks on the federal government or whether they are attacks on the private sector, whether they are ransomware attacks, being communicated to CISA," Portman said.
IT Modernization

Funding is only part of the answer for UI modernization

States appear poised to solve the problem of obsolete and buggy technology hindering the delivery of unemployment insurance benefits, thanks to $2 billion in funding in the American Rescue Plan Act. But state leaders say that funding and federal involvement isn't enough.

"I think there is this vision that there'll be a great modernized system that the feds can come up with," said Sue Anne Athens, CIO in New Mexico's Department of Workforce Solutions, at an event hosted by GovExec. She noted that federal agencies that themselves have outdated tech in need of modernization and pointed to policy issues that can impede delivery at the state level.

"At the end of the day, the state owns the UI system. It owns the processes. It has the subject matter expertise on the ground," she said.

New Mexico modernized their UI system in 2013 and has tried to pursue continuous modernization and improvement since then, she said. But Department of Labor funding can't necessarily be used for continuous improvement, which can be a "constraint," she said.

Mark Butler, Commissioner of Labor in Georgia, said funding cycles for state workforce agencies themselves can present a hurdle to IT modernization and management. Generally, state workforce agencies get less funding during economically prosperous times, when less people are applying for UI, Butler said.

"We're the opposite of everything else in government," he said. "Our funding formula is probably 35 to 40 years old and it's mainly based on the number of claims being done."

That can lend itself to a modernization effort tied to funding levels that change over time based on the economy, Athens said. Right now, Georgia's workforce agency is "flush with cash," Butler said. "Since March of 2020, we money has not been an issue."

His office is using the resources to fill hiring needs, but he's already thinking about when these funding resources might go away when the crisis ends, Butler said.

Although New Mexico and Georgia aren't in need of UI tech overhauls, Athens and Butler said that some of DOL's tech portals used by states themselves could need some updates as well.

"We're still tied to some of the federal systems which are lacking in modernization," Athens said.

Athens did say that she would welcome DOL help with identity management and fraud prevention, issues that have shot up during the pandemic with soaring numbers of fraudulent claims.
(Adds details on ACCC consultation, Woolworths statement)

May 11 (Reuters) - Australian grocer Woolworths Group Ltd has offered draft commitments to ensure its deal to buy two-thirds of PFD Food Services will not hurt competition in the food sector, the country's competition regulator said on Tuesday.

Woolworths and PFD have offered to maintain "a degree of separation and independence" for three years after the deal, unless some early termination clauses are triggered, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said.

The companies indicated that the move would "preserve the current market dynamics and enable market participants, such as independent suppliers, to continue to do business with Woolworths and PFD independently," ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said.

The proposed measures will also place obligations on PFD's board and governance structure, and impose confidentiality protocols regarding certain supplier information, the ACCC said.

The regulator had said in December that the deal by the nation's biggest grocer may increase the company's already "substantial" bargaining power in dealing with food manufacturers.

The ACCC will consult with market participants on the proposed undertakings until May 19 and make a final decision on the deal on June 10, it said.

A Woolworths spokesperson said the company was pleased that the ACCC was consulting with relevant stakeholders on the matter.

"We continue to submit to the ACCC that the proposed partnership will give rise to no substantive competition concerns irrespective of the undertaking we have offered," the spokesperson said. (Reporting by Shashwat Awasthi in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
(Adds quotes, background)

CAIRO, May 10 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) executive board approved on Monday a financing plan to help mobilize resources needed for the fund to cover its share of debt relief to Sudan.

The financing plan relies on a broad effort of IMF member countries, including cash grants and contributions derived from the fund's internal resources, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in a statement.

"This marks a critical step in helping Sudan advance the process of normalizing relations with the international community and make progress towards achieving debt relief under the Heavily-Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) Initiative," she added.

The IMF said on Friday it had reached a staff-level agreement with Sudan on completion of the second and final review under its staff-monitored programme, in a step towards debt relief.

A strong performance under the year-long IMF economic reform programme is a requirement for Sudan to reach the "decision point" for debt relief under the HIPC process. Sudan is expected to reach that point in June.

In April, a French diplomat said France was prepared to grant a bridge loan of up to $1.5 billion to clear Sudan's arrears to the IMF and bring the country a step closer to securing relief on much of its debt.

Sudan, whose transitional civilian government is battling a crippling economic crisis, is seeking relief on at least $50 billion in external debt to international financial institutions, official bilateral creditors and commercial creditors.

The African nation has already secured bridge loans from the United States and Britain to clear arrears to the World Bank and African Development Bank. About 85% of the debt is in arrears.

Sudan is emerging from decades of economic sanctions and isolation under former President Omar al-Bashir, who was ousted by the military after months of popular protests in April 2019.

(Reporting by Nadine Awadalla and Nafisa Eltahir; Writing by Nayera Abdallah and Mahmoud Mourad; Editing by Leslie Adler and Richard Chang)
VANCOUVER, BC, May 10, 2021 /CNW/ - (TSX: AOI) (Nasdaq-Stockholm: AOI)  Africa Oil Corp. ("Africa Oil", "AOC" or the "Company") will publish its financial and operating results and related management's discussion and analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2021, after Toronto market close on Thursday, May 13, 2021. View PDF version

Senior management will hold a conference call to discuss the results on Friday, May 14, 2021 at 09:00 (ET) / 15:00 (CET). The conference call may be accessed by dial in or via webcast:

Canada +1 416 764 8650 North America toll free +1 888 664 6383 Sweden +46 20 089 9189 UK +44 800 652 2435 Dial in code 96842764# Webcast URL https://produceredition.webcasts.com/starthere.jsp?ei=1462627&tp_key=60cb2b5ea3

A recording of the webcast will be available on the Company's website after the event.

About Africa Oil

Africa Oil Corp. is a Canadian oil and gas company with producing and development assets in deepwater Nigeria; development assets in Kenya; and an exploration/appraisal portfolio in Africa and Guyana. The Company is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and on Nasdaq Stockholm under the symbol "AOI".

Additional Information

This information is information that Africa Oil is obliged to make public pursuant to the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at 6:30 p.m. ET on May 10, 2021.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains statements and information which constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" (within the meaning of applicable securities legislation). Such statements and information (together, "forward-looking statements") relate to future events, including the Corporation's future performance, business prospects or opportunities. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release, unless otherwise indicated. Africa Oil does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable laws.

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All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking statements. Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, forecasts, guidance, budgets, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "project", "forecast", "predict", "potential", "targeting", "intend", "could", "might", "should", "believe", "budget" and similar expressions) are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements".

Africa Oil to Release First Quarter 2021 Financial Results on May 13, 2021 (CNW Group/Africa Oil Corp.)

SOURCE Africa Oil Corp.

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BRASILIA, May 10 (Reuters) - Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Ricardo Lewandowski on Monday gave health regulator Anvisa 48 hours to report which documents it needs to approve imports of the Russian-made COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V.

The judge's ruling followed a request from the northern state of Maranhao. Anvisa denied requests by Brazilian states to approve Sputnik V for import on April 26, citing "serious" defects and potential safety issues. (Reporting by Ricardo Brito Writing by Jamie McGeever)
TEL AVIV, Israel and BETHESDA, Md., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Cannabics Pharmaceuticals Inc. (OTCQB: CNBX), a global leader in the development of cancer related cannabinoid-based medicine, announced today that it had filed a patent application under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) for novel formulations developed for treatment of various cancer types.

Cannabics Pharmaceuticals Logo

Said patent application includes ample preclinical supporting data collected from in-vitro experiments performed in the company's in-house drug discovery facilities in Israel, as well as from in-vivo experiments performed on mice.

Gabriel Yariv, Cannabics Pharmaceuticals President and COO: "After a rigorous process of screening, testing and analyzing a variety of unique molecular compounds, and their effect on human biopsies and cancer cell lines, we have identified specific formulations that stand out in terms of their performance. These formulations are detailed in the current PCT application, and we plan to turn them into new drug candidates for specific cancer treatments in the near future".

This news follows the company's announcement from last week concerning "Notice of Allowance" received by the company from The Mexican Patent and Trademark Office (IMPI) on a separate patent application.

About Cannabics Pharmaceuticals:

Cannabics Pharmaceuticals Inc. (OTCQB: CNBX) is a U.S. public company and a global leader in the development of cancer related cannabinoid-based medicine. The Company's R&D is based in Israel, where it is licensed by the Ministry of Health to conduct scientific and clinical research on cannabinoid formulations and cancer. For more information, please visit www.cannabics.com. For the latest updates on Cannabics Pharmaceuticals follow the Company on Twitter @Cannabics, Facebook @CannabicsPharmaceuticals, LinkedIn, and on Instagram @Cannabics_Pharmaceuticals.

Disclaimer:

Certain statements contained in this release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other U.S. Federal securities laws. Such statements include but are not limited to statements identified by words such as "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "targets," "projects" and similar expressions. The statements in this release are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of our Company's management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those outlined in the forward-looking statements. Numerous factors could cause or contribute to such differences, including, but not limited to, results of clinical trials and other studies, the challenges inherent in new product development initiatives, the effect of any competitive products, our ability to license and protect our intellectual property, our ability to raise additional capital in the future that is necessary to maintain our business, changes in government policy and regulation, potential litigation by or against us, any governmental review of our products or practices, as well as other risks discussed from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission including, without limitation, our latest 10-Q Report filed April 14th, 2021. We undertake no duty to update any forward-looking statement or any information contained in this press release or other public disclosures at any time. Finally, the investing public is reminded that the only announcements or information about Cannabics Pharmaceuticals Inc., which are condoned by the Company, must emanate from the Company itself and bear our name as its source.

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For more information about Cannabics:

Cannabics Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Phone: +1-(877)-424-2429

info@Cannabics.com

http://www.Cannabics.com

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SOURCE Cannabics Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Virtual Event Highlights II-VIs Innovation Strategy, Markets, and Technology Platforms Underpinning the Transformation to Mobile, Intelligent, and Electric

PITTSBURGH, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- II-VI Incorporated (Nasdaq: IIVI), a global leader in engineered materials and optoelectronic components, announced today that the Company will present a special webcast for investors on Thursday, May 20, 2021, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. ET. The II-VI Advanced Markets & Technologies event will feature II-VIs top leaders presenting insights into the Companys innovation strategy, markets, and technology platforms. A live Q&A with equity analysts will follow the presentations, beginning at 11:30 a.m., and will be hosted by Dr. Vincent D. (Chuck) Mattera, Jr., CEO; Dr. Giovanni Barbarossa, Chief Strategy Officer and President of the Compound Semiconductors Segment; and Mary Jane Raymond, Chief Financial Officer.



Webcast URL :

Individuals wishing to participate in the webcast can access the event at the Companys website,

www.ii-vi.com, or via https://event.webcasts.com/starthere.jsp?ei=1458618&tp_key=0d84852a81.

The presentation materials will be available on the Investor Relations tab of the II-VI website at ii-vi.com/investor-presentations/.

About II-VI Incorporated

II-VI Incorporated, a global leader in engineered materials and optoelectronic components, is a vertically integrated manufacturing company that develops innovative products for diversified applications in communications, industrial, aerospace & defense, semiconductor capital equipment, life sciences, consumer electronics, and automotive markets. Headquartered in Saxonburg, Pennsylvania, the Company has research and development, manufacturing, sales, service, and distribution facilities worldwide. The Company produces a wide variety of application-specific photonic and electronic materials and components, and deploys them in various forms, including integrated with advanced software to support our customers. For more information, please visit us at www.ii-vi.com.

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Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to future events and expectations that are based on certain assumptions and contingencies. The forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and relate to the Companys performance on a going-forward basis. The forward-looking statements in this press release involve risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results, performance, or trends to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements herein or in previous disclosures.

The Company believes that all forward-looking statements made by it in this press release have a reasonable basis, but there can be no assurance that managements expectations, beliefs, or projections as expressed in the forward-looking statements will actually occur or prove to be correct. In addition to general industry and global economic conditions, factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements in this press release include but are not limited to: (i) the failure of any one or more of the assumptions stated above to prove to be correct; (ii) the risks relating to forward-looking statements and other Risk Factors discussed in the Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2020; (iii) the purchasing patterns of customers and end users; (iv) the timely release of new products, and acceptance of such new products by the market; (v) the introduction of new products by competitors and other competitive responses; (vi) the Companys ability to assimilate recently acquired businesses, and risks, costs, and uncertainties associated with such acquisitions; (vii) the Companys ability to devise and execute strategies to respond to market conditions; and/or (viii) the risks of business and economic disruption related to the currently ongoing COVID-19 outbreak and any other worldwide health epidemics and outbreaks that may arise. The Company disclaims any obligation to update information contained in these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or developments, or otherwise.

CONTACT:

Mary Jane Raymond

Chief Financial Officer

investor.relations@ii-vi.com

www.ii-vi.com/contact-us




Orange is accelerating its solar projects in Africa and the Middle East to reduce its carbon footprint to zero by 2040.

Across the entire region, many sites are not connected to the electricity grid and when they are, the quality of the grid often requires alternative backup solutions. To avoid using generators that run on fuel (fossil energy that emits CO2), Orange is putting in place several initiatives such as solar panels.

In several of its subsidiaries, Orange is deploying innovative solar solutions and the latest generation batteries with partners specializing in energy. To reduce its environmental footprint, the Group is positioning itself in these countries as the biggest deployer of solar panels, with a renewable energy use rate already at over 50% for Orange Guinea, 41% for Orange Madagascar and 40% for Orange Sierra Leone.

These solar panel solutions have also been or will soon be deployed in other African and Middle Eastern countries where Orange is present, like Liberia, for instance, where 75% of Orange's telecom sites are equipped with solar panels. In total, Orange has installed solar panels at 5,400 of its telecom sites (some 100% solar, others hybrid) saving 55 million liters of fuel each year.

Furthermore, in Jordan, Orange has launched three solar farms to switch to clean and renewable energy helping to reduce its carbon footprint. In 2020, these solar farm projects covered over 65% of Orange Jordans energy needs. Since 2018, the company has successfully reduced its CO2 emissions by 45 kilotons thanks to this solar infrastructure.

Alioune Ndiaye, CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa says: We are proud to be the first company by number of solar panels in 5 countries in Africa and the Middle East. As a stakeholder in the energy transition, Orange has included in its Engage 2025 strategic plan the objective of meeting 50% of the Groups electricity needs from renewable sources by 2025. We are aiming for net zero carbon by 2040."

Orange is present in 18 countries in Africa and the Middle East and has around 130 million customers as at March 31, 2021. With 5.8 billion ($7.04 billion) in turnover in 2020, Orange MEA is the Groups main growth region.

Orange Money, with its mobile-based money transfer and financial services offer is available in 17 countries and has 50 million customers. Orange, a multi-service operator, benchmark partner of the digital transformation, provides its expertise to support the development of new digital services in Africa and the Middle East. -- TradeArabia News Service
MANHATTAN, Ill., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The head of one of the Chicago area's largest industrial mechanical contracting companies with a proven record and active program of minority recruitment and training has announced his opposition to HB3437, currently pending in the Illinois Senate.

Independent contractor opposes Illinois HB3437, warning construction career opportunities for minority youth are in jeopardy.

The reason: House Bill 3437 would require privately owned petroleum refineries, petrochemical facilities, and ethanol plants in Illinois to pay state government-mandated wages on construction work done on their facilities. Under the guise of "safety", and keeping jobs in Illinois, the bill is simply a ruse that will result in all construction and maintenance work to be performed exclusively by members of certain trade unions. HB3437 would require a certain percentage of professional "journeyman" working at the facilities, safety training, and reporting of minority participation in apprenticeship programs.

"This bill ignores economic equity and strips minorities of opportunities to work in construction," says Michael Uremovich, owner and president of Manhattan Mechanical Services, an Illinois-based merit shop contractor.

"HB 3437 is not about safety" he continues, "but rather the hypocrisy behind this bill is exposed as 100% unionized facilities are exempt under the legislation. That means that union contractors are not required to meet the journeyman, safety training or apprenticeship reporting requirements. In fact, one of the more recent instances of a safety failure was at a 100% unionized refinery."

He adds, "It's also not about assuring use of Illinois jobs. First, the refineries, manufacturing facilities and ethanol plants impacted by HB 3437 will see their costs increase which will result in fewer jobs in Illinois. Plus, contractors like myself will be forced to abandon support of construction career pipelines like the Community Builders Program. My company has partnered with a number of minority community organizations such as Project Hood to provide access to the construction industry for black and brown workers."

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In opposing the bill, Manhattan Mechanical joins numerous reputable organizations, including: Associated Builders and Contractors (A.B.C.), the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, West Side N.A.A.C.P., Project H.O.O.D., Chicago Urban League, and other groups from communities of color.

Join Manhattan Mechanical Services, and the Construction Fairness Alliance in opposing HB 3437 here .

In the name of safety, the bill adversely impacts merit shop contractors, who have worked relentlessly to diversify the construction industry. Established merit shops take training and safety seriously, Uremovich notes, implementing strict employee safety standards and apprenticeship training programs.

Below are four examples of the positive impact merit shop contractors have had on diversity and safety in construction:

Partnerships with organizations that provide training to minorities for job opportunities.

Manhattan Mechanical Services works closely with A.B.C. and Project H.O.O.D. to create career opportunities for young people living in underserved neighborhoods of Chicago.

Like other merit shops, Manhattan Mechanical supports A.B.C.'s Community Builders Program and other workforce-development initiatives that empower individuals facing serious barriers. Manhattan Mechanical hires from each Community Builders Program cohort every four to six months. This program has trained more than 180 students from 10 underserved communities in Illinois.

Graduates from these programs earn an average wage of $16.50 per hour while also having opportunities for upward mobility. "If HB3437 passes," says Uremovich, "it will harm workforce development programs that are doing exactly what members of the General Assembly have been asking the unions to do for more than 40 years."

A 2020 Union Members Report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (B.L.S.) indicates that unions represent only 13.9% percent of employed Black or African American individuals.

"The B.L.S. refuses to provide specific union demographic information by city or state, because minority numbers are so low," says Uremovich.

Opening of new facilities creating job opportunities in construction

Manhattan Mechanical Services recently opened new facility in East Chicago , bringing 80 new, good-paying jobs to the community.

"We are committed to building a trained and certified workforce of craft professionals by offering accredited training programs through NCCER," Uremovich remarked during the East Chicago grand opening in November 2020.

Entry-level pay is $16 per hour at Manhattan Mechanical. But once an apprenticeship ends, a worker will be in a position to earn a six-figure annual wage.

Apprenticeship programs and career development

Manhattan Mechanical Services administers specialized knowledge and skills necessary for craftspeople working in the construction, maintenance, and pipeline industries. The company has trained approximately 160 men and women recruits since 2011, 25% of whom were minorities.

Manhattan Mechanical provides the journey-level assessments and performance verifications free of charge to employees and offers journey-level assessment testing to the public.

Impeccable safety record

Manhattan Mechanical Services has an impeccable safety record and consistently exceeds OSHA standards. The company recently celebrated its second consecutive year with zero OSHA-recordable injuries at a large University Park, IL chemical plant. This particular maintenance contract holds an impressive safety record as well  seven consecutive years injury-free.

"Petrochemical refineries are among some of the safest job sites, compared with private commercial projects, and state or federal construction projects," says Uremovich.

"Illinois has the safest record in the petrochemical industry of any state in the nation," noted Alicia Martin, President of the Associated Builders and Contractors of Illinois, in a recent chapter news release.

"But this bill is not actually about safety or the needs of actual people in our communities," she continued. "The over 350 opposition slips filed against this issue during a recent committee hearing is evidence that this legislation has many problems."

CLICK HERE TO SEND A DIRECT MESSAGE TO STATE SENATOR MICHAEL E. HASTINGS [D-FRANKFORT] AND GOVERNOR J.B. PRITZKER TO VOTE "NO" TO HB3437

About Manhattan Mechanical Services

Merit Shop Proud.

Manhattan Mechanical Services is the premier merit shop mechanical services contractor in the Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana Area. Safety and integrity are the common threads binding our employees, our customers, and our community together. We are committed to a progressive career path for employees, complete with certifiable skills training. Manhattan Mechanical Services is a unique services provider that supports our customers in multiple areas: industrial maintenance services, process piping, structural steel, equipment installation, scaffolding and insulation. We specialize in providing turnkey projects to our customers.

Visit: meritshopworks.com

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SOURCE Manhattan Mechanical Services
OTTAWA, ON, May 10, 2021 /CNW/ - The Honourable David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, and the Honourable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, today issued the following statement:

"Five years ago, on May 10, 2016, the Government of Canada changed its position to fully support the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. On this day we endorsed the Declaration without qualification and committed to its full and effective implementation. We acknowledged the enormous effort and struggle from Indigenous leaders, across Canada and the world, to bring the Declaration into fruition and the Government of Canada became an active partner in the collaborative work to advance its implementation. These efforts have resulted in a significant shift in the global will to protect the rights, culture, language, dignity and wellbeing of Indigenous peoples worldwide.

"Since 2016, the Government of Canada has been working closely with Indigenous peoples to put the Declaration in action. We have co-developed legislation on First Nations, Inuit and Metis to affirm the rights of Indigenous peoples to exercise jurisdiction in relation to child and family services to their communities. Working with Indigenous partners, we developed the Indigenous Languages Act, which supports the reclamation, revitalization, maintenance and strengthening of Indigenous languages.

"We've been engaging directly with Indigenous partners at over 150 discussion tables across the country to explore flexible, rights-based agreements that support the renewal of Crown-Indigenous relationships based upon the recognition of rights, respect, cooperation and partnership. We continue to work with Indigenous institutional partners to remove barriers for First Nations that decide to opt-out of land and fiscal management sections of the Indian Act to self-govern their land and financial resources. We are also supporting initiatives to revitalize Indigenous laws and support access to justice. All of these measures contribute to the implementation of the Declaration in Canada.

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"On December 3, 2020, we introduced Bill C-15, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. If passed, this Bill would create a lasting framework to advance federal implementation of the Declaration in collaboration with Indigenous peoples. This would help create a roadmap for the Government of Canada and Indigenous peoples to work together to achieve the promise of the Declaration while respecting Aboriginal and treaty rights recognized and affirmed in the Constitution.

"Working in partnership with First Nations, Inuit and Metis to effectively implement the Declaration will advance reconciliation for the benefit of all Canadians. We know there is much more to be done and we look forward to continuing this important work in partnership with Indigenous peoples. Working together to advance reconciliation and to implement the Declaration will help us all build a brighter, more inclusive future and a better Canada for current and future generations."



Associated Links

SOURCE Department of Justice Canada

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Reuters

TOKYO/JOHANNESBURG/LONDON (Reuters) -Haunted by memories of past U.S. interest rate hikes, the world's central banks are laying the groundwork for a transition to life with less global stimulus, with many countries already signalling moves to the exit. While the Federal Reserve is publicly committed to keeping interest rates near zero -- and no hikes are priced in until late next year at the earliest -- official comments about inflationary pressures could become a chorus in months ahead, making tapering a more concrete prospect and likely heightening volatility in global financial markets. For some developed economies, a return to pre-pandemic conditions means central bank stimulus withdrawal is already in the works.
Three PIH Health Hospitals in the Top 5% in the Nation for Patient Safety

WHITTIER, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- PIH Health Downey Hospital, PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital, and PIH Health Whittier Hospital have been recognized as a Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award recipient. This distinction places PIH Health among the top 5% of all short-term acute care hospitals reporting patient safety data as evaluated by Healthgrades, the leading marketplace connecting patients and providers.

PIH Health Logo (PRNewsfoto/PIH Health)

"Patient safety is always our top priority," says James R. West, PIH Health president and chief executive officer. "Working together to face the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic brought about this last year has bolstered our commitment to our patients and communities, and we have focused even more attention on safety within all of our facilities. We are honored to be recognized for our commitment to our patients' safety and well-being and attribute this award to the unwavering dedication of all our employees, medical staff, and volunteers."

From 2017 through 2019, there were 190,273 potentially preventable patient safety events among Medicare patients in U.S. hospitals.* And, if all hospitals, as a group, performed similarly to hospitals performing better than expected on each of 13 Patient Safety Indicators (PSIs) evaluated by Healthgrades, on average, 106,052 patient safety events could have been avoided.*

During this time frame, four patient safety indicators accounted for 72% of all patient safety events (collapsed lung, hip fracture due to an in-hospital fall, pressure or bed sores, and catheter-related bloodstream infections). Healthgrades found that patients treated in hospitals receiving the Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award were, on average*:

50.3% less likely to experience a collapsed lung due to a procedure or surgery in or around the chest, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals*

60.3% less likely to experience an in-hospital fall resulting in hip fracture, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals*

66.5% less likely to experience pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals*

65.4% less likely to experience catheter-related bloodstream infections acquired in the hospital, than patients treated at non- recipient hospitals*

"The importance of hospital quality is now at the forefront of consumers' minds, especially as we continue to navigate COVID-19. We congratulate the recipients of the Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award for their ongoing commitment to upholding the highest quality standards for their patients and communities," said Brad Bowman MD, Healthgrades chief medical officer.

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PIH Health participates in safety best practices across all of our hospitals and outpatient medical offices. Employees are regularly engaged in important discussions about the safety initiatives already in place in PIH Health facilities, and, together with leadership, continuously work to see where enhancements can be made to improve upon patient safety.

During the study period (2017 through 2019), Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award recipient hospitals demonstrated excellent performance in patient safety within the Medicare population, as measured by objective outcomesrisk-adjusted patient safety indicator (PSI) ratesfor 13 PSIs defined by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). A 14th PSI is included in the evaluation - Foreign Objects Left in Body During a Surgery or Procedure  which is a "never" event and does not have an expected rate.

View Healthgrades hospital quality methodologies.

*Statistics are calculated from Healthgrades Patient Safety Ratings and Excellence Award methodology which is based primarily on AHRQ technical specifications (Version 2020.0.1) to MedPAR data for years 2017 through 2019 and represent three-year estimates for Medicare patients only.

About PIH Health

PIH Health is a nonprofit, regional healthcare network that serves approximately 3.7 million residents in the Los Angeles County, Orange County and San Gabriel Valley region. The fully integrated network is comprised of PIH Health Downey Hospital, PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital, PIH Health Whittier Hospital, 35 outpatient medical office buildings, a multispecialty medical (physician) group, home healthcare services and hospice care, as well as heart, cancer, digestive health, orthopedics, women's health, urgent care and emergency services. The organization is recognized by Watson Health as one of the nation's Top Hospitals, and College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) as one of the nation's top hospital systems for best practices, cutting-edge advancements, quality of care and healthcare technology. PIH Health is also certified as a Great Place to Work. For more information, visit PIHHealth.org or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.

Cision

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SOURCE PIH Health
FILE PHOTO: SoftBank Corp's logo is pictured at a news conference in Tokyo

By Liz Lee

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -Malaysian telecommunications firm Axiata Group Bhd on Tuesday said Japanese peer SoftBank Corp will invest $60 million in its digital analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) arm ADA.

SoftBank will own 23% of ADA via new shares, with its investment valuing the unit at $260 million, Axiata said in a statement.

ADA will use the proceeds to expand in South and Southeast Asia, while SoftBank will establish the unit as its core digital and data marketing partner in Asia, Axiata said.

"(SoftBank) aims to leverage its network of portfolio companies in proposing and providing digital marketing solutions that incorporate ADA's proprietary technologies and consumer AI models," Axiata said.

"This alliance with ADA heralds a new theme in this growth strategy as it will enable us to deploy our digital marketing business outside Japan," said SoftBank Representative Director and Chairman Ken Miyauchi.

ADA Chief Executive Srinivas Gattamneni said in a virtual media briefing that SoftBank's funds will go into developing and investing in big data platforms, artificial intelligence and automation technology for digital marketing and advertising.

The unit also aims to become a $2 billion business over the next five years, he said.

SoftBank follows compatriot Sumitomo Corp which invested $20 million in ADA in 2018 to support the unit's expansion.

Sumitomo's ADA stake will be 13.46% in size after SoftBank's investment, while Axiata Digital Services, which houses Axiata Group's digital businesses, will own 63.47%.

Another Japanese conglomerate, Mitsui & Co Ltd, has been a minority strategic shareholder of Axiata Digital Services since 2019.

(Reporting by Liz Lee in Kuala Lumpur; Additional reporting by Sam Nussey in Tokyo; Editing by Stephen Coates and Christopher Cushing)
FILE PHOTO: U.S. and Chinese flags outside the Pentagon

BEIJING (Reuters) -China should implement its commitments to equal treatment for foreign business and abandon "implicit" guidance to replace foreign products with domestic alternatives, the American Chamber of Commerce in China said on Tuesday.

In an annual white paper, the chamber, also known as AmCham, which represents 900 companies, also called on the United States and China to communicate more and cooperate on climate change and public health.

The relationship between the world's two biggest economies deteriorated rapidly over the past few years over issues ranging from trade to China's response to COVID-19.

When ties worsen, U.S. firms see poorer implementation of regulations promising equal treatment for foreign business, affecting investment project approvals and market access, said Greg Gilligan, chairman of AmCham China.

"We feel that local officials are reacting to the levels of tension in the relationship and just taking the safer path which is to offer preference to domestic industry," he said, speaking at a news conference on Tuesday.

American companies were also "rightfully concerned" about the possibility of consumer boycotts in China and needed to do scenario planning for it, he said.

In March Sweden's H&M and other foreign brands met with a furious online backlash and boycotts after they raised concerns about forced labour in China's western Xinjiang region.

Foreign businesses in China have long complained about limited market access, opaque regulatory processes, the favouring of domestic champions and state-owned companies, and weakness in intellectual property protection.

Beijing has repeatedly said it treats foreign and domestic firms equally and welcomes foreign investment. The government is meanwhile also trying to spur domestic innovation and reduce reliance on foreign technology and markets.

Legislation promising equal treatment for foreign and domestic companies is only unevenly implemented, said the paper, which also called for emerging sectors like cloud computing to be opened up to foreign companies.

Story continues

"The government should abandon the use of implicit, unpublished, or internal guidance to replace U.S. or other foreign-made products/services with domestically made equivalents," it said.

U.S. President Joe Biden says competition with China is the greatest foreign policy challenge the United States faces. Democrats and Republicans alike have moved toward a harder line on Beijing.

U.S.-China tensions were seen as a challenge to doing business in China for 78% of companies polled by AmCham, according to a survey released in March.

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said last week she expected to engage "in the near term" with Chinese officials to assess their implementation of the Phase 1 trade deal between the two countries, with the outcome to influence the fate of Washington's punitive tariffs on Beijing.

Tai and other senior Biden administration officials are conducting a top-to-bottom review of U.S.-China trade policy. Trump launched a tariff war between the world's two largest economies in 2018. Washington and Beijing signed the Phase 1 trade deal in January 2020.

The pact, which expires at the end of 2021, called for China to boost purchases of U.S. exports by $200 billion over two years - a target that Beijing is far behind in meeting, partly due to the coronavirus pandemic.

China also pledged to toughen intellectual property protections, and improve agriculture biotechnology and financial services access for U.S. firms.

(Reporting by Gabriel Crossley; Editing by Stephen Coates)
NASSAU, Bahamas, May 6, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Travelers wishing for idyllic sandy beaches and irresistible blue waters will find their paradise in The Bahamas this summer.

(PRNewsfoto/Bahamas Ministry of Tourism & A)

NEWS

People-to-People Goes Virtual  The beloved program, connecting visitors with locals for 45 years, now offers five free virtual sessions with ambassadors in The Bahamas. To book, visit: https://www.bahamas.com/plan-your-trip/people-to-people.

Increased Airlift  American Airlines launches direct flights from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (ABIA) to Lynden Pindling International Airport (NAS) June 5, 2021. Frontier Airlines also announced direct flights from Miami International Airport (MIA) to Nassau (NAS) four times a week starting July 2021.

Viva Wyndham Fortuna Beach Reopens  the Grand Bahama Island all-inclusive resort welcomes guests back this month with an oceanfront pool, watersports, white-sand beaches, ocean view rooms and more.

Resorts World Bimini's New Beach Destination  Located just 50 miles off the coast of Florida, Resorts World Bimini Beach will debut May 14, 2021, featuring lagoon pools, private cabanas, ocean view dining and more.

The Sugar Factory Heads to Baha Mar  the newest location will be set inside the New Providence resort featuring a restaurant, cafe, confectionary shop, retail store, carousel bar and CandyOcean, a new aquatic-themed immersive experience.

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES

Nominated as Best Spa Destination  The Bahamas has been nominated for the Caribbean's Best Spa Destination award in the 7th annual World Spa Awards. Voting runs May 19 through September 8, 2021.

Top Incentive Travel Destination  Northstar Meeting Group survey revealed The Bahamas as a Top 8 Travel Destination for booking incentive travel in 2021, selected by event organizers, planners and incentive program professionals from all sectors.

PROMOTIONS AND OFFERS

For a complete listing of deals and packages for The Bahamas, visit www.bahamas.com/deals-packages.

Story continues

$250 Air Credit for Out Island Vacations  U.S. and Canadian residents can take their pick of 10 unspoiled and uncrowded Out Islands and receive an air credit of $250. Booking window: April 5 - May 10, 2021.

Extended Stay Deals  Guests who book an extended stay - 14 days or longer - at Grand Isle Resort on Great Exuma can receive up to 50% off. Margaretville Beach Resort in Nassau is also offering guests who stay 14 days or longer special pricing of up to 40% off regular rates.

Travel Advisor Appreciation  Celebrating "Travel Advisor Month" in May, Warwick Paradise Island  Bahamas is offering rates and a 3rd night free for travel advisors booking now through May 31, for stays through December 20, 2021.

ABOUT THE BAHAMAS

For an overview of The Bahamas' travel and entry protocols, visit Bahamas.com/travelupdates.

Explore all the islands have to offer at www.bahamas.com or on Facebook , YouTube or Instagram .

PRESS INQUIRIES

Anita Johnson-Patty

Bahamas Ministry of Tourism & Aviation

ajohnson@bahamas.com

Weber Shandwick

Public Relations

Bahamas@webershandwick.com

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View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/whats-new-in-the-bahamas-in-may-301286184.html

SOURCE Bahamas Ministry of Tourism & Aviation
For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL  May 11, 2021  Today, Zacks Equity Research discusses Airlines including Southwest Airlines Co. LUV, American Airlines Group Inc. AAL, Allegiant Travel Company ALGT, Alaska Air Group, Inc. ALK and Delta Air Lines, Inc. DAL.

Link: https://www.zacks.com/commentary/1529565/3-airline-stocks-to-watch-out-for-despite-industry-headwinds

The Zacks Airline industry continues to be hurt by the coronavirus pandemic. Due to the pandemic-induced passenger revenue weakness, most airline companies suffered losses in the first-quarter 2021 earnings season.

Although air-travel demand is showing signs of recovery, it is way below the pre-pandemic levels. With economic activities picking up the pace coupled with increasing vaccine rollouts, things now seem rosier for the airline stocks than last-year levels as air-travel demand (particularly for leisure) gains momentum. This bodes well for carriers like Southwest Airlines, American Airlines and Allegiant Travel Co.

Industry Description

The Zacks Airline industry houses companies engaged in transport of passengers and cargo to various destinations, globally. Most operators maintain a fleet comprising multiple mainline jets in addition to several regional planes. Operations are aided by their regional airline subsidiaries and third-party regional carriers. Additionally, industry players utilize their respective cargo divisions for offering a wide range of freight and mail services.

Key Themes Governing the Airline Industry

Uptick in Air-Travel Demand Augurs Well: Even though most airlines incurred losses in the March quarter akin to the four quarters of the coronavirus-ravaged 2020, in most cases, the metric compared favorably with either the sequential quarter or the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the said quarter. For example, American Airlines' first-quarter loss (on an adjusted basis) of $4.32 per share was narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $4.35.

Story continues

Similarly, Alaska Air Group's loss (excluding $2.46 from non-recurring items) of $3.51 per share was narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $3.71. The sequential improvement in passenger revenues was the primary reason for this outperformance. Evidently, Delta Air Lines' March-quarter passenger revenues of $2,748 million bettered the December quarter's reading by almost 2%.

The scenario also looks brighter for the U.S. airlines with summer around the corner. Driven by an enhanced air-travel scenario, many U.S. carriers announced plans to broaden their networks to include their favorite tourist spots. This leads to an anticipation of demand hike during the upcoming months.

Expecting the current bullish scenario to continue, some airlines issued encouraging outlooks while releasing their first-quarter results. Per Delta's CEO Ed Bastian, "If recovery trends hold, we expect positive cash generation for the June quarter and see a path to return to profitability in the September quarter as the demand recovery progresses."

Focus on Cargo Revenues Another Positive: With passenger revenues still lagging the pre-pandemic levels, most airlines are targeting cargo revenues to shore up their top lines. At American Airlines, the same soared in excess of 100%. Notably, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects 2021 cargo revenues to increase to $152 billion from $128 billion and $101 billion in 2020 and 2019, respectively.

Capacity Cuts Pushing Up Non-Fuel Unit Costs: With air-travel demand well below the pre-pandemic levels, airline companies are trimming capacity. Evidently, available seat miles (a measure of capacity) slumped 50.2% in the first quarter of 2021 at United Airlines amid massive capacity contractions.

As a result, non-fuel unit costs or cost per available seat mile excluding fuel, third-party business expenses, profit-sharing and special charges are escalating. Notably, the metric flared up 43.8% at United Airlines as of March end. The IATA expects capacity reduction to the tune of 47.2% in 2021 from the 2019 levels.

Higher Oil Prices to Hurt Bottom Line: The increase in fuel price per gallon (up 22% in the January-March period) is not a welcoming development for the airlines as far as their bottom lines are concerned. This is because fuel expenses represent one of the largest input costs for the airlines.

With the resumption of economic activities, fuel costs are on the rise. Notably, per IATA, Jet kerosene price is expected to be $68.9/barrel in 2021 (on average), representing a huge increase from the 2020 reading of $46.6 per barrel.

Zacks Industry Rank Indicates Bearish Outlook

The Zacks Airline industry is a 28-stock group within the broader Zacks Transportation sector. It currently carries a Zacks Industry Rank #211, which places it in the bottom 17% of more than 250 Zacks industries.

The group's Zacks Industry Rank, which is basically the average of the Zacks Rank of all the member stocks, indicates murky near-term prospects. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperforms the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.

The industry's position in the bottom 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries is a result of a negative earnings outlook for the constituent companies in aggregate. Looking at the aggregate earnings estimate revisions, it appears that analysts are pessimistic about this group's earnings growth potential. As a proof, the industry's loss estimate for 2021 has widened to $3.46 per share from 88 cents at 2020 end.

Industry Outperforms Sector & S&P 500

Driven by the betterment in air-travel demand, the Zacks Airline industry has outperformed the broader Zacks Transportation sector as well as the Zacks S&P 500 composite over the past year.

The industry has skyrocketed 107.9% over this period compared with the broader sector's increase of 70.2%. The S&P 500 has also grown 46.6%.

Industry's Current Valuation

Price/Sales (P/S) ratio is often used for valuing airline stocks. The industry currently has a forward 12-month P/S of 0.97X compared with the S&P 500's 4.77X. It is also below the sector's forward-12-month P/S of 1.81X.

Over the past five years, the industry has traded as high as 1.05X, as low as 0.37X and at the median of 0.72X.

3 Airline Stocks to Keep an Eye On

Southwest Airlines: This Dallas-based low-cost carrier currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Owing to the recent improvement in air-travel demand, Southwest Airlines' first-quarter passenger revenues of $1,712 million improved 2.9%, sequentially. Moreover, the airline incurred a narrower-than-expected loss per share in the March quarter. Additionally, management estimates average core cash flow to either break even or turn positive by June.

The company is also looking to cut costs to partly offset the revenue weakness. Evidently, total adjusted operating expenses (excluding profit sharing, special items, fuel and oil expenses) dropped 19.1% year over year in the March quarter.

Notably, shares of Southwest Airlines have gained 20.5% in the past three months, driven by the rise in leisure passenger demand and impressive booking trends. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter 2021 bottom line is pegged at a loss of 60 cents, narrowed from a loss of 81 cents, 30 days ago.

You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

American Airlines: This Fort Worth, TX-based company operates flights to multiple destinations across the globe. The company, like most other airline operators, is witnessing a revival in passenger revenues on a spike in air-travel demand. Moreover, the company's cost-control initiatives are aimed at driving the bottom line despite the prevalent challenging scenario. Boosted by its cost-saving efforts, American Airlines succeeded in reducing its daily cash burn rate from nearly $100 million in April 2020 to approximately $27 million in the first quarter of 2021.

The company currently carries a Zacks Rank of 3. The stock has rallied 26% in the past three months, mainly owing to the rise in bookings. Reflective of this upside, American Airlines' seven-day moving average as of Mar 26 with respect to the net bookings was roughly 90% of the level recorded in 2019.

Moreover, the reading related to domestic load factor (% of seats filled by passengers) was nearly 80% in the first quarter, further mirroring the recovery in air-travel demand. Management anticipates booking strength to continue through the second-quarter 2021 end.

Allegiant Travel Co., headquartered in Las Vegas, NV, is currently Zacks #3 Ranked. The recent improvement in leisure air-travel demand in the United States is providing a boost to Allegiant's passenger revenues, which account for bulk of the top line. Evidently, Allegiant's passenger revenues improved 14.2% sequentially in the first quarter of 2021.

Owing to upbeat air-travel demand in the United States, the carrier expects capacity (measured in available seat miles or ASMs) in second-quarter 2021 to expand from the number reported in second-quarter 2019. For the second quarter, ASM (for scheduled service as well as total system) is expected to increase between 2% and 6% from the second-quarter 2019 reported figure.

Like most other U.S.-based airline companies, increasing air-travel demand in the United States perked up the Allegiant stock price, which has appreciated 6.3% over the past three months. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter earnings per share has been revised above 100% upward to $2.26 over the past 30 days.

Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2021

In addition to the stocks discussed above, would you like to know about our 10 best buy-and-hold tickers for the entirety of 2021?

Last year's 2020 Zacks Top 10 Stocks portfolio returned gains as high as +386.8%. Now a brand-new portfolio has been handpicked from over 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank. Don't miss your chance to get in on these long-term buys.

Access Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2021 today >>

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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.



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While on her deathbed a few weeks ago, Mary Fallon made sure to order a cake.

Fallon understood she wouldnt live to see it delivered to her friend, Fran Williams, who celebrated her 50th wedding anniversary Saturday with her husband, Jim. But Fallon was determined to make the couple feel special, said her daughter, Mary Ellen Chandler.

She would be sleeping for 23 hours, Chandler said. When she would wake up, she would say You need to make sure Frans cake gets there. 

The baker, Michelle Schneider, said she had never received such a thoughtful request, especially not from someone on pain medication and in hospice care.

It was the most special cake I have made in a long time, Schneider said.

Fallon and Williams developed a bond shortly after meeting years ago at Prince of Peace Catholic Church in Chesapeake. They were the type of friends who would treat each other to lunch during their birthday weeks.

Williams said Fallon was quite the character and loved to make people laugh. Fallon, who volunteered at her churchs food pantry, dressed in costumes every holiday  she had a closet full of them.
The official said the efforts began in late April as the situation in Jerusalem worsened. He said Israeli actions, including the recent storming of the Al-Aqsa mosque and the planed evictions of Palestinian families from their homes in an east Jerusalem neighborhood, have frustrated the mediators.

The official says the situation is changing rapidly, but officials nonetheless hope to reach a truce before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr later this week. Egypt frequently mediates between Israel and Hamas.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing ongoing diplomatic efforts.

Samy Magdy in Cairo



GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  An Israeli airstrike has hit another high-rise building in the middle of Gaza City. Local media reported that Tuesday's airstrike killed an unknown number of militants inside.

But the airstrike in the middle-class Rimal neighborhood in Gaza sent terrified residents of the building into the streets. They included screaming women and children, some of whom were barefoot.
Samsung Digital Appliances is showcasing the Bespoke Home  a vision that reflects how the role of the home has evolved at a new event, Bespoke Home 2021.

Today, homes have become multifunctional. Living rooms are now doubling as yoga studios, movie theatres, and makeshift classrooms. The kitchen counter has become a remote office desk. Living in this new normal has required people to become more creative about how to fit their daily routines into limited spaces, writes by JaeSeung Lee, President & Head of Digital Appliances Business, Samsung Electronics.

From the way we use our rooms to the materials we use in our interior design, so many things have changed inside our homes  except our appliances.

At Samsung, we believe that now is the time for our appliances to change. Appliances must be designed beautifully to satisfy the tastes of our trendy, discerning customers; they must have flexible features so that they can be fit to each users unique lifestyle needs; they must be connected, not just for connectivitys sake, but to truly streamline and enrich the home management experience.

And of course, all of these innovations must be pursued with sustainability in mind. For home appliances, that means creating durable products with longer lifespans to reduce needless waste and developing new technologies that help consumers reduce consumption of water and energy without sacrificing performance.

This is our vision for appliances in the Bespoke Home.

DESIGNED FOR YOU

The Bespoke Home begins with Samsungs flagship Bespoke refrigerators, which will be expanding across global markets in 2021. This line offers personalized design, with interchangeable panels available in many colours and finishes.

The response so far to Bespoke refrigerators has been tremendous. Early adopters love that Bespoke comes in an array of changeable colors and materials that fit any interior decor. The fridges also have a sleek, flat-front design that gives them a built-in appearance.

This year, we are also excited to introduce new and exclusive collections of our Bespoke refrigerators in collaboration with designers, which we plan to further discuss at our upcoming event.

But we are not stopping with the kitchen. The customizable Bespoke design philosophy is coming to appliances throughout the home  giving you more freedom to decide what your appliances will look like.

FLEXIBLE FOR YOU

An important aspect of the Bespoke refrigerator is flexibility. It has a modular design that allows you to pick and choose the size and style of the unit, as well as flexible temperature controls for different compartments that let you control how you store your food.

For the Bespoke Home, weve taken this central idea of flexibility and applied it to other appliances.

We know that the same chores, be it vacuuming or airing out the house or doing laundry, do not mean the same thing in every household. This is why in our Bespoke Home vision, appliances have features that can be adjusted as your household needs change.

Whether you are welcoming new members into your family, taking on a home improvement project to change out your floors or getting serious about cooking at home, we want your appliance experiences to evolve to fit your needs.

CONNECTED FOR YOU

The Bespoke Home also includes seamless connectivity powered by IoT services, AI and automation to create customised and holistic home solutions that bring appliances together. Samsungs SmartThings services streamline housework to let you focus on the activities you enjoy and to help you get more out of everyday home experiences.

Samsung is the only brand that can bring these fundamental changes to your home seamlessly. With our dual leadership in hardware and software and an expansive range of devices compatible with SmartThings, the possibilities for a connected home are endless.

Connecting your appliances to SmartThings is set to help your appliances cater to your own personal lifestyle, habits and preferences. Whether you want to find a recipe that works perfectly with your Samsung oven or youre looking for the right wash cycle for a delicate garment, SmartThings will have you covered.

The services you will see at Bespoke Home 2021 are going to offer a glimpse into the future. The smart home is about more than being able to remotely turn your machines on or change their settings: we are creating services for a home that truly knows you and is customised to your interests and needs.

A NEW VISION FOR THE HOME

We are excited to show you the modern designs, flexible features and smart connectivity that will make up our Bespoke Home vision on May 11. We are showcasing our existing products that have been evolved with new features and functionalities, as well as presenting some completely new products and services. In addition, we are excited to share with you our sustainability vision and goals. The world has changed so much over the past year, and it is time for our appliances to catch up. We look forward to seeing you at Bespoke Home 2021. -- TradeArabia News Service
This means that the moisture contained in foods, especially fresh fruits, sodas, juices, soups, milk, coffee and, yes, even beer, contributes to this daily recommended water requirement. These guidelines go on to suggest that most of the recommended water content can be accomplished without drinking additional cups of plain water.

And, it is important to note that while alcohol has diuretic properties  ethanol acts directly on the kidneys to make us pee more  caffeinated beverages, like tea and coffee, do not increase urinary water losses above the amount of water contained in these beverages.

King kidney

Now, you may be wondering why this is so. After all, youve heard from a lot of people that you need to drink more, more, more.

Because total body water balance, or what we exercise scientists call homeostasis, is complicated, mammals survive by making real-time adjustments at the kidney. Thats why when it comes to hydration, our kidneys are king.
Today

Walk-in COVID-19 vaccine clinic, 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Three Rivers Public Health Department, 2400 E. Lincoln Ave., Fremont. Those interested in receiving the COVID-19 vaccine can register at www.vaccinate.ne.gov. Recipients must be 19 or older or 18 with a parent, wear a mask and not currently be ill or receive convalescent plasma or monoclonal antibodies for COVID-19 in the past 90 days.

Walk-in COVID-19 vaccine clinic, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. First Lutheran Church, 2146 Wright St., Blair. Those interested in receiving the COVID-19 vaccine can register at www.vaccinate.ne.gov. Recipients must be 19 or older or 18 with a parent, wear a mask and not currently be ill or receive convalescent plasma or monoclonal antibodies for COVID-19 in the past 90 days.

Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, 10 a.m., Chapter 5 Club, 136 N. Main St., Fremont.

Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, noon, Chapter 5 Club, Fremont.

Narcotics Anonymous meeting, 1 p.m., LifeHouse, 723 N. Broad St., Fremont. The hotline number is 402-459-9511.

Fremont Eagles Club open, 3 p.m. to 12 a.m., 649 N. Main St. The club may close early depending on business.
The Pentagon says the withdrawal of remaining U.S. military forces in Afghanistan is proceeding steadily to meeting a September 11 deadline set by U.S. President Joe Biden.

In a statement on May 11, the U.S. military's Central Command, or Centcom, said enough equipment had been decommissioned to fill 104 C-17 Globemaster planes, the militarys jumbo transport aircraft.

More than 1,800 pieces of equipment had been turned over to a separate logistics agency to be destroyed, Centcom said.

It also said a base in Helmand Province had been turned over to Afghan forces.

Centcom estimated that it had completed up to 12 percent of the "retrograde process" -- a technical term used by the military to describe a withdrawal of forces and equipment.

In April, Biden announced the withdrawal of remaining forces -- about 2,500-3,500 U.S. troops and about 7,000 NATO troops -- by September 11, after two decades of U.S. military intervention in Afghanistan.

The administration of former President Donald Trump originally pledged to be out of the war-torn country by May 1, but Biden pushed the date back.

Fighting has been soaring across the country amid the ongoing withdrawal of U.S. and international forces from Afghanistan by September 11.

The pullout will be a major test for Afghan security forces, with U.S. generals and other officials expressing concerns in recent weeks that it might lead to the collapse of the Afghan government in the absence of progress on stalled peace talks with the Taliban.

Intra-Afghan peace efforts have stalled since the Western-backed government in Kabul and the Taliban began talks in Qatar last year.

Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters
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At this Colorado Springs restaurant, it doesn't matter if you've never been to Malaysia | On the Table
In a victory for the Old North End Neighborhood civic group, the Colorado Springs City Council on Tuesday unanimously upheld 20-year-old histo
Lawmakers from the Colorado Springs delegation gather at the House dais, along with their colleagues, to express their views on the May 9 shooting in Colorado Springs that left seven dead, including the shooter.
Swiss-Belhotel International has announced its participation at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) taking place at the Dubai World Trade Centre from May 16 to 19. The brand will also be present at the ATM Virtual from May 24 to 26.

Commenting on the participation, Gavin M. Faull, Chairman and President of Swiss-Belhotel International, said: Although the crisis is far from over, ATM Dubai is a great way to prepare for the recovery of the hospitality sector. At Swiss-Belhotel International our business strategy is focused on responsible recovery while delivering value to all. We look ahead to a dynamic future by relentlessly pursuing new opportunities and reinforcing our presence in existing markets. On this occasion we would like to thank our owners, guests and associates for their continued support and trust.

Laurent A. Voivenel, Senior Vice President  Operations & Development, EMEA & India; Senior Vice President  Group Human Resources & Talent Development, Swiss-Belhotel International, stated: ATM Dubai is the first major live event for the travel and tourism industry in 18 months and we are delighted to reconnect and share our latest developments with our industry partners. It is crucial for all of us to reunite in the global recovery efforts of the travel and tourism industry and Dubai is once again taking the lead in this direction.

Laurent further added: We have two new hotel openings coming up in the GCC in May 2021 (Swiss-Belsuites Admiral Juffair and Grand Swiss-Belhotel Waterfront Seef), that will also bring to life for the very first time our upscale five-star brand Grand Swiss-Belhotel in the Middle East, and ATM Dubai is the perfect platform for us to debut these. In addition, as we navigate through the market challenges, we have many other exciting initiatives to share with our network aimed at delivering on evolving guest requirements through innovative and enhanced experiences in a safe environment.

Visitors to ATM Dubai can find Swiss-Belhotel International on stand: HC0935 in the Sheikh Saeed Arena at the Dubai World Trade Centre. - TradeArabia News Service
The average number of COVID-19 cases identified daily in Colorado has fallen by nearly a third since late April, which one expert said is a sign that the state is heading "in a positive direction." But another warned that continued high levels of hospital admissions means that the fourth pandemic wave is not yet over.
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Coloradans between the ages of 12 and 15 will likely be able to start receiving vaccines in the coming days, Gov. Jared Polis said Tuesday, ahead of the expected full approval by federal regulators this week.
The UAE tourism sector has continued to recover during Q1, 2021, with the average hotel occupancy rates across the country nearing 63 per cent, said a report citing initial data released by the local tourist authorities.

Average length of stay in hotels during Q1 increased 27.6 per cent to 4.3 nights as compared to the same period last year, with March recording a growth of 34 per cent in the number of hotel guests comparatively with March 2020, news agency WAM reported.

UAE nationals accounted for 25.6 per cent of total guests in the reference period -one million guests- with March seeing a thumping 112 per cent growth in the Emirati hotel guests as compared to the same month last year. Dubai proved to be the preferred destination for Emiratis, followed by Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah then Sharjah.

Dr. Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and SMEs, who is also the Chairman of the The Emirates Tourism Council, enunciated the distinctive performance of the UAE domestic tourism sector, commending the tireless efforts made by various local departments concerned to position local attractions as the favourite destination for Emiratis and residents alike.

"The UAE continues to enhance its coveted position on the global tourism scene, with domestic tourism now proving to be a significant catalyst for economic growth and a key contributor to GDP in implementation of the directives of the UAE's wise leadership," added the minister.
City Editor

Tom Roeder is the Gazette's City Editor. In Colorado Springs since 2003, Tom has covered the military at home and overseas and has cover statehouses in Denver and Olympia, Wash. His main job, though, is being dad to two great kids.
Industry Insight

Real metrics for measurable cybersecurity progress

Every time theres another massive cybersecurity breach, which like SolarWinds finds its roots in a security issue at a third party, policymakers and security experts ask, Where do we go from here?

The private sector and the federal government havent figured out how agencies can best address risks posed by their vendors. The problem is especially acute for small- and mid-sized organizations. Individually engaging, evaluating and auditing every vendor, from custodial services to cloud providers, is cost prohibitive and unrealistic for the vast majority.

One thing is clear: What we are doing is not working. Our check-the-box approach to third-party risk neither improves the security of suppliers nor effectively informs the recipients of software and services about its real risk. Whats worse, its still practically impossible to determine just how effective our efforts are.

Today, those of us in cybersecurity are just like medieval barbers doing our best not to kill our patients. We struggle to know if an organization was breached due to poor security or if it was doing everything right and was simply overpowered by a nation-state.

We must start creating clear incentives to measure risk and share information about attacks.

It is impossible to know if we are moving forward if we cannot measure outcomes. Without information, we cannot reward good behavior. Developing ways to measure and report risk via trusted, objective security key performance indicators will lead to better approaches to cybersecurity and ultimately lower risk systemically. Government-provided incentives, such as procurement preferences, can drive real improvements, but public- and private-sector organizations need objective measurements to ensure progress and not just activity for the sake of activity.

Of course, objective measurement and effective cybersecurity decision-making requires access to data about risk. Liability concerns about sharing data can hamper this effort. Cybersecurity is one field where catastrophic failure and damage are hidden and protected by non-disclosure agreements, drastically reducing our ability to learn from our mistakes and compile sufficient actuarial data to understand the true nature of the risks we all face.

The Securities and Exchange Commission recognizes that information is key to gaining investor confidence. In 2018, the SEC released guidance calling for more fulsome disclosures of cyber risk. Unfortunately, as identified in a March report released by SecurityScorecard, the Cyber Threat Alliance, IHS Markit and Diligent, companies have yet to embrace full transparency leaving investors unable to properly evaluate the level of cyber risk to which they are exposed in the market.

Solving the metrics and transparency problems will take time. For now, security rating methodologies and services can help improve our understanding of the true scope and scale of the problem. In January, the National Risk Management Center within the Department of Homeland Securitys Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency announced its effort to identify and reduce systemic cyber risk and noted the utility of security ratings in developing cyber risk metrics in the near term.

Measurement and transparency are not new issues, although success has been hard to find. President Barack Obamas May 2011 cybersecurity regulatory proposal focused on the disclosure of the level of cybersecurity protection implemented by critical infrastructure to allow market forces to hold security failures accountable. Similarly, President Donald Trumps first Executive Order on cybersecurity proposed using market transparency -- informing investors about the level of cybersecurity implemented by publicly traded companies -- to build national momentum. Over a number of years, states across the country have passed breach disclosure laws. Most recently, the bipartisan Cyberspace Solarium Commission proposed enhancing metrics and establishing a new Bureau of Cyber Statistics to enable success.

Thats a good start; however there is still much work to be done. The Biden administration should take swift action to normalize objective measurement of cybersecurity and corresponding vendor risks. The time is now for an executive order to accelerate the timeline for establishing measurement criteria and build an actionable work program with appropriate incentives.

The attacks arent going to stop. We urgently need to establish metrics so we can stop acting as medieval barbers, step into the 21st century and start making progress.
The Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack and the SolarWinds hack were all but inevitable  why national cyber defense is a wicked problem

The ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline on May 7, 2021, exemplifies the huge challenges the U.S. faces in shoring up its cyber defenses. The private company, which controls a significant component of the U.S. energy infrastructure and supplies nearly half of the East Coasts liquid fuels, was vulnerable to an all-too-common type of cyber attack. The FBI has attributed the attack to a Russian cybercrime gang. It would be difficult for the government to mandate better security at private companies, and the government is unable to provide that security for the private sector.

Similarly, the SolarWinds hack, one of the most devastating cyber attacks in history, which came to light in December 2020, exposed vulnerabilities in global software supply chains that affect government and private sector computer systems. It was a major breach of national security that revealed gaps in U.S. cyber defenses.

These gaps include inadequate security by a major software producer, fragmented authority for government support to the private sector, blurred lines between organized crime and international espionage, and a national shortfall in software and cybersecurity skills. None of these gaps is easily bridged, but the scope and impact of the SolarWinds attack show how critical controlling these gaps is to U.S. national security.

The SolarWinds breach, likely carried out by a group affiliated with Russias FSB security service, compromised the software development supply chain used by SolarWinds to update 18,000 users of its Orion network management product. SolarWinds sells software that organizations use to manage their computer networks. The hack, which allegedly began in early 2020, was discovered only in December when cybersecurity company FireEye revealed that it had been hit by the malware. More worrisome, this may have been part of a broader attack on government and commercial targets in the U.S.

The Biden administration is preparing an executive order that is expected to address these software supply chain vulnerabilities. However, these changes, as important as they are, would probably not have prevented the SolarWinds attack. And preventing ransomware attacks like the Colonial Pipeline attack would require U.S. intelligence and law enforcement to infiltrate every organized cyber criminal group in Eastern Europe.

Supply chains, sloppy security and a talent shortage

The vulnerability of the software supply chain  the collections of software components and software development services companies use to build software products  is a well-known problem in the security field. In response to a 2017 executive order, a report by a Department of Defense-led interagency task force identified a surprising level of foreign dependence, workforce challenges and critical capabilities such as printed circuit board manufacturing that companies are moving offshore in pursuit of competitive pricing. All these factors came into play in the SolarWinds attack.

SolarWinds, driven by its growth strategy and plans to spin off its managed service provider business in 2021, bears much of the responsibility for the damage, according to cybersecurity experts. I believe that the company put itself at risk by outsourcing its software development to Eastern Europe, including a company in Belarus. Russian operatives have been known to use companies in former Soviet satellite countries to insert malware into software supply chains. Russia used this technique in the 2017 NotPetya attack that cost global companies more than US$10 billion.

SolarWinds also failed to practice basic cybersecurity hygiene, according to a cybersecurity researcher.

Vinoth Kumar reported that the password for the software companys development server was allegedly solarwinds123, an egregious violation of fundamental standards of cybersecurity. SolarWinds sloppy password management is ironic in light of the Password Management Solution of the Year award the company received in 2019 for its Passportal product.
Pipeline attack highlights ransomware threats to infrastructure

The cyberattack against Colonial Pipeline, which led to the precautionary shutdown of fuel pipelines serving the East Coast, has been attributed to ransomware group Darkside.

In response, the FBI released a flash alert to industry with indicators of compromise and mitigation measures, according to Deputy National Security Advisor Anne Neuberger Additionally, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is preparing its own release of information to critical infrastructure providers about the ransomware attack, she said in a May 10 White House briefing.

The attack "underscores the threat that ransomware poses to organizations regardless of size or sector," said Eric Goldstein, executive assistant director of CISAs cybersecurity division.

As the administration confronts a rise in ransomware activities, cybersecurity experts and lawmakers continue to debate the pros and cons to paying ransoms. In general, the FBI has long discouraged payments out of fear it will encourage future attacks.

Neuberger said companies are often left in a "difficult position" if they have no other method of recovering stolen data.

"That is why given the rise in ransomware and given frankly the troubling trend we see of often targeting companies who have insurance and may be richer targets, that we need to look thoughtfully at this area  to determine what we do in addition to actively disrupting infrastructure and holding perpetrators accountable, to ensure that we're not encouraging the rise of ransomware," she said.

Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.), who has previously introduced legislation to expand CISA's role in responding to cybersecurity breaches into industrial control systems, said that "You can expect substantial congressional oversight on this incident in the near future."

Speaking at the White House shortly after the press briefing, President Joe Biden said the intelligence community does not have evidence that "Russia is involved, although there is evidence that the actor's ransomware is in Russia. They have some responsibility to deal with this."

A longer version of this article was first posted to FCW, a sibling site to GCN.
Diane Niezwaag, who has spent her entire 37-year nursing career in the critical care unit at MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center, has a passion for helping people.

The important part of it (nursing) for me is that its a helping profession, she said. You meet so many people at the lowest time of their life, and sometimes being able to be that little bit of sunshine for them or the caregiver that helps them, thats a very humbling experience.

Because of her age, Niezwaag didnt work with COVID-19 patients when the pandemic hit more than a year ago. Instead, she concentrated on cardiac and trauma patients, leaving the other nurses free to focus on those with COVID.

Hats off, hats off, hats off to my co-workers who were able to take care of the COVID patients, she said. They did a miraculous job. It was very hard work for them.

The visitor restrictions at the hospital affected all the staff and patients in the department, according to Niezwaag.

It was hard to watch for me because we had several people die during that time with no family that could be at the bedside, she said. That was very difficult.
When Jake Tefft was hired for his first nursing job by MercyOne North Iowa in January 2020, he had no idea what was coming.

The 27-year-old Mason City resident was still in training a few months later when the first COVID-19 patients arrived.

It makes it a whole different learning curve, said Tefft, who works in the hospitals critical care unit. You are working on your own pretty quick.

He also had to do things he normally wouldnt as part of his training.

It was kind of a blessing in disguise, Tefft said. Having to hit the ground running, I gained a lot of experience and skills very quickly.

Although the death of patients is something all critical care nurses experience, the COVID-19 pandemic was an especially trying time to begin working in the CCU.

I had to deal with a lot of death and dying, Tefft said.

He once saw four patients die on the same day.

Family members werent allowed to visit the hospital because of the virus, so as a CCU nurse you are the only one there with that person as they are passing on, Tefft said.
Palestinian health officials gave no breakdown on the death toll in Gaza, but Islamic Jihad confirmed that three senior commanders were killed in a strike on their hideout in a Gaza City apartment building. The Health Ministry said 10 children and a woman were also killed.

Netanyahu said Israel had attacked hundreds of targets. The fiercest attack was a set of airstrikes that brought down an entire 12-story building. The building housed important Hamas offices, as well as a gym and some start-up businesses. Israel fired a series of warning shots before demolishing the building, allowing people to flee and there were no casualties.

Israeli aircraft heavily damaged another Gaza City building early Wednesday. The nine-story structure housed residential apartments, medical companies and a dental clinic. A drone fired five warning rockets before the bombing. Israel said the building housed Hamas intelligence offices and the group's command responsible for planning attacks on Israeli targets in the occupied West Bank.

Fighter jets struck the building again after journalists and rescuers had gathered around. There was no immediate word on casualties. The high-rise stood 200 meters (650 feet) away from the Associated Press bureau in Gaza City, and smoke and debris reached the office.
Both Veasey and Liberty chose Youngkin as their top candidate during the convention Saturday, where delegates could vote at about 40 different drive-thru locations across the state.

He was my top choice, Veasey said.

The two sisters attended a Youngkin campaign event last week at Owen Farm Loft in Pittsylvania County, where Texas Sen. Ted Cruz stumped for Youngkin.

Im just very concerned about the state of the union and the state of our state, Liberty said of her choice for Youngkin. Were losing a lot of our freedoms and thats very concerning to me. I want my children to grow up and have the opportunity to live in a free country.

Becoming a delegate

To become delegates to the convention, participants had to be registered voters. If an elector voted in a Democratic primary in the past, they were asked to renounce that vote, said John March, spokesperson for the Republican Party of Virginia.

Veasey and Liberty, who had been delegates before, filled out required paperwork and sent it to the Pittsylvania County Republican Committee so they could participate in the convention.

Delegates then received campaign information from Republican candidates.
Travellers flying from Abu Dhabi with Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, will be able to validate their Covid-19 travel documents before arriving at the airport from May 12.

Guests can arrive at the airport with confidence and with peace of mind, knowing they have met all essential requirements before their flight.

With the formalities out of the way, verified travellers can enjoy fast track check-in at the airport by going to the dedicated Verified to Fly desk for a quicker and smoother experience.

Mohammad Al Bulooki, Chief Operating Officer, Etihad Aviation Group said: As Etihad continuously looks for innovative solutions to simplify the travel experience, Verified to Fly removes any guess work from the equation and makes check-in faster. Guests have total peace of mind knowing that when they arrive at the airport, they have already met all Covid travel requirements.

To use the Verified to Fly service, guests can sign-up by visiting Manage my Booking and will receive further information on how to submit their documents. Once the submission has been checked by the Verified to Fly team, guests will receive a success email if their documents meet government requirements.

If requirements are missing or not met, the guest will be asked to resubmit or check their documents. Guests can also check their Verified to Fly status at any time by visiting Manage my Booking.

Verified to Fly will be available for all guests departing Abu Dhabi from May 12, 2021 (excluding China) and for flights departing Amman, Beirut, Dhaka and Manila shortly thereafter. Future developments are in progress to introduce the service on other destinations. -- TradeArabia News Service
More than a quarter are in an intensive care unit.

As Virginia surpassed 3 million residents fully vaccinated, the number of people testing positive reached the second-lowest percentage of the pandemic. The first was 3.7% on March 16, 2020  nine days after the Virginia's first identified case and two days after the first virus death.

"The data is giving us a very clear message," Gov. Ralph Northam wrote in a tweet on Monday. "The vaccines are working."

Case counts have fallen by 34% in a two-week span, with some of the greatest drops reported in localities with the highest vaccination rates.

Goochland is one of six counties in the state with more than 55% of its population vaccinated with at least one dose. A New York Times tracker monitoring national COVID-19 trends showed an 87% decline in cases.

Hanover County, 1 of 10 localities that has 50% to 55% of their residents receiving at least one shot, reported a nearly 70% dip in infections.
GREENSBORO  Fighting the spread of COVID-19 in schools. Rebuilding and strengthening academics. Offering help to students with mental health needs.

As Guilford County Schools administrators prepare for an influx of money from the December and March federal pandemic relief bills, they are eyeing ways to use that aid to support those goals.

Between the two bills, the district estimates it could receive about $287 million. Thats equal to more than a third of the districts annual operating budget. Its also more than seven times what the district received from 2020s federal CARES Act relief bill.

The district does not need to spend all the money in the next school year. An estimated $89 million would need to be spent by September 2023, with the rest to be spent by September 2024.

Superintendent Sharon Contreras has held off adding the estimates for the COVID-19 relief money to her proposed 2021-22 budget, awaiting more specifics about what the district will get.

Instead, during a presentation to school board members at their last meeting in April, she highlighted some potential recommendations.
GREENSBORO  A temporary shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline won't lead to significant gas shortages, experts say. They're more worried about the effect of panic buying on the gas supply.

On Tuesday, a line of cars snaked through the parking lot at the Costco on West Wendover Avenue in Greensboro as people sought to fill up. It was a scene playing out at many gas stations across the state and region.

Gov. Roy Cooper urged residents not to panic buy.

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"I have talked today with federal officials including Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and we have a full court press to get the Colonial Pipeline back up and fully operating quickly," Cooper said Tuesday on social media. "Report price gouging and please don't rush to top off your tanks."

In North Carolina, 8.5% of the states nearly 5,400 gas stations reported running out of fuel Tuesday, according to Gasbuddy.com, which tracks supply.

As of 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, GasBuddy.com's fuel availability tracker, which is updated through reports by motorists, showed a handful of convenience store fuel outages in Greensboro.
With donations during the quiet phase of their fundraising, Palmer said theyve reached nearly half their goal.

Now, theyre looking to the public. And help is needed now more than ever, according to Richardson.

People are not just coming to us for simple reasons, she said. We are seeing generational poverty, generational homelessness. There are mental problems and social and emotional challenges. The needs are multi-faceted, and theyre so much more complex than the needs of those 10 or 15 years ago.

Palmer said the goal is to preserve that legacy of service, but also the legacy of Shirley T. Frye.

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In 2016, the new Greensboro YWCA building was named in honor of Frye, a long-time community leader in Greensboro. Its the first building in the city to be named after a Black woman.

When the Greensboro YWCA began in 1903, it was a whites only organization, according to Richardson. Eventually, an African American YWCA formed. Richardson said the two groups tried to find some synergy back in the 1930s, but it wasnt until 1970 that the two organizations came together.
"There was a lot of social pressure at her table," she said, "so I was able to vaccinate her."

Kestner said some Resurgence employees also agreed to get vaccinated, especially kitchen staff.

County leaders hope the vaccine-for-beer effort will attract younger residents, particularly those in their 20s and 30s who have consistently had the highest rates of positive Covid-19 cases in recent weeks.

Morsch, who had picked up his free beer at the bar after getting vaccinated with a friend, said he got the shot for more peace of mind when visiting his family and traveling. But he acknowledged that among younger people, there's a sense of invincibility that makes them slower to seek out the Covid-19 vaccine.

"This is the best way to do it," he said. "Bring some fun into it."

Since rolling out the program two weeks ago with commitments from Resurgence and Flying Bison, both Buffalo-based breweries, three other county breweries have signed on.

Health experts say these programs might seem like gimmicks, but if they get several thousand more community residents vaccinated, that's a good thing. They don't expect these types of efforts to be enough to get the region to herd immunity.

"But if it gets another 200 people vaccinated today who otherwise would not have, that's 200 more people that are going to be protected from COVID-19," Poloncarz said, "and 200 less people we need to get to eventually reach herd immunity. And that's the important thing."
One House bill approved unanimously would mandate a duty for law enforcement officers to intervene when they believe a colleague is using excessive force, and report what they saw to a superior within 72 hours. Another would require an officer to tell standards commissions when the officer receives a letter from a prosecutor telling the officer they have been untruthful or have committed misconduct and shouldnt testify in criminal cases.

And a third bill would require officer trainees to receive psychological screening examinations. Continuing education also will include an emphasis on mental health.

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These provisions will not only improve the lives of our law enforcement officers, but I believe that they will improve the communities that these officers daily patrol and protect and preserve, said Rep. Kristin Baker, a Cabarrus County Republican and chief sponsor of the mental health bill.

The Senate measure contains House provisions and many more changes, including increased penalties for rioting and the creation of new databases to discourage misbehaving law enforcement officers from remaining on the job.
Assemblymember Rudy Salas (D-Bakersfield) and the entire State Assembly honored and recognized the continued service and patriotism of California Blue Star Mothers with Assembly Concurrent Resolution (ACR) 6, which recognizes May, 2021 as Blue Star Mothers of America Month in California.
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A professor of language and linguistics at the Department of English at the Delhi University, 54-year-old Babu was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in July 2020. His family has demanded, immediate access to proper medical care for Babu and transparency in case of such a serious illness.

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Delhi University Professor Hany Babu, an undertrial prisoner in the Bhima Koregaon case, who has been in custody since July 2020 without trial, is being denied medical treatment at Taloja jail in Mumbai for an acute eye infection, his family alleged on Tuesday.

In a statement issued by his wife Jenny Rowena and brothers Harish MT & MT Ansari, the family demanded immediate access to proper medical care for Babu and transparency in case of such a serious illness.

The family expressed fear that an opaque system will do irreparable damage to those locked up within as well as locked down at various places.

We are only asking for the rights granted and guaranteed under the Constitution of India, they said.

A professor of language and linguistics at the Department of English at the Delhi University, 54-year-old Babu was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on July 28, 2020. He has remained in prison since. The NIA accused Babu of being a co-conspirator in the Bhima Koregaon case and propagating Maoist activities and ideology.

According to the family, Hany Babu started experiencing pain and swelling in the left eye on May 3, which soon developed into double vision and severe pain.

Since the prison Medical Officer had already informed Hany Babu that the prison did not have the facilities to treat his eye infection, Hany Babu had immediately requested consultation and treatment with a specialized doctor.

But he was not taken for consultation, because an escort officer was not available. It was only after his lawyers sent an email on May 6 to the Superintendent, Taloja Jail, that he was taken to a Government Hospital in Vashi on May 7, the family said.

At the Vashi Government Hospital, Hany Babu was examined by an Ophthalmologist, prescribed certain anti-bacterial medication, and advised to return for follow-up treatment in two days.

The family said that while his condition deteriorated alarmingly, he was still not taken back to the hospital after two days, once again due to the lack of escort officers, the prison claims.

On May 10, Hany Babus lawyer, Payoshi Roy, made over 8 calls to the prison in order to speak with the Superintendent, who refused to come on the line, the family claimed.

At 8:30 pm, the Jailor informed Roy that he was aware of Hany Babus condition and was making arrangements to take him to the hospital the next day, the family said.

To follow up, Hany Babus lawyers also sent another email to the Superintendent requesting that there be no further delay in taking him to the hospital.

The email urged on the gravity of the situation and said that even a days delay may lead to an irreversible deterioration leading to partial or complete loss of sight as well as a life-threatening complication if it affects the brain.

However, he was not taken to the hospital even on May 11, they said.

The family said that for the last few days, they are living in anxiety.

The family said that he has little or no vision in his left eye due to the swelling, which has spread to the cheek, ear and forehead, compromising other vital organs as well, and posing a significant risk to his life if it spreads to the brain.

He is in agonizing pain and is unable to sleep or perform daily chores. Due to an acute water shortage in the prison, he does not have access to clean water to even bathe his eye and is forced to dress his eye with soiled towels, the family said.

The thought of Hany Babu having to beg for something as basic as essential health services is heart wrenching. Even today, we were unable to get a response from the prison, despite repeated calls by our lawyer Roy, the family said.
BJ Allen-Prudden was born in the historic Lissner Mansion 26 years ago and had finally made her way into getting the coveted third-floor bedroom, complete with a loft and skylight that gave her access to the roof.

It was super cool, she said Monday during a telephone call, noting that at one time it had served as a bedroom for her parents and was passed down to other family members.

And now it was hers.

But on May 3, while at work, she got a text on her phone from her sister telling her the house was on fire. Allen-Prudden said she left her job as a receptionist at a salon without saying a word to co-workers, jumped in the car, and headed for home.

The whole time I was hoping it was a mistake and it wasnt real, she said.

But it was real.

Since the fire, the family has not been able to go back into the mansion and the building has been condemned, Allen-Prudden said. She said the fire marshal has not determined a cause.

Right now, we really dont know anything, she said.

BJs mother, Barda Allen, said the family is not sure about the future of the house.
He and Smith both mentioned a FEED the NEED fundraising event in October.

Phil Smith said they have enjoyed their time in Helena and said that prior to coming to the Queen City they had served only in metropolitan areas.

When we arrived in Helena we immediately fell in love with the community, he said. Everybody cares about one another here.

He said Longview reminds him somewhat of Helena and is located near the Oregon border.

Smith said he planned on taking some of the skills he acquired in the Treasure State to his new job.

"I have learned how to fly fish, ice fish and I go out and enjoy the gun range," he said. "Weve also enjoyed camping and seeing all the different reservoirs here. We have done as much traveling as we can possibly get in. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

The Salvation Army Northwest Division appointed the Smiths to Helena in June 2019. Lawry Smith also served as the Montana state capital liaison for The Salvation Army. They replaced Capts. Rob and Tiffany Lawler, who were moved to The Salvation Army in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Part of the government's plan to house thousands of children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border involves about a dozen unlicensed emergency facilities inside military installations, stadiums and convention centers that skirt state regulations and don't require traditional legal oversight.

Inside the facilities, called Emergency Intake Sites, children aren't guaranteed access to education, recreational opportunities or legal counsel.

In a recent news release, the administration touted its "restoration of a child centered focus for unaccompanied children," and it has been sharing daily totals of the number of children in custody as well as a few photos of the facilities. This reflects a higher level of transparency than the Trump administration. In addition, the amount of time children spend, on average, inside the system has dropped from four months last fall to less than a month this spring, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Nonetheless, the agency has received reports of abuse that resulted in a handful of contract staffers being dismissed from working at the emergency sites this year, according to an official who wasn't authorized to talk about it publicly and insisted on anonymity.

Attorneys say sometimes, even parents can't figure out where their children are.
Rice said certain communications between the justices include correspondence about U.S. Supreme Court decisions or legislation that impacts the justices' work, materials that are confidential so not to allow plaintiffs to engineer a litigation strategy.

"I don't have anything to hide and I don't think anything I've done in the Supreme Court would be a disgrace," he said. "I think this series of action I've been talking about to undermine the court, to attack the court, are simply continuing."

Democratic lawmakers have accused the committee of manufacturing an email scandal to discredit the court ahead of several anticipated legal battles over conservative legislation passed in recent months and signed into law by a new Republican governor.

Oestreicher said the committee is willing to negotiate with Rice in regards to which documents would be disclosed, but said the judicial branch should not rule on the matter when it is the party under investigation.

"It's an extraordinary circumstance that calls for a different way for resolving a dispute than through a judicial adjudication," he said. "The judicial branch shouldn't sit and resolve a dispute involving the judicial branch."
DECATUR  The challenges The Salvation Army has faced throughout the pandemic are similar to those faced by any charitable organization.

More than once, they had to quarantine the men in the shelter, which meant they needed food and staff 24 hours a day. Volunteers weren't as numerous, as some had health issues or concerns during the worst of the shutdown days. Weekly church services had to be scaled back to adhere to capacity guidelines. And the food pantry, which was just gearing up with refrigeration and the ability to allow families to shop for what they wanted instead of handing out pre-packaged standard boxes, had to put that aspect of the ministry on hold.

Obviously the need is much, much greater, said Kyle Karsten, director of development and community relations. And I think we're seeing that continue to kind of rear its head, but when it was March of 2020 through the year, we saw more and more people coming to the food pantry who had never been here before, more men that came to the shelter and then needed to stay for longer because of the pandemic and we had to keep them out of circulation in the community for their safety and the safety of our staff.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower proclaimed National Salvation Army Week in 1954, only 74 years after the organization arrived in the United States. This year, National Salvation Army Week is May 10-16. Worldwide, The Salvation Army serves 23 million people annually in 130 countries.

(The proclamation) was to recognize the work that The Salvation Army is doing and has done in the United States, said Lt. Kenesa Debela, head of the Decatur center with his wife, Lt. Shanell Debela. We want people to fully understand what The Salvation Army does.

The Army plans to share history and information about their current activities on its Facebook page all week. The Decatur center was established in 1888.

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We also want to say thank you to those who donate and also our volunteers who help us to accomplish the things that we do on a day-to-day basis, Debela said.

Among the many things they do are a food pantry, the men's shelter, assistance with expenses like rent, utilities and prescriptions, Pathway of Hope, a ministry to single parents with children, veterans assistance and youth programs that offer summer activities.

The Salvation Army needs financial donations and volunteers all year, Karsten said, not just at Christmas time, and it's the people who send monthly donations who keep them going.

One thing that was difficult for Debela as a pastor was that he couldn't minister to people as he wanted to: no hugs, not much opportunity for in-person counsel and encouragement.

For me, it was the limited personal interaction that we were able to have with those who come into our building for service, he said. As a pastor, I would like to talk to people and give them verbal hope, not just tangible, which is good, to be able to pay rent and have food boxes. But also to have conversation and be able to give them a hug and say 'It's going to get better,' and give them some encouragement.

"That physical touch and personal human interaction was so limited with social distancing and masks. It just made it tougher to do our job. We did the best we could. At least we met their physical needs. We just weren't as able to address their emotional and spiritual needs.

Contact Valerie Wells at (217) 421-7982. Follow her on Twitter: @modgirlreporter

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DECATUR  The medical field was already a growth area for those considering careers even before the pandemic, but the need is even more critical now.

Decatur Memorial Hospital held a recruiting/hiring event on Monday and if the fit was right, interviewers were offering to hire people on the spot. Sourcing Manager Megan Nelson said the event sought new graduates, experienced nurses, certified nursing assistants and licensed practical nurses.

We do have a lot of positions, she said. Health care is ever-growing and everything that's been going on over the last year, we really are in need of some strong, passionate clinicians to help make a difference in our community.

During the worst of the pandemic in 2020, she said, a lot of people weren't looking for jobs or were hesitant to work in non-clinical fields. Now that things are opening up, she said, the hospital is encouraging people to come back to the workforce, understanding that it's safe to do so.

According to the Illinois Nursing Workforce Center, registered nurses are in demand, projected to create the second-largest number of new jobs among all occupations, with some employers reporting difficulty in filling all their openings.

Quite often, when someone chooses nursing as a career, they have a specific department in mind  pediatrics, emergency, intensive care  but Nelson said Decatur Memorial encourages applicants to get a wide range of experience because that makes them better nurses.

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It is a really wonderful thing to start in a general medical unit or a surgical unit if you really want to get stable in your practice and get some solid, all-around nursing experience before going into something a little more specialized, she said.

HSHS St. Mary's is also looking for nurses, said Robyn Reising, chief nursing officer.

HSHS St. Marys Hospital has several openings throughout the hospital, Reising said. Whether you want to work directly with patients or prefer to help behind the scenes, we have a role for pretty much everyone.

She said the hospital is focused on needs at the patient's bedside, which includes registered nurses, CNAs and a new position called patient safety assistants.

Nursing is not only a great need, Nelson said, but it offers an opportunity to make a difference in the community.

You could be caring for your teacher, or your children's teachers, people in your community and making a huge difference for more than just your patients, she said. I just think it's really cool. It's a career that is always going to make a difference.

HOW TO APPLY To learn more about open positions at Decatur Memorial Hospital, visit dmhcares.com/careers To learn more about open positions at HSHS St. Mary's Hospital, visit careers.hshs.org

Contact Valerie Wells at (217) 421-7982. Follow her on Twitter: @modgirlreporter

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Vance was returned to his hometown of Decatur on Monday. The funeral procession traveled from the Tanzyus-Logan Funeral Home on Friday for the service at First Christian Church in Springfield before his burial at Camp Butler National Cemetery.
Central Illinois is fortunate to have a plethora of opportunities to enjoy the outdoors right at its doorstep. One such scenic gem is Spitler Woods State Natural Area.

The site, a half-mile east of Mount Zion off Illinois 121, was named for Ida B. Spitler who donated the land to the state in 1937, preserving for posterity the area's shaded ravines and towering trees.

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The 200-acre site is home to one of the largest acreages of old growth woods in Central Illinois. Much of the site is dedicated as Spitler Woods Nature Preserve, providing additional protection for the site's valuable natural features.

According to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Spitler Woods mesic upland forest includes red oak, sugar maple, black walnut and basswood on the hillsides and slopes. Dry mesic forest containing white oak, red oak and shagbark hickory is present on the higher elevations. Wet-mesic floodplain forest containing sycamore, hackberry and Ohio buckeye is present along the creek, which flows through the nature preserve.

The site has a display of spring wildflowers, including false rue anemone, wild geranium, trillium, spring beauty and mayapple.

Spitler Woods provides habitat for songbirds, with birders spotting yellow-billed cuckoo, gray catbird, eastern wood pewee and red-bellied woodpecker.

With hiking paths, picnic shelters and a youth group camp, Spitler Woods State Natural Area is an attractive site for residents and wildlife alike.

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DECATUR  U.S. Army Cpl. Asa E. Vance was returned to his family on Monday, more than 70 years after leaving Decatur to serve in the Korean War.

Thats a long time to be away from your country, said his niece Alma Andrews.

Andrews was on hand Monday when Vance was released from an American Airlines cargo hold at Lambert International Airport, carried by honor guard to a waiting hearse and escorted by a contingent of Patriot Guard Riders and State Highway Patrol to Decatur.

Funeral services with full military honors for Vance will be at noon Friday in the First Christian Church in Springfield, with the burial at 2 p.m. in Camp Butler National Cemetery, Springfield.

Its going to be an interesting day, thats for sure, Andrews said.

Vance was a member of Company D, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, and was reported missing in action Dec. 2, 1950, near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea, after his unit was attacked by enemy forces.

Vance, who was 18 years old when he went missing, was listed as presumed dead by the Army in 1954. Still, family members continued to hold out hope of his safe return.

In a Decatur Daily Review article at the time, his mother said "everyone holds out hope" about those missing still being alive.

A 2018 meeting between President Donald Trump and North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un resulted in more than 55 boxes of war-dead remains being turned over to the United States. Some boxes of remains were recovered from Sinhung-ri and were consistent with where Vance was reported missing in action. Analysts eventually identified Vance among the remains.

Andrews, another niece, his brother and a nephew were located by the military to conduct DNA testing. Thats how they traced Asa back to us, Andrews said.

Vances return to Central Illinois were delayed because of COVID restrictions.

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Joe and Carol Stepping of Stonington stood along Illinois 48 Monday as the remains of Vance travel through the village.

Its the least we could do, Joe Stepping said.

Carol Stepping wanted to show support for the family, because of her connection with other military families. Her father was a World War II veteran and her brothers and cousins also served during the Vietnam War. It was a privilege to honor (Vance) for his service, she said. And Im kind of thankful for my family being able to return home.

Stonington resident Carter Walton, 20, watched as the procession of vehicles and motorcycles drove down the highway. He is a member of the Army ROTC.

I figured I should be here, he said.

The procession was an emotional event for Walton.

I kind of teared up, he said. It was heartfelt to see everyone come out. It shows that theres still support for people, even if theyve been gone for years.

Andrews, who still lives in Decatur, said most of the surviving family are attempting to be at Fridays services to honor a fallen soldier.

Vance was one of 15 children, all of whom have had died. There was quite a bunch, Andrews said.

Contact Donnette Beckett at (217) 421-6983. Follow her on Twitter: @donnettebHR

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DECATUR  U.S. Army Cpl. Asa E. Vance was returned to his family on Monday, more than 70 years after leaving Decatur to serve in the Korean War.

Thats a long time to be away from your country, said his niece Alma Andrews.

Andrews was on hand Monday when Vance was released from an American Airlines cargo hold at Lambert International Airport, carried by honor guard to a waiting hearse and escorted by a contingent of Patriot Guard Riders and State Highway Patrol to Decatur.

Funeral services with full military honors for Vance will be at noon Friday in the First Christian Church in Springfield, with the burial at 2 p.m. in Camp Butler National Cemetery, Springfield.

Its going to be an interesting day, thats for sure, Andrews said.

Vance was a member of Company D, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, and was reported missing in action Dec. 2, 1950, near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea, after his unit was attacked by enemy forces.

Vance, who was 18 years old when he went missing, was listed as presumed dead by the Army in 1954. Still, family members continued to hold out hope of his safe return.

In a Decatur Daily Review article at the time, his mother said "everyone holds out hope" about those missing still being alive.

A 2018 meeting between President Donald Trump and North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un resulted in more than 55 boxes of war-dead remains being turned over to the United States. Some boxes of remains were recovered from Sinhung-ri and were consistent with where Vance was reported missing in action. Analysts eventually identified Vance among the remains.

Andrews, another niece, his brother and a nephew were located by the military to conduct DNA testing. Thats how they traced Asa back to us, Andrews said.

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Vances return to Central Illinois were delayed because of COVID restrictions.

Joe and Carol Stepping of Stonington stood along Illinois 48 Monday as the remains of Vance travel through the village.

Its the least we could do, Joe Stepping said.

Carol Stepping wanted to show support for the family, because of her connection with other military families. Her father was a World War II veteran and her brothers and cousins also served during the Vietnam War. It was a privilege to honor (Vance) for his service, she said. And Im kind of thankful for my family being able to return home.

Stonington resident Carter Walton, 20, watched as the procession of vehicles and motorcycles drove down the highway. He is a member of the Army ROTC.

I figured I should be here, he said.

The procession was an emotional event for Walton.

I kind of teared up, he said. It was heartfelt to see everyone come out. It shows that theres still support for people, even if theyve been gone for years.

Andrews, who still lives in Decatur, said most of the surviving family are attempting to be at Fridays services to honor a fallen soldier.

Vance was one of 15 children, all of whom have had died. There was quite a bunch, Andrews said.

Contact Donnette Beckett at (217) 421-6983. Follow her on Twitter: @donnettebHR

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O'FALLON, Mo. (AP)  Republican Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt on Tuesday filed a lawsuit challenging St. Louis Countys COVID-19 restrictions, citing concerns about their impact on religion, education and the freedom of residents.

The lawsuit filed in St. Louis County Circuit Court names Democratic County Executive Sam Page, the countys health department and its director, Dr. Faisal Khan. It seeks an injunction to end the restrictions.

From requiring a mask outdoors to subjecting citizens to government pre-approval for private events, enough is enough, Schmitt said in a news release. The seemingly unending control over peoples lives must end. Vaccines are widely available to all adults  its past time for St. Louis County to lift these restrictions, and thats why I filed suit today.

Page's spokesman, Doug Moore, said litigation related to public health orders is common across the country and St. Louis County has been successful in defending every legal challenge around public health orders. Our legal foundation is sound.

The lawsuit is the latest of several filed by Schmitt, who announced in March that he will seek the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate in 2022. His announcement came weeks after incumbent Republican Sen. Roy Blunt announced he would not seek reelection.

In April 2020, Schmitt filed suit against the Chinese government over the coronavirus, alleging that the nations officials are to blame for the global pandemic. In December, he joined multi-state lawsuits against Google and Facebook. And also in December, he was among several GOP attorneys general who joined Texas lawsuit that sought to overturn former President Donald Trumps November election loss.

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We all know Mr. Schmitt is trying to increase his profile statewide and suing those protecting the health and safety of residents is apparently one of the ways he has chosen to do that. Our focus is on getting people vaccinated and on economic recovery, Moore said.

Schmitts spokesman, Chris Nuelle, denied any political motive in the lawsuits.

The Attorney Generals Office serves all 6 million Missourians and is tasked with protecting the rights and liberties of those 6 million Missourians  when we find that Missourians personal freedoms and liberties are being trampled, we will seek information and take action, Nuelle said in an email. He (Schmitt) is doing his job.

Republican Gov. Mike Parson allowed businesses in Missouri to reopen in May 2020, just months into the coronavirus pandemic. St. Louis County, St. Louis city and several other jurisdictions enforced more stringent regulations, including restrictions on indoor dining, mask mandates and limits on gatherings. Nuelle said an analysis of shutdown orders across Missouri showed St. Louis Countys was far and away the most stringent.

Schmitt wrote to Khan on April 20 and asked him to explain the countys continued restrictions. Schmitt called the countys response vague and unresponsive.

Earlier this month, St. Louis city and county both announced easing of some restrictions, including elimination of limits on the number of people allowed in restaurants and an end to an outdoor masking requirement. Schmitts lawsuit said it wasnt enough.

Instead of providing meaningful relief for St. Louis County residents, the new Order replaces prior restrictions with vague, confusing, and self-contradictory directives that continue to impose unjustified burdens on religious, economic, and personal freedom, the lawsuit states.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities that The Associated Press has learned spans two dozen states and includes five shelters with more than 1,000 children packed inside.

Confidential data obtained by the AP shows the number of migrant children in government custody more than doubled in the past two months, and this week the federal government was housing around 21,000 kids, from toddlers to teens. A facility at Fort Bliss, a U.S. Army post in El Paso, Texas, had more than 4,500 children as of Monday. Attorneys, advocates and mental health experts say that while some shelters are safe and provide adequate care, others are endangering children's health and safety.

"It's almost like 'Groundhog Day,'" said Southern Poverty Law Center attorney Luz Lopez, referring to the 1993 film in which events appear to be continually repeating. "Here we are back to a point almost where we started, where the government is using taxpayer money to build large holding facilities ... for children instead of using that money to find ways to more quickly reunite children with their sponsors."

A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesman, Mark Weber, said the agency's staff and contractors are working hard to keep children in their custody safe and healthy.

A few of the current practices are the same as those that President Joe Biden and others criticized under the Trump administration, including not vetting some caregivers with full FBI fingerprint background checks. At the same time, court records show the Biden administration is working to settle several multimillion-dollar lawsuits that claim migrant children were abused in shelters under President Donald Trump.

Part of the government's plan to house thousands of children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border involves about a dozen unlicensed emergency facilities inside military installations, stadiums and convention centers that skirt state regulations and don't require traditional legal oversight.

Inside the facilities, called Emergency Intake Sites, children aren't guaranteed access to education, recreational opportunities or legal counsel.

In a recent news release, the administration touted its "restoration of a child centered focus for unaccompanied children," and it has been sharing daily totals of the number of children in custody as well as a few photos of the facilities. This reflects a higher level of transparency than the Trump administration. In addition, the amount of time children spend, on average, inside the system has dropped from four months last fall to less than a month this spring, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Nonetheless, the agency has received reports of abuse that resulted in a handful of contract staffers being dismissed from working at the emergency sites this year, according to an official who wasn't authorized to talk about it publicly and insisted on anonymity.

Attorneys say sometimes, even parents can't figure out where their children are.

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Jose, a father who fled El Salvador after his village was targeted in a massacre, said he requested asylum in the U.S. four years ago. He had hoped to welcome his wife and 8-year-old daughter to California this year, but the pair were turned around at the border in March and expelled to Mexico. The little girl crossed again by herself and was placed in the government shelter in Brownsville, Texas, on April 6. Jose called a government hotline set up for parents seeking their migrant children repeatedly but said no one would tell him where she was.

"I was so upset because I kept calling and calling and no one would tell me any information about where she was," said Jose, who asked to be identified only by his first name out of fear of endangering his immigration case. "Finally they told me I had to pay $1,300 to cover her airplane ticket and if I didn't pay, I would have to wait a month more, and I was so anxious."

For nearly three weeks, his daughter was held inside the Brownsville facility before finally being released to him in late April after an advocacy organization intervened to get the government to pay for her airfare, as is required by the agency.

Of particular concern to advocates are mass shelters, with hundreds of beds apiece. These facilities can leave children isolated, less supervised and without basic services. The AP found about half of all migrant children detained in the U.S. are sleeping in shelters with more than 1,000 other children. More than 17,650 are in facilities with 100 or more children. Some shelters and foster programs are small, little more than a house with a handful of kids. A large Houston facility abruptly closed last month after it was revealed that children were being given plastic bags instead of access to restrooms.

"HHS has worked as swiftly as possible to increase bed capacity and to ensure potential sponsors can provide a safe home while the child goes through their immigration proceedings," Weber said in a statement.

"The system has been very dysfunctional, and it's getting worse," said Amy Cohen, a child psychiatrist and executive director of the nonprofit Every. Last. One., which works to help immigrant families fleeing violence in Central America. Although there have been large numbers of children arriving in the U.S. for years, Cohen said she's never seen the situation as bad as it is today.

One reason so many children are now arriving without their parents dates back to a 2020 Trump administration emergency order that essentially closed the U.S.-Mexico border to all migrants, citing public health concerns about spreading COVID-19.

Some of the facilities now holding children are run by contractors already facing lawsuits claiming that children were physically and sexually abused in their shelters under the Trump administration, while others are new companies with little or no experience working with migrant children. Collectively, the emergency facilities can accommodate nearly 18,000 children, according to data the agency provided earlier this month.

Administration officials have said that the increased need has driven them to expand the number of beds available for migrant children and that sheltering children in large facilities, while not preferable, is a better alternative than holding them for long periods at Border Patrol stations.

As for the 8-year-old girl, her father, Jose, said she is adjusting to life in Los Angeles, enjoying playing with her older brother and, bit by bit, opening up.

"Soon I hope she'll tell me what it was like inside," he said.

AP researcher Larry Fenn contributed to this report.

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The significant delay of the release of 2020 census data as well as politics surrounding the count have created problems for lawmakers deciding how to draw Illinois' legislative maps.

Normally, there is little debate over which data to use. The census data is available and used by lawmakers to understand how the state's population has changed over the last decade. This year, factors including the pandemic and policies by the Trump administration, have delayed the release of the full census data until late summer. It has left lawmakers quarreling over whether they should use the census data or the American Community Survey data.

The Illinois Constitution says lawmakers have until June 30 to pass new legislative maps. If they don't, map-making goes to a commission of eight people, four from each party. This group must agree on maps by Aug. 10. If five members don't approve the maps, the name of either a Republican or Democrat is drawn from a hat to choose a ninth member to break the tie by Oct. 5.

"It is not my belief that the people of Illinois would rather us have our redistricting on whose name, Republican or Democrat, is pulled out of a top hat," said state Rep. Jay Hoffman, D-Swansea, arguing he believes Illinoisans would rather lawmakers use the best data they have now than leave map-making up to a random drawing.

In 1981, 1991, and 2001, the redistricting process was controlled by the winner of a drawing from a replica Abraham Lincoln top hat by the secretary of state.

Senate Democrats are arguing they are required to pass new maps by June 30. Republicans argue the real deadline is Oct. 5. Wendy Underhill, a redistricting expert from the National Conference of State Legislatures, said Illinois' June 30 deadline for lawmakers is ahead of most states.

However, the constitution gives no guidance on how to use data in the redistricting process.

"Nowhere does our constitution say we have to use census data," said the chairman of the Senate redistricting committee, Sen. Omar Aquino, D-Chicago.

With the census data not scheduled to appear until August, lawmakers have choices to make. They can go ahead with redistricting using 2010 census data and more recent ACS data, or they can wait until later in the summer when the Census releases redistricting data.

Democrats say they have to draw a map by June 30 per the constitution. Republicans say they can wait for the Census. The constitution says lawmakers "shall" handle the redistricting process, but does not mandate maps to be complete by June 30 and creates a process for lawmakers to handle redistricting after June 30.

Oklahoma has already released initial maps using ACS data, according to Politico.

While Republicans argue for using census data and Democrats consider using ACS data, both sets are academic data sets that are seriously vetted and come from the U.S. Census Bureau. However, there are some key differences.

According to the Census Bureau, the ACS is sample data over a five-year period that fills gaps between census counts. The census counts every person in the country, but the ACS uses a sample to gather a snapshot of population changes. While the ACS is accurate, the census is more accurate. For example, the 2020 census found there were 12,812,508 people in Illinois. The 2019 ACS estimated Illinois had 12,770,631 people.

"Using the ACS data ... is an attempt by the majority to use flawed data to a partisan end," said Senate Majority Leader Dan McConchie, R-Hawthorn Woods.

Another worry Republicans have with ACS data is its ability to accurately understand rural communities.

Georgia Logothetis from Common Cause Illinois told lawmakers April 1 the ACS data has a hard time accurately picturing communities with fewer than 65,000 people because it is sample data that is taken over a period of years.

"The census data is worth the wait," Logothetis said.

Not everyone is convinced the census data is best to represent Illinois communities, however.

Aquino said "the Trump administration did so much to try to undermine the census count," and there should be legitimate questions raised about its validity, especially in minority communities.

"How accurate is that information?" he asked.

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Both the House and Senate combined have held over 50 public hearings to gather input from residents on the redistricting process. Many people have expressed support for using census data.

"These are a wide variety of organizations that are expressing these concerns about the data," said state Rep. Tim Butler, R-Springfield.

State Sen. Jason Plummer, R-Edwardsville, said using the ACS data for redistricting is like using polling data to decide elections because the ACS is just a sample, and reality can be different from the sample.

"We don't elect people based on samples or surveys," said Madeleine Doubek, executive director of CHANGE Illinois.

However, Al Hooks from the NAACP in Peoria said he would be concerned about lawmakers going away from the "process" and waiting until later in the summer to tackle redistricting.

State Sen. Ann Gillespie, D-Arlington Heights, said delaying the redistricting process could mean the maps aren't fair.

State Sens. Christopher Belt, D-Centreville, and Doris Turner, D-Springfield, both argued at a hearing in mid-April in East St. Louis that the Trump administration's handling of the census makes it more difficult to trust that it will be accurate. Multiple members of the Black community in East St. Louis agreed with the senators' comments and said it was more difficult to get Black residents to fill out the census within the time constraints imposed at the federal level.

"If we're looking at the American Community Survey data, it's very accurate. I think referencing that and using that data gives us an accurate picture of what these communities look like," said Stacy Grundy, a population science and policy assistant at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine.

Other experts have pushed back on the claims by Belt, Turner and Grundy.

"It's a sampling and not a full accounting of everyone who lives in the state. I understand we all have concerns about the accuracy of the census, but it certainly was an all-out effort to make it more complete," Doubek said.

Gov. JB Pritzker was pressed by reporters at the end of April on what data lawmakers should use. He wouldn't say what data he preferred, but offered this assessment of Illinois' 2020 population numbers:

"One thing that I will offer up is that we should pay close attention to the fact that the census data that came out yesterday I think exceeded everyone's expectations. There are many carnival barkers and people who have run down this state for years who have talked about that we lost hundreds of thousands of people over the last 10 years."

University of Illinois at Chicago political science professor Christopher Mooney said regardless of what data set gets used, lawsuits are filed routinely, although using ACS data could be a basis for lawsuits.

On Thursday, House Republicans held a press conference outside a room at the end of the hallway in the Stratton Office Building. According to a report by WCIA-TV, House Democrats are drawing maps in that room.

"This is the doorway to further corruption in the state of Illinois," said state Rep. Ryan Spain, pointing at the door with a phone number on it instructing members to call Speaker of the House Emanuel "Chris" Welch's office for access.

Later Thursday, House redistricting committee chair Lisa Hernandez, D-Chicago would not address what Butler called "the secret room." Hernandez said the process has been transparent, and House Majority Leader Greg Harris, D-Chicago, said their caucus is still evaluating public input in the remapping process.

"We are just following the process. (Republicans) are doing the same. They are also looking at their maps. It's not a secret. Now it's in a stage of getting input from legislatures," Hernandez said.

Republicans showed reporters an empty conference room where they said they would draw their maps. Republicans are not drawing maps because they want full census data.

"I've talked to Leader Welch about this and he says he's going to stay with the ACS data. He believes whatever process is in place will be fair," House Minority Leader Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs said last month.

However, Welch's office said Durkin's statement is not true.

"Speaker Welch has never suggested that maps will be drawn solely using ACS data. As he's reiterated numerous times, it is one of the alternative sources of data," said Jaclyn Driscoll, a spokeswoman for Welch.

Aquino and Sims said Senate Democrats have not made any decisions about what data set they will use.

Democratic lawmakers will likely have maps ready in some form by the end of June. The legislative session ends at the end of May, and maps could also be presented before then. Whatever maps are drawn in that time will more than likely use ACS data.

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Call it what you want. Climate instability or climate change or global warming is caused by carbon and greenhouse emissions emitted by humans in the past century. We are the problem and the solution to our climate crisis. We must act now. The good news is we have a means to help get to net carbon by 2050.

The Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act (EICDA), H.R.2307, has been reintroduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. EICDA puts an annual fee on fossil fuel producers for the climate harming carbon emissions of their products. This will drive down carbon pollution because energy companies, leading industries, and American consumers will move toward cleaner, cheaper options. This is a definite free market and fully cost approach. The money collected from the carbon fee will be allocated in equal shares and paid out as a monthly dividend to the American people to spend as they see fit.

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We need Republicans and Democrats to help us to care for our common home. Congressmen Darin LaHood and Rodney Davis and Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth are all concerned about our climate. So should you. Please visit citizensclimatelobby.org, the website of the Citizens Climate Lobby an organization committed to promoting and passing EICDA and addressing this challenge in a way that is efficient and bipartisan.

I encourage you to join Brady Burden and me in forming the CCL chapter in Central Illinois. Please join CCL and we can work together.

Mike Armstrong, Springfield

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NEW YORK (AP)  Amid growing pressure on the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, NBC said Monday that will not air the Golden Globes in 2022.

In a statement, the network said it believes the press association  which is facing possible boycotts from Netflix, Warner Bros. and many Hollywood stars  is committed to reform.

However, change of this magnitude takes time and work, and we feel strongly that the HFPA needs time to do it right, the network said. "As such, NBC will not air the 2022 Golden Globes. Assuming the organization executes on its plan, we are hopeful we will be in a position to air the show in January 2023.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, long a subject of ridicule from even its own telecast hosts, has come under fire following an investigative report by The Los Angeles Times that recounted the organization's questionable record on diversity  including, presently, no Black members among its approximately 90 voting members.

The press association has pledged to thoroughly reform, and last week approved a plan to, among other things, diversity its membership. But that hasn't stopped several studios from threatening to pull out of the Globes.
DAMASCUS, Va.  A local couple has created an innovative tourism gift shop in Damascus as their way of giving back to the community.

John and Susan Coleman opened Discover Damascus on Main Street earlier this month. The business caters to local crafters, providing an outlet for them to display their goods.

The couple had no idea theyd become business owners after moving here from Christiansburg, Virginia, two years ago.

It really was something that just fell into place, said John, who believes divine inspiration had a lot to do with it.

Susan and her husband John, who served as a pastor in the New River Valley area, have helped with many community service projects throughout the years, including turning a former Bible college into the CrossPointe Conference Center in Christiansburg.

We love to see things revived, he said. We were looking for a new season, and Damascus was the place for us.
The Central Intelligence Agency is always looking to recruit new agents, and advertising is one way it has done so in the past. The difference this time is in a newly created series of recruitment videos that reflect the spirit of the age in which we live, rather than appealing to abilities and patriotism.

The videos seem to suggest that the super-secret agency has been infiltrated, not by spies from Russia, China, or al-Qaida, but rather a subtler and nearly invisible enemy.

That would be the infiltration by woke liberals, whose primary goal appears to be the undermining of every tradition and institution  from Disneylands Snow White ride (the famous kiss scene by the Prince has been deemed sexually aggressive because Ms. White is unconscious and cannot give consent, so it will be reimagined)  to Americas foremost intelligence agency.

The latest CIA video features a Latina officer who identifies as a cisgender millennial. Even the word cisgender is so new that my spellcheck does not (yet) recognize it. The video is part of a new series called Humans of CIA designed to attract a more diverse pool of candidates.
Two Lenoir residents face multiple counts of felony trafficking in methamphetamine.

Justin Marqui Caldwell, 33, and Stephanie Nicole Laws, 28, both of Lenoir, were arrested and charged with multiple counts of felony trafficking in methamphetamine, according to a news release from the Alexander County Sheriffs Office. They were each placed in the Caldwell County Detention Center under an $800,000 secured bond.

At about 7 a.m. May 5, Caldwell County deputies attempted to stop Caldwells vehicle. Caldwell fled, according to the release.

The vehicle pursuit ended when Caldwells vehicle collided with a tree at a residence on Connelly Springs Road in the Baton community, the release stated. Caldwell then fled on foot and was taken into custody by officers.

Caldwell was found in possession of about 2,000 grams of methamphetamine, about 4.4 pounds, the release said.

Laws was a passenger in the vehicle and was arrested without incident, the release stated. The drugs seized during the investigation have a total street value of $300,000, according to North Carolina State Drug Guidelines.
A suspect in the shooting deaths of Branique McKnight and Janarion Knox turned down a plea deal Monday and is scheduled for a trial by jury.

Daniel Minton, 22, of Lenoir appeared in Superior Court at the Catawba County Courthouse on Monday for a pretrial hearing.

The attorneys and Judge Gregory Horne were present for the hearing at 10 a.m., but Minton didnt arrive until 11:28 a.m. Mintons defense attorney Ken Darty said Minton was struggling to find something to wear.

Several requests and motions were made at the hearing including Minton formally turning down the plea deal of a minimum 25 years in prison to seek a jury trial.

Jury selection began Monday afternoon. Darty said the process might take longer than normal because COVID-19 restrictions limit the courtroom to 18 people at any one time.

The prosecutor in this case is Brittany Pinkham with the North Carolina Department of Justice.

Knoxs family attended the hearing on Monday. Those present included his father Carlos Walker and cousin Xavier Winston.

Winston said he used to help drive Knox to school. (Knox) was full of life and finally getting stuff figured out, he said.
He and Speaker Moore said it was just coincidence that they had both quashed bills targeting transgender individuals. And they didnt kill them quietly. They went out of their way to do it publicly.

Berger maintained, It had nothing to do with Apple.

Whatever the reason, give Berger and Moore credit. They did the right thing.

Give Cooper credit. He could have hogged the stage. Instead, he shared it.

Give them all credit for working together and crafting an incentives package that brought in Apple. It amounts to $845.8 million over 39 years.

Three years ago, it looked like North Carolina had missed its bite at Apple. But the Cooper administration kept talking to the company. The administration and the legislature worked together to write the incentive package into law.

Staffers for both, usually sworn enemies, traded compliments at the end.

With Apple, we saw a picture you dont see in other Southern states these days: The Governor and legislative leaders, Democrats and Republicans, Blacks and whites  and Machelle Sanders, a former life-sciences executive who is the first Black commerce secretary  standing together
A meteotsunami is a form of tsunami generated by atmospheric conditions, and it can strike any coastline adjacent to a sea floor with a long, shallow shelf. They are not as massive, nor as well-known, as ordinary tsunamis, which are caused by earthquakes in the ocean floor, and they are more localised. But they can damage property and endanger human life.

A meteotsunami in the harbour of Ciutadella on the Spanish island of Menorca in 2006, for example, sent yachts crashing into each other and then dumped them on the harbour floor as it drained away, causing tens of millions of euros in damage. Meteotsunamis also feature in local legends  one meteotsunami in sixteenth century Croatia swept away the bridge that linked two sides of a village bringing them to their senses over a feud that had arisen between them.

Researchers already understand the conditions that trigger such tsunamis, according to Professor Jadranka Sepic, an assistant professor and meteorologist at the University of Split, Croatia.

At the coast, there must be a drop down to a shallow shelf of up to 100m deep that juts out at least a few tens of kilometres into the sea. Such a feature is found on the east coast of the United States and in the channel between France and England, for example.

This shape has an effect on the speed of long-ocean waves  those that travel over long distances rather than the wind-caused breakers that hit the shoreline every few seconds. When these 10km-long waves reach this kind of shelf they slow down to a speed of 50 to 110 kilometres per hour, depending on the depth.

Crucially, this can be slow enough to match the speed of atmospheric gravity waves above them. If the two speeds coincide, and if the two sets of waves then synchronise, energy from the atmospheric wave siphons down into that of the wave in the water, and this wave in the sea grows bigger and bigger, kind of like a resonance, said Prof. Sepic.

So at the surface it looks fine, but at high levels there is something happening that is more energetic. Prof. Jadranka Sepic, University of Split, Croatia

Atmospheric waves

But what causes those atmospheric waves is less well understood, says Prof. Sepic. She leads a project known as SHExtreme to discover the processes behind them and whether they will be more common as the climate changes.

We know how the atmosphere and the ocean interact  but we want to find out what exactly helps these processes in the atmosphere to develop, what kind of larger setting in the atmosphere allows for these smaller processes, she said.

If they increase in incidence, she points out, then there will be a corresponding increase in the incidence of the biggest meteotsunamis. Whats more, because of sea level rise, they will have a further reach than today.

The first thing is they will happen from a higher sea level so they will be more dangerous, said Prof. Sepic. But the second thing we need to check is what will happen to these atmospheric waves  will they happen more often or less often? If they happen less often it could happen that these two events cancel each other  but if we have  more of these favourable atmospheric processes then there is a problem: you have a meteotsunami which is more likely to happen and which will start from a higher level.

SHExtreme is collecting evidence of previous such waves and comparing them with the atmospheric processes going on at the time.

To do so requires tidal data which has been collected by mechanical tide gauges as far back as the 19th century, and is now mostly recorded through digital radar and pressure sensors on the sea floor.

For the more historical work, however, there was a hitch. Tables of sea level data before around 2010 register the height only every hour. This is too coarse a measurement because a meteotsunami could roll in, do its damage and depart in just a few minutes.

Because of this, Prof. Sepic has had to find the original analogue charts  made by a needle wavering up and down a rotating cylinder  from which the tables were compiled. She is working through these records for the whole of the Croatian coast. Colleagues, meanwhile, have done the same for Finland.

Since 2010, the International Oceanographic Commission has been providing sea level height measurements taken around the globe every minute. So Prof. Sepics team is prioritising study of this period, looking for patterns in the data such as seasonal distributions and the breadth of coastline affected.

Summer

So far, the team has shown that Mediterranean meteotsunamis tend to be stronger in the summer. Despite calm conditions at ground level, fast winds of dry air from Africa can be racing through the atmosphere some 1,500 metres up and this is what seems to trigger the atmospheric waves.

At the surface it looks fine, but at high levels there is something happening that is more energetic, she said. Testing this theory for Spains Balearic Islands coasts, she said we were able to show that, if you have this situation in the atmosphere, there is a very high chance that a meteotsunami will happen  this situation almost always generates these atmospheric waves.

The next step is to consider the future. There are many simulations of how the atmosphere will behave under climate change. For the Balearic Islands, the worst-case scenario of one simulation revealed a 30% increase in the number of days favourable to meteotsunamis because of an increase in the number of days during which there are these high-level winds.

But the problem is we used only one climate simulation  this was like a prototype model, said Prof. Sepic. You need to look at ten or 20 climate simulations.

Looking at more simulations is something she plans to do in the next couple of years.

Scientists in the United States think they have made a breakthrough in forecasting meteotsunamis, at least for Lake Michigan. In April 2018 the beach town of Ludington was drenched by a wave that damaged boat docks and homes, flooded intake pipes  and could have carried away beach-goers if it had happened a little later in the year.

Its a gap in our forecasting, said Dr Eric Anderson, an oceanographer at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory.

His team reported in late March that, using photos taken by a local resident, and other data, they should, with existing forecasting tools, be able to predict such an event minutes to hours in advance.

Prof. Sepic says that forecasting is already in place for the Balearics but they are often wrong, because they are based either on a statistical chance according to the atmospheric conditions or on models that cannot give precise forecasts of atmospheric waves at small scale.

SHExtreme may change that. At the very least, Prof. Sepic said, we hope we will be able to show which parts of the European coast are in most danger now and also in the future.

Just how are our seas changing and rising with climate change and the melting of Earths ice caps? In this three-part series, we look at the past, present and future of extreme sea level rise. In part three we will look at how habitants of cities with high flood protection are paradoxically put more at risk of extreme flooding. In part one, we looked at what the last interglacial can tell us about extreme sea level rise.

The research in this article was funded by the EUs European Research Council. If you liked this article, please consider sharing it on social media.
People, wearing face masks as a precaution against the coronavirus disease, walk in the central business district in Singapore on 5 May, 2021. (PHOTO: Reuters)

SINGAPORE  The Ministry of Health (MOH) on Thursday (6 May) confirmed 18 new COVID-19 cases in Singapore, taking the country's total case count to 61,286.

Two of them are local cases in the community, unlinked to the Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) cluster, and the remaining 16 are imported.

Thursday marks the 11th consecutive day with local cases reported. "Amongst the new cases today, 16 are asymptomatic, and were detected from our proactive screening and surveillance, while two were symptomatic," said the MOH.

Of the two community cases on Thursday, only one is unlinked. He is an 88-year-old Singaporean man who is employed by Ramky Cleantech Services as a cleaner deployed at Changi Airport Terminal 3. He had not gone to work after the onset of symptoms.

The man received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on 22 January and the second dose on 15 February. He developed a runny nose and cough on 4 May and sought medical treatment at a general practitioner clinic, where he was tested for COVID-19.

The man's test result came back positive on 5 May, and he was conveyed to Sengkang General Hospital in an ambulance. His earlier tests under the rostered routine testing regime  the last being on 16 April  were all negative for COVID-19.

His serological test result is pending, said the MOH.

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The second community case is linked to the tenth and latest cluster in Singapore. He is a 22-year-old male permanent resident who is a full-time national serviceman with the Singapore Armed Forces.

He is a household contact of a 59-year-old Singaporean man who works as a trailer truck driver at Brani Terminal and Pasir Panjang Terminal. The older man was confirmed to have COVID-19 on 4 May and was linked to a new cluster announced on Wednesday.

With the addition of the younger man, the cluster  identified as the "Case 61822" cluster  is now linked to five cases, of whom four work at Pasir Panjang Terminal.

As the 22-year-old had been identified as a close contact of the older man, the former was placed on quarantine on 4 May, and immediately isolated while in Sembawang Camp. On 5 May, he was tested for COVID-19 even though he is asymptomatic.

Story continues

The man's test result came back positive the next day, and he was conveyed in an ambulance to Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital. His serology test result is negative, said the MOH.

The MOH noted that the number of new cases in the community has increased from 28 in the week before to 48 in the past week. The number of unlinked cases in the community has remained stable at seven per week in the past two weeks.

The ministry also added five more locations to the list of public places visited by infectious community cases. These places include Yummy Food Link, visited on seven occasions, and NTUC FairPrice at White Sands.

Singapore now has 10 active COVID-19 clusters, the largest being the TTSH cluster which to date has 40 infections linked to it.

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16 imported cases, including 7 PRs who returned from India

Among the 16 imported cases, seven are PRs who returned from India. Another case is a dependants pass holder who arrived from Nepal.

One case is a students pass holder who arrived from India and had been emplaced on his course earlier

Another is a work pass holder who arrived from Malaysia.

The remaining six are work permit holders who arrived from Bangladesh and Indonesia, of whom four are foreign domestic workers. A 43-year-old man who arrived from Indonesia is one of two symptomatic cases reported on Thursday.

All 16 imported cases were placed on the stay-home notice upon their arrival here and were tested while serving their notice.

"The arrivals from the Indian sub-continent had already come into Singapore before the restrictions on travel were imposed," said the MOH.

With effect from 11.59pm on 23 April, all long-term pass holders and short-term visitors with recent travel history to India are not allowed entry into or transit through Singapore, due to a surge in COVID-19 cases there.

The same border control measure has been extended to travellers with recent travel history to Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka with effect from 11.59pm on 1 May.

99% of total cases have recovered, 1 in ICU

With 29 more patients discharged from hospitals or community isolation facilities on Thursday, 60,873 cases  or 99.3 per cent of the total  have fully recovered from the infection.

Most of the 120 hospitalised cases are stable or improving, while one is in critical condition in the intensive care unit.

A total of 262 patients  with mild symptoms or are clinically well but still test positive  are isolated and cared for at community facilities.

Apart from the 31 patients who have died from COVID-19 complications, 15 others who tested positive for the virus were determined to have died from unrelated causes, including three whose deaths were attributed to a heart attack and another four, whose deaths were attributed to coronary heart disease.

Among the 165 confirmed cases reported from 30 April to 6 May, 47 cases have tested positive for their serology tests, 86 have tested negative, and 32 serology test results are pending.

Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore's Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore

More Singapore stories:

SPH CEO Ng Yat Chung 'takes umbrage' at reporter's 'editorial integrity' question

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TAIPEI (Reuters) -Taiwan's foreign minister criticised what he called China's "shameless lies" on Tuesday in an escalating dispute about Beijing blocking the island from the World Health Organization (WHO), saying China clearly did not care about Taiwan's people.

The United States and the rich-nation Group of Seven (G7) have called for Chinese-claimed but democratically ruled Taiwan to attend the WHO's decision-making body, the World Health Assembly, which meets from May 24.

Taiwan is excluded from most global organisations such as the WHO because of the objections of China, which considers the island one of its provinces not a country.

China's foreign ministry said on Monday that "appropriate arrangements" have been made for Taiwan's participation in global health matters and that nobody cared more for Taiwan's people than the Chinese government.

"Shameless lies! Just goes to show the CCP can't tell the truth," Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said on Twitter, referring to China's ruling Communist Party.

"After what Beijing has done to Xinjiang, Tibet & Hong Kong, no sane person would believe it could take care of Taiwan's health needs or otherwise," Wu added. "Thank God we aren't under China's control! Please help us keep it at a distance."

Wu said China's Communist Party could not claim to speak for Taiwan as it has never ruled it and only the island's democratically elected government can represent its people.

In Beijing, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the blame lay with Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) for refusing to accept the island was part of China.

"The DPP authorities know this well. Taiwan compatriots are our flesh and blood. The Chinese central government takes all necessary measures to ensure the health and well-being of the Taiwan compatriots," she added.

Story continues

While the WHO cooperates with Taiwan's technical experts on COVID-19, it is up to member states whether to invite Taiwan to observe the WHO meeting, the WHO's principal legal officer Steve Solomon said on Monday.

China can easily corral enough countries to support blocking Taiwan from the World Health Assembly, according to diplomats.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Additional reporting by David Kirton in Beijing; Editing by Robert Birsel)
Question: Why does Duke Energy have an $8 charge if you want to pay by credit card or even a debit card? Other services do not, including AT&T, Piedmont Natural Gas, and City of Winston-Salem for water. With the poor mail service, checks mailed may not get there by the due date.

 B.M.

Answer: Jimmy Flythe, the west region director for government and community relations for Duke Energy Carolinas explained the fees and what Duke Energy has done during the pandemic.

Credit and debit card convenience fees are paid by the customer using the service as defined in North Carolinas rules and regulations governing utility operations.

These fees cover the processing costs associated with handling credit card and electronic debit payments. No part of the convenience fee goes to Duke Energy.

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, we received approval to waive credit and debit card convenience fees for residential accounts only. And as of April 5, this fee has been eliminated for Duke Energy Carolinas residential customers. Non-residential customers have several no fee options including traditional mail and automatic bank draft.
Chernobyl

Le autorita ucraine hanno sequestrato 1.500 bottiglie di Vodka Atomik, un particolare tipo di vodka prodotta a Chernobyl che sarebbe stata presto commercializzata nel Regno Unito.

Vodka Atomik di Chernobyl, sequestrate 1.500 bottiglie destinate al Regno Unito

Una spedizione di 1.500 bottiglie di Vodka Atomik era in partenza da Chernobyl ed era destinata al mercato del Regno Unito: lintera spedizione, tuttavia, e stata intercettata dalle autorita ucraine che hanno immediatamente provveduto al sequestro della merce e al suo trasferimento allufficio del procuratore di Kiev.

Il prodotto, battezzato Vodka Atomik, e stato realizzato impiegando mele coltivate a Chernobyl, in prossimita della centrale nucleare presso la quale si verifico la drammatica esplosione del reattore numero quattro nella notte del 26 aprile 1986.

In relazione alle informazioni sinora diramate, i produttori della bevanda alcolica hanno dichiarato che il singolare tipo di vodka che avrebbe dovuto approdare sul mercato inglese rappresenta il primo bene di consumo prodotto a Chernobyldallepoca del tragico disastro nucleare che ha reso famoso il luogo a livello internazionale.

LEGGI ANCHE: Peschereccio italiano speronato da barche turche di fronte alle costa della Siria

Vodka Atomik di Chernobyl, il sequestro e le indagini

Le autorita ucraine che hanno effettuato il sequestro hanno confiscato la prima partita di Vodka Atomik facendo irruzione in una distilleria situata nei Carpazi e svuotando un camion sul quale era gia stata caricata la merce da spedire nel Regno Unito. Le bottiglie, poi, sono state trasportate direttamente presso lufficio del procuratore di Kiev che si occupera di esaminare e valutare i prodotti.

Intanto, la Chernobyl Spirit Company, azienda che si occupa della produzione della Vodka Atomik, ha spiegato che la merce requisita rappresenta il primo prodotto di consumo di Chernobyl dal disastro nucleare del 1986. Inoltre, lazienda ha dichiarato di aver saputo che la bevanda alcolica e attualmente al centro di unindagine condotta dai servizi di sicurezza ucraini ma ha anche ammesso di non essere a conoscenza delle motivazioni che abbiano causato il sequestro del carico.

Continua a leggere

Vodka Atomik di Chernobyl, nascita del prodotto

La produzione della Vodka Atomik a Chernobyl e iniziata nel corso del 2019 e, in principio, la bevanda era stata concepita come una sorta di esperimento scientifico. In un secondo momento, pero, dopo aver effettuato tutte le analisi necessari e aver confermato che il bene di consumo non fosse radioattivo, la Vodka Atomik si e trasformata nel principale prodotto venduto dalla Chernobyl Spirit Company, un brand locale di modeste dimensioni.

Lalcolico deriva dalla lavorazione di mele coltivate a Narodichi, una zona situata al di fuori dellarea contaminata dallesplosione del reattore della centrale nucleare avvenuta nel 1986. La Vodka Atomik, poi, viene venduta dalla Chernobyl Spirit Company, societa fondata da Jim Smith, uno scienziato che svolge limportante compito di esaminare e monitorare gli effetti radioattivi nelle zone di esclusione, e altri colleghi.
ARTHUR  Convicted Arthur child sex offender Christopher J. Landess will be close to 80 years old before hes eligible for release from prison after receiving two consecutive sentences.

A Monday hearing saw Moultrie County Circuit Court Judge Jeremy Richey sentence the 52-year-old man to four years incarceration after he pled guilty to two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

Richey ordered that sentence to be served after a 30-year sentence Landess had been given April 28 in Champaign County Circuit Court following his conviction there for the predatory criminal sexual assault of a child.

With the combined sentences, Landess will be just short of 80 years old before he would be eligible for release from IDOC custody, said Moultrie County States Attorney Tracy Weaver.

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Weaver, in a statement, said Landess had been caught and charged after he initiated sexual contact with two minor females at a location in Arthur. One child had then come forward to report an April 2020 incident to police and a second child had contacted law enforcement and described additional and separate occurrences initiated by Landess in Arthur and Champaign.

A warrant had been issued for his arrest in May of 2020 and police investigations revealed he had fled to Montana where he was tracked down and arrested May 27.

If he does live long enough to be released from prison, Landess is further ordered to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

Contact Tony Reid at (217) 421-7977. Follow him on Twitter: @TonyJReid

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DECATUR  U.S. Army Cpl. Asa E. Vance was returned to his family on Monday, more than 70 years after leaving Decatur to serve in the Korean War.

Thats a long time to be away from your country, said his niece Alma Andrews.

Andrews was on hand Monday when Vance was released from an American Airlines cargo hold at Lambert International Airport, carried by honor guard to a waiting hearse and escorted by a contingent of Patriot Guard Riders and State Highway Patrol to Decatur.

Funeral services with full military honors for Vance will be at noon Friday in the First Christian Church in Springfield, with the burial at 2 p.m. in Camp Butler National Cemetery, Springfield.

Its going to be an interesting day, thats for sure, Andrews said.

Vance was a member of Company D, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, and was reported missing in action Dec. 2, 1950, near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea, after his unit was attacked by enemy forces.

Vance, who was 18 years old when he went missing, was listed as presumed dead by the Army in 1954. Still, family members continued to hold out hope of his safe return.

In a Decatur Daily Review article at the time, his mother said "everyone holds out hope" about those missing still being alive.

A 2018 meeting between President Donald Trump and North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un resulted in more than 55 boxes of war-dead remains being turned over to the United States. Some boxes of remains were recovered from Sinhung-ri and were consistent with where Vance was reported missing in action. Analysts eventually identified Vance among the remains.

Andrews, another niece, his brother and a nephew were located by the military to conduct DNA testing. Thats how they traced Asa back to us, Andrews said.

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Vances return to Central Illinois were delayed because of COVID restrictions.

Joe and Carol Stepping of Stonington stood along Illinois 48 Monday as the remains of Vance travel through the village.

Its the least we could do, Joe Stepping said.

Carol Stepping wanted to show support for the family, because of her connection with other military families. Her father was a World War II veteran and her brothers and cousins also served during the Vietnam War. It was a privilege to honor (Vance) for his service, she said. And Im kind of thankful for my family being able to return home.

Stonington resident Carter Walton, 20, watched as the procession of vehicles and motorcycles drove down the highway. He is a member of the Army ROTC.

I figured I should be here, he said.

The procession was an emotional event for Walton.

I kind of teared up, he said. It was heartfelt to see everyone come out. It shows that theres still support for people, even if theyve been gone for years.

Andrews, who still lives in Decatur, said most of the surviving family are attempting to be at Fridays services to honor a fallen soldier.

Vance was one of 15 children, all of whom have had died. There was quite a bunch, Andrews said.

Contact Donnette Beckett at (217) 421-6983. Follow her on Twitter: @donnettebHR

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MATTOON  Vaccinations for COVID-19 through an Illinois National Guard program will be available at Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center on May 22.

The Coles County Health Department announced the vaccination clinic, which will be the second in the county through the guards Mobile Outreach Vaccination Point of Dispensing program.

A news release from the health department said the vaccinations will be available from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, May 22, at SBLHCs Lumpkin Family Center for Health Education, located on the north side of the hospital.

It said the single-dose Johnson & Johnson brand vaccine will be used and the clinic will be open to any Illinois resident age 18 or older.

It said registration for the vaccinations is available online at https://events.juvare.com/IL-IDPH/577593e1-506a-45e3-ac47-27fc8bfb88f6/.

The release also said walk-in appointments will be available with completion of registration forms upon arrival.

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It also said face masks will be required for those who receive the vaccinations. An Illinois drivers license or state ID card will also be required, it said.

A vaccination clinic through the National Guard program also took place at SBLHC last month, when organizers said more than 1,500 appointments were filled during the two-day clinic.

Coles County health officials also announced on Monday that six more Coles County residents have tested positive for COVID-19 since Friday.

A news release from the department said there were two additional cases of the disease caused by the coronavirus reported on each day, Saturday-Monday.

The release said the new cases of the disease brought the countys total since the start of the pandemic to 5,811.

Of those, five county residents are hospitalized and 28 are recovering from the disease, according to the release. It said 5,684 county residents have recovered from the disease and 94 are deceased.

The Illinois Department of Public Health on Monday reported 1,424 new confirmed and probable cases of coronavirus disease, including 12 additional deaths.

To date, the state is reporting a total of 1,356,391 cases, including 22,235 deaths.
President Joe Biden is expected to select former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel as his ambassador to Japan, according to multiple reports Tuesday.

The move would give Biden a deeply experienced government tactician and political veteran in a prominent foreign post, but the choice is also certain to receive criticism from some in the Democratic Partys progressive wing who have been critical of Emanuels eight-year tenure as Chicago mayor.

The Financial Times first reported the decision. Emanuel declined to comment.

Its unclear when Biden will make the announcement official. The White House did not respond to a request for comment. The president is likely to announce Emanuel with a slate of other ambassadors.

Once announced, Emanuel would face confirmation in the U.S. Senate. If his nomination were sent with several other ambassadors, it lessens the likelihood he would face individual scrutiny from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Emanuel has faced criticism on the left for his handling of the Laquan McDonald fatal police shooting as mayor and from Republicans for Chicagos status as a sanctuary city and its history of struggling to tamp down violent crime. However, he has deep relationships in Washington and Congress with an established track record as a top official in two White Houses.

The former mayor made little secret that he coveted an appointment as Bidens transportation secretary, a push that met fierce resistance from progressives. Powerhouse U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, NAACP President Derrick Johnson, some union leaders and the Rev. Al Sharpton among others opposed Emanuel as a cabinet pick.

Former South Bend mayor and presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg ultimately got the nod instead.

Getting selected as an ambassador would amount to a political consolation prize for Emanuel, but it also would give him a foothold back in national and international politics. Since leaving office in May 2019, Emanuel has been working as a Chicago-based adviser for Wall Street investment firm Centerview Partners and as a political analyst for ABC News.

A foreign assignment for Emanuel may not draw quite the ire from critics as a cabinet post would. Larry Cohen, the chairman of the Our Revolution group that backed progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders for president, said as much to The New York Times earlier this year.

None of the people we were afraid of got into this cabinet, Cohen said. Its fine and well for Rahm Emanuel to be an ambassador someplace.

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Still, some have not given up the anti-Emanuel fight. A progressive coalition of groups, including some in Chicago, have opposed Emanuel in a foreign post, citing a lack of ethics, integrity and diplomatic skills.

As Biden fills out his slate of ambassadors, he has looked to reduce the number of political appointees to embassies around the world in favor of career diplomats  a move that is aimed at reinvigorating confidence in the State Department and longtime Foreign Service officials. Political appointees typically fall into one of two categories: experienced and connected officeholders such as Emanuel and those who bundled major campaign contributions for the president.

Emanuel had been in the running for ambassador to China, viewed as a critical position as the U.S. is poised to confront a more aggressive Beijing. Multiple reports, however, have suggested Biden is likely to tap a career diplomat for the post instead  Nicholas Burns, a former ambassador and senior State Department official who is currently a Harvard professor and helped advise Bidens campaign on foreign policy. The last four ambassadors to China previously served as elected officials.

In Japan, the nations leaders have come to expect a high-profile name as the top U.S. envoy. Emanuel fits that bill as a former senior adviser to President Bill Clinton, a member of the U.S. House leadership and first chief of staff to President Barack Obama prior to his tenure running City Hall in the nations third-largest city.

Emanuel would enter the job with the most political and government experience since Howard H. Baker Jr., the former Republican Senate majority leader who served as former President Ronald Reagans chief of staff and served as ambassador to Japan under former President George W. Bush.

Former Vice President Walter Mondale served as ambassador to Japan in the Clinton administration. Obama chose California fundraiser and businessman John Roos to serve as envoy to Japan followed by Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of former President John F. Kennedy. Most recently under former President Donald Trump, the post was held by Tennessee Republican businessman Bill Hagerty, who stepped down from the position in July 2019 to launch a successful U.S. Senate bid.

As mayor, Emanuel took a 44-member delegation from Chicago on a trade trip to Japan and China. The group was made up mostly of business heavyweights, including donors with ties to nearly $2 million in contributions to Emanuels campaign, the Tribune reported at the time.

Emanuels official calendar for the trip shows he spoke at a business council investment forum, held a dinner reception for various Japanese businesses and met with several government officials, including Yuriko Koike, the governor of Tokyo; Yasutoshi Nishimura, deputy chief cabinet secretary; and Kazuyuki Nakane, the state minister of foreign affairs.

Emanuel also met with James Nudo, president of DMG Mori, a company that makes machine tools for the auto, aerospace and other industries. A few weeks following the trip, DMG Mori announced it was moving its North American headquarters and 250 jobs from suburban Hoffman Estates to Chicago to be closer to the staff and students at Illinois Institute of Technology in Bronzeville.

The former mayor also had drinks at a Tokyo bar with Takeshi Niinami, president of Suntory Holdings Limited, the Japanese beverage giant. During Emanuels tenure, subsidiary Beam Suntory moved its global headquarters from suburban Deerfield to Chicagos Merchandise Mart.

If confirmed, Emanuels role as ambassador would mark the second time hes returned to the public sector following a stint in investment banking. And spending a few years in Japan could further deepen his well of business contacts, should he decide to pass through the revolving door a third time back to the private sector.

After serving in the Clinton White House, Emanuel made $16 million in a little more than two years as an investment banker. As part of the confirmation process, Emanuel would be required to disclose his financial assets and income at Centerview Partners.

As mayor, Emanuel regularly released his tax returns, with the most recent showing an income of $554,000 in 2017. Earlier this year, Emanuel and his wife Amy Rule gave $100,000 to the Star Scholarship program he created at City Colleges of Chicago.

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JERUSALEM (AP)  Israel stepped up its attacks on the Gaza Strip, flattening a high-rise building used by the Hamas militant group and killing at least three militants in their hideouts on Tuesday as Palestinian rockets rained down almost nonstop on parts of Israel.

It was the heaviest fighting between the bitter enemies since 2014, and it showed no signs of slowing.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to expand the offensive, while Gaza militants unleashed a fierce late-night barrage of rockets that set off air-raid sirens and explosions throughout the densely populated Tel Aviv metropolitan area.

Just after daybreak Wednesday, Israel unleashed dozens of airstrikes in the course of a few minutes, targeting police and security installations, witnesses said. A wall of dark gray smoke rose over Gaza City. Iyad al-Bozum, a spokesman for the Hamas-run Interior Ministry, said airstrikes destroyed the central police headquarters in Gaza City, a compound with several buildings.

Five Israelis, including three women and a child, were killed by rocket fire Tuesday and early Wednesday, and dozens of people wounded. The death toll in Gaza rose to 35 Palestinians, including 10 children, according to the Health Ministry. Over 200 people were wounded.

In the West Bank, meanwhile, a 26-year-old Palestinian was killed during clashes with Israeli troops that entered al-Fawar refugee camp in southern Hebron, the ministry said.

In another sign of widening unrest, demonstrations erupted in Arab communities across Israel, where protesters set dozens of vehicles on fire in confrontations with police.

The fighting between Israel and Hamas was the most intense since a 50-day war in the summer of 2014. In just over 24 hours, the current round of violence, sparked by religious tensions in the contested city of Jerusalem, increasingly resembled that devastating war.

The booms of Israeli airstrikes and hisses of outgoing rocket fire could be heard in Gaza throughout the day, and large plumes of smoke from targeted buildings rose into the air. Israel resumed a policy of airstrikes aimed at killing wanted militants and began to take down entire buildings  a tactic that drew heavy international criticism in 2014.

In Israel, the nonstop barrages of rocket fire left long streaks of white smoke in their wake, while the explosions of anti-rocket interceptors boomed overhead. Air-raid sirens wailed throughout the day, sending panicked residents scurrying for cover.

In a nationally televised address, Netanyahu said that Hamas and the smaller Islamic Jihad militant groups have paid, and I tell you here, will pay a heavy price for their aggression.

He claimed that Israel had killed dozens of militants and inflicted heavy damage on hundreds of targets.

This campaign will take time, he said. With determination, unity and strength, we will restore security to the citizens of Israel.

He stood alongside Defense Minister Benny Gantz, a political rival, in a show of unity. There are lots of targets lined up. This is only the beginning, Gantz said. The military said it was activating some 5,000 reservists and sending troop reinforcements to the Gaza border.

The current violence has coincided with the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, a time of heightened religious sentiments.

Critics say heavy-handed Israeli police measures in and around Jerusalems Old City helped stoke nightly unrest. Another flashpoint has been the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where dozens of Palestinians are under threat of eviction by Jewish settlers.

Confrontations erupted last weekend at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, which is the third-holiest site in Islam and the holiest site in Judaism. Over four days, Israeli police fired tear gas and stun grenades at Palestinians in the compound who hurled stones and chairs at the forces. At times, police fired stun grenades into the carpeted mosque.

On Monday evening, Hamas began firing rockets from Gaza. From there on, the escalation was rapid.

In a televised address, Hamas exiled leader, Ismail Haniyeh, said Israel bore responsibility. Its the Israeli occupation that set Jerusalem on fire, and the flames reached Gaza, he said.

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Palestinian health officials gave no breakdown on the death toll in Gaza, but Islamic Jihad confirmed that three senior commanders were killed in a strike on their hideout in a Gaza City apartment building. The Health Ministry said 10 children and a woman were also killed.

Netanyahu said Israel had attacked hundreds of targets. The fiercest attack was a set of airstrikes that brought down an entire 12-story building. The building housed important Hamas offices, as well as a gym and some start-up businesses. Israel fired a series of warning shots before demolishing the building, allowing people to flee and there were no casualties.

Israeli aircraft heavily damaged another Gaza City building early Wednesday. The nine-story structure housed residential apartments, medical companies and a dental clinic. A drone fired five warning rockets before the bombing. Israel said the building housed Hamas intelligence offices and the group's command responsible for planning attacks on Israeli targets in the occupied West Bank.

Fighter jets struck the building again after journalists and rescuers had gathered around. There was no immediate word on casualties. The high-rise stood 200 meters (650 feet) away from the Associated Press bureau in Gaza City, and smoke and debris reached the office.

Soon after the bombing, Hamas announced that it would resume its attacks and aimed 100 rockets at the Israeli desert town of Beer-Sheva. Hamas said the renewed barrage was in response to the strike on the building. The latest rocket attack early Wednesday killed a man and his seven-year-old daughter in the central city of Lod, according to Israel's Kan public radio.

The Israeli military said hundreds of rockets were launched toward Israel. Two women, including an Indian caregiver, were killed in separate rocket strikes in the southern city of Ashkelon.

Then, late at night, Hamas said it unleashed a barrage of 130 rockets toward Tel Aviv in response to the destruction of the high-rise. As the rockets rose into the skies, mosques across Gaza blared with chants of God is great, victory to Islam and resistance.

One rocket killed a woman in the city of Rishon LeZion, and another struck a bus in the nearby city of Holon, wounding three people, including a young girl.

The violence was beginning to spill over to Israels own Arab population.

In Lod, thousands of mourners joined a funeral for an Arab man killed by a suspected Jewish gunman the previous night. The crowd clashed with police, and set a synagogue and some 30 vehicles, including a police car, on fire, Israeli media reported. Paramedics said a 56-year-old man was seriously hurt after his car was pelted with stones.

The citys mayor, Yair Revivo, described the situation in the mixed Jewish-Arab city as civil war, and the government ordered a deployment of paramilitary border guards from the West Bank to Lod.

In neighboring Ramle, ultra-nationalist Jewish demonstrators were filmed attacking cars belonging to Arabs. In the norther port town of Acre, protesters torched a Jewish-owned restaurant and hotel. Police arrested dozens of others at Arab protests in other towns.

Diplomats sought to intervene, with Qatar, Egypt and the United Nations working to deliver a cease-fire. All three serve as mediators between Israel and Hamas.

The U.N. Security Council planned to hold its second closed emergency meeting in three days Wednesday on the escalating violence, an indication of growing international concern. Council diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity because discussions have been private, said the U.N.s most powerful body did not issue a statement because of U.S. concerns that it could escalate tensions.

The escalation comes at a time of political limbo in Israel.

Netanyahu has been caretaker prime minister since an inconclusive parliamentary election in March. After failing to form a coalition government by a deadline last week, his political rivals have now been given the opportunity.

The support of an Arab-backed party with Islamist roots is key for the anti-Netanyahu bloc. But the current tensions might deter the partys leader, Mansour Abbas, from joining a coalition with Jewish parties, at least for the time being.

The sides have three more weeks to reach a deal. If they fail, Israel would likely begin an unprecedented fifth election campaign in just over two years.



Akram reported from Gaza City, Gaza Strip. Associated Press Writer Ilan Ben Zion also contributed to this report.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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The real-estate arm of Cook Out Inc. has bought another Forsyth County restaurant property, this time a former Burger King site.

2897 Reynolds Road Inc. has spent $1.15 million to purchase the property at 2897 Reynolda Road. The deal closed Friday.
LONDON (AP)  A former English National Ballet principal dancer was convicted Tuesday of sexually assaulting young female dance students.

Yat-Sen Chang, 49, was found guilty of 12 counts of sexual assault and one count of assault by penetration. The offenses took place at the English National Ballet and Young Dancers Academy in London from 2009 to 2016, and relate to four teens who were between 16 and 18 years old at the time.

The victims accused Chang of touching them inappropriately during massages at the schools. During the trial, Chang said he had no idea why the allegations were made against him, and said he hadn't touched any of the complainants in an inappropriate or sexual way.

But prosecutors described Chang as an internationally renowned ballet dancer who used his position to commit sexual offenses against young students he taught.

Yat-Sen Chang used his position as a famed and trusted ballet teacher to groom and sexually assault teenage dancers under his training, senior prosecutor Nahid Mannan said. At 20 years their senior, Chang would have been well aware that his conduct was grossly inappropriate and predatory.
Q: If a married couple has been filing a joint tax return and one spouse dies half way through the tax year, and there are no minor children involved, can the surviving spouse file a return as head of household rather than as a single taxpayer?

 A.H.

Answer: No, Richard Dawson, a spokesman for the Internal Revenue Service explains why that isnt possible. When a spouse dies during the year, the IRS allows the widowed individual to still file married jointly for that year in most cases.

They would not file head of household with no other dependents.

The IRS has a tool for helping you determine what your filing status should be. Its on the IRS.gov website. Click on Get Answers to you Tax Questions on the home page, that will take you to the Interactive Tax Assistant section. Click on the what is my filing status link and that will take you to the page to determine what your filing status should be. You answer several questions and it determines your status.
Options were dwindling rapidly for people looking to gas up their cars Tuesday night, as one station after another displayed yellow plastic bags over pump handles that could no longer deliver.

A feeling of desperation welled up among some folks looking at a gas gauge sitting almost on empty, and listening to voices in the night saying that pumps were all out.

I do need to find some gas, Dwight Lewis said as he sat in one gas stations parking lot, noting he had about a quarter of a tank left in his car. My wife needs to go to work. It is 30 miles to work and back. It looks like Im going to be out here awhile.

Drivers learned it was pointless to pull into a gas station where no cars were sitting at any of the pumps. Places that did have gas attracted cars and drivers like a street light pulls in moths at night.

We ran out of our regular gas yesterday, said Jenna Rabold, an employee at Quality Mart #3 at the corner of Country Club and Peace Haven roads. We got a delivery of premium and non-ethanol about midnight. We ran out of the premium this morning. We had to bag off the pumps.

Business dropped off, but not completely, she said.

Were still selling lottery and alcohol, she said.
COVID-19 vaccines finally are headed for more kids as U.S. regulators on Monday expanded use of Pfizer's shot to those as young as 12, sparking a race to protect middle and high school students, including those in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, before the start of the new school year.

Shots could begin as soon as a federal vaccine advisory committee issues recommendations for using the two-dose vaccine in 12- to 15-year-olds, expected Wednesday.

Locally, the school system has been working with the Forsyth County Department of Public Health on ways to vaccinate this age group. Though no plan has been announced, the school district has said it is willing to use its school buildings as vaccination sites, but the decision is up to the health department.

Superintendent Tricia McManus said the school district will continue to look for guidance from the health department and other health care providers on how to proceed.

"We know our schools are hubs of their community and a good place to reach not only students, but the community at large," she said in a statement.

So far, local school buildings have not been used for its older students, ages 16 and up, who are eligible for the Pfizer vaccine.
The Senates opposition to SB20 comes despite overwhelming statewide support for hands-free while driving legislation, according to the Meredith College poll released in March.

More than 85% of survey respondents strongly or somewhat support a hands-free state law  about the same percentage of support as was found in a 2018 Meredith poll.

The March poll found that 83% of respondents agreed that using a mobile phone while driving is a privilege that can have limits placed on it.

Since we first started asking these questions three years ago, the results have been very consistent  citizens see the negative effects of using a mobile device while driving and strongly support legislation banning such behavior, said David McLennan, director of the Meredith poll.

Bill details

Even though HB144 was approved by a wide margin in 2019, there was impassioned discussion about the effectiveness of the potential legislation, particularly whether it represented overreach or the penalties were too weak.

SB20 restores the penalties, which include fines of between $100 and $200 and between one and two insurance points for multiple offenses.

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Even though there was limited discussion of HB211 on the House floor Tuesday, the bill faces long odds of passage, foremost because it would supersede any emergency executive order by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, or municipal or county ordinance.

Cooper has vetoed several Republican-sponsored reopening bills during the 2020 and 2021 sessions out of concerns that the bills would hamstring the flexibility needed for state and local government officials to quickly respond to another COVID-19 surge.

Attempts to override some of those vetoes have failed, including one in the current session.

Local businesses have shown their flexibility and resiliency to stay in business with reduced capacity and make necessary changes to keep customers safe, Zenger said when the bill was filed March 3.

House Bill 211 balances the needs of our local businesses with the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic to allow bars and restaurants to open at full capacity while they continue to follow certain safety guidelines.

Some health officials have questioned allowing bars to fully reopen, citing the recent increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations among young adults, particularly since the ending of the statewide stay-at-home curfew in late February.
She said she called Winston-Salem police to report her findings, but the response was, again, less than what she hoped to hear. A friend arranged to buy some stuff and drove down. A photo of the "sales" vehicle  the license tag had been removed  was snapped.

This time, she called the Davidson County Sheriffs Office. Deputies found the people selling the store's stuff, confiscated it and started an investigation. Then they loaded it up on a truck and brought it back, Bublitz said.

The sellers, as it turns out, face a pile of pending charges in Davidson County for larceny, shoplifting and possession of stolen goods.

Problem solved, right? Not exactly.

Winston-Salem police returned that Friday, and acting on instructions from prosecutors, impounded Bublitz merchandise to use as evidence.

"A nightmare," Bublitz said. The seed was shot. Couldnt they just have taken pictures of it all and confiscated one or two (birdhouses) instead of taking it all?"

A different approach

On the Davidson County side of this saga, returning stolen items to their rightful owner is standard policy, said Chief Deputy Scott Craven, of the Davidson County Sheriffs Office.
The bills contain most of the same language in House Bill 671, which cleared the House by a 112-2 vote on May 28, 2019, but was never addressed in the Senate.

Under current state regulations, qualified behavioral analysts must operate under the supervision of licensed psychologists, according to a statement from bill sponsors.

Both bills would create a five-member state Behavioral Analysis Board that would be able to issue and revoke the licenses of applicants. Licenses would be valid for two years and subject to renewal.

Applicants would have to be at least age 18, pass a criminal history record check, pass the boards Certified Behavior Analyst examination, and have active status with the board. There would be a $250 application fee and a $200 renewal fee.

According to Autism Speaks, applied behavior analysis is therapy based on the science of learning and behavior.

ABA therapy applies our understanding of how behavior works to real situations. The goal is to increase behaviors that are helpful, and decrease behaviors that are harmful or affect learning.
Opponents of the program claim that adding competition, particularly from for-profit groups, would lead to new services and facilities, including more acute care hospitals, diagnostic centers and rehabilitation centers.

They say competition would force more providers to lower fees for high-risk procedures. Several cost-comparison websites have shown the costs of some of those procedures can vary by tens of thousands of dollars within a region.

Advocates for the Certificate of Need program say ending the law would allow for-profit groups to cherry pick the most profitable medical procedures. They say that would leave not-for-profit hospitals handling the sickest patients, who often dont have health insurance, in their emergency departments.

Senate Bill 462

SB462 would go into effect Oct. 1 if signed into law.

Instead of trying to weaken or eliminate a big portion of the Certificate of Need laws, SB462 takes aim at two elements of the program.

It would increase the amount health care providers can spend before the certification is required in certain cases.

The spending limit would increase from $500,000 to $1.5 million for free-standing diagnostic centers.
Thanks to the beneficence of the Internal Revenue Service  and the fallout from COVID-19  we half of Americans who pay federal income taxes have been given until May 17 to file.

Since I began earning enough to file Form 1040 and associated forms, I have only known one person who prepared his own taxes. That was Bill Archer, a Texas Republican who formerly headed the House Ways and Means Committee. I once asked Archer why he prepared his. His reply was that not only did he think it was fun, but because he helped write the tax code, he felt a responsibility to demonstrate competence in filling out the forms.

These days, the forms are so complicated, hardly anyone I know understands them. The instructions need instructions.

I have again filed jointly with my wife (more than 70 pages). She owns a business, so it is more complicated than if we filed separately. Still, the forms require translating a language I have never studied and wouldnt want to. If you call the IRS and ask for help, you are still responsible for interest and penalties if they give the wrong advice.
A Kansas woman was taken to jail early Sunday for allegedly trying to alter a lottery ticket to add $75 to her 35-cent winnings, police say.

Rachel Richardson, 28, of Wichita, was charged Monday with altering a lottery ticket and possession of methamphetamine, both felonies.

In court records, Lincoln police say they were called to Big Red Keno on West O Street shortly after 11:30 p.m. Saturday about a woman who returned to the bar after trying to cash a $75.35 BankShot Keno ticket earlier in the day.

An employee told police she'd noticed the woman sitting at a BankShot machine that afternoon pretending to play, before going to the restroom for more than two hours. Then, at about 7:30 p.m., she allegedly tried to redeem the ticket.

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Police said the ticket registered on the computer as a 35-cent win, according to the affidavit for Richardson's arrest. When an employee called another employee over, the woman said she had to use the restroom and left.

Richardson allegedly told police she'd found the ticket on the floor and thought it was her lucky day.

They said they found a lottery ticket with numbers cut out of it, bottles of glue, Exacto knives and tweezers in her purse, along with a pipe with suspected meth residue.

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Police say they caught a 31-year-old Lincoln man with nearly 2 ounces of methamphetamine and a tomahawk after he crashed into a light pole on O Street early Sunday.

Prosecutors charged Isaac Johnson on Monday with possession of meth with intent to deliver and possession of a deadly weapon during the commission of a felony.

In an affidavit for Johnson's arrest, police said they were called to a strip mall just east of Calvary Cemetery at 40th and O streets just before 2:30 a.m. about a Honda Accord that hit a light pole.

An officer noticed Johnson had red eyes and saw an open whiskey bottle on the middle console.

Police arrested him after a search turned up nearly 2 ounces of meth, roughly an ounce of marijuana and a tomahawk in a backpack, in addition to a digital scale, baggies and seven cellphones, police said.

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A 56-year-old man Tuesday lost an appeal over his 20- to 40-year sentence for a crash near Nebraska City in 2018 that killed an Auburn woman and her teenage stepdaughter.

Ricky E. Anthony pleaded no contest to two counts of motor vehicle homicide, which prosecutors enhanced because he's a habitual criminal, for unintentionally causing the deaths of Rachel Curry, 32, and Chloe Curry, 15.

Anthony later argued it was a double enhancement because motor vehicle homicide, when someone causes the death of another unintentionally while driving, can be charged as a misdemeanor.

Prosecutors charged him with two felonies, based on his willful reckless driving.

But the Nebraska Court of Appeals on Tuesday said his argument was refuted by prior Supreme Court holdings. Because the state had to prove Anthony had been willfully driving recklessly, there was no enhancement.

"As such, Anthony was not subjected to an impermissible double enhancement when he was sentenced as a habitual criminal," Judge David Arterburn wrote for the three-judge panel.

In the evening of Oct. 21, 2018, law enforcement were called to a head-on crash in rural Otoe County. A red pickup had rolled, and loud music still was playing from a gray SUV with the door open.
Three times in the past four years, Nebraska prosecutors have sought death sentences, and each time they have been successful. Within a couple months, two more people convicted of a grisly murder could also be sentenced to death.

But as the state adds to its death row population, the lawyers, judges and prison officials who oversee Nebraska's system of capital punishment largely ignore the fact that the state has no lethal injection drugs and very likely wont get any for years, if ever. Those sentenced to death have a better chance of dying of natural causes than being executed.

While the nation remains divided over capital punishment, Nebraska stands out for its peculiar version of the institution: it's still wedded to the idea of executing prisoners, just not the practical part of doing it. The state is among a handful caught in a law vs. reality netherworld as legislatures and activists wrestle over how the issue will eventually play out.

As the Rev. Stephen Griffith, a leading anti-death penalty activist, put it, Were being duplicitous, really. We say Nebraska has a death penalty when, functionally, we dont.
Two women who died in a head-on collision over the weekend in northeast Nebraska have been identified by the Cedar County Sheriff's Office.

Samantha Plantenberg, 30, of Crofton, and Elizabeth Braunesreither, 64, of Mission Hill, South Dakota, were pronounced dead at the scene, Cedar County Sheriff Larry Koranda said. The crash occurred about 9:40 p.m. Saturday five miles south of Yankton, South Dakota, on U.S. 81.

Investigators determined that Plantenberg was driving a Buick LeSabre and Braunesreither a Buick Century at the time of the crash. After those cars collided head-on, a Pontiac G6 driven by Blake Johnston, 24, of O'Neill, hit one of the other vehicles.

Johnston was treated for minor injuries at Sacred Heart Hospital in Yankton and released. Seat belts were in use in all three vehicles, Koranda said.

The crash remains under investigation by the Cedar County Sheriffs Office and the Nebraska State Patrol.

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The director of a community improvement organization in Lincoln announced her candidacy for the District 28 seat in the Legislature on Tuesday.

Nancy Petitto will seek the seat held by Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks, who will leave the Legislature after being term-limited.

Petitto is the director for Collective Impact Lincoln, a partnership among Civic Nebraska, Nebraska Appleseed and the South of Downtown Community Development Organization.

A two-time graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Petitto said civic engagement, political advocacy and "an active commitment to justice" led her to run for office.

"I can't keep talking about the importance of involvement without being willing to take a leap myself," Petitto said in a news release.

Petitto said she'll focus on housing, engaging communities in the political process, and protecting "the fundamental rights of all Nebraskans."

She also said she'll make sure Lincoln's voice is heard in policy debates centered on helping Nebraskans lift themselves out of poverty.

"I'm going to do it in a way that honors the spirit of collaboration and true civil discourse upon which our unicameral was founded," she said.
The state would focus on counseling, rather than court, for kids who skip school under a measure given first-round approval Monday by the Nebraska Legislature.

LB568, introduced by Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks, will remove truancy as a status offense that requires a trip to juvenile court and instead mandate diversion programs that concentrate on root causes of absenteeism, such as family problems or bullying.

Pansing Brooks said the state's current system of handling truants isn't working, and is instead contributing to the "school-to-prison" pipeline. Her bill will provide more resources for the 80-some counties that already have diversion programs for truants, and would help the remaining counties set up such programs.

"We aren't solving things by putting kids, who aren't bad kids, into this (juvenile court) system," the Lincoln senator said.

Pansing Brooks said 70% of kids who end up in juvenile court later enter the adult court system, so LB568 may eventually help reduce prison overcrowding by keeping more kids out of the juvenile justice system. About 650 kids are deemed truant each year.
Gov. Pete Ricketts signed onto a letter with 19 other Republican governors asking President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to take action to close the U.S. border with Mexico.

The letter comes after unauthorized crossings at the southern border increased throughout February and March, reaching a 20-year high in April that U.S. Customs and Border Patrol data shows has leveled off in recent weeks.

Border patrol agents took more than 172,000 people into custody in March and were expected to match that number in April.

"We call on you to take action on the crisis at the southern border immediately," the letter from the governors begins. "The crisis is too big to ignore and is now spilling over the border states into all of our states."

At fault was "irresponsible rhetoric" by the Biden administration, the governors wrote in the letter, as well as the reversal of several Trump-era policies, including halting construction on the border wall, eliminating asylum agreements, and refusing to enforce immigration laws.

That's led to more drugs and weapons being smuggled across the border and increased trafficking of men, women and children seeking to get into the U.S., the governors write.
Federal dollars are "pouring into our state," he said, creating "a false reality."

"It's time to be a little more cautious," he said, expressing his support for Stinner's amendment. "We need to be thoughtful."

Sen. John McCollister of Omaha also voiced concern about "so many (proposed) revenue reductions ... too much of a good thing."

"My concern," he said during earlier debate on an omnibus bill that included reduction of the corporate income tax rate, is that "we may deplete our revenue stream to such an extent that in future years we're going to suffer greatly."

Sen. Myron Dorn of Adams suggested it's "time to be prudent."

The omnibus tax bill (LB432) cleared second-stage floor consideration on a 44-0 vote.

Senators advanced the tax bill, which calls for a reduction in the state's top tax rate for corporations, to final reading after Sens. Machaela Cavanaugh of Omaha and Friesen raised questions about the legislation.

"I don't think corporations need to be subsidized more than human beings who are in poverty," Cavanaugh said.
* Veterans diversion: This diversion program is designed to meet the specific needs of veterans or current members of the armed forces who have or are eligible for Veterans Administration health care services. Veterans who commit certain offenses and who are diagnosed on the trauma spectrum connected to their time in the armed forces are eligible for this program, which started in 2014.

* Intensive supervised diversion: After developing the Lancaster County Drug Court, we identified a group of clients with drug-related charges but minimal criminal history, who would be oversupervised in a traditional Drug Court. This provides an opportunity for individuals to live successfully in the community, receive supervision and community-based services and reduce the risk of relapse and recidivism. This program started in 2017.
On Friday, a statement from a Racine County Sheriff's Office public information officer issued a statement indicating that it plans to release no more information about what occurred pending the investigations of the deaths, both of which are being led by the Kenosha County Sheriff's Department.

"The Racine County Sheriffs Office has released two statements to the media concerning two inmate deaths in the County Jail on Saturday, May 29, 2021, and Tuesday, June 1, 2021," Sgt. Michael J. Luell said in an email. "The investigations into the two deaths are being handled by the Kenosha County Sheriffs Office. The Racine County Sheriffs Office is cooperating fully with the Kenosha County Sheriffs Office, as-well-as the Milwaukee County Medical Examiners Office (which is reported to be performing the autopsies). In respect to the integrity of the investigative process, the Sheriffs Office is not providing any additional information or making public comments at this time."

The fiancee of one of the men that she is "now left with more questions than answers" after the little information she has received from the Racine County Sheriff's Office.
BURLINGTON  A few weeks ago, a young woman entered Quotes + Cotton, a boutique that opened in late February in Burlington. She said her boyfriend was finally coming back home after serving a tour in the military, and she wanted the perfect outfit.

Megan Swederski and Allie Zusan, co-owners of the boutique, successfully helped her, who then left them a message on their Facebook page. She was like, Thank you so much for being my hype girl. I havent felt that confident about myself in a very long time,  Zusan recalled.

A well-decorated counter Megan Swederski looks over an employee's shoulder at the front of house in Quotes + Cotton on Wednesday.

A boost in self-esteem, inclusion for all shapes and sizes and a welcoming atmosphere for moms are just a few things found at Quotes + Cotton, 615 North Pine St.

An open door to all

Walking into the small boutique feels like walking into your cooler older sisters apartment: plush rugs, natural lighting, copious greenery and hardwood accents. And of course, the clothes, which are in all sizes (including plus sizes) and colors, with eclectic, feminine and edgy styles.

Swederskis original graphic T-shirts  with fun sayings like, Indoorsy, Be a nice human and Midwest Girl  are also embedded in the racks, placed meticulously so they blend in with the boutiques offerings.

Original graphic t-shirts Quotes + Cotton sells original graphic t-shirts designed by Megan Swederski.

The two want to focus on a comfortable shopping experience for anyone who comes in  whether theyre new mothers who want a confidence boost or women simply seeking something to feel good in.

Its important for us to make sure that when people come in here they find something that they feel confident in, and when they leave, theyll confidently wear it, Zusan said.

The salesfloor at Quotes + Cotton is chic, but its also homey and inviting. A little table in the corner by the large window has kids toys and coloring books, some of which Zusans children were playing with when a Journal Times reporter visited. Catering the shopping experience to mothers with young children is something the owners wanted to focus on.

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We knew that some of the best shopping experiences weve ever had is when we were allowed to bring our kids and there was something for them to do, Zusan, a mother of three, said. Swederski has four children of her own.

Zusan added: (Customers) are like, What if I knock something down? And were like, okay, its not a big deal, because chances are our kids have done it.

Mom at heart Allie Zusan, co-owner of Quotes + Cotton, holds her son, Keats, inside the store on Wednesday. Zusan said she wants mothers to know their chil

A photoshoot that changed everything

The friendship between Swederski, 34, and Zusan, 33, is one of serendipity. Both of them are originally from Burlington. Though they didnt attend the same school, they worked at the same place. The two naturally floated apart during adulthood and happened to rekindle a friendship in 2012 when Zusan asked Swederski, who is a wedding photographer, to do a maternity photoshoot.

Weve been best friends ever since, Swederski said.

The two have a lot in common, Zusan said: We both love napping, we both love shopping, we both love...

Coffee, they said in unison.

They started taking girls trips together, frequenting small towns just like Burlington. In late 2019, they took a trip to Iowa and found a boutique that inspired them to open their own. They opened up their Quotes + Cotton online store on a whim right before the pandemic struck.

The online store saw great success despite the pandemic, Swederski said, and she was even able to make unique shirts that encouraged people to stay home and social distance; it also gave the two the opportunity to give back, donating proceeds to Advocate Aurora.

Managing the store is now essentially a full-time job for both of them, Zusan having left her longtime position as an educator when the pandemic called for her needing to be home with her kids.

Quotes + Cotton Quotes + Cotton is located at 615 North Pine St. in Burlington.

Revitalizing Burlington, without a camper

Before finding the storefront on North Pine Street, the two actually had renovated a 1967 Shasta camper with plans to be a totally mobile boutique. But then, they found the physical space.

Our first three weekends were packed, Swederski said. The two are also keeping up with their online sales.

Whether its filming TikTok videos or reaching out to Instagram influencers, the two owners are experts on social media outreach. For example, theyll contact an Instagram user with a large following and offer to ship that user T-shirts to wear and post pictures with as a way to advertise.

So far, its worked in our advantage, Swederski said.

As far as their goals for the future, the two said they dont plan on leaving Burlington. Theyre part of a new generation of young business owners moving in, alongside places like including Low Daily Brewery and The Loop Commons, a community venue with rooms like photo studios and private offices open for rent.

Were going to keep doing this til we dont love it anymore, Zusan said. We both love knowing that our kids get to see that we get to do something that makes us happy.

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With the Census process wrapping up, attention is now focused on political redistricting. Soon state officials and commissions across the country will determine how districts for U.S. House seats and  perhaps more importantly  state Legislative seats will be drawn.

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Ten years ago, here in Wisconsin, the Republican-controlled state Legislature convened with lawyers behind closed doors to draw up the current legislative seats. The Wisconsin Assembly has been predominantly Republican for some time, but the state Senate from time to time switched hands between the parties, making the political process a true contest. That ended with the 2011 GOP-drawn map.

One redrawn district that drew national attention was Senate District 21, which encompasses the bulk of Racine and Kenosha counties. The district was drawn so that it would include the home of state Sen. Van Wanggaard, R-Racine. Previous incarnations of District 21 made the district more competitive and representative, with it flipping back and forth between Republicans and Democrats several times over the 1990s and 2000s. Wanggaard even found himself being removed from office in the 2012 recall election, only to win back the seat two years later after the new district map was in place.
1. Yes. Its important to keep my child as safe as possible. We plan to take advantage.

2. Yes. With the school district dropping its mask mandate, its a necessary step.

3. No. Local COVID cases are dropping. There is no good reason to vaccinate my child.

4. No. There hasnt been enough data on vaccinated children. I think Ill hold off.

5. Unsure. I havent decided yet whether to take part in the vaccine clinics.

Vote

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- A reader sent part of an article from Bloomberg News saying that Pfizer is turning its COVID-19 vaccines into a long-term business that will do $26 billion in sales in its first year.

- Someone added that Pfizer already has made $3.5 billion in the first quarter of 2021, or 25% of its total revenue.

- Because we have the right to say no.

- Im afraid of needles

- Too expensive.

- One reader, quoting Bloomberg News, said that Pfizer is turning its vaccines into a long-term business

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- A reader sent a post from Mike Yeadon, 60. Yeadon spent 16 years as allergy and respiratory researcher and vice president of Pfizer, manufacturer of one of the three COVID-19 vaccines now in use in the U.S. He then left Pfizer to open his own biotech firm. He warns in the post that within three years, the vaccine will kill all those who are inoculated. The final goal is a mass depopulation event which will make the World Wars combined seem like a Mickey Mouse production, the post says.
Warta works four, 12-hour days. Early in the week, she might welcome 20 new patients a day and discharge 10. When new patients arrive to fill those 10 beds, she welcomes them, too.

Patients come in and out on a regular basis.

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I stay pretty busy. For a 12-hour shift, thats a lot. If nurses had to do all that on their own, it would be difficult, she said.

Raised in Ogallala, Warta took a certified nurses assistant class in high school simply because her friends did. It was a cool thing to do at first, but it grew from here, she said.

After graduating from Ogallala High School, she went to Central Community College-Kearney and became a licensed practical nurse. For the next three years, she worked in a nursing home.

In 2018, she returned to Central Community College-Grand Island and became a registered nurse. She began working at Kearney Regional and never looked back.

"Nursing home work is routine. There arent a lot of changes, she said. At a hospital, every day is different. I like the different aspects of hospital nursing.

At KRMC, the nurse-to-patient ratio is 1:6. She is able to relieve stress on the nursing staff.
Fifteen-year-old Elizabeth Goluszka was ready. For more than a year, she and her friends have celebrated birthdays and holidays at a distance. The teenagers left gifts outside each other's homes as a replacement for the parties they planned and then canceled as the pandemic wore on. Elizabeth said she also missed dance competitions and chatting with friends over lunch at Batavia High School in Chicagos western suburbs.

Im just so looking forward to getting back to a sort of normal high school experience, like having the homecoming dance and being able to have lunch with friends, she said.

Dr. Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez said her son, Nicolas, had hoped to be part of the clinical trials for the Pfizer but they were no longer signing up participants by the boy's 12th birthday. The family relocated this summer to San Antonio when Verduzco-Gutierrez accepted a new job and its been difficult for Nicolas to make friends or explore much.

Attending classes in person helped, but theres not much time to socialize at school. Masks and social distancing dont make it any easier either, he said, and he's looking forward to getting vaccinated.

"It will be really nice to be able to say, Hey, want to go get ice cream or something? Nicolas said.
Vaccination clinics are being planned for more than 40 schools, and adolescents will be able to get the vaccine at any location that offers the Pfizer vaccine. There are about 27,000 Vermonters in the 12-15 age group.



TORONTO  Canadas largest province says it will stop giving out first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine due to concerns over blood clots.

Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams says the decision has been made out of an abundance of caution because of increased instances of a rare blood clotting disorder linked to the shot.

AstraZeneca is restricted in some European countries because of a potential link to extremely rare blood clots. In Canada, at least 12 cases have been confirmed out of more than two million doses given and three women have died.

Ontario says it has 49,280 doses of the shot remaining in the province out of over 707,000 received. Health officials are awaiting results of a clinical trial in the United Kingdom looking at giving a different vaccine for the second dose. That would allow people who got AstraZeneca first to be given Pfizer or Moderna for their second dose.


The following people were charged with felonies in La Crosse County Circuit Court Tuesday:

David Pearson, 34, La Crosse, was charged with felony bail jumping and three misdemeanors for theft, resisting arrest and criminal damage to property. The criminal complaint states that Pearson stole two rings of keys from a UPS driver while he was delivering packages inside a Main Street apartment building on May 10. He was issued a $1,000 cash bond.

Gary L. Willert II, 35, La Crosse, was charged with three felonies for drug possession and bond violation, as well as drug-related misdemeanor counts and one for resisting arrest. According to the criminal complaint, Willert was arrested May 11 after Americas Best Value Inn staff contacted police about an impaired man near its front door. Officers identified the man as Willert and discovered an active warrant for his arrest. Officers obtained heroin, methamphetamine, prescription pills and other drug paraphernalia on his person. Willert did not want to appear in court Tuesday and is being held without bond.
The La Crosse County Board voted to appoint Audra Martine, a longtime county employee and health advocate, as the new leader of the La Crosse County Health Department on Monday evening.

Martine has been with the county since 2003 and has most recently served as the deputy director of the La Crosse County Human Services Department.

I appreciate your confidence, Martine told the board after its vote.

I am delighted to have the opportunity to join a team of dedicated and talented professionals, she said in a statement announcing the role shortly after the vote. The health department has a fundamental role to play in building a vibrant, healthy and safe La Crosse County for all residents and Im excited about supporting that work.

Martine was recommended by County Administrator Steve OMalley over one other internal candidate after a nationwide search for a new leader of a department that has been at the forefront of the communitys fight against the pandemic.

One of the distinct pleasures I have as your administrator is I get to recommend department heads, and I think [Martine is] just an excellent choice, OMalley said.
La Crosse County is launching a new small business relief grant that aims to assist businesses not within the city of La Crosse find relief amid the pandemic.

The COVID Recovery Microenterprise Grant program, announced Tuesday afternoon, would offer grants between $1,000-$20,000 for county businesses outside of the city with five or fewer employees.

We know that many small businesses have been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Brian Fukuda, county community development specialist, said in a statement.

We hope this program can help some of those businesses get back on their feet, particularly in often underserved rural areas and smaller towns and cities.

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The county received $100,000 in funding for the grants from the Wisconsin Department of Administration through a federal pandemic-era Community Development Block Grant, allowing for the possibility of dozens of grants to be awarded, depending on the size of the grant.

The city received its own portion of this funding, and has launched several of its own small business relief programs throughout the pandemic.

Grant funds can be used to cover rent, utilities, staffing, purchasing personal protective equipment and more COVID-related business expenses.
Cuevas' attorney, Michael W. Elliott, said he didn't think Cuevas was the owner of the tiger or that he was taking care of the animal. The attorney also said it was unclear to him if it was Cuevas seen on videos of the incident.

People are making a lot of assumptions in this particular case. Maybe he might be the hero out there who caught the tiger that was in the neighborhood," Elliott said.

Cuevas was charged with murder in a 2017 fatal shooting of a man outside a restaurant in neighboring Fort Bend County and was out on bond. Elliott said Cuevas has maintained the shooting was self-defense and is innocent of the murder charge.

Cuevas also apparently had two monkeys in the home, Borza said.

Having a monkey is not illegal in Houston if the animal is under 30 pounds (13.5 kilograms). Tigers are not allowed within Houston city limits unless the handler, such as a zoo, is licensed to have exotic animals. Texas has no statewide law forbidding private ownership of tigers and other exotic animals.
BRUSSELS (AP)  As strict lockdowns are loosened across Europe and many EU citizens dream about holidays in the sun, the 27-nation bloc has yet to agree on how to quickly implement a virus certificate scheme to boost summer travel and tourism.

European affairs ministers gathered Tuesday in Brussels to assess progress in discussions with European lawmakers and expressed their optimism that trans-border travel passes will be approved soon.

A deal between the Parliament and EU countries is required in May to ensure the system facilitating free movement within the EU during the COVID-19 pandemic will be up and running by the end of June, but several sticking points remain.

When it proposed the scheme in March, the EU Commission said coronavirus certificates would be given to EU residents who can prove they have been vaccinated or those who tested negative for the virus or have proof they recovered from it.

EU lawmakers and nations agree on that, but the Parliament insists that COVID-19 certificates should be enough to allow EU citizens to move about freely and that EU countries shouldnt be allowed to impose extra restrictions on certificate holders such as quarantines, tests or self-isolation measures.

That's a major roadblock, since border controls are a national responsibility.

A senior EU official, speaking anonymously as is custom before Tuesday's meeting, said EU nations had different opinions on the topic and the bloc was working to find a universal solution. The official said the pressure was on since vaccinations were increasing across Europe and more and more people wanted to travel.

The European Commission hopes that about 70% of the EU's adult population will be vaccinated by the end of the summer.

The Parliament has also raised concerns about the price of the PCR coronavirus tests that could be included in the certificates, which will be available in a digital or paper format with a QR code. EU citizens will get the pass for free but the price of tests vary widely across the bloc.

EU lawmakers said member states should ensure universal, accessible, timely and free-of-charge testing to avoid discrimination against those who have yet to be vaccinated.

Ana Paula Zacarias, Portugals Secretary of State for EU Affairs, noted very good technical discussions with the Parliament but said a fixed common price for the tests cannot be imposed. Portugal currently chairs the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU.

Its a free market, we can only try to see if there is a possibility that the price of the tests can be lowered, she said.

Lawmakers agreed with the European Commission that all vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency, the EUs drug regulator, should be automatically recognized. So far that includes vaccines from AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. They also offered EU countries the possibility of including other vaccines listed by the World Health Organization for emergency use, which would include China's Sinopharm vaccine.

The EU has already begun working on the technical aspects of the vaccine certificate scheme, with testing starting this week in several EU nations.

Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic said the certificates could also be useful at a later stage to help the 27-nation bloc reopen to visitors from outside the EU.

I think in the end it will be needed on a wider scale," he said.



Follow more of APs pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine
The Lancaster County Community Vaccination Center will host a special event to provide COVID-19 vaccinations and resources to veterans and active members of the military this Saturday, the Vaccinate Lancaster Coalition announced.

The event, which will take place at the vaccination center at Park City Center from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., coincides with Armed Forces Day, honoring those who serve or have served in the U.S. military, the Vaccinate Lancaster Coalition said in a press release. Free coffee and raffle prizes will be available throughout the day.

This is our way to celebrate the men and women in our community who so bravely serve our nation, said Dr. Michael Ripchinski, the vaccination center's site director and chief clinical officer with Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health, lead healthcare partner for the Vaccinate Lancaster Coalition.

We want to give them the same shot of hope that hundreds of thousands in our community have gotten, he added. They protect us; this is our opportunity to protect them  and their families.

The event will also feature the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' Mobile Vet Center, which offers direct counseling, outreach and care coordination to military veterans, according to the news release. The mobile center serves as an extension of brick-and-mortar VA Vet Centers located throughout the country, including ones in Lancaster and Harrisburg.

The Pennsylvania National Guard will hold an awards ceremony to recognize those who have served onsite and coalition partners as part of the event, the Vaccinate Lancaster Coalition said. About 50 members of the Pennsylvania National Guard have been volunteering at the center in both clinical and nonclinical roles since mid-April.

For more information, or to schedule a vaccination appointment, visit VaccinateLancaster.org or call 717-588-1020.
An East Drumore Township man tortured a horse by refusing to treat its injuries for months after it was struck by a vehicle, then shot and killed it rather than obtaining veterinary care, according to Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Mark S. Fisher, 37, was charged with two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals after authorities found the Morgan filly underweight, with her ribs and hips showing and unable to walk on her front right leg, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

Authorities arrived at Fishers residence in the 900 block of Deaver Road in late August 2020 after receiving tips that a horse was seen limping with a possibly dislocated leg, according to the affidavit.

The animals ankle appeared to be bent in a manner that caused her extreme difficulty walking, and her other front leg was bowed out in what appeared to be an overcorrection due to her inability to put weight on the injured leg, SPCA said. The horse was unable to walk normally or put pressure on her front legs as she attempted to hobble.

Fisher told investigators he was aware of the horses ankle issues, which were caused by her being struck by a car in February or March of 2020, breaking her right leg, according to the affidavit. Fisher told authorities the animal had not received veterinary care in the months since the incident.

Fishers inaction caused the horse prolonged pain and suffering, SPCA said.

An SPCA officer told Fisher of the severe neglect of the situation and that the animal needed veterinary care, according to the affidavit. Fisher said he would euthanize the animal instead.

Officers returned to Fishers residence on Sept. 1, where they learned that Fisher made the filly walk up a hill where he then shot her in the head as his method of euthanasia, SPCA said.

A preliminary hearing has not been scheduled, court documents show.
A Pennsylvania State Police trooper shot at a man who hit him with a vehicle early Tuesday morning on Lincoln Highway East in East Lampeter Township, according to state police.

Police are still searching for the man, identified as 18-year-old David Joseph Pratt, of East Lampeter Township, who is considered armed and dangerous.

Troopers initiated a traffic stop at 2:20 a.m. for a vehicle in the 1600 block of Lincoln Highway East after a cigarette was discarded onto the roadway by one of the occupants, according to an affidavit of probable cause. A trooper asked the driver to step out of the vehicle and approached him, while Pratt stayed in the vehicle as a passenger, according to police.

Pratt initially provided the false name "Donovan" before abruptly moving to the driver's seat, police said. A trooper then positioned himself to the front left of the vehicle and told Pratt to exit the vehicle.

Pratt then accelerated and hit the trooper with the vehicle, causing him to be thrown over the hood, according to police. The trooper then shot at the vehicle as Pratt drove away from the scene.

The trooper struck by the vehicle sustained abrasions to his elbow and leg, but was treated and later released. The original driver of the vehicle was taken into custody and later released.

It is not immediately clear if the vehicle or Pratt were struck by the trooper's shots.

Pennsylvania State Police is investigating, with assistance by York Criminal Investigations, the Lancaster County Detectives and the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office. District Attorney Heather Adams will review the incident and make a determination on the trooper's use of force at a later time.

Lincoln Highway East was closed between Route 340 and Michigan Avenue, but reopened around 7 a.m.

Pratt has been charged with two counts of aggravated assault, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, fleeing or attempting to elude an officer, depositing waste on a highway, false identification to a law enforcement officer and driving without a license, according to court documents.

Pratt has an active arrest warrant for robbery. A criminal docket indicates he is charged with robbery, conspiracy, possession of a firearm by a minor and firearms not to be carried without a license stemming from an incident that happened on Sept. 7, 2020. He was arraigned on those charges on Jan. 8 and was free after posting bail through a bail bondsman  he was last scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing for March 8.

The vehicle Pratt was operating is a 2004 Honda Civic displaying Pennsylvania Registration, LKM0953.

Anyone with information on Pratt's whereabouts is urged to contact Pennsylvania State Police in Lancaster at 717-299-7650.
A West Hempfield Township man received and shared dozens of indecent images of juveniles through social media, according to West Hempfield Township police.

Richard G. Martinez, 60, was charged with two counts of disseminating photos of child sex acts, two counts of child pornography and six counts of criminal use of a communication facility after investigators found dozens of indecent images of minors, some of them nude, on his electronic devices, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

Authorities first became aware of Martinezs activity in October 2020, when CyberTip documentation showed that he had uploaded six files of apparent child pornography and shared two videos depicting child porn on Facebook Messenger, according to the affidavit.

A search of Martinezs residence in April uncovered 29 indecent images of minors, 21 nude images of minors and a video of indecent contact with a minor on his cell phone, computer tablet, personal computer and laptop, police said.

Martinez told investigators he was part of a chatroom along with others who shared images of underage boys, ages 16 and 17, mixed with adult males, according to the affidavit. Martinez also said he may have seen nude images of boys between the ages of 5 and 8, but that he would have deleted them.

Martinez said his Facebook account was stopped after he sent nude images to someone in Mexico, police said.

A preliminary hearing has not been scheduled, court documents show.
THE ISSUE

An article by Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Jessica Calefati, published in Saturdays LNP | LancasterOnline, noted that all but a few state GOP lawmakers have been silent about COVID-19 vaccination, hampering efforts to persuade Republican holdouts to get vaccinated. Noted Calefati: Communications and public health experts say these skeptics need reassurance from the Republican elected officials they trust the most.

In a May 2 Sunday LNP | LancasterOnline column, Stuart Wesbury implored his fellow Republicans to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Do not buy into made-up dangers promulgated by anti-vaccination voices, wrote Wesbury, a former LNP | LancasterOnline Editorial Board member who began his career as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Public Health Service. Ask your physician or other health care provider about any concerns you may have. Do not rely on people who promote unfounded theories.

Wesbury is a staunch conservative. He was a stalwart supporter of former President Donald Trumps policies. And as a professor emeritus in Arizona State Universitys School of Health Administration and Policy, he knows how vaccination has saved lives.

He pointed to the massive number of COVID-19 vaccine doses that have been administered in the United States  more than 261 million, as of Monday afternoon  and the resulting dramatic drops in deaths and hospitalizations among senior citizens, who were the first to be vaccinated.

The COVID-19 vaccines are saving lives and moving us toward a return to normalcy. Because we care about you, we hope you will get vaccinated  and will persuade your family members to get vaccinated, too.

The members of the LNP | LancasterOnline Editorial Board all have been vaccinated, and the side effects we experienced ranged from minimal arm soreness to a 12-hour low-grade fever and headache. These effects were much easier to handle than being hospitalized with COVID-19, or dealing with the condition known as long COVID-19, in which symptoms persist for months.

Now, were planning summer vacations. We could even fly to other countries if we wished. Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, recently told The New York Times that European Union countries likely will welcome fully vaccinated American travelers this summer.

As for other freedoms that come with vaccination, none compare to being freed from the worry that we might get seriously sick  or make someone else seriously sick  with COVID-19.

Regrettably, as the Inquirer reported, most Republican elected officials in Pennsylvania have done little to persuade their conservative supporters to get vaccinated. (Even less helpfully, state Rep. Russ Diamond of Lebanon County is among those spreading dangerous misinformation.)

Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health is holding pop-up vaccination clinics for rural, Plain and poor communities across Lancaster County.

But who is trying to reach vaccine-hesitant Republicans? Trusted state GOP leaders could be  and should be  but are not, according to the Inquirers reporting.

A notable exception: state Sen. Ryan Aument, who tweeted that he received his second dose of the Pfizer vaccine Monday morning at the Lancaster County Community Vaccination Center. A member of the Pennsylvania COVID-19 Vaccine Joint Task Force, Aument has been forthright in promoting vaccination.

Which is important. Because when silence reigns, the anti-vaccination rants of prominent conservatives like Tucker Carlson sound louder.

Carlson has refused to answer numerous media inquiries about whether hes been vaccinated against COVID-19. But were guessing that Carlson  a wealthy product of elite boarding schools  sees doctors who have urged him to get vaccinated. And we know that Fox News Chairman Rupert Murdoch was vaccinated in December. Murdoch clearly trusts that vaccination is safe.

In March, Republican pollster Frank Luntz worked with the De Beaumont Foundation, a Maryland-based charitable foundation that seeks to improve community health, to figure out what messages might persuade hesitant Republicans to get vaccinated.

After meeting at length with a focus group of Republican voters who initially werent planning to get vaccinated, Luntz found that objective information is key to making the case for COVID-19 vaccination.

The focus group findings can be found in a report on the foundations website. Were highlighting them here in the hope that they will be helpful in persuading readers to get vaccinated  or will be helpful to those who are trying to convince their loved ones to get vaccinated.

The focus group members said they want to be informed, but not told what to do  educated, not indoctrinated.

Among the facts they found compelling were these:

 Development of the Moderna and Pfizer BioNTech vaccines, which use messenger RNA, was built upon decades of research (something Wesbury also pointed out in his column).

 The clinical vaccine trials involved large numbers of participants and showed the vaccines were safe and effective.

 The governments relatively fast approval of the vaccines was not due to cutting corners or compromising safety but cutting red tape and administrative bureaucracy.

The focus group members preferred messaging that came from health experts. They were particularly convinced by Dr. Tom Frieden, an infectious disease physician and former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Frieden laid out five simple facts:

One: If you get infected with the virus, it will go all over your body and stay there for at least a week and be much more likely to cause you long-term problems than the vaccine.

Two: If you get the vaccine, it will prime your immune system, but then the vaccine is gone. It will not be with you anymore.

Three: More than 95% of the doctors who have been offered this vaccine have gotten it as soon as they can.

Four: The more we vaccinate, the faster we can get back to growing our economy and getting jobs.

Five: If people get vaccinated, were going to save at least 100,000 lives of Americans who would otherwise be killed by COVID.

The focus group members said they wanted politics to be separated from the science of vaccination  something wed prefer, too. And they were moved by the stories of people who had personal experiences with COVID-19.

A combination of key medical facts, enumerated clearly without any political undertones, and a human story of just how random and deadly the virus has been, is a convincing, motivating message, Luntz, the GOP pollster, states on the focus group summary on the De Beaumont Foundation website. If the elected officials and the public health experts adopt this strategy, they will save thousands of lives.

We truly hope this information is helpful. Please get vaccinated and urge others to do so, too.
Lopez Obradors Diplomatic Protest Insists Biden Answer: Are You Trying To Overthrow My Government?

May 10, 2021 (EIRNS)Just hours before his scheduled virtual meeting with Kamala Harris on May 7, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador announced that his Foreign Ministry had filed a formal diplomatic protest with the Biden administration over unconstitutional intervention into Mexican political affairs. He presented the proverbial check-stubs proving the State Departments U.S. Agency for International Development was financing of Mexicans Against Corruption, one of the leading NGOs organizing for the overthrow of his government. Oh, no, I will not be raising this issue with Harris, AMLO told reporters; those talks are about immigration.

The message was delivered, however. From Harris on down, top Biden administration officials have been overt that their stop the migrants plan for Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador is a cover for regime change against all of those governments, using NGOs and a fraudulent fight against government corruption. Lopez Obradors actions do not just defend Mexico, but also strengthen El Salvador President Nayeb Bukelis hand in combatting the same corrupt, neoliberal agents being deployed against his attempt to develop his country.

The Mexican government confirmed the veracity of the invoices demonstrating U.S. government funding of the group through USAIDfrom 2018 right up through May this year which had been revealed by Contralinea magazine, Lopez Obrador reported. Civil society groups are welcome and free to operate in this country, he said, but it is reprehensible that an opposition group to our government which has dedicated itself to blocking all the projects which are underway by promoting injunctions against themas was the case with the Mexico City airport, the Tren Maya [Mayan Railway]is being given financing from a foreign government. So yesterday we filed a diplomatic note requesting an explanation from the United States government about this case.

The supposed anti-corruption group in question is headed by Claudio X. Gonzalez, Jr., son of one of the most powerful private business sector leaders in the country (of the same name) who, AMLO noted, in 2006 had threatened that if Lopez Obradors probable electoral victory in the presidential elections were recognized, it would be necessary to do what was done in Chile in 1973: a coup detat.

AMLO also reported that Mexicans Against Corruption personnel also overlap the Article 19 supposed press-freedom NGO which also receives money from the U.S. government. In March 2021, EIR exposed Article 19 as a British-headquartered, British-, U.S.-, EU-, etc., financed operation, after it issued a broadside against alleged Lopez Obrador threats to press freedom.

Lopez Obrador was hardline: We are going to wait for an answer from the United States government.... This is an act of interventionism, which violates our sovereignty.... No foreign government can give money to political groups of another country. Our Constitution prohibits receiving money from another country for political purposes. That is treason against the Fatherland.




The Taliban on Monday announced a three-day cease-fire for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr.

The holiday marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan this week. Hours later, however, a roadside bombing killed 11 people on a bus in eastern Afghanistan as the country experiences continued acts of violence.

No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing.

After the Taliban cease-fire announcement, the government in Kabul called for a permanent truce. A statement from the presidential palace criticized the Taliban for the increasing violence but said the government would also observe the holiday cease-fire.

The Taliban said the cease-fire would begin on either Wednesday or Thursday. It will be decided on the sighting of the new moon that marks the start of the holiday.



The announcement follows an attack on a girls school on Saturday in Kabul that killed as many 60 people. The number of dead continues to increase. Many of the dead are students between 11 and 15 years old. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and the Taliban have said they did not do it.

The attack happened in a mostly Shiite neighborhood in western Kabul. Past attacks there have been carried out by a group linked to the Islamic State.

The Afghan President said Tuesday will be a national day of mourning for the victims.

Hours after the Taliban announcement, a bus in southern Zabul province struck a roadside bomb, said Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian. The explosion killed 11 and at least 24 more people on the bus were wounded.

Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen said Taliban fighters have been ordered to stop all operations, to provide a peaceful and secure atmosphere to our compatriots so they can celebrate the religious holiday.

The U.S. and NATO are withdrawing the last of their military forces from Afghanistan. The final 2,500-3,500 American soldiers and about 7,000 allied NATO forces will leave by September 11.

Since the withdrawal began, the Taliban have increased their battlefield attacks on the Afghan army, capturing new territory.

Also on Monday, Pakistans army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, was in Kabul. There were no other details about his visit.

Pakistani leaders were important to the process of getting the Taliban to agree to peace talks. However, the Taliban-Afghan government negotiations have been frozen for months now although the U.S. has tried to push both sides to an agreement.

Im Jonathan Evans.

The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor.

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

palace n. the official home of a king, queen or president of some countries

compatriot n. a person who is from the same country as someone else

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A major U.S. fuel pipeline remains largely shut down Monday after a cyberattack caused service to be suspended.

The incident, reported Friday, led to the shutdown of a main fuel line operated by Colonial Pipeline, a company based in Georgia. The pipeline carries gasoline and other fuel from Texas to the U.S. Northeast. The company says it supplies about 45 percent of all the fuel used on the U.S. East Coast.

Some are considering the cyberattack the most damaging so far against important U.S. infrastructure.

Colonial said Monday it hopes to have most of its fuel transportation system running again by the end of the week. The company is in the process of restarting its network, which transports over 2.5 million barrels of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel each day.

The company says it was hit by a ransomware attack. In such attacks, online attackers infect the computer systems of organizations and hijack information in a way that leaves it unreadable. The attacker then demands payment in exchange for returning the information to a readable state.

Law enforcement agencies are investigating the incident. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said Monday the attack was carried out by a criminal group known as DarkSide.

A news release issued Monday in the name of DarkSide stated its purpose, but did not name Colonial Pipeline, Reuters news agency reported. Our goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society, the group said.

Cybersecurity experts who have studied DarkSide say the group appears to be made up of experienced cybercriminals who aim to get as much money as they can from their targets. "They're very new but they're very organized," said Lior Div, chief of Cybereason, a security company based in Boston.

DarkSide claims it does not attack hospitals, nursing homes or educational or government targets. It says it donates part of the money it receives to charity. Like most other major ransomware groups, it is known to avoid targeting organizations in former Soviet bloc nations. This suggests a link to former Soviet republics.

The administration of President Joe Biden said it has made restarting the fuel network a top goal. The administration said it is working with several agencies on plans to avoid severe fuel disruptions.

If a shutdown continues, fuel suppliers would need to use trucks and trains to transport fuel. The Department of Transportation announced emergency measures Sunday to keep deliveries moving. The agency lifted driver restrictions on fuel transporters in 17 states affected by the shutdown.

Experts said gasoline prices are not likely to be affected if the pipeline is able to restart operations in the next few days. But they said the incident should raise awareness of the serious threats companies can face.

David Kennedy established TrustedSec, a company that helps organizations prepare for and fight cyberattacks. He told the AP that once a ransomware attack is discovered, companies have few choices. They can either completely rebuild their infrastructure or pay the amount of money being demanded.

Ransomware is absolutely out of control and one of the biggest threats we face as a nation, Kennedy said. The problem we face is most companies are grossly underprepared to face these threats.

Im Bryan Lynn.

The Associated Press and Reuters reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the reports for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. 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

cyberattack  n. an attempt by attackers to damage or destroy a computer network or system

disruption  n. an interruption that stops something from continuing as it should

charity  n. an official organization that gives money, food or other assistance to people in need

infrastructure  n. the basic equipment and structures (such as roads and bridges) that are needed for a country or region

absolute  adj. complete

grossly  adv. extremely


Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, fired rockets into Israel on Monday. The group fired the rockets after hundreds of Palestinians were hurt in clashes with Israeli police in Jerusalem earlier Monday.

The Israeli military answered Hamass rocket fire with airstrikes in Gaza. Palestinian health officials said 20 people, including nine children, were killed in an explosion in the northern Gaza Strip. The cause of the blast was not immediately known. Also, Hamas media reported that an Israeli drone strike killed a Palestinian, also in the northern Gaza Strip.

Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned of continuing operations against Gazas Hamas rulers. In a speech, he accused the militants of crossing a red line with the latest rocket fire. Whoever attacks us will pay a heavy price, he said, warning that the fighting could continue for a while.



In Washington, D.C., U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged both Israel and the Palestinians to lower tensions and urged an immediate end to rocket fire by Hamas.

"All sides need to de-escalate, reduce tensions, take practical steps to calm things down, he said. Blinken, however, defended Israels right to respond and said Hamas rocket attacks "need to stop immediately."

A spokesman for Hamas military division said the rocket attack was an answer to what he called Israeli crimes and aggression in Jerusalem. He threatened more attacks if Israel enters the area of the Al-Aqsa Mosque or carries out planned removal of Palestinian families from east Jerusalem.

A spokesman for the Israel military said at least six of the 45 rockets fired from Hamas-controlled Gaza were launched toward Jerusalem. A house was hit but no injuries or deaths were reported. He added, "We have started to attack Hamas military targets."

Jerusalem Day

Earlier in the day, Israeli officials had changed the path of a planned march through the Muslim Quarter of Jerusalem for Jerusalem Day. The change was an effort to avoid violence between Israeli groups in the march and Palestinians. The day celebrates Israels capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War.



The Associated Press reported that Palestinian protesters, behind wooden boards and scrap pieces of metal, threw stones at Israeli police deployed outside the mosque. Police then entered the area, firing tear gas, rubber bullets and stun grenades, some of which entered the mosque. Police said stones thrown at officers also landed near the Western Wall, where thousands of Israeli Jews had gathered to pray.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said more than 305 Palestinians were hurt, including 228 who went to hospitals or clinics for treatment. Seven of the injured were in serious condition.

Israeli police said 21 officers were hurt, including three who were hospitalized. Israeli health officials added that seven Israeli civilians were also hurt.

Al-Aqsa Mosque was built in an area known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and called Temple Mount by Jews. It is considered one of the holiest places for Islam and Judaism. Tensions in the area have led to violence in the past, including the last Palestinian intifada, or uprising.

Mondays conflict was the latest after weeks of clashes between Palestinians and Israeli troops during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Most recently, the tensions have increased with the planned removal of Palestinians from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of east Jerusalem.

Hamas is an Islamic militant group that has fought three wars against Israel since it took control of Gaza in 2007. The group possesses missiles and rockets able to strike many areas in Israel.

The rocket strike on Jerusalem comes as Prime Minister Netanyahu has been unable to form a new government.

Netanyahu also pushed back against international criticism Monday. He said Israel wants to ensure the rights of worship for all.

Im Mario Ritter, Jr.

The Associated Press, Reuters, and Agence FrancePresse reported this story. Hai Do adapted it for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter Jr. was the editor.

________________________________________________

Words in This Story

drone n. a small aircraft that flies without a pilot

mosque n. a building that is used for Muslim religious services

stun grenade n. an explosive device that produces a very loud sound and a bright light

clinic n. a place where people go to get medical help

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Thanks to her two girls, Kim Zachman spent a lot of time making popular American foods like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chicken fingers, hot dogs, and pizza.

Her girls are adults now, but when they were young, Zachman also learned a lot about books written for children.

I just got hooked on childrens books myself, I just really love em, she said.

Zachman wrote for newspapers and magazines, but she wanted to try writing a childrens book. With the recent publication of Theres No Ham in Hamburgers, she has.

Zachman said it was not easy to learn how to write for children. She had to learn to use clear vocabulary and shorter sentences. She said, its been a long process, a learning process.

The book is about the history of American foods like cookies, chocolate, and cereal. When Zachman first had the idea of writing the book, most publishing companies were not interested. But that was before chefs got famous and television was filled with cooking shows  some of which featured children.

Now, times have changed, and kids are interested in food, she said.

One of her favorite kid food stories is about the first breaded boneless chicken pieces, now known as nuggets. No one had found a way to cover the chicken pieces with a bread mixture that could be frozen and then stay on when cooked. When that finally happened, chicken nuggets started selling at McDonalds restaurants all over the world in the early 1980s.

You know, we had fried chicken for hundreds and hundreds of years, why not the chicken nugget? And it really was that that was a technological challenge.  It was actually that really required a lot of technology to make it happen, so that surprised me that this little chicken nugget was such a big deal, and we didn't have it sooner.

Zachman said she had fun learning some of the stories behind the foods people love to eat. Each story includes history, fun facts, food nutrients and even cooking directions, or recipes, in case people want to try to make the foods themselves.

Did you know, for example, that all it takes to make a really good peanut butter cookie is about 128 grams each of peanut butter and sugar, plus one egg? Divide the mixture into small equal pieces onto a baking surface, flatten them with a fork, and then bake at 176 degrees Celsius for about 10 minutes.

Some American foods are actually versions of food brought to the U.S. by immigrants. For example, hamburgers came from Germany but the food became popular when someone in America put them on a round piece of bread.

Speaking of something else that is round, pizza was a food eaten by poor people in Italy for hundreds of years. In 1905, an Italian immigrant named Gennaro Lombardi opened the first pizza place in New York City. Now, New York-style pizza is famous around the world.

Zachman said immigrants added to American food culture in many ways.

Because the immigrants came over, and some could find jobs, but some had a hard time finding jobs, so they would be entrepreneurs and start this little food business, little food truck business kind of thing to get going.

Now, not every story in Zachmans book is true. Some were passed down for generations and are still unproven. But one might argue that the more interesting food stories are the true ones.

For example, pepperoni is not a traditional pizza addition in Italy. It is an American creation thought to have been started by German immigrants who wanted a spicy sausage.



Anyone who watches American television probably knows that children love peanut butter and jelly spread between two pieces of bread  known as a sandwich. But it did not start with kids.

The peanut butter and jelly sandwich got its start with American soldiers in World War I and stayed popular among soldiers through the 1940s. When soldiers returned home after World War II, they started making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for their children.

There are a lot of brands of peanut butter in the food store today. But Zachman discovered that, in 1910, there were 21 different brands of peanut butter in the U.S. state of Kansas alone!

Zachmans book has 10 parts. She said she would have liked to write about more foods, but she ran out of space. She thought about doughnuts  sweet fried balls of dough topped with sugar or stuffed with cream or jelly. There are also tacos and macaroni and cheese. Maybe she will include them in another book. One thing is for sure, however. It will also be for kids.

I like the idea that Im hopefully inspiring kids to read and inspiring kids to learn, Zachman said. Ive got several ideas Im researching right now. There might be another food book, which would be fun for me.

Im Dan Friedell.

Dan Friedell wrote this story for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor.

What is your favorite American food? Tell us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page. Quiz - Stories, Cooking Directions for Popular American Foods Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

hooked adj. very interested in and enthusiastic about something

cookie n. a sweet baked food that is usually small, flat, and round and is made from flour and sugar

cereal n. a breakfast food made from grain

chef n. a professional cook who usually is in charge of a kitchen in a restaurant

kid n. a young person

challenge n. a difficult task or problem : something that is hard to do

style n. a particular way in which something is done, created, or performed

entrepreneur n. a person who starts a business and is willing to risk loss in order to make money

brand n. a category of products that are all made by a particular company and all have a particular name

dough n. a mixture of flour, water, and other ingredients that is baked to make bread, cookies, etc.

inspire v. to make (someone) want to do something : to give (someone) an idea about what to do or create
When Alyssa Berg was in elementary school she joined a Lebanon-area Girl Scout troop.

As it turned out, Miranda Smith, the daughter of her troop leader was a member of the Lebanon Strawberry Festival Court. Smith spent a lot of time with the troop and made a big impression on Berg. Looking back, Berg knows this is when she first dreamed of serving on the court herself.

I wanted to attempt to be a Strawberry Princess my senior year because it was so much fun hanging out with her, Berg said. I really dont think she knows that or even remembers me. She was a senior and I was in fourth grade. She probably doesnt realize she inspired a little girl to be a Strawberry Princess, but she did.

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Berg is one of five princesses on the 2021 Lebanon Strawberry Festival Court. Even though this years event will not be held because of the pandemic, the princesses are still staying busy representing the festival and the community.

The court participated in the Walk-A-Mile-For-A-Child event and visited residents at The Oaks and Willamette Manor. The visit at Willamette Manor was outdoors, but the restrictions in place during their visit to The Oaks allowed the princesses to meet residents indoors.
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Elsewhere in Oregon, the University of Portland, Willamette University and Lewis and Clark College have also announced vaccine requirements. The University of Washington and Washington State University also will have vaccine requirements for fall term.

Both the University of Oregon and WOU stressed that important details about the vaccination requirements still must be finalized.

Western Oregon is offering an incentive to encourage students to get vaccinated, and giving them $25 to be used on textbooks, supplies, gear or other items at the WOU Wolfstore.

My hope is that this incentive program encourages WOU students to get their vaccination and rewards those who already have. Its important we do our part to support pack immunity in our Wolf community, said Associated Students of Western Oregon University President N.J. Johnson. We encourage students to get their first vaccination as soon as possible so they will have their second dose completed before the conclusion of spring term.

Free vaccinations are available in the Pacific Room of WOUs Werner University Center on Monday, Wednesday and Friday each week. Walk-ins are welcome from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Or, appointments can be made with Salem Health. WOU has hosted the Polk County clinic for Salem Health since February 2021.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Lewiston, ID (83501)

Today

Cloudy with light rain this morning...then becoming partly cloudy. High 73F. Winds W at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy early followed by cloudy skies overnight. Low 49F. SW winds shifting to ESE at 10 to 20 mph.
CALmatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California's state Capitol works and why it matters. Dan Walters has been a journalist for nearly 60 years, spending all but a few of those years working for California newspapers.
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During the whole pandemic, the relationship between agent and presenter has gotten closer, he added. Its a closer relationship in figuring this out together. I hope that stays as we move forward.

Decisions to make

Sometime this summer or early fall, Overture will be announcing March 2022 through next summer, Sauers said. There are a lot of shows in that time period  a lot of big shows.

While it has remained closed to the public, Overture recently hosted a blood drive. The center is tentatively open to being a vaccination site, according to communications director Shari Gasper. As for audience safety, masks will likely be required for audience members and the ventilation system is very good, Sauers said, above where we need to be.

Staff are still working out what the return of Kids in the Rotunda could look like  maybe two shows instead of three  and is weighing the complications of live-streaming events. The administration hasnt made a decision yet on eating and drinking inside theaters.

Resident organizations, of which Overture has 10, have already begun to announce their seasons. Forward Theater will open in the Playhouse on Sept. 9 with a one-woman play by Adrienne Kennedy. Madison Opera is preparing to officially announce its season next week.

Share your opinion on this topic by sending a letter to the editor to tctvoice@madison.com. Include your full name, hometown and phone number. Your name and town will be published. The phone number is for verification purposes only. Please keep your letter to 250 words or less.
Madison could relate: Shed bought a car at age 21 with no guidance or research  resulting in a bad deal  and it wasnt until she took a homebuyer education class a couple years ago that she finally applied for her first credit card.

Before that, the only thing I ever learned about credit cards was not to get them because you don't ever want to be in credit card debt, Madison said. This is me at 41, 42, having gone to college. As a result, shed missed out on decades of opportunity to build her credit history.

Then, when the virus gripped Wisconsin, yanking away jobs and childcare, more than 300 people contacted Madison for help paying bills or buying groceries.

I just remember hearing people so stressed out because they were living paycheck to paycheck, Madison said. You can hear them  doing the math on the days before they know they're gonna run out of money.
There were three elements of the story that I found especially compelling. They are the predatory nature of wealthy actors in todays economy, the important role labor unions can still play, and the ineptness of former Gov. Scott Walkers economic policy. A little more on each point

The threatened demise of the Little Chutes paper mill is a prime example of the economic forces at work today that have made a few unimaginably rich, but threaten the economic well-being of millions of workers. The potential demise of the Appleton Coated mill pushed by a large, out-of-state financial institution, possibly to enhance its profits from its investment in a competitor, shows why the power of corporate giants needs to be regulated. The mill closure was only stopped because local and union leaders were empowered to contest its shutting by a provision in state law.

At a time when organized labor faces great challenges, the Fox Valley story shows that unions continue to be a valuable asset for workers. Unions are at their best when, as in Little Chute, they represent not just the interests of their members but also the interests of the broader community.
Gov. Tony Evers said Monday that a requirement for all Wisconsinites to get vaccinated against COVID-19 is not going to happen and that he believes frankly, it wont happen anywhere in the country.

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He made those comments during a virtual interview with The Journal Times Editorial Board on Monday afternoon, two weeks after he vetoed a bill that would have banned a state-mandated vaccine requirement.

At the end of the day, it is an individual choice, Evers, a Democrat, said of the decision to be vaccinated.

Evers' statement on personal choice echoes something U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., has come under fire for saying in a recent radio interview, although Evers and Johnson approached the topic with different tones and perspectives.

"What do you care if your neighbor has one or not?" Johnson said to conservative talk radio host Vicki McKenna on April 22. "I certainly am going to vigorously resist any kind of government use or imposing of vaccine passports ... that could be a very freedom-robbing step and people need to understand these things."

Veto on mandate
A Minnesota man who police said admitted to setting a fire at a Stoughton laundromat last weekend said he did it to rid himself of evil spirits and a government tracking device.

Jonathan M. Reeves, 26, of Minneapolis, was charged Tuesday with arson. According to a criminal complaint, Reeves was standing near the main entrance of Viking Laundry, 1425 E. Main St., about 12:10 a.m. Sunday as two-foot flames shot out of a vent on the buildings east end.

The complaint states Reeves told police, Yeah, I set it on fire, when asked about the building, and said he set the fire because he was cursed.

After starting the fire inside the building, Reeves told police he went outside to watch the evil spirits burn. Nobody was injured in the fire.

Bail was set for Reeves at $5,000 during a court appearance Tuesday, and Court Commissioner Jason Hanson ordered a competency evaluation to determine whether Reeves is mentally fit to assist with his defense.

Assistant District Attorney Rachel Kibbe said Reeves has a pending charge of making threats of violence in Hennepin County, Minnesota, and there is also a warrant for him from Topeka, Kansas. She said Reeves doesnt know anybody in this area and has no ties to Dane County.
Both Johnson and Fierro are seeking dismissal of the charges on those grounds.

Johnson faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted on one of the attempted arson charges, with a mandatory minimum of five years in prison.

No plea hearing date has been set.

According to an FBI agents affidavit filed with a criminal complaint in September, Johnson and Fierro were identified as two people who carried a gasoline can from the Downtown YWCA first to an unnamed building that in photos contained in the affidavit is recognizable as Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce.

The affidavit states an unidentified man used a skateboard to break a window on the building, then Johnson used other objects to break more glass. A woman identified as Fierro then poured liquid from a red container into the building, which Johnson then tried to set ablaze.

While a fire was ignited from the liquids vapors, the building itself did not catch fire.

Surveillance images showed that a short time later, the affidavit states, Johnson and Fierro broke windows at a business recognizable in photos as Chalmers and poured liquid from the red container into the building. There are apartments located on the upstairs floors of the building that were occupied at the time.
A 29-year-old Madison man with a history of gun crimes  including pointing a gun at a police officer  was sentenced Monday to seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty in February to the armed robbery of a Near East Side coffee shop last year.

Nathaniel W. Homestead also pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and ordered to complete three years of supervision after his prison sentence is up, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Western District of Wisconsin.

During the robbery of Ground Zero Coffee, 744 Williamson St., on July 19, Homestead raised his shirt and revealed a handgun in his waistband, an employee gave him cash from the register, and he fled. Madison police arrested him a few blocks away and found the handgun in a backpack at a nearby beach.

Homestead later told investigators he was motivated to rob the store to get money to quickly purchase drugs, and was under the influence of methamphetamine and crack cocaine at the time, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.
Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul and other state law enforcement officials are calling on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to expand monitoring and testing of drinking water for toxic forever chemicals.

Kaul, a Democrat, and attorneys general from 17 states and the District of Columbia, submitted comments Monday asking the agency to regulate PFAS as a class, something the chemical industry has staunchly opposed.

The comments, submitted in support of the EPAs plan to require public water systems to test for 29 unregulated PFAS compounds, say the agency should also require monitoring and validate a method for measuring total PFAS, lower minimum reporting levels and advance environmental justice with PFAS monitoring.

Despite studies showing PFAS exposure negatively affects human health, there are no national drinking water standards or requirements that public water systems test for the compounds.
At least four of five Wisconsin House Republicans say they plan to vote to remove U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney from her House leadership post when Republicans convene to oust her on Wednesday.

U.S. Reps. Bryan Steil, R-Janesville, Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, Glenn Grothman, R-Glenbeulah, and Mike Gallagher, R-Green Bay, said they planned to vote for her removal. Many of them cited concerns with Cheneys ability to unify the Republican caucus and serve as the top messenger for the House GOP as Republicans work to take back leadership in both chambers.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy set a Wednesday vote for removing Cheney, saying it was clear that he and his GOP colleagues need to make a change.

Cheney, R-Wyo., seems all but certain to be tossed from her No. 3 House GOP job after repeatedly challenging former President Donald Trumps false assertions pinning his November reelection defeat on widespread voting fraud. She also has criticized his role in inciting the Capitol riot on Jan. 6 as electoral votes were being formally certified, and she was among just 10 Republicans to support Trumps second impeachment.

Wednesdays vote to remove Cheney comes after Republicans failed in the first attempt to do so in February, after her impeachment vote.
The Legislature this week is expected to take its first floor votes on police reform measures since George Floyds death sparked a national reckoning on policing and racial justice.

The Senate is widely expected to pass a bipartisan package Tuesday and send it to the Assembly for consideration. The bills mostly deal with administrative changes and data gathering, not use-of-force policies.

Although more contentious proposals are still in the works, including restrictions on chokeholds and the establishment of a statewide use-of-force policy, Tuesdays vote will represent the first signs of movement in Wisconsin after GOP lawmakers ignored Democratic Gov. Tony Evers calls for special sessions on police reform following Floyds death last May in Minneapolis and again following the August police shooting of another Black man, Jacob Blake, by a white Kenosha police officer.

This doesnt solve every problem, but I think that this really shows that there is transparency and areas where we can make that a little bit better and collect a little more information, Sen. Van Wanggaard, R-Racine, a former police officer who co-sponsored the measures, said during a joint Milwaukee Press Club-WisPolitics.com virtual luncheon discussion Tuesday. Its better for everyone to be able to see that.
The training is where we invest in each other and we invest in ourselves to be able to better serve our communities, Barrett said. And to do that, that costs some sort of financial investment.

Reaching out

Above all, Barrett said, building trust starts with developing close relationships with an array of county residents, especially those most skeptical of law enforcement.

I believe that proximity breeds care, and distance breeds fear, Barrett said.

He said he has already started working with local community organizations but declined to specify which ones.

Around the room Monday, Barrett noted the attendance of law enforcement, elected officials, community leaders and activists.

This is what its going to take for us to move forward  being in the same room having difficult conversations, then working together as one to move forward, he said.

Barrett said he feels humbled to have been appointed sheriff but also excited to lead an outstanding organization.
This split and timing does not necessarily reflect the urgency or the level of need that many businesses, families, workers, and community organizations have right now, Baldwin and Evers wrote. Over the past year, we have been clear that our response to the pandemic must be robust and it must be flexible to meet the specific needs that our state faces.

The governor has sole discretion over the use of federal funds, and Evers has vetoed multiple attempts by state Republicans, who control the Legislature, to use those dollars, including a package of 11 bills that would have used those funds to pay down state debt, provide $200 million in assistance for small businesses and provide $500 million for broadband expansion, among other things.

Rep. Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, co-chair of the states budget committee, on Tuesday again called for a meeting with Evers on the use of federal funds.

Regardless of the exact amount, theres a lot of federal money coming into the state, and we would love to have a discussion with the governor on how that is going to be spent, Born said.

Republican leaders, who have criticized the governor for a lack of firm details on the use of federal funds, have said the use of that money could factor into the budget process.
BOISE  Idaho is moving to Stage 4 in its plan for reopening the states economy during the coronavirus pandemic. That means Idahoans will be allowed to have gatherings of any size.

Idaho Health and Welfare Director Dave Jeppesen announced the move to Stage 4 during a media briefing Tuesday afternoon.

The decision is due to the steadily improved Idaho COVID-19 case numbers, test positivity rates, and hospital and health care resources, Jeppesen said.

But vaccination will be critical to Idahos reopening, he said.

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Over 623,000 Idahoans have had at least one shot, which includes almost 74% of those over the age of 65, Jeppesen said. However, we are counting on even more Idahoans choosing to get the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine. A COVID-19 vaccine is the best choice we have to keep the coronavirus spread under control, to continue to fuel the Idaho economy, and to ensure that our kids can go back to school in the fall.

Idaho is far behind other states in the share of population with at least one dose of vaccine. Only four states (Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Wyoming) have less of their population vaccinated at this point, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
The Bellevue deputy marshal whose TikTok videos done in uniform have been seen by millions has signed a book deal and is returning to work, according to a new video.
One hundred thirty thousand dollars. Thats what it takes for a down payment to buy an average-priced home in Bozeman, Montana. Then an aspiring homeowner must fork out another $3,000 each month, which is more than two-thirds of their households paychecks if they make the median income for the metro area.

Thats because the average home in the greater Bozeman area is going for more than $650,000, up from an already astronomical $500,000 in early 2020. A couple of tenured professors at the local Montana State University might be able to swing that, but it is way out of reach for the rest of the faculty.

If college professors cant afford homes, then what kind of local worker can who has no outside source of income? Certainly not public-school teachers, firefighters, cops, or journalists. Service workers? Forget about it.

As pandemic-spurred remote work is freeing folks from the office and the cities, they are buying up remote work-centers, aka houses, in places far away from their cubicles. The result is real estate markets blowing up across the West, as well as the nation.

Writers on the Range: We blame the trees, but whose fault is it? Opinion: Just like you, I live with the fear of wildfire. My southern Oregon town of Ashland nestles against the foothills of the Siskiyou Mountains. . .
Recently Judge Napolitano explained his conversation with Justice Scalia regarding the second amendment. He deliberately left out Justice Scalia's final statement which was "all rights can be regulated." I interpreted that as they should be regulated by Congress and not by the judiciary unless Congress refuses to act.

In my 61 years as a Republican, I have never seen the stupidity being shown by the GOP members of Congress and the various state legislatures. The acceptance of Trump's lies saying he won the election and it was stolen is equivalent to accepting the fact that bison and elk can fly.

The Idaho legislature has demonstrated incompetence by members getting covid-19 when the simple act of wearing a mask would have protected them. They have wasted taxpayers' money this session with the silliest discussions and bills that they wanted ignoring their constituents' needs. We need a law that gives them 93 days to do their job. After that, if they did not finish they will not be paid any more nor receive per diem. If they choose to leave with unfinished business then the public will get to vote on all outstanding bills. The first week the public can add amendments and the second week is voting online.
U.S. Marshals and the Virginia State Police approached a house in Martinsville in an armored vehicle Monday evening and arrested a man on charges related to a shooting death in Rocky Mount.

Despite the heavy presence of law enforcement in the 700 block of Forest Street, Richard Lee Hannon Jr. surrendered peacefully, and Martinsville Police say he is charged with second-degree murder, use of a firearm in commission of a felony, possession of a firearm by a nonviolent felon and maliciously shooting into an occupied building.

Tony Dimitri Bruce, 26, died from gunshot wounds after police found him outside of his residence in the 100 block of Bland Street in Rocky Mount on June 17, 2019.

Kaneisha Shatae Hannon, Richard Hannons sister, was arrested the following day on charges of first-degree murder, shooting into an occupied dwelling, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and grand larceny.

She had been scheduled for a 3-day trial in Franklin County Circuit Court in March, but her case was continued and has not been rescheduled, according to the courts docket.
Virginia has already begun planning for the widened vaccine availability and are working to ensure students receive a second dose before going home for the summer. Avula has said success is tied to executed on-site vaccinations at schools, since it's a reachable access point for families.

Adolescents, with the consent and accompaniment of a parent, will also be able to receive a dose at any location currently offering vaccinations such as federal retail pharmacies; health care providers; local health department clinics; and pediatricians.

Once the CDC gives the OK, vaccinations could theoretically start immediately but it's unclear when school districts will advise parents on their options. Plans will differ with each locality.

And just as they aren't for adults, vaccinations for kids are not mandated and will not be in Virginia.

While theyre less likely to get sick from the virus, children can still spread the disease and contribute to community transmission, Avula said in an interview last week. He added that Michigan and Minnesota have had surging case counts these in the past month in large part due to high school and college students.
Rick Knight, the long-time compiler for the count, made note of some of the misses, which included pied-billed Grebe, common nighthawk, Acadian flycatcher (just the seventh miss in last 50 years), loggerhead shrike, horned lark, summer tanager and bobolink.

He also made some observations about other count finds.

One species  brown-headed nuthatch  made its official count debut. Another  evening grosbeak  returned to the count after being absent since the spring of 2000.

The American robin edged out the European starling for most common bird. Counters tallied 801 robins compared to 618 starlings.

For only the sixth time in the last 18 years, Northern bobwhite made it onto the count. A single ruddy duck became only the second record for this waterfowl on the spring count. Also making only its second appearance on the spring count was willet, a species of shorebird that only migrates through the region.

Some species appear to have moved into the region for good. Fish crows have been found the last five of the past six years, and Eurasian collared-doves have been found every year for the past 15 years.
Anwer Gillani, owner of the Samirs chain of convenience stores, said his locations are almost out. His store on the five lane in Marion had no gas signs on the pumps Monday evening.

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We are almost out of gas, he said Tuesday morning to The McDowell News. We have a few at a couple of stores. I am holding it for those who really need it.

Gillani said people who really need gas so they can get a doctors appointment or a similar emergency can message him on Facebook or call one of his stores.

By the weekend, everything will be normal is what they are telling us, he said Tuesday morning. Hopefully by the end of this week, everything will be normal. A lot of people are out of gas in Atlanta.

An employee at KGs Quik Stop on Rutherford Road said her store doesnt have gas. Monday evening, folks were lined up at KGs to fill up their tanks and the supply there has since run out.

People are getting crazy, said the employee.

The M&M store on the five lane only has premium gas as of Tuesday morning and it wont last long. Destiny Morgan, an employee there, said she hopes the store will get more fuel.
Credit: Imperial College London

Researchers used AI to identify which daily changing clinical parameters best predict intervention responses in critically ill COVID-19 patients.

The investigators used machine learning to predict which patients might get worse and not respond positively to being turned onto their front in intensive care units (ICUs)  a technique known as proning that is commonly used in this setting to improve oxygenation of the lungs.

While the AI model was used on a retrospective cohort of patient data collected during the pandemic's first wave, the study demonstrates the ability of AI methods to predict patient outcomes using routine clinical information used by ICU medics.

The researchers say the approach, where each patient's data were analyzed day-by-day instead of only on admission, could be used to improve guidelines in clinical practice going forward. It could be applied to potential future waves of the pandemic and other diseases treated in similar clinical settings.

This is the first study that examines daily COVID-19 patient data, using AI to understand the clinical response to the rapidly changing needs of patients in ICUs. Led by a team from Imperial College London and Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals for the COVID-ICU Consortium, the research is published today in the journal Intensive Care Medicine.

First author and clinical science lead Dr. Brijesh Patel, from Imperial's Department of Surgery & Cancer and senior intensivist at Royal Brompton Hospital, said: "Most studies look at the health of a patient on admission to ICU, and whether they were discharged or sadly died. In ICU there is a huge amount of information which we use at the bedside to manage patients on a day-by-day basis, and our study focuses on how the patients' state changed daily.

"This helped focus our attention on which specific parameters matter the most, and how the importance of each parameter changes over time. This dynamic understanding is vitally important when trying to understand a new life-threatening disease and to know when and in whom each intervention works."

The prone position is used in ICUs to help improve blood oxygenation in people with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome, and has been used extensively during the pandemic. However, proning did not help all COVID-19 patients and, when used in patients who will not benefit, can delay the start of other sequential treatments like using extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a life-support machine that takes over for the heart and lungs to oxygenate blood and pump it round the body. Better analysis of proning implementation and prediction of failed proning could lead to more personalized applications.

Dr. Patel said: "ECMO is currently the last resort for many patients, after all other less invasive interventions such as prone position have failed, but it has associated risks. Over 20% of all patients on a mechanical ventilator were referred to and received management advice from one of the five national ECMO centers. Patients appropriately placed early onto ECMO show better outcomes. However, only 4% of referred patients received ECMO, which is due to a number of reasons, but one of which could have been delays in assessment of responsiveness to interventions like prone position.

"Advanced analytics to enable tracking of disease allows patient care to be streamlined so that the window of opportunity for any intervention is not missed. The data from this national evaluation enabled us not only to examine how our management decisions affected disease course but importantly where we could improve."

The new findings show that the AI model identified factors that determined which patients were likely to get worse and not respond to interventions like proning. The researchers found that during the first wave of the pandemic, patients with blood clots or inflammation in the lungs, lower oxygen levels, lower blood pressure, and lower lactate levels were less likely to benefit from being proned. Overall, proning improved oxygenation in only 44% of patients.

Senior author and data science lead Professor Aldo Faisal, Director of Imperial's Center in AI for Healthcare at the Departments of Computing and Bioengineering said: "In the ever-changing landscape of the pandemic, clinicians are constantly learning and adapting to patient needs, which themselves change every day. Critically, we have set up a standing digital service evaluation of UK ICUs, getting day-by-day treatment data from ICUs across the nations. Our machine learning tool could help track patient progress in real time and help inform ICU guidelines by filling the gaps of patient carereflecting back to clinicians to identify best practice quickly and benefit from sharing.

"More than one year on, we're still learning how the course of COVID-19 affects the body, and how this can change day-by-day. Data science and the daily data feeds from ICUs across the country help us learn much faster how best to treat individual patients based on their daily symptoms and needs."

The researchers analyzed data from 633 mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients across 20 UK ICUs during the first wave of the COVID-19 outbreak (1 March31 August 2020). They examined the importance of factors associated with disease progression, like blood clots and inflammation in the lungs, as well as treatments given and whether the patient ultimately died or was discharged.

They used this data, which was collected daily by legions of medical students, nurses, doctors, audit, research and data staff, to design and train the AI tool which then made predictions on factors that determine outcomes.

Dr. Patel added: "Our findings could help inform ICU guidelines and clinicians going forward, and AI could play a pivotal role in how we learn about and adapt to COVID-19 disease progression on a daily basis. Our mantra within the NHS is to innovate and improve patient care and this form of national evaluation helps us to understand our own biases as clinicians. We hope our findings will help and encourage more research to be undertaken that focuses on the daily needs of patients."

The researchers continue to collect patient data and are currently analyzing findings from the second wave of the pandemic. They note that in the first wave there were limited drug treatments available, so more COVID-19 patients may have been triaged directly to ICU for breathing support. However, in the second wave, proven treatments such as steroids and tociluzimab, pioneered by other Imperial researchers, were more widely available, so those who progressed to ICU had a different disease profile, as they were patients who were inherently resistant to these initial drug treatments.

Professor Faisal said: "Findings from the first and second wave will differ because approaches to treating patients in ICU evolved with the pandemic. However, our AI tool kit is already set up across UK ICUs to monitor daily patient data and adapt to the changing situation."

Explore further Clinicians report improved COVID critical care with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation

More information: undefined undefined et al. Natural history, trajectory, and management of mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients in the United Kingdom, Intensive Care Medicine (2021). undefined undefined et al. Natural history, trajectory, and management of mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients in the United Kingdom,(2021). DOI: 10.1007/s00134-021-06389-z
This October 2013 photo provided by the family shows Josselyn Kish on the day she received a gene therapy treatment at UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital in Los Angeles. Born without a working immune system because of an inherited genetic flaw, Josselyn suffered rashes, painful shingles and frequent diarrhea as a baby, said her mother, Kim Carter. After the gene therapy, "she was better right away," Carter said. (Family photo via AP)

A gene therapy that makes use of an unlikely helper, the AIDS virus, gave a working immune system to 48 babies and toddlers who were born without one, doctors reported Tuesday.

Results show that all but two of the 50 children who were given the experimental therapy in a study now have healthy germ-fighting abilities.

"We're taking what otherwise would have been a fatal disease" and healing most of these children with a single treatment, said study leader Dr. Donald Kohn of UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital.

"They're basically 'free range'going to school, doing normal things," without the worry that any infection could become life-threatening, he said.

The other two children who weren't helped by the gene therapy later had successful bone marrow transplants. Doctors say it will take longer to know if any of the 50 are cured, but they seem to be well so far.

The children had severe combined immunodeficiency syndrome, or SCID, which is caused by an inherited genetic flaw that keeps the bone marrow from making healthy versions of the blood cells that form the immune system. Without treatment, it often kills in the first year or two of life.

It became known as "bubble boy disease" because of a case in the 1970s involving a Texas boy who lived for 12 years in a protective plastic bubble to isolate him from germs. It's now called "bubble baby disease" because roughly 20 different gene defects, including some that affect girls as well as boys, can cause it.

A bone marrow transplant from a genetically matched sibling can cure the disorder, but most kids lack a suitable donor and the treatment is riskythe Texas boy died after one.

This January 2020 photo provided by the family shows Josselyn Kish of Las Vegas. As a baby, Josselyn suffered rashes, painful shingles and frequent diarrhea, said her mother, Kim Carter. "Day care was calling me a couple times a week to come get her because she was always getting fevers." After the gene therapy, "she was better right away," Carter said. Now, "she rarely, rarely gets sick at all" and has been able to recover whenever she has. (Family photo via AP)

Patients now are treated with twice-weekly doses of antibiotics and germ-fighting antibodies, but it's not a permanent solution.

Doctors think gene therapy might be. They remove some of a patient's blood cells, use a disabled AIDS virus to insert a healthy version of the gene that the kids need, and return the cells through an IV.

Josselyn Kish, now 11 and living in Las Vegas, had it at UCLA when she was 3. As a baby, she suffered rashes, painful shingles and frequent diarrhea, said her mother, Kim Carter. "Day care was calling me a couple times a week to come get her because she was always getting fevers."

After the gene therapy, "she was better right away," Carter said. Now, "she rarely, rarely gets sick at all" and has been able to recover whenever she has. That hope extends to Josselyn's newest infectionshe was just diagnosed with COVID-19 and so far has only very mild symptoms.

In all, 27 children were treated at the Los Angeles hospital, three at the U.S. National Institutes of Health near Washington and 20 at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London. The fact the treatment seems safe across multiple hospitals performing it makes the study "very powerful," said Dr. Stephen Gottschalk of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis.

He had no role in the new study but he and his colleagues have performed a similar gene therapy on 17 other children with SCID.

"People ask us, is it a cure? Who knows long term, but at least up to three years, these children are doing well," Gottschalk said. "The immune function seems stable over time so I think it looks very, very encouraging."

Results of the UCLA-led study were published Tuesday by the New England Journal of Medicine and presented at an online American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy conference. Grants from U.S. and British government health agencies and the tax-supported California Institute for Regenerative Medicine paid for the work. Kohn is an inventor of the treatment and an adviser to the company now developing it, London-based Orchard Therapeutics.

Explore further Gene therapy offers potential cure to children born without an immune system

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
A new paper in the Journal of the European Economic Association, published by Oxford University Press, indicates that distrust generated by a 2011 CIA-led vaccination campaign ruse designed to catch Osama Bin Laden resulted in a significant vaccination rate decline in Pakistan.

Using a local doctor, the US Central Intelligence Organization planned an immunization plan in Pakistan to obtain DNA samples of children living in a compound in Abbottabad where American authorities suspected Bin Laden was hiding in order to obtain proof of Bin Laden's location (because the presence of close relatives would be a likely indication of Bin Laden's presence). Without consent from the Pakistani health authorities, the doctor began to administer hepatitis B vaccines to children in Abbottabad. The Guardian published an article revealing the vaccine project shortly after a United States military special operations unit killed Bin Laden on May 2, 2011.

Even prior to this campaign extremist groups in Pakistan have worked to discredit formal medicine and vaccines. By discrediting such services (which are provided by the state) extremist groups may increase the credibility of non-state actors such as the Taliban.

The Taliban increased propaganda efforts against vaccines in the aftermath of the publication of the Guardian article. In particular, the Taliban issued several religious edicts linking vaccination campaigns to CIA espionage activities and later used violent action against vaccination workers.

Using data from the Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement on children born between January 2010 and July 2012, researchers have investigated the effects of the disclosure of this vaccination ruse on the extent to which children in Pakistan received doses of the polio, DPT, or measles vaccine. Their estimates indicate that the vaccination rate declined between 23% and 39% in districts with higher levels of electoral support for an alliance of parties espousing political extremism relative to districts with lower levels of electoral support for such groups. The researchers' investigation also revealed that the decline in girls' vaccination rates is larger than the decline in the vaccination rate of boys.

"The empirical evidence highlights that events which cast doubt on the integrity of health workers or vaccines can have severe consequences for the acceptance of health products such as vaccines," said Andreas Stegmann, one of the paper's authors. "This seems particularly relevant today as public acceptance of the new vaccines against Covid-19 is crucial to address the pandemic."

Explore further Pakistan launches new anti-polio drive amid tight security

More information: Monica Martinez-Bravo et al, In Vaccines We Trust? The Effects of the CIA's Vaccine Ruse on Immunization in Pakistan, Journal of the European Economic Association (2021). Monica Martinez-Bravo et al, In Vaccines We Trust? The Effects of the CIA's Vaccine Ruse on Immunization in Pakistan,(2021). DOI: 10.1093/jeea/jvab018
Empathetically exploring the positive motivations of people who are vaccine hesitant may help improve acceptance for COVID-19 vaccines and others. Credit: Shutterstock

New parents have many decisions to make soon after their baby is born. One of them is about vaccination.

Between the cooing and crying, cards and bouquets, and yet another change of clothes, parents will be asked about inoculating their infant against childhood illnesses. Where once the answer would have been "yes" by default, the past few decades have seen more Canadian parents hesitate.

Vaccine hesitancy

While vaccination remains the norm, for a range of reasons exhausted mothers and nervous fathers are saying "We'll wait" or even "No" to vaccinations in maternity wards across the country.

In an era of patient-centrism and individual autonomy, the parents' right to hesitate is accepted. But health-care professionals are often worried by both the individual risks and societal consequences of the choices that are being made. Life threatening and altering diseases like polio or measlesonce eradicated or marginalized by vaccinesare creeping back.

Canadians' attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccines suggest hesitancy and its societal consequences are not limited to the choices of newly minted parents. Recent surveys in Canada, and globally, show many of us are hesitant about vaccines that have been produced with such herculean effort and enormous cost. So many, in fact, that the immunization thresholds required to tame COVID-19 are under threat.

This hesitancy has been described in detail, and linked to people's politics, past community traumas and attitudes towards science and industry.

However, just what to do about it has been less clear. While most Canadians will say yes to COVID-19 vaccines, many of us also know a friend or a family member who is, at least for the moment, saying no.

Most of us know someone who mistrusts some element of the vaccinefrom the speed of its production, to the intentions of its manufacturers or deliverers. Indeed, COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is said to be on the rise, nudged upwards by the various pauses, or stops, introduced by governments. How, under these conditions, might we turn a "no" into a "maybe," or even a "yes?"

Motivational interviewing

My research team at the University of Calgary's School of Public Policy started our most recent work with just this question in mind. It turns out the answer was just a few provinces away in Quebec, and took us back to newborns and their parents.

We have been working with Canadian federal and World Health Organization funding to support family doctors as they respond to the pandemic. To support better conversations about vaccine hesitancy, we met with Dr. Arnaud Gagneur, a hospital-based neo-natalogist in Sherbrooke. He and his colleagues are world leaders in improving dialogue around vaccination with new parents.

The technique they've been working with for more than a decade is called motivational interviewing and it has shown great success.

Described in academic journals and media coverage, a motivational interview is based on a seemingly simple idea: find a vaccine-hesitant person's positive motivation. The art of accomplishing this lies in long and empathetic engagement with the person to get to the roots of their hesitancy.

Those roots will often be negatively expressed: "I don't like the way it was made," or "It's a conspiracy, you know." Under the principles of motivational interviewing, these roots are to be respected and acknowledged, regardless of how gnarled they might appear. Attempting to chop them off with arguments and facts will only encourage the person to sink deeper into their hesitancy. Unless the person's concerns are acknowledged as valid, facts are more likely to hinder than help.

The aim isn't to chop off the negative, but rather to have the positive reveal itself. This takes conversation, close listening, empathy and above all, trust. Shifting out of the negative reason and into an expression of a positive aspiration is something that takes time, not argument. This, in motivational interviewing, is the key to moving from "I'm religiously opposed to the vaccine," to helping someone understand that vaccination may allow them to attend worship again soon.

Progress in primary care

Our team was originally dismayed by this. Of course it worked for Dr. Gagneur and his team, but they have huge blocks of time to talk to new parents about their hesitancy. Neither all that time, nor the intensity of a recent birth, are common features of family medicine as practised in Canada. Could the principles of motivational interviewing be distilled into the short encounters of most primary care visits?

We were encouraged to seek an answer because family doctors have the expertise and the relationships to deal with COVID-19 and its long-tailed consequences. They have also been identified as key players in countering vaccine hesitancy. This is because they have the long-term relationships with patients who trust them, and the space to understand and validate the concerns those patients raise.

Where many people might struggle to find the positive motivation in a friend or family member's hesitancy, a family doctor is better positioned to do so. With this in mind, our team has been working with doctors from across Canada to develop a pragmatic tool to help them navigate tricky conversations with people considering COVID-19 vaccines, or with parents making decisions about their children.

The tool will be web-based and stocked with helpful examples. Along with the family doctors who have been so generous with their time in developing the tool, we are hoping it will contribute to better conversations about vaccine hesitancy

Explore further Having difficult conversations: Addressing vaccine hesitancy

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Ultrastructure features of penile tissue from live seroconverted COVID-19 patients. (A) Coronavirus-like spiked viral particles (arrows) visualized via TEM in the peri-vascular erectile tissue of a live patient who had previously contracted the COVID-19 virus and subsequently seroconverted. Particle diameter measurement indicated on image. (B) Coronavirus-like spiked viral particles (arrows) visualized via TEM in the peri-vascular erectile tissue of a live patient who had previously contracted the Covid-19 virus and subsequently seroconverted. Particle diameter measurement indicated on image. Credit: Dr. Ranjith Ramasamy/University of Miami Health System

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine researchers are the first to demonstrate that COVID-19 can be present in the penis tissue long after men recover from the virus.

The widespread blood vessel dysfunction, or endothelial dysfunction, that results from the COVID-19 infection could then contribute to erectile dysfunction, or ED, according to the study recently published in the World Journal of Men's Health. Endothelial dysfunction is a condition in which the lining of the small blood vessels fails to perform all of its functions normally. As a result, the tissues supplied by those vessels could undergo damage.

"Our research shows that COVID-19 can cause widespread endothelial dysfunction in organ systems beyond the lungs and kidneys. The underlying endothelial dysfunction that happens because of COVID-19 can enter the endothelial cells and affect many organs, including the penis," said study author Ranjith Ramasamy, M.D., associate professor and director of the Miller School's Reproductive Urology Program. "In our pilot study, we found that men who previously did not complain of erectile dysfunction developed pretty severe erectile dysfunction after the onset of COVID-19 infection."

Dr. Ramasamy and colleagues collected penile tissue from two men with a history of COVID-19 infection who underwent penile prosthesis surgery for ED. One of the men was hospitalized for COVID-19, while the other patient only had mild symptoms when he contracted the virus.

The researchers also collected tissue from two additional men with no history of COVID-19 infection undergoing the same surgery for ED. The investigators analyzed all the tissue samples for not only evidence of the virus but also endothelial dysfunction.

They found COVID-19 was present in the penile tissue of both men who had been infected, but not in the men with no history of the virus. The men had been infected six and eight months prior, respectively. These men had evidence of endothelial dysfunction, while the men who had been free of the virus did not.

"This suggests that men who develop COVID-19 infection should be aware that erectile dysfunction could be an adverse effect of the virus, and they should go to a physician if they develop ED symptoms," Dr. Ramasamy said.

The authors hypothesize that similar to other COVID-19 related complications, widespread infection and subsequent endothelial dysfunction could result in ED, and that worsening of ED could be due to the virus's presence in the penile tissue, itself.

In a previously published study, Dr. Ramasamy and Miller School colleagues found that COVID-19 can also invade testis tissue in some men who are infected with the virus, which might be the first step in understanding the virus's potential impact on male fertility and whether COVID-19 can be sexually transmitted.

"These latest findings are yet another reason that we should all do our best to avoid COVID-19," said first author Eliyahu Kresch, a medical student working with Dr. Ramasamy.

"We recommend vaccination and to try to stay safe in general," Kresch said.

Explore further Prolonged immune response may contribute to post-COVID-19 blood clots

More information: Eliyahu Kresch et al. COVID-19 Endothelial Dysfunction Can Cause Erectile Dysfunction: Histopathological, Immunohistochemical, and Ultrastructural Study of the Human Penis, The World Journal of Men's Health (2021). Eliyahu Kresch et al. COVID-19 Endothelial Dysfunction Can Cause Erectile Dysfunction: Histopathological, Immunohistochemical, and Ultrastructural Study of the Human Penis,(2021). DOI: 10.5534/wjmh.210055
In a move that should hasten the country's recovery from the pandemic, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved the emergency use of Pfizer's two-dose coronavirus vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds.

"Today's action allows for a younger population to be protected from COVID-19, bringing us closer to returning to a sense of normalcy and to ending the pandemic," Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock said in a statement released Monday.

The FDA's authorization is not the final step in bringing Pfizer's vaccine to younger children. A U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel plans to meet Wednesday and is expected to approve the vaccine's use in 12- to 15-year-olds.

The country's leading pediatrician's group applauded the FDA's move.

"Our youngest generations have shouldered heavy burdens over the past year, and the vaccine is a hopeful sign that they will be able to begin to experience all the activities that are so important for their health and development," Dr. Lee Savio Beers, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), said in a statement.

"It's essential for children to be vaccinated against COVID-19. According to data compiled by the AAP and Children's Hospital Association, more than 3.8 million children have tested positive for COVID-19 in the United States since the start of the pandemic," Beers added. "While fewer children than adults have suffered the most severe disease, this is not a benign disease in children. Thousands of children have been hospitalized, and hundreds have died. We will soon have a very safe, highly effective vaccine that can prevent so much suffering. I encourage parents to talk with their pediatrician about how to get the vaccine for their adolescents as soon as they are eligible."

The authorization also removes a roadblock to reopening schools by lowering the threat of transmission.

"This is great news," said Dr. Kristin Oliver, a pediatrician and vaccine expert at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, told The New York Times. "It feels like we've been waiting a long time to start protecting children in this age group."

The emergency authorization follows the results of a clinical trial involving more than 2,000 participants aged 12 to 15 who got either two doses of the vaccine or placebo shots three weeks apart. The researchers recorded 18 cases of symptomatic coronavirus infection in the placebo group and none in the vaccinated group.

Vaccination side effects were comparable to those seen in trial participants who were 16 to 25. Fevers were slightly more common among inoculated 12- to 15-year-olds; about 20 percent of them had fevers, compared with 17 percent in the older age group, the Times reported.

Ty Dropic, 14, who participated in that trial, urged others his age to get vaccinated so they could help build up widespread immunity and protect themselves. He had no side effects, which makes him think he got the placebo. If that turns out to be the case, he told the Times that he plans to be vaccinated as soon as possible.

"I know it can be kind of scary, but it's really not as bad as it seems," he told the Times. "If you do get COVID, it'll be a lot worse than getting stuck with a needle for, like, two seconds."

Ty's three siblings, ages 8, 10 and 16, are all enrolled in vaccine trials for their respective age groups. Their mother, Dr. Amanda Dropic, a pediatrician in northern Kentucky, told the Times that most parents she sees are eager to have their children vaccinated so they can regain some sense of normalcy.

"The anxiety and depression that we're seeing with kids, the social delays, has been tremendous," she noted.

Still, the campaign to vaccinate younger children may run into the same problems with hesitancy that have plagued attempts to immunize adults. In one recent poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation, only 29 percent of parents said they would have their children vaccinated right away, while 32 percent said they planned to wait to see how the vaccine was working.

Most of the other parents said they would definitely not have their children vaccinated, or would do so only if schools required it. All 50 states require certain vaccines for children who attend school, but those mandates apply only to vaccines that have been fully approved by the FDA. Pfizer has applied to the FDA for full approval, but that process is expected to take several months, the Times said.

Fauci says loosened mask rules indoors a possibility

Dr. Anthony Fauci has opened the door to the possibility of relaxing indoor masking rules as more Americans are vaccinated against the coronavirus.

As immunizations climb, "we do need to start being more liberal" in terms of rules for wearing masks indoors, though the nation is still averaging about 43,000 cases of the virus a day, Fauci told ABC's Sunday program "This Week." "We've got to get it much, much lower than that," he added.

Fauci's comments came in response to a question about recent statements made by Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the former head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Times reported. Gottlieb said that relaxing indoor mask mandates now"especially if you're in environments where you know you have a high level of vaccination"would give public health officials "the credibility to implement them" again in the fall or winter if cases surged again.

Asked whether he agreed with that assessment, Fauci said, "I think so, and I think you're going to probably be seeing that as we go along, and as more people get vaccinated."

"The CDC will be, almost in real time updating their recommendations and their guidelines," Fauci added. "But yes, we do need to start being more liberal as we get more people vaccinated."

Over a third of the U.S. populationmore than 115 million peopleis fully vaccinated and another 45 million people have received the first dose of a two-dose protocol, according to the CDC.

Right now, the agency says that even vaccinated people should still wear masks in indoor public spaces, including restaurants when they are not actively eating and drinking.

In an interview on CNN's "State of the Union," Jeffrey Zients, President Joe Biden's COVID response coordinator, was more circumspect than Fauci about Gottlieb's comments.

"I think everyone is tired, and wearing a mask isit can be a pain," Zients said. "But we're getting there. And the light at the end of the tunnel is brighter and brighter. Let's keep up our guard. Let's follow the CDC guidance. And the CDC guidance across time will allow vaccinated people more and more privileges to take off that mask."

Zients also suggested that instead of reaching herd immunity, the goal should be getting 70 percent of Americans immunized, the Times reported. Biden has called for 70 percent to have at least one dose by July 4.

Reaching 70 percent will create "a pattern of decreasing cases, hospitalizations and deaths and take us down to a sustainable low level," Zients said, pointing to Israel as a model.

In that country, vaccinations have reached almost 60 percent of the population since they began on Dec. 19 last year, and the seven-day average of new cases has dropped from a high of more than 8,600 on Jan. 17 to fewer than 60 as of Saturday, the Times reported.

As of Tuesday, the U.S. coronavirus case count passed 32.7 million, while the death toll topped 582,000, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University. Worldwide, nearly 159 million cases had been reported by Tuesday, with more than 3.3 million people dead from COVID-19.

Explore further Fauci says relaxed indoor masking rules could be on the way

More information: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on the The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on the new coronavirus

Copyright  2021 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Fig. 1: Study sample and gut microbiome characteristics. a At baseline, the study sample (n = 7211) had a balanced sex ratio (55% women in red:men in blue), a mean age of 49 years (range 2474; left panel) and a mean body mass index (BMI) of 27 kg/m2 (range 1657; middle panel). During a median follow-up time of 14.8 years, 721 of 7055 (10.2%) participants with complete data who were included in the prospective analysis died (right panel). b A total of 7211 out of 13,500 randomly sampled individuals (53.4% participation rate) from six catchment areas in Finland underwent stool sampling, a physical examination and filled in a questionnaire on health behaviour, history of diseases and current health. c Principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) indicates sample similarity based on species-level taxonomic composition. The colour indicates the dominant (most abundant) genus in each sample. Altogether, 96% of the samples are dominated by one of the six genera that are indicated in the figure. Credit: Nature Communications (2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22962-y

Researchers discovered that a large amount of enterobacteria in the gut microbiota is related to long-term mortality risk in Finnish adult population.

The study conducted by the University of Turku and the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare together with an international research team is so far the largest population-level study in the world examining the connection between human gut microbiota and health and mortality in the following decades.

The composition of the research subjects' gut microbiota was analyzed from stool samples collected in 2002. The researchers had access to follow-up data on the subjects' mortality until 2017, i.e., close to the present day.

"Many bacterial strains that are known to be harmful were among the enterobacteria predicting mortality, and our lifestyle choices can have an impact on their amount in the gut. By studying the composition of the gut microbiota, we could improve mortality prediction, even while taking into account other relevant risk factors, such as smoking and obesity. The data used in this research make it possible for the first time to study the long-term health impact of the human gut microbiota on a population level," says Teemu Niiranen, Professor of Medicine at the University of Turku, Finland.

Everyone has a unique microbiota

Human microbiota is highly individual and consists of a vast amount of different bacteria and other microorganisms. The bacteria predicting a shorter lifespan were discovered when the researchers compared health records and billions of DNA strands retrieved from the research subjects' microbiota.

"We developed a machine learning algorithm that screened the data for microbial species having a significant association with mortality among the research subjects in the following two decades after the sample was taken," says Associate Professor Leo Lahti from the University of Turku.

"Finnish population studies are unique in their extent and scope even on a global scale. With new data science methods, we are now able to study more closely the specific connections between microbiota and, for example, aging and incidence of common diseases," Lahti continues.

Even though the connection between gut microbiota and lifestyle has lately been studied extensively in cross-sectional studies, there are only a few long-term follow-up studies available. Therefore, only a small amount of information has been gained about the connection between microbiota and health in the long term.

The research article was published in Nature Communications.

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More information: Aaro Salosensaari et al. Taxonomic signatures of cause-specific mortality risk in human gut microbiome, Nature Communications (2021). Journal information: Nature Communications Aaro Salosensaari et al. Taxonomic signatures of cause-specific mortality risk in human gut microbiome,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22962-y
HIV infecting a human cell. Credit: NIH

The impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has been profound for Delawareans living with HIV, according to a new report from the University of Delaware-based Disaster Research Center.

Researchers interviewed 55 Delawareans living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) in January and February, focusing on those in greatest need of economic and health-care assistance. The goal was to gather accounts of their experiences, what they observed, needed, lost, wished had been different and found most helpful.

Many responses were similar to those of a general-population study DRC did last summer, said Tricia Wachtendorf, director of the center, with many reporting a deep sense of isolation, declines in physical or mental health, increasing economic hardship and uneven access to health care.

"Many of the issues we heard would be familiar to all of us," Wachtendorf said. "Layoffs, isolation, helping children or grandchildren with remote learning. They put off going to the dentist and even having surgery. But 13% had missed medication and 20% missed or delayed routine HIV lab tests."

Those disconnects are important for anyone concerned about improving care and developing plans for future crises.

Many living with HIV are ahead of the curve when it comes to coping with a potentially deadly virus. They already know the importance of trusted sources, accurate information, reliable testing and consistent medical care. Many also knowall too wellthe heart-rending effects of distance and disconnection.

"One thing that really struck us, compared to interviews we did last summer, was that many participants in the HIV study were much more likely to use words like 'fear' or 'scared' when describing COVID-19, as opposed to 'anxious' or 'concerned," " Wachtendorf said. "They realized the potential for this to be life threatening."

For that reason, most said they took public health guidelines seriously.

"The fear they talked about didn't result in a sense of helplessness," Wachtendorf said. "Insteadto the extent possible by finances and living arrangementsthe participants described taking a lot of actions to protect themselves against the virus. It wasn't an afterthought."

This kind of information adds essential context to the data Delaware already has on its residents living with HIV, said Jordan Hines, manager of community planning for the Delaware HIV Consortium.

Numbers and data are important, of course, and a comprehensive collection of data is included in Delaware's 2020 HIV Surveillance Report.

More than 3,400 Delaware residents were living with HIV at the end of 2019, according to the state's report. Wilmington had the greatest number of cases and Black men accounted for more than half of all Delaware cases, but the virus resides in all ZIP codes, among all races, ethnicities and across all demographics. Suppression efforts have slowed the spread of the virus, but more than 2,000 people have progressed to the disease known as Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

The DRC study, done at the request of the consortium, adds qualitative insight to those numbers, giving voice to the backstories and nuanced contexts represented.

"Delaware is so small, we can always work on the quality of our data," said Tyler Berl, executive director of the consortium, who earned his bachelor's and master's degrees at UD. "Qualitative studies improve our findings here. And having a research institution like DRC involved adds credibility."

The study required extended conversations, some lasting more than two hours. The consortium, which has more than 400 members, helped DRC researchers connect with willing participants.

Connection was a frequent theme of these conversations.

"Connectionwhether virtual or the lack of connection one-on-oneis what stuck out to me," Hines said. "This pandemic was new to everyone, not just the demographic we serve. It was new across the board. Everyone struggles trying to move into a virtual worldwhether that is meeting with doctors, having an assessment, feeling like you're not really getting served.

"Some shared that they had mixed feelings meeting with a doctor virtually. Or that they couldn't meet virtually and they were not comfortable going to the hospital or going to a doctor's appointment."

That may point to a need to invest more in telehealth, Hines said.

"This can help usas a society and especially our demographicrecognize what the needs are should this come up in the future," Hines said.

Financial insecurity was another frequent theme. Some lost part or all of their income and had insufficient savings to tide them over.

"When there is a shock to the system, there are a lot who are already near the cliff financially," Berl said. "They can easily fall off that cliff at a time like this."

Every person's situation is different, and the pandemic demonstrated again that even shared experiences have significantly different impacts on people.

"We should never think about a community of people as entirely vulnerable," Wachtendorf said. "Although they contend with a lot of vulnerability, there are many ways this community has shown strength to overcome very difficult circumstances throughout 2020."

As many COVID patients learned, stigma can be visited on anyone who contracts a communicable disease. That sense of stigma is not new to those living with HIV.

"We've always dealt with a lot of stigma," Berl said. "And testing has always been stigmatized. This is another virus that has stigmatized other populations, including the Asian population. Hopefully, normalizing testing will bring down some of these stigmas. Anything we can do to break the stigma of HIV is important to us and to our clients."

With COVID-19 spreading quickly, many stopped going to community-based testing sites that offered HIV testing. Testing was down by more than 50%, Berl said.

But now that the need for COVID-19 testing is recognized as critical for public health, why not have one-stop testing sites that cover multiple conditions?

"We hope to see COVID testing sites evolve to where they test for more than COVID," Hines said. "We're slowly getting to some kind of normalcy, but we should take advantage of all of that testing and test for opioids, hepatitis C, HIV. This study highlights the need to get tested across the board for any and everything, not just for this moment."

Two doctoral studentsChristopher Tharp and Nancy Rios-Contreraswho conducted interviews for DRC said the experience was important for them.

"During the interviews, I heard and in many ways connected with feelings of deep isolation in the experiences recounted by the people we spoke with," Tharp said. "The isolation was often expressed through stories of powerful, self-reliant resolve; but it was also often expressed in stories of grief and even, sometimes, loneliness."

All of that helps to bring a global disaster into personal focus.

"The collaboration between the Delaware HIV Consortium and the Disaster Research Center allowed me to explore how a global pandemic connects to the local community experience," Rios-Contreras said.

Direct quotations from some participants are sprinkled through the report.

One expressed the hope that has made the long struggle against COVID worthwhile.

"It's a sacrifice worth taking [protective measures and isolating] because I'm looking at the light at the end of the tunnel. I'm looking at the end of the road. And I would rather be here and healthy, than not."

Wachtendorf found those words impressive.

"We've seen so many other people out in the community not taking protective guidance seriously, not appreciating that their actions do impact others," she said. "The Delawareans living with HIV with whom we spoke took COVID-19, as well as the responsibility to protect themselves and others, very seriously."

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The rate of in-hospital mortality is lower for pregnant versus nonpregnant women hospitalized with COVID-19 and viral pneumonia, according to a research letter published online May 11 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Beth L. Pineles, M.D., Ph.D., from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, and colleagues conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients in the Premier Healthcare Database that captures 20 percent of U.S. hospitalizations. All female inpatients aged 15 to 45 years hospitalized from April to November 2020 with COVID-19 were included; the cohort included 1,062 pregnant and 9,813 nonpregnant patients.

The researchers found that in-hospital death occurred in 0.8 and 3.5 percent of pregnant and nonpregnant patients, respectively, hospitalized with COVID-19 and viral pneumonia. The median time from admission to death was 18 and 12 days for pregnant and nonpregnant patients, respectively. Among patients admitted to an intensive care unit, in-hospital mortality was 3.5 and 14.9 percent in pregnant and nonpregnant patients, respectively. In-hospital death occurred in 8.6 and 31.4 percent of pregnant and nonpregnant patients, respectively, among those who received mechanical ventilation. The nine pregnant women who died ranged in age from 23 to 44 years; eight were non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic. Six women were obese and seven had one or more comorbid conditions.

"In this large, geographically diverse cohort of reproductive-aged patients hospitalized with COVID-19, we found that in-hospital mortality was low in pregnant patients," the authors write.

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Copyright  2021 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Hospital bed occupancy projections for England. Credit: Imperial College London

The roadmap out of lockdown for England could lead to a smaller third wave in late summer or autumn, but the risks of new variants of concern remain.

Imperial's COVID-19 Response Team estimate that if steps 3 and 4 of the roadmap continue as planned, there will be a small wave of hospitalisations and 9,000 (estimate range: 5,100 to 16,600) additional deaths by June 2022.

The team warns that new variants of concern still have the potential to cause a much larger third wave depending on how they spread and whether they can escape immunity.

The report, along with work from the University of Warwick and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), is informing the UK government's 'roadmap' out of lockdown for England.

Imperial's researchers have revised their estimates for projected deaths from previous reports because of new data showing virus transmission from people who have been vaccinated but still get infected is nearly 50% lower than from unvaccinated cases.

The latest models suggest that 72% of the English population could be protected against severe disease through vaccination or recovery from previous infection by the end of August.

The researchers say that most deaths are likely to occur in people who have already been vaccinated, as while the vaccines are highly effective, none are 100% effective at preventing hospitalisations and deaths.

The team estimates that the current level of transmission in England is around 1, however, this estimate may not fully capture the impact of schools opening after Easter given the delay before changes in contact rates are reflected in surveillance data.

Population protection

Based on PHE data available to 28 April 2021, 64% of the adult population in England have received at least one vaccine dose and 26% have received two doses.

The team say that this means around 40% of adults (31% of the whole population) are protected against symptomatic disease, and 49% of adults (38% of the whole population) are protected against severe disease and hospitalization, by vaccination. An additional 15% of the population who are not protected through vaccination are thought to be protected through immunity from past infection.

Projections show that by 21 June 2021, 52% of the whole population will be protected against symptomatic disease and 60% against severe disease, due to either vaccination or recovery from infection, assuming a vaccine rollout rate of 2.7million doses per week.

Projections show that by 31 August 2021, 92% of the adult population (72% of whole population) will have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 78% of the adult population (61% of whole population) will have received two vaccine doses.

This means that 72% of the English population could be protected against severe disease through vaccination or recovery from previous infection.

The remaining 28% of the population will be unprotected at this point because under 18-year-olds will not be vaccinated , and vaccines will not fully protect all people.

Variants of concern

If a variant of concern emerges with similar transmissibility to B.1.1.7 and with a moderate ability to evade immunity from vaccines and prior infection, the researchers predict that a third wave substantially larger (both in hospitalization and deaths) than the winter of 2021 could occur.

The team say that remaining at step 3 beyond 17 May is projected to maintain the effective reproduction number around 1 and keep hospitalisations and deaths at very low levels. It would also dampen a third wave if a variant of concern did emerge that could partially evade vaccines and immunity from previous infection. Reinitiating restrictions similar to step 3 could be an option to counter the emergence of variants of concern, at least temporarily until booster vaccines are distributed.

Professor Neil Ferguson, from the School of Public Health, said: "Current trends in the UK are looking very positive, and support the decision to substantially relax restrictions. Vaccines have had a major impact in reducing hospitalisations and deaths, and crucially we know now that they are significantly reducing transmission as well. New variants of concern may pose a risk to reopening which is why a vaccine booster program in the autumn will be important to help suppress any future outbreaks and maintain population protection."

Dr. Anne Cori, from the School of Public Health, said: "With revised higher vaccine efficacy assumptions in light of the latest scientific evidence, our model suggests that proceeding with the planned roadmap should lead to a small third wave. However this wave may be considerably larger if variants of concern are imported into the UK. Limiting such importations will be critical in the next few months."

Dr. Marc Baguelin, from the School of Public Health, said: "Our latest modeling shows the tremendous impact vaccination has had on reducing the burden of COVID-19 at a population level alongside restrictions put in place at the end of the winter. We are in a much better position now than a few months ago and we should be able to continue reopening the country. If vaccine escape variants were to emerge and become established we would need to revisit this strategy and potentially trigger a boosting campaign in the autumn."

Explore further COVID-19 roadmap for reopening could lead to a third wave in England

More information: Evaluating the Roadmap out of Lockdown: Step 3: Evaluating the Roadmap out of Lockdown: Step 3: www.gov.uk/government/publicat  wn-step-3-5-may-2021
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A new study is one of the first to show sustained benefits more than a year after completing a voluntary eight-week Mindfulness in Motion (MIM) intervention program offered by The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center to reduce stress and build resilience among employees.

Study findings are published online in Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing.

MIM offers small-group sessions teaching healthcare providers and other interested employees specific techniques in mindfulness and resiliency for the high-stress environment healthcare can create.

Successful completion of this program has been shown to significantly decrease perceived stress and inflammation, as well as increase sleep quality and work engagement.

"However, you could argue these results mean nothing for the organization if a month after the program ends, usual stress and burnout levels return to base levels," said Maryanna Klatt, the study lead author and creator of the Mindfulness in Motion intervention, which is the core offering of the Gabbe Health and Wellness Initiative at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center.

"Demonstrating sustainability of the results of an intervention is nearly as important as demonstrating the effectiveness of the intervention, yet this is rarely done. Organizations need to be assured the return on their investment to reduce burnout and build resilience produces results that are maintained long after the intervention ends," said Klatt, who is a professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at The Ohio State University College of Medicine.

Klatt collaborated with researchers with the Gabbe Health and Wellness Initiative and the Division of Health Behavior and Health Promotion at the Ohio State College of Public Health.

Klatt said she embarked on this research to learn if this intervention if worth their time for the individual participants, and worth the money and return on investment for the organization to invest in this program.

"After analyzing date from 66 participants, we found that three of the four outcomes (burnout, perceived stress, resilience) remained significantly improved beyond a year after completing the intervention. Work engagement remained improved, but was not significantly different than baseline levels," said Klatt, who is now sending former participants "mindful moment" emails on a weekly basis and offering monthly virtual "booster" session to continue to reinforce the mindfulness techniques.

"As a healthcare organization focused on improving health for patients and communities, we also recognize the importance of prioritizing health and well-being for our faculty and staff. Interventions to address current levels of burnout among healthcare professionals must demonstrate long term success to help our employees thrive," said Dr. Hal Paz, executive vice president and chancellor for health affairs at The Ohio State University and chief executive officer at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center. "More than 580 employees have participated in the Mindfulness in Motion program since 2017, and we are proud that this program is strong and growing, despite the COVID-19 pandemic."

The Ohio Hospital Association asked Klatt if the Mindfulness in Motion intervention could be shared outside of Ohio State; now three health systems across Ohio and the Mercy Health System in Michigan are offering the program to their employees.

The Ohio Hospital Association also partnered with Gabbe Health and Wellness Initiative to share free mindfulness resources and videos that Klatt developed to address provider resilience, especially as the pandemic continues to burden our healthcare teams.

"We also plan to repeat the sustainability study every other year to see if the positive results may even be sustained longer than the 14+ months we found in this study," Klatt said.

More information: Maryanna Klatt et al. Sustained resiliency building and burnout reduction for healthcare professionals via organizational sponsored mindfulness programming, EXPLORE (2021). Maryanna Klatt et al. Sustained resiliency building and burnout reduction for healthcare professionals via organizational sponsored mindfulness programming,(2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.explore.2021.04.004
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

For patients seen at a urology clinic, patient satisfaction scores vary by insurance statuswith higher scores for patients on Medicare and commercial insurance, but lower scores for those on Medicaid, reports a study in Urology Practice, an Official Journal of the American Urological Association (AUA). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

"Our study adds to previous evidence showing patient satisfaction scores are affected by the type of insurancenot just by the quality of care provided," comments senior author Werner de Riese, MD, Ph.D., Chair of the Department of Urology of Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC), Lubbock. "That may have important implications for physician reimbursements, which are increasingly adjusted upward or downward based on patient satisfaction ratings."

Urology clinic data show 'payor-bias' in patient ratings

The researchers analyzed satisfaction ratings made by nearly 21,000 patients seen at the TTUHSC urology clinic between 2013 and 2020. Patient satisfaction scores were compared for those with different kinds of insurance coverage.

Forty-six percent of patients were covered by commercial/private insurance, 37 percent by Medicare and nine percent by Medicaid. Five percent of patients had other government coverage; self-pay or workers' compensation patients accounted for less than two percent each.

Patient satisfaction ratings differed between groups. Medicare patients reported the highest average score, 93.03 (on a 0-to-100 scale); followed by other government coverage, 91.49; commercial insurance, 91.32; workers' compensation, 90.72; Medicaid, 89.21; and self-pay/uncompensated, 89.00.

Although the numerical range was small, the data showed several statistically significant differences between groups. The "other" government groupmainly veterans or active-duty military members covered by the Veterans Administration or Tricarereported "generally higher" patient satisfaction levels than every other group besides Medicare.

In contrast, Medicaid and self-pay patients had the lowest satisfaction scores. "Medicaid often covers the most vulnerable and disadvantaged patients, and our results are consistent with other studies reporting that hospitals treating more Medicaid patients have lower satisfaction scores," says Dr. de Riese.

Medicare and Medicaid have introduced "fee for performance" payments, in which reimbursements to physicians and hospitals are adjusted based on quality measuresincluding patient satisfaction scores. Commercial insurance plans are also moving toward such "value-based" reimbursement plans. However, there are concerns patient satisfaction scores may be affected by certain non-modifiable characteristics, including insurance status.

"Data from our urology clinic illustrate a potential bias in reported patient satisfaction levels, based on their health insurance coverage," says Dr. de Riese. The researchers call for further studies to explore the underlying reasons for this "payor-specific bias," particularly among Medicaid patients. "Meanwhile," Dr. de Riese adds, "we believe reimbursement policies should be modified to account for the payor-mix of patients seen by each physician."

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More information: Dan Hayward et al. Association Between Payor-Class and Patient Satisfaction Scores in an Academic Urology Outpatient Clinic, Urology Practice (2021). Dan Hayward et al. Association Between Payor-Class and Patient Satisfaction Scores in an Academic Urology Outpatient Clinic,(2021). DOI: 10.1097/UPJ.0000000000000224
Colorized scanning electron micrograph of an apoptotic cell (green) heavily infected with SARS-COV-2 virus particles (yellow), isolated from a patient sample. Image captured at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland. Credit: NIH/NIAID

A new study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal has found that the risk of delayed acute complications after non-hospitalized SARS-CoV-2 infection is low, but persistent symptoms in this group could lead to increased visits to general practitioners or outpatient clinics in the six months following infection. The study assessed only those complications that led to contact with hospitals.

Researchers assessed the risk of initiating medication and receiving a hospital diagnosis for a new condition by comparing individuals who tested positive via a PCR test for SARS-CoV-2 with individuals who had a negative test during the first wave of the pandemic in Denmark. Results found SARS-CoV-2 positive individuals were at a slightly increased risk of initiating medications to help improve breathing and alleviate migraines, and had a slightly increased risk of receiving a first diagnosis for breathing problems and blood clots in the veins.

Senior author, Professor Anton Pottegard from the University of Southern Denmark says: "Until now, most research investigating long-term complications from COVID-19 has been focused on hospitalized patients. But the reality is that the majority of people with COVID-19 are not admitted to the hospital. Our study finds a very low risk of severe delayed effects from COVID-19 in people who didn't require hospitalization for the infection. However, our research provided evidence for some long-term effects that did not require hospitalization or the use of new medicines, which we found reflected in higher use of primary health-care services after infection. This highlights the need to ensure clinicians have the resources and support to manage any potential long-term conditions."

The researchers used data from the Danish health registries on all individuals who were tested for SARS-CoV-2 between Feb 27, 2020, and May 31, 2020. The study followed up 8,983 non-hospitalized SARS-CoV-2 positive people and 80,894 SARS-CoV-2-negative people during the period from two weeks to six months after the test. By comparing data from the two groups, researchers assessed the relative risk of starting new medications and of receiving a diagnosis of a new health condition during this time.

The analysis took into account variables that could be associated with having a positive versus negative test and with the risk of a more severe course of COVID-19, such as obesity, cancer, and kidney disease.

The cohorts had a median age of 43 years and 64% were female. Among SARS-CoV-2 positive individuals, 31% had initiated new medication treatments during the follow up period. A more detailed analysis found that compared with those with a negative SARS-CoV-2 test those with a positive test were at an increased risk of initiating medications to widen the airways (1.8% compared with 1.5%), and medications to treat migraines (0.4% compared with 0.3%). As such, observed differences were generally small.

The risks of receiving a hospital diagnosis for a new health condition during follow up were similar in the two groups (around 26%). Compared with individuals who tested negative, those with a positive SARS-CoV-2 test were at an increased risk of receiving a first diagnosis of breathing difficulties (1.2% compared with 0.7%) and blood clots in the veins (0.2 % compared with 0.1%). No increased risk of serious complications identified by previous research conducted among individuals hospitalized for COVID-19, such as stroke, encephalitis, and psychosis, was identified among individuals who did not require hospitalization.

The research also analyzed the use of health services in the follow-up period and found that those with a positive SARS-CoV-2 test visited their general practitioners around 20% (1.2 times) more often than those that tested negative, and visited outpatient clinics 10% (1.1 times) more often. However, there was no difference in the visits to emergency department or being hospitalized.

The follow-up of the study was limited to six months after the positive test, which means the data may not have captured the longer-term complications and symptoms of COVID-19 that could occur after this time. In addition, due to the limited resources during the pandemic, some individuals with complications may have been referred to hospitals but not actually attended clinics before the end of the follow-up. This may have affected the numbers of hospital diagnoses recorded.

Commenting on the limitations of the study, co-author Stine Hasling Mogensen, Ph.D., from the Danish Medicines Agency adds: "Our analysis only captures specific symptoms leading to contact with hospitals, so it is likely that the study underestimates symptoms which do not require this level of care, like fatigue and breathing difficulties which are not severe enough for hospitalization or require initiation of new medical treatment. Previous research has found a high level of these symptoms reported by patients, so the differences between patient reports and healthcare encounters could be important to investigate in regards to potential unmet healthcare needs and the need for new medications for treatment."

The researchers call for large population-based studies of patient-reported symptoms and healthcare visits to fully evaluate the duration and range of any persisting symptoms after SARS-CoV-2 infection.

More information: Lars Christian Lund et al. Post-acute effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection in individuals not requiring hospital admission: a Danish population-based cohort study, The Lancet Infectious Diseases (2021). Journal information: Lancet Infectious Diseases Lars Christian Lund et al. Post-acute effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection in individuals not requiring hospital admission: a Danish population-based cohort study,(2021). DOI: 10.1016/S1473-3099(21)00211-5
Melanoma in skin biopsy with H&E stain  this case may represent superficial spreading melanoma. Credit: Wikipedia/CC BY-SA 3.0

Today in Nature Communications, researchers at Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah report critical new insights into how cells mount an attack against melanoma tumors.

Melanoma is an aggressive type of skin cancer that can arise from excess exposure to sun, frequent sunburns, genetics, and other environmental factors. Melanoma, like all cancers, begins within cells. Specially designed and refined over billions of years, cells are experts at working to root out and fix routine errors that arise. A tumor begins when a cell makes faulty copies of itself over and over again. If left unchecked, these faulty cell copies continue to grow into complex ecosystems that become tumors. Some tumors, like melanomas, can go on to develop mechanisms to sustain themselves with blood flow and oxygen. They can also send the cancerous cells through the body to proliferate in other organs, which ultimately causes death.

Immunotherapy, which trains the immune system to fight cancer cells, can sometimes be effective in treating melanomas. Some patients experience a long-lasting and durable response to immunotherapies. Yet many patients' tumors soon learn how to outsmart the drugs.

Understanding how cells mount a defense against an aggressive tumor like melanoma piqued the curiosity of Ryan O'Connell, Ph.D., a cancer researcher at HCI and professor of pathology at the University of Utah Health. His lab works to understand how immune cells and cancer cells interface. He wants to better understand the sophisticated metabolic processes within and around cells and to use those insights to develop more effective cancer therapies.

In this study, O'Connell and his team uncovered a key metabolic "switch" driven by an enzyme, nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase, or NAMPT. They learned how NAMPT plays an important role in how certain immune cells fight melanoma tumors.

"We were interested in better understanding NAMPT because it is increased in specific immune cells within tumors, called macrophages, in response to a substance secreted by other immune cells, called interferon, which is known to be important for effective antitumor responses," says O'Connell. O'Connell and his team used next-generation RNA sequencing to determine which metabolic genes increase within immune cells in response to different tumor processes.

"NAMPT was a top hit," says O'Connell. The research team found that a specific inflammatory signaling pathway triggers NAMPT. They discovered that when this inducible NAMPT pathway is disrupted, the antitumor function of cells was also impaired.

The study was co-led by Warren Voth, Ph.D., a research assistant professor and member of the O'Connell Lab. Voth helped design and conduct the experiments to study the role of Nampt and also mentored lab trainees who worked on the project. Using studies of cells in a laboratory setting, Voth helped to understand how NAMPT is induced in immune cells and what happens if the immune cells block NAMPT induction. The research team then created an experiment using a mouse model system and found the same NAMPT pathway was required for the mouse cells to initiate antitumor activity. Next, the team studied data from human tumors using The Cancer Genome Atlas, a federal cancer genomics program that molecularly characterized more than 20,000 primary cancer and matched normal samples across 33 cancer types. The critical role of the NAMPT pathway was also a factor in the genomic data they analyzed.

"Based on this work, we want to understand whether novel therapies that enhance the NAMPT pathway in immune cells in patient tumors could result in improved outcomes," says O'Connell. He hopes the next step will be to understand whether therapies that strengthen this pathway in certain immune cells could be the foundation for more effective treatments. He also wants to understand whether high levels of NAMPT in tumors may predict whether a patient will respond well to some immunotherapies that have inconsistent outcomes.

This work adds to the body of evidence that the metabolic state of tumors, immune cells, and the tumor microenvironment as a whole can have profound impacts on the course of disease by controlling the identity and functionality of immune cells that either fight to destroy the tumor or act to promote cancer growth. O'Connell's team also found strong evidence that this study has applications to other cancer types.

Explore further Study finds combination therapy suppresses pancreatic tumor growth in mice

More information: Thomas B. Huffaker et al. A Stat1 bound enhancer promotes Nampt expression and function within tumor associated macrophages, Nature Communications (2021). Journal information: Nature Communications Thomas B. Huffaker et al. A Stat1 bound enhancer promotes Nampt expression and function within tumor associated macrophages,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22923-5

Provided by Huntsman Cancer Institute
Dr. Zeina Arnouk takes care of a patient in the COVID-19 unit at Penn State Health St. Joseph Medical Center. Credit: Penn State Health

Over the past year, studies have revealed that certain pre-existing conditions, such as cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure, can increase a person's risk of dying from COVID-19. New research shows that individuals living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)an estimated 38 million worldwide, according to the World Health Organizationhave an increased risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and fatal outcomes from COVID-19.

In a new study, Penn State College of Medicine researchers found that people living with HIV had a 24% higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and a 78% higher risk of death from COVID-19 than people without HIV. They assessed data from 22 previous studies that included nearly 21 million participants in North America, Africa, Europe and Asia to determine to what extent people living with HIV/AIDS are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection and death from COVID-19.

The majority of the participants (66%) were male and the median age was 56. The most common comorbidities among the HIV-positive population were hypertension, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and chronic kidney disease. The majority of patients living with HIV/AIDS (96%) were on antiretroviral therapy (ART), which helps suppress the amount of HIV detected in the body.

"Previous studies were inconclusive on whether or not HIV is a risk factor for susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection and poor outcomes in populations with COVID-19," said Dr. Paddy Ssentongo, lead researcher and assistant professor at the Penn State Center for Neural Engineering. "This is because a vast majority of people living with HIV/AIDS are on ART, some of which have been used experimentally to treat COVID-19."

According to the researchers, certain pre-existing conditions are common among people living with HIV/AIDS, which may contribute to the severity of their COVID-19 cases. The beneficial effects of antiviral drugs, such astenofovir and protease-inhibitors, in reducing the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and death from COVID-19 in people with living with HIV/AIDS remain inconclusive.

"As the pandemic has evolved, we've obtained sufficient information to characterize the epidemiology of HIV/SARS-CoV-2 coinfection, which could not be done at the beginning of the pandemic due to scarcity of data," said Vernon Chinchilli, fellow researcher and chair of the Department of Public Health Sciences. "Our findings support the current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance to prioritize persons living with HIV to receive a COVID-19 vaccine."

Emily Heilbrunn, Anna Ssentongo and Jonathan Nunez of Penn State College of Medicine; Ping Du of Takeda Pharmaceuticals and Shailesh Advani of Georgetown University also contributed to this research. The researchers declare no conflicts of interest.

More information: Paddy Ssentongo et al. Epidemiology and outcomes of COVID-19 in HIV-infected individuals: a systematic review and meta-analysis, Scientific Reports (2021). Journal information: Scientific Reports Paddy Ssentongo et al. Epidemiology and outcomes of COVID-19 in HIV-infected individuals: a systematic review and meta-analysis,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-85359-3
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

A retrospective study conducted by scientists from the Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC) of MedUni Vienna and Vienna General Hospital found that compiling a tumor molecular profile can result in better risk stratification and hence to better treatment decisions in endometrial cancer. The use of so-called "integrated molecular risk classification" could reduce the use of chemo- and radiotherapies aimed at preventing metastases following hysterectomy by up to 20%. The researchers were also able to demonstrate the feasibility of compiling this tumor molecular profile as part of the clinical routine.

With around 1,000 new cases every year, endometrial cancer is the second most common gynecological cancer in Austria, after breast cancer. It predominantly affects post-menopausal women. The prognosis in this disease is relatively good, since the cancer is usually detected at an early stage. The standard treatment is complete surgical removal of the uterus and ovaries, frequently followed by adjuvant chemotherapy or radiotherapy to prevent any recurrence.

New risk classification

For a long time now, the decision to give adjuvant treatment or not has been taken by classifying patients according to conventional clinical and pathological criteria. Based on this classification system, it is likely that some of the patients will have been "overtreated," that is to say will have undergone unnecessary treatment. However, a new system of classification based on molecular pathological criteria was recently released. Moreover, additional molecular pathological risk factors have been identified, such as mutations in specific genes and the extent to which the cancer invades blood or lymphatic vessels (lymphovascular space invasion). The incorporation of these factors gives rise to a new type of integrated molecular risk stratification. Using this, it is possible to assess risk more accurately and to develop a personalized treatment strategy.

First investigation ever

The present study was conducted by scientists led by principal investigator Richard Schwameis, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of MedUni Vienna and Vienna General Hospital and member of the Gynecologic Cancer Unit of the CCC. It was the first study ever to investigate the clinical feasibility of carrying out post-operative tissue analyses in accordance with this integrated molecular risk stratification system. Background: there is a maximum time window of eight weeks following surgery in which to administer adjuvant treatment if it is to be fully effective and prevent metastases. The researchers demonstrated that it is feasible to compile a tumor molecular profile within this critical period. Schwameis explains: "In the context of the study we developed a strategy that allowed molecular pathological processing of the specimens to be done quickly enough, that is to say in around four weeks. This meant that there was still enough time left to plan any adjuvant treatment that might be required within the necessary timeframe. This means that so-called tumor profiling could be established as part of the clinical routine."

The scientists analyzed tumor specimens from patients with endometrial cancer who had been treated in accordance with the established guidelines for a period of one year, looking at the treatment decisions that had been taken at the time and the outcomes associated with these decisions. They then assessed the specimens using the new integrated molecular risk stratification system. A comparison of the results shows that the new system would have eliminated up to 20% of the adjuvant treatments. In a few cases, however, the new classification would have resulted in more intensive treatment being recommended, because of the extremely high risk of recurrence. Tumor profiling in endometrial cancer could therefore change treatment decisions and improve the quality of treatment. Schwameis explains: "This finding could lead to a change in the current guidelines. Although the data are highly promising, they still need to be confirmed by a prospective study."

Explore further High thrombotic risk in cancer patients receiving immunotherapy

More information: Felicitas Oberndorfer et al. Risk Reclassification of Patients with Endometrial Cancer Based on Tumor Molecular Profiling: First Real World Data, Journal of Personalized Medicine (2021). Felicitas Oberndorfer et al. Risk Reclassification of Patients with Endometrial Cancer Based on Tumor Molecular Profiling: First Real World Data,(2021). DOI: 10.3390/jpm11010048
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A team of researchers at the University of Washington Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) has found evidence that suggests the number of people who have died due to COVID-19 is much higher than official reports would indicate. They have undertaken a country-by-country analysis of deaths due to COVID-19 that includes factors associated with the pandemic as a whole and have published their results on the IHME website.

Most medical experts involved with the current pandemic agree that the number of people who have died from COVID-19 is higher than official reports indicate. This is because many people who died were not listed as COVID-19 casualties; instead, they were listed as dying from other causes or their deaths were not recorded at allwhat experts have not agreed on is the degree of difference. In this new effort, the researchers sought to calculate estimates for the total number of people who died in each country and then to add them together to find a global total.

The work involved combing death records for each country for the time covering the pandemic and then comparing those numbers with the average number of deaths over the past several years. Numbers in excess of the average were then assumed attributable to COVID-19 or other factors associated with the pandemic, such as an increased likelihood of dying from cancer due to fear of seeking treatment during a pandemic.

To create their estimates, the researchers counted deaths around the world week by week, factoring in six drivers of mortality: total official deaths from COVID-19, increases in deaths due to delayed treatment for other ailments, increases in deaths due to increases in mental health conditions such as depression, reductions in deaths due to fewer incidents involving injury, such as car accidents due to the pandemic, reductions in deaths due to less spread of other diseases such as the flu and reductions in deaths due to people who would have died from other ailments such as chronic diseases but were listed as COVID-19 deaths.

After analyzing their data, the researchers found major discrepancies between official death tallies and those they found through their calculations. Egypt, for example, reported just over 13,000 deaths, while the IHME number came to 170,000. Another example was Russiaofficials there reported just over 100,000 deaths, while the team at IHME found the number was more likely over 600,000. The researchers also found that the actual death toll in the U.S. is likely nearly twice as high as official reportsas of May 3, it was 574,043. They found it more likely the number is closer to 905,289. All told, the researchers found that worldwide death estimates have been far lower than actual deaths. The WHO has reported the worldwide death toll (which has been calculated using each country's official tallies) as 3.25 million people as of May 6. The IHME team found the number is much likely closer to 6.93 million.

 2021 Science X Network
Marie-Christine Nizzi, research associate in cognitive science. Credit: Perry Smith

The question of who speaks for patients with traumatic brain injuries when considering medical decisions is the subject of a commentary in the American Journal of Bioethics Neuroscience by Marie-Christine Nizzi, a research associate in the Program in Cognitive Science.

"Patients with severe physical impairments often report good quality of life, but their opinions are routinely disregarded because of their conditions," Nizzi says.

The debate over medical care for the severely disabled focuses on whether patients are best positioned to report on their own quality of life, or whether doctors, policymakers, and the public are better qualified to speak for patients.

According to the paper"Can We Trust Patient-Reported Outcomes?"healthcare policies are determined, in part, from large opinion surveys of the able-bodied public or physicians, which tend to assume these patients do not have good lives.

"This is known as the disability paradox," Nizzi says. "Third parties underestimate the quality of life experienced by patients. This paper advocates to include patients' voices to reduce bias in policies that directly affect the patients."

In the paper, Nizzi rebuts common arguments used to cast disabled patients as "less-than-credible witnesses." Such arguments claim that patients only report good quality of life because they fail to understand the severity of their condition or because a positive response might earn them additional resources.

According to Nizzi, the belief that other people know more about the life satisfaction of patients than the patients themselves is a misconception that dominates decision-making, particularly when it comes to expensive medical interventions.

"This one-sided view of what constitutes relevant expertise belongs to an outdated model of medicine," said Nizzi in the paper. "As we move towards precision medicine, disregarding the patient's expertise in their subjective experience perpetuates an ineffective one-sided view of expertise which has been found to damage patient satisfaction, trust, and adherence."

Much is at stake, according to Nizzi. The mistrust of patient self-reporting directly influences the attitudes of medical professionals, their clinical recommendations to patients' families, and their expert opinion when informing healthcare policies.

"These biases perpetuate the misconception that by combining one-sided expertise with third-person objectivity, one could altogether dispense with the patients' input," she says. "Specialists in the field already know that most patients with severe disability report good quality of life, but this knowledge has not penetrated the public opinion yet."

The article argues that the healthcare relationship between doctor and patient should move away from being a "tutelage" toward being a partnership, where a physician's technical expertise is informed by the patient's report on their own thoughts, feelings, and sensations.

"When health care policies rely on prejudice, people die," says Nizzi.

The open peer commentary is in response to research previously published in AJOB Neuroscience on ethical issues in the allocation of novel, and costly, health care resources to patients with disorders of consciousness.

Nizzi, an expert in medical humanities, says she wrote the piece to stake out a moral position on how society should approach decisions on people's lives. "We need to listen and change policies accordingly. We can all be on the receiving end of a specialist who dismisses our subjective experience," she says.

Nizzi's other research is exploring the subjective experience of free will and agency in patients who recover from disorders of consciousness, but are left paralyzed and voiceless.

Explore further People with disabilities faced pandemic triage biases

More information: Marie-Christine Nizzi. Should We Trust Patient-Reported Outcomes?, AJOB Neuroscience (2021). Marie-Christine Nizzi. Should We Trust Patient-Reported Outcomes?,(2021). DOI: 10.1080/21507740.2021.1904040

Provided by Dartmouth University
Minister for Education Norma Foley TD and Minister of State with responsibility for Special Education Josepha Madigan TD today (Tuesday, 11 May) announced the provision of expanded summer education programmes for pupils with complex special educational needs and those at greatest risk of educational disadvantage, as a Covid-19 pandemic response measure, for summer 2021.

Under this expansion of the summer programme, students with complex special educational needs and those at greatest risk of educational disadvantage will have access to an enhanced summer programme of education.

The total funding available to provide the programme is up to 40 million, a one hundred per cent increase on the allocation for summer provision in 2020.

The programmes aims are to support pupils to re-engage with education, to build their confidence and increase their motivation, promote wellbeing and for some who are at key transition stages, help to ensure they can move on to their planned educational placement next September along with their peers.

For the first time ever, all schools (primary and-post primary) are encouraged to provide summer programmes and the eligibility criteria have been extended to include post-primary children with complex needs and children at risk of educational disadvantage. Prior to this expansion summer programmes were only available to special schools and pupils in special classes in primary schools and in DEIS schools. Todays announcement marks a recognition of the value of such school based programmes for children with complex needs and those at risk of educational disadvantage in all schools.

A home-based summer programme will continue to be available for children with complex needs where their schools are not providing a school based programme.

Minister Foley said:

This is an incredibly important Government decision, to significantly expand the summer programme as a specific response to the pandemic, and offer important education provision this summer to children who really need and it. We are all acutely conscious that children and young people did not have access to in-school learning for a long period of time. Despite the best efforts of everyone to support and engage with remote learning, not being in school has many adverse consequences. Evidence indicates that it particularly impacts children with complex special educational needs and those at greatest risk of educational disadvantage. The summer 2020 programme was extremely successful and its benefit was felt when children re-integrated into their education settings in September. I am delighted we can now extend this vital opportunity to many more children this year. I encourage school communities to take full advantage of this opportunity and to provide this valuable programme to their students. We have also listened to concerns of school stakeholders as to the challenges in running summer programmes and have taken significant steps to enhance those supports for schools. Across the country, our children and young people with complex needs, or at risk of educational disadvantage will benefit hugely from todays decision.



Minister Madigan said:

This is an important announcement for young people with additional needs and young people facing educational disadvantage. It is the largest summer programme there has ever been and for the first time, every student with complex needs across all primary and post-primary schools will be eligible to take part. This is something that I have sought to put in place and I welcome the decision to make this expanded programme a reality.



We know it has been a very difficult year for students with additional needs who might not have been able to engage with remote learning. Parents and families have been worried about regression and loss of key skills.



Having visited schools hosting summer programmes in previous years, I have seen first-hand the positive benefits that it brings. This summer, all students in special schools, special classes, and those with complex needs in mainstream schools will be eligible to participate in a summer programme. This is the first time that all schools will be eligible to host a summer programme and I urge all schools to do so. It is a very worthwhile opportunity for young people.



The summer programme has become an important part of special education provision in Ireland. I am delighted that this years programme recognises the diversity of needs that exists in Ireland, across our special schools, special classes, and mainstream classes. This programme and the funding that goes with it, demonstrates the commitment of the Government to backing special education and ensuring that every student gets the support they need.



The five key strands of the programme will run, as follows:

 Numeracy and literacy camps in DEIS primary schools

 School based summer programme in primary schools with special classes and special schools.

 Home based provision for children with complex needs where no school based programme is available;

 All primary schools (DEIS and non DEIS) have the opportunity to provide a two-week summer programme for mainstream pupils with complex needs and those at greatest risk of educational disadvantage.

 All post-primary schools (DEIS and non DEIS) have the opportunity to provide a two-week summer programme for mainstream students with complex needs and those at greatest risk of educational disadvantage

The programmes for mainstream students in primary and post-primary schools are new programmes for 2021, building upon previous summer programmes in DEIS schools and the programmes for pupils with special educational needs last year.



Enhanced measures have been put in place to encourage participation of schools in this process, including reducing the administrative process, provision of funding to schools towards preparation and overseeing of the programmes, earlier payment of school staff and provision to recruit final year student teachers graduating this summer.

Further details on the schemes and how schools can apply will be made available over the coming period at gov.ie/summerprovision.

Pupils with complex needs who have transport provided on the Special Educational Needs School Transport Scheme during the school year and are attending the school based programme in either a primary or a special school will be provided with transport.

Following a Government decision today, the Department of Education will also confirm to schools that for the 2021/22 school year there will be no change to the model of allocation of special needs assistants.

The introduction of the frontloaded model for the allocation of special needs assistants will be deferred to the commencement of the 2022/23 school year.

This has occurred as during the pandemic period it has not been possible to provide the necessary information and training to support the implementation of the new model in schools.

SNA allocations for 2021/22 school year will be based on the actual number of SNAs employed by a school on 30 April 2021 and the allocation on that date will be rolled over into 2021/22. No school will receive a reduced allocation and there will be scope for additionality under an exceptional review process to be delivered by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).

ENDS

Notes to Editors

Summer provision programmes

The enhanced summer provision programmes will comprise both programmes running in summer 2021 that were also in place in summer 2020, and new programmes. The programmes are specific to 2021, as a Covid-response measure.

Further details on the schemes and how schools can apply will be made available over the coming period at gov.ie/summerprovision.

SNA allocation for schools in 2021/22 school year

Following a recommendation from the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) In December 2019, Government approved the national roll out of a new frontloading model for the allocation of special needs assistants (SNAs) support to primary and post-primary schools for students in mainstream classes, with effect from the 2020/21 school year, as part of the phased roll out of the School Inclusion Model (SIM).

With the onset of Covid-19 and the closure of school buildings from March 2020 and the resulting disruption to schools and the system as a whole, it was decided to defer the full introduction of the Model by one year i.e. to the commencement of the 2021/22 school year.

SNA allocations were maintained at their 2019/20 (April 2020) levels for 2020/21 with provision for additionality where necessary and an exceptional review process was developed.

During this school year, as a result of the pandemic it has not been possible to hold planned workshops and consultations on the introduction of the new allocation model.

Accordingly, the Department has decided that the introduction of the frontloaded model will be deferred for one more year i.e. to the commencement of the 2022/23 school year.

SNA allocations for 2021/22 school year will be based on the actual number of SNAs employed by a school on 30 April 2021 and the allocation on that date will be rolled over into 2021/22. No school will receive a reduced allocation.

As in previous years, there will be provision for schools to apply to the NCSE for additionality where exceptional circumstances give rise to new care needs that cannot be catered for within existing allocations.

The frontloading of SNAs for mainstream classes is a key part of the School Inclusion Model. The Department and NCSE are committed to its introduction as part of the development of that Model.

The NCSE is planning for the provision of workshops and information sessions for schools in early 2022 so schools can plan for introduction of the new allocation model from September 2022.
MCPS does not require students or staff to get the COVID-19 vaccine, Watson said.

As of Tuesday afternoon more than 650 people had registered for the vaccine clinic, according to Watson. The district is aiming to offer 1,000 appointments over the two-day event, but has the capacity to add more resources if necessary.

Cases of COVID-19 are still active in the district and Watson said getting more people vaccinated will help cut down on transmission.

We also know that once a kid is vaccinated, they dont have to quarantine if theyre considered a close contact."

The district began planning the clinics with Granite Pharmacy and local pediatricians like Dr. Jennifer Hall with the Western Montana Clinic when the FDA was nearing the approval for children age 12 to 15.

MCPS has hosted vaccine clinics in the past, including four in April for students between the ages of 16 and 19.

To date, about 37% of Missoula County residents between the ages of 15 and 19 have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the Missoula City-County Health Department.
One case he worked on with Hector stands out from the rest, when Missoula police got involved in a homicide case that followed a couple who had taken a car for a test drive from a dealership in Idaho. During the drive, they killed the salesperson to steal the car, Welsh said.

Authorities believed the couple was making their way to the Deer Lodge area. When Welsh was called to help locate the duo, he said Hector accompanied him.

Witnesses reported seeing the couple go into a barn, and when officials were finally able to approach the structure, Welsh said the inside was full of hay bales stacked about 12 feet high.

My job was then to get myself and my dog up on top of this stack of hay, he said. I was the only one that could have done this with this dog. We had been together so long, and he knew me and trusted me, so basically I lifted him straight up the side of the stack.

Hector was able to dig through a well of hay and find the couple, who were taken into custody.

Ive had lots of rewarding incidents Ive been involved in, Welsh said. But I look back and that was one of the highlights of my career.
After 13 years of serving the public, Thorin Geist has joined the running for Missoula municipal judge.

Geist, 43, has been serving as a prosecutor, civil litigator and substitute judge for over a decade in Montana, and said he is ready to step into the role of municipal judge.

I believe in public service, I always have, Geist said, adding he's running for this position because of the importance municipal judges have in the legal system.

Because most people who pass through the system do so in municipal court, Geist said he feels this is the department where he can best serve Missoula.

For most people this is the first experience theyre going to have with the legal system, and probably the only, Geist said.

After working as a private attorney, Geist transitioned into the role of deputy county attorney in Ravalli County from 2012 to 2020 where he prosecuted felony crimes for the State of Montana.

In 2019, he added working as the special assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Montana to his resume, where he was responsible for prosecuting drug crimes and weapons cases.
The National WASP WWII Museum, which celebrates the legacy of the Women Airforce Service Pilots and their important role in winning WWII, hosted an event this past weekend at Avenger Field in Sweetwater, Texas. This free and well attended event featured a warbird fly-in, which included a gathering of Vultee BT-13 and BT-15 Valiants. Once common in the skies all over the US, there are only about 25 of these iconic WWII-era trainers in the United States which are currently operable, and almost half of these (10 BT-13s and 1 BT-15) participated. To highlight the rarity of seeing so many Valiants at one event, EAA AirVenture Oshkosh typically has more than a half dozen of the type in attendance, so as the museums press release stated Little ol Avenger Field had 11 of these beauties, which made for a phenomenal day at the Museum airfield!

The last time there were this many BTs in one place was in 1995 at the Wright Patterson Museum, said Brian Laing, 27-year-old BT-13 owner/pilot and the events aircraft organizer. Before that, it was WWII, he continued. Many of these planes were flown by the WASP, the Women Airforce Service Pilots, trained female pilots that operated aircraft during World War II. The WASP played a significant role in opening many doors for women in the military, just as the Tuskegee Airmen were opening doors for people of color through their success in the Army Air Forces.

Event goers were able to witness a four ship formation of BTs. A pair each of currently-serving U.S. Navy and Air Force training aircraft, piloted by women, also made flybys. Air Force Col Carey Mamba Jones and Navy Lt Holly Pace were among the special guests in attendance, and there was even a surprise visit from Tammie Jo Shults, retired Southwest Airlines Captain of Flight 1380.

If you missed out on this past weekends event, or want to learn more, the museum is hosting a virtual event this coming Saturday, May 15th, featuring a variety of different speakers, including current and former Air Force pilots. The virtual affair was set up to ensure that everyone can be a part of the experience, even if they arent able to travel.

If you want to participate with friends, you can host a watch party dinner for the evening program and support the Museum in achieving its fundraising goals by having the Museums delicious barbeque delivered right to your door. Keep an eye on our events page for updates of upcoming celebrations. You wont want to miss an opportunity to glimpse history in a fresh light. For more information visit www.waspmuseum.org
Citizens of Missoula/Alberton/Lolo have made it abundantly clear to me during my four campaigns for the Montana state House, and will undoubtedly make the same claim in my upcoming campaign for the Montana Senate, that one of their top three concerns, and most often their No. 1 concern, is the crushing impact that onerous property taxes are having on them. However, its time for a few lessons about your property taxes, and where and why they are growing.

Fact 1: The state of Montana is only responsible for about 15% of your property tax impact. Cities and counties are responsible for the remaining 85%.

Fact 2: In 2001, the city of Missoula collected $13.4 million in property taxes. In 2020, 20 years later, that collection amount had grown to more than $36.4 million. Thats about a 5.4% annual growth rate, far above the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and our population growth during that period.

Fact 3: In 2001, the county of Missoula collected about $24 million in property taxes. In 2020, 20 years later, that collection amount had grown to more than $69.2 million. Thats about a 5.7% annual growth rate, again far above the CPI and our population growth. For comparison, the most populous county in Montana, Yellowstone, had total tax revenues in 2020 of $58.5 million, about $11 million, or 16%, less than Missoula County.
Jeannette Rankin, a Republican from Missoula, was sworn into office as one of Montanas two at-large representatives with the 65th Congress on March 4, 1917. The 19th Amendment, enshrining the womens constitutional right to their franchise, did not yet exist. When she took her oath, women possessed full voting rights in only 13 of the then-48 states. She introduced the resolution that would ultimately become the Womens Suffrage Amendment  which was quickly and resoundingly ratified in Montana.

When Rankin arrived in Washington, the city and all federal buildings were segregated by the strictures of Jim Crow, a legal and social system spread throughout the 15 former slave states that nullified the protections of the 14th Amendment  guaranteeing equal protection under the law  and the 15th Amendment  guaranteeing equal voting rights for men  for African Americans. Rankin, however, represented a state which possessed no laws barring any of its citizens, regardless of race or sex, from voting.
" " A sign announces the day's gas prices at a station in Annapolis, Maryland, on May 12, 2021. Fears that the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline because of a cyberattack would cause a gasoline shortage led to some panic buying. JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

Critics of any president are quick to blame the commander in chief for things that are totally beyond his or her control. (Of course, presidents and their supporters are equally quick to take credit for things that are beyond their control.) The price of gasoline is a perfect example. Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans took credit for low gasoline prices in 2019 [source: Rainey]. And when George W. Bush was in office, Democrats blamed him for allowing gas prices to rise from $1.45 a gallon on his inauguration day to $4.05 a gallon by June 2008 [source: Thaler].

The truth is that no president  Democrat or Republican, friend of "big oil" or supporter of alternative fuels  can do much of anything to affect the short-term price of oil, and therefore gasoline. The overriding factor that determines the price of oil from day to day is the market principle of supply and demand [source: U.S. Energy Information Administration]. It comes down to simple economics: When demand is greater than supply, prices rise.

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The actual price of a barrel of oil is constantly changing, since oil is a commodity that is traded on the futures market. Buying and selling oil futures is called speculating, because you're making trades based on expectations of future supply and demand.

And for a while, demand was skyrocketing. After the Great Recession ended, demand steadily increased as the global economy recovered and kicked back into high gear. To match that demand, U.S. oil production rose dramatically from around 5,000 barrels a day in 2009 to a record high of 13,100 barrels a day in early 2020 [source: Macrotrends]. Thanks in large part to the drilling technology called hydraulic fracturing (or " fracking"), American oil producers were able to keep pace with demand and keep gasoline prices stable.

The COVID-19 pandemic slashed global demand and hit the oil and gas industry hard. One upside of the global oil glut was lower gasoline prices at the pump [source: Associated Press]. But that changed in May 2021, when the Colonial Pipeline system, which moves about 45 percent of the East Coasts fuel, had to shut down after hackers got into its servers and encrypted its data, demanding money to restore access. (The hackers are thought to be based in Russia.) The shutdown caused increases in gas prices and fuel shortages in some Eastern states. Panicked buying of gas in response to fears about gas shortages only made the problem worse.

So if gasoline prices are largely at the mercy of global fluctuations in supply and demand (plus the occasional pandemic), what can a president actually do, if anything, to influence gas prices? Find out next.
Chris Cates was an avid musician and had a passion for creating music.

Christopher graduated from Appalachian State University with a major in English and a minor in music," Jim said. He was a really prolific songwriter and about eight or nine years ago he wrote an original song every day for 365 days. Thats why he has a bunch of albums.

I have to go down to Atlanta and get some of his equipment. He has about 20 guitars, three or four mandolins and about four or five ukuleles. The keyboards and all that stuff are also down in his house in Atlanta.

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There have been other outlets created by friends and family members to honor Chris Cates and his passion for music. A scholarship fund has been created in honor of him to raise money for local high school students who want to major in music when they go to college.

Right now we have right at $2,000 raised for a scholarship fund in his name," Jim said. It is going to be for high school music majors going off to college. Its the Chris Cates Music Scholarship Fund.
While the Colonial Pipeline hopes to have most gasoline transport service restored by the weekend, long lines and outages have emerged locally and in parts of the state.

The Associated Press reported Tuesday morning that the pipeline, which recently was hit by a cyberattack (and delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast), hopes to mostly be back in commission this weekend. The AP also reported that federal officials said that the fuel supply had not experienced any widespread disruptions.

Patrick DeHaan, a petroleum analyst for GasBuddy, said Tuesday morning on Twitter that 6.3% of stations in North Carolina were experiencing gas outages and 2.1% had diesel fuel outages. The day before, GasBuddy activated the outage tracker for its mobile application, but the app itself was experiencing outages Tuesday due to intense traffic, DeHaan said.

The web version of the tracker did not report any outages in the Burke County area, though residents told The News Herald of seeing outages around stations near Freedom High School on North Green Street, Carbon City Road and Jamestown Road, as well as at other isolated stores. Wait times were as long as an hour midday Tuesday at Morgantons Murphy Express. Other stores were limiting purchases.
Wallace said she will make a decision on whether to seek the death penalty before Long's arraignment, which has not yet been scheduled.

Georgias new hate crimes law does not provide for a stand-alone hate crime. After a person is convicted of an underlying crime, a jury must determine whether its motivated by bias, which carries an additional penalty.

The 19-count Fulton County indictment includes charges of murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and domestic terrorism.

The domestic terrorism charge says Long committed a series of illegal acts which were interrelated by distinguishing characteristics, with the intent to cause serious bodily harm and to kill individuals and groups of individuals, and with the intent to intimidate the civilian population of this state and of its political subdivisions.

Four aggravated assault charges have to do with the shootings of the four victims who died. For a fifth, the indictment says Long pointed a gun at another woman, causing her reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving a violent injury.
He and Moore said it also was just coincidence that they had quashed bills targeting transgender people. They didnt kill them quietly; they went out of their way to do so publicly.

It had nothing to do with Apple, Berger maintained.

Whatever the reason, give Berger and Moore credit. They did the right thing.

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Give Cooper credit. He could have hogged the stage. Instead, he shared it.

Give them all credit for working together and crafting an incentives package that brought in Apple. It amounts to $845.8 million over 39 years.

Three years ago, it looked like North Carolina had missed its bite at Apple. But the Cooper administration kept talking to the company. The administration and the General Assembly worked together to write the incentive package into law.

Staffers for both sides, usually sworn enemies, traded compliments at the end.

With Apple, we saw a picture you dont see in other Southern states these days: The governor and legislative leaders, Black and white Democrats and Republicans  and Machelle Sanders, a former life-sciences executive who is the first Black commerce secretary  standing together.
Finally, after 50 years, on May 20, 1825, Charlotte held its first celebration of the anniversary of the event.

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When Jeffersons letters were published in 1829, his spurious description prompted loyal North Carolinians to stand up for the validity of their states early version of a declaration of independence.

In 1831, the state legislature established a special committee to settle what had become known as the Mecklenburg controversy. The committee, after an investigation that included interviews with 13 eyewitnesses to the events of May 1775, concluded that the Meck Dec was genuine and that it was incumbent to usher to the world the Mecklenburg Declaration, accompanied with such testimonials of its genuineness, as shall silence incredulity  (and) forever secure it from being forgotten.

The committees report did not end the controversy, but its sanction gave credibility and cover to the states official embrace of the declaration and 150 years of bragging about our First in Freedom status.

Syfert observed that, after years of big celebrations that attracted American presidents, interest had waned. Why was so little known and reported about the declaration before 1819? And why, after more than 150 years of attention, did interest in the declaration wane?
The Butte-Silver Bow Health Department on Monday announced an additional fatality related to COVID-19.

Health Officer Karen Sullivan said the fatality is that of a resident of a local care facility, but the death has been determined not to be healthcare-associated. The fatality brings the total to 86 deaths in Butte-Silver Bow related to the COVID-19 virus.

On Monday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration agreed to let adolescents ages 12 to 15 receive the Pfizer vaccine. Sullivan said Butte-Silver Bows Unified Health Command will await authorization from the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services to administer Pfizer to that age group, but expected that authorization soon.

The Unified Health Command is planning a mass vaccination clinic from 3 to 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 18, at the Butte Civic Center. Sullivan said the clinic will be open to everyone ages 12 and older. Those under

the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. Registration for the clinic is available at https://butteciviccenter.com.

Sullivan said the Unified Health Command is also planning a variety of pop-up clinics throughout the county over the coming weeks and months. Planning also is under way for a major vaccine incentive and education/marketing campaign.
by Melani Manel Pererea

Christians held a special Eucharistic service to invoke divine intercession against the pandemic. The Lord's guidance and protection are needed at a time of extreme need. Believers call for mercy. So far, 130,000 cases have been reported in the country with more than 800 deaths.

Colombo (AsiaNews)  Sri Lankan Christians held a special Eucharistic celebration to call for divine intercession against the COVID-19 pandemic to save the country and the world.

Meanwhile, the government has reinforced restrictive measures to stop the spread of the virus, further limiting freedom of movement between provinces as of midnight today, 11 May.

According to data provided by the Epidemiology Unit at the Sri Lankan Ministry of Health, 128,479 cases have been reported so far, with 105,611 people recovered and 827 deaths.

The government has introduced stricter rules to contain the pandemic, also because of the crisis situation in neighbouring India and its possible repercussions on the island nation.

This led to the idea of celebrating a Mass last Saturday at the All Saints Church in Borella, Colombo, which was broadcast by Catholic Verbum TV.

Fr Jude Sharman Fernando, along with Fathers Peter Subaraj and Mahima Gunawardane, led the trilingual service (English, Sinhalese and Tamil).

Because of social distancing requirements, only a small group of nuns from a nearby convent were present during the prayer for the end of the pandemic.

In his homily, Fr Jude Sharman Fernando invoked Gods guidance and protection at this time of extreme need and great anxiety, a moment of disaster.

The deadly virus seems to be crippling, disturbing, paralysing, and destroying human lives and the world, in so many ways, said the clergyman. But we ask God, why? What wrong has man done? What evil has man done, to suffer so much?

Our God is a God who is compassionate and kind, who is very forgiving and merciful. Our God is never ever revengeful. Then why is man going through such suffering?

For Fr Fernando, the time has come to pray to God to be close and near to the Lord, the Heavenly Father, [. . .] to repent for our sins, reconcile ourselves with our sister and brother, [. . .] to live the divine word and observe the commandments, relying on his power.

During the intention of the faithful  in Sinhalese, Tamil and English  prayers were said for those who are physically and morally debilitated by COVID-19.

A special intention was also addressed to the countrys leaders, that they may lead the nation with wisdom, heart, fairness and honesty during the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Many people followed the service via Verbum TV, praying for Sri Lanka and those affected by the virus in the world.

Sebastian Fernando, Calista Cooray, Raajan Silva and Priyantha Yatiwela told AsiaNews that we occasionally need such spiritual events because now we only have God's mercy. We are in a very dangerous situation as a country.
Laws cripple public health

Over 500,000 (and counting) Americans have needlessly been killed for political reasons by those who are more concerned about their own self-interests then they are about the greater good. This is while other countries, using strict mandates and the peoples willingness to temperately give up some of their personal liberties for the greater good, were able to drastically limit, before vaccines, the deadly and disastrously devastating economic effects of this pandemic, and prepare themselves for the next pandemic that may have a 25% or higher mortality rate similar to the Spanish Flu.

The Constitution of the State of Montana states that: "All persons are born free and have certain inalienable rights. They include the right to a clean and healthful environment . . ." Governments at all levels are responsible to ensure that these rights are not infringed upon.

Our Montana governor has recently signs bills either severely limiting or ending local government's health regulatory authority and ability to effectively deal with disastrous emergencies such as pandemics.

It was a pleasure to witness the first Community Advisory Council authorized by the B-SB Council of Commissioners in action Thursday (5/06/2021) evening.
The U.S. District Court of Guam is seen on Feb. 19, 2021.

The Guam Daily Post photo
Honduran migrant Kevin, wearing a U.S. flag, holds his daughter Keiry, during a multicultural activity at a makeshift camp at the El Chaparral border port of entry with the U.S., in Tijuana, Mexico on April 22, 2021.

REUTERS
U.S. Army soldiers with Pacific ties volunteering off-hours to gather books in Hawaii. From left, Albert Manglona, Katoa Sailusi, Jordon Galvez and Valentino Sigrah.

Habele photo
St. Jude Brings Hope to Catholics as Mass Returns to Ireland

NEWS PROVIDED BY

Im Ur Blasta, LLC

May 11, 2021

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /Christian Newswire/ -- Yesterday was a day of celebration for the Catholic Church in Ireland. It marked the first time in 2021 that Catholics in the Republic were legally permitted to attend Mass.

Yet, the joy should be tempered with prayerful vigilance, according to Seamus O Fianghusa (Fennessy), author of the new book, "Heaven Help Us, Now!: A Self Help Guide to God's Own First Responder, St. Jude Thaddeus."

"We should remain on guard against a government that believes it has the right to shut churches down and persecute reception of the sacraments," O Fianghusa says. He believes that Catholics should turn to St. Jude both in thanks for the return of Mass and in petition to keep it that way.

The book points out, "The Eucharist is supremely relevant to the St. Jude Thaddeus devotion. Recall that in Hebrew, Jude/Judas/Judah means 'Thanksgiving.' Do you know what Eucharist means in Greek? You got it right, 'Thanksgiving.' Let's let that sink in."

St. Jude is highly regarded by many as the patron saint of hopeless causes. O Fianghusa states, "Some people consider Ireland to be a hopeless cause but I say she's not, because St. Jude is our heavenly patron."

"Ireland needs to be a 32-county republic, she needs her language and culture, and she needs her Catholic faith  the only thing that brings eternal life. Praying to St. Jude will help bring this about, if enough people do so with true faith."

St. Jude Thaddeus has traditionally been a popular saint in Ireland. He was venerated by the author's grandfather from Limerick City, to whom "Heaven Help Us, Now!" is dedicated.

O Fianghusa himself is a life-long devotee of St. Jude Thaddeus. He is also an American National Guard soldier and combat veteran. He is currently serving on the military's COVID-19 relief mission.

He is known for the widespread attention and support he garnered for the campaign to rescue his bomb dog, "Bring K9 Mattie Home." As a historian, soldier, and Irish language activist, Seamus has been featured on Fox News and the Smithsonian Channel in the U.S., and on RTE, TG4, and BBC in Ireland.

"Heaven Help Us, Now!" is rated 4.9 stars by those who have purchased the book on Amazon.com. It is now also available on Amazon.co.uk.

For More Information: For more information or to schedule an interview about this press release, please contact Seamus: seamus@imurblasta.com

SOURCE Im Ur Blasta, LLC

CONTACT: Seamus O Fianghusa (Fennessy), 718-344-3437 seamus@imurblasta.com

Related Links

https://imurblasta.com
by Nirmala Carvalho

Over a hundred corpses carried by the current in the Buxar district after being in the water for days. According to local authorities they are from Uttar Pradesh, where there is no longer room in the crematoria. WARNING: the article contains images that may hurt the sensitivity of some readers

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - Over a hundred corpses of Covid-19 victims floating on the waters of the Ganges. In the seemingly endless devastation caused by the pandemic in India, news of the latest horror and offense to the dignity of the people arrived from the state of Bihar.

Videos of the bodies of suspected Covid-19 victims floating on the Mahadev bank of the Ganges River, near the village of Chausa in the Buxar district, are circulating virally on social media. Officials who visited the site claim the corpses may have floated to that point from the eastern districts of Uttar Pradesh, one of the Indian states most affected by the pandemic. Already in the past week in Uttar Pradesh nearly a dozen bodies had been found floating on the Yamuna River, the largest tributary of the Ganges.

The prime minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar, whose government is an ally of the Hindu nationalist BJP, reacted to the images by saying that "the corpses belong to Uttar Pradesh". The abandonment in the rivers would be due to the lack of space in the crematoria and improvised pyres. Most are likely to belong to Covid-19 victims.

Eye witness testimonies even speak of stray dogs devouring these abandoned bodies. K.K. Upadhayay, a Buxar district official, explained to the media: The bodies of the dead are swollen. They appear to have been in the water for at least 5-7 days. It is necessary to ascertain where they come from, probably from Varanasi or Allahabad ".

Meanwhile, the official numbers of the infection also continue to remain high: 329,942 new cases registered in the last 24 hours, a figure slightly down compared to recent days. But it should still be added that Covid-19 is now spreading especially in rural areas, where monitoring of infections is more difficult. On the other hand, yesterday's deaths were 3,876, which raised the total count since the beginning of the pandemic to 249,992.

Even in this tragic situation, the Indian Catholic Church urges the faithful to continue to seek the truth. Father Ivel Mendanha, vice-provincial superior of the Redemptorists, comments in a homily sent to AsiaNews: "The Spirit of truth is at work even today, through doctors, health workers, scientists who produce vaccines. They tell us that "there is a way out of this crisis. We must not listen to those who sow fear, but not even those who rely on superstitions such as the idea that making noise is enough to ward off the virus. No prison, not even in the pandemic, can enslave us, because the spirit of Jesus is among us.
Vumacam has announced it has connected seven of its CCTV poles in Rosebank and one in Braamfontein to the City Power grid in Johannesburg.

The company operates South Africas first and only Video Management-As-A-Service, with a network of hi-tech cameras strategically placed throughout the citys streets.

These are connected to Vumas extensive fibre network to ensure a consistent, reliable, and quality surveillance service to law enforcement and security companies to assist in fighting crime and vandalism.

The direct connections to City Powers grid comes after the metropolitan municipality previously accused Vumacam of illegally connecting electricity from City Power through third-party agreements with Johannesburg residents.

City Power sent a letter of demand to Vumacam on 3 September 2019 which instructed it to stop this practice and removed all connections with City Powers customers within a week.

At the time, Vumacam said that it had engaged with City Power prior to setting up its network in 2017 in order to get direct access to electricity supplied by City Power itself.

However, the company claimed it was presented with commercials that were prohibitively expensive.

It therefore entered into contracts with City Power customers as an alternative to providing power for its camera network.

After the letter of demand, the parties met and it was agreed that a duly appointed, joint technical, legal, and commercial committee would be tasked with arriving at a solution for the dispute.

This process has now appeared to bear fruit, as Vumacam CEO Ricky Croock said the successful connections represented the start of a strong relationship between City Power and Vumacam.

While we have been operating successfully using alternative power sources to the City Power grid to feed cameras in the City and suburbs of Johannesburg, our intention has always been to connect directly to the City Power grid, said Croock.

He stated the direct connections would benefit Johannesburg and Vumacams growing pool of users.

Our cameras provide invaluable support to the South African Police Service, the Johannesburg Metro Police Department and private security companies. They also play a huge role in protecting city assets from vandalism and other crimes, Croock said.

The initial roll-out has focused on a few poles, but it is intended that more Vumacam poles will move on to the City Power grid soon.

We are continuing discussions with the City of Johannesburg, City Power as well as the Johannesburg Roads Association, Croock said.

We believe that building a strong, cooperative working relationship between ourselves as a private operator, the City of Johannesburg and its key agencies will ultimately build a safer Joburg.

Vumacam said it would share more details on the rollout once the logistics, billing, and the process for larger roll-outs were finalised with the City of Johannesburg.

Now read: Vumacam footage being used in insurance claims investigations
Google parent company Alphabet has donated scholarship funding for four Wits University students to complete their Masters degrees in the field of machine learning.

The scholarships  which will be offered by Alphabets artificial intelligence research company DeepMind  will fund students registering for MSc degrees in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, or Robotics between 2022 and 2024.

The DeepMind scholarships include tuition fees, a stipend, plus conference and equipment funding.

The company will be funding two Masters students who aim to complete their degree through dissertation over two years, as well as two students who enrol in a Masters programme through coursework and dissertation over two years.

Scholars get their Masters fees paid in full, in addition to guidance and support from a personal DeepMind mentor.

These will only be awarded to students who would not be able to take up their studies without financial assistance, with preference given to South African citizens from underrepresented groups, including black students and women.

It will also be open to international students, with a preference for residents of Sub-Saharan African countries.

DeepMind global lead for university relations & education partnerships, Obum Ekeke, said the company was proud to help support the next generation of AI researchers and engineers in Africa.

The spirit of the donation and the DeepMind Scholarships is to increase diversity in the fields of artificial intelligence and machine learning, and to increase the representation of the groups currently most underrepresented in these fields, said Ekeke.

Associate professor in the School of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics at Wits, Benjamin Rosman, said the scholarships would become a much-needed platform and launchpad to the careers of some of the countrys most talented students.

Enabled by this support from DeepMind, Wits will bring an even broader range of African talent to the global conversation in cutting-edge AI research, said Rosman.

Wits joins two other African universities  Stellenbosh University and Makerere Univeristy  as well as world-leading universities in the field of machine learning and artificial intelligence who are participating in the DeepMind scholarships programme.

The latter includes the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, New York University, and University College London.

For more information on how to apply for the DeepMind scholarships, prospective Masters students in the fields of AI and machine learning can visit the Wits website.
New Covid-19 variants which have been detected in South Africa and concerns of a big third wave have prompted calls for stricter lockdown rules.

The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) has recently confirmed that four South Africans have tested positive for the COVID-19 B.1.617.2 variant.

This is the variant is more contagious and is fuelling the spike in Covid-19 cases and deaths in India. There is also speculation that it may bypass vaccine protections.

Another variant that is currently dominating Covid-19 infections in Europe and North America, B.1.1.7 has also been detected in South Africa.

Eleven cases of B.1.1.7 have been confirmed  eight in the Western Cape, two in Gauteng, and one in KwaZulu-Natal.

The detection of these new Covid-19 variants comes amidst a rise in infections in South Africa and concerns about a third wave.

Health Minister, Zweli Mkhize has expressed concern over the increase of Covid-19 cases in the country in the past two weeks.

Mkhize said the Free State, Gauteng, Northern Cape, and North West provinces are of particular concern.

Numerous districts in these provinces have been flagged by the NICD and have been placed under observation due to an appreciable rise in the 14-day average percent change.

The Free State Health Department has already announced that the province is officially experiencing a third wave.

Departmental spokesperson Mondli Mvambi said last week they have seen a shocking rise of infections.

Our current ability to treat people may not last if unnecessarily stretched to the limit by non-adherence to Covid-19 measures, he said.

There has also been a rise in case in Gauteng which Professor Adrian Puren from the NICD said could be a sign of a third wave.

Predictive modelling by the NICD showed Gauteng is at the highest risk of having a particularly devastating third wave.

This is because of its higher concentration of working-age adults and people with co-morbidities in the province and the lower estimates of seroprevalence.

On the back of the increase in Covid-19 cases and concerns around the new variants, experts are now calling for stricter lockdown rules.

At the end of April, Bloomberg reported that the South African government was considering introducing additional measures to stave off a third wave.

We have received an advisory from the ministerial advisory council that we have to consider some restrictions and we are now going through that, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said.

Professor Alex van den Heever from the Wits School of Governance echoed Mkhizes concerns in a Cape Talk interview in March.

He explained the problem is that peoples behaviour might go back to what it was in October and November last year, which will result in another surge.

He said the country is nowhere close to dealing with the problem and that not enough people will be vaccinated in South Africa this year to reach herd immunity.

To vaccinate the majority of the population by the end of the year, South Africa has to vaccinate around 200,000 people per day. This is not happening.

Speaking to Business Day TV this week, Van den Heever said there is a high probability of a third wave which will be driven by peoples behaviour.

He said there should be a strong focus on limiting large gatherings. If we can address gatherings, we will reduce the possibility of a third wave, he said.

Winter periods make it difficult to contain the virus, which means that even with restrictions it is challenging to avoid another wave.

It is not the variants which are going to cause a third wave, but the variants will be part of a wave, he said.

If we have super-spreader events which involve one of those variants, it may become the dominant variant which we experience.

He said the delay in South Africas vaccination programme means it will not be in time to help with a third wave.

We will have to face this wave with restrictions  the way we have done in the past, Van den Heever said.

He said South Africa may have to consider restrictions pretty soon in Gauteng and the Free State if we continue to see infections rise.

The Actuarial Society of South Africa (ASSA) said while the country is unlikely to escape a third Covid-19 wave, the severity in terms of confirmed cases, hospital admissions and deaths will depend on its timing.

ASSA working group member Adam Lowe said evidence from around the world indicate that the quicker the third wave follows the second wave, the less severe it is likely to be.

According to Lowe, South Africa could experience one of three scenarios:

An early third wave in May (most likely)  An early third wave is expected to be less severe than the second wave and is most likely to materialise in May 2021. Not only does historical precedent set by the Spanish Flu pandemic in 1918 and 1919 support this scenario, but it is also a realistic expectation given the public holidays and school holidays in April.

 An early third wave is expected to be less severe than the second wave and is most likely to materialise in May 2021. Not only does historical precedent set by the Spanish Flu pandemic in 1918 and 1919 support this scenario, but it is also a realistic expectation given the public holidays and school holidays in April. A delayed third wave (less likely, but not impossible)  A third wave of similar magnitude to the second wave becomes more likely the longer the peak is delayed. A more severe third wave would be likely to peak in late winter (July/August) at the earliest.

 A third wave of similar magnitude to the second wave becomes more likely the longer the peak is delayed. A more severe third wave would be likely to peak in late winter (July/August) at the earliest. Worst case scenario (very unlikely)  A large and sudden third wave could be possible if available patterns and interpretations of patterns prove to be flawed.

The worst-case scenario can occur if the number of people infected in the first two waves was over-estimated, or through a series of super spreader events.

The super-spreader events can be a result of reduced vigilance on the part of a population which has been locked down for over a year, Lowe said.

Now read: New lockdown rules for South Africa considered
The Caymus Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) will hold their last meeting of the calendar year on May 26 at 12:30 p.m. The luncheon meeting will be at the Bear Flag B&B in Calistoga, also the home of member Marjorie McNay.

The featured speaker will be DAR member Ginny Craven speaking on Operation Tango Mike.

Tango Mike translates from military jargon to Thanks Much. This is an all-volunteer nonprofit group which she began 18 years ago to support and thank the military by preparing and sending care packages to the troops. Between 80 and 100 care packages are sent monthly by volunteers who gather in Lakeport at packing parties. Monthly shipping costs, averaging $2,000, as well as the cost of care package items, are covered through donations and fundraising, of which the Caymus Chapter is a part.

DAR recently awarded Craven the National DAR Excellence in Community Service Award and the State DAR Project Patriot Award.
Smith-Madrone launches a year of 50th anniversary celebrations on May 14. It was on May 14, 1971 that founder Stuart Smith signed the paperwork to close on the purchase of 200 forested acres on top of Spring Mountain outside St. Helena.

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, Smith-Madrone has dug deep into its cellar and will be re-releasing wines on the 14th of every month through the anniversary year. In May there will be a six-bottle vertical of Cabernet Sauvignon, a horizontal collection of 2013 Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling and Cooks Flat and several other unusual wines. The re-released wines are very limited in availability and will appear on a specially designated page on the winerys website.

The winery will also offer a monthly Zoom tasting and discussion with the winemakers: the first one will be at 4 p.m. June 12. Stu, Charles and Sam Smith will open wines and taste and discuss them with the Zoom attendees.

Another element of the year-long 50th anniversary celebration is a collaboration with Point Reyes-based Cowgirl Creamery. Purchasers of any of the winerys wines will receive a discount code to use for purchases of Cowgirl Creamerys artisanal cheeses.

It was in the fall of 1970 that I first walked the dense forested property that would become Smith-Madrone, said Stu Smith.

All that remained of the original vineyard planted in the 1880s were small redwood grape stakes and a towering allee of olive trees competing for sunlight with the 100-foot-tall Douglas fir trees.

Stu's brother, Charles Smith, joined Stu at the winery in 1972. We knew being in the mountains would differentiate Smith-Madrone from the wineries on the floor of the Napa Valley and we valued and nurtured that difference, he said. The success of our Riesling is due altogether to being in the hills at altitude."

When planting the vineyard, the brothers planted the first twenty acres (five acres each of Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Riesling and Pinot Noir) on their own roots, which was unusual at the time.

Sam Smith, Stu's son, joined the winery in 2010. After working harvest around the world, including at Dr. Loosen in Germany, I brought new opinions and expertise to what my father and uncle had been doing, he said.

All of the winerys wines are made from the estate vineyards surrounding the winery, originally planted 49 years ago by Stuart and Charles. The vineyards are primarily dry-farmed on steep mountainsides surrounding the winery on top of Spring Mountain in the Napa Valley. At elevations between 1,300 and 2,000 feet, the vineyards extend in steepness up to 35% slopes. With its signature deep red Aiken loam soil, Smith-Madrone is located near the top of the Spring Mountain District appellation.

The wine industry has seen many changes in the 50 years since we carved Smith-Madrone out of the forested mountain top," Stu Smith said. "Napa Valley wine has evolved from a small provincial business, second in economic importance behind livestock, to an industry of worldwide pre-eminence. While there have been many technological advances in both viticulture and enology, the fundamental of great wine remain the same: climate, soil, site and a sound understanding of science."

The winery has been recognized as a pioneer of mountain grapegrowing and winemaking. Smith-Madrones first vintage of Riesling, the 1977, won Best Riesling in the Wine Olympics, an international tasting organized by the food and wine magazine Gault Millau in Paris in 1979. This accolade launched the winerys identity as a pre-eminent producer of Riesling in the United States.

Among many other accolades, Smith-Madrones Riesling was named one of the best 20 Rieslings in the world and the only one in North America referenced by British wine writer Stuart Pigott in his 2014 book "The Riesling Story: Best White Wine On Earth."

In 1983, Smith-Madrone was the first American Riesling producer to use only the name Riesling on its labels. No other winery did this for the next 15 years. Stu had an extended battle with the then-BATF to change the label from Johannisberg Riesling to Riesling. He explains, While White Riesling is legally correct, it is none-the-less both wrong and redundant  when was the last time you had a red Riesling? This is just one example of our commitment to this wonderful and somewhat overlooked varietal.

Stu Smith was one of the key vintners profiled in James Conaway 2002 book "The Far Side of Eden: New Money, Old Land and the Battle for Napa Valley." In 2018 he was named one of Wines Most Inspiring People as a pioneer and champion of hillside grapegrowing by Wine Industry Advisor.

In 2020, Smith-Madrone was chosen by the University of California, Berkeley, to be the only winery offering a virtual wine tasting to the attendees of Homecoming events: Stu was honored as an alumnus of the class of 1970.

Last fall the winery battled the Glass Fire, which was documented almost daily on the winerys Instagram page and later by Food & Wine Magazine in a documentary short film. Among other impacts, respecting the enormous damage all over Spring Mountain and the northern Napa Valley, the winery lost telephone service for the next 100-plus days.

Smith-Madrone will be profiled in an episode of the "Behind The Glass" series on SommTV, with the segment airing in June 2021. The winery's current releases are the 2017 Chardonnay, 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon, 2017 Riesling, 2016 Cooks Flat Reserve and in very limited availability, magnums of the Cabernet Sauvignon and Cooks Flat Reserve.

Smith-Madrone will re-open for tours and tastings by appointment only in June: smithmadrone.com, info@smithmadrone.com.
Heres an idea for Councilman Dohring and his hotel-pushing comrades: get over your preoccupation and declare Adams Street off the table for hotel development, and then pursue all other options, of which there are many ("Lets put the puzzle together," May 6).

We just voted on the issue 6 months ago and, again, advised the city we do not want a hotel on Adams Street. Can these people not see how a hotel on that property would be a huge nail in the coffin of our rapidly dying middle class while bowing to the wealthy? Maybe they do see it. Ugh.

Were a town with tremendous assets beyond Adams Street, and we have no debt. But we lack water resources and responsible, pro-community leadership. We need a moratorium on all new development until we have achieved water security. If we can do that, then we need leadership that will see to it we have sufficient workforce and affordable housing before we even think about building anything else new.
Arguments over Minuteman boil down to this: Given its age and the nuclear challenges posed by Russia and China, should it be phased out in favor of a new-generation ICBM? Or should it be refurbished at lesser cost, to be replaced later? Or should it be phased out, period, with no replacement?

The debate reveals a longstanding American divide. On one side is the view that ICBMs are indispensable to the strategy for deterring any adversary from attempting a nuclear attack upon the United States or its allies. A key piece of the argument is that ICBMs in their 400 underground silos in five Great Plains states act as a warhead sink, or sponge, to absorb the first blow in a nuclear war; the argument is that an attacker would need to expend so many weapons destroying these silos that he would see little chance of winning and thus would be deterred from attacking in the first place.

The opposing view is that ICBMs are overkill, given the large amount of firepower in the more elusive sea- and air-based segments of the nuclear arsenal, and that ICBMs make nuclear conflict more likely because an American president might feel compelled to launch one upon a warning of attack that turned out to be a false alarm. Once its launched from its silo, an ICBM cannot be recalled.

These differences are more stark in light of expected stagnant defense budgets.
Meanwhile, the Queen Mary didnt get the expensive maintenance such a huge machine requires. In 2017, a consultant estimated that the ship needed nearly $300 million in rehabilitation. The city responded with $23 million but how the money was spent is the subject of much fingerpointing. The last operator, an outfit called Eagle Hospitality Trust, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January.

So what now?

The Long Beach City Council has tentatively decided that rather than cutting its losses and selling Queen Mary for scrap, it will shift ownership to the city-owned Port of Long Beach, the nations second busiest container port.

The move is drawing sharp opposition from the shipping lines that use the Long Beach port, fearing, with good cause, that funds needed to keep the port competitive will, instead, be dumped into the bottomless pit of keeping the Queen Mary afloat.

The Queen Mary sits at the southern end of the Long Beach Freeway which on paper connects Long Beach to Pasadena, 32 miles to the north  but only on paper, because the last few miles on the northern end were never built, and thats the other civic fiasco.
The ultimate goal of city and county agencies trying to solve Californias homeless problem is to get this transient populace into permanent housing.

But it turns out many of the homeless dont want the kind of permanent units that are becoming more available as local, state and federal governments devote ever more money to getting them off the streets.

No one knows precisely how many of the states approximately 161,000 homeless prefer to keep sleeping in tents and under tarps, as about two-thirds of the California homeless do each night. But dealing with the encampments so common along sidewalks and beneath freeway bridges can often seem like playing with silly putty: When authorities squeeze encampments by shooing occupants away and cleaning up messes they leave, the camps often reappear somewhere else within days, like silly putty oozing through the gaps between a childs fingers.

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Meanwhile, homeless-aid agencies keep building, buying and renting more housing aimed for the homeless. Short-term housing has arisen in several parts of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento and other cities. Permanent housing is becoming more available.

The mayors of Californias 13 largest cities demanded $20 billion the other day to create more of each.
Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: I have reasonable doubts that Shushi was deliberately handed over

Azerbaijan provides documents on 6 captured Armenia soldiers health condition

Police apprehend 16 ARF youths near Armenia government building

Ex-President Kocharyan on acting PM idea to exchange son for Armenian captives in Azerbaijan: Primitive stupidity

Armenia acting premier receives acting US assistant secretary of state

ARF youth close off downtown Yerevan street

Yerevan police forcibly apprehend protesting ARF members

Armenia acting PM in Lori Province, he is accompanied by State Protection Service head (PHOTOS)

ARF of Armenia presents facts about high treason

Permit documents can now be submitted online at Armenia border checkpoints

76 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

World oil prices dropping

Armenia interim government holding Cabinet meeting

Daily Express: Brussels angry over upcoming Biden-Putin meeting

Newspaper: Bright Armenia Party leader gives acting US deputy secretary of state sanctions list on Azeri authorities

American billionaires pay little income tax

Most livable city for 2021 is announced

Newspaper: Artsakh President makes controversial decision

WTO countries agree to intensify negotiations on easing access to coronavirus vaccines

Armenia Ombudsman: Trials against Armenian POWs continue in Azerbaijan with gross violations of international law

Ankara hopes Erdogan and Biden find common ground

Acting US Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs Philip Reeker arrives in Yerevan

Candidate for Armenia PM: Heads of headquarters of Democratic Party are apprehended

More on COVID-19 and tense election campaign in Armenia, June 9 digest

Members of European Parliament call on Yerevan and Baku to start exchanging information for demining

Members of Armenian opposition Adekvad Union post posters reading "Antinikol" near government building

France says it will do everything it can to ensure Amazon is subject to minimum global tax

UN warns of likelihood of mass deaths from hunger and disease in Myanmar

Beijing accuses Washington of paranoid mania

Stanislav Zas: There are still risks of escalation of the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border

Trump supports Nigerian government decision to block Twitter access

Erdogan announces visit to Shushi with his family

Armenia ruling party MP Hamazasp Danielyan drops mandate

Armenia ex-president shares promised record about acting PM

Armenia acting PM ends campaign meeting in Gyumri with march, accompanied by many security officers

"Armenia" bloc holding rally in Yerevan

Opposition Bright Armenia Party leader inviting Nikol Pashinyan to a debate

Nagorno-Karabakh issue discussed within the scope of Russian-Turkish consultations in Moscow

168.am: Armenia acting PM in Gyumri, snipers on roof of city council

Armenian authorities forcing employees of educational institutions and nuclear power plant to attend campaign meetings

Putin-Biden meeting in Geneva to take place in 18th-century villa

Armenia opposition party leader: There are 1,837 Armenians who lost their extremities after war in Artsakh

Bright Armenia Party leader slams discourse over transferring acting PM's son in exchange of POWs

Leader of opposition Liberty Party says Armenia acting PM steals over $2,500 from budget every month

Headquarters of political party running in elections applies to Prosecutor General's Office and Police of Armenia

Armenia Ombudsman's Office, Central Electoral Commission hold discussion to guarantee citizens' suffrage

Armenia acting premier, "support group" employees visit Shirak Province

Tech Week Artsakh 2021 to be held in Stepanakert

Armenia Elections Oversight Committee: Such development of events might lead to clashes

2 citizens apprehended for electoral bribery in Armenia's Gavar

Republican Party of Armenia vice-president: Serzh Sargsyan disclosed an audio recording a little while ago

Dollar continues dropping in Armenia

Armenia High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs, Ukraine deputy FM express willingness for cooperation

Turkeys Erdogan to visit Artsakhs Shushi

Armenia health ministry: 5 of 11 children with acute gastroenteritis are discharged from hospital

Azerbaijan MOD publicly admits that it is not well-established

Armenia independent MP: Acting premier is leading country to events similar to those of March 1, 2008

Russia resumes air communication with Armenia

Armenian man says Nikol Pashinyan 'liberated' Armenia's Etchmiadzin

Shooting in Russia, casualties and shooter are Armenian

Goris town deputy mayor on captured Armenia soldiers return: Negotiator was the Russian side

"I have the honor" bloc member: We must achieve Azeri forces withdrawal from Artsakh territories by talks

Armenia President receives Masdar's representatives

Vanetsyan: It was assumed that Armenia would recognize Karabakh in case of war

Lavrov: Turkey, Iran interests are considered when discussing unblocking of regional communications

Armenia PM contender: 2 of 3 principles of Karabakh conflict have been violated

Vanetsyan: Possibility of deeper Armenia-Russia integration should be considered after our coming to power

Russia FM: Nagorno-Karabakh status issue has yet to be agreed upon

Tuesdays fire at Yerevan landfill not put out yet

Armenia Ombudsman: Manipulating issues of return of captives during election campaign increases tension

Woman, 84, dies at Yerevan hospital after being attacked by stray dogs

99 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Blinken to Menendez: US will continue to take a look at possible suspension of aid to Azerbaijan

Security Council chief meets with head of Red Cross mission to Artsakh

Armenia MOD: Disoriented, captured soldier is in Stepanakert

World oil prices on the rise

Newspaper: Armenia ruling party is "singing its swan song

Newspaper: Armenia state institutions employees are warned not to attend ex-President Kocharyan's rallies

Researchers record highest level of CO2 emissions in history

Armenia ex-President Sargsyan: Russians have mainly fulfilled their obligations as ally

Armenia ombudsman considers election campaign climate "extremely worrying"

Palestinian leaders arrive in Cairo for talks on reinforcing ceasefire with Israel

Blinken: 'Hundreds' of US sanctions against Iran to remain in effect

Armenia MOD: Official investigation launched against 2 military unit commanders who were dismissed today

Armenian serviceman who was captured today has been returned

UN Security Council endorses Antonio Guterres who is running for Secretary-General for the second time

Armenia Prosecutor General's Office launches case on Armenian serviceman beaten by Azerbaijani soldiers

US is ready to provide technical support for delimitation of border between Armenia and Azerbaijan

Armenia 3rd President to Nikol Pashinyan: I'm giving that depraved 24 hours

"Armenia" bloc calls on Central Electoral Commission to respond to Nikol Pashinyan's calls for violence

Armenian National Congress Party member: People who talk about peace achieve the greatest victories

"Armenia" bloc member: Pashinyan dismissed regiment commanders because they refused to advocate for him

Armenia MOD: Incident between Armenian and Azerbaijani soldiers took place a week ago

Armenia ruling Civil Contract Party holding campaign meeting in Ashtarak, led by Nikol Pashinyan (LIVE)

Soldier ends up on Azerbaijan territory, Baku starts trial against Armenia POW, Jun 8 digest

Head of Armenia's Geghamasar village endorses Robert Kocharyan, to manage bloc's territorial headquarters

"Armenia" bloc representative: I call on law-enforcement authorities to get ready to perform their duties

Armenia President receives acting high-tech and economy ministers and CEO of FAST

Armenia 2nd President says his bloc is against vendettas, supports justice

Armenia opposition party's candidate for PM Samvel Babayan makes call to citizens
250 rockets fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel. The army responds with airstrikes on strategic Hamas targets. The inertia of the international community. From the first protests over the ban on prayer during Ramadan to the Sheikh Jarrah controversy, many issues remain unresolved.

Jerusalem (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Dozens of victims, hundreds of injured and an escalation of violence destined to continue despite the (timid) appeals for calm launched by the international community. Throughout the night and until the first light of dawn, fighting continued between Israel and the extremist Islamic movement of Hamas in Gaza. Military sources report that at least 250 rockets have been launched from the Strip into Israeli territory, most of which have been intercepted by the "Iron Dome" defense system. However, a small part also touched the outskirts of Jerusalem, sounding alarms and hastily evacuating Parliament.

The attacks continued this morning as well, with rocket launches in the direction of Ashkelon in southern Israel. The air force response was extremely tough with targeted operations which, according to military sources, hit at least 130 Hamas targets in Gaza. These include the home of a prominent leader of the movement, the intelligence headquarters, two tunnels and rocket storage and depot sites.

Meanwhile, clashes continued between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli police in Jerusalem, triggered by the growing repression of the police who prevented the faithful from reaching the Al Aqsa for Ramadan, the holy month of fasting and prayer.

Added to this is the controversy relating to the ownership of some buildings in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, disputed between Palestinians and Jewish settlers and ended up in courtrooms, becoming a pretext for further clashes. Israeli intellectuals and activists also point out that the eviction, justified as restitution because in the past the owners were Jews, represents a case of "ethnic cleansing" and according to this principle many other homes and goods should be returned to the Palestinians.

Health sources in Gaza report that at least 22 people have died in Israeli raids, including several children. Senior Israeli officials speak of 15 Hamas members among the victims. The extremist group is threatening new attacks as part of the "Jerusalem Sword" operation. The Israeli army responded to the Palestinian attacks with the "Guardian of the Walls" operation, which is set to continue in the coming days. The Palestinian Red Crescent speaks of over 700 injured in the clashes between the parties in Jerusalem and the West Bank, some of them in serious condition.

It is the most serious violence in Jerusalem in recent years. Interim Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke of "crossing the red line" to which the military will respond "with great force". The international community observes with concern and launches (timid and so far in vain) appeals for calm. An urgent meeting of the UN Security Council was held yesterday, which however did not produce a joint declaration at the end of the meeting.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has made rather dubious statements about Canada and France.

"Sometimes countries that are located on the other corner of the world make statements related to the [Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh)] conflict, or the processes taking place in Azerbaijan; this is inadmissible. I can bring Canada as an example. I was recently informed that the Canadian ministry of foreign affairs had issued a statement on Azerbaijan regarding our internal affairs. By what right? Who gave it that right? Is it possible that it is a superpower, but we did not know? Could it be the second Luxembourg, a second superpower has appeared, but we were not aware of it? Let them deal with their own affairs," Aliyev said in an interview with Azerbaijani television.

"I deny the statements made by the French foreign ministry. We have repeatedly expressed our demands to the French side to leave us alone. Go and deal with your affairs! A representative of the French Senate arrives in Yerevan, announces that the French Senate recognizes Nagorno-Karabakh. When we appeal to the French government agencies on this issue, express our complaint, we are told not to pay attention, it is a legislative body, it does not reflect the position of the [French] government. Well, does the [French] ministry of foreign affairs also reflect the position of the government? What are those statements? Let them deal with their own affairs," the Azerbaijani president continued indignantly.

Aliyev was particularly angry at the reaction of the international community to the "military trophy park" that recently opened in the Azerbaijani capital Baku. "Turtles of slain leaders of the Algerian national movement are on display in French museums. Look at yourselves in the mirror. How many times do I have to say that? I have to tell journalists, foreign journalists, foreign politicians. I should say instead of keeping silent. But let them, too, deal with their own affairs. They, too, have sunk into problems. They have thousands of problems," Aliyev said.
by Mathias Hariyadi

Like last year, the traditional exodus associated with Eid celebration has been banned. Checkpoints and roadblocks have been set up across the country. More than 6,700 mudikers have been tested. Indonesia so far has reported 1.7 million cases, but the actual number is likely to be 10 times those admitted by the authorities. People move at night to avoid checkpoints.

Jakarta (AsiaNews)  Due to COVID-19, the government of President Joko Jokowi Widodo has again banned travel for Eid al Fitri celebrations, which mark the end of Ramadan, the month of fasting. The ban came into force on 6 May and is set to last until 17 May.

Traditionally, millions of people leave the cities to return to their hometown to reunite with families for the Eid. The homecoming is known as Mudik.

Restrictive measures are designed to stop the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19. As a result of the ban, in the capital police set up checkpoints at main access roads into the city. Usually, during Mudik, Jakarta's population drops from 13 to 6 million.

Economy Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartato yesterday said that 4,123 mudikers out of 6,742 tested positive for the coronavirus in Java in recent days. The random testing was carried out at 318 security posts.

Indonesia has so far reported 1.7 million cases with more than 47,000 deaths. However, according to epidemiologist Dicky Budiman, it is likely that the actual numbers are 10 times higher than those provided by the authorities.

In his view, tracing and testing are not conducted in accordance with World Health Organization protocols. What is more, government regulations have not stopped people from travelling.

Many mudikers move at night, on foot or cross waterways with their own cars to avoid checkpoints and roadblocks, this according to Nurharyati, a woman who travelled from Tangerang (Banten province) to Cilacap (Central Java), and spoke to AsiaNews.

Considering the health risks, another woman, Nanik, said that she gave up the traditional visit. Better stay home in Bekasi instead of risking contagion by going to my birthplace in Yogyakarta.
Review of US policy towards Pyongyang concluded: North Koreans willing to talk about it. A first contact between the two parties failed in February. Washington will not seek a grand "take it or leave it" deal, but a "gradualist" approach on the denuclearization of North Korea.

Seoul (AsiaNews) - The Kim Jong-un regime has "welcomed" the Biden administration's offer to explain the results of its North Korea policy review, which concluded on April 30.

The South Korean news agency Yonhap reported this morning that Pyongyang responded to an invitation made by Washington last week. In April, the US government admitted that a first attempt at contact, dating back to mid-February, had not received a response.

North Korea is isolated from the international community (except from China and partly from Russia), and has been subjected to international sanctions for years for its nuclear and missile program.

Since the end of 2017, in the framework of negotiations with Donald Trump, the then-incumbent US president, Pyongyang has unilaterally decreed a moratorium on nuclear tests and long-range ballistic tests.

Negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang are stalled. The North Koreans are demanding that the United States abandon its aggressive policy for their return to talks.

The US State Department has specified that the Biden presidency will not seek a major "take it or leave it" deal. According to analysts, this means that Washington will follow a "gradualist" approach to push the North Koreans to abandon their nuclear weapons.
Armenian News - NEWS.am presents the daily digest of Armenia-related top news as of 11.05.21:

After discussing the issue of the election of the Prime Minister during Monday's special session, the Armenian parliament failed to endorse Nikol Pashinyan as a candidate for PM for the second time.

Thus, the process of snap elections has begun in Armenia, and the National Assembly has been dissolved by law. Before the formation of a new parliament, deputies will continue to perform their duties and exercise their powers.

Armenian president Armen Sarkissian has already signed an appropriate decree.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan officially submitted his resignation on April 25 - it was the first step in triggering the process to hold snap parliamentary elections on June 20.

Russian FM Sergey Lavrov has arrived in Baku on an official visit.

Earlier, he was in Armenia - to discuss issues over Nagorno-Karabakh's recent conflict.

During the meeting with Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev, Lavrov noted that border issues in the Nagorno-Karabakh [(Artsakh)] region can be resolved despite the complexity.

" Now, the details on the ground need to be dealt with. There are demarcation issues. Not everything is easy, but is solvable, in our conviction. Military experts, with the participation of diplomats, can agree on mutually acceptable solutions," Lavrov said.

During an interview with an Azerbaijani TV channel, Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev has made rather dubious statements about Canada and France.

"Sometimes countries that are located on the other corner of the world make statements related to the Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) conflict, or the processes taking place in Azerbaijan; this is inadmissible," he noted.

"I can bring Canada as an example. I was recently informed that the Canadian ministry of foreign affairs had issued a statement on Azerbaijan regarding our internal affairs," he said. "Let them deal with their own affairs."

Aliyev was particularly angry at the reaction of the international community to the "military trophy park" that recently opened in the Azerbaijani capital Baku.

The park displays trophy helmets and dummies of Armenian soldiers who were martyred in last year's war in Nagorno-Karabakh.

"Turtles of slain leaders of the Algerian national movement are on display in French museums," AluBut let them, too, deal with their own affairs. They, too, have sunk into problems. They have thousands of problems," Aliyev said.

The man has brought a donkey to the gates of the Armenian parliament building.

A 36-year-old resident of Tavush Province has been seen with a suspicious drug. The Yerevan police are preparing a report in this regard.

Sevada Ghukasyan was released, whereas the donkeybefore being handed over to himwas taken to an animal care center in Yerevan.

As of Tuesday morning, 243 new cases of the coronavirus were confirmed in Armenia, and the total number of these cases has reached 219,596 in the country.

Also, three more deaths from COVID-19 were registered, making the respective total 4,256 cases.

The number of people who have recovered over the past one day is 475, the total respective number so far is 205,675.

Azerbaijan is not only failing to implement the provisions on the unconditional return of POWs stated in the trilateral statement signed by Russia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan but is also daringly trying to present the POWs as mercenaries - launching phony criminal cases against them.

Prosecutor General of Azerbaijan Kamran Aliyev noted that regular criminal cases have been launched, including the case against citizens of Lebanon who are of Armenian descent and whom Azerbaijan is trying to present as mercenaries.

Aliyev declared that investigations into criminal cases against other 'terrorists' are almost over.

At least 11 people died during the shooting at an educational institution in Kazan, capital of the Republic of Tatarstan, a semi-autonomous region in Russia.

The President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov announced seven dead - four boys and three girls, all - students of the eighth grade.

16 people - twelve children and four adults - are hospitalized.

According to preliminary data, teenagers have opened fire - one of them was detained, the other was eliminated.

Psychologists are working with evacuated children.

A criminal case was initiated.
The European Union has filed a new lawsuit against AstraZeneca that could lead to financial sanctions against a company that the EU claims had violated a contract to supply COVID-19 vaccines, Reuters reported.

This is the second EU lawsuit against AstraZeneca after it took action in late April over delays in vaccine supplies.

AstraZeneca said the first EU lawsuit is unfounded, saying it has complied with the terms of the contract.

The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker initially pledged to deliver 300 million doses of the vaccine from December to the end of June, but delayed shipments, delivering only 50 million, which were contracted to be delivered in January.

As partial and immediate compensation for delays, the company is expected to deliver 120 million doses by the end of June - 90 million in the second quarter, in addition to the 30 million doses shipped by the end of March, an EU lawyer told the court.

Officials familiar with the case said the second trial is mostly procedural and substantive, but also allows for financial penalties to be imposed on the company.

The EU has put forward a request for preliminary compensation of  1 while the damage assessment is being carried out. AstraZeneca's decision to claim effective compensation for breach of contract will be considered at a later stage.

The official said the fine could be significant, but he declined to quantify the financial claim that could be approved by a judge.
In a note, the patriarchate expressed discouragement and concern over the violence in East Jerusalem, the al-Aqsa mosque and Palestinian properties in Sheikh Jarrah. Blocking access to sacred places during Ramadan is an "unacceptable" deprivation of "basic human rights". By Israel "discriminatory" use of the rule of law.

Jerusalem (AsiaNews) - "Disheartened and concerned " like the other heads of the Churches of the Holy Land by the violence in East Jerusalem, the al-Aqsa mosque and Sheikh Jarrah, which violate "the holiness of the people and the city" as a source " of peace". This is what the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem states in an official note, in response to the escalation of violence taking place in recent days between Israelis and Palestinians, which has caused dozens of victims and hundreds of injured. Violence against the faithful and forced expropriations, the statement continues, "undermine security and access rights to sacred places" and are an "unacceptable violation of basic human rights".

Adding to the tension is Israel's "discriminatory" use of the rule of law, which joins the attempt "inspired by an extremist ideology" to deny "the right to exist to those who live in their homes". Another thorny issue is the denied right of access to holy places, as was the case with Muslims during Ramadan in al-Aqsa. These are manifestations, the note emphasizes, that "wound the spirit and soul of the Holy City, whose vocation is to be open and welcoming, to be a home for all believers, with equal rights, dignity and duties".

Here is the full text of the statement:

With all the Heads of Churches, we are profoundly disheartened and concerned about the recent violent events in East Jerusalem, whether at the Al Aqsa Mosque or in Sheikh Jarrah, which violate the sanctity of the people of Jerusalem and of Jerusalem as the City of Peace and require of an urgent intervention.

The violence used against the worshippers undermines their safety and their rights to have access to the Holy Places and worship freely. The forced eviction of Palestinians from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah is also an unacceptable violation of the most fundamental human rights, the right to a home. It is a question of justice for the inhabitants of the city to live, pray and work, each according to his/her own dignity; a dignity bestowed upon humanity by God himself.

Regarding the situation in Sheik Jarrah, we echo the words of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights who said that the rule of law is being "applied in an inherently discriminatory manner". This has become a main flashpoint amid rising tensions in Jerusalem in general. The issue today is not a matter of a real-estate dispute between private parties. It is rather an attempt driven by an extremist ideology which denies the right of existence of a person in his own home.

Also of particular concern is the right to access the Holy Places. Palestinian worshippers have been denied access to Al Aqsa Mosque during this month of Ramadan. These demonstrations of strength wound the spirit and soul of the Holy City, whose vocation is to be open and welcoming; to be a home for all believers, with equal rights and dignity and duties.

The historic position of the Churches in Jerusalem is clear with regards to our denouncement of any attempt which makes Jerusalem an exclusive city for anyone. This is a city sacred to the three monotheistic religions and, based on international law and relevant UN resolutions, also a city where the Palestinian people, Christians and Muslims, have the same right to build a future based on freedom, equality and peace. We also call for an utter respect for the historic Status Quo of all Holy Places, including Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound.

The authority that controls the city should protect the special character of Jerusalem, called to be the heart of the Abrahamic faiths, a place of prayer and meeting, open to all and where all believers and citizens, of every faith and belonging, can feel at home, protected and guaranteed.

Our Church has been clear that peace requires justice. Insofar as far as the rights of everyone, Israelis and Palestinians, are not upheld and respected, there will be no justice and therefore no peace in the city. It is our duty not to ignore injustice nor any aggression against human dignity regardless of who is committing them.

We call upon the International Community, the Churches and all people of goodwill to intervene in order to put an end to these provocative actions, and to continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. We join in prayer with the intention of the Holy Father Pope Francis that the multi-religious and multi-cultural identity of the Holy City might be respected and that fraternity might prevail.
Armenia 1st President: If we Armenians miss this moment as well, very bad things will happen

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: I have reasonable doubts that Shushi was deliberately handed over

Azerbaijan provides documents on 6 captured Armenia soldiers health condition

Police apprehend 16 ARF youths near Armenia government building

Ex-President Kocharyan on acting PM idea to exchange son for Armenian captives in Azerbaijan: Primitive stupidity

Armenia acting premier receives acting US assistant secretary of state

ARF youth close off downtown Yerevan street

Yerevan police forcibly apprehend protesting ARF members

Armenia acting PM in Lori Province, he is accompanied by State Protection Service head (PHOTOS)

ARF of Armenia presents facts about high treason

Permit documents can now be submitted online at Armenia border checkpoints

76 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

World oil prices dropping

Armenia interim government holding Cabinet meeting

Daily Express: Brussels angry over upcoming Biden-Putin meeting

Newspaper: Bright Armenia Party leader gives acting US deputy secretary of state sanctions list on Azeri authorities

American billionaires pay little income tax

Most livable city for 2021 is announced

Newspaper: Artsakh President makes controversial decision

WTO countries agree to intensify negotiations on easing access to coronavirus vaccines

Armenia Ombudsman: Trials against Armenian POWs continue in Azerbaijan with gross violations of international law

Ankara hopes Erdogan and Biden find common ground

Acting US Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs Philip Reeker arrives in Yerevan

Candidate for Armenia PM: Heads of headquarters of Democratic Party are apprehended

More on COVID-19 and tense election campaign in Armenia, June 9 digest

Members of European Parliament call on Yerevan and Baku to start exchanging information for demining

Members of Armenian opposition Adekvad Union post posters reading "Antinikol" near government building

France says it will do everything it can to ensure Amazon is subject to minimum global tax

UN warns of likelihood of mass deaths from hunger and disease in Myanmar

Beijing accuses Washington of paranoid mania

Stanislav Zas: There are still risks of escalation of the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border

Trump supports Nigerian government decision to block Twitter access

Erdogan announces visit to Shushi with his family

Armenia ruling party MP Hamazasp Danielyan drops mandate

Armenia ex-president shares promised record about acting PM

Armenia acting PM ends campaign meeting in Gyumri with march, accompanied by many security officers

"Armenia" bloc holding rally in Yerevan

Opposition Bright Armenia Party leader inviting Nikol Pashinyan to a debate

Nagorno-Karabakh issue discussed within the scope of Russian-Turkish consultations in Moscow

168.am: Armenia acting PM in Gyumri, snipers on roof of city council

Armenian authorities forcing employees of educational institutions and nuclear power plant to attend campaign meetings

Putin-Biden meeting in Geneva to take place in 18th-century villa

Armenia opposition party leader: There are 1,837 Armenians who lost their extremities after war in Artsakh

Bright Armenia Party leader slams discourse over transferring acting PM's son in exchange of POWs

Leader of opposition Liberty Party says Armenia acting PM steals over $2,500 from budget every month

Headquarters of political party running in elections applies to Prosecutor General's Office and Police of Armenia

Armenia Ombudsman's Office, Central Electoral Commission hold discussion to guarantee citizens' suffrage

Armenia acting premier, "support group" employees visit Shirak Province

Tech Week Artsakh 2021 to be held in Stepanakert

Armenia Elections Oversight Committee: Such development of events might lead to clashes

2 citizens apprehended for electoral bribery in Armenia's Gavar

Republican Party of Armenia vice-president: Serzh Sargsyan disclosed an audio recording a little while ago

Dollar continues dropping in Armenia

Armenia High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs, Ukraine deputy FM express willingness for cooperation

Turkeys Erdogan to visit Artsakhs Shushi

Armenia health ministry: 5 of 11 children with acute gastroenteritis are discharged from hospital

Azerbaijan MOD publicly admits that it is not well-established

Armenia independent MP: Acting premier is leading country to events similar to those of March 1, 2008

Russia resumes air communication with Armenia

Armenian man says Nikol Pashinyan 'liberated' Armenia's Etchmiadzin

Shooting in Russia, casualties and shooter are Armenian

Goris town deputy mayor on captured Armenia soldiers return: Negotiator was the Russian side

"I have the honor" bloc member: We must achieve Azeri forces withdrawal from Artsakh territories by talks

Armenia President receives Masdar's representatives

Vanetsyan: It was assumed that Armenia would recognize Karabakh in case of war

Lavrov: Turkey, Iran interests are considered when discussing unblocking of regional communications

Armenia PM contender: 2 of 3 principles of Karabakh conflict have been violated

Vanetsyan: Possibility of deeper Armenia-Russia integration should be considered after our coming to power

Russia FM: Nagorno-Karabakh status issue has yet to be agreed upon

Tuesdays fire at Yerevan landfill not put out yet

Armenia Ombudsman: Manipulating issues of return of captives during election campaign increases tension

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Security Council chief meets with head of Red Cross mission to Artsakh

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World oil prices on the rise

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Researchers record highest level of CO2 emissions in history
Taipei still pushing for seat at WHO summit

Taiwan says it has yet to receive an invitation to a World Health Organization meeting later this month. File photo: Shutterstock .

Taiwan will fight to the end for an invitation to a World Health Organization (WHO) meeting this month, its foreign ministry said on Monday, but China said there was no room for compromise.



The rich-nation Group of Seven (G7) has called for Taiwan to attend the WHO's decision-making body, the World Health Assembly, which meets from May 24.



US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated that on Sunday, and Taiwan says it's urgent during the Covid-19 pandemic.



Taiwan Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou said they had yet to receive an invite.



"But the Foreign Ministry will continue to work together with the Ministry of Health and Welfare to fight to the last minute and do everything possible for our right to participate in the meeting," she said in a statement.



Taiwan is locked out of most global organisations such as the WHO due to the objections of China.



While the WHO cooperates with Taiwan's technical experts on Covid-19, it is up to member states whether to invite Taiwan to observe the WHO meeting, the WHO's principal legal officer Steve Solomon said at a news briefing on Monday.



Such an invite would need a vote, and China can easily corral enough friendly countries to block it, according to diplomats.



In Beijing, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying condemned the United States for its "political manipulation" of the issue, and said Taiwan had to accept it was part of China if it wanted access to global bodies, something the government will not do.



"I want to emphasise once again that the Taiwan issue concerns China's core interests. China has no room for compromise," Hua told reporters.



Taiwan says it is nonsense for China to claim it has the right to speak for it on the international stage when Beijing has no say in how it is governed.



The WHO says it has cooperated with Taiwan during the pandemic and that the island has received help needed. (Reuters)
Ex-official Patrick Ho has doctor's licence suspended

The Medical Council says Patrick Ho has committed two counts of professional misconduct. File photo: RTHK.

Former home affairs chief Patrick Ho has had his doctor's licence suspended for a year by the Medical Council in light of his bribery convictions in the US in 2018.



Following a disciplinary hearing on Tuesday, which Ho and his lawyers did not attend, the medical watchdog ruled that the ophthalmologist had committed two counts of professional misconduct.



It also issued Ho a warning letter, saying he had failed to notify the council about his convictions in a timely manner.



The regulator said it decided on the penalty after taking into account his past contributions to society.



Ho was appointed as home affairs secretary by former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa in 2002.



In March 2019, he was sentenced by a US federal court to three years in jail for bribery and money laundering in a case involving oil rights for CEFC China Energy in Chad and Uganda.



Ho completed his jail term last year and was deported from the US, returning to the SAR.
Once it arrives in Baltimore, Glazer said he plans to display the bike not in a museum, as The Daily Mail reported, but in his Federal Hill offices. He believes the historic building was part of the Underground Railroad. Hell use the bike as a comment on what he sees as the inherent racism of the royal system, based on hereditary principle. The royal system is racial, said, Glazer, who is married to a Black woman and has children with her. That alone is what offends me.. I think thats the basis for racism.
HK recognises 10 vaccines for reduced quarantine

The government says it will recognise jabs produced by well-known manufacturers such as AstraZeneca, BioNTech and Moderna. Image: Shutterstock

Wendy Wong reports

The government says it will recognise 10 different coronavirus vaccines for Hong Kong residents to be allowed shorter quarantine periods when they return from overseas.



From Wednesday, the quarantine period will be cut from 14 days to seven for fully vaccinated travellers flying in from "low-risk" countries such as Australia, New Zealand and Singapore.



Those coming back from "medium and high-risk" countries, including Canada and the US, will be required to undergo 14 days of quarantine instead of 21, again only if theyre fully vaccinated.



The government said it will recognise vaccines made by well-known manufacturers such as AstraZeneca, BioNTech and Moderna. Five mainland-made vaccines, including those produced by Sinovac and Sinopharm, will also be accepted.



But travellers from "very high-risk countries", including Ireland and the UK, will be put under quarantine for 21 days regardless of whether they have taken a vaccine or not.



Meanwhile, anyone who has stayed for more than two hours in countries considered "extremely high-risk", including Brazil, India, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines and South Africa, are not allowed to board a flight to Hong Kong.
BEIJING (AP)  Two amateur computer coders pleaded guilty Tuesday to stirring up trouble and picking quarrels" in a case that highlighted a growing Chinese government crackdown on online activity.

Chen Mei, 28, and Cai Wei, 27, created an online archive that stored articles that had been censored from the Chinese internet, and an accompanying forum that allowed people to discuss them anonymously.

In court, prosecutors zeroed in on 2049bbs, the forum accompanying the archive. They said Cai was responsible for building a website that had insulted the government, and Chen had paid for it, Chens mother, Wei Xiuwen, told reporters outside the court.

Family and friends believe what got them in trouble was archiving articles showing an alternative to Chinas official narrative about its coronavirus response just as the country started facing questions over its handling of the initial outbreak.

The case was tried at Wenyuhe Peoples Court in the northeastern outskirts of Beijing. The court said sentencing would come at a later date.

The charge stirring up trouble and picking quarrels" is a catch-all charge often used for politically sensitive cases.

Chens mother, who traveled from northwestern Shaanxi province to attend the hearing, said her son wore a full-body medical protective suit and had his hands cuffed and feet shackled. She could tell which one was her son, as he is shorter than Cai, but was unable to make eye contact. The only time her son spoke was to plead guilty, she said.

The two men have been held for more than a year since authorities detained them without warning in April 2020, along with Cai's girlfriend Tang Hongbo. Family and friends only knew something was wrong when they realized they hadn't had any contact with any of them three in days. Tang was later released after it became clear she did not know about the others' work online.

Their parents had not seen them for more than a year, as both lived in Beijing for work. Throughout the process, the families pressed for the two to have access to their own lawyers, but the court appointed lawyers for them instead.

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If I can shoulder the consequences for him, I would, said Cai's father, Cai Jianli, from Guangdong province in southern China.

The parents were not able to speak with their children. Cai Jianli said the court-appointed lawyers told them to keep quiet in court.

Cai and Chen created the archive in 2018, keeping hundreds of censored articles. The forum saw discussions on sensitive issues that could not be freely discussed on the Chinese internet including the anti-government protests in Hong Kong and complaints about the ruling Communist Party. Forum users also discussed the pandemic after cases were first detected in Wuhan in late 2019.

Terminus2049, the archive itself, primarily housed articles that had been deleted from Wechat and Weibo, popular social media platforms that are subject to regular algorithmic and human censorship. While similar databases existed, most were blocked in China. Terminus2049 was available on Github, a code sharing platform that is not blocked.

The forum and archive never had major reach, but the case has attracted the attention of a few.

One supporter waited outside the court Tuesday to give two bouquets of chamomile flowers to the parents. The 25-year old, who declined to be named out of fear of repercussions, said she thought the two men had done a service for society during the pandemic by showing there was more than one official story.

___

Wu reported from Taipei, Taiwan. Associated Press news assistant Caroline Chen contributed to this story.
A 6-year-old girl was shot and killed on Mothers Day when an argument at a car club event led to a barrage of gunfire, Texas police say.

Saryah Perez was sitting in the backseat of a vehicle at the San Antonio gathering Sunday when one of the bullets struck her upper torso, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said Monday afternoon. Saryah died at a local hospital.

Police on Monday identified 23-year-old Andrew Ray Elizondo as the suspect in the shooting. He faces a capital murder charge.

Its a random act by a reckless, heartless individual who could not have cared less where those bullets wounded up, McManus said Monday when announcing the arrest.

Elizondo was an acquaintance of Saryahs mother but the shooting was not a domestic violence-related incident, according to the police chief. Its unclear what circumstances behind the argument led to the shooting.

Saryahs mother, Kassandra Mendoza, was struck by shrapnel during the shooting, McManus said. When she went to ask for help, she discovered her daughter was shot, the San Antonio Express-News reported

McManus attended a vigil Monday night for Saryah and was seen in footage from WOAI consoling the girls family. The vigil was held at a convenience store parking lot where the shooting took place.

She took her last breath in my arms, Mendoza said, according to WOAI. Stop using guns, they took my baby because of a gun, put them down.

Signs people held at the vigil included phrases Stop the violence and Put the guns down, dont be a coward, the Express-News reported.

Mendoza said she will never forgive Elizondo for the shooting, KSAT reported. She described her daughter as a girl who loved everyone.

They did this, Mendoza said at the vigil, according to KSAT. They took her from me! Why? She wasnt doing anything wrong! She was enjoying herself!

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A 6-year-old girl was shot and killed on Mothers Day when an argument at a car club event led to a barrage of gunfire, Texas police say.

Saryah Perez was sitting in the backseat of a vehicle at the San Antonio gathering Sunday when one of the bullets struck her upper torso, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said Monday afternoon. Saryah died at a local hospital.

Police on Monday identified 23-year-old Andrew Ray Elizondo as the suspect in the shooting. He faces a capital murder charge.

Its a random act by a reckless, heartless individual who could not have cared less where those bullets wounded up, McManus said Monday when announcing the arrest.

Elizondo was an acquaintance of Saryahs mother but the shooting was not a domestic violence-related incident, according to the police chief. Its unclear what circumstances behind the argument led to the shooting.

Saryahs mother, Kassandra Mendoza, was struck by shrapnel during the shooting, McManus said. When she went to ask for help, she discovered her daughter was shot, the San Antonio Express-News reported

McManus attended a vigil Monday night for Saryah and was seen in footage from WOAI consoling the girls family. The vigil was held at a convenience store parking lot where the shooting took place.

She took her last breath in my arms, Mendoza said, according to WOAI. Stop using guns, they took my baby because of a gun, put them down.

Signs people held at the vigil included phrases Stop the violence and Put the guns down, dont be a coward, the Express-News reported.

Mendoza said she will never forgive Elizondo for the shooting, KSAT reported. She described her daughter as a girl who loved everyone.

They did this, Mendoza said at the vigil, according to KSAT. They took her from me! Why? She wasnt doing anything wrong! She was enjoying herself!
Smoke billows following an Israeli airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip. (Getty Images)

Hours after hundreds of Palestinians were injured in confrontations with Israeli police near a flashpoint religious site in Jerusalems contested Old City, Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip fired dozens of rockets into Israel on Monday evening, triggering retaliatory Israeli strikes.

The exchange of fire continued into Tuesday, with deadly results. Israeli airstrikes on Gaza killed 26 people, nine of them children, Palestinian health officials said. Hundreds of rockets fired into Israel by Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants resulted in the deaths of two Israelis.

The rapid escalation of hostilities, which raised the specter of wider conflict, followed weeks of unrest in and near the Old City over the planned eviction of some Palestinians from their homes in East Jerusalem and curbs on Palestinian access to sensitive religious sites during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

An Israeli police water cannon is deployed near the Damascus Gate to the Old City of Jerusalem as a fire burns on May 10, 2021. (Mahmoud Illean / Associated Press)

Palestinians have lambasted days of aggressive behavior by Israeli police, including the bloodying of demonstrators and bystanders, and the firing of rubber-coated bullets and stun grenades into the Al Aqsa Mosque, which sits atop a disputed plateau in the heart of the Old City. It is the third-most sacred site in Islam and also revered by Jews as the Temple Mount, and access is controlled by Israeli security. A widely viewed video circulated on social media showed Israeli police kicking and beating a Palestinian taken into custody near the site.

As rockets were fired toward the Jerusalem area from Gaza soon after 6 p.m. on Monday, sirens sounded throughout the city. People fled playgrounds, hurrying for shelter with their children. Footage showed one Jerusalem park empty, with dozens of strollers left behind.

The Knesset, Israels parliament, halted a session so lawmakers could seek shelter. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israels politically embattled leader, said Israeli forces would respond very forcefully to strikes by Palestinian militants from inside Gaza, which is ruled by Hamas. He called the targeting of Jerusalem a red line.

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An official in Egypt told the Associated Press on Tuesday that the country was trying to broker a cease-fire.

Israeli security forces walk amid debris in Jerusalem's Al Aqsa Mosque compound on May 10, 2021. (Ahmad Gharabli / Getty Images)

In Gaza, the Health Ministry said nine children were among 26 people killed, while Israel's military said 15 of the dead were militants. The Palestinian Red Crescent said more than 300 Palestinians were hurt in confrontations earlier Monday with police in the Al Aqsa compound while Israeli authorities said 21 police officers and five Israeli civilians were injured in the area.

Tensions came to a head Monday as Israel marked Jerusalem Day, a holiday commemorating the Israeli capture of East Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. In a last-minute bid to tamp down confrontation between Palestinians and ultranationalist Jewish marchers, Israeli authorities rerouted part of a Jerusalem Day demonstration away from a sensitive area of the Old City, and forbade Jews to ascend the Temple Mount.

Although Hamas has often fired rockets at Israel, the targeting of Jerusalem, with its holy sites, marked a first since Israel and the militant group fought a 2014 war. The Israeli military reported a barrage of more than 250 rockets, one of which hit an apartment building, injuring six people. At least seven of the rockets were aimed toward Jerusalem.

Both Hamas and Islamic Jihad acknowledged carrying out the attacks, and Abu Ubaida, a spokesman for Hamas military wing, called the rocket strikes a message the enemy should understand."

Echoing a high-tech approach to past conflicts, an officer from Israels home-front command went on television to suggest that people download an app with rocket alerts. Citizens were also advised to seek shelter during an alert, and to lie flat on the ground, hands over head, if caught out in the open.

Wounded Palestinians sit at a hospital in the northern Gaza Strip. (Mohammed Abed / Getty Images)

Israeli schools within 25 miles of the Gaza border were to be closed Tuesday, and in central Israel, only schools with bomb shelters would be in session, authorities said.

The growing volatility of the situation had a familiar feel to many. On Hebrew-language social media, a quote by the late playwright Hanoch Levin circulated as a meme: In Israel there are only three seasons: winter, summer and war.

The potential opening of a new phase of hostilities finds Israel in a state of political limbo, as the prime ministers opponents seek to form a governing coalition following an inconclusive national election, the fourth in two years.

The unrest could hamper efforts by seven political parties calling themselves the Change Bloc  an anti-Netanyahu grouping that for the first time includes an Arab party  to form a coalition.

On the Palestinian side, with elections postponed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, the rocket attacks were seen by some as a bid by Hamas to claim a greater role in responding to recent events in Jerusalem. Those include the prospective evictions in the



East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheik Jarrah, where Jewish settlers have engaged in a legal fight to take over Palestinian homes. Israels Supreme Court was to have ruled in the case on Monday, but put off issuing a judgment.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Ned Price called the rocket attacks by Palestinian militants an unacceptable escalation, and called for calm on all sides.

But the Biden administrations relatively restrained response to Israeli police tactics against Palestinian demonstrators prompted criticism in some quarters. The liberal Jewish advocacy group J Street urged the Biden administration to respond to the continued use of intimidation and violent, excessive force against Palestinian protesters and worshipers.

Palestinian protesters move an object during an anti-Israel demonstration over tensions in Jerusalem at the Qalandiya checkpoint between Ramallah and Jerusalem on May 11, 2021. (Abbas Momani / Getty Images)

Special correspondent Kraft reported from Tel Aviv and staff writer King from Washington.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  Officials have not yet said who is responsible for the shot that killed a 3-month-old baby when his father died in a shootout with police on a highway last week in Mississippi.

Activists with Black Lives Matter Mississippi are calling for the release of police body camera footage of what happened May 3 near Biloxi. Investigators won't say whether any officers were wearing body cameras at the time.

A group gathered Sunday by Interstate 10, near the site of the shooting, to pay tribute to the life of infant LaMello Parker and two people who were killed earlier May 3. Authorities said Christin Parker, 32, and her nephew Brandon Parker, 26, were killed by La'Mello's father, Eric Derrell Smith, in a domestic dispute, leading to the police chase and standoff in which Smith and the baby were killed.

We want to have a coherent, truthful conversation about what happened and how this could have been avoided. Period, Anastassia Doctor, a Black Lives Matter Mississippi board member and Army veteran, told The Associated Press Monday. If this was a white man with a white child, would they have done the same thing?

Smith, 30, was suspected of killing his ex-girlfriend, Christin, and her nephew at a home in Baker, Louisiana, on May 3. Smith then kidnapped La'Mello and left the scene, according to investigators.

In a Facebook post on May 3, the sheriff's office from East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, alerted the public to be on the lookout for Smith.

Right now, our top priority is locating that child safely, Sheriff Sid Gautreaux said.

Before Smith and La'Mello were killed, Smith led police on a chase across state lines. The pursuit was joined by more than a dozen officers from the Mississippi Highway Patrol, Gulfport Police Department and the Harrison County Sheriffs Department.

A video taken by a bystander shows the final barrage of gunfire after more than a dozen law enforcement vehicles pursued Smiths car. Police told WLOX-TV that both Smith and officers fired weapons.

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An autopsy determined that LaMello Parker died of a single gunshot wound. The coroner of Harrison County, Mississippi  Brian Switzer  told The Associated Press last week that Biloxi police investigators would examine the bullet to try to determine the source of the fatal shot.

Switzer said a pathologist will determine whether the fatal shot came from close range or a distance.

Biloxi police are investigating because none of that departments officers were involved. Biloxi Police Major Chris DeBack said Monday that he had no other details to release while the matter is still under investigation  including whether any officers were wearing body cameras at the time of the incident.

As soon as the investigation is completed, all the information will be forwarded to the district attorneys office for further review, DeBack said.

Family and friends of Christin Parker said that Smith had a history of domestic violence, and that she feared for her and her children's lives daily.

She got to a point where she just didnt know what to do," friend Johnnie Williams told WAFB-TV. A lot of people say, Get a restraining order, stuff like that. They know that dont stop them.

Christin Parker leaves four children, including one who was home when the shooting occurred. Her family's wish is that the loss will encourage more conversations about domestic violence, WAFB reported.

Get help now so this situation wont become your situation, Pastor Robert Scott, a family friend, said. "Walmart lost a great worker. The community lost a sweet and loving young lady. The children ... lost a parent that loved them dearly.

Reginald Virgil, who was at the vigil Sunday, questioned why officers from multiple departments couldn't de-escalate the situation without using deadly force.

Knowing that there was an infant in the vehicle, where were their hearts?" he told the AP. "Where is the empathy? Where is the concern for the Black lives that were in that vehicle? A total disregard for Black lives.

Sean Hendrickson, an instructor at Washington States Criminal Justice Training Center, said the situation is a difficult one for officers, who have to make quick decisions for the public's safety.

By law, police are allowed to pursue a suspect and use deadly force if they have reasonable suspicion that person has committed a violent crime and they are an imminent threat to the public.

Theres no amount of training that we can give where youre now balancing your own life, where you're being shot at and then not returning fire because theres an innocent person in the vicinity or even in the vehicle, he told the AP. I know thats not much of an answer, it's just there's is just no amount of training I think that we can do that gives you this answer, like the binary code, to 'go do this. "

___

Willingham is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
Andrew Brown Jr. was ambushed in his Elizabeth City driveway with his hands on the wheel of his car, dying in a hail of bullets without threatening the sheriffs deputies who fired them, his attorney said Tuesday after viewing additional body camera footage.

Attorney Chance Lynch watched 20 minutes of footage with Brown family members. He disputed the district attorneys prior account of Brown striking deputies with his vehicle. Instead, Brown backed up and turned away for them as deputies opened up, Lynch said.

There were so many shots that we had difficulty in counting the number, Lynch said.

Browns family and lawyers arrived at the Pasquotank County sheriffs office Tuesday to view the longer but still heavily redacted video of his death. Until Tuesday, family members had only seen about 20 seconds of body camera footage.

The footage from body cameras included audio, and Lynch said deputies were yelling so loud Brown could not have understood them.

You could see both hands, Lynch said of Brown. We could clearly see both hands.

Lynch emphasized that Browns car did not move until the first shot was fired.

Release the tape! The whole tape!

The Rev. William Barber II, speaking outside the sheriffs office on Tuesday, said the family should be able to see unredacted footage.

This is cruel and unusual punishment, Barber said. What are they hiding? What do they have to hide? To kill a young man, driving away, with a back shot and then to hide the tape.

The Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman, president of the NC NAACP, called Pasquotank County deputies lawless enforcement and said 16 minutes are another snippet.

After the family had spent about an hour inside, a chant broke out among several dozen in the parking lot: Release the tape! The whole tape! The real tape!

Brown, 42, died of a gunshot wound to the head on April 21 as deputies arrived at his home to serve search and arrest warrants based on a yearlong drug investigation.

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Neighbors reported seeing deputies open fire on Browns car as he fled, shooting out the back window, and a family commissioned autopsy found a kill shot to the back of his head, according to attorney Ben Crump.

The family has since sought access to all deputies body-cam footage and dashboard camera video.

A Superior Court judge denied media requests for the release, and the sheriffs office also sought permission to show video publicly. State law permits this only with a judges ruling, which the county commissioners have sought to change.

Some bipartisan support for wider access rules is also rising in the General Assembly.
CAIRO (Reuters) -The Arab League on Tuesday condemned deadly Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip and called on the international community to move urgently to stop escalating violence that it blamed on Israeli actions against Palestinians in Jerusalem.

The violence began with confrontations between Palestinian protesters and Israeli security forces at al Aqsa Mosque, a compound known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, in the heart of Jerusalem's walled Old City.

Israel carried out air strikes on Gaza, killing at least 28 people, after Palestinian militant groups based there unleashed barrages of rockets, some close to Jerusalem. Two people have been killed in Israel from rocket fire.

In a statement before the Arab League's meeting, its chairman Ahmed Aboul Gheit said: "Israeli violations in Jerusalem, and the government's tolerance of Jewish extremists hostile to Palestinians and Arabs, is what led to the ignition of the situation in this dangerous way."

The holy city has been tense during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, with sporadic unrest and the possibility of evictions of Palestinians from homes in East Jerusalem claimed by Jewish settlers in a court case adding fuel to the friction.

In a statement concluding their meeting, Arab League foreign ministers said they held Israel "fully responsible for whatever follows due to its crimes, which constitute glaring violations of U.N. decrees, international law and human rights law."

It called on international organizations including the U.N. Security Council to "immediately stop the Israeli aggression and provide the necessary protection for the Palestinian people and uphold their right to worship freely and safely".

The United Nations is working urgently to defuse tensions between Israel and the Palestinians, a U.N. spokesman said. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, he said, was saddened by the increasing numbers of casualties on both sides.

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In light of events in Jerusalem, Egypt declared its "total rejection and condemnation of these oppressive Israeli practices," Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told the League.

The head of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which held an emergency meeting in Jeddah, "praised the steadfastness of the Palestinian people stationed in the occupied city of Jerusalem and their response to the Israeli attacks on the holy sites", Saudi state agency SPA reported.

Turkey also condemned the Israeli air strikes.

"The Israeli government must finally understand that it will not be able to suppress the Palestinian people's legitimate rights and demands by using indiscriminate and disproportionate power," a Turkish foreign ministry statement said.

The Gaza health ministry said at least 28 Palestinians, including 10 children, had been killed. Israel disputed that account, saying it had killed at least 20 Hamas fighters and that a third of the hundreds of rockets launched by militants had fallen short, causing Palestinian civilian casualties.

(Reporting by Nadeen Ebrahim, Mohamed Zaki, Aziz El Yaakoubi and Daren Butler; Writing by Nadine Awadalla and Aidan Lewis; editing by Mark Heinrich)
May 11Honolulu police opened a first-degree arson investigation involving a small fire that broke out at the Hawaii Supreme Court building in downtown Honolulu early today.

The fire occurred at Aliiolani Hale at 417 S. King St. just after 1 :55 a.m.

The building is closed today as police and the Honolulu Fire Department investigate.

Police said it appeared a Molotov cocktail-type device was thrown at the front of the structure and ignited.

The fire burned one of the exterior doors of the building, resulting in residual smoke throughout the structure, according to state Judiciary spokeswoman Jan Kagehiro.

Authorities are also investigating a fire at a separate structure at 425 Queen St., located behind the Supreme Court building.

The state Department of Attorney General is located at the Queen Street building. Officers placed yellow police tape across the front of the building where there appears to be burn marks on the lower part of the exterior doors.

No injuries were reported.
(Independent)

Some of the shootings at a massage spa in Atlanta, Georgia in March were hate crimes, Fulton Countys district attorney announced on Tuesday. The four victims were targeted because they were women of Asian descent, the DA says, and the death penalty will be sought as punishment.

This is a breaking news story. More to follow
We always talk about how to reduce spending but we never relate it to a reduction in services, she said. Everything we do is services ... from police, to clean water, to recreation. Weve got to find a way, as were talking about expenses, to connect them to what people value.
By Sabine Siebold

(Reuters) - Austria on Tuesday rejected a plea for other European Union countries to accept migrants from Italy, following a surge in arrivals on Lampedusa that seems likely to expose deep-seated divisions across the bloc over migration.

More than 2,000 mostly African migrants have reached the tiny island off Italy's southern coast by boat since Sunday, overwhelming its reception centre.

On Monday, the EU's home affairs commissioner Ylva Johansson called on member states to show solidarity with Italy and support their relocation. The EU's executive said on Tuesday it had not yet received any pledges from countries to take any of them in.

Austria would not do so. "Austria is steering a very clear course: A distribution (of the Lampedusa migrants) all over Europe is not an approach that will bring a solution," its Europe minister, Karoline Edtstadler, said in Brussels.

The EU should rather help people in Africa directly, while also sending a message that not everyone who makes it to Europe can stay there, she added.

Lampedusa is one of the main landing points for people trying to get into Europe from Africa, and the latest arrivals were being transferred elsewhere in Italy.

The 27-nation EU has argued bitterly over migration since 2015, when over 1 million mostly Syrian, Iraqi or Afghan refugees reached its borders.

Arrivals dropped significantly to about 95,000 last year, according to United Nations data, most to Italy, Spain and Greece.

In 2019, Italy agreed a plan with other European states to redistribute migrants after they arrived.

But that voluntary scheme has not provided a stable solution, and a cross-EU pact to tackle the issue proposed by the Commission last September has not been ratified as Hungary and Poland have refused to participate.

The Italian government on Tuesday denied a report by the La Repubblica newspaper that it would ask the EU to pay Libya - where the vast majority of African refugees travelling by sea depart from - to stop migrant boats leaving its coast.

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The bloc struck such a deal with Turkey in 2016 to stem migrant flows from the Balkans.

"At the moment there is no initiative regarding creating a similar deal" with Libya, an official in the prime minister's office said.

The official said the government's view was that the EU must give more attention to the situation in the southern Mediterranean and be ready to offer financial help to all African countries involved in migrant flows.

(Reporting by Sabine Siebold, Clement Rossignol and Gavin Jones; Editing by John Chalmers and John Stonestreet)
May 10Authorities are looking for a missing South Hall woman who was last seen picking up a prescription at a Cherokee County Walmart.

Mary Nicole Shoemake, 42, was believed to be in the Canton/Cherokee County area as of Sunday, May 9, according to the Hall County Sheriff's Office.

Shoemake is 4 feet, 11 inches and weighs 150 pounds. She has blonde hair and green eyes.

Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to contact the investigator at 770-533-7187.
Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Negotiations between Iran and the world powers on how to revive the 2015 nuclear accord will resume this weekend, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said on Wednesday, adding that Iran's June 18 presidential election was a complicating factor. "I know that the negotiation will start again over this coming weekend," Sherman said during a virtual event organized by the German Marshall Fund think tank. "I think there's been a lot of progress made, but, out of my own experience, until the last detail is nailed down, and I mean nailed down, we will not know if we have an agreement," Sherman, one of the key U.S. negotiators for the original deal, said.
In 2014 'Little Nicolas' was accused of impersonating public officials, including passing himself off as a secret service agent and falsifying state documents - AFP

A Spanish con artist who became Spain's most notorious gatecrasher has gone on trial in Madrid for posing as a royal envoy.

Francisco Nicolas Gomez Iglesias, a national celebrity, went on trial in Madrid on Tuesday accused of usurping a public servant, falsifying documents and bribery for a stunt he pulled as a 20-year-old student in 2014, when he is accused of posing as an aide to Spains royal household.

Mr Gomez Iglesias, known as Little Nicolas, is accused of travelling from Madrid to meet a businessman passing himself off as a royal household attache to Spains government.

Francisco Nicolas Gomez Iglesias aka 'Little Nicolas' attends the court accused of slandering to the National Centre of Intelligence (CNI) on April 24, 2018

He is accused of travelling to Ribadeo, northwestern Spain, in a convoy of four cars, two of which were driven by police officers he had hired for the day, using flashing beacons and had stickers using Interior Ministry accreditation. Mr Gomez Iglesias allegedly phoned the restaurant chosen beforehand so the staff was prepared for the arrival of a very important person.

I just wanted to trick the businessman and make it a very showy trip, Mr Gomez Iglesias, now 27 years-old, told the Madrid court on Tuesdays opening day of the trial.

I wanted to look like an important person, but not an official.

The trip to Ribadeo happened weeks after Mr Gomez Iglesias had managed to slip through security and become an uninvited guest at the coronation of Spains King Felipe VI.

Francisco Nicolas Gomez Iglesias at the coronation of King Felipe VI

The public prosecutor is asking for seven years imprisonment for Mr Gomez Iglesias, who is also due to face at least three further trials for allegedly impersonating a government official, hacking into government databases and falsifying his ID document so a friend could sit a university entrance exam in his place.

Mr Gomez Iglesias has made wild claims on TV shows about his alleged undercover work for the CNI secret service agency and his high-placed political connections as a youth leader of the Popular Party in Madrid. In 2019 he founded his own party called Young Influence.

In 2019 Mr Gomez Iglesias was acquitted on appeal of defaming Spains secret service agency, after he had accused the organisation of illegally tapping his telephone.

He is undergoing psychiatric treatment for a narcissistic personality disorder.
No, you haven't accidentally stepped into a time machine and emerged back in 2003: it appears Bennifer really might be a thing again.

After it was revealed Monday that exes Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck recently vacationed together for a week, TMZ reported Tuesday that they "didn't just rekindle their romance within the last two weeks," but "instead, it's been building since February." According to the report, Lopez and Affleck, who broke up in 2004, were in "very regular contact" beginning in early February, when Affleck "started flooding her with emails" while she was filming a movie in the Dominican Republic.

"We're told the tone of the emails wasn't just friendly," TMZ says, "but more loving and longing for Jen."

Affleck in one instance reportedly told Lopez she looked beautiful in photos and that he wished he could be down there with her in the Dominican Republic. They apparently emailed each other back and forth for Lopez's entire film shoot, which went until the end of April. The two were subsequently spotted together in May, setting the internet aflame and sparking rumors of a rekindled romance  though a source told Page Six at the time, "They are friends."

But on Monday, E! News quoted a source as saying Affleck and Lopez have "picked up where they last left off," also saying, "the chemistry is unreal." Lopez and Alex Rodriguez officially announced they were calling off their engagement in April, and Rodriguez, E! also reported, is apparently "shocked that J.Lo has moved on."

So, is Bennifer really back, then? Affleck's buddy Matt Damon, for one, is rooting for these crazy kids.

"I love them both," Damon told Today. "I hope it's true. That would be awesome."

More stories from theweek.com

The doom-loop of a falling fertility rate

The real reason Liz Cheney lost her job

Democrats are fiddling while Republicans prepare to burn down Rome


President Biden, with Vice President Kamala Harris behind him, speaks about the economy on May 10 at the White House. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press)

The White House has billed President Biden's first formal meeting Wednesday with Congress' "Big Four" leaders, two from each party, as an opportunity to talk about where Democrats and Republicans can find "common ground" on the country's most pressing issues.

The early signs aren't good. Last week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said he was "100% focused on stopping Biden's agenda. And just hours before the White House meeting, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield will lead his caucus' expulsion of Wyoming's Rep. Liz Cheney from its leadership because she has publicly condemned former President Trump for his lies that he won last year's election.

The two Republican leaders' short drive down Pennsylvania Avenue from Capitol Hill to the White House will be a journey between two realities, one dominated by Trump's assault on the democratic process and the other rooted in traditional political debates about the role of government in American life. The challenge of bridging that gap has left few optimistic about the possibility for bipartisan dealmaking in Washington.

Not only are many Republicans preoccupied with Trump's divisiveness and the culture war issues that animate many of their party's voters, but those lawmakers interested in policy are also staunchly opposed to Biden's major legislative proposals, in particular the cost and scope of his plans for investing in infrastructure and subsidizing childcare, community college and other expenses for workers and families.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, in her briefing Monday, said Biden, who campaigned on a promise to try to restore bipartisanship to the capital, "believes that the American people did not elect him to accept improbability or impossibility of working in a bipartisan manner. So the role he can play, as president of the United States, is to continue to seek ways to work together."

Story continues

And on Tuesday she brushed off questions about what Cheney's likely demotion meant for the prospect of reaching deals with Republicans. "We'll let the intraparty squabbling happen at the table" in the Capitol, she said. "And at the table over here  or a smaller table in the Oval Office  we're going to have a discussion about how we can work together."

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) is one of four leaders of Congress meeting with President Biden on Wednesday. (Andrew Harnik / Associated Press)

Yet, although Biden outwardly demonstrates an eagerness to work with Republicans, he is hardly naive about the political disincentives in their party that make compromise close to impossible, according to two senior advisors speaking on condition of anonymity.

"He's not going to give up on this," one of the advisors said. "But when not a single Republican votes for a COVID relief bill in the middle of a pandemic, it's pretty clear where they are."

Also in the White House meeting will be Congress' two Democratic leaders, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco and Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer of New York, who echoed the White House position on Tuesday, telling reporters that he thinks actions to spur long-term economic recovery must be "big and bold."

Biden has set some ambitious legislative deadlines. He's called for Congress to overhaul police practices with legislation that's named for George Floyd, the Black man killed by a Minneapolis police officer, by the May 25 anniversary of Floyd's death. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, the Senate's only Black Republican, said recently that negotiators had made progress.

Also looming is Biden's push for roughly $4 trillion in spending on infrastructure projects, jobs initiatives, educational programs, social services and more to rebuild the economy. He's said he wants to see enough progress by Memorial Day on the infrastructure component  including roads, bridges, broadband access, lead-free water systems, clean-energy projects and more  that he can sign a bill into law as early as this summer.

Democrats and Republicans are far from agreeing on how much to spend, what to spend it on and where that money should come from. Biden is seeking at least $2.25 trillion in new investments. Some Republicans responded with an opening offer of $568 billion, much of which is funding already projected in the federal budget. But Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, the Republicans' lead negotiator on infrastructure plans, has signaled in recent days that her side is willing to go higher.

Although there's some overlap in the parties' spending proposals, there's none on whether and how the costs should be funded.

Biden wants to increase the corporate tax rate to 28% after Trump and a Republican-controlled Congress lowered it from 35% to 21% three years ago. He's reluctant to simply borrow more money  "Im not a deficit spender," he said last week  and he's refusing to consider Republicans' idea of "user fees." Those presumably would raise fuel costs and other fees for drivers, violating Biden's campaign promise not to increase taxes on any families making less than $400,000 per year.

But Republicans describe Biden's corporate tax proposal as a nonstarter, and his spending plans as an expensive liberal wish list. "What we see in the first part of this year is pretty radical," Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) said to reporters this week.

The White House has refused to say whether Democrats should consider pushing through infrastructure legislation on a party-line vote using the so-called reconciliation process, which allows budget-related measures to sidestep Senate filibusters and pass with 50 votes instead of 60.

"Were in the early sausage-making stage of the discussion with members of both parties," Psaki said.

Republicans aren't the only problem for Biden. A reconciliation maneuver would require unanimous Democratic support in a Senate split 50-50 with Vice President Kamala Harris as tie-breaker, and more moderate Democrats like Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia have expressed concerns about Biden's price tag and taxes. They're also demanding bipartisanship  underscoring why Biden has to at least make a credible attempt at compromising with Republicans.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) says President Biden wants to raise the corporate tax rate too much. (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press)

Biden met separately Monday with Manchin and Sen. Tom Carper of Delaware, another key moderate Democrat, who supports funding infrastructure projects with user fees. Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, also a centrist Democrat, visited with the president Tuesday afternoon. On Thursday, Biden is scheduled to meet again with Capito, along with several other Republicans.

In a bit of political gamesmanship, the White House plans to dispatch First Lady Jill Biden to West Virginia that same day, taking the administration's campaign for its domestic agenda to Capito's home state.

Early on, Biden was willing to press ahead without Republican support to pass his $1.9-trillion COVID-19 relief package, arguing that it was broadly popular and there was no time to waste amid a deadly pandemic that had roiled the economy.

That's harder to do with the next phase of his agenda, especially given moderate Democrats' position. After 36 years as a senator and eight years as President Obama's vice president, Biden appears pained by his inability to negotiate with  or even truly understand  his political opposition.

"We badly need a Republican Party. We need a two-party system. Its not healthy to have a one-party system," Biden said last week. "And I think the Republicans are further away from trying to figure out who they are and what they stand for than I thought they would be at this point."

He hasn't been a reliable judge of Republicans before, either.

In 2012, he echoed Obama in predicting of Republicans: "You're going to see the fever break" if Obama won reelection that year. Yet the second Obama-Biden term saw four more years of polarized politics, followed by Trump's election.

In 2019, starting his presidential campaign, Biden said the country would see "an epiphany occur among many of my Republican friends" once Trump lost. Instead, about 70% of Republicans question Biden's election, and the president confronts a nearly united party opposition.

Yet Biden has refused to question the motivations of Republican lawmakers or fire back at their criticism of him. He even made a point of expressing heartfelt appreciation to McConnell in his televised address to a joint session of Congress late last month, recalling how his former Senate colleague named a law funding cancer research for Biden's late son, Beau.

Just days later, however, McConnell  who famously said in 2010 that his main goal was limiting Obama to one term  made it clear that, his personal relations with Biden aside, little has changed in his partisan approach.

"One-hundred percent of our focus," McConnell told Kentucky reporters, "is on stopping this new administration."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
By Ricardo Brito and Pedro Fonseca

BRASILIA/RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) -Brazil's federal government on Tuesday nationally suspended the vaccination of pregnant women with the AstraZeneca COVID-19 shot, after an expectant mother in Rio de Janeiro died from a stroke possibly related to the inoculation.

Franciele Francinato, coordinator of the Health Ministry's vaccination program, told reporters the suspension was enacted as a precautionary measure after health regulator Anvisa issued a warning about the vaccine's use in pregnant women earlier in the day.

Authorities are investigating the incident. The suspension applies only to AstraZeneca's shot and not to vaccines developed by Sinovac and Pfizer Inc that are also being used in the country.

The pregnant woman in Rio de Janeiro died after receiving the AstraZeneca shot, according to state Health Secretary Alexandre Chieppe.

Anvisa said the 35-year-old woman, who was 23 weeks pregnant, died of a hemorrhagic stroke on Monday after checking into a hospital five days earlier.

"The serious adverse event of a hemorrhagic stroke was assessed as possibly related to the use of the vaccine given to the pregnant woman," Anvisa said in a statement.

AstraZeneca said in a statement that pregnant women and those breastfeeding were excluded from clinical trials of its COVID-19 vaccine. Studies in animals did not produce direct or indirect evidence of harm regarding pregnancy or fetal development, the statement added.

Anvisa said it had not been informed of any other adverse events in pregnant women receiving the vaccine.

The AstraZeneca vaccine is produced and distributed in Brazil via a partnership with public health institute Fiocruz.

Fiocruz President Nisia Trindade told reporters that the suspension was necessary.

The national decision to suspend the vaccine's use in pregnant women followed similar decisions by Rio and Sao Paulo states earlier in the day, citing Anvisa's recommendation.

Brazil has recorded the world's second-deadliest outbreak of COVID-19, with the Health Ministry reporting on Tuesday that the official death toll had risen to more than 425,000.

(Reporting by Pedro Fonseca and Rodrigo Viga in Rio de Janeiro, Ricardo Brito in Brasilia, and Eduardo Simoes in Sao Paulo; Writing by Ana Mano and Jake Spring; Editing Jonathan Oatis and Peter Cooney)
Ashraf Ghani, second left, and General Sir Nick Carter, second right (Afghan government)

The head of the British military, General Sir Nick Carter, is said to be playing a key role in bringing together the Afghan government and Pakistani security chiefs as US-led international forces prepare to leave Afghanistan and the country faces an uncertain future.

Gen Carter was in Kabul this week for a meeting between commanders of the Pakistani military  elements of which have long been accused of supporting and arming the Taliban during the conflict  and Afghanistans president and vice-president.

The role of Carter and his team in the mediation has not been publicised by the British government.

There are currently 750 British troops in Afghanistan, on a training mission. They, along with about 7,000 other non-American forces, are expected to leave at least a month earlier than the symbolic departure date of 11 September declared by the US president, Joe Biden.

The Independent understands that months of confidential talks have been taking place to facilitate negotiations between senior Afghan and Pakistani military officers and officials, with British involvement, after it became clear that the US intended to end the longest war in its history by pulling out its remaining troops.

The Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, has kept in regular personal contact with Gen Carter, the UKs chief of the defence staff, who he has known for a long time.

A senior Afghan official said: General Carter has played an important part in getting us and the Pakistanis together. It is not easy to have trust with the recent history between the two countries. We do not know whats going to happen in the future; we have great worries.

We think theres a bit of sensitivity in London over it all among some people, not wanting to be seen to be too involved. But its important that the British and Carter continue. It is a constructive role.

Gen Carter was present at the meeting between President Ghani, the vice-president, Amrullah Saleh, and the head of the Pakistani army, General Qamar Bajwa. General Faiz Hameed, the head of Pakistans Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was also present. The ISI, in particular, has been repeatedly charged over the years with backing the Taliban and other insurgent groups, including the Haqqani network.

Story continues

Mr Saleh, a former head of Afghanistans National Directorate of Security, thanked Gen Carter after the meeting for his facilitating role.

Schoolgirls arrive at a hospital in Kabul to visit students who were injured in a car bomb blast on SaturdayReuters

The office of Mr Ghani said: The president met with General Qamar Jawaid Bajwa, the Pakistan army chief, and General Carter, British army chief. During the meeting they discussed the peace process, relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and Pakistans role in the peace process and stopping violence in Afghanistan.

The meeting in the Afghan capital took place just two days after one of the most horrific atrocities in recent years, even by the violent standards of the Afghan conflict, targeting schoolgirls in the city. The number of dead rose to 85, with another 147 injured, after the school in the Dasht-e-Barchi neighbourhood was targeted by a car bomb.

Gen Carter served extensively with the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, including as head of regional command south, based in Kandahar. During that time, he built up extensive contacts among senior Afghan military officers and their Pakistani counterparts, as well as Afghan tribal leaders and politicians.

Last month, after President Biden announced that he was continuing with Donald Trumps decision to withdraw all troops from Afghanistan, Gen Carter said that he had hoped for a different outcome. He pointed out that the reason for the western presence in support of the Afghan government was to prevent the country becoming an ungoverned space from which terrorist attacks could be launched.

Gen Carter said: We went into Afghanistan back in 2001 to prevent international terrorism ever emerging from Afghanistan. In the last 20 years, there has been no international terrorist attack mounted from Afghanistan. I think that is a great tribute to our armed forces and, of course, to the armed forces of the Nato countries that have been committed to this.

Following the meeting in the Afghan capital, the Pakistani military issued a statement: A peaceful Afghanistan means a peaceful region in general and a peaceful Pakistan in particular. We will always support an Afghan led-Afghan owned peace process based on mutual consensus of all stakeholders.

The withdrawal of US-led forces follows an agreement between the Trump administration and the Taliban that took place in the capital of Qatar, Doha, and was presented effectively as a fait accompli to the Afghan government in February last year. The insurgents were supposed to stop their bombings and shootings while talks continued and prisoners were exchanged.

The vast majority of Taliban detainees, including the high value, hardcore ones, have been released.

Attacks on international troops have dwindled significantly, but those on Afghan government forces and civilians have continued. Some of the deaths have been targeted assassinations of civic society leaders, human rights workers, academics and journalists.

Under the deal struck between the Taliban and the Trump administration, American troops were supposed to have pulled out by the beginning of May.

In the past, the Taliban warned that they would resume attacks if the withdrawal was delayed. The Pakistani military, according to reports, is trying to persuade the Taliban to desist from resuming hostilities.

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New Orleans Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan will help fund police training in New Orleans. Jordan is giving $120,000 to fund anti-racist training for police in the area.

Jordan appeared at a news conference with New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell on Monday to announce the new program.

Jordan explained he does not see this donation as a "solution" to the issue.

"This is not a solution," Jordan said. "This is not just a completion of everything. This is a continuation of work that has been done from the social justice leaders that have been on the ground. To the leaders that are in the system as we speak now."

Cameron Jordan one of the longest-tenured Saints

With Drew Brees retiring, Jordan is one of the longest-tenured players on the team. He said that while he's not from New Orleans, his kids were born there. That inspired Jordan to make the donation.

Jordan has put up excellent numbers over his 10 seasons in New Orleans. He has 94.5 sacks since joining the team, and has made six Pro Bowls and one All-Pro team.

More from Yahoo Sports:
In the letter, Novotny and Shoemaker cite the newsletter misprint by the city when information about each candidate was sent by the city to Westminster voters. The information for Dillon, who justified the relevance of his being a member of the Republican party in the nonpartisan election, was replaced by a city council candidates information in what Dominick called an inadvertent misprint. The city corrected the error online, mailed out corrected versions and placed a full-page advertisement with the correct information in the Times.
In this 6 January, 2021 file photo, Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington. With riot cases flooding into Washingtons federal court, the Justice Department is under pressure to quickly resolve the least serious cases. ( (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File))

Anthony Antonio, who is accused of being part of the 6 January Capitol riot, apologised and claimed part of what inspired him was a steady stream of misinformation coming from conservative TV news and former President Donalf Trump.

His lawyers have previously said he had a case of Fox-itis from watching too much Fox News and believed the election was stolen.

"I shouldnt have been there that day. I shouldnt have been involved on those Capitol steps," Mr Antonio, 27, told CNN on Monday, telling anchor Chris Cuomo he "got wrapped up in what was being told to me, and what was on TV.

The networks hosts and guests made frequent, baseless allegations that the 2020 presidential election wasnt legitimate throughout election season.

Mr Antonio is charged with five crimes including violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and hasnt entered a plea.

"As of right now, I acknowledge, I know that Joe Biden is our president. Thats not a mystery; thats a fact. But, I felt like, maybe I believed that America was being robbed of a president," Mr Antonio added. "And I now know that that was a lie."

Fox News did not respond immediately respond to a request for comment from The Independent.

Previously, the mans lawyer, Joseph Hurley, said that Mr Antonio lost his job at the beginning of the pandemic and developed Fox-itis and Fox-mania after spending months watching the conservative news network.

He believed what was being fed to him," Mr Hurley said last week at a virtual court hearing.

Mr Antonio, a Delaware native, began watching the network after moving in with new roommates in Chicago during the pandemic.

Eventually, prosecutors allege he joined in on the Capitol riot, where he allegedly wore a bullet-proof with the patch of the right-wing Three Percenter extremist group, and took an officers riot shield and mask.

You want war? We got war. 1776 all over again, he told police, according to an affidavit.

Story continues

Among the hundreds charged with being part of the riot, a number have suggested to little avail they were influenced by outside factors like comments from former president Trump, claiming they were duped or inspired by his repeated conspiracy theories about the election.

Democratic members of Congress have taken that proposition one step further, suing the former president and his associates directly for inciting the riot.

Jason Miller, a Trump senior advisor, has said in response to the suits that the president didnt organise did not incite or conspire to incite any violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6th.

As of last Thursday, 440 people have been arrested in connection with the riots, and 100 more could be charged, according to federal officials, who called the Capitol case the most complex investigation ever prosecuted by the Department of Justice.

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The Pfizer vaccine is set to be injected as soon as Thursday into adolescents. The question now is how many of them and their parents are going to be willing to take it.

Video Transcript

- So we turn now to the race to vaccinate New York. More than 39% of New Yorkers are fully vaccinated, and the positivity rate in the state down to just 1.43%. But New York officials are still trying to attract people on the fence about being vaccinated by using some incentives.

See, starting tomorrow, there will be eight pop up Johnson and Johnson vaccination sites at MTA stations around the city and in Westchester County. And here's the incentive. Anybody who gets the shot gets a free seven day metro card or two free trips on the LIRR or Metro North.

But vaccination sites will, hopefully, soon see a spike in visits now that the FDA has granted emergency authorization use for Pfizer's shot to be used on young teens. Eyewitness News reporter Candace McCowan is standing by live outside the Javits Center in Manhattan with the story. Candace?

CANDACE MCCOWAN: Yeah, [? Kinnon, ?] tomorrow is when a CDC advisory committee will meet to decide how that vaccine should be administered to those who are 12 to 15. Now, the FDA, they expanded this emergency use authorization to people in this age group yesterday. Now, if no red flags are triggered, Pfizer's vaccine could become the first COVID-19 vaccine available to kids as young as 12 as soon as Thursday. But there is hesitancy among parents and politicians as they work to convince everyone eligible to get the shot.

- I'd just like a little bit more time, a little more data.

- I'm good. I don't want to be a lab rat.

BILL DE BLASIO: You know, folks, who are dealing with so many other challenges, we make it really easy. If you make it appealing, maybe you make it kind of fun, I think a lot of people come in. And we think that's potentially hundreds of thousands of people in that category.

- Yeah, and Pfizer says it will be September when they expect to submit for their emergency use authorization to be expanded to those children who are 12 or two to 11 years old. Live in--
The general in charge of the Pentagons Africa Command warns the Chinese government is attempting to secure naval bases in West Africa.

The Chinese Navy would use those bases to refuel and rearm, extending Beijings reach.

China currently has just one naval base outside mainland Asia.

The Peoples Liberation Army Navy could soon be operating in the Atlantic Ocean, according to the U.S. Army general in charge of Africa Command.

 Join Pop Mech Pro to get exclusive answers to your most pressing military questions.

China has reportedly approached several African countries for the right to open a naval base. The result could be Chinese surface ships and submarines thousands of miles from their traditional operating areas, which could prove to be problematic for U.S. forces in wartime.

Gen. Stephen Townsend, the top U.S. general for Africa, told the Associated Press on May 6 that China is looking for a place where they can rearm and repair warships. He continued:

That becomes militarily useful in conflict. Theyre a long way toward establishing that in Djibouti. Now theyre casting their gaze to the Atlantic coast and wanting to get such a base there.

Photo credit: AFP Contributor - Getty Images

China has reportedly approached countries on Africas west coast, from southern Namibia to Mauritius, but hasnt reached an agreement with any country yet. So far, China has just one overseas base: Djibouti, on the Horn of Africa.

China is slowly, but surely expanding the reach of its naval forces. In the late 2000s, China volunteered to join the international anti-piracy flotilla off the coast of Somalia, a process that forced its navy to learn how to sail from mainland China across southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean, and then conduct roving anti-piracy patrols. This was a huge leap in capability for a navy that had rarely sortied outside of the western Pacific.

The patrols led to China securing the rights to a local naval base, in Djibouti, which is now the home of several hundred Chinese marinesand has spawned reports of Chinese troops harassing U.S. military aircraft with laser beams.

Story continues

Townsend claims China has tried to sign an agreement to establish a naval base in Tanzania, farther south, and now around the Cape of Good Hope in the Atlantic. If more Chinese bases materialize in Africa, the result could be a string of facilities leading close to the American-dominated Mid-Atlantic region.

This all makes sense from the perspective of a major naval power whose economy relies on international trade. Most of Chinas imports and exports travel by sea, and China has a stake in maintaining the freedom of the seas.

Photo credit: Getty Images - Getty Images

At the same time, such bases would also be useful in a potential conflict with the U.S. If a war broke out tomorrow, U.S. forces could be reasonably sure of bottling up the vast majority of the Chinese Navy in the west Pacific Ocean, where they could be isolated, sunk, or forced to return to port.

But if Chinese air, naval, and marine forces were based in the Atlantic, they could force the Pentagon to expand the scope of a war with China far beyond the Pacific. The U.S. could be faced with a two-front war, tracking down Chinese aircraft carriers, surface task forces, and attack submarines operating in the Atlantic.

China, for all of its newfound prosperity and the rapid growth of its navy, has few places to send its fleet worldwide. Unlike the U.S. Navy, which can count on a global network of military allies with welcoming ports, the Peoples Liberation Army Navy might sail to Russia, Pakistan, Djibouti ... and thats about it.

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China's population increased 72 million over the past 10 years to 1.41 billion in 2020, with an annual average growth rate of 0.53%, data published by the country's National Bureau of Statistics Tuesday shows.

Why it matters: It's the slowest population growth for over half a century. The birth rate also dropped for the fourth consecutive year in 2020, with 12 million babies born, raising the prospect of a "demographic crisis that could stunt growth in the worlds second-largest economy," per the New York Times.

Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.

Between the lines: China's government imposed a repressive one-child policy to slow population growth in 1979. It eased this limit on couples to two children in 2016.

The big picture: The census revealed the number of over 65s in China rose from 8.9% in 2010 to 13.5%, the number of children increased 1.35% and the working population remained steady.

Peking University population studies professor Lu Jiehua said "the fast decline in the working-age population" was a great concern, AP reports.

This group was three-quarters of 2011's total and was expected to fall to "just above half by 2050," Lu said.

Go deeper: U.S. population growth is on a downward slope

More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free
Residents in a Chinese city were warned to stay indoors as authorities released flocks of chickens as bait to track down a leopard that escaped from a safari park, state media reported Tuesday.

The leafy lakeside city of Hangzhou has been on edge since late last week, when residents began spotting leopards roaming around local hills covered in forest and tea plantations.

The leopard is one of three that escaped on April 19 -- the other two have since been recaptured -- a lapse that police said was concealed by the Hangzhou Safari Park's management for nearly three weeks to avoid hurting its visitor numbers during a long holiday last week.

The incident has unleashed a torrent of Chinese internet posts savaging the park for endangering the public, and lamenting the abysmal safety and animal-welfare record of the country's chaotic zoos and wildlife parks.

Public outrage has also been fanned by footage of one of the big cats being mauled in a forest by a pack of fierce hunting dogs, and another showing one of the recaptured leopards with part of its hind foot missing.

The first leopard was quietly recaptured by the park on April 21, and the second last Friday by a far larger government search organised as news of the escapes went viral.

But the remaining feline has so far eluded the thousands of search personnel using tracker dogs, powered parachutes, and armed with drones and night-vision and heat-detection equipment.

Nearly 100 chickens were released to lure the cat, the Modern Express Post in the nearby city of Nanjing reported Tuesday.

Like the other two escapees, it was captive-born, lacks hunting smarts and is believed to be near starvation.

Authorities also have posted additional security near the search zone and residents have been put on alert.

"Leopard tracks have been discovered near mountain villages. Police are searching. Everyone please securely close doors and windows and do not go out," said a mass text message issued in a neighbourhood adjacent to the park.

Story continues

The park is about a dozen miles from downtown Hangzhou.

Police said Monday that careless park personnel allowed the animals to escape while cleaning their enclosure and that the attraction's general manager Zhang Dequan ordered a cover-up while the park scrambled to recover the animals themselves.

The park only came clean after police launched an investigation into the mounting leopard sightings.

Local officials have said five people, including Zhang, have been detained. The park is temporarily closed.

Chinese zoos and wildlife parks frequently face criticism over recurring revelations of horrific conditions or deadly incidents blamed on lax management.

Chinese state media reported in 2017 that a tiger killed a visitor at a wildlife park in the eastern city of Ningbo after the man apparently entered its enclosure. Tigers at a Beijing park also killed a woman and injured another the previous year after the pair left their vehicle.

dma/jfx
May 10Four Calhoun County food pantries received grant money from the Community Foundation of Northeast Alabama last week, in addition to several more in the foundation's nine-county service area.

Jacksonville Christian Outreach Center, Community Enabler Developer, Piedmont Benevolence Center and All Saints Interfaith Center of Concern each received $500 from the foundation.

"During a time when many homes are being challenged with food insecurity, we are pleased the mini-grants awarded will support food pantries and soup kitchens that are actively feeding their communities," Fred Smith, director of grants and partnerships, was quoted as saying in a news release.

Other organizations that received $500 in grant money included:

 Cherokee County Crisis Center

 Clay County Community Food Bank

 HEARTS, Cleburne County

 Feeding Cleburne

 Bread of Life Community Ministries, DeKalb County

 The Salvation Army, Etowah County

 Race Against Injustice Now (RAIN), Etowah County

 The Way of The Cross Ministries, Etowah County

 Helping Hands Food Ministry/White Springs Baptist Church, Etowah County

 Randolph Community Life Church

 St. Clair Christian Love Pantry

 Talladega Red Door Kitchen

 Lincoln Food Pantry, Talladega County

Assistant Metro Editor Ben Nunnally: 256-235-3560.
AstraZeneca - Leon Neal/Getty Images

Protesters and police have clashed outside AstraZeneca's headquarters in Cambridge.

The demonstrators blocked the entrance to the building in Hills Road accusing the pharmaceutical company of profiting during the pandemic and to demand the jab is licensed openly so it can be shared with the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Masked activists were seen in videos chanting and beating drums and a banner unfurled at the site read: "We demand a people's vaccine".

Cambridgeshire Police arrested four people aged 17, 20, 22 and 49, reports say, as officers moved in to disperse the demonstrators, some of whom had chained themselves to the roof.

AstraZeneca said it had produced the jab not-for-profit and shared "know-how" with partners across the world.

06:24 PM

What happened today?

Good evening, that's it from our live blog for another day. Here are the latest Covid headlines:

The Queen's Speech saw Boris Johnson put a "catch-up and recovery plan" for the NHS at the heart of the next Parliament, vowing to tackle the "unprecedented challenge" of a huge backlog in patients

The Prime Minister also pledged a "full, proper" inquiry into the government's handling of the crisis likely within the next year

Scots will be able to hug loved ones again and enjoy indoor visits to pubs and restaurants from next week, Nicola Sturgeon confirmed in the latest wave of lockdown easing

Four arrests were made as scuffles broke out between police and protesters outside the Cambridge offices of Covid vaccine maker AstraZeneca, as activists demanded poorer nations benefit more

New ONS figures showed deaths in Britain were now 7.3 per cent below the five-year average, with the number of people dying from Covid also continuing to drop

Ambulance staff in India were accused of dumping the bodies of Covid-19 victims into the Ganges River, as corpses washed up on its banks for the second consecutive day

The US approved the Pfizer vaccine for use in children aged 12 to 15, hailing a "watershed moment" in the fight against the virus.

06:09 PM

Story continues

Coronavirus around the world, in pictures

Covid United States - Jae Hong/AP

Coronavirus India - Amit Dave/Reuters

Covid Indonesia - MADE NAGI/EPA

05:51 PM

French MPs say 'non' to Covid passports

French lawmakers have rejected Covid passports, dealing a blow to President Emmanuel Macron's plan to end months of lockdown restrictions.

The "health pass" would initially have allowed travel outside France in return for proof of coronavirus vaccination, a recent negative test or recovery from a Covid-19 infection.

The phones or paper certificate would also let people attend sporting events and other major gatherings, when restrictions ease.

But opposition parties have criticised the bill for posing a discrimination risk, not least because millions of people have yet to be inoculated, and defeated it by 108 votes to 103 in the lower-house National Assembly.

Meanwhile, the EU hopes to have a "green certificate" in place next month to ease travel during the summer holidays.

05:36 PM

Here's yet more optimistic news on the UK's situation

Deaths in Britain are now 7.3 per cent below the five-year average, with the number of people dying from Covid also continuing to drop.

The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that there were 766 fewer deaths in the week ending April 30 than would be expected for this time of year.

Deaths involving Covid in England and Wales have fallen to their lowest level since mid-September and now make up just 2.1 per cent of all deaths after decreasing by 198 in a week.

Our science editor Sarah Knapton has crunched the latest numbers.

05:21 PM

Expert: 'Vaccinating elders in Covid-hit poorer countries is the priority, not children'

Vaccinating children is "unlikely to be the priority, at least for now" with the escalating surge of coronavirus in poorer nations and shortages of jabs there posing a "global threat", an expert has said.

"Most children who get SARS CoV2 infection do not get seriously and, indeed, most dont get sick at all," said Adam Finn, professor of paediatrics at the University of Bristol. He added:

Although the importance of children in transmission of the virus within the community is not entirely clear, the evidence we have suggests that it is not great, especially where younger children of pre-school and primary school age are concerned. Accordingly immunising children is a low priority and if vaccine-induced protection in the adult population is high from high uptake, good persistence of protection and sustained protection against viral strains as they evolve to evade immunity, then it may not be necessary to immunise children in a general way at all. This is even more likely for young children than adolescents.

05:06 PM

The latest UK deaths, cases and vaccination figures are in

A further 20 deaths within 28 days of a positive Covid-19 test have been recorded in the UK, in the latest Government figures.

As of Tuesday, another 2,474 cases have been logged.

It means that over the last seven days, compared to the previous week, deaths have declined 6.5 per cent and cases have risen 12.2 per cent. Hospitalisations are down 18.7 per cent.

Vaccination data shows 115,053 more first doses and 231,835 second shots were administered in the latest 24 hour period.

It brings the totals to 35,587,348 first doses - 67.6 per cent of the adult population - and 18,088,385 second doses, 34.3 per cent of adults.

04:58 PM

What's the latest on the Covid 'variants of concern' across the UK?

04:52 PM

Aquatic superfoods could combat hunger triggered by the pandemic

Aquatic superfoods should be a central plank of policies to combat rising levels of hunger triggered by the pandemic, according to the first woman of Asian descent to win an award dubbed the Nobel prize of food.

Dr Shakuntala Haraksingh Thilsted has been a central figure in decades of research which has reshaped scientific understanding of the nutritional value of small fish commonly eaten across Southeast Asia.

After winning the $250,000 World Food Prize, Dr Thilsted told The Telegraph that disruption triggered by the pandemic has pushed millions of people towards hunger.

She called for aquatic superfoods to be at the centre of efforts to combat the growing crisis.

Sarah Newey has the full interview, from our Global Health Security team.

04:42 PM

AstraZeneca responds to protesters blocking its UK offices

After protesters demanding a "people's vaccine" shared with the world descended on its Cambridge offices this morning, AstraZeneca has now responded to the calls.

A spokesman for the Covid-19 jab maker said: "AstraZeneca has risen to the challenge of creating a not-for-profit vaccine that is widely available around the world, and we are proud that our vaccine accounts for 98% of all supplies to Covax (the scheme created to pool the global vaccine effort).

"We have established 20 supply lines spread across the globe and we have shared the intellectual property and know-how with dozens of partners in order to make this a reality.

"In fact, our model is similar to what an open intellectual property model could look like."

AstraZeneca protest - Leon Neal/Getty Images

04:35 PM

London braces for Covid-style Brit Awards - free from masks and social distancing

Singers Dua Lipa and Arlo Parks will perform in front of 4,000 people at the Brit Awards tonight, in the first major indoor music event with a live audience held in London in over a year.

The O2 arena audience, of which 2,500 are key workers and their guests, will not have to wear masks or socially distance.

However they must show proof of a negative lateral flow test result to enter, take a test afterwards and provide contact details for NHS Test and Trace.

The music awards ceremony is part of the British government's Events Research Programme aimed at establishing whether big events can be held in closed environments without social distancing.

04:09 PM

India medics accused of dumping Covid dead in the Ganges

Ambulance staff in India have been accused of dumping the bodies of Covid-19 victims into the Ganges River, as corpses washed up on its banks for the second consecutive day.

An MP from Indias ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Janardhan Singh Sigriwal, has claimed that the bodies were being thrown into the river by ambulance staff in the northern state of Bihar.

India coronavirus - Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP

Video was then shared by leading Indian news channel NDTV showing ambulance staff apparently throwing corpses into the river.

On Tuesday, more than a dozen bodies were seen floating in the Ghazipur district of Uttar Pradesh, one of the Indian states worst hit.

From India, Joe Wallen has more on this story.

04:01 PM

'By ditching face masks in classrooms, Boris is finally putting children first'

While this policy change feels to be a significant acknowledgment by policymakers, the battle for common sense over Covid hysteria is far from won, writes Molly Kingsley.

Like many parents, I celebrated the news last night that children will no longer be required to wear face coverings in school from Monday. A friend and fellow parent - her two secondary school children directly impacted by the rule - texted last night: I actually burst into tears when I heard it.

03:48 PM

Multiple major airline chiefs call for UK-US summit on reopening travel

The bosses of major US and UK passenger airlines are demanding a summit with the two governments to reopen transatlantic travel faster - hinting at vaccine passports as a solution.

"The airline industry needs adequate lead time to establish a plan for restarting air services, including scheduling aircraft and crews for these routes as well as for marketing and selling tickets," said the letter.

It was signed by the CEOs of American Airlines , Delta Air Lines, United Airlines , British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and JetBlue Airways in a letter to the transport chiefs of both countries.

The letter said US and UK citizens "would benefit from the significant testing capability and the successful trials of digital applications to verify health credentials."

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday that he would set out in the coming weeks what role "if any" Covid vaccine passports would play as society reopens.

More on Covid-era travel: How Iceland suddenly became a hotspot for holidays

03:37 PM

Indian PM Modi to skip G7 meet in Cornwall due to Covid crisis

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not travel to Cornwall's G7 summit next month because of the virus crisis engulfing the country.

"While appreciating the invitation to the Prime Minister by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to attend the G7 Summit as a Special Invitee, given the prevailing Covid situation, it has been decided that the Prime Minister will not attend the G7 Summit in person," India's foreign ministry said.

India coronavirus - Sajjad HUSSAIN/AFP

It comes after a London meeting of G7 foreign ministers last week descended into chaos when the full Indian delegation - who were invited - were forced to self-isolate for positive Covid tests.

India's seven-day average of daily infections hit a record 390,995 on Tuesday, with 3,876 deaths. Official Covid-19 deaths there stand at just under 250,000.

03:17 PM

Boris Johnson signals coronavirus inquiry will begin within a year

A "full, proper" public inquiry into the Government's handling of the coronavirus pandemic could be established within a year, Boris Johnson has said.

The Prime Minister committed to setting up the inquiry within the new session of Parliament, which started on Tuesday and typically runs for around a year.

"I can certainly say that we will do that within this session," the Prime Minister told MPs in the Commons.

"I have made that clear before... I do believe it's essential we have a full, proper public inquiry into the Covid pandemic."

Mr Johnson was responding to a question from Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey:

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03:14 PM

More footage of the scuffles outside AstraZeneca's Cambridge offices

As protesters hold loud demonstrations and scuffle with police outside AstraZeneca's offices (see 11:57am and 3.18pm for details), here's the latest footage:

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02:50 PM

AstraZeneca suffers major revolt over executive pay

AstraZeneca has suffered a major shareholder rebellion after 40pc of investors voted against proposals to significantly increase executive pay.

Shareholders at its annual meeting on Tuesday rebelled over proposals to boost bonus levels for the company's top bosses.

The new policy would mean chief executive Pascal Soriot's total potential remuneration will have increased from 650pc of salary to 900pc of salary over the course of just two years.

A spokesman for AstraZeneca said its bosses have "demonstrated solid and visionary leadership".

02:46 PM

Spain plans to allow Britons to enter without PCR test from May 20

Spain plans to lift its requirement for Britons to present a negative coronavirus PCR test upon arrival from May 20, provided that the infection rate in Britain keeps declining, the Spanish tourism minister said on Tuesday.

"It will allow the opening of the British market so they can come to Spain," Reyes Maroto told reporters after a weekly cabinet meeting, offering a glimmer of hope to the flagging tourism sector.

Spain coronavirus tourism - Kai Foersterling/EPA

Plans to lift the PCR requirement - if cases are below around 50 per 100,000 people - form part of a broader revision of EU regulations on allowing tourists, which Maroto expected to be approved by May 20.

She also stressed that Spain must bring down its own infection rate. Spain is not currently on the UK's "green list" of quarantine-free destinations for when travel resumes on May 17.

02:39 PM

Greater Manchester wants Covid vaccine for all over-16s amid Indian variant spread

The Covid-19 vaccine rollout should extend to all over-16s in Greater Manchester because of the infectious Indian variant, mayor Andy Burnham says.

Authorities in Greater Manchester have written to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to request that jabs extend quickly down the age ranges to young people to "mitigate risks" in the variant's spread.

"That request has gone in; we understand it is being considered. I believe other authorities...have made a similar request," Mr Burnham told a news conference this afternoon.

"In many ways we are repeating that request but with a new urgency."

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Mr Burnham adds there has been a "significant increase in all-age positivity" of coronavirus cases in Bolton, which is "linked to international travel, particularly to India".

He says Bolton is a "cause of concern". A cluster of Indian variant cases were detected there earlier this week.

02:18 PM

Meanwhile outside AstraZeneca's offices...

There have been reports of at least two arrests as protesters gather outside AstraZeneca sites across the UK to demand the pharmaceutical firm shares its Covid-19 vaccine technology.

The rally is centred on the firm's British headquarters in Cambridge, where about 50 people reportedly assembled.

Activists have also gathered at its Macclesfield site in Cheshire and at the University of Oxford, which worked with AstraZeneca to develop the vaccine.

Organisers Global Justice Now said the action, which coincides with AstraZeneca's annual general meeting on Tuesday, also seeks to persuade Oxford to make all of its future medical innovations open-licenced.

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01:52 PM

Nepal pleads with Everest climbers to bring back oxygen

Nepal is so short of oxygen canisters that it has asked climbers on Mount Everest to bring back their empties instead of abandoning them on mountain slopes.

The country issued climbing permits to more than 700 climbers for 16 Himalayan peaks - 408 to Mount Everest - for the April-May climbing season to boost tourism.

But Covid brought Nepal's fragile healthcare system to breaking point, as it has in neighbouring India where cases and deaths are setting records.

everest nepal covid - PRAKASH MATHEMA/AFP

The Nepal Mountaineering Association said climbers and their Sherpas were estimated to have carried at least 3,500 oxygen bottles this season, but these canisters often get buried.

"We appeal to climbers and sherpas to bring back their empty bottles wherever possible as they can be refilled and used for the treatment of the coronavirus patients who are in dire needs," they told Reuters.

01:27 PM

Even the gloomiest modellers admit it: we're not facing a third Covid wave

It has finally happened.

After months of dire predictions, modellers have concluded that Britain is not facing a deadly third wave, and that deaths are likely to be five times fewer than previously suggested.

On Monday, as Boris Johnson announced that Step 3 of easing lockdown will go ahead, the Government released new models which paint an uncharacteristically hopeful picture of the coming months.

Gone are the mountains of infections, admissions and deaths that were predicted in February.

Sarah Knapton delves into how the scientists' models have shifted.

01:20 PM

Lockdown caused postnatal depression rates to double

Lockdown has caused rates of postnatal depression to double, with women feeling abandoned in the early weeks of motherhood, a study suggests.

A UCL survey found that almost half of women with babies aged six months or younger met the threshold between May and June last year.

New mothers described feelings of isolation, exhaustion, worry and inadequacy as they were forced to negotiate the challenges of caring for a newborn without support from friends and family.

More from our health correspondent Henry Bodkin.

01:14 PM

Pandemic care home resident deaths fifth higher than average

The number of care home residents who have died during the coronavirus pandemic in England and Wales was a fifth higher than the average for the previous five years, figures show.

Some 173,974 deaths of care home residents were registered in England and Wales between March 14 2020 and April 2 2021, the Office for National Statistics said.

This is a rise of 19.5 per cent compared to the average for that period recorded over the previous five years - 145,560 deaths, but overall deaths fell between waves one and two.

Coronavirus accounted for 42,341 care home resident deaths - almost a quarter (24.3 per cent) of the total. The figures cover deaths of care home residents in all settings, not just in care homes.

12:34 PM

Think seriously about jetting off on holiday, Sturgeon warns Scots

Nicola Sturgeon has called on Scots to "think seriously" about taking holidays, despite unveiling changes to the rules on non-essential travel.

Speaking at a coronavirus briefing in Edinburgh, the First Minister urged Scots to "err on the side of caution" after announcing a new traffic light system in Scotland.

"Even though the rules on non-essential travel are starting to change, that doesn't mean we're saying that non-essential international travel is desirable," she said.

"Everyone should think seriously about whether they should travel abroad this summer."

She added: "When it comes to holidays abroad, my advice continues to be to err on the side of caution and to staycation this summer."

12:13 PM

Looking ahead to summer, Greece speeds up jabs on islanders

In welcome news for British holidaymakers, Greece is stepping up Covid-19 vaccinations of its island residents ahead of a planned May 14 launch to its tourism season.

"We are giving our islands priority... by opening up vaccination of their entire adult population earlier than the rest of Greece," Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said. "The aim is to fully vaccinate permanent (island) residents by the end of June."

Greece Covid - LEXANDROS VLACHOS/EPA

Greece is keen to see crowds of holidaymakers back on its idyllic islands, prompting its tourism minister to hold talks with Britain.

The country is on England's amber travel list for when the overseas travel ban lifts on May 17, requiring at least five days in quarantine on return.

12:01 PM

Lockdown loosening will be delayed in region of north-east Scotland

Case numbers in Moray, north-east Scotland, are more than four times higher than in the rest of the country, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said.

"It's against that backdrop that, unless the situation was to materially improve over the next few days, it would simply not be safe or sensible to ease restrictions there from Monday," she said.

As well as Moray remaining in Level 3, she said the region would see travel restrictions reimposed to ensure cases do not rise in other areas of the country. "This will mean that travel in and out of Moray will be limited to permitted purposes only," she added.

But nationally, the "huge success" of the vaccination programme and with compliance with restrictions has seen Scotland's case numbers drop from an average of 226 per day to 177 per day.

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11:50 AM

Scotland isles to enjoy even more freedom from next week

Scotland's islands will move to Level 1 next week due to vaccination coverage and low case numbers, Nicola Sturgeon said.

Western Isles, Orkney, Shetland, all islands in the Highland Council area with the exception of Skye and the islands in the Argyll and Bute area are affected.

The First Minister says she hopes Scotland will reach Level 1 on June 7 and Level 0 on June 28, shortly after England is due to lift all restrictions.

She says she is hopeful that life will become more normal in the summer and autumn.

Watch the Scottish Government briefing live below:

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11:37 AM

State school attendance dips as Government finally meets laptop pledge

Pupil attendance in state schools in England has fallen over the past week, Government figures show.

Around 92 per cent of state school pupils were in class on May 5, down from 93 per cent on April 29, according to the Department for Education (DfE) statistics.

Just under nine in ten secondary school pupils were in class last week, down 1 per cent on the previous week, while attendance in primary schools remained at 95 per cent.

The DfE estimates that approximately 1 per cent of all pupils on roll - up to 84,000 children - did not attend school for Covid-19-related reasons on May 5, similar to April 29.

Meanwhile, the Government has finally met its January pledge to provide 1.3 million laptops and tablets to disadvantaged pupils, figures suggest. New DfE data shows a total of 1,313,449 laptops and tablets have been delivered or dispatched for remote learning since the start of the pandemic.

11:29 AM

Scotland to ease lockdown further next week, Sturgeon confirms

Most of Scotland will move to Level 2 of Covid-19 restrictions on Monday, Nicola Sturgeon has confirmed at a Scottish Government coronavirus briefing.

But Moray will remain in Level 3 following a surge in cases and an increase in hospital admissions.

Nicola Sturgeon - Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

In the rest of the country, from May 17 four people from two households will be able to meet indoors, six people from three households will be able to meet in a hospitality venue and eight people from eight houses will meet outdoors, excluding under-12s.

"I actually feel a wee bit emotional saying this, from Monday, as long as you stay within permitted limits, you can hug your loved ones again," the First Minister told a Scottish Government briefing.

But she warned it remains "vital to be cautious", saying that dropping social distancing will be reviewed for all situations in the coming weeks.

11:11 AM

Booster jabs and anti-obesity drive in Queen's Speech

There is a continued need to "remain vigilant, maintain appropriate infection prevention and control, and be mindful of the risk from potential future waves" of Covid-19, the briefing accompanying the Queen's Speech says.

But the document adds: "Now more than ever the Government will back the NHS."

It says the Government is planning a potential booster vaccine campaign in the autumn to protect the vulnerable against Covid. "Over the longer term, regular boosters are likely to become a regular part of managing Covid-19," it says.

Queen's Speech - Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire

Measures will also be brought forward to support the health and wellbeing of the nation, including tackling Britain's obesity problem.

A new incentive scheme called Fit Miles will look at paying people to eat better and exercise more while there will be more support for GPs to help people lose weight.

11:07 AM

Queen's Speech confronts huge NHS backlog brought by Covid

Boris Johnson has put repairing the NHS following the Covid pandemic at the heart of the next programme for government.

The Queen's speech to officially reopen parliament this morning includes an NHS "catch-up and recovery plan" detailing the "unprecedented challenge" now facing the health service.

The Prime Minister commits to clearing the backlog of 4.7 million people in England waiting for care and more than 380,000 waiting more than a year for treatment.

The Government has also pledged to "account for the returning demand of those people who have not come forward for care during the pandemic". It wants to persuade these "missing referrals" to see their GP to find undiagnosed conditions, including cancer.

Catherine Neilan over on our Politics liveblog has more on the Queen's Speech.

10:57 AM

Protesters outside AstraZeneca HQ in Cambridge demanding 'people's vaccine'

Activists have gathered outside AstraZeneca's headquarters in Cambridge this morning, demanding the Covid-19 vaccine firm share its blueprints with the World Health Organization (WHO).

The protest, organised by Global Justice Now, is calling for the British-Swedish company to openly licence its jab and commit to sharing technology to ensure a "people's vaccine" for the world.

It comes as the UK and EU are under pressure to back US president Joe Biden's support for waiving patent rights on vaccines to boost supply in South Asian nations where the virus is surging (scroll down).

AstraZeneca has promised not to profit from its jab during the pandemic, and has sold its low-temperature, easy-storage vaccine at low cost.

AstraZeneca - Leon Neal/Getty Images

10:39 AM

US approves Pfizer coronavirus vaccine for children

The Pfizer coronavirus vaccine has been approved for use in children aged 12 to 15 by regulators in the US in what was described as a watershed moment in the effort to bring the pandemic under control.

Until now, only those aged 16 and older have been permitted to receive the two-dose vaccine.

The Federal Drug Administrations approval after a weeks-long safety review must be ratified by an advisory committee of the governments Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

If it gives its go ahead at a scheduled meeting on Wednesday, vaccinations of children can begin immediately.

10:32 AM

UK in 'constructive' talks with US over waivers on Covid vaccine patents

Britain is seeking constructive engagement with the United States and other World Trade Organization members on the issue of patent waivers for Covid-19 vaccines, Downing Street has said after pressure from charities to back President Joe Biden's proposals.

Last week, the US threw its weight behind waiving intellectual property rights on the jabs to help manufacturers free up supply in poorer nations, where the rollout is slow.

"We are engaging with the US and other WTO members constructively on the TRIPS waiver issue, but we need to act now to expand production and distribution worldwide," the government spokesman said this morning.

"Any negotiations in the WTO on a waiver will require unanimous support, which could take a significant amount of time. So while we will constructively engage in the IP discussions, we must continue to push ahead with action now including voluntary licensing agreements for vaccines."

10:14 AM

Extremists 'exploiting Covid conspiracies to recruit vulnerable people'

Right wing extremsists are using Covid 19 conspiracy theories to identify, target and radicalise vulnerable people, one of Scotland Yard's most senior counter-terrorism officers has warned, writes Martin Evans.

Terrorists have seized on wild rumours about the dangers of 5G technology and misinformation about the vaccine to stoke distrust about authority and lure people into terrorist activity, police believe.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist from counter terrorism policing, said the pandemic had been exploited, particularly by right wing extremists, who were posing an ever increasing threat.

He revealed that counter terror police had foiled four potential terror attacks since the start of the pandemic.

09:56 AM

Covid deaths in England and Wales lowest since mid-September

Deaths involving Covid-19 in England and Wales have fallen to their lowest level since mid-September, new figures show.

A total of 205 deaths registered in the week ending April 30 mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) - the lowest number since the week ending September 18. The figure is also down 21 per cent on the previous week.

The total number of deaths registered in England and Wales was below the five-year average for the eighth consecutive week, the ONS said.

Some 9,692 deaths were registered in the week to April 30, 7.3 per cent below the average for the corresponding period in 2015-19.

Before the eight most recent weeks, the last time deaths were below average was in the week to September 4 2020.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock welcomes the data:

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09:16 AM

Care home deaths down 30pc on previous week

Some 35 care home resident deaths involving Covid-19 in England and Wales were registered in the week to April 30, down 30% on the previous week.

In total, 42,416 care home residents in England and Wales have had Covid-19 recorded on their death certificate since the pandemic began.

The ONS figures cover deaths of care home residents in all settings, not just in care homes.

08:48 AM

Poll | Will you be hugging people on Monday?

We're interested in what you will be doing.

08:39 AM

Weekly Covid deaths down 21pc in England and Wales

A total of 205 deaths registered in England and Wales in the week ending April 30 mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate, according to the Office for National Statistics - the lowest number since the week ending September 18.

The figure is down 21% on the previous week.

Around one in 48 (2.1%) deaths registered in England and Wales in the week to April 30 mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate.

08:19 AM

Holidaymakers can use NHS app to 'prove' vaccine status

Holidaymakers who have had both doses of a coronavirus vaccine will be able to "prove" their status to other countries, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said.

The Cabinet minister confirmed that people in England who travel abroad will be able to use the NHS app to demonstrate they are fully vaccinated when the ban on overseas leisure travel is lifted on Monday.

The app is currently used to book medical appointments and order repeat prescriptions, and is different from the Covid-19 app.

People who do not have access to a smartphone and know the country they are travelling to requires proof of vaccination status can call the NHS helpline 119 from Monday and ask for a letter to be posted to them.

Mr Hancock told Sky News: "The certification, being able to show that you've had a jab, is going to be necessary for people to be able to travel.

"So, we want to make sure people can get access to that proof, not least to show governments of other countries that you've had the jab if they require that in order to arrive.

08:02 AM

Vaccine working against Indian variant, Matt Hancock suggests

The Health Secretary said: "We have some degree of confidence that the vaccine works effectively against the so-called an Indian variant.

"We're more confident with the vaccines effectiveness against the Indian variant than the South African variant, but these are reasons to be to take cautious, a cautious approach at the borders in order to protect the progress that we've made at home, that's the approach that we're taking."

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07:41 AM

Indian variant poses 'global concern', says WHO

India's coronavirus crisis showed scant sign of easing on Tuesday, with a seven-day average of new cases at a record high and international heath authorities warning the country's variant of the virus poses a global concern.

India's daily coronavirus cases rose by 329,942, while deaths from the disease rose by 3,876, according to the health ministry. India's total coronavirus infections are now at 22.99 million, while total fatalities rose to 249,992.

India leads the world in the daily average number of new deaths reported, accounting for one in every three deaths reported worldwide each day, according to a Reuters tally.

The seven-day average of new cases is at a record high of 390,995.

The World Health Organization said the coronavirus variant first identified in the country last year was being classified as a variant of global concern, with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily.

"We are classifying this as a variant of concern at a global level," Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead on Covid-19, told a briefing in Geneva on Monday. "There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility."

07:25 AM

Variants 'biggest risk' to roadmap, says Hancock

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said the emergence of new coronavirus variants represent the "biggest risk" to lockdown easing in England.

Mr Hancock told BBC Breakfast: "There is no doubt that a new variant is the biggest risk. We have this variant that was first seen in India - the so-called Indian variant - we have seen that grow.

"We are putting a lot of resources into tackling it to make sure everybody who gets that particular variant gets extra support and intervention to make sure that it isn't passed on.

"However, there is also, thankfully, no evidence that the vaccine doesn't work against it."

07:24 AM

Third wave inevitable, says expert

Professor Graham Medley, from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and chairman of the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Modelling (Spi-M) group, which advises Government, said the country may be back to normal by the end of the year if there were limited threats from variants.

But he warned there will "inevitably" be a third wave of infection "but whether that translates into hospitalisations, I think is is the big question. And that's still uncertain. I think we've lost the kind of projections that we had back in February, (they) had some really quite scary numbers in, but they were based upon the fact that the vaccines might not work, but now we know they do..."

07:09 AM

People with Covid not admitted to hospital 'go to GP more after infection'

Coronavirus patients who are not admitted to hospital have a low risk of serious long-term effects, but they could report more visits to a GP in the six months after infection, new research suggests.

According to the six-month study, people who tested positive for the virus and were not admitted to hospital had a slightly increased risk of needing medical treatment for blood clots and breathing difficulties, compared with those who had not been infected.

There was also a slightly increased risk of starting medications for breathing difficulties and migraines.

However, the risks of these factors at the individual level remained small, researchers from the University of Southern Denmark say.

Experts assessed the risk of initiating medication and receiving a hospital diagnosis for a new condition by comparing individuals who tested positive for coronavirus with those who had a negative test during the first wave of the pandemic in Denmark.

07:00 AM

Face masks could be scrapped on June 21, says Health Secretary

Face masks could be a thing of the past come June 21, the Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said.

Asked if there was a possibility the mandatory wearing of face masks could be scrapped in the next step of lockdown lifting, Mr Hancock told Sky News: "We haven't ruled that out when it comes to the where that where we end up on social distancing rules."

He said at this stage, the only change was in schools, where wearing a mask in lessons will now not be enforced.

"These lessons are it's harder to communicate, it's harder to teach," he said.

"But in, in general settings, we're keeping the rules on masks, as they are for this step outside of schools, your mask, mask wearing is one of those things that the cost of it to your personal going about your normal life is really, really small.

"We know that they are of benefit. And that's one of the things we've learned. One of the things that scientists have developed the science on and learned during the pandemic. And so those rules will be saying the same, except for within school settings."

06:43 AM

Can two unvaccinated people hug?

Asked if two people should hug if they have not had their vaccinations, Matt Hancock said: "If two people, neither of them have been vaccinated, then of course the risk of passing on a disease is much higher than if they have been vaccinated.

"I mean that's one of the reasons that the vaccine programme is so, so important and so brilliant is that it gives that level of protection.

"And until now we've had blanket rules across the board. But now what we say with the prevalence of this disease so much lower than it was, that we think, trusting people's personal responsibility is the right way to go because those who are most at a risk from the disease, most of risk of ending up in hospital, or dying - the vast, vast majority of them are vaccinated "

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06:40 AM

What does a 'cautious hug' mean?

Asked to clarify what is meant by a "cautious hug", the Health Secretary told Sky News: "It depends on people's circumstances so we will be changing the rules to be far more about people taking personal responsibility exercising common sense according to their circumstances."

He said that people had been "behaving brilliantly" so far, and added "it is much safer for two people who've had both vaccines to be in close contact" compared to one vaccinated person and one unvaccinated person or who people who have not had jabs.

"People can exercise their own personal responsibility so your grandparents - sometimes for the first time in over a year - will be able to be close to their grandchildren.

"But of course, taking into account the individual risk of catching this disease that people have which differs according to circumstances."

06:22 AM

Today's front page

Here is your Daily Telegraph on Tuesday, May 11.

dt

04:46 AM

Indian strain recorded in Philippines

The Philippines has detected its first two cases of a coronavirus variant first identified in India, its health ministry said on Tuesday.

The World Health Organisation has classified the coronavirus variant, known as B.1.617, as a variant of global concern with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily.

The variant was confirmed in two Filipino seafarers who returned in April from the United Arab Emirates and Oman, said Alethea De Guzman, director of the ministry's epidemiology bureau.

The seafarers were isolated on their return and had both recovered.

In a bid to prevent the entry of variants, the Philippines has temporarily barred travellers from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh from entering the country.

03:48 AM

Its up to all of us to exercise common sense, says PM

People should use their common sense when rules are relaxed to allow them to socialise indoors for the first time this year, Boris Johnson said on Monday.

Confirming that stage three of his England reopening roadmap would go ahead from May 17, the Prime Minister said he wanted people to take personal responsibility for their decisions rather than relying on "government edicts".

From next Monday, there will no longer be a requirement for people gathering in groups of six or two households to stay two metres apart, as the current guidance says.

Instead, those in a group will be free to judge for themselves whether they should hug, shake hands and sit near each other.

Read the full story here.

03:44 AM

Travel spots set to be added to the green list

The British Virgin Islands and a clutch of Caribbean countries are among a limited number of destinations likely be added to the "green list" for holidays, The Telegraph understands.

Hopes of a major expansion including popular destinations in France, Spain, Greece or Italy are, however, likely to be dashed when the Government reviews its current list for quarantine-free travel in three weeks.

It means any big summer holiday getaway to the continent for Britons is likely to be delayed until July or even August.

EXCLUSIVE: The destinations set to be added to the travel green list

03:40 AM

People with Covid not admitted to hospital 'go to GP more'

Coronavirus patients who are not admitted to hospital have a low risk of serious long-term effects, but they could report more visits to a GP in the six months after infection, new research suggests.

According to the six-month study, people who tested positive for the virus and were not admitted to hospital had a slightly increased risk of needing medical treatment for blood clots and breathing difficulties, compared with those who had not been infected.

There was also a slightly increased risk of starting medications for breathing difficulties and migraines.

However, the risks of these factors at the individual level remained small, researchers from the University of Southern Denmark say.

Experts assessed the risk of initiating medication and receiving a hospital diagnosis for a new condition by comparing individuals who tested positive for coronavirus with those who had a negative test during the first wave of the pandemic in Denmark.

03:37 AM

Today's top stories
Associated Press

Already on a first-name basis with relationships that range from just months to years, the leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized democracies are gathering Friday amid hopes that the departure of their most unruly member and a new era of personal friendships enhanced by face-to-face discussions can restore a global anti-authoritarian consensus on climate, the coronavirus, China and Russia. The G-7s return to polite quasi-normality comes as President Joe Biden seeks to restore steady U.S. leadership to the bloc, which had been hamstrung by his predecessor Donald Trumps often confrontational approach to longtime American allies. Trump had thrown a wrench into G-7 unity, demanding the absolute prioritization of U.S. interests, threatening decades-old security guarantees, insulting colleagues and loudly suggesting that Russian President Vladimir Putin be invited back into the group despite his refusal to meet demands for Moscow to stay out of Ukraine.
Stephanie Davis, who's from the US, moved to Singapore in 2017 in the role of Google's country director. Stephanie Davis

Stephanie Davis is Google's vice president for Southeast Asia, based in Singapore.

Since April, she's been back at the office two days a week and working from home for three.

Davis has about 40 hours of meetings a week, most of which are virtual.

See more stories on Insider's business page.

Stephanie Davis is Google's vice president for Southeast Asia, making her the company's top-ranking executive for the region.

Davis is from Georgia in the US and has lived in Singapore since 2017. Stephanie Davis

Davis, who's in her 40s, has worked for Google for 15 years. Originally from a small town in Georgia in the US, she spent stints working in the San Francisco Bay Area, Dublin, and New Zealand before moving to Singapore in 2017 as the company's country director.

Now, she's Google's highest-ranking Southeast Asia executive, overseeing teams at Google's Southeast Asia headquarters in Singapore  where about 2,000 employees work  as well as teams in the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia.

Before the pandemic, Davis said she was typically traveling in the region for work eight to 10 days out of the month.

Stephanie Davis

Whenever possible she would tack on a personal day to a work trip, and her husband would join her for a mini-vacation.

"I think it's one of the beauties about this region," Davis told Insider. "You have the organization, the safety, and the beauty of Singapore, a professional place to be in terms of career. But then you step on a boat, step on a plane, and you can just be in some of the most adventurous, amazing spots in the world."

Now, like many office workers, Davis has been working from home for over a year. In April, however, Singapore's loosened restrictions allowed Davis to start going into the office two days a week and to work from home the other three.

Davis' home workstation. Stephanie Davis

Davis, who lives in Singapore's Tanjong Pagar neighborhood with her husband, Jack, said she thought she had a sufficient home-office setup before the pandemic.

"But I soon realized my desk and my small chair may have worked for weekend work and a few hours at night, but it certainly wasn't cut out for working full days at home," she said. "So I've certainly had to adapt a more ergonomic setup."

Story continues

Davis got a better chair, a desk that raises and lowers so she can alternate between sitting and standing, and a keyboard and monitor.

Google, which is known for providing lavish amenities to its employees like a free cafe and on-site massage therapists, is saving more than $1 billion a year while its staffers work from home, Bloomberg recently reported.

7 to 7:30 a.m: As often as her schedule allows, Davis starts her day with a yoga session.

Stephanie Davis

"I have found yoga to be so helpful to my well-being during this time that I sometimes manage to squeeze in two sessions a day, with a second one that's a nice wind-down before bed," Davis said.

One of her favorite channels is Boho Beautiful with Juliana Spicoluk, she said. The morning yoga is a new addition to Davis' routine since she started working from home.

"Singapore is an easy city to get around, so it's not that I have a really long commute," she said. "But that saving of time in the morning has allowed me to do yoga most mornings."

7:30 to 8 a.m: After yoga, it's time for Davis' morning coffee made with Malaysian-grown coffee beans from the local Tiong Bahru market and brewed by her "kind husband," she said.

Stephanie Davis

"No fancy coffee machines in our home  we lived on a boat for many years, and it's still a stovetop espresso maker for us," Davis said. "We love the simplicity and low waste."

With her coffee in hand, Davis starts getting ready for her day.

"Another pandemic-driven change: I get ready for WFH much faster than I get ready to work from the office," she said.

8 to 9 a.m: Davis typically spends the first hour of her workday clearing her inbox.

Davis at her home workspace. Stephanie Davis

Davis said she got "hundreds" of emails a day and tried to "carve out time each day to read and respond to top priorities."

9 to 10 a.m: Davis' first meeting of the day is with the Southeast Asia search product and marketing team. It's one of about 40 hours of meetings in a typical week.

Stephanie Davis

They discuss how to make Google Search more useful for people in the region.

"We know that people in Southeast Asia are increasingly using voice search to discover a wide range of information  from song lyrics to recipes to store hours, restaurants nearby and items to buy," Davis said. "The number of people across SEA who used their voice to interact with Google on their phone grew 49% compared to the previous year."

10 to 11 a.m: Her next virtual meeting of the day is with Southeast Asia's YouTube team.

Stephanie Davis

Google sees YouTube (which Google owns) as an "integral partner" to the growth of the internet economy in Southeast Asia, Davis said.

Five of YouTube's biggest markets globally, based on watch time, are in Asia: India, Indonesia, Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam, she said.

After the meeting ends at 11 a.m., Davis takes a 15-minute break to stretch and refill her water bottle.

11:15 a.m. to noon: Davis meets virtually with Farhan Qureshi, Google's country director for Pakistan and South Asian frontier markets.

Qureshi and Davis. Stephanie Davis

Davis typically meets with her direct reports for 45 minutes every two weeks.

She and Qureshi discuss how Google can help startups and developers in Pakistan.

Noon to 12:30 p.m: Davis sits in on an in-person meeting at Google's office in Singapore, where the company's incident-response team is discussing its continuing efforts to make the offices safe for Googlers to return.

A socially distanced meeting with the incident-response team in December. Stephanie Davis

The meeting is typically virtual, but some members of the team were able to meet in person at the end of last year.

12:45 to 1:45 p.m: Davis has lunch at a local cafe with a founder who has decided to start a new business to address the climate crisis.

Davis had the Oriental Shrimp Salad at Singapore's Little Part 1 Cafe. Stephanie Davis

"I look forward to when we can once again host guests at our offices, but I'm also thankful for the many local cafes in Singapore, where we can easily meet up and have productive business discussions," Davis said.

2 to 4 p.m: After lunch, Davis has more virtual meetings, including one with Google's philanthropic arm, Google.org, to get an update on its recent projects.

Stephanie Davis

Google.org announced on April 26 that it was contributing $18 million to the COVID-19 crisis in India. The philanthropic arm also works with local organizations in Southeast Asia to support education for underprivileged children, Davis said.

Then she has a 30-minute call with a large e-commerce company in the region about how the two companies can work together to get more small businesses online.

At 3 p.m., Davis takes part in a regional Google town hall to celebrate diversity, inclusion, and belonging.

"Town halls like these are an integral part of Google's culture, and at this one, we hear personal stories from Googlers across the region," she said.

4:15 to 6 p.m: Davis is a few minutes late to the monthly meeting of the Singapore Computer Society, where she's an Executive Council member.

Singapore Computer Society's president, Chong Yoke Sin, left, with Davis. Singapore Computer Society

The Singapore Computer Society is an infocomm and digital-media society with 42,000 members  including industry professionals, students, and tech enthusiasts  that helps grow the tech industry in Singapore, she said.

The meeting is in person, with masks and social distancing, Davis said.

6:15 to 6:30 p.m: Just as she gets back home, Davis gets a video call from her brother in North Carolina so she can say good morning to her 1-1/2-year-old niece, Vivian Cora.

Stephanie Davis

"It's been more than a year since I last saw my family in the US," Davis said. "I come from a close-knit family, and it's been difficult to not see them, but I'm grateful that we're healthy and well connected via video calls."

6:30 to 8 p.m: Davis and her husband go for a hike at Singapore's Mount Faber, a 138-acre park with scenic views of the city. It's a hike they do several times a week, she said.

Stephanie Davis

"He and I catch up on our respective days, but then our earbuds go in, we listen to our favorite podcasts or books, and then share learnings with one another," Davis said.

Davis recently finished "So You Want to Talk About Race" by Ijeoma Oluo and said she liked the author's "straightforward style in suggesting how we can have better conversations about race."

"A few stretches at the top and some reflection while the sun goes down is a great way to close the curtain on the day," Davis said.

8 to 9 p.m: For dinner, Davis and her husband have a kale Reuben sandwich. "Jack is the chef in our home - lucky me," she said.

Jack's kale Reuben and tomato soup. Stephanie Davis

While they eat, they watch YouTube videos including the evening news, late-night replays, and some sailing videos like Ruby Rose.

9 to 11 p.m.: After dinner, Davis gets some more work done.

Stephanie Davis

"This is when I prepare for the next day  read materials for meetings, think through presentations, look at the revenue numbers, etc.," she said. "All with a nice candle burning nearby."

11 p.m. to midnight: Davis spends some time reading before bed.

Stephanie Davis

"So that I don't wake Jack, I have a little light that attaches to my book  or should I say one of a few books, as it's common for me to be reading several at once," Davis said. "I seem to read fiction when on a holiday, but otherwise I enjoy nonfiction."

One of Davis' favorite books is Jane Goodall's "Reason for Hope," which she says has influenced how she chooses to lead.

And finally, it's time to sleep.

Read the original article on Business Insider
The woman told police Murray struck her with a closed fist and choked her four or five times, according to the charging documents. Officers noted in the charging documents that they saw red marks on the womans neck consistent with strangulation, a red mark on her cheek where she said she had been struck and red spots in her eyes caused by a severe case of burst blood vessels  that is another sign of strangulation. These were confirmed by medics who took her to Carroll Hospital.
BERLIN (Reuters) - A worldwide lack of semiconductors is proving a challenge for computer manufacturers, but the shortage is likely to persist for some years, the chief executive and founder of Dell Technologies told Germany's Handelsblatt newspaper.

A surge in demand for electronic devices, coupled with U.S. sanctions against Chinese technology firms, has caused a dearth of the chips, crimping output of items ranging from cars to computers and smartphones.

"The shortage will probably continue for a few years," Michael Dell said in an interview published on Tuesday. "Even if chip factories are built all over the world it takes time."

With an annual order volume of $70 billion, the firm is one of the most important customers of many semiconductor makers, but still had to pay a premium to secure supply, Dell added.

In particular, older and cheaper semiconductors are hard to get hold of, he said.

"We are talking, in particular, about components that are in the one-dollar range and are used practically everywhere," he said. "But even newer technologies are not easy to come by."

(Writing by Caroline Copley; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
- By GF Value





The stock of Diebold Nixdorf (NYSE:DBD, 30-year Financials) appears to be significantly overvalued, according to GuruFocus Value calculation. GuruFocus Value is GuruFocus' estimate of the fair value at which the stock should be traded. It is calculated based on the historical multiples that the stock has traded at, the past business growth and analyst estimates of future business performance. If the price of a stock is significantly above the GF Value Line, it is overvalued and its future return is likely to be poor. On the other hand, if it is significantly below the GF Value Line, its future return will likely be higher. At its current price of $12.74 per share and the market cap of $996 million, Diebold Nixdorf stock is believed to be significantly overvalued. GF Value for Diebold Nixdorf is shown in the chart below.





Diebold Nixdorf Stock Is Believed To Be Significantly Overvalued

Because Diebold Nixdorf is significantly overvalued, the long-term return of its stock is likely to be much lower than its future business growth.

Link: These companies may deliever higher future returns at reduced risk.

Since investing in companies with low financial strength could result in permanent capital loss, investors must carefully review a company's financial strength before deciding whether to buy shares. Looking at the cash-to-debt ratio and interest coverage can give a good initial perspective on the company's financial strength. Diebold Nixdorf has a cash-to-debt ratio of 0.15, which ranks in the bottom 10% of the companies in Software industry. Based on this, GuruFocus ranks Diebold Nixdorf's financial strength as 3 out of 10, suggesting poor balance sheet. This is the debt and cash of Diebold Nixdorf over the past years:

Diebold Nixdorf Stock Is Believed To Be Significantly Overvalued

It poses less risk to invest in profitable companies, especially those that have demonstrated consistent profitability over the long term. A company with high profit margins is also typically a safer investment than one with low profit margins. Diebold Nixdorf has been profitable 4 over the past 10 years. Over the past twelve months, the company had a revenue of $3.9 billion and loss of $3.47 a share. Its operating margin is 1.10%, which ranks in the middle range of the companies in Software industry. Overall, GuruFocus ranks the profitability of Diebold Nixdorf at 4 out of 10, which indicates poor profitability. This is the revenue and net income of Diebold Nixdorf over the past years:

Story continues

Diebold Nixdorf Stock Is Believed To Be Significantly Overvalued

Growth is probably the most important factor in the valuation of a company. GuruFocus research has found that growth is closely correlated with the long term stock performance of a company. A faster growing company creates more value for shareholders, especially if the growth is profitable. The 3-year average annual revenue growth of Diebold Nixdorf is -6.3%, which ranks worse than 78% of the companies in Software industry. The 3-year average EBITDA growth rate is 3.7%, which ranks in the middle range of the companies in Software industry.

One can also evaluate a company's profitability by comparing its return on invested capital (ROIC) to its weighted average cost of capital (WACC). Return on invested capital (ROIC) measures how well a company generates cash flow relative to the capital it has invested in its business. The weighted average cost of capital (WACC) is the rate that a company is expected to pay on average to all its security holders to finance its assets. If the return on invested capital exceeds the weighted average cost of capital, the company is likely creating value for its shareholders. During the past 12 months, Diebold Nixdorf's ROIC is 1.46 while its WACC came in at 17.32.

Overall, Diebold Nixdorf (NYSE:DBD, 30-year Financials) stock shows every sign of being significantly overvalued. The company's financial condition is poor and its profitability is poor. Its growth ranks in the middle range of the companies in Software industry. To learn more about Diebold Nixdorf stock, you can check out its 30-year Financials here.

To find out the high quality companies that may deliever above average returns, please check out GuruFocus High Quality Low Capex Screener.

This article first appeared on GuruFocus.


TikTok users are discovering crazy truths using DNA test kits.

 Recommendations are independently chosen by Revieweds editors. Purchases you make through our links may earn us a commission.

No other app can cause things to go viral quite like TikTok. Whether it's beauty hacks, Cottagecore, or Restoration Hardware's Cloud sofa, you never know what's going to attract widespread attention from the Gen Z audience. While there's all kinds of engaging content and trendy clips on its platform, one hashtag that's been making the news this year is #AncestrySecret, in which users share the shocking discoveries they've made after taking an AncestryDNA test.

How did the trend start?

TikTokers have been divulging their stories in answer to a video from user @meezersqueezer, which prompts them to share family secrets that they learnt after using the DNA kit, and the responses have been a wild ride. The original poster shared that they discovered a new great uncle, and that their great grandfather was not who theyd previously believed him to be. They reveal:

My family identifies as Irish, but we have a Czech last name, so I took a DNA test. It came back half Irish and Scottish nothing too surprising, Im super white. A year passes and I get an email from a Polynesian guy, Faalongo, who tells me Im his highest DNA match and hes searching for his birth dad. So I give him access to my family tree. His team points out that my grandfather was born to an unmarried teen mom and she married the guy I knew as my great grandfather four years later. At this point, I get my family involved. My brother agreed to take a Y DNA test to help narrow down the paternal line, and we find out who my great grandfather is. Hes a guy named Albert who lived in Ohio and he fathered my grandfather, went to war, fathered Faalongo, came back to Ohio and had a daughter and a family there, and never told anyone.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Countless TikTokers have come forward with their own crazy revelations, ranging from donor-conceived siblings to unfaithful parents to secret love children, among other plot twists you thought only happened in soap operas.

Story continues

What have other users discovered?

One user discovered he had over 30 half-siblings that his parents had never mentioned.

Out of the many crazy tales, TikToker Cat McDonald (@fretlessfeline) found out her biological father was a "billionaire CEO" after her dad gifted her a DNA test. In a now-viral clip, she states, My dad came up with the brilliant idea of giving the entire family Ancestry DNA kits last year for Christmas. I identify as Irish because my last name is McDonald and my hair is bright red. Turns out, Im 75 percent Norwegian and the rest is like German and British and theres zero Irish. So I called my dad and said, Guess what? Im not Irish at all. He calls me at 10 oclock, which we all know is 3 a.m. dad time, saying, Theres no way youre not Irish!' So with my dad on the phone, I logged into my account to see if I had any DNA matches, and I had an exact paternal match. It just wasnt him!

According to McDonald, Cats dad recognized the name of the paternal DNA match as an "old family friend," who she's since tried to contact, but he wasn't willing to meet her "when he heard [her] name."

In another viral TikTok, user Andy Torrey (@kingnabil69) details the "most insane weekend" of his life, when he discovered he was actually the second oldest of 31 siblings, who live all across the world. In his TikTok, Torrey states, "My Dad told me that he was, like, mostly French and English, and I was like, 'That's strange, I wonder why Ireland is higher than that'." After looking at his highest DNA matches and searching the man's name online, Andy discovered a news story about his "sperm donor dad and 15 of [his siblings he] didn't know about partying in Mexico." His parents later confirmed that what he'd found out was true.

When asked how he felt about the situation, Andy told us, "As soon as I pieced everything together and was able to confirm my findings, I was in complete shock. I grew up as an only child that really would have loved to have had siblings, and woke up one day and found out I was the second oldest of 31 and the oldest boy. For the first couple weeks, it was complete joy and excitement. As time has gone by, a lot of feelings of grief, loss, and pain have arisen for the time I have already lost with my siblings; additionally, coming to terms with the fact that my parents have lied to me about my identity for my entire life has not been an easy pill to swallow. Grappling with the fact that I don't believe they had a right to withhold that information from me, but knowing they have been good parents otherwise has been really tough."

In the end, however, it was a positive revelation for him. He added: "For the first two weeks I was on FaceTime non-stop chatting various siblings for hours at a time like it was a full-time job. It has been hands down the most incredible experience of my life getting to meet them, and discovering the myriad of similarities we have (musical talent, affinity for politics, gesturing/phrasing, palette, etc). Since I found out a few months ago, I've actually already met 5 of them in personI just got back from Boston where I visited 2 siblings over my birthday weekend, and I even got a matching tattoo of a paper plane that some of the siblings have (@paperplanesociety on Instagram). It's been a journey for sure."

A third TikToker, Lydia (@lyddelle_) seemingly found out she was three years older than she originally thought. After getting the results back from her test, she attempted to fill out her profile for her family tree, but the system said that there was no public record of a "Lydia Ellen with [her] birth date."

Lydia then dug up her medical records, in which her first vaccination at 18 months old was recorded in July, 1997. "My medical records suggest I was born November 1995," she explained, meaning I would be 26 this year instead of 23." However, upon further investigation of her prior vaccination schedule, she found that whoever had recorded the immunization in '97 had written the wrong date.

Although she was confused by the results at first, stating "I didn't understand how a mistake could be made like that by medical professionals," Lydia claims she doesn't lament the whole ordeal: "Overall I am glad I took the test...It allowed me to get to know myself and my family both past and present better. It's nice to know where you come from!"

How can AncestryDNA uncover family secrets?

Ancestry has the capability to show you exactly how you're related to each DNA match.

After you submit your test kit to AncestryDNA, your results are broken down into three components: a DNA story (your ethnic background), DNA matches (your relatives on Ancestry), and ThruLines (your family tree). If you opt in to the latter two features, they may help you discover a few secret relatives, or reveal information about your familys past you may not be privy to.

From there, users can dig into their family histories even further to find potential ancestors, discover shared relatives with other AncestryDNA users, and build out their family tree through generations. Should you want to contact one of your newly discovered family members, Ancestry gives you the option to message them and explore shared family trees.

If you're as curious as these TikTokers are about your family history, an AncestryDNA test could reveal some major surprisesbe it a long-lost sibling or a sordid affair. With a database of over 18 million DNA tests (and counting), it's smart to go in prepared for anything.

Get an AncestryDNA kit for $99

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Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.

This article originally appeared on Reviewed: DNA test kits may uncover family secretsjust ask these people on TikTok
Colonial Pipeline storage tanks in Woodbridge, N.J., on May 10, 2021. (Ted Shaffrey / Associated Press)

A major fuel pipeline supplying the East Coast was shut down Friday after the Georgia-based company operating it became the victim of a ransomware attack.

Friday's hack forced Colonial Pipeline to halt operations in what it called an abundance of caution. The company said the ransomware attack targeted its information technology systems. White House officials said Monday that the pipeline did not appear to suffer any damage.

Cybersecurity experts have been warning for years about the threat posed by a ransomware attack on U.S. infrastructure in the wake of thousands of successful hacks of computer systems operated by governments, school districts, companies and hospitals. To combat such cyberattacks, governments and businesses must beef up their defenses, better prepare to respond to intrusions and put diplomatic pressure on countries harboring cybercriminals, the experts say.

What happened?

Ransomware is malware that infects and locks computer systems until victims pay hackers a fee to unlock them. Hackers typically infect such systems by tricking unwitting computer users into clicking an email attachment or a link containing the virus.

Colonial Pipeline reported over the weekend that it became the victim of a ransomware attack that locked up its business-side computers. The company said in a statement that on Friday it "proactively took certain systems offline to contain the threat, which has temporarily halted all pipeline operations." The cyberassault did not appear to infect systems operating the pipeline.

"It is relatively easy to hack a business network," said James Lewis, a cybersecurity expert and a senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "It's harder to hack the industrial network. Colonial did everything right after it was hacked. But we don't yet know if Colonial made the right move to prevent the hackers from crossing over."

By Monday, the company reported, it was bringing back online segments of the pipeline, which supplies about 45% of the jet fuel, gasoline and heating oil consumed on the East Coast. White House officials said the shutdown was not likely to cause fuel shortages or lead to a rise in gas prices.

Story continues

Colonial said it hoped to fully restore service by the coming weekend, but that might not be soon enough to avoid an increase in gas prices.

Debnil Chowdhury, executive director of the international business research firm IHS Markit, told the Associated Press that if the pipeline remained down much longer "we do expect an increase in East Coast gasoline and diesel prices."

A similar outage in 2016 led to a 15- to 20-cent increase in the cost for a gallon of gas, Chodhury told the AP.

How big a problem is ransomware?

The Colonial hack shouldn't surprise anyone, said Bruce Schneier, a cybersecurity expert and lecturer at Harvard Universitys Kennedy School of Government.

"This happens hundreds of times a day," Schneier said. "These hackers, this time, just happened to land a big fish."

A task force of more than 60 experts from industry, government and nonprofits issued a report last month that called ransomware "a flourishing criminal industry that not only risks the personal and financial security of individuals, but also threatens national security and human life."

The report, published by the nonprofit Institute for Security and Technology, estimated that nearly 2,400 governments, healthcare facilities and schools were victims of ransomware attacks last year. Ransom payments rose to $350 million last year, a 300% increase over 2019, the report said. The average such payment topped $300,000.

The problem is growing, experts said. A cyber insurance firm told the task force that it tallied a 260% increase in ransomware attacks of its policy holders. A cybersecurity firm estimated that ransomware hacks spiked 700% in 2020 over 2019.

Christopher Krebs, the former head of the Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, testified before congress last week that "we are on the cusp of a global digital pandemic, driven by greed, a vulnerable digital ecosystem in an ever-widening criminal enterprise."

Why are ransomware attacks on the rise?

Cybersecurity experts say two trends are behind the increase in ransomware assaults. The first, they said, was the growth of difficult-to-trace cryptocurrency, which has allowed hackers to easily obtain large ransom payments under the nose of financial regulators.

Meanwhile, they said, foreign governments have recognized the value in allowing hackers to operate inside their borders. Such hackers pay bribes to officials and agree to only target victims overseas. Russian operatives, in particular, believe such hackers help advance their foreign policy goals by causing trouble for adversaries, according to law enforcement officials and cybersecurity experts.

President Biden told reporters Monday that it did not appear that Moscow was behind the attack but there was evidence the "actor's ransomware is based in Russia."

"I'm going to be meeting with President Putin," Biden said, referring to his Russian counterpart. "They have some responsibility to deal with it."

Who targeted Colonial Pipeline?

The FBI on Monday attributed the attack to DarkSide ransomware, which is produced by an eponymous criminal organization that U.S. officials and cybersecurity experts say operates in Eastern Europe or Russia.

DarkSide is a "ransomware-as-a-service" business that relies on selling malware to hackers who then launch attacks and share proceeds with the developers, according to U.S. officials and cybersecurity experts.

The group's malware packs a dual punch: It not only locks networks but also siphons data. This kind of attack is effective even if a company or government backed up its information to mitigate the damage from ransomware because hackers can still threaten to release the data they are holding publicly or to competitors.

Cybereason, a Boston-based cybersecurity firm, reported that DarkSide's approach "effectively renders the strategy of backing up data as a precaution against a ransomware attack moot."

In a statement obtained by multiple media organizations, DarkSide said its "goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society."

What's next?

The U.S. government is taking steps to address the ransomware threat. The Justice Department last month formed a task force to combat ransomware, and the Biden administration says it is formulating a plan to tackle the problem.

Cybersecurity experts said they expect high-profile hacks like the one on Colonial Pipeline to prod potential victims to heighten security, create backups of data and come up with effective response plans.

"This problem will be greatly reduced over the next year because there is so much attention being paid to it," predicted Lewis, the cybersecurity expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Other experts are not so sanguine, saying hackers have proved adept at devising new ways to overcome cyberdefenses.

Times staff writer Eli Stokols contributed to this report.





This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Afghan officials are blaming the Taliban for an attack on a girls' school, the first major attack since the U.S. military began withdrawing from Afghanistan. CBS News foreign correspondent Charlie D'Agata reports from Kabul.

Video Transcript

- The death toll is rising from an attack that targeted a girl's school in Afghanistan. Dozens died in the bombing, many of them students. Charlie D'Agata is in Kabul with the latest. And a warning, some of the video is difficult to watch.

CHARLIE D'AGATA: The first major attack since the US drawdown began was designed to kill and maim as many school girls as possible. The interior ministry told us a suicide car bomb was detonated, followed by two other explosions from devices planted in the street. At the hospital today, we found young girls fighting for their lives. 14-year-old Merriam's internal injuries are so extensive, doctors say they're not sure she can be saved. Habiba's brain damage is so severe, she will not survive. 13-year-old Zainab was rushing to catch up with classmates who are just leaving through the school gates.

- [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

INTERPRETER: I had just left the library to go home, she said. On the street, suddenly, the suicide attack happened. I started running, and I noticed my hand was bleeding.

CHARLIE D'AGATA: An attack like this is just tragic proof that there is no front line. No target is off limits. These children had nothing to do with the fighting that's going on. They simply just wanted to go to school. Fighting has intensified as Taliban militants have gone on the attack. Afghan security forces are stretched thin battling the Taliban in the provinces while trying to protect civilians in the cities.

- They attack us where we are weakest, so our front line is our mosques. They're our streets. They're our schools, and they're our universities. Any place that the Taliban can attack is a front line for us now.

CHARLIE D'AGATA: The Taliban have declared a three-day cease fire to mark the Muslim holy day of Eid later this week. Tonight, the Afghan government agreed, but called for a permanent cease fire saying the Taliban have no legitimate reason to keep killing Afghan people. Elaine.

- Charlie D'Agata, thank you.
Egypt reached out to Israel to calm tensions in Jerusalem but was met with indifference, its top diplomat told an emergency Arab League meeting Tuesday on the crisis.

Israel and Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas exchanged heavy fire Tuesday, killing at least 26 Palestinians and two Israelis, in an escalation sparked by violent unrest at Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

The international community has called for calm, while Muslim countries have voiced outrage amid the worst flare-up of Israel-Palestinian violence in years.

"In the last few days, Egypt extensively reached out to Israel and other concerned countries urging them to exert all possible efforts to prevent the deterioration of the situation in Jerusalem," said Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.

"But we did not get the necessary response," he told the meeting of the Arab League via videoconference.

While not specifying the other countries Egypt contacted, he condemned "Israeli violations at the walls of Al-Aqsa Mosque which crossed over into Sheikh Jarrah" in east Jerusalem.

In a closing statement, the League's foreign ministers urged the International Criminal Court to "press ahead" with its probe of "war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Israel against the Palestinian people".

They also called for the latest "forced evictions of Palestinians from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah" in east Jerusalem to be included in an investigation by the Hague-based tribunal.

Israel has refused to sign up to the court, set up in 2002 to try the world's worst crimes. The Palestinians have been a state party to the ICC since 2015.

Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit also lambasted Israeli violence directed towards Palestinians in east Jerusalem in the meeting's opening remarks.

"Israel wants to convince the world that what happened in Sheikh Jarrah is a real-estate dispute over some homes, as if we don't have a memory," he said.

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Israel occupied the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in the Six-Day War of 1967, and later annexed mostly Arab east Jerusalem. Today they are home to at least five million Palestinians defined by the United Nations as living under Israeli occupation.

He described the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as being "completely beholden to the hardened agenda of settlers and extremist religious parties in Israel".

Netanyahu warned Tuesday that Israel would "intensify the power" of its attacks on Hamas after two Israeli women were killed by rockets.
Hunters took selfies with the dead deer

Hunters have been condemned by English Heritage over pictures they took posing with dead muntjac deer at one of the organisation's properties.

Officials said that some of the hunters were not "respectful" to the deer, which were shot as part of a cull at Wrest Park, in Bedfordshire.

The group were believed to have paid to visit the park and shoot muntjac, which are an invasive species. They then posed, grinning, with the animals with the stately home as a backdrop.

Photographs of the hunt were then shared widely on Facebook, and condemned by local animal rights groups. Their shoot was not illegal, as it was licenced, but English Heritage said posing with dead animals is not respectful.

Bedfordshire Against Trophy Hunting urged its followers to bombard English Heritage with disapproving messages.

The group said: "For a national charity this really is quite grubby and we should expect better from them. They may seek to protect the national heritage but there are parts of it that should be consigned to history - such as all these blood 'sports' that they embrace e.g. killing innocent animals for fun and money."

A spokesperson for English Heritage said the organisation was "shocked and saddened" by the pictures, adding that while culls take place on the land, shooting "for sport" is not allowed.

They added: "In accordance with relevant legislation, in some places we need to work with third parties to manage some animal populations. Its important to us that this is done humanely and respectfully.

"Weve started a full investigation and can assure you were taking this matter extremely seriously."

Stalking groups in the area charge hunters from 100 per deer.

The small deer was an import from China, and was first introduced to nearby Woburn Abbey at the start of the 20th century. It rapidly spread across South East England, and further releases, deliberate and accidental, established the population nationwide.

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They are subject to culls because they are notorious browsers, stripping the ground of vegetation and impeding the growth of plants and trees.

Last year, conservationists warned that bluebell woods were at risk from the mammals, which munch all the green shoots before the flowers have a chance to bloom.

James Sutcliffe, BASC deer officer, said: Muntjac are an invasive, non-native species in the UK. They can do a lot of damage if not correctly managed. Their population is widespread and they are increasing in both number and range. The management of muntjac is necessary to reduce the significant negative impact they can have on native woodlands, for example.

Some people may have a rose-tinted view of managing fragile landscapes, but these areas are absolutely best protected by the lawful and essential management of invasive species such as muntjac.
By Francesco Guarascio

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union launched a new lawsuit against AstraZeneca on Tuesday that could lead to financial sanctions for the company which the EU alleges has breached a supply contract for COVID-19 vaccines.

The lawsuit is the EU's second against AstraZeneca after the bloc took action at the end of April over delayed vaccine supplies.

AstraZeneca has said the EU's first legal action is without merit, saying that it complied with the contract. The company's lawyer said on Tuesday the new lawsuit was not needed given that there was already one underway.

EU lawyer Rafael Jafferali, speaking in a Belgian court at Tuesday's hearing, asked that AstraZeneca delivers a total of 120 million vaccine doses by the end of June in Brussels' first formal request on the exact volume it is seeking to receive by mid-year.

The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker had originally committed to deliver 300 million vaccine doses from December to the end of June, but has delayed shipments, having delivered only 50 million, which under the contract were due in January.

As a partial and immediate compensation for the delays, the EU's lawyer told the court that the company should deliver 120 million doses by the end of June - 90 million in the second quarter, in addition to the 30 million shots shipped by the end of March.

AstraZeneca's aim is to ship 100 million shots by mid-year, which the company's lawyer Hakim Boularbah confirmed at the hearing on Tuesday.

Boularbah said AstraZeneca was not obliged to deliver the entire volume of doses set in the contract because it only committed to doing its "best reasonable efforts" to achieve it.

He declined to comment when asked by Reuters if the company could accept the EU's demand to deliver 120 million doses by the end of June. The company has cited production problems and export restrictions as reasons for its delayed supplies to the EU.

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The EU lawyer told the court that the EU hoped the remainder of the contracted 300 million doses could be delivered by AstraZeneca by September, although he did not submit a formal request on this.

AstraZeneca was not immediately available for comment.

FINE LOOMING?

Officials familiar with the case said the second lawsuit is mostly procedural, pertaining to the merits of the issue, but would also allow financial penalties to be imposed on the company.

A request for a provisional compensation of 1 euro was put forward by the EU while damages were assessed. A demand for real compensation for what the EU has alleged is a breach of contract by AstraZeneca would be decided at a later stage.

One official said the fine could be "significant" but declined to quantify the financial claim, which would need to be approved by the judge.

A spokesman for the European Commission told a news conference later on Tuesday that the ultimate objective of the lawsuits was to get doses and not to punish AstraZeneca or seek a fine. But he also said financial penalties could be imposed on the company.

The EU lawyer also asked AstraZeneca to share confidential documents, a request which AstraZeneca opposes.

The EU had previously urged AstraZeneca to present evidence of how it spent the 224 million euros ($272 million) the EU paid in September to buy vaccine ingredients.

AstraZeneca's lawyer complained in the court hearing that the EU's executive had launched a second case given that one had already been opened.

The judge decided in favour of allowing the second case to proceed and set Sept. 24 as the date for the next hearing.

Another hearing has been set for May 26 on the first legal case in which the EU is seeking an immediate acceleration of deliveries.

A verdict on the first case is expected before the end of June, whereas the second case on the merits of the matter will last at least until next year.

($1 = 0.8220 euros)

(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio; additional reporting by John Chalmers and Jan Strupczewski; Editing by Jane Merriman and Ed Osmond)
At first, Mark William Ackett couldnt bring himself to look at the dozens of former students, friends and colleagues who filed in to a Hillsborough County courtroom on Monday.

For a few moments the 52-year-old former teacher met their gaze while addressing the court at the start of his sentencing hearing. But then he would swallow hard and look down at his long-awaited apology - reading aloud for roughly 10 minutes in the clear, steady voice of a life-long educator.

Judge Laura Ward sentenced Ackett to 15 years in a Florida prison on Monday evening, and sex offender probation for the rest of his life.

Theres so much suffering in this case by so many different people due to the actions of the defendant. Theres very little I can say today to make any of that better, she said.

He stayed composed, head bowed on his chest and eyes closed, for the two hours his friends, fellow church members, neighbors and wife of nearly 30 years begged Judge Ward to be merciful and lenient in her sentencing decision. Prosecutors pointed out that, under state law, the sentence for pleading guilty to 324 counts of video voyeurism - which Ackett did in an April Zoom hearing - would equal roughly 366 years in state prison. In a sentencing memorandum filed ahead of Mondays hearing, his defense attorneys asked for a maximum of three years and time on probation, promising Ackett would continue seeking treatment for a diagnosed voyeristic disorder.

But when his victims had their turn to speak, Ackett crumbled. He sobbed in his chair.

Eva Applebee was the first victim to speak. Shes a longtime teacher at Bloomingdale High School who worked alongside Ackett for 12 years, when he was an assistant principal at the school and then, after a stint working in the district offices, when he returned in 2017 as the girls track coach and the schools fashion design teacher.

In the roughly 20 months after Ackett returned to the school in January 2017 he collected, cropped and edited hundreds of nude and partially-nude videos and photos of 125 victims changing in the fashion design class dressing room. All were students except for Applebee.

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Applebee spoke Monday of the shock and disbelief she felt when she learned she was the only adult employee at the school in Acketts videos. It felt like she had been punched in the stomach, she said, when she realized his cameras were discovered in the classroom they shared, which students now call the room of horrors.

What Mark did was not an isolated lapse of judgement but calculated and deliberate criminal acts, Applebee said. Mark groomed and chose his victims - gaining their trust and then taking advantage of them.

The court heard tearful testimony from a parent whose daughter was 15 when Ackett recorded her changing in his classroom.

I cant trust the school system, I cant trust the teachers or the coaches, I cant trust anyone anymore, she said.

Five former students identified in Acketts images read letters in court describing the the anguish they felt in the days since his arrest. Prosecutors didnt read their names aloud in court because they were minors when the sexual abuse charges occurred.

Anything less than life in prison would be a free pass, some victims said. They spoke of how angry they were when they learned that Acketts mother bailed him out of jail two days after his arrest and spoke of how nervous they were of bumping into him after learning he was allowed to stay home with his family while awaiting trial.

Some of the students said they struggle with depression and anxiety. One victim went from being a standout on the girls track team to quitting completely. Another, who was only 12 when she began attending devotional Bible studies at Acketts home, no longer goes to church.

When I found out what you had done I was filled with disgust, but when I found out I was a victim I was filled with hate, she told Ackett on Monday. I hope you can get the help you need, because you need help, and I hope that one day I can see you in heaven. But I think you need nothing less than the maximum sentence for everything youve done to us.

One victim told the court that she spent her fathers birthday sitting with two sheriffs deputies, identifying pictures of her naked body. Another victim said Mondays sentencing was also the first day of her senior year of college - a time forever darkened by Acketts criminal case. She identified herself in 18 different videos, she said.

I went back to my dorm feeling disgusted and violated and as if someone was watching me, she said. I remember I felt like I had to take a shower, but when I entered the shower stall in my dorm I was still fully clothed. Thats how I shower now - sitting on the ground in my clothes until I can build up enough courage to undress.

The victims testimonies rattled those who came to speak of Acketts character. They described Ackett as a good neighbor, a good coach, a volunteer for his kids marching band, a trusted Sunday school teacher and a loving husband to his wife Jennifer.

I wish I could go back and change what I did, or do something to make amends but I know that I cannot, Ackett said to the court. I feel especially ashamed of what I did because you treated me with such care. Some of you confided in me your fears and problems, and many of you consider my classroom a safe place to escape the problems that you face. I will never forgive myself for turning something that should have been a fond memory for you into something that you would rather forget.

Ruben Drake, cognitive behavioral therapist told the court that in his 53 counseling sessions with Ackett since his arrest, his clinical opinion is that Ackett is not a threat to the community, is not a pedophile and is committed and capable of recovering from his compulsions. His fantasies werent about having sex with underaged students, but were triggered by the thrill of secretly watching them, Drake said, and Acketts shame and remorse is overwhelming.

Its a mental disorder and it can be treated, Drake said. People can be benevolent in one area and then have a disorder in another. Hes not a bad person, but he certainly had some bad behaviors.

Childhood trauma led Ackett to develop voyeuristic disorder, Ruben said. He knew he needed help, but didnt know where to go without risking his job, his freedom and his familys reputation.

If it wasnt for one of Acketts 17-year-old fashion design students, he would have never been caught, Applebee said. The girl was changing clothes in a dressing area inside a fashion design classroom and noticed a box on a shelf with a light coming from it. Inside, she found a cell phone that appeared to be recording. She found a second cell phone and told the school principal, who notified the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office.

Ackett told deputies he had been recording students without their knowledge. The recordings began in January 2017.

He is an excellent actor, having fooled us and his very own family for years, Applebee said. Acting like he cared, like he respected us. But instead we found out it was a big act.
This discussion will focus on how the pandemic has changed lives and what the new normal looks like. Magsamen will guide participants in the creation of their own family or individual vision board. During this hands-on program, shell explore ways to use intuition, set goals and create a format through the vision board to clarify, concentrate and maintain focus on what truly matters to you.
The former mayor of a Texas city who resigned shortly after winning re-election has been charged with child sex crimes.

Scott Saunders Jr.  who was mayor of Smithville, a small town southeast of Austin  was arrested Monday on two charges of sexual assault of a child and a charge of indecency with a child, officials say.

Early this year, allegations of possible indiscretions involving Saunders surfaced on Facebook, officials say.

Due to the nature of the allegations and the fact that criminal offenses may have occurred, the information was immediately forwarded to the Texas Rangers for an investigation to eliminate any potential conflict of interest to the city and provide protection for everyone involved, the city said in a statement.

According to court records, the incidents happened in June 2010 and May 2015. The city did not release additional information about the charges.

Saunders was unopposed in the November 2020 election. He resigned in January, saying he was mentally, physically, financially and emotionally exhausted, KXAN reported.

Im a young guy with a young family and a new business just trying to make it, Saunders said, according to the news outlet. My hectic work schedule is not only impacting my family but also my mental and physical health.

Ex-reserve cop used ghost hunting ruse to sexually assault women, Texas sheriff says
The Daily Beast

Dennis Fujimoto/APOne year to the day after her two childrens remains were found buried in shallow graves, a court has ordered Idaho doomsday mom Lori Vallow Daybell to be committed to a mental health facility for 90 days, where psychiatrists will attempt to restore her competency to stand trial, according to court records.The move comes as Daybells fifth husband and co-defendant Chad Daybell, who is also accused of killing his first wife, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to multiple murder and
It turns out you can go home again, at least for a little while.

For South Carolina native and S.C. State University alum Brig. Gen. Milford Beagle Jr., coming to his home state and being the commanding general of the U.S. Armys Fort Jackson for the last three years has been the opportunity of a lifetime. But his time leading the post is drawing to a close.

Beagle, who has been in the Army for 31 years, has served as Fort Jacksons commanding general since 2018. In February, the Department of Defense announced he will become the commanding general of the 10th Mountain Division (Light) at Fort Drum in New York, according to the Pentagon. An official date for the transition hasnt yet been announced, but officials have estimated it could come in June.

His service has taken him to military installations across the nation and world, including combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. In a recent one-on-one interview with The State at his office on Fort Jackson, Beagle acknowledged the infinitesimally small chance that, when he first entered the Army in 1990, he would ascend to the rank of brigadier general and eventually assume command of the installation in his home state.

For me, its just a continued process of making it, fortunately, through the eye of the needle, Beagle said. That eye just keeps getting smaller and smaller. Lo and behold, here I end up commanding the installation in my state. You cant describe the feeling, short of it being phenomenal. Theres a great sense of pride to do what youve done so long in your career, at home.

Fort Jackson is the nations largest military basic training base with more than 50,000 recruits assigned there each year, and a key driver in Columbias economy.

As he watches trainees at Fort Jackson at the beginning of their military journey, he sees a bit of himself in the young men and women, Beagle said. While not all of them will go on to become commanding generals, Beagle said there are certain shared characteristics.

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You see that pride, that drive, that motivation, said Beagle, a native of the small Upstate town of Enoree and a graduate of Woodruff High School. That is what I see and what resonates with me and is a part of me. But my hope is always that they keep it, that they retain it. You have it right now. That pride, that drive, that motivation and desire to do good, to be right and be a part of a team. Just dont lose that. Thats whats got me here after more than 30 years.

Beagle and his wife, Pam, have two sons: Jordan, who is a lieutenant in the Army, and Jayden, who attends S.C. State.

In his three years at the helm of Fort Jackson, Beagle  known as Beags to his friends  has worked to strengthen the longstanding bond between Columbia and the post. Columbia Chamber CEO Carl Blackstone said Beagle has been a success in that regard.

During General Beagles tenure at Fort Jackson, he was instrumental in building community partnerships that helped the greater Midlands earn the recognition as a Great American Defense Community, which we will proudly proclaim for years to come, Blackstone told The State. As a strong military leader, advisor, business partner and friend, General Beagle leaves a notable mark on the military community partnership.

As a military leader, Beags serves as a commanding officer, as well as a role model to those that serve under him. He has brought the same level of energy, commitment, and responsibility to being a great community partner.

Third-term Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin said Beagle was excited and giddy three years ago at the opportunity to command Fort Jackson. The mayor said that energy has remained in the years since, and noted that he speaks with Beagle often.

He stays deeply involved in this community, with open lines of contact. Ive had wonderful relationships with several of the (commanding generals) at Fort Jackson. Ive talked to no one on a deeper level than I have with General Beagle. Hes a star and I wish (the Department of Defense) would reconsider the promotion and let him stay a little bit longer. Hes a great guy with wonderful communication skills, and hes very community focused and centered.

His time at the head of Fort Jackson hasnt been without challenges. In the last couple months, a pair of off-post incidents have grabbed headlines. In one, a white sergeant was arrested after a heated encounter with a Black resident on the sidewalk of the Summit neighborhood, an incident that was captured on video and went viral.

And on May 6, a Fort Jackson trainee was arrested after authorities said he left post with an unloaded rifle and briefly hijacked a bus filled with elementary school kids. No one was physically injured in that incident.

The Army apologized for the bus incident. Beagle said one of the first objectives when an off-post, high-profile event happens is to quickly reassure the community that the Army will work to make sure it doesnt happen again.

Really, my start point is trust, and thats what gets me to react in a time frame, Beagle said. You only have a small window, if a little bit of trust is broken, to seal that gap back up. You never want to lose it. I dont want the installation to ever be in that position.

Beagle was reflective during his recent conversation with The State, as ESPNs SportsCenter played silently on the flatscreen TV in his office. (Hes an Oakland Raiders fan.) While there is a bit of melancholy in leaving his home state for his next assignment in New York, he remains proud of his time at Fort Jackson, during which 150,000 soldiers graduated and made their start in the Army.

You leave and you leave a little bit sad, because of all the connections, all the people. This is not only on the post, but off the post, Beagle said. But you also leave with a sense of pride in what you were able to accomplish. And its not what I accomplished, its what we accomplished.
Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart has hit the market to raise about $1 billion at up to $30 billion valuation in a pre-IPO financing round, two people familiar with the matter told TechCrunch.

The Bangalore-based startup, which sold majority stake to Walmart for $16 billion in 2018, initiated fundraise possibilities with some investors earlier this year and has since grown more serious and hired bankers.

In recent months, the company has also internally discussed pushing its public listing timeline to early next year, the people said, requesting anonymity as details are private. (The firm still intends to file for an IPO later this year. A listing takes an additional few months. Reuters reported last year that Flipkart might list overseas in 2021.)

Several major investors of Flipkart declined to comment on fundraise talks early this month and the e-commerce firm didn't respond to a request for comment. An early Flipkart investor, who has since sold all its stake, said it made sense that the e-commerce group was planning to raise some capital as the market currently has no shortage of it.

11 Indian startups have turned unicorn this year, more than half of them last month, as some high-profile investors including Tiger Global and Falcon Edge double down on the world's second largest internet market.

Flipkart, which was last valued at about $24.9 billion last year when it raised $1.2 billion in a round led by Walmart, hasn't finalized the new investment and the deal size as well as the valuation may change, one of the sources said.

In an earnings call in November last year, Walmart said Flipkart and its payments entity PhonePe had reached an all-time high monthly active customers base. In an earnings call in February this year, Judith McKenna, President and Chief Executive Officer of Walmart International, said Flipkart's GMV growth was impacted by a 53-day national lockdown in India in the first half of the last year.

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"But the business rebounded and exited Q4 with strong momentum, delivering GMV growth roughly double that of the full year," said McKenna, adding that more than 250 million customers in India engaged with the e-commerce platform during last year's festival sales.

India was hit by a second wave of the coronavirus in early April, which has again prompted some states to enforce restrictions on servicing of non-essential items on e-commerce platforms. Flipkart announced on Tuesday that it is working to strengthen its grocery infrastructure as it expands the new category.

Flipkart's cap table as of September last year, according to research firm Tracxn.

The Bangalore-headquartered firm competes neck to neck with Amazon in India. The American e-commerce group has invested over $6.5 billion in the South Asian market.

Both the firms are struggling to aggressively expand their footprint in India, where physical stores continue to drive the vast majority of retail sales. An additional heavily-funded player arrived in the market last year to further increase the competition.

E-commerce platform JioMart, a joint venture between Reliance Retail (Indias largest retail chain) and Google and Facebook-backed Jio Platforms (Indias largest telecom operator), launched last year in over 200 cities and towns across the nation.

At stake is one of the worlds fastest-growing e-commerce markets that is poised to grow even further as more first-time internet users begin to shop online. Indias e-commerce market is estimated to reach more than 300 million shoppers by 2025, according to estimates by Bain & Company. These shoppers would have bought items worth more than $100 billion from online platforms, the firm projected.

In recent years, Flipkart and Amazon have made a number of bets to expand their reach in India. Both of them have rolled out support for Hindi language (Flipkart has added several additional Indian languages as well), and partnered with neighborhood stores.

"34% of the population [in India] are millennials, young people. By 2030, there is an estimate that this young population of millennials and GenZ will be 75% of the total population. 700 million Indians are digital today. And I also want to just quickly acknowledge that Digital India vision of the Government of India, which has actually enabled this. So you have a unique combination of a big market, completely digital, getting wealthier and very young," said Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO of Flipkart, in February.
LONDON (Reuters) -Former British Prime Minister David Cameron repeatedly contacted senior ministers over a four-month period in 2020 to lobby for the now-failed, supply-chain finance firm Greensill Capital, according to documents published on Tuesday.

Cameron's involvement in efforts to secure access for Greensill Capital to the government's pandemic funding schemes have fuelled wider questions about lobbyists' influence over British government decision-making.

The communications log released on Tuesday included texts, WhatsApp messages and telephone calls to finance minister Rishi Sunak, cabinet office minister Michael Gove and health minister Matt Hancock. He also contacted several officials.

"Again Greensill have got a 'no'," Cameron wrote to top finance ministry official Tom Scholar on April 3, 2020 according to documents provided by Cameron to parliament's Treasury Committee.

"Am genuinely baffled ... This seems bonkers. Am now calling CX, Gove, everyone. Best wishes. Dc."

'CX' refers to Sunak.

Cameron was lobbying the government to allow Greensill, founded by Australian banker Lex Greensill in 2011, to access a COVID-19 financing scheme.

The Bank of England said in April that no changes were made to the Covid Corporate Financing Facility as a result of communication between Cameron and Bank officials.

Cameron has denied breaking any code of conduct or government rules and the government has repeatedly said the outcome of his discussions on Greensill's proposals for access to a COVID-19 loan scheme were not taken up.

Nevertheless, the opposition Labour Party say Cameron's involvement is evidence of a wider culture in which those with privileged access to ministers can gain an unfair advantage.

Current Prime Minister Boris Johnson is also facing investigations over his conduct on several unrelated issues concerning donations and funding. He denies any wrongdoing.

NOT FRIENDS

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Later on Tuesday, Lex Greensill appeared for more than three hours before a parliamentary inquiry into the collapse of the firm and its lobbying efforts.

Greensill was brought in as an adviser to the government while Cameron was British prime minister from 2010 to 2016.

Asked about his relationship with Cameron, he said the two were not close during his time working for the government.

"I wouldn't say that Mr Cameron and I were friends," Greensill said. "I met him a couple of times in the time that I worked with the Cabinet Office."

After leaving office, Cameron became an adviser to Greensill Capital, which filed for insolvency protection in March.

The data release showed Cameron contacted six different ministers and a similar number of government and Bank of England officials. The messages ranged from arranging calls to listing the merits of Greensill's business.

"Am sure goodwill and common sense can fix this. In the end substance is what matters (help for SMEs) - the form can always be sorted," one message from Cameron to Sunak said.

The Treasury Committee will interview Cameron on Thursday.

(Reporting by William James and Paul Sandle, editing by David Milliken and Mark Heinrich)
BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP)  Police have arrested a French national accused of supporting rebels in volatile Central African Republic after discovering a cache of weapons and ammunition at his residence, authorities said.

Juan Remy Quignolot, 55, was detained on Monday after the search that also uncovered military fatigues and bank notes in multiple currencies, according to Attorney General Eric Didier Tambo.

Photos had circulated on social media purporting to show Quignolot alongside Ali Darassa, the leader of a rebel movement known as the Union for Peace in Central African Republic.

The arrest comes amid somewhat of a diplomatic chill between Central African Republic and former colonizer France as Bangui has deepened its relationship with Moscow. Anti-French sentiment also remains high in many parts of Central African Republic.

However, government spokesman Ange Maxime Kazagui said that Quignolot was not targeted because he is a French national.

"An investigation is underway, and we must leave room for the justice system to do its work, Kazagui said.

Quignolot, a former soldier and paratrooper in the French army, has denied the accusations and said he was a trainer for a private security company in Bangui. The company, though, has denied any affiliation with him.

The Union for Peace in Central African Republic, known as UPC, is made up of militants who were once part of the mostly Muslim rebel coalition known as Seleka that overthrew the president in 2013.

Seleka's leader Michel Djotodia briefly served as head of state before he handed over power to an interim government under mounting international pressure in 2014.

The turmoil and violence of the Seleka rule gave rise to another militia known as the anti-Balaka, that later targeted Muslim civilians and forced tens of thousands to flee the capital. Many were killed even as they sought to reach refuge in neighboring countries.
Ali Fazeli Monfared, a 20-year-old gay Iranian man, was allegedly killed in an honor killing by some of his male family members after they found out he was gay, according to an LGBTQ rights group in Iran and Turkey.

Fazeli Monfared, who was known as Alireza by friends and family, lived in a city in southwest Iran. He had applied for an exemption from compulsory military service so he could leave the country and move to Turkey to live with his close friend, Aghil Bayat, according to 6Rang, the Iranian Lesbian and Transgender Network.

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Though homosexual conduct is criminalized in Iran, part of the military exemption law allows gay and transgender people to receive a medical exemption from service for their identity. The law states, in part, a person can be freed from his military service duties, if he is mentally ill (homosexual).

Fazeli Monfared received an exemption card in the mail from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps after disclosing his homosexuality, but one of his male relatives found it and discovered he was gay, according to 6Rang. The organization reported the relative had previously told Fazeli Monfareds father that the young man had dishonored the family due to the way he dressed.

BBC Persian reported Friday that it received audio recordings of Fazeli Monfared saying his family had threatened his life.

After finding the exemption card, a group of male relatives took Fazeli Monfared to a rural village near Ahvaz on May 4 and killed him, Shadi Amin, executive director of 6Rang, told NBC News. The card, and the exemption for homosexuality as a disease, put Fazeli Monfared in danger, she said.

We think that because of his gender expression and his behaviors, they knew that he is homosexual, but it was proof that shows he wants to leave the country, and he is a gay man, Amin said. We are trying to use this story to challenge the Iranian government  to remove this paragraph [in the exemption law] and the reason on the exemption cards.

Story continues

Bayat told 6Rang the alleged killers had called Fazeli Monfareds mother and told her where to find her only sons beheaded body.

Though 6Rang first reported that police arrested the three men involved in Fazeli Monfareds death, Amin said that isnt accurate and no arrests have been made. She said police told Fazeli Monfareds mother they made arrests in the case to calm her down.

But Amin said she thinks arrests will be made in the case because Fazeli Monfared comes from a wealthy family, and his father is angry about his death. She added that though Iran criminalizes homosexual conduct, it isnt illegal to be gay. If Fazeli Monfareds alleged killers had caught him having sex with a man, then they might receive lesser punishments for his death.

Iran is one of an estimated 11 countries where same-sex sexual acts are punishable by death, according to the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, and one of almost 70 countries where it is criminalized, according to Human Rights Watch, an international human rights group based in New York. In Iran, punishments for homosexual conduct range from 31 to 100 lashes to death, according to Human Rights Watch.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif defended the countrys death penalty punishment for homosexual conduct during a press conference in June 2019. "These are moral principles regarding the behavior of people in general, he said at the time, according to German broadcaster Deutsche Welle.

There are no statistics or records of the number of anti-LGBTQ honor killings  which are perpetrated by relatives who feel the LGBTQ person has brought dishonor to the family  that happen in Iran or other countries that criminalize homosexuality, Tara Sepehri Far, who investigates human rights abuses in Iran and Kuwait for Human Rights Watch, told NBC News.

She said Fazeli Monfareds case highlights the importance of the role of the family in LGBTQ peoples lives when the state criminalizes who they are.

In the context that the LGBT community is not protected by law  and theres actually a serious threat to their rights and even safety  the role of the family is becoming even more important, Sepehri Far said, adding that if youre coming from a family that accepts you, you can have access to safer spaces and communities.

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According to a 2020 survey from 6Rang, nearly 63 percent of Iranian LGBTQ people reported experiencing violence perpetrated by their nuclear family.

The military exemption cards increase that risk of violence and discrimination from family, employers, law enforcement or anyone else who could find the persons exemption card, Amin said.

When they have it in their pocket, it is like a ticking bomb for them, she said.

The process of receiving an exemption is also itself dangerous, Sepehri Far said, because it forces someone to come out as LGBTQ to the government.

Exposing that to the very same authorities who, in theory, have the authority to arrest and prosecute you is very risky, she said.

Amin said other countries should pressure Iran to remove the law criminalizing homosexuality and the death penalty because this is the reason why the families, they allow themselves to have the right to violate their children.

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Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) on Monday signed into a bill repealing a citizen's arrest law from 1863.

Why it matters: The legislation was passed in response to the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old Black man, who Kemp said had been "a victim of vigilante-style violence that has no place in our country or our state."

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Kemp said before signing the bill, House Bill 479, that the legislation "makes Georgia the first state in the country to repeal its citizen's arrest statue."

"Today we are replacing this Civil War-era law, ripe for abuse, with language that balances the sacred right of self-defense of person and property with our shared responsibility to root out injustice and set our state on a better path forward."

Kemp

What they're saying: Wanda Cooper-Jones, the mother of Arbery, said after the signing that the legislation "will make people think before they take action into their own hands," per AP.

The big picture: Arbery was out jogging when he was shot on Feb. 23, 2020.

Three white men who told police they suspected Arbery had committed a burglary are facing charges including murder and hate crimes over his death.

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BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's lead data protection regulator for Facebook is banning the social network from processing personal data from WhatsApp users because it views the messaging app's new terms of use as illegal, it said on Tuesday.

The decision follows emergency proceedings opened by the regulator in the city-state of Hamburg last month after WhatsApp required users to consent to new terms or stop using the service.

"This order seeks to secure the rights and freedoms of the many millions of users who give their consent to the terms of use throughout Germany," Hamburg's data protection officer Johannes Caspar said.

"My objective is to prevent disadvantages and damages associated with such a black-box procedure."

Caspar, who leads domestic oversight of Facebook under Germany's federal system as its country office is in Hamburg, announced his decision before a May 15 deadline for consenting to WhatsApp's new terms.

WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, said the action by the Hamburg data protection authority rested on a fundamental misunderstanding of the purpose and effect of its update and therefore had no legitimate basis.

"As the Hamburg DPAs claims are wrong, the order will not impact the continued roll-out of the update. We remain fully committed to delivering secure and private communications for everyone, a WhatsApp spokesperson said.

The regulatory action has opened a new front in Germany over Facebook's privacy policies, with its national antitrust regulator waging a legal battle over data practices it says amount to an abuse of market dominance.

Since 2018, online privacy has been subject to a European Union rulebook, called the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Under the GDPR, Ireland leads oversight of Facebook because the company's European headquarters is there.

Caspar said he was using his power to impose a three-month freeze on Facebook's collection of WhatsApp user data under extraordinary powers foreseen in the GDPR.

He said he would also seek an EU-wide ruling at the European Data Protection Board, a forum that groups regulators from the bloc's 27 member states.

(Reporting by Douglas Busvine; editing by Barbara Lewis)
Gordon Brown said: 'We'll develop all the arguments that will win that referendum' - Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images Europe

Gordon Brown has said he is not afraid of a new independence referendum as he launched a campaign to persuade "middle Scotland" to stick with the UK.

On Monday, the former Prime Minister set out plans to transform his pro-UK Our Scottish Future think tank into a campaigning organisation to make a "patriotic, progressive, and principled" case for the union to the 40 per cent of Scots he believes hold the key to the country's future.

Following the SNP's landslide election victory, he predicted that the unionist side would prevail in any new referendum given Nicola Sturgeon's failure to address key questions about the implications of separation.

However, he warned that Boris Johnson's "muscular unionism" strategy, which involves the Government bypassing Holyrood to encroach in normally devolved areas, would backfire because most people want more co-operation between Edinburgh and London.

Mr Brown said his research showed four in 10 Scots were neither staunch nationalists or unionists. While members of this group generally felt more Scottish than British and preferred Ms Sturgeon to Mr Johnson, they did not want to be forced to choose between their identities.

He said: "You can't get to a majority on either side without middle Scotland, and therefore the union will fall or survive on the basis of what they think and do."

Mr Brown's group published research from polls conducted on election day, when 48 per cent of voters backed the SNP, which showed almost three-quarters want better co-operation between the UK and Scottish governments.

He is proposing a new forum that would hand the nations and regions of the UK more influence and believes Mr Johnson will be forced to look again at the constitutional settlement, which could mean the devolution of more powers.

Mr Brown also called on both Ms Sturgeon and the UK Government to publish legal advice on whether Holyrood has the power to organise a new independence referendum on its own.

Story continues

"I'm not afraid of a referendum," he said. "I actually think that we've got all the arguments, and we'll develop all the arguments that will win that referendum.

"Nicola Sturgeon's admitted she's got no plan for it. Does anybody know what would happen to the pound on day one? Does anybody know what would happen to pensions? Does anybody know what would happen to the border? Does anybody know what would happen to trade, tax and benefits?

"You can't say we're going to postpone this until we publish something a few days or a few weeks before a referendum. If you were to have a referendum, you've got to be open and up front."

The 70-year-old, seen as playing an influential role in delivering a No vote in the 2014 referendum, said he had "no aspirations" to become the figurehead of a new pro-union campaign but was "not going to be silent". While he did not rule out a new referendum, he said he did not expect one soon.

Keith Brown, the SNP deputy leader, said Mr Brown was "the very last person anyone in Scotland should be listening to".

He added: "Ironically, Gordon Brown has launched a campaign about Scotland's future, but he is working hand in hand with Boris Johnson to try to deny the people of Scotland the democratic opportunity to choose it  despite an overwhelming mandate for an independence referendum in the election and clear majority support in the newly elected Scottish Parliament."
2021 Pensacola Theological Institute Conference to Examine 'Revoice' LGBTQ Controversy, Sexual Identity, and Purity within the Presbyterian Church in America June 16 to 18

NEWS PROVIDED BY

Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals

May 11, 2021

PENSACOLA, Fla., May 11, 2021 /Christian Newswire/ -- In partnership with the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, the 2021 Pensacola Theological Institute Conference will examine the controversial 'Revoice' LGBTQ movement within the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) June 16-18 at McIlwain Presbyterian Church located at 1220 East Blount Street in Pensacola, Fla. Attendance is $55 for individuals, $175 maximum for families.

Drs. Jon Payne and Richard Phillips are ministers in the PCA which as of 2019 had 89 presbyteries, more than 1,500 churches, and over 380,000 members (see pcaac.org/resources/pca-statistics-five-year-summary). They also will discuss sexual identity and purity within the Church. For more information and to register, visit alliancenet.org/One-Voice.

In an article for the Gospel Reformation Network, led by Payne "to cultivate healthy Reformed" PCA churches, he writes, "The sexual revolution has come to the PCA, and it has introduced itself through Revoice ... The controversy over Revoice and the new 'Gay Christian' movement will surely test the mettle of our beloved denomination. Will the PCA end up losing her biblical moorings by embracing doctrine which is a clear departure from the Scriptures?" (See gospelreformation.net/a-time-to-stand.)

The Alliance Executive Director Bob Brady said, "Our desire is that conference attendees may understand what's happening in the Church and be equipped to speak with 'one voice' to our culture."

About the Speakers:

* Jon Payne is senior pastor of Christ Church Presbyterian in Charleston, S.C. He is the executive coordinator of the Gospel Reformation Network, and serves as a trustee with the Banner of Truth Trust and the Heidelberger Society. Payne also is an author and editor of numerous books and a contributing writer to a number of publications. * Richard Phillips is senior minister of Second Presbyterian Church in Greenville, S.C. He has authored myriad books and articles and frequently speaks at conferences on the Bible and Reformed theology. Phillips is chairman of the Alliance's Philadelphia Conference on Reformed Theology and co-editor of the Reformed Expository Commentary. An adjunct professor and member of the board of trustees at Westminster Theological Seminary, he also serves on the Alliance's board of directors.

For speaker photos visit alliancenet.org/pti-marketing.

About the Alliance: Headquartered in Lancaster, Pa., the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals is a coalition of pastors, scholars, and churchmen who hold to the historic creeds and confessions of the Reformed faith and who proclaim biblical doctrine in order to foster a Reformed awakening in today's Church. Visit alliancenet.org.

SOURCE Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals

CONTACT: Grant Van Leuven, 619-616-9484, gvanleuven@alliancenet.org
According to court documents and testimony, Parrish, now 29, had robbed Coudon  who was in a wheelchair  in March of 2018. When Coudon indicated he would testify against him, Parrish shot him twice in his home and left him to die, Doory said. Charges were filed in the robbery case, but without a victim, Doory said they were dismissed.
- By GF Value





The stock of GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF, 30-year Financials) gives every indication of being significantly overvalued, according to GuruFocus Value calculation. GuruFocus Value is GuruFocus' estimate of the fair value at which the stock should be traded. It is calculated based on the historical multiples that the stock has traded at, the past business growth and analyst estimates of future business performance. If the price of a stock is significantly above the GF Value Line, it is overvalued and its future return is likely to be poor. On the other hand, if it is significantly below the GF Value Line, its future return will likely be higher. At its current price of $12.845 per share and the market cap of $3.4 billion, GrafTech International stock gives every indication of being significantly overvalued. GF Value for GrafTech International is shown in the chart below.





GrafTech International Stock Shows Every Sign Of Being Significantly Overvalued

Because GrafTech International is significantly overvalued, the long-term return of its stock is likely to be much lower than its future business growth, which averaged 35.9% over the past five years.

Link: These companies may deliever higher future returns at reduced risk.

Since investing in companies with low financial strength could result in permanent capital loss, investors must carefully review a company's financial strength before deciding whether to buy shares. Looking at the cash-to-debt ratio and interest coverage can give a good initial perspective on the company's financial strength. GrafTech International has a cash-to-debt ratio of 0.08, which ranks in the bottom 10% of the companies in Industrial Products industry. Based on this, GuruFocus ranks GrafTech International's financial strength as 3 out of 10, suggesting poor balance sheet. This is the debt and cash of GrafTech International over the past years:

Story continues

GrafTech International Stock Shows Every Sign Of Being Significantly Overvalued

Companies that have been consistently profitable over the long term offer less risk for investors who may want to purchase shares. Higher profit margins usually dictate a better investment compared to a company with lower profit margins. GrafTech International has been profitable 6 over the past 10 years. Over the past twelve months, the company had a revenue of $1.2 billion and earnings of $1.62 a share. Its operating margin is 46.39%, which ranks better than 99% of the companies in Industrial Products industry. Overall, the profitability of GrafTech International is ranked 5 out of 10, which indicates fair profitability. This is the revenue and net income of GrafTech International over the past years:

GrafTech International Stock Shows Every Sign Of Being Significantly Overvalued

Growth is probably one of the most important factors in the valuation of a company. GuruFocus' research has found that growth is closely correlated with the long-term performance of a company's stock. If a company's business is growing, the company usually creates value for its shareholders, especially if the growth is profitable. Likewise, if a company's revenue and earnings are declining, the value of the company will decrease. GrafTech International's 3-year average revenue growth rate is better than 97% of the companies in Industrial Products industry. GrafTech International's 3-year average EBITDA growth rate is 99.5%, which ranks better than 99% of the companies in Industrial Products industry.

One can also evaluate a company's profitability by comparing its return on invested capital (ROIC) to its weighted average cost of capital (WACC). Return on invested capital (ROIC) measures how well a company generates cash flow relative to the capital it has invested in its business. The weighted average cost of capital (WACC) is the rate that a company is expected to pay on average to all its security holders to finance its assets. If the return on invested capital exceeds the weighted average cost of capital, the company is likely creating value for its shareholders. During the past 12 months, GrafTech International's ROIC is 43.08 while its WACC came in at 6.94. The historical ROIC vs WACC comparison of GrafTech International is shown below:

GrafTech International Stock Shows Every Sign Of Being Significantly Overvalued

In closing, GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF, 30-year Financials) stock is estimated to be significantly overvalued. The company's financial condition is poor and its profitability is fair. Its growth ranks better than 99% of the companies in Industrial Products industry. To learn more about GrafTech International stock, you can check out its 30-year Financials here.

To find out the high quality companies that may deliever above average returns, please check out GuruFocus High Quality Low Capex Screener.

This article first appeared on GuruFocus.


Australian financier Lex Greensill on Tuesday took full responsibility for the collapse of his finance group Greensill Capital, as he refused to be drawn over the company's links to UK government lobbying.

Greensill apologised for the fallout ahead of British lawmakers grilling him over his group's demise that has hit hard some of the world's biggest banks and risks thousands of steel-sector job losses, some in the UK.

His appearance before the cross-party Treasury Committee came ahead of UK former prime minister David Cameron facing the same panel Thursday for questions focused on claims of improper government lobbying involving the London-headquartered company.

- 'Truly sorry' -

"I bear complete responsibility for the collapse of Greensill Capital," Greensill said in a video statement.

He added that he was "desperately saddened that more than a thousand very hard working people" had lost jobs at Greensill and takes "full responsibility for any hardship" felt by its clients, their suppliers and investors.

"To all of those affected by this, I am truly sorry," Greensill finished by saying.

He however also laid blame at insurer Tokio Marine, which withdrew cover to loans issued to Greensill clients amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"It's deeply regrettable that we were let down by our leading insurer whose actions assured Greensill's collapse and indeed of some of our biggest customers," he said.

- Lobbying links -

Ahead of Greensill's appearance over video-link, Britain's Treasury revealed the extent of Cameron's lobbying efforts for Greensill Capital.

Cameron and his office staff last year sent ministers and officials 45 emails, texts and WhatsApp messages relating to the now-collapsed firm, bypassing official channels.

It was revealed also that UK regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, is formally investigating Greensill Capital after allegations that were "potentially criminal in nature".

Story continues

Greensill Capital, which filed for insolvency in March after having operated for a decade, had clients including steel empire GFG Alliance which employs thousands of workers worldwide.

Headed by Indian-British magnate Sanjeev Gupta, GFG runs Liberty Steel, which could be forced to shut some of its dozen UK plants following the collapse of its main financial backer, according to Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng.

Greensill Capital's implosion threatens about 50,000 jobs overall at companies around the world that relied on its financing for their supply chains.

Lex Greensill, the 44-year-old son of sugar cane planters, obtained inside access to the Downing Street machine during Cameron's spell as prime minister in the previous decade.

This after offering to advise the government on financial technology.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered a senior lawyer to investigate Cameron's lobbying for the firm in April.

Cameron, who was prime minister from 2010 until he resigned after Britain voted to leave the European Union in 2016, has admitted he acted in error but denies any impropriety.

- Financial fallout -

Greensill Capital, which bypassed strict regulations forced upon traditional banks, specialised in short-term corporate loans via a complex and opaque business model that ultimately sparked its declaration of insolvency.

"Mr Greensill, are you a fraudster?" Siobhain McDonagh, an MP for the main opposition Labour party, asked Tuesday.

"No, Ms McDonagh, I'm not," the financier replied.

It was creditors including Credit Suisse and the Association of German Banks who last month placed the Australian parent of Greensill Capital into liquidation.

Switzerland's second-largest bank -- rocked also by the bankruptcy of US hedge fund Archegos -- has been forced to suspend four funds with an exposure to Greensill totalling $10 billion.

In Japan, Softbank is counting the cost after investing $1.5 billion in Greensill two years ago.

And the Association of German Banks counts losses of 2.0 billion euros after investing communities' money with the Bremen-based subsidiary of Greensill.

bcp/rl
The man suspected of fatally shooting six people before dying by suicide early Sunday morning at a Colorado Springs birthday party was identified by police as Teodoro Macias Jr.

Macias, 28, was angry that his girlfriend did not invite him to the party and responded by killing her and five adult relatives, police said at a Tuesday press conference.

At the core of this horrendous act is domestic violence, Colorado Springs Police Chief Vince Niski said, adding that Macias displayed power and control issues in the relationship.

Macias was dating Sandra Ibarra for about a year before he killed her, police said. The other five victims were identified as:

Jose Ibarra, Sandras brother

Mayra Ibarra Perez, 32, Sandras sister

Melvin Perez, 30, Mayras husband

Jose Gutierrez, 21, Melvins brother

Joanna Cruz, 53, Jose and Melvins mother

The families gathered Saturday night to celebrate birthdays for Melvin Perez, Joanna Cruz and another relative, 28-year-old Nubia Marquez, who left the party about two hours before the shooting.

Marquez identified her family members to local newspaper The Gazette prior to police releasing their names Tuesday.

Three children were in the residence at the time of the shooting, and none was physically injured, police said.
Danny Ings scored twice on his return from injury as Southampton marked their first match since being assured of Premier League survival with a 3-1 win at home to Crystal Palace on Tuesday.

Fulham's defeat by Burnley on Monday condemned the Cottagers to the third and final relegation place, with Southampton spared the worry of a nervous finish to the season.

Their first victory in six games saw the Saints climb to 14th place in the table.

They had to come from behind, however, after Palace went 1-0 up inside two minutes at St Mary's through Christian Benteke.

But Ings, fit after two games out with a hamstring problem, equalised in the 19th minute to score his 11th league goal of the season.

Palace could have regained the lead before half-time after Wilfried Zaha was brought down in the box, but Luka Milivojevic's penalty was saved by goalkeeper Fraser Forster.

And three minutes after the break the Saints were ahead when the sliding Che Adams scored at the far post.

Ings, the Saints' top-scorer, was about to be substituted when he sealed victory in the 75th minute by latching onto Adams' pass and poking the ball past onrushing Eagles' keeper Vicente Guaita.

jdg/nr
Inter Miami will continue reinforcing the health and safety protocols currently in place at the 18,000-capacity DRV PNK Stadium, including requiring face masks unless eating or drinking and encouraging social distancing in the concourse areas. Read more: https://cbsloc.al/3tDWFbM

Video Transcript

ELIOTT RODRIGUEZ: Now on new at 5:00, Inter Miami CF is planning to welcome a capacity crowd to DRV PNK Stadium later this month.

LAUREN PASTRANA: It'll be the first time the team plays in front of a full house due to previous restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic. CBS4's Steve Goldstein is here now with details, Goldie.

STEVE GOLDSTEIN: Eliott, Lauren, it's about to get a lot louder at the stadium in Fort Lauderdale as Inter Miami will have a packed house starting Sunday May 29. Now the team says in a statement due to the rapid distribution of vaccinations in South Florida and increased demand from our loyal fans, the stadium will operate at full capacity while still abiding by MLS guidelines for all home matches starting on May 29. Now you can watch the game live right here on CBS4 8 o'clock against DC United.

Inter Miami will continue health and safety protocols, including requiring face masks and encouraging social distancing when possible and will also provide hand sanitizer throughout the stadium. Capacity will go from 8,000 to 18,000, that's because some league rules still require some seats near the field must remain empty.

JAY CHAPMAN: It's amazing. I mean, I saw it on my way to-- my way to train today. And it put a smile on my face, to be honest with you. You know, it's been so tough with COVID, you know, as a player. Especially, I mean, I've played in the state for seven years. And most of them, I mean apart from last year, it's been full stadiums. And that's what you look forward to as a player, right? You know, those are the games that you get up to.

STEVE GOLDSTEIN: And Inter Miami back on the pitch tomorrow night to DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale for their game against CF Montreal. You can watch the game on our sister station, MyTV 33 at 7:30. So Inter Miami becomes the first South Florida professional sports team to announce it is returning to full capacity since the pandemic shut down the sports world in March of last year. Eliott, Lauren, it's been a long run. Nice to see.

ELIOTT RODRIGUEZ: Getting back to normal, so slowly but surely Goldie.
By Angelo Amante

ROME (Reuters) -Prime Minister Mario Draghi's office denied a media report on Tuesday that Italy was proposing that the European Union should pay Libya to stop migrants leaving its shores for Europe.

Draghi favours the EU offering financial assistance to all African countries involved in migration to Europe, an official in Draghi's office told Reuters.

But the official denied a report by La Repubblica newspaper that Draghi wanted to propose at a May 24 summit that the EU make a deal similar to one reached with Ankara in 2016, under which Turkey is entitled to financial aid in exchange for hosting refugees who try to reach Europe via the Balkans.

"At the moment there is no initiative regarding creating a similar deal to what was done with Turkey," the official said.

"The government's position is that the EU must pay more attention to the situation in the southern Mediterranean and be ready to offer financial help to all African countries involved in migrant flows."

Some 13,000 migrants have landed on Italy's coast this year, about three times as many as in the same period last year, according to interior ministry data.

More than 2,000 have since Sunday reached the island of Lampedusa, the initial arrival point for many people trying to get to Europe from Africa.

The migrants, arriving on small and perilous boats run by people-traffickers, are being transferred elsewhere in Italy.

The vast majority of African migrants heading for Europe by sea depart from Libya.

In 2019, Rome agreed a plan with other European states to redistribute migrants after they arrived, but the scheme was voluntary and has not provided a stable solution.

On Tuesday, the executive European Commission said it had received no offers from member states to accept migrants from Italy.

The migration issue has fuelled the rise of anti-immigration parties across Europe. In Italy, the right-wing League is part of Draghi's national unity government and wants action.

(Writing by Gavin Jones, editing by Gareth Jones and Timothy Heritage)
A federal judge scolded an attorney representing two agents from the State Bureau of Investigation on Monday evening, asking who gave him permission to give the state of North Carolina a black eye.

The fiery exchange took place in the federal civil trial for Henry McCollum and Leon Brown, brothers who spent more than three decades in prison for a brutal rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl. DNA evidence tested by the North Carolina Innocence Inquiry Commission in 2014 pointed to another man: a serial rapist who lived not 40 feet from where the girls body was discovered in 1983.

McCollum and Brown, both of whom suffer severely from cognitive limitations, seek millions in compensation from two former SBI agents and two former detectives with the Robeson County Sheriffs Office. Both McCollum and Brown had been on death row.

U.S. District Court Judge Terrence Boyles sharp questions followed a heated afternoon of opening arguments and then testimony from former Robeson County District Attorney Johnson Britt.

Boyle appeared to bristle at a defense strategy that seemed to argue that McCollum and Brown are, in fact, guilty of rape and murder.

Henry McCollum, 50, spends time outdoors with his sister, Geraldine Brown, 49, rear, in Fayetteville, N.C. Im happy to be out here breathing the cool air, he says. He and his brother Leon Brown, 47, not seen, both served 31 years for a rape and murder of a young girl which they did not commit. They were freed in September 2014. Both are happy to out of prison, but find that its been a hard adjustment on the outside. They have no income and no car, which makes it difficult to find work and earn money.

Im mystified

On Monday evening, after the jury filed out of the courtroom, Boyle demanded answers from the lawyers. He asked Scott MacLatchie, an attorney representing the two former SBI agents, who was directing his strategy. Boyle wanted to know whether state Attorney General Josh Stein had consulted and asked where Steins public relations team was.

MacLatchie argued that he simply represented SBI agent Leroy Allen, now retired, and SBI agent Kenneth Snead, who died in 2019.

Laura Brewer, the communications director for Steins office, said Tuesday that it is not involved in the trial.

As you know, over a year ago, Attorney General Stein withdrew our office from the handling of this case and private attorneys are representing McCollum and Brown, Brewer said. Those attorneys do not speak for our office or have any affiliation with our office. I can tell you that the only involvement our office has had in this case since we withdrew from the litigation is in an effort to facilitate getting it settled.

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Desmond Hogan, a lawyer representing McCollum and Brown, told the judge that he, too, was confused by defenses strategy. He told Boyle that the defense team brought about 25 lawyers to a mediation aimed at settling the case out of court before the trial.

Hogan told the judge: Im mystified.

On Tuesday, MacLatchie and Hogan declined to comment further about the conversation with Boyle.

Microphones are typically turned off during conversations with judges at the bench. But Mondays conversation was instead broadcast through the courtroom to an audience of about two dozen.

Boyle talked to the all-white jury Tuesday morning about the wrongful conviction of the brothers, both of whom are Black. Boyle explained that former Gov. Pat McCrory pardoned the brothers in 2015, an act that obliterates or wipes out the conviction.

Leon Brown, 47, spends much of his time indoors praying and meditating at the home he shares with sister, Geraldine Brown, 49, and brother Henry McCollum, 50, in Fayetteville, N.C. I try to think about my future. I cant change the past. I try not to think about the past. I cant erase things when I was young. Im starting out now as an adult, he says. The two brothers served 31 years for a rape and murder of a young girl which they did not commit, were freed in September 2014. Both are happy to out of prison, but find that its been a hard adjustment on the outside. They have no income and no car, which makes it difficult to find work and earn money.

Intense interrogation techniques

The trials first witness Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning was Johnson Britt, who served as Robeson Countys district attorney from 1994 through his retirement in 2019. He discussed in detail the interrogation techniques he thinks were used on Brown and McCollum, 15 and 19 at the time.

Britt described officers techniques: playing good cop, bad cop, cussing and swearing and slamming the table. The information officers share with the suspects in such an intense interrogation is known, unknown or made up, Britt testified.

At the time of their arrests, McCollums IQ hoovered in the 50s. His brother Brown has the mental capacity of an 8-year-old, the N&O has reported.

Investigators for the SBI and Robeson Sheriffs Department questioned Brown, 15 at the time, without the consent of his mother, who was just outside the police department, Hogan told the jury Monday.

At the time, the SBI policy manual said that agents should secure the permission of a guardian before questioning a minor who is a suspect in a crime, Hogan said in court Monday.

But MacClatchie defended the officers decision to question Brown. He told jurors that in 1983 state law did not require consent from guardians to question juveniles ages 14 to 17.

On Tuesday, Brown sat not five feet from the jury. A group home worker hired to supervise him sat to his left.

McCollum sat on a bench behind them. An embroidered message stretched across the back of his shirt: Sleep with one eye open.
Ring Factory families, especially those who live in neighborhoods such as Glenwood that are across Route 924 from the school, objected to the plans, though, as it would mean their children would have to get on a bus rather than walk to school. They also noted that Ring Factory has been part of the fabric of their community since it opened in 1990. Those families will be able to remain in their neighborhood school, as the May 6 map shows children who were going to shift from there to Homestead-Wakefield will stay put.
Two Kentucky police officers have been presented their departments life saving award this week after doing a "fantastic job" coming to the rescue of an unresponsive 3-month-old girl, their chief tells Fox News.

Elsmere officers Brian Evans and Alexis Day were honored Monday for their actions on April 26, when they were dispatched to a residence in the city just outside of Cincinnati to assist a baby who police say "may not have been breathing."

"Given the situation, you get there and you see the baby turning blue -- there is no waiting on that one," Evans told FOX19.

MOTHER OF CHICAGO GUNSHOT VICTIM PRAISES POLICE OFFICERS WHO SAVED HIM

Bodycam footage broadcast by the station shows Evans and Day saving the infant after taking her out of her mother's arms. Evans  holding the baby face down  gets the girl to cry again after repeatedly slapping her back.

"We go through CPR training all the time and you hope to never use it and luckily when I needed it, it all came back," he told FOX19, adding that "once the baby started crying, it was like mom had a weight lifted off her chest."

Day says the pair worked like a "well-oiled machine" that day.

"He grabbed her and Im just kind of coaching him the way through and [his] training and my maternal instincts kicked in," she said in an interview with the outlet. "It worked really well together between the two of us."

Elsmere Police Chief Joe Maier told Fox News on Tuesday that the officers did a "fantastic job."

Police say paramedics eventually showed up on scene and transported the baby away for further medical observation.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"Those with children can understand the fear and helplessness when their child appears to stop breathing and becomes unresponsive," reads a copy of the officers life saving award obtained by Fox News.

"Officer Evans and Officer Day calmly reacted and took immediate control of the situation," it added. "We are proud to have a police department where our members exemplify professionalism, dedication, and courage. Great Work!"
KYIV (Reuters) - Ukraine does not expect next month's NATO summit will produce a Membership Action Plan (MAP) for Ukraine, because some member states worry it will provoke Russia, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Tuesday.

"Regarding the obstacles, unfortunately, there are still several countries among the allies who are guided by the logic of not provoking Russia and believe that sitting and doing nothing is the best way to keep Russia calm," he told the Ukraine 24 channel.

(Reporting by Natalia Zinets; writing by Matthias Williams)
By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Bosses of major U.S. and UK airlines called on Tuesday for a summit between the two governments to speed the reopening of transatlantic travel, still paralyzed even though the countries have among the world's highest COVID-19 vaccination rates.

"The airline industry needs adequate lead time to establish a plan for restarting air services, including scheduling aircraft and crews for these routes as well as for marketing and selling tickets," said the letter to the transport chiefs of both countries.

It was signed by the CEOs of American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, British Airways , Virgin Atlantic and JetBlue Airways.

Flights between the United States and Britain, normally some of the world's busiest international long-haul routes, are still largely stalled even as both countries are loosening COVID-19 restrictions and travelers are making summer holiday plans. Britain has administered the most vaccine doses per capita of any big country, and the United States is close behind.

MANAGING RISK

Willie Walsh, the former British Airways boss who now heads global airline body IATA, voiced exasperation over what he described as a failure by governments to "manage the net risk" proportionately.

"You see some politicians just afraid to make decisions because they're afraid of the consequences, whereas (in) the airline industry we live with that all the time," Walsh said at a virtual event on Wednesday. "Sometimes it's necessary for us to be vocal and try to force that approach upon people."

Since March 2020, the United States has barred nearly all non-U.S. citizens who have recently been in Britain. For its own citizens, the U.S. State Department on Monday eased its UK travel advisory, lowering it to a "Level 3: Reconsider Travel" rating.

Britain requires visitors from the United States to quarantine on arrival. Next week it is set to lift a nearly five-month ban on most international travel by its own residents, but it has so far excluded the United States from a small "green list" of destinations where British passengers can travel for leisure and return without a quarantine.

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A spokesman for U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg noted that G7 Transport Ministers met last week "to discuss the complexities around reopening international travel and how to do so safely.

"These conversations are ongoing. The department will be reviewing the letter with other agencies as part of the whole of government approach to COVID recovery."

The British Embassy in Washington did not immediately comment.

A coalition of U.S. and European travel, airline, union, business and airport groups called last week for a full reopening of the U.S.-UK air travel market "as soon as safely possible."

Investment bank Cowen and Co said in a research note it believes "the Biden Administration needs to make a decision about international travel within the next week to 10 days...

"Americans are making their summer travel plans now, and without a decision on Europe soon, we believe they will continue to travel" to other destinations.

Travel firm TUI said on Wednesday it still expects a strong 2021 travel season, assuming some of its best destinations are added to Britain's "green list" later this month.

(Reporting by David ShepardsonEditing by Chizu Nomiyama, Carmel Crimmins and Peter Graff)
MANILA, Philippines (AP)  Malaysian authorities have captured eight suspected Abu Sayyaf militants who may have been planning ransom kidnappings in Malaysia, Philippine military officials said Monday, adding that they provided information that helped lead to the arrests.

The Filipino militants were arrested Saturday in Sabah state on Borneo island, were they fled in March due to military assaults on their jungle bases in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, Philippine marine brigade commander Col. Hernanie Songano said.

It is highly possible that they intend to make Sabah their staging point for their kidnapping activities, Songano said in a statement. They know that it will be very difficult for them to launch atrocities in Sulu due to the persistent military operations in the area.

The suspected militants may have been helping arrange the travel of foreign militants to the southern Philippines, Songano said, without providing further details.

The Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia have collaborated for years on fighting kidnappings by Abu Sayyaf militants of Malaysians in Sabah and several Indonesian crewmen on cargo vessels along their vast sea border.

Philippine military officials said the suspected militants were led by Abu Sayyaf commanders Sansibar Bensio and Mabar Binda, who were involved in past clashes with the Philippine military, including 2011 fighting in Sulu where a marine officer was beheaded.

The two were allegedly involved in the kidnappings of Swiss citizen Lorenzo Vinciguerra and Dutch national Ewold Horn in the southernmost Philippine province of Tawi Tawi in 2012. The two kidnap victims were taken to nearby Sulu, where Vinciguerra fought with and escaped from his captors in December 2014. Horn was killed while trying to escape during a military assault in May 2019.

The Philippines and the United States both consider the Abu Sayyaf a terrorist organization for bombings, ransom kidnappings and beheadings. The militants have been weakened considerably by battle defeats, surrenders and infighting but remain a national security threat.
A grand jury in Queens County has indicted a man with a hate crime for allegedly shoving an Asian American woman to the ground in Flushing in February.



The crime: Patrick Mateo, 47, is accused of pushing the 52-year-old woman to the pavement following an argument outside a bakery near Main Street on Feb. 16, Forest Hills Post reported.



Footage of the incident showed Mateo throwing a box at the woman before pushing her to the ground following an argument around 2 p.m.

As the victim fell, she hit her head on a metal newsstand box and sustained a long cut on her forehead, requiring 10 stitches.

The suspect was arrested less than 48 hours but was soon released under supervision, NextShark reported.

At the time, police did not consider the attack as a hate crime. In an Instagram post, the woman's daughter said Mateo had called her mother racial slurs before attacking.



Anti-Asian hate: Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said a subsequent search of Mateos phone allegedly revealed anti-Asian sentiment, without elaborating on what the anti-Asian sentiment was.



Prosecutors reportedly needed time to establish the evidence of a hate crime before bringing charges against the suspect.

According to Katz, they have concluded the victim was targeted for her ethnicity and have since charged Mateo with a hate crime.

Mateo, who is now waiting for his arraignment in Queens Supreme Court, is also facing assault and aggravated harassment charges that could land him up to one year in jail.



Featured Image via NYPD109Pct (left), CeFaan Kim (right)

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May 11The Manchester Board of School Committee is poised to become the latest school board to formally oppose House Bill 544, citing the harmful effect officials believe it could have on students in the state's most diverse school district.

The bill would ban schools from teaching what it calls "divisive concepts," such as Critical Race Theory, and deny state funding to businesses, schools or organizations that spread these "divisive concepts" by teaching about systemic racism and holding certain diversity and anti-racism training sessions.

The bill has received significant pushback, including from New Hampshire businesses, nonprofits and colleges.

On Tuesday, members of the Manchester school board's Policy Committee are scheduled to discuss sending a letter voicing their objection to the bill, which they say is an attempt to "silence dialogue and restrict speech."

"We are opposed to any bill which will limit any school's ability to talk about race or gender, or to educate our students and staff about the historical discrimination against communities of color, women, and other marginalized groups, and the impacts that long standing racism and sexism has had on the American people," reads a draft of the proposed letter, attached to the posted agenda for the Policy Committee meeting. "We cannot pretend this history does not exist or that it does not affect our present and future."

In their letter, board members write that Manchester recently approved a policy aimed at creating an equitable education experience for local students, which acknowledges they are negatively impacted by racism and sexism.

Board members say the reach of the new Manchester policy is wide, in the hopes of addressing students impacted by discrimination due to language, gender identity, special education status, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background and mobility, in addition to race and ethnicity.

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"Many students in Manchester fall into one of those categories, and to pass a bill such as this one would severely hamper the ability of our district to move forward in our goal of providing equitable access to education for all our students," reads the letter.

Last week the Concord School Board approved a resolution opposing HB 544.

"As a school district, we encourage students to critically analyze the world around them and learn the ways sexism and racism are interwoven into our systems and cultures, so that as a community, we can work together to end the cycles of these inequities," the resolution read.

SAU 70, which includes Hanover, also recently passed a resolution opposing the bill.

The Manchester school board's Policy Committee will meet remotely Tuesday at 6 p.m.

pfeely@unionleader.com

Paul Feely is the City Hall reporter for the New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News. Reach him at pfeely@unionleader.com
Banyas, Howards Class of 2022 Student Government Association president, said in his online campaign materials that his main priorities are getting civic education and financial literacy included in social studies, increasing support for mental health and pushing the school system to continue to join the Green Schools Alliance, a worldwide effort to address climate change in schools. Banyas, who is also co-president of the schools Tri-M Music Honor Society and vice president of the Math Honor Society, has also said he will hold town halls and will post weekly videos discussing relevant issues.
The University of Michigan student government accused Israel of engaging in "apartheid" and "ethnic cleansing" against Palestinians and encouraged students to boycott the nation as violence between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas continues to escalate.

The Central Student Government (CSG) of the University of Michigan issued a press release on Monday claiming that Israel is actually Palestine and accused the Israeli government of committing "inhumane, international war crimes" against Palestinians since the creation of the state of Israel in 1948.

The students accused the Israeli military of murdering Palestinians in the Gaza Strip after over 20 Palestinians  including children  were reportedly killed in a Israeli airstrike that followed Hamas launching rockets at Jerusalem.

They also accused the Israeli government of engaging in "ethnic cleansing" against Palestinians and declared that the Israeli-Palestine issue is not a conflict, but "emblematic of Israeli settler-colonialism, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid."

SQUAD MEMBER RASHIDA TLAIB CLAIMS ISRAEL PROMOTING RACISM AND DEHUMANIZATION UNDER APARTHEID SYSTEM

"In an effort to further suppress Palestinians, Israeli police and settler militias are currently targeting Muslims during the holiest month of Ramadan at the third most divine site in Islam; Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem," the students alleged in their press release.

They also accused the Israeli government of targeting Palestinian "churches and other houses of worship" while threatening Palestinians of "all religions" around the globe.

Additionally, the group claimed that "anti-Palestinian sentiment has been allowed to run rampant" on the Univeristy of Michigans campus and said they were recognizing their own groups "complicity with Israels violence" by taking part in annual trips to the nation "that supported the settler-state in its apartheid and occupation."

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"By extension, the University of Michigan remains complicit by choosing not to divest from Israeli companies profiting off of the settler states occupation," the group continued, ending the letter by telling students to follow BDS-supporting social media accounts.

ISRAEL MOBILIZES 5,000 RESERVE SOLDIERS AS EGYPT TRYING TO BROKER CEASE-FIRE WITH GAZA MILITANTS

"The struggle for liberation is worldwide as the disenfranchised continue to fight the interlocked systems of deadly capitalism, colonialism, and imperialism that manifest in global oppression," the students wrote while claiming that Palestinians have been "censored" and forced out of public discourse.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

A spokesperson for the University of Michigan told Fox News on Tuesday that a "core value" of the school "is freedom of speech and respect for diverse ideas and viewpoints" and said that the CSG "does not speak for the University of Michigan."

The University of Michigan CSG did not immediately respond to Fox News request for comment.
A 71-year-old man was found safe after officials said he texted his wife saying he was lost while hiking in Oregon.

Joe Dean, 71, of Portland was found Monday morning by rescuers near the Horsetail Falls Trail, according to the Multnomah County Sheriffs Office. Officials said he was conscious and breathing when they administered first aid before Dean was put into a basket and taken down the trail to the parking lot.

Dean was then taken to a hospital, police said, and was talking and able to walk with assistance.

Authorities said Dean told them he was planning on hiking from Horsetail Falls near the Rock of Ages Ridge but lost the trail halfway through the hike. Dean texted his wife on Saturday afternoon that he was lost and was reported missing around 8:33 p.m., according to officials.

Both the Oneonta and Horsetail Creek drainages suffered significant fire damage during the Eagle Creek Fire in 2017. The trails in these areas are not maintained, indistinguishable and overgrown. This area has been closed since the fire, the sheriffs office said.

Around 65 rescuers looked through the trail and wilderness on Sunday and searchers used cell phone data to narrow down an area, believing that Dean was still alive based on data and information from his family and friends, according to police.

Dean said he followed Horsetail Creek after getting lost and was equipped with thermal leggings, a jacket and balaclava but didnt prepare to stay overnight, according to the sheriffs office. Dean also said he was able to ration food but ran out of water.

Deans son, William Dean, said hes elated his father, an experienced hiker, was found safe, according to ABC News.

I thought today was quite do or die, William Dean said. Ive always said hes the person I want to be stuck out overnight with by accident so Im really glad he was able to get out of here.

The trail where Dean was found is located around 35 miles east of Portland.

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Kentucky State Police and federal authorities are investigating after a Chicago man was found shot to death near the Kentucky Veterans Cemetery in Radcliff.

The man was reported missing by Chicago authorities on April 18, police said. His body was found by state police in a wooded area on May 1. He had been shot in the head, police said.

The state medical examiners office confirmed the man was Quincy K. Ukaigwe, the missing 30-year-old from Chicago.

It is believed that Ukaigwe traveled to Radcliff to visit a childhood friend and last spoke with family members on April 18, 2021, state police said. Investigators learned that Ukaigwe did arrive in Kentucky and was in Hardin and Meade counties as well as the Louisville metro area.

Ukaigwe was last heard from while he was in the Hardin County area, state police said.

State police are working with federal authorities to follow up on strong leads. Theyre also trying to find Ukaigwes dog.

Ukaigwe owned an American Bulldog named Abloh that is believed to have been with him at the time of his death, state police said. KSP is asking for the publics assistance that if they have any information on the dogs whereabouts or have any information about this case to contact KSP Detective Tony Hardin at (270) 766-5078.
A Missouri bar is under fire for a viral video that shows a man denying service to military members he believed used a fake ID.

The group of service members went to LOTO Lounge near Lake of the Ozarks when the man behind the bar crumpled one of their military identification cards and tossed it in the trash, according to a Facebook post by Noel Cook on May 7.

When the group insists the ID is real, the man replied hell call my boys that have been to (expletive) Afghanistan.

Weve been to Iraq and Afghanistan, a person responded.

You dont even look old enough to know about (expletive) 9/11, he said.

The man behind the bar was local musician Josh Weitkamp, who isnt an employee but personally connected to the business, the Lake Expo reported.

Were obviously huge supporters of the military. What happened was a huge misunderstanding, an unidentified owner told the newspaper. What happened is not a reflection of how we feel about the military.

The video posted by Cook, who lists himself as a member of the Air Force, had nearly 200,000 views by Tuesday.

Warning: It includes graphic language.

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Weitkamp refused to give the ID to anyone except a police officer, insisting the covering of real card wouldnt peel.

At one point, Weitkamp told a member of the group You can do a lot more push-ups than me. What have you done for this country since World War II?

Ive never been more heated about a non-racial interaction with someone and the straight disrespect he had for fellow service members ESPECIALLY when some of us (if not all) joined the military because of 9/11 and how it shaped our upbringing, Cook posted on Facebook.

A few minutes later, an officer arrives and can be heard off camera.

Have you been in the military, sir? Weitkamp asks the officer.

Yes, he replies.

Can you tell me if you can peel off the front of a military ID? Weitkamp asked.

Yeah, actually, I remember mine being laminated, the officer replied.

Osage Beach police told the Lake Sun Leader the officer confirmed the ID was real and the group left the bar.

No one was arrested, the newspaper reported.

Hitler Gang TikTok video with students making Nazi salute sent to Iowa teen, cops say
MSNBC

MSNBC anchor Ayman Mohyeldin repeatedly confronted a former Israeli ambassador on Tuesday as the cross-border fighting between Gaza militants and Israel continues to escalate, wondering aloud if hed recognize that Israel is possibly responsible for war crimes.

After an Israeli airstrike leveled a 14-story apartment complex in Gaza City on Monday, a Tel Aviv neighborhood was hit by Palestinian rocket fire on Tuesday, killing three. Dozens of Israelis have also reportedly received medical treatment. At the same time, amid Israeli airstrikes, health officials in Gaza said at least 26 Palestinians have been killed, including nine children, and over 100 others wounded.

While the current tensions were apparently triggered by a violent police raid on a mosque in Jerusalem this week, the undercurrent of the conflict is decadesif not centuriesold, something Mohyeldin drilled down on in his interview with former Israeli Ambassador to the United Kingdom Mark Regev.

Noting that the Israel Foreign Ministry recently said that Palestinian terror groups are presenting a real-estate dispute between private groups as a nationalistic cause, the MSNBC anchor brought up 2009 remarks made by a Jewish settler who took over a Palestinian home.

We take house after house because we prove in the court that this area belonged to the Jewish. And because of that, all this area will be a Jewish neighborhood. A dream that all East Jerusalem will be like West Jerusalem, Jewish capital of Israel, the Jewish claimant said at the time.

Pointing out that the man is now on the Jerusalem City Council, Mohyeldin said this sounds less like a land dispute and more like a stated strategy to remove Palestinians from East Jerusalem to make it a Jewish city.

He was speaking for himself, Regev responded.

Hes the spokesman for a settler organization, the MSNBC anchor retorted.

I understand. He is speaking for himself and the organization, Regev said, before invoking Mohyeldins prior guest, a Palestinian evicted from East Jerusalem.

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The person who you had on before was speaking for himself and his organization, he added. He basically said Israel had no right to exist, he said my country was built on stealing other peoples land. So you have different opinions on both sides, very strong opinions on both sides.

Mohyeldin followed up by reading a recent statement by the deputy mayor of Jerusalem, who said last week that theres a wider strategy of placing Jews throughout the eastern part of Jerusalem so as to achieve the larger goal of making Jerusalem a capital for Jewish people.

How should Arabs who are living in Jerusalem interpret statements like this by the deputy mayor of this city? Mohyeldin asked.

From there, the interview grew a bit more heated, with Regev complaining that Mohyeldin was constantly interrupting and pressing him to answer specific questions, something Regev felt the anchor didnt do to his previous guest.

Mohyeldin, meanwhile, continued to press the ex-ambassador about inflammatory rhetoric from Israeli officials, such as the deputy mayor saying Palestinian activists should be shot in the head.

To be fair, there were people demonstrating with Hamas flags. You know, Hamas calls for the murder of all Israelis. How am I supposed to see that? If you want to find extremists and say that represents Israel, you can do that, Regev reacted.

Hes the deputy mayor of Jerusalem. Im not selecting a fringe element, Mohyeldin shot back.

Eventually, the MSNBC host noted that the United Nations doesnt recognize Israeli sovereignty over East Jerusalem, challenging Regev on whether or not he felt evictions of Palestinian families in the area were criminal.

A spokesperson for the United Nations high commissioner said any actions in Jerusalem that are enforced that would ultimately evict Palestinian families under international humanitarian law may amount to a war crime, Mohyeldin stated. What do you say to the international community who does not recognize Israels sovereignty over East Jerusalem and says what youre doing to families like [the previous guests] and others is possibly a war crime?

Regev described this as the politicization of international law before blasting the U.N for its anti-Israel agenda and claiming the organization doesnt have a lot of legitimacy on the issue. He also suggested Palestinians have no rightful claim to territory in Jerusalem since Israel reunited the city in 1967 and, before that, the area was occupied by Jordanians and the British.

Were not going down the history lessons here because, as you mentioned, you dont recognize Palestinian claims to their homes in 1948 Israel or East Jerusalem. You wont allow them to use the same judicial process that youre advocating for Israelis to use, Mohyeldin pushed back.

Dont put words in my mouth, Regev fired back. I said what happened in 1948, thats what youre talking about here, I said there were almost a million Jews who were thrown out of their homes in the Arab countries.

There were less than that, Palestinian Arabs, who fled the fighting here, he concluded. And just as we made homes for the Jews, and my wifes family were expelled from Syria, had that terrible journey on foot from Syria to Israel, we think its fair that the Arab world would accept their Arab brothers and sisters and integrate them. I think thats fair history.

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OSIRIS-REx made history last fall when it touched down on the asteroid Bennu, and now, the NASA spacecraft is on its way back to Earth with some souvenirs from the trip.

OSIRIS-REx started the two-year journey back home on Monday, carrying rubble it collected from the surface of Bennu, an asteroid believed to be as tall as the Empire State Building and 4.5 billion years old. This was NASA's first mission to try to get a piece of an asteroid, and principal scientist Dante Lauretta of the University of Arizona told The Associated Press it is estimated that OSIRIS-REx is holding between half a pound and a pound of rubble  much more than the goal of two ounces.

The spacecraft was launched in September 2016, and orbited Bennu for two years, sending back "new and exciting images and data," Lauretta said. The samples are set to arrive in a capsule dropping in Utah on Sept. 24, 2023, and the rubble could help scientists better understand how planets were formed and life began on Earth.

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A passenger wearing a respiratory mask speaks on her smartphone by the departures board on January 31, 2020 at Rome's Fiumicino airport

Englands NHS app will be available to use as a vaccine passport from Monday, the government has said - but only for those who have had both doses of the jab.

A paper version will also be available - by calling 119 but not through a GP.

Both will be available from Monday, 17 May, when the ban on foreign travel is eased.

The NHS app is separate to the NHS Covid-19 app, which is used for contact tracing.

People can already use the NHS app to:

request repeat prescriptions

arrange appointments to see their doctor

view medical records

It can also show vaccine statuses, including for coronavirus, but currently this feature must be enabled by a GP before it appears on the app.

The new update will contain a separate feature to display coronavirus vaccine records, so the government said there should be no need to contact GPs.

The app will not show coronavirus test results, but the NHS plans to incorporate this in the future, the government website said.

It advised people to register to use the app at least two weeks before travelling.

A paper letter can be requested only at least five days after a second vaccine dose and can take five days to arrive.

Pre-departure test

There are not many countries that currently accept proof of vaccination, the government advice warns.

So for the time being, most people will still need to follow other rules when travelling abroad  like getting a negative pre-departure test.

The government has announced 12 countries people in England can travel to, without having to quarantine when they return.

But not all of these destinations allow UK tourists.

For example, travel to mainland Portugal and the Azores is currently for essential purposes only.

The list will be reviewed every three weeks.

Countries can be added or removed at short notice.

Analysis box by Rory Cellan-Jones, technology correspondent

It's finally becoming clearer exactly how the government plans to use the NHS app as a vaccine passport.

It had been assumed it depended on getting GPs to share a patient's data with the app. I'd been on the phone to my GP surgery because neither of my two jabs was showing up in the app.

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But this morning a Department of Health spokeswoman told me that NHS X - the health service digital division - has designed an update to the app which doesn't depend on GP records.

The update won't go live until May 17th and will provide a new tab displaying your vaccine record, the idea being that this is all you need to show rather than any other sensitive data being visible.

What's not clear however is whether this solution will be acceptable to foreign airlines or border police. But there is one message the government is keen to get out - don't do what I did and ring your GP.

Holiday destination

Travellers also need to take coronavirus tests before returning to England and after arrival.

Some countries may also require tests to be taken upon entry to the holiday destination.

European officials have announced plans for an EU-wide "Green Digital Certificate".

This would allow anyone vaccinated against Covid or who has tested negative or recently recovered from the virus to travel within the region.

Officials hope the certificate will be in place before the summer.

Several companies have been working on apps to make travel easier, including trade body the International Air Transport Association, who are piloting 'Travel Pass'.

It said it has been in discussions with government to ensure the pass can read data from the NHS App.

"We're keen to go further and faster now that the Secretary of State has confirmed that travellers will have access to their covid vaccination status by 17 May," a spokesperson added. "Globally there are now 20+ countries that are either easing testing or quarantine requirements for vaccinated passengers so the UK needs to move quickly if it does not want to fall behind globally in supporting its citizens' ability to freely travel."

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Washington Boulevard, 8800 block, 4:58 a.m. May 2. A man reported he was assaulted by a group of acquaintances in a hotel room. The group stole his car, which was later recovered. The man was transported to the hospital for treatment. The investigation is ongoing.
Waller County Sheriff's Office Deputy Wes Manion approximates the size of the tiger, Monday in Houston, that was loose the night before (Houston Chronicle via AP)

A man believed to be the owner of a tiger which was spotted wandering around a Houston, Texas neighbourhood on Sunday had previously been arrested and bailed on a murder charge.

According to Houston police, the man named Victor Hugo Cuevas, 26, was taken back in custody and charged with felony evading arrest.

A video from Sunday shows the tiger with a collar roaming around the streets of a residential area in Houston, where he comes face-to-face with an armed man who can be heard asking the owner to take the tiger back inside.

The man was an off-duty Waller County sheriffs deputy, the police said. Another man, allegedly the owner, can be seen taking the animal back inside after the confrontation.

After the reports of a loose tiger, when officers arrived Mr Cuevas put the animal in a white van and drove off, Houston police officer Ron Borza said during a news conference on Monday.

Mr Cuevas got away after a brief pursuit, he said. However, police caught him after a search lasting several hours.

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The officer said he was arrested in relation to a murder  the fatal shooting of a man outside a restaurant in neighbouring Fort Bend County  in November 2020, and was out on bond. Police are looking for the whereabouts of the Bengal tiger.

Mr Borza earlier said: What I dont want him to do is harm that tiger. We have plenty of places we can take that tiger and keep it safe and give it a home for the rest of its life."

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Mr Cuevas attorney, Michael W Elliott, denied that his client was the owner or caretaker of the tiger. The attorney also said it was unclear to him if it was Mr Cuevas seen on videos of the incident.

People are making a lot of assumptions in this particular case. Maybe he might be the hero out there who caught the tiger that was in the neighbourhood," Mr Elliott said.

Police said there were also two monkeys inside the house where Mr Cuevas lived, however, they were not sure if he was the owner.

Any animal under 30 pounds (13.5 kilograms) is legal to be kept as a pet in Houston. However, tigers are not allowed within the city limits. The Texas state law does not prohibit private ownership of tigers and other exotic animals.
May 11Rejecting his claims of self-defense, Manchester police charged a local man with first-degree assault after witnesses said he entered his father's restaurant, retrieved a gun, returned outside and shot an adversary three times.

Witness statements were detailed in a police affidavit filed in connection with the arrest of Dunbarton resident Zabayullah Qahir, 29.

He's charged with shooting a 48-year-old man three times early Monday evening outside the restaurant that Qahir owns, USA Chicken and Biscuit. The 6:15 p.m. shooting took place in the heart of Manchester's downtown.

Qahir's father, Rahim Woodod, said his son had gotten into a fight with an aggressive, threatening customer, who had punched his son several times and his son fired in self-defense.

But police talked to several witnesses who said the victim, whose full name is redacted in the affidavit, had been fired by the restaurant and was there to pick up his final paycheck, police said.

Qahir was upset over an earlier telephone conversation between his sister and the victim, and they got into a heated exchange. Qahir directed racial slurs at the victim, who is Black, according to one witness, a customer of the nearby Castro's cigar bar.

Several witnesses said the two were arguing outside the restaurant. Qahir entered the restaurant grabbed a weapon, went outside and shot the man three times, according to the affidavit.

Downtown impact

The shooting comes as the downtown tries to return to normal after a year of shutdowns and restrictions prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last week, Manchester police announced that summertime foot patrols had resumed downtown. Fewer homeless people are walking Elm Street. And office workers are returning to downtown as more businesses relax their pandemic restrictions, said Tammy Ferrier, an assistant manager at Bunny's convenience store, which is located across Elm Street from USA Chicken and Biscuit.

She said the weather is the biggest factor in how busy her store is and doubts the shooting will have an impact.

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"It happens all the time, we're used to it," said Anna Cordero, who was manning the front desk at Shaggin Salon, also across the street from USA Chicken and Biscuit.

Likewise, the manager at Castro's cigar bar was not worried about any effect on business.

"We have a pretty tough crowd here," said Bob Stallings.

He is happy to see the police patrols return.

"You're talking officers in dress blues, bikes, state troopers. Most of the people like it. Why wouldn't they?" Stallings said. He also praised USA Chicken and Biscuit, saying the food is great, the prices are affordable, and it is operated by a good family.

According to the police affidavit, one of the shooting witnesses was parked in her car in front of USA Chicken and Biscuit with her children and waiting for her husband, who was inside picking up an order.

She told police she thought the argument was finished when Qahir walked into the restaurant. But then he emerged with a handgun and fired.

"(The witness) was very adamant that the lighter-skinned male opened fire immediately upon opening the door when he came back after the initial argument. She made it clear he did not come back out and physically or verbally engage the Black male again," detectives wrote.

Her husband, who was in the restaurant at the time of the shooting, said the victim yelled for Qahir to come outside and fight him, and Qahir said to wait right there, the affidavit reads.

The husband and a DoorDash driver tried to persuade Qahir not to leave the restaurant with a gun, but they did not physically intervene. The husband said Qahir was extremely angry, and he was nervous what might happen if he tried to stop Qahir.

After shooting the man, Qahir remained in the area until police arrived and put the gun on the ground.

"All the statements that were provided to police failed to establish a self-defense claim," detectives wrote.

Superior Court Judge David Anderson ordered Qahir held on preventive detention, meaning he won't get out of jail before trial. Anderson called the shooting "very troubling."

"Based on the numerous witness accounts ... Defendant exited his storefront with a gun and shot the victim twice from a distance and then once more while standing over the victim," Anderson wrote.
A powerful state senator publicly called for the resignation of University of South Carolina President Robert Caslen following plagiarism and a slip of the tongue during his commencement speech.

On the Senate floor Tuesday, S.C. Sen. Dick Harpootlian, D-Richland, called on Caslen to resign.

Harpootlian, whose district includes the University of South Carolina, said his phone and email were filled over the weekend by professors, staff and students who were concerned about the Saturday commencement speech.

If he is the military man of honor that I think he is, he will resign, Harpootlian said.

During his Friday graduation speech, Caslen accidentally referred to USC graduates as being from the University of California and shortly after plagiarized a quote from retired Navy Adm. William McRaven.

In an interview with WIS, Caslen acknowledged his unattributed use of McRavens quote was plagiarism and apologized to those who lost their trust in him.

The flap drew so much blowback Caslen offered to resign over the weekend, USC spokesman Jeff Stensland confirmed. Caslen told WIS he still had the support of Gov. Henry McMaster and the board of trustees.

McMaster spokesman Brian Symmes confirmed in a text message to The State that the governor spoke with Caslen but did not elaborate on what was said.

Former U.S. Rep. Joe Cunningham, who announced last month he is running for governor, called on the board to accept Caslens resignation.

By rejecting his resignation, the Board of Trustees has set a double standard for the president and its students, the Charleston Democrat said in a statement. There exists, and it is enforced on students, a code of honor at UofSC. Plagiarism is a serious violation which has seen students suspended and/or expelled. To hold the employed face of this cherished institution to a different, lesser standard is a slap in the face to anyone who holds a degree from Carolina.

The board should be ashamed by its inaction on holding President Caslen accountable, he added.

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Cunningham said the Board of Trustees political loyalty to Governor McMaster demonstrates the need for serious reform to our states higher education system.

South Carolina should transition away from Boards of Trustees and instead move toward more independent oversight and accountability through a Board of Regents system like our neighboring states have successfully implemented for decades, Cunningham said.

Charles Williams, a board of trustees member who was initially critical of the process by which Caslen was hired, said the university has to hold its president to at least the same standards as it does its students.

Its just hard to have a policy that you can get expelled from the university for plagiarism and you have a lesser standard for your president, Williams said.

Its very serious, Williams said. To act like its not serious, that its just okay, is not just not right.

While Caslen has faced widespread blowback for the speech over the weekend, many still support him.

Eddie Floyd, USCs longest serving board of trustees member, said USC should not jump to conclusions on how to move forward following the commencement speech fiasco.

I just think we need to sit back and think about things a little bit. I dont think we should make a rash decision, Floyd told The State. We had a president who came in and it was real tough circumstances. During the pandemic he did an unbelievably good job.

USC womens basketball Coach Dawn Staley tweeted support for Caslen.

I just came up from air after losing a sibling, Staley tweeted. I just want to say to @Bob_Caslen thank you for your commitment to @UofSC. It is when we are in the midst of our hardest day true leadership rise. Win the war Prez!

USCs student body president, Alex Harrell, also expressed support for Caslen on Twitter Monday evening.

Character is a virtue President Caslen speaks about often. He has exemplified it his entire life, from saving countless lives during 9/11 to his leadership during COVID-19. His commitment to and care for our student body is incredible and a growing rarity in higher education, Harrell tweeted. It speaks volumes about his character that he could admit he made a mistake and furthermore commit to fixing his mistake. I am honored to work with and serve with such an incredible public servant.

Caslen has been no stranger to controversy since arriving in South Carolina. When he was announced as a finalist to replace then- President Harris Pastides, students protested his candidacy because of his connection to the Iraq war, his military service in South America and his lack of doctorate degree, The State previously reported.

USCs board, which was also divided on Caslens candidacy, reopened the presidential search in 2019. But then McMaster forced a yes-or-no vote on Caslen, resulting in Caslen being named president. The influence of McMaster, who is an ex-officio chair of USCs board but does not attend board meetings, drew a formal inquiry from USCs accrediting body, which found undue political influence  something that could have compromised the universitys accreditation. While USCs accreditation is no longer threatened, the school is still dealing with the aftershocks of the accreditation inquiry.

Harpootlian criticized Caslens hiring as president.

He was the wrong choice, Harpootlian said. Clearly, this is the last demonstration of evidence of that.

S.C. Sen. Mia McLeod, D-Richland, agreed.

Its called plagiarism, (and) any student who does the same will be kicked out faster than he/she can say, Univ. of California!, McLeod said in a tweet sent Tuesday afternoon. Thanks @henrymcmaster for strong-arming the @UofSC board to hire Caslen over more diverse, qualified candidates.

S.C. Sen. Brad Hutto, the minority leader, said he was disappointed and embarrassed.

If a student plagiarized a piece in my class, he would have been reported, Hutto, who has taught classes at USC said. Hutto is an Orangeburg Democrat.

Harpootlian and a number of other Democrats expressed concerns with USCs Board of Trustees, whose members are confirmed by the legislature. The Richland Democrat said the board has historic, institutional issues, adding that the General Assembly needs to address a systematic problem at the University of South Carolina.

The board is more concerned about the politics than institution running, Harpootlian said.

This is a problem we need to address before we give them the millions of dollars we intend to give them, he added.

One Republican member of the Senate, Sen. Ronnie Cromer, stood up for Caslen, saying he had a hard time listening to Harpootlians comments.

I hate to see a person of his stature be mischaracterized as such, Cromer said.

This is a developing story. Check back later for updates.
Jackson Countys top prosecutor publicly apologized Monday to a Kansas City man who she says has spent more than four decades in prison for a triple murder he did not commit.

Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker said she was profoundly sorry for the trauma Kevin Strickland, 61, and his family have endured over the last 40 years of his imprisonment. Her office has determined he was wrongly convicted.

What we did in this case was wrong, Baker said during a news conference with Stricklands attorneys at the Jackson County Courthouse. I am sorry for this mistake made by this system.

Baker spoke with Strickland by phone Monday morning from prison. He gave her a lot of grace, Baker said.

And he didnt have to, she said.

Earlier Monday, the prosecutors office said it had determined Strickland is innocent in the 1978 triple murder for which he is in prison. They called for him to be released immediately.

Federal prosecutors, Jackson Countys presiding judge, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas and members of the team that sent Strickland to prison four decades ago also agree he was wrongly convicted as a teenager.

Baker described the number of groups and people calling for Stricklands release profound and different.

It does go to the weight of the evidence that hes innocent, she said.

Baker noted she does not have the ability to free Strickland, even though the office she now leads prosecuted him before some of his current attorneys were born. Prosecutors need more legal tools to do so, she said.

I dont have any actual power here, Baker said. And the local DA should have power because we carry a responsibility long after convictions are done.

Tricia Rojo Bushnell, one of Stricklands attorneys and executive director of the Midwest Innocence Project, noted that no physical evidence linked Strickland to the killings.

Stricklands innocence is clear, but the process to bring him home is quite opaque and difficult, Rojo Bushnell said.

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Currently in Missouri it is unclear whether or not innocence is enough for a person to be released from prison, she said.

Rojo Bushnell and lawyers with the law firm Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner filed a petition Monday urging the Missouri Supreme Court to free Strickland.

Strickland was convicted at age 19 by an all-white jury in 1979. At trial, prosecutors relied heavily on the testimony of Cynthia Douglas, the only eyewitness to the shooting. She later recanted and said detectives pressured her into identifying Strickland.

In an investigation published in September, The Star reported that, for decades, two men who pleaded guilty in the killings swore Strickland was not with them and their two other accomplices during the April 25, 1978, killings at 6934 S. Benton Ave. A third suspect, who was not charged, has since said Strickland is innocent.

The shooting that fateful night killed Larry Ingram, 21; Douglas boyfriend, John Walker, 20; and Douglas best friend, Sherrie Black, 22. Douglas was wounded in the shooting.

Baker on Monday also apologized to the victims families.

Bakers office, which reviewed Stricklands case and The Stars investigation, concluded that the core claims made by Vincent Bell  the first suspect to admit guilt in the killings  are credible.

When Bell pleaded guilty in the triple murder in 1979, he repeatedly warned prosecutors that they had convicted Strickland, an innocent man, four months earlier.

Im telling you the truth today that Kevin Strickland wasnt there at the house that day, Bell declared during his three-hour plea.

Douglas, the eyewitness, tried to correct her mistaken identification and wanted nothing more than to see Strickland freed, her relatives have said. She died in 2015 at age 57.

Meanwhile, Stricklands older brother, L.R., said he was thrilled about Mondays news and reiterated, as he has for decades, that his brother was at home during the shooting.

My brother was not guilty of what they accused him of, he told The Star.
ATLANTA (AP)  A man accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses was indicted Tuesday on murder charges by two separate grand juries, and one prosecutor filed notice that shell also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty.

A Fulton County grand jury indicted Robert Aaron Long, 22, in the March 16 slayings of Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; and Yong Ae Yue, 63. A separate grand jury in Cherokee County indicted Long for a separate shooting there that resulted in the killings of Xiaojie Emily Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Delaina Yaun, 33; and Paul Michels, 54.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis also filed notice that she intends to seek a hate crime sentence enhancement and the death penalty against Long, who is white. The hate crime charges are based on the actual or perceived race, national origin, sex and gender of the four women killed, the notice says.

The charges and the decisions to seek the death penalty and a sentencing enhancement under the hate crime law send a message that everyone within this community is valued, Willis said during a news conference Tuesday.

Today we have taken another step forward in seeking justice for the victims of this crime and for their family members, Cherokee County District Attorney Shannon Wallace said in a news release.

Wallace said she will make a decision on whether to seek the death penalty before Long's arraignment, which has not yet been scheduled.

Georgias new hate crimes law does not provide for a stand-alone hate crime. After a person is convicted of an underlying crime, a jury must determine whether its motivated by bias, which carries an additional penalty.

The 19-count Fulton County indictment includes charges of murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and domestic terrorism.

The domestic terrorism charge says Long committed a series of illegal acts which were interrelated by distinguishing characteristics, with the intent to cause serious bodily harm and to kill individuals and groups of individuals, and with the intent to intimidate the civilian population of this state and of its political subdivisions.

Story continues

Four aggravated assault charges have to do with the shootings of the four victims who died. For a fifth, the indictment says Long pointed a gun at another woman, causing her reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving a violent injury.

The charges in the 23-count Cherokee County indictment are related to the shooting at a spa near suburban Woodstock in which four were killed and one person was wounded. Six other people were inside the spa when the shooting happened, Wallace said. The Cherokee County charges include malice murder, felony murder, attempt to commit murder and aggravated assault.

Willis decision to seek the death penalty is a departure from her stance during her campaign to be district attorney last year.

During a 2020 candidate forum, Willis answered yes when asked: Will you commit to refuse to seek the death penalty?

Last year I told the voters of Fulton County that I could not imagine a circumstance where I would seek (the death penalty), Willis said during the news conference. Unfortunately, a case has arisen ... that I believe warrants the ultimate penalty and we shall seek it.

The killings are eligible for the death penalty because each was committed while Long was in the act of committing another capital offense, namely the killings of the victims, Willis notice of intent says. Each killing was also outrageously or wantonly vile, horrible, or inhuman in that it involved depravity of mind and was committed during an act of domestic terrorism, the notice says.

Police have said Long shot and killed four people, three of them women and two of Asian descent, at Youngs Asian Massage near Woodstock just before 5 p.m. on March 16. He also shot and wounded a fifth person, investigators said.

He then drove about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south to Atlanta, where he shot and killed three women at Gold Spa before going across the the street to Aromatherapy Spa and fatally shooting another woman, police have said. All of the Atlanta victims were women of Asian descent.

After the shootings at the two Atlanta spas, Long got back into his car and headed south on the interstate, police said.

Longs parents called authorities to help after recognizing their son in still images from security video that the Cherokee County Sheriffs Office posted on social media. They provided cellphone information that allowed authorities to track their son to rural Crisp County, about 140 miles (225 kilometers) south of Atlanta.

State troopers and sheriffs deputies spotted his SUV on Interstate 75, and one of them forced Long to spin to a stop by bumping his vehicle. Long then surrendered to authorities.

In an initial interview with investigators, Long claimed to have a sex addiction, and authorities said he apparently lashed out at businesses he viewed as a temptation. But those statements spurred outrage and widespread skepticism given the races of the victims.
(In May 11 story, fixes paragraph 10 to clarify that Stop AAPI Hate supports prosecutors intention to pursue hate crime charges, not the death penalty, which the organization opposes)

By Linda So

ATLANTA (Reuters) -A Georgia prosecutor said on Tuesday she would seek the death penalty for the man accused of fatally shooting eight people at Atlanta-area spas, six of them women of Asian descent, saying the suspect committed hate crimes.

Robert Aaron Long, 22, was indicted on murder charges in the March 16 killings of four women in Fulton County, Georgia, as well as on aggravated assault and domestic terrorism charges, according to court documents.

He was previously charged with four counts of murder and one count of aggravated assault in Cherokee County, about 40 miles (64 km) north of Atlanta.

In a court filing, Fulton County prosecutor Fani Willis said Long had targeted four women in Atlanta because of their race, national origin and gender.

"Lady Justice in this community is blind," Willis told a news conference after her court filing. "It does not matter your ethnicity, it does not matter the side of the tracks you come from, it does not matter your wealth. You will be treated as an individual with value."

In a separate filing, Willis said she would seek the death penalty against Long.

"Death penalty cases are never easy. This is a long journey. And so the biggest hurdle will just be having stamina, but some journeys are worth taking," Willis said, adding she came to the decision after spending time with the families of the victims and reviewing the evidence.

A lawyer for Long did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In March, Long told investigators a sex addiction drove him to commit the killings and indicated he frequented spas in the area. Authorities initially declined to name racial animosity as the motive for the massacre, which sent shock waves through the Asian-American community, already rattled by a rise in hate crimes since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

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Stop AAPI Hate, a coalition that has tracked rising anti-Asian violence during the pandemic, commended the prosecutor's characterization of the shootings as hate crimes, calling it "important" and stressing the broader need to address "the combination of racism and misogyny Asian American women experience" in the United States.

The bloodshed began with four people killed and another wounded at Young's Asian Massage in Cherokee County. Two Asian-American women were among the dead there, along with a white woman and a white man.

An hour later in Atlanta, police officers responding to a robbery report arrived at the Gold Spa beauty salon to find three women shot dead. The officers were then called to a separate spa across the street where another woman was found fatally shot. All four women killed in Atlanta were of Asian descent.

(Reporting by Linda So, Gabriella Borter, Rich McKay and Brendan O'Brien; Editing by David Gregorio and Peter Cooney)
Prosecutors unveiled murder charges against the white man accused of shooting and killing eight people, six of whom were Asian women, at Atlanta-area spas, AP reports.

Driving the news: A prosecutor filed notice that she plans to seek hate crime charges and the death penalty in the case. Two separate grand juries have now indicted the suspect on murder charges.

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A Fulton County grand jury indicted Robert Aaron Long, 22, in the killings of Suncha Kim, Soon Chung Park, Hyun Jung Grant and Yong Ae Yue.

Long faces:

Four counts of murder

Four counts of felony murder

Five counts of assault with a deadly weapon

Four counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony

One count of domestic terrorism

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis filed notice that she plans to seek hate crime charges based on actual or perceived race, national origin, sex and gender, per AP.

A separate grand jury in Cherokee County indicted Long on counts related to the shooting spree that killed Xiaojie Tan, Daoyou Feng, Delaina Yaun and Paul Michels. It's not yet known whether the county's district attorney intends to pursue hate crime charges.

Long faces:

Four counts of malice murder

Four counts of felony murder

One count of criminal attempt to commit murder

11 counts of aggravated assault

One count of aggravated battery

One count of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony

One count of criminal damage to property

What to watch: The high-profile case could test the state's new hate crimes law, which was signed into law last year.

According to Georgia law, a hate crime cannot be charged on its own. Only after a person is convicted of an underlying crime can a jury decide the merits of such a charge, which carries an additional penalty.

The big picture: The shootings, which came amid a yearlong spike in anti-Asian hate, increased fear among Asian Americans and sparked outcry across the country.

Story continues

In 16 of the United States' largest cities and counties, reports of anti-Asian hate crimes have surged 164% since this time last year, according to a recent study from the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at Cal State University San Bernardino.

AAPI women are more than twice as likely to report hate incidents as men, Stop AAPI Hate reports.

In April, the Senate passed a rare bipartisan bill to address anti-Asian hate. The House is expected to take up its version of the legislation in May.

Go deeper: The centuries-long history of anti-Asian racism and violence in the U.S.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with Robert Aaron Long's indictment in Cherokee County.

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Meanwhile, the countys weekly positivity rate, which measures the percent at which tests return positive over a seven-day period, reached a record low of 1.76% as of Tuesday. Howard has had relatively low positivity rates for most of the pandemic, but the most recent figure is lower than even the percentages after the original wave and before the small surge in the summer. Three weeks ago, the countys positivity rate was at a moderate level of 5.33%.
The shooter who allegedly killed eight people, including six women of Asian descent, in March will face hate crime charges and the death penalty, the district attorney in Atlanta indicated Tuesday.

Robert Aaron Long, 22, was indicted by a grand jury in Georgias Fulton County on Tuesday in the March 16 slayings of Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; and Yong Ae Yue, 63, all of whom died in two Atlanta spas.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis indicated she would seek hate crime charges and the death penalty in the slayings.

Long was indicted on four counts of murder, four counts of felony murder, five counts of assault with a deadly weapon, four counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and one count of domestic terrorism, according to online records cited by The Associated Press.

A separate grand jury will be convened in Cherokee County to determine charges in the four shootings there, in which three people died and one was wounded. Xiaojie Emily Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Delaina Yaun, 33; and Paul Michels, 54, were killed in that attack, and Elcias Hernandez-Ortiz, 30, was wounded but survived.

Long had been traveling south on the interstate when police caught up with him, possibly en route to Florida to commit more crimes, authorities said at the time.

Long blamed sex addiction for his crimes.
Federal prosecutors recommended a 17-year sentence for a former U.S. Army Green Beret who pleaded guilty in November to conspiring with Russian intelligence sources dating as far back as the 1990s.

The recommendation was filed Friday in the U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Virginia, following 45-year-old Peter Rafael Dzibinski Debbinss guilty plea to a charge under the federal Espionage Act.

"Debbins, who has family ties to Russia, committed the offense for primarily ideological reasons: he considered himself a loyal son of Russia and believed that America needed to be cut down to size," the court filing reads, according to Stars and Stripes, which first reported about the recommendation.

Debbins, of Gainesville, Virginia, had a 15-year relationship with Russian intelligence starting in 1996 when he was a U.S. Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) student at the University of Minnesota and on a visit to Russia for an independent study program. He gave a handler there the names of four Roman Catholic nuns he had visited, according to the Justice Department. Shortly thereafter, Russian agents assigned him a code name.

EX-ARMY GREEN BERET PLEADS GUILTY TO CONSPIRING WITH RUSSIANS

Debbins' mother was born in the former Soviet Union, and Debbins met his wife in the Russian city of Chelyabinsk, where they were married in 1997, according to the indictment.

In a statement of facts made public last November, Debbins admitted he held pro-Russian and anti-American political views. He also admitted he was motivated in part by bitterness over his Army service and the potential opportunities to make business contacts in Russia.

Debbins told Russian intelligence he "thought that the United States was too dominant in the world and needed to be cut down to size," according to the indictment.

In a separate filing, the defense attorney representing Debbins asked the court for leniency, arguing his client is a man with psychological pathologies who felt trapped by circumstances, including attraction to the same sex, which he feared Russians might use against him to destroy his Army career during the "dont ask, dont tell" era, according to Stars and Stripes.

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Debbins indictment alleges he provided information and names of his fellow Special Forces members while he was on assignment in Azerbaijan and Georgia.

He served in the Army as an active-duty officer between 1998 and 2005  the last two years as a Special Forces officer. He was discharged and lost security clearance after violating protocols while on assignment in Azerbaijan. As a civilian, he worked for military contractors in counterintelligence roles.

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Though the maximum sentence for an espionage charge is life in prison and a $250,000 fine, prosecutors recommended a lower penalty due to Debbins "early acceptance of responsibility." Though 17 years behind bars still "reflects the seriousness of the offense" and sends a "clear deterrent message to other servicemembers" who might consider betraying their country, prosecutors said.

Fox News Bradford Betz and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's public prosecutors have shelved a case over a woman's allegation that she was gang raped at a luxury hotel in Cairo in 2014 because of "insufficient evidence" against the defendants, they said in a statement on Tuesday.

Anger at inaction following the incident at the Fairmont Hotel helped fuel a campaign against harassment and assault in which hundreds of women have shared testimonies online and grew more vocal about exposing sexual abuse in Egypt.

The four defendants were released from custody because evidence amassed during nearly nine months of investigation was insufficient to bring a criminal case, the prosecutors said.

They added that 39 people were interviewed but the testimonies were contradictory.

Several witnesses in the case were arrested and held for months in what some human rights activists said was part of a tendency by authorities to prioritise traditional social morality at the expense of women's rights.

Encouraged by the #MeToo movement, the woman who said she was drugged and gang raped at the hotel posted an anonymous account online before filing a formal complaint in July.

(Reporting by Haitham Ahmed; Writing by Nadine Awadalla; Editing by Aidan Lewis and Grant McCool)
Puerto Rican boxer Felix Verdejo Sanchez pleaded not guilty to federal charges linking him to the killing of Keishla Rodriguez Ortiz, whose family said she was pregnant with his child at the time of her death.

In a virtual court hearing Tuesday morning, Verdejo Sanchez pleaded not guilty to one count of carjacking resulting in death, one count of kidnapping resulting in death, one count of killing an unborn child and a count of using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

Luis Antonio Cadiz Martinez, a second person indicted in Rodriguez Ortiz's killing, also pleaded not guilty later in the afternoon. He was charged with one count of carjacking resulting in death, one count of kidnapping resulting in death and one count of killing an unborn child.

Even though the death penalty is illegal in Puerto Rico, both men could face federal death penalty charges because the indictment included special findings, including "Verdejo Sanchez procured the commission of the offense by payment, or promise of payment" and "Cadiz-Martinez committed the offense as consideration for the receipt, or in the expectation of the receipt, of anything of pecuniary value," among other factors, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Puerto Rico said.

Verdejo Sanchez will be held without bail until his trial, the judge ruled.

The disgraced boxer turned himself in to authorities last week after Rodriguez Ortiz's body was found floating on the San Jose Lagoon near the Teodoro Moscoso bridge in San Juan two days after her family reported her missing on April 29.

Cadiz Martinez, a former federal convict, has been identified as a witness who cooperated with the FBI, which has been investigating the case alongside the Puerto Rico Public Safety Department, the Puerto Rico Police Bureau and the Puerto Rico Justice Department, NBC News' sister station Telemundo Puerto Rico reported. He is also being held without bail until his trial.

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Keishla Marlen Rodriguez Ortiz. (Puerto Rico police)

Rodriguez Ortiz's killing has struck a chord on an island reeling from a series of femicides that have claimed the lives of at least 21 women in the U.S. territory since January, according to the civil rights coalition Observatorio de Equidad de Genero. At least 60 women were killed last year, a 62 percent increase in femicides compared to the previous year.

According to a criminal complaint, Rodriguez Ortiz was killed after she told "Verdejo that she was pregnant with his child based on a pregnancy test."

The complaint alludes to a witness who participated in the events, but does not identify Cadiz Martinez by name.

According to the criminal complaint, the witness told the FBI that Verdejo Sanchez contacted him to help terminate Rodriguez Ortiz's pregnancy. Verdejo Sanchez and Rodriguez Ortiz met up near her home and drove separately to meet the witness. When they got to the meeting place, Rodriguez Ortiz got into Verdejo Sanchez's car.

Following a conversation between the pair, Verdejo Sanchez punched Rodriguez Ortiz and then injected her with "a syringe filled with substances purchased from a drug point in Llorens Torres," a large housing project in San Juan, the complaint alleges.

Verdejo Sanchez and the witness tied Rodriguez Ortiz's arms and feet with wire and bound her to a cinder block, authorities alleged. They then drove to the bridge, where they threw Rodriguez Ortiz into the water, according to the complaint. Verdejo Sanchez then shot at Rodriguez Ortiz with a pistol from the bridge above.

Rodriguez Ortiz was buried Saturday morning during an emotional ceremony that brought crowds of Puerto Ricans to the streets to say one last goodbye.

The entourage went to the Villa Esperanza housing project, where Rodriguez Ortiz resided and where Puerto Ricans have created a memorial to commemorate her life. There, the family released four white doves.

"Not one more. It ended on April 29," Jose Antonio Rodriguez, her father, said with a message to men amid an alarming rise in femicides. "Let them think that they came from a lady. And those who have daughters, talk a lot with them," he said.
Factory workers

Employers' groups and trade unions have expressed concern at the lack of an Employment Bill in the Queen's Speech.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson had previously promised such a bill amid fears that workers' rights could be watered down after the UK left the EU.

But Downing Street blamed the coronavirus pandemic for the delay.

The TUC said the government had "rowed back" on its pledge, while the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) said the bill was "long overdue".

REC chief executive Neil Carberry said he was "surprised by the lack of a specific Employment Bill in the government's legislative programme".

"It was due to contain a number of measures to extend and protect workers' rights, and create a Single Enforcement Body to tackle abuses in the labour market - and could also have provided further guidance on flexible working and the regulation of umbrella companies," he said.

"We hope to hear more about these issues from government, as they can't just be sidelined as the labour market recovers."

'Dithering and delay'

In 2019, the government promised that it would bring forward a new employment bill to improve people's rights at work.

But no legislation has been brought forward since then.

It comes as pressure mounts for new laws to outlaw practices which unions say are cutting workers' pay and conditions. A series of disputes have flared this year over claims of a "fire and rehire" culture in companies.

TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said: "We can't build back better from this crisis unless we improve pay and conditions at work.

"But the government has rowed back on its promise boost to workers' rights by not bringing forward its long-overdue Employment Bill.

"This pandemic has brutally exposed the terrible working conditions and insecurity many of our key workers in retail, care, and delivery face.

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"We need action now to deal with the scourge of insecure work - not more dithering and delay."

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation added its voice to the criticisms, saying it was "deeply concerned that providing security for low-paid workers was not a priority".

Its director, Helen Barnard, added: "The government has repeatedly committed to levelling up our country, but with one in eight workers trapped in poverty and many of them hardest hit by the pandemic, many will be in disbelief there was no bill to protect them announced today."

Downing Street said an Employment Bill would be introduced "when the time is right", citing the pandemic as the reason for the delay.

Junk food ad ban

In other business reaction to the Queen's Speech, the food and drink industry has criticised plans to limit how takeaways and restaurants can advertise.

Under the plans, advertising foods that are high in saturated fat, salt or sugar will be subject to a 21:00 watershed on TV and a total ban online.

A child eating a burger

Andrew Crook of the British Takeaway Campaign pressure group said the online restrictions would disproportionately affect smaller players that were more reliant on social media to make an impact.

He added: "Small restaurants must be given an exemption from this ban, or they will be at risk, as will thousands of jobs."

The Food and Drink Federation said the ban "confirms this government is interested in headline chasing policy rather than making serious interventions that will help reduce obesity rates".

For its part, the Advertising Association said it was "dismayed" at the moves, adding: "The government's own evidence shows that such measures will be ineffective in tackling obesity."
RICHMOND, Va. (AP)  A Russian-speaking ransomware syndicate that stole data from the Washington, D.C., police department says negotiations over payment have broken down, with it rejecting a $100,000 payment, and it will release sensitive information that could put lives at risk if more money is not offered.

The extortion threat comes amid a separate ransomware attack on a major pipeline that's affected part of the U.S.'s fuel supply, highlighting the power of internet-savvy criminal gangs to sow mayhem from a half a world away with impunity.

The Babuk group said on its website late Monday that it would release all the data it stole from the Washington police department if it did not raise the price.

The negotiations reached a dead end, the amount we were offered does not suit us, the group said.

The department did not immediately comment and has not said whether it's negotiated any possible payment.

On Tuesday, the gang released screenshots that appear to be negotiations with the department. They show the gang asked for $4 million and received a counter-offer of $100,000. The authenticity of the screenshots could not be independently confirmed.

If true, it's an example how complex the ransomware problem is when even police find themselves forced to consider making payments to criminal gangs.

Late last month, the group said it had hacked into the network of the citys police department and threatened to leak the identities of confidential informants unless an unspecified ransom was paid. Experts said such a release could endanger the lives of the informants.

A day after the initial threat was posted, the gang tried to spur payment by leaking personal information of some police officers taken from background checks, including details of officers past drug use, finances and  in at least one incident  of past sexual abuse.

Babuk leaked similar background files on Monday with its threat to release more, said Brett Callow, a threat analyst and ransomware expert at the security firm Emsisoft.

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This is far worse than any hack of other police departments previously, Callow said, adding that he's never seen a law enforcement agency pay a ransom before.

Ransomware gangs have been leaking sensitive data from victims for well over a year, but experts said theyve not seen such aggressive new tactics used before against police departments. The cybercriminal mafias mostly operate in foreign safe havens out of the reach of Western law enforcement.

The average ransom payments last year were $310,000, up 171% from 2019, according to Palo Alto Networks.

The Biden administration has said that curbing ransomware attacks are a top priority, saying they are a threat to national security.
WASHINGTON  Im sorry to be so frustrated, Sen. Bill Cassidy told the nations top public health experts, who had come to Capitol Hill to discuss the coronavirus pandemic. A practicing physician, Cassidy, R-La., was one of several Republicans who used a contentious Tuesday hearing of the Senate Health Committee to argue that the nation was moving too cautiously to reopen, in good part because caution continued to be the message from the Biden administration.

To illustrate his point, Cassidy asked one of the witnesses, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, if people can go back to work, if theyve been vaccinated, and not wear a mask  assuming theyre not immunocompromised?

Walensky did not answer the question, noting that the majority of Americans remain unvaccinated. We are working to review our guidance, and to update our guidance, she said. The CDC has not issued any new guidance on indoor mask wearing, or mask wearing in the workplace. That would mean, as Cassidy plainly understood, that his question, for now, could only be answered in the negative. If youre back in your cubicle, the mask stays on.

Theres consequence to this kind of delay in updating public health guidance, Cassidy told Walensky. The American people are incredibly frustrated. He charged that much of what the CDC advised was patently not true, citing the recently changed guidance on outdoor mask wearing. He urged updates that better reflect the nature of viral transmission, as well as the exceptional effectiveness of the coronavirus vaccines in stopping almost all spread.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., at a Senate Health Committee hearing on Tuesday. (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Cassidy noted that during the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the recommendations were kind of calibrated to real life, seeking to mitigate risk instead of trying to eradicate it altogether. As other conservatives have in recent days, Cassidy wondered why mask wearing continued to persist in places like the airy Senate chamber where the hearing was being held, since most everyone present was likely vaccinated. Or outdoors, where the risks of transmission are minimal.

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The American people just lost patience with us  with you guys, a plainly dismayed Cassidy concluded. I just ask you to be kind of aware of their frustration.

Another witness at the hearing was Dr. Anthony Fauci, a top medical adviser to President Biden. He fielded questions about the origins of the coronavirus and had yet another testy exchange with Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who has clashed with Fauci on previous occasions.

It was the CDC, however, that came in for the most sustained criticism from Republicans, who were generally more interested in the pandemics conclusion than its origin. The CDC was not doing enough, they said, to signal to Americans that that conclusion was nearly at hand. (The CDC did not return a Yahoo News request to respond at more length to Republicans assertions.)

I used to have the utmost respect for the guidance from the CDC, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, told Walensky. I always considered the CDC to be the gold standard. I dont anymore. Collins added that conflicting, confusing guidance has undermined public confidence. Specifically, she cited recent reports that the CDC was influenced by teachers unions in its guidance on school reopenings.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine. (Greg Nash/Pool via Reuters)

Collins also criticized the CDC for not conceding that outdoor transmission of the coronavirus is unlikely to nearly the point of impossibility. The lack of such a concession has resulted in a CDC guidance for summer camps that advises children to wear masks in most situations. The summer camp guidance has been the source of significant criticism, and was cited by Collins as what she described as one of the agencys several recent missteps.

Why does this matter? It matters because it undermines public confidence in your recommendations  in the recommendations that do make sense, Collins told Walensky, in the recommendations that Americans should be following.

During the Trump administration, Democrats criticized the CDC and other public health agencies for not communicating frequently enough with the public. Now Republicans are criticizing those same agencies for communicating what they say is incorrect information. Some epidemiologists and public health experts agree that the CDCs shifting positions on mask wearing, travel and social gatherings are confusing and do not clearly enough spell out the benefits of a post-vaccine life.

Frustration and uncertainty seem to mark this stage of the pandemic. Those sentiments have been in place more or less since the coronavirus arrived in the United States in early 2020. The difference now is that with the virus in apparent abeyance, at least some of that frustration has targeted a reluctance by some to fully move beyond restrictive public health measures.

Last week saw the publication of a widely shared Atlantic article, The Liberals Who Cant Quit Lockdown, which Cassidy referred to in his exchange with Walensky. There have also been articles in the Washington Post and other publications about vaccinated people who persist in wearing a mask. Biden has been criticized for continuing to wear a mask outdoors when he could instead, some experts argue, advertise the promise of post-vaccine life.

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky. (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

The fundamental disagreement seems to be about who is holding up progress on the pandemic. Democrats have pointed to vaccine hesitancy among conservatives, including white evangelicals; Republicans say that the fault is with overly cautious people who continue to wear masks and take other precautions even after full vaccination. Doing so, they hold, suggests that vaccination is not the ticket out of pandemic life it had been billed as.

Its time for us to start setting the stage and paint the picture for what the fall looks like. That people can go on vacation this year and they can eat in a restaurant  in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, preferably, said Sen. Richard Burr, who represents that state and is the committees top GOP member. He argued that telling the public that resumption of normal activities is safe can act as a strong enticement to vaccination.

Nor are these issues merely a matter of the culture wars. Offices remain closed, and the pace of hiring slowed sharply last month, after a winter and early spring of strong gains. While the reasons for that slowdown are complex, some believe that as long as the country remains in a state of partial lockdown, neither the economy nor civil society can return to normal.

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., sought to defend Walensky and other health officials in the Biden administration, framing their approach as a reaction to the previous presidential administration.

President Trump literally made things up about this virus, Murphy charged, and simplified the story over and over and over again, notoriously claiming that the virus would disappear. Given how damaging that proved to be, Murphy said he was glad to have public health officials who may occasionally err on the side of caution.

____

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Sandra Oh is best known for playing Dr. Cristina Yang on "Grey's Anatomy." (Photo: Noam Galai/Getty Images for Tibet House)

Sandra Oh hasn't been part of the Grey's Anatomy cast for years, but she still regularly faces one question from fans: Will she return?

"No," Oh said on Tuesday's season premiere of the Los Angeles Times's Asian Enough podcast. "I love it, though, and this is also why I really appreciate the show  that I still get asked this."

Oh, who played Dr. Cristina Yang, the brilliant and ambitious best friend of Dr. Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), was part of the cast when it debuted in 2005. She left the Shonda Rhimes medical drama in 2014, as Yang left the hospital for a top job in Switzerland. But the phenomenally successful show has continued, and it's currently in its 17th season on ABC.

Besides the fact that Yang is still alive  unlike many other characters  Grey's audiences have been primed for her return, because other departed characters, including Patrick Dempsey's Dr. Derek Shepherd, have come back to visit Grey on recent episodes while she was in a coma.

"It's very rare, I would say, to be able to see in such a way the impact of a character," said Oh, who won a Golden Globe for performance in 2006. "In some ways, you do your work as a bubble and you let it go. I left that show, my God, seven years ago almost. So in my mind, it's gone. But for a lot of people, it's still very much alive. And while I understand and I love it, I have moved on."

She asked that fans now catch her elsewhere.

"So please come with me to Killing Eve and on to [the upcoming Netflix series] The Chair and on to the other projects," said Oh, who also won a Golden Globe for the former. "Come see the characters that I'm playing that are much more deeply integrated in  the Asian American experience."

Looking back on her time at the hospital, Oh remembered that there was a moment when she "wanted to do this really good joke" with another former Grey's actress, Sara Ramirez, who played Dr. Callie Torres. It didn't happen, because the show tended to avoid talking about race back then, she said.

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"Cristina was ambitious and just trying to get ahead, right? So she was just kind of trying to pull the like, you know, the POC [person of color] card with Dr. Torres," she explained. "But it wasn't the time. It just wasn't the time, and it wasn't the part of the show. So it wasn't anything that I actually focused on."

In 2021, Oh theorized, Yang would be just as headstrong as ever, for the benefit of society.

"Cristina, like I imagine all the health care workers, [would be] wickedly at the frontline trying to solve the big problems," Oh said. "This pandemic [has made] the wealth gaps  even more obvious and problematic, so [she] probably [is] attacking the systematic problems, not just the day in and day out."

Read more on Yahoo Entertainment:
Bridgerton writer Oliver Goldstick is selling his longtime family home in Southern California  which was built in 1923 and features a 1,000-square-foot primary bedroom  for $4 million, according to Douglas Elliman Real Estate.

The stately, three-story, 4,500-square-foot Mediterranean residence, dubbed Casa Amarilla, sits in the hills of the Los Angeles neighborhood of Los Feliz. Called a secret from the street, the home boasts extraordinary views from downtown to Catalina Island.

The estate has been the home of Goldstick, 60, and his family for 25 years. And the location near television studios is ideal for Goldstick, whose writing/producing credits include Pretty Little Liars and Ugly Betty, as well as the Netflix romance hit Bridgerton that is set in London in the 1800s.

Its an entertainers dream, a Douglas Elliman representative said in an email to the Sacramento Bee, with soaring ceilings, sun-drenched rooms and a 40-foot pool. The setting has been the venue of weddings, fundraisers and concerts.

Yet, the home offers privacy, too. There are three bedrooms on the top floor as well the private, expansive master suite that spans 1,000 square feet with an elegant spa-like bath. The chefs kitchen is spacious and opens into a cozy family room. The formal dining area has 9-foot ceilings. Theres a loft above the living room, multiple patios and a home-office with a bathroom.

A yurt is tucked into the hillside, surrounded by mature landscaping. The yurt is being used as a gym and yoga studio.

This warm, beautifully-preserved historic home, dating back to the silent screen era, is a rare find  an easy walk to the trendy shops and restaurants of Vermont and Hillhurst, the trails of Griffith Park, and a brief commute to most of the studios and downtown, according to Douglas Elliman.

The property is listed by Dorothy Carter and Michael Orland of Douglas Elliman.

Despite being in the city, the privacy of the home is fantastic, Goldstick told Mansion Global.

The house is like a secret from the street and I love that, Goldstick told the real estate news website. You have no idea, looking from the outside, that its many levels with high ceilings and magnificent viewsyou dont feel like youre that high above the city until youre inside and then you realize, oh, it really does open up the entire city.

Goldstick bought the property in 1996 for $600,000, according to realtor.com and Mansion Global.
Last spring, after the coronavirus first shuttered school buildings, the topic of graduations was an important one for many in the community  especially for parents with seniors in the Class of 2020. The system decided to cancel the in-person events and instead streamed prerecorded ceremonies.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa this week will make his second appearance before a panel investigating the alleged looting of state coffers under his scandal-tainted predecessor Jacob Zuma.

The commission, tasked with uncovering the full extent of official corruption, will make recommendations to prosecutors when it wraps up 34 months of hearings at the end of June.

Here is key background to the panel and its work:

- The genesis -

Zuma appointed a fact-finding panel after a 2016 report by South Africa's anti-graft watchdog identified him as a kingpin of patronage and malfeasance.

He said the commission would prove his innocence and erase public doubt over the government's commitment to eradicating "all forms of corruption".

Setting up the judicial commission in January 2018, Zuma asked it to investigate allegations of fraud known as "state capture" by special interests, appointing deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo as its chair.

One month later, the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party forced Zuma to step down as allegations piled up and his popularity plummeted.

Ramaphosa came to power vowing to fight corruption, and the panel that Zuma commissioned launched hearings in August 2018.

- Revelations -

More than 270 witnesses, including politicians, business people, civil servants and anonymous state security agents, have testified.

Many referred to a wealthy Indian immigrant family headed by three brothers -- Ajay, Atul and Rajesh Gupta -- who are accused of having wielded undue influence over Zuma.

The brothers are at the centre of the 2016 graft report, which claims they paid bribes to influence ministerial appointments and plunder state organs. They fled South Africa shortly after the commission started, and their whereabouts are unknown.

One witness described bags bulging with cash, sometimes totalling as much as six million rand ($427 million) in a month, being delivered to ANC bigwigs during secret meetings in upmarket hotels, in exchange for the awarding of lucrative contracts to one private company.

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Several witnesses detailed an audit for a major asbestos roof removal project in central Free State province. The project was never completed, yet $10 million went missing. This led to the indictment and suspension of ANC secretary general Ace Magashule, the provincial governor at the time.

Some witnesses and whistleblowers, including some who remained anonymous, have reported receiving death threats since they testified.

- The Zuma quagmire -

Zuma first appeared before the commission in July 2019, denying any wrongdoing. He withdrew two days later, complaining of being "treated as someone who was accused". The former president has since ducked all calls to testify.

Exasperated, Zondo petitioned the Constitutional Court, which ordered Zuma to testify in January. But he refused, saying he would "rather face jail" and that "no amount of intimidation or blackmail" would change his mind.

The commission has since asked the top court to jail Zuma for two years for contempt of court.

To date, the anti-graft panel has cost South African taxpayers over 800 million rand ($57 million).

Ramaphosa, who was Zuma's deputy president, first testified as head of the ANC in April. He alleged that "rot" and graft had riddled the party under Zuma .

The president will testify again on Thursday and Friday in his capacity as head of state.

mgu/sch/sn/gd
The SpaceX facility in Texas (AP)

Police in Texas issued an arrest warrant for a YouTuber accused of breaking into the SpaceX launch site in Boca Chica, and of filming the companys Starship rocket .

Officials in Cameron County allege that Caesar Galaviz broke into the Boca Chica base of SpaceX  founded by Tesla CEO Elon Musk  in March without consent.

The incident occurred a within days of a test flight of a SpaceX prototype from Boca Chica.

Confirming the arrest warrant, Sheriff Eric Garza said on Monday that police wanted Mr Galaviz "for intentionally going onto the SpaceX property without their consent."

Mr Galaviz, who was last seen in Conroe, Texas, filmed the alleged break-in at the SpaceX facility for Loco VlogS.
By Suleiman Al-Khalidi

AMMAN (Reuters) - Syria has freed more than 400 civil servants, judges, lawyers and journalists detained this year in a crackdown on social media dissent, a move seen by rights activists and former detainees as intended to win over public opinion ahead of presidential elections.

Those released after being held under Syria's cyber crimes law were among thousands freed this month under a general amnesty for currency speculators, drug dealers, smugglers and kidnappers ahead of the May 26 election that is expected to hand President Bashar al Assad a fourth term.

Most of the freed social media critics were supporters of Syrian authorities' handling of the uprising in 2011 that spiralled into a war that has killed hundreds of thousands.

The amnesty excluded tens of thousands of Assad opponents and political detainees held for years without trial, many of whom are believed dead, rights groups say.

"The auspicious timing of the release right before elections of a moderate loyalist camp ... is to generate a facade of entertaining some form of dissent to further make elections look credible," said Sara Kayyali, Syria researcher with U.S.-based Human Rights Watch.

The group had seen an uptick in arrests for online activities in recent months to silence public disaffection over Syria's economic crisis.

Its economy is collapsing under the weight of war, sanctions and COVID-19, but public criticism of deteriorating living conditions is not tolerated.

The crackdown under cyber crime law on mostly Assad supporters was intended to instil fear ahead of elections, according to two released detainees, who requested anonymity.

None of those arrested had criticised Assad, a capital offence, and most were rounded up by security forces for online posts ranging from a "like" on a Facebook comment lamenting growing hardship and critical of the government to remarks decrying state corruption.

Syrian officials were not immediately available for comment on the releases but the head of the journalists' union, Musa Abdul Noor, had earlier confirmed that journalists had been held for social media comments on their personal accounts but not under another law that technically bans the arrest of journalists.

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WELL-KNOWN FIGURES

At least 60 of those released are well-known in their local communities, including senior police officers, judges and a senior customs inspector, state employed journalists, lawyers, university students, businessmen and women's rights advocates, four detainees said.

The releases were among steps taken in recent weeks ahead of the elections to influence public opinion, such as efforts to fight sky-rocketing inflation, and extending government grants to state employees in areas suffering from economic hardship.

The interior ministry had in January warned that violators of the cyber-crimes law, which criminalises social media comments deemed to undermine the authority of the state, would face a minimum of six months in prison.

The ministry said it would pursue people who leaked fake news to portals that "distort and sow confusion in public opinion".

Family members said Hala Jerf, a leading presenter on state television, Firyal Jahjah, a senior civil servant who serves as the head of a government inspection agency, and a prominent local journalist in Latakia province, Kenan Wakkaf, were among those released.

"I will stay with you, the voice that believes truth is the highest value. To corruption, I say you think you have shaken my resolve or maybe frightened me? You have not even scared my boots," Wakkaf said in a post after he arrived home.

The majority of those released were not formally charged or put on trial, according to two released detainees who requested anonymity because they were warned not to speak publicly.

(Reporting by Suleiman Al-Khalidi; editing by Maha El Dahan and Giles Elgood)
A newly formed coalition of technology firms called Tuesday for $50 billion in US government aid to boost incentives for domestic semiconductor manufacturing in the face of a deepening chip shortage.

The Semiconductors in America Coalition urged Congress to allocate funds for research and manufacturing, calling the effort essential for economic and national security.

The coalition -- which includes giants including Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, AT&T and Verizon and several dozen other firms -- said it seeks funding for the CHIPS for America Act, which was passed by lawmakers earlier this year but without funds appropriated.

"Semiconductors are the brains of the systems and technologies that enable America's economic growth, national security, digital infrastructure, and global technology leadership," said John Neuffer, president and chief executive of the Semiconductor Industry Association, whose member firms are part of the coalition.

"Leaders from a broad range of critical sectors of the US economy, as well as a large and bipartisan group of policymakers in Washington, recognize the essential role of semiconductors in America's current and future strength."

The shortage has added to a supply crunch for the technology sector and a variety of other manufacturing sectors including automotive as the economy emerges from a pandemic-induced slowdown.

"To address this problem in the short term, government should refrain from intervening as industry works to correct the current supply-demand imbalance causing the shortage," the coalition said in a letter to congressional leaders.

"But for the longer term, robust funding of the CHIPS Act would help America build the additional capacity necessary to have more resilient supply chains to ensure critical technologies will be there when we need them."

rl/ec
A Texas bankruptcy judge on Tuesday sided with the New York Attorney General's office and dismissed the National Rifle Association's Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, Law360 reports.

Why it matters: The NRA filed for bankruptcy months after New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit to dissolve the organization, alleging the group committed fraud by diverting roughly $64 million in charitable donations to support reckless spending by its executives.

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What they're saying: "The NRA does not get to dictate if and where it will answer for its actions, and our case will continue in New York court," James said in a statement. "No one is above the law."

Judge Harlin Hale found that the NRA's bankruptcy filing was made in "bad faith," per Law360.

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Thailand said Tuesday it was seeking a "humanitarian" solution for three Myanmar journalists arrested after fleeing across the border, as protesters across the coup-hit nation marched for democracy on the 100th day of military rule.

The trio's employer -- the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) -- and the Thai foreign correspondents' club urged the authorities not to deport them, warning their lives could be in danger if they returned to the coup-hit country.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1, triggering a mass uprising as large swathes of the population take to the streets to demand democracy.

The junta has responded with force -- shooting protesters, arresting suspected dissidents in night raids, and targeting journalists and news outlets by shutting them down.

Thai authorities on Tuesday confirmed the arrests, while foreign ministry spokesman Tanee Sangrat said they were seeking a way out of the case.

"Thai authorities concerned are coordinating to find possible humanitarian solution(s) to this case," Tanee told reporters.

DVB said their three journalists -- as well as two Myanmar activists -- were arrested during a random search in the northern city of Chiang Mai.

They appeared in court Tuesday and were charged with illegal entry, according to National Police deputy spokesman Kissana Phathanacharoen.

"They all denied the charge at the Chiang Mai court this morning," he said, adding that the group would be held in detention while an investigation is underway.

"Repatriation would be decided after the court's decision."

- 'The world is watching' -

DVB's chief editor Aye Chan Naing, currently in Oslo, said in a statement they are appealing to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to "intervene to help guard their safety".

"DVB strongly urges the Thai authorities to not deport them back to Burma, as their life will be in serious danger if they were to return," he said, referring to Myanmar by its old name.

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The UN refugee agency said it could not comment on individual cases.

But "generally speaking, people at risk of persecution should be given sanctuary", said a spokeswoman.

The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand warned Tuesday if the journalists were deported, they would face "certain arrest and persecution, if not worse".

"The world is watching what the Thai authorities do in this important case for press freedom in Myanmar and the region," it said.

A well-known news organisation within Myanmar, DVB started as an exile media outlet during the previous junta, broadcasting uncensored reports on TV and radio.

It moved into the country in 2012, a year after the military dictatorship loosened its grip, but had its broadcast licence revoked in March, sending its journalists into hiding.

Despite this setback, it has continued to report, posting regular Facebook updates -- as well as broadcasting on satellite TV -- about the daily protests and crackdowns.

- 100 days of military rule -

More than 80 journalists have been detained since the February 1 coup, according to local monitoring group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners -- which has tracked a total of nearly 5,000 arrests nationwide.

Security forces have also killed at least 781 civilians in brutal crackdowns, said AAPP -- though the junta has a much lower death toll and blames the violence on "rioters".

But protesters across Myanmar on Tuesday, the 100th day since the military seized power, continued to take to the streets, with crowds in Yangon chanting: "What do we want? We want democracy!"

burs-dhc/rbu
Supporters of then-President Donald Trump storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. (Photo: Evelyn Hockstein for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The operator of a pro-Donald Trump bus that most recently appeared at an America First rally featuring Republican Reps. Matt Gaetz of Florida and Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia is being asked to remove the name of a popular website hosting service from his Trump Train.

GoDaddy doesnt sponsor the bus and we dont have any advertising relationships with the bus/owner whatsoever, GoDaddy spokesman Dan Race told HuffPost in a statement Monday. They dont have permission to use our brand on the bus and weve asked them to remove.

Buddy Hall said Monday that he never meant to suggest GoDaddy was a sponsor. They built us a nice website. I just wanted to show my appreciation.

In any event, Hall said he was planning to remove GoDaddys name as well as everything else as part of redoing all of the Trump iconography he originally used to wrap the tour bus in early 2020. Its coming off. Its all coming off. Mike Pence is coming off, he said, before hanging up when HuffPost asked why he was removing the name of Trumps vice president.

Hall explained in interviews in early 2020 that he had paid for the bus and had it decorated with a giant image of Trumps head imposed on fictional boxer Rocky Balboas body and other imagery to help promote the former presidents reelection campaign because he felt Trump had done so much for the country.

Hall, who has been described as a Mississippi businessman but who appears to live in Arizona, raised money for the bus by selling pro-Trump shirts, hats and souvenirs, but he also solicited donations, including through a GoFundMe page.

The expenses to keep the Trump Train traveling across the USA are great, Hall wrote last year. Just to fill our tank with gas is $800 every three days! Bus repairs, bus payment, meals, tour team, it all adds up!

The page raised only $795 of its $10,000 goal, and Hall in February had listed the bus for sale before taking it off the market and updating it for a possible 2024 campaign.

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Were on the Trump 2024 revenge tour, he said in a video posted to Facebook, along with photos and video from Fridays rally with Gaetz and Greene, in which Hall explained how he had replaced the final 0 in 2020 with a 4 and the 2 in Ready for Round 2 with a 3.

The six-minute video also explains why Pence, whose likeness is currently on the bus, will not be on the new version. We were going to put Pence under the bus, but he dont even qualify to be there, Hall said. I think he took a check from China. It would be nothing to give him $5-6 million to do what he did.

Many Trump supporters remain enraged that Pence did not do as Trump wanted and reject electoral votes from enough states that had voted for Democrat Joe Biden to give Trump the Electoral College victory. Neither the Constitution nor federal law permits the vice president to do such a thing, as Pences own legal analysis concluded.

Hall said he would replace Pences image with those of Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Donald Trump Jr. and conservative commentator Candace Owens. He added in the video that he has found a sponsor for the new $14,000 bus wrap: Newsmax owner Chris Ruddy, whom Hall described as Trumps billionaire friend and a member of Mar-a-Lago, the former presidents Palm Beach, Florida, social club and residence.

He wants us to put: President Donald J. Trump loves Newsmax TV. And the o in the love will be a heart, Hall said.

A Newsmax official confirmed, on the condition of anonymity, that it would be paying for the ad on Halls updated bus wrap. It sounded like a fun thing to do, the official said. We dont really know him or anything else, but we just decided to buy a small ad there.

Newsmax was among the pro-Trump news media aggressively pushing his lies that he had won the 2020 election in a landslide but that it had been stolen from him because of massive voter fraud, including some done by altering totals on voting machines.

The cable network has since apologized repeatedly for those stories after Dominion Voting Systems began filing defamation lawsuits against Fox News, Trump lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell, and others. Late last month the news outlet settled a lawsuit brought by a Dominion official who had to go into hiding after Newsmax falsely reported that he had helped rig the machines against Trump.

Trump spent weeks attacking the legitimacy of the Nov. 3 election after he had lost. Those falsehoods continued through a long string of failed lawsuits challenging the results in a handful of states. After the Electoral College finally voted on Dec. 14, making Democrat Joe Bidens win official, Trump began urging his followers to come to Washington on Jan. 6 to intimidate his own vice president and members of Congress into overturning the election results and installing Trump as president for another term anyway. The mob he incited attempted to do just that as it stormed the Capitol. His supporters even chanted Hang Mike Pence after Pence refused to comply with Trumps demands.

A police officer died after being assaulted during the insurrection, and two others took their own lives soon afterward.

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
The UN Security Council will hold an urgent meeting on Wednesday over the deadly unrest playing out between Israel and the Palestinians, its second such session in three days, diplomatic sources said Tuesday.

The closed-door meeting has been requested by Tunisia, Norway and China. The first, held Monday, ended without a joint statement, with the United States expressing reluctance to adopt a draft statement proposed by Norway "at this point."

The text, seen by AFP, would call on Israel to "cease settlement activities, demolitions and evictions" including in east Jerusalem.

In the statement the Security Council members also expressed "their grave concern regarding escalating tensions and violence in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem," which Israel annexed and considers part of its capital.

Asked Tuesday whether the United States had lifted its opposition to such a Security Council statement, State Department spokesman Ned Price refrained from directly addressing the question.

"We want to see to it that steps, whether they emanate from the Israeli government, the Palestinian Authority or the UN Security Council, serve, not to escalate or provoke, but to de-escalate," he said.

On Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the escalation must stop.

"Israeli security forces must exercise maximum restraint and calibrate their use of force," he said in a statement, adding that "the indiscriminate launching of rockets and mortars towards Israeli population centers is unacceptable."

At least 28 Palestinians in the blockaded Gaza Strip and three Israelis have been killed in a sharp escalation of violence.

Several nights of clashes between Palestinian protesters and Israeli police, particularly around the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound, spiralled on Monday night into a barrage of Islamist rocket fire from Gaza and deadly Israeli air strikes in retaliation.

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The woman had filed for a protective order in October. In the filing, she described fearing for her life and Prices because he choked and threatened to kill her. After she left him in July, Price stalked her and sent her pictures of her sisters house an hour and a half away, the petition states, and asked the woman to come outside.
The Washington Post named Sally Buzbee, a veteran journalist with the Associated Press, as executive editor on Tuesday, the first time a woman will head the newsroom of the prestigious newspaper.

Buzbee, 55, has spent her entire career with the US news agency and is currently the AP's executive editor and senior vice president.

Buzbee, a former Washington bureau chief for the AP, replaces Martin Baron, who retired in February after eight years at the helm of the newspaper.

Buzbee will be the first woman to serve in the top editorial position at the Post since it was founded in 1877. Previous executive editors include Ben Bradlee of Watergate fame.

"The Post has such a rich journalistic legacy, and such a terrific staff," Buzbee told the Post in an interview. "It's exciting to join this organization at a time of growth and innovation."

Publisher Fred Ryan, who announced the hiring, said the newspaper had "looked for someone steeped in the courageous journalism that is The Post's hallmark, and who can extend our reach to news audiences in the US and abroad."

The Post has announced plans to open new bureaus in Sydney and Bogota for a total of 26 outside the United States.

Buzbee is the first executive editor hired by the Post since Amazon founder Jeff Bezos purchased the newspaper in 2013 from the Graham family.

cl/dw
House Republicans plan to vote Wednesday on whether to strip Representative Liz Cheney of her leadership post in the House as a result of her criticisms of former President Trump and his baseless claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

The highest-ranking two Republicans in the House want Cheney to be replaced with Representative Elise Stefanik, a staunch Trump ally, as GOP Conference chair. Cheney won't give up the spot willingly, and she plans to force the conference to vote on whether to remove her, according to a source familiar with her plans.

Cheney says "I will not sit back" in speech on eve of vote to remove her from leadership post

In a defiant speech on the House floor Tuesday night, on the eve of the vote, Cheney said she will not "watch in silence" amid Mr. Trump's baseless claims that the election was stolen from him.

"This is not about policy, this is not about partisanship, this is about our duty as Americans," Cheney said. "Remaining silent and ignoring the lie emboldens the liar. I will not participate in that. I will not sit back and watch in silence while others lead our party down a path that abandons the rule of law and joins the former president's crusade to undermine our democracy."

If the conference chooses to remove Cheney, as House Republican leadership expects it to, the vote will trigger an overhaul of the GOP's messaging, further solidifying it as the party of Mr. Trump.

What is a conference chair?

The House Republican Conference is simply the organizational body for all the GOP members in the House of Representatives. The conference chair is responsible for scheduling meetings where members can discuss issues and legislation within their own party. But the chair also has a major role in party messaging, both coordinating media availabilities and interviews with members and speaking on behalf of the caucus.

The job gives Cheney the third-highest position among House Republicans, behind Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Minority Whip Steve Scalise. However, conference chairs have seldom reached higher positions within the party.

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U.S. House Republican Conference Chairperson Rep. Liz Cheney waits for President Biden to deliver his first address to a joint session of Congress in the House chamber of the U.S. Capitol on April 28, 2021 in Washington, D.C. / Credit: JONATHAN ERNST / Getty Images

Why is Cheney's leadership post at risk?

Cheney is at risk of losing her job as conference chair because she has repeatedly criticized Mr. Trump and rejected his unfounded theories about the election, while other members of House GOP leadership and some members have stood behind the former president and his claims.

She began publicly breaking with McCarthy over how the party should handle Trump after pro-Trump rioters stormed the Capitol January 6. She called for Trump to be impeached for his role in the event and later voted to impeach him, while McCarthy urged members to move forward.

For her impeachment vote, Cheney faced a similar attempt to unseat her as conference chair in early February. At the meeting, McCarthy strongly advised members against unseating Cheney as well as removing Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene from her committee assignments for promoting conspiracy theories and apparently endorsing violence toward Democratic politicians. In both cases, the conference voted overwhelmingly not to take action. Just 61 Republicans voted to remove Cheney from her post, while 145 voted for her to stay in the vote by secret ballot.

But days later, the GOP in Cheney's home state of Wyoming voted overwhelmingly to censure her for voting to impeach Mr. Trump.

In late April at House Republicans' annual retreat in Florida, the fracturing grew between Cheney and pro-Trump members when Cheney told reporters "our elected leaders are the ones who are in charge," as opposed to Mr. Trump.

Since, Cheney has continued to challenge Mr. Trump's benefit to the party as well as his baseless claims that Democrats cheated in the 2020 election.

"While embracing or ignoring Trump's statements might seem attractive to some for fundraising and political purposes, that approach will do profound long-term damage to our party and our country," Cheney wrote in a Washington Post op-ed last week.

Almost immediately, McCarthy and Scalise began taking steps behind the scenes to unseat Cheney from her conference chair post. Since then, both of them have said they support Cheney's removal and replacement with Stefanik.

"Each day spent relitigating the past is one day less we have to seize the future," McCarthy wrote to GOP members Monday. "These internal conflicts need to be resolved so as to not detract from the efforts of our collective team. Having heard from so many of you in recent days, it's clear that we need to make a change."

How will the vote work?

Representative Virginia Foxx, a House veteran who's facing a far-right primary challenger in her reelection battle, is expected to introduce a resolution to remove Cheney from the job when the conference meets Wednesday, according to sources familiar with the plans .

The vote is expected to be done by secret ballot or by voice and decided by a simple majority, as was the previous one, according to two sources familiar with the process. Because there are 218 Republican members in the House, at least 110 would need to vote against Cheney to remove her.

If the attempt to oust her is successful, the conference would then need to elect a replacement chair. That election would likely take place at a later conference meeting, leaving time for a candidate forum in between, according to sources familiar with the plans.

Like all conference meetings, both of these events would take place behind closed doors.

Who could be the next GOP Conference chair?

Stefanik, a four-term congresswoman from upstate New York, is the current frontrunner to be the next GOP Conference chair if Cheney loses the job.

Stefanik was an establishment Republican who worked for former President George W. Bush and former House Speaker Paul Ryan. During the 2016 election, Stefanik was so reluctant to embrace Mr. Trump that she referred to him as "my party's presidential nominee," rather than by his name. But by the first impeachment inquiry into the former president a year and a half ago, Stefanik had become one of his staunchest allies on the Hill. On Monday, he repaid her for her loyalty.

"The House GOP has a massive opportunity to upgrade this week from warmonger Liz Cheney to gifted communicator Elise Stefanik. Elise has intelligence, an endorsement from American Patriot Brandon Judd and the National Border Patrol Council, she has an A+ from the NRA, and she loves our Veterans," Mr. Trump said in a statement.

Stefanik also has a history of helping other members win election and reelection. Her Elevate PAC donated to nearly 50 Republican women running for House spots the last election cycle.

Still, Stefanik's moderate history worries some in the GOP as it coalesces around the former president's ideals. The Conservative Club for Growth PAC last week said in a statement that Stefanik has among the most liberal voting records in the House GOP. "House Republicans should find a conservative to lead messaging and win back the House Majority," the group said.

Some members of the right-wing Freedom Caucus have already come out against Cheney. Representative Chip Roy sent a memo to members Tuesday indicating he wanted to hold off on putting Stefanik in the leadership post.

"Therefore, with all due respect to my friend, Elise Stefanik, let us contemplate the message Republican leadership is about to send by rushing to coronate a spokesperson whose voting record embodies much of what led to the 2018 ass-kicking we received by Democrats," Roy wrote in the memo.

To quell similar concerns among the most conservative members, Stefanik plans to meet with the Freedom Caucus after the vote on Cheney, according to sources familiar with the plans. She has also told GOP members she plans to serve only one term as conference chair, according to a GOP aide.

But Stefanik's reaction to the January 6 riot at the Capitol stands in stark contrast to Cheney's. While Cheney called for Mr. Trump's impeachment in the days that followed, Stefanik was unfazed. She returned to the House chamber after the event and unsuccessfully objected to the election results in Pennsylvania.

A source familiar with the GOP's plans confirms that there will be a candidate forum for potential candidates for the conference chair position on Thursday with an election planned for Friday.

"Today we face a threat, America has never seen before"

In a speech on the House floor Tuesday night, Cheney was emphatic that "the election is over."

"Today we face a threat, America has never seen before," Cheney said. "A former president, who provoked a violent attack on this Capitol, in an effort to steal the election has resumed his aggressive efforts to convince Americans that the election was stolen from him."

Cheney urged her fellow Republicans that they must "speak the truth" because "millions of Americans have been misled by the former president. They have heard only his words and not the truth."

Nikole Killion and Rebecca Kaplan contributed to this report.

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General Miller, head of U.S. NATO forces in Afghanistan, discusses American drawdown

Political analyst on vote to oust Rep. Liz Cheney from House GOP leadership

Fears of gas shortage lead to panic buying across Southeast U.S.
DETROIT - President Joe Biden will tour a Ford Motor Co. facility in Dearborn next week ahead of the company's unveiling of the all-electric F-150 Lightning, the White House confirmed to the Detroit Free Press.

In a statement Tuesday, the White House said Biden will visit the Ford Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn. No other details, including the time of the visit, were immediately available.

A source familiar with the plans had earlier confirmed the visit for the Free Press.

Ford is set to reveal the new electric version of the company's best-selling truck on May 19, during a livestream event at Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn. That event is expected to begin at 9:30 p.m.

While it's not known whether Biden has a speech planned, it's likely that he will make note of the fact that the electric F-150 will be built with UAW workers at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center.

Electric pickup: Ford to reveal new all-electric F-150 Lightning in livestream event May 19

Biden is a longtime labor union supporter

Biden has been a staunch and vocal ally of labor unions before and since becoming president in January. In recent months, he has called for additional government incentives to spur electric vehicle innovations and the infrastructure needed to make them widely popular while also saying those vehicles and that infrastructure needs to provide union jobs with good wages and benefits.

The UAW, meanwhile, has been urging Biden and Congress to adopt restrictions on incentives that would ensure that they are focused on vehicles built in the U.S.

Longtime union backer: Joe Biden's support of labor unions is historic. Here's what it means

The union recently called General Motors' decision to open a plant in Mexico, where it would assemble electric vehicles, "a slap in the face" and wants automakers to ensure that electric vehicle battery manufacturers  where much of the labor on the vehicles is done  provide union-level wages and benefits.

Story continues

Biden's visit will be his second since taking office. In February, he visited the facility in west Michigan where Pfizer manufactures its COVID-19 vaccine.

Contact Todd Spangler at tspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @tsspangler. Read more on Michigan politics and sign up for our elections newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Biden to visit Michigan ahead of Ford F-150 reveal
By Yiming Woo and Sarah Meysonnier

PARIS (Reuters) - An elderly French-Vietnamese woman vowed on Tuesday to pursue her legal fight to obtain compensation for health problems which she says were caused by exposure to the toxic herbicide "Agent Orange" during the Vietnam War.

Earlier this week, a French court rejected a lawsuit filed by 79-year old Tran To Nga against 14 chemical companies, but she told reporters she would appeal.

"I am disappointed, I am angry, but I am not sad," said Tran To Nga, whose news conference was broadcast on Reuters TV.

"We are going to carry on because our cause is just. Truth is on our side," she added.

U.S. warplanes dropped about 18 million gallons (68 million litres) of Agent Orange - so-called because it was stored in drums with orange bands - between the early 1960s and early 1970s to defoliate jungles and destroy Viet Cong crops.

Tran, who worked as a journalist and activist in Vietnam in her 20s, has said she suffers from effects including Type 2 diabetes and a rare insulin allergy.

Her lawsuit, first filed in 2014, sought compensation from chemical firms including U.S. companies Dow Chemical and Monsanto, now owned by Germany's Bayer.

Those multinational companies had argued they could not be held legally responsible for how the U.S. military had decided to use their product.

So far, only military veterans from the United States and other countries involved in the war have won compensation over Agent Orange. In 2008, a U.S. federal appeals court upheld the dismissal of a civil lawsuit against major U.S. chemical companies brought by Vietnamese plaintiffs.

The United States has said there is no scientifically proven link to support the claims of dioxin poisoning of many Vietnamese plaintiffs.

(Reporting by Yiming woo and Sarah Meysonnier; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Estelle Shirbon)
NORTON  A Lynchburg man will serve three years in prison after being convicted of two counts of attempted murder, discharge of a firearm at an occupied dwelling and felony destruction of property, the Wise County commonwealths attorney said this week.

Manuel Sotillo Soto, 27, was sentenced Monday in Wise County Circuit Court, the commonwealths attorney said in a statement. Although he received a 10-year prison sentence, seven years were suspended, landing Soto an active sentence of three years.

On Oct. 12, 2020, police received a call about a person firing a gun at a residence on Gardner Hollow Road in Norton. When they arrived, officers found Soto holding a rifle and several bullet holes in the side of the residence and within the home, the statement said.

Soto later confessed to law enforcement that he shot into the residence and that he knew people were inside the home during the shooting, the statement said. Soto said that he was angry because the residents had disrespected him.

The statement said nobody was injured by the gunfire.
In San Luis Obispo, Benedetti was fatally injured in a shootout in an apartment in the Central Coast city, officials said during a news conference. He was a a 12-year law enforcement veteran and a detective in the city's police department.

Jennifer and I extend our heartfelt sympathies to the family, friends and colleagues of Detective Benedetti who made the ultimate sacrifice while in the line of duty," Newsom said in another statement. "His tragic death underscores the dangers that are routinely faced by those who courageously risk their lives to protect communities throughout California, and we will never forget his sacrifice.

Benedetti and five other officers had been at the apartment for an investigation into items stolen in a string of late-night commercial burglaries in the city that's about 200 miles (321.87 kilometers) north of Los Angeles.

Police said gunman Edward Zamora Giron had been lying in wait inside the apartment and fired at the officers before shooting and killing himself. He also had wounds sustained in the shootout. Police initially said that he had been killed by officers' fire.
However, many gasoline retailers were saying Tuesday they still have supplies, and some gas market observers were urging people to remain calm and avoid panic buying.

There is no question that the Colonial Pipeline outage is becoming a significant event for the entire East Coast as it supplies over 50% of fuel supply to end consumers in many markets that it serves, said Lori Bruce, a spokeswoman for Wawa Inc., a major chain of convenience stores.

However, I can share that Wawa has had no interruption of supply at its stores in our six states and plans on maintaining supply through this event, Bruce said.

Henrico County-based GPM Investments LLC, the parent company of the Fas Mart convenience store chain and hundreds of others across the country, said Tuesday it has had spot outages of gasoline.

As of this morning, we have spot outages in certain areas but nothing widespread at this time, said Arie Kotler, chairman, president and CEO of Arko Corp. the parent company of GPM. We are mostly branded fuel and have many brands and supply relationships, so we are able to pull resources from other markets.

Sheetz, another major convenience store chain, said Tuesday it is not experiencing any widespread gasoline outages.
The biggest sum was awarded last week by an Ohio judge who ordered the National Policy Institute to pay Burke $2,444,461.15 for the harm he suffered as a result of the rally. The white supremacist think tank, which is led by UTR participant and University of Virginia graduate Spencer, was found to be in default approximately a year ago.

According to Judge Michael Watsons order, as a result of the car attack, Burke suffered various physical injuries  including head, knee and arm injuries  several of which still require medical treatment and may be permanent.

Although [Burkes] arm and knee have reached max medical improvement, [Burke] credibly testified that they, and his headaches, continue to cause him pain and suffering and the pain and suffering is not expected to resolve, Watson wrote.

The order includes $217,613 for past and future medical expenses, $350,000 in punitive damages, $500,000 for pain and suffering and $1 million for emotional distress.
More than a quarter are in an intensive care unit.

As Virginia surpassed 3 million residents fully vaccinated, the number of people testing positive reached the second-lowest percentage of the pandemic. The first was 3.7% on March 16, 2020nine days after the Virginias first identified case and two days after the first virus death.

The data is giving us a very clear message, Gov. Ralph Northam wrote in a tweet on Monday. The vaccines are working.

Case counts have fallen by 34% in a two-week span, with some of the greatest drops reported in localities with the highest vaccination rates.

Goochland is one of six counties in the state with more than 55% of its population vaccinated with at least one dose.

A New York Times tracker monitoring national COVID-19 trends showed an 87% decline in cases.

Hanover County, 1 of 10 localities that has 50% to 55% of their residents receiving at least one shot, reported a nearly 70% dip in infections.
With investors around the world fueling another crypto asset boom since late last year, elevating the values of digital currencies such as bitcoin, Japanese players in the space are hopeful that the country will be able to advance to the next stage after undergoing a period of scrutiny and renewal.

Perhaps, the most symbolic indication of the local industrys progress is the steady growth recorded by Coincheck Inc., which is now under Monex Group Inc., an online brokerage.

A hacking attack that hit Coincheck in January 2018 put a wet blanket on a growing cryptocurrency frenzy. In the aftermath of the massive cryptocurrency heist, which saw 58 billion worth of NEM coins taken from the Tokyo-based startup, Japans cryptocurrency market appeared to have lost vigor amid an intensified crackdown on virtual currency exchange operators by the countrys financial watchdog.

According to fiscal 2020 earnings released by Monex Group last month, Coinchecks revenue jumped by more than fivefold to 20.8 billion compared with the previous year. Of the 260,000 users that it gained, about 210,000 were concentrated in the second half of the business year that ended in March, indicating that many users have hopped on the latest crypto bandwagon.

When Coincheck was hit by the cyberattack, the firm was criticized for neglecting consumer protection amid its sharp growth. That incident highlighted the fact that many exchange operators, which were startups, did not have experience and know-how in properly running online-based financial services, prompting the government to issue a series of reprimands, some of which even ordered the suspension of operations.
Today we learned that the Office of the State Prosecutor has opened an investigation related to an employee of the States Attorneys Office. We are fully cooperating with the Office of the State Prosecutor, said Zy Richardson, a spokeswoman with the States Attorneys Office. This is an open and pending investigation and we cannot comment any further.
The owner of the Tokyo Stock Exchange Building faces a shareholder resolution from Hong Kong hedge fund LIM Advisors calling for an end to giving board seats to former executives at the TSE and its parent, a practice LIM says results in offering the bourse below-market rent.

Heiwa Real Estate has customarily appointed ex-officials of the TSE -- its biggest tenant, leasing the entire building -- to directorships. President Kiyoyuki Tsuchimoto is Heiwa's fourth consecutive chief to have started his career at the Tokyo bourse. Including Tsuchimoto, three of Heiwa's five inside directors are TSE alumni.

This could create a conflict of interest, LIM says.

The ties are likely to stir debate, given that TSE operator Japan Exchange Group (JPX) is essentially the standard-bearer for corporate governance reform at the nation's listed companies.

Formed in 1947 to manage stock exchange facilities across the country, Heiwa is known as the "landlord of Kabutocho" because it owns a large portfolio of properties in the area, considered the Wall Street of Japan.

LIM Advisors is apparently proposing three main changes at Heiwa: no board candidacies for anyone who has worked at JPX for five years or longer; filling at least two-thirds of the board with real estate professionals with 10 or more years of industry experience; and selling off roughly 3.2 million JPX shares held by Heiwa. The activist fund also points out that the TSE building's rent is a bargain compared with market rates. If the rent is low because former JPX executives are on the leadership team, this would constitute a material conflict of interest, the shareholder says.
20 O2 bedded covid care centre opened in Rohini

New Delhi, Tue, 11 May 2021 NI Wire

New Delhi, 10 May: The Delhi BJP Organisational General Secretary Shri Siddharthan and former Delhi BJP President Shri Vijender Gupta today lit the lamp to start a O2 fitted 20 bedded covid care centre in Rohini. Recognised by state government, this is open to public from today itself and has been set up by NGO Sampoorna, Bhagwan Mahavir jan samite and Purushottam Bansal Foundation.

No efforts made by Kejriwal to increase beds in Delhi hospitals- Siddharthan

Time to help each other with sense of human service is god service-Vijender Gupta

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Siddharthan said medicines, beds and doctors will be provided here without any charges and even food has been arranged for the patients. He charged to tackle the corona like epidemic the Kejriwal government has made no effort to increase beds in hospitals and hence this government has totally failed to arrest the current wave of corona. Shri Siddharthan said Delhiites are still awaiting hospitals announced by state government outside GTB hospital and in Ram Lila grounds for treatment whereas their chief minister is only busy in self publicity about taking various steps to deal with corona. If only he had cared for improving health care system things would not have gone so bad, he charged.

Shri Vijender Gupta said on the basis of this vardhman hospital preparations are in full swing for another covid care centre at Rajapur village in Rohini sector-9. Beds and concentrators have already reached here,he said adding the services will be available locals shortly. He said from January till March 2012, in these three months the Kejriwal government has spent hard earned money of people close to Rs 150 crore in only shining his own image through publicity. If only this amount had been spent on improving health care system, things would have been different, he said.

Shri Gupta said human service is like service to god and it is time we helped each other by distributing masks, medicines, food and like things and also encourage others to do it. He said in future some more such centres would be set up.

--Source: BJP
Stacy Armstrong is the assistant chemistry supervisor at Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital. She earned her associates in applied sciences from the Des Moines Area Community College and started working at Jennie in 1987.

The first part of Armstrongs day is spent setting up two chemistry analyzers that put out over 100,000 patient test results each month. Part of the process involves performing maintenance and running quality control  something Armstrong takes very seriously.

The doctors count on these results to provide them with the best possible information to treat their patients correctly. One of the newest tests we run is the high-sensitivity cardiac troponin test. It allows for detection of very low levels of troponin T, helping to diagnose heart attacks more quickly, she said. Time is always of the essence and part of my job is to quickly and accurately report out these test results so physicians can treat patients as soon as possible.

Methodist Jennie Edmundson is nationally recognized by the American Heart Association for its treatment of heart attack and stroke patients.

One of the most rewarding parts of Armstrongs job is helping to diagnose issues that cannot be seen with a physical examination.
Colburn completed her schooling at Jennie Edmundson School of Nursing, and then got her bachelors degree at University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. Jennie Edmundsons School of Nursing closed in 1997.

I actually have a passion for patient care, Colburn said. I just believe that any patient that comes into our facility, should always be treated with respect, dignity and that we need to treat them with excellent care.

Colburn provided that excellent patient care with the person who nominated her  that person was suffering from mental illness.

I wanted my life over and she saved me, the nominator wrote. I came to her to quit my job and then I was going to end my life.

Colburn got them in touch with a psychiatrist, who helped them with their medication needs. They say theyre now back to themselves.

She is not a psych nurse but she knew what to do those horrible eight months ago, the person wrote. She cared about me like she does her patients and it really meant a lot.

Since starting as a nurse aid, Colburn said she has grown a tremendous amount in her career. Her compassion is something patients will never forget about her, and for some, shes a role model.
Council Bluffs high schools have been hit by an outbreak of senioritis  but the cure is on its way.

All of the schools will release seniors  and other students  in the new few weeks.

The parade of Council Bluffs high school graduation ceremonies begins with Heartland Christian Schools commencement at 2 p.m. Saturday at Victory Fellowship Church, 2111 23rd Ave.

The commencement address will be delivered by the Rev. Jeff Kraft, pastor at NorthWest Christian Church and a former teacher at Heartland Christian.

Heartland Christian Elementary Principal Justin Steinmetz will do the invocation, and Heartland Christian Secondary Principal Carolyn Parton will introduce Valedictorian Morgan Beckner and Salutatorian Sarah Stile. Heartland Christian Executive Director Larry Gray will award all honors and diplomas to the 11 members of the Class of 2021. The Rev. Lonnie Parton, pastor of Victory Fellowship and chairman of the Heartland Christian School Board, will close with the benediction.

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Heartlands last day of school will be May 19.

The next event will be St. Albert High Schools Baccalaureate Mass and recognition ceremony at 6 p.m. May 19 at the school.
My friend pulled me out of the rubble and propped me on a chair, he said. I couldnt move my legs at all.

The then-13-year-old spent more than a week in the hospital and a few months in a wheelchair. It was agonizing at the beginning.

You are constantly laying or sitting on your pelvis, he said. Every moment was painful. I was on a lot of pain medications.

Hanna enjoyed doing physical therapy because he felt like he was making progress every session. He graduated from a wheelchair and walker in August of that year, although he had issues for a while with his balance.

Being around so many medical personnel and other patients while in therapy shaped his life.

A lot of other kids are wheelchair-bound their entire lives, he said. It was seeing those kids. I knew how hard it was and (for me) it was only for a couple of months. I was very fortunate.

In 2011, while at Bellevue West High School in Bellevue, Nebraska, he enrolled in the UNMC High School Alliance. Its for those interested in science and the health industry. Hanna took anatomy, microbiology and public health classes.
The American Families Plan will expand affordable child care and paid family leave, which Axne called part of a new definition of infrastructure.

Asked about lessons from the pandemic, Axne said, what weve also seen is that even in the best of circumstances, no roads down, less traffic, we saw we were missing out on childcare, things like paid family leave, sick days.

The person working an hourly wage job that has to come into work even if their children are sick, thats not a country that we should be in. We should be able to support people in those endeavors, she said. Every person who works works full time in this country should be able to make a living wage. We need to move toward a country where we understand that were all better off when were all better off.

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Whatever we can do to bring people opportunity are what I believe are truly infrastructure. It could be a road, and it could be broadband. It could be a sewer system and it could be a childcare center. Every single one of those things enhances our economy, creates safety for our community and puts money in peoples pockets.

We have to learn that infrastructure adapts to the needs of society. Infrastructure isnt one solid piece of cement that never changes. It has to be flexible and support the kind of work we do today.
WASHINGTON  Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., seems all but certain to be tossed from her No. 3 House GOP job Wednesday after repeatedly challenging former President Donald Trumps false assertions pinning his November reelection defeat on widespread voting fraud.

A small number of Republicans have spoken out in Cheneys defense.

Cancel culture is cancel culture, no matter how you look at it, Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, told reporters Monday. And unfortunately I think there are those that are trying to silence others in the party.

Ernst, who is the Senate GOPs conference vice chair, noted that she supports Trump and his policies, so she and Cheney arent coming from the same place, but I still think we shouldnt be trying to cancel voices. Her comments were reported by the Hill news site.

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What we can do is come together and try to win seats in 2022. I think thats what all of us should be focused on, Ernst said, adding that she thought the fight over Cheney was a distraction from that.

Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah also have voiced support for Cheney.
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Police said a 36-year-old man walked into an area hospital after being shot twice in the upper body. Northern District officers responded to the report of the walk-in shooting victim at 11:34 p.m. Monday but do not have any information as to where the shooting occurred.
Like 75 percent of the worlds citizens right now, were traveling. All that pent-up cabin fever had to be released sometime and the warm weather is bringing travelers out in droves. We had a graduation in Florida which we have been looking forward to attending. It was a nice trip.
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP)  The sponsor of the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline says it's pulling the plug on the contentious project after Canadian officials failed to persuade the Biden administration to reverse its cancellation of the company's permit.
The 2021 St. Patrick High School graduating class accomplished great things, said senior class president Samuel Dekleva on Sunday.

Though our class is small in size, it is big in heart, passion and achievements, Dekleva said. We are surrounded today by outstanding individuals.

The graduation ceremony brought together students, parents, faculty, administration and friends to celebrate the 13 students who received their diplomas.

Dekleva pointed out the difficulties this class has had to navigate over the past year.

In the midst of an undeniably troubling year for many, we have pushed through and advanced to the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, Dekleva said. But for our seniors today, it is more than just heightened freedom from the weight of the pandemic that has been raging for over a year; we have made it to the end of our schooling at St. Pats.

The school Bible verse for the year, Dekleva said, was John 16:33, In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.
A Fillmore County man who triggered a social media storm last fall after driving around Lincoln with a racist message on his pickup truck was sentenced to prison Tuesday for attempted manufacture of a controlled substance while in possession of a firearm.

Fillmore County District Judge Vicky Johnson sentenced Austin J. Cordis, 21, of rural Ohiowa, to three to five years in prison. In exchange for a guilty plea, prosecutors reduced the charge from possession of a firearm while committing a drug violation and dismissed three other felony charges.

The charges against Cordis were brought after investigators from the Fillmore County Sheriff's Office searched a farm where Cordis lived on March 13, 2020. According to an affidavit filed in Fillmore County Court, investigators located a large hydroponic marijuana-growing operation.

In September, several people posted photos of a pickup truck driven by Cordis in Lincoln with a coarse expletive and the N-word in large red, white and blue lettering above "Trump 2020." Cordis later said that the pickup belonged to him but that he didn't write the message.

An image of the pickup was shared on Twitter and retweeted by, among others, retired professional basketball player Rex Chapman, who has more than 947,000 Twitter followers.
Photo: Getty Images

Three days before the first official mayoral debate, the editorial boards at two of the citys most-distributed daily papers have made their pick for mayor.

Early on Monday morning, the New York Post endorsed Brooklyn borough president Eric Adams, though the suspense was limited: Its not exactly a surprise that the Murdoch-owned tabloid would favor the former Republican running in the Democratic primary. In the appraisal, the editorial board leaned into Adamss more conservative policies, including the former cops staunch pro-police stance and his plan to cut the budget at every city agency by as much as 5 percent. Will we continue to surrender our streets to homelessness, filth, crime and guns, to betray our childrens future, to push away residents, businesses and wealth? the board wrote, in a suggestion that the other candidates could be waving a white flag on these issues. (In a nod to the citys first ranked-choice election, the paper did add that they liked much of what outsider Ray McGuire has proposed, and appreciate Andrew Yangs enthusiasm. Kathryn Garcia did an excellent job at the Department of Sanitation.)

Hours later, the New York Times agreed with that last superlative, endorsing former Sanitation commissioner Kathryn Garcia in perhaps the most consequential mayoral contest in a generation. In the cosign, the board cited Garcias long record as a problem solver within the city bureaucracy, including her roles in restoring the citys wastewater-treatment systems during Superstorm Sandy when she was at the Department of Environmental Protection; modernizing snowplow and simplifying garbage routes at Sanitation; treating a lead-paint crisis at the New York City Housing Authority; and shifting trash pickup to late-night hours during the pandemic to protect sanitation workers.

As the race has heated up, Adams has been frequently mentioned in media coverage and is among the top-two candidates in the polls; thus, the Post endorsement may not mean as much to his campaign as the Times approval could for Garcia, who has struggled to gain name recognition and consistently polls in the single digits.

The Times endorsement also mentions Andrew Yangs comments that he would hire her in his hypothetical administration, based on her long record of public service. If Andrew Yang thinks I need to run his government, then maybe I should just run the government, Ms. Garcia told the board. Agreed, the Times wrote. Cut out the middleman and elect the most qualified person: Kathryn Garcia.

Meanwhile, that middleman found himself in another controversy on Monday night, thanks to his tendency to shoot from the hip while tweeting. Yang, who is expected to win the support of leaders from the citys ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, commented on the violence in Jerusalem this weekend, when Israeli police threw stun grenades inside the Al-Aqsa mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam. (The assault, in which over 200 were wounded, came in the wake of an effort to evict six Palestinian families living in East Jerusalem, with Israeli forces reportedly shooting a 16-year-old Palestinian in the back and killing him in a raid in the West Bank.) Following the Al-Aqsa attack, militants in Gaza fired rockets into Jerusalem; though Israeli officials reported no casualties, as many as 20 were killed in Gaza on Monday, after the IDF fired retaliatory airstrikes.

Yang said that he stands with the people of Israel who are coming under bombardment attacks, adding that the people of NYC will always stand with our brothers and sisters in Israel who face down terrorism and persevere. While Yang was praised by Stephen Miller and Ted Cruz for the comment, many progressive New Yorkers were quick to point out that he does not speak for all the people of New York City on this front.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP)  Sean Parnell, a decorated Army veteran whose regular guest on Fox News programs helped make him a favorite of former President Donald Trump, announced his candidacy Tuesday for the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania's open U.S. Senate seat.

Parnell, who unsuccessfully challenged Democratic U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb in western Pennsylvania last year, has spent weeks saying he was considering a run. On Tuesday, he updated his social media accounts, launched a new Senate campaign site and made his official announcement to a couple hundred people gathered outdoors at a suburban Pittsburgh restaurant.

The campaign for an open U.S. Senate seat in the presidential battleground state could be the nation's most competitive next year. Both the Democratic and Republican fields are getting crowded, with a year to go until next years primary election.

Parnell is an Army combat veteran who served in Afghanistan and went on to write a memoir on the war in Afghanistan and author two action novels.

At the event, Parnell, 39, cast the opposition against President Joe Biden in warlike terms.
Police vehicles crawled in and out of the two-block crime scene Monday night, bathing the street in red and blue. Slices of yellow light cut the dark as neighbors peered through their doors and windows. Others, just arriving to find their neighborhood sectioned off with yellow tape, asked officers when they could get back to their homes.
Washington, PA (15301)

Today

A mix of clouds and sun this morning followed by increasing clouds with showers developing this afternoon. High 82F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Partly to mostly cloudy with a chance of thunderstorms. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
They edited to make it look so much worse than it really was



The...pharmaceutical companies edit Oprah? TIL



What a fucking idiot

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Thats why I keep seeing seth all over the place, he has a new book out

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Right? Now it makes sense.

Im guessing its possibly why he finally publicly spoke about Franco.

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Yeah, I mean. Tom gets some good PR ahead of this, Seth says he wont work with Franco for good PR for this book. Its all just an endless cycle of wank and bullshit.

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this! no wonder he's been trying to re-write his past shittiness the last few weeks.

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Mte Desus.

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Desus and Meros reactions are hilarious. I lose it every time Mero falls off his chair laughing.

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I remember it was the episode before they went on hiatus, Mero fell on the ground laughing, and Desus goes, Meros final drop for the season, yall.

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I have never liked Tom Cruise nor understood his appeal and he keeps giving me reasons to hate his ass.

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Trust no Scientologist.



I don't give a shit if he does his own stunts

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I'm not reading this post, that title was too perfect and reality could only lessen it.

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Nah cuz you missed the big pharma bit which was equally as wild

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Listening to Yashar in Leah and Mike's podcast talking about scientology was so good. His episode was so so good. And all the info that's come out about how involved farrakhan is with scientology was crazy.

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there's an ep of her show about it too that's really good

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i've been watching leah's show now that it's on netflix and the way tom cruise is talking compared to idk i guess... 'lesser' scientologists is almost identical.

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oh that is not good! 

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Does this mean ontd will have more spot the scientologist posts? I'm here for it.

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And this is why Seth was in the news about not working with Franco instead saying something earlier, he has a book out to promote.



God, I think both are talented but in the end they are shitty men with shitty opinions and very shitty friends.

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Having to cite Y*sh*r and Rogen wasn't something I wanted to do but felt I had to do just this once.

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omg your icon lol

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I appreciate the icon lol

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Omg he's using filters why tho lmao Wait wait he looks so different in his twitter pic is he......Omg he's using filters why tho lmao

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at least you kept it real with your icon 

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lmaooooooo i cant stand his fraud ass

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Tom Cruise needs to realize his glory days are over.

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i wrote about Farrakhan's weird partnership with Scientology some years back https://t.co/wuwMD28vlO  Marlow Stern (@MarlowNYC) May 8, 2021 I was shocked that Scientology reached out to Farrakhan because the late Isaac Hayes wanted the cult to gain more Black members.

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there was an episode of leah remini's show that was about scientology reaching out to the nation of islam too

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This is wild: actor LaKeith Stanfield moderated a Clubhouse chat dedicated to anti-Semitic conspiracy theories where Jews were repeatedly compared to Satanists and termites https://t.co/QXyrBKRoOa  Marlow Stern (@MarlowNYC) May 7, 2021



I missed whatever this was. I missed whatever this was.

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"flirting with anti-Semitism" sure is a weird way to phrase it when he moderated a whole entire anti-Semitic chatroom...

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By Thursday, Stanfield decided to address the brewing storm head-on and joined another Clubhouse chat, this time moderated by a panel of Jewish educators, who wanted to address the hate speech they had witnessed. Jewish men and women, as well as allies, came to the stage to express how triggering the rhetoric theyd heard was.



Interesting

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I remember someone on Tumblr outed him as someone who pulls off his condom covertly with his sexual partners. That's all I really think about when I see him in a movie.



Edited at 2021-05-12 12:36 am (UTC)

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I love how relentless Leah Remini has been in exposing scientology's bullshit. I'm sure it's very difficult and very scary for her but she's doing a good thing. She could have quietly left and just kept to herself, but she's really putting her neck on the line and going all out to try and bring them down and hold them accountable.

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Thanks for the tweet because people act so dumb regarding this POS.



On the Deux Moi Reddit, an user asked about LaKeith Stanfield drama. I gave a brief answer.



An other user jumped on me saying that the one who shall not be named wasnt anti-Semitic but anti-Zionist. And he never said bad things against Jewish people. Oh. Ok.



And I was like since when referring to Jewish people as evil and saying Hitler was a good dude (among other things) is not anti-Semitic?!



In 2021, people still have that kind of thoughts. Jeez Louise.



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Clutching pearls. Im assuming theres ton of worst case since he returned his GGs that hed get exposed or something!

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Big Pharma was silencing him...sure jan.



Granted Big Pharma is to blame for the opioid epidemic, but thats not the same thing as mental health medication.

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Yes, there's a laundry list of things to blame Big Pharmacy for. This is probably the only thing they aren't guilty of.

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That and giving people autism via MMR



Edited at 2021-05-11 10:21 pm (UTC)

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Yeah, I have issues with Big Pharma, but as someone who meds, specifically psychiatric meds, have helped incredibly, who knows how she is without meds, who is better daily because of the meds, the idea that this idiot who never got past high school science classes is calling himself an expert on anything regarding science is so infuriating. Fuck him. Honestly, this could apply to a lot/all of science deniers.

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There is actually a discussion to be had around Big Pharma and MI medication, especially regarding patents, research transparency and over-prescription linked to pay-to-prescribe.



Plus the benzodiazepine epidemic, which will probably be the next big class action.



But Big Pharma doesnt need to waste money discrediting Tom and his Cruisade when he and his xenopmorph pals are already doing it for them.



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It always seems like his mental health is heald together by a paperclip and a little prayer.

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Dont forget thetans!

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Who is the next man Rogen is going to throw under the bus.



Hope it's Pratt somehow.

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Woody A.

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"Hey, everybody, don't look at the big shiny object of my own fuckery...here's a much more famous person who I saw do something one time! Stare at them!"--Seth Rogen

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The creation of Libyas interim government has instilled the international community with tacit hopes of a decade-long conflict finally coming to an end. As it is oftentimes the case with Libya, aspirations remain alive only insofar as they are not accompanied by deadlines to be met. The interim government has a little less than 2 months to create the constitutional basis for the Libyas first democratic elections of this century (assumed to take place in December 2021). The complete unpredictability of what is going to happen next has been delaying much-needed investment into Libya, with most investors (even those who happen to have equity) fearing another landslide into all-out mayhem is still on the cards. Against all this, Libya has been trying to struggle its way through another round of plummeting differentials.

The force majeure, initiated mid-April by Libyas NOC that debilitated operations at the Marsa el-Hariga Terminal (loading Sarir and Mesla grades), took less than 2 weeks to overcome. AGOCO, the NOCs fully-owned upstream subsidiary, claimed the Central Bank of Libya (CBL) did not transfer its income in due time  reportedly not a single Libyan dinar since September 2020 - compelling the firm to wrap up operations. It took CBL exactly one week to wire 230 million USD to AGOCOs account and within several days the port of Hariga was loading cargoes again. By early May all fields connected to Marsa el-Hariga were reported to be running at peak capacity. This, of course, does not eliminate the risk of further disputes, especially on highly contentious issues like reporting oil revenues where the underlying causes of discord remains simmering under the surface.

Usually Libyas NOC issues its official selling prices (OSP) for the upcoming month on the last week of the month preceding the loading. For the second time already this year, it had delayed the OSP issuance into the actual month of loading, taking roughly a week more than it generally should. Following the market ruckus caused by the force majeure, NOC probably wanted to wait for the mayhem to abate. Still, it was induced to decrease prices even further, especially the light sweet ones. El Sharara suffered the most marked depreciation month-on-month, dropping 40 cents to -1.8 USD per barrel against Dated. Smaller flows like Brega, Bu Attifel and Zueitina were hiked by 20 cents per barrel; all the other grades saw insignificant month-on-month changes or were just simply rolled over. Interestingly, Sarir and Mesla, the two grades that have suffered from the force majeure, were also left unchanged. Related: Big Oil Eyes Wave Of Buybacks After Blowout Earnings



With Libyas largest crude flow - Es Sider - lingering at its lowest differentials ever, Libyan energy authorities are closely following the intense competition with incoming US grades as well as Mediterranean peers such as CPC or Azeri, hoping for their influx to ease. This might well be a pipe dream, at least temporarily, considering that US crude arrivals to Europe in May 2021 are at their highest since September 2020 and the tally might still edge higher from its current level of 24 MMbbls (the sailing time is usually 18-20 days so the final number could only be assessed mid-month). In addition, the gradual winding-down of OPEC+ production quotas has lifted crude production rates (just to name one example from the ranks of Libyas competitors, this years CPC output target is 150kbpd higher than in 2020, at 1.44mbpd) and the wide Brent-Dubai spread has killed off most of the previously existing arbitrage opportunities.

Hypothetically, Libya could channel more crude into other streams and thus optimize its revenues by placing more emphasis on crude streams that it believes to hold higher value. However, for this happen Libya would ideally need the liberty to choose which plays or deposits it would prefer to develop; that is hardly what Tripoli has now after 10 years of fratricidal conflict. Perhaps unfortunately for Libyas NOC, a significant part of Libyas prospective fields to be commissioned will be channeled into Es Sider flows  the Dahra and Bahi fields are currently being refurbished and will bring in some 20kbpd once they reach their assumed plateau at some point later this year; North Gialo and Gialo III (the two combined have a nameplate capacity of 150kbpd) might take several years to launch but should bring the total Es Sider flows to 500kbpd.

Related Video: Massive American Pipeline Shut Down in Cyber Attack

Thus, Libya has found itself in a limbo whereby the short-term prospects of its oil industry ultimately depend on not just one but several key factors. These can be categorized along the following dilemmas:

- could the interim government manage to navigate Libya to an election without new flare-ups of fighting?

- will light sweet differentials improve over time so that Libyan grades garner more?

- when will the arbitrage towards Asia reopen and how long would it last?

The most important point of agenda, of course, is the political unity of Libya  without it the Libyan NOC will not be able to breathe new life into exploration drilling and to allocate new acreage, not to speak of even more delicate tasks such as tweaking the countrys (oftentimes outdated) 1955 Petroleum Code.

By Gerald Jansen for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Grammy Winning Music Director Shedrick Mitchell Releases Hymns Project

NEWS PROVIDED BY

RGMC Impact

May 11, 2021

MEDIA ADVISORY, May 11, 2021 /Christian Newswire/ -- Shedrick Mitchell can easily be described as a musical wonder. The highly revered and celebrated musician has poured pure essence into the heart of the music he has played for over two decades with a venerable list of who's who across genres including Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan and more. Never one to rest on his laurels, Mitchell exudes the same passion in the presentation of his second disc of hymns and sacred songs simply entitled, Time, Reflections, Distance, Volume 2, released exclusively on bandcamp.com May 7th.

"Johnny Cash was on to something when he sang, I've Been everywhere, man", Mitchell says with great joviality. "The one thing I can add is that all of this would be impossible without God in my life. God is the greatest power, the Bible says, that before we were formed in our mother's womb, He knew us, and He has given life and creativity to this preacher's kid from St. Louis, I have been afforded the opportunity to travel around the world and share stages with music legends and icons. Yeah, you will find me being most grateful. Then Covid hit, slowed us down, forced many of us to stop, pray and think. I have a different mindset, I don't want to leave here without having done what I was called to do, and because of what God has done for me, I am obligated to help and reach for somebody else. So, yeah, I am mission minded."

The classically trained musician whose earliest musical experiences can be traced back to his home church where his grandfather and father served as pastor treasures those foundational days. Mitchell was exposed to Bach and Chopin as well as James Cleveland and Milton Brunson. It was also there he quickly learned how music spoke a universal language and connected to the hearts and minds of people. This would prove useful in his life and work. His teenage years brought him to a renaissance as he experienced the music of Miles Davis' Kind of Blue recording. Moving to NY in pursuit of additional jazz studies led him to Mannes School of Music, where he continued to cultivate his gift. Several opportunities would ensue as he went on to work with the jazz greats including Dee Dee Bridgewater, Christian McBride, Terrance Blanchard, Dianne Reeves and others. In 2003, Shedrick had a destiny encounter as he was asked to accompany Whitney Houston. This association would last for nine years. That's only the tip of the iceberg. Shedrick shares fond memories of his many travels and life lessons learned with his many students and music connoisseurs.

The 15 tracks that comprise Time, Reflections, Distance are songs and hymn classics that are near and dear to Shedrick's religious experiences. The album is sure to be one of the most highly anticipated projects of this year.

SOURCE RGMC Impact

CONTACT: Rey Garza, 773-749-8562, rgmcimpact@gmail.com
The killings are eligible for the death penalty because each was committed while Long was in the act of committing another capital offense, namely the killings of the victims, Willis notice of intent says. Each killing was also outrageously or wantonly vile, horrible, or inhuman in that it involved depravity of mind and was committed during an act of domestic terrorism, the notice says.
Following talks in Vienna this month, the U.S. could announce a deal with Iran as early as the end of May, which could lead to the lifting of oil and energy sanctions.

Analysts are predicting a return to pre-pandemic oil production levels for Iran, around 3.9 million bpd, by 2022, assuming that the U.S. eases the sanctions that have been suffocating Irans economy. Production levels in March stood at around 2.3 million bpd, the highest level since May 2019, an increase that highlights how Irans oil exports have already been recovering in spite of U.S. sanctions.

Unofficial talks between the two countries have been taking place in Vienna for over a month, in collaboration with diplomats from Europe, Russia, and China, and are expected to result in some sort of an agreement between the U.S. and Iran in the coming weeks.

It is likely that a deal will be reached before Irans elections in June, that timeline would ensure an energy agreement is in place between the two countries before any change in government.

Fernando Ferreira, director of Rapidan Energy Groups Geopolitical Risk Service claimed that Progress in Vienna is slow but steady,. He added that Weve seen flexibility from both sides as Biden is now willing to move first, and Tehran understands some sanctions will stay.

Related Video: Massive American Pipeline Shut Down in Cyber Attack

The easing of sanctions is expected to be gradual, with a complete end to sanctions expected as early as September. This could allow Irans crude and condensate exports to increase to 1.5 million bpd by the beginning of next year.

The hope is that the two countries will return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) mutual compliance agreement. This would present an easy path forward in the partnership between the two states as no new agreement would need to be developed.

Under the JCPOA nuclear deal, the U.S. vowed not to restrict Irans oil export ability so long as Tehran complied with restrictions on its nuclear program. However, then-president Donald Trump took the U.S. out of the deal in 2018 and imposed sanctions.

The sanctions introduced between 2018-2020 are viewed by the Biden administration as being poison pills meant to disrupt a return to the JCPOA. Iran is calling for a total revocation of these recent sanctions, with Biden aiming to remove those sanctions which hinder Irans economy.

In reference to the talks, Iranian President Hassan Rohani stated this week that "sanctions will be lifted soon if we are all united."

Meanwhile, OPEC crude production increased by 70,000 bpd last month, achieving a three-month high of 24.96 million bpd, largely due to Irans increased output. Iran is now ahead of Kuwait for oil production, making it the fourth-largest oil producer in OPEC.

OPEC+ quotas have limited Irans output in recent months, although production decreases in North and West Africa have allowed for slightly higher production from both Saudi Arabia and Iran.

In addition, Iran has been fostering energy partnerships with industry giants China and Venezuela. These export partnerships are expected to help Iran get back on track quickly as soon as restrictions are eased.

Talks in Vienna between the U.S. and Iran are looking promising. The proven oil-producing ability of the state as well as its strong relationship with China and Venezuela will mean Irans oil industry could soon be back in full swing.

By Felicity Bradstock for Oilprice.com

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Finally, after years of watching dubious short-sellers manipulate stocks and destroy companies, Canadian regulators are ready to do something about it, and unscrupulous short-sellers who have been living lives of obnoxious luxury paid for by ordinary shareholders have every reason to worry.

The only question now is whether the Canadian regulators have the teeth to follow through.

The first move came in January 2021, when the Ontario Capital Markets Modernization Task Force recommended a new prohibition against misleading or untrue statements about public companies. Why? Because Canadian markets are being threatened severely by short and distort and pump and dump campaigns. The same legislation was already enacted in British Columbia.

The prohibition would do one very important thing: It would mean that Ontario regulators would only have to prove intent and not causation, making them far more powerful if they choose to use that power.

That starts the regulatory ball rolling  but it isnt enough.

Now, the Ontario task force wants to take things further, requiring short sellers to actually confirm they can borrow the securities theyre attempting to short.

The task force also wants to make them subject to a mandatory buy-in if a sale fails to settle only two days after the settlement day or four days after the trading date.

That would be the death of one of the free markets biggest threats: Naked shorting, when shorters sell shares they dont own and have made no arrangements to buy.

As we noted in our recent expose on naked short selling, this harmful setup gives traders the ability to endlessly sell phantom shares and manipulate the share prices to their benefit in a direct challenge to the free market.

If the task force makes good on its plans, it would essentially make it impossible to do any naked short selling.

So far, naked shorters have gotten away with their destructive market tactics due to a loophole that requires them to have a reasonable expectation of settling a trade without actually borrowing the stock. That loophole may have turned the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) into a free-for-all.

The disruption doesnt end there, either. Stocks are sent into a tailspin when shorters fail to settle a trade and cannot find any stock to buy back, meaning that there are more shares which seem to be outstanding than there really are on the market. Its an existential crisis for companies targeted by naked shorters. While technically, traders only have two days to settle those shorts, they are often given 10 days under exceptional circumstances, according to CME.

And as far as some Canadian regulators are concerned, all circumstances appear to be exceptional.

The most insidious aspect is this, though: The funds behind these big naked shorts are highly sophisticated machines that can easily take full advantage of any loopholes, not to mention the Canadian regulators. We have talked to dozens of lawyers and traders who attest that these naked shorters have had no trouble staying naked for months when the actual limit is technically two days. That kind of time frame is destroying companies.

While all of these sophisticated naked shorting machines are already getting the 10-day grace period that they shouldnt be getting in the first place, they also have a strategy for the 11th day: They simply shift their bets to another related company so that the clock starts all over again. That practice is called kiting.

In other words, they simply move their position from one broker or dealer to another--endlessly.

Indeed, its not even clear to many whether naked short selling is legal or not, given all the loopholes that make it so prevalent.

Mining.com called it either quasi-legal or poorly policed, noting that the IIROC says short selling is illegal in Canada, but a 2019 study by business law firm McMillan LLP concludes that despite IIROCs insistence to the contrary, naked short-selling is legal in Canada.

If the law is that unclear, its no wonder why naked short-sellers seem to be calling the shots on the Canadian capital markets.

It took an uprising among Canadian mining companies, of which there are many on the TSX, for regulators to do anything.

These companies have been key targets of harmful short and distort campaigns in which naked shorters spread negative rumors to drive a companys stock down by artificial means. And the smaller the miner, the easier the target.

Will Canada continue to allow naked short sellers to control capital markets?

The mining industry is up in arms and theyve banded together to force change, but many are still concerned that the IIROC will only pay lip service to the Ontario task forces new proposals and implementation will be light-handed.

This is the first time there has been any sense of pending optimism as opposed to pending doom for Canadian capital markets. And now, its all down to the regulators to challenge the predators, protect the prey--which includes the savings of regular shareholders--and reinstituting a free market where companies rise and fall on their merits and not on naked shorting tactics, distortion, and manipulation.

By James Stafford

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Saudi Arabia will export full crude oil volumes to at least four Asian clients next month, Reuters has reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the situation.

Saudi Aramco and its Asian buyers use standard contracts, under which either side can trim or boost orders by a margin of 10 percent above or below the originally stipulated amounts depending on demand and supply.

Earlier this year, Aramco angered the Indian government after it said it will raise prices for crude oil shipments for Asian buyers as it continued to keep a heavy cap on its oil production. India responded with an order to state-owned refiners to buy crude oil from other suppliers. Later, Aramco reduced its official selling price for Asian buyers for June shipments. This was the first price reduction for Saudi crude in six months.

According to Reuters sources, however, some buyers from Asia have refused to increase their volumes for June and preferred to buy other crude grades similar to Saudi Arabias Arab Light on the spot market, where prices were lower. Besides price considerations, a slowdown in fuel demand growth in China and India has also weighed on buyers appetite.

Saudi Arabia was among the hardest hit by the pandemic in terms of oil revenues. But it has since recovered thanks to higher oil prices, with Aramco reporting a 30-percent jump in net profits for the first quarter.

Despite the improvement in prices, the Saudi state energy company has been looking for ways to shore up its finances amid the prolonged depression in oil prices despite the rally in recent months after it booked a 50-percent slump in net profits for 2020.

Steps taken so far have included debt issuance, a 49-percent stake sale in its pipeline business to a consortium led by EIG Global Energy Partners for $12.4 billion, and plans to sell stakes in non-strategic oilfields.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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A Mexican court has issued an injunction against new legislation that sought to change the rules of competition on the country's fuel market, The Associated Press reports.

The legislation, which was passed by the lower chamber of the Mexican parliament last month, involves changes to an energy law that gives the government power to restrict private oil companies' activity in oil and fuel imports.

The changes, therefore, would give the government the power to revoke private companies' permits to import and market oil and fuels if, for example, they are deemed to threaten the Mexican economy and national security.

They would also grant the government to right to seize fuel stations owned by private companies and fuel terminals, according to the AP report.

The changes would affect both local and foreign companies active in the Mexican fuel market. Interestingly enough, the proposal does not list the circumstances under which import and sale permits could be revoked, only saying that such a move would be considered "when an imminent danger is foreseen for national security, energy security or for the national economy."

Private fuel marketers were only allowed to operate in Mexico starting in 2016. These fuel marketers quickly undermined Pemex's market share, the AP report notes, recalling that the state-owned major did not have a particularly good reputation as fuel retailer.

Related Video: Massive American Pipeline Shut Down in Cyber Attack

According to President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the purpose of the legislative changes is to counter contraband gasoline imports. He noted that private importers of gasoline often don't pay taxes.

The government can appeal the court's decision, but it has become the latest blow against the president's efforts to solidify government control over the energy sector, from fuels to electricity generation.

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court struck down changes proposed in a draft policy that would see the state-owned power utility, CFE, get preferential treatment by the national grid operator over private electricity producers. The court called the proposal unconstitutional.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Sensors have detected increased levels of neutrons in an inaccessible chamber at the Chernobyl site, signaling that nuclear fission reactions are taking place in the entombed reactor hall, Science reports.

The signs that fission reactions are occurring come 35 years nearly to the date when the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in what is now Ukraine exploded on April 26, 1986. It was the worst-ever nuclear disaster in the world to date.

The nuclear fission reactions are taking place in a room that is sealed with concrete and contains a large part of the uranium fuel of the former reactor.

Ukrainian scientists are now trying to assess whether the detected nuclear fission reactions will die out or create a larger problem that will require some type of extraordinary intervention.

Its like the embers in a barbecue pit, Neil Hyatt, a nuclear materials chemist at the University of Sheffield, told Science.

Maxim Saveliev of the Institute for Safety Problems of Nuclear Power Plants (ISPNPP) in Kyiv, Ukraine, says that the scientists cannot rule out the possibility of an accident.

Were talking about very low rates of fission, so its not like a fizzing nuclear reactor, Hyatt told New Scientist.

And our estimation of fissile material in that room means that we can be fairly confident that youre not going to get such rapid release of nuclear energy that you have an explosion. But we dont know for sure, the nuclear materials chemist noted.

According to Hyatt, the higher level of neutrons is a cause for concern but not alarm.

However, if sensors continue to detect rising production of neutrons, the site may need an extraordinary intervention, Hyatt said. One approach could be to drill into the entombed chamber and spray it with a substance such as gadolinium nitrate, which would stop the fission reactions.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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A DNA library is a collection of DNA fragments that is stored and propagated in a population of micro-organisms through the process of molecular cloning.

The DNA sequencing is a process that runs overnight.

Kyndt said after a night of DNA sequencing researchers will have genome information.

Theres still more to do once you have the genome, then you have to compare them to each other and compare it to all the other genomes out there, Kyndt said.

He said this process can be done via a computer program.

You have to run the programs for several days after that so for each of those genomes, it can add up to be several weeks of work, Kyndt said.

He said scientist research Heliomicrobium to take a look at the evolution of photosynthesis through the ages.

These are kind of the first evolution of photosynthesis, thats why this group of bacteria is so important because photosynthesis has evolved from there into other species, Kyndt said.

He said if scientist can understand and classify the first steps of the evolution of photosynthesis the world can then begin to understand the start of photosynthesis in bacteria in general.
Isaac Smith, an eighth grade student at St. Columbkille Catholic School in Papillion, has been awarded a second prize in 2021 Nebraska State Treasurers essay contest Why I Want to Go to College.

Co-sponsored by the Omaha Storm Chasers, the prize winners were recognized Sunday afternoon at Werner Park prior to first pitch. The contest was open to seventh- and eighth-graders in each of Nebraskas three congressional districts, and well as three winners from the rest of the United States.

I felt surprised, excited, and thankful, Isaac said.

Nebraska Treasurer John Murante said in a statement that the quality of the students writing, their clarity of vision for their futures, and their expressions of gratitude to parents, siblings, teachers, and mentors were tremendously impressive.

Each winner receives a cash reward of $500 for third place, $1,000 for second place, and $2,000 for first place, which will be in the form of a contribution to each students Nebraska Educational Savings Trust (NEST529) college account. This is the 19th year of the contest.

I was very excited for him, said Isaacs father, Dan. You can never get too much help into going to college these days
The man who transformed the Vermont-based Orvis company from a niche fly-fishing supply company into a global retailer of outdoor supplies, apparel and protector of the environment has died. Leigh H. Perkins was 93.

The Sunderland-based Orvis company says Perkins died May 7 in Monticello, Florida. The cause of death was not released.

An online tribute published on the company's website said Perkins was a lifelong outdoorsman who hunted or fished more than 250 days a year into his 90s who had a reverence for nature and conservation.

The company says that Perkins began donating 5% of pre-tax profits to conserving fish and wildlife.

While Orvis is based in Sunderland, not far from the headwaters of the Batten Kill  one of the most famous trout streams in the state  the company's reach goes across the world.

He followed that fly rod to all corners of the world and he made connections and relationships to both places and people across the globe, Simon Perkins, Leigh Perkins' grandson and the current president of Orvis, said Tuesday.

Simon Perkins is the third generation of his family to lead the company.
Khater walked through the crowd toward the bike rack barrier. Rioters began pulling on one of the racks, and Khater was seen with his arm in the air and the canister in his hand while standing just 5-to-8 feet from the officers, authorities said.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP)  An Alabama police officer convicted of murder for shooting a suicidal man who was holding a gun to his own head has been taken off duty but will continue to be paid, the city of Huntsville said.

Officer William Darby, who was initially placed on desk duty following the killing of Jeffrey Parker in 2018, can't continue working as an officer because of the conviction and went on leave Monday, city spokeswoman Lucy DeButy told news outlets.

"This is the normal process until formal proceedings under the City of Huntsvilles personnel policies and procedures are complete, she said in a statement. Darby was freed on $100,000 bond soon after the verdict on Friday.

While Mayor Tommy Battle, a Republican, and Police Chief Mark McMurray have disagreed publicly with the jurors' decision, Alabama Democratic Party executive director Wade Perry criticized the city's move to keep paying Darby.

Hes a convicted murderer. He shouldnt get another days pay. Fire him. And the police chief, Perry said in a statement.

Darby shot Parker, 49, moments after joining two other officers who had responded to a 911 call from the man, who said he was armed and planned to kill himself.
Since sundown Monday, 28 Palestinians  including 10 children and a woman were killed in Gaza, most by airstrikes, health officials there said. The Israeli military said at least 16 of the dead were militants.

Two women were killed by rockets fired from Gaza that hit their homes in the southern city of Ashkelon  the first Israeli deaths in the current violence. At least 10 other Israelis have been wounded since Monday evening.

After those deaths, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said officials decided to increase both the strength and rate of the strikes against militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.

Egyptian officials said they were trying to broker a cease-fire, but the cycle of violence was gaining momentum. Even before the two Israeli deaths, the Israeli military said it was sending troop reinforcements to the Gaza border, and the defense minister ordered the mobilization of 5,000 reserve soldiers.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, told reporters that Israel was beefing up defensive forces on the border to prevent possible infiltrations and increasing its offensive forces as well, primarily in the air.

He said the objective was to send a clear message to Hamas.
MINDEN, Neb.  A former Minden school board member repeatedly was asked to leave before the boards meeting Monday night. She eventually left of her own accord.

Former board member Katie Sinsel was seated at the boards table and wasnt wearing a mask. Superintendent James Widdifield repeatedly asked Sinsel to put on a mask or to leave.

Sinsel told Widdifield that she was a school board member, but he told her that she had been voted off the school board at the previous meeting.

Widdifield told Sinsel that she was trespassing, and he made a call asking for a police officer to come to address the situation.

Sinsel then told Widdifield that she wanted to hear from Rusty Rhynalds, Minden Public Schools board president, whether he wanted her to leave. Rhynalds asked Sinsel to put on a mask. Sinsel gathered her things, but before leaving the table she asked Rhynalds for the record if he wanted her to leave. Rhynalds once again asked Sinsel to wear a mask.

Sinsel left the board meeting of her own accord, although a Minden police officer arrived at the school after Sinsel left.
LINCOLN  A bill to make permitless carry of concealed weapons possible across most of Nebraska raises significant constitutional concerns, according to an opinion issued by Attorney General Doug Petersons office on Monday.

The opinion said Legislative Bill 236 would improperly delegate state authority to the counties and would do so without adequate standards to guide county boards, both of which appear to violate the Nebraska Constitution.

In the wake of the opinion, State Sen. Tom Brewer of Gordon, who introduced the bill, was scrambling to decide how to proceed. The measure had been expected to be up for debate this week.

He said Tuesday that he could proceed with the bill as is, amend it to allow concealed carry statewide without a permit or replace the current contents of the bill with portions of three less controversial measures relating to concealed carry.

As introduced, LB 236 would give counties the power to authorize carrying of concealed firearms without a permit or training requirements. Currently, gun owners must obtain a state permit and pass a firearm course before they can legally carry a concealed gun.
We have to look at it holistically, Linehan said.

The significant financial impact from eliminating taxes on Social Security income has blocked previous attempts to phase out the tax, but rosy tax revenue forecasts have put state senators in a mood this year to cut taxes and address some long-neglected spending priorities.

The Social Security tax break, which was introduced by Omaha Sen. Brett Lindstrom, advanced from second-round debate on a 44-0 vote, but only after it was amended to include a safeguard.

Gering Sen. John Stinner, who heads the legislative committee that draws up the state budget every two years, proposed the safeguard amendment. It will require the Legislature, after five years, to revisit the Social Security tax break to ensure that the state can handle the fiscal impact. Conceivably, lawmakers could put a hold on a total phase-out of taxes on such retirement income if the state was facing hard economic times.

Taxpayers will get a 5% tax break on their Social Security checks in the 2021 tax year. Then the tax break would rise to 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% in subsequent years before undergoing a legislative review. The intent of LB 64 is that the review would result in increasing the tax break to 100% after 10 years, but there is no guarantee of that.
Gov. Pete Ricketts signed onto a letter with 19 other Republican governors asking President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to take action to close the U.S. border with Mexico.

The letter comes after unauthorized crossings at the southern border increased throughout February and March, reaching a 20-year high in April that U.S. Customs and Border Patrol data shows has leveled off in recent weeks.

Border patrol agents took more than 172,000 people into custody in March and were expected to match that number in April.

We call on you to take action on the crisis at the southern border immediately, the letter from the governors begins. The crisis is too big to ignore and is now spilling over the border states into all of our states.

At fault was irresponsible rhetoric by the Biden administration, the governors wrote in the letter, as well as the reversal of several Trump-era policies, including halting construction on the border wall, eliminating asylum agreements and refusing to enforce immigration laws.

Thats led to more drugs and weapons being smuggled across the border and increased trafficking of men, women and children seeking to get into the U.S., the governors write.
Nebraska State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh of Omaha is a force to be reckoned with. She is the first woman to breastfeed her child on the floor of the Legislature and she introduced LB 709, which would create a safe nursing station in the Capitol. She is also spearheading LB 187 to expand the definition of sexual assault.

As a woman, I am in awe of Cavanaughs resilience and willingness to fight for social justice, especially in a male-dominated workplace. However, her recent vote in opposition to LB 364, a bill that would allow low-income students to attend a private school of their familys choice via a tax credit scholarship, is an affront to poor kids.

During floor debate on April 28, Cavanaugh said, The opportunity gap isnt where you show up to school, its all the things that happen in your life before you even enter the school. Its did you get to eat? Did you get breakfast? Did you get to brush your teeth? Did you get to go see your doctor, your pediatrician? Did you get your vaccinations? Did you have shoes? Its raining out. Do your shoes have holes in them? Is your parents car working? Is the bus on time? Do you have heat? Do you have a home?
Dear Nebraska, hi from sunny Arizona! We wish our message were brighter, but unfortunately our state is a cautionary tale of what can and will go wrong when state lawmakers work with out-of-state special interests to defund local public schools. We understand the Nebraska Legislature debated LB 364 in late April, a scholarship tax credit bill that would have used tax dollars to send children to private schools for the first time in your state. We are relieved for Nebraskas sake that the bill did not advance.

If we could invent a time machine and set it for 1998, we would warn Arizonans about the incredible damage unaccountable private school tuition tax credits  vouchers  would wreak on our local, neighborhood public schools and kids.

We would tell parents that being No. 1 in school choice also means having the worst funded public schools in the nation. Wed warn lawmakers that setting up a $1 million tax credit program would eventually balloon to over $200 million taxpayer dollars being siphoned to private schools every single year, with little to no accountability or transparency. Wed show Arizona voters future news articles documenting the profiteering of these tuition credit firms, with taxpayer dollars going down the drain.
Soon after the bombing, Hamas announced that it would resume its attacks and aimed 100 rockets at the Israeli desert town of Beer-Sheva. Hamas said the renewed barrage was in response to the strike on the building. The latest rocket attack early Wednesday killed a man and his seven-year-old daughter in the central city of Lod, according to Israels Kan public radio.
Lemurs are curious-looking animals. They have wildly elongated bodies and mesmerizing eyes. Visitors to the Madagascar exhibit at the Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium can watch a variety of the little creatures frolic along tree branches in indoor and outdoor areas.

What visitors may not know is that Omahas zoo is an internationally respected institution promoting global wildlife and plant life conservation, with its work in Madagascar a prime example. Omahans can be proud that our zoo has, for decades, devoted major scientific efforts, in cooperation with global partners, to strengthen the worlds ability to sustain vulnerable animal and plant species.

The zoos website, in its section on global plant conservation, points to the value of such work: Thousands of square miles of rainforest are destroyed each year. It is estimated that for every plant species that goes extinct, 10 to 30 animal species, insect or microbe, disappear with it. Worldwide nearly one in eight plant species faces the possible threat of extinction. Yet animals and humans cannot survive without the plants that provide their food, shelter, medicine and cover.

Madagascars situation illustrates the point: Some 80% of its wildlife species are found only on that Texas-sized island.
Mothers who send their children for malaria vaccination in the Gomoa West district of the Central Region have praised the health services for introducing malaria vaccine, saying, "the malaria vaccine is very good and effective with no sign of any side effects on their children after first, second and third doses of the vaccine".



According to Madam Charity Dadzie, one of the caregivers whose child has received three doses of the malaria vaccine, the vaccine is her saviour and it is very effective.



She is waiting for the fourth and final dose when her child turns two years.



This, she said, her child frequently suffered from malaria in the past thereby receiving some scolding from the health workers whenever she visits the hospital.



This she said is because the nurses blamed her for allowing her child to be bitten by mosquitoes, adding that, "but now it has become a thing of the past. And this is very encouraging".



Another mother Madam Patience Sey also said the vaccine has truly come to help the mothers in the district, because at the time when there was no malaria vaccine, at first, her child used to get sick frequently and always diagnosed with malaria fever whenever they visit the hospital



Esther Arthur, a mother of three, explained, because of the malaria vaccination she does not visit the hospital/clinic frequently with malaria fever like she used to with her child in previous times and her child is in a good condition now, adding "now I go about testifying about the malaria vaccine to my pregnant friends".



The mothers disclosed this as part of the pilot implementation of the malaria vaccination currently underway in the three selected countries in Africa; Ghana, Malawi and Kenya. And it is expected to cover at least 600,000 children who will be receiving the first dose of the vaccine as part of World Malaria Day, which coincides with the African vaccination week.



"We think the malaria vaccine should be made compulsory at the health centers for every eligible child born, because we believe that it will help we the mothers to protect our children against malaria, mothers noted.



They indicated that as the mosquito net protects their children from mosquito bites, the malaria vaccine protects them from getting malaria.



"We only wish the disease could be eradicated from our environment permanently", they stated.



In Ghana, more than 680,000 doses of the malaria vaccine is expected to be administered, with some more than 230,000 children having received the first dose by the end of April, 2021

Source: Sally Ngissah/Peace FM News









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Minister of Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has assured the chiefs and people of the Western Region of effective collaboration to ensure that the region benefits from the oil and gas activities.

Speaking during an interaction with the members of the Western Regional House of Chiefs yesterday, he said the mandatory requirement to manage and minimise the adverse impacts of petroleum activities on the host communities would be respected.



The minister, who is on a working visit to the region, said it was important for Ghanaians to collectively support the government to ensure that maximum benefits were derived from the God-given resource and for the development of the country.



Social investment



The ministry, he said, was keen on ensuring that the oil industry invested in the communities through the companys social investment initiatives to ensure sustainable development and shared benefits.



Along the coasts, especially in the Western Region, he said there was an increase in exploration activities in the countrys offshore basin, which had resulted in the competition for space among various users of the sea.





As a result, he said reports indicated that there were increasing rates of fishing incursions by fishermen into the safety zones around the offshore installations.



These incursions, he said, currently averaged 5,000 annually, which were posing serious risks to the offshore installations and other users of marine space.



Community education





The situation, he said, was not healthy since the offshore oil and gas space remained a restricted area and must be respected.



I am appealing to you our hardworking fishing community that these zones are earmarked to also protect them and their activities and they should respect the zones as such, he told fishers.





Dr Prempeh said the government would intensify and extend community education across the coastal belt to reach other fishermen beyond the region.



That, he said, would ensure that the oil activities were not carried out at the expense of fishing and other lawful economic activities.



Safe sea access



Dr Prempeh said the ministry aimed to ensure effective community and broader stakeholder engagement as the basis for good social performance practices.



It is a delight to interact with this august House, reminding me of the unique role this House has played and is still playing in promoting development of the Western Region and Ghana in general.



I am hopeful that through this interaction, we would be able to provide and share ideas, with the view to improving on our understanding of the issues in the Energy (petroleum) sector and enhancing the welfare of the people we all represent, he said.



He added: The critical role of chieftaincy or traditional governance in nation building and national development, therefore, cannot be overemphasised,



National development



The Western Regional Minister, Mr Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, called for the support of all to ensure that the country developed faster than expected.

Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Government has with immediate effect dissolved Operation Vanguard which was dedicated to the fight against illegal gold mining menace.



The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor, reiterated this at the Meet the Press at the Ministry of Information on Tuesday, May 11, 2021.



The Minister stressed that no task force has been sanctioned to go after or harass illegal miners.



He, however, pledged the governments commitment to resolving the menace, stressing no person or mining machinery is permitted along areas that have been earmarked as red zones and a 100-meter boundary.



The red zones and 100-meter boundary are areas where no person is allowed to undertake a mining activity, Hon. Jinapor explained.



''We've also observed that some [should I say] rogue imposters are taking advantage of the atmosphere and the quest for enforcement [to go about] to go around the country harrassing small-scale entities, people who are in involved in small-scale mining. I want to clarify that what the Military are engaged is being codenamed or dubbed 'Operation Halt 2' and the Minister for Defence has been very clear about it...that relates to only the red zones, water bodies, forest reserves.



''In case of water bodies, 100 meters away from the banks of any water body in our country. Forest reserves, we are clear about them. So, that is the current ongoing operation. The Military are not involved in any other operation. If there's going to be any other operation outside the 'Operation Halt 2', that will be sanctioned by the official authorities, either by myself or Minister for Defence or National Security or whoever or the government establishment.''



He made it ''very clear that taskforces which are moving about the country harrassing small-scale miners, whether they're involved in legal or illegal mining, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has not mandated the operation of any taskforces. I believe that's very clear...The activities and operations of 'Operation Vanguard' have been suspended for the time being. Operation Vanguard is no more in operation as we speak''.



The Minister of Defence, Dominic Nitiwul, speaking at the event, also accentuated that any person caught mining within the 100-meter radius will be dealt with and their machines (excavators) burned down.



Over 200 police personnel deployed



Over 200 police officers have been deployed to various mining sites across the country to enforce the recently announced directives on artisanal mining as well as ward off illegal miners.



The deployment comes on the back of a similar deployment of officers from the Ghana Armed Forces.



Speaking at an event to dispatch the officers, Deputy Minister-designate for Mines and Natural Resources, George Mireku Duker urged them not to allow themselves to be compromised with financial inducements as this will ruin the good intentions of government.

Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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A blogger and former Deputy British High Commissioner to Ghana, Craig Murray has been sentenced to eight months in jail for abhorrent contempt of court over his coverage of the Alex Salmond trial. Mr Murray watched two days of Mr Salmonds trial in March 2020 from the public gallery of Edinburghs High Court, and wrote about it on his website. Judges subsequently ruled that Murray, 62, was in contempt of court, relating to material capable of identifying four complainers. Sentencing the former UK ambassador to Uzbekistan, Lady Dorrian said Murray knew there were court orders giving the women anonymity and he was relishing the potential disclosure of their identities.



At the virtual sentencing, Lord Justice Clerk Lady Dorrian explained that Murray deliberately risked jigsaw identification and that revealing complainers identities was abhorrent.



She said it was particularly so, given the enormous publicity which the case in question attracted and continues to attract. Murrays offending blog posts and tweets were written over a period of a month and remained up, unredacted, despite the blogger being told they could potentially lead to the identification of women who had made complaints about Mr Salmond, who was eventually acquitted of all 13 charges.



Lady Dorrian said: It appears from the posts and articles that he was in fact relishing the task he set himself, which was essentially to allow the identities of complainers to be discerned  which he thought was in the public interest  in a way which did not attract sanction.



She added: These actions create a real risk that complainers may be reluctant to come forward in future cases, particularly where the case may be high profile or likely to attract significant publicity.



The actions strike at the heart of the fair administration of justice.



Notwithstanding the previous character of the respondent and his health issues, we do not think we can dispose of this case other than by way of a sentence of imprisonment. Murray was initially given 48 hours to hand himself in to a police station, but after a challenge by his lawyer Roddy Dunlop QC, this was extended to three weeks so Murray can appeal the sentence, although he has to surrender his passport.



In his previous mitigation submission, Mr Dunlop said Murray was a man of impeccable character and previously untarnished reputation, and said it is no exaggeration to say the retired diplomat is already suffering significant punishment from the impact of the case. Mr Dunlop said sending Murray to prison would be harsh to the point of being disproportionate, and he urged judges to deal with the matter by way of a fine.



He said: Allowing that the finding of contempt has been ruled by this court to be justified, the question is whether, given all the circumstances, that justification extends yet further to countenancing imprisonment, to taking a retired diplomat with an exemplary background away from his wife, his 11-year-old son, and his baby.



For what purpose? The response might well be pour decourager les autres (French for to discourage others). If that is the purpose, job done. Mr Murrays blogging is inevitably hamstrung by the ruling itself, the decision is and has been widely publicised.



If anyone out there thinks that playing with fire in the field of jigsaw identification is a zero sum game, their views have been disabused by the ruling this court has already made.



Following the sentencing, former SNP justice secretary Kenny MacAskill said it was a sad day for Scottish justice and in a subsequently-deleted Tweet, wrote: Theres a presumption against sentences of less than a year.



In a case where an offender isnt violent, dangerous or a threat to communities a sentence less than that breached the intentions.



Time for the presumption to be made mandatory.

Source: www.forres-gazette.co.uk









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Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas, former Special Representative and Head, United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), has urged Chad to us solid democratic principles to build a sustainable society.



He said African leaders needed to be careful not to excuse the necessity to go through basics and ensure that ultimately a sustainable peaceful society was created in Chad, where all Chadians could aspire to be included in various processes and also in the benefits of the resources of the country.



Dr Chambas made the appeal in his submission during the Council on Foreign Relations-Ghana (CFR-Ghana) Virtual Conference Series dubbed, Chad After Idriss Deby  Issues and Challenges.



President Deby was assassinated on April 19, 2021, during a visit to the frontlines of the Chadian Armys fight against the Front for Alternation and Concorde in Chad (FACT) rebels.



Dr Chambas noted that the African Union (AU) already had a normative framework - protocols and mechanisms for dealing with conflict situation such as in Chad.



He said an AU Team was already in Chad conducting their facts finding work, adding that the Team would then take their findings to the Peace Security Council.



He said it was regrettable that unlike with ECOWAS, the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) did not have a very well-defined protocols on conflict mechanism for prevention, mediation, additional protocols on democracy and good governance.



So, there is a void in that regard but I think the AU is there, we have our normative framework. We need to insist on at least some minimum standards to be maintained, otherwise, bad precedence would be set and it becomes a problem down the lane, Dr Chambas said.



He noted that ECOWAS had started to collaborate rather closely with ECCAS, which perhaps would be an opportunity to rather solidarize with ECCAS regarding the situation there, which was strictly within the ECCAS domain.



This, he also said, was because of the widen implications of the situation in the Lake Chad Basin and the Sahel and the involvement of Chad through its military.



We have an interest there, dont forget that Ghana forfeited its candidature at the AU recently in solidarity with Chad, precisely because of the role that it is playing, he stated.



So, we acknowledge that role, however, at this point when some naked truths are also stirring us in the face, how do we go beyond the short term to start dealing with the situation.



The discussant at the debate all held the view that Chad had an overblown army, which was not professionally structured, they turned to be tribal youth, who were hurriedly recruited and thrown into battle, they show a lot of bravery, bravado and they win some battle field victories and but one could not talk of a professional army in Chad and that needed to be addressed going forward.



Dr Chambas said the level of poverty was incredible in a country like Chad in the midst of huge resources.



He said going forward, serious efforts were needed in achieving sustainable development that impacted the population.



He called for judicious resource utilization to avoid state capture by a family or a clan or a few elites that denied the rest of population resources and which were at the roots of all these different rebel movements that kept coming up one time or the other.



He reiterated that the nature of recruits to the Chadian Army and the nature of the resource capture by the state and governance needed to be relooked.



He said as part of efforts to promote good governance in Chad, there was the need for the participation of citizenry, the ability to do so every so often freely and in a credible manner choose their leaders.



In the short term, maybe one can accommodate some levels of Chadians particularities for a transition, but going forward there cannot be acceptance or variance to accepted norms of good governance, good democratic transitions. Weve all gone through it in countries, Dr Chambas said.



We didnt wake up one day and be a model of democracy in Africa. We went through processes where we built block by block and Chad has to start somewhere.

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.

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Some agitated Ghanaians threatened to embark on a demonstration on Sunday, May 9 to protest Presdident Akufo-Addo's governance but their plans were foiled by the Police.



The Police stopped them on grounds that there are currently restrictions on public gatherings and for fear of spreading COVID-19 wouldn't allow them to go on their protest march.



The Police acquired a restraining order from the High Court to prohibit the conveners of the protest.



But the action of the Police has received a public backlash and without cowering, a section of the citizens embarked on a virtual protest.



Joining the people to lambast the Police is the National Chairman of the Progressive People's Party (PPP).



Nana Ofori Owusu, speaking on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo', found the Police excuse for hampering the #fixthecountry protest on Sunday very lame.



To him, the Police using the COVID-19 restrictions as their caveat against the protest is neither here nor there because, to him, the fact there is the presence of the viral disease in the country doesn't mean no one can embark on demonstrations.



Nana Ofori Owusu wouldn't buy the reasons by the Police, because to him, it's the civil right of the citizenry to complain when the government is underperforming.



He asked, "So, until we get vaccines for our country for which we don't have any short term solution for it, no citizen can go out and express themselves? . . . When are we going to vaccinate the rest of the country that will allow us to go on a demonstration?"



He called on the Police not to infringe on the rights of the protesters, stressing ''allow the people to go; just allow them".





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









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Nana Ofori Owusu, PPP National Chairman, says the Police should allow the #fixthecountry conveners to embark on their protest march irrespective of the COVID-19 restrictions on public gatherings.



The conveners scheduled Sunday, May 9, 2021 for their protest march to register their displeasure with the administration of President Nana Akufo-Addo but they were stopped by the Police.



The Police argued that the protest defies the public gathering restrictions.



Preventing the protesters, the Police acquired a restraining order from the High Court which read the conveners, their associates and all parties interested in taking the protest march are ''prohibited from embarking on any demonstration on Sunday, 9th May, 2021 or any other date until the restriction on public gathering is lifted by the appropriate authority''.



Speaking on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo' programme, Nana Ofori rebuked the Police for prohibiting the protest.



He asked the Police if they will equally stop political parties from holding their primaries, stressing what they have done to the #fixthecountry protesters means that, "all political activities henceforth will also have to be stopped".



"Are we going to do that? When it comes to political activities, when someone is going for primaries and so forth, is the Police going to come and also impose that on the political activities?'' he further questioned.



He admonished the Police to, "allow the people to go; just allow them'' on their demonstration because, to him, nothing bad will happen when they do so.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Kwadaso (MP), Dr Kingsley Nyarko, has called for effective collaboration between Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) and their Members of Parliament (MPs) to stimulate development in their various constituencies.

According to him, closer working relations between the two parties would not only help to bring the needed development but also peace and harmony in constituencies.



Meeting



Speaking at a town hall meeting organised at Tanoso, Dr Nyarko said unity between key stakeholders and leadership from the various interest groups was key to community building and development.



The meeting, the eighth in the series, was to afford the MP and the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Richmond Agyenim Boateng, the opportunity to learn at first hand the challenges facing residents and how best they could work together to resolve them.



Platform



Dr Nyarko said the town hall meeting was to provide residents the platform to discuss the development of their communities and suggest means of resolving them.



He took the opportunity to thank the people for voting for him to represent them in Parliament and appealed to them to unite and support him and the MCE to bring the needed development to the area.



He presented quantities of nose masks, hand sanitisers and LED bulbs to the assembly member for Tanoso, Mr Richard Kofi Karikari, for distribution to the people in the area.



Dr Nyarko also donated four motorbikes to some police stations to help fight against crime in the constituency.



The beneficiaries were the Asuoyeboah North, Tanoso, Apire and Sofoline police stations.



The MP said it was important for community members to decide projects which were of priority to them for consideration and implementation and pledged to work closely with the MCE to beef up security in the area.



Rally



Mr Richmond Agyenim Boateng, on his part, appealed to the people to rally behind the assembly to help bring the needed development in the area.



He said the government was committed to completing the Tanoso-Abuakwa road and asked them to be patient as the government continued to work on the ongoing project.



The Abuakwa District Police Commander, Police Chief Superintendent, Yaw Asubonteng, who received the motorbikes, expressed gratitude to the MP for supporting the police to fight crime.



He appealed to the people to involve themselves and establish community watchdogs to support the police to combat crime.



The Assembly Member for Tanoso, Mr Richard Kofi Karikari, praised the MP for engaging residents to know the challenges facing them and finding the best ways that could be used to resolve them.





Source: graphiconline.com









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A Senior Lecturer at the Department of Political Science of the University of Ghana, Dr Alidu Seidu, has said the adoption of a one man, one vote system by political parties to elect their flag bearers will help deepen internal party democracy in the country.



That, he said, was because it would expand the franchise to every qualified party member to vote in the election of a flag bearer.



The good thing is that when you do one man, one vote, you are expanding the franchise. It means every person who is qualified as a party member can vote and that deepens internal party democracy which can catapult to the national level, Dr Seidu told the Daily Graphic.



He was sharing his thoughts on suggestions made by another Senior Lecturer at the Department of Political Science, University of Ghana, Prof. Ransford Gyampo, for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to adopt the system to elect its flag bearer for the 2024 election.



Challenges



Dr Seidu said in spite of the benefit of the system, it came with some challenges, one of which was the financial implication of using such a system.





The biggest challenge is the money to run it. To be honest with you, it means you will do double elections among your membership. It is expensive in the sense that the party has to spend so much money to get it done across the country and it is also expensive for those who will be running for the position because rather than target a few delegates, you have to go to the 16 regions, polling stations, every electoral area and constituency to campaign, he explained.



In addition to that, he said, was the issue of infiltration by opposing party members, citing the situation when the National Democratic Congress (NDC) used a similar system with the allegation of NPP members infiltrating the ranks of the NDC as an example.



Those that infiltrate the system can vote to elect an incompetent candidate who will lose in the general election, he said.





The political scientist agreed that if political parties could have an up-to-date voters register and update it every six months, that could also help address the problem of infiltration.



So if they can start from there by keeping an accurate voters register of members across the length and breadth of the country, it will be good, he said.











Source: graphiconline.com









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The Lubbock Police Department said in a statement that it was heartbroken to learn of the deaths and that its officers on Tuesday would escort the deputies bodies to a forensics lab in Lubbock, which is about 200 miles northwest of Eden.
Ghana does not need an office of special prosecutor in the fight against corruption, a member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) who is based in the United States, Dr Arthur Kennedy, has said.



Dr Arthur Kennedy told Dzifa Bampoh on the First Take on 3FM Tuesday May 11 that what Ghana needs is a president who has the will to fight corruption and also punish his own appointees who are neck deep in graft.





President Nana Addo Dankwa promised to create an Office of Special Prosecutor as part of his measures to deal with corruption.

Accordingly, he established the office.



A new Special Prosecutor, Mr Kissi Agyebeng has been nominated and forwarded to Parliament for vetting and approval following the resignation of Mr Martin Amidu as the first person to occupy that office.



Assessing the Presidents performance in the area of corruption fight, Dr Arthur Kennedy said Mr Akufo-Addo has failed in tackling the menace in his government and in the country in general.



He told Dzifa that although the president has achieved some successes, his major failure is in his inability to fight gr5fat.



I think to be balanced the current administration and this president have done some good things. I thought Dagbon was handled very well, I think that the new regions were good, I think Africa Free Trade Zones were good. But I think in all candor, the presidents most significant failing has been corruption.



I think that his reputation as an incorruptible person has been dented significantly in his first term.



At the end of the day I hear all those people like Kennedy Agyapong who express so much sympathy for the president that he is being failed by his appointees. But If your friends keep turning out to be thieves after sometime people will think you are a thief too. Presidents should [pick people who will not fail them.



So to the extent that his appointees have failed him then he bears some of the responsibility. I think good intentions are not enough. If you ask me that is my major areas disappointment. I think looking at the presidents legacy he needs to do more work on fighting corruption.



I never thought that the Special Prosecutor was really going to make a difference. I think at the end of the day we dont need a good special prosecutor who will fight corruption. We need a president who will not tolerate corruption, a president who will appoint people who will are not corruption, a president who will sack corrupt officials , a president who will not tolerate excuses.



Dr Arthur Kenney also noted that the problems facing Ghana that have occasioned the #Fixthecountry movement existed before President Akufo-Addo became president of the land.



Nonetheless, the former Communication Director of the NPP said, the president and his team must make it a priority to address all those concerns.



He told Dzifa that the concerns raised by conveners of the movement are legitimate.



Some Ghanaians have asked the president to immediately fix the challenges that the nation is currently saddled with.



These challenges include graduate unemployment and unemployment in general, erratic power supply, poor road network, escalating fuel prices and others.



The former Flageaberer hopeful of the NPP said the movement was a long time coming. I thought that Sam Jonahs speech in a certain sense crystalized the frustrations that a lot of people were feeling.



These problems predate the current president but it is time to fix them. I think that the men and women on the streets were taking the president up on his call to be citizens, not spectators.



So, I thought it should be commended. Whether maybe some people may have political motives or not, is not the point because the most important thing is that the issues that they are calling for actions on are legitimate, they are important and they will move the nation forward. So, we should take what they are saying on board and work on it.



These are problems that have been building for some time.







Source: 3news.com









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Activist Joseph Canlas died today of COVID-19 inside a Pampanga jail, days after his colleagues mounted a public campaign to convince authorities to free him from detention.

Canlas, the vice-chairperson of the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), was arrested on March 30 in Mexico town by the Pampanga police for the alleged illegal possession of firearms and explosives. The 58-year-old land defenders capture was allegedly illegal, and prior to this, he was constantly accused of being a communist.

Read: Quezon City community pantry shuts due to red-tagging

According to the KMP, he was detained in Angeles City, where was put in quarantine with at least 100 prisoners. By May 7, Canlas appeared ill and was stuttering during a phone call with relatives. He was also feeling weak, had difficulty breathing, and needed help eating and walking. He was rushed to a hospital on May 8 over suspicions that he had a COVID-induced stroke and succumbed to a coma two days later. He died this morning due to what the KMP described as grave government neglect and deprivation of necessary health and medical attention.

Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) officer Rebecca Manalo-Tiguelo, the chief of the Angeles City jail, belittled Canlas illness, the KMP said. Tiguelo allegedly said that Canlas was umaarte lang or was just pretending to be ill. The organization also blamed the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict for red-tagging Canlas, Judge Maria Angelica Paras-Quiambao for issuing the warrant that led to the peasant leaders arrest, and the Philippine National Police.

We could only blame the Duterte government for Canlas untimely death. The states brutal fascism killed Canlas who was exposed to COVID while in detention and under the custody of the BJMP. His unjust detention led to the swift deterioration of his health condition, the KMP said.

Read: Fact-Check Yourself, Duterte: UP denies it recruits for communist party

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The KMP sent its sincerest condolences to Canlas family.

We will turn our grief into strong indignation and protest this government that kills its people. We call on all our fellow land reform advocates, human rights advocates, communities, and institutions to join us in demanding justice for Joseph Canlas, the organization added.

Human rights organization Amnesty International has urged the Duterte government to stop its widespread practice of red-tagging, saying that it was vicious and at times, deadly. The Philippines has the longest communist insurgency in Asia, and the Duterte government has exerted all efforts to end it. However, some Filipinos have said that the administration is persecuting human rights defenders and legitimate dissenters in an effort to quash the rebellion.

This article, Peasant leader dies of COVID-19 in Pampanga jail, originally appeared on Coconuts, Asia's leading alternative media company.
Could the great British cuppa be under threat? (Getty)

The great British cuppa could be at risk from climate change, as rising temperatures threaten crops in the biggest tea-growing countries, a report from Christian Aid has warned.

In tea-growing countries such as Kenya and Ceylon, tea growers fear for their livelihoods, as climate change will cut optimal conditions for tea production in Kenya by 26% by 2050.

In areas such as Assam and Darjeeling, climate change could lead to increased rainfall, leading to inferior-tasting tea, the report warned.

The researchers wrote: "Tea is the most consumed drink in the world after water and its the most popular hot beverage in the UK with three-quarters of the population drinking at least one cup a day.

However climate change is threatening the future of the British cuppa.

Rising temperatures, drought, erratic rainfall and flash floods are taking their toll on the key tea growing regions of the world, damaging the delicate leaves that go into our teabags and ruining the livelihoods of the people who grow and pick those leaves.

Read more: Melting snow in Himalayas drives growth of green sea slime visible from space

In Kenya, tea growing areas are under threat from volatile temperatures and increased rainfall, the researchers warned.

A survey of 700 farmers in seven of Kenyas tea-growing regions by the UNs Food and Agriculture Agency found that 43% of the farmers had noticed changes in rainy and dry seasons, which impacted planting season.

Areas with only average growing conditions will see production fall by 39% by mid-century.

Big British tea brands and the Fairtrade Foundation have also raised concerns about the impact climate change is having on tea growers and the future of production.

Dr Kat Kramer, Christian Aids climate policy lead, said: This year the UK government has a key role in overseeing the global response to the climate emergency.

As host of both the G7 in June and the COP26 climate summit in November, the UK can ensure that countries on the front line of this crisis can adapt and respond to the impacts of climate change.

Story continues

Watch: No storm in a teacup as research finds climate change threatens future of the British cuppa

Read more: A 1988 warning about climate change was mostly right

With countries starting to announce improved climate plans, there is a unique opportunity to accelerate cuts in emissions and boost the finance needed to help countries adapt to the changing climate.

The warning comes as the UK prepares to host the G7 meeting of major economies next month.

Boris Johnson has said that climate, and finance for poor countries to cope with global warming, will be centre stage at the G7 meeting.

Britain will also host key UN COP26 climate talks in Glasgow in November.

Richard Koskei, 72, a tea farmer from Kericho in Kenyas Western Highlands, said: We are proud that the tea that we grow here is the best in the world but climate change poses a real threat to us.

We cannot predict seasons anymore, temperatures are rising, rainfall is more erratic, more often accompanied by unusual hailstones and longer droughts which was not the case in the past.

If this continues then it will make growing tea much harder and life for us extremely difficult.

Watch: Sophisticated hamster enjoys afternoon tea
Sidestream Elevated Pool Aeration station in Cal-Sag and Calumet River.

As city populations boom and the need grows for sustainable energy and water, scientists and engineers with the University of Chicago and partners are looking towards artificial intelligence to build new systems to deal with wastewater. Two new projects will test out ways to make "intelligent" water systems to recover nutrients and clean water.

"Water is an indispensable resource of our society, as it is required for sustaining life and economic prosperity," said Junhong Chen, the Crown Family Professor in the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago and lead water strategist at Argonne National Laboratory. "Our future economy and national security greatly depend on the availability of clean water. However, there is a limited supply of renewable freshwater, with no substitute."

Reduce, reuse

The U.S. Department of Energy announced that UChicago, along with Argonne National Laboratory, Northwestern University and other partners, will receive funding to develop an artificial intelligence-assisted system for recovery of energy, nutrients and freshwater from municipal wastewater.

The ultimate goal of the project, which will be funded at $2 million over three years, is to transform the existing U.S. treatment system for municipal wastewater into an intelligent water resource recovery system that will dramatically reduce energy consumption and become energy positive at a national scale.

The resulting water recovery system would benefit the water supply in underserved communities on Chicago's South Side as well as the Great Lakes region in general, including Milwaukee and Detroit.

MWRD connects Des Plaines Inflow Tunnel to McCook reservoir construction. Credit: MWRD

"This project is an important step forward in realizing Argonne's strategic plan to enhance our leadership in water-related science through pioneering research, discoveries and innovations using artificial intelligence," said Chen.

The approach will combine artificial intelligence and machine learning for online learning of system dynamics, mathematical modeling for optimizing energy and nutrient recovery, and life-cycle analysis and modeling with respect to both the science and economics to guide system design. It will also involve development of novel materials for efficient solar steam generation and wireless sensors for real-time water quality monitoring.

The intelligent system concept for municipal wastewater recovery should also be applicable to other wastewaters, including industrial and agricultural.

The other partners include the Great Lakes Water Authority, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, NanoAffix and two regional water innovation hubsCurrent and the Water Council. The award is part of a slate of Department of Energy projects totaling $27.5 million for 16 water infrastructure projects to reduce energy use and carbon emissions in our aging water infrastructure, particularly in wastewater treatment.

In addition to Chen, the project team members include Seth Darling of Argonne, Jennifer Dunn of Northwestern University and Argonne, George Wells of Northwestern University, and Asst. Prof. Yuxin Chen of the University of Chicago.

Des Plaines tunnel system construction with water. Credit: MWRD

Removing toxic water contaminants

Another project seeks to use AI in molecular engineering to detect and remove water contaminants.

Water-contaminating chemicals such as polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, may lead to severe environmental and health effects, such as low infant birth weight, cancer, and thyroid hormone disruption. The current approaches for detecting these chemicals are expensive, time-consuming, and require bulky equipment and skilled personnel. The vast number of contaminantsover 4,000 in the PFAS family alonealso prohibit conventional development of biological or chemical probes.

A project headed by University of Chicago and Argonne scientists will develop a platform using molecular simulation, organic synthesis, and artificial intelligence to rapidly explore the large molecular space of potential PFAS probes and efficiently identify, design, and fabricate new chemical probes for sensing and removing contaminants from water.

The work, which partners with Current, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, will also advance data science, characterization at the Argonne Advanced Photon Source, and high-performance simulation. The scientists hope it could potentially transfer to the screening and removal of other water contaminants, such as pharmaceuticals, to advance global public health. It is funded through the Discovery Challenge program from the Center for Data and Computing (CDAC), with support from UChicago's Office of Research and National Laboratories Joint Task Force Initiative.

Project scientists include Junhong Chen, Stuart Rowan, and Andrew Ferguson of the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, Rebecca Willett and Eric Jonas of the UChicago Computer Science department, Seth Darling of the Pritzker School and Argonne, and Sang Soo Lee and Chris Benmore of Argonne.

Explore further Water strategist addresses questions on managing our precious water resources
A ceremonial tsantsaor shrunken headwas authenticated and repatriated to Ecuador in 2019, after it had been discovered amongst stored exhibits at Mercer University. The history of the artefact and the process of its authenticationwhich involved CT scans and assessment of 33 criteria such skin and hair featuresare described in a study published in Heritage Science.

Tsantsas are unique and valuable artefacts that were produced by the Shuar, Achuar, Awajun/ Aguaruna, Wampis/Huambisa, and Candoshi-Shampra (SAAWC) peoples until the mid-20th century. They were made from the heads of enemies slain during combat in a labour-intensive, multi-step process. Tsantsas became valuable as keepsakes during the 19th century as a result of Western/European cultural encroachment, and unmet demand resulted in the production of convincing forgeries. As a result, repatriation of tsantsas to their places of origin requires prior authentication.

A team of researchers at Mercer University, USA report the authentication and repatriation of a ceremonial tsantsa discovered in the natural history collection of Mercer University and described in the personal memoirs of the original collectora deceased faculty member of Mercer Universityas having originated in the Ecuadorean Amazon. The authors examined the anatomy of the tsantsa using computed tomography (CT).

They found that the tsantsa had the structural hallmarks of a ceremonial artefact, such as the size of the head, which was about as large as an adult human fist, and three holes in the upper and lower lips, joined together with a vegetal fibre, which are common in other ceremonial examples. The tsantsa also showed a distinctive, three-tiered hairstyle consistent with hair worn by SAAWC culture group members.

In total, the authors were able to affirm 30 of 33 authenticating indicators provided by Ecuador's National Cultural Heritage Institute and found in the academic literature, including evidence of traditional fabrication and modification. Although the authors caution that some of the authentic tsantsa characteristics might have been damaged as a result of it being used as a prop in the 1979 John Huston film Wise Blood, the findings allowed them to conclude that the artefact was a genuine, ceremonial tsantsa and not a forgery. The results of the authentication were accepted by the Ecuadorean government, and the tsantsa was repatriated in June 2019.

The authors also produced a to-scale 3-D replica of the tsantsa, suggesting that 3-D printed reproductions may be useful as enhancements, and in some cases even replacements for, authentic artefacts in cultural and historical education.

Explore further Science puts historical claims to the test

More information: Byron et al. The authentication and repatriation of a ceremonial tsantsa to its country of origin (Ecuador) Heritage Science 2021, Byron et al. The authentication and repatriation of a ceremonial tsantsa to its country of origin (Ecuador)2021, DOI: 10.1186/s40494-021-00518-z
Aggregated visits by industry type. Stay-at-home orders reduced visits to all industries overall last spring, and some venues, such as leisure (which includes restaurants and bars) remaining well below their pre-pandemic levels as of late last year. Credit: Andrew Renninger and Ken Steif

Just over a year since the pandemic led to shut-downs and stay-at-home orders across the world, the rollout of vaccines and gradual reopening of long-shuttered parts of the economy have many wondering when life will return to a pre-pandemic normal. But amidst the numerous changes this past year to how people work, shop, travel, and go about their day-to-day routines, how close is society to getting back to the way things were before COVID-19?

In an analysis presented at the GISRUK conference, geospatial researcher Andrew Renninger found that overall mobility in large cities in the United States has yet to return to pre-pandemic levels. Using tools from geographic information system (GIS) analysis and data science, this study also found that some of these cities are experiencing changing segregation patterns, with potential implications on the structure of metropolitan areas that could last well beyond the pandemic.

Renninger is a senior research coordinator at the Wharton Geospatial Initiative, a team that helps researchers in economics, business, and real estate incorporate spatial analysis into their work. He is also working towards a degree in the Master's of Urban Spatial Analytics (MUSA) program in the Stuart Weitzman School of Design and the Penn Institute for Urban Research and is studying the impacts of COVID-19 on mobility with Ken Steif, MUSA program director and associate professor of practice.

In March of 2020, SafeGraph reached out to the Wharton GIS Lab with an interest in understanding the impact of the pandemic on mobility and provided Renninger and his team with a massive dataset of mobile phone counts. Renninger decided to focus his analysis on "superstar cities," a term coined by economists in a 2006 paper for cities with high real estate demand and inelastic supply that leads to rising housing prices relative to median income, with examples in the U.S. including San Francisco, Seattle, and New York.

"There's a huge debate raging in terms of if these expensive cities will ever get back to their 2019 baseline or if people will flee for good," says Renninger. "What we want to look at is whether the pandemic is going to change these big cities forever or will they bounce back, which is why we're looking at big cities in particular."

The number of visits to different parts of Philadelphia on a monthly basis throughout 2020. The interconnectedness of the city was dramatically changed by the pandemic, with the largest decline seen in Center City. Credit: Andrew Renninger and Ken Steif

Starting last spring, Renninger began to analyze millions of individual smartphones at different locations. Using this dataset, Renninger can study movements between an individual's point of origin and destination to see if there were any changes to mobility networks across time and space in 100 of the largest cities in the U.S.

One of the things that immediately stands out to Renninger is how "night and day" mobility still is in large U.S. cities. In Philadelphia specifically, leisure industries, such as restaurants and bars, are still experiencing greatly reduced footfall from January of last year, and the Center City area of Philadelphia has seen more than a 70% reduction in traffic from its typical peak. "The data tell a stark story of how little we are doing compared to before the pandemic," he says. "The visuals show a huge drop, and it probably will take a long time for things to get back to normal."

In addition to this general and continued reduction in movement, Renninger's analysis showed an increase in segregation in cities like San Francisco and New York. In these cities, there was an increase in community homogeneity, with people less likely to interact with neighborhoods that differ from their own. Renninger also found that degree centrality, or how many other neighborhoods a person visits outside their own, and network density, or how connections between neighborhoods became sparser or denser, both decreased dramatically during the pandemic and have yet to return to pre-pandemic levels.

"As visits declined, neighborhoods realigned," says Renninger. "People are going to fewer new neighborhoods, and the consequence is that people are less likely to interact with people from other races, so we've become more segregated. That has profound consequences in terms of the purpose of a city, and it's a big deal if people don't interact with each other."

This analysis and the methods developed by Renninger to obtain insights from this complex dataset have potential implications for city planners and officials who will need to understand the way that large cities might be changing because of COVID-19. This could include shifting transportation needs, better access to green space, and providing more decentralized amenities such as restaurants and gathering spaces if downtowns fundamentally change post-pandemic.

Continued monitoring of mobility patterns will also be crucial to understand, track, and test hypotheses around how cities might be changing moving forward, Renninger says. "The task for the next year will be to keep monitoring if people are going back to what they were doing or if there's going to be a drift, and this data really calls to that," he says.

Explore further Research explores human migration changes during the COVID-19 pandemic

More information: The Pandemic and Changing Patterns of Segregation in America. The Pandemic and Changing Patterns of Segregation in America. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.4669958
Elements of a newly discovered process in plate tectonics include a mass (rock slab weight), a pulley (trench), a dashpot (microcontinent), and a string (oceanic plate) that connects these elements to each other. In the initial state, the microcontinent drifts towards the subduction zone (Figure a). The microcontinent then extends during its journey to the subduction trench owing to the tensional force applied by the pull of the rock slab pull across the subduction zone (Figure b). Finally, the microcontinent accretes to the overriding plate and resists subduction due to its low density, causing the down-going slab to break off (Figure c). Credit: Erkan Gun/University of Toronto

Geoscientists at the University of Toronto (U of T) and Istanbul Technical University have discovered a new process in plate tectonics which shows that tremendous damage occurs to areas of Earth's crust long before it should be geologically altered by known plate-boundary processes, highlighting the need to amend current understandings of the planet's tectonic cycle.

Plate tectonics, an accepted theory for over 60 years that explains the geologic processes occurring below the surface of Earth, holds that its outer shell is fragmented into continent-sized blocks of solid rock, called "plates," that slide over Earth's mantle, the rocky inner layer above the planet's core. As the plates drift around and collide with each other over million-years-long periods, they produce everything from volcanoes and earthquakes to mountain ranges and deep ocean trenches, at the boundaries where the plates collide.

Now, using supercomputer modelling, the researchers show that the plates on which Earth's oceans sit are being torn apart by massive tectonic forces even as they drift about the globe. The findings are reported in a study published this week in Nature Geoscience.

The thinking up to now focused only on the geological deformation of these drifting plates at their boundaries after they had reached a subduction zone, such as the Marianas Trench in the Pacific Ocean where the massive Pacific plate dives beneath the smaller Philippine plate and is recycled into Earth's mantle.

The new research shows much earlier damage to the drifting plate further away from the boundaries of two colliding plates, focused around zones of microcontinentscontinental crustal fragments that have broken off from main continental masses to form distinct islands often several hundred kilometers from their place of origin.

"Our work discovers that a completely different part of the plate is being pulled apart because of the subduction process, and at a remarkably early phase of the tectonic cycle," said Erkan Gun, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Earth Sciences in the Faculty of Arts & Science at U of T and lead author of the study.

Elements of a newly discovered process in plate tectonics include a mass (rock slab weight), a pulley (trench), a dashpot (microcontinent), and a string (oceanic plate) that connects these elements to each other.In the initial state, the microcontinent drifts towards the subduction zone (Figure a).The microcontinent then extends during its journey to the subduction trench owing to the tensional force applied by the pull of the rock slab pull across the subduction zone (Figure b).Finally, the microcontinent accretes to the overriding plate and resists subduction due to its low density, causing the down-going slab to break off. Credit: Erkan Gun/University of Toronto

The researchers term the mechanism a "subduction pulley" where the weight of the subducting portion that dives beneath another tectonic plate, pulls on the drifting ocean plate and tears apart the weak microcontinent sections in an early phase of potentially significant damage.

"The damage occurs long before the microcontinent fragment reaches its fate to be consumed in a subduction zone at the boundaries of the colliding plates," said Russell Pysklywec, professor and chair of the Department of Earth Sciences at U of T, and a coauthor of the study. He says another way to look at it is to think of the drifting ocean plate as an airport baggage conveyor, and the microcontinents are like pieces of luggage travelling on the conveyor.

"The conveyor system itself is actually tearing apart the luggage as it travels around the carousel, before the luggage even reaches its owner."

The researchers arrived at the results following a mysterious observation of major extension of rocks in alpine regions in Italy and Turkey. These observations suggested that the tectonic plates that brought the rocks to their current location were already highly damaged prior to the collisional and mountain-building events that normally cause deformation.

"We devised and conducted computational Earth models to investigate a process to account for the observations," said Gun. "It turned out that the temperature and pressure rock histories that we measured with the virtual Earth models match closely with the enigmatic rock evolution observed in Italy and Turkey."

According to the researchers, the findings refine some of the fundamental aspects of plate tectonics and call for a revised understanding of this fundamental theory in geoscience.

"Normally we assumeand teachthat the ocean plate conveyor is too strong to be damaged as it drifts around the globe, but we prove otherwise," said Pysklywec.

Explore further Flare ups and crustal removal in northeast Japan

More information: Erkan Gun et al, Pre-collisional extension of microcontinental terranes by a subduction pulley, Nature Geoscience (2021). Journal information: Nature Geoscience Erkan Gun et al, Pre-collisional extension of microcontinental terranes by a subduction pulley,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41561-021-00746-9
Red fluorescent detector proteins in fruit flies reveal detection from an actual copying experiment (left) and how perfect copying would appear (right). Fluorescent cells in the left panel also lack the function of a pigmentation gene called "pale" due to copying of the CopyCatcher element, which eliminates function of both copies of the pale gene. Control flies in the right panel, which have only one copy of the pale gene disrupted by insertion of the CopyCatcher (one functional copy of the gene), have bright red cells and normal bristle pigmentation throughout the body. Credit: Zhiqian Li

Researchers at the University of California San Diego have laid the groundwork for a potential new type of gene therapy using novel CRISPR-based techniques.

Working in fruit flies and human cells, research led by UC San Diego Postdoctoral Scholar Zhiqian Li in Division of Biological Sciences Professor Ethan Bier's laboratory demonstrates that new DNA repair mechanisms could be designed to address the effects of debilitating diseases and damaged cell conditions.

The scientists developed a novel genetic sensor called a 'CopyCatcher,' which capitalizes on CRISPR-based gene drive technology, to detect instances in which a genetic element is copied precisely from one chromosome to another throughout cells in the body of a fruit fly.

Details are explained in the journal Nature Communications.

Gene-drive technology is being developed to copy and distribute desired traits in reproductive cells of the body (sperm and eggs), which allows these traits to be spread throughout populationspotentially preventing transmission of insect-vectored diseases such as malaria and fortifying agricultural crops. For human health applications, next-generation CopyCatcher systems will measure how often such perfect copying might take place in different cells of the human body. As this system detects a very high rate of copying in fruit flies, similar success in human cells would allow scientists to make desired precise genome edits throughout the body, and particularly in cells that rely on the function of that gene for normal health.

"These studies provide a clear proof of principle for a new type of gene therapy in which one copy of a mutated gene could be repaired from a partially intact second copy of the gene," said Bier, senior author of the Nature Communications study and science director for the Tata Institute for Genetics and Society-UC San Diego. "The need for such a design occurs in genetic situations with patients with inherited genetic disorders, if their parents were carriers for two different mutations in the same gene."

Bier says the strategy of fixing a mutated gene in its normal context within the genome differs greatly from current gene therapy strategies in which a surrogate copy of a gene is placed at a different site in the genome and acts as a crude "patch."

"This method restores enough gene activity to allow the patient to limp by," said Bier. "In these cases, genes are often activated in cells where they should normally be silent and may not be activated in others where they should be."

If the high efficiency of precise in vivo gene editing detected by CopyCatchers in fruit flies could be achieved in human cells, then a variety of genetic disorders might be treated including blood diseases, diseases affecting vision or hearing and diseases targeting specific organs such as muscular dystrophy, cystic fibrosis (lung and kidney) and congenital heart defects.

"This restorative form of gene therapy would represent a major improvement over existing methods in which a functional copy of the gene is typically activated in all cells of the body but in an abnormal pattern," said Li.

Although the researchers detected highly efficient copying of genetic information in three genes active in different tissues of the fly body (eyes, epidermis and embryonic cells), this ability to copy information from one chromosome to another was less efficient in human cells (4-8% of cells) than in flies (in 30-50% of cells), the researchers found. However, in human cells where specific cuts were made to one chromosome using CRISPR, the researchers rigorously established that the other chromosome could be used to repair the damage resulting in a genetic element being precisely copied into the cut site. Moreover, measures to improve copying in flies also translated to enhanced copying in human cells suggesting that further research may increase the efficiency of human in vivo genetic repair.

CopyCatchers are designed based on the fact that cells have two copies of each chromosome. In its starting location, a CopyCatcher is rendered inactive, preventing it from producing a red fluorescent detector protein. If the CopyCatcher copies itself precisely to the other chromosome, however, then it can free itself from the constraint imposed on the original element thereby leading to cells becoming fluorescent. The fraction of red fluorescing cells tabulated throughout a tissue is a quantitative indicator of the frequency of precise CRISPR editing. Since cells of the body have been thought to be relatively recalcitrant to precise CRISPR editing, it was surprising that CopyCatchers reveal an unexpected potential of cells throughout the body to do so, such as in the eyes and in the epidermis.

In the next series of planned experiments Li and colleagues in the Bier lab will use CopyCatchers and related systems to further optimize the efficiency of corrective editing and develop model systems for human diseases to enhance the efficacy this technology for gene therapy applications.

Explore further New approach to gene therapy can correct any disease-causing mutation within a gene

More information: Zhiqian Li et al. CopyCatchers are versatile active genetic elements that detect and quantify inter-homolog somatic gene conversion, Nature Communications (2021). Journal information: Nature Communications Zhiqian Li et al. CopyCatchers are versatile active genetic elements that detect and quantify inter-homolog somatic gene conversion,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22927-1
Quail Ridge Reserve following a 2020 wildfire. The barren patches were formerly chaparral that burned at high severity. Credit: Jesse Miller

Lichen communities may take decadesand in some cases up to a centuryto fully return to chaparral ecosystems after wildfire, finds a study from the University of California, Davis, and Stanford University.

The study, published today in the journal Diversity and Distributions, is the most comprehensive to date of long-term lichen recolonization after fire.

Unlike conifer forests, chaparral systems in California are historically adapted to high-intensity firesthey burn hot, fast and tend to regenerate quickly. However, with more frequent fires predicted under a drier, warming climate and more ignitions occurring amid a growing human population in these areas, the study indicates that lichen communities may not receive the window of opportunity they need to return to chaparral shrublands after wildfire.

"In chaparral systems, lichens can come back 20 to 30 years after fire, but if you get into more frequent burning several times in a short time period, it may be there isn't a place for these lichens," said co-leading author Alexandra Weill, who conducted the research while a graduate student researcher in the UC Davis Department of Plant Sciences.

Overlooked and all around

Lichens are complex organisms born from a symbiosis of fungi and algae. Overlooked and yet all around, they present a variety of colorful and intricate shapes and patterns along the rocks, branches and floor of forests and other biomes. They not only provide food for wildlife, they also help retain moisture in their environmentsan increasingly important service in dry chaparral systems.

Lichen attach to a branch at UC Davis Quail Ridge Reserve. A UC Davis study finds it can take lichens 20 to 30 years to recolonize an area after wildfire. Credit: Alexandra Weill

"There's also value to biodiversity itself," said co-leading author Jesse Miller, a UC Davis postdoctoral researcher at the time of the study and currently a lecturer at Stanford. "In our study, plant diversity was low under the dense shrub canopy. But we could find dozens of lichen species in the same area. If we lose these lichens, we're losing a lot of the actual biodiversity that's there."

To test how lichens recolonized in chaparral systems after fire, the scientists in 2018 sampled lichen communities at two UC Davis natural reservesQuail Ridge and nearby Stebbins Cold Canyon in Napa and Solano counties. Using records from CAL FIRE and Quail Ridge Reserve, they identified fire boundaries that occurred within the reserves since 1950. They sampled five fires: the 1953 T. Viue Fire, 1988 Resort Fire, 2005 Pleasure Fire, an unnamed 1996 fire and the 2015 Wragg Fire.

After identifying plots to survey at these locations, they crawled under the chaparral to document every lichen species they could find and its abundance.

They found that fire-intolerant species like lichens may be slow to recolonize landscapes after high-severity fire. Most chaparral lichen taxa could be lost if fire intervals shorten to less than 20 years, which has already occurred in some parts of California, the study said.

The UC Davis Quail Reserve in 2018, before wildfire burned the area, which is mostly composed of oak woodland and chaparral. Credit: Jesse Miller

The UC Davis Quail Ridge Natural Reserve after a 2020 wildfire. Credit: Jesse Miller

Old-growth lichens, including Usnea spp., Flavoparmelia caperata, Physcia rhizinata, Evernia prunastri, Cetraria merellii, Polycauliona sp., and Parmelia sp., drape off a branch in chaparral shrubland at the Quail Ridge Reserve. Credit: Jesse Miller

Old-growth chaparral

The researchers also compared the species richness of lichens found in these previously burned areas to old-growth chaparral sites with no recorded fire history. They found such old-growth vegetation may promote biodiversity, and the study highlights its value.

"Old-growth chaparral doesn't have the charisma of a redwood forest," Miller said. "Most people wouldn't recognize it as a 100-year-old plus mini-forest if they walk by. But all ecosystems have old-growth states of unique species that don't occur in areas of recent disturbance. Our study builds on the idea that we need to recognize the value of communities that take a long time to form."

Management strategy

The study suggests a land management strategy that aims for "a well-maintained mosaic of land types," including areas of old-growth chaparral and areas that are managed with prescribed fire. Such a strategy, when paired with prevention and home protection efforts, could help reduce fire risk while maximizing cultural and ecological value.

"For most Californians, chaparral shrublands are the closest and most accessible ecosystems we have," said Weill. "If you're going to Mt. Tam, you're hiking in chaparral. If you're hiking in LA, you're in chaparral. For the average Californian, this is what's most likely in your backyard. But that's also what makes it an issue because these are the fires threatening your home."

Explore further Lichen is losing to wildfire, years after flames are gone

More information: Epiphytic macrolichen communities take decades to recover after highseverity wildfire in chaparral shrublands.Diversity and Distributions, doi.org/10.1111/ddi.13295 Journal information: Diversity and Distributions Epiphytic macrolichen communities take decades to recover after highseverity wildfire in chaparral shrublands.
The United States Great Lakes as seen from space. The Great Lakes hold about 90% of the freshwater in the U.S. and about 20% of the world's freshwater supply (NOAA). Credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. 2019.

A new paper in the May issue of Nature Communications demonstrates why keeping local lakes and other waterbodies clean produces cost-effective benefits locally and globally.

A single season of a lake or water body with a harmful algal bloom that results in public do-not-drink orders, damages to fishing activity, lost recreational opportunities, decreased property values and increased likelihood of low birth weight among infants born to mothers exposed to polluted water bodies are but just a handful of reasons why clean water is important.

Most everyone wants their local lake or stream to be clean and useable for drinking, fishing, swimming and recreation. But previous cost-benefit studies showed the costs of protecting local water sources often exceeded the benefits.

Not so fast say the authors. One of the reasons past studies showed costs exceeding benefits is that not all benefits, especially global ones, were analyzed by economists.

New research, led by University of Minnesota Sea Grant Director John A. Downing, found that adding up global financial benefits of clean water shows that keeping water clean can help slow climate change, saving trillions of dollars. Using one Lake Erie case study as an example, the authors also found that the global climate change value of protecting and preventing this Great Lake from algae blooms was ten times greater than the value of beach use or sport fishing.

"Surface water is one of the Earth's most important resources," said Downing, who is also a lake scientist at the University of Minnesota Duluth Large Lake Observatory. "Yet people have mistakenly assumed that it costs more to protect our water than it is worth. Our research demonstrates that there is significant local and global value to protecting local water quality."

One reason for this, said the authors, is that scientists and economists have previously considered only a narrow range of local benefits when calculating the outcomes of good water quality. Downing and co-authors sought to calculate the potential global benefits.

Locally, cleaning or keeping a local lake or waterbody free of unwanted nutrients- what scientists call eutrophicationis obviously good for people who use or want to access that particular water body. Globally, it's also good for reducing the amount of the greenhouse gas methane that is released into the atmosphere from that eutrophic water body.

Methane is a stronger greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide because it has a much higher heat-trapping ability and has about 21 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide. Less methane in the atmosphere can help slow global warming.

The authors sought to answer the question: is keeping a local water body clean worth the cost?

The cost of climate change comes from health-care costs, damages to urban infrastructure, agricultural damages, catastrophic storm damage, negative impacts on recreation, forestry, fisheries, energy systems, water systems, construction, and coastal infrastructure.

"We calculated the global climate damages from methane emissions from eutrophic lakes and calculated the damages that would be avoided damages by preventing increased emissions from 2015 to 2050," said Downing. "If we could hold methane emissions at current levels rather than the expected 20-100% increase by 2050, the value of avoiding the resulting damages could be as much as $24 trillion." The authors estimated the costs of global climate change due to eutrophication from 2015 to 2050 to be as much as $81 trillion.

The authors' analysis shows that local water quality protection has global economic implications. The substantial emissions they document from lakes and reservoirs and the potential for increased emissions suggest that there is considerable value to be gained by improving water quality in lakes and reservoirs and in preventing further deterioration.

"It's not possible to avoid all emissions from lakes and reservoirs, but with concerted effort it may be possible to prevent increased emissions or even reverse it," said Downing.

Explore further Greening of lakes will significantly increase greenhouse gas emissions

More information: John A. Downing et al, Protecting local water quality has global benefits, Nature Communications (2021). Journal information: Nature Communications John A. Downing et al, Protecting local water quality has global benefits,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22836-3
This order can be requested by almost anyone if someone seems to be a danger to themselves and others. And, as one psychiatrist who has written about the complexities of getting people mental health treatment said, Maryland has one of the broadest definitions of dangerousness. Even without that leniency, walking the streets with a weapon and threatening people, as neighbors said Brown did, ought to be justification enough to explore the petition. But many people have no idea the option is available to them as average citizens. Its not just police or a mental health professional who can make the request; others with an interest also can, including those neighbors who noted Brown had terrorized the community. Thats not to blame them for what happened. Certainly, we understand being reluctant to report someone they already fear, if thats the case. But if tools arent being used because theyre not known, the state and counties need to better inform the population.
Folio 5r from the Codex Amiatinus (Florence, Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, MS Amiatinus 1). Credit: Ezra the scribe.

Medieval authors have had their work brought back to life with 21st century technology in an unexpected collaboration at the University of St Andrews.

An archive of the works of medieval English authors, which revealed an unanticipated international outlook in medieval writers, had fallen into disuse.

Created in the 1990s, the loss of the ground-breaking Fontes Anglo-Saxonici database in 2018 made it virtually impossible once again to trace the precise borrowings within the early medieval literary heritage of the British Isles.

However, in a multi-disciplinary project involving medieval scholars and computer scientists, researchers and enthusiasts of the period can once again cross-reference medieval authors with their global counterparts from whom they often 'borrowed' long passages in pre-plagiarism times.

Thanks to St Andrews MSc student Bryan Yick who has cross-disciplinary interests in both Computer Science and History, the database has been redesigned and republished and will hopefully even be expanded and potentially reveal even more about this period.

Dr. Christine Rauer of the School of English said: "It's sometimes forgotten that earlier times were just as interconnected and internationally organized, not just the Middle Ages, but also prehistoric times.

"Humanity has always been outward looking and interested in innovating from outside influences, in learning new things from elsewhere.

"So it seems particularly apt that it is thanks to the most up-to-date technology that we have been able to resurrect this invaluable repository of medieval literature for future posterity.

"Our project presents all the evidence that shows that early medieval literature is a fascinating blend of all sorts of traditions, homegrown as well as international."

That medieval English authors had an international outlook in compiling their reading lists has long been known, but the precise evidence was only systematically collected in the 1990s.

The original Fontes Anglo-Saxonici project ran from 1984-2007 and consisted of academic staff at a number of British and Irish universities.

Publicly funded by the AHRC and the British Academy it produced a publicly available internet database (then based at the University of Oxford) which linked around 1100 early medieval English texts (written in Old English and Latin) to around 1000 source texts (written in Old English and Latin) from England, Europe, the Middle East and Northern Africa.

In these pre-copyright times, early medieval writers quoted their source texts allowing researchers to trace these 'borrowed' quotations and discover what they had read and what texts they were interested in.

Unfortunately, the database became dysfunctional for technical reasons, and had to be taken offline by Oxford in 2018 because it constituted a security risk due to the obsolete software it was produced with to the dismay of scholars across the globe.

Dr. Rauer was able to recruit the technical expertise of Bryan Yick who was studying for an MSc in Human Computer Interaction at the University, and his MSc project supervisor, Dr. Mark-Jan Nederhof, to help. Due to the COVID pandemic the three researchers had to work remotely in three different countries across two different continents to complete the project successfully.

Dr. Rauer added: "The project also shows that the University of St Andrews similarly managed to bring together specialists from different academic disciplines, different countries and especially different generations to construct something that is highly technical and complex yet useful and user-friendly for scholars all over the world."

Explore further New open access database for medieval literature

More information: Fontes Anglo-Saxonici database: Fontes Anglo-Saxonici database: arts.st-andrews.ac.uk/fontes/search
Credit: Shutterstock

The Black Summer bushfires shocked the world and generated enormous global media interest. Fire scientists like myself found themselves filling a role not unlike sport commentators, explaining the unfolding drama in real time.

Scientists who engaged with the media during the crisis straddled two competing imperatives. First was their duty to share their knowledge with the community while knowing their understanding is imperfect. Second was the ethical obligation to rigorously test hypotheses against data analysis and peer reviewthe results of which could only be known long after the fires were out.

One area where this tension emerged was around the influential idea that logging exacerbated the bushfire disaster. During the fire crisis and in the months afterwards, some scientists suggested logging profoundly affected the fires' severity and frequency. There were associated calls to cease native forestry and shift wood production to plantations.

But there is no scientific consensus about the possible effects of logging on fire risk. In fact, research by myself and colleagues, published in Nature Ecology and Evolution today, shows logging had little if any effect on the Black Summer bushfires. Rather, the disaster's huge extent and severity were more likely due to unprecedented drought and sustained hot, windy weather.

These findings are significant for several reasons. Getting to the bottom of the bushfires' cause is essential for sustainable forest management. And, more importantly, our research confirms the devastating role climate change played in the Black Summer fires.

Looking for patterns

Our research focused on 7 million hectares of mostly eucalyptus forests, from the subtropics to temperate zones, which burned between August 2019 and March 2020.

There is some evidence to suggest logged areas are more flammable that unlogged forests. Proponents of this view say logging regimes make the remaining forests hotter and drier, and leave debris on the ground that increases the fuel load.

In our research, we wanted to determine:

the relative roles logging and other factors such as climate played in fires that destroyed or completely scorched forest canopies

Plantation forests were found to be highly flammable. Credit: Shutterstock

whether plantations are more vulnerable to canopy scorch than native forests.

To do so, we used landscape ecology techniques that could compare very large areas with different patterns of land use and fire severity. We sampled 32% of the area burnt in three regions spanning the geographic range of the fires.

What we found

Fire intensity is classified according to the vertical layer of vegetation burnt. A scorched tree canopy suggests the most intense type of fire, where the heat extended from the ground to the treetops.

We found several predictors of canopy damage. First, completely scorched canopy, or canopy consumed by fire, typically occurred across connected swathes of bushland. This most likely reflected instances where the fire made a "run," driven by localized winds.

Extreme weather fire conditions were the next most important predictor of canopy damage. The drought had created vast areas of tinder-dry forests. Temperatures during the fire season were hot and westerly winds were strong.

Southeast Australia's climate has changed, making such extreme fire weather more frequent, prolonged and severe.

Logging activity in the last 25 years consistently ranked "low" as a driver of fire severity. This makes sense for several reasons.

As noted above, fire conditions were extraordinarily extreme. And there was mismatch between the massive area burnt and the comparatively small areas commercially logged in the last 25 years (4.5% in eastern Victoria, 5.3% in southern NSW and 7.8% in northern NSW).

Fire severity is also related to landscape features: fire on ridges is generally worse than in sheltered valleys.

Our research also found timber plantations were as prone to severe fire as native forestry areas. In NSW (the worst-affected state) one-quarter of plantations burnedthan 70% severely. This counteracts the suggestion using plantations, rather than logging native forest, can avoid purported fire hazards.

Forests must become fire-resilient while performing other functions. Credit: Shutterstock

A challenge awaits

Our findings are deeply concerning. They signal there is no quick fix to the ongoing fire crisis afflicting Australia and other flammable landscapes.

The crisis is being driven by relentless climate change. Terrifyingly, it has the potential to turn forests from critical stores of carbon into volatile sources of carbon emissions released when vegetation burns.

Under a rapidly warming and drying climate, fuel loads are likely to become less important in determining fire extent and severity. This will make it increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to lower fuel loads in a way that will limit bushfire severity.

A massive challenge awaits. We must find socially and environmentally acceptable ways to make forests more resilient to fire while the also produce sustainable timber products, store carbon, provide water and protect biodiversity.

The next step is a real-world evaluation of management options. One idea worth exploring is whether the fire resistance of native forests can be improved in specific areas by altering tree density, vegetation structure or fuel loads, while sustaining biodiversity and amenity.

Commercial forestry could potentially do this, with significant innovation and willingness to let go of current practices.

Through collective effort, I'm confident we can sustainably manage of forests and fire. Our study is but a small step in a much bigger, zig-zagging journey of discovery.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A group of scientists say now is the time to talk about reintroducing jaguars (Panthera onca) into the U.S.

In a study published today in the journal Conservation Science and Practice, the authors provide a prospective framework for this effort and describe "righting a wrong" done to "America's Great Cat" in the Southwest more than 50 years ago. The big cats lived for hundreds of years in the central mountains of Arizona and New Mexico but were driven to local extinction by the mid-20th century, in part because of killing by government hunters.

Authors of the study include a diverse set of scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society, Center for Landscape Conservation, Defenders of Wildlife, Wildlands Network, Pace University, Universidad Autonoma de Queretaro, Life Net Nature, and the Center for Biological Diversity.

In March, a separate study suggested that an area in central Arizona and New Mexico spanning 2 million acres (82,000 square kilometers) can provide potentially suitable habitat for 90 to 150 jaguars. This area, roughly the size of South Carolina, was not considered in the 2018 US Fish and Wildlife Service Recovery Plan for the jaguar. That plan considered only habitat south of Interstate Highway 10 (an artificial boundary considering historic jaguar records north of that) and therefore concluded there was habitat for only six jaguars in the U.S.

However, habitat destruction, transportation infrastructure, natural constrictions in the landscape, and the border wall mean that natural reestablishment of female jaguars from source populations in Mexico to this recovery region is unlikely over the next 100 years.

The authors of today's study conclude that reintroduction of jaguars should be examined as a viable alternative. The authors believe that restoring jaguars can be a net benefit to people, including culture and local economies, and nature and would represent the return of an original part of the U.S. fauna.. The study focuses on on five dimensions of the reintroduction project: conservation rationale, history, ecological context, human context and practical considerations.

"The jaguar lived in these mountains long before Americans did," said Eric Sanderson, WCS Senior Conservation Ecologist and lead author of the study. "If done collaboratively, reintroduction could enhance the economy of this region and the ecology of this incredible part of jaguar range."

The study notes some key aspects of the reintroduction effort to be discussed with relevant officials and the public in central Arizona and New Mexico, noting that:

The region is a habitat unique in all of the jaguar's range, representing a special and valuable part of jaguar's ecological diversity.

The Central Arizona and New Mexico Recovery Area (CANRA) is vast, covered with suitable vegetation, and well populated with potential prey. Given its elevation and latitude, it may provide an important climate refuge for the species in the future, though further research is required.

The majority of the land is managed for the public good, mainly (68%) by the US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and National Park Service, with several large designated wilderness areas. Only 381,000 people live in this area, primarily in towns and cities. The most important economic activities there are government expenditures, accommodation and food services, outdoor recreation, health care and social assistance, and retail trade.

The mountains of central Arizona and New Mexico are part of the ancestral and reservation lands for a number of Native American Nations. Currently two Tribal nations, the White Mountain Apache and the San Carlos Apache, manage nearly 12 percent of the CANRA's land area, including wildlife and ecological systems.

Reintroduction would replace a historic member of the species assemblage of the region. U.S. government agents and private citizens hunted and poisoned the jaguar for most of the 20th century. As a result of persecution here and elsewhere, jaguars were listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Today we have tools to facilitate coexistence and avoid and mitigate conflict. Reintroduction efforts, such as the Ibera Project in Argentina, have demonstrated the potential. Reintroduction could contribute to the recovery and eventual removal of the jaguar from the Endangered Species List, especially if the recent recovery plan were revised to consider this area and the possibility of reintroduction.

"This represents a turning point for this iconic wild cat, identifying a path forward for restoration of the jaguar to its historic range in the United States," said Sharon Wilcox Ph.D., Texas Representative for Defenders of Wildlife. "It should serve as the starting point for a renewed conversation among stakeholders."

"The Southwest's native wildlife evolved with jaguars," said Michael Robinson of the Center for Biological Diversity. "They have a storied and vital place in our canyons and forests, so we should plan an intelligent and humane reintroduction program."

Wildlands Network Mexico and Borderlands Program Director, Juan Carlos Bravo added: "Restoring jaguars to the northernmost portions of their historic range is an issue of importance for both the U.S: and Mexico, our paper provides an initial step for both countries to draft together a roadmap of what that major rewilding effort may look like."

Explore further New study reveals habitat that could increase jaguar numbers

More information: Eric W. Sanderson et al, The case for reintroduction: The jaguar ( Panthera onca ) in the United States as a model, Conservation Science and Practice (2021). Eric W. Sanderson et al, The case for reintroduction: The jaguar ( Panthera onca ) in the United States as a model,(2021). DOI: 10.1111/csp2.392

Provided by Defenders of Wildlife
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

About 42% of rural school districts in the U.S. offered fully in-person instruction as of February, compared with only 17% for urban districts, according to a new RAND Corporation survey of school district leaders. The opposite pattern held for fully remote learning: 29% of urban districts offered fully remote instruction compared with 10% of rural districts and 18% of suburban districts.

The choice of in-person versus remote learning has important implications. Over a third of all U.S. school districts offering some form of remote instruction in early 2021 had shortened the school day, and a quarter had reduced instructional minutes.

"This survey shows how the choice of remote instruction has ramifications that extend beyond longstanding concerns about the lower quality of remote instruction.," said Heather Schwartz, lead author of the report and director of the Pre-K to 12 educational systems program at RAND, a nonprofit research organization. "Rural districtswhich were primarily fully in-person or hybriddid not decrease instructional minutes as often as urban districts, which means that urban students of color have likely lost more instructional time this school year than their white counterparts in rural districts."

To offset pandemic learning challenges, many districts added services. More than half of districts overall, and about seven in 10 urban districts, offered tutoring in 2020-2021 and increased social and emotional learning minutes or programming.

The survey found that about eight in 10 districts have not cut spending in 2020-2021, and most foresee spending the same or more next academic year. Similarly, many more districts have hired rather than fired school staff this academic year, and the prospect for next year looks the same.

Two-thirds of districts lost some enrollment this academic year from the year before, with an average decline of 5%. This is twice as many districts, and twice as large a decline, as the year before.

Looking forward, district leaders have great concern about a shortage of substitute teachers, bus drivers and teachers in several historically difficult-to-staff subject areas for 2021-2022.

RAND fielded the survey to the American School District Panel (ASDP) Jan. 21 through March 5. The report is based on responses from 434 district leaders from 48 states and the District of Columbia.

The ASDP is the first-of-its-kind nationally representative, longitudinal panel of school districts across the U.S., providing opportunities for district and charter management organization leaders to inform policy and practice.

The other authors of "Urban and Rural Districts Show a Strong Divide During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Results from the Second American School District Panel Survey" are Melissa Kay Diliberti, Lisa Berdie, David Grant, Gerald P. Hunter and Claude Messan Setodji.

RAND Education and Labor, a division of RAND, is dedicated to improving education and expanding economic opportunities for all through research and analysis. Its researchers address key policy issues in U.S. and international education systems and labor markets, from pre-kindergarten to retirement planning.

Explore further Remote learning here to stay despite challenges, survey finds
GNSS station in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. Credit: Pacific Northwest Geodetic Array, Central Washington University

Researchers have developed a global earthquake monitoring system that uses the Global Navigational Satellite System (GNSS) to measure crustal deformation.

The monitoring system can within seconds rapidly assess earthquake magnitude and fault slip distribution for earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 and larger, making it a potentially valuable tool in earthquake and tsunami early warning for these damaging events, Central Washington University geophysicist Timothy Melbourne and colleagues report in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America.

GNSS can potentially characterize a large earthquake much more rapidly than the global seismic network, offering more time for evacuations, drop-and-cover and automatic shut-down of essential infrastructure. "The imperative for doing it quickly is really about saving lives," said Melbourne.

GNSS systems consist of Earth-orbiting satellites that send signals to receiver stations on Earth. The signals are used to determine the receivers' exact locations through time. Earthquakes move and deform the Earth's crust underneath the receivers, so changes in their locations after an earthquake can be used to monitor and characterize the ruptures.

Seismic monitoring by GNSS is a "very blunt tool," compared to seismometer-based networks capable of detecting minute seismic waves, Melbourne said.

A top-of-the-line seismometer is remarkably sensitive, he noted, able to detect seismic wave velocities as small as tens of nanometers per second.

GNSS is more coarse, only detecting displacements of centimeters or larger.

During a big earthquake, however, there is a trade-off between sensitivity and speed. Local seismic networks can be swamped with data during a large, complex event such as the 2016 magnitude 7.8 Kaikoura earthquake in New Zealand, where multiple faults are involved and waves from the initial event reverberate through the crust. To accurately determine magnitude and fault slip distribution, seismologists usually have to wait for the seismic wave data to reach distant stations before it can be accurately characterized, which involves tens of minutes of delay while the waves propagate across the planet.

GNSS station in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. Credit: Pacific Northwest Geodetic Array, Central Washington University

The global system created by Melbourne and his colleagues is the first of its kind. It takes in raw GNSS data acquired at any Internet-connected receiver on Earth, positions these data, and then re-transmits the positioned data back to any Internet-connected device, within a second.

The researchers assessed their system over one typical week, using data from 1270 receiver stations across the world. They found that the average time it took data to travel from a receiver to the processing center at Central Washington University was about half a secondfrom anywhere in the world. It took an average of about one-200th of a second to convert that data into estimates of GNSS position.

This means that the GNSS global monitoring system can detect changes well before the earthquake itself is done rupturing, since it can take tens of secondsor even minutes for the largest earthquakes"for the fault to unzip and radiate all that energy into the planet," Melbourne said.

The speed of a global GNSS seismic monitoring system might be even more important for tsunami warnings, he noted. At the moment, an international monitoring program uses data from a global seismic network to determine an earthquake magnitude, combined with data from global tide gauges and buoys that detect a tsunami wave in the open ocean, to determine whether a tsunami advisory should be sent to the public.

The seismic network could take 15 minutes or more to determine the magnitude of an earthquake that causes a tsunami, said Melbourne, and the tidal gauges and buoys could take up to an hour to deliver data, depending on their proximity to the earthquake. GNSS receivers, on the other hand, could characterize an earthquake in tens of seconds with sufficient nearby stations.

"The real power of the GNSS for the tsunami is buying more time and greater accuracy from the get-go for the warnings that come out," Melbourne said.

GNSS receiver stations are proliferating around the world as more people use them, especially for surveying or monitoring in mining and construction. But the global GNSS monitoring system depends on open-source data, which has not expanded at the same rate. In some countries, data are sold to recover the costs of constructing and maintaining the receivers, Melbourne said, making their operators reluctant to make the data freely available.

"Part of what I do is trying to get countries in seismically active areas to open up their data sets for hazard mitigation purposes," said Melbourne.

For instance, GNSS operators in New Zealand, Ecuador, Chile and elsewhere partner with Melbourne's group, benefiting from the decade of work that the team has put into their GNSS positioning system. They send raw data from receivers in their countries to central Washington, where Melbourne and colleagues position the data within a global reference frame and send it back within subseconds for further research and monitoring.

Explore further Tests reveal cybersecurity vulnerabilities of common seismological equipment
Credit: Shutterstock/Adwo

Like detectives, Argonne scientists are studying clues from the release of carbon in thawing permafrost regions, piecing the clues together to create detailed maps to predict the impact of rising global temperatures on future greenhouse gas emissions.

Webster's Dictionary defines a vicious cycle as "a reciprocal cause and effect in which two or more elements intensify and aggravate each other, worsening the situation."

The release of carbon from thawing soils in permafrost regions represents just such a cycle.

Permafrost-affected soilswhere subsurface temperatures remain below freezing for two or more consecutive yearscontain vast amounts of organic carbon that decompose and enter the atmosphere. The rate of such release has accelerated with climate change as the regions rapidly grow warmer and surface soils thaw to greater depths in summer. The release of stored carbon as greenhouse gases (e.g., carbon dioxide and methane) into the atmosphere causes further warming and more carbon emissions.

To help understand the cycle, scientists need to carefully examine the potential for these carbon stocks to speed global warming rates by measuring how much of the greenhouse gases are emitted from decomposing permafrost carbon. A team of researchers led by Julie Jastrow and Roser Matamala, terrestrial ecologists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory, is contributing to that effort through an integrated set of research approaches.

Their work, recently published in Science Advances, focused on quantifying how much carbon is stored in permafrost-affected soils and, more specifically, where it is stored in the soil layers.

Because soils hold more than two-thirds of the Earth's terrestrial carbon poolmore than twice the amount of carbon present in the atmospherethey play a significant role in the global carbon cycle. Much of the carbon in soils is organic matter formed as dead plant materials decompose and microbial debris accumulates over periods ranging from decades to thousands of years.

The team employed big dataa huge volume of data that grows with timeand geospatial analysis methods to develop the first high-resolution maps of soil carbon storage and distribution at multiple depths for permafrost regions in the Northern hemisphere.

Like detectives, geospatial analysts gather and pick through a mountain of data that are sorted geographically, finding the most relevant data and using visualization and statistical techniques to identify and analyze trends. The team also identified which environmental conditionssuch as temperature, precipitation, topography or vegetationbest predict soil carbon quantities in permafrost regions.

Their detective work provides a baseline that is critical to scientists who develop the Earth system models used to predict the amount and type of greenhouse gas emissions released as permafrost-affected soils begin to thaw.

Soils in permafrost regions retain more organic carbon than in other regions as surface organic materials mix into deeper layers due to frequent freezing and thawing cyclesa process called cryoturbationand repeated burial of accumulated peat deposits by wind- and water-transported sediments. Additional climatic factors help reduce decomposition rates and preserve large stocks of organic carbon in these soil systems over long periods.

In the rarified air present at high latitudes and altitudes, where most permafrost-affected soils occur, climate extremes lead to greater temperature increases than in other parts of the world. Permafrost is already warming, thawing and disappearing from some portions of these cold regions, but the progressive rate of permafrost loss predicted by future climate warming scenarios could release substantial additional greenhouse gases to the atmosphere before and beyond the end of this century.

The carbon mapping studyled by Umakant Mishra, an Argonne geospatial scientist now with Sandia National Laboratoriesalso included numerous collaborators associated with the Permafrost Carbon Network. This international team gathered data quantifying carbon in soil samples collected from more than 2,500 different locations across the northern circumpolar, or Arctic permafrost region, and in almost 200 locations across the Tibetan Plateauthe largest high-altitude permafrost region at lower latitudes.

Measurements of soil organic carbon used to produce earlier circumpolar estimates were combined with large amounts of new soil data contributed by scientists from Canada, Russia, South Korea and Sweden. The data were organized by depth0 to 1, 1 to 2, and 2 to 3 metersto calculate profiles of soil organic carbon stocks at each sampled location. These collaborative efforts increased sample numbers by 42%to 69%compared with previous studies, depending on depth.

The team then compiled newly available high-resolution maps of environmental factors that influence soil formation and scaled them to a uniform resolution of 250 square meters. Correlating these relationships with the environmental maps, they generated estimates of soil organic stocks for both the northern circumpolar and Tibetan permafrost regions.

One important finding suggests that more carbon occurs closer to the surfacewithin a meterthan scientists previously believed, making more of the region's carbon vulnerable to thawing, decomposition and release as global air temperatures rise, potentially feeding the warming cycle.

The researchers found that the distribution of carbon stocks in both permafrost regions depends on complex relationships among multiple environmental factors. Temperature, precipitation, topographic properties and vegetation type were significant predictors of carbon stocks. The analysis also pinpointed topography as a major factor in prediction uncertainties; this information can be used to prioritize where additional samples of soil carbon profiles are most needed.

"Overall, this new picture of how the vast amounts of organic carbon stored in permafrost-affected soils are distributed across much of the world's coldest land areas will help to improve the ability of Earth system models to predict the impact of rising global temperatures on future emissions of greenhouse gases from these rapidly changing regions," said Jastrow.

The study, "Spatial heterogeneity and environmental predictors of permafrost region soil organic carbon stocks," is published in Science Advances.

Explore further Arctic permafrost releases more carbon dioxide than once believed

More information: Umakant Mishra et al. Spatial heterogeneity and environmental predictors of permafrost region soil organic carbon stocks, Science Advances (2021). Journal information: Science Advances Umakant Mishra et al. Spatial heterogeneity and environmental predictors of permafrost region soil organic carbon stocks,(2021). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aaz5236
Different phytoplankton communities bloom around the Canadian Maritime Provinces and across the northwestern Atlantic Ocean. Credit: NASA/Aqua/MODIS composite collected on March 22, 2021

A seaward journey, supported by both NASA and the National Science Foundation, set sail in the northern Atlantic in early Maythe sequel to a complementary expedition, co-funded by NSF, that took place in the northern Pacific in 2018.

The 2021 deployment of NASA's oceanographic field campaign, called Export Processes in the Ocean from Remote Sensing (EXPORTS), consists of 150 scientists and crew from more than 30 governmental, university and private non-governmental institutions. The team is spread across three oceanographic research vessels, who will meet in international waters west of Ireland over the underwater Porcupine Abyssal plain. Throughout the field campaign, scientists will be deploying a variety of instruments from aboard the three ships: the RRS James Cook and the RRS Discovery, operated by the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, UK, plus a third vessel chartered by the Ocean Twilight Zone project of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and operated by the Marine Technology Unit in Vigo, Spain. A total of 52 high-tech platforms, including several autonomous vehicles, will be taking measurements and continuously collecting data.

Much of the science focuses on the ocean's role in the global carbon cycle. Through chemical and biological processes, the ocean removes as much carbon from the atmosphere as all plant life on land. Scientists hope to further explore the mechanisms of the ocean's biological pumpthe process by which carbon from the atmosphere and surface ocean is sequestered long-term in the deep ocean. This process involves microscopic plant-like organisms called phytoplankton, which undergo photosynthesis just like plants on land and can be seen from space by observing changes to the color of the ocean. Their productivity has a significant impact on Earth's carbon cycle, which then in turn affects Earth's climate.

"This is the first comprehensive study of the ocean's biological carbon pump since the Joint Global Ocean Flux study in the 1980s and nineties," said EXPORTS science lead David Siegel from the University of California, Santa Barbara. "In the interim, we have gotten advanced microscopic imaging tools, genomics, robust chemical and optical sensors and autonomous robotsa bunch of stuff that we didn't have back then, so we can ask much harder and much more important questions." Those questions include how much organic carbon is leaving the surface ocean, and what path does it take as it makes its way to the deep where it can be sequestered for long periods of time, from decades to thousands of years.

Scientists know of three major pathways that transport carbon from the atmosphere and upper ocean to the dark "twilight zone" that lies 1,640 feet (500m) or more below the surface: 1) physical ocean mixing and circulation can carry suspended organic matter deep down into the ocean's interior, 2) particles can sink due to gravity, often after passing through the guts of organisms, and 3) daily vertical migrations of animals that commute between upper and lower ocean levels bring carbon along for the ride.

Diverse plankton from surface waters seen under a microscope. It is so concentrated that you don't need to zoom to identify. Credit: Laura Holland/ University of Rhode Island

EXPORTS aims to determine how much carbon is transported by each of these pathways by observing the carbon pump in two very different ocean ecosystems with varying conditions. The researchers chose the northern Pacific and northern Atlantic because they are on the opposite ends of the productivity spectrum (i.e. rates of photosynthesis) and experience two opposing extremes of physical processes such as eddies and currents. Studying contrasting environments will provide the maximum insight for modeling future climate scenarios.

According to Ivona Cetinic, project scientist and oceanographer at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, the North Pacific is akin to a desert or "simple meadow" on land. It is low in nutrients, in this case iron needed for photosynthesis, and experiences amongst the fewest eddying currents found in the global oceans. Therefore, carbon transport into the deep ocean is primarily driven by tiny animals, called zooplankton, consuming microscopic plant-like phytoplankton and then excreting the digested carbon to the depths below.

Phytoplankton drift in the upper, sunlit layer of the ocean where they can convert carbon dioxide that comes from the atmosphere into organic carbon. When conditions are right, as is often the case in the North Atlantic region this time of year, phytoplankton populations grow or "bloom" so rapidly they can be seen from space.

The North Atlantic also features strong currents that contrast with the North Pacific's slower moving waters. Along with those, Siegel says they anticipate at least four days of harsh weather during the month-long expedition.

But EXPORTS data doesn't just apply to the seait will also be used to improve satellite technology. Cetinic works with several optical measurements that come from ocean color satellites, which measure light reflected from the ocean surface in parts of the visible spectrum, what we know as the colors of the rainbow. These provide insights such as measurements of the ocean's temperature, salinity, carbon and concentrations of a green pigment called chlorophyll. However, the varying species of phytoplankton occupying different parts of the ecosystem and carbon cycle produce different amounts and shades of green chlorophyll, creating nuance in ocean color that current ocean color satellites can't "see."

Science and crew aboard the RRS James Cook are deploying a sampling rosette - platform that allows for collection of the water samples and other information from ocean depths, with RRS Discovery and R/V Sarmiento de Gamboa in the distance deploying the same instrumentation simultaneously. Credit: Deborah Steinberg

Among the instrumentation deployed during EXPORTS are highly refined, and in some cases experimental, optical instruments to measure ocean color that are akin to instruments which will be aboard future NASA satellites. Researchers will combine these satellite-simulating measurements with the detailed observations of the surface phytoplankton communitythrough genomics, image analysis or pigment compositionas well as knowledge of their physiology to enable satellites to detect oceanic diversity and ultimately their role in the oceanic carbon cycle.

The next generation of these satellites, NASA's Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission, will be hyperspectral, meaning it will be able to collect data across the entire visible spectrum, and capture information beyond the visible part, including ultraviolet and shortwave infrared.

"What we see while we are on the ground gives us an understanding of what kind of information we will need to see from space in order to capture those critical processes we want to be able to better understand," Cetinic said. "That drives the development of the space-based technology. In return, data coming from the new Earth observing satellites allow for scientists, such as the ones participating in EXPORTS, to go and find other crucial information or develop new techniques to complement the current, or even inspire a new, Earth observing satellite. This perpetual interplay of technology and science, ultimately benefits the whole of humanity."

Following the fieldwork campaign, an additional phase of EXPORTS will focus on using the data collected from the Atlantic and Pacific to predict what the carbon transport pathways may look like in future oceans.

"What we currently know is limited to what is happening in oceans today," said Siegel. "With the ongoing climate-driven changes, seen not only in the ocean but across the Earth systems, we need to be able to predict what's going to be happening in 2075, and we do not yet have that predictive understanding."

The scientist crew boarded the R/V Sarmiento de Gamboa on April 29 after 14 days in quarantine. Credit: Ken Buesseler/ Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Because so many characteristics of a single slice of ocean are going to be measured at the same time, existing computer models will have a rich and more complete data set depicting the carbon pump on which to base projections of what might happen in the near future deeper in the oceanand what the impacts might be on the carbon cycle.

"It's such a good data set that it is going to be fueling research for decades to come," said Cetinic.

Both PACE and EXPORTS experienced delays because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, to ensure the safety and security of every individual involved, a two-week quarantine was required before sailing and social distancing protocols were enacted for the first week aboard the ships. Siegel says the diversity and dedication of the team members, the unparalleled support from the U.K."s National Oceanography Centre to ensure the ships and crew are ready and safe for sailing, the sustained commitment from NASA Headquarters, and a great deal of good fortune is the reason that the campaign is still able to go ahead this year.

Explore further Fishes contribute roughly 1.65 billion tons of carbon in feces and other matter annually

More information: For more information about EXPORTS, visit For more information about EXPORTS, visit oceanexports.org/
Variation in how animals and bacteria use heme reveals potential target for new antibiotics The Impossible Whopper pictured at a Burger King restaurant in Columbus, Georgia. Burger King started offering this burger featuring a patty made with heme in August 2019. Credit: Shutterstock

It took an unlikely food innovationearth-friendly vegetarian patties, made to taste and "bleed" like the familiar meaty onesto make people aware of heme.

But heme is an essential part of proteins found in most life forms, from tiny bacteria to soy plants to the human body. Heme plays a crucial role in supplying cells with the energy needed to carry out chemical reactions.

In human cells, iron-containing heme is the essential cofactor of two types of molecules. One is the hemoglobin molecules that bind oxygen in the lungs and ferry it around the body. More than half the heme in the body is in hemoglobin, but some of the rest is in the hemeproteins called cytochromes.

New research from Washington University in St. Louis in the journal eLife shows how animals and bacteria differ in the enzyme they use to attach heme to the cytochrome. Spotting variations in how this "cytochrome c synthase" works would help to find compounds that deactivate the enzyme in bacteria, but not in humans. The results of this study demonstrate that the bacterial cytochrome c synthase could be a promising target for new antibiotics.

However, studying cytochrome c synthase in living cells is challenging.

"We took purified CcsBA [a protein for making cytochrome in bacteria] and purified human HCCS and, with an assay in a test tube, attached the heme to the cyt c or cyt c peptides," said Robert Kranz, professor of biology in Arts & Sciences and senior author of the new paper. "This allows us to say what each (CcsBA and human HCCS) recognizes on the cytochrome to attach the heme. It further shows that the peptides can inhibit attachment to the cytochrome by HCCS.

"No one else has purified CcsBA or human HCCS, or analyzed the reaction in vitro," Kranz said.

In addition to this first-of-its-kind research, Kranz led the group of Washington University scientists that previously discovered how the vital but vulnerable heme molecule is shuttled across cell membranes for cytochrome synthesis.

For the new work, the scientists examined in detail which structures the enzymes recognize to attach the heme onto their cytochrome target. Their experiments revealed that human and bacterial synthases actually rely on different parts of the cytochrome c to orient themselves. Different short compounds could block either the human or bacterial enzyme.

Heme in the laboratory. Credit: Robert Kranz

Variations between human and bacterial cytochrome c synthase could lead to new antibiotics that prevent cytochrome assembly and kill bacteria while sparing patients. A provisional patent application has been filed for the process by the Washington University Office of Technology Management.

"The project represents seven years of effort," said Molly C. Sutherland, one of three co-first authors of the paper, who is now an assistant professor of biological sciences at the University of Delaware. Sutherland said that she and co-authors Shalon E. Babbitt and Deanna L. Mendez were able to "work collaboratively, bring individual expertise and build off each other's results.

"This combined effortalong with some talented undergrads!is the reason that we were able to analyze the human and bacterial holocytochrome c synthases at such a detailed level," Sutherland said.

Heme helps ferry oxygen throughout the body, carries iron and colors blood red. For most humans, the majority of the heme we consume comes from animals.

But plants also make heme. Plants use CcsBA in their chloroplasts the organelle that conducts photosynthesisand they cannot grow without cytochrome proteins. Because of this dependency, Kranz and his team are also looking at how they could block cytochrome processes in plants to build smarter herbicides.

Which bring us back to the heme in those veggie burgers. The company Impossible Foods discovered that heme in red meats catalyze (during cooking) many of the reactions that form the tasty flavors that meat-loving humans crave. A question raised by some at that time was whether hemeas an added "magic" ingredientwas safe. But because all plants have heme, humans ingest it every dayeven vegetarians. It is just at higher concentrations in red meat.

"Heme has been consumed by humans and other animals for a long time with no issues," Kranz told Business Insider at the height of the Impossible Burger craze.

So whether functioning as the magic ingredient in plant-based burgers or as an essential co-factor for cytochromes and hemoglobins, being able to control processes that use heme will lead to advances in health and agriculture. The potential use in new antibiotics is perhaps the most exciting for Kranz and his team.

"Now, we see how we might be able to target heme to starve bacteria by cutting off their energy sources," Kranz said. "The next step is to identify the molecules that specifically interfere with cytochrome synthase in bacteria."

Explore further Structure of an enzyme that pathogenic bacteria use to reduce oxygen revealed

More information: Molly C Sutherland et al. In vitro reconstitution reveals major differences between human and bacterial cytochrome c synthases, eLife (2021). Journal information: eLife Molly C Sutherland et al. In vitro reconstitution reveals major differences between human and bacterial cytochrome c synthases,(2021). DOI: 10.7554/eLife.64891
A Saker Falcon. Credit: Green Balkans

The Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) is a bird of prey living in plains and forest-steppes in the West and semi-desert montane plateaus and cliffs in the East. The majority of its Central and Eastern European population is migratory and spends winters in the Mediterranean, the Near East and East Africa. With its global population estimated at 6,100-14,900 breeding pairs, the species is considered endangered according to the IUCN Red List.

In Bulgaria, the Saker Falcon, considered extinct as a breeding species since the early 2000s, was recovered in 2018 with the discovery of the first active nest from its new history in Bulgaria. The nest is built by two birds that were reintroduced back in 2015 as part of the first ever Saker Falcon reintroduction program. The results of the 5-year program are described in detail in the open-access, peer-reviewed Biodiversity Data Journal.

Many factors contributed to the decline of the Saker Falcon in Bulgaria and globally, and most of them are human-caused. Populations lost big parts of their habitat due to changes in land usethe transition from grazing to arable crops led to the diminishing of key food sources. Other reasons include the use of poisonous baits and the accumulation of pesticides in the food chain, illegal trade of nest-poached chicks and eggs, power line electrocution, and lack of suitable nesting places.

Even after European legislation for the protection of wildlife was implemented, and regulations were issued on the use of pesticides in Bulgaria, the Saker Falcon population did not stabilize. Its endangered status further prompted joint conservation efforts between NGOs and national authorities.

A Saker Falcon. Credit: Green Balkans

As a result, a re-introduction program for the Saker Falcon in Bulgaria was initiated in 2015, aiming to release a number of birds over a certain period of time using adaptation aviaries, or hacks. The Green Balkans Wildlife Rehabilitation and Breeding Centre (WRBC) in Stara Zagora facilitated the captive breeding of a group of Saker Falcons imported from Austria, Hungary, Germany, Slovakia and Poland by constructing ten breeding aviaries and two stock cages for juvenile falcons and equipping them with internal surveillance cameras.

Between 2015 and 2020, a total of 80 Saker Falcons27 females and 53 males, were released via the hacking method from four aviaries near the town of Stara Zagora. Out of them, 64 had been bred and hatched at the WRBC.

Observation records from 2018 confirmed that at least one pair of the falcons released in 2015 was currently breeding in the wild in Bulgaria. This observation proves that with the help of hacking, Sakers can survive in the wild until maturity, return to the region of their release and breed successfully. In 2020, the female bird in the breeding pair was changed with a Saker Falcon released in 2016, and the new pair bred successfully.

Saker Falcon fledges. Credit: Green Balkans

In 2020, the program was restarted for another 5 years, with the aim to release 100 Saker Falcons and have six pairs breeding in the wild. This will help restore the Saker Falcon population in the southern Balkans and facilitate gene flow amongst fragmented populations from Central Europe to Kazakhstan.

Helping this iconic species successfully establish a self-sustaining population in Bulgaria has profound implications for conservation in the countrynot only in terms of public awareness of species conservation, but also as an indicator of wider environmental issues.

More information: Ivanka Lazarova et al, Re-introduction of the Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) in Bulgaria - preliminary results from the ongoing establishment phase by 2020, Biodiversity Data Journal (2021). Journal information: Biodiversity Data Journal Ivanka Lazarova et al, Re-introduction of the Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) in Bulgaria - preliminary results from the ongoing establishment phase by 2020,(2021). DOI: 10.3897/BDJ.9.e63729
Children are impressionable and often times agreeable, she said.

During the trial, Reed took the stand in his own defense, denying the allegations.

Prosecutions case

In his summation, Assistant District Attorney Brandon Rathbun said the investigation was not rushed or sloppy.

No one was jumping to conclusions in this case. Everyone was doing their job, he said.

He pointed out that Reed was not arrested until September  more than three months after the incident  and only after a DNA test came back showing that sperm containing DNA was in the girls underwear.

A forensic expert testified there is only 1 in 24,639 chance the DNA did not come from Reed or a male relative of his, according to Rathbun.

Also, Rathbun rebutted a claim that the semen could have been transferred to the girls clothes by saying the material was collected at the hospital after she had been put into new underpants.

Rathbun said when the girl woke up on the morning of May 29, there was no blood, tearing of her vagina or signs of discomfort.
I want to assure the public that we are moving forward on a plan to get the public back into City Hall, Mayor Gavin Buckley said during his opening remarks. Were taking it one step at a time. While the members of this council have been vaccinated and gone through the two-week inoculation period, we have an obligation to look out for our city staff to help run these meetings. I assure you we will get here.
Washington Center is far from herd immunity. A little more than 40% of the workers there have been vaccinated.

It varies significantly from site to site. At the Fort Hudson nursing home in Fort Edward, 83% of the workforce is vaccinated.

At Elderwood in North Creek, 74.7% of the current workforce is fully vaccinated. At one clinic there, every worker except a few who were quarantined or ill was vaccinated, said Warren County Health Services Director Ginelle Jones, who noted its hard to keep up to date with the amount of turnover normal at nursing homes.

Health Services workers are trying to get every health care worker vaccinated. Every time they have leftover doses after a clinic, which is happening often now, they call the nursing homes. They also have enough vaccine now to vaccinate any new employee or resident at the nursing homes in Warren and Washington counties.

State rules say they must be offered the vaccine within 14 days, but Warren County offers it much more quickly.

Were doing it within minutes, Jones said.

She noted that the percentage of nursing home workers vaccinated reflects roughly the same percentage of people in the county who are vaccinated. But she urged the rest to get vaccinated soon.
Even with fatalities down, the continuing presence of infections in homes has made it difficult for some to resume having outside visitors, even for places doing well with vaccinations.

In the Bronx, the Hebrew Home at Riverdale, which has vaccinated 86 percent of residents and 80 percent of staff, is now allowing outdoor visits. But under state rules, it can't let patients see loved ones indoors if anyone in the facility has tested positive for the virus in the past 14 days, according to David Pomeranz, chief operating officer of the nursing homes parent organization.

Some nursing homes still dont allow hugs, or only allow infrequent, 15-minute visits, said Karla Abraham-Conley, of Utica, who got involved in a social media campaign to expand visitation after she couldn't visit her mother before she died in October.

The Legislature recently passed a law that would require nursing homes to allow residents to have visits from certain people, including relatives, designated as caregivers. It will become law if the governor doesn't veto it or sign it within a few weeks.

State health regulators will then write rules detailing the length and frequency of caregiver visits, and how many visitors a resident can have at once.
Ciattarelli and Singh will get their media attention with two 60-minute debates later this month.

Under state law, all candidates who qualify for public matching funds must participate in at least two debates during each election. Candidates not seeking public funds who commit to raising and spending at least $490,000 also can participate. Singh did not qualify for matching funds but says he has raised the required amount to participate.

Early this year, Murphy had already raised $3.4 million, according to the federal Election Law Enforcement Commission, and received $4.1 million in public matching funds.

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Ciattarelli had raised nearly $1 million and received $3.6 million in matching funds.

Murphys campaign also said Tuesday it would launch a new bilingual website to mobilize voters.

With less than a month to go until the June 8 Democratic primary, we are ramping up a coordinated effort to communicate directly with voters, said Murphy campaign manager Mollie Binotto.

Murphy has no Democratic challenger on the ballot in the primary. State officials ruled that two would-be challengers filed faulty petitions to get on the ballot last month.
As vaccinations continue successfully across the U.S., a return to normalcy begins to look more realistic. However, many of those who have been vaccinated twice still fear the disease. Psychologist Ken Goodman of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America explains why people may conti

U.S. educators are doing everything they can to track down high school students who stopped showing up to classes and to help them get the credits needed to graduate, amid an anticipated surge in the country's dropout rate during the coronavirus pandemic.

There isn't data available yet on how the pandemic has affected the nation's overall dropout rate  2019 is the last year for which it is available  and many school officials say it's too early to know how many students who stopped logging on for distance learning don't plan to return. But soaring numbers of students who are failing classes or are chronically absent have experts fearing the worst, and schools have been busy tracking down wayward seniors through social media, knocking on their doors, assigning staff to help them make up for lost time and, in some cases, even relaxing graduation requirements.

Parents, schools and vaccine clinics rushed to begin inoculating younger adolescents Tuesday after U.S. regulators endorsed Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine for children as young as 12, a decision seen as a breakthrough in allowing classroom instruction to resume safely around the country.


The same manager, Yao, was also told of alleged sexual misconduct by the other doctor, Ngandu, in an email obtained by the AP dated April 23, 2019, with the subject line, Urgent need for your guidance. Outbreak manager Mory Keita wrote in French: I hereby inform you that we have a colleague who has impregnated a girl from Beni.

Keita told Yao that a young woman and her aunt had come to the Hotel Okapi in Beni with two armed police officers, looking for senior WHO staff. They said the young woman had been having an affair with Ngandu, and the hospital had confirmed she was now pregnant. Ngandu was avoiding them, the aunt said, so they went to the police to find him.

Keita told Yao that when confronted, Ngandu acknowledged a relationship with the girl but said it was only for two weeks. The womans aunt, however, said her niece first spent the night with him about a month and a half ago, and at the time he gave her $100, a detail that Ngandu could not deny, the email noted.

The two women demanded payment for all medications and hospital treatment during pregnancy and the purchase of land for the child, given that Dr. Jean-Paul will abandon the girl and she will be obliged to raise her child alone.
The phone had at least 936 images and 368 videos constituting child pornography, the plea agreement said. More videos were found in his Wickr account and his Notes app showed lists of links to file-sharing sites that redirected to webpages saying the files had been removed  an indication, according to the plea agreement, that the files contained material related to child exploitation.
My North Star has always led me toward community service and building a stronger future. As a journalist, I exposed corruption to make our area a better place to live. Serving as an executive in a health system, I fought for better care for those in need. And when first elected to public office on the city council, I worked to make my town a better place to live, work and play.

As Ive rounded each new decade of my life, I've reflected on where the next 10 years might take me. Ten years ago, it was a run for Congress. But the next 10 years will be a new chapter. Recently, I announced I will not seek another term at the end of this one in January 2023. I am healthy, relatively young, full of energy and passion and am ready to make a difference in a new way.

Working together, we have made real progress for our region. I first ran on the promise that I would work to expand access to healthcare. I championed a special enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act to help our families during the global pandemic. For our rural communities, I created the first-ever Rural Health Liaison position with the USDA. And when so many of our families were hurt by the opioid crisis, I introduced and passed legislation to help our district combat opioid and heroin use.
The police departments in Scott County are joining with Davenport NAACP and Davenport LULAC Council 10 to a form a new community partnership meant to enhance relationships between law enforcement and communities of color.

The partnership, announced in a press conference Tuesday, will include the Davenport and Bettendorf police departments and the Scott County Sheriff's office. It is called the Iowa Quad Cities Law Enforcement Community Partnership.

The groups began meeting regularly in June 2020 after the killing of George Floyd by the hands of a police officer in Minneapolis. Representatives of each group signed a partnership letter Tuesday, making the partnership official.

"Our communications aren't focusing on one policing agency in one community. We're focusing on our region, our Scott County, Quad-Cities, region, and it's an ongoing, consistent conversation," Davenport Police Chief Paul Sikorski said during the press conference. "We don't always agree on everything; however, we absolutely respect one another, and we let each other voice our perspectives on any issue that we want to bring forward."
"Theres other, more family-friendly and neighborhood friendly ways to do a bar," Berkley said. "Something that is for the whole neighborhood and not just the population that is able to drink, and so they provide a service to the entire neighborhood."

The proposed ordinance would make an exception for re-establishing bars in certain neighborhood commercial areas, such as the Hilltop Campus Village.

Small business owners could open new drinking establishments in commercial spaces that once held a class C liquor license in the last 10 years, Berkley said. Owners would have until July 1, 2031 to re-establish eligible neighborhood bars. The areas include Harrison Street from 14th Street to Locust Street; Washington Street from 14th Street to Locust Street; and West Locust Street from Fillmore to Division streets.

"There are some vacancies, particularly on Harrison, for space that had been bars," Berkley said. "We dont want to punish those areas" that are more commercialized and have traditionally accommodated bars.
Ford added that the chamber is not pushing the resolution but provided background material to supervisors at Croken's request for the purpose of generating discussion and gauging supervisors' reaction to such a proposal.

While applauding the concept, other supervisors said more study is needed to determine the potential impacts and repercussions of such a policy, including what impact it might have on the county's budget.

"I'm all for buying local, but I think our first obligation comes to the taxpayer," Supervisor John Maxwell said. "And I don't want it to be where we pay hundreds of thousands of dollars more just to keep it local."

Supervisor Tony Knobbe questioned whether such a policy would spur surrounding local governments to retaliate and impose their own local procurement strategy, hindering local firms from securing contracts outside the Quad-Cities.
President Trump told a big lie, one of the biggest ever told. We all know that. Every single person in this room knows that, Sen. Schumer, the Democratic majority leader, said at the hearing. "And its taking root, this big lie is taking root in our country, not just in the minds of his voters but in the laws of the land.

The laws emerging around the country are about one thing and one thing alone: making it harder for Americans to vote," he said.

The Democrats' measure would not stop every bill being passed in Republican states across the country. But it would make it difficult, if not impossible, for states to press ahead with many of the new rules.

That's because the legislation would create nationwide rules for early voting and no-excuse absentee voting, standardizing the process. Currently, six states dont offer early, in-person voting and a third of states still require an excuse  such as illness or planning to be away from home on Election Day  to vote by mail, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Republicans walked a narrow line during much of the discussion on Tuesday, criticizing congressional Democrats for seeking to change voting rules while at the same time offering robust support for GOP state lawmakers who are doing the same.
During the meeting, Biden asked the governors to share their innovations to boost vaccine uptake, from mobile vaccination clinics to incentives like tickets to minor league baseball games or promotions at retailers like L.L. Bean.

I think you've done incredible work, Biden said of the governors. None of this could work without your leadership.

Cox pressed Biden for assistance in highlighting the role of vaccinations bringing about a return to normalcy, echoing a growing complaint of public health professionals and others at the caution of the Biden administration in releasing guidance for those who are fully vaccinated.

One area where we can use some help from the White House and others, and that is modeling what a fully vaccinated person can do," said Cox. I like to say that we have fully vaccinated people, we should start acting like it, calling it a motivating force for those who haven't yet gotten a shot.

I think youre going to see a more aggressive effort on our part to lay out that its not only you can hug your grandchildren, you can do a lot more," Biden responded.
To keep students on track, some local governments and school systems have waived certain testing requirements for graduation or changed grading policies so that missed assignments aren't as damaging. But such leniency carries the risk of watering down academic standards, said Russell Rumberger, a professor emeritus of education at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who has written about dropouts.

If they let you pass with a D and you dont have to do very much to do it, maybe technically you are getting a diploma, but you are not getting the same type of diploma you may have gotten prior to the pandemic, when the standards were higher," he said.

A National Dropout Prevention Center report predicted a doubling or tripling of the number of students who were at risk of falling behind academically and not graduating.

Among them for much of this school year was Jose Solano-Hernandez, a 17-year-old senior at Wyandotte High School in Kansas City, Kansas. In January, when he was at his lowest point following the deaths of one grandparent from COVID-19 and another from cancer in the same week, he estimated that he had missed eight assignments in each of his classes.

I wouldnt make my parents proud, he recalled thinking as he struggled to learn virtually at night while working by day at a mechanic's shop.
As Biden fills out his slate of ambassadors, he has looked to reduce the number of political appointees to embassies around the world in favor of career diplomats  a move that is aimed at reinvigorating confidence in the State Department and longtime Foreign Service officials. Political appointees typically fall into one of two categories: experienced and connected officeholders such as Emanuel and those who bundled major campaign contributions for the president.

Emanuel had been in the running for ambassador to China, viewed as a critical position as the U.S. is poised to confront a more aggressive Beijing. Multiple reports, however, have suggested Biden is likely to tap a career diplomat for the post instead  Nicholas Burns, a former ambassador and senior State Department official who is currently a Harvard professor and helped advise Bidens campaign on foreign policy. The last four ambassadors to China previously served as elected officials.

In Japan, the nations leaders have come to expect a high-profile name as the top U.S. envoy. Emanuel fits that bill as a former senior adviser to President Bill Clinton, a member of the U.S. House leadership and first chief of staff to President Barack Obama prior to his tenure running City Hall in the nations third-largest city.
Rosenbaum acknowledges that he has work to do in getting voters to know who he is and what he stands for before the June 2022 primary. Hes looking forward to traveling the state to get to know voters and to build coalitions with like-minded people who can help carry out his vision.
A generation of young people in the United Kingdom has been scarred by the emotional toll of lockdown. Charities and sector workers warn of poorer families falling through the cracks of an overstretched and under-resourced support network, where children face a stark reality: get worse or do

Away from her friends and regular routine, London teenager Eesha Parashara developed an eating disorder during the UK's first national lockdown, which began last March.

Isolation and loneliness, coupled with social media, proved a toxic combination.

"When I ate every meal, my stomach would hurt for about an hour," Parashara, 17, recalled. "Then not going to the toilet for about two weeks or three weeks. And obviously I was really bloated. And then I looked at my body in different ways. So why am I putting on weight? Why am I not going to toilet? Is there something wrong?"

Despite knowing the pitfalls, she kept comparing herself to others online.

"It is a big influence on the way you think," she said. "Everyone else, when you're on social media, they put up all the good parts. They never put up the negative parts of how they're feeling, the way they look. It's all the good angles. And you're sat at home thinking: Why don't I look like that?"

As light began to appear at the end of the pandemic tunnel, Parashara said she felt additional anxiety about returning to school and normal life, fearing that the opportunities for social development, important for her future at university, are irretrievably lost.
European leaders say lifting patent protections wont solve the problem of getting shots into the arms of people in poorer countries. Instead, they are pushing for more immediate action, like urging the U.S. to export vaccine doses that have already been produced.

But Persic told The Associated Press that "in times of emergency or crisis, there might be a way of lifting those patents ... One can protect the data in a certain way, and still share it.

U.S. President Joe Bidens surprise announcement last week in favor of suspending patent protections came just at experts started meeting at UNESCO to discuss the Open Science plan. Bidens move was was received as a positive nod to their efforts, Persic said.

In 2019, then U.S. President Donald Trump pulled out of UNESCO, but U.S. diplomats are taking part in the Open Science talks as observers.
It's true Iowas schools are open and people can get vaccinated. But it's pretty clear not everybody is doing so.

Meanwhile, there may well be a historic shakeup in the labor force going on. And revolutions can happen in Iowa, just as they can on the coasts. After a year of Covid, a lot of people are reassessing their lives.

A Washington Post article a few days ago said, "A Pew Research Center survey this year found that 66 percent of the unemployed had seriously considered changing their field of work, a far greater percentage than during the Great Recession. People who used to work in restaurants or travel are finding higher-paying jobs in warehouses or real estate, for example. Or they want a job that is more stable and less likely to be exposed to the coronavirus  or any other deadly virus down the road. ...

"Economists describe this phenomenon as reallocation friction, the idea that the types of jobs in the economy are changing and workers are taking awhile to figure out what new jobs they want  or what skills they need for different roles."

That will be harder to do if your state government is pushing you back into the same old low-wage economy.
President Joe Biden proposes to impose steep new taxes on high earnings and lucrative investments to help pay for expanded child care and other social programs. But if hes serious about requiring wealthy Americans to pay more, he missed one of the most obvious places to start.

That would be by curtailing a gift to business owners granted by the 2017 Republican tax law: a special deduction that gives owners of partnerships and limited-liability companies a way to pay less than others who earn just as much money.

Business owners are allowed to deduct up to 20% of the income they receive from a pass-through business (so-called because the businesses' profits pass through to owners directly and are taxed at the individual level) from their overall taxable income. That means a marginal tax rate as low as 29.6% instead of 37% for the highest earners.

To try to limit abuse, there are income thresholds in place for who can qualify for the full 20% deduction: $163,300 for single filers and $326,600 for married taxpayers filing jointly. But the statute was poorly written and includes several exceptions, which has resulted in a lot of tax avoidance. The attempted workaround techniques even have colorful names, like "crack and pack," where lucrative businesses split up into smaller units to game the system.
Our country has a national two-party system, where both political parties form coalitions to gain the majority support of voters. These coalitions have changed throughout U.S. history based on political responses to major events. Our first Republican president (Abraham Lincoln) was elected by a coalition comprised of progressive voters from northern states, who opposed slavery. The Democratic Party of 1860 formed a coalition comprised of conservative voters from southern states, who supported slavery.

Political scientists have identified six distinct "party systems" throughout U.S. history, where the voter coalitions for both parties are dramatically different. FDRs New Deal of 1933 and LBJs Civil Rights Act of 1964 caused our two political parties to "flip" ideologies, with conservative voters currently supporting Republicans and progressive voters supporting Democrats.

Todays Republican coalition can no longer garner the support of a national voter majority. But thus far, the Republican Party refuses to change its ideology, and has instead become tribal in nature, leveraging anger, fear, demonization, and obstruction of the other tribe (Democrats) to stay in power. Worse yet, Republicans are embracing anti-science, misinformation, voter suppression, and authoritarianism to remain in power, which threatens our democracy.
Looking for things to do in Rapid City, South Dakota and Deadwood, South Dakota during your Black Hills vacation? When it comes to visiting the area, we can be sure of one thing: The possibilities for fun and adventure are endless. Its no wonder thousands of people gather to the Black Hills every year. Whether you are here to enjoy fine dining, live casino action, cocktails with a view, or family fun, the Black Hills has it all. So, what will your next vacation look like? Lucky for you, we have compiled a list of our top 5 places to visit in the Black Hills. Take your pick from our list below.

1. Hotel Alex Johnson

Unbeatable views. Savory entrees & craft cocktails. A haunted reputation. Where else can you find a hotel this iconic? The Hotel Alex Johnson in Rapid City, South Dakota provides everything you would normally expect in a historic hotel, but with a few unexpected surprises. Dubbed by many as the highest-ranking hotel (literally 11 stories) in downtown Rapid City, the hotel has welcomed travelers from all over the world. Our hotel is filled with rich history, modern comfort and luxurious amenities.

Foodies are welcome here. From rooftop patios to drinks and delicious entrees, our onsite restaurants satisfy every palate. Vertex Sky Bar, located on the rooftop of the hotel, features comfy seating, cozy fire pits and an extensive menu for every appetite. The atmosphere is perfect for happy hour, a private party, or simply dining with a view. Heres a tip  come for the view, but stay for the exquisite food and classic cocktails.

Feeling Irish? Grab a pint or enjoy a hybrid of Irish and American fare at Paddy ONeills Irish Pub. Pull up a barstool or step outside onto our patio to enjoy the food, beers on draft or any of your favorite cocktails. Its no wonder the locals voted Paddys as the best bar in the Black Hills.

2. WaTiki Indoor Waterpark

Looking for some family fun in the Black Hills? Make your trip totally tubular by visiting WaTiki Indoor Waterpark in Rapid City. With five hotels to choose from and plenty of family-friendly amenities, we make it easy for you to stay at our Rapid City waterpark. Dive into the areas largest indoor waterpark  30,000 sq ft to be exact  with exciting water activities and gnarly attractions for the whole family. And the fun doesnt stop there. Head upstairs to Kokos Arcade with over 30 classic and modern video games for kids of all ages. Dont forget to satisfy your snack attack at our onsite restaurant, Sliders Bar & Grill. Where else can you find a bar with a water slide running right through it?

3. Tin Lizzie Gaming Resort

Spark your curiosity with the swankiest slots and table games, luxurious accommodations and memorable dining at Tin Lizzie Gaming Resort in historic Deadwood, South Dakota. Our full-service gaming resort is conveniently located on Main Street  just steps away from all the casino action. At Tin Lizzie, its all about creating a truly unique experience with deluxe accommodations, delectable dining options and a newly-renovated gaming floor.

Take advantage of the most dynamic and exciting gaming experience that Deadwood has to offer. Dare to be a Big Shot on our gaming floor featuring over 220 of the newest slot machines, eight dynamic live table games including craps and roulette and exhilarating promotions. Dare to stay with luxurious accommodations at Hampton by Hilton and coming soon, Four Points by Sheraton. Make the most of your Deadwood vacation with one of our room package experiences, which include free play and dining credit. Satisfy your palate with great drinks, great food and even better company at one of our onsite restaurants. Your stay will be nothing short of unforgettable. Are you ready to experience Deadwood?

4. Cadillac Jacks Gaming Resort

Located in Deadwood, South Dakota, Cadillac Jacks Gaming Resort is the Black Hills hottest full-service casino and hotel. Get in on the action with exciting promotions, 22 live table games including poker and blackjack, or take a spin on one of our 240 slot machines. Whatever your pleasure, fun at Cadillac Jacks is a sure bet.

When you stay at Cadillac Jacks, youre never far from the excitement. Experience the luxury at our full-service resort with three exceptional hotels and convenient onsite accommodations. Plus, youll never go hungry with our five brand-new dining options. From The Worlds Greatest Hot Sandwich to Flyts for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert, we offer a wide variety of delicious dining options to satisfy your cravings.

Reserve a room for your next Deadwood visit and see why Cadillac Jacks is one of the best places to stay in the Black Hills. Ready to Bet on Red?

5. Mount Rushmore

South Dakota is filled with natural beauty and non-stop adventure. A trip to the Black Hills would not be complete without visiting Mount Rushmore and its neighboring attractions. At Liv Hospitality, our Rapid City, South Dakota and Deadwood, South Dakota hotels are only a short drive from Mount Rushmore and other popular attractions. Whether youre exploring the area on a family vacation, or on a quick weekend getaway, Liv Hospitality offers comfortable accommodations and convenience to make your time in the Black Hills extraordinary.

This content was produced by Brand Ave. Studios. The news and editorial departments had no role in its creation or display. Brand Ave. Studios connects advertisers with a targeted audience through compelling content programs, from concept to production and distribution. For more information contact sales@brandavestudios.com.

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Board members were concerned by the lack of input from healthcare professionals, in addition to the potential flaws in the survey. RCAS Superintendent Lori Simon said a physician from Monument Health was scheduled to attend the meeting but did not show up.

Simon said she meets with Monument every Friday and as of last week physicians said that by July, given current vaccination rates, society can return to a semblance of normalcy.

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Thomas said it is not the school boards job to make medical decisions for its students, only educational ones.

If somebody wants to double up on their mask and a shield, theyre protected, they can do this. Were not asking for kids to get right up in teachers faces, were asking for them to be expressive, to relieve their stress just a little bit, Thomas said.

She urged the other board members to vote for their constituents who took the survey and let students and staff choose their own health and safety precautions.

Board member Amy Policky said she wouldn't vote to lift the mask mandate without guidance from an expert.
More than $488 million in CARES Act funding has been dispersed among 5,857 small business and health care providers in South Dakota as of May 10.

The grants were awarded through the states Small Business and Healthcare Grant program announced by Gov. Kristi Noem in fall 2020. There have been two rounds of grants awarded as the state so far has received two rounds of COVID-19 funding from the federal government.

Final decisions on the second round of grant applications will be made by May 19, according to Colin Keeler, director of financial systems and operations at the Bureau of Finance and Management. Keeler and BFM Commissioner and the state Chief Financial Officer Liza Clark appeared before the Joint Appropriations Committee Tuesday morning to update legislators on the programs progress, which is now wrapping up.

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Ten thousand, three hundred and eighty one applications were submitted by businesses, nonprofits, and community health care providers, 5,857 of which have been deemed eligible and paid a total of $488,820,592. The maximum amount that can be awarded is $514,046,171, so 95% of that amount has already been paid out. Some recipients applied for both rounds and received two grants. There are still 37 applications left to be processed.
The Montana Community Foundation, Inc. (MCF) awarded $8,400 in grants to benefit three organizations in Darby.

Grants were made from the Darby Town Endowment Fund, established at MCF by Richard and Barbara Ackerman in 1999 and enhanced through generous contributions from community members.

Grant requests were reviewed by the Darby Town Endowment Fund Committee.

Awardees include:

 $6,100 to the Darby Community Public Library toward the funding of the HVAC system

 $1,000 to Sapphire Health to purchase books for the Dolly Parton Imagination Library of Ravalli County

 $1,300 to the Town of Darby Parks and Recreation Committee to purchase signage to identify parks in Darby

The Darby Town Endowment Fund Committee is pleased to award grants to these wonderful organizations, said Barbara Ackerman. We feel honored to be able to support our local community in this way. We are also very fortunate to have the following members on the committee: Juli Winthers, Ron Birkle, Terri Mountford and Steve Mandala.
Common Bugloss not a pretty plant.

Common bugloss is a perennial in the Boraginaceae family, the same plant family as houndstongue (Cynoglossum offinale) and blueweed (Echium vulgare). It is native to Europe and western Asia.

Common bugloss is a noxious weed in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia; in Montana Lincoln and Ravalli counties include common bugloss on their county noxious weed lists.

The first record of common bugloss in Montana was in Gallatin County in 1994. Since then it has been reported in Flathead, Lake, Missoula, Ravalli and Stillwater counties with the highest number of occurrences in Ravalli County and more predominately in the Grantsdale area. Ravalli County has received over $246,729 in grants funds to help out our landowners that has this nasty weed.

Common bugloss forms a rosette of oblong leaves that are broadest toward the tip and taper to the base. Plants may remain as a rosette the first year and then begin flowering the second and subsequent years. Leaves along the lower stem are attached via a stalk (i.e. petiole), but upper leaves do not have a stalk (they are sessile) and can have slightly toothed edges.
Sheetz, another major convenience store chain, said Tuesday that it is not experiencing any widespread gasoline outages.

As the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline continues, our teams at Sheetz are working to address any supply issues at our store locations, the chain said. As of now, there are no widespread outages at our stores, although certain grades of gasoline could be temporarily unavailable while our fueling teams replenish supplies. We apologize for any inconvenience caused to our customers and thank them for their patience while we navigate this situation.

Some gasoline market observers such as the motorists club AAA urged people to avoid panic buying because it only exacerbates shortages.

We realize people are concerned about this ... but they need to think about what they are doing, said Morgan Dean, a spokesperson for AAA Mid-Atlantic.

Panic buying creates artificial demand that can lead to shortages and outages, he said, adding that people should consider fueling up only when their gas tank is a quarter full. He suggested that workers and businesses should also do what so many have done over the past year during the pandemic: Work from home if they possibly can to avoid burning gas by commuting.
But its demise would be detrimental to ongoing efforts to keep them housed as the pandemic drags on, advocates warned.

We are concerned that the abrupt end to the moratorium will overwhelm the systems we are building to manage the tremendous need of individuals and families in central Virginia for eviction prevention programs and rental assistance, said Heather Crislip, president and chief executive officer of Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia, a Richmond-based nonprofit.

Stronger protections written into the state budget also require landlords to apply for rent relief before pursuing an eviction against a tenant. Only if that tenant does not cooperate, is ineligible or the application takes more than 45 days to approve can a landlord then carry out an eviction.

Of more concern than the uncertainty around the federal moratorium, said Christie Marra, director of housing advocacy for the Virginia Poverty Law Center, is the potential end of the state of emergency in Virginia at the end of June. If that declaration expires, so, too, would the requirement for landlords to work with tenants to get rental assistance. Qualifying households are eligible for up to 15 months of rent under the program.
Randolph-Macon College will require its students, faculty and staff to be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus by the beginning of the fall semester, joining a growing list of colleges across the country.

The colleges president, Robert Lindgren, who made the announcement Tuesday, said mandating the shot was a critical step toward returning to a more normal educational experience.

More than 300 colleges nationwide say they will require vaccines, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education, even though federal law is less than crystal clear on the subject. U.S. law requires citizens be given the option to accept or refuse a drug that is under emergency-use authorization and that they be made aware of the possible consequences of refusing.

Mark Herring, Virginias attorney general, opined last month, saying he believes Virginias public colleges have the authority to mandate inoculation. So far, 47% of Virginia residents have received at least one dose, according to the state health department. State figures also show that Virginians who are in their 20s are least likely to have been vaccinated.

Randolph-Macon, a private school, is not bound by state laws regarding vaccinations.
I am for schools building schools, I dont care. But right now, I want our children to not have to go to a school in the shape that George Wythe is in, he said. I would hope my colleagues on the School Board would have the same sentiment... Im sorry, I guarantee you if those that voted for this, if their children were going to that school, they would view this thing a whole lot differently.

Fourth District Councilwoman Kristin Larson, who once served on the School Board, has long said the city should not oversee school construction. She introduced a resolution saying so in 2018, which passed, 7-2. Kamras opposed the responsibility of overseeing school construction then, too.

Larsons colleagues on Monday brought up the success of the Joint Construction Team, a body made of school officials and leadership to address school construction, but the councilwoman stood firm. I realize this mayor has a different approach now, but I still philosophically believe that schools should be building schools, and they should take the lead.

The Richmond City Council originally was slated to approve the general fund budget Monday, but will now vote on its adoption later this month after council negotiations over proposed budget changes delayed the process.
Fallons family and Williams would separately visit her outside a window, and they would chat on their cellphones.

After Fallon fell and broke her nose in February, Chandler decided to have her move in.

Around Easter, Williams stopped by to drop off holiday cupcakes, although Fallon was too sick to eat them. When Williams arrived, Chandler welcomed her in to see Fallon, who was sleeping.

Williams sat on the side of Fallons bed, talking to her about how much joy she brought everyone and how much her friendship had meant.

Before Williams left, Fallon opened her deep blue eyes, grabbed her hand and told her she loved her.

Within 48 hours of that meeting, Fallon died  on March 22, Chandler said. She was 83 and had been suffering from congestive heart failure and arthritis.

When the baker called Fran and Jim Williams last week to tell them she planned to deliver a cake for their 50th wedding anniversary, they had no idea who sent it.
In her campaign Sears also emphasized ballot box integrity, saying that she wants to bar third parties from turning in ballots for others and wants Virginia to go back to requiring a photo ID at the polls. She says she was not suggesting that such measures would have changed the outcome of the presidential election, but asserted that such changes would boost voter confidence.

Sears, who worked in 2020 to win Black voters for President Donald Trump, asserted that she can win a general election because she can win over Black voters, including Democrats.

Democrats quickly sought to label Sears as extreme.

Its no surprise that Republican insiders nominated a right-wing extremist like Winsome Sears, said Del. Hala Ayala, D-Prince William, one of six candidates seeking the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor.

The Republican Party of Virginia is out of touch with the needs of regular Virginians, and they continue to elevate conspiracy theorists and Trump extremists like Winsome Sears.

In 2001 Sears became the first Black Republican woman elected to the General Assembly, knocking off Del. William P. Robinson Jr., D-Norfolk, who had been a delegate since 1981. She lost a race for Congress in 2004 to Rep. Bobby Scott, D-3rd.
Glenn Youngkin, the multimillionaire businessman who sought to cast himself as a political outsider with the best chance to challenge Democratic power, will represent Republicans in the race to become Virginias next governor.

Youngkin prevailed Monday night as entrepreneur Pete Snyder, his final rival for the nomination, conceded during the sixth round of vote counting at the Richmond Marriott.

The 54-year-old from Fairfax County was a late entrant in the campaign, with little name recognition in the tight-knit Virginia GOP, which tasked a relatively small number of party loyalists with choosing its nominee in a convention.

Fueled by his own fortune, Youngkin, former CEO of a global investment firm, used the biggest war chest in the race to promote stricter voting laws, the protection of the states right-to-work status, under which membership in a union cannot be a condition of employment, and the end of liberal influence on public schools.

He will become the face of the state party as it heads into a pivotal November election, when the GOP will try to end its banishment from the Executive Mansion since Bob McDonnell left office in 2014.
Yet when Black and Latino students do enroll in those advanced classes, they do just as well as their peers, according to research from Education Trust. At a time when Virginia is growing more diverse, access to the upper-level math classes that will spur our economy still is highly stratified by race.

Parent advocacy matters. Its critical that all parents monitor their childs access to higher level math. Pay special attention to whether their child is enrolled in Algebra I in the eighth grade.

Thats true even for kids who are not math whizzes. One Florida study found that students who had taken Algebra II in high school were less likely to have to take remedial (in other words, noncredit) math classes in college, even if they only squeaked through with a D.

Every student in Virginia needs to take higher math. They just dont all need to take calculus. Some, ideally including aspiring policymakers and journalists, really need a course in probability and statistics. (If youve read as much bad analysis of polling as I have, youll know why.) Students who aspire to open their own businesses might do better learning financial mathematics.

In other words, equity does not have to involve a leveling down. It can and should mean a leveling up.

Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction James Lane has announced there will be no elimination of advanced math classes. That seems to have put a stop to the MPI brushfire. But until Virginia opens up access to higher math to all students, there still is a real cause for math anxiety.
Local economic development forecasters estimate more than 1,000 direct jobs will be lost, as well as countless supporting jobs that would have facilitated the buildout.

Jeff Nobers, the president of Pittsburgh Works, an economic group made up of officials in manufacturing, steel, energy and labor unions, said the unknown costs and future implications due to this decision are formidable and long-lasting.

Local elected officials are of several minds on this project. Most of them just were hoping it would fly under the radar of the climate justice warriors and go up without notice. That never was going to happen. The rest fully backed its demise because of their views on climate change.

One exception has been Fetterman, the progressive populist Democrat who is seeking his partys nomination for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Republican Pat Toomey in 2022.

He was a vocal supporter of the project, which sometimes placed him at odds within his own partys ranks. His support created a strange alliance between him and Republican state lawmakers such as Allegheny County state Sen. Devlin Robinson and the state Senate majority leader, Kim Ward.

Ward said that although she does not agree with Fetterman on much, she sure does on this one.
According to the document, it came from Magnolia, Texas, a city of roughly 1,400 people thats about 30 miles northwest of Houston. The address on the document belongs to a small strip shopping center that includes a realty office, a mortgage office, a homebuilders office, a hearing aid store and a steakhouse.

When I called the phone number, I got a woman named Nicole on the line. She declined to give me her last name. She said her employers name was GenTec but that it also was known as Lab Services.

When I told Nicole about Kathy Weikarts package, Nicole said her employers records indicated Weikarts physician faxed an approval order for the test to GenTec on April 28. Nicole added that Weikart had phoned a genetic advocate on April 8.

Nicole also said that TheraGene DX was one of a number of labs that GenTec represented.

Weikart told me she received the test around April 24, the day she called me.

How could Weikart have received it before it was ordered by her doctor? Why would Weikart have called a genetic advocate nearly three weeks before her physician supposedly ordered the test? How could Weikart even know which number to call before April 24, when the package with the bright pink paper was delivered?
Vineyard Wind follows the scrapped Cape Wind project, which failed after opposition from some high-profile liberals and conservatives alike. Supporters of Vineyard Wind have said the newer project is better sited than Cape Wind, which would've been closer to shore, and that it's more in tune with today's political climate.

But Vineyard Wind also faces opposition. Commercial fishing businesses have said the growth of offshore wind projects off the East Coast would make it difficult for them to harvest valuable seafood species such as scallops and lobsters.

The Responsible Offshore Development Alliance, a coalition of fishing groups and businesses, characterized the approval of the project as a sellout to multinational corporations that hope to profit on offshore wind in the U.S.

For the past decade, fishermen have participated in offshore wind meetings whenever they were asked and produced reasonable requests only to be met with silence, said Anne Hawkins, executive director of the group. From this silence now emerges unilateral action and a clear indication that those in authority care more about multinational businesses and energy politics than our environment, domestic food sources, or U.S. citizens.
A suspect in a shooting incident in Henrico County who was being pursued by police on Interstate 95 died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after officers disabled the womans car, authorities said.

At the request of Henrico police, state troopers joined in the pursuit of a 2010 Honda Accord at 8:10 a.m. on southbound I-95 near Arthur Ashe Boulevard in Richmond, state police Sgt. Dylan Davenport said.

As the pursuit neared the Walthall exit at mile marker 58 in Chesterfield County, troopers deployed a tire deflation device in an attempt to end the pursuit. After running over the device, the driver succumbed to a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Davenport said. No one else was inside the vehicle.

The driver, who has not been identified, was involved a short time earlier in a domestic-related shooting incident in the 4200 block of Sprenkle Lane, said Henrico police Lt. Matt Pecka.

After officers arrived about 8 a.m., they confirmed that shots were fired inside an occupied apartment after a confrontation between two women. There were no reported injuries in the incident, Pecka said.

One of the women took some personal items, including a pink-colored, four-door Honda, and left the scene, Pecka said.
Three other people, one adult and two children who were inside the two-story, single family home were taken to local hospitals but survived. They have since been released.

Corrine Wright was the mother of Aubrey Wright and Ariabella Seaborne, and Linda Carlton was Wrights grandmother, according to her obituary.

Fire officials said the home had working smoke detectors and there was no evidence of foul play.

In addition to smoking in bed and not properly discarding smoking materials, fire officials also determined that one or more of the following safety measures may have changed the outcomes of the Glass Road blaze: having working smoke alarms installed in proper locations, a home escape plan with two identified exit paths that have been practiced regularly and calling 911 without delay.

The home had three smoke detectors, two on the first floor and one on the ceiling at the top of the stairs on the second floor, Luciano said.

One of the detectors on the first floor was placed lower than recommended for effectiveness. But whether that caused a delay, there is no way to know, he said. Not all of the bedrooms had smoke alarms.

Luciano said there was a delay in calling 911.
Glenn Youngkin, the multimillionaire businessman who sought to cast himself as a political outsider with the best chance to challenge Democratic power, will represent Republicans in the race to become Virginias next governor.

Youngkin, 54, prevailed Monday night as entrepreneur Pete Snyder, his final rival for the nomination, conceded during the sixth round of vote counting.

Youngkin was a late entrant in the campaign with little name recognition in the tight-knit Virginia GOP, which tasked a relatively small number of party loyalists to choose its nominee in a convention.

Fueled by his own fortune, Youngkin, former co-CEO of a global investment firm, used the biggest war chest in the race, a limited public record and in-person campaigning to overcome tough odds. He will become the face of the state party as it heads into a pivotal November election, when the GOP will try to end its banishment from the Executive Mansion since Bob McDonnell left office in 2014.

Youngkin prevailed in what became a close match-up against Snyder and Sen. Amanda Chase of Chesterfield. The crowded race also included former House Speaker Kirk Cox of Colonial Heights, whose fourth place finish marked the likely end of his 30-year political career.
1) US and China bounce back, but a slow recovery for developing countries

While economic output in the United States and China is expected to grow robustly and lift global growth, many developing economies are not expected to return to pre-pandemic output levels anytime soon. The pandemic is far from over for most developing countries where vaccination is advancing slowly, and fiscal pressures have intensified.

2) The situation of the most vulnerable has become even more precarious

Lockdowns and social distancing measures resulted in large job losses in contact-intensive and labour-intensive service sectors, which predominantly employ women. The pandemic has also exposed the vulnerability of informal employment, which is the main source of jobs in many countries and which offers less job security, social protection and access to healthcare.

IMF/Lisa Marie David An egg vendor sits in her stall in Quiapo, Philippines.

3) Global trade recovery is strong, particularly in Asia

Merchandise trade has already surpassed pre-pandemic levels, buoyed by strong demand for electrical and electronic equipment, personal protective equipment (PPE) and other manufactured goods. Trade in services remains constrained by restrictions on international travel. While exports from Asian economies have soared, exports from Africa, Western Asia, and the Commonwealth of Independent States has stalled.

4) The COVID-19 crisis has inflicted more harm on women and girls

This crisis disproportionately affected women, who suffered significant job and income losses, contributing to the worsening of gender poverty gaps. Burdened by increased home care duties, many girls and women gave up on schools, and the workforce altogether. Returning to school and work might take longer or may not happen at all for many of them, further widening gender gaps in education, income and wealth.

ILO/Kivanc Ozvardar Women textile workers perform quality control tests at a factoy in Izmir, Turkey.

5) Countries need to do more to address the uneven impact of the COVID-19 crisis

There is an urgent need for countries to formulate better targeted and gender-sensitive policies to drive a more resilient and inclusive recovery from the crisis. Though on the frontlines of the pandemic, women have been under-represented in pandemic related decision-making and economic policy responses. The severe and disproportionate impact of the pandemic on women and girls call for more targeted policy and support measures for women and girls, not only to accelerate the recovery but also to ensure that the recovery is inclusive and resilient.

UN Women/Piyavit Thongsa-Ard A rice mill worker fills a sack with rice in Ratchathani province, Thailand.

UN
Banks dominate

First quarter business results of nearly 370 listed companies announced by Rong Viet Securities (VDSC) show that results on both HoSE and HNX are positive with increasing profits of 62% and 100%, respectively. On HoSE, 58% of businesses recorded profit growth of about 20% compared with about 1% in the same period in previous years. Business results on HNX were similar when around 50% of enterprises recorded profit growth of almost 20%.

Steel consumption in the first quarter of the year grew strongly year-on-year in both export and domestic markets, helping steel companies such as the Hoa Phat Group Joint Stock Company (HPG) to show record high profits. According to the first quarter financial statement, HPG has surpassed the entire banking group to lead the market in profit after tax with VND 6977.6 bn, three times higher than in the same period in 2020. The sharp increase in steel price is also the reason for the Hoa Sen Group Joint Stock Company (HSG) to join the group of enterprises showing a trillion dong profit in the first quarter with VND 1,034 bn, five times higher than in the same period in other years.

According to statistics, in the first quarter, eight out of the top 20 listed companies with a trillion dong profit were manufacturing and retail enterprises, and the rest were twelve leading banks. In this, two banks that surpassed HPG were Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (VCB) and Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (CTG) with profits of VND 6,902 bn and VND 6,461.5 bn, respectively. VCB showed a 65% profit increase and CTG showed a 167% increase.

Other companies among the Top 20 were a series of banks such as Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TCB) with VND 4,397 bn; Military Commercial Joint Stock Bank (MBB) with VND 3,553 bn; Vietnam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VPB) with VND 3,201 bn; Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BID) with VND 2,648 bn; Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) with VND 2,483 bn; HCM City Development Commercial Joint Stock Bank (HDB) with VND 1,563 bn; Vietnam International Commercial Joint Stock Bank (VIB) with VND 1,446 bn; Saigon-Hanoi Commercial Joint Stock Bank (SHB) with VND 1,330 bn; Tien Phong Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TPB) with VND 1,138 bn; and Orient Commercial Joint Stock Bank (OCB) with VND 1,011 bn.

Contrary to the spectacular growth of HSG was the dramatic decline of the two giants, Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company (VNM) and Vietnam Gas Corporation (GAS). VNM after-tax profit decreased by 7%, reaching VND 2,576 bn, while GAS profit decreased by 13%, reaching VND 2,029 bn. With this result, VNM fell to ninth place, while GAS was kicked out for the first time from the Top 10 most profitable companies on the stock market since it was listed on the stock exchange.

The financial reports submitted in the first quarter of this year recorded an unusual phenomenon with many businesses recording an increase in after-tax growth equal to, or even ten times higher than in the same period last year. Specifically, Tien Len Steel Corporation (TLH) showed an increase by three times; Vietnam Rubber Industry Corporation (GVR) by four times; Saigon Investment VRG (SIP) by five times; TKV Minerals JSC ( KSV) by six times; Tri Viet Securities (TVB) by eight times; Thu Duc Trading-Import Export (TMC) by nine times; Truong Thanh Energy and Real Estate JSC (TEG) by eleven times; NH Kien Long Commercial Joint Stock Company (KLB) by twelve times; Sesan 4 Hydropower JSC (S4A) by sixteen times; Bamboo Capital JSC (BCG) by twenty times; FLC Faros Construction JSC (ROS) by forty-four times; and the South Mekong Group JSC (VC3) by forty-six times.

Trick and manipulation

The strong recovery in business results in the first quarter was due to low results of the first quarter of 2020 when enterprises were suddenly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Even in the same period last year, many companies reported losses, but are now showing profits, so the growth rate calculated by times is not too difficult to understand. For the banking industry, the strong increase in profit in the first quarter included factors such as the contribution of credit growth and interest income, a sharp decline in provision costs for bad debts, and the effect of the policy of reducing operating costs after the second quarter of 2020.

However, this does not mean that beautifying of financial statements has declined. In fact, the first quarter financial statements are often doctored by companies to satisfy shareholders for the next AGM. According to an economist, the tricks to beautify the financial statements applied by SMEs are to use a lot of accounting estimates that have a direct impact on profit in the period.

Some common tips to increase profits are by reducing depreciation, provisions, inventory prices, provisions for bad debts, not recording expenses when assets are depreciated below net value, and capitalization of unqualified accounts. Profit tricking based on accounting estimates in fact do not increase profits, but merely convert profits in the following period to the current period.

The inevitable consequence is that next year profits will be reduced, and as there is no exact standard for the value of these estimates, it is seen as a powerful tool to highlight profits. In addition to using accounting estimates, an enterprise may also make a profit through mediating real transactions to increase profits for the current year, although such transactions may not benefit the company in the long run.

Investing in a group of shares with positive business results also has left investors facing high risks. It was a phenomenon that the stock price level was pushed up quickly in such a short time. This coincided with positive information of the removal of a liquidity bottleneck, stimulating profit taking activities. In fact, after reaching peak, many stocks sold out strongly, causing heavy losses for investors who bought in peak distribution sessions.

Therefore, to limit the risks, investors need to know how to read financial statements. Understanding financial statements will help investors evaluate the actual financial health of enterprises, find signs of potential risks to avoid, and seek genuine investment opportunities. When analyzing financial statements, investors can predict direction of future cash flow, revenue, and profit of the company, before making any investment decisions.

Kim Giang
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Email Thomas Elias at tdelias@aol.com. His book, "The Burzynski Breakthrough, The Most Promising Cancer Treatment and the Governments Campaign to Squelch It" is now available in a soft cover fourth edition. For more Elias columns, visit www.californiafocus.net
" " Astronauts like flight engineer Karen Nyberg aren't the only ones who crave that view of Earth from afar. Karen Nyberg/NASA

Billionaire Jeff Bezos's space launch company Blue Origin has announced it will sell its first flights into microgravity to the highest bidder.

Blue Origin and its two greatest competitors in the "space tourism" field, SpaceX and Virgin Galactic, claim to be advancing humanity through the "democratization" of space. But these joyrides aren't opening up access to space for all.

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A Changing Landscape

At face value, the prospect of a space tourism industry is exciting.

It promises an easier path to space than the one followed by astronauts, who must go through higher education, intense training and extremely competitive selection processes. Astronauts must also have the right nationality, because few countries have access to human spaceflight programs.

In theory, the opening up of a commercial spaceflight industry should make space more accessible and democratic. But this is only partly the case; what was once the domain of only the richest countries is now an industry headed predominantly by commercial entities.

Adding to this, these companies are prepared to take more risks than government programs because they don't have to justify their spending  or failures  to the public. Blue Origin and SpaceX have seen many explosions in past tests, yet fans watch with excitement rather than dismay.

This has pushed the rapid development of space technologies. Reusable rockets  particularly SpaceX's Falcon 9, which just made its tenth successful launch  have reduced the cost of launching tenfold.

Besides driving down costs, reusable technology is also working to solve the problem of sustainability.

" " Spectators watch from Canaveral National Seashore as a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 60 Starlink satellites launches from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center on Oct. 6, 2020 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. This was the 13th batch of satellites placed into orbit by SpaceX as part of a constellation designed to provide broadband internet service around the globe. Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images

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Considering Sustainability

There have been thousands of launches since 1957, when the first human-made object (Sputnik I) was launched by the Soviets. Apart from Falcon 9, however, every single launch vehicle has been used once and disposed of immediately  akin to throwing away an aeroplane after one flight.

Launch numbers are increasing each year, with 114 carried out in 2020 alone. Over the weekend, the uncontrolled reentry of debris from China's Long March 5B rocket made world news because of its sheer size and the risk of damage. It is just one example of the problems of space debris and traffic management.

Safety is a key issue for human spaceflight. Currently, there are about 3,400 operational satellites in orbit and about 128 million pieces of debris. There are hundreds of collision risks each day, avoided by expensive and difficult maneuvers or, if the risk is low enough, operators wait and hope for the best.

If we add more human spaceflight to this traffic, countries will need to adopt stricter requirements to de-orbit satellites at the end of their lives, so they burn up on reentry. Currently, it's acceptable to de-orbit after 25 years, or to put a satellite into an unused orbit. But this only delays the problem for the future.

Nations will also need to implement the 2019 United Nations guidelines on the Long-term Sustainability of Activities in Outer Space.

The environmental impact of launches are another important factor. SpaceX's Falcon 9 burns as much fuel as an average car would over 200 years, for a single launch.

On the ground there are impacts on terrain and waterways, which we have to keep in mind when building future launch sites in Australia. Launch permits currently require environmental impact statements, but these should include long-term effects and carbon footprints as well.

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Keeping Billionaires in Check

In the coming years, it will be crucial for independent spaceflight companies to be tightly regulated.

Virgin Galactic has long advocated a "shirtsleeve" environment wherein customers can experience the luxury of spaceflight unhindered by awkward spacesuits. But the death of one of its test pilots in 2014 is evidence spaceflight remains dangerous. High altitudes and pressure require more precaution and less concern for comfort.

Although regulators such as the US Federal Aviation Administration have strict safety requirements for space tourism, pressurised spacesuits are not among them  but they should be. Also, space tourism operators can require passengers to sign legal waivers of liability, in case of accident.

And while it's laudable SpaceX and Blue Origin are making technological leaps, there is little in their business plans that speaks to diversity, inclusivity and global accessibility. The first space tourists were all wealthy entrepreneurs.

In 2001 Dennis Tito paid his way to a seat on a Russian Soyuz rocket to visit the International Space Station (ISS). Since then, there have been eight more space tourists, each paying between US$20 million and US$30 million to fly through the Russian program.

" " American space tourist Dennis Tito after his landing on May 6, 2001 near Arkalyk, Kazakstan. Tito was returning from a six-day voyage to the International Space Station, a trip for which he paid $20 million. Newsmakers/Getty Images North America

In 2022, the Axiom crew is scheduled to fly on a SpaceX Dragon flight to the ISS. Each of the three wealthy, white, male passengers will have paid US$55 million for the privilege. Meanwhile, Blue Origin's upcoming auction will last five weeks, the highest bidder winning a seat for a few minutes of microgravity.

Virgin Galactic's 90-minute joyrides, also scheduled to fly as early as 2022, have already sold for US$250,000. Future tickets are expected to cost more.

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A Matter of Time

Of course, conventional recreational air travel was also originally for the wealthy. Early cross-continental flights in the United States costed about half the price of a new car. But technological advances and commercial competition meant by 2019 (pre-COVID) there were nearly five million people flying daily.

Perhaps it's only a matter of time before space tourism becomes similarly accessible. Ideally, this would mean being able to fly from Sydney to London in a matter of hours.

Then again, spaceflight carries much greater risks and much greater costs than airflight, even with reusable rockets. It's going to be a long time before these costs are driven down enough to allow the "democratization" of space.

This is a compelling narrative which commercial spaceflight companies are eager to adopt. But there will always be a portion of society that won't have access to this future. Indeed, as many science-fiction stories predict, human spaceflight or habitation in space may only ever be accessible to the very wealthy.

We know there are benefits to space-based technologies  from tracking climate change, to enabling global communications and health services, to learning from scientific experiments on the ISS. But when it comes to space tourism, the payback for the average person is less clear.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. You can find the original article here.

Cassandra Steer is a senior consultant and lecturer, specializing in space law and space policy at the Australian National University College of Law. She is a Mission Specialist with the ANU Institute for Space, providing space law, policy and security expertise to space research and technology development at the ANU.
" " Unite d'Habitation in Marseille is arguably the most influential Brutalist building of all time. It's also one of 17 projects by 20th-century French architect Le Corbusier to be added to UNESCO's list of internationally significant architecture sites. Flickr/Denis Esakov/(CC 3.0)

Strike up a conversation about the world's most beautiful buildings, and it might be a while before anyone mentions an example of Brutalist architecture. There could be numerous French buildings on the list like the Palace of Versailles or something more recent like the Sacre-Coeur Basilica, but Le Corbusier's Unite d'Habitation in Marseille probably won't be at the top of anybody's list.

Yet that building, completed in 1952, has been called the architect and designer's "most significant and inspiring" by ArchDaily. Made of beton-brut concrete, which was inexpensive in post-World War II Europe, the innovative building housed 1,600 individuals and included spaces for dining, shopping and gathering. And its heavy look and raw material established Brutalism, a style that has been fighting for its rightful place in the imagination of architecture lovers ever since.

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What Is Brutalism?

Brutalism is an architectural style that came out of the postwar era and is defined by several key characteristics, including large building forms, unique and striking shapes, heavy-looking materials, and unfinished surfaces and materials, says Brandon Buck, RIBA and design director at global design firm Perkins&Will. Buck also is leading the team enhancing the Brutalist Richard Seifert building at 41 Tower Hill, London.

It is the unfinished surfaces that are responsible for Brutalism's name  the raw concrete it's known for is called beton brut in French. The style predominantly makes use of this exposed concrete and sometimes brick with an overlay of a monochrome color palette. Of course, there is a need for other materials in construction, like steel, timber and glass, but those are secondary.

"I think it's hard not to be impressed with the striking nature of Brutalist architecture," says Buck, who compares the style to walking through a modern art museum  even if you don't love everything, it makes you stop and wonder and feel something.

" " Brandon Buck, design director at global design firm Perkins&Will, is leading the team enhancing the Brutalist building at 41 Tower Hill, in London, seen here. Perkins&Will

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Brutalism, Popular or Not?

With the understanding that the moniker attached to this 20th-century style of architecture relates to raw concrete rather than it's "brutal" nature, it's curious that it has earned such a negative image.

"If you think about popular culture, there is a raft of movies that painted Brutalist buildings in a bad way because of what was happening around those buildings," Buck says. He cites the housing estate in the film "A Clockwork Orange" as an example. Uses like this in popular culture have fed into the reputation of Brutalism's, well, brutalness.

In fact, Brutalist buildings are sometimes touted as ugly or hated. But it's important to keep in mind that the style had an important purpose and historical context.

"At the time, in the late '50s early '60s, the cost of concrete was pretty affordable," says Buck. In the postwar era, there was a surplus of energy and a big push for labor, so concrete felt like a sensible building material at the time. It became popular for authoritative buildings like government and university structures, as well as social housing.

In that era, people liked it. Architects that advocated for the style "sought to project a sense of strength through these large, fortress-like designs," Buck explains.

Yet even with the focus on sensibility and authority, Brutalist architecture had a softer side in that it displayed the rawness and imperfections of handmade items.

"There is something very human about that," says Buck.

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Brutalism for Home Decor and Interiors

If you're looking to incorporate Brutalist style into your life, you don't have to move to a mid- to late-20th century building to do it. Home decor influenced by Brutalist ideas is readily available. A piece of Brutalist-inspired sculpture might also do the trick.

"There is an interest and appeal for that type of piece to be in people's homes and office spaces," says Buck.

The Vault explains that today's Brutalist interiors begin with a large textured base and maintain an emphasis on natural materials. What's new is that polished and chrome metallics may be added. The clean shapes and forms present a good juxtaposition against other palettes that are more colorful or include things like brass and copper, Buck explains.

"The tone of the concrete and its imperfections go well with other material palettes from an interior design perspective," he says.

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Is Brutalism Making a Resurgence?

After falling out of favor in the 1980s, partially due to its association with totalitarianism, writes Jessica Stewart for My Modern Met  think socialist modernism  Brutalism appears to be making a comeback. It's not that new Brutalist buildings are popping up like it's the 1960s, but rather existing structures are getting a second look and being enhanced, refurbished and retrofit.

"That's really a big movement right now," says Buck. The solid structure of Brutalist buildings is often compatible with adding several stories, so today's architects can keep the essence of a building and provide a better feel and environment that feeds into the community.

"People see the merits of Brutalism now and are using some of those characteristics in different ways," he says.

In a lot of the Brutalist architecture, the fenestration is minimal or minimized in proportion to the spans of the concrete, so one enhancement is often to increase the size of the openings. This was one of the goals with the controversial 2018 Cooper Carry update to the Marcel Breuer-designed Central Atlanta Library. Recladding of a facade can also be used to improve the performance of the building in order to control heat loss or gain, according to Buck.

Thanks to the combination of their initial functionality, their structural soundness and connection with many important architects, Brutalist buildings are experiencing a revival in this century. Like it or not.

"They do tend to be striking," says Buck. "They do tend to demand a response."

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Famous Brutalist Buildings

Brutalist buildings and structures can be found throughout the world; you've probably seen many without realizing it. In addition to Le Corbusier's Unite d'Habitation that started it all, his Notre Dame du Haut in Ronchamp, France, is "one of the most important buildings of the 20th century," according to Dezeen.com.

" " Considered by many critics to be Le Corbusier's finest work, the Notre Dame du Haut chapel features a huge curving board-marked concrete roof that shows a break away from the functionalism of the architect's earlier buildings. Sobli/RDB/ullstein bild via Getty Images

In the U.K., wife and husband team Alison and Peter Smithson "led British Brutalism through the latter half of the 20th century," according to ArchDaily, designing "streets in the sky" modern housing, as well as the headquarters of the Economist and a building at Oxford University.

Swiss-British architect Richard Seifert was prolific in his creation of Brutalist buildings, including the 34-story "'beehive' grid of glass and concrete" Centre Point in London, which was unused for decades and has now been redeveloped into a high-end residential tower. Barbican Centre and Estate is another of London's famed Brutalist structures; its architects at Chamberlin, Powell and Bon were inspired by the Unite d'Habitation.

" " The architects at Chamberlin, Powell and Bon who designed London's epic Barbican Centre were inspired by the Unite d'Habitation. Jordi Prats/Shutterstock

Another attempt at "reimagining apartment living," Moshe Safdie's Habitat 67, built for the 1967 World's Fair in Montreal, combined the concrete of Brutalism with Japanese Metabolism for a look that is defined by modular cubes.

" " Habitat 67, designed by the Israeli-Canadian architect Moshe Safdie as the Canadian Pavilion for the World Exposition of 1967, was originally intended as an experimental solution for high-quality housing in dense urban environments. Taxiarchos228/Wikimedia/(CC BY-SA 3.0)

Boston is home to many examples of Brutalist architecture, including Boston City Hall, which has been described as a "concrete fortress." Its design is the result of an international contest for which the winning concept was submitted by Gerhard Kallmann, Noel McKinnell and Edward Knowles, admirers of Le Corbusier.

" " Boston City Hall's design is the result of an international contest for which the winning concept was submitted by Gerhard Kallmann, Noel McKinnell and Edward Knowles, admirers of Le Corbusier. DEA/M. BORCHI /De Agostini via Getty Images

One of the most recognizable Brutalist buildings is the Geisel Library at University of California San Diego. Designed by William Pereira, completed in 1970 and constructed of reinforced concrete and glass, the building's two-story pedestal holds six additional stories, cantilevered above it.

" " One of the most recognizable Brutalist buildings is the Geisel Library at University of California San Diego, which was designed by William Pereira. Geisel Library

Now That's Interesting The iconic Geisel Library at UCSD was originally called the Central Library but was renamed in 1995 for Audrey and Ted Geisel (better known as Dr. Seuss) after Audrey donated $20 million to the university. It is also home to more than 20,000 pieces of Dr. Seuss' original work and memorabilia.
 On fleek and spicy: "Millennials Commit Less Crime Than Prior Generations" | Main | Fourth Circuit to review en banc recent panel ruling that lengthy (within-guideline) drug sentence was unreasonable 

May 11, 2021

"Old law" federal prisoners provide new reminder that parole does not cure all ills

A few years ago I wrote an essay, titled "Reflecting on Parole's Abolition in the Federal Sentencing System," which lamented the federal sentencing system's decision to abolish parole back in 1984. Among other points, in this piece I suggested that "parole could have been, and perhaps should now become, a bulwark against the kind of impersonalized severity that has come to define much of the modern federal sentencing experience." I realized while working on that piece that there was a bit of "grass is always greener" thinking driving my modern "ivory tower" affinity for part of a sentencing scheme that has long been beset with problems in practice.

Today, the imperfect realities of parole is highlighted in this new NPR piece a helpful reader made sure I saw headlined "Forgetting And Forgotten: Older Prisoners Seek Release But Fall Through The Cracks." I recommend the full piece, and here is how it starts and a few other passages:

Davon-Marie Grimmer has been struggling to get help for more than year for her cousin, Kent Clark. Sometimes, when he calls from prison, he asks to speak with relatives who are no longer alive. Sometimes, he forgets the name of his cell mate. "As far as I know, he hasn't received any medical attention for the dementia, and he's just so vulnerable in there," Grimmer said. "He's 66 years old. He can't take care of himself." Clark is one of about 150 people in federal prison who time mostly forgot. This group of "old law" prisoners committed crimes before November 1987, when the law changed to remove the possibility of parole. But even with the grandfathered-in chance for parole  and despite a push to reduce prison populations  dozens of men in their 60s, 70s and 80s still have little hope of release. When Congress tweaked the law three years ago to allow sick and elderly people behind bars to apply to a judge for compassionate release, that change didn't apply to the "old law" prisoners. They're easy to overlook. "They are the oldest and most vulnerable cohort of people within the federal prison system today," said Chuck Weisselberg, a law professor at the University of California, Berkeley. "I mean, their only path for release is through the parole commission, an agency that's been dying for decades." A bipartisan group of senators has introduced legislation that would give "old law" prisoners the chance to petition judges for release based on their age and poor health, but it's awaiting action in Congress.... As for Kent Clark, the U.S. Parole Commission reviewed his case last year. According to written records, Clark's case manager told the commission that Clark is showing signs of dementia. He pointed out that as a young man, Clark was a boxer who may have a history of head injuries. But the parole examiner denied Clark's bid for release. The examiner wrote that if Clark can't remember what he did, "how can the Commission be certain he has learned something from his mistakes and/or that he has developed the skills to avoid engaging in the same behavior?"

May 11, 2021 at 10:42 AM | Permalink

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I handle old law parole revocation cases as part of my practice. The Parole Commission lacks accountability and transparency. They sometimes cannot get basic administrative functions right. In my view, all parole cases should be converted to supervised release cases and handled by courts with public dockets, public hearings and the chance to meet a lawyer before deciding you don't want or need one. And given my strong feelings about the supervised release system, that's saying something.

Posted by: defendergirl | May 11, 2021 3:06:36 PM

Way back when I was in law school and dinosaurs walked the earth, I participated in a clinic that handled parole hearings. (This was just after the sentencing guidelines took effect for the new offenders.) What quickly became apparent was that, even before the sentencing guidelines were enacted, many judges were using the parole guidelines to make sentencing decisions. Most of my clients fell into two categories with both based on the assumption that the parole date would be within the guidelines range.

In category one were the individuals who faced a judge who used the guidelines as a parole eligibility date. At that time, federal offenders had to serve one-third of their sentence before becoming parole eligible. These offenders had a sentence approximately three times the median of the guideline range. In short, these judges made sure that the Parole Commission could not go under the guideline range.

In category two were the individuals who faced a judge who used the guidelines as a mandatory release date. At that time, barring misconduct that would cost an inmate "good time" credit, most inmates reached their statutory release date after serving about two-thirds of their sentence. Thus, by imposing a sentence that was approximately 50% longer than their parole guideline range. In short, these judges made sure that the Parole Commission could not go over the guideline range.

In short, the more transparent the operations of parole were, the easier it was for judges to circumvent and limit the discretion of the Parole Commission. As bad as the current system might be, it is at least more straightforward about the relationship between the sentence and the time to be served.

Posted by: TMM | May 11, 2021 3:39:39 PM

What your Blog and the NPR piece gloss over is that "old Law" inmates can seek compassionate release under the pre-First Step Act BOP Regulations, but as a practical matter, it is almost never granted, and generally requires that the inmate be terminally ill, such as with cancer. Most Old Law inmates seeking Compassionate Release under the old Regulations died before their Petition could work its way thru the 4 levels of the BOP Bureaucracy: Warden, Regional Office, Director of the BOP, and review and recommendation by the BOP Medical Director. The minimum time for a petition to run the gauntlet of the BOP Bureaucracy is 6 months to 1 year, and terminally ill men usually die before that process can be completed. I first learned about this issue when I was an inmate at USP - 1, Coleman, Florida in 2006. I drafted (at a prison law library typewriter) a Petition for Compassionate Release for the longest serving inmate in the entire BOP. He was convicted of "kidnapping resulting in death" in June 1964. He was among a group that had been paid by a political opponent to kidnap a Cincinnati political candidate and hold him in communicado (in Northern Kentucky) during the last weeks before and election, to keep him from campaigning. The kidnappers were camping in the woods with their captive, but forgot to bring water to drink. Their captive suggested that he had a bottle of bourbon in the trunk of his car, so they should drink it in lieu of water. All got drunk, and a fight broke out. The captive died when his temple struck a rock on the ground when he was punched and knocked down in the fight. The Inmate was paroled for 13 days in 1994, after serving 30 years of his sentence. During those 13 days bank in the free world, he and his brother committed a series of bank robberies, and he was caught and returned to prison, to complete his life sentence, plus more time for the bank robberies. By the summer of 2006, he had served 42 years in Federal prison, and was reduced to an old man in his 80s, restricted to a wheel chair and chain smoking cigarettes. The prison doctor diagnosed him with terminal cancer, which had metasticized throughout his body. The Warden told him to get someone to help him prepare a Petition for Compassionate Release, and he would approve it and try to get him released from prison in time to die in the Free World, with his family. Other inmates brought him to me, because I was the only inmate with a law degree and practice experience. We met in the law library after dinner. I opened the Code of Federal Regulations to the appropriate sections, read them, and begin asking him questions to elicit the information I needed to prepare his Petition. I typed as he answered the questions. The Warden approved his Petition for Compassionate Release and forwarded it to the BOP Regional Office, where it was sitting unreviewed at the time the inmate died 6 weeks later. His cellmate returned from breakfast one morning to find him dead on the concrete floor of their cell. Work call and educational call were cancelled that morning and inmates were restricted to their living units while the local coroner was called in to review the scene and remove the body. The Coroner removed his body thru back hallways, out of inmate view, because some inmates with life sentences (in a BOP Penitentiaries, more than 2/3 of inmates have life sentences) get upset or violent when they see the body of another inmate who has passed inside the prison. Staff permitted the dead inmate's cellmate to sit outside at a table and cry away his grief. It was a poignant scene. This is what the remaining 150 Old Law inmates inside the BOP are facing. I pray that Congress will soon help them and make them eligible for the same kind of Compassionate Release as the New Law inmates receive.

Posted by: Jim Gormley | May 12, 2021 9:17:10 AM

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Its like they knew they were special, Blaine said.

In just a week of bringing Marvel home, Paxton has already taken her on a lot of walks along the trails near their home. Blaine has been capturing their matching, yet miraculous strides.

The amount of emotions that were running through me at the time, it was just awesome because it was knowing that she was in the perfect place at the perfect time, Blaine said.

Stephanie has already seen Marvel make a difference in the way Paxton shares his own story with his friends and neighbors.

It gives him the opportunity to tell the kids, Oh shes missing a paw, shes like me, and like it gives him that voice, too, to advocate for himself, Stephanie said.

As Marvel gets older, she may need a wheelchair or prosthetic of her own to get around. For now, the hope is someday Paxton will be able to run with his prosthetic, and Marvel will be able to run alongside him.

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In 1966, a merger was announced between the National and American Football Leagues, and more events that happened on this day in history.
SIOUX CITY -- Sioux City School District teachers and support staff will be receiving a pay increase for the 2021-22 school year.

The Sioux City Community School reached agreements with the Sioux City Education Association (SCEA) and the Sioux City Educational Support Personnel Association (SCESPA). The two agreements were approved during the Monday night school board meeting.

The SCEA represents roughly 800 teachers. The SCESPA represents other workers such as secretaries, instructional assistants, special education assistants, library assistants, busing assistants and crossing guards.

Teachers with a bachelors degree will see a $540 salary increase and the Teacher Supplemental Salary will increase by $11. The starting salary for a first-year teacher in Sioux City will be $43,191. Currently, a first-year teacher in Sioux City makes $42,640, said Human Resources Department Director Rita Vannatta previously.

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All current educational support personnel will receive a 44-cent-per-hour increase, a 2.87 percent increase. The minimum base salary will receive a 22-cent increase.

Including wages and benefits, the total package increase is at 2.41 percent for both groups.
SIOUX CITY -- Gov. Kim Reynolds' move to end Iowa's participation in federal pandemic-related unemployment benefit programs should help employers who are struggling to fill positions, a local workforce specialist said.

Brad Newton, director of economic development and workforce solutions with The Siouxland Initiative, said the additional federal government payments have adversely affected some employers' efforts to recover from the pandemic.

Local employers have been reaching out to Newton, asking how they can compete with the added benefits, which includes a supplemental payment of $300 per week.

They are essentially competing with the unemployment program and it makes it very difficult for them, across all industries, to find people who are qualified, Newton said.

He noted over 66,000 jobs are currently available in Iowa. Newton said he hopes more positions will be filled after Iowa ends the federal programs on June 12. After that date, Iowans will no longer be able to receive Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation or Mixed Earners Unemployment Compensation.
SIOUX CITY -- Several Siouxland students were recognized for their essays and artwork created for Sioux City's Tolerance Week -- an annual remembrance of the Holocaust -- which, this year, took place April 26-30.

Ian Greigg, a Hinton Middle School student, was the winner of the Tolerance Week Written Word Contest. Barite Mohammed, a South Sioux City Middle School student, and Avery Welte, a Hinton Middle School student, received honorable mention honors for their essays.

Abby Demers, a student at Sioux City's Holy Cross School, was the winner of the Ella Holtzen Memorial Tolerance Week Art Contest. Brandon Lee, a South Sioux City Middle School student; Miranda Garcia, of Sioux City's North Middle School; and Emily Olthausen and Hailey Lotus Kotalik, both of Sioux City's West Middle School, received honorable mention honors for their art.

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The art contest was renamed in honor of Ella Holtzen, the 2016 Tolerance Week Middle School Art contest winner, who died with her brother Beck in a 2020 ice-related car accident.

Sioux City's Tolerance Week was created in 2005 by Jerry and Kathy Weiner after the couple saw "Paper Clips," a critically acclaimed documentary film featuring middle-school kids in Tennessee who collected 6 million paper clips to represent the 6 million Jews killed by the Nazis during World War II.
CARIBBEAN SEA -- The crew of the USS Sioux City seized over $24 million in suspected cocaine late last month, the U.S. 4th Fleet Public Affairs Office said in a statement released Monday.

On April 26, a helicopter and a small boat were deployed from the USS Sioux City, a Freedom-variant littoral combat ship, to intercept a go-fast vessel.

The statement said packages had been thrown over the side of the vessel, which was first spotted by a maritime patrol aircraft.

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The vessel was searched, all of the packages were recovered, and two suspected drug traffickers were detained, according to the statement.

The following day, the ship was directed to intercept a second go-fast vessel and three additional suspected drug traffickers were subsequently detained.

The ship, working with embarked U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment 109, recovered an estimated 582 kilograms of suspected cocaine worth an estimated $24 million.
Wesley Lowery, a former Post reporter now at CBS News, referred to Merida in tweeting Tuesday: The overqualified black candidate not even getting a serious call about the job, only for it to go to a white lady and be framed as a win for diversity is the entire story of newsroom diversity efforts.

Buzbee said the AP made important strides in diversity and in opening paths to leadership while she was in charge.

What I'm looking forward to is getting to know the (Post) staff and diving in and continuing that commitment to diversity and inclusiveness, she said. I think it is one of the highest priorities for every news organization going forward, and it is very much mine.

The Post has made a sharp turnaround, particularly as a digital organization, since Bezos bought it. Its website has more than 80 million unique visits per month. But the Amazon founder's presence is closely watched; Trump continually pointed out the connection.

Buzbee said she has been impressed with how the Post has maintained its independence in the news pages.

Buzbee, originally from Olathe, Kansas, joined the AP as a reporter in Topeka. She was correspondent in San Diego, and then in 1995 joined the Washington bureau, where she eventually became assistant chief of bureau.
ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. (AP)  Lawyers for relatives of Andrew Brown Jr., a Black man fatally shot by deputies, said Tuesday that body camera videos show that he didnt strike them with his car before they opened fire, contradicting a local prosecutor.
HOUSTON (AP)  A Texas man free on bond from a murder charge was returned to custody Monday after neighbors found a pet tiger wandering around a Houston neighborhood.
BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP)  A judge said Thursday he will review under seal mental health records of Ahmaud Arbery to decide whether they can be used by defense attorneys to support their case that the slaying of the 25-year-old Black man was an act of self-defense.
HOUSTON (AP)  A Texas man free on bond from a murder charge was returned to custody Monday after neighbors found a pet tiger wandering around a Houston neighborhood.

Houston police tweeted Monday night that Victor Hugo Cuevas, 26, was back in custody charged with felony evading arrest.

Police had said they believed the tiger had belonged to Cuevas, but his attorney questioned the accuracy of that belief.

Video of the Sunday night encounter shows the tiger coming face-to-face with an armed off-duty Waller County sheriff's deputy, police said. During the encounter, the deputy can be heard yelling at Cuevas to get the animal back inside.

No shots were fired.

When officers arrived, Cuevas put the animal in a white Jeep Cherokee and drove off, Houston police Cmdr. Ron Borza said during a news conference Monday. Cuevas got away after a brief pursuit, he said.

Police said Monday that the tiger's whereabouts are not known. Borza had said earlier Monday that the main concern was finding Cuevas and finding the tiger "because what I don't want him to do is harm that tiger. We have plenty of places we can take that tiger and keep it safe and give it a home for the rest of its life."
"Cutting the safety net out from underneath Iowans who are still out of work and looking for a job is no way to do it," Axne said. "Slashing their benefits only sends the message that Iowa isn't on the side of its workers and their families."

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Charlie Wishman, president of Iowa Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, also said cutting unemployment "isn't the answer" for Iowa's long-term workforce shortage.

"Iowa needs to change its course economically, take steps to raise wages and benefits, make Iowa a good place to raise a family and actually invest in our education instead of defunding it," Wishman said in a statement.

Some Democrats have pointed to a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago saying those who receive unemployment payments search more intensely for work. The study said, though, that those who do not receive benefits are more likely to accept a job that pays considerably less than their previous job.

The Iowa Association of Business and Industry, which represents about 1,500 employers in the state, lauded Reynolds decision.

Iowa had a workforce shortage prior to the pandemic, Iowa ABI President Mike Ralston said in a statement. The continued extended benefits have only exacerbated the challenge and slowed our recovery.
LONDON (AP)  A coroner in Northern Ireland ruled Tuesday that 10 civilians killed during military operations in west Belfast half a century ago were innocent victims, clearing them of suggestions that they were shot for attacking British soldiers.
JERUSALEM (AP)  The Latest on confrontations between Israelis and Palestinians, sparked by weeks of tensions in contested Jerusalem and as Israel has signaled it's widening its military campaign:
One of the most pernicious contributors to global warming is methane gas, a byproduct of petroleum production that often escapes when producers arent required to capture it. President Donald Trump, a climate-change cynic, mocked the idea of placing limits on petroleum companies and made a point early in his administration of lifting restrictions imposed under President Barack Obama.

With Democrats back in control, President Joe Biden is pressing Congress to reverse Trumps reversal. Nothing new there. Whats worth noting, however, is that an unlikely ally is joining Democrats fight: Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, one of Trumps strongest allies.

I think its just unnecessary emissions that they can do something about, and theyll need to do it, Graham told reporters in Washington. On April 28, Graham sided with Democrats in a 52 to 42 Senate vote to restore methane-emission limits. House approval is a certainty because of Democrats far more comfortable voting margin. Also voting with Graham were Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Rob Portman of Ohio.
For die-hards, no horror movie can be too scary. But for you, a wimp, the wrong one can leave you miserable. Never fear, scaredies, because Slates Scaredy Scale is here to help. Weve put together a highly scientific and mostly spoiler-free system for rating new horror movies, comparing them with classics along a 10-point scale. And because not everyone is scared by the same thingssome viewers cant stand jump scares, while others are haunted by more psychological terrors or simply cant stomach arterial spurtsit breaks down each movies scares across three criteria: suspense, spookiness, and gore.

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Next up is Zack Snyders Army of the Dead, which hits theaters on Friday before streaming on Netflix beginning May 21. The film posits a world in which Las Vegas has been overrun by zombies and walled off from the rest of the world, and Dave Bautista stars as a survivor who agrees to go back in to pull off a heist.

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As to be expected from any zombie movie worth its salt, Army of the Dead has a few surprises in store, but the movie wont necessarily have you on the edge of your seat. Its a little more action than horrortheres a lot of just mowing down zombiesand the gore is a way bigger factor here than suspense or spookiness. That said, theres still a faint overarching sense of dread, thanks to the fact that the undead seem to be evolving, rather than remaining mindless shamblers, as the movie terms them.

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Oh boy, the gore. Perhaps unsurprisingly, if youve seen Snyders Dawn of the Dead, there is a lot of blood in Army of the Dead. Heads getting chopped off, hands thrust into abdomens, even a tooth-and-claw maulingthis movie has it all. Its a little easier to deal with because most of the casualties are suffered by the titular army, but the living crew that Bautista assembles gets put through the wringer, too, so there may be a few moments where, if youre even a little squeamish, you might want to look away.

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The story of Army of the Dead is contained enough that it likely wont make you worry about what would happen if your hometown suffered the same fate as its Las Vegas, and the zombies themselves arent too scary. At the end of the day, the movie feels like its meant to be a fun romp more than something that gives you nightmares after youre done watching it, and though theres a lot of carnage, theres nothing so grisly that most people wont be able to wipe it from their minds after the credits roll.

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As far as scary movies go, Army of the Dead isnt too severe a trialunless zombies are your one true phobia. The survival aspect that makes most zombie movies scary is offset here by the fact that the protagonists are all outfitted with a considerable arsenal of firearms, and Snyder definitely leans into the humor that comes with having the living dead take over a location as gaudy as Vegas. (Yes, we get a glimpse of a zombified Elvis impersonator.) However, the sheer amount of viscera on display bumps the movie up a rung or two on the Scaredy Scale. Its not for babies, but if you can stomach some gruesome violence, you should come away unscathed.
Weeks of Palestinian protests over efforts to remove Muslim families from portions of Jerusalem spilled over into military conflict Monday. Israeli police raided the Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, the site of the simmering weekslong standoff, resulting in clashes that wounded several hundred Palestinians, as well as some police officers, prompting an exchange of rocket fire between Hamas militants in Gaza and Israeli defense forces. Hamas fired as many as three hundred rockets, a small number of which targeted the city of Jerusalem for the first time since 2014. There were a smattering of injuries from the rockets that prompted Israeli airstrikes that killed at least 20, including nine children, according to Palestinian officials.

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The escalating cycle of reprisal attacks comes after weeks of Palestinian protests over Israeli restrictions on daily life of Muslim residents in East Jerusalem. Tensions have centered on a single neighborhood in the city, Sheikh Jarrah, where a Jewish settler group has been attempting to use the courts to evict six Palestinian families from their homes. The issue became a rallying cry for Palestinians, who saw the moves as ethnic cleansing and illegal, and right-wing Israeli Jews, who said they were fighting for their property as landowners while also attempting to ensure Jewish control over East Jerusalem, the New York Times reports. Palestinian protests over the planned evictions has prompted clashes with right-wing pro-settler activists and Israeli police.

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Mondays violence was the most significant in the region in years and the spiraling of the localized clashes into a military skirmish left the already volatile region on edge.
In the latest twist in the protracted Massachusetts drug lab scandal, it was reported earlier this year that District Attorney Rachael Rollins had ordered a new inquiry into more than 74,000 cases. The scale of the audit is unprecedented, even as more than 20,000 criminal convictions have already been reversed, at a cost of about $30 million.

Such systemic problems are the entirely predictable result of inadequate resources at crime labs nationwide. Amid a national conversation over where to best allocate law enforcement dollars, we call for a critical look at redirecting funding to other agencies in the criminal justice system that are often forgotten and overlookednamely, crime labs. Critically, those labs must have sound quality control and adequate resources and must be independent of law enforcement.

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Today, key aspects of crime-solving often involve carefully collecting minute pieces of evidence at a crime scene. The most serious crimes tend to be the most forensic-dependent. In the DNA age, careful crime scene work demands donning gloves and masks and taking extra precautions to prevent contamination that can occur with a stray breath. Yet far too often we have overtaxed and undertrained police officers struggling to appropriately collect and analyze evidence.

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Take the case of Joe Bryan in Clifton, Texas. At two trials in 1986 and 1989, he was convicted of his wifes murder and served 30 years in prison based on blood spatter evidence from a crime scene contaminated by poorly trained police and analyzed by a rookie officer who entered the scene after 10 hours of foot traffic and the removal of the victims body by private funeral home employees. It was the first analysis ever done by the officer, who had taken a single 40-hour course in blood pattern analysis. Yet at trial he made uncannily precise statements about the direction, angle, and distance of a flashlight supposedly held by the shooter that was spattered with blood. Years later, the Texas Forensic Science Commission determined his work was unreliable and scientifically unsupportable. Bryan was released last year, but his conviction hasnt been overturned.

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Or consider the case of George Rodriguez, who maintained that he was innocent of kidnapping and rape charges at a 1987 trial in Houston, Texas. He was convicted, based in part on testimony by a police examiner at what was then the Houston Police Department Crime Laboratory, who said crime scene hair had been microscopically identified as consistent with Rodriguezs hair and blood typing, which proved an alternative suspect could not have committed the offense.

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After 17 years in prison, Rodriguezs conviction was overturned on the basis of DNA testing that excluded him and hit on an alternative suspect, and he was awarded $5 million by a federal jury. As part of the fallout, the lab was audited and shut down, and a 2003 New York Times story questioned if it was the worst crime lab in the country.

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This case served as an impetus for the city of Houston, with the full support of its police department, to make the laboratory an independent agency overseen by a citizen board. That new setup was responsive to recommendations made in 2009 by the National Academy of Sciences, which called for independence and scientific leadership of labs. The Houston Forensic Science Center is now lauded as one of the nations best, with a budget overseen by an independent board of directors and allocated based on scientific needs. Quality control measures have been independently adopted, top to bottom. The lab is held accountable not only by police, but also by prosecutors, defense attorneys, and, most importantly, the community it serves.

These are not isolated cases. The database Convicting the Innocent, which tracks the role forensics played in cases of people exonerated by DNA, shows that more than half of those 300-plus exonerees, who spent an average of 14 years in prison, were convicted based on flawed forensics.

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After a decade of national reports detailing problems with forensics, funding is still laughably small: Less than $200 million in federal grant dollars are available annually to be shared by over 400 public crime labs. Three-quarters of that is designated for DNA analysis, contributing to massive backlogs in other disciplines affecting far more cases. It is the attempt to do forensics cheaply that leads to inadequately staffed and regulated crime labs, which inevitably implode with tragic results, affecting tens of thousands of people. In Massachusetts, it will take years to unravel the scope of such systemic errors.

If the criminal justice system is to work properly, it needs access to science that is best supported in well-funded, independent, and scientist-led and -driven crime laboratories. Sound science and justice both demand accurate evidence, which means getting forensics right. And getting forensics right demands reform accountability for our labs, independence, and adequate funding.
Senate Democrats this week are finally beginning to move on their show-stopping election reform legislation, the For the People Actfor which they reserved the symbolic bill number of S. 1 out of the 1,500-plus bills that have been introduced this session. The sweeping measure is the Democrats counteroffensive to Republicans long-running strategy of voter discouragement and lax federal election oversight. It would expand voter registration and voting options, vastly increase public financing of campaigns, require independent redistricting commissions to combat gerrymandering, relieve gridlock on the Federal Election Commission by giving it an odd number of commissioners, and much more. It is the companion legislation to H.R. 1, which the House passed in March on a nearly perfect party-line vote.

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Before it can reform democracy nationwide, though, the For the People Act has to somehow survive the less-than-democratic dynamics of the Senate itself. The Senate Rules Committee, led by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, considered the bill Tuesday morning in a markup that lasted all day. The final committee vote on the bill deadlocked at 99, but the majority will still have the opportunity to bring it to the floor.

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In a sign of how existential each party considers the bill, both Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who usually have better things to do, attended the markup. Schumer argued that the legislation was necessary to combat an attempt at the greatest contraction of voting rights since the end of Reconstruction and the beginning of Jim Crow. McConnell, who recently described defeating the For the People Act as his top priority of this Congress, said the measure was a partisan effort to take over how you conduct elections in our country and argued that democracy is not in crisis, and we arent going to let one party take over our democracy under the false pretense of saving it.

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Neither side is leaving much in the tank. And its a lot of hoopla for a bill that hasto be generousan exceedingly slim path to becoming law.

As it stands, S. 1 theoretically has 49 votes. We say theoretically because even though thats the total number of sponsors and co-sponsors, there has been more behind-the-scenes grumbling about it. The one Democratic vote that the For the People Act certainly does not have is that of West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin. While theres much within the legislation that Manchin likes, hes been adamant that hes not on board with overhauling elections on a partisan basis.

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How in the world could you, with the tension we have right now, allow a voting bill to restructure the voting of America on a partisan line? Manchin told Vox in a recent interview. He said it would guarantee an increase in mistrust in elections and lead to more anarchy like the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. I just believe with all my heart and soul thats what would happen, and Im not going to be part of it.

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Should Democrats find a way to get Manchin and other nervous members on boardand Klobuchar has put forth an amended version of the bill that would address many of the more practical concerns with the first draftthey then have another problem: Theyre still 10 votes short of breaking a filibuster.

Unless youre prepared to change the rules of the Senate, this federal takeover of elections doesnt have any hope of passing, Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt, the ranking member of the Rules Committee, told reporters during a break from the markup. At some point in the future, the majority leader will have to decide if he wants to bring a bill to the floor that cant possibly pass unless theres a change to the Senate rules.

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Democrats have even fewer votes to change the rules than they do to pass S. 1. Manchin and Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, most notably, have been so consistent in their opposition to weakening or eliminating the legislative filibusterwhich Democrats could do with 50 votesthat it might be worth believing them. The pressure on them will grow significantly as Republicans refuse to budge on S. 1. But Manchin represents West Virginia, where hes not very susceptible to progressive pressure, and Sinema is proudly displaying jewelry that says fuck off.

Republicans are leaving nothing to chance, though, and part of the reason theyre so vigorously on the attack against the bill, rather than just trusting the filibuster to kill it for them, is to try to tank its popularity and make it easier for Manchin and Sinema to hold the line against rules changes. Not all arguments against the bill are as compelling as others. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, for example, said during todays markup that it was S. 1 that was the real Jim Crow 2.0, as it would register millions of illegal aliens to vote, thus diluting the voting power of citizens. This is not in the bill.

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So then. Whats the plan?

Ill let you guys make those judgments, Virginia Sen. Mark Warner said when asked if theres any path for passing it with the filibuster not going anywhere.

Senate Democrats are scheduled to hold a caucus meeting on S. 1 on Thursday. An aide said this was simply the first opportunity for the caucus to get together in person and discuss the bill, not an occasion where grand strategic decisions would be made. At some point soon, though, Democrats will have to have that meeting where grand strategic decisions are made. It is possibleand Manchin is more supportive of thisthat they could shift their emphasis away from S. 1 and toward a separate bill, a restoration of the Voting Rights Act. That is something about which Republicans are at least open to having a conversation, as Blunt told reporters today that thats certainly a much more likely success path for Democrats.

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The S. 1 conversation has been unusual in how the reality of the whip count has clashed with Democrats projection of optimism. Typically when a party realizes how slim the chances of something passing are, they seek to lower expectations. Schumer, however, has been saying that failure is not an option and that we cannot fail to pass S. 1, and we will, we will.

In his opening remarks on the Senate floor on Monday, though, Schumers pledge was more measured.

Make no mistakewe are moving forward with S. 1 in the Rules Committee this week, he said. I will attend the markup tomorrow. And as a reminder to my colleagues: I have committed to bring S. 1 to the floor of the Senate. Unless a switch that doesnt currently exist on Manchin and Sinema flips, that will be as far as it goes.
Last month, the Supreme Court unanimously decided an underexamined case that is going to do significant damage to the Federal Trade Commission, rolling back the commissions power to compensate victims of fraudsters through court-imposed penalties and siding with a payday loan kingpin in a tussle over the repatriation of about $1.3 billion to borrowers.

The courts decision effectively put an end to a practice that the FTCtasked with enforcing a wide array of consumer protection mattershas engaged in for decades and imperils the agencys ability to act swiftly and nimbly to protect vulnerable Americans finances.

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The FTC successfully sued Scott Tuckera Kansas City tycoon who controlled several payday loan companiesalongside his businesses in 2012. The $1.3 billion court-issued penalty against Tucker and his companies was the largest of its kind in the FTCs enforcement history. Tucker lost his appeal in the 9th Circuit. He then petitioned the Supreme Court, claiming that the commission lacked the authority to redress businesses deceptive practices by going directly to court to seek monetary relief. The Supreme Court agreed.

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Though it flew under the radar, the Supreme Courts ruling should have bred a blizzard of denunciations. The payday loan industry, which funnels short-term, high-cost loans to cash-strapped Americans, is a $30 billion quicksand machine that exists to siphon money from the poor and bury consumers in debt. Ordinarily, such lenders issue loans with terms that ensure the initial sum of money borrowed ends up dwarfed by the amount of cash owed. Here, Tuckers companies did something worse: They suckered Americans into signing millions of contracts where the most punishing of loan terms were contained in fine print. Without knowing it, colossal numbers of customers had their loans automatically renew time and time again, racking up hefty debts.

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The courts decision guarantees that those customers wont get their money back, and that legions of other Americans will be shortchanged as well. The justices found Congress authorized the FTC to seek monetary penalties in court only when the agency has first issued a final cease-and-desist order against a company or deceptive operator. Going directly to court, the justices insisted, was foreclosed by the Federal Trade Commission Act. The court also planted more roadblocks on the path to proving that deceptive conduct merits such a penalty, hinting that a company would have to persist in its bad behavior after being slapped with a cease-and-desist order to be forced to pay back money to the FTC.

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In doing so, the court left a gaping hole in the FTCs enforcement toolbox, ensuring that many fewer Americans will be compensated by companies who swindle them. The commission brings dozens of cases each year seeking the return of ill-gotten funds; many of those cases are now at risk of collapsing. In testimony before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee, acting FTC Chair Rebecca Kelly Slaughter emphasized that the FTC was badly bruised by the decision and called on Congress to restore the agencys powers. Slaughter also noted that the courts decision could ensnare 24 active FTC court cases amounting to $2 billion in requested penalties. That slate of FTC cases includes a lawsuit against the infamous former pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli and his associates, who stand accused of improperly inflating medicinal drug prices.

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Facebook, too, is likely to seek to capitalize on the Supreme Courts ruling. The FTC sued Facebook in December, accusing the tech giant of illegally safeguarding the companys market dominance by vacuuming up would-be rivals in a buying spree. Facebook has argued that the same statutory provision at issue in the payday loan case cannot be used by the FTC to remedy past conduct.

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Though the justices put forward a united front in the case, the outcome was far from preordained. The courts ruling, authored by Justice Stephen Breyer, upended decades of precedent preserving the FTCs powers. In executing a U-turn, the courts reasoning reflects its members textualist turn. Yet its easy to see how the justices could have read the text of the statute as compelling the opposite conclusion, as the 9th Circuit did, and as other courts have. Instead, the court chose, deliberately, to constrict the FTCs powers.

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The courts decision may signal a worrying trend. Its no secret that some conservatives saw the appointment of Justice Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Courtand the cementing of a right-wing court supermajorityas an opening salvo in a renewed battle to dramatically scale back federal agencies powers to issue legally binding rules. This ruling, while dealing with the FTCs enforcement powers, shows how federal agencies might be slowly suffocated by a series of Supreme Court decisions, rather than decimated in one fell swoop.

That political backdrop makes Congress taskto now step in to unambiguously restore the FTCs powerseven more difficult. Corporations are sure to vigorously protest. But the commission has never enjoyed full-throated powers to protect consumers. It has limited oversight powers over crucial sectors like telecommunications and no power to investigate or enforce cases against banks and nonprofit organizations. The FTCs authority to defend Americans privacy interests was also dicey. So far, legislative proposals to enhance the agencys jurisdiction have sputtered. The only possible good news is that the Supreme Courts recent decision might breathe new life into a transformational congressional solution.

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Even without Congress, the Biden administration should respond. The scope of the Supreme Courts ruling goes far beyond payday loans. But the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau can act now to crack down on the payday loan industry. The Trump administrations CFPB rolled back restrictions set to take effectthe first federal rules of their kindthat would have imposed critical limits on payday lending and curbed some of the nations most predatory lending practices, including by forcing lenders to verify that would-be borrowers had the means to repay debt. Bidens CFPB should reinstate the scrapped rules with unpunctuated haste.

With the Supreme Court choosing to retreat to the sidelines, its clearer than ever that its time for Congress and the executive to write ironclad consumer protections into the law.
On Thursday, the Department of the Interior released a plan to protect 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030, as directed by President Bidens executive order of Jan. 27. Intended to tackle the twinned crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, the administrations 30 by 30 plan is a domestic interpretation of the Global Deal for Naturea proposal with strong support among scientists, diplomats, and major environmental organizations. The GDN aims for 30 percent of Earth to be formally protected and an additional 20 percent designated as climate stabilization areasnatural areas that would sequester carbon and thereby offset greenhouse gas emissions.

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This combined 50 percent target emerged among conservation biologists nearly a decade ago and gained traction in 2016 with E.O. Wilsons book Half Earth, which argues that only by setting aside half the planet in reserve, or more, can we save the living part of the environment and achieve the stabilization required for our own survival. Following a $1 billion campaign funded by Swiss philanthropist Hansjorg Wyss, a large intergovernmental coalition is pushing for formal adoption of a 30 by 30 target at the next Convention on Biological Diversity, which will be held in Kunming, China, in October 2021.

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The U.S. plan therefore comes at a critical juncture in global environmental negotiations. At present approximately 12 percent of U.S. lands are protected, along with roughly 23 percent of its coastal waters. That means that in order to reach the 30 by 30 goal, as its being called, the country will have to protect an additional 400 million acresan area twice the size of Texasin the next 10 years.

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This may sound like a laudable goal. But in practice, its complicated. The International Union for the Conservation of Natures Protected Area Categories recognizes as protected everything from Strict Nature Reserves (Type Ia), areas managed and monitored to restrict even human visitation, to areas that encompass a low-level non-industrial use of natural resources compatible with nature conservation (Type VI). Protected area is thus a capacious term, encompassing a range of mechanisms with radically different implications for human rights and environmental justice.

There is a real danger that nations will use the 30 or 50 percent targets to revoke the land and resource rights of vulnerable groups. Since the mid-20th century, the creation of strict protected areas or wilderness areas has dominated conservation thinking and strategy. In 1960, there were approximately 1,000 protected areas worldwide. Today, there are a staggering 267,170 , encompassing 15.6 percent of terrestrial area and 7.6 percent of marine area.

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In many instances, governments established protected areas through violent removal and policing. The U.S. military created the nations first national park, Yellowstone, by forcibly removing Nez Perce, Bannock, Shoshone, Crow, and Blackfeet communities from their ancestral lands. Such fortress conservation, as its detractors call it, still enjoys widespread support among scientists and environmentalists. In a 2004 United Nations meeting, an indigenous delegate (who chose not to identify herself) remarked that conservation, not extractive industries, was the biggest threat to indigenous territorial and human rights. Recent estimates of the number of conservation refugees people forcibly displaced in the name of biodiversity protection  range from 5 million to tens of millions.

At its core, protected area creation is a misanthropic and typically racist strategy, one that rests on the assumption that human presence is incompatible with biodiversity. Conservationists emphasis on population growth or human presence obscures the real driver of ecological degradation: the overconsumption of the few in a world of horrific inequality. One recent paper estimates that if Wilsons half-earth plan were implemented, more than 1 billion people, primarily in middle-income countries, would find themselves living in a newly protected area. These people would become conservation refugees, banished from their homes and histories in the name of protecting other species. Expansion of protection areas would exacerbate global inequalities in the places that have historically contributed least to climate change and biodiversity loss.

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There are, however, alternatives to the protected areas approach, including ecological restoration, or the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been damagedsay, by planting native plants, or removing toxic sediments, or re-introducing endangered species. Ecological restoration acknowledges that humans can exert positive ecological agency, co-designing ecosystems and making a shared world more hospitable to other species. Ecological restoration can also counter climate change. A 2018 study of conservation, restoration, and resource management intervention options in the United States concluded that reforestation has the single largest maximum climate change mitigation potential. The majority of this potential occurs in the northeast (35 percent) and south central (31 percent) areas of the United States, and much of this private land.

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Restoration, of course, is not devoid of perils. Carbon offsetting projects focused exclusively on maximizing carbon sequestration can threaten local biodiversity, and scientists have used the term bio-perversity to refer to outcomes in which, say, a carbon plantation project meant to mitigate climate change ends up reducing native habitat for endemic bird species. Restoration also has as violent a past as wilderness protectionfor instance, in the seizure of vast swaths of the Flathead Indian Reservation to form the National Bison Range, the U.S.s first wildlife restoration site, in 1908.

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Nonetheless, restoration supported by local communities and respecting land rights can realize both biodiversity protection and reparative justice. In January 2021, after 113 years, the National Bison Range (and management of the bison) was returned to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes through passage of Public Law 116-260the massive COVID-relief package.

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It is promising, then, that Interiors 30 by 30 report emphasizes conservation and restorationto be led by locally designed conservation efforts and the priorities of Tribal Nationsover the establishment of strict protected areas. The report, written under Deb Haaland, the first Native American to serve as secretary of the interior, acknowledges that in pursing the protection of wildlife and iconic lands, the federal government has caused pain along the wayincluding dispossessing Tribal Nations of their lands, imposing segregationist policies on public lands, and ignoring the contributions of communities of color in the preservation of natural resources. While the language could be stronger, it is a significant shift in tone from past Interior reports.

The Interior report also recommends incentivizing voluntary conservation efforts on private lands, including strengthening existing programs like the USDAs Working Lands for Wildlife initiative and Conservation Reserve Program. This is critical: Roughly 70 percent of land in the United States is owned by individuals or companies, and approximately two-thirds of species listed on the U.S. endangered species list are found on privately owned lands.

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Too often, conservationists have pursued the protection of other species through direct violence against people of color, poor people, and other marginalized groups. Protecting areas therefore will never be an effective solution; it redistributes consumption and environmental degradation, but it does not slow it. Instead, we must bring our ways of living into alignment with those of other species. What is desperately needed is restoration and environmental stewardship in the places where people live and work. This is a necessity for environmental justice as much as it is for biodiversity protection. It is possible for biodiversity conservation to be just. Indeed, it must be.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
This summer, Harvard researchers working on a project called Scopex were supposed to fly a literal trial balloon over Sweden. This would have been the first step toward testing a potential method to moderate global warming by releasing small quantities of particles into the atmosphere. Early on, Harvard established an independent advisory committee to provide advice on the science and risks of the proposed experiment, as well as on the need for stakeholder engagement. Recently, however, the Swedish Space Corporation canceled the flight in the wake of opposition from Swedish environmentalists, scientists, and indigenous groups, even though the first flight would have involved no experimental release of particles.

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Unprecedented wildfires, storms, and floods make it clear that climate change has arrived. And as climate change worsens, there is growing interest in researching solar geoengineeringa cluster of proposed strategies for reflecting sunlight to reduce the Earths warming. For instance, Congress has begun to provide modest funding for modeling and observing stratospheric conditions potentially relevant to solar geoengineering proposals.

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The Scopex researchers, who are privately funded, have expressed support for suspending test flights to allow for robust public engagement, and the experiment may still go forward. Nonetheless, the recent cancelation demonstrates that we need more public engagement on solar geoengineering research. Opponents of the Swedish test flights appear more worried about where this research might lead than about any individual test flightand those worries cant be ignored. Solar geoengineering research cannot succeed without robust governance and public engagement.

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Two of the leading solar geoengineering proposals are stratospheric aerosol injection (to which Scopex is relevant) and marine cloud brightening. Inspired by the cooling effects observed after major volcanic eruptions, stratospheric aerosol injection would attempt to reflect incoming sunlight by distributing small particles high in the atmosphere. Marine cloud brightening, which is patterned after the tracks formed when water vapor condenses on particles in ship exhaust, would seek to increase the reflection of sunlight by low-lying clouds.

Those are the goalsbut solar geoengineering strategies are not well understood. Each proposed technique comes with substantial questions of feasibility. For stratospheric aerosol injection, these questions include: Which materials should be used and in what quantity? Where and how should materials be released? And what happens to materials after they are released? For marine cloud brightening, the questions include: How do tiny particles interact with clouds? How might clouds be modified to reflect more light? And in what regions might this technique be effective? Researchers also know little about potential impacts on health, ecosystems, and society. Might solar geoengineering reduce crop yields, interfere with Asian and African monsoons, harm biodiversity, or hamper solar energy production?

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The many questions surrounding solar geoengineering including those we havent even thought to ask yetunderscore the need for a broad inquiry into its social, political, economic, and scientific dimensions. Yet such research itself raises further questions. What role should the public have in research processes, especially in outdoor experiments that could affect human populations? Might research create momentum for solar geoengineering and lead to deployment before it is appropriate? And could research undermine efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by offering the misleading prospect of a quick and easy solution to climate change?

The concerns associated with solar geoengineering, the controversy raised by outdoor experiments like Scopex, and the planetary implications of solar geoengineering all point to the need for governance of solar geoengineering research. In this context, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine established a committee, on which I served, to develop a research agenda and recommend research governance approaches for solar geoengineering. Our recent report sets out recommendations geared toward facilitating the production of knowledge to reduce scientific and social uncertainties regarding solar geoengineering.

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One key recommendation calls on the federal government, in coordination with other countries, to establish a transdisciplinary solar geoengineering research program that would develop knowledge to inform policy makers. At the same time, we also recommend that all solar geoengineering research be subject to robust governancewhich is not the same thing as government. Funders of research, publishers of scientific journals, professional societies, international organizations, and solar geoengineering researchers themselves all have a role to play in attending to the physical and societal risks of research, fostering transparency, and enabling public engagement.

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Mechanisms to govern solar geoengineering research should include permitting requirements for outdoor experiments, impact assessment and review processes, a research registry, public engagement efforts, and adherence by researchers and research sponsors to a code of conduct. Public engagement could take the form of citizen consultations in which nonexperts at various locations debate the same policy-related questions pertaining to solar geoengineering and individually vote for prepared answers to the questions posed. Code of conduct provisions should include commitments to make research activities and results public and to monitor and minimize potential adverse effects of research. Furthermore, ongoing programmatic assessment of solar geoengineering research can evaluate the cumulative impacts of multiple experiments, consider the overall trajectory of research activities, and guard against the entrenchment of ineffective or dangerous technologies.

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All of that will take time, money, and commitment. Unfortunately, the worsening impacts of climate change will only increase pressures on policy makers to consider solar geoengineering.

Robust governance is necessary both to facilitate solar geoengineering research and to curb its risks. Adherence to recommended procedures and limits on outdoor experiments can reduce physical risks. Transparency regarding the capabilities and limits of solar geoengineering can counter the potential for solar geoengineering research to detract from other climate efforts. And broad public engagement can improve the quality of research while building the social license to enable the research.

Ignoring solar geoengineering will not make itor climate changego away. Researchand robust governance of that researchare essential to making informed decisions about it.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
ARCHIVED - Spain holds one minute silence for health workers who have died during the pandemic on Wednesday



Throughout Spain a one minute silence will be observed on International Nurses Day.

Spains General Nursing Council is calling for a minutes silence on Wednesday, May 12 to pay tribute to all the health professionals who have died during the pandemic.

The tribute, which will take place at noon across Spain on International Nurses Day, will also honour those who have been, risking their lives and fighting day after day for more than a year, to help end the pandemic.
Number of long-term unemployed increased by 50 percent in a year

Most long-term unemployed people in Slovakia are in Presov Region.

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Labour offices in Slovakia registered about 89,400 people without work for longer than a year by the end of March.

Explore Slovak labour market and human resource trends (for more details visit shop.spectator.sk) (Source: Career Guide)

Long-term unemployment increased by 50 percent y-o-y, or by 30,000 people. Four out of ten registered unemployed people have been without work for more than a year, according to the statistics of the Central Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family (UPSVaR).

The most long-term unemployed people are in Presov Region, the SITA newswire reported. By the end of the third month of this year, there were 24,200 unemployed. The districts of Presov, Vranov nad Toplou and Kezmarok contributed significantly to this figure; the number of unemployed over one year exceeded 3,300 in these areas.

In Kosice Region, 22,400 registered unemployed did not have a job for longer than one year. The worst situation was in the districts of Trebisov, Kosice-okolie, Roznava and Michalovce. While in Trebisov, there were 4,500 such people, there were over 3,000 such people in the other districts mentioned.

The third worst region from the point of view of long-term unemployment is Banska Bystrica Region. About 17,100 people there have been without work for more than 12 months. The worst situation within the region is in the district Rimavska Sobota, where the number of long-term unemployed is 5,100.

Least in Trnava Region

The situation is significantly better in Zilina Region, where the number of people who have been unemployed for over one year by the end of March exceeded 7,500 people. It is followed by Nitra Region, where 5,700 people are registered as long-term unemployed.

The number of long-term unemployed in Trencin Region is 4,500 people, in Bratislava Region 4,300 people and in Trnava Region 3,600 people.

Career Guide: Exploring Slovak labour market trends and human resources in the wider EU context Read more

The registered unemployment rate in Slovakia increased by 0.08 percentage points month-on-month to 7.98 percent in March 2021.

In a year-on-year comparison, the registered unemployment rate rose by 2.79 percentage points. In March 2020, it reached 5.19 percent.

The number of jobseekers ready to start work immediately reached 218,627 in March this year, an increase of 2,132 compared to the previous month.

11. May 2021 at 11:05 | Compiled by Spectator staff
On Monday morning, it became quiet at Longfellow Elementary school. The only sounds were that of the schools two principals and two Scottsbluff police officer conferring as they rapidly checked doors and other spaces throughout the school.

Just minutes before, Principal Laurie Bahl had announced the school had been placed on lockdown. That meant students needed to be in classrooms, teachers locked the doors and concealed students and lights were out.

The scenario during a simulation at the school involved a parent who had lost custody of their child, called their ex and said they were on their way to the childs school, prompting the school to go into secure or lock out mode, James Todd, Scottsbluff Public Schools safety and security coordinator, said. After a period of time, he said, the scenario changed, with the parent having entered the school, believed to be armed and prompting a lockdown.

Similarly, classrooms at other schools in Scottsbluff, Gering and ESU #13, teachers and students went through the same steps of practicing protocols meant to ensure their safety in the event of that security event.
The back of the stage is poorly lit, making it a challenge for the percussionists to read their sheet music during band concerts. The lights will be upgraded to LEDs, which will allow Ronne more opportunities for color changes during shows.

Right now to do color changes, we have to go up there and put colored gels in and bring up multiple lights to mix it to a white, he said. Now you can do that option from the lighting board and have all red in one scene and all blue in another scene.

Theres just a whole lot of great dramatic options that well have, plus better light, Ronne said. Its going to be really exciting.

The LED lights have an expected lifespan between 20 to 25 years, which will reduce the maintenance between shows and costs. The current incandescent bulbs cost $15 a piece and several lights can go out at a time, which requires manpower to maintain.

The SHS project included construction of a music wing, featuring a music technology room that allows students to work in a professional recording studio and large classrooms.

Rickey said the maintenance staff will remove the old materials once the auditorium becomes available after June 7. The projects completion deadline is Aug. 1.
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The parents main concern: wearing masks for eight hours a day is unnecessary and detrimental to students physical and mental health.

One parent said, The pandemic is over, the teachers are vaccinated. So why are our children continuing to wear masks?

Another said, Enough is enough. Just like you took your mask off to speak, none of our kids get to do that when they are in school for seven hours a day. Take the masks off our children. It is our choice as parents.

Although not required to respond, Howell told the crowd he sympathized with them.

I am with you. I believe a year ago the government threw the Bill Of Rights out the door, Howell said. But let me say this, when we are sworn into this office, we are sworn to uphold the state statue and the Constitution of the United States. And I am in a quandary because our governor in my opinion has overstepped his authority. But I will not put this board in jeopardy by saying we are going to do away with masks. I will not do that.

Doug Knight, a teacher himself, responded to the speakers, explaining what he saw as a legal liability issue.
This years ride, Anderson said, was a little different than in previous years with the restrictions because of COVID.

We made the decision not to go to D.C., but we had plenty of, unfortunately, officers in North Carolina to remember, and so that brought us to Concord this morning. We are here in Mooresville today (Monday) because we didnt get to ride in 2020 for K-9 Officer Sheldon, Anderson said. We will then make our way to Hendersonville for the Henderson County Sherriff deputy who was killed and then come down the mountain, hit Mount Holly to remember their fallen officer and then we will head home to Charlotte. So three days, just over 300 miles, she continued.

Three Mooresville police officers, Tim Taylor, Aaron Moore and Jordan Compton, are among the group making the 300-mile journey. For Taylor and Moore, this is a ride they have taken before; however for Compton, this is his first time to ride, but all three feel it is important to participate.

Ive done it for the last several years because the other officers gave the ultimate sacrifice, Moore said. To endure and keep their memory alive is whats important. Whatever little bit we can do to help.

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A Wythe County man who made sure men and women on Virginias sex offender registry were following the rules has been charged with crimes that could ultimately land him on registry

Shane Alan Underwood, 47, of Speedwell was arrested on May 5 and charged with seven counts of possessing child pornography, according to arrest warrants obtained by Virginia State Police Trooper B.R. Edwards.

In a criminal complaint, Edwards said investigators searched Underwoods cell phone in March and found seven images of possible child porn. Underwood, whos on unpaid leave, was a civilian employee with the state polices firearms and sex offender investigate unit, according to a VSP spokesperson.

Police were able to identify the female in the images who confirmed she was 17 during the offense dates  Dec. 4, 2019, to Dec. 4, 2020. Now an adult, the female named in the complaint, 18-year-old Keilee Jude whose birthday is Dec. 4, is facing Bland County charges of possessing child porn.

Jude and 41-year-old William Dean Blankenship were arrested in February after police searched a Bland County residence and reported finding drugs and cell phones containing pornographic images of Jude and two other juveniles  one 17 and one 16.
The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources is investigating a hunting-related shooting in Pulaski County that injured a Rural Retreat man last week.

DWR Public Information Officer Paige Pearson said Andrew Sult was turkey hunting around 7:45 a.m. on May 4 off Robinson Tract Road in Pulaski.

Pearson said that Sult heard a turkey and when the gobbling stopped went to find the bird. While searching, Sult was shot by another, unidentified hunter with a 12-guage shotgun. BBs from the blast hit Sult in the chest and the left side of his face, including the left upper eyelid.

The shooter then walked Sult to a nearby road so he could continue to his friends car. The man then turned around and disappeared into the woods, DWR officials said. Sults friend, who had been hunting in a different area, drove Sult to the hospital.

We dont know who the shooter is at this point, but the investigation is still ongoing, so we are hopeful, Pearson said.

Sult was treated at Roanoke Memorial Hospital and is now recuperating at home.

A PayPal account has been set up to help Sult with expenses.
Both experts agreed that the yellow vest protests that started in 2018 were bad for the image of police, who used brutal tactics to control sometimes anarchic marches by the protesters seeking economic and social justice.

Roche digs further back. Over the past 20 years, France progressively, in stages, engaged police in aggressive policies, notably cordoning off suburban housing projects. These techniques diminished confidence in the police.

Today, the people who have the most confidence in the police in France are people who never see them intervene, Roche said after analyzing 10 years worth of data by the national statistics agency.

The more people see them intervene, the less confidence they have in them," he said. Roche stressed that people dont reject the police. They reject certain tactics.

Police unions have found new leverage in the loss of their colleagues to press longstanding demands, including better protection for forces and backup from what police say is a lax judicial system that fails to translate arrests into convictions and firm punishment.
On an annual basis, trillions of US dollars exchange hands electronically through various e-ecommerce platforms. These transactions mostly happen between buyers and sellers who are often thousands of miles apart.

For decades, banks have been at the forefront of ensuring both clients and sellers get the best form of services available, no matter the distance that separates them. In Botswana, Rand Merchant Bank Botswana has found it fitting to be part of this all-important payment platform called e-Commerce. RMB is a division of Botswana Stock Exchange listed lender, First National Bank Botswana. The latter is a subsidiary of FNB, a JSE listed banking giant.

Within RMB Botswana, there is no other person to explain better this eCommerce platform, other than Onalenna Bhunu. He is the banks Client Implementation Manager. In this interview, he started by explaining what they do within e-Commerce structures. We basically act as conduit between the client and our MS ecommerce offering. We are that connecting piece between the two, both from a sales and support perspective, said Bhunu, adding that, their main focus is spread into understanding customers needs, engaging various stakeholders, that are key in the value chain as well as ensuring product delivery in line with clients requirements.

Bhunu, who has an Msc in Strategic Management (University of Derby) explains why RMB has found it necessary to be part of this concept of e-commerce. As a Corporate and investment bank, we bought onto this concept as a value adding service towards our clients and at the same time making lives for the end users like you and me an easier one, he explained and further that, e-Commerce, in addition, offers customers a value adding service that facilitates towards consumers a more convenient way to shop for products or services they need anytime and anywhere. RMB has been able to come with tailor-made solutions to take advantage of this consumer behaviour.

The customers shift to mobile devices and online participation has meant this is a key strategic initiative for clients that wish to gain a competitive edge. We note that this trend is only gaining momentum especially for local services and products and thus customers that take steps now will definitely be winners later, he added.

Most, if not all services within e-Commerce, are done electronically. This basically means physical interactions are limited. Bhunu, without giving specific figures explained to Botswana Guardian that, there has been a surge in the usage of e-commerce during COVID-19 pandemic. He noted, this surge has helped companies and individuals to do business remotely, especially during lockdowns and restricted movements. E-commerce has the ability to ensure the economy continues to run even with restrictions in movement. This is because it allows for trade to proceed between parties thereby ensuring continuity in some of the sectors driving the economy. It has brought in the ability for businesses to reach more customers than traditional retail reaches. With so many people making their purchases online, it is the fastest-growing retail market, he said as a matter of fact.

Global statistics support Bhunus assertion on eCommerce as the leading and growing retail market. Available statistics show that, in 2020, retail e-commerce sales worldwide amounted to 4.28 trillion US dollars and e-retail revenues are projected to grow to 5.4 trillion US dollars in 2022. RMB has always embraced the e-commerce journey and for that we have over the years developed products and our systems to support this. The bank offers both off the shelf products and bespoke solutions tailored according to our clients needs. We also offer different plug ins for the payment gateway which include websites, App and USSD platforms, he disclosed.

Transacting online also has its own risk, hence Security is of critical importance. Bhunu explains that they are well aware of these risks, and revealed why they have water tight systems in place to guard against possible fraud. Some of the key features that the bank has put in place is card holder Security which includes authentication of the transaction when making a purchase and secondly, RMB has ensured there is security for the solution at large against hackers which includes protection of information entered onto the platform. The bank also keeps to PCI standards, which is high level security of card association. .

The e-Commerce market is set to grow exponentially in the coming years, as more and more consumers transact digitally. From Botswana perspective we anticipate growth within this space due to the ever-growing mobile usage in the country. This trend however, has moved in leaps and bounds in other parts of the world, specifically driven by the current co
Palos Verdes and West Torrance will meet in the first round of the CIF-SS baseball playoffs, and a total of 13 area teams made it to the postseason.
According to council agenda summary, the Oregon and Industrial ways road project has now changed in scope and design with better implications for upstream traffic on Oregon Way.

Hash said reviewing the traffic estimates once business park lots are sold or leased also will allow for a more accurate depiction of the amount of vehicles the area might see.

+4 Longview's Beech Street extension prompts local plans for business park A local real estate company owned by the Sari family auto dealership in Longview is proposing a 14-lot business park on 45-acres of land near 

Regardless of the 14th Avenue decision, the business park developers still will have to build out two public roadways that end at the sites location: Alaska Street and Beech Street.

Adjoining landowners petitioned the city to build out Beech Street as part of an option within the city government called a local improvement district, Hash said. The $2.8 million project will mostly be covered by state and federal funds, and the leftover costs will be divided among adjoining land owners, he said.

+2 Bud Clary group buys Columbia Ford, creating giant Longview car dealership The Bud Clary Auto Group is buying its biggest Longview rival, Columbia Ford, the owners of the two auto dealer giants announced Friday in a j

Willis said the business park is zoned light industrial and commercial. At full buildout, the park will have 16 lots that have undergone environmental reviews and have access to water and utilities to start immediate construction.

When you buy a lot, its ready to build on, Willis said.

Willis said local, Seattle and Portland business owners are interested in leasing or buying lots, and the park could bring about 200 additional jobs to the city.

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Microsoft has taken a truly cross-platform approach with its Edge Browser, developing the software not just for Windows and macOS, but also iOS, Android  even Linux systems like Ubuntu and Fedora. The company recently released the Canary or unstable, developer version of its browser for Android devices on the Play Store, and now the first experimental feature has made its appearance.

Also read: Microsoft Edge is getting a reverse image search, finally

The Canary versions of Edge (and Chromium, Googles open-source browser engine on which Edge is based) are where the companys developers test out new features as they are being worked on  before they make their way into the Dev and Beta channels, and eventually to the Stable release. The company has now begun testing the ability to take screenshots of websites built into the browser on Android, as spotted by Windows Central.

If youve spent some time using Edge on a desktop or laptop computer, the screenshot feature would be one of the first features to catch your attention. Microsoft appears to be working on adding similar functionality to the browser, which would eventually allow users to screenshot a website or take an extended screenshot of the mobile site, just like Safari does on iOS devices.

Read more: Microsoft Edge browser now in beta testing for Linux computers

However, given that the browsers Canary version was only recently released for Android and this is the first noticeable new feature to appear on the new builds, it is still a little rough around the edges  you cant capture an extended screenshot of the whole page like you can on the desktop version. However, appears to be more than enough time for Microsoft to refine and improve on the feature as it could be a few months before the feature makes its way to the stable version of the browser for Android.
Apple is facing a London lawsuit over claims it overcharged nearly 20 million UK customers for App Store purchases, yet another legal headache for the tech giant fighting lawsuits across the world.

Apples 30% standard fee is excessive and unlawful the claimants said in a press release Tuesday. The claim, filed at Londons Competition Appeal Tribunal on Monday, calls for the US firm to compensate UK iPhone and iPad users for years of alleged overcharging.

Apple is abusing its dominance in the app store market, which in turn impacts UK consumers, Rachael Kent, the lead claimant in the case and a professor at Kings College London. She teaches the ways in which consumers interact and depend upon digital platforms.

The suit, described by Apple as meritless, was filed a week into a US trial over Epic Games' claims that Apple is running its marketplace like a monopoly, cheating developers and consumers. The separate UK claim is focused on the alleged harm caused to customers rather than developers.

Earlier this year, Apple lowered its App Store fee to 15% from 30% for developers who produce as much as $1 million in annual revenue from their apps and those who are new to the store.

The legal challenges come as Apple faces a backlash -- with billions of dollars in revenue on the line -- from global regulators and some developers who say its fees and other policies are unjust and self-serving. Last month, the European Commission sent a statement of objections to the firm, laying out how it thinks Apple abused its power as the gatekeeper for music-streaming apps on its store.

We believe this lawsuit is meritless and welcome the opportunity to discuss with the court our unwavering commitment to consumers and the many benefits the App Store has delivered to the UKs innovation economy, Apple said in an emailed statement.

The commission charged by the App Store is very much in the mainstream of those charged by all other digital marketplaces, Apple said. In fact, 84% of apps on the App Store are free and developers pay Apple nothing. And for the vast majority of developers who do pay Apple a commission because they are selling a digital good or service, they are eligible for a commission rate of 15%.

The suit alleges that Apple deliberately shuts out potential competition and forces ordinary users to use its own payment processing system, generating unlawfully excessive levels of profit for the company.

The claimants say any UK user of an iPhone or iPad who purchased paid apps, subscriptions or made other in-app purchases since October 2015 is entitled to compensation. They estimate that Apple could face paying out in excess of 1.5 million pounds.
(AP Illustration/Peter Hamlin)

China's ruling Communist Party has opened a new front in its long, ambitious war to shape global public opinion: Western social media.

Liu Xiaoming, who recently stepped down as China's ambassador to the United Kingdom, is one of the party's most successful foot soldiers on this evolving online battlefield. He joined Twitter in October 2019, as scores of Chinese diplomats surged onto Twitter and Facebook, which are both banned in China.

Since then, Liu has deftly elevated his public profile, gaining a following of more than 119,000 as he transformed himself into an exemplar of China's new sharp-edged "wolf warrior" diplomacy, a term borrowed from the title of a top-grossing Chinese action movie.

"As I see it, there are so-called 'wolf warriors' because there are 'wolfs' in the world and you need warriors to fight them," Liu, who is now China's Special Representative on Korean Peninsula Affairs, tweeted in February.

His stream of postsprincipled and gutsy ripostes to Western anti-Chinese bias to his fans, aggressive bombast to his detractorswere retweeted more than 43,000 times from June through February alone.

But much of the popular support Liu and many of his colleagues seem to enjoy on Twitter has, in fact, been manufactured.

A seven-month investigation by the Associated Press and the Oxford Internet Institute, a department at Oxford University, found that China's rise on Twitter has been powered by an army of fake accounts that have retweeted Chinese diplomats and state media tens of thousands of times, covertly amplifying propaganda that can reach hundreds of millions of peopleoften without disclosing the fact that the content is government-sponsored.

More than half the retweets Liu got from June through January came from accounts that Twitter has suspended for violating the platform's rules, which prohibit manipulation. Overall, more than one in ten of the retweets 189 Chinese diplomats got in that time frame came from accounts that Twitter had suspended by Mar. 1.

But Twitter's suspensions did not stop the pro-China amplification machine. An additional cluster of fake accounts, many of them impersonating U.K. citizens, continued to push Chinese government content, racking up over 16,000 retweets and replies before Twitter kicked them off late last month and early this month, in response to the AP and Oxford Internet Institute's investigation.

This fiction of popularity can boost the status of China's messengers, creating a mirage of broad support. It can also distort platform algorithms, which are designed to boost the distribution of popular posts, potentially exposing more genuine users to Chinese government propaganda. While individual fake accounts may not seem impactful on their own, over time and at scale, such networks can distort the information environment, deepening the reach and authenticity of China's messaging.

"You have a seismic, slow but large continental shift in narratives," said Timothy Graham, a senior lecturer at Queensland University of Technology who studies social networks. "Steer it just a little bit over time, it can have massive impact."

Twitter, and others, have identified inauthentic pro-China networks before. But the AP and Oxford Internet Institute investigation shows for the first time that large-scale inauthentic amplification has broadly driven engagement across official government and state media accounts, adding to evidence that Beijing's appetite for guiding public opinion  covertly, if necessaryextends beyond its borders and beyond core strategic interests, like Taiwan, Hong Kong and Xinjiang.

Twitter's takedowns often came only after weeks or months of activity. All told, AP and the Oxford Internet Institute identified 26,879 accounts that managed to retweet Chinese diplomats or state media nearly 200,000 times before getting suspended. They accounted for a significant share  sometimes more than halfof the total retweets many diplomatic accounts got on Twitter.

It was not possible to determine whether the accounts were sponsored by the Chinese government.

Twitter told AP that many of the accounts had been sanctioned for manipulation, but declined to offer details on what other platform violations may have been at play. Twitter said it was investigating whether the activity was a state-affiliated information operation.

"We will continue to investigate and action accounts that violate our platform manipulation policy, including accounts associated with these networks," a Twitter spokesperson said in a statement. "If we have clear evidence of state-affiliated information operations, our first priority is to enforce our rules and remove accounts engaging in this behavior. When our investigations are complete, we disclose all accounts and content in our public archive."

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it does not employ trickery on social media. "There is no so-called misleading propaganda, nor exporting a model of online public opinion guidance," the ministry said in a statement to AP. "We hope that the relevant parties will abandon their discriminatory attitude, take off their tinted glasses, and take a peaceful, objective, and rational approach in the spirit of openness and inclusiveness."

IDEOLOGICAL BATTLEFIELD

Twitter and Facebook function as formidable  and one-sided  global megaphones for China's ruling Communist Party, helping to amplify messaging broadly set by central authorities.

Today, at least 270 Chinese diplomats in 126 countries are active on Twitter and Facebook. Together with Chinese state media, they control 449 accounts on Twitter and Facebook, which posted nearly 950,000 times between June and February. These messages were liked over 350 million times and replied to and shared more than 27 million times, according to the Oxford Internet Institute and AP's analysis. Three-quarters of Chinese diplomats on Twitter joined within the last two years.

The move onto Western social media comes as China wages a war for influence  both at home and abroadon the internet, which President Xi Jinping has called "the main battlefield" for public opinion.

"On the battlefield of the Internet, whether we can withstand and win is directly related to our country's ideological security and political security," he said in 2013, not long after taking power. In September 2019, as Chinese diplomats flocked to Twitter, Xi gave another speech, urging party cadres to strengthen their "fighting spirit."

Xi has reconfigured China's internet governance, tightening controls, and bound Chinese media ever more tightly to the party, to ensure, as he said in a 2016 speech, that the media loves, protects and serves the party.

In this Nov. 30, 2016 file photo, Chinese Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Liu Xiaoming, left, speaks with Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge during the Tusk Conservation Awards at Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Liu Xiaoming, who recently stepped down as China's ambassador to the United Kingdom,1 is one of the party's most successful foot soldiers on this evolving online battlefield. He joined Twitter in Oct. 2019, as scores of Chinese diplomats surged onto Twitter and Facebook, which are both banned in China. (Stuart C. Wilson/Pool Photo via AP, File)

That intimacy was formalized in 2018, when the party consolidated administrative control of major print, radio, film and television outlets under an entity it manages, the Central Propaganda Department.

Like other nations, China has recognized the value of social media for amplifying its messaging and reinforcing its hold on power. But unfettered access to Western social media has given Beijing a unilateral advantage in the global fight for influence.

Twitter and Facebook are blocked within China, and Beijing controls the conversation on domestic alternatives like WeChat and Weibo, effectively cutting off unmediated access to the Chinese public.

"It's creating a significant challenge for Western democracies. We don't have the same capacity to influence international audiences given that China has walled off its internet," said Jacob Wallis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute's International Cyber Policy Centre. "That creates a significant asymmetric advantage."

Despite the high levels of Chinese government activity, Twitter and Facebook have failed to label state content consistently. In an effort to provide users with more context, Twitter last year began labelling accounts belonging to "key government officials" and state-affiliated media. But Twitter had labelled just 14 percent of Chinese diplomatic accounts on the platform, as of Mar. 1, failing even to flag dozens of verified profiles.

Twitter said that in keeping with its policy of labelling senior officials and institutions that speak for a country abroad, not all diplomatic accounts will be flagged. It offered no further details on how those decisions are made and declined to provide a list of Chinese accounts that have been labelled.

Facebook also began putting transparency labels on state-controlled media accounts last year. But disclosure is especially weak in languages other than English, despite the fact that Chinese state content has strong distribution in Spanish, French, and Arabic, among other languages.

Facebook had labelled two-thirds of a sample of 95 Chinese state media accounts in English, as of Mar. 1, but less than a quarter of accounts in other languages. Unlike Twitter, Facebook does not flag diplomatic accounts, the majority of which are official embassy and consulate accounts.

Facebook labelled an additional 41 Chinese state media outlets AP and the Oxford Internet Institute flagged to them, bringing the overall portion of labelled accounts from less than half to nearly 90 percent. The company said it was looking into the rest.

"We apply the label on a rolling basis and will continue to label more publishers and pages over time," a company spokesperson said in a statement to AP. The company declined to provide a full list of which Chinese state media accounts it has flagged.

The China Media Project, a Hong Kong research group, found that transparency labels make a difference: Twitter users liked and shared fewer tweets by Chinese news outlets after August 2020, when the platform started flagging them as state-affiliated media and stopped amplifying and recommending their content.

"We need the labels," said China Media Project director David Bandurski, though he cautioned that they risk painting all Chinese media with the same broad brush, including outlets like Caixin that have managed to maintain a degree of independence. "This is all about co-opting the narrative. Telling China's story means we the party get to tell China's story and no one else. That's happening in Portuguese and Spanish and French. It really is a global plan."

The outspoken editor-in-chief of China's Global Times, Hu Xijin, noticed the impact immediately. On Aug. 14, he tweeted his dismay at the "China state-affiliated media" label that had been added to his profile, saying his follower growth had plummeted. "It seems Twitter will eventually choke my account," he wrote.

COUNTERFEITING CONSENSUS

In early February, China's state news agency Xinhua published a "fact check" of 24 "lies" it said anti-China forces in the West had been spreading about Xinjiang, where China stands accused of genocide for its brutal, systematic repression of minority Uighur Muslims.

According to Xinhua, the real problem in Xinjiang is not human rights, but Uighur terrorism. Beijing has brought stability and economic development to its restive western region, and information suggesting otherwise has been fabricated by U.S. intelligence agencies, a racist scholar, and lying witnesses, Xinhua said.

The story was picked up by other Chinese state media outlets, amplified by China's foreign ministry at a press conference, and blasted across Twitter by the foreign ministry and Chinese diplomats in the United States, India, Djibouti, Canada, Hungary, Austria, Tanzania, Kazakhstan, Jordan, Liberia, Grenada, Nigeria, Lebanon, Trinidad and Tobago, Qatar and the United Kingdom.

From there, it was further amplified by devoted but mysterious fanslike gyagyagya10, whose account pushed out an identical quote-tweet and reply, within seconds, to a message about Xinjiang posted by China's Embassy in London, writing "Ethnic groups in China are well protected, no matter in economic aspect or in cultural aspect."

This is the ruling Communist Party's global propaganda machine in action: Messages set by key state media outlets and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs get picked up by Chinese diplomats around the world, who repackage the content on Twitter, where it is amplified by networks of fake and suspicious accounts working covertly to shape public discourse for the benefit of China's ruling Communist Party.

Gyagyagya10, who had a single follower, was part of a network of 62 accounts dedicated to amplifying Chinese diplomats in the U.K. that Marcel Schliebs, the Oxford Internet Institute's lead researcher on the project, found exhibited multiple patterns suggesting coordination and inauthenticity.

Little can be gleaned about gyagyagya10 from the image of abstract art posted as a profile photo and the lack of any sort of personal description. Indeed, none of the accounts in the network had fleshed-out profiles with recognizable names and authentic profile photos.

Gyagyagya10's account came to life in mid-August at the same time as more than a dozen other accounts that also devoted themselves exclusively to promoting tweets by the Chinese Embassy in London and Ambassador Liu. Then, after Liu left his post at the end of Jan., they went quiet.

The 62 accounts in the network retweeted and replied to posts by Chinese diplomats in London nearly 30,000 times between June and the end of January, the Oxford Internet Institute found. They exhibited unique patterns in the ways they amplified content.

In this April 20, 2021 file photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a keynote speech via video for the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference, in Beijing. A seven-month investigation by the Associated Press and the Oxford Internet Institute, a department at Oxford University, found that the rise of Chinese diplomats on Twitter has been powered by an army of apparently fake accounts that have retweeted their posts tens of thousands of times. The move onto Western social media comes as China wages a war for influence  both at home and abroadon the internet, which President Xi Jinping has called "the main battlefield" for public opinion. (Ju Peng/Xinhua via AP, File )

Like gyagyagya10, they often simultaneously posted identical quote-tweets and replies, and they repeatedly used identical phrases like "Xinjiang is beautiful" and "shared future for mankind" in their comments. Other users who engaged with the two diplomatic accounts did neither.

They were also slavish in their devotion, sometimes replying to more than three-quarters of all the ambassador's tweets. Most weeks, the fake accounts generated at least 30 to 50 percent of all retweets of Ambassador Liu and the Chinese Embassy in London.

By Mar. 1, Twitter had suspended 31 of the accounts in the pro-China U.K. network and two had been deleted. The remaining 29including gyagyagya10continued to operate, churning out more than 10,000 retweets and nearly 6,000 replies in support of China's U.K. diplomats before Twitter permanently suspended them for platform manipulation at the end of April and beginning of May in response to this investigation.

"We are also aware of concerns about some of the Twitter rules," China's Embassy in the U.K. said in a statement to AP. "If it is against the rules of social media to retweet the Chinese Embassy's tweets, then shouldn't these rules be more applicable to retweets of malicious rumors, smears, and false information against China? We hope relevant companies will not adopt double standards."

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs says China uses social media the same way other nations do, with the goal of deepening friendly ties and facilitating fact-based communication.

In practice, China's network on Twitter amplifies messaging set by central authorities, both for domestic and global consumption, as diplomats translate, repackage and amplify content from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and key state media outlets, network analysis and academic research show.

Zhao Alexandre Huang, a visiting assistant professor at Gustave Eiffel University, in Paris, analyzed social media messaging at key points in the U.S.-China trade dispute and found that content first published on the Weibo account of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs was repackaged and broadcast around the world by Chinese diplomats on Twitter.

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs uses Weibo like a central kitchen of information," Huang said. "It's an illusion of polyphony."

Within China's state network on Twitter, the most referenced accounts belonged to China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its spokespeople, as well as People's Daily, CGTN, China Daily, and Xinhua, and the most active amplifiers were diplomats, AP network analysis showed.

The party's efforts on Twitter have been helped by a core of hyperactive super-fans. Some 151,000 users retweeted posts by Chinese diplomats from June through January. But nearly half of all retweets came from just one percent of those accounts, which together blasted out nearly 360,000 retweets, often in bursts of activity separated by just seconds.

Among the biggest beneficiaries of this concentrated bulk engagement  which is not necessarily inauthentic  were Chinese diplomatic accounts in Poland, Pakistan, India, and South Africa, as well as China's foreign ministry and its spokespeople.

The pro-China accounts that Twitter later suspended were active in a host of languages, with profile descriptions in English, Mandarin, Spanish, Arabic, Hindi, Italian, French, Russian, Korean, Urdu, Portuguese, Thai, Swedish, Japanese, Turkish, German and Tamil. Some worked cross-network to amplify a range of government accounts, while others appeared to function as smaller cells, dedicated to amplifying diplomats in a specific location.

This manufactured chorus accounted for a significant portion of all the engagement many Chinese diplomats got on Twitter. More than 60 percent of all retweets for the Chinese embassies in Angola and Greece from June 2020 through January 2021 came from accounts that have been suspended. China's hawkish foreign ministry spokespeople Hua Chunying and Zhao Lijian racked up more than 20,000 retweets from accounts that have been sanctioned by Twitter.

INTERNET COMMENTING SYSTEMS

Within China, manipulation of online discourse has been effectively institutionalized. It remains to be seen how aggressive and how successful  China will be in implementing its model of public opinion guidance on Western social media, which was founded on very different civic values, like transparency, authenticity, and the free exchange of ideas.

The party's systems for shaping public opinion online go far beyond censorship. Budget documents for Chinese propaganda and cyberspace departments include references to cyber armies, teams of trained online commentators tasked with keeping conversation online aligned with the ruling party's interests. Universities in China openly post announcements about their teams of "online commentators" and "youth internet civilization volunteers," composed exclusively of recruits who "love the motherland" and work to guide public opinion by eliminating negative influences and spreading positive energy online.

For-profit companies also contract with government agencies to run coordinated networks of social media accounts, both human and automated, to help "guide public opinion," according to Mareike Ohlberg, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund's Asia Program, and Jessica Batke, a senior editor at ChinaFile, an online magazine published by the Asia Society. They poured through thousands of Chinese government procurement notices to identify tenders for such services.

While the majority were for opinion management on domestic platforms, Ohlberg told AP that since 2017 a growing number have also targeted Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. One public security bureau in a relatively small city in northeastern China, for example, wanted to buy a "smart Internet-commenting system," capable of commenting on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube from thousands of different accounts and IP addresses.

"This is just a natural extension of what the party has been doing at home for a very long time," Ohlberg said. "Why would they change that model once they go abroad?

China's advance on Western social media is one part of a much broader infrastructure of influence that has shaped how Hollywood makes movies, what Western publishers print and what overseas Chinese-language media outlets communicate to China's vast diaspora.

Anne-Marie Brady, a professor at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, said people may not even realize that information they receive has been, in part, framed by China's ruling Communist Party.

"The propaganda system is vast, and it has incorporated Western social media," she said. "It has helped to reshape perceptions of China. It may not uniquely create a positive image of China, but it creates hopelessness that anything can be done about what China is doing to our democracies."

Explore further Twitter deletes Chinese 'state-linked' disinformation network

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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The Colonial fuel pipeline that was crippled by a ransomware attack late Friday hasn't suffered damage and can be brought back online "relatively quickly," a White House official said Monday.

"Right now there is not a supply shortage," deputy national security adviser Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall told reporters in a briefing.

Anne Neuberger, deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technologies, said the government is "actively engaged" with Colonial, but that the company hasn't asked for federal assistance with its cybersecurity. She said the Federal Bureau of Investigation has been probing the ransomware used in the attack since October.

Neuberger said the government hasn't advised the company on whether it should pay ransom demanded by the hackers that attacked the pipeline. Asked whether the hackers are connected to a foreign government, she said that "at this time" they are considered "a criminal actor."

"Our intelligence community is looking for any ties to any nation-state actors," she said.

The pipeline was idled for the third consecutive day on Monday, as fuel suppliers increasingly worry about the possibility of gasoline and diesel shortages across the U.S. East Coast. Colonial Pipeline said Sunday that it was still working on a plan to restart the nation's largest fuel pipeline and would once it is "safe to do so, and in full compliance with the approval of all federal regulations."

The company said Monday it expects the pipeline to be "substantially" back in operations by the end of the week.

The attack came as the energy industry braced for stepped-up demand from summer travelers and the loosening of COVID-19 restrictions nationally. The White House said Sunday that it has launched an interagency working group to address the breach, including planning for options to lessen the impact on the nation's energy supply. The Department of Energy and the FBI each said they've been in contact with Colonial Pipeline.

President Joe Biden has the ability to invoke an array of emergency powers to keep fuel flowing. On Sunday, he extended the time delivery drivers can spend behind the wheel when transporting fuel, a move intended "to avoid disruption to supply," the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said.

The president also has the option of waiving the Jones Act, which requires ships to be built and flagged in the U.S. and crewed by American workers to transport goods between U.S. ports. Foreign-flagged tankers could help fill any gap caused by the pipeline's crippling, either transporting fuel from the Gulf Coast to New York or from Europe.

The FBI confirmed Monday that ransomware made by a group known as DarkSide was used in the attack. The group posted a message on its dark web page suggesting an affiliate was behind the attack and that it would vet buyers of its ransomware in the future to "avoid social consequences."

"We are apolitical. We do not participate in geopolitics," the message says. "Our goal is to make money and not creating problems for society. From today, we introduce moderation and check each company that our partners want to encrypt to avoid social consequences in the future."

While the inquiry remains in its early stages, some evidence has emerged linking DarkSide to Russia or elsewhere in Eastern Europe.

Explore further FBI: DarkSide group behind ransomware hacking of US Colonial Pipeline

2021 Bloomberg L.P. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC
A company that operates a major U.S. energy pipeline says it was forced to temporarily halt all pipeline operations following a cybersecurity attack.

Hit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said Monday it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end of the week as the FBI and administration officials identified the culprits as a gang of criminal hackers.

U.S. officials sought to soothe concerns about price spikes or damage to the economy by stressing that the fuel supply had so far not experienced widespread disruptions, and the company said it was working toward "substantially restoring operational service" by the weekend.

The White House said in a statement late Monday that it was monitoring supply shortages in parts of the Southeast and that President Joe Biden had directed federal agencies to bring their resources to bear.

Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a ransomware attack that it said had affected some of its systems.

Nonetheless, the attack underscored the vulnerabilities of the nation's energy sector and other critical industries whose infrastructure is largely privately owned. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data, paralyzing victim networks, and demand large payments to decrypt it.

The Colonial attack was a potent reminder of the real-world implications of the burgeoning threat. Even as the Biden administration works to confront organized hacking campaigns sponsored by foreign governments, it must still contend with difficult-to-prevent attacks from cybercriminals.

"We need to invest to safeguard our critical infrastructure," Biden said Monday. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the attack "tells you how utterly vulnerable we are" to cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure.

The attack came as the administration, still grappling with its response to massive breaches by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations, works on an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity defenses. The Justice Department, meanwhile, has formed a ransomware task force designed for situations just like Colonial Pipeline, and the Energy Department on April 20 announced a 100-day initiative focused on protecting energy infrastructure from cyber threats. Similar actions are planned for other critical industries, such as water and natural gas.

Despite that, the challenge facing the government and the private sector remains immense.

In this case, the FBI publicly assigned blame Monday by saying the criminal syndicate whose ransomware was used in the attack is named DarkSide. The group's members are Russian speakers, and the syndicate's malware is coded not to attack networks using Russian-language keyboards.

Anne Neuberger, the White House deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, said at a briefing that the group has been on the FBI's radar for months. She said its business model is to demand ransom payments from victims and then split the proceeds with the ransomware developers, relying on what she said was a "new and very troubling variant."

In this Sept. 8, 2008 file photo traffic on I-95 passes oil storage tanks owned by the Colonial Pipeline Company in Linden, N.J. A major pipeline that transports fuels along the East Coast says it had to stop operations because it was the victim of a cyberattack. Colonial Pipeline said in a statement late Friday that it "took certain systems offline to contain the threat, which has temporarily halted all pipeline operations, and affected some of our IT systems." (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

She declined to say if Colonial Pipeline had paid any ransom, and the company has not given any indication of that one way or the other. Though the FBI has historically discouraged victims from making payments for fear of promoting additional attacks, she acknowledged "the very difficult" situation that victims face and said the administration needs to look "thoughtfully at this area" of how best to deter ransomware.

"Given the rise in ransomware, that is one area we're definitely looking at now to say, 'What should be the government's approach to ransomware actors and to ransoms overall?'"

Speaking later in the day at a conference on national security, Neuberger said the administration was committed to leveraging the government's massive buying power to ensure that software makers make their products less vulnerable to hackers.

"Security can't be an afterthought," Neuberger said. "We don't buy a car and only then decide if we want to pay for seatbelts and airbags."

The U.S. sanctioned the Kremlin last month for a hack of federal government agencies, known as the SolarWinds breach, that officials have linked to a Russian intelligence unit and characterized as an intelligence-gathering operation.

In this case, though, the hackers are not known to be working at the behest of any foreign government. The group posted a statement on its dark web site describing itself as apolitical. "Our goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society," DarkSide said.

Asked Monday whether Russia was involved, Biden said, ""I'm going to be meeting with President (Vladimir) Putin, and so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved, although there is evidence that the actors, ransomware, is in Russia.

"They have some responsibility to deal with this," he added.

U.S. officials have sought to head off anxieties about the prospect of a lingering economic impact and disruption to the fuel supply, especially given Colonial Pipeline's key role in transporting gasoline, jet fuel, diesel and other petroleum products between Texas and the East Coast.

Colonial is in the process of restarting portions of its network. It said Monday that it was evaluating the product inventory in storage tanks at its facilities. Administration officials stressed that Colonial proactively took some of its systems offline to prevent the ransomware from migrating from business computer systems to those that control and operate the pipeline.

In response to the attack, the administration loosened regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an "all-hands-on-deck" effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.

In this Sept. 20, 2016 file photo vehicles are seen near Colonial Pipeline in Helena, Ala. A major pipeline that transports fuels along the East Coast says it had to stop operations because it was the victim of a cyberattack. Colonial Pipeline said in a statement late Friday that it "took certain systems offline to contain the threat, which has temporarily halted all pipeline operations, and affected some of our IT systems." (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

"The time of the outage is now approaching critical levels and if it continues to remain down we do expect an increase in East Coast gasoline and diesel prices," said Debnil Chowdhury, IHS Markit Executive Director. The last time there was an outage of this magnitude was in 2016, he said, when gas prices rose 15 to 20 cents per gallon. The Northeast had significantly more local refining capacity at that time.

The pipeline utilizes both common and custom technology systems, which could complicate efforts to bring the entire network back online, according to analysts at Third Bridge.

Granholm, the Energy Secretary, said "Cyber attacks on our critical infrastructureespecially energy infrastructureis not going away."

"This is a serious example of what we're seeing across the board in many places and it tells you that we need to invest in our systems, our transmission grid for electricity. We need to invest in cyber defense in these energy systems," she told Bloomberg TV.

The attack has not affected the supply of gasoline, she said, "but if it goes on too long, of course that will change.

Gasoline futures ticked higher Monday. Futures for crude and fuel, prices that traders pay for contracts for delivery in the future, typically begin to rise anyway each year as the driving season approaches. The price you pay at the pump tends to follow.

The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline has jumped 6 cents over the past two weeks, to $3.02 per gallon, which is $1.05 higher than a year ago. The year-ago numbers are skewed somewhat because the nation was going into lockdown due to the pandemic.

The attack on the Colonial Pipeline could exacerbate the upward pressure on prices if it is unresolved for a period of time.

Explore further Colonial pipeline is undamaged, White House official says

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
This Friday, March 10, 2017 file photo shows the WhatsApp communications app on a smartphone, in New York. A German privacy regulator banned Facebook on Tuesday May 11, 2021, from gathering data on WhatsApp users, citing an update to its privacy policy that breaches stringent European data protection rules by allowing access to a lot more information on the chat app's users. (AP Photo/Patrick Sison, File)

A German privacy watchdog banned Facebook on Tuesday from gathering data on users of its WhatsApp chat app, citing an update to its privacy policy that it said breaches stringent European data protection rules.

Hamburg's data protection commissioner, Johannes Caspar, said he issued an emergency three-month order prohibiting the social network from processing WhatsApp personal data for its own purposes.

"The order is intended to safeguard the rights and freedoms of the many millions of users who approve to the terms of use throughout Germany," Caspar said in a statement. "The aim is to prevent disadvantages and damage associated with such a black-box procedure."

Caspar's office said the updated terms and privacy policy allowing Facebook access to a lot more information on WhatsApp users were too broad and not transparent.

The watchdog opened urgent proceedings last month because of concerns that WhatsApp users were being required to agree to the update by May 15 or else they wouldn't be able to continue using the service.

WhatsApp denied the update is connected with any expansion of data sharing with Facebook, pointing out it is related only to messages between businesses and customers.

The order "is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the purpose and effect of WhatsApp's update and therefore has no legitimate basis," WhatsApp said in a statement, adding that because the Hamburg regulator's claims are wrong, it wouldn't affect the update's rollout.

WhatsApp initially tried to introduce the update at the start of the year but backed off after a wave of confusion and misinformation among users, many of whom flocked to rival chat apps such as Signal and Telegram.

Caspar warned that with 60 million users in Germany, there's a danger WhatsApp could be used to influence voters in September federal elections through Facebook ads. He said he would refer the case to the European Data Protection Board to get a Europe Union-wide decision.

Facebook's German headquarters is based in Hamburg, giving Caspar jurisdiction at the national level when it comes to enforcing the EU's strict General Data Protection Regulation for the company.

Explore further WhatsApp delays enforcing new privacy terms

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Credit: viewimage/Shutterstock

Chinese technology provider Huawei was recently accused of being able to monitor all calls made using Dutch mobile operator KPN. The revelations are from a secret 2010 report made by consultancy firm Capgemini, which KPN commissioned to evaluate the risks of working with Huawei infrastructure.

While the full report on the issue has not been made public, journalists reporting on the story have outlined specific concerns that Huawei personnel in the Netherlands and China had access to security-essential parts of KPN's networkincluding the call data of millions of Dutch citizensand that a lack of records meant KPN couldn't establish how often this happened.

Both KPN and Huawei have denied any impropriety, though in the years since the 2010 report, Huawei has increasingly found itself labeled a high-risk vendor for telecoms companies to work with, including by the UK's National Cyber Security Centre.

To better understand this story, and to consider whether other telecoms networks may have had similar security vulnerabilities to KPN's, we need to look at how complex mobile networks are run. KPN essentially granted Huawei "administrator rights" to its mobile network by outsourcing work to the Chinese firm. Legislation is only now catching up to prevent similar vulnerabilities in telecoms security.

Commercial pressures

Huawei is one of the three dominant radio equipment providers in the world, alongside Ericsson and Nokia. These giant technology companies provide the base stations and equipment that deliver mobile phone signals. Operators like KPN increasingly pay these companies not only to buy the equipment, but also for them to support and maintain it.

The telecoms market in which KPN operates is one of the most price-competitive in the world. European mobile operators saw average revenues per user in 2019 of 14.90 (12.85) a month, compared with 36.90 a month in the U.S.. European spend on telecoms services are also reducing year-on-year as operators compete to offer the best deals to consumers.

Lower revenues force operators to carefully manage costs. This means that operators have been keen to outsource parts of their businesses to third parties, especially since the late 2000s.

Large numbers of highly skilled engineers are an expensive liability to have on the balance sheet, and can often appear underused when things are running smoothly. Such jobs are often outsourced, with personnel transferring to the outsourced provider, to help operators to cut their payroll costs.

Outsourcing gone too far

When everything is working, very few people notice outsourcing. But when things go wrong, outsourcing can often significantly complicate recovery, or create a large "single point of failure" or security issue.

In the UK, for instance, mobile operator O2 has seen at least one outage which has been linked to the use of outsourced functions. Where large numbers of operators rely on the same outsourcing partner, any issue or security breach affecting the outsourced provider can have a widespread impact.

Still, outsourcing by mobile operators is widespread. And firms in the UK and across Europe have often turned to Huawei to provide IT services and to help build core networks. In 2010, Huawei was managing security-critical functions of KPN's core network.

Administrator access

At the same time, equipment suppliers like Huawei are trying to move away from merely selling equipment and towards providing a managed service, including installation, maintenance and support. This helps them create recurring revenue in an industry that has generally been dominated by large five-year or ten-year purchasing cycles.

But as these vendors add services to their repertoire, they gain wider access to the mobile networks they work with. This could include certain security-critical parts of telecoms networks, which are often designed to work in trusted, secure environments.

In the scenario where a vendor like Huawei also provides a managed service, they find themselves sitting in a uniquely privileged position, with inside knowledge of their own equipment, and with direct access to trusted management interfaces.

This creates the high-tech equivalent of putting all your eggs in one basket. It's akin to giving the combinations of the bank vault to the same security guard in charge of the CCTV camera footage. It's difficult to reliably monitor operations carried out by the vendor without relying on that vendor's own software.

In cases where a vendor has been designated as high-risk as a result of their own product security practices, it's very difficult to know whether that vendor didn't do anything untoward. This is the situation KPN apparently found themselves in with Huawei back in 2010.

Are changes needed?

With at least one operator aiming to reduce European operating expenditure by 1.2 billion, and 5G deployments bringing new opportunities for managed services and software-based solutions to be used in networks, decisions around outsourcing will continue to play an important role for mobile operators going forwards.

But legislation is rapidly catching up. The UK has proposed a telecoms security bill, and associated draft secondary legislation includes requirements for network operators to monitor all activity carried out by third party providers, to identify and manage the risks of using them, and to have a plan in place to maintain normal network operations if their supplier's service is disrupted.

For some operators, it's conceivable this might mean bringing key skills back in-house to ensure there's someone watching the (outsourced) watchmen. In the case of KPN, these measures would likely have prevented Huawei from having seemingly unchecked and privileged access to its customers' mobile data.

Explore further UK to ban new Huawei gear installations after Sept

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
An interdisciplinary team of engineers joined forces to find a new way to clean clogged filtration membranes. Credit: Elia Kneiriemen/J-WAFS

Filtration membranes are critical to a wide variety of industries around the world. Made of materials as varied as cellulose, graphene, and nylon, they serve as the barriers that turn seawater into drinking water, separate and process milk and dairy products, and pull contaminants from wastewater. They serve as an essential technology to these and other industries but are plagued with an Achilles heel: fouling.

Membrane fouling occurs when particles get deposited on the filter over time, clogging the system and limiting its effectiveness and efficiency. Efforts to clean, or de-foul, these membranes have typically relied on chemical processes, in which synthetic solvents are pumped through the membrane to flush the system. However, this results in losses in productivity and profit, all while raising environmental and workplace safety concerns associated with waste disposal.

A solution to this challenge may soon be in sight. A team of researchers from the MIT Department of Mechanical Engineering, supported by a seed grant from MIT's Abdul Latif Jameel Water and Food Systems Lab (J-WAFS), has found an alternative. Their solution was developed via a unique collaboration between researchers with expertise in fluid as well as structure dynamics.

The team has developed a novel system that can mechanically clean membranes using controlled deformation. Their new approach, one of the first ever to combine membranes and mechanics, has the potential to be cheaper, faster, and more environmentally friendly than traditional membrane cleaning techniques, and is poised to revolutionize the way we think about filtration.

"Fouling is the biggest problem that's facing membranes. Being able to solve it would be a game-changer for everyone," says Omar Labban Ph.D. '20 of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, a joint lead author of a new paper published in the Journal of Membrane Science.

The work got its start when two mechanical engineering professors saw the potential of uniting their areas of expertise. John Lienhard, the Abdul Latif Jameel Professor of Water and Mechanical Engineering and the director of J-WAFS, joined forces with Xuanhe Zhao, Professor of Mechanical Engineering and George N. Hatsopoulos Faculty Fellow. Lienhard is an international expert on water purification and desalination, while Zhao specializes in the field of soft materials.

"Real-world problems, such as membrane fouling, inherently cut across disciplinary lines," says Lienhard. "In this case, we faced both a problem of soft matter mechanics and of membrane desalination. Our team combined this disparate knowledge through a solid experimental program to achieve a more environmentally benign cleaning process."

The paper that details the team's new approach was selected as an Editor's Choice Article by the journal for February 2021. Paper co-authors Lienhard, Zhao, and Labban were also joined by co-lead author and member of the core research team driving this work, Grace Goon Ph.D. '20 of the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and Zi Hao Foo, a former visiting student and current graduate student in mechanical engineering.

The "Achilles heel" of filtration

Fouling is the process through which particles are deposited on a membrane's surface. While it occurs in any membrane filtration system, fouling is especially troublesome for desalination. As a process input, seawater has much more than salt that needs to be removed. Foulants, ranging from bacteria to organic material and minerals, can collect on reverse osmosis membranes very quickly. Once membranes become clogged, they are less effective, limiting the amount of clean water that can be produced as well as the purity of the end product.

Unfortunately, the current cleaning solution is not ideal. Membranes used for desalination are cleaned with chemicals, which takes time, money, and resources away from filtration plant operation. Water desalination plant operators often have to stop production to flush their systems for several hours per cleaning cycle. For the dairy industry, operators need to clean the membranes multiples times a day. The chemical cocktails used to flush the systems are often proprietary, making desalination prohibitively expensive for some countries and municipalities. The environmental impact is also hefty because the plants then must figure out how to dispose of the large quantities of chemical waste without causing ecological and toxicological problems.

Controlling the pressure on either side of this membrane allows the layer of contaminants to peel off and wash away. Credit: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Working together for a cleaner solution

Motivated by efficiency, affordability, and environmental sustainability, the research team sought to develop a chemical-free solution enabled by the principles of mechanics. Goon, a member of the core research team, recounts the early days, when the team explored various vibration methods, including a stereo system, to shake the foulant layer off the membrane. From there, they moved on to experimenting with varying the pressure on either side of the membrane to weaken the bonded debris. Eventually, they were able to cause the layer to peel off.

Their solution relies on a phenomenon known as membrane-foulant interfacial fatigue. Through subtle pressure changes, the team was able to gradually weaken and deform the bonded layer of foulants little by little until it could be washed away. Previous research strayed away from this method because of the fragility of the membranes, "but we've shown that if you're able to actually control it properly, you can avoid damaging your membrane," says Goon. Best of all, the method can be used on the industry-standard spiral wound membrane module, where the tightly spaced layers of membranes posed a challenge for other mechanical cleaning methods.

While traditional chemical cleaning processes might be necessary to supplement this mechanical solution, this new method can reduce users' reliance on chemical flushing, which benefits plant operators in multiple ways. The team's calculations indicate that the shutdown time for cleaning would go down by a factor of six. With plants down less often, the total amount of clean water produced by the system can increase. "You'll be saving on cost, you'll be running the plant more, you'll be getting more output. When cleaning no longer becomes a burden for the operator, the system is going to operate in a much better state in the long run," explains Labban.

These improvements provide tangible benefits to producers and consumers alike. During field research the team explored the market potential for this technology and spoke with plant operators across a number of industries who all expressed frustration with the cumbersome nature of the cleaning process. For the dairy industry alone, one that has already faced shrinking profits from the pandemic, the team estimates that a switch to mechanical cleaning could cut cleaning costs by half.

The unique intersection of membrane technology and mechanical processes that this technology models provides a solution that many in the desalination field did not think was possible. "Suddenly you're able to achieve a lot a lot more than beforeyour impact and change that you can accomplish becomes bigger," says Labban of the chance to work on a multidisciplinary collaboration.

The project not only brought together two specialties in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics. The team was also joined by Gabrielle Enns, Annetoinette Figueroa, Lara Ketonen, Hannah Mahaffey, Bryan T. Padilla, and Maisha Prome through MIT's Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program. The unique perspective that each team member brought helped foster creativity and camaraderie around the lab.

Because of the out-of-the-box approach that the interdisciplinary research team was taking, traditional funding mechanisms were not as readily available for this work. This is why the J-WAFS seed grant was so impactful. "Without J-WAFS, this work would not have happened," says Labban. The grant allowed the research team to focus on the challenge as a primary research catalyst, as opposed to being limited to a particular technical process or structured outcome. This provided the team the freedom to take advantage of the cross-departmental collaboration that enabled the convergence of mechanics and membrane research in the name of better filtration strategies.

The current paper primarily looks at organic foulants and the technique has only been evaluated for a limited number of industries. Looking forward, however, the team is excited to expand upon its research by applying the method across a variety of areas, including the energy and agriculture sectors. As long as membranes are being used, there is going to be a need to clean them. "We are excited to be solving the major bottleneck with membranes and desalination," says Labban. "Nothing else compares to this challenge."

Explore further Peel-off coating keeps desalination cleaner and greener

More information: Grace S.S. Goon et al. Deformation-induced cleaning of organically fouled membranes: Fundamentals and techno-economic assessment for spiral-wound membranes, Journal of Membrane Science (2021). Grace S.S. Goon et al. Deformation-induced cleaning of organically fouled membranes: Fundamentals and techno-economic assessment for spiral-wound membranes,(2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.memsci.2021.119169

This story is republished courtesy of MIT News (web.mit.edu/newsoffice/), a popular site that covers news about MIT research, innovation and teaching.
Three graduating UB students share their stories as the big day nears

BUFFALO, N.Y.  As graduating University at Buffalo students prepare to transition to the next stage of their lives, many are looking back to where they began, and how far theyve come. The graduating students spotlighted below agreed to share their stories. Their love, pain, triumphs and tragedies have forged them into something stronger than they were: inspirations to others.

Doing it all for her great-grandmother

Nass

Batool Nass had no interest in occupational therapy. In fact, when she left Saudi Arabia for the United States, shed never even heard of OT. But the moment she did, she immediately thought of her great-grandmother, Salma Alshamlawi. And those memories have made all the difference. Unfortunately, my great-grandmother had diabetes. She was the strongest woman Ive ever met in my life, Alshamlawi said. I have yet to meet anyone who was stronger than her. She was very independent  she didnt rely on anyone else but herself, and she supported her family, and I loved that about her. But because of diabetes, she had to have surgery and  had below-the-knee amputation, and she couldnt walk around anymore We didnt have any kind of OT to guide her on how to do the things she liked to do, not without help. Without professional assistance, Alshamlawis family pitched in to help, going as far as carrying her around the house, helping her in getting to the bathroom, or holding her up while she showered. For such a proud woman, suddenly needing such assistance took its toll. That hurt her dignity, Nass said of her great-grandmother. She felt less of a person when they did that. They were very happily doing it, but for her it was very difficult because she was used to doing everything on her own. She passed away a few years after the amputation, but all the memories of her crying, all the memories of her feeling so ashamed of whatever condition she was in, it was really hurtful for me. Through her, I saw the pain and loss of dignity, loss of independence that wasnt how she wanted to live her life. While Nass was studying English in Ohio, she started considering college majors. I didnt know about OT until I was trying to find what major I want  other than psychology, because that was my first (choice). And I read about OT, and I was like, Whats that? Then I read more about it and what (occupational therapists) do and I was thinking of my great-grandma (and) how it could have helped her a lot to live a better life. Through OT, she would have been much better, so I was like, Thats awesome! I want to do that! I want to support people. Nass picked UB because it would help her help people sooner. I was looking for an OT program, but I realized that no university would give me a bachelors (degree) in OT; Id have to have a prior degree and then go into OT. The good thing about UB is they provide the five-year program, which is BS/MS, and I graduate with a masters degree in less amount of time, so that was attractive. After all of her hard work  learning English, acclimating to a new country, entering college, adjusting to diverse people and their ideas and religions  Nass wants to return to Saudi Arabia. There, she plans to open an occupational therapy clinic, one that what will provide affordable care. Still, despite all of the patients she looks forward to helping, it will still always come down to one person: her great-grandmother, Alshamlawi. I want to not let other people feel the way my great-grandma felt, Nass said. I want to dedicate all the success I have to her and have it in her memory since shes the one who motivated me. Nass will receive her diplomas at the School of Public Health and Health Professions commencement on Saturday, May 15.

Driven by the love of diversity

Guillermo

An interesting detail about senior Denice Guillermo is that she doesnt seem to have changed in the last six years. At least, not outwardly. I have been the same height and roughly the same size as when I was in middle school, said Guillermo, who came to the U.S. from the Philippines when she was 6. Still, she has seen a lot of change in her life. Last year, she lost her father, Ali Dennis Guillermo, to COVID-19. Her father, a frontline health care worker, had wanted his family to experience a better life. He came to the U.S. from the Philippines, months ahead of his family, to lay the groundwork that would become his familys foundation. My father (had) always been a hard and humble worker, says Guillermo. It was because of him that my family and I were able to have a life here in America. (My) father chose to work the night shifts at the (Long Island Community Hospital), leading him to sleep during the day. Therefore, every day, we would all convene at the dining table and have dinner as a family for some quality time together. I knew that those dinners were important and treasured by my father as a way to connect with the family that he worked so hard to build. Despite his apparent exhaustion, I could see his contentment and pride at witnessing his dream come true. Seeing all five of us at the dinner table is something that I will always hold dear in my heart. As a child, Guillermo did her best to fit in. In hindsight, growing up I instinctively took measures to hide or minimize my foreign origins from my classmates in order to fit in better, she said, which often resulted in forgetting my own heritage, at times even rejecting it. Looking back now, I see that I failed to recognize my upbringing as an opportunity to share and celebrate my unique experiences in a diverse world. These days, Guillermo blends art, culture and diversity in her approach to life. She will receive her bachelors in architecture at the School of Architecture and Planning commencement on Friday, May 14, and will enter the schools masters in architecture program in the fall. Throughout my developmental years, I had always taken towards visual and performance art as an essential part to my daily schedule that I often looked forward to. This included participation and education in drawing and painting, photography, mixed media, dance and theater, music, and arts and crafts. All of these, mixed with my social justice and inclusion mindset, research curiosities, and creative writing and communications skills, led me into the path of architecture and planning. I believe that this major has offered more than a creative outlet for me, rather introduced a multi-faceted way of thinking about such an expansive field. Unlike during her childhood, she now celebrates her differences, as well as those of others. In a time where so many people fear and hate those they consider different, Guillermo challenges people to stop and think, rather than simply react. If I was supreme ruler, I would mandate a daily reflection regarding oneself and others, she said. This would entail that everyone takes a couple of moments to acknowledge their accomplishments, learn from failures, and identify their current state of being. In addition, I would encourage people to imagine themselves in anothers shoes, whether a friend, loved one, a stranger, and especially an enemy. With these I hope to bring out more compassion across seemingly divergent groups, to reinforce that we are all human and that we are all flawed.

A head for business with a desire to help

Balogh

For Peter Balogh, its all about the economics. I have been drawn to business since I was in elementary school, he said. It was hard to feed that interest, though, as there aren't many classes that were available to me up until high school. I've always had a knack for business and would usually buy and sell things during the summer to make some money. Business administration seemed a little bit saturated to me when I was first coming into UB, and I had taken an economics course my senior year of high school, and it seemed very interesting  along the same lines, but with more detail about why we as consumers and sellers act the way we do in a market. Since then, its been all economics for me. Perhaps so. However, as with all people, its a little bit more complex than that. Indeed, one of the first things Baloghs classmates noticed about him wasnt his love of business. It was that he was always willing to share. Balogh would attend lectures, type up his notes from the classes, and then share them with his classmates. I've always been one to share and help out where I can, said Balogh, who will receive his diploma as part of the College of Arts and Sciences ceremonies on Sunday, May 16. Born in Hungary, Balogh maintains a link to his native culture by volunteering his time with the Hungarian Scout Association. Despite  or, perhaps, because of  his love of business, Balogh likes helping others, as evidenced by his helping the young children and teens of the Scouts with their education goals. At UB, he also served as a College Ambassador, helping new students and their parents navigate the Economics program. As he prepared for graduation, he reflected on his life at UB. My favorite memory at UB would have to be the dorm rooms, he said, adding thats where he met some of his best college friends. And, of course, hes always thinking about others. A simple improvement I would make is to assign each freshman an ambassador in their department, Balogh said. University is a tricky thing: signing up for specific classes, knowing the little loopholes of prerequisites, and which classes might interest you more than others, (it) can all drastically shape your experience in college. Having a 'big brother/sister' to help you through difficult decisions can be super helpful, especially when they are ambassadors with good grades and high standings already.

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In this March 27, 2008, file photo, the Pentagon is seen in this aerial view in Washington. Officials say the Pentagon is reconsidering how to make a massive shift to cloud computing, suggesting the possibility that it could scrap a contract potentially worth $10 billion. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)

The Pentagon is reconsidering how to make a massive shift to cloud computing, officials said Monday, suggesting it could scrap the so-called JEDI contract potentially worth $10 billion that was awarded to Microsoft Corp. but is mired in legal challenges.

"We are going to have to assess where we are in regards to the ongoing litigation and determine what the best path forward is for the department," deputy Pentagon press secretary Jamal Brown said, citing remarks by Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks at a public forum late last month.

Hicks said then that she could not comment on the legal case or say what course of action the Pentagon will take. But she said a move to cloud computing is essential for a number of reasons, including cybersecurity.

"So for all of those reasons, moving to a cloud architecture is going to be vital to how we innovate in this department and we're going to have to assess where we are with regard to the ongoing litigation around JEDI and determine what the best path forward is for the department," Hicks said April 30.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report Monday that the Pentagon is considering "pulling the plug" on the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure project, known as JEDI, in light of ongoing legal challenges to the Pentagon's decision in 2019 to award the contract to Microsoft over Amazon Web Services.

Amazon Web Services, a market leader in providing cloud computing services, had long been considered a leading candidate to run the JEDI project, which would store and process vast amounts of classified data, allowing the U.S. military to improve communications with soldiers on the battlefield and use artificial intelligence to speed up its war planning and fighting capabilities.

In its legal challenge, Amazon has asserted that the bidding was improperly influenced by President Donald Trump's dislike of Amazon and its chief executive officer, Jeff Bezos. Bezos owns The Washington Post, a news outlet often criticized by Trump.

In April 2020, a government watchdog concluded that the contracting process was in line with legal and government purchasing standards. The Defense Department inspector general found no evidence of White House interference in the contract award process. But the report said investigators could not fully review that aspect of the matter because the White House would not allow unfettered access to witnesses.

The Pentagon had indicated to Congress months ago that if the legal challenges dragged on too long it might have to move in a different direction. Last month a federal judge rejected a Pentagon move to have key parts of Amazon's complaint dismissed.

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
In this April 2, 2021, file photo, Washington Metropolitan Police Department chief Robert Contee speaks during a news conference in Washington. Political hand-wringing in Washington over Russia's hacking of federal agencies and meddling in U.S. politics has mostly overshadowed a worsening digital scourge with a far broader wallop: crippling and dispiriting extortionary ransomware attacks by cybercriminal mafias. All the while, ransomware gangsters have become more brazen and cocky as they put more and more lives and livelihoods at risk. This week, one syndicate threatened to make available to local criminal gangs data they say they stole from the Washington, D.C., metro police on informants. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

A Russian-speaking ransomware syndicate that stole data from the Washington, D.C., police department says negotiations over payment have broken down, with it rejecting a $100,000 payment, and it will release sensitive information that could put lives at risk if more money is not offered.

The extortion threat comes amid a separate ransomware attack on a major pipeline that's affected part of the U.S.'s fuel supply, highlighting the power of internet-savvy criminal gangs to sow mayhem from a half a world away with impunity.

The Babuk group said on its website late Monday that it would release "all the data" it stole from the Washington police department if it did not "raise the price."

"The negotiations reached a dead end, the amount we were offered does not suit us," the group said.

The department did not immediately comment and has not said whether it's negotiated any possible payment.

On Tuesday, the gang released screenshots that appear to be negotiations with the department. They show the gang asked for $4 million and received a counter-offer of $100,000. The authenticity of the screenshots could not be independently confirmed.

If true, it's an example how complex the ransomware problem is when even police find themselves forced to consider making payments to criminal gangs.

Late last month, the group said it had hacked into the network of the city's police department and threatened to leak the identities of confidential informants unless an unspecified ransom was paid. Experts said such a release could endanger the lives of the informants.

A day after the initial threat was posted, the gang tried to spur payment by leaking personal information of some police officers taken from background checks, including details of officers' past drug use, finances andin at least one incidentof past sexual abuse.

Babuk leaked similar background files on Monday with its threat to release more, said Brett Callow, a threat analyst and ransomware expert at the security firm Emsisoft.

"This is far worse than any hack of other police departments previously," Callow said, adding that he's never seen a law enforcement agency pay a ransom before.

Ransomware gangs have been leaking sensitive data from victims for well over a year, but experts said they've not seen such aggressive new tactics used before against police departments. The cybercriminal mafias mostly operate in foreign safe havens out of the reach of Western law enforcement.

The average ransom payments last year were $310,000, up 171% from 2019, according to Palo Alto Networks.

The Biden administration has said that curbing ransomware attacks are a top priority, saying they are a threat to national security.

Explore further DC police department hit by apparent extortion attack

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics said Tuesday it won't be physically present at Mobile World Congress, the telecoms industry's biggest annual gathering, next month in Barcelona due to the pandemic.

Last year's event in February 2020 was called off at the last minute after dozens of the world's biggest technology and telecoms firm pulled out over fears of the spread of the coronavirus.

This year, organisers chose to schedule the eventwhich is normally held at the start of the yearbetween June 28 and July 1, with attendance limited to 50,000 compared with a normal attendance of around 100,000.

But despite the smaller size, Samsung said it would only participate virtually.

"The health and safety of our employees, partners and customers is our number one priority, so we have decided to withdraw from exhibiting in-person at this year's Mobile World Congress," it said in a statement.

The GSMA industry association that hosts the congress has not said how many people have registered to take part in this year's event.

The Consumer Electronics Show, the biggest global tech and gadget show held every January in Las Vegas, only took place online this year due to concerns over the pandemic.

Explore further Ericsson to skip mobile trade show over coronavirus

 2021 AFP


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Dr. Courtenay Miller, who has for many years led the Expanding Your Horizons program offered through College of Coastal Georgia, began planning for this years program during the summer of 2020.
To the bullies at his Brooklyn school, little Romy Vilsaints life wasnt worth $1.

Relatives of the 12-year-student, who collapsed and died after alleged two assaults by Public School 361 classmates in as many days, were still without answers this weekend in the tragic and shocking death. Family members said the boy was beaten by fellow students after school on Wednesday, and then punched hard in the head again on Thursday.

The boys devastated dad, Romain Vilsaint, already lost one son to a motorcycle crash in Haiti three years ago  the same year his younger boy started at the Brooklyn public school. The family said Saturday they had yet to hear from anybody at P.S. 361 about the tragedy.

Family members said the second assault was done to collect a $1 dare, with the boy staying home sick Friday before going into cardiac arrest. The Medical Examiners office had yet to determine the boys cause and manner of death, although there was no sign of trauma to the head or body.

Police continued their investigation into the devastating death, while the Board of Education intends to bring in an outside group to conduct a probe.

Family members said the boy never spoke of any problems at the school, either scholastically or with other kids.
Kudos to Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney. Her House GOP leadership post hangs by a thread because she refuses to mouth Donald Trumps Big Lie about a stolen election, and last Wednesday she boldly framed the stakes: The Republican Party is at a turning point, and Republicans must decide whether we are going to choose truth. 

But we also need to recognize the inconvenient truth that she is rebelling against the cult of disinformation that her father helped build. Dick the veep was a notorious liar who helped turn the GOP into the monster thats poised to devour his daughter.

Lest we forget  it was barely two decades ago  Republican leaders on Capitol Hill were steadfastly silent while Vice President Cheney lied us into the disastrous war in Iraq. He shaped the intelligence on Iraq to reflect his post-9/11 fixation. As our British allies wrote about Cheneys march toward war, in a now-infamous 2002 memo, the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy.

But rather than revisit all of Cheneys shameless BS, Ill simply detail what I consider his most flagrant departure from truth. He flogged one particular lie for years, even as the death toll mounted, and virtually no Republican ever uttered a word of protest in defense of factual reality.
Research News

Informal leaders need boss support, study finds

While companies encourage employees to take on informal leadership roles, those employees' supervisors need to support and energize them so they do not get burned out, new research from the School of Management has found.

By KEVIN MANNE

Companies prioritize hustle cultures and encourage employees to take on informal leadership roles. But these good eggs need to be protected from being exhausted  and its their formal leaders responsibility to support and energize them. 

Ambitious employees in informal leadership roles can get burned out when they dont receive support from their bosses, according to new research from the School of Management.

Recently published in the Journal of Organizational Behavior, the study found that while its commonly assumed that informal leaders are satisfied by their unique status and recognition from others, they could lose motivation from overwork and a lack of support.

To maintain their status and fulfill others expectations of them, informal leaders face increased demands to keep claiming their leadership status, says Paul Tesluk, professor of organization and human resources, and dean of the School of Management. If formal leadership support is low or absent, informal leaders can struggle to fulfill necessary team needs and feel less control over decisions, skills and resources, which results in greater levels of exhaustion.

The researchers conducted a series of four studies across 202 people in 52 work teams to investigate factors that make informal leaders feel dissatisfied at work. First, they issued a survey that examined how formal leadership support helped moderate employees informal leadership status and their satisfaction at work. Second, they conducted a series of interviews to investigate when and why informal leaders experience dissatisfaction, and identified energetic activation as a potential mediator. Studies three and four tested the mediator under different formal leadership conditions.

Their findings challenge the results of other studies on informal leadership, which presume that employees naturally benefit from taking the lead.

Existing business education and training encourages employees to be extra milers and do their best to assist colleagues and organizations, says Tesluk. As a result, companies prioritize hustle cultures and encourage employees to take on informal leadership roles. But these good eggs need to be protected from being exhausted  and its their formal leaders responsibility to support and energize them.

Tesluk says organizations can encourage and retain their overachieving employees in a number of ways.

One way to recognize the contributions of informal leaders is certainly through promotions or bonuses, but more importantly, informal leaders need to experience psychological trust with their managers, which supervisors can foster by providing mentoring and support when coordinating with peers and clients, reducing workloads where feasible and granting more autonomy in decision-making.

Tesluk collaborated on the study with UB graduate and study lead author Chia-Yen (Chad) Chiu, associate director of the Centre for Workplace Excellence at the University of South Australia; Jennifer Nahrgang, the Palmer Professor of Management and Entrepreneurship at the University of Iowa Tippie College of Business; Ashlea Bartram, research fellow at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute; and Jing Wang, lecturer at the Torrens University Australia Chifley Business School.
Here's what you should know about the growing trend  and three questions to help you get started.
n Share conservation stories with a larger audience via field days, media spots and short videos relating to the project.

n Attend training events with local and national leaders in soil health, agronomy and related topics.

n Receive a report on the new practices soil carbon and water quality outcomes. Those that are interested in going deeper may also opt-in for a detailed report on the practices financial return on investment.

Producers will receive year-round assistance from the NRDs, NRCS and The Nature Conservancy staff, who will provide support for paperwork/application processes and soil health practice management.

There is no gross income or acre enrollment cap for NRCS payments, but producers are encouraged to enroll a reasonable number of acres given their operation size and soil health experience. More acres can be submitted for enrollment in subsequent years of the program.

Payments are for new soil health acres only, but a measurable improvement of an existing practice could count (such as moving from strip till to no till) if it aligns with the NRCSs standards.
Todd Rosno has resigned as Central Nebraska Drug Court coordinator.

In a letter dated April 27 to the CNDC board, Rosno announced his resignation would be effective May 10.

He has served as Drug Court coordinator since February 2015.

It is evident that I am a distraction to the board and do not want Drug Court to be in a position to not progress in the direction that the board is wanting to go, Rosno wrote. It is evident that a portion of the Central Nebraska board wanted to go a new direction, and I wish the Central Nebraska Drug Court success in the future.

Central Nebraska Drug Court serves Adams, Buffalo, Hall, Kearney and Phelps counties, and is administered by the District courts of the 9th and 10th Judicial Districts.

The court is open to those whove been charged with a nonviolent felony in which drugs are involved. The main offense does not have to involve drugs.

While people are in the program, they are tested and supervised. If they complete the program satisfactorily, the felony will be dismissed and erased from their record.
He had served the LPD for 23 years, and before that had served in both the U.S. Army and the Nebraska State Patrol.

Herrera will not be forgotten, said Lincoln Police Department Chief Brian Jackson.

Beyond being a great cop, he was a great man. A great person and a great human, Jackson said. Our sorrow and anguish over losing Mario may tempt us in believing evil triumphed that day, that our service is in vain, but it isnt so. Marios courage and fortitude conquered the darkness with a light that can never be extinguished.

He added, His service will continue to be remembered from the Lincoln Police Department from here on out.

Law enforcement often is not appreciated enough by the community, Attorney General Doug Peterson said Monday, and is confronted by the loudest and most critical voices.

You have one of the most important constitutional responsibilities because youre one of the few who will stand in the gap between law and order, and tyranny, Peterson told the crowd of law enforcement officials. You will stand to protect your communities. You will stand, day in and day out, so we can maintain the promises of our Constitution and the spirit of this country.
The improvements have also impacted Americans' concerns about the virus. The AP-NORC poll shows the public's worries about the pandemic are at their lowest level since February 2020, when the virus was first reaching the U.S. About half of Americans say they are at least somewhat worried that they or a relative could be infected with the virus, down from about 7 in 10 just a month earlier.

As has been the case throughout the pandemic, there is a wide partisan gap in Americans' views of pandemic risks. Among Democrats, 69% say they remain at least somewhat worried about being infected with the virus, compared with just 33% of Republicans.

Despite the overall positive assessments of Americans, Biden's advisers are well aware that the next phase of his presidency is potentially trickier. Vaccination rates have slowed, and the administration is grappling with how to persuade those who are reluctant to get the shots about their safety and efficacy.

The AP-NORC poll of 1,842 adults was conducted April 29-May 3 using a sample drawn from NORCs probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 3.2 percentage points.
Q: Why do we have a new normal in weather?

A: The National Ocean and Atmosphere Administrations National Climatic Data Center (or NCDC) calculates the average weather conditions over a 30-year period for more than 7,500 locations in the United States.

A reliable estimate of an average requires at least 30 years. These 30-year averages are referred to as the U.S. Climate Normal. They provide a baseline that allows everyone to compare a locations current weather to the average weather that location would expect to see  whether a particular days temperature is cooler or warmer than normal, or if a particular month is wetter than normal.

Revised normals are computed every decade to account for the most recent 30 years of climate change. Over the past decade, the normals have been based on weather observations from 1981 to 2010. In early May, climate experts at NOAA issued an updated collection based on the weather occurring from 1991 to 2020.
MINDEN  A former Minden Public Schools Board of Education member repeatedly was asked to leave before its meeting Monday night.

Before the school board meeting began, former board member Katie Sinsel was seated at the boards table and was not wearing a mask. Superintendent James Widdifield repeatedly asked Sinsel to put on a mask or to leave the building.

Sinsel told Widdifield that she was a school board member, but he told her that she was voted off the school board at the last meeting. Widdifield told Sinsel she was trespassing, and he made a call asking for a police officer to come to the school to address the situation.

Sinsel then told Widdifield that she wanted to hear from Board of Education President Rusty Rhynalds if he wanted her to leave. Rhynalds asked Sinsel to put on a mask. Sinsel gathered her things, but before leaving the table she asked Rhynalds for the record if he wanted her to leave. Rhynalds once again asked Sinsel to wear a mask.

Sinsel left the board meeting of her own accord, although an officer from the Minden Police Department did arrive at the school after Sinsel had left the room. Three members of the audience, who were also unmasked, left with Sinsel.
Buffalo, WY (82834)

Today

Windy with sunshine. High 92F. Winds SSW at 20 to 30 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Gusty winds during the evening. Low near 45F. NW winds at 25 to 35 mph, decreasing to 10 to 20 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph.
KEARNEY  A Colorado company has emerged as the low bidder for the Kearney Whitewater Park planned in south Kearney.

According to the agenda for the Kearney City Councils meeting Tuesday, Whinnery Construction of Lake City, Colorado, is the winning bidder at $583,918.

Blessing Construction of Kearney was the only other bidder. Blessings bid was $1,221,150.

According to a memo to the City Council from Park and Recreation Director Scott Hayden, Whinnery Construction will begin work on the whitewater park in November, after water has been drained from the canal and the Kearney Water Trail is dry enough for work to commence.

The whitewater park will be ready for kayakers and canoeists in spring 2022.

The whitewater park will be close to Cinema 8 and Second Avenue so passing motorists will be able to see the action on the canal beneath the street, which serves as Kearneys front door.

The park will include two sets of rapids  or drop structures that will create whitewater for recreational and more experienced paddlers.

One of the structures will be just west of Second Avenue and the other just east of Second Avenue.
When children with suspicious injuries are rushed through their doors, pediatricians seek to understand what happened. They actively search for rare disorders and other possible explanations. According to one study, child abuse pediatricians did not find abuse in 44 percent of the cases referred to them.

The diagnosis is based on a physical exam; medical tests; imaging, including X-rays and CT scans; health history; and an explanation of how the injury happened. It often is made in consultation with a medical team.

And to clear up a misconception: In cases of suspected abuse, child protective services and the court system make the final decision on whether to remove a child from the home.

Pediatricians greatly respect the bond between parents and their children. Many of us are parents ourselves. We know that raising children is hard and that the vast majority of parents want whats best for their children.

The overriding goal is to get families and other caregivers  baby sitters, day care providers, teachers and others  the support they need so we can prevent child abuse.
The Texas Legislature wrapped up this years lawmaking session on Sunday. Although members of the House and Senate touted wins for both Republicans and Democrats, tensions are rising between the legislative bodies amid criticism from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. What would you grade this years legislative session?

You voted:
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HCM City raises warnings over Covid-19 outbreaks at seaports

Local seaports in HCM City are at risk of a Covid-19 outbreak according to HCM City Centre for Disease Control director Nguyen Tri Dung.



HCM City raises warnings over Covid-19 outbreaks at seaports






Duluth, MN (55816)

Today

Partly cloudy early followed by scattered thunderstorms this afternoon. High around 80F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies early followed by scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low 52F. Winds ENE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
CARBONDALE  Nicole Gusentine wants to make sure police officers in Southern Illinois feel supported so shes asking brothers and sisters in blue to join a freshly chartered Southern Illinois police auxiliary group.

Gusentine helped charter the Southern regional FOP Auxiliary in late summer last year and currently serves as its president. She said there are five board members and 15 other members ranging from Marion to Herrin. One member represents an officer on the SIU force.

Youre not alone, were here with you. We support you and youre doing a great job, Gusentine said of the groups message to police officers.

Gusentines husband, Karl Gusentine, is a lieutenant in the Williamson County Sheriffs Office and until last year served as the president of the local FOP. She said in attending some of those FOP meetings, she thought to herself how great it would be to marshal more support for the officers in the area.

We need to have something to help encourage the police officers, she recalled thinking.

Knowing this support exists can be buoying for officers, Marion Police Chief David Fitts said.
Julia Hall said a year ago she really did not know much about business.

But that was before the Anna-Jonesboro Community High School senior enrolled in the Union County CEO Program, one of several similar educational efforts in Southern Illinois.

Now, Hall and her fellow CEO participants know more about business than even some business people, and they are wrapping-up their yearlong programs with tradeshow events highlighting their own entrepreneurial ventures.

CEO Programs, established on a countywide level through the Midland Institute for Entrepreneurship, an Effingham-based not-for-profit, gives selected high school students exposure to business leaders and experiences with discussions, on-site visits, plan development and launching their own businesses.

I thought I know about business before, but it just barely skimmed the surface, Hall said. Through the CEO program I learned about businesses in my community and there are so many more things that it takes to run a business than I could ever have imagined.

Under the guidance of a facilitator, students meet every morning each school day for 90 minutes of discussions, presentations and visits to learn the ins and outs of the business world.
ST. PAUL, Minn. Police in a St. Paul suburb are investigating the theft of coronavirus vaccines after a man recorded and posted videos on social media of him walking away with vials of what he said was "poison" and that he had plans to have the vaccines tested at a lab.

Allina Health told police the man, who has been identified by law enforcement as Thomas Humphrey, took a vial of the Pfizer vaccine from a clinic vaccination site in Oakdale May 4 and left before officers arrived.

The 32-year-old St. Paul man recorded the alleged theft, as well as one the next day at a CVS pharmacy, the location of which is not known, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported.

The videos were on Humphrey's Facebook page early Monday, before they were either deleted or made non-public. The videos generated hundreds of comments on Humphrey's page.

One of the videos shows Humphrey sitting down with a nurse at the Allina clinic, then grabbing the Pfizer vaccine before he stood up and yelled at others not to get the vaccine because it would kill them.

In the CVS pharmacy video, Humphrey took a vial of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine from a box that a worker handed him, then walked out of the store, despite pleas from workers not to leave.
Mehlbrech contributed to the ineffective communication and lack of training, according to the report, which noted she initially held brief meetings one to three times daily to inform the staff of the changing policies within the home.

But these meetings did not contain in-service training and they stopped entirely during the summer. In addition, the report states, Mehlbrech did not hold any meetings with nurses.

Mehlbrech was rarely seen at the home and often remained in her office, according to the report.

When Mehlbrechs interim replacement, Anthony Vaughn, arrived, one staff member told him, Im glad youre here, because I havent talked to Angela in six months, according to the report.

Witnesses interviewed for the report described Chapa LaVia as not a hands-on or engaged day-to-day Director. They also said that her chief of staff, Tony Kolbeck, managed the agency and handled the day-to-day operations. Kolbeck has also since resigned from the department.

Chapa LaVia, who is a former state representative and an Illinois Army National Guard veteran, told investigators that she would consider sitting for an interview with the inspector general if she received questions in advance.
As the only Black woman in South Carolina to launch a magazine focusing on womens health, Brunson felt the need to uplift other women and be an example for her daughter, Kennedy, and other Black girls and women, by showing more African American representation in the print industry and not being afraid to challenge yourself.

I want my daughter and other Black young girls and women to see themselves in my magazine. Representation matters, Brunson said. I also want to encourage young women that when you identify a problem or an issue that needs to be solved, it is up to you to take the necessary steps to resolve that issue.

Brunson feels that it is her mission to shed more light on infertility. Sadly, many women battle this condition in silence because of embarrassment. However, Brunson wants to serve as that light at the end of the tunnel and provide an outlet for those in need of help.

I want women who are dealing with infertility to know they are not alone. Beyond Motivated Women will be a resource for them on infertility and other health disparities for Black women.
Gov. Henry McMaster today issued an executive order Tuesday which allows South Carolina parents to decide whether their children should wear masks in public schools throughout the state.

The governors order also explicitly prohibits any county or local governments in the state from relying on prior orders or using a state of emergency as the basis for a local mask mandate and bars all state agencies, local governments and political subdivisions from requiring what has commonly been referred to as vaccine passports for any reason.

With regard to mask requirements in public schools, the governor has directed DHEC - in consultation with the S.C. Department of Education - to develop and distribute a standardized form a parent or legal guardian may sign to opt their child out of mask requirements imposed by any public school official or public school district.

We have known for months that our schools are some of the safest places when it comes to COVID-19, McMaster said in a release. With every adult in our state having the opportunity to receive a vaccine, it goes against all logic to continue to force our children  especially our youngest children  to wear masks against their parents wishes. Whether a child wears a mask in school is a decision that should be left only to a students parents.

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The Orangeburg County School District will be able to expand its pre-K program for the upcoming school year by eight additional teachers if it meets the state-stipulated 500 program applicants.

"We are thrilled to have been allowed the opportunity to expand the number of students that we can serve through our high-quality 4K program and encourage each and every family with an age-eligible student to apply," OCSD Assistant Superintendent for Communications and Business and Community Partnerships Merry Glenne Piccolino said.

"Its critically important that our community appropriately prepares young children for academic success," Piccolino said. "Our nurturing, educationally appropriate and family-centered programs provide a wonderful opportunity to do just that."

If the 500 student applications are received, Piccolino said the district will receive a specific per-pupil allocation that is determined by the state General Assembly.

The district has 137 applications currently for pre-K. It has until the first week of June as a deadline to fill the additional classrooms that have been offered from the state.

The 2021-22 per-pupil allocation has not been determined for next school year, she said.
The clause is written in future tense because none of this had come to pass yet when the Constitution was originally ratified. In 2021, however, the creation and acceptance of the district and the cession of land has already happened. And, as required by the Constitution, the federal government took authority over it. They have no constitutional power to now hand over that authority to any other entity including a state government.

Aside from that direct violation of the Constitution, the bill would also render the 23rd Amendment obsolete.

The amendment states that The District constituting the seat of Government of the United States shall appoint in such manner as the Congress may direct: A number of electors of President and Vice President equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives in Congress to which the District would be entitled if it were a State.

The Constitution requires that the seat of government have at least three electoral votes in the presidential election. If the seat of government is whittled down to a few government buildings and monuments, its population will consist of whoever lives in The White House. Are the president and his family going to have three electoral votes all to themselves?
Its no secret that South Carolina, like other states in the South, is growing in population. Early U.S. Census data from 2020 puts the growth at 10.7% over the past 10 years, with the state adding nearly a half million people.

Much of the growth is occurring in areas attractive to retirees, the coast and Upstate locations, but Orangeburg and the entire state stand to benefit. A new study offers some evidence.

South Carolina is been ranked by the SeniorLiving.org study https://smartasset.com/retirement/retirement-calculator#southcarolina as the No. 10 best state for older adults, with factors being peoples desire for their money to go far, good weather, excellent health care and a social life.

The rank is derived from compiling numbers in 15 categories across taxes and finances, health and medicine, and lifestyle and culture using data from the Census Bureau, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
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Fort Payne, AL (35967)

Today

Showers this morning becoming a steady rain during the afternoon hours. High 79F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Rain showers early with scattered thunderstorms arriving overnight. Low 69F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%. Locally heavy rainfall possible.
POWELL  At a court appearance last week, a Cody man and woman formally denied allegations that they fatally abused a 2-year-old child.

Moshe Williams, 30, and Carolyn Aune, 28, each pleaded not guilty to a count of first-degree murder. The couple is charged in connection with the April 4 death of Williams daughter, Paisleigh Williams.

Authorities say Paisleigh appeared to have been dealt a forceful gut punch sometime between the night of March 25 and the afternoon of March 27, when Williams took her to the hospital. The blow was severe enough to separate her intestines and eventually caused her death, police say in charging documents; medical professionals also reportedly found evidence that the girl suffered broken bones and other injuries in the weeks and months before her death.

Charging documents quote Williams and Aune as both telling police that they did not abuse the child. Aune and Williams reportedly offered various theories as to how Paisleigh might have been injured  while also casting suspicion on one another.

The murder charges allege that both Aune and Williams intentionally or recklessly inflicted physical injuries and killed Paisleigh. However, police have not yet been able to determine how the child was injured or who was responsible.
The implementation of the trilateral agreement brokered by Russia on the night of November 9-10, 2020, between Armenia and Azerbaijan continues in fits and starts. Most near-term questions have been resolved. How intermediate-term issues turn out depend upon the results of the snap parliamentary elections called in June by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. As for the longer-term outcome, this is more difficult to estimate, and it is path-dependent upon those elections. In this regard, events on the groundbut not only the electionsare still in control, even if these are no longer military events.

BACKGROUND: Many of the provisions for ceasefire have been implemented. Armenian forces have been withdrawn from Agdam, Kelbajar, and Lachin, although Armenia still sends servicemen to Karabakh, as is evident from a recent demonstration against the practice, held in Yerevan by the parents and grandparents of army recruits themselves. The Russian peacekeeping contingent has been deployed as foreseen, and the peacekeeping center to enforce the agreement has been established as intended. Only a few Armenians elsewhere in Azerbaijan are returning to Karabakh, but ethnic Azerbaijanis who are internally displaced persons and refugees cannot get back to areas in Karabakh that are under Russian peacekeeping administration, such as Khojaly. There are some disputes over the implementation of the exchange of prisoners of war, hostages, and other detainees as well as the remains of the dead.

Armenia contends that Azerbaijan still detains about 200 prisoners-of-war (POWs). According to Azerbaijan, these individuals were not captured during the conflict itself but infiltrated the de-occupied territories after the cessation of hostilities as guerrillas and saboteurs. As such, they would not be considered POWs under the international law of war. Moreover, since they were captured after the signature of the November agreement, they could not be covered by it.

There is also a political dispute inside Armenia over the creation of the Zangezur Corridor between Nakhichevan and the main body of Azerbaijan, foreseen in the ceasefire agreement. The ceasefire agreement mandates that existing economic and transport ties should be unblocked. The ceasefire document also mandates the construction of a road from Khankendi across Lachin to the Armenian border, which would not pass under the mountaintop city of Shusha. This would relieve pressure on the existing Lachin Corridor by making it less strategic, although the agreement provides for the subsequent redeployment of the Russian peacekeeping contingent to guard the new route.

Former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan has returned to the political arena following his acquittal on charges brought by Pashinyans justice ministry. He has vowed to campaign against the implementation of the Zangezur Corridor, a position amounting to renunciation of one of the points of the original November 2020 ceasefire agreement. However, the Armenian railway system is owned by the Russian railway system. Thus, the Russian railroads are at liberty to rehabilitate the old line linking Azerbaijan with Nakhichevan, following Russian state policy, should they wish to do so. This line would in fact be to Russias advantage, first because it would provide a direct link with Turkey through Azerbaijan, and second because the Russian FSBs Border Service would control the transport communication. This would provide Russia with another sensitive strategic point through which it could exert pressure on Azerbaijan (and Armenia).

IMPLICATIONS: The Zangezur Corridor, which Kocharyan opposes, is in Russias interest. Indeed, Russia is in the region for no other reason than to seek its own advantage. The Russian military in Azerbaijan is not a peacekeeping force in the true sense of the word: it is primarily concerned with Russias national interests in the region, which for the moment coincide with keeping the peace (more or less), albeit in a tenuous state that suggests a need for Russias continued presence. The Zangezur Corridor, however, cannot be unblocked without Turkey, so Armenia will need to reconcile with the opening of its Turkish border, now that events on the ground have satisfied Ankaras condition (i.e., the end of the Armenian occupation of Karabakh) for its opening.

Kocharyan is a personal friend of Putin and is a known quantity in Moscow. But it is not a foregone conclusion that Russia moves to tip the balance in his favor in the snap parliamentary elections that Pashinyan has called for Armenia in June. In fact, he may be a too well-known quantity to Moscow, and not what they exactly prefer at the moment. As a member of the Karabakhi clan that dominated Armenian politics for over two decades up until Pashinyans election in 2018, Kocharyan typifieseven personifiesthe principal conundrum of the dominant Armenian worldview, which is encouraged by a diaspora that need not suffer its now-evident disastrous consequences. It is entirely possible that Russia supports Kocharyan only just enough so that he significantly reduces Pashinyans current majority (or even forces the latter into a minority government), constraining his margin of political maneuver while ensuring that the Zangezur Corridor is opened.

At the same time, Moscows relations with Baku are under strain due to the discovery of pieces of an Iskander-M missile in Shusha. The version of the missile that Armenian armed forces received is the Iskander-E, which is the export version. The M version of this missile has a longer range and is reserved for use by Russian forces. This means that they were either launched by Russian forces from the Russian military base in Armenia at Gyumri, roughly 60 miles north-northwest of Yerevan and 160 miles northwest of Shusha, or that Russia sold or delivered the M version to Armenia.

CONCLUSIONS: The greatest long-term dangers to the peace process in Karabakh are the evolution of domestic Armenian politics, as described above, and the question of Russian policy. For example, there are unconfirmed reports that Moscow is giving or considering giving Russian passports to ethnic Armenians in Karabakh. It has used this tactic in the past in Transnistria, Abkhazia, and most notably South Ossetia. Azerbaijans Constitution provides that any citizen of Azerbaijan accepting a foreign citizenship loses Azerbaijani citizenship. Technically, under international law, a passport is only a travel document and not necessarily a proof of citizenship, unless the issuing countrys domestic law so provides; but in the case of Karabakh this may be a distinction without a difference. However, the distance from Khankendi to the nearest Russian border with Azerbaijan is about 75 miles, there is no direct route, and Azerbaijans second-largest city Ganja is on the way. Even if the attachment of Karabakh to Russia is unlikely, still one of the dangers of the present situation is a creeping political Ossetianization of that remaining part of Karabakh where the Russian troops are located (aside from the Lachin corridor).

Finally, a topic not directly covered in the ceasefire agreementthe rehabilitation of the formerly occupied territorieswill assume a higher profile as time goes on. The Armenian sides refusal to turn over minefield maps to the Azerbaijani side (an obligation under customary international humanitarian law) complicates the resettlement of internally displaced persons and refugees. This situation will increasingly be put into parallel with the ecological and environmental destruction wrought by 30 years of Armenian occupation, highlighted by the international media during the settlers evacuation of the seven administrative districts surrounding the old Nagorno-Karabakh territory. This poses significant difficulties not only for the resettlement of the original population but also for the very rehabilitation of the territories. Surveys carried out by European institutions even during the Armenian occupation noted these violations of the law of war. The international community will increasingly come to recognize the need to address such issues, just as in any post-conflict situation.

AUTHOR'S BIO:

Robert M. Cutler is a Fellow of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute.

Image Source: U.S. Army Europe photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Patrick Grieco accessed 5.11.2021
GILLETTE  The Gillette man accused of trying to run into a sheriffs deputy last spring has withdrawn his plea to three charges against him and again pleaded not guilty by reason of mental illness.

That means that the case awaits an updated mental exam  one that Nathan Schuerman, 41, hopes will take into consideration medical reports missing in the first exam and whether a change in his medication weeks before the incident could have affected his behavior and contributed to his actions.

Schuerman was scheduled to be sentenced May 11 after he had pleaded no contest to aggravated assault and battery, interference with a peace officer and possession of a deadly weapon with unlawful intent.

But last month, Schuermans attorney, Eric Palen, learned from Schuerman that his switch from one anti-depressant medication to another wasnt addressed during his mental health exam at the Wyoming State Hospital.

In a court filing, Palen said being under the influence of these two medications at the same time may explain Mr. Schuermans behavior at the time of the incident.
Rep. Liz Cheney has yet another challenger in the 2022 U.S. House race.

Denton Knapp, a retired U.S. Army colonel and the brother of state Rep. Christopher Knapp, R-Gillette, is entering the 2022 House race for Wyomings lone seat in the House of Representatives, he told the Star-Tribune on Monday.

Knapp joins state Sen. Anthony Bouchard, state Rep. Chuck Gray and Cheyenne lawyer Darin Smith in challenging Cheney. Like Smith, Knapp also brands himself as a fourth-generation Wyoming resident.

Im a Wyomingite through and through, Knapp said.

Similar to the other candidates attempting to unseat Cheney, Knapp is appealing to the strong Trump base in the state and rejecting Cheneys beliefs about the former president and the validity of the election.

I believe President Trump did a great job with the economy, with jobs and putting our country first, he said.

Cheney came under fire from the far right after voting to impeach then-President Donald Trump following the Capitol riot on Jan. 6. She has also pushed back against his unfounded claims that the election was stolen.

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Unlike Cheney, Knapp does not believe that the 2020 presidential election was entirely legitimate.
A patient is considered fully recovered when there is resolution of fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and there is improvement in respiratory symptoms (e.g. cough, shortness of breath) for 72 hours AND at least 7 days have passed since symptoms first appeared, according to the Wyoming Department of Health.

Total cases are determined by adding together the number of confirmed and probable cases. Total recoveries are determined by adding together the number of confirmed and probable recoveries.

Confirmed active cases are determined by subtracting the number of deaths and confirmed recoveries from the number of confirmed cases. Total active cases are determined by subtracting the number of deaths and total recoveries from the number of total cases.







Health Department data(tncms-asset)f0608226-6ece-11ea-bd05-00163ec2aa77[2](/tncms-asset)
I knew it was going to be a big job and it wasnt easy getting there, and I knew that when I got there, that wasnt it either  I had to maintain it and keep it going, Pankovich said. And man, we were on our way to the best year ever, Im sure in the history of the M&M.

Its so frustrating and heartbreaking to know where we were headed, and at the same time, I know we can do it again. I feel like its something we need to move on quickly, because I dont want anyone to forget.

Gallagher said it was too early to say how local government could help in the rebuilding effort, but he would explore all avenues. One could involve assistance from the Urban Renewal Agency and its tax-increment district covering much of Uptown Butte.

URA Director Karen Byrnes agreed.

We need to work with Selina to see what she is interested in doing and theres a lot to go through at this point in time, but we would be, as an agency, 100% behind new construction of the M&M, she said.

Pankovich said there would be an account set up to accept donations, with legal assurances that all contributions go to a rebuilding effort and refunds are made if its not successful.
Over the course of months, the quantity of first doses they managed to produce got out of alignment with the quantity of second doses they were able to produce, Lopez-Gatell said.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund, Russias sovereign wealth fund which has bankrolled Sputnik V and is in charge of marketing it abroad, denied the Mexican reports.

The comments made by Mexican authorities regarding the production of the second dose of the Sputnik V vaccine are not true," the Fund's press office said in a statement. The manufacturing of both components of Sputnik V is being upscaled in Russia and abroad to fully meet the rising demand for the vaccine internationally.

Mexico has so far received only 1.9 million Sputnik V doses, out of a total of 24 million it has signed a contract for. It has been forced to rely more on the Pfizer vaccine, of which it has received 10.6 million doses, as well as about 10 million doses of two Chinese vaccines. It also received about 4.6 million doses from AstraZeneca.

Mexico has recorded over 219,000 test-confirmed COVID-19 deaths, but the country does so little testing that the governments own estimates of probable deaths now amounts to around 347,000.

It is the latest in a series of setbacks for the Russian vaccine.
THE Government expects to spend $107 million on Covid-19 vaccines to allow vaccination of 85 per cent of the population, or about 1.2 million people.

So said Minister of Finance Colm Imbert yesterday, at the Red House, Port of Spain.
Dakota graduated from Bret Harte in 2013 and went to Davidson College, NC where she earned a bachelor's degree in Arab studies. After spending time studying in the Middle East and Europe, she is happy to be home, writing about the community she loves.

Comment Policy Calaveras Enterprise does not actively monitor comments. However, staff does read through to assess reader interest. When abusive or foul language is used or directed toward other commenters, those comments will be deleted. If a commenter continues to use such language, that person will be blocked from commenting. We wish to foster a community of communication and a sharing of ideas, and we truly value readers' input.
My son, in his ever-increasing efforts to make sure Im relatively safe during this pandemic, sent me two packets of masks from the USA. His concern is especially so since I am over 80 and live alone.
About 25% of the sites that are studied by the National Park Service for inclusion in the parks system receive a positive finding that allows them to move forward in the evaluation process, Miller said. Only members of Congress are legally able to establish a park unit, and while they do not need a study to do so, it can help them make the decision, she said.
In a letter last month, members of the group said they believe this proposal and two other changes in election laws sought by Republicans seek to disenfranchise voters.

These proposals are a concerted effort from those in Arizona  and across the nation  who wish to sow additional doubts about our elections in the minds of voters, and feed into the paranoia that has plagued our political discourse over the past several months, they wrote.

No one will lose right to vote

In a video news release  the governor would not answer questions from reporters  Ducey said the opposition was based on deceptive and heated rhetoric being used by some partisan activists.

He pointed out that even with approval of SB 1485, no one will lose the right to vote.

Under Arizona law until this point, individuals can request to be mailed an early ballot before every election. Those ballots keep on coming as long as someone remains a registered voter, even if people choose to vote in person or even decide not to vote in that election.
Parents and guardians with children ages 12 to 15 will be able to access COVID-19 vaccines for them at state-run sites starting at 8 a.m. Thursday, May 13, pending final federal approval.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer shots for this age group, which includes nearly 400,000 youths statewide, on Monday, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to approve it on Wednesday, May 12.

The recommendation for these ages applies only to the Pfizer vaccine, which is currently available to ages 16 and older. The state-run sites and private pharmacies offer Pfizer shots at this time, but not Pima County.

The other two kinds of vaccines, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, are authorized only for those 18 and older.

In Tucson, the state vaccination site is at the University of Arizona, in the Ina E. Gittings Building, Room 129, 1737 E. University Blvd., which is on the north side of the UA Mall, just west of North Campbell Avenue.

Walk-ins are welcome, but parents and guardians also will be able to register those ages 12 to 15 for vaccinations starting at 8 a.m. Thursday, if an appointment is preferred.
He serves as lead organizer for the ReFraming Justice project for the American Friends Service Committee-Arizona, whose mission is to shift the criminal justice system to one that addresses root causes, adopts best practices for building safe and healthy communities, and emphasizes inclusivity and healing, the organization said.

Its for those who may not have anyone behind them to support them when dealing with substance abuse as well as mental health issues and their rehabilitation back into the world.

My aspirations are to help people who have overcome or who are trying to overcome the things that Ive overcome because I know I didnt do it alone. I know that if Im in through the door, that its my job to keep the door open for the next person, Olivares-Pelayo said.

The example left for others, Olivares-Pelayo said, is that success has come from self-acceptance and a radical level of tolerance for past mistakes and the amends that Im trying to make now in the present.
Only one name is disclosed: Rayana B. Eldan, who lists herself as the representative voice for the legal filing. The only contact is an email address.

The only response to an email to Eldan in turn referred questions to an email account operated by Daniel Wood, who was a Republican candidate for Congress last year. He did not immediately respond to questions.

But Eldan, in her filing, did tell the justices that if they take up the case the names will have to be disclosed, though she requested that other personal information such as addresses and birth dates remain off limits to public view.

One thing the lawsuit does not seek is a reversal of the states 11 electoral votes going to Joe Biden. That likely is beyond the reach of Arizona courts.

Meanwhile, at Senate audit

Legal battles still could be in the offing on other fronts, as the state Senate was moving Monday to issue subpoenas for the five Maricopa County supervisors and a top county election official, demanding that they produce certain passwords for counting equipment used in 2020 at voting centers.
Several states have begun requiring those receiving unemployment benefits to show they are actively searching for work, and a few will stop providing the additional federal supplement.

It's not just the hospitality sector that is scrambling to fill positions. Alene Candles, based in Milford, New Hampshire, is looking to fill 1,500 positions for its facility there and another in New Albany, Ohio, to meet demand for the holiday season. Company representatives will be participating in a number of virtual job fairs this month.

We have had more than 100 positions open since the start of the year, and just recently we increased sign-on bonuses to $1,200 for hourly positions - in-part because we are competing with an entity that can print its own money - the federal government - and its $300 per week additional unemployment benefit," said CEO Rod Harl. I would love to welcome those searching for work to join our team.

On Monday, the state of New Hampshire reopened its job centers for the first time since the pandemic hit to help people looking for work, but only a handful showed up in the first few hours at the largest one in Manchester.
Young currently chairs the 23-member Baltimore County House delegation and serves as the Deputy Majority Whip. Having served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps and deployed for two tours in Iraq, he also serves as vice-chair of the House Veterans Caucus. Prior to holding office, Young said he spent six years as the director of Towson University Veterans Services.
KNOXVILLE, Iowa (AP)  An Iowa woman who stabbed her estranged husband's girlfriend to death was found guilty Tuesday of first-degree murder.

A Marion County jury deliberated for less than an hour before convicting Michelle Boat in the May 18, 2020, death of 46-year-old Tracy Mondabough, who was stabbed as she sat in her truck in Pella, The Ottumwa Courier reported.

Boat acknowledged on Monday that she killed Mondabough, of Ottumwa. Her lawyer, Trevor Anderson, argued during the trial that the killing wasn't premediated and that jurors should convict Boat of the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter.

Andersen said Boat snapped after the sudden breakup of her 20-year marriage and amid the uncertainty of the coronavirus pandemic, which left her jobless and with only $6 at the time of the killing. Boat reacted when she saw her husband, Nicholas Boat, kiss Mondabough that day, he said.
Rivera, who worked on a local dairy farm under an alias, has pleaded not guilty. He faces life in prison if convicted.

Under the Iowa Supreme Court's COVID-19 rules, those inside courtrooms are supposed to be at least six feet apart from others and wear face coverings. Yates said in his ruling that the limited size of the Scott County courtroom did not leave space for members of the public or news media to attend, with the exception of one pool photographer.

Court TV and the Law and Crime Network have informed court officials of their intent to broadcast a livestream, and local outlets might follow suit. The court is also expected to make the proceedings available for journalists covering the trial remotely on a Zoom feed.

One exception is jury selection, which will take place at the River Center in Davenport to allow extra space for social distancing. Members of the public and media will be allowed to attend but jury selection cannot be broadcast or covered live under Iowa courtroom media rules. Laptops, cell phones and cameras will not be allowed.

Jury selection is expected to last two days, while the trial could go for 10 more.

Media will also not be allowed inside two remote viewing rooms set up inside the courthouse for family members, and will instead be expected to work from a staging area in the parking lot. Reporters are barred from conducting any interviews inside the courthouse under Yates' order and cannot contact him or his staff directly.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Lambert, using the alias Eric Pope, lured at least six individuals and corporations into paying him to resolve credit issues, draft a will, resolve a dispute with a former employee and help with corporate and intellectual property law, prosecutors said.

This man is the worst of the worst in my opinion, a victim whose named was redacted wrote in a pre-sentence letter to the judge.

The victim, who drained a 401K account to pay Lambert, was berated by Lambert during a phone call and was told I was irrational for ever questioning such an esteemed attorney from New York, according to the letter.

In truth he had never done one bit of work for me as I clearly became aware, the victim wrote.

Before he was sentenced, Lambert told the judge he had sincere regret and wanted to apologize to victims.

My life will be forever marked by this poor choice, Lambert said. He added that he was spending countless hours in prayer to rid myself of the demons.

Gary Peters, Lambert's lawyer, said after the sentencing that he was disappointed that his client, currently enrolled in college, was going to prison.
Mays cried and apologized in addressing the court briefly before learning her sentence.

I know that theres no words that I can say that would alter the families pain and comfort, she said. I dont ask for forgiveness because I dont think I could forgive anyone for doing what I did.

Hospital officials reported the deaths to the VA inspector general and fired Mays after evidence pointed to her.

An interview with Mays after her guilty plea was included in a lengthy report released after Tuesday's sentencing by the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General detailing deficiencies at the hospital.

In it, she said she administered insulin to patients she believed were suffering so they that could pass gently. She said she also had great stress and chaos in her personal and professional life, and that her actions gave her a sense of control.

But Assistant U.S. Attorney Jarod Douglas called her actions predatory and planned, not reactionary.

These men were not in need of mercy by the defendant, Douglas said. In the end it wasnt the defendants call to make.
LANSING, Mich. (AP)  Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer threatened Tuesday to go after Enbridge's profits from a Great Lakes oil pipeline if the company defies her order to shut it down.

The Democratic governor issued the warning in a letter to the Canadian energy transport company on the eve of a state-imposed deadline to halt operation of Line 5, which moves oil through northern Wisconsin and Michigan to refineries in Ontario. Enbridge repeated its intention to defy Whitmer's demand.

A nearly 4-mile-long (6.4-kilometer-long) section of Line 5 divides into two pipes that cross the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac, which connects Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.

Whitmer, backed by environmentalists and native tribes, says the segment is vulnerable to a catastrophic spill in the cold, swirling channel. She revoked an easement last November that Michigan had granted in 1953 for the pipes to occupy the lake bottom and ordered them closed by May 12.

Enbridge insists the segment is in good condition and says its loss would cause economic damage in both countries, a position shared by the Canadian government, which filed a legal brief Tuesday in support of the company.
Its great to hear that they want people to be able to retrain, but where are the jobs that people need, the good-quality jobs, not just the jobs, but the good-quality jobs that allow people to earn decent money to look after their families? Lisa Nandy, Labours spokeswoman on foreign affairs, told the BBC.

The legislative program also includes plans for a summit meeting between leaders of the U.K. government and the devolved administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to discuss issues caused by the pandemic. The government also said it would invest in transport links between the U.K.s four nations and reiterated a commitment that all parts of the country would benefit from a 4.8 billion pound fund to improve town centers and local transport projects.

In addition, the government plans to require voters to show a photo ID before they cast their ballots and ban so-called gay-conversion therapy. Though the government pledged to restrict the prosecution of soldiers who served during the conflict in Northern Ireland, it didn't offer legislation to implement the promise.

One of the most controversial elements of the governments program is a crime bill that stalled in the last parliament amid concern that it gave police too much power to restrict public protests.
The verdict comes as former soldiers press the U.K. government to ensure they arent prosecuted for conduct decades ago when they were sent to enforce the peace in Northern Ireland. More than 3,000 people died during decades of violence between mostly Catholic supporters of unification with the Republic of Ireland and mostly Protestant backers of continued ties with the United Kingdom.

John Teggart, whose father, Danny, was one of the victims, read out the names of the 10 dead at a press conference in Corpus Christi Youth Club in Belfast, pausing to say the word innocent after every name.

The families are outraged at the prospect that the soldiers could be granted amnesty for their actions, he said.

I want to speak directly to the people of Britain at this moment," he said. Can you imagine what would happen if the British soldiers murdered 10 unarmed civilians on the streets of London, Liverpool or Birmingham? What would you expect, an investigation? Would you expect justice? Or would you be happy for them to get an amnesty?

A UK government spokesperson said the findings had been long awaited by the bereaved families of the deceased, military personnel and their relatives."

We recognize how difficult the process has been for all of those affected by the events of August 1971 and the inquest," the spokesperson said. "We will now take the time to review the report and carefully consider the conclusions drawn.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Mr. Bernstein was 17 and attending City College when he dropped out to enlist in the Army in 1943. He had been rejected when he tried to enlist after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 because he was still recovering from an operation for an ear abscess, family members said.
The Stone Avenue Underpass Pump House is available for a serious buyer who can pay all costs associated with removing it from the corner of Stone Avenue and Sixth Street.
Gov. Stitt issued Executive Order 2021-12 as a signing statement to expressly direct that the Tulsa Race Massacre, and all historical events included in the Oklahoma Academic Standards, must still be taught in our schools. The governor believes that any other interpretation of this legislation is misguided and fundamentally inaccurate, and that position was expressed to the Centennial Commission before the bill was signed into law, the statement said.

Nichols, for one, wasnt buying it, and said Tuesday he resigned largely because he did not want his continuing criticism of Stitt to reflect on the commission.

Im proud of the work the commission has done, Nichols said. I wasnt upset that many of the commissioners didnt share my views.

Nichols discounted the idea that recent conflicts over various issues, including HB 1775, will derail the centennial.

I dont think so, Nichols said. I trust my fellow commissioners. Theres been drama here and there, but I think the personal beefs, the political beefs, will fade.

I have more faith in the citizens of the city than I do the leadership. I think this will be a special time for the city and state, but it wont be because of the leadership, Nichols said.
In their video messages to Fletcher on Monday, many of the participants voiced their support for race massacre reparations.

Fletcher is one of the plaintiffs in a state reparations lawsuit filed last year, along with two other massacre survivors, Lessie Randle, 106, of Tulsa and Hughes Van Ellis, 100, of Aurora, Colorado.

The lawsuit, filed against the city of Tulsa, Tulsa Regional Chamber, Tulsa County Commission, Tulsa County sheriff and others, argues that the massacre created a public nuisance, the effects of which still haunt north Tulsas Black community.

Fletcher, who was born Viola Ford in 1914 in Comanche County, grew up in a family of sharecroppers.

Her family moved around before settling in the Tulsa area.

She wouldve been 7 at the time of the 1921 massacre.

I was asleep, as far as Ive been told, Fletcher said in a video interview. We were all aroused up, getting up and getting dressed so we could leave.
Lawmakers and news reports often refer to HB 1775 as banning critical race theory, but in fact the phrase is not used in the legislation. Broadly speaking, critical race theory is an academic approach to everything from law to literature that studies a fields intersection with race.

The most controversial sections of HB 1775 rule out mandatory gender or sexual diversity training or counseling in colleges and universities, and it says common schools may not teach that any individual should feel discomfort, guilt, anguish or any other form of psychological distress on account of his or her race or sex.

The bill includes a provision that says it does not prohibit the teaching of concepts that align to the Oklahoma Academic Standards.

Stitt attached a signing statement to HB 1775 to the effect that the race massacre and other difficult issues should be taught.

The bills House author, Rep. Kevin West, R-Moore, said the intent was to prevent children from being taught that they are racist  or inherently inferior or superior  because of the color of the skin.

The catch is that bills opponents dont believe it.
Update: The 8-year-old boy taken from a Muskogee bus stop has been found safe.

Comanche County deputies reportedly found Jaiden Johnson in Lawton while making contact with his noncustodial mother, Temicah Simpson. She was taken into custody, according to a police news release.

Oklahomans are advised to be on the lookout for an 8-year-old Muskogee boy police say was taken from a bus stop.

Police issued an Amber Alert early Tuesday for Jaiden Johnson after his noncustodial mother, Temicah Simpson, reportedly picked him up Monday evening from a bus stop on South 30th Street.

Jaiden's custodial father told police Simpson came to the bus stop after school and told Jaiden and his 11-year-old sister to get into her car. His sister refused, but Jaiden obliged, according to a police news release.

Simpson, 39, "appears to be having some kind of mental breakdown," and investigators worry she will not take Jaiden to weekly treatments that are medically necessary for his kidney disorder, the alert states. They believe Jaiden to be in imminent danger.
OKLAHOMA CITY  Gov. Kevin Stitt on Monday signed a bill that makes it a misdemeanor to honk at a bicycle or at an animal-drawn vehicle.

House Bill 1770 says drivers cant use a horn with passing a person on a bike or in an animal-drawn vehicle if no imminent danger of a collision exists.

The measure also allows a bike rider to go through a stop sign if the rider determines there is no immediate hazard.

Stitt also signed House Bill 2564 that establishes a process for recounts on ballot issues, including state questions.

The measure allows the governor or attorney general to request a recount of a state question.

Stitt also signed House Bill 2687, dubbed the No Patient Left Alone Act, that requires that hospital patients be allowed a companion, regardless of public health emergencies.

The measure allows hospitals to limit or restrict visitation under certain circumstances, such as interference with care.

The measure allows hospitals to require visitors to wear personal protective equipment, such as masks and gowns, provided by the facility.

The measure prohibits hospitals from requiring patients to waive the rights in the law.
Our office will continue to engage with the tribes, state stakeholders, Congress and the administration to ensure that goal is met.

State, federal and tribal justice systems in Tulsa and a large portion of eastern Oklahoma have been upended by the Supreme Courts McGirt decision, released last July.

The ruling upheld a lower court ruling that determined that the state of Oklahoma does not have jurisdiction to prosecute major crimes that involve an American Indian and within the historical reservation boundaries of the Muscogee Nation. The ruling was later expanded by a state appellate court to include the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw and Seminole nations.

The ruling has resulted in the state of Oklahomas dismissal of hundreds of criminal cases while federal and tribal officials attempt to refile the dismissed charges and pick up new ones as they occur.

The tribal officials say their support for any compacting legislation will be in keeping with their core principle of self-determination and be designed to empower tribal-state problem solving with respect to their shared mission of the publics safety and effective law enforcement.
Indivisible Worcester Maryland was among the bills supporters. The group is part of a national network formed in response to the election of Donald J. Trump. In a letter to lawmakers, they wrote that the presidents official violence towards immigrants of color led to denial of rights under U. S. law, indefinite incarceration, unjust deportation, separation of children, the spread of disease, and the deaths of untold thousands of migrants in the Southwestern deserts.
Dr. Donna Tyungu, a pediatric infectious disease specialist with OU Health, said in a Healthier Oklahoma Coalition news conference on April 27 that knowing which variants are circulating is important in understanding what might be expected and what actions to take.

For example, Tyungu said the P.1 variant has killed more than 1,300 children in Brazil  half of them younger than 5 years old.

She said the double mutant variant out of India appears to wield more of an effect in people ages 30 to 50.

The original strain disproportionately affects people ages 75 and older, she said.

"I think it's very important for us to know what variant is circulating, especially as we move into next winter," Tyungu said. "Really understanding what things are going to look like with RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) and flu and COVID  I think it's important for us to know which variants we're dealing with."

State Epidemiologist Jolianne Stone said in a virtual news conference on May 4 that the Oklahoma State Department of Health is closely monitoring variant trends in other states and countries  not just Oklahoma  as it ramps up its sequencing ability.
Hamas issued a statement saying "as long as the Israeli occupation continues to perpetrate crimes and violations against the Palestinian people, the Palestinian resistance groups, including Hamas, will respond and defend Jerusalem, Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the Gaza Strip." The statement goes on to say, "we have the right to respond to the Israeli offensive and protect the interests of our people as long as the Israeli occupation continues the escalation."

There were no signs of de-escalation over Gaza on Tuesday. Israel called up 5,000 reserve troops to active duty, and an Israeli military spokesman said it would "enhance" its operation in Gaza after militants in Gaza extended the range of their rocket fire. The Israeli military had conducted more than 150 strikes in Gaza as of Tuesday afternoon, the spokesman said.

A number of deaths were reported in strikes in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza. Among them were Amira Abdel-Fattah, 57, who was killed in her apartment along with her son who has special needs, Ibrahim al-Masri, 11, and his brother Marwan, 7, the Palestinian health ministry said. The Israeli army says it is investigating.

A Palestinian man in Gaza told CNN over the phone that the sounds of Israeli strikes throughout the night, as well as the sound of outgoing rocket fire, had been "horrifying."
As a history teacher, it is important to me that students receive an accurate depiction of the past.

In order for students to grasp the full lessons of history, students must see both the moments that made America great, as well as those moments we fell woefully short of the principles of liberty espoused in our founding documents.

So how does the passage of HB 1775 change my role as a history teacher? It doesnt.

HB 1775 explicitly states that teachers shall not be prohibited from teaching the Oklahoma Academic Standards, which were written by Oklahoma educators and include events like the emergence of Black Wall Street, the Tulsa Race Massacre, the Oklahoma City lunch counter sit-ins led by Clara Luper, and the Trail of Tears. I know this because I was one of the educators that wrote the standards prior to being named Oklahomas secretary of education.

This bill would not censor history or make it difficult for teachers to teach about the painful moments of our past.

What this bill will do is ensure that Oklahoma students in grades K-12 will not be instructed by their teachers that one race is inherently superior to another race.

Students may not be taught they are oppressors because of their race or sex.
Recently, the U.S. House passed a bill, which President Joe Biden supports, to convert most of Washington, D.C., into our 51st state.

On strictly a party line vote, Democrats seek more power in both chambers of Congress and in the Electoral College.

In past, and assuredly in future, elections, Washington, D.C. has voted Democrat. The original D.C. area was comprised of electorate from both Virginia and Maryland.

But as a result of tensions over congressional negligence, Alexandria County in the district was returned to Virginia in 1847.

Although the government of Maryland may not support ceding their portion back to their own state, such a return for local governance would provide full voting representation with one member of the House and two Maryland senators.

If Democrats do not succeed in making Washington, D.C., a separate state during the current legislative session, they will in coming years, when they hold a larger congressional majority.

Alternatively, in a May 2 interview with CNN's Jake Tapper, Maine Sen. Susan Collins said she favors returning most of the remaining portion of the district to the state of Maryland.
The Philippines has detected its first two cases of a coronavirus variant first identified in India, its health ministry said on Tuesday.

The World Health Organziation has classified the coronavirus variant, known as B.1.617, as a variant of global concern with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily.

The variant had been confirmed in two Filipino seafarers who returned in April from the United Arab Emirates and Oman, Alethea De Guzman, director of the ministry's epidemiology bureau, told a news conference

"We need to continually monitor what other variants we may be able to detect locally, as well as monitor the spread of the variants we have already detected," De Guzman said, adding that the seafarers were isolated on their return and had both recovered.

In a bid to prevent the entry of variants, the Philippines has temporarily barred travellers coming from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh from entering the country.

Indonesia and Malaysia this month reported the first cases of the B.1.617 coronavirus variant.

The Philippines has also previously recorded cases of a variant first detected in Britain and another first discovered in South Africa, as well as a homegrown P.3 variant.

With 1.1 million infections and 18,562 deaths, the Philippines has the second-highest number of COVID-19 cases and casualties in Southeast Asia, next to Indonesia.
Here are todays leading news stories:

COVID-19 Updates

-- Vietnams Ministry of Health recorded 28 local COVID-19 infections in Hanoi, Bac Ninh, Vinh Phuc, Bac Giang, Lang Son, and Hai Duong on Tuesday morning, raising the countrys tally to 3,489, with 2,618 recoveries and 35 deaths.

-- Vietnam has administered 892,454 out of 917,600 available COVID-19 vaccine shots as of Tuesday morning, according to the health ministry.

-- Ho Chi Minh City chairman Nguyen Thanh Phong and a delegation of officials convened a working session with Cho Ray Hospital and 115 Peoples Hospital on Monday to review COVID-19 prevention and control measures at the two infirmaries.

Society

-- Police in Bac Tu Liem District, Hanoi confirmed on Monday they had detected one Chinese man and were searching for four others who were staying in the capital without passports, visas, and other relevant documents.

-- Border guard officers in the northern province of Cao Bang on Monday received 40 Vietnamese citizens who were previously caught entering China illegally to find jobs.

-- The King Restaurant in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City has been fined VND65 million (US$2,800) for operating karaoke services despite an ongoing ban due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The districts administration is also proposing that relevant agencies revoke its business license.

-- A 17-year-old boy from the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong has been arrested for beating an 88-year-old woman to death following a conflict on Wednesday last week.

Business

-- Vietnams foreign direct investment (FDI) reached $12.25 billion in the first four months of this year, according to the General Statistics Office.

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A French court on Monday threw out a lawsuit by a French-Vietnamese woman against more than a dozen multinationals that produced and sold a toxic herbicide dubbed "Agent Orange, used by U.S. troops during the war in Vietnam.

Filed in 2014, the case has pitched Tran To Nga, a 79-year-old who claims she was a victim of Agent Orange, against 14 chemical firms, including U.S. companies Dow Chemical and Monsanto, now owned by Germany's Bayer.

Tran To Nga told Reuters the case had been thrown out but that she would appeal.

Tran, who worked as a journalist and activist in Vietnam in her 20s, has said she was suffering from effects including type 2 diabetes and a rare insulin allergy.

U.S. warplanes dropped about 18 million gallons (68 million litres) of Agent Orange  so-called because it was stored in drums with orange bands  between the early 1960s and early 1970s to defoliate jungles and destroy crops.

Multinationals say not responsible

The multinationals had argued they could not be held responsible for use the U.S. military made of their product.

The court ruled it did not have jurisdiction to judge a case involving the U.S. government's wartime actions, Agence France Presse reported. Reuters could not immediately see the ruling.

One of Tran's lawyers, William Bourdon, said in a statement on Twitter that the court was applying an obsolete definition of the immunity of jurisdiction principle which contradicted modern principles of international and national law.

He said it was "astounding" that the court had backed the companies' contention that they were acting on orders when responding to U.S. government tenders for contracts.

In a statement, Bayer said it welcomed the court's decision while saying it had "great sympathy for Ms. Tran To Nga and all those who suffered during the [war in Vietnam].

But it said it had been "well-established by courts for many years that wartime contractors like the nine former manufacturers, operating at the behest of the U.S. government, are not responsible for the alleged damage claims associated with the government's use of such product during wartime.

So far, only military veterans from the United States and other countries involved in the war have won compensation over Agent Orange. In 2008, a U.S. federal appeals court upheld the dismissal of a civil lawsuit against major U.S. chemical companies brought by Vietnamese plaintiffs.

The United States has maintained there is no scientifically proven link between the wartime spraying and the claims of dioxin poisoning of many Vietnamese.
Vice-chairman of the Hanoi Peoples Committee Chu Xuan Dung on Tuesday afternoon ordered the shutdown of all beer restaurants and drinking venues to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The closure began immediately and will last until further notice.

Vice-chairman Dung also requested authorities in local districts and wards to suspend all makeshift markets as these locations pose a high risk of virus spread.

Earlier the same day, Hanoi chairman Chu Ngoc Anh asserted that unnecessary meetings and crowded events would have to be canceled.

The gathering of more than 10 people outside of public offices, schools, hospitals, and election sites is forbidden, as Vietnam is set to begin legislative elections at all levels on May 23.

Facilities selling food and beverages must make sure customers are two meters away from one another.

Diners located near hospitals are only allowed to sell takeaway food.

All grocery stores, diners, and rented houses near hospitals where COVID-19 outbreaks have been recorded, namely the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Dong Anh District and K Hospital, must cease operations.

Vietnam has recorded 3,507 COVID-19 cases as of Tuesday afternoon, with 2,618 recoveries and 35 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

The country has documented 502 local infections since April 27.

In Hanoi, 53 cases have been detected in the community and 93 others recorded at the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases and K Hospital during this period.

Authorities in the capital have decided to shutter all karaoke parlors, bars, discos and game centers from April 30 and movie theaters, massage parlors, spa services, and gym centers from May 5.

All students were required to stay home and switch to remote learning on May 4.

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Hanoi authorities have issued an urgent directive to strengthen the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, including capping public gatherings at 10 people.

Chu Ngoc Anh, vice-chairman of the municipal Peoples Committee, signed the directive on Tuesday morning amidst the complicated and unpredictable developments of the pandemic over the last days.

Accordingly, gatherings of more than 10 people in public places outside of offices, schools, hospitals, and election points are banned, at a time when Vietnam is set to begin legislative elections at all levels on May 23.

The new limit is equal to one-third of the previous cap imposed by local authorities last month.

The citys administration ordered authorities of all levels to boost their efforts to prevent the COVID-19 spread in the spirit of fighting the epidemic is like fighting enemies."

Heads of districts, towns, wards, and communes must be the commanders on the anti-epidemic front, and must stay alert, flexible, creative, proactive, and quick in their fight against the pathogen, the directive required.

Any public officials responsible for COVID-19 prevention and control must not leave the city, except for special cases subject to permission of their superiors.

The local government also asked all agencies not to organize unnecessary meetings or events.

For essential events, only a half of the total seats in a hall or meeting room is used for participants, who are required to wear face marks, have body temperature checked, and keep two meters apart from each other.

Any indoor eateries must ensure a minimum seating distance of two meters, while all food and drink outlets around hospitals are allowed to offer takeout only.

Particularly, all eateries, grocery stores, and boarding houses in the areas around the hospitals with COVID-19 outbreaks, including the Dong Anh District branch of the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases and K Hospitals Tan Trieu branch, must be temporarily shut down.

In the directive, municipal authorities also require tightening the pandemic prevention and control procedures at hospitals.

Only one caregiver is allowed for every serious patient. No visits to patients are permitted at all hospitals, the directive states.

Social distancing and lockdown must be applied when necessary under the instructions of health agencies, while COVID-19 testing capacity should be improved, the local government said in its directive.

It also required people to strictly comply with the jealth ministrys 5K recommendations, namely 'Khau trang' (face mask donning)  'Khu khuan' (disinfection)  'Khoang cach' (distancing)  'Khong tu tap' (no gathering)  'Khai bao y te' (health declaration).

Vietnam has recorded 3,537 COVID-19 cases as of Tuesday evening, with 2,618 recoveries and 35 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

The country has documented 529 local infections since April 27, including 148 cases in Hanoi.

Authorities in the capital have decided to shutter all karaoke parlors, bars, discos and game centers from April 30 and movie theaters, massage parlors, spa services, and gym centers from May 5.

All students were required to stay home and switch to remote learning on May 4.

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Police in Hanoi confirmed that they have detected one Chinese man and are searching for four others who had stayed in the capital without passports, visas, and other relevant documents.

Officers in Bac Tu Liem District inspected a flat inside the Goldmark City apartment complex on Monday and discovered a 38-year-old Chinese man named Meng Zhong Xing.

Meng was staying illegally at the apartment as he failed to present a passport, visa, or document proving his legitimate entry into Vietnam.

The Chinese man said his friend in China had helped him contact a 34-year-old Vietnamese man named Phuc.

Phuc received VND10 million (US$432) from Meng and helped the latter lease an apartment in Gia Lam District, Hanoi.

On April 17, Meng and four other unidentified Chinese nationals entered Vietnam illegally via a trail and headed to the apartment.

Meng later asked Phuc to rent another apartment for him.

On April 19, the Chinese man moved to a flat at Goldmark City.

Phuc also helped Meng buy food and other essential items.

Health workers in Bac Tu Liem District have brought Meng to a quarantine center and collected his samples for COVID-19 testing.

Following Mengs statement, police searched the apartment in Gia Lam District but the other four Chinese had already run away.

Officers are working with relevant agencies to hunt for the four Chinese border jumpers.

Phuc has also been taken into custody to facilitate police investigation.

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A restaurant in downtown Ho Chi Minh City has been fined VND65 million (US$2,800) for running karaoke services despite an ongoing ban due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Peoples Committee in District 1 confirmed on Monday it had imposed the fine upon The King Restaurant on Le Lai Street in Ben Thanh Ward for operating karaoke services without a permit and failing to comply with authorities decision to suspend certain businesses due to the coronavirus.

The administration in Ben Thanh Ward was tasked with reviewing all permits and documents regarding the operations of the restaurant.

The District 1 administration added it had requested the municipal Department of Planning and Investment to consider revoking the business permit of the venue.

A team of COVID-19 prevention and control officers led by vice-chairman of the municipal Peoples Committee Duong Anh Duc previously inspected The King Restaurant on April 4.

They found that the restaurant was operating karaoke services inside six VIP rooms while local authorities had already banned all karaoke parlors since April 30 due to the complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A total of 98 people were singing in the rooms, including four Chinese and four Japanese nationals.

Among the Chinese, a 45-year-old man previously completed his quarantine period in the northern province of Hung Yen on April 21 and was required to undergo home quarantine for another 14 days.

The man was on his 13th day into the home quarantine period when he was detected at the restaurant.

All 98 customers later tested negative for COVID-19.

The Ben Thanh Ward administration has asked its counterpart in Thuan My Commune in the Mekong Delta province of Long An, where the Chinese man is working, to fine him for violating COVID-19 prevention and control regulations.

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A nurse has been put on a ventilator since she suffered a severe allergic reaction post-coronavirus vaccination in Vietnam on Monday, according to the Ministry of Health.

Da Nang recorded anaphylaxis in a medical worker who was injected with an AstraZeneca shot on Monday, the health ministry said in a report the same day, quoting Ngo Thi Kim Yen, director of the municipal Department of Health.

Anaphylaxis is a severe, life-threatening allergic reaction that occurs rarely after vaccination, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on its website.

The medical worker is a 31-year-old nurse in the intensive care unit of Da Nang Hospital.

She had no history of allergies and was carefully screened before her injection.

She had temporary partial hearing loss and difficulty breathing post-vaccination so she was immediately treated in the unit as per protocols for vaccine-related complications.

The nurse is under sedation and on a ventilator, with stable blood circulation induced by medications.

This is one of the two cases suffering severe allergic reactions after coronavirus vaccination in Vietnam.

On May 7, a medical worker in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang died of anaphylaxis after she was inoculated with AstraZeneca vaccine.

Vietnam has administered 892,454 out of 917,600 available COVID-19 vaccine shots as of Tuesday morning, according to the health ministry.

Those inoculated were medical staff and other frontline workers.

Thirty percent showed allergic reactions, most of which were injection site pain, fever, headache, vomiting, dizziness, and hypotension.

Vietnam has documented 3,489 COVID-19 cases as of Tuesday morning, with 2,618 recoveries and 35 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

The country has recorded 486 local COVID-19 infections since April 27, after having spent about a month recording no community transmission.

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Vietnam has well contained the coronavirus in the latest wave of infections that started hitting the country late last month, according to a deputy health minister.

At the moment, were basically putting the COVID-19 pandemic under control, Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen was quoted as saying at a government meeting on Tuesday.

Tuyen gave the statement at a time when Vietnam has recorded 486 local coronavirus infections in this fourth wave that broke out on April 27, having spent about a month recording no community transmission.

At least nine hospitals have been isolated over their links to many cases in this round.

Most sources of infection have been identified, Tuyen was cited as asserting on the health ministrys verified Facebook account.

The local cases having been reported over the past few days are direct contacts who had already been traced and quarantined, he added.

The risk of further community transmission is thus low, Deputy Minister Tuyen said.

Vietnam reported 80 domestic cases on Saturday, 92 on Sunday, 125 on Monday, and 28 on Tuesday morning, according to the health ministry's statistics.

Health authorities will continue being proactive in battling the virus, sticking to the countrys prevention, detection, quarantine, suppression, and treatment strategy, as required by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Tuyen said.

Everyone should wash their hands frequently, wear face masks in public, keep a social distance, avoid crowded places, and declare their health status, the Ministry of Health advised, adding COVID-19 screening will be conducted in high-risk areas.

Regional isolation will be imposed on sites where infected patients have visited but authorities will try to minimize disruptions to daily life and economic activities, the ministry noted.

Vietnam has documented 3,489 COVID-19 cases as of Tuesday morning, with 2,618 recoveries and 35 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

The Southeast Asian country confirmed 106 community cases in the first wave from January 23 to April 16, 2020, 554 in the second from July 25 to December 1, 2020, and 910 in the third from January 28 to March 25, 2021.

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Border guard officers in Vietnam's Cao Bang Province on Monday received 40 Vietnamese citizens who were previously caught entering China illegally to find jobs.

The reception took place at the Thi Hoa border guard station at Ha Lang Border Gate, which is Kejia Border Gate on the Chinese side, on Monday afternoon.

The 40 Vietnamese citizens, including 18 men and 22 women, hailing from multiple localities in Vietnam.

Following the reception, Thi Hoa border guards performed medical examinations on the Vietnamese citizens as per COVID-19 prevention regulations, completed legal procedures, and made records for administrative sanctions of their violations.

The border guard officers also coordinated with the Committee of COVID-19 Prevention and Control in Ha Lang District to bring the Vietnamese nationals to centralized quarantine areas according to regulations.

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A province in Vietnam has placed more than 500 students and teachers in home isolation, while sending tens of thousands of others to centralized quarantine, following the detection of over a dozen confirmed COVID-19 cases.

As many as 511 students and teachers in Bac Ninh Province have been transferred to centralized quarantine facilities after being identified as the direct contacts of 14 coronavirus patients, the provincial Department of Education and Training reported on Monday.

Meanwhile, over 48,000 other students and teachers have been put under home quarantine as the indirect contacts of these patients.

Ten of the 14 patients, who were earlier diagnosed with COVID-19, are being treated in Bac Ninh while the remainder have been hospitalized in Hanoi.

Reportedly, there may be a connection between these patients and the recent COVID-19 outbreak in the provinces Thuan Thanh District.

The department has allowed all kindergarten and school students to stay home from May 10 for COVID-19 prevention.

Any schools requisitioned as centralized quarantine facilities must comply with relevant regulations and instructions, the department required.

Since April 27, Vietnam has recorded 502 domestic COVID-19 cases in 26 provinces and cities, the Ministry of Health reported.

Of the infections, 99 were detected in Bac Ninh, according to the health ministry's data.

These new cases have taken the countrys tally to 3,507 COVID-19 patients, including 2,618 recoveries and 35 deaths, since the pandemic struck in early 2020, the ministry reported.

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Czech espionage drama series The Sleepers screens in a late night slot this week on SBS.

This is a 6 part series in Czech with English subtitles. It screened via SBS on Demand in March.

Its 1989, the Soviet Empire is crumbling and after 12 years of exile in London, violinist Marie and her husband Viktor return to Prague and find themselves caught in a deadly battle between rival espionage agencies.

Episode One:

Marie and Viktor return to Prague after 12 years in exile. Suddenly Viktor disappears in dramatic circumstances and Marie must find him in a Czechoslovakia that is far from being free  and with the spy agencies of several countries watching her.

Thursday, 13 May at 10.50pm on SBS.

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Screen Australia and Australians in Film have today announced two joint initiatives for established Australian creatives: the Talent Gateway program and the Global Producers Exchange.

Talent Gateway will provide Australian screenwriters and directors who have had some success either internationally or in Australia, with the skills, knowledge, access, and relationships necessary to succeed further in the global market. The program aims to attract US support, investment and partnerships for Australian content and careers.

The Global Producers Exchange, provides Australias leading scripted producers the skills, knowledge, access and relationships necessary to succeed in the global market and to attract foreign investment and marketplace partnerships for Australian scripted content. The exchange aims to give Australian IP and cultural stories the opportunity to be developed with internationally based collaborators who possess a global outlook and a proven track record of success with international audiences and to help position projects for success in the global market.

Screen Australia CEO Graeme Mason said, Australia is home to world-class creators and creative teams, and these initiatives will assist them to find a pathway to tell distinctive local stories on a world stage. The Talent Gateway program and Global Producers Exchange will enable our creatives to build relationships and networks to achieve professional success.

The US is a key territory for screen sector finance, distribution and careers, and Hollywood is the heartbeat of the global screen market. These programs will provide an opportunity for Australian creatives to connect with influential decision makers via roundtables, individualised mentorships and masterclasses. This will be an invaluable opportunity to elevate our Australian talent and make our projects globally competitive. The goal is to create a trusted, well curated pipeline for the US industry to discover and engage with Australias top creators.

These initiatives have been made possible by the additional Federal Government support, and are part of a suite of opportunities and initiatives being developed to foster the advancement of scripted Australian projects that are aimed to resonate more competitively internationally, as well as locally. Screen Australia is thrilled to be working in partnership with Australians in Film to provide exciting collaborative opportunities for the participants in these programs. Australians in Film are dedicated to promoting Australian screen talent and culture in the US and have a proven track record of attracting leading Hollywood decision makers, creatives and executives to their labs and industry events.

Australians in Film Executive Director Peter Ritchie said, The timing is right to establish this strategic pipeline that connects the Australian and US industries, in both directions. AiF has been working very hard over several years to create unique and meaningful global-facing professional opportunities for Australian screen creatives. The response to Untapped has been overwhelming and we cannot wait to launch Talent Gateway and the Global Producers Exchange.

We are thrilled to be working with Screen Australia and all the state and territory funding agencies, guilds and organisations to create these three complimentary international industry programs. Our DNA remains distinctly Australian, but our focus is squarely on the development of stories are that are most definitely global.

Supporting Partners for these industry development programs are Screen NSW, Film Victoria, South Australian Film Corporation and Scripted Ink. Industry Partners are Australian Directors Guild, Australian Writers Guild, Screen Producers Australia, Screen Canberra, Screen Queensland, Screen Tasmania, Screen Territory, Screenwest and Screenworks.

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Childrens Television, regional news, news media and the bargaining code with digital players were winners from last nights Federal Budget 2021.

The Morrison Government pledged commitments for the media sector and acknowledged challenges the pandemic has created for the arts sector.

Amongst the measures announced last night were:

$15 million to the AAP Newswire in support of public interest journalism in regional Australia;

$4.2 million to implement the News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code;

$85.4 million for eight national collecting institutions; and

$11.9 million over four years to boost quality childrens television content. This represents the ACTFs operational funding being locked in for 4 years. ACTF currently receives $2.9 million annually from the Commonwealth Government, on a year by year basis.

Continued support for public interest journalism in regional Australia

The Government will provide additional funding of $15 million over two years to the Australian Associated Press Newswire (AAP), starting in the 2020-21 financial year. The funding will support AAPs continued provision of newswire services, consisting of regional, national and international news, to regional media outlets across Australia. This allows regional media businesses to concentrate on covering local news stories that are important to their communities. The funding is consistent with the objectives of the Public Interest News Gathering (PING) Program to support regional journalism and builds on the Governments existing support to the newswire service. The measure will bring the total support to AAP to $20 million. AAPs existing PING agreement will be updated to reflect the increase in funding and new grant activities. The first payment of $7.5 million will be paid before 30 June 2021.

News Media Bargaining Code

The Australian Government has introduced the world-leading News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code to address the bargaining power imbalance between Australian news media businesses and digital platforms, and to support a diverse and sustainable news media sector in Australia. The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has several important functions under the Code, including registering news businesses, and maintaining a register of arbitrators. Additional funding of $4.2 million over three years from 2020-21 will be provided to ACMA in this Budget to enable the regulator to discharge its responsibilities.

Creative and Cultural Sector

As part of our plan to secure Australias recovery, the Government has invested almost $300 million to support the successful reopening of Australias creative and cultural sector. These measures include:

$50.8 million to extend the Temporary Interruption Fund used by the screen industry until 31 December 2021. The fund is helping to support local film and television producers secure finance and start filming again.

$75 million to reinstate the Producer Offset Rate for film set to 40 per cent as an ongoing measure for Australian film of creative and cultural significance.

$20 million to various arts organisations including $10 million for the music charity Support Act, and $5 million to support national performing arts touring.

More support for our National Cultural Institutions

The Government will provide additional funding of $85.4 million to our National Collecting Institutions to improve their financial sustainability and enable them to undertake a variety of capital works so that we can continue to preserve and enjoy Australias cultural heritage. Additional funding of $32.4 million over two years will be provided to eight National Collecting Institutions to improve their financial sustainability and enable them to deliver public services and programs. The Australian National Maritime Museum, Bundanon Trust, Museum of Australian Democracy, National Film and Sound Archive, National Gallery of Australia, National Library of Australia, National Museum of Australia and National Portrait Gallery of Australia will be the beneficiaries of this funding.

Childrens Television

Further funding of $11.9 million over four years from 2021-22 and $3.0 million ongoing, will be provided to the Australian Childrens Television Foundation (ACTF) to support the development and distribution of quality Australian childrens content. This is in addition to the funding of $20.2 million over two years provided in the 2020-21 Budget. ACTF has played a pivotal role in the success of iconic Australian programs, such as Round the Twist and Dance Academy, and more recent productions including Bluey, Hardball and Little J and Big Cuz. This funding will enable ACTF to support producers of childrens content to transition as the Government modernises the regulatory and funding framework that underpins Australian content. It will also assist ACTF to continue their role in helping producers capitalise on interest from streaming services to commission and acquire quality Australian childrens content.

Updated.

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Producer Sue Maslin will step down as President of the Natalie Miller Fellowship this week after more than 10 years serving on the Management Committee.

Maslin, whose credits include The Dressmaker, Japanese Story and Brazen Hussies has a 35-year career in the Australian screen industry has been widely recognised. She was appointed as an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to the Australian film industry as a producer in 2019 and received the GCFF Chauvel Award in 2020.

The Natalie Miller Fellowship is the only grant of its kind in the country with co-sponsors Village Roadshow and KOJO, each providing $50,000 over five years in support of women in the screen sector.

I have now overseen the awarding of nine Fellowships since 2011 and am aware of the impact that it has had not only on the career journeys of the recipients, but all women who applied and went through a process of considering their career trajectory in a new way, she said. The requirement to seek letters of support from industry mentors meant that women were having serious conversations about their leadership ambitions with employers and industry leaders, and this alone has led to career advancement for many  something I am very proud of.

The Fellowship itself applies to women from any sector of the screen industry and I am pleased that it has been awarded to women from distribution, production, marketing, post-facilities and exhibition. A particular focus for me has been ensuring that women from the Indigenous community apply to the Fellowship and we awarded our first Fellowship to an Indigenous woman, Pauline Clague, in 2019.

Maslin said she decided to step down as President knowing that the organisation will be offering its 10th annual Fellowship this year with, an energetic committee.

I have been a direct beneficiary of the support of many in the industry who have enabled my own career to develop over the past 10 years and I am hugely grateful for that support. It is largely the result of my work with the NMF that I no longer consider career development as a haphazard journey of success and failure, but as something that can be developed strategically and mindfully with enough confidence, skills and support. The NMF has afforded this same discovery to many other women and I look forward to seeing that continue for many years to come.

Her successor is yet to be announced.

Maslin first joined the then informal group of women in 2010 and together they [Chrissy Thomson, Annette Blonski, Jan Epstein, Jennifer Sabine, Zelda Rosenbaum and Heather Scott] decided to raise funding towards an annual $10,000 Fellowship named in honour of Natalie Miller AO, awarded to aspirational women to pursue professional leadership.

Over the course of her tenure as President and founding member of NMF, Maslin built relationships with the screen industry that would ultimately lead to recurring donations from many individuals, organisations, and companies to enable the annual Fellowship to flourish to $20,000.

Maslin recalled a particular highlight was the successful NMF Brilliant Careers Program, this was the first such program to offer women from around Australia an opportunity to build skills that specifically addressed leadership and was so ably managed by NMF Vice-President, Sandra Sdraulig AM and her team in 2017 and 2019.

Over the years, the Committee has grown and renewed, and Maslin firmly believes that the success of the Fellowship is due to the incredible women behind it who remain committed to ensuring women have a seat at the table shaping the future of the Australian screen industry.

Since 2012, nine Fellowships have been awarded to Rachel Okine (Managing Director, Aquarius Films); Harriet Pike (Head of Production & Development, WildBear Entertainment); Rebecca Hammond (Post Production Manager, Beyond Productions); Courtney Botfield (Head of Distribution & Sales, Bunya Productions); Sasha Close (Program Manager, Gold Coast Film Festival); Kristy Matheson (Director, Film Programs ACMI), Miriam Katsambis (Legal Counsel, Entertainment One); Anna Kaplan (Producer and Impact Producer, Greenfield Pictures); and Pauline Clague (Founder and Artistic Director of Winda Film Festival).

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Travel Guides tonight take a luxury river cruise down the Mekong River from Cambodia to Southern Vietnam, discovering their history, culture and food.

This episode will balance its usual humour with tears by learning of the horrors of the Khmer Rouge regime -and a guest appearance from Luke Nguyen in Vietnam.

Beginning in the small tourist town of Siem Reap in Cambodia, our Travel Guides are greeted with a tuk tuk ride taking them to an authentic Buddhist water blessing. This is no ordinary water blessing and some of the Guides regret wearing white.

Drying off, our travellers are introduced to the ancient Khmer warrior martial arts, including scarf-wielding fighters and crossbow experts.

Its hard to walk around tropical Cambodia without running into a few bugs  literally. After getting a little too close and personal with a scorpion, our Guides hit the tourist strip for an afternoon snack  of glazed scorpions and deep-fried tarantulas.

The highlight of their trip to Cambodia is the world-famous Angkor Wat temple complex. Deep in the jungle lies the very site where the Hollywood blockbuster Tomb Raider was filmed, and our Guides attempt to stride in Lara Crofts footsteps. At a nearby temple some of them have another run-in with the local wildlife.

Finally, its time for the luxury cruise down the Mekong River. With huge suites to relax in, fine dining and onboard bars, theres very little reason to disembark. But our Guides are lured back to shore by an entire village dedicated to the craft of making silk.

Related
In 2018, a teenager killed 20 people at his vocational school before killing himself in Kerch, a city in the Russian-annexed peninsula of Crimea. In the wake of that attack, Putin ordered authorities to tighten control over gun ownership. But most of the proposed legislative changes were turned down by the parliament or the government, the Kommersant newspaper reported.
Deliveroo had a less than stellar stock market debut. Photo: Getty Images

Bank of America (BAC) said it is initiating its coverage of Deliveroo (ROO.L) with a 'buy' rating, as the food delivery company's shares went up about 1.9% on Tuesday morning. It highlighted online grocery delivery as a bright spot in the market.

The investment bank, one of four that worked on Deliveroo's stock market debut, has set a target price of 335p, which is a 35% upside to where it trades now but still below the 390p offer price set when the company launched its IPO in March.

Deliveroo's IPO was less than stellar, with its share price plunging as much as 30% on its IPO debut on the London Stock Exchange.

Last month it posted strong first quarter results but said its outlook remained uncertain as lockdown eases. The company anticipates consumers may order less takeaways as they are allowed to go out more.

Deliveroo shares were trading at 251.72p at the time of writing.

Deliveroo's stock was boosted on Tuesday afternoon. Chart: Yahoo Finance

"Despite its smaller scale, we think ROO can succeed, as we are still in the early days for the penetration of food delivery and even more so groceries," the bank said.

Deliveroo has proven unit economics and a strong management team, it said, adding that it expects the food delivery service to "over-deliver on 2021" and estimates Deliveroo has penetrated just 4% of its directly addressable market.

Chart: Bank of America

It also believes Deliveroo owns "some of the best sector unit economics, allowing it to invest aggressively in marketing while keeping free cash flow burn in check".

Bank of America said the company "has a clear edge" in membership programmes and dark kitchens, which allows it to minimise customer churn and keep strong and exclusive relationship with restaurant brands.

Deliveroo operates close to 250 dark kitchens, which are delivery-only.

It added that concerns over competition in the UK "are overdone as we think Just Eat (JET.L) and ROO serve different ends of the market."

However, when looking at risks, BoA did say that "the food delivery industry is characterised by high competition, primarily because players seek to secure a number one or number two position quickly. In the UK, Deliveroo's core market, after years of market share loss, Just Eat, the incumbent, has opted to fight back aggressively."

Story continues

Meanwhile, it expects online grocery delivery to be a major winner for Deliveroo, representing "a surprisingly significant" contribution to orders and gross transaction value  30% by 2025.

Chart: Bank of America

The bank said a big asset for Deliveroo is also the fact that its current largest shareholder is Amazon (AMZN).

"The relationship between Amazon and Deliveroo is at arm's length, but we think having such a high-quality backer and expert in delivery and logistics is a positive for Deliveroo's development," the bank said.

It also talked up the fact that "very experienced Amazon executives" are now in top positions at Deliveroo, including Eric French, chief marketplace officer, and Dan Winn, chief technology officer.

Bank of America was one of four investment banks that worked on Deliveroo's IPO, the others being Citi (C), Jefferies (JEF) and Numis (NUM.L).

Read more: Deliveroo hits a new all-time low as hedge fund Odey shorts the stock

Banks insist they have Chinese walls between departments that means analysts won't favour companies that their investment banking colleagues are working on.

But as per Investopedia, "if the analyst of a particular security works for the same investment bank that is underwriting the new issue, he/she may be inclined to give a positive recommendation to ensure that the offering is successful."

It added that "investment banks are like most other businesses. They are always trying to increase profits, and they can attract more business by issuing favourable reports about their clientele."

Meanwhile, it is also being reported that New York hedge fund ExodusPoint Capital Management has taken up a short position in Deliveroo that makes up about 0.56% of Deliveroo shares.

WATCH: What are SPACs?
Singapore's Parliament House. (PHOTO: Dhany Osman / Yahoo News Singapore)

SINGAPORE  Members of Parliament on both sides of the House on Tuesday (11 May) condemned the alleged racist attack on a 55-year-old Indian woman last week.

"Investigations need to be done before we can come to any conclusions, but such conduct, unfortunately is consistent with some of the other things that have been happening. And the facts are, as stated by the lady, that it appears to be racist conduct," said Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam in Parliament.

The incident, which took place last Friday morning, saw the victim  private tutor Hindocha Nita Vishnubhai  being kicked in the chest by a man for not wearing her mask properly.

Citing racist attacks on Asians overseas amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Shanmugam noted that there have been "parties" here deliberately "stoking (people's) fears, encouraging racism and xenophobia, and dog whistling, much like what we have seen in the US".

"Expression of overt racism is still only amongst a minority in Singapore. The majority of Singaporeans are decent, and not racist. But if we continue to fan the flames of racism, we will get to a more uncomfortable position," he added.

Shanmugam also pointed to certain websites that "deliberately fan racism".

"They are anti-Government, and that is perfectly OK, but dont play with race. Comments on these sites have Indians being called 'cockroaches', 'rapists' and so on. We should be ashamed, that in the name of free speech, we allow such comments," he noted.

Calling on all Members of Parliament to condemn such racist behaviour, Shanmugam also asked Opposition parties to take a stand "notwithstanding that many of these sites that promote xenophobia support you".

Speaking after Shanmugam, Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh expressed The Workers' Party's support for the minister's statement about the attack. "Indeed, we are in agreement. There is no place for racism in Singapore; no ifs, no buts," he said.

Story continues

Details of the attack

Elaborating on the details of the attack, Shanmugam said that the victim had been brisk walking toward Choa Chu Kang Stadium when she lowered her mask to "prevent breathlessness".

At some point, the alleged assailant  a man "believed to be Chinese"  shouted at the woman, telling her to pull her mask up above her nose. When she explained that she was exercising, the man shouted at her again and used a "racial slur".

The woman then told the man "God bless you" and began to walk away when the man ran towards her and "landed a flying kick on her chest". This caused the woman to fall, leaving her with scratches on her arms and hands.

A police report was lodged by the woman on Friday night and she said she would seek medical attention on Monday.

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Parliament: Shanmugam challenges PSP's Leong Mun Wai to debate CECA

104 applications received for vaccine injury financial aid scheme: Gan Kim Yong
By Ricardo Brito and Pedro Fonseca

BRASILIA/RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazil's federal government on Tuesday nationally suspended the vaccination of pregnant women with the AstraZeneca COVID-19 shot, after an expectant mother in Rio de Janeiro died from a stroke possibly related to the inoculation.

Franciele Francinato, coordinator of the Health Ministry's vaccination program, told reporters the suspension was enacted as a precautionary measure after health regulator Anvisa issued a warning about the vaccine's use in pregnant women earlier in the day.

Authorities are investigating the incident. The suspension applies only to AstraZeneca's shot and not to vaccines developed by Sinovac and Pfizer Inc that are also being used in the country.

The pregnant woman in Rio de Janeiro died after receiving the AstraZeneca shot, according to state Health Secretary Alexandre Chieppe.

Anvisa said the 35-year-old woman, who was 23 weeks pregnant, died of a hemorrhagic stroke on Monday after checking into a hospital five days earlier.

"The serious adverse event of a hemorrhagic stroke was assessed as possibly related to the use of the vaccine given to the pregnant woman," Anvisa said in a statement.

AstraZeneca said in a statement that pregnant women and those breastfeeding were excluded from clinical trials of its COVID-19 vaccine. Studies in animals did not produce direct or indirect evidence of harm regarding pregnancy or fetal development, the statement added.

Anvisa said it had not been informed of any other adverse events in pregnant women receiving the vaccine.

The AstraZeneca vaccine is produced and distributed in Brazil via a partnership with public health institute Fiocruz.

Fiocruz President Nisia Trindade told reporters that the suspension was necessary.

The national decision to suspend the vaccine's use in pregnant women followed similar decisions by Rio and Sao Paulo states earlier in the day, citing Anvisa's recommendation.

Brazil has recorded the world's second-deadliest outbreak of COVID-19, with the Health Ministry reporting on Tuesday that the official death toll had risen to more than 425,000.

(Reporting by Pedro Fonseca and Rodrigo Viga in Rio de Janeiro, Ricardo Brito in Brasilia, and Eduardo Simoes in Sao Paulo; Writing by Ana Mano and Jake Spring; Editing Jonathan Oatis and Peter Cooney)
According to United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), presently, landmines, cluster munitions, and explosive remnants of war (ERW) are found in over 70 countries and seven territories. It is essential to conceive that most countries and territories affected by these weapons are among the least developed countries. These weapons not only claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, mostly civilians, over the last decades and constitute an imminent deadly threat to millions of peoples lives and livelihoods. Anadolu Agency reports that only in 2020, the UN recorded 4,663 civilian casualties caused by mines, ERWs, and cluster munitions. They also have a significant negative impact on post-conflict recovery and development as they undermine aid distribution, land cultivation, and construction and restoration of infrastructure and housing facilities.

The effect of these weapons on human lives and economic-social development came to be widely acknowledged from the 1980s onwards and consequently paved the way to the development of international and national mine action programs and worldwide campaigns, promoted by celebrities like Princess Diana and Paul McCartney, to ban anti-personnel mines and cluster munitions. As such, from the early 1990s on pioneering mine action programs, with the help of international bodies such as the EU, UNDP, and mine action NGOs like the Mine Advisory Group (MAG) Handicap International, and Norwegian Peoples Aid, were initiated in some of the worst mine-affected countries, including Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Mozambique.

Furthermore, worldwide advocacy efforts resulted with the development of the Ottawa Treaty, also known as the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, to which 164 are party as of today, in 1997 and the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM), which was ratified or acceded by 110 states as of September 2020, in 2008. These two include solid recovery arrangements for individual victims and affected communities and preventive actions banning the use, production and transfer of these weapons as well as entailing their destruction, efforts generally known as mine action. Mine action, which deals with landmines, cluster munitions and ERW, led to several countries previously affected by these weapons being able to declare themselves in full compliance with clearance obligations.

According to data compiled by Mine Action Review, as of 2020, 32 states fulfilled their obligations under Article 5 of the Ottawa Treaty and became completely mine-free. State parties to the treaty also have destroyed over 55 million stockpiled anti-personnel mines. Accordingly, both the number of humans killed or disabled by these weapons and the size of contaminated areas significantly decreased, which is a very positive development. That said, the COVID-19 pandemic impacted global mine action efforts as it did in many other domains. De-mining works in Croatia, Ukraine, Iraq, Cambodia slowed down due to halting operations under national lockdowns, travel restrictions, and difficulties in employment in international experts.

However, the more dangerous threat to mine action has come from the eruption of new armed clashes and wars, in which the use of anti-personnel mines is very likely. As the recent Azerbaijan-Armenia war on the Upper-Karabakh revealed, during which the Armenian side extensively used mines and cluster munitions, some states still have the tendency to use this cheap yet inhuman weapon.

Moreover, decently, escalated armed conflicts in Mali, Eritrea, and Ethiopia, ongoing armed clashes in Mozambique and Nigeria between government forces and terror organizations and the possibility of armed violence in Myanmar risks re-proliferation of mines. Because most of the armed hostilities erupt in the least developed countries and involve terrorist organizations, which are not parties to any convention on banning mines, the international community should do more to halt the production of the landmines and immediate destruction of stockpiled mines.
U.S. President Joe Biden said on Monday that his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin will take place.

Biden delivered a speech at the White House on the economic effects of the pandemic.

At the end of the speech, a reporter asked Biden whether he thinks that Russia was involved in the recent cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline fuel pipeline operator.

"So far, there is no evidence based on from our intelligence people that Russia is involved," Biden said. "Although there is evidence that the actors ransomware is in Russia."

The U.S. leader added that he will be meeting with the Russian president, TASS reported.

On April 13, Biden had suggested in a phone call with Putin a summit meeting be organized in a third country within months. Later, Biden explained he had suggested a meeting be held in the coming summer in Europe, when he comes to Europe to attend the Group of Seven and NATO summits in mid-June.

The G7 summit will be held in the seaside resort of Carbis Bay, Cornwall, the UK, on June 11-13, and a NATO summit is scheduled for June 14 in Brussels.
Tbilisi City Court has accepted the release of leader of the United National Movement Nika Melia after the European Union posted Melias 40,000 GEL bail on May 8, following the EU-mediated agreement between Georgian political parties in April.

After the completion of technical issues Melia will leave Rustavi prison where he has been in pretrial custody since February 23, 2021.

Melia is charged with incitement to violence during the June protests in Tbilisi back in 2019 which were sparked by the presence of Russian MPs in the Georgian parliament. He was released on 30,000 GEL bail on June 27, 2020.

However, Melia violated the conditions of his bail by publicly removing his surveillance bracelet and 40,000 GEL was added to his bail in November 2020.

Melia said that the 40,000 GEL bail was unfair and refused to post it within 50 days of sentencing.

On February 5, 2021 the Georgian Chief Prosecutors Office warned him of the possibility of his bail conditions being reversed to detention. He was arrested on February 23, Agenda.ge recalls.
The serious observance of the health ministrys 5K message would help stop the community transmission of COVID-19 in Vietnam, heard a meeting in Hanoi on May 10.

The 5K message comprises khau trang (face masks), khu khuan (disinfection), khoang cach (distancing), khong tu tap (no gatherings), and khai bao y te (health declarations).





Speaking at the meeting of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, Associate Professor Dr Tran Dac Phu, senior advisor at the Public Health Emergency Operations Centre, pointed out four current major pandemic clusters in the country - central Da Nang city, northern Yen Bai province, and the K Hospital and the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases, both in Hanoi, plus a new hotspot in the northern province of Hai Duong.





COVID-19 cases have been reported in 26 cities and provinces, with cases of local transmission standing at 442, he told the meeting.





Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long also warned that Vietnam is on high alert as the coronavirus can spread quickly.





Experts said this fourth wave of COVID-19, which has hit the country since April 27, is more complex than previous waves due to new coronavirus variants, most notably the one believed to be behind the devastating surge in cases in India.





It has spread simultaneously to many localities and medical facilities, the minister said, stressing the need to view testing as a key, urgent task at this time.





Hospitals with more than 300 beds must house a real-time PCR testing laboratory, he requested.

At the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, head of the committee, urged localities that are yet to report any COVID-19 cases to remain vigilant and maintain close supervision.





Vietnam will not complete mass vaccinations by the year end, according to the Deputy PM, so it is necessary to strictly follow the 5K message, especially mask wearing.





He ordered a closer watch on border areas and people under quarantine and to quickly detect cases through contact tracing as well as regular screen testing.





Dam called on people to raise their sense of responsibility in the pandemic fight, for the sake of the country and the community.




We have seen the arc of our political pendulum swing back and forth over time, and we can hope that new generations will produce common sense, pragmatic GOP leadership. But with the existential threats of climate change, population press, diminishing natural resources, increasing gun violence and the looming threat of an emergent China, the United States can no longer afford to wait decades for meaningful change.
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received a delegation led by Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov in Baku.

Ilham Aliyev has pointed out that his country is enjoying positive dynamics in relations with Russia. "It has been half a year since your last visit and we are pleased to point out the ongoing positive dynamics in our relations," Aliyev said during his meeting with Lavrov.

Aliyev recalled that he held a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on May. "We have congratulated each other personally with our common Victory, the victory over fascism," he said.

The Russian diplomat noted that the border issues in Nagorno-Karabakh are solvable in spite of their complexity.

"We are grateful for the high appreciation of our peacekeepers role. We will do our best so that, as you have stressed, everyone can proceed from that fact that the military issues are closed. Now we need to address the details on the ground. There are delimitations, demarcations [of the border]. It is not so simple, but everything is solvable, in our conviction. Military experts alongside diplomats can agree on mutually acceptable solutions," TASS cited Lavrov as saying.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov held a one-on-one meeting, according to the official Twitter page of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A meeting in an expanded composition of delegations led by Minister Lavrov and Minister Bayramov and is being held.

Sergei Lavrov has also paid tribute to the memory of National Leader Heydar Aliyev on the Alley of Honor and laid a wreath at his tomb.

The memory was also honored and flowers were laid on the tomb of the outstanding ophthalmologist, academician Zarifa Aliyeva.

Furthermore, Sergei Lavrov visited the Alley of Martyrs, where he honored the memory of the heroic sons of Azerbaijan, who died in the struggle for freedom, independence, and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. The Russian FM laid a wreath at the Eternal Flame memorial.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in a phone call on Monday emphasized the significance of ongoing efforts aimed at resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh crisis.

"Additionally, [they] emphasized the significance of continuing efforts to stabilize the situation around Nagorno-Karabakh," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement after Mondays telephone conversation.

Sergey Lavrov and Cavusoglu also discussed in a phone call prospects for deliveries of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine to Turkey and its production there.

"In conformity with the agreement between the two countries presidents, Sergey Lavrov and Mevlut Cavusoglu discussed prospects for the organization of deliveries of the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine from Russia to Turkey, and also how to roll out its production there," TASS cited the statement as saying.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in a phone call on Monday called on the parties to the conflict in East Jerusalem to show restraint and to avoid steps escalating tensions, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday.

"The ministers condemned the eviction of Palestinians from their ancestral neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah and, in the spirit of the joint statement of special envoys of the Middle East Quartet of International Mediators of May 8, 2021, called on all the parties to the conflict to show restraint and avoid actions that threaten to further exacerbate the situation in the Islamic holy month of Ramadan," the statement said.

"The foreign ministers voiced serious concern about the escalation in Israeli-Palestinian relations and a dangerous surge in tensions in East Jerusalem, first and foremost outside the Al-Aqsa Mosque," TASS cited the statement as saying.
The Russian delegation at the talks in Baku intends to map out specific steps for resolving issues that arise on the ground in Nagorno-Karabakh, Russias Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a meeting with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov on Tuesday.

"We are set for full and conscientious implementation of all the accords on settling the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," Russias top diplomat pointed out.

"Yesterday, [at a meeting with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev], current tasks were discussed in detail. I hope that today we will be able to map out specific steps that will make it possible to resolve the issues that arise on the ground. Naturally, the situation is uneasy and has not been resolved for years," TASS cited Lavrov as saying.

Speaking about the relations between Russia and Azerbaijan, the Russian foreign minister noted that "there are a lot of issues but not problems" between the two countries. "Their number is conditioned by very diverse relations. They are getting increasingly diverse with every passing day and embrace all possible spheres of human activity, from the political dialogue to trade and economic relations, investments, humanitarian ties, educational and cultural contacts and, of course, international policy," Russias top diplomat pointed out.

The Azerbaijani foreign minister confirmed that the two sides had accumulated quite a large number of issues, considering the broad agenda, including aspects of the contractual legal framework and the implementation of the decisions of the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia on Karabakh.
(c) screenshot from the video from the Telegram channel "I'm going to Tatarstan"

Two unknown perpetrators opened fire at a school in Russia's Kazan, a source in the law enforcement said.

"Nine people died, including eight children and a teacher," the source said.

At least 32 people were injured, they are being taken to hospitals, a source in the republics Ministry of Education informed said.

According to the source, the first signal from a panic button at the school came in at 09:25, and the shooting began at 09:20. At the time, there were 714 children and about 70 employees at the school, including 52 teachers.

One of the attackers was detained. According to the source, he shot seven eighth graders and one teacher. He informed the police while he was being detained that he had placed a bomb at his home.

According to a source in the law enforcement agencies, on Tuesday two individuals opened fire at school No. 175 in Kazan. One of the attackers, a teenager aged 17, has been detained. The second attacker is still in the building.

Police and operative services are working on the scene. Children are being evacuated from the school and some students started jumping out of the windows to escape the shooting.

A source in the regional Health Ministry said that 21 ambulances had been dispatched to the school, along with medics from the Republican Center of Disaster Medicine. Regional Health Minister Marat Sadykov is currently at the scene, the source said.

The authorities have tightened security and entry restrictions at all of the city's schools after two gunmen opened fire at a local educational establishment, the mayor's office said. "Security at the entrances of all of Kazan' schools have been tightened. Relevant instruction have been issued," TASS cited the news release as saying.
Six months after the end of the Second Karabakh War, Russia and Azerbaijan summed up the results of the first months of restoring a peaceful and stable life in the South Caucasus and outlined the prospects for the foreseeable future. In the morning, after President Ilham Aliyev visited the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, he held phone talks with President Vladimir Putin, and in the evening he held a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Baku. The talks focused on Russian-Azerbaijani efforts to advance post-conflict processes in the region and countering attempts to destabilize the situation.

"Armenian railways are owned by Russian railways. This means that Armenian railways belong to them. Therefore, we are discussing this issue mainly with the Russian side. Our next historic achievement will be to connect Zangilan, located in the Eastern Zangazur region, with our ancient lands of Western Zangazur and then with Nakhchivan and Turkey through Ordubad," Ilham Aliyev said in Nakhchivan.



"There is no territorial unit called Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan. The conflict has been resolved, and I think that there is no point in returning to this issue. In any case, we showed it during the post-war period. If someone thinks that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has not been resolved, it is their own problem. On 10 November, a document was signed on the de facto settlement of the conflict. I believe that the parties involved in this issue and the countries that want to deal with this issue  I do not know for what reason  should take this into account," he stressed.



The Azerbaijani leader denounced the statement from Canada and France. "They should mind their own business. This ugly campaign against Azerbaijan over this Military Trophy Park must be stopped. A French museum displays the skulls of slain leaders of the Algerian National Resistance Movement. Go and look in the mirror. Regarding certain politicians talking about the status of Nagorno-Karabakh, a non-existent entity I have also said that if someone wants to give the Armenians living in our territory a status, I dont mind that, but let them choose a good place for that in their own country. Those places have long been occupied by the Armenian diaspora. Let them give them an autonomy or independence there, not in Azerbaijan. This will not happen in Azerbaijan," Ilham Aliyev concluded.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has phoned President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev yesterday. The conversation took place shortly before Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's arrival in Baku.

According to the Kremlin, Putin and Aliyev "warmly congratulated each other on the 76th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War."



At the same time, the leaders noted that the memory of the heroism of the soldiers-liberators is sacredly honored both in Russia and in Azerbaijan, and the citizens are deeply grateful to the veterans for their unparalleled heroism during the war.



The press service of the Russian president also drew attention to the fact that Vladimir Putin and Ilham Aliyev reaffirmed their mutual disposition "to build up comprehensive Russian-Azerbaijani cooperation."

Concluding the conversation, the presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan agreed to continue further contacts between the countries at various levels.

Today Ilham Aliyev has received a delegation led by Sergey Lavrov in Baku. Ilham Aliyev has pointed out that his country is enjoying positive dynamics in relations with Russia. "It has been half a year since your last visit and we are pleased to point out the ongoing positive dynamics in our relations," Aliyev said during his meeting with Lavrov.

Aliyev recalled that he held a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on May. "We have congratulated each other personally with our common Victory, the victory over fascism," he said.

The Russian diplomat noted that the border issues in Nagorno-Karabakh are solvable in spite of their complexity.

"We are grateful for the high appreciation of our peacekeepers role. We will do our best so that, as you have stressed, everyone can proceed from that fact that the military issues are closed. Now we need to address the details on the ground. There are delimitations, demarcations [of the border]. It is not so simple, but everything is solvable, in our conviction. Military experts alongside diplomats can agree on mutually acceptable solutions," Lavrov stressed.
The Armenian President's decree on calling snap parliamentary elections on June 20 came into force.

The document was signed by Armen Sargsyan yesterday, its text was published on the official website of the head of state on the same day.

It says that, based on Articles 92 and 93 of the RA Constitution, taking into account the dissolution of the parliament, early parliamentary elections are scheduled for June 20 this year.

Armenia's parliament failed to elect a prime minister for the second time on May 10, triggering its own dissolution in a final move toward early elections next month.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian, who was swept to power in pro-democracy protests in 2018, resigned last month to run in an early election.

The internal political crisis in Armenia began after the defeat of the country in the Second Karabakh War. In March Pashinyan refused to resign, but set an early parliamentary election for June as he sought to defuse the countrys political crisis.
The White House voiced "serious concerns" on Monday over violence in occupied East Jerusalem as tensions peak following an Israeli raid on al-Aqsa mosque.

"We are continuing to closely monitor the violence in Israel. We have serious concerns about the situation, including violent confrontations that we've seen over the last few days," spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.

She noted that National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan "reiterated concerns about the potential evictions of Palestinian families from their homes," and condemned attacks from the Gaza Strip towards Israel during a Sunday telephone call with his Israeli counterpart.

"This is something that our national security team is closely monitoring, obviously, across government, certainly the president is kept abreast, and is watching closely as well," Politico cited Psaki as saying.
Uzbekistan's Supreme Court has sentenced 17 men to various jail terms and fines over the embezzlement, negligence, violation of engineering works over the Sardoba dam burst in central Syrdarya region last year, the Supreme Court press service said Monday.

Six of the defendants, who occupied senior positions in companies engaged in building the dam, were given 3 to 10 years prison terms, and the rest faced fines, equivalent to around 13,000 U.S. dollars, Xinhua reported.

Around 90,000 people were evacuated when Sardoba dam in the Syrdarya region burst, flooding residential areas and crop fields on May 1, 2020.
Lastly, several weeks ago while driving on the concrete portion of Interstate 97, I hit a pothole that was so big that it shook my car so badly that it made my car veer to the shoulder. I found out days later while my car was in for servicing that the front joint on my car needed an expensive repair due to the pothole I hit.
Authorities need to clarify the situation in which construction contractors are complaining because construction material prices are fluctuating, with an increase of 40% upwards, while many building material manufacturers earn huge profits.

Steel costs account for 20 percent of the total construction costs. (Photo: SGGP)

Supply remains plentiful

It is recorded in HCM City that steel prices increase continuously, so construction material stores must quote prices to customers every two days, while previously, prices were always stable during the week and month, or quarter. For instance, the price of steel coil was around VND12,000 per kilogram before July last year, but by the end of April this year, the price has risen to around VND17,000 per kilogram, an increase of about VND5,000 per kilogram. In April, steel prices had changed at least four times, with an upward trend.



From the beginning of May to now, steel prices have temporarily not increased as drastically as in April. Previously, the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA) forecasted that steel prices will only increase until the end of the second quarter of this year. However, with what is happening in the global steel markets, such as China, the US, India, and the EU, VSA has revised its forecast that steel prices will possibly increase until the end of the third quarter of this year.



The increasing prices of steel and some construction materials, such as cement, have made our contractors unable to handle and face many difficulties. As for signed projects, we must try to negotiate with investors to adjust prices. If we fail to negotiate, we must also carry out the project to keep the company's reputation. Only with new contracts, the company will adjust the price following the increase in construction material prices, said Mr. Mai Dai Khoat, Director of Tan Dat Thanh Construction-Trading Co., Ltd in District 12.



According to the Chairman of the Vietnam Association of Construction Contractors (VACC) Nguyen Quoc Hiep, normally, steel costs account for 20 percent of the total construction costs, so when steel prices increase by 40-45 percent, the construction costs will be raised extremely high. Moreover, not only steel, but the prices of other materials, such as cement, bricks, and tiles, also climb, making the construction industry miserable. The construction contractors have been pushed into a very difficult situation when the steel prices increased like that, Mr. Hiep shared.



From the investor's perspective, some investors said that they were considering adjusting the prices of construction works. Depending on each building structure, the construction price may rise by around 20 percent.



Although the steel prices increased, it is recorded that in the market, there is no shortage of steel, and steel supply is still plentiful. Some experts said that steel prices went up possibly because the prices of imported raw materials, such as billet, surged. To find out the reason, VACC has now proposed to the Government to check and clarify the reason why the prices of steel escalate heavily as currently while the electricity prices and input production costs have not increased.

Manufacturers earn high profits



According to the analysis of many steel manufacturers, the rising momentum in steel prices not only comes from the increasing prices of raw materials, such as billet but also due to the lack of supply, especially in the US and European markets. For the past 10 years, developed countries no longer operated blast furnaces for steel production, leaving only China. However, China is also cutting steel production for environmental protection. This has caused the supply to be no longer as redundant as in the previous period. Meanwhile, the global demand is high for economic recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic.



Currently, to catch the opportunity, many steel enterprises are planning to invest in expanding and improving production capacity. For example, Nam Kim Steel plans to invest in a warehouse for the domestic market and build a steel pipe factory on an area of 5 hectares in Binh Duong Province, with a total investment of VND250 billion. Or Hoa Phat Group is speeding up legal procedures and site clearance to deploy the Dung Quat 2 Project from the beginning of next year, with a total investment of VND85 trillion. The project has an expected capacity of 5.6 million tons per year, including 4.6 million tons of hot-rolled steel coil and 1 million tons of high-quality steel bars and wire.



On the contrary to construction contractors, most steel manufacturers simultaneously reported record-high profits in the first quarter of this year, many times higher than those in the same period last year. Specifically, Hoa Phat Steel saw a post-tax profit of VND7 trillion, three times higher than the same period last year; Ton Hoa Sen's profit was VND1.035 trillion, 5.1 times higher; Nam Kim Steel had a profit of VND319 billion, 7.7 times higher. Many steel manufacturers evaluated that in the second quarter, the steel market would continue to be positive. The upward trend of steel prices will happen globally because of the lack of supply and rising raw material prices. In the Vietnamese market, steel demand is also entering the annual peak consumption season, so it is still smooth for the steel industry.



Meanwhile, VSA forecasts that for the time being, the demand for steel products will remain high. However, there will be great competition from the leading construction steel manufacturers in Vietnam. Regarding the question of whether or not the case of "hoarding goods, speculating, and overcharging" of steel, the representative of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) said that this is unlikely to happen in large manufacturing enterprises because their storage capacity is limited while costs and working capital of the steel industry are tremendous.



The MoIT stated that initially, the main reason for the high rise in steel prices was mainly due to high input material prices. Because at present, 90 percent of input raw materials of the steel industry is imported, mainly iron ore. The total production capacity of the domestic factories is about 14 million tons, while steel products produced from ore account for 60 percent. However, currently, the ministry has assigned market surveillance authorities and VSA to monitor this issue.

SGGP

Construction firms face bankruptcy as steel prices soar Local construction firms face the risk of bankruptcy as the price of steel has soared 40 percent recently.
The real estate market has begun cooling down after a long hot spell.

At the first quarter regular press briefing organized by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Development (MONRE) some days ago, Mai Van Phan, Deputy General Director of the General Department of Land Administration, said that land fever halted after local authorities were instructed to publicize information about urban development planning, land-use plans and land prices.

He said the department has received reports from some localities about the local land price performance and it is still waiting for more reports before analyzing the reasons behind the recent land fever.

At a conference reviewing management work in the first quarter of the year, Minister of Construction Nguyen Thanh Nghi said land prices fluctuated recently in some localities, but the market has stabilized following the Governments instructions and local authorities drastic measures.

The phenomenon of people following the crowd to buy and sell land in many localities has subsided. In the districts of Binh Chanh, Nha Be, Cu Chi and Can Gio, land prices have gone flat after increasing by 5-10 percent in Q1.

The land prices in suburban areas of Hanoi and neighboring provinces, which surged in Q1, are leveling off.

Land-fever periods cause serious consequences. Agricultural land is left uncultivated, and low- and middle-income earners lose opportunities to buy or rent accommodations because the prices become too high.

Minh H, an investor in Hanoi, said in 2020 he bought some land plots at projects near the Dong Van Industrial Zone in Ha Nam. As the prices unexpectedly began soaring after Tet (February 2021), he would have made a profit of VND600 million or VND1 billion for each plot if he had sold them.

But he only sold one plot as he hoped that land prices would keep increasing, and he now regrets his decision. The land prices have begun falling and though he now only expects profit of VND200-500 million for each plot, he still cannot find buyers.

Anh, a real estate broker in Hanoi, said the number of calls and messages from clients has dropped in the last three weeks. Some of his clients have even given up transactions, and will lose their deposits.

Nguyen Van T, an investor in Hanoi, said it is not easy to find property buyers now as land fever has begun to subside. Now is the right time for investors to reconsider their financial capability and cash flow to make decisions on whether to retain properties.

The investors with good financial capability who buy land with their own money are not rushing to sell land right now. Investors who buy land with borrowed money and have to pay interests on loans tend to sell land as soon as possible.

Land fever blamed on market mismanagement

The Vietnam Association of Realtors (VRA) believes that apartment prices in Hanoi and HCM City in Q2 will remain unchanged. It is expected that the new products to be launched during this period will have more reasonable selling prices.

With the drastic measures taken by local authorities recently, land prices wont be higher than Q1. The prices may even decrease in some localities as speculators want to sell land to stop losses.

Observers note that the number of transactions in the real estate market has decreased considerably, but there are no signs of speculators selling off properties.

The director of a real estate trading floor said the prices at some planned and publicized projects are staying firmly at high levels. Meanwhile, it is difficult to sell land in projects with unclear legal status, or ones located in areas with unclear development programming.

He said that discounts have not occurred yet because real estate investment cycles last from six months to one year in general. Only when this cycle finishes will investors have to bargain real estate away to take back their investment capital and get money to pay bank debts.

The Ho Chi Minh City Real Estate Association (HOREA) said that land-fever periods cause serious consequences. Agricultural land is left uncultivated, and low- and middle-income earners lose opportunities to buy or rent accommodations because the prices become too high.

Phan from the General Department of Land Administration under MONRE said that it was necessary to learn a lesson from the recent land fever.

Land brokers took advantage of loose management to push the prices up, he said.

Thuan Phong

As land prices soar, land management in 26 provinces to be inspected The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has told local authorities to inventory land and report on land use.
Challenges are ahead for cadres who will leave the south for the north to take their new duties and leave the north for the south. If they can overcome the challenges, their capability will be shown.

Secretary of Hai Phong City Party Committee Tran Luu Quang

On May 4, 2021, the Party Politburo implemented a decision on cadre rotation, under which Tran Luu Quang, Deputy Secretary of HCM City Party Committee, has been entrusted to the post of Secretary of Hai Phong City Party Committee.

Quang is currently a Central Party Committee Member in the third tenure. In the first time, he was an alternate member of the 11th Central Party Committee.

From a local cadre, Quang grew up to the highest local position  Party Committee Secretary of Tay Ninh province for four years (2015-2019), before being appointed by the Politburo to the post of HCM City Permanent Deputy Secretary.

Quang has become the first Party Committee Secretary leaving the south and taking the office as Party Committee Secretary in a northern province since 1975.

Also, Quang has become the second southern person appointed by the Politburo to the post of Party Committee Secretary in a northern province since reunification.

The first was Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, who has just left her post as National Assembly Chair.

Growing up in her homeland of Ben Tre province, she took the posts of the provincial Finance Department, and then provincial Party Committee Member. Later, she left the province for Hanoi where she was Deputy Minister of Finance.

She was elected to the 9th Central Party Committee in 2001, then appointed by the Politburo to the post of Hai Duong Provincial Party Committee Secretary and had been on the post until 2006.

Breakthrough in personnel work

Looking back at the personnel arrangement of the 13th Party Congress earlier this year and the appointments of the states positions at the National Assembly session one month ago, one can see that the breakthroughs in the latest decisions by the Politburo on personnel work.

The Prime Minister, one of the four key titles, has been put on the shoulders of Pham Minh Chinh, who experienced the posts of Party Committee Member, Quang Ninh provincial Party Committee Secretary, and later the posts of Politburo Member and Head of the Central Organization Committee. Unlike the predecessor, Chinh had not worked as Deputy Prime Minister before taking the office as Prime Minister.

Meanwhile, Le Van Thanh, who was Hai Phong Party Committee Secretary and has no experience in law enforcement at the central level, has been appointed as Deputy Prime Minister, thanks to his outstanding achievements gained during the time of serving in the city.

With outstanding achievements during the four years of serving as Secretary of the Party Committee of Tay Ninh, and two years as Deputy Secretary of HCM City Party Committee, Quang has every condition to take the new post in Hai Phong, the seaport city which is expected to become a locomotive in economic development in the north.

Returning to the case of Tran Luu Quang, the phenomenon that provincial Party Committees secretaries do not come from the same localities is quite common. And it is common that northern cadres leave for central region, Central Highlands and southern provinces to take their new duties.

However, the number of northward cases like Quang is very modest. Two major reasons have been cited to explain this.

First, there are not many head agencies under the central management in the south, mostly belonging to provincial and municipal party committees. Meanwhile, in the north and the north of the central region, in addition to provincial and municipal party committees, there are central ministries, branches and agencies located in the capital city of Hanoi.

This factor, plus geographical advantages, explains why the number of cadres who have the opportunities to be fostered and developed to join central party committees in the north is more numerous than in the southern region.

Second, in some cases, when the Central Committee finds the cadres with preeminent capability in the south and wants to bring them to the north for fostering, the cadres refuse the opportunities, citing the reasons of regional cultural differences, and difficulties when living far from home and from familiar environment. Meanwhile, promotion opportunities remain unclear.

A question may be raised that why northern cadres move southward to take duties as requested, but southern cadres dont want to move northward.

The answer is there should be bravery and breakthrough. And Tran Luu Quang has a lot of favorable conditions to make such a breakthrough.

More advantages than disadvantages

The first advantage is that the transport and information exchange nowadays are much more favorable than in previous years. It takes less time to fly from Hanoi or Hai Phong to HCM City than from HCM City to provinces by land.

To Quang, the northern culture is not unfamiliar. Having parents who were cadres who left the southern region for the north to settle down and continue their work after the 1954 Geneva Agreement, he was born in Hanoi in 1967 and grew up in the north before returning to the south after Reunification Day on April 30, 1975.

As a well-trained cadre, Quang became an alternate member of the 11th Central Party Committee in 2011. And now, entering the third central tenure, the work for a Central Party Committee member is no longer new to him.

With outstanding achievements during the four years of serving as Secretary of the Party Committee of Tay Ninh, and two years as Deputy Secretary of HCM City Party Committee, Quang has every condition to take the new post in Hai Phong, the seaport city which is expected to become a locomotive in economic development in the north.

Opportunities for pioneers

Another question is why Quang was not sent to a locality in the south, where he could make greater contributions to local development, since he is familiar with the local culture.

The answer is that Quang needs challenges.

Challenges are posed to any cadre who leaves the north for the south, or the south for the north. But only if they can overcome the challenges will they be able to prove their capabilities.

Once successfully proving their capabilities in different environments and cultures, cadres can prove that they have leadership qualities and strategic management capabilities, and have aspirations for innovation for the sake of people and the country development as shown in the Politburo's 2020 Regulation 214-QD/TW on the titles and criteria to assess cadres under the Central Party Committee, Politburo and Party Central Committee's Secretariat management.

The appointments of the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, together with the new methods in personnel arrangement, has given strong messages to encourage and promote local secretaries who dare to think and dare to do new things.

Nghia Nhan

13th National Party Congress a complete success The 13th National Party Congress was a success and concluded two days earlier than scheduled, Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong said at a press briefing on February 1 following the congresss closure.
My dear P, dont be startled. If you wake up, you will feel pain. Please step in Heaven. On the two sides of the path to it, I will sprinkle flowers, To Thi Anh Hong said to her dead son.

P's home in Long Son commune of Vung Tau City

The technicians and others at Ba Ria Hospital who were there were unable to hold back their tears.

T.H.P, 24, became brain dead after a traffic accident. Knowing her sons wish to donate organs to save others (P had not registered for organ donations before), Hong suppressed the pain of separation to comply with her sons will.

At noon on May 4, after two hours of surgery, Ps heart, two kidneys and liver were donated.

T.H.Ps funeral was organized on May 5. People mentioned his name with gentle and affectionate smiles.

P. was a cheerful and humorous child. When I felt sad, he would joke, 'Oh my god, you act like you are in sad movies all the time' to make me laugh. He was very good. I have never heard anyone complain about him. So, I did not want him to see sadness at his funeral, Hong said.

P was a disadvantaged boy as he was born without knowing his father. The life was so hard that Hong had to leave her son at the pagoda to spend time working for money. Later, when her financial capability got better, she came to the pagoda and asked the monk to bring P home.

The young man was obedient and gentle. After two years of serving in the army, he grew up and became more mature.

During his military service , when his brother and friends came to the island to visit him, he expressed his willingness to donate his organs if he died. No one thought that this would be the final wish of the 24-year-old.

I was happy when hearing about my sons wish to donate organs to save people. How can I disagree with such a lofty wish? Hong said.

I talked to my son at the hospital the way we used to do. I thanked him for coming into the world and being my son. I also thanked him for bringing happiness to other families, she said.

All of my family members believe that our son is not dead, but lives in another world. We will keep watch over him, Hong added with a shimmer in her sad eyes.

The mothers wish

Attending the funeral of P, the team of medical workers from the Cho Ray and Ba Ria Hospitals felt touched when witnessing the mothers love for her son.

Vietnam has 20 organ transplant centers. As of December 31, 2020, the total number of organ transplant cases had reached 5,587 nationwide, including 5.255 kidney transplant cases.

Hong's words and messages to the son touched the heart of every person there.

Asked about her wishes, Hong said she just wanted to know exactly the time her son went away. She wanted her boys body to be washed after surgery. She wanted her son to wear the clothes he liked the most.

I put a shirt, a pair of trousers and a pair of long socks on him. I looked at him for the last time, caressed his hands and feet, and his body which was no longer warm. Just this was enough to make me happy, she said.

During the conversation , the mother was resilient, but in the end, she could not stop her tears of pain.

The death of a child is a great loss to amother. I tried my best, but I could not hold my pain, the mother said.

Facing criticism from many people for donating his organs to save people, the mother said she would do the right thing. She believes that it is better to inform people about it, because it is impossible to keep the secret forever.

Dr Du Thi Ngoc Thu, PhD, from the Cho Ray Hospitals organ transplant coordination unit, said that after the transplantation surgery, Ps heart beat again in the chest of a recipient.

The function of the two kidneys and the liver also improved. The hospital has informed Ps family about the transplant cases.

Vietnam has 20 organ transplant centers. As of December 31, 2020, the total number of organ transplant cases had reached 5,587 nationwide, including 5.255 kidney transplant cases.

Khanh Hoa

Low number of organ transplant cases due to attitudes toward organ donations The Ministry of Health affirmed that Vietnam now can master organ transplantation techniques, but the number of transplants remains modest.
Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Ethnic Council Nguyen Lam Thanh has said the goal of increasing the rate of ethnic minorities in the 15th legislature from 17.3 percent to 18 percent is likely to be reached.

Ethnic voters in a voting place in Tuyen Quang

They must join election campaigns to win voters trust, he said in a recent interview with the Vietnam News Agency (VNA).

Among 868 candidates for the upcoming election, 185 are ethnic minorities, accounting for 21.31 percent.

Meeting the goal depends on many factors, such as the quality of candidates, preparations for election campaigns with action plans and most importantly, the number of votes, he said.

According to Thanh, ethnic candidates meet many difficulties during election campaign due to their limited access to information in remote and mountainous areas, thus deterring them from grasping local situation.

Moreover, difference in ethnic groups, customs and cultures also makes it hard for them to persuade voters. They must raise voters voice and share similarities in culture with voters, he said.

The elections of deputies to the 15th NA and all-level Peoples Councils for the 2021-2026 tenure are slated for May 23./. VNA
At least 86 per cent of advertisements for illegal wildlife products in hotels, restaurants, bars, pet shops and herbal medicine shops in Thua Thien-Hue, Da Nang and Quang Nam were removed by local authorities in 2019 and 2020.

An expert from Da Nang-based Douc Langur Foundation and local rangers release an Asian water monitor to nature after being rescued from captivity.  Photo courtesy of Douc Langur Foundation

A survey from the Education for Nature Vietnam (ENV) was recently released from a wildlife violation reduction campaign that took place at 1,369 sites in the three localities in 2019 and 2020.

ENV said Da Nang had the highest rate with 94 per cent of violation cases successfully dealt with, while Thua Thien-Hue and Quang Nam followed with 88 per and 77 per cent, respectively.

It said 81 restaurants and herbal medicine shops out of 1,369 sites had made wildlife-related violations, 5.9 per cent, lower than the figures in Hanoi (11 per cent) and HCM City (8 per cent).

Wildlife-related crimes agencies in the three central localities had effectively punished and seized wildlife products in 23 of total 38 violation cases, saving 27 living animals from restaurants and pet shops.

ENV also said wildlife-related crime agencies had received 51 calls from local residents on wildlife violations in the localities in 2019 and 2020 and 49 cases were then arrested or destroyed, saving living animals in 22 of 38 cases.

The successful prevention of wildlife violations in the region resulted from the efforts of wildlife-related crime agencies during the two-year campaign.

Da Nang was the first city in central Vietnam to launch the campaign Say No to wildlife consumption.

Da Nang's location and traffic connections make it a hub of wildlife trafficking routes from the Central Highlands region to northern provinces.

Thua Thien-Hue, Da Nang and Quang Nam are the richest biodiversity sites in Vietnam with two conservation centres of saola  the Vu Quang ox, spindlehorn, or Asian bicorn, the saola  one of the worlds rarest large mammals found only in the Truong Son Mountain Range of Vietnam and Laos.

The region is home to the national parks Bach Ma in Thua Thien-Hue and Song Thanh in Quang Nam Province, while Da Nang has Son Tra and Ba Na-Nui Chua reserves with the largest population of the endangered red-shanked douc langur in Vietnam.

VNS

Da Nang City urges protection of endangered primate population Authorities of Son Tra District, in co-operation with the Centre of Biodiversity Conservation and GreenViet, have started researching the protection of the rhesus macaque monkey to drive troupes of monkeys back to the Son Tra Nature Reserve, Da Nang.
The central province of Quang Ngai has proposed building an airport with a 2,400m runway on Ly Son island to serve 3-3.5 million passengers per year.

Overview of Ly Son island. Photo: Bui Thanh Trung

According to the local government, the construction of such an airport will help attract strategic investors to develop prime locations full of tourism potential in the province, such as Ly Son Island.

The biggest obstacle to attracting investors to develop sustainable tourism on Ly Son Island, according to the local government, is poor transport connections. Currently, visitors can come to Ly Son only by waterway.

This is also the only obstacle to tourism development in particular and economic and social development of Ly Son in general. Therefore, the People's Committee of Quang Ngai province has asked for the Prime Ministers approval for the construction of Ly Son International Airport under the BOT (build-operate-transfer) mode.

At the same time, the province asked the Ministry of Transport to add Ly Son International Airport to the master plan on the development of Vietnams airports in the period of 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050.

It is expected that Ly Son airport will be an airport of level 4C, with a 2,400m runway for A320, A321 and equivalent aircraft. The airport would be located in An Hai commune.

Le Bang

Choose railways or airports Many provinces have proposed building their own airports, but if there are high-speed rail routes, many people will not choose to fly a 300-500km distance.
With the highly contagious UK and Indian variants of COVID-19 detected in Vietnam, testing must be considered one of the most important parts of the fight against the pandemic, Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said.

Medical workers prepare to take samples for COVID-19 testing in Da Nang.

The minister was speaking at the meeting of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control on Monday morning.

The country reported 125 locally acquired infections yesterday, the highest daily spike since the fourth wave began on April 27 and since the pandemic began earlier last year.

The Indian variant, present in various clusters in the current outbreaks, was more transmissible and can spread quickly through the air, especially in closed spaces, Long said, adding that it was necessary to prepare for a worse scenario.

Long said Vietnams testing capacity now was 1.7 times higher than during last years Da Nang outbreak, or the country's second wave.

The health ministry agreed to deploy antigen tests in crowded public places, especially in factories and accommodation sites, so COVID-19 screening can be done regularly and yield faster results.

Likewise, health authorities will also use antigen testing to screen arrivals in centralised quarantine so different measures can be put in place timely. Minister Long also asked that hospitals with more than 300 beds set up a real-time-PCR laboratory to confirm suspected COVID-19 cases and avoid having to send samples elsewhere.

The health ministry has proposed a plan to respond to the scenario in which Vietnam reports up to 50,000 infections but the national steering committee decided that at this time, the country must prepare to deal with a scenario of 30,000 infections.

At present, Vietnam can deal with 10,000 infections properly, according to the committee.

Experts attending the meeting agreed that the pandemic resurgence was developing in a complex manner with highly contagious variants of SARS-CoV-2.

According to the experts, from now to the end of 2021, Vietnam will not have enough vaccines to create community immunity. Therefore, people have to strictly comply with the ministry's guidance to wear masks, disinfect surfaces, keep distance between people, have no gatherings and make health declarations.

Speaking at the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam said the new COVID-19 outbreaks in Vietnam were relatively controlled but risks remain very high.

He said the pathogen was in the community, so even localities that had yet to report new cases must be on alert and tighten prevention and control measures.

He asked the Ministry of Health to map out a plan to prepare equipment and biological products for COVID-19 testing if the number of infections keeps increasing sharply.

The ministry could look to foreign products as well as domestically-made versions so Vietnam can access biological products for testing at reasonable prices.

Dam also asked the Ministry of Finance and finance departments in localities to arrange proper funding for the disease prevention and control activities, particularly funding for tests.

He said Vietnam would still be engaged in the strategy that has featured timely prevention, detection, isolation, zoning and treatment of COVID-19 cases.

The strategy had proven effective during the pandemic, he said.

PM inspects border control and management

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Sunday visited Vinh Nguon Border Station in Chau Doc City in the southern province of An Giang and called on border guards to work closely with local forces to control the border.

Vinh Nguon border station is responsible for more than 15km of border between Vietnam and Cambodia and is known as a hotspot for smuggling and illegal border crossings.

It is a must to protect national independence and sovereignty, ensure security and develop peace, friendship and co-operation in the border area, Chinh said, adding that the key task at this time is to implement disease prevention and control.

The PM asked for thorough preparations to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

He emphasised the need to prepare field hospitals in An Giang Province which shares more than 98km of border with two Cambodian provinces.

Its necessary to prepare for a scenario with up to 10,000 infections, Chinh said, adding that no one wanted such a scenario to happen but preparations were still needed to ensure a timely response.

More than 1,500 staff including soldiers, border guards, police, customs, health workers and volunteers are working at more than 200 COVID-19 checkpoints in the province to curb illegal entrance and exit between Vietnam and Cambodia.

From the beginning of this year, authorities have cracked down on more than 1,400 illegal border crossings. Currently, more than 500 illegal entrants are under health quarantine.

Indian variant detected in new COVID-19 cases in Hanoi, Hung Yen and Thai Binh The coronavirus variant in India is behind newly confirmed COVID-19 cases in Hanoi, Hung Yen and Thai Binh, the Ministry of Health announced on Sunday morning. The highly contagious variant B1.167.2 was found in all eight samples sent to the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology including two in Hung Yen, one in Hanoi and five in Thai Binh. Nguyen Van Kinh, chairman of the Vietnamese Society of Infectious Diseases, said the Indian variant was very contagious, about 70 per cent higher than the original SARS-CoV-2 from Wuhan and could cause a high rate of fatality. The Indian variant has been detected in at least 17 countries across the world. In Vietnam, besides the Indian variant, four other variants of SARS-CoV-2 have been detected including the original one from Wuhan, variant B.1.1.7 from the UK, variant B.1.351 from South Africa and variant D614G from Europe.

VNS

One imported, 16 domestic cases of COVID-19 documented on May 10 afternoon Vietnam recorded 17 new cases of COVID-19 over the past six hours to 6pm on May 10, including 16 domestically-transmitted infections, the Ministry of Health said.
A total of 892,454 people in Vietnam have been given COVID-19 vaccine shots to date, according to Tuesday's morning report from the National Expanded Programme on Immunisation (NEPI).

A medical worker prepares the AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine for administration in a field hospital in the northern province of Vinh Phuc.

On Monday, 25,057 people in 41 cities and provinces have been given the jabs.

The doses administered has reached 97 per cent of the existing stock of 917,000 doses of AstraZeneca that Vietnam has received so far as part of the purchase of 30 million doses from the company and another 30 million from the global vaccine sharing scheme COVAX that is expected to be delivered in different batches within 2021 and early 2022.

The first in line are mostly frontline workers  medical staff directly involved with the treatment of COVID-19 patient; medical staff performing tasks such as collecting patient samples, testing and tracing; members of grassroots anti-COVID-19 groups; members of COVID-19 steering committees at local and central levels; and police and military members.

Regarding last week's death of a medical worker in Vietnam who developed anaphylactic shock after receiving the COVID-19 shot, health authorities have stressed that the reaction rate is still too small to forego the critical protection that the vaccines offer against COVID-19.

Pham Quang Thai, head of the northern region office of the NEPI, said all vaccines, drugs, and even food  not just COVID-19 vaccines  could lead to adverse reactions, but the rate is very low and if the vaccinated are monitored and reactions are promptly dealt with then there would be few problems.

We are pained to hear about the incident. It was very rare, and we wont pause (the vaccination drive) here but we should learn from the experience here to prevent such regrettable incidents in the future, Thai said.

Specifically, there must be increased readiness for the prevention of anaphylaxis at all immunisation facilities, according to the doctor.

Adrenalin shots must be readily available so that they could be immediately administered, instead of wasting critical time in preparing the shots, he said, adding that training and supervision of follow-up post-vaccination monitoring should also be strengthened to ensure that medical staff are ready in all situations.

Given the currently limited supply to Vietnam, especially as the COVID-19 situation is showing complicated developments, the health ministry has met with a World Health Organization (WHO) representative to facilitate the negotiations on transferring of mRNA technology  currently the cutting-edge technology used in highly effective COVID-19 vaccines like Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna (while AstraZeneca used vector-based technology)  so that Vietnam can start producing the vaccines right within the country.

The health ministry is awaiting the results of the second phase of the human trials of Nanogen, Vietnams front runner in the race for a homegrown COVID-19 vaccine, and depending on the safety assessment, could start administering the vaccine to the population as the phase 3 trials commence.

VNS

Vietnam to produce Covid-19 vaccines by September The clinical trial of the domestically-made Nanocovax vaccine is going smoothly, and by the end of September, Vietnam will have its first Covid-19 vaccine.
Bai Chay, which is considered the tourist capital of Ha Long City in Quang Ninh province, has been completely empty these days due to the impact of the new Covid-19 wave in the country.

Just a few days ago, the national holiday that fell on April 30  May 1, Ha Long welcomed more than 280,000 visitors.

However, Covid-19 has broken out again. And Bai Chay is now quiet again.

The tourist street is completely quiet as almost all restaurants and shops were close.

The street is nearly empty. Several restaurants sell food in the take-away mode but do not have customers.

"I have opened the restaurant for nearly a month, but except for the recent holiday, we have not a single customer. In such a situation, we may fail to pay salary to our employees," said Mr. Nguyen Hai, who runs Hai Quan restaurant in Bai Chay.

Some pictures taken in Bai Chay during the past weekend:

Pham Cong

Ha Long City: then and now Ha Long City in Quang Ninh province, the home to Ha Long Bay, a world natural heritage site and a world-famous tourist site, is spacious and beautiful today.
So, if Maryland were to go this route again, it might consider adapting  or outright adopting  such classics as Blue Bayou. Written by 60s rocker Roy Orbison, made famous by 1970s pop star Linda Rondstadt and later covered by the Mavericks in 2011, its got staying power: Im going back someday, come what may to Chesapeake Bay. The extra syllable will just make it that much more interesting.
A French court on May 10 dismissed a lawsuit lodged by a French of Vietnamese origin against multinational companies that produced and supplied Agent Orange, containing dioxin sprayed by US troops during the Vietnam War, AP reported.

Tran To Nga says she will appeal the court's ruling. (Photo: AP)

The judicial court of Evry on the outskirts of Paris ruled that it has no jurisdiction in this case as the defendants said they acted under the constraint of the US government during wartime in Vietnam.

Tran To Nga, 79, filed a lawsuit in 2014 in France against 14 companies that produced and sold Agent Orange, including US multinational firms Dow Chemical and Monsanto, now owned by German giant Bayer.

Nga said she was exposed to AO/dioxin in 1966 and she did not know about the fatal effect of the chemical that can transmit to later generations. Her first child died of respiratory and skin problems 17 months after the bay was born. Her two others daughters are still alive but have poor health conditions, and a grand-daughter of hers suffers from heart diseases.

She is seeking damages for her multiple health problems, including a cancer, and those of her children.

Nga said she will appeal the courts decision, said her layers.

Between 1962 and 1971, the US military sprayed roughly 11 million gallons of the chemical agent, including dioxin, across large swaths of southern Vietnam.

About 4 million Vietnamese people were exposed to the AO/dioxin, of whom three million, including their children, have suffered illnesses from the chemical.

VOV
The German Communist Party (DKP) on May 10 issued a statement expressing its support for the lawsuit lodged by Vietnamese French Tran To Nga and Vietnamese Agent Orange/dioxin victims against 14 multinational chemical groups.

Caring for children infected with AO/dioxin (Photo: VNA)

In a statement sent to the Vietnamese Embassy in Germany and the Vietnam News Agency representative office in Berlin, the DKP stated that on May 10, a court in Evry city, Paris ruled that the case fell outside its jurisdiction.

This ruling has once again ignored millions of Vietnamese who are suffering from serious consequences caused by the chemical war waged by the US troops during the war in Vietnam, it said, stressing that the party will continue bringing to light culprits behind the sufferings of Vietnamese victims.

The DKP also affirmed its profound solidarity with Tran To Nga and AO victims in Vietnam.

Earlier, the Bourdon & Associated law firm also vowed to accompany Nga and Vietnamese AO victims in their struggle for justice. It wished that she would take care of herself to keep on fighting to the end.

In their announcement issued right after the Evry courts ruling, lawyers William Bourdon, Amelie Lefebvre va Bertrand Repolt, who have supported Nga for more than 10 years, affirmed that the court was applying an obsolete definition of the immunity of jurisdiction principle which contradicted modern principles of international and national law.



They said they were surprised as the court recognised that the companies concerned had acted under the constraint of the then US government whereas they answered to a call for tenders, which they were free to do or not.

More seriously, the US government at that time did not force the production of products containing a high dioxin concentration such as Agent Orange. This only came from the policy of the chemical companies themselves, the lawyers said.



Nga, 79, accuses 14 multinational chemical companies, including herbicide manufacturer Monsanto (now under the Bayer Group of Germany), of supplying the herbicide and defoliant chemical - Agent Orange (AO)/dioxin, which was used extensively by the US army between 1961-1971 in Vietnam, causing serious consequences for 4 million people and severely poisoning the environment.



The woman, also an AO victim, has pursued the lawsuit for over a decade, including six years in court.

After the ruling on May 10, Nga said she will appeal immediately, kicking off a new journey no matter how difficult it will be.

She emphasised that she will be at the forefront of a march in Paris on May 15 to oppose Monsanto and reiterate the lawsuit.

German newspaper: Consequences of Agent Orange lingers in Vietnam

Germanys Frankfurter Rundschau (FR) newspaper on May 9 ran an article highlighting a lawsuit by Vietnamese-French Tran To Nga over multinational companies which produced and sold the toxic chemical Agent Orange (AO) containing dioxin sprayed by US forces during the war in Vietnam. The article emphasizes that the consequences of the toxins continue lingering in Vietnam until now.

The author of the article, Stefan Brandle, described 79-year-old Nga as a woman with a robust appearance but suffering from many different severe diseases such as breast cancer, type-II diabetes, high blood pressure, alpha thalassemia and heart-related diseases.



When she was exposed to AO/dioxin in 1966, Nga did not know about the fatal effect of the chemical that can transmit to later generations. But when she gave birth to her first child in 1969, the baby girl lived only 17 months and died due to respiratory and skin problems. Her two others daughters are still alive but have poor health conditions, and a grand-daughter of Nga suffers from heart diseases.

The author wrote that during 1961-1971, the US army sprayed 80 million litres of herbicides and defoliants, 46 million litres of which were AO produced by many companies, including the US chemical manufacturer Monsanto, which is now part of the Bayer Group, in order to defoliate entire forests and track down Vietnamese soldiers.

Agent Orange, which also contains the poisonous dioxin and directly attacks the genetic make-up, has caused hundreds of thousands of deaths and millions of sick people in Vietnam.

Even today, in the fourth generation after the end of the war, around 6,000 babies with deformities and serious diseases are born in Vietnam every year, the article stressed.

In 1984, US veterans who participated in the Vietnam war were paid almost 180 million USD in compensation. However, Vietnamese AO victims have been paid nothing.

Nga, therefore, filed a lawsuit at Evry, France, where she now lives, against 14 chemical giants such as Monsanto or Dow Chemical in 2004. The ruling is expected to be issued on May 10.

According to the article, after that day, the defendants can appeal and that would be a disadvantage for Nga, as doctors said that the 79-year-old doesn't have much time left.

However, the Vietnamese French woman is still not discouraged, as she wants to expand the lawsuit to include the offense of ecocide - a crime against nature. The French National Assembly included the term in its new climate law at the beginning of May, the article wrote./.

French law firm affirms support for Vietnamese AO victim's lawsuit

The France-based Bourdon & Associates law firm affirmed its support for Vietnamese-French Tran To Nga in her lawsuit against multinational chemical companies after the Crown Court of Evry City ruled that it did not have jurisdiction to hear her case on May 10.

In their announcement issued right after the Evry courts ruling, William Bourdon, Amelie Lefebvre va Bertrand Repolt, who have supported Nga for more than 10 years, affirmed that the court was applying an obsolete definition of the immunity of jurisdiction principle which contradicted modern principles of international and national law.

They said they were surprised as the court recognised that the companies concerned had acted under the constraint of the then US government whereas they answered to a call for tenders, which they were free to do or not.

More seriously, the US government at that time did not force the production of products containing a high dioxin concentration such as Agent Orange. This only came from the policy of the chemical companies themselves, the lawyers said.

Nga, 79, accuses 14 multinational chemical companies, including herbicide manufacturer Monsanto (now under the Bayer Group of Germany), of supplying the herbicide and defoliant chemical - Agent Orange (AO)/dioxin, which was used extensively by the US army between 1961-1971 in Vietnam, causing serious consequences for 4 million people and severely poisoning the environment.

The woman, also an AO victim, has pursued the lawsuit for over a decade, including six years in court.

During 1961-1971, the US troops sprayed 80 million liters of herbicides and defoliants, 46 liters of which were Agent Orange produced by many companies./.

Vietnamese-French woman presses ahead with historic AO lawsuit

Vietnamese-French woman Tran To Nga affirmed she will continue her lawsuit against multinational companies for producing and selling chemical toxins sprayed by US forces during the war in Vietnam after the Crown Court of Evry City ruled that it was not competent enough to hear her case.

Nga, 79, accuses 14 multinational chemical companies, including herbicide manufacturer Monsanto (now under the Bayer Group of Germany), of supplying the herbicide and defoliant chemical - Agent Orange (AO)/dioxin, which was used extensively by the US army between 1961-1971 in Vietnam, causing serious consequences for 4 million people and severely poisoning the environment.

The woman, also an AO victim, has pursued the lawsuit for over a decade, including six years in court.

Regarding the Crown Court of Evry Citys ruling, Nga said she was not surprised as she was prepared. The woman stated that she will appeal immediately, kicking off a new journey no matter how difficult it will be.

On the evening of May 10, a committee in support of Ngas lawsuit will meet to discuss the upcoming strategy. A press conference will take place on the morning of May 11 with the participation of French and foreign press agencies interested in the case.

Nga emphasised she will be at the forefront of a march in Paris on May 15 to oppose Monsanto and reiterate the lawsuit./.VNA
Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy expressed Vietnams serious concern over recent tension in East Jerusalem and called on sides involved to restrain themselves at an UN Security Council emergency meeting held in New York on May 10.

Palestinian protesters injured in conflict with Israeli police.

At the meeting on the Middle East situation, including the Palestine issue, UNs Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland delivered a briefing on escalating violence in East Jerusalem, particularly the number of injuries and fatalities among civilians, calling upon the council to make actions to ease the tension.

Quy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations, said without specific steps, the tension is likely to further escalating and the violent cycle could come back at any moment.

He said Vietnam condemns all acts of violence and unnecessary use of lethal weapons against civilians and called on all parties to exercise maximum restraint and avoid any actions and statements that might complicate the situation.

Expressing his serious concern over the fact that about 970 Palestinians are at risk of being deported from their homes in East Jerusalem, the diplomat called for an end to all acts violating international law and humanitarian obligations.

Vietnam called on the Israeli government to fully respect the rights of Palestinians in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, to traditional religious and cultural activities, especially during the Muslim month of Ramadan, Quy said.

The emergency meeting took place at the request of nine council member countries  Tunisia, Ireland, China, Estonia, France, Norway, Niger, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Vietnam./. VNA
The girl testified she was terrified and disgusted by Laymans improper text messages. She reported them to her mother, who contacted the sheriffs office. Scaramucci, who specializes in trafficking and exploitation cases, took over the girls phone, posing as the teen in text message conversations with Layman, which he said quickly escalated to being more sexually explicit.

Scaramucci testified there were 109 pages of screen shots from the text message exchanges between Layman and the officer over the course of a month. The text messages started out with Layman telling the girl that he was going to make it his mission to teach her how to party. When he asked her what she liked to drink, she replied Dr Pepper.

After the deputy began his investigation, the messages became more explicit, with Layman describing sex acts he wanted to perform on the girl and asking her to call him Daddy.

Tuggle told the judge at the December sentencing that Layman was placed on probation by Baylor University Law School officials for sexting, or sending texts with obscene photos, to fellow students.
We have definitely seen an increase from families of color who have wanted to adopt pets, so making our services bilingual has definitely helped with that, Savido said.

Buzbee also said the city is working on a few studies to evaluate the cost of service at the shelter to better operate the facility including working with Team Shelter USA, which will do a walk through of the shelter and look at programs to find ways they can be improved and be more efficient with the staff they have onsite

The city is real excited about that. It is all designed to help improve the welfare and our ability to care for the animals here in the shelter, Buzbee said.

Rivadeneira said the shelter is also working with residents so that they dont have to surrender their pets.

We have many resources available. We work with other organizations that have resources. We want to help keep pets in peoples homes, Rivadeneira said. So whether you are being evicted, going to the hospital and you dont have anyone to take care of your dog, whatever your case may be, or you are going to jail, let us know and let us help you.
Mike Morrison, who preceded Ethridge as mayor, joined the council a year after Ethridge and considered her a mentor. He said she encouraged him to spend his evenings at neighborhood meetings and community gatherings and to visit people affected by an issue.

She helped me get involved with some of the civic aspects of Waco life, he said. She was very generous in helping introduce me to individuals and groups that helped me become a better council person.

From the beginning of her tenure as mayor, Ethridge took on agricultural interests that resisted major changes to waste disposal in the Erath County area, which was then the dairy capital of Texas.

City of Waco officials had been meeting with dairy operators on a committee for several years, but Ethridge warned the committee in April 2000 that the farmers must commit to much stricter standards or the city of Waco will be compelled to seek protection through other remedies available.

Under Ethridges leadership, the city in 2001 worked with Wacos state legislators to require special waste disposal rules on big dairies in the North Bosque watershed in 2001 to cut phosphorus levels in the river by half, then fought the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality over how the rules were applied.
The service will be streamed live on the McDowell Funeral Home website.

After learning of Pearsons death, his friends, including bank executive Sam Brown, former U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, former Ambassador to Sweden Lyndon Olson and Mathis, pledged Pearson would not be buried as a pauper and worked to locate his older brother, Cecil Pearson, a retired sheriffs captain, in Las Vegas.

Brown has set up a fund at First National Bank of Central Texas to help pay for Robert Pearsons burial expenses.

Apartment workers concerned about Pearson checked on him May 3 and found him unresponsive inside his apartment. Waco police mistakenly thought he was dead and called Justice of the Peace Pete Peterson to the scene.

Peterson declared him dead. Mortuary workers who were called to pick up Pearsons body found that Pearson was still alive. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital, where he died later that day, and Peterson declared him dead for a second time.

Waco Police Chief Sheryl Victorian announced Friday, five days after Pearsons death, that the city has revised its policies to ensure medical personnel from the Waco Fire Department and American Medical Response respond to questionable death calls.
Texas schools have mitigated the worst of these issues for many students by remaining open for all students who chose to attend this school year, he wrote in an email, and we stand firmly by our decision as a state to offer options for our students and their families at a time when many students across the country did not have those options.

Texas State Teachers Association President Ovidia Molina said she is worried about upcoming summer classes and another fall return. Last fall, she said, teachers reported inconsistent mask usage and expired cleaning supplies.

TSTA continues to push for requiring everyone to wear a mask in schools because its still hard to know who is vaccinated, she said.

Although in-person attendance is valuable for students because of its learning and relationship benefits, Molina said many educators and staff members have died of COVID-19, and the trauma that losing a teacher brings to students and co-workers is important to consider.

Its just this sense of urgency that we know we have and we feel, and we want others to have as well, Molina said.
WAVERLY  The Board of Education approved a sharing agreement for a human resources director with two other school districts Monday after being notified that the city wanted to end their three-year arrangement.

Waverly-Shell Rock Community Schools will now share the position with the Dike-New Hartford and Grundy Center school districts.

In reaching out to some other districts, these two were definitely interested, Superintendent Ed Klamfoth told the board. The city of Waverly employs the current shared director and is moving that to a full-time dedicated position. The other two districts dont employ a human resources person.

We would hold the contract, said Klamfoth. Waverly-Shell Rock will cover 60% of the directors salary and benefits with the other two districts each covering 20%. He noted that the district will begin advertising immediately. A salary range is not set, but officials will look at candidates experience.

The board also approved two-year wage agreements with several employee groups.

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The company is strongly encouraging workers to get vaccinated, but is not mandating vaccination.

We hope that our team members will make the appropriate decision thats right for them, Coplein said.

Tyson spokesperson Liz Croston said the company so far had two vaccination events for Waterloo workers. Tyson will work with the Black Hawk County Health Department to schedule more events as needed.

The company is offering workers up to four hours of regular pay to get vaccinated, and is offering vaccine clinics for family members and others who live with Tyson workers.

The 35% current vaccination rate at the Waterloo plant falls below the countywide vaccination rate of nearly 55% among adults, according to local data. It similarly falls under the nearly 58% vaccination rate among adults throughout the United States, according to CDC data.

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From January through October of every year, tennis star Sloane Stephens is in a different city competing. Based out of Florida, she visits her mother in Los Angeles as often as she can  and also checks in on the Sloane Stephens Foundation, which utilizes education and tennis to uplift vulnerable children. I honestly dont remember where exactly (my first tennis tournament was), but I do remember that I had a lot of fun and met friends that I grew close to and continued to see at tournaments, Sloane said from Paris, where she was competing in the French Open. That positive first experience with tennis is why I stuck with it. That is the type of environment we create with the kids at the Sloane Stephens Foundation. We give you all the tools to take tennis as far as you want, but the most important thing is that you are finding a pathway to be healthy, happy and have a positive experience. Stephens  who serves on the WTA Players Council  stays in touch with fans on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/sloanestephens/), Twitter (https://twitter.com/SloaneStephens) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/Sloaneposts).
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En espanol | Reaching age 50 is a milestone that most of us celebrate. Still, after youve blown out the candles and bid farewell to your guests, you may have a headache from too much champagne, but otherwise feel the same as before.



Wake up! This is the time to reassess and make sure that your financial plan is in order. If you push it off until later, you may make serious mistakes that will jeopardize your future financial security.

After acknowledging this momentous birthday, Austin Frye, a certified financial planner (CFP) at the Frye Financial Center in Aventura, Florida, invites prospective clients to a financial review. With those who have done little budgeting or saving, hes direct. You have one last chance to put yourself on course to achieve a successful retirement, Frye tells them. Its time to talk about saving more, spending less or both.

Some folks listen, but others dont. Following are 10 errors that Frye and other financial planners see 50-year-olds make that may, indeed, have serious consequences down the road.

1. Expecting to work past retirement age

First, how much time do you really have? Are you planning to work until age 65 or 70? Think again, says Scott Stratton, a CFP at Good Life Wealth Management in Little Rock, Arkansas. Data from the Employee Benefits Research Institute (EBRI) show that 48 percent of people retire sooner than planned, often due to layoffs, health issues or family matters. Lose your job in your 60s, and it may be incredibly difficult to find a new one, especially with the same pay and benefits, Stratton warns. Likewise, Andrew Houte, a CFP at New Level Planning & Wealth Management in Brookfield, Wisconsin, advises his clients to plan for an earlier retirement date. If you work well into your 60s, it should be because you want to, and not because you have to.

2. Taking too much risk  or too little

At this point, some people realize that time is running out, says Mackenzie Richards, a CFP in Providence, Rhode Island. They may do one of two things: take too much risk, often with speculative investments, or sell everything and move into cash, CDs or fixed annuities. The latter strategy could deprive them of decades of growth. And the former could result in big losses when they can least afford them. He recommends finding a CFP who can help you create an investment strategy based on your goals, aspirations and concerns. If you prefer to control your own portfolio, then look for a planner who will work with you to create that plan, while you manage your investments. This can be a cost-effective way to get a second opinion on your financial situation and prepare an investment strategy that keeps you from going to extremes.

3. Ignoring the 50-plus catch-up provisions

What if you are behind in your saving? Fortunately, as a 50-year-old, you can catch up. For 2021, the IRS is allowing individuals to contribute an additional $1,000 to an IRA on top of the standard $6,000 limit. Self-employed people 50 and older with a SIMPLE IRA can add $3,000 to the $13,500 limit. If you have an employer-sponsored 401(k) you can max out your contributions by adding $6,500 over the $19,500 limit. And while you are still gainfully employed, you can start a Roth IRA, adds Rafael Rubio, a CFP at Stable Retirement Planners in Southfield, Michigan. The contribution for this year is up to $7,000 for those 50-plus.

4. Carrying credit card debt

Paying down debt is also essential, though many people dont do it aggressively enough, says Christopher Lyman, a CFP at Allied Financial Advisors LLC in Newtown, Pennsylvania. Ideally, you should work toward having no debt except your mortgage. Once other debts are paid off, and you are funding your retirement, then focus on paying down your mortgage. Theres nothing like being financially independent in retirement, he adds.

5. Taking on college debt

What about the kids? Arthur Ebersole, a CFP at Ebersole Financial LLC, in Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts, sees parents take on too much debt to fund their childrens college because they did not save enough in their 529 plans. They take out home equity loans or other debts that they may be unable to pay off before retirement. Mortgages and college loans put a significant drag on monthly cash flow, especially for those on a fixed budget, he says. Instead, have your kids take loans in their names, and help them with payments as much as you can or wish to. Marguerita Cheng, mother of three, and a CFP at Blue Ocean Global Wealth in Gaithersburg, Maryland, concurs. Some parents are afraid to have the conversation with their student and school about the right financial fit. But you dont want to compromise your own financial security.
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After NBC announced a cancellation of 2020 Globes, the 'Mission: Impossible' star is said to have returned the trophies he won for 'Jerry Maguire', 'Born on the Fourth of July' and 'Magnolia'.

May 11, 2021

AceShowbiz - Tom Cruise has reportedly returned his three Golden Globes to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a protest against the lack of black members in the organization.

HFPA leaders are currently under attack from Hollywood A-listers and executives after it was revealed none of the group's 87 members were black.

They have promised sweeping reforms, which will include adding 13 black journalists as members, but their critics are demanding more, with Scarlett Johansson calling for a boycott, while NBC bosses have opted not to air the organization's annual Golden Globes prizegiving next year (2022).

In a statement to Variety, Johansson said, "The HFPA is an organization that was legitimized by the likes of Harvey Weinstein to amass momentum for Academy recognition and the industry followed suit."

"Unless there is necessary fundamental reform within the organization," she continued, "I believe it is time that we take a step back from the HFPA and focus on the importance and strength of unity within our unions and the industry as a whole."

As for the cancellation of 2022 Globes, NBC announced, "We continue to believe that the HFPA is committed to meaningful reform. However, change of this magnitude takes time and work, and we feel strongly that the HFPA needs time to do it right."

"As such, NBC will not air the 2022 Golden Globes," the network further declared. "Assuming the organization executes on its plan, we are hopeful we will be in a position to air the show in January 2023."

And now Deadline sources claim Cruise has handed back the Globes he won for "Jerry Maguire", "Born on the Fourth of July" and "Magnolia".

Cruise and the HFPA have yet to confirm the story.
Instagram Music

To feature all-new original material, 'Exodus' shares its name with the late rapper's son, Exodus Simmons, and will be his first release since 2012's 'Undisputed'.

May 11, 2021

AceShowbiz - A posthumous DMX album, produced by Swizz Beatz, is to be released at the end of this month (May 2021). "Exodus", DMX's first release since 2012's "Undisputed", will feature all-new original material.

Confirming the project's release, less than two months after the tragic rapper's death on April 9, Swizz Beatz says, "My brother X was one of the most pure and rare souls I've ever met. He lived his life dedicated to his family and music. Most of all, he was generous with his giving and loved his fans beyond measure."

"This album, X couldn't wait for his fans all around the world to hear and show just how much he valued each and every single person that has supported him unconditionally."

"Exodus" shares its name with DMX's son, Exodus Simmons. It will be made available on May 28.

DMX passed away around a week after he was admitted to White Plains Hospital in New York following a heart attack. It was said that he was in a "vegetative state with lung and brain failure" upon his admission and was placed on life support.

At the time, X's family issued a statement that read, "Earl 'DMX' Simmons was rushed to the hospital after collapsing at home." They continued, "At this time he remains in ICU in critical condition. Earl has been a warrior his entire life. This situation represents yet another road he must conquer."

Thanking fans for "the overwhelming outpouring of heartfelt love, encouragement, support and prayers," X's family went on to say, "Earl is someone whose life and music have been a source of inspiration and strength to so many people around the world. It is reassuring to see his fans return that same passion and energy to him during his time of need."
WENN/Ivan Nikolov TV

Kate McKinnon, Mikey Day, Heidi Gardner, Ego Nwodim, Bowen Yang and host Elon Musk have angered many after they used slang terms from African American Vernacular English (AAVE) in the skit 'Gen Z Hospital' written by Che.

May 11, 2021

AceShowbiz - Michael Che has addressed backlash over his latest "Saturday Night Live" sketch. After "Gen Z Hospital" skit written by him was accused of cultural appropriation, the stand-up comedian admitted that he was "stunned" by the accusations.

"I've been reading about how my 'gen z' sketch was misappropriating AAVE, and I was stunned, cause what the f**k is 'AAVE'? I had to look it up," the 37-year-old wrote on Instagram on Monday, May 10. "Turns out it's an acronym for 'African American Vernacular English.' You know, AAVE! That ol' saying that actual Black people use in conversation all the time..."

Che went on to note, "Look, the sketch bombed. I'm used to that. I meant no offense to the 'AAVE' community. I love AAVE. AAVE to the moon." In the caption of the post, he penned, "if i could stop one person from calling everybody bro and bestie, im happy with that."

"Gen Z Hospital" was aired on Saturday, May 8. In the sketch, Mikey Day, Kate McKinnon, Heidi Gardner, Bowen Yang, Ego Nwodim and host Elon Musk used slang terms from AAVE such as "bestie," "no cap," "go off," "king," "sis," "gang gang" and "it's the.... for me." They have since drawn criticism on Twitter.

One person in particular tweeted, "i hate how aave has been reduced to gen z / stan twitter language because those who have any knowledge about anything watch this and just feel gross about this subtle mockery of black people." Another sarcastically stated, "love the relabelling of AAVE and a few assorted BLACK LGBTQ+ phrases as 'Gen z' speak. love to see the erasure in real time."

The backlash continued with one arguing, "the appropriation of AAVE by white people is gross, the mislabeling of AAVE as a 'Gen Z phenomenon' is also gross, but on top of that, the SNL skit reads like they just pulled a list of terms from UrbanDictionary and sprinkled them in, not caring that AAVE has a defined grammar!" The individual continued, "AAVE is a defined dialect which, yes, has its own grammatical rules. You can't just stick random words together and call it AAVE!"
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The upcoming show, titled 'The Me You Can't See', will chronicle stories meant to help lift the veil on the current state of mental health and emotional well-being.

May 11, 2021

AceShowbiz - Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry's new docuseries will arrive on Apple TV+ this month. The upcoming show, titled "The Me You Can't See", will chronicle stories meant to help lift the veil on the current state of mental health and emotional well-being.

"Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry guide honest discussions about mental health and emotional well-being while opening up about their mental health journeys and struggles," the news release of the docuseries stated.

It continued to read, "Featuring high-profile guests, alongside a wide range of people from across the globe living with the challenges of mental health issues and addressing their emotional well-being, the series transcends culture, age, gender, and socioeconomic status to destigmatize a highly misunderstood subject and give hope to viewers who learn that they are not alone. The producers partnered with 14 accredited and respected experts and organizations from around the world to help shed light on different pathways to treatment."

Meanwhile, Oprah said in a statement, "Now more than ever, there is an immediate need to replace the shame surrounding mental health with wisdom, compassion, and honesty. Our series aims to spark that global conversation."

Harry shared, "We are born into different lives, brought up in different environments, and as a result are exposed to different experiences. But our shared experience is that we are all human." The Duke of Sussex added, "The majority of us carry some form of unresolved trauma, loss, or grief, which feels -- and is -- very personal. Yet the last year has shown us that we are all in this together, and my hope is that this series will show there is power in vulnerability, connection in empathy, and strength in honesty."

Featuring Lady GaGa, Glenn Close and San Antonio Spurs' DeMar DeRozan among others, "The Me You Can't See" is set to premiere on May 21 on Apple TV+.
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Days after the longtime host announced her departure, the 'Orange Is the New Black' star is uncovered to be fronting a series of specials and marshalling the network's awards show coverage.

May 11, 2021

AceShowbiz - Laverne Cox has signed on to become the ultimate fashionista, replacing Giuliana Rancic as E!'s red carpet style guru.

Rancic announced she would be stepping down as the network's leading fashion critic last week (May 7), and the "Orange Is the New Black" star will take her place, fronting a series of specials and marshalling E!'s awards show coverage.

"I'm so excited and deeply humbled to be hosting E!'s iconic red-carpet coverage," Laverne said in a statement. "For many years I would wake up early on awards show days, get my snacks in place and watch E!'s coverage all day long. I dreamed of walking red carpets."

"Now, not only have I had several fun and amazing personal red-carpet moments, I also get to be a red carpet guide for E!'s discerning audience and chat with my colleagues and folks I deeply admire for these very special events in their lives. I can't wait to get started while hopefully serving up fashion fantasies for the ages honey."

E! News executive Jen Neal branded Laverne as "a risk taker, groundbreaking pioneer and a fashion tour de force." In a statement, she added, "As we continue to evolve the way we cover Hollywood's biggest nights, Laverne's passion for, and extensive knowledge of, the fashion community resonates with our audience and we look forward to seeing her shine on the other side of the velvet rope."

Giuliana herself issued a lengthy Instagram message about her exit. "After 20 fabulous years hosting E!'s red carpet, I have decided to step out of my red carpet heels into a new pair of shoes," she wrote in a post. "One of my passions is great storytelling and I am thrilled to announce a new development deal with E!'s parent company NBCUniversal where I will be producing and bringing stories to life."

"To my E! family, thank you for allowing me to make my red carpet dreams come true for the past two decades. It has truly been a highlight of my career and life. To my production team throughout the years, you are all simply the best," she went on expressing her gratitude. "We have made some beautiful memories together that I will always carry with me."

At the end, the former star of "Giuliana & Bill" stated her hope for the future. "And to all the viewers, all around the world, thank you for watching and supporting me as we went along together on this red carpet ride," she noted. "I love and appreciate you all and I sure hope you will join me as I enter this exciting new chapter."
Instagram Celebrity

Unveiling the first pictures and a video of baby Jupiter on social media, the 'High School Musical' alum raves that 'the past 6 weeks have been such a blessing.'

May 11, 2021

AceShowbiz - Ashley Tisdale continued to share her joy after welcoming her first child. In commemoration of Mother's Day, the Sharpay Evans depicter in "High School Musical" film series gushed over her "beautiful" daughter as she shared a sweet tribute to her newborn.

On Sunday, May 9, the 35-year-old mom unveiled first pictures and a clip of baby Jupiter on Instagram. One of the snaps saw her husband Christopher French holding the 6-week-old infant. The footage, on the other hand, showed her cuddling up with the baby girl.

In the caption of the post, Ashley raved, "This little lady made me a momma! I knew @cmfrench and I would have a cute baby but I wasn't expecting how beautiful she would be." She then added, "To be a mom You don't know how hard it is until you become one. Mothers you are truly goddesses and single moms you are my superheroes. The past 6 weeks have been such a blessing. Jupiter you are everything and more."

Ashley's husband, meanwhile, took to his Instagram account to offer a dedication for her. Sharing some images of the new mom and their new bundle of joy, he penned, "Happy First Mother's Day to the love of my life! It blows me away every day, watching you instantly become the most incredible Mom. Thank you for creating our little Juju and bringing her into this world so lovingly, you're an inspiration x @ashleytisdale."

The former star of "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" and the musician announced Jupiter's arrival on March 24. Letting out a black-and-white shot of their hands clutching the newborn's tiny fingers on Instagram, they declared, "Jupiter Iris French arrived earth side 3.23.21."

Ashley and Christopher got engaged in 2013 after being together for more than a year. They tied the knot on September 8, 2014 in a small private ceremony held in Santa Barbara, California.
WENN/Lia Toby Celebrity

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are called out after asking their fans to donate for COVID-19 vaccines on their son Archie's birthday while they are 'obscenely wealthy.'

May 11, 2021

AceShowbiz - Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's message for sharing on their son Archie's birthday has earned them criticism. To mark their first child's very special day on Thursday, May 6, the couple let out a never-before-seen picture of the birthday boy holding balloons while urging their fans to "Join Us in Advocating for Vaccine Equity on Archie's Birthday."

However, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's plea for COVID-19 vaccine donations has been labeled as insensitive considering they are "obscenely wealthy." One of the critics slammed the couple for urging their fan base to "celebrate the birthday of their fabulously privileged child" by donating for vaccines.

Another similarly branded it "crass" for Harry and Meghan to "use their child to beg for cash" for vaccines. A third one questioned the pair's personal contribution to the cause, "I wonder how much they donate themselves to these causes," while someone else said it was like "Robin Hood in reverse."

On their Archewell Foundation website, the soon-to-be-parents of two urged their fans to donate to GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance. They noted that a $5 donation would be matched by organizations supporting the appeal to become $20, which would cover the purchase of four vaccines.

"We cannot think of a more resonant way to honor our son's birthday," they stated on their website. "If we all show up, with compassion for those we both know and dont know, we can have a profound impact." They concluded by saying, "Together, we can uplift, protect, and care for one another."

The Duke and Duchess themselves have not announced any personal donation to the cause. The couple, however, made a charitable act in another form in honor of their son's birthday. They are unveiled to have donated 200 knit beanie hats to the I Got Your Back Pack initiative for New Zealand children in need.

The organization Make Give Live posted a video thanking the Sussexes for their donation. "Thank you Harry & Meghan, Duke & Duchess of Sussex, and of course, Archie for the generous donation of these 200 beanies to your friends on the other side of the world in NZ. @igotyourbackpacknz was very grateful for them and they will be sent in care packs to refuges around NZ to warm heads and hearts," read the note from the organization.

The statement continued to read, "It also meant a lot for our maker community to have something special to bring them together to enjoy connection and creativity whilst making them, and didn't they do an incredible job!? Happy Birthday Archie."
WENN/Apega/Adriana M. Barraza Celebrity

Rumor has it it was the 'Justice League' star who started reaching out to his ex-fiancee while she was in the Caribbean island to film her movie 'Shotgun Wedding'.

May 11, 2021

AceShowbiz - Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez's reunion reportedly started out with exchanging love letters while she was still working on her relationship with Alex Rodriguez. The "Gone Girl" actor and the "Hustlers" star had reportedly been in contact for over two months before they were spotted vacationing together.

Sources with alleged direct knowledge spill to TMZ that it was the Batman of "Zack Snyder's Justice League" who first reached out to his former fiancee in February. He reportedly sent her emails while she was in the Dominican Republic to film her new movie "Shotgun Wedding".

It's said that "the tone of the emails wasn't just friendly ... but more loving and longing for Jen." For instance, the sources claim Ben gushed about how beautiful the "On the Floor" songstress looked in pictures which captured her in the Caribbean island. The 48-year-old actor/director allegedly also expressed his wish that he could be down there with her.

J.Lo, in return, reportedly praised Ben's writing and replied to him that he could be able to "own her heart" with his pen. Their email exchange was said lasting during the duration of J.Lo's movie shoot, which wrapped in late April.

The sources, however, note that there was no physical contact or meeting between the two during this time as J.Lo was still with Alex, who was seen visiting her in the Dominican Republic despite rumors of their rocky romance at the time. It wasn't until mid-April that J.Lo and A-Rod announced their split in a statement to "Today" show.

Just two weeks later, Ben and Jen sparked reconciliation rumors after he was spotted making several visits to her house. Despite initial reports which claimed that the two were just being "friendly," they were later reportedly seen at the Big Sky Resort in Montana this past weekend.

On Monday, May 10, pictures surfaced of Ben and Jen exiting a private plane after they landed in Los Angeles. The two were seen leaving together in an SUV.
WENN Celebrity

The 'Winter's Tale' actor and his baby mama have filed legal documents to ask judge to grant them a conservatorship for their son who has a rare condition that causes disabilities.

May 12, 2021

AceShowbiz - Colin Farrell has filed a conservatorship for his son to allow him to properly care for him as an adult.

The Irish actor's kid, James, has a rare condition known as Angelman Syndrome, a genetic disorder which causes developmental delays and disabilities, and Colin and model Kim Bordenave have filed a joint petition for a conservatorship, so they can make medical decisions for him when he turns 18 in September (21), according to The Blast.

In the documents, Farrell and Bordenave make it clear that James is in need of daily assistance in caring for his physical health and well-being, and his parents want to be in charge of their son's financial and medical decisions.

The filing includes a note from James' doctor, advising it would be difficult for the teen to attend a court hearing, as it raises his anxiety levels.

"I decided, after consulting with James' mother, that I wanted to talk publicly about the pride and joy I had in our son," Farrell writes. "He has enriched my life, but I don't want to minimize the trials that so many families go through: the fear, consternation, frustration, and pain."

"We share in the smallest victories - the first words at age six or seven, being able to feed oneself at nine and getting the seizures under control. When you're the parent of a child with special needs, it's important to feel that you're not alone."
LOS ANGELES (AP)  Authorities say two California police officers were shot and killed and a third was wounded within 24 hours this week in two separate incidents.

Police say an officer in the Northern California city of Stockton was fatally shot Tuesday morning.

The officer has not been identified. A male suspect was also shot and killed in the incident.

In San Luis Obispo, a central California city about 250 miles south of Stockton, Detective Luca Benedetti was shot and killed while serving a search warrant Monday evening.

RELATED: 1 of 2 officers shot in California dies, gunman killed

Detective Steve Orozco was injured in the shooting. He was released from a hospital and is expected to recover from his wounds. The gunman in that incident fatally shot himself.
RED BLUFF, Calif.  Police are seeking help from the public in locating a missing Red Bluff teen.

The Red Bluff Police Department told Action News Now 14-year-old Sayla Mae Brieann Blanchard began running away on March 29, 2021. Officers said she has attempted "numerous" runaways, however, she has been missing longer than usual which prompted police to ask the public for help.

Blanchard has been described as 501, 98 pounds with brown hair and blue eyes. Police said she is considered at-risk because of her age.

Anyone with information regarding Blanchards whereabouts is asking to contact the Red Bluff Police Department at 530-527-3131.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP)  California Gov. Gavin Newsom is proposing $12 billion in new funding to get more people experiencing homelessness into housing.

The governor is expected to elaborate on the plan at a media event in San Diego County Tuesday morning after it was announced in a statement.

The nation's most populous state has an estimated 161,000 people experiencing homelessness, which is more than any other state.

Newsom is a former mayor of San Francisco and took on the state's twin crises of homelessness and affordable housing before the pandemic hit.

His proposal includes $8.75 billion to convert buildings into 46,000 housing units.
As part of our series on PR Conversation, we at Adgully are speaking to some of the industry leaders from both PR agencies and the corporate communications world about how PR as a business and communication tool has evolved and grown over the years. In the last 10 years, PR has taken a different dimension, especially after the entry of social media in a big way. While the PR business has grown, some of the challenges that the industry is facing have also multiplied as clients are becoming more demanding and are expecting their consultants to be on their toes to manage their brand reputation, as news today travels fast and clients are expecting quick response and action in case of a crisis situation.

Also read: PR has to have a seat in the board room to make any significant impact: Pooja Garg Khan

In conversation with Adgully, Rashmi Soni, VP & Head of Corporate Communications, Vistara, speaks about how the travel and aviation industry i rallying around in these challenging times and much more. Soni also highlights the #FlyingFeelsSafeAgain campaign, which is aimed at restoring customers confidence in flying.

How has PR evolved in the last 10 years? Going forward how will the Industry shape up as the dynamics of the PR will keep changing with digital transformation?

With the growth of social media and proliferation of smart devices, the PR and communication has changed dramatically over the last decade. Digitisation, data analytics, mobile apps, constantly evolving media landscape, and changes in content consumption behaviour, are some of the emerging trends that have transformed the way brands communicated with their stakeholders. While on the one hand new avenues of communication have come up, the preference shifted towards short format content, mostly consumed on handheld devices. Technology has also given everybody access to enormous amount of information, leading to reduced attention span. I also feel the relationship between journalists and PR professionals has also become more symbiotic in the last few years as a result of the growing trend of citizen journalism.

In view of these changes, PR strategies have to be multi-dimensional to be able to succeed in this digital marketplace. Communication is an integrated process today that mixes traditional methods like conferences, press releases and interviews, with newer aspects like influencer engagement and blending digital and non-digital tools to reach the target audience. Utilising these advanced tools, brands are able to engage more effectively with their target audiences at their preferred platform, time and convenience. Also, data analysis has enabled brands to better understand their audience, their behavioural nuances and use this information to improvise their communication approaches.

The ongoing pandemic has given further push to digitalisation across industries. This has resulted in newer ways of information sharing and new-age engagement tools being used extensively. At Vistara, we did virtual press conferences to announce insights of our customer surveys conducted last year and we found that there was hardly any difference in its effectiveness, compared to traditional methods, plus it is cost effective.

With constant evolution in technology, I feel the future lies in data analytics as it helps understand the customers better. Also, technologies like Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality have started to change the way products are launched and content is consumed, enabling an integrated experiential approach. For instance, virtual travel has been gaining a lot of momentum in times like these when people are not able to travel due to various restrictions. Going forward there will be a sharper focus on using tools and platforms that brands had either not utilised in the past or have under-utilised.

The travel and hospitality industry has been really disrupted. What are the PR challenges you have faced for Vistara in the last one year? How are you navigating during the pandemic and what is the role of PR here?

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the travel and aviation industry across the world and the scenario in India is no different. From a business standpoint, operations came to a complete standstill for two months during the national lockdown last year, which severely impacted the revenue. It had also resulted in loss of passenger confidence in flying, which was a key concern. The main challenge was to sensitise people about following the safety SOPs while establishing air travel as the safest mode of transport.

This crisis presented a unique opportunity, especially to brands in the travel, hospitality and tourism industries, to collaborate with their customers. To restore our customers confidence in flying, Vistara introduced the #FlyingFeelsSafeAgain campaign, which focused on communicating all the steps we have been taking to ensure safe travel, including regularly sanitizing the aircraft, following all SOPs at every step of the customers journey, and deploying touchless technology to reduce physical contact, etc. To educate the customers about air filtration process in the aircraft, we collaborated with our OEM partners and released informative videos. Since airlines and passengers have a shared responsibility to keeping air travel safe, Vistara also introduced the #FlyerCODE campaign that seeks to appeal to customers to be Careful, Observant, Distanced, and Empathetic, whenever they fly. We believe these small actions will influence positive behavioral changes in travellers and will make them more considerate flyers and make flying feel safe again.

Whenever travel picks up again, our key communication objective will be to continue emphasising that air travel is still the safest mode of transportation and reiterate the safety measures taken by us to protect our customers and staff.

Airline brands are very particular in protecting and maintaining their reputation. In todays times when pandemic has hit everyone, how has Vistara managed their brand reputation, especially online where news travels fast?

I feel every communication strategy needs to be based on understanding, empathy and sensitivity towards the customers and the environment around them, especially in a crisis. It should also not be limited to communication alone and should translate into actions as well. Keeping in mind that customers are also going through their own set of challenges trying to take a flight in a volatile environment such as today, we altered the tone and content of our communication to further ensure that our engagement with them is empathetic, timely and meaningful. Whether it is to assure travellers of the steps we are taking to ensure safety of our customers and staff, bringing inspiring stories from within the organisation to light, getting our Leadership closer to people, or to engage our customers in fun activities  the idea is to continue staying relevant.

We even appealed to our customers to travel only when necessary, which wouldnt make sense otherwise, but we knew that in extraordinary circumstances like these it was the right thing to do. We also activated our National Relief Program to provide air logistics support to the Government of India in their efforts to contain the spread of the virus. Under this program, we are offering complimentary cargo space on our domestic flights to transport medical equipment, relief supplies, PPE kits, vaccines, etc., to government organisations. Additionally, we are also offering free air travel to doctors and nurses representing government organisations/ hospitals, travelling to carry out their official duties.

In todays connected world, news travels fast and consumers are not just aware of what a brand is communicating through PR, they also know about on-ground actions by the brand. Hence, I feel the key is to be purposeful in your communication and back it up with actions.

The pandemic has disrupted everyone. In these times how have you managed the expectations from your PR agency? Did you redefine your objectives to them and revisited your deliverables?

We look at our PR agency team as an extension of our communication team and not just an external agency to execute plans and conduct media outreach. They play the role of a partner in achieving business and brand objectives. They are completely aligned with us in driving meaningful and effective communication that resonate with all stakeholders. As the situation changed, we tweaked our communication strategy, prioritised our objectives and regularly evaluated our efforts. Now, it is more about trying to bring a shift in consideration for the brand, engage the customers more meaningfully than just trying to build a strong share-of-voice in the industry.

Internal communication and external communication with stakeholders are very important in the Airline business. What process and framework you follow to continuously stay engaged with both your internal and external stakeholders?

The scale of the pandemic is unprecedented, and its magnitude continues to grow by the day. In such times, keeping internal stakeholders informed and engaged is as important as communicating with the outside world. We brought synergies between our communication to both stakeholders under an overarching theme  #InThisTogether, built on the principles of Inform, Recognise, Engage and Sustain, and reaching out to stakeholders at regular intervals to form an emotional bond.

Externally, our focus remains on being as transparent as possible about our processes, practices, our contribution towards communities, etc. A significant amount of our focus now also lies in creating more awareness and educating consumers about the new normal. From proactive customer communication to round-the-clock responsiveness to the media and other external stakeholders, we are making sure to be as clear in our communication as possible. We truly believe that it is in times of such crises that brands can truly build on their credibility and regular communication plays a vital role in that regard.

On the internal communications front, we are running an all-encompassing campaign, touching all stakeholders to bring positivity among them and boost their morale. We launched VistaraCARE, which focuses on employee safety and wellness by keeping them aware, connected and enabled, supported by an emotionally strong work environment. Were bringing to light inspiring stories of courage of our colleagues across departments and functions about fighting all odds during these challenging times. Were also engaging with them in fun activities like online yoga, or contests using various tools and digital platforms, to reunite and motivate everyone. However, we maintain the tonality of all our communication in check, keeping humour to appropriate limits. We have also put together a special cross-functional taskforce to help our employees with all COVID-related medical assistance for themselves and their families. We also brought the Vistara family together to support the vulnerable communities during COVID-19 and launched Wellness Initiative under which we have been regularly distributing food and hygiene essentials to underprivileged people across the country.

PR measurement and effectiveness of PR has always been a subject of debate. As a PR professional, what steps the PR industry should take to bring in uniformity so that everyone speaks one language when it comes to PR measurement?

With the continuously evolving landscape, the way we disseminate and consume information has changed and so have the measurement metrics. Now it is imperative to look beyond traditional metrics of AVE, readership and viewership, and evaluate the impact of communication more holistically, basis the communication objectives. Having said that, the impact of PR is intangible, hence accurately measuring it is nearly impossible.

Firstly, PR today uses multiple tools and platforms with each having their unique features, making it difficult to evaluate them on any single parameter. For instance, measuring the reach of a news article will be very different from how the output from an influencer campaign could be evaluated.

Even when we talk about specific measurements, it is not as black and white as we all hope. Of course, it also depends on various factors like nature of business, kind of campaign, communication objectives and outcome, etc., as different tools may be effective to reach the right audience for different brands, campaign, etc. However, every measurement system has to start with setting defined, measurable goals with specific KPIs for the brand/ campaign and mapping results to them.

There is no one size fits all solution, it needs a combined macro-outlook to understand what your outreach has achieved.

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This summer, consumers in Nepal will be in for a treat as Pepsi promises to quench their thirst and offer a refreshing experience. In line with this intent, the youth centric brand has onboarded Nepal Superstar, Pradeep Khadka as its new brand ambassador in Nepal and has launched a quirky new summer campaign with him.

The new film is an extension of Har ghoont ma swag proposition and shows the Pepsi hero bonding with friends over a game of carrom on a hot summer day. At the same time, another friend is hooked on the phone talking to his girlfriend. Seeing this budding romance, Pradeeps friend exclaims Kyaa maya. Participating in the cheeky banter, Pradeep says Kyaa Garmi and pulls out a chilled bottle of Pepsi, takes a swig and proclaims Kyaa refreshing! with Swag.

Commenting on the campaign launch, Naseeb Puri, Marketing Director, PepsiCo, Nepal Region, said, Pepsi has always been the choice of the young generation and is one of the most loved cola drinks in Nepal. We are excited to have Pradeep as our brand ambassador as Pradeeps refreshing attitude matches with the brand synergies.

Speaking about the campaign, Pepsi brand ambassador Pradeep Khadka, said, I have always been a big fan of Pepsi and truly believe that it is a perfect drink to beat summers with SWAG. The irreverent attitude of the brand is what makes it so relatable to the youth today. Hence, I am confident that everyone will enjoy the new TVC as well which is fun, irreverent and is all about enjoying fun moments with a chilled Pepsi.

The new Pepsi TVC will be amplified across TV, digital, outdoor, and social media with a 360-degree surround sound. Pepsi is available in single and multi-serve packs across all modern and traditional retail outlets.
Press releases Recognition of accomplishments in Africa key to continued development says new Director General of KFAS Tuesday 11 may 2021
Press releases African Energy Chamber calls for more US-Africa Energy investments with series about unjustified risk perceptions on Africa Tuesday 11 may 2021
Meanwhile the social pressure is enormousSo theres a lot of pressure to comply.

You understand that soon you may not be able to fly on commercial airlines or go to the office or send your children to school if you dont have the shot.

If you havent had your shot youre under enormous pressure to get your shot.

Joe Biden was on TV yesterday talking about vaccines. He wants you to get one. Everyone in authority wants you to get one. 

We talk a lot about vaccines constantly, not just on this show but in this this country.

Youd think you would know more about that than you do.

We know a lot about the upside of vaccines. Weve been completely in favor of vulnerable people taking vaccines, but what about the potential risks?

Do you know anything about the downside?

Do you know the answer to that question?

Its not Americans whove been killed by the virus.Thats a huge number. Its how many Americans have died after getting the vaccines designed to prevent the virus. .

Transcribed by Anne Dachel Heres a very simple question: How many Americans have died after taking the COVID vaccine?

At some point you probably will comply. Its just too difficult not to be vaccinated in this country.

But before you do comply ask yourself, do you know anything about the potential risks?

Probably you dont know much. We assume the risks are negligible

Every flu season for example, we give influenza shots to more than 160 million Americans. Every year a relatively small number of people seem to die after getting these shots.

To be precise, in 2019, that number was 203 people. The year before, 2018, it was 119 people.

In the big picture, we do not see those numbers as disqualifying 

How do those numbers compare with the apparent death rate from the coronavirus vaccine now being distributed across the country?

Thats worth knowing so we checked today and heres the answer, and these numbers come from the same set of government numbers that we just read to you from.

Here they are:

Between late December of 2020 and last month, a total of 3,362 people apparently died after getting a COVID vaccine in the United States. 3,362, thats an average of roughly 30 people every day.

So what does that add up to?

By the way, that reporting period ended on April 23, and we dont have numbers past that, its not quite up to date, but we can assume that another 360 people at that rate have died in the 12 days since. You put it all together and that is a total of 3,722 deaths.

Thats almost 4,000 people who died after getting the COVID vaccine. The actual number is almost certainly higher than that, perhaps vastly higher than that.

The data we just cited come from the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System, VAERS. VAERS is managed of the CDC and the FDA.

VAERS has received a lot of criticism over the years, some of it founded. Some critics have argued for a long time that VAERS undercounts vaccine injury.

A report submitted to the Department of Health and Human Services in 2010 concluded that fewer than one percent of vaccine adverse events are reported by the VAERS system, fewer than one percent.

So what is the real number of people who apparently have been killed or injured by the vaccine? We dont know that number, nobody does, and were not going to speculate about it on this show.

But its clear that what is happening now, for whatever reason, is not even close to normal. Its not even close to what we see in previous years with previous vaccines.

Most vaccines are not accused of killing large numbers of people. 

In just the first four months of this year, the U.S. government has recorded more deaths after COVID vaccinations than from all other vaccines administered in the United States between mid 1997 and the end of 2013. That is a period of 15 and a half years.

AGAIN, more people, according to VAERS, have died after getting the shot in four months in a single vaccination campaign than from all other vaccines combined over more than a decade and a half.

Chart that out. Its a stunning picture. Now the debate is over what it means. Again there is a lot of criticism of the reporting system,

Some people say, well its just a coincidence that someone gets their shot and then dies, possibly from other causes. No one really knows is, the truth.

We spoke to one physician today who actively treats COVID patients. He described what were seeing now as the single deadliest mass vaccination event in modern history.

Whatever is causing it, it is happening as we speak.

So youd think someone in authority might want to know what it is. Whats going on?

If the vaccine injury reporting system is flawed, and clearly it is flawed, why hasnt it been fixed?

And more to the point, why has there not been an independent vaccine safety board impaneled to assess what is happening and reassure people who stumble across official government numbers on the Internet?

But amazingly, none of that has been done. No one even mentions the numbers, and in fact, youre not allowed to. Youll be pulled off the Internet if you do.

The people in charge do not acknowledge them. Instead they warn us what might happen if we dont take the vaccine. 

People who are not fully vaccinated can still die from COVID19, Joe Biden said, and as factual matter, that is true. But it is also misleading.

Not all Americans are at similar risk from dying from COVID19. 

So those second two categories, the young and the healthy and the previously infected may add up, if you combine them, to hundreds of millions of people in this country.

The funny thing, the White House, the official policy makers who are designing the vaccine rollout do not acknowledge that those categories even exist.

Health authorities are pretending that everyones health and risk potential is exactly the same as everyone elses, and thats why Joe Biden has demanded that 70 percent of all Americans adults, regardless of age, regardless of health condition, regardless critically of pre-existing antibodies from previous infection, get the COVID shot by the 4th of July, two months from now or else.

This might be an acceptable policy, it would never be an ethical policy, but as a practical matter it might be acceptable for the country if COVID vaccines, we could show conclusively, came with no risk and if we truly understood the long term effects of those vaccines.

But neither one of those things is true.

We know, according to the government reporting system, thousands of people have died after getting the shot. That is true in this country where its hotly debated when its talked about at all, but its also true in European countries whose recordkeeping on this question is, if anything, more reliable than ours.

Many thousands of other people appear to have been injured after getting the vaccination.

VAERS reports nearly 900 non fatal heart attacks in people who just received the shot. 2,700 people reported unexplained chest pain.

In all, the vaccine, according to the government reporting system, appears to have contributed to 8,000 hospitalizations.

Some of the side effects defy easy explanation.

Researcher Alex Berenson has noted that coronavirus vaccines now account for almost one third of all tinnitus reports in the VAERS database, the ringing in your ears.

The American Tinnitus Association says it has received many questions on that link.

Meanwhile researchers at Oxford and UCLA have begun tracking corona vaccine side effects across eight separate countries.

What have they found?

Among other things, Women aged 18 to 34 years old had a higher rate of deep vein thrombosis than men of the same age.

They also found that heart attacks were common in people 85 years and older whove taken the vaccine.

They found some serious potential side effects in some children. anaphylaxis [and] appendicitis were more common in young people. 

This is not the first time that people have been hurt during a vaccination campaign. That is bound to happen.

Whats different this time and so striking is the reaction to these numbers. 

In 1976 the U.S. government vaccinated 45 million people for the swine flu. A total of 53 people reportedly died after getting that shot, and the U.S. government immediately halted the vaccination halted the vaccination program.

Why? Because authorities decided it was too risky. It wasnt worth it.

Contrast that with whats happening now. This time our health authorities have reserved their energy for anyone who dares to question vaccines.

Lifesite News, its a nonprofit news organization, just found itself permanently banned from Facebook.

Why? Because it reported government numbers from the VAERS database, something we just did, on the air.

Famously when podcaster Joe Rogan asked whether healthy young people ought to be getting the COVID vaccine, the media treated him like a war criminal. 

Anti-vaccine narratives.

He did nothing of the sort. Almost everything you just heard was a lie that obscured a very simple and potentially relevant question that he asked, which is, should healthy young people receive the vaccine.

Were not precisely sure what the risks are. It is a lie to say there are no risks. There are risks in everything, including getting a vaccine. So why not rationally weigh the risks/reward ratio as we do with every decision we make? For that he was denounced as an anti-vaxxer kook, a danger to public safety.

Yahoo News published a piece entitled, Joe Rogan, whos not a doctor, gives terrible vaccine advice.

Keep in mind that this is the same Yahoo News that published this piece: 5 things Bill Gates wants you to know about COVID19 variants.

One of the very few elected officials in the country who has said a word about any of this, whos asked the obvious question not attacking vaccines, wondering about their effect, which is a legitimate thing to do, is Republican senator, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin.

Last week Johnson asked Francis Collins, director of NIH, why so many Americans, according to the governments own numbers, appear to be dying after getting the shot. Maybe theres a good answer for that.

Collins wouldnt even acknowledge that was happening.

Instead Collins fretted that if the population focuses too much on the potential harm from vaccines, people might be hesitant to get them.

I challenge his use of the term Vaccine Hesitancy, Ron Johnson told us in a conversation today.

I told him that based on the VAERS deaths and my conversations with people who have chosen not to get vaccinated, a better description would be: People who are hesitant to be coerced into participating in the largest drug trial in history.

Why is that an unfair description exactly?

Theres a reason many states have more vaccine doses than they can use. Some people just dont want the vaccine, and that is their right, period. And not all of them are crazy.

Health decisions used to be considered personal choices. We didnt ask about them. They were considered personal as recently as last fall.

It was in September of 2020, at the height of the presidential campaign, that a CNN reporter asked Kamala Harris whether she would be willing to take the coronavirus vaccine once it became available.

Her response: Well I think thats going to be an issue for all of us. Harris responded. I will say that I would not trust Donald Trump.

A month later, at the vice-presidential debate, Harris was if anything more emphatic on the subject. If Donald Trump tells us we should take the vaccineIm not going to take it.

Kamala Harris has since changed her mind. Shes no longer skeptical of the vaccine. Nor does she tolerate the skepticism of others.

Instead, shes an enthusiastic participant in COVID theater, and thats the only name for it. 

What exactly are we watching here?

Were watching the crudest kind of propaganda designed by the cynical for the benefit of a population they consider stupid and weak and malleable.

And its not just Kamala Harris. Everyone is in on it, even the corporate comedians

It doesnt make you laugh, it makes you nervous.

Why are they talking to you that way? Why are they giving you the finger on TV?

No matter how many fingers they give you, it doesnt change what remains true for the country.

If American citizens are going to be forced to take this vaccine or any other medicine, and they have an absolute right to know what it is and what its effects might be.

And they have an absolute right to ask that question without being censored or silenced or mocked or given the finger.

And no amount of happy talk or coercion or appeals to false patriotism can change that, period.
"Our area has had a quarter of an inch since the first of April. This is hardly enough precipitation to get the crops out of the ground."
Mention the name Choctaw Chief 373 to Bob Hough, and there is a sense of reverence in his reply.

He was the most important bull in the Red Angus breed, and thats by a lot, says Hough, a cattle industry author and historian who also served in leadership roles with the Red Angus and North American Limousin associations.

Choctaw Chief was born in Oklahoma in 1965, a product of legendary seedstock producer George Chigas line-breeding program. He was purchased in 1967, along with 40 heifer mates, to start Pioneer Seed Companys Red Angus herd, ending up on the farm in Iowa.

Chiga grew up in Canada, and lived a colorful life that included wrestling in the 1936 Olympics and a spot on the Oklahoma State University wrestling team. Chiga never completed 10th grade, but graduated from OSU with a degree in animal science and an interest in genetics. He did his masters work on inbreeding and out-breeding of swine and became a staunch proponent of line and inbreeding.

After volunteering for military service to gain U.S. citizenship, he returned to Oklahoma after World War II, teaching agriculture in Guthrie, Oklahoma. He and his wife Vernice had hoped to start their own cattle herd, and selected the Red Angus breed in 1949.

Chigas impact on the breed was formidable. At one time, nearly 95% of registered Red Angus cattle were descended from his Chiefline breeding program.

Hough says Pioneer intentionally bred Choctaw Chief to 20 of his daughters for the purpose of identifying deleterious genes  genes that would cause death, premature birth or some sort of physical defect.
Alabama will end its participation in all federally-funded pandemic unemployment programs on June 19.

Gov. Kay Ivey announced the move this afternoon, making the state the latest to end the programs that added money to unemployment benefits and began last year as a response to massive layoffs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The programs include Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, which provides for an additional $300 weekly payment to the states maximum weekly benefit amount of $275.

It also includes Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) for the self-employed, gig workers, and part-time workers; Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), an extension of benefits once regular benefits have been exhausted, and Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation (MEUC), an additional $100 benefit to certain people with mixed earnings.

In addition, the Alabama Department of Labor has reinstated the work search requirement for all claimants, which was temporarily waived during the height of the pandemic. This requires all claimants to actively search for work to remain eligible for unemployment benefits.

According to the governors office, any weeks filed prior to and up to June 19 which are eligible under any of the federal program requirements will continue to be processed.

South Carolina, Arkansas and Montana in the past week have announced they will suspend their participation in the programs. The decisions come after hiring slowed nationally in April, with some companies blaming enhanced unemployment benefits for the inability to fill positions.

In her announcement, Ivey alluded to the programs contributing to a labor shortage that is compromising the continuation of our economic recovery. She cited the states current unemployment rate of 3.8 percent, the lowest in the Southeast.

As Alabamas economy continues its recovery, we are hearing from more and more business owners and employers that it is increasingly difficult to find workers to fill available jobs, even though job openings are abundant, Ivey said. Our Department of Labor is reporting that there are more available jobs now than prior to the pandemic. Jobs are out there.

Alabama Department of Labor Secretary Fitzgerald Washington said the department has more posted job ads than in February or March of last year, just before the pandemic started, when Alabama posted a historic low in unemployment claims.

Ads for workers in the leisure and hospitality industry are up by 73%, Washington said. Overall, ads are up by nearly 40%. There are plenty of opportunities available in multiple industries in Alabama.
Barnes & Noble, which has more than 600 stores, closed about 11 during the year that ended in April but opened six. The retailer expects to open roughly as many stores as it closes this year and is considering an additional Chicago location, Daunt said. While the in-store cafes may take time to bounce back, Daunt said he is optimistic about the future of bricks-and-mortar retail.
Mass vaccination clinics operated by the University of Alabama at Birmingham plan to provide vaccines to kids ages 12 to 15 by Thursday if federal regulators approve the expansion of Pfizers emergency use authorization.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration expanded the emergency use authorization to younger ages Monday. Tomorrow, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will meet to consider whether or not to approve the expansion. If they do, UAB spokesman Tyler Greer said vaccines would be available to younger teens on Thursday at four sites operated by the health system.

Younger teens who want the vaccine must have a parent or guardian with them and they must sign a consent form, Greer said. Kids between 12 and 15 do not need an ID to get the vaccine. All COVID vaccinations are free.

Dr. Ellen Eaton, an assistant professor in the division of infectious diseases at UAB, said the expansion of vaccines to younger patients could help prevent both transmission and serious illness.

We know that a continuing number of young adults and adolescents are getting infected and exposed to coronavirus, so providing vaccination is an opportunity to give them a viral dead end, Eaton said. Meaning that if they are exposed after theyre fully vaccinated, they are highly unlikely to get infected.

Kids who receive COVID vaccines will not have to quarantine after exposure, so they wont have as many disruptions to school and other activities, Eaton said. In addition, vaccinating more teens could help protect younger siblings who are not yet eligible.

Clinical trials of the vaccine showed high efficacy and no safety concerns for younger patients, Eaton said.

This vaccine was 100 percent effective in terms of preventing coronavirus in 12 to 15 year olds, Eaton said.

Children and young adults have been less affected by COVID-19 than older adults. In Alabama, nine children younger than 18 died from COVID-19 out of 10,985 deaths.

But Eaton said that children have suffered severe bouts of COVID-19 requiring hospitalization and others suffered serious multisystem inflammatory syndrome related to infection.

We have seen thousands of hospitalizations, and weve also seen hundreds of deaths, Eaton said. I as a parent even if there have only been hundreds of American children who have died of coronavirus, I as a parent would want to prevent that low likelihood of an outcome in my child, when there is tool to aid in prevention that is as safe and as effective as a vaccine.

Increased vaccine eligibility will help keep children in school and prevent widespread quarantines and closures that have disrupted education and development, Eaton said. Children and teens can also spread coronavirus to those who havent been vaccinated.

Im a parent myself, Eaton said. My children are not yet eligible. But as soon as they are, I will be the first one to line up and get my kids on board. I think its really important for my kids to get back to normal.

Eaton has said her kids are eager to see cousins and attend indoor parties, so they are eager to get vaccinated. Vaccines are available at the following locations without an appointment.

Parker High School

400 Reverend Abraham Woods Jr. Blvd. Birmingham, AL 35204

Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

No appointment needed

Walk-ups and drive-throughs accepted

AOH Cathedral of the Cross

1480 Center Point Parkway Birmingham, AL 35215

Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

No appointment needed, but you may self-schedule an appointment online if you wish at uabmedicinevaccine.org

Drive-through only

Hoover Met

100 Ben Chapman Drive, Hoover, AL 35244

Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

No appointment needed, but you may self-schedule an appointment online if you wish at uabmedicinevaccine.org

Drive-through only

UAB Hospital-Highlands

1130 12th Street South, Birmingham, AL 35205

Sunday-Friday, 1-5 p.m.

No appointment needed, but you may self-schedule an appointment online if you wish at uabmedicinevaccine.org

Drive-through only
The 2021 Atlantic hurricane season will get started in just a few weeks on June 1. And it will last until Nov. 30.

Alabama had its first direct hit from a hurricane in 16 years in 2020. Category 2 Hurricane Sally made landfall near Gulf Shores on Sept. 16 with 105 mph winds and did tremendous damage along the coast and inland as well.

Alabama also got socked by Hurricane Zeta, which made landfall in Louisiana on Oct. 28 but tracked quickly inland and across southern Alabama before it had a chance to weaken much, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

Those storms left quite an impression. So many Alabamians may not need quite as much encouragement to get prepared for another hurricane season this year.

This is Hurricane Preparedness Week and a good a time as any to start getting ready for what could be another active season.

 The best time to prepare for a hurricane  is BEFORE hurricane season begins on June 1



 https://t.co/aLVV1LLHc0



 #HurricanePrep #HurricaneStrong pic.twitter.com/U3yE45p5pL  NWS Mobile (@NWSMobile) May 11, 2021

NOAA wont release its hurricane season outlook until later this month, but other groups already have.

One of the longest-running pre-season forecasts (38 years) from Colorado State University is suggesting another busy season  though likely not as active as the 30 record-breaking storms of 2020. CSU is forecasting 17 named storms (both tropical storms and hurricanes), eight hurricanes and four major hurricanes, which are Category 3 or stronger storms.

An average season, according to NOAA, has 14 named storms, seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes.

NOAA has adjusted its averages this year, using data from 1991-2020 (where it had been using data from 1981-2010).

Hurricane Preparedness Week runs through May 15. Theres a different topic every day, highlighting what experts think are the most important points for getting ready.

Some of them dont even require getting out of your chair, such as assessing your risk and making an evacuation plan. However, some of them are time-sensitive, such as getting an insurance checkup (remember flood insurance has a 30-day waiting period).

Experts encourage those along the coast to get their supplies together now to avoid the stress and possible shortages that could result by waiting until the last minute.

The hurricane preparedness topics are:

Sunday: Determine your risk

Monday: Develop an evacuation plan

Tuesday (today): Assemble disaster supplies

Wednesday: Get an insurance checkup

Thursday: Strengthen your home

Friday: Help your neighbor

Saturday: Complete a written plan

Find more information on all of those topics here.

The National Weather Service offices across Alabama are also taking part in Hurricane Preparedness Week  including those well inland.

The weather service in Mobile is keeping up a steady stream of tweets highlighting important hurricane safety info for those along the coast.

The weather service in Birmingham said that effects from landfalling tropical systems can be felt across the state, including high winds, flooding rain and tornadoes.

The Atlantic hurricane season officially begins on June 1.
An Anniston man arrested on federal firearms charges last month will stay in custody pending his trial, a federal magistrate judge ruled on Friday.

Jack David Stovall, 72, will remain in jail because no condition or combination of conditions of release will reasonably assure the safety of any other person and the community, U.S. Magistrate Judge John England wrote in a court order Friday.

Stovall was arrested for unlawful possession of a firearm as a convicted felon last month after a countywide raid on suspected gambling operations. Police seized 75 illegal gambling machines in those raids, along with guns and narcotics.

Stovall served a sentence in federal prison after pleading guilty in 1997 to the attempted murder-for-hire of Barry Jackson, a man Stovall said he suspected of burglarizing his house. At the time, Jackson said he had nothing to do with the burglary.

Before his April arrest, Stovall was awaiting trial on a capital murder charge stemming from the death of Floyd Roger Hurst. Investigators in 1997 told The Star that Hurst was also someone Stovall had suspected of burglarizing his house.

Stovalls capital murder charge lingered in court for seven years without a trial. Shortly after his arrest last month, local prosecutors asked Circuit Judge Bud Turner to drop that charge. Turner did so earlier this month.

Stovall was free while awaiting trial on the capital murder charge. Then on April 9, various police agencies raided alleged illegal gambling sites around Calhoun County. According to a federal indictment, police discovered a .22 caliber Mossberg rifle and a .22 revolver in Stovalls possession during the raid.

In a telephone interview Monday, Bill Broome, Stovalls lawyer, disputed the assertion that the guns belonged to Stovall. He said he had argued in court that Stovall doesnt need to be detained because there is little risk that he will flee. Broome noted that Stovall never fled while awaiting a capital murder trial.

We may ask a district court judge to review the magistrates order of detention, Broome said.

Court records show that the judge reviewed an application for a protection from abuse order filed last year by a woman who wrote that Stovall verbally threatened her on a daily basis.

In his order, England wrote that Stovalls 17 past convictions and three past convictions on gun charges weigh in favor of detention.

Stovall is being held in the Pickens County Jail, Broome said.

Broome said he expects a trial to begin sometime this fall.

Capitol & statewide reporter Tim Lockette: 256-294-4193. On Twitter @TLockette_Star.

___

(c)2021 The Anniston Star (Anniston, Ala.)

Visit The Anniston Star (Anniston, Ala.) at www.annistonstar.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The road to the future is electric, but several business groups in Alabama are worried the state might get left behind in the race to a gas-less future, hurting the states ability to recruit new businesses.

Alabama ranks 48th among states with just 2.3 electric vehicle charging stations per 10,000 registered vehicles. Thats far behind the national average of 9.7 outlets per 10,000 vehicles.

As the number and type of electric vehicles dramatically increase in the next few years, its important for our state to be prepared in terms of publicly accessible electric vehicle charging, said Michael Staley, president of the Alabama Clean Fuels Coalition, in a phone interview.

The coalition, with the support of several conservative business groups, wrote a letter to Alabamas State Senate leadership and Gov. Kay Ivey urging the state to double its 2022 general fund spending on electric car charging stations from $2 million to $4 million to prevent the state from being left behind as electric vehicles grow in popularity across the country.

The letter was co-signed by some of the largest and most prominent business groups in the state, including the Business Council of Alabama, Manufacture Alabama, the Alabama League of Municipalities, the Alabama Restaurant and Hospitality Association, the Economic Development Association of Alabama and several local chambers of commerce and business groups.

The groups say that while Alabama is already poised to be a leading manufacturer of both electric cars and batteries, ignoring electric vehicle infrastructure could hold the state back from recruiting future businesses.

Mercedes-Benz USA is currently building a an electric car battery production plant as part of its $1 billion expansion in Bibb County, and plans to begin building electric SUVs next year at its plant in Vance.

The governors office referred questions on electric vehicle infrastructure to the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA), which is leading the state effort to create more charging stations. ADECA did not immediately respond to requests to comment for this story.

Staley said the widespread switch from gasoline vehicles to electric ones is already happening and will only pick up speed as batteries get cheaper and last longer between charges.

Electric transportation is not a thing of the future, Staley said. Its here and more is coming.

Automobile manufacturers large and small have made strong commitments to transitioning their vehicles to electric in the next 10 years, and we are going to see an increasing number and type of electric vehicles available right here in Alabama.

General Motors has announced plans to make all its new vehicles electric by 2035, with models like an electric Hummer on the horizon. Honda has a goal to go all-electric by 2040. The iconic Ford Mustang and F-150 pickup will be available as fully electric vehicles by 2022.

The transition is accelerating worldwide. Bloombergs research service forecasts that electric cars will be cheaper to produce than fossil fuel vehicles by 2027, and the United Kingdom has announced plans to ban the sale of new fossil fuel vehicles by 2030.

Electric cars with 200+ mile range used to start at $70,000 or more, but now an increasing number of automakers are releasing or have released cars capable of going 200+ miles on a single charge for $40,000 or less.

Staley said almost half of the roughly 5,000 electric vehicles registered in Alabama are Teslas, a pricier option, but one that offers a range of 200-300 miles between charges. Once more electric cars can offer similar range at a lower price, Staley said the number of electric vehicles in Alabama could skyrocket.

He compared the potential growth of electric cars to that of flat-screen televisions, which were once a luxury item but now are seemingly everywhere.

Now, as the prices are coming down, and the battery technology is improving, its finally practical for someone to consider an electric car for their next car purchase, he said. And I dont think thats always been the case.

Thats why the Clean Fuels Coalition and co-signing groups say its important Alabama doesnt get left behind.

Staley said Alabama has made significant investments in EV infrastructure, thanks to funds received from the Volkswagen emissions testing settlement, and from state funds.

Ivey and ADECA unveiled the Alabama Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Plan last year to use $3.4 million in Volkswagen settlement funds to build fast-charging stations, with the top priority being the I-20/I-459 corridor from Tuscaloosa through Birmingham to the Georgia state line. Most of those funds are being given as grants to private entities that put up 20 percent or more of the cost to build the chargers with the state picking up around 80 percent.

ADECA said Wednesday it has received 76 applications requesting more than $18.7 million in its Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Program, but has only $4.1 million to award coming from electric vehicle fees and the Volkswagen settlement.

Independent web site ChargeHub maintains a map of electric car chargers in the United States and Canada, showing significant gaps between electric car chargers, especially in areas along I-65 south of Montgomery, and along I-59 and I-22 heading north to Gatlinburg and Memphis respectively.

Staley said he appreciates the investment the state has already made in electric vehicle charging infrastructure but thinks the state should still do more.

Were happy to see $2 million and we would love to see four, he said. Ive no criticism of the Legislature, I think they have a lot of things to balance, and were very appreciative of whatever investment they make. We will encourage them to put as much as they can.

UPDATED May 12 with additional information from ADECA.
UPDATE: The company has restarted operations

Alabama and other states in the Southeast are experiencing the effects of the Colonial Pipeline shutdown, as some stations are reportedly out of gas and at least one state has taken extraordinary measures.

Colonial Pipeline said Monday afternoon that parts of its system are being brought back online, and it hopes to restore service by the end of the week, CNBC is reporting.

A cybersecurity attack forced the Colonial Pipeline to shut down its entire system, from Texas to New York City.

What will it mean for fuel prices?

Alabama - along with Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas and Tennessee - relies on the Colonial Pipeline for most of its fuel supplies. The network ships more than 2.5 million barrels per day of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel to customers throughout the eastern U.S., or about 45% of all fuel consumed on the East Coast.

Segments of our pipeline are being brought back online in a stepwise fashion, in compliance with relevant federal regulations and in close consultation with the Department of Energy, which is leading and coordinating the Federal Governments response, Colonial Pipeline said in a statement.

AAAs gas price average for Alabama this morning stood at $2.985 cents, up from yesterdays average of $2.96. In Alabama, the average is $2.72, an increase of 4 cents in one day.

A fuel truck replenishes pumps at a gas station in Southside, Ala., Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (William Thornton / wthornton@al.com)

The time of the outage is now approaching critical levels and if it continues to remain down we do expect an increase in East Coast gasoline and diesel prices, said Debnil Chowdhury, IHS Markit Executive Director. The last time there was an outage of this magnitude was in 2016, he said, when gas prices rose 15 to 20 cents per gallon. The Northeast had significantly more local refining capacity at that time.

Gasoline futures ticked higher Monday. Futures for crude and fuel, prices that traders pay for contracts for delivery in the future, typically begin to rise anyway each year as the driving season approaches. The price you pay at the pump tends to follow.

The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline has jumped 6 cents over the past two weeks, to $3.02 per gallon, which is $1.05 higher than a year ago.

See also: What we know on the fifth day of the shutdown

The year-ago numbers are skewed somewhat because the nation was going into lockdown due to the pandemic.

The attack on the Colonial Pipeline could exacerbate the upward pressure on prices if it is unresolved for a period of time.

Georgia on Tuesday suspended its gas tax as prices rose, the AJC reported.

Will gas supplies run out?

The pipe shutdown yesterday prompted North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper to sign an executive order declaring a state of emergency in North Carolina. The order temporarily suspends motor vehicle fuel regulations and trucking restrictions in order to maintain adequate fuel supplies.

At the same time, stations throughout the Southeast are reportedly out of gas. Some Atlanta area stations and pumps in North Carolina are shut down. Bloomberg is reporting that an estimated 7% of gas stations in Virginia were out of fuel as of late Monday.

WTVY in Dothan, for example, is reporting that multiple stations in the Wiregrass are out of gas. Some of those outages, however, could be caused by panic buying instead of supply issues.

A few stations in and around the Gadsden area had bags on pumps to indicate they were inactive. One station got a welcome visit from the fuel truck to replenish its tanks.

Posts on social media show there are other Alabama cities were stations have run out of gas.

SEVEN gas stations later, I finally found gas in Mobile, Alabama.  My car had a 10 mile range left when I found gas. I was about to have to Fred Flintstone it back to North Alabama.  pic.twitter.com/BnzHk32f75  Hannah Stephens (@TheHannahSShow) May 11, 2021

AAA is urging motorists to avoid panic buying of gasoline.

It recommends planning trips ahead to accomplish multiple errands at once, and avoiding high-traffic times of day.

Also, minimize use of air conditioning, as open windows have less effect on fuel economy than the engine power required to operate the air conditioning compressor.

When will service be restored?

The company said Monday that it was working toward substantially restoring operational service by the weekend.

It said that it was evaluating the product inventory in storage tanks at its facilities. Biden administration officials stressed that Colonial proactively took some of its systems offline to prevent the ransomware from migrating from business computer systems to those that control and operate the pipeline.

In response to the attack, the administration loosened regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an all-hands-on-deck effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.

How did this happen?

President Biden stopped short of blaming the Kremlin for the Friday attack, but said theres evidence the hackers or the software they used are in Russia.

They have some responsibility to deal with this, he told reporters at the White House on Monday, after announcing that my administration will be pursuing a global effort of ransomware attacks.

The FBI confirmed Monday that ransomware made by a group known as DarkSide was used in the attack. The group posted a message on its dark web page suggesting an affiliate was behind the attack and that it would vet buyers of its ransomware in the future to avoid social consequences.

We are apolitical. We do not participate in geopolitics, the message says. Our goal is to make money and not creating problems for society. From today, we introduce moderation and check each company that our partners want to encrypt to avoid social consequences in the future.

The Associated Press and Bloomberg News contributed to this report.
High turnout among voters of color, increased support among white voters with college degrees, and a stop  or a least a pause  in declining support for Democrats among white voters without degrees: President Joe Biden needed all of that for his victory in November and he, or some other Democrat, will probably need those factors to align again in 2024.

The release of census data on who voted last year, as well as a new analysis of the results from a leading Democratic data firm, has filled in many of the details of Bidens victory, providing numbers to fuel the continuing debate within the party about who deserves the most credit for the win and what policies would make a repeat most likely.

The most striking feature of the election remains the outsize turnout  the largest as a share of the eligible population since the 19th Amendment to the Constitution in 1920 roughly doubled the size of the potential electorate by giving voting rights to women.

Turnout rates went up for everyone, said Michael McDonald of the University of Florida, the nations leading expert on the topic.

The higher numbers across the board meant that even groups that shrank as a share of the electorate still produced more votes. So, for example, more white Americans voted than ever before, even though whites declined as a share of the electorate, continuing a trend that has seen the voting population grow steadily more diverse over the last couple of decades.

Biden benefited from that growing diversity. Roughly 4 in 10 of his votes came from people of color, according to a newly released analysis from Catalist, the Democratic data firm. President Donald Trumps voters, by contrast, were overwhelmingly white, 85%, according to the firms estimates, with just 15% coming from people of color, mostly Latinos.

Biden also gained from increased support for Democrats among white voters with college educations.

Those voters, many of whom live in suburban areas, swung sharply against Trump in the 2018 midterm election and stuck with Biden in 2020, said Yair Ghitza, Catalists chief scientist.

In the Trump era, white college voters have become an increasingly core piece of the Democratic coalition, Ghitza said. A big question for the next couple of elections is, will that continue?

Biden didnt improve among whites without a college degree  Trumps core group  but he didnt lose any further ground among a group that remains a majority of voters in many key states.

Exactly how well a candidate did among different population groups can never be known for sure because ballots are secret. On election night, exit polls try to estimate the breakdown by surveying voters and asking which candidate they favored. Exit poll estimates, although often cited, are highly imperfect.

In the months since the election, additional numbers become available that improve those estimates. The census conducts a survey that asks Americans whether they voted  although not for whom. And firms like Catalist glean data from state voter files, which are public, to determine who voted. They then apply complex models of the electorate that theyve honed over several election cycles to analyze racial, ethnic and other breakdowns.

For political parties, two numbers are key to analyzing how the vote changes from one election to the next: What share of the electorate does each population group make up, and how did the partys level of support change from each group?

In 2020, Latino and Asian voters increased as a share of the electorate, while the white share declined. The share cast by Black voters remained steady.

Turnout among Latino voters was up 31% compared with 2016, and Asian turnout increased 39%, according to Catalists estimates. As a result, the Latino share of the 2020 electorate expanded from 9% to 10%; Asian voters made up about 4% of the total.

Turnout among Black voters, which was already high, increased by 14%. Thats just slightly more than the rate by which the overall electorate grew, which meant Black voters remained at 12% of the total.

White voters remain by far the largest racial group in the electorate, but their share fell to 72% from 74% in 2016 and 77% in 2008, when President Barack Obama won his first term.

Much of the drop among white voters came from those without college degrees. Because the popularity of college has grown a lot in recent decades, the non-college-educated population skews older, especially among white Americans. In 2008, non-college-educated white voters made up just over half the electorate, but by 2020, they had declined to just over 4 in 10.

In 2016, Trump was able to eke out a victory by boosting the Republican share of those non-college white voters. In 2020, with their ranks continuing to shrink relative to the overall population, he was able to stay in contention by improving his vote share among Latinos and, to a lesser extent, among Black voters  a result that startled many Democrats.

Latinos went from 71% support for Hillary Clinton in 2016 to 63% for Biden in 2020.

Thats no small move, said Democratic analyst Ruy Teixeira, who sees it as a worrying portent.

The drop varied significantly from state to state, the Catalist analysis notes, with Latino support for the Democratic ticket falling 14 percentage points in Florida compared with 2016 and 9 points in Texas, but only 4 points in Georgia and 5 in Arizona, which Biden won.

Black voters, by contrast, continued to support the Democrats overwhelmingly. The 90% of the Black vote that went to Biden was slightly lower than the 93% Clinton received, but that was more than made up for by higher Black turnout, Catalist estimates.

The trends toward a more educated and more racially diverse electorate will continue for years, posing a challenge for Republicans nationally, McDonald said.

No wall can be erected to stop that, he said. Laws that many Republican-majority states have begun to pass that make voting more difficult are a rear-guard action trying to eke out a few more election cycles from the older, whiter electorates of the past, he said.

Its like putting your finger in the dike. Its not going to stop the rising water.

___

2021 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
A life sciences corporation and a plant research laboratory broke ground virtually Monday on $15 million in new buildings for research and commercial biotechnology on the campus of the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology.

At the virtual groundbreaking were Alabama House Speaker Mac McCutcheon of Madison County and other local and state leaders who helped secure the expansion funding.

Discovery Life Sciences, a worldwide company with roots at HudsonAlpha, will build a 90,000-square-foot headquarters for its international business in the analysis, procurement and distribution of biospecimens for research and treatment development.

The HudsonAlpha Center for Plant Science and Sustainable Agriculture will add another 13,000 square feet of laboratory and greenhouse space to grow and study plants that can grow with fewer fertilizers and fungicides in the worlds changing climate.

HudsonAlpha is one of the worlds largest genomics institutes in plant science and we collaborate with research groups everywhere to discover and then apply the discoveries to crop improvement, plant researcher and center co-director Jeremy Schmutz said. We also will work closely with HudsonAlphas Educational Outreach team to attract the next generation of plant science students. These students need to be trained and inspired to go further to make an even greater impact in improving agriculture. Schmutz directs HudsonAlphas Genome Sequencing Center with Dr. Jane Grimwood.

Marshall Schreeder Jr., executive vice president of Discovery Life Sciences, said the company was one of the first started at HudsonAlpha with two employees and has grown to 450 employees across the United States and in Europe. This new facility will be our global headquarters, Schreeder said. It will allow us to bring all of our lab capabilities under one roof. Discovery Life Sciences will be able to continue its mission of accelerating tomorrows healthcare solutions.

HudsonAlpha was founded almost 14 years ago to support biological research that could be developed into new businesses. It now has more than 1,000 people working on its campus, institute President and Science Director Dr. Rick Myers said. Among those are 17 scientists or faculty investigators leading teams seeking new diagnostic tools and treatments for Alzheimers disease, childhood cancer, breast cancer and other diseases along with ways to increase sustainable agriculture. There are also 46 resident biotechnology companies at the institute today.

HudsonAlpha co-founder Jim Hudson thanked Gov. Kay Ivey for including funding for the expansions in a state economic development bond issue. Ivey was scheduled to attend the groundbreaking, but said by telephone that she was delayed in Montgomery by issues related to the end of the legislative session. This new campus expansion is a phenomenal investment, the governor said, and it will help secure Huntsvilles and Alabamas place in international biotechnology research.
Montgomery Public Schools has opened an online survey for suggestions for new names for three high schools.

The schools are Jefferson Davis High School, Robert E. Lee High School and Sidney Lanier High School, each named for a Confederate leader or soldier.

Community members can suggest one new name for each school, and the Montgomery Renaming Committee will take them into consideration.

The Board of Education voted on a renaming effort in 2020, but the task -- as well as the removal of a Lee statue outside the high school that bears his name -- has been complicated by a 2017 state law protecting Confederate memorials and monuments. A bill to repeal the law and make it easier for local governments to remove or recontextualize their monuments has not moved forward during the current legislative session.

It is not clear whether the board has sought or obtained a waiver from the Committee for Alabama Memorial Preservation.

A spokeswoman for the district said the Board planned to seek legal advice before accepting or rejecting any name suggestions.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has signed a law aimed at blocking defund the police efforts in larger Georgia cities and counties, saying its unfair to condemn and demonize police officers.

This far-left movement will endanger our communities and our law enforcement officers and leave our most vulnerable at risk, the Republican Kemp said Friday while speaking at the Barrow County Sheriffs Office gun range in Bethlehem, flanked by a number of sheriffs and police chiefs.

The law would limit governments ability to cut police funding by more than 5% a year after Atlanta and Athens-Clarke County officials debated but rejected plans to cut or redirect spending following racial injustice protests last year. The murder of George Floyd, a Black man killed in police custody in Minneapolis last year, launched demonstrations that were also fueled by the death of Rayshard Brooks in Atlanta.

The measure is a rejection of arguments by protesters nationwide that minority communities are suffering from overpolicing. The critics argue that governments should spend less on law enforcement and more on social services to address problems.

Rep. Houston Gaines, an Athens Republican who sponsored the bill, said lawmakers wont allow the defund the police movement to take a foothold in Georgia, saying instead that local governments should be hiring more officers and paying them more to fight a spike in crime.

Listen, I support local control, but when you have local governments that are out of control, I knew we had to act, Gaines said of Athens-Clarke and Atlanta. While were fortunate these proposals didnt pass the first time around, we cant let it happen.

Most Democrats opposed restricting local control and said Republicans were grandstanding to score political points.

A similar measure has become law in Florida, while other states are considering them.

Defunding the police was debated extensively across the country, including during the presidential race, but not much action followed. An Associated Press review found that while some local governments trimmed police budgets, cuts were mostly modest. In Minneapolis, despite efforts to transform policing, the city is planning to spend $6.4 million to try to fill vacancies.

Under the Georgia measure, cities and counties can cut more than 5% if local revenues decline by more than that, and cities and counties with fewer than 25 officers are exempt.

Theres also a provision to allow governments to make larger capital expenditures for a year and not get locked in to higher levels of spending. Cities also could abolish their police forces and contract with counties for law enforcement if they guarantee equivalent levels of protection.

Its unclear what the penalty would be for a government that defies the law. Gaines has said decreases of more than 5% could be challenged in court.
President Joe Biden said Russia has some responsibility to address a ransomware attack that crippled the Colonial fuel pipeline and that hell seek global cooperation to combat similar hacks.

Biden stopped short of blaming the Kremlin for the Friday attack, but said theres evidence the hackers or the software they used are in Russia.

They have some responsibility to deal with this, he told reporters at the White House on Monday, after announcing that my administration will be pursuing a global effort of ransomware attacks.

We have efforts underway with the FBI and DOJ  Department of Justice  to disrupt and prosecute ransomware criminals, he said.

Earlier, Deputy National Security Adviser for Cyber and Emerging Technologies Anne Neuberger said the government is actively engaged with Colonial, but that the company hasnt asked for federal assistance with its cybersecurity. She said the Federal Bureau of Investigation has been probing the ransomware used in the attack since October.

Transnational criminals are most often the perpetrators of these crimes, and they often leverage global infrastructure and global money laundering networks, she said, describing the need for an international campaign to combat ransomware.

To combat the exploitation of virtual currencies that are often used for payment and ransomware, the U.S. Treasury has also been leading international efforts, including driving development and adoption of virtual assets standards, she said.

But she said the U.S. has no advice to victims of the attacks about whether they should pay ransoms. The attacks are known as ransomware because the hackers typically ask for money in exchange for restoring control of companies systems.

We recognize that victims of cyberattacks often face a very difficult situation, and they have to just balance, often, the cost benefit when they have no choice with regard to paying a ransom, she said.

Asked whether the hackers are connected to a foreign government, Neuberger said that at this time they are considered a criminal actor.

Our intelligence community is looking for any ties to any nation-state actors, she said.

The Colonial pipeline hasnt suffered damage and can be brought back online relatively quickly, Deputy National Security Adviser Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall told reporters in a briefing with Neuberger, adding: Right now, there is not a supply shortage,

The pipeline was idled for the third consecutive day on Monday, as fuel suppliers increasingly worry about the possibility of gasoline and diesel shortages across the East Coast. Colonial Pipeline said Sunday that it was still working on a plan to restart the nations largest fuel pipeline and would once it is safe to do so, and in full compliance with the approval of all federal regulations.

The company said Monday it expects the pipeline to be substantially back in operations by the end of the week.

The attack came as the energy industry braced for stepped-up demand from summer travelers and the loosening of COVID-19 restrictions nationally. The White House said Sunday that it has launched an inter-agency working group to address the breach, including planning for options to lessen the impact on the nations energy supply. The Department of Energy and the FBI each said theyve been in contact with Colonial Pipeline.

Biden can invoke an array of emergency powers to keep fuel flowing. On Sunday, he extended the time delivery drivers can spend behind the wheel when transporting fuel, a move intended to avoid disruption to supply, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said.

The president also has the option of waiving the Jones Act, which requires ships to be built and flagged in the U.S. and crewed by American workers to transport goods between U.S. ports. Foreign-flagged tankers could help fill any gap caused by the pipelines crippling, either transporting fuel from the Gulf Coast to New York or from Europe.

The FBI confirmed Monday that ransomware made by a group known as DarkSide was used in the attack. The group posted a message on its dark web page suggesting an affiliate was behind the attack and that it would vet buyers of its ransomware in the future to avoid social consequences.

We are apolitical. We do not participate in geopolitics, the message says. Our goal is to make money and not creating problems for society. From today, we introduce moderation and check each company that our partners want to encrypt to avoid social consequences in the future.

While the inquiry remains in its early stages, some evidence has emerged linking DarkSide to Russia or elsewhere in Eastern Europe.



(Bloombergs Jordan Fabian contributed to this report.)

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The Chicago-based fast food giant announced Tuesday it will promote the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services We Can Do This campaign on its Times Square billboard later this month and on McCafe coffee cups and delivery orders at all U.S. restaurants beginning in July.
The sight of the Carnival Sensation docked in Mobile this Friday wont signal the resumption of cruise travel from the city, but it may represent a big step in the right direction: The ship will be visiting so that its crew can be vaccinated.

Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson announced at a city council meeting on Tuesday that he expects 110 crew members will receive their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine during the visit. The shots will be administered aboard the ship by healthcare personnel from USA Health, which has been working with the city to operate a vaccination clinic at the nearby Mobile Civic Center.

Were pretty excited about that. Its a big deal, theyre coming here to be vaccinated, Stimpson told the council. My understanding is that three weeks later the ship will come back in for the crew members to be re-vaccinated. Crew members will not be allowed to get off the ship, he said.

Thats the first concrete major step we know of, of having the cruise ship come back and start cruising, he said.

It remains unknown exactly when the cruise terminal will once again welcome passengers ready to embark on voyages aboard the Sensation. Earlier this year, the position of the Centers for Disease Control had been that it would maintain a cruising shutdown until well into fall. That led to political pressure from the cruise industry as well as political figures, such as Stimpson and Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey, whose cities and states benefit from cruise travel.

More recently the CDC has told the industry that sailings from U.S. ports could resume by mid-July if 95% of customers and 98% of crew members are vaccinated. But a blanket industrywide restart is unlikely: Carnival has previously said it expects to ramp up a gradual return to full normal operations.

We appreciate the support of Mobile officials in our efforts to vaccinate Carnival Sensation crew members, said a statement from a Carnival representative. We value the partnership of the port and city of Mobile and look forward to resuming sailing from the Alabama Cruise Terminal as soon as we can.

Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak in spring 2020, the Carnival Fantasy had been operating out of Mobile, with plans to replace it with the Carnival Fascination, a newer ship of the same class. But the COVID shutdown led Carnival to shed some older vessels on a faster schedule. The Fantasy went to a scrapyard and the Fascination was sold to a new operator.

The Sensation, another Fantasy-class ship that has undergone upgrades in Carnivals Fun Ship 2.0 enhancement program, was announced as the ship that will operate out of Mobile when the shutdown ends.

In his presentation to the council, Stimpson said that Weve reached out to Carnival and said we want to do everything that we can do to help facilitate cruising. He suggested that cruise supporters were welcome to come down to the GulfQuest Maritime Museum or Cooper Riverside Park at about 9 a.m. Friday to help us welcome them back.
An east Alabama woman has become the sixth fatality victim from tornadoes that pummeled Calhoun County and other parts of Alabama in March.

Calhoun County Coroner Pat Brown on Tuesday said 59-year-old Deborah Free was pronounced dead in late April at a Birmingham hospital. Free was transported to Birmingham on the day of the powerful March 25 storms, then released and later hospitalized again before her death.

Free lived in Ohatchee, where four other people were killed - three in the same family. The other Calhoun County fatality victims were Joe Wayne Harris, 74, Barbara Harris, 69, Ebonique Harris, 38, James William Geno, 72 and Emily Myra Wilborn, 71.

Alabama had at least 10 tornadoes that Thursday, March 25, including an EF3 with winds of 140 mph in Shelby County, that caused extensive property damage, numerous injuries and multiple fatalities across the state, the National Weather Service said.

One of those was the Ohatchee-Wellington Tornado (Calhoun County), which was an EF2 that tracked for 24.35 miles with peak wind 130 mph.
A Birmingham has pleaded guilty to a dozen counts of child pornography possession.

Val Page Jr., 67, entered his guilty plea Friday, according to Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall. Page pleaded guilty to 12 counts of possession of obscene matter depicting a person under the age of 17. He was initially indicted in February on 25 counts.

Marshall said Page was sentenced to 10 years in prison, with one year to actually serve. After his release, he will be on probation for three years and is required to register as a sex offender. As part of his plea, Page cannot have any devices that have internet capability.

This is a reprehensible crime that exploits and causes terrible damage to innocent children, Marshall said. It is appropriate that this defendant will spend time in prison and important that in the future, the public will be warned against him.
Black Lives Matter Birmingham on Monday demanded the resignations of Mayor Randall Woodfin and police Chief Patrick Smith, saying their handling of the police killing of Desmon Montez Ray Jr. is unacceptable.

BLM, joined by a couple dozen of Rays family members and friends, voiced several demands at a press conference held in front of Birmingham City Hall. Though Smith last week released three videos  two of which were officers body-worn camera footage  the family and activists say they want all videos available to be released in their entirety and unedited.

As a leader, and as the chief of police, the video that was released and how it was released was totally unacceptable,' said BLM Birmingham co-founder Eric Hall. The family should not have seen this video on the news or through social media without the leadership first contacting them and making them aware that the videos showing the killing, the murder, of Desmon Ray.

This family has been demanding that the leadership of this community, Mayor Randall Woodfin, council members, the police chief, anybody in leadership should have come to this family to offer their condolences,' Hall said. Thats the right thing to do. Thats what leadership is.

Birmingham police officials did not respond to the demands. Woodfin said he is not resigning.

The 28-year-old Ray was fatally shot in the north Birmingham alley just before 11 p.m. on April 4, which was Easter Sunday. The citys 911 dispatchers that night received a call about a domestic dispute taking place inside a vehicle.

Officers responding to the call spotted the vehicle in the 200 block of Ninth Avenue West and tried to stop it, but the driver  later identified as Ray  refused to stop, police said.

Police pursued the vehicle until it crashed into a chain link fence in the 200 block of Ninth Avenue West. Smith said Ray then exited the vehicle, confronted the officers and fired one round in the officers direction. Officers returned fire, at least eight shots, and Ray was struck, police said.

Smith said he decided to release the videos, which he did May 4, because of misinformation being circulated in the community. Let me be clear, theres not a member of this department who wants to take anyones life. Our goal is preservation of life, and we want to be respectful to everyone,' Smith said. We extend our condolences to the Ray family, but we have to make sure that were putting out the information that is necessary and relevant for the greater good of our community.

The videos released included a neighbors Ring camera footage, and the body-worn camera footage from the two officers first to Ray, including the officer who fired the fatal shots. The chief said at that press conference that dashcam footage was not available because either the cruiser was not equipped with a dashcam or the equipment was outdated and not retrievable.

Hall said they were told there were technical difficulties with the dashcam footage. Enough is enough,' Hall said. Thats totally unacceptable.

Desmon Montez Ray (Contributed)

Rays mother, Lashondra Wilson, said she just wants to know what happened. If Des was wrong, I can accept that but I know in my heart that my baby aint pulled no gun,' she said. Why he couldnt have been tased? My baby was shot in the back. It took 30 days for the chief to reach out to me. I dont need it, I dont want it, Im not going to accept it. My baby did not deserve to be gunned down.

Hall said the family is demanding the release of all unedited footage, full transparency in the investigation, and that both officers involved be held accountable. Smith previously said the officer who fired the fatal shots was initially on leave but has since returned to work in a new assignment.

Black Lives Matters Birmingham, he said, also wants all of the unedited footage release, as well as the resignations of Woodfin and Smith. Additionally, he said, the group demands that Woodfin and city council members acknowledge what happened and address the use of excessive force.

Why in the hell was there between eight and 11 shots fired at one individual. In his back,' Hall said No man should be shot in the back. Were tired of Black men being killed for simply running away.

Hall also said they are asking for a halt to all high-speed police pursuits and roadblocks in predominately Black communities.

Rays grandmother, Cynthia Owens, said the videos released by the Birmingham Police Department are not the same videos shown to the family a week before Smith released them to the media. In the video we saw, we actually saw him getting out of his car, running toward the fence where he was shot down,' Owens said. We heard a shot, we dont know where the shot came from, and then I heard about eight to 10 shots in rapid fire. Then I saw him with his hands up saying, My hands are up.'

She said she never saw Ray with a gun in the video shown to the family. Where did all of these videos come from all of the sudden,' she said. Im concerned, Im heartbroken and Im hurt. We dont want to see this happen to anyone else.
An Atmore man sentenced to life in prison without parole for a 2013 strangulation death in Alabamas Escambia County has died in prison.

Collis McCaster, 48, died Sunday at William Donaldson Correctional Facility. The Jefferson County Coroners Office said McCaster was found unresponsive in his private cell by correctional officers. He was pronounced dead on the scene at 8:45 a.m.

Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said no foul play is suspected in McCasters death.

Collis McCaster pleaded guilty to the 2013 slaying of an Escambia County woman. He died May 9, 2021 at an Alabama prison. (Photo courtesy of NorthEscambia.com)

McCaster, who had a lengthy criminal record dating back two decades, was originally charged with capital murder in the 2013 slaying of 60-year-old Mildred Jackson Morris. According to NorthEscambia.com, Morris was found dead in her Adams Street home when firefighters responded there about 5:20 a.m. on June 8, 2013.

Authorities said Morris had been murdered and her home torched. McCaster was arrested a few hours later and confessed to the crime, the publication reported. In 2019, he pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of murder.
A 28-year-old man shot by Birmingham police in Fairfield last month has been charged with attempted murder and marijuana possession.

Allen Dwight Robertson is charged with two counts of attempted murder, one count of first-degree unlawful possession of marijuana and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency announced Monday evening.

Robertson, who at the time he was shot was out on $250,000 bond for a 2020 marijuana trafficking charge, was booked into the Jefferson County Jail April 27 and released April 29 after posting $378,000 bond, jail records show.

A suspect was shot Thursday, April 22, 2021 after opening fire on Birmingham police during a drug search warrant.

The gunfire erupted about 3:20 p.m. Thursday, April 22, on Acadia Terrace in Fairfield, which is just off Interstate 59/20 and Valley Road. Birmingham Police Chief Patrick Smith said the departments narcotics unit and tactical team has just arrived at the home when the suspect, an adult male, pulled a handgun and started firing. Our officers barely got a change to get out of their vehicles before rounds were fired at them,' Smith said.

An undisclosed number of officers returned fire, striking Robertson. The suspect was taken to UAB Hospital and then booked in the county jail upon his release. The chief said a gun was recovered from the scene.

Every situation comes with a number of factors that are unknown,' the chief said following the shooting. Once we decide to execute a search warrant, no one would know the suspect would immediately start firing at officers.

ALEAs State Bureau of Investigation took the lead, which is standard procedure in officer-involved shootings, and obtained the warrants against Robertson. ALEA said the investigation is ongoing.
A 34-year-old woman is charged with capital murder in the December blunt force trauma death of her boyfriends toddler daughter.

Tykeila Johnson is charged in the killing of 18-month-old KarMynn Brachelle Gaines. The U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force arrested Tykeila Lesha Johnson on Monday, five months to the day after KarMynn died.

KarMynn was injured Nov. 16 and then taken off life support Dec. 10, 2020. The charge is capital because of the victims age.

Marshals took Johnson into custody about 2:45 p.m. at an apartment in the 20 block of Sixth Avenue North in Birmingham. She was booked into the Jefferson County Jail at 8:09 p.m. Monday and remains held without bond.

This doesnt bring her back, but it helps a whole lot,' Melanie Gaines, KarMynns paternal grandmother, told AL.com Tuesday. It still hurts as bad as it did the day it happened.

Kar'Mynn Gaines (Contributed)

The Jefferson County Coroners Office said KarMynn suffered blunt force trauma to the head. The injury happened at a private residence in the 600 block of Carraway Boulevard while in Johnsons care, authorities and family members said.

The girls father, Kameron Gaines, had taken KarMynn to the doctor earlier in the day on Nov. 16 for her regular checkup. Later that night, he left the home for a brief time to go pick up Johnsons daughter from work.

When he returned, he found KarMynn was having difficulty breathing and the toddler was immediately taken to Childrens of Alabama by Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service.

She immediately underwent surgery to relieve the pressure on her brain. Her grandmother said surgeons first removed the right side of her skull to relieve the pressure and, when that didnt work, they removed more skull from the left side. The third surgery took place because infection was setting in.

KarMynn never regained consciousness throughout her hospital stay. Her family, including grandmother, mother and father, stayed by her side as much as they could.

There was a special visitation held at the hospital - on her grandmothers birthday  so that the family could say their goodbyes. Because of COVID -19 restrictions, only a small number of people could be with KarMynn at a time.

KarMynn was taken off life support about 2 p.m. that Thursday and survived about four hours before she took her last breath 5:48 p.m. I let her mom and dad hold her,' Melanie Gaines said. They held her until she took her last breath. Thats the only image he (her father) has of her now.

Kameron Gaines described his only daughter as full of life. She was the bossiest, sassiest 1-year-old there was,' Kameron Gaines said in a previous interview. She told me what to do. She was something else.

My baby deserved the world, but she didnt deserve this,' said the girls father, Kameron Gaines. Shes an angel now.

KarMynn would have turned 2 on Mothers Day. The family is still reeling from her death. We are all just devastated,' Melanie Gaines said.
Alabama Democratic Party Executive Director Wade Perry on Monday called for the firings of Huntsville Police Chief Mark McMurray and Officer William Darby after Darby was placed on paid administrative leave following his conviction on murder charges.

Hes a convicted murderer. He shouldnt get another days pay. Fire him. And the police chief, Perry said in an email.

Darby was convicted by a jury Friday after two hours of deliberations of murdering Jeff Parker, a suicidal man, in April 2018.

He was on administrative leave while awaiting trial and put on paid administrative leave on Monday. The Huntsville City Council voted to dedicate $125,000 in public money for Darbys criminal defense.

Due to Mr. Darbys conviction, he cannot continue as a police officer, city of Huntsville spokeswoman Lucy DeButy said earlier Monday. William Darby was placed on paid administrative leave today, May 10. This is the normal process until formal proceedings under the City of Huntsvilles personnel policies and procedures are complete.

DeButy could not immediately be reached for a response to Perrys statement calling on McMurray and Darby to be fired.

A civil suit is expected to move forward against Darby.
One person is dead following a shooting incident Monday night in Huntsville.

Madison County Coroner Tyler Berryhill said the incident happened shortly after 9 p.m. at Burgundy Square Apartments on Binford Drive S.W.

According to Huntsville police, officers arrived to find Stephon Hussey, 36, suffering from a gunshot wound. Hussey was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to police, the shooting was a domestic incident. Investigators say they are working to find the suspect, but did not release a name.

A homicide investigation is underway with Huntsville police investigating, Berryhill said.

An autopsy on the victim will be performed this week.
An Alabama state trooper was arrested on assault and sexual misconduct charges in Huntsville, authorities said.

Trooper William J. Fox, 47, was placed on mandatory leave following his arrest by Huntsville police, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said.

ALEA did not provide further information, only saying Huntsville police will handle the investigation into Fox, which is ongoing.
The outage occurred after the company automatically rebooted modems for a portion of Chicago-area customers, New Jersey-based RCN Telecom Services said in an email. Nearly 1,300 people reported the outage just after noon, according to Downdetector.com, with internet service down for customers from Chicago to Skokie.
Before traffic bound for Dauphin Island crosses a high-rise bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway, it traverses a low, narrow causeway vulnerable to hurricane damage. That sliver of land is about to get more than $30 million in reinforcement that also will add an expanse of salt marsh habitat to the shoreline.

The Mobile County Commission voted Monday to accept a $22.6 million grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) for work that will protect the causeway as well as hundreds of acres of salt marsh to its west, while adding new marsh to the east.

This project restores and conserves critical habitat along the Dauphin Island Causeway, said Chris Blankenship, commissioner of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. At the same time, it protects and strengthens the road that is the hurricane evacuation route for Dauphin Island.

Dauphin Island Mayor Jeff Collier described the causeway as an important lifeline for island residents and visitors and said he foresaw many positive results generated by the comprehensive shoreline restoration project.

The money, coming through NFWFs Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund, originates in criminal penalties paid by companies involved in the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster and requires no local matching funds. Its a great opportunity for Mobile County to receive grant funds for a project that will preserve the environment and protect infrastructure with no out of pocket expense to County taxpayers, said District 3 County Commissioner Randall Dueitt.

Previous grants totaling $500,000 paid for some planning work, and another $7.8 million or so will come to the project through another NFWF program, bringing the total to about $31 million. A statement released by the Mobile County Commission following the vote described it as one of the largest and most significant investments in an Alabama coastal restoration project to date.

According to project documents released earlier in the planning and funding process, the project will create an offshore breakwater paralleling the causeway to the east. The space in between the shore and the breakwater will be partially filled in, using material dredged from the Mobile Ship Channel, to create marshland that will further protect the causeway from wave impacts.

According to information previously released by NFWF, the breakwater will stretch for about 3 miles, roughly from Bayfront Park to Cedar Park along Ala. 193, and about 60 acres of coastal marsh will be created.

According to information released by the county commission, design and engineering have been completed and work will begin this summer. The timeline to completion is somewhat dependent upon the Army Corps of Engineers dredging to expand the Mobile Bay shipping channel, said the commissions Monday announcement.

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation very much appreciates the strong leadership and diligent work of the Mobile County Commission, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and other partners in advancing this significant restoration project, Jeff Trandahl, executive director and CEO of NFWF, said in the statement released by the commission. The Foundation remains deeply committed to investing in large-scale restoration efforts such as the Dauphin Island Causeway Shoreline & Habitat Restoration Project that enhance and protect coastal habitats to benefit both native species and the local communities that rely upon them. The announcement also credited the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program with supporting the project.
The Biden Administration is officially tossing its support behind Amtraks return to the Gulf Coast.

The confirmation came in a letter from John Putnam, acting general counsel with the U.S. Department of Transportation to the U.S. Surface Transportation Board, charged with ruling whether Amtrak can restart a twice-daily service between Mobile and New Orleans. The service also calls for four stops in Mississippi  Pascagoula, Biloxi, Gulfport and Bay St. Louis.

Putnam, within a three-page letter submitted on Monday, urges the STB to act expeditiously on Amtraks application to restore the service to the Gulf Coast that was interrupted by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The letter also reaffirms support from President Joe Biden  a longtime proponent and user of Amtrak service -- for expanding the passenger rails network. Biden is pushing for more Amtrak routes through a $2.3 trillion infrastructure program that includes billions toward expanding the passenger rail operators services across the U.S. Amtrak has since said it would add 30 new routes and trains on 20 existing routes by 2035.

Restarting the Gulf Coast route is something Amtrak wants to achieve quickly. The rail service has a targeted time frame of running trains along the Gulf Coast by New Years Day.

The Biden-Harris Administration believes that the expansion and improvement of intercity passenger rail service, though efforts such as the restoration of Gulf Coast service, plays an essential role in meeting the most important objectives of our transportation system, including combating climate change, ensuring equity in personal mobility, and driving economic growth and vitality, Putnam said in his letter to STB chairman Martin Oberman.

Putnam echoed concerns, raised by officials in Alabama, over the lack of a resolution in the negotiations involving Amtrak and the Gulf Coast lines two freight operators -- CSX Corp. and Norfolk Southern. He said that the Federal Railroad Administration  an agency under the U.S. DOT -- remains concerned about an inability to obtain access to all the data and analysis related to restoring the service. Putnam said there doesnt appear to be any clear path forward for resolving unanswered questions, absent the STBs intervention.

Putnam said that the FRA was initially encouraged when Amtrak, CSX and Norfolk Southern agreed to in early 2020 to undertake a collaborative operations study, called the Gulf Coast Simulation Study. That study was charged with analyzing what, if any, capital investments are needed to implement the first phase of the Gulf Coast project.

The FRA funded the study for $250,852 through a grant issued to Amtrak, Putnam said. He said the FRA and Amtrak have repeatedly attempted to address concerns with CSX and Norfolk Southern about the conduct and completion of the study, but were unable to do so by scheduled end date of January 2021.

Amtrak spokesman Marc Margliari, in a statement, said the FRAs letter speaks for itself. Amtrak looks forward to the STB rendering a speedy decision.

CSX and Norfolk Southern have since called on Amtrak to resume negotiations, but Amtrak has declined to so by saying that the study should have lasted only seven months.

Jeff DeGraff, a spokesman with Norfolk Southern, said his company is withholding public comment as the Gulf Coast project continues through litigation before the STB. He added, as weve stated, there is an established process for introducing new passenger rail service and we look forward to that process being reviewed and completed.

A CSX representative did not provide immediate comment.

Alabama officials are pushing for the studys completion out of concerns over what Amtraks return to the Gulf Coast could mean to the Alabama State Port Authority. A letter from Alabamas House delegation called on Amtrak to back away from the STB process and return to negotiations with CSX and Norfolk Southern. The Port Authority has argued that a study should include a look at freight operations involving eight railroads that use or cross the CSX mainline at the port, not just CSX and Norfolk Southern.

A letter submitted to the STB last month says that Alabamas sole seaport has greatly increased since passenger rail service was last in Mobile before Hurricane Katrina destroyed much of the rail line in 200. The 3,700-acre port complex provides over 154,000 jobs and $25 million impact, according to the letter from lawmakers that included Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and Republican U.S. Senator Richard Shelby. Amtrak has since said that support from Alabama public officials is not needed for the services restoration.

The project has the backing of some Republicans in Mississippi, and notably has long been championed by U.S. Senator Roger Wicker.

Amtraks potential return has been polarizing in Mobile, where local government officials have argued whether the service would be utilized enough by residents. Councilman Fred Richardson, who is running for mayor, is a backer of Amtrak and has said its return to the Gulf Coat has widespread support among citizens. Councilman Joel Daves has called it a joyride for the affluent, and doesnt believe it will be utilized enough by residents.

Putnams letter does not cite, nor does it address any of the worries in Alabama.

He said the FRA has made several significant grant program selections for restarting the route, totaling $47.6 million (together with $52.3 million in non-federal matching funds) to support the project. Of that, nearly $10 million in federal funds has been invested to support the routes operations and more than $33 million for capital expenses.

Putnam also argued that a return of Amtrak to the Gulf Coast is supported by federal law. He cited Amtraks 50th anniversary, celebrated last month, in addressing the importance of passenger rail when it comes to cooperative arrangements with host freight railroads.

Nearly 50 years ago, Congress affirmed the importance of passenger rail in this arrangement, requiring freight railroads to give Amtrak trains access to host freight railroad lines and facilities at incremental cost and preference over freight service in the use of those host freight railroad assets, Putnam said.

This story was updated at 6:40 p.m. on Monday, May 10, 2021, to include a statement from Amtrak.
A Missouri animal shelter is the new home of more than 50 animals, mostly puppies, after they were flown in from Alabama after an emergency transfer aided by the ASPCA.

Wayside Waifs, located in Kansas City, received 55 dogs and puppies from the Mobile SPCA on May 6, according to their Facebook page. The Mobile shelter was suffering from overflowing with animals, according to Geoff Hall, president of Wayside Waifs.

These are animals that were surrendered to the Mobile SPCA, and they just have too many of them. Were happy to be able to bring them here and find them wonderful homes, Hall told KMBC.

The ASPCA contacted Wayside Waifs to assist in the transfer, according to their Facebook page. All 55 animals are now resting and receiving medical care, behavior testing and more until they are adopted out.

Wayside Waifs shared the news of the arrival of the dogs on their Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages.

BARKING NEWS! Wayside received 55 animals at the downtown airport this morning. Well keep you updated on this transport, the shelter said on their Instagram page.

According to KMBC, one of the dogs has already found a new home via the pilot on the plane from Alabama that flew the dogs to Missouri.

The Alabama dogs will make their debuts on the shelters website in the coming days and weeks. To see them, click here.
A Tuscaloosa man was identified Monday as the fatal victim in a five-vehicle crash on Sunday that injured a state trooper, authorities said.

Jose Angel Guerrero Ortiz, 47, of Tuscaloosa, died in the Sunday morning wreck on McFarland Boulevard at the intersection of Veterans Memorial Parkway, according to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency.

The troopers 2017 Ford Explorer stuck a 1995 Jeep Cherokee being driven by Ortiz around 9:35 a.m. Sunday.

Ortiz was pronounced dead at the scene, while the trooper was taken to DCH Regional Medical Center.

Three other vehicles were involved after the initial collision, authorities said, but ALEA did not provide more information.

ALEAs Major Accident Investigation Team is investigating the incident.
A 30-year-old Tuscaloosa woman pleaded guilty Monday in the 2019 killing of her co-worker.

Angela Mayo issued her guilty plea in Tuscaloosa County and was sentenced to 50 years in prison, court records show. She will be given 646 days of credit for time already spent in jail.

The shooting happened in August 2019 on the assembly line at Lear Corporation, which manufactures automotive seating and electrical systems.

Shanina Smith, 27, was found dead on the floor. She had been shot multiple times.

Shanina Smith (AL.com)

Mayo left the plant after the shooting, but later turned herself in. She admitted shooting Smith and then standing over her and shooting her again. She told investigators Smith had brushed up against her and had been bullying her at work for eight months.

Mayo was charged with one count of murder was held $150,000 bond.

In November 2020, Mayo was sent to Bryce Hospital after a judge deemed her incompetent to assist in her defense. She was released from the hospital March 9, 2021 and on Monday deemed competent to stand trial.

It was then she pleaded guilty to the murder charged and sentenced by Circuit Judge James H. Roberts Jr.
LGBTQ+ representation has always existed in films, but how much has it evolved? A great deal, Stacker notes, as we revisit key moments in queer movie history. Click for more.
Xi calls for promoting innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture

Xinhua) 08:13, May 11, 2021

BEIJING, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has called on people who work in the field of philosophy and social sciences to promote the evolution and growth of fine traditional Chinese culture in new and creative ways.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks when writing back on Sunday to editors of the Journal of Chinese Humanities.

Founded in May 1951, the journal is the country's oldest comprehensive academic journal on humanities.

In the past 70 years since it started publication, the journal -- under the Party's leadership -- has done a lot of work to promote Chinese civilization and enrich academic research, Xi said, applauding these efforts which have won recognition from home and abroad.

Xi spoke of the importance of a profound understanding of the Chinese civilization to let the world better know and understand China, and urged efforts to combine theories and practices to expound how to better uphold the Chinese path, promote the Chinese spirit, and pool together the Chinese strength.

Xi urged the journal to remain true to its original aspiration, lead innovation, produce more high-quality works, support the growth of distinguished experts and boost international academic exchanges.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
In 2019, Prieto led a historic and largely successful battle for higher wages in Matamoros, but she was arrested for allegedly inciting a riot, threats and coercion stemming from a protest at a local labor board that sought to revoke an existing union at a factory and install a new one. In return for the charges being dropped, she had to adhere to the unusual travel restrictions.
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MAWGAN PORTH, England (AP)  One year ago, the U.S. was the deadliest hotspot of the COVID-19 pandemic, forcing the cancellation of the Group of Seven summit it was due to host. Now, the U.S. is emerging as a model for how to successfully recover from more than 15 months of global crisis.
NEW YORK (AP)  Donald Trump cannot be held personally liable for crude" and disrespectful remarks he made while president about a woman who accused him of rape, Justice Department lawyers said Monday in arguing for him to be replaced by the United States as defendant in a defamation lawsuit.
The city of Lake Charles will be seeking reimbursement from federal programs but not waiting on it. Two resolutions were unanimously approved by council members to mitigate and repair effects from recent weather events in a special Tuesday council meeting to address the citys gravity drainage.
The nation of Taiwan faces the increasing likelihood of invasion by Mainland China and may have to face it alone. Taiwan must therefore take steps on its own to deter an invasion and to demonstrate the intention to resist it as long as possible if it comes.

In 2019, demonstrators in Hong Kong carried American and British flags as well as at least one poster reading, "We need the Second Amendment." Beijing long ago foreclosed that option for Hong Kong, but Taiwan may still have time to adopt a firearms policy acceptable to its people and government, while contributing to its overall defense. It could develop a capability common to small nations facing larger enemies -- a government-supported citizens' militia. A numerous, well-equipped militia would demonstrate that any invasion will involve the whole population in the nation's defense, and that such an attack would be a costly endeavor.

President Biden still has not stated clearly that the United States will defend Taiwan if the island is attacked. The deterrent value of the policy of "strategic ambiguity" is of little value when Beijing's policy is increasingly unambiguous and there is the possibility that American forces might not be able to intervene effectively even if they tried to do so. War games conducted by the U.S. military have indicated that China might prevail in a regional contest against the United States if it happens in the next few years, and Admiral Phillip Davidson has warned that war could come as soon as six to ten years from now. Plans to revise U.S. military doctrine and tactics offer some hope, but the proposed changes are unlikely to be in place within the time-frame envisioned by Admiral Davidson.

Taiwan must be prepared to stand alone. Its regular military and reserve forces appear strong on paper, but many shortcomings in their equipment and training have been identified. As their principal arms supplier, the U.S. continues to sell advanced weapons to Taipei in furtherance of the "Fortress Taiwan" concept popular in the Pentagon. But expensive, advanced weapons may not be available in sufficient numbers to make a difference in the defense of the island. Recognizing this, former Taiwan Armed Forces Chief of Staff Admiral Lee Hsi-Ming developed an "Overall Defense Plan" (ODP) to maximize the nation's defensive capability. He advocated a defense based on "a large number of small things" -- relatively inexpensive arms, purchased in quantity, dispersed, and protected from rapid destruction in a sudden attack. The ODP should include plans for a militia beyond the currently available reserves, potentially a very large number of "small things" -- trained guerrilla fighters.

A conventional military attack on Taiwan could be costly for Beijing even if it succeeded, and extensive fighting on the island could destroy a large part of the island's coveted industrial infrastructure, especially its microchip production facilities. This possibility has some deterrent value in itself, but Taiwan also faces the threat of an unconventional "hybrid" or "grey area" military operation such as that conducted by Russia's "little green men" against the Ukraine in 2014. Retired Admiral James Stavridis and others caution that China could employ its numerous Naval Militia as "little blue men" at sea or against Taiwan itself. Seizure of many key military facilities and high-value civilian targets simultaneously via hybrid operations, using Naval Militia, infiltration by Special Operations troops, and fifth-column agents, might present Taipei with a fait accompli, discouraging further resistance. A cease-fire under these circumstances could make U.S. intervention unlikely. Such a hybrid operation could be made more difficult and might be deterred by use of a citizens' militia, deployed to reinforce existing security personnel around potential targets. In times of increased tension short of war, a portion of the militia could be mobilized and posted alongside full-time security forces both to strengthen defenses and to demonstrate national resolve. While the militia alone would not be intended to fight pitched battles against regular military forces, its presence in large numbers would complicate an invader's planning and make it hard to seize many objectives simultaneously.

As suggested by writers such as Michael Hunzeker and Brian Davis, part of Taiwan's organized reserves should be converted to "Territorial" forces, armed and equipped similar to regular troops but organized for local defense in their home areas. Poland provides a contemporary model. "Territorials" could be strengthened further by a well-organized civilian militia. If invasion occurs or appears imminent, the militia would be alerted and organized under the leadership of Territorial officers. Conventional military units which are defeated by invaders would disperse and join the militia to organize an extended guerrilla campaign.

Historically, some nations' militia members have furnished their own arms, and others have kept their government-provided weapons at home. With significant limits on private firearms ownership in place already, Taiwan's government and people may not accept the presence of military-grade weapons in private homes. However, weapons, ammunition, and other supplies could be stored in numerous, scattered locations all over the country, in relatively secure facilities such as local police stations. Using government-supplied weapons would ensure that militia fighters have the same arms and ammunition as the regular forces, avoiding the logistical problems often encountered by militias using their personal arms in historical examples, such as our own Revolution.

Non-lethal equipment could be kept at members' homes. Upon alert, militia members would report to a local arsenal to receive weapons and ammunition, then report for duty at pre-assigned posts. Once mobilized, all components of the defense forces would be supported by the widely dispersed infrastructure of arsenals, with stores of ammunition and other supplies. These scattered storage sites would also mean that even if a large part of Taiwan were occupied by invaders, there would be many facilities remaining to support an insurgency.

Taiwan's conventional forces have about 170,000 personnel, and the organized reserves are variously estimated at about 2.5 million members available for service. With a population of over 23 million, Taiwan might easily build a citizens' militia of a million or more -- about one-twentieth of its population -- relatively quickly and at low cost. An invading force would suffer significant losses at the hands of Taiwan's conventional forces even if Taipei's allies are held at bay, and then would face a nation organized for defense. The invaders would have to plan for a costly occupation. While the Chinese Communists are presumably capable of extreme ruthlessness in rooting out an insurgency, they would also realize that extended fighting would greatly reduce Taiwan's prize value.

To help deter China, Taiwan needs an effective militia in addition to improved regular forces. The United States should commit publicly to the defense of Taiwan against invasion and to the long-term support of its resistance to occupation. Military sales to Taiwan should include arms and other equipment appropriate to extended resistance. The prospect of a long, hard fight might make Beijing reconsider its options.

Rex Crigger is a retired officer of the Central Intelligence Agency, and of the US Army Reserve. He currently keeps bees and practices rifle marksmanship in the mountains of Tennessee.

Image: Alan Wu

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White leftist politicians and hipsters have already killed wokeness in American culture. They just dont know it yet.

Theres been this repeating cultural joke occurring throughout my lifetime that, for some reason, never seems to be recognized by those who are ridiculed by its many iterations. That is, when liberal white hipsters adopt any cultural fad, they manage to end the fad by making it spectacularly unpopular in no time flat.

A terrific modern example of this might be liberal white hipsters co-opting fashion and social trends that were prominent in gay culture in the early aughts. Shows like Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and Sex and the City created what was then known as the metrosexual fad that swept America. Up to that point, the cultural aesthetic of the urbane, somewhat androgynous fashion trends that were highlighted on the show had largely existed among men only in the gay subculture, making it a unique expression of that specific identity. But once it was adopted by white hipsters, it became part of the cultural status quo, and the trend died almost overnight.

Which brings us to being woke, and how it went from being somewhat culturally subversive to being a prerequisite of participating in todays cultural status quo.

Before 2014, stay woke was in common use in the black community, writes Aja Romano at Vox, but it didnt carry all the weight its dragging along today. It simply meant that one should remain alert to the deceptions of other people as a basic survival tactic.

Most would agree, thats generally just pretty good advice. It wasnt until the Michael Brown shooting in that year that it took on a more explicit meaning as it relates to racism in American policing. Despite the fact that Officer Darren Wilson was entirely innocent of any wrongdoing, and was exonerated in the court of law and by several investigations, including an investigation by Barack Obamas DOJ, the Hands up, dont shoot! lie was so culturally pervasive that the term woke began to mean, specifically, keeping watch for police brutality and unjust police tactics.

Even still, the term remained pretty limited in its use. It wasnt until liberal white hipsters and left-wing politicians later coopted the term, however, that it became a catchall phrase signifying the noble opposition to anything radical progressive ideologues dont like.

All of a sudden, being woke began meaning everything that a rich white kid from Menlo Park who attended U.C. Berkeley wanted it to mean, from demanding free college, healthcare, and housing at taxpayer expense to the abolition of law enforcement in the United States.

As Dr. Mansa Keita, the pseudonym for a Rastafari, Computer Science PhD, writes on Twitter.

I continue to be amazed by the fact that I have no idea what people are referring to when they use the word woke or its derivatives. I keep trying to catch up, but the words meaning morphs at a tremendous pace. For the record, this used to be the very simple definition of woke. alert to injustice in society, especially racism. I cant imagine many people who use the word pejoratively now can recognize it. But know that the distortion was intentional.

That last sentence couldnt be more correct. And hes right to be annoyed by this. The original definition of woke is generally inoffensive to anyone. Most Americans abhor racism, and generally look to be alert to signs of it. But along come these rich, white leftist hipsters and politicians to capitalize on the popularity of the term, attaching all of their amorphous, yet openly communist, connotations.

At the hands of rich white leftists, woke became synonymous with woke extremism, seemingly overnight. This undoubtedly benefits Republicans. As Republican strategist Mark Serrano says:

The Left will always overreach in their zeal for more power, but just like in 2016, theyre disregarding the interests of hard-working Americans in favor of woke extremism, including massive tax increases on the middle class, open borders, defunding police, climate fanaticism, and destabilizing energy policies that are hitting the pocketbooks of everyday citizens.

The word woke now represents a communists wish list for American policy, and theres not a single person who can deny that the word woke now signifies a devotion to any or all of those political ambitions that Serrano describes. And while the word began as a countercultural sigil in the black community meant to highlight a specific and important issue, the myriad unrelated and radical policy positions that have been later assigned to the term are now being championed by Hollywood, the news media, multi-billion-dollar corporations, Big Tech, and the now-seated ruling regime in American government.

If all of that that doesnt serve as evidence that wokeness is currently occupying the space of a status quo, then I dont know what does. As Vivek Ramaswamy, author of the upcoming Woke, Inc., tells the Washington Examiner: Wokeness is no longer about challenging the system. Wokeness is the system. That creates an opportunity for a new movement of rebels relative to the new power structure of wokeness.

Given that the GOP is already scoring huge gains in delivering an anti-woke agenda, were likely already past peak-wokeness. And, as is so often the case, white leftists coopting a cultural fad and attempting to reshape it for its own purposes has only hastened the its demise.

Image: EpicTop10.com, via Flickr // CC BY 2.0

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The degree to which Muslim terrorists can feign remorse for their crimes and convincingly pretend to have reformed  while secretly despising and plotting to murder non-Muslims  was recently underscored.

After his prison evaluators had determined that Usman Khan, who was serving time for terrorist-related activities, had reformed and repented of his ways, they freed him early, in December 2018. Less than a year later he murdered two people, a man and woman, and injured three others at Fishmongers Hall near London Bridge.

During a recent inquest, the Rev. Paul Foster, a prison chaplain, admitted that he was one of those to have been "conned" by the falsely "remorseful" Khan.

Foster said that "Khan had engaged positively with programmes looking at his offending and the impact of his crimes." Khan, moreover, "had conversations with me about wanting to change and make a fresh start  to pay more attention to the ripple effect of his actions."

The April 24, 2021 report continues:

Mr Foster also said Khan had spoken "openly and emotionally" during a discussion session with a victim of crime. He added: "We were being presented with a lot of positive things about his behavior  even some of the prisoners were telling me... in one instance a chap lost his son to a murder and Usman was the person at his door offering his condolences and asking if he could help." The chaplain described one session with Khan in which he professed "some shame" about the impact his crime had on the Muslim community. "He appeared to show remorse for what he had done," Mr Foster said.

In the end, it was all a charade. During the inquest, Foster expressed shock on learning that, during the same time period that Khan was feigning repentance, so too was he the "main inmate for radicalising others and had been involved in 'forced conversations.'"

"[H]e was obviously presenting himself in a way that was likely to deceive the likes of myself and others," Foster concluded. "I'm open to say I am wrong, and it is possible I have been conned."

Indeed, not only was he conned by Khan, but many other well-meaning prison employees and evaluators have been conned by many other "reformed" Muslim terrorists. Worse, such cons appear to be the rule, not the exception.

According to a 2020 study published by Kings College London's International Centre for the Study of Radicalization (ICSR) and titled "Prisons and Terrorism," "'[f]alse compliance' seems to have become more widespread, especially among jihadist prisoners, though its true extent is unknown. This can be a major issue in relation to risk assessment and release arrangements."

The ICSR report documented several other examples beyond Khan of jihadi prisoners pretending to have reformed and "de-radicalized." One of the two Muslims who beheaded 85yearold Catholic priest Jacques Hamel in his church in France in 2016 had twice earlier been apprehended for trying to go to Syria and fight for the Islamic State. All he had to do, however, was tell the judge what he wanted to hear: "I am a Muslim who believes in mercy, in doing good. I'm not an extremist. ... I want to get back my life, see my friends, get married." Based on these words, the judge released him, and soon thereafter, this "Muslim who believes in mercy" slaughtered the elderly priest.

Similarly, "many of the 40 female inmates in FleuryMerogis prison in Paris have joked about how they tricked the judge or magistrate  by eating pork, for example, which is forbidden in Islam  to receive more lenient sentences."

Sadly, the only ones learning from the interaction between Muslim prisoners and European authorities are the terrorists themselves:

From their perspective, prison is also an opportunity to understand how the authorities operate, and  in a sign of their growing awareness of counterintelligence and countersurveillance  jihadists have actively looked to pass their time in prison without incident or arousing the suspicions of the authorities.

Relatedly, the incarcerated terrorists "see prison as a test of their commitment to the cause and a place to recover from Islamic State's battlefield losses and the wider upheaval in the jihadist scene."

The ICSR report goes on to invoke the word taqiyya  Islam's premiere doctrine of deceit:

[O]ffenders may try to 'game' a risk assessment if they are in contact with other inmates who have already participated in the process. Part of this involves knowing what to say to tick the right boxes. Much of this is seemingly the use of what is referred to as taqiyya, which is a (mostly) Shiite concept used to describe deception and dissimulation to hide one's true intentions. ... [T]he true scale of taqiyya may be greater than commonly understood. ... Yet the assumption that jihadists are more willing to engage in deception than nonterrorist prisoners can pose a conundrum, whereby anything less than admitting to holding jihadist ideas and intentions is thought of as a form of taqiyya.

It is, admittedly, somewhat surprising  refreshingly so  to see a normally politically correct Western think-tank even use the term taqiyya. For example, after "Islam's Doctrines of Deception"  an article that Jane's Islamic Affairs Analyst (a defense intelligence agency) had commissioned me to write on taqiyya  was published in September 26, 2008, its (since fired) editor called me in a panic: his superiors were outraged that he had allowed such an article to appear. Part of their "damage control" was to publish another article refuting mine.

The great "crime" of my article was that it went against academic orthodoxy on taqiyya, which has long insisted that the doctrine permits Muslims to deceive others only when their lives are under threat. My article argued what the ICSR report is now saying  well over a decade later: that the application of taqiyya, or deceit, is hardly limited to life-threatening situations and is often employed in any way that can be seen as helping Muslims against non-Muslims.

As for the typical (and wrong) caveat offered by the ICSR, that "taqiyya ... is a (mostly) Shiite concept," this is not true  as evidenced by the simple fact that the prison subjects in ICSR's own study are overwhelmingly if not entirely Sunni. As Dr. Sami Nassib Makarem, the foremost authority on taqiyya, wrote in his seminal book, Al-Taqiyya fi'l Islam ("Taqiyya in Islam"):

Taqiyya is of fundamental importance in Islam. Practically every Islamic sect agrees to it and practices it. ... We can go so far as to say that the practice of taqiyya is mainstream in Islam, and that those few sects not practicing it diverge from the mainstream. ... Taqiyya is very prevalent in Islamic politics, especially in the modern era.

Taqiyya was associated with Shiites because, historically, they had more reason to employ it, being minorities surrounded by hostile Sunni majorities. Today, however, Sunnis in the West are the primary Muslim minorities surrounded by their historic enemies  non-Muslims, "infidels"  and thus they, no less than Shia, employ taqiyya. (For those interested in more detailed expositions on Islam's doctrines of deceit, see here, here, and here.)

So long as the West fails to appreciate the significance and widespread nature of taqiyya, so long will it continue to be duped by its practitioners  often, as highlighted by Usman Khan's example, with fatal consequences.

Raymond Ibrahim, author of Sword and Scimitar, is a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center, a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, and a Judith Rosen Friedman Fellow at the Middle East Forum.

Image: CreaPark via Pixabay, Pixabay License.

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Chicago has benefited tremendously from young people going to universities and then deciding theyd like to come to the capital of the Midwest, Chicago, and work for a while (and) enjoy living in the city if thats what they want, Evans said at an event held by a national business journalism organization.
For those conservatives already put off by Disney's using its forum with children to indoctrinate them into alternative sexualities, the company had a further fall from grace this past weekend.

Christopher Rufo, who is now the godfather of the fight against the racist Critical Race Theory, used internal documents from the Disney Corporation to reveal that it has gone all in on this theory, a cross between Marxism and the vilest eugenics Democrats produced in the early 20th century  only this time, the target is Whites, not Blacks. It turns out Disney had the capacity to fall still farther, because its response was to deny what the documents clearly said.

The materials Disney foisted on its White employees were blatantly eugenic in nature  that is, they imputed negative behavioral and intelligence characteristics to people based upon the color of their skin. In this case, that color was White. In addition to insisting that America is a racist country, it said that present-day Whites continue to be responsible for the continued systemic racism in America. Thus, it told the White people to "work through feelings of guilt, shame and defensiveness to understand what is beneath them and what needs to be healed."

White employees were also given behavioral instructions. Most importantly, they were told that Whites may "not question or debate Black colleagues' lived experience." Note that this is not saying you must stop denying people's emotions. All sentient people know that it's incredibly stupid to try to tell someone else how he's feeling. This is different because "lived experience" means facts. Thus, if a Black colleague asserts that someone is a racist, you cannot challenge that fact if you're White.

In addition to telling Whites they cannot challenge facts that come from Blacks, they are also not allowed to express empathy. Thus, you cannot say, "I feel you" or "I have been there." Presumably, this is the case even if you've just been through a seminar in which you've been told that, because you are White, you are a privileged, racist oppressor. Instead, you must respond with the banal "I hear you" or, even better, demand more information. ("Tell me more...")

The most blatantly racist item in Disney's employee training was a checklist that required them to tick off all the items showing that they possess "White (heterosexual, cis-gender) privilege." Because the checklist goes to the heart of Disney's laughable denial, here's the Rufo tweet with that checklist so you can see it for yourself:

Next, participants are asked to complete a white privilege checklist: I am white, I am heterosexual, I am a man, I still identity as the gender I was born in, I have never been raped, I dont rely on public transportation, and I have never been called a terrorist. pic.twitter.com/hcTVp9Tnz1  Christopher F. Rufo  (@realchrisrufo) May 8, 2021

Disney tried to wriggle away from the inevitable backlash following those revelations by claiming that Rufo had misunderstood the documents. Rufo wasn't having any of that, and in a strongly-worded, fact-filled rebuttal, he emphasized that the documents are incapable of being misunderstood. They're just straight-up racist:

Disney has released a statement claiming that my reporting "distorted" their antiracism program. This is false. I published direct quotations, contextual screenshots, and the original source documents in their entirety.



Disney is distorting the truthand I won't stand for it. pic.twitter.com/w7eEcKyduq  Christopher F. Rufo  (@realchrisrufo) May 10, 2021

Disney claims to value "inclusivity," but the company has:



-Used slave and child labor in poor countries

-Filmed 'Mulan' near Uighur concentration camps

-Censored content for the CCP

-Shrinked a black actor in Chinese promotional materials



The Magic Kingdom is a house of lies.  Christopher F. Rufo  (@realchrisrufo) May 10, 2021

I challenge Disney's executive team to walk the walk: they should complete the "white privilege" checklist they provided to employees and share the results publicly.



Otherwise, they're fake antiracists, using buzzwords to deflect attention from their moral transgressions. pic.twitter.com/WTw7VoJtTy  Christopher F. Rufo  (@realchrisrufo) May 10, 2021

Read the truthincluding the full original source documentshere: https://t.co/trZwqqNP8C  Christopher F. Rufo  (@realchrisrufo) May 10, 2021

Disney's statement about my reporting is only two paragraphs, but contains eight falsehoods, misrepresentations, and evasions.



I've annotated them here. Do better, Disney. pic.twitter.com/RMJmQhclSs  Christopher F. Rufo  (@realchrisrufo) May 10, 2021

I strongly encourage you to boycott Disney for as long as it thinks its mission, both within the corporation and through the products that it markets to young people, is to promote the fantasy of transgenderism, the lie that America is a systemically racist country, and the eugenic theory that Whites are inherently bad. And if you need a little more encouragement to boycott Disney, just think of all the young Disney stars in the past 20 years who have become complete nutcases because something is deeply wrong in the formerly wholesome, patriotic company that Walt created.

Image: The cover page for Disney's anti-White "Anti-Racism" guide. Twitter screen grab.

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Six thousand eight hundred American patriots died in action, six thousand one hundred were wounded, and eight thousand to twelve thousand died as prisoners of war to free us from the chains of slavery from a tyrannical government under King George III. They willingly gave their lives as a sacrifice for the Bill of Rights that is set in our Constitution. We must never forget what they have done for us.

The enemies of freedom of speech range from the White House to the halls of Congress and down to the schoolhouse. All of us need to loudly use our freedom of speech under the First Amendment against the anti-American government policies and encroachments being launched against us by the Marxists in Congress. Those who fought in the Revolutionary War did not die for government control in our lives; they died for freedom from government control.

One of the first liberties that the communists always attack is to eliminate the free speech of the people. This is the way they control people's lives to force them to become subjects of an iron-fisted, tyrannical Marxist government. Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran are prime examples of countries that continue to crush freedom of speech in their demonic quest to keep people in slavery to the Marxist state.

There have been many incidences over the last several months where Americans have been ostracized and persecuted for exercising their First Amendment right of free speech. Recently, a New Jersey police officer was discharged from her position for posting on Facebook that the BLM rioters are terrorists. A Hollywood business executive lost his job for making a negative comment about BLM. The list goes on. At the same time, BLM and Antifa have looted, burned, assaulted, and killed with impunity, encouraged by the Marxists in Congress and those across this country. These same Marxist mob organizations are afforded the camouflage of their First Amendment right to speak out and condemn our police force, denounce our American heritage, and topple our historical statues with praise from the radical left. They call them peaceful protesters when in essence they are violent insurrectionists.

Let's be truthful about the whole matter. Based on the written and verbal statements of its founders and activists, one can conclude only that BLM is filled with racists, black supremacists, Marxists, and terrorists whose main goal is to overthrow our republican form of government. Also, Antifa is an outlaw, anarchist organization that wants to eliminate law and order. Don't be afraid to publicly call these people out for what they are!

These Marxist political storm troopers are attacking every branch of the government of our republic. The Democrat radical leftists are ramming H.R. 1 through Congress to take away the constitutional authority of our state legislatures to conduct fair and open elections. Also, they are trying to delegitimize the Judicial Branch by legislating to pack the U.S. Supreme Court with leftist, activist justices. Joe Biden and his Marxist cronies are using the Executive Branch to legislate socialist programs through unconstitutional executive orders.

As Americans, we must not be intimidated by the Marxist mob. We must loudly speak out against the anti-American policies being pushed through Congress. They are labeling everyone who stands against their Marxist blueprint to overthrow our American republic as a white supremacist. Let them continue to call names while we take the public action in the trenches necessary to defeat them at the ballot box and on the streets. America was built on freedom of expression and ingenuity, not on the false hope of Utopian Marxism.

There is a Marxist declaration of war on the Second Amendment, from the U.S. Congress to the White House, to disarm the American people. This unconstitutional activity against guns has existed for several decades, but it recently has been greatly accelerated. Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Joseph Stalin were ruthless dictators who disarmed their people so they could take complete control of their societies. The Marxists in America are employing the same vicious tactics as these dictators did during their reigns of terror.

We are considered racists or white supremacists if we speak out against the bloody institution of abortion, the ungodly union of "same-sex marriage," the unconstitutional gun confiscation measures in Congress, and the Critical Race Theory being taught in our public schools. Also, if we speak out against the heritage-busters in our country for toppling statues of our American heroes and attacking our founding fathers as white supremacists, they'll label us racists.

We are proud to be flag-waving American patriots, and we could not care less about what they say and think. Also, we will continue to recite the Pledge of Allegiance with the phrase "one nation under God." As Americans, we will not shut up and quit. We will be victorious over the Marxist insurrectionists in this country. We will never wave the white flag of surrender to the Marxist cancel culture movement, but we will keep our God, Constitution, guns, and freedom of speech. To say less than the truth is not the truth. The truth cannot be compromised or negotiated.

America needs an old-fashioned, biblical, Holy Ghostfilled revival for the salvation of souls. The Bible says in Proverbs 14:34, "Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people."

Pastor Franklin D Raddish is founder and director of Capitol Hill Independent Baptist Ministries.

Image via Pxhere.

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We should never forget how we felt in the days after November 3, 2020. Donald Trumps sizeable Election Night lead mysteriously disappeared while we slept, and then...silence. A surreal quiet followed in the days after the election. There was little of the usual back-and-forth of the talking heads, no real argument about whether there had been fraud  just an eerie quiet that pervaded the political class, Silicon Valley, and corporate America. Nothing to see here! The most secure election in U.S. history!

Then in February 2021, Molly Ball wrote in Time magazine what we had surmised: we had been witness to election theft. All the actors had a part to play. In August, Hillary publicly set the stage by cautioning that Joe Biden should not concede on Election Night, that it might take days for things to play out. Social media did their part by quashing dissent, declaring that claims of fraud were misinformation. Corporate America congratulated the new president. The Supreme Court inexplicably saw no reason to weigh in on the matter. We had been saved by the left and the NeverTrumps from four more years of the orange Nazi in the White House. As Ball famously wrote:

Thats why the participants want the secret history of the 2020 election told, even though it sounds like a paranoid fever dream  a well funded cabal of powerful people, ranging across industries and ideologies, working together behind the scenes to influence perceptions, change rules and laws, steer media coverage, and control the flow of information. They were not rigging the election; they were fortifying it.

In the aftermath, many brave and intelligent people have stepped in to dissect how the theft was carried out. Suddenly, people like Patrick Byrne, Jovan Hutton Pulitzer, Russ Ramsland, and Dr. Douglas Frank have become household names, among many others. And there are scores of nameless, faceless mathematicians, data scientists, and cyber-security professionals who have spent countless hours demonstrating the improbability of the results and discovering the mechanisms of the fraud. State legislatures have begun bolstering their election laws, and groups large and small have dedicated themselves to the cause of election integrity. The interest of the American public in ensuring that elections are open and fair is at an all-time high.

The problem is, as is typical of conservatives, that these individuals and groups are not coordinating their efforts. Because the right does not possess the hive mind of the left, those interested in election integrity find themselves ten years behind those who have decided to win at any cost.

What is needed is leadership in the realm of election integrity. It should be someone, whether it is a person or a group, who is willing to find and pull interested parties together  to act as a clearinghouse of information and a talent agency of sorts for experts in their respective fields. That person must possess enough clout to be listened to and a thick Rolodex of contacts. This must not be overt or public, lest they be just another target of the left. It should be done quietly and behind the scenes.

There needs to be agreement on the path forward, with ideas how to prevent future fraud coalescing around some central tenets, clearly communicated. Black box voting machines, with their closed-source software, must be replaced with open-source machines. New technology like the blockchain should be investigated. Paper ballots, with thumbprint authentication for absentee ballots should be used. Requirements for states to maintain voter list hygiene by coordinating their databases with other states should be mandated. The public needs to be educated that Canada, Mexico, and most of Europe have a national voter ID card. There has to be consistent, concise messaging from everyone on the side of election integrity and our political leaders.

All of this requires a willingness to coordinate and an ability to effectively communicate. It is a herculean task. Now is the time not for ego or internecine quarrels, but rather for bold leadership on the most important issue of our time.

The left has demonstrated how a well orchestrated, flawlessly executed effort can result in the largest theft in American history. Those on the side of restoring free, open, and fair elections need a cabal of their own to set things right. Who will step forward?

Image: tom.arthur via Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

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The media never idolize Democrats who go against their party.

There is a lot of pretending going on. Pelosi, Biden, the media, and other Democrats respect Liz Cheney so much and are extremely worried that Republicans chasing out a valuable asset like Liz Cheney will greatly harm Republicans in future elections.

Does anyone recall all this respect for Liz Cheney when she was voting for lower taxes and supporting almost all of Trump's agenda? It is a shame Liz doesn't remember how the media and other Democrats trashed her dad so much.

Does anyone believe that the Washington Post would do an op-ed from Liz Cheney or another Republican supporting Trump?

Does anyone believe that any of these Democrats would ever support Cheney in an election against a Democrat? Does anyone believe that Democrats want Republicans to be strong in the 2022 and 2024 elections? Isn't it true that all Democrats care about is maintaining control of the House, Senate, and White House and that their support of Liz Cheney is their method to divide Republicans, not unite them, as they are pretending?

The media always trot out Republicans who go against their party, but you rarely, if ever, see them compliment and highlight people like Joe Manchin. Such nonconformists are frequently chastised if they don't go along. They are treated as black sheep of the party. Democrats are respected if they do what they are told by their bosses, Pelosi, Schumer, and Biden.

Trump didn't divide the Republican Party; the NeverTrumps did. The media used the corrupt Lincoln Project to continually attack Trump in 2020 as they campaigned for Biden.

Trump's policies of America First, energy independence, lower taxes, smaller government, photo ID to vote, secure borders, and antisanctuary cities and states are very popular. Trump broadened the base, adding many blue-collar workers and increasing the minority vote for Republicans. Right to work laws are also very popular, and Trump mobilized the government and private sector to rapidly produce vaccines. Trump was also tough on Iran, Russia, and China while getting NATO to pay more of their fair share. He also greatly advanced Mideast peace while moving the embassy in Israel.

The media have been trashing Republicans long before Trump. They sought to destroy Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, McCain, and Romney. The only time they supposedly respect these people is when they turn against Republicans or when they die.

When Obama won in 2008, the Republican Party was warned that it had better move left, or it would never win elections again. Instead, the Republicans moved right with the Tea Party movement and cleaned the Democrats' clock for eight years through 2016. They picked up over 1,000 seats nationwide and won the U.S House, the U.S Senate, and the White House. They took over many statehouses throughout the country.

The progressive-dominated taxpayer-subsidized radio network NPR agrees:

The Democratic Party Got Crushed During the Obama Presidency. Here's Why

Part of President Obama's legacy is the health of his party. He's had many successes in office  health care reform, climate change regulations, Wall Street reform  but his legacy will also include one huge failure: a diminished Democratic Party.

Every president sees his party lose hundreds of positions  it's the price a party holding the White House pays  but no president has come close to Obama. During Obama's eight years in office, the Democrats have lost more House, Senate, state legislative and governors seats than under any other president.

When Obama took office, there were 60 Democratic senators; now there are 46. The number of House seats held by Democrats has shrunk from 257 to 188.

There are now nine fewer Democratic governors than in 2009. Democrats currently hold fewer elected offices nationwide than at any time since the 1920s.

When the Democrats lost all of these seats and the White House, we never heard the media say they should move right. Nope, we continually heard that the public just wasn't getting the right message.

When their candidate, the corrupt career criminal Hillary, lost in 2016 to an outsider, they didn't blame her or the unpopular leftist policies she advocated. Nope, what we got was collusion from most of the media and other Democrats challenging the electoral vote, saying the election was stolen and regurgitating the known lie about Russian collusion for four years.

Hillary is so delusional that she still thinks she won in 2016. She is as delusional as Biden, whom the media kept in the basement in 2020 to hide his corruption, his incompetence, and the radical leftist policies he was going to inflict on the public. Biden spews forth the delusions that the border is controlled or it is Trump's fault; that he is responsible for getting the vaccines; he is so delusional on economics that he doesn't think the extra $300 per week is keeping people from working; trusts the Chinese and Russians on climate change and believes that it will be brilliant to go back into the Iran deal.

While the media are focused on Liz Cheney and lying about Georgia and other states' voting laws to gin up hate and division, they are downplaying the border crisis, riots in Portland and elsewhere, increasing crime and the rapidly increasing price of oil. Here is a hint: when Biden intentionally limited supply by blocking a pipeline and drilling and fracking on federal lands while demand is increasing, the price will go up. It is truly a shame that the media and other Democrats care so little about the reduction in purchasing power by the poor, the middle class, and small businesses.

And there is still no scientific evidence from the Biden administration linking oil to any aspect of the climate, as leftists seek to destroy the industry, and no questions from the media asking why the industry is being destroyed because they don't care.

Everyone should remember that while the media are crying crocodile tears for Cheney and supporting her, the NYT has not endorsed a Republican for president since Eisenhower almost 70 years ago, and the WaPo has never endorsed a Republican for president.

The media uses Romney, Sasse, Kinzinger, Flake, and Cheney as useful idiots to mislead the public and to divide the party. They are as disposable as all the women that the Clintons physically and mentally abused and Tara Reade. Facts haven't mattered for a long time.

Photo credit: Milonica, CC BY-SA 3.0 license.

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A day before the Senate markup of H.R. 1 on May 11, 2021, (the Democrats' power-grab to federalize election laws in favor of progressive candidates), 124 retired admirals and generals issued an open letter to the American people warning that "[o]ur nation is in deep peril. We are fighting for our survival as a Constitutional Republic like no other time since our founding in 1776."

Among the dangers facing the nation created by the administration's policies, the retired flag officers singled out H.R. 1 and S. 1. Without fair and honest elections, they warn that "our Constitutional Republic is lost." Under our federal system, the states and not the federal government set the controls to ensure election integrity: that there is one legal vote cast and counted per citizen. State legislatures are tasked by the Constitution with setting the election rules.

Using government IDs and verified signatures are just commonsense controls, the flag officers argue, to ensure honest elections. But today, many are calling such commonplace controls "racist" in an attempt to avoid having fair and honest elections. The flag officers blasted as a "tyrannical intimidation tactic" the use of racist slurs to stop criticism of the Democrat power-grab. The flag officers compared these tactics to those used by fascist and Marxist regimes to silence their critics. The flag officers warn that H.R. 1 and S. 1, if passed, would destroy election fairness and allow Democrats to forever remain in power, "violating our Constitution and ending our Representative Republic."

The retired generals and admirals cited the administration's appeasement of China as the most important external danger, but they also decried the administration's determination to return to the disastrous Iran nuclear deal.

But the flag officers focused on the numerous internal threats created by administration's policies like the destruction of our border security, condoning anarchic violence, politicizing our military to create the illusion of right-wing threats, spreading the divisive Critical Race Theory, and undermining our energy independence.

It is highly unusual for retired generals and admirals to engage in political actions. But these retired flag officers signed this letter because they still felt bound by the oath that they had taken "to support and defend the Constitution of the U.S. against all enemies, foreign and domestic." The retired flag officers acted because "our Constitutional Republic is under tremendous assault coming from those believing in Socialism and Marxism which is the opposite of the freedoms, liberty and Bill of Rights that form the basis of our Constitution and our traditional values."

They call on the American people to become engaged in political activity to confront these dangers by throwing out these left-wing politicians in the 2022 elections in favor of representatives at the federal, state and local levels who will act to save America.

"Under a Democrat Congress and the current Administration," the flag officers lament, "our country has taken a hard left turn toward socialism and a Marxist form of tyrannical government which must be countered now by electing congressional and presidential candidates who will always act to defend our Constitutional Republic. The survival of our nation and its cherished freedoms, liberty and historic values are at stake."

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Despite the slavish devotion of much of the media, the Biden administration is generating resistance from reporters who cover it. Politico's West Wing Playbook reports:

If you've read a quote from an administration official in a newspaper or a wire story recently, there's a good chance that the White House communications team had an opportunity to edit it first. That's because the Biden White House frequently demands that interviews with administration officials be conducted on grounds known colloquially as "background with quote approval," according to five reporters who cover the White House for outlets other than POLITICO. In practice, that means the information from an interview can be used in the story, but in order for the person's name to be attached to a quote, the reporter must transcribe the quotes they want and then send them to the communications team to approve, veto or edit them.

This is not exactly new:

Many reporters say it's reminiscent of the tightly controlled Obama White House. The Trump White House used it, too. But reporters say Trump's team did so less frequently than Biden's team  which also used the tactic during the campaign  and a number of current White House reporters have become increasingly frustrated by what they see as its abuse. "The rule treats them like coddled Capitol Hill pages and that's not who they are or the protections they deserve," said one reporter. "Every reporter I work with has encountered the same practice," said another.

It's one thing to check for accuracy (and spelling) when writing up an interview. But to allow a source to "unsay" something is allowing sources to censor their coverage.

The nub of the problem lies in the practice of "background" interviews, in which subjects agree to be candid on the stipulation that they won't be quoted by name. That can lead to anonymous sources, which also become a vehicle for fabricating quotes.

PETER BAKER, the chief White House correspondent for The New York Times, said he remembers the practice beginning with reporters going back to sources and asking if a blind quote could be moved on the record. "What started out as an effort by reporters to get more transparency, to get people on the record more, to use fewer blind quotes, then got taken by the White House, each successive White House, as a way of taking control of your story," he said. "So instead of transparency, suddenly, the White House realized: 'Hey, this quote approval thing is a cool thing. We can now control what is in their stories by refusing to allow them use anything without our approval. And it's a pernicious, insidious, awful practice that reporters should resist." Baker conceded that he's no purist. He has agreed to quote approval before but believes reporters ought to push back more. At times, news outlets have tried to fight back. The New York Times barred the practice in 2012 after one of its own reporters, JEREMY PETERS, wrote a story about how quote approval had become "standard practice for the Obama campaign, used by many top strategists and almost all midlevel aides in Chicago and at the White House." "The practice risks giving readers a mistaken impression that we are ceding too much control over a story to our sources," the Times memo on the subject read. "In its most extreme form, it invites meddling by press aides and others that goes far beyond the traditional negotiations between reporter and source over the terms of an interview." The Times told West Wing Playbook that the 2012 memo remains their policy but they declined to comment on how rigorously they enforce it or if their reporters have always followed it when dealing with the Biden White House.

Translation: We'll do it if it helps us scoop our competition.

The most interesting facet of the story is that the Biden team is being so heavy-handed. I guess they have a lot of embarrassing things getting said that need revision or exclusion. And that is no surprise.

Hat tip: Ed Lasky.

Photo credit: "Press Pig" by Peter Fluck and Roger Law, CC BY 2.0 license.

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Does Joe Biden know what he is saying?

Not to the Russian press, which had a field day mocking his statements about the Colonial Pipeline cyber-attack, which is paralyzing the East Coast and now leaving empty gas stations in the U.S.

According to this tweet from RT News, a Russian state propaganda outlet:

And well, who is to argue with their logic?

Here's what Biden actually said, according to the New York Post:

"I'm gonna have a conver  I'm going to be meeting with President Putin and so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved. Although there is evidence that the actors' ransomware is in Russia. They have some responsibility to deal with this," Biden told reporters at the White House.

So on the one hand, there's "no evidence" the Russian state is involved in this cyber-attack, but on the other, Russia is "still responsible" for it. Sound like a plan to get the Russians motivated to catch the crooks who did this, assuming they really are in Russia, which is far from certain?

Biden hasn't even shared the intelligence he has with them, which, given, the low grade of U.S. intelligence on Russia, might not be good intelligence. It's possible it's bad intelligence, actually, given the kind of personnel they are now hiring, based on two CIA call-to-wokesters hiring ads, which the Russian press mocked gleefully.

The potential problem is that hackers disguise the origins of their attacks to avoid apprehension, which has happened in the past. That was precisely the problem in the purportedly North Korean hacks on Sony Pictures headquarters in Los Angeles in 2014, and it certainly would be in a ransomware attack, which involves thieves. Whatever intelligence Biden is getting likely needs to be looked at closely in a release of it for actual pros to look over, which might include Russia's pros, which, according to the Russian state press, Biden hasn't done.

TASS, the Russian state news agency that attempts to report the news more like the Associated Press or Voice of America (rather than the inflammatory RT), reports that Russian officials say Biden can report the crime any time, and he hasn't. Maybe he should, if for nothing else, then to see what happens.

In May 2020, the Embassy advised that Washington can directly contact the Russian National Coordination Center for Computer Incidents. "At the moment, the Embassy has no information about requests for assistance from the American side," the statement said.

Roll the dice, Joe. At this point, what's to lose?

He'd just rather say Russia's responsible, even as he has "no evidence" the Russians are involved.

The Russkis, make no mistake, are capable of all sorts of things, including miasmas of lies, so there's no need for delusions about them.

But Biden's approach, which has provoked so much scornful mockery from them, is also not without consequences.

First, it might help if Biden's serious, and he should be about this matter, to work with the Russians to find out who really did this instead of cast blame first. Smart people, at least, would do it that way, saving their blame for when it doesn't matter.

Second, the inchoate accusations complicate Biden's diplomacy.

Biden claims he's going to sit down with Putin and play Mr. Strong Guy and force Putin to do what he wants on the cyber-front, which is apparently to pin the crime on...someone...in order to take Biden's chestnuts out of the political fire he's in. (This is exactly what he tried to do with Mexico, pressuring President Andres Manuel Lopez-Obrador to use Mexican troops to halt the migrant surges from Central America after he issued an open invitation to let them in.) He's got some pattern on this one, and it doesn't go down well in either country

Putin sees through it and isn't biting. Buried in this TASS piece with the following headline is evidence of a humongous Biden-grade diplomatic blunder:

Biden confident he will meet with Putin

Smell the sarcasm? I do. Here's the money quote down near the bottom of the story:

The US president added that he will be meeting with the Russian president. On April 13, Biden had suggested in a phone call with Putin a summit meeting be organized in a third country within months. Later, Biden explained he had suggested a meeting be held in the coming summer in Europe, when he comes to Europe to attend the Group of Seven and NATO summits in mid-June. Earlier, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the US' hostile steps towards Russia complicate the analysis of the situation for making the decision on a meeting with Biden.

It sounds as though Biden has queered it for that desired meeting, where he can show himself to be Mr. Tough Guy with Putin as his foil over those Colonial Pipeline accusations.

You'd think he'd think these things through if he wants his meeting with Putin. Instead, he gave Putin an opening to refuse, and he probably won't be meeting Putin as he desires now. He had his chance, and he's likely blown it.

It goes back to the old Bob Gates saying about Biden: "I think he has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades."

Just ask the Russians.

Image: Pixabay, Pixabay License.

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A scholarly paper written by five people, four of them from MIT, one from Wellesley College, takes a skeptical look at skeptics of the mask mandates and has a hard time condemning them as much as the authors clearly want to. Nevertheless, in their conclusion, they write of "horrifying ends" achieved by people using scientific inquiry by the book.

Pixy Misa at Ace of Spades HQ sums it up:

Researchers at MIT are horrified to find that mask mandate skeptics are doing rigorous research and not blaming everything on white supremacy. I am not making this up.

A Twitter poster called commie lee jones read through the dreadful academic prose. MIT researchers "infiltrated" a COVID skeptics community a few months ago and found that skeptics place a high premium on data analysis and empiricism.

MIT researchers 'infiltrated' a Covid skeptics community a few months ago and found that skeptics place a high premium on data analysis and empiricism.



"Most fundamentally, the groups we studied believe that science is a process, and not an institution."https://t.co/jsoAG8G2VT pic.twitter.com/CpEvCKz2HK  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

Isn't that a good thing? Institutions are subject to corruption as they seek to perpetuate and enrich themselves. Science is based on the scientific method  a process that incorporates skepticism at every stage.

"Indeed, anti-maskers often reveal themselves to be more sophisticated in their understanding of how scientific knowledge is socially constructed than their ideological adversaries, who espouse naive realism about the objective truth of public health data."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

That almost sounds like an endorsement!

"In other words, anti-maskers value unmediated access to information and privilege personal research and direct reading over expert interpretations."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

Yes, skepticism! That's how science progresses!

"Its members value individual initiative and ingenuity, trusting scientific analysis only insofar as they can replicate it themselves by accessing and manipulating the data firsthand."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

Replicability of studies is essential to proving them to be valid science.

"They are highly reflexive about the inherently biased nature of any analysis, and resent what they view as the arrogant self-righteousness of scientific elites."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

"Many of the users believe that the most important metrics are missing from government-released data."



"One user wrote: 'Coding data is a big dealand those definitions should be offered transparently by every state. Without a national guidelinewe are left with this mess'."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

I can't disagree. Can these authors?

"The lack of transparency within these data collection systemswhich many of these users infer as a lack of honestyerodes these users trust within both government institutions and the datasets they release."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

"In fact, there are multiple threads every week where users debate how representative the data are of the population given the increased rate of testing across many states."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

"These groups argue that the conflation of asymptomatic and symptomatic cases therefore makes it difficult for anyone to actually determine the severity of the pandemic."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

Transparency in data collection is another key to sound science.

"For these anti-mask users, their approach to the pandemic is grounded in more scientific rigor, not less."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

Isn't scientific rigor a good thing?

"These individuals as a whole are extremely willing to help others who have trouble interpreting graphs with multiple forms of clarification: by helping people find the original sources so that they can replicate the analysis themselves, by referencing other reputable studies...  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

that come to the same conclusions, by reminding others to remain vigilant about the limitations of the data, and by answering questions about the implications of a specific graph."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

"While these groups highly value scientific expertise, they also see collective analysis of data as a way to bring communities together within a time of crisis, and being able to transparently and dispassionately analyze the data is crucial for democratic governance."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

"In fact, the explicit motivation for many of these followers is to find information so that they can make the best decisions for their familiesand by extension, for the communities around them."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

Again, rock-solid scientific methodologies.

"The message that runs through these threads is unequivocal: that data is the only way to set fear-bound politicians straight, and using better data is a surefire way towards creating a safer community."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

"Data literacy is a quintessential criterion for membership within the community they have created."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

The data shall set you free. And yet, after all of this work showing that the skeptics are practicing science properly, the authors slam them in the conclusion:

"Arguing anti-maskers need more scientific literacy is to characterize their approach as uninformed & inexplicably extreme. This study shows the opposite: they are deeply invested in forms of critique & knowledge production they recognize as markers of scientific expertise"  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

"We argue that anti-maskers deep story draws from similar wells of resentment, but adds a particular emphasis on the usurpation of scientific knowledge by a paternalistic, condescending elite that expects intellectual subservience rather than critical thinking from the public."  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

And yet in the conclusion they lament "the skeptical impulse that the 'science simply isnt settled,' prompting people to simply 'think for themselves to horrifying ends."



They then compare it to the January 6 Capitol riot.



Bizarre and fascinating document.  commie lee jones (@commieleejones) May 10, 2021

Maybe one or two of these authors might start to show a little skepticism toward the orthodoxy-enforcers they deal with as budding scientists. That would make this effort slightly worthwhile.

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This news story from the U.K. Guardian stands out:

Britons will have to show photo ID to vote in future general elections, ministers are poised to confirm this week, as a means of tackling fraud which critics claim could deter poorer and ethnic minority voters from taking part in democracy. The proposal is to be included in Tuesday's Queen's speech, which will set out the government's post-pandemic priorities and the laws it intends to pass in the forthcoming parliamentary session.

Voter ID? Wow. Up until now, we've been told in the press there's no such thing as election fraud. We've been told that Georgia's voter ID law, is "Jim Crow on steroids," by friend-of-Klansmen Joe Biden, no less. England, the nation that made the global slave trade abhorrent, has decided differently. Can't pin "Jim Crow" on that country, despite Meghan Markle's wokester prevarications.

The queen's speech will also include a proposal to limit ballot-harvesting, another sleazy electoral fraud vehicle, which has seen its share of both GOP and Democrat violators, from North Carolina to Texas to Minnesota, as well as illegal aliens harvesting votes on behalf of Democrats on a wide scale over in California. The queen apparently wants none of that.

I didn't know that the queen had that much authority. Actually, I thought she was just a figurehead. But this step shows how electoral integrity is clearly an apolitical issue, not a partisan one, as Democrats would have you believe. Nothing in this measure will stop voters from voting leftist if that is what they want. What it will stop is leftists from stuffing ballot boxes and canceling out the votes of others who don't want to elect leftists, which is what Republicans, with plenty of reason, suspect has been going on. And clearly, the queen noticed a danger.

After all, the U.S. and U.K. systems tend to move in tandem.

What's vivid here is that the queen seems to have noticed that President Trump was right all along about the fraudy nature of the 2020 election, which saw the election of a doddering old foof with a Jeremy Corbynstyle agenda, put into office based on the questionable activities of a few blue-city machines. She appears to want none of that in her kingdom.

That runs counter to the strong narrative that President Trump was the problem because he refused to concede the election to Joe Biden back in 2020. If you read the Politico anecdotal narratives from various countries' elites about the U.S. 2020 election, you will see that their observers from nearly all nations blamed President Trump for crying fraud, as if there were no such thing as electoral fraud in the U.S. This took some doing, given that everyone noted that U.S. elections were a mess and said so, friend and foe. They also know that there is the possibility of fraud in their own countries, so they effectively claimed that the U.S. couldn't possibly have fraud, even as they claimed that U.S. democracy was diminished. Either it really was diminished and Trump was telling the truth, or it wasn't diminished, and Trump was blowing smoke. Because anything Trump might claim would fall to pieces if his claim were not true, and it's clear they knew that it wasn't.

The Kenyan observer said that America's 2020 election was just like a Kenyan election but pinned the blame on Trump instead of the specter of fraud, as if fraud were unknown in a place like Kenya.

The Mexican observer, Arturo Sarukhan, a former ambassador to the U.S. and known Trump-hater, claimed that U.S. elections were a mess, and Trump was the one at fault, not the fraud. He wrote this twisted drivel, forgetting that Mexico's own current sitting president, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, knows that the same crap happened in Mexico as has now happened in the U.S.:

There's no doubt that if what has happened here in the runup to the elections  with a sitting president stating that fraud is being perpetrated against him, refusing to commit to a peaceful transition of power and to acknowledge and recognize the winner, and stating that the only way he would lose the election was via an electoral fraud  were happening elsewhere in the Americas or the world, for that matter, it would be branded by U.S. media as an attempted coup. That U.S. institutions  mainly the courts and the electoral system, albeit with its imperfections and growing need for reform  and the media continue to check and balance the executive is of little solace to those of us who see this country painfully polarized and tribalized, with the real and troubling weaponization of disinformation and lies feeding the tectonic and sociodemographic fractures that are tearing its social contract asunder.

As an additional note, Sarukhan also knows that California's influential one-party Democrats-only state takes Mexico's political system with all its ballot-harvesting from the PRI one-party-state "perfect dictatorship" era as its model. Note his claim that the U.S. electoral system and courts need "reform." He likes to cover all his bases.

That's the globalist consensus, that the U.S. election was perfectly done and the U.S. remains a beacon of democracy with Trump's cries of "fraud" the only problem, as if Trump can't possibly be just ignored if he's wrong. Trump's words, not the system, are the only problem, so they claim.

Yet this move from the queen of England says she knows better. And this Harvard study that came out before the 2020 election, identifying scores of fraud opportunities in the U.S. electoral system, and how the U.S. election system compares very poorly to that of other democracies, says the same.

The U.K. just got through a significant local election where the public mood was clearly conservative, throwing out leftists across the kingdom. That may have sent a signal to her that the time was right for ensuring that lean-and-hungry frustrated leftists don't attempt to rig elections now that they know they can't sell their extremist ideas as they are now.

That's saving democracy. And it's important to do, because the 2020 U.S. election taught us that the time to stop fraud is before it happens, not after. The wise old queen is doing what myriad state legislatures in the U.S. are doing, which is preventing fraud before it starts. That's a blessing for the U.K., one of her lasting gifts before her reign is done. And you can bet we will see additional democracies elsewhere quietly following her lead.

Hat tip: Matt Margolies, PJMedia.

Image: Julian Calder for Governor-General of New Zealand (extracted image) via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

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One of the constants in modern life is that, if it's the month of Ramadan, there's going to be Muslim violence. In this case, the violence began slowly in Israel and reached critical mass on Monday. As usual, the anti-Semites in Congress (I'm talking about you, Reps. Tlaib and Omar) and the media, and even in one "comedy" outlet, ignored the facts and went straight for the propaganda.

As a strictly factual matter, the Temple Mount in Jerusalem has been a holy spot for Jews since the time of King David, around 3,000 years ago, who built the First Temple. In A.D. 70, the Romans destroyed the Temple and ransacked Jerusalem. All that remained was the Western Wall and its courtyard, which continued to be a sacred spot for Jews without pause for the 1,951 years since then.

When Muslims conquered the entire Middle East after Mohamed's death, they gained control of the Temple Mount, where they repurposed the holiest spots by building the beautiful Al-Aqsa Mosque in 705 A.D.

Through it all, Jews continued to live in Jerusalem and worship at the Temple Mount, as they had done since around 1,000 B.C. In 1948, Jordan was able to capture Eastern Jerusalem. It evicted the Jews who had lived there for hundreds of years, destroyed or desecrated 58 synagogues, looted and desecrated the ancient cemetery on the Mount of Olives, and turned the Western Wall into a slum area, denying Jews access to this holiest of holy sites.

The Jews finally regained access to these areas of Jerusalem in 1967. This is the iconic photograph of Jewish paratroopers at the Western Wall, now freely available to Jews:



This photo by David Rubinger is now part of the Public Domain.

After the 1967 War, Israel did not destroy Al Aqsa. Instead, she transferred control over the mosque to an Islamic trust independent of the Israeli government  although Israeli forces may patrol and conduct searches within the perimeter. Muslims have been trying to oust the Jews ever since. And that brings us to the current situation.

Muslims from the Palestinian territories have been following Antifa's lead and attacking police across Jerusalem, including in the Temple Mount area. Militant Jews have responded by trying to engage with Palestinians, although the police have prevented major clashes. The ostensible reason for the current uproar involves evictions from Sheikh Jarrah, an Arab neighborhood on land that Jews legally purchased in 1875. It really doesn't matter the reason, though. It's Ramadan.

The fighting in the last few days escalated in the Temple Mount area. Arabs claimed that Jewish forces had spontaneously attacked them, but there are plenty of pictures showing huge piles of rocks the Arabs had collected for an assault against Israeli forces that try never to use live ammunition on the protesters:

There's also been the usual Pallywood propaganda.

On Monday, Hamas took advantage of the chaos to launch more than 150 rockets into Israel. As usual, Arab children died because the men launching the rockets kept children near them to increase the body count.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib, in addition to naming Israel as the aggressor, claimed that she'd been to the sacred Al Aqsa mosque that the Jews were now desecrating. The fact that she said the Temple Mount is just as holy for Jews was an inadvertent admission that the mosque is built on stolen land. People had opinions:

Yes, so sacred that Palestinians were rioting, smashing windows and pelting rocks! pic.twitter.com/cuseuEUgU5  Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) May 10, 2021

Ilhan Omar chimed in on the Arabs' behalf, although someone quickly pointed out the Pallywood lies.

Palestinian propaganda. They fake a guys death for cameras but... pic.twitter.com/HcIRXAgIxS  48 (@fadde) May 10, 2021

Ted Cruz was deeply unimpressed by Omar's take:

Why is a Member of Congress acting as the press secretary for Hamas?



Does Biden agree? https://t.co/kjZG1HO0RD  Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) May 10, 2021

NPR, as usual, lied. (It was NPR's lies about Israel in the 1990s that turned me into a conservative.) Its narrative about violent Israeli police allegedly attacking peaceful Arabs breaking their daily Ramadan fast was so extreme that it was belied by outlets such as the AP and The New York Times, neither of which is a friend to Israel.

Even The Onion got into the act, giving a modern touch to the medieval blood libels about Jews killing Christian children:

IDF Soldier Recounts Harrowing, Heroic War Story Of Killing 8-Month-Old Child https://t.co/w9tOPlRvDf pic.twitter.com/QwPjSWW2K4  The Onion (@TheOnion) May 10, 2021

If you've been reading The Onion, you might want to stop as of, say, yesterday.

By the way, to his credit, Andrew Yang defended Israel. I like him better for that, despite generally thinking him an amiable leftist dunce.

Here's the bottom line: at every time in history, those nations that have treated Israel well have thrived. This is because those nations have a greater degree of individual liberty than other nations in the same time period. If you treat Israel well, you will also be treating your own citizens well.

Every time there's strife in Israel, we get a good snapshot of which nations are free and which are not. The fact that the Biden administration, in tune with the whole Democrat party, is hostile to Israel speaks volumes about its creeping attack on America's own liberties.

Image: Rocks at the Al Aqsa Mosque. Facebook photo.

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But the political allure of the term is understandable, considering how often it has been appearing in the fevered narratives of conservative media and Red State politicians. Texas, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Idaho, Arkansas and Arizona have either passed or are working on bills that would drop CRT or anything that looks like it from public schools curricula.
"More than any other single living American, Tony Fauci is responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic."

With these bold words, the most popular commentator on cable news threw down the gauntlet on a man all but sainted by the corporate media. Drawing on the work of Nicholas Wade, who for decades edited the Science section of the New York Times, Tucker pointed out that Dr. Anthony Fauci (the highest paid employee of the federal government) personally overrode a federal ban on gain of function research that makes pathogens more deadly and more transmissible and funded such research at a facility linked to the Chinese military.

Wade's article published at Medium is most impressive; it's quite long and technical in places, but if you don't want to read the whole thing, you can go down to the section headed "Where We Are So Far" and within that section read "4. The US Role in Funding the Wuhan Institute of Virology" and then the "Conclusion." Or you could read Wade's shorter article in the New York Post supporting the theory that the virus leaked from the Wuhan lab and was not transmitted from bats at a wet market.

Here is video of Tucker Carlson's attack on St. Fauci:

Hat tip: The Right Scoop.

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Tragic: 11 die in Tirupati hospital due to oxygen disruption:- Eleven coronavirus patients passed away in Ruia Hospital in Tirupati after there is a delay in the oxygen supply. Though the official reports say that 11 people passed away, a source said that more than 20 patients died due to the tragedy in the ICU ward. There was a delay of oxygen arrival for 45 minutes. Around 1100 people are admitted and are being treated in Ruia Hospital, Tirupati. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy ordered a high-level probe in the incident and he is likely to pay his visit to the hospital today. The district Collector Harinarayanan blames the doctors and their negligence for the incident. There was a drop in the oxygen pressure and before the oxygen cylinders reached the hospital, the tragedy took place.

The second wave of coronavirus gripped the nation already and thousands are losing their lives on a regular basis. Most of the deaths took place due to the shortage of oxygen across the country. The exact number of casualties will go high as per the records. The government claimed that there would be disruption in the supply of oxygen and the tragedy took place right during this time. The supply was disrupted for 25 minutes. There are 135 ICU beds along with 400 oxygen beds in the hospital along with other facilities. The oxygen tank with a capacity of 10,000 litres turned empty in the hospital and the tanker was on its way from Tamil Nadu.

The health condition of ICU patients deteriorated and 11 people passed away. Several videos surfaced on social media of patients lying lifeless on the beds and their family members crying with pain. AP Health Minister Alla Nani spoke to the district officials and is monitoring the situation. The oxygen supply was restored soon but the tragedy took place.

(Video Source: NTV Telugu)
Have you ever wanted to walk into a room and have the lights come on? Perhaps youve longed for a device that can do the vacuuming for you? With advances in technology and a little help from your smartphone, the ability to control household items is easier than you think.

Home automation is becoming increasingly popular in 2021, from smart lighting to security systems, down to controlling the temperature in each room. Smart home technology connects your house items to smart speakers and display systems, allowing you to monitor and control your energy and household appliances via voice command through a digital assistant or remotely, straight from your mobile phone.

Simply connect your smart home devices to the internet, and youre set to send information, communicate, and command your technology to do exactly what you want, when you want. Favored smart assistants include the Amazon Echo or the Google Nest Hub, ideal for setting up lights, HVAC systems and home security.

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Inexpensive smart home features include linking lights to turn on and off whenever you choose to more advanced devices like security cameras. These devices can all be installed to fit your needs and budget, bringing your home up to speed with the latest technology whilst making your life easier.

Property owners and landlords are looking for more sustainable ways to run their buildings to ensure they modernize their space and generate consistent income. Property investment company RWinvest believe buildings with smart features and eco-friendly systems already installed will put these developments ahead of the competition when it comes to buying, selling and renting properties. So whether youre renovating, looking for your first home or wanting to bring your rental property up to date, home automation is a step in the right direction.

Weve put together some of the smart home devices to include in your property in 2021. Keep reading to find out more.

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Smart lighting

Smart lighting is the cheapest way to revamp a home and lead a more sustainable life. Control the smart bulbs straight from your phone or tablet, and enjoy scheduling when your lamps and lights turn on and off, as well as implementing gradual winding down routines to help you to fall asleep. People strive to equip their homes with the latest technology, which can be as simple as changing a lightbulb. Thankfully, most homes have electricity, but if we can have wireless control, we no longer have to get up and physically turn a switch on or off, then this takes our lighting up a level.

Some state of the art smart lighting systems can even detect when someones in a room and adjust the lights accordingly. There are many smart light sources available that can be managed on a circuit or by using smart bulbs. Either way, enjoy setting the appropriate lighting for your home from your phone, tablet or via a digital assistant.

When installing smart lights, you can choose smart switches that manage all the sources on a circuit or use smart bulbs. Whichever route you decide to take, youll have wireless control via your smartphone, tablet, or with a voice assistant.

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Smart thermostats

Invest in a smart thermostat and never worry about forgetting to switch off your heating or cooling system again. One of the best things about having wireless control over your homes energy systems is that you can remotely monitor your energy consumption.

As well as having the ability to control your heating or air-conditioning when youre away from the property, you can also use smart thermostats to adjust your HVAC systems for you automatically.

Create a schedule that works for you to ensure you manage your energy supply in the most efficient way possible. Property owners have saved thousands by installing smart thermostats and reduced their carbon footprint by limiting the amount of energy they were otherwise wasting.

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Smart security systems

Many residential properties now include smart security systems made up of both audio and visual technology. Smart security systems have easy to fit wireless sensors that send live footage and alerts straight to your smartphone or chosen device.

Sensors can recognize when a door or window is opened or closed, ensuring high levels of security at all times. Use the visual features to keep an eye on your home and look out for any unexpected visitors. Some security installations can also give remote access should there be an emergency where you need to gain entry.
Samsung is losing the semiconductor race to its Taiwanese rival TSMC. According to a Nikkei Asia report, the Korean firm trailed TSMC by several months in the launch of 5nm smartphone chips, and this technology gap has been widening ever since. As such, it is losing market share in contract manufacturing.

Samsung apparently failed to secure enough semiconductor production equipment from Dutch supplier ASML last fall, allowing its rival to edge ahead. ASML has reportedly shipped about 100 units of advanced EUV production equipment worldwide. However, more than 70 percent of that volume has gone to TSMC which secured equipment before anyone else. As such, Samsung has lost ground to the Taiwanese company in the production of advanced semiconductors.

The Korean firm has also suffered several other setbacks in recent times though. Perhaps none so bigger than a month-long shutdown of its chip plant in Austin, Texas following a statewide power outage earlier in February this year. It resumed full operation at the facility as of April. However, this shutdown caused a monetary loss of over 300 billion won (more than $270 million) to the company.

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Not to mention, this production delay could result in defections from its clients such as Qualcomm. It could also allow TSMC to further widen the gap over Samsung.

This was somewhat reflected in its quarterly earnings report for Q1 2021. The company reported a first profit drop at its semiconductor division during the first three months of the year. Although sales rose eight percent year-on-year (YoY) to 19.01 trillion won (approx. $17 billion), operating profit dropped 16 percent YoY to 3.37 trillion won (~$3 billion).

TSMC, on the other hand, saw its market share in contract manufacturing grow by two percentage points YoY in Q1 2021, capturing 56 percent of the overall market. This growth rate is even bigger (eight percentage points) compared to Q1 2019. In the meantime, Samsungs market share in the industry dropped by one percentage point during the same period.

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Investments delays could allow TSMC to widen the gap over Samsung

Amid an unprecedented global shortage of semiconductor chips, TSMC recently announced plans to invest $100 billion over the next three years to increase its production capacity. It is building a $12 billion chip manufacturing plant in Arizona.

Samsung is also looking to invest around $40 billion in the semiconductor division this year, including a $17 billion chip manufacturing plant in the US. However, since its Vice Chairman and de facto leader Lee Jae-yong is currently in jail, the company is finding it hard to decide on these investment plans. This delay has now allowed TSMC to edge ahead of Samsung in this semiconductor race.

The troubled US-China relationships have also helped the Taiwanese company. It has secured orders from major US customers such as Apple and Advanced Micro Devices. Samsung, on the other hand, maintains two-way diplomacy with the US and China, which hasnt best pleased either party.

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Non-memory semiconductors manufactured on a contract basis account for only seven percent of total semiconductor sales for Samsung. However, this division has greater significance in its mainstay business which included smartphones and memory chips. Whether the Korean firm manages to catch up with TSMC anytime soon, only time will tell.

The company seems confident though. Our competitiveness in advanced processes is comparable. We have secured large customers and are closing the gap, said Kim Kinam, head of Samsungs semiconductor division.
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Is constantly posing baseless questions while ignoring the easily accessible answers a trick from page 1 of The Conspiracy Theorists Guide to Concocting Easily Debunked Conspiracy Theories? Maybe, I dont know. Does such a book even exist? Im not sure, because Ive been told by many that if I use Google the government will dispatch a team to take me to a FEMA re-education camp run by Marxist squirrels. Is that true? I dont know, how else can you explain my reluctance to use Google? And besides, Im just posing questions everyone should be asking.
By vaccinating everyone in your household ages 12 and up, youre helping to protect the vulnerable children in your household, and in the community, Bartlett said, adding that she is hopeful that by the end of the year, the vaccine will be approved for children of all ages.


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According to the Cook County Sheriffs Office, a total of 2,361 detained individuals had tested positive for COVID-19 while in custody as of February 15, 2021. Of those who tested positive, 219 were isolated for 10 days or less prior to release, meaning they may still have been contagious. This represents less than 10% of individuals who tested positive and 1% of total jail releases during the time frame reviewed. Of the 219 inmates released while still potentially contagious, most (62%) originally tested positive for COVID-19 at intake, meaning they didnt acquire the virus in jail.
The daughter of one of 10 Belfast shooting victims whose names were cleared following fresh inquests has said the fight is won.

Presiding Coroner Mrs Justice Keegan found that soldiers were responsible for nine of the deaths, while there was not enough evidence over the 10th.

She said all 10 were entirely innocent of wrongdoing on the day in question.

The family of Daniel Teggart, one of 10 people who were killed in disputed shootings in west Belfast in 1971 (Liam McBurney/PA)

The bereaved families campaigned for decades to have the deaths re-examined and to clear misinformation that their loved ones had been terrorists.

A solicitor who represents them said families have instigated civil proceedings against the Ministry of Defence.

In light of these findings and the strong criticisms, they will be pushing on with that, he said.

Geraldine Douglas, daughter of Joseph Corr, told the PA news agency following the findings: The fight is won, big time.

Joseph Corr (Family handout/PA)

Her sister Eileen McKeown said the inquest verdicts had gone further than she had hoped.

I was expecting them just to say they were innocent. But when she turned around and said that my daddy and John Laverty werent gunmen, and never should have been branded gunmen, that was really brilliant to hear that, she said.

We have fought long and hard for this, for 50 years, to declare my daddy an innocent man.

My mummy died knowing he was innocent but not getting any justice. I have lost four brothers to this, through the stress and the trauma that they had to live through.

My brother Joe was with my daddy when he was shot. He lived with survivors guilt for years because of the fact that he left his daddy.

Ms McKeown said she had felt unable to speak about her father before because of the claims made against the Ballymurphy victims.

She said: Its been a nightmare. No matter where you went, people would be asking you what happened to your daddy. You were afraid to say what happened to your daddy because he was shot, and because of what was written in the history books: that IRA gunmen were shot in Ballymurphy in 1979.

People just presumed that they were guilty because of what was put out in the media and what the Army said.

Eddie Doherty (Family handout/PA)

Patrick Doherty said he felt a sense of relief after the coroner ruled the use of force in the shooting of his father Eddie was disproportionate.

It is a weight off my shoulders, its been 50 years of serious hard grief and pain, I just feel serious relief, he said.

I wish my mother could have been here to see it. My mother died six years after my father and it is just relief.

We have always known he was an innocent man, we have always known everyone was innocent and it took 50 years.

There is a sense of happiness that we have finally cleared our loved ones names.

It has been a long fight. My father was shot in the back and murdered. My father wasnt in the IRA.

Joan Connolly (Family handout/PA)

Maura McGee, one of Joan Connollys daughters, said her family is absolutely delighted.

She spoke of the pain of having to conceal the circumstances of her mothers death for 50 years, due to the cloud of the unfounded allegation she was a gun woman. She said they often told people her mother had died in a car crash.

We always knew she was innocent but to have her declared innocent in the eyes of the public and the rest of the world, its something that we didnt expect would ever happen, she said.

Another of Mrs Connollys daughters Philomena Morrison said: She was an innocent person and they took her from us and we lost out on having her all of those years.

Solicitor Padraig O Muirigh (Rebecca Black/PA)

Solicitor for the Ballymurphy families Padraig O Muirigh said the findings are another stain on the British Army and their role in the north of Ireland.

But it is also a very memorable day for the families. It has been a very long journey, he said.

After 50 years we finally have an evidence-based investigation and I think its a tribute to their irrepressible spirit.

He added: The families have already instigated civil proceedings against the MoD (Ministry of Defence) and in light of these findings and the strong criticisms, they will be pushing on with that.
Greece has committed to fully vaccinating all residents on nearly 100 of its islands by the end of June in a bid to attract tourists this summer.

This is a change to its national jab programme which prioritises people based on their age and medical vulnerability to coronavirus.

Among the Greek islands which will be vaccinated by the end of June are Rhodes, Corfu, Zante, Kefalonia, Santorini and Mykonos.

Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said: This initiative aims to support local communities, as well as their economies. My message is clear. We are open again.

I am delighted that later this week Greece will begin to reopen its tourism industry.

We are taking every precaution to ensure the safety and security of our visitors and our residents.

Greece will reopen for tourism on Saturday when it lifts a ban on people travelling between different regions.

The country is on the UK Governments amber list for travel, which means holidaymakers who visit from England must quarantine for 10 days when they return.

It is hoping it will be moved to the green tier when the list is reviewed on June 7.

That would mean travellers would not be required to self-isolate when they return home.

Travel list assessments are partly based on the proportion of people in a country or on an island who have received a coronavirus vaccine.

Greek tourism minister Haris Theoharis is visiting London this week to meet with Government officials and travel firms.
Leaders in Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic have welcomed a finding that 10 people killed in shootings in west Belfast in 1971 were entirely innocent.

The British Army was found responsible for nine of the deaths of 10 people in Ballymurphy in August 1971, including a mother-of-eight and a Catholic priest, following fresh inquests.

Presiding Coroner Mrs Justice Keegan acknowledged it was a chaotic time but ruled that the use of force by soldiers had been disproportionate in the deaths the Army was found to have been responsible for.

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Deputy First Minister Michelle ONeill said it had been a powerful day for the families of the victims who lost their lives at Ballymurphy.

It has laid bare for all to see that the British forces murdered their family members, their innocent family members, she said.

They have always known that and now the whole world sees that is the case.

First Minister Arlene Foster said it had been a long road for the families.

50 years later, the court has considered the evidence and the findings should be accepted. I commend the families for their tenacity, she tweeted.

Copies of the Ballymurphy inquest findings (Liam McBurney/PA)

Lots of lessons to be learned. Grief is grief. Justice must be blind.

Too many empty chairs across NI and unanswered questions.

Irish premier Micheal Martin said he was never in any doubt that the victims of the Ballymurphy massacre were innocent.

He told the Dail: Its been a very harrowing experience for many, many relatives.

There have been many false dawns in terms of trying to get closure or trying to get justice in relation to this.

Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney said the findings have cast a tremendous new light on one of the darkest pages of the history of the conflict.

He said the findings will come as an immense relief and vindication for the families who have maintained for decades that their loved ones were innocent and their killings unjustified.

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Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis said he deeply regrets what the Ballymurphy families have had to go through.

He acknowledged the terrible hurt that has been caused to them and paid tribute to their great patience during their determined campaign.

They should not have had to wait this long for details about the events that unfolded between August 9-11 1971, he said.

The Government will carefully consider the extensive findings set out by the coroner, but it is clear that those who died were entirely innocent of wrongdoing, he added.

He also said it was clear that the current system for dealing with the legacy of the Troubles is not working for anyone and the Government wants to deliver a way forward that will provide information about what happened during the Troubles in a way that helps families get the answers they want and lays the foundation for greater reconciliation and a shared future for all communities.

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Labour shadow secretary of state Louise Haigh described the inquest findings as clear and irrefutable.

Those who lost their lives were innocent and posing no threat.

Their deaths were without justification.

The fundamental right to life violated, she said.

That families have had to fight for so long for the truth is a profound failure of justice.

One which must be learnt from.

For these families, the standard to which we hold ourselves as a nation of laws has fallen far short.

Alliance leader Naomi Long urged the UK Government to issue an apology for the actions of the Army in Ballymurphy in August 1971.

The UK Government now needs to step up and formally apologise for the actions of the Army on the day in question, she said.

We saw how much a similar apology in relation to Bloody Sunday meant to the families there, and I encourage the Government to acknowledge the courage of the Ballymurphy families with a similar statement.

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SDLP leader Colum Eastwood paid tribute to the unshakeable dignity of the Ballymurphy families.

They have stood against attempts to blacken the names of their loved ones, attempts to deny the truth and rewrite the past, he said.

Today they can stand proudly in the knowledge that their friends and family were entirely innocent of wrongdoing and the whole world knows it.

Green Party leader Clare Bailey described as shameful the 50-year wait for the bereaved families.

I only hope that today comes as some degree of comfort after decades of distress and compounded grief, she said.

I pay tribute to the fortitude of the Ballymurphy families and the grace and dignity that they have shown during this difficult and protracted Inquest process.

The Presbyterian Moderator, the Reverend Dr David Bruce, said the findings for the families are a long-awaited public declaration of the innocence of their loved ones.

As they take in the news that they have waited 50 years to hear, it reminds us once more of the tragic and shattering past that Northern Ireland has witnessed, and the legacy of those times half a century on, he said.

For too many people across Northern Ireland, and indeed further afield, today would have brought back memories of loved ones whose lives were also cut short during what we casually call The Troubles.

At this particular time they, along with the Ballymurphy families, are in our thoughts and prayers.
New homes, schools and hospitals should be delivered more quickly and efficiently under Government plans.

The Planning Bill is designed to create a simpler, faster and more modern planning system  to replace the current one dating back to the post-Second World War era of 1947.

But property professionals said the Bill must encourage the development of homes in more areas that are affordable for first-time buyers and people on low incomes.

Under the reforms outlined in the Queens Speech, homes and infrastructure such as schools and hospitals should be delivered at a faster pace across England.

The planning system will be transformed from a slow, document-based one to a more efficient digital and map-based service, the Government said.

Communities and developers, particularly smaller developers, should have a better idea about what is permitted and where under the new system.

House prices have recently hit a string of record highs, with home-buyers being encouraged by a stamp duty holiday to snap up properties.

Tom Fyans, campaigns and policy director of CPRE (the Campaign to Protect Rural England) said the Planning Bill risks creating a free-for-all for development.

He said: We know from painful experience that, without the right checks and balances in the planning process, developments can lead to a huge and unnecessary loss of countryside while doing nothing to tackle the affordable housing crisis or level up.

Mark Hayward, chief policy adviser at Propertymark, which represents estate and letting agents, said: A greater supply of homes will serve to correct the imbalance between supply and demand which has been intensified by the stamp duty holiday.

The Government has made a number of announcements in the past on simplifying the planning process; however, this will only work if it really reflects local needs and demands.

We hope the Planning Bill outlined today encourages the development of housing in more affordable areas as, at the moment, most of the development taking place is in areas that are unaffordable to first-time and lower income buyers.

The leasehold system will also undergo an overhaul.

The Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Bill covering England and Wales will ensure leaseholders of new, long residential leases cannot be charged a financial ground rent for no tangible service.

Ground rents will be set in law at a peppercorn rent level  meaning that nothing more than a literal peppercorn can be sought from leaseholders.

Freeholders breaking the new rules by charging ground rent could be fined up to 5,000.

In the past, some leaseholders have faced spiralling ground rent charges and have been unaware of the costs they were taking on when they bought the property.

There will be exemptions to the new rules in a few cases, including business leases, to allow people who need to live in the same premises as their workplace to continue to do this; and some parts of the community-led housing sector, so they can retain the right to levy ground rent to maintain their ability to further promote community activities.

Mr Hayward continued: The issue of escalating ground rent on leasehold homes has been a long-term scandal which has left many owners trapped and unable to sell their homes.

Our Leasehold: A Life Sentence research conducted in 2018 found that 46% of leasehold house owners were unaware of the escalating ground rent when they purchased their property.

Over one million households in the UK are sold as leasehold, and this legislation will go a long way to help thousands of home-owners caught in a leasehold trap.

However, while this is a step in the right direction, we encourage the Government to extend this to those who already own a leasehold property as well as all retirement properties, to create a level playing field.

Later this year, the Government will outline proposals for a new lifetime tenancy deposit scheme in England, which promises to ease the burden on tenants when moving from one tenancy to the next.

It also plans to drive improvements in standards in rented accommodation.

Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: The Queens Speech offers fresh hope to Englands 20 million private and social renters. Today, we are one step closer to ensuring every renter can have a decent place to call home.

Ben Beadle, chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, said: Lifetime deposits for tenants provide an opportunity to reduce the upfront cost of renting, but they need to work for all concerned.

We welcome also the Governments ambitions to drive out bad landlords from the sector without penalising those who do the right thing. We want to root out all those who bring the sector into disrepute.
Revolution Bars has hiked its full-year outlook thanks to a rapid recovery across sites that have reopened as Britons braved the cold to drink outside.

Shares in the group surged as much as 16% as it said the 25 bars that have reopened for outdoor service have traded extremely strongly, with sales running at 48% of pre-pandemic levels in the month to May 9.

Restaurants and bars with outdoor space have been allowed to reopen since April 12 in England and indoor service will be allowed by May 17, with social distancing restrictions, under the next milestone of the Governments roadmap out of lockdown.

Revolution, which has 66 sites across the UK, said it is expecting a further surge in demand over the summer months as the restrictions are lifted.

Together with continued tight cost control and better-than-anticipated support from third parties, we now expect that our full-year performance for the year ending June 30 2021 will be ahead of previous management expectations, the group said.

The groups strong trading for bars reopened so far comes despite only serving around 15% of normal customer capacity and for shorter hours than normal.

Rob Pitcher, chief executive of Revolution Bars, said: We have seen huge pent-up demand and a rapid recovery across the nation in the bars with outside space that we have been able to open to date.

The ability to trade inside from May 17 2021 provides another landmark in the road map and whilst we will still be restricted to using less than 50% of our actual capacity, the demand that we have experienced in recent weeks provides us with the confidence to open all the remaining bars.

Revolutions half-year results last month laid bare the impact of the coronavirus crisis and lockdowns on trading.

It slid to a 17.7 million pre-tax loss for the 26 weeks to December 26 after sales were battered by the pandemic.
The teachers of a teenager who died from sepsis during a school trip to New York have insisted they did not refuse her request to see a doctor.

Ana Uglow, 17, a student at Bristol Grammar School, collapsed in her hotel room and was pronounced dead at Mount Sinai West hospital on December 19 2019.

Avon Coroners Court has heard Ana was on a school history trip to Washington, Philadelphia and New York at the time with fellow students and teachers Rory Hambly and Ellice Clare.

Anas parents, David and Natalia Uglow, said their daughter told Mr Hambly and Ms Clare that she thought she had a chest infection and asked to see a doctor two days before her death but this had been refused.

However, Mr Hambly and Ms Clare said Ana did not directly ask to see a doctor and only complained of symptoms such as feeling tired and having a blocked nose and a cough.

A report by the chief medical examiner of the city of New York concluded that Ana, of Redland, Bristol, died from bronchopneumonia and sepsis complicating an influenza upper respiratory infection.

Ana was off school with cold-like symptoms for two days before the trip but felt better and set off to Washington from Bristol on December 14.

The teachers said Ana had complained of feeling tired in the first few days of the trip and she asked to stay at the hotel while the group went to the National Museum of African American History and Culture on December 16.

She did go to the museum and was seen resting on a bench with a friend, they told the inquest.

On December 17, the group travelled from Washington to Philadelphia by train before going on to New York.

Ana called her mother during the journey, telling her she was worried she had a chest infection, felt much worse and had a fever and a cough.

Mrs Uglow advised Ana to speak to her teachers during the train journey and ask to see a doctor.

Ms Clare told the inquest: She said that she was feeling a bit ill and she had a cough and she said if she was going to feel worse at any point, maybe in New York, was she able to see a doctor?

I took that conversation as is that possible on a school trip? We said that we would be able to go to a pharmacy if needed and go to a doctor if things got worse.

Ms Clare said she felt Anas forehead to check if she had a temperature but it did not feel hot, and the teachers advised the student to take paracetamol.

At some point of that train journey from Washington to Philadelphia, we checked in on all the pupils, and checked in on Ana, she added.

She said she was feeling better so we felt reassured that the paracetamol had done its job.

Ms Clare said Ana did not mention a chest infection and insisted she would never refuse a pupils request to see a doctor.

Giving evidence, Mr Hambly said that during the train journey Ana asked about if she was feeling worse in New York what would the situation be about getting to a doctor but did not directly ask to see one.

He told the inquest he said to Ana that she could see a doctor if that was the case.

Later that evening, Ana bought nasal decongestant and cough syrup from a pharmacy in New York.

The following day, on December 18, Ana told her mother she had been sick overnight and asked the teachers if she could stay in the hotel room that day rather than going on a walking tour.

Both teachers said they were not aware that she had been sick and she came on the walking tour before going shopping with a friend.

That evening, Ana was seen coughing and retching into a bin during a visit to the Empire State Building.

Ana moved to one side and coughed and retched into a bin that was there, Ms Clare told the inquest.

Nothing came up and she was not sick.

Ms Clare said Ana went to the bathroom and splashed her face with water before joining them.

Ana and another student went back to the hotel with Mr Hambly rather than going out for dinner that evening.

On December 19, Ana awoke Mr Hambly at about 6am saying she felt unwell and he went to fetch Ms Clare.

I got the impression she was anxious because she hadnt slept, she said that her back was hurting and she had been coughing in the night which kept her awake, Ms Clare said.

I spoke to her, trying to calm her down. I wasnt alarmed by what I saw, she calmed down within minutes.

She described feeling Anas forehead, which was not hot, and checking her pulse, which appeared normal.

Mr Hambly brought Ana a banana and she ate it before taking some painkillers and returning to her room to sleep.

Ms Clare then went to the hotels reception desk to inquire about medical centres in the area.

When she was at the desk, another student ran to her and said Ana, who had collapsed, was not well.

I had absolutely no idea what I was going to be faced with when I got there, she said.

I saw Ana lying in her room with Rory saying Ana can you hear me, can you hear me. He was started to do chest compressions.

I still cant comprehend what we saw on that day, I dont believe it and I was stood there.

Mr Hambly had already phoned 911 and Ms Clare went to reception to meet emergency services when they arrived.

Ana was taken to hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 10am.

The inquest continues.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Coast Guard ship fired about 30 warning shots after 13 vessels from Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) came close to it and other American Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, the Pentagon said on Monday.

This is the second time within the last month that U.S. military vessels have had to fire warning shots because of what they said was unsafe behavior by Iranian vessels in the region, after a relative lull in such interactions over the past year.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said the warning shots were fired after the Iranian fast boats came as close as 150 yards (450 feet) of six U.S. military vessels, including the USS Monterey, that were escorting the guided-missile submarine Georgia.

In this image provided by the U.S. Navy, an Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) fast in-shore attack craft (FIAC), a type of speedboat armed with machine guns, speeds near U.S. naval vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, Monday, May 10, 2021. U.S. officials say a group of 13 armed speedboats of Irans Revolutionary Guard made unsafe and unprofessional high-speed maneuvers toward U.S. Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday. A U.S. Coast Guard cutter fired warning shots when two of the Iranian boats came dangerously close. (U.S. Navy via AP)

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Maui fired the warning shots from a .50-caliber machine gun before the Iranian vessels left, Kirby said.

"It's significant... and they were acting very aggressively," he said, adding that the number of Iranian vessels was more than in the recent past.

In April, a U.S. military ship fired warning shots after three vessels from IRGCN came close to it and another American patrol boat in the Gulf.

The latest incident comes as world powers and Iran seek to speed up efforts to bring Washington and Tehran back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear accord.

U.S. officials returned to Vienna last week for a fourth round of indirect talks with Iran on how to resume compliance with the deal, which former U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned in 2018, prompting Iran to begin violating its terms about a year later.
Ive heard stories that normal NICU families develop great bonds and friendships because of what you go through together. There was none of that because of COVID, no community, Buck said. There was no safe space for me to go. I know the pandemic dictated our time and our experience there, but even post-pandemic it is so important, especially for new mothers who are recovering from very traumatic circumstances  not to mention all of the physical stuff your body goes through  to have a safe, special place to just take a beat sometimes. I just want somebody else who has a traumatic experience like me to have the benefit of that.
By APD writer Shristi

Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli faced motion of confidence at the House of Representatives on Monday, in which he lost the vote of confidence.

The latest political development has triggered a fresh uncertainity at the time of pandemic.

In the voting, at least 93 lawmakers voted in favour of Oli while 124 were against, and 15 were neutral. Many others remained absent.

During the House session, Prime Minister Oli presented a list of achievements just ahead of the voting process for the vote of confidence motion.

During the process, President of the main opposition party Nepali Congress, Sher Bahadur Deuba and Chairperson of Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre), Pushpa Kamal Dahal, spoke heavily against the favour of vote of confidence motion.

Moreover, the dissenting former Prime Minister duos and their supporting leaders within faction of CPN-UML didnt take part in the voting procedure a miss.

Oli has been facing widespread criticism since long time, which is in rife within his own party.

With this latest development, now the President Bidya Devi Bhandari will call the parties to reach a consensus in proposing a new candidate.

Despite of the ongoing surge in COVID-19 cases, the leaders have been indulged in the political row, which has disappointed the general public who have been reeling under health crisis.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
Editor's Note:

The writer, Mr. I. Hussain Janjua is a senior media professional and analyst having experience of research & broadcast journalism in different organisations. He is a non-resident fellow of Chengdu Institute of World Affairs (CIWA). (Email: ihussainjanjua@yahoo.com; twitter: @ihussainjanjua)

In past 10-15 days India has registered a record spike, 4.14 lakh corona cases in one day as well as pushed the death toll due to the virus to over 2.4 lakh, recording 4,187 deaths, also highest in one day, raising the the Covid-19 caseload to over 223 million.

Covid-19 second wave initially having devastated big cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Lucknow and Pune and hospitals and crematoriums running out of space, and funerals taking place in car parks, has now firmly gripped many smaller cities, towns and villages where the devastation is largely under-reported.

But the outbreak isn't just a crisis for India - it's a crisis for everyone.

"The virus doesn't respect borders, or nationalities, or age, or sex or religion," says Dr Soumya Swaminathan, the World Health Organization's chief scientist.

"And what's playing out in India now unfortunately has been played out in other countries."

The pandemic has revealed just how interconnected the world is. And if a country has very high levels of infection, then it's likely to spread to other countries.

Even with travel restrictions, multiple tests and quarantine, infections can still leak out; and if a traveler has come from somewhere where the virus is very prevalent, they have a higher chance of taking the virus with them. On a recent flight from New Delhi to Hong Kong about 50 passengers tested positive for Covid-19.

But there's another concern with India's high infection rates: A new variant has emerged in India called B.1.617. It's been dubbed by some as the "double mutant" because of two key mutations on the spike of the virus. There's some lab evidence that suggests it's slightly more transmissible and that antibodies may find it harder to block the virus, but scientists are still assessing how much immunity is lost.

"I don't think there's any evidence that it's an escape mutation [which would mean] it fundamentally can't be stopped by the vaccines," Dr Jeff Barrett, director of the Covid-19 Genomics Initiative at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, told media.

"I think we have to obviously watch carefully, but there's at present no reason to panic about it."

But the higher the number of Covid cases a country has, the more likely it is that new variants will emerge. That's because every single infection gives the virus a chance to evolve and a major concern is that mutations could arise that render vaccines ineffective.

"The way to limit viral variants emerging in the first place is to prevent the virus replicating in us so the best way to control variants is actually to control the global amount of disease that we have at the moment," explains Prof Sharon Peacock, Director of the Covid-19 Genomics UK consortium (Cog-UK).

This is despite the fact that India is home to the world's biggest vaccine manufacturer - the Serum Institute of India. And this is another reason why India's surge in cases has a knock-on effect for the rest of the world.

Globally, the pandemic shows no sign of easing, with the virus devastating country after country. The situation in India is a bleak reminder that none of us will be safe until everyone is safe.

At the moment when India is fighting second wave of coronavirus the world including China has extending help to New Delhi while Pakistan has also offered assistance to her arch rival. Chinese FM during his talk to his Indian counterpart and on other occasion has offered all possible help to India while Chinese Presidents message to Indian PM has become medias focus.

While on the one hand India grapples with the deadly virus it continues to pursue its expansionistic agenda as there is no let for the Kashmiris despite corona devastations while there is recent surge in terrorist activities in Pakistan allegedly sponsored by India? At the same time when US-led NATO forces are preparing to leave Afghanistan, India appears to be opposed to peaceful settlement as would be peace in Afghanistan is of great significance for Pakistan in particular and the region in general.

Indias track record is not encouraging viz-a-viz almost all her neighbors including China as the Galwan Valley episode is a recent phenomenon while Kashmiris are at the receiving end since decades and it has issues with Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal too.

The scenario demands India to shun its hegemonic approach and focus on well being of its people who since long have been suffering from extreme poverty though corona virus is a recent phenomenon.

India needs to review its approach and join hands with the world as the deadly pandemic having attained gigantic proportions could only be controlled throug coordinated efforts at the international level. India also needs to learn from Chinese model of dealing with the pandemic too!

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
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Trump argued in a lawsuit that no ballots should be counted that were collected at the Democracy in the Park events, or where election officials added missing information. On both of those claims, the Wisconsin Supreme Court said Trump had raised the issues too late and that his claims lacked evidence to back them up.
If your vote becomes cause of your death, destruction of your property, you are subjected to loot, it is the end of democracy, he said

The most alarming situation, the most concerning facet of this violence, is that in democracy the people are made to pay the price with their lives, rights and human rights because they chose to vote, the Governor said.  ANI

Kolkata: In what appears to be his first confrontation with the third Trinamul Congress ministry in West Bengal, state governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Monday accused the Mamata Banerjee government of not arranging his visits to the post-poll violence-hit parts of the state.

Mr Dhankhar vowed to go ahead with his planned visits on his own as Nandigram BJP MLA Suvendu Adhikari took a swipe at the chief over the post-poll violence after he became the new Leader of the Opposition.

At Raj Bhavan, the governor alleged: We are in a very deep crisis in the state. Post-poll retributive violence, acts of arson and loot have graded to intimidation and extortion. This is very worrisome. I therefore decided to visit the affected parts of the state as part of my constitutional duty. I asked the state government to make arrangements. Unfortunately, the response has not been very responsive. I will go ahead with my schedule. This is the time for me to perform my constitutional duty to share the pain, agony and anguish of the suffering people, and will therefore make arrangements for such visits in the coming days.

He claimed: The most alarming situation, the most concerning facet of this violence, is that in democracy the people are made to pay the price with their lives, rights and human rights because they chose to vote. If your vote becomes the cause of your death, destruction of your property, you are subjected to loot, arson, coercion, intimidation, it is the end of democracy. The Constitution cannot be taken to be functioning and democracy cannot flourish if people are made to suffer because they chose to vote in a particular way. This is very serious. There is anguish, anger, concern about what is happening in the land of culture.

At the BJP office, Mr Adhikari, elected as Leader of the Opposition with the support of 22 MLAs of his party, said: The present Assembly has three features. One of them is that a defeated candidate has become a CM. This never happened in the history of the state after Independence. Besides, several lakhs of people have been homeless due to post-poll violence because they belong to a particular community.

Mr Adhikari added: It is often heard that people from another country take refuge in Assam. But now an instance of people from one state taking refuge in another has been created. Facing attacks, people from Cooch Behar fled to Assam and have been put up at refugee camps there. Nothing can be worse than this. At Sabang in West Midnapore, a village has been devastated in violence because its residents voted for the BJP. So my pledge is to bring peace in Bengal.
Is Indias fabled 'steel frame' only creaking or is it screaming?

The coronavirus pandemic surge has devastated big cities including the capital and brought the healthcare system to its knees. India has now been recording the highest number of new coronavirus cases in the world and the death toll is mounting.

The second wave of the pandemic has spared no one, not even the elite administrative services that are charged with oiling the wheels that run the nation. According to sources, more than 100 senior officers, including IAS, IPS, IRS and others, have lost their lives to Covid. The news of the deaths of senior babus including Bihar chief secretary Arun Kumar Singh and three of his 1985 batchmates  former CBI director Ranjit Sinha, former secretary, department of land resources, R. Buhril and serving director of the panchayati raj department in Bihar and many others  has got the babus rattled.

Further, the president of the UP IAS Association Deepak Trivedi and additional secretary of health in Bihar R.S. Chowdhury too died, both within a week. In recent weeks, nearly two dozen top babus across central government ministries and departments, including the health ministry, have tested positive for the coronavirus.

The severity of the epidemic has hit home. When even the powerful in the land are not safe and anxious about their health and that of their families, they are pushing the panic button. The System, normally a bulwark against the vicissitudes of fate that often visit upon the citizenry, has collapsed this time. It must be a novel experience for the nations elite administrators. Clearly, the old trusted networks and reliable connections have failed.

Naturally, none of them can say this openly but Indias once-fabled steel frame has bent and buckled in the face of the pandemic headwinds. The creaking is audible, even if it actually feels like screaming.

Mamata brings back cops transferred by EC After her hard-fought victory in the recently concluded state Assembly elections, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee is busy setting her house in order. This has primarily meant that she is bringing back a large number of senior IPS officers who had been transferred by the Election Commission during the campaigning.

Sources say that within hours of taking oath for the third consecutive time, Didi brought back senior IPS officer Virendra as director general of police. Virendra will be retiring this month. Similarly, Vivek Sahay has been reinstated as director of security.

Sources say that the state government has decided to clean up the mess in police administration and issued transfer orders to a large number of IPS officers whose role during the election period has been seen as not only doubtful but in violation of norms.

However, the return to normalcy may take longer. After reports about the violence that erupted in certain parts of Bengal after the elections, the ministry of home affairs has deputed a team of top home ministry officials led by an additional secretary-level officer to undertake a fact-finding exercise in the state to assess the ground situation. This again is likely to set off a fresh round of friction between Didi and the Centre.

EC split down the middle

The Election Commission (EC) is split down the middle over its response to the censure by the Madras high court on its role in conducting elections during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The EC has approached the Supreme Court against the censure, but its petition was swiftly rejected. One of the panels counsel has resigned stating that his values are not in consonance with the ECs.

After Sunil Aroras retirement as Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on April 12, the three-member Commission has Sushil Chandra as CEC and Rajiv Kumar as Election Commissioner. The position of the third EC is vacant.

Many remember what happened the last time when there was a schism within the Election Commission. In the 2019 general elections, the then Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa had opposed the clean chit given to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former BJP president Amit Shah on charges of violating the election model code of conduct. We all know how that went.

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She let him back in at 4 a.m. When she let him back in I didnt even know (Webster) was in there til he came in the room where my grandbaby sleeps and sucker-punched me, and he didnt know I had a ... knife in my ... hand, and then I got up and boom boom, prosecutors reported Moody said on camera.
If Nautical Nonsense Is Something You Wish-Two male students in their 20s were rescued unharmed at 2:37 a.m. Sat off Isla Vista after they were unable to return to shore in their boat fashioned from duct tape, buckets, and kiddie pools. Alcohol was not a factor. *Call Newsline* pic.twitter.com/Ug568BY9EF  SBCFireInfo (@EliasonMike) May 8, 2021

Necessity is the mother of invention, they say. The quest for a cheap thrill might also work, as was the case with these two dudes. They built their very special raft gluing two kiddie pools on a piece of plywood and then gluing 20 five-gallon (19-liter) plastic buckets to the bottom and set out for what would turn out to be the adventure of a lifetime.According to the Santa Barbara County Fire, the two college students, both male and both in their 20s, set out off the coast of Isla Vista in Southern California. At nearly 3 a.m. on Saturday morning, they were rescued from the Pacific Ocean after being carried out to sea by the current. Rescuers were called by someone from the shore who had seen the signals they were sending out with their strobe light, a spokesperson tells the LA Times The two students were not in distress when rescued, but they were probably cold since they did not have wetsuits on. They were some 300 yards (274 meters) away from the shore. They did have a paddle and were using it to steer their homemade raft, but the currents were too strong. The pitch darkness did not help.The spokesperson notes that neither of the men was an engineering student, adding, I just wish they had planned whatever they were doing a little better. Like, for example, not head out on a raft made of plastic buckets in the dead of night. Alcohol was not involvedyou know you were thinking it.The aforementioned media outlet notes that the raft could have been part of a school project. That would be the only excuse for attempting seafaring on a homemade raft , risking their lives and costing taxpayers money in midnight rescue operations.
SUV

Funny how stealing a police car will generate the exact same reaction in real life as it does in Grand Theft Auto. Youre instantly swarmed by law enforcement trying to haul your behind off the streets. Granted, once you steal a cop car in GTA, youre getting shot at constantly, whereas the officers involved in this incident managed to stay a lot more composed.Responsible for this whole debacle is one Xavier Javern Cummings, a 33-year-old man from Florida who was eventually apprehended and arrested on suspicion of burglary, eluding law enforcement, possession of a firearm by a felon, firearm theft, motor vehicle theft, plus driving with a suspended license, reports NBC News The chase took place this past weekend, when Cocoa, Florida police responded to a disturbance at a hotel, resulting in Cummings taking off in a patrol sedan heading northbound. It was a Volusia County Sheriffs cruiser that pushed the sedan off Interstate 95 and into the woods after joining the chase Unfortunately for all the officers on location, the suspect used the surrounding area to his advantage, taking off suddenly towards another Cocoa patrol cruiser, this time an. Despite the officers holding him at gunpoint, he floored the throttle and managed to continue driving north for another 8 or 10 miles, as per Volusia Sheriff Michael J. Chitwood.After units along I-95 successfully deployed stop sticks, the suspect again ran off the highway and into a muddy median around the 258-mile marker, said the Volusia office in a statement. It was there that Cummings was finally apprehended. You hardly ever get the chance to steal a third police vehicle , even in the Grand Theft Auto video game.
The hackers, who compromised the Colonial Pipeline computers with ransomware, forced the American company to shut down all operations on Friday. All of its four main lines were knocked offline following the cyberattack.The FBI has already confirmed DarkSide is the group behind the attack, while the federal government has issued an emergency declaration on Sunday due to the disruptions caused by the transportation of oil in the eastern United States.But earlier this week, the hackers explained that their intention wasnt to create so many problems but to actually make some money. Our goal is to make money and not creating problems for society, the hacking group said in a statement.Still, taking offline the pipeline that carries no less than 2.5 million barrels a day has obviously created major problems for several industries, with airlines also struggling to cope with the lack of fuel.As a result, several companies have added refueling stops for their long flights, with aircraft flying from Charlotte to Honolulu projected to stop in Dallas, while the flight going from Charlotte to London will stop in Boston. Most likely, several other airlines will add similar stops along their routes as the pipeline operations are yet to be completely restored, and it wouldnt necessarily be a huge surprise to see some companies actually canceling flights altogether.In a statement on Monday, Colonial said it was still working on restoring the operations, but not all systems are ready to go back online. The company, however, said it expected the network to be up and running later this week.Homeland Security Advisor Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall said most of the computers had been taken offline out of an abundance of caution, as hackers only broke into systems managing the business operations of Colonial.
EV

kW

ICE

While the company's traditional chrome and steel clientele might find it hard to stray away from their classic V-twin powered motorcycles, thetrend has taken over not only the automotive world but also the riders of all kinds. So now, Harley-Davidson is trying to do something completely different than what we're all used to.This new division took its name after Harley 's first electric bike that was introduced in 2019. With a maximum speed of 95 mph (153 kph), it can zoom from 0 to 60 mph (100 kph) in under 3.5 seconds, making it incredibly fast. Packing a 105 hp (78) motor, it's competition for the most rides out there.When the idea was first revealed in 2014, it was described as "the most radical departure in the brand's 111-year history." On the other hand, others saw the introduction of the LiveWire and the development of an electrical product as part of a move toward customers who would not usually go for Harley's typical loud noise.We can see that this is already unfolding in the automotive world where battery power is gaining traction. However, in the motorcycle community, most riders will still prefer the good oldengine and the very distinguishable roar.While Harley promises to use new technology to appeal to a wider customer base, LiveWire will run dedicated EV showrooms in select cities, starting with California. The division would still benefit from Harley's technical experience, manufacturing presence, supply chain networks, and global logistics capability, despite advertised as a different brand.The company announces that its first LiveWire branded motorcycle will launch later this year, on July 8th, and it will have its premiere at the International Motorcycle Show on July 9th.
According to police, London had been visiting the second-floor apartment of the 34-year-old man who was stabbed. The resident later told police he was arguing with London, and he alleged that London had been the aggressor in a physical altercation and that he ultimately stabbed the resident.
Russia is one step closer to deploying its threatening RS-28 Sarmat missile, otherwise known as Satan II, which is one of its most powerful weapon of its kind to date. Upcoming tests, later this year, are going to demonstrate the new missiles full potential.

1 photo
EV

Sol and Terra are, of course, the Latin words for Sun and Earth. It is an appropriate name for anthat could presumably take you off the beaten path thanks to its makers go-anywhere pedigree.Technically speaking, the Solterra is a C-segment class crossover built on the battery electric vehicle dedicated e-Subaru Global Platform. The architecture allows for multiple modules and components to be merged, such as the front, center and rear of a vehicle.While both Subaru and Toyota will use this platform, the former wants to focus on superior passive safety and vehicle stability. The two companies shared the load on a wide range of collaborations, from product planning to design and even performance evaluation. Speaking of performance, this is where Subaru came in with its critically acclaimed all-wheel-drive technology, while Toyota offered up its outstanding vehicle electrification tech.Pricing has yet to be announced for the upcoming Solterra, which is expected to go on sale by the middle of 2022 in markets such as the United States, Canada, Europe, Japan and China. Once in showrooms, it will join a family of existing crossovers that include the Ascent, Outback, Forester, and the Subaru XV Interestingly enough, the Toyota branded model will also go on sale by the middle of 2022 and will be built in China and Japan, which might also be the case for the Solterra. As for the latter's styling, we can tell from the teaser image that its profile is pretty much identical to that of the Toyota bZ4X concept , which comes as no surprise. Only the front and rear fascias are expected to look different, as it is often the case with JV models.
Woven Planet, a subsidiary of Toyota, which is responsible for the prototype city, recently announced in a press release (you can peruse it in its dedicated section below the article) that it partnered with ENEOS, a major Japanese player in the hydrogen business. The goal is to create a hydrogen-based society and to become carbon-neutral at the same time, by 2050, according to their estimates.Toyota and ENEOS are going to test the hydrogen-based supply chain in and around Woven City, from the production phase to delivery and usage. The Japanese carmaker sees hydrogen as one of the cleanest energy sources available and tries to explore and implement the hydrogen and fuel cell technology as much as it can. Woven City starts as a small-scale project, with a community of roughly 360 residents, but will eventually reach over 2,000 individuals, including Toyota employees. It will serve as a live-in laboratory for present and future Toyota technology and inventions.The futuristic town will have three types of streets, each with its specific purpose: one for pedestrian use, another one for automated driving and the third one for pedestrians with personal mobility vehicles. The goal is to create a sustainable urban environment that promotes carbon neutrality in everyday mobility.ENEOS is in fact a petroleum company that is now focusing on hydrogen production. The company operates 45 commercial hydrogen refueling stations in Japan and promotes a low-carbon use of energy.Woven City will be located at the base of Mount Fiji, in Susono City, Shizuoka Prefecture. It was designed by Danish architect Bjarke Ingels, whose portfolio includes among others the LEGO House in Denmark, the two World Trade Center buildings in NYC, and Googles Mountain View and London HQ buildings.
For all intents and purposes, when one uses the words heavy tactical vehicles, the first thing that comes to mind is Oshkosh . The American industrial behemoth is the one responsible for making a great number of them, designed to meet diverse needs and fulfill diverse purposes.There are five such vehicles presently in the companys portfolio. First up is the Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck, or HEMTT. The 500 horsepower monster comes in a number of variants, from cargo hauler to refueler and guided missile transporter.Then comes the Heavy Equipment Transporter (HET), designed to carry with its 700 horsepower heavy loads, including tanks . Then, the Logistics Vehicle System Replacement (LVSR) puts all its 600 horsepower on the table for hauling flatracks, ISO containers, bridging equipment, boats and fuel containers.The Palletized Load System (PLS) and Wheeled Tanker complete the list, offering ways to carry ammunition and other critical supplies in the case of the former, and fuel, in the case of the latter.Ever since these machines came to be, the U.S. military has been ordering them like crazy. The current fleet is getting however a bit old, and the needs of the army are increasing, so an order for more of the newer variants had to be placed.And this is exactly what the U.S. Army Contracting Command did at the beginning of the month, awarding Oshkosh an extension of the existing contract, and a demand for more heavy tactical vehicles.According to the company, a total of 353 new and recapitalized HEMTTs, PLSs and HETs will have to be delivered over the next three years to fulfill the Army's needs.Under the contract awarded in 2015, Oshkosh already delivered close to 70,000 machines from this family to the military.
The U.S. Armys 82nd Airborne Division is executing several operations across Europe, throughout the first half of the month, during Swift Response 21. This multinational exercise includes various operations performed in host countries Estonia, Bulgaria and Romania, until May 14, 2021.Swift Response is part of Defender-Europe 21, an annual large-scale military event, led by the U.S. Immediate Response Force, which develops interoperability between the U.S., NATO allies and European partners. This year, Defender-Europe will engage over 28,000 forces from 26 countries, which will be performing simultaneous operations in multiple training areas.These special operations include air assaults and live fire exercises , designed to show airborne interoperability. Also, Joint Forcible Entries, which are airborne strategic jumps, are set to take place at nighttime in Estonia and Bulgaria.Defender-Europe 21 was officially launched in Estonia, with a live-fire exercise at the Tapa Central Training Grounds. A few days later, U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to 1st Battalion 319th Artillery Regiment, 82nd Airborne Brigade, conducted an air-assault operation at the same location. C-17 military airlift aircraft dropped the artillery and vehicles for the operation. These heavy-lift strategic transport aircraft are specifically designed to carry heavy equipment, supplies and troops, even in challenging environments.The 173rd Airborne Brigade and the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, 7th Army Training Command will also participate in Swift Response 21. And the U.S. Air Force will provide additional support for the operations, in the form of the C-17 Globemaster III aircraft, assigned to Joint Bases in Washington and South Carolina, as well as the EC-130H Compass Call aircraft, assigned to the 55th Electronic Combat Group, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona.
Boat Manufacturer PT Lundin first revealed the Fire Support Vessel (FSV) design at the 2014 Indodefence exhibition in Jakarta. The project took form over the years in what today is called X18 or the Tank Boat. After years of development, the Indonesian Ministry of Defense purchased the vessel and launched the X18 Combat Boat program.Based on an 18 meters (60 feet) long and 6.6 meters (21.6 feet) wide foil-assisted catamaran, it is designed to function in shallow waters with a one-meter (three feet) draft. Suited for coastal waterway operations, the Tank Boat has the ability to execute beach and river landings and insert or extract troops of up to 20 Special Forces or Marines. The X18 has a crew of six and can also carry a High-speed Interdiction for boarding and SEAL insertion.The vessel is powered by two 1,200 hp MAN engines and two waterjets. At higher speeds, a foil elevates the hull, reducing drag and allowing Tank Boat to reach a top speed of 40 knots. It has a range of up to 600 nautical miles.The CMI Defence Cockerill 3105 is the primary weapon system used by the X18. Built around a powerful high-pressure low recoil-force 105mm gun, this weapon system is fully stabilized, effective both during the day and the night. It can use a wide variety of NATO standard 105mm ammunition and it's capable to directly engage a wide range of targets at up to 5,000 meters (3,000 miles) range and indirectly engage at up to 10,000 meters (6,213 miles) range.The 105mm is also capable of firing high explosive shells and anti-tank guided missiles. Additionally, the gun can be elevated to a 42-degree to deliver exceptional engagement capability in out-of-line-of-sight targets, allowing it to be engaged at extended ranges of up to 5 km (3 miles). A remote-controlled 7.62  30 mm cannon can be added to the Tank Boat. That's a lot of firepower for a boat that's just 18 meters (60 feet) long.According to NavalNews , the sea trials will last until the end of May, with sea live firing tests beginning next month. The delivery to the Indonesian Army has not yet been determined, but it is expected to take place in September 2021.
Argentina's government has this week launched a "Green Mondays" campaign that calls on citizens to replace meals containing meat with plant-based ones on Mondays in an effort to tackle climate change.

Why it matters: Cattle ranches contribute to 22% of all emissions in Argentina, making them the "biggest contributor" in the country, per Bloomberg. The campaign is part of a growing worldwide environmental movement away from meat.

Go deeper... New culture war: the meat you eat
RTHK: Beijing urges de-escalation in Jerusalem conflict

Beijing's top envoy to the United Nations says China is "deeply concerned" about clashes in East Jerusalem as he condemned violence against civilians and urged Israeli officials to prevent violence against Muslim worshipers.

Zhang Jun's comments, reported by the official Xinhua News Agency, came as UN Security Council members held behind-closed-doors discussions on the situation on Monday.

The discussion came as Gaza health officials said at least 20 people were killed by Israeli air strikes, which were launched after around 150 rockets were fired from Gaza into Jerusalem in the first such attack since 2014.

Xinhua quoted Zhang, China's permanent representative to the UN, as saying that Beijing had called on all sides to exercise restraint and refrain from provocative actions and rhetoric.

He also urged Israeli authorities to take steps to "prevent violence, threats and provocations against Muslim worshipers". China was concerned about the looming eviction of Palestinian families from neighbourhoods in East Jerusalem, he added.

Confrontations continued close to the Al-Aqsa Mosque as Israel celebrated "Jerusalem Day", marking its capture of East Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society said more than 300 Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli police, who fired rubber bullets, stun grenades and tear gas in the compound. Police said 21 officers were hurt in the skirmishes.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the rocket attacks from Gaza against Israel should stop "immediately." He urged all sides to take steps to reduce tensions. (RTHK/Reuters)

This story has been published on: 2021-05-10. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
100 years ago, this French town inspired China's CPC founding fathers

Xinhua) 08:34, May 11, 2021

Since 1919, thousands of young Chinese, as part of the Work-Study Movement, traveled across the ocean to France, in order to find a way to rebuild and empower their motherland.

Many of them became pioneers and leaders of the Chinese revolution.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
Hudson said he did not know if there were working smoke detectors in the apartment. He said the Office of Fire Investigation had a team at the building to determine the cause, which had not been released as of Tuesday.
Days of tension in Jerusalem escalated into an exchange of fire on Monday, as Hamas fired dozens of rockets toward Israel and the Israeli military responded with strikes of its own and said it was preparing for a military operation that could last several days.

Why it matters: This is the first time Hamas has fired rockets at Jerusalem since 2014, and it's the most serious escalation between the Israelis and Palestinians in many months. It comes during the most sensitive days on the calendar  the last days of Ramadan and the Jerusalem Day commemoration on Monday  and as political crises roil both the Israeli and Palestinian governments.

"All the ministers and security officials in the meeting agreed we can't keep quiet after missiles were fired on Jerusalem."

 A minister from Israel's Security Cabinet to Axios following Monday's meeting.

Driving the news: Starting early Monday morning, Palestinian protesters clashed with Israeli police in the Old City of Jerusalem at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, or Temple Mount, one of the holiest sites for both Muslims and Jews. Around 300 Palestinians were wounded, with 10 in critical condition.

Those clashes followed days of protests over the planned evictions of six Palestinian families from a Palestinian neighborhood in East Jerusalem to make way for Jewish settlers. Israel's Supreme Court delayed its decision on the evictions on Sunday.

After a tense phone call Sunday evening between U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan and his Israeli counterpart, Meir Ben-Shabbat, Israel started taking steps to de-escalate the situation.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the closure of the Temple Mount to Jewish visitors and later ordered the rerouting of an annual nationalist parade so that it would not pass through the Muslim Quarter and the Damascus Gate, two potential flashpoints in the Old City of Jerusalem.

But the militant group Hamas gave Israel an ultimatum on Monday afternoon, threatening military action if all Israeli police didn't leave the al-Aqsa Mosque compound by 11am ET.

Minutes after the deadline expired, Hamas fired rockets from Gaza toward Jerusalem  around 50 miles away. Hamas then fired another 40 rockets toward Israeli towns close to Gaza.

The Israeli air force retaliated with strikes in Gaza and said it had killed three Hamas operatives. Gaza health officials said 20 Palestinians were killed, including nine children.

What to watch: The Israeli Security Cabinet convened for an emergency meeting and decided on a wider response, which Israeli military officials said would be wide-ranging and could last several days.

The latest:

State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the U.S. condemned the attacks on Israel "in the strongest terms" and recognized Israel's right to defend itself. Price called on all parties to seek to de-escalate the situation.

"The terror organizations in Gaza crossed a red line when they fired missiles to Jerusalem," Netanyahu said. "Israel will retaliate strongly. The current confrontation could take some time."

The big picture: The current escalation comes amid deep political crises on both the Palestinian and Israeli sides.

It complicates the efforts of Netanyahu rivals Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett to form an alternative government as soon as this week to oust the prime minister, who was unable to form a government of his own after elections in March.

Monday's violence led Mansour Abbas, leader of the Ra'am Islamist party  an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood and sister movement of Hamas  to suspend coalition talks.

Lapid and Bennett have been trying to convince Ra'am to support their alternative government, while Netanyahu also met Abbas on Sunday in an attempt to convince him not to join the alternative government.

Meanwhile, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas postponed long-awaited parliamentary elections that had been scheduled for May 22.
One of Sweden's most populous regions has asked residents to enter a "personal lockdown" in order to curb soaring COVID-19 cases, Euronews reported Wednesday.

Why it matters: Sweden's more relaxed approach to the pandemic prompted libertarians and conservatives, including Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), to argue the U.S. should've adopted a similar strategy. But the country this week reported the highest infection rate in the EU.

By the numbers: Sweden reported a seven-day average of 625 new infections per million people, statistics published Tuesday by the scientific online publication OurWorldInData show.

What's happening: Mikael Kohler, health chief of the Swedish region of Uppsala, told Euronews regional health officials were asking each resident "to act like they are in a personal lockdown."

"If they have to meet other people ... everyone has to suspect that everyone they are meeting could be infected," he added.

The big picture: Patient numbers in Sweden's intensive care units have surged "past the peak of the second wave around the turn of the year," Reuters reports.

Sweden's chief epidemiologist Anders Tegnell said Tuesday there were "no signs of a decrease" in the spread officials were seeing, per Reuters.

While the country has never imposed a strict lockdown like other nations, it has introduced measures including international travel restrictions and limits on public gatherings to eight and restaurant tables to four.

For the record: Uppsala is one of 13 of the 21 regions in Sweden to have implemented stricter pandemic measures this spring, according to The Local.

"While this is a noticeably sharper tone, the actual recommendations in place in Uppsala remain the same, The Local notes.

This guidance includes staying 2 meters (6.5 feet) from others, wearing a face mask if you need to use public transport, don't meet up with people you don't live with and work from home "if you can," per The Local.

Flashback: Coronavirus helps drive Sweden death tally to highest in 151 years
Tel Aviv  The Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups fired dozens of rockets from the Gaza Strip toward Tel Aviv and other cities in central Israel on Tuesday night, a new step in the current conflict that is likely to be followed by increased Israeli air strikes in Gaza.

Why it matters: The current crisis began in Jerusalem but has evolved into a military conflict across Israel and Gaza that remains on a path of escalation.

Zoom in: Air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv at 8:45pm local time (1:45pm ET), and sounded again five more times over the next half hour.

Most of the rockets were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome aerial defense system but several hit populated areas. At least one Israeli civilian was killed and several dozen injured.

The barrage of rockets forced the closure of Israel's international airport for landings and departures for two hours.

The state of play: At least 28 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli strikes over the past 24 hours, including 10 children, according to health officials in Gaza.

The Israeli air force continued its air strikes in Gaza throughout the day, including on several high-rise buildings it claimed hosted Hamas facilities.

One thirteen-story tower was destroyed after residents were warned to evacuate, and several senior Hamas and Islamic Jihad commanders were killed.

Meanwhile two Israeli women were killed by rocket attacks on southern Israel earlier in the day from Hamas and Islamic Jihad. At least 95 Israelis have been treated for injuries.

Hamas claimed to have fired 137 rockets during that earlier flurry in an attempt to overwhelm the Iron Dome system.

The exchange of fire began on Monday after Hamas threatened military action if Israeli police didn't leave the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, or Temple Mount, a holy site for both Muslims and Jews where Israeli security forces had carried out a raid earlier on Monday.

After Hamas fired rockets toward Jerusalem, Israel undertook a series of airstrikes and warned of a military campaign that could last several days.

The Israeli military said it had struck 130 "terror targets" in Gaza overnight, including two attack tunnels being dug under the border with Israel.

What they're saying: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after the latest barrage from Gaza that Israel would continue its attacks on Gaza with "full force," while Defense Minister Benny Gantz said the military campaign was just beginning and would be designed to restore calm for the long term.

A spokesman for Hamas' military wing said that if the Israeli strikes continue, Hamas will undertake a missile assault that exceeds what was seen on Monday afternoon in Southern Israel.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said the Palestinians had already won the confrontation: "Gaza stood up for the victory of Jerusalem, he said. He added that Egypt, Qatar and the UN had been in touch with Hamas about restoring calm, and said he'd replied that Israel bore responsibility for the escalation.

The White House urged de-escalation while condemning the Hamas attacks and stating Israel's right to defend itself, Press Secretary Jen Psaki said.

Secretary of State Blinken also condemned the rocket attacks from Gaza in a call on Tuesday with Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, the State Department said.

Meanwhile President Biden sent a letter to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas which also touched on the need to de-escalate the current crisis with Israel, per a White House national security council spokesman.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan spoke to his Israeli counterpart on Tuesday and expressed Biden's "unwavering support for Israel's security and for its legitimate right to defend itself and its people, while protecting civilians," per the White House.

UN envoy for Middle East peace Tor Wennesland tweeted: "Stop the fire immediately. Were escalating towards a full scale war. Leaders on all sides have to take the responsibility of deescalation. The cost of war in Gaza is devastating & is being paid by ordinary people. UN is working w/ all sides to restore calm. Stop the violence now."
Davit Babayan, the Karabakh foreign minister, claimed that their tombstones are being smashed and used in the ongoing construction of a new highway passing through the Azerbaijani-controlled Hadrut district.

According to some reports, cemeteries in Hadrut villages are destroyed en masse and their tombstones used for road construction. This is barbarism, he told RFE/RLs Armenian Service.

Babayan said Baku is seeking to erase all traces of centuries-old Armenian presence in Hadrut whose ethnic Armenian residents fled their homes during the fighting.

Gegham Stepanian, Karabakhs human rights ombudsman, said fresh satellite images show that the graveyard of the Hadrut village of Mets Tagher has been wiped out by Azerbaijani authorities.

We can also see similar barbarism in the cemeteries of several other local communities whose tombstones are used as construction materials in the roadwork, he said.

Azerbaijani forces also control part of the village of Taghavard in Karabakhs southeastern Martuni district, including the local cemetery. The village chief, Oleg Harutiunian, said that it is also being destroyed.

The Azerbaijani government has not yet commented on the allegations.

Baku was accused last week of vandalizing Karabakhs largest Armenian church located in the town of Shushi (Shusha) also occupied by the Azerbaijani army during the war.

Photographs taken from nearby hills showed the Holy Savior Cathedral stripped of its conical dome and cross attached to it. Armenia said this was done for depriving the Shushi Cathedral of its Armenian identity.

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry denied that, saying that Azerbaijani authorities are simply renovating the church damaged during the war.
Spray parks in Bakersfield will open in just under two weeks but operate on a slightly reduced schedule as a precautionary measure due to drou
But just as she was pulling out from the church building about 12:30 p.m., at Mozart Avenue and 147th Street, a stolen Dodge Charger struck Odneals vehicle, killing her upon impact, said Posen Mayor Frank Podbielniak. She was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn as paramedics attempted to revive her, the mayor said, but she was pronounced dead at 1:33 p.m., according to the Cook County medical examiners office.
Contact: Ford Porter

Ford Porter govpress@nc.gov

Today, Governor Roy Cooper and Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. Mandy Cohen visited the MEDIC Clinic in Charlotte to observe COVID-19 vaccine distribution as the state continues to work to get more North Carolinians vaccinated. The Mecklenburg County Health Department has partnered with Emergency Medical Services, National Guard and volunteers from Central Piedmont Community College to help distribute vaccines at this site, which is located in one of Mecklenburg County's zip codes with the greatest need.Gov. Cooper said.The state is continuing to encourage North Carolinians to get their shot and taking action to reach people who have not yet been vaccinated, including through DHHS' Bring Summer Back campaign said Secretary Cohen.said Mecklenburg County Health Director Gibbie Harris.Along with serving people in-person, the site also serves as a base for clinic staff to pick up doses and go into the community to administer vaccines to people who are homebound.To date, the state has administered over 7.3 million doses, with nearly 50% of adults who have received at least one shot and 42.5% of adults are fully vaccinated. 78.2% of the 65 and older population have been partially vaccinated.North Carolinians can learn more about the state's vaccine distribution HERE (English) or HERE (Spanish). Visit NCDHHS' online tool, Find a Vaccine Location to find a nearby vaccine provider. The vaccine hotline number is 888-675-4567.
Martin Walsh, writing at conservativebrief.com reports:

With Democrats in control of Congress and Joe Biden in the White House, Republicans are battling multiple fronts to uphold the Constitution.

And conservatives just secured a massive victory at the U.S. Supreme Court regarding free speech.

The Supreme Court ruled in an 8-1 decision that a Georgia colleges speech code policy violated the First Amendment and that a student who was harmed by the policy can seek damages.

Justice Clarence Thomas issued the opinion of the court, writing that nominal damages claims are enough to establish standing to sue for a constitutional violation.

Chief Justice John Roberts was the only dissenter in the ruling favoring a couple of Christian students who challenged the university for restricting when, where, and how they could speak about their faith and disseminate materials on campus.

Uzuegbunam et al. v. Preczewski et al. first materialized after Chike Uzuegbunam, a student at Georgia Gwinnett College, was stopped by campus police for handing out religious materials on campus, a reported violation of the schools Freedom of Expression Policy, which limited distributions and other expressions to free speech zones only with permission from the administration.

Even after Uzuegbunam moved to the designated areas with permission, however, campus police attempted to stop him from speaking and handing out religious literature, prompting him and another student, Joseph Bradford, to take legal action against the university for violating their First and 14th Amendment rights and seek nominal damages.

The students attempts to sue the school, however, were shot down by both a district court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit after Georgia Gwinnett College changed its Freedom of Expression policy to remove barriers on when and where students could speak on campus and filed a motion to dismiss the case as moot.

Justice Clarence Thomas authored the opinion of the court and strongly agreed with the students case.

Applying this principle here is straightforward. For purposes of this appeal, it is undisputed that Uzuegbunam experienced a complete violation of his constitutional rights when respondents enforced their speech policies against him. Because every violation [of a right] imports damage, Webb, 29 F. Cas., at 509, nominal damages can redress Uzuegbunams injury even if he cannot or chooses not to quantify that harm in economic terms, Thomas concluded.

Roberts, however, accused the Court of turning judges into advice columnists.

The Supreme Court has rightly affirmed that government officials should be held accountable for the injuries they cause, Kristen Waggoner, general counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom, said in a statement.

When public officials violate constitutional rights, it causes serious harm to the victims, Waggoner added.

School officials violated [Uzuegbunams] constitutional rights when they stopped him twice from speaking in an open area of campus, Tyson Langhofer, the director of ADFs Center for Academic Freedom, told The Daily Caller News Foundation in January.

The only permit students need to speak on campus is the First Amendment, Langhofer added.
According to Oscar Balderrama, who said police detained him and later let him go without arrest, there should never have been a scene to begin with. He said a poker game in the mixed-use commercial and residential building led to some rowdiness and yelling, but no one at the location was armed. He said officers let everyone go after temporarily handcuffing and questioning them and that no arrests were made.
Photo: wikimedia commons

Biden's spokesperson says, in essence: It's not our responsibility to protect the nation's gas supply, it's all on private corporations. Bull. Unmitigated BS.

Here's the latest from the bizpacreview.com?

Following the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack that shut down roughly 45 percent of the east coasts fuel supply, long lines are forming as gas stations run dry, panic sets in, and a state of emergency has been declared in North Carolina.

Gas stations in Florida, Georgia, and Virginia are closing their pumps due to the fuel shortage and prices are expected to rise dramatically if the company cannot get the pipeline back online and fast.

President Joe Biden has loosened the regulations on truckers so they can bring in more fuel. American Airlines is reportedly adding stops to at least two of its long-haul flights from the Charlotte, North Carolina hub as well.

The cyberattack took place last Friday evening, shutting down the 5,500-mile pipeline. Biden was not briefed on it until Saturday. It appears that the ransomware attack was launched by a Russian-based group called DarkSide. There is no word if negotiations are taking place or if the ransom has been paid, the Daily Mail reported.

(Video Credit: Fox Business)

Colonial Pipeline was not the only company hit in the attack. At least 24 other companies spanning a range of industries were also subjected to the intrusion. Some are calling the attack an act of war and Newt Gingrich, the former Speaker of the House, went so far as to call for the execution of those responsible.

On the national security part, we ought to pass a law immediately that makes this kind of hacking subject to a death penalty and the law should include a provision that the president, through a judicial process, should be able to order the killings of anybody overseas who is doing this, he remarked to Sean Hannity on Fox News. Its an act of war against the United States to do stuff like this.

We need to react to it as an act of war, and the American people are going to look at their representatives and their senators and say, if you dont fix this, your successor will. I wont put up with it, and I wont put up with you if you dont fix it, Gingrich said.

We have no idea who they are. We have no idea where they are, he claimed. If we did know who they were, we would have no mechanism to do anything about it.

A great country cant allow people to savage it and have no consequences and wait for the next attack, Gingrich noted. And yet that literally is where we are.

(Video Credit: Fox News)

The pipeline supplies Atlantas airport which has the most passenger traffic in the world. It also serves 90 U.S. military installations as well as 26 oil refineries.

Long lines at gas stations started forming Monday evening as pumps began to go dry in various states. Shortages were confirmed in the Atlanta area and in Tallahassee, Florida. Patrick de Haan from Gas Buddy noted that five percent of gas stations in Virginia have already run out of gas.

AAA is now predicting that gas prices could jump in Georgia three to seven cents a gallon this week and gasoline will be limited. There is no talk of rationing yet, but is a possibility.

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency to help residents in his state prepare for possible shortages: Todays emergency declaration will help North Carolina prepare for any potential motor vehicle fuel supply interruptions across the state and ensure motorists are able to have access to fuel, he stated.

In Atlanta, some motorists reportedly had to go to several separate gas stations to fill up their tanks.

Gas stations around Atlanta are running out of gas and the ones that have it are hiking up the prices, tweeted one motorist.

Another warned: Yall better go and fill up on gas Atlanta. I finally got gas after trying at 3 gas stations.

And a third man reported: I went to three gas stations and they were out of gas. Hope to make it to one with gas before my car stop.

The pipeline is the largest in the United States and reportedly handles more than 100 million gallons of fuel daily between Texas and New Jersey. Stored supplies are already reportedly running out in numerous states.

DarkSide posted an apology on the Dark Web Monday, according to Vice. They claimed they did not want social consequences, or to make a political statement.

We are apolitical, we do not participate in geopolitics, do not need to tie us with a defined government and look for other our motives, they declared.

Our goal is to make money and not creating problems for society, the group proclaimed.

From today, we introduce moderation and check each company that our partners want to encrypt to avoid social consequences in the future, DarkSide promised.

DarkSide emerged in August of 2020 and they claim they dont attack medical, educational, or government targets. The group allegedly only goes after large corporations. They donate a portion of what they steal to charity.

DarkSide harvests data from a victims server, then they encrypt it and proceed to request a ransom. The group uploads the data to a website on the Dark Web, which then publishes it if they dont receive the ransom.

Darkside has advertised stolen documents from over 80 companies located across the U.S. and Europe on its website.

The Russians are denying any involvement in the attack: We categorically reject the baseless fabrications of individual journalists and reiterate that Russia does not conduct malicious activity in the virtual space.

Although Colonial is stating that they are aiming to restore services by the end of this week, there is no guarantee of that. The national price of gas has already spiked by six cents to an average of $2.96 a gallon. And it is expected to get much worse before it gets better.

Biden is rumored to be meeting with Russias President Vladimir Putin. Biden says there is no evidence that Russia is at fault although DarkSide is said by cyber experts to be located in Russia and seems to operate freely from there.

This could be the most impactful ransomware attack in history, a cyber disaster turning into a real-world catastrophe, Andrew Rubin, who is the CEO and co-founder of cybersecurity firm Illumio told NBC News.

Its an absolute nightmare, and its a recurring nightmare. Organizations continue to rely and invest entirely on detection as if they can stop all breaches from happening. But this approach misses attacks over and over again. Before the next inevitable breach, the president and Congress need to take action on our broken security model, he warned.

The pipeline is described as the jugular of infrastructure in the United States.

Americans expressed alarm and distrust on social media, and a lot of it was directed at Biden:
ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. (AP)  Lawyers for relatives of Andrew Brown Jr., a Black man fatally shot by deputies, said Tuesday that body camera videos show that he didnt strike them with his car before they opened fire, contradicting a local prosecutor.

Chance Lynch, a lawyer who viewed the footage in private with Brown's family, said Brown was sitting in his stationary car with his hands on the wheel when the first of numerous shots was fired. Family members had previously seen about 20 seconds of the video but were shown approximately 18 minutes on Tuesday under a judges order.

The familys lawyers say the footage contradicts statements by the local district attorney, who said in court that deputies didnt start firing until after Browns vehicle struck them twice. Lynch's description aligns with what another family attorney said after seeing the shorter clip.

We did not see any actions on Mr. Browns part where he made contact with them or tried to go in their direction," Lynch told reporters. "In fact, he did just the opposite. While there was a group of law enforcement that were in front of him, he went the opposite direction.

Lynch, who described the shooting as unconstitutional and unjustified, said body camera footage of the shooting's aftermath shows that deputies found no weapons on Brown.

My father did not deserve to die at all," his son Jha'rod Ferebee told reporters after watching the footage. "He did not deserve to get killed in any way, shape or form. He did not pose any threat at all.

Brown was outside his house in Elizabeth City when he was shot on April 21 , prompting days of protests by residents demanding public release of body camera footage. At the time, Pasquotank County deputies were serving search and arrest warrants that accused Brown of possessing small amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine that he intended to sell.

During a court hearing last month over the sheriff's request to release the video, District Attorney Andrew Womble said Browns car was backing up when it first made contact with law enforcement officers, then came to a stop before moving again. The next movement of the car is forward. It is in the direction of law enforcement and makes contact with law enforcement. It is then and only then that you hear shots, Womble said.

Lynch said Tuesday that deputies may have reached out and touched the car as Brown tried to drive away, but that he didnt initiate the contact.

Pasquotank County Sheriff Tommy Wooten II has said his deputies weren't injured.

Womble didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment Tuesday. Lawyers for Brown's family, in addition to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, have called for a special prosecutor to step in. But under state law, Womble would have to agree to step aside.

An independent autopsy commissioned by Browns family found that he was shot five times, including in the back of the head. The states autopsy has not been released yet.

After last month's hearing, Judge Jeffery Foster declined to release the video publicly, but ruled the family should be shown less than 20 redacted minutes of five videos taken from body cameras and a dashboard camera. In total, the unedited and unredacted video runs about two hours. Foster said the video must remain from public view for at least 30 days to allow an independent state investigation to unfold but that he would consider releasing it after that.

On Tuesday, shortly after the Brown family news conference, Wooten issued a statement reiterating that he would have preferred a public release of the video but that he respects the court's decision.

Three deputies who were involved in the shooting remain on leave pending the probe by the State Bureau of Investigation. Four others initially put on leave were allowed to return to duty after the sheriff said they didn't fire shots. The FBI has also launched a civil rights probe.
JERUSALEM (AP)  Israel stepped up its attacks on the Gaza Strip, flattening a high-rise building used by the Hamas militant group and killing at least three militants in their hideouts on Tuesday as Palestinian rockets rained down almost nonstop on parts of Israel.

It was the heaviest fighting between the bitter enemies since 2014, and it showed no signs of slowing.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to expand the offensive, while Gaza militants unleashed a fierce late-night barrage of rockets that set off air-raid sirens and explosions throughout the densely populated Tel Aviv metropolitan area.

Just after daybreak Wednesday, Israel unleashed dozens of airstrikes in the course of a few minutes, targeting police and security installations, witnesses said. A wall of dark gray smoke rose over Gaza City. Iyad al-Bozum, a spokesman for the Hamas-run Interior Ministry, said airstrikes destroyed the central police headquarters in Gaza City, a compound with several buildings.

Five Israelis, including three women and a child, were killed by rocket fire Tuesday and early Wednesday, and dozens of people wounded. The death toll in Gaza rose to 35 Palestinians, including 10 children, according to the Health Ministry. Over 200 people were wounded.

In the West Bank, meanwhile, a 26-year-old Palestinian was killed during clashes with Israeli troops that entered al-Fawar refugee camp in southern Hebron, the ministry said.

In another sign of widening unrest, demonstrations erupted in Arab communities across Israel, where protesters set dozens of vehicles on fire in confrontations with police.

The fighting between Israel and Hamas was the most intense since a 50-day war in the summer of 2014. In just over 24 hours, the current round of violence, sparked by religious tensions in the contested city of Jerusalem, increasingly resembled that devastating war.

The booms of Israeli airstrikes and hisses of outgoing rocket fire could be heard in Gaza throughout the day, and large plumes of smoke from targeted buildings rose into the air. Israel resumed a policy of airstrikes aimed at killing wanted militants and began to take down entire buildings  a tactic that drew heavy international criticism in 2014.

In Israel, the nonstop barrages of rocket fire left long streaks of white smoke in their wake, while the explosions of anti-rocket interceptors boomed overhead. Air-raid sirens wailed throughout the day, sending panicked residents scurrying for cover.

In a nationally televised address, Netanyahu said that Hamas and the smaller Islamic Jihad militant groups have paid, and I tell you here, will pay a heavy price for their aggression.

He claimed that Israel had killed dozens of militants and inflicted heavy damage on hundreds of targets.

This campaign will take time, he said. With determination, unity and strength, we will restore security to the citizens of Israel.

He stood alongside Defense Minister Benny Gantz, a political rival, in a show of unity. There are lots of targets lined up. This is only the beginning, Gantz said. The military said it was activating some 5,000 reservists and sending troop reinforcements to the Gaza border.

The current violence has coincided with the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, a time of heightened religious sentiments.

Critics say heavy-handed Israeli police measures in and around Jerusalems Old City helped stoke nightly unrest. Another flashpoint has been the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where dozens of Palestinians are under threat of eviction by Jewish settlers.

Confrontations erupted last weekend at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, which is the third-holiest site in Islam and the holiest site in Judaism. Over four days, Israeli police fired tear gas and stun grenades at Palestinians in the compound who hurled stones and chairs at the forces. At times, police fired stun grenades into the carpeted mosque.

On Monday evening, Hamas began firing rockets from Gaza. From there on, the escalation was rapid.

In a televised address, Hamas exiled leader, Ismail Haniyeh, said Israel bore responsibility. Its the Israeli occupation that set Jerusalem on fire, and the flames reached Gaza, he said.

Palestinian health officials gave no breakdown on the death toll in Gaza, but Islamic Jihad confirmed that three senior commanders were killed in a strike on their hideout in a Gaza City apartment building. The Health Ministry said 10 children and a woman were also killed.

Netanyahu said Israel had attacked hundreds of targets. The fiercest attack was a set of airstrikes that brought down an entire 12-story building. The building housed important Hamas offices, as well as a gym and some start-up businesses. Israel fired a series of warning shots before demolishing the building, allowing people to flee and there were no casualties.

Israeli aircraft heavily damaged another Gaza City building early Wednesday. The nine-story structure housed residential apartments, medical companies and a dental clinic. A drone fired five warning rockets before the bombing. Israel said the building housed Hamas intelligence offices and the group's command responsible for planning attacks on Israeli targets in the occupied West Bank.

Fighter jets struck the building again after journalists and rescuers had gathered around. There was no immediate word on casualties. The high-rise stood 200 meters (650 feet) away from the Associated Press bureau in Gaza City, and smoke and debris reached the office.

Soon after the bombing, Hamas announced that it would resume its attacks and aimed 100 rockets at the Israeli desert town of Beer-Sheva. Hamas said the renewed barrage was in response to the strike on the building. The latest rocket attack early Wednesday killed a man and his seven-year-old daughter in the central city of Lod, according to Israel's Kan public radio.

The Israeli military said hundreds of rockets were launched toward Israel. Two women, including an Indian caregiver, were killed in separate rocket strikes in the southern city of Ashkelon.

Then, late at night, Hamas said it unleashed a barrage of 130 rockets toward Tel Aviv in response to the destruction of the high-rise. As the rockets rose into the skies, mosques across Gaza blared with chants of God is great, victory to Islam and resistance.

One rocket killed a woman in the city of Rishon LeZion, and another struck a bus in the nearby city of Holon, wounding three people, including a young girl.

The violence was beginning to spill over to Israels own Arab population.

In Lod, thousands of mourners joined a funeral for an Arab man killed by a suspected Jewish gunman the previous night. The crowd clashed with police, and set a synagogue and some 30 vehicles, including a police car, on fire, Israeli media reported. Paramedics said a 56-year-old man was seriously hurt after his car was pelted with stones.

The citys mayor, Yair Revivo, described the situation in the mixed Jewish-Arab city as civil war, and the government ordered a deployment of paramilitary border guards from the West Bank to Lod.

In neighboring Ramle, ultra-nationalist Jewish demonstrators were filmed attacking cars belonging to Arabs. In the norther port town of Acre, protesters torched a Jewish-owned restaurant and hotel. Police arrested dozens of others at Arab protests in other towns.

Diplomats sought to intervene, with Qatar, Egypt and the United Nations working to deliver a cease-fire. All three serve as mediators between Israel and Hamas.

The U.N. Security Council planned to hold its second closed emergency meeting in three days Wednesday on the escalating violence, an indication of growing international concern. Council diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity because discussions have been private, said the U.N.s most powerful body did not issue a statement because of U.S. concerns that it could escalate tensions.

The escalation comes at a time of political limbo in Israel.

Netanyahu has been caretaker prime minister since an inconclusive parliamentary election in March. After failing to form a coalition government by a deadline last week, his political rivals have now been given the opportunity.

The support of an Arab-backed party with Islamist roots is key for the anti-Netanyahu bloc. But the current tensions might deter the partys leader, Mansour Abbas, from joining a coalition with Jewish parties, at least for the time being.

The sides have three more weeks to reach a deal. If they fail, Israel would likely begin an unprecedented fifth election campaign in just over two years.

___

Akram reported from Gaza City, Gaza Strip. Associated Press Writer Ilan Ben Zion also contributed to this report.
Motorists across the U.S. East Coast and South are having troubles finding gasoline thanks to a ransomware attack on a vital pipeline that connects refineries along the Gulf Coast to the south and east coast.

Each day, it ships about 2.5 million barrels, which exceeds the entire oil consumption of Germany, Bloomberg reports.

The Colonial pipeline has been down since late Friday, and since then, the company has managed to restart only a small segment of the pipeline.

Ransomware attacks are increasingly common around the world, and even Southeast Texas is no stranger to them.

In late 2019, Port Neches-Groves ISD lost access to files on all computer systems after being attacked by ransomware.

The district ultimately paid the ransom via Bicoin to the suspected overseas cyberattacker.

The original ransom was set at $55,000, officials said at the time. But the district's insurance company negotiated that down to between $30,000 and $35,000. The school district only ended up paying a deductible of about $2,000 to $2,500.

The whole ordeal became another rallying cry for advocates and experts that want increased cyber-awareness and training.

In a ransomware attack, an intruder will isolate and lock a users files and then demand money to restore access. The crime has been around for decades, but schools have increasingly become the target.

Herb Lin, the Hank J. Holland Fellow in Cyber Policy and Security at the Hoover Institution cited poor cyber hygiene, including a lack of investment in securing systems, for the vulnerabilities.

School districts dont spend very much effort to secure their information, Lin told The Enterprise at the time. It is all of the usual stuff that you have to do about good computer hygiene. There is not a magic bullet. You just have to do it, all of those things are inconvenient for you to do.
HOUSTON (AP)  Top leaders in the Texas county where George Floyd grew up supported a resolution Tuesday calling for him to be posthumously pardoned for a 2004 drug arrest by a former Houston police officer now facing murder charges in a separate case.

The five members of Harris County Commissioners Court unanimously approved the resolution in support of the pardon request, which was submitted last month to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. The board still must decide whether to recommend a pardon, and Gov. Greg Abbott will have the final say.

I think this is a phenomenal opportunity to fix a miscarriage of justice in Georges case, Tera Brown, a cousin of Floyd, told commissioners before they approved the resolution.

The May 2020 killing of Floyd, who was Black, by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, prompted worldwide protests against racial injustice. Chauvin was convicted last month of murder and manslaughter for Floyds killing and also faces federal civil rights charges.

In February 2004, former police Officer Gerald Goines arrested Floyd in Houston for selling $10 worth of crack cocaine in a police sting. Floyd later pleaded guilty to a drug charge and was sentenced to 10 months in a state jail.

Goines is now facing two counts of felony murder, as well as other charges in both state and federal court, for a deadly 2019 drug raid in which Dennis Tuttle, 59, and his wife, Rhogena Nicholas, 58, were killed.

Prosecutors allege Goines, 56, lied to obtain the warrant to search the couples home by claiming that a confidential informant had bought heroin there. Goines later said there was no informant and that he had bought the drugs himself, they allege.

More than 160 drug convictions tied to Goines have since been dismissed by prosecutors.

Allison Mathis, an attorney with the Harris County Public Defenders Office who filed the pardon request, told commissioners this is not a political issue.

No matter how you feel about Mr. Floyd, about his life or his death, Mr. Floyd does not deserve to have this stain and take a wrongful conviction on his record, Mathis said.

Several of Floyds family members and friends as well as community leaders also spoke during Tuesdays meeting in support of the resolution.

This was a wrongful conviction, said Jack Cagle, one of the two Republican county commissioners who voted in support of the resolution and who is a former judge.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg has also submitted a letter to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles supporting the pardon request.

A spokesperson for the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles didnt immediately return a call Tuesday.

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Follow Juan A. Lozano on Twitter: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70

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Find APs full coverage of the death of George Floyd at: https://apnews.com/hub/death-of-george-floyd
A jewelry store in Katy is under investigation for multiple felony theft cases.

LOAN SCAM: Texas bar owner accused in PPP loan scam

According to court documents, the jeweler owes nearly $4 million to a business for watches that were never delivered, as first reported by Matt Dougherty at KHOU.

The store, ALKU Modern Jewelers in Katy, has had multiple customers come forward and allege they were swindled out of their money. The owner, Santiago Mora, is facing federal charges for wire fraud and identity theft and could be facing more charges in the coming days.

Mora told one customer that he'd be able to acquire two rare watches  a Rolex Daytona with a white dial and black dial  for both of which he paid $26,300, per KHOU. The customer says they never received the watches.

Another customer reported purchasing an engagement ring with a check and never receiving the piece of jewelry.

Now, upon approaching the store, customers are met with a closed building that has an eviction notice out front and left with no real way of contacting the owner.

Dougherty also reported that Mora's teenage daughter was missing. Eventually the teen was found and was possibly in the hands of a cult, Mora's lawyer Sam Adamo told KHOU.

STAYING VIGILANT: 'Tugs at victim's heartstrings': Houston FBI agent warns of romance scams leaving victims penniless

Adamo told KHOU that the store owner was a "hardworking man" and that he had succumbed to personal issues as of late, including a heart condition that left him hospitalized.

The business currently has an "F" rating with the Better Business Bureau, and the Fort Bend Count's Sheriff's Office is looking into multiple felony cases against Mora, which have already been presented to the district attorney.

The Better Business Bureau says if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. The BBB offers this advice when it comes to scams: "Resist the pressure to act immediately. Shady actors typically try to make you think something is scarce or a limited time offer. They want to push victims to make a decision right now before even thinking through, asking family members, friends or financial advisors."
The top political consultant to Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller was arrested Thursday on allegations that he participated in a scheme to solicit money and campaign contributions for state hemp licenses issued by Millers Texas Department of Agriculture.

The consultant, Todd Smith, ultimately took $55,000 as part of the scheme, an arrest warrant affidavit obtained by The Texas Tribune says. Smith and others involved in the scheme are alleged in the warrant to have solicited a total of $150,000 to guarantee a license, including a $25,000 upfront cost for a survey that they said was required to get a license in Texas. Some of the money would also go toward funding unnamed political campaigns, according to the affidavit.

The affidavit alleges that Smith committed third-degree felony theft.

Reference

Read the affidavit against Todd Smith here.

(2.7 MB)

Todd Smith created by words and his conduct, a false impression of fact that affected the judgment of others in the transactions to obtain a hemp license and/or conduct a survey that was never attempted by Todd Smith," the affidavit says.

The allegations were investigated by the Texas Rangers' Public Integrity Unit, which is responsible for looking into claims of public corruption.

Smith was arrested Thursday and booked into Travis County jail at 9:23 p.m., according to Kristen Dark, a spokesperson for the county sheriffs office. Smith was released at 2:59 a.m. Friday on a personal recognizance bond. Bail was set at $10,000.

IN HOUSTON: NRG Energy is placing its headquarters solely in Houston

Smith did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment Friday morning.

The affidavit says Smith used another person as a middle man between himself and those interested in getting licenses. The affidavit does not provide much information about the middle man other than that he was introduced to Todd Smith by a friend in August 2019.

The affidavit includes the account of one man who wanted to get involved in the hemp industry and met the middle man at a social gathering in August 2019. The affidavit says the middle man told the license-seeker that he was working directly with senior leadership at the TDA and that he needed $150,000.00 in cash, with some of the money going toward campaign contributions, in order to receive the guaranteed hemp license.

The license-seeking man agreed to the deal, setting off a chain of events that included a November 2019 visit to Austin where he handed the middle man $30,000 cash in a car outside El Mercado, a Mexican restaurant in downtown Austin near the TDA offices, according to the affidavit. Williams went through an alley to take the money to the TDA headquarters before returning to the car and collecting Vinson for a scheduled meeting at the offices.

The affidavit says the license-seeker learned later that month that he was not guaranteed a license, despite the scheme that had been proposed to him. He reached Smith via phone, who denied any knowledge but did admit to receiving a $5,000.00 gift from the middle man, according to the allegations.

READ ALSO: Texas' larger cities would face financial penalties for cutting police budgets under House bill

The hemp licenses were opened as a result of House Bill 1325, which Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law in 2019 and allowed the states farmers to legally grow industrial hemp. Hemp is a cousin of the marijuana plant that contains low levels of tetrahydrocannabinol, the psychoactive element in marijuana known as THC.

Smith has previously been under scrutiny for blurring campaign and official lines. The Austin American-Statesman reported in 2018 that Smith told a San Antonio businessman he could get a TDA appointment if he donated to Millers campaign  then Smith asked the businessman for a $29,000 personal loan.

Years earlier, Miller created four new assistant commissioner positions and gave one of them to Smiths wife, Kellie Housewright-Smith. The positions had annual salaries exceeding $180,000, making them among the highest-paid employees at the TDA.

The Texas Tribune is a nonpartisan, nonprofit media organization that informs Texans  and engages with them  about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has unblocked on Twitter the nine Texans who sued him after they say they were unconstitutionally blocked for criticizing him or his policies on the social media platform.

In a lawsuit filed in April, a group of Texans said being blocked from viewing Paxtons tweets from his @KenPaxtonTX account was a violation of the First Amendment because it limited the rights of people to participate in a public forum and access statements made by the public official.

READ ALSO: Ken Paxton says he doesn't support Greg Abbott for reelection - then tweets that he does

The ACLU of Texas and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University represented the Texans in their lawsuit. According to their statements from a Thursday press release, Paxton has unblocked the nine Texans in the ongoing lawsuit challenging Paxtons practice of blocking critics from his Twitter account.

Paxton has also blocked many other individuals from the @KenPaxtonTX account based on their viewpoints, according to the lawsuit. The plaintiffs had asked Paxton to unblock them and everyone else who was blocked from the @KenPaxtonTX account based on their viewpoints, but its unclear if people not named in the lawsuit have been unblocked.

Lyndsey Wajert, a legal fellow with the Knight First Amendment Institute, said while Paxton has unblocked the nine Texans, the case has not been dismissed.

Paxtons office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Katie Fallow, a senior staff attorney at the Knight First Amendment Institute, said multiple courts have recognized that government officials who use their social media accounts for official purposes violate the First Amendment if they block people from those accounts on the basis of their viewpoints.

READ ALSO: Twitter sues Texas AG Ken Paxton, asks court to halt his investigation

Were pleased that attorney general Paxton has agreed to unblock our plaintiffs in this lawsuit and are hopeful that he will do the same for anyone else he has blocked from his Twitter account simply because he doesnt like what they have to say, Fallow said in a statement.

Kate Huddleston, attorney for the ACLU of Texas, said the ruling is a step in the right direction, but it remains to be seen whether Paxton will unblock other Texans. She said it shouldn't take a lawsuit for Paxton to comply with the Constitution.

Attorney General Paxton cannot prevent Texans from exercising their First Amendment rights, including their right to criticize his policies and qualifications in their responses to his tweets, Huddleston said in a statement.

The Texas Tribune is a nonpartisan, nonprofit media organization that informs Texans  and engages with them  about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.
What Judge Reddick said is theres an appearance of impropriety at the very least to have colleagues opining on the credibility of a colleagues spouse. I have a serious question about why theres an appearance of impropriety about that today but there wasnt last year or the year before that or in the 15-some years that Judge Brosnahan has been married to Detective Kato, he said.
Like torn drapes, curtains of dead vines now line U.S. 59 in Montrose where vibrant greenery once greeted drivers.

The culprit? The historic Texas freeze in February that shined a light on the severe inadequacies of the state's standalone energy grid.

SONG BATTLE: Students protest, man pulls out gun over UT's 'The Eyes of Texas'

Mark Mulligan/Staff photographer

The vines provided color to an otherwise gray drive down the Southwest Freeway before suffering the same fate as so many other plants across Texas when temperatures plunged well below freezing for days in February.

Now, the dead foliage stands as one of the last public reminders of an event that took the lives of nearly 200 Texans , according to a Houston Chronicle analysis. More than half of these deaths were due to hypothermia, while others succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning in their homes.

The failure of critical medical devices requiring electricity also added to the death toll. Webb County medical examiner Dr. Corinne Stern said this of one of those deaths:

"If his electricity had not been turned off in those rolling blackouts, chances are hed be alive today," Stern told the Chronicle. "These deaths were preventable, and theyre senseless. They shouldnt have happened."

In total, Winter Storm Uri caused nearly $200 billion in damages across Texas, making it a more deadly and costly event than Hurricane Harvey.

The power grid failed Texans mostly because massive generators froze in the cold. They weren't built to withstand the bitter weather  a process called winterizing.

The fix seems simple: Winterize the generators and the state won't lose power like it did.

In Austin, Senate Bill 1750 would require power companies and generators to formulate plans for severe weather but falls short of requiring companies to weatherize their equipment (despite what Gov. Greg Abbott claims).

The state will recommend weatherization to specific entities only after those severe weather plans are finalized and reviewed by the Public Utility Commission of Texas, Railroad Commission of Texas and Texas Division of Emergency Management.

The bill analysis says regulators will determine "whether the electric and gas systems are capable of withstanding extreme weather patterns" and will only "recommend" remedies like weatherization.

Funny. I thought February's deadly freeze showed us the system was not capable of withstanding extreme weather patterns.

Still, the bill is the best hope thus far for any kind of changes to the state's electric grid. It passed the Texas Senate in late April and is on its way to the Texas House.

Jay R. Jordan / Chron staff

The lives lost certainly overshadow any mortality in nature, but even so the loss was great. We're left behind with zombie trees and dead vines.

Contractors will remove the dead vines from U.S. 59, according to Texas Department of Transportation spokesperson Deidrea George. A timeline will be set in the coming weeks.

But before they go, they serve as a reminder how bad things were in February  a reminder of what's at stake when we let ourselves forget.
Bangladeshi Foreign Minister A. K. Abdul Momen (left), listens as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks during a meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China July 5, 2019.

Updated at 6:15 p.m. ET on 2021-05-12

Bangladesh expressed anger on Tuesday over very unfortunate and presumptuous comments made by Chinas envoy a day earlier, when he warned Dhaka against participating in the United States-led Quadrilateral Security Dialogue on the Indo-Pacific region.

On Monday, Ambassador Li Jiming had said that ties between Bangladesh and China could be substantially damaged if the South Asian country joined any initiative by the four-nation Quad.

Bangladesh is a sovereign state and will make its own decisions about the nations foreign policy, Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen shot back on Tuesday.

Usually China does not interfere in others affairs. The aggressive way the ambassador spoke is very unfortunate, Momen said in response to reporters questions about Lis comments from a day earlier.

Quad members the United States, Japan, India and Australia have said that the Indo-Pacific region is their focus  specifically an Indo-Pacific region which is free, open, inclusive, healthy, anchored by democratic values, and unconstrained by coercion. And in March, the four nations agreed to deliver 1 billion COVID-19 vaccines to Indo-Pacific nations by 2022.

According to Momen, no Quad member had talked to Bangladesh about joining the group or participating in its efforts in the Indo-Pacific region, and so Li had made too many assumptions.

The organization he [Li] speaks of has shown no interest in us, so [Lis] statement was presumptuous, Momen said, referring to the Quad.

Li had told reporters at a virtual meeting with the Diplomatic Correspondents Association that Bangladesh would gain nothing by participating in the Quads efforts.

It is not wise to ponder over joining [initiatives] with such a small group or club. [The Quad] is a narrow-purposed geopolitical clique, and Bangladesh should not join it, Li said.

That was for Bangladesh  and not China  to decide, Foreign Minister Momen said.

We are an independent and sovereign state. We decide our foreign policy. But yes, any country can uphold its position, Momen said.

But we will decide what we will do. This is a matter of the interest of our country. We do things we need to for the welfare of our country.

Bangladeshs top diplomat said his country remained non-aligned and maintained a balanced foreign policy.

We will continue to do it. What he [Li] said is fine. We have no special comment on that. [But] We didnt expect such behavior from the Chinese.

Well listen to what they say. But well decide what is good for us.

Meanwhile in Washington on Tuesday, a spokesman for the State Department said it had taken note of the statement by the Chinese ambassador to Dhaka about the Quad.

"What we would say is that we respect Bangladesh's sovereignty, and we respect Bangladesh's right to make foreign policy decisions for itself," spokesman Ned Price told a daily news briefing in response to a reporter's question about the Chinese envoy's comments.

A minor anti-China initiative

A Bangladeshi political analyst, who has watched China-Bangladesh ties for decades, was also taken aback by Ambassador Lis comments

Usually, diplomats dont speak in such language, Delwar Hossain, a professor of international relations at Dhaka University, told BenarNews.

China sees this alliance as threat, [but] Bangladesh didnt join the Quad, and did not even express a desire to join. So, making such comments is against diplomatic norms.

However, according to Chinese state media, Defense Minister Wei Fenghe conveyed a message similar to Lis to the Bangladesh president last month.

Xinhua news agency said that Wei told President Abdul Hamid that Beijing and Dhaka should make joint efforts against powers outside the region setting up a military alliance in South Asia. Wei did not mention the Quad by name, according to the report.

But Li did mention it, at least once.

China always maintains that the U.S.-led Quad is a minor anti-China initiative, Li told reporters on Monday.

It is aimed against Chinas resurgence and its relationship with neighboring countries.
Inspector General Abdul Rakhman Baso, the police chief in Indonesias Central Sulawesi province, shows a poster of wanted members of the Eastern Indonesia Mujahideen militant group, in Palu, March 2, 2021.

Updated at 5:59 p.m. ET on 2021-05-11

Suspected pro-Islamic State Indonesian militants killed four farmers in Central Sulawesi province on Tuesday, police said, in the first presumed attack by members of the Eastern Indonesia Mujahideen (MIT) group targeting civilians in more than five months.

The body of one of the victims of Tuesdays attack in Kalemago, a village in Poso regency, was found decapitated, said Senior Commissioner Didik Supranoto, a spokesman for Central Sulawesi police force.

Currently the four bodies of the victims with the initials P.D., N.U., L.L., and P.P. have been taken to their home in Kalemago Village, Didik told BenarNews in Palu, the provincial capital.

Poso has long been a hotbed of MIT activity. The group now has been reduced to nine fighters, according to Indonesian officials, although joint police and military manhunts mounted over the past several years have failed to wipe out MIT entirely.

The area has been frequented by MIT and beheadings have only been carried out by MIT. We strongly suspect that the perpetrators were MIT, Didik said.

During the Tuesday morning attack, a fellow farmer said he saw a group of suspects approach the victims before he fled and informed the police.

He saw the five perpetrators carrying firearms and sharp weapons. When the police showed him photos of people on the wanted list, he recognized one of them, a fugitive named Qatar, alias Farel, alias Anas, Didik said.

He said police and soldiers rushed to the scene and found the bodies of the four victims, whose bodies bore slash wounds. A motorcycle belonging to one of the farmers had been torched.

Members of Operation Madago Raya, the latest iteration of a joint task force whose mission is to hunt down the remnants of MIT, were pursuing the killers, Didik said.

We believe the attackers were not far from the scene, he said.

The motive is not yet known. What is certain is that MIT did this as an act of terror to frighten the villagers, Didik added.

Tuesday's killings came two months after a policeman, a soldier and a pair of MIT suspects were killed in two separate gunfights in Poso.

In the last attack on civilians that was blamed on MIT, four villagers living in a Christian community in nearby Sigi regency were killed on Nov. 28, 2020. One of the victims of that attack was also beheaded and two of the bodies were charred, according to police. The attackers in Sigi also burned down eight houses.

That attack was the deadliest one till then carried out by MIT.

Locals help security officers evacuate the body of one of four farmers killed by suspected Eastern Indonesia Mujahideen militants, in Kalemago, a village in Poso regency in Indonesias Central Sulawesi province, May 11, 2021. [Keisyah Aprilia/BenarNews]





Frightened villagers

Residents in Kalemago village said they were afraid to work in their fields after Tuesdays killings.

There are no security forces to guard us in the field. This is frightening us, said one villager who called herself Mama Kevin.

We hope that all the perpetrators will be immediately arrested so that we can feel safe here, she told BenarNews.

Mama Kevin said the four slain people were relatives.

They were all Torajans and worked as farmers, she said, referring to an ethnic group from southern Sulawesi.

Inspector General Abdul Rakhman Baso, the police chief for Central Sulawesi, said officers had been deployed to provide security to villagers.

I urge residents not to get agitated and to remain calm. The Madago Raya Task Force will provide security, he told BenarNews.

Rakhman had earlier acknowledged that security personnel had difficulty tracking down MITs nine remaining members because of their familiarity with Posos rugged terrain.

He said he was taken aback by the latest attack.

We hope that the perpetrators can be caught soon, he said.

A deputy chairman of the Hanura Party in Central Sulawesi, Frits Kandori, condemned the attack, which was carried out two days before Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday that marks the end of the Ramadan fasting month.

We are all angry. We reject and strongly condemn this inhuman brutal act, he said in a statement.

Frits urged the authorities and President Joko Jokowi Widodo to tackle the scourge of terrorism in Central Sulawesi immediately.

We are really fed up with all of this. These terrorists must be eradicated," he said.

Cannot be underestimated

MIT, which has pledged allegiance to the extremist group known as Islamic State (IS), has survived for years in the mountains and jungle of Poso.

In 2016, police killed MITs previous leader, Santoso, who was the first Indonesian militant to pledge allegiance to IS publicly.

MIT is one of two pro-IS groups operating in Indonesia, the worlds most populous Muslim-majority country. The other is Jemaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD), which authorities have blamed for most terror attacks in the archipelago nation during the past five years.

Police and military members have operated a joint task force since 2016 to hunt down MIT militants.

Beginning on Jan. 1, authorities have taken a new approach to bringing an end to MIT, by renaming Operation Tinombala as Madago Raya (Kindness), as part of a strategy that focuses on humanitarian and social activities, police said.

They still exist and cannot be underestimated. The task force must really make extra efforts to crush them, Lukman S Tahir, a terrorism observer at the State Islamic Institute in Palu, told BenarNews, alluding to MIT.

We see that the operation has not been successful in eradicating MIT. We hope that the military and police can work together well to solve this so that all people, especially those in Poso, can really feel safe, he said.
Malaysia is suing units of global investment banks J.P. Morgan, Deutsche Bank and Coutts & Co. as part of efforts to recover billions of dollars that sovereign fund 1MDB allegedly lost in a corruption scandal, court documents show.

The latest civil lawsuits  22 of them  filed Friday by the now-defunct 1MDB and its erstwhile SRC unit, seek to recover U.S. $23 billion. They come after the government recovered at least $5 billion in 1MDB settlements from Goldman Sachs and others, Malaysias Ministry of Finance said Monday.

In the governments continuing efforts to recover the losses suffered by 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and SRC International Sdn Bhd (SRC), the Ministry of Finance hereby confirms that on 7 May 2021, legal representatives for both entities had filed a combined total of 22 civil suits, the ministry said in a statement.

Six of these writs were filed by 1MDB, while 16 were by SRC for the recovery of assets with a combined total in excess of RM96.6 billion (USD 23 billion), including approximately RM300 million against various local parties, the finance ministry said in a statement.

Malaysian and U.S. prosecutors had alleged that at least $4.5 billion (18.8 billion ringgit) was stolen from 1MDB between 2009 and 2014, in a corruption scandal that implicated foreign and local financial institutions and high-ranking officials, including former Prime Minister Najib Razak.

In one writ seen by BenarNews, 1MDB based its financial claims on negligence, breach of contract, conspiracy to defraud/injure and/or dishonestly assist, by the three international banks, two Petrosaudi units and two of their directors.

This writ was heard before the Kuala Lumpur High Court in an online session on Monday.

A Malaysian financial site, The Edge Markets, reported that both Najib and Low Taek Jho, the fugitive financier better known as Jho Low, were among those being sued by SRC, but BenarNews could not confirm that information.

Najib last year was convicted and sentenced to 12 years in prison on corruption-related charges in a trial over the looting of money linked to 1MDB, but he is out on bail. The ex-PM was found guilty of one count of abuse of power, three counts of criminal breach of trust, and three counts of money-laundering over allegations that he illegally received 42 million ringgit (U.S. $9.67 million) from SRC.

Najib defense lawyer Farhan Shafee told BenarNews that his client had yet to receive the summons writ. M. Puravale, a lawyer representing Jho Lows mother in another 1MDB-linked case, said no one had approached him to represent Jho Lows family in this latest court case, if one had been filed.

Pursuing other wrongdoers

1MDB is suing Deutsche Bank (Malaysia) for $1.11 billion, the Swiss-registered Coutts unit for $1.03 billion and J.P. Morgan (Switzerland) for $800 million, in addition to interest payments from all three, according to the writ seen by BenarNews.

Since last October, Malaysia has recovered $2.5 billion from Goldman Sachs and its Malaysian subsidiary, with another $1.4 billion in a guarantee for the recovery of assets. The bank pleaded guilty to federal U.S. charges tied to bribes it paid Malaysian and Abu Dhabi officials.

Malaysia is also going to receive $700 million in settlement of claims and penalties related to 1MDB from the AmBank Group. In addition, Malaysia will receive $80 million from Deloitte to settle all claims related to its audit of the state fund.

These recoveries appear to have spurred the government to increase pressure on other financial institutions and people allegedly involved in the 1MDB case.

Following significant and successful settlements with Goldman Sachs, AmBank Group and Deloitte PLT, the governments recovery efforts are now focused on pursuing other wrongdoers who have caused losses to 1MDB and/or SRC during the execution of their duties, as parties directly or indirectly involved in 1MDB and/or SRCs various operations and transactions, Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz said in the ministrys statement.

As previously mentioned, the government will not rest until all those involved are made fully accountable for the wrongdoings caused to the country through their involvement in 1MDB and/or SRC.
Seventeen-year-old Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam talks to her father about comments left on her TikTok video, in Kuala Selangor, Malaysia, May 8, 2021.

A17-year-old Malaysian girl who says she has been threatened for reporting a teachers joke about rape has now been warned by the school that she will be expelled if her parents dont give a reasonable explanation for her absence.

Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam said her parents received a warning letter from the school  seen by BenarNews  on the same day that her father met the principal and told her about his concerns for his daughters safety.

I haven't been expelled yet but threatened with expulsion with the first warning letter, she said on Twitter.

I skipped school because I do not feel safe anymore, Ain told BenarNews.

Ain received support from many students, parents, and rights groups after she complained on TikTok on April 23-24 that her teacher had joked about rape. Her video sparked a nationwide debate on sex education and institutional misogyny.

But she said she had also received many threats for filing a police report about the teacher. One student threatened to rape her and her schoolmates began to ostracize her, she said.

Ains father, Saiful Nizam, said he had a meeting with the school principal, Sarimah Mohammed Nor, on April 28.

Nothing was mentioned during the meeting about her missing school, so it was surprising that we received the warning letter later on the same day, Saiful told BenarNews.

BenarNews called the school several times to speak to the principal, but no one answered the phone.

Police investigation complete

Meanwhile, Ain said no official from the Ministry of Education had contacted her despite the education minister on April 28 publicly saying we are  conducting a thorough investigation.

BenarNews repeatedly contacted the Ministry of Education and Education Minister Radzi Jidin via phone calls, text messages and emails but got no response.

Police however told BenarNews that they have completed an investigation into Ains complaints about the teacher and about the student who threatened rape, and the investigation paper on both complaints has been submitted to the Attorney General Chamber for further action.

Police declined to say when they made the submission.

Ain said she did not expect any of this when she made that TikTok video.

Im just a normal teenager, I go on social media and tell people about this and that, like, today this teacher said this, this teacher said that, she told BenarNews.

But this time it blew up because it was so normalized, but nobody spoke up about it and people were angry.

In the TikTok video Ain quoted her teacher as saying: If you want to rape someone, do not rape those below 18 years old, rape those above 18 years old.

The teacher, a man, made the comment as a class on health education was discussing laws protecting minors from sexual harassment, Ain said.

The whole episode, Ain said, has disrupted her education as she is now considering changing schools because of the threats and because her classmates are shunning her. But that isnt going to deter her, she said.

Ain wants to be an artist, but also considers herself an activist. She said she would continue to champion the fight to make schools in Malaysia safe.

I will continue to stand up for this cause, because education is so important, Ain said.

If we can fix the education system, things like racism, sexism, rape and all the crime that is happening can be fixed.
Police from the Philippine Criminal Investigation and Detection Group escort two suspected members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters group, who were caught allegedly transporting explosives near Datu Paglas town in Maguindanao province, May 11, 2021.

President Rodrigo Duterte urged officials of a Muslim autonomous region in the southern Philippines on Tuesday to help rein in a group of Islamic State-linked militants or risk an all-out military offensive.

In a surprise visit to a military camp in the town of Datu Odin Sinsuat near Cotabato, Duterte met with officials of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) as well as military and police commanders. Three days earlier, members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) briefly occupied a town market in the area before government troops chased them away.

Duterte emphasized that developments such as peace and transitional efforts in the region were being threatened by BIFF.

The monkey wrench in the whole situation now is the BIFF and they continue to inflict not just small violence, Duterte said, according to a transcript of his comments. They continue to burn, ambush and detonate bombs, really full-blown terrorism.

The president appealed to the Bangsamoro officials to help him, because, otherwise, if I give the order for an all-out war offensive, it will be bloody and it will be sad.

Duterte did not specify what he meant, but it is widely accepted here that some BIFF commanders have maintained links to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, according to analysts.

One faction of BIFF has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State extremist group, while another continues to espouse a separatist ideology.

The MILF, the countrys largest former separatist group, controls the BARMM. The BIFF had split from MILF because it wanted to fight for an independent Muslim homeland in the Philippine south after MILF signed a peace deal with Manila.

Duterte said the government was doing everything it could to bring effective governance to the BARMM, and it pained him to see that BIFF was still carrying out attacks.

Its pure carnage, he said, adding those most affected by the violence are civilians.

Duterte blamed the BIFF and other allied terrorists for ongoing violence in the region.

He said he had been telling troops to stand down and respond only if attacked.

But this cannot go on. This cannot be, Duterte said. I am avoiding the situation where things will go out of control and the military, upon my orders, is forced to press for a fight in order to impose peace.

If that scenario happens, there will be an all-out offensive, he warned.

And if I give the order, I will no longer withdraw it. I will wait for the next president to do what he wants with Mindanao, said Duterte, whose six-year term ends in 2022.

Government troops secure a roadway after Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters temporarily occupied the main public market in the town of Datu Paglas in Maguindanao province, southern Philippines, May 8, 2021. [Mark Navales/BenarNews]

Increased attacks

While BARMM leaders are responsible for peace and order in the region, they have had to ask for the militarys help to repel BIFF militants who have been stepping up attacks lately.

Over the weekend, troops engaged BIFF militants in a brief gunbattle as they drove them from the agricultural town of Datu Paglas, where the militants took over the main public market on Saturday morning, spokesman Lt. Col. John Paul Baldomar said at the time.

On Tuesday, police in Cotabato said two alleged BIFF members identified as Jerwali Salem Zabel, 32, and Nasrullah Abdullah Walingan, 24, were arrested during the preceding afternoon when they tried to pass with explosives through a checkpoint in Datu Paglas near the site of Saturdays gunbattle. Officers seized two improvised bombs and a gun, officials said.

In 2017, the BIFF backed a five-month siege of the southern Philippine city of Marawi by Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern pro-IS fighters, but held off from sending its own fighters there.

In 2019, the BIFF was blamed for a series of bomb attacks in the south, including on a town market and at a restaurant in the town of Isulan that injured eight and 18 respectively.

And in March, 14 BIFF fighters were killed in clashes in Datu Saudi Ampatuan town, also in Maguindanao.

Philippine authorities also tied BIFF to a series of violent incidents in the south last month, saying these stemmed from the groups opposition to the formation of a joint peacekeeping force between the MILF and the military.
Thai pro-democracy activist Parit Penguin Chiwarak, who has been on a hunger strike since March 15, flashes a three-finger salute from an ambulance as he is released on bail in Bangkok, May 11, 2021.

A Thai court on Tuesday freed on bail two Thai pro-democracy activists charged with royal defamation, including Parit Penguin Chiwarak, who has been on a weeks-long hunger strike to protest being denied bail 10 times since his February arrest.

The court also released Chaiamorn Ammy Kaewwiboonpan, who was arrested in March for allegedly burning a portrait of King Maha Vajiralongkorn in front of a jail during an anti-government protest. A bail hearing for a third activist, Panupong Mike Jadnok, also charged with defaming the monarchy, was delayed as they were waiting for results of his COVID-19 test, authorities said.

The court examined the evidence at the hearing for a temporary release of Parit and Chaiamorn and considered that the circumstances of the cases have changed. Therefore, the court granted a temporary release of Parit and Chaiamorn, the Criminal Court in Bangkok said in a statement, without elaborating on how the situation had changed.

Parit had been sent to a hospital on April 30, where he was force fed through a tube, the corrections department had said. At that time, his weight had dropped from 107 kg (236 lbs.) to 94.5 kg (208 lbs.), Thawatchai Chaiyawat, deputy director-general of the Department of Corrections, had said in a Facebook post.

After they were released from jail around 9:30 p.m., Parit and Chaiamorn flashed three-finger salutes to supporters who had gathered outside the prison. Parits family took him to Vibhavadi Hospital for treatment.

The three-finger salutes, borrowed from The Hunger Games movies, is a symbol of protesters demands that Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha step down, that the Constitution be amended and that the monarchy be reformed. Since pro-democracy protesters first gathered in mid-July 2020, rallies have been held in Bangkok and across the nation as thousands have called for the three reforms.

Parit and Chaiamorn did not speak to reporters after their release, but Parits sister addressed the media.

I'm glad that we get to be together after all. I think that we will not stop fighting, Ploywarin Chiwarak told reporters.

We have to keep fighting until the day we get democracy.

Meanwhile, the court said Panupong tested negative for COVID-19 on May 6, but he had been tested again and results were awaited.

Kritsadang Nutcharat, a lawyer from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), said the court allowed Parit to be released on 400,000 baht (U.S. $12,830) bail. Chaiamorn was allowed to be released on 250,000 baht ($8,000) bail. Neither the lawyer nor the court released details about who paid for their release.

Under bail terms, neither man can defame the monarchy or participate in protests. They also cannot leave the country and must wear electronic monitoring bracelets.

On April 30, Parits mother, Sureerat Chiwarak, shaved her head in front of the Criminal Court building in Bangkok after judges again turned down her request that Parit be released on bail on humanitarian grounds. Parit had been on hunger strike since March 15.

During that days hearing, TLHR attorneys said Sureerat offered to pay 200,000 baht ($6,400) for her son to be granted bail so he could get hospital treatment.

The court rejected that offer and sent Parit to Ramathibodi Hospital for treatment.

My son is sacrificing what he loves and I am letting go of something that I love as well. I will start with shaving my hair, Sureerat told reporters at the time.

When the people see me walking around with a bald head, which may be ugly, please know that this injustice is happening in Thailand and it is even uglier than this.

Parit, Panupong and five other pro-democracy activists, are accused of violating the strict royal defamation law during a two-day protest in September 2020. Royal defamation, or Lese-Majeste, carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years per count.

At the time, protest leaders submitted a letter to the metropolitan police chief asking the king to accept political reform. They also placed a plaque in an area of Bangkok reserved for royal ceremonies.

March incident

Chaiamorn, a pop-star turned activist, was charged with Lese-Majeste, for an incident in late February, police and a lawyers group had said.

Local media showed Chaiamorn falling after climbing a scaffolding in front of Klong Prem Central Prison while holding a portrait of King Maha Vajiralongkorn (Rama X), as he called for the release of Parit and three other protest leaders.

The arson of the kings portrait was my work and I assume sole responsibility. It has nothing to do with any movements, Chaiamorn said in an Instagram posting at the time.

Parit and Chaiamorn join other pro-democracy leaders to be released on bail in recent weeks.

Panusaya Rung Sithijirawattanakul, who also began a hunger strike late in March on Lese-Majeste charges stemming from the September protest, was released on bail on May 6.

Jatupat Pai Boonpattararaksa and Somyot Pruksakasemsuk were released on bail on April 23 after the court ruled there was no sufficient reason to deny their request. Like the others, Jatupat and Somyot were charged with violating Article 112  Lese-Majeste  at the September rally.

As of March 3, as many as 382 activists had been charged with alleged offenses stemming from the pro-democracy protests, according to TLHR. In addition, at least 68 protesters had been charged with Lese-Majeste since Prayuth announced in November that authorities would begin enforcing that law for the first time in about two years.
In this photo released by the San Sai District Administrative Office, a Thai officer checks the temperature of journalists working for Democratic Voice of Burma, at San Sai District in Chiang Mai province north of Thailand, May 9, 2021.

Three Myanmar journalists arrested in Thailand after they fled a crackdown by the military junta should be set free because they would face severe punishment if they were deported to Myanmar, their supervisor and human rights groups said Tuesday.

Police in Thailands northwestern city of Chiangmai arrested the three Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) journalists along with two political activists in a house in the citys Sansai district on Sunday.

DVB began as an exile media organization prior to Myanmars democratic reforms, broadcasting uncensored news on TV and radio into the country before relocating there in 2012, a year after political changes in Myanmar began.

But the junta that ousted Aung San Suu Kyis democratically elected government on Feb. 1 revoked DVBs license in March amid a crackdown on all independent media in Myanmar, driving the outlets journalists into hiding as they continued to broadcast news over satellite and through social media outlets.

The three DVB journalists who fled across the border had planned to continue their work from Thailand, their employer told Radio Free Asias (RFA) Myanmar Service on Tuesday.

The Thai police arrested them during a surprise check, because they had no official travel documents, said Aye Chan Naing, DVBs executive director.

DVB had previously operated in Chiangmai before relocating to Myanmar, but this time reporters had to flee on short notice under pressure from the military regime.

We didnt just suddenly start up shop unannounced back then. We took the time to set up our base there and make sure of our security matters. But now, in this case, we have had to leave the country in a rush, so we had no time to make preparations, he said.

We were working there in Chiangmai for nearly 20 years. If we had had enough time to prepare and discuss with the Thai authorities, we wouldnt be seeing these arrests, he said.

Aye Chan Naing said that the three journalists took the step of quarantining for a 14-day period after they entered Thailand, and the only charge they face is illegal entry. If deported to Myanmar they could face harsh punishment.

We issued a statement today and have asked the Thai government not to hand them over to the military and to just send them to a safe place. We have asked the U.N. High Commission for Refugees office in Bangkok to ask the authorities not to deport our people back to Myanmar, he said.

The five Myanmar nationals are being held in the Chiangmai central prison for investigation and they have legal representation, Chiangmai police on Tuesday told BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.

The five have pleaded not guilty to illegal entry and refused to provide information about themselves during a court hearing on Tuesday, Chiangmai Police Chief Tapanapong Chairangsi said.

Those five men were charged under immigration law and the Thai landlord was charged with giving sanctuary to aliens. I believe they crossed illegally into the northern region about a year ago, but they moved to Chiangmai recently, he added.

It was not immediately clear why the police chiefs account contradicted DVBs statement that the journalists had fled the military crackdown.

Thai authorities concerned are coordinating to find humanitarian solution to the recent case of journalists from Myanmar, said Tanee Sangrat, a spokesperson for Thailands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but he did not elaborate when asked for more information.

A spokesman for Thai national police said investigators had 30 days to wrap up the five Myanmar nationals cases.

Normally, a deportation is done only after a court ruling under immigration law. Police, however, will bring other factors into consideration whether to deport one or not, spokesman Col. Krishna Pattanacharoen told reporters via a text message. At the moment, we are not considering deporting them yet.

Certain arrest and persecution

New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) in a statement urged Thailand to provide protection to the journalists, saying that if they were sent back, the junta would arrest and punish them.

The juntas hostile actions towards DVB were made clear when it revoked the DVBs media license in March. Just last week, the junta criminalized ownership of satellite dishes, in part to prevent DVBs satellite broadcasts from reaching the Burmese people, said Brad Adams, HRWs Asia director.

The Thai government should immediately release these five journalists and activists, allow UNHCR access to provide them with protection, and ensure they can remain temporarily in Thailand, Adams said.

The Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT) said it was seriously concerned over the arrests.

These five individuals would face certain arrest and persecution, if not worse, for their work and association with the DVB, and under no circumstances should they be deported back to Myanmar. Rather, the DVB journalists and their associates should be released from detention, urgently offered protection, and granted the right to remain temporarily in Thailand, the FCCT said in a statement.

The statement noted that more than 70 journalists were among about 5,000 people arrested by the junta since the Feb. 1 coup, and most remain in detention. UNESCO says 71 have been arrested since Feb. 1.

The FCCT also cited the satellite ban as an example of the junta specifically targeting DVB and another outlet Mizzima News as it had been the primary method for both networks to broadcast in Myanmar.

The world is watching what the Thai authorities do in this important case for press freedom in Myanmar and the region, and for the protection of those fleeing the juntas brutal crackdown on independent media and civil society, the FCCT said.

Kunnawut Boonreak contributed to this report from Chiang Mai, Thailand.
In fall 2014, Cottrell told Minor A he knew her real name, address, her parents and sisters name, where her parents worked and the middle school she attended. He started threatening the teen, saying he would post her photos on the internet and send them to her family if she didnt comply with his demands for more material, prosecutors alleged.
In part that depends on Bibi Netanyahu. Of all the crazy coincidences of this moment, maybe the craziest is that it comes in what could be Bibis final days as Israels prime minister  after more than 12 years in office. Netanyahu has an interest in seeing his rivals fail to form a new coalition to unseat him. He would like Israel to go to a fifth election  giving him a chance to hang on and maybe avoid jail if he is convicted in his current corruption trial. One way Bibi could do that is by inflaming the situation so much that his right-wing rivals have to abandon trying to topple him and declare instead that this is no time for a change in leadership.
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Greg Sukiennik has worked at all three Vermont News & Media newspapers and was their managing editor from 2017-19. He previously worked for ESPN.com, for the AP in Boston, and at The Berkshire Eagle in Pittsfield, Mass.
Berkshire Community College and Williams College will receive more than $8 million in emergency money through the American Rescue Plan.
The Illinois Public Labor Relations Act allows any reforms that run counter to the language in a police unions contract to be overruled. It doesnt matter whether state lawmakers now intend to protect citizens from police misconduct and to protect the vast majority of police officers who serve honorably from having their reputations tarnished by the conduct of a few. As long as a provision in the act, Section 15, remains a part of state statute, the union contract is granted the power to prevail over reforms.
Greylock Federal Credit Union and Credit Union of the Berkshires, both based in Pittsfield, have reached an agreement on a merger, which is expected to be completed by late fall.
The mother of Sherilyn Hayes has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Dalton and several current or former police officials, seeking as much as $3.7 million in damages. The action describes a lack of police response to reports from a neighbor that the young woman had threatened to harm herself after a domestic dispute. She was found dead Nov. 23, 2019.
Statehouse Reporter

Danny Jin is the Eagle's Statehouse reporter. A graduate of Williams College, he previously interned at the Eagle and The Christian Science Monitor. Danny can be reached at djin@berkshireeagle.com or on Twitter at @djinreports.
A Canaan, Conn., man is suing the town of Sheffield and police officers who he says violated his civil rights during a stop in 2016 in which he claims he was injured.
Investigations editor

Larry Parnass, investigations editor, joined The Eagle in 2016 from the Daily Hampshire Gazette, where he was editor in chief. His freelance work has appeared in the Washington Post, Boston Globe, Hartford Courant and CommonWealth Magazine.
Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China Vice Chairperson Chow Hang-tung, left, stands in front of the Pillar of Shame statue May 4. The statue is a memorial at the University of Hong Kong for those killed in the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown.
A new study that looked at hundreds of agreements between municipalities and marijuana businesses licensed to operate in those cities and towns found that cannabis companies have paid at least $2.46 million more than required under law.
Oh! We know. Because of the pandemic, Gov. J.B. Pritzker and IDES officials switched to a helpful, automated, efficient phone and online system for claimants. Its really convenient and easy. Just call the hotline number and an eager employee will help you with your benefits claim. That way, the bricks and mortar unemployment offices can keep their doors locked, as they have for more than a year. Just use your phone and your laptop.
I believe that Rep. Cheney does not represent the Republican conference and should not be a part of our leadership team. Unfortunately, Rep. Cheney is seriously out of step with Republicans and is no longer capable of effectively leading the party. Over 70 million Americans voted for former President Trump in our election in November, and 94 percent of the Republican House members voted against the impeachment of President Trump. The leadership of the Republican conference should represent our voters, who overwhelmingly support former President Trump, Miller said, adding: For these reasons, I will vote against Rep. Cheney to remain in our leadership should another vote take place.
Plus, Bill's Message of the Day, will the Catholic Church stand up to Bill O'Reilly?

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In Collaboration with JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research

Biocon Academy, a CSR initiative of global biopharmaceutical company, Biocon, and a Center of Excellence for Advanced Learning in Biosciences, has introduced a new and unique programme in Global Regulatory Affairs (GRA) in collaboration with JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research (JSS AHER), Mysuru.

The exclusive programme is designed to impart applied knowledge on various good regulatory practices, clinical development processes, documentation and submission of filings, regulations for drugs, biologics and medical devices and legislation in regulated and emerging markets through an intensive curriculum.

Biocon JSSAHER Certificate programme in Global Regulatory Affairs is a one-of-its-kind 16-week programme for students of pharmacy and other allied sciences in India, offering domain specific skills taught by the renowned faculty from JSS AHER having experience of offering this content for the past 20 years at the postgraduate level and by Subject Matter Experts from Biocon Group of Companies.

During the programme, students will undergo experiential learning at regulatory departments of Biocon and Biocon Biologics, case studies conducted by Subject Matter Experts, and hands-on training in making e-CTD, eSUGAM filings and 356h submission. Students will also get an opportunity to visit JSS Hospital to understand clinical trial proceedings. Lastly, they will be provided training in professional writing and speaking skills to augment their success in the regulatory space.

The admissions are open now till 1st August 2021, and the course will commence from 30th August 2021, at Bengaluru.
Yokesh Maharaj has joined multinational confectionery company Mondelez International as president of its Sub-Saharan Africa business unit, effective from 1 April.

Yokesh Maharaj

Congratulations on your appointment as Mondelez Internationals president for Sub-Saharan Africa. What attracted you to this role?

Whats at the top of your to-do list in your new position?

#MarketingMasterminds: Mondelez | Cadbury Dairy Milk | Generosity campaign This month's Marketing Mastermind is Alanta Moodley, category brand manager at Mondelez International. She discusses the Cadbury Dairy Milk Generosity campaign...

What do you enjoy most about working in the FMCG industry, and in Africa specifically?

How do you see the Covid-19 pandemic impacting your industry in the short- to medium-term?

Covid-19 shifting snacking and shopping behaviour in SA The global coronavirus pandemic has suddenly changed the way we work, socialise, exercise and shop. New snacking habits will be formed around this reality...

Youve been tasked with helping to unlock business opportunities across the Sub-Saharan African region. Outside of South Africa, which African markets are of particular importance to the Mondelez business?

Could you pinpoint a few of the growth opportunities you think exists for Mondelez International in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Anything in particular youre currently reading or listening to for work inspiration?

Could you leave us with some valuable career advice?

With a portfolio of household brands including Oreo, Cadbury Dairy Milk, Toblerone, Clorets, Halls and Tucs, Mondelez has a presence in over 150 countries around the world. Maharaj, who is based in the company's Johannesburg office, is tasked with accelerating the snack food giant's growth agenda in the Sub-Saharan Africa region by unlocking new opportunities.Maharaj brings to Mondelez extensive experience in consumer-packaged goods, having been chief growth officer: consumer brands at Tiger Brands in South Africa. In addition, he has vast knowledge of the rest of Africa, as he previously managed the African operations for Tiger Brands and occupied the role of managing director Africa for Distell.Prior to this, Maharaj spent 18 years at the South African Breweries (SAB) where he held several senior management positions, including business unit president, executive director sales and distribution, and executive director for human resources.As we acknowledge Africa Month this May, Maharaj shares more about his new appointment and mapping the Mondelez growth strategy in Africa.Thank you. I was enticed by the power of the great brands within the Mondelez portfolio and the ability to leverage these brands into the broader Sub-Saharan markets.We are currently undertaking a strategy refresh to unlock the growth potential across the broader continent and getting a better appreciation of the categories that will present long-term growth.I am also getting to know the people in Mondelez and spending time with them to have a better appreciation of their vision and outlook for the company as well as some of the challenges they face.I love the ever-changing dynamics, especially across the broader African continent. No two days are similar, which really energises me.The various countries and markets are very unique, which presents challenges that allow you to stretch your thinking and grow as an individual. You learn every day!There has been a shift in consumer and shopper behaviour which we need to be very mindful of and adapt our short terms plans accordingly. There is also increased focus on how we manage our supply chain to ensure continuity of supply.In my view the industry and shopper dynamics would not return to pre-covid-19 norms, so for the medium term we have to evolve our strategy to meet these changing needs.Markets in southern Africa are an obvious opportunity, but I believe the opportunity that East Africa offers Mondelez is very attractive, and we are focusing our energy in this geography in the short term.We also have established businesses in West Africa and we will look at leveraging these operations to expand into other markets in West Africa as our brands carry equity across the regionI believe that there is a massive opportunity to grow our core brands and packs. We have by no means extinguished the opportunity here, in fact, I think we are just getting started!Over and above the core, we have opportunities to expand our portfolio, grow in adjacencies and harness brand extensions through deliberate innovation. Mark Johnson and Josh SuskewiczWhat you put in is what you get out! It is also critical to harness the power of your team, and try to have some fun!
The Steve Biko Centre in Qonce, Eastern Cape is one of six African museums selected to participate in the MuseumFutures Africa project.

The staff at the Steve Biko Centre are honoured to be participating in the MuseumFutures Africa project. As we are a relatively new museum, the process of engaging with more experienced institutions will help us improve both our museum and our ways of thinking in the heritage sector. Connecting with other museums on the continent provides amazing opportunities and we are excited to participate in the process of rethinking African museums, says Catherine Stratford, archivist and assistant curator at the Steve Biko Centre.

The six participating museums are:

Musee Theodore Monod IFAN Universite Cheikh Anta Diop  Dakar, Senegal: IFAN was founded in 1936 as the Institut francais dAfrique Noir. After independence, IFAN established itself in Dakar as one of the world's most prestigious institutions for research into African culture.

Musee National  Conakry, Guinea: The National Museum of Guinea houses a collection of local objects that represent the country's different ethnic groups. Religious artefacts, as well as art and everyday objects, are exhibited.

National Museums of Kenya  Nairobi, Kenya: The National Museums of Kenya bring together various museums, sites and monuments that combine a considerable number of exhibitions, from art to natural history and ethnological artefacts.

Steve Biko Centre  King Williams Town, South Africa: The privately-run Steve Biko Centre is dedicated to the legacy of the anti-Apartheid activist Bantu Stephen Biko, murdered in detention and whose thought leadership was instrumental in establishing the Black Consciousness Movement.

Uganda Museum  Kampala, Uganda: As Uganda's largest museum, the Uganda Museum has a variety of different exhibitions that mainly deal with the various ethnic groups of Uganda from an anthropological point of view.

Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Art, Pan-Atlantic University  Lekki, Nigeria: As part of the Pan-Atlantic University, the Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Art is dedicated to the African arts and houses a large selection of works of art from Nigeria.

MuseumFutures Africa is a Pan-African project established to support the conceptual development of museums throughout the African continent. Spearheaded by the Goethe-Institut and a team of practitioners from the art and museum fields, the project was conceived in the culmination of a series of Museum Conversations in 2019, as a means of mobilising museum-driven processes of innovation, transformation and adaptation.The central tenet of the project is to support museums seeking to drive change within their institutions, via facilitated peer-to-peer learning between and within African Museums. Through intra-African dialogue, co-creation and self-driven study-labs, museums are addressing endemic challenges. The participating institutions are encouraged to form study groups with different stakeholders to find new ways of collecting, researching, mediating and engaging society. A curriculum designed by African practitioners (Abiti Nelson, Tatiana Page and Rebecca Corey) is provided to facilitate this process.After an Africa-wide call for applications, a steering committee selected six museums that are characterised by their particular drive to innovate and the commitment to cooperation. The selection also geographically reflects the diverse museum landscape on the continent.After a first engagement with the curriculum, dealing with self-defined questions such as: What do we want to exhibit and how? How do we want to work together? Or Who is our museum for?, the museums are now working in pairings to exchange ideas and form a pan-African network through monthly workshops until September 2021. The museum pairs are: Musee Theodore Monod IFAN Universite Cheikh Anta Diop (Senegal) and Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Art (Nigeria); Musee National (Guinea) and National Museums of Kenya; Steve Biko Centre (South Africa) and Uganda Museum.The steering committee - consisting of Flower Manase (Tanzania), Molemo Moiloa (South Africa) and Nashilongweshipwe Mushaandja (Namibia) as well as Asma Diakite (Goethe-Institut South Africa), Rainer Hauswirth (Goethe-Institut Cote d'Ivoire) and Nadine Siegert (Goethe-Institut South Africa) - states: The MuseumFutures Africa project has come at the right time in the history of African museums: museums in Africa are diverging from colonial museology to Africology in studying and presenting African histories and culture. This museum curriculum is expected to facilitate the ongoing transformation of African museums and the cultural sector by widening the platform of the museums through engagement with surrounding communities and inter-disciplinary engagement. Hence, the curriculum is structured to value the museum and community contributions to bring about desired change with new ideas, exhibitions, programmes and education packages that inspire a new generation of African experts and museums.The essential learning processes and innovations initiated by the project are continuously documented and passed on in a publication.
As part of our #StartupFunding1010 series, Zachariah George, co-founder and chief investment officer of Startupbootcamp AfriTech and Endeavor mentor , walks us through the stages of early-stage funding and how to approach it in South Africa.

Could you take us through the funding stages of starting a business? (levels of seed funding, early stage funding, etc.)

Pre-Seed  typically at MVP but pre-revenue



Seed Stage  some proof of concepts (PoCs) and/or pilots in place, could be pre-revenue still or barely post revenue



Growth Stage  Series A and B



Later Stage  Series C and beyond

Pre-Seed  founders, friends, family, angels



Seed Stage  Angels, accelerators, venture capitalists



Growth Stage  Venture capitalists, Super Angels



Later Stage  Venture capitalists, some early-stage PE

#StartupFunding101: Capital funding and the fund raising basics Antonia Bothner, Endeavor South Africa Capital Markets Lead and Fundraising Lead at Endeavor Harvest Fund, uncovers the basics of capital funding and how to access it...

How should entrepreneurs approach the funding process?

Investors have a high degree of confidence in founders who understand their addressable market exceptionally well.

Ask for advice, and you will often get funding, ask for funding, and you may get advice.

When you're looking for an investor, what should you look out for to know that's the right fit for your startup?

From an investor perspective, what do investors look for in a startup before offering them funding of any sort?

Team (Preference is for founders with a prior entrepreneurial track record)

Traction (Preference given to ventures that already have pilots and/or proof-of-concepts signed up with major corporations, i.e. B2B or B2B2C plays with a clear distribution channel.

Total Addressable Market (Ability to scale outside their home market within two years or after Series A. TAM of a minimum $100m by Year 5)

Technology (Unique technology with I.P. preferably housed in the US, UK, Singapore, Mauritius or other investor-friendly jurisdictions)

Timing (Evidence of not being the very first to market and preferably having learnt from the mistakes of other similar startups)

As an Endeavour mentor, what is the best advice you can give to someone starting up?

Focus on identifying a gap in the market and really hone in on product-market fit and problem-solution fit



Do extensive market research and customer validation before building your product/service offering



Always ask for advice, mentorship and guidance before starting out



Incentivise the smartest people to work with you by offering equity upside in the business. Focus on getting a small piece of a very large pie rather than a large piece of a small pie.



Never exaggerate what you think you can achieve, but dont be too meek and coy either. Be assertive, but not arrogant.

Do you foresee any opportunities that may be a disruptor in the startup ecosystem?

Endeavor is a global high-impact entrepreneurship movement to drive long-term economic growth and build strong entrepreneurship ecosystems in South Africa by selecting, mentoring, and accelerating the best high-impact entrepreneurs.

Always first focus on getting your product-market fit right, and secondly the problem-solution fit. Once those two aspects are understood, things become a lot easier.Often, way too little time is spent by founding teams on thoroughly assessing the size of their market, competitive forces, and industry dynamic. Thorough market research (or lack thereof) is where most founders lose out on investor confidence.Secondly, founders dont do much homework at all on their investors, their mandates or what their current existing portfolio looks like. Good funds often look at synergies within their portfolio companies, and this is an attribute that a lot of founders rarely take note of.Lastly, founders should always be looking to learn and get advice from industry, sector and regional experts. The learning process in the entrepreneurial space is never-ending.Read my articleIts hard to speak on behalf of all investors. So I will not attempt to do so. However, these are five broad categories that I look for as an angel investor and venture capitalist.Plenty. This is such a generic question! There are technology-driven solutions to almost every industry and sector on the planet  be it renewable energy, agriculture, healthcare, education, mobility and logistics, financial inclusion, etc.Artificial intelligence and machine learning, blockchain, sensors and drones, robotic process automation. The applications are endless.
UX/UI Designer

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UI design

UX design

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Be familiar with using design systems to create user interfaces

in trust-based digital transformation, electronic forms and workflow solutions. We are looking for a UX UI Designer to join their team of talented and success driven designers.Join the highly accomplished environment and take your career to the next level.for this position iswhich is a contract position based inoffering a contract rate of betweennegotiable on experience and ability. Contact Zara on az.oc.egrem-e@haraz or call her on 011 463 3633 to discuss this and other opportunities.Are you ready for a change of scenery? The E-Merge IT recruitment is a specialist niche recruitment agency. We offer our candidates options so that we can successfully place the right developers with the right companies in the right roles.Check out the E-Merge website www.e-merge.co.za for more great positions.Do you have a friend who is a developer or technology specialist? We pay cash for successful referrals! Posted on 11 May 12:36
UX Specialist

Location: Johannesburg, Sandton Type: Permanent Reference: #DM52394 Company: E-Merge IT Recruitment

UX

Design essential

User Testing

Interface Design

Wire Frames

Sketch

This is a great opportunity to gain experience with an investment insurance business, they are looking for a UX Specialist to work with teams to share design principles, answer queries on functional UI aspects and drive the design of the product from concept to implementation.Their high performance and innovative attitude drive them to develop top tier systems and believe in investing in their team too!If you are looking for a relationship with a company that challenges the status quo, Apply now!for this position iswhich is aposition based inoffering a salary of up tohighly negotiable on experience and ability. Contact Dominic on az.oc.egrem-e@mcinimod or call him on 011 463 3633 to discuss this and other opportunities.Are you ready for a change of scenery? The E-Merge IT recruitment is a specialist niche recruitment agency. We offer our candidates options so that we can successfully place the right developers with the right companies in the right roles.Check out the e-Merge website www.e-merge.co.za for more great positions.Do you have a friend who is a developer or technology specialist? We pay cash for successful referrals! Posted on 11 May 13:53
Emanuel had been in the running for ambassador to China, viewed as a critical position as the U.S. is poised to confront a more aggressive Beijing. Multiple reports, however, have suggested Biden is likely to tap a career diplomat for the post instead  Nicholas Burns, a former ambassador and senior State Department official who is currently a Harvard professor and helped advise Bidens campaign on foreign policy. The last four ambassadors to China previously served as elected officials.
TCM soup can help cut COVID-19 death rate of patients in half, study shows

China Daily) 09:24, May 11, 2021

Pharmacists dispense medicines according to Qingfei Paidu Soup prescriptions at Anhui University of Chinese Medicine on Feb 21, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

Qingfei paidusoup, a widely used traditional Chinese medicine to treat COVID-19 infections, can help reduce the rate of death among hospitalized patients by half, a recent study has shown.

The study examines more than 8,900 COVID-19 cases that received treatment at 15 hospitals in Hubei provincethe hardest-hit region during the epidemicfrom January to May last year, with nearly 30 percent of them having taken qingfei paiduas part of their therapies.

Results suggest that the mortality rate for those undergoing the TCM treatment stands at 1.2 percent, while the rate for other patients is 4.8 percent.

The study, led by researchers from Fuwai Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences &Peking Union Medical College, concluded that the use of qingfei paiduis associated with a 50 percent reduction of mortality in hospitalized COVID-19 patients, without amplifying the risk of developing acute liver or kidney injuries.

It was first published on preprint website MedRxiv.org in late December. On March 31, it was released on Phytomedicine, a peer-reviewed journal.

Li Jing, head of the research team, said based on the national diagnosis and treatment guideline for COVID-19 diseases, qingfei paiduis the only prescription that is recommended for treating all patients ranging from mild to critical cases.

"The extensive delivery of TCM medication in hospitalized patients during the outbreak had created a sound base for our research because when appraising clinical effectiveness of a certain drug, it is crucial to start by collecting and analyzing from a large enough number of cases," she said.

Qingfei paiduis a concoction that includes dozens of TCM herbs and roots, including ephedra, licorice root and bitter almond. The initial version of the prescription is believed to have originated during the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220).

Zhang Boli, president of the Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, said during an earlier interview that preliminary studies show the therapy mainly works on lungs while offering protection for some other organs against the virus. It can also stem the virus's replication, Zhang said.

According to the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, previous studies have already attested to the herbal prescription's efficacy in preventing mild and moderate cases from worsening into severe infections, but evidence of its role in lowering the death rate was lacking.

"The study is by far the largest clinical research on qingfei paiduand its findings have provided potent evidence for proving its marked efficacy in saving the lives of COVID-19 patients," the administration said.

As of now, there is no approved specific treatment for COVID-19 patients. During the fight against the epidemic, 92 percent of confirmed patients had undergone TCM therapies, with the efficacy rate in Hubei reaching 90 percent, according to a white paper released in June.

Li said the new study is retrospective and based on real-world cases.

"If a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study can be conducted in the future, the TCM drug's clinical efficacy can be further verified, and its global application is expected to expand," she added.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
I wouldnt really think he was a crusader, per se, but I asked him about that and he said, No, I just felt that was the right thing to do. That just seemed the most logical, correct thing to do. It got him a lot of trouble in the industry, but he didnt care, Baird said. My father never really looked at the industry as a resource because, quite frankly, I just dont think theyre at the head of the pack on this issue.
The detective kept saying I really dont want you to come here and I kept wanting to get in the car and see him, thinking he must be scared, Jacobs said. It never occurred to me that it couldnt be Timm because a world where someone pretends to be a missing child just didnt exist for me before that day. It was pretty awful truly was like reliving all of it over again.
Go Green Deerfield was started because we were looking for ways to engage the community in local action here, ways to get people out of the church to help do the work that needed to be done, said Camilla Dadey, the groups land and water team captain.
CNNs recent report that the US security services are considering contracting the services of so-called researchers as a legal workaround for spying on average Americans confirms that Bidens dystopian hellhole is rapidly moving in the direction of establishing a Cyber Stasi for suppressing all digital dissent against the Democrats as they continuing consolidating their de facto one-party rule of the country.

that the US security services are considering contracting the services of so-called researchers as a legal workaround for spying on average Americans.

that I predicted would become a fait accompli following Bidens confirmation as President by the Electoral College is quickly becoming a reality after

According to the outlet, these ostensibly independent contractors would be charged with infiltrating the social media circles of white supremacists and other supposedly terrorist-inclined domestic forces within the country.

[Weve already seen moves to brand all kinds of dissent  whether questioning the election result, countering COVID hysteria or warning about possible dangers of vaccines  as domestic terrorism. Ed.]

The report claims that the intent is to help provide a broad picture of who was perpetuating the narratives of concern, after which the FBI could theoretically use that pool of information to focus on specific individuals if there is enough evidence of a potential crime to legally do so.

In other words, the US security services essentially want to establish a Cyber Stasi of fellow citizens who spy on one another and produce purported evidence of potential crimes for justifying the FBIs legal investigations. CNN quoted an unnamed senior intelligence official who asked, What do you do about ideology thats leading to violence? Do you have to wait until it leads to violence?, thereby hinting that this initiative might likely be exploited to stop so-called pre-crime, or crimes before they occur.

Put another way, even those average Americans who practice their constitutionally enshrined right to the freedom of speech to peacefully dissent against the Democrats consolidation of their de facto one-party rule of the country might find themselves targeted by the security services depending on how the contracted researchers spin their words.

It should be remembered that even Americans constitutionally enshrined right to the freedom of assembly is nowadays under scrutiny depending on the stated reason behind their planned peaceful protests if they dare to propose gathering in opposition to last years alleged voter fraud for example. The events of 6 January were exploited as a game-changer by the security services in order to restrict Americans freedoms.

Its neither here nor there whether one sincerely believes that the election was stolen since the purpose in pointing these double standards out is to prove that average Americans are being politically discriminated against with the implied threat of legal intimidation when it comes to exercising their constitutional rights about politically incorrect issues of concern to them.

Although the reported purpose of the Cyber Stasi is to preemptively thwart emerging domestic terrorist plots, it cant be discounted that the combination of political Russophobia and mission creep will combine to create additional objectives such as stopping the spread of so-called Russian disinformation throughout society.

That phrase is actually just a euphemism for politically incorrect facts and interpretations thereof that contradict the Democrats official narrative of events, being intentionally vague enough to function as an umbrella under which to cover practically every alternative understanding possible.

With this in mind, those average Americans who dare to share something politically incorrect  even in private chats amidst the presence of deep state infiltrators (researchers employed as Cyber Stasi)  might be targeted by the FBI.

The end effect is that the US security services might succeed in suppressing most expressions of digital dissent in the coming future. Theyre inspired to do so by the ruling administration which wants to impose a syncretic system of economic leftism and social fascism onto the country.

Its not communist in the sense that the economic vision is more akin to state capitalism than traditional Marxism, but the social impact will certainly mirror that of East Germany during its darkest days of Stasi rule, though thats precisely why many critics casually describe it as communist despite that not being economically correct (at least not yet). The US researcher-contracted Cyber Stasi will have a chilling effect on how Americans interact with one another from here on out, all in order for Bidens dystopian hellhole to avoid the fate of its predecessor, East Germany.

Originally published at One World Press
Instagram and Twitter have blamed technical errors for deleting posts mentioning the possible eviction of Palestinians from East Jerusalem, but data rights groups fear "discriminatory" algorithms are at work and want greater transparency.

It came as a long-running legal case over evictions from homes in Sheikh Jarrah has fuelled tensions in Jerusalem where hundreds of Palestinians clashed with Israeli police on Monday.

By Monday, 7amleh, a nonprofit focused on social media, had received more than 200 complaints about deleted posts and suspended accounts related to Sheikh Jarrah.

"On Instagram, it was mostly content takedown, even archives from older stories were deleted. On Twitter, most cases were an account suspension," said Mona Shtaya, an advocacy advisor at 7amleh.

Instagram and Twitter said the accounts were "suspended in error by our automated systems" and the issue had been resolved and content reinstated.

Instagram said in a statement that an automated update last week caused content re-shared by multiple users to appear as missing, affecting posts on Sheikh Jarrah, Colombia, and U.S. and Canadian indigenous communities.
Susan Hennessey, a former Obama-Biden administration lawyer who turned to promoting the Russiagate conspiracy theory during Donald Trumps presidential term, has finally found her landing spot on President Joe Bidens team.

Hennessey announced the move herself after seemingly scrubbing her Twitter account of Russiagate tweets, saying on Monday that shes honored to be joining the extraordinary team at the Department of Justice (DOJ). In fact, she will be senior counsel in the DOJs National Security Division.

I'm very honored to be joining the extraordinary team at the Department of Justice in the National Security Division. Thank you for all the kind words. (And a huge thanks to the folks at WH PPO, agency WH liaisons and HRs who are working night and day to staff this government.)  Susan Hennessey (@Susan_Hennessey) May 10, 2021

In between her roles with Obama-Biden and now Biden-Harris, Hennessey served as one of the more unhinged voices of the anti-Trump #Resistance and supported the Russiagate propaganda campaign through jobs as CNN analyst, Lawfare blog executive editor and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution think tank.

Responding to the appointment, journalist Glenn Greenwald called Hennessey one of the most deranged Russiagate conspiracists.

Because @Susan_Hennessey was one of the most deranged Russiagate conspiracists of the last 4 years, she wisely deleted all her of tweets at some point before this announcement. But you can still read her attempt to elevate the Steele Dossier here:https://t.co/h2gYuJQjuHhttps://t.co/SI291XNo7u  Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) May 10, 2021

One of her Lawfare articles defended the widely discredited Steele dossier, suggesting that the mere fact the anti-Trump intelligence community had briefed the president-elect on the sordid allegations gave the report credibility. Even the fact that then-intelligence director James Clapper  later a CNN contributor and anti-Trump media activist  refrained from calling the dossier false meant that it must be at least partly true, she argued.

Hennesseys attacks on Trump were wide-ranging, from the more minor clearly, Melania hates him, jab, to arguing that FBI officials were telling the truth when they misled the court to secretly spy on Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. She even wrote a book saying that Trump was waging war on the worlds most powerful office.

Turns out that the new senior counsel at the DOJ's National Security Division can read the minds of people she never met (needless to say she deleted the tweet). pic.twitter.com/lQkbR3O0GP  Hans Mahncke (@HansMahncke) May 10, 2021

When then-presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard suggested in 2019 that the US should pursue calm and better relations with Russia, Hennessey called the Democrat congresswoman absurd. She blasted Attorney General Bill Barr last year after the DOJ dropped charges against ex-National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, saying there should be mass resignations from the DOJ, despite a review having determined that the case against the retired general was unjustified.

Hunter Biden getting hired to run DEA would be less absurd than Bidens decision to hire Hennessey to work on national security law, unless of course DOJ plans to falsify evidence and illegally spy on its political opponents, Federalist co-founder Sean Davis said. She's perfect for that.Journalist Michael Tracey said it was blatant, transparent corruption for Hennessey to seamlessly transition from NSA lawyer to Russiagate propagandist, then shift right back to the National Security State after Trump was ousted.
Colonial Pipeline Co. Chief Executive Officer Joseph Blount said the company was in the process of restoring its systems but wouldn't resume fuel shipments until the ransomware had been removed, according to Bloomberg.

At the moment, Colonial Pipeline is manually operating a segment of pipeline between North Carolina to Maryland and expects a complete system restore by the weekend. However, gas shortages are already being reported across North Carolina to Florida to Alabama.

On Monday, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper signed an Executive Order declaring a state of emergency, temporarily suspending motor vehicle fuel regulations to ensure adequate fuel supply supplies throughout the state.

WLOS' Caitlyn Penter reported gas shortages in North Carolina.

This gas station in Robbinsville is all out of gas. Clerk said manager told her it could be five days before they have gas again. Says phone has been ringing off the hook of people calling around to find gas @WLOS_13 pic.twitter.com/SCcwmb1Pc0  Caitlyn Penter (@CaitlynWLOS) May 10, 2021

Penter said long gas lines were developing.

This is the gas station across the street. Long line for gas. @WLOS_13 pic.twitter.com/mxaX7QU9a0  Caitlyn Penter (@CaitlynWLOS) May 10, 2021

WEAR-TV's Renee Beninate shows that one gas station in Northwest Florida was selling regular gas for $4.29/gallon.

SKY HIGH GAS PRICES: Weve received calls into the @weartv newsroom about this #gas station in #EscambiaCounty selling regular gas for $4.29/gallon. Within a minute of our news car showing up, it was dropped to $3.29. Check it out  Are you paying more at the pump? #GasShortage pic.twitter.com/ghyAnQO7f6  Renee Beninate (@reneebeninate) May 10, 2021

More people in Florida panic buying fuel for $4.50/gallon.

Next week people in Florida are going to bitch that fuel is $4.50 a gallon. Youll be able to thank the panic buyers of today for the high fuel prices next week. pic.twitter.com/XBXfi7TjAH     Real Talk 93.3 WVFT (@Greg_Tish) May 10, 2021

In Fitzgerald, Georgia, one Twitter user shows long gas lines at an enmarket gas station.

One South Carolina gas station was out of unleaded and plus.

Someone in Myrtle Beach panic hoarded gas.

People are getting worried about the shortage.

Need an idea for what to do if gas becomes too high to fill up lawnmowers or if there's a shortage?



Ronnie Miller from Johnson City has an idea! pic.twitter.com/yS2T70Wya1  Anslee Daniel WJHL (@Anslee_WJHL) May 11, 2021

A massive line of people waiting for fuel in Asheville, North Carolina.

Video coming out of Asheville, North Carolina show the fuel shortage in effect.



Some gas stations are completely out of supply, while others have lineups. pic.twitter.com/7xrSoPA99G  Marie Oakes (@TheMarieOakes) May 11, 2021

People waiting to fuel up at one gas station in Plymouth, North Carolina.

Gas stations are running out, Plymouth NC lines are around the building. 4 stations are out. #gasshortage pic.twitter.com/TcIwRpCsBG  Fly on the wall (@Huge2na) May 11, 2021

Not sure where, but the run has begun.

According to Google Search Trends, people started panic searching "gas shortage" around 1300 ET in the Southeast.

So far, nationwide gas prices have surged six cents this week to $2.96 - the highest for this time of year since 2014. If the national average soars to $2.99 or higher this week, it will be the highest since November 2014... and right before the start of summer driving season.

AAA forecasts gas prices are soaring because of the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of all fuel to the East Coast.

"This shutdown will have implications on both gasoline supply and prices, but the impact will vary regionally. Areas including Mississippi, Tennessee, and the east coast from Georgia into Delaware are most likely to experience limited fuel availability and price increases, as early as this week," said Jeanette McGee, AAA spokesperson. "These states may see prices increase three to seven cents this week."

This is beginning to look like the 1970s gas shortage. If the panic just started hours ago - just wait until tomorrow. People will freak.
As more and more people use their smartphones to pay for everyday items, public transit agencies are encouraging millions of Americans to use their phones as their primary means of paying their fares.

In New York City and elsewhere, police can use 'touch 'n go' or 'touchless fares' to track millions of public transit users movements.

New Yorks Metropolitan Transit Authority's OMNY Executive Director Al Putre said that as of December 2020 there have been over 34 million taps.

Imagine you are the Feds or the NYPD and you just found out that your agency now has access to detailed records of over 34 million transit user's personal information. What do you think will happen?

Transit Authority's across the country are adopting 'touchless fares' putting millions of people's privacy at risk.

Several large transit authority's across the country have introduced 'touchless fares'. They are Atlantas Breeze; Washington, DCs SmarTrip; Chicagos VENTRA; Seattles ORCA; and the California Bay Areas CLIPPER.

The New York-based 'Transit Center' warns that police can use 'touchless fares' to track an individual's movements and much more.

"At the same time, new fare media raise legitimate individual privacy concerns. Namely, they have the potential to significantly increase the personal data generated and collected by transit agencies, as well as the private companies agencies contract or partner with. Once collected, the data can be accessed by other government entities, sold to private companies (in the case of private sector data collection), or simply be vulnerable to a data breach."

As more and more people accept digital ID's and 'touchless fares' for convenience they often overlook how law enforcement and corporations can collect that information without a warrant.

"If a passenger uses a fare card with a unique ID, then the agency can collect data on the unique ID, the time that it was used, and the station or stop where it was used."

Most people don't realize that their smartphones contain many unique identifiers like, IMEI, MEID, ESN, IMSI and UUID.

IMEI for International Mobile Equipment Identity: the Unique Number to identify GSM, WCDMA mobile phones as well as some satellite phones.

MEID for Mobile Equipment IDentifier: the globally unique number identifying a physical piece of CDMA mobile station equipment, the MEID was created to replace ESNs (Electronic Serial Number).

ESN for Electronic Serial Number: the unique number to identify CDMA mobile phones.

IMSI (International Mobile Subscriber Identity): the unique identification associated with all GSM and UMTS network mobile phone users.

Law enforcement can use a phone's MAC address, UUID and it's camera to ID and track anyone.

The Transit Center warns that police can use a smartphone's unique identifiers to create a detailed map of a person's travel activities.

"Privacy advocates argue that the governments collection of personal data is a method for promoting conformist behavior, as individuals fear scrutiny, judgment, and retribution for acting outside accepted norms. While these concerns have often focused more on internet activity, mobility data is also particularly sensitive and deeply revealing about an individuals activities." Police can use 'touchless fares' to create an "intimate window into a person's life." "The United States Supreme Court writes that time-stamped location data provides an intimate window into a persons life, revealing not only his particular movements, but through them his familial, political, professional, religious, and sexual associations." 'Touchless fares' allow police and ICE to track a person[s] movements without a warrant.

"Privacy issues arise, though, when other government entities can access the data that transit agencies collect. In New York, for instance, organizations like the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project highlight the risk of allowing MTA travel data to be accessed by NYPD and, in turn, Immigration and Customs Enforcement."

'Touchless fares' give law enforcement the ability to target people of color.

"Transit history data would enable ICE to locate immigrant community members by allowing the agency to track their daily movements. Further, identity-based surveillance using [the fare payment system] OMNY could compromise a riders right to anonymous public speech and association. This tracking is already possible with the MTAs MetroCard system, but the MTA estimates that the process of retrieving personal information can take up to two weeks. With OMNY, the process is near-instantaneous, introducing the possibility of real-time social controls."

As the Transit Center points out, the only way to really protect public transit passengers from warrantless law enforcement surveillance is to allow riders to pay with cash.

"Cash is the most secure and private fare payment medium, either when used to board the bus or when purchasing and refilling an agency-issued fare card. It is much more difficult to connect a specific fare cards movement to an individual passenger when the passenger originally paid for the card using cash."

As you can see, getting rid of cash at toll booths (E-ZPass) and public transit to save time and protect everyone's health comes at the expense of our privacy.
His goal, Serrano said in a news release, is to create something that reflects the diversity of Elgin in the fullest sense. He plans to hold a variety of events, like healing circles, open mic nights, Zoom sessions and school visits, to connect with the community and learn about peoples histories in an effort to activate the actual lived experiences of Elgin residents as the foundation for the mural, he said.
There are a lot of factors contributing to the growing awareness of Israel's brutality, but I think the

Twenty-four people, including nine children, were killed in Gaza overnight, most of them in Israeli strikes, reads a new report from AP.

Nine children, killed with the help of United States funding to the tune of $3.8 billion a year.

Remember kids, the US loves Muslims and just wants to protect their human rights.

The Monday night airstrikes were in response to rocket attacks by Gaza resistance groups which had reportedly injured six Israelis, and those rocket attacks were in turn were a response to a deluge of Israeli police brutality footage in Jerusalem in preceding days. Electronic Intifada reports:

This came at the end of a day of violence that began in occupied East Jerusalem, where Israeli forces assaulted worshippers at the al-Aqsa mosque compound, injuring hundreds. Scenes of brutality in Jerusalem generated outrage and solidarity among Palestinians and around the world. The military wing of the Palestinian resistance organization Hamas issued an ultimatum giving Israel an hour  until 6 pm local time  to withdraw its forces from al-Aqsa and the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, and free detainees. When the deadline passed, resistance groups in Gaza fired volleys of rockets towards Jerusalem for the first time since the summer 2014 war, prompting celebrations from some Palestinians.

The mass media are working furiously to spin this in a way that rivals my satire piece from the other day. The New York Times has been cartoonishly re-writing its own reporting in a desperate attempt to make Israel look like an innocent victim of unprovoked attacks instead of the obvious aggressor against people protesting a brutal apartheid regime backed by an entire empire. The New York Post falsely reported that the deaths on Monday were caused by Airstrikes from Hamas militants (when did Hamas get an air force?) when sharing an article which falsely implied that those fatalities were inflicted by both sides. DW News framed its headline in a way that suggested the nine children killed had been involved in fighting against Israeli forces, and the word clashes is being thrown about willy nilly to describe a very one-sided assault.

But it isnt working.

Social media is teeming with viral video footage of police assaulting peaceful worshippers in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, of Israelis cheering and chanting Yimach shemam (may their names be erased) at the sight of a fire near the mosque, of Israeli soldiers arresting Palestinian protesters using the signature knee-on-neck maneuver made famous by the murder of George Floyd, many of which have millions of views. Mainstream politicians on both sides of the Atlantic are putting out statements explicitly condemning Israel as the aggressor in these attacks, and the White House is facing some actual adversarial journalism for once regarding its refusal to denounce the killing of Palestinian children and its absurd position that Palestinians have no right to defend themselves.

This is the most mainstream that criticism of Israeli apartheid oppression has ever been in my lifetime, and as more and more mainstream human rights groups begin acknowledging the reality of that oppression its only getting more so.

Whenever I say something critical of Israel I always get readers saying Oh man, youre going to get attacked so bad for this, dissent on Israel is not tolerated, but quite honestly that hasnt been my experience at all and I think its an outdated perception. In the few years Ive been at this commentary gig Ive found I get far more aggressive pushback when I criticize establishment narratives regarding Russia or China, or even Syria and Venezuela, than I do when I criticize Israel. The pushback is there of course, but its not nearly as virulent as what Im used to.

There are a lot of factors contributing to the growing awareness of Israels brutality, but I think the main reason is very simple: there are only so many viral videos of unconscionable acts that can be dismissed with Actually this is way more complicated than it looks. It is not more complicated than it looks. Clearly. It looks bad because it is bad.

At a recent video appearance for the International Festival of Whistleblowing, Dissent and Accountability, Israel-based journalist Jonathan Cook described the changes hes seen as smartphones and internet access made Palestinians less dependent on the work of sympathetic activists and gave them the ability to directly share footage of their own abuse. Cook says the following:

Sadly most corporate journalists paid little attention to the work of these activists. In any case, their role was quickly snuffed out. That was partly because Israel learnt that shooting a few of them served as a very effective deterrent, warning others to keep away. But it was also because as technology became cheaper and more accessible  eventually ending up in mobile phones that everyone was expected to have  Palestinians could record their own suffering more immediately and without mediation. Israels dismissal of the early, grainy images of the abuse of Palestinians by soldiers and settlers  as Pallywood (Palestinian Hollywood)  became ever less plausible, even to its own supporters. Soon Palestinians were recording their mistreatment in high definition and posting it directly to YouTube.

Seeing is believing, and a video is difficult to narrative manage. The dominant narrative is no longer solely in the hands of propaganda outlets like The New York Times which can spin everything that happens with a pro-Israel slant, its being spread all over the internet in a medium that is far more objective than print.

This is so effective because, unlike so many other ugly aspects of the US-centralized power alliance, Israeli apartheid is not some covert government operation being run by highly trained agents and manipulators. Those responsible for carrying out its day-to-day abuses are just ordinary civilians, police and soldiers who have not been trained on the sinister craft of perception management. Who arent acutely aware that its bad optics to tell a Palestinian family on camera that if you dont steal their house then someone else will. Who dont have bad PR at the forefront of their attention when theyre cheering as they shoot Palestinian protesters. Who just react to the racist nationalist propaganda theyve been ingesting all their lives instead of considering how difficult it will be to narrative manage a video of them cheering and chanting may their names be erased at the sight of flames.

Awareness is spreading of Israeli apartheid brutality for the same reason awareness is spreading of US police brutality: the internet combined with smartphone cameras. Seeing is believing. Seeing brings change.

This is why the powerful are working so hard to censor the internet. If they cant control what our dominant narratives are going to be, they will not be able to rule us.

Will they succeed? Jonathan Cooks aforementioned speech concludes with some words of hope and encouragement:

The establishment are being forced into a game of whack-a-mole with us. Each time they bully or dismantle a platform we use, another one  like Substack  springs up to replace it. That is because there will always be journalists determined to find a way to peek behind the curtain to tell us what they found there. And there will always be audiences who want to learn what is behind the curtain. Supply and demand are on our side. The constant acts of intimidation and violence by political and media elites to crush media pluralism in the name of democratic values will serve only to further expose the hypocrisy and bad faith of the corporate media and its hired hands. We must keep struggling because the struggle itself is a form of victory.

____________________________

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Israelis were filmed celebrating Monday night on Jerusalem Day at the Western Wall by singing for God to "take vengeance on the Palestinians" and "erase" them and their "progeny" from all of history.



"Today's Jerusalem Day march ends in an orgy of hate at the Western Wall," Elizabeth Tsurkov reported. "They sing: 'Remember me! Strengthen me! Just this once, God, that I may with one blow take vengeance on the Palestinians (may their progeny be erased!) for my two eyes!' (altering Judges 16:28)."





Today's Jerusalem Day march ends in an orgy of hate at the Western Wall. They sing: Remember me! Strengthen me! Just this once, God, that I may with one blow take vengeance on the Palestinians (may their progeny be erased!) for my two eyes! (altering Judges 16:28) pic.twitter.com/jQG7XnjTc9  Elizabeth Tsurkov (@Elizrael) May 10, 2021

The 1st Jewish Supremacy Appreciation Day (officially Jerusalem Day) since prime minister Netanyahu installed Kahanists in the Knesset. This political party has killed 50+ Palestinians and is now in the parliament, thanks to Bibi. This is their wet dream https://t.co/JnxV4ySNGs  David Sheen (@davidsheen) May 11, 2021



From The Washington Post, "American officials call for calm in Israel. But the U.S. is part of the problem.""

On Monday night, militants in the Gaza Strip and the Israeli military exchanged rocket fire and airstrikes amid a deadly escalation of violence. Hamas and Islamic Jihad, armed groups based in blockaded Gaza, launched a barrage of rockets that landed near Jerusalem and in parts of southern Israel, injuring at least one person. Israeli airstrikes in retaliation killed at least 20 people in Gaza, according to Gazas Health Ministry, including nine children.



Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the terrorist groups in Gaza had crossed a red line with their rocket attacks. But the latest explosion of hostilities has a long tail, following numerous aggressive actions by both Israeli security forces and far-right Jewish supremacist groups in Jerusalem. Two weeks ago, bands of Jewish extremists, including some settlers from the West Bank, marched through Palestinian-populated areas of the holy city, chanting Death to Arabs, attacking bystanders and damaging Palestinian property and homes. Israeli attempts to evict a number of Palestinian families in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah  a microcosm of what Palestinians view as part of a long history of dispossession and erasure at the hands of the Israeli state  had stirred Palestinian solidarity protests in various parts of the occupied territories and Israel proper.



It also raised tensions ahead of the commemoration of Jerusalem Day on Monday, an official Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of the city during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. A planned annual march by far-right ultranationalist Israelis was called off after authorities rerouted its path at the last minute. Large numbers still made their way to the Western Wall and sang an extremist vengeance song against Palestinians.



The Hamas rocket attacks, which included the first strikes against Jerusalem in several years, came after running clashes among Israeli police, Palestinian protesters and far-right Jewish Israelis around the Old City, my colleagues reported. Among the hundreds injured were seven who were hospitalized in serious condition, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent. Video footage circulated on social media of Israeli police officers brutally beating a detained Palestinian man.



 .    ,      .       .                .          . pic.twitter.com/bh22ZSz3nF  Jack khoury.  (@KhJacki) May 10, 2021

In a State Department statement, the United States appealed for calm, urging de-escalation on all sides, while singling out Hamas for condemnation and defending Israels right to self-defense. This followed a previous statement after Israeli forces stormed the compound of the al-Aqsa Mosque, firing tear gas and stun grenades at hundreds gathered there both in protest and prayer, in which U.S. officials urged both sides to eschew unilateral actions. Palestinian protesters threw stones at police and some Jewish Israeli citizens, injuring a couple dozen Israelis. Meanwhile, the Palestinian Red Crescent said more than 600 Palestinians were injured in the Jerusalem altercations.



Israeli forces attack worshippers inside al-Masjid al-Qibli in al-Aqsa Mosque with stun grenades, effectively trapping hundreds of people inside, including many children#Jerusalem #Palestine #AlAqsa #Israel pic.twitter.com/lcv0ZSEtB2  Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) May 7, 2021

This terrorism is what the British media call clashes.



In reality it is a video of Israeli occupation forces attacking Palestinian Women at Jerusalem's Al Aqsa Mosque. #AlAqsaUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/0ZIy0Rv16a  Rachael Swindon (@Rachael_Swindon) May 10, 2021

The minute The most moral army in the world fired bombs at clinic full of doctors and patients inside Al-Aqsa #Mosque#AlAqsaUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/hlrzB1mVmx  Abier Khatib (@abierkhatib) May 7, 2021

To pro-Palestinian activists, the Biden administrations position reflects the broader legacy of U.S. policy in the region. A growing list of rights groups now see the status quo of Israeli military occupation over millions of Palestinians as tantamount to apartheid and see the United States as enabling a morally unacceptable status quo.



There is no both sides here, Jinan Deena, national organizer for the Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee, told the Middle East Eye. Palestinians are under occupation, and the United States has systematically supported this  whether through funding Israels military with our tax dollars or narratives such as this where blame is placed on both sides.

These conflicts could spiral out of control and kickstart a larger war (which America would be expected to fight).



Nonetheless, Israel told the Biden administration to "stay out" of it, according to Axios.





Israel warns Biden: Stay out of our business...but keep sending $3.8 Bil in military aid, & defend Israels apartheid statutes...even as Jewish extremists aim to blow up holy sites, provoke a religious war, as  lobbies Congress against a deal with Iran. https://t.co/nnRwOm2ZHy  Rula Jebreal (@rulajebreal) May 10, 2021



Of course, they'll demand we fight the war for them once a wider conflict breaks out!



Middle East Eye has a backgrounder on the latest battles:





Israel says it launched deadly airstrikes on #Gaza on Monday because of rockets fired at its cities by Hamas, but is the story really that simple?#AlAqsa #Israel #Palestine pic.twitter.com/3Pn0t73Gov  Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) May 11, 2021



Our tax money is funding all of this.





If I dont steal it, someone else is gonna steal it.



This is beyond horrifying. Please help in spreading awareness about the situation in Palestine. #SaveSheikhJarrah #SavePalestine pic.twitter.com/lpLj1tCPsx  femme fatale (@eliesaaab) May 10, 2021





"Twenty-four people, including nine children, were killed in Gaza overnight, most of them in Israeli strikes," the AP reported early Tuesday morning. "More than 700 Palestinians were hurt in clashes with Israeli security forces in Jerusalem and across the West Bank in 24 hours, including nearly 500 who were treated at hospitals. The Israeli military said six Israeli civilians were hurt by rocket fire Tuesday morning."





WATCH: Israel's Iron Dome Aerial Defense System intercepts barrage of rockets from Gaza pic.twitter.com/PEzUr5jWBj  Breaking911 (@Breaking911) May 10, 2021

WATCH THIS: Iron Dome missile defense system goes off during live TV broadcast in Southern Israel. More than 100 rockets have been fired from Gaza into Israel today.https://t.co/CuJU9bKUt9 pic.twitter.com/QU55NxoTwU  Breaking911 (@Breaking911) May 10, 2021



As a reminder, America had to abandon its Iron Dome project last year after Israel refused to share their source code for it with us (which was effectively paid for with our tax dollars).



Of course, the Palestinians have no protection at all (GRAPHIC):





#GAZAUNDERATTACK The Aftermath Of An Israeli Airstrikes On Beit Hanoun, Which Killed 9 Civilians, Including 3 Children.



Israel has continued to strike multiple sites, as its forces attack Palestinians in Al-Aqsa. Gaza's armed groups have just fired rockets again hitting Tel Aviv pic.twitter.com/5LjkrwszMl  Robert Inlakesh (@falasteen47) May 10, 2021



You can see the video uncensored here.





BREAKING: #GazaUnderAttack 22 Palestinian Now Confirmed Killed By Israeli Airstrikes Including 9 Children, 106+ Injured.



Heres how the MSM has been lying to you. Literally bare faced lies, an inversion of the truth. Not a single dead Israeli.



Disgraceful racist propagandists pic.twitter.com/OcR32nrbEB  Robert Inlakesh (@falasteen47) May 11, 2021

Israeli warplanes bombing targets in the heavily populated areas of the Gaza Strip just now.



More than 20 Palestinian civilians have been killed by Israeli warplanes in past 48 hours. pic.twitter.com/i3NI3Iav6B  CJ Werleman (@cjwerleman) May 11, 2021

NEW - VIDEO SHOWS ISRAELI AIRSTRIKE IN GAZA pic.twitter.com/iSyj03EVFu  Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) May 10, 2021

Listen to the fear in the voices of those children and women in Gaza who are being bombed by Israel right now.



New York Post: Hamas is terrorizing civilians in Gaza with airstrikespic.twitter.com/upO64SiJoR  Hadi Nasrallah (@HadiNasrallah) May 11, 2021

Israeli airstrikes near Jabalia in Gaza Strip.(R) pic.twitter.com/QWkD1shl9o  TIMES OF GAZA (@Timesofgaza) May 10, 2021



This was a remarkable demonstration of how propaganda and influence operations work:





Palestinians stone Israeli car, which crashes, as Jerusalem seethes https://t.co/GBcDfYh9zM pic.twitter.com/y3zJTRqy3s  Reuters (@Reuters) May 10, 2021

Great question pic.twitter.com/R4y0ClmS9I  Ana Olivia Saldanha (@anaolivias) May 10, 2021



Here's more context:





Israeli driver slams into Palestinians throwing rocks at his car. pic.twitter.com/nBDgwPDzyZ  Richard Hanania (@RichardHanania) May 10, 2021



Israel also bombed Syria on Monday night:





Syria says IDF chopper bombs site near border, 1 injured, in rare daytime strike https://t.co/XOeuZ0rzlD  The Times of Israel (@TimesofIsrael) May 10, 2021



State Department spokesman Ned Price on Monday defended Israel's "legitimate right to defend itself."





.@StateDeptSpox condemns in the strongest terms the barrage of rocket attacks fired in Israel in recent hours: The U.S. will remain fully engaged to promote calm in Jerusalem. pic.twitter.com/x0EaBU1pMX  Department of State (@StateDept) May 10, 2021



Price refused to say Palestinians have a right to defend themselves.



"I'm not in the position to debate the legalities from up here," Price said.





State Dept Spox, @nedprice, doesnt know if Palestinians have the right to defend themselves & is tongue-tied to condemn children killed in Gaza today by Israeli airstrikes.



Palestinians have the right to defend themselves and killing children is wrong.



Via The National pic.twitter.com/F0xg63cgcv  IMEU (@theIMEU) May 10, 2021



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WASHINGTON (Substack // Alex Rubinstein)  Andrew Yang made a name for himself during the 2020 Democratic presidential primary, primarily by being nothing like the other candidates. More interested in meme causes than bread and butter political causes, Yangs name was synonymous with the words outsider, memes, and math.

But how different was he, really?

Hours after it was reported that the Israeli apartheid regime had murdered nine Palestinian children in the Gaza ghetto, Yang tweeted his unquestioning support for Israel.

Im standing with the people of Israel who are coming under bombardment attacks, and condemn the Hamas terrorists, he wrote. The people of NYC will always stand with our brothers and sisters in Israel who face down terrorism and persevere.

Since Yangs tweet, the hashtag #YangSupportsGenocide has trended.

Many have brushed this off as cynical pandering to New York Citys large and politically powerful Jewish community, as Yang has gone from democratic primary laggard to frontrunner in the citys democratic mayoral primary.

Andrew Yang claims to value math.

So heres some 2014 data on

Palestinian vs Israeli Casualties 1500-6 CIVILIANS Killed

550-1 CHILDREN Killed Mr. Yang, what does the MATH tell you about who the terrorists are? https://t.co/LyMIyYBcqN  ChuckModi (@ChuckModi1) May 11, 2021

After all  Yang was known for his quirky remarks and millennial sensibilities, how could he take such a loathsome, if run-of-the-mill stance on this issue?

During his presidential campaign, his crowds were primed to chant Math! when he talked numbers. The Washington Post noted that he was a former gamer when he talked about regulating video game loot boxes. He was billed as the candidate for the end of the world. He made headlines for planning to campaign as a hologram. The New York Times said of the democratic field: Only one of them will be focused on the robot apocalypse. He made campaign stops at hip hop concerts. He was the only candidate to take a stance against circumcision, in favor of thorium reactors, and even promised to, as president, eliminate the penny and empower MMA fighters.

I support Yang  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 10, 2019

He even had the support of Silicon Valley oddball oligarchs like Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey.

In its typically stupid fashion, the media pontificated about whether Yang Gang was comprised of Gen Zers or White Nationalists.

Even though the Democratic field was crowded, it was clear that one of them was not like the others.

But when it came to foreign policy, a topic rarely discussed by Yang, he took standard democrat positions, much like his recent stance on Israel.

While he was praised by alternative media for signing a pledge to end the forever wars,  a nebulous term that coming out against provides enough wiggle room to get away with maintaining the status quo  the majority of his stated foreign policy positions arent so different from his former campaign rival Joe Biden.

.@AndrewYang ended his Manchester office opening by celebrating with whipped cream pic.twitter.com/Ud8byTiFn4  Christopher Donato (@chrisdonato04) December 3, 2019

Queried by the New York Times, Yang said that he would consider military force for a humanitarian intervention, that the United States should maintain its current level of military aid to Israel, that he does not support the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions movement, that Russia should be considered an adversary or enemy of the US, and that normalizing U.S.-China relations and trade should be contingent on Chinas closing its internment camps for Uighurs.

For the sake of brevity, Ill simply be sharing some quotes from the meme king himself. I wont be hyperlinking, as these quotes are all easy to find on Google:

China:

The treatment of the Uighurs in China is unacceptable, and we need to be a part of the chorus of voices across the world calling the situation out for what it is. Its also troubling to see China take a more aggressive stance throughout the region, whether towards Hong Kong, Taiwan, or in the South China Sea.

There are aspects of Chinese behavior that are deeply problematictheir piracy of intellectual property.  They have taken advantage of frameworks to their own benefit, and we havent had some of the same benefits.

Their system of government is becoming increasingly authoritarian as they develop more technologies that allow them to monitor and control their population. Its important that we work with our allies to combat the spread of this authoritarian capitalism, and provide a model for democratic capitalism.

We need to make sure China isnt stealing our IP or exporting their authoritarianism to other countries, and we must ensure that we have reliable access to rare earth metals.

I think most Americans stand in solidarity with the people of Hong Kong.

[We should use diplomacy] to build a coalition to help us put pressure on China in terms of the treatment of their ethnic minorities and whats going on in Hong Kong.

https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1140339167244824576

Russia:

Russian aggression in Ukraine is a blatant violation of international law, and we have the obligation to work with our allies to act.

Russian aggression is a destabilizing force, and we must work with our allies to project a strong and unified face against Russian expansionism.

The Russian interference in Ukrainian elections was a precursor to their interference in US elections.

Id say [to Russian President Vladimir Putin] Im sorry I beat your guy. Second I would say the days of meddling in American elections are over and we will take any undermining of our democratic as an act of hostility and aggression. The American people would back me on this, we know that theyve found an underbelly and theyve been clawing at it and it has made it so we cant even trust our own democracy.

We need to expand sanctions against Russia, and Putin and members of his government specifically through the Global Magnitsky Act, in order to pressure the country to play by international rules.

Bolivia:

Its hard to tell whether there was widespread fraud or interference in the last election.

Venezuela:

The United States must promote free and fair elections in Venezuela to determine their next leader. The most recent elections were obviously marred by fraud, intimidation, and voter suppression.

The United States must push with our allies for Maduro to step down, through diplomacy, and through sanctions targeted at Maduro and his supporters. We must also work with Guaido, and with him consider amnesty for some of Maduros military support to entice them to support Guaido as President of the National Assembly and interim President.

Iran:

Iran is a destabilizing force in the region.

We need to build on the [JCPOA] to get Iran to stop destabilizing the region, attacking our allies, funding terrorist organizations, and causing conflict in the Strait of Hormuz.

Israel:

Israel has been an important ally to the US, and it will continue to be an important ally. It is a democracy in a region where that is rare.

In addition to his response to the New York Times rejecting BDS, Andrew Yang recently wrote that not only is BDS rooted in antisemitic thought and history, hearkening back to fascist boycotts of Jewish businesses, its also a direct shot at New York Citys economy. Strong ties with Israel are essential for a global city such as ours, which boasts the highest Jewish population in the world outside of Israel.

Israelis dance, sing, cheer, and celebrate all while Israel brutalizes thousands of Palestinians, while settlers attempt to steal Palestinian homes in Sheikh Jarrah, and while Israel bombs Gaza, killing children. This is the lived reality of Palestinians under apartheid. pic.twitter.com/2YiPGDxxb9  IMEU (@theIMEU) May 10, 2021

In an interview with the alternative media show Secular Talk, Yang defended this position citing his on the record support for a two-state solution, which he characterized as a fairly mainstream perspective.

Heart rending- This little boy has lost his father and brother in the deadly attack by Israel.(R) pic.twitter.com/CzkCaOE9oR  TIMES OF GAZA (@Timesofgaza) May 11, 2021

Yang is absolutely correct that the two-state solution is mainstream: it is supported by everyone from former CIA Director John Brennan, who recently penned an op-ed in which he pushed it, to Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

"They have been fighting forever." "It's a centuries-old religious conflict." pic.twitter.com/EXXSE5NsL0  Alex Rubinstein (@RealAlexRubi) May 11, 2021

The two-state solution is an easy answer to a problem that few can bring themselves to admit. It gives Israelis control over the geographically and economically important areas while Palestinians get a Jackson Pollock-style archipelago of overpopulated safe havens with few natural resources. Any serious progressive, at this point, is advocating for a one-state solution with equal rights for all citizens, not a segregationist policy we could call Jafar Crow.

Death toll rises to 26 in Gaza after targeting an apartment in Gaza. pic.twitter.com/nzqbZavBjp  TIMES OF GAZA (@Timesofgaza) May 11, 2021

While Andrew Yang may not have much influence over US foreign policy should he get elected as Mayor of New York City, this kind of analysis of his positions was missing when it really mattered  while he was running for president. Yang enamored the left with his young and hip charade, popularizing fresh ideas like a universal basic income despite his mostly rotten, imperialist positions.

Because of the next to zero scrutiny the left gave to Yangs foreign policy positions until his tweet on Monday supporting Israel as it bombs Gaza, I thought it was important to revisit this history in hopes that it will inform us for the future. I also propose a new nickname for the mayoral candidate: Andrew Yangkee.

And with this nickname, I humbly put forward this offering to the meme king of 2020.

Feature photo | Credit | Alex Rubinstein

Alex Rubinstein is an independent reporter on Substack. You can subscribe to get free articles from him delivered to your inbox here, and if you want to support his journalism, which is never put behind a paywall, you can give a one-time donation to him through PayPal here or sustain his reporting through Patreon here.


12. 5. 2021 / Fabiano Golgo





This photo had to be smuggled out. It was taken on 17th April, 2021, but the photographer said he is now in hiding to avoid being targeted by the violent fans of the genocidal government of Christian fundamentalist autocratic president Jair Bolsonaro, who has been punishing anyone who dares to try to defend the native Indians of Brazil or the Amazonian rainforest's preservation. She is 8 years old and weighs 12 kilos.





This past Monday, a group of 20 illegal gold-diggers sailing in 7 boats ambushed the tribe of Palimiu, indiscriminately shooting towards all of them, including 57 children, killing five natives for no reason. The police refused to investigate the case. A few weeks ago, another 8 natives were killed by invaders and the police refused to even register the deaths.











She is malnourished. This girl is not the sole case. According to local native Indian informers, all children in the tribe Yanomami of Maimasi, in the federative state of Roraima, are in a similar situation, while the adults are also in poor health, without access to enough food because the area was invaded by 20 thousand white explorers after Bolsonaro lifted the laws and regulations that were used to punish invaders. The tribe has only 806 inhabitants. They are basically besieged not so differently as in Leningrad during the World War II, or the Gothic sieges of Rome in the 500s. As a consequence, the tribe is unable to hunt, fish or collect fruits from the forest because they are being hunted like animals by the invaders. And the police are not coming even to collect the murdered bodies, which are then not officially counted anywhere, keeping the genocide hidden.Gold diggers and wood exporters - whose exploits go mainly to Great Britain - are murdering native Indians without any consequence. Every time someone in Britain buys wooden furniture, there is a high possibility it indirectly came from the Amazon. And the Brits also consume mayonnaise, potato chips, batter for coating their horrific fried food, or even shampoo, all of which is made with palm oil that comes from these illegal settlements. Recent laws and regulations have failed to apply financial fines to anyone of those who were caught disrespecting the very timid and limited bans related to imports from Brazilian endangered areas, for the documentation is feeble and easy to falsify already before leaving the tropics.The organization that was created to PROTECT the natives, called Funai (National Foundation for the Indians), is now ATTACKING them. In an Orwellian twist, they are now suing natives who denounce murders and even called the federal police to arrest two native Indian leaders who criticized Bolsonaro on their social media! The foundation also promoted the illegal surveillance of the cell phones of Almir Surui, who is the leader of the natives of the North region, and Sonia Guajajara, who was a vice-presidential candidate nominated by the Green Party in a coalition with a small social-democratic party. They were both summoned to the police station to be interrogated about their criticisms of the president. Guajajara, for having criticized Bolsonaro in Europe, is to be persecuted for international defamation of the country, a crime similar to treason.It's open hunt season against the native Indians. While autocratic populists are taking advantage of the fatigue and impotence created by the pandemic and going ahead with their geopolitical advances and discriminatory prejudiced lawmaking, Bolsonaro is finishing up the ethnic cleansing that was attempted by the military dictatorship (1964-1985), which wanted to decimate the indigenous people to turn the Amazon into a money-making Eldorado. Pressure from the Jimmy Carter government, with sanctions and embargo threats, forced the military to cancel their "asphaltization" of the rainforest and a young Bolsonaro, who had been already lined up to a "mission" in the Amazon, saw it canceled in 1978 because of the American president's demand.Bolsonaro said last week, in a meeting with agricultural industry leaders, that his government will make sure that the native Indians join the exploration, production and sales of goods that their land has to offer and that he will continue to forgive and forbid any fines, and act against police or court procedures aimed at those who want to "work together with the natives to make money, to get a better life - nobody wants to live among trees, they also want cars and apartments like us, but the Europeans force them to live like wild animals by insisting they keep their traditions, which led to nothing but poverty. No, no, no! They are Brazilians like you and me and they will be like all of us, not like those foreigners want them to be. The Amazon doesn't belong to them, it belongs to us. Not to the natives, not the Europeans, not the Americans, but to us, all of us. Gentlemen, go ahead, the days of the criminalization of progress are over".
New Mayor Daniel Biss was asking the freshly-sworn-in council members if they had anything to report for Call of the Wards, which typically happens at the end of each meeting. Most used the time to thank their families and campaign staff, and share their excitement for the new term.


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Sara Caplan 20 works at Hall-Dale Middle School teaching sixth, seventh, and eighth-grade social studies with the mentorship of teachers Scott Bell and Amelia Clukey. She was inspired to teach during a summer job she got in high school in a charter school in Harlem. She fell in love with teaching and has been working towards a career in education ever since. Though she admits this has been a difficult year for both educators and students, she feels that it has not inhibited her ability to build relationships with students and have really meaningful moments of interaction, instruction, and fun with them. She has also learned that kids are a lot stronger than many give them credit for.

Bridget Hoke 20 is teaching ninth-grade English at South Portland High School with the mentorship of Tasha Graff 07. She was inspired to teach by the compassionate, brilliant teachers she has had throughout her life. Hybrid teaching, in her words, is the juggling act of the century. Though it has been a difficult experience, it has taught her to value resilience. The in-person experience she has had so far with students alongside the support she has received from her mentor and Bowdoin professors have made teaching during this time a lot more manageable and have helped her to stay motivated.

Two scholars, Jamaica White 20 and Brianna Moore 21, have a unique assignment co-teaching ninth-grade social studies at Casco Bay High School under the mentorship of Matt Bernstein 13 (BTS 13).

Jamaica did not consider a career in teaching until she combined her love of history with the study of education and had more opportunities to spend time in schools through her education classes. Virtual teaching has pushed her to think of interactive and engaging lessons. The moments when students who had previously found school uninteresting became intrigued due to these lessons have allowed her to stay motivated. The support from BTS has also been a substantial help. Through it, she has learned about the value of asking for assistance and guidance when needed.

Brianna has always had a love for learning and teaching allows her to combine this love with her passion for working with youth. Teaching online has been challenging, but it has pushed her to be more creative and adaptable in not only instruction but also in building rapport with students and she has been able to remain motivated through the support of her BTS cohort. The pandemic teaching experience has taught her that there is no perfect teacher, but instead educators who are constantly growing and adapting to best meet the needs of their students.

Tia Hannah 21 teaches English literature at Brunswick Junior High School with the mentorship of Danielle LeBlanc. She did not envision herself as a teacher until she began to take education classes at Bowdoin. As she explains, I had always been passionate about educational equity and deeply enjoyed working with students of all ages, but the aspect of occupational professionalism only became clear to me after I began exploring the political dilemmas and logistic dimensions of teaching. The challenge presented by the pandemic, along with the opportunity to problem-solve with more seasoned educators, has empowered her to take risks in her own teaching and be unafraid to embrace challenges in the classroom. Through this experience, she has learned that A positive outlook, the cultivation of meaningful relationships with students, and endless cheer are as important in a teacher's toolkit as any lesson plan.

To learn more about BTS or the education department at Bowdoin, see this link.

Thank you to the current BTS cohort and the Education staff for their work! Special recognition for professors Lauren Stark and Alison Miller, who are teaching the BTS seminar this semester and advising BTS students, and Laura Sweet who coordinates all of the field placements.
I heard the last northern white rhino had died in 2018, Fuller said. I wanted to create a piece of art that would make more people aware of the extinction of animals by human activity. It inflates and deflates on a three-minute cycle. That is to show the glory and the magnificence of the animal  what it once was. And then when it deflates, it shows the decline and extinction of the animal.
Village officials opposed the widening of I-294 from four lanes to six lanes in each direction past Hinsdale and Western Springs, and especially dreaded the loss of the oasis, because the restaurants and other businesses there are the largest sales tax producers in the village. They generate a total of about $550,000 a year, Posthuma said at the May 4 Village Board meeting.
The province is ramping up its efforts in issuing fines and warnings to people violating public health orders. Here's a breakdown of the fines:

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The province is ramping up its efforts in issuing fines and warnings to people violating public health orders. Here's a breakdown of the fines:

- 97 warnings and 60 tickets iwere issued for the week of May 3 to 9:

- 50 tickets worth $1,296 each were issued to people for various offences

- Nine tickets worth $298 each were issued to people who refused to wear a mask indoors in public places and

- One ticket was issued to a business for $5,000

Gatherings in private residences made up the bulk of the tickets issued as 47 were handed out for a total of $60,912 in fines. Three tickets totalling just under $4,000 were handed out to people failing to self isolate.

Large gatherings and rallies were on Manitoba Justices radar screen as follow up and investigations took place once they became aware of them with a total of 32 tickets totalling $41,472 issued. This includes two tickets from the Winkler rally on May 1, eight tickets from The Forks rally on May 2, and 22 tickets from the Law Courts rally on May 3. Investigations are ongoing and additional charges are expected.

In order to strengthen the provincial public health orders, the province has taken steps to amend the Preset Fines and Offence Descriptions Regulation and the Provincial Offences General Regulation under the Provincial Offences General Regulation under the Provincial Offences Act.

Those steps include increasing provincial fines for people who receive more than two or more tickets for failing to wear a mask from $298 to $486. People receiving fines for two or more tickets who were fined $1,296 in the past will now see the fine increased to $2,542.

The fine for failure to pay a ticket has increased from $50 to $100.

Travellers arriving in the Winnipeg International Airport are still being greeted by Commissionaires Manitoba and reminded to self isolate.

There are almost 3,300 enforcement personnel across the province capable of enforcing public health orders.

Since April 2020, there have been 4,105 warnings and 1,354 tickets issue with a total of $1.8 million in fines to businesses and individuals.

TheBrandonSun
As COVID-19 vaccine supplies ramp up across the country, most provinces and territories have released details of who can expect to receive a shot in the coming weeks.

As COVID-19 vaccine supplies ramp up across the country, most provinces and territories have released details of who can expect to receive a shot in the coming weeks.

The military commander handling logistics for Canada's vaccine distribution program says there will be enough vaccine delivered to give a first dose before Canada Day to every Canadian over the age of 12.

Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin says that's if provinces follow the advice to delay second doses up to four months.

He also cautions that it is dependent on having no production delays again.

Health Canada currently expects 23 million doses of Pfizer (20.2 million), Moderna (2.1 million) and Oxford-AstraZeneca (1.65 million) in May and June. Another six to eight million doses of Moderna are expected but the company hasnt confirmed exactly what it can ship as it is plagued by ongoing production delays.

Provinces initially suspended giving AstraZeneca shots to people under the age of 55 based on an advisory committee's advice, but their recommendation changed on April 23 to reflect that the shot is safe for anyone aged 30 and older.

Health Canada authorized the Pfizer vaccine for children between 12 and 15 on May 5, the first vaccine approved for kids that young. It had already been authorized for people at least 16 years old, while the other vaccines are all authorized for people at least 18 years old.

There are almost 33 million Canadians over the age of 12.

Here's a list of the inoculation plans throughout Canada:

Newfoundland and Labrador

Residents aged 55 to 64 have access to the AstraZeneca vaccine.

People 55 and older, Indigenous adults, people considered clinically extremely vulnerable and rotational workers, truck drivers and flight crew have access to the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

Nova Scotia

Appointments are now available for people aged 45 and older for the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines.

Appointments are open for the province's first drive-thru vaccination clinic beginning today May 10 at the Dartmouth General Hospital.

The province has also expanded access to the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine to residents aged 40 to 64.

Prince Edward Island

People in the province aged 30 and older can now book appointments for a COVID-19 vaccine.

The eligibility age for booking appointments will be lowered to 16 on today, May 10.

People 16 and older who have certain underlying medical conditions, pregnant woman and eligible members of their household can also get a vaccine.

Also beginning today 10 people aged 50 and older who want the Moderna vaccine can book an appointment with partner pharmacies. On May 24 the age eligibility will be lowered to 40.

People 55 and up who want the Astrazeneca vaccine can now book appointments with partner pharmacies.

New Brunswick

As of May 4, access to COVID-19 vaccines was expanded to people as young as 50.

Individuals 12 and older who have two or more select chronic health conditions are also eligible.

Officials said the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine would be available to people aged 40 to 54 by April 30.

Quebec

Quebec lowered the age of vaccine eligibility to 35 on May 6, and has promised to open appointments to all adults by mid-May.

The province previously announced that it is gradually widening vaccine access to the rest of the general population in descending order of age.

Appointments will open to Quebecers in descending order of age  dropping by five years every two or three days  until May 14, when they will be available to people aged 18 to 24.

The province's health minister says Quebecers 12 to 17 years old will be offered a first dose of COVID-19 by the end of June and will be fully vaccinated by the time they return to school in September.

Quebec has also expanded AstraZeneca availability to people as young as 45.

Ontario

The Ontario government is expanding access to COVID-19 vaccines across the province.

It lowered vaccine eligibility for several groups on May 6  residents aged 50 and older, those with high-risk health conditions and a number of employees who cannot work from home all became eligible.

The newly eligible workers include those in the education, child-care, food and manufacturing sectors.

The province plans to further lower the minimum age for vaccine eligibility to 40 in the coming days.

In the meantime, people aged 18 and up can now book vaccine appointments if they live in hot-spot postal codes.

Peel Region, which has been hard-hit by the virus, is offering vaccines to all residents aged 18 and older  not just those in hot-spot neighbourhoods.

Nearly 150 pharmacies are now offering COVID-19 vaccines to all adults in virus hot spots across the province.

Ontario says it expects 65 per cent of adults to have their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by the end of May.

The province has also said that if the vaccine supply holds, it expects to make those 18 and older eligible for a shot at mass sites provincewide on the week of May 24.

Manitoba

Manitoba is using the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for all Indigenous people aged 18 and up and others aged 35 and up. These are available through a few channels including so-called supersites in larger communities. Health officials plan to continue reducing the age minimum, bit by bit, down to age 12 by May 21.

All front-line police officers and firefighters, regardless of age, are already eligible. All adults who are pregnant, who receive community living disability services or who work in any health-care setting  including outpatient locations and the province's vaccine warehouse  can book an appointment as well

The province is also allowing anyone 40 and over to get an Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine through pharmacies and medical clinics, subject to availability. People 30-39 can get a shot if they have certain underlying health conditions such as chronic liver failure or severe obesity.

The province is also vaccinating all adults in high-risk areas, including the north of the province and many neighbourhoods in Winnipeg and Brandon.

Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan residents aged 29 and older are now eligible to book their first COVID-19 vaccine appointment.

And that age threshold will lower to 26 on Wednesday, and to 23 on Friday May 14.

All adults in the Far North, as well as front-line workers with proof of employment, are also eligible.

The province previously expanded its vaccine delivery plan for people in more vulnerable groups to include all pregnant women and 16- and 17-year-olds who are considered clinically extremely vulnerable.

Saskatchewan also dropped the age at which people can receive the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine to 40 from 55.

The province says all Saskatchewan residents over the age of 12 will be eligible for vaccination by May 20.

Officials say most Saskatchewan residents over the age of 18 can expect their first shot by the end of May.

There are drive-thru and walk-in vaccination clinics in communities across the province. And there are plans to expand the province's pharmacy vaccination pilot rollout as more doses become available.

Alberta

Every Albertan aged 30 and older is now eligible for a vaccine. And starting today, May 10, the eligibility age drops to 12.

For the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, the province lowered the minimum age to 40 from 55. For those living in the hot spots of Banff and Lake Louise as well as the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo, the age for AstraZeneca is 30.

More than 250 pharmacies are offering immunizations. Ten physicians clinics across the province are also providing shots as part of a pilot project.

About 15,000 workers at 136 meat-packing plants across the province can also get shots at on-site clinics, pharmacies and clinics.

Alberta has said it is extending the time between the first dose and the second to four months. But some cancer patients are able to book a second dose 21 to 28 days after their first.

British Columbia

The province is joining other jurisdictions in Canada in possibly making the Pfizer vaccine available to 12- to 17-year-olds.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says the government is looking at ways to immunize young people with their first dose by the end of June now that Health Canada has approved the Pfizer vaccine for those 12 and older.

British Columbia health officials are also looking at whether they can reduce the 16-week wait time between first and second shots for most people with more vaccines arriving this month.

All adults over the age of 18 are eligible to register for vaccines through the province's Get Vaccinated program, with people 40 and older being invited to book appointments as early as next week.

B.C. has lowered the age for those eligible to receive the AstraZeneca shot to 30, starting with those in 'hot spot' communities and adding appointments at pharmacies as supplies improve.

The Fraser Health region, where COVID-19 cases are the highest in the province, is offering all grocery workers 18 and over to get immunized with either Pfizer or Moderna vaccines. It says the workers need to provide proof of their employment when they arrive for an appointment.

Nunavut

Nunavut has opened vaccinations to anyone 18 and older.

It is also offering shots to rotational workers coming from southern Canada.

The territory had expected to finish its vaccine rollout of first and second doses by the end of April.

Northwest Territories

The Northwest Territories is now offering vaccinations to young people aged 12 to 17.

The territory, which has only been using the Moderna vaccine, recently exchanged some of that for doses of the Pfizer product, which Health Canada has now approved for anyone as young as 12.

The government says just over 1,100 Pfizer doses arrived in the territory from British Columbia on May 4.

The Pfizer vaccine will be available through online bookings for 12- to 17-year-olds in the capital.

It will not be offered to adults in the territory, but the Moderna vaccine is still available.

Yukon

Yukon residents aged 18 and older, with a few exceptions, are now eligible to receive vaccinations.

More than 55 per cent of the territory's population has now been fully vaccinated.

Health officials say that means they can reduce the hours of operation at the Whitehorse vaccine clinic.

Deputy health minister Stephen Samis says they'll scale down operations and focus some efforts on other vaccinations, including pre-kindergarten and routine childhood vaccines.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 10, 2021.
God is being Zoomed, livestreamed, Instagrammed, tweeted, Facebooked and YouTubed into peoples homes across Brandon, Souris and CFB Shilo from at least five different churches since COVID-19 entered the province.

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God is being Zoomed, livestreamed, Instagrammed, tweeted, Facebooked and YouTubed into peoples homes across Brandon, Souris and CFB Shilo from at least five different churches since COVID-19 entered the province.

Ministers and pastors have adapted, accommodated, learned new skills, purchased new equipment, mailed cards and telephoned their flocks.

Jonathon Hoskin is the minister at St. Georges Anglican Church in Brandon and St. Lukes Church in Souris. (Kimberley Kielley/Brandon Sun)

Whatever it takes to stay connected to the congregation. Its a small price to pay considering the consequences.

Anglican minister Jonathon Hoskin has been the rector of St. Georges Anglican Church for just over four years. He is the minister of St. Lukes Anglican Church in Souris as well.

"When the pandemic hit the first time, March 22 was the last Sunday we were together," he told The Sun in a telephone interview.

At the time, Hoskin was mildly familiar with Zoom. Seven days later, he held their first meeting.

There were some bugs that needed ironing out in the beginning, he said.

"The first couple of weeks, we had hiccups. We didnt have a set way to go about it. If everyones microphone is on but not at the same speed, Ill hear garbled responses."

And if someone blows their nose? Well, everyone hears it, he chuckled.

"We weathered those things at first."

But he has embraced technology, learning the ropes as he went along with a little help along the way.

A new webcam, auxiliary microphone, livestreaming, Zooming. The learning curve has been steep. But there are silver linings to this cloud, Hoskin said.

"The organist plays her grand piano at home for everyone. Occasionally her daughter will sing with her."

Being in his congregations living rooms while they participate in the sermon is an upside.

"I feel really privileged to be working with people at a time like this."

Another silver lining? The numbers of participants have increased in the virtual sermons, Hoskin said.

He calls it a "hybrid congregation."

A former RCMP chaplain for 10 years, Hoskin is pretty invested in being on the right side of the law. He knows when the right to worship is being impeded. Hes not sure those rights are being violated in the current situation where several Manitoba churches are in provincial court challenging the COVID-19 public health restrictions. They claim their religious freedoms are being violated.

"Is it lamentable that things arent normal? Absolutely. Its not nice," he said. "It behooves us to work within the system. Nobody said Christians cant worship God. These public health orders are our limits."

The pastor at McDiarmid Drive Alliance Church, Daryl McAuley, cant imagine what the landscape of worship would look like in a pandemic if it had happened five years ago. Livestreaming his service, he said it takes a handful of volunteers to make it happen. Without social media to send the message out, McAuley knows there are people who would fall between the cracks. At times, he has resorted to old-fashioned letters and telephone calls to members of his congregation who dont have supportive technology.

However, he cites the 101-year-old lady who tunes into church service with her iPad, and technology has allowed McAuley to reach 48 countries, he said.

"Its allowed Christians around the world to worship."

Over at Grand Valley Church in Brandon, pastor Brian McNarry said his church has embraced technology to offer the congregation virtual sermons, support groups and just checking in on his flock. When technology cant fill the gap, he relies on letters, Canada Post and telephone calls.

"For us, we give up what we like  of meeting in person  and we learn new skills and we do the work of figuring out how to remain connected and are there for one and other," he said. "At some point, these restrictions will be a thing of the past." As well, he said, despite having the legal right to challenge the law, "as followers of Jesus, we actually live and have citizenship, that we are also accountable to."

At CFB Shilo, Our Lady of Shilo conducts coffee fellowship meetings and bible study classes via online platforms. St. Barbaras Protestant chapel Easter service was livestreamed, according to provincial restrictions, said Public Affairs Officer Lori Truscott.

Finally, at the non-denominational Cities Church on Eighth Street, theyve embraced social media to get their message out and support their followers, said assistant pastor Faith Beswitherick.

 kkielley@brandonsun.com
A pilot project in Brandon to help people test for fentanyl before taking drugs has expanded across the province.

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A pilot project in Brandon to help people test for fentanyl before taking drugs has expanded across the province.

The project, started by the Manitoba Harm Reduction Network, supplies people who use drugs with testing strips, which can be used to test for fentanyl in substances, network co-ordinator Solange Machado said.

The project started in December 2020, Machado said, when more fentanyl started appearing on the street. The opioid is extremely potent and was being used to cut other substances when drug supplies were disrupted by COVID-19.

"We saw instances of overdoses and overdose deaths skyrocketing, so we saw there was a need," she said.

"We did it pretty quickly, ordered a bunch of fentanyl test strips and got them out as quickly as we could."

The strips allow people to test for fentanyl in the substance they are using. Machado said people can combine a small amount of the substance with water and dunk the strip in it. If the strip shows one line, it means there is fentanyl in it, but two lines mean it is fentanyl-free.

After doing the test, people can decide how to proceed, she said.

"This gives people the autonomy to make the decision from there, like maybe Im not going to use this substance because I found there was fentanyl or maybe Im still going to use it, but use it a little bit differently, use less than I was planning or make sure Im not using alone or have a Naolxone kit present," she said.

Many tests come back positive, according to the data Machado has gathered so far. She said the majority of "down," which is heroin mixed with another substance, comes back positive. Fentanyl is also showing up in the citys methamphetamine.

"Ive had people still continue to use the down or drugs containing fentanyl, theyre just using it differently  being prepared for if they were to have an overdose," she said.

A total of 12 people died from drug overdoses in 2020 in Brandon, compared to seven people in 2019, according to numbers provided by the Brandon Police Service.

Trips to the hospital after consuming drugs rose province-wide, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

Hospitalizations rose 19 per cent overall in Manitoba over the first six months of the pandemic, including a 28 per cent increase for hospitalizations after taking opioids.

Machado said the Manitoba Harm Reduction Network is in the middle of the pilot project, which is planned to continue until her supply of testing strips has been used up. The goal is to use the information to make the strips more widely available in harm reduction bags.

So far, the fentanyl strip program has been expanded to Winnipeg, Selkirk, The Pas, Flin Flon and Eriksdale-Ashern, Machado said. The pilot was first launched in Selkirk, but relaunched in Brandon late last year before the current expansion.

The goal is to have the strips readily available to anyone who wants them.

While demand for the strips was very high at the beginning of the pilot, it has started to die down in the past month, she said. While Machado said she is not entirely sure what that means to the citys drug supply, it could mean there is less fentanyl circulating.

Brandon Overdose Awareness chair Antoinette Gravel-Ouellette told the Sun last week the ability for people to test substances before taking them is "huge," as so many things are being cut with fentanyl.

"People may be unaware that is part of the substance they are taking," she said.

While demand for testing strips appears to have done down in the past month, Machado said they are still available from Manitoba Harm Reduction Network workers.

 dmay@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @DrewMay_
After travelling to Edmonton in 2018 to sell guns reported stolen in Brandon, Mathieu Plamondon was found guilty of weapons trafficking on Monday.

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After travelling to Edmonton in 2018 to sell guns reported stolen in Brandon, Mathieu Plamondon was found guilty of weapons trafficking on Monday.

Prior to delivering her reason for the decision, Judge Shauna Hewitt-Michta took a moment to break the news to the accused rather than have him wait until the end of her 45-minute statement.

"Im sorry, the decision does not go in your favour this afternoon," she said  news Plamondon appeared to take calmly.

Plamondons co-accused stole guns from his own father in Brandon, the court heard during the judges comments, and conspired with Plamondon to sell them.

The co-accused has pleaded guilty, and a sentencing date will be established for both him and Plamondon on May 17. A publication ban was placed on the name of the co-accused earlier in court proceedings, but he is likely to be named upon their next court appearance.

May 17 also marks exactly three years since a housekeeper at an Edmonton hotel discovered a gun registered to the co-accuseds father while tidying up a room.

Police traced the gun to its registered owner, who suspected his son had stolen it. The father reported loaning his truck to his son to travel to Edmonton and identified the person who checked in and paid the hotel rooms deposit as his sons domestic partner.

Plamondon was at the centre of a 10-day trial held in Brandon in February, during which 25 witnesses were heard.

It was not an easy case, Hewitt-Michta said before reading her decision on Monday.

In her decision, she said: "The totality of the evidence proved beyond any reasonable doubt Plamondon engaged in weapons trafficking in May (2018) when he communicated serious offers to transfer firearms, transported them to Alberta for purposes of peddling them, and did in fact sell both restricted and non-restricted firearms without authorization."

The Crowns case against Plamondon didnt come down to any one piece of evidence, but "the cumulative impact of all the evidence in its entirety," she said.

During her testimony, Plamondons former girlfriend testified Plamondon and the co-accused hatched a scheme wherein Plamondon would find buyers for firearms supplied by the co-accused.

The former girlfriends testimony, text messages between Plamondon and others involved in the scheme, CCTV footage at an Edmonton hotel and Plamondons admissions to police upon his arrest contributed to the guilty verdict.

A total of 18 guns were reported stolen from the co-accuseds father, including the Norinco 9mm handgun the housekeeper discovered in Edmonton, 15 other restricted firearms and two non-restricted firearms.

Although not all of these guns were recovered, several were identified by their rightful owner and his daughter via photographs extracted from Plamondons phone. Police recovered one of the stolen firearms during an unrelated investigation in Prince Albert, Sask., in August 2018.

While the sale of the guns took place in Alberta, Hewitt-Michta said enough had occurred in Manitoba for the court to retain jurisdiction. This included the co-accuseds theft of the firearms, Plamondon and the co-accused hatching a plan to sell the firearms, Plamondon taking photos of the firearms and sending them to a prospective buyer, and Plamondon taking possession of the firearms from his co-accused and transporting the guns out of province.

In her conclusion, Hewitt-Michta said the Crown proved beyond a reasonable doubt Plamondon conspired with the co-accused to commit the indictable offence of weapons trafficking.

Further, she said, "He possessed restricted and non-restricted firearms for the purposes of unlawful transfer; and that he trafficked restricted and non-restricted firearms knowing he was not authorized to do so."

 tclarke@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @TylerClarkeMB
Premier Brian Pallister announced a new round of funding to help businesses through their third lockdown on Monday morning as he implored Manitobans to get vaccinated.

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Premier Brian Pallister announced a new round of funding to help businesses through their third lockdown on Monday morning as he implored Manitobans to get vaccinated.

Manitoba is again extending funding for the Manitoba Bridge Grant as many businesses shutter for the third time.

The province is making a fourth round of $5,000 payments available to businesses and organizations through the current wave of COVID-19, but also boosting payments to restaurants, Pallister announced Monday morning.

The news comes on the heels of new health restrictions announced on Friday, which severely limit capacity in retail stores, close fitness centres and shut down dine-in service at restaurants.

"We know we cannot possibly make up for the hardships that have devastated our country, our world, as a result of this pandemic," Pallister said.

"But what we can do is offer significant financial support to help bridge through this challenging time and get you ready to do the things you want to do as we are able to get more vaccinations and, through adhering to the public health rules, as we are able to reopen in the not-too-distant future, we all hope," he said.

Businesses that received prior bridge grant payments will automatically receive another $5,000 as early as Friday, according to a press release. The payments are not loans and dont have to be repaid by those who receive them.

The announcement of new health orders, which came into effect at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday  Mothers Day  was done out of a sense of urgency, Pallister said.

"For that, I am not going to apologize. Im going to say we had to act, we chose to act and we believe we did the right thing," he said.

As a result, the province is boosting the grant amount for restaurants by $2,000, for a total payment of $7,000.

The money is to help cover the cost of food waste, wages and maintenance. According to the province, approximately 1,800 restaurants are eligible for the top-up.

An additional $2 million will also be provided to the Dine-In Restaurant Relief Program to help restaurants shift to delivery.

Supports to other industries affected by the new health orders, such as fitness centres, arent off the table, Pallister said.

The announcement of more Manitoba Bridge Grant funding was welcome news for businesses after the "gut-wrenching" feeling of another shutdown, Brandon Chamber of Commerce president Spencer Day said.

Businesses needed to be compensated when faced with being closed for three weeks, and the money will help them make it through the end of the month, he said.

"They needed to get that out quick with how short a notice they had given everyone to shut down. The amount of staff that have been laid off today (Monday) in the conversations Ive had is heartbreaking  a lot of long faces and a lot of difficult conversations today," he said.

While the one-size fits all approach to the grant is helpful to get the funding out quickly, more industry-specific funding is needed. Businesses also appreciate the move to automatically give a fourth round of funding to businesses who have received it in the past, Day said.

Pallister said multiple times throughout the Monday press conference that vaccines are a critical part of getting out of the third wave, saying the future is in Manitobans hands.

"We didnt have vaccines in the second wave, not to any degree  We can pull together, weve done it before, we bent that wave before and that was without a lot of vaccinations being done," he said.

The Sun asked if there was a vaccination threshold the province was looking for to lift restrictions. Pallister said he wants to see a roadmap laid out to give people hope, but didnt offer any details.

"Manitobans arent up for easy things. Were up for challenges, and were up for this one, too. Weve done it before, weve done it in tougher times. Now, we have a chance to do it when we have a vaccine available and thats a great opportunity to show what were about here in Manitoba," he said.

Day said vaccinations are the fastest way to get life back to normal, adding he has an appointment scheduled for his own.

"The faster that we all get vaccinated, the faster were going to have return to normalcy."

 dmay@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @DrewMay_
OTTAWA - Advocates are calling on the federal government and the City of Vancouver to halt the march toward possible drug decriminalization in the city, saying the process excludes users and demands a do-over.

Minister of Health Patty Hajdu responds to a question during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

OTTAWA - Advocates are calling on the federal government and the City of Vancouver to halt the march toward possible drug decriminalization in the city, saying the process excludes users and demands a do-over.

In a letter to federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu and the Vancouver and British Columbia working groups on decriminalization, a coalition of 15 organizations said the current proposal must be scrapped immediately or risks reproducing the harms of prohibition.

"We cannot abide by the phony 'Vancouver Model' of decriminalization and refuse to be tokenized in petty political bids," reads the letter from groups representing users.

"We want decriminalization  but on our terms, not the terms of the police and politicians."

The group says police have an oversized role in developing the so-called Vancouver model and that the thresholds that define simple possession are too low in the latest submission to Ottawa.

The letter comes after the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users' (VANDU) board of directors resigned from the city's decriminalization working group Monday. A morning meeting between the working group and Health Canada officials confirmed that the board's input "is not being taken seriously," VANDU said in a statement.

The open letter also comes ahead of a planned submission on decriminalization to the federal Health Department this Friday.

Health Canada is currently working with Vancouver on the city's request for exemption from criminal provisions on simple possession of small amounts of drugs.

Vancouver has been the epicentre of an opioid crisis that saw B.C. record 1,176 illicit drug overdose deaths in 2020  the highest ever in a single year  and more than 7,000 deaths since a public health emergency was declared in April 2016.

Mayor Kennedy Stewart said officials "respect the views of VANDU and other groups."

"The proposed thresholds are a starting point and will be monitored and evaluated as more data become available," Stewart said in a statement.

He said the city's application to Health Canada is grounded in local data  though VANDU argues the figures are outdated  and aimed at reducing stigma to achieve a "fully health-focused approach to substance use."

"As with many pioneering projects, efforts must be made to find consensus between a variety of groups with often vastly differing opinions," Stewart added.

In an emailed statement, Hajdu stressed that "substance use is a health issue, not a moral one." Police are among the "relevant stakeholders," along with Vancouver Coastal Health, the city and the province, she said.

The coalition is demanding the Vancouver Police Department take a backseat in discussions and asking the city to raise the proposed drug thresholds from a supposed three-day supply.

"The police and city officials and health officials go off into a room and prepare something and then they show it to us as theyre about to send it to Health Canada," said VANDU representative Garth Mullins in a news conference Tuesday.

"That is a focus group ... That is not co-design," he said. "That is a decriminalization regime designed by and for police, and it is a Trojan horse to recriminalize us on the other side of its implementation."

Caitlin Shane, a lawyer at the Vancouver-based Pivot Legal Society, worries that a defectivedecriminalization model could set a harmful precedent for jurisdictions across the country.

Lower thresholds on what constitutes simple possession  rather than possession for the purpose of trafficking  mean users cannot buy multiple days supply in one purchase without violating the Criminal Code.

It could also necessitate more frequent interaction with dealers, along with the attendant danger, Shane said.

"These thresholds mean that we are actually incentivizing people to engage with that criminal system more frequently because they are unable to purchase in larger amounts."

Drug users also face greater dangers as the third wave of COVID-19 forces harm reduction sites and outreach programs to curtail their services, leaving at-risk communities out in the cold.

In B.C., deaths linked to the synthetic opioid fentanyl had been on the decline for more than a year until April 2020, when monthly numbers routinely began to double those of 2019.

Opioid-related deaths countrywide could climb as high as 2,000 per quarter in the first half of 2021, far surpassing the peak of nearly 1,200 in the last three months of 2018, according to modelling from the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Canada's ongoing border restrictions have disrupted the flow of illicit drugs, and dealers looking to stretch their limited supplies are more apt to add potentially toxic adulterants.

Benzodiazepines have been detected in drugs circulating in parts of several provinces. Users can be difficult to rouse and slow to respond to naloxone  the drug that reverses opioid overdoses  and more likely to overdose when fentanyl or other opioids are also in the mix.

Richard Elliott, executive director of the HIV Legal Network, said decriminalization helps to remove stigma and barriers to services. But safe supply and treatment programs also make up a key part of the equation, "especially if people's use patterns are being affected by restrictions and by changes in the drug market," he said in an interview.

The B.C. government have made several commitments to helping drug users  Vancouver is also pushing to enhance safe supply  with some supervised consumption sites in the province as well as overdose prevention sites in many cities.

Hajdu said the federal government's focus on harm reduction includes its support for the 2017 Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act, which exempts people from charges after they call 911 during an overdose. The Liberal government has also funded programs that seek to divert users from the criminal justice system and enhance access to safe consumption sites and treatment options, she noted.

Ottawa's work on the decriminalization file is "guided by the health needs of people who use substances" as well as recommendations from the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and federal prosecutors, she added.

B.C. is preparing its own provincewide application for exclusion from the rules around simple possession  illegal under the Criminal Code, but open to exemption along with other provisions of the Controlled Drugs and Substances "if, in the opinion of the minister, the exemption is ... in the public interest," the legislation reads.

"Our approach will seek input from many different groups including people with lived/living experience, frontline service workers and health care professionals, and chiefs of police," the B.C. Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions said in an email.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.
The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada (all times eastern):

The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada (all times eastern):

7:10 p.m.

British Columbia is reporting 515 new COVID-19 cases, continuing a downward trend at the same time that vaccinations are on the rise.

Health officials say in a news release that 6,020 people have active infections, 426 of whom are hospitalized, including 141 in intensive care.

Two more people have died, bringing the death toll to 1,624.

More than 2.2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, 110,516 of which were second doses.

7 p.m.

Yukon is reporting two more cases of COVID-19, bringing the territory's total case count to 84 since the pandemic began.

A statement from chief public health officer Dr. Brendan Hanley says case 83 is related to international travel.

He says the other case is a resident who acquired the infection out of territory and will remain out of Yukon until they are non-infectious.

Yukon said last week it will allow travellers into the territory starting May 25 if they can prove they've been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

5:40 p.m.

Alberta is reporting 1,449 new cases of COVID-19 and three more deaths linked to the virus.

There are currently 24,998 active infections in the province.

There are 705 people in hospital due to COVID-19, with 163 in intensive care.

4:50 p.m.

Ontario says it will stop giving out first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine for now due to an increased risk of a rare blood-clotting syndrome linked to the shot.

The province's top doctor says the decision was made out of "an abundance of caution."

Dr. David Williams says Ontario is preparing guidance for people who already received a first dose of AstraZeneca on what to do next.

He stressed that AstraZeneca recipients made the right decision, based on the advice available at the time, to get that vaccine.

Ontario's move comes hours after Alberta said it wont give out more first doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine for the time being because there arent any confirmed shipments coming.

3:45 p.m.

Saskatchewan is reporting 186 new cases of COVID-19, and four more people have died.

Three of the people who died were in the northwest zone of the province and one was in the south central zone.

The province is now dealing with 2,064 active cases.

There are 162 people in hospital, 38 of whom are in intensive care.

As of Monday, 8,514 cases of variants of concern had been identified by screening in Saskatchewan.

Of the variants of concern with lineages identified by whole genome sequencing in Saskatchewan, the majority have been the B.1.1.7 variant, which was first detected in the United Kingdom.

1:40 p.m.

Manitoba is reporting 329 new COVID-19 cases and no new deaths.

The five-day average test-positivity rate remains high at 12 per cent provincially and 14.2 per cent in Winnipeg.

The province has also lowered to minimum age for vaccines among the general population to 24 from 30.

1:25 p.m.

Quebec is lifting COVID-19 emergency measures Monday in the Outaouais region, located in the western part of the province by the border with Ontario.

Premier Francois Legault says schools in that region will reopen, the curfew will be pushed back to 9:30 p.m. from 8 p.m. and non-essential businesses can reopen.

The premier is asking police in the area to continue to watch for Ontarians who cross into Quebec illegally.

Legault says emergency measures will end Monday in Rimouski, northeast of Quebec City, but will remain in the rest of the Bas-St-Laurent region.

1:20 p.m.

Nova Scotia is reporting 118 new cases of COVID-19 today, virtually all of them in the area that includes Halifax.

The province now has 1,591 active cases, with 64 people in hospital, including 10 in intensive care.

Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia's chief medical officer of health, issued a brief statement urging residents to stick close to home.

Meanwhile, the Nova Scotia government says people aged 40 and older can now book appointments for the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.

12:35 p.m.

Newfoundland and Labrador health authorities are reporting 15 new cases of COVID-19.

Officials say all of the infections identified are linked to travel or to previously known cases.

There are now 77 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, including one person in hospital due to the disease.

Meanwhile, authorities are advising all students and staff at a small all-grade school in western Newfoundland to get tested to determine if there has been transmission within the school.

11:55 a.m.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government is working with the government of Nunavut after a spike in COVID-19 cases in the territory.

Trudeau says as soon as numbers started going up, the federal government moved quickly to keep people safe by sending more PPE and medical equipment.

But he says even more help is needed.

He says new funding will help with everything from food security for communities with active cases, to providing better IT equipment for students who need to do remote learning, to additional health supports to protect people.

11:45 a.m.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says almost 50 per cent of eligible adults in Canada have received at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccine.

He says by the summer, Canada will have enough vaccines so that every eligible resident will have gotten their first dose, and by September, it will have enough doses for everyone to be fully vaccinated.

He says we can have a better, "one-dose" summer, as long as restrictions remain in place for case numbers to go down and more than 75 per cent of Canadians get their first dose.

And he says a one-dose summer sets us up for a "two-dose fall," when Canadians will be able to talk about going back to school, back to work, and back to more normality.

11:35 a.m.

The Manitoba government says it has issued more tickets to people for attending anti-mask rallies and breaking the limit on public gatherings.

The province says 22 tickets have been issued in relation to a rally outside the Law Courts building in Winnipeg last week.

Two tickets were issued related to a rally in Winkler May 1, and eight tickets have been handed out after a rally in Winnipeg the same day.

11:25 a.m.

Quebec is reporting 660 new COVID-19 cases today and nine more deaths attributed to the novel coronavirus, including one in the previous 24 hours.

Health officials say hospitalizations dropped by three, for a total of 540, and 128 people were in intensive care, a rise of five.

The province says it administered 61,051 additional doses on Monday; more than 43 per cent of Quebecers have received at least one dose of the COVID-19.

Quebec has reported a total of 359,456 COVID-19 cases and 11,002 deaths linked to the virus.

---11:15 a.m.New Brunswick is reporting two new cases of COVID-19 today.

Health officials say one case is in the Fredericton area and the other is in the Bathurst region; both are under investigation.

New Brunswick has 136 active reported cases.

Seven patients are hospitalized with the disease in New Brunswick, including three in intensive care; four New Brunswickers are hospitalized with COVID-19 out of province.---

11:00 a.m.

Alberta says it won't give out more first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine for the time being.

The provincial health department says the decision was made because there aren't any confirmed shipments of AstraZeneca coming, and the province only has 8,400 doses of it left.

As such, they will save what they have for second doses.

The department says unlike with AstraZeneca, Alberta is receiving the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines in large and consistent shipments, with more than 236,000 doses arriving this week alone.

10:55 a.m.

There are 2,073 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Ontario today and 15 additional deaths from the virus.

Health Minister Christine Elliott says 685 of the new infections are in Toronto, 389 are in Peel Region and 231 are in York Region.

She says the numbers are based on more than 28,100 tests completed since the last daily report.

The province says there are currently 1,782 people hospitalized with COVID-19, including 802 in intensive care units.

10:25 a.m.

Nunavut is reporting 14 new cases of COVID-19 today, all in the capital city of Iqaluit.

There are now 75 active cases in Nunavut, all in the city of about 8,000 people.

Three people have also been hospitalized in Ottawa since the first case was declared in Iqaluit on April 14.

Iqaluit remains under a strict lockdown, with all schools, businesses and workplaces closed and travel restricted.

To date, about 80 per cent of Iqaluit's adults have received at least one dose of the Moderna vaccine and about 50 per cent have received both doses.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.
We are going to focus on how to help the people who have suffered the most during COVID, Hart said. Its important to improve the quality of life for our residents. I look forward to working collaboratively with others across the county to determine where the greatest needs are.
The chief executive of coronavirus vaccine maker Novavax has admitted the company will have to delay filing for approvals of the product until July and will not put a date on when the vaccine is likely to receive the green light in Australia.

The Australian government has ordered 51 million doses of the Novavax vaccine, which had been expected to start being delivered as early as September this year.

Novavax said the trial, which enrolled 15,000 people aged 18 to 84, was expected to be used to apply for regulatory review in Britain. Credit:

However, on an earnings call for the company on Tuesday morning, chief executive Stan Erck said while the company hoped to have multiple regulatory approvals in the coming months, he could not predict approvals timelines for countries like Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

As of today, we are not able to predict a date with precision, so we wont, he said.
Over the years I was told, youre a liar and no one will believe you.

I went to hell and back, she said of her coercive and violent marriage.

But behind closed doors, Angie Jordan lived in fear for 40 years, being berated, manhandled and told she was worthless.

For all the world, they were a happy couple.

Ms Jordan was forced to eat separately from her abuser, had to wear clothes he chose that were a size smaller so she had something to aspire to and was accused of being unfaithful. He also wrote a eulogy suggesting she had died by suicide.

He intended to kill me, she said. I feared for my life all the time. It was like living in a cult, I had to do what he wanted.

Ms Jordan said most of the abuse was psychological.

Sometimes he would sit me down and go through suicide methods, and I was not allowed to get off the sofa until I picked what to choose, she said.

Ms Jordan tried to leave her then-husband multiple times, but she returned every time he threatened to kill himself.
A young boy rushed with a plastic sword into his mothers bedroom in a bid to protect her and her partner, who died after he was stabbed 86 times in a vengeful, premeditated attack in Brisbanes bayside, a court has heard.

Osmond Roy Greig, 43, was on Tuesday sentenced in Brisbanes Supreme Court for the killing of father-of-three Daryl Corcoran, 37, in Alexandra Hills in November 2016.

Daryl Corcoran was slain in an attack at Alexandra Hills in November 2016. Credit:Facebook

Greig pleaded guilty to three domestic violence charges of burglary, breach of a domestic violence order and murder, after he was accused of killing Mr Corcoran, the partner of his estranged wife Maya.

Greig was sentenced to life imprisonment for the attack, which Justice Ann Lyons described as premeditated, vengeful and full of hate. He can apply for parole after serving 20 years.
A lawyer has launched a defamation case in the hope a media outlet will label him a hit-and-walk driver, not a hit-and-run driver after crashing his high-powered car and hitting two pedestrians.

Simon Christopher Courtney, formerly a lawyer in the Cayman Islands, crashed his Mustang in 2015 on the island of Grand Cayman in the Caribbean.

A view from the Reef Resort on Grand Cayman Island in the Carribean. (File photo) Credit:LAURA MAGRUDER

He launched a defamation case against the Cayman Compass in Queenslands Supreme Court over the publications coverage of the resulting court case.

Mr Courtney was convicted of two counts of inflicting grievous bodily harm and one count of reckless driving. He was sentenced to three years prison.
Scientific research has backed up the effectiveness of nurse-to-patient ratios introduced by the Queensland government, showing they demonstrably prevented re-admissions, shortened hospital stays, and reduced costs.

The state government introduced the measure in 2016, ensuring a minimum number of nurses-to-patients was to be maintained across Queensland hospitals.

Research has confirmed nurse-to-patient ratios introduced in Queensland in 2016 have saved both lives and money. Credit:Joe Armao

The government asked experts from the University of Pennsylvania to conduct a real-time assessment of the scheme to make sure it was having a favourable effect.

The University of Pennsylvania collaborated with researchers from Queensland University of Technologys School of Nursing for the study, and they have now officially published the results of the review.
Two days next month will be dedicated to the final two hours of Queensland schoolgirl Tiahleigh Palmers life.

Tiahleigh was murdered by her foster father in 2015, the 12-year-olds mostly naked and partially submerged body found on the banks of the Pimpama River in the Gold Coast hinterland on November 5, a week after she was last seen alive.

Tiahleigh Palmer. Credit:Queensland Police Service

Foster father Rick Thorburn pleaded guilty to Tiahleighs murder in the Brisbane Supreme Court in May 2018 and was sentenced to life in prison, with eligibility for parole in 2036.

Thorburns wife and two sons were also jailed over the Logan schoolgirls death.
When Sony woke in hospital two days later, he had been operated on twice. Being left motionless on the floor for so long had resulted in a condition called compartment syndrome, or crushing, in his right arm and leg. Its often found in car accident victims who have been lying in the wreckage for extended periods of time. Muscles and nerves become starved of oxygen because blood flow is cut off. His spinal cord was severed. The surgery was performed to prevent muscular explosion, according to internal police documents. Doctors told Sony that if they hadnt operated, he could have lost one or both of his limbs. After the surgery, Joanne said, Sony was in a lot of pain, especially in his arm. He asked her to Just chop it off. Sony had skin grafted onto the injury. A May 2018 medical report said Sony had undergone a traumatic spinal cord injury and was not expected to regain functional use of his legs. It is expected that he will require the assistance of one person for his personal/self-care and transfers and community access, says the report prepared by Dr Estelle Petch from the Victorian Spinal Cord Service. An internal report obtained under Freedom of Information said while Sony was partly to blame for his injuries, prison health authorities and private security firm G4S had likely breached their duty of care to him. It was determined that [Sony] bore a degree of culpability for causing injury to himself in the first instance, says the report by Detective Sergeant Phillip Olsen from Victoria Polices Professional Standards Command.

But the extent of those injuries was exacerbated by inadequate post-incident medical assessment/treatment due to processes exercised by the Custodial Health Service ... and by G4S. [Sonys] lack of movement post the incident and the monitoring of his cell CCTV would have provided a definite indication of his deterioration. Internal police report G4S custodial officers, who were in attendance at [Sonys] cell when the head dive incident occurred and who had further interaction with and observations of [Sony] post the incident, failed to identify the severity of [his] medical condition. [Sonys] lack of movement post the incident and the monitoring of his cell CCTV would have provided a definite indication of his deterioration. Sony is now cared for by his mother and a carer in Bendigo.

The Victorian Government Solicitors Office, which provides legal advice to government departments, reviewed the case and concluded that criminal codes in the Occupational Health and Safety Act had been breached as a result of the inaction of G4S and prison staff. After Sonys injury, Victoria Police continued to prosecute the family violence matter, before eventually dropping it. Prison authorities also lost Sonys possessions, including a $2000 watch. Dr Hannah McGlade. Tens of thousands of people around the country took to the streets in April to protest against a lack of progress in the 30 years since the findings of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody were handed down. During those decades, at least another 455 Indigenous people have died in detention. While there has been a focus on deaths in custody, injuries and disabilities sustained in custody by Indigenous people are more commonplace and garner far less attention. These injuries continue to contribute to morbidity and mortality in a population that already experiences very poor health outcomes.

Dr Hannah McGlade, a Noongar human rights lawyer and the executive officer of National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services, said prisons were creating Aboriginal disability. Dr McGlade said Aboriginal women in particular were vulnerable to disability in prisons because of the inconsistent availability of healthcare. Prisons are supposed to be rehabilitative, but in reality they are highly traumatic and dangerous for Aboriginal people, she said. Their health doesnt seem to matter. Sonys injury is the basis of a lawsuit brought by firm Robinson Gill, which often represents people injured during interactions with police. His lawyer, Jeremy King, said neither he nor his client could comment on the case because it was before the court. Loading

But public documents filed in the Supreme Court by Mr King in October argue that not only are police and G4S responsible for Sonys crushing injury, but their negligence in managing his mental health also led to the severing of his spinal cord. Each element of the above conducts is a disgrace, the writ says. The writ says polices continuance of criminal charges against Sony after he was rendered a quadriplegic caused him unnecessary stress and was inappropriate. The case is next due in court in October. A June 2016 study by RMIT University found that 30 to 60 per cent of people in prison have a diagnosable acquired brain injury, and inmates have more than double the rates of intellectual disability and mental health issues compared to the general public.
Andreas Makarewitsch, 66, whose 94-year-old mother Anita is in aged care in North Geelong, has an optimistic view for the future of the sector, saying the $17 billion dollar investment was a nice surprise, but the devil is in the details. He says he was disappointed there wasnt greater detail about infrastructure for vulnerable residents in aged care and to what extent the funding would create better staffing in facilities. Andreas Makarewitsch, 66, and his mother Anita, 94, at her aged care facility in Geelong North. Credit:Scott McNaughton Facilities cant rely on families to fill the gaps left by staff, he says. Staffing is the most urgent issue for me. He liked the 33,000 training places proposed by Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, but emphasised that people need to be trained properly.

Thats a lot  that is going to put a lot of pressure on training organisations, he said. Recently retired couple Merrin, 61, and Peter Wingfield, 68, welcomed the superannuation downsizing incentive. Merrin and Peter Wingfield have recently retired and are planning the next phase of their life. Credit:Justin McManus It brings forward the opportunity for us to consider downsizing our house, Peter says. The Glen Iris couple say they were concerned about paying back government debt, and how that burden might be passed on to their children.

Long term there needs to be some sort of plan, theres a huge debt burden there and its going to take decades to pay back, Peter says. Merrin and Peter agree that funding for the NDIS and aged care was important, but that rollout schedules should be faster given how acute the problems facing the sectors are. Cherie Scott, 65. Credit:Joe Armao North-east Melbourne woman Cherie Scott, 65, has used crisis services in the past and says they saved her life. She was happy to see more money dedicated to services, but questioned the amount. Its great that there is more budget allocation to women. Thats great  but its not enough, she says.

She says she was disappointed that no money was earmarked for innovative methods of dealing with issues of family violence, but praises programs designed around prevention and consent education for men. I think I would like a clearer articulation about violence prevention, though, she says. Margaret Ambrose and her children Greta, 10 (left) and Aurora, 8. Credit:Justin McManus Single mother Margaret Ambrose, 51, was enthusiastic about the Family Home Guarantee that will let single families put down a deposit of 2 per cent on a home. Its great because it will enable single mothers in a position to do so to buy a house, but it remains to be seen if its setting women up to get a mortgage they cant service, she says.

The Newport mother says shes disappointed only 10,000 people were eligible for the guarantee, saying it was a drop in the ocean. Many single mothers are living in poverty, she says. Co-owner of CBD restaurant Soi 83, Phawinee Tang Suwankamnerd. Credit:Chris Hopkins Margaret says she was grateful for the $7.8 billion extension to the low and middle-income tax offset, which will result in 10.2 million people receiving a tax cut, with maximum benefits flowing to people like her who earn between $48,000 and $90,000 per year. Husband and wife restaurateurs Chavalit Piyaphanee, 40, and Phawinee Tang Suwankumnerd, 33, say COVID-19 was scary, as they watched the paths outside their CBD Thai restaurant empty of city-goers.

With their doors finally reopened, Chavalit says he wasnt upset about small businesses being passed over the in the budget because they got so much assistance during the pandemic. It was expected there was no help for small business because during the pandemic they already helped us out a lot, Chavalit says. Property investors Antone and Eva Khoury with their children Chanel and Isaac. Credit:Simon Schluter Chavalit says all measures in the budget made sense to me, and said he liked the governments fresh commitments to aged care and ramping up funding to immunisation programs. With the property market overheating and a focus on the unemployed, investors Antone and Eva Khoury had prepared for a budget night relatively scant on incentives for their four-unit portfolio.

Loading We dont get anything personal coming for us - maybe the childcare subsidy, he says. From a completely personal perspective in terms of our investment or situation, there isnt much in it for us. The focus on mental health and aged care is great. The Glenroy couple, who are building their family home in Pascoe Vale, say they pay a lot of tax and dont see much of the benefit.
A Victorian court has awarded $200,000 in damages to two brothers, one of whom owns the Thornbury Theatre, over false and defamatory comments on Facebook that linked them to political fraud in the Labor Party.

Brothers Aloke and Aakash Kumar took legal action against aspiring councillor Ravichandran Ragupathy, who stood for a seat on the Hume City Council last year, over posts he made on a Facebook page aimed at the Indian community.

Aloke (left) and Aakash Kumar, have been awarded $200,000 by a court for defamatory Facebook posts.

Mr Ragupathy told The Age he could not afford the pay-out and said that he was not aware before he made his social media comments that they could attract a defamation lawsuit in Australia, a country he migrated to from India in the 1990s and one he regarded as free.

According to the County Court judgment, Mr Ragupathy uploaded statements in June last year that said: How many fake members fees & fundraising monies were diverted to this membership drive and for your own benefits?, questioned the revenue sources of the wealthy businessmen and alleged everyone knows the Thornbury Theatre is not owned by you both brothers.
Shaneera Bell, 27, of Waukegan, died from blunt force trauma after she was partially ejected from her vehicle, police said Monday. A passenger in her car, a Waukegan man in his 20s, was taken to a hospital with what police said were non-life-threatening injuries.
For our free coronavirus pandemic coverage, learn more here.

Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Its a festering Petri dish, is how a hotel quarantine whistleblower describes his time guarding international arrivals at Perths Intercontinental Hotel late last year, before a state review unmasked the unsafe conditions for security guards. The security guard, who does not wish to be identified for work reasons, describes an unruly environment where guests would open their room doors at random, and he felt disgusted at the lack of sanitation. In one extraordinary revelation the guard said a guest was simply forgotten and stayed in the hotel for three months. The guard worked for three months at the hotel via a subcontractor until he thought he contracted the virus and quit his $400-a-day pay packet in November 2020. Those he worked with were mostly foreigners on $23 an hour, who he said did not have a proper command of English and whose own sanitary standards were well below those expected for the job. The hotel was assigned arrivals deemed a high risk of breaching quarantine, and at one stage in August had Australian Defence Force reservists manning its exterior after Victoria went through a second wave of the virus blamed on lapses in hotel security. The guard said behind the theatre of arrivals being escorted from the airports and into the hotel under police guard, inside it was chaos. He said arrivals were assigned rooms in a lottery system meaning families of four had to share a one-bed room, while a single adult got the penthouse.

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Theres no windows open in these hotels and at one point in September it was boiling and I remembered thinking, Im breathing it all in now, Im breathing in corona, the self-confessed germophobe said. He claimed a man from China stayed at the hotel undetected for three months, well beyond his quarantine, because no one told him he could go until a nurse made the discovery. A quarantine room at the InterContinental Hotel. WAtoday was unable to get any more details after the Health Department and the hotel refused to comment on the guards claims. Out of the 2360 issues logged by quarantine hotel guards from April last year until January, one-fifth were guests not being compliant with quarantine regulations by opening their doors or coming out of their room. The data compiled in a recent investigation into the hotel system by former WA chief health officer Tarun Weeramanthri showed that out of 37,408 guests quarantined, 409 tested positive for COVID-19.

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The whistleblower said the identity of those who tested positive was kept secret from security as a matter of privacy. I didnt want their names, just if they came out of their rooms I would know to keep a safe distance and take extra precautions, he said. The guard said by week three he gave up ringing for assistance when people breached their isolation to abuse him, demand lunch or round up their children who had escaped the room. By that time I had cling wrap taped to my head with holes for my eyes and nose and mouth. It was a kind of a f--- you protest to management after asking for a mask for four days, he said. Theres a lot of people coughing and spluttering, so in the end I would bring my own stuff and sanitise the place myself. Even the person tasked with sanitising the surfaces that arrivals touched as they first came up the lifts just used an unmarked plastic, refillable spray bottle, he said. Its meant to have sanitiser but when I asked him to sanitise my hands it was only water in the bottle. There was no sanitiser and, I mean, he doesnt give a f---.

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He said the state of staff eating areas and toilets was horrendous, with food and takeaway wrappers all over the floor, and the bathrooms made him gag. When the guard raised the lack of sanitation or masks with management, he claims to have been told to keep his mouth shut. Part of his contract included signing a waiver preventing workers from speaking to the media. They think theyre law enforcement, but we were babysitters at most, he said. Hotel virus leaks emerge In May last year, a 47-year-old Pan Pacific Hotel guard tested positive to the disease. Unknown to the media or the public, it was the third hotel security infection only months into launching the state-run quarantine system. Two Duxton Hotel guards tested positive on April 14 and 23, 2020, after being exposed to cruise ship cases, while the state was in lockdown.

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But these details only emerged last week after virus leaks at quarantine hotels led to snap lockdowns and sparked more questions. These two cases were reported as cases under investigation and included in the states total, but not reported as security guards, WA Health said. WA was experiencing broader community transmission and confirmed case numbers at the time (an aged care facility and large numbers of COVID-19 positive arrivals from the Artania, Costa Luminosa and Costa Victoria vessels). Five days before the first Duxton guard tested positive, the United Workers Union flagged concerns that dozens of security guards at the Duxton Hotel and Pan Pacific were being instructed to remove PPE because they were upsetting and intimidating guests. The matter was investigated by health inspectors.

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Western Australias Health Department has refuted claims by a former hotel quarantine security guard, denying a quarantine guest could have been left forgotten for three months at the InterContinental Hotel late last year.

The security whistleblower, who wished to remain anonymous for work reasons, was employed by a subcontractor at the hotel for three months until November 2020, saying the stress of working in such an unhygenic environment that wouldnt provide masks or sanister drove him to quit.

Im breathing in corona: WA hotel quarantine security guard thought he caught COVID-19 while working at the InterContinental late last year. Credit:Fairfax Media

The department initially did not respond to detailed questions about his allegations and instead referred WAtoday to the Premiers office spokesmans six-sentence quote. Once published, the department delivered answers.

According to a spokesperson, WA Health was not aware the guard had begged for a mask and sanitiser and never received it, and being told to keep his mouth shut by security management was a question for his employer.
Womens safety and economic security is a key theme of Josh Frydenbergs third budget. But how much will it move the dial on gender equality?

To begin answering that question The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age conducted a rapid gender audit of the budget. Time constraints mean this is a brief assessment  there will be more comprehensive gender-based evaluations of the budget in the coming days and weeks.

It is important to view the governments female-friendly initiatives in the context of the whole budget.

The big picture

Last years budget copped criticism for being too blokey because coronavirus stimulus spending largely overlooked industries with a high share of female workers. The structure of income tax cuts announced in the 2020 budget also drew fire for disproportionately favouring men.
The pandemic is more threatening today than it was one year ago, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has declared in a private warning to government MPs about continuing the cautious approach to opening international borders.

Mr Morrison told Coalition MPs on Tuesday morning the coronavirus remained a danger to Australia when it was racing through countries like India, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has warned Coalition MPs he will continue to take a cautious approach to reopening international borders. Credit:Kate Geraghty

He said it is only just getting started in those countries and we cannot sit here and think because we can get 100,000 in the MCG that this pandemic is over, a Coalition spokesman said of the Prime Ministers remarks.

The warning was given hours before Treasurer Josh Frydenberg unveils the federal budget and put Coalition MPs on notice to expect a slow timetable to open the international borders next year.
And unprecedented support is seeing the country through the biggest global economic shock since the Great Depression. JobKeeper kept 3.8 million people in their job. JobSeeker helped 1.5 million people without work. The Cashflow Boost supported over 800,000 businesses and not-for-profits. And additional payments went to millions of pensioners, carers, veterans and others on income support. All made possible because we entered this crisis from a position of economic strength. Economic Environment But Mr Speaker, it has come at a significant and unavoidable cost. The COVID-19 recession will see our deficit reach $161 billion this year, falling to $57 billion in 2024-25.

With more Australians back at work, this years deficit is $52.7 billion lower than was expected just over six months ago in last years budget. Loading Net debt will increase to $617.5 billion or 30 per cent of GDP this year and peak at $980.6 billion or 40.9 per cent of GDP in June 2025. This is low by international standards. As a share of the economy, net debt is around half of that in the UK and US and less than a third of that in Japan. We are better placed than nearly any other country to meet the economic challenges that lie ahead. Consumer sentiment is at its highest in 11 years. Business conditions reached record highs and more Australians are in work than ever before. Our plan is working. Australias economic engine is roaring back to life. Since the last budget, almost half a million jobs have been created.

Tonight, I outline the Morrison governments plan to secure Australias economic recovery and build for the future. A plan that continues to protect Australians from COVID. A plan that creates more jobs. A plan that guarantees essential services, and a plan that builds a more resilient and secure Australia. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Finance Minister Simon Birmingham with the 2021 budget papers at Parliament House on Tuesday. Credit:Getty Images It is a plan guided by our enduring values: Reward for effort, the power of aspiration and enterprise, upholding personal responsibility, and always providing a helping hand to those who need it. This is what the Coalition stands for.

Securing the recovery and creating jobs Mr Speaker, our first priority is to keep Australians safe from COVID. In this budget, a further $1.9 billion is allocated for the rollout of vaccines. Australians have already received over 2.5 million doses. This budget provides another $1.5 billion for COVID-related health services, including for testing and tracing, respiratory clinics and telehealth. In total the Morrison government has committed $20 billion to the vaccine rollout and to strengthen our health system in response to COVID. Tax relief

Mr Speaker, Australias economic recovery is now well under way and we must keep the momentum going. Loading In last years budget, we promised hard-working Australians tax cuts and we delivered. We promised the largest ever set of investment incentives and we delivered. We promised more jobs and we delivered. This was done without undermining the structural integrity of the budget. But, Mr Speaker, this pandemic is not over. For as long as the virus persists, so will we, so tonight, we go further. Announcing that over 10 million low- and middle-income earners will benefit from a new and additional tax cut. A stimulus measure that will support the recovery and build on tax cuts we announced in last years budget and the budgets before that.

Low- and middle-income earners will receive up to $1080 for individuals or $2160 for couples. More of their money in their pockets to spend across the economy, creating jobs. Under the Coalition, taxes will always be lower and hard-working families better off. Mr Speaker, eight out of 10 jobs are in the private sector; a sustainable recovery requires a strong private sector. Our record investment incentives are filling the order books of the nation. Over 99 per cent of businesses, employing over 11 million workers, can write off the full value of any eligible asset they purchase. This has seen their spending on machinery and equipment increase at the fastest rate in nearly seven years. So, tonight, we again go further, announcing the extension of these measures for a further year until June 30, 2023, so a tradie can buy a new ute, a farmer a new harvester and a manufacturer expand their production line. Housing and small business

Mr Speaker, when construction work began to dry up, HomeBuilder came to the rescue. New house starts are now the highest in 20 years. New loans to first-home buyers reached their highest level in nearly 12 years. HomeBuilder has been a huge success, and our $2 billion investment in affordable housing is bringing on more supply. Loading Mr Speaker, in this budget, our housing measures go even further, helping another 10,000 first-home buyers build a new home with a 5 per cent deposit. Supporting 10,000 single parents to purchase a home with a 2 per cent deposit. Increasing the amount that can be released under the First Home Super Saver Scheme from $30,000 to $50,000. Under the Coalition, home ownership will always be supported. Mr Speaker, we know some sectors and regions continue to do it tough. That is why this budget provides a further $2.1 billion in targeted support for aviation, tourism, the arts and international education providers.

More than 800,000 half-price airfares. Support for more than 200 productions. Grants to English language course providers. And extending our small business loan scheme, which has already helped more than 45,000 businesses access low-cost finance. We are also providing tax relief for around 1000 small brewers and distillers. Mr Speaker, small and family businesses are the engine room of our economy. They are at the heart of every local community. As they strive to recover, we need the tax system to work for them, not against them. So tonight we provide small business with peace of mind that an independent umpire will stand between them and the ATO when it comes to debt recovery actions. We will take these disputes out of the courts and let small business get on with what they do best. Under the Coalition, small business will always be stronger. Record investment in skills and training. Mr Speaker, we need to equip Australians with the skills they need to get a job today and tomorrow. In this budget, we double our commitment to the JobTrainer Fund, supporting a total of more than 450,000 new training places to upskill job seekers and young people.

At a cost of $2.7 billion, we will create more than 170,000 new apprenticeships and traineeships. Building on the 100,000 new apprentices we have already helped into a job in the first stage of the program. We will help more women break into non-traditional trades, with training support for 5000 places. We will provide 2700 places in Indigenous girls academies to help them finish school and enter the workforce, and more STEM scholarships for women, in partnership with industry. Tonight, we are also providing another 5000 places in higher education short courses, and better matching job seekers to jobs. We will invest in modernising employment services, including specialist assistance for young and Indigenous Australians. Importantly, for those who find themselves without work, the government has strengthened the safety net, increasing the JobSeeker payment while enhancing mutual obligations. Childcare Mr Speaker, childcare is an important driver of higher workforce participation and womens economic security.

In this budget, we are making a further and targeted $1.7 billion investment in childcare. This will increase the affordability of childcare for low- and middle-income families. 250,000 families will be better off by an average of $2200 each year, giving more parents, especially women, the choice to take on extra work. A dynamic and competitive economy Mr Speaker, our economic plan capitalises on the opportunities that will exist on the other side of this crisis. Building the infrastructure our economy needs for the future with our 10-year, $110 billion investment pipeline.

Tonight we make $15 billion in additional infrastructure commitments including for: the North-South Corridor in South Australia

the Great Western Highway and Newcastle airport in New South Wales

the new Melbourne Intermodal Terminal in Victoria

the Bruce Highway in Queensland

METRONET in Western Australia

highway upgrades in the Northern Territory

Light Rail Stage 2A in the Australian Capital Territory and

Midland Highway upgrades in Tasmania. In this budget we invest a further $1 billion in road safety upgrades to save lives and a further $1 billion in local road infrastructure projects. Funding for these shovel-ready projects will be provided on a use it or lose it basis. And through the Building Better Regions Fund, we will support a further $250 million of regional community infrastructure projects, creating more jobs.

Under the Coalition, regional Australia will never be taken for granted. Mr Speaker, throughout the pandemic we have seen how quickly Australians have adapted. Changing the way we work, shop and communicate. A trend that will only accelerate. Digital infrastructure and digital skills will be critical for the competitiveness of our economy, creating massive opportunities for growth and jobs. In this budget, we are investing $1.2 billion in our Digital Economy Strategy. Establishing a new national network of Artificial Intelligence Centres to drive business adoption of these new technologies, expanding our cyber security innovation fund to train the next generation of cybersecurity experts, and undertaking a digital skills cadetship trial, which combines workplace and vocational training. Mr Speaker, Australias manufacturing sector will be a key driver of future jobs and higher wages. That is why we have already committed $1.5 billion to expand manufacturing activity and create jobs across six priority areas, including medical products and clean energy.

We backed in our Modern Manufacturing Strategy with an additional $2 billion in R&D tax incentives. Australia has led the world with innovations like Wi-Fi, the bionic ear and a vaccine for cervical cancer. We want to see more innovation commercialised in Australia, and so tonight, we are launching a new patent box starting on July 1 next year. Under the patent box, income earned from new patents that have been developed in Australia will be taxed at a concessional 17 per cent rate  almost half the rate that applies to large companies. The patent box will apply to the medical and biotech sectors and we will consult on expanding it to the clean energy sector. Mr Speaker, Australias effective management of COVID makes us an even more attractive place for the best and brightest from around the world. To take advantage of this, we are streamlining visas to target highly skilled individuals when circumstances allow.

We are simplifying our tax laws, including the treatment of employee shares in line with the rest of the world, and improving Australias competitiveness as a financial centre in the region. Guaranteeing essential services Mr Speaker, a strong economy enables us to guarantee the essential services Australians rely on. In this budget, the government is providing record funding for schools, hospitals, Medicare, mental health, aged care and disability support. Since coming to government, we have listed more than 2600 medicines on the PBS, an average of one each day. This has put life-changing treatments within the reach of every Australian. In this budget, we fund new medicines to treat breast cancer, lung cancer, severe osteoporosis and asthma.

Tonight, we announce the listing of Emgality to treat chronic migraines. Instead of costing $6800 a year for treatment it will now cost $41.30 a script or $6.60 for concession card holders. The government is also providing in this budget new funding for endometriosis, research into pre-term birth and genetic testing for pregnant women. Mr Speaker, the government is committed to ensuring Australians can access quality medical services no matter where they live. That is why this budget will provide higher incentives to rural and regional GPs for bulk-billed services, helping to keep more doctors in the regions. National Disability Insurance Scheme Mr Speaker, the NDIS has made Australia a better country. Profoundly improving the lives of people with disability and their families.

A new wheelchair, home modifications, care in the home and transport to work. Today 450,000 people are receiving disability support. In the last year alone, more than 100,000 have joined the scheme. In this budget, we will spend a further $13.2 billion over four years to meet the needs of Australians with disability. As the scheme reaches maturity, our focus is on ensuring its sustainability and that it continues to deliver a high quality essential service for those who need it. Under the Coalition, the NDIS will always be fully funded. Aged care Mr Speaker, the Prime Minister called the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. It revealed shocking cases of neglect and abuse.

Tonight, we commit $17.7 billion in practical and targeted new funding to significantly improve the system. We will fund another 80,000 new home care packages, bringing the total to 275,000 home care packages available. We will increase the time nurses and carers are required to spend with residents. We will make an additional payment of $10 per resident per day to enhance the viability and sustainability of the residential aged care sector. We will support over 33,000 new training places for personal carers and a new Indigenous workforce. We will provide retention bonuses to keep more nurses in aged care. We will increase access for respite services for carers. We will strengthen the regulatory regime to monitor and enforce standards of care. We will upgrade essential aged care infrastructure in regional and remote areas. This package brings our record investment in aged care to over $119 billion over the next four years. We are committed to restoring trust in the system and allowing Australians to age with dignity and respect. Mental health

Mr Speaker, everybody listening tonight knows someone struggling with their mental health. Suicide is the leading cause of death in those aged 18 to 44. Tragically, over 65,000 of our fellow Australians attempt to take their own lives each year. These are not just statistics on a page but family, friends and colleagues. In every budget, we have committed more resources to front line services: BeyondBlue, Lifeline, Kidshelpline. Tonight we extend our support with a $2.3 billion commitment to mental health care and suicide prevention: More Headspace centres to support more young Australians, expanding this model to those aged over 25, with a new Head to Health national network of 40 centres, and increased funding for the treatment of eating disorders. Greater access to psychiatrists, psychologists and GPs through Medicare, universal access to care for people who have been discharged from hospital following a suicide attempt, a new National Suicide Prevention Office.

And as the Prime Minister has announced, we will establish a Royal Commission into Defence and Veterans Suicide. Mr Speaker, we have nearly doubled spending on mental health since we came to office. It is a clear national priority. It goes to the heart of who we are as Australians, helping those who need it most. Education Mr Speaker, the government is investing record funding in education. We have already doubled school funding since we came to office. Our focus is on lifting student outcomes and better equipping teachers. Mr Speaker, tonight we also commit $2 billion to fund preschools, with reforms to improve participation.

Preschool is a vital time in a childs development and prepares them for the educational journey ahead. In this budget, we are also providing more than $19 billion in funding for our universities in 2021-22. And as a result of decisions made during the pandemic, this year there are 30,000 more places at Australian universities. Womens safety Mr Speaker, all Australians have the right to be safe. The reality is, for too many women, this is not the experience. One in four women experience violence from a current or former partner. This must stop. We must do more to end all forms of violence against women and children. Since we came to government we have invested more than $1 billion to keep women and children safe. Tonight, we invest a further $1.1 billion in womens safety: Delivering more emergency accommodation, more legal assistance, more counselling, more financial support, including cash payments for those escaping abusive relationships, and more targeted services for Indigenous, migrant and refugee women and women with disability.

We will improve the family law system to better protect children, give victims of domestic violence greater access to justice and reduce time spent in court. Mr Speaker, sexual harassment is unacceptable in any context. When it occurs in the workplace, it denies women their dignity, as well as their personal and economic security. The government in its response to the Respect@Work report is strengthening laws, guidance and standards to prevent and address harassment. Retirees Mr Speaker, we want all Australians to get the most out of the superannuation system. On average women retire with less superannuation than men.

So tonight, the government will remove the current $450 per month minimum income threshold for the superannuation guarantee. This will improve economic security in retirement for around 200,000 women. Our plan will also make it easier for Australians to prepare for retirement and to be more secure once in retirement. We will improve flexibility by no longer requiring older Australians to meet a work test before they can make voluntary contributions to superannuation. We will allow those aged over 60 to contribute up to $300,000 into their superannuation if they downsize their home, freeing up more housing stock for younger families. We will also enhance the Pension Loan Scheme by providing immediate access to lump sums of around $12,000 for singles, and $18,000 for couples. Under the Coalition, Australian seniors will always have more control over their money.

A resilient Australia Mr Speaker, COVID has not been the only challenge Australia has faced. Drought, bushfires, cyclones and floods. This budget provides more resources to help Australians prepare, respond and recover from these natural disasters. A new National Recovery and Resilience Agency to lead our response to natural disasters.

A $10 billion government guarantee to make insurance more affordable in Northern Australia.

Funding from our $3.5 billion National Water Grid Fund to make regional Australia more resilient to drought, building dams and irrigation projects.

More than $600 million for community and household projects to mitigate the impact of natural disasters.

And $170 million to strengthen internet and mobile coverage in regional Australia, particularly in bushfire-prone areas. Mr Speaker, Australias biosecurity system protects more than $50 billion in agricultural exports and 1.6 million jobs from threats like African Swine Fever.

This budget will strengthen border screening controls and improve our ability to fight an outbreak. Mr Speaker, a resilient Australia requires diverse and reliable supply chains. That is why we are providing additional support for Australian manufacturers of critical products, and more funding to help small businesses and farmers expand and diversify their export markets. Mr Speaker, our industries and regions depend on affordable and reliable energy. Thats why the government is unlocking Australias vast gas reserves in the North Bowen and Galilee Basins, and investing in hydrogen-ready gas plants. We are also shoring up our fuel security by helping local refineries to keep operating in Australia. Mr Speaker, we are the custodians of this great continent for future generations. This budget provides over $480 million in new funding for the environment, including $100 million to protect our oceans.

We are also upgrading our recycling capabilities, creating jobs and reducing waste sent to landfill. Australia is playing its part on climate change, having met our 2020 commitments and on track to meet and beat our 2030 target. Australia is on the pathway to net zero and our goal is to get there as soon as we possibly can, preferably by 2050. We will do this with a practical, technology-focused approach. Technology not taxes. Already, we have the highest uptake of rooftop solar in the world and are supporting major energy storage projects like Snowy 2.0 and Battery of the Nation. In this budget, we are investing a further $1.6 billion to fund priority technologies, including clean hydrogen and energy storage. Our approach will strengthen the economy, create jobs and reduce emissions.

National security Mr Speaker, while we have been fighting COVID, other threats to our security have not gone away. To keep Australians safe from these threats  whether domestic or foreign  the government is providing an additional $1.9 billion over the decade to strengthen our national security, law enforcement and intelligence agencies. We also need to be prepared for a world that is less stable and more contested. This is why we are investing $270 billion over 10 years in our defence capability. The Australian Defence Force continues to protect and uphold our national interests abroad and at home. Our Defence Forces are always there for us and we are forever indebted to them. Conclusion

Mr Speaker, this pandemic is far from over. Around the world, there are around 800,000 new cases per day. The global economic environment remains uncertain. The euro area has fallen back into recession. But, Australia is now well on the road to recovery. Our economy is forecast to grow by 1 per cent in 2020-21, rising to 4 per cent in 2021-22. Employment is at a record high, with 75,000 more Australians in jobs than before the pandemic. And this budget will help to create more than 250,000 more jobs by the end of 2022-23. Mr Speaker, this budget secures the recovery and sets Australia up for the future: Tax cuts to put more money in peoples pockets, business incentives to unleash a further wave of investment, new apprenticeships and training places to get more Australians into work, a $110 billion infrastructure pipeline to build our nations future, and record funding to guarantee the essential services Australians rely on.
Queensland will splash another $100 million on the states under pressure health system.

Health Minister Yvette DAth said unprecedented demand for health services in Queensland, along with all states and territories, was putting pressure on the system.

Queensland Health Minister Yvette DAth has announced a $100 million injection into the states health system. Credit:Jono Searle/Getty

The funding was announced minutes before the LNP opposition claimed patients waited for more than five hours for emergency treatment at busy south-east Queensland hospitals overnight.

This $100 million package is aimed squarely at tackling the unprecedented demand were seeing in our busy public hospitals, Ms DAth said.
A former McGowan government senior media adviser has been paid nearly $300,000 to settle two legal actions brought against the government after he was sacked when a work colleague accused him of indecently assaulting her at a work Christmas party in December 2019.

Stephen Kaless was working for former Treasurer Ben Wyatt but left his high-paying position after being accused of touching a colleague on her bottom during an office Christmas function in 2019.

Stephen Kaless with his wife and legal team outside court in August 2020. Credit:Nine News Perth

The former Channel 7 Perth chief of staff was charged with indecent assault but fought the charges and was acquitted in August.

Following his acquittal, he launched an unfair dismissal action against the government and in December a defamation claim against WA Premier Mark McGowan and Mr Wyatt.
Singapore: Chinas population has grown at the slowest rate in decades, triggering fears of a demographic crunch in the worlds second-largest economy.

The National Bureau of Statistics said Chinas overall population rose to 1.412 billion in 2020, from 1.4 billion a year earlier. That is the lowest rate of growth since 1961, when the nation was in the grips of famine.

The once-in-a-decade census revealed that annual population growth rate dropped to 0.53 per cent from 0.57 per cent in the last national survey after the nation gained another 72 million people over 10 years.

Chinas low fertility rate means that its population will shrink and age over the coming decades. Credit:AP

Chinas population is ageing and increasingly middle class. But it is the long tail of the one-child policy, which was abolished in 2015, that has driven the result in the worlds most populous country. The coronavirus also played its part. Only 12 million babies were born in 2020, down 22 per cent from the previous year as the pandemic took its toll, pegging childbirth rates to a six-year low.
And she immediately announced, despite her experience, that she wanted to return to the war zone.

Kate Webb faces the microphones after returning to Australia. Credit:Staff photo

SYDNEY.  Frail and tiny, Kate Webb, the Sydney journalist who spent 23 days as a prisoner of the Viet Cong, arrived in Sydney yesterday.

I want to go back to war, says Kate Webb

First published in The Age on May 13, 1971

I have friends there, she said.

Miss Webb was almost unrecognisable as the attractive, dark, 28-year-old whose face has become familiar among the pages of newspapers and magazines since she was released from captivity last week.

Blinking in the glare of popping flashbulbs Miss Webb embraced the only member of her family waiting for her at the airport  her brother, Jeremy, 26.

She has another brother and a sister, both in Canberra.

Her parents are dead.
London: Dr Drew Weissman is not ready to rest on his laurels. Hes already thinking about the next coronavirus variant - the one that will come after the Indian variant, or the Kent variant, or the South African variant, and demolish the defences of our vaccines. Or rather, to give him his due, his vaccines.

Weissman, professor of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, is noticeably reserved and softly spoken on our Zoom call. And perhaps most importantly, he has form to back his claims up, for in the past year his lifes work has transformed human health.

Dr Drew Weissman and Dr Katalin Kariko  the pair of scientists whose messenger RNA discovery at the University of Pennsylvania helped pave the way for the COVID-19 vaccines. Credit:Facebook/Penn Medicine

My wife and kids get mad at me because I dont show the enjoyment of the accomplishment, he says, stroking the ears of his immense white cat, Xander.

That accomplishment has been to develop not just a vaccine for COVID-19, but a whole new vaccine technology which, instead of priming our immune response by injecting us with bits of virus (like the AstraZeneca vaccine), uses genetic couriers called mRNA to teach our bodies how to build those bits themselves. It effectively turns the bodys cells into tiny vaccine-making factories.
Jahns death has passersby and architecture fans given the MetroWest building a second look along with many of his better known projects, including the Thompson Center in downtown Chicago, United Airlines Terminal 1 at OHare International Airport and the 31-story octagonal Oakbrook Terrace Tower, which is the largest building outside of downtown Chicago.
When an abuser has access to a gun, the risk of homicide in that relationship - the risk of homicide to the female partner - increases fivefold, Zeoli said. Loading Theres a very strong correlation between intimate partner violence and guns and gun homicide, said Robert Spitzer, a political science professor at the State University of New York at Cortland. Spitzer has written five books on gun policy in the United States. Experts and victim advocates have long made the case that partner violence is linked to deadly gun violence, but Spitzer noted that detailed research supporting that claim has only emerged relatively recently. The same is true for data connecting attacks involving domestic abusers to mass shootings.

One 2020 Boston University study found that nearly half of mass shooters between 1966 and 2020 have a history of violence against women; most frequently, they have a background of partner violence or sexual assault. Mourners organize a memorial outside a mobile home in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Credit:AP A 2020 Bloomberg News investigation found a similar connection: In an analysis of 749 mass shootings - defined as any shooting in which there are four or more victims, not including the shooter - 60 per cent were either attacks against a partner or family member, or committed by men with histories of domestic violence. While attacks that seem random generate the most media coverage, Spitzer said, many mass shootings involve someone tracking down an estranged or current partner at their home or workplace. The other victims in those cases are children, other family members or co-workers. Even in incidents that do not result in death, firearms are an important means of control for many abusers, Zeoli said, noting that guns are often used in nonfatal domestic abuse.

These events involve intimidation, coercion, terror, Zeoli said - being hit with the butt of a pistol, for example, or simply brandishing a gun at them. Intimate partner violence is about having power over your intimate partner. Its about controlling them. And a gun is a very effective weapon by which to do that, she said. Loading The Trace, a nonprofit journalism outlet focused on gun violence, noted in a 2016 report that the presence of a firearm in a womans home triples the odds that she will be killed. And it does not matter whose gun it is: even when a woman owns a firearm, studies show that it is far more likely to be used against her than by her, the Trace reported. Zeoli and Spitzer say these are preventable deaths - and that updating gun restrictions could make a huge difference in preventing both partner homicides and mass shootings. These include red flag laws, also known as Extreme Risk Protection Order laws, that allow police to temporarily seize firearms from people believed to be a danger to themselves or others.

Red flag laws have become increasingly popular in legislatures, with 19 states and the District of Columbia taking up some version of these laws since Connecticut first passed one in 1999. But there are considerable limits to these laws, too. Enforcement rests heavily on local courts officially following up on restraining orders and domestic violence misdemeanours. Theres traditionally been difficulty with domestic abuse cases, partly because of traditionally sexist attitudes, but for another reason as well, which is that often there are no witnesses, Spitzer said. Victims of partner violence are often reluctant to report for myriad reasons, Zeoli said, including fear of their abuser, concern that they will not be believed or because of inaction when they have previously tried to ask for help. Then there are gaps in the laws themselves.

Red flag restrictions do not necessarily apply to people who arent spouses - a caveat known as a boyfriend loophole. This is because many current laws dont regard nonspouses, especially those without children, as intimate partners. Loading These bans are not always permanent, either: once a restraining order is lifted, for example, a person accused of domestic violence can purchase a gun. And unless theres a law that forces violent gun owners to relinquish their guns, many can hold on to the guns they already have. After the mass shooting in Boulder in March, lawmakers are considering several proposals aimed at curbing gun violence, including a requirement that someone with a domestic-violence-related court order report the firearms they possess.

Some victims advocates see the federal government taking the lead on closing crucial loopholes. In his first speech to the a joint session of Congress last month, President Joe Biden urged congressional lawmakers to close the boyfriend loophole in the Violence Against Women Act, which has remained unauthorised since 2018. While Republicans and Democrats have managed to pass gun restrictions at the state level - and voters on both sides have voiced support for such measures - Danny Weiss, director of the government affairs program at the Century Foundation, a liberal think tank, said it will be difficult to pass the legislation this year: Congressional Republicans are too averse to gun restrictions, he said. There are signs that these restrictions can work in preventing intimate partner homicides - and mass shootings. Zeoli noted one restriction that would bar anyone with a violent misdemeanour from accessing a firearm, either for a limited time or indefinitely. States that have passed those laws have seen a 23 per cent reduction in partner homicides, she said.
Indian public sector banks with substantial presence abroad are legally ready to mount a challenge abroad to counter any efforts by to attach their assets. The development comes on the back of saying on Tuesday that it was taking all necessary action to access the $1.7 billion it was awarded by the international tribunal after overturning the retroactive tax demand slapped by the Indian government.

Given that deposits with overseas branches is public money and not a sovereign asset, attaching funds in such accounts is beyond the realm of rights of the said company, said people in the know.

Senior PSB chiefs said that the government had warned them of the possibility of Cairn attaching funds, and had asked the lenders to keep them (the government) informed. The government has nominated a person for prompt and co-ordinated response. The banks stand is clear  deposits money is not government money. It is customers money. So how can they attach it? In case something happens, banks will fight it legally, said the PSB chief cited above.

Besides legal advice, banks are in touch with Indian embassies and high commissions across the world to pursue matters.

Legal forums abroad will hear the banks side too, before giving a ruling on any attachment plea (by Cairn Energy).

The Scottish firm had invested in the oil and gas sector in India in 1994 and a decade later it made a huge oil discovery in Rajasthan.

In 2006 it listed its Indian assets on the BSE. Five years after that the government passed retroactive tax law and billed Cairn Rs 10,247 crore plus interest and penalty for the reorganisation tied to the flotation.

The state then expropriated and liquidated Cairns remaining shares in the Indian entity, seized dividends and withheld tax refunds to recover a part of the demand.

Cairn challenged the move before an tribunal in The Hague (Netherlands), which in December awarded it $1.2 billion (over Rs 8,800 crore) plus costs and interest, which totalled $1.725 billion (Rs 12,600 crore) as of December 2020.

In December last year the tribunal established to rule on our claim against the Government of India found in Cairns favour and awarded us damages of $1.2 billion plus interest and costs, CEO said at company annual shareholders meeting.

This ruling, he said, is binding and enforceable under international treaty law.

Whilst India has sought to challenge the basis of the award through set-aside proceedings in the Dutch courts, we remain confident of our position and continue constructive engagement with the Government of India whilst at the same time taking all necessary actions to protect our rights to the award and access the value of it as early as possible, he added.

While he did not elaborate, Cairn had previously threatened to seize overseas assets of state-controlled Indian firms to recover the money due to it.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had last month reiterated that international ruling on India's sovereign right to taxation sets the wrong precedent, but had said that the government is looking at how best it can sort out the issue.

The government, which participated in the international arbitration brought by the Scottish firm against being taxed retrospectively, has appealed against The Hague-based tribunals ruling directing the government to return the value of shares expropriated and liquidated, tax refunds withheld, and dividend seized to recover the wrongly levied retroactive tax.

The government argues that tax levied by a sovereign power should not be subject to private arbitration, Cairn had previously said the award is binding and it can enforce it by seizing overseas Indian assets.

Cairn has been engaged with the finance ministry to get the government to pay the award.

Its officials held three face to face meetings with the then Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey in February and at least one video call with his successor Tarun Bajaj.



PTI had reported that the company had in the meetings offered to forego $500 million out of the $1.7 billion award and invest that amount in any oil and gas or renewable energy project identified by the government after rejecting a government offer to get paid just one-fourth of the award.

It wants the principal of USD 1.2 billion due to it is paid and the interest and cost can be re-invested in India.

The Indian government, which appointed one of the three arbitrators on The Hague panel and fully participated in the arbitration proceedings since 2015, wanted Cairn to settle the issue through its now-closed tax dispute resolution scheme Vivad se Vishwas.

Vivad se Vishwas scheme, which closed on March 31, provided for dropping of tax case if 50 per cent of the demand was paid, which the company rejected, sources in the know of the development said.

Even if it were to have agreed to the scheme, the Indian government had to refund about Rs 2,500 crore to the British firm, they said, adding the value of shares seized and sold, dividend confiscated and tax refund withheld totalled to over Rs 7,600 crore, which was more than 50 per cent of the Rs 10,247 crore principal tax demand raised.

Cairn, which is of the opinion that the unanimous ruling of the tribunal was enforceable against Indian-owned assets in more than 160 countries that have signed and ratified the 1958 New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, has hired asset-tracing firms to investigate the overseas assets that could be seized to recover the amount due.

Cairn has already taken steps to have the arbitration award recognised in nine major jurisdictions such as the US, UK, France, the Netherlands, Singapore and Canada's Quebec province, where Indian sovereign assets have been identified.

It hasn't said what it might go after but assets could include Air India's planes, vessels belonging to the Shipping Corporation of India and property owned by state banks.
The (CCI) has approved Kyndryl Holdings and Grand Ocean Managed Infrastructure Services' proposal for the internal restructuring of Corporation under the green channel route.

Green channel is an automatic approval system, whereby a combination is deemed to have been approved by the upon receiving the filing of the notice for the combination by the parties concerned.

International Business Machines Corporation ( Corporation/ Seller) plans to spin off its global MIS Business into a new public company, within the framework of an International corporate internal re-organization," a press release stated.

This will be achieved by separation of the managed infrastructure services (MIS) business into newly incorporated companies-- Kyndryl Holdings LLC and Grand Ocean Managed Infrastructure Services Pvt Ltd-- which are presently not engaged in any business activity and have been incorporated only to implement the proposed transaction.

The MIS business is the business of infrastructure services unit of Corporations Global Technology Services segment and includes security, regulatory, risk management services, identity management services offerings of the security services unit of IBM Corporation's Cloud and Cognitive software segment, but excludes the public cloud platform offering of the infrastructure services unit, the release noted.

"Commission receives notice under Green Channel filed by Kyndryl Holdings and Grand Ocean Managed Infrastructure Services in relation to internal restructuring of IBM Corporation and is deemed approved," the regulator said in a tweet.
US-based networking solutions provider is making a "one-off payment" of about Rs 63.5 crore towards supporting staff in India during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A India employee shared a post on LinkedIn saying the company is providing a 'crisis financial assistance' under which employees in the country are being given Rs 50,000 each.

The company is also offering additional paid leaves for volunteering work, vaccination cost coverage, and salary advances to support its staff in the country, the post said.

When contacted, - in an emailed statement said - the company continues to explore new ways to expand the resources available to its employees and their families.

"All Cisco employees in India will receive an extra, one-off payment to help cover additional expenses and manage the situation a little better," it added.

The company, however, did not disclose the amount being paid to employees.

Cisco - which counts India among its major engineering hubs - has about 12,700 employees in the country.

As India reels under the impact of the second wave, hospitals in several states are reeling under a shortage of medical oxygen and beds.

Social media timelines are filled with SOS calls with people looking for oxygen cylinders, hospital beds, plasma donors, and ventilators. Organisations across the spectrum have come forward to source and donate oxygenators, breathing machines, and ventilators.

Cisco said it has also set up a dedicated 24/7 COVID helpline that is managed by a group of Cisco volunteers.

Over the past few days, this group has assisted several hundred employees and their family members across India in getting hospital beds, oxygen support, plasma, medicines, ambulances, etc, the statement said.

Cisco Chairman and CEO Chuck Robbins, in a recent post on LinkedIn, had said the company has made available USD 1.75 million in financial aid to meet immediate and critical needs such as oxygen concentrators and vaccinations to date.

"This is just the start and we will continue to expand support and resources based on evolving needs to ensure we are doing all we can," he had added.

The top executive also noted that Cisco has set up an employee match COVID-19 India Fund to support seven response organisations working on the ground in India.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
on Tuesday said it will continue the steady supply of its COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin, adding the jab has been directly supplied to 18 states since May 1.

The states include Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, the Hyderabad-based firm added.

"COVAXIN has been directly supplied to 18 states since May 1st. Unflinching in our efforts, we will continue the steady supply of our #vaccine," said in a tweet.

The company is supplying its vaccine to Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

has commenced direct supply of Covaxin with effect from May 1 to several states based on the allocations received by the central government, the company's Joint Managing Director Suchitra Ella had earlier said.

On April 29, Bharat Biotech had announced a cut in the price of Covaxin for states to Rs 400 per dose from the earlier Rs 600.

This followed widespread criticism of its pricing policy as it sold Covaxin to the central government at Rs 150 per dose.

India has expanded its COVID-19 vaccination drive by allowing its large 18-plus population to get inoculated from May 1.

(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.)
Groww, a fast-growing technology-oriented investment platform, has signed an agreement with Housing Finance (IBHFL) to acquire Asset Management Company and Trustee Company for consideration of Rs 175 crore (including cash and cash equivalents of Rs 100 crore).

With this acquisition, will become one of the first fintech to enter the Rs 32-trillion asset management space.

has more than 15 million customers and offers services like mutual fund and stock market investing. The transaction is subject to market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) and other regulatory approvals.

In a release, said Sebis recent change in sponsorship criteria for fintech has enabled it to enter into the asset management space.

MF managed assets worth Rs 664 crore for the quarter ended March 2021.





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In December, Sebi had changed the eligibility criteria for sponsoring by allowing entities that didnt fulfill the profitability criteria to set up a mutual fund provided they had a networth of Rs 100 crore.

Lalit Keshre, CEO, and co-founder of Groww, said, The regulators have also been forthcoming in enabling new-age fintech startups to enter this space and increase the reach of to the next 100 million retail investors in the country.



Groww commenced its financial services business in May 2016 and currently is one of the fastest-growing tech platforms for investing in stocks and Groww is headquartered in Bangalore and backed by marquee investors including Tiger Global, Sequoia Capital India, Y Combinator and Ribbit Capital.

According to the Keshre, the differentiating factor of Groww compared to other fund houses would be leveraging technology, enhancing customer experience, bringing in a lot more transparency, and reducing cost for the end customer.

The sale of Indiabulls MF will be limited only to the mutual fund part of the business, while the Alternate Investment Fund (AIF) and Portfolio Management Service (PMS) businesses will be demerged from the existing IBAMC structure, and remain under Indiabulls Housing Finance, subject to regulatory approvals.

Gagan Banga, Vice Chairman & MD  Indiabulls Housing Finance, We have made the decision to divest our interest in the retail mutual fund business to be able to consolidate capital and provide greater focus in building the companys real estate asset management business by way of Alternate Investment Fund, in line with the companys asset light strategy.
State-owned and Suraksha group, which are in the race to acquire Jaypee Infratech under the insolvency resolution process, have submitted revised bids and improved their offers for financial creditors.

According to sources, and Suraksha group submitted their revised bids on Monday.

Suraksha group has now offered a line of credit of Rs 3,000 crore as working capital for construction of projects as against the earlier proposal of Rs 2,000 crore, the sources said.

It has also given an undertaking that any shortfall to the dissenting creditors will be met.

is offering up to 1,903 acres of land while Surakasha group has proposed over 2,600 acres to the lenders.

Suraksha group has earmarked 1,486 acres to dissenting lenders out of the total land parcels offered in the proposal.

NBCC has provided an additional 377 acres of land in case dissenting financial creditors are not satisfied with its original offer of 1,526 acre, taking its total offer to up to 1,903 acre.

While Suraksha group has proposed to keep Yamuna Expressway road project, NBCC has offered to transfer over 80 per cent of the stake in the project to the lenders.

This is the fourth round of the bidding process in the matter of Jaypee Infratech, which went into an insolvency process in August 2017. The process was initiated on a plea filed by an IDBI-led consortium.

In March this year, the Supreme Court remitted to the CoC (Committee of Creditors) the issue of approval of resolution plan for Jaypee Infratech, saying no new expression of interest would be entertained for taking over the firm and only NBCC and Suraksha Realty could file revised proposals.

The apex court had also directed extending the resolution process by 45 days, which has already lapsed.

In March 2020, NBCC had got an approval from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) to acquire Jaypee Infratech.

The order was, however, challenged in the appellate tribunal NCLAT and later in the Supreme Court, which has ordered conducting fresh bidding.

Homebuyers' claim amounting to Rs 13,364 crore and lenders' claims worth Rs 9,783 crore were admitted last year.

Jaypee Infratech went into the insolvency process in August 2017. Anuj Jain was appointed as an Interim Resolution Professional (IRP) to conduct the insolvency process and also manage the affairs of the company.

In the first round of insolvency proceedings, the Rs 7,350-crore bid of Lakshadweep, part of Suraksha group, was rejected by the lenders.

The CoC rejected the bids of Suraksha Realty and NBCC in the second round held in May-June 2019.

The matter then reached the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) and then the apex court.

On November 6, 2019, the Supreme Court directed the completion of Jaypee Infratech's insolvency process within 90 days and ordered that the revised resolution plan to be invited only from NBCC and Suraksha Realty.

In December 2019, the CoC comprising 13 banks and around 21,000 homebuyers, approved the resolution plan of NBCC with a 97.36 per cent vote in favour in the third round of the bidding process.

(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.)
Chinese envoy expounds China's position on situation in East Jerusalem

Xinhua) 09:30, May 11, 2021

Israeli police arrest a Palestinian outside the Damascus Gate of Jerusalem's Old City on May 9, 2021.(Photo by Muammar Awad/Xinhua)

China condemns the violence against civilians, calls on all sides to exercise restraint and refrain from provocative actions and rhetoric, and encourages immediate actions toward de-escalation, said Chinese UN envoy.

UNITED NATIONS, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, on Monday expounded his country's position on the situation in East Jerusalem during emergency closed-door consultations of the Security Council, according to the Chinese mission.

China is deeply concerned about the escalating tensions and violence in East Jerusalem. The serious clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians in the past days are disturbing. China condemns the violence against civilians, calls on all sides to exercise restraint and refrain from provocative actions and rhetoric, and encourages immediate actions toward de-escalation, said Zhang.

Israeli authorities should take necessary measures to prevent violence, threats and provocations against Muslim worshipers. The historic status quo of holy sites in Jerusalem's Old City should always be upheld and respected. China is deeply concerned about the looming eviction of Palestine families in Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. China urges Israel to cease demolitions, evictions and all settlement activities, he said.

Given the volatile situation and potential of escalation, the Security Council should reiterate its commitment and unwavering support to the two-state solution and call for de-escalation in the interests of peace and stability, said Zhang.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Liang Jun)
Officials said the change has the potential to increase exposure among students as those inside the middle school have resumed changing classes during the day and social distancing between some desks was decreased in order to accommodate more students on site. District officials say attempts inside each classroom were to have each desk spaced six feet apart, but state guidelines indicate the distance may be no less than three feet.
Stressed assets close to being resolved and for which a one-time settlement is under process may not be transferred to the new bad bank, which is expected to be functional next month. Where there is a resolution likely in one or two months, and the order of the National Company Law Tribunal has been pronounced, such cases may not be considered.

There is no point transferring such assets to the National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARC) and resuming the process, said a senior executive with State Bank of India (SBI). Seconding this view, another senior public sector banker ...
By Jennifer Hiller

(Reuters) - Occidental Petroleum Corp on Monday surpassed Wall Street expectations by reporting a smaller first-quarter loss than a year ago, boosted by earnings from chemicals and

The company benefited from a rebound in oil prices, up about 23% during the first quarter, as fuel demand recovered after being decimated last year by lockdowns to curb the spread of COVID-19.

The oil and gas producer reported an adjusted loss of $136 million, or 15 cents per share, for the March quarter, compared with a loss of $467 million, or 52 cents per share, in the first quarter of 2020.

Analysts had expected a loss of 33 cents per share, according to Refinitiv.

Improved operating in chemicals and marketing were overshadowed by costs relating to a dispute over Ecuador's seizure of an Occidental oil field in 2006. Occidental, which plans to appeal, recorded a $403 million after-tax loss contingency to cover an arbitration judgment against it.

Occidental has struggled to pay down debt amassed in its $38 billion acquisition of Anadarko Petroleum in 2019. It has sharply cut spending on production and put several assets on the market to generate cash.

"Occidental is well positioned to continue to use excess cash flows, coupled with asset sales proceeds, to reduce debt," Chief Executive Vicki Hollub said.

Its oil and gas business lost $62 million for the quarter compared with a pre-tax gain of $179 million the year before.

Chemicals posted income of $251 million, down from $186 million the year prior. Stronger pricing was partially offset by storm interruptions and cost rises, the company said.

Midstream and marketing income was $282 million, compared with last year's $1.3 billion loss on impairment charges. The business handles its crude

The company will hold a call with analysts on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Jennifer Hiller in Houston and Arunima Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni, Sriraj Kalluvila and Cynthia Osterman)

(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.)
Homegrown auto major on Tuesday said it is reviewing the order by the (CCI) to initiate investigation against its commercial vehicles business in India for alleged abuse of its dominant position.

Last week, the had passed an order directing the Director General, CCI, to initiate investigation against the company for alleged abuse of dominant position with respect to dealership agreements in its commercial vehicles business in India.

"The CCI, in connection with its prima facie order, has specifically noted in the order that nothing stated in the CCI's order shall tantamount to a final expression of opinion on the merits of the Case. It is reiterated that the company is reviewing the CCI's order and is engaging with its counsel to take suitable next steps," said in a regulatory filing.

The order came on two complaints filed against Tata Motors, Tata Capital Financial Services Ltd and Finance Ltd. The competition watchdog had observed that the complainants were primarily aggrieved that Tata Motors has imposed unfair terms and conditions in the dealership agreement for commercial vehicles.

It has been alleged that the company was abusing its dominant position in contravention of the provisions of Section 4 of the Competition Act, which pertains to abuse of dominant position.

On the allegation that the dealership agreement provides that the dealer shall not start, acquire or indulge in any new business (of product or services) even if it is not related to the automobile industry, the had stated that the same appeared to be unduly restrictive and expansive in its coverage and interferes with the freedom of trade.

However, CCI had made it clear that it was not examining the conduct of Tata Capital and Tata Motors Finance or the agreements executed by them with the dealers for channel financing, which do not appear to command any significant market power in the verticals where they are operating.

(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.)
Inc is facing a London lawsuit over claims it overcharged nearly 20 million U.K. customers for App Store purchases, yet another legal headache for the tech giant fighting lawsuits across the world.

Apples 30% standard fee is excessive and unlawful the claimants said in a press release Tuesday. The claim, filed at Londons Competition Appeal Tribunal on Monday, calls for the U.S. firm to compensate U.K. iPhone and iPad users for years of alleged overcharging.

 is abusing its dominance in the app store market, which in turn impacts U.K. consumers, Rachael Kent, the lead claimant in the case and a professor at Kings College London. She teaches the ways in which consumers interact and depend upon digital platforms.

The suit, described by as meritless, was filed a week into a U.S. trial over Epic Games Inc.s claims that Apple is running its marketplace like a monopoly, cheating developers and consumers. The separate U.K. claim is focused on the alleged harm caused to customers rather than developers.

Earlier this year, Apple lowered its App Store fee to 15% from 30% for developers who produce as much as $1 million in annual revenue from their apps and those who are new to the store.

The legal challenges come as Apple faces a backlash -- with billions of dollars in revenue on the line -- from global regulators and some developers who say its fees and other policies are unjust and self-serving. Last month, the European Commission sent a statement of objections to the firm, laying out how it thinks Apple abused its power as the gatekeeper for music-streaming apps on its store.

We believe this lawsuit is meritless and welcome the opportunity to discuss with the court our unwavering commitment to consumers and the many benefits the App Store has delivered to the U.K.s innovation economy, Apple said in an emailed statement.

The commission charged by the App Store is very much in the mainstream of those charged by all other digital marketplaces, Apple said. In fact, 84% of apps on the App Store are free and developers pay Apple nothing. And for the vast majority of developers who do pay Apple a commission because they are selling a digital good or service, they are eligible for a commission rate of 15%.

The suit alleges that Apple deliberately shuts out potential competition and forces ordinary users to use its own payment processing system, generating unlawfully excessive levels of profit for the company.

The claimants say any U.K. user of an iPhone or iPad who purchased paid apps, subscriptions or made other in-app purchases since October 2015 is entitled to compensation. They estimate that Apple could face paying out in excess of 1.5 million pounds.
As many as 11 patients, who were on ventilator support, died due to low pressure in medical supply at Ruia Government Hospital in on Monday, Chittoor District Collector M Harinarayan.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has ordered an inquiry into the matter.

"This mishap took place due to the reduction of pressure in the supply. 11 patients who were on ventilators lost their lives," Hospital Superintendent Dr Bharati said. Soon after getting information about the incident, the district collector and Superintendent of Police rushed to the spot.

Speaking to media persons, the Chittoor District Collector said, "As of now, death of 11 patients has been confirmed. Treatment is going on for the remaining patients at the hospital. The incident took place at around 8.30 pm due to low pressure in medical supply. Several COVID patients are on ventilators there. Pressure was reduced for hardly five minutes. Meanwhile, an oxygen tanker came but before the hospital authorities could set it up, we lost 11 patients."

"There is adequate oxygen in the hospital. Almost 1,000 patients are getting treatment here. The hospital has 700 oxygen beds and the remaining 300 are regular beds. Around 30 doctors are working on a war footing. Tomorrow more oxygen will come. The oxygen tanker has to come from Chennai. It got delayed by some time. An investigation, including police inquiry will be taken up," Harinarayan added.

Meanwhile, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister has expressed grief over the incident at the hospital. He has ordered a probe and sought a detailed report from concerned officials. "Reasons for the incident must be identified and steps should be taken to ensure that no such incidents occur again," Reddy said.

He has further ordered to monitor the situation at every hospital in the state round the clock. He directed officials to give special focus on the management of oxygen systems in hospitals besides oxygen collection and supply.
Bengaluru, Pune, Delhi, Ernakulam and Nagpur are among those top 10 cities in the country which account for 24.44 per cent of total active cases.

Bengaluru with 9.49 per cent active cases is on top among these cities followed by Pune (2.63 per cent), Delhi (2.29 per cent), Ernakulam (1.79 per cent), Nagpur (1.52 per cent), Ahmedabad (1.47 per cent), Thrissur (1.38 per cent), Jaipur (1.32 per cent), Kozhikode (1.28 per cent) and Mumbai (1.27 per cent).India's total active caseload is currently recorded 37,15,221. It now comprises 16.16 per cent of the country's total positive cases.As per the latest Union Health Ministry data, 13 States cumulatively account for 82.68 per cent of India's total active cases.

Maharashtra has reported 5,93,150 active cases, the maximum, followed by Karnataka (5,71,026), Kerala (4,20,076), Uttar Pradesh (2,25,271), Rajasthan (2,03,017), Andhra Pradesh (1,89,367), Tamil Nadu (1,52,389), Gujarat (1,36,158), West Bengal (1,26,663), Chhattisgarh (1,25,104), Haryana (1,13,232), Madhya Pradesh 1,11,223), and Bihar (1,05,104).

Meanwhile, a good sign emerges from the report with a net decline of 30,016 cases from the total active caseload in the last 24 hours for the first time after two months (61 days).

The reports came when India's total tally of Covid-19 cases stands at 2,29,92,517 with 2,49,992 deaths so far.

--IANS

rak/ash
Gangster Chhota Rajan, who was admitted at AIIMS here for treatment after he had tested positive for COVID-19, was taken back to on Tuesday following his recovery from illness, officials said.

He was found COVID-19 positive in the on April 22 and was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on April 24.

According to a senior police officer, Rajan was brought back to Tihar on Tuesday as he had recovered.

On Friday, the jail administration had dismissed reports claiming that Rajan had died.

''News of death of inmate Rajendra Sadashiv Nikalje @ s/o Sadashiv Nikalje is wrong,'' Director General (Prisons) Sandeep Goel had said.

Rajan, 61, is lodged at the high-security prison since his arrest after deportation from Bali in Indonesia in 2015.

(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.)
About 40 per cent of Indias adult population will be fully vaccinated by November, largely through indigenous vaccine production, according to a recent Yes Securities report. By January 2022, the analysts estimate, another 20 per cent is likely to be vaccinated, thereby covering 60 per cent of the adult population. Yes Securities further estimated that by the end of this fiscal year (March 2022), about 80 per cent of the adult population will be vaccinated.

"It is pertinent to note that the vaccination threshold for herd immunity, as defined by one of WHOs chief scientists, is 6070 per cent of the total population," the analysts noted.

Indias teething troubles of vaccination coverage are likely to persist over the next month, owing to raw material scarcity for domestic manufacture. Shortage, if severe, can dent vaccination drive with 75 million of the population to be prioritised for second dose (who will be due after stipulated seven weeks of first dose), bringing the first dose to a halt and derailing the future vaccination runrate, the analysts cautioned.

However, vaccine production should ramp up, June onwards, given that manufacturers are boosting capacities and the US government is likely to ease export restrictions on vaccines and raw materials following the vaccination of significant native populace, over the next 45 days. Considering that India's adult population of 1 billion will account for the largest market for US vaccines, it estimated that 2025 per cent of US vaccine exports will head to India.




South African President has dedicated his weekly letter to the nation to the issue of waiving on COVID-19 vaccines, saying it's necessary at this time and in direct response to an emergency.

Ramaphosa's message reflects his country's hope that the waiver, first proposed by South Africa and India, may still happen despite opposition from nations like Germany.

Ramaphosa writes that the Biden Administration's support for a waiver has given negotiations at the World Trade Organisation added momentum. He compares the vaccine IP waiver issue to South Africa's eventually successful fight two decades ago to ease IPs on life-saving antiretroviral drugs during the HIV/Aids crisis.

And once again, South Africa is waging a struggle that puts global solidarity to the test, Ramaphosa wrote.

European Union leaders have doubted the immediate benefit of a waiver of IPs on COVID-19 vaccines, saying many less developed countries, particularly in Africa, don't have the capacity to manufacture vaccines even if the waiver is achieved.

Ramaphosa writes that South Africa is one of five countries in Africa with vaccine production capacity and a waiver would enable them to bolster global vaccine manufacturing for COVID-19 and other major diseases.

(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.)
India on Monday reported a net increase of 8,589 in active cases to take its count to 3,745,237. Indias share of global active cases now stands at 20.54 per cent (one in 5). The country is second among the most affected countries by active cases. On Monday, it added 366,161 cases to take its total caseload to 22,662,575. And, with 3,754 new fatalities, its Covid-19 reached 246,116, or 1.09 per cent of total confirmed infections.

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.

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Digital Editor
 An amendment to the districts 2020-21 budget from $258,100 to $267,590 for the addition of a medical assistant at the School Based Health Center. Mary Kalou, assistant superintendent for business, said the district and Advocate Medical Group have applied for a state grant that would cover the cost of this position, but in order for the hiring to occur, the district must agree to reimburse the hospital if the grant is not received. The medical assistant will provide help with COVID-19 testing and vaccinations, Kalou said. The School Based Health Center is located at Maine East High School, but is available to all District 207 students.
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 on Tuesday directed that air traffic controllers (ATCs) and five per cent of and cabin crew on duty would undergo random breath analyser (BA) tests for the next three months in view of the prevailing pandemic.

Justice Prathiba M Singh further directed the ATCs, and cabin crew to give an undertaking that they have not consumed any alcohol or psychotropic substance within the 12 hours prior to a flight.

It made it clear that if a pilot, cabin crew or ATC is found to have consumed such substances and had given a false undertaking, such personnel would be "off-rostered" and appropriate action would be taken against such individuals.

With regard to the procedure to be adopted for carrying out the tests, the court said it would be held in a big and open space and the doctor and medical staff conducting the test would have to undergo a Rapid Antigen Test everyday.

The court further directed that no more than six persons would be tested in a span of one hour and prior to each test the BA machine would be sanitised by UV radiation.

It asked the aviation regulator, DGCA, to issue guidelines with regard to the testing protocol to be followed and to communicate the same to all the airlines and airports in the country.

The directions came on the separate pleas by the ATC Guild and Indian Commercial Association (ICPA) opposing the conduct of BA tests during the prevailing pandemic.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had on April 27 issued an order stating therein that 10 per cent of flight crew and cabin crew members involved in domestic operations shall be subjected to random preflight BA test.

DGCA had also told the court that undertakings are required to be furnished by flight and cabin crew that they have not consumed any alcohol or psychotropic substance in the 12 hours prior to a flight.

In March last year, the high court issued an interim order suspending BA tests through the tube process for ATCs.

Subsequently, in September 2020 it had modified the interim order and allowed BA tests through the tube process on the basis of the recommendations by a medical board.

The board had recommended that one machine would be used per person and not again for the next 12 hours.

The court, while allowing the BA tests, had said that DGCA would be bound by the June 16, 2020 recommendations of the medical board.

The interim order of March 23, 2020 was modified on an application moved by DGCA.

The DGCA's application was filed in the petition by the Air Traffic Controllers' Guild seeking a direction to DGCA and the Airport Authority of India (AAI) to temporarily suspend the BA tests through the tube process to prevent further spread of the virus.

(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.)
Nearly 390,000 fresh cases reported

India reported 389,974 fresh infections on Tuesday, taking the cumulative caseload to nearly 23 million, according to central health ministry data. The country saw 3,876 deaths due to the pandemic, taking the death toll to 249,992. The active caseload is at 3.7 million, while the total recoveries have surged to 19 million. As many as 172 million shots have been administered since the nationwide inoculation programme kicked off on January 16. Of these, 2.5 million were given on Monday. Read more

No clarity on when Sputnik V will be deployed

India received the first consignment of the Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine 10 days ago, but the Russia-made vaccine is still going through the government's regulatory process while there is no clarity on when it might be deployed, a report in ThePrint said. This comes against the backdrop of a shortage of vaccines in many states that has hampered the expansion of the national Covid vaccination drive. Owing to vaccine delays, several states have only just begun to vaccinate their 18+ population even though the vaccination programme was opened up to all adults 10 days ago. Read more

Migraine, breathing issues could stay briefly after mild Covid: Lancet study

A new study published in the Lancet medical journal has found that the risk of delayed serious complications after Covid infection in patients who did not need to be hospitalised is very low, a report in ThePrint said. However, the researchers found that persistent symptoms  such as breathing issues and migraines  in these patients may lead to more visits to general practitioners or outpatient clinics in the six months following the infection Until now, most research investigating long-term complications from Covid-19 has been focused on hospitalised patients. But the reality is that the majority of people with Covid-19 are not admitted to the hospital, one of the authors of the study said.

One in seven Delhi hospital staff infected with Covid after vaccination: study

Through a small-scale study, a Delhi hospital has found that breakthrough infections occurred in 13.3 per cent of them (about one in seven), with one requiring hospitalisation, a report in The Indian Express said. The study was conducted on healthcare workers from Fortis Centre of Excellence for Diabetes, Metabolic Diseases and Endocrinology. The study has been published in the journal Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews. Infections that happen even after vaccination are known as "breakthrough" infections. Read more

Karnataka mulls capping ambulance charges for Covid patients

The Karnataka government is likely to place a cap on ambulance charges across the state amid complaints of exorbitant rates to transport Covid-19 patients and victims, a report in The Indian Express said. Last month, the Bengaluru police had arrested an ambulance driver and his associate for allegedly trying to extort the family of a Covid victim. Police said the duo demanded Rs 60,000 from a woman to take her fathers body to a crematorium.
India's most socioeconomically backward states may have to spend as much as 30% of their health budgets to procure COVID-19 vaccines for their populations, an IndiaSpend analysis of population and state budget data has found.

These eight states-- Bihar , Chhattisgarh , Jharkhand , Madhya Pradesh , Odisha , Rajasthan , Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh --are among 20 that have announced COVID-19 vaccination free of cost for persons aged 18 to 44 years. They would have to shell out as much as 23% if they were to procure only Serum Institute of India's (SII) Covishield, and up to 30% for Bharat Biotech's Covaxin, our analysis shows. Covishield and Covaxin are the two COVID-19 vaccines already being administered, among three approved for use in India. While the Centre had clarified that it would procure vaccines at Rs 150 per dose from vaccine manufacturers, Covishield is being supplied to state governments at Rs 300 per dose and Covaxin at Rs 400 per dose .

Until April 30, India had been vaccinating only registered healthcare workers, frontline workers and those above the age of 45. Then the central government expanded vaccine eligibility to all adults . The Centre would continue to procure 50% of manufacturers' vaccine stocks for vaccinating the former groups, and manufacturers could sell the remaining 50% of their vaccine stock to state governments and to private hospitals, per the new policy.

The burden of procuring and administering vaccines for those aged 18 to 44 was thus shifted to the state governments, and to those individual households that can afford private vaccination.

The additional financial burden comes as all eight states, except Odisha, have reported a revenue deficit in their revised budget estimates for 2020-21, according to a PRS Legislative Research brief. States are facing shrinking revenues and increased expenditure on social safety nets due to the COVID-19 pandemic, IndiaSpend reported in April 2021.

Moreover, the central government has used only 8.5% of the Rs 35,000 crore budgetary allocation for COVID-19 vaccination for the financial year 2021-22. The remaining Rs 32,000 crore is more than enough to procure vaccine doses for India's entire adult population, our analysis found.

Few Indians can afford the cost of vaccination in private hospitals, especially with the COVID-19 pandemic-induced recession pushing millions into poverty. But manufacturers have been incentivised to provide more vaccines to private hospitals, experts point out, with the central government's new policy permitting them to charge higher rates to private healthcare facilities. Covishield is being supplied to private hospitals at double the rate for state governments, and Covaxin thrice the state government rate, currently.

"Under the new policy, the ability of a state to procure vaccine doses and the ability of individuals within a state to afford it would largely determine the ability of each state to vaccinate its population," Rijo John, a health economist and adjunct professor at Rajagiri College of Social Sciences, Kochi, told IndiaSpend. "This would inevitably create an unequal distribution of vaccines," he added.

Revenue-deficit states saddled with additional COVID-19 vaccination burden

Governments of the eight socio-economically backward states will have to spend between 9% and 30% of their health budgets just on procuring COVID-19 vaccine doses, depending on which vaccines they acquire, our analysis shows.

To vaccinate its nearly 100 million population of 18- to 44-year-olds with Covishield, India's most populous state of will have to spend nearly Rs 5,715 crore ($775 million)--18% of its health budget for 2021-22. If it were to procure only Covaxin, the cost would increase by nearly Rs 2,000 crore to Rs 7,620 crore ($1 billion)--23% of its health budget.

would have to spend the largest proportion of its health budget to vaccinate its 49 million eligible population--24% for Covishield doses and up to 30% for Covaxin.

may spend the least--9% of its health budget for Covishield and 12% for Covaxin.
has put the brakes on of persons in the 18-44 years age group and will use the available stock to provide second dose for those above 45 years. The decision has been taken because of non-availability of adequate stock of Covid-19 vaccines, health minister Rajesh Tope said on Tuesday.

The state health department has announced diverting the entire stock of 275,000 Covaxin doses, which it had procured for the 18-44 age group, to vaccinate those above 45 years.

Doses of Serum Institute of Indias Covishield vaccine meant for 18-44 years too could be diverted for the 45 plus group. Tope indicated challenges in procuring doses but did not disclose the quantum of Covishield which could be diverted. As of now, no instruction has been issued to districts on diverting Covishield doses.

While has declared it would divert Covaxin doses meant for 18-44 years, seven other states had last week flagged off shortages in vaccines for administering the second dose. States have also started cancelling appointments for the first jab to prioritise the stock for second doses.





ALSO READ: Covid-19 pandemic: 80% of Indians may be vaccinated by March 2022

Tope said the move to divert the doses followed discussion with Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan.

I spoke with the Union health minister and explained that vaccines need to be provided as second doses are due. However, vaccines are not available. Hence, we will use the vaccines procured for persons in 18-44 age group for vaccinating people over the age of 45 years, Tope said. He added that this would lead to a slowing down of in the state.

Universal (for those above 18 years) started on May 1. While the Centre provides doses for those above 45 years, states are responsible for procurement for those in the 18-44 bracket.

The Maharashtra health minister said that nearly 500,000 need to take the second dose of Covaxin but only 35,000 doses are available with the state. Also, nearly 1.6 million above 45 years need the second dose of Covishield. Tope did not disclose the Covishield stock available with the state.

However, data from the Union health ministry shows Maharashtra has been provided with over 18 million doses for vaccinating persons above 45 years. Around 500,000 doses are still available with the state and another 1,13,330 doses would be delivered to Maharashtra in the next three days. Overall, around 700,000 doses will be sent to various states, it said.



ALSO READ: Indian double mutant variant of Covid-19 less severe for vaccinated: Study

Meanwhile, the Centre has advised states to prioritise the second dose and allot a minimum of 70 per cent of doses received from the Centre for the purpose.

Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan held a meeting with health secretaries of all the states and union territories asking the states to address the needs of large number of persons waiting for their second dose.

The states were informed about the modifications in CoWIN platform to better reflect the changing needs of the vaccination exercise.

The states can download a second dose due report to better plan completion of vaccination of the target groups. CoWin platform also provides flexibility and feature for reserving slots for the second dose.
Maldives, which attracted droves of Indian tourists in the last few months, has shut its borders to India.

The Health Protection Agency of tweeted on Tuesday that starting 13th May tourist visas for visitors from South Asian countries will be temporarily halted.

The safety measure has been put in place in view of second wave of pandemic in India and rise in cases in other countries in the region. A curfew too has been imposed in parts of and congregational prayers in mosques have been temporarily stopped.

The island nation has been a major attraction for celebrities and commoners alike from India and was among the very few destinations that was open to Indian tourists.

India has been the second largest source market for this year accounting for 21 per cent of all arrivals. The islands have received over 400,000 tourists since start of January. Russia has been the biggest source market followed by India, Ukraine, Germany and Kazakhstan.

Last month the Maldives government imposed curbs on Indian visitors by banning their entry on populated islands. However Indians could still visit the resorts. The second wave of pandemic however led to drop of traffic from India resulting in flight cancellations by Indian carriers.
National Technology Day is celebrated on May 11 every year to commemorate the achievements of scientists, researchers, engineers and all others involved in the field of science and technology. Its a day to remind Indians about the technological advancements made by the country.

The day was first observed on May 11, 1999. The day was chosen because on this day India successfully broke into the elite group of countries with nuclear weapons. On 11 May 1998, India successfully conducted three nuclear tests at Indian Armys Pokhran Test Range in Rajasthan. The tests were conducted under operation Shakti. Two more nuclear tests were conducted on May 13. All the tests were led by the late A P J Abdul Kalam, who went on to become Indias eleventh president. The mission was carried out by Indian Army along with Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), and Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMDER).

The Pokhran tests were Indias second instance of nuclear testing after the first test, code-named Smiling Buddha, in 1974

On 11th May 1998, India also tested its first indigenous aircraft Hansa-3 which was designed by the National Aerospace Laboratory and took flight in Bengaluru. It was a light two-seater aircraft built to serve surveillance, pilot training, and other reconnaissance purposes.

The day, 11th May, also saw the successful completion of test firing of Indias surface-to-air missile Trishul. The tests were conducted by the (DRDO) under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme of India. It was inducted into the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force.

With the accomplishment of all these technological advancements, the Government decided to declare the day as the National Technology Day. On this day, the Ministry of Science and Technology organises various seminars and workshops. The Technology Development Board of the ministry honours technological innovations that have helped in the national growth. Each year an event is organised by the Board, where the President of India is the chief guest who confers the awards to scientists for their contributions. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it is unclear if the event will be conducted in 2021.

The Board also decides a theme for every. The theme this time is Science and Technology for a Sustainable Future. The theme last year was Rebooting the Economy through Science, Technology and Research Translations' titled RESTART'.
Odisha's COVID-19 caseload



on Tuesday rose to 5,54,666 after 9,793 more people tested positive for the disease, while 18 fresh fatalities pushed the state's toll to 2,215, a health department official said.

Accordingly, the number of active cases climbed to 94,829, he said.

Of the 9,793 new cases, 5,534 were reported from various quarantine centres and the rest detected during contact tracing, the official said.

Khurda district, of which state capital Bhubaneswar is a part, reported the maximum number of new cases at 1511, followed by Sundergarh at 1,018 and Cuttack at 641.

Barring Malkangiri, Dhenkanal and Bhadrak, all 27 other districts reported over 100 new cases.

Taking to Twitter, the health department said, "Regret to inform about the demise of eighteen Covid positive patients while under treatment in hospitals."



Four fatalities were recorded in Angul, three in Khurda, two each in Kalahandi, Rayagada and Sundergarh.

One each succumbed to the infection in Boudh, Deogarh, Gajapati, Malkangiri and Puri.

This apart, 53 other COVID-19 patients in the state have died due to comorbidities.

As many as 4,57,569 patients have so far recovered from the highly infectious disease. Odisha's positivity rate currently stands at 5.23 per cent.

Over 1.06 crore samples have been tested in the state thus far, including 46,241 on Monday, the official said.

Meanwhile, vaccination for people in the 18-44 years age bracket began in four municipal corporation areas of -- Cuttack, Rourkela, Sambalpur and Berhampur.

The inoculation drive for the younger population is already underway in areas managed by the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), the official added.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
He attached a video of the Oxygen Express entering the Bengaluru station with 120 MT of oxygen.

Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said that Express with six containers of medical has arrived in the capital from Jharkhand to provide relief.

In a tweet, Goyal said, "In order to provide relief to Covid-19 patients, Express from Tatanagar has reached via Green corridor, with six containers of medical Oxygen."

He also attached a video of the Oxygen Express entering the station with 120 MT of Oxygen.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Home Minister



Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday said he has directed the police to exercise restraint while dealing with people during the COVID related restrictions in the state and prefer other ways such as seizing vehicles of those who violated guidelines.

The government has come under sharp attack from some quarters including opposition as police used force at several places to impose stringent restrictions as ordered by the government to curb the spread of COVID.

"The police have reduced enforcing the restriction from 6 am to 10 am such as seizing the vehicles.

There are other ways to deal with people (violators) such as seizing vehicles and imposing fine (after 10 am) which should be done as per rule," Bommai told reporters at the Veterinary College at Hebbal in the city where a new COVID care centre has been launched.

He also sought public support in the drive to check the spread of the disease.

"We have given directions to the police not to use force but we need people's cooperation for at least 14 days to make successful," Bommai said.

To a question, Bommai said caning violators has been stopped now.

Meanwhile, a purported video surfaced in the social media where a man, said to be a banker, was allegedly beaten up by the police at Gandhi Chowk in the district headquarter town of Vijayapura in North

Basavaraj, a bank officer, had left for office when the policemen stopped him.

Though he showed his identity card, the policemen beat him up badly, it was alleged.

The Bengaluru police commissioner Kamal Pant said last evening the police have been advised not to use any kind of force.

"Contrary to the videos doing rounds on Social Media, @BlrCityPolice has been strictly advised to only take action strictly as per law, in case anybody violates lock-down guidelines.

They have been advised not to use any kind of force in this regard", Pant had tweeted.

(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.)
Setting aside the unsigned, unrecorded confession that laid dormant for 30 years, the entire case against Hill was circumstantial, the appeal states. There were no eyewitnesses to his involvement, no cooperating co-defendants and no third parties to whom he admitted any involvement, according to the appeal. Because there was no overwhelming independent evidence of Hills guilt, his conviction should be reversed and remanded for a new trial.
The existing restrictions on travelling in local trains, metro trains and monorails in Mumbai cannot be relaxed at this juncture as COVID-19 cases are still spreading, the told the

State government's counsel PP Kakade told a bench of Justices KK Tated and Abhay Ahuja that only frontline health workers and state government staff are currently allowed to use the services of suburban trains, the monorail, and metro trains.

The bench was hearing a plea filed by the Cooperative Banks Employees Union (CBEU) seeking permission to travel to work by local trains, metro, and monorail services in the city.

CBEU counsel AS Peerzada urged the HC to allow the staff of cooperative banks to board trains to enable them to discharge essential banking services.

"Even during the first wave of the pandemic, the railways and state authorities had in September 2020 permitted all cooperative and private bank officials to travel by local trains, metro trains, and monorail. Even currently, employees of nationalised bank are permitted to use local trains," Peerzada said.

Kakade, however, said the staff of nationalised banks was currently not allowed to use local trains during the second wave of the pandemic.

"COVID-19 infections in the state are still spreading. We can't open the trains for anyone else right now," he said.

The bench also noted the petitioner had not produced any documentary evidence to show that staff of nationalised banks is permitted to use local trains and dismissed the plea.

The HC, however, allowed the CBEU to approach the court again if it could produce documentary proof to show nationalised bank staff is permitted to travel in local trains.
More than 90 lakh COVID-19 vaccine doses are still available with states and UTs which will receive over 7 lakh additional doses in the next three days, the Union Health Ministry said on Tuesday.

The Centre has so far provided more than 18 crore vaccine doses (18,00,03,160) to states and UTs free of cost.

Of this, the total consumption including wastages is 17,09,71,429 doses.

"More than 90 lakh COVID Vaccine doses (90,31,691) are still available with the states and UTs to be administered. States with negative balance are showing more consumption (including wastage) than vaccine supplied as they have not reconciled the vaccine they have supplied to Armed Forces," the ministry said.

States and UTs will receive 7,29,610 additional vaccine doses in addition within the next three days.

The ministry said the Government of India has been supporting the nationwide vaccination drive by providing COVID vaccines free of cost to states and UTs.

Implementation of the Liberalized and Accelerated Phase 3 Strategy of COVID-19 Vaccination has started from 1st May 2021.

In the strategy it is made clear that every month only 50 per cent of the total Central Drugs Laboratory (CDL) cleared vaccine doses of any manufacturer would be procured by the Centre.

The Centre would continue to procure its share of 50 per cent of the monthly CDL cleared vaccines and would continue to make it available to state governments free of cost as was being done earlier.
: on Tuesday recorded



29,272 fresh COVID-19 cases in the single biggest day spike so far, pushing the caseload to 14,38,509 while 298 deaths in the last 24 hours took the toll to 16,178.

According to a medical bulletin, 19,182 people were discharged today, taking the tally to 12,60,150, leaving 1,62,181 active infections.

With an increase in new infections, Chief Minister M K Stalin appealed to the general public and industries to donate to the Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund to fight against the raging pandemic.

The state capital accounted for 7,466 new infections, totaling 4,04,733 till date.

The metropolis also leads in the number of fatalities with 5,368 deaths.

The number of samples tested in the last 24 hours was at 1,56,111, pushing the cumulative number of specimens examined so far to 2,43,10,931.

Besides Chennai, Chengalpet added 2,419 cases, Coimbatore 2,650, Thiruvallur 1,204 and Madurai 1,024, while the remaining 31 districts clocked new infections in triple digits.

Among the 298 deceased, 78 were without comorbidities which include a 25-year old man from Coimbatore who succumbed to the virus due to 'cardio respiratory arrest'.

As many as 25 people who tested positive Tuesday were returnees from other destinations.

Meanwhile, in an official release, Stalin appealed to the general public and industries to donate generously to the Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund towards strengthening the health infrastructure with COVID-19 pandemic being virulent in the State.

In a statement, he assured the funds received would be used only for stepping up medical infrastructure like ramping up production of medical oxygen production and storage facilities, purchasing of RT-PCR kits, life saving devices among others.

"The funds collected will be used only to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and the details related to the expenses made (through the funds generated) would be available on a public domain ensuring transparency," he said.

The funds received would be 100 per cent tax exempted, he added.

Earlier in the day, the chief minister inaugurated a SIDDHA Covid-19 Care facility at the A M Jain College in Meenambakkam in the city under the health department's plan to set up 14 such facilities across the State.

The first Siddha Covid-19 Care Centre was recently inaugurated by medical minister Ma Subramanian at Vyasarpadi.

The facilities would offer traditional SIDDHA food and herbal medicines to the COVID-19 patients who are under treatment.

(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.)
Moody's slashes India growth forecast to 9.3%



Moody's Investors Service on Tuesday slashed India's growth forecast for the current financial year to 9.3 per cent, from the 13.7 per cent projected earlier, on account of the negative impact of the second wave of Covid-19. India is experiencing a severe second wave of infections which will slow the near-term economic recovery and could weigh on longer-term growth dynamics, it said. READ MORE...

Nomura cuts FY22 growth estimate to 10.8% due to lockdowns



Japanese brokerage Nomura on Tuesday cut its GDP growth estimate for the current 2021-22 fiscal to 10.8 per cent from the earlier 12.6 per cent, blaming the impact of the second wave-induced lockdowns. It said the activity levels have dropped further to 64.5 per cent of the pre-pandemic levels in the week to May 9 as per a proprietary index, after a further 5 percentage points drop in the week. The activity levels, at present, are at par with those seen in June 2020. READ MORE...

Covid cases dip in 18 states: Govt

An early trend of decline in daily new Covid-19 cases and deaths has been noted in the country, the government said on Tuesday, indicating that the devastating second wave of the pandemic is on the wane. According to the government, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Chhattisgarh were among 18 states and union territories showing continued plateauing or decrease in daily new Covid-19 cases. READ MORE...

to add 8 lakh sq ft warehousing space



Walmart-owned on Tuesday said it plans to expand its fulfilment centre capacity for grocery by more than 8 lakh sq ft over the next three months across Delhi, Kolkata and other cities. The additional fulfilment centre capacity will help cater to over 73,000 grocery orders per day, a statement said. READ MORE...
Geneva [Switzerland], May 11 (ANI): As India is in the grasp of a devastating second wave of COVID-19, World Health Organisation (WHO) Chief Scientist on Monday (local time) termed the rate of infections and deaths in the country as "worrying" and called on governments to boost exercises on reporting actual numbers.

In an exclusive interview with ANI, Swaminathan said that the projections of one million deaths by August projected by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) are based on models and available data, which are not predictions of the future and can be changed.

"I would say that at this point of time, the situation is very worrying, the daily number of cases and deaths that we are seeing today in India and other countries in the Southeast area region is a big concern for us and we also realise that these are underestimates. Every country in the world, in fact, the number of cases and deaths has been underestimated to its true number," she told ANI, adding that governments should boost exercises to report actual numbers.

The on Monday said that the variant first identified in India last year was being classified as a variant of global concern, with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily.

"We are classifying this as a variant of concern at a global level," Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead on COVID-19, told a briefing.

The B.1.617 variant is the fourth variant to be designated as being of "global concern" and requiring heightened tracking and analysis and data collection must be done in a transparent way, the Chief Scientist added.

"It should be done and we should be aware because the better the data, the better the policies can be directed towards what is happening. Let's remember, people are not just dying of COVID, people are also dying of other illnesses for which they are not able to access healthcare," Dr Swaminathan asserted.

Indian infections and deaths held close to record daily highs on Monday, increasing calls for the Indian government to lock down the world's second-most populous country.

said studies were underway in India to examine the variant's transmissibility, the severity of the disease it causes and the response of antibodies in people have been vaccinated. The WHO scientist called for more genome sequencing in India to get a full picture of what is going on in different parts of the country, while saying that it should be hand-in-hand with clinical epidemiological studies.

"Sequencing does not give you the full picture. You do not know whether it is more transmissible, whether it causes more severe disease or what impact it has on your diagnostics," she said.

While replying to a query on travel amid the pandemic, Swaminathan said that the Review Committee on International Health Regulations (IHR) has said that vaccine passports should not be a pre-condition for travel.

"The scientific reason is that just because you are vaccinated does not mean you cannot get infected. You can see infection or you could be asymptomatic but when you travel you may infect others. The ethical argument is that not everyone has access to vaccinations now," she said, while advocating safe travel with precautions.

She also said that the double mutant - B.1.617 - is highly transmissible and a WHO committee has classified it as a 'variant of concern'.

"For now, the message is that it will be more transmissible, but it behaves the same way as other viral strains replicate the same proportions. Vaccines are still very effective against every variant in the world in protecting against severe disease and hospitalisations," she informed.

Swaminathan also called on countries to continuously update policies regarding the pandemic, which should be based on science and data. "We have to continue to adapt our policies. We cannot become stagnant. What is needed first is to call strong leadership which is based on science and data at public health principles. That needs to be updated from time to time even if you take treatment," Swaminathan added. The WHO scientist also urged data transparency in different countries and that people should be explained why certain decisions are being made and the rationale behind them.

Earlier today, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the WHO Foundation was launching a "Together for India" appeal to raise funds to purchase oxygen, medicines and protective equipment for health workers.

India is currently battling a deadly second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is believed to being led by the 'double mutant'. The current wave has strained the country's health infrastructure and overburdened frontline medical workers.
Southeast Asias economies languish amid virus challenges

The resurgence in cases is posing a threat to some of Southeast Asia's biggest economies, such as Malaysia and The Phillippines, which registered a degrowth in the first three months of the year. Other top regional economies such as Indonesia and Thailand have also had weak signals. The Philippines' gross domestic product shrank 4.2 per cent and Malaysia's, by 0.5 per cent. Meanwhile Indonesia last week reported a 0.74 per cent contraction and Thailand is expected to show a contraction as well when it reports first quarter figures next week. Read here

Let's look at the global statistics Global infections: 158,957,229 Global deaths: 3,303,877 Nations with most cases: US (32,744,100), India (22,992,517), Brazil (15,209,990), France (5,841,593), Turkey (5,044,936). Source: John Hopkins Research Center



Fresh outbreak threatens Taiwans status as haven against virus

Taiwan reimposed restrictions on large gatherings as a slow-burning outbreak escaped government efforts to contain it, threatening the islands status as one of the standout successes of the global pandemic. Indoor gatherings will be limited to fewer than 100 people -- and 500 for outdoor events -- for the next four weeks. The announcement came after the government reported 11 new cases. After an initial outbreak of cases early in the pandemic, Taiwan has managed to keep the virus largely under control, even going more than eight months without a single domestic infection between April and December. Read here

US FDA approves Pfizer vaccine for children aged 12-15

The United States drug regulator approved the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for children aged between 12-15 years, a crucial step in the nations steady recovery from the pandemic and a boon to millions of American families eager for a return to normalcy. The authorisation ends weeks of anticipation among parents, who have been grappling with how to conduct their lives when only the adults in a household are immunised. However, the FDAs go-ahead is not the final hurdle. An advisory committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to meet to review the data and make recommendations for the vaccines use in 12-15-year-olds. Read here

The world may need to learn to live with the virus

Virus variants are tearing through places where people gather in large numbers with few or no pandemic protocols, like wearing masks and distancing. Early in the pandemic, there was hope that the world would one day achieve herd immunity, the point when the coronavirus lacks enough hosts to spread easily. But over a year later, the virus is crushing India with a fearsome second wave and surging in countries from Asia to Latin America. Experts now say it is changing too quickly, new more contagious variants are spreading too easily and vaccinations are happening too slowly for herd immunity to be within reach anytime soon. Read here
The government has proposed to slash import duties on steel items further bringing it to zero or near zero levels to provide relief to MSMEs, which have been hit hard by the high cost of raw materials amidst the raging pandemic.

Top government sources said that a decision had been taken to review duties on steel products and reduce it or withdraw it completely on few items to help the user industry hit hard by rising price of the metal in the domestic market.

Also, lower import duties would help maintain supply lines that have been affected with several domestic steel companies reducing steel production to divert medical grade oxygen for Covid-19 relief measures.

In budget 2021-22, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had revoked the anti-dumping duty (ADD) and countervailing duty (CVD) on certain steel products while reducing customs duty uniformly to 7.5 per cent on semis, flat, and long products of non-alloy, alloy, and stainless steels from 10-12.5 per cent levels earlier. She also brought down to nil on steel scrap to support user industries hit hard by sharp rise in

These duties may now be withdrawn or slashed further.

" continue to remain firm and have also risen further in recent months. It is making operation of several user industries difficult specially in a market disrupted by the pandemic. Cut in will help tame as the global prices of steel in certain markets are still lower than domestic prices. The measure will also help supply lines of steel if there is any shortage in domestic steel production due to use of another input oxygen by steel makers for Covid relief," said the official source quoted earlier.

It is expected that duty cuts in steel will be announced shortly by the DGFT after getting formal nod from the finance ministry. A call has to be taken whether to bring down duty levels largely at 7.5 per cent to 2.5 per cent or withdraw it completely for the time being.

Domestic hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices rallied to a multi-year high of Rs 56,000 per tonne in February from Rs 39,200 per tonne in March 2020 as demand improved amid iron-ore supply constraints and high global prices. This has further improved to over Rs 58,000 in April, a jump of over 50 per cent in last 13 months.

With demand for steel remaining firm and China cutting export incentives to steel makers to support domestic needs, Indian steel prices are expected to move up further. The cut in duty is expected to tame prices in the domestic market while providing competition to domestic steelmakers from traders who secure cheaper metal from abroad.

Steel producers asking anonymity said that the move to cut would be detrimental to the interest of domestic steelmakers as it could flood the market with cheap and substandard steel being dumped into the country. They said that the steel market is giving indications that domestic steel sector may turn profitable after a long interval. But duty cuts could change the cycle again.

In the current scenario of a moderation in demand in India due to the second wave of Covid-19 and consequent business lockdowns, Indian steel mills would be able to offload large steel volumes to export markets and still remain highly profitable, according to a recent report from ICRA.

But a cut in duty would squeeze margins and bring a lot of export destined products back into the domestic market.

(Subhash Narayan can be contacted at subhash.n@ians.in)

--IANS

sn/skp/

(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.)
India has contracted to export 56 lakh tonne sugar so far in the ongoing 2020-21 marketing season, and is expected to conclude deals for shipment of the rest 4,00,000 tonne soon, trade body AISTA said on Tuesday.

The government has fixed a mandatory export target of 60 lakh tonne surplus sugar for ongoing the 2020-21 season (October-September). This export policy was, however, approved only in January.

During the 2019-20 season, India -- the world's second largest sugar producing nation after Brazil -- had shipped 59 lakh tonne of the sweetener.

Releasing latest data, All India Sugar Trade Association (AISTA) said out of 56 lakh tonne export contracts undertaken, 34.78 lakh tonne of the sweetener has been already shipped to top 12 countries till May 6 of this season.

About 35 per cent of the total export quantity has been shipped to Indonesia (12.17 lakh tonne) so far this season, followed by Afghanistan (4.33 lakh tonne) and the UAE (3.66 lakh tonne) in the said period.

AISTA said about 4.54 lakh tonne sugar is in transit and delivery to port-based refineries, while another 4.43 lakh tonne of sugar is under loading.

In total, 43.76 lakh tonne of sugar has been dispatched from for export purpose, it added.

The trade body, however, expressed concern over high freight rates although the containers availability has improved.

India is left with export of 4 lakh tonne sugar under the government's export policy, for which traders are expected to conclude contracts soon, it said.

Global prices of sugar have jumped substantially due to reports of dry weather in Brazil and lower production in the month of April this year, it added.

AISTA has pegged output to be higher at 29.9 million tonne in the current 2020-21 marketing season (Oct-Sept), against 27.40 million tonne in the last season.

(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.)
Moody's Investors Service on Tuesday revised its outlook for the global airlines industry to positive from negative, reflecting that industry fundamentals will materially improve over the next 12 to 18 months.

This is despite the current record high daily infection rate in India, travel restrictions in countries with large amounts of traffic to and from India, and ongoing lockdowns in other countries.

"While the continuing pandemic means there is a risk of further disruption to air travel in various countries at various times, we expect increasing vaccinations will lower border restrictions and increase demand for air travel over the next 12 to 18 months," said Moody's Senior Vice President Jonathan Root.

"Leisure traffic will lead the charge to boarding gates while corporate trips and international long-haul will follow, initially at a slower pace. The restoration of the ability to travel will relieve the tremendous pent up demand to fly to visit friends and relatives and for vacations," added Root.

With offices in many countries opening by fall 2021, this will facilitate the beginning of the corporate travel recovery.

The strong recovery in US domestic travel demand that began in March highlights benefits of the combination of vaccinations and a large geographic footprint for the return of domestic travel demand.

As conditions in other markets improve and barriers to travel come down, Moody's expects the current experience in US market to be repeated globally, over different time frames.

For this summer, the domestic capacity operated by each of the eight US airlines that Moody's rates will reach at least 80 per cnt of the capacity they operated in 2019. Domestic schedules of some US low-cost operators will exceed 100 per cent of 2019 levels.

International operations of US airlines will remain significantly curtailed through the summer, with green shoots starting in the fall, after European borders open this summer and infection rates in Latin America decline. A fullsome restart of trans-Pacific travel will require the end of lockdowns in Japan and removal of border restrictions across the region.

Meanwhile, Canadian airlines are still suffering some of the largest declines of carriers across the globe.

High infection rates in some European countries and the more limited availability of vaccines, resulting in continued travel restrictions, have so far prevented a surge in demand in Europe similar to that seen in the US since late February.

In terms of domestic air travel, China, the US and Australia are leading the industry's recovery.

Moody's expects the industry to sustain operating losses and negative operating margins for all of 2021, although to a lesser degree than in 2020.

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(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.)
Japanese brokerage on Tuesday cut its estimate for the current 2021-22 fiscal to 10.8 per cent from the earlier 12.6 per cent, blaming the impact of the second wave-induced lockdowns.

It said the activity levels have dropped further to 64.5 per cent of the pre-pandemic levels in the week to May 9 as per a proprietary index, after a further 5 percentage points drop in the week. The activity levels, at present, are at par with those seen in June 2020.

The country has reported over 4 lakh new infections and 4,000 deaths a day during the ongoing second wave of the COVID-19 infections, leading over 20 states to impose lockdowns or lockdown-like restrictions as a desperate measure to restrict the spread of the virus.

said its cut in the estimate is reflective of a larger lockdown-led loss of sequential momentum in the June quarter.

"We expect a localised hit in Q2 (April-June period) and believe that medium-term tailwinds (like vaccine pivot, global recovery, easy financial conditions) remain intact," it said.

The economy is officially assumed to have contracted by 7.6 per cent in FY21 because of the hit following the national last year.

At present, the RBI estimates the economy to expand by 10.5 per cent in FY22 because of the base effect, while some analysts have warned that the growth may come down to as low at 8.2 per cent if the second wave peaks in June.

In the note, the brokerage said the fall in activity continues to be driven by a sharp fall in mobility, pointing that Google's workplace and retail and recreation mobility indices fell by 10 per cent. Power demand also fell by 4.1 per cent week-on-week while the labour participation rate inched higher to 41.3 per cent vs 38.9 per cent last week.

The sharp drop in India Business Resumption Index (NIBRI) suggests that the rolling state-wide lockdowns are hurting sequential growth.

"We would, however, caution that the drop in mobility exaggerates the hit to economic activity. International experiences suggest the correlation between mobility and is much weaker during the second wave, due to more targetted restrictions and more pandemic-adept consumers and businesses," it said.
The brothers names are among the names recorded at the Courts of the Missing at the Punchbowl. A rosette will be placed next to their names to indicate they have been accounted for.
Public procurement of goods and services touched Rs 6,894 crore on government buying portal GeM in April alone on account of steps taken by the platform such as rapid onboarding of buyers and sellers across India and development of custom features for large players, a senior official said on Tuesday.

The Government e-Market (GeM) portal was launched on August 9, 2016, for online purchases of goods and services by all the ministries and departments.

"The total gross merchandise value of the orders placed on GeM platform in April was Rs 6,894 crore," Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GeM Prashant Kumar Singh told PTI.

Singh said this value exceeds the value of procurement done over the platform in June quarter and September quarter of the previous financial year, and is a milestone in GeM's journey as the national public procurement platform for India.

"GeM was able to achieve this due to its focussed efforts to rapidly onboard buyers and sellers across India, the e-marketplace's diverse and growing catalog of offerings for our buyers and the development of custom features and functionalities for the benefit of large buyers like the Railways, Defence and CPSUs," he added.

He informed that in April, the platform received the single largest order since its inception five years ago.

The order was placed by Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL), a public sector unit under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, for procurement of 'Carbon Steel Coated Line Pipes' with a cumulative value of Rs 2,600 crore.

The CEO said this procurement is planned to be used for the line pipe insertion for about 1,800 kms from Odisha to Assam (Numaligarh).

"This is a mark of the buyers' confidence on the platform and indicates GeM's readiness for large and complex procurements by PSUs, due to the targeted implementation of several customized features and functionalities," he said.

GeM has also assisted NRL and the sellers with extensive support in placing the order, including through multiple rounds of discussions with all stakeholders and hand-holding them through the complete procurement journey.

"This transaction is not only a shot in the arm for GeM but must also serve as an exemplar to all CPSUs to use GeM for their procurement. Large buyers can and should procure competitively priced and high-quality goods and services efficiently and transparently on GeM, regardless of complexity or value," he added.

Currently, government departments, ministries, public sector units, state governments, and Central Armed Police Forces are allowed to carry out transactions through this portal.

The portal provides a wide range of products from office stationery to vehicles. Automobiles, computers and office furniture are currently the top product categories.

Services, including transportation, logistics, waste management, web casting and analytical, are listed on the portal.

So far, 17,93,773 sellers and service providers are registered with the portal to sell 3,16,2431 products and several services. Over Rs 1,14,700 crore worth of transactions have happened so far on the portal.

(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.)
Co said on Tuesday 737 MAX jet deliveries fell to just four airplanes in April from 19 in the previous month, as the U.S. planemaker's best-selling aircraft struggles with an electrical problem that has re-grounded part of the fleet.

said last month it was halting deliveries of the jet again due to the electrical problem.

The planemaker started delivering the 737 MAX to airlines in December nearly two years after the jet returned to service following a lengthy safety ban.

The company said it delivered a total of 17 airplanes in April, bringing its deliveries to a total of 94 aircraft for the first four months of the year.

Apart from the four 737 MAX jets, said it delivered nine 787 Dreamliners, two 767s and two 777-freighters last month and booked 25 gross orders.

The gross orders include five previously announced 777-freighters for Silk Way West Airlines and 20 orders for the 737 planes - 14 for Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, three for Air Lease Corp and three for unidentified customers.

Boeing said customers canceled 17 737 MAX airplane orders in April. Net of cancellations and conversions, Boeing booked eight aircraft orders last month and had no adjustments for stricter accounting standards.

The company's gross orders for the first four months were 307 airplanes. Net orders after accounting adjustments were 84 aircraft for the same period, Boeing said, up from 76 planes in March.

Boeing said its official backlog fell to 4,045 aircraft orders in April, from 4,054 aircraft orders in March.

(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.)
Chinas births fell to their lowest in almost six decades amid the pandemic last year, putting the countrys population on course to peak within the next five years and adding pressure on Beijing to step up reforms to maintain economic growth as the workforce shrinks.

There were 1.412 billion people in last year, according to the results of a once-a-decade census, up 5.38 per cent from a decade before, but slightly below previous official projections. The annual average population growth of 0.53 per cent in the past decade was the slowest since the 1950s.

Chinas population has become much more urbanised and educated over the past decade, trends which should allow the worlds second-largest economy to continue expanding even after its population peaks. In order to remain an engine of world growth, will require a large increase in spending on pensions and health care and more investment in education and infrastructure to boost productivity.

Even though rapidly contained the coronavirus outbreak and the economy returned to growth last year, its fertility mirrored other major nations such as the US, which saw births slump as economic and social dislocation undercut peoples desire to have children.

The share of the working population those in the ages of 15 and 59 slumped to 63.4 per cent in 2020 from more than 70 per cent a decade ago.




Nepal's devastating COVID-19 outbreak showed no signs of abating on Tuesday as the country recorded its highest single-day related deaths with 225 fatalities and 9,483 new cases in the last 24 hours.

Now, the total number of deaths stands at 4,084 and infections at 413,111, the Ministry of Health and Population said.

In the last 24 hours, 5,225 COVID-19 patients have recovered, 20,596 polymerase chain reaction tests and 720 antigen tests have been conducted, the ministry said.

There are 97,008 active cases in the Himalayan nation.

Of the new cases, 3,927 were reported from the Kathmandu Valley, where prohibitory orders have been extended till May 27. The restriction orders were first enforced on April 29 and were due to expire on May 12.

A deadly second wave of the pandemic is sweeping across Nepal, with about 8,000 new cases being reported daily for the past several days, which is quite high for a country of approximately 30 million people.

In an opinion piece published in The Guardian newspaper on Monday, Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli, who lost a confidence vote in Nepal's House of Representatives earlier in the week, appealed to the UK and other developed nations to urgently provide his country with essential medical items, life-saving drugs and vaccines to combat the pandemic.

Meanwhile, donated 400 oxygen cylinders, 160 oxygen concentrators, and 10 ventilators to on Tuesday.

A wide-body Airlines aircraft flew in the medical supplies, officials said, adding that the 400 oxygen cylinders are part of the 20,000 cylinders that has promised to donate to the country.

General Manager of Airlines Dim Prakash Paudel told journalists an aircraft has been kept on standby to fly in the remaining health equipment which has pledged.

Late last month, China had promised Nepal medical equipment and supplies equivalent to 5 million yuan (USD 780,000). The announcement was made by Chinese Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi at a virtual meeting of Foreign Ministers attended by Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

(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.)
Prime Minister said on Tuesday that would not hold talks with India until New Delhi reverses its decision of scrapping the special status of Jammu and

India abrogated the special status of Jammu and under Article 370 on August 5, 2019 and bifurcated it into two Union territories.

"Unless India retreats from the steps taken on August 5, the Pakistani government will not talk to India at all," Khan said while responding to questions from the public during a live broadcast session.

Earlier in the day, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that no talks presently were taking place with India but parleys could be held if New Delhi revisited its policy regarding and provided relief to the people of Kashmir.

"Jammu and Kashmir cannot be an internal issue of India as it is on the agenda of the UN and there are several Security Council resolutions on it, he said while addressing a news conference in Islamabad.

India has repeatedly said Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and the country is capable of solving its own problems.

New Delhi has told Islamabad that it desires normal neighbourly relations with it in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.

Indo-Pak relations deteriorated after India announced withdrawing special powers of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcation of the state into two union territories in August, 2019. India has maintained that issue related to Article 370 of the Indian Constitution was entirely an internal matter of the country.

However, lately there has been some improvement when the two countries agreed in February to restore peace on the Line of Control. It is said that the rival officials have been interacting through the back channel diplomacy to ease tension.

Khan also responded to several questions about domestic issues and defended the performance of his government which came to power in August 2018.

(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.)
MADRID (Reuters) -South Korean mobile handset manufacturer Electronics said on Tuesday it will not be present at the World Mobile Congress in next month, becoming the latest major company to decide to attend the event remotely because of concerns over covid.

"The health and safety of our employees, partners and customers is our number one priority, so we have made the decision to withdraw from exhibiting in-person at this year's Mobile World Congress," said in an emailed statement.

The 2020 edition of the world's largest mobile telephone industry event, usually held each year in in February, was cancelled because of the pandemic and postponed to late June 2021.

Other including Ericsson have also said they would attend the congress remotely.

(Reporting by Inti Landauro, Supantha Mukherjee and Clara-Laeila LaudetteEditing by Ingrid Mealander)
There is a looming sense of fear in Pakistan that the US withdrawal from will increase instability in its neighbourhood, and add security threats in the region while putting China's Belt and Road projects at risk, Nikkei Asia reports.

As the September 11 deadline of complete withdrawal is approaching, instability in Pakistan has steadily increased, and outlawed groups like Tehreek e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), have increased cross-border attacks in the country.

According to the analyst Fakhar Kakakhel, the US pull-back, along with a weak Afghan government will seriously destabilize the region.

"In the future, TTP will have more safe pockets in regions close to Pakistani borders," Kakakhel told Nikkei Asia. The report by the Japanese newspaper said that Taliban members from and Pakistan allegedly use the border region as a sanctuary.

Furthermore, experts believe the uncertainty in has provided TTP with a window to attack Pakistan, including the projects of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) worth around USD 50 billion.

As per the analysts, after the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan, TTP can more easily attack targets that are key for Pakistan's economy.

"Some (Chinese) investments are located near the traditional areas of TTP's activities, so it makes them natural targets," said Przemyslaw Lesinski, an Afghanistan expert at the War Studies Academy in Warsaw.

Michael Kugelman, the deputy director of the Asia Program at Wilson Center, told Nikkei that has not traditionally been a top target of TTP in Pakistan.

"But in recent months, anti-China rhetoric has [surfaced] in TTP propaganda, especially because of China's oppression of Uyghur Muslims," Kugelman told Nikkei.

Kugelman said that Pakistan, which has built a fence worth millions of dollars, will not get a 100 per cent deterrent against TTP cross-border attacks.

"Pakistan has genuine reasons to be concerned (of TTP)," he added.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Nandita Bose and Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The declined to weigh in Monday on whether companies that are hacked like Colonial Pipeline should pay ransom to their attackers, but a national security official said it may offer some advice in the future.

Anne Neuberger, deputy national security adviser for cyber, told reporters that the FBI has been tracking the ransomware group blamed in the attack, DarkSide, since at least October.

The U.S. intelligence community is investigating whether the Colonial Pipeline hackers have ties to the Russian government or other nation states, Neuberger said.

A news release issued in the name of DarkSide said its goal was to make money and not create problems for society.

As to whether the U.S. government was advising Colonial on whether to pay a ransom, Neuberger said: "Typically that is a private-sector decision and the administration has not offered further advice at this time."

"Given the rise in ransomware, that is one area we are definitely looking at now, to say what should be the government's approach," she said.

Whether targets of such attacks should pay to regain control of their systems is a matter of fierce debate. Critics including the U.S. Conference of Mayors and many security industry veterans contend that paying ransom just encourages attacks.

The U.S. Treasury said in October that facilitating ransomware payments to sanctioned hackers may be illegal, a comment that seemed to signal a crackdown on the fast-growing market for consultants who help organizations pay off cybercriminals.

In a pair of advisories, the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control and its Financial Crimes Enforcement Network warned that facilitators could be prosecuted even if they or the victims did not know that the hackers demanding the ransom were subject to U.S. sanctions.

The formed an interagency working group that met throughout the weekend about the hack and has been keeping U.S. President Joe Biden briefed.

Neuberger and homeland security adviser Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall said officials were discussing options for responding to the hack and how to ensure a steady supply of gasoline after the pipeline disruption caused by the cyber attack.

(Reporting by Nandita Bose and Steve HollandEditing by Chizu Nomiyama, Heather Timmons, Nick Zieminski and Cynthia Osterman)

(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.)
By Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss, Tom Wilson and Tom Westbrook

NEW YORK/LONDON/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - ethereum climbed to a new peak for a third straight day on Monday on continued optimism about further growth in decentralized finance or "DeFi", although some analysts said it was overvalued at current levels.

Ethereum has soared this year, fuelled by the boom in DeFi, which are platforms that facilitate crypto-denominated lending outside traditional banking. Many DeFi applications are embedded in the ethereum

Ethereum, the second-largest coin by market capitalization, hit an all-time high of $4,200 and was last up around 5.2% at $4,133.40.

"The myriad possibilities of decentralized ledger technologies should be likened to a technological force of nature that will continue to disrupt finance and other businesses," said Paolo Ardoino, chief technology officer of exchange Bitfinex.

An upcoming technical change to its software seen as reducing its supply has also provided a boost, while new institutional investors in the crypto sector have warmed to it amid a tepid quarter so far for bitcoin.

"(Crypto has) got a lot more institutional involvement than people who haven't followed the market believe," said Chris Weston, head of research at brokerage Pepperstone.

But some analysts said ethereum's increasing valuation was not underpinned by data of how widely it is used.

"The continued divergence of its price relative to network activity raise questions about its valuation," J.P. Morgan analysts wrote in a report to clients dated May 7.

Factors such as the number of active digital addresses in its network would be more consistent with a price of around $1,000, the U.S. bank said.

BITCOIN STAGNANT

Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, rose to a three-week high above $59,600 on Monday. But it was last down 2.9% at $56,632.

data provider Glassnode, in a research report on Monday, said there are indications that a portion of bitcoin capital is rotating toward ethereum and dogecoin.

Dogecoin, a recent outperformer, however, dropped sharply and was last down 10% at 48.2 cents, according to CoinGecko.com. The currency has been hurt by Tesla Inc chief Elon Musk calling it a "hustle."

Smaller cryptocurrencies, like dogecoin, known as "altcoins," have been in demand in the past few weeks, pushing bitcoin's share of the overall $2.5 trillion digital currency market to its lowest in around two years.

Dogecoin, which began as a social media joke in 2013, is up more than 700% in the last month. It hit a record high on Saturday of 73.15 cents, according to crypto data tracker CoinGecko.com.

Musk's commercial rocket company SpaceX said it would accept the meme-inspired dogecoin as payment.

(Reporting by Tom Wilson in London, Tom Westbrook in Singapore, and Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss in New York; Editing by Jane Merriman and Lisa Shumaker)

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in Indias $2.8 trillion are underestimating the economic impact from the worlds worst outbreak, which will delay any recovery and could trigger a correction in stocks, according to the countrys top-performing fund manager.

The benchmark has climbed for two straight weeks, a period during which the nations tally of daily virus infections as well as related deaths have hit records. Domestic institutional investors, including mutual funds and insurers, poured a net $1.5 billion into stocks in April, helping offset a similar outflow from foreign funds. That trend has continued so far in May.

The market is completely ignoring the present situation, said Samir Rachh, who oversees 130 billion rupees ($1.8 billion) of assets at Nippon India Mutual Fund in Mumbai. Recent gains have been driven by a huge amount of liquidity, he said.





-

India has imposed numerous restrictions on people and businesses, many on a state-by-state basis. But as the outbreak widens, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is under pressure to tighten rules nationwide, which would slow an economy that, according to several forecasts, is poised for double-digit growth this year.

While the country is rolling out vaccines, the virus has spread to places that do not have adequate facilities or the medical infrastructure to handle it, Rachh said. If we dont see it peaking, as estimated, and given how the stocks have gained from last year, there could be a market correction, he said.

The Nippon India Small Cap Fund managed by Rachh has returned 27% so far this year, the top performance among funds that manage at least $500 million, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Small Caps

The Sensex rose 0.6% on Monday, a fourth day of gains, to close at its highest level since April 29. The gauge has surged about 91% from its March 2020 low, boosted by foreign inflows of $23.3 billion last year and optimism that stimulus measures will help engineer a strong economic revival.

Even as businesses were disrupted most of the year, small-cap shares were among the biggest winners, rallying faster than the broader market. That outperformance has widened further in 2021, helping Nippons small-cap fund shine.



graph

The fund, which allocated 11.3% of its assets to the chemicals sector at the end of April -- the largest for any industry -- has returned about 110% over the past 12 months. Consumer non-durables and software are the other top sector holdings.

Picking up the right small-cap company is like searching for the ideal son-in-law, Rachh said. There is a lot of effort and due diligence, including frequent visits to companies and their dealers and vendors -- which have been made more difficult by the Covid-19 protocols, he said.

If an investor is coming into the [small-cap] category looking at last years gains, the returns this year will be nowhere near it, he said. Still, the long-term view is that the economy will see a faster recovery once we have dealt with the pandemic.
National, state and local communities are gradually opening back up and increasing activities. This means more family gatherings and more social gatherings beyond families. This has been long in coming and very exciting! I dont want to burst your bubble but there is a downside that can break family relationships or any social gathering. There is a good chance that not all family or non family participants will be vaccinated or willing to show evidence of being tested. How will the group respond to these individuals. Relationships and the activity could be ruined in an instant. I suggest that for any gathering, set reasonable guidelines early and stick by them. In general activities are privileges not rights!
Shares of Tata Motors differential voting right, or DVR, hit a 33-month high of Rs 151, as they rallied 6 per cent on the BSE in Tuesday's intra-day trade on the back of heavy volumes amid expectations of inclusion in the MSCI Smallcap index.

The stock was trading at its highest level since July 30, 2018. In comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 0.72 per cent at 49,138 points at 10:07 am.

In the past two weeks, shares of have outperformed the index by surging 20 per cent, as against a 1.8 per cent rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. The trading volumes on the counter jumped over three-fold with a combined 3.85 million equity shares having changed hands on the NSE and BSE so far.

MSCI Inc, a leading provider of research-based indexes and analytics, will announce the results of the May 2021 Semi-Annual Index Review for the MSCI Equity Indexes on May 11, 2021. All changes will be made as of the close of May 27, 2021. CLICK HERE TO READ PRESS RELEASE



According to a Business Standard report, Tata Motors DVR, Intellect Design and SKF India are among the stocks that may be added to the MSCI Smallcap index after the index provider does its semi-annual review. The review could help these stocks garner $9.2 million, $7.8 million and $7.7 million in flows, respectively, according to IIFL Alternative Research. CLICK HERE TO READ FULL REPORT
Amid the surge in violence in in recent weeks, US Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad on Tuesday welcomed the announcements by the and the Afghan government to uphold ceasefire in the country during the festival of Eid.

"I welcome the announcements by the and the Afghan government to observe an Eid ceasefire. Violence has been horrific in recent weeks, and the Afghan people have paid the price," Khalilzad tweeted.

A day after the deadly bombing outside a school in Kabul claimed the lives of over 60 students, the on Sunday night had announced that they would observe a three-day ceasefire for the festival of Eid. Later on Monday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani also instructed all Afghan forces to observe the ceasefire during Eid.

Noting the recent rise in violence, top US diplomat Khalilzad on Tuesday said that Afghans deserve a political settlement and a permanent ceasefire.

"But Afghans deserve much more: a political settlement and a permanent ceasefire. We, therefore, urge accelerated negotiations among Afghans on a political settlement and an end to this senseless war. This is what the Afghan people yearn for. The United States stands with them," he added.

This comes after at least three explosions that took place near Sayed-ul-Shuhada High School in the west of Kabul on Saturday afternoon. As many as 63 people, all students, were killed in a Kabul school bombing and 150 more were wounded, TOLO News reported citing sources and relatives of victims.

Amid the ongoing drawdown of US troops from Afghanistan, the war-torn country has seen a spike in the incidents of violence in recent weeks, leading to casualties of Afghan security forces and civilians.

(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.)
Britannia Industries announced that the National Company Law Tribunal, Kolkata Bench had on 7 May, 2021 approved the Scheme of Arrangement between Britannia Industries (Company) and its Members (Scheme).

The Tribunal has issued a electronic copy of the order sanctioning the Scheme on 9 May 2021, to the company.

The Scheme will be made effective by filing certified / digitally signed copy of the order of the Tribunal through e-form INC-28 with the Registrar of Companies, Kolkata.

In terms of the Scheme, the Company will: - issue and allot by way of bonus, 1 fully paid-up debenture of the face value of Rs 29 each, by utilizing its general reserve, for every one fully paid-up equity share of face value of Rs 1 each; and - pay dividend of Rs 12.50 per every one fully paid-up equity share of face value of Rs 1 each by utilizing its accumulated profits to those members whose names appear in the register of members of the Company as on the record date.

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Chambal Fertilisers & Chemicals advanced 2.98% to Rs 230 after the company's consolidated net profit surged 169.4% to Rs 541.75 crore on 16.7% decline in net sales to Rs 1,640.76 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20.

Consolidated profit before tax (PBT) soared 275% to Rs 554.61 crore in Q4 March 2021 over Q4 March 2020.

The board on 10 May 2021, recommended a final dividend of Rs 4.50 per equity share.

The company said it is continuously monitoring the situation arising on account of COVID-19 pandemic considering both internal and external factors and taking appropriate measures in this regard. The company has been able to operate its plants at normal levels. The company's production, dispatches, sales and market collections remained unaffected. The company has made an assessment of its capital and financial resources including liquidity position and ability to service debt and other financing arrangements for next one year.

The company has also assessed the recoverability of the carrying values of its assets such as property, plant and equipment, inventory, trade receivables, investments and other current assets as at 31 March 2021 Further, the company has also evaluated impact of COVID-19 on internal financial controls over financial reporting and concluded that there is no impact of COVID-19 thereon.

Chambal Fertilisers & Chemicals manufactures ammonia, urea, pesticides and other products for farming and other agricultural applications. The company also provides consulting services to farmers on their seeding programs.

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Graphite India announced that the company has decided to keep operations in the IGE division in Ambad, Nashik shut from 12 am on 12 May 2021 till midnight of 23 May 2021 pursuant to order dated 10 May 2021 from District Disaster Management, Collector Office, Nasik directing certain measures to prevent the spread of the corona virus and to break the chain of persons being affected. The Company does not expect any material impact on account of this temporary shutdown in the IGE division.

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Indiabulls Housing Finance has executed definitive transaction document to divest its mutual fund business to Nextbillion Technology, part of Groww Group ('Groww') for about Rs 175 crore.

Indiabulls Housing Finance is the sponsor of Indiabulls Mutual Fund. Indiabulls Housing has decided to focus on its real estate asset management business through AIF structures in line with its asset-light strategy. The real estate asset management business is complementary to the core business of the company.

The company plans to grow this business in partnership with global player(s). The mutual fund business does not remain a core focus area for Indiabulls Housing Finance. Therefore, the company has decided to focus management bandwidth and consolidate capital towards its core lending business and divest out of the mutual fund business.

The company along with its wholly owned subsidiary companies Indiabulls Asset Management Company (IAMCL) and Indiabulls Trustee Company, Trustee of IAMCL, (ITCL) has executed definitive transaction document with Groww, to divest its entire stake in mutual fund business, being carried out by IAMCL & ITCL to the Groww at an aggregate purchase consideration of Rs 175 crore, subject to necessary approvals.

Groww commenced its financial services business in May 2016 and currently is one of the leading tech platforms for investing in stocks and mutual funds. Groww is headquartered in Bangalore and backed by marquee investors including Tiger Global, Sequoia Capital India, Y Combinator and Ribbit Capital.

Groww is presently serving over 1.5 crore users across 900+ cities in India. Nextbillion Technology is a SEBI registered stock broker, depository participant and AMFI registered mutual fund distributor.

The transaction is expected to be concluded on or before 30 June 2022. Post conclusion of the transaction, the company will cease to hold any equity shares and its sole control over IAMCL and ITCL.

As on 31 March 2020, Indiabulls Housing's revenue from mutual fund business was Rs 4.16 crore, which constituted 0.03% of the consolidated revenue of the company.

Indiabulls Housing Finance provides home loans and loans to small business owners. Its consolidated net profit tumbled 40.3% to Rs 329.32 crore on a 25.4% fall in total income to Rs 2514.70 crore in Q3 FY21 over Q3 FY20.

Shares of Indiabulls Housing Finance fell 1.42% to Rs 184.20 on the BSE.

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InterGlobe Aviation said the board of directors of the company has approved raising upto Rs 3,000 crore through a QIP process.

Punjab National Bank (PNB) has informed BSE that the meeting of the board of directors of the bank is scheduled on 14 May 2021, to consider and approve Qualified Institutions Placement of equity shares.

Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) informed that the meeting of the board of directors of the bank is scheduled on 17 May 2021 to consider and approve allotment of equity share to GoI on preferential basis

Nava Bharat Ventures informed that the company has synchronized the 60MW IPP in Odisha with the Grid and has commenced power flows for merchant trade henceforth.

Nxtdigital said its board on May 13, 2021 may consider the proposal of fund raising by offer and issuance of fully paid-up equity shares of the company by way of a rights issue to the eligible shareholders.

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A special committee of the board fixed floor price for the qualified institutional placement (QIP) issue at Rs 35.51 per share.

The capital raising committee of the board of Punjab National Bank (PNB) at its meeting held on Monday, 10 May 2021, authorized the opening of the QIP issue on 10 May 2021.

The 'Relevant Date' for the purpose of the QIP is 10 May 2021 and accordingly the floor price in respect of the aforesaid QIP, based on the pricing formula as prescribed under SEBI ICDR Regulations is Rs 35.51 per equity share, PNB said in a regulatory filing.

The capital raising committee of the bank is scheduled to be held on Friday, 14 May 2021, to consider and determine the issue price, including a discount, if any, for the equity shares to be allotted to eligible qualified institutional buyers, pursuant to the QIP issue. The bank may, at its discretion, offer a discount of not more than 5% on the floor price.

The PNB board had approved the issue in its meeting on 9 July 2020, while the shareholders approved the same via a special resolution passed at the Annual General Meeting held on 4 August 2020 for the QIP.

PNB posted a net profit of Rs 506.03 crore in Q3 FY21 compared with net loss of Rs 492.28 crore in Q3 FY20. Total income during the quarter grew by 45.9% Y-o-Y to Rs 23,298.53 crore.

PNB is a public sector bank. The Government of India held 76.87% stake in the bank as on 31 March 2021.

Shares of PNB slipped 1.40% to Rs 35.10 on BSE. The scrip hit a low of Rs 33.75 and a high of Rs 35.35 during the day.

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Tata Steel Ltd is quoting at Rs 1226.55, up 0.84% on the day as on 12:49 IST on the NSE. The stock is up 347.73% in last one year as compared to a 61.57% gain in NIFTY and a 218.07% gain in the Nifty Metal.

Tata Steel Ltd rose for a fifth straight session today. The stock is quoting at Rs 1226.55, up 0.84% on the day as on 12:49 IST on the NSE. The benchmark NIFTY is down around 0.56% on the day, quoting at 14858.95. The Sensex is at 49177.79, down 0.66%. Tata Steel Ltd has added around 44.04% in last one month.

Meanwhile, Nifty Metal index of which Tata Steel Ltd is a constituent, has added around 30.2% in last one month and is currently quoting at 5503.35, down 0.73% on the day. The volume in the stock stood at 260.47 lakh shares today, compared to the daily average of 270.14 lakh shares in last one month.

The benchmark May futures contract for the stock is quoting at Rs 1229.25, up 0.7% on the day. Tata Steel Ltd is up 347.73% in last one year as compared to a 61.57% gain in NIFTY and a 218.07% gain in the Nifty Metal index.

The PE of the stock is 12.68 based on TTM earnings ending March 21.

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Amid the robust recovery of the domestic tourism market following the effective containment of the COVID-19 epidemic in China, "red tourism" stands out.

Red tourism, which refers to visiting historical sites with a modern revolutionary legacy, has become the top choice of many Chinese tourists this year.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

According to a report recently released by online travel booking platform Ctrip and Xinhua Finance, during the just-concluded May Day holiday, online searches for "red tourism" surged about sevenfold from last month and red tourism orders placed on Ctrip rose 375 percent compared with the same period in 2019.

In Longyan City of east China's Fujian Province, the former site of the Gutian Meeting, a landmark event in the history of the CPC and the army, witnessed a peak in visitor numbers during the holiday.

Among the flocks of tourists was 72-year-old Chen Bingyin from northwest China's Shaanxi Province. "As a veteran Party member, I joined a red tourism tour group to revisit our history," he said.

The tour group took Chen to two other revolutionary areas in neighboring Jiangxi Province before arriving in Fujian.

Zhang Lianqiu, 68, chose to drive all the way from Xinjiang in the northwest to Jiangxi's Jinggangshan with his friends to visit the red sites.

"I have learned the revolution stories that happened in Jinggangshan since childhood, and coming here is like a dream come true," said Zhang enthusiastically.

Yet it is not just senior citizens turning to red tourism.

A recent report on red tourism during the Tomb-sweeping Day holiday in early April and the May Day holiday indicated a general trend of an increasing number of younger individuals among the tourists.

Over 89 percent of the tourists visiting revolutionary sites were aged under 40, with those born in the 1990s and 2000s accounting for more than 40 percent of the total, while those born in the 1980s accounted for over 30 percent, said the report by a research center affiliated to online tourism platform TravelGo.

Li Yanan, a guide at a commemorative park marking the victory of the Central Red Army's Long March in Shaanxi Province, has also noticed the change in tourist demographics.

Before the visitors were mostly elderly people and from the locality, but that picture has gradually shifted to include different age groups and people from outside the region, according to Li.

The rising popularity of red tourism among young people may be partly attributed to the promotion of more creative tourist products, many of which employ new technologies such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality.

"Red tourism is no longer just about visiting historical sites and museums. Instead, it is now designed to cater to the interests of young people, highlighting an immersive experience or offering time travel scenarios to attract more young visitors," said Xu Yongde, a staffer at a revolutionary site in southwest China's Guizhou Province.
UPL has announced that its subsidiary has entered into a license agreement with Japanese company, Meiji Seika Pharma Co., for exclusive access to Flupyrimin for rice in Southeast Asia.

Under the license agreement, UPL will obtain exclusive rights to develop, register and commercialize formulations of Flupyrimin for foliar applications in rice in Southeast Asia, expanding the on-going collaboration between the two companies with this compound.

In addition to this latest arrangement, in 2018, UPL's subsidiary and Meiji had entered into an exclusive licensing agreement for UPL to commercialize formulations of Flupyrimin for applications in rice in India. In 2020, the two companies signed a long-term global commercial exclusive agreement, excluding Japan, South Korea and Taiwan and non-exclusive in China, to use Flupyrimin in seed treatment and in-furrow applications.

Flupyrimin, discovered by Meiji, is a patented active ingredient and the only AI in the new mode of action subgroup, Pyridylidenes, defined by IRAC in 2021. It is a novel insecticide with unique biological properties that, among other benefits, is effective against major rice pests, such as brown plant hopper and rice stem borer, including those populations resistant to existing insecticides.

Together, both companies will continue their contributions to the development of differentiated solutions based on Flupyrimin to address farmer pain points and improve their livelihoods.

On a consolidated basis, UPL reported a 12.6% jump in net profit to Rs 944 crore on 2.6% rise in net sales to Rs 9,126 crore in Q3 FY21 over Q3 FY20.

UPL is a global provider of sustainable agriculture products & solutions. Through OpenAg, UPL is focused on facilitating progress for the entire agricultural value chain.

Shares of UPL gained 0.06% to Rs 674.80 on BSE. The scrip traded between Rs 668.05 to Rs 687.95 so far.

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According to a latest monthly update from the Federation of Automobile Dealers Association (FADA) of India, for FY 20-21, total vehicle registrations were down by 30% (below FY12-13 levels). Except Tractors which grew by 16%, all other categories were in red with 2W, 3W, CV and PV falling by 32%, 64%, 49% and 14% respectively and way below FY13 levels (lowest in last 8 years). Total vehicle registration for the month of April'21 plummeted by 28% MoM.

All categories declined with 2W, 3W, PV, Tractors and CV falling by 28%, 43%, 25%, 45% and 24% respectively. FADA noted that the 2nd wave of covid has not only created havoc in urban but has also unsettled rural India this time around as demand trend in 1st 9 days of May shows extremely weak consumer sentiment with almost 95% India under lockdown (full as well as partial) except Telangana. FADA appealed to all Auto OEMs to handhold their Dealers the way they did during last wave of covid in 2020 and not burden them with high inventory. FADA also requested the Central Government to announce a financial package in terms of moratorium and RBI to release guidelines for relaxation of loan re-payment equivalent to number of days of lockdown each state has declared.

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BJP president J P Nadda on Tuesday accused the Congress of misleading people and creating false panic in the fight against COVID-19, and alleged that the conduct of its leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, during the pandemic will be remembered for "duplicity and pettiness".

Nadda wrote a four-page letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, a day after the Congress Working Committee, the apex body of the opposition party, hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government over the handling of the crisis.

The BJP president also accused Congress leaders, including a chief minister, of trying to actively create vaccine hesitancy during the "once-in-a-century" pandemic.

Under Modi, the fight against the pandemic is driven by unwavering belief in science, support to innovation, trust in COVID warriors and cooperative federalism, he said.

Nadda said he is saddened but not surprised by the conduct of the Congress during these challenging times.

The CWC had said that Modi must "atone for his mistakes" and serve the people instead of carrying on with his "personal agenda" oblivious to the sufferings all around.

The BJP president also hit back over the criticism of his party for holding big poll rallies in April even as COVID cases surged across the nation and also of the ongoing construction of the Central Vista project.

The Congress is doing no favours to itself by opposing lockdowns and then demanding it, he said, accusing it of "ignoring" the Centre's advisories on the second wave of COVID-19.

Congress leaders, he said, held massive election rallies in Kerala causing a spike in the COVID cases and are now "grandstanding" about poll rallies elsewhere.

"Even when the second wave was on the rise, your party leaders were happier being seen in super spreader political events in north India, where there was no regard for masks or social distancing. This is not the era when such information can be erased from public memory," he said.

Hitting back at the Congress over the CWC criticism that the Centre had abdicated its responsibility on the vaccination and left the matter to states, Nadda wondered if there is so much gap between the party and its leaders in power in some states as he noted that its top functionaries in April had called for decentralisation of the inoculation programme.

The Centre has so far distributed 16 crore vaccines to states and 50 per cent of them are being provided even now free of cost, he said, and asked Gandhi if the states where her party is in power will also give free jabs to people as those ruled by the BJP and its allies have done.

The Modi government has engaged with all stakeholders, including chief Ministers, in fighting the pandemic and former prime minister Deve Gowda has also acknowledged that, he said.

The poor have been Modi's priority with the Centre ensuring food and DBT (direct benefit transfer) distribution, he said.

While acknowledging that a few Congress members are doing commendable work in helping people like other several other selfless citizens, Nadda said their hardwork gets eclipsed by the consistent negativity spread by the more senior members of the opposition party.

"One would wish that while India is fighting COVID+19 with utmost courage, the top echelons of the Congress would stop misleading people, creating false panic and even contradicting their stands just based on political considerations," he said.

With the Congress blaming the BJP government for mishandling the crisis, Nadda wrote to Gandhi, "There are other aspects that also need greater thought. For instance, the data from February and March would reveal which states failed to track the rising cases. Why are mortality rates in states such as Punjab so high? These are questions you must ask your own Chief Ministers."



Defending the ongoing Central Vista project, he said there is a "new trend" in the Congress to put all the blame on this.

The need for a new Parliament building was raised during the Congress-led UPA time with the then Speaker Meira Kumar underscoring the need for this, he said, noting that Urban Development Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has addressed queries regarding it.

"Yet, the Congress does not believe in facts. People are also contrasting the Congress' stand on Central Vista with the Chhattisgarh Government going ahead to build a new assembly complex," Nadda added.
Executive Chairman Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw has expressed concern over shortage of COVID-19 vaccines and sought better transparency from the government regarding their availability so that citizens could patiently wait for their turn.

India has announced expansion of its COVID-19 vaccination drive by allowing its large population aged over 18 to get inoculated from May 1.

"Very concerned about why vaccines are in such short supply. Can we please know where the 70 million doses are being deployed every month? @MoHFW_INDIA We need better transparency to avoid the suspense. If a timetable of supplies is made public people can patiently wait their turn," Mazumdar-Shaw said in a tweet on Tuesday while tagging the Health Ministry.

Earlier this month, while responding to media reports alleging that centre has not placed any fresh order for COVID-19 vaccines, the Health Ministry had noted that 100 per cent advance of Rs 1,732.50 crore has been released to the Serum Institute of India (SII) on April 28 for 11 crore doses of Covishield vaccine during May, June and July.

The ministry had also stated that against the last order of 10 crore doses for supplies of Covishield vaccine, 8.744 crore doses have been delivered till May 3.

SII had endorsed the government statement and said it had received the orders.

The Health Ministry had further noted that 100 per cent advance of Rs 787.50 crore was released on April 28 to Bharat Biotech India Ltd (BBIL) for five crore Covaxin doses during May, June and July.

Bharat Biotech Joint Managing Director Suchitra Ella confirmed in a tweet that the vaccine major has commenced direct supply of 'Covaxin' to 14 states, including Delhi and Maharashtra, with effect from May 1.

The Hyderabad-based firm has started supplying its COVID-19 treatment vaccine to the states based on the allocations received by the central government, she had noted.
Over 1.39 lakh people were vaccinated in Delhi on Monday, of which nearly 46 per cent belonged to the 18-44 age group, Deputy Chief Minister said on Tuesday.

"Total 1,39,261 people were vaccinated yesterday in Delhi out of which 64,151 are from 18-45 age group," Sisodia tweeted.

On Monday, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Atishi had said the Delhi government will have to close vaccination centres where Covaxin is being administered to beneficiaries in the 18-44 age group after Tuesday evening if its stocks are not replenished.

Delhi's Covaxin stock for this category would last till Tuesday evening, she said, adding Covishield doses for this age group can last up to four days.

(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.)
Those with iOS devices may have noticed a new pop-up while launching a newly installed application. The message puts in simple words whether you, the user, wish to allow the said application to track your activity across other companies apps and websites?

Given the growing concern for online privacy, many may have instinctively denied permission, knowing little what it was all about. This instinctive behavior is now a major cause of concern for the tech world.

Mobile operating systems allow app companies to track all sorts of user activity on handsets. This includes the apps they use, time spent on each app, new apps installed, mobile screen-time and so on. These metrics advise algorithms that show in-app advertisement, and form the back-bone of the $400 billion mobile ad industry.

Apple, now, has put a gate-keeper. The iOS 14.5, which rolled out 26 April, came in with a new privacy feature that describes as App-Tracking Transparency. What this means is that iOS users now have to opt-in to allow the said app to track activity across other apps and broadly on the smart device, instead of it being allowed as default in earlier iOS versions. It is set to default in Android.

Apples move has opened up fresh rivalry in the world of Facebook, which owns Instagram and WhatsApp, in particular has come out strongly against It said that the move would penalize ad-funded social media companies that support small businesses with free products.

Mobile ad analysts say that with the quality of targeting data going down, advertisers spending is likely to take a hit. Another outcome could be that some app publishers may decide to charge for app that were earlier shipped for free. Either way, this is the biggest shake-up seen in Ad Tech in many years and will likely impact all markets including emerging market like India.

iOS gate-keeper

In 2020, sold about 50 million iPhones in India and its market share, according to Counterpoint, is 3-5 percent. iPads' consumer base is much lesser. That said, Apple users are recognized to be higher spending strata and thus valuable for any advertiser.

Now, with iOS 14.5, targeted advertising on Apple devices is going to take a hit. To break it down, all Apple devices have a unique Identifier for Advertisers (IDFA).

Advertisers use this to track data so they can deliver customized advertising. It is fairly intricate; the data can then be used to discover information such as which in-app events a user triggers, when users interact with a mobile advertising campaign, and whether specific users click an advert for payment and attribution purposes.

Essentially, Apples ad identifier is a string of numbers widely used to reveal where users go online, insight that is useful for targeting ads. Now this is moved to opt-in on explicit user consent instead of opt-in as default which was the case earlier.

These changes will have a profound effect on in-app advertising in the Apple ecosystem, Lauren Fisher, EVP Business Intelligence at InMobi, said in a 5 May webinar on the issue. According to InMobis estimates, only 20-25 percent of users would choose to opt in.

Prior to iOS 14.5, Apple had a Limit Ad Tracking (LAT) feature, through which users could select to not share their data for advertising purposes across all apps on their device. In 2020, about 30 percent of all iOS users had selected LAT.

Once iOS 14.5 is fully live, we expect around 20 percent to 25 percent of all users will explicitly opt in  meaning that 80 percent of users will essentially have LAT functionality enabled on some or all apps on their device, said Fisher.

Facebook feels penalized

Apple announced the feature in June 2020, and in September deferred the roll-out to allow developers time to comply with the new policy. The feature was finally rolled out in April 2021. In the meantime, Apple and Facebook have exchanged salvos in public forums and the latter has admitted that it may have potential revenue impact.

Apple has long maintained its position as a privacy-first company, and that it differentiates itself by giving users necessary disclosures and discretion. In January CEO Tim Cook said at a public forum, If a business is built on misleading users, on data exploitation, on choices that are no choices at all, then it does not deserve our praiseit deserves reform. The comment was widely quoted across the global press.

Facebook has another version. "Many small businesses will no longer be able to reach their customers with targeted ads," Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a January earnings call. "Apple may say that they're doing this to help people, but the moves clearly track their competitive interests."

Facebook has last year warned that Apple's updated privacy settings would trigger a 50 percent drop in revenue for its Audience Network, its ad product that lets developers use the social network's detailed consumer data for in-app ad targeting.

Google, too, is on the offensive but said it will comply. Christophe Combette, group product manager for Google Ads, said in a blog post that the changes would reduce visibility into metrics showing how ads drive app installations and sales, and how advertisers value and bid on ad impressions.

iOS ad market upended

Even as the move is fairly recent, early estimates have started trickling in. According to the data from analytics firm Flurry Analytics, owned by Verizon Media, just 4 percent of iPhone users in the US have chosen to opt into app tracking after updating their device to iOS 14.5. The data is based on a sampling of 2.5 million daily mobile active users.

Flurry extrapolated the data to say worldwide, only 12 percent of all iOS users may opt in for tracking.

In terms of revenue impact Facebook and Google will be impacted, said US-based Media strategist Eric Seufert in an April blog. According to his analysis, Facebook may lose 10 percent or about $8 billion in revenue over the next 12 months, while the same percentage for Google would mean a loss of $17 billion.

Indian ad firms have sprung into action to advise clients (advertisers) on business impact and work-around.

Here on Facebook will not be providing any reporting around age, gender, geolocation, or ad placement. Additionally, Facebook will not be providing the existing 28-day view-through and click-through attribution for active or deleted campaigns, said Pulkit Jain, marketing specialist at Ad-tech firm MoEngage.

Further, Facebook marketers will have to create campaigns from scratch and may not be able to run reach and frequency campaigns, said Jain.
Inc. is starting the first test of its Live Audio Rooms product with public figures and creators in Taiwan, part of an expansion of the companys audio services that will over time include hosting and creation tools.

The social-media giant announced a sweeping set of updates to its audio services in April, with Live Audio Rooms being the Clubhouse-like centerpiece, allowing users to partake in group voice conversations. It intends to expand the trials availability over time and the service will eventually be accessible in the and Messenger apps. Taiwan is one of Menlo Park, California-based Facebooks most vibrant markets, where celebrities and politicians constantly debate important issues and freely interact with their audiences.

For the initial rollout, is limiting the test to what it says is a handful of public figures while planning to bring Live Audio Rooms to Facebook Groups as well. The company is integrating its Stars feature into the audio chat product, letting fans buy tokens to support their favorites, much like they do on livestreaming platform Twitch.

Facebook has in the past quickly rolled out new products similar to competitors, from the Snap-like Instagram Stories to Reels, akin to TikTok. exploded in popularity during a pandemic-stricken 2020, when major events and gatherings were canceled and people looked for new social outlets online. Its informal, unrecorded format appealed to many and it was propelled to prominence by drop-ins from notable figures like Elon Musk and Facebooks own founder, Mark Zuckerberg. Clubhouse, which has been available on iOS for a year, is now opening the app to Android smartphone users.

Podcasts are another significant addition to the main Facebook app planned for the coming months. Having noticed the rise in popularity of Facebook pages for well-known podcasts, its integrating playback directly into its app. The social app will recommend new shows based on users interests and theyll have the ability to comment on and recommend podcasts to others.

Also coming to the Facebook app are Soundbites, brief clips of shareable audio for capturing jokes, anecdotes and other momentary things.

 2021 Bloomberg L.P.
Inc. was ordered to stop collecting German users data from its WhatsApp unit, after a regulator in the nation said the companys attempt to make users agree to the practice in its updated terms isnt legal.



Johannes Caspar, who heads Hamburgs privacy authority, issued a three-month emergency ban, prohibiting from continuing with the data collection. He also asked a panel of European Union data regulators to take action and issue a ruling across the 27-nation bloc. The new WhatsApp terms enabling the data scoop are invalid because they are intransparent, inconsistent and overly broad, he said.

The order aims to secure the rights and freedoms of millions of users which are agreeing to the terms Germany-wide, Caspar said in a statement on Tuesday. We need to prevent damage and disadvantages linked to such a black-box-procedure.

The order strikes at the heart of Facebooks business model and advertising strategy. It echoes a similar and contested step by Germanys antitrust office attacking the networks habit of collecting data about what users do online and merging the information with their profiles. That trove of information allows ads to be tailored to individual users -- creating a cash cow for Facebook.

Facebooks WhatsApp unit called Caspars claims wrong and said the order wont stop the roll-out of the new terms. The regulators action is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the updates purpose and effect, the company said in an emailed statement.

The U.S. tech giant has faced global criticism over the new terms that WhatsApp users are required to accept by May 15. Caspar said Facebook may already be wrongfully handling data and said its important to prevent misuse of the information to influence the German national election in September.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has recommended against the general use of Ivermectin for Covid-19 treatment. The drug is typically used for treatment of parasitic roundworm infections. However, some health experts believe it has shown benefits against Covid-19 too. Scientists from the UK, Italy, Spain and Japan claim a significant reduction in mortality, time to recovery and viral clearance in COVID-19 patients treated with Ivermectin. A scientific research paper has also claimed that global Ivermectin use can break the coronavirus chain and reduce the risk of contracting the deadly virus. Meanwhile, German healthcare giant Merck, echoing WHO, has said no scientific basis has been found on Ivermectin's potential therapeutic effect against COVID-19.

What is Ivermectin?

Ivermectin has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a prescription medicine against parasitic roundworm infections. Mostly, it's administered to patients with intestinal strongyloidiasis and onchocerciasis. The common antiparasitic Ivermectin is being hailed as a possible cure for Covid-19 by doctors and other care experts across the world. A peer-reviewed research paper, written by three US government senior scientists, published in the American Journal of Therapeutics (AJT), claimed that Ivermectin is effective prophylaxis and treatment for Covid-19.

Also read: Oxford University mulls trials of coronavirus 'wonder drug'

Ivertin effect on Covid-19 patients

Scientists claim the regular use of Ivermectin can cut the risk of contracting coronavirus. The AJT research paper, which is the most comprehensive review of the data available on Ivermectin so far, also suggests the regular use of Ivermectin can reduce the risk of contracting Covid-19 . The research paper analysed three RCTs (randomised controlled trials) and five observational controlled trials, including 2,500 patients. Scientists also claim Ivermectin can lead to a significant reduction in mortality, recovery time and viral clearance.

How safe is Ivermectin?

Though approval for the drug as a possible cure against coronavirus is still at the research level. The FDA is yet to review the data related to Covid-19 patients given Ivermectin. Also, the FDA has warned against the consumption of Ivermectin in large quantities.

Also read: Govt issues new guidelines for home isolation of mild, asymptomatic COVID-19 cases

WHO warning against use of Ivermectin

Dr Soumya Swaminathan, WHO chief scientist, said safety and efficacy are important when using any drug for a new indication, which is why it recommends against using Ivermectin. "Safety and efficacy are important when using any drug for a new indication. WHO recommends against use of 'ivermectin' for COVID-19 except within clinical trials," she tweeted.

German healthcare and life sciences giant Merck also issued similar warning, saying scientists are still examining the findings of all available and emerging studies of Ivermectin against Covid-19. "...to-date, our analysis has identified: No scientific basis for a potential therapeutic effect against COVID-19 from pre-clinical studies; no meaningful evidence for clinical activity or efficacy in patients with COVID-19 disease, and; a concerning lack of safety data in the majority of studies," it said.

Goa to offer Ivermectin to all adults

All over the age of 18 years in Goa will be allowed to use Ivermectin drug irrespective of their coronavirus status to bring down mortality, state health minister Vishwajit Rane has said. The minister said this treatment would not prevent COVID-19 infection but it can help reduce the severity. "The Ivermectin 12 mg tablet will be made available in all the district, sub-district, PHCs, CHCs, sub-health centres, rural dispensaries for people to collect and start treatment immediately, irrespective of any symptoms or anything," Rane said. Goa on Monday recorded 2,804 new cases of coronavirus, taking its tally to 1,21,650, while 50 more fatalities pushed the toll to 1,729.

Edited by Manoj Sharma with PTI inputs

Also read: Remdesivir for COVID-19 patients: No evidence of anti-viral drug's effectiveness, says WHO
A substantial portion of AstraZeneca investors did not approve of the pay package for Chief Executive Officer Pascal Soriot during company's annual meeting on Tuesday. While the pay proposal was cleared, it was approved by a very narrow margin with 40 per cent voting against it.

The pay package could see Soriot taking home pay and perks up to 17.8 million pounds as remuneration for 2021, reported The Guardian. The pay proposal was tabled during the annual meeting in Cambridge, where it needed the approval of shareholders with more than 50 per cent stake. Investors cumulatively owing 39.8 per cent voted against the motion, while the rest supported it.

Under AstraZeneca's long-term pay plan, Soriot's share bonus is set to rise to 650 per cent of his base salary of 1.3 million pounds, from 550 per cent, the report said. The pharma major is also planning to increase his maximum annual bonus to 250 per cent from 200 per cent, depending on the performance targets being hit.

Several shareholder advisory groups and fund managers had disproved of the pay proposal. US-based investor advisory groups ISS and Glass Lewis, as well as UK-based Pirc had asked shareholders to vote against the pay policy, The Guardian report said. UK's Investment Association had issued an 'amber top' warning, the second-most severe alert about corporate governance, it further added.

Meanwhile, the AstraZeneca remuneration committee said that it undertook in-depth consultation with its largest shareholders regarding the pay policy. It also acknowledged the fact that a substantial portion of investors did not favour the same, the report added.

AstraZeneca, a British-Swedish pharmaceutical company, is one of the first to develop and release a vaccine against coronavirus in the market. This vaccine is one of the three approved by Indian regulators for use in the nation's vaccination programme. The jab is being manufactured in India by Serum Institute of India and is being marketed under the brand name Covishield.

AstraZeneca has said that it will not earn profits from its COVID vaccine as long the COVID-19 pandemic lasts.

ALSO READ: One dose of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine gives 80% lower death risk, say English health authorities

ALSO READ: EU in wait and watch mode, no new orders for AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine after June
The first China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE) concluded on Monday in Haikou, the capital of south China's Hainan Province.



A total of 70 countries and regions attended the four-day expo, and 2,628 brands under 1,505 enterprises from home and abroad participated in the exhibitions. Covering 80,000 square meters, the expo also attracted more than 240,000 visitors.

Major e-commerce platforms including JD Worldwide and Tmall Global also joined the expo with global brands. Livestreaming rooms garnered over 16 million viewers, with a total turnover of 68 million yuan (about 10.4 million U.S. dollars), said Han Shengjian, director of the Hainan bureau of international economic development.

The first group of companies from sectors including fashion, life services, travel services, service consumption, food, health products and jewelry have already signed up for the second CICPE. Over 80 percent of exhibitors this year expressed willingness to participate in the second CICPE.

With the COVID-19 pandemic still raging and the world economy continuing to drag, the expo has provided a new platform for global enterprises to share the development opportunities brought by the Chinese market and inject new growth momentum into global economic recovery.

New platform

U.S. luxury fashion company Tapestry was in the first group of enterprises to sign up for the second China International Consumer Products Expo on Monday.

"We released several new products at the expo and visitors were very interested. We have seen the huge potential of the Chinese market," said Zhou Guanghua, vice president of Tapestry.

China was the only major economy in the world to achieve positive growth in 2020, with its GDP up 2.3 percent year on year. According to China's Ministry of Commerce, imports of consumer goods grew 8.2 percent in 2020, reaching 1.57 trillion yuan.



"The expo has brought new opportunities for global high-end brands to enter and expand the Chinese market," said Swiss Ambassador to China Bernardino Regazzoni. "The expo also marks another big step forward in the construction of the Hainan free trade port (FTP) and the acceleration of China's integration into the global economic system."

China in 2018 proposed the establishment of a free trade zone in Hainan and began construction of the Hainan FTP last year to build the island into a globally influential and high-level free trade port by the middle of the century.

Hainan has implemented a package of favorable policies to ease market access and further facilitate free trade, investment and cross-border capital flows. According to the provincial government, direct foreign investment in Hainan grew from 340 million U.S. dollars in 2017 to 3.03 billion U.S. dollars in 2020.

"This is our first exhibition in China. We hope to use the platform to enter Hainan's duty-free market and reach cooperation with China's duty-free enterprises," said Chilli Zhou, country sales director of Swiss luxury underwear brand Zimmerli Textil AG.

Official data shows that sales of offshore duty-free shops in Hainan reached nearly 5 billion U.S. dollars in 2020, and the duty-free shopping industry on the island is likely to become a 100-billion-yuan industry in the next few years, insiders said.

China will further expand domestic demand and unleash the potential of the world's largest consumption market, said Ales Cervinka, director of the Czech Trade Promotion Agency in China. "I expect that we will find more business partners to help our product to enter duty-free outlets here."



"By holding the expo, we will give further play to the policy advantages of the Hainan free trade port, effectively promote the accumulation of global high-end goods, capital, talent and other resources, and vigorously promote the development of the services sector, such as exhibitions, and commerce and trade," said Rong Yansong, deputy director of the Hainan provincial department of commerce.

New impetus



Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the consumer products expo has given a strong boost to global economic recovery.

"Despite facing challenges in the past year, the strong resilience and growth potential of China's consumer market has greatly impressed the world," said Yann Bozec, president of Tapestry Asia Pacific.

With a total population of over 1.4 billion and more than 400 million middle-income residents, China has become the world's most promising consumer market.

The retail sales of consumer goods in the first quarter of the year, a major indicator of the country's consumption strength, edged up 33.9 percent year on year to over 10.5 trillion yuan, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.



Justin Yifu Lin, honorary dean of the National Development Research Institute of Peking University, said at an expo forum that the event will become a new growth driver for Hainan's high-quality development.

He added that China has the conditions to double its GDP scale by 2035, or its per capita income level in urban and rural areas, on the basis of 2020. He said that as people become wealthier, their demand for better lives will also be enhanced.

The constant upgrading of Chinese consumer demand has brought new trends and opportunities to the market, becoming a powerful driving force for the growth of the global market, added Yann Bozec.

Italy, an important participating country at the Hainan expo, brought more than 50 brands to take part. Paolo Bazzoni, chairman of the Italy Chamber of Commerce, said Hainan is becoming the number-one location for quality retail travel. "We are here to interact with the local government in order to be more present and to give more opportunities to our companies in Hainan," he said.



The expo pooled global high-end consumer brands to tap into the market potential of the world's second-largest economy, and the country's consumption demand is expected to expand substantially and continuously.

The consumption rate of residents in China is currently less than 40 percent, far below the level in line with the current economic volume, said Long Guoqiang, deputy head of the Development Research Center of the State Council, at an expo forum.

Shanghai-headquartered Fosun International Limited, with 25 years of business experience on the island in sectors including tourism, participated in the expo with products in diverse areas. "The expo not only facilitates international brands entering the Chinese market, but also domestic brands going global," said Qian Jiannong, board chairman and chief executive officer of the Fosun Tourism Group.

China's rate of contribution to global economic growth is likely to be maintained within a range of 25 percent to 30 percent over the next five to 10 years, said Chi Fulin, head of the Hainan-based China Institute for Reform and Development, at an expo forum.
India's coronavirus crisis showed scant sign of easing on Tuesday, with a seven-day average of new cases at a record high and international heath authorities warning the country's variant of the virus poses a global concern. India's daily coronavirus cases rose by 329,942, while deaths from the disease rose by 3,876, according to the health ministry. India's total coronavirus infections are now at 22.99 million, while total fatalities rose to 249,992.

India leads the world in the daily average number of new deaths reported, accounting for one in every three deaths reported worldwide each day, according to a Reuters tally. The seven-day average of new cases is at a record high of 390,995.

The World Health Organization said the coronavirus variant first identified in the country last year was being classified as a variant of global concern, with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily.

"We are classifying this as a variant of concern at a global level," Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead on COVID-19, told a briefing in Geneva on Monday. "There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility." Nations around the globe have sent oxygen cylinders and other medical gear to support India's crisis, but many hospitals around the nation are struggling with a shortage of the life-saving equipment.

Eleven people died late on Monday in a government hospital in Tirupati, a city in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, due to a delay in the arrival of a tanker carrying oxygen, a government official said. "There were issues with oxygen pressure due to low availability. It all happened within a span of five minutes," said M Harinarayan, the district's top bureaucrat said late on Monday, adding the SVR Ruia hospital now had sufficient oxygen.

Sixteen faculty members and a number of retired teachers and employees who had been living on the campus of Aligarh Muslim University, one of India's most prestigious, had died of coronavirus, the university said. Adding to the strain on medical facilities, the Indian government has told doctors to look out for signs of mucormycosis or "black fungus" in COVID-19 patients as hospitals report a rise in cases of the rare but potentially fatal infection.

The disease, which can lead to blackening or discolouration over the nose, blurred or double vision, chest pain, breathing difficulties and coughing blood, is strongly linked to diabetes. And diabetes can in turn be exacerbated by steroids such as dexamethasone, used to treat severe COVID-19.

Doctors in the country had to warn against the practice of using cow dung in the belief it will ward off COVID-19, saying there is no scientific evidence for its effectiveness and that it risks spreading other diseases. In the state of Gujarat in western India, some believers have been going to cow shelters once a week to cover their bodies in cow dung and urine in the hope it will boost their immunity against, or help them recover from, the coronavirus.

"There is no concrete scientific evidence that cow dung or urine work to boost immunity against COVID-19, it is based entirely on belief," said Dr J.A. Jayalal, national president at the Indian Medical Association. India's second wave has increased calls for a nationwide lockdown and prompted a growing number of states to impose tougher restrictions, impacting businesses and the wider economy.

Production of the Apple iPhone 12 at a Foxconn factory in the southern state of Tamil Nadu has slumped by more than 50% because workers infected with COVID-19 have had to leave their posts, two sources told Reuters.

Also read: ED files money laundering case against former Maha Home Minister Anil Deshmukh
Amidst the surge in COVID-19 cases in Delhi, IT company HCL has stepped up its efforts and is providing assistance to 500 hospital beds in Delhi-NCR region.

"...HCL's support includes assistance in the form of more than 500 hospital beds at various facilities such as the Commonwealth Games (CWG) village, Holy Family Hospital, Sama Hospital and Lok Nayak Hospital in New Delhi; and Government Institute of Medical Sciences, Greater Noida Authority," the company said in a statement.

At CWG, in partnership with Delhi government and 'Doctors For You', HCL has also supported import and installation of an oxygen plant for the facility which can provide continuous oxygen supply directly to the beds.

Also read: Italian woman given 6 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine

The CWG COVID facility, which was shut in December 2020 due to fall in COVID-19 cases, has been restarted again amidst the second wave of coronavirus cases.

"HCL has also been extending its support for critical human resources to treat the high number of COVID positive patients at the CWG facility by partnering with Doctors For You to provide doctors, nursing staff, orderlies, supervisors, counsellors, lab technicians and administration staff," it added.

The private sector in the country has come into action amidst the second wave of pandemic, with companies helping provide medical oxygen, oxygen concentrators, COVID beds in hospitals, among others.

India reported over 3.29 lakh new COVID-19 cases and 3,876 deaths in the last 24 hours as of Tuesday morning. The active caseload stood at 37.15 lakh.

Also read: COVID-19: India reports over 3.29 lakh new cases, 3,876 fatalities in 24 hours
Amid the raging second wave of COVID-19 pandemic, the government has decided to conduct the All-India Quarterly Establishment based Employment Survey online to get an estimate of the impact of the pandemic on jobs.

Earlier, the government had decided to suspend four surveys to be undertaken by the Labour Bureau -- All-India Survey on Migrant workers, All-India Survey on Domestic Workers, All-India Survey on Employment Generated by Professionals, and All-India Survey on Employment Generated in Transport Sector.

The All-India Quarterly Establishment based Employment Survey (QES), whose objective is to measure relative change in employment situation over successive quarters in a sizeable segment of the non-farm economy covering eight important sectors of the Indian economy, will be conducted online, Mint quoted a government official as saying. The findings of the survey, which is being revived after four years, will be released by July-end.

"While four (surveys) have been put on hold, we are going ahead with the fifth one, which is QES. But physical establishments and factory visits will not happen this time," the publication quoted Labour Bureau Director General D P S Negi as saying.

The pandemic has hit the job market, pushing millions of people out of employment. A study by Azim Premji University said the first wave the COVID-19 pandemic shoved 23 crore Indians below poverty line. It also highlighted how women lost more employment than men during the COVID-19 pandemic last year, how around half of formal salaried workforce moved into informal work, and how poorer households underwent considerably higher income losses during the lockdown period.

Also read: COVID-19 first wave pushed 23 crore Indians into poverty: Azim Premji University

Also read: COVID-19 second wave: India's GDP growth can slip to 8.2% in FY22, says CRISIL
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not travel to the UK to attend the G-7 summit in June due to the coronavirus situation in the country. The Prime Minister was slated to be a special invitee to the summit in Cornwall at UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's invitation. The summit was scheduled for June 11-13.

"While appreciating the invitation to the Prime Minister by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to attend the G7 Summit as a Special Invitee, given the prevailing COVID situation, it has been decided that the Prime Minister will not attend the G-7 Summit in person," said a Foreign Ministry spokesperson.

The summit that will bring together the world's most advanced economies including Japan, Germany, France, US, UK and Italy, will be attended by US President Joe Biden.

In the first in-person summit of the G-7 in two years, the leaders are expected to discuss shared challenges including the pandemic and its impact on the global economy.

India was to be a guest, along with Australia and South Korea. The Prime Minister had attended the G-7 summit in France in August 2019 and was invited to the 2020 summit too that was cancelled because of the pandemic.

Boris Johnson was also scheduled to visit India ahead of the G-7 summit but had to cancel because of the COVID-19 situation. He had also cancelled his earlier visit where he was scheduled to be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day celebration because of COVID-19.

India has been battling a ravaging second wave of coronavirus. For over three weeks, the country has been reporting more than 3 lakh cases daily.

Also read: PM Modi holds review meeting on COVID-19 situation in country

Also read: India 'squandered' its early successes in tackling COVID-19; PM Modi's actions 'inexcusable': Lancet report
Palestinian militants fired rocket barrages into Israel from Gaza for a second day on Tuesday and Israeli warplanes struck the enclave in a deepening conflict in which at least 26 people in Gaza and two in Israel have been killed.

The most serious outbreak of fighting between armed factions in Hamas Islamist-run Gaza and Israel since 2019 was triggered by clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police at Al Asqa Mosque in Jerusalem on Monday.

The holy city has been tense during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, with sporadic unrest and possible evictions of Palestinians from homes claimed by Jewish settlers in a court case adding to the friction.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would step up its strikes on Gaza in the face of the surge in rocket attacks.

"At the conclusion of a situational assessment, it was decided that both the strength of the attacks and the frequency of the attacks will be increased," he said in video statement.

The Gaza health ministry said at least 26 Palestinians, including nine children, had been killed and 122 wounded by Israeli air strikes in the enclave of two million people since Hamas on Monday fired rockets towards Jerusalem for the first time since 2014.

Israel's ambulance service said two women were killed in rocket strikes on the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon.

In Beit Hanooun town in northern Gaza, Abdel-Hamid Hamad said his nephew Hussein, 11, was killed on Monday in what residents said was an Israeli air strike. He told Reuters the boy was collecting wood when he was hit.

"Gaza has had enough, and nothing makes a difference now. Our children are getting killed. What should we do?" Hamad said.

In Barzilai hospital in Ashkelon, an Israeli woman treated for injuries after her apartment was hit by a Palestinian rocket recalled moments of panic.

An air conditioner fell on her and one of her children during the night and a bathroom door fell on her husband's head, the woman told Channel 13 TV, which did not give her name.

SCHOOL HIT

Israel disputed the Gaza account of casualties in the territory, saying it had killed at least 15 Hamas fighters and that a third of the hundreds of rockets launched by militants had fallen short, causing Palestinian civilian casualties.

In one Gaza neighbourhood, an Israeli missile exploded inside an apartment in a multi-story building, killing three Islamic Jihad members, a militant official said.

Police said more than 30 people were hurt by rocket strikes in southern Israel, though the military said its air defences were intercepting about 90% of the cross-border launches.

Hamas said that in one five-minute barrage alone, it had fired 137 missiles at Ashkelon and Ashdod, both lying south of Tel Aviv, where several homes were on fire.

A school in Ashkelon was hit by a rocket. Classes had been cancelled in the area and the building was empty.

Israeli tanks massed on the Gaza border as officials said infantry and armour reinforcements were being dispatched.

The Arab League, some of whose members have warmed ties with Israel over the last year, accused it of "indiscriminate and irresponsible" attacks in Gaza and said it was responsible for "dangerous escalation" in Jerusalem.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the rocket attacks from Gaza against Israel should stop immediately. He urged all sides to take steps to reduce tensions.

Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations were trying to stem the violence, a Palestinian official said

ARABS PROTEST IN ISRAEL

Israel has also seen a spread of pro-Palestinian protests, some violent, among its 21% Arab minority.

In the ethnically mixed town of Lod, witnesses quoted by Israeli media said one or two armed Jews shot at rioting Arabs, killing one and wounding two. The dead man's father told the Walla news site he had been ambushed while on a family visit.

The accounts could not be confirmed. Israeli police said they had arrested two suspects in the incident.

On Monday, more than 300 Palestinians were injured at Al Asqa Mosque in clashes with Israeli police, who fired rubber bullets, stun grenades and tear gas, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said. Police said 21 officers were hurt.

Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its capital, a status not generally recognized internationally. Palestinians want East Jerusalem - captured by Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war - as the capital of a future independent state free of Israeli occupation.

They have been incensed by Israeli court-ordered evictions there to make way for Jewish settlers. A hearing on the evictions was postponed on Sunday.

The outbreak of hostilities led Netanyahu's political opponents to suspend negotiations on forming a coalition of right-wing, leftist and centre-left parties to unseat him after an inconclusive March 23 election.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid has three weeks left to establish a government. Prolonged fighting could cut into Lapid's mandate, with a new election - and another chance for Netanyahu to retain power - likely if he fails.

Hamas named its rocket assault "Sword of Jerusalem", seeking to present itself as the defender of Palestinians in the city.

Such a move undermines the claims of its chief Palestinian rival, President Mahmoud Abbas, to represent all Palestinians. Abbas's credibility took a blow earlier this year when he first called, then cancelled Palestinian elections.

Also Read: COVID-19 crisis: Israel dispatches second consignment of medical aid to India
Benchmark indices are likely to open lower on Tuesday as Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded 183 points, or 1.22 per cent, lower at 14,895.50. On Monday, Sensex reclaimed the key 49,500 level by closing 295 points higher at 49,502 and Nifty jumped 119 points to 14,942. L&T was the top Sensex gainer, rallying 3.89 per cent, followed by Dr Reddy's, Sun Pharma, NTPC, IndusInd Bank, PowerGrid, ONGC and M&M.

Here's a look at stocks which may remain in news today.

Punjab National Bank: The bank's board has approved raising equity capital from qualified tional investors to enhance its capital base. For the Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) purposes, the bank has fixed the floor price at Rs 35.51 per equity share.

InterGlobe Aviation: Parent of the country's largest airline IndiGo said its board has approved raising up to Rs 3,000 crore through sale of shares to institutional investors.This will be done through issuance of equity shares by way of Qualified Institutions Placement (QIP).

Tata Steel: S&P Global Ratings said that continued strength in steel prices will support Tata Steel's commitment to deleverage. The company has guided for average prices to increase by about Rs 6,000 to 7,000 per tonne quarter-over-quarter in the three months ending June 2021.

Federal Bank: The Kerala-headquartered bank has inked a strategic tie-up with UAE-based Mashreq Bank to facilitate money transfers from the UAE to India. The partnership will support Mashreq's faster payment product, QuickRemit, which was launched in 2017. This will further improve Federal Bank's position among remittances.

SBI General Insurance Company: Regulator IRDAI has imposed a penalty of Rs 30 lakh on SBI General Insurance Company for its failure to comply with the third-party motor insurance regulations. The SBI General Insurance Company had failed to meet the minimum obligations under Motor Third Party business as specified in concerned IRDAI Regulations for 2018-19, the insurance regulator said in its order.

Indian Overseas Bank: The lender said its board will meet next week to issue preference shares to the government for Rs 4,100 crore capital infusion. A meeting of the board of directors for the issue of equity share capital would be held on Monday, May 17, 2021, to issue and allot shares to the government on a preferential basis for the capital infusion of Rs 4,100 crore, the bank said.

JMC Projects: The firm reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 41.44 crore in Q4 driven by higher revenues. The company had reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 54.76 crore in the quarter ended on March 31, 2020.

Coforge: The only promoter of IT firm, Hulst BV offloaded shares worth a little over Rs 616 crore in the firm, through an open market transaction. As per BSE's bulk deal data, the promoter sold 19 lakh shares at an average price of Rs 3,242.

Zydus Wellness: The consumer wellness company's net profit grew over 92 per cent to Rs 133 crore, while total revenue rose 24 per cent to Rs 608 crore in Q4. Zydus Wellness said five of its brands -- Glucon-D, Sugar Free, EverYuth Scrub, Peel Off Face Mask and Nycil -- maintained their leadership positions in-their respective categories as on March 2021.
Benchmark indices snapped their four-session winning streak amid negative cues from the global market today. While Sensex tumbled 341 points to 49,161, Nifty slumped 91.60 points to 14,850. In Monday's session, Sensex reclaimed the key 49,500 level by closing 295 points higher at 49,502 and Nifty jumped 119 points to 14,942.

Kotak Bank was the top loser on Sensex today, shedding 3 per cent, followed by HDFC, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, Tech Mahindra, HUL and Titan.

NTPC, ONGC, PowerGrid, Sun Pharma, UltraTech Cement and SBI were among the top Sensex gainers rising up to 4.60%. Of 30 Sensex stocks, 19 closed in the red. However, BSE mid cap and small cap indices rose 125 points and 190 points, respectively.

Shrikant Chouhan, Executive Vice President, Equity Technical Research at Kotak Securities said, "Technically, on intraday charts, the market has formed a lower top kind of formation, but at the same time, Nifty took support near its 50-day SMA which is broadly positive for the market. We are of the view that, post strong uptrend rally, bulls may prefer to take a temporary pause near 14950/ 49500 and because of weak global market conditions the market likely to consolidate between 14750 to 14900/ 48500-49300 price range."

Banking, metal and IT stocks led the losses with BSE bankex, metal index and IT indices falling 386 points, 218 points, and 190 points respectively. Bank Nifty too fell 270 points to 32,872 in trade today. Oil and gas stocks capped the losses with their BSE index gaining 419 points to 16.047.

This stock held by Rakesh Jhunjhunwala rose 18% in a week

Investor wealth hit all-time high of Rs 213.41 lakh crore on BSE today against previous close of Rs 213.28 lakh crore. The surge came on the back of rise in midcap and small indices.

Meanwhile, market breadth was positive with 1,845 stocks ending higher against 1,204 shares ending lower on BSE. The rupee reduced its early losses to close almost flat at 73.34 (provisional) against the US dollar on Tuesday amid a lacklustre trend in the domestic equity markets. The rupee registered a rise of 1 paisa over its previous close of 73.35 against the US dollar.

Global markets

Shares dropped Tuesday in Asia after selling of several Big Tech companies pulled US benchmarks lower. Germany's DAX sank 2% to 15,101.18 while the CAC 40 in Paris gave up 1.8% to 6,272.36. Britain's FTSE 100 lost 2% to 6,980.62. U.S. futures also augured losses, with the contract for the S&P 500 down 0.6% and that for the Dow industrials 0.4% lower. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 gave up 3,1% to 28,608.59 while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong fell 2% to 28,013.81. In Seoul, the Kospi dropped 1.2% to 3,209.43.
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WHO classifies B.1.1.617 variant as a 'variant of global concern'

The World Health Organization said on Monday that the B.1.617 variant first identified in India was being classified as a variant of global concern. "We classify it as a variant of concern at a global level," Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead on COVID-19, told a briefing. "There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility."

COVID-19 second wave: India's GDP growth can slip to 8.2% in FY22, says CRISIL

India's gross domestic product (GDP) growth may slip to 8.2 per cent in financial year 2021-22 if the second wave of coronavirus pandemic in the country peaks by June-end, rating agency CRISIL said on Monday while maintaining its baseline estimate of 11 per cent growth. Risk is "firmly tilted downwards" to its projection of 11 per cent growth in FY22, CRISIL said.

COVID-19 vaccination: Covaxin stock in Delhi to last a day, Covishield for 3-4 days

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Monday said the national capital has Covaxin stock for only one day, while Covishield stock will last for up to four days only. Around 39 lakh doses have been administered in the national capital so far.

Twitter donates $15 million for COVID-19 relief work in India

Microblogging giant Twitter has donated $15 million to help address the COVID-19 crisis in India which is battling the unprecedented second wave of the deadly pandemic. Twitter CEO Jack Patrick Dorsey on Monday tweeted that the amount has been donated to three non-governmental organisations Care, Aid India and Sewa International USA.

Children as young as 12 to be inoculated Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine in US

COVID-19 vaccines finally are headed for more kids as US regulators on Monday expanded use of Pfizer's shot to those as young as 12, sparking a race to protect middle and high school students before they head back to class in the fall. Shots could begin as soon as a federal vaccine advisory committee issues recommendations for using the two-dose vaccine in 12- to 15-year-olds, expected Wednesday.

COVID-19 impact: Shopping mall owners' revenue fell nearly 50% in FY21

Shopping mall owners' revenue declined by around 50 per cent during the last fiscal as the retail sector was badly hit since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March last year, according to real estate developers and consultants. Average monthly rentals in shopping centres have softened by 4-5 per cent across eight cities, although many malls saw rent correction of up to 25 per cent, they said.
Benson Hill, Inc. to become publicly listed through business combination with Star Peak Corp II (NYSE: STPC). Founded in 2012, Benson Hill is unlocking the natural genetic diversity of plants to supply the Picks and Shovels for the plant-based food revolution. Company leverages artificial intelligence-driven proprietary food innovation engine, CropOS, which combines data science, plant science and food science to create better tasting, more sustainable, healthier, and more affordable food choices. Transaction to provide up to $625 million in gross proceeds, comprised of Star Peaks $403 million of cash in trust, assuming no redemptions, and an oversubscribed and upsized $225 million common stock PIPE at $10.00 per share, including investments from funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Van Eck Associates Corporation, Hedosophia, Lazard Asset Management, Post Holdings, existing Benson Hill investors and affiliates of Star Peak Corp II. All existing Benson Hill shareholders will roll 100% of their equity holdings into the new public company, including Argonautic Ventures, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec (CDPQ), Fall Line Capital, GV, iSelect Fund, Lewis & Clark Ventures, Mercury Fund, Prelude Ventures, S2G Ventures, and Wheatsheaf, as well as other financial and strategic investors. Transaction supports Benson Hills continued rapid growth in the forecasted $140 billion plant-based meat segment and broader $5 trillion agri-food industry, offering a pure-play ESG investment opportunity tied to improving human health and driving decarbonization. Following the expected Q3 2021 transaction close, the combined company will have an estimated enterprise value of ~$1.35 billion and will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the new ticker symbol BHIL. Investor call today, May 10, 2021 at 8:30 a.m. ET.

Benson Hill, Inc. (the Company or Benson Hill), a food technology company unlocking the natural genetic diversity of plants, announced today that it will become publicly listed through a business combination with Star Peak Corp II (NYSE: STPC) (Star Peak). Upon closing of the transaction, the combined company will be named Benson Hill, Inc. and is expected to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the new ticker symbol BHIL. Matt Crisp, Chief Executive Officer of Benson Hill, will lead the combined company.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210510005301/en/

(Graphic: Business Wire)

Benson Hill: Category-Defining Company Merging Food Technology and Innovative Plant-to-Plate Business Model

Benson Hill is a food technology company that uses artificial intelligence (AI), data and a variety of breeding techniques to create innovative food and ingredient products. Starting with the seed and through an integrated business model, the Company works with partners and growers to bring products to market that meet consumer needs for food that is healthier, more sustainable, more affordable and better tasting.

Benson Hills proprietary CropOS technology platform uses predictive analytics to simulate tens of millions of genetic outcomes for plants, referencing an ever-expanding and unmatched data library. The technology has the potential to shave years off the traditional crop breeding process, shortening the time to market, and decreasing development costs for new food and ingredient products. Benson Hills approach is tailored to meet consumer demand and link the interests of both growers and consumers, which has been a historical divide in the food system.

With CropOS, Benson Hill is working to:

Leverage the vast natural genetic diversity within plants to simultaneously optimize for quality traits such as nutrition and flavor profiles, as well as yield;

Improve sustainability through plant breeding innovations that can use fewer resources, including displacing the need for certain expensive water- and energy-intensive ingredient processing steps typically required to produce protein-rich ingredients used in plant-based meat alternatives; and

Increase access to healthier foods capable of delivering more nutrients that consumers are demanding, while offering cleaner labels for food companies and retailers.

Benson Hill deploys an innovative go-to-market approach that significantly reduces technological and product risk. An integrated supply chain ensures plant-to-plate traceability and preserves product identity needed to validate sustainability and product benefits to customers. This approach can help facilitate broad adoption through production partnerships and licensing agreements as customer and consumer demand increases.

Ingredients and Fresh Business Segments Delivering Innovative Products

Benson Hill operates two business segments, Ingredients and Fresh, which can leverage the Companys AI-driven proprietary CropOS technology platform and integrated production systems to deliver enhanced products.

The Ingredients segment is focused on enhancing soybean and yellow pea ingredients for the fast-growing plant-based protein market as well as pet food and animal feed inputs. In soy, Benson Hill is working with its partner growers to scale production of Ultra-High Protein (UHP) soybean varieties in 2021, which can reduce processing costs and water and energy usage. In yellow pea, the Company has developed a comprehensive genomic map that, in combination with its CropOS platform, enables Benson Hill to accelerate its breeding program to develop uniquely differentiated varieties. Leveraging these capabilities, Benson Hill is working on a pipeline of products with the potential to significantly reduce off-flavors, increase protein content and ultimately displace the need for expensive, energy- and water-intensive processing steps typically required to produce protein ingredients used in plant-based meat alternatives.

The Fresh business segment is positioned to deliver differentiated fresh produce to meet consumer and grower demand by combining Benson Hills advanced technology capabilities with an extensive grower base, distribution network, and retail relationships of J&J Family of Farms, Inc., its integrated field produce subsidiary. With its powerful technology and valuable grower partnerships, the business segment is well-positioned in the years to come to develop and commercialize differentiated produce and functional foods with the potential to serve the growing food health convergence between the produce and pharmacy aisles.

Management Comments

At Benson Hill, we believe the natural genetic diversity of plants has untapped potential to make great-tasting food and ingredient choices that are healthier, more sustainable, and more affordable, said Matt Crisp, Chief Executive Officer of Benson Hill. Since our founding in 2012, we have developed our CropOS technology platform to combine data science, plant science, and food science, a truly differentiating convergence of disciplines. As a result of this technology innovation and our go-to-market approach, we are now at the launch phase to deliver and help meet the explosive demand for plant-based ingredients that can displace processing steps, reduce additives, and serve as the picks and shovels for the plant-based food revolution.

This transaction will empower Benson Hills continued rapid growth and commercial expansion, providing access to resources to drive scale by strengthening our proprietary technology platform, growing partnerships across the supply chain, and expanding product commercialization efforts. We believe we are now poised to take Benson Hill to new levels with a partner in Star Peak that shares our commitment to sustainability. We look forward to working closely with the Star Peak team to create value for our shareholders, value chain partners, farmers, and consumers as we help shape the future of food.

Mike Morgan, Chairman of Star Peak, commented, Benson Hill is a truly category-defining food technology company, with a game-changing technology platform and a significant and growing addressable market, thats the first of its kind to go public. Benson Hill and its exceptional management team perfectly align with Star Peaks mission to provide growth capital to a market-leading business focused on sustainability and decarbonization. We believe Benson Hill is well positioned to be a market leader in the plant-based food revolution and will drive significant benefits for both human health and the planet.

We believe Benson Hill is at the epicenter of the evolution in our food system, with a business model thats capable of materially transforming the sector by accelerating novel products paths to market and scale, Eric Scheyer, Chief Executive Officer of Star Peak, added. We furthermore believe that Benson Hill represents an attractive opportunity to capitalize on the scarcity value of high-quality public food technology companies with attractive ESG characteristics.

Benson Hill Investment Highlights:

Significant and Growing Addressable Market Opportunity: The fast growing plant-based meat segment is estimated to reach $140 billion by 2029, and the overall addressable market for the agri-food industry is estimated at $5 trillion.

Pure Play ESG Investment Opportunity: Benson Hills business model unlocks environmental and social benefits on farm and at all stages of product production, and aligns with U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.

Unique and Proprietary Innovation Engine  CropOS: The Company has a robust proprietary data library that is expected to double in size every year, with high-performance soybean breeding data, hundreds of billions of data points to understand natural genetic variation for biodiversity, and 120,000 unique plant genomes across 27 species incorporated to-date. CropOS leverages this data library to accelerate Benson Hills product paths to market.

Capitalized for Growth: The transaction is expected to result in a strong, debt free balance sheet1 to execute on the Companys strategic plan.

Rapidly Growing Revenue at Commercial Inflection: The Company generated $102 million in revenue in 20202 and is projecting robust near-term growth, driven by existing and validated products. The commercialization of innovative products in the Ingredients segment is expected to deliver annual topline growth in the range of 50% to 100% in the near-term. Over the longer-term, the Company expects its focus on production partnerships, licensing and royalties will help it scale and deliver products across numerous end-markets, including those in animal feed, pet food, and human plant-based food ingredients.

Transaction Overview

Following the close, Benson Hill will have a pro forma enterprise value of approximately $1.35 billion based on the $10.00 per share price of Star Peak common stock and assuming no redemptions by Star Peak shareholders. The transaction will provide approximately $625 million in gross proceeds to the Company (assuming no redemptions by Star Peak shareholders), including an oversubscribed and upsized $225 million fully committed common stock PIPE at $10.00 per share, demonstrating strong support from investors including funds and accounts managed byBlackRock, Van Eck Associates Corporation, Hedosophia, Lazard Asset Management, Post Holdings, existing Benson Hill investors and affiliates of Star Peak. Benson Hill intends to use proceeds from the transaction to accelerate investments in CropOS, strengthen partner development efforts, support product commercialization and expand into new agri-food markets. Benson Hills existing shareholders will convert 100% of their ownership stakes into the new company.

The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both Benson Hill and Star Peak. It is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including the approval of Star Peaks shareholders and Benson Hill shareholders.

Additional information about the proposed transaction, including a copy of the merger agreement and investor presentation, will be provided in a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed by Star Peak today with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and available at www.sec.gov.

Advisors

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC are serving as joint financial advisors and capital markets advisors to Star Peak and as co-placement agents on the PIPE offering. Kirkland & Ellis LLP is serving as legal advisor to Star Peak. Barclays is serving as exclusive financial advisor and capital markets advisor to Benson Hill, as well as co-placement agent on the PIPE offering. Winston & Strawn LLP is serving as legal advisor to Benson Hill.

Conference Call Information

Benson Hill and Star Peak will host a joint investor conference call to discuss the transaction today, May 10, 2021, at 8:30 a.m. ET. The conference call can be accessed by dialing +1 877-407-0789 within the U.S. or +1 201-689-8562 for all other locations.

A webcast of the conference call is also available at http://public.viavid.com/index.php?id=144813. A telephone replay will be available until May 24, 2021 by dialing +1 844-512-2921 within the U.S. or +1 412-317-6671 for international callers and entering the passcode 13719518. The conference call replay will also be accessible on Benson Hills investor relations website at https://bensonhill.com/investors.

About Benson Hill

Benson Hill moves food forwardwith the CropOS platform, a cutting-edge food innovation engine that combines data science and machine learning with biology and genetics. Benson Hill empowers innovators to unlock natures genetic diversity from plant to plate, with the purpose of creating healthier, great-tasting food and ingredient options that are both widely accessible and sustainable. More information can be found at bensonhill.com or on Twitter at @bensonhillinc.

About Star Peak Corp II

Led by an experienced management team that has a long history of partnering with high-quality companies across the sustainability, energy infrastructure, renewables and technology landscape  and sponsored by Star Peak Sponsor II LLC, a group comprised of Michael C. Morgan and members of Magnetar Capital, Star Peak Corp II is a special purpose acquisition company created to identify and merge with a market-leading business well-positioned to capitalize on trends in sustainability and emissions reduction.For more information about Star Peak Corp II, visit stpc.starpeakcorp.com.

Important Information for Investors and Stockholders

The proposed transactions will be submitted to stockholders of Star Peak for their consideration and approval at a special meeting of stockholders. In addition, Benson Hill will solicit written consents from its stockholders for approval of the proposed transactions. In connection with the proposed transactions, Star Peak intends to file a Registration Statement on Form S-4 (the Registration Statement) with the SEC, which will include a proxy statement to be distributed to Star Peak stockholders in connection with Star Peaks solicitation for proxies for the vote by Star Peaks stockholders in connection with the proposed transactions and other matters as described in such Registration Statement, a consent solicitation statement of Benson Hill to solicit written consents from its stockholders in connection with the proposed transactions and a prospectus relating to the offer of the securities to be issued to Benson Hills stockholders in connection with the completion of the Merger. After the Registration Statement has been filed and declared effective, Star Peak will mail a definitive proxy statement / consent solicitation statement / prospectus and other relevant documents to its stockholders as of the record date established for voting on the proposed transactions. Investors, Star Peaks stockholders and other interested parties are advised to read, when available, the preliminary proxy statement, and any amendments thereto, and the definitive proxy statement in connection with Star Peaks solicitation of proxies for its special meeting of stockholders to be held to approve the proposed transaction because the proxy statement / consent solicitation statement / prospectus will contain important information about the proposed transaction and the parties to the proposed transaction. Stockholders will also be able to obtain copies of the proxy statement/consent solicitation statement/prospectus, without charge, once available, at the SECs website at www.sec.gov or by directing a request to: Star Peak Corp II, 1603 Orrington Avenue, 13th Floor, Evanston, Illinois 60201.

No Offer or Solicitation

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, or a solicitation of any vote or approval, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. No offering of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Participants in the Solicitation

Star Peak and Benson Hill and their respective directors, executive officers, other members of management, and employees, under SEC rules, may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies of Star Peaks stockholders in connection with the proposed transaction. Information regarding the persons who may, under SEC rules, be deemed participants in the solicitation of proxies in connection with the proposed transaction, including a description of their direct or indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, will be set forth in the Registration Statement to be filed with the SEC by Star Peak, which will include the proxy statement/consent solicitation statement / prospectus for the proposed transaction. Information regarding the directors and executive officers of Star Peak is contained in Star Peaks Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, filed with the SEC on March 31, 2021.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or Star Peaks or Benson Hills future financial or operating performance. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding estimates and forecasts of other financial and performance metrics and projections of market opportunity. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as may, should, expect, intend, will, estimate, anticipate, believe, predict, or the negatives of these terms or variations of them or similar terminology. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by Star Peak and its management, and Benson Hill and its management, as the case may be, are inherently uncertain factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: 1) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the definitive merger agreement with respect to the business combination; 2) the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Star Peak, the combined company or others following the announcement of the business combination and any definitive agreements with respect thereto; 3) the inability to complete the business combination due to the failure to obtain approval of the stockholders of Star Peak, to obtain financing to complete the business combination or to satisfy other conditions to closing; 4) changes to the proposed structure of the business combination that may be required or appropriate as a result of applicable laws or regulations or as a condition to obtaining regulatory approval of the business combination; 5) the ability to meet the NYSEs listing standards following the consummation of the business combination; 6) the risk that the business combination disrupts current plans and operations of Benson Hill as a result of the announcement and consummation of the business combination; 7) the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits of the business combination, which may be affected by, among other things, competition, the ability of the combined company to grow and manage growth profitably, maintain relationships with customers and suppliers and retain its management and key employees; 8) costs related to the business combination; 9) changes in applicable laws or regulations; 10) the possibility that Benson Hill or the combined company may be adversely affected by other economic, business and/or competitive factors; 11) Benson Hills estimates of its financial performance; 12) the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on business and financial conditions; and 13) other risks and uncertainties set forth in the sections entitled Risk Factors and Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements in Star Peaks Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, filed with the SEC on March 31, 2021, in the proxy statement / consent solicitation statement / prospectus relating to the proposed business combination (when available), and other documents filed or to be filed with the SEC by Star Peak. Nothing in this press release should be regarded as a representation by any person that the forward-looking statements set forth herein will be achieved or that any of the contemplated results of such forward looking statements will be achieved. There may be additional risks that Star Peak and Benson Hill presently do not know or that Star Peak and Benson Hill currently believe are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. Neither Star Peak nor Benson Hill undertakes any duty to update these forward-looking statements, except as otherwise required by law.

1 Excludes financing leases.

2 Excludes revenue from a business divested in 2020.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210510005301/en/
Delivered FY2020 Management Guidance with Results Driven by +16% Underlying Revenue Growth of 14 Global Brands (e.g., ENTYVIO  +26.2% YOY, TAKHZYRO  +30.0% YOY, Immunoglobulin + 15.7% YOY)

Accelerated Cost Synergies and Achieved $2.3 Billion Target One Year Ahead of Plan

Reported Net Profit Growth of Approximately +750% YOY, Reflecting Gains on Non-core Asset Sales and Lower Acquisition-related Expenses

Robust Operating Cash Flow and Divestiture Proceeds Resulting in Free Cash Flow of JPY 1,237.8 Billion, Driving Deleveraging to Net Debt / Adjusted EBITDA of 3.2x

FY2021 Anticipated to be an Inflection Year for Wave 1 Pipeline with Five to Six Wave 1 NMEs Submitted and Under Regulatory Review by the FDA with the Potential for Four Approvals

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TOKYO:4502) (NYSE:TAK) (Takeda) today announced financial results for fiscal year 2020 (period ended March 31, 2021).

TAKEDA PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER CHRISTOPHE WEBER commented:

Over the course of FY2020, Takeda remained resilient as we operated in new ways through the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a testament to the dedication of our employees, and Takedas unwavering commitment to serving patients, our people, and the planet to bring better health for people and a brighter future for the world. We maintained business continuity, ensured patient access to our medicines and safeguarded the health and well-being of our employees while helping to address the pandemic.

This focus enabled us to deliver on our full-year management guidance, with underlying revenue growth driven by our 14 global brands, and the acceleration of cost synergies contributed to strong margins and a robust cashflow. Furthermore, we continued to experience growth momentum in our pipeline, including receiving 12 approvals across Takedas key markets.

With FY2021 anticipated to serve as a critical inflection year, we remain focused on leveraging our expected topline growth to ramp up our R&D investment and further fuel our transformative pipeline. We are well-positioned to reach our goal of mid-single-digit revenue growth over the next decade amounting to JPY5 trillion ($47 billion) by FY2030.1

As we celebrate Takedas 240th anniversary next month, I am extremely proud of our progress and confident in our outlook for the future. We will advance on our growth trajectory, maximize value creation for all of our stakeholders, and continue to position the company for long-term success.

FINANCIAL AND BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS

Results for FY2020 Ended March 31, 2021

(Billion yen, except

percentages and per

share amounts) REPORTED CORE

(Non-IFRS)(a) UNDERLYING (b)

(Non-IFRS) (a) FY2020 vs. PRIOR

YEAR FY2020 vs. PRIOR

YEAR Revenue 3,197.8 -2.8% 3,197.8 -2.8% +2.2% Operating Profit 509.3 +407.2% 967.9(c) +0.6% +13.0% Margin 15.9% +12.9pp 30.3% +1.0pp 30.2% Net Profit 376.0 +749.9% 655.5 +8.9% EPS (JPY) 241 +747.3% 420 +8.5% +24.6% Operating Cash Flow 1,010.9 +50.9% Free Cash Flow

(Non-IFRS) (a) (d) 1,237.8 +27.9%

(a) Further information on certain of Takedas Non-IFRS measures is posted on Takedas investor relations website at https://www.takeda.com/investors/financial-results/

(b) Underlying growth compares two periods (quarters or years) of financial results under a common basis and is used by management to assess the business. These financial results are calculated on a constant currency basis and excluding the impact of divestitures and other amounts that are unusual, non-recurring items or unrelated to our ongoing operations.

(c) Core Operating Profit represents net profit adjusted to exclude income tax expenses, the share of profit or loss of investments accounted for using the equity method, finance expenses and income, other operating expenses and income, amortization and impairment losses on acquired intangible assets and other items unrelated to Takedas core operations, such as purchase accounting effects and transaction related costs.

(d) Free Cash Flow represents cash flows from operating activities, excluding acquisition of plant, property and equipment, intangible assets and investments, and any other cash that is not available to Takedas immediate or general business use, and including proceeds from sales of plant, property and equipment, as further adjusted to exclude the acquisition of intangible assets and the acquisition of investments, and to include the proceeds from sales of property, plant, sales and redemption of investments and businesses, net of cash and cash equivalents divested.

FY2020 RESULTS DEMONSTRATE TAKEDAS RESILIENT PORTFOLIO

Reported revenue at JPY 3,197.8 billion (~$28.9B) 2 , declined by 2.8% impacted primarily by foreign exchange and divestitures. Underlying revenue growth in FY2020 was +2.2% driven by the growth of Takedas 14 global brands, up 16% year-on-year.

at JPY 3,197.8 billion (~$28.9B) , declined by 2.8% impacted primarily by foreign exchange and divestitures. in FY2020 was +2.2% driven by the growth of Takedas 14 global brands, up 16% year-on-year. Takeda delivered reported operating profit of JPY 509.3 billion (~$4.6B) 2 , which grew 407.2% with gains from non-core asset sales and acquisition-related expenses. Core operating profit , which adjusts for purchase price accounting (PPA) and non-recurring items (including gains on sales of assets), increased year-on-year to JPY 967.9 billion (~$8.8B) 2 . The core operating profit margin was 30.3%. Underlying core operating profit , which further adjusts for the impact of foreign exchange and divestitures, grew 13% year-on-year. The underlying core operating profit margin was 30.2%.

of JPY 509.3 billion (~$4.6B) , which grew 407.2% with gains from non-core asset sales and acquisition-related expenses. , which adjusts for purchase price accounting (PPA) and non-recurring items (including gains on sales of assets), increased year-on-year to JPY 967.9 billion (~$8.8B) . The was 30.3%. , which further adjusts for the impact of foreign exchange and divestitures, grew 13% year-on-year. The was 30.2%. Takedas reported net profit was JPY 376 billion, a 749.9% increase compared with the same period in the prior year.

was JPY 376 billion, a 749.9% increase compared with the same period in the prior year. Operating cash flow increased by 50.9% to JPY 1,010.9 billion. There was an increase in other financial liabilities of JPY 175.5 billion primarily attributable to an increase of deposits restricted to certain vaccines operations.

increased by 50.9% to JPY 1,010.9 billion. There was an increase in other financial liabilities of JPY 175.5 billion primarily attributable to an increase of deposits restricted to certain vaccines operations. Free cash flow, which adjusts out deposits restricted to certain vaccine operations and reflects capital expenditures and proceeds from asset sales, was JPY 1,237.8 billion (~$11.2B)2. This represented an increase of 27.9% versus the prior year, comfortably covering the full year dividend, debt repayment and interest. Robust cash flow enabled further de-leveraging in Q4.

The overall impact of the global spread of COVID-19 on Takedas consolidated financial results for the twelve-month period ended March 31, 2021, was not material, with several offsetting factors. There were adverse effects due to COVID-19 observed in certain therapeutic areas, especially in Neuroscience when stay-at-home restrictions reduced patient visits to medical care providers. This trend has fluctuated throughout the twelve-month period. These adverse effects have been partially offset by benefits from prescribing trends during the pandemic, such as an expansion of certain products with a more convenient administration profile. Regarding operating expenses, voluntary suspension of certain business activities such as business travel and events in response to COVID-19 led to lower spending. As a result of these factors, the impact on Takedas profit was immaterial.

For the latest Takeda communications regarding COVID-19, please click here to visit the COVID-19 Information Center on Takedas website.

COMMERCIAL UPDATES ACROSS FIVE KEY BUSINESS AREAS

Takedas five key business areas  Gastroenterology, Rare Diseases, Plasma-Derived Therapies, Oncology and Neuroscience  with JPY 2,623.7 billion of reported revenue representing approximately 82% of total FY2020 revenues  delivered year-on-year underlying revenue growth of 4.7%. Takedas 14 global brands, with reported revenue of JPY 1,215.3 billion (~$11.0B) 2 in aggregate, delivered a 16% increase in FY2020 underlying revenue growth compared to a year before.

Gastroenterology

Gastroenterology with JPY 777.8 billion in reported revenue represented 24% of sales, with underlying revenue growth of 14%. This was spearheaded by continued exceptional growth through expanded first line share of gut selective ENTYVIO in the U.S., EU and Japan.

Rare Diseases

Rare Diseases with JPY 591.7 billion in reported revenue represented 19% of sales, with underlying revenue declining 2% driven by a decline in rare hematology that was in line with expectations. The hereditary angioedema (HAE) portfolio saw 10% underlying revenue growth, driven by continued excellent performance from TAKHZYRO, which continues to expand the hereditary angioedema prophylaxis market, as well as launching into additional geographies. Rare Metabolic increased 2% on an underlying basis but excluding NATPARA the portfolio saw 8% underlying growth.

PDT Immunology

PDT Immunology with JPY 420.4 billion in reported revenue represented 13% of sales, with underlying revenue growth of 10% driven by strong Gammagard-Liquid demand in the U.S. and subcutaneous IG worldwide. Albumin underlying revenue declined 13% in FY2020, mostly due to H2 sales impact caused by temporary interruption in submitting batches of Albumin Glass for release in China, and in some part due to phasing and supply dynamics in China in FY2019. COVID-19 has impacted plasma collections industry-wide, but operational excellence, implementation of digital initiatives and ongoing center expansion helped limit plasma collection volume decline to only -11%.

Oncology

Oncology with JPY 416.5 billion in reported revenue represented 13% of sales, with underlying revenue growth of 1% driven by NINLARO, ADCETRIS and ALUNBRIG. Takedas strong oncology portfolio continues to expand indications as growth brands offset the decline of older products in the portfolio.

Neuroscience

Neuroscience with JPY 417.3 billion in reported revenue represented 13% of sales, declining 2% on an underlying basis. The portfolio experienced a slowdown in momentum attributable to COVID-19 stay-at-home restrictions that reduced patient visits and diagnoses. A recovery of prescribing trends has been noted, but new patient starts are not yet back to pre-COVID levels.

Global Brand Highlights

Business Area Product Reported Product

Revenue

JPY (billion) Year-over-Year Underlying

Revenue Growth Gastroenterology ENTYVIO 429.3 +26.2% Rare Diseases TAKHZYRO 86.7 +30.0% PDT Immunology Immunoglobulin 334.9 +15.7% Oncology NINLARO 87.4 +15.9% Oncology ALUNBRIG 8.8 +24.4%

COST SAVINGS AND DIVESTITURES

Synergy deliverables and operational efficiencies supported margin performance, as Takeda delivered an underlying core operating profit margin of 30.2%. Takeda is also deleveraging rapidly, with a net debt/adjusted EBITDA ratio of 3.2x at the end of Q4, down from 3.8x in March 2020. Net debt has decreased by JPY 1,668.5 billion in two years since March 31, 2019 (the Shire Acquisition closed on January 8, 2019), and Takeda is on course to meet its medium-term deleveraging goal of 2x (low-twos) within FY2021-FY2023.

Takeda exceeded its $10B non-core asset divestiture target and has announced 12 deals since January 2019 to date for a total aggregate value of up to ~$12.9 billion3, most recently including:

The completion of the previously announced sale of a portfolio of four type 2 diabetes products to Teijin Pharma Limited for a total value of JPY 133.0 billion. 4 (Press Release)

(Press Release) The completion of the previously announced sale of a portfolio of approximately 130 select over the counter and prescription products, and two manufacturing sites to Orifarm for a total value of up to $670 million USD. (Press Release)

The completion of the previously announced sale of Takeda Consumer Healthcare Company Limited to Oscar A-Co KK, a company controlled by funds managed by The Blackstone Group Inc. and its affiliates, for a total value of JPY 227.7 billion.5 (Press Release)

Takeda has also exceeded its original $700 million target for incremental cash from sales of real estate and marketable securities in FY2020, receiving a total of ~$1.4B.

PIPELINE UPDATE: FY2021  ANTICIPATED TO BE AN INFLECTION YEAR WITH FIVE TO SIX WAVE 1 NMES SUBMITTED AND UNDER REGULATORY REVIEW BY THE FDA WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR FOUR APPROVALS

Takedas world-class R&D engine is fueled by leveraging internal research capabilities and actively engaging with innovative ecosystems around the world. This efficient R&D model has enabled us to focus on more targeted patient populations where there is potential for greater therapeutic benefit, smaller and less costly development programs, and faster tracks to registration with enhanced patent protection and marketing rights. We plan to increase our R&D investment to 522 billion JPY to further advance our 40+ prioritized NMEs and new partnerships, as well as building additional capabilities in oncology, clinical trial initiation and data and digital sciences. In FY2020, we obtained 12 global and regional brand approvals with the U.S., EU, China and Japan, demonstrating our drive to develop best-in-class therapies for patients with high unmet needs around the world. FY2021 is expected to be an inflection year for Takeda as we anticipate up to six regulatory submissions by year-end FY2021, with the potential for four approvals.

Takedas pipeline portfolio has the potential to contribute significantly to its growth over the next decade, with recent highlights including:

TAK-003: Takedas tetravalent dengue vaccine candidate, has completed its first regulatory submissions with possible approval in the EU and some endemic countries in FY2021. (Press release)

Takedas tetravalent dengue vaccine candidate, has completed its first regulatory submissions with possible approval in the EU and some endemic countries in FY2021. (Press release) Mobocertinib (TAK-788): A potential new oral standard of care for adult patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) Exon20 insertion mutation-positive (insertion+) metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC), has completed its New Drug Application (NDA) submission with a potential approval in FY2021. (Press release)

A potential new oral standard of care for adult patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) Exon20 insertion mutation-positive (insertion+) metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC), has completed its New Drug Application (NDA) submission with a potential approval in FY2021. (Press release) Maribavir (TAK-620) : A robust primary analysis from the Phase 3 trial showed significantly more patients achieved cytomegalovirus (CMV) clearance versus conventional therapies in transplant recipients with CMV infection. Met key secondary endpoints, maintaining superior CMV viremia clearance, on track for NDA submission. Takeda continues to investigate Maribavir in the ongoing 302 Phase 3 study for First-Line Treatment of CMV in Hematopoietic Cell Transplant Recipients. (Press release)

: A robust primary analysis from the Phase 3 trial showed significantly more patients achieved cytomegalovirus (CMV) clearance versus conventional therapies in transplant recipients with CMV infection. Met key secondary endpoints, maintaining superior CMV viremia clearance, on track for NDA submission. Takeda continues to investigate Maribavir in the ongoing 302 Phase 3 study for First-Line Treatment of CMV in Hematopoietic Cell Transplant Recipients. (Press release) Soticlestat (TAK-935): Takeda recently re-acquired global rights from Ovid Therapeutics to develop and commercialize this potential first-in-class therapy, with a novel mechanism of action for the treatment of developmental and epileptic encephalopathies. We intend to initiate Phase 3 studies of soticlestat in children and young adults with Dravet syndrome (DS) and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) in FY2021. If successful, it has the potential to bring new treatment options that provide greater seizure control, tolerability and function to DS and LGS patients around the world. (An Inflection Year for Our Wave 1 Pipeline)

Takeda recently re-acquired global rights from Ovid Therapeutics to develop and commercialize this potential first-in-class therapy, with a novel mechanism of action for the treatment of developmental and epileptic encephalopathies. We intend to initiate Phase 3 studies of soticlestat in children and young adults with Dravet syndrome (DS) and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) in FY2021. If successful, it has the potential to bring new treatment options that provide greater seizure control, tolerability and function to DS and LGS patients around the world. (An Inflection Year for Our Wave 1 Pipeline) Orexin (TAK-994) : Potentially the first therapy to treat orexin deficiency, Takeda plans to move this asset into registrational trials, first in narcolepsy type 1 (NT1)  a rare, underdiagnosed and undertreated condition caused by an orexin deficiency which disrupts the sleep awake cycles, with narcolepsy type 2 (NT2) and idiopathic hypersomnia (IH) to follow as potential additional indications. (An Inflection Year for Our Wave 1 Pipeline)

: Potentially the first therapy to treat orexin deficiency, Takeda plans to move this asset into registrational trials, first in narcolepsy type 1 (NT1)  a rare, underdiagnosed and undertreated condition caused by an orexin deficiency which disrupts the sleep awake cycles, with narcolepsy type 2 (NT2) and idiopathic hypersomnia (IH) to follow as potential additional indications. (An Inflection Year for Our Wave 1 Pipeline) TAK-186: A conditionally active T-cell engager, first in its class to enter the clinic with recent phase 1/2 study initiation in EGFR-expressing solid tumors. TAK-186 is one of the latest additions to our pipeline through the acquisition of Maverick Therapeutics. In addition to TAK-186, Takeda also obtained Mavericks T-cell engager COBRA platform and TAK-280 which is expected to enter the clinic in the second half of FY2021 for the treatment of patients with B7H3-expressing solid tumors. (Press release)

KEY CORPORATE INITIATIVES

Several recent examples of Takedas corporate achievements in FY2020 demonstrate Takedas progress toward its purpose of better health for people, brighter future for the world:

Patients:

Launched R&D Center for Health Equity and Patient Affairs to identify and address health inequities.

Developed the Health Outcomes Observatory (H20) project, which brings together diverse public and private partners to amplify the patient voice in Europe.

Awarded the 2021 Facility of the Year Awards (FOYA) by the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE) in two categories. Takedas new solid pharmaceutical packaging building in Hikari, Japan, was recognized with the 2021 Process Intelligence and Innovation category award and the end-to-end high potent drug facility in Grange Castle, Ireland, was selected as Facility Integration category winner.

Earned an industry-leading position within the 2021 Access to Medicine (AtM) Index where the company ranked sixth overall and led the pharmaceutical industry in Governance of Access.

People:

Launched our first Global DE&I Council, led by members of the Takeda Executive Team, to further embed DE&I into our culture.

Achieved global Top Employer  certification for fourth consecutive year and was named as a Top Employer in four regions and 38 countries.

certification for fourth consecutive year and was named as a Top Employer in four regions and 38 countries. Preparing for post-pandemic ways of working with new hybrid working models that foster a flexible working culture, aligned to local business needs, that optimize employee engagement.

Planet:

Achieved carbon neutrality in the value chain for fiscal year 2019.

Named to Corporate Knights Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World (Global 100) for the sixth consecutive year.

Governance:

Takeda recently announced candidates for its Board of Directors that will be proposed at the 145th Ordinary General Meeting of Shareholders to be held on June 29, 2021. As part of its commitment to exercising strong corporate governance practices, Takeda decided that all members of the Audit and Supervisory Committee will be external directors (as defined under the rules of the Tokyo Stock Exchange) to further enhance the independence of the Committee. This change will promote the long-term interests of shareholders and all its stakeholders as well as strengthening its Board of Directors and management accountability. (Press release)

COVID-19 UPDATE

Guided by its values, Takedas response to COVID-19 has focused on protecting the health and safety of employees, striving to ensure its medicines are available to patients who rely on them and playing a part to reduce transmission and support the communities where its employees live and work.

While the results of our CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance clinical trial were not favorable, the effort strengthened relationships within and outside the industry, enabled a renewed perspective toward pragmatic regulation based on scientific evidence and need, and provided a well-defined, legally compliant framework for future collaborative opportunities to address urgent public health needs. Takeda has also undertaken several efforts to help the world respond to COVID-19, and our most recent accomplishments include:

Takeda is making two COVID-19 vaccines available in Japan, by manufacturing Novavax recombinant vaccine candidate and distributing Modernas mRNA vaccine candidate, with the support of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED). Pending regulatory approval, Takeda intends to start distributing TAK-919 (Moderna) in the first half of 2021 and aims to start distributing TAK-019 (Novavax) in late 2021 or early 2022. (Press Release )

Takeda and IDT Biologika GmbH (IDT) have a mutual agreement to support manufacturing of Johnson & Johnsons COVID-19 vaccine for three months utilizing capacity previously reserved for Takedas dengue vaccine candidate. (Press Release)

FY2021 GUIDANCE: Growth Momentum Expected to Continue

(Billion Yen, Except Percentages) FY2020 RESULTS FY2021

FORECAST Underlying

Management Guidance Revenue 3,197.8 3,370.0 Mid-single-digit growth Reported Operating Profit 509.3 488.0 Core Operating Profit 967.9 930.0 Mid-single-digit growth Core Operating Profit Margin 30.3% ~30% margin Reported Net Profit 376.0 250.0 Reported EPS (Yen) 241 160 Core EPS (Yen) 420 394 Mid-single-digit growth Free Cash Flow 1,237.8 600.0 - 700.0 Annual Dividend per Share (Yen) 180 180

Takeda has solid growth momentum heading into FY2021 and expects underlying revenue growth to accelerate to mid-single-digit" driven by continued momentum of Takedas 14 global brands.

Reported revenue is forecast to be 3,370 billion JPY, a year-on-year increase of 172.2 billion JPY or +5.4% from FY2020, with underlying revenue momentum and a one-time gain from the sale of diabetes portfolio in Japan fully offsetting impacts from divestitures completed in FY2020.

Underlying Core Operating Profit and Underlying Core EPS are expected to also grow at mid-single-digit, reflecting revenue growth and continued cost efficiencies, whilst also incorporating a significant increase in R&D expenses to support Takedas innovative pipeline.

Reported Operating Profit is expected to be 488 billion JPY, a decrease of 21.3 billion JPY, or -4.2%, impacted by a significant increase in R&D expenses as well as lower one-time gains on asset sales. Core Operating Profit is expected to decrease by 37.9 billion JPY, or -3.9%, to 930 billion JPY, reflecting a significant increase in R&D expenses. Reported net profit for the year is expected to be 250 billion JPY, a decrease of 126 billion JPY, or -33.5%, reflecting the impacts on reported operating profit as well as an expected increase in the effective tax rate.

Key Assumptions in FY2021 Forecast

Company guidance reflects managements expectations for continued business momentum across Takedas five key business areas, underlying revenue growth of its 14 global brands, and accelerated realization of cost synergies.

FY2021 guidance also reflects the following key assumptions: (i) The gain on sale of a diabetes portfolio in Japan is booked as revenue (JPY 133 billion), and adjusted out of Core Operating Profit for FY2021; (ii) Takeda expects at least one 505(b)2 competitor for subcutaneous VELCADE to launch in the U.S. around mid FY2021; (iii) Takeda does not expect to restart sales of NATPARA in the U.S. market in FY2021; (iv) FY2021 guidance does not include the impact of any potential further divestitures beyond what has already been disclosed by Takeda.

Based on currently available information, Takeda believes its financial results for FY2021 will not be materially affected by COVID-19 and, accordingly, Takeda's FY2021 forecast reflects this belief. However, the situation surrounding COVID-19 remains highly fluid, and future COVID-19-related developments in FY2021, including new or additional COVID-19 outbreaks and additional or extended lockdowns, shelter-in-place orders or other government action in major markets, could result in further or more serious disruptions to Takedas business, such as slowdowns in demand for Takedas products, supply chain related issues or significant delays in its clinical trial programs. These events, if they occur, could result in additional impacts on Takedas business, results of operations or financial condition, as well as resulting in significant deviations from Takedas FY2021 forecast.

For more details on Takeda's FY2020 results and other financial information, please visit: https://www.takeda.com/investors/financial-results/

Further Information

Takeda will share details regarding its commercial strategies in oncology and finance at its upcoming Oncology Strategic Update Call in June 2021 and Finance Strategy Day in June/July 2021, respectively (dates to be confirmed). Additionally, Takeda will share details regarding COVID-19 efforts, the current state of the business, and the short- and long-term outlook of the Company at the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders on June 29, 2021.

About Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TOKYO:4502) (NYSE:TAK) is a global, values-based, R&D-driven biopharmaceutical leader headquartered in Japan, committed to discover and deliver life-transforming treatments, guided by our commitment to patients, our people and the planet. Takeda focuses its R&D efforts on four therapeutic areas: Oncology, Rare Genetic and Hematology, Neuroscience, and Gastroenterology (GI). We also make targeted R&D investments in Plasma-Derived Therapies and Vaccines. We are focusing on developing highly innovative medicines that contribute to making a difference in peoples lives by advancing the frontier of new treatment options and leveraging our enhanced collaborative R&D engine and capabilities to create a robust, modality-diverse pipeline. Our employees are committed to improving quality of life for patients and to working with our partners in health care in approximately 80 countries. For more information, visit https://www.takeda.com.

Important Notice

For the purposes of this notice, press release means this document, any oral presentation, any question-and-answer session and any written or oral material discussed or distributed by Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Takeda) regarding this release. This press release (including any oral briefing and any question-and-answer in connection with it) is not intended to, and does not constitute, represent or form part of any offer, invitation or solicitation of any offer to purchase, otherwise acquire, subscribe for, exchange, sell or otherwise dispose of, any securities or the solicitation of any vote or approval in any jurisdiction. No shares or other securities are being offered to the public by means of this press release. No offering of securities shall be made in the United States except pursuant to registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or an exemption therefrom. This press release is being given (together with any further information which may be provided to the recipient) on the condition that it is for use by the recipient for information purposes only (and not for the evaluation of any investment, acquisition, disposal or any other transaction). Any failure to comply with these restrictions may constitute a violation of applicable securities laws.

The companies in which Takeda directly and indirectly owns investments are separate entities. In this press release, Takeda is sometimes used for convenience where references are made to Takeda and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words we, us and our are also used to refer to subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These expressions are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular company or companies.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release and any materials distributed in connection with this press release may contain forward-looking statements, beliefs or opinions regarding Takedas future business, future position and results of operations, including estimates, forecasts, targets and plans for Takeda. Without limitation, forward-looking statements often include words such as targets, plans, believes, hopes, continues, expects, aims, intends, ensures, will, may, should, would, could anticipates, estimates, projects or similar expressions or the negative thereof. These forward-looking statements are based on assumptions about many important factors, including the following, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements: the economic circumstances surrounding Takedas global business, including general economic conditions in Japan and the United States; competitive pressures and developments; changes to applicable laws and regulations, including global health care reforms; challenges inherent in new product development, including uncertainty of clinical success and decisions of regulatory authorities and the timing thereof; uncertainty of commercial success for new and existing products; manufacturing difficulties or delays; fluctuations in interest and currency exchange rates; claims or concerns regarding the safety or efficacy of marketed products or product candidates; the impact of health crises, like the novel coronavirus pandemic, on Takeda and its customers and suppliers, including foreign governments in countries in which Takeda operates, or on other facets of its business; the timing and impact of post-merger integration efforts with acquired companies; the ability to divest assets that are not core to Takedas operations and the timing of any such divestment(s); and other factors identified in Takedas most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F and Takedas other reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, available on Takedas website at: https://www.takeda.com/investors/sec-filings/or at www.sec.gov. Takeda does not undertake to update any of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release or any other forward-looking statements it may make, except as required by law or stock exchange rule. Past performance is not an indicator of future results and the results or statements of Takeda in this press release may not be indicative of, and are not an estimate, forecast, guarantee or projection of Takedas future results.

Certain Non-IFRS Financial Measures

This press release and materials distributed in connection with this press release include certain IFRS financial measures not presented in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), such as Underlying Revenue, Core Operating Profit, Underlying Core Operating Profit, Core Net Profit, Underlying Core EPS, Net Debt, EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Free Cash Flow. Takedas management evaluates results and makes operating and investment decisions using both IFRS and non-IFRS measures included in this press release. These non-IFRS measures exclude certain income, cost and cash flow items which are included in, or are calculated differently from, the most closely comparable measures presented in accordance with IFRS. By including these non-IFRS measures, management intends to provide investors with additional information to further analyze Takedas performance, core results and underlying trends. Takedas non-IFRS measures are not prepared in accordance with IFRS and such non-IFRS measures should be considered a supplement to, and not a substitute for, measures prepared in accordance with IFRS (which we sometimes refer to as reported measures). Investors are encouraged to review the reconciliation of non-IFRS financial measures to their most directly comparable IFRS measures.

Further information on certain of Takedas Non-IFRS measures is posted on Takedas investor relations website at https://www.takeda.com/investors/reports/quarterly-announcements/

Medical information

This press release contains information about products that may not be available in all countries, or may be available under different trademarks, for different indications, in different dosages, or in different strengths. Nothing contained herein should be considered a solicitation, promotion or advertisement for any prescription drugs including the ones under development.

Financial information

Takedas financial statements are prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The revenue of Shire plc (Shire), which was historically, presented by Shire in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (U.S. GAAP), has been conformed to IFRS, without material difference. Convenience translations of JPY figures into USD are included for reference and have been calculated at a rate of JPY/USD of 110.6. During FY2019, Takeda completed the purchase price allocation for the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed as part of the Shire acquisition. Accordingly, PL statements for FY2019 Q3 were retrospectively adjusted.

1 Includes incremental revenue not adjusted for Probability of Technical Success (PTS) and is not a forecast or target figure. PTS applies to the probability that a given clinical trial/study will be successful based on pre-defined endpoints, feasibility and other factors and regulatory bodies will grant approval. Actual future net sales achieved by our commercialized products and pipelines will be different, perhaps materially so, as there is a range of possible outcomes from clinical development, driven by a number of variables, including safety, efficacy and product labelling. If a product is approved, the effect of commercial factors including the patient population, the competitive environment, pricing and reimbursement is also uncertain.

2 USD included for reference, calculated at JPY/USD of 110.6

3 Includes transactions yet to close and the full value of milestones and other contingent payments not guaranteed to be made.

4 The sales price includes the price of product inventory. The sales price will be adjusted based on the value of the product inventory on the date of the completion of the asset transfer.

5 Enterprise value. Actual sales price will be determined after adjustment for items including net debt and working capital of TCHC and Takeda Healthcare Products Company Limited (THP).

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The first batch of companies from home and abroad have signed up for the second China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE) on Monday.



A total of 42 enterprises, including U.S. luxury fashion company Tapestry, Italian luxury brand ETRO and international consulting firm Deloitte, have signed up to participate in the second CICPE, with the dates for the event to be announced at a later time.

The companies that have signed up are from sectors including fashion life services, travel services, service consumption, food and health products and jewelry, according to the organizer.

Running from May 7 to 10, the inaugural CICPE in Haikou, capital of the southern island province of Hainan, is China's first national expo focusing on consumer products.

Covering 80,000 square meters of exhibition space, the first CICPE featured 648 overseas companies and 1,365 brands from 69 countries and regions.
The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) announced today that Meridith Webster will join the company in the newly-created role of Executive Vice President, Global Communications and Public Affairs, effective May 17, 2021. Meridith will report jointly to William P. Lauder, Executive Chairman, and Fabrizio Freda, President and Chief Executive Officer. She will also join The Estee Lauder Companies Inc.s (ELC) Executive Leadership Team.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005345/en/

ELC Appoints Meridith Webster as EVP, Global Communications and Public Affairs. (Photo: Business Wire)

Meridith will succeed Alexandra (Alex) Trower as head of Global Communications and Maria Cristina (MC) Gonzalez Noguera as head of Global Public Affairs. Her appointment follows the news that Alex has made the decision to retire in June after an esteemed career at the company, and that MC was recently tapped for the role of EVP and Chief Communications and Public Affairs Officer at Popular Inc., the Puerto Rico-based global financial services conglomerate.

Our world-class Global Communications and Public Affairs teams have consistently advanced ahead of the curve against the backdrop of an increasingly complex and rapidly-changing global landscape, said Fabrizio Freda. Meridiths appointment will continue to enable and enhance our delivery of thoughtful, effective communications to our valued global stakeholders as she leads these talented teams to new heights.

Meridiths deep public and private sector experience, coupled with her core values and leadership style, make her uniquely suited to step into this role now, said William P. Lauder. I am so proud of the incredible work of our Global Communications and Public Affairs teams and I know they will be in great hands under Meridiths leadership as she joins our ELC family.

In this new role, Meridith will lead ELCs global communications and public affairs strategic agendas to advance and protect its business interests and corporate reputation globally, and strengthen relationships to drive value for key stakeholders. She will serve as a strategic advisor to the ELCs Executive Leadership Team, the Board of Directors and the Lauder Family on a variety of critical topics.

Meridith will oversee ELCs Global Communications and Public Affairs teams, elevating the impact of these important functions across the business. She will lead the strategy and delivery of holistic, integrated global communications to advance ELCs corporate reputation and winning business narrative, while building brand equity and strengthening the platforms that resonate with key audiences internally and externally. She will also lead the global public affairs and stakeholder engagement strategy to further advance ELCs business goals, build reputation capital and proactively mitigate issues.

Meridiths deep government experience includes tenures under multiple U.S. presidential administrations. Meridith joins ELC from the Biden White House, where she served as Special Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff to the Domestic Policy Council. At the Obama White House, she served as Senior Advisor to two White House Chiefs of Staff, Rahm Emanuel and Pete Rouse. She also served as Deputy Chief of Staff to Susan Rice, then the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Meridith started her career working at the Clinton White House and the U.S. State Department before earning her J.D. Degree at Georgetown University Law Center.

Prior to serving in the Biden Administration, she served as Vox Medias first-ever Chief Communications Officer, overseeing strategic and crisis communications and media relations across a growing modern media company, including editorial networks and advertising, studios, and podcasting. She also previously led the Public Affairs practice at Emerson Collective and served as Global Head of Public Affairs at Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies where she managed the expansion of the business and established public affairs and communications functions in Washington, New York and globally.

I am thrilled to be joining The Estee Lauder Companies. Alex and MC each have done a terrific job leading the companys Global Communications and Public Affairs functions and positioning these talented teams as strategic business partners, said Meridith Webster. It is an honor to step into this new role and I am excited to continue building on the successes of these teams in a rapidly-evolving space. I look forward to partnering with Fabrizio, William and the entire Executive Leadership Team to drive the overall success and continued growth of ELC.

About The Estee Lauder Companies Inc.

The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. is one of the worlds leading manufacturers and marketers of quality skin care, makeup, fragrance and hair care products. The companys products are sold in approximately 150 countries and territories under brand names including: Estee Lauder, Aramis, Clinique, Lab Series, Origins, Tommy Hilfiger, MAC, La Mer, Bobbi Brown, Donna Karan New York, DKNY, Aveda, Jo Malone London, Bumble and bumble, Michael Kors, Darphin, TOM FORD BEAUTY, Smashbox, Ermenegildo Zegna, AERIN, RODIN olio lusso, Le Labo, Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle, GLAMGLOW, KILIAN PARIS, BECCA, Too Faced and Dr. Jart+.

ELC-C

ELC-L

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005345/en/
UPL Ltd., a global provider of sustainable agriculture solutions, today announced that its subsidiary has entered into a license agreement with Japanese company, Meiji Seika Pharma Co., Ltd. for exclusive access to Flupyrimin for rice in Southeast Asia.

Under the license agreement, UPL will obtain exclusive rights to develop, register and commercialize formulations of Flupyrimin for foliar applications in rice in Southeast Asia, expanding the on-going collaboration between the two companies with this compound.

In addition to this latest arrangement, in 2018 UPLs subsidiary and Meiji entered into an exclusive licensing agreement for UPL to commercialize formulations of Flupyrimin for applications in rice in India. Furthermore, in 2020, the two companies signed a long-term global commercial exclusive agreement, excluding Japan, South Korea and Taiwan and non-exclusive in China, to use Flupyrimin in seed treatment and in-furrow applications.

Flupyrimin, discovered by Meiji, is a patented active ingredient and the only AI in the new mode of action subgroup, Pyridylidenes, defined by IRAC in 2021. It is a novel insecticide with unique biological properties that, among other benefits, is effective against major rice pests, such as brown plant hopper and rice stem borer, including those populations resistant to existing insecticides.

Together, both companies will continue their contributions to the development of differentiated solutions based on Flupyrimin to address farmer pain points and improve their livelihoods.

We are pleased to expand our relationship with Meiji regarding Flupyrimin in this mutually beneficial collaboration to provide growers in Southeast Asia access to this important AI. Our OpenAgTM Purpose opens the door to developing and expanding key relationships that create sustainable growth for all and ensure farmer resilience, said Jai Shroff, CEO of UPL. Meiji is an important partner to UPL, and we look forward to continuing our collaboration, creating a win, win.

The UPL agreement is a significant step forward towards providing growers with differentiated solutions that address their challenges in the field. We are excited to continue to strengthen our relationship with UPL to deliver this innovative and effective AI to farmers in Southeast Asia, said Daikichiro Kobayashi, President and Representative Director

ABOUT UPL

UPL Ltd. (NSE: UPL & BSE: 512070) is a global provider of sustainable agriculture products & solutions, with annual revenue exceeding $5 billion. We are a purpose-led company. Through OpenAg, UPL is focused on facilitating progress for the entire agricultural value chain. We are building a network that redefines the way an entire industry thinks and works  open to fresh ideas, innovative ways and new answers as we strive towards our mission to make each food product more sustainable. As one of the largest agriculture solutions companies worldwide, our robust portfolio consists of biologicals and traditional crop protection solutions with over 13,600 registrations. We are present in over 130 countries, represented by more than 10,000 colleagues globally.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210510006058/en/
China's foreign trade has extended its growth momentum during the first four months, with the country fully promoting efforts to coordinate the development of trade industries, the Ministry of Commerce said on its official website.



China's foreign trade expanded 28.5 percent year-on-year to 11.62 trillion yuan ($1.8 trillion) in the January-April period. This marks an increase of 21.8 percent over the level in 2019. Exports jumped 33.8 percent from a year earlier while imports climbed 22.7 percent in yuan terms. In April alone, China's imports and exports totaled 3.15 trillion yuan, the second highest in history.

During the first four months, China's exports to traditional markets such as the EU, U.S., Japan and Hong Kong respectively increased 36.1 percent, 49.3 percent, 12.6 percent and 30.9 percent year-on-year. Exports to emerging markets such as ASEAN, Latin America and Africa rose 29 percent, 47.1 percent and 27.6 percent respectively.

Private enterprises continued to be the main driving force behind China's foreign trade growth. A total of 61,655 new operators in foreign trade were registered in the first four months. During the period, exports of private enterprises expanded by 45 percent to 3.53 trillion yuan, accounting for 55.9 percent of the total.

"Stay at home" products continued to drive export growth. During the first four months, exports of computers, smartphones, household appliances, lamps and toys increased 32.2 percent, 35.6 percent, 50.3 percent, 66.8 percent and 59 percent respectively. Developed economies, with a higher pace of vaccinations, saw increased demand in clothing, shoes and bags, with exports growing 41 percent, 25.8 percent and 19.2 percent respectively.

Cross-border e-commerce has maintained growth momentum. During the first three months, imports and exports rose 46.5 percent to 419.5 billion yuan. The 129th session of the China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, was successfully held online last month, bringing new business opportunities for global exhibitors.

In addition, some commodities saw a rapid increase in prices, driving the growth rate of imports. This year, the manufacturing PMI maintained its expansion, driving up import demand for energy, raw materials and accessory parts.

During the first four months, imports of crude oil, iron ore and integrated circuits increased 7.2 percent, 6.7 percent and 30.8 percent respectively, while the average price of importing soybeans, iron ore and copper ore increased 15.5 percent, 58.8 percent and 32.9 percent respectively.


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Five people were arrested in Hangzhou on Monday in connection with the escape of three leopards from a safari park in the city and attempts to cover up the incident.

Wang Hong, vice-mayor of Hangzhou, confirmed at a news conference that the leopards had escaped from Hangzhou Safari Park in the capital of Zhejiang province on April 19.

He added that the park's management had sought to cover up the incident amid concerns that it could seriously impact its business during the recent May Day holiday.

Police in the city's Fuyang district arrested five people on Monday in connection with the incident, including Zhang Dequan, general manager of the park.

The three young leopards ran out of the park due to the negligence of zookeepers when they were cleaning a zone for wild animals. One of the escapees was recaptured near the park on April 21, while another was caught on a mountain near the park on Saturday.

Although local residents alerted the authorities on Thursday and Friday, while two of the three animals remained at large, the park's authorities continued to deny that anything was amiss until as late as Friday night.

The remaining escaped leopard was tracked down in Hejia, a village in Hangzhou's Xihu district, in the early hours of Sunday morning with the help of sniffer dogs and drones, but the highly alert animal managed to evade its potential captors.

The area where the animal was tracked down is one of the main plantations of the famous West Lake Longjing Tea, one of the most well-known green teas in China.

More than 4,000 personnel have been mobilized by the city's authorities to patrol areas where the leopard could have fled to. This painstaking work is continuing despite the temperature rising to as high as 36 C on Monday, the hottest day of the year so far in Hangzhou.

In addition, a total of 270 professional hunters, animal experts and emergency workers are searching for the animal. They are equipped with night-vision devices and assisted by sniffer dogs. These efforts are also being aided by high-tech, with 70 drones engaged in reconnaissance missions around the area of the safari park.

Zhou Jiangyong, the Party secretary of Hangzhou, who visited Hangzhou Safari Park and Hejia village on Sunday afternoon, said the local authorities will mobilize as many animal experts, police officers and emergency rescue teams as possible using helicopters, drones and infrared probes in the effort to catch the final escaped leopard.
Opening

When Tata introduced its BS6 Nexon facelift back in January 2020, the updates included refreshed styling (both in and out), a longer list of features, and better breathing versions of the same engines. It couldnt have come at a more apt time as the car had started to show its age (originally launched in 2017). As for the BS6 turbocharged powertrains, its the 1.2-litre petrol and the 1.5-litre diesel; both available with either a six-speed manual gearbox or an AMT unit. We were able to get our hands on the diesel variant with a manual gearbox. Heres what you need to know if you were looking to splurge on one.

Appearance Exterior

The updated Nexon takes the already contemporary styling to the next level. For one, you can easily binge-watch on the refreshed nose thats got sleeker headlamps with them scintillating tri-arrow internals as the DRLs, and sharp alloys. Admittedly, the flush use of silver trim to highlight the fog lamp section plus those cutesy wind-mill designs lend it tonnes of appeal; even at the rear. Whats more, the Nexon stands out due to the unique white-band streak that flows on to the boot-lid and is complemented by the raked roofline thats adorned in the same shade.

Appearance Interior

On the inside, one can spot the all-new digital instrumentation cluster, a lively textured finish on the dash with brighter coloured trim, and the new attractive steering from the Tiago/Altroz, all of which make the cabin feel exceedingly refreshing. Everything else is similar to the earlier car, so you continue to get superior visibility and facile ingress thanks to its doors swinging almost 90-degrees.

As for the cabin, some soft-touch materials would have tremendously improved the feel, however, hard plastic is what you get. Also, the glossy inserts may look swell but they reflect harshly under the sun. Even ergonomics in some areas arent up to the mark, like the upright stalks and the protruding centre console that makes using the dead pedal (intended for comfort) more uncomfortable.

In terms of practicality, its up there with the best, thanks to numerous stowage areas. Moreover, owing to its spaciousness, theres ample shoulder- and head-room in the front row which is further complemented by the comfy seat-cushioning all over. Even seating three passengers at the rear doesnt break a sweat. Lastly, what augments the 350-litre boot is the 60:40 split-folding rear bench thats otherwise great for big suitcases and some soft bags.

Features-wise, this XZ+ variant gets projector headlamps with LED DRLS, sunroof, auto AC, cruise control, digital instrument cluster, rear parking sensors, and also the IRA feature for its connectivity needs. In terms of safety, the Nexon boasts of a five-star NCAP safety rating, dual airbags, tyre pressure monitoring, ISOFIX fasteners, ESP and traction control, hill and brake assist, and more.

Performance Drive

To start with, power remains unchanged with a similar 108bhp/260Nm from the BS6 1.5-litre Revotorq diesel motor thats offered with either a six-speed manual or an AMT gearbox. We have the manual variant for this review. Now, unlike most diesels, this one needs some extra initial revving to get it off the mark, which is surprising because the paperwork mentions that maximum torque supposedly flows in from 1,500rpm.

In reality, the true momentum only happens once past 2,000rpm. At which point, the engine gets noisy and feels strained, which shouldnt be the case. But if you can put the unrefined nature and slow-speed flexibility aside, theres a rather abundant and strong mid-range in store. As the turbo kicks in, the strong power delivery mildly pins the occupants into their seats.

With so much mid-range grunt, theres never a driving need that requires one to drag the motor to its 4,000rpm redline. Plus, on highways, frequent downshifts wont be required to keep the momentum up and a quick overtake is as simple as flooring the throttle so that the turbo-boost takes care of the rest. The key here is to keep the revs just over 2,000rpm for optimum responses.

As for the gearbox, although notchy, the reasonably light clutch diffuses the effort substantially, for instance, in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Besides that, there are three driving modes - Eco, City, and Sport. Granted that the changes are barely noticeable, while Eco is the least responsive due to its undivided focus on frugality, Sport makes this engine the most alive and noisy. Overall, Comfort is the best bet for most relaxed driving chores.

The ride and handling department is where the Nexon shines the most. Its impressive because it not only absorbs bumps splendidly at slower speeds but also offers its occupants a flat ride as the velocity increases. Plus, it manages to retain its composure while trampling upon broken stretches at highway speeds; the assurance from the 209mm clearance being evident here.

Similarly, the steering has got the right amount of heft, feels fairly direct, and more importantly, offers great progression around the dead centre. Armed with these, the wide track and grip from the 215mm-section tyres, attacking corners is nothing short of thrilling by compact SUV standards. And, this is despite the substantial body roll. Conversely, wed have loved some more bite from its brakes for a more reassuring drive.

Conclusion

The refreshed Nexon is one of the best-looking compact SUVs our roads have ever seen. It also gets some added features to make the package more attractive. To add to it, even the diesel-manual prices that range from Rs 10.14 - Rs 15.61 lakh (OTR Mumbai) is bang-on-target when compared to the Hyundai Venue, Kias Sonet, the Mahindra XUV300, and the Ford EcoSport. That said, if youre hunting for a looker that has supreme safety standards, unmatched highway driving dynamics along with a spacious cabin, we suggest you take a look at the Tata Nexon.

Pictures by Kaustubh Gandhi

Tata Nexon  7.20 Lakh Onwards

Tata | Tata Nexon | Nexon
Re: Assault over mask dispute

I'm extremely disappointed in Castanet's "reporting" on the vernon business altercation over the masks.

Where in the "article" is a note about the law? The provincial health order expressly states that people with a medical condition are exempt. It makes me see red that there are so many ignorant people who think that simply because they feel like everyone must wear a mask that they can ignore the law.

I want to condemn, in no uncertain terms, the business that this altercation occurred in. The business, which appears to be a Huscavarna dealership, is in direct violation of Canada's Human Rights Act which expressly states that businesses can not discriminate against people who have disabilities. I wonder how Huscavarna would feel about a dealership with their products discriminating against people with disabilities. I want to know the business name so that they can be properly reported.

It's sick, absolutely sick how people are treating those with disabilities because of their own ignorance. You don't have the right to refuse business to someone because they don't have a mask on for medical reasons. If a person states that they have a medical exemption, by law, you can not ask to see proof or ask what condition they have. You must accept their word. That is the law and the business in question is in direct contravention of the law.

By-law officers should be called on that business and a violation ticket issued. I am so tired of this nonsense. Your fear does not supersede the law. Your personal preference does not supersede the law. Your opinion does not supersede the law.



Some people have medical conditions that are exacerbated by confrontation or conflict. For someone like my father-in-law, who has a provincially registered exemption, confrontations like the one in the video happen to him all the time and due to his condition he is physically left disabled and must rest for the day and sometimes multiple days after such altercations. He has stopped going many places because of the disgusting discrimination of these people.

These businesses and people should be ashamed of themselves for their own ignorance and disgusting behaviours. I am no longer going to stand by, going forward, any business that I hear about that discriminates against their customers, like in the video featured, will be reported for violation of the Charter of Human rights. Enough is enough. I will fight for those who can't fight for themselves.

Michelle Cartmell


Photo: The Canadian Press

Health officials are set to detail how children will be incorporated into B.C.s mass vaccination campaign in the coming days, according to the provinces top doctor.

With Health Canada approving the use of the Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) vaccine on children 12-15 last week, B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Monday details on the provinces own plans for vaccinating younger Canadians will be unveiled shortly.

We have had ongoing discussions  about how we factor in 12- to 17-year-olds in our program. But the age-based program is based on risk and, yes, we are moving down that age cohort as quickly as we can and we will have more information on where 12- to 17-year-olds fit in that program in the coming days, Henry said.

The Pfizer vaccine is the most widely used one throughout the country and it is the first of Canadas four approved vaccines to get the nod for children 12-15 years old. The vaccine has been permitted for children 16 years and up since December 2020.

To date, 2,053,045 British Columbians have received at least one vaccine dose, while 106,058

have received two.

Penny Ballem, executive lead for B.C.s immunization plan, said last week she expects a significant acceleration of second doses to begin by the third week of June and that the current interval between first and second doses  16 weeks  will be reduced.

Meanwhile, Henry said more details on opening up indoor dining across the province will also be presented in the coming days as doses are being prioritized for food and restaurant workers.

She said the lifting of current restrictions for restaurants will be contingent on achieving lower rates of cases, but were not at that place quite yet.

Health Minister Adrian Dix also confirmed Monday that the previously expected shipment of 40,000 doses of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) vaccine have yet to be delivered.

About 275,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine are due to arrive in B.C. each week through to the end of May.

June will mark an even more significant ramp-up in deliveries, with around 328,000 doses arriving weekly all month.
Photo: The Canadian Press RCMP Assistant Commissioner Dwayne McDonald.

Some of British Columbia's top police officials tried to reassure Metro Vancouver on Monday after a spasm of brazen shootings linked to the gang war spilled into public spaces.

An innocent bystander is recovering from gunshot wounds after an attack in Burnaby Saturday, officers said, while they also identified the man executed outside Vancouver's airport Sunday who was previously the subject of a public safety warning.

RCMP Assistant Commissioner Dwayne McDonald said the violence is part of a war over the illicit drug market.

"These individuals, make no mistake about it, are vying for control of the drug trade," McDonald said at a joint news conference with other law enforcement officials from the Lower Mainland.

Other officers said personal vendettas, turf wars and shifting alliances can aggravate the conflict.

There have been 10 shootings in Metro Vancouver in recent weeks, many of them during daylight hours, and two in mall parking lots filled with vehicles and pedestrians.

Access to Vancouver's airport was restricted Sunday after Karman Grewal, 28, was gunned down outside the departure terminal. Police roadblocks, air support and even a running gun confrontation with an RCMP officer couldn't stop the suspects.

The police chase of a suspected getaway car ended when an occupant of the vehicle fired at officers, striking the cruiser's windshield without harming an officer, they said.

McDonald said no officer wants to stop a pursuit, but they had to consider the risk to others after the suspects showed a willingness to resort to "blatant acts of violence."

"Unlike the movies, when bullets start to fly they eventually stop somewhere. And tragically, like we've seen in this most recent shooting in Burnaby, there was an innocent bystander that was impacted by that violence, and we can't take that chance to allow a gun battle to rage through the streets."

Grewal was one of five men named by RCMP as targets of shots-fired incidents in a 2017 news release. Although they were victims or intended victims, the Mounties believed the men to be a risk to public safety because they refused to speak with investigators.

Police cautioned anyone from interacting with Grewal and the others because of their status as targets.

Ahmed Tahir has been charged with first-degree murder for the shooting in Burnaby on Saturday that left Toni Dalipi, 19, dead and injured the bystander.

Dalipi died in hospital and the bystander was treated for gunshot wounds that aren't considered life-threatening.

"This individual is an innocent victim and he just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time," said Dave Chauhan, officer in charge of the Integrated Homicide Investigations Team.

Officers have linked both shootings to the gang conflict or "criminal affiliations" but declined to say exactly which gangs are responsible.

Police agencies across the Lower Mainland are working together and sharing information, but they may be legally bound not to identify victims or suspects publicly before they are charged, McDonald said.

Many of the suspects in the gang conflict are well known to police and there are ways police can "get on them," he said, for example by watching closely for breaches of court orders such as curfews, driving prohibitions or firearms prohibitions.

When officers see a breach, they will make an arrest, he said.

"We will do everything we can within the limits of the law to put a wet blanket on the activities of these individuals and we will do it in concert," McDonald said.

Representatives from the police agencies plan to meet Tuesday with Mike Farnworth, B.C.'s minister of public safety and solicitor general, to lay out their plan to crack down on the gang conflict.
Chinese FM holds talks with Turkmen officials

Xinhua) 09:35, May 11, 2021

XI'AN, May 10 (Xinhua) -- China and Turkmenistan on Monday made the consensus to formulate a five-year plan for comprehensive cooperation between the two countries.

The consensus was made when Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov and Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister Berdymukhamedov in Xi'an, capital city of northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Wang expressed the hope that the two sides, in accordance with the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, will work together to build a more thriving and dynamic China-Turkmenistan relationship.

Wang thanked Turkmenistan for its firm support to China on issues concerning China's core interests.

Both sides agreed to further consolidate and expand cooperation on natural gas, while vigorously exploring cooperation in non-resource fields.

The two sides made the consensus to formulate a five-year plan for comprehensive cooperation between the two countries and strengthen coordination in maintaining international information security and biosafety.

The two sides also exchanged in-depth views on the situation in Afghanistan.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Liang Jun)
China's population continued to grow steadily over the last decade, and its labor force remains abundant, data from the latest official census shows.

The population on the Chinese mainland has grown by an average annual rate of 0.53 percent from 2010 to 2020, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Tuesday, citing data from the seventh national census conducted last year.

The rate was slightly lower than the average annual growth of 0.57 percent from 2000 to 2010, according to the NBS.

"Data shows that China's population has maintained slow growth in the past decade," Ning Jizhe, head of the NBS, told a press conference.

China has conducted a national census every 10 years since the 1990s. The country's population on the mainland has reached 1.41178 billion, up by 5.38 percent or 72.06 million from 2010, the latest census data shows.

The figure does not include Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan residents, nor does it include foreigners who live in the mainland's 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, said the NBS.

China's working-age population, or people aged between 16 and 59, stands at 880 million, according to Ning.

The average age of the Chinese population is 38.8, almost the same as the United States' 38, he said.

Ning said the slight decrease in the annual growth rate was a result of mixed factors, including a continued drop in the number of women of childbearing age, couples delaying having children, and the rising cost of childbearing and parenting.

"This is an objective outcome of China's economic development, particularly as the country's industrialization and urbanization reaches a certain stage," he said, noting that it is a universal issue and particularly evident in developed countries.

But he expects China's population to stay above 1.4 billion "for a certain period in the future," citing positive factors that will continue to support future growth.

He attributed the basically steady growth over the past decade to China's large population base, which has ensured more than 10 million newborns every year, as well as a shift to the two-child policy that resulted in a rebound in the number of births.

In 2020, China's population aged between zero and 14 hit 253.38 million, an increase of 30.92 million from 10 years ago, or 1.35 percentage points in proportion to the total population, census data shows.

In response to its rapidly aging population, China allowed all married couples to have two children in 2016. This followed an earlier policy easing in 2013 that allowed couples to have a second child if either parent was an only child.

Ning said the sustained increase in life expectancy also contributed to population growth. In China, the annual number of deaths has never surpassed the annual number of births, due to improvements in people's livelihoods and healthcare.

"China's population will peak in the future, but there remains uncertainty as to when specifically it will happen," Ning said.

Ning noted that population growth will be affected by such factors as age structure, people's views on having children, government population policies, the cost of childbearing and parenting, medical services and the health conditions of the people.

"For the next stage, we should continue to pay attention to changes in population growth and respond actively to risks and challenges in demographic development," he said.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Israel unleashed new airstrikes on Gaza early Tuesday, hitting a pair of highrise buildings believed to be housing militants, as Hamas and other armed groups bombarded southern Israel with hundreds of rockets. The conflict escalated relentlessly throughout the day, and Israel vowed that its strikes would only increase.

The latest exchange of fire was sparked by weeks of tensions in contested Jerusalem.

Since sundown Monday, 26 Palestinians  including nine children and a woman were killed in Gaza, most by airstrikes, Gaza health officials said. The Israeli military said at least 16 of the dead were militants. During the same period, Gaza militants fired hundreds of rockets toward Israel, killing two Israeli civilians and wounding 10 others.

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warning in the evening that more was coming. He said after meeting with senior defense officials that Israel would increase even more the strength of the strikes and also the rate of the strikes against Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas will receive blows now that it didnt expect, he said in a statement.

In a further sign of rising tensions, Israel signalled it is widening its military campaign. The military said it is sending troop reinforcements to the Gaza border and the defense minister ordered the mobilization of 5,000 reserve soldiers.

Even as the two sides ramped up tensions, officials said Egypt was working on brokering a cease-fire.

The barrage of rockets and airstrikes was preceded by hours of clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces.
Photo: The Canadian Press FILE- In this Tuesday, March 16, 2021 file photo, a body is taken away from Gold Spa massage parlor after a shooting, in Atlanta. Robert Aaron Long, 22, accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses was indicted Tuesday, May 11, 2021, on murder charges, and a prosecutor filed notice that she'll also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

A man accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses was indicted Tuesday on murder charges, and a prosecutor filed notice that shell also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty.

A Fulton County grand jury indicted Robert Aaron Long, 22, in the March 16 slayings of Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; and Yong Ae Yue, 63. The indictment only covers those four killings that happened at two spas in Atlanta, and not the attack in Cherokee County in which Xiaojie Emily Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Delaina Yaun, 33; and Paul Michels, 54, were killed.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis also filed notice that she intends to seek hate crime charges and the death penalty against Long, who is white. The hate crime charges are based on actual or perceived race, national origin, sex and gender, according to online records. does not provide for a stand-alone hate crime. After a person is convicted of an underlying crime, a jury must determine whether its a hate crime, which carries an additional penalty.

The indictment charges Long with four counts of murder, four counts of felony murder, five counts of assault with a deadly weapon, four counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and one count of domestic terrorism, according to online records.

It will be up to a separate grand jury in Cherokee County to decide on charges in the shooting at a spa near suburban Woodstock in which four were killed and one person was wounded.

Willis' decision to seek the death penalty is a departure from her stance during her campaign to be district attorney last year.

During a candidate forum last year, Willis answered yes when asked: Will you commit to refuse to seek the death penalty?

Police have said Long shot and killed four people, three of them women and two of Asian descent, at Youngs Asian Massage near Woodstock just before 5 p.m. on March 16. He also shot and wounded a fifth person, investigators said.

He then drove about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south to Atlanta, where he shot and killed three women at Gold Spa before going across the the street to Aromatherapy Spa and fatally shooting another woman, police have said. All of the Atlanta victims were women of Asian descent.

After the shootings at the two Atlanta spas, Long got back into his car and headed south on the interstate, police said.

Longs parents called authorities to help after recognizing their son in still images from security video that the Cherokee County Sheriffs Office posted on social media. They provided cellphone information that allowed authorities to track their son to rural Crisp County, about 140 miles (225 kilometers) south of Atlanta.

State troopers and sheriffs deputies spotted his SUV on Interstate 75, and one of them forced Long to spin to a stop by bumping his vehicle. Long then surrendered to authorities.

In an initial interview with investigators, Long claimed to have a sex addiction, and authorities said he apparently lashed out at businesses he viewed as a temptation. But those statements spurred given the locations and that six of the eight victims were women of Asian descent.
Photo: @JaysonTbird / Twitter Videos circulating on social media show a violent case of road rage between two brothers in the downtown Maple Ridge area on May 10, 2021.

Videos circulating on social media show a violent case of road rage between two brothers in the downtown Maple Ridge area yesterday.

On Monday (May 10) at approximately 1:15 p.m., Ridge Meadows RCMP responded to multiple calls regarding two vehicles being operated in a "dangerous and erratic manner" in the downtown Maple Ridge area, explains a news release.

Police said they received numerous reports regarding a Grey Dodge pickup truck and a Blue Dodge Durango being "driven dangerously and at high rates of speed while intentionally ramming their vehicles into each other."

According to reports, the altercation began in a shopping mall parking lot on 224th street, and then continued North on 224th street and headed East along Dewdney Trunk road. The vehicles finally came to a stop at the intersection of 227th Street and 119 Avenue, when two men jumped from the vehicles and began physically fighting on the street. The two cars also crashed into multiple unassociated vehicles during the incident.

Police arrested the two men, who are brothers, at the scene; they are both facing multiple charges.

RCMP added that this event is not related to recent gang activity and no injuries occurred.

"This type of behaviour was completely dangerous and reckless. These two people were so engrossed in whatever their drama was that they werent thinking about any other person other than themselves," states Constable Julie Klaussner.

"Thank you to the public for the overwhelming number of reports and updates helping police to shut down this incident quickly. Thankfully no one was seriously injured in this reckless event."

Videos circulating on social media show the men physically fighting on the street and sidewalk as well as cars speeding to a halt.
Cementarnica Usje reports 5% rise in profit

11 May 2021

North Macedonia's Cementarnica Usje (Titan group) has reported a 5.1 per cent YoY decline in net profit to MKD182.1m (US$3.6m) in the first quarter of 2021. However, operating revenue increased 9.4 per cent to MKD924.8m.

Domestic sales advanced 9.6 per cent to MKD623.4m, while sales from foreign markets rose 24.3 per cent to MKD272.9m.

Operating expenses grew 7.6 per cent YoY to MKD699.9m in the first quarter, as costs for materials were up by 84.9 per cent to MKD64.7m.

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When Tennessee Governor Lees GIVE Grant was announced in November 2019, Chattanooga State, as one of its recipients, was poised for action to expand healthcare training in three of its rural service areas. In little more than a years time, industry certifications in OSHA, CPR, and Certified Patient Care Technicians were awarded to high school students from Bledsoe, Sequatchie and Marion counties.

In addition, students gained the ability to view human systems virtually in 3D using zSpace, a suite of applications that provide self-study experiences, hands-on laboratory dissections, and ECG certification preparation. Instructors report that student engagement skyrockets as they more deeply understand the 3D interactive experiences. The schools are fully utilizing the equipment provided by the GIVE Grant and very appreciative, said Nancy Draper, director of Chattanooga States Medical Assisting program. This has resulted in an enhanced bond/partnership with the College.

The Medical Assisting program, offered through the Tennessee College of Applied Technology at Chattanooga State, a program established on the main campus in 1985, recently expanded into Marion County at the Kimball site. The initial 2021 cohort class this spring in Kimball is small, but we anticipate a full class for fall 2021, said Ms. Draper. Applications are being accepted now.

Because of the efforts to expand rural healthcare training provided through the GIVE grant, Ms. Draper has been able to meet with area schools and students to discuss the Medical Assisting program. We have stirred great interest and therefore anticipate a full class this fall, said Ms. Draper.

Even more exciting is that Chattanooga States Medical Assisting program has been ranked 3rd best among the top accredited medical assistant programs and schools in Tennessee for 2021 by findmedicalassistingprograms.org. Also, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that average median pay for medical assistants starts at $34.8K and the field is expected to grow by 19 percent over the next 10 years, which is must faster than average.

Ms. Draper noted that individuals interested in this growing field are found to be persistent, self-confident, organized, and punctual, while possessing good comprehension, integrity and communication skills. A typical medical assistant will work well with others in a professional atmosphere working as part of a team focused on excellent patient care, said Ms. Draper.

Chattanooga State is currently accepting applications for the Medical Assisting program for fall 2021. Day classes will be available at both the main campus and the Kimball Site. For more information about TCATs one-year Medical Assisting program call 697-4433, visit chattanoogastate.edu/medical-assisting, or email tcatss@chattanoogastate.edu. To access Chattanooga State Resources, visit chattanoogastate.edu/student-support-center.






Were asking nicely, because we think the use of the term has been mostly well-intentioned. But lets start with some numbers: a mere 3 percent of Americans of Latin-American descent use Latinx to describe themselves. This is based on a 2020 Pew Research poll of about 3,000 American Latinos.

Those who want for Latinx to become the default say its preferable because its a neutral term that can apply to anyone, whether male of female or other. But there is already a word that can be used by an individual who does not want to identify as male or female. That word is Latino. There is already a word that can be used to describe a group of males and females, or others. That word is Latinos.

The term Latinx originated in activist circles primarily in the U.S., and the made-up word has unfortunately started to gain purchase with those in the news media and other institutions who think that using it shows respect for Latino culture. The intent was to provide a word that would be inclusive for those who eschew the gender binary. Spanish is a gendered language, in which all words are considered either masculine or feminine. La gente: The people. La casa: The house. El gato: The cat. Even if the cat is female.

When describing a male, we say he is Latino. When describing a female, we say she is Latina. A group of males is referred to as Latinos; a group of females, Latinas. When the group is a mix males and females, we say Latinos. Or if its a term of undefined gender, the default is Latino. The Latino vote. Latino culture. And so on. Although the notion of a singular Latino vote or culture is up for debate, but thats another subject.

Spanish is a beautiful language that, like many other languages including French, Italian, and Arabic, is gendered. The governing body that is tasked with maintaining the consistency of the Spanish language has rejected Latinx as a word, calling it unnecessary. The vast majority of Latinos either do not like it, do not use it, or have never even heard of it. In fact, most Latinos in the US dont even refer to themselves as Latino and prefer to say Mexican-American, or Cuban-American, or Salvadoran-American, etc. Or just American.

So please, Chattanooga. Stop calling us Latinx.

Catherine Montalbo
A girl on E. Brainerd Road told police she had a disorder with her friend. She said she let him stay with her for a few weeks, but eventually her dad helped her move his stuff out. She said he had attempted to kick the apartment door the night before, but had stopped. Police told her to contact dispatch if he returned.



A vandalism was reported at the Firebox Grill, 7025 Shallowford Road. The owner of the restaurant told police his employees had taken an order from a man. He said his employees must have mis-heard the man when taking the order and accidentally messed up his order.

He said the man then got very upset that the order was incorrect. He grabbed a glass bowl for tips off of the drive-thru window table and threw it into the drive-thru window, breaking the window ($200 damage). The man then jumped out of his car and rushed into the restaurant, jerking the door handle back and forth, bending the door handle and damaging it ($200). The man then entered the restaurant and screamed at every employee and grabbed a paper towel stand and smashed it against the counter ($10 damage). The owner screamed at the man, telling him to leave, and the man then left. Police got some suspect information, including a name that was written on the receipt from the card the customer used, and video footage showing a white male wearing a black hat and gray shirt. Police searched the name and did not find any suspects matching the description seen on camera.* * *A woman on Idlewild Drive told police that her dog had located an unloaded pistol in their yard and she wanted to turn it in. Police turned the pistol into Property and notified NCIC. NCIC notified the owner that it was stolen from Manchester.* * *While already on scene at Walmart, 5764 Hwy 153, police were told by Loss Prevention they had stopped a woman for possibly skip scanning. After speaking to the Loss Prevention employees, they had determined it was more of a misunderstanding and would not press charges. The woman was trespassed from all Walmart properties, however, and let go.* * *An employee at U-haul, 2022 Broad St., told police that a U-haul truck was stolen from their parking lot. A man had rented the truck and left it in the lot with the keys in the vehicle. The employee did not see the vehicle in the lot and did not have footage of it being stolen. The vehicle was entered into NCIC.* * *

An employee at a store on Gunbarrel Road told police that a person attempted to buy shoes with fake money. The employee said they kept the money and called police. Officers will take the money to Property.



* * *



An employee from Home Depot, 7421 Commons Blvd., told police that a man passed all points of sale with the Ayobi back blower. She said she stopped the man, but he refused to come back in the store, leaving the back blower. She showed police photos of the man in the store and in Hixson at Home Depot, saying it was the same person. Officers will not be seeking warrants on

the man based on the photos given.



* * *



A suspicious vehicle was reported on the shoulder at 1040 I-75 SB. Police got out with the vehicle and noted the dealer tag was from Alabama. Police also noted the vehicle did not show any signs of misuse. It looked to be a vehicle being transported from a dealership. Police left an unattended vehicle (orange) sticker on the vehicle for public safety.



* * *



Police responded to a wreck at 3501 Amnicola Hwy. A woman driving a white Volkswagen told police that when she was facing north at the light of Amnicola Highway and Lost Mound Drive, she felt a jolt like her car was rear-ended. The driver of the second vehicle, a Kia Forte, told police that she never hit the car in front. Neither vehicle showed any evidence of a collision occurring (paint transfer, dirt transfer, dents, etc.). Police asked if either woman wanted to make a wreck report. Neither woman wanted to make a wreck report, due to the lack of damage. Neither one indicated injuries, and both vehicles drove from the scene.



* * *



A man at an apartment on Passenger Street told police his white Moped was stolen out of the parking lot. He said he has no suspect information, or an exact time of when it was stolen, but does know the date it occurred. He said he paid $1,100 for the Moped. Police searched the area, but did not find the Moped, which was entered into NCIC.



* * *



A woman on Rogers Road called police around 9 p.m. and said that she and her boyfriend had gotten into an argument and she wanted him to bring her car back. She told police that he lives with her and that he usually drives the car whenever he wants. Police told her that since she allows him to use the car regularly, they could not report it stolen yet. Later, before the officer was able to complete the report, he got a call in the Rogers Road area around 1 a.m. While driving through the area, he observed the vehicle that the woman was trying to report stolen sitting in her driveway. Police made contact with the boyfriend at the residence who said that he was back because she

asked him to bring the car back.



* * *



A woman told police that she was traveling east on E. 3rd Street when a silver Jeep came into her lane almost striking her. She said in order to not have her vehicle struck, she ran up onto the curb and messed her rim up and wanted to make a report. She said that the occupants of the vehicle looked to be two young white females, but thats all she could tell police. The woman did not have insurance information at the time and said she would call back tomorrow to update the report.



* * *



A man told police that his 1970 VW Rail Buggy had died on him on the interstate, at 110 Hwy. 27 NB. He said he went to get jumper cables to jump the vehicle, and when he returned it was gone. He said the key had broken off in the ignition. He said he did not have a tag for the vehicle because he had just purchased it from a man. The man he purchased it from said he would call in tomorrow with the information to enter the car into NCIC. Police searched for the vehicle, but were unable to locate it. The vehicle was not entered into NCIC because of the lack of information.



* * *



A woman on Chestnut Street told police her vehicle had been stolen. She said she had tracking the vehicle, a 2020 black Ford Escape, that showed its last known location to be at Hi-Tech Fuel, 20 GA-193 in Flintstone. This location ping was as of 30 minutes prior to police arrival. Police checked the location, but did not locate the vehicle. It was BOLO'ed to Walker County. During the 30 minutes the vehicle tracking was turned off. The woman said she was at the Hi-Tech and at some point she lost her keys. After looking for the lost keys, she returned home around 10 p.m. to retrieve the spare. She said when she returned to retrieve her vehicle around 11 p.m., it was gone. The vehicle was entered into NCIC. Police were to follow up with Hi-Tech when they open to see about video footage.



* * *



While on patrol at 1529 Sholar Ave., an officer spotted a man who was parked across from the COVID vaccine place late at night. The officer stopped to check on the man, who told him that he was just talking on the phone to his brother. Police ran the man for warrants and it came back negative.



* * *



Police conducted a traffic stop on Kanasita Drive around 3:30 a.m. in the area of all the businesses. The officer stopped a silver Chevy sedan for the tag hanging off and for suspicious activity in the area with thefts during midnight hours. The woman driving the vehicle said she was picking up her son at one of the businesses in the area. Police noted there are a few businesses that do operate at all hours. There were no warrants on the woman and she was released with a warning.

* * *



Someone called about a suspicious person at the 1000 block of Georgia Avenue. Police located the "suspicious" person via the vehicle/tag number the caller said he was in. The man did not seem to be doing anything suspicious. He was an elderly white man who was sleeping in his vehicle due to the recent building fire at 1 E 11th St. where he resides. The building had temporarily been evacuated until repairs are made.




The Tennessee National Guard's 230th Sustainment Brigade, headquartered in Chattanooga, will conduct a change of command ceremony near the Volunteer Training Site in Smyrna on Saturday, May 15, at 1 p.m.Col. John Gobel, the current 230th commander who resides in Nashville, will relinquish command to Col. Christopher Patterson who resides in Ooltewah.Col. Gobel served as the commander of the 230th Sustainment Brigade since August 2018. During his command, he led his brigade in supporting Tennesseans throughout the tornado response last March, COVID-19 testing and immunizations and civil disturbance operations.Col.Patterson serves as the deputy commander and executive officer for the 230th Sustainment Brigade and is the national program director of Unified Communications for Sharp Business Systems. He has more than 28 years of military experience.The 230th Sustainment Brigade is one of 10 sustainment brigades in the Army National Guard. With more than 1,700 personnel across Tennessee, the 230th is responsible for providing maintenance, transportation and logistical support to all units in the state, as well as combat units when deployed.
The Tennessee Valley Authority on Tuesday submitted notice of its intent to file an Environmental Impact Statement for the retirement of the Cumberland Fossil Plant in Cumberland City, Tn. Through the upcoming EIS process, TVA will identify the timeline to retire the plants two coal units and if any replacement generation is needed.

This is an opportunity for TVA to show that it is listening to the people of the Tennessee Valley when they ask for clean technologies such as solar power and battery storage, said JoAnn McIntosh, a clean energy advocate with the Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club based in Clarksville, Tn. Cumberland is one of the nations largest and most polluting coal plants, releasing over 8 million tons of carbon pollution into the air each year, as well as 20 times more mercury into the water than any other U.S. coal plant. It makes no environmental or economic sense to keep running this polluter for another decade, and it certainly makes no sense to replace it with methane-leaking, CO2-emitting gas plants. We urge TVA to transition from Cumberland to clean energy as quickly as possible -- to protect the health of our communities, provide jobs and economic growth in the Valley, and ensure TVAs leadership in the clean energy economy.

In his April 29 remarks on his first 100 days, President Joe Biden reiterated his commitment to moving the U.S. past fossil fuels to clean energy. In recommitting to the Paris Climate Agreement, President Biden reasserted that all eyes are on America to lead again.

We support TVAs efforts to achieve a coal-free energy supply, but the timeline here is critical, said Jonathan Levenshus, a representative for Sierra Clubs Beyond Coal Campaign. The president has called on the country to reach 100 percent carbon-free energy generation by 2035. Moving beyond coal at Cumberland is an important step forward, but our communities and our climate cannot afford more fossil fuels like gas. TVA must take a hard look at replacing all of its coal with clean energy, including wind, solar, storage, and energy efficiency.

TVA will accept initial comments on their proposal until June 10.
This will be the first of many questionable decisions in what I anticipate will be an agonizing four years of Tim Kellys liberal tenure. One thing I have learned in the span of my life is that hiring from within when seeking a qualified applicant for an important job like police chief is the best way for a candidate to hit the ground running. Hiring from outside is almost always ... (click for more)
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Tuesday announced the end of all federally funded pandemic unemployment compensation programs in Tennessee, effective July 3.

We will no longer participate in federal pandemic unemployment programs because Tennesseans have access to more than 250,000 jobs in our state, said Governor Lee. Families, businesses and our economy thrive when we focus on meaningful employment and move on from short-term, federal fixes.

Governor Lees letter to the U.S. Department of Labor can be viewed here.

Federal pandemic unemployment programs set to end on July 3 include the following:

 Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC), which provides for an additional $300 weekly payment to recipients of unemployment compensation

 Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), which provides benefits for those who would not usually qualify, such as the self-employed, gig workers and part-time workers

 Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), which provides for an extension of benefits once regular benefits have been exhausted

 Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation (MEUC), which provides an additional $100 benefit to certain people with mixed earnings

Unemployment claimants in Tennessee have been required to complete three weekly job searches in order to remain eligible for benefits since Oct. 4, 2020.

Any weeks filed before July 3 that are eligible under federal program requirements will continue to be processed.

The Tennessee Workforce Development System stands ready to help Tennesseans return to the workforce. Career specialists are available to help job seekers match with new employment opportunities at more than 80 American Job Centers across the state. They can work to identify possible training programs that can help an individual change their career pathway or enter an apprenticeship program so they can earn a competitive wage, while they learn a new trade.

The Tennessee Virtual American Job Center, www.TNVirtualAJC.com, allows Tennesseans to research different programs that can help remove barriers to employment so they can more easily reenter Tennessees workforce.

As federal pandemic unemployment compensation ends in Tennessee, the state encourages claimants to search for work at www.Jobs4TN.gov, which currently has over 250,000 active job postings of all skill levels.
Angelina Jolie had a high-profile relationship with Brad Pitt for much of the 2000s and 2010s. However, the couple is now divorced, and Jolie is single.

Many people are curious to know if Jolie will date again anytime soon. According to the actor, though, her standards are definitely not on the ground.

Angelina Jolie | Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

Angelina Jolie recently went through a tough divorce

Jolie and Pitt filed for divorce in 2016 after about 10 years together. Afterwards, the couple had a tough time agreeing on how to split custody.

Pitt has allegedly been pursuing 50/50 joint custody with Jolie. However, in March 2021, Jolie had reportedly filed court documents accusing Pitt of domestic violence.

News reports alleged that Pitt and his oldest son, Maddox, got into a physical altercation in 2016 while the family were on a private plane. TMZ reported that Pitt was intoxicated at the time. Pitt was later cleared of abuse by The Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services.

In any case, according to Us Weekly a few months ago, Jolie is now putting forth claims that she can provide proof of alleged domestic violence committed by Pitt.

Jolie and Pitt dont seem to be close to finalizing their custody agreement. Some legal experts believe this battle could drag on until their youngest kids are 18 years old.

Angelina Jolie talks about high dating standards

Angelina Jolie admits she will be VERY selective before finding love again https://t.co/eOgHUSmRUk  Daily Mail Celebrity (@DailyMailCeleb) May 11, 2021

RELATED: Angelina Jolie Said This Ex Was The Greatest Husband  and It Wasnt Brad Pitt

In a new interview with E!s Daily Pop, Jolie touched on the topic of her single life. More specifically, the actor shared that she has high standards for potential partners now.

When host Justin Sylvester talked about having a list of nos when dating, Jolie agreed, saying, I probably have a very long list. Ive been alone for a long time now.

Angelina Jolie is focused on being a mother to her kids

RELATED: Angelina Jolie Reveals the Interesting Reason She Almost Did Not Adopt Her Son Pax

Its not clear if Jolie makes dating a priority or not, but she has made it clear that motherhood is a big part of her life.

Jolie has a blended family of adopted and biological children. She adopted Maddox (born 2001) from Cambodia, Pax (born 2003) from Vietnam, and Zahara (born 2005) from Ethiopia.

Jolie and Pitts biological kids are Shiloh (born 2006) and twins Knox and Vivienne (born 2008).

Jolies oldest kid is almost 20, while her youngest ones are almost teenagers. As such, the actor is adapting to life as a parent to older children.

I have six very capable children, she said on Daily Pop. Of course you wake up and you just feel like, Ive got to make sure theyre OK. Ive got to make sure theyre mentally OK, but honestly I think a few years ago it switched and theyre thinking, Ive got to make sure moms OK.

Jolie added, Were such a team so I am very, very lucky.

In an interview with Vogue earlier this year, Jolie also shared the joy of being a mother to teenagers.

I was best friends with my mom, she said. I loved having babies, but I love sitting up at night and talking to my kids. I like the teenage years. I like the older years. I love hanging out with them.
John Mulaney made headlines in 2020 when he announced that he was checking into a rehab facility in Pennsylvania. The New York-based comedian has been vocal about his past alcohol and drug use and his sobriety in several standup specials. Now, Mulaney is making headlines again after filing for divorce from his wife, Annamarie Tendler, after six years of marriage. Tendlers public statement appears to reveal that the breakup is not mutual.

John Mulaney and Annamarie Tendler are divorcing after six years of marriage

Mulaney and Tendler announced their impending divorce on May 10. The news was devastating to fans who have grown to know and love the couple through Mulaneys standup and Tendlers Instagram posts. While news of the divorce just broke to the public, the couple reportedly separated several months ago.

John Mulaney and Annamarie Tendler | Presley Ann/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

Mulaney and Tendler wed in 2014 in a private ceremony in upstate New York. The couple met several years before during a trip. They were married by a friend and fellow comedian, Dan Levy. They share no children.

Fans noticed trouble in John Mulaneys marriage in December 2020

Fans of the comedian theorized that Mulaney and Tendlers marriage was in trouble in December 2020. Shortly before Mulaney checked himself into a rehab center, followers noticed that the couple had unfollowed each other on Instagram. Tendler then removed her married name from her profile before deactivating Instagram entirely. She has since returned to the social media platform, but any traces of Mulaney have been deleted.

John Mulaney and Annamarie Tendler | Mike Coppola/VF19/Getty Images for VF

RELATED: How Many Times Has John Mulaney Been Nominated For An Emmy?

Mulaney has not posted on the platform since Dec. 2, 2020, shortly before entering rehab. He checked out in February, after 60 days of treatment. According to the Philly Voice, Mulaney moved to intensive outpatient care following his release. He has not returned to social media, but he is ready to return to the stage. The couples divorce news came just days after Mulaney sold out several comedy shows in New York.

Annamarie Tendlers public statement reveals her husband filed for divorce

Following news of the couples divorce, they issued individual statements through spokespeople. While Mulaneys statement appeared to follow the example of celebrities in the past, Tendlers statement broke from protocol. Tendlers statement read, I am heartbroken that John has decided to end our marriage. I wish him support and success as he continues his recovery.

HOLLYWOOD, CA  FEBRUARY 24: (L-R) Annamarie Tendler and John Mulaney | Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

Based on Tendlers statement, fans can assume that the divorce is not mutual. Mulaneys representation stated that the 38-year-old comedian would not be commenting further on his relationship or the divorce proceedings. Mulaney released his statement to Page Six.
Was Kate Chastain being a little salty or merely posting support for the Bravos Chat Room season finale?

She tweeted, Congrats on the finale to the lovely #BravosChatRoom gals and the comment produced more questions about how she really feels about the series. Chastain is an executive producer of the series and a co-host until she abruptly left. Fans speculated over the reasons why she left, especially since neither she nor Bravo made a statement about her departure.

Andy Cohen, Kate Chastain on WWHL | Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank

Kate Chastain used Muppet videos to reply to questions

Chastain included a Bravos Chat Room clip along with her comment. Shes featured in the clip but shes only watching as her former co-hosts flub their lines. A fan asked Chastain why she hasnt been straightforward about her exit.

For as direct and bad a** you are it baffles me why you wont answer the question everyone wants to know, the fan asked on the thread. You have never taken sh*t from anyone I just dont understand. Chastains response was to reply with a video of Kermit the Frog dancing. She followed that up with a clip of Miss Piggy.

Congrats on the finale to the lovely #BravosChatRoom gals pic.twitter.com/guGdDdYFYE  Kate Chastain (@Kate_Chastain) May 11, 2021

RELATED: Below Deck: Is Kate Chastain Returning to the Show? Some Fans Believe She Is Filming Season 9

Makes sense to me, a fan replied. Not burning any bridges and probably signed an agreement stating she wont talk about it. Another person added, If these are clues about what the people look like that are keeping you silenced I get it now.

Why did Kate Chastain leave Bravos Chat Room?

Bravos Chat Room co-host Hannah Berner from Summer House believed that Chastain was busy with other projects. She actually created the show and she got the show off the ground, Berner told StyleCaster. I know she has a lot of other projects going on. I just wish her the best. Adding, I dont know exactly whats going on. But shes teased it. I just know shes onto bigger and better things.

Chastain agreed that she has projects in the works. But said she didnt exactly gel with her co-hosts when she opened up about her experience on the What Else Is Going On? With Taria S. Faison podcast. During her chat, she referenced The Muppets and Sesame Street as to why she left the series.

Has one glass of wine at lunch decides shes cool enough for neon nails pic.twitter.com/d0se9O566M  Kate Chastain (@Kate_Chastain) May 10, 2021

RELATED: Below Deck: Kate Chastain Shades Francesca Rubi, I Seriously Cant Even Count How Many Times Ive Slept in a Guest Cabin

After I did 20 episodes the show found its vibe, Chastain said. And I think that I always felt like how on Sesame Street, One of these things is not like the other? I felt like that was me. Chastain added that she wasnt going to change on the show and felt like it was the perfect time to bow out.

Chastain continued to appear on Bravo after she left Bravos Chat Room. She participated in Below Deck Galley Talk, which fans seemed to love. But shes remained lowkey about her next move after moving back to Florida.
Queen Elizabeth II and the British royal family are moving forward just a month after the death of Prince Philip. The prince died at age 99 peacefully in his sleep. A devoted member of the British royal family, the prince had been by the queens side since their wedding day in 1947.

With Prince Philip gone, the queen has been leaning on Prince Charles and Prince William to keep the British royal family modern and relevant in an age where people are questioning the monarchy, especially following Megxit and the fall out from Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and Prince Harrys shocking interview with Oprah.

However, following Prince Philips death, nothing will ever be the same, and the queens appearance at the State Opening of Parliament is evidence of that.

Queen Elizabeth | Eddie Mulholland/ Getty Images

Queen Elizabeth II has returned to work after Prince Philips death

Following Prince Philips death and into the days leading into his funeral, the queen entered into an eight-day mourning period. During that time, she took on no royal duties, all of the affairs of the state were paused and the flags were lowered to half-mast.

However, following the princes funeral, the queen has returned to work, holding a virtual audience from her current estate at Windsor Castle. She also celebrated her 95th birthday on April 21. She released a statement thanking the public for their support.

While as a family we are in a period of great sadness, it has been a comfort to us all to see and to hear the tributes paid to my husband, from those within the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth, and around the world, she said in the statement via Town & Country. My family and I would like to thank you all for the support and kindness shown to us in recent days. We have been deeply touched, and continue to be reminded that Philip had such an extraordinary impact on countless people throughout his life.

RELATED: Prince Harry Met With Queen Elizabeth II Privately at Least Twice While He Was Visiting the U.K.

The British royal family is changing quickly

Shortly after Prince Philips funeral, fans spotted a major change on The Royal Familys social media accounts. The accounts replaced an older photo of the queen and the prince with a solo photo of the queen from Feb. 2020.

Moreover, as Prince Charles takes on more responsibilities as he prepares for his upcoming role as king, he is looking to form a more slimmed-down monarchy that will focus on himself, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Prince William, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.

But those are not the only big changes in the royal fold.

Queen Elizabeth IIs appearance at the State Opening of Parliament was heartbreaking

On May 11, the queen returned to London from Windsor to attend the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster. Royal fans and experts immediately noticed that the Consorts Throne, which was Prince Philips chair had been removed from the House of Lords.

Instead, Prince Charles and Camilla sat near the queen in Chairs of State. This is not the first time Prince Charles has attending the opening with his mother. He attended December 2019, October 2019, and in June 2017 when Prince Philip was ill.

However, the removal of Prince Philips throne marks an end of an era.
Porsha Williams has the world talking with her engagement revelation. Coals are still cooling off from The Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 13 reunion, but the embers lit a new spark on rumors about her love life.

Now, everyone knows that Williams is engaged to Falynn Guobadias ex-husband and fans wonder if she violated their friendship and girl code. However, throughout this past season of RHOA, many also pondered the status of her relationship with bestie Tanya Sam. Whats going on with the bubbly businesswoman whom everyone seemed to like?

Watch What Happens Live with Porsha Williams, Tanya Sam | Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Tanya Sam stepped back from RHOA

After the Strippergate debacle with Bolo took over the friend circle and lingered for the majority of season 13, Tanya Sam was noticeably absent from the show. She appeared in a few early episodes and was on deck for Cynthia Baileys bachelorette party.

Once Kenya Moore made a fuss about Bolo and launched an investigation, viewers learned Sam went to Porsha Williams room on the night/morning in question. That led to speculation in the group that something frisky happened between the two women and Bolo.

After the ladies returned from the South Carolina trip, Sam left for Canada and refuted rumors about Strippergate on social media. Moore insinuated she cheated on her fiance, but Williams stood up for her friend.

RELATED: RHOA: Why Andy Cohen Enjoyed Strippergate

During a new episode of The Real Housewives of Atlanta After Show, Williams, Drew Sidora, and Shamea Morton spoke on Sams exit. Sidora said she loved getting to know Sam and thought shed return, but that didnt happen.

Morton shared that she texts Sam from time to time but feels she abandoned Williams during the drama over Bolo. As Porshas best friend, I did feel like she kind of left her high and dry and left her to pick up the pieces, she said.

From her perspective, Williams went to bat for Sam to protect her reputation and relationship with fiance Paul Judge. But Morton acknowledged that she has nothing but love for her.

And Williams chimed in to say Sam dipped out on the group but not her. She said they still talk and when Sam left for Canada, she went to visit her father. They are still friends and on good terms, but she understands that Sam wanted no parts of the group.

Meanwhile, Tanya is living her best life

Sam moved on from the rumors about her, Williams, and Bolo, and those who follow her on Instagram and Twitter can see that she is doing fine.

Shes busy traveling, promoting business ventures, and celebrating her fiance taking the stage as a commencement speaker for Georgia Techs undergraduates.

Rolling with my GOAT @pauljudge as we pull up to his alma mater @GeorgiaTech where he received his Masters& PHD & will be delivering this years commencement address #blackexcellence pic.twitter.com/gj9ektllOB  Tanya Sam (@itsTanyaSam) May 8, 2021

And Sam isnt finished with reality TV. Toward the end of March, she tweeted news that shell be hosting a show about entrepreneurship called Making a Mogul.

The docuseries will highlight black businesses and other minority-run ventures and the people who lead them. Viewers will get a peek inside the inspirational backstories of multi-million dollar companies led by women, people of color, and members of the LBGTQ community.
While Sandra Oh left Greys Anatomy in 2014, many fans still feel her absence to this day. Plenty of actors who have left the ABC medical drama have returned in season 17. Viewers have celebrated the return of many beloved characters. Oh, who has already said she wont be returning, explained her thought process and what the character of Cristina Yang means to her to this day.

Sandra Oh | Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

Sandra Oh portrayed Cristina Yang on Greys Anatomy for 10 seasons

Oh acted as the no-nonsense genius cardiothoracic surgeon Cristina Yang from 2005 to 2014. Cristina, who was of Korean and Jewish descent, befriended protagonist Dr. Meredith Grey in the pilot episode of Greys Anatomy. She bonded with Grey while being unapologetic about her ambition to be the best surgical intern of everyone at Seattle Grace Hospital.

Fans loved Cristina for her quick one-liners, confidence, and incredible intellect. Watching Cristina leave Greys Anatomy was difficult for many longtime-viewers of the show.

Sandra Oh left in 2014 and spoke about the impact of Cristina Yang

RELATED: Sandra Oh Speaks Out at Stop Asian Hate Rally in Pittsburgh

Oh departed Greys Anatomy in 2014 while her character took a position at the Klausman Institute for Medical Research in Switzerland. Cristina has appeared on Greys Anatomy since Ohs departure through characters mentioning her, but she hasnt returned as a cast member.

The actor spoke with Asian Enough, an LA Times podcast, about her feelings toward Greys now. She was asked if she would return.

No, Oh said, per CBR. I love it, though, and this is also why I really appreciate the show that I still get asked this.

Oh continued: Its very rare, I would say, to be able to see in such a way the impact of a character.

In some ways, you do your work as a bubble and you let it go, she expressed. I left that show, my god, seven years ago almost. So in my mind, its gone. But for a lot of people, its still very much alive. And while I understand and I love it, I have moved on.

Here is what Sandra Oh has done since leaving Greys Anatomy

Oh then suggested fans of hers could watch her newer work.

Come see the characters that Im playing that are much more deeply integrated in the Asian American experience, she commented.

Since leaving Greys Anatomy, Oh has taken on much more roles in television. She portrayed Abby Tanaka in American Crime, Eve Polastri in Killing Eve, and has an upcoming television series, The Chair.

Critics have loved Ohs work on Killing Eve. She has earned five Emmy Award nominations from 2018 to 2020.

While fans might want Cristina Yang to return, Oh has said that she has moved on. But the silver lining is that Ohs character lives on in Greys Anatomy, and fans can always return to watching her if they would like.

Season 17 of Greys Anatomy is currently on ABC. The show has just been renewed for season 18, with Ellen Pompeo confirmed to return. Time will tell in season 17s final episodes on who will also come back for the next season of the show.
If youre a fan of mob shows and films, youve seen actors flip from criminal roles to cop roles (and vice versa). That happened at auditions for The Sopranos as well. Prior to playing Bobby Baccalieri, Steve Schirripa read for the part of FBI agent Skip Lipari. But how many actors jump between the role of a mobster and that of a priest?

Paul Schulze, who played Father Phil Intintola across six seasons of the show, did just that. Following his breakout role in the indie film Laws of Gravity (1992), Schulze had played characters on both sides of the law. And he originally went out for a criminals role on The Sopranos as well.

Paul Schulze was up for the Mikey Palmice role on The Sopranos

Edie Falco and Paul Schulze attend First Broadway opening of OLEANNA in 2009. | AMBER DE VOS /Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

RELATED: The Sopranos: How Jason Alexander Helped Al Sapienza Land His Role

Schulze recalled the road to playing Father Phil on the Talking Sopranos podcast. The process began with an audition for Mikey Palmice, the right-hand man of Junior Soprano (Dominic Chianese). And Schulze got a callback after his audition.

Its amazing because my father was a Lutheran pastor in New York City but I was acting like a tough kid in the neighborhood, on the Upper East Side, for years and years, Schulze said. And I played gritty kind of people [in previous roles]. So here I am auditioning for this Mikey Palmice character.

At that audition, Sopranos creator David Chase asked Schulze to read for another character: Father Phil, parish priest to the North Jersey mob community. After looking over the lines for a few minutes at the studio, Schulze took a crack at the character he hadnt known existed.

That reading went well enough for Chase to call back Schulze for the role the actor eventually won. And he went on to play Father Phil for a total of 13 episodes, with College representing the most notorious episode for Schulzes character.

Al Sapienza ended up with the Mike Palmice role

Al Sapienza during Bomb The System premiere screening at Tribeca Cinema | Johnny Nunez/WireImage

Though Schulze didnt land the Mikey Palmice role, Sopranos producers found the right man for the job: Al Sapienza. To Sapienza, Palmice was the type of guy who didnt need to act tough. After all, he shoots a low-level thug in the eye in season 1.

So Sapienza came up with the idea of playing him as the opposite of a mastermind. Sapienza thought Mikey had a little Joe Pesci (i.e., Tommy DeVito) and a little James Caan (i.e., Sonny Corleone) in him. And like both of those characters, Mikey didnt live to the end of the story (or even into season 2).

As for Father Phil, Schulze rode his character all the way to The Fleshy Part of the Thigh (season 6 episode 4, 2006). All things considered, it turned out well for both actors. And Schulze kept working with Edie Falco (Carmela Soprano), his frequent Sopranos collaborator, in Nurse Jackie (2009-15).
Landing a role in a movie franchise as popular as Star Wars can have a huge impact on an actors life. After all, the galaxy far, far away has defined many careers. Just ask Adam Driver, who  despite being an Oscar-nominated actor  is best known for playing Kylo Ren. Now one Marvel actor has lamented about how hard they bombed their Star Wars audition.

Two stormtroopers stand in front of the Star Wars: The Force Awakens logo at the Star Wars Force 4 Fashion event | Brian Ach/Getty Images for Disney Consumer Products

Star Wars: The Force Awakens brought a new era in the saga

After nearly a decade with no new movies, Star Wars fans got some surprising news with Disneys 2012 purchase of Lucasfilm. Suddenly, a whole new era of the saga was on the way. Original trilogy actors Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and the late Carrie Fisher were thrust back into the roles that made them famous. But the sequel trilogy also introduced a new generation of characters.

In addition to Driver, actors such as Daisy Ridley and John Boyega gained worldwide acclaim for their roles. As the Force-sensitive scavenger and the stormtrooper-turned-rebel, respectively, Ridley and Boyega landed the roles so many other actors were vying for. And as it turns out, one Marvel actor was among those who failed to get cast in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

RELATED: Star Wars: Why Daisy Ridley Thinks Tom Hollands Marvel Movies Are More Intense than Playing Rey

This future Marvel star missed out on the chance for a key role

Michael B. Jordan joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Erik Killmonger in 2018s Black Panther. But years earlier, hed missed the chance to appear in the Star Wars saga. As he told the Just for Variety podcast (via the New York Daily News), Jordan didnt just fail to win the role, the audition went horribly.

That was probably my worst audition to date. I couldnt wrap my brain around some of the sides [or script excerpts]. Because when youre reading for these high-level projects, theres never really any specificity in the sides. Everythings super vague; everything is secret.  Reading through, I just couldnt connect it. I definitely bombed that one, for sure. Im pretty sure I ran out of there, like, See you guys. Im outta here.'

Jordan stops short of revealing which Star Wars character he might have played. Considering his status even then, the actor was likely up for a major role. probably Finn. Boyega, of course, won that role, much to the delight of fans of his his previous movie, Attack the Block. But Jordans career worked out in the end. In fact, he still joined a long-running franchise in 2015.

RELATED: Why Star Wars Actor Adam Driver Felt Sick at the Force Awakens Premiere: I Just Went Totally Cold

Michael B. Jordan landed his own movie franchise the very same year

Strangely, 2015 brought two hit movies that were the seventh entry of a long-running, fan-favorite series that began in the 1970s. Jordan missed out on continuing the Star Wars legacy. But he did build on the Rocky legacy as the lead in Creed, which hit theaters less than a month before The Force Awakens.

Jordan reprised his lead role as Adonis Creed in 2018s Creed II. Much like co-star Sylvester Stallone, hes stepping behind the camera next. Jordan will make his directorial debut with Creed III, due for release in 2022. Meanwhile, its unclear whether he will appear in another 2022 sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Ree Drummond is one of the worlds most popular home chefs and Food Network stars, a woman who has shared her life and her familys experiences with all of her fans and followers for years. A force of nature, Drummond first started appearing on the Food Network in 2011.

Since then, has not only helmed her own successful series, The Pioneer Woman, but has guest-starred on a variety of other Food Network programs as well. These days, Drummond is still a fan-favorite, not only for the delicious recipes that she shares but for the warm way that she encourages fans to get comfortable in the kitchen and make their own family memories.

When did Ree Drummond start blogging?

Update on our two guys. Feeling pretty grateful today. (Being married to a cowboy is never boring.) https://t.co/tNSZHfcTPx  Ree Drummond  The Pioneer Woman (@thepioneerwoman) March 15, 2021

RELATED: The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond Posts Her Top Moments from 2020

Drummond spent the earliest years of her professional life studying journalism before going on to study gerontology. She planned to attend law school in the big city of Chicago, Illinois  but her plans were derailed when she met rancher Ladd Drummond at a small club in Oklahoma. The two got married and in short order, Drummond began life as a ranchers wife, raising their four small children.

In 2006, Drummond began blogging, writing about the details of life on a ranch  and sprinkling in a lot of details about their family recipes and favorite meals. Eventually, Drummond started sharing recipes, many of them accompanied by descriptive photos of the cooking process.

By 2009, Drummonds website, The Pioneer Woman, was receiving millions of visitors, with Drummond rising to fame as one of pop cultures most vibrant, entertaining voices.

Ree Drummond is now the head of a business empire

Ree Drummond in 2017 | Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Hearst

RELATED: The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummonds Beef and Bean Chili Recipe

In 2011, after releasing several bestselling books, Drummond launched her very own cooking series on Food Network. The Pioneer Woman became an instant hit with fans, many of whom loved seeing Drummond and her family on their Oklahoma ranch, preparing delicious, easy recipes.

To this day, Drummonds show is going strong, even though the COVID-19 pandemic changed the way that the family filmed the beloved series.

Drummond has also utilized her popularity with fans to build a veritable business empire. From opening pizzerias in Oklahoma to releasing a line of specialty frozen foods and dog treats, it seems as though theres nothing that Drummond cant do.

Through it all, she has remained relatable and approachable, connecting with her fans on social media and frequently opening up about how her readers can get more comfortable in the kitchen.

What is Ree Drummonds biggest tip to getting comfortable in the kitchen?

Why do I say things like this? Anyway, the kids and I shot this mornings episode of The Pioneer Woman on @foodnetwork and I hope you enjoy it! 10am/9c pic.twitter.com/zay2b2smFI  Ree Drummond  The Pioneer Woman (@thepioneerwoman) November 28, 2020

RELATED: Why The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond Doesnt Film at Her House

In an interview with Taste of Home, Drummond opened up about her own cooking process and how she recommends everyone starts out in the kitchen prior to preparing a big meal. Drummond follows the rule of mise en place, a French term that means everything in place.

For Drummond, this means laying out all of her ingredients prior to starting to cook. If you dont have to stop in the middle of searing something to go find the Worcestershire or the soy sauce, it really just helps to have it there and take away some of the chaos, Drummond said.

In general, Drummond said, mise en place will help keep the cooking process simple and eliminate a lot of the stress, so that all of her fans can start preparing meals the Pioneer Woman way.
Software plays a key role in modern science. Experiments that produce large amounts of data generally need substantial software-based analysis to extract understanding. Simulation-based research in particular yields results based solely on the computer-based generation of data and its subsequent analysis.

For publications, the scientific principle of reproducibility requires that studies and processes are documented and archived to such a level that they can be repeated at a later point - by the original authors as well as by other interested researchers. Technically, this should be possible for the software-driven steps. However, in practice reproducibility is often not given - for a multitude of reasons.

Now researchers from the UK, France, Norway and Germany - led by Hans Fangohr from the MPSDs new Computational Science unit - have published practical solutions for this challenge on the basis of the OpenDreamKit research project. They recommend reproducible workflows that include the use of open source software and the provision of complex computational capabilities through researcher-friendly high-level command interfaces. These allow scientists to direct the research via electronic notebooks which automatically record every step that has been taken.

One of the open source results of this work is the Ubermag simulation environment for magnetism at the nanoscale. The low-level simulation software, that has been optimized for high execution performance, is difficult to use directly, and the researchers developed a high-level Python interface to drive the simulations with much greater ease. The Ubermag environment features visualisation capabilities which provide immediate visual feedback on the simulation results and integrate naturally into the Jupyter notebook. Given this tool set, a simulation study can now be driven from the Jupyter notebook, which combines narrative comments by the researcher with commands to execute the simulation, immediately followed by the results obtained. The notebook has been designed to be able to record and archive this rich and executable document - thus providing a leap forward for the reproducibility of the study.

"To improve reproducibility in science, it is not enough to provide tools or workflows that make the results more reproducible. These tools must also fit into the scientific approach of the researchers and ideally lead to a better research experience, so that the new methods are accepted and adopted widely," says Hans Fangohr, coordinating author of the publication.

Reproducibility is attracting increasing attention from researchers, research councils and publishers. "One additional aspect of the discussion is that reproducibility leads to re-usability, Fangohr explains. "If all the steps of a data analysis are documented and archived - ideally in a (potentially long!) computer-executable script - so that they can be repeated automatically at the touch of a button, then it becomes a lot easier to take such a study and extend it.

"Currently, it is not unusual for PhD students to spend months or years to first reproduce published results as a baseline, before they can extend the work with novel additions as the second step. With the workflows and methods proposed here, we can reduce that time to hours or minutes, making our collective research activity a lot more efficient."
What do homeless people need? Although he has lived with the homeless community for over 10 years, Maurice Young has rarely been asked this question. Yet according to a report from The National Alliance to End Homelessness,

Seventeen out of every 10,000 people in the United States were experiencing homelessness on a single night in January 2019 during HUDs Annual Point-in-Time Count. These 567,715 people represent a cross-section of America. They are associated with every region of the country, family status, gender category, and racial/ethnic group.

Young is a sought-after educational speaker, Ted Talk communicator and subject of an award-winning documentary. Although he makes plenty of money from his speaking engagements, he has chosen to live outside with the homeless to understand their problems and be their advocate. He has spent time with homeless communities in Seattle, Los Angeles, Nashville, Miami, New York, Chicago and Indianapolis. He seeks to understand their situation and hear their stories by dwelling among them.

The aid organizations and the humanitarian workers think they know- homeless are hungry and they dont have food. Those people go to college and get a social worker degree. They have been trained and studied the knowledge, and they think they know what those people need; they are experts. I am an expert because I am in the situation.

Young describes the homeless community as a mix of different groups. Some people live in their vehicles, some live in abandoned properties and others live outside in what is increasingly known as camps. Some become homeless due to addictions, some due to job loss, some due to family rejection. Although the reasons for becoming homeless and the particular form it takes can vary from city to city, and within a community, there is a common denominator.

What do homeless people need? While there are many answers that probably come to mindfood, clothing, shelter, or jobs, the answer Maurice gave was unexpected. They need time. he said. Time to sort some things out. Time to figure some things out. While their circumstances may vary, each person will work through the process of sorting things out at their own pace.

Besides time, the biggest need Young sees is mental health care. He estimates 90% of the homeless population in his hometown of Indianapolis have mental health needs. According to Psychology of Trauma 101, up to 80% of Americans will be exposed to a traumatic event during their lifetime. Young befriends many people on the streets who are trying to process a trauma theyve experienced. In addition, homeless parents deal with the constant very real fear of having their children taken away if they engage with the system to get help.

Just as Jobs friends sat with him silently in the immediate aftermath of his trauma, Young has learned to support others by sitting with them and offering his presence. According to the Humanitarian Disaster Institutes Covid-19 Mental Health Handbook, practical presence has two important aspects. The practical part involves helping the person with their basic needs, such as food and shelter. The presence part is actively being with another human being in their pain and not trying to fix it but validating their emotions to promote healing.

Well-meaning social service providers are eager to put homeless people on the path to independence and push them along, sometimes before they are ready. Young notes that these social services workers, as well as volunteers from local churches, are people coming from a really good place. However, in coming in with their own agendas, and not taking time to listen to the people they are trying to serve, they can unintentionally push people too fast, and ignore their voices.

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Young has no intention of doing that. As humans, I think we have that desire totry to be the person in chargeIm not in charge of nothing, he says, Im just an instrument being used. By giving up his own privilege, humbling himself, and meeting his homeless neighbors where they live, Maurice Young incarnates Jesuss love for the world. "The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood." (John 1:14, MSG).

Ami Hileman is a graduate student at the Wheaton College Humanitarian & Disaster Institute and a senior technical advisor at HOPE International.

Jiapei Liang is a graduate student at Wheaton College Humanitarian & Disaster Institute. Prior to Wheaton College, she received a M.Min at China Evangelical Seminary.
In his best-selling book, The Year of Living Biblically, secular Jew A. J. Jacobs endeavors to follow biblical laws literally for a year. His escapades with mixed fabrics, stoning Sabbath-breakers, handling serpents, and honoring widows are enthralling and often sidesplitting, and they led to a CBS sitcom spinoff.

In one entry, he explains his attempt to avoid the ritual impurity associated with genital discharges while his wife is menstruating (Lev. 15:1923). Unamused, she makes it a point to sit in every chair in the house before he returns home. Ultimately, he opts for a portable Handy Seat, because really, who can be sure who might have just sat in any particular subway seat or restaurant booth? (Rachel Held Evans completed a similar tongue-in-cheek challenge in her 2012 book, A Year of Biblical Womanhood.)

Part of the reason this story is so humorous is its utter absurdity, especially as seen through our modern Western lens, which unwittingly informs our interpretation of Scripture. We find it awkward or wildly inappropriate to act differentlylet alone to askif a woman is menstruating, and therefore the notion of a biblical regulation or restriction over a womans time of the month seems preposterous.

It is easy to overlook or disregard that, in the Bible, issues of ritual purity matter. Far from being some legalistic and archaic Old Testament oddity, engaging impurity deeply mattered to Jesus as well.

The ritual purity system is a cornerstone of second-temple Jewish life, and Jesus actions reveal that he embodies a kind of contagious holiness, which overcomes the sources of impurity that contaminate Gods people. Without understanding how the ritual purity system works, and ...

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Tim Clinton champions biblical masculinity,' laments how men are feeling marginalized

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A notable Christian professional counselor has advised men to reclaim their biblical masculinity amid mounting attacks on manhood by the mainstream culture.

Tim Clinton, president of the American Association of Christian Counselors, co-authored the book, TakeIt Back, with prolific writer Max Davis. In it, they counter critiques and corruptions of masculinity by various entities within modern American culture and champion biblical ideals of manhood.

One example cited in the book was the release of guidelines by the American Psychological Association in 2018 that described traditional masculinity as being a particular constellation of standards that include anti-femininity, achievement, eschewal of the appearance of weakness, and adventure, risk, and violence.

Many conservative social commentators interpreted the guidelines as expressing hostility toward masculinity and the healthy attributes it brings to culture and civilization.

It's no secret that theres been a real beat-down on men in the media and our culture, Clinton told The Christian Post. In response, there has been an aggressive and radical push to feminize men.

Many men feel marginalized  like they have to almost apologize for being a male. We want to say to men all over America, its OK to be a man, to be masculine! Honestly, its crazy we have to say this.

Clinton told CP that he and Davis are not justifying any sinful or unhealthy behaviors, but we are making a distinction that while behavior can be toxic, it does not mean that masculinity is toxic.

Masculinity has been labeled as toxic, and most men are accused of everything from misogyny to being buffoons, continued Clinton. There is also a difference between traditional masculinity and true biblical masculinity. Now more than ever, we need godly men: men who know who they are and harness their roles and responsibilities.

The Christian Post interviewed Clinton about his book, views on masculinity and criticism of his work. The following is an edited transcript of that interview.

CP: One of the things you stressed is that true godly masculinity doesn't involve mere physical stature or brute strength. You emphasized in the book that the idea that men shouldn't cry is "not true" and "not biblical." How else do you believe traditional American cultural ideas get it wrong about masculinity?

Clinton: I think some have unfortunately confused roles and responsibilities with men being superior to women in marriage. The progressives have also missed it when they try to claim men and women are the same. They are not. Men and women are equal before God, but different.

Then, theres this stereotype that masculine men dont know how to love, or show affection, that they are hard and emotionless, or they just dont get it. While that behavior may be true of some men, there are a lot of men who are tender and strong. They know how to love and be loved.

Through the ages, there have been godly men who know how to love, who care for the brokenhearted, who are tender toward their children, their spouses, and people in general. We want to exemplify that, not the media narrative that is out there.

CP: In one chapter, you warn about men not being good enough gatekeepers of their families, and then later on in the chapter, you quoted the now-disgraced apologist Ravi Zacharias in an authoritative manner. Were you aware of the allegations against Zacharias when you were writing the book, and what's your opinion of the allegations?

Clinton: The final and edited Take It Back manuscript was completed in 2019. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the books release was delayed. Its tragic what we are hearing and learning about Ravi Zacharias. Obviously, we wouldnt have quoted him had we known then what we are learning now.

CP: In one chapter about men and women, you wrote: "They are equal, but they are not the same." Would you say that the complementarian model best exemplifies the godly masculinity you write about in the book? Or can this godly masculinity be just as properly lived in other, possibly more egalitarian, models?

Clinton: We explore godly men throughout the Bible, and our ultimate focus is on Christ as our model. We make no apology by stating Christ-likeness should be the anchor and heart of what it means to be a man, that Jesus was the Supreme model for masculinity. He was a man. Not only that, He was the PERFECT man.

This in no way is meant to be disparaging to women. Jesus is their model too! Yet, if men modeled the way Jesus respected and elevated women, never in a patronizing way, in a culture that looked down on women  the way He loved all people and served to the point of laying down His life, what an impact we would have on the culture.

Jesus wept and washed feet and was compassionate and sensitive to the pains of those around Him. He also stood strong against evil. He drove the money changers out of the temple with a whip, making quite a scene. He was a carpenter with calloused hands that ultimately stretched out those hands to take the nails for us.

There is no room for a culture of sexism or toxic behavior in true biblical masculinity.

CP: You describe at length the many ways in which Western society is opposed to masculinity. When would you say that proper, godly masculinity was promoted and advanced by Western society? Is there a time period within the past, say, 200 years, that you believe serves as a better example?

Clinton: What we are trying to say in the book is there is toxic behavior by men, but it is a mistake to label godly masculinity as toxic. The focus should be on correcting the behavior by changing the hearts of men, but not at the expense of masculinity.

Toxic behavior has existed since the beginning of time, perhaps covered up more in the past. So exposure of this behavior has been a good thing. At the same time, though, in the past, masculinity was not demonized.

My father, for example, was part of what Tom Brokaw called the "Greatest Generation," World War II veterans. He faithfully served in the U.S. Navy and spent time on the U.S.S. Pennsylvania in the South Pacific. He loved God and took seriously Nehemiah 4:14, which says, "Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, great and fearsome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses" (NKJV).

Even though he served three churches as a pastor, he always made our family a priority. We would hunt and fish together, throw a ball, go swimming and kneel together. I often describe him as the kindest man I have ever met.

CP: Some have accused you of engaging in plagiarism with the book, specifically the first chapter and its resemblance to passages from George Foreman's book, God in My Corner. How do you respond?

Clinton: Of course, the accusations are false.

Co-author of Take It Back, Max Davis, has written nearly 40 books and one of them was with George Foreman, whom he spent many hours with, helping to capture his life and craft his message.

Aside from having four citations in the roughly four-page story, this section is partially drawn from Maxs relationship and interactions with him. This is Maxs gift. He helps leaders articulate their messages and it has blessed scores of people for many years.

Though, you should also know that the book went through significant editorial processes to begin with and went through sophisticated software to catch any citation errors afterward (which happens sometimes when one writes large bodies of work).

We have also subsequently consulted with the publishers of both books and agree there are no issues or concerns and have put this issue to rest.

We are praying that God will use this book in a powerful way to challenge and encourage the hearts of men and bring hope and healing to many individuals and families.
Democrats slam 'unjustifiable' Hamas rocket attacks on Israel: 'Must be condemned'

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American politicians on both sides of the aisle have voiced support for Israel after Hamas missile attacks on Monday were met with airstrikes on the Gaza Strip following a day in which hundreds of rioters were injured in clashes with police in Jerusalem.

Islamic militant group Hamas fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, killing at least three people and wounding dozens. An Israeli Defense Forces spokesperson called the Hamas airstrikes a blatant, severe attack." In response, airstrikes by IDF targeting militants in Gaza killed at least 28 people, including 10 children and some civilians.

Dozens of the Hamas-fired missiles were intercepted by Israels Iron Dome air defense system.

RAW FOOTAGE: This is the moment the Iron Dome intercepted a barrage of rockets over Tel Aviv and central Israel. pic.twitter.com/8jl8OTgWCl  Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) May 11, 2021

Hamas also fired missiles into Jerusalem for the first time since 2014, as the city was celebrating Jerusalem Day and the unification of the Holy City.

The Hamas attacks came after a weekend of escalating tension and violence in Jerusalems Old City, the home to some of the holiest sites for Christianity, Judaism and Islam. Israelis and Palestinians both claim Jerusalem as their capital.

U.S. House Minority Leader Kevin, R-Calif., defended Israels retaliation against the Hamas missile attacks and assured that the U.S. stands with Israel.

Israel has every right to defend itself against violence and the barrage of rockets from Hamas, McCarthy tweeted on Monday. The United States unequivocally stands with our ally Israel and the Jewish people.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., who has been historically supportive of Israel, also tweeted in Israels support after the missile attacks.

Israel unequivocally has the right to defend itself & its people, & I condemn today's unjustifiable attacks by Hamas against innocent civilians, Hoyer tweeted. Israelis & Palestinians both deserve a future of peace & security, & I hope both sides take positive steps to promote that end.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued a statement calling out politicians and the Biden administration, who have at times falsely, shamefully, and without justification singled out Israel for blame.

"The United States must stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the people and government of Israel, and I will work with my colleagues to ensure they have the support they need as they defend their sovereignty and respond to these attacks, Cruz wrote.

Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang and candidate for mayor of New York City also tweeted in support of Israel.

I'm standing with the people of Israel who are coming under bombardment attacks, and condemn the Hamas terrorists, he wrote. The people of NYC will always stand with our brothers and sisters in Israel who face down terrorism and persevere.

Cruz commended Yang for opposing the rabidly pro-Hamas & anti-Israel attacks of two Democratic congresswomen.

President Joe Biden has not made a statement regarding the attacks. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that the White House has serious concerns about the situation and is closely monitoring the violence.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan spoke with his Israeli counterpart, Meir Ben-Shabbat, on Sunday. Psaki stated that Sullivan "reiterated concerns about the potential evictions of Palestinian families from their homes, and they agreed that the launching of rocket attacks and sending incendiary balloons from Gaza towards Israel is unacceptable, and must be condemned."

Some Democrats, however, such as Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich. and Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., have criticized Israels retaliation against the Hamas attacks.

Omar called Israels airstrikes that killed civilians an act of terrorism.

Tlaib, a Palestinian American, tweeted that the aid Congress sends to support the IDF should be conditioned, accusing Israel of committing human rights violations.

The Israel military called up 5,000 reservists for active duty as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Israel would increase both the intensity of the attacks and the rate of attacks, NBC News reported.

IDF tweeted on Tuesday that for the past 18 hours, Hamas, an Iran-supported Palestinian terrorist organization that controls the Gaza Strip, had fired one rocket into Israel every three minutes as the attacks continued.

IDF responded to the Hamas attacks by bombing over 100 targets in Gaza, including a Hamas commanders home.

The traditional Jerusalem Day Flag March had to be rerouted Monday due to the riots and violence near the Temple Mount and a weekend of escalating tension.

Hamas said the rocket attacks were in response to Israeli crimes and aggression in Jerusalem.
Hamas fires missiles toward Jerusalem after hundreds injured in Temple Mount rioting Israeli airstrikes kill 24 in Gaza Strip, Palestinians say

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The Islamic militant group Hamas launched rockets at Jerusalem Monday after hundreds of rioters were injured at the Temple Mount in clashes with Israeli police. Palestinians claim about two dozen people, including nine children, were killed and over 100 were injured after Israel responded with airstrikes on the Gaza Strip.

During the Jerusalem Day escalation, Hamas militants fired over 200 rockets into Israel in what an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson called a blatant, severe attack, NBC News reported.

Some of the rockets were fired into Jerusalem, marking the first missile attacks aimed at Jerusalem since 2014.

While no one was injured, air sirens were set off. Israeli Parliament had to stop its session to evacuate due to the missiles.

A spokesperson for the Hamas militant group, the ruling entity for the Gaza Strip, said the rocket attack was in response to Israeli crimes and aggression in Jerusalem. The spokesperson said the enemy should understand the message well, according to NBC News.

Israeli Defense Forces Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus vowed that Hamas will pay a heavy price for the missile attack.

Palestinian officials reported that at least 24 people were killed and about 103 were injured by airstrikes launched by Israel toward the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military claimed that its airstrikes targeted Hamas military installations and operatives, The Associated Press notes.

According to the news agency, at least seven individuals, including three children, were killed in a mysterious explosion in a northern Gaza town.

IDF officials say that it hit at least 130 targets in Gaza, killing at least 15 militants who fired rockets into Israeli territory, according to Haaretz.

The airstrikes were preceded by the clashes between rioters and Israeli authorities at the historic Al Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. The violence led to the rerouting of the historic Jerusalem Day Flag March, which celebrates the unification of Israel in 1967.

Israeli police used stun grenades, rubber-coated bullets and water cannons during the clashes, NPR reported. Rioters threw stones and fireworks at the police.

The Palestinian Red Crescent emergency medical service said more than 600 Palestinians were injured in clashes in Jerusalem. According to AP, Israel police said 32 officers were injured in the altercation.

Local media reported a seven-month-old Israeli child was hurt after stones were thrown at her familys car, The Guardian reported.

Jerusalem Day is the anniversary of the Jewish recapture of East Jerusalem in the Six-Day War in 1967, the first time in thousands of years that all of Jerusalem was under Jewish sovereignty.

To celebrate, thousands march across Jerusalem and walk through the liberated Old City, which was under Jordanian control and restricted from Jews from 1948 to 1967.

The march ends at the Western Wall, which is part of the gate surrounding Judaisms holiest site, the Temple Mount. Speeches and dancing typically take place at the Western Wall to celebrate Jerusalem Day.

Leading up to the beginning of the holiday on Sunday evening, police conducted assessments every few hours due to the heightening tensions, according to The Times of Israel.

The riots in Jerusalem led organizers to reroute the annual march for the first time in decades. The march typically goes to the Old City through the Damascus Gate. The entrance of the Damascus Gate into the Muslim Quarter has been blocked with two large trucks.

Jewish media outlets were warned about the potential violence that could erupt due to the Flag March.

Amos Gilad, former head of Military Intelligence and former top Defense Ministry official, had told Army Radio that the march should not be held this year due to heightening tensions.

I would eliminate anything that creates friction. Jerusalem is currently a powder keg that could explode, Gilad said.

The violence came as anger had been mounting for weeks among Palestinians over a delayed court ruling over whether authorities can evict dozens of Palestinians from an Old City neighborhood to give the homes to Jewish settlers.

At a special cabinet meeting before Jerusalem Day, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will not allow any extremists to destabilize the calm in Jerusalem.

We will enforce law and order decisively and responsibly, he said, according to AP.
Idaho defunds Planned Parenthood, abortion providers; Gov. Little signs pro-life law

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Idaho has adopted a new law defunding abortion providers and banning them from receiving contracts to teach sex education in public schools, ensuring that no state and local dollars are allocated to promote or perform abortion.

House Bill 220, No Public Funds For Abortion Act, was signed into law Monday by Gov. Brad Little, a Republican. The measure defunds outfits such as Planned Parenthood but excepts publicly-funded hospitals and abortions funded with Medicaid.

The measure also bars school districts and public colleges from entering into contracts for abortion organizations to teach sex education and also stops public colleges and universities from providing abortifacient drugs to end a pregnancy after conception.

Such drugs and abortion counseling are presently offered at Boise State University, the University of Idaho and Idaho State University through their student health centers, according to the social conservative activist group Family Policy Alliance of Idaho.

Family Policy Alliance of Idaho Executive Director Blaine Conzatti praised the bills signing.

Defunding Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers was one of our top priorities when legislative session began earlier this year, Conzatti said in a statement emailed to The Christian Post.

Idahoans dont want their state or local governments sending their hard-earned money to abortion providers  and they certainly dont want abortionists providing services and promoting abortion in our public schools and universities.

Conzatti added that abortion should never be subsidized with our tax dollars and Idaho public school students should never learn about sexuality from the abortion industry.

The No Public Funds For Abortion Act protects students, vulnerable women, and hard-working taxpayers from the Big Abortion lobby, the pro-life activist argues. We are excited that Gov. Brad Little signed this important pro-life reform that protects taxpayer assets from abortion providers who have benefitted from government largesse for too long."

Opponents of the bill argue that it will prohibit many women from getting cancer screenings, birth control and other forms of health care because it could shut down clinics affiliated with abortion organizations.

Idaho is a state with healthcare shortages, Democratic Rep. Chris Mathias said, according to The Associated Press. We dont have enough primary care physicians. We dont have enough nurses. We dont have enough hospitals in the right places. We dont have enough beds. We dont have enough people with health insurance or enough health insurance to get them the adequate care that they need.

Rep. Bruce Skaug sponsored the legislation in the House of Representatives. The bill was passed through the lower legislative chamber by a vote of 55-14. Three Republicans and 11 Democrats voted against the measure.

We anticipate, with the new presidential administration, that Title X [family planning] funds will start flowing to abortion-friendly counseling centers, family planning-type clinics, and this would prevent that, Skaug said, according to Life News.

Its going to save some children from abortion. I have no doubt about that. If I could save all the children from abortion with a bill, I would do it. But the political and legal realities will not allow us to have a bill to pass and be successful for that.

The new law also prohibits the city of Boise from contracting with organizations that provide abortion-related services after a transitional report issued to Mayor Lauren McLean last year recommended that the city offer free contraception, abortion and reproductive healthcare for all of its residents.

Planned Parenthood is the largest abortion provider in the United States. Its latest annual report documents that the group performed a record 354,871 abortions in 2019, representing approximately 41% of procedures nationwide.
Only evangelical womens college in US to shut down amid declining enrollment, financial difficulties

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The board of trustees at Judson College in Alabama, which claims to be the only evangelical womens college in the United States, has voted to close down the 183-year-old institution after failing to resolve its multi-million dollar financial deficit.

We know this was the right decision, but there is not a person here whose heart isnt broken over this, Judson College President W. Mark Tew said in a statement. I share the heartbreak of this decision that is felt by generations of Judson students, faculty, and friends.

Judson College, an all-womens Christian college in Marion, Alabama, affiliated with Alabama Baptist Convention, was founded in 1838 when it was rare for women to receive formal education.

The news of the schools closure is a somewhat unexpected end to the five-month emotional roller coaster after the board released a hopeful report for the schools future on April 2.

Judsons declining enrollment, budget deficits and economic burdens from the COVID-19 pandemic led to the schools financial situation.

Mary Amelia Taylor, Judson's associate vice president for marketing & communications, told The Christian Post in an email that the staff is proud of and thankful for the students during this transition.

"They are strong, resilient women who have weathered the nightmare of this past year with hope and grace, continually reminding each other  and the rest of campus  to cherish the time and gifts weve been given," Taylor wrote.

"From arranging prayer times to lifting each other up with scripture, encouraging cards, emails, and social media posts, these Judson women have led our campus community in taking our every next step in the compassion and joy of the Lord.

In December, Tew appealed to Judson's community to financially support the colleges reopening in January 2021 amid declining enrollment as the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the schools financial situation.

Around 80 students planned to return in the fall, and only 12 new students had confirmed their fall 2021 enrollment.

During a special April 2 board meeting, the 24-member board of trustees voted 14 to 5 to approve the 2021-2022 budget to continue operations into the next school year.

The board launched a campaign to raise $5 million for future financial support on March 3.

College administrators launched an All in for Judson campaign and raised awareness through print and digital media and an aggressive advertising campaign across Baptist media outlets.

Fuller Higher Ed Solutions, a firm that provided insight for Judsons path forward, said Judsons two choices were to close with dignity or invest in turnaround.

Judson Board Chair Joan Newman addressed the students following the April board meeting to thank them and alumnae for their fundraising efforts. At the time, she said she was thrilled to tell you that Judson will be around for a long time.

Despite its optimism and aggressive attempts to raise money to continue operations, Judsons efforts fell short.

Judson has served the cause of Christ through Christian higher education for young women with uninterrupted dignity, Tew said. We want to be as God-honoring in these last days as we were in the very first.

Judson College will end academic operation after the summer term concludes on July 31, and residence halls will close after the May 2021 summer term.

Tew said an orderly shutdown with a small number of employees will take place in the coming months. The board will form a five-member committee from its executive committee to work with administration and bankruptcy counsel during its transition to closure.

The Judson campus is still processing this devastating news, but we assure our Judson community that we will find ways to honor our Colleges amazing 183-year-old legacy in the coming days, the university said in a statement.

Judson held its 183rd and final commencement ceremony on April 30, where 41 graduates received degrees.

In an email sent to campus on Sunday, Judson's Student Government President Anna Johnson encouraged the campus community. She said she has "held close" to Psalm 13 through the semester to remind her that there is still reason to rejoice despite difficulties.

As we transition into the new chapters of each of our lives, I urge you to continue the Judson legacy through your actions and through the life you choose to live," Johnson wrote in the email transcript obtained by CP.

"Judson has instilled in all of us the beautiful values of a person who pursues Christ: love for your neighbor, accountability for your sisters, service to those around you, pursuit of education, and more. Continue to look for what Judson has taught you and what you want to have forever instilled in you. Judson may stop its operations and close its doors, but we have the gift to continue its legacy through our own lives."

"... God has beautiful, bountiful stories to continue writing through our lives," Johnson continued. "Our time at Judson may be abruptly ending, but He is going to do amazing things with us."

The college was initially called the Judson Female Institute and was named after Ann Hasseltine Judson, one of the first American women to serve as a foreign missionary.

In 1904, the institution changed its name to Judson College.

The school was founded to give young women the same quality education as young men at Harvard and Yale, according to its website.
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During World War II, my father, who was born in Serbia, endured nearly four years in a Nazi prison camp before he was liberated by General Pattons Third U.S. Army. For the rest of his life, my father idolized America. Because he spoke English, he chose to work for the U.S. Army as a translator after liberation, and five years later, the Serbian Orthodox Church sponsored him to emigrate to the U.S.

Displaced persons like my father typically found jobs in essential industries where there were labor shortages  hard jobs that were difficult to fill as the post-war industrial ramp up was taking place. My father worked on the smelting floor of a steel manufacturer. Eventually, he met my mother, who was also used to hard work  her immigrant father had worked in a coal mine and the Ford Motor Company assembly line.

Both of my parents got a chance at the American dream. Thats why the recent xenophobia of the past year has spurred me to help refugees build the foundations they need for a better life in the U.S. During the pandemic, I (virtually) connected with refugee women sponsored by World Relief and have been teaching them to sew.

Before COVID-19, World Relief Memphiss Resiliency Program was working on a partnership with a local warehouse to help these women secure jobs as seamstresses in the community. Unfortunately, because of the economic impact of the past year, this opportunity has been put on hold, but we hope for (and welcome) new partnerships with local employers.

While learning a new skill is a big incentive for the students, the course also helps them with their English and teaches soft skills employers are looking for, like work ethic and problem solving. Many of my students also want to be able to make their own clothing, in the manner of their culture, that isnt typically available to buy near them.

They have learned a lot from the course, but I have also learned a lot from them. I am humbled by their eagerness to learn and their resilience. And while I am a Christian, I have been able to learn a lot about the many religions and cultures of my students. No nationalities are excluded from Gods love.

Recently, I read a Facebook post that said, If you are an American, your heritage is either Native American, slave, immigrant or refugee. I think some Americans have forgotten this truth, and how important it is to continue to welcome newcomers into our country  especially those who have endured unimaginable hardships. In my experience, these hardships make them more grateful for opportunity and more eager to give back to their new communities. America has a lot to offer these refugees, but they (and their descendants) also have a lot to offer our country. American icons like Madeleine Albright, Nikola Tesla, Elie Wiesel, Joseph Pulitzer and Yo-Yo Ma were all immigrants.

In the generations after my father and my mothers parents immigrated here, our family has produced American engineers, doctors, electricians, teachers, lawyers and U.S. service members who served in World War II and the Vietnam War. I want my students to see their children and grandchildren pursue similar opportunities. And I want them to see a Christ-follower who lives her faith through action.

Everyone has a part they can play in welcoming refugees into our communities  whether this is volunteering as a sewing teacher, ESL partner, mentor, interpreter, or Good Neighbor team; becoming an employment partner; or simply praying that these men and women find jobs, friendship and a place they can call home.

Many Americans throughout the country are eager to welcome immigrants into our communities and long to see refugees finally find protection in the U.S. Last week, President Biden raised the refugee ceiling for FY2021 from 15,000 to 62,500. As we start the process of rebuilding our nations dismantled resettlement infrastructure, its important to recognize that welcoming the most vulnerable into our fold isnt a partisan issue; it's a matter of loving our neighbors and embracing the rich culture of diversity and inclusion that America was built upon.
Postcard from the Grand Canyons overlooked gateway

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Grand Canyon National Park is one of those bucket list destinations that seldom disappoints.

After all, it is all about the sheer beauty of the landscape. This natural wonder, a testament to the design of God the Creator, with its varying colors and deep gorges carved through layers of rock is truly magnificent. Yet, many visitors dont give much thought to how they get to the Grand Canyon. This partially explains why the Grand Canyon West tourist trap exists.

Most of the canyons visitors arrive after passing Williams, a short drive from the national parks busy South Rim entrance. However, this small Arizona town (population 3,023) that was named after a mountain man and Old West legend the wokists have probably canceled is more than just the gateway to the Grand Canyon.

It is actually a destination in its own right, thanks to its prime location along the former U.S. Route 66, once known as the Mother Road or the Main Street of America. In fact, the longest uninterrupted stretch of the original 2,400-mile highway can be found in northwestern Arizona.

The quaint National Register of Historic Places-listed downtown  dominated at night by vintage neon signs  is as much about the hugely iconic route that was long ago supplanted by interstate highways as it is the canyon. This is probably because Williams was the last Route 66 town bypassed by Interstate 40 when it was completed in 1984.

With a couple of exceptions, the entire streetscape looks unchanged since the thoroughfares heyday during the postwar years, when increased car ownership made road trips a thing. In other words, Americana is everywhere. While much of it is nostalgia, some of it is roadside kitsch.

If you go

Summer is actually a great time of the year to visit, as the elevation of 6,770 feet makes Williams considerably cooler than the rest of hot and dry Arizona. Events include the annual Route 66 Car Show in June.

The Holiday Inn Express offers the reliable comfort of a chain hotel experience. For something different, stay at the Red Garter Inn, which was featured on the Travel Channels Hotel Impossible back in 2015. For restaurants, Red Raven, South Rims Wine & Beer Garage and Station 66 Italian Bistro are recommended. Thrill-seekers will want to soar over town on the Route 66 Zipline.

Grand Canyon National Park is less than four hours by car from the Las Vegas and Phoenix airports. Instead of driving the 58 miles from Williams to the South Rim consider parking and riding the Grand Canyon Railway.

Follow @dennislennox on Instagram and Twitter.
ELCA becomes first mainline denomination in US to elect transgender bishop

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A regional body of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has elected the first openly transgender bishop in the liberal mainline Protestant denominations history.

The Rev. Megan Rohrer, who uses the pronouns of they and them rather than gender-specific terms, was elected Saturday to head the California-based ELCA Sierra Pacific Synod.

Rohrer won on the fifth ballot during the online synod assembly, receiving 209 votes and narrowly defeating the Rev. Jeff R. Johnson of Berkeley, California, who received 207 votes.

According to a statement released Monday, Rohrer will be installed as synod bishop on Sept. 11 at St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Walnut Creek, California.

The first council of Nicaeas first action was to try to limit the leadership roles of trans pastors and bishops. Im grateful the Lutherans of the @sps_elca are beginning to dismantle this and some of the [] other hurdles BIPOC and LGBTQ pastors encounter, tweeted Rohrer on Sunday.

Rohrer presently serves as pastor of Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church in San Francisco and also serves as Community Chaplain Coordinator for the San Francisco Police Department.

All of us are proud of our colleague, Bishop-elect Megan Rohrer, who made history as the first openly transgender person elevated to the role of Bishop by a major Christian denomination in the U.S., tweeted the San Francisco Police Department. Congratulations, Rev. @mmrohrer! Keep doing great things!

Others, among them the theologically conservative blog Exposing the ELCA, denounced the election of Rohrer as a complete slap in the face to God.

The ELCA is thumbing its nose at God, His Word and Truth and effectively showing that they are part of the uber left and its rejection of Christianity, stated the blog. How can God-fearing, Bible-believing individuals remain in the ELCA? How can churches remain?

Mark Tooley, president of the theologically conservative think tank Institute on Religion & Democracy based in Washington, D.C., critiqued the Council of Nicea reference Rohrer made in response to being elected.

Claims of suppressing transgender clergy are elusive to history. Rohrer did not cite sources. But presumably Rohrer is referencing Canon 1 from the council declaring eunuchs can be priests unless they castrate themselves, wrote Tooley.

Bishop Rohrer says shes glad her liberal Mainline Protestant denomination is beginning to dismantle the injustice at the Council of Nicaea. No doubt much more dismantling must be done before true justice and knowledge can prevail against the external authority of revelation proposed by historic Christianity. Or so the Gnostics, yesterday and today, always proclaim.

Although the largest Lutheran denomination in the U.S., the ELCA has had many congregations leave due to its increasingly progressive stances on theology and politics.

In 2009, for example, when the denomination voted to allow openly gay individuals to be ordained, hundreds of congregations left the ELCA in protest.

In 2013, the Rev. R. Guy Erwin became the first openly gay bishop in the mainline denomination when he was elected to lead the ELCA Southwest California Synod.

At the time, the ELCA estimated that it had around 4 million members. According to the announcement of Rorhers recent election, the ELCA has about 3.3 million members.
HBCU, helped by Jamal Bryants church and Kanye West, resurrecting after financial scandal

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Morris Brown College, which made headlines when Jamal Bryants New Birth Missionary Baptist Church established scholarships there from a gift by Kanye West, is close to reaccreditation 17 years after a financial scandal cost it millions in federal aid and almost all its students.

President Kevin James said his job has been to bring this institution out of the grave."

"Were now walking and breathing again," James said Tuesday. "Now its time to go to the next level.

West donated to the Georgia church in October 2019 shortly after announcing he had become a born-again Christian. In turn, Pastor Bryant redirected part of it to MBC for scholarships in the names of the rappers mother, Donda, and Vanessa Long, widow of the churchs late shepherd, Eddie Long.

MBC started in 1881 as a resolution by the African Methodist Episcopal Church  Americas first African-American denomination  to establish an educational institution in Atlanta. Morris Brown Colored College opened in 1885 as the first school in Georgia owned and operated independently by black people.

The college had 2,500 students when the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools revoked its accreditation due to the institutions shaky finances.

In 2004, a U.S. attorney filed a 34-count indictment against former President Dolores Cross and ex-financial aid director Parvesh Singh for submitting falsified enrollment reports to gain federal money for covering shortfalls in other areas of the school.

Since their wrongdoing benefited the college, not themselves, the two did not go to jail but served several years of probation and house arrest as well as making some restitution.

Without federal loan and grant dollars, MBC enrollment steadily fell to a low of 25, James said Tuesday in an online news availability hosted by The Christian Recorder, the AMEs official news outlet.

But there are now 53 students enrolled at the Atlanta-based school, he said, all taking classes on the internet this fall due to COVID-19.

Not only has the school secured full operating authority from the state, but it is also targeting federally approved accreditation in April 2021 from the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools.

TRACS is an evangelical agency that holds to the verbal inspiration of Scripture. It began in 1979 to promote the welfare, interests, and development of postsecondary institutions whose mission is characterized by a distinctly Christian purpose, according to its website.

TRACS will conduct a site visit in early January to see whether the school is meeting standards and receive its self-study. The agency will vote three months later on whether to grant candidate status, which gives MBC five years to achieve full accreditation but allows students to immediately start receiving federal aid.

Without accreditation, you will not be able to survive, James explained.

Not only has a lack of accreditation cost student aid, it also resulted in the federal government denying Morris Brown any of the $1.3 billion in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act set aside for historically black colleges and universities.

In December 2019, President Donald Trump signed a bipartisan bill that restored $85 million in permanent federal funding for HBCUs.

The college president added that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris promised HBCUs an additional $70 billion in funding, and he and other officials of those schools need to make sure they keep their word.

One of the top priorities in office for James, 42, is to shore up MBC finances.

The schools fiscal year ending June 30 showed an infusion of cash of nearly $1.2 million, boosted greatly by nearly $2 million in private donations.

He also said $555,000 came in during the colleges virtual homecoming last month, a record for the event and 11% over its goal.

Most of the funds came in large gifts, such as $100,000 from a medical doctor who graduated from Morris Brown more than 40 years ago. New Births Bryant hosted a web-based worship service during homecoming.

TRACS will examine MBCs curriculum, faculty qualifications, staffing and enrollment in majors, school administration, finances and overall stability.

Without an endowment and having lost 36 acres of real estate in settling $35 million in debt, James is betting on showcasing the ability to bring in donations and secure grants as well as attract students once federal financial aid is restored.

James already has secured state permission to offer an eSports concentration in MBCs business degree program. He also hopes to bolster its bachelors degree in hospitality management by luring investors or an established company to operate a hotel on campus, which is close to Atlantas Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Warned of difficult relations with MBCs mother denomination, the college president said he has been very appreciative of the denomination forgiving millions in school debt and continuing to sow into the education ministry.

My first week on the job, the AME Church handed me a check for $50,000, he said, adding that its Council of Bishops forgave over $4 million in debt [for] Morris Brown College to help us get in a position to be accredited, to save this institution from closing.

James, who holds a doctorate in higher education leadership, disclosed that officials of two closed black colleges have contacted him with questions about how MBC has been able to resurrect. The schools now have new interim presidents and revived boards, he said.
Saddleback Church 'in violation of SBC doctrine by ordaining women pastors, Al Mohler says

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Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Al Mohler says Rick Warren's California-based Saddleback Church is in "direct violation" of denominational teaching for ordaining three women pastors and is calling for the denomination to reaffirm its teaching.

This past week, Saddleback Community Church in California ordained three women as pastors. In a development described by the church as historic, the church posted a photograph of the ordinations with the text: Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren and others pray over the first three women the church has ordained as pastors, Mohler wrote in an op-ed published on his website Monday.

Citing a Live Good interview with Cynthia Petty, one of the women ordained as a pastor by the largest church in the denomination, Mohler said that there is "no doubt" that the women were promoted to an office traditionally reserved for men.

There is no doubt that these three women are considered to serve as pastors and in the teaching office. Southern Baptists are clear, through the Baptist Faith & Message, that this is contrary to Scripture, Mohler stressed.

This is no longer a point of tension and debate. These moves represent an attempt to redefine and reformulate the convictional foundation of Southern Baptist faith and cooperative ministry. The theological issues have not changed since the year 2000 when Southern Baptists spoke clearly and precisely in the Baptist Faith & Message. More importantly, the Holy Scriptures have not changed and cannot change.

Mohler, who is vying to become the next president of the SBC, argued that an increasing number of SBC churches like Saddleback have promoted women as preachers or pastors. He said the denomination needs to make the standards of denominational cooperation clear for all affiliated churches.

In an increasing number of cases, it is now clear that some churches, including quite large and well-known churches, are placing women in the office of pastor in direct violation of our confession of faith. Further, a number of churches that are at least listed as Southern Baptist welcomed and advertised women preaching in the morning service, he stated.

The Southern Baptist Convention must not be unclear about our theological convictions and the ground of our cooperation. We cannot afford to be. Attempts to deny the issue will not work. Right now, Southern Baptists will decide if we will redefine the doctrine of the Southern Baptist Convention. I do not believe that Southern Baptists will allow this to happen. I do not believe that Southern Baptists will retreat from the truth.

The Christian Post reached out on Monday to inquire if Saddleback plans to remain a part of the SBC. However, a response was not immediately received.

Mohler noted in his op-ed that the push to ordain women preachers isnt new. He stated that the issue was roiled the SBC since the 1970s until the conventions Conservative Resurgence clarified the question conclusively.

There never was a moment when more than a handful of women served as pastors of SBC churches, but the mainline Protestant denominations were rushing headlong into the ordination of women as pastors and (Episcopal) priests, driven by two major energies  first, the demands of second wave feminism and, second, the impulses unleashed by liberation theology, he argued.

In both cases, the main obstacle was the Bible, but, already compromised by theological liberalism, these denominations deployed revisionist arguments to defuse any argument from Scripture. The strategies of biblical subversion also took two basic forms. The argument was proffered that either the Bible was misread by Christians for nearly 2,000 years or the Bible is just hopelessly mired in patriarchy and oppression and the biblical authors were flat wrong.

Mohler argues that denominations that have adopted liberal theology have brought about the feminization of liberal Protestantism, which has been like the kiss of death for them.

Put bluntly, there are just not that many males left, he added. Actually, there are not many people left in those churches. Liberal theology is the kiss of death for any church or denomination. Little remains but social justice activism and deferred maintenance.

Jason Keith Allen, president of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, called the Saddleback ordinations a disappointing departure from Scripture.

This is a disappointing departure from the clear teaching of Scripture, the BF&M, & long-held SBC consensus & practice, he tweeted Sunday. I Tim 3 & Titus 1 list qualifications, not suggestions. Lets hold fast to Scripture.

Pastor Dwight McKissic, who leads Cornerstone Baptist Church in Texas, argued on Twitter that Scripture is not as clear on the topic as conservative pastors say.

Rick Warren has written the best selling book in Christendom & is a SWBTS graduate, McKissic wrote in response to Allens tweet. Billy Graham affirmed women preachers. If the Scripture is clear as you say, then Ghrahm, Warren, & whoever let a woman preach in SWBTS, wouldnt have done so.

My point is, the SBC has never, ever declared Saddlebacks, Billy [Graham] or the Texas pastor where Beth Moore preached yesterday, wrong. Therefore, its technically not true, thus, inaccurate for Dr. Allen, or anyone else to claim the SBC officially forbids a woman frm preaching.
School chaplain reported as terror threat for opposing LGBT curriculum challenges firing

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A school chaplain lost his job at a Christian school and was reported to the government's counter-terrorism watchdog, Prevent, after telling students they were not compelled to "accept an ideology they disagree with," his lawyers say.

The Rev. Bernard Randall, 48, is taking Trent College to court for discrimination, harassment, victimization and unfair dismissal.

He says he preached a sermon on the biblical view of gender identity and same-sex relationships after being approached by students who were confused and upset by some of the material being taught in a new LGBT-inclusive curriculum at the school.

The curriculum was introduced at the independent school after a visit by Elly Barnes, founder of Educate & Celebrate, an LGBT education charity.

Barnes held training with staff on how they could "embed gender, gender identity and sexual orientation into the fabric of your school," he says.

Randall said he became alarmed when staff were instructed during the training session to chant "smash heteronormativity," and told that gender identity is a protected characteristic under the Equality Act.

He says that when he raised concerns, he was told by the head teacher that he would be involved in any decision on whether the school would implement the Educate & Celebrate program, but he discovered at the following staff training day in January 2019 that it had already been adopted.

When he asked why he had not been included in discussions, he says it was because he "might disagree."

In a sermon called 'Competing ideologies,' Randall presented the Christian view on gender identity, encouraged debate and told the students, aged 11 to 17, that no characteristic in the Equality Act was more protected than another.

He also told the students that they could make up their own minds about gender identity and sexuality.

The following week, he was told that his sermon had hurt people's feelings and that he was being suspended pending an investigation. He was also reported to Prevent, which deals with terrorism threats, and the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO), the point of contact for child protection allegations.

In August 2019, he was informed by the school that he was being dismissed for gross misconduct.

Although his dismissal was overturned on appeal, he says he was forbidden from speaking on topics "likely to cause offense or distress to members of the school body," and was told not to "publicly express beliefs in ways which exploit our pupils' vulnerability."

He says the school also required that he submit a draft sermon in advance for approval and that an observer be present during services.

Randall said he was "terrified" and unabled to sleep when he found out he had been reported to Prevent.

What was I supposed to tell my family? Being reported as a potential terrorist, extremist and a danger to children are arguably the worst crimes you could be accused of," he said.

"When I found out that they had reported me without telling me, my mind was blown trying to comprehend it. I had gone to such lengths in the sermon to stress that we must respect one another no matter what, even people we disagree with. I am not ashamed to say that I cried with relief when I was told that the report to Prevent was not going to be taken further.

"Yet I ended up being told that I had to support everybody else's beliefs, no matter what, while my Christian beliefs, the Church of England's beliefs, were blatantly censored."

He continued, "I don't think the Church of England is an extremist organization.

"I was doing the job I was employed to do. I wasn't saying anything that I should not have been able to say in any liberal secular institution. Everyone should be free to accept or reject an ideology. Isn't that what liberal democracy means?"

Randall was placed on furlough during the first national lockdown in March 2020 but was later made redundant last December.

"My story sends a message to other Christians that you are not free to talk about your faith. It seems it is no longer enough to just 'tolerate' LGBT ideology," he said.

"You must accept it without question and no debate is allowed without serious consequences. Someone else will decide what is and what isn't acceptable, and suddenly you can become an outcast, possibly for the rest of your life.

"I one hundred percent see what has happened to me in Orwellian terms. Truth matters, but increasingly powerful groups in our society do not care about the truth.

"My career and life are in tatters. I believe that if this is the Cross that I have to carry to help prevent others from experiencing the same as me, I have no choice but to pursue justice."

East Midlands Employment Tribunal is expected to hear his case on June 14.

Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, which is defending Randall, said: "When an ordained Church of England minister can't give a simple sermon in a Church of England school without being reported as an extremist and hounded out of his job then who is safe?

"For many years Bernard Randall has worked in education motivated by his love for God and others," Williams added. "When someone like him is pursued and punished it's an attack on us all. It's time to stand up and speak up for these freedoms.

"Is this the kind of behavior we expect from those with the care and protection of our children? Now is the time for ordinary people to wake up and contend for vital freedoms," she continued.

"All those that said it couldn't happen  punishing and criminalizing a Christian minister for preaching from the Bible  need to take a long, hard look at the story of Bernard Randall.

"Who are the extremists in this story? The moderate school chaplain with an intelligent, mild-mannered and thoughtful sermon or Educate and Celebrate encouraging staff to smash heteronormativity?"

Originally published at Christian Today
Students sue to stop Christian university from merging with art college in Tennessee

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Students and faculty at Watkins College of Art in Nashville are suing to stop the school from being absorbed by the nearby Christian nondenominational Belmont University.

On March 10, two students who are members of the LGBT community and one instructor filed legal actions in Davidson County Chancery Court to stop Belmonts acquisition of the secular, four-year art college, which has faced declining enrollment and financial uncertainty in recent years.

The merger drew concern from community members and a legislator who accused the Watkins board of trustees of acting in secrecy to complete the deal with Belmont without government oversight or the public being informed.

Questions were also raised about whether non-Christian faculty at Watkins would be able to keep their jobs once the merger is complete in fall 2020.

The agreement called for Watkins' 13-acre campus, which is about six miles from Belmonts campus and said to be worth about $15 million to $20 million, to be sold. The proceeds from the sale would be used to create an endowment for Watkins College of Art students at Belmont.

But a collective of students, faculty members and alumni have banded together in an attempt to keep Watkins College of Art open in its current form, work toward a partnership with a different institution or change existing policies at Belmont for the benefit of all current and future Watkins students.

The boards lack of transparency has severely impacted the lives of current students, reads a press release from Save Watkins collective.

The plaintiffs allege a breach of faith by the Watkins Institute commissioners and the colleges board of trustees. They requested a restraining order to immediately halt any actions by the Watkins board toward dissolving or altering the Watkins Trust, or selling any Watkins property while the matter is being considered."

The plaintiffs argue that Watkins College of Art is a public institution and the agreement between Watkins and Belmont is invalid.

Watkins College of Art was founded as a gift to the state to be held in trust for the benefit of Nashvilles youth. It was founded on land willed to the state for an educational institute by Samuel Watkins.

But in 1974, the Watkins governing board filed a charter to become a nonprofit organization. According to a legal response filed on behalf of Watkins College of Art, the institution has "no tie to the state of Tennessee" except for three commissioners appointed by the governor.

"The state has no voting control and no oversight powers with respect to Watkins' management and operations," the legal response reads.

As Inside Higher Ed points out, Watkins is technically a private institution with a unique relationship with the state as it is audited under government auditing standards that are rarely applied to private institutions. The management of the Watkins board is at all times to be subject to inquiry by the authority of the state.

The plaintiffs are asking the court to determine whether the Watkins commissioners and board of trustees can unilaterally transfer the schools associated property to a private religious institution without legislative or judicial oversight and extinguish the Watkins public trust.

The plaintiffs also question whether the schools trustees and administrators were allowed to conduct negotiations with Belmont, a school with a Baptist heritage, in secret and subsequently ignore an open records request.

Additionally, the lawsuit asks the court to determine if the dissolution of Watkins College violates the terms of Samuel Watkins 1880 will.

According to court documents, the student plaintiffs  Kenneth Straw and Amari Harris  are concerned that as members of the LGBT community they will not be welcome at the private Christian university.

Straw argues that had he known about the merger three days earlier, he would have had time to reconsider signing his lease.



It doesn't get much clearer that Watkins is a public educational institution, yet the current commissioners and board seek to ram through an insider deal that gives $20 million in state property proceeds to a private religious institution without public scrutiny or legislative oversight, adjunct professor Mark Schlicher, the third plaintiff, said in a statement.

The plaintiffs' request for a restraining order to halt the merger immediately was denied. However, a hearing for a temporary injunction against the order took place last Friday.

"In this case, Plaintiffs present affidavits containing hearsay, opinion, and mere speculation," the Watkins College of Art legal response reads. "The affidavits and Complaint together fail to establish that Watkinss actions will cause irreparable harm. Plaintiffs are unable to establish standing to challenge Watkinss actions and fail to state a claim upon which relief can be granted."

Watkins President J. Kline, who played a large part in organizing the deal, was removed from overseeing the transition process in February after criticism of the merger. The transition instead will be coordinated by Watkins Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs Cary Beth Miller.

Watkins officials maintain that the college considered other offers before agreeing to the deal with Belmont. However, Sen. Brenda Gilmore earlier this month questioned why neighboring historically black colleges Tennessee State University and Fisk University were not approached for a potential deal.

In a letter, Gilmore called for a suspension of the Watkins-Belmont deal and called on Watkins commissioners and trustees to answer community questions about the deal at a public meeting.

Gilmore said she found it troubling that she  a state senator from the district where the campus is located  was not informed about the deal. A Watkins spokesperson told Inside Higher Ed that school officials will meet with Gilmore next week.

James H. Clayton III, a duly appointed commissioner of trustees, filed an affidavit on March 19, explaining that the board turned to a "distinguished higher education consulting firm" in 2019 to assess the institution's financial struggles and declining enrollment.

The firm's report indicated that Watkins' depleted endowment would be insufficient to sustain continued operating losses, Clayton relayed. According to Clayton, Watkins would be required by federal laws and regulations to "teach out" existing classes through graduation years if it were to close down rather than merge.

"The cost of the teach out would be considerable," Clayton explained. "The only potential sources of funds to pay for the teach out would be (a) through the sale of the Campus coupled with a short-term lease obligation, or (b) if obtainable, a commercial loan secured by the Campus. Either option would severely deplete the Campus equity and result in fewer funds distributed to appropriate nonprofit entities as Watkins finalizes its ultimate dissolution and winding up process."



In fall 2019, Clayton said the board created a special committee comprised of current and former trustees and commissioners to review all possible strategic options. Such options included attracting unrestricted gifts, obtaining significant loans secured by the campus or merging with another college or university with "overlapping curricula and a stable financial future."



Clayton stressed that the committee determined that a merger was the "only viable option."



He stated that the committee approached colleges and universities around the Middle Tennessee area and Belmont "was determined to be the most suitable merger partner for a number of reasons, including that Belmont currently offers many of the same degrees and degree paths as Watkins."

Clayton assured that the board considered "feasible alternatives" to the merger.

"Ultimately, the Board determined that a Belmont merger containing the favorable terms outlined in the Term Sheet was the best available strategic decision for Watkins," he wrote.



A legal response filed by the office of Attorney General Herbert Slatery III on March 19 contends that the "petitioners do not appear to have the authority to challenge the actions" of Watkins College of Art.



The attorney general's office argues that Tennessee law dictates when the actions of a nonprofit organization can be challenged and who may bring such a challenge.



One stipulation states that a proceeding may only be brought by a "director, the attorney general, or the corporation directly..."

"Petitioners do not allege that they are directors, members, or other legal representative, nor have they brought this action as a derivative proceeding," the legal response from the attorney general's office contends.

Watkins argued in its legal response that Tennessee law makes clear that nonprofit corporations "are not answerable to the communities they serve or their employees with respect to asset sales or mergers."

Earlier this month, the New York-based commercial real estate company Somera Road offered to buy the Watkins campus for $17 million and offered a generous leaseback agreement in which Watkins College of Art could stay one-year rent-free and then pay rent that is 30 percent under market rate.

The deal would also include a $1 million escrow fund to cover short-term financial needs, according to Nashville Scene.

In a media statement, the Watkins board of trustees said that it appreciates Someras offer and will review it along with multiple other offers for the property."

Save Watkins is also calling on Republican Gov. Bill Lee to remove one of Watkins' commissioners, Susan Basham, after a process server for attorneys retained by plaintiffs said he was threatened with a gun by a man presumed to be Bashams husband at her home last Tuesday.

A police report of the incident was filed.
White evangelicals hold highest disapproval of Biden among religious groups: Pew

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Three-quarters of white evangelicals disapprove of President Joe Bidens job performance, the highest of any surveyed religious groups, according to a report by Pew Research Center.

A Pew report published last week analyzed Biden's approval ratings among several different religious groups and compared them to their approval ratings of former President Donald Trump in 2017.

According to the report, 75% of white evangelical Protestant respondents disapproved of Bidens performance as president, while 23% responded that they approve of his performance.

White non-evangelical Protestants had the second-largest disapproval rating for Biden at 53%, with Protestants overall having 50% disapproval, 48% approval.

On the opposite end, black Protestants were the least likely of surveyed religious groups to disapprove of Biden, with only 8% saying they did not like his performance as president.

Black Protestants, Hispanic Catholics and religiously unaffiliated Americans  also known as religious nones because they describe themselves, religiously, as atheist, agnostic or nothing in particular  have long been staunchly Democratic constituencies, according to Pew.

White evangelical Protestants are among the most solidly and consistently Republican religious group in the U.S., and they have grown even more uniformly Republican in recent decades. White Catholics and White Protestants who are not evangelical also have shifted in a Republican direction in recent years, Pew added.

Data for the report came, in part, from a survey conducted April 511 of 5,109 respondents, with a margin of error for the overall sample being plus or minus 2.1 percentage points.

Over the past few years, much has been made about Trump's strong support among white evangelicals, despite controversies surrounding his moral conduct.

During the 2020 election, some exit polling research suggested that Trump experienced a slight drop in white evangelical support, which might have contributed to his defeat.

An ABC network analysis of the exit polls, for example, indicated that white evangelical and born-again Christian support for Trump declined from 80% in 2016 to 76% in 2020.

Others, among them the conservative group, the Faith & Freedom Coalition, presented research showing that Bidens evangelical support was actually lower than Hillary Clintons evangelical support in 2016.

Trumps 81% of the evangelical vote tied his 2016 total, while Biden won the lowest share of the self-identified white evangelical vote ever received by a Democratic presidential nominee, the Faith & Freedom Coalition noted last November.

The post-election survey commissioned by FFC and conducted by Public Opinion Strategies also found that 31% of the electorate self-identified as conservative Christians, and these voters cast 87% of their ballots for Trump and only 11% for Biden.
Catholic school can fire teacher for being in same-sex marriage, Indiana court rules

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An Indiana court has dismissed a lawsuit filed against a Roman Catholic Archdiocese by a former private school teacher who was fired for being in a same-sex marriage.

Marion Superior Court Judge Lance D. Hamner issued an order Friday in favor of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis motion to dismiss a lawsuit by former teacher Joshua Payne-Elliot.

According to the order, the court concluded that there was a lack of subject matter jurisdiction and failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.

Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket, a law firm that represented the archdiocese, released a statement Friday expressing support for the order.

If the First Amendment means anything, it means the government cant punish the Catholic Church for asking Catholic educators to support Catholic teaching, Goodrich said.

This has always been a very simple case, because the Supreme Court has repeatedly affirmed the freedom of religious schools to choose teachers who support their religious faith.

Kathleen DeLaney, the attorney representing Payne-Elliott, told the Indianapolis Star that she took issue with the order, especially its explanation for the complaint's dismissal.

The decision itself offers no reason, no rationale, no basis, DeLaney said. We have no way to know how the judge got to the decision.

In June 2019, Payne-Elliot was fired from Cathedral High School after it was revealed that he had married another teacher of the same sex who worked at a different high school.

The firing reportedly came at the specific direction of the archdiocese, as the school had originally intended to renew his contract for the 2019-2020 school year.

Although Payne-Elliot reached a settlement with Cathedral High School soon after his firing, he filed legal action against the archdiocese, accusing it of forcing the school to dismiss him.

We hope that this case will put a stop to the targeting of LGBTQ employees and their families, said Payne-Elliot in a statement at the time, as reported by the Indianapolis Star.

A trial court had originally supported having the case go forward, however, the Indiana state Supreme Court intervened and told the lower court to reconsider the complaint.

In July 2020, the United States Supreme Court ruled 7-2 that two Catholic schools could classify their teachers as ministers and not be held to the standards of anti-discrimination laws.

Justice Samuel Alito delivered the opinion of the court, known as Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, which regarded two lawsuits against two Catholic schools in California.

The religious education and formation of students is the very reason for the existence of most private religious schools, and therefore the selection and supervision of the teachers upon whom the schools rely to do this work lie at the core of their mission, Alito wrote.

Judicial review of the way in which religious schools discharge those responsibilities would undermine the independence of religious institutions in a way that the First Amendment does not tolerate.
Mississippi community mourns loss of pastor killed after plane crashes into his home

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A Mississippi community is mourning the loss of their 55-year-old pastor who was killed by a small plane, which was carrying three Texas residents who were flying to a university graduation ceremony, that crashed into his home.

The Hattiesburg community has raised, as of early Sunday, nearly $11,000 through an online fundraiser it put together for the family of Gerry Standley, an assistant pastor at the Wayside Holy Temple church, who was one of the four people in the house when the plane, a Mitsubishi M-2B-60, crashed on Tuesday night.

The community held a candlelight vigil and balloon release Saturday evening to honor and remember the pastor.

Standley and his wife, Melinda, had celebrated their 22nd wedding anniversary last month.

Melinda, who is a division manager for the police departments 911 center, their daughter, Arrianna, and grandson, Eli, were able to get out of the house on Annie Christie Drive in the Irene Chapel neighborhood with only minor injuries when it caught fire.

We cant replace him, Standleys younger brother, Cobrin Varnado, told WLOX. We cant do what he did, but his young brothers, his sons, his nephews, we can come together and uphold the family like he would. He was a remarkable man.

Varnado said he admires his brother so much just from his relationship with God, his relationship with his wife, his family.

He connected with everyone. Everyone loved him, he loved everyone. Its going to be tough to be without him, he added.

Right now, my family is in a time of need, so we need all the help that we can get, the pastors niece, Charlisha Standley, was quoted as saying.

The fundraiser says, All money donated will help Melinda and her family during this extremely difficult time to help with funeral expenses, bills, replacing items they lost in the fire, and any other financially related needs that may arise.

The National Transportation Safety Board is handling the investigation into the plane crash, according to Hattiesburg American.

Among the four killed in the crash were the 67-year-old pilot Louis Provenza, 23-year-old Anna Calhoun, and 2-year-old Harper Provenza, USA Today quoted Forrest County Coroner Butch Benedict as saying.

According to officials of the University of Southern Mississippi, the three on the plane were traveling to Hattiesburg to attend a commencement ceremony.

My heart breaks for our student and her family, and for our community members and their family, USM President Rodney Bennett said in a statement. The university extends our deepest condolences and our thoughts and prayers to all those who are affected by this tragedy during this time of great loss.
Mike Pompeo tells Regent grads of growing threat to religious freedom: Dont compromise your beliefs

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Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned graduates of Regent University not to compromise their beliefs, even when there's a disconnect between being a good Christian and a good American.

Pompeo gave the commencement address at the Virginia Beach, Virginia-based campus Shaw Chapel to a virtual audience of approximately 2,400 graduates, reportedly the largest graduating class in Regents history.

During his remarks, Pompeo told the graduates that he believed religious liberty, especially for followers of Christ, was increasingly under attack in the United States from our government.

More and more, being a good follower of Christ is becoming less synonymous with being a good American, even though you know the history. The founding of our country is deeply rooted in Judeo-Christian values, Pompeo said.

You will need the strength of Christ in you to achieve your goals and to live in a country where you can exercise your right to worship your God as you see fit.

Theres a growing threat right here, right in our backyard, he added. No society can retain its legitimacy or a virtuous character without religious freedom.

I worry that far beyond the battle lines of defense, economic or trade policy, that the battle to stop the divorce of America from its founding values is much more important.

Pompeo argued against trying to find a middle ground with those hostile to conservative Christianity or to split the difference with ideological enemies.

Theres no country that denies religious freedom, that can ever rightly claim to be good in some other way, he continued, saying Christians in the U.S. must exercise their religious liberty with enormous vigor.

We must defend it here at home  The effort to undermine our right to practice our faith is at the very pointy end of their atheistic spear.

While virtual, the ceremony included some in-person proceedings, including singing the national anthem, the presentation of the colors by U.S. Navy reservists, a balloon drop, and founder and chancellor Pat Robertson giving a charge to the class.

There will be times when you will be based; there will be times when it looks like your life is not worth anything. There will be times when you look like a failure, Robertson said. I want to charge you right now with the words of the Apostle Paul, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. The other thing Paul said is: I know how to abound.

So whether it is abased, or whether it's abounding, however your life takes you, I want you, as my charge to you today, I want to tell you that you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you.

Last month, Pompeo told The Christian Post in an interview that he believed the Biden administration was not prioritizing religious freedom issues, stressing that they had disowned that work.

For four years, the Trump administration and the State Department, when I was leading it, placed a real premium on working around the world to promote religious freedom, Pompeo told CP.

We think its important as an independent right, but we also know that where religious freedom is expanded, countries are often more prosperous and the people there are often more secure from their government.
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A 2020 Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation poll provides a stark warning of a dangerous generational shift. According to the poll, from 2019 to 2020 American favorability of socialism went up from 36% to 40%, driven by skyrocketing numbers among younger generations. Gen Zs favorability of socialism, for example, rose 9 points over that year, going from 40% to 49%. In 2019, the Foundation found that Millennial support for communism had risen from 28% to 36%. A number of studies have shown the rise in numbers of self-proclaimed Marxists within academia, with 18% of social scientists identifying as Marxist (2016). When Americans look at what has happened on the streets since George Floyds death, its important to understand the way the rising socialist/communist dynamic is playing out a creeping Generational Transformation. Let me explain.

First, Marxist ideology posits influence of the young as the ultimate means for transforming society from capitalism to Socialism to pure Communism. It starts with removing the influence of the family, with Karl Marx advocating the abolition of the family. Marx also demanded the education of all children, from the moment that they can get along without a mother's care, shall be in state institutions. Marxs most well-known disciple, Vladimir Lenin, proclaimed of Communist indoctrination through education: Give me just one generation of youth, and I'll transform the whole world and give me four years to teach the children, and the seed planted will never be uprooted.

Much of what we have seen on the streets of America today, in the tearing down of historic memorials and burning/looting of businesses and demands for dismantling the system and abolishing police came by influences on the young. Pro-Communist publication Workers World quoted Marx and Lenin to then assert, The police cannot be reformed because, historically, there can be no reconciliation between them and the masses. The attacks on religious icons, accompanied by verbal demeaning of Christians is also in keeping with Marxist hatred of religion as the opiate of the people.

The BLM organization (distinct from the sentiment of black lives mattering, of which Americans are in agreement), has been a major catalyst for ideas and actions tied to Marxism. The primary founder of BLM, Patrisse Khan-Cullors, is not shy about this influence. In a 2015 video, Cullors admits that she and other BLM founders are trained Marxists (Note: Cullors was a protege of Eric Mann, former senior member of Marxist oriented Weather Underground terror group). On a December 14, 2020, Youtube video, attempting to answer charges of Marxism, Cullors doubled-down saying, I do believe in Marxism and that Communism has gotten a bad rap because of US propaganda. When someone made the point that Communism had failed everywhere, Cullor responded So has Capitalism.

The influence of Cullors on the next generation is instructive. Cullors published a book in 2018 directed at the young, When They Call You A Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir. Noting her book recently, Cullors said, I was speaking to this young person  he grabbed a book and he said, Its like Maos Red Book. And I was like, man, thats what I was thinking, and it was just really cool to hear him make that connection, and I was like how about you buy like 10 to 15 of these books and you all have like a youth organizing group where you talk about it and you really try to engage this  We need to build off of this.

Cullors agreement her book can be compared to Mao is shocking. Maos Little Red Book was Originally produced in 1964 by the People's Liberation Army - an early version was titled 200 Quotations from Chairman Mao - it soon became a key feature of the leader's personality cult. Quotations include Marxist gems, such as, Every communist must grasp the truth, political power grows out of the barrel of a gun and "A revolution is not a dinner party, or writing an essay, or painting a picture, or doing embroidery... A revolution is an insurrection, an act of violence by which one class overthrows another.". Tens of millions of Chinese were murdered during Maos cultural revolution following the Little Red Book, and owning it "became a way of surviving", says Daniel Leese, professor of modern Chinese history and politics at the University of Freiburg. Young, murderous university students called "Red Guards" would search citizens to ensure they had a copy of the book and could quote a passage. Failing this test usually meant death, torture, or imprisonment. Radical Western terror groups, like the Weather Underground and Black Panthers, prized the Little Red Book.

Americans need to wake up to the revolution within, coming through a generational transformation to disastrous and failed ideology. The freedom and Constitutional system we have held sacred becomes an enemy to dismantle for the future Socialist or Communist State. The way back will take great time and effort, and starts with our children. Specifically, the teaching or our children in the Judeo-Christian values and worldview that made America great. As British historian Paul Johnson has written about American exceptionalism, America is a God-fearing country, with all that implies. Lets transform the next generation to be the God-fearing country of our past.
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My name is Joy Granados. Im a 38-year-old woman with cystic fibrosis who has struggled to become pregnant because of my age and disease. On April 5, 2021, my husband Vini and I buried our child 36 days after he was born. We were told by doctors that he was incompatible with life because of Trisomy 18, but the hundreds of people who attended his funeral physically and virtually disagree. So do Vini and I.

My brother is a Catholic priest who delivered Mateos homily. I gave the eulogy. Republished below with minor edits is what was delivered for Mateo and 200 attendees on April 5. What I want people to know is that Vini and I embraced Mateos life to the fullest for 259 combined days of pregnancy and post-birth life. It was heart-shattering, but I wouldnt change a thing.

The sorrow is often more than Vini and I can bear. But I will be Mateos mother for eternity, and Vini his father.

Eulogy

Thank you so much for being here to celebrate with us the life of Mateo Augusto.

As a child, I always loved the Choose Your Own Adventure books. These are books where you can choose the ending you want, by turning to a different page in the book. How I wish Vini and I could just turn to a different page in the book of our marriage for a different ending to the life of our son.

As most of you know, I have cystic fibrosis. When Mateo was diagnosed with Trisomy 18, I realized that I had been given CF for my son. A son who would have a lifetime of doctors appointments and would need a mother who knew how to be his best medical advocate and protector. Something that CF taught me throughout my life. I wanted the ending to be that, just like his mama, Mateo beat all the medical odds, and the miracle of his life would continue to glorify the kingdom of God.

God told me in prayer, shortly after my first trimester, I took care of you and your Cystic Fibrosis and against all odds, you survived. I have plans for your son and I will take care of him, you need to just trust me and embrace his life. Well, Gods definition of taking care of Mateo and my definition were very different.

Yet this ending has brought us blessings that we could not otherwise have experienced. The blessing of Mateo interceding for us from heaven. We have felt the grace and strength of the supernatural as you all have prayed for Mateo and our family. Vini and I were humbled by watching the care and love that Mateo received from his doctors and nurses each day, while fighting for his life with us. We were so blessed by those caregivers, including Dr. Steinhorn, who flew in from San Diego on a red eye to monitor Mateos portable vent (that Hopkins made happen) so we could have a few hours together at home instead of the thirty minutes as originally planned. That truly was a direct gift from God.

I didnt know that death could be beautiful for those left behind, until I bathed, washed, dressed and prepared my son's body to be taken by the funeral home. I drank in that face. That sweet face that was free of tape and tubes. The face of how God exactly made him. I loathe the fact that only once my son was dying could I see that face.

As Mateo was dying in our arms at home, a scene from the Trilogy Lord of the Rings, came to me. The scene when Sam held Frodo in his arms after Frodo had been stung by Shelob, the spider, and Sam presumed Frodo dead. With tear stained cheeks, Sam told his companion and friend, Please, Mr. Frodo, dont go where I cant follow. Wake up, Wake up! Now, our cheeks were tear stained and Mateo was going where we could not follow, at least FOR NOW, and our hearts shattered.

Vini says, and I agree, we are both better human beings for having known Mateo. He has changed us, and we will never be the same. He has made all things new for us, as Christ makes all things new for all of us. We have learned so much from our son. We have learned to embrace the joy of the present and let go of the fear for the future. I have learned the purpose of my life as a mother and the feeling of completeness I now have because I have been able to experience it. The purpose of being a mother, MATEOs MOTHER. I take comfort in the words my uncle Bill said to my father at his sons burial, the good news is, it doesnt get worse than this.

Now we walk through a valley of tears but amidst the tears there still is joy to be felt. The joy of 36 days of Mateo snuggles and those sweet eyes, MY EYES. The joy that my son was an incredible source of light and love on this earth and that he inspired so many. Not all Trisomy18 parents can say the same. Our hearts are shattered, but we need to count our blessings as Jesus counts our tears of which there are many. Some doctors say, "Trisomy 18 babies are incompatible with life." Well Mateo IS compatible with life and as his Tio Father Scott says, but maybe he was not compatible with this world. His soul is too pure, so the Lord brought him home. Since his passing, I have moments where I feel a sense of peace and a slight pressure around me, as though Mateo is hugging and comforting his mama, even in death, as I tried to comfort him in life.

Driving home from the hospital, we asked Mama Mary to come and take our son, to her son, when the time came. Many of you had the privilege of knowing my grandmother, Lorraine, grandmolie. I had a vision that night that once Mama Mary brought Mateo to Jesus, grandmolie ran to the gates, pushing people out of the way, saying, get out of my way, THATS MY GREAT GRANDSON!

The thought of grandmolie watching Mateo, who is no longer disabled, running, laughing, and playing always brings a smile to my face. Our boy is in the highest pinnacle of heaven, for people who never sinned on Earth. How perfect. Amen.
Belgium warned its euthanasia law is spiraling out of control as hundredfold more are killed

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Several countries criticized Belgium for its 2002 euthanasia law at a meeting of the U.N. Human Rights Council this week, urging it to protect people with disabilities and the elderly, noting that registered euthanasia deaths had experienced a hundredfold increase in that country.

Sadly, over the years, we have seen Belgiums euthanasia law spiral out of control, Giorgio Mazzoli, U.N. legal officer for ADF International, said in a statement, which noted that the law was expanded in 2014 to enable doctors to end the lives of children of any age.

Citing a case, it said the life of a 23-year-old female was tragically ended by euthanasia due to her battle with mental health issues.

Belgium is undergoing a Universal Periodic Review, during which states are scrutinized on their human rights record and called to consider reforms.

The group said Belgium experienced a hundredfold increase in registered euthanasia deaths since euthanasia was legalized in 2002. In 2017, almost 20% of deaths by euthanasia in Belgium were carried out on patients displaying symptoms common with aging, it added.

A fair and just society cares for its most vulnerable. International law protects everyones inherent right to life and requires countries to protect the dignity and lives of all people, rather than help ending them, Mazzoli continued, urging the Belgian government to bring an end to euthanasia and redirect resources into improving palliative care for those reaching the natural end of their lives.

ADF International is supporting a case that challenges the euthanasia law in Belgium at the European Court of Human Rights.

The petitioner is Tom Mortier, whose mother died from a lethal procedure in 2012.

Belgian law states that the person must be in a medically futile condition of constant and unbearable physical or mental suffering that cannot be alleviated, resulting from a serious and incurable disorder caused by illness or accident.

Mortiers mother was physically healthy, and her treating psychiatrist of more than 20 years did not believe that she satisfied the legal requirements of the Belgian euthanasia law, the group said. Nonetheless, she was euthanized in 2012 by an oncologist with no known psychiatric qualifications.

Neither the oncologist who administered the injection nor the hospital had informed me or any of my siblings that our mother was even considering euthanasia, Mortier was quoted as saying. I found out a day later when I was contacted by the hospital, asking me to take care of the practicalities.

Informing the family if someone wishes to be euthanized is not legally required in Belgium.

The doctor who euthanized Mortiers mother co-chairs the Federal Commission, which reviews euthanasia cases to ensure the law has been respected, the group noted. He also leads a pro-euthanasia organization which received a payment from Tom Mortiers mother in the weeks preceding her death.

In January 2018, representatives of the Roman Catholic Church warned that the euthanasia law was being abused as patients were being killed without the proper legal checks.

In the summer of 2018, it was widely reported that in 2016 and 2017, three children younger than 18 were put to death by euthanasia in Belgium. In addition to a 17-year-old suffering from muscular dystrophy, a 9-year-old who had a brain tumor and an 11-year-old with cystic fibrosis also died by euthanasia in that two-year period.

Last November, Belgian authorities investigated about 10 allegedly illegal euthanasia-related deaths in Leuven, a city east of Brussels.
China: Authorities arrest preacher of heavily-persecuted house church for officiating funeral

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Communist authorities arrested a preacher from the heavily-persecuted house church in southwestern Chinas Sichuan province, Early Rain Covenant Church, for allegedly disturbing public order by officiating a members funeral.

Preacher Wu Wuqing was arrested by officers from Damian Police Station in Chengdu citys Longquanyi District on Friday afternoon, hours after the funeral service, the U.S.-based persecution watchdog International Christian Concern reported, saying it learned about the arrest from ERCCs prayer request.

Wu, who's also been persecuted in the past, was released late in the evening.

Authorities have shut down utilities at his home many times, and Chengdu police have threatened that if he continues to serve at ERCC, they will intensify their crackdown and monitoring of his movements, ICC said.

Over two years ago, authorities shuttered the 5,000-member church, broke down the doors of church members and leaders homes, and arrested more than 100 people. Police continue to harass and track ERCC members today, according to a recent report from the U.S.-based group China Aid.

House churches across China are seeing an increased harassment from church raid, crackdown on their activities, to the detention of their leaders, Gina Goh, ICCs regional manager for Southeast Asia, said. Beijing seeks to intimidate the leaders in hopes that the churches will dissolve due to fear. Their plot will not succeed, thanks to the resiliency of the Chinese house church. They survived the Cultural Revolution, and they will survive Xis era as well.

In April, authorities harassed and criminalized house church leaders across China, including elder Zhang Chunlei from Guiyang Renai Reformed Church, preacher Zhang Peihong at Shanghai Lancun Zhongyue Church, and preachers Qie Jiafu and Huang Chunzi at Beijings Zion Church. All of them fell victim to the latest clampdown.

Last month, several members of the ERCC were also arrested by the Public Security Bureau for participating in an online Easter worship service on Zoom and ordered to cease all religious activity.

A Christian, who did not reveal her name, told China Aid that over the last weekend, police brought in ERCC members in charge of church activities and online services and demanded that they stop all activities.

A supporter of ERCC shared on Twitter: Since 8:30 a.m., some security officials have entered these Christian families homes and pretended to be chatting with them casually. At 9:30 a.m., the worship began, and they were also invited to participate. Once they realized that the sermon was from ERCCs imprisoned pastor Wang Yi, they immediately shut it down.

ERCC, led by pastor Wang Yi, has not been able to gather in person since it was shut down in 2018, and its pastor and other leaders were arrested. Pastor Wang was later sentenced to nine years in prison on charges of subversion of power and illegal business operations.

Authorities in China are also continuing their crackdown on Christianity by removing Bible Apps and Christian WeChat public accounts as new highly restrictive administrative measures on religious staff went into effect last week.

Father Francis Liu from the Chinese Christian Fellowship of Righteousness said in a tweet that some Christian WeChat accounts, including Gospel League and Life Quarterly, were no longer available online, ICC reported at the time.

Last month, Asia News reported that Chinese authorities punished a man who provided a worship venue for believers, fining him $30,000 under the charge of hosting illegal religious activities.

According to recently-released reports, religious persecution in China intensified in 2020, with thousands of Christians affected by church closures and other human rights abuses.

Under the direction of President Xi Jinping, CCP officials are enforcing strict controls on religion, according to a report released in March by China Aid.

Open Doors USAs World Watch List ranks China as one of the worst countries in the world when it comes to the persecution of Christians. The organization notes that all churches are perceived as a threat if they become too large, too political or invite foreign guests.

In addition to Early Rain Covenant Church, the Chinese Communist Party has shuttered a number of well-known churches, including Rongguili Church in Guangzhou and Xunsiding Church in Xiamen.

The U.S. State Department has also labeled China as a country of particular concern for continuing to engage in particularly severe violations of religious freedom.
Church of Scotland to debate legislation on same-sex marriage

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The Church of Scotland's General Assembly meeting later this month will debate legislation on allowing ministers to conduct same-sex marriages.

The legislation means that ministers and deacons would be able to apply for a license to become authorized celebrants for same-sex marriage ceremonies.

Provisions in the legislation say that no one will be forced to participate in or be involved in the arrangements for a same-sex marriage unless they explicitly wish to do so.

The proposals are being brought after the 2018 General Assembly instructed the Legal Questions Committee to prepare draft legislation.

If the Assembly, meeting from May 2227, passes the legislation, it will then be shared with presbyteries for their consideration, with all responses to be returned to the principal clerk by no later than Dec. 31.

The Rev. Grant Barclay, the convener of the Legal Questions Committee, said: "The committee recognizes that there are diverse views on the subject of same-sex marriage. We are committed to ensuring that any resulting debates on this subject are held in a spirit of humility and grace, that the tone and tenor of discussions are civil, and that people are respectful of those who hold opposing views.

"The proposed Act makes clear that no one who does not wish to be involved in the celebration of same-sex marriage shall be required to do so, and this principle of protection and accommodation runs throughout the committee's thinking in drafting the legislation.

"Following presentation of this draft legislation, it is for the Assembly to decide what, if anything, to do with it. The Legal Questions Committee offers no theological view on the issue, and it shall be for the Assembly to determine what steps are now taken."

Originally published at Christian Today
Archaeologists discover rare 2,000-y-o oil lamp in Jerusalems City of David on Pilgrimage Road

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The Israel Antiquities Authority announced the discovery of a rare oil lamp, with its wick still preserved, from under the foundation of a building erected on Jerusalems famed Pilgrimage Road soon after the destruction of the Second Temple almost 2,000 years ago.

The IAA researchers believe the bronze lamp, shaped like a grotesque face cut in half and estimated to be from the late first century or the early second century CE, was put in the foundation of the building in Jerusalems City of David for good fortune, The Times of Israel reported.

This half of a lamp, and in fact half a face, which was discovered in the City of David, is a very rare object, with only a few discovered in the whole world, and is the first of its kind to be discovered in Jerusalem, Yuval Baruch of the IAA was quoted as saying.

It is possible that the importance of the building, and the need to bless its activity with luck by burying a foundation deposit, was due to its proximity to the Siloam Pool, which was also used in the Roman period as the central source of water within the city, IAA archaeologist Ari Levy told The Jerusalem Post.

Speaking to Haaretz, Levy explained, Foundation deposits, in general, go back to the dim reaches of antiquity. It was accepted in construction in general, to bring luck and symbolic defense of the building  and to cast fear and awe on attackers. Its significance was highly symbolic, not functional.

Haaretz said the lamp featured a goaty male half-face complete with (half a) satyrs beard and a horned forehead.

Only one other such lamp has ever been found in an archaeological context  and that was in Budapest, according to Levy.

Experts believe that Pilgrimage Road, where the building had been erected, is the path ancient Jews walked to reach the Temple Mount three times a year  in the festivals of Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot.

The street was built during the period of Governor Pontius Pilates, Levy said. It was inaugurated around the year 30 CE and it was used for about 40 years until the Temple was destroyed in 70 CE.

Baruch added: Decorated bronze oil lamps were discovered throughout the Roman Empire. For the most part, such oil lamps stood on stylish candelabras or were hung on a chain. Collections around the world contain thousands of these bronze lamps, many of which were made in intricate shapes, indicating the artistic freedom that Roman metal artists possessed.
On the unicorn trail: five near-mythical wines to buy right now

Specialist Charles Foley explains why oenophiles fantasise about these rare vintages  illustrated with examples from Christies forthcoming sales

What is a unicorn wine? Snow-white, fleet of foot and spiral-horned: the unicorn is the most famous of fabled creatures, emerging from the stories of the Indus Valley, cantering through Greek mythology and arriving, with a toss of its mane, in medieval European folklore. It is a global symbol for rarity, purity and grace. In the world of fine wine, unicorn wines have become the new holy grail of collectors and connoisseurs. These rare vintages are often produced in limited numbers on tiny plots, and as supply dwindles, the few bottles that are left, secreted in cellars across the world, are raised to unicorn status. For the auction specialist, locating bottles of such wines is an unmeasurable privilege and pleasure, as is sharing their story and offering them for sale. For the collector, winning them at auction and hosting a dinner in their honour is akin to seeing a unicorn trot past your eyes. Domaine Leflaive, Montrachet 2002 The worlds most lauded white wine is Montrachet (scabby hill), which gets its name from the flat, rocky grand cru plot in the Cote de Beaune it comes from  the best vineyard in a sequence that includes the grand cru Batard-Montrachet, Bienvenues-Batard-Montrachet, Chevalier-Montrachet and Criots-Batard-Montrachet, as well as the 1er Cru Puligny Montrachet Les Pucelles. A medieval legend tells of an ageing Lord of Montrachet who, riding past the convent of Clos des Pucelles, heard a beautiful young virgin singing within. A son was born of the liaison, and when the Lords legitimate heir, the Chevalier, died in battle, it was decided that his illegitimate (batard) son should replace him. Naturally, the villagers welcomed his arrival to the Chateau with cries of Bienvenue batard!.

This legend has become intertwined with vinous history, and these exceptional plots now carry names cropped from the local folklore of Burgundy. The 2002 vintage from the foremost producer, Domaine Leflaive, is a sublime expression of Chardonnay: ripe and powerful, with an ability to mature in bottle to gain complex notes of butterscotch, mushroom and toffee. Domaine Coche-Dury, Corton-Charlemagne 1990 The fabled history of Corton-Charlemagne can be traced back to the court of the bearded Emperor Charlemagne. The hedonistic Holy Roman Emperor had ordered plantings of Pinot Noir in Burgundy, and he guzzled the wine they produced with abandon. But as the Emperor grew old and his hand became unsteady, he began to dribble the Pinot Noir into his long white beard. Switching to white, he saw to it that one side of Le Corton hill was planted with Chardonnay.

Since 1986, the acclaimed producer Domaine Coche-Dury has crafted sumptuous yet lifted grand cru Chardonnay from the Corton-Charlemagne vines, fermenting the wines in new oak with some lees stirring. Impossibly rare vintages such as 1990 are brioche-rich and verbena-blossomed, yet with a glorious struck-match reduction that makes them fresh and lively years after bottling. Domaine Leroy, Musigny 1993 Lalou-Bize Leroy is a force of nature. After taking over the reins at Maison Leroy in 1955, she maintained the high standards of her father, Henri, who had bought the best Cote dOr wines for production under his own label. The family were also part owners of the Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, the other great name in Burgundy winemaking, and the wines from both estates are among the most collectable in the world. Other winemakers might be content with such achievements. Not so Lalou. In the late-1980s, she added vineyards to the barrels her father had bought, and began crafting handsome wines from plots such as Richebourg and Romanee-Saint-Vivant.

She now owns four hectares of Musigny, bought from Domaine Moine-Hudelot, and production is tiny  in great years, such as the mythical 1993, only two barrels might be produced. Lalou maintains that 90 per cent of the estates work is in the vineyard, and shes an innovator, allowing the vines to flourish without cutting, and overseeing a savage selection process. Musigny 1993 is lushly textured and decadently rich, with a horsetail of spice. Chateau Cheval-Blanc 1921 In early 2021, Christies specialist Edwin Vos was happily inspecting a Swiss cellar of rare and exceptional wines when he came across a bin reserved for Chateau Cheval Blanc 1921, resting under 100 years of dust. Knowing the vintage to be a favourite of Michael Broadbent MW, Vos was naturally eager to try it. And over dinner with the owner, he was thrilled to discover a panoply of dried fig notes layered by baking spices and blood-orange complexity. The smoky bacon weight of the wine was equally delightful.

Chateau Cheval-Blanc 1921. 6 bottles per lot. Sold for CHF 91,875 on 11 May 2021 at Christies in Geneva

Produced from a glorious crop of grapes that followed a hot Bordeaux summer, the 1921 vintage was the earliest since 1893 and Albert Laussac-Fourcaud had only started picking on 19 September. (Due to climate change, harvests now start in late August!) What Laussac-Fourcaud had noted was the high (14.2%) alcohol content of the crop and its beautiful phenolic and fruit ripeness. The crop went into wooden vats for fermentation and barrels for ageing before being bottled and despatched around the world, including Geneva, where a number of bottles were picked up by the current owner. Six are now offered in the Centenary Anniversary sale on 11 May at Christies in Geneva.

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Grand Constance 1821 In 1821, as Napoleon breathed his last on St Helena, the grapes of his favourite wine were ripening on the vine. Harvested late for optimal sweetness levels, they were then pressed hard for maximum sugar extraction, producing a blend of ripe and raisined red Muscadel and Pontac  30 years before the phylloxera blight.

Grand Constance 1821. 1 bottle per lot. Estimate: 4,000-6,000. Offered in The Bicentenary Anniversary, Cape Fine and Rare Wine Auction (in association with Christies) on 22 May in Stellenbosch
Is it a scam or not? In his recent appearance on Saturday Night Live (SNL) , Elon Musk called Dogecoin a "scam." However, this Monday, CNN Business reported that the founder of Tesla and SpaceX will accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment in a space mission of his company.

According to the media, a Canadian company, called Geometric Energy Corporation, confirmed that it will pay SpaceX to send a 40 kg satellite on a space mission solely with digital currency.
SALEM, Ore.  Oregon lawmakers have passed a bill to give tenants who are struggling with financial hardships due to the pandemic more time to pay past-due rent.

Currently tenants have until July, but the legislation will extend the deadline to next Feb. 28. The bill already passed the Senate and now goes to the governor.

The measure protects renters from the long-term impact of not making payments on time by barring such information from being reported to consumer credit agencies or being used in consideration of future rental applications. The measure also bars landlords from screening out applicants based on pandemic-era evictions.

In March, more than 17% of Oregon renters in a U.S. Census survey reported being behind on rent payments.

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THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

 A jumbo pop-up hospital treating COVID-19 patients in hard-hit Mumbai has more than 2,000 beds, most of them full

 WHO official strongly denies making false statements to Italian prosecutors about U.N. report into Italys virus response

 Argentina's doctors adapt, more learn intensive-care techniques as COVID-19 puts younger patients in hospitals

 Mexico says Russia is having production problems with its Sputnik V vaccine; Russia denies the report.

 Volunteers at Hindu temples, Muslim groups and Sikh relief organizations in US mobilize to support India during its virus surge

 Follow more of APs pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine

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HERES WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

COLUMBIA, South Carolina  South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster has issued an executive order allowing parents to opt their children out of wearing masks in public schools.

In his announcement Tuesday, the governor cited the widespread access to coronavirus vaccines for adults across the state.

McMasters statement says that it goes against all logic to continue to force our children  especially our youngest children  to wear masks against their parents wishes.

The order also bars state and local government agencies from requiring people to show proof of vaccination in order to receive government services or access public buildings and facilities.

The governors order also limits local governments from issuing mask ordinances based on his prior emergency declarations related to the pandemic. Those governments will have to find justification for such mask rules within their own ordinances.

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SALEM, Ore.  Oregons government has set vaccination targets that officials hope will lead to the reopening of the states economy.

Gov. Kate Brown said Tuesday most statewide pandemic restrictions will be lifted when 70% of Oregons residents 16 and older get the first coronavirus vaccine dose. In addition, individual counties can move into the lower risk category for restrictions once 65% of the areas eligible population is vaccinated.

Currently, 35% of Oregons people are fully vaccinated.

Brown cautions that Oregon may continue to require the use of masks and physical distancing.

Just last month, the governor put 15 Oregon counties into the extreme risk category that bans indoor dining and significantly reduces gym and indoor entertainment capacities due to increasing COVID-19 cases.

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HARTFORD, Conn.  Connecticut education and health officials are working to organize clinics that will give children between 12 and 15 years of age access to Pfizers coronavirus vaccine as soon as the federal government gives final approval for that age group.

The Department of Education said Tuesday that clinics have already been held at schools in more than 30 districts for youngers 16 to 18 year old.

Clinics are now being planned that could be expanded to vaccinate younger students. But the department says some local districts may opt instead for bus trips to mass vaccination sites or work with local providers to schedule vaccinations.

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MONTPELIER, Vt.  Vermont says it is ready to begin providing the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine to adolescents between the ages of 12 to 15 within days of its use being authorized by the federal government,.

Vermont's state health commission said Tuesday that vaccinations could begin being administered to adolescents soon after approval, which is widely expected to come Wednesday.

Vaccination clinics are being planned for more than 40 schools, and adolescents will be able to get the vaccine at any location that offers the Pfizer vaccine. There are about 27,000 Vermonters in the 12-15 age group.

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TORONTO  Canadas largest province says it will stop giving out first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine due to concerns over blood clots.

Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams says the decision has been made out of an abundance of caution because of increased instances of a rare blood clotting disorder linked to the shot.

AstraZeneca is restricted in some European countries because of a potential link to extremely rare blood clots. In Canada, at least 12 cases have been confirmed out of more than two million doses given and three women have died.

Ontario says it has 49,280 doses of the shot remaining in the province out of over 707,000 received. Health officials are awaiting results of a clinical trial in the United Kingdom looking at giving a different vaccine for the second dose. That would allow people who got AstraZeneca first to be given Pfizer or Moderna for their second dose.

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LAS VEGAS -- Health officials in Nevada have said Clark County might not be vaccinating people fast enough to reach the states goal to remove capacity limits and social distancing requirements next month.

Southern Nevada Health District Chief Health Officer Dr. Fermin Leguen said about 50% of eligible residents 16 and older, or about 919,000 people, had received at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccines as of Friday.

Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak set a state goal to reduce restrictions by June 1. But Clark County, which includes Las Vegas, set a threshold to vaccinate 60% of its population, or more than a million people, before fully reopening.

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PHOENIX -- Arizona health officials announced Tuesday the the seven state-run COVID-19 vaccination sites are poised to begin offering shots to children ages 12 to 15 starting Thursday.

The Department of Health Services made its announcement a day after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave emergency-use authorization for the administration of Pfizers vaccine to the 12 to 15 age group.

A federal advisory committee and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are expected to follow suit on Wednesday. Arizona has state-run vaccination sites in metro Phoenix, Tucson, Yuma and Flagstaff.

Arizona on Tuesday reported 683 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases and 19 more deaths.

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PARIS  French Health Minister Olivier Veran, a neurologist, has administrated vaccine shots to several people himself in the Paris southern suburb of Montrouge, as France seeks to speed up its COVID-19 vaccination program.

On Tuesday, authorities allowed all people over 18 to get access to vaccines if some appointments remain available for the following day. All people over 50 and those with specific health issues can book in advance.

As the country is gradually reopening, the French government expect 20 million people, or 38% of the adult population, will have received at least one dose at mid-May. At the current speed, between 2.5 million and 3 million people are vaccinated every week.

Terrasses of cafes and restaurants, museums and non essential shops are set to reopen on May 19.

Numbers of daily infections have started decreasing in recent weeks. Over 4,700 COVID-19 patients were still in intensive care units on Tuesday.

France has reported almost 107,000 virus-related deaths.

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BANGKOK  Buddhist monks in Thailand held a national prayer event Tuesday evening to boost the nations morale as the country struggles to curb a surge of COVID-19 cases.

The governments National Office of Buddhism ordered all temples nationwide to hold the prayer event, and issued a handbook with several pages of ceremonial chants used to banish danger and disease during Buddhas era. The office said it was taking action because the countrys third wave of the coronavirus was affecting the minds and bodies of monks and other Buddhists,

Thailands Supreme Patriarch, Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong  head of the countrys Buddhist clergy  led a prayer session lasting about an hour from his temple in the Thai capital Bangkok, which was broadcast live by the governments television station. The words to the chants were shown onscreen for viewers who want to pray along from home.

Thai health authorities earlier Tuesday announced 1,919 new confirmed cases of the disease, bringing the total to 86,924 since January last year. They also announced 31 new deaths, bringing the total fatalities to 452.

The third wave of the coronavirus, which is deemed to have begun on April 1, has accounted for 58,061 of Thailands total cases, and 358 of its total deaths.

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LONG BEACH, Calif. -- The city of Long Beach, California, is offering tickets to the Aquarium of the Pacific as an incentive to overcome resistance to COVID-19 vaccinations.

The Aquarium of the Pacific is one of the Los Angeles regions major attractions, drawing about 1.7 million visitors annually.

Long Beach will give two aquarium tickets to anyone receiving their first dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or a single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at any city-run vaccination site, the city said Tuesday. The offer runs through May 15.

While we have made tremendous strides in vaccinating 60% of eligible Long Beach residents and 96% of our seniors, we know that vaccine hesitancy for some is real, Mayor Robert Garcia said in a statement. We are going to do everything we can to encourage folks to get vaccinated, and that includes incentives.

City Health and Human Services Director Kelly Colopy said the recent slowdown in vaccinations in California includes Long Beach.

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NEW YORK  Vaccination rates for retirement-age Americans have been lowest in states in the South, according to a new government study.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers sought to figure out if places with lower vaccination rates for that age group had anything in common. They found lower vaccination rates in counties where fewer older adults have a computer or Internet access, and in counties where more people 65 and live alone or in poverty.

The CDC released the report Tuesday. CDC researchers looked at vaccination data from mid-December, when coronavirus vaccine first became available, through April 10.

The researchers found that, overall, 79% of people age 65 and older had received at least one dose of vaccine. But vaccination rates were more than 99% of seniors in New Hampshire, and as low as 69% in Alabama, Mississippi and West Virginia.

The percentage of people age 65 to 74 who were vaccinated was higher than the percentage of people 75 and older who got a shot. Also, vaccinations were a bit more common in men than in women.

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OTTAWA, Ontario  Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says almost 50% of eligible adults in Canada have received at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccine.

Trudeau says by the summer, Canada will have enough vaccines so that every eligible resident will have gotten their first dose, and by September, it will have enough doses for everyone to be fully vaccinated.

He says we can have a better, one-dose summer, as long as restrictions remain in place for case numbers to go down and more than 75% of Canadians get their first dose. He says a one-dose summer sets us up for a two-dose fall, when Canadians will be able to talk about going back to school, back to work, and back to more normality.

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OMAHA, Neb.  The pace of coronavirus vaccinations in Nebraska has slowed significantly over the past month.

The state said 49,016 vaccine doses were administered in Nebraska last week. That continues the steady decline seen in recent weeks when roughly 70,000 and 93,000 doses were administered. The latest weekly total of vaccine doses is less than one-quarter of the mid-April peak of 211,057 doses in a single week.

Health officials said 49.9% of the states population over the age of 16 has now been vaccinated and 1.55 million doses have been administered statewide since December. But demand for the shots has weakened across the state.
We wanted to take the opportunity to recognize the role of moms on the path to success of great entrepreneurs.

After all, Abraham Lincoln himself once said "All that I am and all that I hope to be I owe to my mother."

Although many successful people do not speak of the role of their mothers in their lives, many legendary entrepreneurs know how to recognize the role of their families in preparing the way for them. From giving them the right values, fueling their talents, and even supporting their passions, these women helped guide these men who have transformed the world.

1. Maye Musk: determined to be more than just a pretty face

Photo: Joe Corrigan / Stringer | Getty Images

You could put Maye Musk - Elon's mother - on Mars and the 68-year-old entrepreneur and model would find a way to excel.

This lady had a modeling career that spanned five decades, beginning in Pretoria, South Africa, when she was 15 years old and continuing with a nude at age 63 for the cover of New York Magazine. In addition, he was a star of campaigns for Revlon, Clinique and Virgin Airlines.

He had to rebuild his life several times after his divorce and several moves (two of them to other countries). She opened a nutrition clinic at age 22 while raising and supporting three children alone: Tosca, Elon, and Kimball.

"Poverty makes you work very hard," she told The Huffington Post. "I had to juggle my business, modeling career and being a single mother."

Her son Elon moved to Canada when he was 17 years old and Maye followed him by taking various jobs at the University of Toronto so that her children could have an education. When Elon and Kimball moved to Silicon Valley to build their first business, Zip2, they did so with money Mom gave them.

It's clear where Elon Musk got his push from.

2. Eve Branson: a great lady



Photo: Karwai Tang | Getty Images

Richard Branson is famous for his adventures, so it's no wonder his mother also has a taste for danger.

Born in Middlesex, England in 1924, this daughter of a military officer disguised herself as a man so she could fly a glider. She also volunteered as a nurse practitioner in the Royal Navy during World War II.

He was an artist and flight attendant with South American Airways before marrying and having three children.

Motherhood didn't stop her. After her husband failed his bar exam, Eve started a landscaping business in her own backyard to earn money. She was also a police officer and a real estate executive.

Eve, now 91, now works alongside her famous son at the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children and also founded a non-governmental organization to train unemployed people in Morocco.

When asked how she maintains her vigor, she says the key is dating young men and drinking lots of cocktails.

3. Karen Kempner: the simple doctor

Photo: Mark Zuckerberg | Facebook

There is not much information in the media about the mother of what could be the most famous and influential tech entrepreneur in the world: Facebook CEO and co-founder Mark Zucekrberg. And it seems that this is how you want it.

Kempner was a Brooklyn University graduate when she met her husband, Edward Zuckerberg, a dental student at New York University, on a blind date. She and Edward married in 1979 and moved near the school where she was preparing to be a psychiatrist. Together they had four children.

After obtaining her degree, she dedicated herself to working in her husband's clinic, which was a small room in the house in which they lived. In fact, despite having $ 60 million worth of Facebook shares, the couple still lives there.

In a radio interview, Edward said that his wife was a "super woman" because she had managed to work and be at home with the children.

It is obvious that the CEO of Facebook shares this good opinion of his mother. During a meeting with the Prime Minister of India in 2015, he discussed his mother with the politician.

4. Mary Maxwell Gates: a brilliant and philanthropic mind

Photo: Darren McCollester / Stringer | Getty Images | Worked by Entrepreneur

When he talks about his mother, Microsoft founder Bill Gates - the richest man in the world - frequently remembers a letter he wrote to his then fiancee Melinda the day before their wedding.

"Much is expected of those who receive a lot," the letter read.

Mary Maxell Gates, was a generous-hearted woman who died six months after of breast cancer at the age of 64. Gates kept his mother's letter and uses it to inspire his philanthropic actions, such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Mary was a great student in high school and college, where she met her husband, Bill Sr. Together they had three children. I work on the board of trustees for a number of prominent organizations, including the United Way. He convinced his son to start a charity campaign among his employees.

He was regent of the University of Washington in 1975 and promoted the effort of this institution to fight against apartheid in South Africa.

Bill and his mother had various confrontations in their youth, but no one can doubt that she supported him in everything. When her son dropped out of Harvard to start Microsoft in 1975, she used her connections so she could close her first major deal with IBM to develop the operating system for the company's first personal computer.

Copyright 2021 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
LONDON (AP)  A former English National Ballet principal dancer was convicted Tuesday of sexually assaulting young female dance students.

Yat-Sen Chang, 49, was found guilty of 12 counts of sexual assault and one count of assault by penetration. The offenses took place at the English National Ballet and Young Dancers Academy in London from 2009 to 2016, and relate to four teens who were between 16 and 18 years old at the time.

The victims accused Chang of touching them inappropriately during massages at the schools. During the trial, Chang said he had no idea why the allegations were made against him, and said he hadn't touched any of the complainants in an inappropriate or sexual way.

But prosecutors described Chang as an internationally renowned ballet dancer who used his position to commit sexual offenses against young students he taught.

Yat-Sen Chang used his position as a famed and trusted ballet teacher to groom and sexually assault teenage dancers under his training, senior prosecutor Nahid Mannan said. At 20 years their senior, Chang would have been well aware that his conduct was grossly inappropriate and predatory.

The jury convicted Chang, who was born in Cuba and now lives in the German port city of Kiel, after 13 hours of deliberations.

He was remanded in custody to be sentenced on June 18.
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New Yorkers have been waiting to elect Bill de Blasios successor for years. But with the Democratic primary now less than a month away, the race to replace the beleaguered mayor as the city emerges from one of the most trying periods in its history  feels a little weird. At the very least, its been unconventional. Its safe to say no one envisioned the front-runner for the majority of the race would have no government experience and a platform calling for TikTok Hype Houses in New York City.

Andrew Yang commandeered the primary after parachuting in from the national stage following a run for the White House, but there are more than a dozen other candidates jockeying for position heading into the homestretch. Despite the iniquities exacerbated by a crisis-filled 2020, Yang and new favorite Eric Adams are both moderate Democrats. So is Kathryn Garcia, who has been gaining steam since landing marquee endorsements from The New York Times and New York Daily News. The progressive movement has struggled to generate momentum, but a large portion of likely voters are still undecided, and its difficult to tell how ranked-choice voting, which New York City is using for the first time this year, could affect the results. Add to all this how the pandemic has confined the bulk of the race to a series of Hollywood Squares-style Zoom forums, and you have a primary thats been as inscrutable as it is crucial to the citys future. Campaigning for office is one of the most rewarding things Ive ever done, Shaun Donovan, President Obamas former housing secretary and a candidate for mayor, tells Rolling Stone. Except in winter during a pandemic.

The winter is over, people are getting vaccinated, and candidates have a little more freedom to interact with voters in person  but the state of the race remains in flux as the June 22nd primary date draws near. The candidate who does emerge from the pack will still need to defeat the Republican nominee on November 2nd, but the general election is largely a formality in heavily Democratic New York. Heres a guide to the top eight Democrats vying to take a victory lap this summer:

ANDREW YANG

Who is he?

You already know about Andrew Yang, which might go a long way in explaining why hes out in front of a crowded field of opponents whose names are nowhere as familiar as that of the 2020 presidential candidate.

Yang has commanded the bulk of the medias attention since bursting into the race behind a sweeping, Darren Aronofsky-directed campaign trailer, and he has continued to cavort through the city trying to sell himself as a real New Yorker who has what it takes to liven up the city after one of the most depressing years in its history. Hes prone to bouts of Michael Scott-grade tone-deafness, like when he told the Stonewall Democratic Club that LGBTQ people are so human and beautiful, or when tweeted his support for Israeli airstrikes against Palestine and then acted confused as to why organizers of an event celebrating Eid no longer wanted him to appear.

Yangs understanding of how New York City government functions is questionable, to say the least, and some have worried that if elected he would serve as a puppet for special interests  like, say, the lobbyist, venture capitalist, and former Bloomberg adviser backing his campaign.

Yangs lack of experience, assorted gaffes, or dubious donors havent seemed to matter in the polls, though. His optimism is resonating.

What is he pushing?

Yang generated buzz as a presidential candidate by advocating for a universal basic income, and hes promoting something similar for New York. Yang wants to create a $1 billion cash relief program for the 500,000 poorest New Yorkers, giving them what would average to $2,000 a year. He also wants to create a Peoples Bank into which New Yorkers receiving the benefit would be automatically enrolled. Despite some bold ideas, Yang is a very much a moderate Democrat, and critics argue hed be too soft on corporate New York, real estate developers, and police reform.

Who has endorsed him?

Yang launched his campaign with the help of newly minted U.S. Rep. Richie Torres. Hes also landed endorsements from Rep. Grace Meng; state Senators John Liu and Jeremy Cooney; and City Council Members Margaret Chin, Carlos Menchaca, Vanessa Gibson, and Kalman Yeger. Amy Schumer and John Leguizamo have joined the Yang Gang, as well. So have several key Jewish leaders.

What are his chances?

Yang was the favorite for most of the race. No longer. A poll released in mid-May found Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams with a slight edge, with 19 percent to Yangs 18 percent. A few weeks later another poll put him in third place behind Kathryn Garcia and Adams. An NY1/Ipsos poll released in early June put him back in second place, but 6 points behind Adams.

KATHRYN GARCIA

1Who is she?

Garcia is a Brooklyn native who has spent pretty much her entire adult life working in New York City government, most recently as de Blasios sanitation commissioner and the interim head of the New York City Housing Authority and the Covid-19 food czar, a role in which she orchestrated a massive meal-delivery effort. So yeah, she knows her way around City Hall, and is arguably more qualified to pull the levers that need to be pulled to keep the city humming than anyone in the race.

What is she pushing?

Garcia has placed an emphasis on climate resiliency, and wants to begin moving the city to a fully renewable energy economy as soon as she gets into office. She also wants to expand bike lanes, public transportation, and access to public green spaces; electrify over 10,000 school buses and turn every school roof into a green energy source; create a Green New Deal for the citys housing authority; and double the number of green jobs over the course of the next decade.

Who has endorsed her?

In early May, Politico called de Blasios longtime sanitation commissioner everyones second-favorite candidate. Sure enough, two of her biggest endorsements  State Sen. Diane Savino and former City Council member Costa Constantinides  were only willing to go so far as to say shell be their second selection in ranked-choice voting. But Garcia has since scored first-choice nods from State Sen. Liz Krueger, Queens Assemblywoman Nily Rozic, and, most notably, The New York Times. It is Kathryn Garcia who best understands how to get New York back on its feet and has the temperament and the experience to do so, the papers editorial board wrote. Ms. Garcia has our endorsement in perhaps the most consequential mayoral contest in a generation.

She later landed a nod from the New York Daily News, which called her the candidate best equipped to guide us through this difficult moment.

What are her chances?

Shes in the hunt. A poll conducted in mid-April put her in eighth place with just six percent of the vote, but her chances have taken off since landing endorsements from the Times and Daily News. A poll released in mid-May put in her third place behind Yang and Adams with 11 percent of first-place votes. Another released in late May by PIX11 and Emerson College put Garcia ahead with 21 percent support. An NY1/Ipsos poll released in early June put her in third behind Adams and Yang, but she could be a huge beneficiary of ranked-choice voting if progressives rank her second or third. But in a true testament to the topsy-turvy nature of the race, the same PIX11/Emerson poll that put her in first with 21 percent in late May had her in fourth with only 12 percent in early June.

Who is he?

Stringer knows his way around city government better than just about anyone in the race. He was a six-term state assemblyman representing the Upper West side before being elected Manhattan borough president in 2005, and then in 2013, comptroller. Moving up to the big office in City Hall seems a logical next step for the progressive. He was in pretty good position to make it happen when in late April one of his former campaign workers, Jean Kim, accused him of sexual assault. Kim says Stringer groped her in 2001, when she was helping him campaign for public advocate. Stringer says the two were in a months-long casual relationship. Several of Stringers marquee backers have rescinded their endorsements, although one of the biggest, Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) has since said hes second-guessed the decision. Quite frankly, I sometimes regret it because I wasnt more patient, didnt ask more questions, didnt call for other things because I do like Scott, he told a local progressive group in May.

What is he pushing?

Stringer may the progressive movements best shot at City Hall. He hasnt put forth any single, marquee policy proposal, instead opting to lay out an array of initiatives relating to affordable housing (including strengthening tenant rights and investing billions to rebuild the New York City Housing Authority); affordable childhood education (including investing $500 million over five years to address child care deserts); the economy (including creating a $1 billion recovery program that provides grants to small businesses); and more.

Who has endorsed him?

Stringer landed an impressive slate of progressive endorsements, including Rep. Jamaal Bowman; state Sens. Alessandra Biaggi, Jessica Ramos, and Julia Salazar; and Mark Levine, the chairman of the City Councils health committee. He also got nods from the Working Families Party and the Sunrise Movement. Unfortunately for Stringer, theyve all rescinded their endorsements since Kims allegation.

Several of Stringers backers have stuck with him, though, including Rep. Jerry Nadler, climate activist Bill McKibben, and several prominent labor unions, most notably the teachers union, which released a statement saying it has always found him both supportive of educators and an advocate for women, while noting the allegations need to be carefully weighed.

What are his chances?

Well, the sexual assault thing wasnt good. Stringer had been within closing distance of Andrew Yang in the polls, but his support is now in question following the allegation from Kim. A poll conducted around the time Kim went public put him at 15 percent, trailing Yang (18 pecent) and Eric Adams (21 percent). A poll released in mid May put him in fifth place with only 8 percent. Another released in early June put him in fourth with 10 percent. Regardless, hes got some work to do.

Who is she?

Morales was the CEO of a Bronx-based social services nonprofit before leaving her post to focus on her mayoral run, which she announced back in 2019. She is widely considered to be the most progressive candidate in the race, although her bona fides have been questioned since her campaign imploded in late May following allegations of a toxic work environment. The turmoil forced Morales to miss an event hosted by Rev. Al Sharpton on the anniversary of George Floyds death (Morales claimed she was absent due to a family emergency), and spurred a unionization drive among her staff. Morales responded by firing several workers involved in the organizing effort while arguing publicly that her ability to handle the scandal showed that shed be a good multi-tasker if elected mayor. Multiple people affiliated with her campaign have since called for her to suspend her bid for City Hall, although few details have been offered about the allegations of harm perpetrated on staffers of color.

What is she pushing?

Morales has built her campaign around lifting up marginalized communities by rebuilding the New York City Housing Authority, providing guaranteed income to the poor, desegregating schools, and other progressive initiatives. Shes also proposed cutting the NYPDs massive $6 billion budget in half, funneling the leftover funds to social services, including the creation of a Community First Responders Department.

Who has endorsed her?

Morales has the support of the Sunrise Movement, which co-endorsed her and Stringer before ditching him, and the Working Families Party, which ordered Stringer and Morales 1-2 before rescinding their endorsement for Stringer. Morales is also the first choice of state Sen. Jabari Brisport, as well as former gubernatorial candidate Zephyr Teachout. Shes got that something extra  that hope, that joy, that absolute love of the city and the people in it, Teachout said in announcing her endorsement. That love and that integrity can bring us to the most joyful, community-based, ground-up New York city we have ever seen.

What are her chances?

Morales has cultivated a lot of grassroots support, but it hasnt translated into much upward momentum in the polls. A survey released in mid-May put her at only 6 percent, tied for sixth place with Ray Maguire. The controversy within her campaign is likely to hurt her already-slim chances, if it doesnt force her out of the race entirely.

ERIC ADAMS

Who is he?

Brownsville, Brooklyn, native Eric Adams was a police captain, state senator, and, from 1995-2002, registered Republican, before becoming Brooklyn borough president in 2014. He made clear almost immediately after taking office that he planned to use the position as a springboard to City Hall. Seven years later, here we are.

Adams can tend to be  outspoken. Hes been criticized for ranting about his inability to celebrate a building to house LGBTQ seniors during a ribbon-cutting for that very building; telling people moving to New York they should go back to Iowa, go back to Ohio; and claiming after the 2018 shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh that he would carry a gun whenever he enters a place of worship. He also said last year that if elected mayor hed forgo a security detail and instead just carry a gun himself, comments he later walked back.

Adams has also come under fire for some potential campaign finance issues. In May, The New York Times reported his questionable fundraising history, including how he endorsed a controversial land zoning change that benefitted a developer who threw him a fundraiser.

Regardless, Adams has curried plenty of favor during his tenure as president of the citys most populous borough (he won election in 2013 with more than 80 percent of the vote and re-election in 2017 with more than 80 percent), giving him a solid base of support for his mayoral run.

What is he pushing?

Adams is a moderate Democrat and was even registered as a Republican until 2001. Hes advocated for small businesses and real-estate development, and stressed the overarching importance of public safety, calling it a prerequisite to prosperity. He often touts his ability to take on crime, citing his two decades of experience in law enforcement. He supports police reform, although hes stopped short of endorsing anything resembling the defunding of the NYPD.

Adams has proposed what he calls a Peoples Plan. The plan includes a tax credit of $3,000 per year for the poor, universal child care for every family that cannot afford it, housing assistance for those on the verge of homelessness, and the creation of a new MyCity online portal that would allow New Yorkers to figure out which benefits they qualify for.

Who has endorsed him?

Adams has received an array of endorsements from current and former U.S. representatives, New York state politicians, New York City politicians, and New York Mets great Doc Gooden.

What are his chances?

Adams is the favorite. A poll released in mid-May put Adams out in front with 19 percent of first-place votes, but just barely with Yang at 18 percent. The lead appears to have grown. An NY1/Ipsos poll released in early June put Adams in first place with 22 percent of the vote, and Yang in second at 16 percent. Ranked-choice voting may not work in Adams favor, but it may not matter.

Who is she?

Wiley is an attorney, professor, and activist who served as a counsel to de Blasio before becoming an MSNBC commentator in 2018. She jumped into the mayoral race in the wake of the Black Lives Matter demonstrations that swept the city last summer, and she has centered her campaign around racial justice and police reform.

What is she pushing?

Wileys signature proposal is a $10 billion plan she dubs the New York New Deal. The plan aims to create 100,000 new jobs to rebuild the citys infrastructure while lifting up the communities of color hit hardest by the pandemic.

Wiley has also proposed a plan for universal community care that would allow 100,000 families to receive $5,000 in annual assistance to care for children and the elderly. The plan would cost $500 million and would be partially paid by freezing the hiring of police and corrections officers for two years, according to The New York Times.

Who has endorsed her?

Several city, state, and national politicians have lined up behind Wiley, including Reps. Yvette Clarke, Nydia Velazquez, and Hakeem Jeffries, as well as Katie Porter out in California. Not only does she have a vision for change, she has plans to get things done, to deliver real change for people, Porter said in an ad for Wiley.

The biggest endorsement, however, came in early June when Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) threw her considerable political weight behind Wiley. If we dont come together as a movement, we will get a New York City built by and for billionaires, and we need a city for and by working people, Ocasio-Cortez said in endorsing Wiley. So we will vote for Maya number one.

Wiley has also landed a slew of celebrity endorsements, including Chris Evans, Alyssa Milano, Gloria Steinem, and Gabrielle Union.

What are her chances?

Shes trending in the right direction. An NY1/Spectrum poll conducted in early April put her in fourth place at seven percent. She did a little better in another poll conducted in the middle of the month, coming in at 10 percent. A poll released in mid-May put in her fourth place with 10 percent. Her chances skyrocketed following the AOC endorsement, though. A PIX11/Emerson poll conducted from June 7th-8th put her in second place at 17 percent, 6 points behind Eric Adams.

SHAUN DONOVAN

Who is he?

Donovan is a Manhattan native with experience in both city and federal government. He was the commissioner of housing preservation and development under Mayor Michael Bloomberg before jumping to the Obama administration to serve as the secretary of Housing and Urban Development. He then moved to the Office of Management and Budget, which he directed from 2014 until President Trump took office.

What is he pushing?

Donovan wants to close the racial wealth gap by establishing Equity Bonds for all New York City children. The city would deposit up to $2,000 annually in those of low-income families, money he believes could be worth $50,000 by the time the child is 18. Donovan believes such long-term investment will be more effective at tackling inequality than simply handing out a few checks. Proposing 200 bucks a month to a few New Yorkers is not going to change peoples lives, he tells Rolling Stone. But if you really look at what drives inequality in this city, what drives gentrification, it is wealth, and white families have 10 times the wealth of black families, and eight times the wealth of Latino families.

Donovan has also been promoting the idea of 15-minute neighborhoods, in which every New York City community would have easy access to essential food, health care, public transportation, and other services. [These things] need to be part of how we plan and build our city if were going to get rid of the persistent, persistent inequality we have across racial and other lines, he says.

Who has endorsed him?

Donovan has touted his experience working with city mayors, and a few of them have given him the nod to lead the nations largest city. Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, former Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, and the former mayor of Fresno, California, Ashley Swearengin have all lent their support. Other notables include Sen. John Hickenlooper, former Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, and Brooklyn pastor Rev. Johnny Ray Youngblood, with whom Donovan worked to create 5,000 low-income homes in Brooklyn and the Bronx. Also: Ed Norton.

What are his chances?

Its not looking great right now. A poll conducted in mid-April put him in seventh place, garnering only eight percent of the vote. Hes been moving in the wrong direction since receiving negative press for guessing that the median price of a home in Brooklyn is only $100,000 (its actually $900,000) in an interview with The New York Times, as well as for his fathers role in financing his campaign. A poll released in mid-May found him at only 4 percent, good for dead last of the eight notable candidates.

RAY MAGUIRE

Who is he?

Maguire is trying to enter New York City politics fresh from the financial sector. Prior to running for mayor he served as the vice chairman of Citigroup for 15 years, and he was recruited to run for mayor by city business leaders who want to make sure their interests are taken care of coming off of the pandemic.

What is he pushing?

Maguires campaign is built around revitalizing the citys economy following the pandemic. He plans to bring back 500,000 jobs by implementing a variety of measures, including offering salary subsidies to employees of small businesses that were hit particularly hard by the pandemic.

Who has endorsed him?

Hoo boy. Maguire might not be lighting the polls on fire, but hes leading the field in celebrity support: Spike Lee. Samuel L. Jackson. Jay-Z. Nas. Diddy. LL Cool J. Patrick Ewing. Tiki Barber. Steve Martin. Run from Run D.M.C. Gwen Carr, the mother of Eric Garner. Naomi Campbell. U.S. Rep Gregory Meeks. The list goes on.

What are his chances?

Maguire may have a lot of star power backing him, but hes not yet a serious contender. A poll conducted in mid-April found at nine percent, good for fifth place. Another conducted toward the end of the month put him at six percent, which is also where he stood in a poll released in mid-May.

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Courtesy St. Luke's Health

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we, as a community, look at the health care system. Many have a renewed appreciation for the bravery and compassion of hospital staff, and nurses are deserving of a lot of praise as they face the brunt of the pandemic. They arent just care providers  they are heroes, lifelines, and most importantly, family to every patient they treat.

For example, during the winter storm that froze the roads and left much of Texas without power or running water, Noelle Thomas, a NICU nurse manager at St. Lukes Health  The Woodlands Hospital, went above and beyond.
Authorities have recovered the bodies of a couple who drowned together Friday night on Lake Conroe.

The Montgomery County Precinct 1 Constables Office and Texas Game Wardens with the Texas Parks made the discovery on Tuesday after resuming the search for a fifth day.

A male victim was recovered from Lake Conroe this morning and a female victim was recovered this afternoon, said Megan Radke with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. An autopsy has been ordered to confirm the identity of the victims. This is all the information we have at this time.

According to the Montgomery County Police Reporter, the search began at 6 a.m. Tuesday and the man was recovered at 9 a.m. approximately 50-yards away from where the couple drowned over the weekend. Montgomery Precinct 1 Constables Office stated on social media that the Conroe Fire Department and Montgomery County Hospital District also assisted in the search.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families during this difficult time, Montgomery Precinct 1 Constables Office stated on social media. Constable Cash reminds everyone to be sensible and wear a life jacket when youre in or around the water.

Around 6 p.m. Friday, the 26-year-old woman who remains missing fell off an unanchored pontoon boat rented by five people near Ayers Island. Her 24-year-old boyfriend jumped in after her, according to the Montgomery County Precinct 1 Constables Office. The pair  neither of which were wearing a life jacket or knew how to swim  went missing for 10 minutes when calls came in, The Courier reported Saturday.

A second man jumped in the water to try and help them as the pair struggled and a passerby on a boat helped him out of the water. None of the others on the boat were wearing life jackets or knew how to swim, Pct. 1 Cpt. Joe Sclider said Saturday.

The search was suspended a little after 10 p.m. Friday night and resumed Saturday morning, according to Precinct 1. Radke confirmed game wardens were on site Monday afternoon searching for the missing pair.

The search area was roughly one mile and winds hampered search efforts.

Authorities have yet to release the names of the victims, who are reportedly from the Houston area.

The recovery effort parallels the search for a drowned victim from two months ago. A 36-year-old Magnolia man on March 13 went missing near Ayers Island after jumping off an unsecured boat and swimming without a life jacket.

Following four days of searching, the mans remains were found through the use of side-scan sonar. The technology can detect objects on the bottom of the black water lake, including fish-spawning beds, tires and sunken vessels. It is being used by both constables patrol deputies and game wardens to try and find the missing couple, Sclider said Monday.

Fridays drownings mark at least the third and fourth deaths on Lake Conroe this year. This fatality rate is approaching last years five drownings, which were four more than in 2019.

An increase in drownings appears to come as the popular lake has generated more activity during the pandemic.

Jose R. Gonzales contributed to this report.

mellsworth@hcnonline.com
OTTAWA, Ill. (AP)  The LaSalle County coroners office on Monday identified three men killed last week in an explosion near Starved Rock State Park.

The men killed were identified as Immer Rivera Tejada, 39; Guillermo Rivera Tejada, 26, and Rafael Rivera Tejada, 36, all of Chicago. Coroner Rich Ploch previously said the men were ``cousins and uncles.
MOSCOW (AP)  A gunman launched an attack on a school in the Russian city of Kazan that left at least nine people dead Tuesday  including seven youngsters  and sent students hiding under their desks or running out of the building.

At least 21 others were hospitalized, six in extremely grave condition, authorities said.

The attacker, identified only as a 19-year-old, was arrested, officials said. They gave no immediate details on a motive.

But Russian media said the gunman was a former student at the school who called himself a god on his account on the messaging app Telegram and promised to kill a large amount of biomass on the morning of the shooting.

I was in the classroom when a man with a firearm broke into our classroom and just started shooting, said student Akhmat Khairulin. He said students hid under their desks at their teacher's direction, though one jumped out of a window.

Attacks on schools are rare in Russia, and President Vladimir Putin reacted by ordering the head of the country's National Guard to revise regulations on the types of weapons allowed for civilian use.

Four boys and three girls, all eighth-graders, died, as well as a teacher and another school employee, said Rustam Minnikhanov, governor of the Tatarstan republic, where Kazan is the capital.

The teacher who died, Elvira Ignatyeva, had been an English instructor at the school for four years, thye state news agency Tass reported.

Footage released by Russian media showed students dressed in black and white running out of the building. Another video depicted shattered windows, a stream of smoke coming out of one, and the sound of gunfire. Dozens of ambulances lined up at the entrance.

Russian media said while some students were able to escape, others were trapped inside during the ordeal.

The terrorist has been arrested, 19 years old. A firearm is registered in his name. Other accomplices havent been established. An investigation is underway, Minnikhanov said.

Authorities said the 21 hospitalized included 18 children.

Authorities announced a day of mourning on Wednesday and canceled all classes in Kazan schools. Authorities tightened security at all schools in the city of about 1.2 million people, 430 miles (700 kilometers) east of Moscow.

The deadliest school attack in Russia took place in 2004 in the city of Beslan, when Islamic militants took more 1,000 people hostage for several days. The siege ended in gunfire and explosions, leaving 334 dead, more than half of them children.

In 2018, a teenager killed 20 people at his vocational school before killing himself in Kerch, a city in the Russian-annexed peninsula of Crimea. In the wake of that attack, Putin ordered authorities to tighten control over gun ownership. But most of the proposed legislative changes were turned down by the parliament or the government, the Kommersant newspaper reported.

Russian lawmaker Alexander Khinshtein said on Telegram that the suspect in the Kazan attack received a permit for a shotgun less than two weeks ago and that the school had no security aside from a panic button. Authorities did not specify what kind of gun the attacker used.

Authorities in Tatarstan ordered checks on all gun owners in the region.

Putin extended condolences to the families of the victims and ordered the government to give them all necessary assistance. Russian officials promised to pay families 1 million rubles (roughly $13,500) each and give 200,000 to 400,000 rubles ($2,700-$5,400) to the wounded.

The Kremlin sent a plane with doctors and medical equipment to Kazan, and the country's health and education ministers headed to the region.
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP)  The Taliban gained control on Tuesday of a strategic district headquarters in a province in central Afghanistan, just southwest of the capital of Kabul, a provincial council official said.

According to the official, Sharifullah Hotak, the Taliban overran the Nirkh district headquarters in Maidan Wardak province. The insurgents confirmed the significant battlefield success.

The insurgents have long held sway in the area, but the collapse of the district headquarters doesnt bode well for embattled Afghan security forces as U.S. and NATO troops begin their final withdrawal from the country, after 20 years of war.

Nirkh district is important because it runs along the central highway that links Kabul to southern Kandahar province, a Taliban heartland. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid issued a statement saying the insurgent group seized the district, confiscating weapons and military equipment.

The district collapse comes ahead of a Taliban-announced, three-day cease fire over the Eid-al-Fitr holidays marking the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan this week.

The Taliban also released more than 100 government prisoners from across the country, said Taliban's political spokesman Suhail Shaheen. The prisoner release was also to commemorate the Eid holidays, he said.

The last of America's 2,500-3,500 troops and about 7,000 allied NATO forces are to be out of Afghanistan by Sept. 11 at the latest. Their departure has stoked fears of quick territorial gains by the Taliban.

Afghanistan's Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said the retreat in Maidan Wardak was a tactical decision and that he expected the Afghan security forces to retake the headquarters.
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Editor's note: Many people say the 21st century is the Asian Century. During this year's Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference in Boao, Hainan province, in April, Zhang Yunling, chair professor and Dean of the Institute of International Studies at Shandong University, spoke to Beijing Review reporters Tao Xing and Wen Qing, sharing his opinions on the future development of Asia and China's role in the process. This is an edited excerpt of his views:



The Asian Century

The phrase Asian Century actually refers to the regeneration and development of Asia. The process of going through stages of colonization, gaining national independence and rapid development has been difficult for much of Asia. The new century brings new prospects and one of its most salient features is China's modernization and development as a giant economy.

Broadly, Asia has several successful cases of development over the past decades. The economies of the Republic of Korea (ROK), Singapore, and China's Taiwan and Hong Kong, commonly known as the Four Asian Tigers, experienced steady growth from the 1960s to the 1990s. However, they were relatively small economies.

The formation and expansion of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) constituted another fine example of economic improvement. The cohesion of Southeast Asian countries ended a time of division and war, and launched a new beginning for member nations to grow together.

Most notably, China has been developing steadily after adopting the reform and opening-up policy in the late 1970s. It is important to realize that China's story of success in governance and modernization, and its approach to both, are different from those of the West.

China is currently the world's second largest economy in terms of GDP, Japan is the third largest, and India, currently the fifth largest, is expected to continue its rise in the world's economic rankings. The combined GDP of China, Japan and the ROK already exceeds that of the U.S. It is meaningful that Asia, occupying such a large proportion of the planet, began as one of the world's less developed regions and rapidly achieved this degree of economic development.

A cooperative approach

Cooperation has been key to ASEAN's synergy, and at the core of China's economic miracle is the advocacy for cooperative coexistence between nations. China's commitment to cooperation draws on both the concept of harmony that exists within its culture and on modern ideas on governance. Simply stated, the concept boils down to: no conflict.

However, after many decades of U.S.-led competition between nations, the international community may be slow to recognize China and Asia's collaboration-oriented approach.

The U.S. once dominated the world in the area of security, a position based on its history of winning the two world wars and its status as a nuclear power. However, the U.S. also has a notorious record of forcing its values onto other nations with its economic and military power. Nevertheless, the U.S. hegemonic leadership has become increasingly unacceptable. Especially after the Cold War, countries around the world have begun to walk their own paths of development, believing that the world is diversified.

In general, the Asian approach could be summarized into two points. First, strategic ambiguity can be applied across issues which cannot be solved instantly. Second, consultation and communication on issues of common concern are needed.

For example, a number of contentious issues exist within the Asian region, including territorial disputes between China and Japan, Japan and the ROK, and China and India. Asian countries applying American methods to handle these disputes may quickly find themselves engaged in conflict. The Western culture of competition is zero-sum, whereas Asia's culture of cooperation seeks win-win results.

In cases where an issue cannot be dealt with immediately, acknowledging that fact, maintaining a positive attitude, and working toward finding a solution, perfect or imperfect, that is acceptable to all and avoids conflict is a core strength of the Asian approach.

Recently, the Japanese Government decided to discharge contaminated water from the wrecked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean. Japan's neighboring countries are likely to suffer the most serious consequences of this decision.

It is advised that Japan allows expert groups from the international community, especially its neighboring countries including China, to examine and inspect the process in order to ensure the safety of the disposal. This kind of cooperation may also be a way to promote Japan's good relations with China and other countries.

The accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant was caused by a natural disaster and could happen anywhere. The whole of Asia should deal with it together, seeing it as a common challenge and not Japan's own problem.

It is also important to be aware that the creation of frameworks for cooperation such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership free trade agreement is the result of a long-term adjustment. It is a process of improvement, upgrading and deepening that cannot be accomplished in one stroke.

Obstacles from the U.S.

Unfortunately, the Asian approach may not be understood well by the U.S. Competition between China and America is intensifying. However, all sides understand that the two countries will not go to war. Once that reality is commonly held by all parties, the world's governments and media should let go of competitive postures and seek opportunities to move in the right direction together .

Throughout history, the two world wars and the Cold War were all confrontations between blocs. However, at present, it would be difficult for the U.S. to persuade other nations to join a confrontation against China. For example, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad), an informal strategic dialogue between the U.S., Japan, Australia and India, continues to have difficulties in reaching a consensus on how to contain China.

The inauguration of the Joe Biden administration has opened up opportunities for China to once again promote cooperation with the U.S. Historically, China-U.S. relations have softened and become more productive in the second year of a new U.S. administration. Both sides need to obtain a deeper understanding of each other's actions and policies.
Just after midnight on Halloween, a blaring car alarm and a loud banging sound startled Mirella Castaneda and woke her young son.

A man stood in her driveway in Forest Grove, Ore., slamming his fist into the Black Lives Matter flag draped over the metal garage door as the security alarm on the family's pickup truck continued to beep.

Castaneda immediately called 911 - but when police showed up they recognized the man as an off-duty officer named Steven Teets.

Instead of arresting Teets, though, one of the responding officers simply drove him home.

Now, Teets and that officer, Bradley Schuetz, face criminal charges in the incident that Castaneda's lawyers say "terrorized" her family.

A grand jury has indicted Schuetz for official misconduct, following an outside investigation by the Beaverton Police Department, the agency said in a statement Friday. Teets was arrested and charged with criminal mischief and disorderly conduct last year. A second responding officer, Amber Daniels, will not face charges, officials said.

An attorney for Teets did not respond to a request for comment.

Steve Myers, who is representing Schuetz, told The Washington Post that his client had limited options after confronting Teets because the local center where police take intoxicated individuals had been closed and the county jail was not holding people charged with misdemeanors, because of the pandemic.

Myers said Schuetz said taking Teets to his nearby home was the best way to handle the unusual situation. He added that Schuetz knew an outside agency would be taking over the investigation, so he declined to interview Teets or write a citation to preserve the Washington County sheriff's investigation.

"It's hard to believe that this grand jury could find probable cause," Myers said, noting that a charge of official misconduct requires that an officer intended to benefit or intentionally harm another person.

Teets has been on administrative desk duty since late last year, and Schuetz is on paid administrative leave, the Oregonian reported.

The charges raised questions about how police handled the investigation, including whether the officers involved treated Castaneda differently because of her support of the Black Lives Matter movement that has challenged police across the United States over fatal shootings and violent arrests. The Forest Grove Police Department has also recently drawn public scrutiny over the death of James Marshall, who died after police used a stun gun to subdue him as he was having an apparent mental health crisis.

A lawyer for Castaneda provided The Washington Post with a tort claim declaring her intent to sue the Forest Grove Police Department. The claim describes how police allegedly "worked in concert, either intentionally, or subconsciously due to implicit bias, to deprive Ms. Castaneda of her Constitutional rights" as they investigated the incident last October.

In a statement addressing the charges against Teets and Schuetz, Forest Grove police chief Henry Reimann said he could not release any information about the October incident until the criminal cases are resolved.

"Sharing such information at this time (or rushing to make decisions based on partial information) could do more harm than good and could potentially hinder the City's ability to address these important issues," he said in the statement. "Once the criminal process is complete for each of the officers, an outside law enforcement agency will evaluate if policy violations occurred."

In the suburb about 30 miles west of Portland, Castaneda is one of the only homeowners who openly displays Black Lives Matter banners and signs, according to her claim. About 25,500 people live in Forest Grove; more than two-thirds of those residents are White, nearly 23% are Latino, and fewer than 1%of residents identify as Black, according to census data.

The signs allegedly attracted Teets's attention in the early morning hours of Oct. 31, when he allegedly strode up Castaneda's driveway, setting off the security alarm on the family's pickup truck and pounding on a Black Lives Matter flag. Teets allegedly kicked the front door, shouted at the family inside the home, and refused to leave.

"Officer Teets terrorized Ms. Castaneda and her family and yelled at them to fight," according to the tort claim.

Fifteen minutes after Castaneda called 911, two Forest Grove police officers arrived at her home and identified Teets as he was walking in the street nearby, according to court records.

Investigators ultimately revealed that Teets appeared to be "highly intoxicated" when Schuetz and Daniels arrived on the scene, according to a memo reported by the Portland Tribune last month.

Teets allegedly "squared up" with the two officers, fists raised as if he wanted to fight them. He did not recognize his colleagues, the memo said.

The responding officers did not check Teets for weapons, according to Castaneda's tort claim. Then, Schuetz drove Teets to his nearby home, "only blocks away from the Castaneda family," according to the tort claim, and helped the intoxicated officer to his front door.

The officers who interviewed Castaneda on Halloween did not tell her that they had identified Teets as the man who attacked her home, nor did they divulge that they had already taken him home.

"For my own sanity and my family's, I just felt like I needed to know what happened," Castaneda told the Tribune. "This really shook my sense of safety."

Nearly three days later, officials finally disclosed Teets's name and let a shaken Castaneda know that he had been arrested.

Castaneda has alleged that officers violated department policy and Oregon law when they "failed to tell [her] that the suspect lived near her family and carried a firearm as part of his job as an officer."

Even after providing Teets's name, investigators did not tell Castaneda that he was a police officer. According to her tort claim, she only discovered that Teets worked for the Forest Grove Police Department after she searched for his name on the Internet.

Her attorney, Michael Fuller, also said police did not document the possible political motives at play when Teets targeted Castaneda's home. The responding officers did not turn on body cameras during the investigation as required by department policy, nor did they note the existence of the Black Lives Matter flags prominently displayed on Castaneda's property in their reports.

Myers said Schuetz simply forgot to turn his body camera on while determining how to handle the incident and noted that the Forest Grove Police Department had implemented the body-worn cameras in January 2020. He also said the victim's Black Lives Matter flag had not been damaged.

"The treatment of Ms. Castaneda as a second-class citizen based on her political viewpoint by the investigating officers added insult to injury, and further compounded the emotional trauma she and her family had experienced at the hands of Officer Teets," her lawyer said.

The Forest Grove Police Department ultimately passed the criminal investigation over to the Washington County Sheriff's Office, which brought charges against Teets in November. Reimann, the Forest Grove police chief, also requested an administrative investigation be done by the police department in nearby Beaverton, which charged Schuetz last week.

Fuller told The Post that the criminal charges have given Castaneda hope that the city will address the failures that may have inhibited prosecutor's ability to pursue more aggressive charges in the case against Teets.

"I honestly didn't expect much to come from the internal review, certainly not a criminal probe of the police officers involved," Fuller told The Post in an email. "The charge of official misconduct substantiates what my client and I have been alleging for the past six months."
BRUSSELS (AP)  Chinas ruling Communist Party has opened a new front in its long, ambitious war to shape global public opinion: Western social media.

Liu Xiaoming, who recently stepped down as Chinas ambassador to the United Kingdom, is one of the partys most successful foot soldiers on this evolving online battlefield. He joined Twitter in October 2019, as scores of Chinese diplomats surged onto Twitter and Facebook, which are both banned in China.

Since then, Liu has deftly elevated his public profile, gaining a following of more than 119,000 as he transformed himself into an exemplar of Chinas new sharp-edged wolf warrior diplomacy, a term borrowed from the title of a top-grossing Chinese action movie.

As I see it, there are so-called wolf warriors because there are wolfs in the world and you need warriors to fight them, Liu, who is now Chinas Special Representative on Korean Peninsula Affairs, tweeted in February.

His stream of posts  principled and gutsy ripostes to Western anti-Chinese bias to his fans, aggressive bombast to his detractors  were retweeted more than 43,000 times from June through February alone.

But much of the popular support Liu and many of his colleagues seem to enjoy on Twitter has, in fact, been manufactured.

A seven-month investigation by the Associated Press and the Oxford Internet Institute, a department at Oxford University, found that China's rise on Twitter has been powered by an army of fake accounts that have retweeted Chinese diplomats and state media tens of thousands of times, covertly amplifying propaganda that can reach hundreds of millions of people  often without disclosing the fact that the content is government-sponsored.

This type of analysis is possible because Twitter makes more of its data available to researchers than other social media platforms routinely do.

More than half the retweets Liu got from June through January came from accounts that Twitter has suspended for violating the platforms rules, which prohibit manipulation. Overall, more than one in ten of the retweets 189 Chinese diplomats got in that time frame came from accounts that Twitter had suspended by Mar. 1.

But Twitters suspensions did not stop the pro-China amplification machine. An additional cluster of fake accounts, many of them impersonating U.K. citizens, continued to push Chinese government content, racking up over 16,000 retweets and replies before Twitter kicked them off late last month and early this month, in response to the AP and Oxford Internet Institutes investigation.

This fiction of popularity can boost the status of Chinas messengers, creating a mirage of broad support. It can also distort platform algorithms, which are designed to boost the distribution of popular posts, potentially exposing more genuine users to Chinese government propaganda. While individual fake accounts may not seem impactful on their own, over time and at scale, such networks can distort the information environment, deepening the reach and authenticity of Chinas messaging.

You have a seismic, slow but large continental shift in narratives, said Timothy Graham, a senior lecturer at Queensland University of Technology who studies social networks. Steer it just a little bit over time, it can have massive impact.

Twitter, and others, have identified inauthentic pro-China networks before. But the AP and Oxford Internet Institute investigation shows for the first time that large-scale inauthentic amplification has broadly driven engagement across official government and state media accounts, adding to evidence that Beijings appetite for guiding public opinion  covertly, if necessary  extends beyond its borders and beyond core strategic interests, like Taiwan, Hong Kong and Xinjiang.

Twitters takedowns often came only after weeks or months of activity. All told, AP and the Oxford Internet Institute identified 26,879 accounts that managed to retweet Chinese diplomats or state media nearly 200,000 times before getting suspended. They accounted for a significant share  sometimes more than half  of the total retweets many diplomatic accounts got on Twitter.

It was not possible to determine whether the accounts were sponsored by the Chinese government.

Twitter told AP that many of the accounts had been sanctioned for manipulation, but declined to offer details on what other platform violations may have been at play. Twitter said it was investigating whether the activity was a state-affiliated information operation.

We will continue to investigate and action accounts that violate our platform manipulation policy, including accounts associated with these networks, a Twitter spokesperson said in a statement. If we have clear evidence of state-affiliated information operations, our first priority is to enforce our rules and remove accounts engaging in this behavior. When our investigations are complete, we disclose all accounts and content in our public archive.

Chinas Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it does not employ trickery on social media. There is no so-called misleading propaganda, nor exporting a model of online public opinion guidance, the ministry said in a statement to AP. We hope that the relevant parties will abandon their discriminatory attitude, take off their tinted glasses, and take a peaceful, objective, and rational approach in the spirit of openness and inclusiveness.

IDEOLOGICAL BATTLEFIELD

Twitter and Facebook function as formidable  and one-sided  global megaphones for Chinas ruling Communist Party, helping to amplify messaging broadly set by central authorities.

Today, at least 270 Chinese diplomats in 126 countries are active on Twitter and Facebook. Together with Chinese state media, they control 449 accounts on Twitter and Facebook, which posted nearly 950,000 times between June and February. These messages were liked over 350 million times and replied to and shared more than 27 million times, according to the Oxford Internet Institute and APs analysis. Three-quarters of Chinese diplomats on Twitter joined within the last two years.

The move onto Western social media comes as China wages a war for influence  both at home and abroad  on the internet, which President Xi Jinping has called the main battlefield for public opinion.

On the battlefield of the Internet, whether we can withstand and win is directly related to our countrys ideological security and political security, he said in 2013, not long after taking power. In September 2019, as Chinese diplomats flocked to Twitter, Xi gave another speech, urging party cadres to strengthen their fighting spirit.

Xi has reconfigured Chinas internet governance, tightening controls, and bound Chinese media ever more tightly to the party, to ensure, as he said in a 2016 speech, that the media loves, protects and serves the party.

That intimacy was formalized in 2018, when the party consolidated administrative control of major print, radio, film and television outlets under an entity it manages, the Central Propaganda Department.

Like other nations, China has recognized the value of social media for amplifying its messaging and reinforcing its hold on power. But unfettered access to Western social media has given Beijing a unilateral advantage in the global fight for influence.

Twitter and Facebook are blocked within China, and Beijing controls the conversation on domestic alternatives like WeChat and Weibo, effectively cutting off unmediated access to the Chinese public.

Its creating a significant challenge for Western democracies. We dont have the same capacity to influence international audiences given that China has walled off its internet, said Jacob Wallis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institutes International Cyber Policy Centre. That creates a significant asymmetric advantage.

Despite the high levels of Chinese government activity, Twitter and Facebook have failed to label state content consistently. In an effort to provide users with more context, Twitter last year began labelling accounts belonging to key government officials and state-affiliated media. But Twitter had labeled just 14% of Chinese diplomatic accounts on the platform, as of March 1, failing even to flag dozens of verified profiles.

Twitter said that in keeping with its policy of labelling senior officials and institutions that speak for a country abroad, not all diplomatic accounts will be flagged. It offered no further details on how those decisions are made and declined to provide a list of Chinese accounts that have been labeled.

Facebook also began putting transparency labels on state-controlled media accounts last year. But disclosure is especially weak in languages other than English, despite the fact that Chinese state content has strong distribution in Spanish, French, and Arabic, among other languages.

Facebook had labeled two-thirds of a sample of 95 Chinese state media accounts in English, as of Mar. 1, but less than a quarter of accounts in other languages. Unlike Twitter, Facebook does not flag diplomatic accounts, the majority of which are official embassy and consulate accounts.

Facebook labeled an additional 41 Chinese state media outlets AP and the Oxford Internet Institute brought to their attention, bringing the overall portion of labeled accounts from less than half to nearly 90%. The company said it was looking into the rest.

We apply the label on a rolling basis and will continue to label more publishers and pages over time, a company spokesperson said in a statement to AP. The company declined to provide a full list of which Chinese state media accounts it has flagged.

The China Media Project, a Hong Kong research group, found that transparency labels make a difference: Twitter users liked and shared fewer tweets by Chinese news outlets after August 2020, when the platform started flagging them as state-affiliated media and stopped amplifying and recommending their content.

We need the labels, said China Media Project director David Bandurski, though he cautioned that they risk painting all Chinese media with the same broad brush, including outlets like Caixin that have managed to maintain a degree of independence. This is all about co-opting the narrative. Telling Chinas story means we the party get to tell Chinas story and no one else. Thats happening in Portuguese and Spanish and French. It really is a global plan.

The outspoken editor-in-chief of Chinas Global Times, Hu Xijin, noticed the impact immediately. On Aug. 14, he tweeted his dismay at the China state-affiliated media label that had been added to his profile, saying his follower growth had plummeted. It seems Twitter will eventually choke my account, he wrote.

COUNTERFEITING CONSENSUS

In early February, Chinas state news agency Xinhua published a fact check of 24 lies it said anti-China forces in the West had been spreading about Xinjiang, where China stands accused of genocide for its brutal, systematic repression of minority Uighur Muslims.

According to Xinhua, the real problem in Xinjiang is not human rights, but Uighur terrorism. Beijing has brought stability and economic development to its restive western region, and information suggesting otherwise has been fabricated by U.S. intelligence agencies, a racist scholar, and lying witnesses, Xinhua said.

The story was picked up by other Chinese state media outlets, amplified by Chinas foreign ministry at a press conference, and blasted across Twitter by the foreign ministry and Chinese diplomats in the United States, India, Djibouti, Canada, Hungary, Austria, Tanzania, Kazakhstan, Jordan, Liberia, Grenada, Nigeria, Lebanon, Trinidad and Tobago, Qatar and the United Kingdom.

From there, it was further amplified by devoted but mysterious fans  like gyagyagya10, whose account pushed out an identical quote-tweet and reply, within seconds, to a message about Xinjiang posted by Chinas Embassy in London, writing, Ethnic groups in China are well protected, no matter in economic aspect or in cultural aspect.

This is the ruling Communist Partys global propaganda machine in action: Messages set by key state media outlets and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs get picked up by Chinese diplomats around the world, who repackage the content on Twitter, where it is amplified by networks of fake and suspicious accounts working covertly to shape public discourse for the benefit of Chinas ruling Communist Party.

Gyagyagya10, who had a single follower, was part of a network of 62 accounts dedicated to amplifying Chinese diplomats in the U.K. that Marcel Schliebs, the Oxford Internet Institute's lead researcher on the project, found exhibited multiple patterns suggesting coordination and inauthenticity.

Little can be gleaned about gyagyagya10 from the image of abstract art posted as a profile photo and the lack of any sort of personal description. Indeed, none of the accounts in the network had fleshed-out profiles with recognizable names and authentic profile photos.

Gyagyagya10s account came to life in mid-August at the same time as more than a dozen other accounts that also devoted themselves exclusively to promoting tweets by the Chinese Embassy in London and Ambassador Liu. Then, after Liu left his post at the end of Jan., they went quiet.

The 62 accounts in the network retweeted and replied to posts by Chinese diplomats in London nearly 30,000 times between June and the end of January, the Oxford Internet Institute found. They exhibited unique patterns in the ways they amplified content.

Like gyagyagya10, they often simultaneously posted identical quote-tweets and replies, and they repeatedly used identical phrases like Xinjiang is beautiful and shared future for mankind in their comments. Other users who engaged with the two diplomatic accounts did neither.

They were also slavish in their devotion, sometimes replying to more than three-quarters of all the ambassadors tweets. Most weeks, the fake accounts generated at least 30 to 50% of all retweets of Ambassador Liu and the Chinese Embassy in London.

By Mar. 1, Twitter had suspended 31 of the accounts in the pro-China U.K. network and two had been deleted. The remaining 29  including gyagyagya10  continued to operate, churning out more than 10,000 retweets and nearly 6,000 replies in support of Chinas U.K. diplomats before Twitter permanently suspended them for platform manipulation at the end of April and beginning of May in response to this investigation.

We are also aware of concerns about some of the Twitter rules, Chinas Embassy in the U.K. said in a statement to AP. If it is against the rules of social media to retweet the Chinese Embassys tweets, then shouldnt these rules be more applicable to retweets of malicious rumors, smears, and false information against China? We hope relevant companies will not adopt double standards.

Chinas Ministry of Foreign Affairs says China uses social media the same way other nations do, with the goal of deepening friendly ties and facilitating fact-based communication.

In practice, Chinas network on Twitter amplifies messaging set by central authorities, both for domestic and global consumption, as diplomats translate, repackage and amplify content from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and key state media outlets, network analysis and academic research show.

Zhao Alexandre Huang, a visiting assistant professor at Gustave Eiffel University, in Paris, analyzed social media messaging at key points in the U.S.-China trade dispute and found that content first published on the Weibo account of Chinas Ministry of Foreign Affairs was repackaged and broadcast around the world by Chinese diplomats on Twitter.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs uses Weibo like a central kitchen of information, Huang said. Its an illusion of polyphony.

Within Chinas state network on Twitter, the most referenced accounts belonged to Chinas Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its spokespeople, as well as Peoples Daily, CGTN, China Daily, and Xinhua, and the most active amplifiers were diplomats, AP network analysis showed.

The partys efforts on Twitter have been helped by a core of hyperactive super-fans. Some 151,000 users retweeted posts by Chinese diplomats from June through January. But nearly half of all retweets came from just one percent of those accounts, which together blasted out nearly 360,000 retweets, often in bursts of activity separated by just seconds.

Among the biggest beneficiaries of this concentrated bulk engagement  which is not necessarily inauthentic  were Chinese diplomatic accounts in Poland, Pakistan, India, and South Africa, as well as Chinas foreign ministry and its spokespeople.

The pro-China accounts that Twitter later suspended were active in a host of languages, with profile descriptions in English, Mandarin, Spanish, Arabic, Hindi, Italian, French, Russian, Korean, Urdu, Portuguese, Thai, Swedish, Japanese, Turkish, German and Tamil. Some worked cross-network to amplify a range of government accounts, while others appeared to function as smaller cells, dedicated to amplifying diplomats in a specific location.

This manufactured chorus accounted for a significant portion of all the engagement many Chinese diplomats got on Twitter. More than 60% of all retweets for the Chinese embassies in Angola and Greece from June 2020 through January 2021 came from accounts that have been suspended. Chinas hawkish foreign ministry spokespeople Hua Chunying and Zhao Lijian racked up more than 20,000 retweets from accounts that have been sanctioned by Twitter.

INTERNET COMMENTING SYSTEMS

Within China, manipulation of online discourse has been effectively institutionalized. It remains to be seen how aggressive  and how successful  China will be in implementing its model of public opinion guidance on Western social media, which was founded on very different civic values, like transparency, authenticity, and the free exchange of ideas.

The partys systems for shaping public opinion online go far beyond censorship. Budget documents for Chinese propaganda and cyberspace departments include references to cyber armies, teams of trained online commentators tasked with keeping conversation online aligned with the ruling partys interests. Universities in China openly post announcements about their teams of online commentators and youth internet civilization volunteers, composed exclusively of recruits who love the motherland and work to guide public opinion by eliminating negative influences and spreading positive energy online.

The scale of the operation is immense. Ryan Fedasiuk, a research analyst at Georgetown Universitys Center for Security and Emerging Technology, reviewed dozens of government budget documents, university announcements and media reports and found that last year, China's Communist Party had some 20 million part-time volunteers, many of them students, and 2 million paid commentators at its disposal to steer conversation online.

For-profit companies also contract with government agencies to run coordinated networks of social media accounts, both human and automated, to help guide public opinion, according to Mareike Ohlberg, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Funds Asia Program, and Jessica Batke, a senior editor at ChinaFile, an online magazine published by the Asia Society. They poured through thousands of Chinese government procurement notices to identify tenders for such services.

While the majority were for opinion management on domestic platforms, Ohlberg told AP that since 2017 a growing number have also targeted Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. One public security bureau in a relatively small city in northeastern China, for example, wanted to buy a smart Internet-commenting system, capable of commenting on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube from thousands of different accounts and IP addresses.

This is just a natural extension of what the party has been doing at home for a very long time, Ohlberg said. Why would they change that model once they go abroad?

Chinas advance on Western social media is one part of a much broader infrastructure of influence that has shaped how Hollywood makes movies, what Western publishers print and what overseas Chinese-language media outlets communicate to Chinas vast diaspora.

Anne-Marie Brady, a professor at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand and an expert in Chinese propaganda, said people may not even realize that information they receive has been, in part, framed by China's ruling Communist Party.

The propaganda system is vast, and it has incorporated Western social media," she said. "It has helped to reshape perceptions of China. It may not uniquely create a positive image of China, but it creates hopelessness that anything can be done about what China is doing to our democracies.

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Associated Press researcher Chen Si in Shanghai contributed to this report.

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Follow Associated Press reporter Erika Kinetz on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ekinetz

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Contact APs global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org or https://www.ap.org/tips/
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP)  Authorities have identified a man who allegedly tried to rob a Glendale convenience store before being fatally shot by police.

Officers responded about 3:30 a.m. Sunday and after the shooting, the suspect was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP)  Trustees at the University of South Carolina have refused to accept the resignation of the school's embattled president following a commencement address marred by allegations of plagiarism and misidentification of the school itself.

Bob Caslen submitted his verbal resignation offer last weekend to the board, but it did not accept it, according to university spokesman Jeff Stensland.

If the Board feels that I cannot provide leadership for the institution, I have offered my resignation, Caslen said in a statement provided to The Post and Courier, which first reported about his resignation offer.

Caslen acknowledged taking two paragraphs without attribution from a speech by Adm. William McRaven, the Navy SEAL in charge of the mission to take out terrorist leader Osama bin Laden, in delivering an address to graduates Friday. He called it an oversight.

He also referred to the school as the University of California during an address.

The kerfuffle came up on the state Senate floor on Tuesday. Sen. Dick Harpootlian  whose district includes the university  said he was embarrassed by Caslen's remarks.

Maybe he was having a bad day, the Columbia Democrat said. We all make mistakes, but all don't give commencement speeches. It was clear he never read it before that day.

Caslen's rise to the presidency had met with criticism. Student and faculty leaders had opposed the retired general and U.S. Military Academy superintendent, arguing he lacked qualifications, such as a doctoral degree or university research experience, and knew little about the school.

The faculty Senate unanimously approved a no confidence vote.

Caslens supporters touted his 43 years in the military and five years as superintendent of West Point. He had the support of Gov. Henry McMaster and Republican lawmakers who suggested he could bring federal programs to the school and a share of federal money.

McMaster, an ex officio board member, also called trustees, urging them to convene a special meeting to vote on Caslen.

Donors, including Moore, feared that might amount to undue political influence that could threaten the universitys accreditation. McMaster dismissed those ideas, with a spokesman calling the specter of any undue influence preposterous.

In 2019, trustees voted 11-8 to hire Caslen, in stark contrast to his predecessors unanimous approvals.

In office, Caslen's tenure has included other bumps. Last month, he said he took responsibility for the university's failure to reach out to supporter Darla Moore after her mother's death, leading the schools biggest donor to write off the university.

Moore, who has donated in excess of $75 million to the school  and for whom the school of business is named  had asked trustees in 2019 to restart its presidential search rather than hire Caslen.

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Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP.
VICTORVILLE, Calif. (AP)  A 12-year-old boy died and three other children were critically hurt after fire ripped through a home in inland Southern California, authorities said.

Two adults were able to escape the blaze Friday night at the house in Victorville, CBS 2 reported.
BEIJING (AP)  The number of working-age people in China fell over the past decade as its aging population barely grew, a census showed Tuesday, complicating Chinese leaders' efforts to create a more prosperous and influential nation.

The total population rose to 1.411 billion people last year, up 72 million from 2010, according to the once-a-decade census. Slow growth fell closer to zero as fewer couples had children.

That adds to challenges for Chinese leaders who want to create a richer society and increase its global influence by developing technology industries and self-sustaining economic growth based on consumer spending.

The ruling Communist Party has enforced birth limits since 1980 to restrain population growth but worries the workforce is shrinking. It has eased birth limits, but couples are put off by high costs, cramped housing and job discrimination against mothers.

The population of potential workers aged 15 to 59 fell to 894 million last year, the National Bureau of Statistics reported. That would be down 5% from a 2011 peak of 925 million. The percentage of children in the population edged up compared with 2010, but the group aged 60 and older grew faster.

Changes in birth limits and other policies promoted a rebound in the birth population, the bureau director, Ning Jizhe, said at a news conference.

However, Ning said 12 million babies were born last year, which would be down 18% from 2019s 14.6 million.

China, along with Thailand and some other developing Asian countries that are aging fast, faces what economists call the challenge of whether it can grow rich before it grows old. Some warn China faces a demographic time bomb.

The potential shortage of workers needed to generate economic activity and tax revenue comes as President Xi Jinping's government boosts spending on its military and efforts to create global competitors in electric cars and other technologies.

Reflecting the issues sensitivity, the statistics agency took the unusual step last month of announcing the population grew in 2020 but gave no total. That looked like an effort to calm companies and investors after The Financial Times reported the census might have found a surprise decline.

We are more concerned about the fast decline in the proportion of the working age population compared to the total population, said Lu Jiehua, a professor of population studies at Peking University.

The working-age population will fall from three-quarters of the total in 2011 to just above half by 2050, according to Lu.

If the population gets too old, it will be impossible to solve the problem through immigration, said Lu. It needs to be dealt with at an early stage.

Couples who want a child face daunting challenges.

Many share crowded apartments with their parents. Child care is expensive and maternity leave short. Most single mothers are excluded from medical insurance and social welfare payments.

Some women worry giving birth could hurt their careers.

"When you have a kid, you take pregnancy leave, but will you still have this position after you take the leave? said He Yiwei, who is returning from the United States after obtaining a masters degree. Relative to men, when it comes to work, women have to sacrifice more.

Japan, Germany and some other rich countries face the same challenge of supporting aging populations with fewer workers. But they can draw on investments in factories, technology and foreign assets. By contrast, China is a middle-income country with labor-intensive farming and manufacturing.

The decline in the working-age population will place a cap on Chinas potential economic growth, said Yue Su of the Economist Intelligence Unit in a report. That is a powerful incentive to introduce productivity-enhancing reforms.

The International Monetary Fund is forecasting Chinese economic growth of 8.4% this year following a rebound from the coronavirus pandemic. The Communist Party wants to double output per person from 2020 levels by 2035, which would require annual growth of about 4.7%.

The numbers reported Thursday reflect a gain of 11.8 million people, or 0.8%, over the official estimate for 2019, when the government says the population edged above 1.4 billion for the first time.

The working-age population fell to 63.3% of the total from 70.1% a decade ago. The group up to age 14 expanded by 1.3 percentage points to 17.9%. Those 60 and older  a group of 264 million people who on their own would be the world's fourth-biggest country  rose 5.4 percentage points to 18.7% of the population.

Labor resources are still abundant, said Ning of the statistics agency.

The party took its biggest step in 2015 when rules that limited many couples to having only one child were eased to allow two.

However, Chinas birth rate, paralleling trends in South Korea, Thailand and other Asian economies, already was falling before the one-child rule. The average number of children per mother tumbled from above six in the 1960s to below three by 1980, according to the World Bank.

Demographers say official birth limits concealed what would have been a further fall in the number of children per family.

The one-child limit, enforced with threats of fines or loss of jobs, led to abuses including forced abortions. A preference for sons led parents to kill baby girls, prompting warnings millions of men might be unable to find a wife, fueling social tension.

Thursdays data showed China has 105.7 million men and boys for every 100 women and girls, or about 33 million more males.

The ruling party says the policy averted shortages of food and water by preventing as many as 400 million potential births. But demographers say if China followed Asian trends, the number of additional babies without controls might have been as low as a few million.

After limits were eased in 2015, many couples with one child had a second but total births fell because fewer had any at all.

Some researchers say Chinas population already is shrinking.

Yi Fuxian, a senior scientist in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, says the population started to fall in 2018. His book Big Country With An Empty Nest argued against the one-child limit.

Chinas economic, social, educational, tech, defense and foreign policies are built on the foundation of wrong numbers, said Yi.

Chinese regulators talk about raising the official retirement age of 55 to increase the pool of workers.

Female professionals welcome a chance to stay in satisfying careers. But others resent being forced to work more years. And keeping workers on the job, unable to help look after children, might discourage their daughters from having more.

The latest data put China closer to be overtaken by India as the most populous country, which is expected to happen by 2025.

Indias population last year was estimated by the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs at 1.38 billion, or 1.5% behind China. The agency says India should grow by 0.9% annually through 2025.

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Wu reported from Taipei. AP researcher Yu Bing and video producer Liu Zheng in Beijing contributed to this report.
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP)  A Colombian rebel group that has been fighting against the Venezuelan army since March, said in a letter addressed to the International Committee of the Red Cross that it has captured eight Venezuelan soldiers and is trying to find a way to hand them over to human rights groups.

The Red Cross confirmed on Tuesday that it had received the letter, but said it cannot comment further because that would compromise its humanitarian work.

In the letter  which was also published online by Fundaredes, a Venezuelan human rights organization -- the group known as the Martin Villa 10th Front said that it captured the soldiers on April 23 during a battle in Venezuela's Apure state.

The communique lists the names of the soldiers and their ranks, which include sergeants and lieutenants, and asks the Red Cross to implement protocols so that the prisoners of war can be handed over to a commission that might also include members of the United Nations, the Venezuelan government and the rebel group.

Venezuelas government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Venezuelan army's army deployed tanks, fighter jets, soldiers and members of the ruling party's militia movement to Apure in March as clashes with the rebel groups increased.

According to Venezuelan officials 16 soldiers and at least nine rebels have been killed in the military offensive. The United Nations says that fighting around the town of La Victoria forced more than 5,000 people to flee their homes. Many are now staying in shelters in the Colombian border town of Arauquita.

Colombia has long accused Venezuelas socialist government of allowing leftist rebels to use its territory as a safe haven for attacks on Colombia, but in recent months Venezuela itself has reported clashing with such groups, which are widely accused of deep involvement in drug smuggling and illegal mining.

Colombias government says that the Venezuelan army and groups like the Martin Villa 10th Front are fighting over control of drug trafficking routes used to take cocaine to Europe and the United States.

The Venezuelan government says that Colombian rebel groups are terrorists trying to destabilize the country.

The Martin Villa Front is led by former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia who refused to join a 2016 peace deal the larger group signed with Colombias government. The Martin Villa front has not said what it is doing in Venezuela. It is part of a larger structure of dissidents led by Gentil Duarte, a former FARC leader.

Colombian rebel groups have increased their operations in Venezuela recently, according to a report by the International Crisis Group think tank, exploiting illegal gold mines and drug trafficking routes and acting as de-facto law enforcement in some remote communities.

The rebel groups are present in all of Venezuelas border states, said Bram Ebus, an investigator for the International Crisis Group.
CONCORD, N.H. (AP)  Psychiatric patients being held involuntarily in emergency rooms must be given a chance to contest their detention within three days of their arrival, the state Supreme Court ruled Tuesday.

State law requires probable cause hearings for such patients within three days of an involuntary emergency admission," but the state has argued the clock doesnt start until someone is transferred to an inpatient facility. However, those facilities often have no available beds, leaving patients boarding in emergency departments for weeks at a time.

Tuesdays decision reaffirms a lower court ruling in favor of a woman who spent more than two weeks at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Centers emergency room before being transferred to the state psychiatric hospital. Justices agreed with the lower court, which said the state has a duty to provide hearings within three days of when a doctor signs off on an involuntary emergency certificate.

Nothing in the statutory scheme allows a person to be held indefinitely pending delivery to a receiving facility, the court said in Tuesdays ruling.

The state achieved a major milestone in April 2020 when, for the first time in eight years, no one was waiting in a hospital emergency room for an inpatient psychiatric bed. But the numbers went back up and in recent days, more than 80 mental health patients, including record numbers of children, have been waiting in emergency departments for inpatient beds, said Ken Norton, executive director of the New Hampshire chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Such boarding often aggravates rather than helps mental health conditions, he said, and stands in contrast to the quick treatment provided to those suffering from other illnesses.

Norton said he hopes the state sees the ruling as a call to rapidly improve a mental health system that is overburdened at every stage, from entry to treatment to re-entry into the community.

During the past eight years thousands of Granite Staters have experienced ED Boarding. When justice is denied to one person it is denied to all, he said. Todays decision on behalf of Jane Doe is a decision in favor of all Granite Staters. We are all Jane Doe.

A spokesperson for Health and Human Services Commissioner Lori Shibinette did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The department had argued in part that requiring hearings within three days of the signing of certificates would result in either court hearings being held in private hospitals or courts ordering patients to be released when such hearings do not occur. That would increase the risk that mentally ill people would hurt themselves or others, they said.

The court, however, said such public policy arguments should be made to the Legislature, not the judicial branch.

"We do not opine as to how the defendant should comply with its statutorily-mandated duty as our system of government entrusts such decisions to our coordinate branches, the court said.

Gov. Chris Sununus spokesman, Ben Vihstadt, said Sununu's efforts to rebuild a broken system had resulted in eliminating the waitlist last spring. In recent years, lawmakers increased funding for mobile crisis teams, designated receiving beds for patients in mental health crises and supported housing.

We have never taken our eye off this critical issue and the state is reviewing the decision to ensure our most vulnerable citizens get the services they deserve in their time of need, he said.

The ACLU-NH, which has filed a separate class action lawsuit in federal court over the issue, praised the ruling.

Todays historic decision is a major victory for mental health advocacy: it recognizes that those being boarded in hospital emergency rooms are human beings entitled to prompt due process, said legal director Gilles Bissonnette.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP)  Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele said Monday he will donate coronavirus vaccines to seven towns in Honduras even though his own countrys vaccination effort is still struggling.

El Salvador has administered about 1.25 million shots, not nearly enough for the countrys 6.5 million people.

But Bukele was apparently touched by appeals made by the mayors of seven towns in neighboring Honduras who asked El Salvador for help, claiming their own government has abandoned them.

Bukele said that because more shipments of vaccines were due to arrive soon, the donations would not affect El Salvadors vaccination drive.

The scheduled vaccine shipments we will receive leave us enough room to donate some, Bukele wrote in his Twitter account.

Bukele has been known for staking out populist or self-aggrandizing positions in the past.

Health Minister Francisco Alabi is to meet with the Honduran mayors Tuesday. It is unclear how many doses the donation would include.

The mayor of San Jose Colinas in Honduras, Amable de Jesus Hernandez, said in a video posted by the mayors that our people are dying of COVID, our government isn't helping us, and that is why we are appealing to you.

El Salvador has suffered 2,305 deaths from COVID-19.
LANSING, Mich. (AP)  Michigan Republicans' lame-duck maneuver to weaken voter-proposed minimum wage and paid sick leave laws was unconstitutional, organizers of the ballot initiatives said in lawsuit filed Tuesday.

The complaint came more than 16 months after the state Supreme Court declined to issue a rare advisory opinion on the legality of the move, which could have prevented a lengthy court fight.

In 2018, the GOP-controlled Legislature engaged in adopt and amend, a controversial and unprecedented strategy. To prevent minimum wage and sick time ballot drives from going to the electorate, after which they would have been much harder to change if voters had passed them, legislators approved them so they could be made more business-friendly after the election with simple majority votes and the signature of the outgoing Republican governor, Rick Snyder.

The suit  filed against Attorney General Dana Nessel in her official capacity in the state Court of Claims  says the state constitution forbids the Legislature from amending an initiative petition that it has enacted in the same session. The laws are null and void," and the original bills are in full force and effect," according to the filing.

One new law gradually increases the states minimum wage to $12.05 an hour by 2030, instead of to $12 by 2022, as was initially enacted. It also reversed a provision that would have brought a lower wage for tipped employees in line with the wage for other workers.

The other law exempts employers with fewer than 50 employees from having to provide paid sick days, a change that is estimated to leave up to 1 million employees without the benefit  unlike what was proposed. It also limits the amount of annual mandatory leave at larger employers to 40 hours, instead of 72 hours.

Plaintiffs include Michigan One Fair Wage and Michigan Time to Care  which organized the ballot drives  other groups and two residents who say they lost out on wages, earned sick days or both.

What they did was immoral, and unconstitutional, said David Woodward, a former Democratic state legislator and a leader with One Fair Wage. "Today, we go to court to fix a wrong, and raise wages for Michigan workers.

In 2019, Nessel, a newly elected Democrat, declined to review the constitutionality of the move  noting the Supreme Court had agreed to hear arguments. Her predecessor, Republican Bill Schuette, had endorsed the strategy's legality. The suit accuses Nessel of blocking raises and paid sick time by not superseding or rescinding his opinion. She also refused to issue an opinion after the high court decided not to weigh in early, said Mark Brewer, the plaintiffs' lawyer.

A spokeswoman for the attorney general declined to comment.

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Follow David Eggert at https://twitter.com/DavidEggert00
When King John of England agreed to the Magna Carta in 1215 to make peace with the rebellious barons, the royal charter was meant to protect the nobles' property rights. The primacy of the privileged has since become a hallmark of Western democracy.

When Austrian-American political economist Joseph Schumpeter espoused an elitist model in 1942, he argued that given the incapacity of ordinary people to make intelligent decisions in politics, it is necessary to leave governance to politicians chosen through competitive elections, and his theory has gained broad acceptance in the West.

However, from a Chinese point of view, this kind of democracy is at best a procedural democracy, which may be a far cry from substantial democracy or real democracy. The Western democracy today faces multiple challenges, ranging from stagnant living standards, a divided society and monetized politics to rising populism, and needs serious reform to live up to the expectations of the people.

New approach

In contrast, China has long been exploring what is called people's democracy with varying degrees of success. The defeat in the Opium War (1840-42) waged against China by Britain ushered in a period of prolonged instability. Colonial powers invaded China and forced it to pay huge reparations. Things did not change for the better even after the 1911 Revolution, which overthrew the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). In the absence of a strong central authority, the warlords, each supported by imperialist powers, fought one another for dominance. The country descended into civil war and millions of lives were lost.

Most patriots who were exploring the road to national rejuvenation shared the belief that the Chinese should be the masters of their country but a solution to the problems did not emerge until the late 1910s, when the October Revolution in Russia, in which revolutionaries seized power and established the Soviet republic, awakened Chinese progressives to Marxism-Leninism. They realized that the working class and peasants should be mobilized to fight the warlords and imperialist powers in order to achieve national unity and independence.

When the Communist Party of China (CPC) was founded in 1921, most of its members were Marxist intellectuals. Three years later, it formed an alliance with the Nationalist Party (KMT) against the warlords. There were two leanings within the CPC, with some cozying up to the KMT and others prioritizing urban workers' movement while ignoring the peasantry. This alliance collapsed after a KMT coup in 1927.

Based on research in the rural areas in Hunan, his home province, Mao Zedong asserted that the CPC should rely not only on workers but also, more importantly, on peasants, who constituted the vast majority of the population. He called on the Party to reach out to the peasants, understand their needs and help improve their material conditions.

At the end of 1935, after the CPC-led Red Army arrived in Shaanxi Province following the strategic retreat from KMT onslaught, known as the Long March, Mao proposed a government that should represent not only workers and peasants but the whole nation. He integrated his Mass Line with Vladimir Lenin's democratic centralism, which combines centralism built on the basis of democracy or "from the people, to the people," with democracy under centralized guidance. A people's democracy with distinctive Chinese characteristics began to emerge.

There were some detours like the "cultural revolution" (1966-76) when many laws were trampled upon, and they offered a harsh lesson to build a real people's democracy based on rule of law.

Broad representation

Today, people's democracy in China is a three-pronged institutional arrangement comprising: (i) the Party's leadership, (ii) the people as the masters of the country, and (iii) rule of law. The purpose of this arrangement is to establish the people as the masters of the country, while the other two serve as a double guarantee for that.

The CPC plays a leadership role as it represents the overall interests of the people, originating from China's long tradition of a "unified ruling entity" since the country's first unification in 221 B.C., and a leadership structure based on a meritocratic system of "selecting and electing" the best and the most competent to govern the country.

In today's politics, the Party's leadership effectively forestalls simple-minded populism, monetized politics or Western attempts to stage a "color revolution" in China. It is naive to assume that the people can rule a country without any organization providing leadership. Elections need to be organized, procedures established and external interference forestalled. All these tasks are performed by the CPC, a political institution of over 90 million members, larger than the German population, with broad representation and popular support, and committed to the public good.

As for rule of law, it requires first of all strict observance of the Constitution. Unlike the Magna Carta, which prioritized the interests of the rich and wealthy, the Chinese Constitution stipulates that the state shall serve the people and "uphold a fundamental economic system under which public ownership is the mainstay and diverse forms of ownership develop together." It adds that the state shall protect both public property rights and private property rights. Over 90 percent of Chinese households today own properties, a remarkable achievement by itself.

The disintegration of the Soviet Union offered a chilling lesson to most Chinese on how crucial people's democracy was for the protection of their interests. Agitated by the West, the Soviet Union decided in February 1990 to abandon the leadership of its Communist Party and subsequently, public ownership. The fallout was devastating: The country disintegrated and people's wealth was plundered, followed by social disorder and a sharp rise in unemployment and the death rate.

In China, the double guarantee ensures that the people are the masters of their country and their fundamental interests are well expressed and protected. People's democracy is not only a guarantee of people's properties, but also a series of institutions. They range from consultative democracy in each and every level of China's social and political life, to the world's most extensive use of opinion surveys on public policies, to soliciting public opinion directly via the Internet on all major policy issues, and to institutionalized democratic decision-making in producing five-year plans for the nation and for different localities. Each five-year plan goes through hundreds of rounds of consultations at all levels of the state and society.

In many ways, China's success is due to the quality of its decision-making process and efficiency of policy execution, which make the Chinese state far more responsive to the needs of the people than the Western model, as shown clearly in China's resolute fight against COVID-19. The Chinese model has ensured that most Chinese are beneficiaries of China's dramatic rise, and the country has witnessed the fastest improvement in people's living standards in human history.

The Chinese model is not perfect, but it indeed outperforms American democracy in many ways. For one thing, China's top legislature, as well as the local people's congresses, address issues of direct concern to the general public, from medical insurance to pension to education and environmental protection without the intervention of lobby groups as in the U.S. Congress.

Little wonder then that the Ipsos surveys over the past few years have repeatedly shown that around 90 percent of Chinese think their country is on the right track, more than double the number of Americans or British who think the same about their country.

The Democracy Perception Index 2020 released by Dalia Research showed that 73 percent of Chinese believed their country is a democracy while only 49 percent of Americans believed the United States is a democracy. What an interesting and changing time!

The author is director of the China Institute at Fudan University in Shanghai.
Al Drago/AP

SEATTLE (AP)  Rep. Jamie Herrera Beutler, one of 10 Republican U.S. House members who voted to impeach Donald Trump for his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, says she will vote to retain Rep. Liz Cheney in Republican leadership.

Cheney, who also voted to impeach the former president, is expected to be ousted from her position this week.
BOISE, Idaho (AP)  An Idaho death row inmate with terminal cancer and heart disease is asking the state to let him die naturally rather than kill him by lethal injection next month.

Gerald Ross Pizzuto Jr. is scheduled for execution on June 2 for the 1985 beating deaths of Berta Herndon, 58, and her nephew Del Herndon, 37, at a remote Idaho County cabin. His attorneys announced Tuesday that they filed a clemency petition on his behalf to the Idaho Pardons & Parole Commission.

Pizzuto has terminal bladder cancer, diabetes and heart disease and is confined to a wheelchair. He's been on hospice care since 2019, when doctors said he likely wouldn't survive for another year.

Throughout his childhood, Pizzuto was tortured, raped and severely beaten by his stepfather and sometimes by his stepfather's friends, according to his clemency petition. His stepfather beat Pizzuto with a whip, cattle prod, horse crop and even a 2 x 4 piece of lumber, and sometimes Pizzuto and his siblings would be forced to sleep in a dog house and eat dog food. He sustained repeated brain injuries and had trouble communicating, keeping himself clean and relating to other kids, his attorneys said.

Mr. Pizzuto never had a chance in life. He was tortured in unimaginable ways throughout his childhood, his attorneys in the capital habeas unit of the Federal Defender Services of Idaho wrote in the clemency petition. Merciless beatings and savage rapes battered and scarred that little boy.

The 65-year-old has spent 34 years in an isolated cell on death row, his attorneys noted.

The ravages of terminal cancer and heart disease punish him more every day, binding him to a wheelchair, a prisoner of his own failing body," the attorneys wrote. While it is too late to save that little boy, it is not too late to show Jerry Pizzuto mercy.

Pizzuto is one of eight people on Idahos death row.

Prosecutors said Pizzuto, armed with a .22 caliber rifle, tied the victims wrists behind their backs and bound their legs to steal their money. He bludgeoned them both.

Idaho has executed three people since capital punishment was resumed nationwide in 1976.

Keith Eugene Wells was executed in 1994, Paul Ezra Rhodes was executed in 2011 and Richard Albert Leavitt was executed in 2012.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP)  Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday urged people to refrain from panic buying at gas stations after the pipeline cyberattack, saying Alabama does not have a fuel shortage but that hoarding could create one.

Ivey spokeswoman Gina Maiola said the governor spoke to the U.S. Department of Energy and was assured that the pipeline should be operational in a few days. The governor urged people to be courteous, only fill up if you need to, and do not fill up multiple containers.
WAPELLO, Iowa (AP)  A jury has acquitted a former eastern Iowa high school Spanish teacher of allegations that he sexually exploited a student.

After less than two hours of deliberation on April 22, a Louisa County jury found former Columbus Community High School teacher Eusebio Jimenez, Jr., not guilty of the charge of sexual exploitation by a school employee. A judge had dismissed a second count during the trial.

Prosecutors had alleged that Jimenez once rubbed the student's leg in his classroom and made inappropriate sexualized remarks to him in person and through text messages. They argued that the conduct amounted to a pattern of sexual conduct with the student.

In a statement issued through his attorney Leon Spies, Jimenez thanked jurors for their hard work and his friends and family for their support.

In light of his acquittal, Mr. Jimenez is reviewing all of his career options, including a return to teaching, Spies said.

Jimenez, 35, of Columbus Junction, was suspended and later resigned from the school district after he was arrested and charged in 2019.

The student had told authorities that his treatment by Jimenez made him uncomfortable because Jimenez is openly gay.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the second part in a two-part series looking at the many ways the upcoming Raise the Age legislation may impact Benzie and Manistee counties' juvenile court system as well as the ripple effects to other areas of the community.

BENZIE COUNTY  Benzie County's juvenile court and others in Michigan are preparing for what it might mean when Raise the Age legislation takes effect in October.

Cameron Clark, director of the Manistee and Benzie counties' 19th Circuit Courts Youth Services, gave a presentation at the April 20 Manistee County Board of Commissioners meeting about what to expect when 17-year-olds are no longer considered adults in court.

Clark and commissioners pointed out the many areas the changes would touch such as schools, law enforcement of truancy and the collaborations between Manistee County agencies.

One point that Clark made throughout the presentation was how different 17-year-olds are from the juveniles they currently interact with such as the younger teens. He also noted how the addition of 17-year-olds may bring some "friction" with the 17-year-olds' housing and eventually the juvenile court budget.

He said there are many 17-year-olds in the area who do not live at home.

Theyre couch surfers and that kind of instability, it doesnt sit well with most judges, Clark said. They dont like to have a kid on probation (in a situation where) we dont know where theyre at.

For instance if a youth is ordered to be monitored by electronic tether, the court needs to know where the home base is for that tether.

And if you send these kids home, friction can occur which is typically why they arent home in the first place  which can cause more fireworks, he said.

In his presentation he also referenced a Michigan State University study on Raise the Age and he said there are many inferences but also some unknowns to draw from the report.

Clark informed the board that there are also some unknown aspects for the upcoming budget as a result of the changes.

The study doesnt look favorable for small counties such as ours and in Benzie, but again in a county our size  one or two kids can really upset the apple cart, he said. So, buckle up, it may be a bumpy ride. But we will try to figure this out.

Commissioner Margaret Batzer asked if the state would be providing additional funds to help offset the courts budget.

They have offered a pot of money to counties for the first year in terms of implementing the Raise the Age legislation. Things that are not covered by the Child Care Fund will be reimbursed by the state in year one, Clark said adding that he made applications for both Manistee and Benzie county juvenile courts for the funds.

Clark said the court will likely see more cases that require more attorneys fees, and that is one angle that will be reimbursed.

According to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the Child Care Fund Unit provides financial reimbursement to counties and tribes for community-based programming for child welfare and juvenile justice youth, and placement costs for youth involved in juvenile justice cases.

MDHHS states that the fund unit has an annual budget of about $360 million that is shared between the state, 83 counties and participating Native American Indian tribes.

Clark said most of the costs are not covered by the states Child Care Fund.

Theres not a laundry list of things those funds can be used for because the Child Care Fund is really quite inclusive of most every service that we provide, he said. But things that are not covered in the Child Care Fund can be written off, at least in year one.

But the ongoing costs that may not be covered after the first year are not Clarks major concern.

Those dont add up to hundreds of thousand of dollars, he said. Where we really begin to get panicky is when kids are not able to be able to be contained in our community and they have to go live somewhere else where were paying anywhere from $180 to $225 a day.

He said counties like Manistee and Benzie do not have the kind of excess funds to dole out those dollars for even a couple of kids a year.

If the counties were to have four to six children in placement outside the county, he said the juvenile court would be in a world of hurt."

"So, were working hard, Clark said.

A report prepared for the state of Michigan in March 2018 prior to the legislative vote, titled "The cost of raising the age of juvenile justice in Michigan,"details projections in costs to the state as a whole as well as certain counties.

"Focusing on the costs which could be estimated, if Michigan chooses to raise the age to 17, increased costs to the counties are expected to range between $16.9 million and $34.1 million annually. Costs to the state will also increase, somewhere between $9.6 million and $26.8 million."

The report stipulated that "how much the counties and state will incur is based on the type of residential placement in which juveniles are placed" in such as state versus private secure care, secure versus non-secure placement as well as the length of stay.

"Overall, the cost impact to the courts, prosecuting attorneys and jails will cost Michigan $4.7 million annually, with a decrease in costs for district courts and jails and an increase for circuit courts and prosecuting attorneys," the report said in part.

However, the report also states that the future could be different from previous numbers as "the overall trend in arrests of both 17 year-olds and of juvenile offenders has been declining steadily over several years."
The man who transformed the Vermont-based Orvis company from a niche fly-fishing supply company into a global retailer of outdoor supplies, apparel and protector of the environment has died. Leigh H. Perkins was 93.

The Sunderland-based Orvis company says Perkins died May 7 in Monticello, Florida. The cause of death was not released.

An online tribute published on the company's website said Perkins was a lifelong outdoorsman who hunted or fished more than 250 days a year into his 90s who had a reverence for nature and conservation.

The company says that Perkins began donating 5% of pre-tax profits to conserving fish and wildlife.

While Orvis is based in Sunderland, not far from the headwaters of the Batten Kill  one of the most famous trout streams in the state  the company's reach goes across the world.

He followed that fly rod to all corners of the world and he made connections and relationships to both places and people across the globe, Simon Perkins, Leigh Perkins' grandson and the current president of Orvis, said Tuesday.

Simon Perkins is the third generation of his family to lead the company.

Christopher Saunders, a project coordinator for the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife, who describes himself as a passionate fly fisherman, said the legacy of Leigh Perkins is considerable for both the sport of fly fishing and Vermont.

Saunders said Vermont was a cradle of the fly fishing industry, but over the years the focus of the world moved west. Perkins made sure fly fishing in Vermont remained prominent.

To this day people still make pilgrimages to go to Orvis and fly fish on the Batten Kill river and surrounding areas, Saunders said.

He obviously was committed to more than the bottom line, Saunders said. There was a lot of focus on education.

In 1966, Perkins began what the company describes as the worlds first fly-fishing schools, first in Vermont and then elsewhere. Saunders said those schools helped introduce thousands of anglers to fly fishing.

Perkins was born in Cleveland in 1927, but went to college in western Massachusetts. His mother imbued him with a love of the outdoors and hunting and fishing.

Orvis, founded in 1856 by Charles F. Orvis, was a niche business with 20 employees and $500,000 in annual sales when Perkins bought it in 1965. Over the next 27 years, Perkins transformed it into a retail and mail-order business with sales that topped $90 million.

Since then, the company estimates it's grown fourfold.

Perkins is survived by his wife Anne, four children, a number of stepchildren, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Democratic Rep. Troy Carter of Louisiana was sworn into the House on Tuesday, adding some breathing room to the partys tight majority.

Carter, 57, represents a majority-Black district centered in New Orleans that extends up the Mississippi River into Baton Rouge. The seat opened after Democratic Rep. Cedric Richmond left the position to work as a special adviser to President Joe Biden.

Carter had served in a variety of local and state political positions over the course of three decades before winning a runoff election to succeed Richmond. He is the only Democratic member of the Louisiana congressional delegation.

Carter said in his inaugural speech on the House floor that his district is known for Mardi Gras, jazz, great food and its vibrant manufacturing base, but he said it also has a lot of needs, including economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, infrastructure investment, environmental justice and education.

I commit to working with everyone in the Congress and the White House to address those needs and to stand strong when those needs are not being addressed, Carter said.

Carters swearing-in gives Democrats a 219-212 edge in the House, with four vacancies. Of those vacancies, three seats had been held by Democrats and one by a Republican. No party turnover is expected when special elections are held to fill those vacancies.

The race to succeed Richmond was a crowded one. Carter and Karen Carter Peterson, both serving as state senators, emerged as the top vote-getters among 15 candidates in the March primary.

Carter had the backing of Richmond and House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, D-S.C. Peterson was supported by voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams, progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell.

As is the norm for swearing-in ceremonies, lawmakers put aside their party and political differences. Rep. Steve Scalise, the No. 2 Republican in the House, welcomed Carter, saying that hes committed his life to public service.

We look forward to continuing that great tradition as Republicans and Democrats working together for the best interests of our great state of Louisiana as well as for the nation, said Scalise, who also represents Louisiana.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, was also at the Capitol and spoke during a ceremonial event just outside the House floor. He called Carter pretty strong-willed, prompting laughter from Carters family and friends, before he added, but always pleasant to deal with.
CHICAGO (AP)  A man who sped away from Chicago police after running a red light was killed on the city's South Side after his vehicle crashed into a tree, authorities said.

Officers tried to stop the man's Jaguar early Monday after he ran a red light, but the car sped away from officers and slammed into a tree several blocks away, police said.
BOSTON (AP)  Massachusetts Senate leaders on Tuesday unveiled their version of the state budget for the 2022 fiscal year that begins July 1  a spending plan they say will help the state emerge stronger and fairer from the coronavirus pandemic.

Democratic Senate President Karen Spilka said the $47.6 billion budget plan maintains fiscal responsibility and targets spending to address emerging needs, while safeguarding the health of the states most vulnerable populations and making sure all residents can benefit equitably in a post-pandemic era.

If the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic aftershocks have frayed the fabric of our commonwealth, this budget takes on the important, but sometimes invisible, work of stitching that fabric back together, Spilka said. Theres a whole lot of good in this budget.

One new program in the Senate proposal is intended to help students who have struggled with the restrictions of the past year, which for many included remote learning and distance from friends. The program would dedicate about $6 million to address the social and emotional learning challenges facing students returning to classrooms.

Our students will not be able to catch up academically if they cant catch up socially and emotionally, Spilka said.

The budget also includes $1 million to support the development of a pilot program for universal mental health screenings in schools, she said.

The pandemic has also revealed the role affordable housing plays in the states economic recovery, according to Spilka and other Senate leaders. The Senate plan includes $572 million with the aim of helping to keep families in their homes and supporting tenants and property owners as the state makes a transition to a post-pandemic economy.

The Senate budget plan contains no new broad-based tax increases, according to Democratic Sen. Michael Rodrigues, chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, charged with writing the budget.

Investing in areas like education, mental health and public health while working to combat poverty and expand opportunity are key goals of the budget, he said.

"We cannot build back our economy without prioritizing equity, Rodrigues said.

The budget plan also draws $1.55 billion from the states Stabilization Fund  also known as the rainy day fund. The sum ensures the state maintains healthy reserves for years beyond the pandemic, according to Rodrigues.

Legislative leaders are planning to decide how to spend the $4.5 billion in federal pandemic aid separately, rather than lump that money into the states 2022 fiscal year budget plan.

We have not even had the time to dig into that, Rodrigues said. There is plenty of time to spend that money.

Once the Senate debates and approves its version of the budget, both the House and Senate versions will be handed over to a six-member conference committee made up of three House and three Senate members tasked with hammering out a single, compromise budget document.

That version will head back to each chamber for a final up or down vote, at which point the budget heads to Gov. Charlie Bakers desk for his signature.

Baker can also issue any vetoes he wants, which lawmakers would have the option of trying to override. Thats generally not too high a hill to climb, given the hefty Democratic majorities in both chambers.
HELENA, Mont. (AP)  People could have concealed weapons on Montana's public college campuses if they have firearms training and keep the guns holstered or locked in their rooms, with an exception for self-defense, under a policy proposed by the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education.

Under the proposal, students, faculty and others would be allowed to carry on campus if they can certify they have a concealed firearm permit in Montana, a similar permit from another state or firearms safety training.

The university system is also proposing a course for those wanting to possess weapons while living in campus housing.

The policy is needed following legislation, sponsored by Republican Rep. Seth Berglee of Joliet, that expands the number of places people can carry a concealed firearm to also include bank lobbies, restaurants and bars. He said it would reduce the possibility of mass shootings by enabling people to defend themselves.

A legal analysis attached to the bill said there could be constitutional issues with expanding the carrying of concealed weapons to university campuses. The Montana Constitution gives the Board of Regents full power, responsibility and authority to supervise, coordinate, manage and control the Montana university system, the note stated.

Berglee argued the 2nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution supersedes that provision in Montanas Constitution.

Opponents of the bill said having more guns on campuses could exacerbate Montanas already high suicide rate.

The Academic, Research and Student Affairs Committee of the Montana Board of Regents will hear public comments on the proposal Wednesday during a video conference.

About 150 people had signed up to comment on the policy by Monday afternoon, said Helen Thigpen, deputy legal counsel for the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education. More than 800 people had signed up to watch the meeting, so it was made available on a livestream, she said. The meeting is set to run from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The Montana Board of Regents is set to vote on the policy during its meeting on May 26-27. If approved, the policy would take effect on June 1.

Students with histories of campus discipline due to violence or substance abuse could be denied the ability to carry a weapon, under the proposed policy. In addition, firearms would not be allowed at campus events where alcohol is being served and consumed or at concerts or sporting events.

The Board of Regents had previously banned firearms on campus for all but security officers. Campuses were allowed to set regulations for the transportation and storage of firearms on campus.
Sixty years ago, Soviet astronaut Yuri Gagarin journeyed into outer space, ushering Earth into the era of space flights.

Five years prior to that, Qian Xuesen, father of China's space technology, set up China's first rocket and missile research institute, marking the start of China's space explorations.

From the pioneering effort, China's space odyssey reached a new technology milestone on April 29, when construction of the Chinese space station Tiangong started with the launch of its core module, Tianhe, which will function as the management and control center of the space station.

Building a space station and space laboratory is the final stage in the three-step strategic plan for manned space projects. The first step was sending astronauts into space, following in Gagarin's footsteps, and the second was accomplishing extra-vehicular activity, and docking and rendezvous in space.

Now, as part of the third stage, the Chinese space station is expected to be ready for service in 2022. That is the year the International Space Station, run by the space agencies of Europe, the U.S., Russia, Canada and Japan, may retire after over 20 years of operation, and Tiangong may become the only space station working as a space laboratory for the world.

In the past 65 years, China has made substantial progress in rockets, satellites, manned spaceflights and extraterrestrial planetary probes. It has become a leading country in a number of important technologies via self-reliance and independent innovation.

China seeks to utilize outer space for peaceful purposes, economic development, national security, and science and technology development. Its ultimate aim is to raise domestic scientific ability, protect national interests and rights, and promote human civilization and social progress.

All countries have equal right to peacefully explore, develop and utilize outer space and celestial bodies. China maintains that international exchanges and cooperation should be strengthened on the basis of equality and mutual benefit, peaceful utilization and inclusive development.

China's space technologies and activities are independent but not exclusive. During the past decades, it has been participating in space activities sponsored by international organizations including the United Nations, and supported international commercial cooperation in space. Its space missions will also open up to foreign astronauts who will work in the Chinese space station, taking global cooperation to a new height.
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP)  The Navajo Nation on Monday reported 11 new confirmed COVID-19 cases and no additional deaths.

Tribal health officials also said there were 19 new coronavirus cases and one death Sunday, but the numbers werent immediately reported due to the Mothers Day holiday.

The latest combined figures pushed the total number of cases since the pandemic began more than a year ago to 30,620 on the vast reservation that covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.

The known death toll now is at 1,285.

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said more than half of the reservations adult population has been vaccinated, but people still need to stay home as much as possible, wear masks and avoid large gatherings.

The Navajo Department of Health recently loosened some virus-driven restrictions and transition to yellow status.

Restaurants are allowed to have in-door dining at 25% capacity and outdoor dining at 50% capacity and parks are permitted to open at 25% capacity but only for residents and employees.

Navajo casinos are open at 50% capacity, but only for residents and staff.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  Family members of a person killed by North Carolina law enforcement would be able to watch unedited officer body camera footage of what happened within about a week, according to a bill approved Monday by a state Senate committee.

The language, added to a broader criminal justice reform measure expected to clear the Senate later this week, responds to efforts by the family of Andrew Brown Jr. to view bodycam footage of the Black man's death in Elizabeth City.

Brown was fatally shot in his car by Pasquotank County sheriffs deputies last month and his family has spent the past few weeks in a legal battle to see the videos.

Under current law, it's at the discretion of a sheriff's office or police department to let an immediate family member of the person who is the subject of the footage or the familys attorney to watch the video privately. If disappointed with what the law enforcement agency provides, the family can ask a judge to force the agency to let it review more footage.

Initially, in Brown's case, the sheriff allowed his family members to view a 20-second clip from a single body camera. A judge later ruled that the family could watch less than 20 minutes of the nearly two hours of video that was recorded. Family members will get that chance on Tuesday.

The bill directs a law enforcement agency to let the family view the unredacted recordings within five business days of its request unless the agency asks the court if some footage can be edited or withheld. A judge may review the footage privately in deciding whether disclosing all of it would harm a person's reputation or cause a serious threat to carrying out justice. The process also would apply to a person who was seriously injured and wants to see the footage.

Sen. Danny Britt, a Robeson County Republican and the bill sponsor, said the alteration stemmed from discussions with members of the General Assembly's Legislative Black Caucus. He said the changes still provides a balance between the investigation and the needs of family members to see what transpired. The district attorney's office would be allowed to weigh in before a judge rules.

I think that if that was my loved one or if that was myself, I would want to see exactly what happened, Britt said after the judiciary committee meeting. However, I also believe there may be compelling reasons for that law enforcement agency to restrict what I see and what my family sees.

Sen. Toby Fitch, a Wilson County Democrat and former judge who is Black, praised the change: Most of all, the family needs to know, and this does exactly that.

The provision doesnt address the process by which the media or an individual must ask a judge to order footage be released publicly. In a move to make it less likely that the footage could be secretly recorded by someone and made public, the bill makes it a misdemeanor if anyone copies the recording unlawfully and a low-grade felony if someone makes it public.

The law currently lacks a real punishment if the video is secretly recorded and distributed, Britt said: A law enforcement agency is probably going to be more likely to show that unredacted version if theres some sort of repercussion." The current body camera law was approved in 2016.

The bill, which also focuses on targeting insubordinate and overly aggressive officers while giving more mental health assistance to police and deputies, still must receive House approval. The House has passed several measures with many elements contained in the omnibus Senate legislation, but they don't now include the body camera proposal.
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP)  The parents of a 20-year-old fraternity pledge who died from alcohol poisoning after an alleged hazing ritual in March filed a wrongful death lawsuit on Tuesday against the fraternity and several of its members.

Stone Foltz, who was joining the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity at Bowling Green State University, and other pledges were blindfolded, taken into a basement and forced to drink to an entire bottle of alcohol  equivalent to about 40 shots, according to the lawsuit.

Foltz finished the bottle in as little as 18 minutes, and members of the fraternity took him to his apartment, where a roommate found him unconscious, the complaint said. He died three days later.

Eight current or former members of the fraternity were indicted in April on charges ranging from involuntary manslaughter to hazing.

Those named in the lawsuit include organizers of the alleged hazing ritual, the Bowling Green chapter and Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity.

A message seeking comment was left with the Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity. It said in a statement in April that the actions of those individuals found responsible are unacceptable and do not align with its values.

The lawsuit said the fraternity and its chapters nationwide have for decades had incidents of hazing and misconduct resulting in disciplinary actions by universities, civil suits and serious injuries."

The national organization placed the Bowling Green chapter on probation for the spring semester in 2020 but they simply picked up where they left off after probation ended, the lawsuit said. Following Foltz's death, the university permanently banned the fraternity.

University officials said they found that new members who attended the party were blindfolded and taken into a basement while being yelled at and pushed in an attempt to disorient them.

Before the event, fraternity leaders told the pledges to let their professors know they likely would not be in class the next day, the university found.

Foltz, a business major from Delaware, Ohio, was dropped off afterward at his apartment by members of the fraternity, including his big brother who was supposed to spend the night with Foltz and make sure he was OK, the lawsuit said.

Instead, Stone Foltz was taken from the car into his apartment and left alone on the couch to die, the complaint said.

His roommate came home and found him facedown on a couch and still breathing, but he soon stopped breathing and his face and ears turned purple and blue, the lawsuit said.

Foltz was taken to a hospital and put on life support. He died after his family arranged for his organs to be donated.
BROUSSARD, La. (AP)  A police chief in Louisiana is retiring after more than 20 years at the helm of his force amid accusations of sexual harassment made by former officers.

Brannon Decou  Broussard Police Departments longest-serving elected leader  sent his resignation letter to Louisiana Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin and Mayor Ray Bourque on Monday, news outlets reported.

In a statement addressed to city leaders, police and citizens, Decou said his last day as chief will be June 1 to help provide for an orderly transition.

I will take some much needed rest, and allow someone else to take over with a fresh set of ideas that hopefully will continue the forward momentum that our city deserves, he wrote.

The letter didnt address the harassment allegations.

Decou took a leave of absence April 27 while the city investigated an envelope of text messages between the chief and a former deputy that officials said they had received.

Three former officers described the work environment at the Broussard Police Department to The Acadiana Advocate in an article published earlier that month. They said unwanted sexual advances were the norm, and those who spoke up faced retaliation.

Taylor Jones, 28, shared screenshots with the newspaper of inappropriate messages he said were from Decou. The messages included a request for the then-employee to send scandalous pics.

Bourque said in a statement that he will work with the city council to determine an interim police chief. Decous term was through the end of 2022, and city residents will elect a new chief in an upcoming election.

I have been in constant communication with our police commanders, and I want our City to rest assured that the Broussard Police Department has been running smoothly, actively policing our community, and will continue to do so," Bourque said.
PHILADELPHIA (AP)  A man was shot to death inside a sport utility vehicle in north Philadelphia  and someone later got into the SUV and drove it with the body inside across the city to southwest Philadelphia, police said.

Chief Inspector Scott Small told reporters that investigators were notified just after 10:30 p.m. Monday that someone who knew the victim had tracked his cellphone to the vehicle and called police.
COLONIE, N.Y. (AP)  A shooting victim crashed his car into a motel in upstate New York early Tuesday and then died, police said.

Colonie police responded to a report of a motor vecicle accident at a Motel 6 at 1:45 a.m., police said in a news release.
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP)  A Virginia state prosecutor determined that a state police trooper had no legal basis for pulling over a Black woman he later arrested, and has called for an internal police investigation, a newspaper reported Monday.

Fairfax Commonwealths Attorney Steve Descano dismissed all charges against Juanisha C. Brooks, according to the report in The Washington Post.

Brooks was pulled over by Virginia State Police Trooper Robert G. Hindenlang on March 6 while driving home on the Capital Beltway. According to the report, dashboard-camera video from Hindenlang's car shows Brooks repeatedly asking why she was pulled over. Hindenlang only replies that if she steps outside her car, he will show her.

When Brooks tells Hindenlang she doesn't want to get out, the trooper unlocks the car door and pulls her out while she asks him to stop, the video shows. The trooper pushes Brooks up against the car and handcuffs her.

Brooks tells the officer she had one drink, but refuses a sobriety test. Hindenlang tells her she is under arrest for driving under the influence and asks why her eyes were watery.

Why were my eyes watering? Brooks answers. Because people are being shot by the police. Im freaking nervous.

Later at the Fairfax County jail, Brooks took a breathalyzer test twice that showed a 0.0 blood alcohol level, according to Brooks and her attorney, Patrick M. Blanch. She was charged with resisting arrest, eluding police, failing to have headlights on and reckless driving.

The stop and arrest were proper, state police spokeswoman Corinne Geller told the Post. Hindenlang saw Brooks driving without any headlights or taillights, tailgating other vehicles and making unsafe lane changes, which are indicators of an impaired driver and provided reasonable suspicion for the trooper to initiate a traffic stop, Geller said. Brooks was taken into custody due to her persistent refusal to comply with the troopers requests and because of the troopers suspicion that Brooks might have been driving under the influence, Geller said.

Brooks said that on the brightly lit road, she hadnt noticed that she had forgotten to turn her headlights on.

A Virginia ban on pulling people over for dark taillights went into effect March 1. The change was aimed at avoiding the type of pretextual traffic stops that can cause unnecessary conflict. Given the recent change, Descano said in a letter to police that the stop was without proper legal basis, and the dashcam footage does not provide a factual basis to support the warrants. He called for state police to conduct an internal investigation, the Post reported.

Brooks is a senior video producer for the Defense Department, where she has worked for eight years and has top-secret clearance.

My whole livelihood was on the line, Brooks said. You cant have any charges when you have a clearance. The department questioned her about the arrest, she said.

Hindenlang, 49, has been a state trooper for 24 years, Geller said. He did not respond to an email from the Post seeking comment and doesnt have a voicemail or answering machine for the phone number under which he is listed.
ATLANTA (AP)  A man accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses was indicted Tuesday on murder charges by two separate grand juries, and one prosecutor filed notice that shell also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty.

A Fulton County grand jury indicted Robert Aaron Long, 22, in the March 16 slayings of Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; and Yong Ae Yue, 63. A separate grand jury in Cherokee County indicted Long for a separate shooting there that resulted in the killings of Xiaojie Emily Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Delaina Yaun, 33; and Paul Michels, 54.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis also filed notice that she intends to seek a hate crime sentence enhancement and the death penalty against Long, who is white. The hate crime charges are based on the actual or perceived race, national origin, sex and gender of the four women killed, the notice says.

The charges and the decisions to seek the death penalty and a sentencing enhancement under the hate crime law send a message that everyone within this community is valued, Willis said during a news conference Tuesday.

Today we have taken another step forward in seeking justice for the victims of this crime and for their family members, Cherokee County District Attorney Shannon Wallace said in a news release.

Wallace said she will make a decision on whether to seek the death penalty before Long's arraignment, which has not yet been scheduled.

Georgias new hate crimes law does not provide for a stand-alone hate crime. After a person is convicted of an underlying crime, a jury must determine whether its motivated by bias, which carries an additional penalty.

The 19-count Fulton County indictment includes charges of murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and domestic terrorism.

The domestic terrorism charge says Long committed a series of illegal acts which were interrelated by distinguishing characteristics, with the intent to cause serious bodily harm and to kill individuals and groups of individuals, and with the intent to intimidate the civilian population of this state and of its political subdivisions.

Four aggravated assault charges have to do with the shootings of the four victims who died. For a fifth, the indictment says Long pointed a gun at another woman, causing her reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving a violent injury.

The charges in the 23-count Cherokee County indictment are related to the shooting at a spa near suburban Woodstock in which four were killed and one person was wounded. Six other people were inside the spa when the shooting happened, Wallace said. The Cherokee County charges include malice murder, felony murder, attempt to commit murder and aggravated assault.

Willis decision to seek the death penalty is a departure from her stance during her campaign to be district attorney last year.

During a 2020 candidate forum, Willis answered yes when asked: Will you commit to refuse to seek the death penalty?

Last year I told the voters of Fulton County that I could not imagine a circumstance where I would seek (the death penalty), Willis said during the news conference. Unfortunately, a case has arisen ... that I believe warrants the ultimate penalty and we shall seek it.

The killings are eligible for the death penalty because each was committed while Long was in the act of committing another capital offense, namely the killings of the victims, Willis notice of intent says. Each killing was also outrageously or wantonly vile, horrible, or inhuman in that it involved depravity of mind and was committed during an act of domestic terrorism, the notice says.

Police have said Long shot and killed four people, three of them women and two of Asian descent, at Youngs Asian Massage near Woodstock just before 5 p.m. on March 16. He also shot and wounded a fifth person, investigators said.

He then drove about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south to Atlanta, where he shot and killed three women at Gold Spa before going across the the street to Aromatherapy Spa and fatally shooting another woman, police have said. All of the Atlanta victims were women of Asian descent.

After the shootings at the two Atlanta spas, Long got back into his car and headed south on the interstate, police said.

Longs parents called authorities to help after recognizing their son in still images from security video that the Cherokee County Sheriffs Office posted on social media. They provided cellphone information that allowed authorities to track their son to rural Crisp County, about 140 miles (225 kilometers) south of Atlanta.

State troopers and sheriffs deputies spotted his SUV on Interstate 75, and one of them forced Long to spin to a stop by bumping his vehicle. Long then surrendered to authorities.

In an initial interview with investigators, Long claimed to have a sex addiction, and authorities said he apparently lashed out at businesses he viewed as a temptation. But those statements spurred outrage and widespread skepticism given the races of the victims.
La PORTE, Ind. (AP)  The remains of two Indiana brothers who were killed in the 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor have been identified by U.S. military scientists.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said Monday it had identified the remains of Navy Fire Controlman 2nd Class Harold F. Trapp, 24, and Navy Electricians Mate 3rd Class William H. Trapp, 23.
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Richard Gunderman, Indiana University

(THE CONVERSATION) Do you have a work schedule that leaves you with enough time off the clock to rest up and handle your other responsibilities?

If so, you might owe something to Robert Owen, a wealthy industrialist who was born in Wales on May 14, 1771.

Owen is widely credited with being the first person to advocate for a universal eight hours labor, eight hours recreation, eight hours rest approach to work-life balance. He experimented with this concept at his own factories and urged employers everywhere to adopt this management ethos as part of the socialist ideology he embraced decades before Karl Marx.

In the early 19th century, many U.S. and European factory workers worked up to 18 hours a day, six days a week.

Once a year, I travel with 15 fellows enrolled in a leadership program to New Harmony. Its the site of Owens greatest experiment, a cooperative community he founded in southern Indiana on the banks of the Wabash River. Far more radical than limiting labor to eight-hour workdays, the utopia Owen envisioned ran up against human nature.

Early success and a socialist vision

Owen, born into a working-class family, had virtually no formal education. By the age of 21, he was managing a textile mill, and at 28 he married the daughter of a Scottish mill owner, whose business he soon purchased. Owen rejected long hours and took steps to make child labor less exploitative. Although he paid higher wages than his competitors, the mills profits made him a wealthy man.

Owen believed in lifelong education, establishing an Institute for the Formation of Character and School for Children that focused less on job skills than on becoming a better person. This innovation attracted considerable attention, and many dignitaries  including the future czar of Russia  visited to see it for themselves.

But Owens ambitions went far beyond the well-being of his workforce.

He conceived of socialist communities of people who would live together, as well as collectively prepare and eat their meals. Children would remain with their families until age 3, at which point the community would take over raising and educating them. Men and women would have equal rights.

At the core of Owens philosophy was an earnest question: Why shouldnt people who work together enjoy the fruits of their labor communally, promoting the well-being and happiness of every man, woman, and child, without regard to class, sect, party, country, or colour?

Theres a long-running debate over whether nature or nurture is the biggest factor shaping human character. Owen firmly sided with nurture. He believed in a concept then called human perfectibility. In his view, all that was necessary to create better human beings was to raise, educate and employ them in better circumstances.

Creating New Harmony

Owen sought to demonstrate the viability of his ideals by establishing a new community in the United States that would adhere to them. His aspirations belonged to a broader utopian movement that included the Fruitlands agrarian commune in Massachusetts and the Oneida community in New York state.

Other Europeans had attempted their own real-life experiments. In fact, a German religious sect that emphasized a communal way of life was selling its southern Indiana town of Harmony, and its residents were relocating to Pennsylvania.

Owen purchased it in 1825 for US$150,000 (the equivalent of about $4 million today) and renamed it New Harmony. He invited any and all to come join his community of equality located halfway between St. Louis, Missouri, and Louisville, Kentucky.

New Harmony attracted about 1,000 newcomers, including scientists, naturalists, educators and artists, all eager to build what Owen called a union and cooperation of all for the benefit of each.

Trouble soon began to brew.

For one thing, Owen himself seems to have taken a greater interest in traveling and promoting his ideas than in securing the success of the new venture.

A second problem was who moved there. Some residents sincerely believed in Owens ideas, while others had been lured by the promise of an easy life and did little to promote the community.

Finally, his reforms proved to be at odds with human nature. Few families wanted their children to be shielded from what he called the negative influence of their parents, and people who worked hard resented those who contributed little.

Ahead of his time

Despite considerable investments that depleted Owens fortune, the community failed economically after just two years. Perhaps he had overestimated the malleability of human nature. Owen personally believed that humanity wasnt yet ready for his radical new ideas.

He returned to Europe, where he continued to promote publicly funded education, better working conditions and his vision of an enlightened society. He died in Wales in 1858. His four sons and one of his daughters remained in New Harmony, leading notable lives of their own.

Owens legacy doesnt just live on in the nine-to-five schedules that became the norm starting in the early 20th century. Its also in the broad notion of social welfare behind everything from public schools to paid sick leave  including the expansion of government benefits the Biden administration is proposing.

Visitors to New Harmony, where about 750 people reside today, can wander around its many historical sites and learn about its one-time owner and most famous resident, who devoted his fortune and his life to improving the human condition.

[Insight, in your inbox each day. You can get it with The Conversations email newsletter.]

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/robert-owen-born-250-years-ago-tried-to-use-his-wealth-to-perfect-humanity-in-a-radically-equal-society-158402.
China's top political advisor meets with Egyptian Senate speaker via video link

Xinhua) 09:36, May 11, 2021

Wang Yang, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, meets with Egyptian Senate Speaker Abdel Razeq, via video link in Beijing, capital of China, May 10, 2021. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

BEIJING, May 10 (Xinhua) -- China's top political advisor Wang Yang met with Egyptian Senate Speaker Abdel Razeq via video link Monday, pledging to enhance friendly exchanges between the two sides.

Wang, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), said that this year marks the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, and China stands ready to work with Egypt to earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, consolidate mutual political trust, support each other on issues involving each other's core interests and major concerns, and promote cooperation on economy and trade, people-to-people exchanges and anti-epidemic efforts.

The CPPCC National Committee is willing to strengthen friendly exchanges with the Egyptian Senate and further enrich the China-Egypt comprehensive strategic partnership, he said.

Abdel Razeq expressed the willingness to actively participate in the Belt and Road Initiative, deepen practical cooperation in various fields, and continue to firmly support China's principled position on the issues of Taiwan, Xinjiang and Hong Kong.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
 Flash

A Chinese envoy on Monday asked a UN team investigating Islamic State (IS) crimes in Iraq to hand over evidence it collected to the Iraqi government so that the perpetrators can be brought to justice.

The UN Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da'esh/Islamic State (UNITAD) has collected a large amount of evidence. Only a timely transfer of the evidence to the Iraqi government can lead to tangible results of holding terrorists accountable, thereby achieving the intended objectives of UN Security Council Resolution 2379, said Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.

"We hope UNITAD will hand over evidence to the Iraqi side in a timely and complete manner in accordance with relevant Security Council resolutions," he told the council.

Terrorism is the common enemy of humanity. The international community should continue to support Iraq in its fight against terrorism, bring terrorists to justice, and consolidate hard-won counterterrorism gains. At the same time, the international community should also earnestly respect Iraq's sovereignty and jurisdiction over crimes committed on its soil, and support Iraq in its pursuit of accountability against terrorists in accordance with domestic laws, he said. "We appreciate Iraq's active effort to take forward its domestic legislation to hold former IS terrorists accountable."

All the parties concerned and the United Nations should also support Iraq in dealing with foreign terrorist fighters within Iraqi territory, he added.

In its report, UNITAD put forward some preliminary ideas about a "completion strategy." China encourages the investigative team to fully communicate and coordinate with the government of Iraq in this regard. The Security Council should also conduct a study and discuss the relevant issues in due course, he said.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP)  After a full year of distance learning, San Franciscos high school seniors will get to return to classrooms for at least one day" before graduation in a deal between teachers and the school district that drew quick criticism.

The teachers union announced the exciting news last weekend that the Class of 2021 will be able to return to classrooms starting Friday. But it left out the details: It calls for seniors to come back to school for at least one day before the end of the school year, there will be no in-person instruction and just two of the citys 15 high schools will be reopened, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Monday.

Critics said the plan is merely a ploy to tap state funding while failing to serve students.

The announced return date for seniors is one day shy of a May 15 deadline public schools need to meet to qualify for their share of $2 billion in state reopening funds, part of legislation approved this year to encourage school districts that closed in the pandemic to bring students back.

Assemblyman Phil Ting, who authored the legislation, called the plan disappointing. He said he didnt know if the district's plan meets the state requirements to receive funding.

It definitely doesnt meet the spirit of the law, the Democrat from San Francisco told the Chronicle. Kids were supposed to come back in person. Kids were supposed to come back to learn.

The deal between the district and teachers union does not call for in-person instruction. Instead, it includes in person supervision in which students will have activities that might include end of high school conversations, or college and career exploration, said district officials. San Francisco public schools end the term in early June.

The school board was expected to discuss the plan in more detail at a Tuesday meeting.

San Francisco Unified School District was among the last large school systems in the country to bring students back after campuses were shuttered during the pandemic. Elementary students returned in April.

Its much -criticized reopening followed months of political back-and-forth, labor talks and a lawsuit.

District elementary schools and preschools reopened on a rolling basis, with about 22,000 of the districts 52,000 students in classrooms. Most middle and high school students have continued with remote learning, though 2,000 upper-grade students in at-risk populations such as special day classes, foster care and homeless situations returned on April 26.

Under Ting's legislation, school districts were eligible for their full share of funds if they reopened campuses to elementary students and at least one full middle or high school grade by April 1. Districts lose 1% of funding each school day they remain closed after that date and forfeit their entire share of grant funding if they do not meet the minimum requirements by May 15.

Some parents criticized the plan as a blatant money grab that does not address students needs.

Does this show them that they matter, or just that the money matters? a school reopening advocacy group, Decreasing the Distance, said in a statement. One senior told us she wants to return, but not like this. Her reaction: Its too little too late. Schools over.
BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP)  BRATISLAVA, Slovakia  Slovakia has halted use of the two-shot AstraZeneca vaccine, the Health Ministry said Tuesday.

The announcement came after Slovakias State Institute for Drug Control concluded last week that the death of a 47-year-old woman who received the AstraZeneca was likely linked to the vaccine.
SCITUATE, R.I. (AP)  The Rhode Island State Police have formed a unit to investigate sexual assault, abuse and other sensitive cases involving children, the developmentally disabled and older residents, the agency announced Tuesday.

The Special Victims Unit, within the detective bureau, will also be responsible for investigating domestic violence, missing children, sexual exploitation of children, and human trafficking cases, the department said in a statement.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  Gov. Bill Lee announced Tuesday that the extra federal unemployment aid offered amid the COVID-19 pandemic won't be available in Tennessee starting July 3, including the end of $300 weekly additional payments.

With the decision, the Republican joins several other states  among them, Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota and South Carolina  that are planning to stop accepting the $300 benefit. Lee is echoing arguments that job openings are going unfilled, and pointing people to job-finding resources offered in the state.

Lee's office said several other federal pandemic-times offerings will end in Tennessee as well, including eligibility for the self-employed, gig workers and part time workers; an extension of benefits once regular benefits have been exhausted; and an additional $100 for certain people with mixed earnings.

We will no longer participate in federal pandemic unemployment programs because Tennesseans have access to more than 250,000 jobs in our state, Lee said in a news release. Families, businesses and our economy thrive when we focus on meaningful employment and move on from short-term, federal fixes.

Asked by reporters if the 250,000 jobs pay well and offer a living wage, Lee demurred and instead said the state is doing a county-by-county analysis of the openings.

What we found is, in fact, in many cases the job openings match with the job skills of the unemployed, and that's part of what we used to make our decision going forward, Lee said Tuesday.

While his Republican counterparts in the Legislature and some prominent business lobby groups applauded the announcement, Democrats chided the move.

"This is dumb. Really dumb. And cruel to boot," Senate Minority Leader Jeff Yarbro, a Nashville Democrat, said on Twitter. This decision literally pulls money out of Tennessees economy. Itll slow down our recovery rather than speed it up.

Labor experts say the shortage is not just about the $300 payment. Some unemployed people also have been reluctant to look for work because they fear catching the virus. Others have found new occupations rather than return to their old jobs. And many women, especially working mothers, have had to leave the workforce to care for children.

Tennessee reinstated job search requirements for unemployment in October, mandating three weekly job searches to stay eligible.

Weeks that are eligible under the federal requirements will continue to be processed if they're filed before July 3.

Tennessee, meanwhile, has continued to accept billions of dollars in other federal assistance through COVID-19 relief packages approved in Washington.

The move follows action by lawmakers to cut unemployment benefits from 26 weeks to 12 weeks  making Tennessee among the lowest in the country. Lee has not yet acted on the bill, which would make changes starting in late 2023.

Additional weeks would be added if the states average unemployment rate rises above 5.5% for a maximum of 20 weeks should the unemployment rate reach 9%. Supporters argued the move will encourage people to become employed full-time.

Critics warn that the reduction would not help the states unemployed. However, the benefit cap would go up to $325 per week. It was previously $275 per week.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  Tennessee will soon become the latest state to require certain medical providers to cremate or bury fetal remains from surgical abortions under legislation recently signed by Republican Gov. Bill Lee.

Roughly 10 other Republican-majority states have enacted similar laws across the country despite objections from reproductive rights advocates, who argue such requirements are unnecessary and stigmatize a legally available procedure.

However, supporters of such laws contend that it will protect human dignity without interfering with a womans abortion choice.

Lee quietly signed off on the measure last week, which will be implemented starting July 1. The vocally anti-abortion governor signed one of the strictest abortion bans in the country last year. That law  which barred abortions at as early as six weeks  was promptly blocked from being implemented due to a legal challenge.

According to the new law, certain medical providers must dispose of fetal remains from surgical abortions by cremation or burial and cover the costs of the disposal.

The measure states that the pregnant woman has a right to determine the method and location for the final disposal of the fetal remains if desired, but if she picks a different location she would have to shoulder some cost. Hospitals are excluded under the proposed bill.

The language in the Tennessee law mirrors an Indiana version that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2019. In an unsigned opinion, the justices said the case did not involve limits on abortion rights.

Indiana was among the first states to pass fetal-remains laws, in 2016, after anti-abortion activists released undercover video of Planned Parenthood officials discussing the transfer of fetal tissue. The videos sparked anger from conservatives around the country, but investigations cleared the group of wrongdoing.
BANGKOK (AP)  Rights organizations and reporters' groups urged Thai authorities on Tuesday not to repatriate three journalists who fled to Thailand from military-run Myanmar, saying they would face arrest and possible physical harm.

The journalists work for the Democratic Voice of Burma, or DVB, an online and broadcast news agency, its executive director and chief editor, Aye Chan Naing, said Monday. Burma is the former name for Myanmar and is still used by some opponents of military rule.

He said the three, along with two activists, were arrested Sunday in the northern province of Chiang Mai during a random search by police. They were charged with illegal entry into Thailand.

All five pleaded not guilty Tuesday in a Chiang Mai court.

Thai authorities should uphold the countrys proud history as a sanctuary for journalists fleeing military repression in Myanmar, and on humanitarian grounds should not deport three Democratic Voice of Burma journalists recently arrested for alleged illegal entry, said Shawn Crispin, senior Southeast Asia representative of the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists.

Myanmars military regime has repeatedly abused and detained journalists, and Thai authorities should not force these members of the press to face potentially severe retaliation for their work, Crispin said in a statement.

Amnesty International said the detainees could be subject to physical harm if returned to Myanmar.

It is imperative that the Thai authorities do not forcibly return these individuals to Myanmar. To do so would place them at real risk of arbitrary arrest and detention, torture and other ill-treatment, and death, said Ming Yu Hah, the group's deputy regional director for campaigns. For years DVB has been a leading, outspoken outlet holding the authorities to account. If returned to Myanmar, these journalists will be at exceptionally grave risk.

Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tanee Sangrat said in a text message that Thai authorities concerned are coordinating to find possible humanitarian solution(s) to this case. He did not elaborate.

Myanmar's military has sharply curtailed press freedoms since ousting the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February. DVB and several other news organizations were told they were not allowed to operate on any platform, and about 80 journalists were arrested. About half remain in custody.

Most of those still jailed are being held on a provision in the Penal Code that prohibits comments that cause fear, spread false news, (or) agitates directly or indirectly a criminal offense against a Government employee. Violations are punishable by up to three years in prison. Many news media and personnel continue to work despite the bans and threats.

Mondays statement from DVBs chief editor said it strongly urges the Thai authorities to not deport (the journalists) back to Burma, as their life will be in serious danger if they were to return.

They have been covering the demonstrations in Burma until March 8  the day the military authority revoked DVBs TV license and banned DVB from doing any kind of media work.

The statement also appealed to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees to intervene to protect the journalists safety, and for the international community to ask the Thai government not to deport them.
JERUSALEM (AP)  The Latest on confrontations between Israelis and Palestinians, sparked by weeks of tensions in contested Jerusalem and as Israel has signaled it's widening its military campaign:

JERUSALEM  Israeli aircraft have attacked another building in Gaza City.

The nine-story structure houses residential apartments, medical production companies and a dental clinic.

Israeli aircraft fired five warning rockets from a drone to alert people of the incoming bombing early Wednesday. Shortly afterward, the jets struck the building again after journalists and rescuers gathered around.

There were no immediate word on casualties.

The high-rise was heavily damaged. Smoke and debris reached The Associated Press' Gaza office 200 meters (yards) away.

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UNITED NATIONS -- The U.N. Security will hold emergency consultations Wednesday on the escalating violence between Palestinians and Israelis.

The U.N. Mideast envoy, Tor Wennesland, is expected to brief the 15 council members virtually at the closed meeting, which is being called at the request of China, Tunisia and Norway.

China holds the council presidency this month and its U.N. mission confirms plans for the second emergency meeting in three days. It is an indication of growing international concern about the conflict and where it might lead.

The U.N.s most powerful body has not yet taken any action.

China, Tunisia and Norway proposed a draft statement at Mondays meeting expressing grave concern at escalating tensions and calling on Israel to cease evictions. The U.S. State Department said the U.S. wants to ensure any council statements dont escalate tensions.

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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  Hamas leader says Israel is responsible for the latest round of fighting in the region because of its actions in Jerusalem.

The fighting broke out on Monday after Israeli police used stun grenades, tear gas and rubber bullets against protesters at the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. On Tuesday, Israel unleashed new airstrikes on Gaza while militants barraged Israel with hundreds of rockets. The exchange killed a number of militants and civilians in Gaza and at least three people in Israel.

Hamas' leader Ismail Haniyeh in a live speech on Tuesday said that Gaza militants have defended Jerusalem.

He confirmed Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations were trying to broker a cease-fire but said that Hamas told everybody, its the Israeli occupation that set Jerusalem on fire and the flames reached Gaza."

Haniyeh added that Israel is responsible for all these consequences.

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JERUSALEM  The Israeli Foreign Ministry says one of the three women killed in Israel from Gaza rocket attacks was an Indian national working as a caregiver, not an Israeli as had been previously assumed.

The woman was identified as Soumya Santosh.

Israels ambassador to India, Ron Malka, extended his condolences on Twitter for the death of an Indian national on Tuesday. He wrote: Our hearts are crying with her 9 years old son that lost his mother in this cruel Terrorist attack.

Meanwhile, Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai ordered the citys schools remain closed on Wednesday following a late-night barrage of rocket fire on his city. City Hall said there would be no remote learning to allow teachers to remain with their families.

Hamas militants in Gaza said they fired 130 rockets toward Tel Aviv.

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UNITED NATIONS -- U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is demanding an immediate halt to the spiraling escalation in Israeli-Palestinian violence. A spokesman says the United Nations is working with all relevant parties to de-escalate the situation urgently.

Guterres is gravely concerned by the upsurge in violence, and is deeply saddened to learn of increasingly large numbers of casualties, including children, from Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, and of Israeli fatalities from rockets launched from Gaza.

Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday that Israeli security forces must exercise maximum restraint and calibrate their use of force." He also added that the indiscriminate launching of rockets and mortars towards Israeli population centers is unacceptable.

He said when asked whether Guterres had been in contact with key players that contacts are continuing to be held at all levels with all interested parties in an effort to de-escalate the situation.

Dujarric was pressed about whether Guterres condemned the Israeli airstrikes in Gaza but refused to use the word condemn, saying only that the U.N. chief stands against the killing of any and all civilians.

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WASHINGTON  The White House says President Joe Biden is being briefed daily on developments in Jerusalem and Gaza, and has directed his team to engage intensively with senior Israeli and Palestinian officials as well as leaders throughout the Middle East.

Press secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that Biden's team is communicating a clear and consistent message in support of de escalation.

That is our primary focus," she said, adding that Biden supports Israels legitimate right to defend itself and its people" and at the same time condemns ongoing rocket attacks by Hamas and other terrorist groups including against Jerusalem."

She added that the Biden administration will also continue to support a two state solution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict."

That is the only way to ensure the just and lasting peace that two peoples have struggled to achieve," she added.

Separately, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to Israeli Foreign Minister Ashkenazi on Tuesday to condemn the Hamas rocket attacks and reiterate the important message of de-escalation.

State Department spokesman Ned Price says Washington calls on all sides to exercise restraint.

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CAIRO  Arab foreign ministers have urged the International Criminal Court to proceed with an investigation into Israels possible war crimes and crimes against humanity against the Palestinians, including the planned eviction of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in east Jerusalem.

The minister met virtually on Tuesday to discuss on the latest escalation of violence in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and the Gaza Strip. In a statement after the meeting, they called for the ICC to mobilize resources for such an investigation.

They strongly condemned what they call Israels crimes against Muslim worshippers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the latest court orders to evict families of Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

The ministers urged the U.N. Security Council to take action in order to stop the Israeli aggression and provide international protection to the Palestinian people.

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TEHRAN, Iran  Irans supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has urged all nations to condemn Israels brutal and cruel crime against Palestinians in the wake of the latest Mideast escalation.

Iranian state TV on Tuesday quoted Khamenei as saying that it was a duty of every state to take a stand and condemn this evil, criminal, brutal and cruel action by Israel.

Khamenei also said Palestinian need to be empowered in order to force Israel to accept their rights.

They should make themselves powerful, resist and confront so as to force the other party to withdraw from crime and surrender to what's right and fair, Khamenei said.

Khamenei added: You cannot speak to these criminals except in the language of power.

Iran is considered Israels archenemy and backs anti-Israel militant groups across the region, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.

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JERUSALEM  Israels police chief is beefing up deployments across the country in response to a wave of unrest in Arab communities.

Koby Shabtai issued the order on Tuesday as crowds set a police cruiser, motorcycle and bus on fire during protests in the central city of Lod. Protests were expected in dozens of other Arab communities across the country.

In a statement, police said Shabtai instructed his commanders to intensify police presence on the streets following widespread unrest and protests in dozens of Arab communities across the country Monday night.

The mounting unrest came at a time of heightened tensions following weeks of violence in Jerusalem and heavy fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip in the past day.

Earlier in the day in Lod, Israeli police fired tear gas and stun grenades after mourners started throwing stones at officers during the funeral of an Arab man allegedly killed by a Jewish resident in the area.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Gulf Arab countries are offering harsh criticism of Israel in the wake of the latest Israeli-Palestinian confrontation as violence rises in Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.

Hundreds of Kuwaitis staged a sit-in outside Parliament, chanting No to normalization with Israel and voicing support for the Palestinians. Tuesdays protest, which blocked traffic and drew outspoken activists, officials and lawmakers, comes as Gulf Arab sheikhdoms with new diplomatic ties to Israel increasingly condemn the escalation.

As part of the U.S.-brokered normalization agreements known as the Abraham Accords, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain opened ties with Israel last fall, reversing the decades-long Arab policy of conditioning relations on a resolution of the Mideast conflict and drawing intense backlash from the Palestinians.

The de facto leader of the UAE, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, stressed the importance of putting an end to all aggressions and practices that exacerbate tension and wrath in the sacred city of Jerusalem. He discussed flaring Mideast tensions in meetings Tuesday with the Bahraini crown prince and Jordan's prime minister.

Bahrain also renewed its criticism of the rising tensions, with the speaker of parliament affirming the kingdoms support for a two-state solution and denouncing Israels provocations against the people of Jerusalem, including threatened home evictions and attacks in the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Harsh condemnations also have poured in from regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia and the tiny state of Kuwait, which have traditionally considered themselves among the standard-bearers for the Palestinian cause.

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JERUSALEM  Israeli police have fired tear gas and stun grenades after mourners started throwing stones at officers during the funeral of an Arab man allegedly killed by a Jewish resident in central Israel.

The shooting early on Tuesday in Lod came at a time of heightened tensions following weeks of unrest at a contested holy site in Jerusalem and heavy fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. The fighting has spilled over into Israels Arab sector, with protests taking place in dozens of communities across the country.

Thousands of people took part in the funeral in Lod. Police said two officers were injured and a patrol car was set on fire.

Israeli police have arrested three people suspected of involvement in the shooting.

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CAIRO  Egypts top diplomat says he has conveyed messages to Israel and other nations to help de-escalate the outbreak of violence in Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories.

Foreign Minister Sameh Shukry told a virtual meeting of Arab foreign ministers on Tuesday that though Cairo has not received a positive response, it will continue with efforts to calm down the escalation in the holy city. He did not elaborate.

Earlier in the day, an Egyptian intelligence official said Cairo is engaged in intensive talks with Israel and Gaza militants on reaching a cease-fire to end the latest round of fighting.

The Egyptian foreign minister also lashed out at Israel for its what he called violations at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem and Israel's planned eviction of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

He called on all Arab nations to unite at this critical moment to prevent any attempts to change the status quo in Jerusalem, and to help Palestinians achieve their independent state with east Jerusalem as its capital.

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COPENHAGEN, Denmark  The head of the Norwegian Refugee Council has urged both Israel and the Palestinians to avoid further escalation and prevent loss of life, saying that civilians, and specifically children, pay the heaviest price after Israel unleashed new deadly airstrikes on Gaza.

The organization's chief, Jan Egeland, said on Tuesday that civilians once again were bearing the brunt of a dramatic escalation in hostilities. He added that children, whether they are Palestinian or Israeli, are left with not only physically scarred but also emotionally damaged.

The Oslo-based group called on all parties to the conflict to stop the provocations and to ensure that civilians are protected. Egeland said in a statement that the latest events also shows that the prolonged conflict and occupation are unsustainable.

Since sundown Monday, 26 Palestinians  including nine children and a woman were killed in Gaza, most by airstrikes, Gaza health officials said. During the same period, Gaza militants fired hundreds of rockets toward Israel, killing two Israeli civilians and wounding 10 others.

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KARACHI, Pakistan  Dozens of Pakistanis have rallied in the southern port city of Karachi to condemn Israels use of force against the Palestinians at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem during the holy month of Ramadan.

The demonstrators, who mostly included members of the civil society, chanted against Israel to express solidarity with the Palestinians. They also burned an Israeli and an American flag to express their anger against the use of force against Palestinian worshippers.

The demonstrators were holding a banner that read as: Israel is an illegitimate state.

The rally on Tuesday came hours after Pakistans Prime Minister Imran Khan in a televised comment denounced Israels use of force against Palestinians. Pakistan is one of the few countries that have no diplomatic relations with Israel.

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TEHRAN, Iran  The foreign minister of Iran has denounced what he calls the aggression of Israeli security forces in the holy city of Jerusalem and expressed Irans solidarity with the Palestinians amid escalating violence.

Mohammad Javad Zarif says in a video message released on Tuesday in Arabic that the attacks on the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, one of the holiest sites in Islam, are the greatest evidence there is of the discriminatory and criminal nature of Israel.

Zarif blamed Israel for fueling insecurity and instability in the region and also proposed a popular referendum in the Palestinian territories as the only just solution to the Palestinian issue" so that Palestinians may decide their own fate.

Zarif affirmed that Iran is always on the side of the Palestinians and supportive of their cause and called the Palestinian conflict the pivotal issue of the Islamic world and people.

Iran is considered Israels archenemy and backs anti-Israel militant groups across the region, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.

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MADRID  A few dozen people have gathered outside the Israeli Embassy in the Spanish capital to protest Israels use of force against the Palestinians.

Most of the crowd on Tuesday in Madrid waved Palestinian flags. They shouted Israel, assassin of the Palestinian people and its Palestine, not Israel in Spanish.

Some held up photos of Palestinians being arrested by Israeli forces. All wore face masks as stipulated by Spanish health laws to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

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CAIRO  The head of the Arab League has blamed Israel for the escalation of violence in the Palestinian territories, warning that Israeli policies would blow up the situation in Jerusalem.

Ahmed Aboul Gheit, secretary-general of the 22-member organization, spoke on Tuesday as Arab foreign ministers were meeting to discuss the latest bout of violence between the Palestinians and Israelis.

He decried what he called Israels provocative practices in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and the planned eviction of Palestinian families from Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in east Jerusalem.

What we have witnessed is, clearly and frankly, a provocation by the Israeli occupation, that targeted the holiest Islamic sanctities, at at the most sacred time, he said, referring to the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

He urged the U.N. Security Council to take action.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  A gathering of representatives of Muslim nations has condemned Israel for the outbreak of violence in the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem, one of the holiest sites in Islam.

The emergency meeting of the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation was held on Tuesday in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, to present a unified response from the Muslim world to the soaring tensions between Israel and the Palestinians and the latest violent confrontations in Jerusalem.

In a communique, the meeting denounced Israels continuous violations of the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, barbaric attacks against worshippers and movement restrictions on Palestinians at the compound. It said that it considered the Israeli actions a provocation of the feelings of Muslims around the world and serious violation of international law.

It called on the international community to hold Israel liable for the escalation and to press it to halt attacks that threaten the security and stability of the region. It also reaffirmed the long-standing Arab stance of support for an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital.

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ANKARA, Turkey  The office of Turkey's president says he is engaged in intense telephone diplomacy in a bid to end Israels use of force against the Palestinians.

Since late Monday, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has spoken to Malaysias king and the leaders of Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan, as he seeks a strong stance by Muslim nations against Israel, according to Erdogans office.

The Turkish president, who has has strongly denounced Israels actions against Palestinians at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound during the fasting month of Ramadan, has also spoken to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas chief, Ismail Haniyeh.

The latest round of fighting comes as Turkey has reportedly been seeking to restore ties with Israel. The two countries withdrew their ambassadors in 2018, after the United States moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, sparking mass protests by Palestinians.

Late on Monday, thousands of protesters marched to Israels embassy in Ankara and the consulate in Istanbul to protest Israel, ignoring Turkeys COVID-19 restrictions.

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JERUSALEM  The Israeli military says it has assassinated a senior commander of the Islamic Jihad militant group in Gaza on Tuesday,

It said the militant was the head of the Islamic Jihads rocket unit and identified him as Samih al-Mamluk. The military said other senior militants in the organization were also killed in the same strike.

Islamic Jihad confirmed the three killed in an airstrike in an apartment in Gaza City were senior members of its armed wing. The militant group vowed retaliation.

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ISLAMABAD  Pakistans prime minister has denounced Israels use of force against Palestinians at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound during the fasting month of Ramadan.

Imran Khan said Tuesday that he had asked his foreign minister to contact his Turkish and Saudi counterparts to discuss how to collectively respond.

Earlier, Pakistans foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi at a news conference urged the world community to take notice of Israels use of force against innocent Palestinians worshippers.

Under discussion is whether Pakistan, Saudi and Turkish officials should convene the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, a group of Islamic countries.

Pakistan is one of the few countries that have no diplomatic relations with Israel.

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JERUSALEM  Israeli media reports that a rocket has struck an empty school in the coastal city of Ashkelon, not far from the Gaza Strip.

Television footage showed thick smoke rising from cars that had caught on fire.

Israels Home Front Command had ordered the closure of schools on Monday in the area surrounding the Gaza Strip, including Ashkelon. The move came during the escalation of tension that's built for weeks over contested Jerusalem..

Since Monday, Gaza militants have fired hundreds of rockets toward Israel.

Israel has fired back. An airstrike has hit a high-rise building in the middle of Gaza City. Local media reported that Tuesdays airstrike killed an unknown number of militants inside.

The strike in the middle class Rimal neighborhood sent terrified residents of the building into the streets. They included screaming women and children, some of whom were barefoot.

Earlier Tuesday, Israel hit a high-rise where it said a Hamas commander was hiding.

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CAIRO  An Egyptian intelligence official says Egypt is engaged in intensive talks with Israel and Gaza militants on reaching a cease-fire to end the latest round of fighting.

The official said the efforts began in late April as the situation in Jerusalem worsened. He said Israeli actions, including the recent storming of the Al-Aqsa mosque and the planed evictions of Palestinian families from their homes in an east Jerusalem neighborhood, have frustrated the mediators.

The official says the situation is changing rapidly, but officials nonetheless hope to reach a truce before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr later this week. Egypt frequently mediates between Israel and Hamas.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing ongoing diplomatic efforts.

Samy Magdy in Cairo

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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  An Israeli airstrike has hit another high-rise building in the middle of Gaza City. Local media reported that Tuesday's airstrike killed an unknown number of militants inside.

But the airstrike in the middle-class Rimal neighborhood in Gaza sent terrified residents of the building into the streets. They included screaming women and children, some of whom were barefoot.

Earlier on Tuesday, Israel hit a high-rise where it said a Hamas commander was hiding. Palestinian health officials said a woman and her 19-year-old disabled son were killed. The fate of the Hamas commander was not immediately known.

Since Monday, Gaza militants have also fired hundreds of rockets toward Israel.

The escalation in the conflict was sparked by weeks of tensions in contested Jerusalem.
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Erin Baker, University of Massachusetts Amherst and Matthew Lackner, University of Massachusetts Amherst

(THE CONVERSATION) The United States offshore wind industry is tiny, with just seven wind turbines operating off Rhode Island and Virginia. The few attempts to build large-scale wind farms like Europes have run into long delays, but that may be about to change.

On May 11, 2021, the U.S. government issued the final federal approval for the Vineyard Wind project, a utility-scale wind farm that has been over a decade in the planning. The wind farms developers plan to install 62 giant turbines in the Atlantic Ocean about 15 miles off Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts, with enough capacity to power 400,000 homes with clean energy.

The project is the first approved since the Biden administration announced a goal in March to develop 30,000 megawatts of offshore wind capacity this decade and promised to accelerate the federal review process. To put that goal in perspective, the U.S. has just 42 megawatts today. Vineyard Wind expects to add 800 megawatts in 2023.

So, are we finally seeing the launch of a thriving offshore wind industry in the North America?

Several wind farm developers already hold leases in prime locations off the Eastern Seaboard, suggesting plenty of interest.

As engineering professors leading the Energy Transition Initiative and Wind Energy Center at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, we have been closely watching the industrys challenges and progress. The process could move quickly once permitting and approvals are on track, but there are still obstacles.

Why offshore wind plans stalled under Trump

Vineyard Wind had planned to begin construction in 2019, but a ruling by the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management under the Trump administration stalled it. The ruling cast a shadow over other wind farm plans and hopes for an U.S. offshore wind industry.

The agency ruled that the developers needed to address what is called cumulative impacts  what the East Coast will look like when there are not one or two, but 20 or 40 large-scale wind farms. That part of the U.S. coast is ideal for wind power because of its wide, shallow shelf and proximity to cities that are looking for renewable electricity to reduce their climate impact.

Many researchers studying offshore wind, including some of our colleagues, urge planners to take this perspective.

But thinking carefully about a far future with several wind farms does not justify blocking the first utility-scale wind farm now. That first large wind farm will be an opportunity to learn, including about how wind turbines will interact with marine ecosystems. Right now there is almost no data on the impacts of offshore wind on the regions marine wildlife. The knowledge gained will be invaluable in moving forward responsibly.

Is fast-tracking federal approvals enough?

Speeding up federal approvals for offshore wind farms is an important first step, but those arent the only hurdles for offshore wind farm developers.

A large number of state environmental and coastal agencies also must approve offshore wind farm plans, and the communities where cables come ashore have a say.

Many of the Northeastern states, including Massachusetts, have their own offshore wind energy goals, so theyre likely to support wind farms. But some wealthy communities and the fishing industry have pushed backon wind power in the past. Vineyard Winds developers worked with community groups and fishermen from the region and agreed to compensate them for potential revenue losses.

The federal approval process, even fast-tracked, is also time-consuming. The government conducts reviews and requires site assessment plans, including geological, environmental and hazard surveys. From planning to construction, the entire process can take five to six years or more.

Is the US ready to build offshore turbines?

Some other big questions revolve around construction.

Under a 1920 law known as the Jones Act, only U.S.-registered vessels operated by U.S. citizens or permanent residents can move cargo between U.S. ports. In December 2020, Congress made clear that this law applies to wind turbine construction, too.

When companies build offshore wind turbines today, they use special vessels for the installation of the most common offshore turbine designs. The U.S. doesnt have any of these vessels yet, and the Jones Act makes it difficult to rely on vessels from Europe to do the job. There is promise, though: The first U.S.-made version of this vessel is being built in Texas right now. Thats one  the country will need several to meet the new goal.

A thriving wind power industry will also need ports for storing and deploying the long turbine blades, plus a trained workforce for construction and turbine maintenance.

A few coastal states have a head start on this. Massachusetts started laying the groundwork early and already has a port terminal in New Bedford to support the construction and deployment of future offshore wind projects. New Jersey recently announced a plan for a new offshore wind port that will start construction in 2022, and Delaware has been considering one.

States are also investing in training. New York state announced a US$20 million offshore wind training institute in January 2021 with the goal of training 2,500 workers. The Biden administration envisions 44,000 people employed in offshore wind by 2030, and many more in communities connected to offshore wind power activity.

Costs and benefits of offshore wind

In Europe, where many governments have reduced regulatory risks to the industry, the cost of offshore wind energy has come down much faster than experts expected, to around $50 per megawatt-hour. If the Biden administrations new approach allows U.S. wind farms to achieve costs like this, then offshore wind, with its proximity to large urban centers on the East Coast, will be competitive.

Its also important to recognize other benefits. Every year of delay for a large-scale wind farm costs the U.S. hundreds of millions of dollars in climate benefits. The Biden administration calculates that its new wind power goal would avoid 78 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, roughly equivalent to taking 17 million cars off the road for a year.

This article updates a version published March 31, 2021.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/us-approves-its-first-big-offshore-wind-farm-near-marthas-vineyard-its-a-breakthrough-for-the-industry-160747.
CONCORD, N.H. (AP)  The audit of a controversial legislative election in New Hampshire began Tuesday with the voting machines and boxes of ballots arriving at the site where theyll be reviewed.

A team of three auditors has until May 27 by law to complete their work on 2020 election results from four state House seats in the town of Windham. The entire process at the Edward Cross Training Center in Pembroke is being livestreamed.

Though Republicans won all four seats, a recount requested by a losing Democratic candidate showed the Republicans had received hundreds more votes than were originally counted.

Kristi St. Laurent requested the recount after falling 24 votes short in the November election. She expected to gain a few votes, but the recount showed four Republicans each received an additional 300 votes, and Laurent lost 99.

Conservatives questioning election integrity on a broader scale pointed to it as a potential local example of problems, and the discrepancy was big enough to prompt bipartisan support from lawmakers to authorize the audit of the towns ballot counting machines and hand tabulations.

No matter the audit findings, the results wont change.

In this case, I'm more confident than usual that we can have a good conclusive explanation," said Harri Hursti, one of the auditors. We don't know where the investigation is going. ... Seeing the evidence, we might find something we didn't even know existed. Then, we have to follow that track.

As a few dozen masked observers silently looked on, state troopers wheeled four plastic containers with the voting machines into the meeting room where the audit is being conducted.

There was a heavy security presence at the building entrance but no sign of protests. One unidentified Windham resident was questioned by state troopers after taking photos through a window of the audit room.

Auditors on Wednesday will begin the process by opening the 26 boxes of ballots and reviewing them all. Over the coming days, they will put the ballots through the four machines to get four counts. That will be compared to a hand count.

Once the work is complete, auditors will have 45 days to issue a report with their findings.

Lawmakers had overwhelmingly passed a bill authorizing the audit. Republican Gov. Chris Sununu signed the bill in April and insisted that New Hampshire elections are safe, secure, and reliable.

Conservative media outlets and supporters of former President Donald Trump saw things differently. They viewed the results in Windham, a town of 16,000 near the Massachusetts border, as a chance to prove something more nefarious was amiss  the idea that if things were suspicious in Windham, maybe they were across the state and beyond as well.

Last week, Trump issued a statement congratulating the great Patriots in Windham for their incredible fight to seek out the truth about fraud that he alleged, without evidence, had affected the New Hampshire races and his own reelection contest.

Trump had been to Windham in the past and is fond of claiming voter fraud is rampant in the Granite State. In 2017, Trump alleged that he and former Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte would have won in New Hampshire the previous year if not for voters bused in from out of state. There is no evidence to support that claim.

Ken Eyring, a Windsor resident who writes software for a living, filed a lawsuit asking that the audit be halted. Eyring argued that once the vote counting machines are turned on, data from the November 2020 election would no longer be preserved. A Rockingham County Superior Court judge ruled Tuesday that Eyring had no hard evidence to prove his case or that the state wouldnt be able to conduct the audit properly.
SEATTLE (AP)  Authorities say schools in Washington state wont consider a requirement to mandate COVID-19 vaccines in schoolchildren until a vaccine is fully approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The FDA on Monday signed off on emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in 12- to 15-year-olds.

The states secretary of health, Umair Shah, said Tuesday more than 370,000 Washington teens and adolescents are in this age group.

Teens ages 16 and up are already eligible.

Like the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the two other vaccines available here  from Moderna and Johnson & Johnson  were also streamlined by the FDA for emergency use in response to the public health crisis. Vaccines undergo rigorous review before theyre fully approved, but the FDA can allow use under so-called emergency use authorization in instances when vaccines meet certain criteria and there are no approved alternatives.

The Seattle Times reports that until a COVID-19 vaccine is formally approved, however, officials from the Washington State Board of Health  the board that oversees state vaccine policies  say they wont consider adding it to the list of required immunizations.

The board would not require a COVID-19 vaccine for school entry until its approved by the FDA and recommended by Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, Kelie Kahler, spokesperson for the board, wrote in an email, referring to a committee housed within the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that sets national vaccine guidance.

The committee is meeting in an emergency session Wednesday to discuss whether to recommend the vaccine in children, a final hurdle that would pave the way for states to begin vaccinating younger teens later this week.

Then the board would review the vaccine based on the states immunizations criteria, Kahler said.

If a vaccine meets the states criteria, she said, the board could then consider adding it to Washingtons list.
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U.S. experts and advisers for F-16 fighter jets withdrew from Balad Air Base after a series of rocket attacks targeted the air base in Iraq's Salahudin province, Iraqi sources said on Monday.

"Up to 72 experts flew before noon by a military aircraft from Balad Air Base and headed to Erbil, the capital of the Iraqi semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan," an army source anonymously told Xinhua.

A Salahudin provincial security source confirmed to Xinhua that the U.S. team of experts withdrew from Balad Air Base, some 80 km north of Baghdad, and headed to Erbil.

Balad, which houses Iraqi F-16 jet fighters, is the largest military air base in Iraq.

Previously, the U.S. troops also withdrew more than a year ago after the airbase came under a series of rocket attacks by unidentified militias.

On Sunday, Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi said during his meeting with some local media that "the absurd rockets do not target the Americans, because Balad Air Base contains Iraqi aircraft and Iraqi forces, and what is happening embarrasses Iraq."

The Iraqi military bases housing U.S. troops across Iraq and the U.S. embassy in the Green Zone have been frequently targeted by mortar and rocket attacks.
Tim Fischer/Midland Reporter-Telegram

Early College High School at Midland College is ranked among the top high schools in Texas and is considered No. 1 in the Midland metropolitan area, according to U.S. News and World Report.

According to the rankings, ECHS sits at No. 519 among the states thousands of high schools. There were 17 Early College High Schools in the states top 100 performers, according to U.S. News and World Report. That included campuses in the following districts  Houston ISD (three), McAllen, Dallas, Brownsville, Laredo, Clear Creek, Alief, San Antonio, Canutillo, Ysleta, Tyler, La Joya, Pharr-San Juan-Alamo, Clint and El Paso.
Provided by Tasha Hughes/Plainview ISD

A Plainview High School senior was named among the best in the nation in Advanced Spreadsheet Applications.

Brandon Fenelon competed in the National Business Professionals of America competition on April 28. The competition tests students knowledge in various business skills and applications. Fenelon placed 1st in Advanced Spreadsheet Applications.
Former President Donald Trump endorsed Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick for reelection Monday, giving a top ally in Texas an early boost in his bid for a third term next year.

"Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is a great fighter for the people of Texas," Trump said in a statement. "Texans should re-elect him! He is outstanding and has my Complete and Total Endorsement!"

Trump's endorsement of Patrick came hours after another statewide official, Gov. Greg Abbott, drew a primary challenger in former state Sen. Don Huffines, R-Dallas.

Patrick chaired both of Trump's campaigns in Texas, but he has had to deal with some heat from within his own party lately. After the state House passed a bill last month allowing the permitless carry of handguns, Patrick faced pressure to get it through the Senate despite initially saying the votes were not there. He found an avenue, and the Senate passed the House bill last week  but not before adding amendments that have concerned some backers that the proposal could die on procedural grounds.

Patrick took another hit from inside his own party in March, when Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller sued Patrick over Senate rules requiring a COVID-19 test to participate in certain chamber procedures. A state judge dismissed that lawsuit Friday.

Miller has kept open the possibility he could run for another statewide office in 2022. He has also closely aligned himself with Trump.

Patrick said in a statement that he was "honored" by Trump's endorsement and noted how they became "good friends" as he guided Trump's campaigns in Texas. In a statement, Patrick also made a full-throated pitch for his own reelection, saying he will "continue to lead the fight to make sure [Democrats] gain no ground  not an inch  in Texas."

Patrick has said he plans to run for a third term in 2022 but that it would be his last if he wins. He has already drawn a likely Democratic opponent in Mike Collier, who ran against Patrick in 2018 and lost by 5 percentage points. Responding to Trump's endorsement of Patrick, Collier pointed to how the margins of victory for both Patrick and Trump in Texas have narrowed over their past two elections.

"The math is clear: Dan Patrick and Donald Trumps extremist politics is why Texas will flip in 2022," Collier said in a statement. "As we say in Texas, that dog dont hunt."

The Texas Tribune is a nonpartisan, nonprofit media organization that informs Texans  and engages with them  about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues
Its been said countless times that the year 2020 was extraordinary.

COVID-19 imposed challenges and necessary changes to every aspect of life and every industry. For several months, information moved rather fluidly between the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) before moving down to the state and local levels.

On Friday, two local individuals were recognized with the Chamber of Commerces highest honors for the efforts they made to help others during several months of unpredictable change created by the pandemic.

Coralyn Dillard and Dr. Sergio Lara were named Plainviews 2021 Woman and Man of the Year.

Dillard is a 1972 Plainview graduate who returned to her hometown in 1986. Shes maintained an active presence in her church and in various civic organizations  including Plainview Rotary  around Plainview through the year. She has a passion for helping people and she uses that drive in her current employment role as director of health services for Wayland Baptist University.

During the announcement, it was noted that throughout the past year, Dillard worked diligently to tend to WBU students affected by COVID-19 who were far from home. She risked exposure to lend a helping hand with whatever they needed. Thats something those who nominated her were not surprised about.

Reading from her notes, 2020 Woman of the Year, Ranada Jack, said of Dillard: She does whatever needs to be done.

The registered nurse also went above and beyond to coordinate a drive-through testing site  one of the first for Plainview  to ensure people had access to tests to COVID-19 tests.

Dillard was described as selfless and a servant for God and fellow men and women.

Actions during 2020 was the main focus for the honorees Friday night.

Dr. Lara, the Hale County health authority, was also praised for his work during the pandemic.

This honoree goes beyond whats expected, said Kenneth Cooper, the 2020 Man of the Year honoree.

Lara is Chief Medical Officer for Covenant Health Plainview and serves as a health advisor for the county. Throughout the pandemic, he helped the city and county by promoting the latest CDC recommendations and working to raise awareness to slow the spread of COVID-19.

It was also noted that Lara was a key player in creating the Covenant Mammogram Foundation that allows more women to be receive mammograms.

Cooper read from the nomination submitted by Laras daughter in which she spoke of being proud of his accomplishments.

He is not only a great doctor, he is the best husband and father, Cooper read.

Laras daughter mentioned in her nomination that she strives to one day be like her father.

Upon the announcement of their names, both Lara and Dillard received standing ovations as they made their way to the front of the room where they were presented with special plaques and allowed some time on the microphone.

Its a great honor, said Lara, echoing Dillards sentiments.

Dillard and Lara join an elite group. Plainviews Men and Women of the Year are chosen annually by former honorees and are traditionally announced during the Chambers annual banquet. These individuals are typically Plainview residents who have shown dedication to their community. Nominations are open to anyone.

The Chamber also recognized its Doris McDonald Ambassador of the Year.

Chamber ambassadors earn points toward receiving this recognition by attending Chamber functions, like ribbon cuttings. The 2020 honoree was Chris Moore.

During the banquet, now-former Chamber Board President Andrea Glenn also handed the reins to David Walker, who will spend one year as the Chambers new president.
Texans, the Texas State Aquarium needs your help.

For the third year in a row, the popular Texas State Aquarium has been nominated for "Best Aquarium" in North America in USA TODAY's 10Best Readers' Choice Awards. The Corpus Christi site has held the fourth spot for the past two years and needs your help to earn the No. 1 slot.

You can vote every day until noon on Monday, May 24 on 10best.com. As of Tuesday, the attraction lands in the sixth spot in the standings, behind Audubon Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans, North Carolina Aquarium, Florida Aquarium, Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies in Tennesse, and Wonders of Wildlife in Missouri.

READ ALSO: What to expect on the trails at San Antonio's popular McAllister Park

Each year, a USA TODAY panel of experts nominates the top 20 leading aquariums that represent the best in North America for their high-quality exhibits and visitor interactions, according to the publication's website.

Wonders of Wildlife earned the top spot in 2020 and Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies won in 2019. Texas Aquarium was nominated in 2018 but didn't make the top 10 rankings.

The 10 best winners, chosen by your vote, will be announced on Friday, June 4.

The Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi, the largest Aquarium in Texas, offers a journey through land and sea including encounters with the fascinating wildlife of the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.
It was a battle of NIMBYs versus developers during this week's meeting of the New Braunfels City Council. On Monday, May 10, an ordinary council meeting transformed into a nearly six-hour debate between the past and future of this San Antonio suburb, with heated exchanges between the public and dais.

In between administering police chief oaths, pledging allegiance to the Texas flag, and other small-town business, were four agenda items dealing with rezoning, including construction of a doctors' office. While all items were met with vocal disapproval from residents in attendance, it was one item  Item H  that really caused tempers to flare.

Item H would rezone a fin-shaped portion of the town between East Common Street, Old FM 306, and Waterway Lane to build a mixed-use development with 200-plus apartments, according to documents filed with the city.

READ MORE: Bill Miller Bar-B-Q heir proposing 8-story downtown tower on historic site

For nearly an hour, members of the public passionately urged the council to vote against the measure (council didn't). One woman wore a T-shirt that read "New Braunfels City Limits, Population: Full" as she addressed the dais while a man recited the lyrics to Randy Rogers' "They Call it the Hill Country." After finishing the chorus, the same man ended his time saying the measure would turn New Braunfels into "Austintonio, California." The crowd applauded wildly.

Item H passed with a vote of 5 to 2, and angry members streamed out of the chamber while the mayor and council members watched in silence.

Still irked as the council headed into the next agenda item  approving a rezoning measure to create the doctors' office  one citizen returned to microphone to speak. "We can't allow multifamily," said Timothy Davis, who spoke multiple times during the meeting.

"There's gonna be retribution! This is tyranny," Davis said, a statement which Community Impact reporter Warren Brown noted "stunned the council chamber into silence."

RELATED: Texas gains 4M residents, 2 congressional seats in Census

One councilmember, however, didn't stay silent for long. Moments later, after Davis got a zoning fact wrong, Councilmember Matthew Hoyt jumped, saying "Mr. Davis, we work for a lot of people, not just you. You're the one talking on every item saying that we can only listen to you."

While jokes about Austintonio and insurrection-esque sentiments make for dramatic political theater, the meeting itself provided a microcosm for what's happening in small towns across Central and South Texas. As Census Bureau numbers released in April illustrate, Texas's population is booming, with more than 4 million new residents added over the past decade, enough to secure the state two more spots in the House of Representatives. With more companies flocking to San Antonio and Austin to take advantage of the state's business-friendly tax incentives, what were once small towns are becoming absorbed into the fabric of these major metropolises.

The May 10 meeting was officially adjourned at 11:55 p.m. after nearly six contentious hours, it's hard to imagine anyone drove home happy. Well, except maybe the developers.
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Germany is to make Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine available to all adults by removing a priority system that determines who gets the jabs first, Minister of Health Jens Spahn announced at a press conference here on Monday.

Adults in Germany would now have the option to be vaccinated with U.S. company Johnson & Johnson's shot after receiving detailed information from a doctor, according to Spahn.

The move follows the lifting of restrictions on AstraZeneca's vaccine last week. The decision announced on Monday would enable "continued pragmatic and speedy work in this vaccination campaign," said Spahn.

Unlike most other vaccines, Johnson & Johnson's only requires one dose for full immunization.

More than 7.8 million people in Germany had already been fully vaccinated by Sunday, bringing the country's vaccination rate to 9.4 percent, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). A total of 27.3 million people have received at least one vaccine dose.

By the beginning of June, all people aged 60 years and above in Germany who want to get vaccinated for COVID-19 would have received the jab, according to Spahn. However, Johnson & Johnson is expected to deliver larger quantities of its vaccine in June and July only. In this quarter, Germany expects to receive more than ten million vaccine doses from Johnson & Johnson.

"It remains important that we keep up the pace of this vaccination campaign, and the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is also important for this," said Spahn.

To date, almost 3.53 million COVID-19 infections have been officially registered in Germany since the outbreak of the pandemic. The death toll climbed to 84,829 on Monday, according to the RKI.
Florida, FL (34429)

Today

Sunshine and clouds mixed. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High near 90F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Mainly clear skies. Low around 70F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph.
During the pandemic, businesses scrambled to ensure staff could securely access, from their homes, the data and applications they needed to do their jobs. However, those were only steps in a process already underway, one greatly accelerated by the pandemic: digital transformation, and in particular the increasing use of cloud computing facilities and services by organisations of all sizes

A McKinsey survey in October 2020, of executives worldwide, found: responses to COVID-19 have speeded the adoption of digital technologies by several years. Companies have accelerated digitisation of their customer and supply-chain interactions and their internal operations by three to four years, in response to a dramatic shift by customers to online channels.

Remote working and the use of cloud-based collaboration tools like Zoom and Microsoft Teams skyrocketed as a result of COVID-19. The pandemic has also seen a significant rise in the use of robotic process automation (RPA) driven by the pandemic.

In the first months of the pandemic, Microsoft saw an enormous surge in the use of Teams, leading CEO Satya Nadella to say the company had seen two years worth of digital transformation in two months.

Enforced remote working strained resources for every organisation. RPA can minimise business disruption resulting from COVID-19 by automating time-consuming, repeatable tasks freeing up human resources for other tasks.

The digital workspace evolution

With a majority of the global workforce remote, the idea of a workspace has evolved into what was never expected before.

IDC defines the digital workspace as a connected, secure work environment, independent of place or time. Cloud computing is one of the central technologies on which a digital workspace is built, enabling easy access to data and applications from anywhere in the world.

According to Synergy Research, global cloud spending rose by 37 percent in Q1 of 2020, compared to Q1 of 2019, to $US29b. Synergy Research said public IaaS and PaaS services accounted for the bulk of the market.

However, businesses often face several challenges that might cause the transition to cloud to stall, such as unclear roadmap, lack of resources, and cloud compliance.

Vietnams FPT Software has adopted the agility approach for cloud migration, customising its own digital transformation methodology, Digital Kaizen, to shorten the cloud journey.

Digital Kaizen is inspired by Japanese philosophy on continuous improvement. Kaizen means change (kai) for the good (zen).

Digital Kaizen suggests that every transformation process follows three steps: think big, start smart and scale fast. It prioritises making a series of quick wins that build towards long-term success rather than creating a big-bang disruption.

FPT Software, recently recognised as a globally competent vendor in Gartners 2020 Market Guide for Public Cloud Managed and Professional Services Providers, Asia/Pacific, outlined some implications for cloud adopters:

Multi-cloud environments for greater agility and resilience;

Streamlining compliance through automation; and

Reviewing the entire process every 3-6 months

A Digital Kaizen approach has been shown to shorten time to market by enabling organisations to identify relevant business cases three times faster, prepare the environment five times faster, reduce development time by between 25 and 40 percent, and implementation cost by between 15 and 30 percent.

FPT Softwares well-architected framework can improve service quality by 10-30 percent, reduce security risk by 20 to 30 percent and improve operational efficiency by 20 to 30 percent.

FPT Software experts applying the Optimisation Framework have been able to reduce the TCO of cloud services by 10 to 25 percent and eliminate up to 60 percent of common pitfalls in cloud migration.

FPT

FPT Software

Workplace automation

Another technology that can greatly help an organisation stay resilient post-COVID-19 is robotic process automation (RPA) software. This mimics repetitive human tasks and is able to perform those tasks repeatedly with little to no human intervention.

A study undertaken by EY found organisations that had implemented RPA solutions prior to the COVID-19 crisis were likely to be faring better than others.

EY reported: Companies who implemented automation before this crisis began are likely to be experiencing fewer problems while keeping a steady workflow, maintaining productivity, aiding customers and supporting staff.

And it added: Also, automation or front office bots can scale to fluctuations in supply chain demand, which has proven an important stimulus in these turbulent times.

A survey of IT buyers by Bain & Company found more than 80 percent of companies are accelerating their automation initiatives in response to Covid-19.

Bain reported: Virtual, digital and automation initiatives, for both customer interactions and internal operations, accelerated at astonishing speed.  [and] automation took on the work of some employees who were sent home and helped companies quickly respond to surges in demand.

RPA supporting digital transformation

While automation could adapt to transform businesses of all kinds, success stories are often seen in banking, finance, retail, manufacturing and healthcare.

For example, RPA has helped the Vietnam operations of one multinational bank realise very significant efficiencies.

The bank had 13 back office staff to support its 400 salespeople, processing loan applications, and the workload was huge. They were processing 500 per day at peak times, and their task was made more difficult by fragmented information.

FPT Software developed a comprehensive automation solution based on its RPA platform akaBot, optical character recognition (OCR) technology and a web application built using a low code software development platform.

The system was delivered in six weeks and has cut costs by 60 percent and loan processing time by 70 percent. The full-time employee numbers required to perform this function fell by 90 percent.

Cloud and RPA: key to the future of work

Cloud and RPA are two core technologies that will shape the future of work. The potential of cloud was neatly summed up by Deloitte, in a 2020 report: The future of cloud-enabled work infrastructure.

Cloud is more than a place, a journey, or a technology. Its an opportunity to reimagine everything. It is the power to transform. It is a catalyst for continuous reinventionand the pathway to help organisations confidently discover their possible and make it actual. Cloud is your pathway to possible.

RPA is already freeing up employees from many routine tasks, enabling them to focus on more creative and productive tasks rather than simply enabling them to sustain business as normal. AI and RPA complement each other to create a more accessible, productive and high-performing future workplace. RPA and Cloud Managed Services are key programs for FPT Software in 2021.

About FPT Software

FPT Software is part of FPT Corporation, a leading global technology and IT services group headquartered in Vietnam with nearly $1.6 billion in revenue and 28,000 employees.

The company has become an industry leader by investing in four key areas that are the building blocks for technology products and enterprise applications of the future: cloud computing, mobility, business intelligence & analytics, and collaboration.

Discover how FPT Software can help you

Learn more about how you get ready for a post-COVID-19 way of working with FPT Softwares digital solutions.
Support local journalism

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Trying to keep track of all the City Council races? Check out our dedicated Council Countdown section. We've partnered with City Limits, Gotham Gazette, and the Queens Daily Eagle for top notch local election coverage, organized by borough. Don't waste any more time, get informed now.

The race is heating up to replace term-limited New York City Council Member Corey Johnson, who represents District 3 in Manhattan. But the winner, many say, feels pre-determined.

Johnson, first elected to his seat in 2013, ascended through the citys political system to become speaker of the City Council in 2018. The first openly gay man to serve as speaker. In a term-limited position, he announced a run for mayor, which ended almost as quickly as it started in late 2020. In March of this year, he then announced a go at the City Comptroller position  with a NY1 and Ipsos poll finding him leading the Democratic pack a scant month later.

But when it comes to the candidates seeking to replace him, none have quite the funding support as Corey Johnsons own former chief of staff, Erik Bottcher. Hes seen fundraising success since last year, consistently leading amongst candidates who arent incumbents and bringing in remarkable amounts of cash.

According to the city Campaign Finance Board, six Democratic candidates including Bottcher are in the running. Looking at the most recent financial filings with the board, Bottcher leads the pack by a landslide in fundraising, with over $143 thousand in monetary contributions. The only candidate to break the $100k mark, Bottcher has almost four times as much cash as the second-place fundraiser, former investigative reporter Leslie Boghosian Murphy, who received about $37 thousand. Lawyer Arthur Schwartz comes in third with $30,139, and small business owner Phelan-Dante Fitzpatrick follows with $24,585. The final two candidates both rang up totals below $20k: founding member of Hells Kitchen Democrats Aleta LaFargue raised $18,066, and lawyer and figure skater Marni Halasa raised $16,602.

The district is 69% white, according to census data, and 14% hails from Hispanic origin. About 76% of households are non-family, and almost 80% of housing in the area is renter-occupied. It contains the West Village, SoHo, NoHo, Flatiron, Chelsea, Hells Kitchen, and parts of Murray Hill. District 3 also lays claim to Christine Quinn, former speaker for the City Council.

In conversations with the candidates running, some major goals became apparent. Like most places across the city and country at large, economic recovery post-pandemic is a priority for many candidates and constituents alike.

Bottcher said part of that recovery entailed getting people back to work, getting small businesses open, getting the theater industry open, and bringing back tourism. He added that something he wanted to see was the government getting a handle on many of the quality of life issues that are keeping people away, and causing residents to question whether or not they're going to stay there. To him, that means improving sanitation, something hes released a comprehensive plan on.

Boghosian Murphy also supports bringing small businesses, restaurants, and hospitality back and running. The reason why this is a priority, she added, is because those industries are so inextricably tied to our district.

Halasa and Schwartz said that affordable housing was one of the most pressing issues in the district  contributing to a segregated nature in the area, said Schwartz, and also homelessness, said Halasa.

A strong opponent to Rental Assistance Demonstration within NYCHA housing, Schwartz said he would look to have affordable housing not rely on privatization of public housing. He suggested mandatory upzoning and mandatory inclusionary housing as steps that could help address the crisis.

Halasa also strongly opposes privatization of NYCHA. She added that because there were so many vacant hotels in the district, one potential solution is to repurpose them as affordable housing, add in supportive service features, and then give the homeless permanent places to live.

Fitzpatricks website shows priorities include combating educational inequities for marginalized groups and increasing safety, with LaFargues showing the same. She also supports universal base income, along with supporting affordable housing like other candidates.

Bottcher said that what made him unique in the candidate field was his experience, as hes the only candidate whos been in city and state government. Clocking over a decade in public service, he pointed to the fact the majority of Council members will be new next year as to why someone already involved is particularly helpful.

I think it's going to be important to elect a council member who can hit the ground running and doesn't need a long period of learning how things work, he said. I am familiar with virtually every nonprofit in our agency. I know the leadership. I know what their needs are. I know what their goals are. And I won't have to take the first year of my time to meet with all of them.

Halasa, however, saw her lack of such as a strength in itself.

It's important for the district to have someone quote ordinary, separate from the political system, she said. Were the closest to the people. She added that her unique strengths stemmed from her combo background of community activist, being a former small business owner, and her law degree  her varied background, she said, means she can understand a lot of different people.

Fitzpatrick is also a small business owner, whos utilized social services before and know[s] first hand the economic uncertainty facing working people, according to his site.

Schwartz highlighted his experience litigating community causes as his unique strength. Hes gone from negotiating deals to improve accessibility in train stations, to working with staunch progressive Bernie Sanders as his lawyer in 2016. He said all this pointed to a long-term devotion to the causes he touts: and, he added, his political involvement including on community boards has always been volunteer.

Boghosian Murphy, as a former journalist, says she spent her career doing what politicians should be: telling the stories of the marginalized, giving voices to people who didnt have them. She, too, volunteers, with her block association, womens and childrens shelters, and now on the community board.

LaFargue, a lifelong Hells Kitchen resident, is an actress and a community organizer. Shes served as President of the Manhattan Plaza Tenants Association, according to her site.

Despite that, at large, it seems the candidates are well-aware of Bottchers political involvement, and the benefits that can bring.

Eric is the chosen successor to Corey Johnson. He's the guy who's endorsed by all the clubs and all the elected officials in the district, Schwartz said. And I think that one reason I'm running is because I felt like the elected officials in our district, and particularly our city council member, basically abandoned our community, both around the police misconduct stuff that was being addressed last summer, and also around COVID-19.

Its not just limited to Schwartz, either. Last year, the five other candidates in the race banded together to boycott a Village Independent Democrats endorsement event. Bottcher was the only candidate in attendance, and landed all but six of the 79 votes cast  taking home the endorsement.

Schwartz, in his district leaders report to the club, said the V.I.D. and other Democratic club endorsement processes are unfairly biased in support of one candidate. He told City & State that he felt Bottcher received some softball questions, and that the clubs interview process was the least substantive of all the events and debates hed thus far attended. Halasa stressed that it was a group decision all five candidates made, with Boghosian Murphy adding that the decision was the result of this one time specific situation.

Bottcher, however, said he felt the process was fair, while acknowledging the club was aware of some candidates more than others.

The members of V.I.D. had never seen any of the other candidates before, with the exception of Arthur Schwartz, he said. The candidates had the opportunity to come to the club and present their case, and I don't understand why they didn't do that. I think it was a missed opportunity for them.

The primary, electing the Democratic nominee for election in November, will be held June 22, with early voting beginning June 12.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly said that Corey Johnson was the first HIV-positive politician in New York state.

See more City Council coverage here.
In the summer of 2020, Tara Raghuveer found herself dealing with a barrage of inquiries from national media outlets. Raghuveer is the director of a grassroots housing-justice organization, and reporters were seeking to cover a roaring eviction crisis taking place all over the nation, including Kansas City, Missouri, where Raghuveer is based. Most of the requests, Raghuveer found, were routine, asking for connections to someone going through eviction. But others were most like casting calls, seeking a specific profile of suffering.

Can you connect me to a Black single mom on food stamps whos experiencing eviction? How about a Black woman who has kids who cant pay her rent? One such woman who has had covid or gotten it after theyve been evicted?

Raghuveer doesnt mind connecting journalists to her base of tenant organizers. She recognizes that numbers alone cannot convey human stories. And the people being requested do exist. Research has long shown that Black women disproportionately face eviction, especially those with children, and the same has been true during the pandemic. In a study released ahead of the peer review process, public health experts found that evictions have led to more than ten thousand deaths from the coronavirus. But increasingly, she says, some journalists cross the line.

Weve had some uncomfortable or not great experiences with reporters over the past several months who we just kind of had to stop engaging with because we felt like they were looking for a particular type of story, which I would categorize as poverty porn, Raghuveer said. They wanted to tell a story of a really immense tragedy, but they didnt want to tell the story of the policy that could have saved that person, rent and mortgage cancellation. They wanted to get pictures of someone being moved out of their home by the sheriff.

Raghuveers organization, KC Tenants, trains and prepares a multiracial base of poor and working-class tenants to engage with the media. Telling ones story, Raghuveer said, can mean reclaiming dignity and power. The more interviews KC Tenants organizers can do, the more they can combat dominant narratives about their communities.

But to make it a fair fight, journalists have to act with dignity and humanity, too, resisting the pressure placed on them to publish faster, get more clicks, and amass a following.

There was a moment last summer when Raghuveer felt like journalists were acting as if her only job were to connect them with tenants. Hyper-specific requests have continued in 2021, too. But Raghuveer has her own request for journalists: Lean on these community organizations that have people who are organized and aligned for you to talk to, and recognize that, like, theres some kind of patience and grace thats required in order for the process to work as needed.

Whats the point of being a reporter if you dont actually care about the people whose stories youre telling?

ON JANUARY 26, the day President Joe Biden rescinded Donald Trumps zero tolerance migrant family separation policy, Ingrid Jimenez, who fields media requests for an immigration organization in Mississippi, got a request from a local TV station. Producers needed to get someone on Zoom to talk about how the pandemic has affected someone, anyone, from the Hispanic community. Jimenez said these requests always need someone immediately.

She left this particular request unansweredthings were busy. She gets the impression that most media outlets in the state dont really understand how few immigrant leaders there are, and by extension, how this limits their capacity to spring into action when reporters make urgent requests.

A couple of years ago, in the wake of ice raids conducted in Mississippithe biggest single-state immigration sweep in historyJimenez had noticed something else: most of the coverage did not feature anyone directly affected by the raids. Local media were caught flat-footednone regularly published in languages other than English, and none covered immigration as a full-time beat. Only one local outlet translated its coverage into Spanish.

Jimenez described an echo chamber that often occurs in such situations: white media talk to white nonprofits to find people of color to speak to because reporters struggle (or dont bother) to get their own sources.

Many organizations and nonprofitstheyre so desperate for attention, like celebrities trying to stay relevant, she said. They do so many things wrong to do the right thing.

Marginalized people are not just sources for news; theyre also the audience, Jimenez said, adding that stories to be told in communities of color are not only ones of trauma. She suggests that reporters build relationships during the off timesnot everything in journalism has to be transactional.

Find stories that just happen to be stories about people in these communities, Jimenez said. People dont just want to read about the raids or the emergencies that affect them.

LAURIE BERTRAM ROBERTS, a longtime reproductive-justice advocate in the Deep South, has a litany of examples of out-of-step journalists. Theres the Vice producer who asked to be connected to someone low-income, strugglingthe most desperate, he finally said. Or a BBC journalist who pressured one of her clients into doing an on-camera interview about self-managing her abortion, which is a felony in Mississippi.

Just the weirdness of being called and asked for almost a laundry listyouve got to be kidding me, Roberts said. Honestly, I dont trust every journalist to have sensitive information about the kind of clients we have.

Roberts is the executive director of the Yellowhammer Fund in Alabama and a cofounder of the Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Fund. In her fight to protect abortion rights shes often had to fight the media, too. But she also recognizes that her justice work relies on the press. When she was featured on W. Kamau Bells United Shades of America on CNN, she felt a significant shift in local respect for her work.

Sometimes a media relationship does go well. In 2019, Becca Andrews of Mother Jones used Robertss connections to follow a Mississippi woman on her 221-mile journey to get an abortion out of state. The two worked through tough conversations about the power dynamics at play. Roberts didnt feel comfortable asking her clients to consider doing an interview because she didnt want anyone to feel coerced, or as if the resources her organization could provide were contingent on speaking to the press. The two decided that Roberts would bring up Andrewss proposition only if a client expressed interest in going public. Both agree that slowing down and building relationships before youre on deadline is the way to center humanity in storytelling.

Journalism, at its core, holds power to account and is accountable to the public. But the news business is also part of this countrys power structure, and as such must discuss and answer for the harms it commits. I often feel shy about asking organizers and nonprofits to connect me to sources, because I believe in finding sources myself. Andrews, too, was initially nervous about asking Roberts for connections, but she and Roberts built their relationship through a series of phone conversations before publishing anything.

I dont just think of her as a source or like just someone who can help me get a story. I like her, and I care about her as a person. I know her kids names and ask about her grandbaby, Andrews said of Roberts. Youve got to connect with people as humans first, and youve got to put peoples humanity before anything else. Otherwise whats the point of being a reporter, if you dont actually care about the people whose stories youre telling?

Newsrooms, overwhelmingly white and privileged, source who they know. What this means to Roberts is that journalists tend to get stories about extremes, featuring those with power and resources or the poorest of the poor, who are often connected to us through nonprofits and NGOs. In her world, journalists miss a lot of the stuff in the middle, stories where multiple, conflicting things can be true at once.

Thats life. And thats the job of writers and reporters, Roberts said: Use your words. Paint a story.

But dont cross her.

Oh, one thing to add, Roberts texted me after the interview. Activists talk and we blacklist journos.

ICYMI: Unraveling the Protest Paradigm

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Ko Bragg is a writer and editor based in New Orleans. Her work appears in The 19th, Southerly, Scalawag, The Appeal, and Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting.
LAST WEEK, THE NATIONAL Trust for Local News, in partnership with the Colorado Sun, announced the formation of the Colorado News Conservancy, a conglomerate of community newspapers and digital sites across the state. The National Trust for Local News, headed by Tow Center Fellow Elizabeth Hansen, is a new nonprofit with aims to create more sustainability in local media by providing funding and logistical support to local newspapers looking to sell to new ownership (and avoid the pitfalls of hedge fund acquisition). The Colorado Sun, a digital news site created by former Denver Post staff who were laid off by the paper three years ago, will work in tandem with the Trust to run the newly minted Conservancy as a community-centered alternative to national consolidation of local and community media.

The Tow Center spoke with CEO Elizabeth Hansen and Colorado Sun managing editor, Larry Ryckman, about the transition from locally-owned to national trust operatedand how this deal could serve as a model to help the ailing local news media ecosystem. The two conversations have been combined and edited for clarity.

This is a pretty unique way of thinking about journalism sustainability, both from an audience and an editorial perspective. If you had to give the elevator pitch for the National Trust for Local News, what would it be?



Hansen: The National Trust for Local News keeps local news in local hands. We work with owners and funders and communities to figure out how to finance and support their papers. The owners of papers work with a coalition of local stakeholders so they remain within the community. Its not an Alden situation. Were creating ownership groups and ownership structures that can be part of the fabric of the places these papers serve.

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Ryckman: This was people in good faith and goodwill coming together to solve a common problem, sharing the same vision of keeping these newspapers afloat and keeping them in local hands. And [the Colorado Media Project] knows this community really well. But the National Trust brings a lot of other things to the table, a lot of expertise, particularly things on the business and legal sides of the operation.

How did the idea for the National Trust for Local News come to be generally, and how did those ideas come to fruition in Colorado?

Hansen: When we look at the newspaper landscape, we see lots of different types of services, business models, ownership structuresand problems. One important area thats obviously been getting a lot of coverage recently is the consolidated metro daily: your local daily paper is inside of a company, but community members want it to be locally owned. This is like the Chicago Tribune and The Baltimore Sun. What weve done in Colorado is a separate but somewhat related version of replanting. This incredible couple [Ann Macari Healey and Jerry Healey] built this family business over the last twenty years and theyre ready to retire, but they didnt want to be consolidated or bought by a national chain. They wanted to be bought by someone who shared their mission.

Ryckman: Theres just a great crying need for mom and pop publishers out there looking to put their papers into someone elses hands. But often, its hedge funds who are first in line to buy newspapers. And Ive seen firsthand the devastation that hedge funds can bring when they get a hold of local newspapers. Wed like to be in a position where we could step forward and help. I think from the National Trusts perspective, this could be the first of many such acquisitions.

What have you noticed in the newsroom that needs the most support?



Ryckman: It was a little daunting to consider jumping back into print. The Colorado Sun is an all-digital news organization. But we had a lot to learn in terms of what was going on with these newspapers.

So far, my impression of the Colorado Community Media staffs reception [of the deal] has been very positive. Ive been in this business for forty years, and nine times out of ten, when you call an all-hands staff meeting, its to deliver very bad news. But this wasnt us announcing layoffs and consolidations. This was, Hey, were here to help. Were not going to come in here and tell you how to do things. We want to know the challenges and the opportunities.

Are there any other emerging policy ideas you think will help alleviate some of the pressures on local journalism?

Hansen: Were excited about the idea of bonds that could create a fund promising a certain return and impact. So you say to a financial institution, Heres the kind of thing [newspaper replanting] we would want to do with this financing. And if we get a call tomorrow thats like, Oh my gosh, this amazing paper is up for sale, then we have that funding to deploy quickly.

Ryckman: Theres a grassroots model for engaging with journalism that seems to be relatively new. But it makes sense. When youre talking about local news, who better knows than that community? Its a confusing element of these hedge funds acquisitions. Obviously, from a business standpoint, it makes sense for their returns. But when youre trying to center the necessary work local journalism brings to communities, having a hedge fund with headquarters not even in the same state seems like a recipe for disaster (as weve seen).

Theres so much cynicism around print and local news generallya sort of hopelessness, really. Why do you keep fighting for it?

Hansen: We see people who get their weekly paper delivered to their door who love it. They rely on it. These community-based media organizations really do fly under the radar. Its not the same national polarized terribleness of the media, but its also not the Patch.com, citizen blogger model either.

Ryckman: Im not as pessimistic as some about print. There will always be some kind of role for print. Does that mean people will still get daily newspapers? Not necessarily. But Colorado Community Media are weekly and monthly. In some of the communities that are served by these newspapers, WiFi and internet arent that great.

We will do print as long as its economically feasible. And if thats forever, that would be great. The Colorado Sun is very well positioned to bring our digital expertise to Colorado Community Medias newspapers and digital sites. They do fantastic journalism, but their websites need an upgrade. And were happy and excited to help with that process in addition to producing the best print products we can.

Theres been a lot of buzz about outlets converting to nonprofit models to aid sustainability. Is there a difference between what the Trust is doing versus the nonprofit model?

Hansen: We are agnostic about nonprofit conversions versus for-profit entities. Its really about the tools in your toolbox and what fits best for the funders, the new owners, the publisher, and the business model. So in this case, it was [Colorado Public Medias] public benefit corporation model that made the most sense. But in another location, it could be a nonprofit. Ultimately, were really working with communities to figure out what works best for them.

Ryckman: As far as I know, Colorado Public Media is the first news organization to be a public benefit corporation. But again, the Colorado Sun model isnt right for every community or every state. There isnt a one size or even two size fits all. Were having a greater conversation now about finding the right business model that applies in every community, in each case. In our case with the Colorado Sun, we opted for a hybrid model, which is a public benefit corporation and our joint venture with the National Trust. It provides the flexibility that you have with a for-profit entity, but the strands of public service are in the very DNA of the company. At the Sun, public service really is our number one focus.

In the initial report outlining the ideas and structures behind the National Trust for Local News, a big element to assuring local news remains in local hands was engaging with community stakeholders. How did you identify and include community stakeholders in Colorado?

Hansen: There were two phases to that. First was local funder mobilization. As part of our model, we have a few community affiliates and in Colorado, that was the Colorado Media Project. On the transaction and deal side, it was about giving them what they needed to go out and talk to their community and funder networks about how to support this. Now that were in the stage of creating ownership structures and figuring out new resources and stakeholders, its really about identifying who wants to help fund this. Who can we bring into the ownership group that wants to be an investor and be a supporter? What are the other businesses and stakeholders that have a long term interest? Whats the sustainability of these papers, and what do they need from this new entity? Its about widening that base of community support on all fronts.

Could you speak a little bit about any of the drawbacks of this way of trying to help local journalism?

Hansen: This is incredibly labor intensive. And thats why we have to trust our nonprofit model. Some people in our early conversations asked why we werent just the investment vehicle or set up as a public benefit corporation. There are certainly funds out there that operate like that, but we think its important that the deal structuring ultimately be about working with communities and mobilizing people. Thats the foundation for sustainability. And we dont want market or profit logic to be part of that.

We also have huge legal bills from this transaction. It takes a lot of time, and its costly, which is why were a nonprofit. And then its really about assembling funding on the other side that can be directed to all of these local outlets.

What about this particular models application at the local level makes it more sustainable than others?

Hansen: When youre a legacy, weekly print, there are many different business economics. Its a whole different animal than a daily paper, and weve been surprised by how little visibility these kinds of outlets have had in national funding conversations about sustainability. Many of these community media outlets serve communities of color, rural communities, ethnic communities. Theyve really flown under the radar, but they have brands, advertisers, subscribers, and people who love them. We think theres so much that can be strengthened and so much strength to build on.

Ryckman: One of the benefits of this cool national/local partnership is the National Trust (along with a national and local funders) has come in to bring the financing not only to readers, but also to the journalists and others in these newsrooms. I think theres a great deal of trust in that we care about them and we want to help them. We operate with a do no harm approach. Lets not break anything. Lets find out how we can help.

What do you envision is next?

Hansen: Continuing to support the development of Colorado Community Media. We dont have a publisher yet, so were starting to think about who would be an amazing community-focused leader for this organization who can work with us and give the team what it needs.

But beyond that, were really hoping to do two things. One is to sift through the incredible incoming interest for working with the Trust. Two, fundraising. There are a lot of compelling stories to tell. So to all of those impact investors out there whove been wondering how to get in, get into local news and support local news, were here and were excited.

Were also trying to get the word out among community development financial institutions and community foundations. We want to find out who on the ground we can work with to help us vet, assess, and assemble coalitions. That local piece is really critical. We dont want to just parachute into a community and be like, We will save you. It really has to be a grassroots, ground-up effort.

Ryckman: Im incredibly optimistic about the prospects of the Colorado Sun. We are 100 percent journalist and locally-owned. We started out with ten full time journalists; today we have fifteen. By next month, we will have sixteen. We have two full-time people on the business side. And were adding four more newsroom positions. By the end of summer, there will be twenty or more in the newsroom, plus a couple on the business side. So things are good. Our audience numbers continue to grow. We want to continue to grow the Sun as much as we can and ensure that its a sustainable news organization that does what it does well: focus on quality while digging into meaty issues and providing a public benefit to Colorado.

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Sara Sheridan
Insurity Completes Acquisition of Instec

Insurity has completed the acquisition of Instec, a company based in Naperville, Ill. that provides analytics software to more than 300 property and casualty insurers.

Insurity, based in Hartford, Conn. said that acquisition enables it to expand into the $40 billion program business and broadens its offerings for managing general agents.

The program market is highly profitable, with specific risks known for each insured group. However, the program business is also highly competitive, with many P&C carriers competing each year to retain each risk group, Insurity said in a press release.

Instecs unique approach to insurance solutions enables mid-size P&C carriers and MGAs to migrate, launch, or expand complex commercial offerings from project initiation to first quote in as little as four weeks, the company said.

Insurity said Instec enables property and casualty insurers to move quickly as new risks emerge and create a need for coverage. The company allows property and casualty carriers to bring new programs on board in as little as 45 days, half the normal amount of time required.

The acquisition was completed on April 14. Terms were not disclosed.

Arturo Raises $25M from Investors

Arturo, a Chicago based tech company that offers insurers predictive analytics software based on aerial imagery, said it raised $25 million in a Series funding round.

Arturo said it aims to further expand its geographic reach, while breaking into lending and other business sectors. The company said it plans to expand its technical team and refine its product, which extracts property data from satellite, stratospheric, aerial and ground-level imagery.

The new funds also enable the company to establish partnerships with imagery providers to offer coverage in Europe and Southeast Asia and expand its client base of property and casualty insurers.

Arturo said in the coming months it plans to roll out its offering to the commercial property sector and other businesses that engage with the built environment, including banks, other financial institutions, asset managers, among others.

The funding round was led by Atlantic Bridge Capital, with participation from RPS Ventures and existing investors Crosslink Capital and IAG Firemark Ventures  the venture capital fund for IAG, Australias largest general insurer.

Arturo is a deep learning spin-out from American Family Insurance.

Over the past twelve months, Arturo increased its revenue over 300%, which speaks directly to the tangible value it offers to leading insurers, stated Sunir Kapoor, an operating partner with Atlantic Bridge.

CCC Expanding Payments Platform

CCC Information Services Inc., widely know to insurers for its claims management software, is expanding its payments platform to allow transactions between insurers and their business partners.

The Chicago-based tech provider says CCC Payments will reduce administrative costs and claim cycle times. The service is expected to launch in the second half of 2021, the company said in a press release.

CCC Payments transactions initiated by insurers will be processed by Nvoicepay, a third-party financial technology company. CCC first introduced electronic payment capabilities in 2019, providing collision repair customers a simple way to handle customer-to-shop payments.

CCC is systematically bringing digitization to every corner of the automotive and insurance industry, said Barrett Callaghan, CCC executive vice president, markets and customer success. With the expansion of CCC Payments, we aim to eliminate two huge industry pain points: paper checks and phone calls.

Verisk: 29 Carriers Join ISO Statistical Database

Verisk said 29 insurers decided last year to contribute to its ISO Statistical Database, the highest number of new participants in a single year for the past 10 years.

We all benefit as an industry when we collectively contribute data, stated Shane Paltzer, vice president of marketing and personal lines at Acuity Insurance, one of the 29 new contributing companies. Loss costs and benchmarks derived from a diverse and robust dataset give us more certainty and predictability. The additional insights and analytics allow us to differentiate ourselves and maintain our competitive edge.

Verisk, based in Jersey City, New Jersey, said the ISO Statistical Database contains aggregated data from across the insurance industry. The database contains more than 23 billion statistical records that increase the value of derived analytics, such as ISO Loss Costs.

Access to this data and analytics can increase insurers actuarial credibility, lower their rate volatility and significantly improve their pricing accuracy, the company said in a press release.

Verisk: 29 Carriers Join ISO Statistical Database

Verisk said 29 insurers decided last year to contribute to its ISO Statistical Database, the highest number of new participants in a single year for the past 10 years.

We all benefit as an industry when we collectively contribute data, stated Shane Paltzer, vice president of marketing and personal lines at Acuity Insurance, one of the 29 new contributing companies. Loss costs and benchmarks derived from a diverse and robust dataset give us more certainty and predictability. The additional insights and analytics allow us to differentiate ourselves and maintain our competitive edge.

Verisk, based in Jersey City, New Jersey, said the ISO Statistical Database contains aggregated data from across the insurance industry. The database contains more than 23 billion statistical records that increase the value of derived analytics, such as ISO Loss Costs.

Access to this data and analytics can increase insurers actuarial credibility, lower their rate volatility and significantly improve their pricing accuracy, the company said in a press release.
Envista Forensics Appoints VP

Envista Forensics, a global consulting firm headquartered in Chicago, has promoted Liz Peterson to vice president for international forensics.

Peterson will oversee the development, management and growth of global engineering divisions outside of North America.

Peterson started with Envista in 2018 as a practic leader for the energy industry and soon moved into the role of managing director for the firms United Kingdom office, which experienced six-fold growth, Envista said in a press release.

Most recently, Peterson has been appointed head of international forensics. She will remain in London to coordinate Envistas growing global locations, forensic divisional strategies, and client relations.

Peterson has managed multi-disciplinary engineering efforts surrounding complex insurance claims of more than $100 million in property damage exposure values, the company said. She has led and managed engineering firms and divisions throughout her career with a focus on process improvements and rapid growth.

Charles Taylor Appoints Chief People Officer

Charles Taylor, a global claims management company headquartered in London, has appointed Alison Black as chief people officer.

Black joins Charles Taylor from AXA, a multinational insurers headquartered in Paris, France. She served in a range of human resource leadership roles, including as global human resources director for AXA Corporate Solutions, during her 16 years with the company.

At Charles Taylor, Black is responsible for leading human resources and driving the recruitment, development, retention, succession and reward of talent across the group. Black will will join the Charles Taylor Executive Committee and will report to the Chief Operating Officer Richard Yerbury.

Charles Taylor said it employs approximately 3,100 staff in more than 120 locations spread across 30 countries in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa.

CNC Appoints Business Development Manager

Catastrophe and National Claims, an independent claims adjusting firm based in Mobile, Ala., appointedLorrie Burkes as business development manager.

Burkes joins the team with over 30 years of experience in insurance, business development, and marketing, CNC said in a press release. She has an extensive background in insurance, a deep understanding of the industry, and a relationship-focused approach, the company said.

Burkes started her career as a claims as an adjuster for Allstate, working in three different states and adjusting claims for auto, property, casualty, and liability investigations. In 2006, after a brief sabbatical to stay at home with her kids, Burkes returned to the insurance industry as a reviewer and then subrogation manager for Mariposa, an independent adjusting firm. She became Mariposas business development Manager in 2008.

In 2011, Burkes joined another independent appraisal firm to oversee marketing. She worked as a business development manager for Unified Building Sciences & Engineering from 2014 until 2017. In 2017, she joined Dolan in an inside sales/account management position.

Gordon & Rees Hires Senior Counsel in Phoenix

The Gordon, Rees, Scully, Mansukhani law firm as appointed Peter A. Silverman as senior council in its Phoenix office. He joins the firms commercial litigation, insurance, governmentreguulatory and administrative law practice groups.

Silverman has effectively counseled and advocated for clients in an array of complex matters ranging from unfair competition claims, securities actions, employment litigation, and defamation suits, to lending claims, civil rights litigation, government regulation challenges, and election disputes, the company said in a press release.

In addition to his private practice, he served as legal counsel at the Arizona Attorney Generals Office for Secretary of State Janice K. Brewer, where was involved in high-profile litigation in state and federal court concerning the constitutionality of Arizona election laws and other legislation. Silverman would later serve as chief of staff and general counsel for the Democrats at the Arizona State Senate.

In law school, Silverman earned a post on the National First Amendment Moot Court Team two years in a row, and was selected by his peers to deliver the student commencement address at graduation. He also interned for U.S. District Judge Robert C. Broomfield and U.S. District Judge Earl H. Carroll.
 Flash

Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli lost the vote of confidence in the House of Representatives on Monday, opening door for the formation of a new government more than three years after he became the executive head of the nation.

Against 136 needed to win the vote of confidence in the House with 271 lawmakers, Oli just managed to garner 93 votes. The lawmakers from Madhav Nepal faction (UML) within his party CPN-UML did not vote for him and abstained from the voting process.

The CPN-UML has 121 seats in the House of Representatives which is short of 15 votes to win the vote of confidence in the parliament. However, despite the party whip to vote in favour of the vote of confidence motion, the lawmakers from the UML faction, with 28 votes, did not stand for Oli due to the escalated feud within the party.

The government was pushed into minority after CPN (Maoist Centre) on May 5 withdrew its support for Oli extended in February 2018. Oli, however, had decided to take the vote of confidence on May 2 even before the Maoist Centre withdrew its support.

After losing the vote of confidence Oli has been relieved of the prime ministerial position as per Article 100 (3) of the Constitution of Nepal, according to constitutional experts.

House Speaker Agni Prasad Sapkota has written to President Bidya Devi Bhandari after the voting, informing her that Oli has lost the majority in the parliament, which allows her to open the door for the formation of a new government.

"Oli is just a caretaker government after losing the vote of trust," Bipin Adhikari, an expert on constitution who is a former dean at Kathmandu University School of Law, told Xinhua. "Now the president should start the process towards the formation of a coalition government."

Currently, Nepali Congress, CPN (Maoist Centre) and Janata Samajbadi Party are under negotiations to form a government.

The Nepali Congress has 63 seats, with two of them suspended having no voting right while CPN (Maoist Centre) has 49 lawmakers. Similarly, Janata Samajbadi Party has 34 lawmakers, including two suspended having no voting right. The formation of the coalition government is only possible if the three parties come together.

President of the Nepali Congress Sher Bahadur Deuba, Chairperson of the CPN (Maoist Centre) Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Upendra Yadav, Chair of Janata Samajbadi Party, while addressing the parliament on Monday, said the process for the formation of a coalition government should begin.

However, the three parties have not reached an agreement yet. While the Nepali Congress and the CPN (Maoist Centre) are ready to do so, the Janata Samajbadi Party is divided within itself as one of its factions is against the idea.

Constitutional experts say if the three parties fail to form a coalition government, the president will then allow Oli to form a government as a parliamentary party leader of the single largest party. Article 76 (3) of the constitution allows the largest party to form a government if a coalition government is not possible.

"Oli will have to seek vote of confidence in 30 days once (he) gets appointed as a prime minister as a leader of the largest party," Purna Man Shakya, a professor at Nepal Law Campus, told Xinhua. However, the country may head towards the dissolution of the House once again if Oli fails to get the vote of confidence even after he forms a new government.

Oli had dissolved the House of Representatives while he was still leading a majority government in December last year. The Supreme Court on Feb. 23 overturned the decision saying it was unconstitutional.

Addressing the House of Representatives before Monday's vote of confidence motion was tabled, Oli had said his government always worked for nationalism, development and taking the country towards the path of prosperity.

"I decided to take a vote of confidence because I believe the parliament has righty assessed the works by the government," he said in the parliament. "There is no reason why the government shouldn't get trust vote."
CAIRO  UK Club, an insurer of the container ship that blocked the Suez Canal in March, said on Monday a reduced compensation claim made by the Egyptian authorities for almost $600 million to free the vessel and cover related losses was still exceptionally large.

The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) adjusted its claim from an initial $916 million in an effort to settle out of court, SCA head Osama Rabie told private TV network MBC Masr on Saturday.

The Ever Given, one of the worlds largest container ships, was jammed across the canal for six days from March 23, stopping traffic in both directions.

The vessel, still loaded with thousands of containers, is being held in a lake between two stretches of the canal amid the dispute about the level of compensation SCA has claimed from the Japanese owner Shoei Kisen.

Rabie said on Saturday there was no immediate prospect of a settlement. We havent seen any response from their side so far, so we are moving forward with the issue, as we were, in the court, he said.

UK Club said the reduced amount proposed had not been reflected in SCAs claim filed at court.

The Ever Givens owners still have not been provided with evidence that would support a claim of this size, which remains exceptionally large. The Ever Givens interests continue to negotiate in good faith with the SCA, it added.

An Egyptian economic court is due to hold a hearing on May 22 to consider the SCA claim for what it describes as losses due to the blockage and costs for dislodging the ship, SCA sources said.

An Egyptian investigation into the incident found no wrongdoing by the SCA or its pilots, the sources said, without elaborating.

One source said the court could authorize the SCA to auction off the ship if the owner rejected any ruling to compensate the canal authority. Rabie has also mentioned such an outcome.

An Egyptian court rejected an appeal by Shoei Kisen against the Ever Givens detention earlier this month.

About the photo: In this photo released by Suez Canal Authority, the Ever Given, a Panama-flagged cargo ship, is pulled by one of the Suez Canal tugboats, in the Suez Canal, Egypt, Monday, March 29, 2021. Engineers on Monday partially refloated  the colossal container ship that continues to block traffic through the Suez Canal, authorities said, without providing further details about when the vessel would be set free. (Suez Canal Authority via AP)
MEDINA, Ohio -- Ward 3 Councilman Eric Heffinger announced Monday (May 10) that he will not be running for re-election in the fall.

Over these last couple of months, Ive been talking with my family and friends and I have decided that I am not going to run for re-election this coming fall, Heffinger said.

I love what Ive done here, I love what Ive learned, I love to be part of my community, I love raising my children here and I plan to go nowhere else. But I need time with my family, and Ive decided that this is one of the things that has to give so that I can have that time with my family.

He shared his appreciation for the other council members, as well as the citizens who gave him this opportunity. His term will be up in December 2021.

In other news, City Engineer Patrick Patton discussed traffic signal maintenance on Ohio 18 and Ohio 42.

Three years ago, the city entered into agreements with ODOT for both the signal at 18 and Foote and the signal in our next ordinance at 42 and Grande, said Patton.

The one at 18 and Foote, ODOT has determined that, in conjunction with their current State Route 18 corridor improvement project, that they will take over maintenance of that signal themselves.

Council approved the two ordinances, allowing the city to enter into these contracts with ODOT.

Mayor Dennis Hanwell also discussed Fourth of July festivities. Fireworks will be set off on July 3. If you are watching outside and are unable to social distance, the health department has required masks.

Additionally, candy may not be thrown from vehicles during the parade on July 4. Individual wrapped pieces of candy can be tossed to children, but should be done from a distance of 6 feet or more to maintain social distancing.

Read more from the Medina Sun.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Community Police Commission has joined the chorus of Northeast Ohio officials calling for the Justice Department to re-open a federal civil rights investigation into a former Cleveland police officers killing of 12-year-old Tamir Rice.

Ten of the commissions 12 members voted to send the letter that was delivered Monday to the head of the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division in Washington and the U.S. Attorneys Office in Cleveland asking them to revive the probe following reports that officials in former President Donald Trumps DOJ let the investigation stall in his final months in office and then closed the case after he lost the 2020 election.

Over the past month, Clevelands media outlets and others have reported what may have been political interference into the investigation by the previous administration, the letter said. It is our belief that the Rice family deserves a fair and unbiased review of the circumstances that led to Tamirs death free from political influence. Regardless of the outcome, it is the principle of equal treatment under the law that must prevail in this circumstance.

Two members of the board who are current or retired police officers and represent the departments unions opposed the letter. Cleveland Police Patrolmens Association President Jeff Follmer and retired Lt. Gail Maxwell of the Fraternal Order of Police voted not to send the letter, the commissions executive director Jason Goodrick said.

Charmin Leon, the representative of the Black Shield Police Association that is made up of the departments Black officers, supported the letter, Goodrick said.

The board was established under the so-called consent decree the city and the Justice Department entered into in 2015. It is made up of volunteers from the community and is meant to act as the communitys voice to the department.

The boards call comes after Tamirs family and prominent Ohio politicians including Sen. Sherrod Brown and Rep. Marcy Kaptur have called for a reopening of the investigation into the shooting. Cleveland City Council on Monday voted 14-0 to approve a resolution strongly supporting the effort to re-open the investigation.

Tamir was playing with a realistic-looking pellet gun in the park outside Cudell Recreation Center on Nov. 22, 2014 when someone called 911 to report a guy with a gun was pointing the weapon at people.

The citys 911 dispatcher did not tell officers Frank Garmback and Timothy Loehmann that the caller said the gun could have been fake and the person could have been a kid, and Garmback drove up beside the boy as he sat beneath a gazebo. Garmback skidded the cruiser to a halt in the grass and Loehmann, who had been on the force for less than nine months, jumped out of the car and shot Tamir in the stomach as he walked toward the car.

Tamir was taken to the hospital where he died early the next morning.

A grand jury in December 2015 decided not to bring state charges against Loehmann in the shooting. The Justice Department announced shortly after it was opening an investigation into whether the officers violated Tamirs civil rights.

The city fired Loehmann after the media discovered he lied on his application to the department about his reason for leaving his previous job with the Independence Police Department. The union that represents Loehmann has appealed the firing to the Ohio Supreme Court.

The city paid Tamirs family $6 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit, the largest settlement in a lawsuit related to a police shooting in the citys history.

Clarification: The Cleveland Community Police Commission on Tuesday posted an incomplete version of the letter on its website that did not include Charmin Leons name under those who signed it. The commissions executive director Jason Goodrick said Leon supported the letter.
BAY VILLAGE, Ohio -- Authorities are searching for four men accused of stealing more than 20 cars in Bay Village over a three-month span in 2020.

Angel Omar Sanchez Amaro, 21, of Brook Park; Damon M Berry Jr. 25, of East Cleveland; Raul Perez, 20, of Brooklyn; and Romeo Rodriguez, 19, of Cleveland are charged with receiving stolen property. They are not in police custody and authorities issued warrants Monday for their arrests, Rocky River Municipal Court records and Bay Village police said.

These autos were stolen between June and September last year, Bay Village police Sgt. Robert Gillespie said. No one was hurt. Just vehicles were taken. Warrants were obtained through investigation.

The car thefts did not take place in one particular region or neighborhood of Bay Village, police said.

Police are also pursuing charges against three boys who are also involved.

Anyone with information on these men or their whereabouts are asked to call the Bay Village Detective Bureau at 440-871-1234.

Read more crime stories on cleveland.com:

Jury selection set to begin in trial of Olympic gymnast Simone Biles brother charged with murder in Cleveland New Years Eve party shooting
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Food & Wine magazine has ranked Ohio the ninth best pizza state in the country, citing a slew of restaurants including Greater Cleveland spots Geracis, Harlows, Il Rione and Mama Santas.

The ranking is a timely look at pizza, a sector of the restaurant industry that held up well during the pandemic, with its delivery distribution already established at a time when the takeout model was being embraced and enhanced.

Pizza-wise, this is as balkanized a state as you will find, each city and region very much into their own style, writes the magazines David Landsel.

Says the magazine about the four places:

In Cleveland, there are pan-style pizzas topped with a provolone at institutions like Geracis in University Heights, now over a half-century old, or Mama Santas, in the citys Little Italy.  At some point, however, youll be happy to snap back to the pizza present, and there have been some impressive new developments - there are the lovely, neo-Neapolitan pies at Il Rione, one of Clevelands best restaurants, summer nights and Margherita pizzas on the patio at Harlow in Lakewood. 

The magazine did a nice job of covering the entire state, with Steubenville, Youngstown, Columbus, Miamisburg and Dayton all getting nods, as well as Akron for its accompanying cheese-topped salads (clearly a hat tip to Luigis).

By the way, it was an East Coast triumvirate at the top, with New Jersey, Connecticut and New York taking the first three spots, respectively.

Heres the full list.

I am on cleveland.coms life and culture team and cover food, beer, wine and sports-related topics. If you want to see my stories, heres a directory on cleveland.com. Bill Wills of WTAM-1100 and I talk food and drink usually at 8:20 a.m. Thursday morning. And tune in at 7:05 a.m. Wednesdays for Beer with Bona and Much, Much More with Munch Bishop on 1350-AM The Gambler. Twitter: @mbona30.

Get a jumpstart on the weekend and sign up for Cleveland.coms weekly In the CLE email newsletter, your essential guide to the top things to do in Greater Cleveland. It will arrive in your inbox on Friday mornings - an exclusive to-do list, focusing on the best of the weekend fun. Restaurants, music, movies, performing arts, family fun and more. Just click here to subscribe. All cleveland.com newsletters are free.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  The effort to get Ohioans vaccinated for the coronavirus has hit a slump.

You can listen online here.

This week, Ohio will take only 20 percent of the first coronavirus vaccine doses that the federal government allotted to the state, with the rest put into storage for future use or going to other states. Demand for the vaccine has dropped significantly, even though about half of the states residents remain unprotected. Ohios casinos and racinos are not in a slump. In fact, theyre doing robust business and setting records. And it snowed on Mothers Day in Northeast Ohio ... but is that really so unusual?

Hear cleveland.com editor Chris Quinn discuss these stories and more in The Wake Up podcast.

The podcast is a summary of cleveland.coms morning newsletter The Wake Up. You can receive The Wake Up through email at 5:30 a.m. each weekday by subscribing here.

You can get our podcasts delivered directly to your phone, and we have an Apple podcasts channel exclusively for this podcast. Subscribe here.

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BEDFORD, Ohio -- A 28-year-old Cleveland woman who crashed into several cars at a Bedford car dealership and later died had marijuana, lorazepam and three times the legal limit of alcohol in her system when she crashed, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner says.

Janelle Black, who died the following morning at MetroHealth, crashed about 11:30 p.m. Jan. 9 into Bedford Nissan on Rockside Road near Broadway Avenue, according to the medical examiner report from Dr. Thomas Gilson.

Black was eastbound on Rockside Road in a 2008 Audi AA6 when she lost control of the car, drove off the side of the road, went airborne and landed on several parked cars at the dealership, the report says.

The medical examiners report showed that Black had a blood-alcohol level of .239 percent. The legal threshold to drive in the state of Ohio is .08 percent.

Paramedics took her to the hospital where she died shortly after 11 a.m. the next morning, the report says. The medical examiner determined Black died from blunt force trauma to the head.

Read more stories on cleveland.com:

Ohio lands 3 places on national best beer cities list

Jury selection set to begin in trial of Olympic gymnast Simone Biles brother charged with murder in Cleveland New Years Eve party shooting

New Ohio law provides $465M to help Ohioans pay housing, utility bills

Plan for new Cleveland Hopkins airport, with $2 billion price tag, to be revealed next week

Man charged in fatal shooting of man, woman in Clevelands Stockyards neighborhood
ROSS TOWNSHIP, Ohio  A detective serving a search warrant Monday at a home as part of a child pornography investigation shot and wounded the suspect, who confronted officers armed with a firearm, officials say.

Alex Hoskins, 26, was treated and released at a hospital after the shooting, according to a news release from the Butler County Sheriffs Office. Hoskins is being held in the Butler County Jail on a felonious assault charge and three counts illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material/performance.

Deputies and officers with the Department of Homeland Security went to a residence Monday to execute the search warrant, the news release says. Hoskins reportedly knew that he was under investigation and had recently purchased a gun.

Sheriff Richard Jones tells Fox 19 that when detectives went inside the home, Hoskins pointed a handgun at them. A detective shot Hoskins, whose wound was not life-threatening, authorities say.

The news release says Hoskins confessed to the possession of child pornography, and also to sending and receiving images and videos.

More charges against Hoskins are possible as the investigation continues, according to the sheriffs department.

Ross Township is located northwest of Cincinnati.

More crime-related content on cleveland.com:

Akron police say man squeezed, seriously injured 2-month-old baby during altercation

Man shot, killed while sitting on bench in Akrons Grace Park
HOUSTON, Texas  Police say a man who fled from officers with a tiger in the back of his vehicle is in custody, but they have not found the animal.

Victor Hugo Cuevas, 26, was arrested at his parents home Monday evening, click2houston.com reports. He has been charged with evading arrest. Cuevas was out on bond on a murder charge in connection with a shooting outside a restaurant in July 2017, KHOU Channel 11 reports, but the bond now will be revoked. Cuevas has argued the shooting was in self-defense.

The strange case began Sunday when a tiger was seen roaming a Houston neighborhood, ABC 13 reports. Videos showed the tiger walking through yards of homes and onto the street. A neighbor who was an off-duty sheriffs deputy reportedly threatened to shoot the tiger.

Apparently there's a tiger loose on my parents' West Houston street? pic.twitter.com/TgdIiPSPKx  robwormald (@robwormald) May 10, 2021

Police tell ABC 13 that Cuevas was known to own several exotic animals. Cuevas reportedly caught the tiger, then put it in the back of his jeep and drove off, evading police after a short chase, click2houston.com reports.

A lawyer for Cuevas, Michael Elliott, tells KHOU his client had reached a deal to turn himself in but instead was arrested Monday evening. Elliott also tells KHOU that Cuevas is not the owner of the tiger, although he does say Cuevas is the person who caught the animal. He said Cuevas does have information on where the tiger is and its owner.

All they want to do is lock people up and presume them to be guilty, and let them try to figure it out later. Its terrible, Elliott said, according to click2houston.com. Because my client was the one who caught this tiger, who went out and got it, brought it back to safety, everyone is just assuming that hes the owner of the tiger and that its his tiger.
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Get the coronavirus news from around the world, read more about the showdown over a voting rights bill in Congress and see more stories trending online today.

Top stories

GOP readies blitz against Democrats voting rights bill (AP)

Senate poised for all-day brawl over sweeping elections bill (The Hill)

Congressional negotiators make progress on policing overhaul compromise (CBS News)

Colonial Pipeline Hackers, DarkSide, Apologize, Say Goal Is to Make Money (Newsweek)

Israel Hits Gaza With Airstrike After Hamas Rocket Attacks (Yahoo)

OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft Heads for Earth with Asteroid Sample (NASA)

Coronavirus news

Pfizer COVID-19 shot expanded to U.S. children as young as 12 years old (AP)

Growing number of GOP-led states move to end Covid unemployment benefits (NBC)

Hugs with loved ones as PM confirms Englands biggest step back to normal (BBC)

WHO classifies triple-mutant Covid variant found in India as global health risk (CNBC)

Mexico: Russias Sputnik V shortages mean limited 2nd doses (AP)

Other trending headlines

Remains of nine Neanderthals found in Italian cave; they were likely killed and eaten by hyenas (USA Today)

Jaguars plan to sign Tim Tebow to one-year deal to play tight end in Jacksonville (CBS Sports)

Venom: Let There Be Carnage Trailer Is Here, And Woody Harrelson Looks Wild (CinemaBlend)

Fords first electric pickup truck will be called the F-150 Lightning (The Verge)

Chinas Birthrate Drops, As Census Data Warn Of Aging Population (NPR)

Starbucks Launches a Strawberry Funnel Cake Frappuccino (People)
CLEVELAND, Ohio-- A small group of Valley Forge High School students marched down Longwood Avenue in Parma on Friday to demonstrate for Muslim and other non-Christian students who they say do not get academic relief on holidays.

I never realized that it was an issue until I kind of realized it, said junior Zaina Al-Taher.

Along with Valley Forge junior Mai Mostafa, Zaina organized the event to highlight the inequality and lack of intersectionality, since students from different religious backgrounds dont get the same treatment that Christian students get on holidays like Christmas or Easter.

Its just super unfair, Zaina said. I think that if youre gonna acknowledge one, you should acknowledge all of them.

Before the protest, Zaina started an online petition asking Parma schools to extend a day off to Muslim students for Eid El-Fitr, typically celebrated on the last day of Ramadan. The students met with two board members and the superintendent before the protest to discuss what the holiday means to them.

Mai and Zaina have said that they both have had celebrated their religious holidays and been given an excused absence while still being expected to keep up with their schoolwork.

What weve experienced, at least having to take off on our religious holidays, is that it really just makes it so much harder to celebrate, Zaina said.

Its stressful, Mai added.

The students said while they appreciate the support from the administration, they hope that this protest inspires Parma and other Northeast Ohio school districts to consider changing their academic calendars to accommodate these students for the 2021-2022 school year and beyond.

Its actually super sad how that theres actual Muslims going to school on a holiday, Al-Taher said. Like you would never see a Christian going to school on Christmas.

With only 19 days left, Parma schools spokeswoman Audrey Holtzman said the district is unable to make changes to its current calendar.

This is, however, an excused absence for our Muslim students, Holtzman said.

Holtzman noted that students would also receive extra time to make up assignments.

Moving forward, we will work together to address the varying holidays that are observed throughout the district, Holtzman said.
COLUMBUS, Ohio - State officials have decided to only take 20.1% of first coronavirus vaccine doses that the federal government has allotted Ohio this week, with the remaining either being put in storage for future use or going to other states.

This is the first time Ohio has agreed for vaccines to be sent to other states with higher demand, as well as a sign of the slumped demand in Ohio.

The federal government offered Ohio 324,960 first doses this week: 173,160 Pfizer first doses, 131,500 of Moderna first doses and 20,300 of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson shot.

The following is what Ohio decided for the allotment:

-65,370 first doses will arrive in the state this week, or 20.1% of the allotment. This includes some Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson doses.

-With the possibility that the Pfizer vaccine will soon be approved for children ages 12 to 15, the state asked the federal government to save 139,230 Pfizer doses in a stockpile stored at the federal level, or 42.8%.

-The remaining 120,360 first doses will go to other states, or 37%. These are Moderna and J&J doses.

Vaccine is precious, Ohio Department of Health spokeswoman Alicia Shoults said. Many providers in Ohio have adequate vaccine supply on-hand, and requested that additional doses not be shipped to them the week of May 10. Ordering only what can be used in the state week-by-week ensures that this vaccine is preserved for who and when it is needed.

In addition to the 65,370 first doses that are coming to Ohio, other doses may end up in the state that arent part of the Ohios allotment tally. Thats because theyre shipped directly to companies such as Kroger and others that participate in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program for COVID-19 Vaccination. Many of those companies will likely choose to send shots to Ohio.

The 139,230 Pfizer doses that are being sent to the stockpile are in addition to 480,180 doses of vaccine that the state previously asked the federal government to warehouse for Ohio. The doses werent immediately needed and were never sent to the state. Theyll remain in storage until the state asks for them, Shoults said.

The state learned of this weeks allocation for Johnson & Johnson last Monday and of Pfizer and Moderna on Wednesday. For the remainder of last week, it reached out to pharmacies, health departments, hospitals, clinics and other vaccine providers to discuss how many of the vaccines they needed.

State officials feel its important to contribute to the federal pool for other states because there may be a time when Ohio also needs to use this shared vaccine pool, Shoults said.

After months in which millions of Ohioans were frustrated that they hadnt received a COVID-19 vaccine fast enough, demand has slumped. People who were most enthusiastic about getting shots received them and now the state is attempting to reach people who have been more hesitant, and who wanted to wait to see how friends and family members fared after their vaccines.

These days, the number of people receiving their second dose has outpaced the number of first doses. For instance, 39,160 vaccines were completed on Sunday, compared to 29,366 that were started.

A total of 4.8 million Ohioans have started their vaccines and 4.1 million have completed them.

Every week, we will make a decision based on what is in the best interest of Ohioans, Shoults said. We will make this decision every week based on the facts on the ground and will pivot quickly to ensure that we have the most appropriate supply available to meet demand in the state.

More coverage:

Ohio coronavirus vaccine demand has slumped. Now comes the long slog toward herd immunity.

State sending 60,000 doses of opioid overdose drug to 23 counties. Heres why Cuyahoga County is getting among the most.

Ohio bill to overhaul voting laws would only allow ballot drop boxes at county boards of elections

Wolstein Center coronavirus mass vaccination clinic to offer Johnson & Johnson shots next week

Cleveland parents happy with kids schools, but public cooler toward local education: poll

Dr. Amy Acton to be honored with special Profile in Courage Award by the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library

Ohio House Republicans decline to change law to reflect same-sex couples adoptions of children
COLUMBUS, OhioOhio falconers will soon be allowed to use owls to hunt for small game, under legislation signed into law Tuesday by Gov. Mike DeWine.

Under Senate Bill 28, which takes effect in 90 days, the 110 or so Ohioans with a state-issued falconry permit can use owls for hunting animals such as rabbits and squirrels. To become a licensed falconer in Ohio, people must be 16 years old or older, pass a written test, complete a two-year apprenticeship, and keep proper housing and equipment for their birds, among other requirements.

DeWines office announced via a news release that he signed the bill but provided no comment from the governor beyond that.

The legislation is the brainchild of Mick Brown, president of the Ohio Falconry Association. Brown, who lives in Martins Ferry, Ohio, said Tuesday that he was glad to hear that licensed falconers can now hunt with owls.

Just being able to do it is a nice thing, you know? he said in an interview.

Forty-five other states already allow falconers to hunt with owls, Brown said. The great horned owl, barred owl, and Eurasian eagle owl are the most common species used for hunting, he said.

However, Brown said, only a fraction of Ohio falconers are likely to go hunting with owls. The new law, he said, will likely mean more for the owls themselves, as it will now allow falconers to help injured owls learn to catch prey after they finish rehabilitation  which will make the birds more likely to survive into adulthood.

If they injure a leg or a foot, then that thats going to make them unable to hunt, Brown said. But if a falconer has them, or if we find one of them birds, we can kind of rescue it and you know make sure it has good hunting ability before it gets released.

When a reporter asked whether it was fair to compare falconers work with owls after rehab to physical therapists working with patients after a hospital visit, Brown replied, Thats exactly right.

Karla Bloom, executive director of the International Owl Center in Minnesota, told cleveland.com last year that shes opposed to the bill because owls raised in captivity usually dont survive long if theyre released into the wild. That means falconers who take in owls will usually have to keep them for the rest of the birds lives, which can be as long as 25 years.

Its not really fair to the bird unless you seriously know what youre doing, because its a huge commitment, she said at the time. Im not saying it cannot be done -- it certainly can and has been done effectively and well. But thats not the norm.

Bloom also said its usually harder to train owls to follow instructions than it is for hawks. Training an owl is a little bit more like training a cat, she said.

Brown previously said Blooms concerns about catching juveniles arent what happens in Ohio. Buckeye State falconers, he said, take owls that are older than juveniles but are less than a year old -- which means falconers can hunt with them and then safely release them into the wild.

SB 28, introduced by Republican state Sen. Frank Hoagland of Jefferson County, passed the Senate unanimously. Last month, it flew past the House by a wide margin, though some House Democratic critics called the bill irrelevant and unimportant.

Read more Ohio politics and government stories:

Ohios Dave Yost joins other attorneys general against planned Instagram for children

DeWine says Ohio will make Pfizer vaccine available to children ages 12-15 quickly as possible

Ohio will resume work-search requirements for nearly all unemployment benefits recipients

New coronavirus cases in Ohio dip to lowest point since August; hospitalizations also down; see latest county, state trends

Ohio reports 713 new coronavirus cases: Monday update
COLUMBUS, OhioGov. Mike DeWine on Tuesday signed legislation directing $465 million in federal coronavirus aid to help lower-income Ohioans hurt by the coronavirus pandemic to pay rent and utilities.

House Bill 167, which passed the legislature without opposition, also offers $100 million in coronavirus aid to the Ohio Department of Public Safety.

Ohioans who, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, are facing eviction or having trouble making utility payments should contact their local community action agency about getting financial help from the new law, said DeWine, a Greene County Republican. Community action agencies will cut checks directly to landlords or utility companies, and they can help work with Ohioans landlords to keep them in their home, even if theyve already received an eviction notice.

Ohioans are eligible for the money if they make up to 80% of their areas median income and can show that theyve been hurt financially by the coronavirus pandemic. In Cuyahoga County, that means the eligibility limit for a family of four would be a maximum yearly income of $62,900.

The funding can be used for help pay electric, gas, trash, water, sewer, home energy, and internet services in certain circumstances, the governor said. However, the money cannot be used to help make mortgage payments, Cole said.

The federal funding for HB 167 came as part of the second federal stimulus package, passed last December, according to state Rep. Scott Oelslager, the North Canton Republican who sponsored the bill. Its the first of several bills to be signed by the governor that divvy up Ohios roughly $2 billion share of federal coronavirus relief money.

About $857 million of that would go to help Ohio schools; the rest would provide money to coronavirus testing, local fairs, and businesses such as bars, restaurants, and hotels.

The federal grant money for HB167 runs through the end of the year, according to Oelslager.

Ohioans who make up to 80% of their areas median income are eligible for rent or utility help under HB167. Check here to see if you or your household qualify:

Read more Ohio politics and government stories:

Ohios Dave Yost joins other attorneys general against planned Instagram for children

DeWine says Ohio will make Pfizer vaccine available to children ages 12-15 quickly as possible

Ohio will resume work-search requirements for nearly all unemployment benefits recipients

New coronavirus cases in Ohio dip to lowest point since August; hospitalizations also down; see latest county, state trends

Ohio reports 713 new coronavirus cases: Monday update
COLUMBUS, Ohio  Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is teaming with more than 40 other attorneys general in calling for Facebook to rethink its plan to create an Instagram social media site for children under the age of 13.

Yost and 43 other AGs sent a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg arguing that social media can be harmful to the physical, emotional, and mental well-being of children. ... Facebook has a record of failing to protect the safety and privacy of children on its platform, despite claims that its products have strict privacy controls.

Facebook is the owner of Instagram. In March, Buzzfeed reported Facebook was moving forward with a plan to create an Instagram site for younger children. The plan drew quick criticism from people concerned it would make children easy targets for online predators.

There is no timeline on when the site will become available for use.

Facebook and Instagram already have too much control over what we see, hear and buy  and when you add in the dangers of online predators and cyberbullying, its unsafe for children, Yost said in a news release. Until Mr. Zuckerberg can prove that hes doing more to police these platforms, he needs to stay away from our kids.

The AGs say in the news release that research shows young children are ill-equipped to deal with sites such as Instagram, partly due to their underdeveloped understanding of privacy.

Bloomberg news reports Facebook said in a statement it will prioritize safety and privacy on the new service. Facebook also says the youth site will not show ads.
Beachwood, OH (44122)

Today

Partly cloudy skies this morning will give way to occasional showers during the afternoon. High 83F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. Low 68F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.
Earlier this month, Ohio lifted the statewide mandate on wearing masks in public. This change in policy came shortly after updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention assuring fully vaccinated people that they can safely go without masks in most indoor and outdoor se
Beachwood, OH (44122)

Today

Partly cloudy this morning. Increasing clouds with periods of showers this afternoon. High 82F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening with more clouds for overnight. Low 68F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.
Celebrate the Class of 2020

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CMU Connection Leads to Success at eIQ Mobility

May 06, 2021

The years spent studying, researching, and growing at CMU forms a camaraderie between students that lasts long past graduation. For Emre Kara (CEE PhD '14) and Sila Berkol Kiliccote (CFA MS '95 and Tepper MBA 1999-2000), their shared CMU connection led to a business partnership at eIQ Mobilitywhere they work together to simplify and accelerate electrification of fleets. As VP of Engineering, Kara is tasked with building whats now the leading software platform for fleet electrification assessments.

Kiliccote, the companys CEO and co-founder, says she knew right away that Karas experience at CMU would be an asset to the company. She learned about Kara from Professor Mario Bergesand was excited to learn that Kara hailed from her homeland of Turkey.

Kiliccote says she actively recruits from CMU60% of her employees are alumni. And she has a strong relationship with CMUs Silicon Valley campus, welcoming many students working on Capstone projects. There is an ease that comes with working with highly skilled, thoughtful, and ethical people. CMU [is] a perfect place to look for these qualities in people we want to work with.

At eIQ Mobility, Kara is currently focused on building a software platform to help companies transition their vehicle fleets from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles. The platform helps companies to identify the best locations and vehicles to electrifyas well as federal and state incentives that companies may qualify for. It also helps to size the appropriate charging infrastructure to keep fleets operational with a goal to minimize the cost of electricity while maximizing the amount of green energy that goes into each vehicle.

He mentions that his CMU alumni connections have been extremely valuable in the engineering industry. It definitely opens doors when you initially get on the job market.

CEE taught me how to think and how to learn effectivelythese traits are [essential to] success in your professional life."

Now that hes in a position to hire employees for his department, Kara looks for CMU graduates to fill open spots. I know that if someone has successfully completed their degree, theres a high chance that they will do great things within my team.

Kara adds that his education at CEE prepared him well for the work and research challenges of his career. CEE taught me how to think and how to learn effectivelythese traits are [essential to] success in your professional life.

And like Kiliccote, Kara emphasizes the fellowship gained by finding another CMU alumnus in the workplace. There is a camaraderie. Weve gone through the same intellectual challenges and processes and that forms an immediate trust.
Alumni Spotlight: Raaga Kalva

May 10, 2021

Raaga Kalva knew she wanted to work in Washington, DC. The Germantown, Maryland native chose Carnegie Mellon University rather than the University of Maryland because she wanted to broaden her experiences. That decision played a role in getting her where she wanted to be.

At a CMU educational opportunities conference, Kalva reconnected with a former classmate who went on to become a recruiter for the Defense Intelligence Agency. That recruiter helped Kalva get a job with the DIA as a Military Capabilities Analyst.

When looking for jobs, Ive always been a big advocate of students reaching out to alumni as well as taking advantage of the opportunities on campus, said Kalva, who graduated in 2019 with Bachelors and Masters degrees in International Relations and Politics.

Kalva earned both degrees in five years through the Institute for Politics and Strategys Accelerated Master of Science in International Relations and Politics program. She knew she wanted to major in IRP when she applied.

I really, really liked the idea of having be a BS versus a BA program, which it is in most schools, Kalva said. I liked that we got to tie in a lot of things with statistical and data analysis, which I thought would be very valuable skills in the workforce.

Kalva loved the classes she took with Drs. Molly Dunigan, Geoffrey McGovern, and Colin Clarke. She enjoyed a class with Dr. Jay Aronson about the international laws that govern drone warfare; an international security policy course with Dr. Albrecht Funk; and a class with Dr. Anna Pechenkina about decision-making structures within terrorist organizations. Drs. Daniel Silverman, Daniel Hansen, and Ignacio Arana were all huge influences on her, both in school and after graduation.

It was very cool to me that I got to work with faculty from a lot of different disciplines, but all still focusing in the same political sphere, Kalva said. As I grew and explored different options within the Institute and within the major, the fact that it could be so many different things that I focused on and used so many different skills was attractive to me.

The exposure to politicians, government and military officials, academics, and thought leaders that IPS brings to campus through its Policy Forum confirmed for Kalva that she was on the right path. She found that her desire to attend the talks revealed more about her ideal career than more arbitrary measures.

Any time I would see a topic of a talk, I was really excited to go and learn, to participate, to engage, she said. I had friends that didnt really feel the same way about the extracurricular stuff, even though they were fine in class. Participating in all those external things, I think, gives you an idea earlier on about what kind of career is this going to be, what options are available, what kind of things can you get into, and does it excite you? Are you interested in those external talks, things that are not immediately related to what you absolutely have to do?

Kalva wanted to study abroad, but did not want to sacrifice her coursework to do so, so she compromised with the Carnegie Mellon University Washington Semester Program. She spent the spring of 2017 in DC and interned in the office of Maryland Congressman Anthony Brown, an experience that put a congressional career on her radar for the future.

I liked that it was fast-paced, you were working directly with constituents sometimes, and also with policy makers and interest groups, she said. You get a very large range of skills and interest levels in different topics. I also liked the idea that this is really where change happens. Were at the end of the process in all of the research and advocacy and effort, and this is where it comes to fruition.

Kalva also interned with Lockheed Martin as an intelligence analyst, developing tools to mitigate security breaches, and with Ameriinfo Vets, a software company in her hometown that exposed to her the contract and grant side of what she was doing at Lockheed Martin. As graduation approached, she attended the EOC, where she reconnected with her former classmate.



She recognized me and we were able to talk, and she saw my resume and she thought I would be a good fit, Kalva said.

As a Military Capabilities Analyst, Kalva focuses on foreign armed forces, isolating threats and deciding how to best serve policy makers facing various problems. She draws upon her studies at CMU  international relations theory, the interplay between realism and liberalism  to determine the actions foreign countries might take. Given the way in which she got the job, it makes sense that her advice to current students is to make use of their alumni network.

Use your LinkedIn, she said. Look at organizations that youre interested. Chances are a CMU alumnus works there, and reach out. Always be reaching out, talking to people, to understand what your options are, because there are more things out there than you would think.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The Philippine economy declined anew in the first quarter of 2021 as quarantine restrictions and the lingering COVID-19 pandemic continue to hamper business and consumer activity.

National Statistician Dennis Mapa reported Tuesday an economic contraction of 4.2% for the period, milder than the 8.3% plunge recorded in the last three months of 2020 and steeper than the 0.7% drop from January to March last year.

The countrys recent economic performance is worse than the average -2.82% growth forecast resulting from a CNN Philippines poll among analysts, in line with expectations the economy will remain in recession albeit with a softer drop.

The latest figure marks the fifth straight quarter of annual economic decline for the Philippines. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the longest period of negative gross domestic output for the country covered nine consecutive quarters: from the fourth quarter of 1983 to the last quarter of 1985 under the administration of former President Ferdinand Marcos.

Mapa said all three major industries logged slower economic output during the quarter. Industry declined by 4.7%, services by 4.4% and agriculture by 1.2%.

Meanwhile, other services which cover personal care, entertainment, arts and recreation were hardest hit with a 38% plunge during the quarter. This is followed by construction at 24.2%, accommodation and food service activities at 20.6%, and transportation and storage at 18.8%.

Human health and social work activities, on the flipside, grew highest from January to March by 11.7%. Public administration and defense recorded a 7.5% growth rate during the period, while information and communication expanded by 6.3%. Financial and insurance activities also grew by 5.2%.

All major expenditure items performed worse in the first quarter of 2021, except for government spending which surged by 16.1%. Gross capital formation fell by 18.3% during the period, followed by exports at 9% and imports at 8.3%.

Household spending, a major driver of the economy, also decreased by 4.8%. This is a reversal of the 0.2% growth recorded in the same quarter in 2020.

Economy improving, but quarantine restrictions in the way

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua noted during the briefing that the economy is showing signs of improvement. However, he said this suggests "the limit of growth unless we see a major relaxation of quarantine level."

"Recent lockdowns are expected to shave off momentum from the economic recovery and weigh on the services sector the most, with personal services not allowed to operate due to social distancing regulations," said Moody's Analytics associate economist Eric Chiang in a market analysis.

After months of more relaxed quarantine rules, main economic hub Metro Manila and key neighbor provinces Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal were placed under a strict general community quarantine bubble from March 22 to April 4 in a bid to curb the surge in daily infections.

The areas, collectively known as National Capital Region Plus, eventually shifted to a two-week enhanced community quarantine beginning March 29. The region then eased to modified ECQ effective until May 14.

Given the economy's recent quarterly performance, Chua emphasized the importance of taking a more calibrated approach to imposing quarantine restrictions amid the health crisis.

"Instead of having more blanket restrictions, we have more risk-managed ones wherein we open as many sectors as we can and address the highest sources of risk," said Chua, noting this is how this year's ECQ and MECQ were implemented.

Economic team "hopeful" 2021 growth target range can still be met

Despite economic activity slowing down anew in the first quarter of 2021, Chua is not writing off the possibility of achieving the 6.5% to 7.5% range the Development and Budget Coordination Committee has set for a full-year economic growth.

"We remain hopeful that as we manage the risks, we open the economy safely, implement the recovery program and accelerate the vaccine (drive), we are still able to achieve the targeted growth rate only if we work together, said Chua.

While the economic team has yet to compute how much the economy needs to grow for the rest of 2021 to meet their economic growth target band, he said he understands it would take more than 7.5% to offset the negative growth in the first quarter.

Chua added the DBCC will review first quarter data to see how this will affect the trajectory of the national economy for the rest of 2021, and how a more "risk-managed" approach to quarantine rules will help offset initial losses from tighter lockdowns.

"Our actions in the next eight months can reverse initial losses from the imposition of the ECQ and MECQ in the NCR Plus area," said the NEDA chief.

The official likewise assured another contraction for April to June is "not plausible" and can only happen if quarantine restrictions and economic activity are worse than the same period last year, which was during the height of initial lockdowns.

Multilateral institutions such as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank scaled down their growth forecasts for the Philippines this year. They predict it to dwell below the DBCC's expected range, citing factors such as delays in vaccine rollout and alarming rise in COVID-19 infections.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 10) -- Almost a week after President Rodrigo Duterte made the order, the police have so far recorded 18,862 face mask protocol violations.

During Duterte's televised address on Monday, Interior Secretary Eduardo Ano said 904 persons have been arrested from May 6 to 10 for not wearing face masks in public. He added that 9,379 were let off with a warning, 8,027 were fined, and 61 were subjected to inquest proceedings.

Duterte on May 5 ordered the police to arrest and question people not wearing face masks or not wearing them properly.

Both Ano and Philippine National Police chief PGen. Guillermo Eleazar assured that there will be no abuses in enforcing the Presidents order.

Ano added that 5,473 individuals were also caught in the same period for violating physical distancing protocols, while some 280 offenders were apprehended for conducting mass gatherings amid the pandemic.

Duterte also warned earlier that local chief executives will be held liable if violations of COVID-19 health protocols occur in their respective jurisdictions.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 10)  The country received 193,050 doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine on Monday.

DHL flight LD457 landed at 8:51 p.m. at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2.

The vaccines are from COVAX, a global initiative led by the World Health Organization, Gavi, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, which seeks member countries' equitable access to vaccines.

In a joint statement released by the Department of Health, WHO and UNICEF on Monday, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the Pfizer vaccines will be used on priority groups A1 to A3, adding that the vaccines would continue to boost confidence in the government's national vaccination program.

"Today's arrival of vaccines is one more step in the fight against COVID-19," UNICEF Philippines Representative Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov said in the same statement.

WHO Representative to the Philippines Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe said many of the vaccines that arrived on Monday would be administered to healthcare workers.

In an interview, Abeyasinghe said he hopes the arrival of the vaccine would encourage more people to be inoculated.

"We believe that with the introduction of the Pfizer vaccine, people who had some degree of hesitancy would have confidence because the Pfizer vaccines have a good track record," he said.

He added that achieving herd immunity may be difficult this year, due to challenges in the suppply chain.

"Whether we can achieve that within this year, may be a challenge. So we are looking at probably next year when can we achieve full herd immunity, because although we have planned for large quantities of vaccines to come, we have seen challenges on the global supply chain," he said.

Cabinet secretary Karlo Nograles said President Rodrigo Duterte was aware of the arrival of the vaccines and was "very happy" about it.

He added that the President was not able to attend the event as he had an important function to attend the next day.

In a separate statement, the US Embassy said it "welcomes the successful arrival" of vaccines to the country.

"As we fight the pandemic together, the United States will continue to support the Philippines' vaccination and COVID-19 mitigation efforts," said US Embassy Charge d'Affaires John Law.

Earlier, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the vaccines would be distributed in Metro Manila and other major cities which can handle the product's storage requirements of -70 to -80C.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez, Jr. said a total of 1.3 million doses of the vaccines developed by the American firm may arrive in the country this month.

The Philippines was supposed to receive 117,000 doses of the vaccines in February but it failed to push through due to the lack of an indemnification deal.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The Anti-Red Tape Authority issued on Tuesday a show-cause order against a Food and Drug Administration official for 600 drug applications pending in her office.

ARTA ordered FDA Center for Drug Regulation and Research (FDA-CDRR) Director Jesusa Cirunay to explain why the drug applications remain pending despite the complete submission of requirements by involved pharmaceutical firms.

The complaint stemmed from the 23 affidavits of several pharmaceutical companies which detailed the alleged delays committed by FDA-CDRR on their applications filed since 2014.

"Pag titingnan po ito ang mga applications na 'to di ito kumplikado. Ito yung mga aplikasyong for automatic renewal. Ito ay mga produkto na dati ng ginagamit at ngayon ay gusto lang i-register o yung iba naman ay low to no risk sa taumbayan," ARTA Director General Jeremiah Belgica said.

[Translation: If you will look into these applications, these are not complicated. These applications are for automatic renewal. These products have been used before but will be registered now, or those have low to no risk to our citizens.]

Cirunay has been given seven working days from her receipt of the order to conduct an inventory of all pending permits, licenses, clearances or applications.

ARTA also asked Cirunay to immediately release all applications which have been pending beyond the prescribed processing time and submit to the agency a compliance report and list of all permits, licenses, clearances or applications issued pursuant to the order.

If Cirunay fails to comply with the order, ARTA said she may be charged under Republic Act 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act before the Office of the Ombudsman.

Belgica warned that according to the law, Cirunay can be suspended up to six months if she's found liable during her first offense. If she committed such mistake again, she can be jailed for her offense.

Belgica also urged Health Secretary Francisco Duque III and FDA Director General Eric Domingo to remove erring officials and personnel.

"We would really go all out sa inyo dahil sa dami ho ng tambak na applications (because of too many pending applications). We have spoken to you so many times and now there is really a time for everything and a time for reckoning," said Belgica.

CNN Philippines is requesting comment from FDA about the ARTA order.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  A barangay chairman in Caloocan City on Tuesday faced an administrative complaint for his supposed failure to enforce health protocols at a resort on Sunday, according to a complaint filed with the city council.

Barangay 171 Chairman Romeo Rivera faced gross neglect of duty or dereliction of duty and conduct for the presence of around 500 guests at Gubat sa Ciudad Resort in violation of minimum health standards, said city health officer Evelyn Cuevas and business permit office head Emmanuel Emilio Vergara who filed the complaint.

They said that on May 9, Vergara's office received reports that the resort was in full operation despite the modified enhanced community quarantine in place. The rule bans recreational establishments from accepting guests. Vergara's staff confirmed that Ciudad sa Gubat was at "full capacity" with 500 guests, including senior citizens and minors, who failed to observe distancing rules or did not wear face masks.

Dozens of people were also seen swimming in a giant pool despite the ban on mass gatherings.

"Due to abject failure of Barangay 171 to timely detect, monitor, control, prevent, and terminate the illegal operation of the resort and the resulting illegal mass gathering, there is now a real and renewed risk that COVID-19 transmissions in the barangay and city will be exacerbated," the complaint stated.

The city officials said Rivera failed to detect the entry and movement of 500 people in his barangay and therefore failed to prevent the mass gathering.

"As a direct result of the negligence, party-goes and groups seeking entertainment and recreation managed to freely move and travel in Barangay 171 and gather in mass in the resort," the document read.

Mayor Oscar Malapitan on Monday said the barangay chairman was aware that the resort accepted overnight guests, and the owner was warned against it on April 20.

He said the resort owner will face criminal complaints. He added the business permit of Gubat sa Ciudad will be permanently revoked.

Meanwhile, Caloocan police chief Col. Samuel Mina on Tuesday said guests who will work with authorities will only receive citation tickets, otherwise they will face consequences for violating minimum public health standards.

The local government said of the 500 names on the guest list, more than 270 are from Caloocan and the rest are from other areas.

Mina also said Caloocan police substation 9 chief Major Aaron Melgar, who has jurisdiction over the resort area, was relieved from his post.

CNN Philippines correspondent Gerg Cahiles contributed to this report.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  Despite being allowed for human consumption, the anti-parasitic drug ivermectin must not be treated as an over-the-counter drug, the Food and Drug Administration warned Tuesday.

"It is a prescription drug so a doctor has to prescribe it to you," FDA Director General Eric Domingo told CNN Philippines' The Source.

"Kailangan nireseta, kailangan i-explain sa iyo ng doctor kung ano yung gamot na nireseta sa yo, kung ano ang side effect nito, and why its being given to you. Its not an over-the-counter drug," he stressed.

[Translation: It must be prescribed and the doctor should explain to you the drug that he prescribed, what its side effects are, and why it is being given to you. It's not an over-the-counter drug.]

Domingo noted that there is still not enough proof that ivermectin can treat COVID-19, since protocols for the clinical trial are still being finalized.

He said researchers from the University of the Philippines  National Institutes of Health will start recruiting potential patients for the trial by June. Results of the study may be out in four to five months.

The World Health Organization said current evidence on the use of ivermectin to treat COVID-19 patients is inconclusive. Until more data is available, it ecommends that the drug be used only within clinical trials.

The FDA granted last week the application of pharmaceutical firm Lloyd Laboratories to register ivermectin as an anti-nematode drug, or a drug used against roundworms.

Only six hospitals were granted compassionate special permits to administer the anti-parasitic drug to coronavirus patients.

READ: FDA approves registration of ivermectin as anti-nematode drug
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  Peasant leader Joseph Canlas died on Tuesday morning due to COVID-19 complications, his colleagues reported.

Canlas was among activist leaders arrested in March for supposed links to communist groups. Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas and Anakpawis Party-list blamed the administration for his "untimely death" brought by his "unjust and prolonged detention" based on what they call fabricated charges.

READ: Groups decry illegal' arrests of activist leaders in Central Luzon

"We point our fingers to the [National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict] that subjected Canlas to constant red-tagging, Angeles City RTC Executive Judge Ma. Angelica T. Paras-Quiambao who issued the search warrant against Canlas; the [Philippine National Police] that executed the defective warrant and carried out the illegal arrest last March 30; and the [Bureau of Jail Management and Penology] for consciously neglecting Canlas' health condition," KMP said in a statement condemning the death of its vice chair.

CNN Philippines is striving to get comments from these government agencies and officials.

The group said Canlas was rushed to Jose B. Lingad Memorial Hospital in San Fernando, Pampanga on Saturday evening due to a possible stroke and low oxygen level. He was then transferred to an intensive care unit on the same day due to acute respiratory failure and COVID-19 symptoms. On Monday, he was already in coma.

Kapatid, the support group of families and friends of political prisoners, in a statement said it was only after Canlas was rushed to the hospital that he was tested for COVID-19, and the result came out positive.

Anakpawis Party-list noted that "being imprisoned with trumped up charges is akin to death sentence," especially for the 59-year-old peasant leader with comorbidity.

"Had Canlas not been arrested and charged with fabricated cases, he would have been alive and well by now, continuing his noble deeds for the emancipation of the peasantry and other marginalized sectors in Central Luzon," the group added.

Canlas' lawyer, Atty. Luchi Perez of the National Union of People's Lawyers, said they will take legal action to hold the Angeles City Jail and the CIDG accountable. She said up to 100 inmates who have been sharing the same quarantine facility have not been tested for COVID-19.

Peasant women group Amihan said Canlas was already not feeling well as early as last week, but BJMP Angeles District Warden Jsupt. Rebecca Manalo-Tiguelo allegedly dismissed his ailment, saying he was "umaarte lang" (faking it).

Canlas previously led campaigns against land grabbing and the displacement of farmers in Central Luzon. He also led campaigns for the repeal of RA 11203 Rice Liberalization Law and opposed the importation and the increase in palay farm gate prices, Amihan said.

Kapatid also reported that political prisoner Maximo Redota had died of stroke last Sunday after being held at the Gumaca jail in Quezon.

Kapatid spokesperson Fides Lim said the deaths of Canlas and Redota now bring to four, the number of political prisoners who died "without even a fighting chance to live because of government inaction on abysmal jail conditions."
(CNN)  Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is under increasing pressure to impose a nationwide lockdown as the country grapples with the world's worst Covid-19 outbreak.

On Monday, India reported 366,161 new cases, its health ministry said -- the first time daily infections have dipped below 400,000 since May 6. Its total caseload is now more than 22 million since the pandemic began.

The health ministry also reported an additional 3,754 virus-related deaths on Monday, after two consecutive days of reporting more than 4,000 fatalities. The country has now recorded 246,116 total Covid-19 deaths -- among the highest in the world -- with the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington estimating that by August, India may have reached 1 million deaths.

The spiraling crisis is stretching India's health care system beyond breaking point. Beds, oxygen and medical workers are in short supply. Some Covid patients are dying in waiting rooms or outside overwhelmed clinics, before they have even been seen by a doctor.

While more than half of Indian states and union territories have implemented their own shutdowns to deal with the second wave, there are intensifying demands for India to impose a second national lockdown.

On Sunday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and top White House coronavirus adviser, said he believed India should lock down.

"You've got to shut down. I believe several of the Indian states have already done that, but you need to break the chain of transmission, and one of the ways to do that is to shut down," Fauci said on ABC's "This Week."

In a separate interview with CNN affiliate CNN News18 on Friday, Fauci added such a lockdown was needed to "get ahead of the trajectory of the outbreak."

"I don't mean shutting down for six months," he said. "You just need to break the chain of transmission. And one can do that by shutting down to the extent possible for two, three weeks, four weeks. And then, as soon as the cases start coming down and you vaccinate more people, then you can get ahead of the trajectory of the outbreak."

On Saturday, The Indian Medical Association (IMA) said it had been calling for a "complete, well-planned, pre-announced national lockdown" for the past 20 days. The lockdown, it said, needed to last about 10 to 15 days in order to give the country's overstretched health system time to "recoup and replenish both the material and manpower."

The IMA said "sporadic night curfews" and other restrictions imposed by several states "have not done any good."

India imposed one of the world's largest and harshest lockdowns in March last year, when the country of 1.36 billion people had reported little more than 500 coronavirus cases and 10 related deaths.

The nationwide measure was announced with less than four hours' notice and little planning, triggering a migrant crisis. It also brought the country's economic activity to a virtual standstill, with businesses, factories and construction sites ground to a halt.

Modi previously warned lockdowns should only be considered as a last resort. "In today's situation, we have to save the country from lockdown. I would request states to use a lockdown as their last option. We have to try hard to avoid lockdowns and focus only on micro containment zones," he said in late April.

It has been left up to the states to decide when and how to implement these zones.

Indian variant contributing to crisis

In an interview with Agence France-Presse (AFP) Saturday, the World Health Organization's chief scientist said the Covid-19 variant spreading in India, known as B 1.617, is more contagious and is contributing to the crisis there.

Soumya Swaminathan warned "the epidemiological features that we see in India today do indicate that it's an extremely rapidly spreading variant." She also said large gatherings, social mixing, the relaxation of mask-wearing and other protection measures were also to blame.

The variant, first identified in India in October, is listed by WHO as a "variant of interest" -- but Swaminathan said it could soon be labeled a "variant of concern," which indicates it is more dangerous than the original strain.

"B 1.617 is likely to be a variant of concern because it has some mutations which increase transmission, and which also potentially could make (it) resistant to antibodies that are generated by vaccination or by natural infection," she said.

The Indian government has been blasted for ignoring warnings of a second wave, encouraging complacency, and failing to be transparent on Covid-19 data, in a scathing editorial in the medical journal The Lancet.

The publication branded the response by Modi's government "inexcusable" and said India "squandered its early successes" in controlling Covid-19. Despite warning about "the risks of superspreader events," religious festivals and political rallies were allowed to go ahead.

Local lockdowns

As infections increase, at least 24 of India's 36 states and union territories are under full Covid-19 lockdowns, according to CNN data compiled from state governments.

And several regional authorities have announced in the past week fresh restrictions with some extending or tightening previously set guidelines.

Last weekend, the western state of Gujarat and the northern states of Uttar Pradesh -- India's most populous -- and Uttarakhand imposed or extended lockdowns.

In a statement, the Uttar Pradesh government announced an extension for another seven days until May 17, with only essential services allowed to function. "Only medical related work, vaccinations, commercial activities which are providing essential services will be allowed," the statement read.

A total of 36 cities in Gujarat will see their lockdowns extended until May 12, according to the state government.

In Uttarakhand, which begins a week-long lockdown on May 11, infections have been rising since April when the Kumbh Mela -- a Hindu festival where millions of pilgrims from across the country traditionally gather along the banks of sacred rivers to offer their prayers -- took place.

On Sunday, the union territory of Delhi, which encompasses the capital New Delhi, announced it was extending its lockdown for the third time until May 17.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the latest lockdown will be "stricter," with non-essential shops and services mandated to remain closed, and local metro train services suspended.

Meanwhile, India's northernmost union territory of Jammu and Kashmir imposed a "corona curfew" until May 17 across all of its districts, the Department of Information and Public Relations said Saturday.

India's neighbors on the verge of a Covid catastrophe

As India's coronavirus crisis worsens, new waves of infections are fast engulfing a growing number of nations across South and Southeast Asia.

In Nepal, hospitals are closing their doors to new patients as they struggle through a dire oxygen shortage.

The Om Hospital and Research Center in Kathmandu said Sunday it was unable to admit new patients amid a "crisis of oxygen." It is one of six private hospitals in Nepal's capital Kathmandu to stop admitting Covid patients due to lack of oxygen supplies.

Nepal recorded 8,850 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday, bringing the country's recorded total to 394,667, according to the latest figures from the Ministry of Health. The Kathmandu Valley alone recorded 4,198 new cases in the past 24 hours.

International rights group Human Rights Watch called on Nepal's government Sunday to "urgently act" to manage the rapidly escalating Covid-19 emergency there.

"Nepal's under-resourced public health system is strained beyond capacity," said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "Large volumes of oxygen equipment and other medical supplies are urgently needed to avert a Covid-19 catastrophe in the country."

In Pakistan, the country's top Covid official warned the danger of the virus spreading in the country was "higher than ever."

In a tweet Saturday, Asad Umar, the chief of Pakistan's National Command and Control Center (NCOC), said there was a "need for caution" and the country must "unite" against the danger of another wave.

Pakistan has imposed a lockdown in the lead up to the public holiday of Eid-al-Fitr marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. According to the country's health ministry, there are 82,731 active cases of the virus in the country with 120 deaths recorded in the past 24 hours.

This story was first published on CNN.com "Fauci joins calls for nationwide lockdown to contain India's Covid crisis".
(CNN) -- Tensions between Israelis and Palestinians escalated further on Tuesday as Palestinian militants in Gaza fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, which in turn ramped up airstrikes on the coastal enclave, as unrest spread to cities and towns beyond Jerusalem.

As both sides traded airstrikes on Tuesday evening, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the nation from Tel Aviv, saying, "We are in the midst of a significant operation."

Israeli bombing raids across Gaza have killed at least 32 people, including 10 children, according to Palestinian health officials, who also said 203 people have been injured. The Israeli military said it had killed more than 15 militants.

Meanwhile in Israel, sirens wailed non-stop on Tuesday in the town of Ashkelon, where two people were killed by rocket fire, according to an Israeli military spokesman. A third person died in the town of Rishon Lezion, south of Tel Aviv on Tuesday evening after a rocket attack, Israeli media reported citing the ZAKA emergency service.

A CNN team heard at least 50 explosions in the coastal town near Gaza, and rocket fire was also reported in the city of Ashdod. At least 17 Israeli civilians have been treated for injuries from rocket attacks, the military said.

A 13-story building collapse

A 13-story tower block in Gaza city collapsed on Tuesday night after it was hit by an Israeli airstrike, drawing vows of retaliation from militants.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that the building contained offices used by Hamas across several floors, including intelligence offices of its military wing, and a research and development unit working on rockets.

The IDF also said it provided "advance warning to civilians in the building and provided sufficient time for them to evacuate the site."

There are reports that one person on a nearby street was injured in the building's collapse.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad promised to retaliate by firing rockets at Tel Aviv, and shortly before 9 p.m. (2 p.m. ET) sirens went off across the city and surrounding towns.

The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, later said the militant group had targeted Tel Aviv with 130 rockets on Tuesday night, a statement shared on Whatsapp read.

Seven people, including a 5-year-old child, were injured when a rocket struck a bus in Holon, south of Tel Aviv, according to Israeli media.

No signs of de-escalation

In the past two days, Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza have fired at least 500 rockets into Israel, forcing the closure of Israel's main international airport, Ben Gurion, about fifteen kilometers east of Tel Aviv.

The militants say it is a response to the actions of Israeli police who fired stun grenades inside the Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem -- one of the city's holiest sites -- on Monday morning.

Hundreds of Palestinians went to hospitals for treatment after ensuing clashes with Israeli police, in the most serious violence seen in the city in weeks.

"We have the right to respond to the Israeli offensive and protect the interests of our people as long as the Israeli occupation continues the escalation," Hamas said in a statement.

The Israeli military has conducted more than 150 strikes in Gaza as of Tuesday afternoon, according to a military spokesman, who said Israel had also called up 5,000 reserve troops to active duty to "enhance" its operation in Gaza.

A number of deaths were reported in strikes in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza. Among them were Amira Abdel-Fattah, 57, who was killed in her apartment along with her son who has special needs, Ibrahim al-Masri, 11, and his brother Marwan, 7, the Palestinian health ministry said. The Israeli army says it is investigating.

A Palestinian man in Gaza told CNN over the phone that the sounds of Israeli strikes throughout Monday night, as well as the sound of outgoing rocket fire, had been "horrifying."

The man, who declined to be named, described a mood of anger in Gaza over recent events in Jerusalem. "It's the fact the Israelis targeted Al Aqsa, during Ramadan, while people were praying" that has so riled people, he said.

The man added that Israel's actions would only embolden support for Hamas, and that he believed militants should continue firing rockets.

Meanwhile, Arab citizens of Israel demonstrated Monday evening and Tuesday in the streets of several Israeli cities and villages, including Haifa and Lod, in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and Jerusalem.

In Lod, a 25-year-old Arab-Israeli man was shot dead by a 34-year-old Jewish resident who said he was responding to stones being thrown at him. Two people were arrested in connection with that incident, police said.

Israeli police said around 150 violent protesters had been arrested in multiple locations. Rioters attacked drivers, threw stones at passing cars, blocked roads and ignited trees tires and a car, according to police.

International community calls for calm

The United States and European Union called for a de-escalation of violence while several countries in the Middle East, including Turkey, condemned the Israeli police response to tensions in Jerusalem.

One of the main sources of growing unrest in recent days has been the possible eviction of several Palestinian families from their homes in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

Israeli police have clashed with Palestinians in the neighborhood, as well as other locations, for several weeks now, with Palestinians accusing Jewish nationalists of provocation and police of heavy-handed tactics. Nearly a thousand Palestinians were injured in East Jerusalem, and over 200 in the West Bank, between May 7 and May 10, according to the United Nations and the Palestinian Red Crescent.

On Tuesday, UN human rights experts expressed "grave concerns about Israel's aggressive response to protests in East Jerusalem, and called on Israel, as an occupying power, to immediately lift its threat to evict hundreds of Palestinian households from their legally protected homes."

"Re-establishing calm in Jerusalem is important, but creating the conditions for justice and equality in the City are even more important," the experts said in the statement.

The UN also denounced Israeli airstrikes in Gaza as well as Palestinian rocket shelling.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki expressed "serious concerns" about the violence in Israel and said President Joe Biden was continuing to monitor the situation.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Israel ramps up airstrikes as barrage of rockets from Gaza continues"
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 10) -- At least three mayors in Metro Manila are in favor of shifting to a more relaxed general community quarantine starting May 15.

Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte said extended lockdowns could lead to rising cases of hunger and mental health problems. But she stressed the need for strict enforcement of minimum health protocols in workplaces.

If lockdowns continue as is or are further restricted there may be other effects that are also very serious like rising evidence of mental health problems, social unrest, hunger and poverty, said Belmonte.

Marikina City Mayor Marcy Teodoro said a longer implementation of strict quarantine would mean a bigger problem for the economy. Navotas City Mayor Toby Tiangco echoed the same sentiments, saying people are now suffering.

For his part, MMDA chairperson Benhur Abalos said restrictions should be gradually eased.

I think, personally, Metro Manila is really ready...We could be ready with GCQ, but probably with restrictions [] Parang inunti-unti mo (Its a gradual opening), he told CNN Philippines News Night.

The OCTA Research earlier said the average daily COVID-19 cases in Metro Manila are expected to decline between 1,700 to 1,800 by May 14, when the modified ECQ in NCR Plus is scheduled to end.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health said the healthcare utilization rate should be below 50% and the average daily attack rate and two-week growth rate should be steadily decreasing to be able to shift to GCQ.

Abalos added that Metro Manila mayors are expected to come up with a consensus on whether or not to shift to GCQ within the week.

The country recorded 6,846 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, pushing the nationwide tally to 1,108,826, where 59,897 are active cases.

CNN Philippines correspondent AC Nicholls contributed to this report
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 10)  The chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines claimed that the clash with over 20 Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) over the weekend could be a diversionary tactic from the military's focus on other areas in Maguindanao.

Speaking to CNN Philippines' The Source , AFP chief Gen. Cirilito Sobejana on Monday said the BIFF group which occupied the Datu Paglas town market on Saturday is a splinter group that is among those who are looking at vacuum areas in the province with no military presence.

"Ang intention nila, as we assess, is to divert our attention," Sobejana said. "Itong 20 is just a splinter group of Bangsamoro (Islamic) Freedom Fighters."

[Translation: Their intention, as we assess, is to divert our attention. The 20 is just part of a splinter group of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters.]

"Gusto nilang ma-divert ang ating attention by doing perceived attacks para ma-sway yung ating direction," he also said. "Nakikita namin isa ito sa ginagawang tactics, techniques and procedures."

[Translation: They wanted to divert our attention by doing perceived attacks to sway our direction. We see this as part of their usual tactics, techniques and procedures.]

Four BIFF members presumed injured

No deaths and property damage were reported. But Sobejana said at least four BIFF members were believed to be injured after an exchange of fire between them and the rebel group, based on reports of civilians who witnessed the encounter.

"Based on observations of some of the civilians, merong apat na binubuhat na (there were four of the rebels who were being carried and) we presumed were wounded," he said.

READ: Maguindanao town 'under control' after BIFF gunmen cause stir, fight with troops

At least four improvised explosive devices were also retrieved in the area.

Meanwhile, residents who evacuated are now returning to their homes after government troops declared that the situation is "under control."

Sobejana clarified that a hot pursuit operation is ongoing to locate the 20 who headed toward Liguasan Marsh. He said they are improving marshland operations capability. The military is also adjusting its operations to monitor the main group while other contingency forces can monitor the vacuum areas within the province, he added.

He added that simultaneous security operations are also ongoing to track the activities of other terrorist groups in Bangsamoro, in the island provinces of Sulu, Basilan, and other areas of Mindanao.

Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Juvymax Uy, 6th Infantry Division commander, said in a public briefing that operations also ongoing against Dawlah Islamiya. Stakeholders and local government units are coordinating to help secure the province and prevent terrorist recruitment.
A scholarship has been created in honor of Laura Madara, the Selbyville Volunteer Fire Company member who died while responding to an accident on April 9. The Carl M. Freeman Foundation and SVFC have established the annual scholarship for Delaware Technical Community College female students from Sussex County who are pursuing a career or volunteer as a first-responder. Pictured, from left, are: Michelle Freeman, chairwoman and president of the Carl M. Freeman Foundation; Travis Timmons, fire chief of the Selbyville Volunteer Fire Company; Matt Sliwa, president of the Selbyville Volunteer Fire Company; Diane and Kenneth Madara, parents of Laura Madara; and Patti Grimes, executive director of the Carl M. Freeman Foundation.
The State College Borough Council passed an amendment to the municipality's coronavirus ordinance  allowing for larger gatherings  during Monday night's meeting.

The amendment increases the limit on indoor gatherings from 10 to 25 people and outdoor gatherings from 25 to 50 people.

With this amendment, Centre County aligned with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's latest coronavirus regulations, which allows fully vaccinated individuals to gather outdoors without a mask except in crowded areas.

The council members also extended the duration of the 2152 ordinance in its amendment until July 31 from the ordinance's original May 31 endpoint.

This regulation will remain in effect until either the CDC or the Pennsylvania Department of Health and Centre Region Council of Governments redact their coronavirus emergency declarations.

MORE BOROUGH COVERAGE

Discovery Space to open new marine life exhibit Discovery Space is bringing marine life to State College this summer. The science center's e
With the House and Senate both back in session this week, two Republican members of Colorado's congressional delegation found themselves near the center of a power shuffle atop the House GOP caucus, while the third landed in the national spotlight when an ex-staffer sued over his office's alleged negligent approach to COVID-19. Meanwhile, the entire delegation produced bills and called for action on a number of items.
Liz Cheney was cancelled today for speaking her mind and disagreeing with the narrative that President Trump was putting forward, said U.S. Rep. Ken Buck. Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert tweeted, "Liz Cheney is the GOP of the past. We are not going back."
This year our dine and drink business locations throughout the Gorge have suffered with closures. You can help support your favorites by purchasing take out and gift cards. Many of these business will offer curb-side delivery and some will deliver to your home. Lets keep the Gorge going strong!
China fills vaccine gap left by US, India with expanded production to reach 5b doses annually

(Global Times) 09:38, May 11, 2021

A nurse shows a vial of the Sinopharm vaccine at the Panadura Health Office in Kalutara District, in the outskirts of capital Colombo, Sri Lanka, on May 8, 2021. Sri Lanka's Health Ministry on Saturday began administering the Sinopharm vaccine to local nationals, soon after the World Health Organization (WHO) approved it for emergency use worldwide.(Photo: Xinhua)

The grave epidemic situation in India, the world's largest vaccine producer, the WHO's approval of Chinese vaccines for emergency use, lingering questions on whether the US can really deliver its promise to provide vaccines to the world, all these have led to a widely acknowledged situation that China could be a much more reliable global vaccine supplier, especially as domestic vaccine producers vowed to ramp up production to meet domestic immunity targets and overseas demand.

After the WHO approved the Sinopharm vaccine for emergency use, Yang Xiaoming, chairman of Sinopharm China National Biotec Group (CNBG), said in a recent interview with Chinese media outlets that the Chinese vaccine manufacturer has been ramping up efforts to expand production capacity in the third-phase of production to 3 billion doses per year.

With accelerating inoculation pace in China, which has reached 10 million doses per day, the country has administered over 300 million doses domestically, and Yang believes the immune barrier of 1 billion people can be achieved by around the end of 2021 or the start of next year.

Another major vaccine producer in China, Sinovac, is aiming to reach an annual capacity of 2 billion, according to media reports.

Vaccines are believed to be the best way to overcome COVID-19, with which cross-border travel is expected to resume gradually and normal life restored. Some media outlets called it "the biggest vaccination campaign in history is underway," and according to Bloomberg's vaccine tracker, China has surpassed the US in the daily rate of doses administered and topped the list by about 6.7 million doses administered every day, though the average inoculation rate remained lower at 11.3 percent.

Chinese-made vaccines are expected to play a bigger role in supplying other countries, especially as the world's largest vaccine producer India faces a shortfall. After the Biden administration announced its support to waiving intellectual property rules on vaccines, t conflicting views emerged among industry representatives who said such a move may damage US competitive advantage. Questions are thus raised as to whether the US could really play a more active rolein global vaccine supply, according to media reports.

'America First' or vaccine nationalism? COVID-19 vaccine production and exports. Graphic: GT

China has exported half of its produced vaccines, while the US and the UK have exported very few doses, roughly 1 to 3 percent of the total doses, respectively, according to a graphic of the Global Times. The EU and India have exported less than half of the overall vaccines made locally, the graphic showed.

Role of Chinese vaccines

Earlier media reports said China had exported 240 million doses of vaccines, making it the world's top exporter, and the number is expected to grow as Chinese manufacturers transferred their production lines and technologies to more developing countries, actively working with the UN-backed COVAX initiative in making the vaccines "global public goods" with the aim of ensuring vaccine distribution equity.

China will continue working with the international community in pushing forward fair access to vaccines in developing countries, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a press conference on Monday, in response to the WHO approval of the Sinopharm vaccine for emergency use.

China has already announced to provide 10 million doses of vaccines for COVAX for emergency use in developing countries, and China puts its words into action, Hua said, adding that the country is currently keeping close communication with the WHO on the matter.

China has provided the largest amount of vaccines to developing countries, Hua said, noting that the country has provided vaccine aid to more than 80 countries, exported vaccines to over 50 countries in order to eliminate the immunity gap.

Rather than only exporting vaccines, Chinese producers like Sinovac have been working with other countries to localize vaccine production - an effective way to ensure local supply.

Egyptian Health Minister Hala Zayed said on Sunday that Egypt will start producing China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine in June, according to the Xinhua News Agency. The first 2 million doses will be produced in June, Zayed was quoted as saying in the report, noting that the first shipment of the raw materials needed to manufacture the vaccine will be received on May 18. Forty million will be produced in the first year, he said. It also made Egypt the first African country to produce vaccines locally, according to media reports.

India, the world's largest vaccine producer, has been severely affected by the pandemic, which also heavily weighed on its vaccine production and exports, Zhuang Shilihe, a Guangzhou-based vaccine expert, told the Global Times on Monday, when he explained how China has been taking a much more important role in global vaccine supplies.

As the outbreak reached new heights, India's vaccination campaign has slowed down, marred by supply shortages and competition among states, according to the New York Times. And even though the Indian government has promised to fast-track approvals of foreign-made vaccines, the waiver of patent protections backed by the Biden administration still needs the WTO's approval, the report said.

Vaccine producers in India have been previously struggling with a shortage of critical raw materials for COVID-19 vaccines, and the method to solve this dilemma was lifting the export ban imposed by the US, according to some Indian media reports in April.

"The core issue with vaccine supply is about the supply chain, or whether raw materials could be sufficiently provided, and a major advantage with China's inactivated vaccine production is the model of production could be copied in many other developing countries, like Egypt and Brazil," Zhuang said, noting that on the contrary, the US' mRNA vaccine production relies on a more complex supply chain.

Pfizer, for instance, needs over 200 types of raw materials from various countries, Zhuang said, noting that even in the US, the process needs to be completed in three different factories.

Chinese vaccine manufacturers have been localizing production lines in other countries and regions. For example, Sinopharm reached an agreement with Argentina to jointly produce vaccines, according to media reports in May, after Serbia planned to start manufacturing Sinopharm.

Sinovac chairman Yin Weidong also told the Boao forum in April that Sinovac would continue working with other countries, soon choosing 10 countries for tech transfer and vaccine research and development, according to media reports.

Meeting the goals

While China is filling the supply gaps left by countries like the US and India in global vaccine distribution, industry representatives vowed to expand the capacity to meet the growing domestic and overseas demand of inoculation.

"The current vaccine production capacities could meet the domestic inoculation targets previously set by the National Health Commission, but we need to cover 1 billion people by the end of the year, and Chinese manufacturers have to further expand their production," Feng Duojia, president of the China Vaccine Industry Association, told the Global Times on Monday.

For now, the overall vaccine production capacity is about 3 billion doses, half of which are exported, and in addition to the WHO putting more Chinese vaccines into emergency use, exports of Chinese vaccines will further grow, Feng said, noting that as a result, domestic producers have been adjusting production plans in expanding the production.

Given the accelerated inoculation campaign in the country, China is expected to achieve its previous target of vaccinating 560 million people, or 40 percent of China's population, by the end of June, and another 330 million people by the end of the year, covering 64 percent of the population, the Global Times previously learned.

China's annual vaccine supplies are dynamic as some other vaccine producers are ramping up their efforts to speed up their clinical trials and waiting to be approved, according to industry representatives. For instance, if CanSino Biologics' inhaled COVID-19 vaccine is approved this year, its annual production capacity is expected to increase fivefold, reaching about 1 billion doses, Feng said.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
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The XcodeGhost malware attack that allegedly affected 128 million iOS users is an excellent illustration of the kind of sophisticated attack all users should get ready to defend against as platforms become inherently more secure.

Designer label malware

XcodeGhost was an intelligent exploit that presented itself as a malware-infested copy of Xcode made available via websites targeting Chinese developers. Developers in the region downloaded it because it was easier to get than the real code because local networks wereunreliable.

Software built using these copies of Xcode was injected with malware, but at such a low level and so far behind Apples perimeter level of trust that many subverted apps made it past the App Store review process. And so the infection wormed its way into more than 4,000 apps, and onto the devices of millions of users.

Previously confidential internal Apple emails revealed in a recent court case suggested that roughly 128 million customers wound up being affected.

More recently, we saw a similar attempt to seed developers with subverted versions of Xcode called XcodeSpy. And last year, we saw an attempt to infect the Apple ecosystem using GitHub repositories as vessels for bandit code.

There have also been attempts to exploit iOS vulnerabilities to stage man-in-the-middle attacks in which hackers hijack communications between managed iOS devices and MDM solutions.

Cracking into capital

Why do hackers go to such trouble developing these complex attacks? For the money, they know that Apples devices are seeing growing use across the worlds most profitable enterprises.

Trend Micro warns: Attackers are starting to invest in long-term operations that target specific processes enterprises rely on. They scout for vulnerable practices, susceptible systems and operational loopholes that they can leverage or abuse.

When most of the Fortune 500 firms use Macs, iPads, and iPhones, its no surprise hackers are paying attention to the platforms. (They are just as likely to seek out vulnerabilities in IoT devices, Wi-Fi, and broadband provisions, and will always seek out those forgotten Windows servers in dusty backrooms.

During the pandemic, weve also seen increasing attempts to exploit vulnerabilities, with phishing and ransomware exploits on the increase. Developing hacks at this level of sophistication is expensive, which is why most successful attacks appear to emanate from nation states and highly organized gangs.

These groups are already using the same security tools your company is likely to use  if only to identify and exploit vulnerabilities within them, or (in the case of XcodeGhost and derivatives), build them in.

Safe as houses

The truism in security preparedness today is that you dont think about if your security will be subverted  you accept that it probably will be. Instead, you think about what to do when your security is undermined.

[Also read: 12 security tips for the work from home enterprise]

That means putting plans in place to protect systems during and after an attack, ensuring staff are security aware, and making certain you develop a workplace culture supportive enough that employees arent fearful of coming forward if an action they take puts the system at risk.

Does the sheer number of people affected by XcodeGhost reveal an Apple security problem? Not really, because its a given that attempts against its platforms will be constant  and within that context some will make it through. And, of course, Apple responded swiftly once the problem was identified.

Thats the right approach. We know attacks will happen and must have mitigation in place when they do. One of Apple's best ways to inhibit such attacks is to manage distribution via the App Store. It isn't perfect, but it works most of the time.

Preparation is better than cure

We know standard perimeter security models no longer work. We know security incidents will happen, meaning good practice is to make it hard for those events to take place and to act decisively when they do.

Perhaps Apple was irresponsible for not revealing the number of people affected by the attack? I dont think so because Apple cleared this mess up.

It is important to note that in this case the exploit wasnt really used for anything more malicious than device fingerprinting  though this could have chilling repercussions in China.

Up next?

So, whats the lesson here? Attacks are becoming more sophisticated, more targeted, and more dangerous as a result. They are also becoming more expensive, which means most people are unlikely to be attacked  but if you are an enterprise, an NGO, or a dissident voice, you should be concerned.

How to harden iOS device security

Here are a few steps you should always take to harden device security:

If you receive a new device, update your OS.

Always install security updates.

Never jailbreak your device.

Enable automatic app update downloads.

Enable remote wipe and encrypt device backups.

Set a complex passcode and ensure your device will erase data if too many passcode attempts are made.

Turn off Location Services and disable Lock Screen access to Control Center.

Dont download apps unless you really need them.

Regularly audit and delete unused apps.

Set your App permissions to the minimum.

If you use Safari or any browser, enable fraud warnings, disable form autofill, block third-party cookies, and turn on do not track.

To mitigate network security issues, turn off AirDrop, Bluetooth, and Personal Hotspots when not in use, and forget Wi-Fi networks unless you utterly trust them.

Stay up to date with the latest security news as it relates to your industry.

Read Apples Platform Security guide.

Please follow me on Twitter, or join me in the AppleHolics bar & grill and Apple Discussions groups on MeWe.
Earnest Washington, Jr., 74, of Dallas passed away on May 30, 2021. Funeral will be held on Saturday, June 5, 2021 at Saintville COGIC in Dallas at 10:30 a.m. Burial to follow in Little Bethel in Duncanville. Emanuel Funeral Home of Corsicana will handle funeral arrangements.
President Joe Biden's omission of the term "God" in his presidential declaration marking Thursday's National Day of Prayer was criticized by prominent evangelist Franklin Graham on Facebook on Thursday.

The 68-year-old son of iconic evangelist Billy Graham, who called on Congress and President Harry Truman to deliver the first National Day of Prayer declaration in 1952, said, "I was deeply saddened to read that President Biden is the first president to omit the word 'God' in his proclamation."

Graham, who leads the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, said it's hard to imagine America has come this far and cautioned that "omitting God is a dangerous thing."

"Omitting God is a dangerous thing...Prayers to anyone or anything else are to no avail, "he stressed, while again inviting everyone to join him in prayer to Almighty God on behalf of the nation.

According to the Christian Post, other prominent Christian conservatives were also disturbed by Biden's lack of any reference to God.

"[W]e need to call on God, not just some generic gods or some power in the air," Graham said on "Fox News Primetime" Thursday. He emphasized that prayer should be directed at "God, Himself, the Creator who made and created this earth and who sent his son Jesus Christ from heaven to this earth, to save mankind from sin by dying on a cross and God raised him to life."

"There's no one else to pray to except to God," said the Reverend.

Graham thinks that Biden did not write the proclamation, but that it was written by a White House employee who may not have "even ran it by him."

The televangelist granted the president the benefit of the doubt and said, "I don't think Joe Biden would have approved that one."

Host Pete Hegseth then questioned whether Graham had a message to "people who doubt the power of prayer."

Graham responded: "God answers prayer. He hears prayer. He listens to prayer. But we've got to approach God in the right way. We have to confess our sins and ask for His forgiveness and ... not go to Him with ... dirty hands, so to speak, but with a clean heart."

As the TV host mentioned, "the tradition of a National Day of Prayer dates to 1775, when the Second Continental Congress set aside a day for Americans to pray to be ever under the care and protection of a kind providence as they began the struggle for independence."

Since 1952, presidents have released proclamations commemorating the National Day of Prayer. Since 1988, the first Thursday in May has been designated as National Day of Prayer.

In comparison to Biden's proclamation, then-President Donald Trump's National Day of Prayer proclamation last year had 11 references to God. In 2016, former President Barack Obama's final proclamation of the National Day of Prayer contained two references to God.

What the Reverend Has Been Up To

Graham has spoken out about actions taken by the Biden administration or the Democratic-controlled 117th United States Congress before, including on Thursday.

Last month, he took to Facebook to condemn the Biden administration's State Department for allowing LGBT pride flags to fly alongside the American flag in U.S. embassies across the world.

Graham accused the Democratic majority of "shaking a fist in the face of the Creator" by introducing laws against the usage of "gendered" words such as "mother and father" as the 117th Congress started in January.

Graham is one of the conservative religious figures who have spoken with Trump informally during the last four years.

Following the protests in the US Capitol, he likened Republicans who voted to impeach the former president to Judas. Graham cautioned before the election that if Biden won, "attacks on Christian businesses" will increase.
"In addition, the Maharaja was granted administrative jurisdiction over Bhadaur, and the right of escheats and reversion to lapsed estates therein, receiving the annual sum of Rs. 5,265, previously paid into the Imperial treasury by the Bhadaur Sardars. Narendra Singh was made a K.C.S.I., in 1861

Likewise, Raja Randhir Singh of Kapurthala State who helped the British to crush rebellion in Delhi and Oudh was rewarded with a grant of the two confiscated estates of Bundi and Bithauli, in the Bharaich and Bara Banki districts in Oudh, yielding a rental of Rs. 4,35,000. His brother, Kunwar Bikrama Singh, who had accompanied the Raja to Oudh, was given a portion of the Akauna estate in Bharaich, yielding Rs. 45,000 a year. The Raja of Kapurthala stood fifth in order of precedence among the chiefs of the Punjab. He was entitled to a salute of eleven guns, and to receive a return visit from the Viceroy.



"He [nawab of Pataudi] also took an active part in the suppression of a rising in the Bahora pargana of Gurgaon, organized by one Tula Ram, grandson of Rao Tej Singh of Rewari; and his troops were present on the side of order at the action outside Jaurasi, which lasted for two days Pataudi ranks seventeenth in order of precedence amongst the Native States of the Punjab, and the chief is entitled to be received by the Viceroy."

Likewise, Raja Randhir Singh of Kapurthala State who helped the British to crush rebellion in Delhi and Oudh was rewarded with a grant of the two confiscated estates of Bundi and Bithauli, in the Bharaich and Bara Banki districts in Oudh, yielding a rental of Rs. 4,35,000. His brother, Kunwar Bikrama Singh, who had accompanied the Raja to Oudh, was given a portion of the Akauna estate in Bharaich, yielding Rs. 45,000 a year. The Raja of Kapurthala stood fifth in order of precedence among the chiefs of the Punjab. He was entitled to a salute of eleven guns, and to receive a return visit from the Viceroy.The Pataudi family too was rewarded for services rendered during the mutiny:

The sovereign Republic of India shamed itself on the eve of independence and continues to do so by not remembering the 13 women 'sheroes'



"The Maharaja [Takht Singh of Jodhpur] did good service during the Mutiny. He was entitled for a salute of 17 guns. Takht Singh died in 1873, when he was succeeded by eldest son, Jaswant SinghHe was created a GCSI in 1875 and subsequently his salute was raised first to 19, and next to 21 guns."

The Pawayan [in Shahjahanpur] was ruled by a notorious British stooge, Raja Jagannath Singh when 1857 happened. In a gut-wrenching treachery he invited the leading commander of the rebellion Maulvi Ahmedullah Shah posing as supporter of the War. However, when Maulvi reached his palace in the evening he was beheaded by Jagannaths brother Baldeo Singh. The British had announced a prize of 50 thousand pieces of silver for beheading the Maulvi. He presented Maulvis severed head same night to the British commander of the area and received cash inaam as reward.

In his absence the rebel forces including under the command of Nana and Hazrat Mahal lost important battle and revolutionary rule in Rohilkhand came to an end. The decadents of this criminal family became legislators, ministers both at the Stat and central levels. This is how we paid homage to 1857 martyrs!

Apart from these stooges, rulers of Dhar, Bhopal, Nizam, Ratlam, Alwar, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Jammu, Rewa, Ayodhya, Rampur and hundreds other were rewarded for suppressing the mutiny. It must be noted that in 20th century most of these pro-British native rulers became patrons and financiers of communal-fascist organizations like Hindu Mahasabha, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Muslim League. They provided sanctuaries to these anti-national organizations.

The sovereign Republic of India shamed itself on the eve of independence and continues to do so by not remembering the 13 women sheroes [I am using the term shero/sheroes for female martyrs of the liberation War as according to the dictionaries word hero means a man who exhibits great bravery which is not gender neutral and conveys the faulty wisdom that only man can be brave] from Thana Bhawan, situated in Muzaffarnagar district (now in western Uttar Pradesh about 130 kms from Delhi) belonging to different religions and castes who hanged together or burnt alive for taking up arms against the repressive British rule.

The rulers showed criminal indifference to the women martyrs, namely, Asghari Begum, Asha Devi, Bhagwati Devi, Habeeba, Mam Kaur, Umda, Raj Kaur, Inder Kaur, Bkhtawari, Jamila, Rahimi, Bhagwani and Beebee. All these names were available in the contemporary British gazetteers.

The Indian rulers did not bother to save as memorial the trees known as Kaka Amb [black mango], these trees spread in almost every part of India, specially, North India, had nothing to do with fruit mango but were the trees where the British rulers hanged thousands of revolutionaries for joining the liberation War during 1857-1859. Most of these have been removed or withered away. In fact, not only rulers but we all joined hands in obliterating these symbols of great resistance and sacrifices against the white rule.

By forgetting the heritage of the War of 1857, the heritage of religious unity and unity of all the struggling masses against loot and imperialism, the ruling classes, acting criminally, let the polity slip down to the present sorry state of affairs when India is devastated by the forces of religious bigotry, intolerance, casteism and ruthlessness.

How heartless was independent India that we even did not try to locate the final resting places of heroes and sheroes of the War of 1857 like, Rani of Tulsipur, Zeenat Mahal, Azeemullah Khan, Nana Saheb, General Bakht Khan and many of their comrades who died in Nepal.

---

*Formerly with Delhi University, click here for Prof Islams writings and video interviews/debates. Facebook: https://facebook.com/shamsul.islam.332. Twitter: @shamsforjustice. Blog: http://shamsforpeace.blogspot.com/ Many of these kept on ruling free India; we saw the spectacle of the family members of the stooges enjoying power as chief ministers, ministers, Governors in an independent India. They continued enjoying the benefits of estates which were confiscated from the rebels and awarded to their families by the British.The sovereign Republic of India shamed itself on the eve of independence and continues to do so by not remembering the 13 women sheroes [I am using the term shero/sheroes for female martyrs of the liberation War as according to the dictionaries word hero means a man who exhibits great bravery which is not gender neutral and conveys the faulty wisdom that only man can be brave] from Thana Bhawan, situated in Muzaffarnagar district (now in western Uttar Pradesh about 130 kms from Delhi) belonging to different religions and castes who hanged together or burnt alive for taking up arms against the repressive British rule.The rulers showed criminal indifference to the women martyrs, namely, Asghari Begum, Asha Devi, Bhagwati Devi, Habeeba, Mam Kaur, Umda, Raj Kaur, Inder Kaur, Bkhtawari, Jamila, Rahimi, Bhagwani and Beebee. All these names were available in the contemporary British gazetteers.The Indian rulers did not bother to save as memorial the trees known as Kaka Amb [black mango], these trees spread in almost every part of India, specially, North India, had nothing to do with fruit mango but were the trees where the British rulers hanged thousands of revolutionaries for joining the liberation War during 1857-1859. Most of these have been removed or withered away. In fact, not only rulers but we all joined hands in obliterating these symbols of great resistance and sacrifices against the white rule.By forgetting the heritage of the War of 1857, the heritage of religious unity and unity of all the struggling masses against loot and imperialism, the ruling classes, acting criminally, let the polity slip down to the present sorry state of affairs when India is devastated by the forces of religious bigotry, intolerance, casteism and ruthlessness.How heartless was independent India that we even did not try to locate the final resting places of heroes and sheroes of the War of 1857 like, Rani of Tulsipur, Zeenat Mahal, Azeemullah Khan, Nana Saheb, General Bakht Khan and many of their comrades who died in Nepal.--- The British rulers were grateful to Jodhpur Raja when stated:The Pawayan [in Shahjahanpur] was ruled by a notorious British stooge, Raja Jagannath Singh when 1857 happened. In a gut-wrenching treachery he invited the leading commander of the rebellion Maulvi Ahmedullah Shah posing as supporter of the War. However, when Maulvi reached his palace in the evening he was beheaded by Jagannaths brother Baldeo Singh. The British had announced a prize of 50 thousand pieces of silver for beheading the Maulvi. He presented Maulvis severed head same night to the British commander of the area and received cash inaam as reward.In his absence the rebel forces including under the command of Nana and Hazrat Mahal lost important battle and revolutionary rule in Rohilkhand came to an end. The decadents of this criminal family became legislators, ministers both at the Stat and central levels. This is how we paid homage to 1857 martyrs!Apart from these stooges, rulers of Dhar, Bhopal, Nizam, Ratlam, Alwar, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Jammu, Rewa, Ayodhya, Rampur and hundreds other were rewarded for suppressing the mutiny. It must be noted that in 20th century most of these pro-British native rulers became patrons and financiers of communal-fascist organizations like Hindu Mahasabha, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Muslim League. They provided sanctuaries to these anti-national organizations.

Now it is almost 170 years that people of this country, men, women, children belonging to all religions, regions and strata, rose in revolt, from Kashmir to Madras, and from Sylhet to the borders of Afghanistan. Today if Indians have forgotten about this glorious saga of commitment and sacrifices for the liberation of India can be forgiven in absence of the contemporary narratives.But what independent India did to obliterate the memories of this Great War immediately after independence on August 15, 1947, when only 90 years had elapsed to this Great War, could only be described as criminal.It is true that we spent crores of rupees in celebrating the 100th and the 150th anniversaries of the War, but did not bother to revive the common heritage of the joint martyrdoms of this glorious struggle. Earlier, the first education minister of the independent India, Abul Kalam Azad, organized a team of renowned historians to compile the list of pan-Indian martyrs of the War but it was abandoned. On the eve of 150th anniversary Indian Council of Historical produced volumes with details of martyrs which unfortunately not available now.True, these were worthy deeds but the issue was not only of chronicling the sacrifices, but how to undo the injustice done to the liberation warriors who not only lost their lives but all their properties were confiscated and given to Indian stooges who helped the foreign rulers with all kinds of human and non-human resources for suppressing the mutiny.We cannot overlook the fact that Indians lost this War despite mass upsurge and support. The perusal of the contemporary documents makes it clear that it was due to the Indian stooges that we lost this war. Reasons are not difficult to find out. Kaye was forthright in his conclusion that these were princes who helped the British in recapturing India after 1857 revolt. According to him:William Russell, war correspondent in one of the dispatches (May 9, 1858), wrote:It is to be noted here that when Russell referred to Sikhs, it did not mean common Sikhs but the Sikh rulers of Punjab. Moreover, these were not the only rulers who came to sub-serve the interest of the British masters when the latter were on the verge of losing India. The rulers of Kashmir, Hyderabad, Gwalior, Nabha, Kapurthala, Udaipur, Jaipur, Alwar, Kota, Bhopal, Pataudi and hundreds others joined the bandwagon of the British imperialism in the War.Sir Charles Aitchison, who played a leading role in suppressing the mutiny not only hailed the crucial contribution of such stooge princes in winning India in the following words:Nana Saheb, the great commander of the revolutionary army who continued fighting till 1858 in the Terai (foothill) region between India and Nepal and died there, in a letter [dated 7th Sudi of Kartik, Samvat 1915 (1858)] addressed to the Indians wrote:The post-1857 era witnessed an India in which only those princely states survived which either had worked as the stooges of the colonial masters in this War or were pardoned by the British. The entire lot of nationalists who challenged the foreign rule was ruthlessly suppressed. Most of them died fighting or were hanged; their families banished and their estates confiscated and handed over to the loyal princes.On the eve of independence the first decision which independent Indias sovereign government should have taken must have been to return the properties of the families of the martyrs which were confiscated and given as rewards to the Indian stooges. The whole nation knows how the descendants of these revolutionaries including those belonging to princely families lived life of penury, hunger and died miserable deaths, unknown. Out of thousands, here are few examples of gross and criminal injustice which needed immediate redressal but we kept mum as a State and nation.According to the contemporary British gazetteers the estates of Raja of Gonda and Rani of Tulsipur were confiscated and conferred as rewards upon Maharaja Drigbijai Singh of Balrampur and Sir Man Singh of Ajodhya.Scindhia of Gwalior helped the British greatly in defeating Rani Laxmi Bai and Nana and their killings, as per the contemporary British gazetteer:We come to know again through a contemporary British gazetteer that:Ruler of Patiala who as an ally of the British played a prominent role in crushing rebellion in Haryana, Delhi, Oudh received huge inaam:
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A growing number of Muslim-background believers (MBBs) are sharing their miraculous stories about how, after years of suffering and searching under Islam, they discovered real hope and redemption in Jesus Christ.

In a collection of testimonies called "Souls & Stories," these MBBs share with the world about Christ's diverse ways of revealing Himself to the Muslim world.

CBN News compiled and highlighted their remarkable stories, which will be accessible for viewing on the news outlet's YouTube channel from May 8-12 at 6 p.m.

A Muslim Woman's Journey

One of those amazing testimonies featured by Faithwire was Aisha's.

Aisha was born into a conservative Islamic family in Amman, Jordan. Her father was verbally abusive and told her things that were demeaning and hurting to a girl. She found little solace in her faith through those trying years. Instead, she said that she was constantly chastised by Islam.

Desperate for love, Aisha became pregnant at the age of 17 after she and her family traveled to the United States. She was well aware that her father was obliged by Islamic society to kill her because she had disgraced her heritage. Fearing for her survival, she chose to have an abortion, a decision she regretted for several years.

She had been taught that her crimes were unforgivable in Islam, and that she was "hated by Allah." She was depressed and suicidal, and she looked for grace and redemption all the time.

When she cried out to Allah for mercy one day, she heard an audible voice say one word: "Jesus."

Aisha switched her prayers to Jesus after hearing that voice from heaven, pleading for Him to show Himself to her.

"That was the first time I felt any sense of peace, was when I prayed to Jesus," she said.

That one divine encounter instilled in her an insatiable thirst for truth, and she found it in Romans 5:8.

After years of experiencing Allah's relentless judgment, Aisha found that Jesus was full of grace and love for women.

She claims that the stark difference between how the Islamic faith handles women and how Jesus viewed women influenced her choice to obey Christ.

She explained: "You saw Jesus walk up to women with an element of tenderness, and you know, the woman at the well, the woman who had a bleeding disorder, Jesus called her 'daughter,' and that was huge for me to read because in Islam women aren't regarded highly at all."

She added that in Islam, she had to petition Allah for forgiveness, not knowing whether she would ever get it. In contrast, she learned that Jesus is full of mercy.

"All throughout scripture you see Jesus gravitate towards sinners and the outcasts," she said. "It was really interesting to see the tenderness that Jesus had toward sinners and outcasts whereas in Islam there would be shame and condemnation and literal death in certain situations."

Years later, when her father was dying of alcoholism, the Holy Spirit compelled Aisha to call him.

"He had a rattle in his voice which meant like he was going to pass away soon, and he was very weak," Aisha told CBN hosts Emily Jones and John Doyle.

"Before I say anything I'm like, let me pray over the phone, you know, right now, you know for us."

Over the phone, Aisha prayed for them and the mending of their relationship.

"I said, 'Father, thank You for my earthly father that you've given me for everything he's provided for us and for the reconciliation of our relationship. And Lord, I ask that you put your Holy Spirit upon him right now.'"

Aisha then told her father about who Jesus is.

"Well, my Jesus loves you, He died on the cross for you, and you can spend eternity with Him. And so one day and I said do you see Christ into your life and he said, 'Yes, I do have faith,' and I was floored," she recounted.

Only Jesus Christ gives life

Host John Doyle asked Aisha what she would say to a Muslim that is doing all the right things like upholding the five pillars, praying, and fasting.

"You know, Islam fails to provide just sinners with rock solid hope for the future, and reading scripture, all throughout, you know, the Bible, God affirms us that through Jesus Christ, you will have life," she said.

"Like I did, just that simple prayer to Jesus, you know, and I've seen that with other former Muslims who came to know the Lord," she added.

"It's just that one simple prayer of 'Jesus, I don't know who you are. But if you are who you say you are you know reveal Yourself to me.' He shows up every single time," she confirmed.

At the conclusion of the interview, Aisha prayed for all Muslims who are praying and fasting throughout Ramadan, asking God to grant them dreams of Jesus and to open their hearts to welcome him.

Additionally, she prayed for all Christians to have the courage and conviction to continue reaching out to their Muslim neighbors.

"Father God, thank You that Muslims are just coming to know you," she ended her prayer.
In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has. Proverbs 21:20 NIV

In the field of personal financial planning, we apply this verse all the time when we tell clients to maintain a cash reserve of at least three to six months of living expenses. Having cash reserves in our time is equivalent to having food and oil in storehouses. In the wisdom literature of Proverbs, when it is wise to do one thing the implication is that it is unwise or foolish to do the opposite. Therefore, since it is wise to maintain healthy storehouses of supplies, it is foolish to have nothing in ones barn.

This principle  like just about every principle that applies to personal finances  applies equally to states and nations. Therefore, a wise nation maintains a storehouse or reserves. Likewise, a foolish nation spends or consumes all that they take in.

Here in North Carolina, the state is required to save 15% of each years tax revenue growth for it to be set aside in the states Rainy Day Fund. This our states storehouse. Leading up to the Covid Recession, multiple sources listed North Carolina as well-prepared for an economic emergency. One such source was Moodys Analytics. You can find their infographic here, which listed North Carolina as Highly Prepared for Moderate Recession, Mostly Prepared for Severe Recession. The infographic is from their 2018 Stress-Testing Study.

Source:The Christian Post
Members of Grace Cathedral in Ohio wept openly in the sanctuary as leaders announced the death of their controversial founding pastor, televangelist Ernest Angley Friday. He was 99.

First off, wed like to thank all of you for praying for Rev. Angley, and Rev. Angley made so many sacrifices for all of us, and he showed us so much love, began Grace Cathedrals Rev. Steve Millar in a Friday night service broadcast on Facebook.

But Rev. Angley, because of his decline this past week, around 4:30 today went to Heaven. Rev. Angley was our father, our pastor. He was an author, he announced through sniffling as audible weeping erupted from the congregation in the background.

Millar said that Angley, who never remarried after his wife, Esther Lee Angel Sikes, died in 1970, is reunited with her.

Source:The Christian Post
Amid an ongoing crackdown on Christians and their churches, communist authorities in China have arrested an elder of a house church in southwestern Guizhou province in a trumped-up fraud case, according to reports.

Zhang Chunlei, an elder of Love (Renai) Reformed Church in Guiyang, was arrested on suspicion of fraud on May 1, the day Chinas new administrative measures on religious clergy went into effect, the United Kingdom-based nonprofit Christian Solidarity Worldwide reported.

In its newsletter, the house church decried the arrest as a serious trampling on the Christian faith.

We know that he has been treated so unfairly because of his faith. The so-called charges against him for scamming brothers and sisters are simply unfounded; the suspected fraud is outright absurd! the church insisted.

Source:The Christian Post
Idaho has adopted a new law defunding abortion providers and banning them from receiving contracts to teach sex education in public schools, ensuring that no state and local dollars are allocated to promote or perform abortion.

House Bill 220, No Public Funds For Abortion Act, was signed into law Monday by Gov. Brad Little, a Republican. The measure defunds outfits such as Planned Parenthood but excepts publicly-funded hospitals and abortions funded with Medicaid.

The measure also bars school districts and public colleges from entering into contracts for abortion organizations to teach sex education and also stops public colleges and universities from providing abortifacient drugs to end a pregnancy after conception.

Such drugs and abortion counseling are presently offered at Boise State University, the University of Idaho and Idaho State University through their student health centers, according to the social conservative activist group Family Policy Alliance of Idaho.

Source:The Christian Post
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Al Mohler says Rick Warren's California-based Saddleback Church is in "direct violation" of denominational teaching for ordaining three women pastors and is calling for the denomination to reaffirm its teaching.

This past week, Saddleback Community Church in California ordained three women as pastors. In a development described by the church as historic, the church posted a photograph of the ordinations with the text: Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren and others pray over the first three women the church has ordained as pastors, Mohler wrote in an op-ed published on his website Monday.

Citing a Live Good interview with Cynthia Petty, one of the women ordained as a pastor by the largest church in the denomination, Mohler said that there is "no doubt" that the women were promoted to an office traditionally reserved for men.

There is no doubt that these three women are considered to serve as pastors and in the teaching office. Southern Baptists are clear, through the Baptist Faith & Message, that this is contrary to Scripture, Mohler stressed.

Source:The Christian Post
A United Methodist Church chaplain recently began an assignment offering pastoral and personal support for those trekking along the 2,193-mile Appalachian Trail.

The Tennessee-based UMC Holston Conference named Chris Bone Spur Estus, who oversees a ministry to help those struggling with substance abuse, as their ninth Appalachian Chaplain.

In an interview with The Christian Post on Wednesday, Estus explained that the position involves him being loving, listening, and [a] non-reactive presence to people along the way.

Estus, who got his hiking nickname "Bone Spur" due to having a bone spur in the big toe of his right foot and being a San Antonio Spurs fan, began walking the trail on March 26. The Appalachian Trail is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States that runs from Georgia to Maine.

Source:The Christian Post
Crossville, TN (38555)

Today

Overcast with rain showers at times. High 76F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%.
According to the Washington Post, "The Israeli airstrikes came after Hamas fired seven rockets at Jerusalem  the first time the city had been targeted since 2014  and 200 more at southern Israel. Earlier in the day, violent clashes near al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem's Old City between Israeli police and Arab protesters left more than 300 Palestinians injured."

The world watches in horror as violence in the Gaza strip has escalated rapidly. Although tensions have been strong between those in Israel and those in Palestine, building up even more so over the past few years, this past week we have witnessed air raids, retaliations, and rockets being launched between Israel and Hamas, a militant Palestinian group. Hundreds of people have been injured, and dozen have died in this exchange of fire this week. Today we lift up the nation of Israel in prayer and all those involved in the conflict, that the Lord will provide protection, peace, and safety for those caught in the crossfire.

A Brief Overview of the Situation in Israel

Tensions between the nation of Israel and Palestine have existed for more than a century. Ever since the 20th century, the two nations have had to contest over land, especially in post-WWII in 1948 when Israel was established as a Jewish state in the area in which it surrounds today. But most recently, the group Hamas, frustrated with the restrictions placed on them by Israel, fired rockets close to Jerusalem. Israel retaliated, according to Reuters:

"Violent clashes over Jerusalem escalated dramatically on Monday with Gaza health officials saying at least 20 people, including nine children, were killed by Israeli airstrikes launched after Palestinian militant groups fired rockets close to Jerusalem."

Hamas responded by firing 200 rockets toward the Israel town of Tel Aviv. Both catching civilizations in the crossfire. The world watches in horror as the rest of the situation unfolds.

What Does the Bible Say about Israel and the Prophecies Relating to It

Israel is no stranger to having enemies, and they have had such conflicts of these since they came to be a nation during the time of the patriarchs. The Bible does have a lot to say about what will happen with Israel in the Last Days, and perhaps we are seeing a great deal of this prophecy being fulfilled now. Although none of us know the day or hour in which Christ will return, we can watch the nation of Israel, as well as other prophetic signs, for when the Day will fast approach. Let's take a look at a few verses pertaining to Israel and how they will play a role in the End Times.

Ezekiel 37:22: "And I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. And one king shall be king over them all, and they shall be no longer two nations, and no longer divided into two kingdoms."

Joel 3:2: "I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land."

Daniel 12:1: "At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book."

Zechariah 14:2: "For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses plundered and the women raped. Half of the city shall go out into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city."

Israel plays a huge role throughout Revelation. They are, after all, the nation whom God had chosen back in the Old Testament. As they played a role through history, so will they do so in the End Times. So we boldly approach the throne of God, knowing that he has a plan for the nation of Israel, but also knowing that so much hurt and violence has transpired. We ask God to protect Israel and also to grieve the losses the nation, and the nation of Palestine have experienced in the past few days.

A Prayer for Israel

Dear Heavenly Father, as I watch the events in Israel unfold in the news, I am at a loss for words. So much violence, so much hurting, so much fear I imagine those in Israel and in Palestine must be experiencing right now. I pray that you protect those who are in the midst of this escalation of violence right now. Please shelter people from harm, get families to safety, and shield them with your peace and protection. God, although I do not know what will happen in Israel in the next few days, I do know that you have protected them in the past. You are the God of the nation of Israel. You have protected them from enemies throughout history, and you will not fail to do so now. May we continue to lift up the nation of Israel to you, and trust that you will set everything right with your righteous hand (Isaiah 41:10). Amen.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

May they prosper who love you.

May peace be within your walls,

And prosperity within your palaces.

For the sake of my brothers and my friends,

I will now say, May peace be within you.

For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,

I will seek your good.

(Psalm 122:6-9)

A Prayer for Jerusalem

Heavenly Father, The psalmist tells us to "pray for the peace of Jerusalem." So I pray for peace for Your chosen people, Israel, and their beloved city today.

You have planned for Israel, provided for Israel, and protected Israel for thousands of years. But as in days of old, there are those today who seek to harm, even destroy, Your people. So I ask You to keep Israel in Your loving care. Put a spiritual hedge of protection around Your people and their land.

Watch over this nation as a Good Shepherd watches over His flock, and may Your chosen people find their ultimate safety and security in You. While You watch over Your people, may Your Spirit awaken in them a hunger to embrace their Messiahthe One who died for themuntil they see Him face-to-face. We pray this in His name, Amen. (from David Jeremiah, Why American Christians Should Pray for Israel)

Further Reading

What Is the Meaning of Israel in the Bible?

Photo credit: Getty Images/John Theodor
A lawyer said that the new rule of President Joe Biden regarding the Affordable Care Act Section 1557's re-interpretation is said to punish Christian doctors refusing to do transgender surgery.

The Christian Headlines reported that religious freedom advocate and lawyer Luke Goodrich condemned the new law that prohibits discrimination for health care on the basis of sex.

"Biden's HHS just announced "beginning today" it will punish doctors and hospitals if they won't perform harmful gender-transition procedures against their conscience and medical judgment. This is bad for patients, doctors, and religious liberty," Goodrich tweeted on Monday with a link to the new law announced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

"This follows the Biden Administration's appeal, filed just 3 weeks ago, seeking to overturn a court order that would protect religious doctors and hospitals from having to perform these harmful procedures," he added in another tweet that included his post last April 21 on the matter.

In the April 21 post, Goodrich said the Biden Administration filed an appeal that's set to "force" medical professionals to "perform potentially harmful gender-transition procedures against their conscience and professional judgment," which is "bad for patients, doctors, and religious liberty."

Goodrich, in a series of tweets on Monday, explained that the plaintiffs in the case were "religious doctors, hospitals, and clinics who joyfully serve all patients regardless of sex or gender" and do "routinely provide top-notch care to transgender patients" yet the "Biden Administration is fighting them in court" with threats of "multi-million dollar penalties."

Goodrich stressed that the new rule is also harmful to patients because current scientific evidence and even court cases show that it is. He provided links to the said references including the recent policy imposed in Sweden that bans the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones. He highlighted the irony in the HHS statement that it will "comply with the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and 'applicable' court rulings" on the matter since the same office is "fighting to overturn in court" the "very rulings."

In line with these changes, Goodrich announced that they will file a permanent injunction to the new ruling of HHS.

"That is why, on Friday, we @BECKETlaw will be asking a federal court for a permanent injunction that protects patients, aligns with current medical research, and ensures doctors aren't forced to violate their religious beliefs and medical judgment," he said.

According to the HHS, the Office of Civil Rights "will interpret and enforce Section 1557 and Title IX's prohibitions on discrimination" on the basis of "sexual orientation" and "gender identity." HHS explained that the update was made in line with the US Supreme Court decision on the "Bostock v. Clayton County" case.

The HHS Secretary, Xavier Becerra, said that "everyone--including LGBTQ people--should be able to access health care, free from discrimination or interference, period". The department stressed, through its Assistant Secretary for Health Rachel Levine, that medical services should not be denied to anyone "because of who they are".

The Christian Headlines pointed out that former President Donald Trump interpreted Section 1557 to pertain to "male or female as determined by biology" such that "conscience and religious freedom protections" are offered by the rule.

Many faith-based organizations like the Christian Medical and Dental Associations supported Trump's rule on Section 1557 for it safeguarded religious freedom. Whereas, the Christian Headlines said, the Biden Administration protects transgenderism.
People who know nothing about the Greek philosopher Socrates (d. 399 B.C.) have probably heard one of his most famous sayings: The unexamined life is not worth living for human beings. He made that statement after being condemned to death for disloyalty to the ruling elite of Athens and allegedly corrupting the minds of his youthful students. Socrates made his now-famous statement to the jury and his accusers, reminding them that lifes most virtuous endeavor is not to examine others but to examine oneself.

Socrates lived in Greece at a chaotic time in the Jewish land of Judea. The Jews, held captive in Babylon, were being released by the king of Persia; efforts to rebuild the temple and Jerusalem were underway; Gods teachings had been ignored for centuries. All that to sayIsrael was not being a light to the Gentiles. That light was barely flickering in Judea, much less illuminating secular minds like Socrates in Greece.

The Biblical Basis for Spiritual Self-Examination

Therefore, when Socrates said the unexamined life was not worth living, he was not quoting Proverbs or Psalms or EcclesiastesIsraels wisdom literature. He was speaking out of his own understanding of philosophy: the love (philia) of wisdom (sophia). Though Socrates was not speaking out of Scripture, he was not speaking contrary to Scripture either. The idea of the examined life is a biblical principle that deserves careful attention from those who embrace the whole counsel of God.

Before we delve into the cure for the unexamined spiritual life, consider the many ways we employ exams in our lives on a regular basis. We examine almost every other part of our life more than we examine our spiritual livesor at least more consistently.

Health: Most of us get regular medical check-ups; in fact, many employers require their workers to get regular exams to catch problems before they get big (and expensive). Parents do the same with their young children in the early years of life to check on growth, health, and vitality.

Cars: If we lease our car, the agreement mandates regular service checks. At the very least, we change the oil regularly and have our mechanic do a once-over to check hoses, belts, brakes, leaks, and the like.

HVAC: Most people who own their home have fall and spring checks on their houses heating and cooling system.

Finances: We check on the status of our retirement plans, savings, and investments on a regular basis.

News, sports, weather, mail: How many times a day do you check your phone, tablet, or computer for updates and personal communications?

Spiritual Self-Examination and Its Importance

Do you notice anything that ties these five areas together? They are among the most important areas of our life: health, transportation, comfort, money, and awareness. In other words, we regularly examine the things that are most important to us. Its not that a failure to examine these areas makes life not worth living, its that it makes it very uncomfortable! By that I mean there is a measure of self-interest at work in the examined life. We attend to our health, cars, heating and air conditioning, money, and cultural awareness because, eventually, our failure to do so makes life uncomfortable.

But what about our spiritual life? Have we learned to live with an uncomfortable, unexamined life? Is our spiritual life not as high a priority as the other areas of life? But shouldnt it be the most important?

In this article, I want to challenge you to use a simple, nine-point exam that will give you immediate feedback on how you are doing spiritually. But before we get to that, let me remind you of the Bibles position on the examined life.

Key Components of Spiritual Analysis

There are two dimensions to the Bibles position on the examined life, and they are intimately connected.

First, it is God who examines our lives. That is, nobody lives an unexamined life from Gods perspective because He sees all and knows all about all of us. Nobody was more insightful on this subject than the prophet Jeremiah. Several times he says that it is God who sees and tests the mind and the heart of man (Jeremiah 11:20; 17:10; 20:12). This seeing is ultimately for the purpose of our goodfor rewards or for correction: Gods eyes are open to all the ways of the sons of men, to give everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings (Jeremiah 32:19). But it wasnt just Jeremiah who understood this truth; the writers of the Psalms (Psalm 7:9; 17:3) and Proverbs (Proverbs 17:3) knew it, too.

Secondand this puts the responsibility on uswe must conduct self-exams to keep ourselves in Gods path of righteousness: Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet (Hebrews 12:12-13). Nowhere is the principle of self-examination stated more clearly than in 1 Corinthians 11. Because of the Corinthians abuse of the Lords Supper, Paul tells them many of them had been disciplined by God (verses 29-30). Therefore, Paul says, we should examine ourselves, and correct our own lives, rather than have God correct us (verses 31-32).

The examined life is a biblical imperative. And drilling down even deeper, if we dont examine our lives and make needed adjustments, God will (Pleasedont read that as a divine threat. Instead, remember that God is a loving Father. He examines and corrects our lives just as we do our childrens livesfrom a heart of love and grace.).

I promised you a simple way to take stock of your spiritual life every day. So, lets look at this nine-point exam.

The Exam for Life

First of all, who is the benchmark for our life? Jesus Christ, of course. It is His image to which God is conforming us by way of every event in our life (Romans 8:28-29). But how do we measure ourselves against the person of Christ? With the simple list in Galatians 5:22-23: the fruit of the Spirit.

I cant state this truth too often: The Holy Spirit was given to manifest the life of Christ to the world through us. His works are manifested by the gifts of the Spirit and His character by the fruit of the Spirit. Spiritual gifts differ from believer to believer, but the fruit of the Spirit should be fully evident in every Christians life. If there is some dimension of the fruit of the Spirit missing in our lives, that should be a red flaga warning that we have taken back the control of some area of our lives from the Spirit.

So here is the testa check of the fruit of the Spirit:

1. Love: Do I love others unconditionally? Do I withhold my love or forgiveness?

2. Joy: Am I able to rejoice in every circumstance? Can I give God thanks in all things?

3. Peace: Can I make it through a difficult circumstance without worry or depression?

4. Patience/Longsuffering: How often do I react impulsively instead of responding thoughtfully?

5. Kindness: Are my thoughts and words toward others graced with compassion?

6. Goodness: Am I willing to share what I have with others in need? Am I generous?

7. Faithfulness: Do I keep my word even when it is costly? Am I loyal to God and others?

8. Gentleness: Am I ever harsh, unyielding, or insistent on my interests instead of others?

9. Self-control: Am I able to live out my priorities or am I subject to the desires of my flesh?

Heres what I would suggest: First, commit Galatians 5:22-23 to memory. Second, write down these nine traits of Christs life and put them where you can review them daily. If you will do that faithfully, soon your heart and mind will respond immediately when the fruit of the Spirit has been overtaken by the work of the flesh in your life. You can instantly make whatever correction is needed: confess, repent, be filled with the Spirit, and move on.

Let us take Jeremiahs words to heart: Lord, I know that peoples lives are not their own (Jeremiah 10:23, NIV). We belong to God. Let us, as good stewards, live an examined life. Let us yield to the Holy Spirit moment by moment so it is no longer I who live, but Christ [who] lives in me (Galatians 2:20).

This article originally appeared on davidjeremiah.org.

Photo Credit: Unsplash/Fares Hamouche





Dr. David Jeremiah is one of Americas most trusted Bible teachers. For more than 38 years, he has helped millions deepen their understanding of the Bible through 4,552 daily Turning Point Radio releases and a daily Turning Point Television program that reaches millions of people globally. He is the author of more than fifty books, including Hope: Living Fearlessly in a Scary World, Forward, The Book of Signs, Airship Genesis Kids Study Bible, and The Jeremiah Study Bible.
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NEW YORK (AP)  Actor Seth Rogen is jumping into the podcast world later this year with a series where he interviews people who have memorable stories to tell about their lives.

The unnamed series will be produced by Stitcher, the podcast company and subsidiary of SiriusXM, which made the announcement on Tuesday.
EAST HARTFORD  The head of local Democratic Town Committee has stepped down amid abhorrent social media allegations that surfaced last weekend, town lawmakers said in a statement.

The lawmakers said Monday a police investigation was also underway into the alleged actions of Craig Stevenson, who led the towns democratic committee.

We've been made aware of disturbing and abhorrent allegations surfacing on social media, said lawmakers including Sen. Saud Anwar, House Majority Leader Jason Rajos and representatives Jeff Currey and Henry Genga, who all represent East Hartford in the state legislature. While a police investigation is necessary, what appears to take place in the video does not represent the values of our community.

A group called EastCoast Catchem that attempts to find child predators posted Sunday about Stevenson. The group said it was turning over all its evidence to the police.

An East Hartford Police spokesman said the department is investigating, but declined to provide specifics.

Although this matter was not directly reported to us, we initiated an investigation over the weekend when we became aware of a video circulating on social media of an alleged incident appearing to have occurred in East Hartford, Lt. Josh Litwin said.

Litwin said he would not name any of the individuals appearing in the video.

In light of the actions demonstrated in the video and the allegations against Craig Stevenson, he has formally submitted his resignation. This is a necessary action that needed to happen, the lawmakers said.
BARGNY, Senegal (AP)  Since her birth on Senegals coast, the ocean has always given Ndeye Yacine Dieng life. Her grandfather was a fisherman, and her grandmother and mother processed fish. Like generations of women, she helps support her family in the small community of Bargny by drying, smoking, salting and fermenting the catch brought home by male villagers. They were baptized by fish, these women say.

But when the pandemic struck, boats that once took as many as 50 men out to sea carried only a few. Many residents were too terrified to leave home, let alone fish, for fear of catching the virus. When local women managed to get their hands on fish to process, they lacked buyers, as markets shut down and neighboring countries closed borders. Without savings, many families went from three daily meals to one or two.

Dieng is among more than a thousand women in Bargny, and many more in other villages dotting Senegals coast, who process fish  the crucial link in a chain that constitutes one of the country's largest exports and employs hundreds of thousands of its residents.

It was catastrophic  all of our lives changed, Dieng said. But, she noted, Our community is a community of solidarity.

That spirit sounds throughout Senegal with the motto Teranga, a word in the Wolof language for hospitality, community and solidarity. People tell each other: on est ensemble, a French phrase meaning we are in this together.

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This story is part of a yearlong series on how the pandemic is impacting women in Africa, most acutely in the least developed countries. APs series is funded by the European Journalism Centres European Development Journalism Grants program, which is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. AP is responsible for all content.

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Last month, the first true fishing season since the pandemic kicked off, bringing renewed hope to processors, their families and the village. The brightly painted vast wooden fishing boats called pirogues once again each carry dozens of men to sea, and people swarm the beach to help fishermen carry in their loads.

But challenges from the coronavirus  and so much more  remain. Rising seas and climate change threaten livelihoods and homes; many can't afford to build new structures or move inland. A steel processing plant rising near Bargnys beach raises fears about pollution and will join a cement factory nearby.

Since there is COVID, we live in fear," said Dieng, 64, who has seven adult children. "Most of the people here and women processors have lived a difficult life. ... Little by little, its getting better.

Dieng and fellow processors weathered the pandemic by relying on each other. Theyre accustomed to being breadwinners  one expert estimated that each working woman in Senegal feeds seven or eight family members. Before the pandemic, a good season could bring Dieng 500,000 FCFA ($1,000). Last year, she said, she made little to nothing.

Dieng's husband teaches the Quran at the mosque next door to their home, and the couple pooled their money with their children, with one son finding work repairing TVs. Other women got help from family abroad or rented out parts of their refrigerators for storage.

They survived, but they missed their work, which isn't just a job  it's their heritage. Processing is a pride, Dieng said.

Most fishing in Senegal is small-scale  carried out in traditional, generations-old methods. It's referred to as artisanal fishing. Once processed, fish is sold to local and international buyers. In Senegal, fish accounts for more than half of protein eaten by its 16 million residents  key for food security.

Industrial fishing is carried out in Senegals waters as well, via motorized vessels and trawlers. More than two dozen companies also specialize in industrial processing in the country alongside fishmeal factories and canning plants. Fishmeal factories price women like Dieng out by paying more for fish and depleting resources  5 kilos of fish are needed for 1 kilo of fishmeal, a lower-grade powder-like product used for farm animals and pets.

Senegals government also has agreements with other countries allowing them to fish and imposing limits on the hauls. Monitoring what these boats from Europe, China and Russia harvest has proven difficult. Locals say outsiders devastate supply.

Dieng has become a local leader and mentor whose neighbors come to her for advice on everything from money woes to their marriages, and she and others are part of a rising collective voice of women in Senegal working for change along the coast and beyond.

Senegal has designated land near Bargny as an economic zone in its efforts to invest in redevelopment. Diengs neighbor Fatou Samba  a town councilor and president of the Association of Women Processors of Fish Products  has testified about challenges in artisanal fishing.

If we let ourselves be outdone, within two or three years, women will not have work anymore, Samba said. We are not against the creation of a project that will develop Senegal. But we are against projects that must make women lose the right to work.

The pandemic has taught villagers a crucial lesson: Money from fish may not always be there, so its important to try to save.

The pandemic also is not over, so Dieng and other women go door to door to raise awareness and urge people to get vaccinated. Senegal imposed strict measures at the start of the pandemic. The government was widely commended, and restrictions largely eased. But the country's had more than 40,000 cases. Volunteer and government campaigns aim to keep another wave at bay.

At the end of a long day of work, and before she goes home to break fast of Ramadan with her family, Dieng stands in front of her smoking fish and records a video she hopes will to motivate the women working in the industry.

Its our gold. This site is all, this site is everything for us, Dieng said of the coast and its importance to Bargny. All the women must rise up."

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Meet the women of Bargny: See the portrait series.

Follow Carley Petesch on Twitter: https://twitter.com/carleypetesch

Follow AP's multiformat Africa news on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Africa
BOISE, Idaho (AP)  Idaho Gov. Brad Little has signed legislation aimed at thwarting a half-dozen executive actions by President Joe Biden to combat gun violence.

The new law came less than a week after a shooting at an eastern Idaho middle school injured two students and a custodian.

The Republican governor signed the measure Monday. It passed the Idaho House and Senate with veto-proof majorities and carried an emergency notice, meaning it went into effect with Little's signature.

The new law is retroactive to Jan. 20, the day Biden was sworn in as president. It prevents all Idaho government entities from enforcing executive orders, federal laws, treaties, agency orders and rules of the U.S. government involving firearms, firearm components and accessories, or ammunition that conflict with the Idaho Constitution.

The signing followed Thursday's shooting in Rigby, where police have said a sixth-grade girl pulled a handgun from her backpack and fired multiple rounds inside and outside Rigby Middle School, about 95 miles (145 kilometers) southwest of Yellowstone National Park.

All three victims were shot in the extremities and none had life-threatening injuries, authorities have said. The girl was disarmed by a teacher.

Idaho already has a law passed in 2014 stating that the state's government cannot enforce federal actions that infringe upon Second Amendment rights.

Bidens orders include a move to crack down on ghost guns  homemade firearms put together from purchased gun parts that lack serial numbers to trace them and are often acquired without background checks.

Biden also moved to tighten regulations on pistol-stabilizing braces like the one used in the Boulder, Colorado, supermarket shooting last month that left 10 dead, including a police officer. The braces for handguns allow them to be fired from a shoulder, like a rifle.

Biden is also seeking so-called red flag laws allowing family members or law enforcement to seek court orders that temporarily bar people in crisis from accessing firearms if they pose a danger to themselves or others.

Backers of the legislation signed by Little also said it prevents Idaho gun and ammunition manufacturers from being held responsible if their products are used in crimes.

Opponents said creating legislation that conflicts with federal laws could mean the state will lose federal funding. Backers have acknowledged that possibility but said Idaho lost no federal funding after the 2014 law was approved.

Biden has said his priorities for Congress include passing the Violence Against Women Act that would prohibit people previously convicted of misdemeanor stalking from possessing firearms; eliminating lawsuit exemptions for gun manufacturers; and banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Hes also called on the Senate to take up House-passed measures to close loopholes in background checks for gun purchases.

But with an evenly divided Senate and any gun control legislation requiring 60 votes to pass, Democrats would have to keep every member of their narrow majority while somehow getting votes from 10 Republicans.
The family of a Chicago pastor and his wife are asking for prayers while the couple fight for their lives following an unprovoked attack, reports say.

The Christian Headlines said Pastor Timothy Johnson and his wife, Renee, were brutally assaulted last Saturday by Elijah Rule Hill Prince.

Meanwhile, the Christian Post reported that Johnson is the minister of Salem Baptist Church in Chicago's south side. The Christian Post said Prince "chewed off pieces of the couple's ears and gouged both their eyes" and is now facing charges for attempted murder and aggravated battery besides undergoing psychiatric evaluation.

Johnson's daughter, Destinee, posted on Facebook regarding her parents' attack and asked for prayers.

"I am heartbroken to share this news. This weekend my parents were brutally attacked, what's in the article is my family's reality. This is not a dream, this is not a movie, this is not an episode of a crime show--this is our life," Destinee said pertaining to the article she wrote at GoFundMe that she created for her parents.

"I don't have the words to say, sometimes I don't have the strength but the strength of my parents keep me going. We do need your prayers. We need your love," she added. "But also need some financial support to get through this unbelievable situation. Our lives have been forever changed."

"Please share. Please donate. Please pray for our family," she stressed.

According to the article she wrote in GoFundMe, the pastor was "doing yard work" for their 95-year old mother who they have been caretakers of for some time. The page contained an article on Destinee's interview with CBS Chicago where she said Prince approached her father to sell him something but was refused. This prompted Prince to hit his father with a shovel he found nearby.

The Christian Headlines added that the pastor suffered several abrasions on the face, a slash on the head, and a fractured orbital bone after being punched in the head and shoved with a three-inch wood in the left eye by Prince. The report added that Prince used his bare hands to gouge the pastor's eyes and bit his ears then spat into the pastor's mouth.

In addition, the Christian Post said Prince grabbed the pastor's wife in the hair when she came rushing in to help her husband. Prince ripped off "large chunks of her ears with his teeth" and gouged her eyes with his bare fingers, too. Prince also spit on her and kicked her several times.

The assault, as per result of investigations cited by the Christian Post, left the pastor's wife with lacerations, bruises on her face and head, two black eyes, and missing chunks from both ears.

The Chicago Sun Times, on the other hand, reported that Judge John Lyke, Jr., the presiding judge of the case, said listening to the allegations against Prince provided by the Cook County prosecutors made him think he was "listening to a horror movie." The prosecutors even said that Prince admitted that the blood covering him was not his but belonged to "peasants" pertaining to the pastor and his wife.

The GoFundMe page has raised $153,619 from 2,100 donors, as of writing time, that has already exceeded its $50,000 goal.
Viktoria Sundqvist / Hearst Connecticut Media

An East Haven resident pleaded guilty Monday for illegally collecting his mothers Social Security benefits after she died, according to federal prosecutors.

Jovon Gamble, 40, continued to access money from the Social Security Administration after his mothers death in 2007, according to a release from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Connecticut.
School districts in greater Bridgeport and the Naugatuck Valley are preparing for the upcoming expansion of COVID-19 vaccine eligibility for 12- to 15 year-olds.

Similar to the plan laid out for those aged 16 and older in public schools across the state, many districts are either planning to offer vaccine clinics or are in talks about whether a youth-only clinic makes sense. In all cases, parents would have to sign consent forms for their child to be vaccinated and/or accompany their child.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday gave the OK for the use of Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine in those 12 and older. An advisory committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to give its final recommendations on Wednesday.

Pfizer is the only vaccine that has been approved for minors.

Fairfield will be among the first school districts to move forward with offering the younger age group opportunities to get vaccinated.

The Fairfield Health Department has scheduled Pfizer clinics from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday and from 2 to 7 p.m. Friday at 100 Mona Terrace, in the gym of the Senior Center.

We are in the process of notifying families that they can schedule appointments effective immediately, said Andrea Clark, Fairfield schools spokesperson.

In Stratford, drive-thru vaccine clinics are planned for next week at the towns high schools  May 19 at Bunnell and May 21 at Stratford High  for all students eligible and interested in getting vaccinated.

Stratford Superintendent Janet Robinson said the 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. time slot will be open to high school students, while the 3 to 5 p.m. time frame will be for middle school students and students at St. Marks and St. James schools who are eligible.

Other school districts are still working out their plans to offer the Pfizer vaccine.

We have the opportunity to again partner with Community Health Center to assist with offering the COVID-19 vaccination to our 12 to 15 year old population as we did with our 16 to 18 year old students, Westport Superintendent Thomas Scarice said.

He said theyre looking at times that would be most convenient for parents since children must have a parent or guardian present. Families can also schedule appointments on their own.

Trumbull is planning to have a clinic but has yet to finalize the details.

Ansonia and Derby are working with the Naugatuck Valley Health District and Griffin Hospital to plan next steps. Derby Superintendent Matthew Conway said the districts need to ensure there is an adequate supply of Pfizer for the students eligible.

So it is contingent upon Naugatuck Valley and Griffin being able to work out the logistics. But what we're tentatively talking about is expanding the current 16-plus clinic that Ansonia High is running to be inclusive of 12- to 15-year-olds from Derby and Ansonia, he said. Between now and on Friday, we'll confirm the process if we're going forward with this.

He said parents would then get a notification about registering for the closed clinic, with a link to the Griffin Hospital registration portal.

In Milford, plans are also in the works.

We will continue to partner with the Milford Health Department as we support giving all residents access to the COVID-19 vaccine, said Anna Cutaia, superintendent of Milford Public Schools.

Some initial conversations with the MHD are taking place now about how this would work for our district.

Monroe Superintendent Joseph Kobza said he will be sending out an email to families to gauge interest in a vaccine.

Like always, our town Emergency Operations Team has offered to help, Kobza said. If we have enough interest, we will pursue this as an option.

Shelton, meanwhile, has yet to announce any new vaccine clinics for students. The school district held a vaccine clinic for students 16 and older on May 4 after school hours at the intermediate school.

There were fewer than 100 students at the Shelton clinics, which was held by the Naugatuck Valley Health District. The school system assisted but did not have direct involvement.

Bridgeport schools did not return a request for comment.

Staff writers Eddy Martinez, Brian Gioiele, Katrina Koerting, Ethan Fry, Donald Eng and Saul Flores contributed to this report.
LONDON (AP)  The U.K. government sought to capitalize on its electoral strength Tuesday, outlining a sweeping legislative agenda to bolster the economy after the COVID-19 pandemic, defuse tensions that threaten the countrys unity and combat social issues ranging from housing to care for older adults.

The package of about 30 bills was unveiled by Queen Elizabeth II in the annual Queens Speech, in which the monarch reads out the governments legislative priorities at the ceremonial start of the new parliamentary session.

The event, pared down for pandemic times, was the queens first major public appearance since the funeral of her husband, Prince Philip, last month. A single throne was placed beneath the gold canopy for the monarch. In times past, there were a pair of thrones  one for the queen and another for her consort.

My governments priority is to deliver a national recovery from the pandemic that makes the United Kingdom stronger, healthier and more prosperous than before, the queen said in the House of Lords.

The queen, who did not wear a mask, was escorted into the chamber by her son, Prince Charles. She delivered the speech slowly and deliberately before a socially distanced audience, all of whom needed to have a negative COVID test in order to attend.

The queen did not wear her crown. Instead, it was carried into the chamber ahead of her on a cushion.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Cabinet put together the list of proposals after a year of lockdowns and COVID-19 restrictions triggered the U.K.s deepest economic slump in three centuries. The government is also facing renewed calls for Scottish independence and unrest in Northern Ireland fueled by Britains departure from the European Union.

Johnson will pursue the agenda from a position of strength, with his Conservative Party holding 365 of the 650 seats in the House of Commons. That electoral power was underscored last week, when the Conservatives dominated local elections in England.

Ahead of the speech, Johnson announced plans to give all adults access to four years of university or job training throughout their lifetimes as part of an effort to ensure workers have the skills employers need in a changing economy. The government also plans to revamp planning laws to speed up construction of new homes.

These new laws are the rocket fuel that we need to level up this country and ensure equal opportunities for all, Johnson said in a statement released ahead of the speech. We know that having the right skills and training is the route to better, well-paid jobs.

The opposition Labour Party said the government must also come up with a plan to create jobs if the training program is to have any meaning. Labour has previously criticized the government for boosting job creation figures with part-time and low paying jobs.

Its great to hear that they want people to be able to retrain, but where are the jobs that people need, the good-quality jobs, not just the jobs, but the good-quality jobs that allow people to earn decent money to look after their families? Lisa Nandy, Labours spokeswoman on foreign affairs, told the BBC.

The legislative program also includes plans for a summit meeting between leaders of the U.K. government and the devolved administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to discuss issues caused by the pandemic. The government also said it would invest in transport links between the U.K.s four nations and reiterated a commitment that all parts of the country would benefit from a 4.8 billion pound fund to improve town centers and local transport projects.

In addition, the government plans to require voters to show a photo ID before they cast their ballots and ban so-called gay-conversion therapy. Though the government pledged to restrict the prosecution of soldiers who served during the conflict in Northern Ireland, it didn't offer legislation to implement the promise.

One of the most controversial elements of the governments program is a crime bill that stalled in the last parliament amid concern that it gave police too much power to restrict public protests.

Police were criticized for being too lenient after environmental protesters shut down central London last year and for being too heavy handed in March when they broke up a vigil for a young woman who was murdered after being kidnapped in the capital.

The government also promised to bring forward proposals to reform the social care system, which provides in-home and nursing home services for older people. That fell short of demands from advocates for concrete proposals to resolve the long-running problem.

The issue has vexed government for more than a decade as rising costs squeeze local governments, which are required to provide care for those who cant afford it, and leave wealthier families in fear of losing their homes as they struggle to pay for the care of aging relatives.

In comments later in the House of Commons, Johnson committed to holding an inquiry into the governments handling of the COVID-19 pandemic amid public pressure to investigate lapses in hopes that they are not repeated. Johnson has previously resisted the idea, saying an inquiry would be a distraction to officials tackling the pandemic.

Johnson told the House of Commons that the inquiry would take place within the new session of Parliament, which opened Tuesday. Parliamentary sessions typically last a year.

I can certainly say that we will do that within this session, Johnson told lawmakers. I have made that clear before."
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Capitol Police force was hobbled by inadequate intelligence gathering ahead of the Jan. 6 siege, the department's watchdog told Congress on Monday, alarming lawmakers who are concerned for their own safety amid rising threats against members of Congress.

Capitol Police Inspector General Michael Bolton testified in the first of three House hearings this week on what went wrong during the Jan. 6 insurrection. Lawmakers are investigating the riots as they contemplate overhauling security, and Bolton has recommended that the Capitol Police create a new stand-alone division that would gather intelligence about threats and protect members similar to the way the U.S. Secret Service protects the president.

Many lawmakers are receiving threats and worry for their safety after the U.S. Capitol was so easily breached on Jan. 6 by supporters of then-President Donald Trump who wanted to overturn the election. The rioters were hunting for lawmakers, calling out House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and then-Vice President Mike Pence by name as they roamed the building and members fled the House and Senate. In a statement Friday, the Capitol Police said that there has been a 107% increase in threats against members of Congress this year compared to 2020 and provided the unique threat environment we currently live in, the Department is confident the number of cases will continue to increase.

A new inspector general report, one of several Bolton is preparing in response to the insurrection, said the department has experienced issues because of the increase in threats over the last five years and recommended the force hire more agents who are dedicated to assessing threats.

Bolton said there were multiple deficiencies that led to a lack of communication and guidance ahead of the siege. He said the department's guidance on counterintelligence was outdated or vague  some so ancient that it referred to Blackberry communication devices, which are now rarely used.

A stand-alone entity, with a defined mission dedicated to countersurveillance activities in support of protecting the Congressional Community, would improve the Departments ability to identify and disrupt individuals or groups intent on engaging in illegal activity directed at the Congressional Community and its legislative process, the report says, according to a summary released by the House Administration Committee ahead of the hearing. Bolton has not released the full report.

Bolton told the panel that the Capitol Police is in the process of opening up two regional offices so it can better protect lawmakers at home. The department confirmed that on Monday, saying they will be opening up offices in San Francisco and Tampa, Florida.

Illinois Rep. Rodney Davis, the top Republican on the committee, said he hopes they open up more offices around the country and prosecute more people who are making the threats. He noted that he has received threats himself  a man was arrested in 2019 for threatening to shoot him.

So I know firsthand that these threats are real, and that the people making these threats intend to act on them," Davis said. I do believe a truly more aggressive enforcement stance, more arrests and more prosecutions of those who make violent threats and intend to carry them out would be a very strong deterrent.

In Fridays statement, the Capitol Police said they have already taken significant steps to improve counterintelligence and agreed that a stand-alone intelligence division would be helpful, but said theyd need more money to achieve it. The statement said the Capitol Police have about 30 agents and analysts doing the same job as more than 100 in the Secret Service, while the Capitol Police had 9,000 cases in 2020 and the Secret Service had 8,000.

The House is also scheduled to hear this week from former acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller, who will testify about his role in approving National Guard troops during the insurrection. The troops did not arrive until several hours after the riots began, a subject that has attracted intense interest in Congress.

Miller is expected to appear Wednesday before the House Oversight Committee alongside former acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen and District of Columbia Police Chief Robert Contee III. All three were part of frantic meetings that day as Capitol Police begged for backup.

Army and Pentagon leaders have repeatedly denied any efforts to delay the Guard response. Miller denied in a Vice News interview in March that the response was unduly slow, saying, It comes back to understanding how the military works. He said this isnt a video game, adding its not Black Ops Call of Duty.

In a statement ahead of the hearing, House Oversight and Reform Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said Congress and the American people still have many unanswered questions about why more wasn't done about threats of violence from right-wing extremists before the attack.

Our hearing will provide the American people the first opportunity to hear from top Trump Administration officials about the catastrophic intelligence and security failures that enabled this unprecedented terrorist attack on our nations Capitol, Maloney said in a statement.

The House Administration Committee will also hear this week from Christopher Failla, the inspector general for the architect of the Capitol, who is one of three officials sitting on a board that oversees the Capitol Police.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro, a Connecticut Democrat and chair of the House Appropriations Committee, said last week that a $2 billion supplemental spending bill that the House is expected to take up soon will have a focus on increased training, intelligence analysis and capabilities for the police force.

___

Associated Press writer Michael Balsamo contributed to this report.
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Running Out Of Cyber Gas

The Colonial Pipeline cyber hostage fiasco is the latest in an ever-escalating set of cyberspace problems for the new Biden Administration.

With a still forming team trying to navigate the complex Federal cyber bureaucracy - and a business sector not able to fulfill its claim of taking care of itself - this kind of event only increases the urgency of what is now becoming the definition of a managerial wicked problem - the people causing the problem are trying to solve the problem.

The players and vulnerabilities are all too familiar  even pointed out in the U.S.s recent Annual Intelligence Threat Assessment. First, the attacks appear to be coming from Eastern Europe and/or Russia. So far, publicly, it seems like a very well organized, nearly corporate group of hackers who claim to be Robin Hoods hit Colonial  robbing from the rich and giving to the poor, they say. Nice public relations effort, but hardly comforting to the companies who are victims.

Not Trusting Coincidence

Still, I am reminded of an aphorism from my spy days - I believe in coincidences. I do not trust coincidences. This has Russian intelligence service finger prints all over it. And their support of such Eastern European groups is a well-known fact.

Second, the USG seem to be inadvertently helping these kinds of hackers by publicly sharing vulnerabilities. Now, I know the idea was to get the information out to everyone so they could patch and counter accordingly. However, as some of us feared, it also limned out an attack mode for the bad guys. And the bad guys are not stupid  they are students of our vulnerabilities, they are increasingly sophisticated to a front-line nation state degree, and by our sharing we are educating them.

Third, and heres a really sticky point, in America we hold the separation of business and government nearly as sacred as church and state. So, the U.S. Government has simply minced around the edge of directed private sector cyber security for years - due in part also to business saying they can do a better job of protecting themselves. So, the USG engages in a public-private partnership. It gives private business advisories of potential attack. It shares threat information with them - even though business holds back a lot for fear of showing vulnerability to competitors, stockholders, and the government.

And the result, so far, has shown that American businesses are not doing anywhere near an adequate cyber security job - it is not information and partnership alone that will save them. They are simply not prepared to deal with advanced nation state cyber tactics from a Russia or a China or an Iran. And the USG is not giving them the tools or protecting them adequately.

Tell Them What to Do

The sad part about all of this is we knew such an attack could happen and weve talked forever about the vulnerabilities. Iran and others have been poking and prodding at utilities for years. We have, in reaction, spent an enormous amount of time building information systems and proclaiming the safety of our systems. And, we are still getting beaten like a drum.

Eighty percent of American cyber space is owned by the private sector. Our COVID weakened supply chains are sputtering in a spotty restart of the economy. Our enemies know that and are taking advantage.

American businesses need a standard they can follow to protect themselves. And they need direct orders from the U.S. government on what it takes to keep systems safe and be required to do so.

The new Biden Cyber team are smart people  mostly government background, but with some business experience. They are trying to put together a cyber safety program in the middle of the battle. Tough work, no doubt.

But, whatever bureaucratic boundaries and information sharing rules get laid out within D.C., the time has come for the USG to require businesses to maintain certain standards, demand they achieve those standards, and report immediately when they get in trouble. The American public - whose economic well-being depends on it - deserve at least that. And that is what a government is paid to do.

Ronald Marks is Term Visiting Professor, George Mason University, Schar School of Policy and Government. He is President of ZPN Cyber & National Security Strategies

Image: Unsplash

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Chinese authorities were reported to ramp up pressure on Christian Churches in Hong Kong and Taiwan after a string of recent restrictive efforts.

The International Christian Concern (ICC) said Hong Kong Police have recently blocked a Presbyterian Church's website in line with its connection to Edmund Wan, a radio host arrested last February 7.

According to the Hong Kong Free Press, Wan was arrested for four counts of sedition and has recently received new charges: five counts of money laundering worth HK$11 million and of sedition plotting.

The ICC explained that Wan used his radio program to encourage protesters in Hong Kong to study in Taiwan because of the tightening controls of China. ICC said Wan was able to raise funds in the process that were then donated to the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan.

The Standard added that Wan, also known as Edmund Wan "Giggs" Yiu-sing, was refused bail twice to the detriment of his family who could not even get in touch with him. The Standard said Wan actually filed for bail twice but was denied.

Meanwhile, the Union of Catholic Asian News reported that the 52-year-old Wan was able to raise more than US$1.29 million (HK$10 million) from the crowdfunding campaign he setup. UCA News said Wan transferred a portion of the collected crowdfunding money, HK$4 million, to the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan, which is now accused "encouraging Taiwanese separatists and aiding Hong Kong rioters and extremists."

The Presbyterian Church's Website can not be accessed any more in Hong Kong since the Chinese government blocked it for "breaching the national security law." This then restricts the church's efforts, as per UCA News citing a Presbyterian Church official in stating, in reaching out to those in Hong Kong who are in desperate need of help. The same official expressed fears that China is expanding its internet firewall to Hong Kong.

"Hong Kong residents frequently leave messages on our website, often asking for help. Blocking the site like this is a warning sign that Beijing is extending more mainland China-style restrictions to Hong Kong," Presbyterian Church Pastor Huang Chun-sheng said during an interview with Taipei Times.

Despite being blocked by the Chinese government, Chun-sheng pointed out that access to their website is still feasible through a virtual private network (VPN).

Because of the implementation of the Hong Kong National Security Law, ICC said many religious leaders have fled to Taiwan to escape persecution and of being accused of subversion. China has been attempting to prevent the escape of the religious leaders but failed.

ICC said there are already 10,000 residents from Hong Kong who have fled to Taiwan in 2020 alone. While other religious leaders have fled to other countries as far as the United Kingdom.

ICC said that more pastors from Hong Kong will be coming to Taiwan based on an interview they conducted with Pastor Chun-seng of the Chi-Nan Presbyterian Church.

"China aggressively persecutes Christians who choose to worship in institutions outside of the state-run Three-Self church and Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association. House churches are regularly raided, church leaders imprisoned, and laypeople intimidated for practicing their faith outside the narrow confines established by the government," ICC pointed out.
Hindi nationalists in India reportedly use COVID as an excuse to attack Christians, even as the latter are praying inside their homes.

The International Christian Concern (ICC) reported that Hindu Nationalists on Sunday attacked a pastor and his family in India's Madhya Pradesh state. ICC said the nationalists attacked the pastor for "holding a family prayer in their home." ICC cited local sources who said the COVID crisis was used as an excuse for the radicals to attack the pastor and his family.

Three men attacked Pastor Harish's home at 9pm by throwing stones, shouting obscenities, and destroying the wooden fence. The attackers threatened the pastor if they will continue praying in his home, which is located outside of Jhabua.

"We were really frightened, hearing the curses and filthy language. They were very furious and told me that I should not hold any prayers, even with my own family," the pastor told ICC in an interview.

Pastor Harish added that the attackers said the reason they were stopping him from praying was that he was violating COVID protocols on assembling for prayers. The pastor said this was not the case since he was only praying with his family. The pastor also revealed that this was the second time they were attacked.

"This is not the first time. About a year ago we were attacked even worse. But when I approached the police, they did not act against the culprits. They targeted me instead and gave me a hard time," he narrated.

As per ICC, the pastor used to hold prayer services and gatherings in his home before the pandemic. This was regularly attended by 80 families.

Similar incidents have been happening in India where Christians are being attacked while praying at home. Last month, a pastor, his wife, and a member of their congregation was praying in their home when Hindu Nationalists supporters from the Vishwa Hindu Parishad group came and attacked them.

The pastor, his wife, and congregation member suffered severe injuries that led them to be brought to the hospital for medical attention. Ironically, part of the attackers were the pastor's brothers.

While a mob of 70 Hindus attacked 30 Christians gathered in prayer in their home in India's Chhatisgarh state last March. The mob burned Bibles, destroyed property, and left six of the 30 Christians seriously injured and in need of hospitalization.

The attack on Pastor Harish took place in the face of the "unimaginable" COVID-19 surge happening in India that has prompted Christians there to call out to the international community for prayers and assistance.

Much of the assistance needed by COVID-19 patients in India are medical oxygen that has gone into shortage. Recently, international organizations, such as Operation Blessing, have sent in donations for oxygen.

The Union of Catholic Asian News reported that Christian groups have teamed up to provide a food scheme to assist India in its current crisis due to the pandemic as India's Supreme Court has appointed a medical team to address the country's lack of oxygen supply. UCA News said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is being blamed for India's current pandemic crisis due to his decision-making style.
Elizabeth City, NC (27909)

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Cloudy early, then thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 84F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

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Thunderstorms likely. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%.
Dalton, GA (30720)

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Cloudy this morning with thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 81F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

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Showers and thunderstorms. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.
Dalton, GA (30720)

Today

Cloudy skies with periods of rain this afternoon. High 81F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Showers with a possible thunderstorm early, then variable clouds overnight with still a chance of showers. Low around 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%.
The following items are based on information provided by officials in law enforcement and the criminal justice system.
Paul Kirby is a reporter for the Freeman, covering Kingston politics. He has been at the Freeman since August 1996.
Part of the SUNY New Paltz campus is shown on July 2, 2020.
With the intervention of the Christian Legal Centre in the United Kingdom, a Christian chaplain stood his ground after he was accused of "being a terrorist," which led to his dismissal, for preaching a sermon about religious freedom inside the Trent College campus.

According to WND, Rev. Dr Bernard Randall, 48, preached that religious convictions are protected by law and that students are not required to follow the LGBTQ "ideology."

"I never thought a sermon would lead to me being reported as a terrorist," the Reverend told Christian Concern.

He has since filed a lawsuit against the school for "discrimination, harassment, victimization and unfair dismissal." His trial is scheduled to begin on June 14 at the East Midlands Employment Tribunal.

Randall clarified in a college sermon that no protected standard is more protected than another after being barred from a campus debate about whether to pursue an LGBT-promoting policy, which school officials did, since he could "disagree."

According to the Legal Centre, the Reverend said that "for Christians, where there is disagreement, it is vital to love their neighbor, leaving no room for personal attack or abusive language towards anyone."

He has also merely defined the biblical stance of the Church of England on marriage and human nature, only adding that students at the school were not forced to "accept an ideology they disagree with."

Consequently, the school's "Designated Safeguarding Lead" began identifying Dr. Randall as a possibly dangerous religious extremist to the government's counter-terrorism watchdog, "Prevent."

The crisis arose as a result of school officials' adoption of a controversial policy introduced by LGBT activist Elly Barnes, of the "Educate and Celebrate" initiative, which aims to "embed gender, gender identity, and sexual orientation" into the school. The school, WND noted, was once characterized as having a "Protestant and Evangelical" Church in England ethos.

Barnes described her goal as about "smash(ing) heteronormativity."

Randall's work description called for him to be "the particular voice and embodiment of... Christian values." Naturally, he was disturbed by the school's proposal, which had him reportedly shut out of all evaluation and decision-making processes.

Speaking on behalf of the chaplain, the Legal Center revealed that during an aggressive interview, Dr. Randall was told that his views were irrelevant and unnecessary and that his sermon had wounded other people's feelings and compromised the school's LGBT agenda.

School officials also started labeling him as a suspected terrorist.

In his defense, Randall said he preached the sermon after a student asked if he might respond to a concern where the student said, "How come we are told we have to accept all this LGBT stuff in a Christian school."

According to Derbyshire police officer Richard Barker's investigation, the Reverend's sermon posed no counter-terrorism threat.

Randall was dismissed, but the school's governors reversed it, imposing a series of 20 demands, including the requirement that he no longer voice "any opinion" that might "offend" others.

They also required that any sermon be censored by the school administration.

Because of COVID-19 lockdowns, he was later fired again.

How Randal Sees What Just Happened To Him

"Being reported as a potential terrorist, extremist and a danger to children are arguably the worst crimes you could be accused of," reflected Randall. "When I found out that they had reported me without telling me, my mind was blown trying to comprehend it."

"I had gone to such lengths in the sermon to stress that we must respect one another no matter what, even people we disagree with," he continued. "I am not ashamed to say that I cried with relief when I was told that the report to 'Prevent' was not going to be taken further."

He sadly noted, however, that he was ordered to "support everybody else's beliefs, no matter what," while his Christian beliefs, those of the Church of England, were "blatantly censored."

"My story sends a message to other Christians that you are not free to talk about your faith," he pointed out. "It seems it is no longer enough to just 'tolerate' LGBT ideology. You must accept it without question and no debate is allowed without serious consequences. Someone else will decide what is and what isn't acceptable, and suddenly you can become an outcast, possibly for the rest of your life."

Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, said that "when an ordained Church of England minister can't give a simple sermon in a Church of England school without being reported as an extremist and hounded out of his job then who is safe?"

She argued that Rev. Randall, inspired by his passion for God and others, has served in education for several years and that it's an insult to all of humanity that someone like him is prosecuted and punished.

"It's time to stand up and speak up for these freedoms," she declared.
Pedestrians walk along a portion of the Empire State Trail along the Hudson River south of the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge, which can be seen in the distance. This portion of the trail extends from North Street in the city of Kingston to the town of Ulster hamlet of East Kingston.
Ashland, KY (41101)

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...HEAT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 8 PM CDT THIS EVENING... * WHAT...Heat index values up to 101 expected. * WHERE...Portions of central, east central, south central and southeast South Dakota, northeast Nebraska, northwest and west central Iowa and southwest Minnesota. This includes the Tribal Lands of the Yankton Sioux Tribal Nation and the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribal Nation. * WHEN...From noon today to 8 PM CDT this evening. * IMPACTS...Hot temperatures and high humidity may cause heat illnesses to occur. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. Young children and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances. Take extra precautions if you work or spend time outside. When possible reschedule strenuous activities to early morning or evening. Know the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Wear lightweight and loose fitting clothing when possible. To reduce risk during outdoor work, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration recommends scheduling frequent rest breaks in shaded or air conditioned environments. Anyone overcome by heat should be moved to a cool and shaded location. Heat stroke is an emergency! Call 9 1 1. &&
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Michael P. Rellahan has been a staff reporter and editor at the Daily Local News since 1982. He has covered all kinds of news over the years but is now assigned to report on court and legal news, as well as Chester County government news and politics.
Leadership often involves banging down doors and making trade-offs so that big issues are tackled head-on.

Boris Johnson has defied the sceptics and done just that with Brexit.

Voters clearly believe he will do it again when it comes to levelling up as evidenced by his stunning victory in Hartlepool last week.

But one thing was missing from yesterdays otherwise packed Queens Speech: concrete plans on social care.

If ever there was an area we need the same bulldozer spirit to crack a problem that has been ducked by government after government, it is the way we look after older people.

I share part of the responsibility for that lack of progress: as health secretary I took legislation through the House of Commons in 2014 to establish a cap on care costs that would mean people didnt have to sell their home.

I was proud to do so  but then went along with a Treasury request to delay implementation till 2020.

Subsequently, I fought for a ten-year plan for the social care sector to go alongside the one I secured for the NHS. I was told it would follow  but it never did.

The one bright spot was an unexpected mention of social care in Boriss words on the steps of Downing Street the day after he defeated me in the Conservative leadership contest: My job is to protect you or your parents or grandparents from the fear of having to sell your home to pay for the costs of care and so I am announcing now  on the steps of Downing Street  that we will fix the crisis in social care once and for all with a clear plan we have prepared to give every older person the dignity and security they deserve.

Wonderful words  and followed up this spring with an encouraging promise to the Commons liaison committee that we will see that long-awaited ten-year plan later this year.

Bosses at the Alzheimers Society, said the Government needed a concrete plan for the 850,000 people with dementia in the UK. Pictured: Library image of a woman caring for an elderly relative

I am in no doubt about the Prime Ministers personal commitment  but remain concerned we still have no details on what those plans for the social care sector are.

So why the delay? We all understand the sorry state of public finances after the pandemic, but most of the costs of social care reform will not kick in for several years allowing plenty of time for the economy to recover.

Nor is cross-party agreement necessary as all the major parties already support the Dilnot principles on the statute book. All it needs now is political will.

Although it was a Labour government that set up the NHS in 1948, it was actually a Conservative health minister, Sir Henry Willink, who first proposed the idea in 1944.

Fixing social care is our 1948 moment  the chance to make a major reform that will last generations and stand the test of time.

Winston Churchill supported the setting up of the NHS all those years ago so, in his spirit, it is time to end the delay and commit to action this day.

Jeremy Hunt MP is the chairman of the Commons health and social care committee

When WILL they show they care? Boris Johnson faces backlash after failing to honour his pledge to fix Britain's broken social care system... and devoted just NINE WORDS to it in the Queen's Speech

By Daniel Martin, Policy Editor for the Daily Mail

The promise they never keep... September 1997 - Tony Blair: I dont want [our children] brought up in a country where the only way pensioners can get long-term care is by selling their home. January 2013 - David Cameron: Well set out big new steps on some of the hardest and most important long-term issues that will shape the future for generations to come... On social care, capping the potentially huge costs of long-term care faced by many families today. April 2015 - Conservative Manifesto: We will guarantee that you will not have to sell your home to fund your residential social care. April 2017  Theresa May: We need to ensure we have got that long-term solution for a sustainable future for social care. July 2019 - Boris Johnson: 'My job is to protect you or your parents or grandparents from from having to sell your home to pay for the costs of care. And so I'm announcing now that we will fix the crisis in social care once and for all with a clear plan we have prepared.' And yesterday, in just nine words, kicked into long grass again: Proposals on social care reform will be brought forward. Advertisement

Boris Johnson faced a massive backlash tonight after devoting just nine words to social care in the Queens Speech.

Measures to reform long-standing funding issues were absent from the list of 30 Bills announced in Parliament yesterday.

Despite lengthy negotiations, No 10 and the Treasury have been unable to reach agreement on a strategy to limit the amounts pensioners have to pay toward their own care.

It meant the Queen was unable to say any more than: Proposals on social care reform will be brought forward.

The glaring omission of any detail comes despite figures revealing that 10,000 people have been financially crippled while waiting for Mr Johnson to fix the crisis. Charities, experts and MPs condemned yet another delay in the introduction of a credible plan.

Tory MP Damian Green, who worked on social care reform as Theresa Mays deputy, said: I am absolutely insistent that this needs to be the year for action and decision rather than kicking the can down the road any further.

Mr Johnson promised imminent reform when he became Prime Minister in July 2019. Standing outside No 10, he said: My job is to protect you or your parents or grandparents from the fear of having to sell your home to pay for the costs of care.

And so I am announcing now  on the steps of Downing Street  that we will fix the crisis in social care once and for all with a clear plan we have prepared to give every older person the dignity and security they deserve.

But nothing has been forthcoming, aside from a promise that plans would brought forward by the end of 2021.

Under Englands present broken care system, pensioners have to pay the full cost of their care down to their last 23,250.

This includes the value of their property, meaning thousands of parents are unable to pass on the family home to their children.

An average of 15 people a day see their savings wiped out after being landed with sky-high bills for their care, an analysis by Age UK found.

The charity estimated that in the 657 days since Mr Johnson became Prime Minister, some 10,000 people have lost almost all the money they have saved during their life.

Age UK last night said his delay in implementing a plan has had far-reaching effects.

Charity director Caroline Abrahams said: Its patently unfair that if you need a lot of care for a long time the gigantic cost could take away all youve worked hard for throughout your life.

Boris Johnson faced a massive backlash last night after devoting just nine words to social care in the Queens Speech

Despite lengthy negotiations, No 10 and the Treasury have been unable to reach agreement on a strategy to limit the amounts pensioners have to pay toward their own care. It meant the Queen (pictured yesterday) was unable to say any more than: Proposals on social care reform will be brought forward'

Yet this is the reality for 15 people every day, who face complete ruin, just because they lost the lottery over who develops expensive care needs in later life, and who never requires any care support at all.

Its shocking that 10,000 people have been left penniless by their care bills since the Prime Minister promised to fix social care.

Nothing could demonstrate more clearly why its time for the Government to take action, so no one has to bear such a huge financial risk alone ever again, leaving them essentially to be thrown to the wolves because of factors that were totally beyond their control.

She added: As things are at the moment its as though we punish people who have assets and who need long-term care when we should be offering them our full support.

Its bad enough trying to come to terms with growing incapacity and physical and mental decline, without also worrying sick that you could run out of money and be left penniless, at one of the most challenging times in your life.

A briefing note from No 10, accompanying the Queens Speech, said the Government would engage with care staff about how best to help the 1.5million-strong workforce and ensure reform was informed by diverse perspectives.

The document noted that costs are unpredictable, can be very high and that not all the risk is shared across society.

Professor Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, which represents independent care providers, said the Queens Speech was a missed opportunity.

Professor Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, which represents independent care providers, said the Queens Speech was a missed opportunity

Without the much-needed, not to mention heralded, reform it is questionable as to how much longer the sector can be expected to limp on, he said.

A sector that supports and employs vast swathes of the population cannot be ignored.

Liz Kendall, Labours social care spokesman, said: Older people who helped make this country what it is, and who are now seeing their life savings wiped out to pay for care, deserve more than a paltry nine words in the Queens Speech.

'Mr Johnson needs to wake up to the fact we cannot build a better country as we emerge from this awful pandemic without a decent system of social care.

Liz Kendall, Labours social care spokesman, said: Older people who helped make this country what it is, and who are now seeing their life savings wiped out to pay for care, deserve more than a paltry nine words in the Queens Speech.'

After the horror of what happened in care homes during Covid-19 this should have been the Prime Ministers top priority, not once again kicked into the long grass. Our elderly people deserve better.

Sir Andrew Dilnot, the architect of a decade-old plan for a lifetime cap on the amount individuals have to pay, said he would have liked to have seen details in the Queens Speech but the emergence of a clear timetable was encouraging.

Now its up to the Government to bring up a set of proposals that will bring in a social care system we can be proud of, he added.

Gavin Terry, head of policy at the Alzheimers Society, said the Government needed a concrete plan for the 850,000 people with dementia in the UK.

A spokesman for No 10 said: Throughout the pandemic we have sought to protect the elderly and the most vulnerable and this will remain our priority as we look to end the care lottery and make sure people receive high-quality, joined-up care.

'We are committed to bringing forward a long-term plan to reform the social care system and we will set out proposals later this year.
For decades, she presided over the State Opening of Parliament beneath the gold canopy in the House of Lords, her husband perched loyally by her side.

When Philip retired, the Queens eldest son dutifully stepped up from the substitutes bench to offer his support as she announced the Governments legislative agenda.

But yesterday, as she carried out her first major public engagement since the Duke of Edinburgh passed away last month, there was another notable, rather eerie absence from the proceedings.

For the first time since 1901, the consorts throne, positioned next to the monarchs since Edward VIIs reign, had been quietly removed.

For decades, The Queen presided over the State Opening of Parliament beneath the gold canopy in the House of Lords, her husband Prince Philip perched loyally by her side (pictured: the State Opening of Parliament in 2016)

As Her Majesty took her place in front of a near-empty Upper Chamber, she was left to sit just as she had in St Georges Chapel, Windsor, four weeks ago, in that unforgettable image of private, solitary grief.

Could there be a more poignant and sorrowful symbol of the Queens widowhood? This was her 67th State Opening; she and Philip were in their twenties when they first carried out this vital public duty.

For almost all of the long intervening years, Philip had sat dutifully beside her, resplendent on his own gold throne, listening attentively as she delivered to Parliament and to the nation her ministers various programmes  the mundane and the visionary alike.

In later years, of course, the duke took a well-deserved retirement from public life and the onerous roles of state.

Prince Charles took his fathers lead in 2017, sitting in the consorts throne and providing a similar companionship to the monarch.

Yesterday, though, the absence of the throne captured the absence of the duke with a wordless power.

It was a sight that the country had never seen before, and one that we will not soon forget. But then the whole ceremony yesterday felt like departure from the usual fare. No horse-drawn carriages. No train-bearing page boys.

The absence of peers wives rendered the Lords red benches oddly bling-free. Shorn of much of its pageantry thanks to the Covid pestilence, the event felt more procedure than pomp.

It was why the consorts throne had remained at Houghton Hall, Norfolk, under the care of the Lord Great Chamberlain.

Yesterday, as she carried out her first major public engagement since the Duke of Edinburgh passed away last month, the consorts throne, positioned next to the monarchs (left) since Edward VIIs reign, had been quietly removed for the first time since 1901 (pictured right: Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall)

To maintain social distancing Charles and Camilla were seated on chairs of State, to the Queens left.

Her Majestys motorcade had arrived to the Sovereigns Entrance at 11.25am. The Queen had chosen a simple black Range Rover. No fuss, no fanfare. The stately robes, too, remained mothballed, HM preferring a simple grey jacket adorned with lemon flowers and a matching hat by her dressmaker Angela Kelly. Face mask? As the fully vaccinated head of State, one had earned the right to dispense with it. Outside, Parliament Square was deserted. Tumbleweed alley.

The only sounds were the blades of a television news helicopter whirring over Whitehall. Occasionally, there was a Stop Brexit wail from that pillock protester who still lingers around the parliamentary estate like an off sardine.

Into the Robing Room the Queen swept, on through the Royal Gallery, pausing briefly to exchange a glance with her long-serving Lord Great Chamberlain, the Marquess of Cholmondeley, with whom her body language betrayed a rare flicker of familiarity.

Charles, ungloved, held her hand as she climbed the steps to the single throne. Flanked beside Her Majesty yesterday were a rather fidgety Charles, his face pink as a cherry popsicle, and Camilla, a captivating vision in white.

Over in the Commons, Black Rod was rapping on the door and summoning MPs from the chamber. Social distancing required, they filtered off to the Lords single file, depriving us of the sight of awkward chit-chat between the Prime Minister and the Opposition leader along the way.

Prince Charles (right), ungloved, held her hand as she climbed the steps to the single throne. Flanked beside Her Majesty (left) yesterday were a rather fidgety Charles, his face pink as a cherry popsicle, and Camilla, a captivating vision in white

At the last State Opening, Jeremy Corbyn recoiled from Boriss advances the way one might from a lunatic raving on a street corner. This time, Boris yomped ahead as though leading the First XV out of the changing rooms.

Then she spoke. One of the most admirable things about the Queen is her extraordinary composure. She rattled through the speech without a wobble, her trusty handbag at her elbow. Faithfully, she recited stuff about increasing gigabit-capable broadband and banning the unseemly business of conversion therapy while remaining utterly inscrutable.

After less than 20 minutes, she was done, and hopefully on to a well-deserved lunch.

On her way out, she stopped for a few words with the days ceremonial cast of characters  Garter, the Lord Speaker etc. Beneath all her finery, she looked very human.

In the afternoon, we reassembled in the Commons. Sir Keir Starmer, who could have probably done without all this after the weekend hed endured, opened with some warm words for the Monarch.

After Philips death, he acknowledged, the State Opening must have been her hardest to deliver. All those republican Lefties in the party will have been crunching their molars at that.

Following Starmers local-elections drubbing, it was immediately clear aides had encouraged him to loosen up a bit. His speech made several stabs at humour. None an uproarious success. As always, he spoke for too long.

Once Starmer had finished rabbiting, the Prime Minister sprung into action. Suddenly, he was peppier than a sprinter on steroids. He got in a good gag about Starmers cheesed-off deputy Angela Rayner, whom he compared to a dangerous lioness. The more titles he feeds her, the hungrier she is likely to become, joked Boris. Ange and Sir Keir laughed along gamely. But then thats all they can do at the moment. Boris is beginning to look dangerously settled.
A new flare-up of violence between the Israelis and Palestinians seems depressingly familiar.

Decades of peace-making efforts between Jews and Arabs, backed by US presidents from Nixon to Trump, have failed to solve the dispute. And now, once again, the festering sore has reopened.

Rocket fire and Israeli air strikes. Explosions in mosques inflaming tensions. Palestinian missiles fired on Jerusalem for the first time since 2014.

And an ever growing toll of fatalities including nine children, as retaliations take place.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attending a special cabinet meeting on May 9

Protesters in Palestine burn tyres during clashes with Israeli security forces at the Hawara checkpoint

What is notable about the flare-up this time is the speed at which it has escalated into the worst unrest for years. Neither side seems willing to compromise.

After an election in which he failed to gain a majority and is looking to cobble together the next government, the acting Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to look tough.

Hamas, Palestines leading terror group, believes the circumstances are in its favour with Israel in internal chaos and no government.

Its rockets are primitive, indiscriminate and can be used only to terrorise the Israeli civilians within range.

In contrast, the modern missiles with which the Israelis counter-attack are pin-point accurate and so powerful that, when they strike Palestinian rocket launchers, the shock waves shatter nearby houses and the people cowering inside them.

These civilian casualties are fuelling the propaganda war waged by Israels enemies. And Jerusalems status as a city sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims only adds bitter religious rivalry to the explosive mix.

All the powerful regional players wrestling to dominate the Middle East with its vast energy resources are looking on like hawks.

States like Iran, Syria and Hezbollah-dominated Lebanon see the current tit-for-tat violence between Israel and the Palestinians as an opportunity for meddling. And each has bitter disputes with Israel.

The Iranians accuse Israeli agents of sabotaging their nuclear programme with computer viruses and even the assassination of key scientists.

Syria and Iran supply the Lebanese terrorist group, Hezbollah, with weapons and missiles.

The Israeli air force has repeatedly bombed the supply routes through Syria to Lebanon.

The ayatollahs and the Assad regime will be stoking anger against Israel over Palestinian casualties.

Neither has a moral leg to stand on when it comes to taking innocent life but that doesnt stop them weeping crocodile tears.

Members of the public walk past a banner showing Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus this month

A girl receives medical care following a reported Israeli air strike in Syria's Latakia region

Plumes of smoke are seen rising into the air following an Israeli air strike on Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip

They believe the balance of power is shifting their way. Assads regime in Syria is coming out on top of the bloodbath there with Iranian and Russian help.

Meanwhile, the new Biden administration seems to be going soft on its backing for old US allies in the Gulf while trying to cut a renewed nuclear deal with Iran.

Far from moderating Iran by abandoning Trumps tough policy against it, the new administrations approach has encouraged hardliners there to provoke the uneven conflict between Palestinians and Israelis as a smart way to muddy the moral waters.

Hezbollah could even be tempted to send some of Irans hi-tech missiles into Israel.

Ordinary Palestinians are tragic pawns in this wider power struggle. They are expendable to the terrorists and ayatollahs engaged in a long war of attrition against Israel and the other allies of the West.

Warnings about the risks of all-out war are falling on deaf ears. But the terrifying truth is that a Middle East conflagration is becoming more likely by the day.
Many of us are hoping to escape for a summer holiday abroad this year, as lockdown restrictions ease, but these hilarious travel reviews prove that some people are better off staying at home.

Entitled tourists from around the world have complained of sandy white beaches that were 'too sandy,' Indian restaurants serving too much curry, and mountains being too steep in a hilarious gallery collated by Constative.

One person moaned that the legendary panting of the Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci, which is on show at the Louvre Museum in Paris, was too small, while another was aggrieved at being bitten by a mosquito.

Perhaps one of the strangest bugbears was from a hotel quest who disapproved of the shape their towel was folded in because they 'don't like swans'.

Constative has collected the funniest reviews posted online by entitled tourists from around the world, including one who was baffled that hot air balloon rides didn't come with a disclaimer they were not suited for people who were scared of heights

Sorry Leonardo, but you could have done better. One aggrieved art lover was not impressed by the size of the famous Mona Lisa at The Louvre in Paris

Life's not a beach: An eagle-eyed holidaymaker who was expecting a 'yellow' sand was disappointed to find it was more of a pale shade

Biting review! One critic was not happy that the holiday brochure failed to warn that they might encounter a mosquito on their travels

Water lot of bother! A holidaymaker somehow failed to realise that there would be no bathroom on board their canoe

Que? It's unclear what this tourist was expecting of their trip to Spain, but it seems they didn't havet he foresight to realise not everyone would speak English

Swanning off! A hotel customer took offence at a swan made out of a towel one of the maids had left behind as decorative touch

If you don't like curry, don't Goa there! One tourist complained that there was too much spicy food on offer on their tripe to India

Something fishy! A concerned parents said they were not expecting to see fish in the water, and that it scared their children

One person got upset at basic geography after saying it was 'unfair' that it only took Americans three hours to go to Jamaica while it was taking Britons nine hours

Pooling resources! Some people decided to book a trip to a water park, but didn't think to pack swimsuits or towels for it

What were you expecting? Tourists in Europe were dismayed when an incredibly cheap pair of Ray-bans they bought for five euros turned out to be counterfeit

One person tried a hotel phone shortcut on their cellphone, and complained when it didn't work

One tourist said they didn't appreciate the Mediterranean tradition of 'siestas,' where shopkeepers close their shops for a few hours in the afternoon for an after-lunch nap

Note: if you're going rafting, don't bring expensive leather goods with you, pictured, because there is every chance the water will get them wet

Safari not so goody - A tourist who had booked a safari regretted they only had seen antelopes and no 'good animals'

Don't tell them about Everest! One person complained the mountain they decided to climb was too steep and had too many trees
A chef who became an internet sensation for his unique way of seasoning meat is set to bring his restaurant chain to the UK next week - complete with a 700 gold-plated steak.

Nusret Gokce, better known as Salt Bae, is set to open his eponymous restaurant Nusr-et at the Park Tower Knightsbridge Hotel next week as restrictions ease to allow indoor dining.

The Turkish-born butcher already has 19 restaurants across the world which are popular with celebs including Conor McGregor, P Diddy, David Beckham and Leonardo DiCaprio.

A chef who became an internet sensation for his unique way of seasoning meat is set to open a restaurant in London next week - complete with a 700 gold-plated steak. Nusret Gokce, better known as Salt Bae, is set to open his eponymous restaurant in Knighsbridge next week as restrictions ease across the UK to allow indoor dining.

Salt Bae, real name Nusret Gokce, owns a chain of Nusr-Et restaurants and is known for his theatrical salt-sprinkling antics

And now London diners will be able to get their hands on the 24-Carat gold tomahawk steak, which has previously been a menu item in their Dubai branch.

One diner who previously ate at the restaurant told MailOnline that it was the 'best steak he'd ever tasted' but was unsure if it was the gold that made the difference.

However, he said that the metallic morsel was certainly more 'glamorous' than the average chop and 'attracted a lot of attention from fellow diners'.

The swanky steak is covered with gold leaf, which is safe to eat as pure gold is chemically inert. This means the precious metal passes through the digestive system without being absorbed into the body.

And now London diners will be able to get their hands on the 24-Carat gold Tomhawk steak, which has previously been a menu item in their Dubai branch.

Salt Bae, real name Nusret Gokce, owns a chain of Nusr-Et restaurants and is known for his theatrical salt-sprinkling antics.

He went viral in 2017 after posting videos of himself salting meat and now has more than 34 million Instagram followers.

His restaurants in the Middle East, New York and Miami charge several hundred dollars for some cuts of meat.

Rumours of Salt Bae's London branch have been circulating since 2017, and it's finally set to open next week at the Park Tower Knightsbridge Hotel.

While little has been announced about the new output, jobs have been advertised for a sommelier, restaurant manager and a sushi chef - suggesting the restaurant will serve more than just steak.

Rumours of Salt Bae's London branch have been circulating since 2017, and it's finally set to open next week at the Park Tower Knightsbridge Hotel, pictured

Despite his viral fame, the chef has not come without controversies.

Earlier this year a Brooklyn-based artist sued the butcher for $5million over the unauthorised use of artwork featuring the restaurateur's signature pose

The suit alleges that after Gokce commissioned William Hicks to do several pieces for his restaurants in Miami, New York, Doha, and Dubai, Salt Bae used Hicks' graphics for menus, labels, restaurant signs and more.

Hicks discovered that the defendants were 'engaging in widespread, unauthorised distribution' of the work in early 2020, noting that imagery soon began appearing in window displays, digital signs, menus, wipes and takeout bags at 'Nusr-et steakhouses and Saltbae Burger restaurants in New York, Dubai, and Istanbul.'

The lawsuit reads that Hicks sent a letter to Gokce in April 2020 demanding that they 'immediately cease and desist' from any further use of the artwork.

But rather than comply with the request, Gokce began using further graphics at locations in Doha, D Maris Bay, Turkey, Boston, Dallas, and in several Istanbul locations, according to the lawsuit.
Grocery chain Foodland has upstaged its biggest rivals Aldi, Woolworths and Coles to become the best-rated supermarket in Australia.

The independent supermarket, based primarily in South Australia, has taken out the top spot in CHOICE's 2021 supermarket satisfaction survey after 3,200 consumers voted for their favourite grocery chain.

Shoppers were asked to rate the supermarkets based on 19 different categories - including value for money, quality of products, helpfulness of staff, ease of locating items, speed of checkout, store layout and stock availability.

Foodland claimed the top spot, followed by Drakes, Harris Farm Markets, Aldi, Costco, IGA, FoodWorks, Woolworths, Coles and the Friendly Grocer.

Grocery chain Foodland, based primarily in South Australia, stands out ahead of all the major supermarket stores after claiming the top spot for the best rated supermarket in Australia

Foodland has the happiest shoppers after receiving a stellar 82 per cent. The supermarket was rated best for 14 criteria out of 19 - including range of products and brands available, ease of locating items, helpfulness of staff, speed of checkout and ease of using self-service checkout

Supermarket satisfaction 2021 1. Foodland: 82% 2. Drakes: 79% 3. Harris Farm Markets: 78% 4. Aldi: 75% 5. Costco: 75% 6. IGA: 74% 7. FoodWorks: 72% 8. Woolworths: 71% 9. Coles: 69% 10. Friendly Grocer: 67% Advertisement

Foodland has the happiest shoppers after receiving a stellar 82 per cent. The chain kept its title as the best rated supermarket for the second time in Choice's survey after first claiming the top spot in 2019.

The supermarket was rated best for 14 criteria out of 19 - including range of products and brands available, ease of locating items, helpfulness of staff, speed of checkout, ease of using self-service checkout, store appearance and layout.

Drakes finished in second place with a score of 79 per cent.

The chain, which has more than 60 stores across South Australia and Queensland, was voted best for offering the amount and availability of specials and discounts, availability of staff for assistance and helpfulness of staff.

Following closely behind in third place is New South Wales' Harris Farm Markets with a score of 78 per cent for offering the best quality of fresh produce and produce availability - but the grocery chain fell short in the ease of parking category.

What is Foodland? Foodland is an independently owned supermarket chain, based primarily in South Australia and a few stores in Northern Territory. There are 90 stores across SA - with weekly catalogues offering 'hundreds of great specials'. The chain prides itself on selling Foodland branded products made in Australia, with more than half of them made in South Australia itself - meaning there are zero imported foods in the supermarket's exclusively owned label range. The supermarket has been rated best for: Range of products and brands available

Availability of locally produced food products

Stock turnover (food products are within use-by and best-before dates)

Product availability (shelves are stocked with items as labelled)

Opening hours

Ease of parking

Ease of locating items you want Helpfulness of staff (e.g. checkout, refund/exchange, assistance)

Ease of use of shopping trolleys/baskets

Speed of checkout

Availability of your preferred type of checkout (i.e. self-service, staff-assisted)

Ease of using self-service checkout

Store appearance and layout

Clarity of unit-pricing signage Advertisement

Drakes, which has more than 60 stores across South Australia and Queensland, finished in second place with a score of 79 per cent

Drakes, an independent grocery retailer, was voted best for offering the amount and availability of specials and discounts, availability of staff for assistance and helpfulness of staff

Following closely behind in third place is New South Wales' Harris Farm Markets with a score of 78 per cent for offering the best quality of fresh produce and produce availability - but the grocery chain fell short in the ease of parking category

The three supermarket chains earned the highest overall scores for supermarket satisfaction. The trio also rated higher than their major rivals across various criteria including range of products and brands, and availability of locally produced foods.

ALDI was rated best in the value for money category as the supermarket continues to differentiate itself on price.

The German-owned chain landed in fourth place, alongside with Costco after the duo scored 75 per cent.

IGA/Supa IGA supermarket chain scored 74 per cent, followed by FoodWorks with 72 per cent.

Foodland claimed the top spot, followed by Drakes, Harris Farm Markets, Aldi, Costco, IGA, FoodWorks, Woolworths, Coles and the Friendly Grocer

ALDI was rated best in the value for money category as the supermarket continues to differentiate itself on price

Woolworths finished in eighth place with 71 per cent, closely followed by Coles scored 69 per cent. Friendly Grocer rounded up the top 10 with 67 per cent.

Coles and Woolworths rated above average for availability of preferred type of checkout, range of products and brands available, and ease of using trolleys and baskets.

However, the only criterion the duopoly rated best for was their opening hours. The two major supermarkets rated lower than at least some of their competitors on all other criteria.

Consumers were asked to rate their shopping experience at their go-to supermarkets on a seven-point scale ranging from 'excellent' to 'terrible'. The numbers were then converted into a percentage score.

A total of 3,182 Voice Your Choice members across Australia were surveyed in February and March 2021.
Pollutant transfer on Yichang section of Yangzte River gets smarter

09:53, May 11, 2021 By Qiang Yuwen ( People's Daily

Photo shows a display screen of an intelligent management center of the bureau of transport of Yichang, central Chinas Hubei province. The screen shows in real time the whole process of the handover, transfer, treatment and disposal of waste collected from vessels passing the Yichang section of the Yangtze River. (Peoples Daily/Qiang Yuwen)

As a container vessel from Shanghai was berthed at an anchorage ground along the Yangtze River, Chinas longest watercourse, in Yichang, central Chinas Hubei province, Xi Yingjun, captain of the vessel, submitted a list of pollutants generated by the crew members in nearly 10 days, including 2.5 cubic meters of domestic sewage, on a mobile app.

Then the list was received by Zhang Shouzhi, captain of a ship responsible for receiving the pollutants, who later commanded his crew to pilot the ship to a designated area to pick up the garbage.

Ten minutes later, the two vessels were berthed shoulder to shoulder, and the domestic sewage was pumped to Zhangs ship, after which both captains received an electronic bill indicating the time and transfer volume on their mobile phones.

The Yichang section of the Yangtze River stretches 232 kilometers and is passed by around 60,000 vessels each year. Therefore, its not rare to see a vast number of vessels anchored there waiting for inspection before passing ship locks.

In order to save time and reduce cost, most ships choose to have their pollutants transferred while they are waiting for inspection, according to Hu Jixue, head of a law enforcement detachment for waterway transport in Yichang.

Vessels often spend a long time in the section due to the huge traffic, and the handover, transfer and disposal of pollutants are a big headache for us, Hu told Peoples Daily.

Apart from domestic sewage, vessels also produce residential waste and oily wastewater, the disposal of which is supervised by different regulators, for example, the housing and urban-rural development bureau, urban management law-enforcement bureau, and environmental authority, Hu said.

In addition, ships and ports are administered separately by the department of maritime affairs and transport department, which made it even more difficult to efficiently and properly remove and dispose pollutants from passing vessels, he said.

Where do pollutants come from and where will they be taken? No one could explain it clearly because of the lack of communication in the past, Hu added.

In 2019, Jingxiaoyi, which literally means a clean Yichang in Chinese, a collaborative governance information system for addressing pollutants from ships was launched by Yichang. Comprising a mini-program on WeChat, a backend database, and a big display screen, the system is both an instrument for receiving, transferring, and disposing pollutants from vessels and an open platform for collaborative supervision and control among different authorities.

After Zhang once again opened the mini-program at noon and submitted an application to transfer the domestic sewage he received from Xis container vessel, the sewage pump on his ship was connected to a sanitary sewer on the riverbank under the operation of Yang Hongxin, a dispatcher at a wharf where received pollutants are transferred. Then the sewage entered the municipal sewage pipe network for bio-safety disposal.

Meanwhile, the whole process of the transfer was displayed in real time on the big screen of an intelligent management center of Yichangs bureau of transport, so that the whereabouts of the pollutants are totally trackable for supervisory and regulatory authorities.

Domestic wastewater is transferred by the wharf before being directly discharged into the municipal sewage network. Domestic solid waste is taken care of by the environmental authority, which transfers it to solid waste treatment center by sanitation vehicles. And oily wastewater is taken to oil refineries by oil tank trucks after pretreatment at the wharf, introduced Li Xian, an executive with the intelligent management center.

The mini-program has broken the information barriers between supervisory and regulatory authorities, thus enabling closed-loop management of the whole process, he added.

According to Li, as of April 27, 2021, a total of 111,885 batches of pollutants had been transferred on the Yichang section of the Yangtze River under the assistance of Jingxiaoyi since November 2019, when the system was launched, including 2,002.7 tonnes of domestic solid waste, 81,747.5 cubic meters of domestic wastewater, and 5,408.3 cubic meters of oily wastewater.

It is learned that the handover, transfer, and disposal of domestic solid waste and domestic wastewater are free services.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
An American expat living Down Under has revealed why she believes Australian McDonald's is better than the US.

Kaymie Wuerfel relocated from Florida to Sydney in early 2020 after tying the knot with her Australian beau, and has been 'learning to live' in the Harbour City since the first coronavirus lockdown in March.

To pass time during the pandemic, the Clearwater native began documenting the biggest differences between life in the US and Down Under in a series of TikTok videos which have drawn a fan base of more than 133,000 followers.

In her latest clip titled 'three things I've come to love in Australia', Ms Wuerfel said she prefers Australian McDonald's to the American version because the quality of the food is far superior.

Scroll down for video

Kaymie Wuerfel (pictured) relocated from Florida to Sydney in early 2020 after tying the knot with her Australian beau, but she's still coming to terms with some unique Aussie quirks

'I never ate it much in America because when you eat McDonald's in America you genuinely feel like you are going to die,' she said.

'And I know here is probably not much better but it is so, so good.

'I'm eating those Chicken McPieces and downing my frozen Coke, the last thing on my mind is my health - which probably is a bad thing.'

Viewers agreed, with plenty suggesting this could be down to Australia's premium ingredients such as grass-fed beef, or the oil chips and chicken nuggets are fried in.

Many complained of falling ill hours after eating a meal from an American Maccas.

'I tried McDonald's while I was in the US and I literally was sick a few hours later,' one person wrote.

Ms Wuerfel (pictured at Sydney Opera House in 2020) said she prefers Australian McDonald's to the American version because the quality of the food is far superior

Ms Wuerfel (pictured) said she never ate McDonald's when she lived in America because 'when you eat McDonald's in America you genuinely feel like you are going to die'

'I tried the USA Macca's too when I was there. It's so bad, I don't know how it became so big,' said another.

Later in her video, Ms Wuerfel also praised Australias superannuation system and currency, saying the different coloured notes made it much easier to use.

Australian denominations make up a rainbow of shades, with pink and purple $5 bills, blue $10 bills, reddish orange $20 bills and yellow $50 bills, while in America, all paper money is green.

'I love the currency as the different colours make it easy to recognise, plus its very durable,' Ms Wuerfel said.

Earlier this month, Ms Wuerfel made headlines by sharing the biggest culture shocks she faced after moving Down Under, including using the C-word to greet people, free healthcare, chicken salt and being charged 15 cents for a grocery bag.

During a trip to the supermarket with her husband, the young brunette said she realised all the prices labelled on shelves were already 'marked to include tax'.

During a trip to the supermarket, Ms Wuerfel said she was surprised when a checkout employee wanted to charge her 15 cents for a grocery bag

She said the conversation came up when she asked him to give her $5 plus tax so she could pay for a tub of peanut butter.

'But he told me that all prices in Australia are marked to include tax... I realised how much simpler life is buying things for the price as marked,' she explained.

She was similarly surprised when a checkout employee wanted to charge her 15 cents for a grocery bag.

'She asked: 'Would you like a bag?" and I was like: "Of course I'd like a bag." Then she goes: "Okay, that's 15 cents per bag" 15 cents per bag?' she recalled.

Supermarkets in Australia have been charging customers money for reusable bags in an attempt to crack down on single-use plastic bags.
Aldi Australia is planning to convert a supermarket in a densely populated urban area into a trendy small format 'corner store'.

The budget grocery chain has submitted a development application to North Sydney Council about its proposal for transforming its existing North Sydney outlet into a brand new concept store in a major shake-up to the supermarket industry.

The smaller format store will appear different to what shoppers usually expect from a standard Aldi supermarket, with plans to offer an urban-style outlet featuring a new layout, a 'hole in the wall' cafe, new signage and street art.

Aldi Australia is planning to convert a supermarket in a densely populated urban area into a small format 'corner store'

'We know that Australians are looking for new and convenient shopping experiences, especially in densely populated areas, so we are exploring a smaller format store in North Sydney under a new store concept name: ALDI Corner Store,' an Aldi spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia.

'The development application in North Sydney has yet to be approved, so we will have more to share on this proposal at a later date.

'But [we] can confirm the proposed small format update will offer a new store layout and more convenience-driven experiences to North Sydney shoppers.'

The budget grocery chain has submitted a development application to North Sydney Council about its proposal for transforming its existing North Sydney outlet into a brand new concept store in a major shake-up to the supermarket industry

The smaller format store will appear different to what shoppers usually expect from a standard Aldi supermarket (picture of the existing North Shore Aldi store)

If the proposal goes ahead, Aldi's new corner store could rival major supermarkets Woolworths Metro and Coles Local, which are smaller formats mostly located in urban areas.

The new plans come nearly a year after Aldi opened a new supermarket store in Lane Cove on the lower north shore of Sydney - complete with state-of-the-art features and unique Special Buys products.

The modern format store features 'better' product displays, improved navigation, a modern interior design, redesigned shelving, expanded wooden produce bays, as well as extended energy efficient chillers.
A woman who needed reconstructive surgery on her nose after doctors removed a clump of blood vessels under her skin has revealed how she is ridiculed by cruel strangers who say she looks like a 'bull' or Shrek's Princess Fiona.

Laudiane Fernandes, 42, from Alagoas, Brazil, was born with haemangiomas, collections of small blood vessels that form lumps under the skin, in her nose, scalp and around her eyes.

They caused severe nose bleeds and seizures in childhood which worsened to the point where she was in and out of hospital on a regular basis.

After being diagnosed at the age of 16, Laudiane underwent eight surgeries including one to remove a haemangioma from her nose, which involved cutting into the skin and reshaping the nose.

However the repaired skin became infected and Laudiane's nose partially collapsed.

Laudiane Fernandes, from Alagoas, Brazil, was born with haemangiomas, a collection of small blood vessels that form a lump under the skin, which caused severe nose bleeds as a child

Laudiane eventually needed reconstructive surgery, which left her with a larger nose, above

To repair the damage doctors performed a skin graft using part of the inside of Laudiane's cheek.

While this helped her breathe better, it also left her with a nose that was 'twice as big' as the one she had before.

'After five hours, the process was complete and although I felt happy that my nose was finally whole again, I was sad about my appearance and all the scars I had been left with,' Laudiane explained.

'After three months, I was in and out of the hospital once again where they ensured that the skin wasn't rejected. I remember missing being with my friends at school and playing with them and I started to struggle mentally.

'My mum used to cry and worry that we wouldn't have enough money to financially cover all of my surgeries and I used to feel down almost every day.

Laudiane, pictured, is ridiculed by cruel strangers who say she looks like a 'bull' or Shrek's Princess Fiona

Laudiane was bullied over her nose as a child and says the torment continues to this day

'Once I returned to school, I began getting comments from my peers such as "How are you doing Pinocchio?" and "You look like an alien with that nose", which used to hurt my feelings and their constant bullying really took a toll on me.

What is a haemangioma? A haemangioma is a collection of small blood vessels that form a lump under the skin. Theyre sometimes called strawberry marks because the surface of a haemangioma can look like the surface of a strawberry. Eighty percent of haemangiomas dont develop any problems at all and, in those that do, the problems arent always severe. Haemangiomas can be superficial or deep. Some haemangiomas are a combination of the superficial and deep kinds, with a raised, red area on the surface of the skin, and a bluish swelling that comes from deeper in the skin. We dont fully know the cause, but theres evidence that some cases may arise from placental tissue very early in pregnancy. Source: NHS/Great Ormond Street Advertisement

'However I learned to be strong and brave as I had no other option and if people couldn't accept my differences, then all that showed me is that they were unhappy with themselves.'

Laudiane, who works as a beauty therapist, experienced her first nosebleed at the age of five. It was so severe she was left 'sitting in a pool of her own blood'.

'Within seconds, I began having a seizure which scared my teachers as they didn't know what was going on and I was rushed to hospital,' Laudiane recalled.

'As I arrived, medics struggled to make a diagnosis as there wasn't enough technology available like there is today.

'They tried to perform a cauterisation - a procedure which aims to burn off and remove part of the body - where they tried to burn off a few of my blood vessels in an attempt to stop me from bleeding, but this didn't work.'

Laudiane was in and out of hospital as a child with 'constant' bleeding and seizures that grew increasingly worse.

She was finally diagnosed with cavernous haemangioma at the age of 16. Doctors found her nose, eyes and scalp were all affected.

Laudiane continued: 'As my nosebleeds worsened to the point where I couldn't even go a day without profusely bleeding, I spent the majority of my time in hospital corridors where they could monitor my condition.

'Due to this, doctors decided that the best course of action would be to perform surgery on my nose where they would cut into it and remove a clump of blood vessels.

The beauty technician said she has learned to brush off cruel comments from trolls

Laudiane, pictured, had a skin graft after a scar from a previous reconstructive surgery became infected

Laudiane was in and out of hospital as a child with 'constant' bleeding and seizures that grew increasingly worse. Pictured, Laudiane today

'I went on to have eight surgeries and in my final one, they tried reattaching the skin to my nose but this resulted in an infection and as a result, I lost part of my nose.

'I was left with a deviated septum after my surgery which brought me great difficulty breathing and due to this, I knew I had no other option but to let them [reconstruct my nose] with part of my cheek.'

Laudiane now lives with a nose that has a larger tip than before and says she still receives mean comments from people.

Laudiane now lives with a nose that has a larger tip than before and says she still receives mean comments from people

Laudiane said: 'I am not ashamed or feel inferior to anybody else due to the way I look and I believe that my condition has actually made me stronger and it will not deter me from living out my dreams'. Pictured, Laudiane today

Laudiane said she feels grateful to be alive because her condition led to breathing troubles

She added: 'Sometimes I still get comments from people online which are just horrible and cruel such as, "You look like Fiona from Shrek" and " Only bulls have noses like that," but my ordeal has taught me that you cannot let what others say affect you as life is so precious.

'Due to my condition, there were times where I could have stopped breathing or even bled out due to how much I was losing, but I thank God everyday that I am still here to tell my story.

'I am not ashamed or feel inferior to anybody else due to the way I look and I believe that my condition has actually made me stronger and it will not deter me from living out my dreams.'
The heartbreaking story of a mother-to-be who had to abort one twin girl to try and help save her other twin left viewers of Channel 4's Baby Surgeons: Delivering Miracles 'in floods of tears' after airing on Monday.

The latest episode of the documentary series, which focuses on fetal surgeons at St George's Hospital in Tooting, London, saw the woman, a nurse named Jennifer, and her partner being told one of their twins might not survive the pregnancy or would be left needing 24-hour care - after its skull failed to form properly in the womb, leaving its brain protruding out.

Viewers on social media said they were 'devastated' to watched Jennifer and her partner deliberate whether to have surgery to end the life of one of her twins to try and ensure a safer passage for their other twin.

After undergoing a selective termination, the couple's second daughter tragically died just three weeks later, despite doctors being optimistic about her chances.

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Turmoil: Jennifer, a nurse, and her partner were told at 17 weeks that one of the twins they were expecting might not survive or would have a poor quality of life in the latest episode of Channel 4's Baby Surgeons: Delivering Miracles

A scan at 17 weeks revealed that the skull of one of Jennifer's babies, twin girls she named Nova and Aurora, had not formed properly

Baby surgeon Professor Basky Thilaganathan showed the couple that the cerebellum and the thalamus of their unwell twin were 'herniating out' of the gap in the baby's skull

The programme focused on the heartbreaking decision the couple faced to try and achieve one successful pregancy. Jennifer told the show: 'Ethically, it's awful, you feel like you are playing God, and that's not what we are here to do'.

Professor Basky Thilaganathan explained to the couple that a scan at 17 weeks showed that one of the baby's skull hadn't formed correctly, meaning the brain would protrude through the gap leaving her unlikely to survive.

The emotional couple are seen looking at the scan of their unwell twin, with the doctor telling them that the cerebellum, which is responsible for co-ordination, and the thalamus, responsible for motor and sensory signals, are 'herniating out' of the gap in the baby's skull.

The twins are also monoamniotic-monochorionic, which means they share the same amniotic sac and placenta.

After discussing how her second twin's life would also be in danger if the pregnancy continued, Jennifer told the show: 'As a nurse you want to wave a magic wand and make everything better but you can't.'

One viewer, @ElliePeriPeri, said the latest episode of the hard-hitting documentary conveyed the turmoil of Jennifer and her partner: 'As a twin mummy who has been blessed with both babies, the thought of being in the position of this lady is truly awful. What a difficult decision to make.'

Doctors told her that the decision had to lie with the parents of the child over the best course of action. Jennifer and her partner elected to have a selective termination after being told that because the twins shared the amniotic sac within their mother's uterus, it could lead to the other healthy twin also facing danger - their second twin tragically died three weeks later

Viewers watched as Jennifer, pictured, told the show: 'Ethically, it's awful, you feel like you are playing God, and that's not what we are here to do'

Professor Basky Thilaganathan offered the starkest of choices to the couple, saying a selective termination was the only way to give one of the twins a chance at life

The couple seen nervously waiting Jennifer's keyhole surgery to terminate the pregnancy

WHY WAS JENNIFER FACED WITH SUCH A DIFFICULT DECISION? The death of one twin in the first trimester occurs in fewer than seven per cent of twins, according to research. After 20 weeks, death of one twin would be described as a 'late loss', between 0.5 and 6.5 per cent of all twin pregnancies. It mostly happens with monozygotic (identical) twins. Known as demise of a twin, it may be due to a wide range of conditions. If it is genetic, the identical twin may also suffer the same problems. In early pregnancy, once the twin dies, most of it will be absorbed leaving behind a small flattened remnant known as the foetus papyraceous. In later pregnancy, it becomes compressed between the other twins' sac and the uterus wall, forming a foetus papyraceous. With proper care and management, review of studies, the other twin can still be born. The outcome for the other twin's health will depend on when the demised twin passes and whether the twins share a placenta. A co-twin demise in the first trimester doesn't appear to increase risks to the other twin. For twins that share a placenta, generally the outcome for the other twin is not good. Sharing a placenta with the demised twin can lead to anaemia, low blood pressure or restriction of blood flow. This can cause death or brain damage in around 50 per cent, according to literature. For twins that do not share a placenta, the risk of death or damage is much lower for the surviving twin. There is controversy and a lack of strong evidence regarding the best time to deliver the baby. Advertisement

@JuliSavage666 added: 'So heartbreaking what parents go through #BabySurgeons.' @deedeebark wrote: 'Poor Jen, such a cruel loss for you both to comprehend. So sorry x' @ginacrook penned: 'Aah heartbroken for Jen and her partner.' Before the couple decided to go ahead with a selective termination, Professor Thilaganathan explained that because the twins share the amniotic sac within their mother's uterus, it could lead to the other twin's health being jeopardised. He said: 'When that is associated with one of the babies having a major congenital abnormality, then there's a high risk that she will lose even a healthy baby too. 'It's clear from your scan one of your babies has a problem, you know your choice is continuing or doing a selective termination.' The doctor then stressed the couple must make the decision themselves. Professor Thilaganathan said: 'This is not a medical decision, it's a personal one based on your fears and your risks, your experiences, your family, your religion, your financial status. 'There isn't a right or wrong thing to do, I am just so sorry the choice is so difficult. Whatever your choice is, we will support you, I will not tell you what to do.' After three weeks to think about the decision, the couple decide to go ahead with the abortion with Jennifer undergoing keyhole surgery to end her pregnancy. Despite the outcome for the healthier twin looking positive, viewers were devastated to learn the second twin had died three weeks later. She said: 'I feel grateful for the time I got to carry the girls, but sometimes, somedays I wish I was never pregnant, because we would not have had to make the decisions we made. She added: 'My heart aches, I would love to have a baby, but let's heal first.' The couple revealed they'd name their twins Nova and Aurora. In last week's episode of the programme, viewers watched a woman carrying triplets faced with a similarly difficult decision. Expectant mother Susie was informed how two of her triplets, which were identical and sharing the same placenta were suffering from twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome - where one baby was receiving too much blood and the other too little.

Baby Surgeons: Delivering Miracles focuses on fetal surgeons at St George's Hospital in Tooting, London

Susie, who had previously been diagnosed with severe poylcystic ovary syndrome and spent 100,000 in five years on IVF cycles to fall pregnant, had little choice but to undergo pioneering but potentially risky surgery for a successful birth.

While the operation was a success, those who tuned in were quick to take to social media to comment on how they'd been on a 'rollercoaster' of a ride with Susie throughout the programme.

'Oh god, please no! Let Susie keep these babies,' wrote one viewer, while a second penned: 'I am dehydrated from crying.'

In one emotional scene, Susie explained how her and partner Andy had been on a long journey to become pregnant for a second time.

Expectant mother Susie (pictured), from the UK, was informed how two of her triplets, which were identical and sharing the same placenta. were suffering from a condition known as twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, or TTTS - meaning one baby was receiving too much blood and the other too little

'When Henry was about two, we were that couple who thought, "we'll just get pregnant spontaneously now." But I was diagnosed with severe polycystic ovaries. We've gone through back to back IVF cycles. It's very difficult for them to access a good egg - a bit like a needle in a haystack.

'We've spent 100,000 over the five years. You see women that are pregnant all of a sudden. You can't help but give in to that feeling, can't this just be straight forward.

I can remember conversations we'd have where I'd get so fixated on having another child it was like Andy didn't matter.'

Susie and Andy's precious triplets are happy, healthy and thriving today (pictured)

Following the surgery, an ultrasound revealed the baby's heartbeats were strong and healthy and that the surgery had been a success. Pictured, Susie and partner, Andy

WHAT IS LASER SURGERY FOR TWIN-TO-TWIN TRANSFUSION SYNDROME? In complicated cases of twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS), surgery can offer the best chance of having two healthy babies. Laser ablation surgery delivers laser energy that seals off the blood vessels on the surface of the shared placenta that is allowing for blood flow to be shared. Because the vascular connections between the two fetuses are sealed, no further blood exchange between the foetuses takes place. Most surgeries are performed under local anesthesia. A small incision (3mm) will be made and a trocar (small metal tube) will be inserted into the amniotic sac of the recipient twin. An endoscope (medical telescope) will be passed into the uterus. The blood vessels, which are visible on the surface of the placenta, will be analysed, and all communicating vessels will be sealed off with laser energy. The excess amniotic fluid may be drained from the sac of the recipient twin. Pregnancy outcomes after laser therapy for TTTS is as follows: approximately 85 per cent of patients will have at least one foetus survive, 50 per cent will have both survive, with a five per cent risk of a disorder of the nervous system such as cerebral palsy. NICE has said that this procedure is safe enough and works well enough for use in the NHS. Source: Fetal Health Foundation Advertisement

During the episode, professor Basky Thilaganathan warned if nothing was done, there'd be a 90% chance Susie would miscarry before 24 weeks.

'The way we treat it is to put a small telescope in,' he explained. 'Using a laser, we block two or three blood vessels that connect the two circulations.

'My concern is there's a 10% chance that when we block the vessels, one of the heart beats doesn't survive - that's the risk.

An emotional Susie told the camera: 'It's taken us so much IVF to get here, then we're randomly blessed with three and now this is happening - it's like some cruel game.'

'I'm just really scared. I know we've got to do it, I know we have. I get it.'

Agreeing to go ahead, professor Thilaganathan explained how he was blocking anything that crossed the placenta.

'We shine the light which tells us where the laser is aimed and the blood inside the vessel clots immediately,' he said.

Four hours later, an ultrasound revealed the baby's heartbeats were strong and healthy and that the surgery had been a success.

And those who tuned in exhaled a sigh of relief along with Susie, Andy and professor Thilaganathan.

'Oh my holy moly. How do these people do this job!? Im crying my flipping eyes out here,' wrote one, while a second commented: 'Genuinely think I held my breath throughout that surgery, heart in mouth!'

A third added: 'Just casually crying every three minutes at,' while another emotional viewer wrote:

'Made the mistake of watching #BabySurgeons I am a crying mess.'

Elsewhere, others took the opportunity to praise the incredible work of the doctors and medical teams at the hospital.

'These doctors are amazing human beings,' praised one, while a second enthused:

'Wow, #BabySurgeons made me cry again! The doctors at @StGeorgesTrust are amazing! Good luck to all families involved in this brilliant documentary.'

A third added: 'Another brilliant episode tonight. In total awe of the medical team and the brave families. Its truly amazing what can now be done.'

Baby Surgeons airs Mondays on Channel 4 at 9pm
Two lovestruck OAPs who first set eyes on each other while playing Mary and Joseph in a school nativity aged five have struck up a whirlwind romance - 75 years later.

Tony Jackson, 81, and Gloria Loukes, 80, from Sheffield, first met while at school in the 1940s before going their separate ways aged 11 and eventually going on to have their own families and careers.

Then, in August last year, Tony was going through some old things when he found a picture of Gloria before digging out her phone number and ringing to 'see if she was still alive'.

The couple, who both lost their partners in 2017, quickly reconnected and their romance has since gone from strength to strength, with Tony revealing: 'We have lots of lost time to make up for.'

Tony Jackson, 81, and Gloria Loukes, 80, from Sheffield, have revealed how they fell in love after reconnecting last year having first met while at school together

The couple first met while at school in the 1940s before going their separate ways aged 11 and eventually going on to have their own families and careers (pictured, circled, Gloria and Tony)

In 2003, after missing a school reunion, Tony (right) invited Gloria (centre) and her husband Frank up to have Sunday lunch with him and his wife, Jacqueline (pictured, left)

Tony and Gloria were both born and raised in Sheffield, and first met each other aged five in 1945 when they attended Pomona Street School, now known as Porter Croft Primary School.

Shortly after starting school, they were cast as Mary and Joseph in a nativity and it was not long afterwards that Tony gave Gloria a heart-shaped piece of glass jewellery.

He said: 'I have no idea where I got it from but I remember liking Gloria an awful lot and I think that's why I gave it to her.'

Gloria added: 'It was such a special gift because in those days young girls like me didn't have jewellery, it just wasn't as common back then.

Tony and Gloria were both born and raised in Sheffield, and first met each other aged five in 1945 when they attended Pomona Street School, now known as Porter Croft Primary School (pictured left, Gloria at age 11, and right, Tony aged 7)

Shortly after starting school, they were cast as Mary and Joseph in a nativity and it was not long afterwards that Tony gave Gloria a heart-shaped piece of glass jewellery (pictured, Tony at the age of nine)

'So to receive something so beautiful was really important to me and I think that's why I have held on to it all these years.

'And I did always maintain a soft spot for Tony, even though we were very young I liked him a lot.'

Fantastic black and white photos show the pair as youngsters, including one school photo in which they can both be seen alongside their classmates.

After going their separate ways aged 11, Gloria went on to become a primary school teacher and moved to Biggin Hill in Kent and Tony became an engineer for BT at stayed in Sheffield.

After going their separate ways aged 11, Gloria went on to become a primary school teacher and moved to Biggin Hill in Kent (left) and Tony became an engineer for BT at stayed in Sheffield (right)

Both married and had children.

After than more than half a century passed before they saw each other again, following a school reunion in 2003 that Tony failed to attend.

He said he felt guilty he had not gone and called Gloria, one of the organisers, and apologised for not attending.

Tony then invited Gloria and her husband Frank up to have Sunday lunch with him and his wife, Jacqueline.

The couple both went on to live quite separate lives, with Gloria moving to Kent (pictured at the age of 23)

By sheer chance, he had a picture taken with both women and noted down Gloria's landline.

However, after this they did not see each other again for another 17 years.

Then last year, he rediscovered the photo while going through old things and rang the number, which he was also able to find among his things.

Gloria failed to answer initially but then dialled 1471 and got through to Tony, who has battled cancer, Covid-19 and Parkinson's in recent years.

Last year, Tony rang an old number he had for Gloria and was able to get through to his childhood sweetheart

Tony said he rang Gloria wondering 'if she was still alive' and said he was 'delighted to hear her voice and get chatting with her'

From the first call the pair hit it off and since then they have met up in person more than half a dozen times and spoken on the phone up to six times each and every day

Tony, a grandfather-of-16, said: 'Over the summer I just happened to find this picture of Gloria that I had taken in 2003 with a landline number on it.

'I thought I'd try it to see if she was still alive and there she was. I was delighted to hear her voice and get chatting with her.'

From the first call the pair hit it off and since then they have met up in person more than half a dozen times and spoken on the phone up to six times each and every day.

She said: 'I was wonderful to hear from him again and after only a few weeks we decided to meet up. It went really well and we haven't stopped since.'

Under coronavirus restrictions, Gloria and Tony set up their own bubble so they could continue to see each other, which they said was 'very important'

Adding to their fairy-tale romance is the fact Gloria has cherished the heart-shaped, glass piece of jewellery that Tony gave her all the way back in the mid-1940s

Meanwhile Tony revealed: 'In the end, we wanted to see if we were compatible together so she came to see me and it went really well, so it's gone from there.

'We get on very well, Gloria's a wonderful woman.'

Adding to their fairy-tale romance is the fact Gloria has cherished the heart-shaped, glass piece of jewellery that Tony gave her all the way back in the mid-1940s.

Under coronavirus restrictions, Gloria and Tony set up their own bubble so they could continue to see each other, which they said was 'very important'.

The couple says they bond over poetry, cracking jokes and reminiscing over old times.

The couple say they are 'excited' about the future and have four trips planned around the UK for later this year.

They are considering narrowing the 200-mile gap that currently exists between them by moving in together, but want to wait for some months before making a decision.

In the meantime, they have exciting trips to the Isle of Wight, Norfolk and the Chelsea Flower Show planned together.

Gloria said: 'After my husband died I thought that was it, I didn't think about ever finding someone else again or even consider it.

Pictured: Porter Croft School, formerly Pomona Street School, where Tony and Gloria attended in the 1940s

'But then Tony called and was absolutely lovely. Since then we have got on so well and had such a lovely time together that we want to keep it going.'

The gran-of-one added: 'Tony is very clever, which I like, and makes me laugh all the time, which is obviously very important indeed.

'I feel very happy with him and lucky to have found him again.'

The couple would like to appeal for any other children in their class at Pomona Street School, who should be in the picture, to come forward.
A happily-married man has been left red-faced after he accidentally branded himself a 'love rat' after getting a tattoo of a Chinese character.

Father-of-two Jimmy Ames, 37, from Ipswich, Suffolk, wanted to get the Chinese symbol for 'love' inked on his arm to commemorate his 2017 wedding to his wife Michaela Ames, 34.

However, he failed to foresee the potential pitfalls of placing the 'love' symbol above an old Chinese zodiac tattoo for 'rat' on his forearm.

Doting husband Jimmy Ames, 37, from Ipswich, Suffolk, wanted to get the Chinese symbol for 'love' inked on his arm to commemorate his wedding to his wife Michaela Ames, 34

The doting husband, who is dad to Stella, five, and eight-week-old Fred, had the 'rat' tattoo inked on his arm 10 years ago while on a lads' holiday in Miami, as it represents the year of the rat - his Chinese zodiac symbol.

It was only weeks after the business support manager had the new 40 dedication added to his arm that the penny dropped and Jimmy realised his tattoo now reads 'love rat'.

Jimmy laughed off his tattoo fail despite his wife of four-years, insurance claims adviser Michaela, being initially unimpressed.

However the pair now chuckle about it with Jimmy quipping it's a great ice breaker down at the pub.

Jimmy said: 'When the penny dropped I just thought it was hilarious. I've not got the symbol for "love rat" but I do have "love" and "rat" written down my arm.

However, he failed to foresee the potential pitfalls of placing the 'love' symbol above an old Chinese zodiac tattoo for 'rat' on his forearm, which now read: 'Love rat'

The father-of-two, who is dad to Stella, five, and eight-week-old Fred, had the 'rat' tattoo inked on his arm 10 years ago while on a lads' holiday in Miami, as it represents the year of the rat - his Chinese zodiac symbol

'I don't always take life too seriously and remember thinking "I'm stuck with it, what's the point in panicking? I might as well just laugh it off"'.

'My wife was quick to point out that she's got tattoos of our kids that are quite meaningful and lovely and I've gone and got that.

'I said "well what am I going to do with it? I can't cut my arm off".'

'My wife and my mum were more disappointed in me than angry, and we all know that's a lot worse.

'They've come round to it now, it's just a joke. It's a good one for an icebreaker at parties or in the pub.'

He said he was inspired to get the inking after the vicar at his wedding preached about the Chinese symbol for love and what it represented.

Jimmy said: 'The tattoos came a few years apart. The first tattoo was the rat, my Chinese birth year, and I had that done in 2007.

Jimmy said he was inspired to get the romantic inking after the vicar at his wedding preached about the Chinese symbol for love and what it represented

'I'd gone on a lads' holiday to Miami and we decided it would be fun to get tattoos, we all had various tattoos done and I had the year of the rat.

'When we got married in 2017 the vicar was Chinese and he did a speech about Chinese writing.

'He was trying to describe the word for "love" in Chinese and the picture and it was all about having a roof and two people under the roof.

'We really liked what he said so we decided to get matching tattoos of the Chinese word for 'love'.

'My wife got hers on her wrist absolutely fine and I went and got mine on my forearm.

'As I was showing it off to my mum weeks later I looked at it and thought "I've just realised I've got 'love rat' written down my forearm"'.

It was only weeks after the business support manager had the new 40 dedication added to his arm that the penny dropped and Jimmy realised his tattoo now reads 'love rat'

Despite his wife Michaela being initially unimpressed, the pair now chuckle about it saying it's a great ice breaker down at the pub

'I was a bit unsure because at no point did anyone who was Chinese do the tattoos whatsoever so I did question as to whether it did actually say "love rat".

'But I worked with a Chinese fella who confirmed I had "love rat" written down my arm.

'The rat tattoo's a little bit blurred because it's a lot older but if you see it close up you can see it's a picture of a rat and you have to imagine it's got a rat's tail, two front teeth and two eyes.'

Jimmy said although being branded a 'love rat' isn't ideal, that he and his wife have found the funny side of it.

'Those two tattoos are the only ones that mean anything, I've got a tribal pattern on my shoulder but that's it.' he said.

'My wife's got very lovely meaningful tattoos and I've got 'love rat'.

'In some ways I think Michaela's happy because she realises I'm never going to meet another woman while I've got 'love rat' written down my arm, because it probably doesn't send the right message.

'I've got mates that find it hilarious, people just find it a joke and because it's in Chinese no-one really knows what it is so I get away with it in that sense.'
Viewers of BBC drama Three Families were left 'sobbing' as they watched the stories of women impacted by Northern Ireland's restrictive abortion laws.

The two-part series, which continues tonight, is based on writer Gwyneth Hughes's conversations with three women who were seeking an abortion in 2013, six years before the procedure was decriminalised in Northern Ireland.

Last night's episode introduced two of the women: Hannah (Amy James-Kelly), who is forced to go through with a pregnancy even after learning the foetus has a fatal abnormality, and Theresa (Sinead Keenan), who is arrested after ordering termination pills for her teenage daughter who was forced into sex by her violent boyfriend.

The moving drama struck a chord with viewers at home, including many women who shared their own experiences with abortion

Viewers of BBC drama Three Families were left 'sobbing' as they watched the stories of women impacted by Northern Ireland's restrictive abortion laws. In one scene Hannah gave birth to a dying child, as her husband held her, both of them in deep distress, was unbearable for many

The third story, introduced in episode two, centres around Rosie, who is told her baby will die before or shortly after birth and so qualifies for a termination on the grounds of the damaging effect delivering the baby will have on her mental health.

The moving drama struck a chord with viewers at home, including many women who shared their own experiences with abortion.

One tweeted: '#ThreeFamilies I knew it was going to be a hard watch. I've experienced first hand what it's like. I cried several times! I can't decide if it's out of relief to be able to relate to others, or if it's releasing the guilt.'

Another added: 'This was a difficult but incredibly important and powerful watch. I am filled with both rage and heartbreak. Women should ALWAYS have control over their own bodies. #ThreeFamilies.'

A third posted: 'Watching #ThreeFamilies tonight is absolutely breaking my heart, sending so much love to anyone who resonates with these stories.'

Last night's episode introduced two of the women, including Hannah (Amy James-Kelly), who is forced to go through with a pregnancy even after learning the foetus has a fatal abnormality. Pictured, with on screen husband Jonathan (Colin Morgan)

Viewers at home were moved by the story and discussed the restrictive abortion laws

The series started with Theresa, who considered abortion a 'mortal sin'. Her best friend Louise (Kerri Quinn) heckled women outside abortion clinics.

However when she discovers her teenage daughter had fallen pregnant, she was spurred into taking action to help her terminate the pregnancy by ordering pills online.

The secret leaked out. After Orla (Lola Petticrew) and Theresa talked to their GP, he called child protection services  and Orlas school called the police.

Shockingly, Theresa ended up in court, where the magistrates voice dripped with contempt as he read out the charge that, in contravention of a 150-year-old law, she was accused of supplying poison to secure a miscarriage.

The series starts with Theresa (Sinead Keenan), who is arrested after ordering termination pills for her daughter Orla (Lola Petticrew) who was forced into sex by her violent boyfriend

Theresa ended up in court, where the magistrate read out the charge that, in contravention of a 150-year-old law, she was accused of supplying poison to secure a miscarriage

Meanwhile Hannah and her husband Jonathan (Colin Morgan) are dealt a devastating blow when their much longed-for baby is diagnosed with Thanatophoric Dysplasia, a severe skeletal disorder, and are told she will most likely be stillborn.

While they initially believe they will qualify for an abortion, they are later told this is not the case and Hannah will 'have to carry on as normal'.

Treated by doctors and psychologists as though she had committed unspeakable crimes, by considering an abortion and for carrying a disabled foetus in the first place, Hannah was abandoned by the system.

The scene in which she gave birth to her dead baby, as her husband held her, both of them in deep distress, was unbearable for many.

The third story, introduced in episode two, centres around Rosie, who is told her baby will die before or shortly after birth and so qualifies for a termination on the grounds of the damaging effect delivering the baby will have on her mental health

A nurse popped into the maternity room and snapped a picture with a Polaroid camera for your memory box.

The episode also sparked a discussion over the current abortion laws in Northern Ireland, which remains a divisive issue. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is currently attempting to amend them again.

Laws covering abortion were initially the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, and later the Criminal Justice (Northern Ireland) Act and Infant Life (Preservation) Act in 1945.

It was a criminal offence in Northern Ireland to have or perform an abortion except in a handful of circumstances including if a woman's life was at risk or there was a risk of catastrophic damage to her mental health.
The story of the 'world's greatest conman' which was immortalised in the Hollywood blockbuster Catch Me If You Can is actually 'completely fictitious', according to an investigative journalist.

Frank Abagnale, 73, from New York, attracted worldwide fame after releasing his memoir in 1980 in which claimed that he'd cashed $2.5 million worth of bad checks as a teenager, and posed in different jobs while on the run from the FBI.

His story was turned into the 2002 Steven Spielberg film starring Leonardo DiCaprio, who poses as a doctor, a lecturer, a lawyer and an airline pilot over the course of a crime spree which eventually lands him in prison.

But a new book, The Greatest Hoax on Earth: Catching Truth, While We Can by reporter Alan C. Logan, contends that the tale was, for the most part, fabricated by Abagnale.

Logan told The Pulse Abagnale had only stolen around $1,200 during his time as a criminal, saying: 'So Abagnale's narrative that between the ages of 16 and 20, he was on the run, chased all over the United States and even internationally by the FBI. This is completely fictitious. Public records obtained by me show that he was confined for the most part in prison during those years.'

The story of the 'world's greatest conman' which was immortalised in the Hollywood blockbuster Catch Me If You Can is actually 'the world's greatest hoax', according to a new book

Frank Abagnale, 73, from New York, attracted worldwide fame after releasing his memoir in 1980 in which he said as a teenager he had cashed in $2.5 million worth of bad checks and posed in different jobs while on the run from the FBI

The story was adapted into the 2002 Steven Spielberg film starring Leonardo DiCaprio, who poses as a doctor, a lecturer, a lawyer and an airline pilot over the course of a crime spree which eventually lands him in prison (pictured, together on the set)

The author used public records, newspaper archives and interviews with witnesses to discover the truth behind the story, which showed Abagnale was in prison between the ages of 17 and 20.

Logan even spoke to a flight attendant Abagnale met in 1969 in an encounter that would eventually lead to his incarceration.

The journalist argued that what really happened was that Abgnale dressed as a TWA (Trans World Airlines) pilot for a few weeks, and befriended a flight attendant called Paula Parks.

'He followed her all over the Eastern Seaboard, identified her work schedule through deceptive means, and essentially stalked the woman,' he said.

The Spielberg film, which starred A-listers including Tom Hanks and Christopher Walken was a worldwide hit, with Abagnale saying it had 'stayed very close to the story'

Separating fact from fiction in Catch Me If You Can Catch Me If You Can is a 1980 book based on the early life exploits of Frank Abagnale Jr., a former con artist. As a teenager, he claimed to have cashed in $2.5 million worth of bad checks while impersonating a Pan Am pilot, a doctor, a teacher, and an attorney. The book was co-written by Stan Redding, and was adapted into a 2002 film of the same name by director Steven Spielberg, starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Abagnale and Tom Hanks as an FBI agent who pursues him. So how much of the tale is true? CLAIM: Between the ages of 17 and 20 in the mid 1960s-1970s, Abagnale travelled the world while cashing in money from hotels, airlines and banks. THE VERDICT: FALSE Public records, newspaper archives and interviews with witnesses show Abagnale was in prison between the ages of 17 and 20. CLAIM: As part of the con, he pretended to be a pilot for Pan American airlines. THE VERDICT: MOSTLY FALSE Abagnale pretended to be a pilot in order to trick a family for a brief period in 1969 as a 21-year-old, but not for Pan Am. Pan Am spokesperson Bruce Haxthausen told Ira Perry: 'Ive checked with the security people and everyone here, and it never happened. This is the first weve heard of this, and we would have heard or at least remember[ed] it if it had happened. You dont forget $2.5 million in bad checks. Id say this guy is as phony as a $3 bill.' CLAIM: Abagnale stole money from Logan Airport dressed as a security guard. THE VERDICT: FALSE Journalist Stephen Hall debunked this claim in 1978 CLAIM: He stole $1.2 million by signing blank checks. THE VERDICT: FALSE While tricking Paula's family, he stole $1,200 from them in blank checks CLAIM: Before the age of 21, his story went, he had managed to escape from police custody twice - once from a taxiing airliner and once from a U.S. federal penitentiary. THE VERDICT: FALSE He was imprisoned several times in his early 20s for petty crimes CLAIM: He served fewer than five years in prison before starting to work for the federal government. THE VERDICT: FALSE In reality, he was arrested in the summer of 1974 in Friendswood, Texas, for theft at a kids' camp, Camp Manison. The arrest was reported in the local paper Advertisement

Paula tried to convince Abagnale she wasn't interested in him, but he ended up showing up uninvited at her home in New Orleans.

He tagged along with her on a trip to Baton Rouge where she was visiting her parents and, days later, he visited the couple again unexpectedly.

He told them he was 'on furlough as a pilot' and Paula's parents let him stay in her old bedroom after he won them over.

While the couple cooked him meals and introduced him to people in their neighborhood, he began stealing $1,200 from them in blank checks.

Eventually, he was caught and arrested. He was paroled in 1974, and moved to Texas where he was once again arrested for petty crimes.

Upon his release, a prison officer encouraged him to tell his story of being a transformed man, and Abagnale leapt at the chance.

He began telling the story that as a teenager during the mid-1960s and the early 1970s, he stole millions from hotels, airlines and banks in over 26 countries while being chased by the FBI.

According Abagnale Jr., he pretended to be a pilot for Pan American airlines, a doctor in Georgia, a lawyer in Baton Rouge, and a professor.

Before the age of 21, his story went, he had managed to escape from police custody twice - once from a taxiing airliner and once from a U.S. federal penitentiary.

The conman said he served fewer than five years in prison before starting to work for the federal government.

He began giving small lectures before he landed an appearance on To Tell The Truth in 1977.

The show featured a panel of celebrities who had to identify the one person who was not lying, out of three people claiming to be the same person.

Logan said Abagnale fabricated much of his story and told 'multiple lies' on stage.

He revealed that there was no fact-checking on 'To Tell The Truth' to determine if the conman was being honest.

After the programme aired, he was invited onto national TV to tell his story, appearing on the Today show and The Tonight Show, which at the time was hosted by Johnny Carson.

Local journalists began questioning the plausibility of the story, with Stephen Hall debunking a claim that he'd stolen money from Logan Airport while dressed as a security guard.

Meanwhile another reporter Ira Perry found the claim he had recruited women at the University of Arizona to tour Europe with him on Pan Am's dime was also untrue.

However despite the work of the reporters, Abagnale's star was rising and he soon wrote the best-selling book, which was later adapted into both the Spielberg film and a Broadway play.

The Spielberg film, which starred A-listers including Tom Hanks and Christopher Walken was a worldwide hit and Abagnale said it had 'stayed very close to the story.'

According to Logan conman Abagnale only stole around $1,200 during his time as a criminal (pictured, in 2002)

The conman turned FBI consultant has since insisted he is not proud of his youthful adventures and said he regretted the Spielberg film.

He claimed he has paid back society with interest $2 milllion of the $2.5 million he took was recovered by the U.S. Government and has spent 40 years helping the FBI catch criminals.

However Logan remains skeptical, saying: 'No one from the FBI has ever made a public statement about what Abagnale has or hasnt done for them.'
The new series of Motherland left viewers struggling to comprehend how lead actress Anna Maxwell Martin could star as both Line of Duty's scheming DCS Patricia Carmicheal and the comedy's frazzled middle-class mother, Julia - because they're so different.

The first episode of the third series of Sharon Horgan's BBC2 show sees Julia unravel as she sparks a nit outbreak at her children's primary school - and is forced to live under Covid-esque restrictions.

Viewers tuning in struggled to compute that Maxwell Martin, 44, could go from playing icy DCS Carmicheal in the Line of Duty finale to the hysterical Julia.

Last night's installment saw the London mum screaming into a towel at the thought of her elderly mother residing permanently in her family home.

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Digging deep: Anna Maxwell Martin return to screens as on-the-edge middle-class mum Julia - a far cry from her most recent telly outing in Line of Duty

Viewers struggled to comprehend how she could play both DCS Patricia Carmicheal in Line of Duty and permanently frazzled London mum Julia

On Twitter, the actress' name trended with many marvelling at how she portrays such different characters so well.

@GMcK2012 wrote: 'Does anyone on TV play 2 such completely opposite characters as Anna Maxwell Martin in Motherland and Line Of Duty? She's brilliant in both.'

@joeharperrr agreed, writing: 'I love Anna Maxwell Martin, she is great. Funny as hell as Julia here and horrid as hell as DCS Patricia Carmichael in Line of Duty.'

@flyingpheasant wrote: 'Its a bit weird seeing Anna Maxwell Martin in a sitcom after her portrayal of Carmichael #LineOfDuty #Motherland.'

@Sianie_L penned: 'I bloody love Anna Maxwell Martin. Her Julia Motherland and Carmichael Line of Duty are on completely opposite ends of each other.'

The star was among the major suspects to be 'H' in the finale of Line Of Duty and Maxwell Martin recently revealed that people are surprised to learn that she's a 'nice' person in real life after playing the hated role.

A proper nit show: Julia has a mini breakdown at the prospect of her ailing mother moving in permamently

Last night, Julia was seen screaming into a towel at the thought of her elderly mother residing permanently in her family home

The middle-class mum on the edge had also sparked a nit crisis at her primary school

Viewers watched as Maxwell Martin's character screamed into the laundry basket

On This Morning recently: Anna told hosts Holly Willoughby and Philip Schofield people were surprised she's a nice person after watching her in Line of Duty

The star was among the major suspects to be 'H' in the finale of Line Of Duty - before it was revealed to actually be former Detective Superintendent Ian Buckells

Admitting that she was surprised at how vindictive her character turned out to be, she explained: 'There were a couple of bits [in the script] where she was nasty and I just went for it. And then she morphed into a horror show.

'I think shes just misunderstood, shes just trying to do her job. She probably just wants a nice cuddle, Pat. Shes just a bit cross.'

She insisted that her role is no reflection on her actual personality, saying people are surprised at how nice she is in real life compared to her character.

Motherland Writer Sharon Horgan's latest creation took fire at the Government's handling of the pandemic - but replaced Covid with an outbreak of nits.

Viewers on social media said they 'could relate' as the comedy's key characters were forced into a bubble of isolation after central character Julia refused to use nit shampoo on her two children.

Motherland airs at 9pm on Mondays on BBC1 and is available on the iPlayer
An influencer turned princess has revealed how she's set to become the leader of the now defunct Italian throne.

Vittoria Cristina Chiara Adelaide Maria, 17, has been bumped up the royal food chain by her grandfather Vittorio Emanuele di Savoia, the son of the last king of Italy.

In a formal decree, 'Duke of Savoy, Prince of Naples and by the grace of God direct heir to Head of the Royal House of Savoy' abolished male primogeniture, which is preference in inheritance that is given by law, custom, or usage to the eldest son and his issue.

Speaking to The New York Times, Vittoria said: 'It was the best gift [my grandfather] could give me.'

When asked if she felt Italy was ready to accept her as a queen, or the head of her family, the Paris-based teenager said: 'Italy is not really progressive, but they will learn.'

Prince Aimone di Savoia Aosta, a cousin and rival claimant, called the change 'illegitimate'. His two sons, Prince Umberto, 12, and Prince Amedeo Michele, 10, wouldve been next in line after himself had the rule not been changed, since Vittorias father has only two daughters.

Vittoria Cristina Chiara Adelaide Maria (pictured), 17, has been bumped up the royal food chain by her grandfather Vittorio Emanuele di Savoia, the son of the last king of Italy

In a formal decree, 'Duke of Savoy, Prince of Naples and by the grace of God direct heir to Head of the Royal House of Savoy' abolished male primogeniture, which is preference in inheritance that is given by law, custom, or usage to the eldest son and his issue. Pictured, Princess Vittoria

When asked if she felt Italy was ready to accept her as a queen, or the head of her family, the Paris-based teenager (pictured) said: 'Italy is not really progressive, but they will learn'

Her family was exiled from the country for 50 years, only being allowed to return in 2002, after Umberto II, the last reigning king of Italy was deposed in 1946 when the nation became a republic.

Vittoria is an up-and-coming influencer with 35,400 followers on Instagram thanks to her jet-setting lifestlye and fashion prowess.

The teenager, who attended the private Ecole Diagonale in Paris, has a passion for art and fashion, as shown on her social media profile, and has also previously campaigned for educational changes.

Ecole Diagonale is a school known for its excellent art and sport programmes, alongside a rigorous curriculum in the heart of the French capital.

During her free time, Vittoria travels between Geneva, Switzerland, where she was born in 2003, and Monte Carlo, where her father Emanuele Filiberto lives, and an Italian farmhouse owned by her family in Umbertide, Umbria.

Vittoria is an up-and-coming influencer with 35,400 followers on Instagram thanks to her jet-setting lifestlye and fashion prowess (pictured)

The teenager (pictured), who attended the private Ecole Diagonale in Paris, has a passion for art and fashion, as shown on her social media profile

During her free time, Vittoria (pictured) travels between Geneva, Switzerland, where she was born in 2003, and Monte Carlo, where her father Emanuele Filiberto lives, and an Italian farmhouse owned by her family in Umbertide, Umbria

In May 2005, Vittoria was baptised at the Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi in Italy.

What is male primogeniture? Primogeniture is preference in inheritance that is given by law, custom, or usage to the eldest son and his issue. In exceptional cases, primogeniture may prescribe such preferential inheritance to the line of the eldest daughter. The motivation for such a practice has usually been to keep the estate of the deceased, or some part of it, whole and intact. The British Royal Family brought to an end the system of primogeniture that had dictated the line of succession since 1701. Under the Succession to the Crown Act 2013, princes no longer take precedence over their sisters. Advertisement

Her debut as part of the House of Savoy was supposed to take place last year but was postponed due to the pandemic.

Her father, Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy, 47, who is known as the 'Pasta Prince', due to his career running food trucks in LA, announced his plans to run for political office last year.

The royal runs a catering business called Prince of Venice and has lead a colourful life in the public eye, claiming to have dated Kate Moss and starring on Italy's version of Strictly Come Dancing.

He also has a production company called AristoCrazy and a fashion brand called PrinceTees.

Prince Filiberto has had problems with drugs and confessed in 2009 that he only managed to overcome his addiction with the help of his family.

He has previously discussed his desire to set up a royalist party to advocate for restoration of the monarchy in Italy.

Prince Filiberto, who is married to award-winning French actress Clotilde Courau, is the only child of Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, heir to the now defunct throne of Italy, and has two daughters, Vittoria and 14-year-old Luisa.

Speaking to the publication, he admitted that it's unlikely he'll be the one to lead a royal restoration and instead looks forward to abdicating and sailing around the world - 'once my daughter is prepared', he added.

But Vittoria confessed that the new responsibility is 'a lot', while her father is trying to get her to study more and holiday less.

Her father, Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy, 47, who is known as the 'Pasta Prince', due to his career running food trucks in LA (pictured), announced his plans to run for political office last year

Emanuele (pictured left in 2018) and his wife leave church after the christening of their daughter, Vittoria in 2004, pictured right

Vittoria is the first woman in 1,000 years to be invested with the authority to one day lead the Savoy family.

However, while her parents and her grandparents in Gstaad, Switzerland, were delighted about her ascension, a rival branch of Savoias were left frustrated.

Prince Aimone di Savoia Aosta, a cousin and rival claimant, who works as an executive for the Pirelli tire company in Moscow, said it was 'totally illegitimate'.

The Aosta branch of the family have argued the law should only be changed when the monarchy is restored.

Former royal family: Clotilde Courau (centre left) and Emanuele Filiberto (left) arrive with Prince Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy and Princess Marina of Savoy (centre right) for a dinner at Opera terraces after the wedding ceremony of Princess Charlene of Monaco and Prince Albert II of Monaco on July 2, 2011

Fellow royal: Prince Albert and Emanuele of Savoy at the modern Penthathlon in Monaco City, Monaco on April 29, 2001

But Prince Filiberto said: 'They were thinking that me, not having any sons, they would finally have what they were waiting for, for 150 years they got screwed and they got pissed.'

Yet despite Prince Filiberto claims that a lot of people are seeing a potential comeback for the Italian monarchy, Italians have largely no interest in a royal return, noted the publication.

Most people in Carignano, the ancestral home of Vittorio Emanueles branch of the family, dont even know who Vittoria is.
A university graduate who identifies as non-binary has spoken of their delight at being elected as Wales youngest mayor - at the tender age of just 22.

Owen J Hurcum, who has colourful green hair, thanked those who'd voted for them on Twitter, saying they were 'beyond humbled' to be elected to serve.

After winning by an overwhelming majority to become the mayor of Bangor in Gwynedd, North Wales, Owen wrote: 'Today my community elected me Mayor of our great City. The youngest ever Mayor in Wales.'

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They/Them/The Mayor! Bangor University graduate Owen J Hurcum came out as non-binary two years ago - and says their community has left them 'beyond humbled' after they were elected to serve the city of Bangor in North Wales

The graduate grew up in Harrow, London and has 4,000 followers on Twitter and posted a photo of themselves alongside the tweet wearing a sheer black blouse and traditional mayoral chains and ruffles, with a tricorne hat.

They added: 'When I came out two years ago I was so worried I'd be ostracised by my community or worse.'

They said they were determined to fight for better representation of non-binary people, writing: 'I know representation is not just putting on the chain and I'll be judged by what we do as a team for Bangor during my year in office, but still, Im glad my election has resonated with so many.'

Hurcum has lived in the north Wales city of Gwynedd for five years after arriving in the city to study at Bangor University.They told North Wales Live: 'I came here as a student five years ago, just because it was a place to study and it looked quite nice.

'Within a week, I fell in love with it and tried to throw myself into the city's culture.'

The mayor - the youngest ever to be elected in Wales - say they'll start their term in office trying to improve divisions in the local community

Despite their tender years, Hurcum has already been 'a councillor for four years and a deputy mayor and chair of the committee for the council and other sub-groups for a year'.

They said their first priority would be community cohesion, saying: 'My first steps as Bangor's mayor will be reaching across the different divisions of the community, continuing the good work of the departing mayor, and trying to get more grants in to develop the city.'

After claiming to be the world's first non-binary city mayor 'anywhere in the world', some contested Hurcum's claims, suggesting that Kiwi Georgina Beyer had beaten Hucrum to the title by being elected mayor of Carterton in New Zealand back in 1995.

However, Hurcum defended their claim, saying: 'I believe she was the first Openly Transgender Mayor anywhere, and not Non-Binary, that was what I got when I first looked her up but I'm obviously happy to be corrected if my research was incorrect.'
Sheperdess Amanda Owen wins praise from viewers every week for giving her children a magical and no-nonsense upbringing, and in tonight's episode fans of Yorkshire Farm can delight in her daughter Violet's attempts to get her pet cow under control.

On the Channel 5 show, airing tonight at 9pm, Amanda and Clive Owen's daughter Violet, nine, explained that she's had to teach her pet cow Ciara 'some manners,' after the calf started eating the family's laundry.

Violet has helped to feed and raise Ciara after her mother contracted an udder infection, and spends most of her time after school caring for her.

But Amanda revealed that in recent months, rebellious Ciara has taken to eating the family's laundry, from socks to leggings and tops.

Father-of-nine Clive has to show Violet how to put Ciara on a leash to stop her wreaking havoc.

On the Channel 5 show, airing tonight at 9pm, Violet Owen, nine, explained that she's had to teach her pet cow Ciara 'some manners,' after the calf started eating the family's laundry

Tonight's episode focuses on what the Owen children get up to after school, with Violet going straight into feeding and brushing her pet cow, with the help of her younger sister Clemmie, five.

But after the grooming session, the calf was caught on camera sneaking into the Owen's living-room when no one was looking.

She was caught tugging at a sock before being caught by Violet, with mother Amanda quickly coming to investigate.

'I can smell cow, has Ciara been in again?' Amanda asked. 'What did she get this time?'

Violet was able to save a sock from Ciara's ravenous appetite after she headed straight for the laundry basket when nobody was looking

'Uh, this sock,' Violet said, showing a green and pink sock.

'She's eaten stuff off the washing line, she's eating the sheets, she's eaten my leggings, you name it. Oh, she's eating Raven's top, made it into a crop top,' Amanda said.

Five-year-old Clemmie, who was in the living-room at the time added: 'Undies.'

'Pants, socks, I think socks are her favourite,' Amanda said.

'She's probably eaten about 15 without actually swallowing them and about 5 actually swallowing them,' Violet said.

'What, some of them are actually gone,' her mother asked, to which a sheepish Violet replied: 'Yeah... I'll teach her some manners.'

But thankfully, father Clive had a solution to teach Ciara how to handle the situation.

The father-of-nine showed Violet how she could use a bucket to put a leash around Ciara's mouth to keep her from sneaking into the house again.

Violet, pictured second left, is one of the youngest members of the Owen clan. Pictured from left to right: Annas, seven, with Violet, nine, Edith, 11, Raven, 18, Amanda, 46, holding Nancy, four, Owen, 66, holding Clemmie, five, Ruben, 16, Miles, 14 and Sydney, eight

He put a halter around her neck and mouth, which didn't restrict her breathing and could work as a leash for Violet to guide the cow.

'Ciara's getting a bit unruly, so let's see if we can train her to be on a halter,' he said.

'Come on little monster cow, right, here we are, now it's time to be good.'

'Come on, baby cow, time to do what Vi says,' he added.

Violet has spent the last nine months hand rearing Ciara after her mother suffered an udder infection, causing confusion for the calf.

'She thinks you're a cow but you aren't, you're just feeding her,' Clemmie told her as the two girls were busy brushing Ciara's hair.

Amanda said Violet won't want Ciara to follow her around when she's older. Meanwhile, Clive, left, taught his daughter how to make the cow a bit more obedient

'I think she doesn't even know she's a cow, she thinks she's a person like us, I don't think she knows what a cow is,' Violet said.

'She's grown up with all of us, we visit her literally every morning and every night, so she's used to us. And she comes into the house a lot,' she added.

'And she's probably in her whole life, eaten about 20 pieces of clothing.'

Watching the sweet scene, Amanda suggested Violet won't want Ciara to follow her around for long.

'A pet calf can be a great source of irritation. As she grows into an adult cow, Violet definitely won't want her following her down to the school bus and things like that,' she said.

Our Yorkshire Farm airs tonight at 9pm on Channel 5.
Kidnapping survivor Elizabeth Smart has explained how she is able to have sex with her husband after being repeatedly raped by her kidnapper as a teenager.

Smart, now 33, was famously abducted from her bed at knifepoint when she was 14 years old and held captive for nine months by Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee, before being rescued and returned to her parents.

Now a married mother-of-three, Smart said that one of the questions she is most frequently asked is: 'How are you able to have sex after experiencing so much rape and sexual trauma?'

An advocate for survivors of sexual assault, Smart generously opened up about the 'big differences' that she sees between sex and rape which allow her to be intimate with her husband, Matthew Gilmour.

Candid: Kidnapping survivor Elizabeth Smart has explained how she is able to have sex with her husband after being repeatedly raped by her kidnapper as a teenager

Smart, now 33, was famously abducted from her bed at knifepoint when she was 14 years old and held captive for nine months by Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee

Now a married mother-of-three, Smart said that one of the questions she is most frequently asked is: 'How are you able to have sex after experiencing so much rape and sexual trauma?'

The first reason she is able to separate rape from sex with her husband is that 'sex is entered into by choice (also known as enthusiastic consent) and is based off a relationship built off of trust and mutual love.'

That is, of course, far from how she experienced rape at the hands of Brian David Mitchell, who performed a mock wedding ceremony upon taking her into the woods and went on to tie her up with steel cables in a dugout filled with mice and spiders.

She was forced to take drugs and drink alcohol, she testified in 2009, and was raped daily  as often as four times a day.

Another difference, she said, is that 'sex is more than just a physical act. Its about love, connection, and pleasure.'

'Rape is forced, coerced, manipulative, and often violent,' she added.

Finally, Smart wrote, 'rape not only is often physically painful but is emotionally and spiritually painful and devastating.'

Smart generously opened up about the 'big differences' that she sees between sex and rape which allow her to be intimate with her husband, Matthew Gilmour.

Brian David Mitchell (above in 2005 being escorted to court) subjected her to horrific abuse, tying her up and raping her daily

Smart's captor, Brian Mitchell (left), was convicted in 2010 and is serving a life sentence. His wife, Wanda Barzee (right), is out of prison

Smart previously recounted in her book 'My Story,' that after the first time she was raped, she wondered whether her family would even want her back, and if Mitchell had damaged her.

Though she considers those things to be the 'big differences' for her, she noted that her list is 'by no means comprehensive'

'It takes me awhile to articulate everything I think and feel,' she said.

Smart and Gilmour reportedly met on a Mormon mission trip to Paris in 2009, got engaged in January 2012, and were married a month later in Hawaii.

They have welcomed three children together: Chloe, James, and most recently, in December of 2018, Olivia.

Smart has since gone on to become a public speaker, and author, and an advocate, and frequently speaks candidly about her ordeal.

Smart has announced a new YouTube series in which she will answer questions from the public

Smart and Gilmour reportedly met on a Mormon mission trip to Paris in 2009, got engaged in January 2012, and were married a month later in Hawaii

They have welcomed three children together: Chloe, James, and most recently, in December of 2018, Olivia

In fact, last week she announced a new YouTube series in which she will answer questions from the public.

In her first video, she offers background on her story and a disclaimer.

'I am not a therapist, I am not a counselor. Anything that I share will be my own personal opinions and my own personal journey,' she says.

'Keep in mind, if you're struggling, don't be afraid of reaching out to a professional for help,' she says. 'There's no shame in asking for help. If I'm talking about something that's triggering  turn it off. Just close out, it's fine. You won't offend me by doing that because taking care of yourself and respecting your own boundaries is really important.

'I imagine that sometimes I will talk about what it's like to be a survivor, or how my rape affected me, or how my rape has affected my intimate life as a married adult. If you find something triggering, just stop.'

She mostly covers lighter topics in her first video, sharing some background about her family.

'I am a mom. I have three children, Chloe, James, and Olivia. I married my husband about nine years ago. He's from Scotland,' she says.

Of her new YouTube series, she warned viewers to turn it off if she speaks about anything triggering

Smart said that if she and her husband 'have a disagreement it mends pretty quickly because he's just so nice to listen to' with his Scottish accent

'The three questions I always get asked are, "Does he have an accent?" Yes. "Does he have a kilt?" Yes. And "Is he really from Scotland, was he born and raised in Scotland?" Yes.

'If we ever have a disagreement it mends pretty quickly because he's just so nice to listen to. How can you stay angry?' she says.

Smart also talks a bit about the opportunities she has had because of her traumatic experiences, showing a willingness to focus on the positive and practice gratitude.

'I am grateful for the opportunities that my abduction has given me,' she says. 'That's not to say that I enjoyed being kidnapped, because I didn't. There's no part of me that would ever wish that on anyone.

'But I also recognize the fact, had I not been kidnapped, I wouldn't have the opportunities that I have now. And so for that I'm grateful, and for the compassion and the empathy.'

Smart previously appeared on The Masked Dancer, and last month opened a new center for self-defense classes for women so they'll be better-prepared if they're ever faced with the horrors that she's experienced.

Opportunity: Smart previously appeared on The Masked Dancer on Fox

Smart founded the Smart Defense program to teach women self-defense and fend off potential attackers in February, after being assaulted on an airplane.

She unveiled the new training center in Salt Lake City, Utah.

'It's a little bit different than just a series of movements,' Smart said of what's taught at the new center. 'It talks about situations and scenarios' and what to do if you find yourself in them.

Smart also stars in a Lifetime show that debuted last year entitled 'Elizabeth Smart: Finding Justice,' in which she helps other victims of kidnapping, sex trafficking, and abuse find their way to healing and rebuilding their lives.

In a candid Instagram post in December, Smart said that for years, she felt ashamed and embarrassed and didn't talk about the abuse she endured. But she finally spoke out when she learned her captor wasn't going to be charged for all the suffering he inflicted on her.

'In my mind what had happened was something that I hated and never wanted to acknowledge so I just avoided thinking/talking about it,' Smart said.

'But I remember one day my dad came to me and started discussing the charges Brian Mitchell was going to be charged with, and I felt anger, because of all the charges he was faced with none of them included the worst things he did to me,' she added.

'It was ultimately in that moment that I stopped caring and worrying about the shame and embarrassment that I felt,' she said.

Smart has since gone on to become a public speaker, and author, and an advocate, and frequently speaks candidly about her ordeal

Smart said that for years, she felt ashamed and embarrassed and didn't talk about the abuse she endured. But she finally spoke out when she learned her captor wasn't going to be charged for all the suffering he inflicted on her

Mitchell was convicted of federal kidnapping and unlawful transportation of a minor across state lines to engage in sexual activity charges in 2010 and is serving a life sentence in prison.

Smart said before that moment for years if a discussion or situation opened a door to talk about her abuse and captivity, she 'generally side stepped it.'

Smart said after learning of Mitchell's charges she freely began speak about her suffering and disregarded people who disputed her story.

'If someone judged me for what happened, in my mind I came to the conclusion that they did not matter and clearly were not worth my time,' she said.

'Since then I became more and more involved in advocacy and as I went out I realized I was not alone in being a victim of rape and sexual abuse,' she said.

'This more than anything made me want to do more, change the culture, speak and share my story if it helped others. In my eyes the first step towards changing the culture of how we treat victims and survivors is to start by believing them! It is for that reason @elizabethsmartfoundation started our #webelieveyou campaign,' she added.
A woman has discovered she's a 'double cousin' of the Queen's after learning she's related through James V of Scotland and the Bowes-Lyon family.

Kathy Cormack, from Surrey, appeared on ITV's one-off documentary The Queen and her Cousins with Alexander Armstrong to explore her household's royal history.

The retired engineer explained to host Alexander how her family have long believed they are descendants of King Ethelred, also spelled thelred, who came to the throne as a child in 978.

Kathy thought that was her closest link to Her Majesty, but a researcher from Ancestry informed her on the show, which aired last night, that she was in fact a direct descendent of James V of Scotland - making her the Queen's 13th cousin once removed.

She is also related to the monarch on The Queen Mother's side, the Bowes-Lyon family. Hearing the news, Kathy joked: 'Oh well, I'm surprised she doesn't invite me round for tea.'

Kathy Cormack (pictured), from Surrey, appeared on ITV's one-off documentary The Queen and her Cousins with Alexander Armstrong to explore her household's royal history

The retired engineer explained to host Alexander how her family have long believed they are descendants of King Ethelred, also spelled thelred, who came to the throne as a child in 978. Pictured, The Queen today

'We just grew up with this family history all around us,' explained Kathy. 'We all knew we'd been descended from King Ethelred.

'It was well known in the family... I guess everybody wants to be related to royalty, so is it true or not true? And how can I prove it one way or the other?' she questioned.

Her grandfather James believed his grandmother Jemima Dunbar was the illegitimate daughter of Elizabeth Nichol and Sir George Dunbar, a Scottish nobleman and rumoured descendant of King Ethelred.

'To have the family tree confirmed as correct will be incredible, but whichever way it goes, I think it's still a wonderful story,' said Kathy before meeting with Ancestry researcher Laura House.

Kathy (pictured) thought that was her closest link to Her Majesty, but a researcher from Ancestry informed her on the show, which aired last night, that she was in fact a direct descendent of James V of Scotland - making her the Queen's 13th cousin once removed

She is also related to the monarch on The Queen Mother's side, the Bowes-Lyon family. Hearing the news, Kathy (pictured left) joked: 'Oh well, I'm surprised she doesn't invite me round for tea'

Laura confirmed that Kathy is related to the actual George Dunbar, but then revealed how King Ethelred isn't the retired engineers closest royal ancestor to the Queen.

Kathy is a direct descendant of James V of Scotland, who was father of Mary Queen of Scots.

Through James V, she is also related to the Tudors, because she is descended from Henry VII of England, father of Henry VIII.

A delighted Kathy, who has grown up with the idea of being related to royalty, said: 'Oh fantastic, it's all true. I thought it was probably some fantastic story made up in the Victorian times.'

Laura confirmed that Kathy (pictured) is related to the actual George Dunbar, but then revealed how King Ethelred isn't the retired engineers closest royal ancestor to the Queen

'You are the Queen's 13th cousin, once removed,' informed Laura, while adding: 'You are in fact related to the Queen in several different ways, you are also connected to her through her Bowes-Lyon side, through The Queen Mother.

'So you are related to her on both sides of her family, you are a double cousin... That's quite an exclusive group as they tended to marry in nobility so it's pretty special.'

On what her grandfather would say, Kathy said: I think he would be over the moon about it. He never doubted it for a second, he was convinced of it. I think the rest of the family will be excited. I'm so glad it's true.

ITVs one-off documentary has been made to mark the Queen's 95th birthday and follows Alexander as he meets with some of Her Majesty's extended family who share previously hidden details about the monarch.
A mail carrier for the USPS has revealed why some people might mysteriously find dryer sheets tucked into their mailboxes.

The mail carrier, who posted anonymously on Reddit last month, warned that 'if you randomly see a dryer sheet in the back of your mailbox, your mail carrier put it there for a reason'  and you shouldn't remove it.

He went on to explain that bees  including Yellowjackets and wasps  like to make their homes in mailboxes, but scented dryer sheets have been known to ward them off, which can keep mail carriers from getting stung.

Bzzz! A mail carrier for the USPS has revealed that people might find dryer sheets in their mailboxes to ward off bees

'Were almost to the month of May which means nice weather, hanging out outside, school closing for the summer, and the return of those dastardly devils: Yellowjackets and Wasps,' the USPS worker wrote.

'This time of the year wasps and Yellowjackets (especially Yellowjackets) like to make nests inside of mailboxes. In a lot of places this time of the year, its just beginning to warm up outside, but its still fairly cold at night. So mailboxes provide nice, easy shelter for them.'

For mail carriers who quickly stuff letters into mailboxes, this can mean a world of pain.

'I cant tell you how many times, especially during this part of the year, where Ive opened up a box to see a little nest with 3-5 Yellowjackets just chillin. If Im really unlucky, they will have made their nest at the very back of the box so I wind up sticking my hand in not knowing they are there,' they went on.

Last year alone, they were stung 10 times on 10 separate occasions.

Luckily, mail carriers have found that the bees 'hate scented dryer sheets,' so some have taken to stuffing them in mailboxes that they suspect will become bees' nests.

'If we encounter a box that is a problem for nests, well often put one in there and it does the trick,' they said. 'So please, if you one day randomly see a dryer sheet at the back of your mailbox, just know that your carrier more than likely put it there to deter these Satanic creatures from building their home in it.'

For those that want to help their mail carriers out by putting their own dryer sheets in their mailboxes, the Redditor said that all that matters is that they are scented.

'This should only be used as a preventative measure,' they added. 'Ive never tried when theres a huge nest so I have no idea if it would work.'

'As far as when to replace them, just check it periodically to see if the scent is still strong or if it has faded. The scent, once again, is what drives them away. So if the scent isnt as strong or it has completely faded, its time to replace it,' they concluded.
Mothers who were caring for a new baby during lockdown were twice as likely to be struck by postnatal depression, according to a study.

University College London experts surveyed 162 London-based women with infants younger than six months old between May and June last year.

Almost half (47 per cent) said they were suffering from guilt, anxiety and exhaustion among other symptoms, which fitted the definition of the illness.

For comparison, estimates from multiple studies in Europe suggest rates were at one in five (23 per cent) before the pandemic.

Experts blamed the rise on the burden of 'constant mothering' without childcare or support from other family members.

The team also pointed to feelings among some mothers that they had missed out on forming friendships with other mothers and their babies.

Charities helping struggling mothers said they 'were not surprised' by the study's results, and that they had seen more mothers requesting support since the pandemic began.

University College London scientists found 47 per cent of mothers they surveyed were suffering from postnatal depression between May and June (stock image)

WHAT IS POSTNATAL DEPRESSION? Postnatal depression is a form of the mental-health condition that affects more than one in 10 women in the UK and US within a year of giving birth. As many men can be affected as women, research suggests. Many parents feel down, teary and anxious within the first two weeks of having a child, which is often called the 'baby blues'. But if symptoms start later or last longer, they may be suffering from postnatal depression. Postnatal depression is just as serious as others form of the mental-health disorder. Symptoms include: Persistent sadness

Lack of enjoyment or interest in the wider world

Fatigue

Insomnia

Struggling to bond with your baby

Withdrawing from others

Difficulty concentrating and making decisions

Frightening thoughts, such as hurting your baby Sufferers should not wait for their symptoms to just go away. Instead they should recognise that it is not their fault they are depressed and it does not make them a bad parent. If you or your partner may be suffering, talk to your GP or health visitor. Treatments can include self-help, such as talking to loved ones, resting when you can and making time to do things you enjoy. Therapy may also be prescribed. In severe cases where other options have not helped, antidepressants may be recommended. Doctors will prescribe ones that are safe to take while breastfeeding. Postnatal depression's cause is unclear, however, it is more common in those with a history of mental-health problems. Lack of support from loved ones, a poor relationship with the partner and a life-changing event, such as bereavement, can also raise the risk. Source: NHS Advertisement

Scientists used Facebook adverts to recruit mothers to the study, offering them a 5 voucher for taking part.

The survey asked them to list 25 people who were important to them  such as family and close friends  and then which of these they had seen in person, spoken to or messaged.

They also answered questions on how they were feeling to assess whether they were suffering from PND.

Mothers who took part were between 19 and 47 years old. Half of them were first time mothers, while 40 per cent were having their second child.

Half of them also said they had no complications during birth, while one in ten said there were 'major complications'  which may have led to a C-section, a condition linked to higher levels of PND.

As many as 115 babies in the study were born before the first lockdown began, and 47 were born during the restrictions.

Only two of the women who took part said they had no partners.

The results suggested mothers caring for babies during lockdown were more likely to suffer from isolation, exhaustion, worry, inadequacy, guilt and increased stress.

Those who had more contact with people faced fewer depressive symptoms than the mothers who were more isolated.

But when they saw close family members more often, mothers were also more likely to be suffering from PND than those that saw fewer relatives according to the survey.

They highlighted concerns including fears they were not being seen as a good mother, and the developmental impact on their baby of mixing with few infants.

The scientists added, however, that not everything mothers experienced due to lockdown was negative.

Some said the shutdown 'protected' family time, boosting bonding between parents and their children.

Others said their partners were around more often, and could help out more than previously had life been like pre-March 2020.

The researchers, led by UCL anthropologist Dr Sarah Myers, said in the paper: 'Mothers in London were not okay during England's first lockdown, with a substantial number of women meeting the diagnostic criteria for PND.

'While Western childrearing norms focus on intensive parenting, our results highlight that it still "takes a village" to raise children in high-income populations.

'Several studies from Europe and the US have found that maternal domestic work and childcare increased during the Covid pandemic, suggesting that the burden of lockdown may have disproportionately impacted mothers.

'While our qualitative results suggest high partner involvement may have been associated with more positive experiences of lockdown... overall our results indicate that adequate support within the household was either not available or not enough for many mothers in our sample.'

Dr Myes added: 'Our survey shows that lockdowns leave new mothers more vulnerable to PND, and that digital solutions might help but they are not the answer.

'Policy makers must take this into account as we continue to deal with Covid, for the sake of mums, babies and whole families.'

Dr Emily Emmott, who was also involved in the study, said: 'New mothers with more than one child were hardest hit, left to deal with newborns on top of multiple demands like homeschooling.

'First-time mothers often felt cheated out of precious time spent together with their babies and family or friends, making coming to terms with the change of identity and isolation that new mothers often feel even harder.

'But, where partners were at home more because of lockdown, and able to share the relentless tasks and household chores or take care of existing children, new mums felt the benefits.

'This should also be food for thought when we look at support for parents with new babies, not just in a pandemic.'

A spokesman for the London-based Association for Post Natal Illness, which was not involved in the study, said they were 'not surprised' by the results.

'It has obviously been an especially tough time to go through a pregnancy and have a new baby, with all the extra worry around Covid and the problems that brings itself,' they said.

'And then add to that the isolation from friends, family, lack of support or face to face groups or appointments, it really would add pressure and cause high anxiety.'

They added: 'The study does reflect what we have seen too and isolation for a new parent can cause huge problems at a time when they really do need to be supported.

'Last week the Perinatal Mental Health Partnership ran Maternal Mental Health Awareness week and there was lots of great information and resources online for that which hopefully reached many mothers who will have needed the support and reassurance.'

Miriam Donaghy, the founder of perinatal mental health charity MumsAid, told MailOnline their experience 'very much reflects' the study's findings.

'The number of new mothers contacting us for help with their mental health more than doubled during the first lockdown,' she said.

'In addition to the factors identified, we also saw a rise in the numbers of women who felt traumatised by their birth experience when they had often been unable to have their partners present.'

She added: 'A lack of support postnatally from their own mothers is known to be a risk for new mothers' mental well being and as this was the experience for almost all new mums during the lockdown it is no surprise that many more women struggled with their mental health.

'What we found particularly worrying that the percentage of women who self referred to MumsAid increased dramatically, while referrals from health professionals initially decreased.'

The study was published in Frontiers in Psychology.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has stopped counting every infection among people fully immunized with the COVID-19 vaccine who later tested positive for the virus.

So-called 'breakthrough cases' occur when people contract coronavirus at least 14 days after receiving their final dose of the vaccine.

As of April 26, 9,245 Americans out of more than 95 million fell ill with COVID-19 after being vaccinated, about 0.009 percent.

However, at the beginning of May, the CDC revealed it will no longer report all breakthroughs and instead only those that lead to hospitalization or death, as first reported by Bloomberg.

According to the CDC, nine percent of the breakthrough infections, or 835, have resulted in hospitalization and one percent, 132 people, have died.

But an expert tells DailyMail.com that now is not the time for the federal health agency to change their methods of data collection, and stress that it could lead to missing patterns in who gets sick after their shots.

The CDC is no longer counting every infection among people who fell ill with COVID-19 after being fully immunized with the vaccine, currently reported to be 0.009%. Pictured: A health care worker receives her first dose of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, May 2021

As of May, the agency will now only report on 'breakthrough' cases that lead to hospitalization or death, which currently sit at 835 and 132, respectively

In a statement, a spokeswoman from the CDC told DailyMail.com that the agency is transitioning to only reporting on specific cases 'to help maximize the quality of the data collected on cases of greatest clinical and public health importance.'

The change in reporting will start on Friday, May 14.

Dr Tom Clark, deputy director of the CDC's Division of Viral Disease, told Bloomberg that the number of breakthrough infections is likely an undercount because it relies on state health departments voluntarily reporting the cases.

He added that since the CDC started counting COVID-19 cases among fully vaccinated people, no worrying trends have been detected.

'I don't think we're missing out on this data,' Clark told Bloomberg.

'It's just sort of a package of how we're looking at these questions.'

Scientists have warned that breakthrough cases will continue to occur as tens of millions of people are vaccinated across the country.

In clinical trials, the Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine was 95 percent effective in preventing symptomatic disease and the Moderna vaccine was 94.5 percent effective,

Meanwhile, real-world data showed the Pfizer jab was 91 percent effective against all disease for at least six months and the Moderna vaccine was 90 percent effective.

This means that fully vaccinated people are between 90 and 95 percent less likely to develop COVID-19 than unvaccinated people.

But public health experts say that focusing only on people who are hospitalized or die is narrowing the focus of reporting too much.

Dr Michael Kinch, director of the Center for Drug Discovery at Washington University in St Louis told DailyMail.com that as much data on breakthrough cases should be collected as possible.

He said that mild or moderate cases are still important to track because symptoms can evolve over weeks and even months and differ among individuals.

'It seems awfully reckless to lower our guard now,' Kinch said.

Kinch added that by not reporting every breakthrough case, the CDC could be missing the mechanisms that lead to infections in fully vaccinated people.

'We have spent so much time worrying about different versions of the virus, the variants, but have missed why two to three people who get sick die, 10 to 20 get severely sick and 70 to 80 don't care,' he said.

'It's about looking at not just the variation in the virus but the variation in the people.'

Kinch believes that the change in data collection is a resource constraint and that more support should be directed towards a management system for reporting COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough cases

'We're going to blow it if we don't stay one step ahead [of the virus] and, frankly, it's gonna blow it for the rest of the world,' he said.

'As we identify why breakthrough cases occur, we're going to help inform the rest of the world. We have to devote the resources to this.

'The CDC is amazingly good, but they blew it during 2020 reporting on this virus. Now they have a chance to rebuild credibility. Now is not the time to go back to where they were a year ago.'
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) estimate of the risk of COVID-19 transmission outdoors is misleading, public health experts warn.

When the federal health agency released new guidelines on masks for fully vaccinated people last month, director Dr Rochelle Walensky stated that 'less than 10 percent' of coronavirus spread was occurring outside.

Epidemiologists and infectious disease scientists tell DailyMail.com that although the figure is not incorrect, the true risk is believed to be much lower.

The number of COVID-19 cases linked to outdoor spread is below one percent, and may even be as low as 0.1 percent.

It comes as New York Times critic David Leonhardt criticized the agency on Tuesday using mischaracterized data - from studies at construction sites in Singapore - to tell Americans to keep their masks on outside rather than following other interventions to help drive down infection rates.

Last month, the CDC said 'less than 10%' of all coronavirus transmission is occurring outdoors. Pictured: Guests stop to take a selfie at Magic Kingdom Park at Walt Disney World Resort, July 2020

Several public health experts argue that the true risk of outdoor spread is believed to be below 1%, and may even be as low as 0.1% (above)

Prior to the CDC releasing its estimate last month, officials had not stated a concrete number on the risk of outdoor transmission.

But, according to The Times, when the agency did settle on 'less than 10 percent,' it cited studies showing a large share of COVID-19 cases contracted outside occurred at construction sites in Singapore.

For example, in one study from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, 95 cases out of 10,926 documented around the world were classified as outdoors.

All 95 were linked to a cluster at a building site in Singapore.

The data comes from Singapore's Ministry of Health, but officials there don't classify the cases as 'outdoor transmission.'

'We didn't classify it according to outdoors or indoors,' spokesman Yap Wei Qiang told The Times.

'It could have been workplace transmission where it happens outdoors at the site, or it could also have happened indoors within the construction site.'

New York Times critic David Leonhardt criticized the agency for publishing guidelines partially based on mischaracterized data. Pictured: Leondhart, September 2015

The Times discovered that, in many of the cases, the workers had been in close contact with each other and had either met or eaten in enclosed outdoor spaces.

What's more, several locations that researchers had defined as outdoors for their academic papers were actually a mix of indoors and outdoors as outdoors, meaning many of the Singapore transmissions could have actually occurred inside.

However, even if all the Singapore cases were classified as outdoor transmission, that still represents fewer than one percent of the total cases.

In another study, in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, researchers conducted a systematic review of the cases in Singapore and other around the world, and states they found that the proportion of global infections that occurred outdoors is below 10 percent.

'In the paper, they write there is limited data but certainly less than 10 percent,' Dr Aaron Richterman, an infectious disease physician at the University of Pennsylvania, told DailyMail.com.

'You don't want to overstate a claim in academic journals, so that's probably where the 10 percent figure came from.

'That 10 percent then got translated to the guidance, even though when you look at it, it's much less than one percent.'

Other studies, such as one from Wuhan, China, found just one of 7,324 infections was linked to outdoor transmission.

Another, from Ireland, found one case of COVID-19 in every thousand traced to outdoor spread.

'There has been an overwhelming number of studies looking at the risk factors of transmission and transmission patterns,' Richterman said.

'And there are really no well-documented cases of casual transmission cases like another person [transmitting the virus by] walking by another person on a street.'

Richterman said the CDC's guidance had led to a distraction from interventions that could actually help drive down case rates.

'That's where you have circumstances of a person wearing a mask on the street, walk into a restaurant to meet a friend, and take off the mask to sit down for dinner,' he said.

'And the second event has much more of a risk for transmission.'

In The Times article, Leonhardt also argued that the CDC's 'exaggeration' about the risks of outdoor transmission has led to confusion about which activities are dangerous.

'All the while, the scientific evidence points to a conclusion that is much simpler than the CDC's message: Masks make a huge difference indoors and rarely matter outdoors,' he wrote.
AstraZeneca and the Oxford vaccine may be the toast of great swathes of the United Kingdom, but the Citys governance mavens take a different view.

The fact that chief executive Pascal Soriot grasped the nettle and developed a cost price, easily stored and transported vaccine for the whole world has done it no good with advisory services, which monitor pay in the boardroom, or the precious UK long funds.

Both groups are proving unwilling to look through the companys pay report in the light of the gift to humanity or advances in the groups share price.

Covid fight: AstraZeneca chief exec Pascal Soriotn faces a shareholder vote on his potential 18m pay

When the votes on rewards and in particular Soriots potential 18million pay in the current year are totted up at todays annual general meeting a substantial minority, perhaps 40 per cent to 50 per cent, will have cast their vote against.

There wont be as big a revolt as that at Rio Tinto last week. But given the contrasting contributions of the shamed mining company executives and Soriot to the world it seems an unnecessary punishment.

The only saving grace is that the French chief executive will be unanimously re-elected. What appears to have caused most dissonance at the Investment Association (IA), whose members manage some 8.5 trillion of assets, is that the remuneration panel moved the goalposts two years in a row.

That triggered 15.4million in 2020 and even more this time with the prospective bonus rising from 550 per cent of salary to 650 per cent.

AZ chairman Leif Johansson, who is seeking an extra year in office, backed the uplift for Soriot knowing he had been dissatisfied with his salary package for some time. He wanted to make sure that Soriot remains in place and his achievements are recognised.

Soriots performance and that of AZ shares can be contrasted with that at the UKs other big pharma group Glaxosmithkline where the chief executive Emma Walmsley is under siege from vulture activists Elliott Management over a slipping valuation.

Among those thought to have voted against Soriots pay is Aviva, which was at the head of the queue when it came to dissing the recent float of Deliveroo.

Soriot made errors in the pandemic by not addressing European and US concerns about the vaccine and delivery schedules urgently enough.

But his contribution to Britain has been immeasurable. He led the battle against a government-encouraged takeover by Pfizer in 2014 at 55-per-share.

The shares are now trading at 77. He has built an open access 1billion pharmaceutical research centre in Cambridge and AZ has been at the forefront in development of cancer fighting immunology drugs.

The IA and advisory groups such as Glass Lewis feel that they cannot give anyone a free pass on pay for fear that greedy executives will come flooding through the gates.

By being so inflexible on Soriots pay they are failing to acknowledge the public good created by AZ which overwhelms all else. Should the result of the vote rile Soriot and lead him to reconsider his future, it will not just be AZ which pays the price but Britain.

That is barmy.

Door stop

The end of high interest, doorstep lending might seem a decent development. In recent times Provident Financial has not covered itself in glory.

The switch from local agents familiar to hard-pressed customers, many of them women, to direct employees and a more digital approach left it open to challenge by claims management firms.

It made Provident an easy target for complainants who found a willing ally in the Financial Ombudsman Service. The decision (as foreshadowed here) to cut and run isnt good for anyone.

It opens the door to more abusive lenders, less regulated, less transparent and often violent. From now on, the Provvy intends to focus on its banking/credit card operation Vanquis which offers services to borrowers without credit ratings.

That leaves those at the very bottom of the socio-economic ladder exposed. That is not a welcome outcome.

La-la Land

The grand dame of UK property Land Securities is not giving up on central London.

It has decided to press ahead with the second stage of its Nova development in the citys Victoria area, adding a 160,000 sq ft of new office space.

It includes public amenities such as 15 fantastic terraces and a community lounge. We shouldnt read the last rites for big cities just yet.
My husband is 87 and in a private care home with acute dementia. I registered power of attorney (POA) in October last year.

I requested that money held in my husband's account be transferred to mine so that I can pay his care fees.

My husband was a Barclays Bank manager, so I sent the POA link to the branch where he holds his personal account.

Rejected: Barclays is refusing to transfer a husband's pension into his wife's account despite her having power of attorney

But the firm is insisting I send original documents, which is not necessary. I have sent proof of identity and other information required.

I am in my 80s and am supposed to stay indoors because of Covid. I have not had any problems with his state pension, so why is Barclays proving so difficult?

E. B., Northwood, Middlesex.

Tony Hazell replies: I am so fed up with Barclays popping up again and again in my mailbag over bereavement or power of attorney (also known as lasting power of attorney, or LPA) issues.

As you say in your letter, it is now possible to generate a unique access code from the Office of the Public Guardian via the gov.uk internet site.

This code allows banks and other organisations to view an LPA to check whether it is valid, view a summary and check who the attorneys are.

This applies to all LPAs registered in England and Wales since September 1, 2019. It means you don't have to take your documents into a branch.

But it appears that your knowledge of the system was much better than that of the Barclays branch you dealt with.

Even if the staff had not been told of this in training, or had dozed off in that particular section, the protocol on the website says that where someone cannot attend a branch it will make alternative arrangements.

A Barclays spokesman apologises and has now worked with you to ensure you are fully registered as having power of attorney for your husband and can now transfer the funds as you wish. But this should not have taken six months.

Barclays confirmed the government link for staff to view an LPA was always there but the staff were unaware of it. The spokesman has assured you it will look into training around this. You have also been sent a hamper as a goodwill gesture.

You have YOUR say Every week Money Mail receives hundreds of your letters and emails about our stories. Here are some of the best from our article about how we've become hooked on subscription services. We had a bad financial crisis in our family a few years ago. We got out the bank statements and cancelled all our subscriptions for magazines and everything else. Situations like that make you reappraise your priorities. E. H., Nottingham. Subscription companies can run their businesses from a kitchen counter and save enormously on overheads. The death knells for the High Street shops are ringing loud and clear. O. T., Oldham. I love subscription boxes, they are a treat to look forward to once a month. Bake-off boxes and gin subscriptions are the best. However, some companies will only send you tiny samples and are not so good. R. B., Midlands. Nothing seems to come at a fixed price any more. It's all 'only xx a month', from cards to delivery services. But I'm sure many of these direct payments will increase significantly once the first one has gone through S. D., Bradford. It baffles me how lazy people are. Who in their right mind would pay for a food or alcohol subscription box? Just head to your local supermarket and buy some beer and vegetables. W. B., London. I signed up for a weekly food parcel, as I thought it was worth a try. The first few weeks were great and the service saved me from going out during lockdown. However, it wasn't long before items started being substituted and I cancelled soon after that. D. B., email.

Scammers hooked me with 'free' samples

I applied for free samples from a company on the internet. It asked me to provide my debit card details to cover postage. I haven't received any items but it has debited my Lloyds Bank account.

The company say I ordered two tubs of detox tablets and signed up for a regular travel pack. This would be laughable if it were not for the fact that I am on daily dialysis which clears toxins from my body.

When I tried to reclaim the money, Lloyds chose to believe the scammers.

C.D., Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffs.

Tony Hazell replies: It is so frustrating when your bank chooses to side with a dodgy internet company rather than a customer they have known for decades.

You had 9.99 and 99.95 taken from your card. When you attempted to get the money back, the company provided Lloyds with 'evidence' claiming you had actually signed up to detox tablets and enrolled in something called a 'monthly auto-ship program'. Note the American spelling.

The argument seems to be that because you provided your card details, this could not have been fraudulent. But surely the very essence of a scam is that people are persuaded to give up financial details.

Lloyds initially refunded your money but, faced with these claims, it reversed this decision and redebited the money.

When I made Lloyds aware of your health issues, it pirouetted and has refunded your money as a goodwill gesture.

There's a lesson here for all of us. Supposedly free offers on the internet are dangerous because the company is usually intent on harvesting your financial details and signing you up to a subscription via the small print.

These companies sail in grey seas: technically their activities may not be illegal, but they are immoral.

Many are attempting to take your money under false pretences. Why else would they hide key terms in the small print rather than spelling them out in an easily understandable fashion?

Straight to the point I had medical tests done at The Doctor's Laboratory in October, ahead of potential fertility treatment, and was promised an itemised bill. We have since received an invoice for 706 but no breakdown. I have also been billed for a test I did not have. M. J., via email. The Doctor's Laboratory says there had been an administrative oversight and promised to send an itemised invoice immediately. You did not receive it. I made repeated requests and the firm insisted it had been sent. I have not heard back from you and feel you have now given up. *** Robert Dyas is refusing to refund me for telephones I ordered from the retailer in September. I paid 119.99 for the handsets but, when I used them, I could hardly hear the person I was talking to. Robert Dyas insists I have not paid for the order, but my account shows I have. B. R., Abergavenny, Monmouthshire. Customer service has clearly fallen short of expectations and Robert Dyas accepts this. The retailer has apologised and refunded you in full, adding 50 as a goodwill gesture. *** I ordered six cupcakes from Only Eggless for a friend as an Easter gift, but they never arrived. I've called the cake store in Wembley, North West London, five times to ask for my 20 refund, but I'm still waiting for my money. M. L., Essex. The cake company authorised your refund within hours of me getting in contact and you should receive your money within the next two weeks. *** TV Licensing keeps sending letters threatening me with visits from enforcement officers and prosecution. But I renewed my licence in July by cheque and have pointed this out several times. R. M., Shropshire. TV Licensing insists it has no record of your payment. It has contacted you to ask for more information to trace it.

The Schuh don't fit... so where's my refund?

I placed an order in December for two pairs of shoes from Schuh but it sent me one wrong item. So I returned this and was given a refund.

I ordered another pair and again was sent the wrong item. But after returning these, I am still trying to get the refund.

I did finally get the correct item on my third attempt.

Schuh says I have to take this up with [payments provider] Klarna. But Klarna keeps referring me back to its customer services department. Klarna says it processed the refund on December 16 but my bank confirms there was no refund.

I feel I am going around in circles. This only involves 24 but the principle has overtaken the amount of the refund.

E. K, Benfleet, Essex.

Tony Hazell replies: Disputes over small amounts can be the most frustrating.

Klarna says it made the refund on December 15 but your bank could not find it with the reference number it provided.

Klarna has now processed the refund again.

A spokesman says: 'We can see that the refund process did not go as smoothly as we would hope, and so, as a gesture of goodwill, we have arranged a second refund of 24 and have further compensated the customer with an additional 30 due to the inconvenience caused.'
Provident Financial is closing its 141-year-old doorstep lending business  putting 2,100 jobs at risk.

The firm, which specialises in loans for people who are deemed too risky by normal banks, blamed 'changing industry and regulatory dynamics' for the poor performance of its home credit division in recent months.

In a huge departure from its roots, Provvy will try to sell the business or wind it down, meaning the lender will no longer offer any high-cost or home-collected loans.

End of an era: Doorstep Provident Financial blamed 'changing industry and regulatory dynamics' for the poor performance of its home credit division in recent months

Instead, it will focus on 'mid-cost' products such as credit cards and unsecured personal loans through its Vanquis Bank brand, motor finance through its Moneybarn arm and payday lending through its Satsuma business.

Provvy's doorstep lending division, which dates back to 1880, has been dogged by rising customer complaints and an investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Professional claims management companies have increasingly targeted sub-prime lenders like Provvy, many of whom rely on doing business with the same customers again and again, after the regulator decided to clamp down on repeat lending.

Provvy  whose woes had been amplified by a botched restructuring in 2017, when it tried to convert its army of self-employed agents into full-time staff  has now had to set up a 50million compensation fund to deal with the complaints.

While its decision to ditch doorstep lending will be welcomed by campaigners who want to put a stop to expensive debt, there are worries that Provvy's departure could drive cash-strapped borrowers into the arms of loan sharks.

Justin Modray, of Candid Financial Advice, said: 'Whilst Provident Financial and other regulated doorstep lenders might come under fire for the high interest they charge, it is probably preferable to old-school local lenders who are unlikely to be sympathetic when a loan cannot be repaid.

Provident's chief executive Malcolm Le May (pictured) said the company was 'confident' in the outlook for 2021

In an ideal world everyone would get a grip on their finances and avoid borrowing in this way, but in reality there is demand for doorstep borrowing and better it's via FCA-regulated businesses than not.'

Provident, founded by insurance agent Sir Joshua Waddilove when he saw how hard it was for working-class families to buy home essentials, also believed its local agents' expertise and relationships provided better results for borrowers than going to a faceless bank.

Jason Wassell, chief executive of the Consumer Credit Trade Association, which represents alternative and high-cost lenders, said: 'Access to credit will be reduced for hundreds of thousands of people.'

Provvy's announcement came as it unveiled its results for 2020, swinging to a loss of 113.5million from a profit of 119million a year earlier.

But although Provvy had to scale back its new lending during the pandemic last year, as it waited to see how the economy would recover, chief executive Malcolm Le May said the company was 'confident' in the outlook for 2021.

Le May added that the pandemic could bring in more business for Provident in the long run, as people lose their jobs or have to take pay cuts and turn to lenders to make ends meet.
It is one of the most isolated major cities on earth, boasts some of the worlds finest beaches and is mercifully Covid-19 free.

But Perth  which straddles the banks of the Swan River on the shores of the Indian Ocean  has another key attraction.

The sun-drenched city is the capital of Western Australia, the worlds largest supplier of iron ore.

Boom town: Perth  which straddles the banks of the Swan River on the shores of the Indian Ocean  is the capital of Western Australia, the worlds largest supplier of iron ore

This precious commodity, used to make steel, is Australias biggest export, with record iron ore prices of more than $200 a ton helping to power the countrys rapid recovery from the Covid crisis.

Recent estimates put Western Australias iron ore resources at 48bn tons  enough to last half a century.

The bulk of it is mined in the Pilbara region, roughly 800 miles north of Perth.

This desolate expanse  home to more than 31 Aboriginal groups  is also host to a large network of mines all dedicated to digging up the riches lying underneath the arid red earth.

The dominance of the mining industry in this part of the world is clear for all to see in Perths elegant skyline, with the names of FTSE 100 mining titans Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton emblazoned at the top of the citys two tallest skyscrapers.

Just down the road are the headquarters of Fortescue Metals Group, the worlds fourth largest iron ore producer behind Rio, BHP and Brazils Vale.

Its founder and biggest shareholder, Andrew Twiggy Forrest, is Australias second richest man with an estimated fortune of 12.9billion.

The top spot is taken by fellow Perth-based iron ore magnate Gina Rinehart, who has amassed a cool 16.2billion as the head of Hancock Prospecting, the mining firm started by her late father Lang Hancock.

Together the duo  known in mining circles as the Pilbara red dirt twins  are the biggest corporate cheeses in town.

Their fortunes have soared in recent months as iron ore prices have risen  another 10 per cent to more than $226 a ton yesterday. Copper, meanwhile, hit a record high of $10,747 a ton.

The iron ore boom is being driven largely by the insatiable appetite for steel from China, Australias biggest trading partner and the largest consumer of iron ore on the planet.

More than 80 per cent of the iron ore that is dug out of the ground of Western Australia is shipped to the worlds most populous country.

Cashing in: Fortescue Metals Group boss Gina Rinehart - pictured, left, with the company's biggest shareholder Andrew Twiggy Forrest - has amassed a cool 16.2bn fortune

But demand has ramped up as China has embarked on a gargantuan post-Covid infrastructure spending spree under President Xi Jinping.

The appetite for iron ore has also increased to a lesser extent around the world as other countries emerge from lockdowns and start building again.

Lachlan Shaw, head of commodity research at National Australia Bank, said: We are seeing a global steel boom. Steel production in China is hitting all-time highs and steel prices everywhere are at all-time highs.

One of the biggest beneficiaries has been Rio Tinto, which is expected to dish out 7billion in dividends this year, up from 4.3billion last year.

The increase in demand from China for Australias iron ore has come despite growing tensions between the two countries.

The iron ore boom is being driven largely by the insatiable appetite for steel from China, Australias biggest trading partner and the largest consumer of iron ore on the planet

Relations have deteriorated further over the last year after prime minister Scott Morrison bravely led calls for an inquiry into the source of the Covid pandemic.

Beijing responded by imposing trade sanctions on key Australian exports including barley, beef, lamb, cotton and wine.

But it has been forced to hold its nose and buy iron ore from Down Under in vast quantities  because it has no choice.

Beijing is trying to reduce its dependency on Australia, and is investigating a number of possible iron ore mines in Africa, including large deposits in Gabon and Madagascar.

Its biggest hope is the proposed Simandou iron ore mine in the Nzerekore region of Guinea, which is part owned by Rio Tinto.

None of this poses a real threat to Australias stranglehold on the market  at least in the foreseeable future. Nobody, however, is under the illusion that the iron ore bonanza can last forever.

Chinas appetite is expected to taper off, while supply in Brazil and Australia is forecast to rise as new mines are opened and old ones brought back into production.

Shaw predicted prices will remain strong well into the second half of the year, before falling sharply. Rios chief executive of iron ore, Simon Trott, said demand from China is likely to ease in the second half of the decade as its economy matures.

Russ Mould of AJ Bell said that miners were the biggest dividend payers in the FTSE 100 last year, handing out 10billion.

This year, he expects them to pay a massive 16billion  or 21 per cent of the total  with profits at Rio and BHP set to double.

So for the short term at least, investors can expect to do very well indeed from the iron ore lying underneath Pilbara.
Landlords have lost their legal battle against New Look's restructuring deal.

The High Court ruled against a group of property owners who had challenged the High Street fashion retailer's company voluntary arrangement (CVA).

New Look launched the CVA in September after sales were hammered by store closures in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

Fashion chain New Look launched the CVA in September after sales were hammered by store closures in the face of the coronavirus pandemic

It agreed a CVA deal which moved its stores onto turnover-based rents after it was given the green light by a majority of creditors, but a number of disgruntled landlords launched a legal challenge in response.

London property giant Lazari and the Trafford Centre Ltd were among landlords to lead the challenge, and claimed the majority of votes in favour of the deal were from creditors who 'were unimpaired by the CVA'.

But the judge rejected the three separate challenges made to the High Court.

Nigel Oddy, New Look chief executive, said: 'We are pleased the court has ruled in our favour and would like to take this opportunity to thank our people, our landlords and all our creditors for their ongoing support.
Subprime lender Amigo Loans' share price fell by more than 30 per cent this morning after regulators said they would oppose a rescue plan which would cap compensation payouts in court.

The Financial Conduct Authority previously said in March it had several problems with Amigo's proposed 'Scheme of Arrangement', including over how mis-selling complaints would be assessed by the company and how much complainants would receive, but would not oppose it.

However, in an announcement to the London Stock Exchange, the company said it had received a letter from the FCA stating it felt the scheme was unfair and it planned to oppose it in court.

Guarantor lender Amigo Loans' rescue plan was handed a setback on Tuesday after the FCA said it would oppose its scheme to cap compensation pay outs

The update came despite the fact 74,866 creditors of the company voted in favour of the plan, compared to just 3,862 votes against.

Current and past borrowers had until 5pm on Monday to vote for or against the proposed scheme, while a five-hour virtual meeting is due to be held on Wednesday for those who had not voted online.

The scheme, which was previously given the green light by the High Court in March, requires 50 per cent of all creditors who vote to vote in favour to pass, subject to another court appearance next Wednesday.

'The votes in favour of the scheme represent approximately 95.1 per cent of the total number of votes cast and approximately 95.7 per cent of the value of the claims of all creditors who have so far voted', Amigo said.

The subprime lender, which charges 49.9 per cent APR and requires borrowers to provide a friend or family member to act as a guarantor, had previously been brought to the brink of collapse by mis-selling complaints.

By the end of February, there were 15,052 open complaints at the Financial Ombudsman Service about it, while it received the most complaints of any financial firm in the second half of last year.

More pertinently for the company's balance sheet, complaints at the ombudsman were being upheld at a rate of 88 per cent between July and December 2020, with all complaints costing it 116.2million.

This led it to run up a pre-tax loss of 81.3million in the nine months to the end of last year, and caused the company to say it would likely be tipped into administration if it did not propose capping compensation claims.

The plan would set aside at least 15million, with an additional 20million plus 15 per cent of pre-tax profits over the next four years possibly added.

However, the proposed scheme has proved controversial, with the FCA and politicians from both parties expressing concern about it and the fact complainants mis-sold unaffordable loans could get little compensation.

Indeed, pay outs could be as little as 5 per cent of what a borrower is owed.

The FCA said it seemed unfair bondholders and shareholders would not be hit by the scheme, with five directors set to receive millions of pounds in bonuses if the share price recovers.

The Tory MP Mel Stride, who chairs the Treasury Select Committee, told The Guardian in March that 'any situation where directors might receive bonuses on the basis of a cut in fair and reasonable compensation to consumers would clearly be one of significant concern.'

Amigo has defended its actions, telling the High Court it was unlikely to succeed with a shareholder rights issue to raise more capital.

Prior to today, the plan seemed to be working. Amigo's share price rose from 16p at the start of March to just under 30p on Monday. However, the shares tanked this morning after the news the FCA had decided to oppose the scheme was made public.

Amigo's Roger Bennett told the London Stock Exchange: 'The FCA has decided that it intends to appear at the court sanction hearing through counsel to oppose the sanction of the scheme, even if approved by the requisite majority of the scheme creditors, on the basis that the court cannot be satisfied that the scheme in its current form is fair.

'The FCA's letter states that its concerns are in relation to scheme creditors' claims being significantly reduced whilst other stakeholders such as shareholders are not being asked to contribute, and the terms of the scheme arrangements do not arise out of negotiations with Scheme creditors or any body representative of their interests.'

The FCA said the full letter to Amigo was not yet public and could not be shared.
The City watchdog has launched a full-blown investigation into bust lender Greensill Capital amid a lobbying row which has dragged in former prime minister David Cameron.

In a letter to MPs on the Treasury Committee, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) confirmed it was 'formally investigating matters relating to Greensill'.

FCA chief executive Nikhil Rathi said it was also 'cooperating with counterparts in other UK enforcement and regulatory agencies, as well as authorities in a number of overseas jurisdictions'.

Probe: In a letter to MPs on the Treasury Committee, the Financial Conduct Authority, led by Nikhil Rathi (pictured), confirmed it was 'formally investigating matters relating to Greensill'

Rathi added: 'A number of allegations have been made in the press regarding the circumstances of Greensill's failure, some of which are potentially criminal in nature.'

He explained that he was not able to disclose all of Greensill's interactions with the FCA due to fears that this may prejudice ongoing investigations, including a criminal lawsuit in Germany.

Though Greensill was a significant lender to key British firms such as Liberty Steel, it was not regulated by the Bank of England and was only overseen by the FCA under anti-money-laundering rules.

Even that was done indirectly through a firm called Mirabella, which Greensill paid to be its 'principal' under the 'Appointed Representatives regime'. This meant that Mirabella was regulated by the FCA, and had a duty to keep an eye on Greensill.

The FCA said most of Greensill's lending activities did not fall under the 'perimeter' of things it can supervise, as set by Parliament, so there was little it could have done in the run-up to the firm's collapse.

But, following Greensill's plunge into administration this year, Rathi said it would consider asking for changes to the perimeter.

He said this could include extending its investigation and penalty powers when a firm fails, and making changes to the Appointed Representatives regime.

Rathi said the FCA would also look at the criteria which firms are judged on for their fitness under money-laundering regulations.

And he suggested that the perimeter could be extended to give it regulatory powers over some types of lending schemes which Greensill offered, such as those extended to the NHS, which allowed staff to get paid early.

The shockwaves from Greensill's collapse have prompted scrutiny of the UK's lobbying rules, after it emerged that Cameron  an adviser to Greensill  tried to persuade Treasury and Bank officials to give the firm access to the Covid Corporate Financing Facility.

Greensill was told it did not qualify, but a timeline published yesterday showed Cameron called, texted and emailed Government and Bank officials more than 50 times between March and June in 2020.

The evidence was released as Lex Greensill, the Australian founder of Greensill, faced a three-hour grilling from the Treasury Committee in his first public appearance since the firm went bust.

Greensill denied he was a 'fraudster' and insisted all his firm's business was above board.
Astrazeneca has become the latest blue-chip giant to suffer an investor uprising against pay as a 'shareholder spring' rages in the City.

At the drug maker's annual general meeting, almost 40 per cent of votes were cast against an 18million package handed to boss Pascal Soriot. Although the pay plans passed, the results brought Astra close to defeat.

Soriot, who received 15.4million last year, is one of Britain's top-earning executives but claims he is underpaid compared to the bosses of other big drug makers.

The Frenchman, 61, has won plaudits for leading AstraZeneca through a stunning turnaround since taking over in 2012, as well as for rolling out its Covid vaccine at no profit.

But the latest pay rise has divided investors, with some warning it could tarnish the company's image and others only going along with it reluctantly.

There was also a protest outside AstraZeneca's Cambridge headquarters, where the firm was accused of putting profit before lives.

The British-Swedish company is currently producing the jab at cost, meaning it will not make any money from it during the pandemic. But campaigners claim the firm can start to make a profit on the vaccine from July, if it wishes.

At Astrazeneca's annual general meeting, almost 40 per cent of votes were cast against an 18m package handed to boss Pascal Soriot

The uprising by investors marks the latest rebuke to a major firm following similar revolts at Rio Tinto, Pearson, BAE Systems and Glencore, prompting talk that a repeat of 2012's shareholder spring is under way.

Soriot is STILL holed up in Sydney Pascal Soriot is expected to return to the UK next week after five months in Australia. The Astrazeneca boss has been running the firm from his home in Sydney since December having travelled there for Christmas. Bolt hole: Astrazeneca boss Pascal Soriot has been running the firm from his home in Sydney since December having travelled there for Christmas It means the 61-year-old, who was born in France but is also an Australian citizen having first moved there in 1990, has not stepped foot in his London home or the Cambridge headquarters of the drugs giant since before the rollout of his companys vaccine started in January. The firm insists that he was unable to return until next week due to travel restrictions and that Soriots ability to manage has not been hampered by having to communicate by video conference or phone. But some investors say he should have returned to Europe and more publicly defended the firm as its handling of vaccine production came under sustained fire from EU leaders. Advertisement

Aviva Investors and Standard Life Aberdeen were among those who opposed Mr Soriot's pay hike, while Jupiter Asset Management pledged its support.

All three shareholder adviser groups  ISS, Glass Lewis and Pirc  urged against the proposals and the Investment Association issued an 'amber-top warning', indicating concern.

Under the changes agreed, the maximum amount Soriot can receive in bonuses has been increased by 2.3million to 11.9million, on top of his 1.3million salary and 267,000 worth of benefits and pension contributions.

His total package can also rise by a further 4.3million if Astra's shares rise 50 per cent, taking his earnings as high as 17.8million.

It marks the second year in a row that his pay has been hiked.

Astra said Soriot was worth the cash, pointing to the 'remarkable turnaround' since he took over, with supporters agreeing the changes to prevent him from being poached.

Soriot had grumbled that he was 'the lowest-paid CEO in the whole industry' after bosses of rival biotech firms earned more, such as Regeneron boss Len Schleifer who bagged nearly 96million last year.

Richard Buxton, of Jupiter Asset Management, said this was why his firm backed Astra, saying: 'If the board feels there is a real risk of losing Pascal... and so they've got to up the ante, then I'm prepared to trust the board.'

Soriot's pay has been a controversial in the past as well, with shareholders revolting against his packages at the company's 2014, 2017 and 2018 annual general meetings.

Lee Wild, head of equity strategy at Interactive Investor, said: 'The numbers are undeniably eye-watering, but Soriot and his team achieved massive global success. That's worth something.

And Soriot's track record at Astra is enviable.' He pointed to Astra becoming a 100billion company last year  overtaking arch-rival Glaxosmithkline  and its takeover of rare disease specialist Alexion Pharmaceuticals for 28billion.

Wild added: 'Losing him could cost them far more than a few million quid a year.'

Astra shares fell 1.1 per cent, or 86p, to 7632p yesterday.

Mr Soriot is expected to return to the UK next week after five months in Australia, where he has been running the firm from his home in Sydney since December having travelled there for Christmas.

Protesters demanding that AstraZeneca share its Covid-19 vaccine technology have clashed with police outside the pharmaceutical giant's Cambridge headquarters

The demonstration, organised by Global Justice Now, is demanding the pharmaceutical firm share Covid vaccine blueprints with the World Health Organization

It means the 61-year-old, who was born in France but is also an Australian citizen having first moved there in 1990, has not stepped foot in his London home or the Cambridge headquarters of the drugs giant since before the rollout of his companys vaccine started in January.

The firm insists that he was unable to return until next week due to travel restrictions and that Soriots ability to manage has not been hampered by having to communicate by video conference or phone.

But some investors say he should have returned to Europe and more publicly defended the firm as its handling of vaccine production came under sustained fire from EU leaders.
A firebomb attack on a Los Angeles Police station was caught on surveillance camera and the suspect was caught soon after carrying out the assault.

Jonathan Rosin, 24, could be seen throwing a Molotov cocktail at the building before making a run for it just after midnight on Sunday.

The incident was seen by several police officers who quickly ran after the man and immediately arrested him.

A man threw a firebomb at a Los Angeles police station and was chased down by officers and arrested - No one was hurt in the Sunday night attack

Jonathan Rosin, 24, approached the Topanga station just after midnight, lit a glass bottle containing a flammable liquid and threw it at the front window before sprinting away

NEW: LAPDs Topanga Division station was firebombed Sunday morning at about 1am. A source sent me this video, which shows a suspect throwing a Molotov cocktail against the doors. LAPD tells me officers witnessed it and chased the suspect down. Suspect is now in custody @FoxNews pic.twitter.com/gTozeuDwsR  Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) May 10, 2021

Video shows Rosin walking toward the door of the police station before chucking the bottle which immediately smashed and ignites into an orange fireball.

The man runs away followed by several police officers around 20 seconds later.

It's not known how many officers were inside the building at the time. Incredibly, nobody was injured.

Officers took Rosin, who is believed to be homeless, into custody without incident at a nearby intersection and 'observed that he smelled like gasoline,' police said.

The bottle shattered and ignited setting the area around it ablaze

The blaze was intense as the bottle exploded on impact releasing a fireball

Officers gave chase on foot while a supervisor extinguished the flames Officers

The Los Angeles man was booked for igniting an explosive and an unspecified misdemeanor warrant, and was being held on $500,000 bail, police added.

The LAPD Major Crimes Division is now handling the investigation.

The LAPD say the suspect was uncooperative and the motive for the firebombing remains unclear.

Attacks on police stations in the Los Angeles area are rare but the number has increased over the past year.

A Los Angeles man was booked for investigation of igniting an explosive and an unspecified misdemeanor warrant, and was being held on $500,000 bail
An ambitious CIA plot to snare Osama Bin Laden by harvesting his children's DNA through a fake inoculation drive has fuelled vaccine hesitancy in Pakistan, experts have claimed.

A Warwick University study has claimed the 2011 operation led to a decline in overall vaccine rates by up to 40 per cent the following year.

The ruse saw free hepatitis B vaccines offered to children living near a compound in Abbottabad, where US intelligence had placed the former Al Qaeda leader.

A local doctor was recruited to make the programme look authentic  but the real goal was to try to confirm that Bin Laden was hiding in the region by obtaining a DNA match.

The CIA already had DNA from Bin Laden's sister, who died in 2010, and were hopeful of getting a sample to compare it with from any of the terror chief's children.

News of the plot emerged shortly after a US military special operations unit killed Bin Laden on May 2, 2011. It was seized upon by the Taliban and used to fuel conspiracy theories discrediting official public health programmes.

As a result, many local leaders began urging people not to inoculate their children, according to Warwick researchers.

Their analysis of national records discovered between a fifth and 40 per cent fewer Pakistani children in districts where extremist political parties were popular were given a polio or measles vaccine by 2012.

Vaccine hesitancy appears to still be widespread in Pakistan, which is one of only three countries in the world where polio has not been eradicated.

The findings are relevant because high vaccine uptake is considered the only way to end the global Covid pandemic. Pakistan is currently suffering a surge in the virus, possibly as a result of a deadly outbreak in India spilling across its borders.

Daily cases in Pakistan have reached a seven-day average of 5,500, fives times more than in February. But a lack of testing capacity means infections are highly likely to be a vast underestimate.

Just 3.3million Pakistanis have been vaccinated against the virus out of a population of more than 216m.

A CIA plan to find high-profile terrorist Osama Bin Laden (pictured) involved getting a local doctor in Pakistan to vaccinate people in a compound where they thought he was living, to see if they could find DNA samples to prove his family members were there

The CIA scheme was designed to target Osama bin Laden's children, some of whom are believed to be in this picture with his second wife

Pakistani army chiefs are pictured in a meeting in 2011

For the study, researchers used data from a national survey on vaccination rates among children born between July 2010 and July 2012.

More than 70,000 households take part in the Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement survey every year.

Their estimates found uptake for the polio, DPT, or measles vaccine declined by between 23 and 39 per cent in districts where extremist parties were popular.

The analysis also revealed that the decline in girls' vaccination rates was larger than the decline in the vaccination rate of boys.

Warwick researcher Andreas Stegmann, one of the paper's authors, said: 'The empirical evidence highlights that events which cast doubt on the integrity of health workers or vaccines can have severe consequences for the acceptance of health products such as vaccines.

'This seems particularly relevant today as public acceptance of the new vaccines against Covid is crucial to address the pandemic.'

Data from UK roll-out shows vaccines cut deaths by up to 97% Britain's vaccination drive was given another boost last night as yet more real-world data revealed the jabs are saving thousands of lives. Public Health England analysis suggested one dose of AstraZeneca's vaccine cuts the risk of death by around 80 per cent. Two doses of Pfizer's jab slashes the odds by around 97 per cent, academics calculated. Health Secretary Matt Hancock hailed the data, saying the evidence was 'clear' that vaccines protect against the 'awful disease'. PHE estimates at least 10,000 lives have been saved by the vaccine programme so far. One in three adults  almost 18million Britons  are now fully vaccinated, while infections, hospitalisations and deaths have all plunged to levels seen last summer when the virus was firmly in retreat. Advertisement

CIA agents are believed to have concocted the vaccination drive after tracking a courier to Bin Laden's compound in the city of Abbottabad in the summer of 2010.

Agents monitored the compound but wanted to know for sure that Bin Laden was inside before mounting a risky full-blown attack.

They allegedly recruited senior doctor Shakil Afridi to organise the jab drive and had begun in a poorer part of town to make it look more authentic.

Medics and low-ranking local government health workers are said to have been paid off to run the programme and put up posters advertising the project.

Local health visitors had administered polio drops to some of Bin Laden's children in the past.

It is not entirely clear how nurses would extract DNA samples from the children, but they could have been trained to withdraw blood in the needle after giving the vaccine.

News of the CIA operation first emerged in Britain's The Guardian newspaper shortly after Bin Laden was killed.

It is unclear if DNA samples were ever obtained. Scientific American reported that the operation 'apparently failed'.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has recorded a total 854,240 infections and 18,797 deaths from Covid so far and is currently in the midst of a second wave of the disease.

While official daily infection numbers remain low, between 4,000 and 5,000, the country conducts only around 40,000 tests a day - a fraction of its near-220m population.

Pakistan has seen a daily death toll of more than 100 in recent weeks.

Officials are worried the strained healthcare system could reach a breaking point if more contagious coronavirus variants begin to spread, as has happened in India.

Currently the Covid variant first discovered in Kent in England accounts for up to 70 per cent of infections across Pakistan.

The Indian variant has not yet been detected in Pakistan, but experts say it is because Pakistan does not yet have the technology to pick up on the new strain.

Most agree the variant is likely already spreading within the country.
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It was the high society trial that enthralled a nation suffering from the breadlines and unemployment of the Great Depression: a scandal of sex, sterilization and a socialite's downfall.

In January 1936, heiress Ann Cooper Hewitt sued her mother, Maryon, for $500,000. Ann claimed her mother tricked her into having a procedure that made it impossible for her to have children. This allowed Maryon to get her hands on Ann's sizable inheritance.

Ann was the main beneficiary of her father's estate and had a trust fund from her famous great-grandfather, Peter Cooper, which was worth millions then. In 1921, inventor Peter Cooper Hewitt left his daughter two thirds of his fortune - $4 million, which is over $59.1 million today  with the rest going to his wife, Maryon. However, if Ann did not have children, then that money was destined to go to Maryon.

In August 1934, Ann thought she was going to San Francisco hospital only to get her appendix removed. She was 20 and still considered a minor, meaning that Maryon had parental power to make medical decisions.

After a psychologist deemed Ann 'feeble-minded,' a doctor also removed her fallopian tubes without her knowledge or consent. Maryon also claimed that her daughter was 'promiscuous,' a violation of the period's societal norms for women. Reportedly, the socialite paid two doctors the then-huge sum of $9,000 for the procedure. The doctors and Maryon were criminally charged but eventually those charges were dismissed and dropped.

At the trial, two versions of each woman were presented. Ann was mentally challenged and wild or well-read and abused. Maryon, who was known for wearing a $100,000 diamond anklet on her jaunts to Europe and her gambling, was a woman trying to save her daughter and society from someone 'unfit' for motherhood or a schemer who wanted her daughter's millions.

A new book, The Unfit Heiress: The Tragic Life and Scandalous Sterilization of Ann Cooper Hewitt, by Audrey Clare Farley, takes a close look at the case and how it is tied to a prominent New York City family, eugenics and forced sterilization.

Ann Cooper Hewitt, above at 21, sued her mother, Maryon, in 1936 for $500,000 in damages. In August 1934, Ann thought she was going to San Francisco hospital only to get her appendix removed. She was 20 and still considered a minor, meaning that Maryon had parental power to make medical decisions. After a psychologist deemed Ann 'feeble-minded,' a doctor also removed her fallopian tubes without her knowledge or consent

At the trial, two versions of each woman were presented. Ann was mentally challenged and wild or well-read and abused. Maryon, who was known for wearing a $100,000 diamond anklet on her jaunts to Europe and her gambling, was a woman trying to save her daughter and society from someone 'unfit' for motherhood or a schemer who wanted her daughter's millions. Above, Maryon McCarter, who was married five times, and her daughter Ann Cooper Hewitt in Venice in an undated photo

Peter Cooper Hewitt followed in the footsteps of his grandfather - Peter Cooper - and was an inventor of note, patenting the mercury vapor lamp, 'which was widely used for street and outdoor lighting,' according to the National Inventors Hall of Fame website. He married his first wife, Lucy Bond Work, in April 1887, according to their wedding announcement in the Detroit Free Press. It is unclear when he met Maryon, but 'the two carried on an illicit affair, resulting in the birth of Ann in 1914,' according to a History Magazine article

Hewitt and Maryon married in 1918. When he died in 1921, he left two-thirds of his fortune - $4 million, which is over $59.1 million today  to Ann and the rest went to his wife, Maryon. However, if Ann did not have children, then that money went to Maryon. Ann, right, is seen before her final deposition sometime around the 1936 trial

Peter Cooper, born in 1791, was a well-known industrialist and philanthropist. His inventions ranged from the Tom Thumb steam locomotive to what later on would be known as Jell-O. In 1859, he founded his namesake college, the Cooper Union, in New York City. He died in 1883.

His daughter, Sarah, married Abram Hewitt, who was mayor of New York City in the late 1880s and helped build its first subway line. The couple had six children, including Peter Cooper Hewitt. (Two of the couple's daughters, Sarah and Eleanor, founded the Cooper Union Museum for the Arts of Decoration in 1896. It is now called the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum and located on the Upper East Side.)

Hewitt followed in his grandfather's footsteps and was an inventor of note, patenting the mercury vapor lamp, 'which was widely used for street and outdoor lighting,' according to the National Inventors Hall of Fame website.

He married his first wife, Lucy Bond Work, in April 1887, according to their wedding announcement in the Detroit Free Press. It is unclear when he met Maryon, but 'the two carried on an illicit affair, resulting in the birth of Ann in 1914,' according to a History Magazine article. The pair married in 1918. Hewitt died three years later.

Maryon became part of the upper crust when she married Dr. Pedar Brugiere, a California millionaire, in 1902, according to the article. Her background was of 'a popular Southern belle from Virginia,' according to her 1939 New York Times obituary.

'While my mother has always boasted of her Southern aristocracy, she was the daughter of a horsecar driver in San Francisco who lived in a flat over a corner grocery store when she was a girl,' Ann claimed, according to the History Magazine article.

Married five times, Maryon lived extravagantly, with the Times obituary noting: 'On one of her frequent trips between Europe and America she wore a diamond-studded anklet valued at $100,000.' She also had earned the nickname 'the greatest woman gambler' in Europe.

During the trial, Ann testified to her mother's abusive behavior toward her. 'She never had any affection for me, none whatsoever. She would drink all night and drag me out of bed at four in the morning to tell me if I'd die she'd have all my money. She'd be drunk and mistreat me, throwing up to me that I was a love child.'

Ann said she was locked up and did not have boyfriends, which belied Maryon's claims about her daughter's behavior.

'The defendant further claimed that her daughter was morally degenerate, referencing Ann's addiction to masturbation, love letters between Ann and her chauffeur that contained the young lady's pubic hairs, and Ann's 'erotic tendencies' with men ranging from bellhops to 'Negro' train porters,' Farley wrote in her 2019 Narratively article, which was the basis for her new book, The Unfit Heiress.

Peter Cooper, born in 1791, was a well-known industrialist and philanthropist. His inventions ranged from the Tom Thumb steam locomotive to what later on would be known as Jell-O. In 1859, he founded his namesake college, the Cooper Union, in New York City. Ann had a $10,000,000 trust fund from Cooper, her great-grandfather, according to the 1939 New York Times obituary on Maryon McCarter

Peter Cooper's daughter, Sarah, married Abram Hewitt, who was mayor of New York City in the late 1880s and helped build its first subway line. The couple had six children, including Peter Cooper Hewitt. Above, the foundation building of the Cooper Union. When the building, which is now landmarked, opened in 1859 in the East Village, it 'marked the creation' of the college, according to its website

Two of the Sarah and Abram Hewitt's daughters, Sarah and Eleanor, founded the Cooper Union Museum for the Arts of Decoration in 1896. It is now called the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, seen above, and located on the Upper East Side

Above, the cover of new book, The Unfit Heiress: The Tragic Life and Scandalous Sterilization of Ann Cooper Hewitt, by Audrey Clare Farley, takes a close look at the case and how it is tied to a prominent New York City family, eugenics and forced sterilization

In August 1934, Ann supposedly failed a mental test that asked questions, for example, about what was the longest river in the United States and how many years there are in the presidential term. The psychologist deemed her 'feeble-minded' and 'determined Ann to have a mental age of 11.' This was disputed at trial after another doctor examined her. Ann was able to write in French and read books from Shakespeare to Dante's Inferno, according to the History Magazine article.

But that August, the assessment of 'feeble-minded' was enough for grounds to sterilize Ann and it was backed by the laws of the time.

While she recovered in the hospital, 'she overheard a few staff members ask her nurse how the 'idiot patient' was doing,' Farley wrote in The Unfit Heiress, per the New York Post. 'Ann also heard her nurse make several phone calls to Dr. (Tilton) Tillman assuring him that his patient 'didn't suspect a thing.''

Dr. Tillman was Maryon's physician and one of the two that she supposedly paid. Maryon, Tillman and Dr. Samuel Boyd, the surgeon who performed Ann's salpingectomy, were charged with felony mayhem, which is the criminal act of disfiguring or disabling a victim, after Ann brought her civil suit against her mother.

But a judge dismissed the charges against the doctors. However, the charge was not dropped against Maryon, who soon went back to the East Coast. Using a fake name, Mrs. Jane Merritt, Maryon was found unconscious from what was ultimately determined to be an overdose of a 'sleeping potion.' News of the attempted suicide shook high society and Maryon did not recover her standing,' according to History Magazine.

Ann ended up settling for $150,000 and her reluctance to testify against her mother led to the dropping of the criminal charge of felony mayhem. Maryon died at the age of 55 in 1939. Her obituary noted that at one point, her last husband, took out an ad stating he would no longer pay her many debts.

Ann, like her mother, married five times. She died of cancer at the age of 40 in 1956.

It was the high society trial that enthralled a nation suffering from the breadlines and unemployment of the Great Depression: a scandal of sex, sterilization and a socialite's downfall. In January 1936, heiress Ann Cooper Hewitt sued her mother, Maryon, for $500,000. Above, Ann is being sworn in testify on January 23, 1936

During the trial, Ann testified to her mother's abusive behavior toward her. 'She never had any affection for me, none whatsoever. She would drink all night and drag me out of bed at four in the morning to tell me if I'd die she'd have all my money. She'd be drunk and mistreat me, throwing up to me that I was a love child.' Above, Ann testifies in the felony mayhem criminal trial of the two physicians who were involved in her sterilizing procedure
A supporter of convicted rapist Jarryd Hayne accused of spitting outside court after he was jailed will be fined by police.

The former NRL star, 33, was surrounded by dozens of friends and family when he arrived at Newcastle District Court for sentencing last Thursday.

Wild scenes erupted outside court after Hayne was sentenced to five years and nine months behind bars.

There were claims that one of Hayne's supporters allegedly stared down and spat at the victim as she was escorted from the court by police, which sparked nationwide outrage.

Scuffles also broke out between Hayne's supporters and the waiting press.

Daily Mail Australia later identified western Sydney father-of-one Mina Greiss, 38, as the man accused of spitting at Hayne's rape victim after she delivered a powerful victim impact statement in court.

Police have confirmed Mina Greiss (pictured outside court last Thursday) will be issued with an criminal infringement notice for offensive conduct

However, it is understood police investigators do not believe Greiss was intentionally spitting towards Hayne's victim, but possibly news reporters.

The police investigation is yet to find any evidence to back up claims that Greiss spat in the direction of the young victim.

But detectives will allege footage shows him spitting outside the court during a hostile encounter with members of the media, the Newcastle News reported.

A NSW Police spokeswoman confirmed to Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday that a Mount Druitt man, 38 will be issued with an criminal infringement notice for offensive conduct.

Jarryd Hayne (pictured with wife Amellia) won't be eligible for parole until early 2025 after being jailed for rape

The fine in NSW for offensive conduct in a public place is $500.

Greiss has the right to appeal the fine in court.

Investigations into the chaotic scenes outside court following Hayne's sentencing continue.

Hayne will spend a minimum three years eight months behind bars and won't be eligible for parole until early 2025.

Hayne's lawyers on Friday lodged papers with the New South Wales Supreme Court after the disgraced former footy star spent his first night behind bars.

He has filed a Notice of Intention to Appeal with the state's highest court - the first step in his attempt to overturn the jail term.

Hayne's legal team have 12 months to launch a formal appeal.
A pitbull terrier has been reunited with her owner she was allegedly stolen from outside a shopping centre.

Baxter, a four-year-old female pit bull terrier, was tied up by her owner outside World Square shopping centre in the Sydney CBD about 8.20pm on Friday.

When the distraught owner realised his beloved dog was missing, he contacted police who launched a public appeal to track down Baxter.

Baxter, a four-year-old pooch, was allegedly taken last Friday before reuniting with her owner on Monday (pictured)

Police alleged CCTV footage showed a man and a woman heading south on George Street with the pooch.

On Monday night, Levi James, 38, surrendered Baxter at Day Street Police Station in Darling Harbour where he was arrested and charged with stealing the dog.

NSW Police shared footage of the tail-wagging reunion as officers handed over the excited bull terrier to her owner at the inner city station.

The accused dognapper was refused bail and is due to face Central Local Court on Tuesday.

Stealing a dog carries a penalty of up to one year in prison in NSW.
A grieving father whose four children were shot dead in the worst massacre since Port Arthur has told how he can still not look at their photos three years on from their murders as he continues his search for answers into their deaths.

Aaron Cockman's four children - daughter Taye, 13, and sons Rylan, 12, Arye, 10, and Kadyn, eight - were shot dead by his father-in-law Peter Miles on May 11, 2018 at Forever Dreaming Farm in Osmington, near Margaret River in Western Australia.

Miles, 61, also killed his wife Cynda and their daughter and the children's mother Katrina in the horrific shootings that shocked Australia, before turning the gun on himself.

Mr Cockman said the pain of his children's deaths - which he believes were preventable - was 'still really fresh' and 'hasn't eased off at all'.

Aaron Cockman's four children - daughter Taye, 13, and sons Rylan, 12, Arye, 10, and Kadyn, eight - and their mother and his estranged wife Katrina were shot dead by her father and the children's grandfather Peter Miles on May 11, 2018

Mr Cockman (pictured) said three years on from his children's deaths he is still unable to look at photos of them, revealing the pain 'was still really fresh'

'After the kids died, I would've thought in a few years time I'm going to feel a lot better... even start looking at the kids' photos,' Mr Cockman told The West Australian.

'Now that three years have past... I actually feel worse, I still cannot look at the photos.'

Mr Cockman has spent the past three years lobbying for an inquiry into the circumstances leading up to the massacre and to help prevent such a violent act from occurring again.

He said he felt the matter 'hasn't been looked into properly' and the fact that had yet to happen three years on 'I think that's pretty poor'.

'I think more action should've been done within the first year - looking into this situation and what happened and why it happened - to prevent this from ever happening again,' Mr Cockman said.

Western Australia's coroner Ros Fogliani ruled out a public inquest into the deaths stating it was unlikely to generate further evidence.

Peter Miles (second from left in suit and blue tie) shot dead his wife, Cynda, (back right), his daughter Katrina Miles (left in red dress) and her four children (pictured) before shooting himself

Peter Miles shot dead his wife Cynda, their daughter Katrina and her four children at his Osmington property near Margaret River in Western Australia

But the state's Attorney-General John Quigley told Mr Cockman in October last year that while he did not have the power to order a coronial inquest he would seek a parliamentary inquiry into the shootings led by the upper house Community Development and Justice Standing Committee.

The following month, Peter Katsmbanis, the then committee chairman, noted the matter was 'worthy of further investigation' but there was not enough time to carry out an inquiry because of March's state election.

Mr Cockman went back to Mr Quigley last month again seeking answers and was told the relevant committee had not yet been set-up following the election but it 'will happen soon'.

Mr Quigley said as soon as the committee was once again up-and-running, he intended 'to request that it conduct an inquiry into the tragic murders'.

Mr Cockman has also lobbied for the role of the Family Court to be examined since the murder's took place.

His father Phillip Cockman had warned in 2015 the Family Court process could lead Miles to mass murder, by amplifying tensions between the family and exacerbating his financial and pressures.

Police spent several days scouring Miles' 11-heactrae hobby farm and uncovered three guns licensed to him. Pictured is the home where the horrific massacre unfolded

Mr Cockman, who was estranged from Katrina and locked in a bitter custody dispute with her, believes Miles had been planning the killings for some time.

Detectives and forensic officers spent several days scouring Miles' 11-hectare hobby farm, about 20km from the tourist hub of Margaret River, following the massacre.

Three guns licensed to Miles were found.

It later emerged Miles had called police after killing his family and spoke for two minutes before taking his own life.
A key Victorian crossbench MP wants three new safe injecting rooms in areas of Melbourne with high levels of drug use.

Reason Party MP Fiona Patten will call on the government to set up centres in St Kilda, Footscray, and Dandenong.

'People are injecting in our streets, on our front lawns, and they are dying - we need to do something,' she told AAP.

Pictured: Syringes left discarded in North Richmond. The suburb has its own bespoke safe injecting room where drug users can shoot up under supervision

A large gathering is pictured outside a safe injecting room in North Richmond in Melbourne's inner-east

'We are seeing overdoses in those areas similar to what we were seeing in North Richmond,' she said.

Melbourne's existing safe injecting centre at North Richmond has been controversial due to its proximity to a school.

The government is looking at setting up a second centre near the Queen Victoria market.

Under Ms Patten's plan, the new centres would also have the capacity to carry out pill testing.

She says there have been calls from residents in St Kilda, Footscray, and Dandenong to set up facilities.

Ms Patten is currently in New Zealand to talk to local MPs, who are currently considering safe injecting rooms.

Fiona Patten has called for three additional safe injecting rooms to be placed around Melbourne

The North Richmond safe injecting room (pictured) was opened in June 2018

Ms Patten has faced public backlash in relation to her plans on the Move the injecting room Facebook page.

'She has no idea,' one wrote about Ms Patten.

'This woman is disgusting. A traitor. Praying she gets voted out,' another wrote in reply to a story on her plans for the new injecting rooms.
The butcher shop where 'BBQ Man' picked up peri-peri chicken while infected with coronavirus has spun the unfortunate attention into marketing gold.

PJ Ilic, owner of The Meat Store at Bondi Junction, in Sydney's east, told Daily Mail the exposure alert by NSW Health just shows how good his grass-fed, free-range products are.

Tom Pizzey, 50, was dubbed 'BBQ Man' after he visited four BBQ stores on the hunt for the perfect grill while infected on May 1.

But the unwitting Covid patient only stopped off at one place to buy meat.

A Sydney butcher (pictured, The Meat Store) that was declared a Covid hotspot after an infected man dropped by to pick up some prime cuts, is making the most of the whirlwind of media attention

For most businesses, being put on high alert by NSW Health could spell disaster, but for The Meat Store in Bondi they say it just shows how good their product is. Pictured: The Meat Store's Facebook posted

'When it takes four shops to find the right BBQ but only one for the perfect piece of meat for it,' the Meat Store posted on its Facebook page along with a list of the venues he had been to.

Mr Ilic said the tongue-in-cheek ad was about getting 'on the front foot' after the initial 'shock and stress'.

'Some businesses try to play the victim, but we wanted to get on top of it,' he said.

Although being hit with a dreaded Covid hotspot tag could have be enough to tarnish a business, in this case Mr Ilic's customers rallied behind The Meat Shore which has been up and running for more than a decade.

'People understand that in a pandemic it can happen to anyone so our customers have been really supportive,' he said.

'We are very grateful for the support of the community, it really means a lot to us.'

After shutting the business for a couple of days and undergoing a massive deep clean they were given the all-clear from health authorities, and The Meat Store reopened.

For meat lovers who don't live near the stores at Bondi Junction or Caringbah in Sydney's Shire, its products can also be bought online through the website.

'BBQ man' visited four BBQ stores on the hunt for the perfect grill while infected on May 1. But the unwitting Covid patient only stopped off at one place to buy meat. Pictured: The Meat Store

Pictured: The display counter at The Meat Store in Sydney's Bondi Junction

Social media users called the marketing strategy 'genius' and praised the business for keeping its a larrikin sense of humour during such a difficult time.

'They saw the perfect opportunity and they took it,' one commenter wrote.

Another wrote: 'Genius! You turn this around successfully and great marketing!'

Although NSW has not recorded another case of community transmission for almost a week, contract tracers are still scrambling to find a missing link in the infection chain.

BBQ Man, who has been identified as high-flying businessman Mr Pizzey, tested positive for the virus on May 5 and his wife was confirmed to have been infected the following day.

While BBQ man was in the market for a new BBQ, he was also there on behalf of his private equity firm mulling over whether to purchase the Barbeques Galore chain

NSW Health have determined through genomic testing the Apollo Global Management managing director contracted the virus from a returned traveller who came from the US and was infected with an Indian variant.

About a month ago the traveler was taken from hotel quarantine to special health accommodation, but it remains a mystery how he came into contact with Mr Pizzey.

As a result, Covid restrictions were re-introduced across Sydney, Illawarra, and the Blue Mountains, with the return of compulsory masks on public transport and cinemas, and visitors in homes limited to 20 people.

Drinkers in bars must also be seated and just two visitors will be allowed for residents in aged care homes.

The restrictions will remain in place until at least May 17.

The reason the private equity boss was visiting so many BBQ stores was a combination of business and pleasure, the Australian Financial Review reported.

While he was in the market for a new BBQ, Mr Pizzey was also there on behalf of Apollo mulling over whether to buy the Barbeques Galore chain.
A shopper who witnessed a man allegedly carry out a wild stabbing rampage inside a supermarket has told of the horrific moment she and the accused came face to face.

The 42-year-old man allegedly stabbed four people in the attack at a Countdown supermarket in Dunedin on New Zealand's South Island about 2.30pm on Monday afternoon.

After being restrained by customers and then police, the man was arrested and charged with the attempted murder of two men and two women - two of whom were Countdown employees.

Three of the injured are in a serious but stable condition, while the fourth is in a moderate condition.

The 42-year-old is due to make his first court appearance later. The suspect was also injured in the alleged attack and was initially treated for his wounds under police guard before being transferred to jail.

Shopper Jenny McDowell told Daily Mail Australia her first thought was other customers were having an argument when she heard screams echo down the aisles at the Cumberland Street supermarket.

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Countdown employees embrace one another as a man with stab wounds is rushed to hospital. Another man, 42, has been arrested and charged with the attempted murder of two men and two women

Police said in a statement that one person was arrested at the scene. He was held under police guard in hospital before being moved to a police station as he waits to face court on Tuesday

The Maori cultural studies student quickly realised how serious the situation was when she saw the man allegedly stab a female employee and then look directly at her.

'For a second it didn't really click what was happening but then I saw the man standing over the Countdown worker and she was shielding her hands trying to protect her head,' she said.

'He looked in my direction and I was thinking "is this really happening?" I guess it was just a form of disbelief.

'I backed up a bit and then a man yelled at me to help someone who was stabbed in the neck.'

She said she kept going back over in her head what more she could have done to help the injured man.

A Countdown employee used his shirt to put pressure down on the wound after Ms McDowell briefly froze during the chaos.

Shopper Jenny McDowell came face to face with the man accused of carrying out the shocking rampage

She eventually emptied her reusable bag so she could apply pressure with it, but by that time the worker had already pushed his jersey down against the injured man's neck.

'I just keep thinking I should have tried to stop the bleeding sooner. I've done first aid before but it went out of my head,' she said.

'The man kept saying "my wife, my wife - how is my wife?"

'I was reassuring him help was coming. The police came really quickly but it felt like forever - time just slowed down. There was so much blood - I had blood on my clothes as well.

'I thought about going in to restrain the man but fear held me back. I kept thinking is he going to come for me next.'

The blood-spattered 42-year-old was led out of the supermarket by police wearing a 'Sons of Anarchy' T-shirt.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the alleged attack is not believed to be terror-related.

Ms McDowell also told of the dramatic moment both staff and shoppers - including one armed with a chair - tried in any way they could to hold the man down.

'Three or four people just jumped in completely selflessly to try and restrain the man,' she said.

A man wearing a 'Sons of Anarchy' shirt was handcuffed at the Countdown supermarket on Cumberland Street, Dunedin, New Zealand, on Monday afternoon after three people were left in a serious but stable condition following the alleged stabbing attack

'Someone got a chair - I don't know where from - and they were holding him down in the aisle near the pharmacy. I'm so proud of what they did. They were truly amazing - absolute heroes.

'The man nearly got free at one point but the shoppers were able to restrain him until police came.'

Another witness wrote on Facebook how she was told to flee when the alleged stabbing spree began.

'A lady was freaking out telling everyone to run,' the Wellington woman wrote.

A man who was injured in the alleged stabbing rampage is taken from the scene by paramedics

Southern District Police Commander Superintendent Paul Basham said it was a 'fast-moving and extremely traumatic event for every person in that supermarket  the victims who were injured, those present who tried to intervene and those who had to flee to a place of safety'.

Supt Basham said while the investigation was still in its early stages, 'on the face of what we currently know, we believe this was a random attack'.

He said he had viewed CCTV footage of the attack 'which is quite traumatic'.

'What I can say is those that intervened, some of who became injured themselves, have acted selfless and great courage to prevent this man from hurting anybody else - and indeed they did just that,' he said.

The supermarket will stay closed until at least Wednesday.

The alleged stabbing attack unfolded about 2.30pm (NZST) on Monday. Emergency crews are pictured at the scene

The supermarket has been closed for the remainder of Monday and will remain closed on Tuesday. Pictured, emergency services outside the supermarket

Countdown staff could be seen embracing one another as the injured were stretchered from the supermarket by emergency services.

Countdown managing director Spencer Sonn said the 'priority right now is our injured team members and caring for our wider team in the wake of this extremely traumatic event'.

'We have been concerned about the escalating violence towards our team, and this is something we have continued to talk and raise as an issue over the last year.

'Our amazing team comes to work to serve Kiwis every day, and our customers visit our stores knowing that they will be safe. We are heartbroken that this wasn't the case today.'
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'Squad' member Rep Ilhan Omar on Monday accused Israel of 'terrorism' after the nation launched deadly air strikes on Gaza

'Squad' member Rep Ilhan Omar on Monday accused Israel of 'terrorism' after the nation launched deadly air strikes on Gaza as Reps Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley advocated for Palestinians after clashes with police last week and over the weekend.

At least 20 people were killed, including nine children and a senior Hamas commander, and 65 others wounded, Gaza authorities said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Hamas had crossed a 'red line' by directing missiles towards Jerusalem and that the Jewish state would 'respond with force'.

'We will not tolerate attacks on our territory, our capital, our citizens and our soldiers. Those who attack us will pay a heavy price.'

In response to the escalating situation, Omar tweeted: 'Israeli air strikes killing civilians in Gaza is an act of terrorism. Palestinians deserve protection.

'Unlike Israel, missile defense programs, such as Iron Dome, dont exist to protect Palestinian civilians. Its unconscionable to not condemn these attacks on the week of Eid.'

The other 'squad' members advocated for Palestinians following clashes with Israeli police on Friday. Tlaib, Ocasio-Cortez, and Pressley expressed their concerns on Twitter with Tlaib even taking aim at President Joe Biden.

'I was 7 years old when I first prayed at the Al Aqsa with my sity. It's a sacred site for Muslims. This is equivalent to attacking the Church of the Holy Sepulchre for Christians, or the Temple Mount for Jews. Israel attacks it during Ramadan. Where's the outrage @POTUS?' Tlaib wrote.

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At least 20 people were killed, including nine children and a senior Hamas commander, and 65 others wounded, Gaza authorities said

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Hamas had crossed a 'red line' by directing missiles towards Jerusalem and that the Jewish state would 'respond with force'

Israel's army said 150 rockets had been launched from Gaza, dozens of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome Aerial Defence System, with no casualties reported. Pictured: One of the rockets being fired from Gaza City towards Israel

At least three exhaust trails were seen in the skies over Gaza City as explosions were heard, though was not immediately clear whether the rockets hit anything or were shot down

The other 'squad' members advocated for Palestinians following clashes with Israeli police on Friday. Tlaib, Ocasio-Cortez, and Pressley expressed their concerns on Twitter with Tlaib even taking aim at President Joe Biden

Pressley shared: 'I stand in solidarity with the Palestinian residents of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem who are being forcibly removed from their homes  in the middle of a pandemic, during Ramadan. This is unacceptable'

Pressley said: 'I stand in solidarity with the Palestinian residents of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem who are being forcibly removed from their homes  in the middle of a pandemic, during Ramadan. This is unacceptable.'

'We stand in solidarity with the Palestinian residents of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem. Israeli forces are forcing families from their homes during Ramadan and inflicting violence. It is inhumane and the US must show leadership in safeguarding the human rights of Palestinians,' Ocasio-Cortez wrote.

On Monday, Israel's army said 150 rockets had been launched from Gaza, dozens of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome Aerial Defence System, with no casualties reported.

The Israeli military said it had targeted 'two rocket launchers, two military posts', a tunnel and eight Hamas operatives in Gaza.

Hamas sources confirmed that one of their commanders, Mohammed Fayyad, had been killed

Netanyahu said Monday: 'Whoever attacks us will pay a heavy price.' He also warned that the fighting could 'continue for a while'.

Hamas, a militant group which controls the Gaza Strip, had earlier issued a 6pm ultimatum for Israel to withdraw security forces from the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem. The rockets were fired after the deadline lapsed.

It follows days of clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces around the mosque that began on Friday and have continued since. Fighting today saw at least 305 Palestinians hurt, including 205 taken to hospital, five in serious condition.

Some 21 police were hurt, including one seriously, the Israeli security services said.

Speaking of the Israeli response to Hamas's rocket attacks, army spokesman Jonathan Conricus said on Monday evening: 'We have started, and I repeat started, to attack military targets in Gaza.

'We have made preparations for various scenarios, including high intensity ones... Hamas will get the message.'

Diplomatic sources told AFP that Egypt and Qatar, who have mediated past Israeli-Hamas conflicts, were attempting to calm tensions

In perhaps the most serious incident of clashes today, CCTV captured the moment crowds of Palestinians pelted a car driving near Jerusalem's Old City with rocks before the Israeli driver accelerated on to the pavement - sending people flying.

People continued to pelt the driver after the car came to a halt, suspended on a nearby wall, before a gun-waving police officer arrived. The officer helped the man from the car, before he was again attacked by a pedestrian.

Fighting today saw at least 305 Palestinians hurt, including 205 taken to hospital, five in serious condition. Some 21 police were hurt, including one seriously, the Israeli security services said

Hamas, a militant group which controls the Gaza Strip, had earlier issued a 6pm ultimatum for Israel to withdraw security forces from the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem. The rockets were fired after the deadline lapsed. Pictured: Rockets are seen being fired from Gaza

An Israeli military vehicle is seen firing tear gas canisters towards Palestinians during Monday's protests

An ISraeli police officer walks past burning debris during an anti-Israel protest by Palestinians over tension in Jerusalem, in Bethlehem in the Israeli-occupied West Bank

Israeli border police members take position near burning barricades during the violent protests on Monday evening

Police then cancelled a right-wing Israeli march that was due to pass through the Old City and its Muslim Quarter in an effort to calm tensions.

The fighting has drawn calls for de-escalation from the international community and sharp rebukes from across the Muslim world.

In Washington, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the administration, including President Joe Biden himself, was monitoring the violence.

'We have serious concerns about the situation, including violent confrontations that we've seen over the last few days,' she told reporters. The U.S. Embassy in Israel said the rocket fire was 'unacceptable.'

The Israeli military said well over 50 rockets were fired into Israel throughout the evening, most of them aimed at southern Israeli towns near the border.

Lieutenant Colonel Conricus said six rockets were aimed at Jerusalem, some 60 miles (100 kilometers) away. It was believed to be the first rocket attack on the city since a 2014 war.

Shortly after the sirens sounded, explosions could be heard in Jerusalem. One rocket fell on the western outskirts of the city, lightly damaging a home and causing a brush fire. The Israeli army said one rocket was intercepted and the others fell in open areas.

Israel was responding with airstrikes on Hamas targets throughout Gaza.

The fighting has drawn calls for de-escalation from the international community and sharp rebukes from across the Muslim world

Israelis run for shelter in Jerusalem as bomb sirens sound after Hamas fired rockets from Gaza towards the Jewish state

An Israeli man carries his son towards a bomb shelter in Jerusalem after Hamas launched rockets at Israel from Gaza

Palestinian medics evacuate a wounded protester from the Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City amid clashes with security forces that have seen hundreds hurt

Israeli police detain a protester near the compound that houses the Al-Aqsa Mosque during clashes today

Israeli police arrest a Palestinian man at the Lions' Gate, as clashes continue at the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem

Medics evacuate a protester who was injured near the Lions' Gate entrance to Jerusalem's Old City amid fresh violence on the streets today

Clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians began during Ramadan, but dramatically escalated at the weekend with fighting around the Al-Aqsa mosque

Paramedics take the injured Palestinians after Israeli police moved into the Temple Mount compound - known to Muslims as Haram esh-Sharif - to clear demonstrators away

On Monday evening, Palestinians continued gathering outside the Al-Aqsa Compound, in East Jerusalem

Israeli Police officers clash with Palestinians at Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's old city during Israel's 'Jerusalem Day'

Seven members of a family, including three children, were killed in a blast in the northern town of Beit Hanoun. It was not immediately clear if the blast was caused by an airstrike or errant rocket.

Ashraf al-Masri, a member of the family, said there was an explosion outside the house.

'We don't know where it came from,' he said. 'We are trying to get the children for burial but the situation is difficult in Beit Hanoun and we are afraid to leave our houses.'

Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas' military wing, said the attack on Jerusalem was a response to what he called Israeli 'crimes and aggression' in the city. 'This is a message the enemy has to understand well,' he said.

He threatened more attacks if Israeli forces re-enter the sacred Al-Aqsa Mosque compound or carry out planned evictions of Palestinian families from an east Jerusalem neighbourhood.

Fears of further chaos in the Old City had eased somewhat today when Israeli organisers cancelled a march to celebrate the Jewish state's 1967 capture of east Jerusalem that was due to pass through the Old City.

But then came the Hamas warning, followed shortly after by the rockets.

'An alarm has just been sounded in Jerusalem. Police forces have begun evacuating hundreds of people' gathered at the Wailing Wall to safer locations, police said in a brief statement.

Hamas has fired several rockets towards Israel in recent days, some intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defence system, while militants in Gaza have deployed incendiary balloons that have sparked dozens of fires in Israeli territory.

Israel's army earlier announced widespread road closures in communities near the Gaza border, following a 'situational assessment', and two municipalities near Gaza, Ashkelon and Kyriat Malachi, confirmed that they had opened their bomb shelters.

Monday's clashes mark the fourth straight day of fighting between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in Jerusalem, the most serious period of violence the city has seen since 2017.

Tensions between the two sides had been simmering since mid-April because Israeli forces had restricted access to the Al Aqsa Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan.

But the clashes suddenly escalated on Friday with violence in and around the mosque, which drew more people on to the streets. Protesters have also been angered by a long-running court battle between Jewish settlers and Palestinian homeowners in east Jerusalem, where the Old City is located.

A court that was due to rule on the issue today has postponed the date.

Medical workers evacuate a wounded protester from near the Dome of the Rock, Judaism's holiest site that sits just next to the Al Aqsa Mosque which has been at the centre of clashes

An injured man is helped to his feet by a passerby inside the Temple Mount/Haram esh-Sharif compound in Jerusalem

A Palestinian man strikes an Israeli security officer amid bitter clashes around Jerusalem's Old City on Monday

Israeli security forces detain a Palestinian protester amid clashes at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City amid some of the worst clashes in the city for years

Israeli security forces clash with Palestinian protesters at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound today

A member of Israeli police aims a weapon during clashes with Palestinians at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque

Israeli riot police are seen forming a shield wall near the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem's Old City amid violent clashes with Palestinian protesters that have entered their third day

Israeli police confront a Palestinian man near the Lions' Gate entrance to Jerusalem's Old City amid a day of bitter clashes

The leader of the far-right Religious Zionism party, Bezalel Smotrich, announced a visit Monday to the tense Sheikh Jarrah district which is at the centre of property disputes.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday defended Israel's response to the protests and rioting.

'We will uphold law and order - vigorously and responsibly,' Netanyahu said while vowing to 'guard freedom of worship for all faiths'.

Monday's clashes broke out after Palestinians gathered around the Al-Aqsa Mosque in anticipation of the arrival of the Jerusalem Day march, which is due to end at the nearby Dome of the Rock.

Israeli security forces said demonstrators barricaded themselves inside the mosque, and officers were sent in to clear them out. Rocks were thrown at police, who opened fire with tear gas and rubber bullets.

Witnesses said some of the tear gas grenades landed inside the mosque. The BBC also reported confrontations in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, and near the West Bank city of Ramallah.

The scenes around Al-Aqsa Mosque mirror those which took place on Friday and have seen Israeli forces criticised for heavy-handed tactics.

All six Arab nations that have diplomatic ties with Israel - Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan - have condemned the Jewish state.

In Jordan, the custodian of Jerusalem's holy Islamic and Christian sites, King Abdullah II condemned 'Israeli violations and escalatory practices at the blessed Al-Aqsa mosque'.

Jordan and Egypt both summoned Israeli envoys on Sunday to lodge protests.

Tunisia said the UN Security Council was to hold a closed-door meeting Monday, at its request, on the violence.

The Middle East quartet of envoys from the European Union, Russia, the United States and the United Nations - and Pope Francis - have all called for calm.

'Israeli authorities must exercise maximum restraint and respect the right to freedom of peaceful assembly,' UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.

Clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters have been centered around the Asl-Aqsa Mosque. Today, at Lions' Gate, a car was filmed driving into protesters as they pelted it with rocks. Later today, a Jerusalem Day procession is due to pass through Damascus Gate and through the Muslim quarter of the city, amid fears it will spark more clashes

Israeli police detain a Palestinian man during clashes around the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem

Israeli security forces detain a Palestinian man near Jerusalem's Old City, amid clashes that are the worst to have hit the city since at least 2017

Israeli police stand guard at one of the entrances to Jerusalem's Old City amid the worst clashes the city has seen since 2017

Paramedics take away an injured Palestinian while Israeli security forces look on amid clashes in Jerusalem's Old City

Palestinian medics evacuate a wounded protester from the Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, which has seen three days of violence

Palestinians who had gathered near the Al Aqsa Mosque are dispersed by Israeli security forces

Palestinians take cover as Israeli police open fire with tear gas and rubber bullets while medics rush to help the injured

A Palestinian man rushes to get rid of a tear gas grenade amid clashes with Israeli security forces near the Dome of the Rock

Medics treat a wounded man during clashes with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound

The UN children's agency UNICEF said that over two days, 29 Palestinian children had been injured in east Jerusalem, including a one-year-old.

The unrest of past weeks in east Jerusalem, which Palestinians claim as their future capital, has multiple causes.

Much of the recent violence stems from a long-running legal effort by Jewish settler groups to evict several Palestinians from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah.

A lower court ruling earlier this year backing the settlers' decades-old claim to the plots infuriated Palestinians.

A Supreme Court hearing on a Palestinian appeal had been set for Monday, but the justice ministry said Sunday that in light of 'all the circumstances' it would delay the hearing.

Old City shopkeeper Mohammad said Israeli police told him he must close Monday afternoon, when Israeli Jews plan to march with Israeli flags to mark Jerusalem's 'reunification'.

Israel annexed east Jerusalem following the 1967 takeover, a move not recognised by most of the international community.

The unrest has spread across the Palestinian territories, including demonstrations and clashes in the occupied West Bank.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has expressed 'full support for our heroes in Al-Aqsa'.

Hamas Islamists who control the Gaza Strip have also voiced support for the Palestinian protesters and warned Israel of retribution if evictions proceed in Sheikh Jarrah.

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh called Sunday for a united Arab and Muslim response against Israel's 'provocative desecration of the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque'.

Four rockets were fired from Gaza towards Israel on Sunday, the army said, as well as incendiary balloons that started 39 fires on Israeli territory, according to the fire services.

The Israeli military said late Sunday that 'tanks just struck Hamas terror targets in Gaza', without giving further details.

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City

A member of Israeli security forces runs amid clashes with Palestinian protesters in Jerusalem's Old City

Israeli police detain a Palestinian during clashes at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque, known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount

Medics tend to a wounded Palestinian during clashes with Israeli police at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque

A Palestinian man is confronted by Israeli security forces in Jerusalem's Old City on Monday

An Israeli police officer carries a shattered riot shield through the Temple Mount compound surrounded by rocks following clashes with Palestinian protesters on Monday
Controversial evangelical footy star Israel Folau has snapped up a house 15km from Brisbane, fuelling speculation he could be yet again eyeing a return to the NRL.

Folau, 32, and his wife Maria bought a four-hectare property in Pullenvale, once part of disgraced mining magnate Nathan Tinkler's estate, for $1.5million.

The Grandview Drive property only has a modest three bedroom home on it, but the cleared block offers 'the ability to build your dream lifestyle', according to the selling agents' brochure.

It is also said to be 'surrounded by multimillion-dollar homes' - meaning another one built there wouldn't be out of place.

Israel Folau (pictured with wife Maria) has just bought a property 15kms from Brisbane and is believed to be keen for an NRL return, possibly via the backdoor - playing in the second-tier Queensland Cup

The 4 hectare Grandview Drive property Israel Folau just bought for $1.5million was part of bankrupt mining magnate Nathan Tinkler's property portfolio and is adjacent Tinkler's former dream home

The property, which has no registered mortgage, was sold by receivers Grant Thornton for just $750,000 in 2017 despite selling for $2 million in 2008.

Folau is believed to have a property portfolio worth over $8 million and is understood to be selling one in Liverpool in Sydney at present.

He was briefly set to rejoin NRL this season with the St George-Illawarra Dragons in February 2021.

But the club suddenly backed off the deal, apparently over fears its main sponsor, St George Bank, was unhappy with the signing.

Since then rumours swirlled there have been behind-the-scenes discussions to work how how Folau could find his way back into the NRL, where it is believed he wants to again play.

The latest conjecture is that he could return via the back door, by progressing from a team in the second-tier Queensland Cup competition - which the NRL has no jurisdiction over.

Queensland rugby league chairman Bruce Hatcher has been quoted by news.com.au saying there is 'be no legal impediment to the guy playing again' - though he also conceded there could be a backlash.

The renovated kitchen of the cottage on Folau's new property at Pullenvale, near Brisbane

The very modest cottage on the four hectare property Israel Folau just bought near Brisbane

Any backlash appears unlikely to come from NRL fans.

A survey, admittedly commissioned by the Australian Christian Lobby, in April found 69 per cent of NRL fans would support Folau's return to the competition.

In March NRL chairman Peter V'landys said Folau would be 'given every opportunity' to revive his NRL career, while Broncos captain Alex Glenn added he 'would love' to see Folau in a Broncos jumper.

But no NRL clubs have officially offered Folau a contract and the Australian Rugby League Commission has received no request to register him.

Folau was a huge star with the Brisbane Broncos in 2009 and 2010 before switching codes to play in the AFL in 2011, then again code-hopping in 2013 to join the Waratahs.

The highs and lows of Israel Folay. Pictured left playing for Queensland and right preaching for his father's The Truth of Jesus Christ Church in Sydney

Maria and Israel Folau have remained inseparable through many controversies

He played 73 times for the Wallabies, winning Australian player of the the year three times, before he was sacked by Rugby Australia in 2019 over homophobic social media posts.

One read: 'Drunks, Homosexuals, Adulterers, Liars, Fornicators, Thieves, Atheists, Idolators: Hell Awaits You. Repent! Only Jesus Saves.'

He took Rugby Australia to court claiming $14 million over the sacking and received a public apology as part of a confidential settlement, which is understood to have included an $8 million payout.

In 2020 he played rugby league again for the Catalan Dragons in the French competition but opted against playing there again to be with his extended family in Australia due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Folau is believed to be living in Brisbane and training on his own.

The Queensland Rugby League, Brisbane Broncs and National Rugby League were contacted for comment.
Claims the deadly 1979 Luna Park Ghost Train fire was deliberately lit have been backed up by three new witnesses.

Richard Visser, Kerry Lawson, and Kathy Dewar were all at the amusement park on the night of the fire - but were never tracked down or interviewed by NSW Police.

Mr Visser distinctly remembers smelling kerosene inside the ride moments before the blaze, while both Ms Lawson and Ms Dewar both remember seeing a group of suspicious-looking bikies loitering near the ride on the night.

Mr Visser (pictured) has spoken up to say he distinctly remembers smelling kerosene on the night of the fire

On June 9, 1975 a fire on the Ghost Train ride at Luna Park in Sydney (pictured) killed seven people and changed the lives of a community forever

The Luna Park Ghost Train fire in June, 1979 claimed the lives of John Godson, and six children - Damien Godson, Craig Godson, Richard Carroll, Michael Johnson, Jonathan Billings and Seamus Rahilly

A fresh inquest is being considered by authorities after an ABC TV investigation into the incident, which alleged the blaze was deliberately lit and police helped cover up the crime.

Seven people including six boys were killed in the tragedy while on board the ghost train ride.

Initial investigations conducted by detectives pointed to an electrical fault while some subsequent inquiries proved non-conclusive.

Mr Visser, who was 19-years-old on the night of the fire, went to Luna Park with his then girlfriend and her two sisters.

He said he rode the ghost train twice that night and on the first ride noticed nothing out of the ordinary but on his second ride remembers an unusual smell.

'It's something that I've always remembered. I smelt burning kerosene. Absolutely  There's no doubt about it,' Mr Visser told the ABC.

He explained when he heard the news the following morning that the fire was caused by an electrical fault he assumed that must have been the cause.

However, the ABC's documentary revealed the officer in charge of the investigation Detective Inspector Doug Knight was corrupt and took money from criminals to manipulate investigations.

The TV program alleged links between the fire and Sydney underworld figure Abe Saffron, in a bid to secure prime waterfront property.

Kerry Lawson (pictured) said she remembers seeing a group of bikies loitering around the ride on the night of the blaze

There are allegations the fire may have been linked to Sydney underworld figure Abe Saffron (pictured), in a bid to secure prime waterfront property

Mr Saffron has since died.

In 2007 his niece Anne Buckingham claimed he was responsible for the fire and the NSW government at the time said it was open to the possibility of a fresh coronial investigation

Mr Visser's recollection of a kerosene smell supports Luna Park employee Frank Boitano and another park patron, Greg Chard who have previously said they smelt the flammable liquid.

However, another two Luna Park staffers have now spoken up to make more startling claims - that they witnessed a group of bikies in the vicinity of the ride before the fire broke out.

Kerry Lawson was 18-years-old and working as a ticket cashier at the park.

She remembers seeing the group at the entrance to the park and then later that night.

'I thought it was unusual. It was not a place that bikies would frequent. They weren't really interested in riding rides. They were just hanging around,' she said.

Her claims are backed up by Kathy Dewar, who was then 24 and working at a chip bar on that night.

'I do remember seeing a group of bikies ... These were young guys who were thin, [wore] leather boots, long hair. They just looked kind of a bit out of place at Luna Park,' Ms Dewar said.

The pair were also never interviewed as witnesses in the original police investigation.

Other witnesses have also spoken of seeing the group of bikies running away from the direction of the ride and hearing them shouting 'you shouldn't done that'.

The three new witnesses have said they are prepared to make official statements and are echoing calls for a new inquest into the fire.

Footage from ABC's investigative documentary series EXPOSED shows police at the scene of Luna Park moments after the blaze in 1979

The police investigation very quickly chalked up the cause of the fire to an electrical fault

Following the airing of the ABC program, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said there was scope for the matter to be reviewed.

'We've heard the plight of families and I can confirm that relevant parts of the NSW government are considering that,' the premier said last week.

On the evening of June 9, 1979, John Godson and his two boys Damien, six, and Craig, four, plus mates Jonathan Billings, Richard Carroll, Michael Johnson, and Seamus Rahilly, aged 12 to 13, were killed in the fire.

The State Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan has asked NSW Police to review available evidence in the case to determined whether a fresh inquest is held.

'The state coroner has received an application from a person with sufficient standing under ... the Coroners Act to seek a fresh inquest into the Luna Park Ghost Train fire of 1979,' her office said in a statement.
A hero truckie who cradled a dying car crash victim suffers from life-destroying PTSD but is yet to receive a cent in compensation.

Troy Logan witnessed a horror crash on the Hume Highway near Gundagai, NSW, in October 2016 while travelling from interstate to visit his brother in Sydney.

As a family slept in their car in a rest bay, a four wheel drive ploughed into them at high speed, sending a man flying out of one of the vehicles into nearby grass.

After calling emergency services, Mr Logan jumped from his car and rushed to the scene, where he helped evacuate two little boys and their unconscious mother from the smoking 4WD.

Troy Logan (pictured) is yet to be compensated for PTSD more than four years after he was the first responder to a fatal car crash on the Hume Highway, near Gundagai

The truck driver then found the man, aged in his 20s, groaning as he laid in nearby reeds with severe head injuries, and quickly wrapped a towel on his wounds to stem the bleeding.

Mr Logan nestled the man in his arms and consoled him as his condition deteriorated - but minutes later he took his final breath.

Four years on, Mr Logan is still haunted by the trauma.

'I don't have much of a life anymore,' he told 9News.

'I've had two nervous breakdowns, I have had 12 lots of electric shock therapy, I don't go out of the house unless I have to and I used to drive trucks all over Australia.

'It's just destroying me from the inside out.'

Compulsory third party insurance, also know as green slips, allow road accident victims access to compensation for injuries, treatment, and time off work.

But flaws in the system mean Mr Logan and many other NSW residents are yet to be paid.

Unable to reach an agreement with his insurer, Mr Logan's case has been forwarded to medical assessors - independent experts appointed by the NSW Government's Personal Injury Commission - who will determine how much he should receive.

Mr Logan said his life has been completely destroyed by the trauma of the accident (pictured) in October 2016

However, there are lengthy delays to get an appointment - sometimes years - with lawyers reporting it is prolonging victim's suffering and making cases harder to resolve.

Last year, a medical assessor found Mr Logan's psychiatric distress was caused by the car accident, however his insurer contested the claim and he now must see another medical assessor.

An assessment is required before a court case can proceed.

Mr Logan said the system is 'broken' and insurers fail to help those in need, with the ongoing wait to get his case finalised making it 'harder to keep going each day'.

The NSW PIC, the independent statutory tribunal that is responsible for CTP claim disputes, said the delays were the result of in-person medical examinations being suspended due to the pandemic.

'Since March 1, the new commission has been working to reduce the numbers of medical assessments delayed by the pandemic as quickly as we can,' it said.

'As restrictions have eased, we have recommenced in-person examinations and are endeavouring to give priority to those cases that have been on the list for the longest period.'

The PIC said the tribunal was confident it would be able to return to a normal operating situation soon.
A YOUNG Tory MP will rake in a six-figure salary after he was elected to a second job as a council leader.

Ben Bradley, 31, will be the new leader of Nottinghamshire County Council alongside his role as Mansfields MP.

He will be entitled to an allowance of 48,879 for the council post on top his 81,932 salary as an MP, giving him a combined income of 130,811.

Boris Johnson gets 157,372 as Prime Minister. Last year Mr Bradley became the first MP to publicly oppose a proposed 4.1 per cent Commons pay rise, which was eventually scrapped.

Ben Bradley (pictured), 31, will rake in six-figure salary after he was elected to a second job as he will be the new leader of Nottinghamshire County Council alongside his role as Mansfields MP

Anna Soubry, a former MP in Nottinghamshire, yesterday said it was wrong for Mr Bradley to take on both roles.

She said: Being the leader of a county council is a full-time job.

Being an MP requires you to be in Parliament - its a proper job. You cant do both competently, but you can pick up a salary of 130,000.

But Mr Bradley is not the first politician to hold two elected roles at the same time.

Labours Dan Jarvis is mayor of the Sheffield City Region whilst remaining MP for Barnsley Central  although he donates his mayoral salary to good causes.
Footage taken Monday shows migrants continuing to come into the United States at the Rio Grande in Texas amid an ongoing crisis at the southern border with Mexico.

Video taken by Fox News shows the group, including young children and women, making their way into Del Rio, Texas, during a low tide.

The migrants filmed Monday told Fox they arrived from Venezuela, with many saying they already have family in America.

Meanwhile, Kamala Harris - named Joe Biden's border czar - still hasn't visited the border or held a news conference on the issue 47 days after being handed the role.

Jackson County Sheriff Andy Louderback said the response has not been good enough, calling the VP's handling of the crisis a 'complete embarrassment'.

Harris will be making an official visit to Mexico and Guatemala in June. But many Republicans argue Harris has already failed by not visiting the border.

The group filmed Monday are said to have been smuggled early morning, bringing with them camping equipment for their arrival in the US.

Footage taken Monday shows migrants continuing to come into the United States at the Rio Grande in Texas amid an ongoing crisis at the southern border with Mexico

Video taken by Fox News shows the group, including young children and women, making their way into in Del Rio during a low tide. The migrants filmed Monday told Fox they arrived from Venezuela, with many saying they already have family in America

Migrants from Venezuela wait to be transported to a U.S. border patrol processing facility after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Del Rio, Texas Monday

Harris will be making an official visit to Mexico and Guatemala in June. But many Republicans argue Harris has already failed by not visiting the border, pictured Monday

The group filmed Monday are said to have been smuggled early morning, bringing with them camping equipment for their arrival in the US

Louderback told Fox News: 'It's incomprehensible that a national security border, our border with another foreign country is in the shape that it is.

'It's so preventable. Maybe if we could get the president or the vice president down there then maybe they can see for themselves and they will have to admit what they have caused down there. What they have caused here in Texas.'

Louderback described how the Texas National Guard are forced to clean up the mess left behind by migrants at the border.

Harris' defenders point out that her brief is to look for deeper solutions in the Central American countries where most of the migrants start from - the 'Northern Triangle' of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.

She has not publicly disclosed any border visits since being named Biden's czar on the issue.

Jackson County Sheriff Andy Louderback, pictured, called the Democrat's handling of the crisis a 'complete embarrassment'

The VP and Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador pledged Friday to cooperate on resolving the roots of the long-running and politically sensitive issue of illegal migration into the US.

Harris, speaking with Lopez Obrador in a virtual meeting, said they should work together on helping El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras improve conditions and persuade many migrants to stay home.

'It is in our countries' mutual interest to provide immediate relief to the Northern Triangle and to address the root causes of migration,' Harris said.

'Most people don't want to leave home and when they do it is often because they are fleeing some harm or they are forced to leave because there are no opportunity.'

Harris said that it was in the 'mutual interest' of the United States and Mexico to address the 'root causes' of mass emigration from the three Northern Triangle nations.

'Our approach is to work with international institutions, to work with nations worldwide, the private sector and community organizations... and build a sense of hope for the people of the Northern Triangle,' she said.

Kamala Harris - named Joe Biden's border czar - still hasn't held a news conference with the press 47 days after being handed the role

Lopez Obrador referred to the history of US-Mexican tensions over migration and said 'we need to understand one another and avoid fighting.'

'We are in agreement when it comes to the policies that you are undertaking when it comes to migration and we will help. That is what I can say as of now. You can count on us.'

President Joe Biden tapped Harris in March to coordinate an overall response to the surge in undocumented migrants and asylum seekers at overwhelmed US border facilities.
Hail, damaging winds, and heavy rain will batter Australia's east coast with a freak storm forecast for later today.

The Bureau of Meteorology warned severe thunderstorms will lash north-east NSW and south-east Queensland on Tuesday.

'With those severe thunderstorms, we're forecasting damaging winds, large hail, heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding and there's already some thunderstorms and showers on the radar at the moment,' meteorologist Sarah Scully told Today.

The Bureau said a trough of low pressure will move across NSW in the coming days. Heavy rainfall is forecast for the south coast on Tuesday, with hail also possible.

The Bureau of Meteorology warned severe thunderstorms could lash north-east New South Wales and south-east Queensland on Tuesday. Pictured: A pedestrian tries to shelter from the rain in Sydney on Friday

A Weatherzone map shows the accumulated rain across Australia on Tuesday

'A severe weather warning is current for heavy rain cloud with rain with storms developing over the south-east of NSW today,' the Bureau tweeted on Tuesday morning.

'Locations which may be affected include Bega, Merimbula, Eden and Bombala.'

In the state's north-east - from the Queensland border to the mid-north coast - large hail, damaging winds, and significant downpours are expected.

'Mid-May is a very unusual time of year to see severe storms in NSW,' forecaster Jake Phillips said.

'But in this particular case it's due to the combination of having a relatively significant amount of humidity around for this time of year, and also a very powerful upper level system moving through.'

The storm will likely begin on Tuesday, peaking in the afternoon and petering out over Wednesday and Thursday.

Sydney and the Hunter region should be spared, but the BOM is urging all residents along the coast to be prepared for severe storms. Pictured: A woman looks out to the coastline at Bronte on Friday

A map of Australia shows the rain expected to hit the east coast on Tuesday

Sydney and the Hunter region should be spared, but the BOM urged all residents along the coast to be prepared for severe storms.

The Bureau warned Queensland residents on the Gold Coast and in Brisbane, Logan and Beaudesert to prepare for severe thunderstorms on Tuesday.

In Victoria, heavy rain is forecast to lash Gippsland and the Otways, in the state's south-east.

The Bureau said 30-60mm is expected, with 50-100mm possible on the southern slopes of the ranges and in the far east.

The stormy weather came after millions of Australians were plunged into an early winter.

South Australians felt brunt of the cold snap as damaging gusts of more than 100km/h lashed the south-eastern parts of the state on Monday afternoon.

Pictured: Pedestrians walk across a main road holding umbrellas during wet weather in the centre of Sydney on May 7. The city will see at least three more days of rain this week

Weatherzone meteorologist Esteban Abellan on Monday told Daily Mail Australia a band of rain will stretch from blustery South Australia to south-west Victoria.

'There will be gusty showers and rain patches from the Flinders Ranges in the south-east of SA to the Victorian border,' he said.

The arctic winds will also blow over Tasmania at a speeds of up to 102km/h, with up to 5mm of snow on the island's highest peaks.

'In Tasmania there have been strong winds in the last 24 hours in places like Maatsuyker Island,' Mr Abellan said.

Temperatures in Canberra will drop to 0C on Saturday with a maximum of 17C on Thursday.

The Northern Territory and Perth will see average temperatures throughout the week.

The southern parts of New South Wales, including Sydney, will see showers from Tuesday through to Thursday. Pictured: Rugged-up Sydneysiders
Giving each other a brotherly hug, these are just two of the children still at the mercy of the Taliban after they and their families were promised sanctuary in Britain.

Their father Abdul bravely risked his life for Britain as an interpreter alongside UK forces in Afghanistan, making him a target for jihadists.

He and dozens of others were eventually granted sanctuary here, but are heartbroken because they are still separated from their wives and children - despite Government promises to reunite them.

Ministers made the pledge two years ago, yet at least 100 children and wives have been left behind.

The risks they face were starkly illustrated when a school was blown up in Kabul on Saturday, killing 85 and injuring 150, many of them schoolgirls  the latest in a series of bombings blamed on the Taliban.

Mustafa, seven, and Muzzammel, five, (both pictured) are just two of the children still at the mercy of the Taliban after they and their families were promised sanctuary in Britain

In a murderous weekend, at least 11 people were then killed by a bomb that struck a bus on Sunday night in Zabul province.

The Daily Mail's Betrayal of the Brave campaign has helped many interpreters who risked all on the frontline beside British troops in Afghanistan to get refuge in the UK.

But in a fresh betrayal, their families are fighting to survive without them. Translators speak of their desperation and accuse the Government of enforcing a 'cruel separation' of up to six years.

One wife begged her husband to leave the safety of Britain for Kabul so they 'could at least be together', while another spoke of feeling suicidal.

Around 110 wives and children are waiting to be reunited with their husbands in the UK even though immigration rules were relaxed in 2019 by the then home secretary Sajid Javid to make it easier for translators 'to build their future in the UK with their loved ones'.

The changes were hailed as life-saving for some 30 interpreters who were given sanctuary in Britain and arrived without their wives and children.

But after 'empty promises' and 'endless excuses' only around 20 are thought to have made it to the UK.

Abdul, 35, who spent more than two years on the frontline and came to the UK with eldest son Shakeel, 15, in 2015, said he felt daily pain because of the separation from his wife and sons Mustafa, seven, and Muzzammel, five.

Their father Abdul, 35, (pictured) risked his life an interpreter alongside the UK forces in Afghanistan. He was given sanctuary but remains separated from his wife and children

His wife was pregnant with Muzzammel when he left, and he has only met his youngest son once during a return visit to Afghanistan.

He said: 'I am heartbroken. We were so grateful when the rules were changed to allow us to be together, but what is happening is cruel.

'We have been forced to live apart so long and at a time with the worries of the pandemic and now the withdrawal of British and American forces that can allow the Taliban to find and threaten our families.

'The Taliban kidnaps and kills family members to punish interpreters they can't reach.

'The delays are devastating. My children ask if I don't love them because we are apart.'

He said the Home Office has had his family's passports since August 2019 but no visas have been issued.

Afghan veteran Major Ed Aitken, founder of the Sulha Alliance, which supports translators, said: 'After the trauma of the war where interpreters stood shoulder to shoulder with British troops... can you imagine the extra mental health damage the incompetence of this Government has inflicted on these men and their families, to whom we owe so much?

'Because interpreters trusted Sajid Javid's promise that they could 'build their future in the UK with their loved ones' in recognition of their service, they feel let down and depressed.'

His colleague Sara De Jong added: 'With 5,000 Taliban prisoners released since last year and less than 150 days till the US withdraws from Afghanistan, families should be urgently reunited to protect wives and children against revenge.'

A Home Office spokesman said: 'We have relocated 1,358 locally employed Afghan staff and their families to the UK, and aim to process all others who are still awaiting a decision as quickly as possible.'
A record proportion of pupils from state schools and deprived areas gained entry to Oxford University last year, figures showed yesterday.

Almost seven in ten  68.6 per cent  were state-educated compared to 62.3 per cent the previous year.

It means under a third are now from private schools  which only 7 per cent of the population attend.

The proportion coming from the poorest areas of the UK increased to 15.9 per cent  up from 12.2 per cent.

68.6 per cent of those wh0 gained access to Oxford were state-educated compared to 62.3 per cent the previous year

The university, which has more than 24,000 students in total, including 12,000 undergraduates, has said it will reserve 10 per cent of its places from 2023 for the very poorest. It had faced intense political pressure over the issue.

A total of 3,695 students were admitted to Oxford last autumn  400 more than usual. Nearly half  48.3 per cent  of UK students who gained entry between 2018 and 2020 came from the South East. Only 15.1 per cent were from the North.

Dr Samina Khan, director of undergraduate admissions and outreach, said: The pandemic will continue to hit the least advantaged students for a while, hence we remain resolute in stamping out inequality in access to Oxford.

Working together with schools across the country, we are increasing our focus on reaching regional cold-spots where the most talented young people are still under-represented at Oxford - driving down the risk that we are missing out on some of the UKs brightest students.

The report also highlights figures, first released in February, showing that 23.6 per cent of undergraduates admitted were from ethnic minority backgrounds - a record high.

The proportion of students who were black was 3.7 per cent last year, up from 3.2 per cent.

However, the number of black students on some individual courses remains low.

Between 2018 and 2020, there were five or fewer UK-based black students on 13 of Oxfords largest courses, the figures show.

Masked students in a socially-distanced class at Oxford University where a record portion come from state schools

Over the three years, there was one UK black student admitted to biology, one for geography, three for physics and four for history and politics.

In a foreword to the report, vice chancellor Professor Louise Richardson said: While the pandemic has, in many ways, changed the way we operate, it has not weakened our commitment to diversifying the make-up of our student body.

We remain committed to ensuring that every talented, academically driven pupil in the country, wherever they come from, sees Oxford as a place for them.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: We are very pleased to see the progress.

However, there is clearly still more work to be done, and it is very worrying to see the under-representation of students from the north of England.

The Office for Students (OfS) regulator has asked Oxford to set ambitious targets for admitting disadvantaged pupils following intense pressure from politicians.

In 2017, Labour MP David Lammy led a campaign to make the university address its lack of diversity.

In recent years, an increasing number of private school pupils have opted for top US universities instead of Oxbridge, with experts saying it may be because they fear rejection in the new diversity drive.

Chris Millward, director for fair access and participation at the OfS said: The University of Oxford, like all other universities registered with the OfS, has agreed ambitious targets with us to improve access and participation for disadvantaged students within the next five years.

We are monitoring closely each universitys progress towards these targets, including those relating to neighbourhoods with the fewest students entering higher education, which we know are concentrated in coastal areas, former industrial towns and parts of cities across the country.
A snorkeller has managed to find a groom's missing $1,000 wedding ring after spotting the piece of jewellery around the neck of a fish.

Suzie Quintal and her husband Nathan Reeves, who live in the Gold Coast, were visiting Norfolk Island around 1,600km north-east of Sydney to see family over the Christmas period.

But as Ms Reeves went for a swim in Emily Bay he suddenly noticed his ring had fallen off.

All hope was lost until this week local snorkeller Susan Prior spotted the missing ring lodged around the body of a mullet fish.

She said she'd heard that a couple had lost their wedding band earlier this year and miraculously was able to track them down on a community Facebook page.

Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Ms Prior said the sight of the fish trapped in the ring was 'gut-wrenching'.

Norfolk Island local Susan Prior spotted a mullet fish with a missing groom's wedding ring (pictured) stuck around its body this week

She said she'd seen other fish caught in plastic rings but to see one weighed down by metal was truly worrying.

'The metal can only be removed by catching the fish in a net and gently removing it,' the diver said.

'The fish seems to be OK so far but as it grows, the ring will cut into it.'

Ms Quintal said her husband searched high and low for the missing jewellery but all to no avail.

'He tried to look for it and then broke the news to me and I was not happy,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

Ms Prior said she managed to track down the couple who owned the wedding ring, with locals on the island now working to catch the fish (pictured a separate fish with plastic caught around it)

'I always tell him to take it off before he goes for a swim. He lost it a day before our second wedding anniversary.'

She said after having no luck finding the ring themselves, locals on the island immediately banded together to offer their help - some with metal detectors.

'People are now trying to source nets, some have got scuba gear. The team in the glass bottom boats are going to have a look - Norfolk's really good like that.'

She said she just 'spun out' after hearing Ms Prior had found the ring five months later.

'I just couldn't believe it. I've got a few friends on the island and they're pretty adamant that they'll find it.

'It doesn't worry my husband, he doesn't understand all the fuss. I'm just worried about the poor little fish.'

Ms Quintal and her husband have been unable to return to Norfolk Island and are now anxiously waiting to hear if their ring has been retrieved.
A train company purposefully sent staff a fake email wrongly promising workers a financial bonus as a way to test the firm's IT security.

Thousands of West Midlands Trains employees received the message from the managing director suggesting they could expect a reward for their work during the pandemic if they simply clicked on a link.

But a follow-up email read: 'This was a test designed by our IT team to entice you to click the link and used both the promise of thanks and financial reward to try and convince you to provide your details.'

West Midlands Trains purposefully sent thousands of employees a fake email wrongly promising workers a financial bonus as a way to test the firm's IT security (file photo)

Trade union TSSA general secretary Manuel Cortes described it as a 'cynical and shocking stunt'.

But a West Midlands Trains spokesman said: 'This important test was deliberately designed with the sort of language used by real cyber criminals but without the damaging consequences.'

It came as it emerged that cracks found under trains could disrupt travel until after the late May bank holiday.

Cracks were found on the chassis of some Hitachi Class 800 series trains over the weekend, with 182 of them taken out of service.

And yesterday London North Eastern Railways acknowledged the issue is 'likely to be ongoing for a number of weeks'.
An Australian woman has woken up from tonsil surgery to find she has an Irish accent - despite never having been to the country.

Angie Yen posted a video to her TikTok account two days after undergoing an operation on her throat and was shocked to find she no longer had her Australian accent.

'I woke up with an Irish accent the day before and thought I was gonna wake up from this weird dream. But no, my Aussie accent's gone,' she captioned the clip.

After two weeks of research and meeting with doctors Ms Yen believes she has Foreign Accent Syndrome, a condition usually caused by a brain injury that sees sufferers lose their natural accent.

There has only been 100 cases reported since its discovery in 1907.

@angie.mcyen Day 2: I woke up with an Irish accent the day before and thought I was gonna wake up from this weird dream. But no, my Aussie accents gone  original sound - angie.mcyen

Angie Yen (pictured) woke up from an operation on her tonsils to find she was speaking with an Irish accent

Ms Yen, who documented her transformation over two weeks, showed the Irish accent progressively getting stronger as she recovers.

The accent didn't kick in until eight days after her surgery in a phenomenon even her doctors couldn't explain.

She claims she went to the hospital and spoke to her specialist after the accent persisted but was told to 'sit tight' and 'let the body heal'.

'I woke up this morning and I was speaking with my Aussie accent, and I called one of my friends and confirmed that my Aussie accent was back but during the phone call, within five to 10 minutes, she could see the deterioration of my accent back to Irish,' she said on day two.

'I don't know what to do, this is something that's very different. I'm not even trying, I'm completely freaked out. I thought it was going to go away when I woke up this morning.'

Ms Yen believes she is suffering from Foreign Accent Syndrome, a condition that has only been recorded just over 100 times in history and usually occurs after a brain injury

Ms Yen has embraced her Irish accent, attaching the nation's initials and a four-leaf clover to her Instagram bio

The following day Ms Yen said there were 'no traces of Aussie twangs anymore' and she had gone 'full Irish'.

'I still can't believe I woke up with an Irish accent yesterday. I've never been to Ireland. I grew up in Australia. My Aussie accent is gone.'

Ms Yen posted another video to her TikTok nine days after first noticing the Irish accent, saying it wasn't as 'thick' any more but said she was still very upset.

'In terms of how I am coping, I am definitely still in the third stage of grief, and the last two days were not pretty,' she said in the video.

'Yes I know I need medical attention and to see doctors but it's a struggle to even find the right person to look into me and tell me what's wrong and get me back to my old self,' she said in her latest video.

She says she's found a neurologist who specialises in stroke rehabilitation who is willing to meet with her and help diagnose the problem, without confirming it is FAS.

Several commenters accused Ms Yen of fabricating the story, but she angrily rejected the claim and said she hopes people 'learn something from her journey.'

'Unfortunately it's not fake. I bloody damn hope that my Aussie accent is coming through, as it's what I've had for the last 20 years,' she replied to one dissenter.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Ms Yen for comment.
Rev Megan Rohrer was elected bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's Sierra Pacific synod on Saturday, becoming the first transgender person to serve as bishop in the denomination or in any of the major Christian faiths in the US.

Rohrer, pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in San Francisco and community chaplain coordinator for the San Francisco Police Department, was the first transgender person to be ordained in the ELCA in 2006 and the first to serve as a pastor when called to Grace Lutheran in 2014.

Well known for advocating for LGBTQ rights in street activism, preaching and writing, Rohrer, 41, who uses the pronouns they and them, is also recognized for their work with the homeless.

'It's an honor to be called to serve the Sierra Pacific Synod,' Rohrer, who will be installed as bishop on July 1, said to Religion News Service in a written statement.

The Rev Megan Rohrer (pictured) was elected bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's Sierra Pacific synod on Saturday, becoming the first transgender person to serve as bishop in the denomination or in any of the major Christian faiths in the US

Rohrer (pictured with their wife and two children), pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in San Francisco and community chaplain coordinator for the San Francisco Police Department, was the first transgender person to be ordained in the ELCA in 2006

'During this time when some imagine trans people at their worst, Lutherans have once again declared that transgender people are beautiful children of God. Thank you to everyone who has been praying for me and my family as I accept this call.'

According to the New York Times, Rohrer said after the vote: 'My hope is that your grandkids will call you, and your kids will call you, and your friends will call you, and ask you about your faith. And when they call, tell them how much you love Jesus and why Jesuss faith in you meant why you could have faith in me.'

Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries said in a statement on Saturday: 'Megan has always found themself walking alongside in solidarity with, and to provide safety for, those lifting their voices for justice.

'Today, history was made in our church! ELM celebrates a church that now recognizes the gifts of queer leaders like Bishop-elect Rohrer and we anticipate the day when all queer ministry leaders will be called to ministry settings without hindrance or barrier and will be affirmed in their God-given calls.'

Rohrer has also attained minor celebrity status stemming from appearances on the television series 'Queer Eye' and in profiles in Time magazine and Cosmopolitan, where they recounted their struggles as a young LGBTQ Christian and as a person coming to terms physically and spiritually with their gender.

Raised in South Dakota, Rohrer has recounted being expelled from the youth group at the church they attended in Sioux Falls when they came out as a lesbian and told a California public radio station that in college at the Lutheran Augustana University,

Rohrer said after the vote: 'My hope is that your grandkids will call you, and your kids will call you, and your friends will call you, and ask you about your faith. And when they call, tell them how much you love Jesus and why Jesuss faith in you meant why you could have faith in me'

Well known for advocating for LGBTQ rights in street activism, preaching and writing, Rohrer (left and right) is also recognized for their work with the homeless

'The people who were in my religion classes with me would sing hymns when I walked by, to try to get rid of my gay demons. And I would just sing harmony. I didn't know what to do,' they said.

A campus pastor at Augustana, however, encouraged Rohrer to consider ministry, and in 2002 they moved to San Francisco to attend Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary and later transferred to the LGBTQ-friendly Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley.

Ordained in 2006 under an 'extraordinary candidacy process' designed to sidestep the national ELCA's policy on LGBTQ ministers at the time, Rohrer's ordination was officially accepted in 2010.

In San Francisco, whose board of supervisors declared August 12 'Pastor Megan Rohrer Day' in 2012, Rohrer has been an outspoken defender and counselor to LGTBQ people, especially those who identify as transgender and are homeless.

'Using faith to tear other people down is not good news,' Rohrer told Cosmopolitan in 2017. 'We need to all be as loud and as angry as the people who want to declare that there are types of people that God can't love.'

While gay bishops have served in mainline Protestant denominations since Bishop Gene Robinson was named a bishop in the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire in 2003, transgender priests and ministers are only slowly finding acceptance.

In 2007, Drew Phoenix was permitted to remain as pastor of a Baltimore United Methodist parish after coming out as transgender; the UMC appointed its first transgender deacon in 2017. The Episcopal Church approved transgender priests in 2012.

The Sierra Pacific Synod encompasses 180 congregations in northern California and northern Nevada, with more than 36,000 individual members and about 13,000 worshippers attending on Sundays. Bishops are elected to six-year terms in the ELCA.

Rohrer was elected on the fifth ballot in Saturday's episcopal election, edging out the Rev Jeff R. Johnson, pastor of the University of California, Berkeley's Lutheran chapel, who led the voting until the final ballot.

Rohrer said in documents stating their qualifications for bishop that their priorities would be to 'hire a communications professional to lead a major evangelism effort,' to promote low-income housing in a part of the country where real estate prices are exacerbating homelessness and to order an audit to review the synod's policies that lead to bias.
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Sir Keir Starmer was warned that he could be ousted as Labour leader by Angela Rayner after his Hartlepool disaster as his rival spoke out for the first time after her bungled sacking and urged the party to 'stop talking down' to voters.

The row between them exploded after the Labour leader's 'snobby' and 'sexist' top team complained about her wearing leopard-print trousers, stomper boots and a hoodie on a visit to the North East before the crucial by-election, it emerged yesterday.

And amid the fiery fallout of last week's poor local election results, allies of Ms Rayner are said to have raised the prospect of a leadership challenge because of the backing she has from MPs and unions, the Times reports.

A friend said: 'There were a lot of people encouraging her to run and saying they would back her. She could have easily challenged Keir on Saturday night and won'.

Today Shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy said it is best for Labour if Rayner and Starmer work together. She said: 'The two of them together are a really important leadership for us in the Labour party because they come from different backgrounds, they speak to different parts of the electorate, and they care about the people of this country,'

Describing the first shadow cabinet meeting after the flunked reshuffle as 'pretty jovial', she added: 'Afterwards, we all went for a coffee. Things are good in the Labour Party'.

It is understood Ms Rayner did not herself threaten to launch a leadership challenge against Sir Keir. The Ashton-under-Lyne MP has insisted that the party must stop talking down to voters in the wake of the party's damaging election losses.

Writing in the Guardian, Ms Rayner said: 'We have got to change how the Labour Party operates, how it talks and how it relates to the people and communities that we seek to serve and represent. For too long we have given off an air of talking down to people and telling people what they need, or even what they should want or what they should think.

'There has been too much of Labour doing things for people and communities, and not enough doing things with people and communities. Working-class people don't want a handout or someone telling us what we should think. We want the opportunities to do it for ourselves.'

Angela Rayner (pictured) could oust Sir Keir Starmer from the Labour leadership, he has reportedly been warned, as she last night urged the party to 'stop talking down' to voters

It comes amid claims that Ms Rayner, the party's deputy leader, and a popular figure within the party, resisted Sir Keir's (pictured) attempts to oust her from his shadow cabinet.

It is understood the Ashton-under-Lyme MP, (pictured with Sir Keir) did not herself threaten to launch a leadership challenge

Angela Rayner's irregular shoe collection Even when wearing what could be seen as a more conventional outfit, Angela often adds a touch of her own flare with a pair of heels. When meeting campaigners, councillors and the relatives of care home residents in Nottingham last month, she opted for a blue knee-length coat, but added a clash of colour with her red polkadot heels. And when visiting Birmingham, she showcased a smart white coat with leather detailing with a pair of black leopard print sneakers with striking white laces. Angela recently wore a pair of red mid-heel peep-toes featuring polka-dot and cherry print during a visit to Nottingham last month Meanwhile she donned a similar pair of flatform shoes, which wouldn't have looked out of place in the 90s, during a visit to Manchester with Sir Keir Starmer last month The politician appears to have a love of bold and unusual shoes, regularly stepping out wearing flatforms and creepers, which tend to be popular with goth and punks. She has pairs in many different styles, including a black pair featuring a leopard print upper which she wore in April for a visit to Hartlepool College of Further Education. Meanwhile she donned a similar pair of flatform shoes, which wouldn't have looked out of place in the 90s, during a visit to Manchester with Sir Keir Starmer last month. The MP also owns a selection of Dr Marten boots, including a tartan pair which she wore in January with a vibrant red coat and white shirt. Last month Angela added a pop of colour to her monochrome footwear with a bright pink sock while visiting Birmingham Earlier this year, Angela opted for a pair of tartan Dr Martens while visiting a vaccination centre in Oldham In 2015, Angela caused controversy after she became so incensed at missing out on a limited edition pair of Star Wars shoes she complained on Commons headed notepaper. She believed her name had been on a pre-order list for the 192 Irregular Choice shoe, but wasn't notified when the shoes went on sale, so she wrote a letter of complaint to the head office on House of Commons notepaper. In the letter, which was later leaked, Angela wrote: 'I have only ever brought your shoes and I am loathed to do so again [sic]. 'I am writing to let you know that treating customers in that way will only cost you more in the long term.' The MP later tweeted about what happened, writing: 'Shame they sold my pair after I waited months on their list & been a customer 4 years. Poor customer service. Angela has pairs of 'creepers' in several different styles, including a black pair featuring a leopard print upper which she wore in April for a visit to Hartlepool College of Further Education Advertisement

Ms Rayner also offered what was interpreted as coded criticism of Sir Keir, who was known for using tactics in the Commons to heap pressure on the Government during Brexit negotiations.

'Politics is not about the language of Parliament or party processes. We need to show those who have lost faith what we stand for that we are on their side and that we will stand up for them,' Ms Rayner said.

Sir Keir's leadership has been plunged into crisis as he faced a furious backlash over his sacking of deputy leader Ms Rayner, 41, whose supporters claim she has been written off as a 'working class oik and a bit thick' instead of an asset who connects with working class voters.

Her sacking backfired so badly that within hours she had been handed a new 24-word job title her team insisted amounted to a promotion.

Ms Rayner's team is said to have 'hit the roof' over the complaints about her outfits, which have won some praise, especially her love of bovver boots such as Dr Martens, which she has worn regularly for official visits, party conferences and at the Commons' despatch box.

Civil war has broken out over her sacking, with one of the sparks said to be her love of wearing high street fashion while out on party business. There were also raised eyebrows when she washed down chips and gravy with a pint while campaigning ahead of the local elections.

She has now landed an increased role as shadow chancellor to Duchy of Lancaster - opposite key Tory figure Michael Gove.

She was also made shadow first secretary of state, effectively making her the shadow deputy prime minister.

And it is believed that, despite being dropped from her role as party chair, she will still maintain a significant influence on internal party matters.

Angela is a former Stockport teenage single mother and child carer who hauled herself up the political ladder through sheer hard work in her community, after caring for her mother from the age of 10 and having a baby six years later.

Last July it emerged that Ms Rayner had split from husband Mark after a decade. She was 16 when she gave birth to Ryan, the eldest of their two children.

It is not known if she has found love again, but The Sun claimed she had become 'increasingly close' to former Labour campaign chief Sam Tarry, 38.

The pair met for a cup of tea in public this afternoon but relations between Sir Keir and Angela are said to have been poor for up to a year but exploded on March 21 as Labour started its failed campaign to win in Hartlepool.

Amid growing acrimony, the Labour frontbencher who ran the by-election campaign that ended in humiliation on Thursday has now been forced to deny that he had made disparaging comments about Mrs Rayner's casual appearance during a visit.

An aide to shadow transport secretary Jim McMahon said he had merely suggested a different photograph of her was used on a leaflet because he believed the one chosen was not flattering - but the Guardian claimed McMahon complained to the leadership team that the deputy leader had been 'dressed inappropriately'.

And in a further sign of the bitter war at the heart of the party, her opponents leaked details of Ms Rayner's use of first class rail tickets to the Sunday Times - with her allies hitting back to claim she only did so for safety reasons after the murder of Sarah Everard.

Labour sources claim it is because she is a working class woman who has never got on with Starmer's 'patronising' team after she backed her friend and flatmate Rebecca Long-Bailey for the Labour leadership.

Their backgrounds couldn't be more different.

The relationship between Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner is threatening to tear the party apart yet again as faultlines between the hard Left and moderate wings are re-exposed.

Sir Keir's attempt to quietly remove her as party chairman as a scapegoat for the electoral catastrophies in Hartlepool, the Tees valley and the West Midlands blew up at the weekend and arguably helped increase her power within the party.

Both have some things in common, coming from humble backgrounds and being relative newcomers in the Commons. They both entered the House in the 2015 election that saw Ed Miliband defeated by David Cameron to form the first full Tory government since 1997.

But they have since led very different career paths and their relationship has deteriorated over the past year, according to party insiders, with a furious briefing war taking place after the defeats at the weekend.

Sir Keir Starmer has told his shadow cabinet that he took full responsibility for Labour's defeat in the Hartlepool by-election.

The Labour leader met his reshuffled top team at Westminster on Monday for the first time following the party's losses in last week's election.

Sources said Sir Keir told them there was no escaping the scale of the defeats which said 'something profound about the size of the journey we have to go'.

He was said to have told the meeting: 'To be clear, I take responsibility. Nobody else. I lead the Labour Party and it is entirely on me.'

Sir Keir said that deputy leader Angela Rayner had 'a big, new role, taking the fight to the Tories'.

Allies of Jeremy Corbyn threatened to oust Sir Keir Starmer as Labour leader last night as civil war broke out in the party.

His leadership was plunged into crisis as he faced a furious backlash over his sacking of Angela Rayner.

Sir Keir removed his deputy from her roles as party chairman and national campaign co-ordinator following Labour's catastrophic local election results.

But his decision prompted a fresh wave of infighting, with senior figures including Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham warning him that it was 'wrong'.

The toxic row came after Labour received a drubbing, losing control of a host of councils and suffering defeat at the hands of the Conservatives in the Hartlepool by-election  the first time the North East constituency had gone blue since its inception in the 1970s.

The Labour leader was expected to carry out a reshuffle of his frontbench team last night, with shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds among those facing the axe. On Saturday afternoon, Sir Keir met Mrs Rayner to tell her she would be stripped of her role running the party's elections.

It is understood the pair have endured a difficult relationship behind closed doors in recent months, with the leader's inner circle believing she has been behind a series of poisonous briefings.

Those close to Sir Keir have voiced disappointment that she has not acted like a 'John Prescott figure'  Tony Blair's long-time deputy  as they hoped she would, and have accused her of sowing disunity during his 13 months as leader. After news of Mrs Rayner's sacking was made public on Saturday night, some Starmer supporters raised suspicions she had leaked the news to provoke a row that would boost her future leadership chances.

In an attempt to calm the row, the Labour leader's allies yesterday insisted she had not been sacked and had been offered another role.

Appearing on Sky's Sophy Ridge on Sunday programme, the party's Scotland spokesman Ian Murray said: 'Angela Rayner has been offered a significant promotion to take her from the back office of the Labour party running elections to the front office where she is talking to the country.'

But prominent figures in Labour continued to speak out against the decision to remove her as chairman.

Jon Trickett, an MP on the Left of the party who served in Mr Corbyn's frontbench team, said: 'I don't think we should rule out a leadership challenge.' Appearing on an online show hosted by political commentator Owen Jones, he claimed Sir Keir's leadership victory was based on 'deceit', as he had promised to keep policies drawn up under his predecessor.

Mr Trickett, who was chairman of rival Rebecca Long-Bailey's leadership campaign, said local constituency parties were talking about holding votes of no confidence.

Kim Johnson, who previously acted as a parliamentary aide to Mrs Rayner, told the same programme that Sir Keir had 'thrown her under the bus', despite saying he would take responsibility for the election result. 'I was just outraged', she said. 'I was disgusted in terms of how Keir treated her.'

John McDonnell, the former shadow chancellor, said he was 'not into leadership coups', but warned Sir Keir the party would block any attempt by him to move away from Mr Corbyn's legacy. He said: 'If we have to fight it, we'll fight it in every branch, in every trade union, in every meeting, at every conference.'

Former shadow home secretary Diane Abbott said the decision to sack Mrs Rayner was 'baffling' and 'puzzling'.

'We've not heard anywhere in the country people saying they didn't vote Labour because of Angela Rayner,' she told Sky News.

Pictured, wearing a bold pair of patent red boots with a more-conventional style workwear dress during the Labour Party Conference in 2019

Ms Rayner has previously told how having son Ryan (pictured together) so young 'saved' her, teaching her to be 'tough and motivated'. He has since become a dad, making her a grandmother at 36

The Labour leaders taking a knee for Black Lives Matter, including Ms Rayner in goth-inspired heavy boots.

Angela, with a rucksack and hooded coat complete with fur collar, speaks to Labour supporters in London in 2019

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer in more casual clothes during a visit to National Farmers' Union president Minette Batters' farm in Wiltshire last October

Sir Keir in casual clothes wieh his wife Victoria as they join in with the 'Clap for Carers' applause outside their north London home in April 2020

Keir Starmer poses without a tie with London Mayor Sadiq Khan in Euston in June 2016

Keir Starmer when he was director of public prosecutions, in London in March 2013

Sir Keir is pictured wearing a shirt and tie in his younger years

Allies of Jeremy Corbyn threatened to oust Sir Keir Starmer as Labour leader last night as civil war broke out in the party over attempts to remove Ms Rayner

Yesterday, the final results of Thursday's English council elections were announced when the outcome was declared in Winchester on Monday evening.

The Tories gained 294 councillors across the nation, while Labour lost 267.

Labour sources earlier in the day said Sir Keir made clear during his shadow cabinet meeting that he was not trying to shift the blame for the party's dismal election showing.

He was said to have told them there was no escaping the scale of the defeats which said 'something profound about the size of the journey we have to go'.

He said: 'To be clear, I take responsibility. Nobody else. I lead the Labour Party and it is entirely on me.'

Sir Keir said that he had given Ms Rayner 'a big new role, taking the fight to the Tories'.

In other changes, shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds was demoted to party chairwoman, to be replaced by Rachel Reeves who was previously shadowing Mr Gove.

Veteran chief whip Nick Brown also stood down to be replaced by Alan Campbell.

Sir Keir continued to face criticism over the way he treated Ms Rayner - particularly from the Labour left.

Former shadow home secretary Diane Abbott said the Labour leader was trying to make her 'carry the can' for last week's poor results.

'It was a foolish thing to even think about and he has had to walk it back - you can't sack an elected deputy leader,' she told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.

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Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham said that he did not like the way Ms Rayner's removal as party chairwoman was handled.

'I don't think the way Angela was treated was right. But it's been resolved and we move on from this morning,' he said.

Mr Burnham denied the results were 'catastrophic' for Labour and said the party needed to build on those successes it did achieve - such as in Manchester, Liverpool and West Yorkshire where Tracy Brabin became the region's first elected mayor.

'Labour needs to move on from the left and the right conducting this civil war within, focus on delivery now and making change happen and celebrating Labour in power - because this is Labour in power, look at what we're doing,' he said.

Meanwhile, the party's new national campaign co-ordinator Shabana Mahmood acknowledged that Ms Brabin's success in West Yorkshire meant they were facing another potentially difficult by-election in Batley and Spen where she was the MP.

Ms Mahmood told BBC Breakfast: 'It is no doubt going to be a big test. It is an important by-election for us.'

Grangela v Sir Keir: Row between the smooth-talking self-made London lawyer and the Mancunian former single mother Angela Raynor The relationship between Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner is threatening to tear the party apart yet again as faultlines between the hard Left and moderate wings are re-exposed. Angela Rayner's socialist credentials were forged by a tough upbringing as a carer to her bipolar mother aged just 10 before becoming pregnant with the first of her three children at the age of 16. The flame-haired 41-year-old has drawn on her experience as a one-time struggling teenage mother throughout her political career. She proudly welcomed her own granddaughter at the age of just 37 in 2017 with a tweet jokingly referring to herself as 'Grangela' after son Ryan Ryan became a father to baby Lilith Mae. Ms Rayner was just 16 when she had Ryan, and has told how becoming pregnant so young 'saved' her. She has two other sons aged under 10, Jimmy and Charlie, who was born at 23 weeks and is registered blind. She says Charlie would not be alive today without the NHS. Her teenage relationship with Ryan's father ended quickly and married Unison official Mark Rayner. But they split up last summer. She also acted as a carer to her mother, Lynn Bowen, when just a child. In 202 she opened up about her tough early life, revealing she once had to have her sectioned to prevent her from self-harming. In a joint interview with ITV News, Ms Bowen credits her daughter with saving her, saying she would not have survived without her. 'I was in a very dark place, she used to bath me, look after me, feed me,' Ms Bowen said of her daughter. 'If it wasn't for her I don't think I'd be here today.' Ms Rayner was only elected to Parliament as the Labour MP for Ashton-under-Lyne for the first time in 2015 but she has swiftly risen up the ranks to national prominence. It did not take long for her to be welcomed to the Labour frontbench under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn as she was made shadow education secretary in 2016. She became one of Mr Corbyn's most vocal defenders, both in the House of Commons and on the airwaves, before the party sank to its disastrous general election defeat in December 2019. She swiftly launched a bid for the party's deputy leadership in the aftermath of the car crash poll, standing on a so-called hard-left 'dream ticket' with Westminster housemate and former frontbencher Rebecca Long-Bailey who put herself forward for the top job. However, unlike Ms Long-Bailey, who rated Mr Corbyn' leadership 10/10, she was unafraid to criticise him. In February 2020 she said he failed as Labour leader because he 'didn't command respect' and had not been able to unite the party. She also insisted she could succeed where Mr Corbyn had struggled because she 'resonates with people in the country in a way that Jeremy doesn't'. Sir Keir Starmer His downbeat wardrobe is in contrast with the colourful style of outfits preferred by his deputy Sir Keir Starmer was raised by socialist parents who named him after Keir Hardie, the Labour leader's founder and a colossus of the socialist movement. He is married to Victoria, who works in the NHS, and they have two children. In Who's Who he refers to his parents Rodney and Josephine Starmer as 'Rod and Jo'. During his leadership campaign and afterwards he was at pains to describe his father as a toolmaker and Jo formerly a nurse before suffering from a physical disability. As well as devoting themselves to rescuing donkeys, Rod and Jo had four children. Sir Keir's three siblings went to comprehensive school while he passed his 11-plus and went to Reigate Grammar School. The shadow minister has said about his happy home life that 'whenever one of us left home, they were replaced with a donkey'. He then went on to become the first member of his family to go to University. He studied law at Leeds and did a post-graduate degree at St Edmund Hall Oxford, before joining the Middle Temple chambers of Sir John Mortimer, the late barrister and novelist. He went on to specialise in defending in human rights cases and became a Queen's Counsel (QC) in 2002. Just six years later, and despite being a defence specialist, he was made director of public prosecutions (DPP), the head of the Crown Prosecution Service. Cases he oversaw included the prosecution of then Lib Dem Cabinet minister Chris Huhne for perverting the course of justice. He held the post until 2013 and was subsequently knighted in 2014 for his service in the role. He held Holborn and St Pancras for Labour in 2015 after its MP, the late Frank Dobson, retired. Under predecessor Jeremy Corbyn he was shadow Brexit secretary, but did not often appear to be onthe same wavelength as the party leader. While Mr Corbyn was a Brexiteer of decades longstanding, Sir Keir was a vocal cheerleader for the majority Remain faction within Labour. This led to many of the more leftwing figures within the party to accuse him of undermining the hard Left leader, by vocally championing the softest of Brexits, and a second referendum. After Labour's humiliation in the 2019 General Election led to Mr Corbyn quitting, Sir Keir ran to replace him on a moderate, unifying platform. He comfortably beat Corbynite candidate Rebecca Long-Bailey to take charge in April. He attempted to keep the Left onside by giving shadow Cabinet posts to Ms Long-Bailey and a few other survivors of the previous regime. But he is unable to remove Ms Rayner as the deputy leader is elected by party members just as he is. Like Mr Corbyn, he is an Arsenal fan. Advertisement

Pioneering political punk or not bovvered? Stylists give their verdict on Angela Rayner's very unique sense of style and love of clumpy boots

Angela Rayner's unique sense of style and love of clumpy boots show the politician's 'doesn't want to be seen as a typical middle-class politician' and her confidence in her own ability, stylists have revealed.

The Labour MP, 41, from Stockport, was sacked in her roles as by party chairman and national campaign co-ordinator over the weekend after a disappointing set of election results for Keir Starmer.

However reports have emerged the pair have been clashing for months, with The Guardian stating Oldham MP Jim McMahon, who ran the Hartlepool by-election campaign, complained to the leader's office that Angela had been 'dressed inappropriately' on a visit to the town on March 21.

Photographs from the date show the MP in leopard-print trousers, heavy black boots and a bright pink hoodie for the occasion.

And it's not the first time that Angela has been snapped showing off her bold fashion choices, with the MP regularly stepping out in clashing colorful outfits, striking punk patterns, and unusual shoes.

Experts told FEMAIL Angela has been 'showing off her personality' with the outfits and 'could still command authority' despite her unusual fashion choices.

Angela Rayner's unique sense of style and love of clompy boots show the politician's 'personality' and her confidence in her own ability, stylists have revealed (pictured, wearing an outfit reportedly deemed 'inappropriate' by Oldham MP Jim McMahon)

Celebrity stylist Rochelle White said the 41-year-old, who left school aged 16 whilst pregnant and without any qualifications, proved politicians don't have to opt for safe or traditional choices when it comes to their wardrobe.

She revealed: 'I think that Angela's style shows that she is comfortable in herself to rock her own fashion style.

Speaking to The Guardian in 2012, Angela said people 'underestimated her' and thought 'she was stupid' because she was a 'pretty young woman'.

She said: 'I'm not stupid and most people know that now, but I still like to be underestimated because it gives me an edge. It gives me a bit of stealth.'

Stylist Rochelle said the 41-year-old proved politicians don't have to opt for safe or traditional choices when it comes to their wardrobe (pictured, in a vibrant green jacket with a tartan skirt)

As she returned to the Houses of Parliament in Westminster last year on the first day that MPs return from recess, the MP wore a bright red sailor style dress which she coordinated with her phone cover

Rochelle said the rebellious attitude was reflected in her wardrobe, revealing: 'I don't feel that because she is a politician she needs to dress so seriously all the time in plain suits.'

'She can still command her authority in whatever she wears.'

Meanwhile Rochelle also revealed the MP's choice to wear the bold outfit while campaigning could have actually benefited her cause.

The politician, who once described herself as a 'gobby northern ginger lass', has ditched the stuffy grey suits or simple shift dresses, for a bolder style, with clashing colours, bright pink ankle socks and tartan skirts.

She said: 'I feel that her looks and fashion choices show her personality.'

'It makes her relatable to the general public and, in a way, makes her approachable in a way that people feel comfortable with her.

And her preference for vibrant colours and prints isn't anything new. In 2016, Angela wore a lime green jacket during a keynote speech at the Labour party conference

Angela regularly opts for monochrome outfits with a pop of vibrant red, a choice which would normally be associated with a punk or gothic style of dressing (Pictured, at the Labour Party Conference in 2018)

'I don't feel that she wants to be seen as a typical middle-class politician who is used to being seen in court shoes and shift dresses.'

And as her profile has risen at Westminster, she has been unafraid to tone down her outfit choices.

At the Labour party conference in 2016, she took to the stage in fluorescent lime green jacket.

And when she returned to the Houses of Parliament in Westminster last year on the first day that MPs return from recess, she wore a bright red sailor style dress which she coordinated with her phone cover.

Pictured, wearing a bold pair of patent red boots with a more-conventional style workwear dress during the Labour Party Conference in 2019

Rochelle suggested Angela's wardrobe choices indicated she 'doesn't want to be seen as a typical middle-class politician' in 'court shoes and shift dresses' (pictured left and right, on the campaign trail wearing leopard print creepers)

The 41-year-old was snapped in a bold black and white striped jumper dress while attending the House of Commons last year

Meanwhile she clashed the garment with a bold black-and-white checkered backpack.

Even when wearing what could be seen as a more conventional outfit, the politician often adds a touch of her own flare with a pair of heels.

When meeting campaigners, councillors and the relatives of care home residents in Nottingham last month, she opted for a blue knee-length coat, but added a clash of colour with her red polkadot heels.

And when visiting Birmingham, she showcased a smart white coat with leather detailing with a pair of black leopard print sneakers with striking white laces.

The politician appears to have a love of bold and unusual shoes, regularly stepping out wearing 'flatforms and creepers, which tend to be popular with goth and punks.

She has pairs in many different styles, including a black pair featuring a leopard print upper which she wore in April for a visit to Hartlepool College of Further Education.

Meanwhile she donned a similar pair of flatform shoes, which wouldn't have looked out of place in the 90s, during a visit to Manchester with Sir Keir Starmer last month.

The MP also owns a selection of Dr Marten boots, including a tartan pair which she wore in January with a vibrant red coat and white shirt.

Rather than stuffy grey suits or simple shift dresses, the politician opts for bolder style, with clashing colours, bright pink ankle socks and tartan skirts

In 2015, Angela caused controversy after she became so incensed at missing out on a limited edition pair of Star Wars shoes she complained on Commons headed notepaper.

She believed her name had been on a pre-order list for the Irregular Choice shoe, but wasn't notified when the shoes went on sale, so she wrote a letter of complaint to the head office on House of Commons notepaper.

In the letter, which was later leaked, Angela wrote: 'I have only ever brought your shoes and I am loathed to do so again [sic].

'I am writing to let you know that treating customers in that way will only cost you more in the long term.'

Even when wearing a more conventional outfit, the politician often adds a touch of her own flare with a pair of heels (pictured left, meeting with campaigners, councillors and the relatives of care home residents in Sandiacre near Nottingham, and right, visiting Birmingham)

The red mid-heel peep-toes featuring polka-dot and cherry prints sunk into the grass during her visit

Angela's aides were said to have 'hit the roof ' when they heard about the comment from MP McMahon, but kept it from her to avoid fuelling the problems even further.

Angela is far from the first politician to have been in the headlines over her unusual style choices.

During her time as Prime Minister, Theresa May would often attract attention due to her choice of bold and colourful kitten heels.

Her shoes had first made headlines at a party conference, when she wore a pair of 110 leopard-print heels

Russell & Bromley quickly sold out and May  later credited with the revival of kitten heels  became the shoe queen of British politics.
A 23-year-old Italian woman has been discharged from hospital after receiving six doses of the Pfizer vaccine in error.

The woman, a student, was in a good condition after receiving fluids and paracetamol following the injection on Sunday, news agency AGI reported on Monday.

Instead of injecting just one dose into the arm of the student, a nurse at the Noa hospital in Tuscany mistakenly injected the entire vial, the equivalent of six doses.

The nurse immediately realised her mistake and alerted both the patient and an attending doctor.

The woman was kept in hospital for 24 hours under observation as a precaution.

Dr Antonella Vicenti, director of infectious diseases at Noa Hospital, told CBS that the woman had not suffered any side effects from the large dosage.

A 23-year-old Italian woman has been discharged from hospital after receiving six doses of the Pfizer vaccine in error [Stock image]

'The patient did not have fever and did not have any pain except for pain at the inoculation site, nor any other manifestations,' Vincenti said.

'She was a bit frightened, thus we preferred to keep her here until this morning.'

Hospital spokeswoman Daniella Gianelli told CNN that doctors will continue to monitor the patient's immune response.

They will take blood regularly and determine whether the woman requires a second shot of the vaccine.

Gianelli said the young woman was eligible to receive a vaccine ahead of others in her age group because she was an intern at the hospital's psychology department.

At the beginning of April, vaccines became mandatory for healthcare workers in Italy.

Previous studies to test overdoses of the Pfizer vaccine were limited to four doses, AGI wrote.

The incident has been reported to Italy's medicine regulator and the hospital has launched an investigation to review safety measures.

Dr Tommaso Bellandi, director of patient security for the northwest Tuscany health authority told CBS that the incident was down to human error.

'This is something that should never happen. Unfortunately, due to our limits as human beings, as well as organisational limits, these things can happen.'

The woman, a student, was in a good condition after receiving fluids and paracetamol following the injection on Sunday, news agency AGI reported on Monday [Stock image]

He explained that vials of Pfizer vaccine contain six doses. These are extracted individually and placed in separate vials then diluted.

The nurse injected all of the liquid from an undiluted vial and realised her mistake after seeing five empty syringes next to it.

'She thought that the dilution had taken place,' said Bellandi. 'They are both transparent liquids of the same density. Unfortunately, this contributed to the error,' Bellandi said.

Overdoses of the Pfizer vaccine have previously been reported in the United States, Australia, Germany and Israel.
A teenager doing army recruitment training 'went blank' before losing his grip on a ladder and fatally falling metres into a flooded tunnel, a NSW coronial inquest has heard.

Private Liam Wolf, 18, died two days after the fall, on April 21, 2019.

Pte Wolf likely suffered a cardiac arrest and then sustained a brain injury in the fall, expert witnesses are expected to tell the NSW Coroners Court.

The fall came as the Queensland teenager was nearing the end of the army's 80-day basic training course for new recruits at Blamey Barracks in Kapooka, in the NSW Riverina.

The recruits rose at 4am and marched five kilometres with weighted packs. Then they set out to do an obstacle course designed to test the resilience and teamwork skills they'd been building.

Liam Wolf, 18, (pictured) died after completing basic training at the Army Recruit Training Centre in Kapooka in the NSW Riverina region on April 19

Gabrielle Worth, a fellow recruit and Pte Wolf's battle buddy during the 12 weeks of training, had climbed the four-metre metal ladder out of the tunnel, then crouched to watch him ascend the ladder behind her.

'About halfway up, his face just goes blank,' Pte Worth told police in a taped interview.

'His eyes are wide open but they're not seeing anything ... then in a split second he just lets go.'

He fell into the dark concrete tunnel, his head in cold ankle-deep water.

'He just wasn't moving, he was just mouth open, eyes wide open but no movement or anything,' Private Dario Moran-Arnold, who was in the tunnel when Pte Wolf fell, said in his police interview.

Pte Moran-Arnold and a corporal cradled his head above the water and performed CPR in a desperate attempt to save his life.

The Army Recruit Training Centre (pictured) is a world class training establishment for all soldiers selected to join the Australian Army

A dozen people helped to stretcher him out of the underground tunnel, before emergency services took him to Wagga Base Hospital and then by helicopter to Sydney.

Pte Wolf had been moving through the obstacle course slower than normal, Pte Worth thought.

But she said he was a quiet person and not the type to complain.

She described the obstacle course as stressful both physically and mentally.

'The whole time you're working towards this day and it's been drilled into you that this is the day for you to shine,' Pte Worth said.

Though the focus was on good technique, recruits were timed as they went through the obstacle course and a trophy awarded to the section which could complete it the fastest.

Over the 12 weeks of training Pte Wolf was treated twice for viral illnesses, the inquest was told on Monday.

The inquest will explore whether recruits were sufficiently prepared for the field exercises and the obstacle cause , and whether they were sufficiently monitored for developing medical issues.

The coroner will also consider whether there were sufficient safety precautions in relation to the tunnel, particularly the risks posed by the water.

One possibility is that safety helmets should have been used, counsel assisting the inquest Sophie Callan SC said.

Deputy State Coroner Derek Lee and lawyers went to look at the tunnel firsthand in April.

The tunnel has not been used since Pte Wolf's death.

Pte Wolf was just 17 when he signed up for the army. An award has been created in his name for the army recruit with the best rifle shot.

The inquest continues on Tuesday.
Inaccurate statistics were used to justify building thousands of homes on green belt land, a watchdog has found.

The Office for National Statistics had predicted Coventrys population would rise by 32 per cent between 2011 and 2031, twice as much as Birmingham, which led the city council to plan for more than 40,000 new homes.

Many of these homes could be built on green belt land that once formed the Forest of Arden.

It had wrongly been assumed foreign students would stay on in Coventry, rather than move away

But campaigners said the ONS wrongly assumed that foreign students at local universities would stay in the area after their studies.

They said the citys vital signs such as births, jobs, A&E attendances and car registrations did not match expected growth.

Yesterday the Office for Statistics Regulation criticised the ONS for failing to listen to concerns and agreed that the projections in some areas were wrong. It ordered the ONS to report back in July with plans to solve the problem.

The Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street said Coventry City Council must review its plan and stop any more unnecessary development.

The report said: We found that in some smaller cities that had a large student population, the population estimates did appear to be inconsistent with, and potentially higher than, local evidence suggests.

It added that the ONS needs to investigate the root and scale of the issue associated with cities with large student populations and ordered it to report back in July with plans to sort the problem.

Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street, right, said the report was 'too little, too late' for the city's precious green belt land

While national estimates were highly regarded, there is a risk that ONS misses the bigger picture of what the population data inform and is not regularly checking what it does against local insight, it said.

Mr Street said he was pleased the report had agreed with his concerns but precious land had already been lost.

Whilst it is great news that we finally have it in black and white that the ONS overestimated Coventrys population growth, it has come too little too late for so much of the citys precious green belt that has already been scythed off by developers for housing, he said.

He said Coventry City Council must review its local plan and stop any more unnecessary development on irreplaceable green belt land.

An ONS spokesman said it welcomed the reports recognition that overall its methods were fit for purpose for national level numbers but it recognised there was some variability at local level.

We are already progressing much work in this area, he said. We continue to build on new methods, for example exploring the ways in which students leaving university are counted, and the established population and migration statistics transformation programme is making increased use of administrative data.
A police and crime commissioner election candidate who withdrew after a historic driving conviction came to light has been declared the winner of the vote.

Jonathon Seed, Conservative Party candidate for Wiltshire and Swindon PCC, received 40 per cent of the vote in the first round and was elected after it went to a second ballot, but will not be able to take up the post.

A spokesperson for the party said Mr Seed, who had been hoping to take over from Conservative colleague Angus Macpherson who is standing down, had been 'disbarred' after a driving offence had 'come to light'.

In a statement released after the result was declared, the election's returning officer Terence Herbert said he would be considering the next steps after taking appropriate legal advice.

Speaking at Five Rivers Health and Wellbeing Centre in Salisbury where Monday's count was held, Mr Herbert said: 'The election has been called and Jonathon Seed has been duly elected.

'As regards the next steps, as the head of paid services, I am the appropriate officer for making any declaration as to the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner becoming vacant.

A police and crime commissioner election candidate who withdrew after a historic driving conviction came to light has been declared the winner of the vote. Jonathon Seed, Conservative Party candidate for Wiltshire and Swindon PCC, received 40 per cent of the vote in the first round and was elected after it went to a second ballot, but will not be able to take up the post

'Given this unprecedented situation and given the circumstances, I will be seeking legal advice on the next steps and at that point I will be able to make any statements necessary about the position.

'If the post of the PCC is vacant, if someone is disqualified or does not sign the declaration, then the post will be defined as vacant and an election will be called.'

In a statement issued on Sunday, Mr Seed - who won a combined total of 47% of the vote - insisted he had declared his conviction to the party in his application for the role.

Mr Seed said: 'To the best of my knowledge and belief when I applied for, and became, the police and crime commissioner candidate for the Conservative Party in Wiltshire and Swindon, I was an eligible candidate.

'I have declared my 30-year-old driving conviction to the party in my applications both to be a parliamentary candidate and more recently a PCC candidate.

'Party officials confirmed my belief that my offence did not disqualify me.

'I have now been advised that this is not the case, and that I am disqualified as a PCC candidate. I have therefore withdrawn.'

Mr Seed - who won a total of 100,003 votes - said on Sunday that he would be 'bitterly disappointed' not to take up the post if he won the election.

According to a 2012 article in the Salisbury Journal, Mr Seed, a former hunt master, was previously charged with breaching the Hunting Act 2004

Electoral Commission guidance says PCC candidates cannot stand for election if they have been convicted of an imprisonable offence.

Liberal Democrat candidate Liz Webster, who came second after securing 17 per cent of the vote in the first round and a combined total of 27 per cent, said: 'The question that needs to be asked is when the Conservative Party knew (Mr Seed) was ineligible to stand and, if that was before Thursday (polling day), why they didn't say anything, because voters could have made an informed decision.

'It's going to cost the taxpayer 1.4 million to re-run the election, and there will obviously have to be a further police inquiry and, depending on the outcome, it may be a case for the Crown Prosecution Service.'

Ms Webster, who won a total of 58,074 votes, added: 'Jonathon Seed has treated Wiltshire and Swindon residents with total contempt.

'Re-running this election will require residents to vote again and deny our tired elections staff their well-deserved break. All of that is an absolute disgrace.'

A spokesperson for the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) said: 'While this situation is unprecedented, there is legislation in place for this eventuality and due process will be followed.

'Angus Macpherson remains as police and crime commissioner until Thursday.

'The OPCC will be working closely with Wiltshire Council, Swindon Borough Council and the Police and Crime Panel, once confirmed, to ensure any following legal process is handled as effectively and efficiently as possible.'

Mr Seed - who faced competition from five other candidates for the PCC post which involves holding Wiltshire Police to account, overseeing a budget and setting its priorities - was also re-elected as a councillor to Wiltshire Council for the Melksham Without West & Rural ward on Saturday.

A Conservative spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Due to a historic driving offence that has come to light, the candidate has been disbarred from becoming the Police and Crime Commissioner.'

According to a 2012 article in the Salisbury Journal, Mr Seed, a former hunt master, was previously charged with breaching the Hunting Act 2004.

The case, a private prosecution by the RSPCA, was later dropped due to a lack of evidence.

Mr Seed always maintained his innocence and described the proceedings at the time as 'an abuse of the private prosecution system'.
AFL star Willie Rioli has allegedly been busted with marijuana hidden in his pants at an airport in the Northern Territory.

The West Coast Eagles star, 25, was allegedly found with 25g of the substance and was charged with drug possession in a public place.

The talented forward, who is serving a suspension after getting caught trying to use a fake urine for an AFL drug test, will face court on May 12.

He was due to return to training in June and was eligible being playing from August 20 - two years since his doping offense.

News of Rioli's arrest came just days after his cousin Daniel Rioli of Richmond was involved in a nightclub fight which left him with a gash on his face.

AFL star Willie Rioli has allegedly been busted with cannabis hidden in his pants at an airport in the Northern Territory. Pictured after winning the 2018 AFL premiership

The West Eagles star, 25, was allegedly found with 25 grams of the substance

The premiership-wining player was found to have 'adverse analytical finding' detected in a drug test taken on August 20, 2019.

Rioli also tested positive to cannabis in a second drug test following the Eagles' elimination final win against Essendon on September 5.

NT Police said officers conducted drug screening operations at Darwin Airport on April 23.

'Drug detection dog April provided a conditioned response to the male,' a statement read.

'A search was conducted and 25g of [marijuana] was located in the man's pants.'

At the time of his botched drug test he made a grovelling apology to family and friends on social media.

'(I) just want to thank all my real family and friends for all the love and support through this tough time. I'm so sorry I had to put yous all through this,' he posted.

'This lil mistake is a lesson to be learnt. This definitely doesn't define me as a person.'

Rioli is soon to be a father with girlfriend Lucy Campbell announcing she was five months pregnant in November last year.

Rioli's girlfriend Lucy Campbell (pictured right), announced she was five-months pregnant in November last year

The small forward tested positive to cannabis in a second failed drug test after the Eagles' elimination final win against Essendon on September 5.

Craig Vozzo, the general manager of football at West Coast said the club was investigating after being informed of his arrest within the past 24 hours.

'He's a mess. It's all fresh information. There is of emotion at the moment. There's anger, great sadness,' he said.

'I think he thought if he didn't tell anyone it might go away.

'It's been a real challenge to care and support Willie from such a distance. We can continue to financially assist him.

'We can't have any contact from a training or performance capacity. We can't assist him with employment. We can talk to him.

'He acknowledged that on the face of it It's 'another poor decision' that tests the club's trust.'

The talented forward (pictured) who is currently serving a suspension after getting caught trying to switch a urine sample for an AFL drug test, will face court on May 12.

Born on Tiwi Islands in the NT, Rioli played 38 games for the Eagles since making his AFL debut in round two of the 2018 season.

He is part of the famous Rioli footballing family, which stems from his uncle Maurice Rioli who won the Norm Smith Medal as best afield in the 1982 grand final.

Also among Willie Rioli's cousins are former Hawthorn premiership great Cyril Rioli, Essendon premiership player Dean Rioli, and former Geelong leading goalkicker Ronnie Burns.

This weekend, his cousin Daniel Rioli said he was punched after confronting a man who had insulted his girlfriend.

Teammate Shai Bolton came to his aid and ended up with a broken wrist that was expected to sideline him for three weeks.
A truck driver banned from travelling on a passenger ferry service for a year after the transport company said he swore at staff when he took off his mask while a customer during a Covid outbreak has blasted the decision as 'extreme'.

Michael Thompson, who lives on Russell Island, Queensland, was told by Sealink Bay Islands his 'behaviour' on board their vessels on two occasions in January had led to the 12-month ban - including one incident were police were called.

Mr Thompson was also issued with a $130-on-the-spot fine by cops. Masks were mandatory in Greater Brisbane in all settings outside the home at the time after a hotel quarantine cleaner contracted Covid.

'To ban someone for a year is a bit extreme,' he said.

Mr Thompson, who runs a delivery business called Linkseas Logistics, said the letter informing him he was not permitted to travel on Sealink passenger services was delivered to his house by a police officer.

Russell Island resident Michael Thompson (pictured) was issued with a 12-month ban from Sealink Bay Islands passenger ferry services

In a letter informing Mr Thompson of his ban, Sealink Bay Islands said the reason behind not allowing him to travel on passenger services for a year was due to his 'beahviour' on board vessels on two occasions

'This is due to your recent behaviour on board the vessels on Saturday evening, January 9, which Queensland Police were called to and your behaviour on the previous evening, January 8,' the letter said.

'At completion of the 12-month period, you will be required to make an application in writing to the company to have this ban removed.'

Sealink declined to elaborate further about Mr Thompson's behaviour but indicated he swore at staff when they told him to put his mask back on while travelling on their services, the Redlands Community News reported.

'The letter to the customer is the only communication on this matter,' Sealink said.

Mr Thompson said on January 8 he was at work all day and had not realised the government made masks mandatory in Greater Brisbane from 6pm that day.

He said Sealink had provided masks prior to boarding his vessel back to Russell Island from the Redland Bay ferry terminal and he wore his on the ferry, claiming 'there was no problems' on that day.

The next day Mr Thompson said he wore his mask on board but as he had a beard and became 'irritable', he pulled the mask down below his mouth 'to catch my breath'.

He said he was approached by a deckhand who told him to put his mask back on, which he did but not before he said he pointed out there were some people who cannot wear a mask and that needed to be taken into account.

Mr Thompson said the letter informing him of his 12-month ban was hand delivered by a police officer

Mr Thompson, who has a trucking business called Linkseas Logistics, said he is having to sell his trucks and go back to work as a nurse

Other passengers then got involved and called him out.

'The rest of the passengers started piping up. That's when I started piping up and told them to shut up,' Mr Thompson said.

'I don't believe I was swearing (at the staff). I might have displayed some dirty language but it was not directed at them personally.'

At the next stop, police were waiting, where he was issued with the fine.

Sealink said the request to once again travel on their passenger services will be made in consultation with police.

The transport company said Mr Thompson will still be allowed to travel as a passenger on vehicle ferries, which is an extra $47 ticket cost per trip.

Mr Thompson said those services are more infrequent and take 40 minutes longer, making it difficult for him to run his business and stay as a resident on the island.

Following the ban he has sold one of his trucks and was in the process of selling another and said he will soon be forced to sell his business.

He said he will have to go back to working as a nurse to provide for his seven children, including a son who has an internal heart defibrillator and who suffered a heart attack last year.

Sealink was contacted for comment.
A funeral planning ad that joked about a father's preference for women's behinds has been swiftly shelved after being accused of sexual exploitation.

Anticipate Life was forced to withdraw the TV spot on Saturday after it didn't go down well with viewers who complained it was 'gross'.

'You know your dad likes Fat-Bottomed Girls. But do you know if he wants Queen played at his funeral?' the ad jokes, while focusing on a woman's rear.

The Anticipate Life ad for funeral planning has outraged campaigners against sexualisation of women in advertising but could end up helping the new company get attention

The ad goes on to say people need to talk to their parents about funeral planning 'because you care and because it's all about A Crazy Little Thing Called Love'.

Poll Do you approve of Anticipate Life's 'Fat-Bottomed Girls' funeral planning ad? Yes No Do you approve of Anticipate Life's 'Fat-Bottomed Girls' funeral planning ad? Yes 79 votes

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Both are plays on words mixing song titles by British rock band Queen with encouragement for families to talk about funeral requests while they are still alive.

The Perth company yanked the ad 34 minutes after feminist activist Melinda Liszewski from Collective Shout complained on the company's Facebook page.

Ms Liszewski, who claimed she was planning her father's funeral, told the company that to her the ad was 'absolutely on the nose'.

'I've been involved in planning my Dad's funeral, the last thing we thinking about were his sexual preferences,' she said.

She asked why the company wouldn't develop a concept around another song mentioned in the ad text - Crazy Little Thing Called Love?

She argued that would have been better than 'focusing on some young woman's backside as some gross pun'.

Anticipate Life replied: 'The ads were never meant to offend, and only meant to try and inject a little humour into a serious subject.

A screen grab of the complaint about the Anticipate Life funeral planning ad and the company's response. The conversation took place on Facebook but has since been deleted

'We've pulled the ad from circulation and would like to apologise for any distress it may have caused.'

It then deleted all social media posts related to the ad - although it left the YouTube video online.

'This sexually objectifying treatment of women is outdated, unnecessary and harmful to women and girls,' Collective Shout told Daily Mail Australia.

'The harms of sexist and sexually-objectifying representations of women are well-documented.'

'Decades of research has concluded that the everyday sexualisation and objectification of women leads both men and women to have a diminished view of women's competence, morality and humanity.'

Anticipate Life is a new start-up started by former Australian Garnet mining executive Paul Kamarudin and teacher Leanne Russell.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Anticipate Life for comment.
Three perpetrators of domestic violence have spoken about the motivations behind their violent outbursts in a documentary aimed at shining a light on the rampant but largely unseen epidemic.

See What You Made Me Do is presented by investigative journalist Jess Hill who has spent six years researching the topic and is inspired by her award-winning book of the same title.

The documentary explores Australia's domestic abuse crisis and introduces us to survivors, family members, experts in the field, and even - as on Wednesday's episode - three perpetrators who talk about what they did and why they did it.

On Wednesday's episode of 'See What You Made Me Do' perpetrators of domestic violence reveal the motivations behind their behaviour (pictured)

One of the three men interviewed, James Harding who runs a counselling and mentoring program the other two men attended, recounted an incident during an argument in which he violently smashed up a car moments after his then partner had sat behind the wheel.

'The girl I was seeing, I'd been trying to break up with her,' he explained.

'I ran out to the car and put my foot straight through the windscreen, then punched out a window... and I said to her: 'See what you made me do'.

While not excusing their behaviour, Ms Hill attempts to delve into the minds of those who commit domestic violence as she believes understanding the complex factors that fuel abuse is key to tackling the 'national emergency'.

'You're not talking about how you're feeling. You're not addressing what's bubbling under the surface. You're under pressure and stressed and not able to talk,' her interviewee continued.

'Nothing's under control. And then you get someone nagging and harassing you over your shoulder, it's very easy to snap'.

Steven, another perpetrator interviewed, describes an even worse incident in which he attacked an ex-partner when an argument escalated.

One perpetrator, Steven, (pictured) said he strangled his ex-partner for '15 seconds' before he snapped out of his rage

Another perpetrator, Brad, (pictured) said he grew up in foster care where there was little control and said: 'I've always been controlling in my relationships'

'I snapped. I threw her into the bedroom at the front and I strangled her. I had two hands on her throat and probably held her throat for fifteen seconds,' he said.

'It wasn't until my ex-partner uttered the words 'you're killing me' that I let go ... I was so angry'.

A third interviewee then adds that he too strangled an ex-girlfriend and provides a chilling insight into his motivation.

'It was about power. You don't get that back from punching someone cause its instant ... When you strangle someone its you and me and I want you to know that I've got the power' he explained.

According to non-profit Our Watch domestic violence is an emergency in Australian society with one woman on average each week in the country killed by a partner or ex-partner.

The complex issues surrounding domestic violence and the ways people are trying to address them are explored in depth in the Ms Hill's documentary and even further in her book.

One example of an initiative which has tackled the issue with noticable success is in Bourke in north-western NSW.

In 2013 Indigenous elder Alistair Ferguson brought together local leaders, police and support services in a collaboration aimed at 'problem-solving' youth crime and domestic violence rather than relying on arrests.

The specific measures involved checking in with at-risk victims and offenders to ask how their situations could be improved, increasing drug and alcohol programs, and introducing offenders to mentors who could show them different ways to handle their problems.

Between 2015 and 2017 domestic violence offences plunged by 39 per cent in the region.

'These programs work because they are community-led [and] foster deep collaboration,' Ms Hill told the ABC.

She added the initiatives took the tactic that some perpetrators 'are capable of rationality and redemption,' Ms Hills told the ABC.

See What You Made Me Do will air at 8.30pm on Wednesday night on SBS, NITV and SBS On Demand.
Rick Thorburn, 60, (pictured in 2016) is serving a life sentence for murdering Tiahleigh on October 29, 2015

It's been almost six years since three fishermen made a horrific find on the banks of the Pimpama River - the body of murdered schoolgirl Tialeigh Palmer.

The 12-year-old girl was naked except for a pair of underpants when her body was found on November 5, 2015.

Her tiny body was so badly decomposed, authorities have never been able to determine how she died.

Deputy State Coroner Jane Bentley is hoping to finally give Tialeigh's family answers during a two-day inquest starting on June 8.

The schoolgirl's foster father, Rick Thorburn, is serving a life sentence for murdering Tiahleigh on October 29, 2015.

In the hours before, Tialeigh had been to a hip-hop dance class where she complained of stomach pains, counsel assisting Kate McMahon told a pre-inquest hearing on Tuesday.

It's been almost six years since three fishermen made a horrific find on the banks of the Pimpama River - the body of murdered schoolgirl Tialeigh Palmer

That same night, Thorburn's son Trent confessed to mother Julene that he'd had sex with the schoolgirl and feared the stomach pains were a sign she was pregnant.

Thornburn and his wife feared a pregnancy could mean Trent would go to jail, the court was told.

That night, the family - Julene, Trent and brother Joshua went out, leaving Tialeigh home alone with Rick Thorburn.

She was never seen alive again.

When the family returned, Thorburn simply told them: 'Tialeigh is no longer with us. I hope you know what that means.'

Thorburn bluntly said he had 'taken care of it' before warning them not to ask questions.

'There was then a period of about two hours where Mr Thorburn and Tialeigh Palmer were alone in the house together, between 8pm and 10pm,' Ms McMahon said.

Rick Thorburn killed the 12-year-old between 8pm and 10pm on October 29, 2015, just hours after his son Trent (pictured), who was 18 at the time, confessed to having sex with her, telling his parents he feared she was pregnant

'During that two-hour period he killed Tialeigh Palmer.'

Every member of the Thorburn family was convicted of being part of the crime - Rick Thorburn for the murder itself, Trent for incest, and wife Julene and his other son Joshua for being part of an elaborate cover-up.

Thorburn was sentenced to 20 years in jail.

Tiahleigh's murder spawned two major reviews and resulted in stronger criminal checks for people seeking to become foster carers or wanting Blue Cards to authorise them to work with children.

Despite internal reviews and criminal trials, no one knows what happened to Tialeigh Palmer in her final moments.

'(Thorburn) has pleaded guilty to her murder but has never given an account, either on oath or otherwise, as to how he killed her,' Ms McMahon said.

'One of the primary focuses of this inquest will be to see if anything more can be learned about that two-hour period of time.

'What actions Rick Thorburn took when he killed Tialeigh Palmer and how Tialeigh spent her last hours and moments.'

The Thorburn family will be called as witnesses and compelled to give evidence to the inquest.

'The people who loved Tialeigh want answers about what happened to her in her last hours and moments and how Richard Thorburn disposed of her body.'
Victoria Health Department say the man contracted the virus while in quarantine

Man had returned from India flying through Maldives and Singapore into SA

South Australia's Health Officer say they don't believe he was infectious on flight

He started developing symptoms on May 8 and returned a positive test Monday

Man, aged in his 30s, flew back from South Australia to Victoria on May 4

Man tested positive for coronavirus at Melbourne home after hotel quarantine

A man has tested positive for coronavirus at his Melbourne home after serving his mandatory two weeks hotel quarantine in South Australia.

The man, aged in his 30s, arrived back at his house in Wollert in the city's north on Tuesday May 4 before developing symptoms over the weekend.

He was tested on Monday after his condition worsened and produced a positive result on Tuesday morning.

The man had arrived in Australia from India, travelling through the Maldives and Singapore before arriving in South Australia.

The man was staying in a room adjacent to a positive case in the Playford medi-hotel and is believed to have contracted the virus in the final days of his quarantine following his last test.

South Australia's Chief Public Health Officer Professor Nicola Spurrier says they don't believe he was infectious when he caught the flight back to Melbourne.

The man tested negative to his mandatory tests while in hotel quarantine and they believe he only became infectious after landing in Victoria.

Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley confirmed the man's re-test again came back positive on Tuesday afternoon but said his three household close contacts have returned negative tests.

A man has tested positive for coronavirus at his Melbourne home after serving his mandatory two weeks hotel quarantine in South Australia

He also confirmed there are three tier one areas of exposure, which mean anyone at the venues must immediately self-isolate, get tested and quarantine for 14 days.

There were also three tier two exposed venues, where anyone present must immediately get tested and isolate until they return a negative result.

Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton says it was 'absolutely the case' that the man contracted the virus while serving his hotel quarantine in South Australia but said there were positives that his close contacts had produced negative tests.

'The early encouraging sign is the household close contacts are all negative given he would've been infectious likely since the 6th [of May].'

He says they have not yet released his flight number or the airport as areas of exposure because at this stage they don't believe the man was infectious while on the flight.

Anyone that has been at the exposure sites during the reported times must also immediately contact the state's coronavirus hotline on 1800 675 398.

High exposure sites in Melbourne Tier One: TIC Group - Front office - 214 Blackshaws Road, Altona North - 12:01am to 11:59pm - Thursday, May 6 Curry Vault Indian Restaurant and Bar - 18-20 Bank Pl, Melbourne - 6:30pm and 9:30pm on Friday, May 7 Indian Gate Spices and Groceries - Unit 14 C/560-590 High Street - 5pm and 6pm on Saturday, May 8 Woolworths Epping - Cooper Streeet and High Street - 5:40pm and 6:38pm on Saturday, May 8 Tier Two: TIC Group - Rear warehouse section -214 Blackshaws Road, Altona North - All day, Thursday May 6 7/11 Epping - 705 High Street - 6:30pm and 7:30pm on Thursday, May 6 7/11 Epping - 705 High Street - 11:10am and 11:40am on Saturday, May 8 Advertisement

More than two dozen workers at a Melbourne CBD health company were sent home as a 'precaution' after a potential coronavirus scare on Tuesday morning.

The workers at Citadel Health were sent home from their office on the city's busy Collins Street after one of the employees was notified as being a close contact of the Wollert man.

A spokesman for Citadel Health confirmed staff had been sent home to Daily Mail Australia but that their employee who was a close contact to the infected man had returned a negative result.

Victoria Health are now conducting a 'full public health response' into close contacts and possible hotspots.

'Further testing has been urgently arranged to confirm the diagnosis,' the Victorian Department of Health said on Tuesday.

'Until that time, the Department is treating this as a positive case and acting accordingly.'

The man and his household of three close contacts will remain in isolation for a further two weeks as is the incubation period with the virus.

'Until then, the department is treating this as a positive case and acting accordingly,' the department said.

'The individual is being interviewed and exposure sites are being verified.'

The man and his close contacts are all currently isolating while they await further testing

Victoria has currently gone 73 days without a community transfer.

Workers at Citadel Health were told to go home as a precautionary measure on Tuesday morning.

Citadel Health provide software support for hospitals and staff were told to leave after a potential coronavirus scare.

It is not known whether there is any relation between the incident and the new case in Wollert.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Citadel Health for comment.
The tax rebate for low and middle income earners is set to be extended in Tuesday's budget - meaning Australian couples would be $2,160 better off in the coming year.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is expected to extend the low and middle-income tax offset when he delivers the budget at 7.30pm.

If the cash boost is approved, the cash will automatically added on to your tax return this year, meaning some will get the cash into their account as early as July.

The move would benefit Australians with a taxable income up to $126,000 and is worth up to $1,080 for singles and $2,160 for couples.

Australian couples will be $2,160 better off in the coming year as part of changes expected to be announced in Tuesday's federal budget Pictured: Gold Coast couple Gary Yeh and Sara Godwin

The bonus, which was available for the past three income years, had originally been scheduled to run out in June.

Mr Frydenberg though is expected to extend it for another year at a cost of about $7billion.

'The Coalition is always the party of lower taxes,' Mr Frydenberg told reporters in Perth after news of the extension leaked to the media.

'That's our record and that will continue to be the message and the policies we deliver going forward.'

The offset is claimable when Australians submit their tax returns.

Workers don't need to complete a section in their tax return to get these tax offsets as the ATO does it automatically.

Mr Frydenberg's Tuesday announcement - which will unveil his second budget in seven months - is aimed at rebuilding the economy after the coronavirus pandemic.

A worker at a chocolate counter in Sydney. Australians with a taxable income up to $126,000 will benefit from the expected changes, with singles receiving a windfall of up to $1,080

How much do you stand to benefit from the low and middle-income tax offset? The above table shows how much Australians will get back from the government in their tax returns depending on their icnome

Single parents who want to buy a home, school leavers and retirees who want to boost their super accounts are all set to be big winners.

Mr Frydenberg has already promised more big spending next financial year, with Deloitte predicting a budget deficit of $87 billion, a figure well below this year's estimated $167 billion shortfall.

'We won't be undertaking any sharp pivots towards austerity. We want more people in jobs and in better paying jobs. This is what our fiscal strategy is designed to achieve,' he said.

The budget will contain tax cuts for average earners, huge changes to the child care system, a big boost for the aged care sector and a $110billion infrastructure drive with projects set to generate thousands of jobs.
Osmond Roy Greig (pictured) pleaded guilty to murder in a Brisbane court on Tuesday over the fatal 2016 attack on Daryl Corcoran

A man who murdered his ex-wife's new partner by stabbing him 86 times after using an axe to break into their house has been jailed for life.

Osmond Roy Greig, 43, pleaded guilty to murder in a Brisbane court on Tuesday over the fatal 2016 attack on Daryl Corcoran.

Greig used the axe to break a window to get into the home at Alexandra Hills, southeast of Brisbane, about 11.25pm on November 22, 2016.

His ex-wife, Mr Corcoran and three children were asleep in the house at the time.

After stabbing Mr Corcoran, Greig turned the knife on himself, cutting his own arms, legs and throat, the Brisbane Supreme Court was told.

Describing the attack as 'anger-filled' and his actions as appalling, Justice Ann Lyons said it was very clear Greig intended to kill Mr Corcoran.

She told Greig that nothing could erase the loss of Mr Corcoran's life for his family and 'their profound and ongoing grief'.

'Nothing can ever explain your appalling actions on that night,' she added.

After stabbing Mr Corcoran (pictured), Greig turned the knife on himself, cutting his own arms, legs and throat, the Brisbane Supreme Court was told

'You took another man's life in a violent, sustained, premeditated, planned and anger-filled attack in front of your estranged wife.'

Justice Lyons sentenced Greig to life imprisonment for murder, saying, 'You will forever be serving a sentence of life imprisonment.'

'For the rest of your life you are subject to that sentence.'

Greig will be able to apply for parole after serving 20 years.

Justice Lyons also sentenced Greig to a concurrent 10-year jail term for burglary.
Newt Gingrich on Monday night said Joe Biden should be authorized to 'order the killings of anybody overseas' who was found to be behind attacks on America's infrastructure, describing the cyberhack of the Colonial Pipeline as 'an act of war'.

Gas shortages were beginning to be reported across the East Coast on Monday evening, as the pipeline was slowly brought back on line after a four-day shutdown.

Hackers from DarkSide, a Russia-based network of cybercriminals, were said by the FBI to be behind the ransomware attack. On Monday they said they were mistaken to cause 'societal consequences', and only sought money. They said they would not target critical infrastructure again, and wanted no part in any geopolitical battles.

But Gingrich said that the United States needed more power to go after those responsible.

'On the national security part, we ought to pass a law immediately that makes this kind of hacking subject to a death penalty and the law should include a provision that the president, through a judicial process, should be able to order the killings of anybody overseas who is doing this,' he told Sean Hannity on Fox News.

Newt Gingrich appeared on Sean Hannity's show on Fox News on Monday night

Residents in Greenville, Carolina, complained on Monday about gas shortages

The 5,500-mile pipeline is the largest in the U.S. and runs from Texas to New Jersey

The Colonial Pipeline runs from Texas to New Jersey and carries 100 million gallons of fuel daily

'It's an act of war against the United States to do stuff like this.

'We need to react to it as an act of war, and the American people are going to look at their representatives and their senators and say, if you don't fix this, your successor will. I won't put up with it, and I won't put up with you if you don't fix it.'

Gingrich, 77, the former Speaker of the House, said it was pitiful that the U.S. was falling prey to such attacks.

'We have no idea who they are. We have no idea where they are,' he said.

'If we did know who they were, we would have no mechanism to do anything about it.

'A great country can't allow people to savage it and have no consequences and wait for the next attack.

'And yet that literally is where we are.'

Gas shortages were being reported from Florida to Atlanta and as far north as Virginia

Shortages were reported in Atlanta on Monday afternoon, and motorists lined up to fill the cars

Drivers in Asheville, North Carolina, posted photos of long lines waiting to fill up their cars

In Greenville, North Carolina, drivers were also rushing to the pumps to fill their cars

The problem is spiraling out of control.

In the last few months in the United States, ransomware gangs have attacked large businesses, schools and universities, local governments, hospitals and the police.

Last week Christopher Krebs, the former top cyber official in the Department of Homeland Security, told Congress that the ransomware emergency in the U.S. was a 'digital dumpster fire.'

Appearing before the House Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection & Innovation, Krebs - who was fired by Donald Trump for stating that the November election was free and fair - said that the U.S. had a growing problem.

'Even if software and services were more secure, the allure of a quick buck and no real repercussions means the forward-looking prospects for ransomware actors are quite good,' he said.

Gingrich said that Congress needed to act.

'This ought to be a bipartisan issue. What are we prepared to do to protect America from official governments or private citizens?' he asked.

'This is an intolerable situation.'

Putin's cyber soldiers: DarkSide hackers who hit America's biggest fuel pipeline started eight months ago in Russia where they're given free rein to target the West and have already been paid millions by 80 companies

The cyberextortion attack that forced the shutdown of America's largest fuel pipeline was carried out by a criminal gang known as DarkSide that is believed to based out of Russia where they are given free rein to target Western countries.

DarkSide is made up of veteran cybercriminals but insists it is not political. Like many others, however, DarkSide seems to spare Russian, Kazakh and Ukrainian-speaking companies, which does suggest a link to Russia.

Ransomware rackets are now dominated by Russian-speaking cybercriminals who are shielded - and sometimes employed - by Russian intelligence agencies, according to US officials.

Cyber experts say Russia gives free rein to hackers who target the US and European countries.

DarkSide has already boasted that it has been paid millions of dollars in ransom from 80 companies across the US and Europe.

'Whether they work for the state or not is increasingly irrelevant, given Russia's obvious policy of harboring and tolerating cybercrime,' Dmitri Alperovitch, a co-founder of CrowdStrike, told NBC News of DarkSide's recent hacking.

The FBI on Monday confirmed that DarkSide was responsible for the attack on Colonial Pipeline that has experts fearing widespread gas shortages and significant price hikes.

The agency has been tracking the group since at least October and are investigating whether they have ties to the Russian government.

The US last month slapped sanctions on Russia for malign activities including state-backed hacking. The Treasury Department said Russian intelligence has enabled ransomware attacks by cultivating and co-opting criminal hackers and giving them safe harbor.

While there is no evidence the Kremlin benefits financially from ransomware, US officials believe President Putin savors the mayhem it wreaks in adversaries' economies.

The FBI on Monday confirmed that DarkSide was responsible for the attack on Colonial Pipeline (above) that has experts fearing gas shortages and significant prices hikes

DarkSide finds vulnerabilities in a network, gains access to administrator accounts and then harvests data from the victim's server and encrypts it. The software leaves a ransom note text file with demands (pictured above)

DarkSide, which cultivates a Robin Hood image of stealing from corporations and giving a cut to charity, said in a statement posted on the dark web that their only goal was to 'make money' and not create problems for society.

'We are apolitical, we do not participate in geopolitics,' the statement read. 'Our goal is to make money and not creating problems for society.'

DarkSide seemed to suggest that an affiliate may have been responsible for the attack.

'From today we introduce moderation and check each company that our partners want to encrypt to avoid social consequences in the future,' the statement said.

Colonial, which is based in Atlanta, Georgia, has not yet said whether it has paid or is negotiating a ransom with the hackers.

The White House declined to weigh in on Monday on whether companies that are hacked like Colonial should pay ransom to their attackers.

President Biden acknowledged there was evidence DarkSide was based in Russia but said US intelligence hasn't discovered any ties between the attack and the Russian government.

Despite only emerging in August last year, DarkSide appears to be very organized, according to cybersecurity experts.

Those who have tracked DarkSide said it appears to be composed of veteran cybercriminals who are focused on squeezing out as much money as they can from their targets.

'They're very new but they're very organized,' Lior Div, the chief executive of Boston-based security firm Cybereason, said.

'It looks like someone who's been there, done that.'

DarkSide is one of a number of increasingly professionalized groups of digital extortionists, with a mailing list, a press center and a victim hotline to help facilitate ransom payments.

DarkSide cultivates a Robin Hood image of stealing from corporations and giving a cut to charity. Pictured above is a statement posted on the dark web in October last year detailing some of their donations

The group has posted receipts from donations it claims it has made to US charities in the wake of ransom attacks

The hackers cultivate a Robin Hood image of stealing from corporations and giving a cut to charity. Pictured is a receipt the group claims shows they donate a cut of their ransoms to charity

Experts say DarkSide was likely composed of ransomware veterans and that it came out of nowhere in the middle of last year and immediately unleashed a digital crimewave.

'It's as if someone turned on the switch,' said Div, who noted that more than 10 of his company's customers have fought off break-in attempts from the group in the past few months.

DarkSide's site on the dark web hints at their hackers' past crimes with claims they previously made millions from extortion and that just because their software was new 'that does not mean that we have no experience and we came from nowhere'.

The site also features a Hall of Shame-style gallery of leaked data from victims who haven't paid up.

It advertises stolen documents from more than 80 companies across the US and Europe.

One of the more recent victims featured on its list was Georgia-based rugmaker Dixie Group Inc, which publicly disclosed a digital shakedown attempt affecting 'portions of its information technology systems' last month.

DarkSide has previously targeted Enterprise rental cars, Canadian real estate firm Brookfield Residential and an Office Depot subsidiary called CompuCom.

The group has a supposed code of conduct intended to spin the group as reliable, if ruthless, business partners.

They have publicly stated that they prefer not to attack hospitals, schools, non-profits, and governments.

They instead go after big organizations that can afford to pay large ransoms and claims to donates a portion of its take to charity.

'Before any attack, we carefully analyze your accountancy and determine how much you can pay based on your net income,' the group has previously said.

The group has posted receipts from donations it claims it has made to US charities in the wake of ransom attacks.

According to data security firm Arete, DarkSide finds vulnerabilities in a network, gains access to administrator accounts and then harvests data from the victim's server and encrypts it.

The software leaves a ransom note text file with demands.

Sources told Bloomberg News that hackers stole nearly 100 gigabytes of data out of Colonial's network on Thursday before demanding a ransom. Colonial, which is based in Georgia, has not yet said whether it has paid or is negotiating a ransom with the hackers

The attack on Colonial Pipeline, which runs from Texas to New Jersey and transports 45 percent of the East Coast's fuel supply, is the largest assault on US energy infrastructure in history and has sent shockwaves across the industry

Ransoms average more than $6.5 million and the attacks lead to an average of five days of downtime for the business.

Sometimes stolen data is more valuable to ransomware criminals than the leverage they gain by crippling a network because some victims are loath to see sensitive information of theirs dumped online.

Ransom software works by encrypting victims' data and typically hackers will then offer the victim a key in return for cryptocurrency payments that can run into the hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars.

If the victim resists, hackers threaten to leak confidential data in a bid to pile on the pressure.

According to some experts, DarkSide's code is standard ransomware but Div said that what does set them apart is the intelligence work they carry out against their targets beforehand.

Typically 'they know who is the manager, they know who they're speaking with, they know where the money is, they know who is the decision maker,' Div said.

In that respect, Div said that the targeting of Colonial Pipeline, with its potentially massive knock-on consequences for Americans up and down the Eastern seaboard - may have been a miscalculation.

'It's not good for business for them when the US government becomes involved, when the FBI becomes involved,' he said.

'It's the last thing they need.'

Law enforcement has been largely powerless to stop the global epidemic of ransomware because experts say the cybercriminals are largely shielded by Russia.

'Like almost any major industry in Russia, (cybercriminals) work kind of with the tacit consent and sometimes explicit consent of the security services,' Michael van Landingham, a former CIA analyst who runs the consultancy Active Measures LLC, told The Associated Press.

Karen Kazaryan, CEO of the software industry-supported Internet Research Institute in Moscow, told the outlet that Russian authorities have a simple rule.

'Just don't ever work against your country and businesses in this country. If you steal something from Americans, that's fine,' she said.

The nation's top security agencies, including the FBI and the Pentagon, were rocked by an unprecedented breach when it emerged SolarWinds had been hacked in December.

US officials have said the attackers were likely from Russia's SVR foreign intelligence service.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has hinted Tuesday evening's much-anticipated federal budget will give a clear indication of when Australians can travel overseas again.

Mr Frydenberg has said the federal government will unveil its 'assumptions' about when international borders will re-open during the budget announcement.

The treasurer suggested all would be revealed in the budget when asked on Tuesday whether the government is considering keep the borders closed until 2022.

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A passenger wearing a facemask arrives at Sydney's Kingsford Smith Airport in October. The federal government will unveil its 'assumptions' about when international borders will re-open during Tuesday night's budget

Poll Are you happy for Australia's borders to be closed indefinitely to retain our way of life amid the Covid-19 pandemic? Yes No Are you happy for Australia's borders to be closed indefinitely to retain our way of life amid the Covid-19 pandemic? Yes 1996 votes

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'No surprise - tune in at 7.30pm tonight,' he said when asked about the border ban.

Mr Frydenberg said though it was 'hard to be precise in the middle of a pandemic'.

'There's a lot of uncertainty, globally and domestically with respect to the virus,' he said.

'The key point is, we'll always follow the medical advice and we'll always do our best to keep Australians safe.'

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Saturday Australia was still pursuing a Covid-19 suppression strategy and refused to say when the borders would re-open.

Health Minister Greg Hunt meanwhile said the nation would implement a three-step plan to gradually remove the onerous restrictions.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has suggested the fate of Australia's border ban will be revealed in Tuesday night's budget

Firstly, the government will identify 'safe countries' with low levels of Covid-19 and set up travels bubbles similar to the current arrangement with New Zealand.

The second step is to offer the whole adult population a vaccine and the third step is to allow vaccinated Aussies to go on holiday.

'It's really built around the three principles of green lanes and opening up new bubbles with different safe countries, as we've done with New Zealand and as we'll do with others in the Pacific and in the region as they become progressively safer,' Mr Hunt said on Sunday.

Travellers take selfies before their departure for New Zealand at Sydney International Airport on April 19

'The second part of the road map is our own domestic vaccination strategy, protecting the nation.

'The third element, that's the capacity for greater travel for those who have been vaccinated.'

Mr Hunt said that vaccinated Aussies can travel earlier' and 'return with lesser restrictions'.
The president of a powerful national teachers' union has defended teaching the controversial 1619 Project that aims to reframe US history during a heated debate with Fox's Martha MacCullum where she argued it was 'a factual version of oppression in America'.

During the segment, Randi Weingarten - the president of the American Federation of Teachers - denied that the project pushes the idea the United States is a racist country.

The 1619 Project, which was published by the New York Times in 2019 to mark 400 years since the first enslaved Africans arrived on American shores, reframes American history by 'placing the consequnces of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the center of the US narrative'.

On Monday night, Weingarten defended the project being included in school curriculums told Fox's MacCallum: 'I favor us teaching about 1776...I favor us teaching about 1619.'

A number of historians, both conservative and liberal, have knocked the project for putting ideology ahead of historical understanding.

The project has been criticized by historians who said in a letter to the New York Times that it aims to push a new version of American history in which slavery and white supremacy become the dominant organizing themes. They also demanded corrections to the project.

Randi Weingarten, right, on Monday defended the use of the controversial 1619 Project in schools during a heated debate with Fox's Martha MacCallum, left

Fox host MacCallum said the project pushes the idea 'that the reason for the revolution and the colonization was because people wanted to preserve slavery'.

She added: 'In fact, scholars say there's no evidence that colonists were motivated by that in coming to the United States.

'So it would be wrong as a historian to want to teach them something that is not true, because that is the basis that sets up all of these other tenets that lead to teaching kids that we live in a systemically racist country.'

But Weingarten hit back: 'I've had several conversations with Nikole Hannah-Jones and I have not arrived at the same conclusion from her work as you have.'

Hannah-Jones won the Pulitzer Prize for the 2019 series.

In response, MacCallum told Weingarten: 'That's not my conclusion. That's directly from their work.'

Weingarten had said last week: 'All of a sudden you're hearing people...who are trying to ban the 1619 Project, because it is trying toactually teach a factual version of oppression in America.'

On Monday MacCallum has asked if Weingarten supports teaching children 'that if they're white they belong to an oppressor class and if they're black they belong to a victim class.'

Weingarten said: 'I think we should be lifting up all ethnicities. I dont think we should say one is an oppressor class and one is not an oppressor class.

The 1619 Project - first published to mark 400 years since the first enslaved Africans came to American shores - takes slavery and puts it in the center of the American narrative

'I am a big believer in celebrating diversity and actually looking at and helping look at peoples lived experience.'

Weingarten argued: 'From everything I can see and understand from the data that I see, 1619 was the year that the first slave boat came from Africa to the United States.

'So that's a point in history that I think we should be teaching.'

But MacCallum hit back: 'That's a very simplistic take on it.'

After Weingarten tried to steer the conversation away from the 1619 project to the network's coverage of the 2020 election MacCallum told her she was 'dodging' the issue.

A group of 37 Republicans led by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell last week demanded that the U.S. Department of Education not teach the 1619 Project because it puts a 'divisive agenda' over accuracy.

'This is a time to strengthen the teaching of civics and American history in our schools,' McConnell argued. 'Instead, your Proposed Priorities double down on divisive, radical, and historically-dubious buzzwords and propaganda.'

McConnell wrote that the project has become 'infamous for putting ill-informed advocacy ahead of historical accuracy.'

'Actual, trained, credentialed historians with diverse political views have debunked the project's many factual and historical errors, such as the bizarre and inaccurate notion that preserving slavery was a primary driver of the American Revolution,' the Kentucky Republican wrote.

The Education Department isn't mandating the 1619 Project be taught in public school classrooms.

But it has proposed offering grants to schools that teach it and other educational materials that 'take into account systemic marginalization, biases, inequities, and discriminatory policy and practice in American history.'

Nikole Hannah-Jones won the Pulitzer Prize for the 2019 series

Former President Donald Trump was particularly angered by The 1619 Project, describing it as 'totally discredited' and part of the 'twisted web of lies' that has caught fire in American universities that teach American is a 'wicked and racist nation.'

He formed a '1776 Commission' in response to teach 'patriotism.'

It released a report this year before being scrapped by Biden.

Princeton historian Sean Wilentz criticized the '1619 Project' in a letter sent to top Times editors and the publisher, The Atlantic reported in December 2019.

The letter, which was signed by other scholars James McPherson, Gordon Wood, Victoria Bynum, and James Oakes refers to 'matters of verifiable fact' that 'cannot be described as interpretation or 'framing''' and says the project reflected 'a displacement of historical understanding by ideology,' The Atlantic reported.
Caitlyn Jenner, who is running for governor of California, has said that she would not be asking any of her ten children and step-children, which includes the Kardashians, to help with her gubernatorial campaign.

The 71-year-old gold medal-winning Olympic athlete and reality TV star made the remarks during a Sunday interview with CNN's Dana Bash.

'My family has certainly been out in the media and they've taken their shots and they don't need to take any more,' Jenner said.

Caitlyn Jenner said was keen to distance herself from the ten children and stepchildren including the Kardashians during her run to be Governor of California

Jenner explained that she has a good relationship with her kids but that they were not involved with her political ambitions.

'I said, "I am not going to ask you for one tweet. I'm not going to ask you for one thing. You guys go live your life. This is my deal.'"

Jenner said that her kids were 'scared' about her running for the governorship primarily for her safety and because they were 'scared of what the media is going to do.'

Jenner praised her children and their entrepreneurial talents but said her family would not play a role in her election campaign. She also noted that she differs from her stepdaughter Kim Kardashian on halting the death penalty.

Jenner explained that she has a good relationship with her kids and stepkids but that they were not involved with her political ambitions. Kim Kardashian and Caitlyn Jenner are pictured in February last year.

The clan: Khloe Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Kendall Jenner, Kourtney Kardashian, Kim Kardashian West, North West, Caitlyn Jenner and Kylie Jenner pictured in February 2016 in New York City

Over the past two years, Kardashian has become a force in the world of criminal justice reform.

She successfully lobbied former President Trump, spent time on the phone with governors and legislators, written letters in support of clemency petitions and paid legal bills for people trying to get out of prison.

But it appears the neither she nor her famous family will be publicly endorsing Jenner's.

Jenner's right-leaning politics clash with Kardashian's approach to prison reform makes it even more polarizing.

Kardashian actually falls more into line with current governor, Gavin Newsom's approach to crime which favors rehabilitation and support for prisoners re-entering society, in addition to investing in crime prevention.

in the past Kim Kardashian had said she was 'very supportive of Governor Newsom' and his work to remove the death penalty in California

Speaking out: Kim has visited the White House in the past and made speeches about a subject she is passionate about, criminal justice reform. Pictured June 13, 2019

In the past Kardashian had said she was 'very supportive of Governor Newsom' and his work to remove the death penalty in California. He ordered a moratorium on executions in spring of 2019.

'I love Kim and I think she's doing a great job with the criminal justice system. And if I -- I become governor, I would follow her guidance in that because she has been very, very good on that and the rehabilitation side of it, but I don't have her involved in the campaign at all whatsoever,' Jenner emphasized.

'I can't say we've never discussed it but she's great. I love Kimberly. She's smart, great businesswoman and very dedicated, you know, to doing a better job with criminal justice and she would have my ear, I can tell you that when I'm up in Sacramento.'

The former Olympian and reality TV star spoke to CNN's Dana Bash, right, on Sunday

During the conversation, CNN's Dana Bash tells Jenner that there are 1.75 million undocumented workers in California before asking her if they should have a chance at citizenship. 'Absolutely, yeah. They should,' Jenner says. Migrants pictured on April 21

Also during the interview, Jenner outlined her thoughts on the the current immigration crisis.

She said she believes undocumented immigrants should have an opportunity to become citizens.

During the conversation, Bash says there are 1.75 million undocumented workers in California before asking Jenner if they should have a chance at citizenship.

'Absolutely, yeah. They should. I mean, there's a lot of people, but personally I have met some of the most wonderful people who are immigrants, who have come to this country and they are just model citizens. They are just great people and I would fight for them to be US citizens,' Jenner told Bash.

'What's been happening on the border was honestly one of the reasons I decided to run for governor,' Jenner said. 'I was watching people dying come across the river, kids in cages -- whatever you want to call them.'

Jenner, who has never held political office, surprised many when she announced on April 23 that she was taking on embattled Democrat Gavin Newsom.

Last week Jenner told Sean Hannity that she was in favor of reforming the immigration system, but was opposed to sanctuary cities.

'I am pro-law enforcement, pro-Border Patrol, pro-ICE,' she said.

Jenner said that she would support resumption of the border wall with Mexico, describing it as a useful tool in stemming migration.

'I am all for the wall, I would secure the wall,' she said. 'We can't have a state, we can't have a country without a secure wall.

'You have two questions here. One is stopping people from coming in illegally into the state. And then the second question is, what do we do with the people that are here? We are a compassionate country, okay? We are a compassionate state.

'Some help, I mean, some people we're going to send back, okay, no question about that. But I have met some of the greatest immigrants into our country.'

Last week, Jenner spoke to Sean Hannity on Fox News to discuss the race for governor

Jenner spoke to Hannity on Wednesday night for her first interview about her candidacy

During her interview with Hannity, she also expressed her concern about Joe Biden, saying that the president 'scares me'.

'Biden, I don't think I've agreed with anything,' she said. 'I don't think, since he's been in there, he has done anything for the American worker, maybe other ones. So, it is a 180-degree turn in our country, going the other direction, and it scares me.'

Hannity asked what her political allegiance was, and Jenner said she saw herself not as a Republican but rather as 'a thoughtful disrupter'.

She said: 'I kind of played around with that term, and originally I started out as a compassionate disruptor, and then I was thinking the other day, I think I'm more of a thoughtful disruptor.

'I have common sense, I see what is going on. I have always been on the Republican side as I have conservative economic values. Socially I have been much more progressive all my life. I get it. People need help. But you can't have social programs without a strong economy,' Jenner said.

She added: 'I can get along with everyone. I don't care if you are a Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, vegetarian.'

Newsom is facing a recall election, after the 1.495 million-signature threshold on a petition for his recall, launched in February 2020, was easily passed.

The 53-year-old has been governor of the most populous state in the country since January 2019.

Jenner described herself as 'a fighter' who wants the best for her state.

In a slick new campaign advert, Jenner described the race as 'perhaps my most important yet', and said she wanted to 'bring back the gold to the Golden State'.

'I want to take that same fight, that same spirit, go to Sacramento, surround myself with some of the smartest people out there - I am an outsider. I understand that - smartest people out there, because now I'm in a race for solutions.

'I need to find solutions to be able to turn this state around. I absolutely love this state. I'm a fighter. Always have been.'

She promised to bring 'compassion, honesty and leadership' to the role.


Australia is facing yet another setback in its coronavirus vaccine rollout with Novavax delaying its jab by three months.

Novavax has repeatedly pushed back production forecasts as it struggles to access raw materials and equipment needed to make its vaccine.

The company was due to seek regulatory authorisation for the shot in the US, Britain and Europe by the end of June, but on Tuesday pushed this back to September.

Fifty-one million Novavax jabs were due to start arriving in Australia from September to help the 'sprint to the finish' in vaccinating younger people by Christmas.

A queue forms outside at a mass Covid-19 vaccination hub in Sydney on Monday

That hope is completely dashed, and Novavax refuses to even set a date for apply for approval with Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration.

'We know that we're delayed from where we thought we'd be at this point,' chief executive Stanley Erck told investors.

'As closely as we tried to manage these materials, we have been running into shortages that caused us to delay production runs.

'Now we're giving guidance that nearly all of the major challenges have been overcome and we can clearly see the light at the end of the tunnel.'

Mr Erck said he would just be guessing about the timeline for other countries like Australia, New Zealand, and Canada.

'As of today, we are not able to predict a date with precision, so we won't,' he said.

The company promised to supply 150 million shots a month to countries around the globe once production is up and running.

One of the raw materials it is struggling to source enough of is specialised plastic bags necessary for mass-production.

The two-shot jab is highly-anticipated due to its blending of older and newer technology and lacks the blood-clotting fears of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Australia is facing yet another setback in its coronavirus jab rollout after Novavax announced further delays with its vaccine. Pictured: A health worker prepares a Covid vaccine

Novavax's shot has yet to be authorized in any country, but the company reported late-stage data from a UK trial that showed it to be 96 per cent effective against the original version of coronavirus 86 per cent against the more contagious UK variant.

The vaccine was also 60 per cent effective in a trail in South Africa where and even more dangerous variant it wreaking havoc.

Novavax is a small company that has never successfully brought a vaccine to market in its 34-year history, and many delays are attributed to its struggles to grow fast enough.

The company reported revenues of $US447 million over the past three months, after making just $US3.3 million in the same period last year.

There were 2,663,221 doses administered in the national Covid vaccination rollout up to Sunday.

Another 351,000 Pfizer doses have now arrived in Australia and will be tested by medical regulators.

It comes as NSW residents aged 40 to 49 will be able to register to get the Pfizer vaccine at a new Covid mass vaccination hub that opened at Sydney Olympic Park.
China and Indonesia held war game exercises on Australia's doorstep just as Beijing bragged it could hit us with long-range missiles.

Guided-missile frigates practicing attack formation maneuvers, search and rescue operations and communication drills were put through their paces in waters off Jakarta over the weekend.

A Chinese propaganda outlet warned one day after the military exercises that Beijing should launch 'long-range strikes' on strategic Australia targets if Canberra gets involved in a potential conflict over Taiwan.

China and Indonesia held war game exercises on Australia's doorstep (pictured) just days before Beijing bragged it could hit us with long-range missiles.

Guided-missile frigates practicing attack formation maneuvers, search and rescue operations and communication drills were put through their paces in waters of Jakarta over the weekend. Here, Chinese missile frigate Yuncheng launches an anti-ship missile during a military exercise in the waters near south China's Hainan Island and Paracel Islands in 2016

Australia's relationship with China has deteriorated rapidly over the past year with Beijing slapping about $20 billion of arbitrary tariffs and bans on exports including barley, wine, beef, copper, coal, cotton and seafood.

The campaign of economic coercion began after Scott Morrison's government in April last year called for an independent inquiry into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic, which first appeared in Wuhan during the end of 2019.

The plea for transparency infuriated the authoritarian state and tensions have ramped up as a result of the diplomatic spat.

In recent weeks, discussions over the disputed island territory of Taiwan reached fever pitch, with Australian Home Affairs secretary Michael Pezzullo acknowledging the 'drums of war' are getting louder.

As part of Australia's strategy to push back against an increasingly aggressive and belligerent China, diplomats have tried to engage with southeast Asian nations who remain under threat from Beijing.

Chinese military forces continue to encroach on the sovereignty of its neighbours in the South China Sea including Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei and even Indonesia.

This graph shows the differing military capabilities of China and Australia as tensions between the two countries mount and The Global Times calls for possible military intention by Beijing

'Indonesia has a complex relationship with Beijing,' Dr David Engel, head of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute's Indonesia program told Daily Mail Australia.

'President Joko Widodo is keen to have as close of a relationship with China as possible, likely for reasons of self-interest, but at the same time China has infringed on their territory in the South China Sea so it remains tense.'

The two nations were locked in a dispute back in 2019 after China repeatedly encroached on vital fishing waters off the Natuna Islands which remain part of Indonesia's exclusive economic zone.

Despite the flare-up, the relationship appears to be back getting on track after China offered to recover the bodies of Indonesian sailors who perished after their submarine sank April 21.

'Plainly, China is doing that for their own self interest to gain some soft power and improve its standing in the region which generally isn't very good,' Dr Engel said.

'Our government should be alert as to how China and Indonesia engage with each other and how much influence Beijing can wield in Jakarta.'

A Chinese naval ship sails into Sydney Harbour in June 2019 during a secret reciprocal visit - there are now warnings of an impending war between the nations

China has also warned Australia it must fall in line with its policy to 'reunify' the disputed island of Taiwan if it wants to trade to return to normal. Pictured: Chinese Navy personal stand guard

But Dr Engel says any reading that Indonesia is drifting towards China is exaggerated.

'They're doing what a lot of countries are doing when it comes to Beijing - trying to thread the needle between their economy and their security,' he said.

'It's pretty clear that sentiment among ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries towards China has become increasingly negative.

'The behaviour that China has exhibited has been so threatening and worrisome to them in the South China Sea, there is growing anxiety when it comes to Beijing.

'So I don't think we should be too alarmed about Indonesia at this stage.'

As the war games were being wrapped up on Sunday and the People's Liberation Army forces were congratulating themselves on a mission well done, Chinese state media fired a warning shot at Canberra war 'hawks'.

Australia could be on the verge of an all-out war with China as tensions between the two trading partners continue to escalate. Pictured is Chinese President Xi Jinping

Beijing mouthpiece The Global Times said China should launch 'long-range strikes' on Australia's military facilities if Australia combats the People's Liberation Army in a potential war in the Taiwan Straits. Pictured, PLA soldiers in Kashgar, northwestern China's Xinjiang region

AUSTRALIA VS CHINA - MILITARY FORCE BY NUMBERS Place on global Military Strength Ranking 2021: China - 3rd globally Australia - 19th globally Military personnel: China - 3.3 million people Australia - 80,000 people Fighter jets: China - 1,200 Australia - 75 Tanks: China - 3,205 Australia - 59 Rocket projectors: China - 2,250 Australia - 0 Submarines: China - 79 Australia - 6 Fit for service population: China - 617 million people Australia - 8.7 million people Defence budget: China - $233billion Australia - $42billion Labour force: China - 775 million people Australia - 12.5 million people Population: China - 1.4 billion Australia - 25 million Source: GlobalFirePower.com Advertisement

Hu Xijin, the editor-in-chief of The Global Times, which is seen as Beijing's mouthpiece on foreign policy to the world, said China should retaliate with 'long-range strikes' if Australia gets involved in a potential military conflict over Taiwan.

'I suggest China make a plan to impose retaliatory punishment against Australia once it militarily interferes in the cross-Straits situation,' he wrote in an opinion piece curated by the Communist Party.

'The plan should include long-range strikes on the military facilities and relevant key facilities on Australian soil if it really sends its troops to China's offshore areas and combats against the PLA (People's Liberation Army).'

Mr Hu said it would be important for the Chinese government to send a strong message about the plan for retaliatory military action 'to deter the extreme forces of Australia' from 'committing irresponsible actions'.

He warned Australia 'they must know what disasters they would cause to their country' if they were 'bold enough to coordinate with the US to militarily interfere in the Taiwan question'.

Mr Hu also claimed while 'China loves peace' and would 'not take the initiative to pick a fight with faraway Australia', he was quick to point out the country has 'long-range missiles with conventional warheads' that could target Australian military objectives.

The joint US-Australian intelligence-gathering base at Pine Gap, just outside Alice Springs, the Jindalee Operational Radar Network and signals intelligence facility at Geraldton were nominated by The Australian's foreign editor Greg Sheridan as possible sites China might target to 'hurt the US and its military capability'.

Turmoil surrounding Taiwan reached fever pitch in recent weeks after China repeatedly incurred on Taipei's airspace and maritime borders, sending 25 military aircraft into its defence 'identification zone'.

There are grave fears Beijing will militarily force Taiwan to reunify with mainland China under President-for-life Xi Jinping and the country's 'One China' policy.

Taiwan, backed by the US and Japan, has endured a longstanding conflict with Beijing since a separate government was established on the island following the Chinese Civil War in 1949.

Taiwan has democratically-elected leaders and fiercely opposes reunification and the totalitarian rule of Beijing but Communist Party rhetoric is growing more aggressive when it comes to annexing the island.

The island nation remains an important ally of western democratic countries for its close proximity to China and because it produces a significant supply of semiconductor microchips at a time when there is a major global shortage.

Pressure is mounting on Australia and fellow 'Quad' members - Japan, India and the US - to keep Beijing's forces at bay as tensions escalate.

An Australian Army M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tank, from the 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry), crosses a Dry Support Bridge at the Shoalwater Bay Training Area in Queensland

A soldier from the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, patrols through tall grass at Shoalwater Bay Training Area, Queensland
Donald Trump on Monday night tantalized his supporters with the promise of a 'bombshell' election fraud case to come in Michigan, likening Joe Biden to a thief who has raided a jewelry store and vowing: 'the diamonds must be returned'.

The former president did not specify exactly what he was referring to in his opaque statement.

However, a court in rural, northern Michigan is currently considering whether to hear a case about the election, in which the plaintiffs are demanding another audit of the votes.

The district, Antrim County - home to 23,300 people north of Traverse City - was in fact won by Trump. The latest hearing in the court case was on Monday.

The case in Antrim County is among the few yet to be adjudicated.

'The major Michigan Election Fraud case has just filed a bombshell pleading claiming votes were intentionally switched from President Trump to Joe Biden,' said Trump.

Trump, seen at Mar-a-Lago, has said that the Michigan decision will be a 'bombshell'

Antrim County, in northern Michigan, was won by Trump and the vote upheld after a hand tally

'The number of votes is MASSIVE and determinative. This will prove true in numerous other States.

'All Republicans must UNIFY and not let this happen.

'If a thief robs a jewelry store of all of its diamonds (the 2020 Presidential Election), the diamonds must be returned.

'The Fake News media refuses to cover the greatest Election Fraud in the history of our Country. They have lost all credibility, but ultimately, they will have no choice!'

Trump's statement suggested votes were switched from him to Biden, but in Antrim County the opposite occurred.

On the night of the election, the local officials called the vote for Biden, but then switched it to Trump owing to what they said was human error.

A hand tally of the votes, demanded as part of a series of investigations into election integrity, served to only increase Trump's margin.

Election workers in Detroit, Michigan, process the ballots on November 4

In December Antrim County affirmed the outcome, with a net gain of 12 votes for Trump.

A total of 15,949 votes were cast, of which Trump won 9,748 while Biden won 5,960, according to the certified results.

However, Antrim County became a focus of attention for the nation - despite it supporting Trump.

A suit has been filed before Judge Kevin Elsenheimer, who on Monday heard arguments about whether to consider another audit, as requested by plaintiff Bill Bailey.

Bailey and his lawyer, Matthew DePerno, want to subpoena the townships of the county to look at the 'layers and layers of fraud'.

'There's so many layers and layers as to how this fraud occurred, what happened in Antrim County,' said DePerno, in Monday's Zoom hearing, according to 9and10news.com.

'And we now can definitively show the court how the fraud occurred.'

Peter Wendling, an attorney for the local government, said that the investigation Bailey sought was unnecessary.

'It still will not make a difference as far as changing the outcome of the election. Or the fact that there was a recount done properly and that this election has been certified,' he said on Monday, during the hearing.

'I see no basis for this discovery. It's overly burdensome, it's unnecessary.'

The case has been seized upon by Mike Lindell, the MyPillow founder and staunch Trump supporter, who is being sued for defamation for claiming that Dominion Voting Systems rigged the election in favor of Trump.

MyPillow founder Mike Lindell has enthusiastically embraced allegations of election fraud

He pointed to the Antrim County case as an immensely significant part of his argument.

'I'll have really big news once this day is completed,' Lindell told former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon on his War Room podcast.

'It's a game changer.'

Yet Antrim County has a paper ballot record for every vote cast on a Dominion machine.

Judge Elsenheimer provided a glimmer of hope to Lindell and Trump by allowing there to be testimony from people on an 'expert witness' list provided by Bailey, to rebut a report published by Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson's office affirming that human error, not Dominion Voting Systems machine software, led to early tabulation errors in Antrim County.

Among those on the 'expert witness' list is Cyber Ninjas, a Florida-based firm hired by the Republican-led Senate in Arizona to conduct an audit in Maricopa County.

The audit in Arizona is continuing: they are checking the ballots for traces of bamboo, on their unfounded suspicion that votes were shipped into the region from Asia.

Elsenheimer said on Monday that he will decide next week whether to dismiss Bailey's case.
A man sent chilling texts to friends shortly after he fatally stabbed his small-town nemesis five times in the stomach, chest and neck, a court has heard.

Cameron John Oakley has admitted to fatally stabbing Lachlan Hutchins, 25, outside a public toilet in Portland in Victoria's south-west almost three years ago.

The court heard there was bad blood long before the fatal stabbing in August 2019 when the pair's paths crossed each other at a public toilet outside the local Woolworths in the middle of the night.

Oakley had a knife on him and said he could hear Mr Hutchins' voice outside the cubicle door, Victoria's Supreme Court was told on Tuesday.

The latter man had seen Oakley's car as he walked up to the loo and shadow boxed as he waited. He swung a punch when Oakley came out.

In the ensuring struggle, Oakley stabbed his opponent five times, piercing his lungs and heart, until the man freed himself and ran.

Afterwards, Oakley texted a friend: 'C*** I f***ing stabbed Lachy like six times.'

Cameron John Oakley is pictured arriving at the Supreme Court of Victoria in Melbourne, Tuesday. He has pleaded guilty to manslaughter and will be sentenced at a later date

In another text to someone else, he wrote: 'Bro, I've one-upped you with Lachy. I stabbed him'.

At home, Oakley used a grinder to break up the knife and disposed of the pieces in the scrap yard next door.

Meanwhile, Mr Hutchins' girlfriend and his friend took him to hospital, but he died.

The month before, the pair had met for a pre-arranged fight, Oakley armed with a kitchen knife and Mr Hutchins with a vacuum cleaner pole.

Nothing happened, but afterwards Oakley texted a friend saying, 'I told him I'm going to stab him LOL'.

Earlier that year, Oakley and Mr Hutchins came across each in the Woolworths car park.

They fought, Mr Hutchins threw a soft drink bottle at Oakley's car and Oakley took off after the man with either a wrench or a tyre iron.

Father-of-one Lachlan Hutchins (pictured) later died in hospital after he was stabbed five times in the stomach, chest and neck in August 2019

Oakley sent this text to a friend shortly after his confrontation with Lachlan Hutchins

In another text to someone else, Oatley wrote: 'Bro, I've one-upped you with Lachy. I stabbed him'.

After the fatal stabbing, Oakley turned himself in to the police and said he thought Mr Hutchins may have been armed.

'I know Lachy was out there. I could hear his voice and I didn't want to go out (of the toilet) because I knew what would f***ing happen,' he said.

In a phone call from prison, Oakley said: 'I genuinely wanted him f***ing dead'.

He was originally charged with murder, but pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Prosecutor Robyn Harper told the court Oakley had 'essentially brought a knife to a fist fight'.

Mr Hutchins' mother, Tania, said her heart was 'missing a piece and that piece is my son'.

'I can't get past what he would have gone through in the last moments of his life,' she said in a statement to Justice Paul Coghlan.

Mr Hutchins' father, Brad, labelled Oakley a 'poor excuse for a human being'.

Lachlan Hutchins (pictured) was killed by his small-town nemesis outside a public toilet

The slain man's daughter, who was six when he died, said she missed him taking her to the park and the pool.

'Things are not very happy as I don't have a dad like the other kids,' she said in her statement, accompanied by pictures she drew.

In a letter, Oakley offered his 'deepest regret and sincere remorse' to Mr Hutchins' family as they watched in court.

'Although it was never my intention to cause such serious injuries ... I blame no one else,' the killer wrote.

Justice Coghlan decried knife crime, saying 'the court is truly going to have to do something about the prevalence of the use of knives by young men'.

Oakley has already spent 644 days in custody and will be sentenced at a later date.
The end to a horror mouse plague that has tormented communities in eastern Australia should be in sight thanks to the development of a doubly toxic bait, but farmers say they now can't afford to buy it.

Mice have been running rampant through large tracts of inland NSW and parts of southern Queensland, destroying crops and causing significant damage to tonnes of stored hay and grain.

It was hoped that heavy rains and cooler temperatures would significantly cut numbers ahead of the sowing of the winter crop, but neither has had much of an impact.

Farmers in western New South Wales were inundated with a mice plague during the start of 2020

In most of the afflicted towns, the mice - which are able to breed from as young as six weeks old and churn out a litter every 21 days - continue to wreak havoc.

But thanks to research by Australia's national science agency, an emergency permit allowing bait producers to double the toxicity of their product has been granted.

The bait will still be applied at the same rate but will have twice as much of the deadly zinc phosphide on each grain.

CSIRO researcher Steve Henry says because mice rapidly develop an aversion to the bait, it's critical every grain is a lethal dose and the animals do not get a chance to learn to avoid it.

Australian farmer finds thousands of mice inside his barn

'One of my colleagues calls it the dodgy curry effect  if you go out, you have some food, you come home and feel sick, you're not going back to that restaurant again for quite some time,' Mr Henry told AAP.

The efficiency of the higher dosed bait has only been tested in a lab so far, but it is hoped the development could drastically reduce the pests within weeks.

The higher dosed bait should be on the market soon and will only cost farmers about one dollar more per kilogram.

But NSW Farmers says many growers can't get their hands on any bait.

Under a special permit mice baits will have double the toxicity in an attempt to eradicate the rodents

The product is already in short supply, with demand causing prices to skyrocket, and farmers' coffers are nearing empty.

The organisation has joined forces with the Country Women's Association to call for a mouse plague financial support package to provide up to $25,000 per farm to help with baiting costs.

A survey of 1100 farmers across the state found 94 per cent have had to bait for mice already.

'The survey results also showed that the costs of baiting so far for some exceeds $150,000,' NSW Farmers grains committee chair Matthew Madden said.

Adding to farmers' financial woes, a third reported stored grain and fodder losses of between $50,000 and $150,000. Five per cent said they'd lost more than $250,000 worth.

Steve Henry from CSIRO said it's critical every grain is a lethal dose since mice learn to avoid baits

Some growers had to give up on their entire summer crop, and about 40 per cent were sowing less in winter.

More than 80 per cent of respondents also reported damage to machinery and infrastructure, with around a third saying the damage bill was between $20,000 and $150,000.

The health and psychological cost is immense too.

Barmedman farmer Lisa Minogue said she'd done 38 loads of washing in three days.

'The smell is horrific. You can pick up all the mice you see but there is always more,' she said.

The mice have even made their way into rural hospitals, biting patients, and the local health district has reported an increase in mouse-related disease.

Many farmers are saying they can't afford bait after the thousands they have already spent

'It's not just farm businesses - regional hotels, retail and food businesses, bakeries, supermarkets, childcare centres and aged care homes have also felt the impact,' CWA chief executive Danica Leys said.

'All of these financial and health impacts follow unprecedented drought, catastrophic bushfires and most recently floods across large regions.

'It is time for the state government to act.'
Hackers were able to launch cyberattacks on more than 24 other companies across a range of industries after shutting down the Colonial Pipeline, according to reports.

At least two dozen other victims - which have not been named - were also affected by the ransomware attack, Bloomberg reported. They were helped by private-sector companies and US agencies who helped disrupt the hack, the news agency said.

The 5,500 mile Colonial Pipeline was shut down on Friday evening by the company when the ransomware attack was launched - seemingly by Russian-based cybercriminal group, DarkSide. Service was gradually being restored on Monday.

But gas stations from Florida to Atlanta to Virginia are closing their pumps due to a fuel shortage brought on by the Colonial Pipeline hack - and a state of emergency has been declared by the governor of North Carolina.

On Monday DarkSide posted an apology on the dark web, Vice reported, and said they did not want 'social consequences', nor did they seek political influence.

White House officials have warned the attack shows just how vulnerable the US is to such events. President Joe Biden said Monday: 'We need to invest to safeguard our critical infrastructure.'

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the attack 'tells you how utterly vulnerable we are' to cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure.

And Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo warned that technological attacks such as these were 'here to stay.'

'This is what businesses now have to worry about,' she said. 'Unfortunately, these sorts of attacks are becoming more frequent... and we have to work in partnership with business to secure networks to defend ourselves.'

Hackers were able to launch cyberattacks on more than 24 other companies across a range of industries during Colonial Pipeline shutdown, according to reports

At least two dozen other victims - who have not been named - were also affected by the ransomware attack, Bloomberg reported Monday. They were helped by private-sector companies and US agencies who helped disrupt the hack.

The Colonial Pipeline runs from Texas to New Jersey and carries 100 million gallons of fuel daily

What is DarkSide? DarkSide is a group of hackers which first emerged in August 2020, with a press release declaring their formation. Since then, they have become known for their professional operations and large ransoms. The group has a phone number and even a help desk to facilitate negotiations with victims. Believed to be based in Russia, they have targeted Enterprise rental cars, Canadian real estate firm Brookfield Residential, and an Office Depot subsidiary. They have publicly stated that they prefer not to attack hospitals, schools, non-profits, and governments, but rather big organizations that can afford to pay large ransoms. 'Before any attack, we carefully analyze your accountancy and determine how much you can pay based on your net income,' the press release reads. They avoid targets in former Soviet states. Advertisement

Government officials said in a statement late Monday that it was monitoring supply shortages in parts of the Southeast and that President Joe Biden had directed federal agencies to bring their resources to bear.

The attack came as the administration, still grappling with its response to massive breaches by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations, works on an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity defenses.

The Justice Department, meanwhile, has formed a ransomware task force designed for situations just like Colonial Pipeline, and the Energy Department on April 20 announced a 100-day initiative focused on protecting energy infrastructure from cyber threats.

Similar actions are planned for other critical industries, such as water and natural gas.

Ransomware gangs collected almost $350 million last year, up threefold from 2019, according to members of a public-private group called the Ransomware Task Force.

The pipeline supplies 45 per cent of all the East Coast's fuel needs, including Atlanta's airport - the world's busiest, by passenger traffic. The pipeline also serves 90 U.S. military installations and 26 oil refineries.

On Monday evening motorists were beginning to report shortages at gas stations.

The pipeline, the largest in United States, is responsible for transporting more than 100 million gallons of fuel - 2.5 million barrels - daily through pipelines laid out between Texas and New Jersey.

Emergency shipments of gasoline and diesel from Texas already are on the way to Atlanta and other southeast cities via trucks.

The hack is thought to have been carried out by DarkSide, a Russian-based hacking group.

On Monday the group posted an apology on the dark web, Vice reported, and said they did not want 'social consequences', nor did they seek political influence.

'We are apolitical, we do not participate in geopolitics, do not need to tie us with a defined government and look for other our motives,' they wrote.

'Our goal is to make money and not creating problems for society.

'From today, we introduce moderation and check each company that our partners want to encrypt to avoid social consequences in the future.'

Gas stations in Atlanta were suffering from shortages on Monday as a result of the hack

Newt Gingrich on Monday night said Joe Biden should be authorized to 'order the killings of anybody overseas' who was found to be behind attacks on America's infrastructure, describing the cyberhack of the Colonial Pipeline as 'an act of war'.

Gingrich said that the United States needed more power to go after those responsible.

'On the national security part, we ought to pass a law immediately that makes this kind of hacking subject to a death penalty and the law should include a provision that the president, through a judicial process, should be able to order the killings of anybody overseas who is doing this,' he told Sean Hannity on Fox News.

'It's an act of war against the United States to do stuff like this.'

President Biden said on Monday that there US intelligence hasn't found any ties between the attack and the Russian government but said there was evidence DarkSide was based in Russia.

'They have some responsibility to deal with this,' Biden said, adding that he would be meeting with President Putin soon.
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Key points from the Queen's Speech These are the key policies announced by Boris Johnson in the Queen's Speech. The PM is attempting to solidify his support from traditional Labour voters with moves to boost jobs, crack down on illegal immigration, and curb 'woke' culture. A 'lifetime skills guarantee' will be enshrined in law to enable anyone to upgrade their qualifications, regardless of their background;

An immigration overhaul will block asylum for people who have travelled through 'safe' countries such as France and Belgium;

A total ban on online junk food ads will go ahead despite claims ministers were trying to kill off the 'half-baked' idea;

The PM will take back control of the timing of elections and could shorten the length of campaigns, with a row over proposals to require ID for people to vote;

People denied a platform by universities could seek compensation in the courts under government plans to tackle 'cancel culture';

There will be a ban on 'conversion therapy';

The government has renewed its commitment to cut carbon emissions by 78 per cent by 2035 compared to 1990 levels;

New measures will recognise animal sentience and crack down on growing problem of pet theft. However several expected moves were omitted: Downing Street set itself on a collision course with social care reform campaigners today after the key issue warranted just nine words in the Queen's Speech.

The Queen;s Speech did not include legislation to protect British veterans who served during the Troubles Advertisement

The Queen sat alone today while carrying out her first major public duty since the death of her husband Prince Philip a month ago - with the 120-year-old consort's throne removed from the State Opening of Parliament ceremony for social distancing reasons.

Her Majesty took part in a scaled-back, socially-distanced event at the House of Lords where she announced Prime Minister Boris Johnson's legislative agenda and was supported by her son Prince Charles.

Following Philip's death, the consort's throne was omitted from the ceremony for one of the first times since it was installed in 1901 for Queen Alexandra, wife of King Edward VII. There was at least one example in 1958 when the consort's throne was not there despite Philip being present, and sitting in another chair.

House of Lords sources said the chair was removed today for social distancing, and that was why Prince Charles sat on a chair of state to the side. What happens in the future regarding the consort's throne will be decided in the run-up to the next State Opening.

The consort's throne - normally kept at Houghton Hall in Norfolk and moved into the Lords for every State Opening - was not used this year, and is instead in the care of the Lord Great Chamberlain for safekeeping.

The Prince of Wales has previously sat on the consort's throne when accompanying the Queen. But during today's ceremony, Charles sat with the Duchess of Cornwall on chairs of state - placed to the side.

The 95-year-old monarch did not wear a face mask at the ceremony while all other participants did, and Her Majesty was also without the two-pound Imperial State crown or ceremonial robes.

Charles's presence at her side this year, so soon after the death of Philip aged 99 on April 9, will be seen as a sign of things to come at future royal engagements.

The Queen wore what royal officials described as 'day dress' - a coat and hat - instead of her ceremonial robes or crown and travelled by car from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster, rather than by coach.

She was accompanied by a lady-in-waiting and had earlier been driven from Windsor Castle.

The monarch's Imperial State Crown was, as in recent years, carried separately and placed on a table in the House of Lords before she gave her keynote speech, outlining the government's plans for the year.

In the speech, Mr Johnson vowed to 'turbo-charge the Covid recovery' today as he unveiled a raft of measures for the 'Blue Wall' with moves to boost jobs, crack down on illegal immigration, and curb 'woke' culture.

The Prime Minister warned it is not enough to go back to pre-pandemic ways as the monarch laid out the package of legislation for the next parliamentary session.

In a state occasion stripped of most of the usual pomp and ceremony, the Queen - in her first major duty since the death of Prince Philip - said the country should be 'stronger, healthier and more prosperous than before'.

Among the key points from the speech were:

A 'lifetime skills guarantee' will be enshrined in law to enable anyone to upgrade their qualifications, regardless of their background;

An immigration overhaul will block asylum for people who have travelled through 'safe' countries such as France and Belgium;

A total ban on online junk food ads will go ahead despite claims ministers were trying to kill off the 'half-baked' idea;

The PM will take back control of the timing of elections and could shorten the length of campaigns, with a row over proposals to require ID for people to vote;

People denied a platform by universities could seek compensation in the courts under government plans to tackle 'cancel culture';

The centrepiece of the ceremony, the Crown Jewels which weigh two pounds and eight ounces, are now too heavy for the 95-year-old Queen to wear at what was a pared-down 'Covid-appropriate' event.

Queen Elizabeth II sits ahead of the Queen's Speech in the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament today

Queen Elizabeth II sits alone in the House of Lords Chamber with Prince Charles and Camilla by her side this morning

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II is escorted by Britain's Prince Charles as she leaves the House of Lords chamber this morning

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles walk behind the Imperial State Crown as they process through the Royal Gallery today

The Queen processes down the Royal Gallery behind the Imperial State Crown and escorted by Prince Charles today

The Queen is escorted out of the House of Lords by Charles and led by the Imperial State Crown following her speech today

The Queen was without a mask, while the Prince of Wales kept his mask on and held his mother's hand in the Royal Gallery

Queen Elizabeth II delivers the Queen's Speech in the House of Lords Chamber with Prince Charles at her side

The Queen attends the State Opening of Parliament today, accompanied by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall

-- 2016 -- Prince Philip spent decades accompanying the Queen to the occasion, sitting on an golden throne at his wife's side

-- 2019 -- Queen Elizabeth II sits next to Prince Charles at the State Opening of the Houses of Parliament in October 2019

The Queen takes part in a scaled-back, socially-distanced State Opening of Parliament at the House of Lords today

Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall during the State Opening of Parliament today

The Queen processes down the Royal Gallery led by the Imperial State Crown and escorted by Prince Charles today

The Queen steps down with Prince Charles following the State Opening of Parliament at the House of Lords today

Queen Elizabeth II arrives with Prince Charles in the House of Lords Chamber during the State Opening of Parliament today

The Queen leaves with her son the Prince of Wales following the State Opening of Parliament at the House of Lords today

Queen Elizabeth II arrives with the Prince of Wales in the House of Lords Chamber during the State Opening today

Queen Elizabeth II reads the Queen's Speech on the The Sovereign's Throne in the House of Lords chamber this morning

The scene inside the House of Lords in the Palace of Westminster in London as members stand for the arrival of the Queen

Prime Minister Boris Johnson (left), Black Rod Sarah Clarke, Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle and Leader of the Opposition Kier Starmer (right) listen as Queen Elizabeth II delivers a speech from the throne in the House of Lords

Prime Minister Boris Johnson (left) and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer (right) listen at the House of Lords this morning

Prime Minister Boris Johnson (left) and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer (2nd left) walk through the Central Lobby today

Queen Elizabeth II arrives with Prince Charles, Prince of Wales in the House of Lords Chamber during today's State Opening

Queen Elizabeth II reads the Queen's Speech on The Sovereign's Throne in a socially distanced House of Lords chamber today

Crowds of onlookers line behind security barriers in Whitehall before the arrival of Her Majesty The Queen this morning

Elizabeth II, the nation's longest reigning sovereign, last wore the crown - which is made of more than 3,000 gemstones and weighs two pounds and 13 ounces - for the 2016 state opening.

The Queen has formally opened each new session of Parliament on all but two occasions during her 69-year reign - in 1959 and 1963, when she was pregnant with Prince Andrew and Prince Edward.

How will this year's State Opening be different? The pomp and ceremony of the State Opening of Parliament has been reduced this year to prevent any spread of coronavirus. Here is how it will look different: The Queen will not wear her ceremonial robes or crown and instead wear 'day dress' - a coat and hat

The Queen will travel by car from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster, rather than by coach

MPs and members of the House of Lords will have to wear masks throughout unless they are exempt

Everyone will have to take a Covid test beforehand and only be allowed to attend with a negative result

Significantly fewer politicians and peers and no diplomatic or non-parliamentary guests invited

There will be just 108 people attending, including the Queen, rather than up to 600 as is the norm

The Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland will not hand the speech directly to the Queen as is usually the custom, but place it on a table instead

No military street liners or lining of the Sovereign's staircase and no military band nor Guard of Honour

No heralds in attendance, only two Yeomen and Gentlemen at Arms, just one bishop representing the group of 26, and only the Lord Chief Justice and the Head of the Supreme Court representing the Judges Advertisement

The decision to operate what is known as a 'reduced ceremonial State Opening' was viewed as a sensible option given the pandemic and restrictions still being in place.

Officials were also keen not to encourage crowds - and the scaled-back ceremony was because of the Covid-19 crisis, rather than the death of the Duke of Edinburgh.

Her Majesty was accompanied by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall. Charles has previously accompanied the Queen, as has Camilla.

In the House of Lords, a single ornate golden throne was placed under the gold canopy ready for the Queen. Previously there was a pair of thrones - for the Queen and her consort.

The consort's throne, which was first installed in 1901 for Queen Alexandra, is in the care of the Lord Great Chamberlain for safekeeping. The Prince of Wales has previously sat on the consort's throne when accompanying the Queen.

But during today's Covid-secure ceremony, Charles at with the Duchess of Cornwall on chairs of state - placed to the side.

The priceless Imperial State Crown was taken from Buckingham Palace with other regalia on its way to the Palace of Westminster.

It is made of more than 3,000 gemstones and weighs two pounds and 13 ounces, and was carried to the state opening by car.

The Queen did not wear the heavy crown - the last time she did so was in 2016.

Earlier, the Royal Standard was flying above Buckingham Palace, meaning the Queen was back at the central London royal residence for the first time in six months.

The monarch, who has spent most of lockdown at Windsor Castle, was last at the Palace before her visit to the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey, and on Remembrance Day, before the Cenotaph service in November.

The monarchy's official Twitter account posted a short video of the scene outside the Palace.

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall arrived at the Sovereign's Entrance of the Palace of Westminster, travelling from Clarence House by car.

Queen Elizabeth II arrives for the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster in London this morning

The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall arrive for the State Opening of Parliament this morning

Queen Elizabeth II leaves Buckingham Palace ahead of the State Opening of Parliament at the House of Lords today

Her Majesty is accompanied by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall at the State Opening this morning

Queen Elizabeth II travels in a Range Rover to the Houses of Parliament for the State Opening of Parliament this morning

Prince Charles arrives for the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster this morning

The Imperial State Crown is pictured as it leaves Buckingham Palace ahead of the State Opening of Parliament today

Royal cars arriving for the State Opening of Parliament in Westminster this morning with a police escort

The convoy carrying Queen Elizabeth II leaving Buckingham Palace by car to deliver the Queen's Speech this morning

The Imperial State Crown arrives for the State Opening of Parliament at the Houses of Parliament in London this morning

The Duchess of Cornwall at the State Opening of Parliament in Westminster today

Queen Elizabeth II arrives for the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster this morning

Royal cars are seen leaving Buckingham Palace for the State Opening Of Parliament in London this morning

Prime Minster Boris Johnson leaves Downing Street for the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster today

Speaker of The House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle walks through the Central Lobby on the way to the House of Lords today

The Imperial State Crown is taken from Buckingham Palace to the House of Lords for the State Opening of Parliament today

The Queen's Imperial State Crown is, as in recent years, being carried separately and placed on a table in the House of Lords

The Queen travels down The Mall from Buckingham Palace to the Houses of Parliament for the State Opening today

The motorcade with Queen Elizabeth II leaves Buckingham Palace ahead of the State Opening this morning

Queen Elizabeth II arrives for the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster this morning

Queen Elizabeth II arrives for the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster this morning

Priti Patel walks through the Central Lobby on the way to the House of Lords to listen to the Queen's Speech today

Masked Yeoman warders march along the Royal Gallery in the Houses of Parliament to start the ceremonial search today

Members of the House of Lords wearing their robes and masks talk with each other as they wait to enter their chamber today

Masked Yeoman warders march along the Royal Gallery to start the ceremonial search today which is the opening event

Masked Yeoman warders take up their positions in front of the statue of Queen Victoria at the Houses of Parliament today

Yeoman warders march into the Prince's Chamber during the reduced ceremonial search at Parliament today

The prince, in a morning suit, wore a black mask edged in white while Camilla, in a white day dress and hat, matched her mask to her outfit.

A search for gunpowder and an MP held 'hostage': State Opening traditions that date back centuries The State Opening of Parliament is usually the most colourful event of the parliamentary year and is steeped in tradition and customs dating back to the 16th century. The current ceremony, which marks the formal start of the parliamentary year, dates from the opening of the rebuilt Palace of Westminster in 1852 after the fire of 1834. The Queen's Speech presents the Government's agenda, outlining proposed policies and legislation. It is also the only regular meeting involving the three constituent parts of Parliament  the Sovereign, the House of Lords and the House of Commons. Before Her Majesty arrives, a ceremonial search is carried out for gunpowder, which dates back to the reign of James I and Guy Fawkes. An MP is also ceremonially held hostage in Buckingham Palace while the Queen attends the Opening, to ensure her safe return, in a tradition dating back to Charles I. The State Opening, which happens on the first day of a new parliamentary session or shortly after a general election, begins with the Queen's procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster. The Queen is normally escorted by the Household Cavalry before arriving at the Sovereign's Entrance and proceeding to the Robing Room. She then leads the Royal Procession through the Royal Gallery to the chamber of the House of Lords. An ancient tradition which will still take place is the one involving the House of Lords official, Black Rod. Sarah Clarke, Lady Usher of the Black Rod, will see the doors to the Commons shut in her face as she arrives to summon MPs. She has to strike the door three times before it is opened. It is a practice that dates back to the Civil War and is said to symbolise the Commons' independence from the monarchy. Members of the House of Commons then follow Black Rod and the Commons Speaker to the Lords chamber, standing at the opposite end to the Throne, known as the Bar of the House, to listen to the speech. Advertisement

The Queen left Buckingham Palace in a convoy of cars, on her way to the state opening - the 67th of her reign.

The monarch was dressed in a pale lilac coat with yellow floral embroidery around the collar, and a matching lilac hat, rather than the crown or state robes, for the scaled-back state opening.

Camilla walked behind the Queen and Charles in the simple procession. The scene that greeted the Queen in the Royal Gallery was vastly different from previous years.

Instead of being filled with people, the room contained just 34 seated guests - 17 peers and 17 MPs positioned far apart, socially distanced and wearing masks. They were selected for the occasion via a ballot.

MPs complied with social distancing measures as they sat two metres apart in the Commons chamber ahead of the Queen's Speech. Around 50 were sat on the green benches with more MPs sat in the side galleries and public gallery.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson sat arms folded wearing a black face mask with a Union flag on it. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer also wore a black mask, with his deputy Angela Rayner sat to his right.

Black Rod arrived and knocked on the door three times to request MPs attend the Lords.

Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle led a handful of MPs in single file to the other House, including Mr Johnson, Sir Keir, Home Secretary Priti Patel and SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford. The majority of MPs stayed in the Commons.

The Queen said the Government's priority is to 'deliver a national recovery from the pandemic that makes the United Kingdom stronger, healthier and more prosperous than before'.

When the Queen walked towards the principal throne in the House of Lords Chamber, the Prince of Wales kept hold of his mother's hand as she made her way carefully up the low steps.

Charles moved back and then took his seat situated at the far side.

The cream booklet containing the Queen's speech had been placed on a table draped in an embroidered red and gold velvet covering, next to the monarch's throne.

In non-Covid times, the Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland would have handed the speech directly to the sovereign.

Another amendment for the ceremony today is that the Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland will not hand the speech directly to the Queen as is usually the custom, but place it on a table instead.

Other changes include no military street liners or lining of the Sovereign's staircase and no military band nor Guard of Honour outside the Palace of Westminster or as part of the procession from Buckingham Palace.

There will be no heralds in attendance, only two Yeomen and Gentlemen at Arms, just one bishop representing the group of 26, and only the Lord Chief Justice and the Head of the Supreme Court representing the Judges.

Masked Yeoman warders take up their positions in front of the statue to Queen Victoria outside the House of Lords today

Yeoman warders arrive in the Prince's Chamber during the reduced ceremonial search at Parliament today

A parliamentary official walks past a cleaner in the Central Lobby before the State Opening of Parliament today

The Queen leaves Windsor Castle on her way to Buckingham Palace in London before the State Opening Of Parliament today

Queen Elizabeth II is driven in a Range Rover as she arrives at the Houses of Parliament for the State Opening today

This year the State Opening of Parliament has been reduced in numbers on account of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic

Security officers keeps watch before the State Opening of Parliament by the Queen at the Palace of Westminster today

Masked Yeoman warders march along the Royal Gallery in the Houses of Parliament to start the ceremonial search today

People in the Central Lobby before the State Opening of Parliament in the House of Lords at the Palace of Westminster today

Scenes in the Central Lobby before the State Opening of Parliament in the House of Lords this morning

The State Opening of Parliament takes place at the House of Lords at the Palace of Westminster in London today

Police officers stand guard before the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster this morning

People in the Central Lobby before the State Opening of Parliament in the House of Lords this morning

People in the Central Lobby before the State Opening of Parliament in the House of Lords this morning

Police officers stand guard along The Mall before the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster today

But one ancient tradition which will still take place is the one involving the House of Lords official, Black Rod.

Sarah Clarke, Lady Usher of the Black Rod, will see the doors to the Commons shut in her face as she arrives to summon MPs.

She has to strike the door three times before it is opened. It is a practice that dates back to the Civil War and is said to symbolise the Commons' independence from the monarchy.

State Opening timings 10.30am : The Queen is driven from Windsor Castle

: The Queen is driven from Windsor Castle 11am : The Queen is driven from Buckingham Palace

: The Queen is driven from Buckingham Palace 11.20am : The Queen arrives at the Sovereign's Entrance of the Houses of Parliament

: The Queen arrives at the Sovereign's Entrance of the Houses of Parliament 11.27am : The Royal Procession takes place from the Robing Room to the House of Lords chamber

: The Royal Procession takes place from the Robing Room to the House of Lords chamber 11.30am : The Queen is seated on the Throne and instructs the Lord Great Chamberlain to signal to Black Rod to summon MPs from the Commons. MPs process to the Lords chamber, standing at the opposite end to the Throne to listen to the speech.

: The Queen is seated on the Throne and instructs the Lord Great Chamberlain to signal to Black Rod to summon MPs from the Commons. MPs process to the Lords chamber, standing at the opposite end to the Throne to listen to the speech. The Queen reads out the speech, written by the government, from the Throne in the House of Lords, which takes about 10 minutes

When the Queen leaves, a new parliamentary session starts and Parliament gets back to work. Members debate the content of the speech and agree an 'Address in Reply to Her Majesty's Gracious Speech'

2.30pm : Debate on the Queen's Speech Advertisement

Members of the Royal Family are expected to rally round the elderly monarch even more in the coming months and years following the loss of her husband.

Charles has been at his mother's side for the last three state openings - in December 2019, October 2019 and in June 2017.

He stepped in for his father Philip in 2017 after the duke fell ill with an infection, two months before he retired from public duties.

It is the first time the Queen has conducted an engagement outside of Windsor Castle since her husband died - and only the second time she has been at Buckingham Palace since she retreated to Windsor in March last year during the first lockdown.

She briefly visited when she travelled to London to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey last November.

Philip, the nation's longest reigning consort, spent decades accompanying the monarch to the grand occasion at Parliament, sitting on an ornate golden throne at his wife's side.

The Queen has been continuing with her work as sovereign at Windsor Castle as she mourns the loss of her beloved husband of 73 years.

The Queen marks the beginning of the parliamentary session by delivering the Queen's Speech, which sets out the Government's legislative plans.

The State Opening of Parliament is usually the most colourful event of the parliamentary year and is steeped in tradition and customs dating back centuries.

But because of the pandemic, the pomp and ceremony has been reduced in 2021 to prevent any spread of coronavirus.

MPs and members of the House of Lords will have to wear masks throughout unless they are exempt, and everyone present will have to take a Covid test beforehand and only be allowed to attend if they have a negative result.

2019: The Queen and the Prince of Wales during the State Opening of Parliament in the House of Lords in October 2019

2019: Queen Elizabeth II travels by carriage along The Mall ahead of the State Opening of Parliament in October 2019

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh at the State Opening of Parliament ceremony in October 1967

The Queen will not wear the heavy Imperial State Crown which she last wore at the 2016 opening. This will be carried on a cushion and placed on a table as it was in 2019 (pictured)

A sketch of the State Opening of Parliament under Henry VIII's reign is pictured above

A further sketch of the State Opening of Parliament under Henry VIII's reign is pictured

Significantly fewer politicians and peers will be there compared with previous years and no diplomatic or non-parliamentary guests have been invited, with just 108 people attending, including the Queen, rather than up to 600 as is the norm.

There will 74 people in the chamber, including the monarch, Charles, Camilla, the Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Prime Minister Boris Johnson and leader of the Opposition Sir Keir Starmer, representatives from the House of Lords and House of Commons and those involved in the ceremonial procession.

There will also be 17 members of the Lords and 17 MPs in the Royal Gallery.

Discussions took place with the Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England to ensure the event was Covid-secure, with limited attendance, social distancing, masks, good hand hygiene and Covid testing incorporated into the proceedings.

Boris vows to 'turbo-charge the Covid recovery' as Queen unveils his plans to bolster 'Blue Wall' with jobs boost, illegal immigration crackdown, and action against 'woke' culture - but nothing on social care

The Queen's Speech is being unveiled with plans to give every adult access to loans for courses and training

Boris Johnson has vowed to introduce a 'lifetime skills guarantee' to help people upgrade qualifications

The radical plan is among a range of 'levelling up' measures in the government's legislative programme

Asylum overhaul, planning reforms and total ban on online junk food adverts also in the government package

The PM is hammering home his message after taking more chunks out of Labour heartlands in local elections

BY JAMES TAPSFIELD FOR MAILONLINE

Boris Johnson vowed to 'turbo-charge the Covid recovery' today as he unveiled a Queen's Speech for the 'Blue Wall' with moves to boost jobs, crack down on illegal immigration, and curb 'woke' culture.

The PM warned it is not enough to go back to pre-pandemic ways as the monarch laid out the package of legislation for the next parliamentary session.

In a state occasion stripped of most of the usual pomp and ceremony, the Queen - in her first major duty since the death of Prince Philip - said the country should be 'stronger, healthier and more prosperous than before'.

In an introduction to the new parliamentary programme, Mr Johnson said it is time to 'build back better' - hailing a huge drive to increase skills and 'level up' in areas that have fallen behind. The Tories made huge gains in many of those places in local elections last week, and are hoping to turn the screw on crisis-hit Keir Starmer.

There will also be action to reform the asylum system and crack down on illegal immigration, as well as moves to tackle 'cancel culture' at universities, and an overhaul of the planning system to make building homes 'simpler and faster'.

But the government is already facing criticism after the speech included just nine words about social care provision - something Mr Johnson has promised to fix - and no Bill among the 30 or so slated.

And there is set to be a major backlash after it was confirmed ministers are pushing ahead with 'nanny state' proposals for a total ban on online junk food advertising.

Mr Johnson will face off against Sir Keir in the Commons this afternoon since the extraordinary election results that sent Labour into a tailspin. Rumours have been sweeping Westminster that he now plans to call an early election in 2023 - with the PM set to take back control over the date for polls.

Among the key points from the speech:

A 'lifetime skills guarantee' will be enshrined in law to enable anyone to upgrade their qualifications, regardless of their background;

An immigration overhaul will block asylum for people who have travelled through 'safe' countries such as France and Belgium;

A total ban on online junk food ads will go ahead despite claims ministers were trying to kill off the 'half-baked' idea;

The PM will take back control of the timing of elections and could shorten the length of campaigns, with a row over proposals to require ID for people to vote;

People denied a platform by universities could seek compensation in the courts under government plans to tackle 'cancel culture';

The Government is to strengthen Britain's 'archaic' counter-espionage laws amid growing concern about the security threat from foreign spies operating in the UK;

The Queen is unveiling the new legislative programme in her first major engagement since the death of Prince Philip

In a state occasion stripped of most of the usual pomp and ceremony, the Queen - in her first major duty since the death of Prince Philip - said the country should be 'stronger, healthier and more prosperous than before'

Boris Johnson (pictured left watching the speech today) has vowed to inject 'rocket fuel' into his pledge to level up Britain, with the introduction of new laws to boost education opportunities for those who have not been to university. Right, the crown was brought in ready for the Queen to deliver her speech opening the new session of Parliament

Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall were accompanying the Queen as she carried out her duties today

There was none of the usual awkward chat between politicians as they filed through from the Commons to the Lords to see the speech today

Around 30 Bills in Boris's new government programme The Queen's Speech sets out around 30 pieces of legislation, including:  A Health and Care Bill to better integrate the NHS and social care systems.  A Planning Bill to make it easier to build new homes, schools and hospitals.  New laws to scrap the Fixed-term Parliaments Act, meaning it will be easier for Mr Johnson to call an early general election before 2024.  A Counter-State Threats Bill to introduce a US-style register of foreign agents to help counter espionage and influence from hostile governments.  The return of the controversial Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, which saw demonstrations over concerns that it would curtail the right to protest when it was last before Parliament.  A Higher Education (Free Speech) Bill giving regulators the power to fine universities or students' unions in England if they fail to protect freedom of expression. The Government also promised a 'levelling-up White Paper' setting out how Mr Johnson intends to meet the promises made to voters in former Labour-voting areas. Advertisement

A range of measures double down on the agenda that helped the Tories storm more of Labour's former heartlands in the Midlands and the North last week.

Others include reforms to state aid to make it easier for the Government to subsidise industries facing unfair competition, new light-touch freeports and a shake-up of the planning regime to accelerate the rollout of new housing and infrastructure.

In his introduction to the legislative platform, Mr Johnson said: 'Even before COVID-19, there were millions across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland who wanted a new approach.

'They wanted better funded public services, a chance to own their own home, jobs and apprenticeships in their towns, investment in better transport links and local infrastructure. A brighter future for their families, neighbours, high streets and communities.

'So as our vaccination programme helps release us from lockdown, we cannot simply return to the way things were. Now as pubs, shops and restaurants are reopening, and we are seeing our friends and family  our mission must be to build back better than before.'

Mr Johnson - who confirmed last night that England is pushing ahead with coronavirus lockdown relaxations from May 17 - said the government will 'back the amazing work of our NHS in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland'.

Trying to quell the burgeoning row over social care, he said: 'Later in the year we will bring forward proposals to reform adult social care so that every person receives the dignity and security they deserve.

'As the United Kingdom gets back on its feet, we will turbo-charge our economic recovery in every part of our country, increasing and spreading opportunity.'

Addressing Parliament from the throne in the House of Lords, the Queen said: 'My Government will level up opportunities across all parts of the United Kingdom, supporting jobs, businesses and economic growth, and addressing the impact of the pandemic on public services.

'My Government will protect the health of the nation, continuing the vaccination programme and providing additional funding to support the NHS.'

The House of Lords was far less crowded than usual today with coronavirus social distancing rules in force

The Queen was in day dress for the occasion of the reopening of Parliament today, which has been scaled back

Where is social care plan? Just nine words devoted to key issue in Queen's Speech

Downing Street set itself on a collision course with social care reform campaigners today after the key issue warranted just nine words in the Queen's Speech.

Senior Tories including former health secretary Jeremy Hunt and deputy prime minister Damian Green warned today that ongoing delays over making sweeping changes to the system were causing 'incredible worry' and 'frustration'.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock had tried to reassure the public that change was coming as he insisted the Government was 'committed' to reforms the Tories promised in their 2019 election manifesto.

But the Queen's Speech today contained just a single sentence on the subject, with the monarch noting: 'Proposals on social care reform will be brought forward.'

Care groups, charities and politicians have been long calling for a plan to reform and 'fix' the sector, which the Prime Minister promised in his first speech after being elected in July 2019.

Mr Johnson is trying to turn the screw on Keir Starmer (left) after local elections, but in interviews this morning Matt Hancock (right) had to fend off questions about the lack of action on social care

The final preparations have been made including the 'ceremonial search' of Parliament to help keep the Queen safe

But the PM and Chancellor Rishi Sunak are said to be at war over how to pay for it.

Mr Johnson is said to back plans set out a decade ago by Sir Andrew Dilnot to cap costs at between 25,000 and 50,000, with the taxpayer covering the rest.

His report also recommended lifting the means-tested threshold for state support from 23,250 to 100,000.

But the Treasury is said to be resisting, saying the cost to the public finances would be huge in the wake of the Covid pandemic.

Mr Hunt said he hoped a cap will be announced when the Government sets out its legislative agenda, calling the prospect of catastrophic care costs 'an incredible worry for people'.

Ministers promise 'lifetime skills guarantee' to get people into well-paid jobs after hammer blow from coronavirus crisis

Every adult will be given access to a flexible loan to pay for higher-level education under plans announced today by Boris Johnson as part of a new 'Lifetime Skills Guarantee'.

Mr Johnson said new education laws set out in the Queen's Speech will provide 'rocket fuel' to the nation's recovery from the coronavirus crisis.

The PM hopes the guarantee will enable people to gain the skills they need to secure well-paid jobs and to access training throughout the course of their lives.

The so-called Lifelong Loan Entitlement to pay for education and training at university or college will be available to people at any point.

It will provide flexible access to the equivalent of up to four years' worth of student loans.

It is part of a wider effort by the Government to 'remove the bias against technical education'.

Boris Johnson said new education laws set out in the Queen's Speech will provide 'rocket fuel' to the nation's recovery from the coronavirus crisis. The PM is pictured walking past a Job Centre in Truro, Cornwall on April 7 this year

Only 10 per cent of adults aged 20-45 hold a higher technical qualification as their highest qualification compared to 20 per cent in Germany and 34 per cent in Canada.

Mr Johnson said: 'These new laws are the rocket fuel that we need to level up this country and ensure equal opportunities for all.

'We know that having the right skills and training is the route to better, well-paid jobs.

'I'm revolutionising the system so we can move past the outdated notion that there is only one route up the career ladder, and ensure that everyone has the opportunity to retrain or upskill at any point in their lives.'

The Government's plans will also see employers handed a statutory role in planning publicly-funded training programmes with education providers through a so-called 'Skills Accelerator' scheme.

Meanwhile, the Education Secretary will be given more powers to intervene in failing colleges.

Tory war on 'cancel culture': People denied a platform by universities will be able to seek compensation in the courts

The Conservatives opened a new front in their war on 'cancel culture' today, unveiling a new law forcing universities to protect freedom of speech.

The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill will aim to end the so-called 'no platforming' of speakers and academics on campuses.

Regulator the Office for Students will get the power to fine institutions and student unions for breaching new duties designed to foster 'a culture of open and robust intellectual debate'.

People who believe their freedom of speech has been impinged will also get the power to go to court to seek financial compensation.

Universities have been dogged in the past few years by campaigns to block appearances from figures seen as controversial by some students and staff.

Universities have been dogged in the past few years by campaigns to block appearances from figures seen as controversial by some students and staff, including Germaine Greer (left) and Amber Rudd (right)

They range from far-right figures to the legendary feminist campaigner Germaine Greer, who has been targeted by the pro-trans lobby over her views on people who change gender.

The bill will ensure 'freedom of speech can thrive for all staff, students and visiting speakers', and ensure 'that academic staff feel safe to question and test received wisdom and put forward new ideas and controversial or unpopular opinions, without being at risk of losing their jobs, privileges or promotion'.

Giving the showpiece speech in the House of Lords today, the monarch said that the new law would 'protect freedom of speech'.

Other figures who have been no-platformed include the former home secretary Amber Rudd.

Boris Johnson to take back power to call general elections amid rampant speculation he will call early ballot in 2023 to destroy crisis-hit Labour

Boris Johnson will give prime ministers full control over when to call a general election today amid speculation he is planning to go to the country in 2023 to try to destroy Labour.

The Queen's Speech today set out plans to replace the hated Fixed-term Parliaments Act which limits the ability of ministers to alter the five-year electoral cycle.

It was widely criticised for leading to constitutional chaos before the December 2019 election because Boris Johnson's attempts to call a fresh election earlier were blocked by the opposition and his lack of a majority.

At the State opening of Parliament today the Queen confirmed there would be a Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Bill.

'My Government will strengthen and renew democracy and the constitution,' she said.

'Legislation will be introduced to ensure the integrity of elections, protect freedom of speech and restore the balance of power between the executive, legislature and the courts

The Government said the plans being unveiled would allow the PM 'to decide to put the power back in the hands of the public during critical moments for the country' and prevent 'stalemates in Parliament from paralysing democracy, as happened in the last Parliament'.

There is also speculation that the new bill will also slash the campaigning time ahead of general elections to just a month.

Ministers are facing a backlash over plans to make it compulsory for voters to prove their identity at the polling station.

Former Tory cabinet minister David Davis said it was an 'illiberal solution for a non-existent problem'.

At a Downing Street briefing last night Mr Johnson dismissed the criticism as 'complete nonsense', saying it was 'not unreasonable' to ask people to show ID to help cut voter fraud.

Boris's nanny state? Ban on online junk food ads WILL go ahead despite claims ministers were trying to kill off 'half-baked' idea

Boris Johnson is set to go ahead with plans for a total ban on online junk food ads despite industry experts branding it 'not even half-baked'.

The Queen's Speech includes legislation to impose the restrictions, along with a block on TV ads before the 9pm watershed and ending 'BOGOF' deals for unhealthy foods.

The proposals were put out to consultation before Christmas, but faced opposition from senior Tories and the industry. Critics said the online ads move was 'insane' after research suggested it might only shave a couple of calories a day off children's intake.

There have been claims the restriction could affect avocados, hummus and Marmite - although officials insist it would be targeted at foods high in sugar, salt, fat or calories.

According to the new legislative plan the government 'will restrict the promotions on high fat, salt and sugar food and drinks in retailers from April 2022'.

The Health and Care Bill will also 'include measures to ban junk food adverts pre-9pm watershed on TV and for a total ban online'.

Boris Johnson was once a vocal opponent of state meddling in eating and drinking habits, speaking out against efforts by Jamie Oliver to reform school meals.

Boris Johnson (pictured running this week) was once a vocal opponent of state meddling in eating and drinking habits, speaking out against efforts by Jamie Oliver to reform school meals
An elderly Asian man was knocked down and kicked to the ground only to be left screaming for help, while being attacked in northern California.

The shocking assault, which was caught on surveillance camera outside his own home, saw the man yelling for someone to come to his aide.

His cries only add to the stomach-churning content of the video that see two teenage attackers hovering over him and callously laughing while robbing him of his watch.

A California man, 80, was attacked and robbed in broad daylight

Surveillance video sees the senior get knocked to the ground by two teens

As if hearing an 80-year old man cry out for help after getting knocked to the ground in San Leandro isnt bad enough



...the suspects are teens as young as 16 and you can hear one laughing loudly.



(1/3) #stopaapihate #aapi pic.twitter.com/dZHe5Op9DZ  Dion Lim (@DionLimTV) May 10, 2021

The daylight robbery took place in the San Francisco Bay Area in San Leandro where the 80-year-old man was randomly attacked by the two suspects.

The video shows the victim calling out for help but nobody responds.

Another person briefly enters the frame but it is not clear if they were with the other two suspects.

Police say they believe the suspected attackers are as young as 16-years-old and the getaway car was later seen involved in another robbery.

Although police have not yet labelled the incident as a racially motivated crime the victim says he believes that the attack was motivated by hate.

The man could be heard screaming and calling for help during the attack which happened on Saturday in San Leandro

The teenage suspects could also be heard laughing and giggling during assault

The San Leandro Police Department have reported a nearly 300-percent increase in crimes toward Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in 2020 compared to 2019 reports ABC7.

The robbery comes amid a wave of assaults against Asian Americans - many of them elderly - in San Francisco and across the country since the coronavirus pandemic took hold in the U.S.



The virus first surfaced in China and former President Donald Trump repeatedly blamed the nation and referred to it as the 'China virus', which some have contended caused a spike in anti-Asian sentiment.

Some attackers have shouted anti-Asian slurs but other assaults haven't been directly identified as hate crimes.

Two Asian American women were stabbed in an unprovoked attack in broad daylight last week in San Francisco at a city bus stop.

Two Asian American women were stabbed in an unprovoked attack in broad daylight this week in San Francisco. Patrick Thompson, 54, (above) was arrested

A handcuffed Patrick Thompson, 54, pleaded not guilty Monday to charges of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon and elder abuse. Both women were expected to survive after Tuesday's attack, authorities said.

Thompson allegedly launched the brutal attack on the women aged 65 and 85 last Tuesday afternoon on Market Street as they waited for the bus.

A large piece of the military-style blade had to be surgically removed from the elder of the two ladies, Chui Fong Eng, after it broke off in her chest.

The younger woman, who was not identified, was stabbed through the lungs, the district attorney said.

The women were rushed to San Francisco General Hospital but should survive after undergoing surgery.

Thompson was arrested around two hours after the attack and charged with attempted murder last Wednesday.

Also last week week, two sisters employed at a liquor store in Baltimore were attacked by a man with a piece of cinder block, police said.

At least four Asian Americans were hurt last week in separate New York City attacks, including a woman who was struck in the head with a hammer, authorities said.
The Northern Territory's parliament is set to pass proposed changes to youth bail laws that could see some child offenders automatically placed on remand for breaching bail conditions.

Advocates have condemned the reform, saying it will roll back critical recommendations from the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory.

Under the planned changes, children accused of serious re-offending while on bail will be taken into custody except when a court is satisfied there are exceptional circumstances.

The Northern Territory's parliament is set to pass proposed changes to youth bail laws that could see some child offenders automatically placed on remand for breaching bail conditions (stock image)

Breaching electronic monitoring conditions or curfew and failing to attend court or complete diversion programs will also be grounds for bail being revoked.

The list of crimes where bail may not be granted will also be expanded to include unlawful entry, unlawful use of a motor vehicle, assault of a worker or police officer.

Police will also be given more powers to immediately place electronic monitoring on alleged offenders and breath test children without an adult guardian present.

The North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency has led the criticism against the legislation amendments with protests outside NT parliament.

These changes will have generational effects in criminalising children, chief executive Priscilla Atkins says.

'There is still time for our politicians to step back from the brink and make good laws that are considered and based on what we know works.'

Ms Atkins said the bill was badly drafted and rushed through parliament.

NAAJA lawyer Beth Wild warned the laws would take away the courts' discretion to grant bail and refer young offenders to diversion programs.

'This bill will lead to skyrocketing numbers of Aboriginal children in a failed detention system that is outdated, not fit for purpose and that harms children,' she said.

One of Australia's largest Indigenous medical groups, Danila Dilba, echoed the condemnation saying jailing children doesn't work.

'Even the US has moved away from locking people up,' chief executive Olga Havnen said.

'It's time for the NT government and opposition to listen to the advice at hand and look at alternative options that work and that will maintain a safe and flourishing community.'

Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance NT chief executive John Patterson said the proposed changes could lead to a surge in reoffending and offer nothing more than a path to jail.

'We know the tough-on-crime approach only facilitates more crime and disadvantage for our community,' he said.

'It is time the NT government responded humanely and responsibly by addressing the real causes of youth offending and investing in these evidence-based approaches'.

But NT Police Minister Nicole Manison says the new laws will ensure there are immediate consequences for offenders who commit serious crimes while on bail.

'It was 116 youths that committed 50 per cent of the offences last year, over 3000 offences,' she said.

'We are going to be able to break the cycle of crime of these youths that are clearly not willing to abide by their bail conditions.'

The bill is being debated in parliament and is likely to be passed later on Tuesday.
A couple from a sleepy town in southern Tasmania has pleaded not guilty to charges relating to an alleged chainsaw attack.

Neville Perryman, 56, and Lisa Anne Perryman, 53, are accused of wounding a man by cutting his left forearm and right hand with a chainsaw at a Middleton property in November.

Both pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and wounding on Tuesday in Hobart Magistrates Court.

The pair are expected to appear in the Supreme Court of Tasmania on July 19.

Charges of common assault and being the owner of a dog that attacks a person levelled against the couple have been adjourned indefinitely.
A police officer was killed and another wounded in California while serving a search warrant before the gunman, who appeared to ambush the cops, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said.

Shots were fired shortly before 5:30pm as officers served the warrant at an apartment in the Central Coast city of San Luis Obispo, located approximately 190 miles north of Los Angeles.

ABC 7 News reports that the suspect allegedly began the firing, before officers from the San Luis Obispo Police Department returned fire.

Luca Benedetti, 37, a 12-year law enforcement veteran who joined the SLOPD in 2012, was killed in the shooting. Detective Steve Orozco was hospitalized, but was released on Monday evening and is expected to fully recover.

Benedetti was married and his survived by his wife, as well as two young children.

Police scanner traffic noted that the suspect was reported to be down around 5:45pm, at which point three gurneys were wheeled into the building.

Six officers served the search warrant around 5pm on Monday in relation to late-night commercial burglaries from the past week.

Luca Benedetti (left) was killed in Monday night's shooting in San Luis Obispo, while Steve Orozco (right) was wounded and later released from the hospital, expected to recover

The warrant was to search for possible stolen property.

They performed a 'knock and notice' to identify themselves, then forced the front door open when nobody responded.

Edward Zamora Giron, 37, was waiting inside and began to fire. He was later found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, as well as wounds from being struck by other officers.

'Our community is heartbroken,' Mayor Heidi Harmon said in a release about the incident. 'Detective Benedetti loved this City and bravely gave his life so that we could live in peace and safety. Lucas children have lost their father so we could be safe. We will hold Detective Benedetti and his family in our hearts forever.'

'I had the distinct pleasure of working with Luca over the past 9 years,' added Acting Chief Brian Amoroso. 'He was a dedicated officer, a talented detective, a proud member of the San Luis Obispo Regional SWAT Team, and most importantly, a loving husband and father.'

Scroll down for video

Officers are seen aiming at an apartment complex during a police shooting on Monday night

The shooting took place on Camellia Court, off Margarita Avenue in San Luis Obispo

Harmon also commented on the bravery of Orozco, saying 'As Detective Orozco recuperates at home, we are grateful that his physical wounds will heal, and we recognize that yesterdays events have changed his life forever.'

'This is a tragedy beyond measure for all of those who serve and care about our community,' City Manager Derek Johnson said in a statement. 'Our deepest condolences go out to the family. We are devastated by this loss.'

Police added that there was no longer a threat to public safety following the shooting.

DailyMail.com has reached out to the San Luis Obispo Police Department for further information.

Officers were seen pointing their rifles towards the apartment complex before they moved into the building and started going up the stairs.

Victoria Torres, 21, told the San Luis Obispo Tribune that she was upstairs in her bedroom when she heard 'a very loud knocking' at an apartment across from her.

'I don't know if it was the police or what,' she said. 'I always hear noises here so I didn't think anything of it until I heard the gunshots.'

Police are seen in tactical gear outside of the apartment where the shooting took place

Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the scene of Monday night's shooting

She looked out her window and saw a police car, then walked downstairs and looked out another window.

She saw a man carrying a 'big gun' who began shooting from the door of an apartment at officers who were hiding behind their patrol car, Torres said.

Torres went back upstairs to hide and call 911.

'I was pretty startled and frightened,' Torres said. 'I just hid. I looked out the window again when it got quiet. Because I wasn't sure what happened.

'Then I decided to not watch anymore because it was too scary,' Torres added.

Monica Rochte, 31, told the Tribune that she heard the police banging on an apartment door and saying: 'We're going to come in. We know you're in there.'

Rochte said there was yelling and then a bang that she thought might be police knocking down the door, followed by a single shot.

Rochte then heard police yell: 'He has a gun!' followed by a series of 15 to 20 shots, she said.

'I would have never expected something like this to happen, especially down here because it's like, it's mostly just like families and stuff,' Rochte added. 'Some care homes down the way. The only time we have an ambulance is because one of the older people at that care home needs care.'

A person is seen wheeling a gurney towards the scene of Monday night's shooting

Police stated that there was no longer a threat to public safety following the shooting

The California Highway Patrol were on the scene of the shooting, as well as the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office, the San Luis Obispo City Fire Department, and the San Luis Ambulance.

Officers were seen consoling each other following the shooting as ambulances left the scene.

After the shooting, police cars flashed their lights as they made a silent procession on South Higuera Street late on Monday night.
Logie award-winning news anchor Russell Goodrick has died after a private four-month battle with a severe form of pancreatitis.

The Perth broadcaster's death was confirmed on Tuesday afternoon in a heartfelt Facebook post by his sons Rodney and Tom Goodrick.

'With great sorrow and disbelief, I pass on this harrowing news to you, the passing of a man who had such an incredible life and as you all know lived his life to the absolute fullest,' the brothers wrote.

Pictured: Russell Goodrick before his family turned his life support off on Monday evening

Russell Goodrick (pictured) at the start of his career. He went on to win a Logie award in his lengthy career

The Channel 9 presenter was first hospitalised in January with necrotizing pancreatitis after he suffered an attack while driving to Esperance, eight hours south-east from Perth, to work on the production of upcoming film, Before Dawn.

Necrotizing pancreatitis a condition with a 15 per cent survival rate where part of the pancreas dies, which can cause life-threatening infections or sepsis.

Goodrick never made it to Esperance, and was instead flown back to Perth for an operation.

'Over time we saw him go through a roller coaster of improvement and declination,' Rodney and Tom wrote.

Goodrick (pictured) died in January with pancreatitis . He was driving to Esperance when he had an attack

Goodrick (pictured while working as an anchor) spent a period of time in a coma before his family turned his life support off on Monday night

'He continued to fight, and his loved ones and family fought by his side every step of the way.'

Goodrick spent a period of time in a coma before his family turned his life support off on Monday night, The West Australian reported.

His friend and former colleague Jenny Seaton told the publication that not many people knew about his dire health situation.

'It wasn't something we knew about, this is the other part of it we are trying to understand, he was private he wanted it to be this way (but) to find out he was in a coma for so long and this was the result is just awful,' Seaton said.

Ive only found out today that he has a problem with his pancreas...we were told last week that he was in a coma and we werent told why or how bad it was.'

They remembered their father as adventurous and compassionate with a genuine interest in other people.

Legendary Channel 7 newsreader Frank Warrick has died after a five-year battle with dementia.

On Tuesday it was also revealed that long-time Channel 7 newsreader Frank Warrick died after a five-year battle with dementia.

The 76-year-old passed away peacefully surrounded by his family just before 5am on Tuesday.

The respected newsreader had a lengthy television career after joining Channel Seven Queensland in 1976.

Mr Warrick read the 6pm news for Seven from 1976 until he retired in 2001.

The respected newsreader had a lengthy television career after joining Channel Seven Queensland in 1976 (pictured)

Mr Warrick's long time co-presenter Kay McGrath issued a statement this morning offering her 'sincere condolences to Frank's wife Lyn and family.'

'We had a very successful 13 year on air relationship during the 80s and 90s when 6pm news was a ritual for viewers,' Ms McGrath said.

'Live TV can be a challenging environment at times, but we always had each other's backs.'

Ms McGrath described Mr Warrick as 'the consummate professional' and she 'never saw him fazed or flustered on air.'

'He taught me a lot and I'm very saddened to hear he's left 'this world around us', she said.

Mr Warrick will be remembered with a tribute on 7News at 6pm on Tuesday.
Brendan Abela tried to pay his former partner and her two friends $20,000 in hush money a week after robbing them.

Abela messaged the woman, who had dumped him, offering to pay them all to withdraw their police statements so his charges would be dropped in June 2015.

Court documents show he told her there was no point praying to God as she was the only person who could help him.

The 35-year-old also swore to leave her alone if she complied.

Brendan Abela tried to pay his former partner and her two friends $20,000 in hush money a week after robbing them (stock image)

'If they withdraw the statement and make a no complaint statement and you do (then) I'll walk,' Abela told the woman, who cannot be named.

'And it's only your statement that the police are charging me on. No one has to know anything just the people involved.

'20 grand withdraw the statements and ... I'll be out your life.'

Abela on Tuesday faced the Victorian County Court, where he was sentenced to 18 months in prison for attempting to pervert the course of justice.

He is already behind bars serving an 11-year sentence for a separate conviction and is not eligible for parole until 2028.

But Judge Scott Johns ruled that Abela's fresh sentence would be served alongside his existing one, meaning he won't spend extra time in prison.

He had earlier pleaded guilty to one charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Viewers of the BBC's latest Sunday night drama The Pursuit of Love have complained they could not understand some of the characters - five years after the Director General vowed to make sure all shows could be heard.

Some scenes featuring stars Lily James and Emily Beecham came in for criticism over the audio on the mini-series, which is directed by Emily Mortimer.

One licence fee-payer said they had 'worn out the remote control' adjusting the volume to try and counteract the 'extremes of sound'.

And another found it impossible to understand, bemoaning that they 'Can't hear a word'.

One viewer added to MailOnline: 'So disappointed that the sound quality was so poor.

'The production is so lavish, what a shame to miss chunks of dialogue.' Another called it 'Inaudible, breathless whispering'.

A BBC spokesman confirmed 'We have only received six complaints at this time.'

It comes on the heels of complaints about the sound quality of other BBC shows, including Calderdale-based police drama Happy Valley, Jamaica Inn and War and Peace

The BBC took so-called 'Mumblegate' so seriously in 2016 then BBC DG Tony Hall said 'audibilty issues' would be dealt with.

Stars Lily James and Emily Beecham were in scenes some viewers said they could not hear

Issues over the sound are the latest in a series of audio complaints nicknamed mumblegate

The Pursuit of Love director Emily Mortimer on set filming the BBC drama behind the scenes

He had identified the problem even earlier than that, declaring at 2013: 'I don't want to sound like a grumpy old man, but I also think muttering is something we could have a look at. Actors muttering can be testing - you find you have missed a line - you have to remember that you have an audience.'

Pursuit of Love attracted 5 million viewers and tells the story of romance in an upper class family.

Martin J Saxton said on Twitter: 'I find the extremes of sound on 'The Pursuit of Love' excruciating: I've practically worn out the remote control.

'Sound engineers, actors and director all to blame. It's interesting in its own way, maybe not quite as funny as I'd like. And the hair design is abysmal.'

David Atkinson said: 'Pursuit of Love. Can't hear a word and no subtitles on BBC IPlayer after first episode 1.

Martin Saxton said the 'extremes of sound' made Pursuit of Love excruciating to watch

David Atkinson bemoaned not being able to 'hear a word' of the flagship BBC drama

Tony Hall former Director General of the BBC had urged 'audibility issues' to be looked at

Among other complainers were Charles and Angela Cottrell-Dormer, who are the owners of Rousham House in Oxfordshire, which was used as a location for the drama.

Mr Cottrell-Dormer told The Telegraph: 'Couldn't understand a word they said. We must be too old.'

On social media, viewers expressed their frustration. 'What's the point of a drama where 70 per cent of the dialogue is incomprehensible,' asked another.

Sound is not the only problem to have hit BBC dramas.

Last year it asked viewers to monitor the light around their TVs after complaints that hit shows like The Luminaries and Wolf Hall were too gloomy.

As part of a study, the broadcaster will question participants about the layout of their windows, sofa and screen in a bid to create the best lighting conditions.

Sarah Lancashire in Happy Valley, which had also been criticised over the level of sound

Wolf Hall was accused of being too dark by some TV viewers but defended as 'atmospheric'

BBC show The Luminaries was ironically criticised over claims it was poorly lit in some scenes

It follows armchair critics being left frustrated by dimly lit scenes in the BBC drama The Luminaries, with the director of Wolf Hall also defending the lighting in the show as 'lovely and atmospheric' after viewers claimed it was 'too dark'.

Twitter users had reacted to the lighting in The Luminaries, with one tweeting: 'Ironic it's called #TheLuminaries when you can see b****r all because it's always dark.'

Another added: 'I was going to watch #TheLuminaries tonight but then my husband offered to lock me in the dark in the downstairs loo and mumble unintelligibly through the keyhole... so I chose that instead.'
This is the moment a 22-year-old Florida man was confronted by an 11-foot-long bull alligator while he was fishing in the Everglades.

Tommy Lee fled as the huge predator emerged from the water but, like the victim in a budget horror movie, he fell over as it chased him.

His jerky footage captures his hasty retreat after first spotting the alligator moving in the water as he cast his line from the shore to catch tarpon.

Tommy Lee, 22, was fishing for tarpon in the Florida Everglades when he saw a large alligator emerge from the water

Tommy Lee, 22, claimed the bull alligator got within ten feet of him as it chased him on land

The 11-foot alligator pursued Lee along the trail before it returned to the water

He tumbles, accidentally filming a close-up of his legs, and as he stands up again captures the bull alligator just a few feet away from him on the trail.

Tommy, who is known as Chumdumpster on YouTube, says: 'Well, that put an end to my tarpon fishing... wow!'

The fisherman, from Florida, then urges the alligator to 'get back' into the water.

Instead, the fisherman is forced to retreat a further ten yards where he exclaims 'oh my God!'

When the alligator turns around to head back to the water, the fisherman approaches, calling out: 'Hey buddy.'

But after it returns to the water, Tommy says: 'I am out of here, screw that.'

Afterwards he recounted: 'I was tarpon fishing at sunrise when an 11-foot plus bull gator stalked me then chased me.

'The camera is a GoPro with a wide angle. The gator appeared much larger and closer in person. It got within 10ft of me.

'I ran backward and fell as he chased me. Then I confronted him and he chased me again before retreating back to the water. Then I retreated back to my truck.'

Savanna Boan of Gatorland told Click Orlando that people should be careful as it is now alligator mating season.

She said: 'First of all, you need to watch every body of water, your bathtub, your swimming pool, your backyard pond, your mud puddles that your kids play in  anywhere an alligator can be found right now, because alligators are on the run, especially the smaller ones that are easier to hide.

'The big bull alligators are pushing all the little ones out because they want all the ladies to themselves.'
Spencer Benbolt Junior, known as to his loved ones as Budda, was killed when an industrial bin he was sleeping in was emptied by a garbage truck was sleeping rough because he 'hated it' at home

A 'cheeky' teenage boy killed when an industrial bin he was sleeping in was emptied by a garbage truck was living rough because he 'hated it' at home.

Spencer Benbolt Junior, known as to his loved ones as Budda, and his two friends, aged 11 and 12, were inside the dumpster in Port Lincoln on South Australia's west coast when it was emptied at 5.20am on Tuesday.

Police say the 12-year-old managed to escape the bin and frantically started banging on the window to stop the driver, but his two friends had already fallen into the truck.

Spencer suffered extensive injuries and died at the scene, outside a McDonald's, while the youngest was unharmed.

Spencer's friend Dylan Fox said the teen was sleeping in the dumpster because he 'hated' living at his house.

Spencer's cousin Montanah Elvey described him as a 'really good kid' who always had a smile on his face.

'He was brave, tough. He's been through a lot of s**t and he is a very strong child,' she said through tears on Tuesday.

The 13-year-old's aunty said he always had a 'close relationship' with his parents, brothers and grandmothers.

Spencer's friend said the teen was sleeping in the dumpster because he didn't like his home. Pictured: Spencer Benbolt Junior, known as to his loved ones as Budda

Spencer's cousin described him as a 'really good kid' who always had a smile on his face, who had 'been through a lot of s**t'

Pictured: The scene where Spencer Benbolt Junior, 13, died after he and two friends fell asleep in a bin, which was then collected by a garbage truck

Pictured: The scene where a boy died after he was found sleeping in a bin near a McDonald's drive-thru with two others

She said Spencer was a 'cheeky boy with a big imagination'.

Other family members said the three boys were incredibly close and often ran away from home together.

Spencer's friend Holly Puckridge said he was a bright and funny kid.

'He asked to stay with us for a couple days and we let him have a sleep over,' she told 7News.

A mother of one of Spencer's friends said her child could have been in the bin if things had gone differently.

Superintendent Paul Bahr said the boys, who are not believed to be related, had beds they could have slept in.

'It's fair to say that the boys had somewhere to stay. I don't think it'd be fair to classify them as homeless.' he said on Tuesday.

'It's tragic across a whole number of levels.

'And that's just one of the levels of the tragedy of this as to why these three children thought they needed to be sleeping in the bin.

'On what was a pretty cold and wet night, too. It wasn't a good night to be sleeping outdoors.'

Supt Bahr said police had not previously been aware of reports of kids sleeping in Port Lincoln bins.

'Port Lincoln has an issue with homelessness like every community, and from time to time we do get rough sleepers,' he said.

'I'm not aware of children sleeping rough.'

Police said the truck driver did not realise the children, who are from Port Lincoln, were in the bin at the time and that he was 'extremely shaken by the incident'.

A report will be prepared for the coroner.

A spokeswoman for SafeWork SA told Daily Mail Australia that inspectors have attended the site and are making enquiries.

'SafeWork SA offers condolences to his family, friends and colleagues at this distressing and sad time,' she said.

Spencer's friend said the teen was sleeping in the dumpster because he wanted to get away from his home

The grizzly scene unfolded in Port Lincoln - a small coastal town west of Adelaide in South Australia

Port Lincoln Mayor Brad Flaherty described the accident as a tragedy.

'It's a terrible, terrible incident that will have an awful impact on the community as a whole and the families involved,' he said in a statement.

'Our heartfelt thoughts are with the families and community members affected.'

Staff and students at the local school the boy attended have been offered counselling in the wake of his death.

Rowena Fox, the education director for the Eyre Peninsula, said the event had 'deeply affected' the school and community.

'The immediate priority is arranging counselling and psychological support,' she said.

'Local schools are actively monitoring students and will arrange direct wellbeing support for individuals and in groups where necessary.

'This is very upsetting news and children will likely process it in different ways.'

A spokesperson for Veolia Waste Management, the truck driver's company, offered condolences to the boy's loved ones.

'While we are unable to comment further on the circumstances at present, we are working closely with the emergency services and a full investigation into the incident is underway,' it said.
A woman is lucky to be alive after she was bitten by one of Australia's deadliest snakes.

The dramatic incident unfolded on Sunday afternoon just after 3pm when the woman, 27, was hiking with friends in the Karijini National Park, a remote part of Western Australia's Pilbara region.

The woman was attacked by a king brown snake, which has the ability to inject large amounts of highly toxic venom into its prey.

One bite from the serpent also known as a mulga snake can rapidly destroy blood cells as well as affect muscles and nerves.

Emergency services performed first aid on the woman (pictured) who was bitten by a snake in a remote part of Western Australia on Sunday

A detailed rescue team (pictured) were quickly on the scene after a woman was bitten by a highly venomous king brown snake in a remote area of Western Australia's Pilbara region

After receiving the emergency call, police dispatched officers along with members of the DFES State Emergency Services, St John Ambulance paramedics and Karijini National Park Rangers to rescue the injured woman.

She was eventually located in Dales Gorge in the isolated Fortescue Falls area of the national park, where mobile phone reception is notoriously poor.

Compounding the situation was the fact the national park is 100km from the nearest town.

Recorded rescue footage shows the woman, believed to be from Perth, sporting a heavily bandaged leg before first aid was applied.

She was then lifted out of the rugged gorge and into a waiting ambulance.

The woman was rushed to the Tom Price District Hospital before she was then flown to South Hedland Health Campus for additional treatment.

She is now in a stable condition after being given anti-venom medication.

The woman, 27, (pictured) was bitten by a mulga snake (pictured) and was said to be in excruciating pain before she was administered first aid
Heathrow's chief executive has accused Border Force of 'complacency' over queues and called for the travel green list to be 'massively' expanded - as new figures show the airport lost nearly 6.3 million passengers in April, compared with two years ago.

Just 536,000 people travelled through the west London airport last month, representing a 92% reduction on the total for April 2019.

Currently, those who return to England from destinations in the green tier do not need to self-isolate - but are required to take one post-arrival PCR test.

Those arriving from somewhere on the amber list  which makes up most popular holiday destinations  must quarantine at home for 10 days and take two post-arrival tests.

The ban on overseas leisure travel from England will be lifted on Monday as part of the next easing of coronavirus restrictions.

But Heathrow chief executive John Holland-Kaye has criticised the Government's decision to only put a handful of countries on its green travel list - and he accused Border Force of 'complacency' over claims that long queues are 'inevitable'.

Heathrow Airport lost nearly 6.3m passengers in April compared with the same month in 2019, new figures show

Heathrow chief executive John Holland-Kaye has criticised the Government's decision to only put a handful of countries on its green travel list - and he accused Border Force of 'complacency' over claims that long queues are 'inevitable'

Vaccine passport will be on the NHS app from NEXT WEEK so tourists can prove they have received two jabs on arrival at holiday hotspots Holidaymakers who have been fully inoculated against Covid will be able to use the NHS smartphone app (pictured) as a vaccine passport from Monday Holidaymakers who have been fully inoculated against Covid will be able to use the NHS smartphone app as a vaccine passport from Monday. Once Britains foreign travel ban is lifted on May 17, Downing Street said those going abroad could show the app upon arrival to prove they have had two vaccine doses. Those without smartphones are being urged to avoid calling their GP for help. Instead, they should ring 119 to order a letter confirming their vaccination status. Official guidance from the Government published online states: You can access your Covid-19 vaccination status through the free NHS App from May 17. You can access the app through mobile devices such as a smartphone or by tablet. Proof of your Covid-19 vaccination status will be shown within the NHS App. We recommend you register with the app before booking international travel. Demonstrating your Covid-19 vaccination status allows you to show others that youve had a full course of the Covid-19 vaccine when travelling abroad to some countries or territories. A full course is currently two doses of any approved vaccine. Rules vary widely from country to country on international travel  but many are set to allow quarantine-free holidays for tourists who can show they have been vaccinated. The app, developed by NHS Digital and NHS England, was originally designed to allow people to book appointments, repeat prescriptions and see their full medical records. Advertisement

Mr Holland-Kaye said: 'The Government's green list is very welcome but they need to expand it massively in the next few weeks to include other low-risk markets such as the United States, and remove the need for fully-vaccinated passengers to take two expensive PCR tests.

'Border Force's claims that ''long queues in immigration are inevitable'' smack of complacency. They are completely avoidable if ministers ensure that all desks are staffed at peak times.'

Border Force director-general Paul Lincoln warned on Friday that arriving passengers must accept there will be increased delays, and it could take up to 15 times longer to process people than before the pandemic due to extra checks being carried out.

The comments come after Boris Johnson raised hopes that an end to Covid measures may be sight, as he suggested social distancing could be scrapped completely by next month.

The Prime Minister unveiled the return of 'sensible hugs' as he gave the green light for close friends and family members in England to embrace once more from May 17 - after months of forcibly being apart.

He also suggested Britain's Covid nightmare could be over by June 21, saying that even rules such as one-metre plus could be removed from that date onwards.

But he refused to pick-up the pace of the easing of lockdown, instead insisting that the Government would need to assess the current raft of changes before implementing more.

As of Monday groups of six or two households will be allowed to meet indoors for the first time in months.

Overnight visits will also be allowed, while outdoors the limit will rise to 30 in the most significant loosening yet.

Staycations can also get properly up and running, with hotels and B&Bs that do not have self-catering facilities permitted to open - as well as cinemas and theatres if audiences wear masks.

The government has decided the risk is now low enough that social distancing can be left more to 'personal choice' - meaning that while people are urged to be 'cautious', hugs are allowed at private gatherings.

However, despite the very low infection rate and stunning vaccine rollout, social distancing rules will still be maintained at bars and restaurants.

Together with a requirement for table service indoors, the hospitality industry warned it is more a 'psychological opening rather than an economic one' and many venues will still struggle to make ends meet.

Advice to work from home where possible will also stay in place.

Among other elements of the changes from next week, the much-criticised cap on the number of mourners at funerals will be lifted, while up to 30 people will be allowed at weddings and other life events.

Caribbean islands 'likely to be added to Green List next month'  as travel bosses say Greece, Italy and Spain are also safe because less than 1 per cent of arrivals from there test positive for Covid

Less than 1% of arrivals from European holiday locations test postive for Covid

NHS data shows around 0.8% from Greece tested positive over four-week period

The figure for Spain was 0.7 per cent, Italy 0.4 per cent and Portugal 0.6 per cent

But Portugal was the only hotspot to make the quarantine-free travel 'green list'

Travel chiefs said figures proved it was safe for ministers to expand the safe list

A host of Caribbean islands are likely to be added to the Government's quarantine-free 'green list' next month.

The nations that could be added in June are the 'near misses' for Friday's list of just 12 countries and territories, the Telegraph reported.

Islands in the Caribbean such as Antigua, Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis are reporting close to zero infection rates.

Another territory likely to be added to the updated list is the British Virgin Islands, which has had just 216 infections and one death since the pandemic began.

It comes as figures showed less than 1 per cent of arrivals from European holiday hotspots such as Greece, Spain and Italy are testing positive for Covid.

Analysis of NHS Test and Trace data by the Mail reveals around 0.8 per cent of arrivals from Greece over the latest four-week period tested positive for the virus.

The figure for Spain was 0.7 per cent, Italy 0.4 per cent and Portugal 0.6 per cent.

But despite the similar rates, Portugal was the only major European hotspot to make the Government's quarantine-free travel 'green list' last week.

Travel chiefs last night said the figures proved it was safe for ministers to expand the list to include more of Europe when foreign holidays restart next Monday.

A host of Caribbean islands are likely to be added to the Government's quarantine-free 'green list' next month. It comes as figures showed less than 1 per cent of arrivals from European holiday hotspots such as Greece , Spain and Italy are testing positive for Covid, NHS data shows. Pictured: Costa Paradiso Beach, Sardinia

Thanks to their low infection and variant rates, Fiji, the Cayman Islands, Grenada, Finland and Malta are also said to have been on a shortlist for inclusion on Friday's 'green list'.

The news that just 12 destinations were ranked green when the list was unveiled on Friday sparked a backlash from industry bosses.

Foreign tourism ministers have also expressed their dismay.

Greek tourism minister Harry Theocharis said: 'We consider Greece is at a very good status regarding the epidemic at the moment and every week it is getting better and better. This is what the data shows.'

He also hit out at UK ministers for not treating Greece's islands, where vaccination rates are higher, differently to the mainland, adding: 'Britain could have taken a different approach for those islands.'

Rodi Kratsa, governor of the Ionian islands region, which includes holiday hotspots Corfu and Zante, said: 'The decision of Great Britain not to include Greece in the announced green list and to enforce quarantine to travellers returning to England is unjustifiable.

'Greece has proven credibility and efficacy in managing the pandemic crisis, and so has the region of Ionian islands, a region that is loved by British travellers.

'I am sure Britain will very soon change this decision.'

Since February, anyone returning from abroad has been required to take two tests after arrival on days two and eight, while quarantining at home or in a hotel for ten days.

Travel chiefs said the figures proved it was safe for Government (pictured: Boris Johnson) to expand the list to include more of Europe when foreign holidays restart next Monday

The NHS Test and Trace data shows that of 3,823 people who took tests on day two after arriving from Spain between March 26 and April 22, the latest period available, just 26 tested positive.

Of 3,036 people who travelled from Italy, 13 tested positive, while five of 635 arrivals from Greece had the virus.

Of 501 arrivals from Portugal, three tested positive.

The data provides a snapshot into the risk of importing infection from each country, which also have similar vaccination rates.

EasyJet chief executive Johan Lundgren said: 'We do not believe the Government's decision to limit the green list to so few countries is justified and this evidence from the Mail shows that, even at times of high Covid in Europe, travel was a source of relatively few cases.

'With the huge success of the vaccination programme which is being used to open up the domestic economy, there is no reason why Britons should be denied the right to travel to their holiday favourites this summer.'

The criticism came as it emerged that free NHS lateral flow tests may not be approved for holidaymakers to take abroad with them.

Figures showed less than 1 per cent of arrivals from European holiday hotspots such as Greece, Spain and Italy are testing positive for Covid

It would mean travellers having to shell out for a pre-departure test before returning to the UK.

Ministers had proposed giving travellers rapid tests to take with them to cut the hassle and cost of arranging one in a foreign country.

But sources said there were concerns about validating the tests and their accuracy.

A Government spokesman said last night: 'We have taken a cautious approach to our green travel list to protect the country and our vaccination campaign from the threat of Covid-19 variants.

'The decision to add countries to the red, amber or green lists is made jointly by ministers, informed by the latest scientific data and public health advice and taking into account a range of factors.'
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The Gaza Strip was under the most intense bombardment since 2014 on Wednesday, as Israel unleashed a huge firestorm on the territory in response to Hamas missiles, and the death toll on both sides continued to grow as world leaders appealed for calm.

Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, issued a statement calling for an end to violence, but a UN-brokered ceasefire was immediately rejected by Israel.

The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said that they had killed two senior Hamas intelligence chiefs, tweeting: 'Looks like our intel was better.'

Hassan Kaogi, head of the Hamas military intelligence security department, and his deputy, Wail Issa, head of the military intelligence counterespionage department, were killed by Israeli fighter jets, the IDF said.

The Palestinian death toll was at 36 on Wednesday morning, with ten children among the dead.

Five Israelis are believed to have been killed in the conflict, which the mayor of one hard-hit Israeli town labeled 'civil war'.

Yair Revivo, mayor of the Israeli city of Lod, called for army back-up to help secure the area, saying 'civil war' was breaking out as residents clashed following the funeral of an Arab man killed by a Jewish local.

'This is Kristallnacht in Lod,' said Revivo, in reference to the Nazi pogrom against German Jews in 1938.

'I have called on the prime minister to declare a state of emergency in Lod. To call in the IDF. To impose a curfew. To restore quiet.

'There is a failure of governance.

'This is a giant incident - an Intifada of Arab Israelis. All the work we have done here for years [on coexistence] has gone down the drain.'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tours the city of Lod early on Wednesday. He declared a state of emergency in the central city of Lod as police accused Arab residents of waging 'wide-scale riots'

Fire erupts at an energy facility in Ashkelon city in Israel on Wednesday after it was hit by rockets fired from Gaza

Smoke and flames rise on Wednesday after Israeli warplanes conducted airstrikes in Gaza City

A fire on Wednesday morning is seen in Ashkelon, an Israeli city targeted by Hamas rockets

Smoke and flames rise after Israeli warplanes conducted airstrikes in Gaza City on Wednesday

Clouds of dark smoke are seen rising over Gaza City on Tuesday after an Israeli air strike

Revivo said his city was spiraling out of control.

'All of Israel should know, this is a complete loss of control,' he said, according to The Times of Israel.

'This is unthinkable. Synagogues are being burned. Hundreds of cars set alight. Hundreds of Arab thugs are roaming the streets.

'Civil war has erupted in Lod.

'The Orthodox-nationalist community here has guns. I'm imploring them to go back home but they understandably want to protect their homes. Petrol bombs are being thrown into [Jewish] homes. The situation is incendiary.'

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared declared a state of emergency in Lod, and reinforcements were sent to the area after clashes broke out.

Netanyahu on Tuesday said he 'deplored' the deaths in Israel, adding that the country's military would 'further increase both the intensity and the rate' of its own air strikes against Gaza.

'Hamas will be hit in ways that it does not expect,' Netanyahu said, before the announcement of the third woman's death in Israel.

'We have eliminated commanders, hit many important targets and we have decided to attack harder and increase the pace of attacks.'

The homes of three Hamas commanders were destroyed overnight on Wednesday.

A significant barrage begun at 3am local time, with Israel firing into the Gaza Strip.

'In response to HUNDREDS of rockets in the last 24 hours, the IDF has struck a number of significant terror targets and terror operatives across the Gaza Strip, marking our largest strike since 2014,' the IDF confirmed.

'We are currently striking more terror targets in Gaza.'

Donald Trump on Tuesday night blamed Joe Biden's 'weakness' on Middle Eastern issues for the renewed conflict between the two sides.

In Israel, five people including three women have been killed.

One of the three women was in her 60s and another in her 80s, and died during Hamas rocket attacks earlier on Tuesday.

The third woman, aged 50, was killed on Tuesday evening when a rocket hit a building in the Tel Aviv suburb of Rishon Lezion.

The renewed confrontation, following weeks of tensions and clashes in the contested Jerusalem, was sparked on Monday evening when Hamas fired a barrage of missiles towards Jerusalem.

It continued into the early hours of Wednesday morning, with more rockets being fired by the Islamist group into Tel Aviv, and by Israel into Gaza.

On Tuesday afternoon, Trump posted to his website, saying that America 'will always strongly support Israel's right to defend itself' as he criticised Biden over the growing crisis.

Earlier, the White House had said Biden was being briefed on the escalating situation.

Israel's Iron Dome defence system continued to struggle with the volume of rockets being fired from Gaza on Tuesday evening, after an Israeli air strike caused a 13-storey residential building to collapse in Gaza City.

The cross-border violence has been fuelled by Israel's evictions of Muslim communities living in east Jerusalem which led to angry riots breaking out on Temple Mount over the weekend, with hundreds left injured on Monday as riot police shot rubber bullets and fired tear gas at protesters.

Pictured: Video footage from Tuesday evening showed three plumes of thick, black smoke rising from a Gaza residential block as it toppled over following an Israeli air strike. A large residential tower block in Gaza has collapsed today after one of several dozen Israeli cross-border air strikes on Tuesday night, as Hamas vowed to turn Israel into 'a hell'

Pictured: People gather at the site of a collapsed building in the aftermath of Israeli air strikes on Gaza City on May 11, 2021. Hamas Islamists said they had fired 130 rockets towards Tel Aviv on Tuesday, unleashing a massive barrage on Israel's economic hub, in retaliation for an Israeli strike on 12-storey tower near Gaza's coast

Pictured: Rockets are launched from Gaza city, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, in response to an Israeli air strike on a 12-storey building in the city, towards the coastal city of Tel Aviv, on May 11, 2021

Israeli security forces walk past extinguished burnt vehicles in Holon near Tel Aviv, on May 11, 2021, after rockets were launched towards Israel from the Gaza Strip controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement

Pictured: Smoke rises from the streets of Gaza after Israeli air strikes were launched amid tit-for-tat strikes against Hamas

Pictured: Smoke and flame rise after Israeli warplanes conducted airstrikes in Gaza City, Gaza on May 12, 2021

TRUMP: 'WEAK' BIDEN TO BLAME FOR CONFLICT Former US President Donald Trump blamed his successor Joe Biden's 'weakness' for the renewed clashes in the Middle East. Writing on his website Trump, he said: 'When I was in office we were known as the Peace Presidency, because Israel's adversaries knew that the United States stood strongly with Israel and there would be swift retribution if Israel was attacked. 'Under Biden, the world is getting more violent and more unstable because Biden's weakness and lack of support for Israel is leading to new attacks on our allies. 'America must always stand with Israel and make clear that the Palestinians must end the violence, terror, and rocket attacks, and make clear that the U.S. will always strongly support Israel's right to defend itself. 'Unbelievably, Democrats also continue to stand by crazed anti-American Rep. Ilhan Omar, and others, who savagely attack Israel while they are under terrorist assault.' Advertisement

Residents of the collapsed residential block and the surrounding area had been warned to evacuate the area around an hour before the air strike, according to witnesses, and there were no reports of casualties two hours after it collapsed.

Shortly after the attack, Hamas - the Islamist group that rules inside Gaza - and the Islamic Jihad group said they would respond by firing rockets at Tel Aviv, which they did by firing 210 rockets towards Beersheba and Tel Aviv in response to the bombing of the tower buildings in Gaza City.

Air raid sirens and explosions were heard around the city, and the skies were lit up by the streaks of multiple interceptor missiles launched towards the incoming rockets.

Pedestrians ran for shelter, and diners streamed out of Tel Aviv restaurants while others flattened themselves on pavements as the sirens sounded.

The Israel Airports Authority said it had halted take-offs at Tel Aviv airport 'to allow defence of the nation's skies'.

Video broadcast on Israeli Channel 12 television showed interceptor missiles rising above the runways.

'We are now carrying out our promise,' Hamas's armed wing said.

'The Qassam Brigades are launching their biggest rocket strike against Tel Aviv and its suburbs, with 130 rockets, in response to the enemy's targeting of residential towers.'

The sound of the outgoing rockets could be heard in Gaza. As the rockets rose into the skies, mosques across Gaza blared with chants of 'God is great,' 'victory to Islam' and 'resistance.'

One rocket struck a bus in the central city of Holon, just south of Tel Aviv. Medics said three people, including a five-year-old girl, were wounded and the bus went up in flames.

Israel said it had sent 80 jets to bomb Gaza, and dispatched infantry and armour to reinforce the tanks already gathered on the border, evoking memories of the last ground incursion into Gaza to stop rocket attacks, in 2014.

More than 2,100 Gazans were killed in the seven-week war that followed, according to the Gaza health ministry, along with 73 Israelis, and thousands of homes in Gaza were razed.

Pictured: Streaks of light are seen as Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel, May 11, 2021. Rocket fire was so relentless that Israel's Iron Dome rocket-defence system seemed to be overwhelmed on Tuesday

Pictured: Smokes rise from buildings as Israeli fighter jets continue to pound a Palestinian building called 'Hanady' at Al-Rimal neighbourhood in the Gaza Strip, on May 11, 2021

Pictured: Israeli firefighters check out damaged vehicles in the Israeli town of Holon near Tel Aviv, on May 11, 2021, after rockets are launched towards Israel from Gaza. Hamas has vowed to turn Israel into 'a hell' after rockets fired from Gaza killed two Israeli women today following a night of cross-border strikes

Pictured: A bomb drops near a Palestinian building called 'Hanady' at Al-Rimal neighbourhood as Israeli fighter jets continue to pound in the Gaza Strip, on May 11, 2021

A wounded Palestinian boy is transported to hospital after an Israeli air strike in Gaza today

By late Tuesday, the violence extended to Tel Aviv, which came under fire from a barrage of rockets launched from the Gaza Strip. The outgoing volleys set off air raid sirens across the city, and the main international airport quickly closed

Mayor of Lod says a 'civil war has erupted' in his city and calls for military intervention In the central Israeli town of Lod, police on Tuesday fired tear gas and stun grenades after mourners threw rocks at officers during the funeral of an Arab man allegedly shot to death by a Jewish resident the night before. Thousands took part in the funeral, and police said the crowd set fire to a patrol car, a bus and a motorcycle. Two police officers were injured. Lod's Mayor Yair Revivo said earlier on Tuesday the he had asked Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to declare a state-of-emergency in the state in central Israel, which he did so early on Wednesday. Netanyahu himself went to the city, which is in the suburbs of economic hub Tel Aviv near the Ben Gurion airport, to call for calm. The city of 77,000 people, including 47,000 Jewish Israelis and 23,000 Arab Israelis, had been the scene of violent clashes on Monday, the local police confirmed to AFP. Israeli border police vehicles drive past an extinguished burnt vehicle in Lod near Tel Aviv, on May 11, 2021 Mr Revivo said the clashes were 'too big for the police' and called for the military to be deployed. 'This is Kristallnacht in Lod,' he said, in reference to the pogrom against Germany Jews carried out by Nazi Germany in 1938. 'I have called on the prime minister to declare a state of emergency in Lod. To call in the IDF. To impose a curfew. To restore quiet There is a failure of governance 'This is a giant incident  an Intifada of Arab Israelis. All the work we have done here for years [on coexistence] has gone down the drain.' 'All of Israel should know, this is a complete loss of control This is unthinkable. Synagogues are being burned. Hundreds of cars set alight. Hundreds of Arab thugs are roaming the streets 'Civil war has erupted in Lod The Orthodox-nationalist community here has guns. I'm imploring them to go back home but they understandably want to protect their homes. Petrol bombs are being thrown into [Jewish] homes. The situation is incendiary.' The mayor also claimed that Israelis were leaving their homes with guns out of fear for their lives, and that Islamists were allegedly inciting the city's youths. 'We haven't done anything to you,' he pleaded, as he begged for calm in the city. 'Every minute, a car or a synagogue or a school is going up in flames Our new city hall was broken into and set alight. You don't understand what's happening here. This is worse than the missiles from Gaza,' Revivo said. He said 'there's been nothing like this in the history of Israel,' according to The Times of Israel. Palestinians carry the coffin of Palestinian Musa Hassune who was killed by an Israeli gunman's fire, during a funeral ceremony in the city of Lod, on May 11, 2021 The shooting early on Tuesday in Lod came at a time of heightened tensions following weeks of unrest at a contested holy site in Jerusalem and heavy fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. The fighting has spilled over into Israel's Arab sector, with protests taking place in dozens of communities across the country. Thousands of people took part in the funeral in Lod. Israeli police have arrested three people suspected of involvement in the shooting. 'Wide-scale riots erupted by some of the Arab residents and endangering communities,' the police said in a statement. 'Vehicle were burnt and damage caused to property.' The government said reinforcements had been deployed after Israeli media reported that three synagogues and several businesses were set on fire in Lod. 'Sixteen border police platoons (have been) mobilised in areas in order to deal with the violence,' the police added. Advertisement

The barrage of rockets leaving Gaza and airstrikes coming into the territory continued almost non-stop throughout the day, in what appeared to be some of the most intense fighting between Israel and Hamas since their 2014 war.

Rocket fire was so relentless on Tuesday that Israel's Iron Dome rocket-defence system seemed to be overwhelmed, with over 480 rockets reportedly fired at Israel.

Meanwhile, columns of smoke rose from many places in Gaza as the IDF struck more than 130 targets throughout Monday.

The U.N. Security will hold emergency consultations Wednesday on the escalating violence between Palestinians and Israelis.

The U.N. Mideast envoy, Tor Wennesland, is expected to brief the 15 council members virtually at the closed meeting, which is being called at the request of China, Tunisia and Norway.

China holds the council presidency this month and its U.N. mission confirms plans for the second emergency meeting in three days. It is an indication of growing international concern about the conflict and where it might lead.

The U.N.'s most powerful body has not yet taken any action.

China, Tunisia and Norway proposed a draft statement at Monday's meeting expressing 'grave concern' at escalating tensions and calling on Israel to cease evictions.

Wennesland tweeted: 'Stop the fire immediately. We're escalating towards a full scale war. Leaders on all sides have to take the responsibility of de-escalation.

'The cost of war in Gaza is devastating & is being paid by ordinary people. UN is working w/ all sides to restore calm. Stop the violence now,' he wrote.

Egypt was been trying to broker a cease-fire into Tuesday, but the cycle of violence was gaining momentum.

Even before the Israeli deaths, the Israeli military said it was sending troop reinforcements to the Gaza border and the defence minister Benny Gantz ordered the mobilisation of 5,000 reserve soldiers.

But contrary to Egypt's efforts, Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei urged Palestinians to 'build up power' on state television, saying 'Zionists (Israel) only understand the language of force'.

Iran and Israel consider one-another arch enemies, with Iran refusing to recognise the existence of Israel as a state since the 1979 Iranian Revolution.

Iranian state TV on Tuesday quoted Khamenei as saying that it was a duty of every state to take a stand and condemn this 'evil, criminal, brutal and cruel' action by Israel.

Khamenei also said Palestinian need to be empowered in order to 'force' Israel to accept their rights.

'They should make themselves powerful, resist and confront so as to force the other party to withdraw from crime and surrender to what's right and fair,' Khamenei said.

Iran backs anti-Israel militant groups across the region, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.

In the U.S., the White House said on Tuesday that Biden was being briefed daily on developments in Jerusalem and Gaza, and has directed his team to engage intensively with senior Israeli and Palestinian officials as well as leaders throughout the Middle East.

Press secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that Biden's team is communicating a clear and consistent message in support of de escalation.

'That is our primary focus,' she said, adding that Biden supports Israel's 'legitimate right to defend itself and its people' and at the same time condemns ongoing 'rocket attacks by Hamas and other terrorist groups including against Jerusalem.'

She added that the Biden administration 'will also continue to support a two state solution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict.'

But on his own website, Trump posted a message saying that 'America must always stand with Israel and make clear that the Palestinians must end the violence, terror, and rocket attacks, and make clear that the U.S. will always strongly support Israel's right to defend itself.'

Trump criticised Biden, saying: 'Because Israel's adversaries knew that the United States stood strongly with Israel and there would be swift retribution if Israel was attacked.

'Under Biden, the world is getting more violent and more unstable because Biden's weakness and lack of support for Israel is leading to new attacks on our allies.'

Tuesday also saw a pipeline belonging to an Israeli state-owned energy company hit in a rocket attack from Gaza, an Israeli government official and an energy sector official told Reuters.

Video broadcast by Channel 12 showed flames rising from what appeared to be a large fuel vat near the Israeli Mediterranean city of Ashkelon, south of Tel Aviv.

Operations at a power plant in Ashkelon were not interrupted, Channel 13 TV said.

Fire billows from Israeli air strikes in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday morning. At least 26 Palestinians - including nine children - were killed, most by airstrikes, health officials in Gaza reported.

Rockets are fired from Gaza City, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, towards Israel on Tuesday

Smoke billows and sparks fly from Israeli air strikes in Gaza City on Tuesday as Israel and Hamas exchanged heavy fire

Palestinians flee with their children as civilians are evacuated from a building being targeted by an Israeli bombardment in Gaza

A huge explosion from an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on Tuesday causes sparks to fly into the air as a cloud of black smoke rises above the city

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah asks world leaders to end 'killing of innocent people' in tweet Liverpool star Mohamed Salah has called on Boris Johnson and other world leaders to end the 'killing of innocent people' amid continued unrest between Israelis and Palestinians. The Egyptian footballer said 'enough is enough' in a post on Twitter in which he mentioned the Prime Minister's official account, although he did not reveal what it was in reference to. It comes after at least 30 people have died following weeks of tensions in Jerusalem, which has led to calls for a de-escalation on all sides from the international community. Pictured: Liverpool's Mohamed Salah on Saturday The Liverpool forward tweeted: 'I'm calling on all the world leaders including on the Prime Minister of the country that has been my home for the past 4 years to do everything in their power to make sure the violence and killing of innocent people stops immediately. 'Enough is enough.' Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is among those to have called for an end to ongoing violence in Jerusalem and Gaza, urging for an 'end to targeting of civilian populations' on Twitter. Meanwhile, Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson Layla Moran said she has been granted an Urgent Question in the Commons on Wednesday on the issue. The MP said on Twitter: 'The UK Govt must set out its plan to work with our international partners to facilitate a de-escalation now.' Reporting by: Press Association Advertisement

In Israel, residents of Ashkelon have been running to shelters as air raid sirens wail.

'At around 5am, we were woken by sirens. We had to hide in the wardrobe because there is no shelter in the house,' said Shelly Belayev, whose building was heavily damaged, its facade blackened and an apartment devastated.

'There was a very strong explosion, I have never heard a sound like it. I quickly realised the missile fell here,' she said.

'I went outside, I was in shock.'

Since the sirens began late Monday, barrages of rockets launched from the Hamas-controlled Palestinian enclave have rained down on the coastal city, located just north of the Gaza Strip.

The deluge continued on Tuesday, with Hamas' armed wing the Qassam Brigades saying it had fired 137 rockets on Ashkelon and nearby Ashdod within just five minutes during the afternoon.

Islamic Jihad, an ally of Hamas, announced on Tuesday that two of its commanders were killed during continued Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip.

Sources within the group said the strikes in central Gaza, also 'wounded eight people, including a woman and her two children.'

On Tuesday, Israel Defence Forces (IDF) claimed it had killed a top Hamas Commander in a statement , saying: 'We just killed the commander of the Hamas anti-tank missile unit, Iyad Fathi Faik Sharir. He was in charge of carrying out anti-tank missile attacks on Israel. Our aircraft are currently striking additional terror targets'.

Other high-profile Hamas targets are also said to have been killed. One was identified as Samah Abed al-Mamlouk, who the IDF said was in a hideout along with other operatives. He is said to have been in charge of the Islamic Jihad's rocket arsenal.

Another - Hassan Abu al-Atta - was also killed. He is thought to have been a deputy commander of Islamic Jihad's Gaza Brigade. He was killed when the IDF struck an eight-storey building in Gaza's Rimal neighbourhood.

The United Nations said it was 'deeply concerned' over the escalation of violence in the region, warning Israel that Palestinians must be allowed the freedom to congregate and protest.

'We condemn all violence and all incitement to violence and ethnic division and provocations,' spokesman Rupert Colville told reporters in Geneva today.

He added: 'No force should be used against those exercising their rights peacefully.' When use of force is necessary, it should comply fully with international human rights standards, he added.

Colville said the office of UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet was particularly concerned about the impact of the violence on children.

'Detained children should be released,' Colville said. 'Things need to calm down.'

An Israeli sapper checks a damaged apartment building in the southern town of Ashkelon after it was hit by a Palestinian missile on Tuesday morning

A home in the Israeli town of Ashkelon, around 12 miles north of Gaza, which has been targeted by Hamas rockets since last night

Medics evacuate a person injured after a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip hit a house in Ashkelon on Tuesday

A Palestinian man holds an injured girl while she awaits medical care at al-Shifa hospital after an Israeli air strike in Gaza City on Tuesday

Israel's Iron Dome aerial defence system intercepts a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip in the skies above the southern city of Ashkelon on Monday

People gather on the rubble of a factory and car garages destroyed by Israeli airstrikes, in Gaza City on Tuesday

Mourners chant Islamic slogans while they carry the body of Amira Soboh, and her 19-year-old disabled son Abdelrahman, who were killed in Israeli airstrikes at their apartment building, during their funeral at the Shati refugee camp in Gaza

Bodies of the victims of an Israeli air strike are carried through Gaza on Tuesday

Israel's Iron Dome aerial defence system intercepts a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, above the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon

Israeli firefighters extinguish a car which caught on fire after a rocket was launched from the Gaza Strip, in Ashkelon, southern Israel

Israeli civilians take cover as the missile warning sirens ring out in the southern city of Ashkelon on Tuesday amid renewed bombardments

Smoke and flames billow into the air as Israeli warplanes drop bombs on the Gaza strip on Tuesday morning. It comes after militants launched more than 200 rockets at Israel, injuring six civilians

Rockets are fired from Gaza City towards Israel on Tuesday afternoon as airstrikes continue

Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip on Tuesday

Flames and smoke rise during Israeli air strikes on the southern Gaza Strip this morning

An explosion goes off in Gaza City as Israeli warplanes drop bombs on Hamas targets after riots broke out on Temple Mount over the weekend

Damage left by an Israeli air strike is seen on Tuesday in Gaza City after the two sides exchanged rockets and bombs throughout the night

Rockets fired from Gaza City are seen streaming towards Israel this morning as the two sides exchanged fire throughout the night

Smoke rises high above Gaza City following Israeli air strikes in Gaza City on Tuesday

A number of Israeli air strikes have hit Gaza city, with plumes of smoke billowing across the skyline on Tuesday

A heavily damaged house, with furniture, bricks and plaster blown across the building, is pictured at a targeted residential neighbourhood in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon on Tuesday as rockets are fired from the Gaza Strip towards Israel

In a sign of widening unrest, hundreds of residents of Arab communities across Israel staged overnight demonstrations denouncing the recent actions of Israeli security forces against Palestinians. It was one of the largest protests by Palestinian citizens in Israel in recent years.

Israel and Hamas have fought three wars and numerous skirmishes since the militant group seized control of Gaza in 2007. Recent rounds of fighting have usually ended after a few days, often helped by behind-the-scenes mediation by Qatar, Egypt and others.

Why are violent clashes taking place in Jerusalem? When did the protests start? From the beginning of Ramadan in mid-April, Palestinians clashed nightly with Israeli police, who put up barriers to stop evening gatherings at the walled Old City's Damascus Gate after iftar, the breaking of the daytime fast. Palestinians saw the barriers as a restriction on their freedom to assemble. Police said they were there to maintain order. Why did the violence flare up again? An Israeli Supreme Court hearing was due on May 10 in a long-running legal case about whether several Palestinian families would be evicted and their homes in Sheikh Jarrah, a neighbourhood near Damascus Gate that was given to Israeli settlers. Some settlers have already moved into the street affected - living next door to the Palestinians facing possible removal. As the court hearing neared, Palestinians and left-wing Israelis began holding larger demonstrations, saying more evictions could cause a domino effect throughout the overwhelmingly Palestinian neighbourhood. Sheikh Jarrah also contains a site revered by religious Jews as the tomb of an ancient high priest, Simon the Just, leading to frequent tensions between Palestinian living there and religious Jews visiting it. International attention The case, in which a lower court ruled that the land in question belonged to Jews in East Jerusalem before the 1948 War, has gathered domestic and international attention, amid criticism of Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem. On Sunday U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan spoke to his Israeli counterpart to express 'serious concerns about the potential evictions of Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood,' the White House said. read more And United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed 'his deep concern over the continuing violence in occupied East Jerusalem, as well as the possible evictions of Palestinian families from their homes,' U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Sunday. What next? On Sunday the Supreme Court hearing on the evictions was postponed, pushing at least one flashpoint past the end of Ramadan and allowing more time for a resolution. A new session will be scheduled within 30 days. read more Monday is Jerusalem Day, Israel's annual commemoration of its capture of East Jerusalem during the 1967 war. The event usually sees a march through the walled Old City by Jewish pilgrims, including ultra-nationalists, which could be another flashpoint. Why is Jerusalem so sensitive? Politics, history and religion. At the heart of Jerusalem's Old City is the hill known to Jews across the world as Temple Mount - the holiest site in Judaism - and to Muslims internationally as The Noble Sanctuary. It was home to the Jewish temples of antiquity. Two Muslim holy places now stand there, the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest place in Islam. Christians also revere the city as the place where they believe that Jesus preached, died and was resurrected. Israel sees all of Jerusalem as its eternal and indivisible capital, while the Palestinians want the eastern section as a capital of a future state. Israel's annexation of East Jerusalem is unrecognized internationally. Advertisement

An Egyptian official confirmed that the country was trying to broker a truce.

But the official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Israeli actions in Jerusalem had complicated those efforts.

A Palestinian security official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the cease-fire efforts.

Critics say heavy-handed police measures helped stoke nightly unrest, including a decision to temporarily seal off a popular night-time gathering spot where Palestinian residents would meet after evening prayers.

Another flashpoint was the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah where dozens of Palestinians are under threat of eviction by Jewish settlers.

Over the weekend, confrontations erupted at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in east Jerusalem, which was captured and annexed by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war.

The compound, located in Jerusalem's Old City, is the third holiest site of Islam and the holiest site of Judaism.

For four successive days, Israel police fired tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets at Palestinians in the compound who hurled stones and chairs.

Hundreds of Palestinians were hurt, requiring treatment at hospitals. Two dozen officers were also injured. At times, police fired stun grenades into the carpeted mosque.

On Monday evening, Hamas began firing rockets from Gaza, setting off air raid sirens as far as Jerusalem, after giving Israel a deadline to withdraw Israeli security forces from the compound. From there on, the escalation was rapid.

Speaking of the Israeli response to Hamas's rocket attacks, army spokesman Conricus said on Monday evening: 'We have started, and I repeat started, to attack military targets in Gaza.

'We have made preparations for various scenarios, including high intensity ones... Hamas will get the message.'

Amnesty International said Israel is using 'abusive and wanton force against largely peaceful Palestinian protesters.'

The London-based human rights group described some of the measures as 'disproportionate and unlawful', accusing security forces of 'unprovoked attacks on peaceful demonstrators'.

Amnesty said Israel has used excessive force over multiple weeks of east Jerusalem protests.

In one incident, it said Israeli forces last week broke up a peaceful circle of Palestinians chanting against an attempt by Israelis to evict them from their homes in the city's Sheikh Jarrah district.

Forces on horseback sprinted toward the crowd, trampling a man who was trying to run away, Amnesty said.

The rights group called on the international community 'to hold Israel accountable for its systemic violations'.

The Israeli police did not respond to specific allegations, but told AFP in an email: 'We will not allow disturbance of order while harming the fabric of life, inciting to harm police forces and violence against police officers and civilians.'

Police commissioner Kobi Shabtai told Israeli N12 TV on Monday that in Jerusalem in recent days 'we showed too much restraint'.

'We are at the stage of taking off the gloves,' he said.

The group Save the Children, also based in London, said it was 'horrified' by the Israeli air strikes and demanded a stop to 'the indiscriminate targeting and killing of civilians'.

Israeli army spokesman Conricus said Israel 'was doing everything possible to limit collateral damage' and he said there was no confirmation Israeli strikes had impacted Gaza civilians.

In perhaps the most serious incident of clashes today, CCTV captured the moment crowds of Palestinians pelted a car driving near Jerusalem's Old City with rocks before the Israeli driver accelerated on to the pavement - sending people flying.

People continued to pelt the driver after the car came to a halt, suspended on a nearby wall, before a gun-waving police officer arrived. The officer helped the man from the car, before he was again attacked by a pedestrian.

A Palestinian man punches an Israeli security officer amid bitter clashes around Jerusalem's Old City on Monday

Israeli police arrest a Palestinian man at the Lions' Gate during Monday's clashes at Temple Mount in Jerusalem

Palestinian medics evacuate a wounded protester from outside the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City during yesterday's clashes

Israeli police detain a protester near the compound that houses the Al-Aqsa Mosque during clashes on Monday

Israeli police confront a Palestinian man near the Lions' Gate entrance to Jerusalem's Old City on Monday

A car goes up in flames after a rocket launched by Hamas landed in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon on Tuesday

Palestinians mourn during a funeral in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday

Palestinians evacuate following an Israeli air strike on a building in Gaza City on Tuesday

A Palestinian man carries a child away from a tower block during an Israeli bombardment in Gaza

Palestinian families flee from a tower block in Gaza City as Israel carries out further bombardments on Hamas targets

Palestinians mourners carry the bodies of Ameera Soboh and her son, Abed Soboh, during their funeral in the aftermath of Israel's retaliatory overnight air strike

A Palestinian mother and her son walk next a destroyed Hamas interior ministry site in the aftermath of Israel's air strike in Tal Al Hawa neighbourhood of Gaza

Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system fires to intercept rockets launched from the Gaza Strip, as seen from Ashkelon, southern Israel on Tuesday

Cars go up in flames after a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip landed nearby, in Ashkelon

Mourners carry the body of Amira Soboh, and her 19-year-old disabled son Abdelrahman, who were killed in Israeli airstrikes at their apartment building, during their funeral at the Shati refugee camp, in Gaza City

Palestinian mourners carry the body of 11-year-old Hussain Hamad, who was killed by an explosion in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday

A woman stands next to the rubble of a Hamas interior ministry building in the aftermath of Israel's air strike in Tal Al Hawa neighborhood in the south of Gaza

Police then cancelled a right-wing Israeli march that was due to pass through the Old City and its Muslim Quarter in an effort to calm tensions.

The fighting has drawn calls for de-escalation from the international community and sharp rebukes from across the Muslim world.

The Israeli military said well over 50 rockets were fired into Israel throughout the evening, most of them aimed at southern Israeli towns near the border.

Lieutenant Colonel Conricus said six rockets were aimed at Jerusalem, some 60 miles (100 kilometers) away. It was believed to be the first rocket attack on the city since a 2014 war.

Shortly after the sirens sounded, explosions could be heard in Jerusalem. One rocket fell on the western outskirts of the city, lightly damaging a home and causing a brush fire. The Israeli army said one rocket was intercepted and the others fell in open areas.

Israel then responded with airstrikes on Hamas targets throughout Gaza.

Seven members of a family, including three children, were killed in a blast in the northern town of Beit Hanoun. It was not immediately clear if the blast was caused by an airstrike or errant rocket.

Israel launched deadly air strikes on Gaza Monday in response to a barrage of rockets fired by Hamas and other Palestinian militants, amid spiralling violence sparked by unrest at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque compound. Pictured: Streaks of light are seen as Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip towards the country

At least 20 people were killed, including nine children and a senior Hamas commander, and 65 others wounded, Gaza authorities said

Israel's army said 150 rockets had been launched from Gaza, dozens of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome Aerial Defence System, with no casualties reported. Pictured: One of the rockets being fired from Gaza City towards Israel

At least three exhaust trails were seen in the skies over Gaza City as explosions were heard, though was not immediately clear whether the rockets hit anything or were shot down

Fighting today saw at least 305 Palestinians hurt, including 205 taken to hospital, five in serious condition. Some 21 police were hurt, including one seriously, the Israeli security services sai

Ashraf al-Masri, a member of the family, said there was an explosion outside the house.

'We don't know where it came from,' he said. 'We are trying to get the children for burial but the situation is difficult in Beit Hanoun and we are afraid to leave our houses.'

Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas' military wing, said the attack on Jerusalem was a response to what he called Israeli 'crimes and aggression' in the city. 'This is a message the enemy has to understand well,' he said.

He threatened more attacks if Israeli forces re-enter the sacred Al-Aqsa Mosque compound or carry out planned evictions of Palestinian families from an east Jerusalem neighbourhood.

Fears of further chaos in the Old City had eased somewhat on Monday when Israeli organisers cancelled a march to celebrate the Jewish state's 1967 capture of east Jerusalem that was due to pass through the Old City.

But then came the Hamas warning, followed shortly after by the rockets.

'An alarm has just been sounded in Jerusalem. Police forces have begun evacuating hundreds of people' gathered at the Wailing Wall to safer locations, police said in a brief statement.

A fire billows from Israeli air strikes in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday morning

A fire rages following an Israeli air strike overnight on the southern Gaza region of Khan Yunis, controlled by the Hamas movement, early on Tuesday

Fire billows from an Israeli air strike in the Gaza Strip, controlled by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas

Hamas, a militant group which controls the Gaza Strip, had earlier issued a 6pm ultimatum for Israel to withdraw security forces from the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem. The rockets were fired after the deadline lapsed. Pictured: Rockets are seen being fired from Gaza

The Israeli military said it had targeted 'two rocket launchers, two military posts', a tunnel and eight Hamas operatives in Gaza

An Israeli military vehicle is seen firing tear gas canisters towards Palestinians during Monday's protests

An ISraeli police officer walks past burning debris during an anti-Israel protest by Palestinians over tension in Jerusalem, in Bethlehem in the Israeli-occupied West Bank

Israeli border police members take position near burning barricades during the violent protests on Monday evening

The fighting has drawn calls for de-escalation from the international community and sharp rebukes from across the Muslim world

This boy was pictured being treated in hospital after he was injured following an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza strip on Monday

Israeli troops are seen during clashes with Palestinian protesters in the city center of the West Bank city of Hebron on Monday

Rescue teams inspect the damage to Palestinian homes in the town of Beit Hanoun caused by Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip. Twenty Palestinians were killed in a series of Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip on Monday. They were launched after Hamas fired rockets towards Jerusalem

Protesters chant slogans and wave flags outside the Israeli Consulate during a protest against Israel on Monday in Istanbul, Turkey

A Palestinian man pushes a bloody stretcher after wounded residents were treated in hospital following the Israeli airstrikes

Palestinian protesters clash with Israeli troops at in the city center of the West Bank city of Hebron on Monday evening

Israel's Lieutenant Colonel Conricus said six rockets were aimed at Jerusalem, some 60 miles (100 kilometers) away. It was believed to be the first rocket attack on the city since a 2014 war. Pictured: A Palestinian protester on Monday

Israeli security forces clash with Palestinian protesters at the Hawara checkpoint, south of Nablus city, in the occupied West Bank

Hamas has fired several rockets towards Israel in recent days, some intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defence system

Demonstrators light flares during a protest against Israel near the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, on Monday

Palestinians burn tires after Israeli police used tear gas, rubber bullets and stun grenades to quell violent protests in the Nablus province of the West Bank

Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas' military wing, said the attack on Jerusalem was a response to what he called Israeli 'crimes and aggression' in the city. 'This is a message the enemy has to understand well,' he said

Israel's Iron Dome aerial defence system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip, controlled by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, above the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, on Monday

A streak of light is seen as Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel

Israelis run for shelter in Jerusalem as bomb sirens sound after Hamas fired rockets from Gaza towards the Jewish state

An Israeli man carries his son towards a bomb shelter in Jerusalem after Hamas launched rockets at Israel from Gaza

Shocking CCTV has revealed the moment Palestinian protesters pelted an Israeli man's car with rocks during clashes near Jerusalem's Old City, before he drove into crowds

A gun-waving policeman eventually came to the man's aid as protesters continued throwing rocks, with hundreds of people injured in violence today

Moments later, the man was involved in a fist-fight with police just inches away amid the worst violence that Jerusalem has seen in recent years

Medics evacuate a protester who was injured near the Lions' Gate entrance to Jerusalem's Old City amid fresh violence on the streets today

Clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians began during Ramadan, but dramatically escalated at the weekend with fighting around the Al-Aqsa mosque

Paramedics take the injured Palestinians after Israeli police moved into the Temple Mount compound - known to Muslims as Haram esh-Sharif - to clear demonstrators away

On Monday evening, Palestinians continued gathering outside the Al-Aqsa Compound, in East Jerusalem

Israeli Police officers clash with Palestinians at Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's old city during Israel's 'Jerusalem Day'

Hamas has fired several rockets towards Israel in recent days, some intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defence system, while militants in Gaza have deployed incendiary balloons that have sparked dozens of fires in Israeli territory.

Israel's army earlier announced widespread road closures in communities near the Gaza border, following a 'situational assessment', and two municipalities near Gaza, Ashkelon and Kyriat Malachi, confirmed that they had opened their bomb shelters.

Monday's clashes marked the fourth straight day of fighting between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in Jerusalem, the most serious period of violence the city has seen since 2017.

Tensions between the two sides had been simmering since mid-April because Israeli forces had restricted access to the Al Aqsa Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan.

But the clashes suddenly escalated on Friday with violence in and around the mosque, which drew more people on to the streets. Protesters have also been angered by a long-running court battle between Jewish settlers and Palestinian homeowners in east Jerusalem, where the Old City is located.

A court that was due to rule on the issue today has postponed the date.

Medical workers evacuate a wounded protester from near the Dome of the Rock, Judaism's holiest site that sits just next to the Al Aqsa Mosque which has been at the centre of clashes

An injured man is helped to his feet by a passerby inside the Temple Mount/Haram esh-Sharif compound in Jerusalem

Israeli security forces detain a Palestinian protester amid clashes at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City amid some of the worst clashes in the city for years

Israeli security forces clash with Palestinian protesters at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound today

A member of Israeli police aims a weapon during clashes with Palestinians at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque

Israeli riot police are seen forming a shield wall near the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem's Old City amid violent clashes with Palestinian protesters that have entered their third day

The leader of the far-right Religious Zionism party, Bezalel Smotrich, announced a visit Monday to the tense Sheikh Jarrah district which is at the centre of property disputes.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday defended Israel's response to the protests and rioting.

'We will uphold law and order - vigorously and responsibly,' Netanyahu said while vowing to 'guard freedom of worship for all faiths'.

Monday's clashes broke out after Palestinians gathered around the Al-Aqsa Mosque in anticipation of the arrival of the Jerusalem Day march, which is due to end at the nearby Dome of the Rock.

Israeli security forces said demonstrators barricaded themselves inside the mosque, and officers were sent in to clear them out. Rocks were thrown at police, who opened fire with tear gas and rubber bullets.

Witnesses said some of the tear gas grenades landed inside the mosque. The BBC also reported confrontations in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, and near the West Bank city of Ramallah.

The scenes around Al-Aqsa Mosque mirror those which took place on Friday and have seen Israeli forces criticised for heavy-handed tactics.

All six Arab nations that have diplomatic ties with Israel - Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan - have condemned the Jewish state.

In Jordan, the custodian of Jerusalem's holy Islamic and Christian sites, King Abdullah II condemned 'Israeli violations and escalatory practices at the blessed Al-Aqsa mosque'.

Jordan and Egypt both summoned Israeli envoys on Sunday to lodge protests.

The Middle East quartet of envoys from the European Union, Russia, the United States and the United Nations - and Pope Francis - have all called for calm.

'Israeli authorities must exercise maximum restraint and respect the right to freedom of peaceful assembly,' UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.

Clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters have been centered around the Asl-Aqsa Mosque. Today, at Lions' Gate, a car was filmed driving into protesters as they pelted it with rocks. Later today, a Jerusalem Day procession is due to pass through Damascus Gate and through the Muslim quarter of the city, amid fears it will spark more clashes

Israeli police detain a Palestinian man during clashes around the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem

Israeli security forces detain a Palestinian man near Jerusalem's Old City, amid clashes that are the worst to have hit the city since at least 2017

Israeli police stand guard at one of the entrances to Jerusalem's Old City amid the worst clashes the city has seen since 2017

Paramedics take away an injured Palestinian while Israeli security forces look on amid clashes in Jerusalem's Old City

Palestinian medics evacuate a wounded protester from the Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, which has seen three days of violence

Palestinians who had gathered near the Al Aqsa Mosque are dispersed by Israeli security forces

Palestinians take cover as Israeli police open fire with tear gas and rubber bullets while medics rush to help the injured

A Palestinian man rushes to get rid of a tear gas grenade amid clashes with Israeli security forces near the Dome of the Rock

Medics treat a wounded man during clashes with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound

The unrest of past weeks in east Jerusalem, which Palestinians claim as their future capital, has multiple causes.

Much of the recent violence stems from a long-running legal effort by Jewish settler groups to evict several Palestinians from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah.

A lower court ruling earlier this year backing the settlers' decades-old claim to the plots infuriated Palestinians.

A Supreme Court hearing on a Palestinian appeal had been set for Monday, but the justice ministry said Sunday that in light of 'all the circumstances' it would delay the hearing.

Old City shopkeeper Mohammad said Israeli police told him he must close Monday afternoon, when Israeli Jews plan to march with Israeli flags to mark Jerusalem's 'reunification'.

Israel annexed east Jerusalem following the 1967 takeover, a move not recognised by most of the international community.

The unrest has spread across the Palestinian territories, including demonstrations and clashes in the occupied West Bank.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has expressed 'full support for our heroes in Al-Aqsa'.

Hamas Islamists who control the Gaza Strip have also voiced support for the Palestinian protesters and warned Israel of retribution if evictions proceed in Sheikh Jarrah.

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh called Sunday for a united Arab and Muslim response against Israel's 'provocative desecration of the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque'.

Four rockets were fired from Gaza towards Israel on Sunday, the army said, as well as incendiary balloons that started 39 fires on Israeli territory, according to the fire services.

The Israeli military said late Sunday that 'tanks just struck Hamas terror targets in Gaza', without giving further details.

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City

A member of Israeli security forces runs amid clashes with Palestinian protesters in Jerusalem's Old City

Israeli police detain a Palestinian during clashes at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque, known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount

Medics tend to a wounded Palestinian during clashes with Israeli police at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque

A Palestinian man is confronted by Israeli security forces in Jerusalem's Old City
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Boris Johnson left No10 for Parliament today as he plans to heap pressure on stricken Keir Starmer with a Queen's Speech aiming to 'level up' jobs and investment in former Labour heartlands.

The PM will try to cement his new 'Blue Wall' vowing people will no longer have to move to London for decent work, and boosting education opportunities for those who have not been to university.

Speaking ahead of the monarch laying out the legislative programme, the Prime Minister revealed plans for legislation that will give every adult the right to access cheap, flexible loans to fund college courses and training later in life.

A 'lifetime skills guarantee' will be enshrined in law to enable anyone to upgrade their qualifications, regardless of their background.

It is among a range of measures doubling down on the agenda that helped the Tories storm more of Labour's former heartlands in the Midlands and the North last week.

However, the government is already facing criticism over the lack of action on social care provision - something Mr Johnson has promised to fix.

Boris Johnson (pictured leaving for Parliament today) has vowed to inject 'rocket fuel' into his pledge to level up Britain, with the introduction of new laws to boost education opportunities for those who have not been to university

The Queen will unveil the new legislative programme in her first major engagement since the death of Prince Philip

Mr Johnson is trying to turn the screw on Keir Starmer (left) after local elections, but in interviews this morning Matt Hancock (right) had to fend off questions about the lack of action on social care

Others include reforms to state aid to make it easier for the Government to subsidise industries facing unfair competition, new light-touch freeports and a shake-up of the planning regime to accelerate the rollout of new housing and infrastructure.

In a round of interviews this morning, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the Speech will be 'jam-packed' with measures to 'level up' the country and deliver on the Government's promise.

He insisted the Government remained committed to long-term reform of adult social care in England but declined to say when it would publish proposals.

'This is an incredibly important area. We are committed to bringing forward reforms on social care  we are committed to that in our manifesto,' he told Sky News.

'We will be bringing forward a long-term plan for reform of social care. As we come out of Covid, so we can return to delivering on those manifesto commitments that we made.

'We have seen the importance of social care through this crisis. That has strengthened the need for reform, the need for integration with the NHS.'

Mr Hancock admitted more resources are needed to address the 'significant injustices' in the social care system.

Mr Hancock told BBC Breakfast: 'There are a number of significant injustices in the way that social care is organised right now. One is that some people  about one in 10  have these very, very high costs.

'It is very hard to know in advance who that is. Making sure that together as a society we can help people with those costs is important.'

He added: 'We put more money into the system each year. We put an extra billion pounds in last year but I think, as a society, we should really look after people in their older age and it is something that we need to put more and more resources into.'

In a move that raised eyebrows in Westminster, Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg has also confirmed that the programme will also clear the way for a potential early election by scrapping the Fixed-term Parliaments Act.

Repeal of the controversial legislation would allow the PM to order an election at the time of his choosing.

Peers were starting to gather in the House of Lords today ahead of the pared-back Queen's Speech to reopen Parliament

The final preparations have been made including the 'ceremonial search' of Parliament to help keep the Queen safe

There are also claims that Mr Johnson will act to shorten election campaigns to just four weeks from more than five currently.

Some Tory MPs believe an election could be just two years away and the grassroots Tory website Conservative Home yesterday urged activists to 'be ready for a general election in the spring of 2023'.

However, ministers played down the prospect of an election before 2024, saying that the pandemic had left the Government behind schedule on delivering its manifesto.

Today's State Opening of Parliament will lack some of the traditional pomp and ceremony.

Only a number of peers and MPs are likely to be present in person to hear the Queen.

All those attending will have to take Covid tests.

Last night the Prime Minister underlined the importance of the education reforms, which will focus on the 50 per cent of people who do not go to university.

Mr Johnson said: 'These new laws are the rocket fuel that we need to level up this country and ensure equal opportunities for all.

'I'm revolutionising the system so we can move past the outdated notion that there is only one route up the career ladder, and ensure that everyone has the opportunity to retrain or upskill at any point in their lives.'

A Government source said the PM believes those who do not go to university had been 'historically deprived of the chance to find their vocation and develop a fulfilling, well-paid career'.

Under the new Skills and Post-16 Education Bill, set to be published next week, ministers will shake up the student loans system to open it up to all adults seeking higher-level education or training later in life.

Everyone will have access to the equivalent of four years' worth of student loans, which will be accessible throughout their career.

Employers will also be given a statutory role in planning publicly funded training programmes to try and ensure colleges are teaching the skills needed.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson will have more powers to intervene in colleges that fail to meet the needs of the local economy.

Today's Queen's Speech will contain a wide range of measures to get the Government's agenda back on track after more than a year spent grappling with the pandemic.

These include plans to tackle the backlog of NHS operations and cancer treatments and a new law setting ambitious targets for cutting carbon emissions.

However, ministers are facing a backlash over plans to make it compulsory for voters to prove their identity at the polling station.

Former Tory cabinet minister David Davis said it was an 'illiberal solution for a non-existent problem'.

Mr Johnson last night dismissed the criticism as 'complete nonsense', saying it was 'not unreasonable' to ask people to show ID to help cut voter fraud.
Indian doctors have urged people not to cover themselves in cow dung and urine as a treatment for Covid, saying it risks spreading the disease faster.

Medics spoke out after it emerged that Hindus in western Gujarat state have been visiting cow shelters once a week to douse themselves in excrement, which is then washed off with milk.

They believe feces from a cow - a holy animal to Hindus - will boost their immune systems, helping to both prevent and cure Covid.

But Dr JA Jayalal, president of the Indian Medical Association, warned the 'cure' doesn't work and may actually help to spread the virus as often-sick people gather in groups to undergo the treatment.

Some Indians have turned to unproven 'cures' for Covid as the virus runs rampant in the country and proven treatments - such as oxygen and vaccines - run in desperately short supply.

People cover themselves in a mixture of cow dung and urine at a Hindu school in Gujarat state, India, believing it is an alternative cure for Covid

Cow dung is often used in Hindu rituals for its supposed antiseptic or therapeutic properties, but some are now turning to it as a treatment for Covid

Believers smear themselves in a mixture of dung and urine, wait for it to dry, and then wash the mixture off using milk or buttermilk

Doctors warned against using unproven 'cures' for the virus as India's second wave of Covid continues to build, though the rate of increase has slowed in recent days

Despite cases easing a little, deaths have continued to rise at a rapid pace, with the seven-day average now sitting just shy of 4,000 fatalities per day

In one incident, at least 11 patients died at a hospital in the city of Tirupati overnight when the oxygen ran out because a vital delivery was late.

'There were issues with oxygen pressure due to low availability. It all happened within a span of five minutes,' said M Harinarayan, the district's top bureaucrat said late on Monday, adding the hospital's supplies had now been topped up.

Just a week ago, medics in rural parts of Maharashtra state warned that patients are being brought to them with marks from hot irons held against their skin by witch doctors in an attempt to drive the virus out.

Others are coming to shelters such as Shree Swaminarayan Gurukul Vishwavidya Pratishthanam, a school run by Hindu monks near Ahmedabad, to undergo cow dung 'therapy'.

The shelter is located just across the road from the headquarters of Zydus Cadila, which is developing its own COVID-19 vaccine.

Gautam Manilal Borisa, a manager at a pharmaceuticals company and frequent visitor, insisted to reporters that bathing in cow dung had cured him of Covid when he caught the virus last year.

While waiting for the dung packs to dry, devotees hug the cows or perform yoga - believing it will further boost their immunity

Devotees at a Hindu school in the city of Ahmedabad have their cow dung packs washed off using milk in the belief it will help prevent illness

A man covered in cow dung is washed with milk in the belief it will help prevent Covid, though medics warn there is no evidence to support it

A man washes cow dung off his legs after taking part in a 'therapy' session at a Hindu school in Ahmedabad that was designed to ward off Covid

'We see ... even doctors come here. Their belief is that this therapy improves their immunity and they can go and tend to patients with no fear,' he said.

Believes mix both cow dung and urine - which has been used in Hindu rituals for centuries for its supposed therapeutic and antiseptic properties - and then cover their bodies in the mixture.

As participants wait for the dung and urine mixture on their bodies to dry, they hug or honour the cows at the shelter, and practice yoga to boost energy levels.

The packs are then washed off with milk or buttermilk.

'There is no concrete scientific evidence that cow dung or urine work to boost immunity against COVID-19, it is based entirely on belief,' said Dr Jayalal as he urged people not to visit such centres.

'There are also health risks involved in smearing or consuming these products - other diseases can spread from the animal to humans.'

India's coronavirus crisis showed scant sign of easing on Tuesday, with a seven-day average of new cases at a record high and international health authorities warning the country's variant of the virus poses a global concern.

India's daily coronavirus cases rose by 329,942, while deaths from the disease rose by 3,876, according to the health ministry. India's total coronavirus infections are now at 22.99 million, while total fatalities rose to 249,992.

India leads the world in the daily average number of new deaths reported, accounting for one in every three deaths reported worldwide each day, according to a Reuters tally.

Some Indians have turned to 'alternative' medicine as scientific treatments run short, with 11 people dying at a hospital in Tirupati overnight after oxygen ran out (pictured)

Distressing footage from the hospital showed patients struggling to breathe as they were tended to by nurses and loved ones after a vital delivery of oxygen was late

India has been struggling to transport enough oxygen to its big cities to treat Covid patients since its second wave exploded last month, with the crisis still continuing

The seven-day average of new cases is at a record high of 390,995.

The World Health Organization said the coronavirus variant first identified in the country last year was being classified as a variant of global concern, with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily.

'We are classifying this as a variant of concern at a global level,' Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead on COVID-19, told a briefing in Geneva on Monday. 'There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility.'

Nations around the globe have sent oxygen cylinders and other medical gear to support India's crisis, but many hospitals around the nation are struggling with a shortage of the life-saving equipment.

Sixteen faculty members and a number of retired teachers and employees who had been living on the campus of Aligarh Muslim University, one of India's most prestigious, had died of coronavirus, the university said.

Adding to the strain on medical facilities, the Indian government has told doctors to look out for signs of mucormycosis or 'black fungus' in COVID-19 patients as hospitals report a rise in cases of the rare but potentially fatal infection.

The disease, which can lead to blackening or discolouration over the nose, blurred or double vision, chest pain, breathing difficulties and coughing blood, is strongly linked to diabetes. And diabetes can in turn be exacerbated by steroids such as dexamethasone, used to treat severe COVID-19.

India's second wave has increased calls for a nationwide lockdown and prompted a growing number of states to impose tougher restrictions, impacting businesses and the wider economy.
Hundreds of campaigners are calling for the immediate release of a mechanic jailed over the death of a hammer-wielding vandal during an attempted citizen's arrest.

The petition has demanded that Home Secretary Priti Patel intervene in the case of Benjamin Hunt, 32, who is currently serving a 38-month prison sentence.

The father-of-two had chased Christopher Walters, 25, after he had damaged a car with a sledgehammer in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, in May 2019.

Hunt then held Mr Walters by the neck, on the ground, for several minutes, using his body weight to pin him down even after Mr Walters lost consciousness.

Staffordshire Police took 19 minutes to attend and Mr Walters was later pronounced dead at the Royal Stoke University Hospital.

Hunt was locked up last month after admitting to manslaughter during the citizen's arrest gone wrong.

His work colleague Jonathan Hassall, 51, who was also involved in the incident, took his own life just days before he was due to go on trial for manslaughter.

Campaigners believe Hunt should not have been jailed after he put the safety of the public before his own and are now calling for his release.

The petition has demanded that Home Secretary Priti Patel intervene in the case of Benjamin Hunt, 32, (left) who is currently serving a 38-month prison sentence after admitting to the manslaughter of 25-year-old Christopher Walters (right)

The Free Benjamin Hunt petition has so far attracted more than 900 signatures.

Organiser Tony Dyer has said: 'Ben Hunt is a mild-mannered, hardworking, young family man who is a pillar of society.

'He has been imprisoned for 38 months for making an honest mistake which any other law-abiding citizen could have made.

'He was working at the garage when Christopher Walters, who seemed to be under the influence of drugs, began to smash the windows of a car parked outside with a sledgehammer.

Campaigners are asking Priti Patel (pictured) to intervene as they believe Hunt should not have been jailed

Stafford Crown Court last month heard how Mr Walters was detained in Wood Street, Longton, (pictured) and he was later pronounced dead at the Royal Stoke University Hospital

What does the law say about carrying out a citizen's arrest in UK? A citizen's arrest is an arrest by an individual who is not a police officer or other sworn law enforcement official. The law states anyone can perform a citizen's arrest on somebody who is committing an indictable offence. It also states anybody can arrest a person if they have reasonable grounds to suspect that the person is committing an indictable offence. An indictable offence can land a person in Crown Court so it has to be a serious crime such as burglary or a violent offence. But it may not be apparent whether the suspect's behaviour amounts to an indictable offence so the situation needs to be assessed carefully. Anyone carrying out an arrest can only use reasonable force when making it. The law states a citizen's arrest can be carried out to the prevent the person: Causing physical injury to themself or any other person

Suffering physical injury

Causing loss of or damage to property

Making off before a constable can assume responsibility for them Advertisement

'When challenged by Ben Hunt and Jonathan Hassall, Mr Walters ran away still brandishing the sledgehammer towards a school packed with young children.

'Fearful for the safety of the children Hunt and Hassall gave chase.

'They tackled Mr Walters to the ground, disarmed him, and attempted to hold him for the police who were called by a bystander.

'Hunt held him round the neck and Jonathan Hassall held his legs as he was kicking out.'

Stafford Crown Court last month heard how Mr Walters was detained in Wood Street, Longton.

But Staffordshire Police took 19 minutes to attend and he was later pronounced dead at the Royal Stoke University Hospital.

The petition added: 'Ben Hunt is a motor mechanic with no medical knowledge and could not have foreseen such a horrific end to his disarming and trying to restrain a man displaying unlawful and violent behaviour.

'Hunt is the victim of a tragic accident caused by an unfortunate chain of events initiated by the unlawful actions of Mr Walters and exacerbated by the unreasonable length of time taken by the police to respond to the 999 call.

'Hunt had the prosecution case hanging over his head for almost two years.

'He also had the trauma of finding the body of Jonathan Hassall.

'I submit that a jail sentence of 38 months on top of the mental trauma that Hunt has already suffered is a travesty of justice and that compassion rather than punishment would have best served in this instance.

'I believe that there but for the grace of God go I and that many law-abiding citizens could have found themselves in a like situation.

'If you agree with me please add your signature to the petition for his release.'
Four mental health nurses have been deregistered after an indigenous patient with a history of self-harm killed himself on their night shift at a large Sydney hospital.

Staff were required to take observations every 30 minutes, but a coroner found the patient could have been dead from between two and eight hours before he was found at 7.30 am on May 27, 2017.

Days earlier the patient told a psychiatric registrar he needed to make a will because he would 'not be here in a week' and he 'had nothing left'.

Four nurses have been found guilty of professional misconduct after a mentally ill man, 49, with a recent history of suicide attempts and depression, killed himself on their watch

The Health Care Complaints Commission took disciplinary action against the five nurses on duty that night, contending they failed to provide proper observations and make appropriate records for the patient in the acute mental health unit.

The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal on Tuesday found four guilty of professional misconduct but dismissed the case against the fifth nurse, Phoebe Chikuku.

Emma Kate Brown, who was the team leader that night, was deregistered for two years, Mehul Mukundray Dudhela and Jill Louise Watkins for 18 months, and Florence Egbufor for 12 months.

The 49-year-old involuntary patient, who had a recent history of suicide attempts and depression, was admitted to the hospital on May 22.

A psychiatric registrar noted the patient's worsening depression with suicidality in the past few weeks, precipitated by separation from his partner and inability to contact his children.

'Reference was also made to his living conditions, being homeless and living in his car, lack of social support and upcoming court case,' the tribunal said.

The registrar directed level 3 observations, which required nursing staff to take observations every 20 minutes during the day shift and every 30 minutes during the night shift.

The tribunal found the nurses made records indicating that observations had taken place when they knew they had not.

Some made entries on the observation sheet without personally assessing whether the patient was alive.

One nurse made a progress note suggesting that the patient was asleep during all rounds in circumstances where the nurse had last sighted the patient almost seven hours previously.

The NSW Tribunal did not name the hospital, but a 2019 inquest into the man's death revealed it to be the Nepean Hospital in Penrith

One failed to record significant information about the patient's behaviour relevant to his mental state.

They involved the patient allegedly coming out of his room to abuse another patient and later allegedly being agitated and verbally aggressive.

'This conduct posed a direct risk to the safety of a vulnerable involuntary mental health patient.

'It was ultimately realised.'

The tribunal deemed their conduct to be serious and found all nurses 'demonstrated an absence of care, propriety, honesty and integrity relating to the practice of nursing'.

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Seven children were killed this morning at a school in the Russian city of Kazan when a 19-year-old gunman rampaged through the building with a rifle and homemade bombs.

Pupils leapt from third-floor windows and were seen crawling away from the building after the shooter, named locally as Ilnaz Galyaviev, stormed in just after 9.20am.

Galyaviev, a former pupil, is purportedly seen on chilling footage walking towards the school gates with a gun in one hand and a bag in the other before he launched the appalling assault.

Horrific videos showed young children covered in blood lying on the grass outside the building in the aftermath as their weeping parents and teachers bandaged their wounds.

English teacher Elvira Ignatieva, 26, was reportedly killed in the massacre. She had worked at the school for the last four years after graduating from university and was nominated for 'teacher of the year' in her district in 2018.

The suspect, who claimed on social media that he would kill himself, was taken into custody alive. Footage showed a police officer pinning him to the ground outside the front entrance to the school.

Galyaviev was later pictured in the police station, tied up in an iron cage, where he reportedly told officers that he was 'god' and that he 'hated everybody.'

Despite earlier reports of multiple gunmen, Rustam Minnikhanov, president of the Tatarstan region, said: 'We have lost seven children ... four boys and three girls. And 16 people, 12 children and four adults, are in hospital.

'The terrorist has been arrested. He's a 19-year-old who was officially registered as a gun owner.'

It was possible the toll would rise. Twenty-one wounded people were rushed to hospital, including 18 children, six of whom were in intensive care.

Vladimir Putin ordered an urgent review of gun control laws in the country where shotguns, semi-automatic rifles and handguns are legal.

The president was 'taking into account the weapon' used in the attack, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, though he did not specify which type of gun that was.

Galyaviev, a former pupil, is purportedly seen on chilling footage walking towards the school with a gun in one hand and a bag in the other before he launched the appalling assault.

Galyaviev was later pictured in the police station, tied up in an iron cage, where he reportedly told officers that he was 'god' and that he 'hated everybody'

English teacher Elvira Ignatieva, 26, was reportedly killed in the massacre. She had worked at the school for the last four years after graduating from university and was nominated for 'teacher of the year' in her district in 2018

Terrified pupils were seen leaping out of third floor windows in a desperate bid to escape the carnage unfolding inside the school

Footage showed the teenage suspect, named locally as Ilnaz Galyaviev, being pinned to the ground outside by a police officer. Before the attack he posted a chilling photo to social media, calling himself 'god' and saying he wanted to rid the world of all human beings

Two young girls are seen outside the school after the attack, one has blood on her legs and hands as she receives treatment (left) and the damaged interior of the school (right)

A shotgun which was recovered from the suspect

Crowds of anxious parents gathered outside the school this morning, some were seen weeping as children were loaded into ambulances while others watched on as firefighters helped children clamber down ladders.

One pupil said that they were ordered to lock their classroom doors by the headteacher over the loudspeaker system before they heard shooting erupt.

He said he saw a cleaner and a guard who had been shot while trying to prevent the gunmen from gaining access to the school were more than 700 children and 52 teachers were at work.

The youngster told local media: 'We were sitting on the third floor, we had a history lesson.

'Suddenly, in the middle of the lesson, the headmistress starts shouting into the loud speaker so that no one would open their doors.

'The class teacher quickly closed the door and literally five seconds later a big explosion went off, either on the first or on the second floor.

'We stayed together and did not open the door to anyone, but they burst into it - shots were heard, banging on the door, as if someone was trying to knock it out.

'After some time, we heard the riot police and the the deputy head shouted to us to open it.

'Firefighters came in and took us out.

'I don't know who did the shooting, and nobody knows.

'Some say they are terrorists, others say that they are eleventh graders.

'I don't know who they killed, but they killed the cleaner and the guard for sure - they tried to keep them out of the school.'

A 15-year-old boy told local media: 'Everyone started panicking and saying 'shut the doors.' About a minute later the headteacher started yelling: 'We're shutting the doors!'

'We got out about 15 minutes later, not out of the windows. I wanted to do that, but the teacher closed the window immediately and said no.'

Galyaviev, who left the school four years ago, is reported to have killed seven eighth graders - aged 13 to 14 - and a teacher.

He left two unexploded devices inside the school building and reportedly told officers he left another device planted in his house.

Students are evacuated from the school in Kazan by ladder after shooting began

The aftermath of the shooting shows plaster, dust and wood scattered across the floors

Teachers and pupils were evacuated from the school by ladder

Paramedics and police at the school in Kazan on Tuesday after the attack which left dozens of children wounded

A large crowd gathered outside the school including worried parents as gunshots were heard in the neighbourhood

A woman wipes away tears as she stands outside the school in Kazan on Tuesday

Kazan is the capital of mainly Muslim Tatarstan, an oil-rich region on the Volga River.

The apartment block has since been evacuated so that the bomb squad can make checks.

In a chilling message posted online before the attack, he wrote: 'Today I will kill a big amount of bio trash and will shoot myself.'

Photos from his social media accounts showed Galyaviev wearing a mask emblazoned with the word: 'God.'

Other messages read: 'As god, I want everyone to admit they are my slaves.

'You have to do absolutely everything that I want. I want each of you to kill 10+ and kill themselves. There should be no one living, this is the universe's mistake.'

He also wrote: 'I came to this world as a human to get rid of all of you.'

Reports say he told police that he learned how to make bombs on the Internet.

He also said that 'he hates everybody', and 'wanted everybody to know he is a god.'

His shocked father Rinat when found by the media said: 'What has he done?'

He was later detained.

Reached by phone he said: 'I am at the police station right now, don't bother me please.'

A mother embraces her child after the school shooting on Tuesday

Firefighters outside the school gates this morning

Concerned locals, including parents, wait outside the school as ladders are propped up to third floor windows

A tactical response team is seen in the grounds of the school surveying the building. It was not clear if there was a shooter or shooters still at large

Members of the security forces stand guard at the entrance to the school today

Troops are seen around the perimeter of the school building today

Ambulances, army and police trucks are seen outside the front of the school this morning

Fire engines and police cars arriving at the scene this morning

A crowd, including concerned parents, is gathered outside the school as dozens of emergency vehicles arrived at the scene

Around 20 ambulances were on the scene, including members of the security forces.

There were varying reports on the number of casualties, with one local paper saying that up to 32 children had been rushed to hospital.

'The prosecutor of the Republic of Tatarstan Ildus Nafikov left for the scene. The circumstances of the incident are being investigated,' said an official.

All the other schools in the city were closed for the day as a precaution.

School shootings are rare in Russia. One of the last major shootings of its kind took place in Russian-annexed Crimea in 2018 when a student at a college killed 19 before turning his gun on himself.

Kazan is the capital of the Muslim-majority region of Tatarstan and located around 450 miles east of Moscow.
China's population has grown at its slowest pace in decades, reaching 1.41 billion, census results showed on Tuesday, highlighting fears of a looming crisis over an ageing society.

The growth of 5.4 percent over the past decade was the slowest since the 1960s, and comes alongside a sharp drop in the number of working-age people.

China remains the world's most populous nation - but its neighbour India is catching up with around 1.38 billion people, and its youthful population is expected to overtake China in the near future.

A medical staff member takes care of a newborn baby at a hospital in Danzhai, in China's southwestern Guizhou province on May 11

After nearly 40 years of a controversial 'one-child' policy, Beijing in 2016 allowed families to have two children as fears grew about China's shrinking workforce.

China imposed the policy in the late 1970s, forcing couples to have only one baby in a dramatic effort to slow population growth.

But the relaxation of the rule is yet to produce the expected baby boom to help stall a demographic slump in a country which is getting old fast.

'The census not only confirmed rapid population ageing, but also sustained low fertility,' said Wang Feng, professor of sociology at the University of California, Irvine.

'At that low a level, the population cannot sustain itself.'

The changing society has significant economic and political implications for the world's second biggest economy.

The number of people aged between 15 and 59 dropped nearly seven percentage points, while those over 60 was up more than five percentage points.

The surging number of elderly would challenge Beijing to spend more on healthcare and pensions, said Wang, and 'justify its legitimacy by providing the basic social benefits.'

A family walk along a street in Beijing on May 11. China's population grew at its slowest since the 1950s as births declined, sowing doubt over Beijing's ability to power its economy

Falling marriage rates have played out in slower birth rates, as have rising costs of living and increasingly empowered and educated women delaying or avoiding childbirth.

Ning Jizhe from China's statistics bureau said China's fertility policy had achieved 'positive results' but conceded the ageing population 'imposed continued pressure' on development.

China's gender balance has also been skewed by the one-child policy and a centuries-old social preference for boys which prompted a generation of sex-selective abortions and abandoned baby girls.

The latest census data showed the country still has 34.9 million more men than women, making up just over 51.24 percent of the population.

In the near term, Ning said the coronavirus pandemic had also discouraged couples from having children.

Covid-19 'increased the uncertainty of everyday life and increased worries around hospitalised childbirth,' he added.

There were around 12 million births in 2020, he told reporters - the lowest number since 1961.

The average size of a family is now 2.62 people, census data showed, down from 3.10 people 10 years ago.

In a stark sign of changing society, the urban population grew by 236.4 million.

More than 63 percent of Chinese people now live in urban areas.

People walk along a street in Beijing on May 11. In recent months, China's state media has been increasingly bleak on the outlook, saying the population may start to shrink in the next few years

However, nearly 500 million now work in places other than their official household registration, known as the hukou, which can make it harder for families to access schools or healthcare.

Yun Jiang, editor of China Neican at the Australian Centre on China in the World, said Beijing has already 'moved to a more 'pro-birth' direction' because it needs a large population to sustain its international influence.

China is trying to remove barriers against having children and promote conservative social attitudes 'such as shaming single women and penalising working women', she said.

The country conducts a census every decade to determine population growth, movement patterns and other trends, and the politically sensitive data plays a major role in government planning.

The 2020 survey was completed in December with the help of seven million volunteers and for the first time much of the data was collected online.

US-based academic Yi Fuxian, senior scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, speculated China's population was already an over-estimation and began to decline in 2018.

The 2020 census data is designed to avoid a 'political earthquake' but will lead to policies being 'based on the wrong population data,' he said.
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A frantic father has delivered his own baby with only the instructions of a Triple Zero operator after his wife unexpectedly went into labour.

Ravideep Singh from Ipswich, Queensland, received a call from his heavily pregnant wife, Navjot Kaur, around 6am on May 5 to tell him her waters had broken.

The soon-to-be father pleaded with his wife to try and hold off the labour and told her not to push, but soon realised his daughter was already being born.

Ravideeep Singth (left) received a call from his pregnant wife Navjot Kaur (right)

'I told him I'm not pushing, the baby is coming by itself, I can't hold the baby inside. Ravideep was so scared', Ms Kaur told 9News.

Rushing back to their Augustine Heights home, a Mr Singh called Triple Zero and was connected with emergency medical dispatcher Allie Roser.

In the nail-biting call, Ms Roser asks the Queensland father if he can see part of the baby to which he responds 'Exactly, I can see the hairs'.

As their daughter was crowning, the ambulance officer instructed Mr Singh to put his hand on the baby's head.

Allie Roser (pictured) said she immediately began to give Mr Singh instructions on how to deliver the baby, as well as try to calm the worried father down

'Yeah the baby's coming out, I can see the head', the worried father said.

'The head's out? Fantastic you're doing a great job!', Ms Roser replied.

The early morning phone call had been the officer's first of the day.

After sending an ambulance, Ms Roser began to give the Queensland father instructions to deliver the baby, as well as try to calm him down.

Paramedics Samantha Bedford and Bradley Lavers were soon on the scene to provide Mr Singh with some much-welcome back-up.

The healthy baby girl was reunited with the first responders less than a week after her birth

'We literally walked through the bedroom door and there she was, and we just went straight into action,' Ms Bedford said.

Minutes later the baby girl was safely delivered, with her relieved father there to cut the umbilical cord.

Ms Kaur and her baby girl were safely transferred to Ipswich Hospital and returned home later that day.

Less than a week later, the first responders were reunited with the couple's healthy baby girl to wish her well.

'Thanks are not enough,' Ms Kaur said.
Joe Biden is tapping Rahm Emanuel, who served as chief of staff to Barack Obama, as U.S. ambassador to Japan, a Financial Times report revealed Tuesday.

Ambassador to Japan is one of the most important diplomatic postings as Tokyo serves as one of Washington's most important allies, highlighted when Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga was the first foreign leader President Biden received at the White House.

There was speculation Emanuel, the 61-year-old former mayor of Chicago, would become envoy to China. However, multiple sources familiar with the Biden team's discussions, according to the Financial Times report, said that job is expected to go to former top U.S. diplomat Nick Burns.

Emanuel's appointment would continue a tradition of sending high-profile political operators to Tokyo.

The role was previously held by Caroline Kennedy, John F. Kennedy's daughter, who served during Obama's second term.

Rahm Emanuel, former chief of staff to Barack Obama and Chicago mayor, has been picked as President Joe Biden's U.S. ambassador to Japan

There was speculation Emanuel would become envoy to China but multiple sources told the Financial Times that job is expected to go to former top U.S. diplomat Nick Burns

Emanuel, the son of an Israeli immigrant, is known as a high-energy, fierce Democratic partisan.

He came to national notice as an enforcer in the Bill Clinton White House, where he held several roles, ramming home the administration's agenda.

Emanuel was credited with masterminding the 2006 Democratic election triumph, which saw the party grab control of the House of Representatives from the Republicans. He returned to the White House in 2009 as chief of staff to President Obama, where he served until October 2010 before becoming mayor of Chicago.

He served two terms in that post before surprising the political establishment by declining to run for a third, just as an incendiary police shooting trial was about to begin.

He has a reputation for abrasiveness and the occasional piece of profanity-laced rhetoric, attributed to his training in the bearpit of Chicago politics.

Emanuel served a chief of staff to Obama for less than two years and has been credited with the Democrats taking the House of Representatives from Republicans in 2006

Mireya Solis, a Japan expert at the Brookings Institution, told the Financial Times that while Tokyo would value his relationship with Biden, there was some 'trepidation' over his reputation for bluntness.

At the meeting between Biden and Suga at the White House last month, the two vowed their respective nations would stand together against an assertive China.

They also issued a joint statement calling for 'candid conversations' and raising concerns over Beijing's growing maritime moves, its clampdowns in Hong Kong and Xinjiang and growing tension over Taiwan.
San Francisco's high school seniors will return to school for just one day so the city can qualify for $12million in state funds.

The deal between the district and teachers union, which has been described as a blatant money grab, will see the class of 2021 not even receive any in-person instruction from teachers but will instead have 'in-person supervision'.

Most students will not return to their own schools as only two high school sites are being made available to seniors who will be welcomed back 'for at least one day before the end of the school year'.

San Francisco's high school seniors will return to school for just one day so the city can qualify for $12million in state reopening funds. Pictured: students at George Washington High School in 2019

Parents and health officials have been pushing for district schools to reopen for months after private schools opened up again in the fall.

But the teachers union argued it was not safe for students to return until educators were vaccinated.

Even then, only a small group of vulnerable middle and high school students were allowed to return in San Francisco despite neighboring cities Berkeley and Oakland welcoming back a large share of older students.

After months of pushback, the teachers union announced Sunday the 'exciting news' that they had reached an agreement with the district to allow seniors to return, The San Francisco Chronicle reported.

The details of the plan were not specified in the announcement, but it has since been revealed that each cohort of students will have two staff members supervising them on campus.

The cohort size is not yet known but activities will include 'end of high school conversations' and 'college or career exploration', district officials said.

Most students will not return to their own schools as only two high school sites are being made available to seniors. Pictured: Abraham Lincoln High School

Students will return to two high school sites meaning most seniors will not return to their own schools.

It is not yet clear how many students will accept the offer and the district is polling families to assess how many of the 4,000 potential seniors will return.

District officials believe the plan would see $12million offered in state reopening grants.

State law required districts to reopen elementary schools and at least one grade in middle or high school for in-person instruction before May 15.

The legislation was sponsored by assemblyman Phil Ting who said he does not know if the district's plan qualifies for the funding.

He said: 'It definitely doesn't meet the spirit of the law. Kids were supposed to come back in person. Kids were supposed to come back to learn.'

Parents and health officials have been pushing for district schools to reopen for months after private schools opened up again in the fall. Pictured: Lowell High School

He is now pushing for a full reopening in the fall without flexibility for districts to prevent a similar situation occurring.

A school reopening advocacy group run by parents, Decreasing the Distance, slammed the plan, saying: 'What message does this give our kids about what they are worth and how adults take care of our vulnerable populations, including kids? Does this show them that they matter, or just that the money matters?'

They added a senior said she did want to return to school but not like this, saying it's too little too late.

Elementary schools were reopened in early April and sites for middle and high school students with high needs were set up at the end of the month.

The sites were designed for students who were learning English, in public housing, disabled or struggled with distanced learning.

Of the total 52,000 students in the district, around 19,000 have so far returned to school.

The district had set out a reopening plan before the state's announcement of the grant funding which did not include secondary grade students.

Officials and the union then scrambled to get the potential $12million and came up with the plan to reopen for one day.
Drug dealer Terence O'Connor has been jailed for 16 years after police found him in possession of machine guns, drugs and cash

A drug dealer has been jailed after police discovered a cache of machine guns hidden behind a false wall during a raid on his home where they also found drugs and money.

Police recovered an Uzi sub-machine gun and a Skorpion sub-machine gun as well as hundreds of bullets and a silencer when they removed the partition at his home in Edgeware, north London.

Terence O'Connor was jailed for 16 years and three months after admitting a string of drug and weapons offences including two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

O'Conner, 25, first came to the attention of the Met's money laundering team while they were carrying out surveillance on another suspect.

In April last year, specialist officers saw O'Connor hand what they believed to be a bag of cash to the suspect before moving to the boot of the car he had pulled up in.

Concerned about what he might be moving, detectives approached in unmarked vehicles and detained O'Connor at the back of the car.

Detectives searched a black rucksack at O'Connor's feet and they found a large quantity of cocaine hidden inside it.

O'Connor stated to the officers without warning, 'I've never seen that before', a court heard yesterday.

The Uzi sub-machine gun found in a holdall which was hidden in Terence O'Connor's home

The Skorpion sub-machine gun which was found by police during the raid on O'Connor's home

After finding cash and drugs, police found this hidden compartment where weapons were kept

Officers also found that he was in possession of an encrypted 'EncroChat' mobile phone widely used by criminals operating in organised gangs.

During a search of his home in Edgware, detectives discovered 143,080 in cash, a money counting machine and additional quantities of cocaine.

In total officers seized about 1kg of cocaine, with a wholesale value of about 32,000 to 36,000 - although its value was likely to be more at that time because the UK was in lockdown, police have said.

Detectives believe that empty drugs packaging recovered from inside the address indicated that upwards of 100kilos of cocaine had been processed at the location.

Within the flat, police then discovered a false wall panel concealing a void behind it.

Inside the void was a holdall containing the cache of automatic weapons and ammunition. Officers also discovered a compatible silencer.

As well as two machine guns, police found hundreds of bullets compatible with the weapons

Police also discovered this silencer which forensics proved was compatible with the weapons

The weapons were made safe and were sent off for testing and forensic analysis confirmed the weapons seized were a fully functioning 9mm Uzi sub machine gun and a .32 auto Skorpion sub-machine gun.

Both were accompanied by compatible magazines and were compatible with the silencer.

In addition, 332 rounds of compatible ammunition were recovered, which included additional rounds of .38 calibre ammunition.

O'Connor answered no comment during interview and was charged with two counts of possession of cocaine with intent to supply, being concerned in the supply of cocaine, two counts of possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition, possession of a silencer and possession of criminal property.

Following the forensic analysis of the weapons, he was later additionally charged with two counts of possessing firearms with intent to endanger life.

O'Connor, now of Bolton, admitted all charges at Harrow Crown Court in two separate hearings in August last year and February this year.

Officers uncovered more than 143,000 at O'Connor's home in Edgeware, north London

Yesterday, at the same court, the 25-year-old was sentenced to 16 years three months in prison.

Det Con Kevin Davies, the investigating officer from the Met's Proactive Money Laundering Team, said: 'This sentence reflects the seriousness of the matters under investigation and will serve as a deterrent to those involved in serious and organised crime.

'O'Connor was involved in large scale drug trafficking and was also instrumental in the laundering of the proceeds of this crime.

'He had possession of dangerous automatic weapons, ammunition and a silencer, which would have been capable of causing death and serious injury on the streets of London.'

'This investigation shows the close link between money laundering and those committing the most harm within London's communities.

'It is also another example of the inextricable link between money, drugs and violence.

'We remain committed to putting people like O'Connor behind bars to ensure London is a safer place for everyone.'
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The Kent man charged with the murder of PCSO Julia James stuck out his tongue as he was led away from court this morning - as police staged a reconstruction of the officer's last movements.

Callum Wheeler, 21, from Aylesham, was formally accused of killing the 53-year-old at the hearing.

He appeared at Medway Magistrates Court in person before being remanded back into custody ahead of his case at Maidstone Crown Court on Thursday.

Mrs James, a mother of two, went missing while walking her beloved Jack Russell near to her home in Snowdown, Kent, last month.

She was later found dead by members of the public in nearby Akholt Wood on Tuesday, April 27.

Detectives investigating Mrs James' death say she had suffered head injuries. Her dog, named Toby, was unharmed and remained beside her body.

Kent officers today decided to stage a reconstruction of the PCSO's last steps and used the same pet with an actress to complete the effect.

Officers from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate arrested Wheeler on Friday.

Callum Wheeler, aged 21, from Aylesham, in Kent, was arrested on Friday, May 7, and brought to court this morning

Detectives investigating the death of PCSO Julia James have tonight charged a man, Callum Wheeler, 21, from Aylesham

Callum Wheeler, aged 21, from Aylesham, in Kent, is taken from court in a prison van this morning after his hearing

An actress playing the role of PCSO Julia James walks her Jack Russell dog Toby, who was found at the scene

The pair reconstructed the route taken by Julia and Toby in the fields behind her home in the hamlet of Snowdown

PCSO Julia James's Jack Russell dog Toby, who was found at the scene, was used in the reconstruction for her investigation

The force had been granted a 36-hour extension, until Monday evening, to continue holding Wheeler in custody.

Last night the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) authorised a charge of murder.

In a statement, Kent Police said: 'Detectives investigating the death of Police Community Support Officer Julia James have charged Callum Wheeler, 21, from Aylesham with her murder.

PCSO Julia James was found dead on April 27 as she walked her beloved dog Toby

'Mr Wheeler remains in custody and is due to appear via video link at Medway Magistrates Court on Tuesday.'

News of a charge comes after the daughter of Mrs James earlier backed calls for a doorstep clap to recognise the 'hard work and dedication' of police involved in the case.

Bethan Coles, a serving officer herself, backed an idea put forward by locals who plan to take to their doorsteps for a minute's applause similar to the clap for our carers campaign during the pandemic.

They plan to hold the tribute at 7pm on tonight to thank the police.

On a Facebook post advertising the idea, Bethan said: 'This is a lovely way to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of all the officers involved.

'I am so thankful of everything they have done so far.'

Mrs James' husband Paul, 57, changed his Facebook profile picture yesterday to he and Mrs James and wrote: 'I miss you so much Luvly xxx'. It is believed to be the first time Mr James has commented.

He also used a 'Help us find #justiceforjulia' frame around the picture - which Mrs James' son in law Chase Coles said more than 8,600 have added to help the family's appeal.

Mrs James had worked in the Vulnerability Investigation Team from Canterbury police station and helped survivors seek help from abusive relationships.

Mrs James would often attend meetings to speak about potential police action, safety planning and emotional support while working with local domestic violence and abuse charity Rising Sun.

Police officers search a field off Ratling Road in Aylesham, Kent, earlier today as part of the investigation into the death

Officers were also seen marching along the side of Spinney Lane near to the junction of the B2046 as they continued their search today

Police officers line up as they prepare to walk into the woodlands during their searches for evidence following Mrs James' death

A police dog wearing a harness and a lead runs through the woodland in Kent as searches continued on Tuesday afternoon

Julia's daughter Bethan Coles (pictured left with Julia), a serving officer herself, backed an idea put forward by locals who plan to take to their doorsteps for a minute's applause similar to the clap for our carers campaign during the pandemic. Mrs James' husband Paul (pictured right with Julia), 57, changed his Facebook profile picture yesterday to he and Mrs James and wrote: 'I miss you so much Luvly xxx'. It is believed to be the first time Mr James has commented

Their chief executive Fran Ellis described 'kind, caring and generous' Mrs James as a 'devoted supporter and advocate for survivors of domestic abuse' who would 'go out of her way to help anyone'.

Yesterday, two domestic abuse survivors who Mrs James helped have explained how she gave them the strength and self-worth to break free from their abusive relationships.

One victim said: 'Julia was one of the most kind and caring women I have ever come across.

'She genuinely cared about every woman she spoke to and had a way of making you feel so calm and safe around her.

Hundreds of floral tributes have been in left in memory of Julia James in Aylesham in Kent

Community Support Officers walk past floral tributes in a park in Aylesham village close to the scene in Snowdown where Mrs James' body was found

Mourners lay floral tributes in a park in Aylesham village close to the scene in Snowdown, Kent, where the body of PCSO Julia James was found

'She was truly one of a kind, with a heart of gold, and she spent so much time helping others, more than she realised.

'When I met Julia I had not spoken about what I had been through before.

'I had no confidence and felt a part of me was broken. She took the time to listen and understand everything.

'Not only did she help me heal but she helped me realise my worth and that it was not my fault.

'I owe Julia so much and will be forever thankful that she came into my life.'

Another victim who Mrs James supported said: 'When I first left home with my children after a particularly bad altercation with my husband, the police officer who then contacted me suggested I speak with a PSCO named Julia James - just to make sure the children and I were safe.

Ms James went missing while walking her beloved Jack Russell Toby near to her home in Snowdon, Kent, last month. She was later found dead by members of the public in nearby Akholt Wood on Tuesday, April 27. Pictured: Police at the scene last month

Police forensic officers search of fields close to the hamlet of Snowdown, near Aylesham, following the death of Julia James

'From the first words Julia spoke, I knew she was someone I could trust.

'She was a force of nature - calm, kind and reassuring when things were at their worst, and most of all completely focused on making sure that my children and I were safe.

'I didn't tell Julia much about my story the first day, and said I intended to go back home when things calmed down - my husband just had a bad temper.

'Julia kept in touch that first week, calling a number of times and suggesting we go through a confidential questionnaire.

'The questionnaire was a real eye opener for me - initially I chose not to answer all of the questions, but as Julia explained the meaning of each one to me on the phone, it gradually started to sink in that the way my husband had been treating me and our children over the past few years was not ok.

'It was serious physical, verbal and emotional abuse. Julia never judged me or my situation, nor did she tell me what to do.'

She added that, in her role as a PCSO, Mrs James would have helped 'hundreds if not thousands of domestic abuse survivors with stories like mine and even far worse'.
Catholic churches around Germany were offering blessings for gay couples on Monday in a protest against the Vatican's refusal to approve same-sex partnerships.

More than 100 churches around the country have signed up to host services under the motto 'love wins' on or around May 10 in the scheme initiated by priests, deacons and volunteers.

At the services, all couples will be invited to be blessed - regardless of sexual orientation.

A rainbow flag is seen on the wall of a Catholic church as the building is open for same-sex couples to receive a blessing in Cologne, Germany, May 10

Vicar Wolfgang Rothe, left, blesses the couple Christine Walter, center, and Almut Muenster, right, during a Catholic service in St Benedict's Church in Munich, Sunday, May 9. Germany's Catholic progressives are openly defying a recent Holy See pronouncement that priests cannot bless same-sex unions by offering exactly such blessings at services in about 100 different churches all over the country

A couple hugs each other, after Brigitte Schmidt, a pastoral worker blesses the same-sex couple, at the Catholic St. Johannes XXIII church on May 10, 2021 in Cologne, Germany

'We raise our voices and say: We will continue to stand by people who commit themselves to a binding partnership and bless their relationship,' said a statement on the initiative's website.

Tanja Hollas, 41, an IT systems administrator from Hamm in western Germany, was planning to attend a blessing on Monday evening at the town's St Agnes Church with her partner Claudia, 57.

Protestant Tanja and Catholic Claudia have been together since 2017 and married since 2019.

'We are both people of faith, and we find it immensely important to testify to God that we are committed to each other, that we belong to each other,' Hollas told AFP.

A flyer that reads 'Love is all you need' is pictured after Brigitte Schmidt, a pastoral worker blesses a same-sex couple, at the Catholic St. Johannes XXIII church on May 10

The pair also wanted to show 'that people no longer have to hide', she said, adding: 'Love can never be wrong.'

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), the powerful Vatican office responsible for defending church doctrine, handed down a ruling in March that same-sex unions could not be blessed despite their 'positive elements'.

The office wrote that while God 'never ceases to bless each of His pilgrim children in this world... he does not and cannot bless sin'.

While some prominent German bishops have supported the Vatican's stance, others accused the CDF of seeking to stifle theological debates which have been active among German Catholics in recent years.

Some German priests reacted to the announcement using a hashtag calling for 'disobedience' online.

A petition calling for the CDF's ruling to be ignored was signed by 2,600 priests and deacons in March, as well as 277 theologians.

Pastoral worker Brigitte Schmidt blesses the same-sex couple Ivonne Fuchs and Chantal Hoeffer during a ceremony in a Catholic church in Cologne, Germany, May 10

Wolfgang F. Rothe, a parish vicar in Munich, said it was 'a matter of course' for him to conduct a service blessing same-sex couples at the city's St Benedict Church on Sunday.

'I feel the need to pay off the debt the the Catholic Church has incurred by discriminating against and excluding homosexuals for decades,' said Rothe, 53.

Around 30 couples were blessed at the service, which had to be protected by police after the church received threatening emails, including some signed 'Dies Ire' (Day of Wrath), Rothe said.

In the run-up to the initiative, the German bishops' conference had spoken out strongly against the ceremonies.

Public actions of this kind were 'not a helpful signal' in view of the ongoing debates within the church, for example on attitudes to homosexuality, president Georg Baetzing said.

May 10 was chosen for the blessings because it is associated with God sending Noah a rainbow - a symbol often used in support of the LGBT community.

Pastoral worker Brigitte Schmidt blesses the same-sex couple Nini and Juliana Weinmeister during a ceremony in a Catholic church in Cologne, Germany, May 10

Churches in cities including Berlin, Cologne, Hamburg, Frankfurt and Munich signed up for the initiative, planning traditional masses as well as open-air services and online events.

'We must finally recognise as a church that sexuality is part of life - and not only in a marriage between a man and a woman, but in all faithful, dignified and respectful love relationships,' said Birgit Mock, co-chair of the German Synodal Path's working group on sexuality.

At 23 million followers, the Catholic Church remains Germany's biggest religious community. But its pews are increasingly empty on Sundays and it struggles to recruit new priests.

The Synodal Path is a two-year project that aims to renew the Church and regain the public's trust, tackling controversial themes including a damaging child abuse crisis.

Traditionalists within the Church have already voiced opposition to such changes, chief among them the influential Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne.
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More than a fifth of care home residents have died of Covid in the worst-hit parts of England in the North since the start of the pandemic, official data suggests.

Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures released today show the number of care home residents who died in England and Wales was a fifth higher than the average for the previous five years.

Some 173,974 care home resident deaths were registered in England and Wales between March 14 and April 2  a rise of 19.5 per cent. Around 42,000 were from Covid, figures showed.

The stats also showed care home deaths were far greater at their peak in the first wave of the pandemic than in their second, in part thanks to 'vaccine availability', according to the ONS.

And MailOnline analysis using care home population statistics from NHS England's Capacity Tracker shows the rate of Covid deaths in care home residents varied wildly across the country.

The data  which uses population numbers from May this year  suggest more than a fifth of residents died with the virus in South Tyneside, Darlington, Doncaster and St Helens. For comparison, the rate is thought to be less than five per cent in Plymouth.

Care England, the largest national body representing independent adults social care providers, called for a public inquiry into the handling of care homes during the pandemic.

The charity's chief executive Professor Martin Green told MailOnline: 'Care England maintains that a public inquiry is necessary to cross reference all the different factors and better understand both where mistakes were made and what lessons can be learned.

'We are saddened by each and every death amongst residents and staff as a result of this dreadful pandemic but want to pay tribute to the marvellous work that our frontline social care staff have done day in day out.'

More than a fifth of care home residents have died of Covid in South Tyneside, Darlington, Doncaster and St Helens since the start of the pandemic, MailOnline analysis of Office for National Statistics data suggests

Health Secretary Matt Hancock was today slammed for not delivering on the Government's 2019 pledge to reform social care in England, with no plans set to be included in the Queen's Speech this afternoon.

His predecessor Jeremy Hunt and former deputy prime minister Damian Green slammed the inaction for causing 'incredible worry' and 'frustration'.

Experts warned in January this year that the failure to reform the crumbling care system is a major reason Britain has suffered one Europes worst death tolls from Covid.

Of the 103,000 people in the UK who had died at the time from Covid, one in three lived in care homes. The NHS was accused of risking lives by discharging Covid patients back into their care homes last year.

MailOnline's analysis uses population statistics in older adult care homes from Capacity Tracker, which is used by NHS Trusts to source vacancies across England in hospitals and care homes.

The population estimates are for May 2 this year, meaning death figures will be slightly skewed than from if they were taken before the pandemic  particularly in the areas worst hit by coronavirus.

But the proportions give a good indication of how severe the pandemic has hit different areas of the country.

Some 38 of England's 151 upper tier local authorities saw more than 15 per cent of their care home residents die with Covid since March last year, the figures suggested.

After St Helens in Merseyside, the worst hit were Southampton (18.5 per cent), Bury (18.1 per cent), Redcar and Cleveland (17.8 per cent), Slough (17.7 per cent) and County Durham (17.6 per cent).

For comparison, 19 areas saw death rates of less than 10 per cent. After Plymouth, the least affected were: Devon (5.35 per cent), Hackney (5.36 per cent), Cornwall (5.67 per cent) and North Somerset (6.60 per cent).

What's wrong with social care? Experts warned in January this year that the failure to reform the crumbling care system is a major reason Britain has suffered one Europes worst death toll from Covid. Of the 103,000 people in the UK who had died at the time from Covid-19, one in three  31,000  lived in care homes. Fifteen medical bodies joined forces to demand Boris Johnson drastically overhauls social care after the broken system was brutally exposed by the pandemic. The report warns social care spending has fallen by 12 per cent in the past decade, with 1.4million adults missing out on vital support. This has devastating consequences for the NHS, as vulnerable patients end up in A&E needlessly and become stranded in hospital beds. And in march the National Audit Office said the middle classes face a 20billion social care time bomb unless Boris Johnson delivers on his promise to reform the system. It revealed that the amount the middle classes will have to contribute towards their own old-age care is set to more than double in 20 years. It also found that a quarter of over-65s had an unmet care need as a result of failures in the system. Advertisement

Professor Kevin McConway, emeritus professor of applied statistics at the Open University, said: 'Its interesting that there seems to be such a variation between the percentages whose deaths involved Covid-19 in different areas, and there are all kinds of possible explanations.

'But these data cant on their own tell us what the valid explanations are.

'Perhaps its something to do with when in the pandemic the deaths occurred, because Covid wasnt so easy to identify in the early stages because there wasnt much testing.

'Perhaps its something to do with the types of people that live in care homes in different areas. Perhaps its because the figures for the numbers of people living in care homes have changed a lot over time, during the pandemic, and in different ways in different parts of the country.

'One thing to remember, though, is that many people living in care homes for the elderly are very old and very frail and infirm  thats often why they are living in a care home.

'The average length of time that people live in care homes is, very roughly, two years. So, very roughly, even without Covid, you might expect something close to half the residents to die each year, on average.

'During the period of about a year covered by these data, about 55 per cent of the care home population of England (using these figures) died in total.

'About 13 per cent of that population suffered a death that involved Covid, so about 42 per cent of the population died of something not involving Covid.

'But the figures for deaths that didnt involve Covid also varied a lot from one place to another, and in a way thats not really associated with the levels of Covid deaths. The picture seems to be pretty complicated.'

The ONS data also showed coronavirus accounted for 42,341 care home resident deaths  almost a quarter (24.3 per cent) of the total.

The figures cover deaths of care home residents in all settings, not just in care homes. For example, some residents are moved to hospital if they become seriously ill and die there.

Overall deaths fell between waves one and two, with 89,528 deaths in the first wave, which the ONS defines as deaths registered up to September 12, 2020.

From this point on, during the second wave, 84,446 deaths were registered.

There were 27,079 excess deaths in the first wave of the pandemic, and 1,335 excess deaths during the second wave.

The ONS said this may be due to delayed access to care services, rapid testing and personal protective equipment (PPE) during wave one.

In the second wave, care home occupancy was lower and residents were prioritised for a Covid vaccine from December. And some of those who may have died in the second wave may have died earlier, the ONS said.

At the first wave peak, total deaths were around 3.4 times higher than the five-year average, with deaths 1.3 times higher than usual at the peak of wave two.

The figures also show there was a higher proportion of deaths involving Covid in wave two than in wave one.

Some 20,664 deaths of care home residents mentioned Covid in wave one compared with 21,677 deaths (25.7 per cent) in wave two.

The ONS advised caution when comparing the two waves, since there could have been undiagnosed coronavirus cases in the first wave due to less testing and less clinical experience with a new disease.

Throughout the pandemic, Covid was the leading cause of death in male residents, while for female residents it was dementia and Alzheimers disease, followed by coronavirus.

Dementia and Alzheimers disease was the most common pre-existing condition among residents who died with Covid across both waves.
It is an idea so horrifying that it sounds made up: A parasite which bites off its host's tongue and then replaces it, living inside its mouth for the rest of its life.

But in fact, the tongue-eating louse is real and lives inside the mouths of fish - one of which was discovered recently by a shocked student in South Africa.

Don Marx, 27, from Cape Town, was fishing near Cape Agulhas when he hooked the six-pound carpenter fish and discovered the stowaway inside its jaws.

Marx, who happens to study marine biology, had heard of the lice but never seen one in the wild - so snapped a picture to document the moment.

Don Marx, 27, from Cape Town, was surprised to find a tongue-eating louse living in the mouth of a carpenter fish he caught off the coast of South Africa

But after he sent the photo to Professor Nico Smit, a zoologist at North-West University, he was delighted to discover this particular species of louse has never been photographed before

'Being a marine scientist and having fished since a young age, I've see my fair share of parasites living on fish and sharks,' he said.

'But nothing could really prepare me for the moment I opened the carpenter's mouth and saw this blue eyed alien with a moustache staring back at me.

'This specific species of tongue eating louse only uses carpenters as their host and has eluded scientists for years.

The louse enters its host through the gills, bites off its tongue and replaces the organ, living in the fish's mouth for the rest of its life

'When we allow ourselves to slow down and look around us, nature reveals all of her magic to us.'

Tongue-eating lice have been known about for decades, but only in recent years have extensive studies begun into their life cycles and behaviour.

It is thought that all species of tongue-eating lice begin their lives as males, drifting in the ocean and looking for fish to latch on to.

Each species of louse - with over 280 identified so far - appears to target just one species of fish.

Once the louse has found a host fish of the right species, it swims through the fish's gills and makes itself at home.

If the host fish does not have any other lice already in place, the new louse makes its way into the mouth, where it attaches itself to the tongue.

Using its front claws, the louse severs blood vessels in the tongue and then feeds by drinking the blood.

During this time, the male will transform into a female - its body increasing several times in size along with its legs, which it uses to latch on to the fish.

Meanwhile its eyes dwindle since it no longer needs to navigate around.

When the fish's tongue eventually dies and falls out due to lack of blood, the louse latches on to the tongue stump and effectively replaces it.

Mr Marx caught the fish off Cape Agulhas (pictured) and was delighted to find that this particular species of louse had never been photographed before

According to a 1983 research paper, the louse 'replaces the mechanical function of the tongue' by helping the fish hold prey against the roof of its mouth while it feeds.

It is the only known species of parasite that completely replaces the function of an organ in its host.

The parasite will then live in the fish's mouth for the rest of both their lives, feeding on the fish's blood and mucus, but otherwise causing no other harm.

If a louse arriving in a host fish finds that a female is already in place, it will remain as a smaller male and attach to the fish's gills instead.

Males live their whole lives in the gills, occasionally breeding with the female inside the fish, producing live young which are expelled through the gills after birth to find their own host.

It is possible for fish to host several males as well as a female, and in these fish it is common for them to be under-weight - likely due to several parasites feeding on their blood.

During lab studies, the lice have been seen leaving the mouth of the fish only after it dies, often clinging on to the outside of its head or body.

However, little is known about what happens to lice whose hosts die in the wild.

It is likely that, as with most parasite species, death of the host means the death of the parasite.
Some artefacts with links to slavery are set to be removed from churches in light of new guidance for parishes following the Black Lives Matter movement.

New Church of England guidance, published today, urges churches and cathedrals to consider the history of their buildings and the physical artefacts and how it could impact their congregations' worship.

Churches that have already taken action include St Margaret's church in Rottingdean, Sussex, which has removed two 'deeply offensive' grave headstones which contained racial slurs.

St Peter's Church in Dorchester has also covered a plaque commemorating a plantation owner.

And dedications to slave trader Edward Colston were removed from Bristol Cathedral last year.

Protesters throwing a statue of Edward Colston into Bristol harbour during a Black Lives Matter protest rally. December 9, 2020

The new guidance offers a framework for parishes to remove physical artefacts they deem unsuitable from cathedral and church buildings, by engaging with the relevant bodies who oversee changes.

The latest guidance has been informed by a wide-ranging consultation which has included every Church of England diocese and cathedral, and others including heritage bodies and specialists in church monuments.

The guidance notes that while churches and cathedrals are above all places dedicated to the worship of God, for a range of reasons, members of communities may not always feel welcome in these buildings.

A reason could be the presence of objects commemorating people responsible for the oppression and marginalisation of others.

The guidance specifically addresses the issue of heritage associated with racism and the slave trade, including plaques, statues, inscriptions and other monuments, and it is hoped that by doing so it will establish a methodology which can be used for other forms of contested heritage.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby makes an address during a National Service to mark the centenary of the Armistice at Westminster Abbey, London, November 2018

Memorials to politicians, war heroes and authors all targeted due to links to slavery and racist beliefs Since Edward Colston's statue was thrown into Bristol Harbour, there has been a wave of attacks from vandals on various monuments across Britain. A statue to Winston Churchill was defaced with the words 'was a racist' and 'f*** your agenda' written underneath the memorial to the war time PM in Westminster Square, London. Slave trader Robert Milligan's was covered with a shord and the message 'Black Lives Matter' was placed on it in West India Docks amid calls for it to be taken down. It was later removed by Tower Hamlets Council. Less than a year after it was erected, 'Nazi' was scrawled underneath a statue of Nancy Astor, the first woman to take a seat in Parliament, in Plymouth. A statue of Thomas Guy is displayed at Guys Hospital in London A monument to 19th-century politician Henry Vassall-Fox, the third Baron Holland, was left splattered with red paint in Holland Park. A cardboard sign reading 'I owned 401 slaves' was perched in the bronze statue's arms, with the number painted on the plinth alongside red handprints. A Grade II-listed monument to Admiral Lord Nelson, Britain's foremost naval hero, which stands in the grounds of Norwich Cathedral, was sprayed with a black 'V' in the middle of a circle - an anarchist symbol. Red paint spattered another stature of Lord Nelson at Deptford Town Hall in South London. In Kent, a former councillor wrote 'Dickens Racist' outside a museum dedicated to the beloved 19th century author. Letters sent by the Oliver Twist author showed he wished to 'exterminate' Indian citizens after a failed uprising. A statue of Civil War leader Oliver Cromwell in Wythenshawe Park, Manchester, had the words 'Cromwell is a cockroach,' 'f*** racist' and the Black Lives Matter acronym 'BLM' scrawled across it last month. Thousands of people were massacred during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. BLM was also scrawled across the Worcester Civil War memorial in Royal Park. Advertisement

Becky Clark, the Church of England's director of cathedrals and church buildings, said: 'With this guidance, the Church of England is seeking to provide a framework for parishes and cathedrals to lead discussions about how the heritage in our buildings can best serve our commitment to be a welcoming and inclusive Church today.

'Church buildings and their interiors have been adapted over centuries in response to practical needs, architectural styles, as well as to society itself.

'The issues of contested heritage require us honestly and openly to discuss ways in which our buildings can demonstrate our commitment to social and racial justice as a reflection of our faith in Jesus Christ.'

She was asked on BBC Radio 4's Today Programme if some 'physical things' are going to be removed, and she replied: 'It most likely does, but the most important thing about this framework is it's an aid rather than pre-empting decision-making processes.

'It doesn't insist upon any particular outcome or any particular course of action.'

In June 2020, the Church of England established an anti-racism task force which carried out a review of the action it had taken to address its own role in the slave trade.

Speaking on the issue last year the Archbishop of Canterbury said that justice is crucial to forgiveness as he stressed a need to learn from the past so that it is not repeated in the future.

His comments came as monuments of controversial figures came under the microscope amid the wave of protests and growing tensions about Britain's colonial past, sparked by global outcry following the death of George Floyd in the US.

Floyd was killed when white police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds despite his desperate pleas that he 'can't breathe'. He passed out and later died in Minneapolis on May 25.

His death is seen as a symbol of systemic police brutality against African-Americans sparking outrage and largely-peaceful protests first across the US before quickly spreading worldwide.

The Dean of Manchester, Rogers Govender, who chairs the Church of England's Committee for Minority Ethnic Anglican Concerns (CMEAC), said: 'The Black Lives Matter protests which took the world by storm last summer have had a huge impact on how we view racism in church and society in general.

'Our history, faiths, attitudes, actions and heritage are all under scrutiny.

'This guidance on contested heritage offers practical resources for places of worship to respond to concerns over church buildings, examining how we can offer a balanced message and interpretation, ensuring we are not perpetuating a biased historic message.

'This is not about destroying heritage or history, but providing a more balanced view.

'This is essential and appropriate in the light of the discrimination and injustice experienced by people of colour in all walks of life, not least in the life of the Church of England.

'I would encourage all parishes and cathedrals to respond in a positive way to this challenge.'

The Archbishop of Canterbury last year suggested monuments of two men with slave trading links at Canterbury Cathedral should be reviewed to see if they 'should all be there.' Left, Richard Hooker acted as the mentor for the Anglican clergy of the first English slaveholding colonies. Right, George Stanhope viewed Native Americans as 'heathens'

Canterbury Cathedral (pictured) resisted calls to remove the statues with historic links to slavery despite calls by Justin Welby to look at them 'very carefully'

New guidance has been published to support local discussions on contested heritage.



It will enable churches and cathedrals to engage with their communities, to understand how physical artefacts may impact their mission and worship.



Read the guidance via https://t.co/5KZDZdVReZ. pic.twitter.com/zCjVbmYbso  The Church of England (@churchofengland) May 11, 2021

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby during a Christmas Day service at Canterbury Cathedral

On the Today programme last June, the Most Rev Justin Welby was asked if people should forgive the 'trespasses' of people immortalised in the form of statues, rather than tearing them down.

He said: 'We can only do that if we've got justice, which means the statue needs to be put in context. Some will have to come down.

'Some names will have to change.

'I mean, the church, goodness me, you know, you just go around Canterbury Cathedral, there's monuments everywhere, or Westminster Abbey, and we're looking at all that, and some will have to come down.

'But yes, there can be forgiveness, I hope and pray as we come together, but only if there's justice.

'If we change the way we behave now, and say this was then and we learned from that, and change how we're going to be in the future, internationally, as well.'
Lack of plans for reform of social care are causing 'incredible worry' and 'frustration', Matt Hancock has been told today.

The Health Secretary insisted today that plans for a revamp of the sector would come forward once Covid has been tackled.

But his predecessor Jeremy Hunt and former deputy prime minister Damian Green slammed inaction today amid fears there will be no firm plans laid out in the Queen's Speech today.

Care groups, charities and politicians have been long calling for a plan to reform and 'fix' the sector, which the Prime Minister promised in his first speech after being elected in July 2019.

But the PM and Chancellor Rishi Sunak are said to be at war over how to pay for it.

The Health Secretary insisted today that plans for a revamp of the sector would come forward once Covid has been tackled.

Mr Hunt said he hoped a cap will be announced when the Government sets out its legislative agenda, calling the prospect of catastrophic care costs 'an incredible worry for people'.

Mr Green, who commissioned a Government green paper on social care in 2017, said he was frustrated it had taken so long for social care to be addressed.

What's wrong with social care? Experts warned in January this year that the failure to reform the crumbling care system is a major reason Britain has suffered one Europes worst death toll from Covid. Of the 103,000 people in the UK who had died at the time from Covid-19, one in three  31,000  lived in care homes. Fifteen medical bodies joined forces to demand Boris Johnson drastically overhauls social care after the broken system was brutally exposed by the pandemic. The report warns social care spending has fallen by 12 per cent in the past decade, with 1.4million adults missing out on vital support. This has devastating consequences for the NHS, as vulnerable patients end up in A&E needlessly and become stranded in hospital beds. And in march the National Audit Office said the middle classes face a 20billion social care time bomb unless Boris Johnson delivers on his promise to reform the system. It revealed that the amount the middle classes will have to contribute towards their own old-age care is set to more than double in 20 years. It also found that a quarter of over-65s had an unmet care need as a result of failures in the system. The NAO, the Government's own spending watchdog, said the amount paid out by self-funders will go up from 10billion in 2018 to 21.2billion by 2038  a 113 per cent rise. This is because an ageing society means the number of pensioners requiring care will soar by 57 per cent. In addition, the expectation that more of them are likely to own their own home will make them liable for more of the cost. Advertisement

Mr Johnson is said to back plans set out a decade ago by Sir Andrew Dilnot to cap costs at between 25,000 and 50,000, with the taxpayer covering the rest.

His report also recommended lifting the means-tested threshold for state support from 23,250 to 100,000.

But the Treasury is said to be resisting, saying the cost to the public finances would be huge in the wake of the Covid pandemic.

Mr Hunt said he hoped a cap will be announced when the Government sets out its legislative agenda, calling the prospect of catastrophic care costs 'an incredible worry for people'.

Mr Hunt told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: 'I'm hoping to hear that we will introduce a cap on people's care costs, because around one in 10 of us will have catastrophically high care costs.

'It's an incredible worry for people. It's a lottery. You don't know - that could be you I think in a civilised society we should find a way of taking away that worry.

'I think there's a big misconception here that this is sort of helping people with expensive houses in the South East pass on their inheritance.'

Mr Green, who commissioned a Government green paper on social care in 2017, said he was frustrated it had taken so long for social care to be addressed.

He told Sky News on Tuesday that while details could wait until the autumn, he was 'insistent' that this was the year action was needed.

'I didn't expect the full details in the Queen's Speech, the Government produced a white paper on integrating health and social care a couple of months ago and said they would do it this year, which I took as a sign they were going to do it with the comprehensive spending review that we get in the autumn,' he said.

'There's a certain sense in that. I am absolutely insistent that this needs to be the year for action and decision rather than kicking the can down the road any further.'

Mr Hancock today said the Government remained committed to long-term reform of adult social care in England but declined to say when it would publish proposals.

'This is an incredibly important area. We are committed to bringing forward reforms on social care - we are committed to that in our manifesto,' he told Sky News.

'We will be bringing forward a long-term plan for reform of social care. As we come out of Covid, so we can return to delivering on those manifesto commitments that we made.

'We have seen the importance of social care through this crisis. That has strengthened the need for reform, the need for integration with the NHS.'

Vic Rayner, chief executive of the National Care Forum, said she wanted the Government to become the 'government of social care'.

She told BBC Breakfast: 'It's very difficult, it's challenging, but what we need to make the Government understand is that social care really matters to millions of people.

'It's a really big issue for the population and unfortunately governments up to now have not tackled this, and we really want this Government to take on the mantle and to become the government of social care.'
Chinese farmers' income goes up as high-quality development pays off

10:01, May 11, 2021 By Gao Yuncai, Chang Qin ( People's Daily

A woman picks tomatoes in an agricultural park in Deqing county, Huzhou, east China's Zhejiang province, May 8, 2021. (People's Daily/Wang Shucheng)

The average per capita disposable income for Chinese rural residents reached 5,398 yuan ($839) in the first quarter this year, up 16.3 percent in real terms, according to statistics released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Rural economy has maintained sound operation, with the value added of the country's primary industry exceeding 1.13 trillion yuan, up 8.1 percent year on year.

"I made a right decision to return home and start a business, given the huge development potential of the countryside," said Sun Zhongling, owner of a ranch in Sunzhuang village, Guandu township, Zhongmu county, central China's Henan province. Establishing a stock cooperative and inviting agricultural experts to the village for training sessions, the man is quite confident about his future development.

According to Liu Jianyu, a villager that works for the ranch, he can earn 50,000 to 60,000 yuan a year. Now, the ranch has become an important vegetable supplier for Zhengzhou, capital of Henan province, and is offering 400 jobs for rural residents.

It is estimated that every startup project initiated by entrepreneurs returning to rural areas can create 6.3 stable jobs and 17.3 flexible jobs, said Ye Xingqing, director-general of the Research Department of Rural Economy of the Development Research Center of the State Council. A total of 19 million returnees to the countryside have secured jobs near their homes, he added.

As technological innovation is upgrading agricultural production, the income of many farmers is on a rise. In the fields of Qingyihu township, Shuyang county, east China's Jiangsu province, 30 agricultural drones are employed by grain grower Teng Yunfei, who has contracted over 13,000 mu (867 hectares) of land. Thanks to technology-backed grain-growing, the man made more than six million yuan last year, with each mu of land generating an income of 500 yuan.

Green planting is also benefiting many farmers including Zhang Jian from Wangji township, Siyang county, east China's Jiangsu province. By replacing chemical fertilizers with organic fertilizers, and pesticides with sticky traps and bug zappers, Zhang's peaches were certified as green products and put on the shelves of major supermarkets in Shanghai. "Greenness is a golden signboard that makes our peaches more valuable," Zhang said.

Chinese people's demand for quality and green products is growing even stronger as they embrace a better life. It is reported that over 97 percent of agricultural products have met or exceeded quality standard in the first three months of this year, and there were over 53,800 types of green, organic and GI (geographical indication) products available on the market.

In order to better meet the demand of the upgrading consumption, the country will advance the green development of agriculture from a higher level and on a broader range, said Zeng Yande, head of the Department of Development and Planning of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

Apart from green products, improved rural environment is also leading to prospering rural tourism. For instance, a modern agricultural park in Cangxi county, southwest China's Sichuan province, is visited by nearly 10,000 tourists on a daily basis. "There are 86 B&Bs and hotels in the township, and all of them are almost fully booked," said Duan Yongxi, a local villager who runs an agritainment facility and had once received more than 200 tourists a day.

Duan's agritainment facility is jointly run by himself and his son and daughter-in-law who quit their urban jobs and returned home. "It's really great to operate the business together with my family," he told People's Daily.

Duan is not the only one that's benefiting from the business. By running B&Bs and restaurants, each local household has increased annual income by 30,000 yuan on average.

The rapid growing leisure agriculture is expanding the functions of the countryside and increasing added value for relevant industries. Last year, the sector generated total revenue of over 600 billion yuan, and 150 tourism routes and 200 tourism villages will be built this year.

The high-quality development of agriculture is injecting new vitality into the countryside and driving the income growth for farmers, said Zhang Hongyu, deputy dean of the China Institute for Rural Studies, Tsinghua University.

Giving priorities to ecological progress and promoting high-quality development will only make even stronger impetus for increasing farmers' income, he added.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
A remarkable polar bear was finally in captivity tonight after walking a record 675 miles from its Arctic Ocean habitat.

After a six-week effort, authorities eventually caught the beast, which appeared furious that its marathon adventure had come to an end.

In a video, the bear is seen angrily shaking its cramped cage.

The bear's capture came after it ventured into a remote Russian village yesterday, causing panic among the locals.

Hunters kept the bear at bay for around eight hours after it suddenly appeared in the coal-mining village of Dzhebariki-Khaya.

Wildlife specialists flew in by helicopter from regional capital Yakutsk to lure the animal into a cage using seal fat as a bait.

A remarkable polar bear was finally in captivity tonight after walking a record 675 miles from its Arctic Ocean habitat

After a six-week effort, authorities eventually caught the beast, which appeared furious that its marathon adventure had come to an end

The bear's survival depended on its capture because the animal was at risk of being shot by humans - despite its Red Book status as an endangered animal - or starving from lack of food.

The bear was so hungry that it ate 40 kilograms of fish in the first hour after being caught.

Minister of ecology in Yakutia region, Sahamin Afanasiev, said: 'The group worked professionally.

'They lured the bear into the cage which was specially made in advance.

'The bear entered the cage.

'After that we prepared a transportation box, loaded it into a Polar Airlines helicopter and in one and a half hours the bear was delivered to Yakutsk.'

Wildlife specialists flew in by helicopter from regional capital Yakutsk to lure the animal into a cage using seal fat as a bait

The bear is to be temporarily housed in the city's zoo before a decision is made on its fate

One idea for the bear's future is to fly it back to the shore of the Laptev Sea, and re-release it into the wild. But if the animal is deemed unfit to return to the wild, it will go permanently to a zoo

The bear is to be temporarily housed in the city's zoo before a decision is made on its fate.

One idea is to fly it back to the shore of the Laptev Sea, and re-release it into the wild.

But if the animal is deemed unfit to return to the wild, it will go permanently to a zoo.

The bear is already famous for its epic travel adventure - but experts are unsure what made it embark on this odyssey.

The bear's capture came a day after it appeared in Dzhebariki-Khaya.

The polar bear held a Russian village under siege on Monday after travelling some miles inland from its natural habitat on the shore of the Arctic Ocean

The bear - looking emaciated and confused after travelling so far south that there is no snow - was aggressive and threatened villagers who tried to chase it away from houses

The route of the wandering polar bear. Regional wildlife rangers have been attempting to catch the bear for weeks, but until Tuesday it had eluded all efforts

'Here it is.... damned amazing...somehow it's scary to go to work,' said one resident as he filmed the animal.

A woman found the bear sleeping next to her house.

'Look, the beast came to our yard and lies down.

'It ate the dog's food and just brazenly lies here.'

Later the bear - looking thin and confused after travelling so far south that there is no snow - was aggressive and threatened villagers who tried to chase it away from houses.

Sergey Krepushin, head of the village's administration, told Yakutia Daily: 'It is now on the outskirts of the village.

Regional wildlife rangers have been attempting to catch the bear for weeks, but until Tuesday it had eluded all efforts

'We drove it 400ft from a residential building.

'We have been holding it back for about six hours.

'It became aggressive, rushes towards us, and growls.

'We don't know what to do.

'The polar bear is an animal listed in the Red Book, so it cannot be killed.'

The lone bear has been travelling south in Siberia on an odyssey that amazed experts

The beast - looking three or four years old - crossed the Arctic Circle heading south on its remarkable journey into the territory of the brown bear

One video shows locals with dogs trying to hold the bear back.

'Wait - it will rush at us now,' said one man.

'Noit won't' said another.

Later a local woman said she had fed the bear.

'He is not aggressive any more,' she said.

'He is hungry and tired.

'I gathered everything that was in my freezer, fed him.'

The bear remained under close guard.

'Now it looks like he is sleeping. We are waiting for the helicopter.'

The beast, which looked to be three or four years old, wandered down from the Arctic Circle heading south on its remarkable journey into the territory of the brown bear.

In late March the racing predator was spotted running in the wrong direction on a road, near Batagai, already 300 miles from the coast

The last sighting of the animal - dubbed Polar Paddington for its love of travel - was when it crept up on fisherman Andrey Rybakov, 41, on the banks of the Khandyga River, almost two weeks ago.

The bear tried to steal his catch as the angler rushed into his Toyota Land Cruiser to take refuge.

In late March, the racing predator was spotted running in the wrong direction on a road, near Batagai, already 300 miles from the coast.

It is highly unusual for bears to move even a short distance south from the Arctic coast where they have a plentiful supply of food.

Locals cannot remember ever seeing a polar bear so far south.

'It's sat-nav is awry,' said one local.

In 2019 a polar bear was spotted further south in Russia's Kamchatka region after floating in on an ice floe.

But the bear in Dzhebariki-Khaya village had come all this way on foot - a journey that has probably taken at least three months.

The bear tried to steal fishing gear from an angler while desperately searching for food after wandering 600 miles from its natural habitat in Russia

A lone wandering polar bear has tried to steal fishing gear from a local man as it desperately tries to find food after wandering 600 miles across Russia

Wildlife inspectors have so far failed to snare the adventurous predator amid fears for its survival so far from its natural habitat

Fisherman Rybakov recalled his encounter with the bear:

'I was sitting and fishing - and this bear suddenly came from behind,' said a clearly shaken Rybakov.

'I heard nothing. And not just any bear. A polar bear.'

He recorded a video - the best footage so far of the wandering polar bear, and admitted: 'He scared me.'

'I only managed to grab my fishing rod and ice pick - and run,' he said.

'It turned my fishing box upside down.'

Rybakov said: 'It approached my rods. There are no fish! Ugh... I can't go back now. It sits and watches. And attacks me when I try to approach.'

From his vehicle, he shouted at the bear: 'Leave my rods alone.'

With no fish in sight, the bear instead stole his spoon lures as a souvenir, infuriating the fisherman.

'What the hell are you doing?', Rybakov shouted.

The bear crept up on angler Andrey Rybakov, 41, who was fishing on the Khandyga River - and gave him the fright of his life

Polar Paddington has traveled 600 miles south from his natural habitat, sparking fears he may be lost in unfamiliar territory

The bear was last seen climbing a snowy wooded embankment with the angler's spook lures clutched in its jaw.

The bear's winding journey has seen it follow remote roads, and go cross country, all the time evading efforts of wildlife inspectors to track it until Tuesday.

Earlier this month it crossed the Arctic Circle in a southerly direction, and is now close to the notorious Road of Bones, built by prisoners in Stalin times, connecting Yakutsk with former Gulag port Magadan.

Some experts initially believed that the wild animal might be an albino brown bear, because it is so unusual for polar bears to venture here.

The fact the bear appears in good condition, not starving, despite its failure to grab any lunch from Rybakov.

Video taken from a truck following behind the bear shows it bounding through the snow on the Yana Road, heading south towards the regional capital Yakutsk in mid-April

A lost polar bear had wandered 500 miles from its natural habitat in the Russian Arctic by mid-April and has continued to travel away from its home

Previous sightings showed the bear in late March some 300 miles adrift from the Arctic, and more recently in mid-April on the lonely Yana road in Tomponsky district about 500 miles from home.

In 2017, a female cub was rescued in Verkhoyansk district, some 450 miles from the Arctic coast, after raiding a fish processing plant on the Kolyma River.

But now this bear has gone further.
Declaration form will confirm guests have not been in Greater Melbourne area

Will be mandatory for those travelling to NSW & Queensland to sign health form

Infected man returned from India flying through the Maldives and Singapore

Infected man returned from India flying through the Maldives and Singapore

He started developing symptoms on May 8 and returned a positive test Monday

An online declaration form will be mandatory for people travelling into New South Wales and Queensland after a positive Covid case in Victoria on Tuesday.

NSW Health and Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk both confirmed the development, with the implemented changes to apply for visitors from 6am on Wednesday, May 12 in NSW and 1am Thursday, May 13 in the Sunshine State.

'People arriving in New South Wales from the Greater Melbourne area must complete a declaration (form) which confirms they have not attended a venue of concern,' NSW Health said.

'If any travellers have attended any of the identified venues, they must contact NSW Health immediately.'

The message from NSW Health (pictured) confirming people arriving in the state from the Greater Melbourne Area from 6am onwards from May 12 must complete a declaration form stating they have not attended a venue of concern

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk also confirmed the new requirements (pictured) in place for entering her state after a man in Melbourne tested positive to Covid

Some of the identified venues in Greater Melbourne include the likes of Bayside City, Frankston City, Knox City and Mornington Peninsula Shire.

A similar announcement emerged from the Queensland Premier on Tuesday night.

'From 1am Thursday 13 May, anyone arriving into Queensland who has been to any of the locations in Greater Melbourne must go into hotel quarantine for 14 days,' Ms Palaszczuk said.

'Anyone in Queensland prior to 1am Thursday who has been to any of the locations is also asked to quarantine at their home or arranged accommodation and also get a Covid-19 test.'

The full list of Greater Melbourne Council areas: Banyule City, Bayside City, Boroondara City, Brimbank City, Cardinia Shire, Casey City, Darebin City, Frankston City, Glen Eira City, Greater Dandenong City, Greater Geelong City, Hobsons Bay City, Hume City, Kingston City, Knox City, Macedon Ranges Shire, Manningham City, Maribyrnong City, Maroondah City, Melbourne City, Melton City, Mitchell Shire, Monash City, Moonee Valley City, Moorabool Shire, Moreland City, Mornington Peninsula Shire, Murrindindi Shire, Nillumbik Shire, Port Phillip City, Stonnington City, Whitehorse City, Whittlesea City, Wyndham City, Yarra City, and Yarra Ranges Shire. Source: NSW Health Advertisement

Earlier on Tuesday, a man tested positive for coronavirus at his Melbourne home after serving his mandatory two weeks hotel quarantine in South Australia.

The man, aged in his 30s, arrived back at his house in Wollert in the city's north on Tuesday May 4 before developing symptoms over the weekend.

He was tested on Monday after his condition worsened and produced a positive result on Tuesday morning.

The man had arrived in Australia from India, travelling through the Maldives and Singapore before arriving in South Australia.

The man was staying in a room adjacent to a positive case in the Playford medi-hotel and is believed to have contracted the virus in the final days of his quarantine following his last test.

South Australia's Chief Public Health Officer Professor Nicola Spurrier said the man was not believed to be infectious when he caught the flight back to Melbourne.

The man tested negative to his mandatory tests while in hotel quarantine and authorities believe he only became infectious after landing in Victoria.

Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley confirmed the man's re-test again came back positive on Tuesday afternoon but said his three household close contacts have returned negative tests.

A man has tested positive for coronavirus at his Melbourne home after serving his mandatory two weeks hotel quarantine in South Australia

Testing will continue across NSW after a man in Melbourne returned a positive reading for Covid in Victoria in Tuesday (pictured testing at Bondi Beach in Sydney's east)

He also confirmed there are three tier one areas of exposure, which mean anyone at the venues must immediately self-isolate, get tested and quarantine for 14 days.

There were also three tier two exposed venues, where anyone present must immediately get tested and isolate until they return a negative result.

Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton says it was 'absolutely the case' that the man contracted the virus while serving his hotel quarantine in South Australia but said there were positives that his close contacts had produced negative tests.

'The early encouraging sign is the household close contacts are all negative given he would've been infectious likely since the 6th [of May].'

He says they have not yet released his flight number or the airport as areas of exposure because at this stage they don't believe the man was infectious while on the flight.

High exposure sites in Melbourne Tier One: TIC Group - Front office - 214 Blackshaws Road, Altona North - 12:01am to 11:59pm - Thursday, May 6 Curry Vault Indian Restaurant and Bar - 18-20 Bank Pl, Melbourne - 6:30pm and 9:30pm on Friday, May 7 Indian Gate Spices and Groceries - Unit 14 C/560-590 High Street - 5pm and 6pm on Saturday, May 8 Woolworths Epping - Cooper Streeet and High Street - 5:40pm and 6:38pm on Saturday, May 8 Tier Two: TIC Group - Rear warehouse section -214 Blackshaws Road, Altona North - All day, Thursday May 6 7/11 Epping - 705 High Street - 6:30pm and 7:30pm on Thursday, May 6 7/11 Epping - 705 High Street - 11:10am and 11:40am on Saturday, May 8 Advertisement

Anyone that has been at the exposure sites during the reported times must also immediately contact the state's coronavirus hotline on 1800 675 398.

More than two dozen workers at a Melbourne CBD health company were sent home as a 'precaution' after a potential coronavirus scare on Tuesday morning.

The workers at Citadel Health were sent home from their office on the city's busy Collins Street after one of the employees was notified as being a close contact of the Wollert man.

A spokesman for Citadel Health confirmed staff had been sent home to Daily Mail Australia but that their employee who was a close contact to the infected man had returned a negative result.

Victoria Health are now conducting a 'full public health response' into close contacts and possible hotspots.

Face masks remain mandatory on public transport in NSW (pictured commuters at Wynyard Station in Sydney's CBD)

'Further testing has been urgently arranged to confirm the diagnosis,' the Victorian Department of Health said on Tuesday.

'Until that time, the Department is treating this as a positive case and acting accordingly.'

The man and his household of three close contacts will remain in isolation for a further two weeks as is the incubation period with the virus.

'Until then, the department is treating this as a positive case and acting accordingly,' the department said.

'The individual is being interviewed and exposure sites are being verified.'
A heartbroken mother of a six-year-old girl who was shot and killed at a San Antonio car club meetup on Sunday has made an emotional plea for the end of gun violence at her daughter's vigil.

Kassandra Mendoza broke down in tears Monday as she paid tribute her daughter Saryah Perez who was struck by gunfire shortly before 11pm on Sunday while sitting in the backseat of a car after a dispute broke out.

Andrew Rey Elizondo, 23, an acquaintance of Mendoza, was arrested and charged with the little girl's murder on Monday, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said.

As tensions flared at the legitimate car club meetup near Southwest 24th Street and West Commerce Street, the suspect began shooting at a car with Saryah and Mendoza inside as they drove away.

Kassandra Mendoza broke down in tears Monday as she paid tribute her daughter Saryah Perez, six, who was shot and killed at a San Antonio car club meetup on Sunday

Saryah Perez was struck by gunfire shortly before 11pm on Sunday while sitting in the backseat of a car after a dispute broke out.

Andrew Rey Elizondo, 23, an acquaintance of Mendoza, was arrested and charged with the little girl's murder on Monday

The gunfire fatally struck Saryah in the chest as she sat in the back seat of the car while her mother was grazed in the back by the bullet, police said.

The authorities added that it was not a case of domestic violence but did not specify what led up to the dispute.

Mendoza drove to a local corner store where she called for help. Saryah was rushed to San Antonio University hospital where she died from her injuries, police said.

On Monday evening, more than 200 people gathered at a vigil in memory of Saryah at the scene where she was shot.

In an emotional scene, Mendoza was seen crying uncontrollably while being held by friends and family at the vigil. She called for the end of gun violence in a tearful speech.

'She loved everybody,' Mendoza said at the vigil, reports KSAT. 'She loved her brother. She loved being with her parents, her grandparents.

'They did this,' she said while weeping. 'They took her from me. Why? She wasn't doing anything wrong. She was enjoying herself.

'I will never forgive Andrew. Never. He has kids of his own. How could he do this to my baby?'

'Put guns down. Stop using them,' she pleaded. 'They took my baby because of a gunshot. Stop using guns. Put them down, please.'

In an emotional scene, Mendoza was seen crying uncontrollably while being held by friends and family at the vigil

San Antonio Police Chief William McManus embraces Mendoza as she cries at the vigil

As tensions flared at the legitimate car club meetup near Southwest 24th Street and West Commerce Street, the suspect began shooting at a car with Saryah and Mendoza inside as they drove away

'This was not a domestic violence-related incident,' McManus told a press conference on Monday.

'It's a random act by a reckless, heartless individual who could not have cared less where those bullets wound up,' he said.

'This is all about human behavior, and someone who would do something like this I don't even have words for.'

'I don't have words for the atrocity committed by the suspect,' he added. 'Another young life lost, another family grief stricken by that loss.'

Members of a car club had gathered on Sunday night in the parking lot of a retail hub on the south side of Commerce, near Our Lady of the Lake University.

Police attend the scene where Saryah was shot and killed while sitting in the back of a car

Members of a car club had gathered on Sunday night in the parking lot of a retail hub on the south side of Commerce, near Our Lady of the Lake University

Roy Alderete, 35, witnessed the shooting and its aftermath, saying he heard 'a couple of shots' after he saw cars parked in the parking lot.

He told San Antonio Express-News: 'Next thing you know, there's just these cars flying everywhere.'

After the shooting, a red sedan pulled up to the nearby convenience store, Alderete said. Inside was a man, two woman and a little girl.

'I thought they were going to stop and come in the store,' Alderete said, but he said one of the women checked on the girl - now known to be Saryah - who realised she was hurt.

'It just went from laughing and music to yelling and crying,' Alderete said. One of the women - believed to be Mendoza - pulled Saryah out of the car and tried in vain to revive her before holding her daughter's body. 'She had lost a lot of blood,' he said.

Mendoza has set up a GoFundMe page to pay tribute to her daughter, who has been described as always having a 'big smile'

'She was a bright and cheerful girl,' she wrote. 'She was always there to care for everyone. She was a big loving sister.'

'She enjoyed every moment with her family and friends always with a big smile,' Mendoza wrote, adding that Saryah loved wearing big bows in her hair.
Britain's former ambassador to Uzbekistan has said he was 'slightly surprised' at being sentenced to eight months in jail for contempt of court over his blog on Alex Salmond's sex assault trial.

Craig Murray, 62, had watched two days of Mr Salmond's trial in March 2020 from the public gallery of Edinburgh's High Court before writing about the proceedings on his own website.

Speaking today the former ambassador told MailOnline he planned to appeal.

'I'm genuinely slightly surprised with how the sentence went, it seems sort of out of line from what people have known to get for contempt of court.

'I was really surprised by some of the judge's comments. One thing to say is I will be appealing not just to the sentence but to the whole offence,' Murray said.

Judges ruled that Murray was in contempt of court relating to material capable of identifying four of the nine women who accused the former first minister of sexual abuse.

Mr Salmond was acquitted of 13 sexual assault charges following his trial.

'I genuinely did not intend to identify anyone I really didn't, and I don't think I did identify anyone. I still believe that,' Murray said.

'There was no evidence led at all by anyone to justify the judges remarks about doing it 'deliberately and lethally' as she said.

'I just don't know where that came from, it wasn't alleged by the prosecution, it wasn't in the evidence. I don't know how she could say such a thing. I found it all a bit strange. Slightly bemused but ready to continue with the appeal.'

Craig Murray, 62, (pictured alongside his second wife Nadira Alieva) had watched two days of Mr Salmond's trial in March 2020 from the public gallery of Edinburgh's High Court before writing about the proceedings on his own website

Earlier on Tuesday, Murray was sentenced to eight months behind bars and was given 48 hours, later extended to three weeks, to surrender himself to a police station.

Sentencing the former UK ambassador to Uzbekistan, judge Lady Dorrian said Murray knew there were court orders giving the women anonymity and he was 'relishing' the potential disclosure of their identities.

At the virtual sentencing today, Lady Dorrian explained that Murray deliberately risked jigsaw identification and that revealing complainers' identities was 'abhorrent'.

She said it was 'particularly so, given the enormous publicity which the case in question attracted and continues to attract'.

Murray's offending blog posts and tweets were written over a period of a month and remained up, unredacted, despite the blogger being told they could potentially lead to the identification of women who had made complaints about Mr Salmond.

Lady Dorrian said: 'It appears from the posts and articles that he was in fact relishing the task he set himself, which was essentially to allow the identities of complainers to be discerned - which he thought was in the public interest - in a way which did not attract sanction.'

She added: 'These actions create a real risk that complainers may be reluctant to come forward in future cases, particularly where the case may be high profile or likely to attract significant publicity.

'The actions strike at the heart of the fair administration of justice.

'Notwithstanding the previous character of the respondent and his health issues, we do not think we can dispose of this case other than by way of a sentence of imprisonment.'

Murray was initially given 48 hours to hand himself in to a police station, but after a challenge by his lawyer Roddy Dunlop QC, this was extended to three weeks so he can appeal the sentence - but he was ordered to surrender his passport.

Judges subsequently ruled that he was in contempt of court relating to material capable of identifying four of the nine women who accused former first minister Alex Salmond (pictured at electoral count on Saturday) of sexual abuse

The blogger and former diplomat had previously posted on his blog in an attempt to solicit funds to pay for his defence.

He wrote: 'With enormous diffidence and frankly embarrassment, I find myself yet again obliged to ask people to contribute towards my defence fund before my hearing.'

In his earlier mitigation submission, Mr Dunlop said Murray was a man of 'impeccable character' and previously 'untarnished reputation', and said it is no exaggeration to say the retired diplomat is already suffering 'significant punishment' from the impact of the case.

Mr Dunlop said sending Murray to prison would be 'harsh to the point of being disproportionate', and he urged judges to deal with the matter by way of a fine.

He said: 'Allowing that the finding of contempt has been ruled by this court to be justified, the question is whether, given all the circumstances, that justification extends yet further to countenancing imprisonment, to taking a retired diplomat with an exemplary background away from his wife, his 11-year-old son, and his baby.

The blogger and former diplomat has since taken to Twitter to share his reaction

'For what purpose? The response might well be pour decourager les autres (French for to discourage others). If that is the purpose, job done. Mr Murray's blogging is inevitably hamstrung by the ruling itself, the decision is and has been widely publicised.

'If anyone out there thinks that playing with fire in the field of jigsaw identification is a zero sum game, their views have been disabused by the ruling this court has already made.'

Murray has since taken to Twitter to share his reaction to today's sentencing as he wrote: 'Actually what I found most shocking about that was the peculiar determination of the judges to make sure that, during the three weeks we have to lodge the appeal, I am not allowed to go to Spain to testify in the criminal prosecution for the CIA spying on Assange's legal team.'

He has since also received support from others including journalist and documentary filmmaker John Pilger who said: 'In these dark times, Craig Murray's truth-telling is a beacon.

'He is owed our debt of gratitude, not the travesty of a prison sentence which, like the prosecution of Julian Assange, is a universal warning.'
Victor Hugo Cuevas, age 26, is on bail for the 2017 murder of a man outside a sushi restaurant in Richmond, west of Houston

The murder suspect accused of fleeing police with a pet tiger, which was filmed terrorizing a Houston neighborhood, claims he knows where the tiger is and who its real owner is.

Victor Hugo Cuevas, 26, was on bail awaiting trial for first-degree murder when he allegedly ditched police in a high-speed pursuit after he bundled his tiger into a white Jeep Cherokee and fled the scene on Sunday evening.

He was taken into custody on Monday night at his parent's home and was charged with felony evading arrest for fleeing from patrol officers.

The Bengal tiger, revealed to be a nine-month-old named India on Tuesday, is still on the loose after it was filmed wandering through Ivy Wall Drive in West Houston on Saturday night.

Cuevas has been charged with the July 2017 murder of University of Houston dental student Oseikhuemen Omobhude, 20, outside the Bella Terra shopping mall in Richmond, west of Houston, ABC7.com reported.

According to eyewitness accounts, Omobhude was approached by two men on motorcycles and shot several times in his car. He was able to drive a few hundred yards to seek help at a nearby Buffalo Wings Restaurant, but later died at Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital.

The motive for the shooting is still unclear.

Cuevas was arrested two weeks after the murder at an airport while returning from Mexico, KHOU11 reported.

On Tuesday, Cuevas, branded 'Houston's Tiger King', appeared in court in Harris County where a magistrate set a $50,000 bond on a felony evading arrest charge.

After the appearance Cuevas' lawyer Michael Elliott said his client knew who the owner was and where the tiger could be found, and had been assisting investigators.

He again has denied the tiger belonged to his client, and revealed the tiger's name was India and it was just nine-months-old.

Carole Baskin, who shot to fame after the Netflix documentary Tiger King, told Fox26 Houston it appeared someone with a criminal history had decided it would 'be cool to have a tiger and take it around' in his car.

The tiger, identified by a neighbor as a Bengal, approaches a man with a weapon trained upon it in menacing fashion

A tiger was on the loose in the quiet residential neighborhood of Ivy Wall Drive in West Houston on Sunday night

Cuevas is on bail for the 2017 murder of Oseikhuemen 'Ose' Omobhude, 20, who was shot in the parking lot of a popular sushi restaurant

A close friend of Omubhude's, Shontavia Young, told DailyMail.com she was shocked when she heard the suspect in his murder was out on bail.

'This definitely shook me up this morning,' she said.

'If they were in the wrong, and now youre out doing this yes you need to be put away.'

Young said Omubhude had gone to meet two men on the night that he was shot dead.

'From my understanding he was meeting with some guys and there was some words exchanged and he did end up being shot, a couple of times through his body.'

'He was able to make it to the Buffalo Wild Wings but of course he didnt make it.'

She said Omubhude had touched many lives during his 20 years.

'Any room that Ose walked in, he brightened it, he always made sure everybody was good.

'So many people came to his memorial service, it was incredible to see how many lives he touched.'

He was charged with first-degree murder three years later in 2020 and is currently out on a $125,000 bond. A second man was also arrested in connection with the shooting.

Young was unclear why it had taken three years for police to charge Cuevas with her best friend's killing.

Omobhude, who was studying to become a dentist, was a member of the University of Houston's Zeta Zeta Chapter of the Phi Beta Sigma fraternity.

The fraternity held a memorial and fundraising drive for his family after he died.

Cuevas, who is in custody in Harris County on charges arising from this week's run-in with the cops, is due to appear in court in Fort Bend on Friday for a bail revocation hearing on the murder charges.

Cuevas was arrested after sheriff's received an anonymous tip and held on a $750,000 bond in the Fort Bend County Jail.

TIGER HAS A NAME: New info on Houston's missing tiger. Attorney claims "India" is nine-months-old and is not his client's big cat. Latest updates here>>> https://t.co/6zUpFPbEzF pic.twitter.com/lfYFjUlw25  KHOU 11 News Houston (@KHOU) May 11, 2021

The quiet suburban West Houston neighborhood were alerted to the presence of the tiger roaming through the streets when Jose Ramos posted a warning on a neighborhood blog around 8pm.

Waller County Sheriff's deputy Wes Manion, who lives nearby, saw the post and despite initially thinking it was a fake went to the scene to investigate.

'You always have to verify,' he told KHOU radio station.

Upon arriving on Ivy Wall Drive, Manion discovered the big cat on the loose in the street, and tried to shepherd it away from residents.

Video footage shows him drawing his weapon and aiming it at the tiger as it appears to be stalking him.

'Last thing I wanted to do was shoot the tiger,' Manion told KHOU. 'It didn't seem super aggressive.'

The footage shows Cuevas arrive and start dragging the tiger back inside a house, which he had been renting for six months.

Manion asked angrily why the tiger was on the loose, and Cuevas is seen on video telling him: 'We're with the zoo'.

Manion orders Cuevas to get the tiger back into his house and Cuevas grabs the tiger's collar and walks it into a house.

He was taken into custody on Monday night and was charged with felony evading arrest for fleeing from patrol officers

Law enforcement officials investigate the home where the tiger was being kept before it went on the loose

Waller County Sheriff's Office Deputy Wes Manion approximates the size of the tiger, Monday, May 10, 2021, in Houston

Cuevas then puts the tiger into a white Jeep Cherokee and drives away with it.

Police pursued the vehicle but soon lost sight of it.

Houston PD major crimes division commander Ronald Borza said it appeared the animal had been well cared for, and was kept inside a house Cuevas had been renting sine late last year.

Borza, a commander with the Houston Police Department's major offenders division, told a news conference.

A search of the home found an animal enclosure in the backyard, but there were signs the animal had been kept inside the home most of the time.

Borza said the animal appeared to have been well cared for.

But the police commander added Houston's citywide ban on wild animals was in place for a good reason.

'You never know when that animal is going to turn on you,' he said.

Elliott, Cuevas' lawyer, said he and his client had made contact with police and arranged for him to surrender at the Harris County Jail at 8:15pm Monday night.

But police swooped on Cuevas' parents address in Bella Veneza Drive 15 minutes before the deadline.

Cuevas was taken to the Fort Bend County Jail for a bond violation relating to his 2017 murder charge and for evading arrest.

Elliott accused police of a double-cross, insisted his client hadn't done anything wrong, and said they were was assisting police in finding the tiger's owner.

'Because my client was the one who caught this tiger, who went out and got it, brought it back to safety, everyone is just assuming that he's the owner of the tiger and that it's his tiger,' Elliott said.

Speaking after Cuevas' court appearance on Tuesday afternoon, Elliott again denied his client was the owner of the tiger.

'We need to find India,' said Elliott. 'We know from the video that everyone's seen.. he happens to be the one that... brought the tiger back into safety. That doesn't mean that he's the owner.'



While the state of Texas has very relaxed laws on ownership of dangerous animals, is illegal to keep a tiger in the city of Houston.

Footage showed the big cat stalking around the West Houston home

Victor Hugo Cuevas was seen grabbing hold of his tiger by the collar

Cuevas then led the animal back into his house before he put the animal into his Jeep and drove off

Carole Baskin, who runs a big cat sanctuary featured in the hit Netflix documentary Tiger King, praised the actions of the off-duty deputy in an interview with Fox26.

'He showed an amazing amount of restraint. So many other people would have shot it like that,' she told the station.

She said it was an all too familiar story of private big cat owners not caring properly for the animals.

'It just keeps happening,' she said.

'Clearly, this cat was wondering around because they left it unattended. They probably thought the backyard fence was high enough, and didn't realize the cat could hop it like that.'

Her husband Howard added the tiger could have easily killed a small child walking past.

The House of Representatives passed the 'Tiger King' bill in December, which would ban the private ownership in the US of tigers, lions and cougars.

Officers were called to the address around 8pm on Sunday night after receiving reports of a tiger roaming the neighborhood.

Video footage, posted online on Sunday evening, shows several pickup trucks and other vehicles appear to be trying to block the tiger in to prevent it from escaping.

'There is a freaking Bengal tiger roaming in this yard and this dude needs to be careful,' a woman is heard saying on the video.

'What the heck? Why is there a tiger?'

An eyewitness capturing the footage, Maria Torres, can be heard shouting: 'It has a collar. It is somebody's pet.'

The person capturing the footage, which has been viewed nearly 750,000 times by Monday morning, makes a run for it when the tiger gets too close.

Eventually, a person who appears to be the tiger's owner emerges from a house and can be heard saying: 'I'll get him, I'll get him.'

The man grabs the animal by the collar and takes it back into a house.

'Get the f** back inside. F**k you and your f**king tiger,' another man can be heard yelling at him.

The armed man gestures to residents to stay back as the tiger gets within a few feet of his position

The tiger is reportedly not the only exotic animal which has been spotted at Cuevas' rented property.

Neighbor Jose Ramos later told ABC13 that he had seen a capuchin monkey at the residence before.

'I figured, OK, this is a small animal. It could be domesticated. But I never thought they would hold a tiger in their house.'

A person named Rob Wormald posted video of the encounter between the tiger and the deputy on his Twitter account.

'Apparently there's a tiger loose on my parents' West Houston street?' he writes.

Texas has some of the most lenient pet ownership rules in the country, however it is illegal to own a dangerous animal in the Houston city limits.

The neighborhood where the tiger was filmed is about 18 miles west of downtown Houston and still within its city limits.

Animal welfare activists estimate there could be between 2,000 and 5,000 privately-owned tigers in the Lone Star State - making it second only to India in tiger population.

The story lit up social media, with many making comparisons with the Tiger King documentary.

'Tiger King 2 is going to be even more wild than the first season,' wrote David Feder.

'Tiger King 2 is going to be even more wild than the first season,' wrote David Feder.

'Houston's own Tiger King,' said another poster, with a picture of Cuevas with the tiger

Rex Chapman wrote: 'Oh nothing - just a loose tiger in a Houston, Texas neighborhood'

'I think the part we might want to focus on right now, Houston, is "but the tiger's whereabouts are still unknown"'

'Where does one stash a tiger on short notice,' asked Brian Beutler, with New York Times columnist Elizabeth Bruenig replying: 'Well I used to know a guy but he's dealing with some legal troubles'

'Houston's own Tiger King,' said another poster, with a picture of Cuevas with the tiger.

Rex Chapman wrote: 'Oh nothing - just a loose tiger in a Houston, Texas neighborhood'.

'I think the part we might want to focus on right now, Houston, is "but the tiger's whereabouts are still unknown"' Michelle Lyons wrote.

'Where does one stash a tiger on short notice,' asked Brian Beutler, with New York Times columnist Elizabeth Bruenig replying: 'Well I used to know a guy but he's dealing with some legal troubles'.
Migrants who travelled through a 'safe' country like France or Belgium on their way to the UK will be blocked from seeking asylum in Britain.

The Government today confirmed a major overhaul of the nation's immigration system as it set out its plans in the Queen's Speech.

The changes will mean migrants who 'travelled through a safe country where they could have reasonably claimed asylum... will not be admitted into the UK asylum system'.

Legal arrivals and illegal arrivals will be treated differently for the first time so the system 'does not reward those who enter the UK illegally'.

The shake-up will also see the asylum system streamlined, creating a 'one-stop' process designed to 'end the cycle of limitless appeals'.

The Government today confirmed a major overhaul of the nation's immigration system as it set out its plans in the Queen's Speech. A Border Force vessel is pictured in Dover on April 28

Home Secretary Priti Patel unveiled the Government's 'New Plan for Immigration' in March this year

The Government is hoping to deter illegal arrivals to the UK - particularly from dangerous small boat Channel crossings. Pictured is a view of boats used by people thought to be migrants stored at a warehouse facility in Dover after being intercepted in the Channel by Border Force

No right to settle under Priti Priti's asylum blitz Migrants who arrive in the UK illegally will no longer have the right to permanently settle here even if they have a strong asylum claim.

Anyone who arrives illegally having passed through a 'safe country' will be deemed 'inadmissible' to the UK asylum system.

The Government will seek the 'rapid removal' of 'inadmissible cases' back to the country they travelled to the UK from.

Those who cannot be returned to a safe country will be granted 'temporary protection status' for 30 months, with only limited access to benefits and limited family reunion rights.

The Government's asylum estate will be expanded with the creation of new reception centres to provide accommodation while claims are processed.

Action to improve age assessment measures to safeguard against adults claiming to be children.

A new 'one-stop' process for claims which will require people to spell out all protection-related issues in one go to prevent last-minute legal bids to thwart removal of failed asylum seekers.

Maximum sentence for people smugglers raised to life, and to five years for foreign criminals who return to the UK in breach of a deportation order.

New humanitarian routes for the 'vulnerable' in 'immediate danger'. Advertisement

The Government's so-called 'New Plan for Immigration' was unveiled by Home Secretary Priti Patel in March this year.

It will mean migrants who arrive in the UK illegally will no longer have the right to permanently settle here even if they have a strong asylum claim.

Anyone who arrives illegally having passed through a 'safe' country will be deemed 'inadmissible' to the UK asylum system.

The Government will seek the 'rapid removal' of 'inadmissible cases' back to the country they travelled to the UK from.

Those who cannot be returned to a 'safe' country will be granted 'temporary protection status' for 30 months, with only limited access to benefits and limited family reunion rights.

The Government said in the Queen's Speech that the changes will 'establish a fairer immigration system that strengthens the United Kingdoms borders and deters criminals who facilitate dangerous and illegal journeys'.

Ministers believe the overhaul will 'increase the fairness and efficacy of our system so that we can better protect and support those in genuine need of asylum'.

The Government is hoping to deter illegal arrivals to the UK - particularly from dangerous small boat Channel crossings - which will then 'break the business model of criminal trafficking networks and protecting the lives of those they endanger'.

The 'New Plan for Immigration' has been billed by ministers as 'the most significant overhaul of our asylum system in decades'.

The Government said that in 2019 there were more than 16,000 detected illegal arrivals to the UK. Some 62 per cent of asylum claimants in 2019 had entered the UK illegally.

Asylum applications in 2019 increased by 21 per cent on the previous year to almost 36,000 which was the highest number recorded since the European migration crisis in 2015/16
Australians won't be travelling overseas again until at least the middle of 2022 the government predicts - in a major shift on its previous claim that the border could reopen by October this year.

Government forecasts released in federal budget documents on Tuesday say that inbound and outbound international travel into Australia 'will remain low through to mid-2022.'

But officials assume there will then be a 'gradual' return to normal travel after that point.

'Safe travel zones' will be established, as Australia has done with the New Zealand travel bubble.

Australia's borders to the outside world will remain virtually shut through to mid-2022 according to federal budget forecasts released on Tuesday evening

Last year the Government predicted international borders would be open in October 2021 after the whole adult population has been offered a vaccination.

However, this timeline has now been pushed back as Australia's vaccination rollout falls behind due to supply shortages and vaccine hesitancy.

Even when the borders open, Treasury officials admit the number of Aussies travelling overseas won't return to pre-pandemic levels for some time.

Tonight's forecast is only a government assumption which could be wrecked at any point by a serious Covid outbreaks or mutant virus variants.

At the weekend, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the border would remain closed 'indefinitely' to protect the Australian way of life.

'We sit here as an island that's living like few countries in the world are at the moment,' he said.

'We have to be careful not to exchange that way of life for what everyone else has.'

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg's budget contained the 'assumption' that overseas travel will not return until 2022

Overseas travel for Australians is unlikely until at least mid-2022, according to federal budget documents revealed on Tuesday evening

Australians have been banned from leaving the country since March 2020 unless granted special exemptions.

Only citizens, permanent residents and some visa holders have been allowed to enter under some of the strictest Covid-19 border rules in the world.

The budget documents also say the government expects occasional Covid-19 outbreaks to plague the country throughout the rest of the year.

However, they believe they will successfully be contained by authorities.

The government also believes there won't be 'extended or sustained state border restrictions' this year.

But the government is at the mercy of the virus and premiers such as West Australia's Mark McGowan on that.

International students are likely to begin trickling back into the country at the end of 2021 and re-enter Australia in increasing numbers in 2022.
One of the women burst into tears after the incident, the court has heard

An Army soldier grabbed two female colleagues' bottoms while they were on parade to 'lighten the mood', a court martial heard.

'Smirking' Trooper Phillip Ewart of the Household Cavalry pinched the women within minutes of each other as they stood side by side at Windsor Barracks, it is claimed.

One of the women burst into tears after the incident, which she said left her 'shocked and disgusted', Bulford Military Court in Wiltshire heard.

When asked to explain squeezing the women's behinds, Tpr Ewart told the court it was just 'banter' and he would have done it to a male colleague as well.

He now faces two charges of sexual assault after being accused of 'degrading' behaviour towards the two soldiers.

The court heard that all three troopers were serving in the training wing of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment when the incident happened.

Trooper Phillip Ewart (pictured arriving at Bulford Military Court) of the Household Cavalry pinched the women within minutes of each other as they stood side by side at Windsor Barracks

Referred to as 'trusted guardians of the monarch,' the regiment is one of the most senior in the British Army.

The court martial heard the troopers had been called out on Sunday morning parade for an unrelated matter.

But as they lined up, one of Tpr Ewart's alleged victims - who cannot be named for legal reasons - told the court he pinched her.

'I did not feel explicitly comfortable at first but we were on parade so I thought I will deal with the matter afterwards,' she said.

'He shrugged his shoulders when he smirked and then faced the front away from me. A few minutes later he did the exact same thing to (the other trooper).'

His second alleged victim said: 'I felt really shocked and disgusted which is why I directly faced the left and asked what just happened.

'I asked it directly to Trooper Ewart and I said it quite aggressively because of how I felt and no one said anything.

'I was just in shock and so much emotion came over me - I was really overwhelmed - that I just burst out crying.'

A witness, Trooper Monja Danischewsky, told the court Tpr Ewart quipped after the incident that he was 'only trying to lighten the mood'.

The court heard the soldier had later sent the second woman a Whatsapp message after the incident to apologise and explain that he needed to remember he did not work in a male dominated environment.

In court, Tpr Ewart denied groping the women and claimed he had just 'tapped' them.

Tpr Ewart (pictured arriving at Bulford Military Court today) denied groping the women and claimed he had just 'tapped' them

Bulford Military Court in Wiltshire heard that all three troopers were serving in the training wing of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment when the incident happened

He told the hearing he thought he had a friendship with both of them which meant it was okay for him to touch their bottoms and that his male colleagues had a 'similar sort of banter.'

The trooper also told the court there was no specific reason for one of the incidents other than 'she was there.'

When asked to explain his behaviour, he said: '(I was) just being an idiot to be honest. It was a joke taken the wrong way.

'It was nothing more than a brief tap and there was no sexual motivation behind it at all.'

He added: 'It was just a wrong time, wrong place, heat of the moment thing. There was no specific reason other than she was there.

'It could have been a male colleague. There was no difference between male and female at all.'

Tpr Ewart went on to say it was due the 'nature of the friendship' he believed he had with both of them that he thought it was okay to grab their bottoms.

He said: 'I would not have dreamt of doing that to someone I had just met five minutes ago.

'I (did it) as (I would) with my male colleagues mucking around and having the same kind of banter.'

Prosecuting, Sol Hartley challenged Tpr Ewart on his claim that he did it for a joke.

'If this was just for amusement you could have tapped them on the back or on the shoulder couldn't have you?' he asked.

'You could have flicked their ear but you did not flick their ear you grabbed their buttocks and you did that because it was sexual and degrading for those two didn't you?'

Tpr Ewart denies two charges of sexual assault.

The trial continues.
What might be covered by online ad ban? The proposed ban on junk food adverts online will target food and drink products are high in fat, sugar and salt. How a product is classified as HFSS has not been finalised yet. Experts suggest the 'traffic light' system on food packaging could be used. The Government has also developed the Nutrient Profile Model. Foods that could be considered HFSS under these methods could include: Avocados

Salmon

Marmite

Mustard

Hummus

Ketchup

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Boris Johnson is set to press ahead with controversial plans for a total ban on online junk food ads, despite industry experts branding the idea 'not even half-baked'.

The Queen's Speech includes legislation to impose the restrictions, along with a block on TV adverts before the 9pm watershed and ending buy one get one free deals for unhealthy foods.

But No10 has ditched another controversial proposal that would have forced pubs to list calorie counts on all beer, wine and spirits, following fury from hospitality bosses who branded the idea 'un-British'.

Plans to ban junk food adverts online were put out to consultation just before Christmas but faced fierce opposition from senior Tories and the industry.

Critics said the online ads move was 'insane' after research suggested it might only shave a couple of calories a day off children's intake. Whitehall insiders said the plans would be shelved.

But Boris Johnson  who has backed an anti-obesity crackdown following his own Covid scare last spring  will go ahead with the move.

It could affect avocados, houmous, salmon and Marmite, although officials insist it would be targeted at foods high in sugar, salt, fat or calories.

According to the new legislative plan the Government 'will restrict the promotions on high fat, salt and sugar food and drinks in retailers from April 2022'.

The Health and Care Bill will also 'include measures to ban junk food adverts pre-9pm watershed on TV and for a total ban online'.

The Prime Minister was once a vocal opponent of 'nanny state' meddling in eating and drinking habits, speaking out against efforts by Jamie Oliver to reform school meals.

But he underwent a Damascene conversion after a near-fatal brush with Covid last spring.

He admitted being 'too fat' was the reason for his stint in intensive care. Obesity is one of the main risk factors for the virus.

Last summer the PM unveiled a wide-ranging drive to improve public health, including a ban on buy-one-get-one-free deals for junk food, as well as the ban on online junk food adverts.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock previously pointed to studies suggesting children see 15billion adverts for unhealthy food every year.

Boris Johnson (pictured running this week) was once a vocal opponent of state meddling in eating and drinking habits, speaking out against efforts by Jamie Oliver to reform school meals

There have been claimed the restriction could affect avocados and Marmite - although officials insist it would be targeted at foods high in sugar, salt, fat or calories. Houmous is another product that critics have warned could be affected by the move

He has voiced determination to 'help parents, children and families in the UK make healthier choices' and offer reassurance that children are not being exposed to adverts promoting unhealthy foods 'which can affect eating habits for life'.

But while the Obesity Health Alliance and British Heart Foundation welcomed the idea many Tories view it as an unacceptable intervention by the 'nanny state'.

No10 ditches plans to force pubs to list calories in drinks sold in pubs The Government has ditched plans to force pubs to list calories in drinks as part of a drive to tackle Britain's obesity crisis, Downing Street has confirmed. In April, the Government said it was consulting on introducing mandatory calorie labelling on alcoholic drinks  with a view to highlighting so-called 'hidden liquid calories'. The move was met with fury by the drinks industry, with the British Beer and Pub Association saying pubs were already 'on their knees' due to the Covid pandemic. A briefing document published to accompany the Queen's speech said firms with more than 250 employees will be forced to list calories on food, but there is no mention of drinks. Downing Street said the plans for calorie labelling will focus on food and not on drinks, relieving pubs of the need to label the calories contained in pints. Pressed on why drinks have not been included in the plans, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'We've listened to the feedback from the consultation and we think this is the right approach to take forward now and that's why we will set out more detail in a consultation response which is coming out later.' Advertisement

There have been claims it could stop pubs struggling with Covid from putting menus on social media.

The food industry has condemned the scheme as 'not even half-baked', saying it 'beggars belief'.

The Institute of Economic Affairs think-tank warned it would cover 'everything from jam and yoghurt to Cornish pasties and mustard'.

The think-tank added in a statement last year: 'It is an ill-considered policy designed by fanatics who have missold it to politicians as a ban on 'junk food' advertising.'

The Food and Drink Federation, which represents manufacturers, slammed the plans to ban online junk food ads.

Its chief scientific officer Kate Halliwell said: 'The advertising bans on TV and online outlined in today's Queen's Speech, confirms this Government is interested in headline chasing policy rather than making serious interventions that will help reduce obesity rates.

'A proposed advertising ban would remove less than five calories a day from children's diets, according to the Government's own estimates.

'And yet the proposals limit the scope for advertising products that have been carefully reformulated or created in smaller portions in-line with the Government's own targets. For example, Cadbury would not be able to advertise their 30 per cent reduced sugar Dairy Milk.

'This is tying businesses hands, by limiting how healthier options can be successfully brought to market.

'It undercuts what has been a key pillar of the Government's obesity strategy, and demonstrates a lack of joined-up policy making.'

However, Caroline Cerny, of the Obesity Health Alliance, said: 'The commitment to taking forward restrictions on junk food adverts online is very welcome news and shows that the Government is serious about putting our nation's health first by effectively addressing the drivers of obesity.

'If implemented fully, with a 9pm watershed on unhealthy food adverts on TV and restrictions on promotions, these landmark policies will stem the flood of unhealthy food and drink adverts, opening up opportunities for more healthier foods to be advertised.'

Previously, the Prime Minister previously described himself as 'very libertarian' and refused to back restrictions on fast food advertising and so-called 'sin taxes' on junk food companies.

But he admitted having a change of heart after falling critically ill with Covid last April at the height of the first wave, reportedly telling advisers in May: 'I have changed my mind on this.'

The Government has ditched plans to force pubs to list calories in drinks as part of a drive to tackle Britain's obesity crisis, Downing Street has confirmed. It sparked fury at the time it was leaked. MailOnline's graphic shows how many calories are in popular alcoholic drinks, with a pint of Guinness containing 210 calories  roughly the same as a KitKat Chunky

He has also suggested that Britain's obesity crisis has been partly to blame for the nation recording one of the worst death tolls during the pandemic.

Mr Johnson  who admitted to having late night binges of cheese and chorizo  has been seen going for daily jogs with his dog since recovering from Covid and is said to have lost at least 14 pounds.

In a video posted on his Twitter account last October announcing the Government's obesity crackdown, the PM described his Covid fight. His near-death brush with coronavirus is thought to have triggered the action.

He said: 'When I went into ICU, when I was very ill, I was very I was way overweight. I'm only about 5 foot 10, at the [most], and, you know, I was too fat.'

He added the plan to ban junk food adverts before the watershed and scrap 'BOGOF' deals on junk food was not meant to be 'excessively bossy' but a gentle nudge.

People who are clinically obese are about 40 per cent more likely to die of Covid than those of a healthy weight, according to Public Health England figures.

Number 10 has already launched a 100million Government drive to tackle the UK's obesity crisis, which will include a ban on buy-one-get-one-free supermarket deals in 2022.

A fitness drive is also expected, with millions of pounds allocated to encourage walking and cycling.

GPs will be given the ability to prescribe more than 700,000 of the fattest Brits diet plans, apps and wearable activity trackers.

It comes as Downing Street confirmed the Government has ditched plans to force pubs to list calories in drinks as part of a drive to tackle Britain's obesity crisis.

In April, the Government said it was consulting on introducing mandatory calorie labelling on alcoholic drinks  with a view to highlighting so-called 'hidden liquid calories'.

The move was met with fury by the drinks industry, with the British Beer and Pub Association saying pubs were already 'on their knees' due to the Covid pandemic.

A briefing document published to accompany the Queen's speech said firms with more than 250 employees will be forced to list calories on food, but there is no mention of drinks.

Downing St said the plans for calorie labelling will focus on food and not on drinks, relieving pubs of the need to label the calories contained in pints.

Pressed on why drinks have not been included in the plans, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'We've listened to the feedback from the consultation and we think this is the right approach to take forward now and that's why we will set out more detail in a consultation response which is coming out later.'

Boris' battle with the bulge: How Covid scared Prime Minister into ditching midnight fridge raids on cheese and chorizo with a little help from fiancee Carrie

Boris Johnson claimed he lost a stone on the back of his Covid scare by exercising daily and ditching late night cheese and chorizo binges.

Mr Johnson, 56, famously admitted 'I was too fat' after falling severely ill with the disease and being admitted to intensive care last April.

The PM claimed to have lost about 14 pounds in the summer of 2020 after hiring a personal trainer and taking up intermittent fasting to speed up his weight loss.

Fiancee Carrie Symonds was also credited for helping the PM slim down.

Mr Johnson admitted to weighing 16.5stone (105kg) in 2018 when he was Foreign Secretary. At 5ft 10in, that made the PM clinically obese.

He blamed his bulging waistline on 'late night binges of chorizo and cheese' and revealed he had been shamed into cutting back by his doctor.

At his heaviest, the PM weighed 17stone in 2013. In his column for The Telegraph at the time, he joked that his plan to get fitter was called Operation Chiselled Whippet.

He wrote: 'Since my normal cycling speed is so slow that my wife says it is a miracle I stay upright, I have decided to get in shape.'

Mr Johnson lost 12lbs in two weeks at the end of 2018 in the run up to his bid for Prime Minister.

Mr Johnson credits his regular exercise  he is often pictured running in the morning  with helping him to lose 'quite a lot' of weight

He claimed during that time he was on track to dip below 15 stone (210lbs) for the first time since university.

He said he had taken to 'guzzling water' rather than drinking alcohol, writing in the Spectator at time time: 'I breakfast like some Georgian hermit on porridge with a luxury sprinkling of nuts.'

Eton-educated Mr Johnson, who enjoyed rugby and cricket at school, first took up running in the early 2000s but reportedly gave up recently because of his knees.

Before Covid he was an avid tennis player and regularly played on the courts at Chequers, the PM's country residence.

In a Twitter video posted to his Twitter account last autumn, the PM encouraged the nation to lose weight while detailing his own dietary struggles.

He said: 'I've been doing a lot, in fact everything I can, to lose weight and to feel fitter and healthier.

'What I've been doing is I've been eating less carbs, avoiding chocolate, no more late night cheese  all that kind of thing.

'I've been getting up early to go for runs and the result is, you know, I actually have lost some weight  quite a lot by my standards. And I feel much more energetic, I feel full of beans and I thoroughly, thoroughly recommend it.

'I know there are many people who are in the same sort of position as I am, and I was, and who want to lose weight.

'And that's why we're investing now, in that whole national objective, 100million to help people to access GP appointments, to get the right apps that they need to help them to lose weight, and we're also looking at various fit-miles schemes as well.

'What we want to do is to encourage another 700,000 people around the country who have the same problems that I have had to do the same thing.

'So we'll be not just fitter, but also healthier and happier, and we'll bounce back better together.'

His fiancee, Carrie Symonds, is also 'playing a big part' in how careful he is with his diet. She eats incredibly healthily which makes things a lot easier, a No10 source told the Mail on Sunday in March.

Mr Johnson was in a high-risk group for Covid-19 when he caught the disease in April last year, because his BMI was around 34, making him obese.

He was 16stone and 7lbs (105kg), The Times reported, and is approximately 5ft 10in tall (175cm), meaning he was far too heavy for his weight.

The NHS considers a BMI of 25 or higher to be overweight and 30 or higher to be obese. 18.5 to 25 is a healthy range.
Australian workers are set to miss out on a decent pay rise until at least 2025 - but it's good news for home borrowers.

Wages have been at below-average levels under 3 per cent since 2013.

The long streak of lousy pay increases is set to continue for at least another four years with Treasury Budget papers predicting wages growth of just 2.75 per cent in the 2024-25 financial year.

Salaries last year grew by just 1.4 per cent and pay levels for 2021-22 aren't expected to improve with wage increases of just 1.5 per cent forecast.

Australian workers are set to miss out on a decent pay rise until at least 2025 - but it's good news for home borrowers

During the September quarter of last year, wages growth slowed to a record low of 0.1 per cent.

Following the new Treasury forecasts, ACTU president Michele O'Neill said the Budget had failed to properly tackle weak wages growth.

'We've got a crisis in wages in Australia,' she told the ABC.

Reserve Bank of Australia governor Philip Lowe has repeatedly vowed to keep the cash rate at a record low of 0.1 per cent 'until 2024 at the earliest' in a bid to get wages growth back above 3 per cent.

As recently as December, Treasury forecast unemployment peaking at 7.5 per cent by March 2021 only for the jobless rate to sink to 5.6 per cent - the lowest since the onset of the pandemic.

A record 13.077million people are now in work with job vacancies at a 12-year high.

Treasury is expecting unemployment to fall to 5 per cent by June 2022 and to 4.75 per cent by mid-2023.

Lower unemployment usually coincides with decent wages growth but not this time.

The long streak of lousy pay increases is set to continue for at least another four years with Treasury Budget papers predicting wages growth of just 2.75 per cent in the 2024-25 financial year. Salaries last year grew by just 1.4 per cent and pay levels for 2021-22 aren't expected to improve with wage increases of just 1.5 per cent forecast.

Between May 2006 and January 2009, Australia had a jobless rate below 5 per cent and above-average wages growth above 4 per cent, Australian Bureau of Statistics data showed.

Property prices are vastly outperforming pay increases, with Sydney's median house prices in the year to April surging by 10.4 per cent to $1.147million, making property an even more distant prospect for young Australians.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced a Budget deficit of $106.6billion for 2021-22 making up 5 per cent of gross domestic product.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced a Budget deficit of $106.6billion for 2021-22 making up 5 per cent of gross domestic product

Last year, he unveiled a Budget deficit of $213.7billion making up 11 per cent of GDP, the highest since World War II.

On Tuesday night, this was downwardly revised to $161billion or 7.8 per cent of GDP.

Commonwealth Bank chief economist Stephen Halmarick said the lower Budget deficit was a product of a stronger than expected economic rebound.

'The lower deficit projection reflects the continued improvement in Australias economy, which has strengthened considerably over the past six months,' he said.

'We expect Australias economy to strengthen further over the coming years, which will drive the deficit lower.'
Two people were injured in Florida after a lightning strike sent road debris through the windshield of their truck.

Lightning struck the 81 eastbound on Interstate 10 in Walton County just after 7:30am, sending chunk of road through the Ford pickup's windshield.

The projectiles smashed through the windshield and exited via the rear window, injuring the two passengers who were taken to hospital for treatment for cuts and bruises.

Walton County Sheriffs Office spokesperson Corey Dobridnia said the pair 'will be fine' after receiving treatment in hospital.

Two people were injured in Florida after a lightning strike sent road debris through the windshield of their Ford pickup truck just after 7:30am on Monday

The projectiles smashed through the pickup's windshield and exited via the rear window, injuring the two passengers who were taken to hospital

The accident took place on the highway near DeFuniak Springs during heavy thunderstorms, the Walton County Fire Rescue service said on Monday.

Pictures show the pickup's smashed windshield and rear window. The rear headrest had also been pushed back by the projectile.

The Rescue service warned have locals to be careful when driving in heavy thunderstorms.

'Fortunately, most of the bad weather is past us now, but please be careful out there this morning', said a statement posted to the team's Facebook page.

'Slow down and be on the lookout for storm damage and debris in the roadways', it added.

The accident took place on the highway during heavy thunder and lightning, the Walton County Fire Rescue service said (file photo)

The car was apparently hit by a cloud-to-ground lightning strike - the most dangerous type - in which a powerful surge of energy becomes visible to the naked eye.

Florida ranks top in the US for the number of annual cloud-to-ground strikes, but recently lost its crown as the lightning capital of America to Oklahoma, according to a study published last month by Vaisala, a Finland-based environmental monitoring company.

Data from the company showed Oklahoma has the highest lightning flash density between 2016 and 2020, with 83.4 lightning events per square kilometer.

Florida recorded only 82.8 lightning events in the same period.

Louisiana landed in third place with on average 71.9 strikes per square kilometer in the five-year period. The United States as a whole averaged just 18 flashes.
Free speech campaigners have tonight welcomed Boris Johnson's war on woke after he unveiled a new law forcing universities to protect freedom of speech.

The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill will aim to end the so-called 'no platforming' of speakers and academics on campuses.

Regulator the Office for Students will get the power to fine institutions and student unions for breaching new duties designed to foster 'a culture of open and robust intellectual debate'.

People who believe their freedom of speech has been impinged will also get the power to go to court to seek financial compensation.

The plan prompted a storm of protest from unions, with the UCU accusing the Gpvernment of 'embarking on a pseudo freedom of speech crusade on campuses'.

But campaign group, the Free Speech Union, today welcomed the plan, saying in a post on Twitter: 'Great to see the Government following through on its pledge to better protect free speech in universities.

'In the past year we've dealt with over 100 campus free speech cases.

'Anyone who thinks speech protections in universities don't need strengthening hasn't been paying attention.'

The plan was also backed by former UKIP chief Nigel Farage, who described the move as 'vital', while education secretary Gavin Williamson also backed the proposals.

He said: 'The Free Speech Bill will protect the rights of students, academics and speakers.

'Fulfilling our manifesto commitment and bolstering existing legal duties. We want universities to be places where open, intellectual debate is not limited by the chilling effect of "cancel culture".'

Free speech campaigners have tonight welcomed Boris Johnson's (pictured) war on woke after he unveiled a new law forcing universities to protect freedom of speech

Universities have been dogged in the past few years by campaigns to block appearances from figures seen as controversial by some students and staff, including Germaine Greer (left) and Amber Rudd (right)

Former Women's Hour host Jenni Murray pulled out of an Oxford University talk after student leaders claimed she made 'transphobic comments' in a 2017 newspaper article in which she said: 'Be trans, be proud  but don't call yourself a 'real woman''.

Canadian self-help guru Jordan Petersen had an offer of a visiting fellowship rescinded in 2019 after the student union complained his views were 'not representative of the student body'.

Giving the showpiece address in the House of Lords today, the monarch said that the new law would 'protect freedom of speech'.

Universities have been dogged in the past few years by campaigns to block appearances from figures seen as controversial by some students and staff.

Trans-sceptics bear the brunt of cancel culture Jordan Peterson: Canadian self-help guru and psychologist had an offer of a visiting fellowship rescinded in 2019 after the student union complained his views were 'not representative of the student body'. He rose to prominence when he challenged Canadian legislators over compelling speech over trans people's preferred pronouns. He is openly anti-political correctness and believes that men are as much the victim's of gender discrimination as the perpetrators of it. Dame Jenni Murray: The former Women's Hour presenter pulled out of an Oxford University talk after student leaders claimed she made 'transphobic comments' in a 2017 newspaper article in which she said: 'Be trans, be proud  but don't call yourself a 'real woman''. She wrote in the Sunday Times that 'it takes more than a sex change and make-up' to 'lay claim to womanhood'. Germaine Greer: The feminist icon defied attempts to ban her from giving a speech at Carfiff University in 2015 after students claimed she was transphobic. Giving her address under tight security she said that she did not believe that post-operative male to female trans-sexuals were women, adding: 'I don't believe a woman is a man without a c***. You can beat me over the head with a baseball bat. It still won't make me change my mind.' Amber Rudd: The former Tory home secretary was dis-invited by an Oxford University group over her links to the Windrush scandal. She had been due to address the UNWomen Oxford UK society. But She arrived to an empty hall after Felicity Graham, president of society, was forced to cancel the event following a majority vote by its committee. The cancelling was criticised by among others Alan Rusbridger, the former Guardian editor. Professor Selina Todd: Oxford academic was no-platformed by a festival at her own university after pressure from trans activists. She supports Woman's Place, a group branded as a 'trans-exclusionary hate group' by the Labour Campaign for Trans Rights. Both Women's Place and Prof Todd deny being transphobic. The Professor of Modern History was last year chosen to lead the Oxford Martin Programme on Women's Equality and Inequality. Felix Ngole: Devout Christian who was thrown off a university social work course after being accused of posting derogatory comments about homosexuals and bisexuals on Facebook. The Yorkshireman said he was expressing a traditional Christian view and complained that Sheffield University bosses unfairly stopped him completing a postgraduate degree. He won a legal battle to be reinstated, saying it was 'great news' for anyone who cares about free speech. Rosa Freedman: Women's rights expert Prof Freedman is among a number of academics who have called for sex and gender to be defined differently in law, which would mean transgender women could be barred from entering 'women's only' toilets or prisons. The law professor revealed in 2018 she had been threatened with rape and murder and forced to hide behind trees to avoid transgender-rights activists who allegedly drenched her office door in urine. Advertisement

One of the main groups leading the charge to cancel is the transgender lobby. It has targeted people including celebrated feminist Germaine Greer, Former Women's Hour host Jenni Murray and several academics who champion women's rights.

General secretary Jo Grady said: 'There are serious threats to freedom of speech and academic freedom from campus, but they come from the government and university managers, not staff and students.

'Widespread precarious employment strips academics of the ability to speak and research freely, and curtails chances for career development.

'Free speech and academic freedom are threatened more widely on campus by government interference in the form of the Prevent duty, and attempts to impose the IHRA definition and examples of antisemitism on universities.

'If the government wants to strengthen freedom of speech and academic freedom, it shouldn't be policing what can and cannot be said on campus, and encourage university managers to move staff onto secure, permanent contracts.'

The bill will ensure 'freedom of speech can thrive for all staff, students and visiting speakers', and ensure 'that academic staff feel safe to question and test received wisdom and put forward new ideas and controversial or unpopular opinions, without being at risk of losing their jobs, privileges or promotion'.

Giving the showpiece address in the House of Lords today, the monarch said that the new law would 'protect freedom of speech'.

A Universities UK (UUK) spokeswoman said: 'Universities are (rightly) already legally required to have a code of practice on free speech and to update this regularly.

'It is important that the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill is proportionate by focusing on the small number of incidents, while not duplicating existing legislation and creating unnecessary bureaucracy for universities which could have unintended consequences.'

However, bosses from the Christian Legal Centre, a legal organisation which provides pro bono legal support for Christians in the UK, warned that while legislation was already in place to protect free speech and freedom of religion, the issue was with the implementation of the laws.

The group, who say they have already received seven freedom of speech cases related to universities so far this year, have for the last five years represented Felix Ngole, a devout Christian student who was thrown off a university social work course after being accused of posting derogatory comments about homosexuals and bisexuals on social media.

CEO Angela Williams told MailOnline: 'We already have strong freedom of speech and freedom of religion laws in this country.

'However the critical issue is with how it is implemented and the understanding of these laws.

'If this new law backs-up the existing law then this has to be a good thing.'

Other figures who have been no-platformed in the past include the former home secretary Amber Rudd.

In early 2020 she was invited to speak at Oxford University by a student society, but the event was cancelled minutes beforehand because of protests over her links to the Windrush scandal.

She had been due to address the UNWomen Oxford UK society. But She arrived to an empty hall after Felicity Graham, president of society, was forced to cancel the event following a majority vote by its committee.

Ms Rudd resigned as home secretary over the Windrush scandal, which saw those of Caribbean heritage who arrived between 1948 and 1971 wrongly detained, threatened with deportation or wrongly refused re-entry to the UK.

Her barring came after Oxford historian Professor Selina Todd was blocked from appearing at a feminist festival following threats from trans-rights activists.

At the time Education Secretary Gavin Williamson threatened intervention against institutions that fail to defend democracy.

Following a storm of protest  Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg dubbed his alma mater 'snowflake central' Oxford University's governing proctors ordered the feminist group to be de-registered from its affiliated societies and to apologise to Ms Rudd.

Boris Johnson vowed to 'turbo-charge the Covid recovery' today as he unveiled a Queen's Speech for the 'Blue Wall' with moves to boost jobs, crack down on illegal immigration, and curb 'woke' culture.

The PM warned it is not enough to go back to pre-pandemic ways as the monarch laid out the package of legislation for the next parliamentary session.

In a state occasion stripped of most of the usual pomp and ceremony, the Queen - in her first major duty since the death of Prince Philip - said the country should be 'stronger, healthier and more prosperous than before'.

Felix Ngole (left) is a devout Christian who was thrown off a university social work course after being accused of posting derogatory comments about homosexuals and bisexuals on Facebook. Professor Selina Todd (right) is an Oxford academic was no-platformed by a festival at her own university after pressure from trans activists.

Where is social care plan? Just nine words devoted to key issue in Queen's Speech Downing Street set itself on a collision course with social care reform campaigners today after the key issue warranted just nine words in the Queen's Speech. Senior Tories including former health secretary Jeremy Hunt and deputy prime minister Damian Green warned today that ongoing delays over making sweeping changes to the system were causing 'incredible worry' and 'frustration'. Health Secretary Matt Hancock had tried to reassure the public that change was coming as he insisted the Government was 'committed' to reforms the Tories promised in their 2019 election manifesto. But the Queen's Speech today contained just a single sentence on the subject, with the monarch noting: 'Proposals on social care reform will be brought forward.' Care groups, charities and politicians have been long calling for a plan to reform and 'fix' the sector, which the Prime Minister promised in his first speech after being elected in July 2019. But the PM and Chancellor Rishi Sunak are said to be at war over how to pay for it. The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'The Prime Minister has always been clear on his commitment to deal with this issue. 'He's pledged to fix the care crisis and we are committed to bring forward a long-term plan to reform the social care system and we will set out proposals later this year.' Advertisement

In an introduction to the new parliamentary programme, Mr Johnson said it is time to 'build back better' - hailing a huge drive to increase skills and 'level up' in areas that have fallen behind. The Tories made huge gains in many of those places in local elections last week, and are hoping to turn the screw on crisis-hit Keir Starmer.

There will also be action to reform the asylum system and crack down on illegal immigration, as well as moves to tackle 'cancel culture' at universities, and an overhaul of the planning system to make building homes 'simpler and faster'.

But the government is already facing criticism after the speech included just nine words about social care provision - something Mr Johnson has promised to fix - and no Bill among the 30 or so slated.

And there is set to be a major backlash after it was confirmed ministers are pushing ahead with 'nanny state' proposals for a total ban on online junk food advertising.

Mr Johnson will face off against Sir Keir in the Commons this afternoon since the extraordinary election results that sent Labour into a tailspin. Rumours have been sweeping Westminster that he now plans to call an early election in 2023 - with the PM set to take back control over the date for polls.

Among the social changes is a ban on conversion therapy that seeks to 'cure' gay men and women.

Ministers have pledged to end the 'abhorrent and coercive' practice which seeks to make LGBT people heterosexual.

But there are fears that the measures contain a loophole for religious groups who are the main proponents of the highly controversial therapy which critics say is a form of abuse.

The speech sets out plans for a consultation and also says that it will also ensure 'medical professionals, religious leaders, teachers and parents can continue to be able to have open and honest conversations with people'.

Jayne Ozanne, an evangelical Christian and a former Whitehall equalities advisor, tweeted: 'Yet more consultation - what LGBT+ people need is protection from all those that believe they should be changed or be celibate for life.

'It's quite simple - the govt must choose who it will protect: lives of LGBT+ people or religious right who want to ''pray gay (& trans) away''!'

Queen's Speech: Immigration overhaul will block asylum for people who have travelled through 'safe' countries such as France and Belgium as ministers try to deter Channel crossings

Migrants who travelled through a 'safe' country like France or Belgium on their way to the UK will be blocked from seeking asylum in Britain.

The Government today confirmed a major overhaul of the nation's immigration system as it set out its plans in the Queen's Speech.

The changes will mean migrants who 'travelled through a safe country where they could have reasonably claimed asylum... will not be admitted into the UK asylum system'.

Legal arrivals and illegal arrivals will be treated differently for the first time so the system 'does not reward those who enter the UK illegally'.

The shake-up will also see the asylum system streamlined, creating a 'one-stop' process designed to 'end the cycle of limitless appeals'.

The Government today confirmed a major overhaul of the nation's immigration system as it set out its plans in the Queen's Speech. A Border Force vessel is pictured in Dover on April 28

Home Secretary Priti Patel unveiled the Government's 'New Plan for Immigration' in March this year

The Government is hoping to deter illegal arrivals to the UK - particularly from dangerous small boat Channel crossings. Pictured is a view of boats used by people thought to be migrants stored at a warehouse facility in Dover after being intercepted in the Channel by Border Force

No right to settle under Priti Priti's asylum blitz Migrants who arrive in the UK illegally will no longer have the right to permanently settle here even if they have a strong asylum claim.

Anyone who arrives illegally having passed through a 'safe country' will be deemed 'inadmissible' to the UK asylum system.

The Government will seek the 'rapid removal' of 'inadmissible cases' back to the country they travelled to the UK from.

Those who cannot be returned to a safe country will be granted 'temporary protection status' for 30 months, with only limited access to benefits and limited family reunion rights.

The Government's asylum estate will be expanded with the creation of new reception centres to provide accommodation while claims are processed.

Action to improve age assessment measures to safeguard against adults claiming to be children.

A new 'one-stop' process for claims which will require people to spell out all protection-related issues in one go to prevent last-minute legal bids to thwart removal of failed asylum seekers.

Maximum sentence for people smugglers raised to life, and to five years for foreign criminals who return to the UK in breach of a deportation order.

New humanitarian routes for the 'vulnerable' in 'immediate danger'. Advertisement

The Government's so-called 'New Plan for Immigration' was unveiled by Home Secretary Priti Patel in March this year.

It will mean migrants who arrive in the UK illegally will no longer have the right to permanently settle here even if they have a strong asylum claim.

Anyone who arrives illegally having passed through a 'safe' country will be deemed 'inadmissible' to the UK asylum system.

The Government will seek the 'rapid removal' of 'inadmissible cases' back to the country they travelled to the UK from.

Those who cannot be returned to a 'safe' country will be granted 'temporary protection status' for 30 months, with only limited access to benefits and limited family reunion rights.

The Government said in the Queen's Speech that the changes will 'establish a fairer immigration system that strengthens the United Kingdom's borders and deters criminals who facilitate dangerous and illegal journeys'.

Ministers believe the overhaul will 'increase the fairness and efficacy of our system so that we can better protect and support those in genuine need of asylum'.

The Government is hoping to deter illegal arrivals to the UK - particularly from dangerous small boat Channel crossings - which will then 'break the business model of criminal trafficking networks and protecting the lives of those they endanger'.

The 'New Plan for Immigration' has been billed by ministers as 'the most significant overhaul of our asylum system in decades'.

The Government said that in 2019 there were more than 16,000 detected illegal arrivals to the UK. Some 62 per cent of asylum claimants in 2019 had entered the UK illegally.

Asylum applications in 2019 increased by 21 per cent on the previous year to almost 36,000 which was the highest number recorded since the European migration crisis in 2015/16
An extra $2.7 billion will be spent on wage subsidies for apprentices and trainees, alongside $500 million for courses targeting young people, school leavers and the unemployed.

School leavers, young people and unemployed Australians will have greater access to free and low-fee training courses to fill critical skills gaps.

More than $500 million over two years will be spent on extending the federal government's JobTrainer program through the federal budget released on Tuesday.

Young Australians are set for a boost in training and job subsidies in critical industries (above, Sydney, on Budget eve)

Around 163,000 places including 33,800 in aged care and 10,000 in digital skills are expected to be delivered through the expansion.

Eligibility for the program will now include selected industries under ongoing pressure from the coronavirus pandemic.

"We need to equip Australians with the skills they need to get a job today and tomorrow," Treasurer Josh Frydenberg told parliament.

States and territories will be required to match the funding, which has been allocated after a hiring credit scheme for people under 35 massively underperformed.

The JobMaker program, which was a cornerstone of last year's budget, supported just 1100 of the 450,000 jobs it promised.

Wage subsidies for apprentices will also receive a boost with the government providing more than $2.7 billion over three years.

Employers of apprentices or trainees who started work between October 5 last year and March 31 next year will qualify for the scheme.

Businesses will be reimbursed up to 50 per cent of wages up to $7000 a quarter for a year.

Extra support will also be given to female apprentices looking to work in traditionally male-dominated industries.

Almost $200 million will be spent on intensive short courses for people unemployed for more than six months, with some required to participate in work for the dole.

Trades hurt by the border closure due to Covid will be targetted by the scheme (above, a young worker in Sydney)

An additional 2700 places in Indigenous girls academies will also be provided to support graduation from year 12.

The JobTrainer scheme will be expanded after the centrepiece of the October budget - a hiring credit for people under 35 - flopped with just 1100 of the 450,000 promised jobs supported.

"Jobs are coming back. The economy is coming back. Australia is coming back," Mr Frydenberg said.

"And this budget will ensure we come back even stronger, securing Australia's recovery."
A simple change in tonight's Budget could see workers in their thirties have an extra $7,000 in retirement savings by the time they turn 40.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has scrapped the $450 monthly threshold before workers receive superannuation from their employer.

'This will improve economic security in retirement for around 200,000 women,' he told Parliament.

'Our plan will also make it easier for Australians to prepare for retirement and to be more secure once in retirement.'

A simple change in tonight's Budget could see workers in their thirties have an extra $7,000 in retirement savings by the time they turn 40. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has scrapped the $450 monthly threshold before workers receive superannuation from their employer

From July 1 next year, the $450 per month threshold for compulsory superannuation will be removed, meaning employers will have to pay super to low paid workers, such as part-time staff and casuals.

Colonial First State, a retail super fund, calculated that under super existing rules, a 30-year-old woman with $50,000 in retirement savings would only have $57,651 by the time they turned 40.

But this same woman, who took some time out of her career to raise children, would have $64,485 in superannuation within a decade under the scrapping of the $450 a month threshold - a $6,824 difference.

This would be particularly beneficial to Australia's 3.2million people aged in their thirties, including many men who remain in insecure work.

Colonial First State general manager Kelly Power said the super rule change was a first step in tackling the gender disparity between male and female super savings.

'The super industry and the government must unite to create a system that closes the gender gap for good,' she said.

'Specific measures such as mandating super contributions on paid parental leave and removing the $450 per month threshold for superannuation to be paid will improve the retirement savings adequacy for low-income earners and casual workers, many of whom are women.'

From July 1 this year, the compulsory super guarantee is increasing from 9.5 per cent to 10 per cent.

The cost of childcare for a second and subsequent child will be subsidised by up to 95 per cent, up from the existing 85 per cent maximum. Pictured is a Gold Coast family

They will be increasing in half a percentage point at the start of each financial year until it reaches 12 per cent by July 2025.

Women, in particular, are urged to top up their superannuation, as their average balances stood at $73,139 in December 2020 - a 17.8 per cent gap compared with the average male balance of $88,934, Colonial First State data showed.

Figures from Colonial First State's 750,000 accounts showed its average super balances for all age groups stood at just $82,163 in December 2020.

This marked a 60 per cent increase from $51,332 in 2016 but this was a small fraction of the $535,000 figure for singles recommended by the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia to allow for a comfortable retirement.

Low and middle-income earners are also set to receive up to $1,080 as the federal government extends the low and middle-income tax offset program for 10million workers earning up to $126,000 at a cost of $7billion a year.

Colonial First State, a retail super fund, calculated that under super existing rules, a 30-year-old woman with $50,000 in retirement savings would only have $57,651 by the time they turned 40. But this same woman, who took some time out of her career to raise children, would have $64,485 in superannuation within a decade under the scrapping of the $450 a month threshold - a $6,824 difference

An extension of last year's tax relief program means 4.6million Australians earning between $48,000 and $90,000 receive $1,080 as another 1.8million people earning $37,000 to $48,000 were given back $255.

Tax agent H&R Block's director of tax communications Mark Chapman said this didn't amount to a tax cut, only a reprieve from paying higher taxes.

'The extension of the Low and Middle Income Tax Offset is welcome,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'However, let's call this what it is and ignore the government spin; this isnt a tax cut, its simply the deferral of a tax rise.

'Nobody should be counting the extra dollars in next years pay packets because there aren't any; the tax burden for low and middle income individuals next year is exactly the same as it was this year.'

Tax agent H&R Block's director of tax communications Mark Chapman said this didn't amount to a tax cut, only a reprieve from paying higher taxes

The government will spend $1.7billion on changes to the childcare system.

The cost of childcare for a second and subsequent child will be subsidised by up to 95 per cent, up from the existing 85 per cent maximum.

About 250,000 families are expected to save $2,260 a year on childcare fees.

Families who earn a combined $110,000 and have two kids in childcare four days a week will save $95.39 a week.

Parents who earn $140,000 altogether will be able to save $124.80 per week.

The Australian National University Centre for Social Research and Methods defines low-income households as ones where a couple earns $47,060.

The middle is $86,008 while high household incomes are $143,520.
She won The Apprentice in 2016 and got a 250k investment from Lord Sugar

Apprentice winner Alana Spencer's new luxury seaside cafe has been blasted by locals who say its 'tacky' design 'looks like public toilets'.

Ms Spencer, 29, has been opening a string of dessert shops with her Ridiculously Rich brand since winning the 250,000 investment from Lord Alan Sugar in 2016.

But her latest cafe has come under fire for its bright blue bricks which have been described as looking like public loos.

The eatery is set to open on May 22 in the coastal resort of Llandudno, North Wales.

Alana Spencer's new luxury seaside cafe (pictured above), in Llandudno, North Wales, which came under fire from social media users who said the design 'looks like public loos'

Ms Spencer (above), 29, has been opening a string of dessert shops with her Ridiculously Rich brand since winning the 250,000 investment from Lord Alan Sugar

Ms Spencer responded to the negative comments online, saying she was left 'very upset' and that the building has not yet been completed.

She said: 'We came to Llandudno earlier in the week and paint work was finished so I took a photo and put it on social media.

Alana Spencer: The Apprentice winner who made greeting cards aged 14 before moving onto selling homemade chocolates Alana Spencer won The Apprentice - and the 250,000 investment - aged 24 after impressing Lord Sugar and his advisers Alana Spencer, originally from the small village of Llanrhystud in West Wales, started her first business making greeting cards aged 14 before moving onto selling homemade chocolates. After juggling her AS levels alongside her business, Alana left school at age 16 and pursue her career. She won The Apprentice - and the 250,000 investment - aged 24 after impressing Lord Sugar and his advisers, Karren Brady and Claude Littner, with her idea for a business delivering fresh baking goods across the UK. Ms Spencer relaunched the brand in 2017, months after winning the show, and turned over 500,000 in the first 12 months. She later expanded the business with an Ambassador scheme, in which people could pay 1,000 in exchange for selling products at events across the UK. Advertisement

'It was greeted initially by a barrage of mean comments. It was just to show the locals what we had been up to and how it is coming along.

'It was just a barrage of horrible comments: "It looks awful"; "I was thinking that - yuck"; "It looks like it should be in Blackpool, tacky" and "it looks like a toilet block."'

'I don't usually get negativity on social media. I feel very lucky for that. But when you do, that negativity or those comments, it really is very upsetting and it really does hurt.

'And I can't imagine what it would be someone who gets trolled on a regular basis. It must be so horrific.

'I just wrote - "It is not done yet guys, I hope you like it once it is finished."'

Ms Spencer won The Apprentice in 2016 and got a 250,000 investment from Lord Alan Sugar.

Lord Sugar ended his business association with Alana three years later.

Ms Spencer bought back all of Lord Sugar's shares to become sole owner and director of the firm, which she relaunched in 2017.

She later expanded the business with an Ambassador scheme, in which people could pay 1,000 in exchange for selling products at events across the UK.

The 150 'Cakepreneurs' scheme was billed as a lower level, less time-intensive option.

Sign-up is done via the website, from there on they will receive products to sell each month.

The reality star previously said she was aiming to make the business more accessible to future budding business owners.

Speaking about the idea in 2018, Ms Spencer said: 'It was my childhood dream to be able to bake cakes for a living and with Lord Sugar's investment I've been able to make this a reality.

'The "Cakepreneurs" initiative is allowing me to share this dream with many more people like myself and I can't wait to see all their successes.'

Lord Sugar said at the time: 'Over the last 18 months, I've watched Alana work incredibly hard to build her Ridiculously Rich by Alana empire, and now other budding enthusiasts are going to have the opportunity to benefit from the knowledge she's acquired.

'I'm looking forward to the launch of the "Cakepreneurs" initiative and to continue to see the business grow into one with a very exciting future.'

The luxury hand-made cake company now supports almost 50 franchisees across the country.
The tax savings over a four year period can be revealed after Treasurer Josh Frydenberg handed down his budget on Tuesday evening

Workers on a salary of about $90,000 stand to benefit the most from the Morrison government's tax cuts in terms of dollar figures.

Middle income earners paid at about that level will receive $7,020 in tax relief in total over the four years from 2018 to 2022, federal budget documents said.

A working couple who both make $90,000 will be rewarded with $14,040 in tax cuts in total over that period when compared with 2017 tax tables.

Low income earners on $40,000 will have saved $3,080 in total.

Higher income earners on $120,000 will get $6,720 in tax relief over the same period.

Those earning more than $140,000 will take home an extra $5,400 when compared with tax settings from 2017-18.

These numbers come as a result of the federal government's flagship tax policy announced tonight, combined with the permanent relief the government introduced last October.

HOW MUCH TAX RELIEF YOU WILL GET OVER THE FOUR YEARS FROM 2018-22 Income Tax saving $40,000 $3,080 $60,000 $6,480 $80,000 $6,480 $90,000 $7,020 $100,000 $6,720 $120,000 $6,120 $140,000 $5,400 $160,000 $5,400 $180,000 $5,400 $200,000 $5,400

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced on Tuesday night that the government will extend the lower and middle income tax offset for ten million Australians for a further year.

Workers will receive a $1,080 offset when they submit their tax returns for the 2021-22 financial year.

The wealthiest Australians will be rewarded for their patience in years to come, with the Morrison government planning to permanently lower tax brackets again in 2024.

After the 'stage three' tax plan kicks in some 95 per cent of Australians will pay 30 per cent tax or less, official documents said.

'Australia's economic recovery is now underway and we must keep the momentum moving,' Mr Frydenberg said in his speech this evening.

Middle income earners will receive up to $7,020 in tax relief between 2018 and 2022, this year's budget has confirmed

Ten million Aussies get tax cuts worth $1,080 as thousands of free training places and extra cash for your super are unveiled in the Federal Budget - but you won't be able to go overseas until 2022

By Charlie Moore for Daily Mail Australia

Ten million Australians will get a big tax cut worth up to $1,080 as part of a federal budget designed to cement the nation's rapid recovery from last year's Covid-induced recession.

But the sweetener comes alongside grim news that overseas holidays will be off the cards until mid-2022 except for travel bubbles with safe countries such as New Zealand as the deadly disease continues to ravage the world.

The budget's flagship policy is an extension of the lower and middle-income tax offset  which gives Aussies who earn less than $126,000 a big boost when they submit their tax returns.

Australians earning between $48,000 and $90,000 will get the maximum amount of $1,080 while those earning between $37,000 and $48,000 and between $90,000 and $126,000 will get a smaller amount depending on their salary.

Amie Frydenberg hands her children Gemma and Blake a piece of chocolate as they listen to their dad Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg handing down his third Federal Budget

Combined with the permanent tax cuts announced in the October budget, it means an Aussie earning $90,000 will pay $7,020 less tax over the four years from 2018 to 2022. Those earning between $60,000 and $80,000 will pay $6,480 less compared to 2017 tax settings.

Working parents will get a further boost as the budget slashes childcare fees for second and subsequent children and scraps the maximum subsidy amount, which will save 250,000 families an average of $2,200 a year.

Meanwhile, some 300,000 Australians who earn less than $450 a month from a single employer will get superannuation payments for the first time and thousands of young Aussies will have access to free training courses under an extension of the JobTrainer scheme.

In his speech in parliament on Tuesday night, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg warned 'the pandemic is far from over' with the world recording 800,000 cases a day, which is why hotel quarantine will be in place for another year even with everyone offered a vaccine by December.

But with 75,000 more Aussies in jobs than the before the pandemic, the Treasurer said Australia was 'well on the way to recovery'.

'Jobs are coming back, the economy is coming back, Australia is coming back,' he declared.
The partner of convicted child killer Russell Bishop was so besotted with him that she lied under oath in a desperate bid to keep the paedophile out of prison at the first Babes in the Wood trial, a jury was told.

Bishop murdered nine-year-old friends Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway in Brighton in a 1986 case which became known as the Babes in the Wood.

Mother-of-four Jennifer Johnson, 55, admits she lied under oath at his first trial in 1987, where he was left free to target a seven-year-old girl in 1990.

Jennifer Johnson, Russell Bishop's girlfriend, pictured leaving Brighton Magistrates Court

Bishop (right) murdered Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway, both nine, in Wild Park, Brighton in 1986 but was freed a year later after Johnson (left) lied for him

Bishop was serving a life sentence for the second attack when he was finally convicted of the Babes in the Wood murders after a double jeopardy retrial in 2018.

New DNA techniques linked him to the murder through a blue sweatshirt.

Johnson denies committing perjury and perverting the course of justice, and has told the court she was terrified into lying by Bishop and his family.

But prosecutor Alison Morgan QC told jurors that Johnson was 'part of Team Bishop, not a victim of it', and added: 'Nobody has a gun to her head.'

The jury have been told Johnson admits changing her story in the witness box after telling police a sweatshirt which linked Bishop to the murders was his.

Nicola Fellows and her friend Karen Hadaway, both aged nine, were found murdered in Brighton's Wild Park in 1986

Pictured: A blue Pinto sweatshirt, allegedly worn by Bishop and said to contain vital DNA evidence, which was found beside a path behind Moulsecoomb railway station

Ms Morgan told the court that Johnson lied swiftly and easily and only admitted changing her story in the witness box after the retrial.

'She knew all along,' Ms Morgan said.

'For 35 years she knew the truth about that garment. She has said she is sorry but never once in all those years did she come forward.

'Never once did she tell the truth.'

The jury have been told they have to decide if Johnson was forced to lie in a signed witness statement and under oath in court against her will.

But the prosecutor said: 'Nobody has a gun to her head. Nobody said I'm going to kill you if you don't sign that, you're going to die tomorrow if you don't sign that.'

Ms Morgan said a doctor who treated her described Johnson as confident, assertive and tough. 'She is a resourceful, forceful, strong woman,' she added.

The trial at Lewes Crown Court continues.
The COVID-19 vaccine rollout for all Australians who want their two doses is likely to be completed by the end of the year.

That's the bold prediction of Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and his department, underpinning much of the government's economic recovery plan.

So far 2.7 million doses have gone into Australians' arms, but the rollout's weekly pace will need to triple if Mr Frydenberg is to be believed.

"The vaccine is likely to be rolled out by the end of this year to all those Australians who want that vaccine," he told reporters on Tuesday.

Every Australian to get two doses of vaccine by the end of the year

"There is the assumption they will get two doses by that time."

He noted it was based on "those who seek to have the vaccine" rather than the entire Australian population.

Treasury expects international travel to "remain low" through to mid-2022 after which a gradual recovery in international tourism is assumed to occur.

"The rate of international arrivals will continue to be constrained by state and territory quarantine caps over 2021 and the first half of 2022, with the exception of passengers from safe travel zones," the budget papers say.

Finance Minister Simon Birmingham said trying to predict the reopening of Australia's border to the rest of the world was an "imprecise business".

But he said it would be done "as early as possible but no sooner than it is safe to do so".

The cautious approach on travel comes as the government revealed it would spend an extra $1.9 billion over the coming year to boost its COVID-19 vaccine supply to 170 million doses and speed up the rollout.

As well, the budget papers confirmed a plan to investigate domestic manufacturing of mRNA vaccines.

The rollout has been slow to date but the Government predicts every Australian will get two doses

The plan - led by the federal industry and health departments - would complement the existing CSL facility in Melbourne, which makes the AstraZeneca viral vector vaccine, and ensure Australia is not at risk of blockages of supply from overseas.

The budget papers said a funding figure could not be put on the project due to "commercial in confidence sensitivities".

The Howard Springs facility in the Northern Territory, which is housing Australians returning from overseas, will cost $487 million over two years as it is expanded to 2000 places.

Part of the cost will be offset from people paying for their stay at the facility.

There will also be $879 million provided over two years to support access to health care services and reduce the risk of community transmission of COVID-19.

The funding covers subsidising testing and detection of the virus, telehealth services and operating dedicated commonwealth respiratory clinics.

The budget sets aside $37.1 million over two years to support India with urgently needed medical supplies.
Leigh Sales has grilled Treasurer Josh Frydenberg over why companies won't be forced to repay JobKeeper payments to the federal government despite reaping the benefits of soaring profits during the pandemic.

Companies including Harvey Norman, Mercedes Benz and Ford were condemned for pocketing a combined $57million in emergency JobKeeper payments even though their sales boomed amid the economic downturn.

On ABC's 7:30 Report following Mr Frydenberg's Budget announcement on Tuesday night, Sales asked the Treasurer why the Government wasn't chasing down firms that banked JobKeeper payments as a profit when they 'never really needed it'.

'At the time, our priority was to get the money out the door,' Mr Frydenberg replied.

On ABC's 7:30 Report following Frydenberg's budget announcement on Tuesday night, Leigh Sales asked the Treasurer why the Government wasn't chasing down firms that banked JobKeeper payments as a profit when they 'never really needed it'

The veteran reporter said she wasn't disputing the urgency of sending businesses fast cash, but again asked why the money wasn't being chased up now.

'The rules and the law that passed the parliament was that businesses could access JobKeeper based on an anticipated turnover reduction of more than 30%, or 50%, depending on the size of the company,' he said.

'It helped stabilise the economy. So we're not going to retrospectively change the legislation. We're not going to knock on the door of every small business.'

Sales hit back, saying the Coalition would be outraged if the Labor Party were 'just writing it off' and not holding companies accountable.

Mr Frydenberg continued to spruik the success of the JobKeeper program while avoiding answering Sales' line of questioning.

'Just because it did do the job it was intended doesn't mean that it's flawless or that there wasn't waste built into it,' Sales said.

'As I point out, if you're spending at these levels, surely trying to minimise waste and inefficiency has to be an utter priority?'

Mr Frydenberg continued to spruik the success of the JobKeeper program while avoiding answering Sales' line of questioning

Mr Frydenberg retorted that the program worked 'very effectively' through the tax system before taking aim at the Labor Party.

'Labor asked us to extend JobKeeper beyond a year. We said no. It was costing, at that time, more than $2billion a month. And we have seen, in the month of April, more than 100,000 people come off income support, even as JobKeeper ended.

'Labor said they would spend more. They said the sky would fall in if JobKeeper ended. It hasn't. And that step that we took - that decision we took - has proven to be the right one.'

Harvey Norman's billionaire founder Gerry Harvey previously defended receiving $14.5million in wage subsidies despite posting a 116 per cent profit increase

Harvey Norman's billionaire founder Gerry Harvey previously defended receiving $14.5million in wage subsidies despite posting a 116 per cent profit increase.

The electrical retailer made a record $462million after tax profit in the six months to December 31 as lockdowns made consumers more inclined to update their home furnishings.

That $248.4million increase - compared with the second half of 2019 before the pandemic - marked a 116.3 per cent half-year net profit surge.

Mercedes-Benz pocketed almost $5 million in JobKeeper payments despite recording a $62.7 million profit in Australia last year - up from a $25 million loss in 2019.

Ford was handed $38 million in JobKeeper last year, while also enjoying a $59 million profit.

Footwear retailer Accent Group also faced pressure to return more than $9million in JobKeeper payments after hitting a record $52.8million in profit in their December half.

Mercedes-Benz pocketed almost $5 million in JobKeeper payments despite recording a $62.7 million profit in Australia last year - up from a $25 million loss in 2019
Conversion therapy that seeks to 'cure' gay men and women is set to be banned under plans set out in the Queen's Speech.

Ministers have pledged to end the 'abhorrent and coercive' practice which seeks to make LGBT people heterosexual.

But there are fears that the measures contain a loophole for religious groups who are the main proponents of the highly controversial therapy which critics say is a form of abuse.

The speech sets out plans for a consultation and also says that it will also ensure 'medical professionals, religious leaders, teachers and parents can continue to be able to have open and honest conversations with people'.

Jayne Ozanne, an evangelical Christian and a former Whitehall equalities advisor, tweeted: 'Yet more consultation - what LGBT+ people need is protection from all those that believe they should be changed or be celibate for life.

'It's quite simple - the govt must choose who it will protect: lives of LGBT+ people or religious right who want to ''pray gay (& trans) away''!'

The speech sets out plans for a consultation and also says that it will also ensure 'medical professionals, religious leaders, teachers and parents can continue to be able to have open and honest conversations with people'.

Jayne Ozanne, an evangelical Christian and a former Whitehall equalities advisor, tweeted: 'Yet more consultation - what LGBT+ people need is protection from all those that believe they should be changed or be celibate for life'

The Government has also commissioned research into the scope of practices and experiences of those subjected to conversion therapy.

A victim support package will ensure victims can access the support they need.

Organisations will be invited to bid to develop such a package, with the Government anticipating that the chosen provider will be in place by the summer.

Ministers have come under fire in recent months over the time taken to implement a ban.

In March, Boris Johnson said ending conversion therapy is 'technically complex' but insisted that ministers will 'stamp it out' after three LGBT advisers resigned in protest.

The charity Stonewall welcomed the commitment but said news of a consultation 'is concerning and will be hard for our communities to hear'.

Chief executive Nancy Kelley said: 'We don't need a consultation to know that all practices that seek to convert, suppress, cure or change us are dangerous, abusive and must be banned.

'Lesbian, gay, bi, trans, intersex and ace communities have been waiting almost three years for the UK Government to follow through on their promise to ban all conversion practices, and any delay leaves us at further risk of abuse.'

The Queen's Speech set out that measures would be introduced in this Parliament to 'ban conversion therapy'.

In its guide to the speech the Government said: 'People should be free to be themselves in the UK. The ban will eliminate coercive practices which cause mental and physical harm to individuals.

'We will ensure the action we take to stop this practice is proportionate and effective, and does not have unintended consequences. We will ensure medical professionals, religious leaders, teachers and parents can continue to be able to have open and honest conversations with people.'

Equalities minister Liz Truss added: 'As a global leader on LGBT rights, this government has always been committed to stamping out the practice of conversion therapy.

'We want to make sure that people in this country are protected, and these proposals mean nobody will be subjected to coercive and abhorrent conversion therapy.

'Alongside this legislation, we will make new funding available to ensure that victims have better access to the support they need.'
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bersek donned a pair of red Codi shoes by Nine West, which cost $129

Tanya Plibersek turned heads as the Budget was being announced on Tuesday night - and it had nothing to do with economics.

The Shadow Minister for Women donned a pair of modest platform heels for the event in Canberra's Parliament House.

Plibersek's red shoes were impossible to miss, as she literally followed in the footsteps of Julie Bishop, whose passion for fashion and flashy shoes is legendary.

The Labor MP's heels - believed to be Codi Pump by Nine West, which retail for just $129 - were a far cry from the lavish Louboutins Bishop loved to wear on the job.

Tanya Plibersek (right, speaking with Minister for Employment Susan Ley) turned heads with her stylish heels from Nine West

The Shadow Minister for Women (right) donned a pair of modest platform heels (left) for the event in Canberra's Parliament House

At Question Time in Canberra, Bishop was often seen in a Cora Patent Heart Red Sole Louboutin pumps, which retail for just under $1500.

Armani suits and Chanel cosmetics also form part of her regular wardrobe, with Bishop's eye for fashion gaining her countless admirers.

Ms Plibersek paired her 'wine suede'-coloured shoes with a smart sky blue blazer, casual white shirt and smart dress pants.

She also didn't hold back in her scathing assessment of the 2021 'flashy' Budget, declaring it was a 'Morrison-keeper budget'.

Plibersek's red shoes were impossible to miss, as she literally followed in the footsteps of Julie Bishop, whose passion for fashion and flashy shoes is legendary. She is pictured holding the satin red heels she wore on the day she resigned

Ms Plibersek (right) paired her 'wine suede'-coloured shoes with a smart sky blue blazer, casual white shirt and smart dress pants

'It will be all designed around short-term spending, big dollars to deal with political problems caused by the government's own making,' she said.

'Take aged care for example, Scott Morrison was the treasurer who cut $1.7 billion from aged care, he was warned at the time it would be catastrophic for the system  it turns out it was catastrophic.

'What we expect - as usual from this government - (is a) big flashy headline, they'll do really well with the advertising and then it will be Ts and Cs may apply.'

She doubled down on Twitter later on Tuesday night, claiming the Budget was a 'marketing exercise' that was designed to disguise 'mismanagement and missed opportunities that define eight long years of this Liberal-National Government.'

Playful pumps: Bishop famously wore $1496 heart-stamped Louboutins during Question Time
Barista Szilvia at work at Madisons cafe on the Gold Coast

When the coronavirus pandemic hit Australia in March 2020, about 900,000 Aussies lost their jobs as restaurants, pubs, and shops were shut down to stop the deadly disease from rapidly spreading throughout the nation.

Centrelink queues all over the country snaked around the block as the economy was plunged into recession for the first time since the early 1990s.

The shock forced the government to unleash an unprecedented wave of spending including doubling the JobSeeker payment and introducing the $89billion JobKeeper wage subsidy - the most expensive policy in Australian history.

The October budget backed up these large-scale programs by bringing forward permanent tax cuts for low and middle income earners, and outlining a range of initiatives to get Aussies back to work such as JobTrainer, HomeBuilder and Boosting Apprenticeships Commencements.

A little more than a year since the virus reached Australian shores, the situation could hardly be more different.

Businesses have bounced back as the country enjoys relatively normal life with the virus confined to quarantine hotels - and 74,000 more Australians have jobs than before the pandemic hit.

Consumer sentiment is currently at its highest level in 11 years, the property market is booming and the stock exchange reached an all-time high this week.

So the role of this budget is starkly different from the last.

Its aim is to consolidate Australia's gains, keep the economy firing and keep voters happy in the lead-up to an election which is tipped for late this year.

No doubt keeping the borders closed until 2022 is a ploy to please cautious voters who are worried about catching Covid-19 and potential lockdowns.

Aussies don't seem to mind being shut off from the rest of the world when they have the money to do up their house, perhaps buy a new car and take that holiday in the middle of nowhere they always planned - but previously it was just too easy to go to Los Angeles.

Businesses have bounced back as the country enjoys relatively normal life. Pictured: A tradie in Sydney

To cement Australia's recovery, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has simply extended many of the schemes in the last budget that have worked as he intended.

The low and middle income tax offset will be used again to give 10 million Aussies another boost of up to $1,080 in their tax returns next year.

The JobTrainer program will provide a further 163,000 free training places in areas of skills need.

The instant asset write-off is also extended, allowing companies to write-off the full value of any asset such as utes, tractors and machinery.

And the loss carry-back scheme will be pushed out until June 2023, allowing companies to offset previously taxed profits as far back as the 2018-19 income year.

In that sense Mr Fydenberg's second pandemic budget is a continuity budget, with the spending taps slightly turned down to reduce next year's deficit from $161 billion this year to a still-large $106 billion.

There are some significant new initiatives such as reduced childcare costs for 250,000 families and hugely increased funding for aged care, and some tinkering of superannuation.

And there's a glossy new pamphlet touting policies that benefit women to fix the government's 'women problem' following the poor handling of Brittany Higgins' rape allegation (further evidence this is an election budget).

But for the most part we've seen this budget's policies before, and that's no bad thing.

Last year the Labor Opposition said the government would be tested on whether it can get the unemployment rate down and get Australians back to work.

The October budget helped achieved that and this one builds on earlier success.
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A British woman has been tortured and murdered in front of her 11-month-old daughter during a horror home invasion in Greece.

Caroline Crouch, 20, was strangled at the home she shared with 33-year-old husband Charalambos 'Babis' Anagnostopoulos in the Glyka Nera suburb of Athens early Tuesday.

Police say three men - some of whom were armed with pistols - broke into the family home around 5am while a fourth stood guard outside.

The trio killed the family dog, tied up Babis - a helicopter pilot - then tortured Caroline for an hour to get her to reveal the location of the family's valuables, before strangling her.

The men then took jewellery worth worth 21,500 and 13,000 in cash, and fled.

The Greek government have issued a 300,000 (258,000) reward for information, Greek news outlet The Dawn reported.

Babis was today seen briefly returning to his home to pick up personal possessions whilst accompanied by three police officers, according to Greek newspaper Proto Thema.

A TV news video showed the moment he was questioned by journalists as he got into his car to leave.

Babis, who was visibly distressed, said in Greek that his wife's killers would be caught and added that they had 'begged' the men not to hurt them.

On Tuesday evening, heartbreaking footage emerged showing Caroline playing with her baby at the beach earlier this year.

In what was her final Instagram video, the young mother was seen holding and kissing her cherished child.

Caroline Crouch, 20 (right), has been strangled to death at her home in Athens, Greece, that she shared with husband Babis Anagnostopoulos (left) and their infant daughter (pictured)

Police say a gang of burglars broke into Caroline (left) and Babis's (right) home, tied him up, tortured and strangled her, then stole 33,000 in cash and jewellery and fled

After his wife was killed, Babis eventually was able reach a phone and call emergency services, who arrived a short time later.

Theodoros Chronopoulos, a spokesman for Greek police, described the attacks as a 'heinous crime, committed with extreme ferocity.'

'Such barbarism is rare for Greece,' he added.

Investigators say the raid began around 4.30am when the gang approached the couple's house and broke a security camera outside.

They then broke a basement window to get inside the property, and found the family's dog downstairs.

Police say the animal was strangled using its own leash before being left to hang on the house's fence.

The men then made their way upstairs to an attic bedroom where the couple were asleep next to their child.

Babis was attacked first - with the men handcuffing him to a bed post and covering his eyes and mouth with duct tape.

They then set upon Caroline, a trained martial artist, and tied her up using a t-shirt.

Babis was today seen briefly returning to his home to pick up personal possessions whilst accompanied by three police officers, according to Greek newspaper Proto Thema . The publication ran a news video on its website showing the moment he was questioned by journalists as he got into his car to leave

Caroline, who is thought to have been born Greece but has a British passport, began dating Babis in 2017, married him in 2019, and gave birth in June last year

Caroline was a student at the University of Piraeus, according to Greek media, though it is unclear what she studied. Pictured: Caroline and Babis with their daughter

Police have cordoned off the couple's home in the Glyka Nera neighbourhood of Greece and are scouring it for evidence

Officers believe the gang likely targeted the couple, and may have had them under surveillance before striking

For around an hour they tortured her, demanding the location of the family's money and jewellery, which are thought to have been kept in a safe.

According to news site Ta Nea, Babis told police that the men - speaking in broken Greek - had told Caroline that they would hurt the baby if she did not give them the location of the safe.

The men then pointed a gun at the infant, the site reports, causing Caroline to scream for help. She was then strangled to keep her quiet, with a blouse or pillowcase.

After taking the family's valuables, the men fled. Police say the trio spoke a foreign language among themselves, which Babis was unable to identify.

According to Proto Thema, Babis told police that he had discovered his wife's body.

'When I managed to break free, I rushed upstairs to the attic to find my wife on the floor facing down, and the baby next to her wailing,' he said.

At around 6am, Babis managed to reach a phone and called police, who rushed to the scene which is now cordoned off.

Babis and his daughter were taken to hospital, while officers began examining the house for evidence.

Social media profiles reveal Caroline and Babis met in 2017 and were married in July 2019 in a ceremony in Portugal.

Caroline, who appears to have ties to the UK through her father's side of the family, then gave birth to their first child in June last year.

Police say hooded men broke into the home in the Glyka Nera suburb while one stood guard, strangled the family dog, tied up the husband, then tortured and strangled his wife

Caroline was killed in front of her infant daughter after thieves broke into the home she shared with her husband

The pair lived in Athens, where Babis worked as an 'air taxi' pilot flying out of Athens international airport and a smaller airfield in nearby Megara.

Caroline was a student at the University of Piraeus, according to Greek media, though it is unclear what she studied.

According to The Times, Caroline grew up on the Greek island of Alonnisos. A family friend quoted in the paper said she had a British father and a Filipino mother.

'I don't know if she was born on the island or just raised there,' she said. 'She was a very beautiful girl and she was a very active child, doing lots of swimming and scuba diving.

'Her mum was a sweetheart and she was so proud of her daughter. Her mum was saying just a few days ago how happy she was to be able to visit Caroline in Athens once in a while.'

Caroline married Babbis in May 2018. In an Instagram post in July last year, Babbis wrote: 'Happy Birthday to my awesome wife, closest friend, and best mom our daughter could have.'

A post a month earlier announced the birth of their daughter. Babbis said it was the 'best day in a man's life'.

Police say it appears the robbers were experienced, and likely surveilled the couple for some time before the raid.

Investigators are now reviewing local CCTV cameras to see how the burglars got away and whether they were in the area before the raid.

They are also interviewing the couple's neighbours and friends to see if anyone gave away information about the pair keeping large amounts of cash in the house.
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A D-Day re-enactment on a beach where American soldiers trained for the Omaha landings has been cancelled for health and safety reasons - after 'blown sand' and 'surface water' were deemed 'too dangerous'.

The annual event on Saunton Sands, Devon, is one of the biggest World War Two battle re-enactments in the UK.

The shore, along with the Braunton Burrows dunes, is where 10,000 American GIs trained for their assault on Omaha and Utah beaches.

But organisers have issued a 'sincere apology' and claimed they were forced to pull the plug on this year's event after describing the site as 'outright dangerous'.

Residents have expressed sadness at the cancellation of Saunton D-Day - but said actual veterans who trained there would likely 'scoff' at the decision.

The annual event on Saunton Sands, Devon, which is one of the biggest World War Two battle re-enactments in the UK, has been cancelled this year (pictured in 2018)

The D-Day re-enactment (pictured in 2018) was cancelled for health and safety reasons - after 'blown sand' and 'surface water' were deemed 'too dangerous'

The shore, along with the Braunton Burrows dunes, is where 10,000 American GIs trained for their assault on Omaha and Utah beaches (re-enactment pictured in 2018)

Organisers have issued a 'sincere apology' and claimed they were forced to pull the plug on this year's event after describing the site as 'outright dangerous' (enthusiasts in 2018)

Assault Training Center Friends, who organised the event, said: 'It's with a heavy heart that we have to cancel Saunton D-Day and Devon D-Day on 5th and 6th June this year over safety issues.

'Having inspected the tracks on Braunton Burrows, they are in such a poor state of repair they are downright dangerous.

'Add to that the surface water everywhere that simply won't drain away - four feet deep at the concrete landing craft yesterday.

'Blown sand six feet high across some of the tracks off the beach. Access everywhere is so poor even the military have restricted vehicle activity.

'None of these problems can be rectified in time and we don't want you or your vehicle damaged so we have to look forward to next year. Our sincere apologies.'

The D-Day re-enactment on a Devon beach where American soldiers trained for the Omaha landings has been cancelled for health and safety reasons (enthusiasts with a Sherman tank at the event in 2018)

The event featured vintage vehicles on display all weekend, plus living history encampments for people to visit, including the GIs of First wave 44 and the Germans of 304th Panzer Grenadier Regiment (re-enactment pictured in 2018)

Several residents expressed sadness at the cancellation of the event (pictured in 2018) which is seen as one of the highlights of the calendar for the community

The annual event (pictured in 2018) on Saunton Sands in Devon is one of the biggest World War Two battle re-enactments in the UK

The event was last held in 2019 to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day and the 76th anniversary of the Assault Training Centre where American troops trained in North Devon for the D-Day landings between September 1943 and April 1944.

It featured vintage vehicles on display all weekend, plus living history encampments for people to visit, including the GIs of First wave 44 and the Germans of 304th Panzer Grenadier Regiment.

The cancellation news comes two weeks after organisers announced it was cutting the event to a two-day convoy on the 5th and 6th June due to financial cuts during the coronavirus pandemic.

Several residents expressed sadness at the cancellation of the event which is seen as one of the highlights of the calendar for the community.

The shore, along with the Braunton Burrows dunes, is where 10,000 American GIs trained for their assault on Omaha and Utah beaches (re-enactment event in 2018 pictured)

Residents have expressed sadness at the cancellation of Saunton D-Day (event in 2018 pictured) - but said actual veterans who trained there would likely 'scoff' at the decision

The shore, along with the Braunton Burrows dunes, is where 10,000 American GIs trained for their assault on Omaha and Utah beaches (event in 2018 pictured)

One said: 'How ironic that the beach is deemed too dangerous for a reenactment considering what it was used for before D-Day.

'They obviously don't want any accidents and you can understand they need to be careful, but you can imagine a few of the soldiers who trained there for the real thing scoffing at the decision.'

Braunton Burrows played an important role during the Second World War.

In 1943 Lieutenant Colonel Paul W. Thompson was tasked with training the Americans for their assault on the heavily defended Normandy beaches.

The Devon beaches here were ideal for amphibious exercises, despite the fierce Atlantic surf, and the nearby sands were soon found to be identical to Omaha in every respect - including sand quality, beach gradient and tidal range.
Rachel Riley claims she was libelled by a former Jeremy Corbyn staffer who 'dog whistled' her followers to cause a Twitter 'pile on', the High Court heard today.

The Countdown star told the court she believed the Corbyn-led Labour Party was 'fostering antisemitism' - and she felt 'affronted' at being called 'dangerous and stupid' following an online row over the issue.

The 35-year-old claims a 2019 tweet published by Laura Murray, a senior aide to the then Labour leader, caused her serious harm.

Ms Murray's tweet accused Ms Riley of saying 'Corbyn deserves to be violently attacked' and called for the public not to engage with her.

Ms Murray today told judge Mr Justice Nicklin she had been 'shocked and outraged' at Ms Riley's tweet, which she thought was 'reckless and irresponsible'.

The dispute started after an egg was hurled at Corbyn during a visit to Finsbury Park Mosque in north London on 3 March, 2019.

After the incident Ms Riley retweeted a post by Guardian columnist Owen Jones about a similar egg assault on former British National Party leader Nick Griffin in January 2019.

Rachel Riley arrives at the High Court for her libel case on May 11

Labour Party staff member Laura Murray (right) arrives at The Royal Courts of Justice

Jones had commented: 'I think sound life advice is, if you don't want eggs thrown at you, don't be a Nazi.'

TIMELINE: RILEY'S CLAIM AGAINST EX-CORBYN AIDE January 10, 2019: Former British National Party leader Nick Griffin tweets he had re-watched footage of '100 far-left thugs attacking a BNP MEP press conference' in 2009. He says Guardian columnist Owen Jones was 'cheering them on (from the back)'. Mr Jones replies, saying: 'I think sound life advice is, if you don't want eggs thrown at you, don't be a Nazi. Seems fair to me.' March 3: An egg is hurled at Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn at Finsbury Park Mosque. Rachel Riley later posts a screenshot of Owen Jones' egg tweet, saying it was 'good advice', with an emoji of a red rose and an egg. That same day Laura Murray, a senior aide to the then Labour leader, tweets: 'Today Jeremy Corbyn went to his local mosque for Visit My Mosque Day, and was attacked by a Brexiteer. 'Rachel Riley tweets that Corbyn deserves to be violently attacked because he is a Nazi. 'This woman is as dangerous as she is stupid. Nobody should engage with her... Ever.' Ms Riley launches legal action. April 24, 2020: Ms Riley wins the first round in her high court libel claim over the tweet. Mr Justice Nicklin says that an 'imputation that a person had publicly supported a violent attack on someone is plainly defamatory at common law'. He adds that it is 'conduct which would substantially affect, in an adverse manner, the attitude of other people towards the claimant or have a tendency so to do'. But he rejects a claim from Ms Murray's lawyer that she was expressing an opinion when she said Ms Riley had said the Labour leader 'deserved to be violently attacked'. He said it was 'a simple factual statement and would be understood as such'. May 10, 2021: Ms Riley tells the high court she was left unable to sleep and bombarded with abuse after Jeremy Corbyn's former aide claimed she said he 'deserves to be violently attacked because he is a Nazi'. Ms Riley also claimed to the court that Labour showed they 'don't care about jews' by appointing Ms Murray as the party's head of complaints the day after her allegedly libellous tweet. Advertisement

Ms Riley had retweeted Jones' post with the words 'good advice' followed by a rose, the Labour emblem, with an egg emoji.

Reacting that day, Ms Murray tweeted: 'Today Jeremy Corbyn went to his local mosque for Visit My Mosque Day, and was attacked by a Brexiteer. Rachel Riley tweets that Corbyn deserves to be violently attacked because he is a Nazi. This woman is as dangerous as she is stupid. Nobody should engage with her... Ever.'

Ms Murray has told the court Ms Riley was being 'deliberately provocative' by tweeting 'good advice' on the day that Jeremy Corbyn was egged.

Ms Riley is suing Ms Murray for libel over her tweet, which had 1,584 retweets, 4,883 likes and 736 comments.

Ms Murray denies defaming Riley, arguing truth, honest opinion and responsible publication in her tweet.

She told the court all the tweets that she had seen were saying 'how can you call Jeremy Corbyn a Nazi?' with none of them saying 'this is a comment on hypocrisy, this is a tweet on double standards'.

Asked if she could see it was a 'pile on', she said: 'The way it seemed to me was that it was a deliberately provocative of Jeremy Corbyn being attacked.

'The tweet about Nazis being attacked, saying ''good advice,'' ''if you don't want to be egged don't be a Nazi''. The way it looked to be was that it was deliberately provocative and designed to provoke a reaction from the left.

'And it was getting that reaction, lots of people were saying ''Jeremy Corbyn's not a Nazi, that's not a fair comparison to make''.

'Given that many, many people were criticising Rachel Riley like this, the purpose of my tweet was to advise people, as many as would listen, ''don't engage with this,'' ''it's a waste of time,'' ''no one gets anything from it,'' ''it's a huge waste of emotional resources''. I could see this was really counter productive. It's just totally useless.'

Ms Murray, who is now a trainee teacher, told Mr Justice Nicklin she thought Ms Riley's tweet was 'misjudged and stupid'.

'I was horrified by what the claimant had said, which I thought was reckless and irresponsible given all that had happened and also given the claimant's high profile and influence,' she said in a written witness statement.

'My reading of the claimant's original tweet was that she was taking Owen Jones' advice - that Nazis deserve to have eggs thrown at them - and applying it to the assault which had just taken place on Mr Corbyn.

'By adding the words "good advice", the claimant appeared to me to clearly be endorsing and encouraging the act.

'I felt strongly that the claimant's tweet sent a dangerous message to the wider world and was a misjudged and stupid thing to do.'

William Bennett, QC, for Ms Riley, directed Ms Murray to an article in The Sunday Times, which featured a personal Facebook picture of her wearing a necklace saying 'f**k the Tories' with the words 'please no bourgoisie on my profile' superimposed.

Ms Murray said: 'That's definitely not language that I use to people or about people.'

Ms Riley told Mr Justice Nicklin how she believed Laura Murray was aware that the March 2019 tweet would 'encourage more hate'.

She has sued Ms Murray for libel, wants damages, and says the tweet caused 'serious harm' to her reputation.

Ms Murray, who no longer works as an aide to Mr Corbyn, says in her defence that what she tweeted was true, and reflected her honestly held opinions.

Mr Justice Nicklin is overseeing a trial at the High Court in London, which began on Monday and is due to end on Wednesday.

Ms Riley, who studied mathematics at Oxford University, has told the judge that she is Jewish and has a 'hatred of anti-Semitism'.

She said she spoke out against anti-Semitism and thought the Corbyn-led Labour Party was 'fostering anti-Semitism'.

Ms Riley says her 'good advice' tweet was sarcastic and intended to show the hypocrisy of the left wing's 'selective support' for acts of violence against politicians.

She told the second day of libel trial she did not step in and clarify what she meant because of advice on how to deal with Twitter 'pile ons' of angry users from the Centre for Countering Digital Hate.

Ms Riley is suing Ms Murray for libel over her tweet, which had 1,584 retweets, 4,883 likes and 736 comments

The court heard reactions from Twitter users questioning whether Ms Riley was linking Corbyn with the Nazis, or whether she was condoning violence.

William McCormick, QC, for Ms Murray, asked Ms Riley to explain what she meant by something being a 'dog whistle'.

Ms Riley replied: 'It was in the middle of a pile on, there were however many people contacting me to tell me I was dreadful, awful.

'Laura Murray then decided to add an extra layer, she's already aware of a lot of anger, a lot of movement.

'To add something to that, another level on top of it, I believe she was aware of what she was doing. People that do this can cause a lot of damage.

'If her intention was to make people not engage, she would have deleted her tweet. I believe it was a dog whistle because the opposite happened.

'To actually choose was that choice, put on record in the manner that she did, in the job she was in.'

Laura Murray, pictured with Jeremy Corbyn. Ms Murray denies defaming Riley, arguing truth, honest opinion and responsible publication in her tweet

Ms Murray was a former aide of ex-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (pictured). Riley told the court: 'My view is that the Corbyn-led Labour Party was fostering antisemitism'

In her witness statement, Ms Riley said Ms Murray's tweet made her feel vulnerable to 'physical attack' and she had to review her home security.

She said she believed was targeted by Ms Murray following her criticism of anti-Semitism in the Labour Party in 2018.

Ms RIley said she had not tweeted that Jeremy Corbyn deserved to be violently attacked, and she was 'affronted' at being called 'dangerous and stupid'.

'I had made a sarcastic but in my opinion relevant and important comment in relation to Owen Jones and a few hours later the defendant was spreading it round on Twitter that I advocated violence against Jeremy Corbyn because in her words, I had said that he deserved to be attacked because he was a Nazi,' she said.

'I believe that I was targeted by the defendant because I had been critical of the Labour Party's handling of anti-Semitism.

'It was an attempt to shut me up or to stop people listening to what I was saying by telling people that I was encouraging people to commit violence against Jeremy Corbyn.

'The allegations in the Tweet have made me feel vulnerable to physical attack which is naturally very worrying.

'My view is that the Corbyn-led Labour Party was fostering antisemitism.'

She added that she has become a target of a 'very great deal of abuse' on Twitter after using it to condemn what she saw as antisemitism in the Labour party.

Mr Justice Nicklin, who is presiding over the trial, earlier ruled that Ms Murray's tweet was defamatory in common law. Pictured: The High Court in London - where the case is being heard

Mr McCormick said in his skeleton argument before the court that the case was not one about anti-Semitism, it was about the 'need for restraint in public discourse'.

It was also about the 'rights of those who see a public statement on an inflammatory topic garnering a reaction which is generating responses espousing violence, to call that statement what it is, based upon that reaction,' he said.

'It is obvious that her tweet would provoke hostile reactions of the kind that did in fact emerge. What the defendant then tweeted was true, reflected her honestly held opinions and was a responsible exercise of her own rights of expression on a matter of real public importance.'

Mr Justice Nicklin, who is presiding over the trial, earlier ruled that Ms Murray's tweet was defamatory in common law because the meaning was Ms Riley 'publicly stated in a tweet that Corbyn deserved to be violently attacked'.

The trial continues.
Britain could approve Covid vaccines for children within weeks following US health chiefs' decision to green light the move, UK scientists said today.

America's regulator, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), last night approved plans for the Pfizer jab to be given to children aged 12 and above.

No10 has reportedly already drawn up plans to vaccinate secondary school-aged children with Pfizer's two-dose jab from September.

But experts are divided on whether Britain should press ahead with the policy, given that youngsters are at such tiny risk of Covid. No10's scientific advisers today said giving jabs to children is unlikely to be the priority and may not be needed.

Professor Anthony Brookes, professor of genetics and genome biology at the University of Leicester, told MailOnline: 'We should be worried about the completely unknown and unknowable long-term risks of vaccination of the young.'

And professor David Livermore, a medical microbiologist at the University of East Anglia, said he expects vaccines to be approved for children in the UK but warned it poses an ethical dilemma.

He said: 'Children gain very little from the vaccination but may run some small hazard to harm.'

Giving children coronavirus vaccines is morally complicated, and UK health chiefs have already said it would only be done if it was deemed necessary.

Advocates of the move argue it would help protect older people by allowing Britain to move one step closer to 'herd immunity', curbing the spread of the virus.

They also warn that while the immediate harms of Covid seem small to children, the dangers of 'long Covid' on them are still somewhat unknown.

But critics say offering jabs to children would be unethical because it would only be done to protect older people  not youngsters themselves.

Just 57 people under the age of 20 in England have died with Covid since March 2 last year, but teenagers are thought to be just as likely to spread the virus as adults.

Britain could approve Covid vaccines for children within weeks following the decision by US health chiefs to green-light Pfizers jab for over-12s, scientists said today. Pictured: Schoolchildren look on during a lesson at Willows High School

Cambridge University academics believe the risk of infants dying of the coronavirus is around 0.00088 per cent  or one in every 125,000. By contrast, the risk is thought to be around 15 per cent in the over-75s.

There is nothing to suggest the Pfizer vaccine will not be safe in children but some have branded it controversial because studies are still ongoing.

There is more doubt about the AstraZeneca vaccine which has been linked to extremely rare blood clots in young adults.

Britons under 40 are being offered an alternative to the British-made vaccine as a result, although this has only been possible because of how many other jabs the UK has ordered.

WHY ARE PEOPLE WORRIED ABOUT VACCINES? SIDE EFFECTS One reason some people are fearful of having a vaccine is the risk of side effects. Side effects are normal because the vaccines trigger the immune system, which is how they work, and the immune system is usually what causes symptoms of illness. Things like fever, aches, headache and tiredness are all normal signs that the immune system is reacting to something and are often caused jabs but are not serious. They tend to clear up by themselves within days, and can be controlled with drugs like paracetamol and ibuprofen. A tiny proportion of people suffer more severe side effects, such as going into shock or having a severe allergic reaction, but this is extremely rare and usually only happens in people with a history of bad reactions. Everybody who receives a jab on the NHS is monitored for at least 15 minutes to make sure they don't have a bad reaction, and vaccination teams have treatments on hand to help if this happens. FERTILITY Part of the reason for young women being concerned is understood to be myths about the vaccine affecting fertility or the health of unborn babies. Although vaccines are not recommended for pregnant women, this is only because they have not been trialled on them specifically  the same reason children are not eligible for the jabs. There is no evidence to suggest the vaccine would be capable of harming an unborn child  and certainly not any more than the real coronavirus  but it is not being given to pregnant women out of caution. And on long-term effects on fertility, Professor Van-Tam said no vaccine has ever led to infertility and there was no reason the Covid ones would do so. ONLINE CONSPIRACY THEORIES Online conspiracy theories also claim that jabs have tracking microchips in them, contain animal products or use cells from human flesh  none of which are true. Experts have called for spreading lies about vaccines online to be criminalised, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson called it 'total nonsense'. Advertisement

Professor Livermore told MailOnline he expects the vaccines to be approved in younger age groups in the UK because it would help protect Covid spreading from schools to the wider population, some of which may still be un-vaccinated by the time the rollout is extended to youngsters.

He said: 'My guess is that the UK Government and SAGE will press to vaccinate children, exactly on the utilitarian argument above.

'My personal view is that this is wrong and that the ethical case against is paramount  children gain very little from the vaccination but may run some small hazard to harm.

'If they were left to themselves theyd grow up with circulating SARS-CoV2, would be exposed a few times and would develop an immunity.

'Seventy years hence, once they reach their dotage, itd be reduced to the status of "one more sort of common cold".'

He added that children are currently vaccinated against rubella, which causes little harm to them, but these vaccines have had more extensive testing and help protect pregnant women.

Professor Brookes said: 'There are two reasons for using Covid vaccines. Neither apply to children.

'The two reasons one would normally think about using vaccines for protecting the individual and to protect society  herd immunity.

'Children do not need protecting as individuals against this virus. Its effectively harmless to children.

'In terms of herd immunity, its clear that we already have more than enough herd immunity because of the degree of natural infections we had over the last year.

'Since winter weve vaccinated more than 60 per cent of the population, so we totally have enough herd immunity.

'We dont need to add to that by vaccinating children.'

Dr Simon Clarke, an infectious disease expert at Reading University, told MailOnline he expected British regulators to also approve the vaccine for children.

But he added: I dont see any problem with vaccinating children  but it has to be recognised that it is only being done for wider society.

Across the Atlantic, there are also concerns over whether the project is just to protect adults, when only 0.1 per cent of US Covid fatalities have been in people under 18.

Professor Adam Finn, a paediatrician at the University of Bristol and member of No10's vaccine advisory panel the JCVI, said: 'It is important we have confirmation of the safety and adequacy of immune responses of Covid vaccines in children  particularly because there are some children who are at enhanced risk of serious illness because they have underlying health conditions that render them more vulnerable.

'However, most children who get SARS CoV2 infection do not get seriously and, indeed, most dont get sick at all.

'Although the importance of children in transmission of the virus within the community is not entirely clear, the evidence we have suggests that it is not great, especially where younger children of pre-school and primary school age are concerned.

'Accordingly immunising children is a low priority and if vaccine-induced protection in the adult population is high from high uptake, good persistence of protection and sustained protection against viral strains as they evolve to evade immunity, then it may not be necessary to immunise children in a general way at all.

'This is even more likely for young children than adolescents.'

He added: 'At this point in the pandemic, when there are global shortages of vaccines and very large numbers of people at high risk of severe disease  mostly elderly  worldwide who remain unimmunised  a priority for them but also for us  is to prevent large epidemic waves like the one currently playing out in India.

'Those outbreaks pose a global threat as they drive evolution of vaccine-resistant variants and their dissemination around the world.

'So, for now we should make sure that the doses of vaccines that exist are used as strategically as possible  and giving them to children is unlikely to be the priority, at least for now.'

Writing on Twitter today, Aaron Richterman, an expert in infectious diseases at Penn University, criticised the FDA's approval of Pfizer's jab in children.

He said vaccinating youngsters in the US over giving jabs to the world's adult population was a 'moral stain'.

The FDA's decision to grant Pfizer's jab an emergency use authorisation was based on data from a trial of 2,260 participants aged between 12 and 15.

Regulators said the benefits of vaccines for people in the age group outweigh 'the known and potential risks'.

Children (dark blue) now make up nearly a quarter - 24 percent - of new Covid cases in the U.S. as of last week, according to data from the American Academy of Pediatrics

Acting FDA commissioner Janet Woodcock said: 'Today's action allows for a younger population to be protected from Covid, bringing us closer to returning to a sense of normalcy and to ending the pandemic.

'Parents and guardians can rest assured that the agency undertook a rigorous and thorough review of all available data, as we have with all of our Covid vaccine emergency use authorisations.'

The FDA's decision will have to be ratified by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at a scheduled meeting on Wednesday. If given the go ahead, vaccinations for children can begin immediately.

Dr Richard Besser, former head of the CDC told Good Morning America: 'When we think about the impact on kids, thankfully, the number of hospitalizations and deaths is not as great as in adults, but it goes way beyond that.

'The mental health impact, the anxiety and depression - the idea that now, with the vaccine, there are high school kids that could start the fall and have a normal high school experience, take off their masks, do sports, engage with their friends and not have to worry - I think that's absolutely huge.'

Insurance claims for mental health issues among Americans between ages 13 and 18 nearly doubled between January and November of 2020, compared to the same period in 2019, according to a recent Fair Health report.

Parents, teachers, pediatricians and the CDC all agree that children desperately need to be back in school to protect their mental health and ensure they don't fall behind educationally.

The CDC has said in no uncertain terms that schools - K-12 (kindergarten to 12th grade) schools as well as colleges and universities - could safely reopen prior to the availability of vaccines for students, but only so long as they could keep kids in masks and maintain social distance in classes.

But the decision sparked controversy when talks were leaked last week.

Writing in the BMJ last week with two other experts, epidemiologist Stefan Baral from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health said the emergency use authorisation granted by the FDA uses a different measure of risk than when it was given for adults.

They said: 'Pfizer has asked the FDA to amend the existing emergency use authorisation for its vaccine to allow eligibility for children aged 12 to 15.

'Unlike for adults, however, the likelihood of severe outcomes or death associated with Covid infection is very low for children, undermining the appropriateness of an emergency use authorisation for child Covid vaccines.'

But Dr Joe Grove, an immunologist at University College London told MailOnline the Pfizer jab has been demonstrated to be safe and effective in all age groups tested so far.

He said: 'Vaccinating school-aged children has two major benefits.

'First, the children gain protection from disease and, just as importantly, will be able to return to a normal and largely undisrupted education.

'Secondly, increasing the proportion of vaccinating individuals will further disrupt the networks of transmission that drive explosive spread of coronavirus. There will be no fuel for the fire.

'I would hope and expect that safe and effective vaccines are offered to as many people as possible in this country and across the globe.'

And the Adam Smith Institute think tank told MailOnline young people and their parents should be given the choice on whether to be vaccinated.

Matt Kilcoyne, the think tank's deputy director, said the move would ensure children aren't stopped from enjoying the likely benefits of vaccination as the country opens up after lockdown  including travel overseas.

He said: 'It'll help them go abroad we should reject the absurd possibility that it's 17 year olds that have to holiday in Bognor Regis while 70-year-olds are set free to travel to Magaluf.'

It comes after the Sunday Times revealed similar plans to begin vaccinating schoolchildren across the UK.

Government sources told the newspaper plans to roll-out the vaccine to children from September hinge on advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) this summer.

Professor Adam Finn, a member of the committee, said rates of the virus over the next few months would inform the decision.

He said: 'We need to be in a position to immunise children, particularly teenagers, promptly and efficiently if we need to.'

All the main suppliers to the UK  Pfizer and BioNTech, AstraZeneca, and Moderna  are carrying out trials now to see if the vaccines work on youngsters.

Academics are testing the AstraZeneca jab on 300 six to 17-year-olds in England and results are expected by the summer.

Pfizer and BioNTech plan to test their vaccine on youngsters aged as young as five later this year.

Up to one in 10 vaccine recipients suffer side effects, including headaches, fevers and muscle pains. More adverse reactions  including blood clots  are vanishingly rare, official data shows.

The virus is very unlikely to kill children, but as more variants spread, it's becoming increasingly likely to disrupt their learning, which runs counter to most parents desperate pleas to get their children back to in-person classes.

It's worth noting that, prior to the measles vaccine, there were about 400-500 child deaths in the U.S. every year, and almost every child got the disease, according to the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Nearly 500 children have died of Covid in the U.S., which has infected about 3.1 million people under 18, or about 4.3 percent of children - a far smaller share of children than were infected by measles before the vaccine was available.

That makes the relative risk that a child will die of Covid exponentially greater than risk posed by measles, although measles comes with a higher rate of complications like pneumonia and brain swelling. But more children have been hospitalized for COVID-19 (778,080) than were in a typical year for measles (448,000) prior to the vaccine.

Every year, about 91 percent of American children get the MMR (measle, mumps and rubella) vaccine, which is required by schools, despite the low risk of death or hospitalization from that virus.

Vaccinating children against measles is also important to protect their mothers, for whom measles infection can cause miscarriage or stillbirth and raise the risk of premature delivery.

The Covid shot and measles vaccine, developed in 1963 and updated in 1968, are of course two different vaccines, so side effects will not be identical, but so far, neither appears unsafe.

So far, there is no evidence that side effects from the vaccine are dangerous to children, or that those side effects will cost them nearly as many days of class as the virus itself.

Pfizer reported that the side effect profile was comparable to what people ages 16-25 experienced, including fatigue, sore arms and achiness, headache and sometimes fever and chills.

Generally speaking, this younger group of adults has had more significant side effects than older adults. This is common in vaccines, because the immune system becomes slower and less active with age.

Children's immune systems are a little different, too.

'With younger children, their immune systems aren't fully developed. We know that teenagers are different beasts with all the hormonal flux that they go through and that does change immune responsiveness,' Dr Stacene Maroushek, a specialist in pediatric infectious diseases at the University of Minnesota told Kare11.

'There tends to be some sort of a peak group where people have those really bad side effects, the chills and the fever, sort of in the 20s and 30-year-olds. But when you get up to the 60-year-olds a lot of them aren't having those same side effect.'

But, she added that she's not particularly worried about side effects for children, instead, she was concerned the vaccines simply wouldn't work in them.

'I think that the immune system is such that they might not mount the same response and I think that's something we really need to look at. They very well may, but we don't know,' she said.
Climate activists and the oil and gas industry are unhappy at parts of the federal budget, with a mixed bag of measures for the environment and energy sector.

The Morrison government's 2021/22 budget revealed on Tuesday confirmed $1billion on measures to lower emissions and $58.6million to support an expansion of the gas industry.

While that has been welcomed by the sector, the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association is unhappy with a new levy.

Climate activists and the oil and gas industry are unhappy at parts of the federal budget, with a mixed bag of measures for the environment and energy sector

The temporary levy will apply to offshore petroleum production to recover costs of decommissioning the Laminaria-Corallina oil fields, which are situated in waters off the coast of Darwin.

The levy will end when all costs associated with decommissioning have been recovered.

'This will ensure taxpayers are not left to pay for the decommissioning and remediation,' the budget papers say.

The government has not quantified the levy, citing commercial sensitivities.

The government could have approached the issue differently, association boss Andrew McConville said.

'A new levy on the entire (offshore) oil and gas industry is a terrible precedent and could have serious repercussions to Australia's economy and to jobs,' he said.

While Treasurer Josh Frydenberg delivered his budget speech in Parliament House, young climate activists were setting up a candle-lit message for him on lawns outside.

Members of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition wrote 'fund our future, not gas' to oppose taxpayers' money being spent on the fossil fuel sector.

Extinction Rebellion protesters blocked the entrances to Canberra's COMCAR depot early Tuesday morning

The budget also includes $173.6million to help update the gas industry's roads in the Northern Territory.

Energy Minister Angus Taylor outlined the government's plan for long-term fuel security, which involved payments to oil refineries to ensure they stay open.

Greenpeace is unhappy, saying the oil industry is a key driver of climate change.

'The federal government should be investing in electric vehicle infrastructure and the electrification of our transport systems, which currently rely on oil and contribute around 19 per cent of Australia's domestic emissions,' the organisation's spokeswoman Nikola Casule said.

Budget morning began with climate activists staging a protest to try and stop commonwealth cars - used to ferry politicians about when they're in Canberra - from driving to Parliament House.

Extinction Rebellion protesters blocked the entrances to Canberra's COMCAR depot early Tuesday morning.

A 21-year-old man was later charged.
Lazar ordered to next appear in custody at Old Bailey on his birthday, May 13

He spoke only to confirm his personal details through a Romanian interpreter

alentin Lazar, 20, of Barking, charged with murder and appeared in court today

A 20-year-old man has appeared in court today charged with murdering a mother-of-two who was found strangled and 'beaten to death' in bushes.

The body of Maria Rawlings, 45, was found in shrubbery in Little Heath, Romford, by a dog walker on May 4.

Valentin Lazar, of Barking, east London, was charged with committing murder and appeared in custody at Barkingside Magistrates' Court on Tuesday.

He wore grey prison-issued clothing and spoke only to confirm his personal details through a Romanian interpreter as he stood in the dock.

Lazar was ordered to next appear in custody at the Old Bailey on May 13, which will be his birthday.

Maria Jane Rawlings (pictured above), 45, was found dead in shrubbery in Romford, east London, on May 4. Valentin Lazar, of Barking, was charged with committing murder

Police believe Ms Rawlings was attacked after leaving the King George Hospital in Goodmayes, Ilford, walking to Barley Lane in the direction of the A12 on May 3

Bandana Batra, prosecuting, said: 'This defendant is charged with murder.

'The Crown asks for the bail application hearing to take place in two days time at the Central Criminal Court on May 13.'

Magistrate chair Rosalind Reynolds told Lazar: 'You're going to be remanded in custody to appear at Central Criminal Court on May 13 at 10am.

'This will be for a plea and case management hearing at that court.'

Police believe Ms Rawlings was attacked after leaving the King George Hospital in Goodmayes, Ilford, walking to Barley Lane in the direction of the A12 on May 3.

A post-mortem examination at Walthamstow Mortuary found that Ms Rawlings had been strangled and suffered head injuries.

She lived in Chelmsford, Essex - 20 miles away from Little Heath.

Her devastated family have left flowers by the bush where her body was found, with a message attached to one bouquet reading: 'Mummy. I love you now, forever and always.

Flowers left at Little Heath in east London, where Ms Rawlings was found dead by a man walking his dog last Tuesday. A post-mortem examination at Walthamstow Mortuary found that the mother-of-two had been strangled and suffered head injuries

Little Heath in Romford, pictured above. Lazar was ordered to next appear in custody at the Old Bailey on May 13, which will be his birthday

'In this s*** world you made things brighter. Forever my angel. Your Big Baby.'

Another note read: 'I can't believe this has happened. I love you so much, please be at rest.'

And a touching message from her grandsons read: 'Nanny, we love you soo much, we will never forget you. Your boys.'

Detective Chief Inspector David Hillier, who is leading the murder investigation, said in an earlier statement: 'My thoughts remain with Maria's family at this incredibly difficult time.'
Australia is secretly trying to build the capability to make mRNA vaccines such as the Pfizer and Moderna jabs.

The pioneering type of jab contains genetic code from a virus rather than the virus itself.

The Budget will provide funding to the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources to work with the Department of Health to develop an onshore mRNA vaccine manufacturing capability.

Australia is secretly trying to create its own Covid-19 vaccine using the same technology as the Pfizer and Moderna jabs. Pictured: Staff at Olympic Park vaccination hub in Sydney

The funding will be for continuing negotiations with existing manufacturers and approaching the Australian market to establish manufacturing capability.

The technology could also be used for flu jabs and other future vaccines.

However, the government is refusing to reveal how much funding will be provided.

The Budget says: 'Funding for this measure is not for publication (nfp) due to commercial in confidence sensitivities.'

The plan - led by the federal industry and health departments - would complement the existing CSL facility in Melbourne, which makes the AstraZeneca viral vector vaccine, and ensure Australia is not at risk of blockages of supply from overseas.

Meanwhile, the COVID-19 vaccine rollout for all Australians who want their two doses is likely to be completed by the end of the year.

That's the bold prediction of Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and his department, underpinning much of the government's economic recovery plan.

So far 2.7 million doses have gone into Australians' arms, but the rollout's weekly pace will need to triple if Mr Frydenberg is to be believed.

'The vaccine is likely to be rolled out by the end of this year to all those Australians who want that vaccine,' he told reporters on Tuesday.

Every Australian to get two doses of vaccine by the end of the year

'There is the assumption they will get two doses by that time.'

He noted it was based on 'those who seek to have the vaccine' rather than the entire Australian population.

Treasury expects international travel to 'remain low' through to mid-2022 after which a gradual recovery in international tourism is assumed to occur.

'The rate of international arrivals will continue to be constrained by state and territory quarantine caps over 2021 and the first half of 2022, with the exception of passengers from safe travel zones,' the budget papers say.

Finance Minister Simon Birmingham said trying to predict the reopening of Australia's border to the rest of the world was an 'imprecise business'.

But he said it would be done 'as early as possible but no sooner than it is safe to do so'.

The cautious approach on travel comes as the government revealed it would spend an extra $1.9 billion over the coming year to boost its COVID-19 vaccine supply to 170 million doses and speed up the rollout.

The rollout has been slow to date but the Government predicts every Australian will get two doses

The Howard Springs facility in the Northern Territory, which is housing Australians returning from overseas, will cost $487 million over two years as it is expanded to 2000 places.

Part of the cost will be offset from people paying for their stay at the facility.

There will also be $879 million provided over two years to support access to health care services and reduce the risk of community transmission of COVID-19.

The funding covers subsidising testing and detection of the virus, telehealth services and operating dedicated commonwealth respiratory clinics.

The budget sets aside $37.1 million over two years to support India with urgently needed medical supplies.
A coroner has ruled that British Paratroopers shot dead 10 'entirely innocent' people during clashes in Northern Ireland in 1971 that came to be known as the 'Ballymurphy massacre'.

The ten civilians - including a mother of eight and a Catholic priest - killed across three days during the arrest of IRA suspects were 'entirely innocent', Mrs Siobhan Keegan said.

The soldiers have always claimed to have been shot at by IRA gunmen during clashes in the area as they tried to arrest anyone suspected of being a Republican paramilitary under the policy of internment.

But while the coroner accepted that IRA gunmen had been active in the area, she ruled that none of those killed had been carrying a weapon or were members of a paramilitary organisation. She also ruled out a theory that loyalist paramilitaries had shot the victims.

It comes amid growing anger at the prosecution of British soldiers for their roles in decades-old events during the Troubles in Northern Ireland during which 3,500 people died the majority of them civilians killed in terror attacks.

The events in Ballymurphy came during one of the most violent periods of the conflict in Northern Ireland, and violence including gunfire and the hurling of petrol bombs erupted across the province against the mass arrests without charge under internment.

The government has been under pressure to introduce legislation to prevent veterans being prosecuted over the Troubles, but the Government today stopped short of announcing a bill in the Queen's Speech.

And sacked veterans minister Johnny Mercer today slammed Boris Johnson for failing to include any legislation in the Queen's Speech.

Family members arrive to hear the findings of the Ballymurphy Inquest at the Waterfront Hall

The victims of the massacre, pictured, were shot between August 9 and August 11, 1971, during The Troubles, following the launch of a new policy of arrest and internment of suspected IRA members. The British Army's report of the incident was that members of the Parachute Regiment were fired upon by the IRA and soldiers returned fire

British soldiers are pictured in Northern Ireland at the time of the Ballymurphy massacre

Ex-veterans minister Johnny Mercer (pictured) slammed Boris Johnson for failing to include legislation in the Queen's Speech to protect British veterans who served during the Troubles

An official document accompanying the speech said further details of proposed legislation would be confirmed 'in the coming weeks'.

But Downing Street would not guarantee that the laws would be in place within the next 12 months and Mr Mercer expressed doubts over whether the legislation would actually be brought forward.

Mr Mercer said he doubted Mr Johnson would follow through on this plan, despite the Government claiming more details will be announced in the coming weeks.

He said: I just cannot be part of an administration that is going to promise these people things and then not make almost any effort to deliver on them.

Reacting to the findings of the Ballymurphy inquest, Mr Mercer said: 'Deeply difficult hearing todays findings, but of course, not surprised. Of course civilians killed in conflict are innocent, it was a tragedy at the time and it remains a tragedy today.

To be clear - wherever compelling evidence exists of a crime, I support prosecutions. But it must be a fair process with a credible chance of a conviction if we proceed down that route

War is awful - Ive seen it. Bad things happen and its a mess. I do not believe British soldiers ever don the uniform and set out to kill innocent civilians, and we must never lose sight of that in the emotion of all this. If evidence can be provided to the contrary I will change my view. But veterans deserve fairness in the process as much as anyone else.'

Just three days ago hundreds of bikers rode through London with the support of veterans as part of rally to prevent old soldiers being tried over historic offences in Northern Ireland.

The Government said in a briefing document issued today it would 'focus on information recovery and reconciliation, and end the cycle of investigations'.

But asked today if he believes the Government when it says it will soon be bringing forward legislation, Mr Mercer replied: If I had thought legislation was going to be forthcoming on this I would not have left the Government. I didnt want to leave the Government. It was hard, but I did not want to leave government.

But the truth is, on that very day I left, I asked my secretary of state if he had seen a single word committed to paper on these proposals and the answer was no.

A Government source told MailOnline 'it could take 20 years to go every one of the 3,500 Troubles-related deaths'.

Father Mullan, pictured, died aged 38 while other victims ranged in age from 20 to 50

They added: 'Twenty more years of Northern Ireland not being able to move on is not something anyone would want.'

In 2011 Northern Ireland's Attorney General John Larkin ordered new inquests into the deaths at Ballymurphy to be heard following a long campaign by family members who claimed the original coroners' probes in the aftermath of the shootings were inadequate.

Most of the soldiers involved cannot be identified, the coroner said, although most will be dead or at least in their late 60s. It is not known whether the conclusion of the inquest could lead to prosecutions but any move to punish soldiers 50 years on is likely to be met with anger.

An inquest blaming British soldiers for the Ballymurphy deaths comes just days after the murder trial of two veterans over the shooting of IRA commander Joe McCann collapsed.

That case was decimated after a judge ruled statements given by the soldiers in 2010 to try help McCann's family reach some closure were now being used to try and prosecute them.

The hearing into the the 'Ballymurphy massacre' scrutinised five different incidents that coincided with the launch of Operation Demetrius, a British government-backed plan to arrest and intern suspected IRA members in large numbers.

Mourners are pictured here in Ballymurphy in August 1971 at a wake for Catholic priest Father Hugh Mullan, who was shot on the first day of violence on August 9. Witnesses said he had been performing the last rights when he was hit by a bullet

The first was the shooting of parish priest Father Hugh Mullan, 38, and Frank Quinn, 19, around 9pm on August 9.

In the second incident - that happened around the same time as the first - Noel Philips, 19, Joseph Murphy, 41, Joan Connolly, 44, and Daniel Teggart, 44, were fatally shot outside an army barracks.

In the third incident, the following day, Eddie Doherty, 31, died after being shot on the Whiterock Road as he came across an encounter between soldiers and protesters who had erected a barricade across the road.

Who were the ten people shot in the 'Ballymurphy massacre'? Francis 'Frank' Quinn, 19, was shot while going to the aid of a wounded man. Father Hugh Mullan, 38, a Catholic priest, was shot while going to the aid of a wounded man. There is evidence that the priest had been waving a white item, either a handkerchief or T-shirt, at the time. He had served a year in the Merchant Navy before being a priest in parishes in Belfast, County Antrim and County Down before going to Ballymurphy. Joan Connolly, 44, a mother-of-eight, was shot as she stood opposite the army base. It has been claimed she might have survived had medical help reached her sooner. She lay dying for several hours. Her family had moved from a two-bedroom bungalow to a four-bedroom house in Ballymurphy in 1966. Briege Voyle, one of Mrs Connolly's daughters, said her mother 'just couldn't get her head around' the Troubles. The mother-of-eight had made tea and sandwiches for British soldiers at the family home. Mrs Connolly had been out looking for her daughters - who were moved to a refugee camp during the unrest - when she died. Daniel Teggart, 44, was shot fourteen times. Most of the bullets entered his back. It was claimed they were fired as he lay injured on the ground Noel Phillips, 20, was shot as he stood opposite an army base Joseph Murphy, 41, was shot as he stood opposite an army base He claimed to have been beaten and shot again in hospital while in the custody of officers Edward Doherty, 28, was shot while walking along a road John Laverty, 20, and Joseph Corr, 43, was shot at separate points at the top of the same road John McKerr, 49, was shot outside a Catholic church There was not enough evidence to determine where the shot that killed him came from, nor whether it was fired by the military or paramilitaries He died of his injuries nine days later on August 20 Advertisement

In the fourth incident - on the third day of shooting - Joseph Corr, 43, and John Laverty, 20, were shot in the Whiterock Road area in the early hours of the morning.

Mr Corr died 16 days later from his injuries.

In the fifth and final incident, former soldier John McKerr, 49, was shot later that morning as he took a break from maintenance work.

He died of his injuries on August 20.

The coroner said Father Mullan and Mr Quinn were killed by shots fired by soldiers and that the force used was not justified.

She said she was satisfied both entered the field to assist an injured man.

While the coroner said there was evidence of a small number of IRA gunmen in the wider area on the day, she said this did not apply to the waste ground when the men were shot.

She said neither man was armed and they were not in the vicinity of someone with a gun.

Mrs Justice Keegan said there was evidence that the priest had been waving a white item, either a handkerchief or T-shirt, at the time.

She said the use of force used by the Army was disproportionate in the circumstances, noting the soldiers were firing from protected positions from a long distance away.

There were also many civilians in the field fleeing from violence that was unfolding elsewhere.

The coroner also rejected a suggestion from the Ministry of Defence that the men may have been shot by a sniper from the UVF - a Protestant paramilitary group - from the nearby Springmartin area.

In May the Belfast Telegraph reported that Tommy West, a trained UVF marksman who died in 1980 was one of the gunmen involved in the 'Ballymurphy massacre'.

It reported that Derek Menice, who died in 2010 after turning his back on the UVF, was the other.

Mrs Justice Keegan said she had been unable to identify which soldiers fired the fatal shots.

Family members cheered as she announced her findings.

Addressing the second incident, Mrs Justice Keegan found the killings of Mr Philips, Mr Murphy, mother-of-eight Mrs Connolly and Mr Teggart were also not justified.

All victims were 'innocent', unarmed and not linked to the IRA, she added.

She said: 'The Army had a duty to protect lives and minimise harm, and the use of force was clearly disproportionate.'

One military witness said Mr Teggart had ammunition is his pocket - an allegation the coroner rejected.

She said there was no evidence to suggest any of the deceased were linked to the IRA.

She said there had been a 'basic inhumanity' in how long Mrs Connolly had been left to lie injured on the ground.

However, she said she could not determine whether the delay in treatment had contributed to her death.

On the third incident, the coroner ruled disproportionate force was used in the shooting of Mr Doherty - who was not throwing petrol bombs at the time, as some claimed.

'He was an innocent man who posed no threat,' she said.

The soldier who fired the shot that killed him was in a tractor that was attempting to clear the barricade.

The coroner said she accepted that at least two petrol bombs had been thrown at the tractor and that the soldier inside would have held an honest belief that his life was in danger, and was justified in using some force as a consequence.

But she said his actions went beyond that.

'On any reading he acted in contravention of the Yellow Card (Army's rules of engagement),' she said.

Mr Corr and Mr Laverty were both shot by the British Army, she added, and there was no evidence that they could have been shot by anyone else.

The two men were not firing at soldiers at the time, as some alleged.

But the families of the victims have been protesting the deaths for years and claim they were innocent Catholics. Some claim their loved ones were shot while trying to help wounded friends. Nine men and one woman were shot in Ballymurphy and their relatives are pictured here with banners and photos of the dead outside the inquest in Belfast

'There is no evidence that guns were found on or near any of these two men,' she said.

The coroner added: 'It was wrong to describe these two men as gunmen and that rumour should be dispelled.'

The coroner also raised concerns about 'serious failings' in military testimony provided in respect of the shootings.

Responding to the fifth and final incident, Mrs Justice Keegan said Mr McKerr was an entirely innocent man.

But there was not enough evidence for her to determine where the shot that killed him came from, nor whether it was fired by the military or paramilitaries.

'It is impossible to say where shot may have come from,' she said.

'The evidence is not consistent and clear in this case.'

The coroner said it was 'shocking' there was no adequate investigation of the killing afterwards.

She added: 'I have no hesitation in stating that Mr McKerr was an entirely innocent man.'

The coroner said he was 'shot indiscriminately on the street'.

She noted that Mr McKerr was a 'proud military man' and claims he was associated with the IRA had caused great pain for his family in the five decades since.

'I can allay that rumour and suspicion once and for all,' she said.

The killings became known as 'Belfast's Bloody Sunday', a reference to the 'Bloody Sunday' of 1972 in Derry where 28 civilians were shot by soldiers during a protest march against internment.

British troops, in the foreground, clash with demonstrators in Belfast in May 1981 during the Troubles in Northern Ireland

The official Army account of the incident is that soldiers were fired upon by Republican gunmen as they entered the area on August 9, with firefights continuing over the next two days.

One more casualty was 44-year-old Paddy McCarthy, whose family say suffered a fatal heart attack after confronting a group of soldiers and having an empty gun put in his mouth and 'fired'.

Louise Haigh MP, Labour's Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, commenting on the inquest verdict into Ballymurphy, said the conclusions were 'clear and irrefutable'.

'Those who lost their lives were innocent and posing no threat. Their deaths were without justification. The fundamental right to life violated,' she added.

By the end of Operation Demetrius on August 10, 342 people had been arrested while 7,000 civilians had been forced out of their homes.

Across the country 20 civilians died during the operation, including those in Ballymurphy, while two IRA members and two British soliders were also killed.

Mass protests against internment followed but the policy continued until 1975.

No evidence has ever been provided that proves any of those killed was involved in any armed resistance.

The fight for the inquests has been led by the families of the victims, including Mr Laverty's brother Terry, 64, who was initially arrested at the same time as his sibling died.

Terry was later convicted of riotous behaviour and jailed for six months, but overturned his conviction 44 years later in 2015 having always denied there was any rioting going on.

A year later Sir Declan Morgan, Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, recommended an inquest be held into Ballymurphy following a review of 50 cases related to The Troubles.

Although the inquest was initially delayed due to a lack of funding, it was finally launched in September 2018.

It comes as the Government is expected to move towards an approach echoing the 'truth and reconciliation' model used in post-Apartheid South Africa, where all sides come forward to talk about historical events without risk of prosecution.

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis is now in discussions about building a 'truth discovery' museum in the border areas that will aim to move things from a 'criminal debate to a historical debate'.

British forces are thought to have been responsible for 301 deaths during the Troubles, out of a total of 3,520.

Among the veterans welcoming the plans is former Royal Marine David Griffin, 80, a Chelsea pensioner who has been waiting since 2012 for a decision on whether he will be charged over a shooting incident in July 1972.

Among the veterans welcoming plans to move towards an approach echoing the 'truth and reconciliation' model of South Africa is former Royal Marine David Griffin, 80, a Chelsea pensioner (left) who has been waiting since 2012 for a decision on whether he will be charged over an incident in July 1972. He is also pictured in 1970 (right)

He told The Times that he would give the relatives of those who died 'every last detail of what happened', adding: 'I was promised ten years ago that within six months I would either be charged or given a letter of complete exoneration and I'm still waiting.'

Mr Griffin added that he would want to have legal assurances as well as a senior Ministry of Defence officer with him before he gave evidence in the 'truth and reconciliation' process.

He was originally questioned in 2012 by the Historical Enquiries Team, and the case was then passed onto the Legacy Investigations Branch of the Police Service of Northern Ireland  but he has still not yet heard whether he will be charged or exonerated.

Another veteran known as 'Dave', who was part of the Green Howards regiment, also told The Times: 'We should all get together and say enough is enough, it is water under the bridge and let's forget it and carry on.'

Johnny Mercer, who was sacked as Veterans' Affairs minister last month, said the past two Queen's Speeches have contained lines promising to take action to protect Northern Ireland veterans but the Government is yet to deliver.

Many victims of the Troubles are vehemently opposed to any statute of limitations, which they characterise as an amnesty that will thwart their chances of justice.

The bar on prosecutions would apply across the board, including former security force members and paramilitaries, but an exemption would still enable war crimes, such as torture, to be prosecuted, according to reports in The Times and Daily Telegraph.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister has promised draft laws to protect soldiers will be brought forward but no timetable has been set out and no specific Bill was mentioned by the Queen during the State Opening of Parliament.

An official document accompanying the speech said further details of proposed legislation would be confirmed 'in the coming weeks'.

But Downing Street would not guarantee that the laws would be in place within the next 12 months and Mr Mercer expressed doubts over whether the legislation would actually be brought forward.

He also claimed as he gave evidence to the Defence Select Committee this afternoon that Number 10 had banned him from giving media interviews on veterans' mental health when he was in the Government.

Mr Mercer left the Government after expressing frustration at a lack of progress over legislation to protect British veterans who served during the Troubles.

Following his departure he savaged the Government and accused Mr Johnson of surrounding himself with 'cowards' and 'desperately weak people'.

Hundreds of bikers took to the streets of London as part of a march on Saturday, with flags adjourning their vehicles. Supporters and veterans gathered to watch and listen to speeches underneath the gaze of the famed statue of Winston Churchill

A veteran looks on as speeches are made close to the statue of former Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Attendees worn facemasks, some clear and some with flags on them, to adhere to coronavirus guidelines.

Mr Mercer said during his evidence that Number 10 had tried to stop him from giving media interviews when he was in the Government.

He said: It was extraordinary. I will be honest with you, in that case an individual a senior individual in Number 10 phoned me up and said "you are not to do the Today programme" talking about veterans mental health.

I think I recall saying to him, "has the Prime Minister specifically said that to you" because I didn't believe he would say that, and he was like "the Prime Minister has specifically told me you are not to do that tomorrow".

So I spoke to the Prime Minister and he had made no such pledge at all.

Mr Mercer previously said: 'Those making prosecutorial decisions need to ask serious questions of themselves. We are trashing people's lives with these decisions.

'I will keep campaigning on this until the Prime Minister and the UK Government does what it has promised to do.

'For me, this is a scandal up there with contaminated blood or Windrush. It's appalling. These are men who served in the military 50 years ago. Their crime? Serving here to prevent civil war.

'These men have been totally abandoned by their country.'

Asked at lunchtime when the Government intends to bring forward legislation relating to Northern Ireland veterans, the PM's Official Spokesman said: 'We want to do this promptly and we also want to make sure this is done properly.

'We have listened to a wide range of stakeholders since last March and we've also engaged substantially with the Irish Government and the Northern Ireland parties on this issue and we will bring forward legislation in due course.'

The proposed new system is expected to focus on 'information recovery and reconciliation' rather than criminal prosecutions which are unlikely to succeed.

Politicians from across the island of Ireland have voiced anger at the prospect of a form of amnesty on Troubles prosecutions.

Northern Ireland's two main parties, the DUP and Sinn Fein, both criticised the move reported last week by the UK Government to introduce a statute of limitations on prosecuting offences committed prior to the signing of the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement.

Sacked minister Mr Mercer led the respect our veterans march on Saturday after the controversial trial against two paratroopers accused of murdering Official IRA leader Joe McCann effectively collapsed earlier this month

Mr Mercer led a Respect Our Veterans march on Saturday.

Veteran groups have claimed the prosecutions are politically motivated, and want the government to take action to prevent them.

A crowd gathered as Mr Mercer was joined on stage by British soldier Dennis Hutchings to give a speech.

The former Army officer left the Government last month after it emerged the Overseas Operations Act would not include soldiers who served in Northern Ireland.

In his resignation letter, he said he had 'no choice' but to leave after frustration at a lack of progress over the legislation to protect British veterans who served during the Troubles.

He said he had hoped Mr Johnson's premiership would 'signal a step change in veterans affairs in the UK' and that he had raised his concerns in a face-to-face meeting with him.

The legislation, which gained royal assent in Parliament last week, was developed in response to legal claims made after operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Overseas Operations Act will come into effect following the opening of the new Parliament on Tuesday.

Asked if the promised legislation would cover both the alleged actions of service personnel and terrorists, the Prime Minister's Official Spokesman said: 'We will set out the proposals in due course, I'm not going to jump ahead of that.'

In his introduction to the Queen's Speech package, Mr Johnson said: 'We will introduce legislation to address the legacy of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, ensuring that our proposals deliver better outcomes for victims, survivors and veterans, while ending the cycle of investigations.'

In her address to Parliament this morning, the Queen said: 'My ministers will promote the strength and integrity of the Union.

'Measures will be brought forward to strengthen devolved government in Northern Ireland and address the legacy of the past.'
Five abandoned girls from Honduras and Guatemala were found on Sunday on the land of a Texas farmer, hungry and crying after being left by their families to try to get into the country alone in another example of the worsening border crisis.

Three of the girls are from Honduras. They are seven, three and two. The other two are from Guatemala and are aged five and 11-months-old.

They are now at Uvalde Station, where they'll be processed, before being given to Health and Human Services.

Jimmy Hobbs, the 75-year-old farmer and his wife Katie gave an interview to Texas Congressman Tony Gonzales which was posted on Twitter after the pair submitted photos and videos to social media groups that campaign for tighter border control.

Gonzalez also shared a gut-wrenching image of the girls lying in dirt. In one of the videos she shared, Katie fumed in the background: 'These children dumped out on the side of the river here on our farm.

'If this doesn't make you mad and make you want to take to the streets, I don't know what will. They have no mother, no father, no nothing. This is one of our workers' wives right here taking care of this tiny one. No one with these children.'

Hobbs is an onion and watermelon farmer who has lived on the land he owns his entire life. The farm is in Quemado, Texas, which sits on the border with the Mexican state of Coahuila.

He said that he believes the girls would have died if he hadn't found them, and that the situation at the border is the worst it has been in the 75 years he has lived on the farm.

He and his wife warned that there will be 'thousands more' who get into perilous danger and die this summer trying to illegally cross the border as temperatures rise and President Biden continues to shrug off the crisis and leave it to Vice President Kamala Harris to handle instead.

Since Biden took office, there has been a rush of people trying to illegally get into the country and the number of kids in detention centers has doubled over the last two months. Now, there are 21,000 in US custody. Neither the President nor the Vice President has visited the border.

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These five little girls from Honduras and Mexico were found on Sunday by a Texas onion and watermelon farmer Jimmy Hobbs, who was making a round of his land in Quemado, which borders the Mexican state of Coahuila. The photo was posted on Twitter by Congressman Tony Gonzalez on Sunday after first being shared on border Facebook groups

Jimmy and Katie Hobbs. Jimmy, 75, has lived on the farm his entire life. He said the situation is the worst he's ever seen it and that thousands of kids will likely die this summer trying to enter the US illegally in sweltering heat, with no food or water

The farmer and his wife gave the girls food, water and sat them in shade while they waited for CBP to arrive at the scene

The youngest of the girls is so little she can't walk yet. She was naked when the farmer arrived and the girls didn't have any diapers for her either. She is shown being cradled by one of the farm workers' wives

They also called on the wife of one of their workers, who speaks Spanish, to comfort the girls. They are now in CBP custody, along with 21,000 other kids

The farmer and his wife spoke to Republican Congressman Tony Gonzalez about what they found. Gonzalez posted a video of their comments on Twitter.

'I was making a round on the farm and about 8.30 in the morning, I was just driving along and all of a sudden I see them.

'Five little baby girls, all by themselves, hungry crying. One didn't have any clothes on.

'Immediately, I called border patrol but they're snowed under, they don't have any help either.

'I waited for a while then I called one of my workers and asked his wife to go up to the house and bring some food and water,' the farmer said.

The farmer brought the girls into shade and gave them food and water for 'two and a half hours' before police arrived.

'It was really hot. I don't think they would have made it if I hadn't found them,' he said.

The farmer's wife added: 'It needs to stop right now.

'There's going to be thousands. This is just five miles of the Rio Grande. That's a huge border, this is happening all up and down it.

'It can't go on. It's going to be too hot. There are going to be a lot of deaths, a lot of suffering this summer.'

The farmer added a plea to President Biden - tighten the rules to prevent people from flooding the border or come and see the crisis for yourself.

Republican Congressman Tony Gonzalez shared the photo on Twitter and said it was another indicator of the escalating crisis

'We're talking about how the United States is a humane country - this is not humane anymore and it all started under [him].

'He either needs to come down here and look at this himself or change it back,' he said.

His wife added that Trump's presidency was the first time they'd felt safe in 30 years because it stopped migrants from rushing to the border to try to get in.

'Change it back under Trump's administration. For the first time in 30 years we felt secure here.

'It was working and it was working well. They stayed in Mexico.

Biden has shrugged off the crisis, refusing to even call it one, for months

'A lot of people are going to die this summer and we're going to be witness to it.'

Customs and Border Patrol called the situation 'heartbreaking'.

'It is heartbreaking to find such small children fending for themselves in the middle of nowhere.

'Unfortunately this happens far too often now.

'If not for our community and law enforcement partners, these little girls could have faced the more than 100-degree temperatures with no help,' said Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Austin L. Skero II in a press release.

The number of migrant children being held in CBP detention centers has doubled over the last month - there are now more than 21,000.

One facility in Fort Bliss, Texas, has more than 4,500 kids in custody.

Attorneys, advocates and mental health experts say that while some shelters are safe and provide adequate care, others are endangering childrens health and safety.

'Its almost like Groundhog Day,' said Southern Poverty Law Center attorney Luz Lopez.

'Here we are back to a point almost where we started, where the government is using taxpayer money to build large holding facilities...for children instead of using that money to find ways to more quickly reunite children with their sponsors.'
An empty four-story St. Louis building on the west end of the city became a raging inferno early Tuesday morning.

The fire broke out in a brick apartment building around 6am, and smoke filled the area above the Missouri city for miles.

The devastation was captured by news helicopters and drones.

There are no known injuries, as of 8:20am, and the building was undergoing rehab at the time, KMOV 4 reported.

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Firefighters from the St. Louis and University City fire departments responded

Firefighters got the fire under control in about 30 minutes

There are no known injuries two hours after the fire was brought under control

St. Louis and University City fire departments responded and had the fire under control in about 30 minutes, according to the news station.

But just the apartment building's skeleton remained.

How the fire started or if it appeared to be suspicious is unknown at this point.

Tuesday's fire was less than 24 hours after a woman died in a senior apartment building fire Monday after about three miles away, the St. Louis Dispatch reported.

All that was left was the building's skeleton

Smoke from the Tuesday morning fire filled the air about St. Louis for miles

There's a stark difference between the before and after photos of the St. Louis building that caught fire Tuesday morning

DailyMail.com left a message for the St. Louis Fire Department.
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Five Republican governors are declining federal coronavirus aid from President Joe Biden by ending the $300 per week enhanced unemployment benefits in their states.

The moves from GOP Governors Kay Ivey in Alabama, Asa Hutchinson in Arkansas, Tate Reeves in Mississippi, Greg Gianforte in Montana and Henry McMaster in South Carolina over the last week comes after Republicans demanded Biden drop the boosted benefits.

The enhanced federal payments were created last year to assist those put out of work in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, but governors are now worried their states' economies won't recover if people continue to be incentivized to not work.

'It has become clear to me that we cannot have a full economic recovery until we get the thousands of available jobs in our state filled,' Reeves tweeted Monday.

The move to reject the extra money comes as new expert analyses show those who made $32,000 before COVID-19 hit are now making more in benefits staying at home and collecting than if they were to go back to work.

The average U.S. salary for an individual in 2019 was $31,133. This means the average Americans could earn more money in coronavirus-era benefits instead of going back to work.

Mississippi's governor wrote in a statement declining the boost: '[I]t has become clear that the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) and other like programs passed by the Congress may have been necessary in May of last year but are no longer so in May of this year.'

Hutchinson said Tuesday morning it's time to stop paying workers to stay home.

'The extra compensation was very helpful during the dark days of the pandemic when unemployment rates were so high,' Hutchinson told CNN's 'New Day'. 'But now our economy has come back, we have jobs aplenty, we have employers that are begging workers to come to their place of business.'

'We cannot pay extra compensations for workers to stay home  we need them in the place of employment,' he added, claiming: 'If they need assistance in finding a job, we'll provide that to them. If they did child care assistance we have more than ample resources to assist in that, as well.'

'People of Arkansas want to work,' Hutchinson said, 'but we found that that enhanced benefits was simply an impediment.'

Republican governors from Arkansas, Mississippi, Montana, South Carolina and Alabama are ending enhanced unemployment for their residents. The move comes after Joe Biden denied a GOP request to end the $300 per week boost

Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson told CNN on Tuesday morning: 'The extra compensation was very helpful during the dark days of the pandemic... But now our economy has come back, we have jobs aplenty... We cannot pay extra compensations for workers to stay home'

"The extra compensation was very helpful during the dark days of the pandemic when unemployment rates were so high. But now ... we have jobs aplenty," Gov. Asa Hutchinson says about his decision to end pandemic jobless aid in his state. "We cannot pay ... workers to stay home." pic.twitter.com/undhfHUZmy  New Day (@NewDay) May 11, 2021

Reeves said in a statement Monday: 'Programs passed by the Congress may have been necessary in May of last year but are no longer so in May of this year'

Biden said in remarks Monday that anyone taking unemployment who gets offered a 'suitable job' must take it or lose benefits. The new demand comes after experts claim those who made $32,000 before the pandemic, can now make more by collecting benefits at home

In eight states, unemployed Americans can earn at least $600 per week in benefits. Massachusetts offers the most generous benefits. The White House denied that these benefits are to blame for the historically low jobs numbers

UNEMPLOYMENT FOR MARCH 2021 IN ALABAMA, ARKANSAS, MISSISSIPPI, SOUTH CAROLINA AND MONTANA ALABAMA Unemployed residents: 84,670 Percentage unemployed: 3.8% ARKANSAS Unemployed residents: 60,199 Percentage unemployed: 4.4% MISSISSIPPI Unemployed residents: 80,270 Percentage unemployed: 6.3% MONTANA Unemployed residents: 19,978 Percentage unemployed: 3.8% SOUTH CAROLINA Unemployed residents: 120,783 Percentage unemployed: 5.1% *The national unemployment rate in March 2021 was 6% Advertisement

McMaster, on Monday, slammed the idea of continued boosted unemployment benefits as part of the left's way to lead the U.S. toward socialism.

The South Carolina governor told Fox News' Tucker Carlson on Monday that his state is experiencing a labor shortage as a result of the enhanced federal payments for jobless in his state.

'This is about as close to socialism that I've seen,' McMcaster told the conservative Fox host. 'We've got help-wanted signs up everywhere, we get calls and letters, and texts from all sorts of businesses all across the state looking for people to work.'

'People won't come to work because they're getting as much money or more in some cases by staying home,' he lamented, adding: 'It's a counterproductive policy and I'm afraid what the Biden administration is doing is that they're telling everybody that the virus is still rampant and still in great danger. Everybody has to stay home. That's not true.'

'Go get a job, get back to work. That's how you build an economy and a family and everything else.'

'The Biden proposals are totally underproductive, killing incentive, and it puts us right on the road to socialism. We've got to stand up and fight against this,' McMaster said.

All of the five states who are opting out of the enhanced unemployment benefits from the federal government, still have remaining unemployment benefits in their states that will be available to those who remain jobless.

McMaster ordered on Thursday his state's Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW) to withdraw from the federal government's pandemic unemployment programs.

'South Carolina's businesses have borne the brunt of the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Those businesses that have survived  both large and small, and including those in the hospitality, tourism, manufacturing, and healthcare sectors  now face an unprecedented labor shortage,' McMaster wrote in a letter to DEW Executive Director Dan Ellzey.

The state will stop accepting the additional aid starting June 30, a decision that was endorsed by South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham.

'We are currently facing a labor shortage created in large part by the supplemental unemployment payments that the federal government provides,' McMaster wrote on Twitter on Thursday. 'Since the Biden Admin and Congress appear to have no comprehension of the damage being done the State of South Carolina must take action.'

In April, only 266,000 people joined the workforce - a quarter of the 1 million that were predicted. The loss stunned experts with many concluding there isn't enough of an incentive to go back

The darkest shaded states - many of which are Democrat states - are where unemployment rates are the highest. Massachusetts has the highest combined benefits with a max of $855 a week. The unemployment rate there is at 7.1 per cent - higher than the national average

South Carolina's unemployment rate reached nearly 13 per cent in April of 2020, but in March 2021, the unemployment rate was down to 5.1 per cent, which is below the national rate of 6 per cent.

McMaster said his state still has more than 81,000 available jobs as the economy has reopened and restrictions have been lifted.

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey also announced her state was ending engagement in boosted unemployment benefits from the federal government.

'As Alabama's economy continues its recovery, we are hearing from more and more business owners and employers that it is increasingly difficult to find workers to fill available jobs, even though job openings are abundant,' Ivey said in a Monday statement announcing the move.

She insisted: 'Among other factors, increased unemployment assistance, which was meant to be a short-term relief program during emergency related shutdowns, is now contributing to a labor shortage that is compromising the continuation of our economic recovery.'

'Our Department of Labor is reporting that there are more available jobs now than prior to the pandemic. Jobs are out there,' Ivey added.

The move from Republican states to opt out of the federal programs comes after Biden rejected calls by Republicans to cut the extra $300 weekly unemployment benefit passed under his COVID relief plan.

The benefit already expires in September. The expiration of the program has been extended several times since it was first passed by Congress under former President Donald Trump last year.

'Twenty-two million people lost their jobs in this pandemic, through no fault of their own,' Biden said. 'For many of those folks, unemployment benefits are a lifeline.'

The White House argued Monday the boosted benefits are not the main factor keeping people from returning to the workforce.

'We don't see much evidence that the extra unemployment insurance is a major driver in people not rejoining the workforce,' White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said at her daily briefing.

States who voted for Biden in 2020 on average lost people in the workforce at a disproportionately higher rate than red states.

Many of these states also have the highest combined unemployment benefits when taking into account state and federal benefits during the last year.

Massachusetts has the highest unemployment benefits with a max of $855 per week.

The unemployment rate in the Northeast state is 7.1 per cent  higher than the 6 per cent national average.

The average weekly payment to an unemployed person in March 2019 was $348 when combining federal and state payments. That number nearly tripled to $938 in March 2020, when the pandemic first really hit the U.S.  resulting in a record number of unemployed Americans.

Now that average payout is still at $638 each week, which is $300 more than they were before, meaning someone who was working 40 hours every week before the pandemic now gets nearly $16-per-hour to do nothing at home, which is more than double the federal minimum wage of $7.25

The Labor Department reported historically low jobs numbers on Friday, showing the U.S. added only 266,000 jobs in April, well below the 1 million jobs that most forecasters expected.

Psaki blamed the disappointing report on factors other than the unemployment benefits disincentivizing people to go back to work. She said lack of vaccination access, schools remaining closed, lack of childcare options and the need for a livable working wage as reasons why people aren't returning to the workforce.

Unemployment skyrocketed to 14% in April 2020, when the country shut down along with much of the rest of the world. It has since dropped to 6 percent but it's around double the 3 percent it had been in 2019

In March 2019, the average weekly payment to an unemployed person was $348 when combining federal and state unemployment payments. That nearly tripled to $938 in March 2020. Now they're still $638 -a-week - $300 more than they were before. It means, someone who was working 40 hours a week before the pandemic now gets nearly $16-an-hour to do nothing at home, which is more than double the federal minimum wage of $7.25

'The majority of economists, internally and externally of the White House, don't feel that unemployment insurance - something that was done at a time where, to help unemployed people get through a very difficult economic downturn, during a pandemic - is a major driver in our unemployment data, that there are other factors, bigger factors that were contributing,' Psaki said.

President Joe Biden said during remarks on the economy on Monday that anyone taking unemployment who gets offered a 'suitable job' must take it or lose their benefits.

'We're going to make it clear that anyone collecting unemployment, who is offered a suitable job must take the job or lose their unemployment benefits,' he said at the White House.

'There are a few COVID-19 related exceptions, so that people aren't forced to choose between their basic safety and a paycheck, but otherwise, that's the law,' Biden added.

The president didn't specify what he meant by a 'suitable job'. He did, however, note companies that 'provide fair wages and safe work environments' will 'find plenty of workers.'

To enforce the matter, Biden directed Labor Secretary Marty Walsh to reaffirm to states that individuals receiving unemployment benefits may not continue to receive benefits if they turn down a 'suitable job' due to a non-coronavirus specific concern.

The administration noted in a fact sheet that 'workers may not misreport a COVID-related reason for unemployment.'

States that voted for Biden lost jobs at a higher rate during COVID than states that voted Republican

They listed acceptable reasons for turning down a job as the worker has a child at home who cannot go to school because of the COVID pandemic or that the worker is offered a job at a worksite that is out of compliance with federal or state health requirements.

The process of proving an individual has been offered a 'suitable job' but not taken it usually requires some sort of self-reporting, which is unreliable.

Twenty-nine states have already reinstated work search requirements, which mandates unemployed individuals must be actively looking for a job. Walsh will work with the remaining states to reinstate that requirement, as well.

During his Monday speech, Biden also dismissed experts' claims that Americans can earn more by staying home and collecting unemployment.

'Americans want to work,' he assured. 'I think the people [who] claim Americans won't work, even if they find a good and fair opportunity, underestimate the American people,' he added.
A convicted female sex offender has been given one last chance by a judge after breaching her court order for a fourth time by creating a Tiktok profile without telling police.

Bricklayer Serena Ransom, 26, dodged prison despite breaking the terms of her sex offenders' register requirements four times.

Ransom was placed on the register and made subject to a sexual harm prevention order for ten years after being jailed for giving two schoolgirls lovebites in 2015.

She has already been convicted of breaching the terms twice and has now been back in the dock for a third and fourth breach.

The first two breaches involved setting up an unregistered Facebook account and approaching a young boy in a shopping centre and 'ruffling his hair' despite being barred from approaching children without parental consent.

Serena Ransom, 26, has admitted breaching a court order for the fourth time. She was placed on the register and made subject to a sexual harm prevention order for ten years after being jailed for giving two schoolgirls lovebites in 2015. Pictured: Ransom in 2017

Prosecutor Ian Mullarkey, said that on October 14 last year Ransom created a profile on TikTok, but failed to notify the police about it.

TikTok is a video sharing app that is for users aged 13 years and over.

A month earlier, Ransom had stayed overnight in a house where children also regularly stayed and again failed to notify the police.

But she was caught after a man, who knew about her sordid past, found her TikTok profile and sent a screenshot to police.

Ransom changed her profile name and made the account private after her partner's ex-husband became concerned that one of his children had attempted to befriend the sex offender.

Prosecutor Ian Mullarkey, said that on October 14 last year Ransom created a profile on TikTok, but failed to notify the police about it. She admitted the breach at Teesside Crown Court (pictured) and was given a 12-month suspended sentence and made subject to a six-month curfew

The prosecutor added: 'She said she had the account for about four weeks before it was discovered and accepted she changed the account's name because she didn't want it to be discovered by the police.'

Ransom, of Middlesbrough, pleaded guilty to both breaches at Teesside Crown court on Monday.

She was given a 12 month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, and made subject to a six-month curfew.

She must also undertake 120 hours unpaid work and carry out 30 rehabilitation days.

Recorder Craig Hassall warned her she has 'got to stop breaching this sexual harm prevention order' or go to jail.

He said: 'When I came into court today I was going to lock you up. I was going to send you to custody for these offences.'

Nigel Soppitt, mitigating, said the breaches were 'reckless rather than malicious' and that Ransom had shown'no sexual interest in children' since her 2015 conviction.
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A diver has come face-to-face with an abnormally big female shark while freediving off the coast of Florida.

John Moore, 55, managed to capture several astonishing images of the giant shark near Jupiter earlier this month.

He managed to snap the huge female showing her rows of razor-sharp teeth and yellow-tinted eyes, while swimming among a shiver of bull sharks.

They say the camera adds 10 pounds, but one diver has managed to capture pictures of an abnormally fat shark swimming off the coast of Florida

The pictures were captured by John Moore, 55, while he was freediving with the sharks near Jupiter, Florida, earlier this month

He managed to snap the huge female showing her rows of razor-sharp teeth and yellow-tinted eyes, while swimming among a shiver of bull sharks

Moore is an experienced diver, photographer, and conservation advocate. He frequently shares pictures of sharks off the coast of Florida on Instagram.

He said: 'She was an abnormally large female. Very likely pregnant and certainly hadn't skipped any meals.'

He explained the bull shark is likely overweight because of the influx of bait fish in the early spring.

Pictures show the massive female feeding with her head, chest fixed, and using her pectoral fins to slow her down.

Moore added: 'She was a very dominant shark, confidently coming right up to me throughout our dive'.

Moore said the shark was abnormally large compared to the rest of the shiver and speculated she could be pregnant

The freediver added he thought the fat shark 'certainly hadn't skipped any meals' in order to get to her size

Moore added the massive female was a dominant figure in the shiver while he was diving with the group last month

The 55-year-old explained 'she was a very dominant shark, confidently coming right up to me throughout our dive'

Bull sharks are commonly found in estuaries or off the coast of Florida, in both the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean

Close range pictures show the massive female shark hunting around the surface of the water near Jupiter, Florida.

Bull sharks are commonly found in estuaries or off the coast of Florida.

They are one of a very few shark species which can inhabit both fresh and saltwater, and are often found in packs.

The species typically reaches between seven and 11 feet (between 2.1m and 3.3m) in length and can weigh over 1,500 pounds (680kg).

It is one of the most dangerous and aggressive shark species, accounting for the third highest number of attacks on humans.

Bull sharks are one of a very few shark species which can inhabit both fresh- and saltwater, and are often found in packs

The species typically reaches between seven and 11 feet (between 2.1m and 3.3m) in length and can weigh over 1,500 pounds (680kg)

Bull sharks are one of the most dangerous and aggressive species, accounting for the third highest number of attacks on humans
A courtroom where six Extinction Rebellion activists are being tried was today thrown into chaos for the second day running as a defendant stormed out.

Yesterday, one of the defendants glued his hand to a table in the courtroom and yelled 'I would like to make clear what is going on in this court is obvious and complete criminality.'

And this morning, when District Judge Sally Fudge ruled Liam Norton, 36, would not be allowed back into court after the stunt, another of the protesters, Sally Davidson, declared she was leaving.

Six of the protestors accused of taking part in an unlawful protest outside the News Print plant in Broxbourne, Herts, where the Sun is printed, went on trial at St Albans Magistrates' Court on Monday.

They are accused of the wilful obstruction of the road outside the plant.

It comes after the first witness in the case to give evidence, PC Josh Wilson, claimed protestors asked him to get the Sun owner Rupert Murdoch down to the scene.

Today, the judge was forced to leave the courtroom so order could be restored.

A man believed to be Liam Norton, who glued his hand to a courtroom table, was led from St Albans Magistrates Court yesterday morning

Extinction Rebellion block the road in Knowsley, Liverpool to prevent papers going to print

On trial are Liam Norton, 36, from Scarborough; Eleanor Bujak, 28, from Finsbury Park, London; Sally Davidson, 33, from Streatham, London; James Ozden, 35, from London; Timothy Speers, from Waltham Forest, London and Morgan Trowland, 38, from Hackney, London.

All six plead not guilty to a charge of obstructing the highway.

Norton will now be tried in his absence after he was arrested for gluing his hand to a table top in the court room, launching into a rant and filming himself with his smart phone.

His stunt and the efforts to free him pushed back the start of the trial for three hours.

When it did get underway, the district judge was told how on the night of Friday, September 4, last year around 50 members of Extinction Rebellion staged a protest outside the main gates of The Suns printing plant just off the A10 near Broxbourne.

Activists blocked the road outside the gates with two bamboo lock-on structures and two vans preventing all movement in and out of the plant.

Newsprinters produce News Corporations titles including the Sun and the Times, as well as the Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail and the London Evening Standard.

The activists were protesting at what they said was the mis-reporting of the climate crisis by the media.

Protesters outside St Albans Magistrates' Court, where XR activists who were arrested during blockade of News Corp printing works in Hertfordshire on September 4 2020 are due in court

Today Alan Brett, the manufacturing director at Newsprinters, told St Albans Magistrates' Court how printers, contractors, engineers and drivers and a few cleaners all found themselves unable to leave in their cars when their shift ended at 5am in the morning.

She said the company had to order a fleet of around 20 taxis to take the employees home.

It meant that workers had to make their way on foot through the gates and past the protestors to the waiting taxis.

But he said they were then faced with the prospect of coming back to the site later to their cars.

Mr Brett said that he knew of one worker who should have finished at 5am that Saturday morning, but because he needed his car later in the day, remained at the plant until around 11am.

He also told the court that the protest that night meant that no ambulance or fire engine could have got into the plant because of the protest.

The court was told when the first police officers arrived on the scene at around 11.30pm that night, they found protesters suspended from each of the bamboo structures using climbing equipment.

Other protesters were laying in the ground under the structures and activists were also under the parked vans and on the roofs of each vehicle.

Officers were told by the group they had trained for the protest.

It is estimated the blockade stopped 3.5million copies of newspapers from reaching readers and some workers also found themselves unable to leave the plant after finishing their shifts.

The court has been told the police repeatedly asked the protesters to leave the road as they were breaking the law by blocking it.

When they didnt 51 protesters were arrested.

PC Wilson, who was one of the first officers to arrive, told the court it was his job to talk to members of Extinction Rebellion and try to persuade them to move out of the road.

While being cross-examined by Mr Raj Chada, who represents four of the protestors, PC Wilson said he found out that night that the protest was about the 'control of the media'.

On Monday, six of the protestors accused of taking part in the unlawful protest went on trial at St Albans Magistrates' Court, including Morgan Trowland, 38, of Hackney, London (pictured)

The officer said he and his colleagues repeatedly pointed out to the protestors they were in breach of the law and asked them to move out of the road.

Mr Chada put it to the officer: 'Five crooks in control of our news?'

PC Wilson answered: 'That's correct.'

Mr Chada asked the officer: 'People were talking about one particular owner? That was Rupert Murdoch?'

'That was correct,' said the officer.

Asked if there were any specific requests from the group, the officer said: 'A request to get Mr Murdoch down to the location.'

PC Wilson said he relayed the request to his senior officers.

Tim Speer, 25, one of the six who is on trial and who is defending himself, cross examined PC Wilson and put it to him that Rupert Murdoch was promoting hate speech.

'I just don't know why you haven't arrested him,' he told the officer.

He then went on to question the officer about his understanding of the 'climate situation'.

Inspector Matthew Barton, who attended the protest, agreed that the protest that night was about the group's concerns about the ownership of the media and the way the climate crisis was being reported.

All six are charged with the wilful obstruction of the highway. Pictured: James Ozden, 35, from Tottenham, London

PC Wilson also told the court that the effect of the blockade meant that nothing could leave the plant or enter, and workers who had finished their shift were trapped and the transportation of newspapers away from the plant was threatened.

PC Wilson said members of the group told him they had been training for the protest and that he shouldn't touch the two bamboo structures because they were 'load bearing' and could topple over.

Yesterday morning, Norton got to his feet to rant in court, yelling out 'Judge, what you are doing is illegal.'

With the palm of his left hand on a table, he continued: 'What we have seen over decades is organised criminality in this country and unfortunately the only thing to do, as I have showed, is contempt, as you have.'

Norton, whose eyes were hidden behind a mask, then revealed to security staff who entered the courtroom at St Albans Magistrates Court, that in fact his flat hand on the table had been glued to the surface.

As he continued his rant against the government, cheering, singing and clapping broke out from his supporters in the public gallery.

He told his supporters and others in court: 'I am left with no option but to disobey and show contempt.'

District Judge Sally Fudge then left courtroom number six and the gallery was cleared as security staff dealt with the situation.

It took two hours to free Mr Norton and he was arrested and removed from the court building and taken to Hatfield Police Station.

The trial then got underway against the other five and Mr Norton in his absence.

The court was told the effect of the blockade meant that nothing could leave the plant or enter. Pictured: Tim Speers, 25, from Waltham Forest

XR action saw protesters targeting Newsprinters printing works at Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, and Knowsley, near Liverpool, blocking the day's newspapers from leaving the depots

In all, 51 people were charged with obstructing the highway following the blockade of the Newsprinters printworks in Great Eastern Road, Waltham Cross.

During the protest last September, activists used vehicles and bamboo lock-ons to block roads near Newsprinters' Broxbourne site.

A second blockade of the company's printing works in Knowsley, near Liverpool, took place on the same day.

The Newsprinters presses publish the Rupert Murdoch-owned News Corp's titles including the Sun, Times, Sun On Sunday and Sunday Times, as well as the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph, the Daily Mail and Mail On Sunday, and the London Evening Standard.

It meant readers were delayed in receiving, or did not receive their copies of their respective newspapers.

Extinction Rebellion claimed at the time the demonstration was in response to the newspapers' failure to report on the climate and ecological emergency.

In his impromptu speech in the courtroom, Mr Norton said 'Society is on the brink of collapse and the Crown Prosecution Service continue to criminalise protests.

'Corruption is flowing through the highest levels of our system, yet our system continues to criminalise us.'

The case is proceeding.
David Cameron's toe-curling barrage of messages to ministers and officials as he lobbied on behalf of Greensill were revealed today.

The Treasury Committee has published a full list of the former PM's contacts after he disclosed them ahead of an evidence session tomorrow.

They show that he fired off an array of texts and emails, some signed 'Love Dc' and suggesting meet-ups for 'elbow bumps'.

The powerful cross-party committee is investigating the collapse of Greensill Capital and lobbying of the Treasury and Bank of England on its behalf.

Mr Cameron has denied breaking any lobbying rules, but admitted he should have made approaches in a more formal way.

David Cameron (pictured in London today) is facing a grilling by the powerful Treasury committee tomorrow over his activities on behalf of Greensill Capital

Mr Cameron fired off an array of texts and emails, some signed 'Love Dc' and suggesting meet-ups for 'elbow bumps'

Mr Cameron (pictured with Lex Greensill on a visit to Saudia Arabia last year) has denied breaking any lobbying rules, but admitted he should have made approaches in a more formal way

Greensill boss apologises for the collapse of firm The boss of collapsed finance company Greensill apologised today and said he takes full responsibility as the City watchdog launched a probe into the firm. Lex Greensill, whose firm is at the heart of a lobbying row featuring former prime minister David Cameron, told MPs today he was sad about the impact on its 1,000 staff and its clients. But he sidestepped questions about his relationship with companies like Liberty Steel - which faces an uncertain future - for legal reasons. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said it is formally investigating how two Greensill companies failed, and how one of them was overseen by a company whose licence it piggybacked on to operate in the UK. Facing MPs for the first time since the explosion of the lobbying scandal earlier this year, Australian banker Mr Greensill said 'Please understand that I bear complete responsibility for the collapse of Greensill Capital. 'I am desperately saddened that more than 1,000 very hard working people have lost their jobs at Greensill. Likewise I take full responsibility for any hardship being felt by our clients and their suppliers, and indeed investors in our programmes. But at the same time he said the decision of the company's leading insurer, Tokio Marine, ultimately led to the collapse. He said that Covid-19 and the actions of authorities in Germany had played a role in the insurance company's decision. 'It's deeply regrettable that we were let down by our leading insurer whose actions assured Greensill's collapse, and indeed some of our biggest customers. 'To all of those affected by this. I am truly sorry.' Advertisement

The messages revealed today include to Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove.

He also contacted vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi.

One text message to Mr Gove on April 3 last year acknowledged the minister is 'manically busy', adding: 'But do you have a moment for a word? I am on this number and v free. All good wishes Dc.'

'Thank you! Will call!' the Cabinet Office minister replied, according to a separately-published response to a Freedom of Information request.

On the same day, Mr Cameron sent a separate message to the Chancellor asking for a 'very quick word' on the Treasury refusal to grant access to the Covid Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF).

'HMT are refusing to extend CCFF to include supply chain finance, which is nuts as it pumps billions of cheap credit into SMEs,' Mr Cameron wrote.

'Think there is a simple misunderstanding that I can explain.'

After arranging a discussion with Mr Sunak, the former prime minister messaged Mr Gove: 'Am now speaking to Rishi first thing tomorrow. If I am still stuck, can I call you then?'

'Of course! Any time,' Mr Gove responded.

Following the talks, Mr Cameron wrote to Treasury permanent secretary Sir Tom Scholar saying that his ultimate ask was for 'one more high-level chat' with Sir Tom, adding that the Chancellor had 'agreed'.

But on April 22 the former Conservative leader texted Mr Sunak again to apologise 'for troubling you again' but asking if he could help on CCCF and if he could 'give it another nudge over the finish line'.

Communications still continued, however, and he asked 'for the last time, I promise' for Mr Sunak to instruct senior Treasury official Charles Roxburgh for another look at the matter.

Another message to Sir Tom, in March last year, read: 'See you with Rishi's for an elbow bump or foot tap. Love Dc.'

Other recipients of Mr Cameron's texts include Boris Johnson's senior adviser Sheridan Westlake, Treasury ministers Jesse Norman and John Glen, and deputy Bank of England governor Sir Jon Cunliffe.

He also called Health Secretary Matt Hancock, according to records of the exchanges taking place between March 5 and June 26 last year.

The timeline of his contacts submitted by the former prime minister ahead of his appearance before the committee on Thursday also included 11 telephone calls or conference calls.

Mr Cameron listed nine WhatsApp messages to Mr Sunak as well as one telephone call.

He also recorded 12 texts sent to Sir Tom and one call and six emails to Bank of England deputy governor Sir Jon.

The correspondence was released ahead of the collapsed firm's boss, Lex Greensill, appearing before MPs on Tuesday afeternoon.

Nikhil Rathi, the chief executive of the FCA, said the regulator was investigating Greensill Capital UK (GCUK).

The Treasury Committee has published a full list of the former PM's contacts after he disclosed them ahead of an evidence session tomorrow

'We are also co-operating with counterparts in other UK enforcement and regulatory agencies, as well as authorities in a number of overseas jurisdictions,' Mr Rathi said.

'As the committee will be aware, a number of allegations have been made in the press regarding the circumstances of Greensill's failure, some of which are potentially criminal in nature.

'There are, therefore, some aspects of the FCA's interactions with Greensill entities that I am not able to disclose so as not to prejudice these ongoing investigations.'

Greensill was placed into administration in March, threatening thousands of UK jobs at Liberty Steel which was dependent on its finance.

In a letter to the committee, Mr Cameron said the 'first time I became concerned that the company might be in serious financial difficulty was in December 2020' following a call from Mr Greensill.

'Up until that point, I firmly believed that Greensill was in good financial health,' the former Conservative leader added.

Scandal-hit financier Lex Greensill will be questioned by the MPs this afternoon over the collapse of his firm and the lobbying controversy.
It took an Iowa jury less than an hour on Tuesday to convict a jealous wife of first-degree murder for brutally stabbing her husband's younger girlfriend, after the defendant argued that the COVID-19 lockdown pushed her over the edge.

Michelle Boat, 59, showed no emotion when Marion County District Court Judge Patrick Greenwood announced the guilty verdict on Tuesday afternoon.

The six male and six female jurors spent only about 45 minutes deliberating before finding Boat guilty of murdering 46-year-old Tracy Mondabough in May 2020, reported CourtTV.

Stoic: Michelle Boat, 59, showed no emotion when she was found guilty on Tuesday of first-degree murder for the killing of her romantic rival

Marion County District Court Judge Patrick Greenwood announced the guilty verdict after the jury spent just 45 minutes in deliberations

Boat was handcuffed in the courtroom and remanded into the custody of the sheriff

VERDICT: #MichelleBoat has been found #GUILTY of first-degree murder.



Boat has been convicted of the brutal killing of her estranged husbands new girlfriend, #TracyMondabough.



WATCH #CourtTV LIVE Tonight at 8/7c https://t.co/Ps5kNht0Fn pic.twitter.com/ozKewb6rLN  Court TV (@CourtTV) May 11, 2021

She was led out of the courtroom in handcuffed and remanded into the custody of the Marion County Sheriff pending her sentencing, which has yet to be scheduled.

Boat argued that it was the COVID-19 pandemic that pushed her over the edge

The conviction carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Boat testified in her own defense on Monday, telling the court through tears that she 'just snapped.'

'I grabbed the knife. And I just stabbed her, and I dropped the knife,' Boat said from the stand.

Boat's attorneys argued that that the first-degree murder charge against her should have been reduced to manslaughter, saying that she had a mental break in the chaos of the pandemic, and was not motivated by jealous revenge.

On March 12, 2020, as the nation descended into the grip of the pandemic, Boat was working in the laundry room of a hospital when she learned that her husband Nicholas was leaving her for the younger woman.

'I just snapped, and I grabbed the knife. And I just stabbed her, and I dropped the knife,' Boat testified on Monday in Marion County District Court, visibly emotional

Boat is charged with murdering 46-year-old Tracy Mondabough (left), after her husband Nicholas Boat (right) left her for the younger woman last spring

'Heartbroken, sad, despondent, devastated, destroyed. Like my whole life had just walked out the door. There weren't going to be any more Thanksgivings or Christmases without him,' the mother of two testified of her reaction on learning her husband was leaving.

Two months later, on May 18, 2020, Boat stabbed Mondabough while the younger woman sat in her car outside of her apartment complex, police say. Witnesses described the attacker shouting 'He don't belong to you!' according to an arrest warrant.

Jill Eimermann, one of Michelle Boat's lawyers, told the jury in opening statements last week that police had identified the right suspect.

'This isn't a movie, it's not TV. What's happening in here is a real-life tragedy,' Eimermann said. 'I will tell you that Michelle Boat is responsible. Michelle Boat is the one who had the knife...Michelle Boat is the one who stabbed her.'

Eimermann insisted that Boat was not 'scorned' or motivated by jealousy, but had snapped at finding herself 'suddenly alone in the midst of chaos' as the pandemic unfolded.

'Each of you remembers back to March of last yearhow scary the world was. The fear, the chaos, the isolation that we all felt in the early days of the pandemic. That's where Michelle was 69 days before May 18,' Eimermann said.

Nicholas testified that he had met Mondabough on Facebook in early March, and said the two began dating soon after

However, prosecutors presented a different tale to the jury, describing Boat as a calculating killer motivated by jealousy.

Marion County Attorney Ed Bull said that Boat had carefully stalked Mondabough, following her from a Burger King drive-thru to Nicholas' workplace, where the two had dinner, and then on to Mondabough's own home.

Boat attacked Mondabough as she parked her car outside of her apartment complex, stabbing her in the heart before she could even unbuckle her seatbelt, prosecutors say.

Nicholas testified that he had met Mondabough on Facebook in early March, and said the two began dating soon after.

Bull also noted that Boat had worn latex gloves while carrying out the stabbing.

'[S]he hunted, she gloved up, and she plunged the knife into Tracy Mondabough's heart, murdering her,' Bull said in opening statements.

Former Marion County Sheriffs Lt. Brian Bigaouette testified that investigators found a calendar in Boat's home that marked each day since her husband had left her.

Boat testified that she 'snapped' but prosecutors say that the murder was planned and carefully carried out, with Boat wearing latex gloves for the stabbing

Boat was immediately identified as a suspect in the murder, in part because Mondabough had already called police in March to complain that Boat had followed her from Pella, Iowa to Ottumwa, Iowa 40 miles away, saying she was fearful for her safety.

Witnesses to the murder also described the assailant's grey Cadillac, matching Boat's vehicle.

When officers arrived at Boat's home, they found the Cadillac with 'visible blood on the outside,' according to a warrant affidavit.

Inside the home, Boat was wearing wearing a robe and having her head in a towel after showering.

A single outfit was found in her laundry machine, and a pair of 'rubber gloves, with what appeared to be blood on them, were found in the upper tank of the toilet.'

The murder weapon was never recovered. Bull argued that the gloves demonstrated that the killing was planned in advance, and not spur of the moment.
The investigation into Matt Gaetz is now focusing on a former Capitol Hill intern who is the ex-girlfriend of the Republican congressman.

Prosecutors believe the intern, who did not work in Gaetz's office on Capitol Hill, was on a trip Gaetz took to the Bahamas in 2018 that allegedly involved drug use and arrangements with women, including paying them for sex, sources told CNN.

The ex-girlfriend, who is not being named publicly, could also be questioned about a second woman being investigated. Feds are examining whether Gaetz had sex with that woman when she was only 17.

The former girlfriend, who now works in the Florida state government, also has knowledge of some financial transactions being investigated by the FBI.

Gaetz, meanwhile, has remained defiant as the federal probe continues. He has slammed the media, claimed to be the victim of an extortion plot, and denied all the charges

A Gaetz spokesperson told CNN: 'Your 'story' is simply a regurgitation of the same falsehoods you've been peddling for two months now without a shred of evidence or a single on-record accuser.'

The investigation into Matt Gaetz is now focusing on a former Capitol Hill intern who is the ex-girlfriend of the Republican congressman

Prosecutors into the federal probe - which is examining whether Gaetz broke federal sex trafficking, prostitution and public corruption laws and whether he had sex with a minor - are nearly done collecting evidence.

They also could soon gain the cooperation of former Florida county tax collector Joel Greenberg, a Gaetz associate who is approaching a May 15 deadline to strike a plea agreement on the 33 charges he's facing, including sex with a minor.

Earlier this month, Greenberg's lawyers said he was prepared to take a plea deal.

'I'm sure Matt Gaetz is not feeling very comfortable today,' Greenberg's attorney told reporters.

After that officials at the Justice Department will decide whether or not to formally charge the Florida congressman.

Joel Greenberg, a Gaetz associate, is approaching a May 15 deadline to strike a plea agreement on the 33 charges he's facing

In 2017, the ex-girlfriend was interning for a Republican lawmaker when she was fired because she was a Democrat.

Gaetz then asked a fellow Florida congressman, Democratic Rep. Darren Soto, if he would hire her as an unpaid intern.

Soto agreed to hire her.

'She was just an intern,' Soto said in a statement to CNN. 'I found it offensive that she was fired for her political beliefs.'

She also is the woman who sent Gaetz a nude video of her performing a hula hoop dance, which he reportedly showed to other lawmakers on the House floor, Politico reported.

She met Gaetz while she attended college in the Orlando area in 2017.

Greenberg was the one who reportedly made contact with her on the SeekingArrangement website - a dating website that connects women with so-called sugar daddies - and, soon after, she began dating Gaetz.

Gaetz then helped her get the internships on Capitol Hill.

Feds believe Matt Gaetz's ex-girlfriend was on 2018 Bahamas trip that allegedly involved drug use and arrangements with women, including paying them for sex

Meanwhile, the 2018 Bahamas trip is emerging as a central part of the investigation, as prosecutors examine whether it violated the Mann Act, which forbids transporting people across state lines to engage in prostitution.

The trip involved 'several' young women, and investigators are probing whether Gaetz accepted gifts, including travel and paid escorts.

Investigators also are looking at whether Gaetz and his associates tried to secure government jobs for some of the women, sources told the Associated Press last week.

Also under scrutiny from that trip are Gaetz's connections to the medical marijuana sector, including whether the trip was used to illegally influence Gaetz in the area of medical marijuana.

It is an issue Gaetz has long supported and introduced legislation seeking to loosen laws regulating the drug both as a member of Congress and when he was in the Florida state legislature.

Gaetz was a rising Republican star with close ties to former President Donald Trump when the bombshell news of the federal investigation was revealed.

Since then, his wider actions have come under question, including an allegation that he played a sleazy Harry Potter themed sex game scoring points for sleeping with married colleagues, virgins and in sorority houses.

It has also been claimed Gaetz regularly attended gated community house parties with other Republican lawmakers where cellphones were handed over at the door and the 'frat party boy' Florida representative would discuss politics while popping pills.

Meanwhile, as well as the federal investigation, the House Ethics Committee has also launched an inquiry into a string of allegations including 'sexual misconduct and/or illicit drug use, shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, misused state identification records, converted campaign funds to personal use, and/or accepted a bribe, improper gratuity, or impermissible gift, in violation of House Rules, laws, or other standards of conduct.'
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A teenager who died from sepsis on a school trip to New York would not have suffered a cardiac arrest if she had been prescribed antibiotics in the days before her death, an inquest heard.

Ana Uglow, 17, a sixth form pupil at Bristol Grammar School, had felt unwell for a week before she collapsed in her hotel room and was pronounced dead at Mount Sinai West hospital on December 19, 2019.

Avon Coroner's Court has heard that Ana, a senior prefect aspiring to attend Oxford University, told her family her concerns were not being taken seriously by 'history fanatic' teachers as she struggled to breathe during a tour of the Empire State Building.

A report by the chief medical examiner of the city of New York concluded that Ana, of Redland, Bristol, had died from Bronchopneumonia and sepsis complicating an influenza upper respiratory infection, the inquest heard.

Dr Chris Danbury, a consultant in intensive care medicine, said Ana was described as 'a fit, healthy woman with no significant past medical history' before her death.

'I think she had an infection then she probably became septic on December 18, and then probably went into septic shock at some point on December 19,' Dr Danbury said.

Ana Uglow, 17, a student at Bristol Grammar School, was seen 'retching' over a bin in the Empire State Building on the day before she was pronounced dead at Mount Sinai West hospital in December 2019

Her parents David and Natalia (pictured) told the inquest Ana told teachers she thought she had chest infection and asked to see a doctor two days before her death, but this was 'refused'

Ana Uglow (pictured), 17, a Bristol Grammar School student, was pronounced dead in December 2019 after complaining of an illness on a school trip to New York, an inquest heard

Ana Uglow, 17, was seen 'retching' over a bin in the Empire State Building (pictured) on the day before she was pronounced dead from sepsis at Mount Sinai West hospital in New York

'Fit, young, healthy individuals generally compensate well right up to the point where they go into cardiac arrest. My experience is if you can initiate some kind of treatment prior to a cardiac arrest, then the overwhelming majority of people will survive.'

He later added: 'I think she was very treatable up until the point when she had a cardiac arrest.'

Ana was off school with cold-like symptoms for two days before the trip but felt better and set off to Washington from Bristol early on December 14.

The following day, Ana told her mother Natalia Uglow she was 'exhausted' and had done a walking tour of Washington with fellow students and teachers Rory Hambly and Ellice Clare.

What are the key symptoms of sepsis? The 'silent killer' that can cause death in minutes Sepsis, known as the silent killer, strikes when an infection such as blood poisoning sparks a violent immune response in which the body attacks its own organs. It is the leading cause of avoidable death, killing at least 44,000 a year. If caught early, the infection can be controlled by antibiotics before the body goes into overdrive - ultimately leading to death within a matter of minutes. But the early symptoms of sepsis can be easily confused with more mild conditions, meaning it can be difficult to diagnose. A patient can rapidly deteriorate if sepsis is missed early on, so quick diagnosis and treatment is vital  yet this rarely happens. In the early stages, sepsis can be mistaken for a chest infection, flu or upset stomach. The six signs of something potentially deadly can be identified by the acronym 'SEPSIS': Slurred speech or confusion.

Extreme shivering or muscle pain.

Passing no urine in a day.

Severe breathlessness.

'I feel like I might die.'

Skin that's mottled or discoloured. Anyone who develops any of these symptoms should seek medical help urgently  and ask doctors: 'Could this be sepsis?' Advertisement

On December 16, Ana 'had no energy to walk' and asked to stay at the hotel while the group went to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Mrs Uglow said.

They travelled by train from Washington to Philadelphia on December 17 and Ana called her mother during the journey, telling her she was worried she had a chest infection, felt much worse and had a fever and cough.

Mrs Uglow told her daughter, who complained of feeling 'out of breath' and being unable to keep up with the group while walking, to speak to her teachers and ask to see a doctor.

She said: 'She reported back that Mr Hambly had told her that she would have had a higher temperature if she had a chest infection and advised her to take paracetamol.

'I was also told he had also suggested that they go to a pharmacist in Philadelphia to get some stronger drugs and that if she felt worse in New York they would take her to a doctor.'

During the inquest today, Bristol Grammar School teacher Ellice Clare, who was in charge of leading the trip to America along with Rory Hambly, said she would 'never' refuse a student's request to see a doctor.

Ms Clare told the court Ana seemed 'under the weather' on December 16 and complained about feeling ill during a train journey to New York the next day on the 17th.

She said: 'She said she was feeling a bit ill, and she had a cough. She said if she felt worse at any point in New York was she able to go see a doctor. I took the conversation as 'is that possible on a school trip?

'She had a dry cough - it wasn't all the time; it wasn't really noticeable.'

Ms Clare was quizzed over whether this conversation regarding a doctor was a demand from Ana, or simply a question to discuss a possible need for a doctor late down the line.

The teacher continued: 'I don't recall exactly what was said but I felt it was a conversation on a school trip about whether it was possible to see a doctor. She said to us 'is that a possibility down the line?'

When asked whether she would ever refuse a student's request to see a doctor  Ms Clare said 'never.'

The inquest heard that the group stopped at a pharmacy on the evening of December 17 on route to watch a basketball game in New York.

Ms Clare told the court that while in the pharmacy the only thing that was bothering Ana was a blocked nose.

On December 18, while queuing for the Empire State Building both Ms Clare and Mr Hambly reported the school student bending over a bin and then coughing and retching.

'She retched a couple of times over a bin,' Ms Clare told the court.

'Nothing came up. We assumed it was because she had a cough. She didn't stay long in the bathroom. She didn't say anything about feeling sick.

'Very similar to the evening to the 17th - she was very tired. It wasn't anything that alarmed any of us.'

Ms Clare said she checked Ana's pulse the morning of December 19 - after the pupil had woken Mr Hambly up and gone into his room.

She added Ana had complained about back pain but speculated to the court this could have been down to a poor night's sleep.

'She'd been sleeping in a sleeping bag,' she said.

'Her having a sore back were things that might explain that.

'I felt her head and she was not warm at all  not even a hint of a raised temperature.'

Ms Clare also checked Ana's pulse, but told the court 'it didn't feel fast.'

The teacher added: 'At some point of that train journey from Washington to Philadelphia, we checked in on all the pupils, and checked in on Ana.

'She said she was feeling better so we felt reassured that the paracetamol had done its job.'

On December 19, Ana awoke Mr Hambly at about 6am saying she felt unwell and he went to fetch Ms Clare.

'I got the impression she was anxious because she hadn't slept, she said that her back was hurting and she had been coughing in the night which kept her awake,' Ms Clare said.

'I spoke to her, trying to calm her down. I wasn't alarmed by what I saw, she calmed down within minutes.'

She described feeling Ana's forehead, which was not hot, and checking her pulse, which appeared normal.

Mr Hambly brought Ana a banana and she ate it before taking some painkillers and returning to her room to sleep.

Ms Clare then went to the hotel's reception desk to inquire about medical centres in the area but when she was at the desk, another student ran to her and said Ana had collapsed.

'I had absolutely no idea what I was going to be faced with when I got there,' she said.

'I saw Ana lying in her room with Rory saying ''Ana can you hear me, can you hear me''. He started to do chest compressions.

'I still can't comprehend what we saw on that day, I don't believe it and I was stood there.'

Holding back tears, Ms Clare said: 'When I came upstairs after enquiring about a doctor and saw Ana on the floor having CPR, I didn't believe what I was seeing.

Coroner's Court heard Ana was on a school trip in New York. Pictured: Bristol Grammar School

'The last time I saw her she was in her room getting stuff sorted for bed.'

Giving evidence on Monday, Mr Hambly said Ana complained of feeling tired and having a blocked nose in the days before her death.

On the train journey on December 17, she asked 'about if she was feeling worse in New York what would the situation be about getting to a doctor' but did not directly ask to see one, Mr Hambly said.

He insisted he had told Ana they could see a doctor if that was the case and suggested she take paracetamol, which she did and appeared 'much brighter'.

Mr Hambly advised Ana to buy decongestant and cough syrup from a pharmacy in New York on the evening of December 17.

He insisted he had told Ana they could see a doctor if that was the case and suggested she take paracetamol, which she did and appeared 'much brighter'.

Mr Hambly advised Ana to buy decongestant and cough syrup from a pharmacy in New York on the evening of December 17.

In his report to the inquest, Dr Danbury wrote: 'If Ana had been treated with antibiotics on December 17 or 18 then it is my opinion that she would not have had a cardiac arrest on the morning of December 19.'

Dr Danbury said he believed Ana had an infection by December 17 and 'probably fulfilled the criteria for sepsis' on December 18.

If antibiotics had been prescribed on December 18, he said Ana would have awoken 'feeling rough' the following day but not in the 'extreme state' that she was in.

'Oral antibiotics on the 18th in my view would have been enough to slow the progression of the disease,' Dr Danbury said.

Dr Danbury told the inquest he believed Ana probably did have a chest infection on December 17, when the question of going to a doctor was raised with her teachers.

He said someone of Ana's age usually wants 'to keep up with their peers at all costs' and it would have been unusual for her to 'bail out' of the group's activities and see a doctor.

'A young person, 16 or 17, who is otherwise fit and healthy, if they suddenly say 'I would like to see a doctor' I think they should see a doctor,' Dr Danbury said.

'I think their wishes to see a doctor at that point should be heeded.'

A report by the chief medical examiner concluded that Ana had died at Mount Sinai Hospital from Bronchopneumonia and sepsis complicating an influenza upper respiratory infection

On December 18, Ana told her mother she had been sick overnight and had asked the teachers if she could stay in her hotel room but they 'forced her to go on a walking tour as they could not leave her alone,' Mrs Uglow said.

Ana vomiting overnight was an 'indication of progression of her infection', Dr Danbury told the inquest.

She went on the walking tour before shopping with a friend but was seen having a coughing fit and retching into a bin during a tour of the Empire State Building that evening.

On December 19, she awoke Mr Hambly at about 6am saying she felt unwell, her heart was racing, she felt anxious and had difficulty sleeping - symptoms 'consistent with the onset of septic shock', Dr Danbury said.

Mr Hambly suggested she take paracetamol and return to bed to sleep but an hour later, her friend came and said she was unwell at about 7.30am.

He went to her room, where he saw that she had suffered a nose bleed. The teacher called emergency services at 8.15am, when Ana collapsed, and she was taken to hospital.

Dr Danbury said: 'Time is absolutely of the essence when you get to that sort of situation.

'She had been in cardiac arrest for nine minutes before they (paramedics) arrived to assess her. The time of the assessment was 8.26am.

'Nine minutes of cardiac arrest due to septic shock is a very, very long time.'

The inquest continues.
Jurors in the trial of a suspected neo-Nazi student have today seen a picture allegedly showing the defendant performing a 'Hitler salute'.

The photograph allegedly shows Andrew Dymock, 23, performing the Nazi salute in a picture in front of a flag of banned extremist group System Resistance Network (SRN).

A court heard a t-shirt similar to the one worn by one of the figures in the photograph was found in Dymock's bedroom during a raid by counter-terror police.

Dymock, from Bath, Somerset, allegedly promoted the extremist right-wing group through a Twitter account and a website before it was banned.

The defendant has denied being behind the accounts and claimed he was 'set up', the Old Bailey has previously heard.

Today jurors were shown a stream of SRN tweets which included images that were later recovered from devices seized from Dymock's bedroom.

On November 11 2017, a tweet featuring an image of a German SS soldier hailed those who fought for 'Europe's freedom against Jewish Bolshevism and Capitalism'.

It stated: 'Their sacrifice shall not be in vain. Hail victory. #11November #RemembranceDay.'

Jurors viewed other tweets which contained homophobic, racist, anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic language.

On November 23 2017, the SRN account tweeted about the former military commander Ratko Mladic the day after he was convicted of war crimes, claiming he 'did nothing wrong'.

The defendant, from Bath in Somerset, has denied being behind the accounts and claimed he was 'set up', the Old Bailey has previously heard

A picture released by Counter Terrorism Policing North East of an image of a person wearing a top (right) similar to one which was recovered from home of Andrew Dymock, and which has been exhibited in his right-wing extremism trial at the Old Bailey in London

Jurors were also shown a second image of men performing a Nazi salute in front of flags, with a top similar to the one worn by the man on the left found in Dymock's bedroom during a raid

Pictured: T-shirts found in the bedroom of Dymock when anti-terrorism police raided his bedroom

It was followed three days later with a tweet stating the 'fascist state should be achieved through blood and black printer ink' which was retweeted twice and liked 32 times.

By December 19 2018, the SRN Twitter account had displayed a total of 75 posts and had 650 followers, jurors heard.

Today jurors were also shown email exchanges between Dymock and his parents Stella and Dr David Dymock who he lived with in Bath, Somerset.

On May 1 2017, he sent them an email with the subject 'Watch this'.

It contained a link to a YouTube video entitled Oswald Mosley Documentary - Multiculturalism, which has since been removed.

Dr Dymock, a professor of dentistry, replied requesting his son not to send 'any of your political stuff to my work email account because I work in a multicultural institution, am proud to do so, and believe in the values of that institution.

Andrew Dymock, 23, (pictured) allegedly promoted the extremist right-wing group System Resistance Network (SRN) through a Twitter account and a website before it was banned

Dymock, 23, from Bath, is alleged to have promoted the extreme-right System Resistance Network (SRN) group through his Twitter account and website. Pictured: Images posted on his account which allegedly matched images found in his bedroom

'I would hate anyone who might see my emails to think that I sympathised with fascist views in any way.'

The email was signed off 'Love, Dad'.

In her reply, Mrs Dymock wrote: 'Not what I expected. Thoroughly illuminating.'

Jurors heard the response referenced hedge fund managers and bankers and was signed 'Love Mum'.

Dr Dymock attended court by video link to watch the prosecution case against his son at the Old Bailey.

Andrew Dymock allegedly created and managed the neo-Nazi website 'The Lion Rises' and posted racist content to SRN's Twitter account.

The Sonnenkrieg Division and System Resistance Network The Atomwaffen Division was founded in the US around 2013 with the aim of destroying civilisation in order to build a national socialist state. Its UK offshoots were known as the Sonnenkrieg Division and System Resistance Network (SRN). Jurors heard SRN was one of the organisations that filled the 'dubious gap' left after far-right group National Action was banned in 2016. The homepage of the Neo-Nazi group SRN declared objective to be the destruction of 'the system' and 'guide the European to his destiny', before quoting Hitler. SRN was banned in 2020. Advertisement

A video was posted on The Lion Rises on 7 September 2017 following Southampton Pride and featured a poster of a man performing a Nazi salute holding a noose over his shoulder and calls to 'protect children from degenerate scum'.

Posts to the website from 23 December 2017 included essays written by Dymock, titled 'They will never understand us', 'The Truth about the Holocaust' and 'Join your local Nazis'.

In another article 'Homosexuality: The Eternal Social Menace' the author stated that gay people 'are simply degenerate and must be purged from society for the greater good'.

Analysis of Dymock's phone showed him being in Southampton on the day of Pride and a train booking reference was found in his mobile phone.

Jocelyn Ledward, prosecuting, said the SRN material was part of 'an agenda against the LGBT community'.

Jurors heard Dymock used the well-known Neo-Nazi code '1488' in an article, combining references to a white supremacist slogan known as the '14 words' and 'Heil Hitler', with H being the eighth letter of the alphabet.

Dymock's website also prominently featured photos of founder of the American Nazi Party founder and Fuhrer of the World Union of National Socialists, George Lincoln Rockwell, who was murdered by a disgruntled former member of his party in 1967.

Jurors have heard how Dymock used the SRN twitter account two disseminate two separate terrorist publications.

On the second day of his trial, prosecutor Jocelyn Ledward alleged Dymock published an anti-Semitic article on the SRN website in October 2017, while he was studying politics at Aberystwyth University in Wales.

In an article called 'The truth about the Holocaust', Dymock allegedly wrote: 'The only guilt felt by the Germanic race in regard to the Holocaust should be that we did not finish the job.

'Far too many people are getting caught up on debating the death toll of the Holocaust as if it matters at all... the issue is not the given death toll, the issue is that the death toll was not of the entire Jewish race.'

The article continued to describe Jewish people as 'a cancer on this earth' which 'must be eradicated in its entirety', the jury heard.

Ms Ledward told the court: 'The article is clear in its encouragement of the eradication of Jewish people.

'Such encouragement constitutes encouragement to commit acts of terrorism.'

Dymock has denied five charges of encouraging terrorism, two of funding terrorism, stirring up racial hatred and hatred based on sexual orientation, four counts of disseminating terrorist publications, possessing a terrorist document and possessing racially inflammatory material.
Brazen drug runners were hoping to get away with smuggling right under the noses of Mexican authorities by digging a narcotunnel from a house directly across the road from a military police station.

Security forces found the tunnel - which was still under construction - by chance while searching for a kidnapping victim in the border town of Tijuana.

Mexico's Attorney General's Office obtained a search warrant last Friday for the residence while looking for the missing individual.

National Guard troops had been unable to enter the premises because its gates were locked. The house is across the street from a National Guard station, and just a few hundred feet up the road from the Otay Mesa Land Port of Entry with the US.

Mexican cops stand guard outside a home in Tijuana where authorities discovered an underground tunnel that was under construction. An unknown criminal organization intended to connect it to another passageway in order to traffic drugs and smuggle migrants to the United States

A subterranean passageway was discovered under a Tijuana, Mexico, home last Friday while security forces were conducting a search for a person who had been reportedly kidnapped

Entrance to an underground tunnel discovered by security forces last Friday in Tijuana, Mexico. The secret passageway was being linked to another one that had been built and discovered a decade ago

The house is across the street from a National Guard station, and just a few hundred feet up the road from the Otay Mesa Land Port of Entry with the US

Sources told Mexican newspaper La Jornada that the criminal organization intended to connect the underground passageway to another one which had been built and located by authorities almost a decade ago.

Authorities say the tunnel was built 13 feet below the street surface and extended 656 feet. However, it fell short of reaching the southern United States city of San Diego.

The subterranean passage was equipped with rails which allowed a drilling machine to remove earth and gravel. The tunnel also featured a lighting and ventilation system.

Authorities say the tunnel has a rail track system set up to remove soil along with ventilation and lighting. The partially built tunnel was set up 13 feet below the street surface and extended 656 feet out to a second underground passageway

Mexico's National Guard stands outside a home in the border town of Tijuana where an underground tunnel was discovered last Friday

The property was just a few hundred feet up the road from the Otay Mesa Land Port of Entry with the US

Area residents told Telemundo that they never heard any noise emanating from the two-story home that is located on Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz Street, an avenue trucks transit through every day before crossing the Otay Mesa Port of Entry.

'No one knew what there was, no, everything was quiet,' Miriam Carmen said. 'It was a homelike house, nothing more.'

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration's 2020 National Drug Threat Assessment, Mexican drug trafficking organizations are considered 'the greatest drug trafficking threat to the United States.'

The DEA report indicated that aside from employing 'commercial and passenger vehicles' to ship massive quantities of narcotics to the U.S., tunnels also play an intricate role in ferrying drugs.

'These cross-border tunnels originate in Mexico and lead into safe houses on the U.S. side of the border,' the DEA said.

DEA data shows that there are as many as 13,000 underground passageways in Mexico.
A black man allegedly used a life-like white man mask complete with fake hair and glasses to disguise himself as he committed dozens of burglaries in the Los Angeles area in the past year.

Police released surveillance images of the suspect wearing the mask and glasses, but something was off.

'It was odd this burglar's mouth was always open when seen on video surveillance,' LAPD Pacific wrote on Twitter, which has since been deleted. 'When he was caught breaking into another home we discovered why.'

Rockim Prowell, 30, allegedly wore the disguise to commit about 30 home burglaries in the Southern California area starting last April, Fox News reported.

He was finally caught on May 2 after he was pulled over in Beverly Hills.

Police wondered why this burglar's mouth was open. Turns out it was a mask

The suspect, later identified as Rockim Prowell, used this disguise to commit at least two Beverly Hills burglaries and it connects him to dozens more in the Los Angeles area, police said

This is the life-like mask of a white male that Prowell, a black man, allegedly used during break-ins

That's when police found the mask and other items that connected him to Beverly Hills break-ins last July and on April 20, where he stole flat screen TVs, Beverly Hills police said.

Currently, Rockim Prowell faces charges connected to two Beverly Hills burglaries

Prowell was arrested and charged with two counts of burglary, two counts of grand theft and one count of vandalism.

The license plates attached to Prowell's car were allegedly stolen, according to police.

But Prowell's woes didn't stop there.

Beverly Hills detectives conducted a search warrant at Prowell's home in Inglewood, California, where police said they found stolen items that connected Prowell dozens of other home break-ins in mostly wealthy areas in Southern California.

Beverly Hills police are working with Los Angeles Police Department and law enforcement in in Newport Beach, an affluent city in Orange County, to determine if he is linked to home burglaries in those cities.

He's currently out on bail but could face more charges.

Twitter was, as usual, went straight to the punchlines. One user compared the situation to a Scooby Doo episode and asked someone to make a 'face reveal meme.'
President Joe Biden's new deputy in a White House office of strategy and outreach urged her followers to shut down ICE offices in a 2018 tweet amid protests over agency raids and the Trump administration's border policy.

With protesters surrounding the ICE office in Portland and camping out in tents, Natalie Montelongo, the new White House official, wrote on Twitter on June 21, 2018: 'If you're looking for a way to help - look up your nearest ICE office and shut-it-down.'

Montelongo, a Texas native, served as political director for former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro, who was one of a large field of Biden presidential primary rivals.

Natalie Montelongo, the new White House deputy director for political strategy and outreach, urged her Twitter followers to shut down ICE offices amid protests in 2018

Castro delivered one of the most slashing internecine attacks on Biden during the campaign, and her hiring signals Biden is not holding grudges.

In a September 2019 debate, Castro went after Biden during an exchange on health care. 'Are you forgetting what you said two minutes ago?' Castro asked Biden.

He repeated the charge, which came amid former President Trump's attacks on Biden's mental fitness. 'Are you forgetting already what you said just two minutes ago?' Castro asked.

Biden advisor Anita Dunn, now a senior Biden advisor, called it a 'cheap shot' at the time. Castro formally endorsed Biden in June 2020, months after Sen. Elizabeth Warren, whom he also backed, endorsed him.

The tweet came amid protests that shut down an ICE facility in Portland

Montelongo accused ICE of 'terrorizing immigrant communities'

In this Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, photo released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, foreign nationals are arrested during a targeted enforcement operation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) aimed at immigration fugitives, re-entrants and at-large criminal aliens in Los Angeles

In this July 25, 2018 file photo, authorities clear the protest encampment at the Southwest Portland offices of the Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency in Portland, Oregon

Montelongo's 2018 post was a retweet of a CNN writer who blasted out the headline: 'ICE shuts down Portland office as protesters camp outside waiting for children to be reunited with families.'

The story noted that the agency had shut down its southwest Portland office amid protests outside its front door until 'security concerns' could be addressed. It included images of tents outside the office by protesters seeking to occupy it, as well as posters calling ICE a 'disgrace' and comparing the agency to the Gestapo.

The blasted the agency again on Twitter, in postings Fox News reported.

'This administration's actions are not motivated by public safety concerns - they're terrorizing immigrant communities. #ICE didn't exist 15 years ago, it doesn't have to exist now.'

White Customs and Border Protection detains immigrants at the border, ICE handles deportations and enforcement within U.S. borders.

The attacks came amid calls on the left of the Democratic Party to abolish the agency amid fury over child separations at the border. Castro during his campaign called for repealing the provision of law that makes it a crime to cross the border without documentation.

Biden slapped down the idea, telling Castro in one debate exchange: 'I found that Julian, excuse me, the secretary, we sat together in many meetings. I never heard him talk about any of this when he was the secretary.'

'If you cross the border illegally, you should be able to be sent back,' Biden said. 'It's a crime. It's a crime.'

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) tweeted on Jan. 18th: 'Abolish ICE.'
Ex-veterans minister Johnny Mercer has slammed Boris Johnson for failing to include legislation in the Queen's Speech to protect British veterans who served during the Troubles.

The Prime Minister has promised that draft laws will be brought forward but no timetable has been set out and no specific Bill was mentioned by the Queen during the State Opening of Parliament.

An official document accompanying the speech said further details of proposed legislation would be confirmed 'in the coming weeks'.

But Downing Street would not guarantee that the laws would be in place within the next 12 months and Mr Mercer expressed doubts over whether the legislation would actually be brought forward.

He also claimed as he gave evidence to the Defence Select Committee this afternoon that Number 10 had banned him from giving media interviews on veterans' mental health when he was in the Government.

Ex-veterans minister Johnny Mercer has slammed Boris Johnson for failing to include legislation in the Queen's Speech to protect British veterans who served during the Troubles

The Prime Minister has promised that draft laws will be brought forward but no timetable has been set out and no specific Bill was mentioned by the Queen during the State Opening of Parliament

Mr Mercer left the Government after expressing frustration at a lack of progress over legislation to protect British veterans who served during the Troubles.

Following his departure he savaged the Government and accused Mr Johnson of surrounding himself with 'cowards' and 'desperately weak people'.

Asked today if he believes the Government when it says it will soon be bringing forward legislation, Mr Mercer replied: If I had thought legislation was going to be forthcoming on this I would not have left the Government. I didnt want to leave the Government. It was hard, but I did not want to leave government.

But the truth is, on that very day I left, I asked my secretary of state if he had seen a single word committed to paper on these proposals and the answer was no.

He added: I just cannot be part of an administration that is going to promise these people things and then not make almost any effort to deliver on them.

Mr Mercer said during his evidence that Number 10 had tried to stop him from giving media interviews when he was in the Government.

He said: It was extraordinary. I will be honest with you, in that case an individual a senior individual in Number 10 phoned me up and said "you are not to do the Today programme" talking about veterans mental health.

I think I recall saying to him, "has the Prime Minister specifically said that to you" because I didn't believe he would say that, and he was like "the Prime Minister has specifically told me you are not to do that tomorrow".

So I spoke to the Prime Minister and he had made no such pledge at all.

Asked at lunchtime when the Government intends to bring forward legislation relating to Northern Ireland veterans, the PM's Official Spokesman said: 'We want to do this promptly and we also want to make sure this is done properly.

'We have listened to a wide range of stakeholders since last March and we've also engaged substantially with the Irish Government and the Northern Ireland parties on this issue and we will bring forward legislation in due course.'

The proposed new system is expected to focus on 'information recovery and reconciliation' rather than criminal prosecutions which are unlikely to succeed.

Politicians from across the island of Ireland have voiced anger at the prospect of a form of amnesty on Troubles prosecutions.

Northern Ireland's two main parties, the DUP and Sinn Fein, both criticised the move reported last week by the UK Government to introduce a statute of limitations on prosecuting offences committed prior to the signing of the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement.

Asked if the promised legislation would cover both the alleged actions of service personnel and terrorists, the Prime Minister's Official Spokesman said: 'We will set out the proposals in due course, I'm not going to jump ahead of that.'

In his introduction to the Queen's Speech package, Mr Johnson said: 'We will introduce legislation to address the legacy of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, ensuring that our proposals deliver better outcomes for victims, survivors and veterans, while ending the cycle of investigations.'

In her address to Parliament this morning, the Queen said: 'My ministers will promote the strength and integrity of the Union.

'Measures will be brought forward to strengthen devolved government in Northern Ireland and address the legacy of the past.'
Qantas staff have revealed the extraordinary set of instructions they were forced to follow after a Covid infected passenger was about to arrive on an overseas flight.

The remarkable incident unfolded at Brisbane Airport on May 7 around 1.30pm, with shocked ground staff told to 'open the door and run' as the flight from Papua New Guinea prepared to land.

'No one could believe it,' a Qantas employee told the Courier Mail.

'We were put at risk... staff wearing gloves and masks at the arrivals gate were told to open the door and run.'

Staff from Qantas in Brisbane (pictured) were stunned after recently being told to 'open the door and run' as a flight from Papua New Guinea prepared to land - the plane had a passenger from Papua New Guinea believed to be infected with Covid

The Qantas worker also revealed that the passenger in question on a Air Niugini plane arrived on Australian shores looking 'very unwell'.

He was then quickly attended to by 'officials from border force, quarantine and Queensland Health.'

The man originally attempted to board a flight to Brisbane on May 6, only to be turned away at Port Moresby International Airport when he produced a positive result for Covid.

He then reportedly returned to the same airport the next day, armed with an exemption letter and 'appropriate paperwork' permitting overseas travel.

'After that he kept getting positive results, he received a doctor's certificate advising he was considered non-infectious, and that he had been symptom free in the previous 72 hours,' an Air Niugini spokesperson said.

The man was eventually cleared to fly after Air Niugini contacted the Australian High Commission in Port Moresby, who then spoke to the Australian Border Force, who gave him the green light to travel.

The remarkable incident unfolded at Brisbane Airport on May 7 around 1.30pm, with Qantas staff (pictured) left in a state of disbelief (stock image)

It is understood the man - who is an Australian passport holder - is currently in hotel quarantine along with more than 60 other people in Brisbane from the same international flight.

A Qantas spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia Qantas ground staff 'followed all procedures'.

'There are a number of strict procedures in place for managing aircraft arriving from overseas,' the spokeswoman said.

A spokesperson for the Australian Border Force said the ABF did not comment on individual cases.

'The work of the ABF has been integral to Australian Government efforts to slow the transmission of Covid-19 across our border and keep travellers and supply chains moving,' the spokesperson said.

'The ABF has responsibility for customs and immigration clearance and works closely with local state and territory health officials.

'There are a number of categories in which the traveller is automatically exempt from the travel restrictions and can enter Australia (without obtaining an individual exemption), including if they are an Australian citizen.'

Last month, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk admitted the Commonwealth should look to limit the number of international arrivals into the Sunshine State.

On April 3, it was revealed 42 Covid cases were being treated from people who have travelled to Queensland from PNG  which was more than 60 per cent of the recorded cases in Queensland at the time.

The Premier said reducing the number of international guests was an 'appropriate measure' in a bid to contain a possible outbreak.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement on Monday said it found no evidence that Jeffrey Epstein received special treatment, including a lenient sentence and jail privileges, from any member of the Palm Beach County sheriff's or state attorney offices due to bribery or influence in 2005

Florida detectives have cleared Palm Beach prosecutors and sheriff's officials of any criminal wrongdoing in connection with their handling of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's sex crimes case more than 16-years ago.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement on Monday said it found no evidence that Epstein received special treatment, including a lenient sentence and jail privileges, from any member of the Palm Beach County sheriff's or state attorney offices due to bribery or influence.

Palm Beach authorities investigated Epstein between 2005 and 2006 after underage girls and young women told investigators that the billionaire financier had sexually assaulted them at his Palm Beach mansion.

Epstein ended up serving 18 months in jail after pleading guilty in a deal with prosecutors to state charges of procuring a person under 18 for prostitution and felony solicitation of prostitution.

Both the state attorney's office and sheriff had been criticized by Epstein's victims and their advocates for the sentencing deal he received and for his participation in a work-release program that allowed him to travel to his office most days for up to 16 hours, where he possibly engaged in the sexual abuse of underage girls.

Gov. Ron DeSantis had ordered the investigation in August 2019 just days before Epstein killed himself at a federal jail in New York City where he was being held on federal sex trafficking charges.

State investigators concluded that both agencies followed the laws and rules that were then in place in their handling of Epstein.

Palm Beach authorities investigated Epstein between 2005 and 2006 after teenage girls and young women told investigators that the billionaire financier had sexually assaulted them at his Palm Beach mansion. His mansion was torn down (above) by a developer last month

In three separate reports that were completed in March, Florida investigators wrote they found no evidence that any sheriff's deputy, former State Attorney Barry Krischer (above) or any of his prosecutors were bribed or influenced in Epstein's case

In three separate reports that were completed in March, Florida investigators wrote they found no evidence that any sheriff's deputy, former State Attorney Barry Krischer or any of his prosecutors 'was coerced, bribed or engaged in any criminal activity in the performance of their duties'.

Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, who assumed office in 2005, issued a statement on Monday saying he had asked for the investigation and welcomed its findings.

He declined to comment any further, saying an internal investigation into possible violations of agency regulations is ongoing.

Krischer, who served from 1993 to 2007, did not respond to a request for comment. He had previously defended his handling of the investigation.

Gov. Ron DeSantis had ordered the investigation in August 2019 just days before Epstein killed himself at a federal jail in New York City where he was being held on federal sex trafficking charges

Florida's treatment of Epstein came under scrutiny in 2018 following a series of articles published by the Miami Herald.

The reports detailed the disagreements that surfaced beginning in 2005 among law enforcement officials after teenage girls and young women told Palm Beach police investigators that Epstein had sexually assaulted them.

They had agreed to give him massages while semi or fully nude in exchange for money but said he would then molest them without their consent.

Palm Beach police thought they had a strong case to bring sexual assault charges against Epstein but Krischer and his prosecutors disagreed, saying Epstein's attorneys would have avenues to attack the victims' credibility and a conviction was unlikely.

A grand jury heard the case but no indictment was issued.

Palm Beach police, meanwhile, took their evidence to federal prosecutors who threatened to bring charges until an agreement was reached in June 2008.

Epstein pleaded guilty to state charges of procuring a person under 18 for prostitution and felony solicitation of prostitution.

He was sentenced to 18 months in the Palm Beach County jail system followed by 12 months of house arrest. He was required to register as a sex offender.

When Epstein died, he had recently been charged federally with sex trafficking dating back almost 20 years and was facing life in prison. His alleged madam Ghislaine Maxwell is currently awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges

While in Palm Beach sheriff's custody, Epstein was allowed to stay in an isolated cell at the county's minimum security stockade where he roamed freely and watched television.

State investigators said isolating him was a prudent decision, saying it was made to protect Epstein from other inmates and to prevent him from using his wealth to become 'king of the dorms'.

Epstein was also soon allowed into the county's work-release program. During that time, he was taken to his office where he claimed to be running his financial consulting business and his foundation.

By the time of his release in 2009, he was spending six days a week and 18 hours a day at his office. He was required to wear an ankle monitor and hire two deputies to oversee his whereabouts from the lobby but they were not in his office with him.

A woman who was then 17 and another woman, who was then an adult, have said they were trafficked to Epstein's office to have paid sex with with him.

The women declined to meet with Florida investigators but their attorney texted an investigator that there was no wrongdoing by deputies, according to the reports.

When Epstein died, he had recently been charged federally with sex trafficking dating back almost 20 years and was facing life in prison.

He was known for his wealth and his connections, including former presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump and the UK's Prince Andrew. None of them have been charged in connection with his crimes.
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The record nine babies born to a mother from Mali celebrated their first week of life today with a religious naming ceremony.

Two of the nonuplets are still on ventilators, and all the siblings  five girls and four boys  will have to spend at least another three months in high care at a specialist unit in Morocco.

Because of the grave risk of infection, their mother Halima Cisse, 25, has only limited access to them.

She is now strong enough to be out of intensive care after almost dying from blood loss during delivery.

The strain of carrying the weight of the babies and amniotic fluid, estimated at 40kg, more than six stone, triggered a haemorrhage of

Ms Cisse's uterine artery during the caesarean section, 30 weeks into her pregnancy.

Halima Cisse, 25, from Timbuktu, spent two weeks in hospital in the Malian capital of Bamako before being flown to Morocco in March to give birth in a specialist hospital via cesarean section. Pictured: Ms Cisse arrives in Morocco

Ms Cisse gave birth to nine babies (one seen above after birth) via caesarean section at a hospital in Morocco last Tuesday

Pictured: One of the nine babies rests in an incubator at the maternity ward of the private clinic of Ain Borja in Casablanca, Morocco, Wednesday, May 5, 2021

In accordance with Islamic custom, the names of the newborns  who weighed in at 1.1lb to 2.2lbs - were revealed seven days after their birth last Tuesday.

Two of the nine babies were a total surprise as only seven had ever been spotted in scans.

Two of the boys, Mohamed and Bah, carry the names of the president of Mali and king of Morocco in gratitude to the help the two countries' authorities have given towards the safe delivery of the babies.

The names for the five girls are Hawa, Adama, Fatouma, Oumou and Kadidia. The two other boys are called Elhadji and Oumar.

A spokeswoman for the Guinness World Records said it had 'yet to verify' whether the family sets a new record for the most number of babies born in a single delivery.

'Our records team alongside a specialist consultant are looking into this,' she told MailOnline.

Today in the family's hometown of Timbuktu, in the north of the impoverished west African country, the traditional baptism ceremony was celebrated, minus the nonuplets, with their extended family including five uncles and aunts and two sets of grandparents.

Kader Arby, 35, their proud father is waiting in Mali's capital Bamako to get final paperwork to fly to Casablanca to visit his wife, with whom he also has a daughter of two and a half, and their new brood.

With Ms Cisse only given restricted direct access to the babies, a team of 18 nurses are working around the clock to talk and sing to them to provide comfort.

A spokesman for the Ain Borja said the new mother was 'recovering well' from the dramatic delivery. 'The babies are in a stable condition, two of them are still intubated. We continue to monitor them every moment of the day.'

Incredible footage from inside a Moroccan maternity unit captured the astonishing birth of nine babies to a single mother - as the premature newborns beat the odds to survive.

Doctors on May 5 revealed how they delivered the five girls and four boys, and have confirmed that all nine newborns and their mother Halima Cisse, from Timbuktu in Mali, were 'doing well'.

The babies, born on Tuesday, are said to be 'doing well' following their record-breaking birth in Casablanca, Morocco

Pictured: One of the nine babies is successfully removed from the mother's womb during the delivery in Morocco on Tuesday

Two of the newborn nonuplets are seen inside an incubator shortly after 25-year-old Ms Cisse gave birth on Tuesday

Ms Cisse, 25, had expected to deliver seven babies following ultrasound scans in Mali and Morocco, but medics were shocked to find two more when they performed a caesarean section.

It is expected the mother, whose husband remains in Mali, will return home in several weeks, with health minister Fanta Siby confirming she is 'doing well' following heavy bleeding and a blood transfusion.

The mother had spent two weeks in hospital in the Malian capital of Bamako before being flown to Morocco in March for specialist care. She gave birth prematurely at 30 weeks into her pregnancy.

Ms Cisse's nonuplets are the third-ever recorded case of the extremely rare phenomenon, with previous mothers in Australia and Malaysia sadly losing their babies not long after giving birth.

Should all nine babies survive, the birth would break the current world record set by 'Octomum' Nadya Suleman in 2009, who gave birth to eight babies that survived.

Babies born at 30 weeks measure an estimated 39.9cm in length and weigh 2.8lbs, according to the NHS.

Astonishing video shared today by the Ain Borja private clinic in Casablanca shows how doctors and nurses worked hard to ensure that all nine babies were delivered safely and alive.

A nurse takes care of one of the newborn nonuplets, lying in an incubator, at the private clinic of Ain Borja in Casablanca

Pictured: A view of the premature infant ward where are the nine babies at the maternity ward of the private clinic of Ain Borja in Casablanca, Morocco, Wednesday, May 5

A heavily pregnant Ms Cisse is shown arriving in Morocco by plane, where she was pushed in a wheelchair across the tarmac. Afterwards, a doctor speaks to the camera and explains the complicated procedure.

The babies were born at around 30 weeks into Ms Cisse's pregnancy, Doctor Yazid Mourad says, adding that efforts were made to slow the delivery by another five weeks to give them a better chance of survival.

'She was going to have seven babies normally. [..] At 25 weeks, 6 months, she has been here for five weeks, we tried everything [..] so we managed to earn an extra five weeks with the suitable treatment and care,' Dr Mourad says.

'Fortunately, or unfortunately [..] we found nine babies which were taken into the NICU. Most of the babies are intubated, some are on oxygen, [] but at first sight the babies are well.'

Dr Mourad says that he estimates a baby's chance of survival increases to around 80 per cent if they are born at around 30 weeks, and if they are given proper treatment.

Pictured: Two of the nine babies delivered in Morocco on Tuesday. Should all nine babies survive, the birth would break the current world record set by 'Octomum' Nadya Suleman in 2009, who gave birth to eight babies that survived

Pictured: A maternity nurse cleans one of the nine babies at the Ain Borja private clinic in Casablanca, Morocco, soon after it has been born and before it is put in an incubator

Pictured: Two healthcare workers are seen giving one of the nine babies oxygen shortly after they were born in Morocco

The babies were born sometime between 25 and 30 weeks into Ms Cisse's pregnancy, Doctor Yazid Mourad (pictured) explains, adding that efforts were made to slow the delivery by another five weeks

'I can't imagine all nine would have survived at 25 weeks given they will naturally be smaller  which will be why they needed to buy some time,' he said.

From inside the operating theatre, footage shows the doctor preparing for the surgery and donning PPE as other healthcare workers frantically prepare around him.

The surgeon is then shown operating on Ms Cisse, successfully removing the tiny babies from her stomach and passing them to post-natal nurses in the room, who are shown cleaning and caring for them.

For some of the babies, healthcare workers are shown administering oxygen before placing them in incubators.

Mali's Health Ministry on May 5 2021 confirmed that a Malian woman had given birth to nine children at a hospital in Morocco

A Moroccan nurse takes care of one of the nine babies protected in an incubator at the maternity ward of the private clinic of Ain Borja in Casablanca, Morocco, Wednesday, May 5

Pictured: Incubators with some of the newborn nontuplets are pictured at a neonatal station in a hospital in Casablanca, Morocco, May 5, 2021

A Moroccan nurse takes care of one of the nine babies after Malian woman Halima Cisse has given birth to nonuplets

The babies are being cared for by nurses at a specialist hospital in Casablanca following the record-breaking birth

For some of the babies, healthcare workers are shown administering oxygen and intubating them, before putting them into incubators. Pictured: One of the babies is shown on oxygen and inside an incubator

Ms Cissse's husband Adjudant Kader Arby - who is still in Mali with the couple's older daughter - today told the BBC he is not worried about his newborn children's future.

He said: 'God gave us these children. He is the one to decide what will happen to them. I'm not worried about that. When the almighty does something, he knows why.

'Everybody called me! Everybody called! The Malian authorities called expressing their joy. I thank them Even the president called me.'

Details about Ms Cisse's pregnancy remain unclear, but multiple births are typically the result of IVF.

In these cases, multiple fertilised eggs are simultaneously implanted into a woman's womb to increase the chances she will fall pregnant.

In rare cases, several of embryos will develop into babies, causing extreme cases of multiple birth that almost never occur naturally.

One of the nine newborns, measuring an estimated 39.9cm in length and weighing 2.8lbs, seen following the birth

A team of medics worked to deliver the babies at 30 weeks at the Ain Borja private clinic in Casablanca, Morocco, yesterday

Ms Cissse's husband Adjudant Kader Arby - who is still in Mali with the couple's older daughter - today said he is not worried about his children's future

Mali's health ministry said in a statement that Cisse had given birth to five girls and four boys by cesarean section, and the Ain Borja later confirmed to the Associated Press she had given birth there

One of the newborn nonuplets is seen in an incubator at the private clinic of Ain Borja, in Casablanca, Morocco

A nurse takes care of one of the newborn nonuplets, lying in an incubator, after its mother gave birth on Tuesday

Incubators with some of the newborn nontuplets are pictured at a neonatal station in a hospital in Casablanca, Morocco

According to Mali 24, doctors in the impoverished country estimated that there was a less than 50 per cent chance that a single one of the nine fetuses would survive.

Ms Cisse spent two weeks in Point G Hospital in Bamako, Mali's capital, before she was transferred to Morocco thanks to the intervention of Mali's President of Transition Bah N'Daw.

She was admitted to the Ain Borja private clinic in Casablanca on March 20, and spent over six weeks in hospital before reportedly giving birth yesterday.

Mali's health ministry said in a statement that Cisse had given birth to five girls and four boys by caesarean section, and the Ain Borja later confirmed to the Associated Press she had given birth there.

'The newborns (five girls and four boys) and the mother are all doing well,' said Fanta Siby.

Mali's health ministry said in a statement that Cisse had given birth to five girls and four boys by caesarean section, and the Ain Borja later confirmed to the Associated Press she had given birth there

'The newborns (five girls and four boys) and the mother are all doing well,' said Fanta Siby. Pictured: The maternity ward

Siby offered her congratulations to 'the medical teams of Mali and Morocco, whose professionalism is at the origin of the happy outcome of this pregnancy'

The pregnancy - while it was believed to involve septuplets - drew national attention in Mali, as organisations worked to ensure that Ms Cisse and her expected babies received the necessary medical care. Pictured: The birth

The minister added that she had been kept informed by a Malian doctor who accompanied Ms Cisse to Morocco.

The new family are due to return home in several weeks' time, she added.

Siby offered her congratulations to 'the medical teams of Mali and Morocco, whose professionalism is at the origin of the happy outcome of this pregnancy'.

The pregnancy - while it was believed to involve septuplets - drew national attention in Mali, as organisations worked to ensure that Ms Cisse and her expected babies received the necessary medical care.

On April 15, 2021 it was announced that the Orange Mali Foundation would donate five million CFA Francs (around 6,580) to the cause, after the country's The Department for the Promotion of Women, Children and the Family appealed for aid.

Pictured: The plane on which Ms Cisse arrived in Morocco in is shown on the tarmac, as a lift is shown taking her from the plane, with an ambulance waiting to collect her

Pictured: People wait in front of the Ain Borja private clinic in Casablanca, Morocco, Wednesday, May 5, 2021, where Ms Cisse gave birth on Tuesday

Cases of women successfully carrying septuplets to term are rare - and nonuplets even rarer - due to the strain multiple babies can put on the mother's body.

Ms Cisse's pregnancy has become the third reported instance of nonuplets in history, with the other two occurring in Sydney and Malaysia. In both cases, none of the babies survived.

Nadya Suleman, or 'Octomom' made headlines in the United States on January 26, 2009, when she gave birth to six boys and two girls in California.

Medical complications in multiple births of this kind often mean that some of the babies do not reach full term.

The first recorded case of nonuplets came in Sydney in the 1970s, although sadly none of the babies survived, according to The Independent.

In March 1999, a set of nonuplets was born in Malaysia to a woman named Zurina Mat Saad, though none of them survived for more than six hours.

In January 2009, Nadya Suleman - dubbed Octomum - gave birth to octuplets including six boys and two girls at a hospital in California.

All survived the birth, and recently celebrated their 12th birthdays.

The babies were a result of IVF treatment, and were nine weeks premature when they were delivered via c-section.

To this day. the octuplets are still the only full set of eight babies born alive in the United States, and after one week after their birth they surpassed the previous worldwide survival rate for octuplets.

Before the record-breaking birth, Suleman already had six children, who were also conceived via IVF treatment.

The doctor who delivered the embryos, and who implanted twelve embryos in Suleman's womb, had his license revoked in 2011 after charges were brought against him in relation to the octuplet's conception.

In a more recent case, a woman in Texas gave birth to sextuplets - two sets of twin boys and one pair of twin girls - in 2019.
A Zimbabwean father who has 16 wives and 151 children has revealed he follows a strict four-times-a-night sex schedule to help keep his family growing.

Misheck Nyandoro, 66, does not work and claims his full-time job is 'satisfying his wives', who cook, clean, and cater to his every desire.

The dad-of-151 has no plans to slow down, however. He will marry his 17th bride in the winter and hopes to have 100 wives and 1,000 children before he dies.

He has complained he has to keep marrying younger women because older brides cannot keep up with his insatiable sex drive.

He claims to lead a life of luxury and says he is showered with gifts and money by his many offspring.

Zimbabwean father Misheck Nyandoro, 66, who has 16 wives and 151 children has revealed he follows a strict four-times-a-night sex schedule to help keep his family growing

Nyandoro, from Mbire District, Mashonaland Central Province, has designed a schedule that allows him to 'satisfy' at least four of his wives per night.

He told the local news outlet The Herald: 'I go to the bedrooms that I have on my schedule. I then satisfy my wife and move onto the next room. This is my job. I have no other job. '

He added: 'I alter my behaviour in the bedroom to suit the age of each of my wives. I don't act the same with the young ones as I do with the older ones.'

The 66-year-old became a polygamist in 1983 and said he does not plan to stop the 'project [reproducing]' until he dies.

He added all of his brides are extremely happy with their lives and at least two are pregnant.

Nyandoro already has 151 children but plans to have at least 1,000 and keep reproducing until his dies

Financially, Nyandoro claims he is not feeling the burden of having over 150 children and explains that he has actually benefited from his giant family.

He said: 'My children spoil me. I'm constantly receiving gifts and cash from them and my step-sons.'

The family mainly relies on farming and has recently been allocated 93 hectares of land near the Mvurwi mountains.

But at least 50 of his offspring are in school in Mbire, Harare, Mutare and Guruve.

Six work for the Zimbabwe National Army, two by police, 11 others are employed in different professions, and 13 of his daughters have been married off.

He has married off 13 daughters. Two wives are pregnant. At least 23 of his sons are married, one of which is distantly following his fathers footsteps, on a count of four wives.

The 66-year-old retired war veteran claims he is not feeling the burden of having over 150 children and explains that he has actually benefited from his giant family who shower him with gifts and cater to his every need

But, the polygamist claims to be living a stress-free life, he doesn't go to work and his 16 wives all dote over him with each one of them cooking him separate meals.

He said: 'Every one of my wives cooks for me daily but the rule is that I only eat delicious food, anything I feel is below standard gets thrown away,

'They know the rules and they have promised not to get angry when I send their food back. Anything sent back should be a lesson that helps them improve.'

He last got married in 2015 and then took a brief pause because of the poor economic situation in Zimbabwe, but has planned a return to weddings in 2021.

He started the grand project after the Rhodesian bush war, in which he fought for Zimbabwean independence, because he wanted to help replenish the population.
Sally Buzbee, 55, is the first woman to be named editor of the Washington Post newspaper

The Washington Post named Sally Buzbee, a veteran journalist with the Associated Press, as executive editor on Tuesday, the first time a woman will head the newsroom of the prestigious newspaper.

Buzbee, 55, has spent her entire career with the US news agency and is currently the AP's executive editor and senior vice president.

Buzbee, a former Washington bureau chief for the AP, replaces Martin Baron, who retired in February after eight years at the helm of the newspaper.

Buzbee will be the first woman to serve in the top editorial position at the Post since it was founded in 1877. Previous executive editors include Ben Bradlee of Watergate fame.

Many staff at the Washington Post welcomed the appointment as its first female editor.

But the paper's former star reporter Wesley Lowery, an outspoken critic of Baron's, slammed the decision to overlook Kevin Merida, who was named executive editor of the Los Angeles Times earlier this month.

'The overqualified black candidate not even getting a serious call about the job, only for it to go to a white lady and be framed as a win for diversity is the entire story of newsroom diversity efforts,' Lowery, a 60 Minutes correspondent, posted on Twitter.

Former Post journalist Wesley Lowery's claim on Twitter that the 'overqualified black candidate' Kevin Merida was overlooked in favor of a 'white lady' was slammed as misogynistic

Buzbee's former colleague at the Associated Press, Washington Bureau Chief Julie Pace, wrote that she was 'bursting with pride'. 'There is simply no better newsroom leader and mentor than Sally'

Journalist and author Connie Schultz welcomed the appointment, writing 'Big news in our profession'

Jennifer Palmieri, co-host of The Circus on Showtime, tweeted: 'Wow - I love the Washington Post doubling down on commitment to hard news with appointment of Sally Buzbee as EIC. So many I know from AP who deeply revere her'

Ben Smith, media columnist at the Post's old rival the New York Times, wrote: 'Perhaps an understated factor in the WaPo hire: What's the last messy, public AP internal controversy you remember?'

Lowery, who is black, had previously written in an opinion piece for the New York Times that Baron had pushed out black and brown journalists while accepting the 'views and inclinations of whiteness'.

The tweet from Lowery prompted an immediate backlash on Twitter.

'This is an incredibly bad take,' wrote media critic Jordan Pittman.

'Kevin Merida took the executive editor position at the LA Times (which is huge) and Sally Buzbee is the executive editor and senior vice president of the Associated Press. Referring to her as just a "white lady" is misogynistic.'

Baron, the recently-departed Post editor, is widely credited with returning the paper to its 1970s heyday.

But as he turned the Post into a digital powerhouse and rival to the New York Times, Baron also faced stinging criticism from some of the paper's 'woke' staff for being tone deaf to brewing racial tension.

Writing on Salon.com, former Washington Post columnist Dan Froomkin wrote that Baron had been 'clueless, condescending and dismissive' when confronted with criticism about his 'hiring, coverage and newsroom conventions'.

Froomkin pointed to an exit interview Baron gave with Vanity Fair, in which he said Baron had been dismissive of efforts to make the paper more diverse.

A story published on the Daily Beast last week titled Inside the Hunt for the Washington Posts Next Top Editor failed to even mention Buzbee as a contender for the role.

Having boasted of speaking with 'seven knowledgeable people inside and outside the paper', it listed seven contenders for the position, one of the most coveted in American journalism.

The article focused on Post national editor Steve Ginsberg, who is white, and New York Times assistant managing editor Marc Lacey, who is black, as strong possibilities, before throwing our the names of five other men.

It said Kevin Merida had been in the running for the role, before removing himself and being named to the top job at the LA Times.

The Post has announced plans to open new bureaus in Sydney and Bogota for a total of 26 outside the United States.

Buzbee is the first executive editor hired by the Post since Amazon founder Jeff Bezos purchased the newspaper in 2013 from the Graham family.

'The Post has such a rich journalistic legacy, and such a terrific staff,' Buzbee told the Post in an interview.

'It's exciting to join this organization at a time of growth and innovation.'

Publisher Fred Ryan, who announced the hiring, said the newspaper had 'looked for someone steeped in the courageous journalism that is The Post's hallmark, and who can extend our reach to news audiences in the US and abroad.'

Buzbee, a graduate of the University of Kansas William Allen White School of Journalism & Mass Communications, joined AP in 1988 as a reporter in Topeka, the Kansas state capitol.

She worked as a correspondent in San Diego before joining AP's Washington bureau in 1995.

She went on to various senior leadership positions at AP including Middle East director and Washington bureau chief, and oversaw the team that won a Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting in 2012 for its deep dive into the New York police departments surveillance of Muslims.

As executive editor at AP, she oversaw the news services global operation, which includes journalists in more than 254 locations in 100 countries.

Recent appointments to senior editors' roles have proved controversial, with Alexi McCammond being ousted from Teen Vogue after staff members protested about decade-old tweets she'd written.

However, Washington Post editorial staff welcomed the news on Twitter.

'Wow wow WOW the incomparable Sally Buzbee will be the new executive editor of Washington Post,' wrote Anne Rumsey Gearan, the paper's White House reporter.

'She was a guiding force for me at AP and someone I deeply admire. Congratulations Sally.'

Buzbee's former colleague at the Associated Press, Washington Bureau Chief Julie Pace, wrote that she was 'bursting with pride'.

The Washington Post has named veteran AP journalist Sally Buzbee as executive editor, the first time a woman has held the position

'One other thing about Sally Buzbee: she's an amazing mom and role model for other working moms in journalism. Her kids were a presence in the newsroom, she took their phone calls, told stories about them. That meant a lot to me and other women in the AP Washington bureau.'

Ben Smith, media columnist at the Post's old rival the New York Times, said Associated Press's ability to remain free of controversy may have been a factor in her hiring.

'Perhaps an understated factor in the WaPo hire: What's the last messy, public AP internal controversy you remember?'

Jennifer Palmieri, co-host of The Circus on Showtime, tweeted: 'Wow - I love the Washington Post doubling down on commitment to hard news with appointment of Sally Buzbee as EIC. So many I know from AP who deeply revere her.'

Journalist and author Connie Schultz welcomed the appointment, writing 'Big news in our profession'

Buzbee has two daughters, while her husband, John, a Foreign Service office died in 2016 at the age of 50 of complications from colon cancer.

On Monday, Teen Vogue announced it was hiring Versha Sharma, 34, as editor-in-chief in less than two months after its last new hire was forced to resign following backlash over racist tweets she wrote as a teenager.

The Washington Post is best known for breaking the Watergate story about former President Richard Nixon's overseeing a June 1972 break-in at the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee.

Nixon was eventually forced to resign over the scandal, which was broken by the paper's legendary investigative reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein.
A celebrity farmer has been subjected to death threats from vegan activists after asking a cafe why they didn't sell cow's milk.

Gareth Wyn Jones, 54, shared a picture of the drinks menu at Caffi Clywedog in Powys, Mid Wales, not realising that the venue is entirely vegan.

'Is this Caffi just using plant based fluids and not using natural local milk? Am I wrong? Can anyone help,' he asked his supporters.

The cafe offers a menu of meat-free options, but its dairy and meat-free stance has proved controversial because it sits in the heartland of Welsh farming communities.

Gareth Wyn Jones, 54, recieved a huge backlash after questioning why Caffi Clywedog in Powys, Mid Wales did not use cow's milk, not realising that the venue is entirely vegan.

But Gareth, who stars in the BBC series The Family Farm with presenter Kate Humble, received a huge backlash from animal activists sending him online abuse.

In vile messages on social media the activists said they would 'end your bloodline' and blamed farmers for 'causing all these pandemics'.

Another message described him as an 'animal-killing scumbag' and 'future serial killer', and one more said: 'You better hope and pray I don't find you'.

Gareth has reported the messages to North Wales Police, saying: 'When you and your family start getting death threats, it's gone too far.'

'Is this Caffi just using plant based fluids and not using natural local milk? Am I wrong? Can anyone help,' he asked his supporters

In vile messages on social media the activists said they would 'end your bloodline' and blamed farmers for 'causing all these pandemics'

The dad-of-three has followed in his family's 350-year-old tradition of farming at Ty'n Llwyfan in Snowdonia National Park.

Gareth, who farms in the hills above Llanfairfechan, said: 'These are the type of people who kill your animals and set your barns on fire.

'They are not to be messed around with. The messages didn't bother me too much but my wife was very worried and upset last night.'

His online post also resulted in the cafe and its owners being met with a barrage of online hatred and arson threats. In a statement, they described a 'surge of unexpected, online abuse'.

Gareth later added: 'It's fine having a free country and free speech but these people have crossed the line. When you and your family start getting death threats, it's gone too far. This is not how we should be doing things'

Gareth's post also resulted in the cafe and its owners being met with a barrage of online hatred and arson threats. In a statement, they described a 'surge of unexpected, online abuse'

'We would firstly like to thank the public who have supported us and sent kind messages, after we received a torrent of negativity which included online threats for offering a plant-based menu,' they said.

'Although we respect that people can all have different views, what we cannot accept are threats of violence and arson to our premises, and messages of hatred that have been sent to Caffi Clywedog, which has promoting well-being within our community at the heart of everything we do.

'We are committed to our work at Clywedog to promote positive well-being, and will continue to serve members of the public, as well as helping the vulnerable in our community.'

Gareth later added: 'We have to be able to have a conversation about these things without being judgemental.

'It's fine having a free country and free speech but these people have crossed the line. When you and your family start getting death threats, it's gone too far. This is not how we should be doing things.'
NBC and stars including Tom Cruise are being slammed as 'hypocrites' for boycotting the Golden Globes over diversity concerns about the organizers, after the awards ceremony posted record low ratings earlier this year.

NBC said on Monday that it would not air the 2022 Golden Globe awards in January, and criticism of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association reached such a pitch that Cruise returned his three awards.

'Surrendering to woke group think. So Tom why now? What has changed? Why not refuse the trophy to begin with years ago? Coward much?' one Twitter user wrote.

Many pointed out that Cruise has never won an Oscar, and questioned whether he would be so quick to return the more prestigious industry award.

Tom Cruise received a Golden Globe for his role in the film 'Magnolia' in 2000 (above). On Monday he returned his three Globes awards

'You think if Cruise had an Oscar  those of us old enough remember his hard, humorless campaign for 'Born on the Fourth of July'  that he'd ever, ever return it? No way,' wrote New York Post columnist Maureen Callahan.

Cruise won Best Actor at the Golden Globes for Jerry Maguire in 1997, Best Actor for Born on the Fourth of July in 1990 and Best Supporting Actor for his role in Magnolia in 2000.

'How does Tom Cruises' woke moment undo the 76 years of inequality? It can't! Cruise & the others can give back trophies, but what about the financial gains?' another Twitter user wrote.

Actor Mark Ruffalo also drew criticism for vowing to boycott the 2022 Golden Globes ceremony in a Twitter post.

'Thank you Mark. The woke members of Hollywood are truly looking out for the smaller people of the world with these revelations,' one user responded. 'I for one feel 10 times better knowing self flattering awards will be given out to a broader stroke of millionaires. Truly revolutionary changes ahead!'

Columnist Callahan pointed out that less than three months ago, Ruffalo had been ecstatic to accept a Golden Globes award, declaring that 'The godly light of decency is breaking through the hideous dark storm we've been living through.'

Mark Ruffalo (left) and Scarlett Johansson (right) also drew criticism for 'woke virtue signaling' after calling for a boycott of the Golden Globes

'So, Mark Ruffalo: What's gone so sideways since this inclusion of the Globes as part of said godly light? Since you accepted your Globe with giddiness and glee?' wrote Callahan.

Actress Scarlett Johansson also led calls for a Golden Globes boycott, saying she had faced 'sexist questions and remarks by certain HFPA members that bordered on sexual harassment.'

One Twitter users responded: 'Scarlett Johansson is a virtue signalling hypocrite. She doesn't mean a word she's saying.'

This year, the 78th Golden Globes ceremony was a ratings disaster, with viewership down 63 percent from 2020 and hitting an all-time low.

Still, the ceremony usually ranks third among the most-watched awards shows, after the Oscars and Grammys.

Earlier this year, the HFPA came under fire after it was revealed that none of their 90 members were black.

The organization's track record of overlooking black- and minority-led films and television series at the Golden Globes has also been frequently criticized.

Back in March, former president Philip Berk was expelled for forwarding an email dubbing Black Lives Matter a 'hate movement,' and two consultants hired to address the HFPA's diversity issues quit over a lack of progress.

There were additional claims that the HFPA had not been inclusive enough to women or members of the LGBTQ community.

Last year, comedian Ricky Gervais delivered a scathing monologue as host, mocking the HFPA

Last week, Netflix and Amazon Studios both said they would cut ties with the HFPA if it didn't swiftly enact more drastic changes.

'We dont believe these proposed new policies - particularly around the size and speed of membership growth - will tackle the HFPAs systemic diversity and inclusion challenges, or the lack of clear standards for how your members should operate,' Netflix co-chief executive Ted Sarandos wrote in a letter to the group.

In a letter sent Sunday and shared with reporters Monday, WarnerMedia said it would cease holding screenings and other events for the HFPA until it made more substantial changes.

'For far too long, demands for perks, special favors and unprofessional requests have been made to our teams and to others across the industry,' WarnerMedia executives said in a letter. 'We regret that as an industry, we have complained, but largely tolerated this behavior until now.'

In a statement, NBC said it believes the Hollywood Foreign Press Association is committed to reform. But the network said change can't come quickly enough for next year's Globes.

'However, change of this magnitude takes time and work, and we feel strongly that the HFPA needs time to do it right,' the network said. 'As such, NBC will not air the 2022 Golden Globes. Assuming the organization executes on its plan, we are hopeful we will be in a position to air the show in January 2023.'

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association has long been a subject of ridicule from even its own telecast hosts.

Last year, comedian Ricky Gervais delivered a scathing monologue as host, saying at one point: 'Many talented people of color were snubbed in major categories. Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about that. Hollywood Foreign Press are all very racist.'

The HFPA has vowed to implement 'transformational changes' after NBC cancelled plans to broadcast next year's Golden Globes

HFPA has also come under fire following an investigative report in February by The Los Angeles Times that recounted the organization's questionable record on diversity - including, presently, no black members among its roughly 90 voting members.

The press association has pledged to thoroughly reform, and last week approved a plan to, among other things, diversity its membership. But that hasn't stopped several studios from threatening to pull out of the Globes.

The outcry against the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has gathered force over the last six weeks, as a film industry where racial and gender inequity long went unchecked has grown newly intolerant of the ways of the group, made up of mostly little-known journalists who profit considerably from the annual telecast.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association didn't address the 2022 telecast in responding to NBC's decision, but board members of the group laid out its schedule of reforms - ultimately leading to a revamped membership and board by early August, as well as numerous other policy changes.

'Regardless of the next air date of the Golden Globes, implementing transformational changes as quickly - and as thoughtfully - as possible remains the top priority for our organization,' the group said in a statement.

'We invite our partners in the industry to the table to work with us on the systemic reform that is long overdue, both in our organization as well as within the industry at large.'

Last week, the press association ratified plans to add at least 20 new members this year 'with a specific focus on recruiting Black members' and with a goal of increasing membership 50% over the next 18 months.

For some, that timeline wasn't aggressive enough. In the next few months, several potential awards contending films are set to premiere at film festivals and elsewhere. Tina Tchen, president and chief executive of Time's Up, called the HFPA's pledges 'window-dressing platitudes.'

'These measures ensure that the current membership of the HFPA will remain in the majority and that the next Golden Globe Awards will be decided with the same fundamental problems that have existed for years,' said Tchen.
Canada's 'fashion fairy godmother' is being pushed out of society circles after she had dinner at Mar-a-Lago and posted an image of herself with Donald Trump on Instagram.

Suzanne Rogers, a socialite philanthropist who married Rogers telecom heir and Toronto Blue Jays owner Edward Rogers - worth $11.57 billion - in 2006, is as famous for her over-the-top fashion statements as she is for sharing her family's wealth.

But her years of goodwill backing up-and-coming fashion stars, investing millions in Suzanne Rogers Fashion Institute at the Ryerson School of Fashion and raising nearly $4 million children's charities were quickly erased after she faced fierce criticism for the snap with the former president.

'People in Canada hate (Trump)  It's image suicide,' a Canadian insider told Page Six.

'She's become persona non grata. She's a huge donor to [the Canadian Arts & Fashion Awards] which is our version of the [Council of Fashion Designers of America], and two people even resigned from the board because of it.'

A spokesperson for the Rogers family told Page Six that they were at Mar-a-Lago for a family dinner.

'They were there for a family dinner. No one in the family has ever met him until a few seconds prior to departing while walking out,' the spokesperson said.

This Instagram photo post by Canada's Suzanne Rogers, which was deleted, created a sort of international scandal because of Canada's strong feelings against the former US president

Suzann Rodger, pictured here at the 2017 'House of Z' premiere, has been in hot water with Canada's fashion world after posting a picture of her with Donald Trump

Suzanne Rodgers posted this message on Instagram after the photo with Trump sparked controversy

Rogers tried to do damage control by issuing a statement on Instagram, saying: 'I do not have any kind of relationship with Donald Trump, good or otherwise.'

'I regret that my actions caused anyone to question my values or commitments to the communities and causes my family and I hold so dear,' she said in the social media post.

But it didn't seem to help, and as criticism piled up, she was uninvited from the Canadian Arts & Fashion Awards, the annual Suzanne Rogers Designer Grant Award was deferred, and at least two people resigned from the awards board in a sign of protest.

The president of the Canadian Arts & Fashion Awards 'made the decision to defer The Suzanne Rogers Designer Grant Award and Suzanne Rogers will not be attending this year's Gala,' Page Six reported.

The seventh annual awards gala, where a designer receives the Suzanne Rogers Designer Grant Award, will be hosted virtually on May 19 this year.

Ironically, the event is described as a unique evening that 'unite Canadian talent and fashion leaders from all over the world,' except Rogers will not be invited.

Suzanne's philanthopy in the fashion world drew many international celebrity designers, including Victoria Beckham and Zac Posen, to Canada for high society events.

Canadian designer Michael Zoffranieri, who admitted he benefitted from Rogers' backing, was one of the first of many to publicly distance himself from her and her family, saying on Instagram, 'We do not stand for white supremacy,' Refinery29.com reported.

Suzanne (right) married Edward Roger (left), who's worth $11.57 billion, in 2006 and they have a daughter Chloe (middle)

Suzanne Rogers, known as Canada's 'fashion fairy godmother' because of her fashion statements and hairstyles, has a long history of philanthropy that was seemingly erased after one photo with Trump. Suzanne's philantrhopy has drawn a host of celebrity designers to Canada, including Victoria Beckham (right) and Zac Posen (left).

The Ryerson School of Fashion, to which Suzanne has donated millions over the past years, also criticized her in a post, which has since been deleted, according to Refinery29.com.

In a tweeted statement, it said the the curriculum and culture at the school of fashion 'actively works to challenge, resist and undo the values, structures and practices of white supremacy, exclusion and discrimination that we feel Trump actively enforced and executed during his time [in office].'

The post also called out the impact of his presidency on 'members of the fashion industry who are low income, black, brown, Asian, disabled, indigenous, trans, queer and/or part of other systemically marginalized communities.'

After that post was removed Ryerson University issued a new, more generic statement about school's values and diversity.

'A previous post from the School of Fashion was not endorsed by Ryerson University and does not reflect Ryerson's views,' it said in its new statement.

'We are dedicted to creating and maintaining a culture that echoes our values and demonstrates a commitment to the whole person. At the same time, we will continue to seek out new ideas, we will remain curious about perspectives we do not yet know and we will be respectful of differing viewpoints.'

On the school's website, it still states: 'The Suzanne Rogers Fashion Institute (SRFI) is made possible through the generous gift from The Edward and Suzanne Rogers Foundation.'

This was the second of two tweeted statements from Ryerson University after Rogers' photo with Trump. The first once was deleted
Jeffrey Nicholas, 28, was arrested and charged with two counts of capital murder

A suspect shot and killed two central Texas sheriff's deputies and critically wounded a city employee while they were responding to a complaint about a dog at his home, authorities said Tuesday.

Neighbors claim several vicious dogs patrol the area, though it's unclear if one of them was the cause for the initial complaint.

Sgt. Justin Baker, of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said the suspect was taken into custody after Monday night's attack in Eden, a city of about 1,300 people roughly 210 miles southwest of Dallas.

The two Concho County sheriff's deputies and city employee arrived at the home shortly after 8:40pm, Baker said. While making contact with people at a home, 'an altercation occurred and quickly escalated to gunfire,' he said.

Witnesses heard around 9 or 10 gunshots. A standoff then lasted for approximately 30 minutes, a witness told KTXS, with the suspect claiming that he had constitutional rights.

Jeffrey Nicholas, 28, was arrested without further incident on two counts of capital murder of a peace officer.

A motive for the shooting has not been released at this point. The names of the police officers and city employee have also not been released.

The city employee who was wounded was shot in the stomach and rushed to Shannon Medical Center, located in San Angelo.

The scene shows a large gathering of law enforcement following the shooting

Two sheriff's deputies were killed in Eden, Texas while a city employee was shot in the stomach

Eden Mayor Pete Torres, who lives around the corner from the crime scene, helped defuse the situation and convince Nicholas to surrender, according to San Angelo Live!

There were reports of a brief car chase preceding the shooting, though the Texas Department of Safety did not comment on whether those reports were true.

The cause of the initial complaint is unclear, but neighbors claim there are six dogs that viciously terrorize the neighborhood where the shooting took place. The suspect claimed the dogs didn't belong to him, witnesses said.

The Lubbock Police Department said in a statement that it was 'heartbroken' to learn of the deaths and that its officers on Tuesday would escort the deputies' bodies to a forensics lab in Lubbock, which is about 200 miles northwest of Eden.

Gov. Greg Abbott said in a statement that 'our hearts are broken.'

'This terrible loss is a solemn reminder of the risks our brave law enforcement officers face while protecting our communities,' Abbott said.

Rep. August Pfluger also released a statement in response to the tragic shooting.

'Camille and I are absolutely devastated by the news that two of our Concho County Sheriffs deputies were killed in the line of duty last night in Eden. These officers protected the community until the very enddefending our freedoms, values, and safety. Though we are unable to thank them for their sacrifice, we will never stop honoring their legacy and service,' Pfluger said in a statement, according to KXAN.

'I've spoken with Judge Dillard, Mayor Torres, and Sheriff Miller to offer my condolences. My office stands ready to provide any support that we can,' Pfluger continued.

'We join with our Concho County neighbors in mourning the loss of these heroes. Please keep our entire law enforcement community in your prayers.'

Police departments across the region also took to Facebook to share condolences for the officers.

'We pray for all whose lives have been touched by tragedy, whether by accident or a deliberate act. For those who mourn, immerse them in your love and lead them through this darkness into your arms, and light,' the San Angelo Police Department wrote.

'Prayers for the Concho County Sheriffs Office and their two deputies families,' added the Coleman County Sheriffs Department.

The Texas Rangers are involved in the investigation of the shooting.

Deputies were responding to a dog complaint, though it's unclear what caused the complaint

Nicholas was booked at the Tom Green County Jail at 5:38am, where is bond is currently set at $4 million, $2 million for each count of capital murder.

The San Angelo Standard-Times reports that a candlelight vigil will be held in the victims' honor at Eden Square on Tuesday evening.

The shooting in Eden on Monday night was one of at least two cop killings that took place that evening.

West in California, one officer was killed and one was injured in a shooting incident in San Luis Obispo.

The officer who was injured in that shooting was listed in stable condition, while the suspected shooter was killed by the police, according to The San Luis Obispo Tribune.
Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has called on France to halt migration from outside the EU for up to five years, saying terrorists have infiltrated migration routes.

The 70-year-old, who is being tipped to run against President Macron in next year's election, said the pause is necessary so France can 'verify, evaluate and if necessary change' its immigration policies.

Mr Barnier, who previously served as France's agriculture minister, then warned of 'the terrorist networks which use migratory flows, which infiltrate them.'

France should also push the EU to adopt tougher migration policies at its external borders, he added.

His comments came after a group of French soldiers published an open letter to Macron on Monday, warning him of a 'civil war', and calling for military action against 'Islamist', in another sign of growing tensions in France.

Michel Barnier, who is being tipped to run in next year's French presidential election, has called for a three to five year moratorium on migration into France from outside the EU

The senior politician made the remarks on Sunday to a panel of French broadcasters and newspapers, as he ramps up his public profile ahead of the 2022 ballot.

Mr Barnier said the 'moratorium' would last between three and five years and would affect migrants trying to enter France from countries outside the EU.

It would not affect free movement from within the EU, he added, while students and asylum seekers would also be exempt.

'I do not think that all immigrants, and in particular those who try to cross the Mediterranean to reach a better future, are potential terrorists or potential delinquents,' he said.

'We will always welcome students, it is one of the strengths of French universities. There is always the question of the right of asylum that we must respect.'

'But there are real and serious problems, especially on the issue of immigration.'

Mr Barnier was likely referring to family reunification, whereby migrants who have been living in France for a certain length of time can bring their families from overseas to live with them.

The idea of a pause on immigration has become a popular among right-wing politicians in France in recent years, after a similar policy was brought in by Donald Trump during his tenure as US president.

Marine Le Pen, the far-right presidential candidate who is likely to be Mr Macron's main challenger according to polls, has also proposed a similar moratorium and wants to limit the overall number of migrants to 10,000 per year.

Mr Barnier's new posturing could be seen as an attempt to head off Ms Le Pen and divide her voter base, as he has previously spoken of a strong desire to see her beaten at next year's vote.

Mr Barnier warned of 'terrorist networks which [infiltrate] migratory flows' and said the moratorium is needed for France to 'evaluate and if necessary change' its policies (file)

Asked about her in the same interview where he put forward his migration proposal, Mr Barnier said there is 'no need' for Ms Le Pen to try and solve the problems of French people.

'I don't need Madame Le Pen to listen to and understand the problems of the French and to provide solutions,' he said.

'That's political responsibility. You will not make me go into the field of comparison with Madame Le Pen who represents a party whose history we know.'

Mr Barnier, who has spent the last five years negotiating the UK's exit from the EU, has now returned to frontline politics in France and appears to have set his sights on the top job.

He is due to publish a book, The Great Illusion, and dropped a hint in an interview last month that he could run as presidential candidate for the centre-right Les Republicains party.

Mr Barnier said he would make his intentions clear 'in the fall', but added: 'I want to.'

His hard-line on migration also comes just a day after a group of serving French soldiers published a new open letter to Macron warning of 'civil war' and calling for military action against 'Islamists'.

The letter was published in the right-wing magazine Valeurs Actuelles (Today's Values) on Sunday and echoes the tone of a similar letter printed in the same magazine last month.

The previous letter, signed by 1,000 people including serving officers and some 20 semi-retired generals, warned of the 'disintegration' of France because of radical Islamic 'hordes' living in the suburbs.

French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, a close ally of Macron, slammed the letter as a 'crude maneouvre' and accused its anonymous signatories of lacking 'courage'.

Prime Minister Jean Castex called the letter an unacceptable interference while France's top general vowed that those behind it would be punished for the 'absolutely revolting' letter.
The death penalty will be waived for US Army veteran Craig Lang, the alleged double murderer who fought as a mercenary for a far-right paramilitary group in Ukraine, the DOJ has said.

The government is hoping the lesser sentence could expedite the 30-year-old's extradition from Kiev where he is living under house arrest.

The US wants to try Lang in Florida for his role in the murders of Serafin 'Danny' Lorenzo Jr, 53, and Deana K. Lorenzo, 50, in 2018.

During a Zoom status hearing in Fort Myers yesterday, Jesus Casas, assistant US attorney for the Middle District of Florida, said the Department of Justice had agreed to Ukraine's demands not to pursue the death penalty.

Ukraine abolished the death penalty in 2000 and Lang and his lawyers have involved the European Court of Human Rights which ordered a stay on his extradition until they could conduct a review of his case.

But his alleged coconspirator in the double murder, Alex Zwiefelhofer, a fellow veteran who met Lang while fighting for the nationalist Right Sector group in Ukraine, is now in US custody and could still face capital punishment.

A family member of the Lorenzos welcomed the developments, saying they do not want Lang to face the death penalty, only to face justice, Buzzfeed reported.

The United States is seeking the extradition of Craig Lang, 29, a former US Army soldier, who is currently under house arrest in Ukraine

The two GIs are accused of robbing and murdering the couple in order to get money to travel to Venezuela.

The Lorenzos were found dead in a parking lot near the Galleria plaza in Estero, Florida, in April, 2018.

Danny, 53, had been shot seven times and his wife Deana, 51, had eleven bullet wounds, court documents revealed at the time.

Danny and Deana had traveled to Lee County in order to buy guns from the soldiers after responding to an online advertisement from a man 'named Jeremy', a federal indictment said.

The couple had withdrawn $3,000 in cash for the purchase of four Glocks, two 9mm pistols and nine high-powered rifles.

It is believed the soldiers then lured Danny and Deana to the Galleria parking lot, where they were robbed and killed.

The pair, who had both been discharged from the military, hoped to 'participate in an armed conflict against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela', a federal criminal complaint revealed.

Lang is wanted for his alleged role in the April 2018 killings of Serafin Danny Lorenzo Jr (left), 53, and Deana K. Lorenzo (right), 50, of Estero, Florida

They allegedly wanted the $3,000 in order to fund their journey, and had every intention of taking the guns with them.

Authorities found Danny's cell phone at the scene. It reportedly showed recent text messages with a person who claimed to want to sell him a firearm.

The text message was traced to a Walmart burner SIM card used by Zwiefelhofer, according to investigators.

A search of Zwiefelhofer's Google and Facebook histories showed he was traveling with Lang in Miami, according to court documents.

During that time, he searched phrases like 'Classified Miami Handguns,' 'Hotwire Boat Ignition Switch,' and 'How to Smuggle Myself to South America.'

Lang made his way back to Ukraine where he was detained by authorities but Zwiefelhofer was captured in Wisconsin and transferred to Florida.

Zwiefelhofer and Lang had reportedly been previously detained by Kenyan authorities after they tried to enter South Sudan in 2017, before the alleged killings.

When interviewed by a Customs and Border Protection officer, Lang said the pair fought with the 'Right Sector' - a Ukrainian nationalist paramilitary movement.

Zwiefelhofer, who is the son of the chief of police in Bloomer, Wisconsin, has pleaded not guilty.

Lang's future is further clouded by the fact that while the US government says he is a murderer, the formerly AWOL soldier is considered a hero in Ukraine.

'We know that in the US, he is very negative person in mass media,' his attorney, Dmitry Morgun, told NBC News.

Alex Zwiefelhofer, 22, another former Army soldier who went AWOL, is alleged to have helped Lang kill the couple in Florida

'In Ukraine, he is not. In Ukraine, he was a hero. He defends our interests and our country.'

Lang enlisted in the US Army when he was 18 years old. During his stint in the military, he served tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.

When he was 24 years old, he was discharged from the Army after he went AWOL.

Lang allegedly told his commander that he wanted to murder his wife. So he drove from Texas to North Carolina and took his military equipment with him.

The next spring, Lang flew to Ukraine to join a paramilitary militia - the Right Sector.

The Right Sector is a Ukrainian nationalist outfit that has attracted European and American right-wingers in their five-year-old armed campaign to remove Russian-backed separatists from the eastern part of the country.

In Ukraine, Lang met up with Zwiefelhofer, who also deserted the US Army to become a foreign fighter.

Zwiefelhofer traveled first to France and then to Ukraine.

Lang also joined another anti-Russia militia, the Georgian Legion, which has been known to fight alongside the Ukrainian military.

Authorities say that in 2017, both Lang and Zwiefelhofer left the Right Sector and traveled to South Sudan, where they hoped to fight the Islamist group al-Shabbab, an al-Qaeda-affiliated outfit based in East Africa.

But officials in Sudan did not allow them to enter the country. They were sent back to Kenya to obtain proper visas.

Shortly afterward, they were deported by Kenya.

Lang's passport was canceled because prosecutors say he failed to pay child support.

Zwiefelhofer, meanwhile, was arrested and booked into jail upon landing in Charlotte.

Authorities say they found child pornography on his cell phone. He was released on bond and then fled the state.

Lang made his way back to Ukraine where he was detained by authorities but Zwiefelhofer was captured in Wisconsin and transferred to Florida

Early last year, Lang and Zwiefelhofer chatted online about possibly traveling to Venezuela to fight against the government.

They allegedly planned to travel to Florida and steal a yacht, which they would then use to smuggle guns to 'South America or Ukraine.'

Prosecutors said in order to get the money they needed to go to South America, they robbed and killed the Lorenzo couple.

A month after the killing, authorities arrested Zwiefelhofer after he was allegedly caught lying on a gun purchasing form.

He told investigators that he left Miami after he and Lang ran out of money, though he denied killing the couple in Estero.

Lang has many admirers in Ukraine, a nation that is thankful to him for helping defend the country against its enemy, Russia.

He has used his status in Ukraine to get public support for his request for asylum.
Dr. Anthony Fauci and Rand Paul squared off on Tuesday over the origins of the coronavirus, with the Republican senator accusing the National Institutes of Health of funding risky Chinese research into bat coronaviruses that infect humans.

Paul accused Fauci and the NIH of supporting 'gain of function' research (which is essentially the study of how viruses are transmitted) with the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

'You are entirely and completely incorrect,' Fauci shot back. 'The NIH has not ever and does not now fund gain of function research in the Wuhan Institute.'

Paul, an ophthalmologist, wouldn't let up, repeatedly questioning Fauci on the matter, which has emerged in conservative circles as a conspiracy theory tied to the origins of the coronavirus.

Senator Rand Paul clashed with Dr. Anthony Fauci at a hearing a Senate hearing

Dr. Anthony Fauci snaps back at Senator Paul during questioning about the origins of COVID

Fact check on funding for Wuhan lab USA Today found it 'false' that any US funding led to the COVID outbreak. In 2014, NIH approved a grant to EcoHealth Alliance designated for research into 'Understanding the Risk of Bat Coronavirus Emergence.' The project involved collaborating with researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology to study coronaviruses in bats and the risk of potential transfer to humans. In total, $3,378,896 in NIH funding was directed from the government to the project. Over the course of the two grants approved by the NIH for EcoHealth Alliance, the Wuhan Institute received about $600,000 from the NIH, according to Robert Kessler, a spokesperson for EcoHealth Alliance. The funding was a fee for the collection and analysis of viral samples, the group said. It was directed toward SARS research. In the grant approved in 2014, about $133,000 was sent to the institute in the first four years and about $66,000 in the past year. In the second grant approved in 2019, about $76,000 was budgeted for the Wuhan Institute, though no money was sent before the grant's termination. The grant was terminated in April 2020. - USA Today fact check Advertisement

'Government defenders of gain of function such as yourself, say that COVID-19 mutations were random and not designed by man,' the Republican senator from Kentucky said.

He went on talk about reports that question how the coronavirus came into existence, including an unproven theory it was created in the Wuhan lab.

'Could you rule out a laboratory escape? The answer in this case is probably not. Will you in front of this group categorically say that the COVID-19 could not have occurred through serial passage in a laboratory,' he asked Fauci.

'I do not have any accounting of what the Chinese may have done and I'm fully in favor of any further investigation of what went on in China,' Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said.

'However I will repeat again, the NIH and NIAD categorically has not funded gain of function research to be conducted in the Wuhan Institute,' he added.

Republicans claim American funding of the research made its way to countries, including China, through U.S.-based EcoHealth Alliance, a group that says its purpose is to prevent pandemics.

But PolitiFact has said it's 'false' that NIAID funding was tied to experiments that may have led to the coronavirus pandemic. Both the NIH and EcoHealth Alliance denied any funds went to gain-of-function research.

Paul only had five minutes to question Fauci during the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee and he used it to repeatedly attack the medical expert.

'You're fooling with mother nature here. You're allowing super viruses to be created with a 15% mortality. It's very dangerous and it was a huge mistake to share this with China,' he said. 'We should be very careful to investigate where this virus came from.'

'I fully agree that you should investigate where the virus came from. But again, we have not funded gain of function research on this virus in the Wuhan Institute of Virology. No matter how many times you say it, it didn't happen,' Fauci said.

Senator Rand Paul repeatedly questioned Dr. Fauci on whether NIH funded research at the Wuhan lab in China

Dr. Anthony Fauci repeatedly denied Paul's claims, which have emerged in conservative circles as a conspiracy theory on the origins of COVID

The White House, in March, said it believes that China has 'not been transparent' in its report on the origins of COVID-19, which was written in collaboration with the World Health Organization.

The report dismissed claims that COVID-19 had escaped from a lab in Wuhan and instead said the transfer of infection from animals to humans was 'likely to very likely.'

The White House has called for 'unfettered access' to investigate the origins of the pandemic.

When the exchange between Paul and Fauci was over on Tuesday, Democratic Senator Tina Smith, who was next up to question Fauci, asked him: 'What is the impact of conspiracy theories peddled by Senator Rand Paul and others on Americans willingness to take this vaccine, a vaccine that, by all accounts is remarkable for its safety and efficacy.'

'Well, conspiracy theories certainly are not helpful in what we're trying to do. I guess I can say that with some degree of confidence,' Fauci replied.

It's not the first time Paul and Fauci have gone head-to-head. The Republican senator, in past hearings, grilled Fauci over mask wearing and other COVID-related matters.

The senator seemed ready to roll for Tuesday's hearing.

He wrote on Twitter on Monday: 'Looking forward to tomorrow's hearing, Dr. Fauci!'
Boris Johnson today confirmed he is pressing ahead with plans to hold tech giants accountable for the content published on their platforms.

A new Online Safety Bill has been included in the Queen's Speech which will place a duty of care on companies to 'improve the safety of their users online'.

Firms will be required to tackle illegal content and they will also have to set out in their terms and conditions what legal content they deem unacceptable.

The Government has said the terms and conditions must be enforced 'consistently and transparently'.

Meanwhile, Ofcom will be handed the power to impose fines of up to 18million or 10 per cent of annual global turnover - whichever is greater - to social networks that fail to comply.

For social media giants such as Facebook, this could mean fines of several billion pounds.

The new legislation proposed by Mr Johnson is not expected to affect popular news websites after fears were expressed the internet crackdown could hit free speech.

Concerns were raised last year that the legislation would not go far enough to protect legitimate news on the internet.

However, ministers have insisted the laws will not affect articles and comment sections on news websites, and there will be additional measures to protect free speech.

Boris Johnson today confirmed he is pressing ahead with plans to hold tech giants accountable for the content published on their platforms

Martin Lewis slams Government for failing to tackle online scams Consumer champion Martin Lewis has criticised the Government for not including scams in its new online safety plans set out in the Queen's Speech. The MoneySavingExpert.com founder has been battling fake online endorsement adverts for years, with many still falsely using his image and name to lure members of the public. Campaigners had hoped that the upcoming Online Safety Bill would include a crackdown on scams but it was not mentioned in the speech. Mr Lewis said the move leaves criminals to 'get away with fraud with impunity', telling the Government it has 'failed to protect millions'. 'The Queen read that "My Government will lead the way in providing internet safety for all, especially children",' he explained. 'Yet the Government has stumbled at the first fence, by not including scams in the Online Safety Bill. 'We live in a world where the policing of scams is dangerously underfunded, leaving criminals to get away with fraud with impunity. 'This was a chance to at least deny them the 'oxygen of publicity' by making big tech responsible for the scammers' adverts it is paid to publish. 'By not doing so the Government has failed to protect millions, in the midst of a pandemic, from one of the most damaging online harms to their financial and mental health.' The financial expert said he had a 'slim hope' that 'the door is ajar for scams to be added to the Bill at the committee stage' when the legislation passes through Parliament. Advertisement

The Queen's Speech to officially reopen Parliament said the Government will 'lead the way in ensuring internet safety for all, especially for children, whilst harnessing the benefits of a free, open and secure internet'.

As part of the plans, major platforms will be expected to set out clearly in their terms and conditions what legal content is unacceptable and to enforce rules consistently.

The Government also wants tech giants to ensure effective user reporting systems for harmful content are in place.

Alison Trew, senior child safety online policy officer at the NSPCC, said: 'The confirmation of an Online Safety Bill in the Queen's Speech is a significant step towards creating a Duty of Care for children in order to protect young users at a time when they face unprecedented risk online.

'The Government must learn from other regulated industries to ensure the Bill delivers an ambitious and effective framework for Ofcom to hold tech firms to account if their products cause avoidable harm to children.

'Ultimately legislation will be judged on whether it prevents harm and abuse, and works in the interest of children rather than simply embedding the status quo with regulation that is palatable only to big tech firms.'

Fact checking charity Full Fact said the move is 'a necessary and overdue response'.

'A year of conspiracy theories and false health advice has shown the threat bad information poses to all our lives,' the charity's chief executive, Will Moy, said.

'We cannot go on relying on the internet companies to make decisions on online misinformation without independent scrutiny and transparency.

'The Government's Online Safety Bill is a necessary and overdue response.

'But with fundamental rights at stake, it must be closely scrutinised by Parliament.

'The Bill should include measures to safeguard UK democracy and counter dangerous false information, while protecting  and enhancing  freedom of expression.'
Britain should give away a fifth of its Covid vaccines to help poorer countries protect their citizens, UNICEF said today.

The UK has orders for 517million doses but only needs around 160m to vaccinate all adults and give them booster jabs in the autumn, as planned.

Analysis by the UK arm of the United Nations Children's Fund claims that the country could have enough leftover doses to fully vaccinate 50m people  the population of Spain or South Korea.

And if all the vaccines currently in trials are approved this would soar to 115m, it said  almost double the population of South Africa.

Campaigners warned hogging vaccines and allowing the virus to continue spreading elsewhere would raise the risk of a new variant emerging and coming back to wreak havoc in Britain.

UNICEF said Britain could share 20 per cent of its current supply and still hit its goal of offering every adult a vaccine by the end of July. It claimed the UK could reach the target by July 9 and sharing the doses would only push it back by 10 days.

'Unless the UK urgently starts sharing its available doses to ensure others around the world are protected from the virus, the UK will not be safe from Covid,' said UNICEF UK's Joanna Rea.

Two thirds of adults in the UK have now had at least one vaccine dose and almost 18million are fully vaccinated. Real-world data suggests the jabs prevent eight to nine out of 10 severe Covid cases, almost all deaths and also slash transmission of the virus by half.

The UK has enough vaccine supplies on order to immunise the entire adult population many times over, including booster doses in the autumn

UK could approve Covid vaccines for children within weeks after US green lights plan for Pfizer's jab to be given to over 12s Britain could approve Covid vaccines for children within weeks following US health chiefs' decision to green light the move, UK scientists said today. America's regulator, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), last night approved plans for the Pfizer jab to be given to children aged 12 and above. No10 has reportedly already drawn up plans to vaccinate secondary school-aged children with Pfizer's two-dose jab from September. But experts are divided on whether Britain should press ahead with the policy, given that youngsters are at such tiny risk of Covid. Professor Anthony Brookes, professor of genetics and genome biology at the University of Leicester, told MailOnline: 'We should be worried about the completely unknown and unknowable long-term risks of vaccination of the young.' Dr Simon Clarke, an infectious disease expert at Reading University, said he expected British regulators to also approve the vaccine for children. But he added: I dont see any problem with vaccinating children  but it has to be recognised that it is only being done for wider society. Giving children coronavirus vaccines is morally complicated, and UK health chiefs have already said it would only be done if it was deemed necessary. Advocates of the move argue it would help protect older people by allowing Britain to move one step closer to 'herd immunity', curbing the spread of the virus. They also warn that while the immediate harms of Covid seem small to children, the dangers of 'long Covid' on them are still somewhat unknown. But critics say offering jabs to children would be unethical because it would only be done to protect older people  not youngsters themselves. Advertisement

UNICEF estimated that Britain could give away 20 per cent of its projected available stock and still meet its target to give all adults their first dose of vaccine by the end of July.

But it is not clear how many vaccines the UK is currently sitting on because of commercial agreements to keep the figures private.

The only data provided is the number of doses of each jab that have been dished out  28.5million of AstraZeneca, 19.5m of Pfizer and 100,000 of Moderna.

The charity warned that the success of the vaccination programme in the UK could be 'reversed' if supply is not shared.

Concerns have been raised that while the virus rages in other parts of the world there is more chance for new variants to emerge.

And experts have suggested that new variants could potentially escape the protection afforded by the vaccines.

UNICEF UK called on the Government and other G7 countries  Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US  to start sharing vaccines through Covax from June.

Ms Rea said: 'The UK has done a fantastic job in rolling out Covid vaccines to more than half of its adult population and we should all be proud of what has been achieved.

'However, we can't ignore that the UK and other G7 countries have purchased over a third of the world's vaccine supply, despite making up only 13 per cent of the global population  and we risk leaving low-income countries behind.

'Unless the UK urgently starts sharing its available doses to ensure others around the world are protected from the virus, the UK will not be safe from Covid-19.

'Our vaccine rollout success could be reversed and the NHS could be fighting another wave of the virus due to deadly mutations.'

On Monday Professor Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England, said the way to prevent or minimise the number of new variants is to 'get on top of' the pandemic globally.

And the World Health Organization said there was a 'shocking disparity' in access to Covid vaccines between rich and poor countries.

WHO director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press briefing: 'The shocking global disparity in access to Covid vaccines remains one of the biggest risks to ending the pandemic.

'High and upper-middle income countries represent 53 per cent of the world's population, but have received 83 per cent of the world's vaccines.

'By contrast, low and lower-middle income countries account for 47 per cent of the world's population, but have received just 17 per cent of the world's vaccines.'

He added: 'How quickly we end the Covid pandemic and how many sisters and brothers we lose along on the way, depends on how quickly and how fairly we vaccinate a significant proportion of the population and how consistently we all follow proven public health measures.'
Emotional Andrew Neil battled back tears today thanking This Morning hosts Holly Willoughby and Philip Schofield ahead of the launch of his GB News channel. The veteran journalist, 72, was bidding farewell to the daytime show before the start of his new endeavour. While he has a reputation as a fearless interrogator of politicians, he showed his softer side as his voice cracked with emotion at points. He has appeared on This Morning regularly to contribute to the magazine programme's topical new round-ups and debates. But today as the section ended he said: 'Listen, I wanted to come on today to thank you.' Holly told him 'Aw, well thank you! It's been wonderful having you here this year!' before Philip quizzed 'What are you thanking us for?'. Andrew, who hinted Piers Morgan was in discussions to join him, was visibly emotional and his voice wavered as he told them 'For being so kind, wonderful'. As Phillip wished him the best of luck, Holly joked 'Thank you, hope it goes well, thank you, you are soft sometimes'.
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Preakness officials will allow Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit to enter Saturday's race, subject to additional testing and monitoring, after a recent blood sample from the colt was found to contain a prohibited amount of an anti-inflammatory steroid.

Medina Spirit and two other horses trained by Bob Baffert will be under extra scrutiny in the days leading up to the second jewel of the Triple Crown. The Maryland Racing Commission and Baffert have agreed to the conditions for Medina Spirit, fellow Preakness runner Concert Tour and Beautiful Gift, who is expected to run in the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes on Friday.

Medina Spirit drew the No. 3 post in a field of 10 horses as the 9-5 morning-line favorite. Concert Tour drew the outside 10th post and is the second choice in the wagering at 5-2.

Baffert earlier Tuesday said it was brought to his attention that a veterinarian treated Medina Spirit with an antifungal medication to treat dermatitis that includes the steroid betamethasone. Medina Spirit failed a Kentucky Derby postrace drug test due to the presence of betamethasone.

Maryland Racing's chief veterinary officer, Dr. Dionne Benson, said at the draw that tests on the three Baffert horses are expected back Friday. This is an additional layer of blood testing added to the usual postrace tests.

Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit (pictured) was treated with an antifungal ointment containing the steroid betamethasone that caused the horse to fail a postrace drug test, trainer Bob Baffert said Tuesday. Medina Spirit is currently the Preakness favorite

In a statement issued by his lawyer, Baffert (pictured) said Medina Spirit was treated for dermatitis with the ointment once a day leading up to the May 1 race and that equine pharmacology experts have told him this could explain the test results

Preakness officials said Tuesday they are allowing Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit to enter Saturday's race subject to additional testing and monitoring

In a statement issued by his lawyer, Baffert said Medina Spirit was treated for dermatitis with the ointment once a day leading up to the May 1 race and that equine pharmacology experts have told him this could explain the test results.

Baffert said the horse tested positive for 21 picograms of the substance, which is typically given to horses therapeutically to help their joints and is a violation even at a trace amount on race day in Kentucky.

Regardless of the reason, Medina Spirit would be disqualified from the Derby if a second round of testing shows the presence of betamethasone.

'My investigation is continuing, and we do not know for sure if this ointment was the cause of the test results, or if the test results are even accurate, as they have yet to be confirmed by the split sample,' Baffert said. 'I have been told that a finding of a small amount, such as 21 picograms, could be consistent with application of this type of ointment.'

Baffert initially said at a news conference Sunday at Churchill Downs that he did not know how the substance made its way into the colt's system.

Lawyer Craig Robertson said the plan is still for Medina Spirit to run in the Preakness on Saturday. The Preakness post position draw is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.

Preakness officials said they were reviewing the facts before deciding on Medina Spirit's entrance. Robertson told The Associated Press he planned to file a restraining order to prevent the Preakness from barring Medina Spirit if that was the decision that was made.

Medina Spirit is currently a 7-2 favorite in the Preakness as Mandaloun and several other top competitors will not be running in Baltimore. Baffert said Monday that he will not attend the second leg of the Triple Crown to avoid being a distraction.

Baffert blamed Medina Spirit's bout with dermatitis after the colt failed a post-Derby drug test

Medina Spirit #8, ridden by jockey John Velazquez, (R) crosses the finish line to win the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby ahead of Mandaloun #7, ridden by Florent Geroux, and Hot Rod Charlie #9 ridden by Flavien Prat ,at Churchill Downs

Baffert on Monday blamed 'cancel culture' for his situation with Medina Spirit.

'I know when Churchill Downs came out with that statement, that was pretty harsh,' Baffert continued, referring to the Kentucky race track's decision to suspend him on Saturday after one of Medina Spirit's blood samples was found to contain a prohibited amount of the anti-inflammatory drug, betamethasone.

'With all the noise going out, we live in a different world now. This America is different. It was like a cancel culture kind of a thing. So they're reviewing it. I haven't been told anything. We're prepared to run [in Baltimore on Saturday].'

Medina Spirit is Baffert's fifth horse known to have failed a drug test in just over a year, but the California-based trainer is insisting that he and his horse are the victims of an 'injustice.'

'How do I move forward from this, knowing that something can happen?' Baffert asked. 'It's a complete injustice, but I'm going to fight it tooth and nail, because I owe it to the horse, I owe it to the owner, and to our industry.

'We're going to do a complete investigation, our own investigation, we're going to be transparent with the racing commission, like we've always been.'

Baffert's barn received word Saturday that Medina Spirit had tested positive for an excessive amount of betamethasone - the same drug that was found in the system of Gamine, another Baffert-trained horse who finished third in the Kentucky Oaks last September. Gamine was eventually disqualified from that finish because of that test and Baffert was fined $1,500.

Betamethasone is legal under Kentucky racing rules, though it must be cleared 14 days before a horse races.

Medina Spirit is currently a 7-2 favorite in the Preakness as Mandaloun and several other top competitors will not be running in Baltimore

In his defense, Baffert first claimed to have records proving that Medina Spirit was never treated with that particular anti-inflammatory drug.

'One thing about it, in California, everything is documented every day, what the horses get,' he said. 'This horse was never treated with that. He's a great horse. He doesn't deserve this. He ran a gallant race.'

Baffert has been immediately suspended from entering any more horses at Churchill Downs. He may also be forced to repay $1.86million in winnings he received

Speaking with reporters on Sunday, Baffert suggested that Medina Spirit is the victim of a nefarious plot.

'There's something wrong right now,' Baffert said. 'I've been talking about it, nothing seems to be done about it, but these contamination levels  and I'm not a conspiracy theorist, I know everybody's not out to get me, but there's definitely something wrong. Why is it happening to me? There's problems in racing, but it's not Bob Baffert. I just want to get that across to you guys.'

When asked to specify his allegations, Baffert declined to go into further detail.

'I'm not going to speculate,' he said. 'I have no idea where it came from. We don't know. We can't believe it's in there. The process has to start. We're going to investigate it thoroughly. That's all I can tell you on that?'

The track said failure to comply with the rules and medication protocols jeopardizes the safety of horses and jockeys, the sport's integrity and the Derby's reputation.

'Churchill Downs will not tolerate it,' the statement read. 'Given the seriousness of the alleged offense, Churchill Downs will immediately suspend Bob Baffert, the trainer of Medina Spirit, from entering any horses at Churchill Downs Racetrack.'
A security guard in China has been fired for posting an x-ray image of a woman's suitcase containing sex toys on social media.

The man had been working as a guard at Guangzhou-Foshan subway when he noticed the items inside the traveller's luggage during a regular security screening.

He was sacked after authorities discovered the post on Weibo, with Guangzhou Metro condemning the incident as 'leaking passenger privacy'.

A security guard in China has been fired for posting an x-ray image of a woman's suitcase containing sex toys on social media. The image is pictured above

The security guard had asked to look in the woman's bag after the x-ray detected metal objects.

Inside he found a whip, lingerie, an anal plug, a dildo, and other electric adult toys, according to a report in the South China Morning Post.

He sent the x-way image in a group chat, writing: 'There are many beautiful women in Guangzhou, but they are not so serious.

'She looked like Lin Chi-ling in her plaid skirt, but she had this in her bag.'

Someone noticed the post on social media and complained to the police, saying: 'How can someone as bad-mannered as this qualify as a security guard?

'Who gave you the right to take photos of commuters' personal belongings and leave inappropriate comments?'

The security guard claimed he had sent the images to a friend, who posted them online without his knowledge.

He was sacked from his position and handed over to Foshan police last Friday.

Guangzhou Metro said in a statement: 'We have zero tolerance of any action leaking passenger privacy.

'We have now asked our security check unit to investigate, restrict staff behaviour, and conduct legal and professional training to avoid similar incidents from happening again.'
His death not treated as suspicious but police described incidents as linked

Nicholas, 57, also died after falling from car park in Newport city centre

Kerry Bradford, 57, was found dead at her home in Bettws, Newport, Wales

A woman was found stabbed to death at her home just hours after her husband plunged 100ft from a car park, an inquest heard today.

Kerry Bradford, 57, was found dead at her home in Monnow Way in Bettws, Newport, Wales, by police with 'multiple stab wounds to the neck' on April 25.

About 90 minutes earlier, officers had been called to the Kingsway multi-storey car park in Newport, Gwent, which lies just three miles away, following reports that a man had fallen.

The man, who was pronounced dead at the scene, was later identified as Mrs Bradford's 57-year-old husband Nicholas Bradford.

His death was not treated as suspicious although Gwent Police described the incidents as linked.

Kerry Bradford, 57, and her husband Nicholas, also 57, both died in Newport, Wales, on April 25

After finding Mr Bradford, police liaison officers visited the Bradford's home in Monnow Way, to inform Mrs Bradford of her husband's death.

However when officers did not receive a response from Mrs Bradford they smashed their way into the detached property, where the couple had lived since 2006.

At Newport Coroners' Court on Tuesday, senior coroner for Gwent Caroline Saunders said officers found Mrs Bradford, who worked as a store assistant at Tesco, lying in the living room with 'multiple stab wounds to the neck'.

Ms Saunders described it as a 'violent death' which was still under investigation, adding that the deceased was identified from a photograph provided to officers by her family.

Mr Bradford's post-mortem examination revealed that he died from severe head injuries sustained from his fall. He was also identified from a family photo.

The hearing into both deaths, which might be conducted as a joint inquest, was adjourned until May 24, 2022.

Following the horrific killing, neighbour Hilda Frisell, 78, said: 'I don't know what would possess someone to do such an awful thing.

'They were well liked in the street and would always say hello when I was passing.

'They have children and grandchildren, it's terrible for them, they've lost their mum and dad and their grandparents.

'We've all been through bad times at the moment but for something like this to happen it's just dreadful.'

A spokesman for Gwent Police said at the time: 'Officers are continuing to carry out enquiries in the Bettws area of Newport following the death of a woman.

'57-year-old Kerry Bradford was found deceased at an address in Monnow Way at about 6.15pm on Sunday, April 25.

'The death is being treated as suspicious, specialist officers are continuing to support the family and our thoughts remain with them.

Mrs Bradford was found dead at her home in Monnow Way in Bettws, Newport, Wales, after her husband fell from the Kingsway multi-storey car park in Newport, Gwent

Officers smashed their way into the detached property, where the couple had lived since 2006, to find Mrs Bradford lying in the living room with 'multiple stab wounds to the neck'. Pictured: Police outside the home

'At this time we are not looking for anyone else in connection with her death, which is being linked to another death on Sunday afternoon.

'At around 4.40pm we also had a call reporting that a man had fallen from the Kingsway car park in Newport city centre.

'The man was confirmed dead at the scene. His death is not being treated as suspicious.

'We'd like to thank the local community for their continued support as officers carry out enquiries in the local area.'

Speaking after the tragedy, Councillor Janet Cleverly said: 'It is devastating news. My thoughts go out to those involved.

'It has come as a shock to the whole community. It's just awful news and my thoughts and sympathies are with those left behind.'
Organisers Global Justice Now said the action is also to persuade Oxford University to make future medical innovations open-licensed

Protesters demanding that AstraZeneca share its Covid-19 vaccine technology have clashed with police outside the pharmaceutical giant's headquarters.

A group of mostly young activists blocked the entrance to the firm's main building in a Cambridge business park.

The protestors are accusing the pharmaceutical company of profiting during the pandemic and to demand the jab is openly licensed and shared with the World Health Organisation (WHO).

One protester holding a sign reading 'human life not profit', chained himself to a door while others climbed on to the roof of the entryway and unfurled a banner which read 'people's vaccine not profit vaccine'.

Other masked activists were seen in videos chanting and beating drums and a banner unfurled at the site read: 'We demand a people's vaccine.'

There have been reports of at least two arrests at the gathering. Uniformed officers could be seen nearby.

Protesters demanding that AstraZeneca share its Covid-19 vaccine technology have clashed with police outside the pharmaceutical giant's Cambridge headquarters

The demonstration, organised by Global Justice Now, is demanding the pharmaceutical firm share Covid vaccine blueprints with the World Health Organization

Global Justice Now said the action, which coincided with AstraZeneca's annual general meeting, also seeks to persuade Oxford University to make all of its future medical innovations open-licensed

The Telegraph reported that activists have also gathered at AstraZeneca's Macclesfield site in Cheshire and at the University of Oxford, which worked with AstraZeneca to develop the vaccine.

Global Justice Now, who organised the protests, said the action, which coincided with AstraZeneca's annual general meeting, also seeks to persuade Oxford University to make all of its future medical innovations open-licensed.

Nick Dearden, director of Global Justice Now, said: 'Scientists at Oxford University, a publicly-funded institution, developed this lifesaving vaccine through a research and development process that was 97 per cent publicly funded.

The social justice organisation claims that AstraZeneca has not yet joined the WHO's Covid-19 Technology Access Pool, which facilitates the sharing of technology for vaccines and treatments

The protestors are accusing the pharmaceutical company of profiting during the pandemic and to demand the jab is openly licensed and shared with the World Health Organisation (WHO)

A group of mostly young activists blocked the entrance to the firm's main building in a Cambridge business park

'The resulting vaccine should have been openly accessible to everyone, but AstraZeneca swooped in and privatised it.

'The UK is reaping the benefits of the highly effective vaccines that are now available, but people in low and middle-income countries are still dying daily by the thousands from Covid-19.

'AstraZeneca like to portray themselves as the good guys, but they've boycotted attempts to pool the vaccine knowledge they control just like all the other pharma giants - and now claim they have no time to share this knowledge globally.

There have been reports of at least two arrests at the gathering. Uniformed officers could be seen nearby

One protester holding a sign reading 'human life not profit', chained himself to a door while others climbed on to the roof of the entryway and unfurled a banner which read 'people's vaccine not profit vaccine'

Nick Dearden, director of protest organisers Global Justice Now, said: 'Scientists at Oxford University, a publicly-funded institution, developed this lifesaving vaccine through a research and development process that was 97 per cent publicly funded

'Today, we're demanding AstraZeneca pool this publicly created knowledge so the whole world can ramp up production of these vaccines.'

The social justice organisation claims that AstraZeneca has not yet joined the WHO's Covid-19 Technology Access Pool, which facilitates the sharing of technology for vaccines and treatments.

It comes as the group put up posters at bus stops across the UK over the weekend to highlight the level of public investment in vaccine research and development and the profits made by pharmaceutical companies.

A spokesperson for AstraZeneca said: 'We agree with the view that the extraordinary circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic call for extraordinary measures.

'AstraZeneca has risen to the challenge of creating a not-for-profit vaccine that is widely available around the world, and we are proud that our vaccine accounts for 98% of all supplies to COVAX.

'We have established 20 supply lines spread across the globe and we have shared the IP and know-how with dozens of partners in order to make this a reality. In fact, our model is similar to what an open IP model could look like.'
The boss of collapsed finance company Greensill apologised today and said he takes full responsibility as the City watchdog launched a probe into the firm.

Lex Greensill, whose firm is at the heart of a lobbying row featuring former prime minister David Cameron, told MPs today he was sad about the impact on its 1,000 staff and its clients.

But he sidestepped questions about his relationship with companies like Liberty Steel - which faces an uncertain future - for legal reasons.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said it is formally investigating how two Greensill companies failed, and how one of them was overseen by a company whose licence it piggybacked on to operate in the UK.

Facing MPs for the first time since the explosion of the lobbying scandal earlier this year, Australian banker Mr Greensill said 'Please understand that I bear complete responsibility for the collapse of Greensill Capital.

Lex Greensill, whose firm is at the heart of a lobbying row featuring former prime minister David Cameron, told MPs today he was sad that 1,000 had lost their jobs with the finance house.

David Cameron 's toe-curling barrage of messages to ministers and officials as he lobbied on behalf of Greensill were revealed today.

David Cameron's toe-curling barrage of messages lobbying ministers David Cameron's toe-curling barrage of messages to ministers and officials as he lobbied on behalf of Greensill were revealed today. The Treasury Committee has published a full list of the former PM's contacts after he disclosed them ahead of an evidence session tomorrow. They show that he fired off an array of texts and emails, some signed 'Love Dc' and suggesting meet-ups for 'elbow bumps'. The powerful cross-party committee is investigating the collapse of Greensill Capital and lobbying of the Treasury and Bank of England on its behalf. Mr Cameron has denied breaking any lobbying rules, but admitted he should have made approaches in a more formal way. The messages revealed today include to Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove. He also contacted vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi. One text message to Mr Gove on April 3 last year acknowledged the minister is 'manically busy', adding: 'But do you have a moment for a word? I am on this number and v free. All good wishes Dc.' Advertisement

'I am desperately saddened that more than 1,000 very hard working people have lost their jobs at Greensill. Likewise I take full responsibility for any hardship being felt by our clients and their suppliers, and indeed investors in our programmes.

But at the same time he said the decision of the company's leading insurer, Tokio Marine, ultimately led to the collapse.

He said that Covid-19 and the actions of authorities in Germany had played a role in the insurance company's decision.

'It's deeply regrettable that we were let down by our leading insurer whose actions assured Greensill's collapse, and indeed some of our biggest customers.

'To all of those affected by this. I am truly sorry.'

Separately, FCA boss Nikhil Rathi said that there have been a number of allegations about the circumstances in which Greensill failed, 'some of which are potentially criminal in nature'.

'We are also co-operating with counterparts in other UK enforcement and regulatory agencies, as well as authorities in a number of overseas jurisdictions,' he said in a letter to MPs on the Treasury Select Committee, released on Tuesday.

US-based Mirabella Advisers allowed Greensill Capital Securities to sell products here using its license with the FCA.

In March Mirabella ended its relationship with Greensill which had been in place since 2017.

It made Greensill Capital Securities an appointed representative (AR) of Mirabella.

'A principal firm (in this case, Mirabella) is responsible for ensuring that, on an ongoing basis, its AR complies with the requirements, rules and regulations of the FCA,' Mr Rathi said.

Greensill collapsed earlier this year and its relationship to David Cameron, who lobbied for the firm, has been thrown into the limelight.

The company's main business was so-called supply-chain finance, which ensures that suppliers get paid more rapidly by their customers than normal.

Greensill would pay suppliers directly, and then collect the money later from the customer. It made its money by charging a fee that offset the risk of the customer going bust before it could pay.

Greensill's collapse caused shockwaves among its customers, with worries that some could fail, putting thousands of jobs on the line.

But Greensill also had a product that it wanted to run with the NHS which would - for free - offer to pay nurses and doctors their salary on a daily basis.

It would, Greensill argued, reduce their need for payday loans.

However, FCA notes released on Tuesday show that in 2019 founder Lex Greensill said that the scheme would be free for the NHS, but that it was an 'add on' product as 'they are already making a lot from Greensill contracts'.

Mr Greensill offered the service to 18 other employers as a 'foot in the door,' the FCA notes reveal.

At the time FCA executive director strategy and competition Christopher Woolard warned that good innovative ideas can go wrong, but that there could also be upsides.
President Joe Biden will have a medical check-up before the end of the year, according to the White House, which said the results would be made public.

Officials are reluctant to discuss the 78-year-old's health.

But every verbal gaffe, every cough and every stumble prompt questions about whether the oldest president in history will be able to keep up a busy schedule for his full four-year term.

The White House says Biden will have a medical checkup before the end of the year and the results will be released to the public

His most recent summary came during the campaign in 2019 and concluded that he was fit to fully discharge the powers of the presidency

His administration promised full transparency but has not released an update to the three-page medical summary released about 17 months ago.

'The president is planning to have a check-up later this year, and the results will be released to the public,' White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates told DailyMail.com on Tuesday.

The question has been raised several times at White House daily briefings.

On Friday, Press Secretary Jen Psaki said she was not aware of an appointment being scheduled.

'I don't have an update at this moment,' she said.

'But certainly, when he has his next medical appointment, we will be transparent about that and provide that information to all of you.'

His last summary was released in December 2019, when his physician Dr Kevin O'Connor described the then candidate as a 'healthy, vigorous, 77-year-old male, who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the presidency.'

He also noted Biden was being treated for atrial fibrillation and took medicine for seasonal allergies and occasional reflux.

Biden suffered an embarrassing stumble on the steps of Air Force One in March before flying to Georgia. He often jogs to the foot of the stairs and hops up one or two steps when he knows the cameras are trained on him

However, his opponents have seized on every misstep as evidence of growing frailty.

In December, he fractured his foot while playing with one of his dogs, forcing him to wear an orthopedic boot as it healed.

And then in March he stumbled three times as he climbed the steps to Air Force One before a trip to Georgia.

It marked an embarrassing moment for a man given to little displays of vigor when the cameras are trained on him.

Biden frequently jogs to the steps of the presidential aircraft and the White House has issued multiple slow-motion videos of the president striding purposefully about his business.

Stuart Jay Olshansky, a professor of public health at the University of Illinois who studies the longevity of presidents, said his analysis suggested Biden had all the hallmarks of a 'superager,' someone who would remain active later into life.

But he said his assessment was only as good as the information he could analyze.

'We have to rely on the validity of the information,' he said. 'We don't know what isn't included. We can only rely on what is available.'
A tragic 25-year-old woman was found hanged after breaking up with her boyfriend and struggling to cope with the isolation of lockdown, an inquest has heard.

Katy Goodwin, from Sheffield, South Yorkshire, was found dead at a friend's house on December 6 last year, only weeks after seeking professional help for mental health difficulties.

Sheffield Coroner's Court heard the university graduate had recently broken up with her long-term boyfriend and that this likely contributed to her affected mental state.

It was also heard how Ms Goodwin was living alone for the first time in her life and that, as a result, she struggled to cope with last year's lockdowns.

The inquest was told Ms Goodwin sought help for mental health issues in the weeks before her death and she was prescribed antidepressants but struggled with them.

Katy Goodwin, 25, from Sheffield, was found dead at a friend's house on December 6 last year, after breaking up with her boyfriend, struggling to cope with the isolation of lockdown and only weeks after seeking professional help for mental health difficulties

She had also attended A&E for her mood in late November, had called the crisis team for further help and was due to attend another mental health appointment at the time she died.

A psychiatrist determined she had been suffering from mixed anxiety and depressive disorder.

The court heard Ms Goodwin was found dead at her friend's house in Sheffield on December 6, 2020, and that her cause of death was determined as hanging.

Ms Goodwin's parents, who were both present in court, said her independence meant she hid things from them and as a result they had no idea her problems had got so bad.

Her father Steven said: 'We were proud as anything of her. She was the perfect daughter.

'She had so many good friends who are all devastated. It is just a tragic loss for us.'

Assistant coroner Katy Dickinson decided not to record a conclusion of suicide due to the particular circumstances of Ms Goodwin's death

Her mother Joanne added: 'You would never have thought she would have done this. She had everything to live for.

'I just wish someone could have told us. She didnt want to die.'

Assistant coroner Katy Dickinson decided not to record a conclusion of suicide due to the particular circumstances of Ms Goodwin's death.

She said the lack of a note, the fact Ms Goodwin had sought help on numerous previous occasions and was with someone at the time she died meant that verdict was not possible.

These factors led her to believe her actions may have been an 'expression of distress' rather than something done with the intention of ending her life, she added.

Ms Dickinson concluded Ms Goodwin died as a result of misadventure.
Undercover police officers have arrested a vaccination center worker in Argentina for selling stolen doses of the Chinese Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine in the street.

Leonardo Alvarado was arrested in Berisso, near Buenos Aires, after a tip off.

A woman, who has not been named, approached her neighbor, Mayor Fabian Cagliardi, to inform him that a man had offered to sell her the immunization shot at $53 a dose.

In a sting operation, officers confiscated eight vials of the Sinopharm vaccine from a bag Alvarado was carrying. Agents also seized 12 empty vaccine jars, syringes, and a cooler to keep the coronavirus immunization doses chilled.

As part of the investigation, authorities recorded a phone call in which the woman agreed to purchase the Sinopharm coronavirus vaccines from a man who identified himself as Alvarado.

The 48-year-old claimed that while the vaccines were being offered free-of-charge by the Argentine government, he saw himself fit to sell the doses because the vaccination center where he is employed had withheld his checks, police say.

Leonardo Alvarado was arrested Monday during an undercover sting led by Argentine cops in the Buenos Aires town of Berisso after he agreed on a recorded phone line to sell stolen doses of the Chinese Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine

Authorities say they confiscated eight vials of the Sinopharm vaccine from a bag Alvarado was carrying. Agents also seized 12 empty vaccine jars, syringes, and a cooler to keep the coronavirus immunization doses from going bad

Leonardo Alvarado was charged with aggravated theft and attempted fraud

In the recorded phone call, Alvarado is alleged to have said: 'I don't want to thank you because I'm not an idiot and I'm not dummy. I know this can't be done. It's free because it's true, the vaccine is free. But well, we are in a conflict, we haven't been paid in four months.

'We go to work every day. We do everything we have to do and they do not pay us. We don't like. . I also don't want to justify myself, but if you want to thank me, your gratitude is welcome, but it's not fair. I am not comfortable.'

Allegations that Alvarado had not been paid were dismissed by Buenos Aires Health Minister Daniel Gollan during a press conference Tuesday. He showed reporters a copy of Alvarado's last pay stub he received from the State Worker's Association.

'Apparently what this person was doing, he kept a small vial and filled them with some substance and cheated people,' Gollan said. 'We stopped him and he will have to pay the consequences. It is a despicable act.'

Leonardo Alvarado (pictured in the grey hoodie) under the custody of Buenos Aires cops moments after he was arrested Monday for selling the Chinese Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine

Evidence collected from Leonardo Alvarado after he was arrested during an undercover operation Monday in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The 48-year-old spoke on a recorded phone line with a resident of the Buenos Aires town of Berisso and agreed to sell her four doses of the Chinese Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine without knowing that she had informed her neighbor, who happened to the mayor

Leonardo Alvarado is filmed by a surveillance camera completing a transaction with an undercover cop for the sale of the Chinese-made Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine Monday in Buenos Aires, Argentina

During the conversation, Alvarado told the woman that he only had four doses of the Sinopharm vaccine and promised to meet with her Wednesday to provide her an additional four doses.

Surveillance footage shows Alvarado meeting with an individual who appears to be an undercover police officer at a park to complete the deal before a team of agents arrived and apprehended him.

Alvarado was charged with aggravated theft and attempted fraud.

Data released by John Hopkins University on Tuesday showed that Argentina has the 13th highest death toll in the globe since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic with 67,821 confirmed deaths.

Argentina is 11th in the world with 3,165,121 cases.

Leonardo Alvarado (left) with agents of the Buenos Aires police after he was arrested for selling doses of the Chinese Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine

Last Friday, the World Health Organization authorized the emergency use of China's Sinopharm.

The move means Sinopharm could become part of the United Nations-backed COVAX program in coming weeks or months and distributed through UNICEF and the WHOs Americas regional office.

Sinopharm has not published its late-stage test results in scientific journals, so the WHO requested a breakdown of its data, which come mostly from the United Arab Emirates.

'(We) came to the conclusion that there is enough evidence of safety and the capacity of the vaccine to prevent severe disease or symptomatic and hospitalized cases up to 79%,' said Dr. Alejandro Cravioto, who heads the WHO advisory group on immunizations. 'The information we have for people over 60 is still very scarce.'

'There is no reason to think that the vaccine would behave differently in this older age group,' he added.
Andrew Peterson, 22, from Wisconsin, has been charged with battery, disorderly conduct, bail jumping and possession of an electronic weapon for allegedly tasering his 43-year-old mother in the neck on Mother's Day

Instead of presenting his mother with a bouquet of blossoms or a greeting card for Mother's Day, police in Wisconsin say a man hit the woman who gave him life with a Taser after getting into a tizzy over his missing phone.

Andrew Peterson, 22, was arrested on Sunday on charges of battery, disorderly conduct, bail jumping and possession of an electronic weapon stemming from the attack on his parent.

According to a press release from the Richland County Sheriff's Office, a 43-year-old woman called 911 shortly before 2.45pm on Sunday to report that her adult son had just Tasered her in the neck during a domestic dispute at her home in Lone Rock, which is about 45 miles west of Madison.

The victim said that her son, later identified as Andrew Peterson, 'became upset because he could not find his phone.'

After the Taser attack, Peterson, his girlfriend, 20-year-old Colleen Parker, and their young child, who had all been living with his mother for the past several months, left her home in the 1000 block of Sunflower Street.

Peterson was allegedly upset because he could not find his phone. The 22-year-old has a criminal record that includes multiple convictions

Peterson's girlfriend and the mother of his child, 20-year-old Colleen Parker, allegedly admitted to punching his mother in the face three days prior

Deputies who responded to the domestic disturbance call arrested Peterson and Parker a short time later in Richland Center.

Under questioning, Peterson allegedly admitted to deploying the stun gun against his parent on Mother's Day, and his girlfriend allegedly confessed to punching the woman in the face during an earlier confrontation on Thursday.

Parker was charged with battery and disorderly conduct.

Court records indicate that Peterson has a prior criminal history, which includes convictions for DUI, possession of drug paraphernalia and trespassing.
A nursing assistant who murdered seven elderly veterans at a VA hospital in West Virginia has been sentenced to seven life sentences - one for each of the victims.

Reta Mays, 46, claimed that she was ending her victims' suffering once she was caught by police, but investigators found she was fascinated with serial killers and had researched them online.

She killed Robert Edge Sr., Robert Kozul, Archie Edgell, 84, George Shaw Sr, 81, Felix McDermott, 82, Raymond Golden, and W.A.H. - identified as William Alfred Holloway, 96 between 2017 and 2018 while working the night shift.

According to police, she would stand by afterwards and watch her colleagues try to revive them after she administered fatal insulin injections.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Kleeh told her 'you knew what you were doing' before sentencing her to seven consecutive life terms, a punishment that means she'll likely die in prison

'Several times your counsels made the point that you shouldnt be considered a monster. Respectfully, I disagree with that. You are the worst kind. Youre the monster that no one sees coming,' he said.

Mays cried and apologized in addressing the court briefly before learning her sentence.

'I know that theres no words that I can say that would alter the families pain and comfort,' she said.

'I don't ask for forgiveness because I don't think I could forgive anyone for doing what I did.'

Reta Mays, 46, was given 7 life sentences for 7 elderly veterans she killed while working at a Veteran Affairs hospital between 2017 and 2018

The victims: Robert Kozul (left) and John Hallman (right). John Hallman, 87, was cremated, although his daughter said he had an unexplained drop in blood sugar levels before he died

Pictured) George Shaw Sr. (left) Archie Edgell (center) and William Alfred Holloway (right)

Felix McDermott (pictured) is one of seven killed victims named. Others include Robert Edge Sr., Robert Kozul, Archie Edgell, George Shaw Sr and Raymond Golden

While the deaths accumulated during her overnight shifts at the hospital in 2017 and 2018, Mays conducted internet searches on female serial killers and watched the Netflix series 'Nurses Who Kill,' Kleeh said.

He also said she repeatedly denied her involvement, telling investigators three times that she had no knowledge of the crimes.

Hospital officials reported the deaths to the VA inspector general and fired Mays after evidence pointed to her.

An interview with Mays after her guilty plea was included in a lengthy report released after Tuesday's sentencing by the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General detailing deficiencies at the hospital.

In it, she said she administered insulin to patients she believed were suffering so they that could pass 'gently.' She said she also had great stress and chaos in her personal and professional life, and that her actions gave her a sense of control.

But Assistant U.S. Attorney Jarod Douglas called her actions 'predatory and planned, not reactionary.'

'These men were not in need of mercy by the defendant,' Douglas said. 'In the end it wasn't the defendant's call to make.'

Mays' attorney, Jay McCamic, described her long history of depression, anxiety, mental health and other medical issues, including a trip to the emergency room when a patient knocked her unconscious with a punch to the face in May 2016.

The devastated granddaughter of one of the victims - Tina Hickman - said last year that she wanted to know why Mays went on her killing rampage

'Many, many people ask why, why did Reta do this?' McCamic said. 'Most people want to have a nice, linear story applied to the conspiracy, a unified motive of why someone would set upon the idea of taking the life of others and go forth with that idea. Unfortunately, why is not a question that can be answered here. Reta doesn't know why. Her family doesn't know why.'

Mays, of Reynoldsville, had served in the Army National Guard in a noncombat position in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Her duties at the hospital included measuring patients vital signs and blood glucose levels. VA nursing assistants are not qualified or authorized to administer medication, including insulin, prosecutors said.

The hospital's nursing assistants also were not required to have a certificate or license as a condition of continuing employment.

Then-U.S. Attorney Bill Powell said there were about 20 suspicious deaths at the medical center during the time Mays worked there, but charges were only brought in cases where the government thought it had sufficient evidence.

She also was sentenced to an additional 20 years for assault with intent to commit murder involving the death of Navy veteran Russell R. Posey Sr., 92.

Separately, the federal government has agreed to the settlement of numerous lawsuits filed by veterans families alleging a widespread system of failures at the hospital.

The VA is responsible for nine million military veterans. The agency's former director was fired in 2018 in the wake of a bruising ethics scandal and a mounting rebellion within the agency.
3D Printing in Healthcare Market Overview

reach $2.5 billion by 2026 , growing at a CAGR of 17.75% from 2021 to 2026. 3D printing is a process in which materials are joined or hardened under the control of a computer to create a 3D object, with material being added together (such as liquid molecules being fused together). 3D printing is used in both rapid prototyping The 3D printing in Healthcare Market is forecast tofrom 2021 to 2026. 3D printing is a process in which materials are joined or hardened under the control of a computer to create a 3D object, with material being added together (such as liquid molecules being fused together). 3D printing is used in bothand additive manufacturing. The shape or geometry of an object can be of any type and is produced typically using digital model data from a 3D model or other electronic data source. The increasing adaptation of 3D printing technologies into healthcare helps the market to grow at a high rate. The increasing adoption is because of the wide spectrum of 3D printing applications in healthcare. In 2020, printers have dominated the market share in terms of revenue, and the market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 16.1% throughout the forecast period.

Report Coverage

The report: 3D Printing in Healthcare Market Forecast (2021-2026) , by IndustryARC covers an in-depth analysis of the following segments of the 3D Printing in Healthcare Market.

By Technology : Laser Beam Melting (LBM), Electron Beam Melting (EBM), Photo Polymerization, Droplet Deposition, Laminated Object Manufacturing, Wax Deposition Modeling, Bio Printing..

By Type: Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), Thermal Inkjet Printing (TIJ), Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), Stereo Lithography (SLA), Binder Jetting (BJ), Material Jetting.

By Material : Donor Cells, Plastics, Photopolymers, Metals, Ceramics, Bone Cement, Polylactic Acid (PLA), Others.

By Application : Prosthetics, Surgical Implants, Hearing Aids, Dental Implants, Tissue Engineering, Drug Screening Prosthetics, Surgical Implants, Hearing Aids, Dental Implants, Tissue Engineering,, Surgical Guides, Medical Components, Others.

By Geography : North America (U.S, Canada, Mexico), South America(Brazil, Argentina and others), Europe (Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain, Russia and Others), APAC(China, Japan India, SK, Aus and Others), and RoW (Middle east and Africa).

Key Takeaways

Metal 3D printing is a precise and cost-effectual method for the manufacturing of template components and as an end components for use in different environments, without the investment in time and money of conventional tooling.

Rising demand for implant customizations during surgical procedures coupled with growing R&D investments is also driving the global 3D Printing in healthcare market.

One of the major challenges in the global 3D Printing in Healthcare Market is the high cost of 3D printers.

Lack of skilled professional and stringent government regulations are challenging the growth of the market.

3D Printing in Healthcare Market Segment Analysis - By Type

SLS Printing has dominated the 3D Printing in Healthcare Market as compared to the other types. SLS Printer uses powdered material as the substrate for printing new objects. A laser draws the shape of the object in the powder, fusing it together. Then a new layer of powder is placed and the process repeats building each layer one by one to form the object. Laser sintering is used to create plastic, metal and ceramic objects. The degree of detail is limited only by the accuracy of the laser and the quality of the powder, so it is possible to create detailed and delicate structures with this type of printer. Fused Deposition Modeling printers are more common and inexpensive than the Selective Laser Sintering printers. However their applications are currently limited.

3D Printing in Healthcare Market Segment Analysis - By Applications

The applications include the medical uses such as, organ fabrication, anatomical models, and creation of customized prosthetics, drugs and tablets and many more. The end users include Prosthetics, Medical Components, Tissue Engineering, Hearing Aids, Surgical Guides, Dental Implants, Drug Screening and many more. 3D printing has been used by the manufacturing industry for decades to produce product prototypes. Many manufacturers use large, fast 3D printers called rapid prototyping machines to create models and molds. This is mainly owing to shorter treatment times, less invasive, Less post-operative strain which are contributing to the growth of this segment.

3D Printing in Healthcare Market Segment Analysis - By Geography

North America is the leading market in the 3D Printing in Healthcare Market with 39% of the total share and it is followed by Europe. U.S. is majorly contributing towards to the development and increasing share in Americas market. In Americas regions, the Stereo lithography (SLA) is a leading technology majorly adopted in 3D printing market. With the improvement of a variety of processes in 3D printing technology in healthcare, SLA has continued to surpass its initial application in modeling and prototyping. The technology is capable to design highly complex and individually designed geometrics. 3D Printing in Healthcare Market in the Asia Pacific region is growing at a significant pace due to rising adoption of 3D Printing across applications in APAC market. Plastic materials used in 3D printing in healthcare are projected to grow at an impressive rate, it is expected that the total plastics shipped for medical printing purposes would be over 570 tons in 2020.

3D Printing in Healthcare Market Drivers

Rising Number of Applications for 3D Printing

One of the main drivers in the global 3D Printing in Healthcare Market is the growing use of this technology in many applications like transplantation, drug delivery, 3D printed organs and many others in the healthcare industry. Rising demand for implant customizations during surgical procedures coupled with growing R&D investments is also driving the global 3D Printing in healthcare market. The increasing adoption is because of the wide spectrum of 3D printing applications in healthcare. The rising number of applications combined with declining cost of 3D Printing and printers will spur the growth of 3D Printing market.

New Technological Advancements drives Adoption of 3D Printing in Healthcare

Technological advancement helps to focus on developing new 3D-printed products which increases the demand for 3D printing in the healthcare industry some factor driving the growth of the market. Moreover, increasing research and development activities helps to develop new treatments for multiple diseases are contributing to the growth of 3D Printed Medical Devices Market. Engineers from Pohang University of Science and Technology, South Korea have successfully developed bio-blood-vessels from a 3D printer using material extracted from the human body as a template. These blood vessels are also capable of acting as drug carriers that will release the drug into its inserted surroundings thereby increasing the likelihood of a successful implant. Spanish Scientists from the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain, Center for Energy, Environmental and Technological Research (CIEMAT), Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Maranon, in collaboration with the firm BioDan Group, Spain, have presented a prototype for a 3D bioprinter that can create totally functional human skin. This skin is adequate for transplanting to patients or for use in research or the testing of cosmetic, chemical, and pharmaceutical products. Such advancements are expanding the scope of 3D Printing in healthcare and are thereby driving the market.

3D Printing in Healthcare Market Challenges

High Cost of 3D Printing

One of the major challenges in the global 3D Printing in Healthcare Market is the high cost of 3D printers. Technologies like stereolithography, laser beam, electron beam, photopolymerization and droplet deposition techniques are way too costly. Business and Industrial printers which are typically used in healthcare sector cost around $10,000 and thus present a major hurdle for facilities to adopt. While the 3D Printed products can reduce the price of the final products significantly and improve efficiency, the high cost of 3D Printers remains a major obstacle to their adoption.

Market Landscape

Product launches, acquisitions, and R&D activities are key strategies adopted by players in the 3D Printing in Healthcare Market. Hewlett Packard , Medical Molding Inc., Proto Labs, 3D Systems, Stratasys, SLM Solutions, Nano Dimension and ExOne are considered to be the key players of the 3D Printing in Healthcare Market.

Acquisitions/Technology Launches/Partnerships
New bodycam footage shows the moment a Washington DC cop crashed their car into another patrol vehicle while they were allegedly drag racing at up to 50mph in a quiet residential neighborhood.

Officers Humias Khan, 24, and Jerrita Millington, 33, have been charged with reckless driving and two counts each of aggravated reckless driving due to property damage and bodily harm over the April 22 crash.

Another officer, a passenger, who was on probation with the police, was fired after the incident while another passenger, as well as Khan and Millington, have been placed on desk duty. All four cops suffered minor injuries in the crash.

Bodycam footage, from the passenger of a patrol car, captured the incident last month.

The video starts with the cop in the driver's seat giving them a thumbs up before putting the car into drive.

The car starts moving forward, quickly picking up speed as the driver says something on the radio - the sound in that moment is muted to viewers.

New bodycam footage shows the damage done by DC cops who allegedly drag raced

The car hits at least one bump, then seconds later, the car bumps again, which is when the crash happens and forces the airbags in the car to deploy.

The cop in the passenger seat groans several times as he exits the vehicle, before somebody asks off-camera if one of the people involved are okay.

'Yeah, I'm good. Oh, f***,' he responds as he slowly walks across the street, asking for the other people involved to be checked on.

Meanwhile, the two cop cars can be seen facing one another, with one firmly on the sidewalk following the crash, which occurred when one vehicle allegedly cut off the other.

The bodycam footage comes from a passenger in one of the cop cars

The car begins accelerating quickly, before seemingly rocking and crashing

The impact of the crash was strong enough that both airbags in the front deployed

The passenger with the bodycam slowly made his way out of the vehicle after the crash

The District Attorney General is now charging the two drivers with reckless driving.

Khan and Millington were in court on Monday and will have to return to court on June 22, according to WUSA9.

One of the police officers involved in the crash, who was a passenger, was fired prior to May 3, although it's not clear if it was their bodycam footage. Their name has not been released.

It's unclear if the fourth officer involved in the incident will be charged or fired in connection to the crash.

Four officers were injured from the crash and treated locally, while $21,718.66 in damage was done to the cop cars.

No other injuries were reported to civilians.

The cop cars can be seen facing each other after the crash, showing the damage

In total, over $20,000 in damage was done to the cop cars, though no civilians were injured

The person recording the footage was seen backing away from the crash after it occurred

They eventually backed their way to the other side of the street, clearly shaken by the crash

At the time of the probationary cop's firing, acting DC Police Chief Robert Contee said the other officers were being investigated.

'The other individuals that are involved are part of the internal affairs investigation that will be going over to the Office of the Attorney General for their judicial review to make a determination on what the next steps will be - if there will be any charges that come out of this investigation,' Contee said at the time.

He also expressed his disappointment with his officers during a press conference last week, according to FOX 5 DC.

'Obviously those types of things are unacceptable, they're embarrassing,' Contee said. 'It's not something that we tolerate. It's certainly something that I would not tolerate as the Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department.'

Two Washington DC Scout patrol cars collided after drag-racing down Anacostia Ave, in a quiet residential neighborhood of the city

The cops were initially believed to be driving up to 60mph, though a Crash Data Retrieval report shows the vehicles hitting high speeds of 48 to 49mph prior to the crush, still nearly double the 25mph speed limit.

'The streets, roadways, and avenues of the District connect us to our families and friends, get us to and from work, and bring our community closer together  thats why its imperative for my office to enforce our traffic safety laws,' Attorney General Karl Racine said.

An affidavit stated that the drag race lasted two-tenths of a mile, according to WDVM.

The affidavit said: 'Both vehicles carelessly and heedlessly proceeded south on Anacostia Avenue, accelerating to speeds that displayed a wanton disregard for the safety of both persons and property.'

Sixth District commander Durriyyah Habeebullah blasted the officers involved in the crash in an internal email

Racine added, 'When people threaten public safety and the residents of the District by driving recklessly on our roadways, we hold them accountable.'

Racine isn't the only person taking the cops to task, with 6D Commander Durriyyah Habeebullah ripping the officers right after the accident.

'Yesterday two 6D scout cars were totaled because officers decided instead of fighting crime, patrolling their beats, or engaging the community  they decided to drag race each other on Anacostia Avenue at 5 pm in the evening,' Habeebullah wrote in an internal email obtained by FOX 5 DC.

'What does this say to all the members of MPD who are passionate about their job and work hard every day to make a difference. This is not fair to any of us,' the email continues.

Witness Jaylah Jennings told FOX 5 she saw the two police cars going 'really really fast' just before they crashed.

She said the officers were 'stupid' and 'irresponsible.'

'This is our community, people walk over there. It's a small community,' said Jennings.
William 'Roddie' Bryan is among the three men charged with federal hate crimes in the slaying of Ahmaud Arbery who was chased and shot while out jogging in Brunswick in February 2020

An attorney for the Georgia man who was charged after he filmed the fatal shooting of black jogger Ahmaud Arbery has claimed any 'patriotic American' would have done the same thing.

William 'Roddie' Bryan is among the three men charged with federal hate crimes in the slaying of the 25-year-old black man who was chased and shot while out jogging in Brunswick in February 2020.

Greg McMichael and his adult son, Travis McMichael, are the other two men charged.

All three pleaded not guilty to the federal charges during a court appearance on Tuesday.

In an interview CourtTV prior to the federal hearing, Bryan's attorney Kevin Gough insisted that his client was innocent and that a jury would come to the same conclusion.

When asked why Bryan joined the chase, Gough argued that any American would have done the same.

'Any patriotic American under the same circumstances would have done the exactly the same thing,' Gough said.

He argued that it was 'grossly unfair' Bryan was not being allowed out on bail.

Greg and Travis McMichael are accused of arming themselves and pursuing Arbery in a pickup truck after he ran past their home on February 23, 2020. Bryan, who is a neighbor, allegedly joined the chase and took cellphone video of Travis shooting Arbery three times at close range with a shotgun

Greg McMichael (right) and his adult son, Travis McMichael, (left) are also charged with hate crimes. All three are due to be arraigned on Tuesday afternoon

'I think one could reasonably take the position that Roddie Bryan is a political prisoner in this case. He should not be in jail right now... he should be out on bail,' he said.

'He is being punished as a way of appeasing the woke left mob and it's simply not right.

'Whatever you think of what the McMichaels did that day... why is Roddie Bryan stuck in the middle of this. Why has he lost a year of his life? It's just unfair to Mr Bryan to be placed in this situation and to be put on trial for his life.'

All three defendants have been jailed without bond since their arrests on state murder charges a year ago.

They initially remained free for more than two months after Arbery was killed but were swiftly charged after Bryan's cellphone video became public and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation took over the case from local police.

Greg and Travis McMichael are accused of arming themselves and pursuing Arbery in a pickup truck after he ran past their home on February 23, 2020.

Bryan, who is a neighbor, allegedly joined the chase and took cellphone video of Travis shooting Arbery three times at close range with a shotgun.

Federal prosecutor charged both McMichaels and Bryan, who are all white, with violating Arbery's civil rights, as well as attempted kidnapping for using their trucks and guns to try to detain him.

The McMichaels are also charged with using firearms in the commission of a crime.

The three men were charged a month after the killing when Bryan's cellphone video of the incident (above) became public. Greg and Travis McMichael are accused of arming themselves and pursuing Arbery in a pickup truck after he ran past their home on February 23, 2020

Bryan, who is a neighbor, allegedly joined the chase and took cellphone video of Travis shooting (above) Arbery three times at close range with a shotgun

Gough said that his client was being portrayed as if he conspired with the McMichaels, which he argues it not true.

'I think the biggest misperception is that somehow Roddie Bryan has anything to do with the McMichaels and whatever was going on in their heads on the day of this shooting,' Gough said.

'My guy is not in communication with them prior to the shooting... it's very clear he's out on his porch minding his own business when someone that he doesn't know goes running by followed by a vehicle that he recognizes as being from the neighborhood.

'Whatever was going on with the McMichaels, whatever their motivations are, there is absolutely no indication that Roddie Bryan had anything to do with it.

'All he's doing at the time of the shooting is recording it on his cellphone.

'Roddie Bryan has committed no crime.'

Defense attorneys for the McMichaels also insist they committed no crime.

Lawyers for the McMichaels have said they chased Arbery because they suspected he was a burglar who had been recorded on video inside a nearby home under construction.

They say Travis shot Arbery fearing for his life as they grappled over a shotgun.

Prosecutors say Arbery was merely out jogging and there's no evidence Arbery stole anything from the home.
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American and British airlines are begging Joe Biden and British Prime Minister to reopen transatlantic travel to save both economies and reunite families who have been separated for more than a year.

Multiple airlines penned an open letter with the US Chamber of Commerce last week urging an announcement and on Tuesday, the CEOs of of Delta, Virgin, British Airways, American Airlines and JetBlue wrote their own letter.

They said they need adequate time to plan routes and to staff them after an announcement is made, and that June 11-13 - when the two leaders meet at the G7 in Cornwall, England - would be the perfect time to announce it.

'The return of Transatlantic flying would not only have a significantly positive impact on our respective economies but will also reunite those who have been separated from their loved ones for over a year.'

Neither Biden nor Boris Johnson has responded to it yet.

Both the US and the UK have vaccinated roughly a third of their populations and travel to and from each country from multiple others is allowed, but free travel between them has been banned since March 2020.

Currently, and as has been the case since March last year, a non-US citizen cannot fly directly from the UK into America.

British rules have fluctuated but currently, anyone from the US can fly to the UK so long as they quarantine for 10 days upon arrival and take multiple COVID-19 tests.

A new report on Tuesday from Airlines for America revealed that in the first quarter of 2021 alone, the major US airlines lost $7billion between them. That is on top of the $35billion they collectively lost in 2020.

The report predicted that it will take until 2023 for normal levels of air travel to resume.

Between February 2020 and February 2021, the number of US airline employees dropped by 66,000. Globally, it dropped by 46,000.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is scheduled to meet Joe Biden at the G7 next month. The aviation industry says it is the perfect time to announce that open travel can resume between the US and the UK - which has been banned since last March

A coalition of airlines including British Airways begged the two world leaders to reopen. The airlines have furloughed or laid off tens of thousands of staff, surviving only through freight flights over the last 14 months

The US has been moved onto a list of Amber countries in the UK that includes dozens of others.

THE RULES ON UK-US TRAVEL ENTERING AMERICA FROM THE UK No non-citizens can enter the US from the UK without a visa waiver or other special circumstances. The UK is on a list of banned countries along with 27 in Europe, Iran, China, India and South Africa, from which direct travel is banned if it has happened in the last 2 weeks. WHO CAN TRAVEL TO AMERICA? Every other country in the world that is not on the banned list. ENTERING THE UK FROM AMERICA The US is now on a list of 'Amber' countries in the UK which means people can travel from them but upon arrival in the UK, they have to quarantine for 10 days and take multiple COVID-19 tests. WHO CAN TRAVEL TO THE UK? Only countries on the 'Green' list can travel freely to the UK and only from May 17. Those countries are; Australia, Brunei, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Iceland, Israel and Jerusalem, New Zealand, Portugal, Singapore, South Georgia, St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. Advertisement

From May 17, only people traveling from 'Green' countries will be able to enter the UK freely.

Those countries are Australia, Brunei, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Iceland, Israel and Jerusalem, New Zealand, Portugal, Singapore, South Georgia, St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha.

Travel is permitted to the US from every country in the world apart from the UK, Europe, China, Iran, the UK, Ireland, Brazil, South Africa and India.

A British national living in America could not therefore return home to the UK, then fly back to America, under the current rules, and an American national living in the UK would only be able to if they quarantined for 10 days when they returned and did COVID-19 tests.

Now, airlines say it is time for that to change. The coalition of airlines had 48 co-signees but was led by Virgin.

In their letter on May 3 they said: 'We are confident that the right tools now exist to enable a safe and meaningful restart to transatlantic travel, said the letter from 49 industry groups and unions on both sides of the Atlantic.

'Safely reopening borders between the U.S. and U.K. is essential for both countries economic recovery from Covid-19.'

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said last week that there will never be a federally-mandated vaccine passport.

It begs the question of what it will take for the US to reopen travel, given that everyone over the age of 16 is now eligible for a vaccine. America will also make children under the age of 15 eligible to receive the vaccine from Thursday.

The flight from London to New York was the most lucrative in the world before the pandemic. There were dozens a day, across multiple airlines and flying in and out of various airports.

The pandemic crippled the airline industry which had to drastically reduce flight schedules and lay off tens of thousands of staff.

A new report on Tuesday from Airlines for America revealed US airlines incurred $7billion in losses the first quarter of 2021 alone, on top of the $35billion they lost throughout 2020.

Everyone over the age of 16 is now eligible for a vaccine in America and a third of the country has received at least one dose
U.S. job vacancies hit record highs in March, illustrating how a shortage of workers is hampering economic recovery and heaping fresh pressure on President Joe Biden and his $300-a-week unemployment supplement.

Six states have now moved to end the federal program amid complaints that it is deterring people from looking for work.

Tuesday's Labor Department figures showed vacancies rising 8%, to 8.1 million openings in March, the most since record began in December 2000.

Critics were quick to blame the supplement, which pays more than most minimum-wage jobs. It is due to run until September as part of Biden's $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package approved in March.

President Joe Biden has been forced on the defensive as his $300-a-week unemployment benefit supplement is blamed for keeping workers at home and sending the number of job vacancies to record highs

Bureau of Labor Statistics reveal record highs for job vacancies at more than 8million on last day of March as businesses struggle to recruit staff

'While unemployment benefits were helpful during the pandemic to keep laid off workers afloat, the fact that many are now making more money sitting on the couch than being back at work is creating an unbelievable labor shortage for small businesses,' said Job Creators Network president Alfredo Ortiz.

'The Democrats should realize times have changed and reduce unemployment benefits accordingly.'

The combined benefits can total as much as $600 a week in some states.

It is not just conservative critics who see that as a problem. A recent Bank of America analyst note said the cash meant anyone earning less than $32,000 before the pandemic would be better off taking the benefits instead of working.

Yet businesses are desperately trying to recruit staff to meet pent-up demand triggered by the widespread availability of vaccines and trillions of dollars in public spending.

Kim Reynolds of Iowa is the latest Republican governor to opt out of the federal benefits in an effort to get Americans back to work

The result is a catalog of horror stories of businesses running into difficulties as they try to put the pandemic behind them.

Owners of 7-Eleven franchises pleaded with the company not to return to 24-hour opening because they were struggling to staff night shifts.

A McDonald's restaurant in Texas went viral after managers displayed a sign at its drive-through entrance asking for patience because 'nobody wants to work any more.'

And chicken processor Tyson Foods says it is raising wages to tackle high rates of absenteeism and worker turnover, which it is blaming on enhanced unemployment benefits.

Employers are scrambling to staff up in order to cash in on newly vaccinated customers as the economy fills with Biden's pandemic trillions

'It takes about six days right now to get five days worth of work done,' said Donnie King, Tyson's chief operating officer, on a conference call with investors.

Polly Lawrence, owner of Lawrence Construction in Colorado, told DailyMail.com that businesses like hers desperately need their labor force back.

"When small businesses are having to pay people to come in for an interview or offering $2,000 hiring bonuses, you know theres a problem," she said.

"The Democrats need to eliminate or significantly lower the additional unemployment benefits they enacted as part of their $1.9 trillion stimulus bill."

The anecdotal evidence comes after jobs numbers released on Friday showed that Biden's strategy was facing a major test.

Instead of adding almost a million jobs, businesses reported hiring only 266,000 workers.

That means the economy still has 8.2 million jobs fewer than its peak in February last year.

Biden defended his strategy and said anyone turning down a 'suitable' job would lose their benefits.

'The line has been because of the generous unemployment benefits, that it's a major factor in labor shortages,' he said in response to criticism.

'Americans want to work. Americans want to work.'

At least six governors disagree. The Republican governors of Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, South Carolina, North Dakota, and Montana have signaled they will end the extra benefit early.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is the latest to follow suit.

'Our unemployment rate is at 3.7%, vaccines are available to anyone who wants one, and we have more jobs available than unemployed people,' she said on Tuesday.

'Regular unemployment benefits will remain available, as they did before the pandemic, but it's time for everyone who can to get back to work.'
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The Indian Covid variant that is surging in Britain could spread up to 60 per cent faster than the dominant Kent strain, a scientist has claimed.

Professor Tom Wenseleers, a biologist and biostatistician at the KU Leuven university in Belgium, said on Twitter he had analysed how the two strains compared and found the Indian variant to be faster spreading.

The B1617.2 variant is the most common version of the Indian strain in the UK  it has been spotted at least 520 times and experts fear it could take over as the dominant version of coronavirus.

Scientists on the SAGE Government advisory panel said in a meeting last week: 'Early indications, including from international experience, are that this variant may be more transmissible than the B.1.1.7 [Kent] variant.'

And chief medical officer for England, Professor Chris Whitty said at a Downing Street briefing last night: 'Our view is that this is a highly transmissible variant, at least as transmissible as the B117 variant. It is possible it is more transmissible but we'll have to see.'

In a tweet posted yesterday Professor Wenseleers, who has published other papers on Covid variants including one about the Kent strain in the journal Science, said: 'The Indian data estimates that B.1.617.2 has a 10% per day growth [advantage] over B.1.1.7 (translates to a ~60% transmission advantage).'

He posted graphs showing that the variant had rapidly pushed aside other types of the virus in parts of India including Maharashtra, Gujarat and West Bengal, where it is believed to be linked to an explosion in cases.

UK data also suggest that the variant is surging in Britain, accounting for an increasing proportion of cases and up to 40 per cent in London. University College London mathematician Professor Christina Pagel said it may be 'outcompeting' the Kent variant and Public Health England admitted it 'may have replaced it to some extent'.

Public Health England has divided the Indian variant into three sub-types. Type 1 and Type 3 both have a mutation called E484Q but Type 2 is missing this, despite still clearly being a descendant of the original Indian strain. Type 1 and 3 have a slightly different set of mutations. The graphic shows all the different variants that have been spotted in Britain

Professor Wenseleers said that the Kent variant was approximately 1.6 times as infectious as the Wuhan strain, so another 60 per cent transmissibility could make it 2.6 times faster spreading than the original virus.

He added that its strength was also 'partly linked to immune evasion'.

Early research has suggested that the variant has evolved in a way that makes immunity from vaccines or past infections slightly weaker than it is against the original virus.

This would allow more people to get reinfected and raise the risk of it spreading in a vaccinated population. Research is still in its early stages but it does not appear to be strong enough to slip past vaccines en masse.

Professor Wenseleers added: 'This is not necessarily a problem, as long as vaccines adequately protect against serious illness and death.'

Professor Chris Whitty said yesterday that officials were keeping a close eye on the variant because it is one of the top threats to ending lockdown and getting life back to normal.

He said: 'What we know with all the variants is that things can come out of a blue sky  you're not expecting it and then something happens.

'That is what happened with B.1.1.7 and that has happened to India with this variant as well.

'I think our view is that this is a highly transmissible variant, at least as transmissible as the B.1.1.7 variant. It is possible it is more transmissible but we'll have to see.'

He added: 'At this point in time, our view is that it is less likely to be able to escape vaccination than some of the other variants, particularly the South African one. But the data are not properly in there, so I think we need to be cautious until we've seen clear data that gives us an answer one way or the other.'

Professor Graham Medley, from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, and chairman of the SAGE subgroup SPI-M, today warned the UK could find itself in trouble again if a variant evolves that can get around the body's Covid defences from a previous infection or inoculation.

Asked whether the country would be able to get back to normal, he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'I don't think anyone can give you the complete answer. If vaccines continue to work, and we don't have some nasty variants, then potentially we could be completely back to normal by the end of the year.'

His comments were echoed by Matt Hancock, who warned a new Covid variant that bypasses vaccines would pose the 'biggest risk' to lockdown-ending plans next month.

But Mr Hancock suggested the Indian strain should not yet threaten this because it did not seem to pose significant problems to vaccinated people.

He told BBC Breakfast: 'There is no doubt that a new variant is the biggest risk.

'We have this variant that was first seen in India  the so-called Indian variant  we have seen that grow. We are putting a lot of resources into tackling it to make sure everybody who gets that particular variant gets extra support and intervention to make sure that it isn't passed on.

'However, there is also, thankfully, no evidence that the vaccine doesn't work against it.' No10's top scientists are more worried about the South African variant, he added.

Mr Hancock also said it was important to keep tight restrictions at the border to prevent undetected variants from being imported to the UK. Only 12 countries are currently on the green list for foreign travel, including Portugal, Israel and Gibraltar.

Professor Graham Medley, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said Britain could be back to normal by the end of the year. The Health Secretary said the only thing that would prevent England from scrapping more restrictions on June 21 would be the emergence of a mutant strain that makes vaccinated people severely ill

Boris Johnson last night announced a major loosening of lockdown rules for next Monday

Globally, one of the three sub-lineages of the variant that merged in India now accounts for an estimated 5% of all cases, according to Outbreak.info data. The entire set of B.1.617 variant sub-lineages (of which there are three) has been classified a 'variant of concern' by the WHO

'But, on the other hand, if there are variants, if the vaccines wane, so the impact wanes and we aren't able to get boosters, then we could have been in a very different position.'

Earlier, he said the country was currently in its best position, saying: 'We're in the best position that we've been in the whole epidemic, prevalence is low, vaccines are working.

'I think the risks going forward, you can think of them in two ways: one is the risk to each individual and the other is the risks to the population, so essentially having to go back into a lockdown again.

WHO classifies India's Covid strain a 'variant of concern' The World Health Organization (WHO) has branded the Indian coronavirus variant as being of global concern. There is enough data to suggest the mutated strain  officially known as B.1.617.2  is more infectious than previous versions of the virus, according to the global body. It makes B.1.617.2 the fourth Covid strain to be classed by the WHO as a 'variant of global concern', after those that emerged in Kent, South Africa and Brazil. England's chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, went a step further last night, claiming the Indian variant could be the most transmissible strain in the world. Cases of B.1.617.2 have risen ten-fold in Britain in a month and the variant is already making up between 40 per cent and half of all cases detected in London. The strain first emerged in India last autumn but for reasons scientists are still trying to work out, it only took off this year. It is partly behind India's raging second wave, where there are now 4,000 Covid victims per day and hundreds of thousands of infections. Britain's health secretary Matt Hancock said this morning the variant was the single 'biggest risk' to the UK's lockdown easing plans. There is still no evidence it will cause worse disease or make vaccines less effective. Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead on Covid, told a briefing last night: 'We are classifying this as a variant of concern at a global level. There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility.' Public Health England classes the strain as a variant of concern but the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has dubbed it a 'variant of interest'  a less urgent designation. Advertisement

'Both of those are low but there remain challenges in the sense that we don't know what the virus is going to do in terms of the future and it's quite likely that it will start to increase together and start to transmit, and the question is whether the vaccines can hold it.'

He said there will 'inevitably' be a third wave of infection but whether that translates into hospitalisations remains the 'big question'.

Mr Hancock told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: 'We have some degree of confidence that the vaccine works effectively against the so-called Indian variant, and then against the South African variant we are a little bit more worried, but we dont have full data on those yet.

'These are reasons to take a cautious approach at the borders in order to protect the progress that we have made at home.

'People would be loath to see us put that at risk by going too fast at the borders. But on the other hand we are seeing countries get this virus under control in the same way we appear to be able to get it under control.'

There is no evidence the Indian variant will cause worse disease or make vaccines less effective.

The Indian variant has had a meteoric rise since it was first spotted in the UK with cases surging to 790 across all three types, from just 77 a month ago on April 15.

The most cases of type .2, which is the fastest spreading and makes up 520 of the 790, have been in London, with 191.

There were 87 in the North West, 56 in East Anglia and 53 in the South East, with fewer than 50 in all other regions.

In London the variant is confirmed to have made up at least 37.5 per cent of all cases in the week ending April 27. In the North West it was 17.1 per cent.

Scientists are concerned it could be outcompeting the Kent variant, meaning it is becoming more widespread  either because it spreads faster or because it is better at reinfecting people who have been vaccinated or are immune from past infection.

Public Health England last week branded the Indian strain a 'variant of concern' and the World Health Organization last night upgraded it to its highest risk category.

One of scientists' biggest concerns about the Indian variant is that it has evolved  or will evolve further  in a way that makes vaccine immunity less effective against it.

Early tests by a lab run by Professor Ravi Gupta at the University of Cambridge suggested that the original version of the Indian variant (type .1) saw a slight dip in effectiveness of immunity, but not as bad as with the South African strain.

It suggested that levels of useful antibodies  virus-fighting proteins made by the immune system  were about six times lower than with the Wuhan variant. But for the South African strain they were 10 times lower in similar tests, the team said.

Other variants in circulation in the UK appear to be able to make vaccines slightly less effective at preventing infections.
Three Georgia men have all pleaded not guilty to federal hate crimes in the slaying of black jogger Ahmaud Arbery.

Greg McMichael, 65, his son Travis McMichael, 35, and a neighbor William 'Roddie' Bryan, 51, entered their pleas during their arraignment before a federal judge in Brunswick on Tuesday.

Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, was chased and shot while out jogging in Brunswick back in February 2020.

Greg and his Travis are accused of arming themselves and pursuing Arbery in a pickup truck after he ran past their home on February 23, 2020.

Bryan allegedly joined the chase and took cellphone video of Travis shooting Arbery three times at close range with a shotgun.

Travis McMichael, 35, his father Greg McMichael, 65, and a neighbor William 'Roddie' Bryan, 51, (left to right) entered their pleas during their arraignment before a federal judge in Brunswick, Georgia on Tuesday

Greg and Travis McMichael are accused of arming themselves and pursuing Arbery in a pickup truck after he ran past their home on February 23, 2020. Bryan, who is a neighbor, allegedly joined the chase and took cellphone video of Travis shooting Arbery three times at close range with a shotgun

Federal prosecutors last month charged both McMichaels and Bryan, who are all white, with violating Arbery's civil rights, as well as attempted kidnapping for using their trucks and guns to try to detain him.

The McMichaels are also charged with using firearms in the commission of a crime.

All three are also facing state murder charges in Arbery's slaying.

The three men will remain in custody following their federal court appearance.

They have been jailed without bond since their arrests on the state murder charges a year ago.

They initially remained free for more than two months after Arbery was killed, but were swiftly charged after Bryan's cellphone video became public and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation took over the case from local police.

The federal indictment says all three men illegally used force to 'injure, intimidate and interfere with' the black man 'because of Arbery's race and color.'

If convicted of interfering with Arbery's rights, they could face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Defense attorneys for the McMichaels and Bryan insist they committed no crimes.

The three men were charged a month after the killing when Bryan's cellphone video of the incident (above) became public. Greg and Travis McMichael are accused of arming themselves and pursuing Arbery in a pickup truck after he ran past their home on February 23, 2020

Bryan, who is a neighbor, allegedly joined the chase and took cellphone video of Travis shooting (above) Arbery three times at close range with a shotgun

Lawyers for the McMichaels have said they chased Arbery because they suspected he was a burglar who had been recorded on video inside a nearby home under construction.

They say Travis McMichael shot Arbery fearing for his life as they grappled over a shotgun.

Prosecutors say Arbery was merely out jogging and there's no evidence Arbery stole anything from the home.

The men weren't arrested until 10 weeks after Arbery was shot dead when when a cellphone video of the shooting was leaked online and a national outcry erupted.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation took over the case the day after the video emerged and swiftly arrested the three men.

In a pretrial court hearing, prosecutors had presented evidence that racism may have played a role in Arbery's death.

Last June, an agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation testified that Bryan told investigators Travis had uttered a racist slur right after the shooting as he stood over a bleeding Arbery.

'Mr Bryan said that after the shooting took place before police arrival, while Mr Arbery was on the ground, that he heard Travis McMichael make the statement, 'f***ing n-word,'' GBI agent Richard Dial testified.

Travis McMichael's attorneys have denied that he made the remark.
Robert Aaron Long, 22, was indicted Tuesday on murder charges by a Fulton County, Georgia grand jury, and District Attorney Fani Willis said she intends to seek hate crime charges and the death penalty

A prosecutor plans to seek to the death penalty against the white gunman who allegedly murdered eight people - six of them women of Asian descent - in three Atlanta-area massage spa shootings in March.

Robert Aaron Long, 22, was indicted Tuesday on murder charges by a Fulton County, Georgia grand jury, and District Attorney Fani Willis said she intends to seek hate crime charges and the death penalty.

After his arrest of the shootings in March, Long told police he wasn't racist, but was driven by his desire to 'eliminate' sexual 'temptation.'

He grew up with a deep-rooted religious background, even carrying a Bible around when he was younger, and felt shame over his addiction to porn and sex which he sought treatment for in rehab, his friends and former roommates have revealed.

Exclusive surveillance footage obtained by DailyMail.com shows Long parked outside Young's Asian Massage Parlor on the day of the shootings. He is seen sitting and patiently waiting in the driver's seat of his black Hyundai Tucson for exactly an hour before he stepped inside and allegedly opened fired, killing four.

A short while later, the surveillance video shows the door swing back open, and Long rushes back to his vehicle, hops in and speeds off to allegedly continue his massacre at two other Atlanta area spas.

Moments after he drove off, the video shows a few lucky survivors exiting the spa, followed by the arrival of cops and paramedics a few minutes later. One victim was carried out and left on the sidewalk with blood flowing from a bullet wound in the back of their head.

Scroll down for video.

A body is taken away from Gold Spa massage parlor after a shooting in Atlanta

Within minutes the video shows a few lucky survivors exiting the spa, followed by the arrival of cops and paramedics as one victim is seen on the sidewalk with blood flowing from a bullet wound to the head

One man who'd been getting a massage with his wife sat outside in handcuffs, as his wife lay dying inside. Police still hadn't identified a suspect, so restrained him as a precaution.

A make-shift memorial is seen outside the location of Long's first of three alleged shootings over the course of three hours

VICTIMS OF GEORGIA MASSAGE SPA SHOOTINGS Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33, Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33- DECEASED Delaina was at Young's Asian Massage for a couple's treatment with her husband when friends say she was killed. The mother-of-two's husband survived. Paul Andre Michels, 54 - DECEASED Xiaojie Yan, 49 - DECEASED Daoyou Feng, 44 - DECEASED Elcias R Hernandez-Ortiz, 30 - INJURED Elcias R Hernandez-Ortiz Elcias was shot in the throat, forehead, lungs and stomach. He survived but he is in critical condition in the hospital. Before he lost consciousness, he called his wife to tell her he'd been injured. His wife, Flor Gonzalez, 27, told The Washington Post that he was likely on his way to a store next door to send money back to his family in Guatemala when he was attacked. Doctors say they expect him to survive, despite the severity of his injuries. Advertisement

Long was charged with four counts of murder, five counts of assault with a deadly weapon, four counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and one count of domestic terrorism, according to online records.

The four counts of murder are for Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; and Yong Ae Yue, 63.

The indictment only covers those four killings that happened at two spas in Atlanta; not the attack in Cherokee County where Long allegedly killed Xiaojie 'Emily' Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Delaina Yaun, 33; and Paul Michels, 54, were killed.

A separate grand jury in Cherokee County will determine charges that shooting.

The killings are eligible for the death penalty because each was committed while Long was in the act of committing another capital offense, namely the killings of the victims, the prosecutor's notice of intent to seek the death penalty says.

Each killing was also 'outrageously or wantonly vile, horrible, or inhuman in that it involved depravity of mind' and was committed during an act of domestic terrorism, the notice says.

Georgia's new hate crimes law does not provide for a stand-alone hate crime. After a person is convicted of an underlying crime, a jury must determine whether it's a hate crime, which carries an additional penalty.

Police have said Long shot and killed four people, three of them women and two of Asian descent, at Youngs Asian Massage near Woodstock just before 5 p.m. on March 16. He also shot and wounded a fifth person, investigators said.

He then drove about 30 miles south to Atlanta, where he shot and killed three women at Gold Spa before going across the the street to Aromatherapy Spa and fatally shooting another woman, police have said. All of the Atlanta victims were women of Asian descent.

After the shootings at the two Atlanta spas, Long got back into his car and headed south on the interstate, police said.

Long's parents called authorities to help after recognizing their son in still images from security video that the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office posted on social media. They provided cellphone information that allowed authorities to track their son to rural Crisp County, about 140 miles south of Atlanta.

State troopers and sheriff's deputies spotted his SUV on Interstate 75, and one of them forced Long to spin to a stop by bumping his vehicle. Long then surrendered to authorities.

Officials stand in front of a massage parlor after a shooting, in Atlanta

He told police that he is a sex addict who frequented the spas and blamed them for his addiction.

Friends shared more details of his intensely religious life. His father is a youth minister and he is an enthusiastic member of a South Baptist church which, after the shootings, said it was 'heartbroken'.

It has also been revealed that he sought treatment at Maverick Recovery, a treatment center in Atlanta, for sex addiction at the end of 2019 and early 2020.

Tyler Bayless, 35, told Reuters that he spent several months living at the Atlanta halfway house for recovering addicts with Long.

He said Long had been treated for sex addiction and that he frequented massage parlors for 'explicitly sexual activity.'

Bayless said Long was 'deeply religious' and would become 'very emotionally distraught that he frequented these places.'

'In the halfway house he would describe several of his sexual addiction "relapses" as he called them. He would have a deep feeling of remorse and shame and say he needed to return to prayer and to return to God,' he said.
The backlash has begun in the Republican Party as it prepares to remove Liz Cheney from its leadership on Wednesday.

Grumbling has started against GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy and how he's handled the situation.

And, on Tuesday, one Republican lawmaker spoke out against Rep. Elise Stefanik, the front runner to replace Cheney, as not being conservative enough to be the GOP Conference chair.

The infighting comes as Republicans struggle to find their path forward after four years of Donald Trump's presidency left a legacy of division. The debate continues as to whether to embrace the former president or denounce him - with Trump's allies winning the race to define the GOP.

That battle will accumulate on Wednesday, when the referendum on Cheney's position as the Number Three in GOP leadership becomes a loyalty test to Trump.

Her ouster is all but a foregone conclusion but the first cracked appeared on Tuesday against Trump's endorsed candidate to replace Cheney - Elise Stefanik.

The backlash has begun in the Republican Party as it prepares to remove Liz Cheney from its leadership on Wednesday

Republican Rep. Chris Roy of Texas argued electing Stefanik into leadership would undermine GOP attempts to win control of the House in the 2024 midterm election.

'We must avoid putting in charge Republicans who campaign as Republicans but then vote for and advance the Democrats' agenda once sworn in - that is, that we do not make the same mistakes we did in 2017,' Roy wrote in a letter sent to all GOP lawmakers that was obtained by Dailymail.com.

'Therefore, with all due respect to my friend, Elise Stefanik, let us contemplate the message Republican leadership is about to send by rushing to coronate a spokesperson whose voting record embodies much of what led to the 2018 ass-kicking we received by Democrats,' he noted.

Roy opposed conservative efforts to overturn the election results and defended Cheney after she was criticized for being one of the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump. But he now concedes her time has come and she will exit leadership when House Republicans gather Wednesday morning in the basement of the Capitol.

Stefanik is campaigning hard to replace Cheney and has the endorsement of McCarthy, Trump, and power conservative Rep. Jim Jordan. But other conservatives - including some in the powerful House Freedom Caucus - worry she is not far enough to the right for them.

Cheney, a Republican from Wyoming, holds a far more conservative voting record than Stefanik, but angered Republicans when she repeatedly and publicly challenged Trump's false claim the presidential election was rigged. Stefanik, in contrast, was one of Trump's most public defenders.

And Stefanik brushed off concerns about her conservative credentials.

'We have a great deal of support from the Freedom Caucus and others,' the New York Republican told reporters on Capitol Hill on Tuesday.

The vote for Cheney's replacement is expected to happen later this week.

A Republican lawmaker said Rep. Elise Stefanik, the front-runner to replace Liz Cheney in party leadership, isn't conservative enough for the job

Rep. Cheney was criticized for repeatedly speaking out against Donald Trump's false claim he won the 2020 presidential election

McCarthy, meanwhile, is facing anonymous grumbling for his handling of the matter.

'Kevin McCarthy has pissed off enough members of his own conference that he's going to have to go back to his former days as a whip to try to figure out where his votes are' to become speaker, an unidentified GOP lawmaker told Politico's Playbook on Tuesday. 'I'd be worried if I was him.'

He remains the frontrunner to become House speaker should Republicans win back control of the chamber in next year's election but there is chatter the drama in the GOP - not just Cheney and Trump but over conservative firebrands Reps. Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene - have left him in a tough spot.

McCarthy will address Wednesday morning's meeting - as he addresses every GOP meeting - with a look to the future.

'Leader McCarthy speaks at every conference meeting and what the conference's priorities should be at every meeting,' a McCarthy spokesperson told DailyMail.com.

But many rank-and-file Republicans are falling in line with McCarthy and have embraced his call to unit and focus on next year's election so the party can win back the House.

Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, who strongly defended Cheney when she faced a recall in February, will now vote against her.

'House Democrats under Speaker Pelosi have been ruthless in advancing their radical progressive agenda, and Rep. Cheney can no longer unify the House Republican conference in opposition to that agenda. We need to take back the House in 2022 and permanently retire Pelosi,' he told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

Other Republicans brushed off the squabbling and predicted the GOP would come together.

Republican Whip Rep. Steve Scalise told CBS News on Tuesday that, after the vote: 'You're going to see a very united front.'

Cheney, a member of a prominent GOP family and the highest ranking woman in Republican leadership, survived that February attempt in 145-61 in a secret-ballot vote. But Wednesday is not expected to go so well. Punchbowl DC, an insidery newsletter, predicted she would only garner 20 votes of support.

As Republicans focus on winning back control of the House, they are increasingly turning to Trump, who still has a strong and vocal base of MAGA supporters who are expected to be active in next year's primary and general election.

A few Republicans have defended Cheney, including Senator Mitt Romney and Rep. Adam Kinzinger, but most are looking ahead to 2022.

Cheney became an outspoken critic of Trump in the wake of the January 6th MAGA riot on Capitol Hill that left five people dead. She voted to impeach him for his role in inciting the rioters - Trump was acquitted by the Senate - but has made it clear she intends to speak out against his influence on the party.

'The Republican Party is at a turning point, and Republicans must decide whether we are going to choose truth and fidelity to the Constitution,' she wrote in an op-ed for the Washington Post last Wednesday.

And she called on other Republicans to join her in speaking out against Trump's false claim he won the presidential election.

'History is watching. Our children are watching. We must be brave enough to defend the basic principles that underpin and protect our freedom and our democratic process. I am committed to doing that, no matter what the short-term political consequences might be,' she wrote.

Grumbling has begun among Republicans about the way House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy has handled the situation with Cheney and other drama in the party

Kevin McCarthy has embraced Donald Trump as Republicans seek to win back control of the House of Representatives

Trump repeatedly attacked Cheney repeatedly after she voted to impeach for his role in the Capitol riot and, last week, blasted her as a 'warmonger.'

She has given as good as she has gotten.

Last Monday, Cheney she slammed Trump for 'poisoning our democratic system' as he continued to falsely spout that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

Trump's office sent out a statement saying: 'The fraudulent presidential election of 2020 will be, from this day forth, known as the big lie!'

Cheney snapped back.

'The 2020 presidential election was not stolen,' she tweeted. 'Anyone who claims it was is spreading THE BIG LIE, turning their back on the rule of law, and poisoning our democratic system.'

The 2020 contest showed no evidence of widespread voter fraud. Several recounts in states confirmed Joe Biden's win. Multiple courts threw out Trump's legal challenges.

Several Republicans said Trump should have done more to rein in his supporters who stormed the Capitol on January 6th.

McCarthy even called him out on the House floor the day, saying Trump bears responsibility for the riot.

Trump erupted in fury. McCarthy flew down to Mar-a-Lago, Trump's residence in Palm Beach, to make peace.

He called Trump a force in the GOP.

'He could change the whole course of history,' McCarthy told The New York Times. 'This is the tightest tightrope anyone has to walk.'
A federal judge has denied the National Rifle Association's (NRA) bankruptcy petition to move the gun-rights group from New York to Texas, slamming the conduct of boss Wayne LaPierre as 'nothing less than shocking'.

US Bankruptcy Judge Harlin Hale ruled in Dallas Tuesday that the NRA's Chapter 11 bankruptcy had been filed 'in bad faith' in an effort to avoid a corruption lawsuit in the state of New York.

The decision, outlined in a 33-page ruling, marked a major blow to the NRA and a victory for New York Attorney General Letitia James.

The NRA became embroiled in the high-stakes bankruptcy trial when LaPierre, the 71-year-old gun group boss, filed for bankruptcy in order to move the organization from New York to Texas.

He did so after James sued the NRA for corruption and money mismanagement claiming LaPierre and other members of the group's leadership had been using the organization as a 'personal piggy bank' for years.

A federal judge has denied the National Rifle Association's (NRA) bankruptcy petition to move the gun-rights group from New York to Texas, slamming the conduct of boss Wayne LaPierre (pictured) as 'nothing less than shocking'

Hale's ruling means the group cannot use bankruptcy to reorganize in the gun-friendly Lone Star state and it must remain incorporated in New York.

This clears the way for James' lawsuit to continue through the courts.

The decision marked the end of a month-long trial where the NRA argued its bankruptcy case should move forward in Texas.

James had asked the court to throw out the petition accusing the group's leadership of trying to 'remove the NRA from regulatory oversight.'

Hale ruled in favor of James' office, saying the NRA had not filed for bankruptcy under a financial purpose set out by the Bankruptcy Code, but instead filed 'in bad faith.'

'The Court finds there is cause to dismiss this bankruptcy case as not having been filed in good faith both because it was filed to gain an unfair litigation advantage and because it was filed to avoid a state regulatory scheme,' the judge wrote.

'The question the court is faced with is whether the existential threat facing the NRA is the type of threat that the Bankruptcy Code is meant to protect against.

'The court believes it is not.'

US Bankruptcy Judge Harlin Hale ruled in Dallas Tuesday that the NRA's Chapter 11 bankruptcy had been filed 'in bad faith' in an effort to avoid a corruption lawsuit in the state of New York in a victory for New York Attorney General Letitia James (above)

The judge also said 'what concerns the court most' was the 'nothing less than shocking' conduct of LaPierre when he made the Chapter 11 filing.

'What concerns the court most though is the surreptitious manner in which Mr. Pierre obtained and exercised authority to file bankruptcy for the NRA,' read the ruling.

'Excluding so many people from the process of deciding to file for bankruptcy, including the vast majority of the board of directors, the chief financial officer, and the general counsel, is nothing less than shocking.'

James welcomed the judge's decision in a statement on Twitter where she said it sent a message that 'no one is above the law'.

'The NRA does not get to dictate if and where it will answer for its actions, and our case will continue in New York court. No one is above the law,' she said.

Hale's dismissal is without prejudice, meaning the NRA can try again to file for bankruptcy, but the judge said the problems identified in its operations could result in the appointment of a trustee to oversee its affairs.

The NRA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

James filed a lawsuit against the NRA in August accusing the group's leadership of using the organization as their 'personal piggy bank' for years.

An NRA member and Trump supporter at the NRA convention in 2019. The NRA became embroiled in the high-stakes bankruptcy trial when LaPierre filed for bankruptcy in Janaury in order to move the organization from New York to Texas

She sought to have the organization dissolved and its $200million assets redistributed saying its top leaders had illegally diverted millions of dollars away from the charitable mission of the organization 'for personal use by senior leadership.'

She claimed that LaPierre and three other top executives used tens of millions of dollars from NRA's coffers to pay for trips for themselves and their families to the Bahamas, all-expenses-paid African safaris, private jets, and expensive meals.

LaPierre and the NRA denied all wrongdoing.

The NRA filed for bankruptcy in January as part of a restructuring plan in a bid to leave New York in favor of Texas.

It claimed the move would help it escape what it called a corrupt political and regulatory environment in New York.

James and the NRA's former advertising agency Ackerman McQueen claimed the bankruptcy claim was improper, inappropriate and merely an attempt to avoid having to pay any kind of settlement if she were to win her suit.

LaPierre pictured on a hunt in 2014. The gun-rights boss filed for bankruptcy after James sued the NRA for corruption and money mismanagement claiming the group's leadership had been using the organization as a 'personal piggy bank' for years

A lawyer for James during closing arguments of the trial branded the bankruptcy a 'circus sideshow.'

The Biden administration had also opposed the NRA in the trial.

The Justice Department's bankruptcy watchdog, the US Trustee, urged Hale to dismiss the bankruptcy.

The NRA, meanwhile, called New York's lawsuit politically motivated.

At a bankruptcy hearing last month, LaPierre admitted he had filed for bankruptcy because he wanted to move the organization to Texas where it would receive a friendlier welcome from Republican lawmakers.

He said he feared James would try to put it into receivership if the group stayed in New York.

He also tried to justify some of the spending within the organization saying hunting wildlife was a justifiable business expense.

Donald Trump and LaPierre in the White House in 2017. The judge said 'what concerns the court most' was the 'nothing less than shocking' conduct of LaPierre when he filed the bankruptcy petition

The NRA also has faced internal upheaval in recent years including a failed effort to oust LaPierre over allegations of mismanagement.

The NRA was founded in 1871 in New York. Texas is a Republican-governed state whose leaders are friendly to the NRA's stance against gun control.

The group has long been closely aligned with Republican politicians including Donald Trump and has been instrumental for years in thwarting Democratic-backed gun control proposals in the US Congress.

A spate of mass shootings in the United States this year prompted Biden in April to call gun violence 'a national embarrassment.'

The Democratic president has taken some executive action on gun control and has called for broader steps that would require congressional passage including banning military-style assault weapons and large-capacity ammunition magazines.
Republican lawmakers tore into Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky Tuesday over health guidelines that remain in place even as more and more Americans get vaccinated.

'I always considered the CDC to be the gold standard. I don't anymore,' Maine Senator Susan Collins said during a Capitol Hill hearing on the pandemic response Tuesday.

Collins, who was reelected to her fifth term in November, told Walensky that she 'used to have the utmost respect for the guidance from the CDC' but now feels it has issued 'conflicting, confusing guidance' that contradicts health officials.

'I used to have the utmost respect for the guidance from the CDC. I always considered the CDC to be the gold standard. I dont anymore,' she lectured the agency head.

She accused the agency  whose leaders repeatedly said they operate based on the science and the available data  of 'exaggerating' the risk of transmission of COVID-19.

'So, here we have unnecessary barriers to reopening schools, exaggerating the risks of outdoor transmission, and unworkable restrictions on summer camps. Why does this matter?' Collins continued. 'It matters because it undermines public confidence in your recommendation, in the recommendations that do make sense, in the recommendations that Americans should be following.'

Republican senators tore into CDC Director Rochelle Walensky during a hearing Tuesday on the pandemic response, claiming the agency has been inconsistant and confusing

'I always considered the CDC to be the gold standard. I don't anymore,' Maine Senator Susan Collins said

The attack by Collins, an influential senator who sometimes cooperates with Democrats, came as her state's Democratic governor joined a zoom call with President Joe Biden to talk about vaccine distribution and the pandemic.

At one point, Maine Gov. Janet Mills joked about people in her state responded to the CDC's initially recommended 6-foot social distancing guidance. 'Some people asked, why so close?' she quipped.

Walensky  who in March warned about a feeling of 'impending doom' as U.S. infections rose  spoke with optimism about vaccines approved for young people aged 12-15  even appearing to suggest they lobby their parents for the shot.

She made the statement when asked about government approval to extend the emergency use authorization for Pfizer for children aged 12-15.

'I recognize some parents want to see how it goes, but I am encouraging all children to be vaccinated,' she said during the hearing. 'And I am also encouraging children to ask for the vaccine.'

'I have a 16-year-old and I continue he wanted to get the vaccine. He wants his life back,' she said.

Officials are eyeing young people as a cohort that can help boost the nation's overall vaccine rates  with a substantial number of adults still saying they aren't sure they want to get the shots.

'The American people have just lost patience with us, with you guys,' Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy said. 'I would ask you to be aware of their frustrations and get a little real time into updating these things'

Republican senators repeatedly pressed Walenksy and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci at Tuesday's hearings over continued restrictions. They called mask mandates unreasonable as more Americans get vaccinated.

Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.), a physician, also piled on the CDC.

He told Walensky Tuesday that the American people 'are starting to disregard what you say is true.'

'The American people have just lost patience with us, with you guys,' Cassidy said. 'I would ask you to be aware of their frustrations and get a little real time into updating these things. I am sorry to be so frustrated.'

The GOP attacks are the latest sign of ongoing political divides over mask mandates, school policies, and vaccines. Public polling has consistently showed greater vaccine hesitancy over getting the vaccine among Republicans.

The CDC recently relaxed its guidelines over masks and other distancing, saying people who are fully vaccinated can do activities outside unmasked and even interact with unvaccinated people in the home.

It also eased up on its recommendations for outdoor activities, and coronavirus advisor Jeff Zients said on a call with governors Tuesday that renewed guidance was being considered.

The hearing was held just as the Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer vaccines for children 12 and older.

Previously, no one under the age of 16 was authorized to receive any of the coronavirus vaccines.

Walensky stood behind the current CDC guidance and pointed to immunocompromised communities but got personal when talking about kids being able to attend summer camp, claiming her 16-year-old son counts down the days until camp.

'I want our kids back in camp,' she said. 'We now have 38,000 new infections, on average, per day. Last May 11th, it was 24,000. And we sent a lot of kids home and camps were closed. The camp guidance is intended to get our kids to camp and allow them to stay there.'
Market Scenario:

Rare earth elements are the set of seventeen chemical elements found in the periodic table. These elements include europium, holmium, erbium, lanthanum, terbium and others, and are found in huge quantities in the earths crust, despite their name. These elements are found together in the earths crust and are difficult to separate from each other.

The global rare earth metals market is majorly driven by the increase in demand of rare metals such as Neodymium and Praseodymium, for the production of high power metals which are used especially in electric vehicles and wind turbines. The market is further expected to be driven by the increase in use of large number of rare earth metals in offshore wind turbines in the forecast period. The demand for electric vehicles is expected to increase with the application of strict regulations on greenhouse gas emissions, across the globe. This increase in the production of electric vehicles is expected to further drive the market for rare earth metals over the forecast period.

Free Sample Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample_request/2261

Study Objectives of global rare earth metal market:

To provide detailed analysis of the market structure along with forecast for the next 5 years of the various segments and sub-segments of the global rare earth metal market

To provide insights about factors affecting the market growth

To analyse the global rare earth metal market based on various factors such as supply chain analysis, and Porters five force analysis

To provide historical and forecast revenue of the market segments and sub-segments with respect to regions and their respective key countries

To provide country level analysis of the market with respect to the current market size and future prospective

To provide country level analysis of the market for segments by type, application and region

To provide strategic profiling of key players in the market, comprehensively analysing their core competencies, and drawing a competitive landscape for the market

To track and analyse competitive developments such as joint ventures, strategic alliances, mergers and acquisitions, new product developments, and research and developments in the global rare earth metal market

Regional Analysis of Rare Earth Metal Market:

The rare earth metal market can be geographically segmented as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC) and Rest of the World (ROW). Asia pacific is expected to be the largest consumer and producer of global rare earth metals with the high consumption of these metals in China. North America is also expected to grow rapidly as it is a leading importer of rare earth metals from China, the largest extraction region of rare earth metals.

Key Players:

The key players of rare earth metal market are Lynas Corporation, Ltd.( Australia), Molycorp Inc. (U.S.), Alkane Resources Ltd (Australia), Baotou Steel Rare-earth (China), Ucore Rare Metals Inc.(Canada), Tantalus Rare Earths AG (Germany), Tasman Metals Ltd. (Canada), Greenland Minerals and Energy Ltd. (Australia), Avalon Advanced Materials Inc. (Canada) and others.

Intended Audience:

Rare earth metal extractors

Distributer & Supplier companies

End Users

consultants and Investment bankers

Government as well as Independent Regulatory Authorities

Product Analysis:

Product matrix which gives a detailed comparison of the market for different recycled product types

Additional Information:

Regulatory Landscape

Pricing Analysis

Macroeconomic Indicators

Geographic Analysis:

Geographical analysis across 15 countries

Company Information:

Profiling of 10 key market players

In-depth analysis including SWOT analysis, and strategy information of related to report title

Competitive landscape including emerging trends adopted by major companies

The report for Rare earth metal Market of Market Research Future comprises of extensive primary research along with the detailed analysis of qualitative as well as quantitative aspects by various industry experts, key opinion leaders to gain the deeper insight of the market and industry performance. The report gives the clear picture of current market scenario which includes historical and projected market size in terms of value, technological advancement, macro economical and governing factors in the market. The report provides details information and strategies of the top key players in the industry. The report also gives a broad study of the different market segments and regions.
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Donald Trump has claimed that President Joe Biden's 'weakness' is to blame for escalating violence in Israel, where Hamas has vowed to turn the Jewish state into 'a hell' after rockets fired from Gaza killed two Israeli women following a night of cross-border strikes.

Violence erupted last Friday at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque amid growing anger over the potential eviction of Palestinians from homes on land claimed by Jewish settlers. The clashes escalated overnight Monday with the Hamas rocket attacks and Israeli air strikes that left a reported 28 Palestinians dead, including ten children.

'When I was in office we were known as the Peace Presidency, because Israel's adversaries knew that the United States stood strongly with Israel and there would be swift retribution if Israel was attacked,' Trump said in a statement on Tuesday.

'Under Biden, the world is getting more violent and more unstable because Biden's weakness and lack of support for Israel is leading to new attacks on our allies. America must always stand with Israel and make clear that the Palestinians must end the violence, terror, and rocket attacks, and make clear that the U.S. will always strongly support Israel's right to defend itself,' he added.

Trump also lashed out at Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, who had said in a tweet: 'Israeli air strikes killing civilians in Gaza is an act of terrorism.'

'Unbelievably, Democrats also continue to stand by crazed anti-American Rep. Ilhan Omar, and others, who savagely attack Israel while they are under terrorist assault,' Trump said.

Rockets are launched towards Israel from Gaza City, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, on Tuesday

Hamas rockets are fired from Gaza City towards Israel on Tuesday. Israel and Hamas exchanged heavy fire, in a dramatic escalation between the bitter foes sparked by unrest at Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound

Trump claimed that 'Under Biden, the world is getting more violent and more unstable because Biden's weakness and lack of support for Israel is leading to new attacks on our allies'

Donald Trump has claimed that President Joe Biden's 'weakness' is to blame for escalating violence in Israel

In tweets, Rep. Ilhan Omar said that Israel should be condemned for deadly air strikes on Palestinians

White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki opened her daily news briefing on Tuesday with a statement about the situation, saying that Biden had just received an update from his national security team and that his primary focus was on de-escalation.

She said the United States condemned rocket attacks by Hamas and other groups, including attacks on Jerusalem, and that Biden's support for 'Israel's security, for its legitimate right to defend itself and its people, is fundamental and will never waver.'

'Jerusalem, a city of such importance to people of faith around the world, must be a place of co-existence,' Psaki said.

U.S. officials in recent weeks have spoken candidly with Israeli officials about how evictions of Palestinian families and demolition of their homes 'work against our common interests in achieving a solution to the conflict,' Psaki said.

Biden has sought to rebalance U.S. policy toward Israel and the Palestinians after his predecessor, Donald Trump, sided with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on all fronts.

A senior administration official said Biden and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas recently completed an exchange of letters that began when Abbas sent Biden a letter congratulating him on winning the 2020 election. Biden sent a response recently.

'We wont share details of the letter. This is part of this administrations ongoing outreach with the Palestinian leadership on a range of issues of mutual interest, including ongoing efforts to de-escalate violence and restore calm,' the official said.

Psaki said the United States wants a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a goal that Trump did not aggressively pursue, saying it was the only way to ensure a 'just and lasting peace' between them.

'We believe Palestinians and Israelis deserve equal measures of freedom, security, dignity and prosperity,' she said.

Smoke billows from an Israeli air strike on the Hanadi compound in Gaza City, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement

Pictured: Streaks of light are seen as Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel, May 11, 2021. Rocket fire was so relentless that Israel's Iron Dome rocket-defence system seemed to be overwhelmed on Tuesday

White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the US condemned rocket attacks by Hamas on Jerusalem, and that Biden's support for 'Israel's security, for its legitimate right to defend itself and its people, is fundamental and will never waver'

On Tuesday, Netanyahu 'deplored' the deaths of the two Israeli women killed by rocket attacks, adding that Israel would 'further increase both the intensity and the rate' its own air strikes against Gaza.

'Hamas will be hit in ways that it does not expect,' Netanyahu said. 'We have eliminated commanders, hit many important targets and we have decided to attack harder and increase the pace of attacks.'

Two women, one aged in her 60s, the other in her 80s, were killed in Israeli city Ashkelon, while the city's Barzilai Medical Center said it was treating around 70 people. One of the woman was identified by The Jerusalem Post as Soumya Santhosh, an Indian national working in Israel as a caregiver.

Meanwhile, twenty-eight Palestinians - including ten children - have been killed in Israeli strikes, according to health officials in Gaza. The Israeli military claimed at least 16 of the dead were militants, while seven deaths have been attributed to the same family, including three children.

By late Tuesday, the violence extended to Tel Aviv, which came under fire from a barrage of rockets launched from the Gaza Strip. The outgoing volleys set off air raid sirens across the city, and the main international airport quickly closed.

Hamas said it launched a total of 130 rockets, its most intense strike so far, in response to Israel's destruction of a 12-storey building in Gaza earlier in the evening.

The sound of the outgoing rockets could be heard in Gaza. As the rockets rose into the skies, mosques across Gaza blared with chants of 'God is great,' 'victory to Islam' and 'resistance.'

One rocket struck a bus in the central city of Holon, just south of Tel Aviv. Medics said three people, including a 5-year-old girl, were wounded and the bus went up in flames.

Pictured: Smokes rise from buildings as Israeli fighter jets continue to pound a Palestinian building called 'Hanady' at Al-Rimal neighbourhood in the Gaza Strip, on May 11, 2021

Pictured: Israeli firefighters check out damaged vehicles in the Israeli town of Holon near Tel Aviv, on May 11, 2021, after rockets are launched towards Israel from Gaza. Hamas has vowed to turn Israel into 'a hell' after rockets fired from Gaza killed two Israeli women today following a night of cross-border strikes

Pictured: A bomb drops near a Palestinian building called 'Hanady' at Al-Rimal neighbourhood as Israeli fighter jets continue to pound in the Gaza Strip, on May 11, 2021

A wounded Palestinian boy is transported to hospital after an Israeli air strike in Gaza today

By late Tuesday, the violence extended to Tel Aviv, which came under fire from a barrage of rockets launched from the Gaza Strip. The outgoing volleys set off air raid sirens across the city, and the main international airport quickly closed

The cross-border violence has been fuelled by Israel's evictions of Muslim communities living in east Jerusalem which led to angry riots breaking out on Temple Mount over the weekend, with hundreds left injured on Monday as riot police shot rubber bullets and fired tear gas at protesters.

The barrage of rockets leaving Gaza and airstrikes coming into the territory continued almost non-stop throughout the day, in what appeared to be some of the most intense fighting between Israel and Hamas since their 2014 war.

Rocket fire was so relentless that Israel's Iron Dome rocket-defence system seemed to be overwhelmed, with over 400 rockets reportedly fired at Israel. Meanwhile, columns of smoke rose from many places in Gaza as the IDF struck more than 130 targets throughout Monday.

Egypt was been trying to broker a cease-fire into Tuesday, but the cycle of violence was gaining momentum.

Even before the two Israeli deaths, the Israeli military said it was sending troop reinforcements to the Gaza border and the defence minister Benny Gantz ordered the mobilisation of 5,000 reserve soldiers.

But contrary to Egypt's efforts, Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei urged Palestinians to 'build up power' on state television, saying 'Zionists (Israel) only understand the language of force'. Iran and Israel consider one-another arch enemies, with Iran refusing to recognise the existence of Israel as a state since the 1979 Iranian Revolution.

Fire billows from Israeli air strikes in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday morning. At least 26 Palestinians - including nine children - were killed, most by airstrikes, health officials in Gaza reported.

Rockets are fired from Gaza City, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, towards Israel on Tuesday

Smoke billows and sparks fly from Israeli air strikes in Gaza City on Tuesday as Israel and Hamas exchanged heavy fire

Palestinians flee with their children as civilians are evacuated from a building being targeted by an Israeli bombardment in Gaza

A huge explosion from an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on Tuesday causes sparks to fly into the air as a cloud of black smoke rises above the city

In Israel, residents of Ashkelon have been running to shelters as air raid sirens wail. 'At around 5am, we were woken by sirens. We had to hide in the wardrobe because there is no shelter in the house,' said Shelly Belayev, whose building was heavily damaged, its facade blackened and an apartment devastated.

'There was a very strong explosion, I have never heard a sound like it. I quickly realised the missile fell here,' she said. 'I went outside, I was in shock.'

Since the sirens began late Monday, barrages of rockets launched from the Hamas-controlled Palestinian enclave have rained down on the coastal city, located just north of the Gaza Strip.

The deluge continued on Tuesday, with Hamas' armed wing the Qassam Brigades saying it had fired 137 rockets on Ashkelon and nearby Ashdod within just five minutes during the afternoon.

Islamic Jihad, an ally of Hamas, announced on Tuesday that two of its commanders were killed during continued Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip.

Sources within the group said the strikes in central Gaza, also 'wounded eight people, including a woman and her two children.'

On Tuesday, Israel Defence Forces (IDF) claimed it had killed a top Hamas Commander in a statement , saying: 'We just killed the commander of the Hamas anti-tank missile unit, Iyad Fathi Faik Sharir. He was in charge of carrying out anti-tank missile attacks on Israel. Our aircraft are currently striking additional terror targets'.

Other high-profile Hamas targets are also said to have been killed. One was identified as Samah Abed al-Mamlouk, who the IDF said was in a hideout along with other operatives. He is said to have been in charge of the Islamic Jihad's rocket arsenal.

Another - Hassan Abu al-Atta - was also killed. He is thought to have been a deputy commander of Islamic Jihad's Gaza Brigade. He was killed when the IDF struck an eight-storey building in Gaza's Rimal neighbourhood.

The United Nations said it was 'deeply concerned' over the escalation of violence in the region, warning Israel that Palestinians must be allowed the freedom to congregate and protest.

'We condemn all violence and all incitement to violence and ethnic division and provocations,' spokesman Rupert Colville told reporters in Geneva today.

He added: 'No force should be used against those exercising their rights peacefully.' When use of force is necessary, it should comply fully with international human rights standards, he added.

Colville said the office of UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet was particularly concerned about the impact of the violence on children. 'Detained children should be released,' Colville said. 'Things need to calm down.'

An Israeli sapper checks a damaged apartment building in the southern town of Ashkelon after it was hit by a Palestinian missile on Tuesday morning

A home in the Israeli town of Ashkelon, around 12 miles north of Gaza, which has been targeted by Hamas rockets since last night

Medics evacuate a person injured after a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip hit a house in Ashkelon on Tuesday

A Palestinian man holds an injured girl while she awaits medical care at al-Shifa hospital after an Israeli air strike in Gaza City on Tuesday

Israel's Iron Dome aerial defence system intercepts a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip in the skies above the southern city of Ashkelon on Monday

People gather on the rubble of a factory and car garages destroyed by Israeli airstrikes, in Gaza City on Tuesday

Mourners chant Islamic slogans while they carry the body of Amira Soboh, and her 19-year-old disabled son Abdelrahman, who were killed in Israeli airstrikes at their apartment building, during their funeral at the Shati refugee camp in Gaza

Bodies of the victims of an Israeli air strike are carried through Gaza on Tuesday

Israel's Iron Dome aerial defence system intercepts a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, above the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon

Israeli firefighters extinguish a car which caught on fire after a rocket was launched from the Gaza Strip, in Ashkelon, southern Israel

Israeli civilians take cover as the missile warning sirens ring out in the southern city of Ashkelon on Tuesday amid renewed bombardments

Smoke and flames billow into the air as Israeli warplanes drop bombs on the Gaza strip on Tuesday morning. It comes after militants launched more than 200 rockets at Israel, injuring six civilians

Rockets are fired from Gaza City towards Israel on Tuesday afternoon as airstrikes continue

Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip on Tuesday

Flames and smoke rise during Israeli air strikes on the southern Gaza Strip this morning

An explosion goes off in Gaza City as Israeli warplanes drop bombs on Hamas targets after riots broke out on Temple Mount over the weekend

Damage left by an Israeli air strike is seen on Tuesday in Gaza City after the two sides exchanged rockets and bombs throughout the night

Rockets fired from Gaza City are seen streaming towards Israel this morning as the two sides exchanged fire throughout the night

Smoke rises high above Gaza City following Israeli air strikes in Gaza City on Tuesday

A number of Israeli air strikes have hit Gaza city, with plumes of smoke billowing across the skyline on Tuesday

A heavily damaged house, with furniture, bricks and plaster blown across the building, is pictured at a targeted residential neighbourhood in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon on Tuesday as rockets are fired from the Gaza Strip towards Israel

In a sign of widening unrest, hundreds of residents of Arab communities across Israel staged overnight demonstrations denouncing the recent actions of Israeli security forces against Palestinians. It was one of the largest protests by Palestinian citizens in Israel in recent years.

Israel and Hamas have fought three wars and numerous skirmishes since the militant group seized control of Gaza in 2007. Recent rounds of fighting have usually ended after a few days, often helped by behind-the-scenes mediation by Qatar, Egypt and others.

Why are violent clashes taking place in Jerusalem? When did the protests start? From the beginning of Ramadan in mid-April, Palestinians clashed nightly with Israeli police, who put up barriers to stop evening gatherings at the walled Old City's Damascus Gate after iftar, the breaking of the daytime fast. Palestinians saw the barriers as a restriction on their freedom to assemble. Police said they were there to maintain order. Why did the violence flare up again? An Israeli Supreme Court hearing was due on May 10 in a long-running legal case about whether several Palestinian families would be evicted and their homes in Sheikh Jarrah, a neighbourhood near Damascus Gate that was given to Israeli settlers. Some settlers have already moved into the street affected - living next door to the Palestinians facing possible removal. As the court hearing neared, Palestinians and left-wing Israelis began holding larger demonstrations, saying more evictions could cause a domino effect throughout the overwhelmingly Palestinian neighbourhood. Sheikh Jarrah also contains a site revered by religious Jews as the tomb of an ancient high priest, Simon the Just, leading to frequent tensions between Palestinian living there and religious Jews visiting it. International attention The case, in which a lower court ruled that the land in question belonged to Jews in East Jerusalem before the 1948 War, has gathered domestic and international attention, amid criticism of Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem. On Sunday U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan spoke to his Israeli counterpart to express 'serious concerns about the potential evictions of Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood,' the White House said. read more And United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed 'his deep concern over the continuing violence in occupied East Jerusalem, as well as the possible evictions of Palestinian families from their homes,' U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Sunday. What next? On Sunday the Supreme Court hearing on the evictions was postponed, pushing at least one flashpoint past the end of Ramadan and allowing more time for a resolution. A new session will be scheduled within 30 days. read more Monday is Jerusalem Day, Israel's annual commemoration of its capture of East Jerusalem during the 1967 war. The event usually sees a march through the walled Old City by Jewish pilgrims, including ultra-nationalists, which could be another flashpoint. Why is Jerusalem so sensitive? Politics, history and religion. At the heart of Jerusalem's Old City is the hill known to Jews across the world as Temple Mount - the holiest site in Judaism - and to Muslims internationally as The Noble Sanctuary. It was home to the Jewish temples of antiquity. Two Muslim holy places now stand there, the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest place in Islam. Christians also revere the city as the place where they believe that Jesus preached, died and was resurrected. Israel sees all of Jerusalem as its eternal and indivisible capital, while the Palestinians want the eastern section as a capital of a future state. Israel's annexation of East Jerusalem is unrecognized internationally. Advertisement

An Egyptian official confirmed that the country was trying to broker a truce. But the official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was discussing sensitive diplomacy, said Israeli actions in Jerusalem had complicated those efforts. A Palestinian security official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the cease-fire efforts.

Critics say heavy-handed police measures helped stoke nightly unrest, including a decision to temporarily seal off a popular night-time gathering spot where Palestinian residents would meet after evening prayers.

Another flashpoint was the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah where dozens of Palestinians are under treat of eviction by Jewish settlers.

Over the weekend, confrontations erupted at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in east Jerusalem, which was captured and annexed by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war.

The compound, located in Jerusalem's Old City, is the third holiest site of Islam and the holiest site of Judaism.

For four successive days, Israel police fired tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets at Palestinians in the compound who hurled stones and chairs.

Hundreds of Palestinians were hurt, requiring treatment at hospitals. Two dozen officers were also injured. At times, police fired stun grenades into the carpeted mosque.

On Monday evening, Hamas began firing rockets from Gaza, setting off air raid sirens as far as Jerusalem, after giving Israel a deadline to withdraw Israeli security forces from the compound. From there on, the escalation was rapid.

Speaking of the Israeli response to Hamas's rocket attacks, army spokesman Conricus said on Monday evening: 'We have started, and I repeat started, to attack military targets in Gaza.

'We have made preparations for various scenarios, including high intensity ones... Hamas will get the message.'

Amnesty International said Israel is using 'abusive and wanton force against largely peaceful Palestinian protesters.'

The London-based human rights group described some of the measures as 'disproportionate and unlawful', accusing security forces of 'unprovoked attacks on peaceful demonstrators'.

Amnesty said Israel has used excessive force over multiple weeks of east Jerusalem protests.

In one incident, it said Israeli forces last week broke up a peaceful circle of Palestinians chanting against an attempt by Israelis to evict them from their homes in the city's Sheikh Jarrah district.

Forces on horseback sprinted toward the crowd, trampling a man who was trying to run away, Amnesty said.

The rights group called on the international community 'to hold Israel accountable for its systemic violations'.

The Israeli police did not respond to specific allegations, but told AFP in an email: 'We will not allow disturbance of order while harming the fabric of life, inciting to harm police forces and violence against police officers and civilians.'

Police commissioner Kobi Shabtai told Israeli N12 TV on Monday that in Jerusalem in recent days 'we showed too much restraint'.

'We are at the stage of taking off the gloves,' he said.

The group Save the Children, also based in London, said it was 'horrified' by the Israeli air strikes and demanded a stop to 'the indiscriminate targeting and killing of civilians'.

Israeli army spokesman Conricus said Israel 'was doing everything possible to limit collateral damage' and he said there was no confirmation Israeli strikes had impacted Gaza civilians.

Diplomatic sources told AFP that Egypt and Qatar, who have mediated past Israeli-Hamas conflicts, were attempting to calm tensions

In perhaps the most serious incident of clashes today, CCTV captured the moment crowds of Palestinians pelted a car driving near Jerusalem's Old City with rocks before the Israeli driver accelerated on to the pavement - sending people flying.

People continued to pelt the driver after the car came to a halt, suspended on a nearby wall, before a gun-waving police officer arrived. The officer helped the man from the car, before he was again attacked by a pedestrian.

A Palestinian man punches an Israeli security officer amid bitter clashes around Jerusalem's Old City on Monday

Israeli police arrest a Palestinian man at the Lions' Gate during Monday's clashes at Temple Mount in Jerusalem

Palestinian medics evacuate a wounded protester from outside the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City during yesterday's clashes

Israeli police detain a protester near the compound that houses the Al-Aqsa Mosque during clashes on Monday

Israeli police confront a Palestinian man near the Lions' Gate entrance to Jerusalem's Old City on Monday

A car goes up in flames after a rocket launched by Hamas landed in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon on Tuesday

Palestinians mourn during a funeral in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday

Palestinians evacuate following an Israeli air strike on a building in Gaza City on Tuesday

A Palestinian man carries a child away from a tower block during an Israeli bombardment in Gaza

Palestinian families flee from a tower block in Gaza City as Israel carries out further bombardments on Hamas targets

Palestinians mourners carry the bodies of Ameera Soboh and her son, Abed Soboh, during their funeral in the aftermath of Israel's retaliatory overnight air strike

A Palestinian mother and her son walk next a destroyed Hamas interior ministry site in the aftermath of Israel's air strike in Tal Al Hawa neighbourhood of Gaza

Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system fires to intercept rockets launched from the Gaza Strip, as seen from Ashkelon, southern Israel on Tuesday

Cars go up in flames after a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip landed nearby, in Ashkelon

Mourners carry the body of Amira Soboh, and her 19-year-old disabled son Abdelrahman, who were killed in Israeli airstrikes at their apartment building, during their funeral at the Shati refugee camp, in Gaza City

Palestinian mourners carry the body of 11-year-old Hussain Hamad, who was killed by an explosion in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday

A woman stands next to the rubble of a Hamas interior ministry building in the aftermath of Israel's air strike in Tal Al Hawa neighborhood in the south of Gaza

Police then cancelled a right-wing Israeli march that was due to pass through the Old City and its Muslim Quarter in an effort to calm tensions.

The fighting has drawn calls for de-escalation from the international community and sharp rebukes from across the Muslim world.

In Washington, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the administration, including President Joe Biden himself, was monitoring the violence.

'We have serious concerns about the situation, including violent confrontations that we've seen over the last few days,' she told reporters. The U.S. Embassy in Israel said the rocket fire was 'unacceptable.'

The Israeli military said well over 50 rockets were fired into Israel throughout the evening, most of them aimed at southern Israeli towns near the border.

Lieutenant Colonel Conricus said six rockets were aimed at Jerusalem, some 60 miles (100 kilometers) away. It was believed to be the first rocket attack on the city since a 2014 war.

Shortly after the sirens sounded, explosions could be heard in Jerusalem. One rocket fell on the western outskirts of the city, lightly damaging a home and causing a brush fire. The Israeli army said one rocket was intercepted and the others fell in open areas.

Israel then responded with airstrikes on Hamas targets throughout Gaza.

Seven members of a family, including three children, were killed in a blast in the northern town of Beit Hanoun. It was not immediately clear if the blast was caused by an airstrike or errant rocket.

Israel launched deadly air strikes on Gaza Monday in response to a barrage of rockets fired by Hamas and other Palestinian militants, amid spiralling violence sparked by unrest at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque compound. Pictured: Streaks of light are seen as Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip towards the country

At least 20 people were killed, including nine children and a senior Hamas commander, and 65 others wounded, Gaza authorities said

Israel's army said 150 rockets had been launched from Gaza, dozens of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome Aerial Defence System, with no casualties reported. Pictured: One of the rockets being fired from Gaza City towards Israel

At least three exhaust trails were seen in the skies over Gaza City as explosions were heard, though was not immediately clear whether the rockets hit anything or were shot down

Fighting today saw at least 305 Palestinians hurt, including 205 taken to hospital, five in serious condition. Some 21 police were hurt, including one seriously, the Israeli security services sai

Ashraf al-Masri, a member of the family, said there was an explosion outside the house.

'We don't know where it came from,' he said. 'We are trying to get the children for burial but the situation is difficult in Beit Hanoun and we are afraid to leave our houses.'

Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas' military wing, said the attack on Jerusalem was a response to what he called Israeli 'crimes and aggression' in the city. 'This is a message the enemy has to understand well,' he said.

He threatened more attacks if Israeli forces re-enter the sacred Al-Aqsa Mosque compound or carry out planned evictions of Palestinian families from an east Jerusalem neighbourhood.

Fears of further chaos in the Old City had eased somewhat today when Israeli organisers cancelled a march to celebrate the Jewish state's 1967 capture of east Jerusalem that was due to pass through the Old City.

But then came the Hamas warning, followed shortly after by the rockets.

'An alarm has just been sounded in Jerusalem. Police forces have begun evacuating hundreds of people' gathered at the Wailing Wall to safer locations, police said in a brief statement.

A fire billows from Israeli air strikes in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday morning

A fire rages following an Israeli air strike overnight on the southern Gaza region of Khan Yunis, controlled by the Hamas movement, early on Tuesday

Fire billows from an Israeli air strike in the Gaza Strip, controlled by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas

Hamas, a militant group which controls the Gaza Strip, had earlier issued a 6pm ultimatum for Israel to withdraw security forces from the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem. The rockets were fired after the deadline lapsed. Pictured: Rockets are seen being fired from Gaza

The Israeli military said it had targeted 'two rocket launchers, two military posts', a tunnel and eight Hamas operatives in Gaza

An Israeli military vehicle is seen firing tear gas canisters towards Palestinians during Monday's protests

An ISraeli police officer walks past burning debris during an anti-Israel protest by Palestinians over tension in Jerusalem, in Bethlehem in the Israeli-occupied West Bank

Israeli border police members take position near burning barricades during the violent protests on Monday evening

The fighting has drawn calls for de-escalation from the international community and sharp rebukes from across the Muslim world

This boy was pictured being treated in hospital after he was injured following an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza strip on Monday

Israeli troops are seen during clashes with Palestinian protesters in the city center of the West Bank city of Hebron on Monday

Rescue teams inspect the damage to Palestinian homes in the town of Beit Hanoun caused by Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip. Twenty Palestinians were killed in a series of Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip on Monday. They were launched after Hamas fired rockets towards Jerusalem

Protesters chant slogans and wave flags outside the Israeli Consulate during a protest against Israel on Monday in Istanbul, Turkey

A Palestinian man pushes a bloody stretcher after wounded residents were treated in hospital following the Israeli airstrikes

Palestinian protesters clash with Israeli troops at in the city center of the West Bank city of Hebron on Monday evening

Israel's Lieutenant Colonel Conricus said six rockets were aimed at Jerusalem, some 60 miles (100 kilometers) away. It was believed to be the first rocket attack on the city since a 2014 war. Pictured: A Palestinian protester on Monday

Israeli security forces clash with Palestinian protesters at the Hawara checkpoint, south of Nablus city, in the occupied West Bank

Hamas has fired several rockets towards Israel in recent days, some intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defence system

Demonstrators light flares during a protest against Israel near the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, on Monday

Palestinians burn tires after Israeli police used tear gas, rubber bullets and stun grenades to quell violent protests in the Nablus province of the West Bank

Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas' military wing, said the attack on Jerusalem was a response to what he called Israeli 'crimes and aggression' in the city. 'This is a message the enemy has to understand well,' he said

Israel's Iron Dome aerial defence system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip, controlled by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, above the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, on Monday

A streak of light is seen as Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel

Israelis run for shelter in Jerusalem as bomb sirens sound after Hamas fired rockets from Gaza towards the Jewish state

An Israeli man carries his son towards a bomb shelter in Jerusalem after Hamas launched rockets at Israel from Gaza

Shocking CCTV has revealed the moment Palestinian protesters pelted an Israeli man's car with rocks during clashes near Jerusalem's Old City, before he drove into crowds

A gun-waving policeman eventually came to the man's aid as protesters continued throwing rocks, with hundreds of people injured in violence today

Moments later, the man was involved in a fist-fight with police just inches away amid the worst violence that Jerusalem has seen in recent years

Medics evacuate a protester who was injured near the Lions' Gate entrance to Jerusalem's Old City amid fresh violence on the streets today

Clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians began during Ramadan, but dramatically escalated at the weekend with fighting around the Al-Aqsa mosque

Paramedics take the injured Palestinians after Israeli police moved into the Temple Mount compound - known to Muslims as Haram esh-Sharif - to clear demonstrators away

On Monday evening, Palestinians continued gathering outside the Al-Aqsa Compound, in East Jerusalem

Israeli Police officers clash with Palestinians at Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's old city during Israel's 'Jerusalem Day'

Hamas has fired several rockets towards Israel in recent days, some intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defence system, while militants in Gaza have deployed incendiary balloons that have sparked dozens of fires in Israeli territory.

Israel's army earlier announced widespread road closures in communities near the Gaza border, following a 'situational assessment', and two municipalities near Gaza, Ashkelon and Kyriat Malachi, confirmed that they had opened their bomb shelters.

Monday's clashes mark the fourth straight day of fighting between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in Jerusalem, the most serious period of violence the city has seen since 2017.

Tensions between the two sides had been simmering since mid-April because Israeli forces had restricted access to the Al Aqsa Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan.

But the clashes suddenly escalated on Friday with violence in and around the mosque, which drew more people on to the streets. Protesters have also been angered by a long-running court battle between Jewish settlers and Palestinian homeowners in east Jerusalem, where the Old City is located.

A court that was due to rule on the issue today has postponed the date.

Medical workers evacuate a wounded protester from near the Dome of the Rock, Judaism's holiest site that sits just next to the Al Aqsa Mosque which has been at the centre of clashes

An injured man is helped to his feet by a passerby inside the Temple Mount/Haram esh-Sharif compound in Jerusalem

Israeli security forces detain a Palestinian protester amid clashes at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City amid some of the worst clashes in the city for years

Israeli security forces clash with Palestinian protesters at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound today

A member of Israeli police aims a weapon during clashes with Palestinians at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque

Israeli riot police are seen forming a shield wall near the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem's Old City amid violent clashes with Palestinian protesters that have entered their third day

The leader of the far-right Religious Zionism party, Bezalel Smotrich, announced a visit Monday to the tense Sheikh Jarrah district which is at the centre of property disputes.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday defended Israel's response to the protests and rioting.

'We will uphold law and order - vigorously and responsibly,' Netanyahu said while vowing to 'guard freedom of worship for all faiths'.

Monday's clashes broke out after Palestinians gathered around the Al-Aqsa Mosque in anticipation of the arrival of the Jerusalem Day march, which is due to end at the nearby Dome of the Rock.

Israeli security forces said demonstrators barricaded themselves inside the mosque, and officers were sent in to clear them out. Rocks were thrown at police, who opened fire with tear gas and rubber bullets.

Witnesses said some of the tear gas grenades landed inside the mosque. The BBC also reported confrontations in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, and near the West Bank city of Ramallah.

The scenes around Al-Aqsa Mosque mirror those which took place on Friday and have seen Israeli forces criticised for heavy-handed tactics.

All six Arab nations that have diplomatic ties with Israel - Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan - have condemned the Jewish state.

In Jordan, the custodian of Jerusalem's holy Islamic and Christian sites, King Abdullah II condemned 'Israeli violations and escalatory practices at the blessed Al-Aqsa mosque'.

Jordan and Egypt both summoned Israeli envoys on Sunday to lodge protests.

Tunisia said the UN Security Council was to hold a closed-door meeting Monday, at its request, on the violence.

The Middle East quartet of envoys from the European Union, Russia, the United States and the United Nations - and Pope Francis - have all called for calm.

'Israeli authorities must exercise maximum restraint and respect the right to freedom of peaceful assembly,' UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.

Clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters have been centered around the Asl-Aqsa Mosque. Today, at Lions' Gate, a car was filmed driving into protesters as they pelted it with rocks. Later today, a Jerusalem Day procession is due to pass through Damascus Gate and through the Muslim quarter of the city, amid fears it will spark more clashes

Israeli police detain a Palestinian man during clashes around the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem

Israeli security forces detain a Palestinian man near Jerusalem's Old City, amid clashes that are the worst to have hit the city since at least 2017

Israeli police stand guard at one of the entrances to Jerusalem's Old City amid the worst clashes the city has seen since 2017

Paramedics take away an injured Palestinian while Israeli security forces look on amid clashes in Jerusalem's Old City

Palestinian medics evacuate a wounded protester from the Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, which has seen three days of violence

Palestinians who had gathered near the Al Aqsa Mosque are dispersed by Israeli security forces

Palestinians take cover as Israeli police open fire with tear gas and rubber bullets while medics rush to help the injured

A Palestinian man rushes to get rid of a tear gas grenade amid clashes with Israeli security forces near the Dome of the Rock

Medics treat a wounded man during clashes with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound

The UN children's agency UNICEF said that over two days, 29 Palestinian children had been injured in east Jerusalem, including a one-year-old.

The unrest of past weeks in east Jerusalem, which Palestinians claim as their future capital, has multiple causes.

Much of the recent violence stems from a long-running legal effort by Jewish settler groups to evict several Palestinians from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah.

A lower court ruling earlier this year backing the settlers' decades-old claim to the plots infuriated Palestinians.

A Supreme Court hearing on a Palestinian appeal had been set for Monday, but the justice ministry said Sunday that in light of 'all the circumstances' it would delay the hearing.

Old City shopkeeper Mohammad said Israeli police told him he must close Monday afternoon, when Israeli Jews plan to march with Israeli flags to mark Jerusalem's 'reunification'.

Israel annexed east Jerusalem following the 1967 takeover, a move not recognised by most of the international community.

The unrest has spread across the Palestinian territories, including demonstrations and clashes in the occupied West Bank.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has expressed 'full support for our heroes in Al-Aqsa'.

Hamas Islamists who control the Gaza Strip have also voiced support for the Palestinian protesters and warned Israel of retribution if evictions proceed in Sheikh Jarrah.

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh called Sunday for a united Arab and Muslim response against Israel's 'provocative desecration of the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque'.

Four rockets were fired from Gaza towards Israel on Sunday, the army said, as well as incendiary balloons that started 39 fires on Israeli territory, according to the fire services.

The Israeli military said late Sunday that 'tanks just struck Hamas terror targets in Gaza', without giving further details.

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City

A member of Israeli security forces runs amid clashes with Palestinian protesters in Jerusalem's Old City

Israeli police detain a Palestinian during clashes at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque, known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount

Medics tend to a wounded Palestinian during clashes with Israeli police at the compound that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque

A Palestinian man is confronted by Israeli security forces in Jerusalem's Old City
Surveillance camera footage shows the moment a driver smashed into a car during an alleged street drag race, killing a 42-year-old father and his eight-year-old son in Argentina.

Footage of the March 20 accident was released Monday of the tragic accident as the two drivers involved in the alleged race were charged with negligent homicide.

German Schoeller, 36, was speeding with Pablo Mancini down a street in Rosario, Argentina when the accident happened, prosecutors say.

The surveillance video from an intersection captures the moment a Citrogen 4 driven by Mancini narrowly misses a Citrogen C3 driven by David Pizorno.

A moment later Schoeller's Renault Sendero smashes into the married man's vehicle.

Pizorno and his eight-year-old son Valentino were pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.

His wife, Cintia Diaz was rushed to a medical facility where she was treated for her injuries and later released.

The formal accusation on Monday was made during a court hearing, the first that Schoeller had participated in since he had been hospitalized due to injuries sustained in the high-speed crash.

WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT

Eight-year-old Valentino Pizano and his father David Pizorno, 42, were killed March 20 when a vehicle that was part of an illegal street race plowed into the vehicle the elder Pizorno was driving

Still image of a surveillance camera shows the moment David Pizorno is crossing a street intersection in Rosario, Argentina, before his car was slammed into

German Schoeller (left) told an Argentine court that he was not aware of how fast his car was traveling before he crashed into a vehicle in which a family was traveling March 20. The accident claimed the lives of David Pizorno and his son Valentino Pizorno. Surveillance footage shows a car driven by Pablo Mancini nearly hitting the Pizorno's vehicle before Schoeller collided with them

Schoeller was hospitalized and discharged April 15, but he was immediately placed in home confinement.

A motion filed by prosecutors to place Schoeller in pre-trial custody was approved by the judge overseeing Monday's hearing, according to online news portal Infobae.

'We were able to refute, through objective evidence, what the defense argued that he was following the other vehicle and did not realize the speed,' Rosario prosecutors Walter Jurado and Valeria Piazza said in a joint statement.

Schoeller could face anywhere between eight to 25 years in prison if he is found guilty.

Mancini has also been held without bail for his role in the accident.

'He acted with gross negligence because he was moving at high speed in an intersection busy with pedestrians, not stopping at any time when crossing Ayacucho street and ignoring the intermittence of said traffic light,' prosecutors said.

David Pizorno's Citrogen C3 was completely wrecked after it was slammed into at an intersection on a street in the central Argentine province of Rosario on March 20

Cintia Diaz survived the crash that left her husband David Pizorno and son dead

Valentino Pizorno was killed in a car accident in Rosario, Argentina, on March 20

During the hearing, Schoeller acknowledged he lost track of how fast he was driving his vehicle, the first he has ever owned and which he purchased in 2019.

Authorities say the car's speedometer registered 82 miles per hour at the time of the accident.

'That night we got together with some friends to eat, it was something frequent, we did it once a month. I had a glass of beer about two hours before going out more or less, without any idea that something as serious as what happened was going to happen,' Schoeller said.
Colonial Pipeline says it is still days away from resuming full operations after falling victim to a cyberattack as questions being to mount over why it is taking an entire week to get the nation's biggest fuel pipeline back in action.

Gas prices have already spiked to a seven-year high and reports of gas shortages and panic buying are emerging up and down the East Coast with motorists lining up from Florida to Virginia for fuel.

But as the shutdown nears its sixth day, it is still unclear why it is taking so long for Colonial to return to business as usual after insisting it would try to 'substantially' restore operations by the end of the week.

Colonial, which delivers about 45 percent of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, announced last Friday it had halted operations after becoming the victim of a ransomware attack that it said had affected some of its systems.

Ever since abruptly shutting the 5,500 mile pipeline that runs from Texas to New Jersey, Colonial has only managed to restore some services and has given the vague timeline of when things will be back up and running.

Colonial Pipeline said it was working to 'substantially' resume operations by the end of this week but reports of gas shortages are already emerging up and down the East Coast as motorists were spotted lining up in Atlanta on Tuesday morning

The cyberattack carried out by Russian ransomware hackers that shut down Colonial Pipeline, America's largest fuel pipeline, has left the operator and the US government scrambling to restart the network to avoid fuel shortages and price hikes

The timing of when its systems could be restored may be weighed down by multiple factors, including whether Colonial paid the ransom and, if so, when it was given the decryption key that could unscramble it.

Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data and paralyze victim networks before demanding large payments to decrypt it.

Cyber experts say the process of decrypting can take several days.

Colonial has refused to say whether it has paid or is negotiating a ransom after the FBI confirmed DarkSide, a Russian hacking outfit made up of ransomware veterans, was responsible for the attack.

How extensively its systems were infected would also affect how quickly Colonial can restore them.

Colonial has only said the hack affected its IT systems and not those that actually control the pipeline.

Sources previously told Bloomberg that hackers stole nearly 100 gigabytes of data out of Colonial's network on Thursday before demanding a ransom.

Analysts at Third Bridge have said the pipeline utilizes both common and custom technology systems, which could complicate efforts to bring the entire network back online.

A government map shows a mishmash of pipelines, petroleum ports and petroleum refineries. The Southeastern area now under biggest stress shows little in the way of pipelines or refineries, whereas the Gulf area, the Northeast and the Midwest are well-covered, so aren't as at-risk from fuel shortages at the moment

In a statement released on Monday, Colonial said it took some systems offline on May 7 in a bid to contain the threat after first learning of the cybersecurity attack.

Taking those systems offline resulted in temporarily halting all pipeline operations and affected Colonial's IT system.

Colonial said it is currently 'in the process of restoring' its IT systems and was evaluating the product inventory in storage tanks at its facilities.

Biden administration officials have said that Colonial proactively took some of its systems offline to prevent the ransomware from migrating from business computer systems to those that control and operate the pipeline.

'The Colonial Pipeline operations team is developing a system restart plan,' a Colonial spokesperson said on Monday.

'While our mainlines (Lines 1, 2, 3 and 4) remain offline, some smaller lateral lines between terminals and delivery points are now operational.

The national average for retail gasoline prices was at $2.985 as of Tuesday, according to the American Automobile Association. The last time the average gas prices were above $2.99 was back in November 2014

As the shutdown nears its sixth day, it is still unclear why it is taking so long for Colonial to return to business as usual after insisting it would try to 'substantially' restore operations by the end of the week

'We are in the process of restoring service to other laterals and will bring our full system back online only when we believe it is safe to do so, and in full compliance with the approval of all federal regulations.'

The mounting questions over when the system will be restored comes as fuel distributors and refiners say Colonial has left them in the dark about what it to come.

One Maryland fuel distributor warned there would be 'catastrophic' shortages in the coming days given Colonial has only managed to restore some services in the wake of the hack.

Sources told Bloomberg News that hackers stole nearly 100 gigabytes of data out of Colonial's network on Thursday before demanding a ransom. Colonial, which is based in Georgia, has not yet said whether it has paid or is negotiating a ransom with the hackers

'It's going to be catastrophic,' John Patrick, chief operating officer of Liberty Petroleum LLC, told Bloomberg.

'Governors should declare a state of emergency and ask people chasing tanker trucks to gas stations to stay home. School buses stay put.'

DarkSide is believed to be based out of Russia and made up of veteran cybercriminals. In a statement (above) following the Colonial attack, the group denied being political and said their only goal was to 'make money'

Fears of a looming shortage have already prompted panic buying with gas stations in various cities already running out of fuel or restricting sales.

Motorists were also lining for hours across Florida, North Carolina, Georgia and Virginia.

And gas prices have now spiked to a seven-year high.

The national average for retail gasoline prices was at $2.985 as of Tuesday, according to the American Automobile Association. The last time the average gas prices were above $2.99 was back in November 2014.

The AAA had already warned that gasoline prices could spike three to seven cents per gallon this week and said that there also could be 'limited fuel availability' in places.

'This shutdown will have implications on both gasoline supply and price, but the impact will vary regionally,' an AAA spokesperson said.

'Areas including Mississippi, Tennessee and the East Coast from Georgia into Delaware are most likely to experience limited fuel availability and prices increases as early as this week.

'These states may see prices increase three to seven cents this week.'

DarkSide finds vulnerabilities in a network, gains access to administrator accounts and then harvests data from the victim's server and encrypts it. The software leaves a ransom note text file with demands (pictured above)
The promise they never keep... September 1997 - Tony Blair: I dont want [our children] brought up in a country where the only way pensioners can get long-term care is by selling their home. January 2013 - David Cameron: Well set out big new steps on some of the hardest and most important long-term issues that will shape the future for generations to come... On social care, capping the potentially huge costs of long-term care faced by many families today. April 2015 - Conservative Manifesto: We will guarantee that you will not have to sell your home to fund your residential social care. April 2017  Theresa May: We need to ensure we have got that long-term solution for a sustainable future for social care. July 2019 - Boris Johnson: 'My job is to protect you or your parents or grandparents from from having to sell your home to pay for the costs of care. And so I'm announcing now that we will fix the crisis in social care once and for all with a clear plan we have prepared.' And yesterday, in just nine words, kicked into long grass again: Proposals on social care reform will be brought forward. Advertisement

Boris Johnson faced a massive backlash tonight after devoting just nine words to social care in the Queens Speech.

Measures to reform long-standing funding issues were absent from the list of 30 Bills announced in Parliament yesterday.

Despite lengthy negotiations, No 10 and the Treasury have been unable to reach agreement on a strategy to limit the amounts pensioners have to pay toward their own care.

It meant the Queen was unable to say any more than: Proposals on social care reform will be brought forward.

The glaring omission of any detail comes despite figures revealing that 10,000 people have been financially crippled while waiting for Mr Johnson to fix the crisis. Charities, experts and MPs condemned yet another delay in the introduction of a credible plan.

Tory MP Damian Green, who worked on social care reform as Theresa Mays deputy, said: I am absolutely insistent that this needs to be the year for action and decision rather than kicking the can down the road any further.

Mr Johnson promised imminent reform when he became Prime Minister in July 2019. Standing outside No 10, he said: My job is to protect you or your parents or grandparents from the fear of having to sell your home to pay for the costs of care.

And so I am announcing now  on the steps of Downing Street  that we will fix the crisis in social care once and for all with a clear plan we have prepared to give every older person the dignity and security they deserve.

But nothing has been forthcoming, aside from a promise that plans would brought forward by the end of 2021.

Under Englands present broken care system, pensioners have to pay the full cost of their care down to their last 23,250.

This includes the value of their property, meaning thousands of parents are unable to pass on the family home to their children.

An average of 15 people a day see their savings wiped out after being landed with sky-high bills for their care, an analysis by Age UK found.

The charity estimated that in the 657 days since Mr Johnson became Prime Minister, some 10,000 people have lost almost all the money they have saved during their life.

Age UK last night said his delay in implementing a plan has had far-reaching effects.

Charity director Caroline Abrahams said: Its patently unfair that if you need a lot of care for a long time the gigantic cost could take away all youve worked hard for throughout your life.

Boris Johnson faced a massive backlash last night after devoting just nine words to social care in the Queens Speech

Despite lengthy negotiations, No 10 and the Treasury have been unable to reach agreement on a strategy to limit the amounts pensioners have to pay toward their own care. It meant the Queen (pictured yesterday) was unable to say any more than: Proposals on social care reform will be brought forward'

Yet this is the reality for 15 people every day, who face complete ruin, just because they lost the lottery over who develops expensive care needs in later life, and who never requires any care support at all.

Its shocking that 10,000 people have been left penniless by their care bills since the Prime Minister promised to fix social care.

Nothing could demonstrate more clearly why its time for the Government to take action, so no one has to bear such a huge financial risk alone ever again, leaving them essentially to be thrown to the wolves because of factors that were totally beyond their control.

She added: As things are at the moment its as though we punish people who have assets and who need long-term care when we should be offering them our full support.

Its bad enough trying to come to terms with growing incapacity and physical and mental decline, without also worrying sick that you could run out of money and be left penniless, at one of the most challenging times in your life.

A briefing note from No 10, accompanying the Queens Speech, said the Government would engage with care staff about how best to help the 1.5million-strong workforce and ensure reform was informed by diverse perspectives.

The document noted that costs are unpredictable, can be very high and that not all the risk is shared across society.

Professor Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, which represents independent care providers, said the Queens Speech was a missed opportunity.

Professor Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, which represents independent care providers, said the Queens Speech was a missed opportunity

Without the much-needed, not to mention heralded, reform it is questionable as to how much longer the sector can be expected to limp on, he said.

A sector that supports and employs vast swathes of the population cannot be ignored.

Liz Kendall, Labours social care spokesman, said: Older people who helped make this country what it is, and who are now seeing their life savings wiped out to pay for care, deserve more than a paltry nine words in the Queens Speech.

'Mr Johnson needs to wake up to the fact we cannot build a better country as we emerge from this awful pandemic without a decent system of social care.

Liz Kendall, Labours social care spokesman, said: Older people who helped make this country what it is, and who are now seeing their life savings wiped out to pay for care, deserve more than a paltry nine words in the Queens Speech.'

After the horror of what happened in care homes during Covid-19 this should have been the Prime Ministers top priority, not once again kicked into the long grass. Our elderly people deserve better.

Sir Andrew Dilnot, the architect of a decade-old plan for a lifetime cap on the amount individuals have to pay, said he would have liked to have seen details in the Queens Speech but the emergence of a clear timetable was encouraging.

Now its up to the Government to bring up a set of proposals that will bring in a social care system we can be proud of, he added.

Gavin Terry, head of policy at the Alzheimers Society, said the Government needed a concrete plan for the 850,000 people with dementia in the UK.

A spokesman for No 10 said: Throughout the pandemic we have sought to protect the elderly and the most vulnerable and this will remain our priority as we look to end the care lottery and make sure people receive high-quality, joined-up care. We are committed to bringing forward a long-term plan to reform the social care system and we will set out proposals later this year.

JEREMY HUNT: Country's care problem is now critical - So why the delay?

Leadership often involves banging down doors and making trade-offs so that big issues are tackled head-on.

Boris Johnson has defied the sceptics and done just that with Brexit.

Voters clearly believe he will do it again when it comes to levelling up as evidenced by his stunning victory in Hartlepool last week.

But one thing was missing from yesterdays otherwise packed Queens Speech: concrete plans on social care.

If ever there was an area we need the same bulldozer spirit to crack a problem that has been ducked by government after government, it is the way we look after older people.

I share part of the responsibility for that lack of progress: as health secretary I took legislation through the House of Commons in 2014 to establish a cap on care costs that would mean people didnt have to sell their home.

I was proud to do so  but then went along with a Treasury request to delay implementation till 2020.

Subsequently, I fought for a ten-year plan for the social care sector to go alongside the one I secured for the NHS. I was told it would follow  but it never did.

The one bright spot was an unexpected mention of social care in Boriss words on the steps of Downing Street the day after he defeated me in the Conservative leadership contest: My job is to protect you or your parents or grandparents from the fear of having to sell your home to pay for the costs of care and so I am announcing now  on the steps of Downing Street  that we will fix the crisis in social care once and for all with a clear plan we have prepared to give every older person the dignity and security they deserve.

Wonderful words  and followed up this spring with an encouraging promise to the Commons liaison committee that we will see that long-awaited ten-year plan later this year.

I am in no doubt about the Prime Ministers personal commitment  but remain concerned we still have no details on what those plans for the social care sector are.

Bosses at the Alzheimers Society, said the Government needed a concrete plan for the 850,000 people with dementia in the UK. Pictured: Library image of a woman caring for an elderly woman

So why the delay? We all understand the sorry state of public finances after the pandemic, but most of the costs of social care reform will not kick in for several years allowing plenty of time for the economy to recover.

Nor is cross-party agreement necessary as all the major parties already support the Dilnot principles on the statute book. All it needs now is political will.

Although it was a Labour government that set up the NHS in 1948, it was actually a Conservative health minister, Sir Henry Willink, who first proposed the idea in 1944.

Fixing social care is our 1948 moment  the chance to make a major reform that will last generations and stand the test of time. Winston Churchill supported the setting up of the NHS all those years ago so, in his spirit, it is time to end the delay and commit to action this day.
David Cameron texted ministers and officials 62 times as he desperately lobbied for Greensill Capital, it was revealed yesterday.

The former prime minister also made 11 phone calls and sent 12 emails to some of the most senior figures in the Government and the Bank of England during the four-month bombardment.

He even turned to his former friend Michael Gove  with whom he fell out over Brexit  in his desperate bid to get the finance firm access to massive Covid-19 support loans.

Mr Cameron was a paid part-time senior adviser at Greensill Capital for two years and received share options that could have landed him a huge windfall if the firm had floated on the stock market, but he has said their value was 'nowhere near' the rumoured 42 million.

The former PM signed some of the messages 'love Dc', claimed he was 'riding to the rescue' with his financier boss Lex Greensill and described the now-collapsed firm as a 'British success story'.

David Cameron (pictured on Tuesday) texted ministers and officials 62 times as he desperately lobbied for Greensill Capital, it was revealed yesterday

Far more comprehensive than the information previously released by HM Treasury and the Bank, the messages were published by the Treasury select committee ahead of Mr Cameron's highly anticipated appearance tomorrow in front of MPs examining his lobbying for Greensill Capital last year and the firm's recent demise.

Greensill boss apologises for the collapse of firm The boss of collapsed finance company Greensill apologised today and said he takes full responsibility as the City watchdog launched a probe into the firm. Lex Greensill, whose firm is at the heart of a lobbying row featuring former prime minister David Cameron, told MPs today he was sad about the impact on its 1,000 staff and its clients. But he sidestepped questions about his relationship with companies like Liberty Steel - which faces an uncertain future - for legal reasons. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said it is formally investigating how two Greensill companies failed, and how one of them was overseen by a company whose licence it piggybacked on to operate in the UK. Facing MPs for the first time since the explosion of the lobbying scandal earlier this year, Australian banker Mr Greensill said 'Please understand that I bear complete responsibility for the collapse of Greensill Capital. 'I am desperately saddened that more than 1,000 very hard working people have lost their jobs at Greensill. Likewise I take full responsibility for any hardship being felt by our clients and their suppliers, and indeed investors in our programmes. But at the same time he said the decision of the company's leading insurer, Tokio Marine, ultimately led to the collapse. He said that Covid-19 and the actions of authorities in Germany had played a role in the insurance company's decision. 'It's deeply regrettable that we were let down by our leading insurer whose actions assured Greensill's collapse, and indeed some of our biggest customers. 'To all of those affected by this. I am truly sorry.' Advertisement

Mr Cameron was introduced to Mr Greensill when he was in Downing Street by then Cabinet Secretary Jeremy Heywood, who had met him when they both worked at the investment bank Morgan Stanley.

The Australian became a business adviser to the Government and hired Mr Cameron two years after he left No 10.

Just before the pandemic struck, Mr Cameron and Mr Greensill met Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, and they went on a 'desert camping trip' together.

The messages show that Mr Cameron's approaches began early on March 5 last year, with a text message to Sir Tom Scholar  the most senior civil servant in the Treasury and well known to Mr Cameron since he had served as his main adviser on international affairs in Downing Street.

The former PM wrote, 'hope you are still alive and well' before asking for a phone number for one of the Bank's deputy governors, Sir Jon Cunliffe.

He also asked the Permanent Secretary, 'can I give you lunch once the budget is done' before signing off 'Love Dc'.

Minutes later, Mr Cameron was emailing Sir Jon and arranging for him to phone him.

The following day he was texting Sir Tom again and boasting: 'I am riding to the rescue with Supply Chain Finance with my friend Lex Greensill.'

He added that he hoped to see Sir Tom with Chancellor Rishi Sunak 'for an elbow bump or foot tap'.

Mr Cameron texted Bank boss Sir Jon as he had 'tried to call but line busy', then emailed him to arrange a meeting.

Ten days later he texted Sir Tom to say he was 'thinking of you in these impossibly difficult times' and 'hope you are staying calm', as he sent him Greensill's request for the Bank to buy billions of pounds worth of its bonds.

On April 2, he told Sir Tom, 'one last point then I promise I will stop annoying you' as he highlighted Greensill's early payment deal with NHS pharmacies.

But the next day he texted him again to say he was 'genuinely baffled' that the firm had been rejected from joining the Bank's Covid Corporate Financing Facility  which would have given it the ability to make 200 million loans to businesses rather than its upper limit of 50 million  and complained that the Treasury's decision 'seems bonkers'.

He concluded: 'Am now calling CX [Chancellor Mr Sunak], Gove, everyone.'

True to his word, within ten minutes he was WhatsApping Mr Sunak about the 'nuts' decision to reject Greensill, which he described as a 'British Fintech success story'.

Continuing a mammoth day of lobbying on April 3, Mr Cameron also texted, emailed and called No 10 adviser Sheridan Westlake, saying: 'Dc here. There is a looming problem you can help solve.'

On the same day, Mr Cameron texted, phoned and emailed Treasury minister Jesse Norman, as well as contacting ministers John Glen and Mr Gove.

The former prime minister also made 11 phone calls and sent 12 emails to some of the most senior figures in the Government and the Bank of England during the four-month bombardment. Pictured: The texts he sent

He told his former friend Mr Gove, now in the Cabinet Office: 'I know you are manically busy  and doing a great job, by the way (this is bloody hard and I think the team is coping extremely well).'

He said he had arranged a phone call with the Chancellor and asked: 'If I am still stuck, can I call you then? Thanks!'

Carrying on into the evening, before ringing him the next day, he told Mr Sunak: 'You are doing a great job  keep going!'

After his conversation with the Chancellor early on April 4, Mr Cameron started texting Sir Tom again to say they had enjoyed a 'good chat'.

But he wanted Sir Tom to have 'one more conversation' with Mr Greensill and in the next few days kept texting him to ask 'anything to report'.

Mr Cameron was a paid part-time senior adviser at Greensill Capital for two years and received share options that could have landed him a huge windfall if the firm had floated on the stock market, but he has said their value was 'nowhere near' the rumoured 42 million. Pictured: Lex Greensill

Mr Cameron was introduced to Mr Greensill when he was in Downing Street by then Cabinet Secretary Jeremy Heywood, who had met him when they both worked at the investment bank Morgan Stanley

Mr Cameron had a phone chat with the Treasury's top two civil servants on April 7 and immediately told the Chancellor about the 'excellent call'.

But three weeks later he was messaging Mr Sunak again to complain the 'situation is still stuck' and asked: 'Could you try and give it another nudge over the finish line?'

He continued to message and call the Chancellor into May, asking 'for the last time, I promise' for officials to look at Greensill's plans again.

In June, he moved on to business minister Nadhim Zahawi, telling him he had been 'very solid on the media' before asking him for a phone number for Richard Sharp, a banker and Tory donor who was then an unpaid adviser to the Chancellor and is now BBC chairman.

Mr Cameron had a phone chat with the Treasury's top two civil servants on April 7 and immediately told the Chancellor about the 'excellent call'

The Treasury Committee has published a full list of the former PM's contacts after he disclosed them ahead of an evidence session tomorrow

Financier Lex Greensill denies MPs' accusations that he is a fraudster as he apologises for the collapse of his company

Lex Greensill yesterday apologised for the collapse of his company  but denied accusations by MPs that he was a fraudster.

David Cameron's financier boss said he took full responsibility for the failure of Greensill Capital earlier this year.

Mr Greensill said the supply chain finance firm had been 'let down' by its main insurer, Tokio Marine, which did not renew its cover partly because of the impact Covid had on the insurance industry and Greensill's customers.

But he insisted its complex business model had been sound and denied allegations that it was like a 'Ponzi scheme' scam.

He made his first public comments on the collapse of his firm as it emerged that it is now being probed by the City watchdog.

Lex Greensill yesterday apologised for the collapse of his company  but denied accusations by MPs that he was a fraudster

The Financial Conduct Authority said it was formally investigating the failure of Greensill Capital and a subsidiary firm amid allegations 'some of which are potentially criminal in nature'.

At the start of a three-hour evidence session, Mr Greensill told the Commons Treasury committee: 'Please understand that I bear complete responsibility for the collapse of Greensill Capital.

'I am desperately saddened that more than 1,000 very hard-working people have lost their jobs at Greensill.

Likewise, I take full responsibility for any hardship being felt by our clients and their suppliers, and indeed investors in our programmes.

'It's deeply regrettable that we were let down by our leading insurer whose actions assured Greensill's collapse, and indeed some of our biggest customers.

The Financial Conduct Authority said it was formally investigating the failure of Greensill Capital and a subsidiary firm amid allegations 'some of which are potentially criminal in nature'

'To all of those affected, I am truly sorry.'

Labour MP Rushanara Ali told him bluntly: 'It is a Ponzi scheme. Frankly, it smacks of fraudulent behaviour.

'It doesn't smack of a proper process where people can get supply chain finance which is reliable and credible.'

Mr Greensill said all major financial institutions now offer supply chain finance, which involves paying suppliers early then collecting the money from their customers.

Another Labour MP on the committee, Siobhain McDonagh, asked him: 'Mr Greensill, are you a fraudster?' He replied: 'No, Miss McDonagh, I'm not.'
The UK economy will take a 19billion hit unless the 'green list' of countries for quarantine-free travel is expanded, MPs have warned.

A study by a cross-party group predicts revenues from international tourism will plummet to just 1.1billion this summer against 20.2billion pre-pandemic for June, July and August.

Just 12 destinations were ranked green when the list was unveiled on Friday.

The projection is based on outbound and inbound traveller figures to the green countries  which accounted for just 5.5 per cent of passengers in 2019.

The estimate of the damage may be conservative as such destinations include Australia and New Zealand, which have very strict entry measures or blanket bans on UK tourists.

Portugal and Gibraltar were the only European hotspots to go green. This week the Mail revealed the grounding of planes has blown a 3billion hole in Treasury coffers after the collapse in air passenger duty revenues due to the pandemic.

Boris Johnson (pictured) is being urged by MPs to add more countries to the green list

The new study, by the Future of Aviation Group of MPs, renewed calls last night for more countries to be added to the green list to allow quarantine-free travel in time for the summer.

Tory MP Henry Smith, the group's chairman, said: 'Without a safe and fuller restart of international travel our economic recovery will have its brakes on and many businesses that have run on empty will be left in a desperate battle for survival. It is vital that the Government use the first review point to bring forward a fuller list of safe green list countries.' Joss Croft, head of trade body UKinbound, said: 'The hopes of a summer revival for inbound tourism, which sustains over 500,000 jobs, are looking bleak, especially with such a small number of countries on the green list.'

Outbound travel in June, July and August 2019 generated a total of around 11.7billion towards the UK economy while inbound was responsible for about 8.5billion.

Heathrow airport chief John Holland-Kaye said: 'The Government's green list is very welcome, but they need to expand it massively in the next few weeks to include other low-risk markets such as the United States.'

In a joint letter yesterday to Boris Johnson and US president Joe Biden, with the boss of Philadelphia International Airport Chellie Cameron, the pair urged the leaders to create a 'travel corridor', letting vaccinated passengers move between both countries without the need for testing or quarantine.

The US is currently on the UK's amber list and British holidaymakers are banned from visiting. The list of red, amber and green countries will be reviewed every three weeks after foreign leisure travel becomes legal again on Monday.

The projection is based on outbound and inbound traveller figures to the green countries  which accounted for just 5.5 per cent of passengers in 2019

However, the Health Secretary yesterday dampened hopes of a 'big bang' of countries being added to the green list next month.

Matt Hancock told BBC Radio 4's Today programme there were 'reasons to take a cautious approach at the border', such as stemming the import of so-called variants of concern to protect the vaccination programme.

He also confirmed that fully vaccinated people will be able to prove their inoculation status by using an NHS app from Monday.

It will prove useful for travellers to the Continent this summer, with the European Union last week announcing plans to allow fully vaccinated UK visitors to sidestep testing and quarantine requirements. There were reports yesterday that only a limited number of destinations may be added to the green list during June, with no big reopening to traditional destinations in Europe likely until at least July.

The British Virgin Islands and some Caribbean destinations are in contention, along with Malta.

A Whitehall source stressed it was pointless trying to 'guess' which countries will be added three weeks before the first review is due.

Countries have been ranked red, amber or green based on their vaccination and infection rates and ability to contain new variants.
Seeing her reflection in the bathroom mirror, Jayne Ozanne recoiled in horror.

It was as if she had staggered from a car wreck: her cheeks were ashen, the skin around her eyes horribly red where blood vessels had burst.

But Jayne hadn't survived a terrible crash, she'd merely emerged from a therapy session.

Yet while her appointment had taken place in a cosy sitting room, it was a far from gentle experience.

Because for five hours, Jayne  a Cambridge graduate with a highflying business career  had been writhing and retching as her 'therapist', a respected faith leader, urged her to literally vomit out her 'problem'.

So prolonged and violent was her treatment that many of the delicate veins around her eyes ruptured and she wore sunglasses for a week, unable to bear daylight. Her 'problem'? Being attracted to women.

For almost 20 years, Jayne, 52, endured sessions of controversial 'conversion therapy', which aims to change a person's sexual orientation or suppress their gender identity.

Seeing her reflection in the bathroom mirror, Jayne Ozanne recoiled in horror. It was as if she had staggered from a car wreck: her cheeks were ashen, the skin around her eyes horribly red where blood vessels had burst. But Jayne hadn't survived a terrible crash, she'd merely emerged from a therapy session

Yesterday, in the Queen's Speech, the Government finally committed to introducing legislation to ban the 'abhorrent' practice, which is based on the belief that being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender is a mental illness that can be 'cured'.

The sessions intended to achieve that 'cure' are sometimes similar to traditional exorcisms, in which the subject's feelings are characterised as a 'devil' that must be forcibly cast out.

'The physical pain of the sessions was bad enough but the psychological torture was so profound it left me wanting to die just to stop the agony,' says Jayne, from Oxford.

'In fact, I often contemplated taking my own life just to escape the hell I was in.'

While conversion therapy sounds like something from a bygone age or a practice that could only be allowed in a more oppressive, less tolerant nation, it is alive and well in the UK today, as Jayne can attest.

Performed in faiths  including Christianity, Islam and Judaism  which traditionally teach that any sex outside heterosexual marriage is wrong, conversion therapy has been denounced by the NHS as well as by major counselling and therapy associations including the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Given its clandestine nature, the number of people who have been put through it is not known, though it is thought to be thousands.

A government survey of the LGBT community in 2018 found that of 108,000 participants, 2 per cent had undergone conversion therapy and a further 5 per cent had been offered it.

Of 4,600 people who took part in another survey on faith and sexuality in the same year, about 10 per cent said they had undergone efforts to change their sexuality, with one in ten of those saying they had no choice about it.

According to campaigners, conversion therapy can include barbaric 'treatments' including rape, beatings and electrocution.

Jayne's experience propelled her to help start a nationwide campaign in 2017. One of the key goals of the Ozanne Foundation is to ban conversion therapy.

'It is the dark side of religion. It's done under the radar,' she says. 'There are tens of thousands of people in the UK who have endured this. I know of at least a thousand myself.

'It's happening every day in leafy suburbs and university cities. I got off lightly. I'm aware of others who have been raped, electrocuted, violently beaten or burnt.

'Today I can't believe I allowed myself to be preyed on. But it just proves how easy it is to become a victim.'

Growing up a practising Christian on the island of Guernsey, Jayne today a member of the General Synod for the Church of England  didn't even know women could be gay.

Then, after graduating with a maths degree from Cambridge in 1990, she moved to Paris to lead a division of the multinational Kimberly-Clark Corporation, and fell deeply in love with a female colleague.

'I was so ashamed, I tried to convince myself it was a one-off,' she remembers today.

At the age of 28 and by then working in London as head of marketing at the BBC, she began dating men but simply couldn't quell her feelings towards women: 'I was in a quandary because my Christian faith told me these feelings were wrong. That's how I found myself falling prey to conversion therapy.'

In 2000, aged 32, Jayne attended a Christian conference in Stroud, Gloucestershire.

There, one of the prayer leaders approached her, saying: 'I can see the spirit of man on you. We must cast it out.'

Shocked, Jayne agreed to be led to a side room. There, the leader placed his hands on her shoulders and 'commanded the spirit of lust to leave me', she says, shuddering at the memory.

'He shouted, 'Cast it out' and urged me to vomit up the evil inside me. I gagged and was violently sick.

'Without batting an eyelid, he whipped out a bucket. This was obviously standard practice.

'It was horrific. He made me believe a demonic presence was living inside me that had to be exorcised.

'Of course, it didn't work. I was still attracted to women. But I felt so guilty and ashamed afterwards I subjected myself to endless therapies.

'I went to services and prayer meetings where strangers put their hands on me, prayed over me, shouted to rid me of the evil inside me.

'These were respectable Evangelical churches.

'The cumulative effect was traumatic. Conversion therapy takes you to the darkest place.

'You are constantly ashamed and made to feel wrong, sinful and unacceptable.'

After almost two decades of these sessions, in 2008 Jayne had a mental breakdown and had to be admitted to hospital. 'I felt so low I prayed to die,' she says.

Only after slowly working her way back to health  and still a committed Christian  did she feel strong enough to come out as gay.

The devastation inflicted by conversion therapy is clear from the profound trauma of those who end up at the door of Galop, the LGBT and anti-violence charity.

Joe Hyman, 28, from North London, was 17 and struggling with his homosexual feelings, he signed up for an online therapy course to 'cure' him

In the 2018 survey of faith and sexuality, organised by the Ozanne Foundation, 22 participants said they had undergone forced sexual activity with, or involving, someone of the opposite gender.

The most common reason given was that their desires were 'sinful'. About half were teenagers at the time.

More than half reported mental health problems, most commonly anxiety and depression.

Almost 300 said they had attempted suicide or had suicidal thoughts. More than 100 said they had self-harmed and 70 reported eating disorders.

'We see young people, including under-18s, who have been victims of serious psychological, sexual and physical abuse in the attempt to change who they are,' says Galop's CEO Leni Morris.

'Some are faced with forced marriage or abduction. Others have sustained physical trauma so serious they needed to be hospitalised.

'Some have severe mental health problems and are driven to suicidal thoughts.

'Victims come from many religions, cultures and backgrounds.'

Michael King, a professor of psychiatry at University College London and expert on the stress and stigma suffered by gay and lesbian people, explains why conversion therapy is so dangerous and futile.

'It's impossible to change a person's underlying sexuality to any significant degree,' he says.

'You can help people to control their behaviour but that's completely different from changing their sexuality. We don't choose what we desire, it comes without thought.

'Your sexuality is so core that being told that you need to change can be devastating.

'Being told you are sick or ill or need to "have the gay prayed out of you" is deeply shaming. And, when it doesn't work, the shame can be intensified.'

Campaigners against conversion therapy are pleased that politicians, long accused of dragging their feet, are finally acting to outlaw it.

In March, Jayne and two other advisers quit the Government's LGBT advisory panel in protest. She welcomes the new announcement, though she fears it doesn't go far enough.

With public consultation still to take place before a ban is implemented, she and other campaigners fear there is a risk of a 'highly dangerous loophole' being created if the Government focuses only on 'coercive practices' rather than all forms of conversion therapy, which vulnerable victims may submit to willingly.

Those victims include Joe Hyman, 28, from North London.

When he was 17 and struggling with his homosexual feelings, he signed up for an online therapy course to 'cure' him.

'My Jewish faith taught me that being gay was wrong,' says Joe, a community worker.

'I was petrified about coming out to my parents. When I saw an advert online for therapy that promised to cure me, I was thrilled.

'It meant I could admit my feelings but soften the blow by telling my parents I had a solution.'

Shocked by his announcement, Joe's parents supported him in his quest to be 'cured' and agreed to pay for a weekly hour-long session online, at about 50 a time.

His sessions continued for years and left him on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

'The therapist told me there was an ideal version of myself  a red-blooded heterosexual  whom he could liberate,' recalls Joe.

'He picked away at me, convincing me I needed to be fixed.

According to campaigners, conversion therapy can include barbaric 'treatments' including rape, beatings and electrocution. Pictured: A scene from 2018 gay conversion film Boy Erased

'Talking therapy sounds more innocuous than some of the more extreme "cures" of conversion therapy, such as electric shocks.

'But it eats away at you. I was made to talk about my most intimate sexual feelings. It was shaming and grossly inappropriate.

'However, I would feel comforted after each session by the hope my gay feelings were fading.

'Then would come the crashing blow when I realised I was still attracted to men. I blamed myself. The therapist kept telling me to try harder. I was trapped.'

After excelling at school, Joe began an engineering degree at Leeds University but sank into depression.

'I was so paralysed with self-loathing, I couldn't study. The therapist encouraged me to date but I couldn't feel any attraction for women.'

After almost three years of weekly therapy, Joe began to question it. 'It clearly wasn't working,' he says.

'Then I heard about young Jewish gay people being physically molested in real-life group therapy sessions.

'When I told my therapist, he shrugged it off. The scales dropped from my eyes. Were his practices really any better?'

A few months on, Joe finally determined to quit. He is now happily out but currently single.

'It's the best decision I've ever made,' he says. 'But I am still deeply scarred. I was violated  I was a child when it started. My parents are terribly upset, too.'

Justin Beck, 38, was also a vulnerable teenager when he was put through conversion therapy by church leaders.

Brought up in a deeply Christian family near Glasgow, Justin was sick with shame when he realised, aged 13, that he was attracted to boys.

At 17, and immersed in his Pentecostal church, he found church leaders eager to 'cure' him with exorcisms.

'By 23 I was empty, overwhelmed with utter loneliness, suicidal and stockpiling medication, fully intending to take my own life,' he says. 'Luckily I found a real, licensed therapist in time.'

He is now planning to wed his fiance Paul this year, but scars remain: 'I still struggle with my esteem and had to learn to live with anxiety and panic attacks.'

Ibrahim (who didn't want his surname used) was even offered medication as part of his conversion therapy treatment.

He underwent therapy after coming out to his Muslim parents when he started his medical degree.

'They weren't happy. I thought if we spoke to an impartial professional we might find some middle ground,' he recalls.

'My dad went online and found a Muslim psychiatrist working in London.'

The resulting session left Ibrahim feeling violated.

'He asked me incredibly invasive questions about sexual practices, intimacy, pornography.

'He was adamant my sexuality should  and could  be changed. This went on for almost three hours.'

The doctor also wanted to prescribe medication for him. 'He was very persistent,' recalls Ibrahim.

'I've no idea what it was and I had the presence of mind to refuse. But the experience left me feeling violated and afraid.'

While now accepting of his sexuality he adds: 'I didn't then realise anything inappropriate had happened.

' I know now that medical professionals are never trained to challenge people on their sexuality. What he did was wrong.'

Now single after the end of an eight-year relationship, Jayne, too, still bears mental scars.

'During the conversion therapy sessions, religious music would be played,' she says. 'Now I can't listen to it without shaking. If someone plays it I have to walk out. The memories flood back.'

She is adamant that whether or not it involves physical or sexual abuse, conversion therapy has to be outlawed: 'It is harmful, it destroys lives and relationships and there is no credible evidence it works.

'We need to send a clear sign that it is not tolerated, that people who practise it will be prosecuted.'

For support, see galop.org.uk and ozanne.foundation
An all-female squad to police the Sarah Everard vigil was considered by Commissioner Cressida Dick (pictured)

An all-female squad to police the Sarah Everard vigil was considered by Commissioner Cressida Dick.

Britain's top police officer yesterday said she weighed up deploying only women due to 'sensitivities' over the death of Miss Everard, allegedly kidnapped and killed by a serving Met officer.

The Met Commissioner faced calls to quit after ugly scenes of officers arresting women at the March 13 vigil for the 33-year-old marketing executive in Clapham, south London.

She told the Commons home affairs committee she decided against the female support unit the day before the event.

She said: 'It was not practical for us to do that at short notice. And secondly, hugely divisive among my people.

'I have subsequently taken a straw poll and men and women alike are really not keen on the idea that when you have a primarily female rally or protest that we will send only women. I do understand the sensitivities... that the images in that context looked very powerful.'

The Met Commissioner faced calls to quit after ugly scenes of officers arresting women at the March 13 vigil

Dick said she weighed up deploying only women due to 'sensitivities' over the death of Miss Everard, allegedly kidnapped and killed by a serving Met officer. Pictured: A protest following Everard's death [File photo]

When asked why there were so many male officers at the vigil, she said: 'It would be wrong to say that there was an unusual number of men there, far from it

'Public order policing... can be quite messy, we are hands-on when we arrest people.'

The Commissioner said her officers came under sustained abuse from the crowd and described the hostility as the worst they had faced in their careers.

Dick said officers came under sustained abuse from the crowd at the vigil. Pictured: Floral tributes to Everard on Clapham Common [File photo]

Cressida Dick stands by investigation of 'credible' VIP paedophile ring claims by Carl Beech even though he was jailed for the lies

Cressida Dick came under fire over her role in Operation Midland yesterday as she admitted 'many mistakes' were made but stood by her decision to investigate Carl Beech's 'credible' claims.

The Scotland Yard Commissioner told MPs public confidence in her force had been damaged by the disastrous multimillion-pound inquiry into an alleged VIP paedophile ring based on the lies of fantasist Carl Beech, known as 'Nick'.

Pictured: Carl Beech

During a grilling by MPs, the officer appeared unclear about her role in the scandal, claiming first that she left the force before Beech was interviewed by detectives before clarifying she was Assistant Commissioner at the time.

Dame Cressida apologised for the botched probe.

But she defended the decision to investigate Beech's claims, even though it turned out he was a 'very, very capable liar' who had the ability to 'lie in a credible manner', she said.

Her use of the word credible echoes former Detective Superintendent Kenny McDonald in 2014 when he said he and senior officers believed Nick's allegations to be 'credible and true'.

The Daily Mail's role in exposing the shambolic investigation was praised at the Commons home affairs committee hearing. Tory MP Tim Loughton said: 'Thank goodness the Mail has uncovered and revealed the full horror of this.'

He asked if Dame Cressida had presided over a cover-up.

She replied: 'I do not believe we have lost our moral compass, I don't believe that anything has been covered up. Operation Midland undoubtedly first of all had a huge impact on many individuals, and I regret that.

'It harmed people's sense of confidence in the police service generally and in particular the Met.'

She said it was 'hard to hear' the testimony of Lady Brittan, whose husband Lord Brittan was falsely accused of being in the ring.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has predicted all Australians who want their two Covid-19 vaccine doses will receive them before the end of the year.

After a sluggish start, the Morrison government is banking on all willing Australians being fully vaccinated for Covid-19 by the end of the year.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has declined to set a target completion date for the vaccine rollout after AstraZeneca-linked blood clots forced a reset.

But the 2021/22 budget, handed down by Treasurer Josh Frydenberg on Tuesday night, assumes the program will be finished before 2022.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg (pictured) has predicted all Australians who want their two Covid-19 vaccine doses will receive them before the end of the year

'The vaccine is likely to be rolled out by the end of this year to all those Australians who want that vaccine,' Mr Frydenberg told reporters.

'There is the assumption they will get two doses by that time.'

That will require the weekly pace of the rollout to triple, with just 2.7 million doses administered so far.

Mr Frydenberg noted the prediction was based on 'those who seek to have the vaccine' rather than the entire Australian population.

Treasury also expects international travel to 'remain low' through to mid-2022 after which a gradual recovery in international tourism is assumed to occur.

The cautious travel approach comes as the government revealed it would spend an extra $1.9 billion over the coming year to boost its Covid-19 vaccine supply to 170 million doses and speed up the rollout.

The budget papers also confirmed a plan to investigate domestic manufacturing of mRNA vaccines, although an exact funding figure was not divulged due to 'commercial in confidence sensitivities'.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison (pictured) has declined to set a target completion date for the vaccine rollout after AstraZeneca-linked blood clots forced a reset

The Northern Territory's Howard Springs facility, which is housing Australians returning from overseas, is slated to cost $487 million over two years as it expands to 2000 places.

Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley used the case of a Melbourne man who tested positive after completing hotel quarantine in SA to again push for the federal government to fund its own purpose-built quarantine site.

'We cannot continue to have a situation where it is the states disproportionately bearing the load in this quarantine process,' he said.

Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton strongly suspects the man picked up the virus in the Adelaide hotel, not in India where he travelled from before it was outlawed.

Although India repatriation flights are set to resume from Saturday, Liberal National Party Senators Matt Canavan and Gerard Rennick crossed the floor on Tuesday to support a Labor motion against the ban.

Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley used the case of a Melbourne man who tested positive after completing hotel quarantine in SA to again push for the federal government to fund its own purpose-built quarantine site

The urgent motion called for the Morrison government to help - not jail - stranded Australians return from India and 'fix' the nation's quarantine system.

Senator Canavan on Tuesday denied he was being 'naughty' by crossing the floor to back Labor, saying the coalition respected the right of MPs to vote with their conscience.

'I don't think we should be stopping Australians from returning from their home country,' he told Nine Network.

'I voted against the government last night to reflect that view in regards to the Indian travel ban ... because we should be helping Australians out, who are in a distressing situation.'
Thirty British soldiers who were falsely accused of war crimes in Iraq are suing the Ministry of Defence for 20million.

In a landmark legal case to be launched this month, they claim defence chiefs failed to uphold a duty of care.

They say the MoD facilitated a legal witch-hunt which ruined careers and led to broken marriages and emotional disorders.

It comes after the MoD paid Iraqi legal agent Abu Jamal 40,000 a year to help bring claims by families of suspected insurgents killed by UK troops.

Innocent soldiers were then hounded by the Iraq Historical Allegations Team based on bogus statements provided by the agent.

Thirty British soldiers who were falsely accused of war crimes in Iraq are suing the Ministry of Defence for 20million. In a landmark legal case to be launched this month, they claim defence chiefs failed to uphold a duty of care

The 30-strong group are also understood to be suing indemnity insurers who supported lawyer Phil Shiner.

He was struck off by the Solicitors Regulation Authority after claiming British troops unlawfully killed and tortured Iraqis.

He was found to have agreed to pay 'sweeteners' to an Iraqi fixer to persuade him to change his evidence to the Al-Sweady Inquiry  a UK legal probe into soldiers' conduct which cost 31million.

Soldiers say they felt hugely let down by the MoD for its role in the evidence-gathering process and failure to establish claims brought by compensation-seeking Iraqis were lies.

The 30-strong group are also understood to be suing indemnity insurers who supported lawyer Phil Shiner (pictured)

They are seeking payouts to cover loss of earnings and pension entitlements. The group includes ex-Colour Sergeant Brian Wood, who won a Military Cross for bravery, but was later investigated for murder.

His ordeal will be recounted this evening in BBC2 drama Danny Boy.

He said: 'What they put us through was damaging to our careers, our relationships and also fuelling the fire of post-traumatic stress disorder.'

Another claimant, Major Robert Campbell, was hounded by military police and lawyers for 18 years over the death of a teenager in Basra in 2003.

He was eventually cleared last year but said the allegations 'destroyed' his career.

The soldiers have launched a crowdfunding campaign to pay to launch their case.
Market Scope:

Fatty Alcohol Ethoxylates Market to surge at a CAGR of 4.2% during the forecast period (2016-2023).

Market Drivers and Growth Factors:

The mounting sale of ointments and creams is expected to favor the market, as fatty alcohol ethoxylates are the primary components in these products. Then, the surge in product demand in industrial applications, including wetting agents and anti-foam is bound to do wonders for the market in the long run.

The manufacturers transform ethylene oxide into different types of products with a series of chemical reactions. The manufacturers also produce a high volume of fatty alcohol ethoxylates along with a broad range of products that meet with the consumer demands and also expand revenue. These have been identified as prime factors responsible for the lucrative run of the market during the review period.

Currently, consumers are laying strong emphasis on the use of environmentally safe products and are ready to shell out for higher priced products. The spike in demand for fatty alcohol ethoxylates to be used in detergents and low foam cleaners can be expected to do wonders for the market in the following years.

Leading Companies:

The leading companies in the worldwide fatty alcohol Ethoxylates Market include Rimpro-India (India), BASF SE (Germany), Huntsman International LLC. (US), Clariant (Europe), Unitop Chemicals Pvt. Ltd. (India), Akzo Nobel N.V. (Netherlands), GUJARAT CHEMICALS (India), P&G Chemicals (US), Ecogreen Oleochemicals (Germany), Shree Vallabh Chemicals (India), and others.

Industry Update:

June 2019

From July 2019, Bluesign will be releasing black limits in finished products including textile auxiliaries which are considered to have reprotoxic, mutagenic or carcinogenic properties. The Bluesign System Black Limits (BSBL) is expected to be integrated into other substances that are part of POP (persistent organic pollutant) regulation, in addition to the monomers utilized in textile dyes along with chemicals including ethylene oxide, acrylonitrile or acrylamide.

Market Segmentation:

The worldwide Alcohol Ethoxylates Market Analysis has been segmented on the basis of derivatives, application, and end users.

The derivatives-dependent segments in the market are lauryl alcohol ethoxylates, ceto stearyl alcohol ethoxylates, stearyl alcohol ethoxylates, behenyl alcohol ethoxylates, oleyl cetyl alcohol ethoxylates, tridecyl alcohol ethoxylates, and others.

With respect to application, the market can be considered for scouring, cleaning, emulsifying, foaming, and others.

The end users mentioned in the report cover textiles, agriculture, personal care, household, paper, and others.

Regional Analysis:

The key markets for Fatty Alcohol Ethoxylates are Asia Pacific (APAC), Latin America, Europe, Middle East & Africa, and North America.

Asia Pacific emerges as the largest fatty alcohol ethoxylates market, backed primarily by the increasing per capita income of the middle class, mostly in household and personal care industry. Prevalence of modern lifestyle, the rising cost of living and expanding population are elevating the adoption of surfactants across several industries like agriculture, textiles, household, personal care, and others. As a result, the regional market is deemed to mark a highly lucrative run during the evaluation period.

Europe, as the second largest fatty alcohol ethoxylates market, is led by the United Kingdom (UK), Italy, Germany, and France. The regional market can expect significant gains in the coming years on account of the high demand for environment-friendly products within the personal care sector. The EU members have banned the use of NPE toxic substances that are present in clothing, expanding the market size in the process.

With the third largest share of the worldwide fatty alcohol ethoxylates market, North America will be spearheaded by Canada and the United Mexican States. These countries are at the forefront of the market with respect to the demand for fatty alcohol ethoxylates. Interestingly, Middle East & Africa along with Latin America is touted to have rather healthy growth in the global fatty alcohol ethoxylates market in the following years. This growth will only get better during the assessment period, the trade pundits predict.

Browse key industry insights spread across 137 pages with 47market data tables & 13 figures & charts from the report, Fatty Alcohol Ethoxylates Market Information- by Derivatives (Lauryl Alcohol Ethoxylates, Ceto Stearyl Alcohol Ethoxylates, Stearyl Alcohol Ethoxylates, Behenyl Alcohol Ethoxylates, Oleyl Cetyl Alcohol Ethoxylates, Tridecyl Alcohol Ethoxylates, and Others), by Application (Scouring, Cleaning, Emulsifying, Foaming, and Others), by End Use Industry (Textiles, Agriculture, Personal care, Household, Paper, and Others), and by Region- Forecast till 2023 in detail along with the table of contents @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/fatty-alcohol-ethoxylates-market-3860
Experts are warning the Australian government the country's education sector - worth $10 billion annually - could be the next victim of China's trade war.

Australia must do more to recruit international students from outside China before the sector falls victim to Beijing's trade war, experts argue.

Researchers from the Australian National University have released a paper making the case for an Ambassador for Australian Education.

The ambassador would lead a team within the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to focus on diversification in the sector.

Experts are warning the Australian government the country's education sector - worth $10 billion annually - could be the next victim of China's trade war

Dr Dirk van der Kley and Dr Benjamin Herscovitch argue education is Australia's only remaining export valued over $10billion annually which is 'both reliant on China and which Beijing can target without significant self-harm'.

The industry employs thousands of Australians, and is closely linked to the country's technological competitiveness, the pair say.

Coercion against the sector would significantly impact Australia's prosperity.

'If there was a significant drop in students from China, the revenue and research loss would be impossible to fully replace through other international markets because China is the largest source of globally mobile students,' the authors write.

The government would not be able to step in and fill that gap, they say.

The pair point out that media reports already indicate education agents in some Chinese cities were discouraged from promoting Australia as an education destination.

Beijing could go further, by fostering negative views of Australia and its universities via the state-controlled media or even ceasing to recognise some or all Australian qualifications.

'If there was a significant drop in students from China, the revenue and research loss would be impossible to fully replace through other international markets because China is the largest source of globally mobile students,' the authors write

By recruiting more students from other locations, Australia could safeguard itself from Chinese coercion to a degree.

'While no market could replace China, there is capacity to tap into growth elsewhere and to divert market share from other education exporters.'

Currently Australia's education diplomacy and government-led promotion is underfunded and scattered across a range of departments.

'In comparison, tourism  a smaller export to both China and the world  has a dedicated agency for promotion (Tourism Australia) that was allocated $231.6 million in financial year 2020-21,' the researchers say.
Tourism bosses are angry about the federal budget, with international borders closed until 2022 and domestic travel remaining in jeopardy.

Australia risks being the 'lost kingdom' of the South Pacific, according to tourism bosses who are angry about a lack of support in the federal budget.

The 2021/22 plan leaves the tourism sector high and dry with nowhere to go until at least the middle of next year, Tourism and Transport Forum chief executive Margy Osmond said.

The industry wants a clear calendar for when borders will open, she told reporters after Tuesday's budget.

The 2021/22 plan leaves the tourism sector high and dry with nowhere to go until at least the middle of next year, Tourism and Transport Forum chief executive Margy Osmond said

'No timetable condemns us virtually to being the lost kingdom of the South Pacific when the rest of the world is opening up,' she said.

'We will see more job losses and we will see many many business failures.'

International borders are closed and domestic travel remains in jeopardy amid Covid-19 leaks from hotel quarantine and people fearing domestic borders snapping shut.

Australian Chamber-Tourism chair John Hart said budget funding for zoos and aquariums, consumer travel and Tourism Australia will fall short without a plan to open Australia.

'It is vital for the government to begin a staged opening as soon as possible, given the stimulus measures (in the budget),' he said.

Tourism Minister Dan Tehan said the Morrison government's $1.2 billion tourism package would help support operators and workers

'Businesses need certainty and this is especially important after state border lockdowns battered the sector in 2020/21.'

Tourism Minister Dan Tehan said the Morrison government's $1.2 billion tourism package would help support operators and workers.

Half-price airfares have given a much-needed boost to 15 domestic tourism areas across Australia, while also supporting the aviation sector, he said.

The $94.6 million zoos and aquariums program will be extended by six months to maintain animal populations where tourism revenue has been affected by travel and social distancing restrictions.

'We'll be lucky to have a tourism industry to welcome international tourists back into the country,' Ms Osmond said.
A raft of proposals aimed at improving the lives of animals was introduced yesterday.

Measures ranged from bans on pet monkeys to outlawing foie gras.

But claims that the PM's fiancee Carrie Symonds was behind them were dismissed as 'mischief making'.

Miss Symonds has spoken passionately of her commitment to improving the lives of animals.

But environment minister Lord Goldsmith said the idea that she was the driving force behind the Bill was wrong.

Carrie Symonds (pictured) has spoken passionately of her commitment to improving the lives of animals

Environment minister Lord Goldsmith (pictured) said the idea that she was the driving force behind the Bill was wrong

He said: 'I can understand why those things are said, but it's mischief-making.

'I was pretty much the loudest voice on animal welfare issues for nearly ten years on the back benches. And now as animal welfare minister, I'm able to make this stuff happen.'

One issue being looked at is the stunning of animals before slaughter.

The practice could put ministers on a collision course with faith groups as under interpretations of Islam and Judaism, animals slaughtered when they have been stunned are not considered halal or kosher.

Ministers will also seek to outlaw keeping primates as pets. Other measures include bans on electric-shock training dog collars, adverts for elephant rides abroad and the use of glue traps to catch rats and mice.

The Government is also 'exploring' banning the sale and importation of foie gras and a law that recognises animals are 'sentient'  able to experience pleasure and pain.
New laws to crack down on 'online harm' will not become a 'woke charter', the Culture Secretary vowed last night.

Warning social media giants not to damage democracy, Oliver Dowden unveiled powers yesterday to 'seize back control' amid concerns Twitter and Facebook can act as judge and jury in decisions to block contributions from conservative-leaning commentators.

It will be part of a new Online Safety Bill to hold tech firms responsible for protecting children from internet pornography, cyberbullying and sites promoting self-harm and suicide.

Under the bill, social media firms who fail to protect children online could be shut-down.

But there was confusion last night over the bill's effect on legitimate journalism.

The Government said articles from recognised news publishers would be exempt from the regime, but also admitted they might still be 'moderated' by online platforms.

If articles were removed there would be an appeals process overseen by Ofcom.

But industry experts said appeals would be pointless due to the short shelf-life of news, and the involvement of Ofcom would mean state regulation by the back door.

New laws to crack down on 'online harm' will not become a 'woke charter', the Culture Secretary vowed last night. Warning social media giants not to damage democracy, Oliver Dowden unveiled powers yesterday to 'seize back control' amid concerns Twitter and Facebook can act as judge and jury in decisions to block contributions from conservative-leaning commentators [Stock image]

It would also mean that an article the public could freely read in the Daily Mail newspaper, or MailOnline's own website, might still be banned by Google and Facebook.

Mr Dowden said the measures would enable him to look the father of Molly Russell in the eye. The 14-year-old took her own life in 2017 after seeing self-harm material on Instagram.

Mr Dowden said there was overwhelming public pressure for social media companies to 'up their game' and do more to protect youngsters.

But he will face criticism over continued delays in imposing age-verification on commercial pornography sites.

The new provisions on upholding democratic debate follow concerns in recent months about the way tech firms can take unilateral decisions to block people from their sites.

In January, YouTube removed TalkRadio's channel for breaking its rules. It was later reinstated after an outcry.

In an interview with the Daily Mail, Mr Dowden said he was determined not to allow online platforms to 'censor' views.

'The crucial thing is this can't become a woke charter,' he said.

'This has got to be about tackling serious harms like racism, protecting our kids, illegal terrorist content.

'I don't want this to be hijacked by a woke agenda that moves into censorship.'

Decisions on who can be banned online must not be left solely to bosses of global tech giants, he said.

Instead, people can appeal against decisions to take them down, and if Ofcom is not happy with the appeals process the firms could be fined.

Mr Dowden (pictured) said there was overwhelming public pressure for social media companies to 'up their game' and do more to protect youngsters. But he will face criticism over continued delays in imposing age-verification on commercial pornography sites [File photo]

Sites will be forbidden from discriminating against particular political viewpoints, and they must protect content promoting or opposing government policy in advance of a vote in Parliament, election or referendum.

'This is about seizing back control and making sure that, rather than these decisions purely being made by West Coast tech executives accountable to their shareholders, there is some democratic accountability through ministers setting rules for regulators,' Mr Dowden said.

But the fact the legislation includes an Ofcom appeals process means it appears to fall short of the full exemption for journalism the news industry has called for, and the Government expects tech giants to block some legitimate news content.

On Tuesday, digital minister Caroline Dinenage promised MPs would get to decided what legal but harmful online material Ofcom would be allowed to police.

Under the new duty of care, tech firms will have to remove harmful content such as child sexual abuse, terrorist material and suicide content.

Ofcom will be able to fine companies failing to do this, up to 18million or 10 per cent of annual global turnover.

This would be a maximum fine of 6billion on Facebook and 13billion on Google. A criminal offence for senior managers could also be introduced in future.

'I think this is about genuine accountability for tech firms and cleaning up the public square,' said Mr Dowden.

He added: 'As a parent, I feel very strongly and every parent I speak to worries about their kids online.

The new powers were unveiled on Tuesday as the Queen's Speech marked the State Opening of Parliament. Pictured: Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a debate on the speech

'When I speak to parents like Ian Russell and hear what happened with his child, it is the stuff of parents' nightmares.'

Mr Dowden admitted the Bill would only tackle pornography on social media but 'we're continuing to work through' addressing an age verification regime on commercial porn sites.

The culture secretary meanwhile told the Telegraph there could be 'no excuses' for tech firms who he said 'must face the consequences' if they fail to adhere to the new rules.

Social media giants such as Facebook, Instagram and Youtube will be made to end 'no further questions asked' age verification processes - which can be easily side-stepped by youngsters.

Those who fail to enforce their minimum age limits - Facebook's is currently 13 - would face sanctions, Mr Dowden said.

He told the Telegraph: 'Enough is enough. We're all sick to death of the bile and the threats.

'If it's illegal, platforms like Facebook and Twitter will have to flag and remove online abuse quickly and effectively or face the consequences. No more excuses.'

Meanwhile, Mr Russell told the Telegraph: 'If that is watered down in any way and if harmful content continues to be promoted and pushed by tech companies' algorithms, then the Bill will have failed and people will remain at risk.'

It comes after free speech campaigners last night welcomed Boris Johnson's war on woke after he unveiled a new law forcing universities to protect freedom of speech.

The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill will aim to end the so-called 'no platforming' of speakers and academics on campuses.

Regulator the Office for Students will get the power to fine institutions and student unions for breaching new duties designed to foster 'a culture of open and robust intellectual debate'.

People who believe their freedom of speech has been impinged will also get the power to go to court to seek financial compensation.

The plan prompted a storm of protest from unions, with the UCU accusing the Gpvernment of 'embarking on a pseudo freedom of speech crusade on campuses'.

But campaign group, the Free Speech Union, today welcomed the plan, saying in a post on Twitter: 'Great to see the Government following through on its pledge to better protect free speech in universities.

'In the past year we've dealt with over 100 campus free speech cases.

'Anyone who thinks speech protections in universities don't need strengthening hasn't been paying attention.'

The plan was also backed by former UKIP chief Nigel Farage, who described the move as 'vital', while education secretary Gavin Williamson also backed the proposals.
A bizarre shrunken head once used as part of a grisly film prop has been confirmed to a real 'ceremonial tsantsa' and repatriated to Ecuador, where it was made.

Experts from the Mercer University in Georgia  among whose collections the head was found  examined the artefact to confirm that it was indeed genuine.

Their analysis involved a comparison of the head with known authentic tsantsas  looking at features including its size, facial structure and hairstyle.

The tsantsa, whose exact origins are unclear, was acquired by a former member of the Mercer Faculty in 1942 and was displayed before being forgotten in storage.

In the late seventies, it was loaned out for the production of the film 'Wise Blood', where it can be seen, replete with added body, in several scenes.

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A bizarre shrunken head (pictured) once used as part of a grisly film prop has been confirmed to a real 'ceremonial tsantsa'  and repatriated to Ecuador, where it was made

Experts from the Mercer University in Georgia  among whose collections the head was found  analysed the artefact to confirm that it was indeed genuine. Pictured: the tsantsa's mouth

THE HEAD SHRINKERS Tsantsas  or 'shrunken heads'  are cultural artefacts that were produced by certain indigenous cultures of Ecuador and Peru until around the middle of the 20th century. These cultures included the Amazonian Shuar, Achuar, Awajun/ Aguaruna, Wampis/Huambisa and Candoshi-Shampra. Typically crafted by men in an elaborate, multi-step process, shrunken heads are made from made from the cranial skin of enemies slain in combat. It was believed that tsantsas contain the spirit and knowledge of the individual from whom they were produced  and were thus regarded to hold supernatural power that could be conferred to the owner of the head. Tsantsas were used in ceremonial rituals  involving a feast  in which the power of a given shrunken head could be transferred to a household. Following the ritual, the supernatural power was regarded to have left the shrunken head, at which point the tsantsas itself originally became nothing more than a keepsake. However, the influence of European and colonial visitors in the nineteenth century saw post-ceremony tsantsas acquire a commercial value, with their owners willing to trade them away. Demand for the curios soon outstripped supply, resulting in a market of inauthentic tsantsas  some made from human remains, other from animal heads or synthetic materials  for export to European and North American purchasers. Advertisement

The study was undertaken by biological anthropologist Craig Byron of Mercer University and his colleagues.

'Tsantsas, commonly referred to as "shrunken heads", are unique and valuable antiquities,' and are simultaneously human remains and cultural artefacts, the researchers explained in their paper.

'Originally used with ceremonial purpose during important social group functions, tsantsas became monetarily valuable as keepsakes and curios during the nineteenth century,' they added.

However, they explained, 'their production and purpose were negatively influenced by colonialism and the outside curio market  as such many institutions may choose to repatriate them to their places of origin.'

However, before a tsantsas can be returned, it must first be verified as genuine item.

In the case of the Mercer head, such an analysis was requested by the Ecuadorian government.

The reason these checks are needed, the researchers explain, is because the authenticity of many tsantsas in museum collections is uncertain.

'Unmet demand [for tsantsas] resulted in the production of convincing forgeries, the team explained.

In their study, Professor Byron and colleagues compared 33 aspects of the Mercer head  including its size, hairstyle and facial structure  with authentic tsantsas, to see if it matched.

So-called 'commercial' tsantsas that were made solely for export to the European and North American markets rarely share all the characteristics of their authentic counterparts, the researchers explained.

While some were still made from the heads of European victims, most were elaborate forgeries produced from animals like monkeys and sloths or even synthetic materials.

The tsantsa analysed by the team appears to have been acquired in 1942 by one James Harrison, who was a member of the university's biology faculty until 1976.

In his memoirs, published prior to his passing in 2016, Dr Harrison described having acquired the artefact during his travels in the Ecuadorian Amazon while serving as a lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force.

Dr Harrison wrote that he met a man from the SAAWC (Shuar, Achuar, Awajun/Aguaruna, Wampis/Huambisa and Candoshi-Shampra) culture group who wore the tsantsa  and the then soldier made a trade to acquire the head.

His part of the exchange included some coins, a pocket knife and a military insignia.

He stuffed the head's interior cavity with Ecuadorian newspaper before bringing the artefact to the United States, where it ended up on display in Mercer University for some time, first in the Willet Science Center and then in the cultural museum.

It is unclear whether the tsantsa was made by the man who originally wore it  as is the age of the artefact and the identity of the individual whose head was used to produce it.

'Tsantsas, commonly referred to as "shrunken heads", are unique and valuable antiquities,' and are simultaneously human remains and cultural artefacts, the researchers  led by anthropologist Craig Byron, pictured  explained in their paper. They continued: 'Originally used with ceremonial purpose during important social group functions, tsantsas became monetarily valuable as keepsakes and curios during the nineteenth century'

The tsantsa was acquired in Ecuador by a former member of the Mercer University faculty in 1942. Having traded the head for possession including a penknife and a military insignia, he stuffed the head's interior cavity with Ecuadorian newspaper before bringing the artefact to the United States, where it ended up on display in Mercer University for some time. Pictured: the researchers study the newspaper extracted from the the inside of the shrunken head

The team's analysis involved a comparison of the head with known authentic tsantsas  looking at features including its size, facial structure and hairstyle. Pictured: two views of the Mercer tsantsa, showing characteristic features including (left) a darkened skin (1) a thick and leathery texture at the neck (2) and a polished cheek skin (4), as well as (right) conservation of the anatomy of the ear (6) and limited evidence of the use of preservation materials (26)

While the tsantsa was eventually placed in storage and forgotten, it was first loaned to the production team of John Huston's 1979 black-comedy/drama film, 'Wise Blood', which was filmed in Macon, Georgia, close to the Mercer University campus.

In the film's plot, the head  to which a fake body was attached  forms a shrunken corpse that becomes the object of worship of one of the characters, Enoch Emery.

The tsantsa is visible in several scenes and was handled by various members of the film's cast throughout the production.

While the tsantsa was eventually placed in storage and forgotten, it was first loaned to the production team of John Huston's 1979 black-comedy/drama film, 'Wise Blood' (right), which was filmed in Macon, Georgia, close to the Mercer campus. The tsantsa is visible in several scenes and was handled by various actors throughout the production (as seen left)

In the plot of 'Wise Blood', the head  to which a fake body was attached, as pictured  forms a shrunken corpse that becomes the object of worship of one of the characters, Enoch Emery

Professor Byron and his team believe that the use of the head in 'Wise Blood' may have damaged the artefact slightly  explaining why not all of its characteristics quite match those of known authentic ceremonial tsantsas.

Nevertheless, of the the 33 distinctive characteristics of authentic tsantsas  as set out by Ecuador's National Cultural Heritage Institute and previous literature  the Mercer head matched 30 of the criteria, enough to confirm it is not a forgery.

According to the researchers, the Mercer tsantsa has the structural hallmarks of a ceremonial artefact, including how it is the size of an adult human fist and has lips sewn together using a plant-based fibre, as is common in other genuine examples.

In addition, the tsantsa was noted to wear a distinctive, three-tiered hairstyle that is consistent with those worn by members of the SAAWC culture group.

The Ecuadorian government accepted the results of the team's authentication, and the tsantsa was repatriated back in June 2019.

As part of their investigation, the team also took computed tomography (CT) scans of the tsantsa, from which they were able to produce three-dimensional models of the head (right) and its hair (left) for analysis. The arrows on the right image highlight distinct depressions at the temples, which are characteristic of ceremonial tsantsas

As part of their investigation, the team also took computed tomography (CT) scans of the tsantsa, from which they were able to produce three-dimensional models of the head and its hair to enable better analysis of certain features.

According to the researchers, such 3D models of tsantsas  while lacking in some of the diagnostic characteristics of their original counterparts  could be used to replace the repatriated artefacts in public museums and classroom settings.

The full findings of the study were published in the journal Heritage Science.
New technology could bring hypersonic flight into a reality by enabling jets to reach up to Mach 17 without releasing an out of control detonation.

Scientists at the University of Central Florida developed a new propulsion system to stabilize the detonation, which is a type of explosion that sends waves faster than the speed of sound.

The facility contains a chamber with a 30-degree angle ramp near the propellent mixing chamber that stabilized the oblique detonation wave for three seconds in a controlled experiment - previous work only captured it for milliseconds.

This controlled method uses the dentation for a power source that could let a jet to travel at speeds of Mach 6 to 17, which is more than 4,600 to 13,000 miles per hour, while stopping the powerful shock that could damage the craft's surroundings.

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Scientists at the University of Central Florida developed a new propulsion system to stabilize the detonation, which is a type of explosion that sends waves faster than the speed of sound

'There is an intensifying international effort to develop robust propulsion systems for hypersonic and supersonic flight that would allow flight through our atmosphere at very high speeds and also allow efficient entry and exit from planetary atmospheres,' said study co-author Kareem Ahmed, an associate professor in UCF's Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

'The discovery of stabilizing a detonationthe most powerful form of intense reaction and energy releasehas the potential to revolutionize hypersonic propulsion and energy systems.'

The technology improves jet propulsion engine efficiency so that more power is generated while using less fuel than traditional propulsion engines, thus lightening the fuel load and reducing costs and emissions.

In addition to faster air travel, the system could also be used in rockets for space missions to make them lighter by requiring less fuel, travel farther and burn more cleanly.

The facility contains a chamber with a 30-degree angle ramp near the propellent mixing chamber that stabilized the oblique detonation wave for three seconds in a controlled experiment - previous work only captured it for milliseconds

Scientists designed a small 2.5-foot-long series of chambers to mimic those that would shoot a jet at Mach speeds, Live Science reports.

The chambers mix air and fuel in way that results in a powerful combustion, which was released onto the new chamber as a detonation.

And the small detonation stayed in a stabilized position for three seconds.

Ahmed told Live Science that although short, the timing was enough to prove the innovation is capable of controlling a detonation from traveling up or down.

'This is the first time a detonation has been shown to be stabilized experimentally,' Ahmed said.

'We are finally able to hold the detonation in space in oblique detonation form. It's almost like freezing an intense explosion in physical space.'

This controlled method uses the dentation for a power source that could let a jet to travel at speeds of Mach 6 to 17, which is more than 4,600 to 13,000 miles per hour, while stopping the powerful shock that could damage the craft's surroundings

Gabriel Goodwin, an aerospace engineer with the Naval Research Laboratory's Naval Center for Space Technology and study co-author, says their research is helping to answer many of the fundamental questions that surround oblique detonation wave engines.

Goodwin's role in the study was to use the Naval Research Laboratory's computational fluid dynamics codes to simulate the experiments performed by Ahmed's group.

'Studies such as this one are crucial to advancing our understanding of these complex phenomena and bringing us closer to developing engineering-scale systems,' Goodwin says.

'This work is exciting and pushing the boundaries of both simulation and experiment,' Goodwin says. 'I'm honored to be a part of it.'
The wreck of a submarine sunk off the coast of Malta has finally been verified as the missing HMS Urge which vanished with all hands en route to Alexandria in April 1942.

Archaeologists from the University of Malta dove to the wreck twice in April and were able to identify the vessel based on the 'N17' ID embossed on its conning tower.

The confirmation puts an end to controversial claims that the sub was instead sunk off of the coast of Libya by Italian warplanes while undertaking a secret mission.

Experts believe that the HMS Urge was fatally struck by a German mine shortly after leaving Malta's Grand Harbour, while the vessel was still surfaced.

It was discovered in 2019 after Francis Dickinson  grandson of HMS Urge's captain, Lt Cdr Edward Tomkinson  pushed for a search of an area heavily mined by Nazis.

The wreck of a submarine sunk off the coast of Malta (pictured, showing the forward gun) has finally been verified as HMS Urge, which vanished en route to Alexandria in April 1942

Experts believe that the HMS Urge (pictured here in 1941) was fatally struck by a German mine shortly after leaving Malta's Grand Harbour, while the vessel was still surfaced

N17 HMS URGE: SPECS Class/type: U-class submarine Length: 191 feet (58 metres) Beam: 15 feet 1 inch (4.9 metres) Draft: 17 feet 5 inches (5.3 metres) Max surface speed: 11.25 knots Max submerged speed: 10 knots Arms: One 3-inch gun, 10 torpedoes Complement: 32 crew Builder: Vickers Armstrong Launched: August 19, 1940 Lost: April 27, 1942 Advertisement

The dives down to the wreck were led by archaeologist and deep wreck historian Timmy Gambin of the University of Malta, who was accompanied by five colleagues.

'It is now 100 per cent confirmed,' Professor Gambin  who first discovered the wreck two years ago around six miles east of the Maltese coast  told Live Science.

'We got some good images of the name that will hopefully do away with the absurd claim that she was lost off North Africa.'

This is the first time that people have dived down to visit the wreck. Surveys in 2019 were undertaken with an autonomous underwater vehicle, and since then, the COVID-19 pandemic has impeded investigation of the lost vessel.

During the recent dive, however, the researchers were able to spend more than 20 minutes inspecting the wreck  which lies at a depth of around 360 feet (110 metres)  taking high-resolution photographs and video of the vessel.

Sight of the vessel's ID embossed on the port side of her conning tower had previously been impossible to catch, because such had been obscured by a legally-protected gorgonian coral that had grown alongside the wreck.

'We abide by international standards where we don't touch the wreck, so I'm not going to go and just shove it out of the way,' Professor Gambin told Live Science.

The researchers were also able undertake a detailed 3D scan of the submarine's hull, which revealed not only how it matched the dimensions of the missing HMS Urge but also the extent of the damage to the vessel's bow.

The team's inspection found that the state of the wreck was consistent with having struck a German naval mine, with a hole having been punched through the vessel's pressure hull near her bow.

According to Professor Gambin and colleagues, the bow section likely rapidly filled with water after being holed, and ultimately broke off when the stricken sub plunged in the sea bed.

HMS Urge was discovered in 2019 after Francis Dickinson  grandson of HMS Urge's captain, Lt Cdr Edward Tomkinson  pushed for a search of an area heavily mined by Nazis. Pictured: a sonar image of the vessel's wreck, top, compared with an illustration of a U-class sub, bottom

In early 1942, HMS Urge was based at the British naval port at Malta, which at that time was a key facility in the Mediterranean.

To avoid the intense bombardment of the island by German and Italian air forces, the British Admiralty ordered all warships stationed at Malta to set sail for the port of Alexandria, in Egypt.

HMS Urge set sail from Malta on April 27, 1942 under the cover of darkness, carrying 29 crewmembers, 11 naval passengers and the British war reporter Bernard Gray, who wrote for the Daily Mirror and the Sunday Pictorial.

By May 6, however, she had failed to report at Alexandria as expected, and was ultimately reported missing.

HMS Urge (pictured) set sail from Malta on April 27, 1942 under the cover of darkness, carrying 29 crewmembers, 11 naval passengers and the British war reporter Bernard Gray, who wrote for the Daily Mirror and the Sunday Pictorial. By May 6, however, she had failed to report at Alexandria as expected, and was ultimately reported missing

Sight of the vessel's id embossed on the port side of her conning tower had previously been impossible to catch, because such had been obscured by a legally-protected gorgonian coral that had grown alongside the wreck. Pictured: a sonar image of the vessel's wreck, top, compared with an illustration of a U-class sub, bottom

'It is now 100 per cent confirmed,' Professor Gambin  who led the team that initially found the wreck back in 2019 told Live Science . 'We got some good images of the name that will hopefully do away with the absurd claim that she was lost off North Africa'

'It is now 100 per cent confirmed,' Dr Gambin  who first discovered the wreck two years ago around six miles east of the Maltese coast  told Live Science

According to Professor Gambin, providing this final confirmation of the wreck's identity had taken on a personal importance.

'There is a massive difference between working on a Roman shipwreck  which is important archaeologically and very spectacular  and working with something from a recent conflict,' he told Live Science.

'The daughter of the commander is still alive. The love letters written by her mother are in the submarine.

'So for me, the science and the safety of the dives are paramount, but the most important thing is closure for the families.'

With their latest study of the wreck complete, the team will be passing the details to the Royal Navy, which retains responsibility for the wreck under international law.
Following one of the most adventurous ocean expeditions ever, scientists have returned precise measurements for the deepest points in each of the world's five major oceans.

Data from the Five Deeps Expedition (FDE), which performed dives over the course of 10 months from 2018 to 2019, confirms for the first time the locations of the deepest points of Indian Ocean and the Southern Ocean.

The deepest point of the Indian Ocean is at 7,187 metres, within the Java Trench, just off the coast of Indonesia, the data reveals, while the deepest point of the Southern Ocean has a depth of 7,432 metres, within the South Sandwich Trench.

Prior to FDE, the deepest parts of some oceans were relatively well known, such as lowest point on Earth  the Challenger Deep, inside the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean.

At a whopping 10,924 metre (6.8-miles), the Challenger Deep still holds the record for the deepest point on Earth, the expeditions confirmed.

While the deepest point in the Atlantic Ocean is called Brownson Deep in the Puerto Rico Trench, which descends an impressive 8.378 metres.

Image shows the location of the deepest points within each of the world's oceans (Atlantic, Southern, Indian, Pacific and Arctic)

The new measurements for each of the deepest points in the world's five oceans and their coordinates

The Five Deeps Expedition was a successful 10-month mission to travel to the deepest point in each of the world's five major oceans  Atlantic, Southern, Indian, Pacific and Arctic.

The expedition, which covered 47,000 nautical miles, completed 39 dives using Limiting Factor (LV)  a two-person submersible built by Florida-based company Triton Submarines.

LV carried the latestgeneration, fullocean depth multibeam echosounder  which emits a series of sound pulses  in order to map each part of the seafloor.

Now, a team of researchers, including experts from the British Geological Survey, has authored a new study on the mission's findings, published in Geoscience Data Journal.

The study was led by Cassandra Bongiovanni chief hydrographic surveyor for the FDE.

'The global Five Deeps Expedition allowed us a unique opportunity to accurately map some of the most remote and deepest places in the world, and to validate these depths with measurements collected by the submersible and support landers,' she said.

Mariana Trench, is about 124 miles east of the Mariana Islands off the coast of the Philippines, is already known to be the deepest spot in the Pacific Ocean

Triton DSV Limiting Factor can dive to depths of 36,000 feet and fits two passengers plus a pilot

'Access to state-of-the-art full-ocean depth technology allowed us to map an area equivalent to continental France in only 10 months.

'Around 61 per cent of where we went had never been mapped using modern technology.'

Prior to Five Deeps, there had been some uncertainties regarding the deepest points in the Indian Ocean and Southern Ocean.

For example, two possible locations for the deepest point in the Indian Ocean had previously been identified  Java Trench and Diamantina Fracture Zone (DFZ).

FDE data now shows Java Trench takes the title of deepest point in the Indian Ocean, at 7,187 metres (4.4 miles), more than the DFZ's 7,019 metres.

The expedition, which covered 47,000 nautical miles in 10 months, completed 39 dives using Limiting Factor (LV)  a two-person submersible built by Florida-based company Triton Submarines. Graph shows how the depth of Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench - the deepest point on Earth - exceeds the height of Mount Everest

As for the Southern Ocean, the South Sandwich Trench, located just north of the Antarctic continent, had not been thoroughly explored prior to FDE.

South Sandwich Trench is the only sub-zero hadal zone (deeper than 6,000 metres, or 20,000 feet) in the world.

The recently named Factorian Deep, located at the southern end of the trench, measures 7,432 metres deep.

The new data has also shown that although the deepest point of the South Sandwich Trench is Meteor Deep at 8,265 metres, it is located within the waters of the Atlantic Ocean  meaning Factorian Deep takes the crown.

The Limiting Factor (pictured) is a two-man vessel that is capable of diving to full ocean depth. It is the world's first and only manned-submersible certified for dives to 36,000 feet

This study has also confirmed that the Horizon Deep within the Tonga Trench is the second deepest point in the Pacific Ocean (at 10,816 metres).

Key to the findings were the $35 million Triton DSV Limiting Factor  the only submersible in the world capable of diving to the deepest ocean depth (11,000 metres, or 36,000 feet).

Limiting Factor is the first vehicle in history that has repeatedly gone to the deepest point in the ocean.

At such depths, characterised by immense pressures, extreme darkness and almost freezing temperatures, only specialised microorganisms can survive.

The privately funded exploration vehicle is specialised for the hadal zone of the deep ocean, which exists at in V-shaped depressions at around 20,000 to 36,000 feet.

The hadal zone of the ocean - named after Hades, the ancient Greek god of the dead - exists around 20,000 to 36,000 feet below the ocean surface

FDE was launched by Victor Vescovo, an American former intelligence officer turned millionaire financier who was aboard LV for all five missions.

In May 2019, Victor Vescovo became the fourth person in history to reach Challenger Deep as part of the expedition.

Over the course of seven days, Vescovo made fives dives in the Mariana Trench.

As well as three new species of marine life, and the deepest piece of recovered mantle rock, Vescovo and his team found a plastic bag and a candy wrapper  a stark reminder of the scale of plastic pollution.
Giant turtles may seem exotic, but they visit our seas regularly enough to be considered 'normal' British animals, according to a conservation charity.

Usually associated with beaches in South America and Africa, visits from leatherback and loggerhead turtles are common enough to suggest that the seas around Britain are a home from home.

Despite weighing up to 1 ton and reaching 7ft in length, on average, 15 leatherback turtles, the most common type, are spotted in UK waters each year.

But the true number of visitors to British seas is likely to be much higher, as turtles can swim quite deep and can keep a low profile.

Reptile and amphibian charity Froglife has called for marine turtles to be recognised as typical British animals.

Usually associated with beaches in South America and Africa, visits from leatherback (pictured) and loggerhead turtles are common enough to suggest that the seas around Britain are a home from home

Professor Roger Downie, a Froglife trustee, wrote that the figure of 15 leatherbacks a year 'is bound to be a vast underestimate of the turtle numbers actually present in British waters'. The vast majority of visiting turtles, around 84 per cent, are leatherbacks, but 12 per cent are loggerheads, and 3 per cent Kemp's ridley turtles.

He added that they are 'incredibly difficult to locate as they rarely emerge from the depths to breathe, nor to do they nest on British beaches; so the chances of actually spotting one in the huge expanses of our coastal waters are slim.'

A 5ft turtle, thought to be a leatherback, was spotted off the coast of Wales in August 2020 by a fisherman who said he had never seen one in 20 years of fishing.

Professor Downie said that the fisherman 'was certainly lucky' to spot one.

But he added: 'Although they may seem like an exotic species, these data clearly show that we should regard leatherback turtles as normal members of the migratory fauna that inhabits our surrounding seas.'

Professor Matthew Whitt, a turtle specialist at Exeter University, said that big turtles are drawn to UK waters by jellyfish.

The vast majority of visiting turtles, around 84 per cent, are leatherbacks, but 12 per cent are loggerheads, and 3 per cent Kemp's ridley turtles

'You would not think that turtles are standard animals, like robins or dolphins, animals we might take for granted,' he said.

'Most people would only interact with turtles on TV, seeing pictures of sandy beaches and turtles laying an egg. We should see them as part of our natural fauna, they aren't waifs or vagrants. Certainly leatherback turtles are frequent summer residents of our seas.

'They come here to eat because our waters are so attractive with lots of jellyfish, so they have plenty of food.'

The bigger turtles can travel to the UK because their larger body mass makes them more resistant to the colder waters off our coasts, he said.

Records show most turtles are seen on the western side of the UK, including the English Channel, all around Ireland and north to the Orkneys and Shetlands. Leatherbacks and loggerheads have been recorded at all times of the year, with peaks between June and October for leatherbacks and November to March for loggerheads. Kemp's ridleys have only been seen from October to February.

Dr Peter Richardson, head of ocean recovery at the Marine Conservation Society, said: 'Six of the world's seven marine turtle species have been recorded in UK waters, with leatherback turtles visiting our waters every summer to feed on jellyfish blooms.

'The other species usually strand either dead or dying on our shores in the winter and are almost always young turtles that have strayed into the UK's chilly seas. If they're still alive they can be rescued, so long as they're reported and not put back in the sea.

'A suite of legislation in the UK already protects marine turtles, for example, all seven species are included on Schedule 5 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act, so they are already considered to be part of the UK's amazing diversity of marine wildlife.

'Taking part in the Marine Conservation Society's turtle sightings programme is a fantastic way to help us better understand turtles in UK waters - but you will be lucky if you spot one, they are few and far between - and last year there were just 14 reports of turtles in UK waters.'
Five double-star systems, each with a planet capable of supporting life, have been discovered by a team of scientists using data from NASA's Kepler space telescope.

University of Illinois scientists used the Kepler data to create a new methodology that can identify systems with two stars that could host habitable Earth-like planets.

Luke Skywalker's view of two suns from his aunt and uncle's moisture farm in the first-released Star Wars film is fictional, but this research suggests that five known systems have double-star planets like Tatooine.

The team used information on the mass of the two stars, how bright they were and the location of planets within the system to determine their habitability.

Habitability is defined in this research as planets, like Skywalker's home and Earth, that have liquid water somewhere on their surface and one system fits the bill.

Kepler-38, a binary system with one Earth-like and one smaller star is 3,970 light years away and while so far only one Neptune-sized world has been spotted orbiting the larger star, it is predicted there are rocky worlds in the habitable zone.

Five double-star systems, each with a planet capable of supporting life, have been discovered by a team of scientists using data from the Kepler space telescope

Luke Skywalker's view of two suns from his aunt and uncle's moisture farm in the first-released Star Wars film is fictional, but this research suggests that five known systems have double-star planets like Tatooine (pictured)

FIVE CANDIDATES FOR HABITABLE PLANETS IN BINARY SYSTEMS Kepler-34 is an eclipsing binary star system with both stars roughly the same size of the Sun orbiting a common centre of mass every 27 days. There is also a gas giant a fifth the size of Jupiter that is on an eccentric orbit of the stars every 288 days. Kepler-35 is a binary star system found in the constellation Cygnus with two stars similar in size to the Sun. One is 89 per cent and the other 81 per cent the mass of ur star and both G-class orbiting a common centre of mass every 20.73 days. There is a gas giant about an eighth the mass of Jupiter orbiting the stars every 131 days. Kepler-64 is made up of two binary star systems forming a quadruple star system. One pair is made up of a star 1.3 times the size of the Sun and another just 30 per cent the Sun's mass, the other has a star the size of the Sun and one half the size of our own host star. That pair has a Neptune-sized planet orbiting them every 138.3 days. There are about 92bn miles between the two pairs of stars. Kepler-413 is a binary star system made up of a K and M dwarf stars that orbit each other every 10.1 days. There is also a Neptune-like planet that orbits both stars every 66 days. Kepler-38 is a binary system with a Sun-sized G-class star and a smaller M-class star 25 per cent the size of our Sun. They orbit a common centre every 18.8 days and there is a large Neptune-like planet orbiting the larger star. Advertisement

The researchers investigated the effects of double-star and giant planets on habitable zones of nine systems observed by the Kepler mission.

Each of the systems they selected had at least one large planet at least as big as Neptune in the solar system.

They did this as they wanted to demonstrate the presence of a large planet doesn't preclude the chance for habitable worlds to develop in the goldilocks zone - the area where liquid water can flow on the surface of a planet.

Not so close to the star, it escapes as vapour, but not so far away it completely freezes.

'Life is far most likely to evolve on planets located within their system's Habitable Zone, just like Earth,' says corresponding author Dr Nikolaos Georgakarakos, a research associate from the Division of Science at New York University Abu Dhabi.

Kepler-34, 35, 38, 64, and 413 were promising targets - with Kepler-38 being the best candidate for hosting Earth-like worlds with oceans, they found.

These are all multi-star systems that have configurations that support a permanent 'habitable zone' that won't be 'pushed out' by the gravitational pull of the stars.

They all have two stars in one configuration or another, apart from Kepler-64, which despite having four suns, could be home to a habitable rocky world.

Kepler-38 is a binary system in the constellation of Lyra about 3,970 light years away, with one large star 95 per cent the mass of the Sun and a smaller star 25 per cent the Sun's mass.

So far, a Neptune-sized planet has been found orbiting the larger star but it is thought there are more planets within the habitable zone not yet discovered.

Eggl said the methodology they developed is based on analytical equations rather than computer simulations that have to run day and night for months.

'There are some parts that use numerical models to feed in information, such as the way that the atmosphere interacts to different amounts and spectra of sunlight.

'That's really difficult to figure out analytically so we used pre-computed atmospheric models for that,' Eggl explained.

This is an artist impression of a planet orbiting the binary system Kepler-38, which researchers say is the best candidate for an Earth-like habitable world

'The benefit of our approach is that anyone can take our equations and apply them to other systems to determine where to best look for Earth-like worlds.'

The Earth's orbit around the Sun is nearly circular, ensuring that the planet receives an almost constant amount of radiation on a permanent basis.

But that isn't true for planets that orbit two suns as the second star would provide an additional source of radiation and gravitational pull.

Even if a planet's orbit is initially circular around the two stars, it will become elliptic over time due to the push and pull of both parental bodies.

This is an artist impression of a planet orbiting the two stars of Kepler-35, one of the candidates for an Earth-like rocky habitable planet

Because of this, Eggl said dynamical stability is a necessary condition for habitability of a two-sun planet, but it is not the only one.

'If a planet comes too close to its suns its oceans could boil away. If the planet is too far out, or even ejected from a system, water on its surface will ultimately freeze, as will the atmosphere itself, like CO2 that forms seasonal polar caps on Mars.

'Once we confirm that a potentially habitable planet is on a stable orbit, we can proceed to investigate how much radiation it receives from the two stars over time.

'By modeling the evolution of the stars and planetary orbits we can estimate the actual amount or radiation the planet receives.'

This is an artists impression of a planet within a binary star system with two stars of different sizes

The Kepler mission has spotted thousands of exoplanets since 2014, with 30 planets less than twice the size of Earth now known to orbit within the habitable zones of their stars

In Eggl's doctoral dissertation, he developed an analytic framework to determine habitable zones in double-star systems.

He said subsequent research and this new work 'completes the picture,' adding: 'We know that planets can form in these systems and now we know they can actually retain water on the surface, and it's pretty awesome.'

'Our study confirms that even binary star systems with giant planets are hot targets in the search for Earth 2.0. Watch out Tatooine, we are coming,' said Georgakarakos.

The findings have been published in the journal Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Science.
Greek PM calls for COVID-19 vaccine patent waiver to help countries in need

Xinhua) 10:03, May 11, 2021

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (L) welcomes Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez at Greek Prime Minister's Office in Athens, Greece, on May 10, 2021. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visited Greece on Monday to attend the 6th Delphi Economic Forum. (Photo by Michalis Karayannis/Xinhua)

ATHENS, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday called for waiving intellectual property rights protected by patents for COVID-19 vaccines in order to speed up production to assist countries in need.

"The health crisis has highlighted more than anything the need for joint action to address threats," Mitsotakis said following a meeting with his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez in Athens.

"The main issue today is how we will allow, using all the means at our disposal, the production of more vaccines and export them without hindrance to the countries in need," Greek national broadcaster ERT quoted him as saying.

"Thanks to vaccination we can feel more optimistic about the pandemic," the Spanish leader said, adding that the vaccinations are opening the road to economic recovery.

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, vaccination is underway in an increasing number of countries with already-authorized coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, 280 candidate vaccines are still being developed worldwide -- 97 of them in clinical trials -- in countries including Germany, China, Russia, Britain, and the United States, according to the World Health Organization.

Mitsotakis and Sanchez, as well as Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa who also visited the Greek capital on Monday, expressed their strong support for the Digital Green Certificate, introduced by the European Commission and expected to be implemented from June to help ease restrictions on non-essential travels to the European Union (EU).

The "green pass" will be given to EU residents who can prove they have been vaccinated and to those who have a recent negative test result, or can prove they have recovered from the infection.

The three prime ministers, along with other leaders, participated in the Delphi Economic Forum VI that takes place in Athens and online from Monday until Saturday.

Over 1,000 guest speakers from some 40 countries are expected to take part in the discussions on themes such as global economy, climate change, technology and health.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
Market Research Future published a Half Cooked Research Report on 

Global Reactive Dyes Market Research Report - Forecast to 2023

 Market Analysis, Scope, Stake, Progress, Trends and Forecast to 2023.

Reactive Dyes Market  Overview

Reactive Dyes belongs to a class of organic compounds which is predominantly used for tinting textiles. Reactive dyes possess excellent property in the formation of covalent bonds with the substrate that is to be colored, moreover these form chemical bind with fiber, which is the main component of cotton fibers. These are majorly utilized in end use application such as nylon, cotton, wool, leather, and silk. The Reactive Dyes market is estimated to grow tremendously and register a strong growth during the forecast period. Growth of global Reactive Dyes market is predominantly driven by textile and leather industry. Furthermore, textile industry is expected to witness considerable growth on account of various factors such as increasing population, rising disposable income, and changing consumer trends. Textile industry is among the largest application segment for dyes and dyestuff and is predicted to offer a progressive scope for the reactive dye market over the assessment period. Additionally, constantly changing fashion trend along with the rising popularity of various clothing brands is estimated to drive textile industry, which in turn, is predicted to fuel the market growth over the forecast period. Apart from this, stringent regulations imposed by various government agencies in the use of synthetic based reactive dyes can hinder the growth of the market over the assessment period.

Geographically, Asia Pacific emerged as the leading market for reactive dyes followed by North America and Europe in 2016. The Asia Pacific region provide huge growth potential for reactive dyes and is predicted to register highest CAGR on account of continuous growth of textile, paper, and leather industry specifically in China, India, Japan, and South Korea. Moreover, end use industrial growth in various countries of Asia Pacific such as South Korea, India, Japan, China, Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia. Furthermore, increasing investment by major companies and shifting of manufacturing facilities as well as end use industries expansion in this region is predicted to propel the reactive dyes regional market growth. North American market is expected to witness substantial growth due to expansion of textile sector. Europe is estimated to witness moderate growth owing to the significant growth of leather and textile industries. Moreover, stringent regulations imposed by various regulatory bodies in Europe and North America is expected to slightly hamper market growth.

Key Players:

Huntsman International LLC., BASF SE, NIPPON KAYAKU CO. LTD., Sumika Chemtex Co., Ltd., Archroma, Colourtex, Kiri Industries Ltd., IM Dye Chem, Roop dyes and Intermediates, Kevin India Co. among others are some of the prominent players at the forefront of competition in the Global Reactive Dyes Market and are profiled in MRFR Analysis.

Access Complete Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/reactive-dyes-market-3870

Industry/ Innovation/ Related News:

November 2016- Huntsman Corporation signed an agreement for strategic partnership with Jihua Group, a China based company. With this agreement, textile division of Huntsman Corporation and Jihua Group will cooperate to meet the increasing demand for dye and dye intermediates for Chinas textile sector. The strategic partnership will strengthen the groups capabilities of serving customers in China and further speedily expand their business across the globe.

July 2016- Bodal Chemicals, one of the leading producer of dyes intermediate and dyestuff based at Ahmedabad, plan to expand its dyestuff manufacturing at its Vadodara facility. The company will expand its business in two phases. In first phase the company will expand dyestuff production capacity by 8000 MTPA and in second phase the company will increase production capacity from 17000 MTPA to 25000 MTPA. With this expansion the company strengthen its position in dye intermediate market.

September 2015- Shree Pushkar Chemicals & Fertilizers Ltd planned to set up reactive dye manufacturing unit with an annual capacity of 3000 tonnes. As with increase in dye manufacturing demand, company will expand its dyes intermediate capacity of H acid by 750 tonnes and vinyl sulphone by 1000 toness. With this expansion in manufacturing unit, company strengthen its position in global market.

Competitive Landscape

The Reactive Dyes report analyses the degree of competition among the market players as well as industry growth and market scenario. The global reactive dyes market consist of various players operating in the market including large scale and medium size manufacturers. This industry is concentrating towards growth association specifically by Asia Pacific as medium scale and key operating players are from this region specifically from China, South Korea, Thailand, Japan, and India. Furthermore, reactive dyes manufacturers from Europe and North America are planning to expand their manufacturing base to Asia Pacific region in order to meet the demand for reactive dyes in this region. In addition to this, manufacturers operating in this region are expanding their production capacity in order to strengthen their position and to meet the demand for increasing textile sector. Moreover, the market is rising with a substantial growth rate which raises the competitive rivalry among the industry players.
Apple rejected or removed more than 1 million malicious apps from its App Store and stopped more than $1.5 billion in potentially fraudulent transactions in 2020.

The US tech giant said its combination of 'sophisticated technology and human expertise' kept customers on its online store safe for the year.

Apple also deactivated 244 million customer accounts due to 'fraudulent and abusive activity', and rejected another 424 million attempted account creations for 'patterns consistent with fraudulent and abusive activity'.

The announcement follows revelations that Apple is facing a 1.5 billion legal battle over allegedly 'overcharging' millions of UK customers for apps in its App Store.

App Store stopped more than $1.5 billion in potentially fraudulent transactions in 2020, it revealed on Tuesday (stock image)

'Threats have been present since the first day the App Store launched on iPhone, and theyve increased in both scale and sophistication in the years since,' the firm said in a online post.

'Apple has likewise scaled its efforts to meet those threats, taking relentless steps forward to combat these risks to users and developers alike.'

Apple revealed that more than 180,000 new developers launched their first app on the App Store last year  and that there's now around 1.8 million apps available to purchase.

New figures from the US tech giant, displayed here in a graphic from the firm, shows the scale of fraud on the App Store

Of the 1 million malicious apps that were rejected or removed, 215,000 were rejected for privacy violations, while 48,000 were rejected for containing hidden or undocumented features.

UK APP STORE DEVELOPERS RAKE IN 22 PER CENT MORE CASH IN 2020 App developers have seen a boom in business due to the coronavirus pandemic, Apple revealed in March. The tech giant, valued at more than two trillion dollars, says 2020 saw a 22 per cent boost in earnings compared to 2019 for developers. Apple did not give exact figures for either year. As a result, more than 330,000 Britons are, at least in part, now employed with money from the App Store. This figure is up 10 per cent year-on-year, Apple claims. Read more: UK App Store developers rake in 22% MORE cash in 2020 than in 2019 Advertisement

Another 150,000 were rejected for being spam, copycats or misleading to users, while 95,000 were removed for 'fraudulent violations'.

As well as preventing $1.5 billion in fraudulent translations on the store, Apple said 3 million cards were prevented from being used to purchase stolen goods and services last year.

Sometimes on the App Store, developer accounts are created entirely for fraudulent purposes, often resulting in the offender being expelled from the App Store Developer Program and their account terminated.

Apple said it terminated 470,000 developer accounts in 2020 and rejected an additional 205,000 developer enrollments over fraud concerns, preventing these bad actors from ever submitting an app to the store again.

An over the last 12 months, Apple found and blocked nearly 110,000 illegitimate apps on pirate storefronts, it also revealed.

These storefronts distribute malicious software designed to resemble popular apps, or that modify popular apps without their developers' authorisation, while circumventing App Store's security protections.

Apple's announcement follows the announcement of a billion-pound legal action brought forward against the firm, over accusations it has broken UK competition law by 'overcharging' millions of people using its apps.

Apple is facing a billion-pound legal claim after being accused of breaking UK competition law by 'overcharging' millions of people for apps on its App Store

The tech giant is alleged to have deliberately shut out competition and forced people to use its own payment system.

Apple's policy of taking up to 30 per cent commission on such transactions is 'unjustified' and has generated 'excessive' profits, the claim argues.

Damages of up to 1.5 billion are being sought, and could see as many as 19.6 million users in the UK eligible for compensation.

The claim, which has been filed in the Competition Appeal Tribunal, says anyone with an iPhone or iPad who paid for apps or made any in-app purchases within the UK version of the App Store since October 1, 2015 could be entitled.

In response to the legal claim, Apple said: 'We believe this lawsuit is meritless and welcome the opportunity to discuss with the court our unwavering commitment to consumers and the many benefits the App Store has delivered to the UKs innovation economy.'

Apple is also going against video games developer Epic Games, known for the popular game Fortnite, over its App Store.

Epic alleges that Apple has transformed App Store, a once-tiny digital storefront, into an illegal monopoly that squeezes mobile apps for a significant slice of their earnings, which Apple denies.

Epic also takes issue over Apple taking a commission of up to 30 per cent on purchases made within apps, including everything from digital items in games to subscriptions.

Apple started building its dominant App Store 13 years ago as part of a strategy masterminded by co-founder Steve Jobs.
NASA is eyeing the 2030s to put the first human boots on Mars, but a scientist suggests the American space agency may have already sent forms of life aboard its Perseverance rover to the Red Planet.

Christopher Mason, a geneticist at Weill Cornell Medicine, suggests that although NASA takes extreme measures to clean spacecraft and landers of microbes, there is a high probability that some survived the trip.

Through his research, Mason scanned the Jet Propulsion Lab's (JPL) clean rooms for DNA and found the facilities 'serve as an evolutionary selection process for the hardiest bugs.'

These organism can attached to metal surfaces, survive blasts of intense radiation and thrive in extremely cold environments.

'These findings have implications for a form of planetary protection called 'forward contamination',' Mason wrote in the BBC.

'This is where we might bring something (accidentally or on purpose) to another planet.

'It is important to ensure the safety and preservation of any life that might exist elsewhere in the Universe, since new organisms can wreak havoc when they arrive at a new ecosystem.'

NASA is eyeing the 2030s to put the first human boots on Mars, but a scientist suggests the American space agency may have already sent forms of life aboard its Perseverance rover to the Red Planet

NASA and scientists worldwide are continuously working on new protocols and innovations to ensure microbes do not contaminate space  and specifically make it to Mars.

The American space agency is very particular when cleaning every inch of a craft by building one sterilized layer at a time.

Spacecraft, like Perseverance, are constructed in JPL's ISO-5 clean rooms that boast air filters and biological control protocols, which ensures 'only a few hundred particles can contaminate each square foot and ideally no more than a few dozen spores per square meter,' Mason writes.

However, he also notes that it is nearly impossible to get to zero biomass.

Researchers scanned the Jet Propulsion Lab's (JPL) clean rooms for DNA and found the facilities 'serve as an evolutionary selection process for the hardiest bugs'

These organism can attached to metal surfaces, survive blasts of intense radiation and thrive in extremely cold environments

Mason and his team conducted the investigation by extracting DNA from clean rooms, which were then sequenced to better understand what kind of microbes are living in the facilities.

Using what is called 'shotgun' sequencing, researchers were able to 'blast' DNA into billions of smaller fragments to sequence.

This allowed them to map each back to a known genome species in a sequence database.

'In JPL's clean rooms, we found evidence of microbes that have the potential to be problematic during space missions,' wrote Mason.

'These organisms have increased numbers of genes for DNA repair, giving them greater resistance against radiation, they can form biofilms on surfaces and equipment, can survive desiccation and thrive in cold environments.'

These findings are what Mason and other experts refer to as 'forward contamination,' which is the transport of Earth-based microbes to other celestial bodies, a disrupting concept for scientists who are searching for signs of life in an extraterrestrial sample.

The major implication with brining Earth microbes to Mars is that they could be mistaken for alien lifeforms and throw off decades of research.

Mason also notes that these tiny organisms could also form colonies in life-support equipment used by astronauts, which could malfunction in a life or death situation.

The major implication with brining Earth microbes to Mars is that they could be mistaken for alien lifeforms and throw off decades of research

However, he also notes that these traveling organisms can change once they reach space.

New species have been found on the International Space Station that include similarities to those found in clean rooms - but with abilities to withstand high levels of radiation.

'Eventually, humans will set foot on Mars, carrying the cocktail of microbes that live on and inside our bodies with them. These microbes too will likely adapt, mutate, and change,' wrote Mason.

'They may even make life on Mars more tolerable for those who go there, since the unique genomes adapting to the Martian environment could be sequenced, transmitted back to Earth for further characterization, and then utilized for therapeutics and research on both planets.'
Advertisement

Soviet tanks in Slovakian fields, fighter aircraft resting in tropical waters, a French submarine pen impervious to the biggest of bombs and intimidating guns standing sentry over rugged coastlines.

World War II ended more than 75 years ago but, as an intriguing new book reveals, the remnants of the six-year conflict can be found all over the world, from Hawaii to the English coast and from the Red Sea to Iceland.

Illustrated with more than 150 unique photographs, Abandoned World War II Aircraft, Tanks and Warships (Amber Books Ltd) by Chris McNab 'allows the history buff and general reader to explore the detritus of this great, destructive conflict in every part of the world'.

McNab writes in the introduction: 'For six unprecedented years in human history, almost the entire globe thundered to the sounds of war, lit by strobe-like flashes of gunfire and explosions. Despite the passage of more than seven decades since the end of the war, the physical evidence of that conflict remains prolific and poignant.

'Some of it is small in scale... some of it is open and defiant - many wartime fortresses still sit powerfully above coasts or atop mountains. We should ultimately be glad that they and the world around them are now silent.'

Scroll down to see some of the fascinating images featured in the book.

T-34'S, DUKLA PASS, SLOVAKIA: 'The Dukla Pass on the PolishCzech border was the site of a major battle between German defenders and advancing Soviet forces from September 8 to October 28, 1944,' says McNab. 'These T-34 tanks stand as memorials to an oft-forgotten clash that cost 70,000 casualties'

VOUGHT F4U CORSAIR, OAHU, HAWAII: A diver hovers peacefully over the wreck of a Vought F4U Corsair. The author explains: 'Although this particular aircraft was a veteran of World War II, it actually ended its flying career in 1948, when a routine flight ended in engine failure and ditching. The pilot was unharmed and was later rescued'

ROSALIE MOLLER, RED SEA: According to McNab, the Rosalie Moller was a coaling vessel, transporting Welsh coal around Royal Navy bases in the UK and out to the Mediterranean and Red seas. He adds: 'On October 7, 1941, while hazardously static at anchor in the Red Sea, waiting for a blockage to clear in the Suez Canal, the ship was bombed and sunk by two Heinkel He 111 bombers making a low-level strike'

QF 4IN MARK IV NAVAL GUN, GYPSY COVE, PORT STANLEY, FALKLAND ISLANDS: 'Despite their extreme distance from the main European battlegrounds, the British Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic were still deemed vulnerable to German, and later Japanese, naval incursions,' according to McNab. 'This Vickers QF 4in (101mm) Mk IV naval gun was one of a pair mounted to watch over Port Stanley'

L6/40 TANK, GJIROKASTER, ALBANIA: 'The L6/40 light tank was an Italian armoured vehicle that saw combat service in the Balkans, the Soviet Union, North Africa and the Italian campaign,' the book reveals. 'The vehicle here is one of only three surviving L6/40s and is located in the Gjirokaster Fortress in Albania, a fortress that dates back to the 12th century'

WRECKED VEHICLES, TOBRUK, LIBYA: McNab explains that Tobruk was one of the most contested places in the North African war, under Axis siege for 241 days. He adds: 'Military equipment is still scattered around the port city, including Allied trucks. This one appears to be a Chevrolet Modified Conventional Pattern (MCP), a Canadian-produced vehicle'

SS THISTLEGORM, NEAR RAS MUHAMMAD, RED SEA: 'The wreck of the British merchant navy ship SS Thistlegorm was discovered by none other than the legendary French diver Jacques Cousteau in the early 1950s, although its location was subsequently lost then rediscovered in the 1990s,' explains McNab. 'Following her launch in April 1940, the ship made three perilous voyages across war-torn waters  to the United States, Argentina and the West Indies  carrying everything from rum to aircraft parts. On her fourth voyage, from June 1941 to Alexandria, she carried a huge stock of trucks, weapons, ammunition and even two steam locomotives. On October 6, however, the ship was bombed while at anchorage near the Straits of Gubal. She caught fire, exploded and sank in less than a minute. Nine of her crew died. As these photographs indicate, the wreck is today an undeniably fascinating dive site, within easy reach for Egypts tourist divers'

BUNKER, BUSH-KRKONOSE, CZECH REPUBLIC: According to McNab, the mountainous borderlands between Czechoslovakia and Poland offered good terrain for elevated defensive positions. He writes: 'This Czech Army hilltop bunker was likely built during the 1930s, in what is today the Krkonose Mountains National Park'

GERMAN HOWITZER, TRONDHEIM, NORWAY: 'This German artillery piece is a 10.5cm leFH 18M light howitzer,' writes McNab, 'one of the most prolific pieces of artillery in the German arsenal, with more than 22,000 examples produced. It was the standard German divisional field howitzer'

LANDSORT COASTAL ARTILLERY BATTERY, OJA, SWEDEN: 'Although Sweden was a neutral country in World War II, the European tensions of the 1930s and the onset of war in 1939 meant that it took its defence seriously,' says McNab. 'Here we see 152mm caemated guns on the island of Oja, emplaced during the late 1930s. Oja was the home of coastal batteries until 2007'

ISU-152 SELF PROPELLED GUN, CHERNOBYL, UKRAINE: Chernobyl is historically famed for its tragic and devastating nuclear accident in 1986, but it was also the scene of heavy fighting between German and Soviet forces in 1943, reveals McNab. He says: 'The ISU-152 was a World War II creation, designed as an armoured monster with a crushing 152mm (5.98in) main gun to take on the German Tigers and Panthers. This specimen was used in 1986 to demolish radioactive concrete buildings after the disaster at the power plant, in the tragically mistaken belief that the thick armour would protect the crews inside'

FORTIFICATIONS, HLUCIN, CZECH REPUBLIC: According to the author, the fortifications at Hlucin in the Czech Republic are 'yet another example of European defensive thinking in the 1930s, these being constructed between 1935 and 1938'. He adds: 'Framing a T-34 tank, here we see a blockhouse (top right) and a series of tank traps'

LORIENT SUBMARINE BASE, LORIENT, FRANCE: With the fall of France to the Germans in mid-1940, the Kriegsmarine set about establishing protected Atlantic bases for its U-boat fleet. McNab writes: 'Here we see the formidable Keroman 3 (K3) U-boat pen at Lorient. With wet cells for housing seven U-boats, the K3 pen was virtually impregnable to conventional bombing, courtesy of a roof 7.6m (25ft) thick, including a one-metre (three-foot) air gap in the middle to disperse explosive force. On August 6, 1944, an RAF bombing raid hit the bunker with a 5,454kg (12,000lb) "Tallboy" bomb, but the structure was not penetrated. Even today the complex of storage cells evoke a sense of physical defiance'

COASTAL GUN, VIS, CROATIA: A derelict coastal gun position looks out over the shimmering waters of the Adriatic Sea. McNab writes: 'During the war, the island was used as a base by Yugoslavian partisans, the British No.2 Special Service Brigade and even some US Army Rangers'

COASTAL ARTILLERY, ASKOLD, FOKINO TERRITORY, RUSSIA: Askold is an island in Peter the Great Bay of the Sea of Japan, 50km (31 miles) southeast of Vladivostok city. The book states: 'Between 1936 and 1939, the island was heavily armed with coastal batteries, including these turreted twin 180mm (7.1in) MB-2-180 guns, which were trained over the entrance of Ussuri Bay and approaches to Strelok Bay and Vostok Bay. The gun positions seen here sit atop underground towers, each containing working compartments, ammunition stores, reloading facilities and crew quarters. Each gun position was connected to its neighbour by underground passageways, totalling nearly one kilometre (0.6 miles) in length. Today, the isolated location of Askold means that the batteries are reasonably well preserved'

ROCKET PRODUCTION WORKSHOP, PEENEMUNDE, GERMANY: McNab says: 'World War II transformed the village and seaport at Peenemunde on the Baltic coast into a hub for research into advanced weaponry, specifically the V-2 ballistic missile. Peenemunde was originally intended as the manufacturing facility for the V-2, but the Allied Operation Hydra bombing raid in 1943 prompted the Germans to move production to the underground Mittelwerk (Central Works) in the Kohnstein, Thuringia'

PILLBOX, KIMMERIDGE ISLAND, ISLE OF PURBECK, DORSET: 'This abandoned pillbox, tilted crazily by time, was one of thousands emplaced around the British coastline in 1940,' explains McNab. 'It is a circular Type 25 pillbox, which featured an entrance at the back (visible here) and three embrasures for rifles or light machine guns'

A 228MM (9IN) GUN, SUOMENLINNA FORTRESS, HELSINKI, FINLAND: According to the book, construction on the Suomenlinna (Castle of Finland) Fortress began in 1748 and continued off and on until the 1970s, when it was handed over to civilian administration. It adds: 'Such is the extent and continuing power of the fortifications that they were added to Unescos World Heritage List in 1991. The powerful nine-inch (228mm) gun seen here, set on a gliding mount, was one of several heavy-calibre weapons emplaced in the late 19th century, but which continued to serve during World War II, when the fortress was a base for the Finnish submarine fleet'

LCM, MJOIFJORDUR, ICELAND: 'Rusting on the freezing shoreline within an 18km (11-mile) fjord, this US Navy Landing Craft Mechanized (LCM) was actually purchased as war surplus by Icelandic farmers following the end of hostilities in 1945,' writes McNab

WRIGHTS HILL FORTRESS, WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND: This sweeping, empty gun emplacement is part of the Wrights Hill Fortress, a coastal artillery position built between 1942 and 1947. The book reveals: 'The fortress received two 9.2in (234mm) Mk XV guns on Mk IX mountings  the largest land batteries ever constructed in New Zealand  but the weapons were only test-fired after the war, and ironically were later sold as scrap metal to the Japanese'
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With foreign holiday travel reopening for Britons from May 17, nervous fliers have just one question  are the flight crews rusty?

I meet British Airways' Chief Pilot, Captain Al Bridger, to seek reassurance for them  and get it in spades.

The BA cabin safety manager, Matt Whipp, during a tour of the airline's incredible cabin crew safety training centre, similarly declares that passengers have nothing to worry about.

BA's Chief Pilot, Captain Al Bridger, used to captain 747s but now flies 777s after completing a conversion course (he passed first time)

Considering the vast reduction in operations that the airline has had to instigate as a result of the pandemic  how can they both be so confident that the aircrews are 'match fit'?

Captain Bridger, 54, reveals why pilots are ready for action in one of the most exciting 'classrooms' in the world  a multi-million-pound Boeing 777 simulator at BA's Flight Training Centre near Heathrow.

It's an apt location in many ways, not least because Captain Bridger has just used this very simulator to qualify to fly the 777. He used to captain BA's Jumbos, but needed to complete a conversion course, just like any other pilot, after the fleet was retired (he passed first time).

Captain Bridger (pictured in a BA 777 simulator): 'We keep on top of surveying the pilots, on top of looking at how the simulator details are running. We are safety-led throughout. It's in our DNA. It's what we do. We haven't seen a change in our safety data throughout'

The simulator is so realistic that his first flight at the controls of a real 777 was to New York with passengers on board (and a training captain by his side).

The bike is a good analogy in the sense of actually flying the aeroplane Captain Al Bridger

I get a thrilling taster of the lessons he had when he lets me take the sim 777 for a spin.

But first, I have some crucial questions to ask him on behalf of nervous fliers everywhere. To begin with, should passengers be worried about getting on a BA flight post-lockdown? Just how much like riding a bike is flying a plane?

Captain Bridger, a former RAF Phantom fighter-jet pilot, says: 'I know exactly what you mean. And I know the apprehension that people might have. The bike is a good analogy in the sense of actually flying the aeroplane. But also, it's exposure to the aircraft that's really important. We've been flying throughout. Yes, a reduced amount of flying, but [our pilots] have been flying cargo and vital PPE around the world and flying customers, so the pilots have been exposed to the flying operation, which is really important.

'We haven't furloughed pilots and just sent them away. We've been doing flexible furloughs, so they've been still connected with the operation and still flying.'

The British Airways flight simulator hall, which houses 15 full-motion simulators that are available 365 days a year, 24 hours a day - and they cover every Airbus and Boeing aircraft type in the fleet

The pilots at BA have also been connected to flying via the 15 amazing full-motion flight simulators that the airline owns, which cover every Airbus and Boeing aircraft type in the BA fleet.

They've been available 365 days a year, 24 hours a day to help keep the pilots' skills honed - and 4,000 practice sessions were logged last year over and above regulatory training assessments.

Captain Bridger says: 'These sims have been available the whole time, which is amazing. We've got a great pilot-led community system whereby they can come and book sims and come and practice, jump on the bike and use these incredible pieces of kit to keep their hand in.'

Which aspects of flying the plane would Captain Bridger be most worried about going rusty?

Captain Bridger gives MailOnline's Ted a quick flying lesson in the Boeing 777 simulator. Here Ted is moving the throttles up for take-off

Ted finds time for a quick selfie before take-off (left) and on the right Captain Bridger lets him get a feel for the 777's turning circle before coming in to land

He says: 'We keep on top of surveying the pilots, on top of looking at how the simulator details are running. We are safety-led throughout. It's in our DNA. It's what we do. And so we look at the safety data all the time and we focus on any areas we think the pilots need to concentrate on. And it's worked really well.

'The pilots have been incredible, so professional. They've kept on top of their skills, they've kept on top of all the information they need to have to go flying and we haven't seen a change in our safety data throughout.'

All pilots must pass bi-annual simulator assessments, but Captain Bridger points out that on top of that regulation, BA has 'recency requirements'  'we need every pilot at the controls every 35 days'.

He adds: 'Our industry is one of the most regulated on the planet. And we stick to that regulation and go beyond it.'

In addition, the pilots have also been taking part in online skill sessions to pinpoint areas they need to get support with.

'I think our pilots would say that our training is excellent,' says Captain Bridger. 'Our trainers are absolutely on top of their game - world-leading at getting the best out of our people. And it's fantastic to see.'

Are there some aircraft in the fleet that are easier to keep on top of in terms of flying technique? Captain Bridger says not.

A British Airways Boeing 777 coming in to land at Glasgow Airport earlier this year

'I think you can take them all as being the same,' he reveals. 'We're very standard in our procedures. I came off the 747 and on to the 777 very recently and lots of the procedures I recognised, because we keep it very standard, across all our aircraft types, which is really good.

'So, the pilots have it ingrained in them that they're used to these flying procedures we have. So when they come back on the aircraft, they're ready to do it.'

In addition, they're encouraged to think through how they'd fly a plane from A to B during their downtime.

All pilots must pass bi-annual simulator assessments, but Captain Bridger points out that on top of that regulation, BA has 'recency requirements'  'we need every pilot at the controls every 35 days'. Pictured is a BA simulator training session

BA DURING THE LOCKDOWN Pilots Throughout the pandemic British Airways has continued to fly cargo services, some passenger services and continued its pilot training schedule and also used this time to re-train some of its pilots on different aircraft types  possible due to its (owned) 'industry leading' pilot training centre/flight simulators. British Airways has 15 full-motion state-of-the-art flight simulators at its Heathrow flight training centre, the most of any UK commercial carrier and more than the vast majority of international airlines. Its 'highly-trained pilots' have had increased access to its full-motion simulators during the pandemic, which are used for training around the clock - 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. Flying aircraft is one of the most highly regulated professions in the world and all BA's pilots take part in recency checks and recurrent training requirements every six months by law. Cabin crew British Airways cabin crew are trained at its state-of-the-art training facilities at the British Airways Global Learning Academy, near Heathrow. The Global Learning Academy includes full-size aircraft cabin mock-ups, emergency slides and doors, and medical training classrooms. Its 'highly trained cabin crew have continued with their safety training throughout the pandemic, meaning they are ready to resume flying when needed'. Advertisement

Captain Bridger continues: 'We encourage them to think about it. I'll sit at home in an armchair or wake up in the morning and I'll think through what I'm going to do on the aircraft.

'I'll think through what switches I'm going to move. How I'm going to fly a sector from literally getting on to getting off.

'And you can do that in your own head at home. Which is really important. And the pilots are brilliant at doing that.'

Captain Bridger is clearly 1,000 per cent confident in his flight crews, but he argues that some apprehension about getting back at the real-world controls after a break is only to be expected.

He says: 'We're all human beings, we're all apprehensive. I flew in the Jumbo and in that last fabulous flight out of Heathrow [in December], but I hadn't flown for a long time, and I came to do a course in February and I was apprehensive, I'll be totally honest with you. There's a voice in your head saying "I hope I don't mess this up". But actually, it came back very quickly, and that comes back to the core training that we do and the procedures that we use, and it's all in there. You jump in the seat and it comes back, it's amazing.'

The only thing missing now? The customers.

Captain Bridger says: 'The pilots love interacting with the customers. It's a big part of the job. And we're ready to welcome them back.'

I find out just how strict flight safety is when Captain Bridger lets me loose at the controls of the 777 simulator, which feels so real it sets my heart racing.

It's an enthralling experience to 'taxi' out to the Heathrow runway and guide such an immense plane 'into the air'  with the most expert of help, of course.

Landing is exciting too - but harder. Even with the help of Heathrow's precision approach path indicator ('Papi') lights. These red-and-white guide lights, positioned at the landing zone of the runway, indicate to pilots whether they're at the correct angle of approach.

If they're all red or all white, you're too low or too high. Two white and two red and you've positioned the plane perfectly.

Captain Bridger lets me land on my first of two attempts with four white lights shining  'for the experience of landing'.

It all seems fine to me, but I'm told that landing would have been aborted in real life and a 'go around' initiated.

The aviation industry is, quite rightly, a tough crowd to please.

After my piloting skills have been put to the test, Mr Whipp gives me a tour of the cabin crew safety training centre at the BA Global Learning Academy nearby  and I'm duly extremely impressed.

It's not so much a training centre as a training town.

The vast academy provides cabin crew with mock versions of everything they use during day-to-day operations  and kit they need for emergencies.

There are doors from every aircraft type in the fleet, emergency slides and mock cabins for single and twin-aisle aircraft for evacuation drills, a CPR training cabin with a sloping floor to mimic the angle of flying and a mock cabin complete with business and first-class seating for customer service training.

Ted is given a tour of British Airways' amazing cabin crew training facility by cabin safety manager Matt Whipp (pictured)

Mr Whipp says: 'We are so ready for our cabin crew to get back in the sky and to welcome our customers back on board in a very safe environment and we've got this fantastic state-of-the-art facility at British Airways that helps us do that.'

Have there been any specific worries voiced by crew about going back?

Mr Whipp says: 'Nothing specific. I think it's just confidence. When they come back into the training centre and re-do all the practical assessments and are hands-on again with the equipment, their confidence is raised at the end of the course.'

Here Mr Whipp reveals the BA medical training cabin, which is deliberately angled to mimic the feeling of being airborne

The BA training facility has two full-size emergency slides - one used in single-aisle aircraft, the other (right) in wide-bodied planes, including the A380

Mr Whipp, pictured here in BA's mock business class cabin, said: 'Aviation is ready  and British Airways is ready  to welcome people back. And they'll have a lovely time'

Mr Whipp explains that the crew are assessed regularly when they come into training but are also assessed by the senior cabin crew member during every pre-flight briefing, who will fire questions at them about safety and procedures to make sure they're on top of things  'determining whether they should be flying or not'. If the knowledge has waned in any way, they won't fly, says Mr Whipp.

And do pilots have any input with the training?

'Absolutely,' says Matt. 'It's all about working as one team. At British Airways, we do it brilliantly. We have a lot of combined training. Just last week I was in here and there was a flight crew member with a cabin crew group as well, talking about an abnormal scenario and they were playing their part with the handsets and the interphone and then they can all practise the communication.

'On a lot of occasions, we will do combined training. With locked flight deck doors, it's even more important now that communication between the flight crews and the cabin crews is absolutely on-point. And on the vast majority of pre-flight briefings, the flight crew will be involved in that too. They'll come in and talk about what's expected on the flight, whether it's turbulence or whatever it may be.'

Mr Whipp reveals that, what's more, cabin safety intelligence is shared between BA and other global airlines.

He adds: 'I'm in an International Air Transport Association [Iata] cabin safety group with a lot of global airlines and before the pandemic, and during the pandemic, we share best practice and support each other to make sure that globally aviation is a safe environment. We also have a UK group  and again, from a safety point of view, we can share best practice. We're confident and we want our customers to be confident. Aviation is ready  and British Airways is ready  to welcome people back. And they'll have a lovely time.'

Ready for take-off now? Visit www.britishairways.com/travel/home/public/en_gb/ to book.
Former Bachelor star Anna Heinrich hit back at critics once again on Monday, during a live interview on The Morning Show.

The 34-year-old lawyer was asked about being trolled over a bikini photo she posted in November last year, just two weeks after giving birth to her daughter Elle.

A fired-up Anna said people shouldn't be criticising new mothers from behind their keyboards and should instead keep their thoughts to themselves.

Response: The Bachelor's Anna Heinrich (right) fired up live on The Morning Show on Monday, hitting back at 'mum shamers' who criticised her for this bikini photo she posted on Instagram just two weeks after giving birth to her daughter Elle

'People thought that was setting a bad example [by posting the photo], but I don't go out with the intention of putting up images to make other people feel bad,' Anna said.

'I had an article in Sunday's paper, it was saying we've got to stop criticising people and... putting pressure on women to bounce back.'

She added: 'Also, people bounce back in different ways and it shouldn't matter what people look like after pregnancy.'

She clarified she was now 'focusing' on raising her daughter, who is six months old.

Defending herself: Anna said people shouldn't be criticising new mothers from behind their keyboards and should instead keep their thoughts to themselves

Anna was pressed about the trolling by The Morning Show host Kylie Gillies, and said that people shouldn't be criticising each other online at all.

'I feel like people shouldn't be criticising either way. Full stop. That goes for everything, not even when it comes to your body,' the reality star said.

'Instagram is that platform where people think they're allowed to criticise. It's got to stop. People have to be more kind to people.'

She added that American model Emily Ratajkowski had recently been criticised for sharing an image of her post-baby body.

Anna defended her by saying she didn't think Emily's 'intentions were bad'.

Her say: In an interview with Body + Soul at the weekend, Anna spoke about being trolled over her bikini photo from November. 'The intention behind the image wasn't to say, "look at me, look at my body, look how I've recovered." I put it up because I was having a great time'

In an interview with Body + Soul at the weekend, Anna spoke about being trolled over her bikini photo from November.

'The intention behind the image wasn't to say, "look at me, look at my body, look how I've recovered." I put it up because I was having a great time.'

'I'm not trying to make anyone feel bad, I'm just living my life. Instagram is a fraction of what I am.'

Anna went on to say that there is no right way to have a 'mum body' or recover from childbirth.

Each to their own: Anna went on to say that there is no right way to have a 'mum body' or recover from childbirth

Anna was slammed her for posing in a bikini just two weeks after she welcomed her baby girl, Elle.

In November, the same month she gave birth to her first child, the former Bachelor star enjoyed an early 34th birthday on board a yacht on Sydney Harbour with husband Tim Robards, 38, and their pals.

In photos shared to Instagram, the first-time mother looked nothing short of sensational in a black bandeau bikini top and matching high-waisted briefs - but she gained the negative attention of critics for sharing the images.

Anna won over husband Tim Robard's heart in the 2013 season of The Bachelor.

They wed at a fairytale Italian ceremony in June 2018, and welcomed their daughter in November.
Wendy Williams and contractor Mike Esterman have parted ways after a brief fling.

Esterman, 53, told Page Six Monday that the talk show host, 56, 'deserves to be with someone who may have more time' to spend with her.

Esterman, a Maryland contractor, said he and the TV personality went on dates three times and were 'never an item.'

The latest: Wendy Williams, 56, and contractor Mike Esterman, 53, have parted ways after a brief fling. Esterman on Monday said that the talk show host 'deserves to be with someone who may have more time' to spend with her

'I had placed all work-related tasks aside to get to know her on a personal level, no angles or hidden agendas,' he told the outlet. 'I can only wish her the best as we both continue the search at our own paces and remain friends in the process.

'I have enjoyed our times together and felt great to be able to make her laugh.'

Esterman's chat with the outlet came in the wake of a report from The Sun indicating that the pair had decided to cease their romance.

The pair were initially linked in a Date Wendy segment on her show earlier this year, and Williams last month paid a visit to Esterman in his home state of Maryland.

Background: The pair were initially linked in a Date Wendy segment on her show earlier this year, and Williams last month paid a visit to Esterman in his home state of Maryland

Esterman, who has ties to show business through his friend Mario Lopez, said that his pursuit of the TV host was not for 'exposure'

Out and about: Williams was seen in her native NYC in March

Williams said Esterman is 'age-appropriate, and he's got jokes' on her February 26 edition.

Esterman, who has ties to show business through his friend Mario Lopez, told Page Six that his pursuit of the TV host was not for 'exposure.'

Esterman told The Sun of their parting, 'Nobody called it a day, there's just no time to meet up. We talk when we can. I can't hold her back from meeting someone who can give her more.'

The veteran broadcaster was previously married to ex-husband Kevin Hunter for more than 20 years ahead of her divorce filing in April of 2019. The pair are son to Kevin Jr., 20.
She made her name on the sitcom Mike & Molly and got her major break into movies with 2011's Bridesmaids.

Now a major star, Melissa McCarthy was in a nostalgic mood on Monday as she shared a handwritten note of advice she made for herself to her Instagram.

McCarthy, 50, explained: 'Found this note I wrote to myself years ago... still stands.'

Memo to self: Melissa McCarthy (pictured in 2019) was in a nostalgic mood on Monday as she shared a handwritten note of advice she made for herself several years ago to her Instagram

The letter was addressed 'To me' and began: 'In 10 years, you will not remember his name.'

The advice then included such words of wisdom as 'It's ok to cry it out,' 'For the love of God - buy both pairs of shoes' and 'Please listen to that little voice inside your head.'

The actress and producer's tips observed that 'A walk of shame can be character building.'

She also reminded herself that she should 'Call Mom' and 'Just eat the damn cookie!!'

McCarthy ended the note to herself with: 'Go ALL IN - you'll never get today back.'

She signed it: 'xoxoxo Me.'

Things to remember: The letter was addressed 'To me' and included several tips and observations. 'Still stands up,' McCarthy commented in the accompanying caption

The star of Spy and Can You Ever Forgive Me? did not elaborate further on exactly how long ago she had penned the note, nor why she did it.

McCarthy is currently in Australia where she's been filming a raft of projects.

Her schedule Down Under began last fall with her role opposite Nicole Kidman in Nine Perfect Strangers; she and Kidman are co-producers on the mini series.

Then in March, she filmed a cameo in the upcoming Marvel Comics superhero sequel Thor: Love And Thunder.

Spouses and collaborators: McCarthy, 50, is currently in Australia with husband Ben Falcone, 47, and their daughters. The couple are filming the Netflix series God's Favourite Idiot together

And now she and husband Ben Falcone are shooting a new series for Netflix titled God's Favourite Idiot for which they received a $10 million grant from the Australian government to make there.

MCCarthy and Falcone married in 2005 and have worked together several times since, including on the 2014 movie Tammy and the 2016 film The Boss.

The couple and their daughters Vivian, 13, and Georgette, 10 have been living in Australia since July 2020.

Launchpad: The actress made her name on the CBS sitcom Mike & Molly which premiered in 2010. She's pictured with co-star Billy Gardell in the series pilot
The Politician alum Zoey Deutch flashed her black bra beneath an ultra-sheer, distressed white T-shirt while buying iced green tea matcha in Los Angeles on Monday.

The 26-year-old Valley Girl - who was glued to her phone - also wore baggy black jeans and Birkenstock-style sandals.

Zoey was wearing a black evolvetogether face mask ($36 for pack of 30) despite the CDC 's new guidelines to only do so indoors or in crowds to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Transparent: The Politician alum Zoey Deutch flashed her black bra beneath an ultra-sheer, distressed white T-shirt while buying iced green tea matcha in Los Angeles on Monday

There's been 1.2M confirmed COVID-19 cases leading to 24K deaths in the city, but LA County is currently in the least-restrictive yellow tier.

Missing from Deutch's side on Monday was her boyfriend, Home Economics star Jimmy Tatro.

On Mother's Day, the Justin Bieber video vixen shared a tribute to 'the greatest to ever do it' - Back to the Future alum Lea Thompson.

'She taught me everything I know,' Zoey - who boasts 3.5M social media followers - wrote.

Glued to her phone: The 26-year-old Valley Girl also wore baggy black jeans and Birkenstock-style sandals.

Safety first: Zoey was wearing a black evolvetogether face mask despite the CDC 's new guidelines to only do so indoors or in crowds to prevent the spread of coronavirus

Anything for a laugh! Missing from Deutch's side on Monday was her boyfriend, Home Economics star Jimmy Tatro (posted February 14)

'Like how our small bladders mean we need to fly aisle seat and how we have to pee right after we pee (like immediately after) and also how desperate times call for desperate measures and there's no shame in peeing in a water bottle while driving in 405 traffic.

'No shame. Just pride. She also taught me other things unrelated to having a small bladder but I'm focusing on the more important stuff right now.'

Deutch and her big sister Madelyn's father is Howard Deutch, who famously directed his 59-year-old wife on the set of Some Kind of Wonderful way back in 1987.

'She taught me everything I know': On Mother's Day, the Justin Bieber video vixen shared a tribute to 'the greatest to ever do it' - Back to the Future alum Lea Thompson

Christmas family portrait: Zoey and her big sister Madelyn's (2-L) father is Howard Deutch (2-R), who famously directed his 59-year-old wife (R) on the set of Some Kind of Wonderful way back in 1987

'It's very NSFW!' Deutch teamed up with Lea for Audible Original's body-swapping podcast/scripted audio comedy A Total Switch Show, which premiered last Thursday

The nepotistically-privileged millennial teamed up with Lea for Audible Original's body-swapping podcast/scripted audio comedy A Total Switch Show, which premiered last Thursday.

Zoey will definitely promote A Total Switch Show when she appear on this Thursday's episode of NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Deutch will next executive produce and star as timid dog-groomer Calliein Lisa Duva's spec script Hound, which Searchlight acquired the rights to back in January - according to Deadline.
He's the charismatic painter who formed an unlikely friendship with real estate agent-turned-TV villain Daniel Hayes on Big Brother Australia.

And on Monday, evicted housemate Nicholas Brenton revealed despite missing out on the $250,000 prize, he walked away with life-long friends.

The 29-year-old told Daily Mail Australia his new mate made the long trip from Victoria to Adelaide to be at his wedding.

'For Dan to drive over [to Adelaide] from Victoria that obviously goes to show you how good our relationship was and will continue to be,' the 29-year-old told Daily Mail Australia.

Friends: Big Brother's Nicholas Benton, 29, [left] has revealed that fellow housemates Daniel Hayes, 44, [centre] and Melissa McGorman, 33, [right] attended his wedding last month

Also attending the wedding was Cambrai-based sheep farmer, Melissa McGorman and her partner Ryan.

'I became really good mates with Mel on the show and we'll be mates forever. I got to meet husband Ryan.

'I'm still yet to go up to the farm, but I'm sure myself and wife Lara will be going up there sometime soon.'

Evicted: On Monday, evicted housemate Nick told Daily Mail Australia despite missing out on the opportunity to win $250,000, he was still happy to walk out with life-long friends

So sweet! Nick married his long-term girlfriend Lara Simone (pictured together) during a lavish wedding ceremony in April. His Big Brother housemates were also in attendance

Nick explained that he struggled mentally during his time in the Big Brother compound.

'I didn't realise how intense it was going to be,' he said. 'I really struggled, like just the fact that I knew that we weren't even at half way.'

'I thought, this is going to be a really mental effort.'

'I really struggled': Nick explained that he struggled mentally during his time in the Big Brother compound. 'I didn't realise how intense it was going to be,' he said

Nick was sent home after his alliance with Katie Williams, Jess Trend and Marley Biyendolo failed.

Katie turned on him, and after getting nine votes, Nick was the latest housemate to be voted out.

Big Brother continues Tuesday at 7.30pm on Channel Seven
She has been filming the Marvel sequel Thor: Love and Thunder in Australia for the past few months.

And Tessa Thompson took some time off work on Sunday to make some furry friends.

Posting to Instagram, the 37-year-old actress shared a video of the sweet moment she met a kangaroo.

Making furry friends! Tessa Thompson took a break from filming Thor: Love and Thunder in Australia to have a cute encounter with a kangaroo on Sunday

In the video, Tessa smiles as she pets the Australian native animal.

She simply captioned the clip with a teary-eyed emoji.

During her visit to the zoo, Tessa showed off her Hollywood style in 1950s-style sunglasses and a trench coat.

It comes two months after the animal-lover went horse riding in Sydney's Centennial Park.

Chic: During her visit to the zoo, Tessa showed off her Hollywood style in 1950s-style sunglasses and a trench coat

Sightseeing: Since arriving Down Under, she has visited hotspots like Nobu restaurant at Crown Sydney and department store David Jones

Since arriving Down Under, she has also visited hotspots like Nobu restaurant at Crown Sydney and department store David Jones.

The American actress flew into Sydney in January to join co-stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman and Mark Ruffalo to film the latest Thor movie.

Thor: Love and Thunder will see Tessa's character Valkyrie return to the Marvel Universe for the latest installment of the superhero series.

Back to work: The American actress flew into Sydney in January to join co-stars Chris Hemsworth (left), Natalie Portman and Mark Ruffalo (right) to film the latest Thor movie

Star power: Natalie Portman (right), who plays the character of Jane Foster in the highly anticipated Marvel movie, has been in Sydney since September

Valkyrie was previously revealed to be one of the first LGBTQ characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The franchise has previously been criticised for merely paying lip service by making its LGBTQ characters supporting or background players and diminishing their queerness.

Production of Thor: Love and Thunder is expected to create 2,500 jobs in NSW.
According to a market research report " Smart Buildings Market by Component (Solution (Safety and Security Management, Energy Management, Building Infrastructure Management, Network Management, IWMS), Services), Building Type (Residential, Commercial, Industrial), Region - Global Forecast to 2025 " , published by MarketsandMarkets ,the Smart BuildingsMarket size is expected to grow from USD 66.3 billion in 2020 to USD 108.9 billion by 2025, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 10.5% during the forecast period.

The major drivers for the Smart building include the rising adoption of IoT-enabled building management system, rising awareness of space utilization, increased industry standards and regulations, and increase demand for energy-efficient system.

Browse and in-depth TOC on Smart Buildings Market

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The safety and security management solution in the solution type segment is expected to lead the Smart Buildings Market in 2020.

The safety and security the prime concern for most of the buildings be they residential or commercial. Access control and video surveillance systems help to track every activity across a facility. This helps to detect intruders and keep the environment safe. Rising deployment of advanced access control systems, video surveillance systems, and fire and life safety systems to safeguard the occupant and assets is contributing to the high market share if this segment.

Industrial building segment is expected to grow with the fastest growth rate during the forecast period.

Industrial buildings are often large and have many moving parts. Smart industrial building solutions automate building temperature control, security, and maintenance for more efficient property management through various mobile computing devices, such as mobile devices and computers.

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North America to lead the Smart Buildings Market during the forecast period.

The growth of the market in North America can be attributed to the region has witnessed the emergence of latest smart building solutions that leverage new technologies, such as IoT, big data, cloud computing, data analytics, deep learning, and artificial intelligence, for saving energy, reducing operational expenditures, increasing occupancy comfort, and meeting increasingly stringent global regulations and sustainability standards. Moreover, North America is a technologically advanced region in the world due to the rapid adoption of emerging technologies by the organizations in the region. Furthermore, the US and Canada are prominent countries contributing to technological development in this region; for instance, US organizations are heavily investing into smart building measures, such as building controls and building systems integration, to leverage energy efficiency and energy storage and deliver smarter, safer, and more sustainable buildings while the Canadian government is taking initiatives to support Canadas commitment to protecting the environment and its resources by making federal buildings more energy-efficient and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, driving the growth of smart buildings.

Market Players

The major vendors covered in the Smart Buildings Market include 75F (US), ABB (Switzerland), Aquicore (US), Bosch (US), BuildingIQ (US), Cisco (US), CopperTree Analytics (Canada), ENTOUCH (US), Hitachi (Japan), Honeywell (US), Huawei (China), IBM (US), Igor (US), Intel (US), Johnson Controls (Ireland), KMC Controls (US), Legrand (France), Mode: Green (US), PTC (US), Schneider Electric (Germany), Siemens (Germany), Softdel (US), Spaceti (Czechia), Telit (UK), and Verdigris Technologies (US).

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Markets and Markets's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "Knowledgestore" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets.

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Natalie Roser has revealed her private battle with scoliosis.

The 30-year-old model, who has shot campaigns for the likes of Guess in the US, said she was preparing for spinal fusion surgery.

'It's getting worse. It's going to continue to get worse,' she said during a Q&A on Instagram on Monday.

Surgery: Natalie Roser has revealed her private battle with scoliosis. The 30-year-old model, who has shot campaigns for the likes of Guess in the US, said she was preparing for spinal fusion surgery

'I am constantly in a level of discomfort. There are days when I can't ignore it.'

Scoliosis is the sideways curvature of the spine. Natalie said her spine has moved '60 degrees' and that makes her a candidate for surgery.

The fashion star will undergo surgery in 15 days, with doctors 'removing her discs' to replace them with artificial ones and a brace.

Scoliosis is the sideways curvature of the spine. Natalie said her spine has moved '60 degrees' and that makes her a candidate for surgery

'They are removing my discs, putting in fake ones and drilling a pole to my spine, so I am straight up and down again,' Natalie explained.

The operation will see her in hospital for one week and her recovery time is estimated to be about six weeks.

Natalie said she won't be able to work, but admitted that 'winter' is a much better time to undergo the procedure.

The fashion star will undergo the surgery in 15 days, with doctors 'removing her discs' to replace them with artificial ones and a brace

'I will be affected as I won't be able to work [for now,' she said.

'[But] timing wise, this is the perfect opportunity.'

Nat recently relocated back to Sydney with her Neighbours star boyfriend, Harley Bonner.

In November 2019, she revealed her excitement at having secured her dream job as the face of Guess' holiday campaign in the United States.

Star: In November 2019, Natalie revealed her excitement at having secured her dream job as the face of Guess' holiday campaign in the United States

Natalie told The Daily Telegraph at the time that she believed being chosen as a Guess girl had 'a lot to do with her curvy body'.

'One of the biggest compliments I got on set was the clothes fit me so well,' she said.

'...and that was not because I was really thin, but because I was curvy and had a full figure. That's what being a Guess woman is all about.'

'That's what being a Guess woman is all about': Natalie told The Daily Telegraph previously that she believed being chosen as a Guess girl had 'a lot to do with her curvy body'
Actress Felicity Kendal nearly lost her partner Michael Rudman to Covid earlier this year. Yet far from exhausting her enthusiasm for battle, she is now taking on another foe.

She is campaigning to prevent a property developer from demolishing part of her iconic neighbourhood, London's King's Road.

Kendal, star of the Seventies sitcom The Good Life, has lived in fashionable Chelsea on-and-off since the Sixties and is protesting against a scheme to demolish a row of red-brick buildings and replace it with a 'monstrous' five-storey complex of offices and luxury apartments with terraces.

'This entire development is over-the-top and all wrong for the area,' she protests.

'This part of Chelsea is historic and any development needs to be in keeping with the area's character.

Actress Felicity Kendal is campaigning to prevent a property developer from demolishing part of her iconic neighbourhood, London's King's Road [File photo]

The King's Road was the birthplace of Mary Quant's swinging Sixties' mini-skirt, Dame Vivienne Westwood's 1970s 'punk' shop and the 1980s Sloane Rangers

'To simply dump a high and over-sized chunk of brick and glass right on the King's Road would be architectural vandalism and idiocy. The entire idea needs to be scrapped and re-thought.'

The street was the birthplace of Mary Quant's swinging Sixties' mini-skirt, Dame Vivienne Westwood's 1970s 'punk' shop and the 1980s Sloane Rangers.

The actress is among hundreds of residents objecting to plans by King's Road Properties Ltd owned by Saudi-based HALJ  to destroy a series of shops including a favourite M&S and re-develop it into an Emirate-style block with a central glass tower.

Kendal, star of the Seventies sitcom The Good Life (pictured), has lived in fashionable Chelsea on-and-off since the Sixties and is protesting against a scheme to demolish a row of red-brick buildings and replace it with a 'monstrous' five-storey complex of offices and luxury apartments with terraces

More than 800 objections had been lodged to the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea when submissions closed on Friday and campaigners continue to rally support through its freshly launched website SaveKingsRoad.

The developer tells me: 'We are keen to ensure that any development helps ensure the future prosperity of the world-renowned King's Road.

'Clearly there has been a great deal of interest in the submitted plans and now that the council's consultation has closed, we will take the opportunity to review all of the comments that have been submitted and determine how to move forward.'

TV's Carrie is 'over the moon' with spaceman fiance...

Life is imitating art for actress Ophelia Lovibond - who is starring as Prime Minister Boris Johnson's fiancee, Carrie Symonds, in the forthcoming Sky series, This Sceptred Isle - as she now has a wedding of her own to plan

Life is imitating art for actress Ophelia Lovibond, who is starring as Prime Minister Boris Johnson's fiancee, Carrie Symonds, in the forthcoming Sky series, This Sceptred Isle.

For I can reveal the 35- year-old now has a wedding of her own to plan after getting engaged to actor Henry Pettigrew.

The Scotsman, 38, who plays astronaut Neil Armstrong in The Crown, met Ophelia six years ago when, shortly after her split from actor Tom Hughes, they were onstage lovers in the Lucy Prebble play, The Effect.

'I'm over the moon,' gushes Ophelia.

As Tough-Talking Chief Constable Philip Osborne, he turned out not to be Line Of Duty's 'H', but Owen Teale has a confession nonetheless.

When he worked as a cuddly bear at Barry Island Pleasure Park in Wales, Teale headbutted children who picked on him, using his giant mask.

'It had a fibreglass head on it and kids used to just beat me up. I'd turn around and catch them. Especially if they were very young, it was easy to bring the head down, this huge head on top of mine, and you would smack a kid on the head with it.

'They would scream and then his mother would say, 'What are you doing? The bear is just trying to say hello. Look, he is waving and smiling at you . . .' '

Bond Girl Ana licensed to fill (up with cake)

Birthday girl Ana de Armas shared a picture of herself as she was presented with a white gateau adorned with berries

To prepare for her role as a Bond Girl in No Time To Die, Ana de Armas's training included using knives as lethal weapons.

Thankfully, for her 33rd birthday, she only used them to cut a cake.

The Cuban-born actress, who will play Paloma alongside Daniel Craig in his final outing as 007 this autumn, shared a picture of herself as she was presented with a white gateau adorned with berries.

'I'm so grateful I got to celebrate with my loved ones,' she says, thanking friends for the 'gifts, letters, flowers, cakes, and all the love. Cheers to an incredible year ahead.'

Traumatised by the experience of directing and acting at the same time in new BBC series The Pursuit Of Love, Emily Mortimer vows never to attempt it again.

'I did not enjoy being in something I was directing. I hated it. I will never do that again,' says Emily of her directorial debut.

'I tried to fire Emily Mortimer about four times before we started filming. Anyway, they wouldn't let me fire myself. I was told it was part of my contract that I was in it.'

Sporty Spice's answer to an identity crisis

Former Spice Girl Mel C admits she sometimes struggles to prove she's the mother of her own daughter when travelling because they have different surnames [File photo]

Former Spice Girl Mel C, aka Sporty Spice, admits she sometimes struggles to prove she's the mother of her own daughter.

'We've got different surnames because I never married her dad,' explains Melanie Chisholm, whose 12-year-old, Scarlett, took the surname of her father, property developer Thomas Starr.

'When I get to the airport gate, if I have my little girl with me, you have to show their passport and birth certificate.

'One time I didn't have her birth certificate, and I just said, 'Google me!' But they're not very impressed at passport control in Germany when you say: 'Google me'.'

The hunt is on for two riders to look after the horses that pull the royal ceremonial carriages.

The liveried helpers' jobs at Buckingham Palace are described as an opportunity 'to play a part in the ceremonial events themselves'.

The posts come with accommodation but no salary is given on the advert on the royal website. It adds that they must have stable management experience and be a 'highly capable and confident rider'.
Former Bachelor Locky Gilbert and his girlfriend Irena Srbinovska attended her cousin's wedding earlier this week.

And on Monday, Irena revealed a sweet detail about her man from the special day.

The 31-year-old shared a clip to Instagram showing Locky taking part in a traditional Macedonian dance with her family ahead of the ceremony.

Proud girlfriend! The Bachelor's Irena Srbinovska revealed a sweet detail about boyfriend Locky Gilbert that made her proud as they attended her cousin's wedding earlier this week

She proudly wrote in the caption: 'So this is literally the first Macedonian dancing @locklangilbert has ever seen and he was straight into it and up at the front.'

Irena then explained: 'So for the non Macedonians, it's tradition to go to the bride or groom's parents' house in the morning to see them off to the church and yes we dance from 9am all the way into the night.'

She also shared photos from the nuptials of herself and Locky with her family, and congratulated her cousin and her new husband.

Getting in to it! Irena shared a video to Instagram of Locky taking part in a traditional Macedonian dance with of her family. She wrote: 'So this is literally the first Macedonian dancing @locklangilbert has ever seen and he was straight into it and up at the front'

Congratulations! She also shared photos from the special day of herself and Locky with her cousin and her new husband

Irena added: 'And to my amazing boyfriend @locklangilbert you were literally thrown right into a full Macedonian wedding, your first with my family and you were right in there.

'You were dancing, singing and you finally got to meet more of my family. Love you so much.'

Meanwhile, the nurse looked stunning on the day in a slinky nude frock by designer Shona Joy in several photos shared to Instagram.

Their turn next? Irena wrote: 'And to my amazing boyfriend, you were literally thrown right into a full Macedonian wedding, your first with my family and you were right in there'

She paired the frock with a gold Cartier bracelet, styled her hair in an elegant up-style and allowed a wavy fringe to frame the delicate features of her face.

Locky looked strapping in a black shirt and pants, which he paired with a black tie.

The former Australian Survivor star finished his outfit with low-shine boots.

Videos posted online showed the couple partying alongside the bride, Stephanie Srbinovska, who is Irena's cousin.

Sensational: The glamorous nurse looked stunning on the day in a slinky nude frock by designer Shona Joy in several photos shared to Instagram

Stephanie and her new husband were seen sharing their first dance together in a grand ballroom as guests cheered them on.

In an Instagram Q&A back in March, a fan asked: 'Have you and Locky talked about having kids and getting married?'

'Yes we have. Locky is my forever love, I can't wait to be his wife and to have some babies with him,' she revealed.

Perfect pair: Locky looked strapping in a black shirt and pants, which he paired with a black tie. The former Australian Survivor star finished his outfit with low-shine boots

Family: Irena was thrilled to be able to spend time with her boyfriend and her family (pictured). Locky had been unable to meet them in person on the Bachelor due to Covid border closures

Traditions: The bride, Stephanie Srbinovska, and her husband shared their first dance together in a grand ballroom as guests cheered. Locky documented the festivities on Instagram

She then clarified: 'But we are not engaged yet and don't worry I won't be able to keep it a secret for long when it does happen.'

Locky and Irena have been inseparable since The Bachelor finale aired in September last year.

They have been travelling all over Australia after the Covid pandemic blocked Locky from travelling to and from his other home in Bali.

Locky memorably chose Irena to be his girlfriend after dumping runner-up Bella Varelis - despite telling both women he was falling in love with them.
She has the distinction of being one of fashions premiere supermodels since the 1980s.

And on Monday, Cindy Crawford looked just as gorgeous as ever, when she was spotted outside a Wells Fargo in Malibu, California.

The runway star, 55, cut a chic and casual figure, in a putty-colored V-neck sweater and form-fitting denim blue jeans.

Windswept beauty: On Monday, Cindy Crawford looked just as gorgeous as ever, when she was spotted outside a Wells Fargo in Malibu

Cindy complemented her ensemble with a beige scarf that matched her sweater beautifully.

She wore her brown hair down and parted to the side, as it blew in the wind along with her scarf.

Crawfords jeans were shredded at the ankle, and she slipped her feet into snakeskin slides.

She kept the animal print theme going with a fun cheetah print face mask. Cindy also had a delicate gold chain around her neck.

Eye contact: The runway star, 55, cut a chic and casual figure, in a putty-colored V-neck sweater and form-fitting denim blue jeans

Over the weekend, the beauty celebrated Mothers Day with two stunning photos.

One was a throwback she's posted before, on the beach from when her model daughter Kaia Jordan Gerber was just a baby and her son Presley Walker looked to be no more than three or four years old.

The catwalker also included a lovely photo from a more recent time, with her arm around her own mother, Jennifer Sue Crawford-Moluf.

Over the weekend: The beauty celebrated Mothers Day with two stunning photos

Love: The catwalker included a lovely photo from a more recent time, with her arm around her own mother, Jennifer Sue Crawford-Moluf

In the caption, Cindy thanked her children 'for making me a mom and teaching me so much along the way,' and her own mother, 'who taught me to love unconditionally.

'Motherhood is the greatest gift of my life,' she added.

Earlier this month, Crawford paid tribute to the late Gianna Bryant, wearing Mambacita sweat clothes in honor of the 13-year-old who lost her life last year along with her father Kobe Bryant.
Bachelor couple Matthew 'Matty J' Johnson and Laura Byrne are known for sharing relatable parenting posts with fans on social media.

And while their adorable, funny and refreshingly honest uploads are usually praised, a video from the family's recent trip to Byron Bay divided opinions on Monday.

Doting father Matty J was slammed by angry followers for letting daughter Marlie Mae, one, chase a brush turkey along the beach.

Scroll down for video

Bachelor Matty J hit back at parent-shaming trolls after he and Laura Byrne were slammed for letting their daughter chase a brush turkey in Byron Bay on Monday

Matty J and Laura were on holiday in the trendy coastal town with their two girls: Marlie-Mae and Lola Ellis.

'Byron.. where even the brushturkeys are fed up of the Sydney blow-ins,' Matty J comically captioned the video of the bird running away from his playful child.

One fan shamed the parents for not 'educating Marlie-Mae about respecting wildlife' or telling the little girl to 'look but dont touch'.

'Why did you let her keep chasing it?... Generally love your content but I must admit this disappointed me, sorry,' they wrote in part.

Matty J chose to hit back with a hilariously sarcastic response that was praised by fans, writing: 'Agree - shes an absolute maniac and the quicker shes removed from the community the better!'

Fun in the sun? Doting father Matty J was slammed by some angry followers for letting daughter Marlie Mae, one, chase a brush turkey along the beach in Byron Bay

'She's an absolute maniac': Matty J chose to hit back at critics and parent-shaming trolls with a hilariously sarcastic response that was praised by many of his fans

Support: Many fans backed up Matty J by saying it was clear Marlie was 'innocently playing' and seemed like a 'happy camper'

The former marketing manager was faced with more criticism, with several followers commenting that it was bothersome to see children chasing and annoying animals.

Many fans backed Matty J by saying it was clear Marlie was 'innocently playing' and seemed like a 'happy camper'.

When fans raised concerns of what Marlie would have done if she caught the bird, Matty J joked: 'That'll be lunch sorted.'

Quick-witted! When fans raised concerns of what Marlie Mae would have done if she caught the bird, Matty J joked: 'That'll be lunch sorted'

Laura and Matty J met on The Bachelor in 2017.

In April 2019, Matty J proposed to a then-pregnant Laura on their luxury babymoon vacation in Fiji. Less than two months later, Laura birth to their first daughter, Marlie Mae, in June 2019.

Laura and Matty J welcomed their second child, daughter Lola Ellis, in February 2021.

The reality TV lovebirds told their Instagram followers in April that they plan to get married later this year.
She always commands attention whenever she steps out.

And Sam Faiers looked sensational as she highlighted her trim waist in a belted lemon jacket while leaving Annabel's in London on Tuesday.

The Mummy Diaries Star, 30, appeared to be in good spirits as she stepped outside with a pal after a business meeting.

Stylish: Sam Faiers looked sensational as she highlighted her trim waist in a belted lemon jacket while leaving Annabel's in London on Tuesday

Sam exuded style in a pair of figure-hugging leather trousers which she styled with some strappy black sandals.

The brunette beauty wore her locks down and straight, letting them fall around her shoulders as she smiled and chatted while making an exit.

Not forgetting her accessories, Sam toted a chic black handbag and added a pair of sunglasses to complete her look.

Sam has been busy in recent days teasing a new ambassador for her Revive Collagen brand, with it understood that the meeting in London was about the business.

Standout: The Mummy Diaries Star, 30, appeared to be in good spirits as she stepped outside with a pal after a business meeting

Speaking about the brand last year, Sam said: 'I initially started to use collagen skincare products for the anti-ageing qualities.

'But I soon noticed a dramatic reduction in breakouts along with my skin becoming firmer, lines reducing and my skin feeling more hydrated.

'That's why I set out to create a collagen skincare brand. Over the past two years, I've been working with some of the UK's top laboratories to bring to the market a uniquely formulated skincare brand that delivers real results.'

It comes after MailOnline exclusively revealed the Mummy Diaries star is teaming up with Tesco to launch her own products for children in a multi-million pound deal.

Looking good: Sam exuded style in a pair of figure-hugging leather trousers which she styled with some strappy black sandals

Heading off: The brunette beauty and her pal chatted away they walked around London

Spring ready: The star accessorised her lemon jacket with a chic handbag and sunglasses

It is understood that Tesco acquired exclusive rights to sell Sam's brand after an intense bidding war among three other major retailers.

Her children's body care brand is expected to earn her more than 3million in the first year, and Knightleys Adventures will launch with a range of 10 products.

Her children's range will be released in every Tesco store in the UK in early May, and it is understood to be the largest deal the retailer has signed with a celebrity pre-launch.

In March, Sam told beau Paul Knightley she wants a third child in 'one more year' despite him admitting he is 'not having' another anytime soon.

Busy: The meeting comes after MailOnline exclusively revealed the Mummy Diaries star is teaming up with Tesco to launch her own products for children in a multi-million pound deal

Brand: The reality star's children's body care brand is expected to earn her more than 3million in the first year (Sam pictured with her kids Paul Jr, five, and Rosie, three, in 2018)

The couple are already parents to Paul Jr, five, and Rosie, three, and Sam is thinking about expanding their brood as she doesn't want her next baby to be too apart in age from their siblings.

On an episode of The Mummy Diaries, the couple were kept up until 4am as they tried to get Rosie to sleep in her own bed.

Speaking about their current nighttime difficulties, Sam said: 'It's not going to happen overnight. You need to get them into a routine. She's older and wiser so it's going to take a bit of time.'

The conversation then moved to the couple expanding their family, with Sam admitting she wants another child sooner rather than later.
Tammy Hembrow has turned up the heat with a new series of racy bikini photos.

The 27-year-old posted new pictures on Tuesday that left little to the imagination as she showcased her trim figure and killer curves in a tiny floral print ensemble.

She posed reclining on her sun lounge alongside the pool of her waterside Gold Coast home.

Leaving little to the imagination! Tammy Hembrow soaked up the sun as she showcased her killer curves and derriere in a tiny G-string bikini in her latest series of racy Instagram photos on Tuesday

The blonde bombshell flaunted her sensational gym-honed physique while soaking up the sun on an $840AUD Louis Vuitton towel.

In one photo, the fitness mogul turned around to show off her G-string bikini bottoms and famous derriere.

Tammy, who runs fitness app Tammy Fit and activewear brand Saski Collection, wrote in the caption: 'Divine feminine.'

The new photos came a day after she shared a steamy photo of herself cosied up to her beau Matt Poole as they enjoyed a night out on Monday.

That's luxurious! The blonde bombshell left little to the imagination as flaunted her sensational gym-honed physique, while soaking up the sun on an $840AUD Louis Vuitton towel

Cheeky display! In one photo, the fitness mogul turned around to show off her G-string bottoms and famous derriere. Tammy wrote in the caption: 'Divine feminine'

Tammy shared a passionate kiss with her man while they spent quality time together.

In one picture shared to Instagram, Tammy leant in close to Matt as they gazed into each other's eyes while another showed the Instagram model wrapping her arms around her man as they shared a kiss.

Look of love: This comes after she shared a steamy photo of herself cosied up to her beau Matt Poole as they enjoyed a night out, on Monday. Tammy leant in close to Matt as they looked into each other's eyes in one photo

The passion! The following photo showed the Instagram model wrapped her arms around her man as they shared a kiss

Tammy and her surfer beau went public with their romance in September during a trip to the Whitsundays.

That month, Matt also made his debut on his girlfriend's YouTube channel, disclosing in a Q&A video that he'd been the first to say 'I love you'.

'We had a little fight over nothing, and then when he was trying to make up with me and apologise, he told me he loved me,' she said with a smile.

Getting serious: Tammy and her surfer beau went public with their romance in September last year. He seems to be getting on wonderfully with Tammy's children, Wolf and Saskia, whom she shares with her ex-partner Reece Hawkins

Matt also seems to be getting on wonderfully with Tammy's two children, Wolf and Saskia, whom she shares with her ex-partner Reece Hawkins.

He runs a popular restaurant on the Gold Coast called Maman Bar and Kitchen.

Meanwhile, Tammy's ex Reece and his new wife London Goheen welcomed their newborn son Stone on March 7.
The late Tawny Kitaen revealed she dated disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, and said that she hoped there would be a Bachelor Party sequel, in one of her final interviews.

Kitaen weeks ago opened up to Behind The Velvet Rope with David Yontef in an episode set to premiere Tuesday, just days after her death Friday at 59 at her Newport Beach, California home.

Kitaen said that she dated Weinstein in 'the mid-80s - like around 84, 85' for about two months when both were living in Los Angeles.

Details: The late Tawny Kitaen revealed she dated disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, and said that she hoped there would be a Bachelor Party single, in one of her final interviews weeks ago with Behind The Velvet Rope with David Yontef

She said he was shocked and disgusted amid the multiple sexual misconduct and assault accusations aimed at the producer since 2017, calling it 'an absolutely horrible story.'

Kitaen said she never saw the darker side of the now-convicted rapist unfurl amid their time together, as he ingratiated himself to her with his gentlemanly behavior and bringing her her favorite snack of escargot from Wolfgang Puck's.

'I didnt experience that other side of him, I never even saw it so imagine my shock when I heard that this was his M.O. with girls and not having that experience with him,' she said. 'I was completely blown away  and disgusted, and there was a part of me that was like, "No not Harvey," and then the girls kept piling up and up and the numbers kept growing and growing.'

She added, 'It frightens me, it scares me, but he never put me in that situation.'

Kitaen opened up to Behind The Velvet Rope with David Yontef in an episode set to premiere Tuesday, just days after her death Friday at 59 at her Newport Beach, California home

Point of view: The late actress said he was shocked and disgusted amid the multiple sexual misconduct and assault accusations aimed at the producer since 2017, calling it 'an absolutely horrible story'

Credits: Kitaen was best known for her 1980s endeavors including Bachelor Party, and her memorable appearances in Whitesnake videos including Here I Go Again, Is This Love and The Deeper the Love

She recalled of the time frame 'Miramax had just started to and he wasnt my rock n roll type, and you look at him now and its like, "My God did I dodge a bullet in so many ways ... Im glad I had the foresight ... its an absolutely horrible story.'

Kitaen said she also felt sympathy for his ex wife Georgina Chapman, 45, who shares two daughters with Weinstein, India, 10, and Dashiell, eight.

'I mean look what he did to her, look how he ruined, all those heres all those great years that she gave him,' Kitaen said.

Elsewhere in the interview, Kitaen said she would like to do a sequel to her 1984 Tom Hanks comedy Bachelor Party, 'do another like Bachelor Party 2, where our kid is getting married.'

She said Hanks 'needs to do like a lighthearted comedy ... I mean, everything is so heavy and so Newsweek and Time oriented, you know, I, I would love to see him to a nice comedy. Hes so good.'

Flashback: Kitaen said that she dated Weinstein in 'the mid-80s - like around 84, 85' for about two months when both were living in Los Angeles. She was pictured in 1986, while he was seen in Cannes two years earlier in 1984

Kitaen said she would like to do a sequel to her 1984 Tom Hanks comedy Bachelor Party, 'do another like Bachelor Party 2, where our kid is getting married'

Kitaen said she was 'in the middle of writing a book' about her life weeks ago.

'Because if I don't write my life story, somebody else is going to, and they're going to do it off of sound clips, that aren't true and aren't real about me,' she said. 'So it's really, really important that I get my book out. Yeah. I mean, even if I only sell two copies, you know?'

Kitaen was best known for her 1980s endeavors including Bachelor Party, and her memorable appearances in Whitesnake videos including Here I Go Again, Is This Love and The Deeper the Love. She had later appeared in an episode of Seinfeld in 1991 and reality shows including The Surreal Life and Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.

Kitaen was past wed to Whitesnake vocalist David Coverdale and former California Angels pitcher Chuck Finley.

Kitaen's daughters with Finley, Wynter and Raine, said in a statement, 'We just want to say thank you for all of you, her fans and her friends, for always showing her such support and love. You gave her life everyday.'

The Orange County coroners office, which confirmed Kitaen's death, which did not release a cause of death.

Yontef said Kitaen 'was full of life, generous and pleasant' in their exchanges, adding, 'She lit up when she talks about her children, she was just so pleasant.'
After playing Abraham Woodhull in AMC's Turn: Washington's Spies, Jamie Bell is returning to the small screen with Shining Girls.

The 35-year-old actor has signed on to star alongside Elisabeth Moss and Wagner Moura in the Apple TV Plus series, according to Deadline.

The 'metaphysical thriller' will be adapted from the 2013 best-selling novel of the same name by Lauren Beukes.

TV return: After playing Abraham Woodhull in AMC's Turn: Washington's Spies, Jamie Bell is returning to the small screen with Shining Girls

Apple series: The 35-year-old actor has signed on to star alongside Elisabeth Moss and Wagner Moura in the Apple TV Plus series, according to Deadline

Best-selling: The 'metaphysical thriller' will be adapted from the 2013 best-selling novel of the same name by Lauren Beukes

The series will center on Moss' character, a Chicago reporter named Kirby, who survived a brutal attack.

As she tries to hunt down her attacker, she finds her reality shifting in incredibly strange ways.

Moura will portray another reporter who is covering the growing story about a copycat attack following Kirby's assault.

New role: The series will center on Moss' character, a Chicago reporter named Kirby, who survived a brutal attack.

Another journalist: Moura will portray another reporter who is covering the growing story about a copycat attack following Kirby's assault

Bell is playing 'a mysterious loner with a surprising connection to Moss' Kirby,' according to the Deadline report.

Silka Luisa will be adapting the novel to television and serving as the showrunner of the upcoming series.

Leonardo DiCaprio will also executive produce through his Appian Way production company, alongside longtime partner Jennifer Davisson.

Jamie's role: Bell is playing 'a mysterious loner with a surprising connection to Moss' Kirby,' according to the Deadline report

Moss will also serve as an executive producer through her Love & Squalor Pictures company along with Lindsey McManus.

Also serving as executive producers are author Lauren Beukes and Alan Page Arriaga.

Bell most recently starred in Amazon's Without Remorse, alongside Michael B. Jordan and Jodie Turner-Smith.

Star-producer: Moss will also serve as an executive producer through her Love & Squalor Pictures company along with Lindsey McManus

He will next be seen in Surrounded with Letitia Wright, Jeffrey Donovan and Michael K. Williams, which is in post-production.

Moss is coming off The Invisible Man and the new season of The Handmaid's Tale, plus she'll be seen on the big screen in The French Dispatch this summer.

Moura made a name for himself playing Pablo Escobar in Netflix's Narcos, and he's currently filming The Grey Man with Chris Evans, Ryan Gossling and Ana de Armas.

Coming soon: He will next be seen in Surrounded with Letitia Wright, Jeffrey Donovan and Michael K. Williams, which is in post-production.

New role: Moss is coming off The Invisible Man and the new season of The Handmaid's Tale, plus she'll be seen on the big screen in The French Dispatch this summer
A former Home and Away star has been accused of being the mastermind behind an alleged drug syndicate supplying cocaine across Byron Bay, New South Wales.

But it's not the first time an actor from the Channel Seven soap opera has been embroiled in a headline-making controversy.

From Jodi Gordon's wild night in Kings Cross to Lincoln Lewis' sex tape confessions, here are the biggest scandals to hit Summer Bay.

Sex tapes, bathroom busts and jail time: Inside Home and Away's most controversial scandals as former actor Putu Winchester-Stanton (right) is accused of masterminding an alleged drug syndicate in Byron Bay

Home and Away began broadcasting on Seven 33 years ago and soon became a hit in the UK, launching the careers of many Hollywood stars.

Maintaining a squeaky-clean reputation until the turn of the century, the program has been hit by a series of controversies since the early 2000s.

Flashback! Putu played a surfer named Pogo on the Seven soap, and was one of seven men arrested after police raided homes across the Byron Shire on Thursday, April 22

Putu Winchester-Stanton

News broke on Monday that former Home and Away actor Putu Winchester-Stanton, 44, had been accused of being the mastermind behind an alleged drug syndicate supplying cocaine across Byron Bay, New South Wales

Putu, who played a surfer named Pogo on the show, was one of seven men arrested after police raided homes across the Byron Shire on Thursday, April 22.

The Indonesian-born actor was charged with 10 offences, including supplying a commercial quantity of a prohibited drug and knowingly directing activities of a criminal group.

Jail time: In 2018, former Home and Away actor Martin Lynes was jailed for sexually assaulting a woman in his home

Role: Martin played Adam Sharpe, a mentor to Stephen Peacocke's character Darryl Braxton

Martin Lynes

In 2018, former Home and Away actor Martin Lynes was jailed for sexually assaulting a woman in his home.

He was sentenced to a maximum of five years' imprisonment, with a non-parole period of two years and six months.

With his sentence backdated to August 2017, it meant he was eligible for parole in February 2020.

Martin played Adam Sharpe, a mentor to Stephen Peacocke's character Darryl Braxton.

Summer Bay scandal: In 2009, Home and Away was rocked by its second sex tape scandal - this one involving the show's then-golden boy Lincoln Lewis (pictured in August 2011)

Lincoln Lewis

In 2009, Home and Away was rocked by its second sex tape scandal - this one involving the show's then-golden boy Lincoln Lewis.

At the time, Lincoln admitted to filming a sex tape with a former flame a year earlier, after rumours swirled his castmates had seen the video.

According to The Daily Telegraph, several Home and Away stars and crew members urged him to try to get rid of the footage.

Sex tape: At the time, Lincoln admitted to filming a sex tape with a former flame a year earlier, after rumours swirled his castmates had seen the video

'You do stupid things when you are young,' he said at the time, acknowledging the tape's existence.

'But you learn from your mistakes, that's part of growing up. This mistake, and what I have learnt, will contribute a lot to making me a better person in the future.'

Seven reportedly encouraged the then-21-year-old to have counselling but ultimately stood by him, with the actor staying on the show until 2010.

Stupid mistake: 'You do stupid things when you are young,' Lincoln told The Daily Telegraph in 2009, acknowledging the tape's existence. Pictured in December 2017

Jodi Gordon

Bikies invade the bay! Jodi Gordon (L) debuted on Home and Away back in 2005, where she played the 'straight down the line' character Martha MacKenzie

Jodi Gordon joined Home and Away in 2005 as 'straight down the line' character Martha MacKenzie, who was previously played by Burcin Kapkin.

In August 2009, the troubled actress was embroiled in a bizarre drug scandal with bikie associate and Kings Cross identity Mark Judge.

The pair were found by police huddled in the bedroom of Mark's Bellevue Hill home, after Jodi had called Triple Zero under the delusion that armed intruders were threatening her life - sparking an emergency operation.

It marked the end of a dramatic few days, with Jodi's then-fiance Ryan Stokes having previously reported her missing to Kings Cross police.

'Cowering': In August 2009, the troubled actress was reportedly found cowering in the bedroom of a suspected bikie after reports gunmen were trying to break into the property

As reported by News Corp at the time: 'The unit's resident reported that five men - at least two of them with guns - were in his backyard and trying to scale his balcony.

'Armed police responded in force, wearing bullet-proof vests, cordoning off the area while a search was launched.'

Police reviewed CCTV footage and found no sign of any intruders - only Jodi and Mark hiding in a bedroom.

Jodi allegedly told officers during an interview following the bizarre episode that cocaine had been consumed earlier that night.

She and Ryan broke up soon after the scandal.

Jodi's wild night! It marked the end of a dramatic few days, with Jodi's then-fiance Ryan Stokes having previously reported her missing to Kings Cross police

Joel McIlroy

Joel McIlroy was nominated for a Silver Logie in 2006 for his role as Home and Away's Flynn Saunders - the husband to Sally Fletcher, played by Kate Richie.

In October 2019, he allegedly punched a 29-year-old senior constable during a violent scuffle in Sydney's Surry Hills which resulted in the officer being taken to hospital.

Remember him? Joel McIlroy (left) was nominated for a Silver Logie in 2006 for his role as Home and Away's Flynn Saunders - the husband to Sally Fletcher, played by Kate Richie

Cleared: In October 2019, Joel allegedly punched a 29-year-old senior constable during a violent scuffle in Sydney's Surry Hills which resulted in the officer being taken to hospital. However, he avoided a criminal trial and was dealt with under the Mental Health Act

However, after being accused of putting the policewoman in a headlock and punching her repeatedly Joel avoided a criminal trial and was dealt with under the Mental Health Act.

Joel was diagnosed with Huntington's disease in 2007, a rare degenerative brain condition.

Medical experts gave him about ten years left to live during his 2020 trial, five of which will be in care.

Todd Lasance

The year from hell: The year 2009 ended with yet another Home and Away scandal, this time involving Logie winner Todd Lasance, who played Aden Jefferies from 2005 to 2010

The year 2009 ended with yet another Home and Away scandal, this time involving Logie winner Todd Lasance, who played Aden Jefferies from 2005 to 2010.

He was arrested on the night of Home and Away's Christmas party, having reportedly been seen 'acting suspiciously' in the bathrooms of Kings Cross nightclub Kit and Kaboodle.

Having started their night at Strike Bowling on King Street Wharf, Todd had dinner with his fellow cast members, several of whom then joined him at Kid and Kaboodle.

Arrest: He was arrested on the night of Home and Away's Christmas party, having reportedly been seen 'acting suspiciously' in the bathrooms of Kings Cross nightclub Kit and Kaboodle. Pictured on Home and Away with Lincoln Lewis

Police sniffer dogs arrived later, with officers claiming they 'saw a man [Todd] near the rear of the club acting suspiciously before he went into the toilets,' according to News Corp.

'Officers asked him if he had anything he should not and it is alleged he removed a small clear resealable bag containing white powder from a pocket,' it was reported.

He was then arrested and charged with cocaine possession, resulting in the actor being slapped with a 12-month good behaviour bond, which was later lifted on appeal.

Johnny Ruffo

Four Seasons, one scandal: In 2014, Home and Away and former X-Factor contestant Johnny Ruffo was involved in a scandal at the Four Seasons hotel in Sydney

In 2014, Home and Away and former X-Factor contestant Johnny Ruffo was involved in a scandal at the Four Seasons hotel in Sydney.

He was photographed at a party, sitting at a table with lines of white powder.

In one of the photos, the actor used a bank card to cut the substance into 13 lines.

Johnny has never publicly commented on the images and Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting any drug use took place.

Dan Ewing

Scandal: In 2011, Dan Ewing was charged with assaulting his then-fiancee during a dispute at their Northern Beaches home. The charges were later dropped

In 2007, Dan Ewing starred in Home and Away in the recurring role of Heath Braxton, before landing gigs on several other high-profile shows.

In 2011, he was charged with assaulting his then-fiancee during a dispute at their Northern Beaches home.

'A 26-year-old man [understood to be Ewing] was arrested at the scene and taken to Manly police station where he was charged with common assault,' police said at the time.

The charges were later dropped.
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Saudi Arabia is the largest market for agriculture in the GCC region and the demand for agriculture is higher at present in the country, owing to changing consumption patterns of consumers and increasing awareness. The increasing presence of superstores and hypermarkets has increased the access to high-quality agricultural products for the Saudi population. As many of these retailers adopt strategies, including optimal pricing strategies to capture the market, the demand among consumers is increasing. The urban population is gradually becoming brand conscious and is becoming aware about the origin and type of food consumed.

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The Push Towards Water Conservation Is Driving the Market

The Saudi government discontinued its domestic wheat production program in the year 2015 as an initiative towards water conservation. The comparative advantage of each region in terms of climate, water abundance, and developing agricultural technology have made the agricultural sector achieve high growth and self-sufficiency. This self-sufficiency in food production is resulting in the improvement of quality in the agricultural products and reduce the use of groundwater for agricultural purposes which accounted for approximately 10.0 billion cubic meters in 2019. The Saudi government has been encouraging farmers to participate in alternative sustainable agricultural activities, such as greenhouse farming and implementing advance drip irrigation practices, to produce fruits and vegetables. This is promoting the cultivation of different varieties of fruits, vegetables and grains for sustainable development of the nation.

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Paul Hogan said on Tuesday he was 'desperate' to return to Australia as his adopted home city of Los Angeles is battered by Covid-19 and a surge in crime.

But it seems Aussies are less eager to welcome back the once-beloved comedian, who abandoned his native country decades ago when his Hollywood career took off.

Hogan, 81, failed to win any sympathy from viewers when he told Sunrise hosts David 'Kochie' Koch and Natalie Barr he wanted to leave LA for good - only to then whinge about the prospect of 14 days of hotel quarantine.

Australians turn on 'entitled' Paul Hogan: The Crocodile Dundee star, 81, has been told to 'stay in LA' after he begged to return home on Tuesday. Pictured during his interview on Sunrise

Viewers flocked to Twitter to share their thoughts on Hogan's 'entitled' attitude, with one writing: 'Quarantine like everyone else... or stay in America.'

Another tweeted: 'Wants to come back but won't do hotel quarantine. He's not that desperate then if he won't follow the rules.'

Over Sunrise's Facebook page, many fans shared the same sentiments.

One furious Aussie commented: 'Quarantine like every other human being. You're not special.'

'Am I homesick? You bet your life': Hogan, 81, failed to win any sympathy from viewers when he told Sunrise hosts David 'Kochie' Koch and Natalie Barr he wanted to leave LA for good - only to then whinge about the prospect of 14 days of hotel quarantine. Pictured in December 2016

'He can't be that desperate if he won't quarantine for two weeks,' another wrote, while a third added: 'He said it! Bored and sick of being locked down! That's the only reason he wants to come to Australia.'

Several viewers pointed out that Hogan had chosen LA as his home many years ago, and only wanted to return to Australia because of Covid-19.

'He is home, he lives there, so what is he homesick about?' one critic asked.

Another pointed out: 'He said it! Bored and sick of being locked down! That's the only reason he wants to come to Australia.

'If Covid wasn't there you would not want to come here. Stay where you are. That's your home that you made.'

Ouch: Viewers flocked to Twitter to share their thoughts on Hogan's 'entitled' attitude, with one writing: 'Quarantine like everyone else... or stay in America'

Backlash: Over Sunrise's Facebook page, many fans shared the same sentiments

He's made his bed: Several viewers pointed out that Hogan had chosen LA as his home many years ago, and only wanted to return to Australia because of Covid-19

However, some fans sided with the 'elderly' actor.

'Lot of mean people here. He is an elderly 81 year old fella obviously homesick. A bit of compassion wouldn't hurt,' one supporter wrote on Facebook.

'Why can't he come home? Every other person is flying in here! Get on a plane, Hoges,' another added.

In his interview with Sunrise, Hogan spoke for the first time about his miserable life in crime-ravaged Los Angeles during the coronavirus pandemic.

Rules: Aussies were furious Hogan seemed resistant to completing two weeks of quarantine

Old man: However, some fans sided with the 'elderly' actor. 'Lot of mean people here. He is an 81 year old fella obviously homesick. A bit of compassion wouldn't hurt,' one supporter wrote

He revealed he was 'desperate' to return to Australia and leave his life in America behind.

'I am desperately homesick,' he told said during a video chat from his $4.5million LA mansion.

Hogan lives in the once-elite beachside suburb of Venice, where a vast increase in homelessness has seen hundreds of tents line the beach's famous boardwalk and resulted in a sharp increase in crime.

'You're living in the country, alongside New Zealand, that's the light of the world,' Hogan told the presenters.

'And I'm living in LA County, which is 10 million people and half of them have got Covid. So am I homesick? You bet your life,' he complained.

Life sucks: In his interview with Sunrise, Hogan spoke for the first time about his miserable life in crime-ravaged Los Angeles during the coronavirus pandemic

'Hell on earth': Hogan lives in the once-elite beachside suburb of Venice, where a vast increase in homelessness has seen hundreds of tents line the beach's famous boardwalk and resulted in a sharp increase in crime

When asked how he was coping with Los Angeles' recent crime wave, Hogan simply said he 'doesn't go anywhere'.

'[I'm] bored in lockdown, and the minute I can get on the plane without being locked in a hotel for two weeks, I'm back,' he said.

The movie star went on to explain he 'wouldn't survive' Australia's mandatory 14-day hotel quarantine.

'My son [Chance] would have to be with me... we'd strangle each other,' he said.

'My son [Chance] would have to be with me, we'd strangle each other': The movie star went on to say he 'wouldn't survive' Australia's mandatory 14-day quarantine

Elsewhere in the interview, Hogan said he was sick of anti-vaxxers in America, calling them 'brainless cowards'.

'They don't care about anyone else. [They say], "I'm brave, I like freedom." What about your grandma? You killed her. All of that gets on top of you, and I want to escape it for a while,' he said.

Hogan is currently holed up inside his 'fortress-like' $4.5million mansion with his son Chance, 23, according to reports.

Fears: Hogan is holed up inside his 'fortress-like' $4.5million mansion with his son Chance, 23

'Where Paul lives in hell on earth,' Hogan's neighbour Tyler Proctor, a local politician, told Woman's Day on Monday.

'His house is like a fortress and it needs to be. I can see why [he] wants to move out,' Mr Proctor added.

Hogan moved to the United States permanently in 2005, after growing up in Granville in Sydney's western suburbs.

However, the comedian revealed last year that he was itching to leave the U.S. as soon as the coronavirus pandemic is over.

'I'm here out of paternal duty': Despite yearning to come back to Australia, Hogan said he would remain living in Venice to be a part of his son Chance's life. Pictured in December 2016

'I can't wait for this stupid disease to go away so I can get out,' Hogan revealed in the News Corp podcast Evenin' Viewers with Paul Hogan.

'I'm like a kangaroo in a Russian zoo - I don't belong here.'

Despite yearning to come back to Australia, Hogan said he would remain living in Venice to be a part of his son's life.

Hogan shares Chance with his Crocodile Dundee co-star Linda Kozlowski, whom he married in 1991 before divorcing in 2014.

Terrifying situation: It comes as residents of Venice say soaring crime rates and the exploding homeless population have made life in the elite beachside community unbearable

'I'm here out of paternal duty because my kid is an American,' he said.

'My kid is a "Yaussie", a yank Aussie, he went to school here, his friends are here, his band is here.'

Hogan added that if Chance was prepared to move with him to Australia, he would be 'out of here in a flash'.

Tent city: The world-famous beach community, 16 miles from downtown Los Angeles, has traditionally been a major tourism drawcard for the Californian city. However, now the palm trees and promenade are blighted by hundreds of tents

Police patrol the Venice Beach Boardwalk on April 20, which has seen an explosion in homeless numbers during COVID lockdowns

It comes as residents of Venice say soaring crime rates and the exploding homeless population have made life in the elite beachside community unbearable.

Business owners say they are being forced to close their doors and longterm residents are afraid to leave their homes after dark after being subjected to violent attacks and intimidation.

The world-famous beach community, 16 miles from downtown Los Angeles, has traditionally been a major tourism drawcard for the Californian city.

Venice Family Clinic's Director of Homeless Services Dr. Coley King, left, treats Kenard Durr, center, at the world-famous beach. A homeless encampment at the beach has exploded during COVID lockdown (April 20)

However, now the palm trees and promenade are blighted by hundreds of tents.

Venice Neighbourhood Council member Soledad Ursua said the homeless encampments had exploded during the COVID-19 lockdowns.

She said residents were afraid to be out after dark, and there were fights several times a day and shootings and stabbings on a weekly basis.

Rubbish and waste litter the golden sands of Venice Beach. Anti-social elements have made it dangerous to go out after dark, residents say

Fights occur several times a day, while shootings and stabbings are common, say residents of Venice Beach, who are fearful of increased crime rates since the homeless encampments became permanent

'It's just a very dangerous time to be a Venice resident right now,' she said.

According to figures from the Los Angeles Police Department provided to the Venice Neighbourhood Council, the violent robberies in the neighbourhood are up 177 per cent from last year.

The same period has also seen a 162 per cent increase in cases of assault with a deadly weapon involving a homeless person.

'Venice's world famous beach and boardwalk are crippled,' a letter to city and county officials from residents says

Meanwhile, hundreds of residents have put their signatures to a letter pleading for help from city and county officials.

'Venice's world famous beach and boardwalk are crippled,' it says.

'Local children are refusing to come to the beach because they're frightened by what they've witnessed. Seniors who live on or near the boardwalk are terrified of walking in their own neighbourhoods.'
She's the proud mom of three fur babies.

And on Monday, it was French Bulldog Minnie Pearl that had Reese Witherspoon's undivided attention.

The actress, 45, who often takes the pup along with her to the set of her Apple+ series The Morning Show, was spotted carrying the Frenchie during an outing in LA.

Her fur baby: Reese Witherspoon was seen out in LA on Monday with her French Bulldog Minnie Pearl, whom she often takes with her to the set of her Apple+ series The Morning Show

Reese was dressed down on the cloudy day in an off-white sweatsuit and multi-colored sneakers.

Her blonde hair was loose and held back from her face by a dark yellow bandana knotted on top of her head.

The star of Legally Blonde and Walk The Line was fresh-faced as she went makeup free for her stroll.

Casual: Reese, 45, was dressed down on the cloudy day in an off-white sweatsuit and multi-colored sneakers

fresh-faced: The actress was makeup-free and held her loose hair back from her face with a dark yellow bandana knotted on top of her head

In addition to Minnie Pearl, known as Minn, Reese is 'mom' to chocolate Labrador Hank and black Labrador Major.

Last month, to mark National Pet Day, she shared some cute pics of all three on her social media.

After posting portrait shots of each to Instagram, she shared a photo of them all cuddled up together as they slept.

So cute: The Hollywood star brought home Minnie Pearl in November, a few weeks after the death of her beloved Frenchie Pepper

Her boys: In addition to Minn, she has a black Labrador named Major, whom she adopted in February, and a chocolate Labrador named Hank

Adorable: After posting a portrait shots of each of her pets, Reese then shared a photo of them all cuddled up together as they slept to mark National Pets Day last month

She brought home Minnie Pearl in November, a few weeks after the death of her beloved Frenchie Pepper.

And Major was added to the family only this past February.

Last week, Major was in the dog house after being caught chewing up the Hollywood star's sofa.

Posting images of the eaten furniture and the sheepish puppy, Reese declared: 'Good thing he is cute.'

Hangdog: Last week, Major was in the dog house after being caught chewing up the Hollywood star's sofa

Forgiven: Posting images of the eaten furniture and the sheepish puppy, Reese declared: 'Good thing he is cute'

In addition to her fur babies, Reese is mom to three children.

She shares daughter Ava, 21, and son Deacon, 17, with her ex-husband Ryan Phillippe.

She also has a son Tennessee, eight, with current husband Jim Toth whom she married in 2011.

And on Sunday, her three kids celebrated their famous mom on Mother's Day with a special balloon display.

Mother's Day: On Sunday, Reese's children Ava, Deacon and Tennessee celebrated their famous mom with a balloon display. She shares her two eldest with ex Ryan Phillippe and her youngest with husband Jim Toth
Adam Sandler gave IHOP a shout out on Monday after attending their all-you-can-drink milkshake event that the restaurant chain created in his honor.

'Thank u IHOP for Milkshake Monday' the actor wrote on Twitter with a picture of his bulldog Bagel licking his lips after a tasty treat at the event.

Sandler went viral last month after an IHOP employee revealed her embarrassment at not recognizing the Blended actor when he asked for a table at a very busy Long Island location.

Approved: Adam Sandler gave a thumbs up to IHOP after it created Milkshake Monday in his honor. He shared a photo of his dog Bagel at the event next to a table of shakes

A TikTok video showed the 54-year-old Just Go With It actor leaving the restaurant after the hostess told him it would be a 30-minute wait for a table for Sandler and his daughter.

In response to the post, Sandler jokingly wrote on Twitter that it wasn't the wait that made him leave the restaurant, but the lack of all-you-can-eat choices.

'For the record, I only left the IHOP because the nice woman told me the all-you-can-eat deal didn't apply to the milkshakes.' the Hollywood star wrote on May 3.

It didn't take the breakfast chain long to seize on the opportunity to please the movie star as they tweeted back the next day: 'You know what, @AdamSandler, you may be onto something here. In your honor, wed like to declare May 10th, 2021 #MilkshakeMonday at IHOP. More sweet details to follow.'

Later on IHOP clarified that the Milkshake Monday would only take place at its 19 Long Island locations from 12pm to 8pm on Monday, May 10.

Sandler went viral last month after an IHOP employee revealed her embarrassment at not recognizing the Blended actor when he asked for a table at a very busy Long Island location

Nice lady: In response Sandler jokingly wrote on Twitter that it wasn't the wait that made him leave the restaurant, but the lack of all-you-can-eat choices

In your honor: It didn't take the breakfast chain long to seize on the opportunity to right their wrong as they tweeted back the next day

Nationwide, the company marked the day by donating $1 to the nonprofit Comedy Gives Back for every milkshake sold, up to $50,000.

The whole IHOP debacle came to light when hostess Dayanna Rodas posted a video on TikTok, calling herself a clown after she failed to recognize Sandler and told him it would be a 30minute wait for a table.

Dayanna uploaded a security camera shot of Sandler and his daughter interacting with uniform-clad hostess briefly before politely leaving.

She wrote on top: 'Not realizing it's Adam Sandler and telling him it's a 30 minute wait and him ofc leaving because he's not going to wait 30 minutes for IHOP.'

The video was captioned: 'Pleaseee come back #comedy #fyp #foryou #viral #adamsandler' set to the song Be A Clown by Osuna.

IHOP clarified that the Milkshake Monday would only take place at its 19 Long Island locations from 12pm to 8pm on Monday, May 10

The whole IHOP debacle came to light when hostess Dayanna Rodas posted a video on TikTok last month, calling herself a clown after she failed to recognize Sandler and told him it would be a 30minute wait for a table

She also took to TikTok the following day, sharing a screen grab from a Daily Dot story about her video, adding, 'I didn't think it was gonna go viral.'

Sandler's publicist confirmed to The Huffington Post that it was Sandler in the video, but did not provide any further details.

Many viewers commended both Dayanna for not giving Sandler the celebrity special treatment, and Sandler for not expecting special treatment and leaving politely.

'At least he didnt use his fame to rush anything,' one person commented while another added, 'I used to serve him regularly.'

Another person with experience serving Sandler said, 'Never served a nicer person,' while another added, 'And he didnt pull the celebrity card either.'

Other commenters said the worker did the right thing by treating him just like a 'regular person.'
Sarah-Mae Amey, who appeared on Tim Robards' season in 2013, is now engaged.

The Gold Coast florist's boyfriend Matt Flugge proposed during a romantic picnic on the beach.

'I cannot wait to marry you. The love of my life and my best friend,' the 29-year-old captioned the loved-up announcement on Monday.

She said, yes! Bachelor star Sarah-Mae Amey (right) has announced she's ENGAGED to boyfriend Matt Flugge (left) after he surprised her with a beachside proposal over the weekend

Describing it as the 'happiest moment of my life', Sarah-Mae said she was completely taken aback by the timing.

'At our favourite spot, doing our favourite thing (a picnic on the beach), [Matt] asked me to grab him a beer out of the esky and I turn back around to him down on one knee,' she added.

The pair were both wearing casual linen outfits at the coastal location, as Sarah-Mae showed off her dainty diamond sparkler on a rose gold band.

Pleasant surprise: Describing it as the 'happiest moment of my life', Sarah-Mae said she was completely taken aback by the timing

Romantic! The Gold Coast florist's boyfriend proposed during a sunset picnic on the beach

Stunning: The pair were both wearing casual linen outfits at the coastal location, as Sarah-Mae showed off her dainty diamond sparkler on a rose gold band

In a sweet birthday tribute to Matt in 2019, Sarah-Mae explained how she was eternally grateful for a mutual friend setting them up.

'You came in to my life just a couple of weeks after I lost my little brother, I was completely broken but you loved me just as I was and did everything you could to put my broken pieces back together,' she said.

'I dont know where I would be without you my favourite human.. so grateful. I love you and adore you so much,' Sarah-Mae concluded at the time.

'I don't know where I'd be without you': In a sweet birthday tribute to Matt in 2019, Sarah-Mae explained how she was eternally grateful for a mutual friend setting them up

Remember this? Sarah Mae appeared on Tim Robards' season of The Bachelor in 2013

'So happy for the two of you. Sending lots and lots of love': Tim and Anna sent their congratulations on the Instagram announcement

Sarah-Mae is still on friendly terms with both Anna Heinrich and Tim Robards some eight years after their time on reality TV together.

Anna and Tim sent messages of congratulations on Monday, commenting on the Instagram announcement 'so happy for the two of you. Sending lots and lots of love' and 'woohoo! Congrats'.

Sarah-Mae also attended Tim and Anna's luxe wedding in Italy in 2018.
Lee Elliott married former Bachelorette Georgia Love in a picturesque wedding ceremony earlier this year.

And on Monday, the 40-year-old shared a sweet post praising his TV journalist wife, for her work on Channel Seven.

The plumber shared a post on his Instagram story of Georgia presenting a news piece about the Australian Olympic team traveling to Tokyo for the Olympic games.

'This absolute babe makes watching the news so much more enjoyable!' Lee Elliott praised his former Bachelorette wife Georgia Love for making the news 'much more enjoyable' to watch in an Instagram Story on Monday

As Georgia, who recently moved from Channel 10 to Seven, spoke about Japan's current Covid crisis, he complimented her for making the news 'enjoyable' to watch.

'With all the doom and gloom in the world this absolute babe makes watching the news so much more enjoyable!' he wrote.

Lee's gushing post about his former reality star wife comes after they tied the knot in March this year.

Someone's smitten: The plumber shared a post on his Instagram Story of Georgia presenting a news piece about the Australian Olympic team traveling to Tokyo for the Olympic games

Georgia and Lee said 'I Do' at the Frogmore Creek Winery, just 20 minutes outside of Hobart's city centre, followed by an outdoor reception at the Shene Distillery.

The bride stunned in a custom couture gown by Australian designer Jason Grech, while the groom donned a white tuxedo jacket and bow tie by YSG Tailors.

The evening reception was held at Shene Distillery, with Shene Estate hosting limited bespoke wedding ceremonies each year at the historic property.

Husband and wife: Lee's gushing post about his former reality star wife comes after they tied the knot in March this year. They said 'I Do' at the Frogmore Creek Winery, just 20 minutes outside of Hobart's city centre, followed by an outdoor reception at the Shene Distillery

Georgia and Lee were due to marry in Italy last year, but were forced to cancel their wedding due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The couple became engaged in September 2019.

Georgia chose Lee as her winning suitor on the 2016 season of Channel Ten's The Bachelorette.
She is expecting her first child with boyfriend Nathan Dalah.

And on Tuesday, Victoria's Secret model Georgia Fowler covered up her blossoming baby bump as she arrived at the AJE fashion show in Sydney.

The 28-year-old New Zealand-born beauty kept warm in a black and white furry sweater, which she teamed with a pair of black leather trousers and boots.

Keeping things underwraps! Pregnant Georgia Fowler looked effortlessly chic as she stepped out in a chic sweater and leather trousers at the star-studded AJE fashion show in Sydney on Tuesday

Georgia was all glammed up for the exclusive event, glowing in a face full of makeup consisting of light foundation, blush and nude lip.

She completed her stylish look by carrying a black leather Dior handbag.

Georgia and her beau Nathan announced their pregnancy news last month.

Stylish: The 28-year-old New Zealand-born beauty kept warm in a black and white furry sweater, which she teamed with a pair of black leather trousers and boots

She's glowing! Georgia was all glammed up for the exclusive event, glowing in a face full of makeup which consisted of light foundation, blush and nude lip

Nathan, a co-founder of the Fishbowl restaurant group, revealed they're having a daughter in his separate announcement.

The couple had confirmed their romance in February last year, and already share a puppy together, called Chilli.

In the past, Georgia has been romantically linked to Hollywood stars including Nick Jonas, Leonardo DiCaprio and Harry Styles

When prodded about Harry's song Kiwi on Channel Seven's The Morning Show in 2017, the star's face dropped before addressing the question.

The song Kiwi on Styles' self-titled debut album has long been rumoured to be about the Georgia and features the curious lyric: 'she said "I'm having your baby, it's none of your business".'

'Definitely don't have a baby... that's what the song is all about,' she said, adding: 'I think it's highly unlikely.'
The BRIT Awards have paid tribute to convicted murder Phil Spector in their memoriam list.

The Wall Of Sound producer died from Covid-19 related complications at the age of 81 in January.

Famed musician Phil had been serving a 19 years-to-life sentence for the 2003 murder of actress Lana Clarkson, who died aged 40 after being shot in the mouth.

Tribute: The BRIT Awards have paid tribute to convicted murder Phil Spector in their memoriam list (pictured in 2005)

Despite his conviction, the BRIT Awards included Spector in their Obituaries page, which honoured 'creative talents sadly lost'.

The tribute read: 'American record producer, songwriter and pioneer of the iconic 'Wall of Sound', who will equally be remembered for his conviction for murder of the actress Lana Clarkson.

'Spector collaborated with many of the greats including The Beatles individually and as a band -- producing 'Let it Be' and 'Imagine' - The Righteous Brothers, Leonard Cohen and The Ronettes, and also wrote numerous era-defining songs.'

MailOnline has contacted the BRIT Awards for comment.

Remembered: Despite his conviction, the BRIT Awards included Spector in their Obituaries page, which honoured 'creative talents sadly lost'

Famed musician: The Wall Of Sound producer died from Covid-19 related complications at the age of 81 in January (pictured in 1970)

Awards: The BRIT Awards, set to take place at The O2 on Tuesday night in front of a 4,000-strong crowd, will not have an In Memoriam section during the ceremony (pictured 2020)

The famed musician, born in the Bronx of New York City, developed the Wall of Sound a technique of that has a roaring effect, dubbed the 'Wagnerian approach to rock 'n' roll,' that was popular in the '60s.

It was the first time the recording studio was used as an instrument itself. It works by having reverberating instruments and large ensembles play in unison to create a fuller, richer tone and nearly drown out vocals.

Tom Wolfe declared him the 'first tycoon of teen.' Bruce Springsteen and Brian Wilson openly replicated his grandiose recording techniques and wide-eyed romanticism, and John Lennon called him 'the greatest record producer ever.'

Though musically he was often praised as a genius, he suffered from depression, drug and alcohol dependency and admitted to battling personal demons.

Criminal: Phil had been serving a 19 years-to-life sentence for the 2003 murder of actress Lana Clarkson, who died aged 40 (pictured 2013)

Terrible: Lana Clarkson suffered a single gun-shot to the mouth and her teeth were found scattered over the carpet

Spector did little work after the early 80s and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989.

In 2009, after three decades in semi-retirement, he was convicted of Clarkson's murder.

In 2003 actress Lana Clarkson was killed at Spectors mansion in Alhambra, California.

Throwback: The famed musician, born in the Bronx of New York City, developed the Wall of Sound a technique. Phil (in sunglasses) pictured with the Rolling Stones

On February 3, 2003 she had been working as a hostess at Sunset Strip's House of Blues in West Hollywood when Spector urged her to accompany him home.

Then shortly after their arrival, a chauffeur reported Spector came out of the house holding a gun, blood on his hands, and told him, 'I think I killed somebody'

The actress who starred in the cult film 'Barbarian Queen' was found dead, slumped in a chair suffering a single gunshot wound to the mouth with her broken teeth scattered across the carpet.

Spector told Esquire Magazine in July 2003 that her death was an 'accidental suicide' and she 'kissed the gun.'

In an emergency call from Spector's home, the music virtuoso can be heard saying 'I think I killed someone'.

In both of his trials - the first ending in a mistrial - jurors were taken to examine the murder scene.

Spector was eventually convicted of her murder in 2009. He was supposed to be eligible for parole in 2024.

According to The Mirror, the BRIT Awards, set to take place at The O2 on Tuesday night in front of a 4,000-strong crowd, will not have an In Memoriam section during the ceremony.
The Hills: New Beginnings star Mischa Barton was seen cuddling her beloved Cocker Spaniel, Charlie, while running errands in Los Feliz on Sunday afternoon.

As the 35-year-old British-American actress walked around her neighborhood, she could be seen wearing an oversized grey sweatshirt, white shorts and a pair of brown Birkenstocks with gold buckles.

She accessorized with a few necklaces and kept her blonde hair straightened just above her shoulders as she enjoyed the fresh air and warm weather.

Puppy love: The Hills: New Beginnings star Mischa Barton was seen cuddling her beloved Cocker Spaniel, Charlie, while running errands in Los Feliz on Sunday afternoon

She has been happily dating Gian Marco Flamini since September.

Although she is known for her work in various scripted projects, such as The O.C, Barton joined the cast of the reality show The Hills: New Beginnings, which premiered in 2019.

The reality show serves as a sequel to the original Hills, which ran on MTV from 2006 until its cancellation in 2010.

Casual: As the 35-year-old British-American actress walked around her neighborhood, she could be seen wearing an oversized grey sweatshirt, white shorts and a pair of brown Birkenstocks with gold buckles

Relaxed: She accessorized with a few necklaces and kept her blonde hair straightened just above her shoulders as she enjoyed the fresh air and warm weather

Several cast members returned for the new version of the show, including Heidi Montag and her husband Spencer Pratt, Whitney Port, and Brody Jenner.

Shortly before the premiere of the show's first season, Barton spoke to Glamour and noted that she had joined the show in an effort to take control of her own narrative.

Specifically, the Sixth Sense actress noted, 'I think there has always been a lot of mystery around me. Its fun to allow people to actually see me!'

The performer also spoke about the theme of sisterhood and how she was impressed by the other cast members who raised children while appearing on the series.

Making moves: Barton joined the cast of The Hills: New Beginnings ahead of the premiere of its first season; she is seen with several of her costars in 2019

'Its girls supporting girls... I hadnt had quite so many girlfriends before this show so its funny to have five women hanging out together. I also respect them so much for being working mothers - that is not an easy job,' she said.

Barton then discussed how she has spent much of her life under heavy media attention and the lessons that she gained from her experience.

She remarked, 'I did start being very famous when I was only 17 years old in The OC. Your twenties are crazy anyway and if you magnify that, it was wild doing all of that in the public eye. Theres really nothing I havent started to learn about myself.

'There really was a time when I couldnt do anything or get away with anything or even leave the house without having to really think it through,' she added.

Watch The O.C on Stan in Australia.
She is busy filming a secret new project for Channel 4.

And Amanda Holden looked sensational as she channelled her inner Sharon Stone in a behind-the-scenes snap of her top-secret programme that she shared via Instagram on Monday.

The TV presenter, 50, put on a stylish display for the day's shoot as she slipped into a sleeveless, white blazer dress that showed off her slender legs and mimicked the Basic Instinct star's iconic look.

Wow! Amanda Holden channelled her inner Sharon Stone as she put on a VERY leggy display in a white blazer dress in behind-the-scenes snap of secret Channel 4 project on Monday

Her ensemble was cut high on the waist to highlight her slender legs, and she boosted her height in a pair of chic shoes.

Adding a glamorous flair to her outfit, Amanda accessorised with a gold bracelet and cinched her outfit at the waist with a statement belt.

Amanda styled her golden locks into loose waves that fell to her shoulders, and she used a light palette of make-up for the occasion.

Famous moment: The TV presenter, 50, showed off her slender legs and appeared to mimick the Basic Instinct star's iconic look

Amanda's new venture means she has become the first person to appear on all three channels after previously appearing on both the BBC and ITV with Britain's Got Talent and I Can See Your Voice.

Reports on Friday claimed Amanda is in high demand and she is keen to work across all channels rather than be associated with just one.

A source told The Sun: 'It's a top-secret brand new show format and will take Amanda back to her TV roots, having started out on shows like Kiss Me Kate, Hearts and Bones and Cutting It in the Nineties.

Exciting: Amanda's new project means she has become the first person to appear on all three channels after being on ITV's Britain's Got Talent (pictured) and BBC's I Can See Your Voice

'Everyone wants a piece of Amanda right now. She's become the golden girl of TV and radio over the last 12 months.

'Amanda has never wanted a handcuffs deal from any one TV channel and it's paid off because she's going to be the first person to work across all three major UK channels.'

Last month, Amanda teased a new venture which could potentially be her Channel 4 show, as she posed for a snap and wrote: 'Starting to film a fun new project today.'

In demand: A source said on Friday, 'Amanda has never wanted a handcuffs deal from any one TV channel and it's paid off because she's going to be the first person to work across all three'

Amanda is currently starring in the first season of I Can See Your Voice, while she is set to appear on the judging panel of the 15th season of BGT.

As well as her TV gigs, Amanda also presents the Heart Breakfast Show alongside Jamie Theakston every weekday.

It was recently reported that Amanda will step into Cilla Black's shoes and host her own version of Blind Date - 30 years after she appeared on the show looking for love herself.

The star is believed to be working with the BBC on the 'special' project, having hinted at the details in a recent interview.

Busy: As well as her TV gigs, Amanda also presents the Heart Breakfast Show alongside Jamie Theakston every weekday

'It's always been a dream of mine to have my own dating show, so I'm excited that I'm working on something special with the BBC at the moment,' the media personality told Woman's Own magazine.

Amanda, who was on Blind Date as a contestant in 1991 when she was 19, was rumoured to be in talks with BBC producers last month.

'Execs are thrilled to have Amanda on board. She is perfect for a dating show because she has a great sense of humour,' an insider told Daily Star Sunday.

'Everyone working on the show thinks she has the potential to be just like Cilla was years ago on Blind Date. There's a lot of excitement about this.'
They have been dating for four years.

Yet Leonardo DiCaprio and Camila Morrone have kept their romance nearly entirely off social media - until the model, 23, took to Instagram on Monday night.

After the Titanic star, 46, shared the first image from his new movie Killer Of The Moon Flower, the model shared his post with her 2.4million Instagram followers via stories, yet kept things coy by writing nothing else.

Supportive: Leonardo DiCaprio and Camila Morrone have kept their romance nearly entirely off social media - until the model, 23, took to Instagram on Monday night

Leonardo sparked conversation across social media when he joined Paramount Pictures and Apple Studios in unveiling the first still from Martin Scorsese's latest flick showing Leonardo DiCaprio and his co-star Lily Gladstone, 34.

Filming began April 19 in Oklahoma on the filmmaker's big-screen adaptation of David Grann's 2017 non-fiction book and it will continue for seven months.

Leonardo produces and stars as scheming rancher Ernest Burkhart, who weds a wealthy Osage oil heiress Mollie (Gladstone) in 1917 just before her closest family members mysteriously die.

In the image, Leonardo and Lily sit side-by-side, with the actor done-up to look weary and somewhat haggard - worlds away from his famous good looks.

Little known: After the Titanic star, 46, shared the first image from his new movie Killer Of The Moon Flower, the model shared his post with her 2.4million Instagram followers via stories, yet kept things coy by writing nothing else (pictured last year)

He added a simple caption reading: 'First look at #KillersOfTheFlowerMoon. See link in bio @osagenews', which Camila then shared on her own Instagram.

There was divide on social media, with some fans alleging the actor looked unrecognisable in the still while others insisted he looked largely the same.

It was recently claimed that Camila had to adjust to a long distance relationship with Leonardo who was filming Don't Look Up! in Boston with Jennifer Lawrence.

A source recently told OK!: 'It's well-known that when Leo gets into character, he's so focused that he shuts out everything and everyone else.'

The insiders said that the distance is 'grinding them down,' adding that the couple 'still talk all the time, but they're getting more cranky and reckless with the things they say to each other.'

Long distance: It was recently claimed that Camila had to adjust to a long distance relationship with boyfriend Leonardo who was filming Don't Look Up! last month in Boston with Jennifer Lawrence (pictured in 2018)

The insider continued: 'They've been solid for three years, but if Leo and Camila don't get some decent couples time soon, they could be in trouble.'

The Valley Girl actress joined him in Boston to celebrate New Year's Eve, when they splurged on an Italian feast.

A source told ET Online in December that Camila might be 'the one' for the Titanic star, after they were first linked in 2017, adding: 'They are very in love. Camila is his dream girl.

'She's young, sweet, simple and it's easy because she gets along well with his family and he gets along great with hers too. They've known each other forever and it just works.'
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On Tuesday's episode of Big Brother Australia, Daniel Hayes emerged from isolation after falling ill, to learn his best friend in the house was evicted.

The real estate agent got back a negative Covid-19 test after running a high fever and showing symptoms of an illness.

When he was freed from the isolation room, he broke down when he found out Nick Benton had been kicked out.

Upset: On Tuesday's episode of Big Brother Australia, Daniel Hayes (pictured) emerged from isolation after falling ill, to learn his best friend in the house was evicted

'I hate this, he was my only friend in here,' he wept, as Sarah Jane Adams tried to comfort him.

'I trusted him with everything. I don't trust anyone here. I trust him,' he added, openly sobbing.

In the diary room, Darren went on: 'I actually couldn't believe it, he was so loyal to me, and he always said he would go down with the ship.

Out: Nick Benton (pictured) was sent home on Monday after his alliance with Katie Williams, Jess Trend and Marley Biyendolo failed

Sad: Daniel got back a negative Covid-19 test after running a high fever. When he was freed from the isolation room, he broke down when he found out Nick had been kicked out

'So he went down with the ship, good on him, I respected that,' he added.

Darren then vowed revenge on Katie Williams, who put Nick up for eviction.

'My plan moving forward is I will eat humble pie, because that is what you do in here. Keep things nice with king Katie.

'But make no mistake, it's time to hustle, to play a little bit dirtier than I have been playing.

Tears: 'I hate this, he was my only friend in here,' he wept, as Sarah Jane Adams tried to comfort him. 'I trusted him with everything. I don't trust anyone here. I trust him,' he added, openly sobbing

Scheme: Darren then vowed revenge on Katie Williams, who put Nick up for eviction. 'Make no mistake, it's time to hustle, to play a little bit dirtier than I have been playing,' he said

'Give me one chance, one shot at them, and I will take the whole mountain down,' he said angrily.

Later in the episode, Daniel was gifted a limousine full of treats and Champagne and told he could invite others inside.

He picked all his biggest enemies in the house: Katie, Marley Biyendolo, Tilly Whitfield, Jess Trend and Mary Kalifatidis.

Daniel did so to get them onside - it worked, and at the end of the episode, Melissa McGorman was evicted by the alliance Daniel had formed.
Jack Whitehall's girlfriend Roxy Horner has been discharged from hospital after battling an autoimmune disease.

The model, 29, took to Instagram on Monday to give her fans the update while sharing a selfie from her hospital bed.

Over a picture of her smiling while wearing a hospital gown, she wrote: 'I can leave tonight yay.'

'I can leave tonight!' Jack Whitehall's girlfriend Roxy Horner revealed she had been discharged from hospital on Monday after battling an autoimmune disease

Roxy has not disclosed what type of autoimmune disease she has been battling, and MailOnline have contacted her representatives for further comment.

On Sunday, she admitted she didn't know whether to 'laugh or cry every five minutes' while in hospital for an autoimmune disease.

Posting a stunning throwback snap from a photoshoot, Roxy penned: 'Ever stare life right in the face like really???

'Currently sitting in hospital not knowing to laugh or cry every 5 mins but Im going to choose to try and laugh because life is too damn short.'

Grateful: Before revealing news of her discharge, Roxy shared a loved-up picture with Jack and gushed: 'I'm so lucky and grateful for my man'

What are autoimmune diseases? Autoimmune diseases can cause either low or over activity of the immune system. The immune system can mistake body parts, such as skin, joints or organs, as bacteria or viruses so attacks them and healthy cells. It is not known exactly what causes the immune system to attack healthy cells. Symptoms can range from mild to severe. Advertisement

Worrying: On Sunday, Roxy revealed she was in hospital 'for another night', she has not disclosed what type of autoimmune disease she has been battling

Roxy, who has been dating Jack since early 2020, signed off her post with: 'Screw auto immune diseases though!'

Autoimmune diseases can cause either low or over activity of the immune system. The immune system can mistake body parts, such as skin, joints or organs, as bacteria or viruses so attacks them and healthy cells.

MailOnline has contacted Roxy's representatives for further comment.

Before revealing news of her discharge, Roxy shared a loved-up picture with Jack and gushed: 'I'm so lucky and grateful for my man, my biggest support through everything. I don't know what I would have done this past year without you.'

Candid: The model admitted she didn't know whether to 'laugh or cry every five minutes' while in hospital for the autoimmune disease

Scary: Roxy, who has been dating Jack since early 2020, signed off her original post about her hospital stay with: 'Screw auto immune diseases' (pictured with Jack last year)

The model also took to her Instagram Story to share a short video of herself in a hospital bed and gown with a cannula in her arm, and she said: 'Guess I'm here another night!'

Roxy's 180K followers were quick to share their concern and well-wishes for the model after her post.

One person said: 'Sending you much love and positive vibes .'

Another fan put: 'Sorry to hear that, Roxy. Hope you feel better soon.'

Well-wishes: Roxy's 180K followers were quick to share their concern and well-wishes for the model after her post

Since the first lockdown Roxy has been dating comedian Jack, 32, after the pair met during a trip to Australia, with the model moving into his London home after just a few weeks of dating.

Jack previously admitted although the decision 'accelerated' their relationship, they did miss out on doing ordinary things like restaurant and cinema dates.

Speaking on the Couples Quarantine podcast, he said: 'Weirdly that was quite nice because we spent a lot of time together and it accelerates the relationship in a way.

'Then when lockdown ended, there's a lot of things we realised. We'd never gone to see a film together. We'd never been to a restaurant in England because we met in Australia.'

Big event: The 2021 Brit Awards will be hosted by Jack, and will mark the first major indoor music event in over a year as bosses prepare to release 2,500 free tickets to key workers

Jack dated actress Gemma Chan, 38, between 2011 and 2017, and he previously said that he regretted not marrying her.

Speaking to his mother Hilary in an episode of his Netflix series, Travels With My Father, he said: 'I f****d up my chance of that. I did. I could have got married but I messed it up.'

In the episode, which was filmed before Jack began dating Roxy, he apologised to his mother for being the only single member of their immediate family as it meant he had to attend his sister Molly's wedding alone.

He added: 'I'm sorry I'll be attending the wedding alone and I'm sorry you have two children who have model relationships and one who is going to be there on his own trying to s**g a bridesmaid.'
Actress Goldie Hawn appeared on Tuesday's Good Morning Britain to chat about her work in teaching children mindfulness - and opened up about her own battle with depression as she rose to fame.

'When I was young, I became depressed,' the 75-year-old Hollywood star recalled. 'I was 21, rising to success, it's a very difficult thing. I didn't necessarily want that.

'In doing so, I was very depressed and I had a lot of these issues where I couldn't even go outside in public. This is something that for me I worked through.

'I went to a doctor, I went to a psychologist, I learned about quieting my mind and what happens to the brain, I studied the brain.

'I didn't understand why we weren't taking it out and putting in our classrooms for our kids to learn and enjoy and to be able to have a much better sense of self-regulation.'

Goldie added: 'Happiness is a choice. Unfortunately, I didn't want to be a big deal. I wanted to go home I wanted to be a dance school teacher. I did have a plan.

'So I didn't have delusions of grandeur on any level, I was extremely realistic. The problem was, I was a dancer. And then things changed.

Difficult past: Goldie Hawn appeared on Tuesday's Good Morning Britain to chat about her work in teaching children mindfulness - and opened up about her own battle with depression as she rose to fame

Throwback: 'When I was young, I became depressed,' the 75-year-old Hollywood star recalled. 'I was 21, rising to success, it's a very difficult thing. I didn't necessarily want that' [pictured in 1967, age 22]

'For every one of us, we have a different reason for why we might feel low, depressed, anxious, a lot of these things If I broke my arm I would go to a doctor, if I fell and hurt my hip I would go to a doctor. Doctors can help us and we should never be ashamed to say, 'I'm feeling sad'.'

Goldie launched MindUp to help children learn mindfulness techniques and said: 'The idea is we have our children start early.

'I started the programme when 9/11 happened, just knowing there was going to be, basically things had changed forever and our children are going to have to adapt and there was going to be what they call silent distress. That was then. Children feel everything.'

She added: 'Now, when this pandemic happened it gobsmacked everyone. We didn't know how to handle our children, we're dealing with ourselves  so many issues with parenting and how do I handle this. It's a plethora of problems.'

Goldie added: 'Happiness is a choice. Unfortunately, I didn't want to be a big deal. I wanted to go home I wanted to be a dance school teacher. I did have a plan'

She recalled: 'I was very depressed and I had a lot of these issues where I couldn't even go outside in public. This is something that for me I worked through' [pictured 1968]

Of whether she thinks the pandemic will have a bigger impact on mental health than what she saw 9/11 had on American children, she said: 'Yes I do. They basically were incarcerated in their own homes. There was frustration, probably in some ways very stressed parenting. Children didn't feel safe oftentimes, they couldn't see their friends, social development for their neuro growth, it didn't quite happen.

'I don't believe that the time period they went through [in the pandemic] is going to be a lasting damaging effect, I think we have to learn obviously how to deal with it. That period of time can be made up.'

She added: 'What are we teaching them? What are they learning? Yes we need math, English, we need all of it, but the wellbeing and the sense of resiliency and wellbeing of our children is everything. They're the ones that are going to have to deal with the rest of the world as they grow up.'

Watch Good Morning Britain weekdays on ITV from 6AM and ITV Hub.
Isla Fisher has come out swinging against Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.

The actress, 45, told Marie Claire magazine that she feels the social media platform 'incites violence' and places some blame on Facebook for the Capitol Hill attack in Washington on January 6.

'It is something that we all need to be as proactive as possible about right now. It was clearly the spread of online conspiracy theories that led to the storming of Capitol Hill,' she told the magazine.

Blame: Isla Fisher (pictured) has come out swinging against Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. The actress, 45, told Marie Claire magazine that she feels the social media platform 'incites violence' and places some blame on Facebook for the Capitol Hill attack in Washington on January 6th

'And people like Mark Zuckerberg are making money off lies that cost lives, and these social media companies should be creating jobs that save lives.

'No account on social media should incite violence, or spread hate or false information.'

The Wedding Crashers actress added: 'I think these companies can afford to hire moderators to prevent misinformation being spread, and to save lives.'

Isla said: 'People like Mark Zuckerberg are making money off lies that cost lives, and these social media companies should be creating jobs that save lives. No account on social media should incite violence, or spread hate or false information.' Pictured: Mark Zuckerberg

More than 370 people are facing federal charges in the deadly insurrection of the Capital building, which also sent lawmakers into hiding and delayed the certification of President Joe Biden's election win.

Authorities lost control as rioters entered the Capitol building, vandalising and trespassing. Four people died in the chaos.

Isla and her husband, Borat star Sacha Baron Cohen, have been living in Australia for several months.

Attack: More than 370 people are facing federal charges in the deadly insurrection of the Capital building on January 6, which also sent lawmakers into hiding and delayed the certification of President Joe Biden's election win

The couple relocated from Los Angeles to Sydney, along with their children, in December.

And while it's been widely speculated that they moved Down Under to escape the coronavirus pandemic ravaging the US, new reports claim they were actually fleeing America's tumultuous political climate.

'They didn't want to raise their kids in Trump's America,' an insider told The Sydney Morning Herald of the couple's decision to move to Australia.
Scarlett Moffatt has spoken out about how she called the Samaritans for help during one of the lowest points of her life.

The television personality, 30, appeared on Lorraine on Tuesday to discuss her battle with mental health and how she once spent a week in a bed because she felt so low.

Scarlett said she felt 'for a long time' she couldn't speak out over fears people would criticise her because she 'had everything that she dreamed of'.

Candid: Scarlett Moffatt has spoken out about how she called the Samaritans for help during one of the lowest points of her life as she appeared on Lorraine on Tuesday

Detailing how her I'm A Celebrity win catapulted her career, but opened her up extreme trolling she said: 'I got really badly trolled about my nose, saying "You've gone too far with the surgery, rhinoplasty expert says she's gone to far" and this is just the nose I was born with.

'Because I was bullied when I was younger, I did suffer with self esteem issues anyway but my nose was something I always loved about myself.

'And because then all of a sudden I had this new thing to hate about myself because everyone was telling me it was awful.'

Tough: Scarlett said she felt 'for a long time' she couldn't speak out over fears people would criticise her because she 'had everything that she dreamed out'

Sad: Scarlett said after she won I'm A Celebrity in 2016, the trolling became incessant and the constant taunts about her looks and personality made her feel depressed

Scarlett went on to detail how she began to think she would need surgery to make her nose bigger, just to please the trolls.

She told Lorraine: 'I remember I was meant to film something, I sat and googled all day to see if I could get surgery to make my nose bigger because I just felt as if I just felt as if my personality was being attacked, my looks were being attacked.

'It just felt like a lot of pressure.'

Scarlett said she began to feel scared to leave the comfort of her home for fear of facing scrutiny if she stepped outside the door, and pretended to her family and friends she was working away.

She said: 'I wasn't, for the whole week I was just in bed.

Her story: 'So I was just so sad Lorraine. I dialled Samaritans a few times and hung up quickly, because I was like, "What will I say?",' Scarlett said before eventually talking on the phone

I remember thinking "I don't want to speak to my mum and dad because then they'll worry and I don't want to be a burden, my friends are so proud and think I'm living the dream".

'So I was just so sad Lorraine. I dialled Samaritans a few times and hung up quickly, because I was like, "What will I say?"

'And then I'm so pleased that from somewhere I got the strength to call Samaritans because that little voice on the other side of the line, was like a little voice of hope.'

The Gogglebox star said she gave the fake name 'Charlotte Muffin' and felt her troubles melt away as she spoke about her problems.

Scarlett, who is now an ambassador for Samaritans, said: 'I could just rant about how I was feeling, and I called them again the next day.

'From there I got the courage to speak to my family and then a GP. Now, I really hope that people can see you can go full circle.'

The television personality said she now sends the number for Samaritans to trolls because: 'I think a lot of the time they just need a hug as well, they're obviously not feeling OK'.

Lorraine is on weekdays from 9am on ITV and catch up on ITV Hub.
Cat Deeley has admitted that she never thought she would 'crack' America due to her appearance after refusing surgery when she first began working in Hollywood.

The TV presenter, 44, who moved back to London last year following 14 years in the States, candidly discussed being judged critically on her appearance across the pond.

According to the mother-of-two, she was told to consider getting a nose job after she landed a host position on So You Think You Can Dance in 2006.

'Ive still got no boobs and a nose that goes that way': Cat Deeley has admitted that she never thought she would 'crack' America due to her appearance after refusing surgery when she began working in Hollywood (pictured in 2019)

Speaking to The Sunday Telegraph's Stella magazine about the pressure to live up to beauty standards, she said: 'Ive still got no boobs and a nose that goes that way.'

'When it comes to stuff like that, youre asking the wrong woman,' Cat added of her decision to refuse surgery. She also stated: 'I never thought I was going to crack America.'

However, one positive habit that the star has taken back to the UK after living in Los Angeles is yoga, as she said 'it clears my mind and lengthens everything'.

Cat decided to return to her home country with her husband Patrick Kielty, and their sons, Milo, four, and James, two, in 2020.

Judgement: The TV presenter, 44, who moved back to London last year following 14 years in the States, candidly discussed being judged critically on her appearance across the pond

In November, the TV host - who is set to reunite with Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly for a revival of SM:TV skit Chums - discussed the 'terrifying' reason she decided to move back.

The television presenter revealed her fear of gun violence, as she touched upon the gut-wrenching moment her husband, 49, and their eldest son narrowly avoided a public shooting incident.

She described the event at the Century City Mall as the 'catalyst' for their departure.

Speaking to Lorraine Kelly from her north London home, Cat said: 'The catalyst for it was definitely a moment when Paddy called me and him and Milo were stuck in a shopping mall there.

'I had to go and pick them up and I didnt know quite where they were. There were helicopters and police vans and news crews, it was terrifying for me. Everybody was safe and fine, but it was terrifying for me.'

In a previous interview with YOU Mag, the former SM:TV host discussed her anxiety surrounding a possible school shooting when her kids begin their education.

Her fear became a reality when her family had to escape the mall shooting, as she elaborated further on the incident.

She said in September: 'That danger became even more real last summer when Milo and his father went to the Century City Mall in LA after morning nursery.

Scary: In November, Cat detailed a public shooting incident involving her husband Patrick Kielty, and eldest son, Milo, four, which influenced her decision to return to the UK (pictured in 2020)

'The FBI turned up with guns and ordered everyone to take cover under counters or hide because a shooter was on the loose.'

Patrick and Milo were forced to take cover in a Shake Shack kitchen when they first discovered a gunman had entered the building.

Cat said her husband was trying to keep their son calm so he didn't understand the danger and enormity of the situation.

She added: 'They shut down the centre. I got a call from Paddy, saying, Theyre taking us out through the fire exits but nobody can get to their car. If we walk to a junction, can you come and get us?

'It was terrifying. Paddy was shaken by it, more than Milo, who was hot and cranky but didnt properly understand.

Luckily, they managed to escape the scary event unharmed, and Cat is focused on spending quality time with them and her extended family, which also prompted her decision to move back to London.

She also said to Lorraine: 'We had always thought, our boys have got grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins that they adore and they adore them right back.

'Its such a special moment in time and you dont get those times back. We had always thought we would bring them back here so that they would know everyone in the family and friends.'
Line of Duty has become the UK's most-watched drama series of the 21st century after more than 15 million viewers tuned in for its final episode.

The hit show, created by Jed Mercurio, saw a record 15.24 million people tuning in to discover the identity of the 'fourth man,' code-named H, on Sunday evening.

The figure has eclipsed that of the rather more wholesome police drama Heartbeat, with the genteel 1960s based show winning 15.16 million viewers for a single episode in 2000, ten-years before it went off air.

Success: Line of Duty has become the UK's most-watched drama series of the 21st century after more than 15 million viewers tuned in for its final episode

Line of Duty has also become the most popular TV drama series since March 1999, when ITVs A Touch Of Frost drew an audience of 15.83 million.

The show's success has led ITV Studios to strike a deal that will see series six air in China. The drama will also launch on Britbox in North America next week.

Julie Meldal-Johnsen, the executive vice president of global content at ITV Studios, said: 'Line of Duty is a phenomenon and were delighted to be able to take the show to an even wider audience as a result of these sales.

Top of the tree: The figure has eclipsed that of the rather more wholesome police drama Heartbeat, with the genteel 1960s based show winning 15.16 million viewers for a single episode in 2000

Excitement: The hit show, created by Jed Mercurio, saw a record 15.24 million people tuning in to discover the identity of the 'fourth man,' code-named H, on Sunday evening

'Its great that fans everywhere from Finland to China will be able to watch this thrilling season of the show. Im sure there will be more countries on the horizon too, which can only be a good thing for audiences across the globe.'

Meanwhile, Line of Duty fans are being offered the chance to buy an AC12 HAS number plate for 1,200.

According to The Sun, owner Kenny Connor has put the registration - which is a reference to the famous AC-12 anti-corruption unit and the abbreviation of 'gaffer' Ted Hastings' surname - up for sale.

The fourth man: Fans discovered Detective Ian Buckells was the elusive H on Sunday evening

Elsewhere, Adrian Dunbar - who plays Hastings - is auctioning his jacket from the series to raise money for childrens projects in Kenya and Malawi.

The listing explains: 'Adrian Dunbars official series six AC12 cast puffer jacket - what more can we say? Made by Result Urban, size large. Adrian has kindly donated this item for auction.

'A certificate of authenticity will be provided to the winning bidder.'
Clare Danes transformed into her character, a widow named Cora, as she filmed The Essex Serpent in London on Monday.

The actress, 42, was joined by her co-stars Frank Dillane and Hayley Squires to film funeral scenes.

Clare wore a formal morning dress which was in keeping within the Victorian era of which the series is set.

Action! Clare Danes transformed into her character, a widow named Cora, as she filmed The Essex Serpent on Monday

Clare cut a regal figure in the costume which featured a velour embroidered cape with ruffled neckline and a black floor-length gown.

The tight bodice and cuffs of the dress were adorned with hundreds of black sequins.

The Homeland star's strawberry blonde locks were styled in a voluminous up-do complete with big black bow.

In character: The actress, 42, was joined by her co-stars Frank Dillane (pictured) and Hayley Squires as they filmed funeral scenes

Hello! Frank, 30, who played Tom Riddle in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, gave a friendly wave to fans who had gathered to watch the scenes unfold

Dramatic: Clare cut a regal figure in the costume which featured a velour embroidered cape with ruffled neckline and a black floor-length gown

Detailed: The tight bodice and cuffs of the dress were adorned with hundreds of black sequins

She completed her look with drop earrings and heeled boots.

Clare took off a pair of black leather gloves in-between takes as she chatted to Frank.

The actor, 30, who played Tom Riddle in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, gave a friendly wave to fans who had gathered to watch the scenes unfold

The cast appeared in high spirits as they gathered on a set of steps ahead of filming the funeral scenes.

Behind-the-scenes: Clare took off a pair of black leather gloves in-between takes as she chatted to Frank

Costume: She completed her look with drop earrings and heeled boots

Safety first: A crew member chatted to the pair in a face mask as they prepared to film scenes amid the pandemic

Journey: The programme follows Cora, a widow who moves from London to the Essex village of Aldwinter in search of a mythical sea creature

The programme follows Cora, a widow who moves from London to the Essex village of Aldwinter in search of a mythical sea creature.

Tom Hiddleston plays Will Ransome, the trusted leader of the local community.

Mother-of-two Claire, who is married to British actor Hugh Dancy, replaced Keira Knightley in the role when the actress had to withdraw for 'family reasons'.

A representative for the star confirmed that she decided to pull out of the project over childcare concerns for two daughters, Edie and Delilah

The spokesperson told the Daily Mail at the time: 'There wasn't a comfortable scenario for Keira that could be put in place for an extended period of childcare required for the four-and-a-half-month production.'

Replacement: Mother-of-two Claire, who is married to British actor Hugh Dancy, replaced Keira Knightley in the role when the actress had to withdraw for 'family reasons'

Motherhood: Keira decided to pull out of the project over childcare concerns for two daughters, Edie and Delilah (pictured in 2018)

The cast: Frank and Clare chatted on the steps ahead of the cameras rolling

Emotional: Clare and Hayley cut solemn figures as the cameras rolled for the funeral scenes

Happy: But off camera, Clare was in great spirits and was spotted laughing with a crew member

Last minute preparations: The pair inspected a piece of paper as they prepared to film the scenes

Maldon District Council confirmed that filming would be taking place in the area, telling Essex Live in a statement: 'We are delighted that the production company has chosen the Maldon District as one of their locations for a new six-part drama.

'They have a sizeable base on Promenade Park, and they will minimise any disruption during their filming and ensure safety can be maintained at all times.

'We would remind everyone that while this is clearly exciting, social distancing must still be maintained at all times.'

Patient: A member of the cast sat on the steps as he waited for the cameras to roll

Set in the Victorian era of the 1890s, the drama follows Cora Seaborne (Danes), a newly widowed woman relishing her newfound freedom from an abusive husband, who moves from London to a small village in Essex.

Not long after arriving, she becomes intrigued by a local superstition: a mythical sea serpent known as the Essex Serpent that has returned to the area.

The See-Saw production is being directed by Clio Barnard, who's best known for her work on film The Selfish Giant (2013), and produced by Andrea Cornwell.

Anna Symon will serve as the lead writer. Her resume includes penning the British historical drama series, Mrs. Wilson (2018).

Journey: Set in the Victorian era of the 1890s, the drama follows Cora Seaborne (Danes), a newly widowed woman relishing her newfound freedom from an abusive husband

Both Barnard and Symon will also play serve as executive producers alongside Jamie Laurenson, Patrick Walters, Hakan Kousetta, Emile Sherman, and Iain Canning, according to Deadline.

Apple gave the green light and ordered The Essex Serpent to series in August 2020.

While it has yet to be announced, the release date for The Essex Serpent is expected to be next year.
Emily Blunt will star alongside Chaske Spencer in award-winning director Hugo Blick's new western for the BBC, with filming already underway in Spain.

Written and directed by 56-year-old Blick  who also wrote Amazon's spy thriller The Honourable Woman  the epic series is set in the mythic mid-American landscape in the year of 1890.

The plot follows Englishwoman Cornelia Locke (played by Blunt, 38) who arrives into the new and wild landscape of the West which is where she meets an ex-cavalry scout Eli Whipp (played by Spencer, 46) - to wreak revenge on the man she sees as responsible for the death of her son.

Exciting: Emily Blunt, 38, will star alongside Chaske Spencer, 46,in award-winning director Hugo Blick's new western for the BBC, with filming already underway in Spain

Cornelia and Eli soon join together and discover a shared history which must be defeated at all costs, if either of them are to survive.

The cast will also include Rafe Spall (Jurassic World: The Fallen Kingdom), Tom Hughes (Victoria), Stephen Rea (The Honourable Woman), Valerie Pachner (The Kingsman), Toby Jones (Detectorists), Ciaran Hinds (The Terror), Malcolm Storry (The Princess Bride), Steve Wall (The Witcher), Nichola McAuliffe (Tomorrow Never Dies), Sule Rimi (Black Earth Rising) and Cristian Solimeno (Avenue 5).

The English will be produced by Drama Republic.

Speaking about teaming up with Blunt, director Blick gushed: 'The chance to make a Western with Emily Blunt and the cast is so delicious I'm still wondering if it's one of those weird dreams we were all having during lockdown...

Epic: The series is set in the mythic mid-American landscape in 1890, with Blunt playing Cornelia Locke and Spencer (pictured) in the role of ex-cavalry scout Eli Whipp

'If not, a thrilling, romantic, epic horse-opera is heading to your screen sometime next year, and I couldn't be more excited.'

Drama Republic's CEO Greg Brenman  who will executive produce for Drama Republic alongside Blick and Blunt - added of the project: 'Hugo Blick has created a compelling, modern love story set against the epic landscape of a Western.

'The English is a true adventure that will tell us as much about the times we live in today as the period in which it is set.'

Co-star: British actor Rafe Spall will star alongside Blunt and Spencer (pictured on the 2020 set of The Salisbury Poisonings)

Piers Wenger, Director of BBC Drama, commented: I'm delighted that Hugo's beautiful scripts are finally coming to life in The English.

'With a cast led by the exceptional Emily Blunt and Chaske Spencer, I have no doubt that this thrilling and compelling story will be a treat for BBC audiences when it hits our screens.'

It comes after Blunt and her husband John Krasinski are reportedly battling Paramount Pictures over their compensation for their upcoming film A Quiet Place II.

Pay up! Blunt and John Krasinski, 41, are negotiating with Paramount for more compensation on A Quiet Place II after the studio reportedly shrank the film's exclusive theatrical window

The celebrity couple are said to be fighting for additional compensation from the studio after it opted to shorten the horror film's exclusive theatrical window, a person familiar with the negotiations told Bloomberg.

According to the source, Krasinski and Blunt are keen to make up for the lost revenue, as most of their payment is tied to how well the film performs in theaters, as opposed to on streaming service.

DailyMail.com has reached out to representatives for Blunt and Krasinski for comment.
A former World War II airfield in rural Oxfordshire went back in time on Tuesday as filming continued on the set of forthcoming miniseries Masters Of The Air.

The new drama, the latest instalment in the Band Of Brothers series, is based on the exploits of the Eighth Air Force of the United States Army, who famously brought the war straight to Hitler's doorstep by dropping bombs on Berlin.

With work already well underway on the show, an adaptation of Donald L. Miller's 2007 novel, a replica Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress was seen getting into position on a large airfield in Abingdon, some six miles south of Oxford.

Authentic: A former World War II airfield in rural Oxfordshire went back in time on Tuesday as a replica Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress was jockeyed into position for forthcoming miniseries Masters Of The Air

The impressive plane was a double for the famous four-engine bomber, built by the United States Army in the 1930s and deployed to bomb enemy targets across mainland Europe during World War II.

Classified as a strategic weapon, the B-17 played a pivotal role in toppling Nazi Germany's grip on Europe during the 1940s, dropping more bombs than any other US aircraft during the bitter conflict.

From an estimated 1.5 million tons of bombs to decimate Germany and its occupied territories - among them France, Belgium, Poland, Hungary and the Netherlands - more than 640,000 tons were distributed from the B-17 before the Nazi stranglehold on Europe was loosened.

Powerful: The impressive plane is a four-engine bomber, built by the United States Army in the 1930s and deployed to bomb enemy targets across mainland Europe during World War II

Deadly: Classified as a strategic weapon, the B-17 played a pivotal role in toppling Nazi Germany's grip on Europe during the 1940s, dropping more bombs than any other US aircraft (pictured dropping bombs on Germany in 1943)

Two non-flying replica B-17's are understood to be in use while filming continues in Oxfordshire, with ground vehicles used to jockey them into position ahead of every scene.

Cast-members dressed military uniform from the period were visible as they mingled alongside US army jeeps between takes on the Abingdon airstrip.

Producers Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg have constructed a sprawling US airforce base in the British countryside to film the drama - at an eye-watering cost of 5 million.

Like the real thing: Two non-flying replica B-17's are understood to be in use while filming continues in Oxfordshire, with ground vehicles used to steer them into position

WHO ARE THE EIGHTH AIR FORCE? The Eighth Air Force was part of the United States Army, and brought the war to Hitler's doorstep by bombing Berlin, Hanover, and Dresden to destroy enemy targets like rail facilities and oil refineries during World War II. It was established in 1944 after the redesignation of VIII Bomber Command, and was the largest in terms of personnel, aircraft, and equipment deployed in the war. As well as strategic bombing, the aircrews were expected to engage in air-to-air fighter combat at 25,000 ft. Their bombing against Nazi Germany was the longest military campaign of the Second World War. Bomber crews were an elite part of the American Air Force, with notable members of the team including actors Jimmy Stewart and Clark Gable Advertisement

The Hollywood heavyweights are producing the Apple+ TV series, which started shooting in the UK in February and features Callum Turner, Austin Butler, Anthony Boyle and Jude law's son, Rafferty, among its cast.

Masters Of The Air is based on Donald L. Miller's book Masters of the Air: America's Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany.

It was initially reported that HBO had planned to televise the series, when rumours first swirled almost a decade ago back in 2012, by 2019, it was revealed that Apple TV had made a deal with Spielberg and Hanks' production companies for the series.

A force to be reckoned with: Classified as a strategic weapon, the B-17 played a pivotal role in toppling Nazi Germany's grip on Europe during the 1940s

While Deadline Hollywood reports 10 episodes at $200 million, the Hollywood Reporter has claimed it will be nine episodes at $250 million.

Established in 1944 after the redesignation of VIII Bomber Command, the Eighth Air Force was the largest in terms of personnel, aircraft, and equipment that was deployed during the war.

Their bombing campaign against Nazi Germany was the longest of the Second World War and was considered a war within a war until Allied soldiers crossed into the country in the final months of the conflict.

Impressive: Producers Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg have constructed a sprawling US airforce base in the British countryside to film the drama - at an eye-watering cost of 5 million

Bomber crews were an elite part of the American Air Force, with notable members of the team including actors Jimmy Stewart and Clark Gable, and they were expected to engage in air-to-air fighter combat at 25,000 ft.

It is hoped that the series will emulate the success of Band Of Brothers, the American war drama miniseries also produced by Spielberg and Hanks back in 2001.

Based on based on historian Stephen E. Ambrose's 1992 book of the same name, the show dramatised the history of "Easy" Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, of the 101st Airborne Division.
The City of Hartford has some magnificent architecture and just incredible character, so were thrilled that so many production companies are discovering Hartford. We encourage that, and we want as many as possible, Mayor Luke Bronin said. Its a great thing to raise the profile of the city, but its also a great boost for the local economy when you have this many members of a production team in the city week after week.
He's had his fair share of interesting events as a world famous actor and writer.

But Seth Rogen never forgot being tempted to join Scientology while pitching a movie with Judd Apatow to Tom Cruise.

The 39-year-old actor wrote about meeting the Mission Impossible star in his new collection of essays, Yearbook, and recalled the day while chatting on The Howard Stern Show.

Yikes! Seth Rogen never forgot being tempted to join Scientology while pitching a movie with Judd Apatow to Tom Cruise; seen in 2019

While noting that Tom had 'looked weird' in press recently, Cruise used that time to try and recruit the duo.

'A few hours into the meeting, the Scientology stuff comes up,' Seth noted. 'He said, "I think the pharmaceutical industry is making me look bad." He said, "You should see what they do to my friend Louis Farrakhan."

Cruise then pitched the guys on joining the religious cult, which has a heavy celebrity following including John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, Beck, Beck, Juliette Lewis and Danny Masterson.

'A few hours into the meeting, the Scientology stuff comes up,' Seth noted. 'He said, "I think the pharmaceutical industry is making me look bad." He said, "You should see what they do to my friend Louis Farrakhan"' (seen in 2018)

'I'll never forget the wording he used,' he said. "'It's like with Scientology ... If you let me just tell you what it was really about just give me like 20 minutes to, like, really just tell you what it was about, you would say, "No f***ing way. No f***ing way."'

He added, 'The wording, I was like, "Is that a good thing to be saying?"'

The Pineapple Express star said, 'And I'm like, 'Is he gonna bite? Am I gonna bite? Can we come out of this? Are we strong enough to have him do this to us and not be converted? I don't know if I am. I'm generally a weak-willed, weak-minded person. I would assume on the grand scale of people, if they got [Tom], what chance do I have?'

Woah! Cruise then pitched the guys on joining the religious cult, which has a heavy celebrity following including John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, Beck, Beck, Juliette Lewis and Danny Masterson.

'Thank god Judd was like, "Eh, I think we're good. Let's just talk about movies and stuff,"' Seth added. 'Oof, dodged that bullet.

'If I was there alone, I would be singing a very different tune right now.'

Seth and Judd have worked together on a number of projects after Freaks and Geeks, including Apatow's directorial debut, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and followed up by Knocked Up and Funny People.
The factual drama Danny Boy is set to air on the BBC later this Spring.

And Toby Jones transformed into human rights lawyer Phil Shiner on an Iraqi war crimes' crusade in new images released from the upcoming show on Tuesday.

The single drama follows the real life events of Phil's pursuit of British soldiers accused of war crimes.

Serious: Toby Jones transformed into a human rights lawyer on an Iraqi war crimes' crusade in new images released the upcoming BBC drama Danny Boy on Tuesday

Former lawyer Phil and his firm Public Interest Lawyers made more than 1,000 claims involving the British military following the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

In the new pictures Toby, 54, dressed smartly in a beige overcoat and striped scarf as he carried a collection of files in his arms.

The story homes in on soldier Brian Wood - played by Anthony Boyle - who embarks on a journey from war hero to alleged murderer following his time in Iraq.

Exciting: The single drama follows the real life events of human rights lawyer Phil Shiner's [Toby Jones] pursuit of British soldiers accused of war crimes

Disgraced: Shiner was struck off as a solicitor in 2007 after being found guilty of misconduct and dishonesty relating to false abuse claims against British troops (right is the real Shiner)

After returning home from service Wood is accused of war crimes by Shiner, who makes it his mission to undercover the 'crimes' of British soldiers.

Wood looked smart in a dark suit in one of the new images released as he waited outside a court room.

He is also seen in another shot stood next to his wife Lucy Wood played by Leah McNamara.

Lawyer Deena Aayari - played by Kiran Sonia Sawar - and Patrick O'Connor played by Tom Vaughan-Lawlor are also seen looking over documents in another tense image.

Star: The story homes in on soldier Brian Wood - played by Anthony Boyle (pictured) - who embarks on a journey from war hero to alleged murderer following his time in Iraq

Real life: After returning home from service Wood (pictured in April, right) is accused of war crimes by Shiner, who makes it his mission to undercover the 'crimes' of British soldiers

Drama: Viewers will see Shiner and Wood (actor Anthony Boyle pictured) go head-to-head in a moral and legal battle that follows the story from checkpoint Danny Boy to the courtroom

Family: Wood is also seen in another shot stood next to his wife Lucy Wood played by Leah McNamara

Viewers will see Shiner and Wood go head-to-head in a moral and legal battle that follows the story from checkpoint Danny Boy to the courtroom.

The story is set to investigate one of Britain's biggest ever public inquiries, the Al-Sweady Inquiry.

The drama explores the effect Brian's experience has not just on him, but also on his family.

Tough: The drama explores the effect Brian's experience has not just on him, but also on his family including his father and ex-soldier, Gavin, played by Alex Ferns, (right) and his wife Lucy

True tale: The real Brian Wood is pictured with his family after collecting his MC (Military Cross) at Buckingham palace, with the new BBC show recreating the moment in the show

This includes his father and ex-soldier, Gavin, played by former EastEnder Ferns, and his wife Lucy, played by Leah McNamara.

Boyle said: 'I'm thrilled to be telling Brian's extraordinary story. We get to explore not just the realities of war, but how they can come back to haunt you.'

Toby Jones added: 'Robert has written an extraordinarily compelling, intelligent and nuanced script, and it's a real honour to be working with Danny Boy's exceptional cast and creative team to bring it to the screen.'

Work: Lawyer Deena Aayari - played by Kiran Sonia Sawar - and Patrick O'Connor played by Tom Vaughan-Lawlor are also seen looking over documents in another tense image

Real life: The story is set to investigate one of Britain's biggest ever public inquiries, the Al-Sweady Inquiry (pictured is lawyer Patrick O'Connor played by Tom Vaughan-Lawlor)

Shiner founded and ran Public Interest Lawyers before it was shut in 2016 and he was later struck off in 2017 for 'misconduct'.

Several of the allegations centered on the Battle of Danny Boy, when 28 Iraqi insurgents were killed and nine militants were taken to the Camp Abu Naji military base to be questioned - later claiming they had been subjected to torture.

Shiner was struck off as a solicitor in 2017 after being found guilty of misconduct and dishonesty relating to false abuse claims against British troops.

Job: Shiner (right) founded and ran Public Interest Lawyers before it was shut in 2016 and he was later struck off in 2007 for 'misconduct'

Important project: Director Sam Miller is pictured with actor Toby Jones on location for Danny Boy

Writer Robert Jones continued: 'Here's a man who won a medal for valour, but whose toughest test was the scrutiny that followed. External scrutiny, and soul searching too - Brian Wood's story is a fascinating one for a writer to explore.

'It's been a great privilege to work with producers of such distinction and I'm really delighted we're going into production with Sam Miller at the helm and a terrific cast and crew.'

Sue Horth and Colin Barr, executive producers for Expectation, said: 'Robert's script is a razor-sharp examination of one of our most urgent and morally challenging questions: when is killing an act of war and when is it an act of murder?

Tense: Several of the allegations centered on the Battle of Danny Boy, when 28 Iraqi insurgents were killed and nine militants were taken to the Camp Abu Naji military base to be questioned

Opinions: Viewers will see Shiner (centre) and Wood go head-to-head in a moral and legal battle that follows the story from checkpoint Danny Boy to the courtroom

'The story of Colour Sergeant Brian Wood and human rights lawyer, Phil Shiner - who accused him of war crimes - goes straight to the heart of that question and it's an incredible honour to be able to tell it.

'Bringing it to life for BBC Two with Sam and Simon and an amazing cast only adds to that sense of privilege.'

Danny Boy is written by Bafta-winner Robert Jones (Murder, Party Animals), directed by Sam Miller (I May Destroy You, Luther) and produced by Simon Lewis (Three Girls, The Nest).

It was commissioned by Patrick Holland, Controller of BBC Two, and Piers Wenger, Director of BBC Drama. Executive Producers are Colin Barr and Susan Horth for Expectation, and Lucy Richer, Jo McClellan and Clare Sillery for the BBC.

Danny Boy will air on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer later this Spring.

New role: Boyle (pictured) said: 'I'm thrilled to be telling Brian's extraordinary story. We get to explore not just the realities of war, but how they can come back to haunt you'

Upcoming: The show was commissioned by Patrick Holland, Controller of BBC Two, and Piers Wenger, Director of BBC Drama
Cindy Crawford is still landing top magazine covers at the age of 55.

On Tuesday the Illinois native posted to Instagram her latest score: the cover of Vogue Brazil where she was shot in black-and-white by Luigi and Iango.

The mother to supermodel Kaia Gerber said in her caption that the photo shoot was 'so much fun' and it reminded her what she 'loves about modeling.'

Still haute stuff: Cindy Crawford is still landing top magazine covers at the age of 55. On Tuesday the Illinois native posted to Instagram her latest score: the cover of Vogue Brazil where she was shot in black-and-white by Luigi and Iango

'Thanks to @luigiandiango for reminding me what I love about modeling  collaboration and big hair! Ha! This shoot for @voguebrasil was so much fun! ' said the siren.

The wife of Casamigos co-founder Rande Gerber was seen on the cover with her hair worn down in sexy waves as she added a black outfit and a chunky gold chain necklace with diamonds on it.

Inside, Cindy flaunted her stunning figure in a nearly nude image in which she wore a beaded bra with jeweled designs hanging from it over her flat tummy.

She didn't have any underwear showing and had her arms crossed to protect her modesty.

The model completed the look with edgy studded black heels and a long black veil that completely covered her and reached down to the floor and beyond.

Other images showed the Versace favorite in black tights and a leotard with lace sleeves as well as high heels; the outfit proved she is in top shape with no flaws on her 5ft9inch frame.

Cindy also traded out the leotard for a lacier top in photos she shared to her Instagram account on Wednesday.

In another photo she pulled at her voluminous hair while wearing an eye-catching black leather top composed to straps held together with large jeweled buttons.

The ex of Richard Gere went out to credit her hairstylist as Akkishi Rakawa, makeup artist as Georgi Sandev and styling by Pedro Sales.

Lisa Rinna clicked like on the post and said, 'Gorge' with a red heart.

Over the weekend she shared a post about Mother's Day.

'Forever grateful to @presleygerber and @kaiagerber for making me a mom and teaching me so much along the way-- and for own mom (@jsmaki) who taught me how to love unconditionally. Motherhood is the greatest gift of my life  Sending love to all the mamas out there today and everyday,' she noted.

It's been quite the year for the runway favorite.

In January it was reported Crawford and Gerber purchased a $10 million waterfront home in Miami Beach.

Proud of her man: Last week she posed in front of a truck featuring her husband Rande with Casamigos co-founder George Clooney

The Gucci model and her businessman husband, 58, are believed to have splashed out on the midcentury-modern house, which is situated in Miami Beach, Florida, on a stretch of land that's a known favorite among celebrities.

According to a real estate source - who reported the news to People magazine - the couple spent $9.6 million on the property, which has five bedrooms, four and a half bathrooms, and almost 4,000 square feet of living space.

The property was built in the 1950s and sits on a lot with more than 100 feet of water frontage.

Esther Percal of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices EWM Realty was the buyer's agent, while Mirce Curkoski and Albert Justo of One Sotheby's International Realty served as listing agents.

Mommy: Over the weekend she shared a post about Mother's Day. 'Forever grateful to @presleygerber and @kaiagerber for making me a mom and teaching me so much along the way'

Her mommy: The cover girl also shared a pic with her mother: 'And for own mom (@jsmaki) who taught me how to love unconditionally. Motherhood is the greatest gift of my life  Sending love to all the mamas out there today and everyday,' she noted

The news comes nine months after the sale of a home Cindy and Rande own in Malibu, California, reportedly fell through, after the buyers - who were set to close a $6.5 million sale on the property - pulled out amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Just like mommy! Daughter Kaia is also a high-end fashion model; seen in April

Cindy and Rande reportedly told the potential buyers that there would be no issues with canceling the sale of the home and the pair returned the deposit.

And now that they've bought a new home, the couple will likely take some time to decorate the interior, as they both have specific needs when it comes to their home furnishings.

Speaking about buying a new couch in 2019, Cindy - who has Kaia, 19, and Presley, 21, with Rande - explained: 'My husband is very, very picky about the cushion density and seat depth because he's taller. We've got it down now. We know the dimensions we like, so sometimes we just change the body style.'
She is known for turning up the heat on social media.

Yet Carol Vorderman managed to combine hilarity and sauciness as she took to Instagram on Tuesday to share a sizzling swimsuit snap.

The former Countdown presenter, 60, looked incredible as she showcased her eye-popping assets in response to Alan Carr's snap earlier in the day, in which he was seen in a coconut shell bra while standing on a balcony.

Oh my! Carol Vorderman managed to combine hilarity and sauciness as she took to Instagram on Tuesday to share a sizzling swimsuit snap

Carol was seen biting her finger in the sizzling snap, in which she sported the plunging one-piece while posing on a balcony - in a mimic of Alan's shot.

Alan, who recently admitted to putting on three stone during Britain's coronavirus lockdown, was pining for a trip abroad as he shared the hilarious throwback snap of himself while restrictions are beginning to loosen.

The comedian, 44, posted a photo of himself sporting a coconut shell bra while standing on a balcony from a previous holiday.

Alan sported a hilariously glum expression in the snap where he also appeared to sport a Hawaiian skirt and a gold necklace.

Hitting back: The former Countdown presenter, 60, looked incredible as she showcased her eye-popping assets in response to Alan Carr's snap earlier in the day, in which he was seen in a coconut shell bra while standing on a balcony

In her matching snap, sultry Carol posed and wrote over the top: 'Oiiii Al. Get off my b****y balcony! #holiday soon'.

Alan's close pal Amanda Holden commented on the photo with a love heart while Ashley Roberts jokingly added: 'Nice cones'.

Lockdown restrictions are loosening further on May 17 with hotels, hostels and B&B reopening in the UK while people will also be able to travel to countries on the green list including Australia, New Zealand, Iceland, Israel and Singapore.

Carol is well known for flaunting her incredible frame and she was up to her old tricks once more on Thursday when she again took to Instagram to snap selfies while sporting a tight khaki jumpsuit.

Sizzling: Carol is well known for flaunting her incredible frame and she was up to her old tricks once more on Thursday when she again took to Instagram to snap selfies while sporting a tight khaki jumpsuit

The former Countdown presenter looked incredible in the sizzling one-piece which left very little to the imagination thanks to its tight fit.

Carol was wowing in the ensemble as she held her hand to her hip to highlight her tiny waist alongside the cinching belt.

She added a caption reading: 'Got actual clothes on (not leggings today)... this is called adulting... Pretending to be a grown-up today'.
Russian bombshell Irina Shayk flaunted her taut tummy in a black crop-top while strolling with her four-year-old daughter Lea De Seine Cooper in Manhattan on Tuesday.

The 35-year-old Lions Model stood out in a pair of split-hem zebra-print pants beneath a white trench coat and matching boots.

Irina finished off her daytime attire with a messy updo, dark sunglasses, and a tiny black purse.

Mommy and me! Russian bombshell Irina Shayk flaunted her taut tummy in a black crop-top while strolling with her four-year-old daughter Lea De Seine Cooper in Manhattan on Tuesday

Black and white ensemble: The 35-year-old Lions Model stood out in a pair of split-hem zebra-print pants beneath a white trench coat and matching boots

Shayk (born Shaykhlislamova) was also wearing a black face mask - even though Americans no longer have to wear masks outside.

New York City is reportedly experiencing its lowest COVID-19 positivity rate in six months, falling to 2.41% - according to city's health department.

Meanwhile, little Lea looked adorable in an argyle sweater over a white collared top, matching ruffled skirt, black leggings, and sneakers.

Last Friday, the Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 2 catwalker revealed how her precious princess takes part in her beauty routine to promote the launch of skincare company, Alo Wellness.

Big Apple babe: Irina finished off her daytime attire with a messy updo, dark sunglasses, and a tiny black purse

No longer mandatory: Shayk (born Shaykhlislamova) was also wearing a black face mask - even though Americans no longer have to wear masks outside

On the mend! New York City is reportedly experiencing its lowest COVID-19 positivity rate in six months, falling to 2.41% - according to city's health department

Skooting: Meanwhile, little Lea looked adorable in an argyle sweater over a white collared top, matching ruffled skirt, black leggings, and sneakers

'Now that my daughter is older, we have fun together with beauty rituals. She loves to participate in my beauty routine - from scrubbing masks off my face to playing with my favorite creams,' Irina told Harper's BAZAAR on Saturday.

'[I always instruct her] less is more. Be happy in your own skin and be kind to other people...Beauty comes from inside. A happy and kind woman is always beautiful.'

Shayk shares 50/50 joint legal and physical custody of Lea with her ex-fiancee - eight-time Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper - whom she split from in June 2019 after four years.

The amicable exes escort little Lea to a specialist school in the Financial District every Thursday for Russian lessons, according to Page Six.

'We have fun together with beauty rituals!' Last Friday, the Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 2 catwalker revealed how her precious princess takes part in her beauty routine to promote the launch of skincare company, Alo Wellness

Irina told Harper's BAZAAR on Saturday: 'She loves to participate in my beauty routine - from scrubbing masks off my face to playing with my favorite creams'

Shayk added: '[I always instruct her] less is more. Be happy in your own skin and be kind to other people...Beauty comes from inside. A happy and kind woman is always beautiful'

Nailed it: The pretty girl look determined as she rode her scooter down the street

All puffed out: Lea took a rest inside the stroller as her famous mother pushed

On April 21, the cherubic blonde made her Instagram debut in a picture with Irina, which was taken by the Philadelphia-born 46-year-old.

Bradley will next play a film director in Paul Thomas Andersons untitled coming-of-age film, which United Artists will release on November 26 - according to IndieWire.

The seventies San Fernando Valley-set flick formerly known as 'Soggy Bottom' also stars Cooper Hoffman, Alana Haim, and Benny Safdie.

'I always instruct her less is more': Shayk shares 50/50 joint legal and physical custody of Lea with her ex-fiancee - eight-time Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper - whom she split from in June 2019 after four years (pictured last Wednesday)

Bilingual child: The amicable exes escort little Lea to a specialist school in the Financial District every Thursday for Russian lessons
Having been announced as Armie Hammer's replacement in forthcoming Jennifer Lopez movie Shotgun Wedding, Josh Duhamel has admitted he didn't enjoy the manner in which he was cast.

The actor, 48, replaced Hammer, 34, after an ex-girlfriend accused Hammer of violently raping her in hotel room in 2017.

Hammer has also since been accused of having cannibalism and rape fantasies, with other ex-girlfriends accusing him of alleged physical and emotional abuse - all of which he has denied.

Bittersweet: Having been announced as Armie Hammer's replacement in forthcoming Jennifer Lopez movie Shotgun Wedding, Josh Duhamel [pictured] has admitted he didn't enjoy the manner in which he was cast

'It's not how I like to get roles,' Josh told the latest issue of Man About Town. 'I know Armie a little bit, and when I knew I was gonna get the part I emailed him and said, "Listen, I know you are going through it right now, I don't like to get roles like this and I just wanted to let you know that I am thinking about you and good luck, get through it!"

'He emailed me right back and said thank you so who knows, hopefully he gets through it.'

Asked about being Hollywood's 'Mr Nice Guy', the Love, Simon star said: 'I guess for me it's not being the nice guy, I just show up and show everybody respect and that's really the way I see it, everybody deserves basic human respect and we are all trying to do the same thing. I think we could be a lot kinder to each other.'

Admitting he doubted himself as an actor initially, he added: 'For the first 10 years or so I just felt like I was faking it, I didn't know what I was doing, I was just pretending I was a good actor, it's sometimes hard to believe that you are enough.

Replacement: Josh, 48, [L] replaced Hammer, 34, [R] after an ex-girlfriend accused Hammer of violently raping her in hotel room in 2017

Josh explained: 'I know Armie a little bit, and when I knew I was gonna get the part I emailed him and said, "Listen, I know you are going through it right now, I don't like to get roles like this and I just wanted to let you know that I am thinking about you and good luck, get through it!"'

He added: 'He emailed me right back and said thank you so who knows, hopefully he gets through it'

'But as soon as I stopped caring about what people thought, it helped my work in a great way.'

And of love scenes he mused: 'It's never a comfortable thing, you are supposed to be enacting this intimate scene but what you don't realise is there are camera guys, people coming up and fixing your hair or whatever, you never feel like... to me you go in there and you treat it like any other scene but naked. But butt-naked!'

On April 21, Josh wrapped his role as Tom in Shotgun Wedding - set to hit US screens on June 29, 2022 - alongside Lenny Kravitz and JLo.

Asked about being Hollywood's 'Mr Nice Guy', the Love, Simon star said: 'I guess for me it's not being the nice guy, I just show up and show everybody respect and that's really the way I see it'

Admitting he doubted himself as an actor initially, he added: 'For the first 10 years or so I just felt like I was faking it, I didn't know what I was doing, I was just pretending I was a good actor, it's sometimes hard to believe that you are enough'

Coming soon: On April 21, Josh wrapped his role as Tom in Shotgun Wedding alongside Lenny Kravitz and Jennifer Lopez

Josh said: 'It was one of the best experiences I've ever had working, honestly. You're in the Dominican Republic, which is absolutely beautiful. We shot at some of the most gorgeous places you've ever seen'

Josh continued: 'JLo was awesome to work with. Lenny Kravitz is just a stud. We had an awesome cast, we had an awesome crew, we had beautiful scenery all around. It's what you dream about when you set out to make movies'

He plays a groom whose lavish destination wedding is hijacked by criminals.

'It was one of the best experiences I've ever had working, honestly. You're in the Dominican Republic, which is absolutely beautiful. We shot at some of the most gorgeous places you've ever seen,' he recently gushed to People.

Read all about it! Read the full article, available now at manabouttown.tv

'JLo was awesome to work with. Lenny Kravitz is just a stud. We had an awesome cast, we had an awesome crew, we had beautiful scenery all around. It's what you dream about when you set out to make movies.'

Jason Moore's action rom-com also features Sonia Braga, Jennifer Coolidge, and Cheech Marin.

In reality, Josh - who stands tall at 6ft4in - is seeing pageant princess, Audra Mari, who is 21 years his junior.

He shares a seven-year-old son Axl Jack with ex-wife Fergie. Josh and the 46-year-old Grammy winner (born Stacy Ann Ferguson) finalized their divorce in November 2019 after eight years of marriage.

Read the full article, available now at manabouttown.tv.
John Mulaney was branded 'intense' as he returned to the stand-up stage just months after completing a 60-day rehab stint for cocaine and alcohol addiction.

Mulaney, 38, appeared on stage Monday for night one of his sold-out series, John Mulaney: From Scratch, at City Winery in Manhattan, where he spent a majority of the set 'processing his intervention and rehab experience,' according to Rolling Stone TV critic David Fear.

The series marks Mulaney's first stand-up show since completing his rehab stint earlier this year. News of his divorce from wife Anna Marie Tendler also broke the same day of his set.

'So John Mulaney at City Winery was... intense': John Mulaney has returned to doing stand-up just three months after completing treatment for cocaine and alcohol addiction (pictured 2019)

'So John Mulaney at City Winery was...intense,' tweeted David. '90 mins that was mostly processing his intervention and rehab experience. Remarkably raw, vulnerable, personal. 'When I'm alone, I realize I'm with the person who tried to kill me.' Hilarious, harrowing, brave, historic.'

Money writer Julia Glum also spoke highly of the set, tweeting '10/10 would see again.'

'Just left John Mulaney's first post-rehab show at City Winery. I don't know much about comedy, but imho he did a great job... an excellent mix of humor and honesty. I'm rooting for u, dude,' she wrote.

'I'm going to be really interested to see what gets written about this show tomorrow, but I certainly laughed and gasped "oh nooo, John!" out loud several times,' she added.

'I'm rooting for u, dude': Money writer Julia Glum also spoke highly of the set, tweeting '10/10 would see again' (pictured 2019)

Mulaney checked himself into a 60-day rehab program for cocaine and alcohol addiction in December. He has been in outpatient sober care for the last three months, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Mulaney has been candid about his struggles with alcohol in his comedy.

'I don't drink. I used to drink and then I drank too much and I had to stop. That surprises a lot of audiences because I don't look like someone who used to do anything,' he said in his 2012 comedy special, New In Town.

Matters of the heart: News of his divorce from wife Anna Marie Tendler also broke the same day of his set (pictured 2018)

'I quit drinking because I used to drink too much and then I would black out and I would "ruin parties."'

The pandemic proved to be difficult for the comedian as well.

'His fans know he's struggled in the past with sobriety, he has talked about it openly,' a source previously told Page Six. 'Unfortunately, he has struggled again during the pandemic.'

On top of his sobriety issues, Mulaney recently filed for divorce from Tendler, his wife of seven years.

'I am heartbroken that John has decided to end our marriage,' Tendler said through a spokesperson. 'I wish him support and success as he continues his recovery.'

A rep for Mulaney confirmed the divorce to Page Six: 'John will not have any further comment as he continues to focus on his recovery and getting back to work.'
She's been busy filming the upcoming gay romance drama My Policeman alongside Harry Styles in recent weeks.

And Emma Corrin was enjoying a well-deserved day off as she stepped out for a low-key solo stroll in Brighton on Tuesday.

The Crown actress, 25, cut a casual figure in a burnt orange jacket from BODE as she headed to a few shops in the seaside city.

Relaxed: Emma Corrin was enjoying a well-deserved day off from filming The Policeman as she stepped out for a low-key solo stroll in Brighton on Tuesday

She teamed the quirky shirt jacket with comfy black tracksuit bottoms and wore a baggy white shirt underneath.

Emma completed her relaxed look with a pair of black trainers and leather satchel as she stepped out while checking her phone.

She wore her blonde locks in a cropped do held back by a pair of sunglasses and put safety first by donning a white face mask as she left a shop holding a book.

Low-key: The Crown actress, 25, cut a casual figure in a burnt orange jacket from BODE as she headed to a few shops in the seaside city

Stepping out: She teamed the quirky shirt jacket with comfy black tracksuit bottoms and wore a baggy white shirt underneath

One Direction star Harry, 27, is taking the lead in the movie, which is set in Brighton in the 1950s, and based on Bethan Roberts' novel, focusing on police officer Tom, who is gay, but married to Marion (Emma) due to societal expectations.

He goes on to have an affair with museum curator Patrick Hazelwood (David).

Production on the film kicked off in Brighton last month, and it is currently unclear when the film will be released.

Engrossed: Emma completed her relaxed look with a pair of black trainers and leather satchel as she stepped out while checking her phone.

Natural: She wore her blonde locks in a cropped do held back by a pair of sunglasses

Harry will reportedly film sex scenes with co-star David in the upcoming romantic drama.

An insider said: 'Harry will be having sex on screen and they want it to look as real as possible. The plan is to shoot two romps between Harry and David, then another scene where Harry is naked on his own.'

A source added to The Sun: 'Not much is going to be left to the imagination. Harry is throwing himself into this new role and is really excited about the challenge, even though its a daunting task.

Precautions: Emma put safety first by donning a white face mask as she left a shop holding a book

'He always wants to do things that people wouldnt expect and challenge what people think about him  and this film will really do that.'

A spokesperson for Harry declined to comment when approached by MailOnline. MailOnline also contacted a representative for David at the time.

Baz Bamigboye revealed in The Daily Mail earlier this year that The Last Kingdom star David would portray the lover of Harry's character.

Day off: Emma looked like she was enjoying a bit of time away from the busy set as she went shopping

Quirky: The award-winning actress showed off her unique sense of style in the orange jacket as she stepped out

Rupert Everett will appear as the older version of Patrick in the film, while the former One Direction artist will be replaced by Linus Roache for scenes set years after their affair began.

Meanwhile Golden Globe winner Emma's character will be taken over by Gina McKee later in the film.

Rupert Everett will appear as the older version of Patrick in the film, while the former One Direction artist will be replaced by Linus Roache for scenes set years after their affair began, while Golden Globe winner Emma's character will be taken over by Gina McKee later in the film.

Drama: Harry Styles, 27, is taking the lead in the movie, which is set in Brighton in the 1950s, and based on Bethan Roberts' novel, focusing on police officer Tom, who is gay, but married to Marion (Emma) due to societal expectations

Something interesting? Emma seemed completely engrossed with something she was reading on her phone

The 2012 novel explores the sexual mores of the 1950s and the criminalisation of homosexuality.

The Amazon Studios production is being directed by Michael Grandage, and has been shooting since April 12 on locations in London and the South-East coast, while the more intimate moments will be filmed at one of the big film studios.

The film will be adapted by Oscar-nominee Ron Nyswaner, and Amazon will be working with Berlanti Schechter Productions.
Three-time Oscar nominee Tom Cruise finally addressed his leaked expletive-filled rant at crew members disobeying COVID-19 safety protocol on the set of Mission: Impossible 7 back in December.

'I said what I said,' the New York-born 58-year-old admitted in his Empire cover story hitting newsstands Thursday.

'There was a lot at stake at that point. But it wasn't my entire crew. I had the crew leave the set, and it was just select people.'

'I said what I said': Three-time Oscar nominee Tom Cruise (pictured April 23) finally addressed his leaked expletive-filled rant at crew members disobeying COVID-19 safety protocol on the set of Mission: Impossible 7 back in December

Tyrannical or not, Tom noted that Christopher McQuarrie's action spy film was 'never shut down again' so his intimidation appeared to work.

'And here we are, continuing to film. I do Zoom parties and kids' parties also, you know!' Cruise (born Thomas Mapother IV) joked.

'All those emotions were going through my mind. I was thinking about the people I work with, and my industry. And for the whole crew to know that we'd started rolling on a movie was just a huge relief. It was very emotional, I gotta tell you.'

At least five MI7 crew members have reportedly quit since the thrice-divorced father-of-three's outburst but production has carried on, last seen shooting in Yorkshire.

The New York-born 58-year-old admitted in his Empire cover story: 'There was a lot at stake at that point. But it wasn't my entire crew. I had the crew leave the set, and it was just select people'

Tom Cruise's Rant Transcript 'We are the gold standard. They're back there in Hollywood making movies right now because of US!! Because they believe in us and WHAT we're DOING!! I'm on the phone with every f***ing studio at night. INSURANCE COMPANIES!! PRODUCERS!! And they're looking at us, and using us to make their movies.' 'We are creating THOUSANDS of JOBS, you motherf***ers!' 'I don't EVER WANT TO SEE IT AGAIN!! EVER!! And if you don't do it, you're fired! If I see you do it again, you're f***ing gone. And anyone on this crew does it, THAT'S IT! And you, too. And you, too. And you. If you ever do it again, that's it.' 'No apologies. You can tell it to the people who are losing their f***ing homes because our INDUSTRY is shut down. It's not gonna put FOOD ON THEIR TABLE, or pay for their COLLEGE EDUCATION. THAT'S what I sleep with every night. The FUTURE of this F***ING INDUSTRY!! So, I'm sorry, but I am beyond your apologies. I have told you and now I want it and if you DON'T do it, you're OUT!' 'We are not shutting this F***ING MOVIE DOWN!!' 'Is it understood? If I see it again, you're f***ing gone. And so are you. So YOU'RE gonna cost him HIS job. If I see it on the set, YOU'RE gone, and YOU'RE gone. That's it. Am I clear? Do you understand what I want? Do you understand the responsibility that you have?' 'Because I will deal with your reason. And if you can't be reasonable, and if I can't deal with your logic, you're fired. That's it. That is it. I trust you guys to be here. That's it. That's it, guys.' 'That's what I'm thinking about. That's what I'm doing today. I'm talking to Universal, Paramount, Warner Bros. Movies are going because of us. We shut down, it's going to cost people their f***ing jobs, their homes, their familythat's what's happening. All the way down the line.' 'And I care about you guys. But if you're not going to help me, you're gone. OK? Do you see that stick? How many meters is that? When people are standing around a f***ing computer and hanging out around here, what are you doing?' Advertisement

Tom reprises his death-defying role as IMF agent Ethan Hunt in the seventh installment of the Mission Impossible franchise, which hits US/UK theaters in May 2022.

The MI7 ensemble includes Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames, Angela Bassett, Cary Elwes, Pom Klementieff, Vanessa Kirby, Rebecca Ferguson, and Hayley Atwell.

On Monday, Cruise made headlines for returning all three of his Golden Globe awards to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association over to its countless controversies - according to Deadline.

'And here we are, continuing to film': Tyrannical or not, Tom (pictured April 19) noted that Christopher McQuarrie's action spy film was 'never shut down again' so his intimidation appeared to work

Cruise (pictured April 20) continued: 'All those emotions were going through my mind. I was thinking about the people I work with, and my industry. And for the whole crew to know that we'd started rolling on a movie was just a huge relief. It was very emotional, I gotta tell you'

Fight scene with co-star Esai Morales: At least five MI7 crew members have reportedly quit since the thrice-divorced father-of-three's outburst but production has carried on, last seen shooting April 23 in Yorkshire

NBC already canceled next year's broadcast and everyone from Netflix to Amazon to Scarlett Johansson and Mark Ruffalo have spoken out about the lack of diversity in the HFPA.

Audiences can next catch the 5ft7in action star back in the danger zone as Captain Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell in Top Gun: Maverick, which finally hits US/UK theaters on November 19.

Joseph Kosinski's long-awaited $152M-budget sequel also features Val Kilmer, Ed Harris, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, and Miles Teller.

Outraged over scandal: On Monday, Tom (pictured in 1997) made headlines for returning all three of his Golden Globe awards to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association over to its countless controversies
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Sylvester Stallone has dropped the price of his stunning, very exclusive Beverly Hills mega mansion that has a generous view of Los Angeles.

In February the Rocky actor listed the home for an eye-watering $110M but had no takers so this week the movie icon lowered the price to $85M. That is a massive $25M reduction.

The property is extra big with a total of eight bedrooms and nine bathroom on a whopping 3.5 acres. The home is located in the exclusive North Beverly Park neighborhood of Beverly Hills where Lisa Vanderpump and Rod Stewart used to reside.

Price drop: Sylvester Stallone has dropped the price of his stunning Beverly Hills mega mansion that has a generous view of Los Angeles

Making a splash: In February the Rocky actor listed the home for an eye-watering $110M but had no takers so this week the movie icon lowered the price to $85M. That is a massive $25M reduction

Wow factor in the 90210: The property is extra big with a total of eight bedrooms and nine bathroom on a whopping 3.5 acres. The home is located in the exclusive North Beverly Park neighborhood of Beverly Hills where Lisa Vanderpump and Rod Stewart used to reside

Stallone, 74, first brought use the listing agency Hilton & Hyland with the agents being Paris Hilton's dad Rick along with his son Barron Hilton II and his son's wife Tessa. Rick's business partner Jeff Hyland was also listed.

But now the agent is Jade Mills of Coldwell Banker Previews International who has worked with Jennifer Aniston.

It was Sly's wife Jennifer Flavin Stallone - a former model that tied the knot with the actor in 1997 - who called on Mills.

Knockout price for his mega home in the hills: The 74-year-old Rocky actor seen in November 2019

'I pick up the phone one day, and this voice says, "Jade, this is Jennifer Stallone,"' Mills shared with People.

'I was absolutely thrilled to hear from her,' she cooed. 'She's a very, very successful woman with her skincare products. She's also an interior designer.

'So I was just really in awe of her. Both of them are really larger-than-life people.'

Mills is also working with agent Kurt Rappaport, she shared with the site.

Change is good: Stallone, 74, first brought the big guns as the listing agency is Hilton & Hyland with the agents being Paris Hilton's dad Rick along with his son Barron Hilton II and his son's wife Tessa. Rick's business partner Jeff Hyland is also listed. But now the agent is Jade Mills of Coldwell Banker Previews International who has worked with Jennifer Aniston

She cold called the power agent: It was Sly's wife Jennifer Flavin Stallone - former model that tied the knot with the actor in 1997 - who called on Mills

Jade added, 'A lot of these homes in Beverly Park are big, beautiful homes but don't have a view. This is an exceptional home with land, and it has a view.'

No doubt the home will serve as an oasis to those seeking privacy from the hustle and bustle of Tinseltown as it is at the end of a cul de sac up a long private driveway in an exclusive enclave.

And the security is very good: 'It's double gated. You're gated within the community, and then, again, when you get to the house, you're gated,' added Mills.

Stunning: The primary two-story building includes a formal living room which features views to Rodeo Drive and beyond

Not a bad place to have a cocktail: There is a large bar with high chairs and a painting as well as a sculpture from Rocky

The property was designed architect Edward Granzbach and built in 1994.

The entire square feet of the dwelling is 21,000 but Mills says it's not too big: 'Even though the square footage is very large, it's a pretty traditional floor plan. It's a really easy house to live in.'

The main house features six bedrooms and nine bathrooms including a master suite, three spacious en-suite bedrooms, and two maids bedrooms.

The opulent master suite includes a sauna, steam room, and office with a terrace.

Epic: This room is big enough for a pool table, a piano, a living room set; notice on the left art of Stallone himself

Another angle: The room is also seen at night with the doors open that offers a look at the twinkling lights below

A wonderful room for entertaining: One of the living rooms has French windows, high ceilings with a rod iron chandelier, and hardwood floors

There is also a two-story guest house with two en-suite bedrooms and full chef's kitchen as it was designed by Richard Landry.

The primary two-story building includes a formal living room which features views to Rodeo Drive and beyond.

As if that wasn't already enough, amenities also include a professional movie theater and cigar room with an air-filtration system.

Cooking up a storm: The chef's kitchen included two massive islands that can seat at least five people with room for a kitchenette table by the windows

Wow factor: No doubt you are treated to stunning views in this room that has floor to ceiling windows that look out at the hills

A nice pool view: Just out the doors is the long swimming pool with a patio area in front and behind

Old Hollywood glamour: There was also a professional movie theater on the property which has room for 20

There is also a home gym. Mills said: 'What would you expect Rocky's gym to look like? It truly is Rocky's gym, even though I'm sure the whole family uses it.'

The power pair have daughters Sophia, Sistine and Scarlet. And he is also father to sons Seargeoh and the late Sage Stallone from his first marriage to Sasha Czack (1974 to 1985).

He was also married to blonde bombshell Brigitte Nielsen from 1985 until 1987.

Outside there is a massive patio with an infinity pool, spa, and even a putting green. Any gearhead would be happy to know that there is also an air-conditioned eight-car garage with an art studio.

The gated community is also home to Hollywood royalty Denzel Washington and Eddie Murphy.

What a big office: In the actor's office there is a large window that looks at the yard as well as high ceilings; inside there are many images of him as Rambo and Rocky

The neighborhood has been in the news plenty as of late as a neighboring mega mansion is set to become the most expensive property to ever be auctioned, after it was listed for a cool $160million.

The Villa Firenze estate features 20 bedrooms and 23 bathrooms, and is currently owned by billionaire Air Lease Corporation CEO Steven Udvar-Hazy.

The property was previously listed in 2018 for $165million, but is now going up for auction with a guide price of $160million. It sold for $51M in April.

The home - which was built by architect William Hablinski sits on nine acres and can be accessed by its own street, as the listing is being managed by Hilton & Hyland

Where Rocky works out: There is also a home gym. Mills said: 'What would you expect Rocky's gym to look like? It truly is Rocky's gym, even though I'm sure the whole family uses it'

Sly has been keeping his real estate portfolio full as last month he reportedly purchased a Bermuda-style estate on the North end of Palm Beach in Florida for $35.375M.

The Oscar nominated actor bought the 13,241-square-foot property in a sale recorded December 16 by the Palm Beach County Clerk's office - according to the Palm Beach Daily News.

Sly (born Michael) reportedly financed the sale with a $15M, 30-year mortgage.

Despite being in his 70s, Sly doesn't seem to be slowing his acting career anytime soon as late last year, it was confirmed that the Rocky and Rambo star has joined the cast of James Gunn's The Suicide Squad.

Gunn posted a photo of the two together to his Instagram on November 15, sharing: 'Always love working with my friend @officialslystallone & our work today on #TheSuicideSquad was no exception.'

So much to take in: Agent Mills said, 'A lot of these homes in Beverly Park are big, beautiful homes but don't have a view. This is an exceptional home with land, and it has a view'

In the cut: There are stunning views including Rodeo Drive and beyond; here is a look from the home at night

The director went on: 'Despite Sly being an iconic movie star, most people still dont have any idea what an amazing actor this guy is.'

Stallone joins Margot Robbie, who reprises her role as Harley Quinn from the 2016 film directed by David Ayers.

Also returning for the standalone sequel are Viola Davis as government agent Amanda Waller, Joel Kinnaman as Rick Flag and Jai Courtney as Captain Boomerang.

Meanwhile, Idris Elba has stepped in to replace Will Smith as Bloodshot; Smith had to drop out of the film due to scheduling conflicts as he juggles projects following the COVID-19 shutdown in Hollywood.

Moving on up! Sly has been keeping his real estate portfolio full as last month her reportedly purchased a Bermuda-style estate on the North end of Palm Beach in Florida for $35.375M
Unfortunately, because of the nature of the incident we havent been able to talk to the mother. She is distraught, Norwich police Lt. Anthony Gomes said late Tuesday morning. Our heart goes out to the family. This is just a tragic incident for all of those involved. Police called their chaplain unit to the scene to help those who witnessed the mauling and those who saw the aftermath.
They were first linked on September 1, 2020 during a dinner date at Nobu in Malibu.

And eight months later, Kaia Gerber and Jacob Elordi are still going strong.

The 19-year-old model and the actor, 23, held hands as they enjoyed an afternoon stroll in the Soho borough of New York City.

So cute: They were first linked on September 1, 2020 during a dinner date at Nobu in Malibu. And eight months later, Kaia Gerber and Jacob Elordi are still going strong

Kaia looked casual but chic in blue jeans with a burnt orange turtleneck, adding a long black coat.

The teen model added black boots with a matching face mask.

She pulled back her short brunette tresses while opting to go makeup free, adding a pair of small framed sunglasses.

Kaia was seen playfully pulling up her knit up for a snap, as she posed up a storm while Jacob took the image.

Cheeky: Kaia was seen playfully pulling up her knit up for a snap, as she posed up a storm while Jacob took the image

Duo: The 19-year-old model and the actor, 23, held hands as they enjoyed an afternoon stroll in the Soho borough of New York City

Jacob wore cream colored bottoms with a graphic shirt, adding a brown toned hooded jacket.

The Euphoria star wore a printed bandanna around his neck with a tote bag slung over one shoulder.

Jacob donned a brown Styleguise face mask and sunglasses for his outing with Kaia.

The duo were seen meeting up with a pal who also dressed in a casual fashion.

Candid: Kaia was seen playfully pulling up her knit up for a snap, as she posed up a storm while Jacob took the image

Chatting: The teen model added black boots with a matching face mask; they were joined by a pal as well during their outing

Good times: Jacob wore cream colored bottoms with a graphic shirt, adding a brown toned hooded jacket

Soon after, the couple were spotted carrying two large purchases as they made their way around the Big Apple.

Kaia and Jacob were first spotted together on September 1, 2020 while on a date at Malibu's Nobu.

They were seen holding hands just one week later while out and about in New York City.

The model, who is the daughter of Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber, and the actor went Instagram official on Halloween while dressed as Elvis and Priscilla Presley.

Kaia previously dated comedian and actor Pete Davidson while Jacob has been linked to Joey King and Zendaya.

Errands run: Soon after, the couple were spotted carrying two large purchases as they made their way around the Big Apple

Staying close: It appeared to be wallpaper or art of some sort

Lovebirds: The duo stayed close as they crossed the street

Lucky in love: The pair confirmed their romance in October, by posting photos of themselves sharing a kiss in their Halloween costumes to their respective Instagram pages

Another one: Hours later, Kaia stepped out in a different top, this time opting for a black and white striped number

Holding hands: Meanwhile, Jacob opted to keep his same outfit on, just swapping out his face mask

Strike a pose: Kaia took off her mask briefly as she posed with her sunglasses in her mouth

Third look: After swapping out her knit for a striped top, Kaia stepped out again in a third ensemble, this time choosing gray sweats with a black top and a camel coat

Even more: After Kaia was seen stepping out solo, Jacob was spotted as well
Pregnant Jessie Ware displayed her baby bump in a plunging black gown as she hit the red carpet at the BRIT Awards on Tuesday night.

The musician, 36, - who announced just last week that she is expecting her third child - looked incredible in the full-length Valentino number as she arrived at the event at the O2 in London.

Jessie exuded glamour in the flattering dress that skimmed over her growing bump which she wore under a sheer black cape tied around her neck.

Gorgeous: Pregnant Jessie Ware displayed her baby bump in a plunging black gown as she hit the red carpet at the BRIT Awards on Tuesday night

The star completed her red carpet look with a pair of long black leather gloves and a black clutch bag as she posed for the cameras.

She wore her brunette tresses in loose waves over her shoulders and opted for a full face of makeup including a slick of light pink lip and blue eyeliner.

Jessie accessorised perfectly with dangly silver earrings and wore a statement silver bangle over her leather gloves.

Wow: The musician, 36, - who announced just last week that she is expecting her third child - looked incredible in the full-length number as she arrived at the event at the O2 in London

Jessie was nominated in the female solo artist category alongside Arlo Parks, Celeste and Dua Lipa as well as the best album category for What's your pleasure?.

In an explosion of colour and optimism, the 2021 BRIT Awards celebrated the achievements of British and international artists over the last 18 months.

The awards ceremony truly belonged to Dua Lipa, 25, as the evening saw her scoop the accolade for Female Solo Artist and beat Jessie for the the Mastercard British Album of the Year Award with her lockdown hit Future Nostalgia.

This year's Rising Star award winner Griff was handed the baton for the honour by 2020's Rising Star winner Celeste, who herself was up for three further awards.

And Arlo Parks was crowned Breakthrough Artist, one of the three awards the star was nominated for, after what has been an incredible year for the young London artist.

Lovely: Jessie exuded glamour in the flattering dress that skimmed over her growing bump which she wore under a sheer black cape tied around her neck

Style: The star completed her red carpet look with a pair of long black leather gloves and a black clutch bag as she posed for the cameras

The most nominated girl band in BRIT Award history, Little Mix, finally bagged the title of British Group and made history as the first-ever girl band to win, having been up for the award three previous times.

Meanwhile, the International Group category followed a similar suit, with the California girlband HAIM in attendance to accept their award.

And the accolade for International Female was given to the 19-year-old Bad Guy hitmaker Billie Eilish, who accepted the award via a pre-recorded video acceptance speech.

The Weeknd emerged victorious in the International Male Solo Artist category with his award presented by the former First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama.

The Blinding Lights hitmaker treated the audience to an unforgettable performance of his single Save Your Tears, pre-recorded from the US.

Dem Boy Paigon hitmaker JHUS scooped the Male Solo Artist award, which was accepted on his behalf by DJ Semtex in his absence.

Following a successful awards season stateside, One Direction heartthrob Harry Styles scooped Best British Single with his summertime track Watermelon Sugar.

Stunning: She wore her brunette tresses in loose waves over her shoulders and opted for a full face of makeup including a slick of light pink lip and blue eyeliner

Having fun: Jessie accessorised perfectly with dangly silver earrings and wore a statement silver bangle over her leather gloves

The first female artist to win the highest BRITs accolade and the UKs biggest selling artist of the year to date, Taylor Swift appeared in person to accept the special Global Icon award, which was presented by Game Of Thrones actress Maisie Williams.

Each winner was presented with the BRITs' first-ever collaborative double-trophy, designed by Es Devlin OBE and Yinka Ilori MBE, with each recipient encouraged to re-gift the smaller trophy to someone else.

The 2021 BRIT Awards, hosted by Jack Whitehall, marked the first major indoor music event in over a year as bosses released 2,500 free tickets to key workers.

The show saw a total of 11 awards handed out alongside nine unbeatable show-stopping performances, six of which were able to be staged live in stadium.

The show officially opened with fireworks and a UK exclusive performance by Coldplay of their new song Higher Power from the River Thames.

The BRITs is known for its unique collaborations and this year was no different, with Elton John and Years & Years' Olly Alexander joining forces for a spectacular performance of the Pet Shop Boys classic Its A Sin.

Exciting: Jessie is nominated in the female solo artist category alongside Arlo Parks, Celeste and Dua Lipa

The recorded version of the song will now be available to purchase as a single in support of the Elton John AIDS Foundation charity.

A second collaboration saw RagnBone Man and P!nk perform their new single Anywhere Away from Here, with P!nk joining remotely from the US.

And the musical duo were joined by special guest singers from the Greenwich and Lewisham NHS Trust Choir, providing an emotional climax to the show.

Another US star who made it to The O2 was Olivia Rodrigo who lit up the stage with a performance of her stunning hit single, Drivers Licence.

Finally: The 2021 Brit Awards , hosted by Jack Whitehall, will mark the first major indoor music event in over a year as bosses released 2,500 free tickets to key workers

How did BRIT Awards go ahead during the Covid pandemic? The 2021 BRIT Awards marked the first live music event in the UK since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The indoor ceremony and live show formed part of the Government's scientific Events Research Programme. Enhanced testing approaches will examine how events can take place without the need for social distancing after all restrictions are lifted on June 21. 4,000 tickets were made available for the live ceremony, just one fifth of the venue's 20,000 capacity, with 2,500 of those being given to key workers. The BRITs will play an important role in paving the way for the return of live music at scale as the UK emerges from the past year's restrictions. Audience members were not socially distanced or required to wear face coverings once seated inside the arena, though they were required in communal areas such as the toilet or main concourse. All attendees were allowed to purchase alcohol and concessions once inside the O2 Arena. Attendees were also required to follow existing Government guidance when travelling to the venue and adhere to rules set out by the event organisers. Among the rules, attendees had to provide proof of a negative lateral flow test result to enter the venue, and said test had to be taken at an asymptomatic testing site within 36 hours of the ceremony. Upon arrival at the venue, all attendess were asked to take a PCR test, and will then take another test five days after the ceremony It's hoped this will gather further evidence on the safety of indoor settings, reduced social distancing and the removal of non-pharmaceutical interventions like face coverings. Advertisement

Event: The Brit Awards are taking place in front of a live audience of 4,000 people at London 's The O2 six days before the next phase of lockdown lifts

Yay! The ceremony, which will be broadcast live on ITV, will celebrate the return to live music and nominee Dua Lipa has promised those attending that it will 'be a night to remember'

Twice nominated Headie One also blew the audience away with a special performance of Aint It Different/Princess Cuts, joined by fellow nominees AJ Tracey and Young T & Bugsey.

Presenters on the night included: Annie Mac, Boy George, Celeste, Lewis Capaldi, Kurupt FM and Mabel.

The event was Co-Chaired by Rebecca Allen (President EMI Records) and Selina Webb (EVP Universal Music UK), who oversaw the creative team which along with Devlin and Ilori also included BRITs TV Executive Producer Sally Wood.

Working the camera: Jessie had her growing baby bump on display in the stunning floor-length gown

Precautions: Among the rules, attendees must have proof of a negative lateral flow test result to enter the venue

Science: The indoor ceremony and live show will form part of the Government's scientific Events Research Programme

The BRIT Awards took place in front of a live audience of 4,000 people at London's The O2 six days before the next phase of lockdown lifts.

The ceremony, which was broadcasted live on ITV, celebrated the return to live music and Dua Lipa promised those attending that it would 'be a night to remember'.

The indoor ceremony and live show formed part of the Government's scientific Events Research Programme, and used enhanced testing approaches to examine how events can take place without the need for social distancing after all restrictions are lifted on June 21.

Working closely with the Government to adhere to safety guidelines, The BRITs was the first live music show at The O2 in over a year, with 4,000 tickets being up for grabs - just one fifth of the venue's 20,000 capacity.

Mother-to-be: Jessie looked radiant as she posed in the flowing gown on the BRITs red carpet

Success: Jessie (pictured), J Hus, Bicep, AJ Tracey are up for two awards as with Headie One

Incredible: Jessie complimented her dramatic gown perfectly by opting for dark eye makeup

Work it: Jessie is expecting her third child with husband personal trainer Sam Burrows

Star: AJ Odudu (left) interviews Jessie Ware (right) at The BRIT Awards 2021 at The O2 Arena on Tuesday

Stars: Maya Jama (left) interviews Jessie Ware (centre) and Celeste (right) in the media room during The BRIT Awards 2021

Powerful women: Jessie was sat with Celeste who is nominated in three categories tonight

Weather: Jessie struggled to control her flowing gown as the wind picked up while she was on the red carpet

The BRITs played an important role in paving the way for the return of live music at scale as the UK emerges from the past year's restrictions.

Audience members were not socially distanced or required to wear face coverings in the arena, but were required to follow existing Government guidance when travelling to the venue and adhere to rules set out by the event organisers.

Among the rules, attendees had to have proof of a negative lateral flow test result to enter the venue.

As part of the wider scientific research on the trial events, attendees were also asked to take a test after the event to gather further evidence on the safety of indoor settings, reduced social distancing and the removal of non-pharmaceutical interventions like face coverings.

All smiles: The artist looked like she was having a great time as she put on an animated display on the red carpet

Chatting: Jessie stopped to be interviewed as she walked the red carpet ahead of the ceremony
Billie Lourd took to Instagram Monday to share a few images from a Las Vegas getaway she took with partner Austin Rydell while their seven-month-old son Kingston Fisher Lourd Rydell rested upstairs.

The 28-year-old actress wore a glittery creme dress with a light brown overcoat and matching sandals, and had her blonde locks down and a face mask on during the excursion to the desert getaway.

She captioned the shot: '#parentsnightout means forcing @avstenrydell 2 take a bunch of #touristypics of you puttin your #legup #allovervegas and #runningdownupescalators.'

The latest: Billie Lourd, 28, took to Instagram Monday to share a few images from a Las Vegas getaway she took with partner Austin Rydell while their seven-month-old son Kingston Fisher Lourd Rydell rested upstairs

Lourd, who's been seen on Scream Queens and American Horror Story, added a 'special shout out to GrandMa @aenclade and PopE @erickb310 4 hangin upstairs with the kid while we acted like kids ... and yes Im #doublefistingmilkbar #longestcaptionevergoesto.'

Lourd was seen posing in a number of places including in front of an ornate chandelier installation in front of an escalator, in an elevator hall, and inside the elevator on the night out.

In a clip, Lourd was seen running down an upwards-bound escalator, celebrating her safe trip down at the end.

Rydell was clad in a long-sleeved grey tip with khaki pants and brown sneakers and a necklace with a face mask on, sipping a beverage during the outing.

The actress wore a glittery creme dress with a light brown overcoat and matching sandals, and had her blonde locks down and a face mask on during the excursion to the desert getaway

Lourd posed at the Milk Bar at one of the resorts

Lourd raised her leg toward Rydell in an elevator on the Las Vegas getaway

Lourd last week took to the social media site on May 4, which is designated as Star Wars Day, to remember her late mother Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia in the sci-fi anthology. She shared a shot of her baby son watching the end of the first Star Wars film.

Lourd welcomed her first child last September, less than four years after Fisher and her grandmother Debbie Reynolds died on consecutive days in December of 2016.

In a clip, Lourd was seen running down an upwards-bound escalator, celebrating her safe trip down at the end

Happy: The third-generation star gave a thumbs up at the end of the clip

Lourd, in conjunction with the Child Mind Institute, took part in the Getting Better Together campaign, which is aimed at spending awareness about mental health.

'As any of you who have lost a loved one know, it can make you feel extremely alone, but I'm here to tell you that you're not,' she said. 'Grief has become even more universal during this unprecedented and awful year and more people than you realize might be going through exactly what you're going through.

'So, don't isolate and stay in your head, reach out to your loved ones and friends. Find a support group online. Talk to a therapist.'
Edward Norton is joining the cast of Knives Out 2, the follow up to Rian Johnson's hit murder mystery.

Sources revealed to Deadline Hollywood on Tuesday that the 51-year-old actor is joining Daniel Craig, 53, who will reprise his role as detective Benoit Blanc in the film.

Dave Bautista, 52, was also recently cast in the sequel to the 2019 Golden Globe and Academy Award-nominated movie.

Good news for Knives Out fans! Edward Norton is joining the cast of the follow up to Rian Johnson's hit murder mystery. Seen in 2019

Johnson will write and direct the motion picture and produce alongside Ram Bergman. Plot details for the upcoming film are being kept under wraps, but it will center around Blanc solving another crime, and production is due to begin in Greece this summer.

The first movie's plot centered on the detective, who was sent to investigate the murder of a renowned crime novelist, and the film featured an all-star ensemble cast made up of the likes of Chris Evans, Jamie Lee Curtis, Toni Collette and Ana de Armas.

This comes after reports Netflix has forked out $400 million for the next two Knives Out movies.

Joining the ensemble: Dave Bautista, 52, was also recently cast in the sequel to the 2019 Golden Globe and Academy Award nominated movie. Seen in 2020

He's back! Daniel Craig, 53, will reprise his role as detective Benoit Blanc in the film. Seen in 2020

Since the news, Jamie Lee Curtis, 62, has revealed her on-screen alter-ego Lynda Drysdale, the daughter of wealthy mystery writer Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer, now deceased), and her extended family will not have a role in the upcoming films.

She wrote on Instagram: 'To clear up any rumors, the Thromby family is in family counseling and the therapist suggested they stay away from Benoit Blanc in the future. Linda was fine as she kicked her loafer wearing p**** of a husband, sorry @donjohnson to the curb.

'The rest of them are hustling. Ransom is apparently in the knitting sweater business, a new skill he picked up in the slammer. Joni has some vaginal scented bath bomb, Walt is self publishing his memoir. NONE of us will be joining Mr. Blanc in Greece. As the family spokesperson we wish the filmmakers all our best in their new venture (sic).'

Lights, camera, action! Johnson will write and direct the motion picture and produce alongside Ram Bergman. Plot details for the upcoming film are being kept under wraps, but it will centre around Blanc solving another crime, and production is due to begin in Greece this summer. Seen in 2019
Armie Hammer is reportedly in the midst of a new romance, despite being accused of rape by a former girlfriend in March that launched an investigation by the LAPD.

A source told People on Tuesday that the 34-year-old, who has been hunkered down in the Cayman Islands since December, has been 'dating a dental hygienist on the island' since earlier this year.

'They seem happy and comfortable with each other,' the source continued. 'They seem to have lots of friends and she introduces him to any friends who haven't met him before when they are out.'

Moving forward? Armie Hammer is reportedly in the midst of a new romance, despite being accused of multiple instances of rape by a former girlfriend in March that launched an investigation by the LAPD; Armie pictured in 2019

People's insider also alleged that the pair 'were recently on a "staycation" out East, the other side of the island from where they live.'

Hammer's rumored new romance comes just days after the accused rapist was pictured out for the first time in the Cayman Islands, where his estranged wife Elizabeth Chambers and their kids have been residing throughout the pandemic.

The Call Me By Your Name actor was seen enjoying the company of several friends during a lunch outing at Macabuca on Grand Cayman on Wednesday, May 5.

Sporting a shorter haircut, Hammer cut a casual figure in a T-shirt and shorts as he met up with five friends. He was seen sat next to an older couple and was also joined by three women.

'On April 24, 2017, Armie Hammer violently raped me for over four hours in Los Angeles. During which he repeatedly slapped my head against a wall bruising my face.' Armie's ex - known only as Effie - alleged in March. Hammer claims it was all consensual

An eyewitness revealed that the mood was 'super chill' and that 'no alcohol was consumed' during the lunch.

They added that the meet-up was casual and Hammer appeared to be 'nothing more than friends' with the women.

The actor has been in the Cayman Islands since December, when he flew out to reunite with his two children; Harper, six, and Ford, four after being separated for several months due to visa issues amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Just one month later the actor was rocked by accusations of abuse by several ex-girlfriends along with a series of leaked messages online, purported to be from the star, discussing cannibalism fetishes and rape fantasies.

Island bliss: 'They seem happy and comfortable with each other,' the source continued. 'They seem to have lots of friends and she introduces him to any friends who haven't met him before when they are out'; Armie pictured in December

Hunkering down: The actor has been in the Cayman Islands since December, when he flew out to reunite with his two children; Harper, six, and Ford, four after being separated for several months due to visa issues amid the coronavirus pandemic; Elizabeth, Harper, and Ford pictured in May

Seven weeks ago, on March 15, the actor was spotted looking relaxed as he dined with a female companion at seafood restaurant called Over The Edge Cafe.

That outing came just days before a woman named Effie accused Armie of violently raping her in hotel room during their four-year relationship.

The Call Me By Your Name star was accused by the 24-year-old of forcing himself upon her during an incident in April 2017, where she claims he 'committed acts of violence' against her which she 'did not consent' to.

During a press conference with her attorney Gloria Allred, Effie alleged: 'On April 24, 2017, Armie Hammer violently raped me for over four hours in Los Angeles. During which he repeatedly slapped my head against a wall bruising my face.

Disturbing: In January a series of leaked messages surfaced online, purported to be from Hammer, discussing cannibalism fetishes and rape fantasies

Several of Hammer's former partners  including Paige Lorenze (pictured) and Courtney Vucekovich  have accused him of being controlling and physically abusive during their relationship

'He also committed other acts of violence against me to which I did not consent.'

According to Variety , Effie said she thought Hammer was 'going to kill' her, and claimed he beat her feet during the alleged attack 'so they would hurt' and said she tried to leave 'but he wouldn't let' her.

Effie alleges she met Hammer on Facebook when she was 20, and admitted to falling in love with the actor, although she now believes she fell victim to 'manipulation tactics'.

She claimed: 'He would often test my devotion to him. He abused me mentally, emotionally and sexually.'

Shortly after, the LAPD confirmed it was investigating the actor after a 'community member' came forward with an attorney on February 3 2021 with a sexual assault claim.

Denial: However, Hammer has denied the allegations made against him, and his lawyer has provided screenshots of alleged text conversations between him and Effie which seemingly suggest he told her they couldn't pursue a relationship, though these are not verified; Armie pictured in 2018

However, Hammer has denied the allegations made against him, and his lawyer has provided screenshots of alleged text conversations between him and Effie which seemingly suggest he told her they couldn't pursue a relationship, though these are not verified.

In one message, Hammer allegedly told Effie: 'I am not going to be able to engage in you in that specific way right now. It never ends well. We can talk and be friends, but I can't do that.'

The actor's lawyer also said Hammer's encounter with Effie was 'completely consensual, discussed and agreed upon in advance, and mutually participatory'.

In a statement, the lawyer said: 'Effie's own correspondence with Mr. Hammer undermines and refutes her outrageous allegations. As recently as July 18, 2020, [she] sent graphic texts to Mr. Hammer telling him what she wanted him to do to her.

I am listening: Hammer's estranged wife Elizabeth Chambers  whom he married in 2010 and split from last year  broke her silence on the matter in February

'Mr. Hammer responded, making it clear that he did not want to maintain that type of relationship with her.

'It was never Mr. Hammer's intention to embarrass or expose [Effie's] fetishes or kinky sexual desires, but she has now escalated this matter to another level by hiring a civil lawyer to host a public press conference.

'With the truth on his side, Mr. Hammer welcomes the opportunity to set the record straight. From day one, Mr. Hammer has maintained that all of his interactions with [Effie]  and every other sexual partner of his for that matter  have been completely consensual, discussed and agreed upon in advance, and mutually participatory.

'[Effie's] attention seeking and ill-advised legal bid will only make it more difficult for real victims of sexual violence to get the justice they deserve.'

Shocked: Elizabeth said she was 'shocked, heartbroken, and devastated' and insisted she will always 'support any victim of assault or abuse'; Armie and Elizabeth pictured in 2019

Split: Armie and Elizabeth split last summer after she found about his infidelity, with each of them uploading a post to Instagram announcing their separation

Effie's allegations come after an Instagram account named House of Effie - sparked reports about Hammer's alleged sexual behavior when they posted a series of unverified direct messages allegedly from the actor, which referenced cannibalistic fantasies.

After the leak of those texts, several of Hammer's former partners  including Paige Lorenze and Courtney Vucekovich  have accused him of being controlling and physically abusive during their relationship.

Hammer's estranged wife Elizabeth Chambers  whom he married in 2010 and split from last year  broke her silence on the matter in February, when she said she was 'shocked, heartbroken, and devastated' and insisted she will always 'support any victim of assault or abuse'.

Following the scandal, Hammer left several projects including upcoming film Shotgun Wedding opposite Jennifer Lopez. He was replaced by Josh Duhamel.
Harry Styles left fans baffled at the BRIT Awards 2021 on Tuesday night as viewers questioned why he had suddenly developed an 'American accent'.

The former One Director star, 27, who wore an eye-catching brown suit, scooped up the Best British Single gong for his hit track Watermelon Sugar.

Yet during his acceptance speech, Harry, who grew up in Cheshire, left fans distracted with his accent as they claimed he suddenly sounded American.

'Since when was he American?': Harry Styles left fans baffled at the BRIT Awards 2021 on Tuesday night as viewers questioned why he had suddenly developed an 'American accent'

Harry, who is in the midst of filming the 1950s drama My Policeman, said on stage: 'Thank you so much. It's... I just continue to be baffled by moments like this and they make me more and more incredibly grateful to get to do this job every day.

'I am really happy to be here and proud to be celebrating British music tonight. I want to thank my fans for being so generous to me, always, and everyone in my life who has my back. Thank you so much, I love you.

'All of you around there [NHS staff sitting in the audience], thank you for everything you did for this country in the last year. We love you so much, thank you very very much, thank you, have a good night.'

Fans were quick to take to Twitter after Harry's acceptance speech as they questioned why he was talking in an 'American accent', while others pointed out that the star has just finished filming his movie Don't Worry Darling in America - explaining the twang.

Winner! The former One Director star, 27, who wore an eye-catching brown suit, scooped up the Best British Single gong for his hit track Watermelon Sugar

Confused: Yet during his acceptance speech, Harry, who grew up in Cheshire, left fans distracted with his accent as they claimed he suddenly sounded American

One person said: 'Wtf was Harry Styles accent!? Since when was he American!? #brits2021.'

A different fan put: 'My mum just asked why Harry was talking with an American accent at the Brits.'

Another follower questioned: 'Why has Harry Styles turned American? #brits2021.'

Confused: Fans were quick to take to Twitter after Harry's acceptance speech as they questioned why he was talking in an American accent

Hitting back: While others pointed out that the star has just finished filming his movie Don't Worry Darling in America

While a different account said: 'Why is Harry Styles talking in an american accent? #brits2021.'

However, one loyal fan was quick to point out: 'Harry sounds American because he just finished filming an movie where he has to use an American accent.'

Another account questioned: 'Why are people saying Harry has an American accent? #brits2021.'

While a different user added: 'Why are people saying Harry sounds American [crying face] hes like posh northern lmfao hes still very British.'

Star-studded: Harry, who is in the midst of filming the 1950s drama My Policeman, said on stage: 'Thank you so much. It's... I just continue to be baffled by moments like this and they make me more and more incredibly grateful to get to do this job every day.'

He added: 'I am really happy to be here and proud to be celebrating British music tonight. I want to thank my fans for being so generous to me, always, and everyone in my life who has my back. Thank you so much, I love you.'

Grateful: 'All of you around there [NHS staff sitting in the audience], thank you for everything you did for this country in the last year. We love you so much, thank you very very much, thank you, have a good night,' he concluded

Eye-catching: Harry opted for a colourful eye-catching suit for the evening paired with a Gucci bag

Other winners on Tuesday night included Dua Lipa, who won the top prize for Best Album, Little Mix, who took home the Best British Group gong, and Taylor Swift who made history as the first-ever female to win the Global Icon Award.

The 2021 Brit Awards, hosted by Jack Whitehall, marked the first major indoor music event in over a year as bosses released 2,500 free tickets to key workers.

The Brit Awards took place in front of a live audience of 4,000 people at London's The O2 six days before the next phase of lockdown lifts.

Emotional: Other winners on Tuesday night included Dua Lipa, who won the top prize for Best Album

Here she is! Taylor Swift also made history at the end of the evening as she accepted the Global Icon Award, the first time in history a female artist had been presented with the honour

At last! The ceremony, which took place at London's O2 Arena with a limited audience as part of the government's Covid pilot scheme, also saw Little Mix make history as the first-ever girl band to win Best British Group

The ceremony, which was broadcasted live on ITV, celebrated the return to live music and Dua Lipa promised those attending that it would 'be a night to remember'.

The indoor ceremony and live show formed part of the Government's scientific Events Research Programme, and used enhanced testing approaches to examine how events can take place without the need for social distancing after all restrictions are lifted on June 21.

Working closely with the Government to adhere to safety guidelines, The BRITs was the first live music show at The O2 in over a year, with 4,000 tickets being up for grabs - just one fifth of the venue's 20,000 capacity.

How did BRIT Awards go ahead during the Covid pandemic? The 2021 BRIT Awards marked the first live music event in the UK since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The indoor ceremony and live show formed part of the Government's scientific Events Research Programme. Enhanced testing approaches will examine how events can take place without the need for social distancing after all restrictions are lifted on June 21. 4,000 tickets were made available for the live ceremony, just one fifth of the venue's 20,000 capacity, with 2,500 of those being given to key workers. The BRITs will play an important role in paving the way for the return of live music at scale as the UK emerges from the past year's restrictions. Audience members were not socially distanced or required to wear face coverings once seated inside the arena, though they were required in communal areas such as the toilet or main concourse. All attendees were allowed to purchase alcohol and concessions once inside the O2 Arena. Attendees were also required to follow existing Government guidance when travelling to the venue and adhere to rules set out by the event organisers. Among the rules, attendees had to provide proof of a negative lateral flow test result to enter the venue, and said test had to be taken at an asymptomatic testing site within 36 hours of the ceremony. Upon arrival at the venue, all attendess were asked to take a PCR test, and will then take another test five days after the ceremony It's hoped this will gather further evidence on the safety of indoor settings, reduced social distancing and the removal of non-pharmaceutical interventions like face coverings. Advertisement

The BRITs played an important role in paving the way for the return of live music at scale as the UK emerges from the past year's restrictions.

Audience members were not socially distanced or required to wear face coverings in the arena, but were required to follow existing Government guidance when travelling to the venue and adhere to rules set out by the event organisers.

Among the rules, attendees had to have proof of a negative lateral flow test result to enter the venue.

As part of the wider scientific research on the trial events, attendees were also asked to take a test after the event to gather further evidence on the safety of indoor settings, reduced social distancing and the removal of non-pharmaceutical interventions like face coverings.
Matt Damon plays a father who heads to a foreign country to save his daughter in the first trailer for Focus Features' Stillwater.

The 50-year-old actor plays Bill Baker, an Oklahoma oil rig roughneck who drops everything and heads to Marseilles, France to save his daughter (Abigail Breslin).

Despite complications of being in a foreign land with language barriers, Bill makes a new life for himself in the south of France while trying to figure out how to clear his daughter's name when she is charged with a murder she did not commit.

New trailer: Matt Damon plays a father who heads to a foreign country to save his daughter in the first trailer for Focus Features' Stillwater

Save: The 50-year-old actor plays Bill Baker, an Oklahoma oil rig roughneck who drops everything and heads to Marseilles, France to save his daughter (Abigail Breslin)

The trailer begins with shots of Baker at work, stating in voice over that he drove his daughter Allison to the airport when she left for Marseille.

'I went to the gift shop and I saw this necklace. It was gold, said Stillwater on it. I thought it'd be a little piece of home to take with you,' Baker says, with the necklace referring to their hometown of Stillwater, Oklahoma.

Baker is seen travelling to Marseille, telling the customs agent he's in Marseille to visit his daughter, who he sees coming out of a room in prison with a strange smirk.

Working man: The trailer begins with shots of Baker at work, stating in voice over that he drove his daughter Allison to the airport when she left for Marseille

Home: 'I went to the gift shop and I saw this necklace. It was gold, said Stillwater on it. I thought it'd be a little piece of home to take with you,' Baker says, with the necklace referring to their hometown of Stillwater, Oklahoma

Prison: Baker is seen travelling to Marseille, telling the customs agent he's in Marseille to visit his daughter, who he sees coming out of a room in prison with a strange smirk

He is speaking with a French woman named Virginie (Camille Cottin), who says, 'You are the father of the girl? The American student?' He replies, 'Yes ma'am.'

Bill reveals that Allison, 'came here for college, and that's where she met this girl, Lina,' as we see Allison and other girls diving off of large rocks.

He reveals that, 'one night she found Lina dead and called the police,' adding, 'All they cared about was Allison sleeping with some Arab girl.'

Virginie: He is speaking with a French woman named Virginie (Camille Cottin), who says, 'You are the father of the girl? The American student?' He replies, 'Yes ma'am'

College: Bill reveals that Allison, 'came here for college, and that's where she met this girl, Lina,' as we see Allison and other girls diving off of large rocks

In prison, Allison tells her father, 'I loved her,' and Bill says, 'I know you did,' while Allison adds, 'But everybody thinks that I killed her.'

Another woman tells Bill that, 'We have exhausted every possible legal action,' and when Virginie asks if the lawyer is not helping, he says he's, 'doing it myself for now,' as she offers her help as well.

Bill meets Virginie's daughter Maya (Lilou Siauvaud), as Virginie says, 'She's very protective of me.'

Loved: In prison, Allison tells her father, 'I loved her,' and Bill says, 'I know you did,' while Allison adds, 'But everybody thinks that I killed her'

Legal action: Another woman tells Bill that, 'We have exhausted every possible legal action,' and when Virginie asks if the lawyer is not helping, he says he's, 'doing it myself for now,' as she offers her help as well

Protective: Bill meets Virginie's daughter Maya (Lilou Siauvaud), as Virginie says, 'She's very protective of me'

Bill spends his time walking around showing pictures of suspects to young French men, but Virginie tells him that, 'No one will talk to you, trust me.'

He's seen walking alone at night when a number of young men surround him on motorcycles and start beating him up.

Bill insists he will not give up, while Dirosa (Moussa Maaskri) tells him, 'It would be a serious mistake to commit a crime to prove your daughter innocent. It will not get her out of jail, and it will send you in.'

No one: Bill spends his time walking around showing pictures of suspects to young French men, but Virginie tells him that, 'No one will talk to you, trust me'

Mistake: Bill insists he will not give up, while Dirosa (Moussa Maaskri) tells him, 'It would be a serious mistake to commit a crime to prove your daughter innocent. It will not get her out of jail, and it will send you in'

Bill is seen being approached by the police while Maya is lead away, and Virginie asks Bill if he asked his daughter to lie for him.

He angrily tells Virginie, 'I'm trying to get my little girl out of jail, that's all I give a damn about.'

She responds, 'You sound very American right now,' and he adds, 'Good, I am,' when she reminds him, 'Yeah, and you're also a stranger here.'

Lies: Bill is seen being approached by the police while Maya is lead away, and Virginie asks Bill if he asked his daughter to lie for him

The trailer winds down with a number of dramatic shots, including Allison asking him 'What did you do?'

He tells her, 'You just have to trust me,' as the trailer comes to an end.

Stillwater, from director Tom McCarthy (Spotlight), debuts in theaters from Focus Features on July 30.

Trust: He tells her, 'You just have to trust me,' as the trailer comes to an end
There is no hint of lightness in any of the shots of 'Vitalina Varela', flooded with darkness and shadows that impose their weight, that appease and crush the quasi-immobile bodies that dare to combat the blackness of those wildly static images.

Walking in darkness

Only one figure refuses to submit to the shadow: Vitalina, a woman who leaves a home built with the sweat and effort of a lifetime to search for her husband, a Cape Verdean immigrant in the now-defunct Lisbon suburb of Fontainhas and a slave to a darkness by the one that has finally been swallowed.



Wandering, like his characters, between fiction and non-fiction, Pedro Costa updates the baroque gloom in its most political aspect in his latest film, using wild backlights provided by low-key lighting to reconstruct, amid rigid shadows, the life of that stranger for whom Vitalina leaves what little she had to find nothingness.

The darkness is, therefore, an aesthetic bet that becomes a subtle exercise of neocolonial representation: the shadow hides between wrinkles and the faces of immigrants who have never been at the center of the story, and its thickness reminds that, even making them visible, they continue being subjected to the blackness of oblivion.

Through these spaces passes 'Vitalina Varela', a person-actress from Costa who already appeared in 'Horse money' and who here takes the leading role to search for her late husband Joaquim de ella, once absorbed by the gloom.

Among the same ruins and buildings on the brink of collapse of the forgotten Lisbon neighborhood in which a sick Ventura wandered in the previous film, now lives a pained Vitalina refusing to let the memory of her husband disappear, investigating everything she can about him: his habits, his vices, his parallel and unknown life. In short, she all that she lived in the shadows and she could never (or wanted) to tell.

There is, therefore, a double operation on memory and representation: first, that of Vitalina, who tirelessly searches for any clue, no matter how small, among the rubble of the dispossessed and forgotten by globalization and gentrification, to rebuild life of her husband, unraveling her heartbreak and realizing, finally, that Joaquim was a stranger.

And a second, carried out by Costa himself, who again approaches Cape Verdean immigration in Portugal, intruding between the cracks of Vitalina's shadows, to measure her pain, her grief and her loss, but also her filmic approach to a reality. about which he narrates as much as his characters-actors allow them.

The darkness, also silence

The exacerbated statism of 'Vitalina Varela' responds not only to its mimicry with the spirit of Caravaggio and his representations of the most extreme marginality, but also to a particular formula of partial visibility that not only operates in the visual but also in the sound.

And it is that Pedro Costa's film, sparing in words, is full of noises, a constant bustle that deafens the mourning and the silence of the newcomer Vitalina, invading her privacy as interruptions in her story.

The silences of the film are never clear, nor are the bodies stained by the shadow that follow one another like specters, like ghostly presences of a tale of migrants forgotten by the ancient metropolis who also forgot their purpose, if ever. had. Bodies that do not inhabit the spaces invaded by the shadow, with the exception of Vitalina, whose striving purpose is to recover the home that she promised to build together with Joaquim.

Religion becomes a particular bastion of 'Vitalina Varela' through an old priest who is brought to life, precisely by Ventura, on whom Vitalina relies as a confessor but also as support in the face of her contrite mourning.

The protagonist is the only faithful who attends the empty and ramshackle room in which the parish priest, a kind of migrant transcript of the rural priest of Bresson or of the update proposed by Paul Schrader in 'The Reverend', saddened by the absence of bodies Let them fill their filthy cabin with prayer.

And it is that religious expression, reduced to a minimum in construction, sound and light, is also a neocolonialist mirror, as the priest's advice to Vitalina makes explicit, which urges him to learn Portuguese to speak with spirits, since it is the only language that they understand. Something that seems to be another reflection of Cape Verdean reality, an independent country since 1975 that still maintains Portuguese as its official language, despite the fact that most of its citizens speak Cape Verdean Creole.
Former Red Lion Hotel in downtown Hartford sells for $22 million. See what plans the new owners have for the building.

Former hotel overlooking Dunkin' Donuts Park get new owners.
@MarkCavitt on Twitter

Mark Cavitt is a multimedia journalist at The Oakland Press and MediaNews Group in Michigan. He covers Oakland County government as well as the communities of Commerce Township, Lyon Township, Milford, Novi, South Lyon, Walled Lake and Wixom.
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Veterans memorial issue could end up in court

Petition effort to stop Royal Oaks move of veterans memorial may end up in court
Neel Bhatt, a UW assistant professor of otolaryngology, specializes in treating patients with voice problems. Through his work, he began to realize people did not like the sound of their own voices. With the transition to school over Zoom, many students can relate to the discomfort of hearin
Connecticut has great hopes for the project. Its a key milestone in the states shift to zero-carbon energy and its role in the offshore wind industry thats increasingly turning to the Atlantic Ocean, particularly off Massachusetts and Rhode Island, as welcoming terrain for wind turbines that will be assembled at the State Pier and towed out to the Atlantic.
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DARIEN  Griebs Pharmacy, in Darien, is holding a Pfizer clinic on Sunday from 2 to 7 p.m. for 12- to 15-year-olds after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the vaccine for that age group.

Connecticut health providers are preparing to inoculate 12- to 15-year-olds for COVID-19 this week. An FDA committee has given final authorization and providers in Connecticut have said they would not delay in administering the inoculations.
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP)  Former Connecticut House Republican leader Robert Ward, a key player in state government for decades, has died at age 68.

Ward died Sunday at his home in North Branford, according to Brian Havens, owner and director of the North Haven Funeral Home. The cause of death was not released.

Ward served as a state legislator for 22 years, the last 12 as House Republican leader, a position he held for longer than anyone else in Connecticut history.

After declining to run for reelection to the legislature in 2006, Ward held positions as state motor vehicles commissioner and state auditor.

Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney, a New Haven Democrat, called Ward the epitome of a public servant in a statement Monday.

He will be sorely missed and his years as a legislator, DMV Commissioner, and State Auditor will stand as an ongoing model for other public officials to emulate, Looney said.

Hartford Courant columnist Kevin F. Rennie, a Republican former state senator, said in a blog post Sunday that Ward entered the thin ranks of the heroic when he supported an impeachment inquiry into Gov. John Rowland, a fellow Republican.

Rowland resigned in 2004 during a corruption investigation and has served two terms in federal prison.
O'FALLON, Mo. (AP)  Republican Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt on Tuesday filed a lawsuit challenging St. Louis Countys COVID-19 restrictions, citing concerns about their impact on religion, education and the freedom of residents.

The lawsuit filed in St. Louis County Circuit Court names Democratic County Executive Sam Page, the countys health department and its director, Dr. Faisal Khan. It seeks an injunction to end the restrictions.

From requiring a mask outdoors to subjecting citizens to government pre-approval for private events, enough is enough, Schmitt said in a news release. The seemingly unending control over peoples lives must end. Vaccines are widely available to all adults  its past time for St. Louis County to lift these restrictions, and thats why I filed suit today.

Page's spokesman, Doug Moore, said litigation related to public health orders is common across the country and St. Louis County has been successful in defending every legal challenge around public health orders. Our legal foundation is sound.

The lawsuit is the latest of several filed by Schmitt, who announced in March that he will seek the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate in 2022. His announcement came weeks after incumbent Republican Sen. Roy Blunt announced he would not seek reelection.

In April 2020, Schmitt filed suit against the Chinese government over the coronavirus, alleging that the nations officials are to blame for the global pandemic. In December, he joined multi-state lawsuits against Google and Facebook. And also in December, he was among several GOP attorneys general who joined Texas lawsuit that sought to overturn former President Donald Trumps November election loss.

We all know Mr. Schmitt is trying to increase his profile statewide and suing those protecting the health and safety of residents is apparently one of the ways he has chosen to do that. Our focus is on getting people vaccinated and on economic recovery, Moore said.

Schmitts spokesman, Chris Nuelle, denied any political motive in the lawsuits.

The Attorney Generals Office serves all 6 million Missourians and is tasked with protecting the rights and liberties of those 6 million Missourians  when we find that Missourians personal freedoms and liberties are being trampled, we will seek information and take action, Nuelle said in an email. He (Schmitt) is doing his job.

Republican Gov. Mike Parson allowed businesses in Missouri to reopen in May 2020, just months into the coronavirus pandemic. St. Louis County, St. Louis city and several other jurisdictions enforced more stringent regulations, including restrictions on indoor dining, mask mandates and limits on gatherings. Nuelle said an analysis of shutdown orders across Missouri showed St. Louis Countys was far and away the most stringent.

Schmitt wrote to Khan on April 20 and asked him to explain the countys continued restrictions. Schmitt called the countys response vague and unresponsive.

Earlier this month, St. Louis city and county both announced easing of some restrictions, including elimination of limits on the number of people allowed in restaurants and an end to an outdoor masking requirement. Schmitts lawsuit said it wasnt enough.

Instead of providing meaningful relief for St. Louis County residents, the new Order replaces prior restrictions with vague, confusing, and self-contradictory directives that continue to impose unjustified burdens on religious, economic, and personal freedom, the lawsuit states.
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For Release: Tuesday, May 11, 2021

DEC and Partners Continue Efforts to Control Invasive Hemlock Woolly Adelgid in Lake George

Biological Control Release Underway Bolsters Second Round of Treatment to Limit Spread of Invasive, Tree-Killing Pest

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and partners today announced that additional efforts to limit the spread of the invasive hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) on Forest Preserve lands in Washington County are underway. DEC forestry staff are treating 29 acres of infested hemlock stands near Shelving Rock and additional infested hemlocks near Paradise Bay. DEC is partnering with the New York State Hemlock Initiative and Cornell University to release Leucopis silver flies, a biological control for HWA, near Paradise Bay. These efforts are part of an ongoing, multi-year initiative to control the HWA infestation along the shores of Lake George that was discovered last August. Additional partners in these treatment efforts include the Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program (APIPP) and Lake George Land Conservancy (LGLC).

"Hemlocks are the fourth most common tree in New York's forests and their ability to grow on steep slopes along streams makes these trees fundamental in terms of preventing erosion, filtering pollutants from runoff, and maintaining cold-water habitat," said DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos. "Preventing the spread of these hemlock-killing pests is essential for protecting the vital ecosystem services that hemlock forests provide for the Lake George Watershed and the greater Adirondack Park."

DEC crews are using bark applications of the chemicals imidacloprid and dinotefuran to treat infested hemlock. However, direct injections are used for ecologically sensitive areas and when wet weather conditions interfere with bark applications. Before treatment, crews conduct surveys to identify and mark trees to be treated. This process helps to ensure treatments are applied to the trees that need it most. The flagging is removed once the tree is treated and tags are left at the base to identify treated trees. These flags should not be removed or disturbed by anyone other than the staff working to treat the trees. A photo of the tags is attached.

In addition, DEC and partners are releasing Leucopis silver flies collected in the Pacific Northwest for the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid Biocontrol Research Lab at Cornell University to be prepped for release. These are predatory flies that feed on HWA eggs laid in the spring and the release of the Leucopis silver flies complements the October 2020 release of Laricobius beetles, another biocontrol that feeds on developing and adult HWA during the fall and winter. The goal of these deployments of predatory insects is to establish stable populations in the area and provide long-term, year-round protection for the region's hemlock forests.

"DEC and partners have done an admirable job responding to the spot infestations on Lake George to slow the spread of HWA," said Mark Whitmore, Director of the New York State Hemlock Initiative based at Cornell University. "The use of insecticides will give us time necessary to implement classic biological control with predators from the Pacific Northwest where HWA is a native insect. The three predator species we are releasing feed exclusively on adelgids and are known to effectively control HWA in the west."

About Hemlock Wooly Adelgid

A tiny insect from East Asia, HWA feed on young twigs, causing branch dieback as needles dry out and drop prematurely. Hemlock decline and mortality typically occurs within four to 10 years of the initial HWA infestation.

Signs of HWA include:

white, woolly masses (ovisacs) about one-quarter the size of a cotton swab and found on the underside of branches at the base of needles;

gray-tinted foliage; and

significant needle loss and branch dieback.

HWA is mobile for only a short period of time in the spring from mid-April through mid-June. DEC is asking anyone surveying for HWA or entering a hemlock stand for any reason to clean off any equipment or gear used and to leave infested branches where they are found. If a suspected infestation is found, please:

Take pictures of the infestation signs as described above, include something for scale such as a coin;

Note the location, including intersecting roads, landmarks, or GPS coordinates; and

Email the information to DEC at foresthealth@dec.ny.gov, contact the local Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management (PRISM, available at DEC's website for contact info), or report the infestation to iMapInvasives.

To support New York State's overall efforts to combat invasive species, the State Budget once again earmarked $13.3 million from the Environmental Protection Fund to support prevention and control activities. This sustained funding continues to provide critical support for prevention, eradication, research, and biological control efforts through programs like the New York State Hemlock Initiative and through the PRISM network, which protects against threats to New York's biodiversity, economy, and human health at the local level.

For more information on HWA, including identification, control techniques, and reporting possible infestations, visit DEC's website. For more information on the NYS Hemlock Initiative, visit Cornell University's website. Report possible infestations to foresthealth@dec.ny.gov or call DEC's toll-free Forest Pest Information Line at 1-866-640-0652.
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She was working as a family relations counselor for the state. Edward was working as a bail bondsman, a job he still holds. They decided to open a restaurant together and Elizabeth would leave her job to run it. I knew there was something more out there for me. I always wanted to be the boss, she said.
After a lot of dillydallying, Government of Telangana has finally yielded to the clamour to impose a lockdown in the State. Starting from Wednesday, the State will be under lockdown for 10 days, in a bid to bring down the rapidly increasing COVID-positivity rate as the second wave of the pandemic rips through the country.

Nightmare situation

A distressing shortage of oxygen cylinders, ventilators and ICU beds, incessantly ringing helpline numbers, fervent pleas on social media for Remdesivir, hospitals turning down admissions, and a patchy vaccination drive are characteristics of the times. With more than 4 lakh fresh cases recorded on Monday, no one knows when things will start getting better.

Though the courts, as well as many international experts, have been pressing for a country-wide lockdown for quite a while, opinion is divided - the Government seems to be worried about the socio-economic impact such a move could have, while medical experts claim the vaccination drive will give us the advantage in the fight against the virus.

Is the State Governments lockdown decision the right way forward? While some cite reports indicating that despite a few other States imposing a lockdown, there has been no fall in the number of COVID-positive cases, others feel a lockdown will certainly help.

The yea-sayers

Justice Chandra Kumar, a former High Court Judge, is emphatic that a lockdown is necessary. Stressing that the economy can be revived after a lockdown but not lost lives, he points out that Article 21 of the Constitution of India confers on citizens the right to live.' A short-term lockdown is the need of the hour to save lives, he says. One month of lockdown is required to get things under control, reduce the spread of the virus and treat those infected, he adds.

Advocating the Japanese work culture as a means to revive the economy, Justice Chandra Kumar explains that In Japan people work doubly hard to increase production and compensate for losses.

While upholding the right of the Courts to direct the governments, the former Judge says, Protecting the lives of the people is the primary duty of the government, and the right of the people too.

Even as thousands of new COVID-19 cases are being added daily to Telanganas tally, former High Court Judge, Justice Tamada Gopalakrishna questions the need for elections and political and religious gatherings to have been held.

All these mass gatherings have led to this current situation, says Gopalakrishna, and blames the Government for the present crisis situation.

The nay-sayers

On the other hand, Dr M. Yadagiri Rao, former State Secretary, Indian Medical Association (IMA), is not in favour of imposing a lockdown.

He says that as on Monday, only 17 crore doses of vaccine were administered in the entire country, and less than 10 per cent of the population have so far received both the mandated vaccine doses. Dr Rao fears that a lockdown might hamper the current vaccination drive.

He also stresses the need to overcome the scarcity of vaccines, hospital beds and COVID-19 medication. These issues have to be simultaneously coordinated. The Supreme Court has constituted a Task Force to create a mechanism for the distribution of oxygen to the States. If the oxygen availability issue is resolved, patients will become confident about staying at home instead of panicking and scampering to hospitals, he says.

Onus on the Government

Aparna Rayaprol, Professor and Former Head, Department of Sociology, University of Hyderabad, says that since a complete lockdown might trigger migrant labour problems like last year, government should ensure that the lockdown is only a temporary measure. She points out that the pandemic is a serious problem and that the seriousness should be reflected in the States response. The lockdown will give a psychological feeling that theres something wrong, she comments, adding that, the onus would however be on the government to ensure that the employers pay the labours before a crisis point is reached.

Dr Santosh Kumar Kraleti, Senior Public Health Specialist and Member, National Medical Commission, also favours a lockdown situation where essential services and activities are permitted.

He feels people should equip themselves with a pulse oximeter, thermometer and spirometer at their homes to quickly assess their health condition.

During these times, I also want the government to actively and strongly communicate with the public so that theres no scope for misinformation, he adds.

A collective responsibility

Is it only the governments responsibility? People are collectively responsible for this situation. The government has been telling people to follow all the health protocols, but they turned a deaf ear. Democracy works well only if the society is mature. I think people should act responsibly and politicians should educate their followers about the significance of health protocols.
Vijayawada: Presenting a novel solution to present vaccine shortage crisis in the country, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has sought technology transfer of Corona vaccine Covaxin from its producer Bharat Biotech to other companies to increase production to fully meet demand and speedily, too.

With Telugu Desam chief N Chandrababu Naidu and other leaders targeting the Chief Minister every day, slamming him for the state lagging others in vaccination drive, YSRC leaders had stepped up counter attacks and alleged links between Bharat Biotech and Naidu. They even challenged him to bring vaccines to the state as Bharat Biotech belongs to his relative.

A battle is raging between the two parties over the vaccination issue. Now, even Jagan Mohan Reddy seemed to target Bharat Biotech.

He wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, stating that present manufacturing capacity of Covaxin doesnt cater to the huge demands of vaccine. At this rate, it may take several months to get all vaccinated in the state, he mentioned. He appealed to the PM to direct Bharat Biotech to facilitate technology transfer of Covaxin, and to ask ICMR-NIV to provide a viral train to whoever is interested and capable of manufacturing the vaccine.

The Chief Minister informed that, the average count of cases per day over the last seven days stands at 20,300 and as of today we have 1,86,695 active cases. We have taken all the steps necessary to prevent further infections and provide quality treatment, care and support. While certain temporary measures like curfew, restrictions are taken up, the ultimate solution is in vaccinating every individual as early as possible. One of the measures we have been striving for is to provide vaccine doses to all eligible and vulnerable populations as per national guidelines at the earliest opportunity. We have in the past been able to demonstrate capability of administering over 6 lakh vaccinations per day. However, due to the short supply of vaccine we are not able to vaccinate our population at large.

The CM appealed to the PM thus: Under your leadership, COVAXIN, India's indigenous COVID-19 vaccine was developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) - National Institute of Virology (NIV). This is manufactured currently at the Bharat Biotech's BSL-3 (Bio-Safety Level 3) high containment facility. The Expert Committee of Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) gave Emergency use Authorization to COVAXIN in January 2021.

It has also been announced from your good office to increase the production of COVAXIN. It is learnt that at present the total manufacturing capacity of this vaccine doesn't cater to the country's requirement. It may take several months to get all vaccinated at this pace. Considering that the COVAXIN manufacturing is intended to be ramped up, we would request you to please direct Bharat Biotech to do technology transfer of manufacturing the COVAXIN and ICMR-NIV to provide the viral strain to whoever interested and capable of manufacturing the vaccine.

The CM also requested the PM to explore the possibility of involving all such production firms and enable them with the technology, IPR etc., to deliver the vaccine as quickly and as affordable as possible. This shall ensure that IPRs/Patents etc., if any, are not a hindrance. Anyone who can manufacture or is interested to manufacture the vaccine should be encouraged to do so in the larger public interest. Entire manufacturing capacity should be mobilized and put to use in these testing times.

I, therefore, request your consideration and intervention and if implemented will go a long way in encouraging the manufacturers and accelerate the supply of vaccines to be made available to the population at large. I look forward to your favorable orders on this matter, pleaded thus the CM with the PM.
The situation, however, went out of hands with nearly 10 patients losing their lives and leaving 10 more patients in critical condition.  AFP

Nellore: Tension prevailed at SVR Ruia Hospital in Tirupati following the death of 11 Covid-19 patients in the ICU allegedly because of the drop in the oxygen pressure while filling the life-saving gas in the storage tankers late on Monday evening.

Speaking to media persons late on Monday night at the hospital, Chittoor district collector M. Harinarayana said that 11 persons died in the incident while adding that situation returned to normal.

According to sources, there are 135 ventilators-equipped beds of which 55 had been occupied by patients, and some others were on high-flow oxygen.

The patients became critical as their condition deteriorated due to breathlessness after a sudden drop in the oxygen supply, much to the shock of their attendants.

According to an eyewitness account, paramedical staff attempted to save the lives by performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on some patients.

The situation, however, went out of hands with nearly 10 patients losing their lives and leaving 10 more patients in critical condition, according to unconfirmed reports.

Although the hospital officials denied the number of deaths and said they were assessing the situation, a top police official confirmed 10 deaths.

Sources said the ward was under the grip of panic as the anguished attendants started damaging several items in the ward. Irate relatives of patients present in the hospital premises rushed into the ward and damaged some furniture after coming to know about the incident.

Fearing attack, the hospital staff, including doctors ran away from the scene. More people started reaching the hospital as some television channels flashed the news. An official in the hospital attributed the incident to the late arrival of oxygen from Chennai and said the oxygen supply was restored and the situation was well under control.

Taking serious note of the incident, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy gave orders to the officials to take immediate steps to protect the patients. He also sought a report on the incident.

Meanwhile, TDP Tirupati president G. Narasimha Yadav demanded that the officials present the facts before the people and said the state government had to take responsibility for the incident.
The court directed the Telangana state police not to prevent ambulances carrying Covid patients from neighbouring states into Telangana. (DC Photo/File)

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court reprimanded the state government and the police for stopping ambulances ferrying patients across the inter-state borders. A Division Bench of the High Court headed by Chief Justice Hima Kohli observed that it was utter violations of fundamental rights of citizens ensured by Indian Constitution.

Justice Hima Kohli asked the Director General of Police who had given him the authority to stop ambulances while allowing the general public.

When it was submitted that there was no circular or advisory issued by the government and it was only oral instructions to prevent havoc at hospitals, Chief Justice wondered if the Telangana State government ran on oral instructions, instead of GOs and advisories.

On Tuesday, the Division Bench held an emergency hearing on Covid cases, related to the issue of stopping of ambulances at inter-state borders and utter violations Covid protocols at Ramzan shopping and congregations in the old city area. These two issues were taken suo moto by the court, following reports published in various newspapers.

In the afternoon, the AG submitted that RMPs practicing in other States like Karnataka and Chhattisgarh were recommending patients to private hospitals in Telangana, and with the influx of patients, the people of Telangana were not getting beds in Hyderabad hospitals.

The court directed the Telangana state police not to prevent ambulances carrying Covid patients from neighbouring states into Telangana, unless the government issued any advisory.
WestGodavari collector Karthikeya Mishra said 42 hospitals have been given permission for Covid-19 treatment out of which 16 private hospitals are no empanelment and three have temporary Aarogyasri empanelment.  Representational image

KAKINADA: West Godavari district administration has initiated urgent steps to streamline the functioning of private hospitals, particularly with regard to treatment given to Arogyasri card holders.

District collector Karthikeya Mishra said that private hospitals should provide treatment without collecting any charges. Those found guilty would be subject to stringent punishment, he cautioned.

He was interacting with district officials through a video conference at Eluru on Monday. He was told that some hospitals have not allotted ICU beds to Arogyasri patients. He said this would be taken as a serious offence.

He instructed Eluru and Jangareddygudem RDOs to ensure that private hospitals will earmark 50 per cent of ICU and oxygen beds to Arogyasri patients. If any negligence is found on this count, criminal cases would be booked against them, he warned.

He said that 42 hospitals have been given permission for Covid-19 treatment out of which 16 private hospitals are no empanelment and three have temporary Aarogyasri empanelment. He said that the remaining 13 hospitals should also be given temporary empanelment.

Mishra said that there was a need to increase vaccination centers and tahsildars should supervise it.
Himanta said his governments prime focus will be to fulfil electoral promises of one lakh jobs, waive off all microfinance loans taken by women in the state and further strengthen the Arunodoi scheme, that provides Rs 830 to eligible households every month.  PTI

Guwahati: Assams new chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who took the oath and assumed office on Monday morning, straightaway called upon the United Liberation Front of Asom (Independent) commander-in-chief, Paresh Baruah, to abjure the path of violence and come to the table for talks. Saying the agenda of his government will be to maintain the states prevailing peace and harmony and take it on the path of prosperity, Mr Sarma told reporters the people would get a proactive government which will work round the clock for them. You will see a proactive government which will be there for you at 12 midnight, at 5 am and also at 2 pm. We will try and resolve all pending issues and seek the blessings of the people of Assam, he said.

He said his governments prime focus will be to fulfil electoral promises of one lakh jobs, waive off all microfinance loans taken by women in the state and further strengthen the Arunodoi scheme, that provides Rs 830 to eligible households every month. Mr Sarma said the first Cabinet meeting of his government will take place on Tuesday, and the prevailing Covid-19 situation will be on top of the agenda. We will announce a planned roadmap to handle this Covid crisis. Daily cases in Assam have crossed 5,000. The situation in Assam may affect the other northeastern states as well, he said.

The chief minister pledged that all the promises made by the BJP and its allies in their election manifesto will be fulfilled. We saw peace and development in the past five years. I appeal to the remaining outlawed armed outfits in Assam to join the peace talks. I would make a special request to the leader of the United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (Ulfa-I) Paresh Baruah to shun violence and join talks for permanent peace in the state.

In response to a question on the NRC, Mr Sarma said that as promised by the BJP in its manifesto, his government would seek re-verification of the National Register of Citizens (NRC). The document that lists Indian citizens in Assam was released in 2019 with exclusion of the names of 1.9 million applicants. The BJP has termed it as faulty, saying while many genuine citizens got left out, those with dubious credentials managed to get enlisted.

Our view on the NRC is very clear. We want 20 per cent re-verification of the list in districts bordering Bangladesh and 10 per cent in other districts. If after that, the NRC is found to be correct, the government will accept it and take the process forward. But if the NRC is found faulty after re-verification, we would plead before the Supreme Court to view this issue critically, said the chief minister.

On the granting of Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to Ahoms, Koch-Rajbongshi, Moran, Motok, Sootias and tea-tribe, Mr Sarma said the state government would try and resolve the issue through talks and without affecting the rights of tribes already under the ST ambit.

On concerns about Assams financial situation, Mr Sarma, who held the finance portfolio in the previous government, said the state has nearly Rs 7,000 crores in its treasury and stressed there was no cause of concern as the states fiscal health was among the best in the country.
KARIMNAGAR: Former Jammikunta agriculture market committee (AMC) chairman Tummeti Sammi Reddy on Tuesday regretted that when people are dying due to non-availability of oxygen in the on-going pandemic situation, people are playing politics to lure away supporters of ex-minister Etala Rajendar.

In a statement, Sammi Reddy said since past few days, opposition and ruling party leaders are offering costly vehicles and contracts to peoples representatives in Huzurabad, who have won with the support of Etala Rajendar.

He maintained that the former minister continues to have enormous popularity not only in Huzurabad region but the entire state, as he had helped people of all sections for past seven years, irrespective of their caste and communal affiliations. But attempts are now being made to spoil Rajendars image.

Asking the former leaders supporters not to succumb to allurements, Sammi Reddy pointed out, Rajendar was with you in your hard times and will continue to look after you. Do not take any hasty decision.

He pointed out that many people in Huzurabad region are suffering due to non-availability of beds and lack of oxygen in hospitals. Try to help such people as well as farmers, who are waiting at purchasing centres to sell their produce, he underlined.
On the face of it, the time hardly seems propitious for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reach out to his foreign friends. His ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has suffered electoral setbacks in West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh and been reprimanded by the courts. People blame his government for the mix of complacency and inefficiency that aggravated the fearsome second wave of Covid-19. But stricken India desperately needs the emergency medical aid that is pouring in from several richer countries.

Britain is one of them. Prime Minister Boris Johnson needs a treaty with India, especially after Brexit, and also to highlight the failure of his predecessor, Theresa May, to secure one. Undaunted by a series of setbacks, he bubbles that the Enhanced Trade Partnership and the memorandum of understanding on India-UK Migration and Mobility Partnership that he and Prime Minister Modi had endorsed on May 4 mark the beginning of a new era in the UK-India relationship.

Britain sees India as an Indo-Pacific partner in the great game of countering China. Britain is also the country with which India interacts most intimately at many levels.

As Mr Johnson put it without inquiring too closely into the downside, a living bridge unites the two countries. Given that demographic link, British public opinion reacts swiftly and spontaneously to domestic Indian developments like the 1984 Sikh carnage, the Gujarat communal killings in 2002, constitutional changes in the former Jammu and Kashmir state, and the Citizenship Amendment Act. That is only natural. Britains 2011 census recorded 1,451,862 Indian-origin persons, accounting for 2.3 per cent of the population. Migration has long been a contentious issue, and British-Indians are particularly curious about the new deals provision for employment for 3,000 young Indian professionals annually, in return for New Delhi taking back Indian illegals in Britain.

Identifying and repatriating these illegals is bound to cause friction. If the noblest prospect which a Scotchman ever sees, is the high road that leads him to England!, to quote Samuel Johnson, the flight to Heathrow airport is beaten in attractiveness only by the flight to New York for many aspiring Indians. Very few Indians who go nowadays to a Western country to study ever return to the motherland, with its bleak employment opportunities.

The phenomenon isnt exclusively Indian. A special British scheme to facilitate the import of chefs from Bangladesh for so-called Indian restaurants at once attracted floods of Bangladeshis whose only aim was to migrate to the West. The scheme was quickly abandoned.

When migration was discussed during Theresa Mays 2016 visit to India, London claimed that as many as 100,000 Indians lived illegally in Britain. New Delhi disputed this figure, throwing in the counter-argument that tens of thousands of young Indians who go to Britain to study are denied job opportunities there. Another charge was that Britain is about the only country in the world that counts post-graduate Indian students staying on for a year or twos practical training as migrants.

Indians felt especially aggrieved when visa rules for Chinese students were greatly liberalised. One obvious explanation lies in the old saying: Money talks! With 8.63 billion in Chinese investment in the UK (with some of them being in public utility undertakings) and around 800 Chinese companies employing 71,000 people in the UK, Beijing could demand concessions. Moreover, Beijings rigid controls guaranteed that all its students and trainees would sooner or later be recalled. Britain was not afraid of becoming a vast Chinatown. The repatriation of Indian illegals is supposed to facilitate the legal movement of students and professionals and enhance cooperation in addressing illegal migration.

But the late and much maligned right-wing British politician, Enoch Powell, was not alone in warning that rivers of blood would flow unless non-white immigration was checked. London is so acutely conscious of sensitivity about Commonwealth citizens from Asia and Africa that even Clement Attlees Labour government back in the 1940s quietly set up a committee to examine how the British Nationality Act of 1948, which granted colonials the right to enter, live and work in Britain, could be revised without creating a huge uproar.

Apart from a series of agreements on climate change, technology and

pharmaceuticals, the Narendra Modi-Boris Johnson negotiations had finalised Indian investment worth 1 billion to create over 6,500 jobs in Britain. The other significant outcome was a commitment by both sides to begin trade talks this year to negotiate a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, remove trade barriers, and double bilateral trade by 2030.

The partnership deal will lift all export barriers on goods ranging from British apples to medical devices and open up India's legal services to British firms. In return, Britain agreed to improve access to its fisheries and nursing sectors.

Mr Johnson probably hopes that Britain will upstage the European Union and sign an FTA with India first. Negotiations with the EU, which started in 2007, have been stalled since 2013 but were resumed on May 8 when the 16th India-EU virtual summit was held at Porto, Portugal. India was represented by Mr Modi and the EU by Charles Michel, European Council president, and Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, besides all the 27 member countries. The unsurprising news was that they decided to restart talks on trade, investment protection and geographical indications.

The major sticking points in the India-EU negotiations  tariffs on automobiles, wines and spirits, restrictions the on free movement of professionals, data security status for the IT sector, market access and waiver of patent rights on Covid-related innovations  are important but are not explosive like migration. Ironically, Saturdays summit host, Portugals Prime Minister Antonio Costa, is an Overseas Citizen of India.

Many assume that the presence of three ethnic Indians (Rishi Sunak, Priti Patel and Alok Sharma) in important positions in Mr Johnsons Cabinet will make it easier for other immigrants. But its a worldwide trend for those who have boarded the gravy train diligently to ward off any newcomers. As home secretary, Priti Patel has already acquired a formidable anti-immigrant reputation.

The writer is a senior journalist, columnist and author
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday issued emergency authorization for use of the Pfizer vaccine in 12- to 15-year-olds, but theres still another step before the shot can be rolled out to the new age group. An advisory group to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is scheduled to meet Wednesday to recommend use guidelines for the vaccine.
Janet Colliton, Esq. is a Certified Elder Law Attorney and limits her practice to elder law, retirement, life care, special needs, and estate planning and administration with offices at 790 East Market St., Ste. 250, West Chester, PA 19382, 610-436-6674 , colliton@collitonlaw.com. She is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and, with Jeffrey Jones, CSA, co-founder of Life Transition Services, LLC, a service for families with long term care needs. Tune in to Radio Station WCHE 1520 A Plan Ahead on Wednesdays at 4 p.m. with Ron Ehman, Real Estate Ron, Broker, Next Home Signature Real Estate.
OPINION

Sound Off for Tuesday, May 11
A 19-year-old woman with 23 previous convictions to her name has been remanded in custody after a judge refused to grant a change in bail conditions.

Saiyanna Hickey, of Greenvale Park, Magherafelt, appeared at Magherafelt Magistrates Court last week via video link charged with assault causing actual bodily harm and common assault.

The court heard how Hickey was granted bail on March 20 this year following an incident in which criminal damage was sustained to an Oxfam shop.

Hickey is also accused of assaulting a prison officer while in custody as a result of the incident.

The court was told that on April 25 this year, Hickey was observed on CCTV in Belfast snatching an item from an unknown male and making off in a car.

After being stopped and searched, a quantity of diazepam and pregabalin were found on her person and seized by police.

When questioned in relation to the offence, she admitted she had stolen the drugs, but only used the pregabalin.

Hickey was granted bail to reside at an address at Greenvale Park, but on May 3 2021, police attended the address following a report from the homeowner who alleged the defendant had assaulted her.

The court heard how the injured party had withdrawn consent for her address to be used for bail, causing Hickey to be in breach of her bail conditions.

Opposing bail, police said Hickey was a violent person and anyone being responsible for her bail would require training, or an appropriate security package would have to be put in place.

Hickey's grandmother's address had been offered as a possibility, but police records showed a total of 62 previous reports related to the address.

They also argued she had absconded from her given bail address on a number of occasions and was later located at an address in Antrim.

Defence for Hickey called into question whether the injured party's injuries amounted to actual bodily harm and pointed out she had not attended hospital after the incident.

District Judge Noel Dunlop refused to grant bail.

He remanded Hickey in custody to be returned to appear before Magherafelt court on June 2.
A 64-year-old man arrested in connection with the murder of an RUC officers in Derry's city centre in 1993 has been released.

Constable Michael Ferguson, from Omagh, was shot twice, at close range, in the back of the head by an IRA gunman in Shipquay Street on January 23, 1993.

The 21-year-old Catholic policeman was on duty at the time and was taken to Altnagevlin Hospital but died from his injuries.

One man was jailed in 2015 in connection with the murder.

The PSNI yesterday said that detectives from the PSNI's Legacy Investigation Branch had arrested a 64-year-old man in Derry on Monday.

The man has been released following questioning.
Councillors in Derry today held a minute's silence in memory of 10 people killed in the Ballymurphy area of Belfast as an inquest found that they were 'entirely innocent'.

The inquest, which began in November 2018, examined the deaths in August 1971.

The shootings happened after an operation in which a number of people were detained without trial.

The victims included a priest trying to help the wounded and a mother of eight.

Nine of the victims were killed by the Army, the coroner said.

Mrs Justice Keegan, who today delivered her findings over the course of more than two hours, said the deaths took place during Northern Ireland's Troubles in a 'highly charged and difficult environment'.

But she concluded: "What is very clear, is that all of the deceased in the series of inquests were entirely innocent of wrongdoing on the day in question."

The killings happened over three days immediately following the introduction of internment.

Speaking this afternoon at the start of a meeting of Derry City and Strabane District Council's Business and Culture Committee, committee chair, SDLP councillor Rory Farrell, proposed that a minute's silence be held in memory of those killed in Ballymurphy.

Cllr Farrell read out the names of those killed before the minute's silence was observed.

Sinn Fein councillor Conor Heaney said the gesture would send a message of solidarity from Derry to the Ballymurphy families.
Salman Khan's Sisters Alvira And Arpita Test Positive For COVID-19

Salman Khan is all set to bring his Eidi for fans. The actor is getting geared up for the release of Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai, that will release on 13th May on ZeePlex. According to latest reports, while he has been extremely busy with work his sisters Alvira Agnihotri and Arpita Khan Sharma have been recovering from COVID-19.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Arpita Khan Sharma (@arpitakhansharma)

Arpita took to her official social media handle last night to announce that she had tested positive for the virus at the beginning of April. But she was asymptomatic. She shared, "I tested positive for Covid-19 in the beginning of the month of April 2021 however I was asymptomatic. I followed all the guidelines and protocols and thankfully with the grace of God I have fully recovered and have been well since. Stay Safe. Stay Strong. Stay Positive."

Salman has engaged in philanthropic work and has been working towards COVID-19 relief. He provided food, medical equipments as well as oxygen cylinders to frontline workers. The actor also offered assistance to an 18-year-old Karnataka boy who had asked him for help. Salman has also been asking everyone to stay safe and be cautious to fight the virus. Talking about Radhe, the film's song Zoom Zoom released today.
America Movil has been ordered to pay $2.2 million to cover the legal costs of its case against the state of Colombia, in which the operator accused the government of illegally expropriating its local subsidiary Comcel.

Reuters reported that the World Bank's International Centre for Settlement of Investor Disputes (ICSID) tribunal has dimissed the claim, leaving America Movil on the hook for the legal fees.

America Movil initiated the case in 2016, challenging a 2013 ruling that the government could assume control over certain telecom assets in the event of the expiration or termination of concessions.

Comcels concessions had been terminated that year and, following this, America Movil alleged that there had been a subsequent refusal of the government to recognise Comcels property rights, with the unit prevented from freely using or selling its assets.

However, the ICSID has ruled that while the Colombian state had taken certain measures relating to the termination of Comcels concessions, these did not represent an expropriation of America Movils investments in Comcel, which would have been in contravention of Mexico and Colombias free trade agreement.

In 2017, a previous arbitration ruling ordered America Movil to pay the Colombian government US$1.08 billion over the issue, and the operator complied with the directive. This time around, it has stated that it is analysing the available legal actions against the award, including the potential request of its annulment.
The Polish Competition and Consumer Protection Office (UOKiK) president, Thomas Crostney, has initiated proceedings against TeleGo telephone company, saying the company misled customers and presented itself as their current operator.

As reported by UOKiK, TeleGo from Warsaw provides telecommunications services in fixed and mobile networks, internet access services, and telecare services.

"The Office received numerous complaints, which show that the company's representatives calling consumers with a proposal to conclude a contract and then visiting them at home may indicate or suggest that they represent their current telephone operator.

Consumers may therefore be convinced that the conversation and the documents submitted to them concern only the change of the terms of the contract with the current supplier, and not the conclusion of the contract with the new operator " said a press release from the UOKiK office.

Another objection  as UOKiK explains  is not providing consumers with an advertisement or withdrawal form, which could  in the opinion of the office  make it difficult for them to withdraw from a contract concluded outside the companys headquarters.

UOKiK noted that some complaints show that company representatives never leave signed documents at all or hand them over late, so consumers cannot verify with whom and what agreement they signed.

If the allegations are confirmed, TeleGo may face a fine of up to 10% of the annual turnover. In the past, the President of UOKiK has already punished telecommunications companies for impersonating the current operator, e.g. PGT (Telefonia Polska Together), Telekomunikacja Cyfrowa, Twoj Telekomunikacja, Nasza SA or Telestrada.
Solar power is supporting the activities of a number of Orange subsidiaries in Africa and a Huawei data centre in Jordan.

International operator Orange says it is accelerating its solar projects in Africa and the Middle East in order to reduce its carbon footprint to zero by 2040.

Where sites cannot be connected to  or cannot always rely on  the electricity grid, generators are often used, requiring fossil fuel. Orange is putting in place several initiatives such as solar panels to limit reliance on such power sources.

This is already the case with several of its subsidiaries. The renewable energy use rate is now at over 50 percent for Orange Guinea, 41 percent for Orange Madagascar and 40 percent for Orange Sierra Leone.

These solar panel solutions have also been or will soon be deployed in other African and Middle Eastern countries where Orange is present, like Liberia, for instance, where 75 percent of Orange's telecom sites are equipped with solar panels. In total, Orange has installed solar panels at 5,400 of its telecom sites (some 100 percent solar, others hybrid) saving, it says, 55 million litres of fuel each year.

Orange has also launched three solar farms in Jordan. The aim is to meet 50 percent of the groups electricity needs from renewable sources by 2025, and to be net zero carbon by 2040.

In Dubai, meanwhile, Moro Hub  a subsidiary of Digital DEWA, the digital arm of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA)  has signed an agreement with communications giant Huawei to build a solar-powered data centre.

The new 100MW facility will be located in the 3,000MW Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park outside Dubai to the southeast of the city.

Moro Hub claims the new facility will be largest solar-powered Uptime Tier III-certified facility in the Middle East and Africa.

The new facility is Moro Hubs second solar-powered facility; the company has a 3,402 sqm (36,600 sq ft), 8.8MW Tier III-certified data centre in the Dubai Marina.
No foreign interference able to undermine rule of law in Hong Kong

10:04, May 11, 2021 By Zhong Sheng ( People's Daily

The rule of law is never to be played with, and those who go against the laws shall never escape punishment.

The District Court of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) recently sentenced Joshua Wong Chi-fung, an instigator of the Hong Kong riots, as well as other three persons, four to ten months in jail for participating in an unauthorized assembly.

Aerial photo taken on March 6, 2021 shows people displaying China's national flag and the flag of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in support of implementing the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong" at Tamar Park in Hong Kong, China. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

The judgment was made strictly according to the Basic Law and judicial proceedings of the HKSAR, based on solid facts and legal procedure.

However, a U.S. politician ridiculously requested the HKSAR government to immediately release these anti-China rioters on twitter.

Does he want to be a judge in Hong Kong? If he does, he must learn first the laws of Hong Kong and then see if he's qualified to be one.

The human rights and freedom in Hong Kong, including the freedom of speech and the freedom of assembly, are fully protected by the Chinese constitution and the Basic Law of the HKSAR. However, there are legal boundaries for every right and interest. No one enjoys the freedom to hurt the personal and property security of others, the freedom to undermine social prosperity and stability, or the freedom to challenge national sovereignty, security and development interests.

The four anti-China rioters are suspected of an illegal assembly. Their mean practice to challenge the police authority and cripple the government through organized massive illegal assembly is tolerated in no law-based society.

The judge of the case said when announcing judgment that the defendants were intentionally, premeditatedly and blatantly violating the law, as they had been told that the assembly was not authorized. There must be deterring punishment to underline the severity of the case, so as to avoid imitation.

Hong Kong is an inalienable part of China and its affairs are China's internal affairs that brook no interference by any external forces. How dare the U.S. politician request the HKSAR government to release the defendants that have pled guilty and try to meddle in the normal and justifiable adjudication of the HKSAR! His practice not only goes against the rule of law, but also violates international law and the basic norms governing international relations.

The U.S. politician can't be unclear about the causal relationship between illegality and punishment. In the U.S., illegal assembly is banned, and anyone that participates in it will face severe punishment. For instance, unlawful assembly is a Class B misdemeanor in Alabama, and is punishable by six months of imprisonment and a $3,000 fine. In Arizona, it is considered a first-degree felony that is punishable by six months of imprisonment and a $2,500 fine.

There's no doubt that the judgment made by the District Court of the HKSAR was an act to safeguard justice with the rule of law. The improper and irresponsible remarks made by the U.S. politician is totally shameful as it puts political manipulation above the law.

The hypocritical double standard of some U.S. politicians have again and again hindered the law enforcement of Hong Kong judiciary authorities, and offered shelter and even whitewashed criminals. They are standing on the opposite side of Hong Kong's rule of law and order, as well as the Hong Kong citizens.

Of course, the U.S. attempts to interfere in Hong Kong affairs and China's domestic affairs are doomed to end up in vain. To ensure that laws are put in place, observed, and strictly enforced and that anyone who violates the law is held to account is necessary for safeguarding social orders and people's interests with the rule of law.

It must be noted that China has the resolution, confidence and capability to contain foreign interference, safeguard national security, and ensure the long-term stability and prosperity of the HKSAR.

(Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People's Daily to express its views on foreign policy.)

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
Though vaccine hesitancy has often been painted as an issue primarily in Black and Latino communities, surveys have found that white Republicans are less likely to want a vaccine than any other group. And according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, rural Americans are less likely than urban Americans to say they plan to get vaccinated or are considering it.
Telkomsel, a unit of Indonesias state-owned and largest telecom operator Telkom, has invested an additional US $300 million in ride-hailing and payments firm Gojek, just months after the network provider wrote a $150 million check to the Southeast Asian firm.

The announcement comes amid Gojek, Indonesia's largest private tech company, working to seal a proposed merger with e-commerce platform Tokopedia. The $18 billion deal would result in a new entity called GoTo. Telkomsels investment today likely makes it one of GoTos top eight investors.

Both parties said in a joint statement that the additional investment has the approval and support of Telkomsel's shareholders, including Telkom Indonesia and Singtel.

According to the press release, both companies interpret this continued investment as a momentum to strengthen and deepen collaboration in presenting comprehensive digital services and creating more innovative solutions. The two companies will continue to encourage the use of cutting-edge technology more deeply in every aspect of life from all walks of life, it said.

President Director of Telkomsel Setyanto Hantoro said, "Telkomsel is optimistic that this latest investment effort will open up more opportunities for the public to see and enjoy more advanced technology-based innovations created by the nation's children."

Setyanto then explained that this corporate action was part of Telkomsel's strategy to strengthen the company's digital business trifecta, namely Digital Connectivity, Digital Platform, and Digital Services.

Gojek Group Co-CEO Andre Soelistyo said: Telkomsel's continued funding will optimize the resources and technical expertise of each company to innovate and expand the benefits of the digital economy for more consumers, driver-partners and MSME players throughout Indonesia. We are both confident and committed that this partnership will support the acceleration of Indonesia's digital transformation which will strengthen Indonesia's position as the leader in the digital economy market in Southeast Asia."

This continued strategic investment action is supported by Telkomsel's shareholders, namely Telkom Indonesia and the Singtel Group, said the release. This is based on Telkomsel's vision of seeing this investment as an effort to strengthen its role as a leading digital telco company in developing the company's digital ecosystem to bring more use of appropriate digital technology to society, it added.
Update: The Sony PlayStation 5 console will be available for pre-booking on Vijay Sales, GamesTheShop, and PrePaidGamerCard.

Good news for PlayStation 5 fans! It seems like the elusive console might be available for pre-order next week. A user in a WhatsApp group informed us about a Sony Authorised dealer that posted a banner on their website. The banner claims that the Sony PlayStation 5 will be available for pre-order from May 17, 12PM onwards. While we can see the disc edition banner there is a screenshot of the digital edition as well making the rounds on social media going up for preorder on the same date - May 17, 12PM. Do note that the disc edition is priced at Rs 49,990 and the digital edition is priced at Rs 39,990.

To recall, the sale of the PlayStation 5 is staggered, to say the least. Not only did the console arrive late, but its sale dates could be best summarized as first-come, first-served. Very recently, the console went on sale on Reliance Digital, but it went out of stock within a few minutes. It also seems like the issue of low stocks isnt doing to go away anytime soon.

According to Sony, the shortage of console units isn't going to end unless the demand declines. With demand for the consoles at a fever-pitch, that isnt going to change anytime soon. While speaking to investors, Sony CFO, Hiroki Totoki confirmed that it was challenging to keep up with the strong demand. He noted that in addition to the global semiconductor shortage, there are "other factors" contributing to the scarcity. Totoki didn't dive deep into the details about these other factors that are in play, but we are assuming one of them may be the global shipping crisis right now due to the pandemic.

Of course, Sony isnt the only one struggling to meet the demands of gamers. Even Microsoft is having trouble keeping enough stocks of the Xbox Series X and the Series S. The lack of units isn;t just affecting console gamers, AMD and Nvidia are also having issues keeping up with demand. With everyone stuck at home during the pandemic, it seems like everyone turned to gaming to pass the time

Till then you can check out our reviews of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X.
The update from Whatsapp for its users for the year 2021 is the highly anticipated multi device feature. WABetainfo that posts news and updates related to Whatsapp recently has provided new details on to what the multi device support of the social media app will bring. The multi device feature is the most exciting feature that is coming. This feature will allow users to have access to their same Whatsapp account through multiple devices at once without the need of an active internet connection on the main device. This feature will definitely help people all around the world and is a very innovative creation on Whatsapps part.However, there will be reportedly two variants to this multi device feature to be tested. One variant will allow the users to use their Whatsapp account from their desktop or browser without the need of their phone or an active internet connection, and the other variant will allow users to use Whatsapp from multiple devices all at once. This means that the all the chats and data from one device wont be migrated to the other device but instead the two devices will be in sync with each other. However, there are rules that apply to this synchronization. For example, if you delete a chat on one device, the chat will not get deleted on the other device that is in sync with the first once. Likewise if you delete a message for everyone, the same will not happen on the other device or devices. So if you are to use the multi device feature, messages or chats deleted from one device will get deleted on the other devices using your Whatsapp account only if you do the same on other devices that are in sync.Whatsapp is at the moment still working on its multi device feature and this hasnt even been available to Whatsapps beta users, so therefore, there might be some alteration to this syncing feature and other features that are to release with this. Whatsapp is even planning onto offer a public beta for Whatsapp Web to allow their users to try this feature out. No release date for the multi device feature has been announced yet but the speed at which Whatsapp is working, this feature is to soon make its round throughout the world!Read next: WhatsApp takes another leaf from Telegram's book
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By MARK PRATT

Associated Press

A bipartisan group of 44 attorneys general has written to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg urging him to drop company plans for a version of Instagram for children under the age of 13, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced Monday.

The attorneys general in the letter said they are concerned about social media's effects on the physical and emotional well-being of children, the potential for increased cyberbullying, possible vulnerability to online predators, and what they called Facebook's checkered record in protecting children on its platforms.





. . .
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SEATTLE  A industrial building at 1700 Airport Way S. sold for $9.5 million, according to King County records.

The seller was Western Blower Associates LLC, which had owned the property for decades.





. . .
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The show is being cast with local performers, and the neighborhoods where it will be performed even weighed in on the choice of Passing Strange, which Padron says Barboza is presenting as a story of resilience. Working with the City of New Haven Department of Arts, Culture and Tourism, the Long Wharf looked for leaders who need arts programming in their communities, the areas with cool parks and open areas. Padron says. We wanted to make sure we were co-creating and co-curating with the community, Padron says. We didnt want to helicopter in to these areas and say You need this.
In the second of its series of events on In conversation with.... Dundalk Chamber of Commerce will host a webinar with Simon Hartley, founder of Be World Class.

Simon has spent the last 25 years working with world class performers and teams. The theme of his speech will be A conversation on How to Spark Innovation in your People and advance business from home.

We can run the business from home, but are we advancing it from home? he asks entrepreneurs when speaking in advance of the online event.

When we are working from home, its like we are treading water? Were not sinking, but were not really going forward either.

There are challenges that a lot of business leaders are facing now. If we cannot get everyone in the same room, how do we have strategic discussions?

How do we collectively solve the problems? How do we enable the people to be innovative, creative and drive the business forwards? These are just some of the items Simon will cover during this webinar.

Sponsored by Recruitment Plus the webinar will take place via zoom on Wednesday the 26th of May at 12 noon to 1pm and is free for Chamber members and 10 plus vat for non-members. To register for the event call Brenda in Dundalk Chamber on 042 9336343 or email brenda@dundalk.ie.
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There was no widespread fraud in the 2020 election. Trumps claims were rejected by Republican and Democratic election officials in state after state, by U.S. cybersecurity officials and by courts up to the U.S. Supreme Court. And his attorney general at the time said there was no evidence of fraud that could change the election outcome.
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!
Julie Huss/Staff photoFour voting machines arrive at the facility in Pembroke Tuesday for the start of Windham's forensic audit. Windham's town ballots from the Nov. 3 general election arrived later. The first day included an overview of the process by audit officials. The process is being livestreamed at www.doj.nh.gov.
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Two WHO officials with knowledge of the situation said the agency investigated complaints that Diallo acted unprofessionally, including an alleged sexual assault, and there was insufficient evidence to corroborate the charges. But investigators failed to interview any of the women involved or the whistleblowers who flagged the harassment claims, according to a senior WHO official who didnt want to be identified for fear of losing his job. Diallo continued to work for WHO months after concerns were raised about him.


Connie Green is the interim president of Blue Mountain Community College, and Jane Hill is chair of the Blue Mountain Community College Board of Education.
Just after his first week of official practice, new transfer Jesse Miritello persuaded sever
In 2018, worker advocacy groups gathered enough signatures to put several citizen-initiated ballot proposals on the November ballot. However, according to law, before that happens, the legislature has the ability to make them law immediately by passing them as legislation. If this is done, it bypasses the governor and they become law without the governors signature.

There were several ballot initiatives that year. One was to make recreational weed legal. Another created our new Independent Redistricting Commission and process. A third make early voting and voting in general much easier. The legislature did not act on these three and voters passed them by wide margins in November.

Two of the initiatives, however, WERE passed by the Republican-led legislature and they were set to become law 90 days after the end of the legislative session. What happened next was a calculated move to essentially overturn the will of the voters and subvert Michigan law. One of the initiatives raised the minimum wage over a series of years and raised the minimum tipped wage, as well. The other made earned paid sick time a reality for all workers. Republicans asked then Attorney General Bill Schuette to issue an opinion on whether they could modify these new laws in the same legislative session that they were passed. He issued an opinion that they could.

Schuettes move, one of his last as Attorney General, overturned a decades-old opinion issued by a conservative who is Michigans longest serving Attorneys General in our states history, Frank Kelley. His 1963-64 Opinion of the Attorney General No. 4303 said that the Legislature is prohibited from enacting an initiative petition into law and then amending that law during the same legislative session.

Republicans, who knew these two proposals were wildly popular with everyone but the corporations who fund their campaigns, passed new legislation during the subsequent 2018 lame duck session that completely gutted them both, rendering them all but useless. In the process, they completely disenfranchised millions of Michigan voters who signed the petitions to put them into our state law. It was an astonishing act of un-American anti-democracy.

Since then, workers advocacy groups have been urging Attorney General Dana Nessel to overturn Schuettes opinion. She has declined to do so, presumably because she didnt want to perpetuate Schuettes decision to overturn decades of precedent by overruling a predecessor.

Today, Mothering Justice, the Restaurant Opportunities Center of Michigan and several workers, along with other advocates for working families, have filed a lawsuit against AG Nessel for blocking efforts to restore these two important elements in making sure our workers are treated fairly in the workplace.

Schuettes decision was politically driven and wrong and the Legislatures actions were unconstitutional, said Aisha Wells, paid family leave organizer for Mothering Justice. We believe that Nessel is indifferent to working families economic security.

Here are some statements from the plaintiffs in the case from a press release they sent out today:

If these initiatives had gone to the voters, Michigan workers would have gotten a raise and paid sick time starting in 2019, said Sarah Coffey, organizer at ROC Michigan. At the behest of corporations and big business, legislators did an end run around voters so they could gut our measures  denying vulnerable workers and families the fairer wages and paid leave they acutely need and deserve. James Hawk, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit against Nessel, was a server at Applebees from 2018 through mid-March last year, when he was laid off due to the pandemic. He lost wages and was forced to work while sick because the Legislature stopped the original initiatives from taking effect. Tipped workers should be paid the same minimum wage as everyone else, said Hawk. Our livelihoods shouldnt have to rely on uncontrollable factors like the generosity of customers or how busy our section of the restaurant is. Paid sick time should be a basic right, said plaintiff Tia Marie Sanders, a worker who has not earned paid sick leave that she deserves. If nothing else the pandemic has shown us that sick workers should stay home to help keep everyone safe. Workers like me shouldnt have to choose between a paycheck or going to work sick.

You can read a copy of the complaint HERE.

While I understand AG Nessels reluctance to overturn opinions of her predecessor, this is an unique situation that requires a bold countermeasure in order to restore the rights of the citizens of Michigan to change laws in our state. Voters were effectively denied their right to vote on these two measures and it was done by corporate-funded Republicans in the legislature colluding with a corporatist Republican Attorney General to do the bidding of their corporate benefactors. Its a perversion of democracy that should make ALL Michiganders angry, no matter what political party they support. We have rules and laws and norms and the party in power shouldnt be able to do an end run around them.

Heres hoping Mothering Justice and ROC are successful in their suit. With a Democratic and level-headed majority in the state Supreme Court, there is much reason to be optimistic.
State police released body camera footage from Jan. 15 that shows a trooper firing multiple shots, killing a teenager behind the wheel of a stolen car in West Haven after a lengthy high-speed chase. Mubarak Soulemane, 19 of New Haven, was shot after he displayed a knife, state police said. He was taken to Yale New Haven Hospital, where he died. The video shows troopers and a West Haven police officer descend on the car after it was stopped off Exit 43 off I-95 northbound. After Trooper Joshua Jackson yells for the teen to get out of the vehicle, a West Haven officer repeatedly bashes the passengers side window until it breaks. As the officer tries to break the window, Trooper Brian North calls from the drivers side of the Hyundai to Tooper Joshua Jackson to use his Taser. State police officials said the Taser did not work. Jacksons body camera shows the teen move in the drivers seat and someone yells: Hes reaching. North, from feet away, then fires about seven shots at the teen through the closed drivers side window. At 3:07 in the video, dash camera footage shows troopers moving fast down I-95, following the stolen car as it weaves through rush-hour traffic. The ACLU has claimed that one of the officers involved was recorded calling [Soulemane] a racial slur. State police officials have denied this and insisted that the trooper has been falsely accused. They insist the officer was using the word mirror, in reference to the damage that happened to his police cruiser. (The part of the video in question is at 2:09.) An investigation is underway. For the full-length police video, click here
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WARSAW, Ind., June 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc. (NYSE and SIX: ZBH), a global leader in musculoskeletal healthcare, today announced that its Board of Directors has approved the payment of a quarterly cash dividend to stockholders for the second quarter of 2021. The cash dividend of $0.24 per share is payable on or about July 30, 2021 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on June 28, 2021.
Chief Minister won't seek re-election to House of Keys

The Chief Minister Howard Quayle MHK has announced that he does not intend to seek re-election to the House of Keys in the general election this September.



Commenting on his decision, the Chief Minister said: It has been an honour and a privilege to represent the people of Middle for the past 10 years and to serve as the Islands Chief Minister for the past five.



In 2011 I decided to stand for the House of Keys out of concern for our Islands future following the significant change to the revenue sharing agreement with the United Kingdom as well as the after effects of the global financial crisis. I set out with a clear focus to secure a prosperous future for our Island, one that we could hand over to the next generation. I only ever intended to serve two terms in the House of Keys and did not expect to become the Islands Chief Minister.



My time as Chief Minister has seen arguably two of the greatest challenges to face the Isle of Man since the Second World War: Brexit and COVID-19. I am proud of what this administration and our Island have achieved together, particularly in responding to the pandemic. It has been a real team effort.



The Chief Minister continued: It is my intention to continue to serve as Chief Minister until the House of Keys elects a successor in October.



There remains much to do over the coming weeks and months as we continue to navigate our way through the pandemic and work to emerge from it stronger and ready for the future. We also continue our work to deliver the Programme for Government.



The job of government is never done, there is always more to do. There will be new challenges over the horizon, of course, but I believe our Island can look to the future with confidence and optimism.
July 'working date' for local authority elections



By Chris Cave - Local Democracy Reporter

A date for the local authority elections is still to be confirmed after the ballot was delayed.

Tynwald unanimously backed postponing the vote after a rise in Covid-19 cases on the Island in March.

It is now expected to take place in July, however, no date has yet been ratified.

Although its been widely speculated that voters are now set to head to the polls on Thursday, 22 July, no official announcement has been made.

Infrastructure Minister Tim Baker, whose department is responsible for local authorities, has told me that date is a working assumption and he hopes to be able to confirm the date soon.

Many commissioners and councillors have already served more than 12 months longer than they initially thought their terms would last, after the election was intended to take place in April last year.

With tough coronavirus restrictions in place, the decision was taken to push the vote back by a year.

That action of postponing the ballot was repeated again earlier this year as the Island entered a third lockdown.

And despite a number of suggestions being put forward, such as holding the vote on the same day as the House of Keys election in September, members agreed to push it back by three months until July.

Mr Baker is expected to confirm the date early next month, giving candidates standing just over a month to get out canvassing on the campaign trail.

For details on how to stand, contact your local authority directly or head to the Isle of Man Government website gov.im.
Athens, AL (35611)

Today

A few showers in the morning with thunderstorms developing for the afternoon. High 82F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Variable clouds with showers and scattered thunderstorms. Low around 70F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%.
The Manchester location in a swath of green surrounded by retail businesses and roadways is an open secret in the area and photos of the eagles are all over community Facebook pages. Seeing the show is as simple as parking and looking out the car window, and people have come from miles around just to marvel at such a close-up encounter with the nations symbol.
A German regulator claims Facebook's attempt to make WhatsApp users agree to data collection practices under an updated privacy policy isnt legal. As a result, the regulator has ordered Facebook to stop collecting data from WhatsApp users in the country under a three-month emergency ban.

The head of the Hamburg privacy authority, Johannes Casper, said the updated terms are overly broad, inconsistent and not transparent. He suggested Facebook might already be mishandling data and that it was vital to stop potential misuse from affecting the German election later this year. Caspar has asked European Union regulators to weigh in and issue a ruling that would cover all EU member states. He previously ordered Facebook to stop data collection from WhatsApp users in 2016 and to delete whatever information it had gathered.

Facebook denounced Caspars claims. It told Bloomberg the order is based on a fundamental misunderstanding about the aims and impact of the updated terms. Facebook said the ban wont stop it from rolling out the new rules.

WhatsApp users will need to agree to the terms by May 15 . Facebook pushed back the deadline from February 8th amid confusion and misinformation about the updated policy and to give users more time to review it. Although Facebook said it was committed to end-to-end encryption for messages in WhatsApp, the policy will enable it to share certain data from the service with other parts of its business. That includes phone numbers, transaction data, mobile device info, IP addresses and other details.
Lenovo is ready to bolster its AMD-powered gaming laptops with models that include the latest Intel has to offer  and NVIDIA, for that matter. The PC maker has unveiled new 7i (above), 5i (below) and 5i Pro portables that all revolve around Intel's 11th-generation Core H-series, scaling up to a Core i7 in the 5i models and a Core i9 HK chip in the 7i. While these won't make you ditch a recent Ryzen-based machine, you shouldn't be hurting for speed.

The 5i systems, meanwhile, are some of the first laptops we've seen beyond Samsung's Galaxy Book Odyssey to use NVIDIA' new GeForce RTX 3050 and 3050 Ti graphics. You'll have to make do with 4GB of video RAM on those models, but that should still be enough to play modern games at a good clip. You can upgrade to the RTX 3070 or (on the 7i) 3080 if you want top-tier performance.

Lenovo

The Intel refresh also brings up-to-date connectivity that includes a Thunderbolt 4 port as well as WiFi 6. The 16-inch 5i Pro and 7i laptops pack 2,560 x 1,600 displays with 165Hz refresh rates, while the 15- and 17-inch 5i machines start with 1080p 60Hz panels and offer higher refresh rates (165Hz on the 15-inch, 144Hz on the 17-inch) as well as a 1440p resolution for the smaller computer.

The combination of two new hardware lines won't be cheap. The Legion 5i Pro and Legion 7i ship in June at respective starting prices of $1,330 and $1,770. You'll have to wait until July for the 5i, which will start at $970.

You'll have the option of a fast gaming-oriented monitor, too. Lenovo has unveiled a 24.5-inch Legion Y25g-30 monitor (not pictured) that sticks with a 1080p resolution, but packs a super-fast 360Hz refresh rate to improve response times for competitive games. The pivoting and swiveling display supports NVIDIA's anti-tearing G-Sync and low latency Reflex tech, offers HDR (albeit modest at 400 nits of typical brigthness) and even includes a headphone hook. You'll be paying a premium, though, as the Y25g-30 will sell for $700 when it lands in October.
On May 10th at 4:23 PM Eastern, OSIRISREx bid asteroid Bennu farewell to begin its 1.4-billion-mile journey back to our planet. The probe has been observing the asteroid since 2018 and even touched down on its surface last year to collect samples scientists can examine here on Earth. In fact, it scooped up so much more than the 60 grams of regolith its ground team expected to get that small particles kept leaking from the sample container until it was stowed away ahead of schedule.

OSIRISREx will spend the next two-and-a-half years flying back so it can drop the sample containers, which will parachute to the Utah Test and Training Range in Utah's West Desert. No, the probe itself won't be landing back on Earth  it will stay in space for good. To be able to rendezvous with our planet, the ground team will have to do regular corrections so that it can bring the probe's trajectory increasingly closer to Earth's atmosphere. OSIRISREx will have to circle the sun twice inside of Venus' orbit first before it can get close enough for sample release.

NASA expects the probe to drop its sample capsule on September 24th, 2023. The process is a tricky one, because dropping it too low will cause the container to bounce out of the atmosphere, but dropping too high will cause the capsule to burn up during re-entry. That's why the agency prepared a backup plan that would give OSIRIS-REx the chance to try again in 2025, in case the first attempt wouldn't be possible. After all, getting the samples intact is of paramount importance. Scientists believe the asteroid Bennu has been around since the formation of our solar system 4.5 billion years ago. The debris OSIRIS-REx collected could hold the answer to whether asteroids helped deliver ingredients for life to Earth as we know it today.

Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for science at NASA Headquarters, said:
Half a year since launch, and its still a challenge for a lot of us to get our hands on a next-gen console. Sony has reportedly said there will be supply constraints for the rest of the year, but we didnt even need to be told. If youve tried to buy an Xbox Series X or PS5, youve probably had to shop around (online, mostly) for stock. And get very lucky.

What have you missed out on? Fortunately, not that much so far. According to Jessica Conditt, our newest consoles are still finding their feet, with Sony and Microsofts differing approaches still yet to yield anything conclusive. While Xbox has Game Pass, the PlayStation has the early exclusives (like Returnal)  enough, in fact, to warrant the debut of our guide to the best games on PS5. As you might expect, yep, there are some games in there you can play on your PS4, but the new console just does them better.

 Mat Smith

Security video shows the car's owner getting into the drivers seat.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its preliminary report on the fatal Tesla Model S crash that killed two men in Texas last month . The report says security camera footage from the home of the owner of the vehicle shows him entering the drivers side door. When police first started investigating the crash, they told reporters they were 100 percent certain that no one was in the driver seat driving that vehicle at the time of impact.

Theres been a lot of speculation over whether the owner of the Model S was attempting to use Autopilot, and this report doesnt clarify much just yet. The fire from the crash destroyed the onboard storage device and damaged the restraint control module. The latter stores data related to the cars speed, acceleration, as well as seat belt and airbag status.

Continue reading.

Leaked images suggest they'll look vastly different from the terrific WF-1000XM3.

Sonys excellent noise-canceling WF-1000XM3 true wireless earbuds have been around for a few years, so it's about time for a refresh. According to a leak, the next-gen buds could look a little different. Images obtained by The Walkman Blog suggest that, although the WF-1000XM4 will ditch the flatter design for a rounded outer shape, they could protrude less from your ears.

Continue reading.

One section of the curriculum had an emphasis on "emotional intelligence."

Thomas A. Coney

With President Biden's vote of confidence, the first flight unit composed entirely of Space Force Guardians graduated from Air Force basic military training, last week. The boot camp saw 35 recruits undergo seven and a half weeks of drills following a tailor made curriculum.

Continue reading.

Yes, it does sound like a file-sharing service from the 00s.

Harley-Davidson

Back in 2019, Harley-Davidson released the LiveWire, its first all-electric motorcycle. Now, it plans to use the LiveWire name to launch an all-electric motorcycle brand. LiveWire will announce its first EV on July 8th  dont miss Fords electric F-150 event next week  revealing the bike at the International Motorcycle Show, one day later.

Continue reading.

Eventually, you won't be able to chat with anyone.

With its controversial privacy policy slated to go into effect this weekend, WhatsApp says it won't delete or deactivate the accounts of individuals who don't want to share their information with Facebook. "No one will have their accounts deleted or lose functionality of WhatsApp on May 15th because of this update," the company said in its own support article .

However, you will start to lose some WhatsApp functions if you continue to not accept its new privacy policy. At first, you'll lose access to your chat list. The only way the app will allow you to message or call someone is if they contact you first and you tap on the notification from WhatsApp.

After several more weeks, the app will stop sending messages and calls to your phone altogether. At that point, your options are particularly limited. You can export your chat history or download a report of your account. Or you can just delete your WhatsApp account and start using one of several alternatives .

Continue reading.

But wait, theres more...

Ford will reveal the F-150 Lightning EV on May 19th

Sony's DualSense controller now works with Apple devices for PS5 remote play

What's on TV this week: 'Mass Effect,' 'Love, Death & Robots' and 'Castlevania'

Amazon's palm-reading payment tech is now available in New York City

UK postal service tests autonomous drone deliveries to remote islands

'VVVVVV' creator Terry Cavanagh's new game only exists inside 'Roblox'

US cracks down on 'bulletproof hosting' admins that enabled malware attacks

FDA approves the first smart insulin pen cap to help with dosing
Samsung won't have a physical presence at MWC 2021 in Barcelona. "The health and safety of our employees, partners and customers is our number one priority, so we have made the decision to withdraw from exhibiting in-person at this years Mobile World Congress," a spokesperson for the company told Reuters (via The Verge).

As things currently stand, the GSM Association, the organization that puts together MWC every year, plans to go ahead with an in-person event on June 28th. Samsung is the latest company to say it will attend the event remotely. Previously, Sony, Nokia and Ericsson announced similar plans. Google has also said it won't exhibit at MWC, but still plans to attend it virtually.

"Of course we respect that planning in a pandemic is complicated. Samsung will adapt their presence to virtual for MWC21 and we look forward to seeing them in person 2022," a spokesperson for the GSMA told Engadget. The organization also pointed us to a press release it published last week that details some of the programming it has planned for MWC 2021. Last year, the GSMA ended up canceling MWC 2020 after several major exhibitors, including Samsung, Sony and LG dropped out of the event in the days leading up to it.

Update 3:04 PM ET: Added comment from the GSMA.
American tech companies (not to mention car makers) are feeling the pinch of chip shortages, and they're banding together in hopes of bringing more production to the US. A string of tech giants have formed the Semiconductors in America Coalition to land funding for the recently enacted CHIPS for America Act, which greenlit incentives for domestic chip manufacturing and research but didn't supply the necessary money.

The alliance includes a mix of companies, including familiar tech brands like Amazon, Apple, Google and Microsoft as well as carriers like AT&T and Verizon (Engadget's parent company for now). Firms that were already part of the Semiconductor Industry Association, such as AMD, Intel, Qualcomm and Samsung, are also part of the coalition.

The aim is simple: the companies want enough US-based manufacturing to create "more resilient supply chains" and ensure tech is there when necessary. SIAC is opposed to any short-term intervention as it believes it can fix the supply-and-demand imbalance itself.

The alliance has already sent a letter to House and Senate leaders urging "robust" funding for the CHIPS Act.

There's no guarantee SIAC will succeed in getting the funding it wants. President Biden has asked for $50 billion to fund the CHIPS Act, though, and industry funding is less prone to partisan fighting than other issues. Suffice it to say that the right funding could be transformative  the US now represents just 12 percent of worldwide chipmaking capacity, and a surge of new or expanded plants could both increase that percentage and reduce the country's dependence on foreign-made components.
House Majority Leader Jason Rojas of East Hartford said: The governor has been pretty restrained for a number of months in terms of issuing new executive orders. I think what were trying to do is ensure that he can maintain the flexibility that the governor needs to act in an emergency situation, but I think that he has shown to the public as we move toward May 19 and largely removing most of the remaining business-related executive orders, hes just looking for that flexibility to be able to respond accordingly.
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GARBER  Service for Anton R. (Tony) Vencl will be held Saturday at 10 a.m. at Ladusau Evans Chapel. Burial will follow at the White Cemetery, Hunter. Arrangements are under the direction of Ladusau-Evans Funeral Home.
Bill and Melinda Gates rocked the entire world when they announced they were headed to divorce after 27 years of marriage.

However, a new report suggested that perhaps their split has been looming for some time already.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Melinda contacted divorce lawyers in 2019 about separating from her billionaire husband.

The outlet reported that the philanthropist has been in contact with numerous law firms for two years now regarding her marriage to Bill.

People familiar with her life-changing decision and those who have seen the divorce documents revealed that the mom-of-three saw her relationship with the Microsoft founder as "irretrievably broken."

When the divorce announcement was publicized last week, people all over the globe are wondering why they have come to the decision.

But it's only now when the Wall Street Journal has somehow cleared up the confusion and questions people are asking.

Bill and Melinda Gates' Possible Reason for Divorce

The publication cited that Melinda Gates had concerns about her husband's interactions with a convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein.

Her concerns about Bill Gates' connections and deals with the financier dated as far as 2013 when they met Epstein.

A former employee told the WSJ that Bill continued his relationship with Epstein, who was worth $500 million at the time of his death in 2019, despite Melinda telling her husband she was uncomfortable with the disgraced financier.

In 2019, the New York Times reported that Bill met with Epstein multiple times and even stayed late once into his Manhattan townhouse.

According to the outlet's sources, Melinda made several phone calls in Oct. 2019 after the Times' report broke.

That same year, a spokesperson for Bill said that he "regrets" having meetings with Epstein, which mainly was all about philanthropy.

Bridgitt Arnott said at the time, "Bill Gates regrets ever meeting with Epstein and recognizes it was an error in judgment to do so."

According to The Daily Beast, Bill Gates' relationship with Epstein also reportedly "haunted" Melinda throughout the years, since the billionaire continued to have a relationship with him even after pleading guilty to soliciting an underage girl in 2008.

READ ALSO: Nayel Nassar Net Worth 2021: Is Bill Gates' Future Son-in-Law Richer Than Jennifer Gates?

Another Reason For Gates' Divorce

In Melinda Gates' book "The Moment of Lift," she admitted it was difficult to be heard by her husband after revealing to him her desire to get more responsibility.

She also had difficulties living constantly in her husband's shadow.

She wrote, "I've been trying to find my voice as I've been speaking next to Bill, and that can make it hard to be heard."

Melinda further revealed that a request to co-author the yearly Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation letter, which was usually written by Bill, brought a massive strain in the almost three-decade marriage.

The 56-year-old wrote, "I felt, 'Well, this just might end the marriage right here.'"

She added, "I told him that there are some issues where my voice can make an impact, and in those cases, I should be speaking - separately or along with him."

Melinda continued, "It got hot. We both got angry. It was a big test for us - not about how you agree but about what you do when you can't agree. And we took a long time to agree."

Bill Gates has a net worth of $130 billion while his wife Melinda is worth $2.4 billion.

Their divorce comes two years after another high-profile billionaire, Jeff Bezos, finalized his divorce from his wife of 25 years, MacKenzie Scott.

Jeff gave MacKenzie a quarter of their joint stocks in Amazon worth $36 billion, instantly making her the world's 22nd richest person.

READ MORE: The One VIP Melinda Gates Banned Bill Gates From Seeing During Their Marriage Exposed

See Now: Famous Actors Who Turned Down Iconic Movie Roles
Tony Armatrading passed away Monday. Following a cancer struggle, the actor, who appeared in "The Saint," "Notting Hill" and "Death in Paradise," died at the age of 59.

Tim Bentinck, a fellow actor, announced his death online."Very sad news," Tim wrote on Twitter. "My dearest friend Tony Armatrading died of cancer an hour ago ."

Bentinck added alongside a photo of Tony, his wife Suzan Crowley, and their pet dog Dash before his death.

Very sad news. My dearest friend Tony Armatrading died of cancer an hour ago.

I had the privilege of being his best man, and loved him dearly. He was a wonderful actor, and a true friend. This pic of him with Suzy and Dash taken last night. pic.twitter.com/DfnFqtpOyj  Tim Bentinck (@timbentinck) May 10, 2021

"I had the privilege of being his best man, and loved him dearly. He was a wonderful actor, and a true friend," he continued while noting that the photo was taken a night before he breathed his last.

Following the tragic news, some of Tony's fans took to social media to express their condolences.

READ ALSO: Was Jake Ehlinger's Cause of Death Suspicious? Did He Die of Drug Overdose or Suicide? [Details]

"So, so sorry for your loss and sorry, too, for ours. Tony was a forerunner for a generation of British actors. I include myself in that generation. He had a quiet power and a shining integrity in all he did. Rest In Peace, Maestro," a certain Paterson Joseph commented.

"Oh good grief! devastating.I worked with Tony in Return to Blood River for BBC years ago,and then caught up with him & Suzy in LA a few years ago.Really happy times. Such a wonderful man. Such a wonderful actor. I'm completely shocked. RIP dearest man," said another fan that goes by the name Frances Barber.

Tony, a Birmingham native, had a successful acting career that included appearances on major American television shows such as NCIS and Prison Break.

See Now: Famous Actors Who Turned Down Iconic Movie Roles
Apple Film has recently released the first look from the film "Killers of the Flower Moon" which is directed by Martin Scorsese

The photo released via Twitter shows Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone who stars in the film as Ernest and Molle Burkhart, the film is set during the early 20th century in Oklahoma. (Check out the photo below)

Fans quickly pointed out that the "Titanic" actor appears to be unrecognizable in the photo released.

Leo is so unrecognizable on this pic  https://t.co/0R7AXFu0h5  Edward (@Enterward) May 11, 2021

The film is based on David Grann's best-selling book "Flower Moon" which is a non-fiction story about the massacre of Native Americans in 1920s Oklahoma after oil was discovered on their land.

READ NOW: Herr Fuchs Zurich, Creator of Official Dogecoin Song Elon Musk Tweeted Reacts: 'I Can Die in Peace Now'

'Killers of the Flower Moon' Shooting

The Apple Film-original movie was set to shoot in March 2020 but production was halted because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Scorsese-directed film confirmed to IndieWire that they have officially resumed production last April 19.

"We are thrilled to finally start production on Killers of the Flower Moon' in Oklahoma," the director said in a statement.

The director and crew had spent over a year with the Osage Nation a Midwestern Native American tribe in Oklahoma to study and learn about their culture and to make sure their stories will be accurately depicted. The production has consulted Geoffrey Standing Bear, Chief of Osage Nation, and Chad Renfro, the tribe's film ambassador.

"To be able to tell this story on the land where these events took place is incredibly important and critical to allowing us to portray an accurate depiction of the time and people." the director said

Scorsese also shared his sentiments with the people involved in the film "We're grateful to Apple, the Oklahoma Film and Music Office and The Osage Nation, especially all our Osage consultants and cultural advisors, as we prepare for this shoot. We're excited to start working with our local cast and crew to bring this story to life on screen and immortalize a time in American history that should not be forgotten." he stated.

'Killers of the Flower Moon' Cast

DiCaprio stars alongside Jesse Plemons, Scott Shepherd, Pat Healy, Tantoo Carinal, Michael Abbott Jr., Gary Basaraba, and many more.

This is the first time Scorsese has directed a Western-genre film.

READ ALSO: Zac Efron Under Fire After Ex-GF Sarah Bro Claims a Movie Actor 'Manipulated' and 'Brainwashed' Her

See Now: Famous Actors Who Turned Down Iconic Movie Roles
2021-05-11

Maeci

Deputy Minister Manlio Di Stefano has inaugurated today the Italy-Minas Gerais (Brazil) Business Forum organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Italian Consulate in Belo Horizonte and the Italian Trade Agency, in collaboration with Confindustria, the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Minas Gerais and the Federation of Industries of Minas Gerais, with the support of the State Government. The event has been attended by over 600 Italian and Brazilian economic and institutional operators, who could then meet in B2B sessions on the digital platform 'Fiera Smart 365'.

"In these difficult and uncertain times - the Deputy Minister said - today's event is a valuable opportunity to confirm the strategic importance of the relationship between Italy and Brazil, a friendly country with which we have historical, cultural and human, but also business and commercial ties.

"The Business Forum, the first event of its kind in recent years, aims to strengthen economic relations between Italian companies and their Brazilian counterparts. It presents the investment opportunities offered by Minas Gerais with a focus on agribusiness and food processing, manufacturing and automation, sustainable energy and smart cities.

"We see great opportunities for Italian companies - the Deputy Minister continued  which are world leaders in terms of experience, product quality, know-how, innovative capacity, but also technology, versatility and reliability.

"The complementary nature of our two production systems, the ability of Italian companies to create a supply chain by sharing their knowledge with the local entrepreneurial fabric, and the high demand for Italian goods and machinery in Brazil, are excellent bases for further increasing our collaboration, the Deputy Minister concluded.

Particular appreciation has been expressed by the Governor of Minas Gerais, Romeu Zema, for the contribution to the economic-industrial development of the State offered by the 100 Italian companies already present there. The Governor shared 'the hope of seeing Italian investment and trade intensify in the future and the development of new collaborations between Italian and Minas Gerais companies.
As the governor calls on the National Guard to support nursing homes during the strike, we call on him and his team to put those resources to better use by funding the services provided by nursing home workers, said Rob Barile, president of SEIU District 1199 New England, which represents the workers. The danger of the work and the low wages have created an extreme staffing crisis. This is an urgent matter of racial and economic justice.
Most patients with depression are treated in primary care, however, relatively few clinical trials for treating depression have focused on primary care. Researchers at the Vrije University Amsterdam examined the effects of the two major approaches to treating depression: psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy, as well as combined treatment and care-as-usual. The study integrated the results of 58 randomized controlled trials with a total of 9,301 patients. Results concluded that both psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy were significantly more effective than care-as-usual or waitlist control. However, they found no significant difference between psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy as stand-alone treatments. Combined treatment, particularly in studies that included cognitive behavioral therapy, was better than either pharmacotherapy or psychotherapy alone. Treatment in primary care should be organized to accommodate any of these treatments in response to patients' preferences and values, the authors write.

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Although new family medicine graduates intend to provide a broader scope of practice than their senior counterparts, individual family physicians' scope of practice has been decreasing, with fewer family physicians providing basic primary care services, such pediatric and prenatal care. Russell et al conducted a study to explore family medicine graduates' attitudes and perspectives on modifiable and non-modifiable factors that influenced their scope of practice and career choices. The authors conducted five focus group discussions with 32 family physicians and explored their attitudes and perspectives on their desired and actual scope of practice. Using a conceptual framework to understand the influences on practice scope, the authors found that personal factors played a role on desired scope while workplace, environmental and population factors influenced actual practice scope. Stressors that occurred in these four categories often caused family physicians to narrow their scope of practice. Understanding personal, environmental, workplace and population factors that influence practice scope can inform specific interventions that create desirable jobs for family physicians and improve their ability to meet changing population needs. Supportive factors of a broader-scope practice include training and access to additional medical education after training; access to mentors; strong organizational leadership; and team-based care.

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Researchers from the Cleveland Clinic and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company conducted a study to evaluate the effectiveness of shared medical appointments for people with pre-diabetes compared with a group of patients receiving usual care. Shared medical appointments are typically delivered in a medical clinic by physicians and other health care providers. Within the context of this study, shared medical appointments consisted of patients consulting with their doctors one-on-one and then joining a group of similar patients to set goals and review lab results with the same family physician and a diabetes educator. Researchers also assessed the impact of attending a shared medical appointment versus care-as-usual on chronic conditions such as high blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure.

Over 24 months, patients who took part in shared medical appointments lost more weight than those who received usual care. By the conclusion of the study period, patients who attended shared medical appointments showed better outcomes in managing the aforementioned chronic conditions than those patients who received usual care.

Researchers concluded that shared medical appointments may provide an effective model of treatment for patients with pre-diabetes. As the diabetic epidemic continues, the authors call for more research using shared medical appointments to manage prediabetes in health care systems.

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DALLAS, May 11, 2021 -- The American Heart Association is pleased to announce the new Dr. Nanette K. Wenger Award for Best Scientific Publication on Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke in Women to recognize and honor her pioneering career in cardiovascular medicine. Nanette K. Wenger, M.D., FAHA, is an emeritus professor of medicine in the division of cardiology at Emory University School of Medicine, consultant to the Emory Heart and Vascular Center, founding consultant to the Emory Women's Heart Center and director of the Cardiac Clinics and Ambulatory Electrocardiographic Laboratory at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta.

All authors submitting manuscripts focused on cardiovascular disease and stroke in women in one of the American Heart Association's 12 scientific journals will have the option to select their manuscript for consideration for the Dr. Nanette K. Wenger Award. Authors of manuscripts who self-identify as members of an under-represented race or ethnic group are encouraged to apply. Publications including structural and social determinants of health, policy, computational biology and engineering are highly encouraged. The AHA's Research Goes Red Research and Publications Sub-Committee, and additional experts as needed, will serve as peer-reviewers to select the winner of the Dr. Nanette K. Wenger Award. Submissions for the 2022 Award will open June 1, 2021 and remain open through May 29, 2022. The inaugural award will be awarded during this year's American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, November 13-15, 2021.

"Dr. Wenger's name is practically synonymous with women's cardiovascular research and care - she has been a formidable leader in the field of women's heart health and a strong ally and advocate for women in cardiology and medicine. This award recognizes her incredible legacy of paving the way, supporting and mentoring women as scientists and medical professionals, as well as her pioneering efforts in cardiovascular disease research about, for and by women," said American Heart Association President Mitchell S.V. Elkind, M.D., M.S., FAAN, FAHA. "The new Dr. Nanette K. Wenger Award will serve as an inspiration for continued innovation and discovery in research on cardiovascular disease and stroke in women. I think it will continue to motivate the current generation of scientists and medical professionals and many more generations to follow."

Dr. Wenger has been at the forefront of advancing patient care for the last 60-plus years, and she was among the first physicians to focus on coronary heart disease in women and to evaluate the different cardiovascular risk factors, symptoms and conditions for women compared to men. She noticed that women were coming into the clinic with heart disease in large numbers, and, unable to find existing studies on women's heart disease symptoms and their treatment, she decided to investigate. She and her colleagues discovered that women have different heart attack symptoms than men, and those symptoms were often dismissed or misdiagnosed by doctors.

Her clinical and research efforts led to the critical knowledge that cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death for women in the U.S., accounting for about 1 in every 5 female deaths. These findings have resulted in increased awareness, public health efforts and research about the significant risks of CVD for women, saving countless lives.

Dr. Wenger is actively practicing at Emory University School of Medicine, and she continues to promote and conduct gender-specific cardiology research. Her work includes the connection between pregnancy complications and cardiovascular disease and the possibility that certain breast cancer treatments are linked to heart failure.

Together with colleagues at Grady, she also led the development of a 21-day cardiac rehabilitation program for patients after myocardial infarction (heart attack), which became a model for programs across the country. In stark contrast, the standard of care at the time was for patients to be confined to bed rest for six months and not allowed to return to work for at least one year after a heart attack. Today, the hospital stay after a heart attack has decreased dramatically, and nearly all cardiac rehabilitation is delivered after hospital discharge - either remotely or through in-person programs.

Dr. Wenger earned a Bachelor of Arts from Hunter College, summa cum laude. She was one of the first women to graduate with a doctorate in medicine at Harvard Medical School, and in 1956, she was the first woman to be named chief resident in cardiology at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. She later moved to Atlanta and completed her fellowship at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Wenger has been on staff at Grady Memorial Hospital and at Emory University since 1959, and she served as the chief of cardiology at Grady Memorial Hospital from 1998 to 2009.

Dr. Wenger has received numerous awards for her outstanding achievements throughout her career. Notably, she was an author of the American Heart Association's 2007 Guidelines for Cardiovascular Disease in Women, and she has been recognized with numerous awards from the Association. Her awards include the Distinguished Achievement Award from the Scientific Councils of the American Heart Association; the AHA Women in Cardiology Mentoring Award; the James D. Bruce Memorial Award of the American College of Physicians for distinguished contributions in preventive medicine; the Gold Heart Award, the highest award of the American Heart Association; a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009; the Inaugural Bernadine Healy Leadership in Women's CV Disease Distinguished Award of the American College of Cardiology; and, most recently, the 2020 Eugene Braunwald Academic Mentorship Award.

In October 2020, she was featured in The Hill newspaper's special tribute, "The Century of the Woman: 100 Women Who Have Helped Shape America." She chaired the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Conference on Cardiovascular Health and Disease in Women. She also chaired the World Health Organization's Expert Committee on Rehabilitation after Cardiovascular Disease and co-chaired the Guideline Panel on Cardiac Rehabilitation for the U.S. Agency for Health Care Policy and Research. She is a past president of the Society of Geriatric Cardiology and was editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Geriatric Cardiology for more than 15 years. She has been involved with WomenHeart: The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease since its inception, and The Wenger Awards, are given in her name.

The Dr. Nanette K. Wenger Award is sponsored by AHA's Research Goes Red. Research Goes Red aims to empower researchers to contribute to women's health research. Cardiovascular disease continues to be a woman's greatest health threat, claiming the lives of 1 in 3. That's a third of our mothers, sisters, daughters, friends, neighbors, and loved ones. Research Goes Red is a collaboration between consumers contributing to health research, the American Heart Association volunteers and health experts and Verily with its leading tools and technologies. In the past, clinical studies have not been adequately inclusive of women or analyzed women-specific heart health data, yet that is the best way to improve care and prevent heart disease. Together, we aim to change these statistics and help save the women we love.

Additional Resources:

Available multimedia is on right column of release link - https:/ / newsroom. heart. org/ news/ new-dr-nanette-k-wenger-award-for-best-scientific-publication-on-cvd-and-stroke-in-women?preview= dceee3226c1debf8a3c70917f3e6eb0d About the American Heart Association

The American Heart Association is a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives. We are dedicated to ensuring equitable health in all communities. Through collaboration with numerous organizations, and powered by millions of volunteers, we fund innovative research, advocate for the public's health and share lifesaving resources. The Dallas-based organization has been a leading source of health information for nearly a century. Connect with us on heart.org , Facebook , Twitter or by calling 1-800-AHA-USA1.
A ceremonial tsantsa - or shrunken head - was authenticated and repatriated to Ecuador in 2019, after it had been discovered amongst stored exhibits at Mercer University, USA. The history of the artefact and the process of its authentication - which involved CT scans and assessment of 33 criteria such skin and hair features - are described in a study published in Heritage Science.

Tsantsas are unique and valuable artefacts that were produced by the Shuar, Achuar, Awajun/ Aguaruna, Wampis/Huambisa, and Candoshi-Shampra (SAAWC) peoples until the mid-20th century. They were made from the heads of enemies slain during combat in a labour-intensive, multi-step process. Tsantsas became valuable as keepsakes during the 19th century as a result of Western/European cultural encroachment, and unmet demand resulted in the production of convincing forgeries. As a result, repatriation of tsantsas to their places of origin requires prior authentication.

A team of researchers at Mercer University, USA report the authentication and repatriation of a ceremonial tsantsa discovered in the natural history collection of Mercer University and described in the personal memoirs of the original collector - a deceased faculty member of Mercer University - as having originated in the Ecuadorean Amazon. The authors examined the anatomy of the tsantsa using computed tomography (CT).

They found that the tsantsa had the structural hallmarks of a ceremonial artefact, such as the size of the head, which was about as large as an adult human fist, and three holes in the upper and lower lips, joined together with a vegetal fibre, which are common in other ceremonial examples. The tsantsa also showed a distinctive, three-tiered hairstyle consistent with hair worn by SAAWC culture group members.

In total, the authors were able to affirm 30 of 33 authenticating indicators provided by Ecuador's National Cultural Heritage Institute and found in the academic literature, including evidence of traditional fabrication and modification. Although the authors caution that some of the authentic tsantsa characteristics might have been damaged as a result of it being used as a prop in the 1979 John Huston film Wise Blood, the findings allowed them to conclude that the artefact was a genuine, ceremonial tsantsa and not a forgery. The results of the authentication were accepted by the Ecuadorean government, and the tsantsa was repatriated in June 2019.

The authors also produced a to-scale 3D replica of the tsantsa, suggesting that 3D printed reproductions may be useful as enhancements, and in some cases even replacements for, authentic artefacts in cultural and historical education.

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Media Contact

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Senior Communications Manager

Springer Nature

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Further information:

1. Research article:

The authentication and repatriation of a ceremonial tsantsa to its country of origin (Ecuador)

Byron et al.

Heritage Science 2021

DOI: 10.1186/s40494-021-00518-z

For an embargoed copy of the research article and for images, please contact Anne Korn at Springer Nature.

After the embargo lifts, the article will be available here: https:/ / heritagesciencejournal. springeropen. com/ articles/ 10. 1186/ s40494-021-00518-z

Please name the journal in any story you write. If you are writing for the web, please link to the article.
(Boston)--Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a disease caused by cigarette smoking that reduces lung function and causes difficulty breathing. It is the third leading cause of death worldwide. Current treatments for COPD only affect symptoms, not progression. Identifying who is going to get COPD before they get it is key to figuring out how to intercept the disease at an early stage.

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have identified a panel of genes that are active in smokers and ex-smokers who experience faster loss of lung function over time. They believe these genes could be useful to predict which people are most at risk for smoking-related decline in lung function.

"Our discovery that airway genes change before a rapid decline in lung function should give patients with COPD a lot of hope. A test like this could help doctors identify people at risk for COPD before they get it, and help scientists find new treatments to stop the disease before it gets worse," explained corresponding author Katrina Steiling, MD, MSc, assistant professor of medicine at BUSM.

Smoking, and diseases related to smoking, create changes throughout the airways and lungs. These changes can be detected using a procedure called a bronchoscopy, where a small flexible camera inserted through the nose or mouth is used to collect cells with brushes from the sides of the airways. The researchers tested airway brushings from 134 people who were current or former smokers. They found changes in the activity of specific genes in the people that went on to have more rapid worsening of their lung function several years after that initial airway brushing. Some of the genes were more active in the people who rapidly lost lung function while other genes were less active in these people.

According to the researchers, further study of these genes may provide clues as to what causes rapid lung function decline which could be used to develop to new treatments for preventing the development of COPD. "Being able to identify people most at risk for worsening lung function might also make clinical trials of COPD fighting medications easier, by enriching the trials testing new medications for people most likely to benefit from them," added co-author Beth Becker, PhD, a recent graduate from BU's bioinformatics program.

This study further shows another use for the 'airway field of injury' hypothesis. "Cigarette smoking causes changes to the cells in the lungs and airways. Because the changes in the airways are similar to those that occur deep inside the lung, testing the cells in the airways can be used to detect diseases deep within the lungs," added Marc Lenburg, PhD, professor of medicine and pathology and laboratory medicine at BUSM.

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These findings appear online in the journal Thorax.

Funding for this study was provided by the National Institutes of Health/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (ROI HL095388 and ROI HL 118542-01) and Dutch Longfonds Foundation (4.2.16.132JO).

Note to editors:

GO reports unrelated personal fees from AstraZeneca and grants from Janssen Pharmaceuticals. PSH reports unrelated grants from Boehringer lngelheim and Galapagos. MvdB reports unrelated research grants from GlaxoSmithKline, TEVA Pharmaceuticals and Chiesi. AS reports unrelated founder's equity from Metera Pharmaceuticals as well as grants and personal fees from Janssen Research and Development. KS reports grants from CHEST Foundation, unrelated grants from Lungevity Foundation Early Detection Award and royalties from UpToDate. MEL reports unrelated founder's equity from Metera Pharmaceuticals and unrelated grants from Janssen Research and Development. WT reports unrelated personal fees from pfizer, GSK, Roche Diagnostics/Ventana, Merck Sharp Dohme, Novartis, Lilly Oncology, Boehringer lngelheim, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers-Squibb and AbbVie. KS, MEL and AS have US patent 9,677, 138 issued. EJB, KS, MEL and AS have a relevant patent pending (application no. 62/916,431 ).
Dr. HAN Fangpu's group from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences reports the identification and functional study of the maize Knl1 gene in an article published online in PNAS. The gene is a major component of the KMN network that links centromeric DNA and the plus-ends of spindle microtubules. It also plays an important role in kinetochore protein recruitment.

The kinetochore complex that assembles on the centromeres mediates the proper partitioning of chromosomes to daughter cells during the cell cycle. However, kinetochore proteins undergo frequent mutations and coevolve with their interaction partners, leading to great diversity in kinetochore composition in eukaryotes.

Functional studies of kinetochore composition in plant model organisms are necessary to shed light on the evolutionary role of this intriguing component, and thus improve our collective understanding of the fundamentals of genetics.

The Knl1 is the constitutive component of the central kinetochore protein in plants. The researchers showed it was subcellularly localized and colocalized with other kinetochore components during interphase, mitosis, and meiosis. The functional importance of Knl1 in plants was demonstrated via characterization of the knl1 mutant.

The researchers revealed that Knl1 plays an essential role in chromosomal congregation and segregation during mitosis in maize, and deficiencies in Knl1 are linked to defective kernel development.

In addition, the researchers shed light on how spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) proteins interact with kinetochores in plants.

In the present study, the scientists discovered that maize Knl1 interacts with BMF1/2 via a 145-aa region that does not contain well-known MELT repeats described in yeast and mammalian cells. This region displayed high divergence between monocots and eudicots, implying a rapid evolution of kinetochore proteins.

In fact, despite being evolutionarily conserved in function, KNL1 displayed low overall sequence similarity between species. The intricate species-dependent presence/absence of conserved sequence regions led the authors to propose an interaction network model of plant Knl1 with spindle assembly checkpoint signaling.

Understanding the evolutionary and functional importance of these fundamental individual components of the kinetochore complex may in turn improve the efficacy of downstream manipulations, such as the generation of haploid inducer lines for medical applications.

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The researchers have demonstrated that silencing or inhibiting the activity of these proteins completely reverses the aortic disease in a mouse model of Marfan Syndrome

Scientists at the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Centro de Biologia Molecular Severo Ochoa (CBM-CSIC-UAM) have discovered that the nitric oxide (NO) pathway is overactivated in the aortas of mice and patients with Marfan Syndrome and that the activity of this pathway causes the aortic aneurysms that characterize this disease.

The results of the study, published today in Nature Communications, reveal the essential role played by NO in Marfan Syndrome aortic disease and identify new therapeutic targets and markers of NO pathway activation that could be used to monitor disease status and progression.

Aortic aneurysm (AA) is a progressive dilatation and weakening of the aortic wall. AA can be harmless, but in some patients can lead to dissection (rupture) of the aorta, resulting in death.

Marfan Syndrome is a hereditary disease that affects connective tissues, which are the fibrous structures that bind and anchor all the organs and tissues in the body. Marfan Syndrome principally affects the skeleton, the eyes, the heart, and the blood vessels. A particularly common disease manifestation is thoracic aortic aneurysm and dissection (TAAD). "Aortic dissection accounts for more than 90% of deaths associated with Marfan Syndrome," explained CNIC investigator Dr. Juan Miguel Redondo, study co-director together with CBM-CSIC-UAM investigator Dr. Miguel Campanero.

Current treatments for Marfan Syndrome are aimed at reducing blood pressure on the artery wall, but do not prevent its deterioration. The only effective intervention for the aortic disease in Marfan Syndrom is surgery.

The researchers therefore recognize "the urgent need to identify new targets for the development of pharmacological treatments for TAAD in Marfan Syndrome."

The study, whose first authors are Andrea de la Fuente-Alonso and Marta Toral, reveals the essential role played by NO in Marfan Syndrome aortic disease. "We previously detected high expression of a protein with a high capacity for NO production in the aortas of Marfan Syndrome patients and an animal model of the disease, and we therefore undertook an in depth investigation of the role of NO in the associated aortic disease," explained Dr. Campanero.

"We observed that treatment of healthy mice with supra-pharmacological doses of an NO donor induced TAAD similar to that seen in Marfan mice. The NO donor treatment also reproduced the degeneration of the aortic wall, an essential step in the development of TAAD," added Dr. Redondo. "Through these experiments, we showed that elevated production of NO is necessary and sufficient for the development of TAAD in Marfan Syndrome."

Given this important role of NO in the development of TAAD, the researchers decided to focus on the enzymes soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) and type I cGMP-dependent protein kinase (PRKG1), two NO-regulated proteins. "Our analysis detected elevated activities of both sGC and PRKG1 in samples from mice and patients with Marfan Syndrome," said Dr. Redondo.

"We were able to completely reverse the aortic disease in Marfan mice by treating them with inhibitors of these two proteins or by genetically silencing the expression of Prkg1, demonstrating that the NO-sGC-PRKG1 pathway mediates the development of TAAD in Marfan Syndrome," added Dr. Campanero.

Given the need for new pharmacological treatments for Mafan Syndrome aortic disease, "the results of this study open the way to the use of sGC and PRKG1 inhibitors in preclinical and clinical trials for this syndrome and possibly other aortic diseases," said Dr. Redondo.

The research team also explored possible "footprints" left by high NO levels in the blood. "Working with the CNIC Proteomics Unit and clinical groups at Vall DHebron, Puerta de Hierro, Marques de Valdecilla, and Ghent University hospitals, we found that the high NO levels in Marfan Syndrome lead to increases in protein nitration and cGMP in the blood of mice and patients with this disease," said Dr. Campanero.

"This discovery has important implications for patients with this syndrome, because these molecules could be used as biomarkers for disease monitoring, and we are now studying their potential as prognostic indicators," explained Dr. Redondo.

The researcher conclude that their results are therefore "good news."

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The study was funding by the Fundacion "la Caixa" through the CaixaResearch Call for Health Projects with 500.000 euros, the Ministerio de Ciencia, Investigacion y Universidades, the Community of Madrid regional government, the CSIC, the Pro CNIC Foundation, the Marfan Foundation, the Fundacion La Marato, and the Instituto de Salud Carlos III CIBER cardiovascular (CIBER-CV).

* de la Fuente-Alonso, A; Toral, M; Alvaro-Alfayate, A; Ruiz-Rodriguez, M.J; Bonzon-Kulichenko, E; Teixido-Tura, G; ...; Campanero, M.R; and Redondo, J.M. (2021). Aortic disease in Marfan syndrome is caused by overactivation of sGC-PRKG signaling by NO. Nature communication. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-22933-3

About the CNIC

The Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC), directed by Dr. Valentin Fuster, is dedicated to cardiovascular research and the translation of knowledge gained into real benefits for patients. The CNIC, recognized by the Spanish government as a Severo Ochoa center of excellence, is financed through a pioneering public-private partnership between the government (through the Carlos III Institute of Health) and the Pro-CNIC Foundation, which brings together 12 of the most important Spanish private companies.
Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, have developed a new material that prevents infections in wounds - a specially designed hydrogel, that works against all types of bacteria, including antibiotic-resistant ones. The new material offers great hope for combating a growing global problem.

The World Health Organization describes antibiotic-resistant bacteria as one of the greatest threats to global health. To deal with the problem, there needs to be a shift in the way we use antibiotics, and new, sustainable medical technologies must be developed.

"After testing our new hydrogel on different types of bacteria, we observed a high level of effectiveness, including against those which have become resistant to antibiotics," says Martin Andersson, research leader for the study and Professor at the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at Chalmers University of Technology.

Research and development of the material has been ongoing for many years at Martin Andersson's group at Chalmers, growing in scope along the way, with a particular focus on the possibilities for wound care. Now, the important results are published as a scientific article in the journal ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering.

The main purpose of the studies so far has been to explore new medical technology solutions to help reduce the use of systemic antibiotics. Resistant bacteria cause what is referred to as hospital-acquired infection - a life-threatening condition and is increasing in incidence worldwide.

Mimicking the natural immune system

The active substance in the new bactericidal material consists of antimicrobial peptides, small proteins which are found naturally in our immune system.

"With these types of peptides, there is a very low risk for bacteria to develop resistance against them, since they only affect the outermost membrane of the bacteria. That is perhaps the foremost reason why they are so interesting to work with," says Martin Andersson.

Researchers have long tried to find ways to use these peptides in medical devices, but so far without much success. The problem is that they break down quickly when they come into contact with bodily fluids such as blood. The current study describes how the researchers managed to overcome the problem through the development of a nanostructured hydrogel, into which the peptides are permanently bound, creating a protective environment.

"The material is very promising. It is harmless to the body's own cells and gentle on the skin. In our measurements, the protective effect of the hydrogel on the antimicrobial peptides is clear - the peptides degrade much slower when they are bound to it," says Edvin Blomstrand, doctoral student at the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at Chalmers, and one of the main authors of the article.

"We expected good results, but we were really positively surprised at quite how effective the material has proven," adds Martin Andersson.

According to the researchers, this new material is the first medical device to make successful use of antimicrobial peptides in a clinically and commercially viable manner. There are many varied and promising opportunities for clinical application.

Startup company Amferia takes the research from lab to market

In recent years, foundational research into the antimicrobial peptide hydrogel has run in parallel with commercial development of the innovation through the spin-off company Amferia AB.

The company was founded in 2018 by Martin Andersson together with Saba Atefyekta and Anand Kumar Rajasekharan, who both defended their dissertations at Chalmers' Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering.

The material and the idea, which is currently developed as an antibacterial wound patch, has generated interest around the world, attracting significant investment and receiving several awards. The company is working intensively to get the material to market so that it can benefit wider society.

Before the new material can benefit hospitals and patients, clinical studies are needed, which are ongoing. A CE marking of the material is expected to be completed in 2022. Furthermore, the wound patch version of the new material is undergoing trials in veterinary care, for treating pets. The company Amferia AB is already collaborating with a number of veterinary clinics around Europe where the hydrogel is now being tested.

"Amferia has recently entered into a strategic partnership with Sweden's largest distributor of premium medical & diagnostic devices to jointly launch these wound care products for the Swedish veterinary market during 2021" says Martin Andersson.

More about antimicrobial peptides and the new material

The beneficial properties of antimicrobial peptides have been known for some decades, and thousands of different varieties occurring in the natural immune systems of humans, animals and plants have been discovered. Researchers have long tried to mimic and use their natural function to prevent and treat infections without having to use traditional antibiotics. However, because the peptides are broken down as soon as they come in contact with blood or other body fluids, successful clinical usage has proved elusive. The researchers knew that smart new solutions were needed to protect the peptide from degradation. The new material in the study has been shown to work very well, allowing the peptides to be applied directly to wounds and injuries on the body, with the effect of both preventing and treating infection. The material is also non-toxic, so it can be used directly on the skin. The potential of this new material can also be seen in the flexibility that it offers for different types of products.

"So far, we have mainly envisioned the material as a wound care dressing, but we are working on a new study investigating the potential for a wound care spray," says Edvin Blomstrand.

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More about the research:

The scientific article Antimicrobial Peptide-Functionalized Mesoporous Hydrogels has been published in ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering and is written by Saba Atefyekta, Edvin Blomstrand, Anand K. Rajasekharan, Sara Svensson, Margarita Trobos, Jaan Hong, Thomas J. Webster, Peter Thomsen and Martin Andersson. The researchers are active at Chalmers University of Technology, Sahlgrenska Academy and Uppsala University, Sweden, and Northeastern University in Boston, USA.

The research was carried out with funding from the Wallenberg Foundation through the Wallenberg Academy Fellow Program, the CARe-Centre for Antibiotic Resistance Research at University of Gothenburg, the Handlanden Hjalmar Svensson Foundation, the Adlerbertska Foundation, the Doctor Felix Neubergh Foundation, the Swedish Research Council (2018-02891), the Swedish state under the agreement between the Swedish government and the county councils, the ALF agreement (ALFGBG-725641), the IngaBritt and Arne Lundberg Foundation, the Eivind o Elsa K: son Sylvan Foundation, and the Area of Advance Materials of Chalmers and GU Biomaterials within the Strategic Research Area initiative launched by the Swedish Government.

For more information contact:

Martin Andersson, Professor, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chalmers, +46 31 772 29 66, martin.andersson@chalmers.se

Edvin Blomstrand, Doctoral Student, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chalmers, edvinbl@chalmers.se +46 70 537 49 80
Columbia Engineers develop the smallest single-chip system that is a complete functioning electronic circuit; implantable chips visible only in a microscope point the way to developing chips that can be injected into the body with a hypodermic needle

New York, NY--May 11, 2021--Widely used to monitor and map biological signals, to support and enhance physiological functions, and to treat diseases, implantable medical devices are transforming healthcare and improving the quality of life for millions of people. Researchers are increasingly interested in designing wireless, miniaturized implantable medical devices for in vivo and in situ physiological monitoring. These devices could be used to monitor physiological conditions, such as temperature, blood pressure, glucose, and respiration for both diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.

To date, conventional implanted electronics have been highly volume-inefficient--they generally require multiple chips, packaging, wires, and external transducers, and batteries are often needed for energy storage. A constant trend in electronics has been tighter integration of electronic components, often moving more and more functions onto the integrated circuit itself.

Researchers at Columbia Engineering report that they have built what they say is the world's smallest single-chip system, consuming a total volume of less than 0.1 mm3. The system is as small as a dust mite and visible only under a microscope. In order to achieve this, the team used ultrasound to both power and communicate with the device wirelessly. The study was published online May 7 in Science Advances.

"We wanted to see how far we could push the limits on how small a functioning chip we could make," said the study's leader Ken Shepard, Lau Family professor of electrical engineering and professor of biomedical engineering. "This is a new idea of 'chip as system'--this is a chip that alone, with nothing else, is a complete functioning electronic system. This should be revolutionary for developing wireless, miniaturized implantable medical devices that can sense different things, be used in clinical applications, and eventually approved for human use."

The team also included Elisa Konofagou, Robert and Margaret Hariri Professor of Biomedical engineering and professor of radiology, as well as Stephen A. Lee, PhD student in the Konofagou lab who assisted in the animal studies.

The design was done by doctoral student Chen Shi, who is the first author of the study. Shi's design is unique in its volumetric efficiency, the amount of function that is contained in a given amount of volume. Traditional RF communications links are not possible for a device this small because the wavelength of the electromagnetic wave is too large relative to the size of the device. Because the wavelengths for ultrasound are much smaller at a given frequency because the speed of sound is so much less than the speed of light, the team used ultrasound to both power and communicate with the device wirelessly. They fabricated the "antenna" for communicating and powering with ultrasound directly on top of the chip.

The chip, which is the entire implantable/injectable mote with no additional packaging, was fabricated at the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company with additional process modifications performed in the Columbia Nano Initiative cleanroom and the City University of New York Advanced Science Research Center (ASRC) Nanofabrication Facility.

Shepard commented, "This is a nice example of 'more than Moore' technology--we introduced new materials onto standard complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor to provide new function. In this case, we added piezoelectric materials directly onto the integrated circuit to transducer acoustic energy to electrical energy."

Konofagou added, "Ultrasound is continuing to grow in clinical importance as new tools and techniques become available. This work continues this trend."

The team's goal is to develop chips that can be injected into the body with a hypodermic needle and then communicate back out of the body using ultrasound, providing information about something they measure locally. The current devices measure body temperature, but there are many more possibilities the team is working on.

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About the Study

The study is titled "Application of a sub-0.1-mm3 implantable mote for in vivo real-time wireless temperature sensing."

Authors are: Chen Shi1, Victoria Andino-Pavlovsky1, Stephen A. Lee2, Tiago Costa1,3, Jeffrey Elloian1, Elisa E. Konofagou2,4, Kenneth L. Shepard1,2

1 Department of Electrical Engineering, Columbia University

2Department of Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University

3Department of Microelectronics, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands

4Department of Radiology, Columbia University

The study was supported in part by a grant from the W. M. Keck Foundation and by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) under Contract HR0011-15-2-0054 and Cooperative Agreement D20AC00004.

Chen Shi and Kenneth L. Shepard are listed as inventors on a provisional patent filed by Columbia University (Patent Application No. 15/911,973). The other authors declare no competing interests.

LINKS:

Paper: https:/ / advances. sciencemag. org/ content/ 7/ 19/ eabf6312

DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abf6312

http://engineering. columbia. edu/

http://advances. sciencemag. org/

https:/ / engineering. columbia. edu/ faculty/ ken-shepard

http://www. ee. columbia. edu/

http://bme. columbia. edu/

http://cni. columbia. edu/ cni

Columbia Engineering

Columbia Engineering, based in New York City, is one of the top engineering schools in the U.S. and one of the oldest in the nation. Also known as The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, the School expands knowledge and advances technology through the pioneering research of its more than 220 faculty, while educating undergraduate and graduate students in a collaborative environment to become leaders informed by a firm foundation in engineering. The School's faculty are at the center of the University's cross-disciplinary research, contributing to the Data Science Institute, Earth Institute, Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Precision Medicine Initiative, and the Columbia Nano Initiative. Guided by its strategic vision, "Columbia Engineering for Humanity," the School aims to translate ideas into innovations that foster a sustainable, healthy, secure, connected, and creative humanity.
The Virginia Beach Sheriffs Office said it is not associated with the calls and will never ask for money over the phone.
Argonne scientists across several disciplines have combined forces to create a new process for testing and predicting the effects of high temperatures on refractory oxides.

Cast iron melts at around 1,200 degrees Celsius. Stainless steel melts at around 1,520 degrees Celsius. If you want to shape these materials into everyday objects, like the skillet in your kitchen or the surgical tools used by doctors, it stands to reason that you would need to create furnaces and molds out of something that can withstand even these extreme temperatures.

That's where refractory oxides come in. These ceramic materials can stand up to blistering heat and retain their shape, which makes them useful for all kinds of things, from kilns and nuclear reactors to the heat-shielding tiles on spacecraft. But considering the often-dangerous environments in which these materials are used, scientists want to understand as much as they can about what happens to them at high temperatures, before components built from those materials encounter those temperatures in the real world.

"I'm not saying humans aren't great, but if we get help from computers and software, we can be greater. It opens the door for more experiments like this that advance science." -- Marius Stan, program lead, Intelligent Materials Design, Argonne

A team of researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory has come up with a way to do just that. Using innovative experimental techniques and a new approach to computer simulations, the group has devised a method of not only obtaining precise data about the structural changes these materials undergo near their melting points, but more accurately predicting other changes that can't currently be measured.

The team's work has been published in Physical Review Letters.

The seed of this collaboration was planted by Marius Stan, leader of the Intelligent Materials Design program in Argonne's Applied Materials division. Stan's group had developed plenty of models and simulations about the melting points of refractory oxides, but he wanted to test them out.

"It's rooted in the desire to see if our mathematical models and simulations represent reality or not," Stan said. "But it has evolved into a study of machine learning. What I find most exciting is that there is now a way for us to predict interactions between atoms automatically."

That innovation began by flipping a familiar script, according to Ganesh Sivaraman, lead author on the paper and an assistant computational scientist with the Data Science and Learning division at Argonne. He performed this work while he was a postdoctoral appointee at the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility (ALCF), a DOE Office of Science User Facility.

While most experiments begin with a theoretical model -- basically, an informed and educated guess at what will happen under real-life conditions -- the team wanted to start this one with experimental data and design their models around that.

Sivaraman tells a story about a famous German mathematician who wanted to learn how to swim, so he picked up a book and read about it. Creating theories without considering the experimental data, Sivaraman said, is like reading a book about swimming without ever getting into a pool. And the Argonne team wanted to jump in at the deep end.

"It's more accurate to build a model around experimental data," Sivaraman said. "It brings the model closer to reality."

To obtain that data, the computational scientists partnered up with physicist Chris Benmore and assistant physicist Leighanne Gallington of Argonne's X-ray Science Division. Benmore and Gallington work at the Advanced Photon Source (APS), a DOE Office of Science User Facility at Argonne, which generates very bright X-ray beams to illuminate the structures of materials, among other things. The beamline they used for this experiment allows them to examine the local and long-range structure of materials at extreme conditions, such as high temperatures.

Of course, heating up refractory oxides -- in this case, hafnium dioxide, which melts at around 2,870 degrees Celsius -- comes with its own complications. Ordinarily, the sample would be in a container, but there isn't one available that would withstand those temperatures and still allow the X-rays to pass through them. And you can't even rest the sample on a table, because the table will melt before the sample does.

The solution is called aerodynamic levitation and involves scientists using gas to suspend a small (2-3 mm in diameter) spherical sample of material about a millimeter in the air.

View related video here.

"We have a nozzle connected to a flow of inert gas, and as it suspends the sample, a 400-watt laser heats the material from above," Gallington said. "You need to tinker with the gas flow to get it to levitate stably. You don't want it too low, because the sample will touch the nozzle, and might melt to it."

Once the data were taken and beamline scientists had a good understanding of some of what happens when hafnium oxide melts, the computer scientists took the ball and ran with it. Sivaraman fed the data into two sets of machine learning algorithms, one of them that understands the theory and can make predictions, and another -- an active learning algorithm -- that acts as a teaching assistant, only giving the first one the most interesting data to work with.

"Active learning helps other kinds of machine learning to learn with fewer data," Sivaraman explained. "Say you want to walk from your house to the market. There may be many ways to get there, but you only need to know the shortest path. Active learning will point out the shortest way and filter out the others."

Computations were run on supercomputers at the ALCF and the Laboratory Computing Resource Center at Argonne. What the team ended up with is a computer-generated model based on real-life data, one that allows them to predict things the experimentalists didn't -- or couldn't -- capture.

"We have what is called a multi-phase potential, and it can predict a lot of things," Benmore said. "We can now go ahead and give you other parameters, such as how well it retains its shape at high temperatures, which we did not measure. We can extrapolate what would happen if we go beyond the temperature we can reach."

"The model is only as good as the data you give it, and the more you give it the better it becomes," Benmore added. "We give as much information as we can, and the model becomes better."

Sivaraman describes this work as a proof of concept, one that can feed back into further experiments. It's a nice example, he said, of collaboration between different parts of Argonne, and of research that could not be done without the resources of a national laboratory.

"We will repeat this experiment on other materials," Sivaraman said. "Our APS colleagues have the infrastructure to study how these materials melt at extreme conditions, and we are working with computer scientists to build the software and streaming infrastructure to rapidly process these datasets at scale. We can incorporate active learning into the framework and teach models to more efficiently process the data stream using ALCF supercomputers."

For Stan, the proof of concept is one that may replace the necessary tedium of people working out these precise calculations. He has watched this technology evolve during his career, and now what once took months only takes a few days.

"I'm not saying humans aren't great," he chuckled, "but if we get help from computers and software, we can be greater. It opens the door for more experiments like this that advance science."

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The Argonne Leadership Computing Facility provides supercomputing capabilities to the scientific and engineering community to advance fundamental discovery and understanding in a broad range of disciplines. Supported by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Office of Science, Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) program, the ALCF is one of two DOE Leadership Computing Facilities in the nation dedicated to open science.

About the Advanced Photon Source

The U. S. Department of Energy Office of Science's Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory is one of the world's most productive X-ray light source facilities. The APS provides high-brightness X-ray beams to a diverse community of researchers in materials science, chemistry, condensed matter physics, the life and environmental sciences, and applied research. These X-rays are ideally suited for explorations of materials and biological structures; elemental distribution; chemical, magnetic, electronic states; and a wide range of technologically important engineering systems from batteries to fuel injector sprays, all of which are the foundations of our nation's economic, technological, and physical well-being. Each year, more than 5,000 researchers use the APS to produce over 2,000 publications detailing impactful discoveries, and solve more vital biological protein structures than users of any other X-ray light source research facility. APS scientists and engineers innovate technology that is at the heart of advancing accelerator and light-source operations. This includes the insertion devices that produce extreme-brightness X-rays prized by researchers, lenses that focus the X-rays down to a few nanometers, instrumentation that maximizes the way the X-rays interact with samples being studied, and software that gathers and manages the massive quantity of data resulting from discovery research at the APS.

This research used resources of the Advanced Photon Source, a U.S. DOE Office of Science User Facility operated for the DOE Office of Science by Argonne National Laboratory under Contract No. DE-AC02-06CH11357.

Argonne National Laboratory seeks solutions to pressing national problems in science and technology. The nation's first national laboratory, Argonne conducts leading-edge basic and applied scientific research in virtually every scientific discipline. Argonne researchers work closely with researchers from hundreds of companies, universities, and federal, state and municipal agencies to help them solve their specific problems, advance America's scientific leadership and prepare the nation for a better future. With employees from more than 60 nations, Argonne is managed by UChicago Argonne, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.
Driven to extinction in the U.S. 50 years ago, reintroduction is key to recovery of "America's Great Cat"

NEW YORK (May 11, 2021) - A group of scientists say now is the time to talk about reintroducing jaguars (Panthera onca) into the U.S.

In a study published today in the journal Conservation Science and Practice, the authors provide a prospective framework for this effort and describe "righting a wrong" done to "America's Great Cat" in the Southwest more than 50 years ago. The big cats lived for hundreds of years in the central mountains of Arizona and New Mexico but were driven to local extinction by the mid-20th century, in part because of killing by government hunters.

Authors of the study include a diverse set of scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society, Center for Landscape Conservation, Defenders of Wildlife, Wildlands Network, Pace University, Universidad Autonoma de Queretaro, Life Net Nature, and the Center for Biological Diversity.

In March, a separate study suggested that an area in central Arizona and New Mexico spanning 2 million acres (82,000 square kilometers) can provide potentially suitable habitat for 90 to 150 jaguars. This area, roughly the size of South Carolina, was not considered in the 2018 US Fish and Wildlife Service Recovery Plan for the jaguar. That plan considered only habitat south of Interstate Highway 10 (an artificial boundary considering historic jaguar records north of that) and therefore concluded there was habitat for only six jaguars in the U.S.

However, habitat destruction, transportation infrastructure, natural constrictions in the landscape, and the border wall mean that natural reestablishment of female jaguars from source populations in Mexico to this recovery region is unlikely over the next 100 years.

The authors of today's study conclude that reintroduction of jaguars should be examined as a viable alternative. The authors believe that restoring jaguars can be a net benefit to people, including culture and local economies, and nature and would represent the return of an original part of the U.S. fauna.. The study focuses on on five dimensions of the reintroduction project: conservation rationale, history, ecological context, human context and practical considerations.

"The jaguar lived in these mountains long before Americans did," said Eric Sanderson, WCS Senior Conservation Ecologist and lead author of the study. "If done collaboratively, reintroduction could enhance the economy of this region and the ecology of this incredible part of jaguar range."

The study notes some key aspects of the reintroduction effort to be discussed with relevant officials and the public in central Arizona and New Mexico, noting that:

The region is a habitat unique in all of the jaguar's range, representing a special and valuable part of jaguar's ecological diversity.

The Central Arizona and New Mexico Recovery Area (CANRA) is vast, covered with suitable vegetation, and well populated with potential prey. Given its elevation and latitude, it may provide an important climate refuge for the species in the future, though further research is required.

The majority of the land is managed for the public good, mainly (68%) by the US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and National Park Service, with several large designated wilderness areas. Only 381,000 people live in this area, primarily in towns and cities. The most important economic activities there are government expenditures, accommodation and food services, outdoor recreation, health care and social assistance, and retail trade.

The mountains of central Arizona and New Mexico are part of the ancestral and reservation lands for a number of Native American Nations. Currently two Tribal nations, the White Mountain Apache and the San Carlos Apache, manage nearly 12 percent of the CANRA's land area, including wildlife and ecological systems.

Reintroduction would replace a historic member of the species assemblage of the region. U.S. government agents and private citizens hunted and poisoned the jaguar for most of the 20th century. As a result of persecution here and elsewhere, jaguars were listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Today we have tools to facilitate coexistence and avoid and mitigate conflict. Reintroduction efforts, such as the Ibera Project in Argentina, have demonstrated the potential. Reintroduction could contribute to the recovery and eventual removal of the jaguar from the Endangered Species List, especially if the recent recovery plan were revised to consider this area and the possibility of reintroduction.

"This represents a turning point for this iconic wild cat, identifying a path forward for restoration of the jaguar to its historic range in the United States," said Sharon Wilcox Ph.D., Texas Representative for Defenders of Wildlife. "It should serve as the starting point for a renewed conversation among stakeholders."

"The Southwest's native wildlife evolved with jaguars," said Michael Robinson of the Center for Biological Diversity. "They have a storied and vital place in our canyons and forests, so we should plan an intelligent and humane reintroduction program."

Wildlands Network Mexico and Borderlands Program Director, Juan Carlos Bravo added: "Restoring jaguars to the northernmost portions of their historic range is an issue of importance for both the U.S: and Mexico, our paper provides an initial step for both countries to draft together a roadmap of what that major rewilding effort may look like."

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WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society)

MISSION: WCS saves wildlife and wild places worldwide through science, conservation action, education, and inspiring people to value nature. To achieve our mission, WCS, based at the Bronx Zoo, harnesses the power of its Global Conservation Program in nearly 60 nations and in all the world's oceans and its five wildlife parks in New York City, visited by 4 million people annually. WCS combines its expertise in the field, zoos, and aquarium to achieve its conservation mission. Visit: newsroom.wcs.org Follow: @WCSNewsroom. For more information: 347-840-1242.

Defenders of Wildlife: Defenders of Wildlife is dedicated to the protection of all native animals and plants in their natural communities. With nearly 2.2 million members and activists, Defenders of Wildlife is a leading advocate for innovative solutions to safeguard our wildlife heritage for generations to come. For more information, visit Defenders.org/newsroom?and follow us on Twitter?@Defenders.

Center for Biological Diversity: The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.7 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.

Wildlands Network: Since 1991, Wildlands Network been committed to reconnecting, restoring and rewilding North America so that life--in all its diversity--can thrive. Our work is founded in science, driven by fieldwork and furthered through strategic policy and partnerships. We envision a North America where nature is undivided, and where people coexist in harmony with our native plants and animals. Visit wildlandsnetwork.org to learn more.
Diamonds are sometimes described as messengers from the deep earth; scientists study them closely for insights into the otherwise inaccessible depths from which they come. But the messages are often hard to read. Now, a team has come up with a way to solve two longstanding puzzles: the ages of individual fluid-bearing diamonds, and the chemistry of their parent material. The research has allowed them to sketch out geologic events going back more than a billion years--a potential breakthrough not only in the study of diamonds, but of planetary evolution.

Gem-quality diamonds are nearly pure lattices of carbon. This elemental purity gives them them their luster; but it also means they carry very little information about their ages and origins. However, some lower-grade specimens harbor imperfections in the form of tiny pockets of liquid--remnants of the more complex fluids from which the crystals evolved. By analyzing these fluids , the scientists in the new study worked out the times when different diamonds formed, and the shifting chemical conditions around them.

"It opens a window--well, let's say, even a door--to some of the really big questions" about the evolution of the deep earth and the continents, said lead author Yaakov Weiss, an adjunct scientist at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, where the analyses were done, and senior lecturer at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. "This is the first time we can get reliable ages for these fluids." The study was published this week in the journal Nature Communications.

Most diamonds are thought to form some 150 to 200 kilometers under the surface, in relatively cool masses of rock beneath the continents. The process may go back as far as 3.5 billion years, and probably continues today. Occasionally, they are carried upward by powerful, deep-seated volcanic eruptions called kimberlites. (Don't expect to see one erupt today; the youngest known kimberlite deposits are tens of millions of years old.)

Much of what we know about diamonds comes from lab experiments, and studies of other minerals and rocks that come up with the diamonds, or are sometimes even encased within them. The 10 diamonds the team studied came from mines founded by the De Beers company in and around Kimberley, South Africa. "We like the ones that no one else really wants," said Weiss--fibrous, dirty-looking specimens containing solid or liquid impurities that disqualify them as jewelry, but carry potentially valuable chemical information. Up to now, most researchers have concentrated on solid inclusions, such as tiny bits of garnet, to determine the ages of diamonds. But the ages that solid inclusions indicate can be debatable, because the inclusions may or may not have formed at the same time as the diamond itself. Encapsulated fluids, on the other hand, are the real thing, the stuff from which the diamond itself formed.

What Weiss and his colleagues did was find a way to date the fluids. They did this by measuring traces of radioactive thorium and uranium, and their ratios to helium-4, a rare isotope that results from their decay. The scientists also figured out the maximum rate at which the nimble little helium molecules can leak out of the diamond--without which data, conclusions about ages based on the abundance of the isotope could be thrown far off. (As it turns out, diamonds are very good at containing helium.)

The team identified three distinct periods of diamond formation. These all took place within separate rock masses that eventually coalesced into present-day Africa. The oldest took place between 2.6 billion and 700 million years ago. Fluid inclusions from that time show a distinct composition, extremely rich in carbonate minerals. The period also coincided with the buildup of great mountain ranges on the surface, apparently from the collisions and squishing together of the rocks. These collisions may have had something to do with production of the carbonate-rich fluids below, although exactly how is vague, the researchers say.

The next diamond-formation phase spanned a possible time frame of 550 million to 300 million years ago, as the proto-African continent continued to rearrange itself. At this time, the liquid inclusions show, the fluids were high in silica minerals, indicating a shift in subterranean conditions. The period also coincided with another major mountain-building episode.

The most recent known phase took place between 130 million years and 85 million years ago. Again, the fluid composition switched: Now, it was high in saline compounds containing sodium and potassium. This suggests that the carbon from which these diamonds formed did not come directly from the deep earth, but rather from an ocean floor that was dragged under a continental mass by subduction. This idea, that some diamonds' carbon may be recycled from the surface, was once considered improbable, but recent research by Weiss and others has increased its currency.

One intriguing find: At least one diamond encapsulated fluid from both the oldest and youngest eras. The shows that new layers can be added to old crystals, allowing individual diamonds to evolve over vast periods of time.

It was at the end of this most recent period, when Africa had largely assumed its current shape, that a great bloom of kimberlite eruptions carried all the diamonds the team studied to the surface. The solidified remains of these eruptions were discovered in the 1870s, and became the famous De Beers mines. Exactly what caused them to erupt is still part of the puzzle.

The tiny diamond-encased droplets provide a rare way to link events that took place long ago on the surface with what was going on at the same time far below, say the scientists. "What is fascinating is, you can constrain all these different episodes from the fluids," said Cornelia Class, a geochemist at Lamont-Doherty and coauthor of the paper. "Southern Africa is one of the best-studied places in the world, but we've very rarely been able to see beyond the indirect indications of what happened there in the past."

When asked whether the findings could help geologists find new diamond deposits, Weiss just laughed. "Probably not," he said. But, he said, the method could be applied to other diamond-producing areas of the world, including Australia, Brazil, and northern Canada and Russia, to disentangle the deep histories of those regions, and develop new insights into how continents evolve.

"These are really big questions, and it's going to take people a long time to get at them," he said. "I will go to pension, and still not have finished that walk. But at least this gives us some new ideas about how to find out how things work."

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The other authors of the study are Yael Kiro of Israel's Weizmann Institute of Science; Gisela Winckler and Steven Goldstein of Lamont-Doherty; and Jeff Harris of Scotland's University of Glasgow.

Scientist contacts:

Yaakov Weiss (Jerusalem): yakov.weiss@mail.huji.ac.il

Cornelia Class: (New York): class@ldeo.columbia.edu

Steven Goldstein (New York): steveg@ldeo.columbia.edu

More information: Kevin Krajick, Senior editor, science news, The Earth Institute kkrajick@ei.columbia.edu 212-854-9729

The Earth Institute, Columbia University mobilizes the sciences, education and public policy to achieve a sustainable earth. http://www. earth. columbia. edu .
The COVID-19 pandemic has now claimed over 2 million deaths worldwide, and this number is only increasing. In response, health agencies have rolled out tests to diagnose and understand the disease. Besides the now widely known PCR test, there is interest in serological (blood) tests that detect "antibodies" against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. These blood tests have considerable applications, from identifying blood donors with high levels of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, whose blood can be used for convalescent plasma therapy, to measuring vaccine effectiveness.

So, what are antibodies? These are proteins produced by the body's immune system to combat foreign proteins, such as the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Antibodies function by binding to a specific part of the virus that the immune system recognizes, called "antigens." SARS-CoV-2 is composed of four major proteins, with two being highly immunogenic (capable of producing an immune response). These immunogenic proteins are called spike (S) and nucleocapsid (N) proteins. Presence of antibodies specific to the S protein means there is a higher amount of virus-neutralizing activity while antibodies specific to N protein indicate the presence of previous SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Despite this general awareness, we actually have only a vague understanding of how different antibodies (or antibody "isotypes") interact with the various antigens produced by SARS-CoV-2. Hence, a team of scientists led by Senior Assistant Professor Hidetsugu Fujigaki and Professor Yohei Doi from Fujita Health University, in collaboration with National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, FUJIFILM Wako Pure Chemical Corporation, and FUJIFILM Corporation undertook the first detailed investigation of these interactions. "Our goal was to quantify the neutralizing activity of these different antibodies against SARS-CoV-2," Dr. Fujigaki explains, "We looked at antibodies specific to different parts of the S protein and the N protein to determine which of them was the best predictor of stopping the virus."

They did this through an analysis of blood samples from 41 COVID-19 patients at the Fujita Health University Hospital. The team developed assays using three common antibodies (IgG, IgM, and IgA), each of them split into isotypes that bind specifically to five antigens (three parts of the S protein, including the receptor binding domain [RBD], the full S protein, and the full N protein).

The results of their experiments showed that all antibody isotypes that bind to the S protein (full and parts) were highly specific, but antibody isotypes binding to the N protein were less so. With minor variations, all antibodies are detectable in patients at approximately 2 weeks after symptoms appear, and detection sensitivity was higher than 90% (except in the case of IgM binding to N protein). Importantly, the researchers showed that IgG specific to the RBD of S protein had the highest correlation with virus neutralizing activity and disease severity. In other words, measuring RBD-specific IgG levels could tell us a lot about the immune response of COVID-19 patients, and could be the foundation for improving COVID-19 blood tests.

"We are also very excited by our findings because of their implications for convalescent serum/plasma therapy, a type of treatment where you transfuse blood from people who recovered from COVID and have high levels of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2," Dr. Fujigaki adds, "Being able to show that the IgG antibody against RBD is highly correlated with neutralizing activity means we can identify appropriate blood donors for this treatment."

The world is hopefully moving into the final stages of the pandemic, and this information could be the tools needed to carve out the final few steps to a safe post-pandemic world.

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Reference

Title of original paper: Comparative analysis of antigen-specific anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody isotypes in COVID-19 patients

Journal: Journal of Immunology

DOI: https:/ / doi. org/ 10. 4049/ jimmunol. 2001369

About Fujita Health University

Fujita Health University is a private university situated in Toyoake, Aichi, Japan. It was founded in 1964 and houses one of the largest teaching university hospitals in Japan in terms of the number of beds. With over 900 faculty members, the university is committed to providing various academic opportunities to students internationally. Fujita Health University has been ranked eighth among all universities and second among all private universities in Japan in the 2020 Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings. THE University Impact Rankings 2019 visualized university initiatives for sustainable development goals (SDGs). For the "good health and well-being" SDG, Fujita Health University was ranked second among all universities and number one among private universities in Japan. The university will also be the first Japanese university to host the "THE Asia Universities Summit" in June 2021. The university's founding philosophy is "Our creativity for the people (DOKUSOU-ICHIRI)," which reflects the belief that, as with the university's alumni and alumnae, current students also unlock their future by leveraging their creativity.

Website: https:/ / www. fujita-hu. ac. jp/ en/ index. html

About Senior Assistant Professor Hidetsugu Fujigaki from Fujita Health University

Dr. Hidetsugu Fujigaki is part of the Department of Disease Control and Prevention at the Fujita Health University Graduate School of Health Sciences. He is an author on over 20 publications. His work is centered on assay development for new biomarkers and lead discovery for drug development to advance human health.

About Prof. Yohei Doi from Fujita Health University

Dr. Yohei Doi, M.D., Ph.D., is a Professor at the Departments of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases at Fujita Health University School of Medicine and the Director of the Center for Innovative Antimicrobial Therapy at the University of Pittsburgh. He has authored 226 publications and has served on several journals' editorial boards. He has led a clinical trial of the flu drug "Avigan" (favipiravir) as a potential treatment for COVID-19 at Fujita Health University.

Funding information

This study was supported in part by Grants-in-Aid from the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (grant numbers: AMED, JP19fk0108110 and JP19fk0108150). It was also funded by FUJIFILM Wako Pure Chemical Corporation.
SALT LAKE CITY - Today in Nature Communications, researchers at Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah report critical new insights into how cells mount an attack against melanoma tumors.

Melanoma is an aggressive type of skin cancer that can arise from excess exposure to sun, frequent sunburns, genetics, and other environmental factors. Melanoma, like all cancers, begins within cells. Specially designed and refined over billions of years, cells are experts at working to root out and fix routine errors that arise. A tumor begins when a cell makes faulty copies of itself over and over again. If left unchecked, these faulty cell copies continue to grow into complex ecosystems that become tumors. Some tumors, like melanomas, can go on to develop mechanisms to sustain themselves with blood flow and oxygen. They can also send the cancerous cells through the body to proliferate in other organs, which ultimately causes death.

Immunotherapy, which trains the immune system to fight cancer cells, can sometimes be effective in treating melanomas. Some patients experience a long-lasting and durable response to immunotherapies. Yet many patients' tumors soon learn how to outsmart the drugs.

Understanding how cells mount a defense against an aggressive tumor like melanoma piqued the curiosity of Ryan O'Connell, PhD, a cancer researcher at HCI and professor of pathology at the University of Utah Health. His lab works to understand how immune cells and cancer cells interface. He wants to better understand the sophisticated metabolic processes within and around cells and to use those insights to develop more effective cancer therapies.

In this study, O'Connell and his team uncovered a key metabolic "switch" driven by an enzyme, nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase, or NAMPT. They learned how NAMPT plays an important role in how certain immune cells fight melanoma tumors.

"We were interested in better understanding NAMPT because it is increased in specific immune cells within tumors, called macrophages, in response to a substance secreted by other immune cells, called interferon, which is known to be important for effective antitumor responses," says O'Connell. O'Connell and his team used next-generation RNA sequencing to determine which metabolic genes increase within immune cells in response to different tumor processes.

"NAMPT was a top hit," says O'Connell. The research team found that a specific inflammatory signaling pathway triggers NAMPT. They discovered that when this inducible NAMPT pathway is disrupted, the antitumor function of cells was also impaired.

The study was co-led by Warren Voth, PhD, a research assistant professor and member of the O'Connell Lab. Voth helped design and conduct the experiments to study the role of Nampt and also mentored lab trainees who worked on the project. Using studies of cells in a laboratory setting, Voth helped to understand how NAMPT is induced in immune cells and what happens if the immune cells block NAMPT induction. The research team then created an experiment using a mouse model system and found the same NAMPT pathway was required for the mouse cells to initiate antitumor activity. Next, the team studied data from human tumors using The Cancer Genome Atlas, a federal cancer genomics program that molecularly characterized more than 20,000 primary cancer and matched normal samples across 33 cancer types. The critical role of the NAMPT pathway was also a factor in the genomic data they analyzed.

"Based on this work, we want to understand whether novel therapies that enhance the NAMPT pathway in immune cells in patient tumors could result in improved outcomes," says O'Connell. He hopes the next step will be to understand whether therapies that strengthen this pathway in certain immune cells could be the foundation for more effective treatments. He also wants to understand whether high levels of NAMPT in tumors may predict whether a patient will respond well to some immunotherapies that have inconsistent outcomes.

This work adds to the body of evidence that the metabolic state of tumors, immune cells, and the tumor microenvironment as a whole can have profound impacts on the course of disease by controlling the identity and functionality of immune cells that either fight to destroy the tumor or act to promote cancer growth. O'Connell's team also found strong evidence that this study has applications to other cancer types.

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This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute including P30 CA042014, and Huntsman Cancer Foundation via a pilot grant from the Melanoma Disease Center at HCI. O'Connell and Voth acknowledge the critical work of the entire research team, particularly study authors Thomas Huffaker, Atakan Ekiz, and Cindy Barba.

Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah is the official cancer center of Utah. The cancer campus includes a state-of-the-art cancer specialty hospital as well as two buildings dedicated to cancer research. HCI treats patients with all forms of cancer and is recognized among the best cancer hospitals in the country by U.S. News and World Report. As the only National Cancer Institute (NCI)-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in the Mountain West, HCI serves the largest geographic region in the country, drawing patients from Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana. More genes for inherited cancers have been discovered at HCI than at any other cancer center in the world, including genes responsible for hereditary breast, ovarian, colon, head, and neck cancers, along with melanoma. HCI manages the Utah Population Database, the largest genetic database in the world, with information on more than 11 million people linked to genealogies, health records, and vital statistics. HCI was founded by Jon M. and Karen Huntsman.
TAMPA, Fla. - A hallmark of cancer is its ability to evade the immune system. It is why researchers are focused on finding new strategies and targets to jumpstart the immune system so it can mount a response against tumors. One such target is the inhibitory receptor T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 3 (TIM-3), a protein that is overexpressed in many different types of cancer and is associated with poor patient outcomes. It is known to block the activity of immune cells, such as dendritic cells, but how remains unclear. In a new article published in the journal Immunity, Moffitt Cancer Center researchers show that TIM-3 inhibits the STING signaling pathway in dendritic cells, thereby blocking their ability to elicit an immune response.

Dysregulation of the immune system is an important contributor to cancer development. Many new therapies target T cells to restimulate them to attack cancer cells. However, dysregulation of dendritic cells and other cells of the immune system can also contribute to the development of cancer. Dendritic cells are specialized cells that capture, process and display antigens, which are then recognized by T cells that become activated. Cancer patients often have dysregulated or lower dendritic cells levels, suggesting that approaches to augment their activity may be effective against cancer.

Previously, Moffitt researchers demonstrated that antibodies that block TIM-3 enhanced the activity of chemotherapy in mouse models of breast cancer, even though T cells in this model had very low levels of TIM-3. They also found that the effect of TIM-3 blocking antibodies was dependent on the presence of dendritic cells.

To further understand the role of TIM-3 in dendritic cells, the Moffitt team performed preclinical laboratory experiments in cell lines and mouse models. They discovered that TIM-3 inhibits activation of the cGAS-STING pathway and downstream immune cell activation. The cGAS-STING pathway is an important mediator of immune cell function and activators of STING can stimulate anti-tumor activity of immune cells. They found that TIM-3 was able to block activation of the STING pathway in dendritic cells by inhibiting the internalization of double-stranded DNA derived from tumor cell debris in the extracellular space. The researchers also confirmed that chemotherapy plus TIM-3 blockade effectively prevented tumor growth in mice, which was dependent on STING activity.

"Our results suggest that we can enhance T cell activity by targeting TIM-3 to activate the STING pathway in dendritic cells," said Brian Ruffell, Ph.D., associate member of the Department of Immunology at Moffitt. "While more research is needed, we believe understanding this process will help us develop combinations with anti-TIM-3 antibodies as a possible therapy for certain types of cancer."

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This study was supported by the National Cancer Institute (P30CA076292, R00CA185325, R01CA230610, F31CA224963, F99CA245807), the Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program (W81XWH-20-1-0012), the Florida Department of Health Bankhead-Coley Cancer Research Program (8BC02), the Florida Breast Cancer Foundation and the Shula Fund at Moffitt Cancer Center.

About Moffitt Cancer Center

Moffitt is dedicated to one lifesaving mission: to contribute to the prevention and cure of cancer. The Tampa-based facility is one of only 51 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers, a distinction that recognizes Moffitt's scientific excellence, multidisciplinary research, and robust training and education. Moffitt is the No. 11 cancer hospital and has been nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report since 1999. Moffitt's expert nursing staff is recognized by the American Nurses Credentialing Center with Magnet status, its highest distinction. With more than 7,000 team members, Moffitt has an economic impact in the state of $2.4 billion. For more information, call 1-888-MOFFITT (1-888-663-3488), visit MOFFITT.org, and follow the momentum on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
The voicemail was extremely unusual. It was from the director of the National Science Foundation, who asked Melanie Wood to call him right back.

"You get a call from your program manager every once in a while, about some grants or panels, but a call from the director of the National Science Foundation? I've certainly never received a call from him before," said Wood, a professor of mathematics.

Wood, who had just emerged from a virtual department meeting, returned the missed call. NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan told her she was one of two recipients of this year's Alan T. Waterman Award, the organization's most prestigious prize for scientists under 40 in the U.S.

"I think I actually used the word gobsmacked," Wood said. "It's not something that anyone ever expects to win. I was just blown away, completely amazed, and just so honored."

Wood is the seventh Harvard scientist to receive a Waterman, which the government has awarded annually since 1975, and the first woman ever to receive it in mathematics. This marks the second year in a row a Harvard scientist has won a Waterman. Last year, chemist Emily Balskus was one of the winners. Wood shares the 2021 Waterman Award with Nicholas Carnes, a social scientist and scholar of public policy at Duke University.

The award recognizes Wood for fundamental contributions in number theory, algebraic geometry, topology, and probability.

"Wood is tackling the mysteries and most complex problems in mathematics by looking into the connection of number theory and random matrices," Panchanathan said. "It is a privilege to recognize Dr. Carnes and Dr. Wood as this year's recipients of the Alan T. Waterman Award, the highest honor given to early career scientists and engineers."

Wood is best known for her work on number theory, one of the oldest branches of mathematics that considers the properties and relationships of numbers.

"I am interested to know if we look out into the universe of different possible numerical systems, what will we see?" Wood said. "Are most numerical systems similar to the familiar ones, or quite different? To what extent do things we take for granted with whole numbers, like prime factorization, remain the same, and to what extent do they vary among different number systems?"

Her passion for mathematics developed early. She won a citywide math competition for middle schoolers in her hometown of Indianapolis in 1994, when she was in the seventh grade. She took first in the state-wide contest that same year and placed 40th at the national level. The next year, she placed 10th among American middle schoolers. She was 16 when won silver in 1998 and 1999 with the U.S. International Mathematical Olympiad team. She was the first woman to make the team.

Wood is used to being first when it comes to awards. In 2002, she was the first female mathematician to receive the Putnam Fellow award from the Mathematical Association of America and in 2003 she received the Morgan Prize for outstanding research as an undergraduate. This also isn't her first NSF award. In 2017, she received a National Science Foundation Career Award. A quirkier addition to her trophy case came from Dove soap, which named her a role model for young girls in 2012.

Among her peers and students, Wood is known for mentoring graduate students through research programs and encouraging undergraduates to get involved in math research.

"Within her pioneering contributions to mathematics she has the unusual ability to find projects for undergraduates interested in trying their hand at research," said Michael Hopkins, George Putnam Professor of Pure and Applied Mathematics and department chair. "She is an inspiration to our community in all of its facets."

Wood said the Waterman Award will allow her research team to take on high-risk, high-reward projects that would be impossible without NSF support.

"The most exciting thing about the award research-wise is that it lets me start new projects that I don't know if they are going to pan out," Wood said. "This will enable me to go for the long shots. Sometimes they don't pan out, which is why that they're not always easy to get funded, but sometimes they do and they give us the most exciting breakthroughs."

The award will be presented at a virtual ceremony later this month. Along with a medal, the award includes $1 million in research funding over five years.

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CAMBRIDGE, MA -- In early 2020, a few months after the Covid-19 pandemic began, scientists were able to sequence the full genome of the virus that causes the infection, SARS-CoV-2. While many of its genes were already known at that point, the full complement of protein-coding genes was unresolved.

Now, after performing an extensive comparative genomics study, MIT researchers have generated what they describe as the most accurate and complete gene annotation of the SARS-CoV-2 genome. In their study, which appears today in Nature Communications, they confirmed several protein-coding genes and found that a few others that had been suggested as genes do not code for any proteins.

"We were able to use this powerful comparative genomics approach for evolutionary signatures to discover the true functional protein-coding content of this enormously important genome," says Manolis Kellis, who is the senior author of the study and a professor of computer science in MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) as well as a member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

The research team also analyzed nearly 2,000 mutations that have arisen in different SARS-CoV-2 isolates since it began infecting humans, allowing them to rate how important those mutations may be in changing the virus' ability to evade the immune system or become more infectious.

Comparative genomics

The SARS-CoV-2 genome consists of nearly 30,000 RNA bases. Scientists have identified several regions known to encode protein-coding genes, based on their similarity to protein-coding genes found in related viruses. A few other regions were suspected to encode proteins, but they had not been definitively classified as protein-coding genes.

To nail down which parts of the SARS-CoV-2 genome actually contain genes, the researchers performed a type of study known as comparative genomics, in which they compare the genomes of similar viruses. The SARS-CoV-2 virus belongs to a subgenus of viruses called Sarbecovirus, most of which infect bats. The researchers performed their analysis on SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV (which caused the 2003 SARS outbreak), and 42 strains of bat sarbecoviruses.

Kellis has previously developed computational techniques for doing this type of analysis, which his team has also used to compare the human genome with genomes of other mammals. The techniques are based on analyzing whether certain DNA or RNA bases are conserved between species, and comparing their patterns of evolution over time.

Using these techniques, the researchers confirmed six protein-coding genes in the SARS-CoV-2 genome in addition to the five that are well established in all coronaviruses. They also determined that the region that encodes a gene called ORF3a also encodes an additional gene, which they name ORF3c. The gene has RNA bases that overlap with ORF3a but occur in a different reading frame. This gene-within-a-gene is rare in large genomes, but common in many viruses, whose genomes are under selective pressure to stay compact. The role for this new gene, as well as several other SARS-CoV-2 genes, is not known yet.

The researchers also showed that five other regions that had been proposed as possible genes do not encode functional proteins, and they also ruled out the possibility that there are any more conserved protein-coding genes yet to be discovered.

"We analyzed the entire genome and are very confident that there are no other conserved protein-coding genes," says Irwin Jungreis, lead author of the study and a CSAIL research scientist. "Experimental studies are needed to figure out the functions of the uncharacterized genes, and by determining which ones are real, we allow other researchers to focus their attention on those genes rather than spend their time on something that doesn't even get translated into protein."

The researchers also recognized that many previous papers used not only incorrect gene sets, but sometimes also conflicting gene names. To remedy the situation, they brought together the SARS-CoV-2 community and presented a set of recommendations for naming SARS-CoV-2 genes, in a separate paper published a few weeks ago in Virology.

Fast evolution

In the new study, the researchers also analyzed more than 1,800 mutations that have arisen in SARS-CoV-2 since it was first identified. For each gene, they compared how rapidly that particular gene has evolved in the past with how much it has evolved since the current pandemic began.

They found that in most cases, genes that evolved rapidly for long periods of time before the current pandemic have continued to do so, and those that tended to evolve slowly have maintained that trend. However, the researchers also identified exceptions to these patterns, which may shed light on how the virus has evolved as it has adapted to its new human host, Kellis says.

In one example, the researchers identified a region of the nucleocapsid protein, which surrounds the viral genetic material, that had many more mutations than expected from its historical evolution patterns. This protein region is also classified as a target of human B cells. Therefore, mutations in that region may help the virus evade the human immune system, Kellis says.

"The most accelerated region in the entire genome of SARS-CoV-2 is sitting smack in the middle of this nucleocapsid protein," he says. "We speculate that those variants that don't mutate that region get recognized by the human immune system and eliminated, whereas those variants that randomly accumulate mutations in that region are in fact better able to evade the human immune system and remain in circulation."

The researchers also analyzed mutations that have arisen in variants of concern, such as the B.1.1.7 strain from England, the P.1 strain from Brazil, and the B.1.351 strain from South Africa. Many of the mutations that make those variants more dangerous are found in the spike protein, and help the virus spread faster and avoid the immune system. However, each of those variants carries other mutations as well.

"Each of those variants has more than 20 other mutations, and it's important to know which of those are likely to be doing something and which aren't," Jungreis says. "So, we used our comparative genomics evidence to get a first-pass guess at which of these are likely to be important based on which ones were in conserved positions."

This data could help other scientists focus their attention on the mutations that appear most likely to have significant effects on the virus' infectivity, the researchers say. They have made the annotated gene set and their mutation classifications available in the University of California at Santa Cruz Genome Browser for other researchers who wish to use it.

"We can now go and actually study the evolutionary context of these variants and understand how the current pandemic fits in that larger history," Kellis says. "For strains that have many mutations, we can see which of these mutations are likely to be host-specific adaptations, and which mutations are perhaps nothing to write home about."

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The research was funded by the National Human Genome Research Institute and the National Institutes of Health. Rachel Sealfon, a research scientist at the Flatiron Institute Center for Computational Biology, is also an author of the paper.
Study Take-Aways:

Different African populations were genetically interrelated suggesting abundant gene flow across Africa such that all African population should be considered together as single subspecies.

There appeared a striking genomic distance between leopards living in Asia vs. leopards in Africa.

Asian leopards are more genetically separated from African leopards than brown bear species are from polar bear species, the researchers found.

The two leopard groups actually diverged around the same time as Neanderthals split apart from modern humans.

The genetic differences between African and Asian leopards have been maintained since 500,000 to 600,000 years ago. Asian leopards retain markedly less overall genetic variation than is seen in African leopards.

FORT LAUDERDALE/DAVIE, Fla. - They are some of the most beautiful, and elusive, animals on the plant. Leopards.

These majestic animals are the only great cat species (Genus Panthera) to roam about both Africa and Asia today. Leopards are considered as highly vulnerable, classified by the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Because of their elusive nature, and their adaptation to multiple landscapes (rain forest, savannah, deserts and mountain sides) an accurate estimation of their global census has not been possible.

In a major scientific step to reconstruct the evolutionary history plus their conservation status, the whole genome DNA sequence of 23 individual leopards sampled from eight geographically separated subspecies locales were interpreted using the latest technologies of population ecology and molecular evolution. Ancient DNA sequences for 18 archival specimens along with 5 living leopards were combined to refine our understanding of the leopard's movements, population reductions, divergence and isolation, and over the past half million years.

The new study was published today in Current Biology.

An international team involving scientists from Nova Southeastern University (NSU), Nottingham Trent University, the University of Cambridge, University of Leicester in U.K. and the University of Potsdam in Germany carried out genetic analysis of modern and historical specimens stored in natural history museums as part of the study.

"This study changes everything about genetic contributions to conservation management of the world's leopards, particularly the highly threatened Amur leopard," said Stephen J. O'Brien, Ph.D., a professor and research scientist in NSU's Halmos College of Arts and Sciences, who is a collaborating author and also led the genetic analyses the Florida panther restoration two decades ago.

O'Brien, is also the Chief Scientific Officer at the Theodosius Dobzhansky Center for Genome Bioinformatics, St. Petersburg State University, Russia, and is a member of the National Academy of Sciences.

Genetic distinctiveness of nine previously suggested subspecies was re-affirmed with increased precision. Different African populations were genetically interrelated suggesting abundant gene flow across Africa such that all African populations should be considered together as a single subspecies. By contrast Asian leopard populations were geographically distinct along ten prior recognized subspecies boundaries.

There appeared a striking genomic distance between leopards living in Asia vs. leopards in Africa. Asian leopards are more genetically separated from African leopards than brown bear species are from polar bear species, the researchers found. The two leopard groups actually diverged around the same time as Neanderthals split apart from modern humans. The genetic differences between African and Asian leopards have been maintained since 500,000 to 600,000 years ago. Asian leopards retain markedly less overall genetic variation than is seen in African leopards.

"While they both have spots, the African and Asian leopards are quite different when looking at their DNA, said Johanna Paijmans, Ph.D., lead author, Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge and Honorary Fellow at the University of Leicester. "Given their mobility, it is surprising that they have remained so distinct and do not carry more shared genetic material with one another. Our study demonstrates that many more exciting genetic discoveries could be hidden among the shelves of natural history museums around the world."

The simplest explanation for both low Asian diversity and this large genetic difference may involve an origin for all leopards in Africa, with a single founding "out of Africa" migration to Asia occurring 500,000 - 600,000 years ago. Evidence of subsequent additional northern migrations were not detected, perhaps because the Asian habitats were protected by behavioural reinforcement, a term used to describe the blocking of immigrants across a narrow migration corridor. For example, a similar pattern had occurred with puma/cougar population migrations to North America from South American isthmus 1-12,000 years ago.

The depletion of genetic diversity observed in Asian leopard subspecies extends to the extreme in the critically endangered Amur leopard ( Panthera pardi orientalis ). Amur leopards comprise a tiny relict subspecies living on the edge of extinction in the Primorsky Krai region of the Russian Far East-RFE, along the North Chinese border. The Amur leopard population has dropped below 60 individuals and is now showing congenital traits that derive from close inbreeding. Conservation organizations in the RFE are proposing a genetic restoration of re-introduction of Amur leopards to Ussurijsky and Lazovsky Nature Reserves in the RFE (similar to what was successful for the Florida Panther restoration 15 years ago to augment the struggling wild population). The new Amur leopard genomic diversity data shall form a baseline for monitor of Amur leopard re-introduction consequences.

"Despite the fact that they the most widely distributed big cats, the evolutionary development and population history of leopards across Africa and Asia has not been studied with genomic tools before now," said Axel Barlow, Ph.D., an expert in palaeogenomics and molecular bioscience in Nottingham Trent University's School of Science and Technology. "Our results have highlighted marked genetic differences between African and Asian leopards, that Asian leopards originated from a single out-of-Africa dispersal event, and that the distinctiveness of leopards on the two continents has been maintained."

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A new paper in the Journal of the European Economic Association, published by Oxford University Press, indicates that distrust generated by a 2011 CIA-led vaccination campaign ruse designed to catch Osama Bin Laden resulted in a significant vaccination rate decline in Pakistan.

Using a local doctor, the US Central Intelligence Organization planned an immunization plan in Pakistan to obtain DNA samples of children living in a compound in Abbottabad where American authorities suspected Bin Laden was hiding in order to obtain proof of Bin Laden's location (because the presence of close relatives would be a likely indication of Bin Laden's presence). Without consent from the Pakistani health authorities, the doctor began to administer hepatitis B vaccines to children in Abbottabad. The Guardian published an article revealing the vaccine project shortly after a United States military special operations unit killed Bin Laden on May 2, 2011.

Even prior to this campaign extremist groups in Pakistan have worked to discredit formal medicine and vaccines. By discrediting such services (which are provided by the state) extremist groups may increase the credibility of non-state actors such as the Taliban.

The Taliban increased propaganda efforts against vaccines in the aftermath of the publication of the Guardian article. In particular, the Taliban issued several religious edicts linking vaccination campaigns to CIA espionage activities and later used violent action against vaccination workers.

Using data from the Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement on children born between January 2010 and July 2012, researchers have investigated the effects of the disclosure of this vaccination ruse on the extent to which children in Pakistan received doses of the polio, DPT, or measles vaccine. Their estimates indicate that the vaccination rate declined between 23% and 39% in districts with higher levels of electoral support for an alliance of parties espousing political extremism relative to districts with lower levels of electoral support for such groups. The researchers' investigation also revealed that the decline in girls' vaccination rates is larger than the decline in the vaccination rate of boys.

"The empirical evidence highlights that events which cast doubt on the integrity of health workers or vaccines can have severe consequences for the acceptance of health products such as vaccines," said Andreas Stegmann, one of the paper's authors. "This seems particularly relevant today as public acceptance of the new vaccines against Covid-19 is crucial to address the pandemic."

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Direct correspondence to:

Andreas Stegmann, Assistant Professor of Economics

Department of Economics, University of Warwick

Coventry, CV4 7AL, UNITED KINGDOM

University of Warwick

Andreas.Stegmann@warwick.ac.uk

To request a copy of the study, please contact:

Daniel Luzer

daniel.luzer@oup.com
Police did not say when or where Booth was arrested, and whether additional people were in the vehicle besides Claunch. Officials also did not release information about the stabbings victim.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- As the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in health applications grows, health providers are looking for ways to improve patients' experience with their machine doctors.

Researchers from Penn State and University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) found that people may be less likely to take health advice from an AI doctor when the robot knows their name and medical history. On the other hand, patients want to be on a first-name basis with their human doctors.

When the AI doctor used the first name of the patients and referred to their medical history in the conversation, study participants were more likely to consider an AI health chatbot intrusive and also less likely to heed the AI's medical advice, the researchers added. However, they expected human doctors to differentiate them from other patients and were less likely to comply when a human doctor failed to remember their information.

The findings offer further evidence that machines walk a fine line in serving as doctors, said S. Shyam Sundar, James P. Jimirro Professor of Media Effects in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications and co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory at Penn State.

"Machines don't have the ability to feel and experience, so when they ask patients how they are feeling, it's really just data to them," said Sundar, who is also an affiliate of Penn State's Institute for Computational and Data Sciences (ICDS). "It's possibly a reason why people in the past have been resistant to medical AI."

Machines do have advantages as medical providers, said Joseph B. Walther, distinguished professor in communication and the Mark and Susan Bertelsen Presidential Chair in Technology and Society at UCSB. He said that, like a family doctor who has treated a patient for a long time, computer systems could -- hypothetically -- know a patient's complete medical history. In comparison, seeing a new doctor or a specialist who knows only your latest lab tests might be a more common experience, said Walther, who is also director of the Center for Information Technology and Society at UCSB.

"This struck us with the question: 'Who really knows us better: a machine that can store all this information, or a human who has never met us before or hasn't developed a relationship with us, and what do we value in a relationship with a medical expert?'" said Walther. "So this research asks, who knows us better -- and who do we like more?"

The team designed five chatbots for the two-phase study, recruiting a total of 295 participants for the first phase, 223 of whom returned for the second phase. In the first part of the study, participants were randomly assigned to interact with either a human doctor, an AI doctor, or an AI-assisted doctor.

In the second phase of the study, the participants were assigned to interact with the same doctor again. However, when the doctor initiated the conversation in this phase, they either identified the participant by the first name and recalled information from the last interaction or they asked again how the patient preferred to be addressed and repeated questions about their medical history.

In both phases, the chatbots were programmed to ask eight questions concerning COVID-19 symptoms and behaviors, and offer diagnosis and recommendations, said Jin Chen, doctoral student in mass communications, Penn State and first author of the paper.

"We chose to focus this on COVID-19 because it was a salient health issue during the study period," said Jin Chen.

Accepting AI doctors

As medical providers look for cost-effective ways to provide better care, AI medical services may provide one alternative. However, AI doctors must provide care and advice that patients are willing to accept, according to Cheng Chen, doctoral student in mass communications at Penn State.

"One of the reasons we conducted this study was that we read in the literature a lot of accounts of how people are reluctant to accept AI as a doctor," said Chen. "They just don't feel comfortable with the technology and they don't feel that the AI recognizes their uniqueness as a patient. So, we thought that because machines can retain so much information about a person, they can provide individuation, and solve this uniqueness problem."

The findings suggest that this strategy can backfire. "When an AI system recognizes a person's uniqueness, it comes across as intrusive, echoing larger concerns with AI in society," said Sundar.

In a perplexing finding, about 78% of the participants in the experimental condition that featured a human doctor believed that they were interacting with an AI doctor, said the researchers. Sundar added a tentative explanation for this finding is that people may have become more accustomed to online health platforms during the pandemic, and may have expected a richer interaction.

In the future, the researchers expect more investigations into the roles that authenticity and the ability for machines to engage in back-and-forth questions may play in developing better rapport with patients.

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The researchers presented their findings today at the virtual 2021 ACM CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems -- the premier international conference for research on Human-Computer Interaction.
St. Petersburg, like other cities in the Russian Federation, is actively participating in the establishment of the "Smart City" program, which will provide new services for residents of the megalopolis, increasing the safety of citizens. Digital services are essential for such a system.

Due to the Internet of Things (IoT) systems, the environment can adapt to the needs of humanity on its own accord. Cybersecurity threats are especially dangerous for such infrastructure.

Specialists from Peter the Great St.Petersburg Polytechnic University (SPbPU) developed the methodology for assessing cyber risks in intelligent systems of a Smart City. The developed methodology was tested on the "smart crossroads" test bench (a component of the smart transport system of a Smart City). The results were published in the scientific journal "Machines" of the MDPI Publishing House.

Scientists note that the new goal for cybercriminals is to disrupt the functioning of large enterprises and urban infrastructure, as well as is to intercept the control over them. The attackers using wireless links can remotely invade into the target subnet or device (a group of devices), intercept traffic, launch denial of service attacks, and take control of IoT devices to create botnets.

"Currently, traditional cyber risk analysis strategies can't be directly applied in the construction and assessment of digital infrastructures in a Smart City, because the new network infrastructure is heterogeneous and dynamic. The goal of our project is to ensure the level of the information assets security considering the specifics of modern cyber threats," notes researcher Vasily Krundyshev, Institute of Cybersecurity and Data Protection SPbPU.

Researchers of St. Petersburg Polytechnic University developed a methodology for analyzing cybersecurity risks, which includes the stages of identifying asset types, identifying threats, calculating risks, and analyzing the resulting risk values. The proposed methodology is based on a quantitative approach, at the same time it is easily and quickly computable, which is especially important for the functioning of modern dynamic infrastructures. Experimental studies using a set of developed simulation models of typical digital infrastructures of a Smart City (Internet of Things, smart building, smart crossroads) demonstrated the superiority of the approach proposed by the authors over existing analogs.

In the near future, it is planned to arrange the automatic calculation of cybersecurity risks in a Smart City based on the developed methodology.

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The reported study was funded by Russian Foundation For Basic Research according to the research project #19-37-90001.
Researchers have developed a global earthquake monitoring system that uses the Global Navigational Satellite System (GNSS) to measure crustal deformation.

The monitoring system within seconds can rapidly assess earthquake magnitude and fault slip distribution for earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 and larger, making it a potentially valuable tool in earthquake and tsunami early warning for these damaging events, Central Washington University geophysicist Timothy Melbourne and colleagues report in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America.

GNSS can potentially characterize a large earthquake much more rapidly than the global seismic network, offering more time for evacuations, drop-and-cover and automatic shut-down of essential infrastructure. "The imperative for doing it quickly is really about saving lives," said Melbourne.

GNSS systems consist of Earth-orbiting satellites that send signals to receiver stations on Earth. The signals are used to determine the receivers' exact locations through time. Earthquakes move and deform the Earth's crust underneath the receivers, so changes in their locations after an earthquake can be used to monitor and characterize the ruptures.

Seismic monitoring by GNSS is a "very blunt tool," compared to seismometer-based networks capable of detecting minute seismic waves, Melbourne said.

A top-of-the-line seismometer is remarkably sensitive, he noted, able to detect seismic wave velocities as small as tens of nanometers per second.

GNSS is more coarse, only detecting displacements of centimeters or larger.

During a big earthquake, however, there is a trade-off between sensitivity and speed. Local seismic networks can be swamped with data during a large, complex event such as the 2016 magnitude 7.8 Kaikoura earthquake in New Zealand, where multiple faults are involved and waves from the initial event reverberate through the crust. To accurately determine magnitude and fault slip distribution, seismologists usually have to wait for the seismic wave data to reach distant stations before it can be accurately characterized, which involves tens of minutes of delay while the waves propagate across the planet.

The global system created by Melbourne and his colleagues is the first of its kind. It takes in raw GNSS data acquired at any Internet-connected receiver on Earth, positions these data, and then re-transmits the positioned data back to any Internet-connected device, within a second.

The researchers assessed their system over one typical week, using data from 1270 receiver stations across the world. They found that the average time it took data to travel from a receiver to the processing center at Central Washington University was about half a second--from anywhere in the world. It took an average of about one-200th of a second to convert that data into estimates of GNSS position.

This means that the GNSS global monitoring system can detect changes well before the earthquake itself is done rupturing, since it can take tens of seconds--or even minutes for the largest earthquakes--"for the fault to unzip and radiate all that energy into the planet," Melbourne said.

The speed of a global GNSS seismic monitoring system might be even more important for tsunami warnings, he noted. At the moment, an international monitoring program uses data from a global seismic network to determine an earthquake magnitude, combined with data from global tide gauges and buoys that detect a tsunami wave in the open ocean, to determine whether a tsunami advisory should be sent to the public.

The seismic network could take 15 minutes or more to determine the magnitude of an earthquake that causes a tsunami, said Melbourne, and the tidal gauges and buoys could take up to an hour to deliver data, depending on their proximity to the earthquake. GNSS receivers, on the other hand, could characterize an earthquake in tens of seconds with sufficient nearby stations.

"The real power of the GNSS for the tsunami is buying more time and greater accuracy from the get-go for the warnings that come out," Melbourne said.

GNSS receiver stations are proliferating around the world as more people use them, especially for surveying or monitoring in mining and construction. But the global GNSS monitoring system depends on open-source data, which has not expanded at the same rate. In some countries, data are sold to recover the costs of constructing and maintaining the receivers, Melbourne said, making their operators reluctant to make the data freely available.

"Part of what I do is trying to get countries in seismically active areas to open up their data sets for hazard mitigation purposes," said Melbourne.

For instance, GNSS operators in New Zealand, Ecuador, Chile and elsewhere partner with Melbourne's group, benefiting from the decade of work that the team has put into their GNSS positioning system. They send raw data from receivers in their countries to Central Washington, where Melbourne and colleagues position the data within a global reference frame and send it back within subseconds for further research and monitoring.

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Study finds people homeless in their 20s, 30s and 40s are physically comparable to those housed in their 70s and 80s

Trinity study finds people homeless in their 20s, 30s and 40s are physically comparable to those housed in their 70s and 80s

A Trinity College study published today (Monday, 10th May 2021) demonstrates an extremely high burden of physical and mobility problems experienced by people who are homeless and were admitted for inpatient care to an acute hospital in Dublin. The study found that only one third of participants could climb a hospital stairs and there was a very common presentation of geriatric conditions such as frailty, falls and needing a mobility aid on a long term basis, despite a low median participant age of 45 years.

The study is published in the journal Scientific Reports here: http://www. nature. com/ articles/ s41598-021-88590-0

Overall the study provided visible evidence of accelerated physical ageing among this cohort relative to the general population with participants, (all homeless and mostly using hostel accommodation or rough sleeping) in their 20s, 30s and 40s experiencing poor physical status and geriatric syndromes comparable to housed individuals in their 70s or 80s years.

It is commonly accepted that adults who are homeless experience poor health and frequently require hospital in-patient care. The objective of this study however was to evaluate a broad range of physical functioning variables to enable better future planning of targeted health and accommodation services for this group.

Uniquely this study collectively evaluated this group using a broad range of robust physical functioning measures, including lower extremity physical function, falls risk, functional capacity, stair climbing ability, frailty, fitness and grip strength. Notably, many participants were unable to even complete the simple physical tests due to pain or not feeling well enough.

The study of 65 people, (32.3% female, 66.7% male) was carried out in St James's Hospital and initiated by the Physiotherapy Department, Trinity College and Inclusion Health Team at St James's Hospital. It was conducted by Sinead Kiernan, Department of Physiotherapy St. James's Hospital and Researcher Discipline of Physiotherapy, Trinity and first author and led by Dr Cliona Ni Cheallaigh, Lead Inclusion Health Service, St. James's Hospital and School of Medicine Trinity College.

Most participants (64.0%) utilized hostel accommodation or were rough sleepers (17%). It was previously noted that people who are homeless tend to present more often for unscheduled care - such as presenting to the emergency department much more commonly than those who are stably housed. Some will need to be admitted to hospital for further care - and this cohort can constitute a substantial proportion of inpatients in many acute hospitals at any one time. Some of these patients were referred to physiotherapy and appeared to have very low levels of mobility but the physical characteristics of this vulnerable group were not well known.

KEY FINDINGS

- The majority (83%) of participants had mobility problems. - Over half (54%) of this cohort experienced at least 1 fall in the previous 6 months. - Only 31% could attempt to climb one flight of stairs. - Only 38% could walk for 6 minutes. - The majority of participants (70.5%) were frail or pre-frail. - One quarter (25%) displayed extremely poor balance

Dr. Julie Broderick, Principal Investigator and Assistant Professor, Discipline of Physiotherapy, Trinity College said:

"In our study we found that general physical and mobility levels of participants who were homeless in their 20s, 30s and 40s were comparable to levels we would expect to see among stably housed people in their 70s or 80s, this is visible evidence of accelerated physical ageing among this cohort. The huge physical burden experienced by this group who mostly utilised hostels or were rough sleepers is concerning. As well as other complex needs, mobility levels, strength and fitness need to be targeted in this group to prevent further deterioration. Falls prevention strategies are also necessary. Accommodation services for people who are homeless need to be suitable and accessible for people with low mobility levels."

RECOMMENDATIONS

It is established that many people who are homeless experience problems associated with addiction and mental health complexities, but physical and mobility limitations also deserve greater consideration. The Trinity research team propose that medical and rehabilitation services are needed to target these limitations as some may be reversible with appropriate physiotherapy provision. Physiotherapy and other physical rehabilitation services are a priority for this group.

Appropriate community and outreach services are also necessary as it is likely that ongoing support will be needed after discharge from hospital. Specific community-based onward referral services are also required.

And finally, the research team recommends that housing policy should respond to the physical health needs of people who are homeless along with housing and accommodation services that are designed with accessibility in mind.

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(Philadelphia, PA) - Finding ways to optimize energy use is critical to keeping up productivity. This idea applies to the human body overall, as well as to each individual cell that makes up the body. Cells, in fact, go to great lengths to maintain energy levels, frequently increasing the activity of certain proteins and support pathways to compensate for drops in energy production that are brought about by stress or disease.

One way in which cells compensate for flagging energy production and metabolic dysfunction is mitochondrial calcium transport remodeling - a process marked by seemingly harmless changes in the amount of calcium present within mitochondria, the energy-generating batteries of cells. But while beneficial at first, this response may become maladaptive over time, with altered calcium levels inflicting severe damage to mitochondria. In the nervous system, this ultimately impacts cellular activities necessary for memory and learning.

A team of scientists led by John W. Elrod, PhD, Associate Professor in the Center for Translational Medicine at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, has hypothesized that altered mitochondrial calcium transport contributes to Alzheimer's disease development and progression. But whether and how this happens remains unclear.

Now, thanks to a new three-year, $2.27 million grant from the National Institutes of Health's National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Dr. Elrod and colleagues are poised to gain novel insight into biological mechanisms that may be driving or worsening neurodegeneration. The researchers will investigate potential mechanisms using mouse models of Alzheimer's disease and a systems biology approach. The work could help identify new drug targets and therapeutic opportunities for Alzheimer's disease.

"We recently reported that altered mitochondrial calcium transport impacts the progression of neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Alzheimer's disease," said Dr. Elrod, who is senior investigator on the new grant. "But very little is known about the mechanisms involved."

Dr. Elrod and colleagues think that an initial energetic or metabolic stress likely causes cells to change their behavior.

"We suspect that in Alzheimer's disease, stressed brain cells (neurons) have an energy deficit, which causes the cells to take up more calcium in order to augment energy production. But ultimately the high mitochondrial calcium levels cause maladaptive remodeling and disease."

Dr. Elrod and colleagues demonstrated that neuronal expression of a calcium transporter known as NCLX is lost in Alzheimer's disease and that re-expression of NCLX protects against disease development. In particular, by moving calcium out of mitochondria, NCLX prevented the formation of harmful protein aggregates and re-established mitochondrial calcium homeostasis in neurons, effectively rescuing animals from cognitive decline.

Dr. Elrod's laboratory further discovered that in neurons, loss of expression of a protein known as MICU1 correlates with Alzheimer's disease progression. MICU1 is a key regulator of mitochondrial calcium uptake. Its loss predisposes the energy-producing organelles to calcium overload.

"Now we want to know if mitochondrial calcium uptake contributes specifically to the development and progression of Alzheimer's disease," Dr. Elrod said. "We also want to find out what energy or metabolic deficits are occurring in cells as Alzheimer's disease develops. Using new genetic tools, we hope to identify metabolic changes in neurons during the course of disease. Defining what cellular stresses are occurring and which metabolic pathways are affected can help us better understand what triggers mitochondrial dysfunction in the first place."

**Research reported in this publication was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (NS121379, HL136954, HL123966, HL123966, HL142271). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

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A University of Alberta virology lab has uncovered how an oral antiviral drug works to attack the SARS-CoV-2 virus, in findings published May 10 in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

The researchers demonstrated the underlying mechanism of action by which the antiviral drug molnupiravir changes the viral genome, a process known as excessive mutagenesis or "error catastrophe."

"The polymerase, or replication engine of the virus, mistakes molnupiravir molecules for the natural building blocks required for viral genome replication and mixes them in," explained Matthias Gotte, professor and chair of the Department of Medical Microbiology & Immunology in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry and member of the Li Ka Shing Institute of Virology. "It causes the polymerase to make sloppy copies--nonsense genomes that are useless and not viable."

Molnupiravir is currently in Phase 3 human clinical trials, which are expected to report preliminary data by the end of June. Phase 2 trial results recently revealed that the drug eliminated SARS-CoV-2 infectivity in newly diagnosed patients after five days of treatment.

The drug is taken as a pill, making it much easier to administer than other approved treatments such as remdesivir or monoclonal antibodies, which must be given intravenously. It has not yet been shown to be effective in treating hospitalized COVID-19 patients with advanced disease, so current trials are focused on determining how well it works for newly diagnosed patients. It is hoped the drug could also be used as a preventive measure to protect household members against infection.

"Molnupiravir is one of the few compounds under investigation that is orally available," Gotte said. "Data reported so far demonstrate that this drug is well tolerated with no signs of severe side-effects, and it shows an antiviral effect after five days. Whether it can also reduce hospitalizations remains to be seen."

"Our work to demonstrate that the effect of the drug is indeed mediated by the viral polymerase is reassuring, because if the drug somehow generates mistakes in the virus and you don't know how it happens, there could be other mechanisms at work that could also harm the cell," he said. "Still, the safety of the drug for COVID-19 patients remains to be evaluated and monitored."

Another step in the hunt for a weapon against future pandemics

Molnupiravir was first identified as a broad spectrum antiviral at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. In 2003 it was developed as a treatment for chronic hepatitis C, but it was dropped due to possible side-effects associated with long-term use. The drug was then tested in humans with influenza, because the course of treatment for flu is much shorter. The focus of testing switched to SARS-CoV-2 after the COVID-19 pandemic emerged. The drug is now being developed in partnership by Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics.

Merck has made deals with five generic drugmakers in India to make molnupiravir, and at least one of them has applied for approval to use it on an emergency basis, as at least 350,000 new infections are diagnosed in that country every day and vaccination levels are low.

Gotte and his team previously uncovered the mechanisms of action for remdesivir, a now-approved treatment that inhibits replication of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and baloxavir, an influenza drug.

Next, they will test molnupiravir's mechanism of action against the polymerases of some of the other viruses the World Health Organization has identified as having high epidemic potential.

"All are recognized as emerging pathogens where we need to develop countermeasures," Gotte said. "We need to be prepared with broad-spectrum antivirals that can serve as a first line of defence."

"Even once vaccines are developed, we can't get them into all the arms at once," he said. "To really fight outbreaks and epidemics, one tool is unlikely to be sufficient."

The researchers were supported by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Alberta Ministry of Jobs, Economy and Innovation, and the U.S. National Institutes of Health Centers for AIDS Research. The other authors were graduate student Calvin Gordon and research associate Egor Tchesnokov of the U of A, and Raymond Schinazi of the Emory School of Medicine.
An experimental form of gene therapy developed by a team of researchers from UCLA and Great Ormond Street Hospital in London has successfully treated 48 of 50 children born with a rare and deadly inherited disorder that leaves them without an immune system.

Severe combined immunodeficiency due to adenosine deaminase deficiency, or ADA-SCID, is caused by mutations in the ADA gene that creates the enzyme adenosine deaminase, which is essential to a functioning immune system. For children with the condition, even day-to-day activities like going to school or playing with friends can lead to dangerous, life-threatening infections. If untreated, ADA-SCID can be fatal within the first two years of life.

The investigational gene therapy method involves first collecting some of the child's blood-forming stem cells, which have the potential to create all types of blood and immune cells. Next, using an approach developed by the research team, a new copy of the ADA gene is delivered into the stem cells by a modified lentivirus, or "viral vector." The corrected cells are then returned to the child's body, where they are intended to produce a continual supply of healthy immune cells capable of fighting infection.

In a study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, co-lead authors Dr. Donald Kohn of UCLA and Dr. Claire Booth of Great Ormond Street Hospital, or GOSH, report two- and three-year outcomes for children treated with the investigational lentiviral gene therapy in clinical trials at GOSH, UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital and the National Institutes of Health between 2012 and 2017.

"Between all three clinical trials, 50 patients were treated, and the overall results were very encouraging," said Kohn, a distinguished professor of microbiology, immunology and molecular genetics and a member of the Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at UCLA. "All the patients are alive and well, and in more than 95% of them, the therapy appears to have corrected their underlying immune system problems."

No complications or treatment-limiting events were reported among the patients. Most adverse events were mild or moderate, and were considered to be related to routine procedures performed in preparation for the experimental gene therapy treatment or effects of the immune system rebuilding.

"Treatment was successful in all but two of the 50 cases, and both of those children were able to return to current standard-of care-therapies and treatments, with one eventually receiving a bone marrow transplant," said Kohn, who has been working to develop gene therapies for ADA-SCID and other blood diseases for 35 years.

The investigational gene therapy -- a one-time procedure that the researchers say may provide lifelong results -- is a welcome potential new treatment option for children with ADA-SCID, who otherwise must undergo once- or twice-weekly injections of the ADA enzyme until a matched bone marrow donor, usually a close family member, can be found. If a donor is not available, patients require lifelong injections, along with antibiotics, antifungal medications and monthly infusions of immunoglobulin, which contains infection-fighting antibodies. These treatments are expensive and therefore out of reach for patients in many countries.

"If approved in the future, this treatment could be standard for ADA-SCID, and potentially many other genetic conditions, removing the need to find a matched donor for a bone marrow transplant and the toxic side effects often associated with that treatment," said Booth, a GOSH consultant in pediatric immunology and gene therapy.

The benefits of lentiviral gene therapy

Prior to teaming up, both Booth and Kohn worked separately for years on successful gene therapies for ADA-SCID that used viral vectors made from retroviruses. Retroviral vectors, however, can only enter cells' nuclei to deliver genes while the cells are dividing, limiting the number of cells receiving the genetic payload and, thereby, the potential efficacy of the treatment.

Additionally, while neither Kohn nor Booth observed serious complications in their ADA-SCID trials, other earlier studies testing retroviral vector-based gene therapies did report some serious side effects, including leukemia, in some patients.

In 2008, Booth and Kohn began collaborating with professors Bobby Gaspar and Adrian Thrasher of University College London to develop an improved viral vector using a different kind of virus, called a lentivirus. Viruses of this kind can enter non-dividing cells' nuclei and, when used as vectors, have the potential to make gene therapies safer and more effective. ADA-SCID patients began receiving the new gene therapy at GOSH in 2012; the following year, the experimental treatment was offered at UCLA and the NIH.

"More than 200 patients with various genetic conditions across the world have now been treated with experimental lentiviral gene therapies, and applying gene therapy to ADA-SCID is another significant scientific advance," said Thrasher, a senior author of the study who is also a professor of pediatric immunology at GOSH.

Ten of the children in the UCLA study were treated using a frozen preparation of corrected stem cells. These children experienced similar outcomes to the children treated with cells that were not frozen. The freezing approach may allow children with ADA-SCID to have their stem cells collected locally, then have them transported and processed at a manufacturing facility elsewhere and shipped back to a specialized hospital near them, removing the need for patients and their families to travel long distances to specialist centers.

One patient's story: A life-changing treatment

One of the patients who received a frozen preparation of cells at UCLA, Cora Oakley of Morristown, New Jersey, was diagnosed with ADA-SCID through newborn genetic screening at just 7 days old, in April 2017. "I remember asking the doctor if my daughter was going to die," Cora's mother, Chelsea Oakley, said of receiving the diagnosis. "And his response was, 'I hope not.' It was the darkest day of my life."

Cora was the last child to enroll in the clinical trial and received her own corrected cells in September 2017. Following the gene therapy, Cora and her family spent a month in the bone marrow transplant unit of a hospital closer to their home for Cora's follow-up treatment. The experiences of the other young patients in this unit opened Oakley's eyes to what her daughter would have gone through if the experimental gene therapy hadn't been an option.

"I saw young bone marrow transplant patients who developed graft-versus-host disease and others who had to take all these anti-rejection medications and still had issues. I just thought no one should have to suffer like this," she said. "And then here's my daughter who had this life-changing treatment that felt like a miracle. It still shocks me all the time how unbelievably fortunate we are."

Now a healthy and exuberant 4-year-old, Cora is described by her mom as a "rough and tumble, outdoors kind of kid" who loves all animals and is incredibly social. "I'll never forget what it felt like when we didn't know if she'd ever be able to do any of these things," Oakley said.

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The investigational lentiviral gene therapy is licensed to Orchard Therapeutics and has not been approved for clinical use by any regulatory authority.

The research was funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, and the National Human Genome Research Institute (all part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health); the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine; the U.K. National Institute for Health Research's Biomedical Research Centre at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children National Health Service Foundation Trust, University College London and Orchard Therapeutics.
Researchers at the University of California San Diego have laid the groundwork for a potential new type of gene therapy using novel CRISPR-based techniques.

Working in fruit flies and human cells, research led by UC San Diego Postdoctoral Scholar Zhiqian Li in Division of Biological Sciences Professor Ethan Bier's laboratory demonstrates that new DNA repair mechanisms could be designed to address the effects of debilitating diseases and damaged cell conditions.

The scientists developed a novel genetic sensor called a "CopyCatcher," which capitalizes on CRISPR-based gene drive technology, to detect instances in which a genetic element is copied precisely from one chromosome to another throughout cells in the body of a fruit fly.

Details are explained in the journal Nature Communications.

Gene-drive technology is being developed to copy and distribute desired traits in reproductive cells of the body (sperm and eggs), which allows these traits to be spread throughout populations--potentially preventing transmission of insect-vectored diseases such as malaria and fortifying agricultural crops. For human health applications, next-generation CopyCatcher systems will measure how often such perfect copying might take place in different cells of the human body. As this system detects a very high rate of copying in fruit flies, similar success in human cells would allow scientists to make desired precise genome edits throughout the body, and particularly in cells that rely on the function of that gene for normal health.

"These studies provide a clear proof of principle for a new type of gene therapy in which one copy of a mutated gene could be repaired from a partially intact second copy of the gene," said Bier, senior author of the Nature Communications study and science director for the Tata Institute for Genetics and Society-UC San Diego. "The need for such a design occurs in genetic situations with patients with inherited genetic disorders, if their parents were carriers for two different mutations in the same gene."

Bier says the strategy of fixing a mutated gene in its normal context within the genome differs greatly from current gene therapy strategies in which a surrogate copy of a gene is placed at a different site in the genome and acts as a crude "patch."

"This method restores enough gene activity to allow the patient to limp by," said Bier. "In these cases, genes are often activated in cells where they should normally be silent and may not be activated in others where they should be."

If the high efficiency of precise in vivo gene editing detected by CopyCatchers in fruit flies could be achieved in human cells, then a variety of genetic disorders might be treated including blood diseases, diseases affecting vision or hearing and diseases targeting specific organs such as muscular dystrophy, cystic fibrosis (lung and kidney) and congenital heart defects.

"This restorative form of gene therapy would represent a major improvement over existing methods in which a functional copy of the gene is typically activated in all cells of the body but in an abnormal pattern," said Li.

Although the researchers detected highly efficient copying of genetic information in three genes active in different tissues of the fly body (eyes, epidermis and embryonic cells), this ability to copy information from one chromosome to another was less efficient in human cells (4-8% of cells) than in flies (in 30-50% of cells), the researchers found. However, in human cells where specific cuts were made to one chromosome using CRISPR, the researchers rigorously established that the other chromosome could be used to repair the damage resulting in a genetic element being precisely copied into the cut site. Moreover, measures to improve copying in flies also translated to enhanced copying in human cells suggesting that further research may increase the efficiency of human in vivo genetic repair.

CopyCatchers are designed based on the fact that cells have two copies of each chromosome. In its starting location, a CopyCatcher is rendered inactive, preventing it from producing a red fluorescent detector protein. If the CopyCatcher copies itself precisely to the other chromosome, however, then it can free itself from the constraint imposed on the original element thereby leading to cells becoming fluorescent. The fraction of red fluorescing cells tabulated throughout a tissue is a quantitative indicator of the frequency of precise CRISPR editing. Since cells of the body have been thought to be relatively recalcitrant to precise CRISPR editing, it was surprising that CopyCatchers reveal an unexpected potential of cells throughout the body to do so, such as in the eyes and in the epidermis.

In the next series of planned experiments Li and colleagues in the Bier lab will use CopyCatchers and related systems to further optimize the efficiency of corrective editing and develop model systems for human diseases to enhance the efficacy this technology for gene therapy applications.

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The co-authors of the study include: Zhiqian Li, Nimi Marcel, Sushil Devkota, Ankush Auradkar, Stephen Hedrick, Valentino Gantz and Ethan Bier.

The research was funded by National Institutes of Health (grant R01 GM117321), a Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group Distinguished Investigators Award and a gift from the Tata Trusts in India to TIGS-UC San Diego and TIGS-India.

Note: Bier has equity interest in two companies he co-founded: Synbal Inc. and Agragene, Inc., which may potentially benefit from the research results. He also serves on Synbal's board of directors and the scientific advisory board for both companies.
As city populations boom and the need grows for sustainable energy and water, scientists and engineers with the University of Chicago and partners are looking towards artificial intelligence to build new systems to deal with wastewater. Two new projects will test out ways to make "intelligent" water systems to recover nutrients and clean water.

"Water is an indispensable resource of our society, as it is required for sustaining life and economic prosperity," said Junhong Chen, the Crown Family Professor in the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago and lead water strategist at Argonne National Laboratory. "Our future economy and national security greatly depend on the availability of clean water. However, there is a limited supply of renewable freshwater, with no substitute."

Reduce, reuse

The U.S. Department of Energy announced that UChicago, along with Argonne National Laboratory, Northwestern University and other partners, will receive funding to develop an artificial intelligence-assisted system for recovery of energy, nutrients and freshwater from municipal wastewater.

The ultimate goal of the project, which will be funded at $2 million over three years, is to transform the existing U.S. treatment system for municipal wastewater into an intelligent water resource recovery system that will dramatically reduce energy consumption and become energy positive at a national scale.

The resulting water recovery system would benefit the water supply in underserved communities on Chicago's South Side as well as the Great Lakes region in general, including Milwaukee and Detroit.

"This project is an important step forward in realizing Argonne's strategic plan to enhance our leadership in water-related science through pioneering research, discoveries and innovations using artificial intelligence," said Chen.

The approach will combine artificial intelligence and machine learning for online learning of system dynamics, mathematical modeling for optimizing energy and nutrient recovery, and life-cycle analysis and modeling with respect to both the science and economics to guide system design. It will also involve development of novel materials for efficient solar steam generation and wireless sensors for real-time water quality monitoring.

The intelligent system concept for municipal wastewater recovery should also be applicable to other wastewaters, including industrial and agricultural.

The other partners include the Great Lakes Water Authority, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, NanoAffix and two regional water innovation hubs -- Current and the Water Council. The award is part of a slate of Department of Energy projects totaling $27.5 million for 16 water infrastructure projects to reduce energy use and carbon emissions in our aging water infrastructure, particularly in wastewater treatment.

In addition to Chen, the project team members include Seth Darling of Argonne, Jennifer Dunn of Northwestern University and Argonne, George Wells of Northwestern University, and Asst. Prof. Yuxin Chen of the University of Chicago.

Removing toxic water contaminants

Another project seeks to use AI in molecular engineering to detect and remove water contaminants.

Water-contaminating chemicals such as polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, may lead to severe environmental and health effects, such as low infant birth weight, cancer, and thyroid hormone disruption. The current approaches for detecting these chemicals are expensive, time-consuming, and require bulky equipment and skilled personnel. The vast number of contaminants -- over 4,000 in the PFAS family alone -- also prohibit conventional development of biological or chemical probes.

A project headed by University of Chicago and Argonne scientists will develop a platform using molecular simulation, organic synthesis, and artificial intelligence to rapidly explore the large molecular space of potential PFAS probes and efficiently identify, design, and fabricate new chemical probes for sensing and removing contaminants from water.

The work, which partners with Current, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, will also advance data science, characterization at the Argonne Advanced Photon Source, and high-performance simulation. The scientists hope it could potentially transfer to the screening and removal of other water contaminants, such as pharmaceuticals, to advance global public health. It is funded through the Discovery Challenge program from the Center for Data and Computing (CDAC), with support from UChicago's Office of Research and National Laboratories Joint Task Force Initiative.

Project scientists include Junhong Chen, Stuart Rowan, and Andrew Ferguson of the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, Rebecca Willett and Eric Jonas of the UChicago Computer Science department, Seth Darling of the Pritzker School and Argonne, and Sang Soo Lee and Chris Benmore of Argonne.

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-- Adapted in part from an article by Joseph E. Harmon published by Argonne National Laboratory.
Duluth, Minnesota - A new paper in the May issue of Nature Communications demonstrates why keeping local lakes and other waterbodies clean produces cost-effective benefits locally and globally.

A single season of a lake or water body with a harmful algal bloom that results in public do-not-drink orders, damages to fishing activity, lost recreational opportunities, decreased property values and increased likelihood of low birth weight among infants born to mothers exposed to polluted water bodies are but just a handful of reasons why clean water is important.

Most everyone wants their local lake or stream to be clean and useable for drinking, fishing, swimming and recreation. But previous cost-benefit studies showed the costs of protecting local water sources often exceeded the benefits.

Not so fast say the authors. One of the reasons past studies showed costs exceeding benefits is that not all benefits, especially global ones, were analyzed by economists.

New research, led by University of Minnesota Sea Grant Director John A. Downing, found that adding up global financial benefits of clean water shows that keeping water clean can help slow climate change, saving trillions of dollars. Using one Lake Erie case study as an example, the authors also found that the global climate change value of protecting and preventing this Great Lake from algae blooms was ten times greater than the value of beach use or sport fishing.

"Surface water is one of the Earth's most important resources," said Downing, who is also a lake scientist at the University of Minnesota Duluth Large Lake Observatory. "Yet people have mistakenly assumed that it costs more to protect our water than it is worth. Our research demonstrates that there is significant local and global value to protecting local water quality."

One reason for this, said the authors, is that scientists and economists have previously considered only a narrow range of local benefits when calculating the outcomes of good water quality. Downing and co-authors sought to calculate the potential global benefits.

Locally, cleaning or keeping a local lake or waterbody free of unwanted nutrients- what scientists call eutrophication - is obviously good for people who use or want to access that particular water body. Globally, it's also good for reducing the amount of the greenhouse gas methane that is released into the atmosphere from that eutrophic water body.

Methane is a stronger greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide because it has a much higher heat-trapping ability and has about 21 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide. Less methane in the atmosphere can help slow global warming.

The authors sought to answer the question: is keeping a local water body clean worth the cost?

The cost of climate change comes from health-care costs, damages to urban infrastructure, agricultural damages, catastrophic storm damage, negative impacts on recreation, forestry, fisheries, energy systems, water systems, construction, and coastal infrastructure.

"We calculated the global climate damages from methane emissions from eutrophic lakes and calculated the damages that would be avoided damages by preventing increased emissions from 2015 to 2050," said Downing. "If we could hold methane emissions at current levels rather than the expected 20-100% increase by 2050, the value of avoiding the resulting damages could be as much as $24 trillion." The authors estimated the costs of global climate change due to eutrophication from 2015 to 2050 to be as much as $81 trillion.

The authors' analysis shows that local water quality protection has global economic implications. The substantial emissions they document from lakes and reservoirs and the potential for increased emissions suggest that there is considerable value to be gained by improving water quality in lakes and reservoirs and in preventing further deterioration.

"It's not possible to avoid all emissions from lakes and reservoirs, but with concerted effort it may be possible to prevent increased emissions or even reverse it," said Downing.

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Nature Communications.

Once published, the paper will available to view online at https:/ / www. nature. com/ ncomms/ .

Contacts:

John A. Downing, director, University of Minnesota Sea Grant Program, University of Minnesota, downing@d.umn.edu.

Authors:
South Africa: Lesotho water project important for SA, Lesotho socio-economic prospects

The Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation has underlined the strategic importance of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) for the socio-economic prospects of both Lesotho and South Africa.

The committee made the remarks, as it concludes its week-long oversight visit to the LHWP.

Committee Chairperson Machwene Semenya said the purpose of the oversight visit was to assess progress on the project, challenges and strengthen oversight over the project, and also meet the Lesotho committee responsible for water.

The committee felt it was necessary for its oversight work to visit Lesotho and assess progress, especially considering the economic importance of the project to the sustainability of Gauteng, which is our countrys economic hub and seat of the executive, said Committee Chairperson, Machwene Semenya in a statement on Monday.

The LHWP is a bi-national water transfer and hydroelectricity generation project between the Kingdom of Lesotho and the Republic of South Africa, established through a treaty signed in 1986.

The project generates hydroelectricity for the sole benefit of Lesotho citizens, while water is transferred to meet the water needs of South Africans. It satisfies 60% of Gautengs water demand.

The project is a flagship of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Revised Protocol, which is premised on regional economic integration for peace and prosperity. It is a water and energy security bilateral agreement.

It also enables South Africa to meet some of its international commitments, including global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly six which concerns the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, as it involves the implementation of the integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation.

Another such commitment is the African Union Agenda 2063 on Socio-Economic Integration pertaining to trade and the movement of people.

As part of its programme, Semenya said the committee met with the Natural Resources Cluster Committee of the National Assembly of Lesotho, where they focussed on oversight of the LHWP and its benefits to both countries.

The committees agreed on a collaborative oversight effort over the project to ensure the maximisation of benefits of the project for both countries, and also to share knowledge and learn from each other going forward.

The meeting recommended that the Treaty between Lesotho and South Africa needs to be reviewed in its entirety, as the 2011 amendment only focussed on Phase 2 of the project and does not cater for the current state of affairs in both countries. Above all, the joint committees concurred that the LHWP is too important to fail.

The committee received briefings from the South African High Commission, the Lesotho Highlands Water Authority and the Lesotho Highlands Water Commission.

It also visited Katse and Polihali (under construction) dams and the Muela Hydropower Plant. The committee was impressed with the quality of the dam and associated structures and the overall management and operations of the LHWP, Semenya said.

Despite the success of the LHWP, the committee however, identified various challenges needing urgent attention from both countries.

These include compensation of resettled communities; capacity-building and skills transfer between the two countries; and funding of the project.

Nevertheless, the project implementers assured the delegation that these challenges are not insurmountable with plans already in place to arrest them. The committee has emphasised the need to speed up implementation of phase 2 of the project to ensure that both countries explore maximum benefits from the project.

The committee resolved that it would assist by collaborating with its Lesotho counterparts on conducting oversight and amending laws, and advocating for improved funding allocations where necessary, Semenya said.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2021-05-11. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Gender ratio of China's population falls slightly to 105.07: official data

Xinhua) 10:40, May 11, 2021

Children play in an adventure playground at a tourist attraction in Nanning, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, May 1, 2021. (Xinhua/Zhou Hua)

BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Gender ratio of China's mainland population reached 105.07 males to 100 females, according to data of the latest national population census released Tuesday.

It was slightly down from 105.2 in 2010 when the previous census was conducted.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
When he got to his room door, Furick said he struggled to get the key fob out of his wallet, but was able to get into his room and wrap up his wound before calling 911 on his cellphone. During this time, Furick said he saw four people leave in a late model, red Ford Focus he recognized as Stoeckls.
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine researchers are the first to demonstrate that COVID-19 can be present in the penis tissue long after men recover from the virus.

The widespread blood vessel dysfunction, or endothelial dysfunction, that results from the COVID-19 infection could then contribute to erectile dysfunction, or ED, according to the study recently published in the World Journal of Men's Health. Endothelial dysfunction is a condition in which the lining of the small blood vessels fails to perform all of its functions normally. As a result, the tissues supplied by those vessels could undergo damage.

"Our research shows that COVID-19 can cause widespread endothelial dysfunction in organ systems beyond the lungs and kidneys. The underlying endothelial dysfunction that happens because of COVID-19 can enter the endothelial cells and affect many organs, including the penis," said study author Ranjith Ramasamy, M.D., associate professor and director of the Miller School's Reproductive Urology Program. "In our pilot study, we found that men who previously did not complain of erectile dysfunction developed pretty severe erectile dysfunction after the onset of COVID-19 infection."

Dr. Ramasamy and colleagues collected penile tissue from two men with a history of COVID-19 infection who underwent penile prosthesis surgery for ED. One of the men was hospitalized for COVID-19, while the other patient only had mild symptoms when he contracted the virus.

The researchers also collected tissue from two additional men with no history of COVID-19 infection undergoing the same surgery for ED. The investigators analyzed all the tissue samples for not only evidence of the virus but also endothelial dysfunction.

They found COVID-19 was present in the penile tissue of both men who had been infected, but not in the men with no history of the virus. The men had been infected six and eight months prior, respectively. These men had evidence of endothelial dysfunction, while the men who had been free of the virus did not.

"This suggests that men who develop COVID-19 infection should be aware that erectile dysfunction could be an adverse effect of the virus, and they should go to a physician if they develop ED symptoms," Dr. Ramasamy said.

The authors hypothesize that similar to other COVID-19 related complications, widespread infection and subsequent endothelial dysfunction could result in ED, and that worsening of ED could be due to the virus's presence in the penile tissue, itself.

In a previously published study, Dr. Ramasamy and Miller School colleagues found that COVID-19 can also invade testis tissue in some men who are infected with the virus, which might be the first step in understanding the virus's potential impact on male fertility and whether COVID-19 can be sexually transmitted.

"These latest findings are yet another reason that we should all do our best to avoid COVID-19," said first author Eliyahu Kresch, a medical student working with Dr. Ramasamy.

"We recommend vaccination and to try to stay safe in general," Kresch said.

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Miller School coauthors are medical student Justin K. Achua, M.S.; clinical research coordinator Russell Saltzman; clinical research associate Kajal Khodamoradi, Ph.D.; Research Assistant Professor of Urology Himanshu Arora, Ph.D.; Assistant Professor of Urology and Neurological Surgery Emad Ibrahim, M.D., HCLD; Associate Professor of Pathology Oleksandr N. Kryvenko, M.D.; Transmission Electron Microscopy Core Vania Wolff Almeida; Fakiha Firdaus; and Founding Director of the Interdisciplinary Stem Cell Institute Joshua M. Hare, M.D.
Inks containing metal nanoparticles are among the most commonly-used conductive materials for printed electronics. Ink-jetting layers of MNP materials allows for unpreceded design flexibility, rapid processing and 3D printing of functional electronic devices such as sensors, solar panels, LED displays, transistors and smart textiles.

Inkjet 3D printing of metals typically form a solid printed object via a two-step process: solvent evaporation upon printing (pinning) and subsequent low-temperature consolidation of nanoparticles (sintering). The low temperature is important as in many applications the nanoparticles are co-printed with other functional/structural organic materials that are sensitive to higher temperatures.

However, layers produced by inkjet printing of metal nanoparticles have different electrical conductivity between horizontal and vertical directions. This effect is known as functional anisotropy and is a long-standing problem for the 3D printing of functional electronic devices, preventing its use for advanced applications.

It was previously thought that reduced vertical conductivity through a printed device is mainly caused by shape and physical continuity problems at the interfaces of the constituent nanoparticles (at the very small micro and nanoscale). However, Nottingham researchers used silver nanoparticles to show, for the first time, that it is caused by organic chemical residues in the inks.

These residues, which are added to the inks to help stabilise the nanomaterials, lead to the formation of low-conducting, very thin nanoscale layers which interfere with the electrical conductivity of the printed sample in the vertical direction.

With a clearer understanding of the distribution of residual organic additives within printed layers, the researchers hope to go on to define new techniques and develop new ink formulations to overcome functional anisotropy of inkjet-based 3D printed electronics.

Lead author, CfAM Research Fellow Dr Gustavo Trindade, said, "The conductivity of inkjet-printed metal nanoparticles is known to be dependent on processing temperature and have been previously attributed to changes in the shape and porosity of clustered nanoparticles, with the role of organic residues being only speculated."

"This new insight enables the development of routes to overcome functional anisotropy in inkjet-based nanoparticles, and will therefore improve uptake of this potentially transformational technology, making it competitive with conventional manufacturing. Our approach is transferable to other nanomaterial-based inks including those containing graphene and functionalised nanocrystals, and will enable the development and exploitation of both 2D and 3D printed electronics like flexible and wearable sensors, solar panels, LED displays, transistors and smart textiles."

The study was carried out by the Centre for Additive Manufacturing (CfAM), under the 5.85m EPSRC-funded Programme Grant, Enabling Next Generation Additive Manufacturing. Their findings are published in a new paper 'Residual polymer stabiliser causes anisotropic electrical conductivity during inkjet printing of metal nanoparticles' in the Nature journal Communications Materials.

The researchers used the unique chemical sensitivity of a state-of-the-art 3D orbiSIMS instrument owned by the University of Nottingham. The Nottingham orbiSIMS - the only one at a UK university - allows label-free 3D chemical imaging of materials with very high resolution, revealing insights that have informed this study.

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For a copy of the paper and media interviews contact Dr Gustavo Trindade on G.FerrazTrindade@nottingham.ac.uk, or Emma Lowry Media Relations Manager (Engineering) on 0115 846 7156 or emma.lowry@nottingham.ac.uk The University of Nottingham

The University of Nottingham is a research-intensive university with a proud heritage, consistently ranked among the world's top 100. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement. We are ranked eighth for research power in the UK according to REF 2014. We have six beacons of research excellence helping to transform lives and change the world; we are also a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally. Alongside Nottingham Trent University, we lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, a pioneering collaboration which brings together the combined strength and civic missions of Nottingham's two world-class universities and is working with local communities and partners to aid recovery and renewal following the COVID-19 pandemic. CfAM

Additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, also known as 3D printing, continue to evolve rapidly into crucial 21st Century manufacturing practises. At the University of Nottingham, the Centre for Additive Manufacturing (CfAM) is at the forefront of this development. To address the exciting engineering research challenges arising from this, CfAM combines several innovative strands of engineering research to span fundamental and translational research. Implemented as an interlinked and progressive programme of research projects, our activities include the investigation of the underpinning material deposition process, the formulation and selection of entirely new materials, the exploration of new computation-based design philosophies and novel deployment approaches for a wide range of industrial sectors. Whilst always keeping a keen eye on industrial implementation the vision guiding CfAM has always had its focus ahead of the current state of the art of AM technological capability.

EPSRC Programme Grant: Enabling Next Generation Additive Manufacturing

This EPSRC Programme Grant has the ambitious goal of developing next generation AM for the in situ production of multi-functional devices. We aim to control the co-deposition of functional and structural materials to generate whole systems, as opposed to single material component parts. Delivering this goal challenges us to establish compatibility at the interfaces where differences in the physical and chemical properties of various materials meet. The Programme's multi-institution (Universities of Nottingham, Warwick and Birmingham) and multidisciplinary team is using state of the art equipment and approaches to analyse such interfaces, thereby accurately modelling and simulating multi-material AM - from constituent materials to multifunctional components - and developing novel materials to manufacture working electronic and bio/pharmaceutical devices.
A new study from the University of Portsmouth calls for further government oversight to curb potential illegal activity through these zones.

This study demonstrates the attractive trading advantages offered by freeports to enable enterprise and innovation. Eight new freeports in England are due to enter operation in late 2021, which are hoped to drive investment, economic opportunities and growth to those regions.

However, researchers also advise that stronger regulation is needed to prevent Freeports being abused for money-laundering and tax-evasion purposes. The study, published today in the Journal of Money Laundering Control, raises justifiable concerns over the misuse of Freeports.

In early 2020, and with Brexit looming on the horizon, the UK government published a consultation into proposals to create Freeports across the country. The idea was to stimulate the economy following the departure from the EU.

Report lead author Paul Gilmour, from the University's Institute of Criminal Justice Studies, explains the role of freeports. He says: "In their basic form they are warehouses located within free-trade zones that lie within a country's geographical border but are designated by that country's government to be outside its normal customs regime.

"The companies based within these zones enjoy several concessions, such as cheaper import duties, suspended custom obligations, and reduced bureaucratic checks intended to streamline cross-border trade. They effectively act as offshore jurisdictions that offer attractive trading advantages which enable enterprise and innovation."

The research examined existing freeports around the world and found they are often used as tactical depots: intended as spaces to temporarily house valuable assets, such as artwork, precious metals and gems, wine collections and antiques.

Researchers say that many art dealers now commonly exploit the beneficial goods-in-transit position of freeports, to house assets on a more permanent basis. This means, as long as the dealers' goods remain within the freeports storage facility, those dealers are unaccountable for any duties (such as value-added taxes [VAT] or capital gains taxes) which would normally be applied upon export.

Gilmour explains: "The growth in freeports may have originally evolved from a desire to stimulate global investment by deregulating financial markets. However, there is an argument that permanent storage spaces within freeports only act to stifle capital mobility. Nonetheless, freeports do seem to provide innovative trading advantages to enable businesses to thrive in today's competitive global market."

The study warns that freeports can be abused for money-laundering and tax-evasion purposes because of a lack of transparency. It says they can help to obscure the true beneficial owners of assets through secretive corporate practices that thwart efforts by authorities to trace illicit profits and recoup government taxes.

"There is also evidence that these zones enable trade-based money laundering by the falsifying of trade invoices to deceive authorities," says Gilmour. "The many international transactions occurring through freeports, coupled with a lack of regulatory supervision, poses notable challenges for government officials."

The study suggests that banks that facilitate numerous international trade transactions need to be more alert to illicit trading and should be responsible for carrying out proper due diligence around freeport trade. It says that although governments have recognised the threat that freeports present by ensuring they fall within the scope of anti-money laundering control, there is still opportunity for freeports to operate without transparency.

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Notes to editors:

1. For further information about freeports visit: https:/ / www. gov. uk/ government/ news/ freeports-bidding-process-opens-for-applications

The first freeports will be open for business in 2021, and sea, air and rail ports from across England are encouraged to apply, working in tandem with their local leaders, businesses and others in their communities.

The government is working constructively and collaboratively with the devolved administrations to establish at least one freeport in each nation of the UK, in addition to those allocated in England.

2. The University of Portsmouth is a progressive and dynamic university with an outstanding reputation for innovative teaching and globally significant research and innovation.

The University's research and innovation culture is impacting lives today and in the future and addressing local, national and global challenges across science, technology, humanities, business and creative industries. http://www. port. ac. uk/

For further information:

Emma Gaisford, Media Officer, University of Portsmouth, email: emma.gaisford@port.ac.uk
A newly described horned dinosaur that lived in New Mexico 82 million years ago is one of the earliest known ceratopsid species, a group known as horned or frilled dinosaurs. Researchers reported their find in a publication in the journal PalZ (Palaontologische Zeitschrift).

Menefeeceratops sealeyi adds important information to scientists' understanding of the evolution of ceratopsid dinosaurs, which are characterized by horns and frills, along with beaked faces. In particular, the discovery sheds light on the centrosaurine subfamily of horned dinosaurs, of which Menefeeceratops is believed to be the oldest member. Its remains offer a clearer picture of the group's evolutionary path before it went extinct at the end of the Cretaceous.

Steven Jasinski, who recently completed his Ph.D. in Penn's Department of Earth and Environmental Science in the School of Arts & Sciences, and Peter Dodson of the School of Veterinary Medicine and Penn Arts & Sciences, collaborated on the work, which was led by Sebastian Dalman of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science. Spencer Lucas and Asher Lichtig of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science in Albuquerque were also part of the research team.

"There has been a striking increase in our knowledge of ceratopsid diversity during the past two decades," says Dodson, who specializes in the study of horned dinosaurs. "Much of that has resulted from discoveries farther north, from Utah to Alberta. It is particularly exciting that this find so far south is significantly older than any previous ceratopsid discovery. It underscores the importance of the Menefee dinosaur fauna for the understanding of the evolution of Late Cretaceous dinosaur faunas throughout western North America."

The fossil specimen of the new species, including multiple bones from one individual, was originally discovered in 1996 by Paul Sealey, a research associate of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, in Cretaceous rocks of the Menefee Formation in northwestern New Mexico. A field crew from the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science collected the specimen. Tom Williamson of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science briefly described it the following year, and recent research on other ceratopsid dinosaurs and further preparation of the specimen shed important new light on the fossils.

Based on the latest investigations, researchers determined the fossils represent a new species. The genus name Menefeeceratops refers to the rock formation in which it was discovered, the Menefee Formation, and to the group of which the species is a part, Ceratopsidae. The species name sealeyi honors Sealey, who unearthed the specimen.

Menefeeceratops is related to but predates Triceratops, another ceratopsid dinosaur. However Menefeeceratops was a relatively small member of the group, growing to around 13 to 15 feet long, compared to Triceratops, which could grow to up to 30 feet long.

Horned dinosaurs were generally large, rhinoceros-like herbivores that likely lived in groups or herds. They were significant members of Late Cretaceous ecosystems in North America. "Ceratopsids are better known from various localities in western North America during the Late Cretaceous near the end of the time of dinosaurs," says Jasinski. "But we have less information about the group, and their fossils are rarer, when you go back before about 79 million years ago."

Although bones of the entire dinosaur were not recovered, a significant amount of the skeleton was preserved, including parts of the skull and lower jaws, forearm, hindlimbs, pelvis, vertebrae, and ribs. These bones not only show the animal is unique among known dinosaur species but also provide additional clues to its life history. For example, the fossils show evidence of a potential pathology, resulting from a minor injury or disease, on at least one of the vertebrae near the base of its spinal column.

Some of the key features that distinguish Menefeeceratops from other horned dinosaurs involve the bone that make up the sides of the dinosaur's frill, known as the squamosal. While less ornate than those of some other ceratopsids, Menefeeceratops' squamosal has a distinct pattern of concave and convex parts.

Comparing features of Menefeeceratops with other known ceratopsid dinosaurs helped the research team trace its evolutionary relationships. Their analysis places Menefeeceratops sealeyi at the base of the evolutionary tree of the centrosaurines subfamily, suggesting that not only is Menefeeceratops one of the oldest known centrosaurine ceratopsids, but also one of the most basal evolutionarily.

Menefeeceratops was part of an ancient ecosystem with numerous other dinosaurs, including the recently recognized nodosaurid ankylosaur Invictarx and the tyrannosaurid Dynamoterror, as well as hadrosaurids and dromaeosaurids.

"Menefeeceratops was part of a thriving Cretaceous ecosystem in the southwestern United States with dinosaurs that predated a lot of the more well-known members closer to end of the Cretaceous," says Jasinski.

While relatively less work has been done collecting dinosaurs in the Menefee Formation to date, the researchers hope that more field work and collecting in these areas, together with new analyses, will turn up more fossils of Menefeeceratops and ensure a better understanding of the ancient ecosystem of which it was part.

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Peter Dodson is a professor of anatomy in the School of Veterinary Medicine and a professor of earth and environmental science in the School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania.

Steven E. Jasinski is a curator of paleontology and geology at the State Museum of Pennsylvania and corporate faculty at Harrisburg University of Science and Technology. He earned his doctoral degree in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science in the University of Pennsylvania's School of Arts & Sciences.

Sebastian G. Dalman is a research associate at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science in Albuquerque.

Spencer G. Lucas is a curator of paleontology at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science in Albuquerque.

Asher J. Lichtig is a research associate at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science in Albuquerque.

Jasinski was supported by Geo. L. Harrison and Benjamin Franklin fellowships while attending the University of Pennsylvania. The research was also partially funded by a Walker Endowment Research Grant and a University of Pennsylvania Paleontology Research Grant.
Scientists now better understand early bacterial evolution, thanks to new research featuring University of Queensland researchers.

Bacteria comprise a very diverse domain of single-celled organisms that are thought to have evolved from a common ancestor that lived more than three billion years ago.

Professor Phil Hugenholtz, from the Australian Centre for Ecogenomics in UQ's School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, said the root of the bacterial tree, which would reveal the nature of the last common ancestor, is not agreed upon.

"There's great debate about the root of this bacterial tree of life and indeed whether bacterial evolution should even be described as a tree has been contested," Professor Hugenholtz said.

"This is in large part because genes are not just shared 'vertically' from parents to offspring, but also 'horizontally' between distant family members.

"We've all inherited certain traits from our parents, but imagine going to a family BBQ and suddenly inheriting your third cousin's red hair.

"As baffling as it sounds, that's exactly what happens in the bacterial world, as bacteria can frequently transfer and reconfigure genes horizontally across populations quite easily.

"This might be useful for bacteria but makes it challenging to reconstruct bacterial evolution."

For the bacterial world, many researchers have suggested throwing the 'tree of life' concept out the window and replacing it with a network that reflects horizontal movement of genes.

"However, by integrating vertical and horizontal gene transmission, we found that bacterial genes travel vertically most of the time - on average two-thirds of the time - suggesting that a tree is still an apt representation of bacterial evolution," Professor Hugenholtz said.

"The analysis also revealed that the root of the tree lies between two supergroups of bacteria, those with one cell membrane and those with two.

"Their common ancestor was already complex, predicted to have two membranes, the ability to swim, sense its environment, and defend itself against viruses."

The University of Bristol's Dr Tom Williams said this fact led to another big question.

"Given the common ancestor of all living bacteria already had two membranes, we now need to understand how did single-membrane cells evolve from double-membraned cells, and whether this occurred once or on multiple occasions," Dr Williams said.

"We believe that our approach to integrating vertical and horizontal gene transmission will answer these and many other open questions in evolutionary biology."

The research was a collaboration between UQ, the University of Bristol in the UK, Eotvos Lorand University in Hungary, and NIOZ in the Netherlands, and has been published in Science (DOI: 10.1126/science.abe5011).

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TORONTO, ON - Geoscientists at the University of Toronto (U of T) and Istanbul Technical University have discovered a new process in plate tectonics which shows that tremendous damage occurs to areas of Earth's crust long before it should be geologically altered by known plate-boundary processes, highlighting the need to amend current understandings of the planet's tectonic cycle.

Plate tectonics, an accepted theory for over 60 years that explains the geologic processes occurring below the surface of Earth, holds that its outer shell is fragmented into continent-sized blocks of solid rock, called "plates," that slide over Earth's mantle, the rocky inner layer above the planet's core. As the plates drift around and collide with each other over million-years-long periods, they produce everything from volcanoes and earthquakes to mountain ranges and deep ocean trenches, at the boundaries where the plates collide.

Now, using supercomputer modelling, the researchers show that the plates on which Earth's oceans sit are being torn apart by massive tectonic forces even as they drift about the globe. The findings are reported in a study published this week in Nature Geoscience.

The thinking up to now focused only on the geological deformation of these drifting plates at their boundaries after they had reached a subduction zone, such as the Marianas Trench in the Pacific Ocean where the massive Pacific plate dives beneath the smaller Philippine plate and is recycled into Earth's mantle.

The new research shows much earlier damage to the drifting plate further away from the boundaries of two colliding plates, focused around zones of microcontinents - continental crustal fragments that have broken off from main continental masses to form distinct islands often several hundred kilometers from their place of origin.

"Our work discovers that a completely different part of the plate is being pulled apart because of the subduction process, and at a remarkably early phase of the tectonic cycle," said Erkan Gun, a PhD candidate in the Department of Earth Sciences in the Faculty of Arts & Science at U of T and lead author of the study.

The researchers term the mechanism a "subduction pulley" where the weight of the subducting portion that dives beneath another tectonic plate, pulls on the drifting ocean plate and tears apart the weak microcontinent sections in an early phase of potentially significant damage.

"The damage occurs long before the microcontinent fragment reaches its fate to be consumed in a subduction zone at the boundaries of the colliding plates," said Russell Pysklywec, professor and chair of the Department of Earth Sciences at U of T, and a coauthor of the study. He says another way to look at it is to think of the drifting ocean plate as an airport baggage conveyor, and the microcontinents are like pieces of luggage travelling on the conveyor.

"The conveyor system itself is actually tearing apart the luggage as it travels around the carousel, before the luggage even reaches its owner."

The researchers arrived at the results following a mysterious observation of major extension of rocks in alpine regions in Italy and Turkey. These observations suggested that the tectonic plates that brought the rocks to their current location were already highly damaged prior to the collisional and mountain-building events that normally cause deformation.

"We devised and conducted computational Earth models to investigate a process to account for the observations," said Gun. "It turned out that the temperature and pressure rock histories that we measured with the virtual Earth models match closely with the enigmatic rock evolution observed in Italy and Turkey."

According to the researchers, the findings refine some of the fundamental aspects of plate tectonics and call for a revised understanding of this fundamental theory in geoscience.

"Normally we assume - and teach - that the ocean plate conveyor is too strong to be damaged as it drifts around the globe, but we prove otherwise," said Pysklywec.

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The findings build on the legacy of J. Tuzo Wilson, also a U of T scientist, and a renowned figure in geosciences who pioneered the idea of plate tectonics in the 1960s.

The research was made possible with support from SciNet and Compute Canada, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey.

Media Contacts:

Erkan Gun

Department of Earth Sciences

University of Toronto

erkan.gun@mail.utoronto.ca

Russell Pysklywec

Department of Earth Sciences

University of Toronto

russ@es.utoronto.ca

Sean Bettam

Communications + Public Affairs, Faculty of Arts & Science

University of Toronto

s.bettam@utoronto.ca
Memphis, Tenn. (May 11, 2021) - The Clinical Trials Network of Tennessee (CTN2) at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center has contracted a new clinical trial to test possible therapeutics for COVID-19 in hospitalized patients. This new trial brings the total generated by CTN2 contracts for the university to nearly $7 million.

Since its launch in 2018, CTN2 has brought more than 200 clinical trial opportunities to the university and the citizens of Tennessee. Steven R. Goodman, PhD, vice chancellor for Research at UTHSC, who led the creation of CTN2, lauded "the tremendous success" of the nonprofit that enables clinical research faculty across all the UTHSC campuses, who are affiliated with hospitals, to effectively respond to opportunities for clinical trials with pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device industry partners.

"CTN2 was created to increase the number of important clinical trials that can be conducted by our faculty, while providing credit to UTHSC for these trials and improving its national ranking as a Research Academic Health Center," Dr. Goodman said. "The growth of CTN2 into a statewide network of 13 hospital and practice plan partners over a two-year period has been remarkable. Most importantly, these CTN2-contracted clinical trials will improve the health care of the citizens of Tennessee."

This new trial, the third for CTN2 that involves COVID-19-related research, will evaluate the effectiveness and safety of already available drugs to treat immune system inflammation in COVID-19 patients. Immune system inflammation associated with COVID-19 has emerged as a key factor affecting the survival rate of at-risk groups.

"People with severe COVID-19 experience an inadequate immune response," said Ivan Romero-Legro, MD, assistant professor of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at UTHSC and principal investigator of the trial. "Inflammation, the body's reaction to an infection, is the body's normal response to infection. If not controlled, it will lead to damaging effects on the body. We believe controlling inflammation can decrease the severity of the disease and mortality. The medications we'll be testing have been approved for psoriatic arthritis, plaque psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, atopic dermatitis, and ulcerative colitis due to anti-inflammatory properties. The importance of this trial is to find a new medication to fight COVID-19 and decrease the severity of the disease in our community."

Phil Cestaro, associate vice chancellor for Research and Business Development in the Office of Research at UTHSC, pointed out that conducting clinical trials for COVID-19 highlights the need for innovative collaborations in the health care marketplace to fight the pandemic. "Instead of individual companies running separate trials simultaneously, COVID protocols have combined various drugs under a single study. This allows for the comparison of drugs from multiple companies with the ability to include additional drugs as necessary," Cestaro said.

Julio Lanfranco Molina, MD, associate professor of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at UTHSC, is the sub-investigator on the double-blind trial, which will be conducted at Regional One Health with patients who have been evaluated in the hospital and determined to be good candidates.

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About the Clinical Trials Network of Tennessee (CTN2)

A 501(c)(3) subsidiary of the University of Tennessee Research Foundation (UTRF), CTN2 was created to increase the number of clinical trials conducted by the University of Tennessee Health Science Center's clinical research faculty statewide. CTN2 supports UTHSC's overarching goal of improving the health of all Tennesseans by increasing patient access to cutting-edge new therapeutics and medical devices. CTN2 provides its eight participating University of Tennessee campuses and Institutes with access to the Enterprise Data Warehouse, clinical trials budgeting and contracting, site management, site quality assurance, sponsor-relationship management, and central IRB management.

About the University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Controlling, and mitigating the effects of ice growth is crucial to protect infrastructure, help preserve frozen cells and to enhance texture of frozen foods. An international collaboration of Warwick Scientists working with researchers from Switzerland have used a phage display platform to discover new, small, peptides which function like larger antifreeze proteins. This presents a route to new, easier to synthesise, cryoprotectants.Caption: Using viruses (phage display) to identify the one molecule in a billion (peptide8) that controls the formation of ice. Credit: University of Warwick

Ice binding proteins, which includes antifreeze proteins, are produced by a large range of species from fish, to insects to plants, to prevent the damage caused by ice. The proteins achieve the remarkable function of recognizing and binding to ice, even in the huge excess of water (which ice is the solid form of). New antifreeze proteins have typically been discovered by isolation from the organisms.

In this work, the team took a very different approach by screening billions of possible peptides to find those which could bind to ice. This was achieved by Phage Display - a technology whereby a virus is used to generate vast numbers of peptides, and those which 'bind' to the ice can be isolated.

Using this a cyclic peptide of just 14 amino acids (which is very short compared to a typical protein) was discovered which could bind to ice. The team used computer simulations to understand how the peptide binds to the ice, which is not possible by 'wet' experimental techniques alone. The team also showed how this short peptide can be used to help purified other proteins by ace affinity purification.

By identifying these short peptides, it means researchers can now simply make (or buy) modified peptides to understand and probe how these interact with ice and help design new cryoprotectants with simplified structures, and hence lower cost.

In the paper "A Minimalistic Cyclic Ice-Binding Peptide from Phage Display", published in Nature Communications the international team including the University of Warwick and led by EPFL, Switzerland, have demonstrated the use of phage display to discover new minimalistic antifreeze peptides, which could not be achieved by conventional tools, which would not allow the billions of potential structures to be screened.

Dr Gabriele Sosso, Assistant Professor at the University of Warwick, in the Department of Chemistry comments:

"This work highlights that even very small changes within the structure of these peptides can make a huge difference in their ability to control the formation of ice. Our computer simulations allowed us to identify and understand the importance of these structural changes - which is a key step toward the rational design of synthetic cryoprotectants.

"It is such a privilege to be able to leverage both the experimental work of the Gibson's group and the computational resources of the SCRTP. Truly, Warwick is a great place to be if you want to understand how ice forms and what can we do to have a say in this process."

Professor Matthew Gibson, Professor at the University of Warwick in the Department of Chemistry and Warwick Medical School adds:

"We have been working on developing synthetic tools to understand, and interfere with, ice growth processes with an aim of helping develop new cryoprotectants. This work was really exciting, as we made use of biotechnology tools (phage) to discover small, cyclic, peptides which are remarkably potent.

"These peptides are easy to synthesis and modify and will accelerate our research in this field. It also highlights the growing 'team ice' collaborative network at Warwick, combining experimental and computation studies together. We are also grateful for the support from the IAS at Warwick, which allowed Dr Stevens to visit us to complete this work, showing the need to support international scientific collaborations."

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NOTES TO EDITORS

The research and development of this has been supported by the European Research Council (638661), EPSRC (EP/P020232/1, EP/R029407/1) the Swiss Science Foundation and the Institute of Advanced Study at the University of Warwick thanks to a Fernades Fellowship.

High-res images available at:

https:/ / warwick. ac. uk/ services/ communications/ medialibrary/ images/ april_2021/ gibson. sosso_crop. jpg

Caption: Using viruses (phage display) to identify the one molecule in a billion (peptide8) that controls the formation of ice.

Credit: University of Warwick

For further information please contact:

Alice Scott

Media Relations Manager - Science

University of Warwick

Tel: +44 (0) 7920 531 221

E-mail: alice.j.scott@warwick.ac.uk
May 11, 2021 - For patients seen at a urology clinic, patient satisfaction scores vary by insurance status - with higher scores for patients on Medicare and commercial insurance, but lower scores for those on Medicaid, reports a study in Urology Practice, an Official Journal of the American Urological Association (AUA). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

"Our study adds to previous evidence showing patient satisfaction scores are affected by the type of insurance - not just by the quality of care provided," comments senior author Werner de Riese, MD, PhD, Chair of the Department of Urology of Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC), Lubbock. "That may have important implications for physician reimbursements, which are increasingly adjusted upward or downward based on patient satisfaction ratings."

Urology clinic data show 'payor-bias' in patient ratings

The researchers analyzed satisfaction ratings made by nearly 21,000 patients seen at the TTUHSC urology clinic between 2013 and 2020. Patient satisfaction scores were compared for those with different kinds of insurance coverage.

Forty-six percent of patients were covered by commercial/private insurance, 37 percent by Medicare and nine percent by Medicaid. Five percent of patients had other government coverage; self-pay or workers' compensation patients accounted for less than two percent each.

Patient satisfaction ratings differed between groups. Medicare patients reported the highest average score, 93.03 (on a 0-to-100 scale); followed by other government coverage, 91.49; commercial insurance, 91.32; workers' compensation, 90.72; Medicaid, 89.21; and self-pay/uncompensated, 89.00.

Although the numerical range was small, the data showed several statistically significant differences between groups. The "other" government group - mainly veterans or active-duty military members covered by the Veterans Administration or Tricare - reported "generally higher" patient satisfaction levels than every other group besides Medicare.

In contrast, Medicaid and self-pay patients had the lowest satisfaction scores. "Medicaid often covers the most vulnerable and disadvantaged patients, and our results are consistent with other studies reporting that hospitals treating more Medicaid patients have lower satisfaction scores," says Dr. de Riese.

Medicare and Medicaid have introduced "fee for performance" payments, in which reimbursements to physicians and hospitals are adjusted based on quality measures - including patient satisfaction scores. Commercial insurance plans are also moving toward such "value-based" reimbursement plans. However, there are concerns patient satisfaction scores may be affected by certain non-modifiable characteristics, including insurance status.

"Data from our urology clinic illustrate a potential bias in reported patient satisfaction levels, based on their health insurance coverage," says Dr. de Riese. The researchers call for further studies to explore the underlying reasons for this "payor-specific bias," particularly among Medicaid patients. "Meanwhile," Dr. de Riese adds, "we believe reimbursement policies should be modified to account for the payor-mix of patients seen by each physician."

Click here to read "Association Between Payor-Class and Patient Satisfaction Scores in an Academic Urology Outpatient Clinic."

DOI: 10.1097/UPJ.0000000000000224

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About The Journal of Urology

The Official Journal of the American Urological Association (AUA), and the most widely read and highly cited journal in the field, The Journal of Urology brings solid coverage of the clinically relevant content needed to stay at the forefront of the dynamic field of urology. This premier journal presents investigative studies on critical areas of research and practice, survey articles providing brief editorial comments on the best and most important urology literature worldwide and practice-oriented reports on significant clinical observations. The Journal of Urology covers the wide scope of urology, including pediatric urology, urologic cancers, renal transplantation, male infertility, urinary tract stones, female urology and neurourology.

About the American Urological Association

Founded in 1902 and headquartered near Baltimore, Maryland, the American Urological Association is a leading advocate for the specialty of urology, and has nearly 24,000 members throughout the world. The AUA is a premier urologic association, providing invaluable support to the urologic community as it pursues its mission of fostering the highest standards of urologic care through education, research and the formulation of health care policy. To learn more about the AUA visit: http://www. auanet. org .

About Wolters Kluwer

Wolters Kluwer (WKL) is a global leader in professional information, software solutions, and services for the clinicians, nurses, accountants, lawyers, and tax, finance, audit, risk, compliance, and regulatory sectors. We help our customers make critical decisions every day by providing expert solutions that combine deep domain knowledge with advanced technology and services.

Wolters Kluwer reported 2020 annual revenues of 4.6 billion. The group serves customers in over 180 countries, maintains operations in over 40 countries, and employs approximately 19,200 people worldwide. The company is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands.

Wolters Kluwer provides trusted clinical technology and evidence-based solutions that engage clinicians, patients, researchers and students in effective decision-making and outcomes across healthcare. We support clinical effectiveness, learning and research, clinical surveillance and compliance, as well as data solutions. For more information about our solutions, visit https:/ / www. wolterskluwer. com/ en/ health and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter @WKHealth.
GBP/NZD Exchange Rate Falls Despite Falling UK Covid-19 Death Toll

The Pound New Zealand Dollar exchange rate fell today despite Prime Minister Boris Johnson reiterating his aim to further ease lockdown in England on 17 May. At the time of writing, the pairing is currently fluctuating around NZ$1.94.

Sterling failed to benefit from the PMs confirmation that the Governments roadmap for easing lockdown was still on schedule.

Boris Johnson said in a public address:

I want to thank you particularly because your efforts have so visibly paid off, giving us the time to vaccinate more than two thirds of all adults across the UK, with more than one third  nearly 18 million people  also receiving their second dose and thereby unquestionably saving many lives.

In UK Covid-19 news, daily cases have risen versus last week, with the figure currently at 2,357, up by 708 compared to last weeks figure.

Daily deaths have remained in single figures, however, buoying hopes that lockdown measures could continue to ease in the months ahead.

Nevertheless, this failed to buoy the GBP/NZD exchange rate today, with a lack of UK economic data leaving Sterling largely rudderless.

New Zealand Dollar Exchange Rates Edge Higher Despite Risk-Off Market Mood

The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) rose against the Pound (GBP) today despite risk-off market mood dampening demand for the risk-sensitive Kiwi.

A sell-off in equity markets has dampened confidence in NZD, as the outlook for the global economy remains largely uncertain, despite strides in improvement and Covid-19 vaccination rollouts across the EU and the US.

New Zealands Covid-19 situation is also showing signs of improvement, despite longer restrictions being announced.

New Zealands Health Ministry said:

The public health risk assessment for New Zealand remains as low however it is important to remain vigilant.

In New Zealand economic news, yesterday saw the release of the latest electronic card retail sales figure for April. The data rose by 4%, boosting confidence in the outlook for New Zealands economy.

Analysts at Reuters explain:

New Zealand electronic retail card spending rose 4.0 percent in April, while actual sales rose 108.7 percent from the same month a year ago, Statistics New Zealand said on Tuesday. The electronic cards data covers about 68 percent of core retail sales in the country, and is the main measure of monthly retail activity.

GBPNZD: Looking Ahead

Pound (GBP) investors will be eyeing tomorrows release of the flash GDP data for the first quarter. Any improvement in the outlook for the UK economy would be GBP-positive.

However, if the figure confirms forecasts and falls by -1.6%, then we could see Sterling quickly begin to fall against the Kiwi.

The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) will remain sensitive to risk sentiment this week. If tensions between Australia and China continue to worsen, then the NZD/GBP exchange rate could begin to shed some of its gains.
All of the establishments mentioned in the article, with the exception of Golden Corral, are full-service restaurants  that is, patrons are served at table by tipped servers. Tipped servers are expected to make most of their income from gratuities, for which reason their minimum wage is low ($2.13/hour, as quoted). If restaurants were forced to pay more extravagantly, most would close, or their menu prices would double.
Pantheon Macroeconomics note that the Pound Sterling surged on Monday in immediate relief following the weekend Scottish elections.

Pantheon is, however, sceptical whether these gains are justified as net pressure for a second referendum has still increased.

It considers that there will be a persistent degree of political uncertainty in Sterling markets. The one potential caveat is that Pantheon considers another vote is unlikely for at least two years.

In this context it notes; Another referendum will be Mr. Johnson's least worst option, but don't expect one in the next two years.

Pantheon has a year-end Pound to Dollar (GBP/USD) exchange rate forecast of 1.35 and Pound to Euro (GBP/EUR) exchange rate forecast of 1.1700.

Pro-Independence Parties in a Stronger Position than in 2011

Although the SNP fell one seat short of an overall majority, Pantheon notes that the SNP allied with the pro-independence Green Party have a working majority of 15 compared with 13 after the 2011 election when it lobbied successfully for a referendum.

The UK government will, therefore, find it difficult to argue against another vote, especially if there is further success in recovering from the coronavirus pandemic.

Johnson Could Still Win a Vote

A key question is whether Prime Minister Johnson would look to block a second vote. Pantheon considers that it is not in Johnsons interest to adopt a combative stance.

Strong resistance would fuel pro-nationalist sentiment within Scotland and, from a longer-term view, the chances of a Conservative victory in the next General Election would be increased if Scotland was not in the Union.

More importantly, Pantheon also notes that the government could win a vote. Mr. Johnson also has at least an even chance of winning a second independence vote.

The latest opinion polls suggest that the no side have a slight lead and pantheon also notes that 9% of voters are undecided and expects that these would break towards remaining in the Union.

Above: Scottish Independence polls chart

The best defence against a referendum would be to boost support for the Union.

If polls suggest waning support for independence, the SNP enthusiasm for a referendum may also fade and it may decide to wait for a better opportunity.

Referendum Realistic in Late 2023

Pantheon expects that the timetable for the 2014 referendum has significant implications for any second referendum.

The UK government did not agree a referendum in principle until 8 months after the 2011 vote and the actual vote did not take place until September 2014.

Pantheon notes that the timetable could be accelerated, but it considers late 2023 would be a realistic timetable.
Brooklynn Chandler Willy, a San Antonio financial adviser who was suspended last year by state securities regulators for steering clients into unregistered and unsuitable investments, now is accused of selling a fraudulent investment.

According to a recent lawsuit filed by New Braunfels residents Scott and Erin Anderson, Willy promoted an investment to Scott Anderson that required him to loan $100,000 to Sonoqui LLC.

Florida-based Sonoqui would then loan the money to Austin debt-collection agency Collins Asset Group LLC. Willy told Anderson he would earn 10 percent annual interest and receive $140,000 after four years, the complaint alleges.

Anderson wrote a check to Sonoqui for $100,000 on July 27, 2017. Less than a month later, Sonoqui principals Daryl G. Bank and Raeann Gibson were arrested on charges of leading a nationwide investment fraud scheme that caused at least 300 investors  most of whom were retirees  to lose more than $20 million combined.

Some of the proceeds from the scheme went to fund Banks lavish lifestyle, prosecutors said. Bank operated dozens of limited liability companies, though Sonoqui was not mentioned in his indictment.

On ExpressNews.com: State securities regulators suspend San Antonio investment adviser who hosts radio show

On April 30, a federal jury in Norfolk, Va., convicted Bank on 27 charges. He faces a maximum penalty of more than 300 years in prison when sentenced in September. Gibson previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Four days before Banks conviction, the Andersons sued Willy for fraud and breach of fiduciary duty in San Antonio over the Sonoqui transaction and an unrelated investment.

A spokesman for Texas Financial Advisory, Willys firm, said in an emailed statement she was never told by the Andersons or their attorney that the couple was dissatisfied with its services before filing suit.

As soon as Ms. Willy learned about their concerns, she took immediate action to rectify the situation, the spokesman said. Although Ms. Willy strongly disagrees with the allegations in the petition, she is saddened by the circumstances and regrets that after five years with TFA, the clients became unhappy. She wishes them the best in their future endeavors.

Willy is serving a one-year suspension of her license as an investment adviser representative under a disciplinary order entered by the Texas State Securities Board in October.

Willy  who in addition to serving as TAFs CEO and president also dispenses financial advice on local radio shows  did not conduct a reasonable level of due diligence to determine whether the investments were suitable for clients prior to recommending they purchase them, the TSSB said. She agreed to pay clients almost $2.8 million in commissions she earned from the alternative investments as part of the TSSBs order.

The Andersons allege that about the time of Banks and Gibsons arrest, Willy called Scott Anderson and suggested that if his $100,000 check to Sonoqui had not cleared, he should stop payment on it and she would direct him into a different investment. The check already had been cashed, however.

On information and belief, Willy made this call after learning of the arrests, the suit says. On learning the check had cleared, Willy was reassuring and made no mention of any problems with Sonoqui.

A registered investment adviser in Texas is a fiduciary to their client, which means you put your clients interests in front of your own, said San Antonio attorney Matthew J. King, who represents the Andersons. She owed a duty of care, and a duty of information and disclosure to her clients. By not saying anything, thats a breach.

Seven years earlier, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority barred Bank from associating with any of its members after finding that he had violated securities laws by misappropriating more than $100,000 from an investment firm. He neither admitted nor denied the allegations in agreeing to the sanction.

Willy is a registered with FINRA, the investment industrys self-regulatory organization, as a broker.

In February 2020, Collins Asset Group  the debt-collection agency that was to receive Andersons $100,000 from Sonoqui  filed a interpleader lawsuit asking the court to determine who Collins should pay the nearly $3.2 million it borrowed from Sonoqui in 2017. Following Banks arrest, Sonoqui ceased to operate.

Also in February 2020, a couple filed a class-action lawsuit to recover $222,000 of retirement savings they said they invested with Collins. Collins and Sonoqui are among the defendants in the suit.

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Despite the arrests and lawsuit, Willy continued to assure the Andersons that both their $100,000.00 investment and the associated $40,000.00 in promised interest were safe, the couple says in their lawsuit.

When the Andersons received documents in the mail regarding the class-action lawsuit, the suit says Willy told them to disregard the documents and that she would assist them so they could get their money back.

Without the Andersons knowledge, the suit says, Willy submitted a proof of claim and release in the class-action complaint. Scott Andersons signature was forged in the court papers, the suit adds. Other documents created at the time of his investment and that were required as part of the proof of claim also contained his forged signature, the suit says.

On information and belief, Brooklynn Chandler Willy submitted these forged documents for the purpose of obtaining a release of any claims Scott Anderson might have against her for her role in selling the fraudulent $100,000.00 investment with Sonqui, the complaint alleges.

A nearly $16 million settlement of the class-action lawsuit and interpleader complaint received preliminary approval from an Atlanta federal judge in January. The court has set a June 15 settlement hearing.

The settlement calls for the release of any claims against the agents of Collins, Sonoqui and others. King, the Andersons lawyer, expressed concern that the agents could include Willy. Shes not mentioned in either complaint, however.

pdanner@express-news.net
A bill that would have extended for another decade the states controversial Chapter 313 tax breaks for corporations was effectively killed in the Texas House this week.

Property tax breaks granted through the program will drain nearly $1.7 billion from the states coffers through 2022 to pay corporations that relocate to, or expand in, the state.

Chapter 313 backers say the incentive cuts the tax bill for companies looking to invest in Texas. Without the giveaway, supporters say, a company could go to a state thats more generous with public subsidies.

On ExpressNews.com: Tax-break program to cost Texas $1 billion a year by 2022. Tesla soon will be a beneficiary

Opponents say the program isnt needed to lure firms to Texas and hurts the states public school funding.

The program creates a major tax drain to our state budget, which represents millions that could be spent on schools and other important priorities, which is why we have worked on this policy all session, San Antonio grassroots organization COPS/Metro and its sister organizations in Texas said in a statement.

The Texas Legislature passed Chapter 313, known as the Texas Economic Development Act, in 2001. Lawmakers worried that Texas, with its high property taxes, wouldnt be able to attract companies to the state.

The Chapter 313 provision allows school districts to grant companies looking to expand to their jurisdictions lower taxable properties value for 10 years. School boards usually grant the tax breaks for manufacturing, petrochemical and renewable energy facilities, which are expensive to develop.

And in Texas, which doesnt have a personal state income tax, property tax bills are high compared to other states. That makes lowering a projects property tax bill a priority for businesses.

In exchange for the tax break, the firm promises to build the facility and create a certain number of jobs that pay above-average wages, though companies can  and do  have their job-creation requirements waived.

Rep. Jim Murphy, R-Houston, sought to expand the program through House Bill 1556, which would have extended Chapter 313 through 2032.

Murphy wanted the program to also apply to upgrades and renovations that companies make at existing properties. That would have expanded the number of eligible projects, and allowed firms to double-dip in the tax break program.

A series of amendments tacked onto the bill Monday by Republican and Democratic members of the House all but sunk the measure.

Rep. Tony Tinderholt, R-Arlington, added an amendment that struck the language allowing companies to receive an abatement for renovating, modernizing or upgrading a facility.

Allowing project expansions, renovations and refurbishments to qualify for the property tax relief benefits of Chapter 313 would increase the number of projects eligible for the program, perhaps significantly, analysts with the states Legislative Budget Board said in a May 3 fiscal note on Murphys bill.

Refurbishments and renovations of existing large and small manufacturing facilities and renewable energy projects in Texas have occurred without Chapter 313 tax incentives, the analysts wrote.

Instead, a smaller bill  HB 4242, which passed the House last week  would extend Chapter 313 for two years to allow lawmakers to study the program. Its likely that bill will become law, said Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio.

I think (Murphy) got the message that the best thing we need to do with 313s is to study them over the course of the interim and come back with pragmatic policy, said Martinez Fischer, who sits on the Ways and Means Committee, which has been examining Chapter 313.

Opponents of Chapter 313 also say the program leaves major economic development decisions up to school district administrators at a handful of districts that grant the majority of 313 tax breaks.

Two Houston-area school districts, Barbers Hill and Brazosport, have approved about 10 percent of the 509 total active Chapter 313 agreements, according to Texas Comptrollers office.

When a company wants to move into an area, the local school district has little reason to deny it the giveaway. Any money a school district would lose in tax revenue by offering a Chapter 313 incentive is refunded from the states general fund.

Companies that receive Chapter 313 tax breaks typically take the money they saved in taxes and pay the school district about 40 percent of that sum  so-called supplemental payments.

School districts face little risk by offering the tax break, thanks to the state refund. And the districts pocket the supplemental payments from applicant companies with few strings attached.

That companies coming to Texas are willing to pay the school district a chunk of their tax savings shows the tax benefits are likely too large  and perhaps unnecessary altogether, said researchers at the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation and liberal think tank Every Texan.

On ExpressNews.com: Texas lawmakers likely to extend costly, controversial tax break

The two organizations issued a joint statement opposing the extension of Chapter 313.

Research and experience show that abatements are an unnecessary and wasteful perk and companies would have come to Texas regardless, the two groups said. Its time to call these tax breaks what they are: handouts to favored industries and to the few school districts that use them to incentivize companies to locate there.

On the other hand, rural school district administrators have argued to lawmakers that Chapter 313 is one of the few tools they have to attract investment and boost the districts tax revenue.

The supplemental payments that companies pay school districts have funded things such as vocational training and other programs small districts cant otherwise afford.

Chapter 313 is one of those mechanisms that allows a property-poor district to have a boon that will allow us to do what we call legacy projects, said J.R. Proctor, superintendent of Axtell ISD outside of Waco, which has fewer than 800 students.

Martinez Fischer points to Toyotas South Side truck factory as a good example of a 313 agreement that produces robust investment and new jobs. Murphys proposal, however, would have tipped the balance too far in favor of industry and away from policymakers, he said.

When were spending millions of dollars in incentive programs, and theres not a guarantee were going to create local jobs or pay a living wage, something is wrong with that policy, Martinez Fischer said. The best policy is to extend (Chapter 313) for two years, study it top to bottom  all ideas are on the table  and see if we can come back with balanced policy.

diego.mendoza-moyers@express-news.net
Jean Smart starred in Designing Women and won Emmys for her work on Frasier and Samantha Who?, but that all may have been just a prelude to the new HBO Max comedy Hacks.

Smart plays the uproariously irreverent lead in the new 10-episode series, which serves up a main course of laughs with a side of poignancy. Its from Michael Schur (The Good Place) and three of the writers behind Broad City, Paul W. Downs, Lucia Aniello and Jen Statsky,

Shes Deborah Vance, a Las Vegas comedy legend in her 60s, who reluctantly agrees to hire Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder), a 20-something L.A.-based writer, to help resuscitate her material. Much of the half-hours fun comes from pointing up the large generational divide between the two central characters.

Hacks debuts Thursday with two episodes and continues with two more each week through June 10.

A powerful scene early on has Deborah sharing some tough truths with her much-younger and frequently condescending employee.

You dont know how hard it is, she barks at Ava in an emotional rant that speaks of her never-ending struggles as an aging performer. You were plucked off the internet at, what, 20? You just got lucky.

Jake Giles Netter /HBO Max

When Ava balks, insisting shes also good, Deborah counters: Good is the minimum. Its the baseline.

In contrast to her character, Smart, 69, may be more in demand lately than she was in her so-called prime.

For me personally, I've had some of the most incredible opportunities in my career in the last several years, and I don't take any of it for granted whatsoever, she said during an online Q&A.

Smarts work over the past decade includes meaty roles in high-profile projects, including FXs Fargo and HBOs Watchmen. She was nominated for Emmys for both.

Currently, she can be seen in another plum series on HBO. In Mare of Easttown, she plays the indelicate  and scene-stealing mom of Kate Winslets detective character.

Smarts return to series comedy hearkens back to her sitcom roots of the 1980s and 90s, when she shone as part of the ensemble cast of CBS hit Designing Women. Of course, her character in that show, the sweet-natured Charlene, bears little resemblance to the bombastic and quick-with-an-insult Deborah in Hacks.

Asked about comics who influenced her portrayal, Smart named two women and a man, a comedian who, like Deborah, was known for screaming tirades.

I guess I borrow things from other comedians unconsciously  certainly anywhere from Elayne Boosler or Phyllis Diller to Sam Kinison, she said. There's a little Sam Kinison every once in a while.

Jake Giles Netter /HBO Max

Hacks begins with a montage of Deborahs stage performances and TV guest shots as well scenes of her pitching personalized products on QVC and star turns at ribbon cuttings. She seems to be on top of the world  until she isnt.

The smarmy owner (Christopher McDonald) of the casino she has had a regular gig for a record tenure tells her hes bumping her weekend shows for fresh acts with younger appeal, such as the a capella group Pentatonix.

Meanwhile, in the very different comedy world of Los Angeles, Ava is dealing with her own crisis. She lost her TV writing job after posting a vulgar tweet about a closeted senator.

The agent who represents both thinks putting them together may solve their problems. He tells Ava shes just the person to punch up Deborahs stand-up act and sends her to Sin City.

Neither is pleased by the prospect of working together. For starters, their styles are wildly different. Avas a comedy elitist, believing funny stories are preferable to the zingers that have been the bedrock of Deborahs career.

Ava's point of view is if the masses think something is funny, then it's not, Smart said. If the people from Florida who eat at Panera like it, then it's not funny.

Deborah also finds Avas pared-down style of Ts, jeans and combat boots noxious, while the younger woman snorts at the comedy divas glamorous sequins and caftans.

You want to talk about clothes? You look like you let a tailor loose in an antique carpet store, Ava says.

Of course, Deborah, whos been doing disparaging humor much of her life, is quicker and often better at the put-down game.

As Ava struggles to come up with jokes, Deborah deadpans: Wow. Its like watching Picasso sing.

Their snarky exchanges provide much of the fun in the series. But along with all the trading barbs comes a growing respect  even affection  between the two.

It doesnt hurt that the actors who play them admire each others work.

Einbinder called Smart one of her heroes and described working with her and the Hacks writers as being treated to a master class.

I'm learning every single day, she said.

Smart also said she was awed by Einbinder, who, incidentally, is the daughter of Laraine Newman, one of Saturday Night Lives original Not Ready for Prime Time Players.

She's hilarious, and she's a comedian, Smart said, and so I was first sort of nervous to do stuff in front of her because she has done a lot of stand-up  so a little pressure.

Jeanne Jakle is a freelance writer in San Antonio.
Comedian Gabriel Fluffy Iglesias third Netflix special will be shot right here in San Antonio during his four-week run at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts.

Iglesias made the announcement about the new show, titled The Comedy Event, in Variety on Tuesday morning.

The Tobin Center run is part of his Beyond the Fluffy World Tour 2020: Go Big or Go Home. The tour marks his return to performing after being sidelined by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is the longest time Ive been away from my fans in decades, Iglesias said in a statement quoted by Variety. Im extremely grateful to be able to come out of forced retirement. Since I realized how much I miss and need all my fans around the world. Im waxed and vaxed, ready to return to the stage.

On Expressnews.com: New Braunfels getting a Lucy Cooper's Ice House, a popular San Antonio 21-and-over bar and restaurant

He is slated to give 24 performances in the Alamo City from June 23 through July 16. The special will be filmed on the last night, according to Variety. Tickets range from $55 to $65.

The special will be his third for Netflix, following Im Sorry for What I Said When I Was Hungry, which was shot in Chicago and released in 2016; and One Show Fits All, which was shot in Houston and released in 2019.

Iglesias also executive produced and starred in the streaming services sitcom Mr. Iglesias, in which he played a teacher working at his alma mater.

dlmartin@express-news.net | Twitter: @DeborahMartinEN
The 50 acres of olive trees on Dunham Jewetts farm in Moulton, about 100 miles east of San Antonio, look like a war zone. What had been 10- to 12-foot-high trees with wide canopies are now nothing more than 2- to 3-foot high stumps, cut down following Februarys devastating winter storms.

When temperatures dropped to 10 degrees and stayed below freezing for about 100 hours, Jewett said that every one of his trees died from the ground up. His only option: cut them down, burn the wood in huge pyres and hope for the best.

The good news is that the tree roots survived and most of the trees have begun to send up new shoots called suckers from the base of the trunk. Properly tended, these sprouts will become fully grown trees  eventually.

Itll take at least three years, maybe even four or five before they fruit again, Jewett said.

Jewetts farm is part of the nascent Texas olive industry, a part of the state economy about 20 years old and still struggling to find its footing. The industry was just dealt a two-prong blow: the freeze putting olive harvests on hold for most of the state for three to five years and the death of Sandy Winokur, owner of Sandy Oaks Olive Orchard in Elmendorf and the person many consider to be the founding mother of the Texas olive industry.

Depending on weather conditions, Texas growers harvest between 80 tons to 150 tons of olives annually, worth an average $12 million to $15 million based on analysis by Cathy Bernell, president of the Texas Association of Olive Oil.

This year theyll harvest zero tons. she said.

While the storms full effect wont be known until late summer, Stephen Janak, extension program specialist with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, said he expects upwards of 75 percent of trees in the state to survive.

New trees planted to replace those that died in the freeze will take several years to mature enough for a real crop. In orchards north of the Interstate 10/U.S. 90 line, most trees died back to the ground and, like at Jewetts farm, are now sending up new suckers that will take years to grow into a fruit-producing tree.

On ExpressNews.com: Lone Star State olive pioneers pressing a new Texas oil

Some trees in South Texas lost leaves when their canopies froze, but even though they are starting to leaf out now, a harvest is a least a year away. With virtually every tree in the state damaged to some extent, Janak said it will be several years before theres another significant olive crop in Texas.

The Texas olive industry is only 20, 25 years old, so growers have never experienced anything like what happened in February, he said. Many were shocked by the losses theyve suffered.

And there may still be more losses as hidden damage may doom even apparently healthy trees. The trees may have enough energy stored to leaf out now, but as temperatures rise, they may not be able to take the stress and they could die, Janak said.

Jim Bugg, who grows olives on his 15-acre LadyBugg Farm in Sutherland Springs, lost an entire years crop as the freeze killed the leaves and the just-emerging buds on his trees. Hes not getting out of the business, but he does plan to diversify his crop and replace 1 acre of his olive orchard with blackberries, which are better adapted to the Texas climate.

I dont know if this storm was a freak thing or if its going to happen every year now because of global warming, he said. So Im planting blackberries just to be on the safe side.

Thao Nguyen /Contributor

A great lady, a great loss

Winokur was one of the first farmers to plant an olive orchard in Texas, importing stock from around the world. She would field test the trees on her 40 acres in Elmendorf, just southeast of San Antonio, to determine which varietals hold up best to Texas fickle weather, sharing her knowledge with other olive growers.

Her farm had her orchard, a nursery from which she sold many a new grower their olive trees, a mill for turning olives into oil, a store selling that olive oil and other olive-related products and a restaurant with an olive-heavy menu. With her mentorship and the farms strong online presence on top of that, Sandy Oaks Olive Orchard served a de facto marketing agency for the Texas olive oil industry.

Her death in March from cancer has many Texas growers worried about their industrys future.

At this point, the fate of the property and the business is unclear. Currently, Sandy Oaks is closed, so the mill is not operating. While there are no olives to mill right now, that will change once trees recover, and Winokur was one of less than a handful of mills for small producers.

For small-time growers harvesting enough for 30 or 40 gallons of olive oil  still a large part of the states growers  its cost-prohibitive for them to make their own oil, bottle it and sell it. Winokur provided an essential service by buying their olives and then doing the pressing and bottling at her mill.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonios nonnative palm trees likely dead from February freeze and may cost $2,000 per tree to remove; natives seem OK

Losing Sandy is really going to set (the industry) back, said William Webber, owner of Ten Oaks Olive Farm in Floresville and the former miller at Sandy Oaks. Webber said he and several others are considering forming a co-op to try to establish a mill to replace the one at Sandy Oaks.

No one knows whats going to happen to the land. She had some of the first and oldest trees in the state, so I hope they dont get chopped down to develop the land, Webber said.

New beginnings

Todays Texas olive industry often is compared to the Texas wine industry of 20 or years ago.

Back then if you told someone you grew wine grapes, theyd say, You can do that in Texas?  said Michael Paz of Texana Olive Ranch in Cotulla, one of the largest producers in the state with 150 acres and 100,000 trees. Today you get the same response when you say you grow olives.

Like the states winemakers, who imported and tested vines from wine-making regions around the world, olive growers have planted different varietals, trying to find the ones that grow best in Texas. This isnt as easy as it sounds. While South Texas hot and dry climate might seem similar to that in the Mediterranean and the Middle East where olives have been cultivated for millennia, temperatures here fluctuate much more wildly  and promise to increasingly do so, thanks to climate change.

During an April meeting hosted by the Texas AgriLife at Jewetts farm, many growers said Februarys storms could serve as an opportunity to learn what tree varieties do best around Texas.

When Lone Star Olive Ranch in Madisonville, about 130 miles northwest of Austin in Madison County, was starting out in 2008, for example, they planted 21 varieties of trees. Those had been been winnowed to 14, with six varieties mature enough to produce fruit before the storm.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio chef brings STEM lessons into kitchen with free video series

Now were going to go down to three: arbequina, koroneiki and arbosona, said Bernell, whos a partner at Lone Star.

Even if orchards recover, the future of the Texas olive industry isnt certain and profits remain elusive. Texas AgriLife is running more field trials on olive varietals as the industry is still trying to figure out how to maximize production.

While most California olive growers, for example, produce 5 to 6 tons of fruit per acre and yields in other countries can be as high as 10 to 12 tons, few in Texas are producing as much as 2 to 3 tons per acre, generally considered the break-even point, according to experts.

For some, profits not the point. Ive had people happy to tell me they grew (half a ton) a year, Janak said.

Bugg is primarily a medical doctor with an orchard on the side. My trees were just barely starting to produce, so I dont get any income from them, said Bugg, adding that he considers himself a hobby farmer.

Jewett, also raises cows and grows oak and pecan trees. He didnt plant his orchard to make money. I was interested because I wanted to do something when I retired, he said. And then I failed to retire.

rmarini@express-news.net | Twitter: @RichardMarini
On Monday afternoon, when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use in kids 12 to 15 years old, Houston resident Marla Huseman Grace was already fumbling for the phone to dial her 15-year-old sons pediatrician.

For Grace, whose son has underlying medical conditions, the news was a beacon of hope.

Because he has so many underlying concerns and because COVID is so new, we had no idea how it would present in him, she said. We didnt want to find out.

Her son is one of about 17 million Americans who are newly eligible to receive the vaccine, adding 5.7 percent of the nations population to the eligibility pool, as vaccination rates slow among the nations adults.

Todays action allows for a younger population to be protected from COVID-19, bringing us closer to returning to a sense of normalcy and to ending the pandemic, said Dr. Janet Woodcock, acting FDA commissioner. Parents and guardians can rest assured that the agency undertook a rigorous and thorough review of all available data, as we have with all of our COVID-19 vaccine emergency use authorizations.

Pfizer officials said teen trial participants produced strong antibody responses.

Researchers found that youth ages 12 to 15 experienced similar side effects to adults, including sore arms, fatigue, headache, chills and fever. Side effects were reported more often after the second Pfizer dose, according to the data.

NOT SO FAST: Texas COVID rates are down. But is this herd immunity?

In Texas, where more than a quarter of the population is under 18, Pfizers new authorization could go a long way in boosting vaccination numbers. The vaccine manufacturer started a clinical trial for kids under 12 last month at Baylor College of Medicine.

The logistics

Houstons vaccine sites are already preparing for the influx of interested families. Memorial Hermann opened registration for 12-to-15-year-olds Monday, and noted that children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian to the appointment. CVS Health said it is prepared to start administering vaccines to adolescents as well.

Both are waiting on the official go-ahead from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before they make appointments available.

Once that happens, parents will receive an invitation to schedule a vaccination appointment for their child/children, said George Kovacik, a Memorial Hermann spokesperson.

As more children qualify for vaccines, teachers are also breathing a sigh of relief. Liana Silva, an English teacher at Cesar Chavez High School, said shes encouraged by the increase in eligibility.

Its not just about bringing germs to class, but catching them at school and bringing them home, Silva said. A lot of my kids live in multi-generational households.

Many of her students avoided returning to in-person learning because they were nervous about the high rate of infections in the schools southeast Houston neighborhood. Now, she thinks theyre more likely to return to school, and shes looking forward to putting both students and parents minds at ease.

Grace, the mom of three, is also eager to help her son feel safe returning to in-person school.

Her family has mixed-vaccination status right now: both parents are vaccinated, and her 13-year-old is currently enrolled in a Moderna trial. Her 11 and 15-year-old sons, though, havent received their shots. In late January, she joined Vaccinate Houston: COVID-19, a Facebook group where locals swap stories on where to find vaccines, to find vaccines for her parents, and eventually friends and neighbors who needed a shot. It was the first place she saw Mondays Pfizer news. She is now looking for appointments on several vaccination clinics websites.

Although her eldest son turns 16 at the end of the month, qualifying for the Pfizer vaccine, being able to sign up for a shot even a few weeks earlier than expected is exciting.

The sooner hes vaccinated, the sooner hes protected, Grace said. The sooner enough of us are vaccinated, the better the chances that life can return to normal. So not only do I want to protect him, but I also want to protect others.

More than 1.5 million adolescents between 11 and 17 years old have caught COVID-19 since the pandemic began in March 2020.

TRACKING CORONAVIRUS: Interactive maps, charts show spread of COVID-19 across Houston, rest of Texas

Pfizer is now seeking full FDA approval for its COVID-19 vaccine, which would allow clinicians to administer the two-dose series even after the federal emergency is over.

Emergency use authorization can help vaccine sites use up their existing supply, too. As vaccine demand ebbs across the country, public health officials and hospitals are resorting to walk-in clinics and incentives to convince people to get the vaccine.

Manufacturers developing drugs and vaccines first test their products on the general adult population. Researchers start separate trials on other parts of the population, such as teens, because of the higher chance of different immune responses compared to adults.

Moderna and Johnson & Johnsons vaccines are not authorized for emergency use in teens yet. However, Moderna said its vaccine is 96 percent effective in teens so far.

gwendolyn.wu@chron.com

twitter.com/gwendolynawu
Grab your water shoes and coolers. The Comal River is now open!

The river, which runs through New Braunfels, reopened May 2 for all recreation activities, according to the New Braunfels Police Department's Facebook page.

If you've floated the river before, you know that you will bump into a wild range of characters.

But who are these people, these "river rats?"

Some are allies with useful abilities while others are sinister and should be treated with caution, but all are part of a balanced social ecosystem that make up the river experience.

Below are the 10 types of tubers you find on Texas waterways.

The sleeper: These people fall into two categories: those who are in such dire need for rest and relaxation that they recline as soon as they get into their tube (or river chair), and those who are too drunk and sunburned to move any of their limbs.

TOM REEL/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

The busy-body: They jump off the banks, swing on ropes, climb trees and generally try to be as physically active as possible doing an activity that is based off of doing as little as possible.

TOM REEL/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

The high and dry: They love the idea of tubing and everything that comes with it  drinking, smoking, partying  but aren't very big fans of the water, so they stay on the land.

TOM REEL/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

The party animal: They are here to drink and do other mind altering things and don't care about anything else  they may even end up sleeping in someone else's tent. It doesn't matter if they have a tube or not, and they don't even care if they lose their wallet, sunglasses or other possessions, as long as there is alcohol.

Nicole Fruge/San Antonio Express-News

The keeper of the cooler: The keeper needs to be responsible, so this isn't the job for a party animal because they may drink it all and lose everything tied to it. The keeper tends to keep a slower pace and is basically the deciding factor in managing your group's pace.

Eric Gay/Associated Press

The recruiter: With "the more the merrier" as their mission statement, this person goes to the river with a big group and then continually tries to get more people to join the party. A well-seasoned recruiter will only target groups with lots of river resources  beer, food, etc.  while a recruiter with poor judgement will attract groups that will leech off of your supplies.

TOM REEL/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

The moocher: They brought a tube and nothing else. And they did it on purpose so they could mooch sun lotion, beer, food and anything else off everyone on the river.

TOM REEL/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

The DJ: While it's great to get out and get away from technology and TV, who doesn't love some tunes to keep the party going? The DJ takes this river responsibility seriously and will take requests  for a beer.

The sinker: He or she can't swim and thought they would be just fine as long as they stay in their tube. But sooner or later, that person ends up falling in and making a big scene.

LISA KRANTZ/Lisa Krantz/Express-News

The survivalist: They came overly prepared with a fisherman's hat, dry-bags, water shoes, Croakies, loads of sunscreen, a first aid kit and an iron to navigate tough terrain.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)  Aided by an astonishing nearly $76 billion budget surplus, California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday proposed tax rebates of up to $1,100 for millions of households and more than $7 billion to help people affected by the pandemic cover rent and utilities.

It was Newsom's first in a weeklong roll out of pandemic recovery proposals totaling $100 billion, which could boost his political fortunes as he faces a likely recall election later this year. His opponents accused him of pandering and said the state would be better served by broader tax reforms.

Direct stimulus checks going into peoples pockets and direct relief  that's meaningful," Newsom said from a community organization in a disadvantaged Oakland neighborhood.

Under his plan, roughly 11 million low- and middle-income Californians would see direct, one-time payments. Taxpayers making between $30,000 and $75,000 a year would get a $600 payment. Households making up to $75,000 with at least one child would get an extra $500 payment. It builds on an earlier payments to the lowest-income Californians and immigrants who pay taxes but did not get federal stimulus payments, including those living in the country illegally.

The projected $75.7 billion budget surplus is largely due to taxes paid by rich Californians who generally did well during the pandemic, and marks a major turnaround after officials last year said they feared a deficit of more than $50 billion. Officials from the state Department of Finance said multiple rounds of federal coronavirus bills boosted the states budget by putting money back into the economy. The stock market also did well, helping Californias tax collections. The state relies heavily on income taxes from the wealthiest people.

The state will also get $27 billion from the latest federal coronavirus spending plan, the U.S. Treasury Department announced Monday.

Under Newsom's plan, the direct payments would total an estimated $8.1 billion, said H.D. Palmer, a finance spokesman. The proposal also includes $5.2 billion to help with back rent and future payments and $2 billion for overdue utility bills for people who fell behind during the pandemic, though Newsom's office provided few details.

A law passed by voters in the 1970s requires the state to give some money back to taxpayers if the surplus hits a certain limit. The state estimates it will be $16 billion over that threshold. Newsom does not have to act immediately, but is choosing to do tax rebates now, Palmer said.

We believe people are better suited than we are to make determinations for themselves on how best to use these dollars," Newsom said.

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, who joined Newsom, urged immigrants to take advantage of free assistance to file their taxes and become eligible for the payments.

The budget surplus puts Newsom in a prime political position, said Eric Schickler, a political science professor at the University of California, Berkeley. It's a better position when youre able to give out surplus to millions of voters than in a mode of cutting the budget, raising taxes, asking for sacrifice," he said.

Newsom must introduce his revised state budget by the end of the week. The chairs of the state Senate and Assembly budget committees joined Newsom, indicating their support for a proposal that will go before overwhelmingly Democratic Legislature.

Jon Coupal, president of the fiscally conservative Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, said he did not think Newsoms plan complied with the state law that limits how much the government can spend. But he didn't argue with the idea of giving money back to people.

If he is giving money back to taxpayers, back to citizens, that is a positive thing. Who he is giving it to, we could argue about that," he said.

Meanwhile, Newsom's Republican rivals in the recall election quickly criticized the effort, saying long-term tax reform is needed instead. Kevin Faulconer, the former mayor of San Diego, plans to roll out a tax cut proposal later this week.

One time payments for just one year isn't enough, not nearly enough," Faulconer said. We need permanent, lasting tax relief for middle-class families."

Businessman John Cox, who campaigned alongside a bear last week for attention, accused Newsom of engaging in a publicity stunt.

The governor's got a lot of money to hand out. And of course, he's worried about his own neck," Cox said at a campaign event in Los Angeles.

Mindy Romero, director of the Center for Inclusive Democracy at the University of Southern California, said the cash payments could give Newsom a temporary boost but are unlikely to make or break his political future. Instead, his fate will likely depend on a collection of things like the pandemic, drought, wildfires and other issues that could be on voters' minds.

Combined with the earlier payment, the state would spend $11.9 billion on direct cash payments.

Democratic Assemblyman Phil Ting, the chamber's budget chair, summed up the plan as one that helps those most battered by the pandemic.

That budget surplus is going right back to the most vulnerable Californians, the ones who need help the most," he said.

___

Associated Press writers Adam Beam in Sacramento and Michael R. Blood in Los Angeles contributed.
PORTLAND, Maine (AP)  Maine is rolling out free fishing licenses, baseball tickets and L.L. Bean gift cards to encourage more residents to get vaccinated before the end of the month, Gov. Janet Mills announced Tuesday.

Mills unveiled the public-private program, Your Shot To Get Outdoors, during a virtual discussion President Joe Biden hosted with several governors.

The items include up to 5,000 hunting licenses, fishing licenses, Maine Wildlife Park day passes and state park day passes, along with up to 10,000 $20 L.L. Bean gift cards and up to 5,000 Portland Sea Dog tickets and passes for Oxford Plains Speedway.

Whether youre an angler or a hunter, a baseball fan or a racing fan, or someone who just all-around enjoys being outside, now is a great time to protect yourself from COVID-19 and take to the outdoors, Mills said.

The program led by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services comes as the number of vaccinations dipped to less than 63,000 last week, down from a peak of more than 125,000 doses in the first week that eligibility opened to all adults.

The state hopes the new program along with federal approval of a COVID-19 vaccine for younger teenagers will encourage more vaccinations.

MaineHealth is working with school districts to offer vaccinations for students. Many students could be fully vaccinated before the school year comes to an end, said Dr. Joan Boomsma, chief medical officer.

We see the vaccine as that potential game-changer for us, said Jeremy Ray, superintendent for Biddeford, Dayton and Saco schools. There are clinics in Biddeford on May 18 and in Saco on May 20, he said.

In other pandemic-related news:

THE NUMBERS

The number of COVID-19 infections continues to trend downward in Maine.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Maine has gone from 351 new cases per day on April 25 to 304 new cases per day on May 9.

On Tuesday, there were nearly 240 new confirmed infections and two deaths, the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported. All told, the state has had more than 64,000 cases of the virus and 797 deaths since the start of the pandemic, the Maine CDC said.

___

RENTAL HELP

Thousands of struggling Maine renters during the pandemic are seeing a two-month backlog for rent relief applications.

Understaffed local agencies are struggling to keep pace with the volume of applications and a bulkier process that requires more documentation, the Bangor Daily News reported.

Maines latest rent relief program is funded by the federal COVID-19 aid package passed in December.

And it's "much more administratively burdensome, according to Shawn Yardley, CEO of Community Concepts, which facilitates the program for Androscoggin and Oxford counties as well as the city of Brunswick.

___

VACCINE MANDATE BILL TABLED

A committee of the Maine Legislature was no longer scheduled to consider a proposal on Tuesday that would ban coronavirus vaccine mandates for five years.

The proposal had been slated for a work session before the Maine Legislatures Committee on Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services on Tuesday, but is no longer on the committee's calendar.

The Republican lawmakers who supported the proposal, led by Rep. Tracy Quint of Hodgdon, tied their proposal to the theory that coronavirus vaccines cause reproductive harm. The proposal states that coronavirus vaccine mandates would be banned for five years "in order to allow for safety testing and investigations into reproductive harm.

Numerous medical authorities have said the claim lacks merit, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Maine lawmakers are not currently considering coronavirus vaccine mandates.
In her letter to her sons, Fabian quoted Eger saying, Live with meaning. Freedom has to be with a purpose, direction and inspiration. When you are dealing with someone, do not give advice, or question what they say, but select your response to them, like I understand how you feel. Even repeat back to them what they have just told you. This will make the person feel better.
STOWE, Vt. (AP)  Eduardo Rovetto is hoping the state of Vermont's reinstated requirement that people who are collecting unemployment benefits must seek work to qualify will help him hire enough staff for his restaurant in the resort town of Stowe.

After more than a year of coronavirus restrictions on his business, Piecasso Pizzeria & Lounge, he's expecting a breakout summer tourism season. But like employers across the country, he's worried he won't have enough workers.

Weve been getting many excuses as to why not to return, said Rovetto, who is offering a signing bonus of up to $600 to try to add 15 to 20 employees who agree to stay through the middle of October. Obviously, it was a legitimate one with COVID, but, you know, I think thats getting used less and less now. The vaccines are free; they are out there for anyone.

Many employers are telling similar stories. Fourteen months after COVID-19 put hundreds of thousands of people out of work, the U.S. economy is rebounding and employers are desperate for workers.

The challenge was highlighted Friday when employers nationwide added 266,000 jobs, far fewer than expected, and businesses reported they couldnt find people to fill the openings they have to keep up with the rapidly strengthening economic rebound.

To encourage people to return to work, more states are making it harder for people to stay on unemployment. Many blame the easy benefits that followed the pandemic, including what is now a $300-a-week supplemental federal payment on top of state benefits. The argument is that people make more money staying home than going back to work.

Several states have begun requiring those receiving unemployment benefits to show they are actively searching for work, and a few will stop providing the additional federal supplement.

It's not just the hospitality sector that is scrambling to fill positions. Alene Candles, based in Milford, New Hampshire, is looking to fill 1,500 positions for its facility there and another in New Albany, Ohio, to meet demand for the holiday season. Company representatives will be participating in a number of virtual job fairs this month.

We have had more than 100 positions open since the start of the year, and just recently we increased sign-on bonuses to $1,200 for hourly positions - in-part because we are competing with an entity that can print its own money - the federal government - and its $300 per week additional unemployment benefit," said CEO Rod Harl. I would love to welcome those searching for work to join our team.

On Monday, the state of New Hampshire reopened its job centers for the first time since the pandemic hit to help people looking for work, but only a handful showed up in the first few hours at the largest one in Manchester.

Labor experts say the shortage is not just about the $300 payment. Some unemployed people also have been reluctant to look for work because they fear catching the virus. Others have found new occupations rather than return to their old jobs. And many women, especially working mothers, have had to leave the workforce to care for children.

The details and the timing of the state-led efforts to get people back to work differ, but they are coming from states led by both Republicans and Democrats.

In addition to Vermont, states reinstating the work-search requirement include Arizona, Maine, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island and South Carolina. Lawmakers are advancing work-search legislation in Pennsylvania.

As President Reagan said, the best social program is a job, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, said when announcing the resumption of the work-search requirement. This statement rings true today. Unemployment benefits are still available to Arizonans who need them, but now that plenty of jobs are available, those receiving the benefits should be actively looking for work.

Arkansas, Mississippi, Montana and South Carolina are planning to stop accepting the $300 benefit.

In announcing last week that unemployed workers will no longer receive the additional benefit beginning June 27, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, a Republican, said it was doing more harm than good.

Rachel Mata, an area manager for a Fayetteville, North Carolina-based staffing company, said its been increasingly difficult to find people for positions since the passage of the latest federal COVID-19 relief bill.

We get candidates who will mention, Hey, you know, why would I go to work when I get paid more on unemployment to sit at home? said Mata.

At a recent job fair, only one candidate showed up, said Mata, whose company, Mega Force Staffing Group Inc., mainly focuses on manufacturing jobs. In other cases, candidates have gone through the staffing companys onboarding process, only to not show up on their start date.

In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, the heart of the states $20 billion tourism industry, restaurants and resorts are scrambling for summer help. Angelo Verdone, an assistant general manager at Seaside Resorts, said hotels are so short-staffed that managers are working double duty, cleaning rooms and doing maintenance. He is working some front desk shifts.

Some applicants have responded to ads but failed to attend the interviews; others have gotten offers but did not show up to the job itself.

Though the company has offered a $500 sign-on bonus for its $11-an-hour housekeeping role, it got no takers.

Its not like theyre bad jobs, Verdone said. Most years, people are beating down the front door for the front desk jobs.

William Spriggs, an economist at Howard University and the chief economist for the AFL-CIO, said the issue isn't as simple as the unemployed being able to receive more benefits. He says the economy has changed.

He said he didn't think the job-search requirement is bad, but it won't solve the labor shortage.

Matching workers to employers isnt as easy as people think, which is what some of these employers are finding out," Spriggs said.

There might be a lot of jobs available, but in some cases they don't fit for the unemployed with specialized work skills.

I am a master technician with 30 years experience. You think I am going to go work in a pet store?" said Harry Chaikin, an out-of-work stagehand from Burlington, Vermont, who lost his job last year when the theater where he works stopped offering performances.

Chaikin says he is eager to return to work when theaters resume normal performances. He's receiving unemployment, including the $300 supplemental benefit, but he's still months behind in his rent.

The sense of optimism I feel is that human nature being what it is, I know that sooner or later people are going to gather again in big groups to be entertained. And when that happens, I will have work," he said.

And people are still losing their jobs.

Crystal Dvorak, 41, an audiologist in Billings, Montana, who has two teenage daughters, weathered a furlough early in the pandemic and had to dip deep into her savings. Last month, she found out she would lose her job when the clinic where she worked for nearly nine years had been sold.

When the governor announced the $300 supplemental benefit would end, it was Dvorak's second day of unemployment.

It had me in tears, she said.

The state plans to launch a new program to give one-time $1,200 bonuses to unemployed workers who return to work. Dvorak has begun applying for waitressing jobs, even though it could complicate her search for positions in her field.

Knowing that change is coming, Im having to be open to other positions, she said. I have shown interest in more jobs in the last week than I have applied for my entire 25 years of working.

___

Associated Press writers Michelle Liu in Columbia, S.C.; Kathy McCormack in Manchester, New Hampshire; Sarah Rankin in Richmond, Virginia; Iris Samuels in Helena, Montana, and statehouse reporters across the country contributed.
DEL RIO  Struggling to escape the Rio Grandes grasping current, Ernesto Parra collapsed onto the refuse-choked Texas shore.

I was very afraid, especially for the little ones, Parra, 55, said moments after he waded across the river from Mexico with his wife, Mariana, their 11-year-old son and two dozen other migrants.

Parra owned a small business in the Venezuelan city of Maracaibo. He and his family are part of a wave of Venezuelans fleeing their shattered country.

There are things that have terrified us on this journey, he said as his wife cried inconsolably. But we couldnt remain at home any longer.

Across the entire border with Mexico, the U.S. has seen an upwelling of migrants this year. But in few places has the traffic increased as sharply as it has along the 60-mile stretch from Del Rio to Eagle Pass.

From October through March, agents in the Border Patrols Del Rio sector had 68,570 encounters with migrants  more than four times as many as in the same period a year earlier.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

The Rio Grande Valley in far South Texas has long been the favorite corridor for undocumented border crossers. But smugglers and word of mouth are drawing many farther north, putting great stress on rural areas of Southwest Texas unaccustomed to the crush.

This is the worst weve seen it as far as the migrants. Its been terrible, said Joe Frank Martinez, 64, the Democratic sheriff of Val Verde County, whose seat is Del Rio. The policymakers came in and changed the policy, but they didnt have a plan to put the policy in place.

Echoing officials in neighboring Kinney County, who last month declared an emergency, Martinez called the influx a crisis that has overwhelmed local, state and federal efforts to contain it.

Its causing a lot of hardship to our community, to local resources, to our federal partners, Martinez said. This is going to continue until some policy is put in place that prohibits this activity and allows these immigrants a path for citizenship.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

A world on the move

Nearly destitute Mexicans and Central Americans used to dominate the cross-border traffic along this stretch. But in recent weeks, some 60 percent of the people passing through a migrant assistance center in Del Rio have been Venezuelans. The rest were from Haiti, West Africa and Uzbekistan.

A whole world seemingly on the move, squeezing through tiny, isolated Del Rio.

The influx of Venezuelans  about 100 every day  underscores the ubiquity of mobile communications as well as inconsistent border enforcement and confusion about the Biden administrations immigration policies, Martinez and others say.

Across the entire border, the Border Patrol had more than 550,000 encounters with migrants from October through March, nearly three times as many as a year earlier, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

The number of single adults entering the country  most of them men looking for work in an expanding U.S. economy  has spiked. Migrant families and unaccompanied children also continue to pour in, encouraged by word that some who preceded them were granted at least temporary permission to enter.

The border is going to stay open to those who really want to cross, said Alexis Araujo, 51, a Honduran construction worker who was preparing to make a second attempt to cross the Rio Grande from the Mexican border city of Piedras Negras, which sits opposite Eagle Pass.

I am here by the grace of God, and he is not going to fail me now.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

Treacherous crossing

Central Americans journey to the border can take weeks or even months of walking, hopping trains and riding buses. Haitians and Africans have traveled in the same fashion from South America.

Many of the better-financed Venezuelans arriving in Del Rio fly into Mexico City or Cancun with visas, catch flights to the northern city of Monterrey and take buses to the border.

Then theyre led to the barren Mexican riverbank by smugglers in the pre-dawn darkness. The water is knee-deep near an island in the middle of the river. But it deepens and the current accelerates near the Texas side, an area of pastures and quarries a few miles west of the center of Del Rio.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

A San Antonio Express-News reporter and photographer watched as the Parra family and other migrants made the crossing at this spot on the last day in April.

Younger children suddenly found themselves chest deep in dark water. Adults struggled to hold infants and packs of dry clothes aloft, above the reach of the water. Grunts of exertion turned to panicked cries.

Once ashore, adults soothed upset children and one another. Some wept from jangled nerves, others from pure relief. Many changed into dry clothing. Discarded items choked an empty lot and the patio of a neighboring home.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

Rather than try to evade detention, the Venezuelans turn themselves in. The U.S. agents keep busy processing rather than pursuing them. Politeness prevails, even kindness. Agents offer a hand to those struggling to climb out of the river  and coats to those shivering from the cold.

The Biden administration in March granted temporary protected status to Venezuelans already in the U.S. Those who apply for the status and are approved are protected from deportation for 18 months. They can apply for work permits and authorization to travel.

In addition, there has been a noticeable tendency since early April to allow Venezuelan migrant families and even individuals to apply for political asylum and to be released to await hearings, said John de la Vega, a South Florida immigration lawyer with Venezuelan clients.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

These past three weeks, weve seen them be more reasonable at the border, De la Vega said. The policy is inconsistent  but more lenient.

Many, if not most, of the Venezuelans intend to apply for asylum, said De La Vega and migrants relatives. The vast majority of such petitions are rejected.

Many of the families who crossed with Parras appear to have been released from custody within days. Adults traveling without children were still being detained, according to their relatives.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

In a statement, Customs and Border Protection officials said migrants are released pending court appearances because of crowding in detention facilities and the need to guard against the spread of the coronavirus.

As the administration reviews the current immigration process, balancing it against the ongoing pandemic, we will continue to use all current authorities to avoid keeping individuals in a congregate setting for any length of time, the statement said.

Something has to be done

Twenty-four hours before Parra and his group of Venezuelans scrambled into Texas, Sheriff Martinez stood at the same spot along the river and considered the impact of the immigration surge on his isolated county of 40,000 people.

Val Verde was one of a handful of majority Hispanic counties on the Texas border that voted for Donald Trump in November, in part because of concerns over immigration.

With graying hair, a burly build and a starched white shirt, Martinez fits the classic profile of a Texas sheriff. Raised in Del Rio, hes been a lawman for most of his life, serving as elected sheriff here for 13 years after finishing a 25-year career as a Texas state trooper.

A day earlier, Martinez had attended a meeting in Uvalde where ranchers and others demanded that the government do more to stop the migrants. He said he understands the frustration.

In the last administration, the rhetoric was negative, the sheriff said. A lot of people are still tied to that.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

In mid-March, Martinezs deputies responded to a gruesome crash that occurred when a smugglers pickup, fleeing state troopers, rammed another vehicle head-on. Eight migrants were killed. A local man and his young daughter traveling in the other vehicle were badly injured.

Sharply critical of Bidens immigration moves, Martinez is no easier on Trump and his predecessors.

Every administration over the past several decades has talked about it and given it lip service and not done anything about it, Martinez said as he scanned the river and the far shore with binoculars. Something has to be done rather than just talking.

Our goal  my goal  is to not have them wandering through our streets, the sheriff said.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

Healing the broken-hearted

In two small municipal buildings in Del Rio, volunteers offer assistance to migrant families who have been released to await asylum hearings.

In one room, women seated at computers help arrange plane and bus tickets, paid for by the migrants or their sponsors. In an adjoining room, volunteers pass out water, answer questions and keep an eye on toddlers and preschool children playing with donated toys.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

The recent arrivals from Venezuela and elsewhere are better off than previous waves of Central American migrants. Most have the money  their own or provided by relatives and friends  to move on from here, said Tiffany Burrow, director of operations at the Val Verde Humanitarian Border Coalition.

We are like a travel hub for these people, Burrow said. They have to figure out how they are going to survive long term in this country.

Many of the Venezuelans, Haitians and Cubans make a beeline to Miami. But others head for Utah, Nevada, Georgia or Oklahoma  anywhere friends or family await.

Jessica Phelps /San Antonio Express-News

This is not just about South Texas. This is much bigger than that, Burrow said of the migrant crush. It really needs to be looked at. Because its not sustainable the way it is. I dont know what the answer is.

The volunteers ethos could be summed up by the psalm someone tacked to a wall in the chaotic receiving hall.

He heals the broken-hearted, it says, and binds up their wounds.
The weekend sighting of a tiger lounging on the lawn of a west Houston home left neighbors bewildered and authorities searching for the big cat on Monday, all while investigators considered the possibility that the apex predator was connected to an exotic animal ring.

The alarming find Sunday evening revealed two things to residents in the 1100 block of Ivy Wall Drive: Their neighbor, Victor Hugo Cuevas, was out on bond in a 2017 murder case in Fort Bend County, and police believe he had been looking after the tiger in the backyard of a rental home. Keeping an exotic animal, such as a tiger, violates city code, police said.

Authorities entered the Energy Corridor-area rental Monday and found an empty house. No other animals could be found. The tiger had been sleeping inside, but authorities found a spacious enclosure for it outside. Houston Police Department Commander Ron Borza surmised the tiger had been living pretty well but that he found freedom by scaling the fence. This then led to a tense face-off on Sunday with an armed off-duty Waller County deputy sheriff, who happened to live nearby.

Cuevas  after a shouting match with neighbors  shepherded the tiger into a white Jeep Cherokee and drove off, authorities said. There was a brief pursuit but he got away. Cuevas was arrested Monday night at a Fort Bend County home on a felony charge of evading arrest, police said.

Authorities were still trying to locate the animal, which police speculated was a Bengal tiger.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Are tigers allowed in Houston? What you need to know about owning dangerous wild animals.

Borza said Monday he was eager to get the tiger to a safe place.

"We have plenty of places we can take that tiger, keep it safe and give it a home for the rest of his life, Borza said. A lot of times people get desperate and they do silly things."

Cuevas, 26, had been out on bond since November on a murder charge stemming from the shooting death of Osiekhuemen Omobhude outside a sushi restaurant in Fort Bend.

According to witnesses, two men on motorcycles approached Omobhude in July 2017 as he was getting in his vehicle in the restaurants parking lot. Witnesses said they heard shots fired and that two assailants then covered their faces with masks and drove off. Omobhude later died from his injuries.

Cuevas has repeatedly maintained his innocence, stating in court documents that he shot the victim in self-defense after Omobhude pointed a gun at him.

Cuevas was arrested that month and posted a bond of $125,000. Since then, his bond has been revoked at least four times for repeated violations of his release conditions, including a failure to charge his GPS ankle monitor and remain in Fort Bend, records say.

Fort Bend County prosecutors filed a motion to revoke his bond again. He was due back in court on July 12.

Michael Elliott, Cuevas' lawyer in the murder case, said earlier Monday that his client did not own the tiger but believed that people are making a lot of assumptions. He said he could not elaborate on his clients connection to the animal.

He said his client would help lead police to the animal and its owner.

"The last we know of, the tiger was very safe and unharmed, Elliott said.

Borza, meanwhile, said he believes the incident may be related to the 2019 discovery of a caged tiger in an abandoned east Houston home. The tiger in that instance was later transported to a North Texas wildlife refuge to live out its days. Both tigers, Borza continued, may have come from a small circle of folks that deal on exotic animals.

Investigators hope Cuevas can lead them to the tiger breeder and the purveyor of other wild animals. Police spent last year tracking down bear cubs possibly linked to the ring, but never found them, Borza said.

Its not a big ring, Borza said. Most of them know each other from my experience.

Get your tiger back inside

In the west Houston neighborhood where the tiger was spotted, neighbors were still taken aback Monday.

Jose Ramos once saw a monkey peek out the window of his neighbors home. Curious, he thought, but not unusual. He did a double take Sunday when he spotted the same neighbors tiger relaxing across the street. He stepped outside his door and cautiously inched his way toward the street to have a closer look.

I am not a brave man at all, Ramos said.

He called 911 but was patched to animal controls voicemail, Ramos said. He next turned to Next Door to warn his neighbors.

Wes Manion, an off-duty deputy, rushed down the street and came face-to-face with the tiger.

He pointed his gun at the animal while placing himself between it and others. Dozens of children and families stroll the idyllic street. He was worried the tiger might attack someone.

It did stalk me across the road, but it did not look super aggressive, Manion, a six-year veteran of the Waller County Sheriffs Office, said. The last thing I wanted to do was shoot that tiger.

A man who apparently cared for the tiger then realized it was loose and came outside. Video of the encounter, which Ramos shot, showed the tiger pacing toward the deputy, as he backed up. The lawman then shouted profanities to the tigers caretaker.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Things to know about the Houston search for an escaped tiger

Were with the zoo,the caretaker replied.

Officials with the Houston Zoo said the owner is not affiliated with them.

Get your tiger back inside, the deputy cried out, without firing any shots during the tense confrontation.

Authorities in Houston commended Manion for his cool-headed approach.

As the caretaker was reunited with the tiger, he rubbed its fur and corralled the cat back inside. Within five minutes, he was out the door with the tiger. Their escape was noted in police radio traffic.

Weve got one running away with the tiger in the car, officials said on a law enforcement radio channel.

Police said they believe Cuevas also kept two monkeys. Their whereabouts were not known. It is not illegal to own monkeys under 30 pounds in Houston.

The fate of the feline

Authorities warn that Houston city ordinances forbid ownership of tigers and other wild animals, with exceptions for animal shelters, hospitals and zoos. The rules are not as stringent in unincorporated Harris County, where people are allowed to own some unconventional animals  with restrictions on how close the animal is to a school or child care facility, according to the countys Dangerous Wild Animal Regulations.

In this case, Borza said he believes the caretaker to be in violation of city code  a Class C misdemeanor.

Animal activists have long advocated a ban on the possession of big cats. Lauren Loney, Texas state director for the Humane Society of the United States, said her organization is working on a bill in Congress.

Yet another dangerous wild animal was apparently on the loose this weekend in Houston, she said. This inhumane treatment of animals  and the public safety risks created by the surplus of tigers in Texas  must end.

Noelle Almrud, the director of the Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch in Murchison, said raising tigers from cubs isnt enough to keep owners safe, as some would expect.

I cannot imagine a situation in which it would be appropriate for a tiger to live in a residential home, Almrud said. Somebody could get seriously hurt, and I dont want that to be the catalyst that causes us to limit or ban ownership.

Once the tiger is found, the feline could face the same fate as another big cat found in 2019 under similar circumstances. Almruds sprawling ranch southeast of Dallas currently houses Loki, the caged tiger whom a worried, pot-smoking 311 caller discovered in a ramshackle home in the Manchester neighborhood. Police outlined in court records the deplorable conditions that the tiger was found in, describing the bed of trash, feces, urine and rotting meat that it was forced to sleep on.

Animal control officers with Houston's Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care are assisting with the latest investigation, said Lara Cottingham, chief of staff & chief sustainability officer of the citys Administration & Regulatory Affairs Department.

In the event any such animals are found, Animal Control Officers will impound the animals and transport them to a secure location  either BARC, another shelter, or regional wildlife facility  to protect the safety of the public as well as the animals health, Cottingham said.

Samantha Ketterer contributed to this report.

nicole.hensley@chron.com

julian.gill@chron.com
The city of San Antonio needs a strategy to balance development with environmental protection, said the leader of the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance after the SAWS Board paused a project that would extend utility lines through conservation easements in North Bexar County.

Although environmentalists have pushed for a plan to limit development on top of the aquifers environmentally sensitive features, the struggle to direct growth in ways that protect San Antonios main water source continues, said Annalisa Peace, executive director of the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance.

They never do anything about it. And frankly, the direction on a day-to-day basis has been from the developers and their lobbyists, Peace said.

Scott Gruendler and Brenda Chapman both own land on the countys northern fringes with conservation easements through the citys Edwards Aquifer Protection Program. Last week, following community concerns about the proposed project, the San Antonio Water System board put plans for water and sewer lines through both Gruendler and Chapmans properties on hold.

Although the conservation easements primarily prevent construction of major developments, such as shopping centers or subdivisions, Gruendler and Chapman feel the plan to build underground lines through their land, on the environmentally sensitive Edwards recharge zone, undermines the spirit of the program.

Its also a breach of the taxpayers trust. The city of San Antonio paid for this easement as well, said Gruendler, who entered into a conservation agreement with the city nearly a year ago.

On ExpressNews.com: SAWS board delays project after seeing red flags

The program, which began in 2000, is funded through a 1/8-cent sales tax that voters last approved in 2015.

On Gruendlers ranch, the lines would pass beneath land where his horses, Hereford cattle and a couple of donkeys roam and graze. On Chapmans adjoining property to the west, 134 trees, including many heritage oaks, would be cut down if the lines are built.

The proposed water and sewer lines would provide service to a 173-acre property along Specht Road, known as the Specht tract, on the east side of Blanco Road and Camp Bullis, a military training reserve under Joint Base San Antonio. It would initially serve 420 homes built by Meritage Home and more if the area is fully developed, as predicted.

Gruendler has owned his 86-acre ranch site for nearly seven years. He moved there a year ago, seeking isolation from the sea of rooftops that now mark the Kinder Ranch subdivision.

Were kind of tucked back here. Thats why I like it because were tucked away, and we dont have to see the growth out here, he said. Its peaceful. Its serenity. Its the ability to go ahead and keep the animals out there with absolutely no development. Thats me. Thats my wife. Thats the way we are.

SAWS President and CEO Robert Puente empathized with Gruendler and Chapman. But, he said, the planned concrete-encased utility lines, which would use gravity to carry water and sewage, offer the best environmental option.

We understand them, and we fully understand that they didnt sign up for this. And they didnt anticipate this, Puente said.

But the utility could seek power of eminent domain to build the pipeline, according to Puente. If so, the matter would be voted on by the SAWS Board and then sent to the City Council.

A lot of our projects require us to go through private property, and we do our best to negotiate with the landowner to purchase the easement, the right to go through there, Puente said.

When a deal cant be reached, SAWS staff asks the board and then the council to use eminent domain, paying the landowner fair market value, he said.

One alternative to the pipelines is using force mains, which carry pressurized water and sewage over the recharge zone. But those are at greater risk for breaking and would require at least two lift stations, which have potential for pump failures that could result in a sewage release.

Another option would be allowing the developer, Meritage Homes, to build a wastewater treatment plant that would discharge into a creek over the recharge zone.

A third alternative is to request permission from the states Public Utility Commission to de-certify the Specht tract, removing it from the SAWS service area. Then, the developer could do whatever they want within state law, but we, SAWS, would not be there to see anything thats going on and provide input, provide protection, Puente said.

This is the best of the options that we have because were obligated to serve, he said of the pipelines.

Staff will present a risk assessment on the project at the June 8 SAWS board meeting.

Puente said Peace was 100 percent right when she said San Antonio needs coherent policy to avoid conflicts between SAWS legal service obligations and the citys aquifer-protection goals. One area for possible improvement is amending the citys Unified Development Code to require lower-density development over the aquifer in the citys extraterritorial jurisdiction, Puente said. That would limit impervious cover, require more tree canopy and implement other environmental standards in sensitive areas.

If you want change, thats where the change happens, Puente said of the development code.

Commissioner Trish DeBerry, whose precinct covers northern Bexar County, said shes troubled by the planned pipelines but has little direct influence on the issue as a county commissioner.

While we dont have regulatory authority over SAWS or the ETJ, disturbing a conservation easement that impacts protected land is hugely problematic to me, DeBerry said. Precisely because the land is protected, (it) demands increased transparency and public involvement.

In the last year, the SAWS board twice gave preliminary approval to run large underground water and sewer lines through the tract. But when the utilitys board met last week, SAWS trustee Amy Hardberger said the panel had not been adequately informed. Mayor Ron Nirenberg, a voting board member, said the case presented a lot of red flags about the process for water and sewer service extensions involved protected areas.

On ExpressNews.com: SAWS approves most costly, complex sewer main in San Antonio history

Puente said he has vowed to keep the board informed way ahead of time on conservation easements and other issues that may be just as sensitive.

Leaders of the aquifer alliance also have called on the city to create a task force to advise SAWS on requests for new water and sewer lines over the aquifers recharge and contributing zones and help guard against rampant urban sprawl.

Peace said SAWS also is being asked to provide water in environmentally sensitive areas in Kendall, Medina and Comal counties. But extending service to those areas provides no property taxes, sales taxes or other revenue that would benefit SAWS ratepayers or Bexar County residents.

This spurs high-density development out on the recharge and contributing zones, which is exactly where we dont want it. And thats been our contention all along, Peace said. Where SAWS provides this water and wastewater service, thats where high-density development is going to occur. And so if it is a goal of the city of San Antonio to protect the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone, then we should curtail supplying those areas.

shuddleston@express-news.net
Hammered by federal court monitors in a long-running lawsuit against the states foster care system, a San Antonio nonprofit that provides services to foster children here told Texas officials that it wants out of its state contract.

The Childrens Shelter gave 60 days notice on April 29 that it plans to terminate its five-year contract, under which its child placement agency, Family Tapestry, handled such duties.

The decision was already made when the nonprofits endured a blistering rebuke by a federal judge at a hearing last week that focused partly on safety lapses and compliance issues at their facilities.

Once the contract ends, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services will take over the responsibility of finding places to put foster children.

Most of the 1,725 children still under Family Tapestrys care network will remain where they are as long as theyre safe, said Marissa Gonzales, a spokeswoman for the state agency.

Its possible a few of them might need to be moved, but those details will be worked out in a transition plan, she said.

In a prepared statement, Jaime Masters, the states family and protective services commissioner, thanked the San Antonio nonprofits and said her agency will work toward a seamless transition.

Masters had threatened to terminate the state contract in an April 22 letter and ordered all youths being cared for by the Childrens Shelter to be moved elsewhere within days.

The situation is unacceptable and threatens the safety of the children. There is no other way to put it, Masters wrote at the time.

The nonprofits subsequent communications with Masters showed them trying to salvage the situation. But they moved to terminate the contract two days after court-appointed monitors filed a report with Senior U.S. District Judge Janis Graham Jack, citing numerous problems with their services, including insufficient medical attention, inadequate supervision and allegations of violence and sexual assault.

On ExpressNews.com: Judge blasts San Antonio-based nonprofits as dangerous, unsafe for foster children

During a two-day hearing last week, Jack accused the San Antonio nonprofits of running a dangerous, unsafe operation and said they were unprepared to take care of foster children.

Family Tapestry entered the contract in August 2018 in good faith and with expectations of working in partnership with the state to provide private foster care services, the nonprofits top official said in a letter announcing the contracts termination.

Unfortunately, due to a number of different circumstances beyond our control, this has not borne out, making Family Tapestrys continued participation ... not sustainable under the contract as currently written, Childrens Shelter and Family Tapestry CEO Annette Rodriguez wrote.

As recently as April 26, Family Tapestry had submitted a corrective action plan to DFPS officials and expressed a willingness to continue trying to meet the states expectations.

All stakeholders in the foster care system are operating under immense difficulties to provide safe and secure homes for children in troubling situations, Rodriguez wrote in a response to Masters April 22 ultimatum. These difficulties have only been exacerbated by the global pandemic and the statewide foster care capacity crisis.

Our team has made many admirable accomplishments ... We were very disappointed by your letter. We are committed to continuing our progress and finding a way forward. Obviously, we would prefer to do so in a cooperative, less adversarial manner.

In the April 29 letter giving notice of the contracts termination, Rodriguez suggested it could be amended to recognize and account for the increased costs of supporting foster childrens needs.

On ExpressNews.com: Worst of all situations  Childrens Shelter, Family Tapestry defensive after report

Bexar County was one of four areas in Texas  and the largest  that pivoted to a community-based foster care model in recent years, using private contractors instead of state employees to manage and oversee networks of foster care providers and childrens services. Now those responsibilities will revert to the state.

The Childrens Shelter and Family Tapestry will continue working cooperatively with Texas child protective agency and remain committed to serving the children and families in our community, Rodriguez said in a statement in response to questions this week.

Masters statement this week said her agency was disappointed to learn of the contract termination, but lauded the nonprofits and Rodriguez for their efforts.

I know Annette and her board and the Bexar County community gave it their all, and I also know we put in a great deal of work to make this a success, she said. We will learn from this as we move ahead with community-based care.

We are working with (Family) Tapestry so as this contract ends, we will resume the placement of children and young people into living arrangements that meet their individual needs. And we will work together to make this a seamless transition.

The state had already been helping Family Tapestry find placements for children before the contract termination notice arrived, Gonzales said.

None of the children still in the nonprofits network of care are currently located at its physical site, she said.

pohare@express-news.net | Twitter: Peggy_OHare
A 6-year-old girl was killed Sunday night when gunfire erupted during a noisy gathering of car enthusiasts at a strip mall parking lot on the West Side.

A 23-year-old man opened fire around 11 p.m., the result of an argument whose cause investigators were still trying to determine a day later, police said.

The girl, Saryah Perez, was at the gathering with her mother and was in the rear seat of a car when a round struck her in the upper torso, Police Chief William McManus said Monday.

On ExpressNews.com: Mother of slain 6-year-old girl describes West Side shooting

She was transported to University Hospital, where she died.

Andrew Ray Elizondo, 23, was arrested Monday afternoon and charged with capital murder in the girls death.

Elizondo was taken into custody without incident around 2:30 p.m., McManus said. The suspect was an acquaintance of Saryahs mother, but that appeared to play no role in the shooting, the chief said.

This was not a domestic violence-related incident, McManus said.

Courtesy San Antonio Police Department

Its a random act by a reckless, heartless individual who could not have cared less where those bullets wound up, he said. This is all about human behavior, and someone who would do something like this I dont even have words for.

The girls mother, Kassandra Mendoza, was grazed in the back by shrapnel and drove to a nearby convenience store to ask for help, police said.

McManus said thats when the mother realized her daughter had been shot.

READ: The arrest affidavit.

Members of a car club had gathered in the parking lot of a retail strip on the south side of Commerce, west of 24th, near Our Lady of the Lake University. The cluster of businesses there includes a Family Dollar store, a mobile phone shop, a furniture and appliance rental center, two loan stores and a Bank of America cash machine.

Roy Alderete, 35, said he witnessed the shooting and its aftermath. He spoke with a San Antonio Express-News reporter Monday afternoon at a convenience store on West 24th, diagonally across from the retail strip.

Robin Jerstad /Contributor

Late Sunday night, Alderete said, he saw cars crowded into the parking lot. Then he heard a couple of shots, he said.

Next thing you know, theres just these cars flying everywhere, Alderete said.

One of the cars, a red sedan, pulled up at the convenience store, he said. Two women, a man and a girl were inside. The girl was in a car seat in the back, he said. Music blared from the vehicle.

I thought they were going to stop and come in the store, Alderete said.

Then, he said, one of the women checked on the girl and realized she had been shot.

It just went from laughing and music to yelling and crying, Alderete said.

One of the women pulled the girl from the car, laid her on the ground and tried to revive her, without success. She had lost a lot of blood, he said.

Alderete snapped pictures of the scene with his mobile phone. One of them showed a kneeling woman cradling a girl in her arms.

On Monday evening, Mendoza returned with family members to the spot where she had held her daughters lifeless body less than 24 hours earlier.

More than 200 people attended the vigil amid a strong police presence.

Mendoza wept uncontrollably alongside her mother and grandmother as Regina Navarro, a minister with River of Life Church, raised her arms and prayed over the family.

People joined in prayer, released silver and purple balloons, and held neon pink and yellow signs that read Stop the Violence, and Put down the guns, dont be a coward.

Navarro said Mendoza told her the fight started with a disagreement between a group of men and Mendozas boyfriend. She said the men, one of whom had previously dated Mendoza, confronted Mendoza and pulled her current boyfriend out of a vehicle.

Navarro said the men started beating Mendozas boyfriend until he got in the car with Mendoza and her daughter and drove off. When the car reached the street, one of the men pulled out a gun and fired at it, Navarro said.

We need to make a difference in San Antonio, Navarro said. Its just destroying everything that we worked for.

At car club meetups, people hang out, show off vintage automobiles and trade tips on maintenance and modifications. These are social events. McManus said thats how Sundays gathering started out. He called it a meeting of a legitimate car club.

Police have had problems in the last year with a different kind of meetup, where people race their cars, block streets or intersections, damage property and sometimes clash with police officers.

Robin Jerstad /Contributor

Between Sept. 16 and May 5, San Antonio police recorded 24 encounters with such groups.

A task force assembled by McManus to address the problem made 116 felony and misdemeanor arrests in that time period.

Mariah Medina, a San Antonio Police Department spokeswoman, said the group that met Sunday night had not been on the departments radar.

The scene of the shooting is in City Council District 5, represented by Shirley Gonzales.

Gonzales said she lives a few blocks from the retail strip and heard gunshots around 11 p.m. Sunday, followed by sirens.

This isnt the first time since I took office that a child has been killed by a stray bullet, Gonzales said. Off the top of my head, I can think of at least five instances of children being murdered.

Gun violence in this neighborhood is just out of control, she said. Incidents like these dont get as much attention as mass shootings because they are individual incidents, but they are equally as devastating.
A San Antonio firefighter who was fired two years ago after he was accused of drunken driving is trying to get his job back through the appeal process outlined in the fire unions contract with the city.

Arbitration proceedings began Tuesday in the case of former San Antonio firefighter Albert Cerda, who was fired in May 2019 after the fire department said he led a Selma police officer on a nine-minute car chase, at one point swerving into oncoming traffic.

Selma police officer Josten Rodriguez testified that the pursuit started around 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 24, 2019, after he observed Cerdas vehicle stopped in the right lane of Retama Parkway.

Rodriguez said he approached the vehicle and tried to get Cerdas attention, to no avail. Cerda was slumped over the steering wheel with a Bud Light can in the cup holder beside him, Rodriguez said.

On ExpressNews.com: SAPD captains firing calls attention to controversial paid leave policy

I kept knocking on the glass, trying to get some kind of response from him, Rodriguez said.

After a minute, Rodriguez said, Cerda sat up and looked at Rodriguez. He then began to drive away, Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez said he jumped into his vehicle and tried to stop Cerda by turning on his police lights and siren. He also issued commands over a loudspeaker on his police car.

Cerda pulled over about nine minutes later and stepped out of his vehicle.

I immediately detected the strong odor of alcoholic beverages, and he had glossy red eyes, Rodriguez said. Those are typical indicators of alcohol intoxication.

Cerda denied drinking any alcohol, Rodriguez said. He said the 24 oz. beer can belonged to his brother, who had been in the vehicle earlier in the day.

On ExpressNews.com: Fired San Antonio police officer cleared of domestic violence wants his job back

Rodriguez later obtained a warrant from a judge to conduct a DUI blood test, which revealed that Cerdas blood alcohol level was 0.131, suspension records show.

Cerda was ultimately arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, unlawful carry of a firearm and evading arrest.

Two of the charges against Cerda were later dismissed. The third charge, for drunken driving, was pleaded down to obstruction of a roadway. He is still on probation for that charge, court records show.

Fire Chief Charles Hood fired Cerda in May 2019 for allegedly violating five administrative rules, including bringing reproach or discredit on the department.

During cross-examination, an attorney representing Cerda said the firefighter was disoriented that evening because he hadnt eaten all day.

He said Cerda  who had never been in trouble prior to his firing  was courteous during the arrest and never mentioned that he was a San Antonio firefighter or asked for any types of special favors.

Ben Sifuentes, another attorney representing Cerda, said the fire chief had never fired an employee for a DUI arrest until Cerda. The attorneys plan to argue that Cerdas firing is an example of disparate treatment.

eeaton@express-news.net
In a move that will have implications in communities across the state, Texas is moving forward with a policy to permanently allow to-go purchases of alcoholic beverages, creating new, unique challenges to ensuring the safety of Texas youth.

We should more thoughtfully consider the risks and consequences of to-go alcohol sales and  more importantly  take action to limit those risks and protect kids.

Having passed the Texas Legislature and now headed for Gov. Greg Abbotts signature, this measure is well on its way to becoming law. Even through these final steps of the legislative process, the need for ensuring important protections for our youth remains as crucial as ever.

Youth alcohol use is linked to serious consequences, including impaired-driving crashes and fatalities, poor academic performance, increased dropout rates and sexual assault. Young people who drink are at higher risk for low self-esteem, anxiety, depression, addiction and suicide. And yet alcohol remains the most widely used substance by youth and the easiest to get.

By creating expanded access to alcohol without having appropriate oversight and enforcement policies for these new purchase options, were creating a scenario ripe for underage drinkers to exploit. We should be protecting our kids and making it harder  not easier  for them to access anything that can cause them harm.

As state officials move forward, they must do so thoughtfully, with steps taken to ensure youth are protected.

On ExpressNews.com: Alcohol-to-go is closer to becoming Texas law.

A statewide task force  which weve proposed  would directly address the risks and consequences of increased youth access. Charged with determining the full scope of the legislations public health and safety impact, the task force would also determine effective, enforceable protocols for the safe sale of alcohol to-go.

Alcohol is simply not the same as any other product and presents significant risks, especially to youth. Because of this, changing alcohol policies cannot be a business decision alone; the public health and safety implications cant be side notes, and targeted protections must be identified and put in place.

Public health experts with experience on alcohol policy should have a significant role in this task force. With expertise informed by science, data and methodologies, these professionals should be leveraged as a valuable resource in shaping this policy the right way. And to ensure full transparency, the task forces findings and proposals must be made public.

As this policy continues to move toward becoming law, we must ensure that the task force becomes a reality. It would ensure health experts are provided a strong platform from which they can help guide policy, and provide the oversight and enforcement necessary for protecting Texas youth.

We call on Abbott to do right by voicing his support for the task force and taking action to make it happen.

Nicole Holt is CEO of Texans for Safe and Drug-Free Youth.
I miss torturing Liz Cheney.

But it must be said that the petite blonde from Wyoming suddenly seems like a Valkyrie amid halflings.

She is willing to sacrifice her leadership post  and risk her political career  to continue calling out Donald Trumps Big Lie. She has decided that if the price of her job is being as unctuous to Trump as Kevin McCarthy is, it isnt worth it, because McCarthy is totally disgracing himself.

It has been a dizzying fall for the scion of one of the most powerful political families in the land, a conservative chip off the old block who was once talked about as a comer, someone who could be the first woman president.

How naive I was to think that Republicans would be eager to change the channel after Trump cost them the Senate and the White House and unleashed a mob on them.

I thought The Donald would evaporate in a poof of orange smoke, ending a supremely screwed-up period of history. But the loudest mouth is not shutting up. And Republicans continue to listen, clinging to the idea that the dinosaur is the future. We cant grow without him, Lindsey Graham said.

Denied Twitter, Trump is focusing on his other favorite blood sport: hunting down dynasties. Whether its the Cheneys, the Bushes or the lesser bloodlines  such as the Romneys or the Murkowskis  Trump has been relentless in his efforts to force them to bend the knee, David Siders wrote in Politico.

Yet an unbowed Cheney didnt mince words when, in a recent Washington Post op-ed, she implored the stooges in her caucus to steer away from the dangerous and anti-democratic Trump cult of personality.

That trademark Cheney bluntness made her the toast of MSNBC and CNN, where chatterers praised her as an avatar of the venerable fact-based Republican Party decimated by Trump.

But if Cheney wants to be in the business of speaking truth to power, shes going to have to dig a little deeper.

Lets acknowledge who created the template for Trumps Big Lie.

It was her father, Dick Cheney, whose Big Lie about the Iraq War led to the worst mistake in the history of American foreign policy. Liz Cheney, who was the captain of her high school cheerleading team and titled her college thesis The Evolution of Presidential War Powers, cheered on her dad as he spread fear, propaganda and warped intelligence.

From her patronage perch in the State Department during the Bush-Cheney years, she bolstered her fathers trumped-up case for an invasion of Iraq. Even after no weapons of mass destruction were found, she continued to believe the invasion was the right thing to do.

She almost thrives in an atmosphere where the overall philosophy is discredited and she is a lonely voice, a State Department official who worked with her told Joe Hagan for a 2010 New York magazine profile of the younger Cheney on her way up.

She was a staunch defender of the torture program. Well, it wasnt torture, Norah, so thats not the right way to lay out the argument, she instructed Norah ODonnell in 2009, looking on the bright side of waterboarding.

She backed the futile, 20-year occupation of the feudal Afghanistan. (Even Bob Gates thinks we should have left in 2002.) Last month, when President Joe Biden announced plans to pull out, Cheney  who wrote a book with her father that accused Barack Obama of abandoning Iraq and making America weaker  slapped back: We know that this kind of pullback is reckless. Its dangerous.

For many years, she had no trouble swimming in Fox News bile. Given the chance to denounce the Obama birther conspiracy, she demurred, interpreting it live on air as people being uncomfortable with having for the first time ever, I think, a president who seems so reluctant to defend the nation overseas.

Thanks to that kind of reasoning, we ended up with a president who fomented an attack on the nation at home.

In her Post piece, Cheney wrote that her party is at a turning point and that Republicans must decide whether we are going to choose truth and fidelity to the Constitution.

Sage prose from someone who was a lieutenant to her father when he assaulted checks and balances, shredding Americas Constitution even as he imposed one on Iraq.

Because of 9/11, Dick Cheney thought he could suspend the Constitution, attack nations preemptively and trample civil liberties in the name of the war on terror. (And for his own political survival.)

Keeping Americans afraid was a small price to pay for engorging executive power, which the former Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford aide thought had been watered down too much after Watergate.

By his second term, W. had come around to his parents opinion that Cheney had overreached, and the vice president became increasingly isolated.

Liberals responded to Trumps derangements by bathing the Bush-Cheney crowd in a flattering nostalgic light.

So, shockingly, the Republicans who eroded Americas moral authority  selling us the Iraq War, torture, a prolonged Afghanistan occupation and Sarah Palin  became the new guardians of Americas moral authority. Complete with bloated TV and book contracts.

Trump built a movement based on lies. The Cheneys showed him how its done.
I was lucky enough recently to be invited to a preview of a study on Texas  and how Texans feel about a variety of issues  across seven different categories of people. The research commenced about a year ago, involved talking to 4,000 individuals, conducting focus groups and crunching data, and it came up with surprising (to me) cohesion among all groups.

The report  Threads of Texas  from the nonprofit More in Common, which is devoted to to strengthening social cohesion, is now available to the public.

For much of the past 18 months, the COVID-19 pandemic upended daily life. Movies, restaurants, hugs. All over. Touching people. Handshakes. Gone.

People died. Loved ones were sick. We all knew someone who had COVID-19.

Politics took sharp turns at the same time. National, state and local politics were angry and divisive, driving wedges between friends and families.

Now, spring is here, and the tragic and devastating February snowstorm is behind us. That was an unbelievably bad time for too many Texans. But, finally, we are seeing flowers: Vaccinations are up, and the pandemic numbers look better. Fingers are crossed. The air is soft, and the skies are blue.

So getting a chance to listen to a group with the compelling message that, yes, we as a state have more in common than we thought was well worth my time.

Threads of Texas Read it at moreincommon.com See More Collapse

More In Common has a straightforward, data-driven approach. Slicing and dicing the stats produced more common perspectives than I expected. Sometimes it was how something was phrased that allowed a better human connection.

I have eagerly begun sharing this study with people in my network and urging them to investigate the website. On the phone, I can hear a smile in their voices. There is a surprise but also an upwelling of fragile hope. Really? We dont hate each other as much as we are told we do?

Turns out when you dig deep, as More In Common did, into attitudes in the Lone Star State, by a sizable majority, we want people of all backgrounds, outlooks and races to feel welcome. Being made to feel welcome is a great thing. It opens mental and emotional doors to connecting. So we might truly be able to put out a statewide welcome mat. That sounds fantastic.

The research also pointed out that, by and large, we do think things will get better. Texans are less divided than residents in other states. But the work is still ahead. With the research and compiled data, there is room for optimism. But hard work, measured words, a way of being inclusive  these are all important tools for approaching each other. Words matter. Using sharp rhetoric for effect can be impactful  but one that too often is negative.

A witty cousin of mine from San Antonio had a mantra, which I adopted: No negative chacha. We both instinctively understood that chacha stood for all kinds of bad stuff. But the goal of no negative anything has a way of entirely redirecting our perspective. Just think about it: Maybe we should each take a one-day break from screaming into the void online or at our TVs.

Wed be less hoarse from screaming; our blood pressure would undoubtedly benefit; and amazingly, we would be able to hear other people speak.

Listening to understand  thats one of the most powerful tools we have in our arsenal and one we certainly dont use often enough. Maybe we could stretch this exercise to a second day. And onward. We might learn something from each other that we simply never could hear before. I am an inveterate optimist. Lets get started on working toward more in common.

Susan Combs is a former Texas comptroller and agriculture commissioner. She was most recently assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of the Interior.
William Johnson and his brother Andrew, the future 17th president, had an unusual bond at a young age  their mother placed both of them into indentured servitude to a tailor. They eventually worked together as clothiers until Andrew went into politics. When he assumed the presidency on Lincolns death, William saw an opportunity to take advantage of his brothers new position; he asked him for a job. Andrew was reluctant and somewhat chagrined. He sent him to Texas as a U.S. marshal  William was never heard from again.
Words can be empty or full of firepower.

Many of former President Donald Trumps words are empty, for they lack honesty, compassion and logic. But the words Trump used on, and leading up to, Jan. 6 were full of firepower  inciting an insurrection and based on the lie of widespread voter fraud. These words, spread so easily on social media, led to his loss of Twitter and Facebook as megaphones.

The president and his supporters have decried his removal from these giant social media platforms as the loss of free speech, which is nonsense. No one has stopped the president or his supporters from speaking. As private platforms, Facebook and Twitter have every right to suspend or ban users for violating policies.

Facebook, acting through its oversight board, recently upheld the suspension of Trumps account, which was put in place after the horrific attack on the Capitol.

At the time of Mr. Trumps posts, there was a clear, immediate risk of harm and his words of support for those involved in the riots legitimized their violent actions, the Facebook Oversight Board wrote in the announcement upholding its decision. Given the seriousness of the violations and ongoing risk of violence, Facebook was justified in suspending Mr. Trumps accounts.

Applauded by critics of the former president, the decision came with a caveat: While upholding the decision, the board determined the indefinite ban is wrong, saying the suspension should be permanent or limited to a specific period of time.

There is precedent for a permanent ban. Twitter banned Trump for good. Facebook, though, has been less clear.

(Facebook) will determine an action that is clear and proportionate, Nick Clegg, vice president of global affairs and communications, said in a statement.

For his part, Trump has remained unrepentant, indicating the suspension, far from chastening him, has emboldened him. It certainly has not restricted his freedom of speech. He has blasted the Facebook Oversight Boards decision.

What Facebook, Twitter, and Google have done is a total disgrace and an embarrassment to our Country, Trump said in a statement following the decision. Free Speech has been taken away from the President of the United States.

Oh, the irony to release a statement widely quoted in media about ones free speech being taken away.

True to form, the former president has continued to spread misinformation about the 2020 election and COVID-19; no individual, according to a Cornell University study, has done more to undermine the public education effort regarding the pandemic.

The Facebook Oversight Boards decision was a positive move in terms of symbolism, but it fails to provide any clear path forward for the handling of false speech on massive social media platforms, which rely on algorithms to evoke responses and attract (distract, really) our attention.

Put another way, the far more interesting and challenging question doesnt revolve around whether the former president should be allowed to post on Facebook  that is crystal clear; ban him  but how social media platforms handle false politicized speech from ordinary Americans. How are these decisions being made? Are they being meted out equally? What are the social consequences of inaction?

These are profound questions, and we have little confidence social media platforms are prepared to provide meaningful answers.
The authors of the Pandemic Response Act aimed at first to limit Gov. Greg Abbotts powers during such public health crises and give the Legislature more say in how to manage them.

But the heavily amended version that received initial approval from the Texas House on Monday would also constrain local government officials with the same zeal.

Abbotts dependence on executive orders to manage the pandemic, rather than calling the Legislature into session, was a point of contention for Republicans and Democrats alike last year. Members wanted to have more say on pandemic-related decisions, and many conservative members were staunchly against restrictions they saw as impeding on Texans rights. Some even filed suit against the governor.

House Bill 3, a priority for House Speaker Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, that he has described as the Houses blueprint for pandemic response, passed on a 92-45 vote, with Democrats split and most Republicans voting in favor. It needs one more vote before it heads off to the Senate.

The bill would indeed add new checks on the governor, mainly by forming a committee to review the governors pandemic disaster declarations and proclamations. That committee would have the option to dissolve all or parts of the governors orders when the Legislature is not in session.

'PURITY OF THE BALLOT BOX': An echo of Jim Crow is stricken from Texas voting bill

The 12-member committee would be made up of the lieutenant governor and speaker of the House, who as joint chairs would convene the group when necessary, and various House and Senate committee chairs.

The governor would still have the authority to issue orders to close businesses in part or in full, mandate face coverings or place limits on voluntary surgeries or other procedures. But the governor would be required to get approval to renew such orders beyond 30 days. And if a pandemic lasts more than 120 days, the governor would be forced to call a special session to continue a disaster declaration.

But on top of that, local government officials powers would also be limited, and the governor actually gains a new authority. The bill prohibits local governments from closing businesses or limiting their maximum occupancy, plus any local government deemed by the governor to have required a business to close would be prohibited from levying certain tax increases.

The bill also includes protections for most businesses from civil suits related to the pandemic.

Some of the more recent additions to the bill have helped it win the favor of conservative legislators who were skeptical, such as Rep. Tony Tinderholt, R-Arlington, who commended the bills author, Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, for addressing his concerns.

Texas House Democratic Party Chair Chris Turner, D-Grand Prairie, said the deal breaker for many members of his party came down to limits on local control.

There were some positive things in the bill, but a lot of us were not comfortable with restrictions on local officials, Turner said. Local officials led our state through the pandemic and the Legislature should not limit their ability to do so in the future.

Top down approach to pandemics

Texas was one of just three states that went 10 months without convening its Legislature to help shape the governors pandemic response. That was in part because the body meets only once every two years. In the interim, the Legislature can meet only to address targeted issues during a special session. Only the governor has the authority to call a special session, tying the hands of lawmakers if the governor declines to do so.

When in other disasters, the response is usually bottom-up  where local governments organize their response, and the state and federal government support them  the response to a pandemic will be top-down, said Burrows, who is a top lieutenant of Phelan. This allows a unified, cohesive response.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Lawmakers seek firmer limits on Gov. Abbotts emergency power

Yet for some conservative groups, the legislation not only fails to go far enough, it cements Abbotts most egregious overreaches into law, they say.

The Tyler-based group Grassroots America has urged lawmakers to scrap HB 3, saying it replaces the Legislatures check and balance on the governor with a select committee.

Leader of the Tea Party-aligned Empower Texans group, CEO Michael Quinn Sullivan, wrote on Twitter that the bill allows future governors to lockdown Texas & destroy small businesses, with a handpicked committee of #txlege cronies rubber stamping it.

The groups would prefer to see mask mandates and lockdowns banned entirely and have instead favored other Republican-authored bills that would trigger a special session for any emergency declaration renewal beyond 30 days, such as Senate Joint Resolution 45, which passed out of the Senate in mid-April and would put the issue before Texas voters.

On Monday evening, the House narrowly voted down 72-71 an amendment that would have prohibited the governor and any local government from requiring masks during a pandemic.

In order to become law, Abbott would have to sign it. He has expressed an openness to limiting his own power and that of future governors during emergencies, though he said he wanted to help craft the changes himself.

taylor.goldenstein@chron.com


The Serbian Civil Aviation Directorate has failed to issue Russias S7 Airlines a permit to commence flights between Moscows Domodedovo Airport and Belgrade, which were to launch on May 21. The carrier has now suspended ticket sales on the route. Flights were initially planned to operate once per week with the Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Instead, additional frequencies on flights between Moscow and Belgrade will be awarded to Russias national carrier Aeroflot. Serbia and Russia have a stringent bilateral air service agreement in place. Although revised in 2013 to allow airlines other than Aeroflot and Air Serbia to maintain operations between the two countries, it still heavily favours the two national carriers. The Serbian Civil Aviation Directorate has failed to issue Russias S7 Airlines a permit to commence flights between Moscows Domodedovo Airport and Belgrade, which were to launch on May 21. The carrier has now suspended ticket sales on the route. Flights were initially planned to operate once per week with the Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Instead, additional frequencies on flights between Moscow and Belgrade will be awarded to Russias national carrier Aeroflot. Serbia and Russia have a stringent bilateral air service agreement in place. Although revised in 2013 to allow airlines other than Aeroflot and Air Serbia to maintain operations between the two countries, it still heavily favours the two national carriers.





Russia is one of Belgrade Airports biggest markets and despite the coronavirus pandemic has continued to perform well. Currently, Air Serbia, Aeroflot and Nordwind Airlines maintain flights between Belgrade and Moscow with frequencies limited to fourteen per week by Russian authorities due to the pandemic. Nordwind itself inaugurated operations to the Serbian capital in January but has also faced permit issues with the Serbian regulator. Air Serbia will restore operations to Krasnodar and St Petersburg on June 4 and June 8 respectively, as well as launch new flights to Rostov-on-Don on June 4. Due to existing limitations, both Aeroflot and Air Serbia have often been deploying wide-body aircraft on flights between the two capital cities so far this year, including the Airbus A330 aircraft and the Boeing 777 jet.





Commenting on its Russia operations, Air Serbias General Manager for Commercial and Strategy, Jiri Marek, said last week, We continue to react quickly to all changes in travel restrictions in order to make use of every opportunity that arises. The Russian Federation represents a strategically extremely important market for us, and we are very glad that we will soon be able to operate flights to as many as four destinations in this great country. We are especially proud of the fact that, after Oslo and Geneva, we will be launching flights to Rostov-on-Don, as the third completely new destination in our network since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, and the second one this year. Earlier this year, the Serbian Civil Aviation Directorate blocked Turkeys AnadoluJet from commencing operations from Antalya.




Len Fasano of North Haven, the former Senate minority leader and 18-year veteran of the General Assembly, was approved by a key legislative committee on Monday to become one of two part-time commissioners in the nonpartisan law-writing office.

Members of the Executive & Legislative Nominations Committee praised Fasano as a fair, collegial, policy-driven lawmaker, before they approved his nomination for the full General Assembly to consider and ratify. Fasano, with a law office in New Haven, would be paid about $52,000 a year and serve as Republican legislative commissioner, to Democrat Ed Maley.

Fasano would replace William Hamzy, a former state representative and GOP state leader from Plymouth, who is leaving to become a probate judge.

Ive got to admit it, I miss the building a lot, Fasano told the 17-member committee. So having the opportunity to get back into the building is a little bit thrilling to me. Its been such a large part of my life.

I think we are very fortunate to have him coming back in this capacity, said Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney.

I know that you have always strived to be fair and to work with folks, get things passed and to have the best interest of the state of Connecticut, added Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, co-chairman of the committee. We know how much you loved it and how much you enjoyed your role and the passion you have for policy in the state of Connecticut and public service.

Both legislative commissioners serve under an office director, and help administer about 20 lawyers and a dozen support staff in drafting proposed laws and amendments to legislation, as well as resolutions. Fasanos nomination heads to the Senate and the House.

The Legislative Commissioners Office makes sure that bills are constitutional, written properly, and not repetitive of other laws.

The office is in the process of digitizing itself to catch up with technology.

kdixon@ctpost.com Twitter: @KenDixonCT
3 1 of 3 Contributed photo Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Contributed photo Show More Show Less 3 of 3





NEW HAVEN  Alisa Bowens-Mercado, founder of Rhythm Brewing Co., the states first Black, female-owned beer company, will be the featured speaker at a presentation next month.

The free, virtual event, Founders Chat: The Rhythm of Work, will be held at 6:30 p.m. June 15, according to a release. It is being held by the New Haven Museum in partnership with the 2021 International Festival of Arts & Ideas, it said.
NEW YORK (AP)  The once-deserted steps outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art are filling up with visitors again. Hotel lobbies are losing their desolate feel. Downtown, people are back to taking selfies with the Charging Bull statue near Wall Street.

Tourists who vanished from New York Citys museums, hotels and cultural attractions when the coronavirus pandemic hit a year ago are trickling back in as restrictions loosen.

Theres still a long way to go before the still-closed theater district is mobbed with international travelers again.

But lately, indicators like hotel occupancy and museum attendance have ticked up, thanks to domestic travelers and day trippers who dont mind seeing the city operating at less than its usual hectic pace.

Ive always wanted to come to New York, just because Ive watched the movies, said Chazmin Fuhrer, 26, a first-time visitor from Concord, California, who came into the city for a handful of days recently to celebrate a friends birthday.

Lounging at a table in Times Square as three street performers started their dance moves nearby, Fuhrer said she knew it wasnt anywhere near as busy as usual. But she was OK with that.

Its kind of nice without a lot of people out," she said, noting that the pre-pandemic crush of people would probably now make her nervous, with the virus still circulating.

City officials are optimistic, even in the wake of an incident in Times Square on Saturday, when three people  including a child  were injured by stray bullets when a dispute led to gunfire.

In the end, people want to come to this city, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday. It is an overwhelmingly safe city, when you look at New York City compared to cities around the country, around the world.

In 2019, an estimated 67 million people visited the city. In 2020, that plummeted to slightly more than 22 million, mostly those who came before the pandemic began rampaging in New York in March.

Restaurants and stores were forced to close, as were some hotels, bringing the city's available rooms from 124,000 to 88,000, according to city tourism officials.

On top of that, unrest over racial injustice in late spring led to two days of property destruction and stealing. While the damage was limited and cleanup quick, the city suffered through months of bad press as then-President Donald Trump, eager to bash his Democrat-run hometown, publicly smeared it as having succumbed to anarchy.

The daytime Times Square shooting brought a fresh round of handwringing.

But after a moribund year, things are looking up. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, for example, has reached 9,000 visitors on some recent days. That's still far less than the swarms of 25,000 who once packed in on the busiest days pre-pandemic, but far more than the museum was seeing when it reopened in late August.

Ridership is up on the ferries that take visitors from the southern tip of Manhattan to the Statue of Liberty, where the grounds and a museum are open even as the statue's interior remains off limits.

Rafael Abreu, vice president for marketing at Statue Cruises, said it had been fairly slow" through February, but ridership had risen in March and April to about 25-30% of pre-pandemic times.

Hotel occupancy, which had been running in the 30% range, has been in the 50% range over the last few weeks, said Fred Dixon, president and CEO of NYC & Company, the citys tourism agency.

New hotels are opening, and the number of rooms is expected to reach 118,000 by year's end.

Its just really wonderful, Dixon said of the city's cautious reawakening. And so, its given us a lot of hope.

The agency is predicting just over 31 million visitors in 2021.

City and state officials in recent weeks have been making moves to open the city up as much as possible.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the city's subway system would return to 24-hour service in mid-May. Capacity restrictions on businesses are being lifted, although 6 feet (2 meters) of space between patrons will still be required.

The Yankees and Mets have been allowed to boost crowd capacity at games, with no restrictions at all on people who can show they have been vaccinated.

De Blasio last month announced a $30 million tourism marketing campaign that NYC & Company will launch in June.

The city and state are also setting up vaccination stations offering free shots to tourists.

We think this is a positive message to tourists. Come here. Its safe. Its a great place to be and were going to take care of you, said de Blasio, a Democrat.

In a city where multitudes are dependent on tourism for their livelihoods, things can't get better quickly enough.

Michael Keane, an owner of OHaras Restaurant and Pub near the World Trade Center site, said things have been looking up.

Its been a slow crawl but were seeing more and more tourists every week come in the area, he said, noting that he's keeping a nervous eye on how the virus has continued to ravage some other countries. I cant imagine going through that again."

Limitations remain. Broadway shows won't start running again until September. Some attractions require timed reservations to keep crowds down. Others are still closed.

But even with things moving slower, Fuhrer said she was definitely not disappointed with her trip.

Back home, I feel like people are still a little bit cautious out there with COVID, she said. Meanwhile, in New York, I feel like everybody out here is trying to get their life going.

She and girlfriend Gabbi Allen, 23, both vaccinated, felt like they got to experience some of that New York vibe.

All the sirens, all the honking," Allen said.

People yelling at each other in the middle of the street," Fuhrer added.

The lower-key New York City has actually been wonderful, said Stephanie Piefke, 24, of Atlanta, a frequent visitor out recently for some touristy activities with her friend, first-time visitor Danielle Jenkins.

The women, both vaccinated, said at the Empire State Building there were maybe a few dozen people cruising through a waiting area set up to handle what Piefke said would have been a miserable snaking line.

She didn't think the quieter New York City would last, though, once the city fully reopens.

Yall are gonna be like, Oh God, theyre here,'" she said, and itll be like a tsunami of tourists that have been wanting to come.
ROME (AP)  A top World Health Organization official has strongly denied making false statements to Italian prosecutors about a spiked U.N. report into Italys coronavirus response, doubling down on his assertions in court documents obtained by The Associated Press.

Dr. Ranieri Guerra, a WHO special adviser, outlined his position in a 40-page response, with a 495-page annex, to prosecutors who placed him under investigation last month for having allegedly made false statements to them when he was questioned Nov. 5.

The prosecutors claims create a picture that is quite different from the reality of the facts and above all, are imprecise and dont adhere to the reconstruction of events that Dr. Guerra provided, said the response signed by Guerras Rome-based attorney, Roberto De Vita.

Prosecutors are investigating the huge COVID-19 death toll in the Lombardy province of Bergamo, which was hit hardest when Italy became the epicenter of the pandemic in Europe last year. Their investigation initially focused on whether delayed lockdowns in Bergamo contributed to the toll, but has expanded to include whether Italys overall preparedness going into the crisis played a role.

That second path of investigation was sparked by controversy over a WHO report into Italys response that was published by the U.N. health agency May 13, 2020 but taken down a day later from the WHO website and never republished.

The ensuing scandal revealed that Italys pandemic preparedness plan hadnt been updated since 2006, and the reports disappearance suggested that WHO had spiked it to spare the Italian government criticism and potential liability. WHO has said it was removed because it contained inaccuracies and was published prematurely.

Guerra, who was serving as a WHO liaison with the Italian government during the crisis, has not been charged. But he became embroiled in the scandal after the coordinator of the report, Dr. Francesco Zambon, accused Guerra of pressuring him to alter data in the report to make it appear that the pandemic plan had been updated in 2016-2017 when it had not.

Bergamo prosecutors have said the preparedness plan should have been updated during Guerras 2014-2017 tenure as head of prevention at the Italian Health Ministry to reflect new international guidance from the WHO and European Commission in 2009 and 2013.

In the new document, Guerra argued the WHO guidelines werent compulsory and that the EU guidance was primarily about coordination with other states, not about internal pandemic plans.

Guerra also noted that before he left the ministry to join the WHO in 2017, he wrote the then-minister alerting her that Italy needed a new pandemic preparedness plan. As a result, his response said, prosecutors should verify if the action initiated by Dr. Guerra in September 2017 was followed by those who succeeded him.

In addition, Guerra pointed the finger at Italy's regions, which are largely responsible for health care: He argued national preparedness plans are only designed to provide organizational planning, while individual regions are responsible for putting the plans into concrete action with local legislation and policies of their own.

Guerra also said he had nothing to do with the decision to spike the report and that the original impetus came from WHOs Beijing office, which objected to a politically sensitive timeline of the China origins of COVID-19.

Kindly pull the document off the web immediately. Consider this an emergency, WHOs China representative, Gauden Galea, wrote Zambon and others May 14 in an email contained in the annex. This document is inaccurate and contradicts the HQ timeline in a couple of places.

Zambon has acknowledged he took the report off the web because of the China inaccuracy, fixed it, and reprinted the report. But WHO never put it back up on the website.

The Bergamo prosecutors outlined their allegations against Guerra in a March 8 rogatory request to the Italian justice and foreign ministries, seeking their assistance in forwarding specific questions to the WHO as part of the investigation.

Included in the prosecutors' document were transcripts of WhatsApp chats between Guerra and Dr. Silvio Brusaferro, president of Italys Superior Institutes of Health, in which Guerra appears to boast that he had intervened to have the report spiked.

In the end I went to Tedros and got the document removed, Guerra wrote Brusaferro May 14, 2020, referring to WHOs director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

In his response to prosecutors, Guerra questioned the authenticity of the partial WhatsApp chats and said they lacked necessary context to be understood. Regardless, he said, the content has no relevance with respect to the declared investigation."

The WHO press office has denied that Tedros was involved in spiking the report and insisted it was taken down based on inaccuracies and inconsistencies in the text, which it said hadnt cleared all approvals.

Guerra's lawyer, De Vita, said in an interview that Guerra has suffered greatly from the months of controversy over the report and was embittered to now find himself under investigation, when he freely went to prosecutors to contribute what he knew as a scientist and civil servant.

He could have, as others probably did, availed himself of functional diplomatic immunity," De Vita said of Guerra's status as a U.N. official. If he had something to hide, even remotely," he never would have gone.

___

Follow APs pandemic coverage at:

https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic

https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine

https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
BRANFORD  While some saw the enormous stone house as a historic treasure in the center of Pine Orchard, others said they were happy to see it torn down.

The Warner House at 265 Pine Orchard Road, a 10,105-square-foot home with nine bedrooms and seven baths, sold in January for $1.3 million to Wallingford-based 265 Pine Orchard Road, LLC. The local landmark, which sat across the street from Youngs Pond, was on the market for about five years.

Built by Alden Young in 1894, one of the founders of Pine Orchard, as a wedding present for his daughter, Olive Warner, the house has been called a white elephant by some neighbors, while others said they cherished the history of the place. Many expressed shock on Facebook that was razed on Friday, May 7.

Local preservationist and architectural historian John Herzan echoed that sentiment in a phone interview: The demolition is shocking and sad.

Members of the Branford Historical Society and Preservation Connecticut had initially applied for a 90-day demolition delay.

The demolition permit on file was under the name of 265 Pine Orchard LLC, according to the Branford Building Department.

A spokesperson for the Wallingford-based 265 Pine Orchard LLC, Peter Berdon, declined to comment when reached by phone.

The real estate agent who sold the house, Peter Cowie of William Pitt Sothebys, also declined to comment on any aspect of the house, sale or the buyer.

Meanwhile, local historical groups agreed to rescind the demolition delay once the new owner allowed them access to the house to document its interior for their records.

The 127-year-old house had changed over the years, adding features, such as intricately carved mahogany hunting scenes over a gleaming solid wood bar done in 1990; and wood ceiling medallions carved by European artisans who lived at the house and worked in a workshop onsite in the 1980s, according to the listing at William Pitt, Sothebys.

You can see a video of the interior of the house while it was on the market and more photos of the house.

While the funky carving on that house is not historically significant, its incredible craftsmanship and an incredible piece of the story, said Jane Montanaro, director of Preservation Connecticut, which had filed the demolition delay request along with the Branford Historical Society.

Its not historic but it will be! she noted.

In 1927, a two-story music room with tall windows, was built to accommodate a now rare Skinner pipe organ. The organs 1,500 pipes were housed in a pipe room in the basement, according to local historians,

While the organ, circa 1927, had a player component to it, that feature could be turned off to allow the organ to be played manually, according to Jean Allen who lived in the home for nearly 10 years.

It needed a lot of work, she said, referring to the antique instrument.

I had an organ guy come because I felt like I was steward of it and I didnt want to do it further harm, she said. He did a few tweaks, but basically he said the whole thing needs to be restored, a complete restoration.

Montanaro noted that the new owner salvaged the organ and shipped it to a church near the University of Virginia.

Along with the organ, many of the houses unique features will find new homes, according to Allen.

While she did not go into a lot of detail about the new owners, she said, I think they really worked hard to try to find homes for what they could.

Neighbor Betty Ann Donegan said that before the demolition, she saw a New York salvage company spend about a month at the house, removing wood, paneling, the elevator, bar, Stony Creek granite and the organ.

The house did have modern amenities  such as a professional kitchen with a six-burner Blue-Star range with Zephyr hood, a Sub-Zero refrigerator and Miele dishwasher. On the flip side, there was a 1931 working elevator, likely cutting edge in its day.

What makes a house historical?

Among local historians there seems to be disagreement on what makes a house historical.

Branford Historical Society member Matt Radulski said he didnt find much of historic value on the tour.

He noted that there were no interesting doorknobs or hardware  many historic homes in Branford often have doors retrofitted with Branford Lock Works stuff, and the bathrooms didnt hold anything antique  no claw-foot tubs or old pedestal sinks.

As far as pieces in the house of historical significance, Montanaro said she takes a wholistic approach.

Inside the house you could see where the original section was. The beautiful two-story music room and the staircase, she said.

We dont get caught up in being purists of what was historical, she added. We are open to houses evolving over time and changes being made as needed and new families moving in and being able to adapt it.

But for Allen it was home, not necessarily an historic house.

It becomes your house and your space you move around in, she said.

She said that the upkeep was a lot of work.

I spent an inordinate amount of time maintaining that house, she said.

It is rather ironic that I spent so much time maintaining that house and for five years it was on the market and getting it up to snuff each time and then somebody comes and it doesnt matter anymore, she said.

Allen said she is peaceful with the new owners decision to demolish the structure.

Some neighbors happy to see it go

For Donegan, who has lived in the neighborhood since 1973, seeing the house come down was wonderful.

It was too big a house, she said. It was too close the road, it was too big and it was dark inside. It was a real white elephant.

It was a nice house in its day, but it was impractical, she added. It was dark and cold. The people that bought it  its going to be lovely.

What theyre going to put up is going to be a nice normal house, she said. Im sure it will be lovely and much better situated on the property.

She is looking forward to seeing a new home, built farther off Pine Orchard Road.

Its going to brighten up the whole area, she added.

Yet for Montanaro, the new structure being built away from the road and closer to the water, changes the streetscape that she so admired.

When youre driving down the street  the scale, the materials, you know, the quirky architecture  that is what is being lost, Montanaro said.

Meanwhile, Donegan said the neighbors she has talked to are all very happy.

She watched, all day long, as a huge excavator dismantled the home, piece by piece.

Its interesting watching it come down, Donegan said, late in the afternoon as she watched work continue across the street.

They had to separate all the different components of the house, she said. They have to put the wood in one area, the metal in one area and the stones have to be separated.

Hes using that big machine like he could pick up a toothpick with it, she added, referring to the excavator. Its just incredible.

Another neighbor, Paul Gavejian, who could hear the work being done from his home, agreed with Donegan.

Im one of those folks that thinks that houses live their life and this has done exactly that, he said. I think its probably a good fitting that its being torn down.

Memories

Madison resident Ellen Kremskis mother, Ellen Lakso Johnson, was the cook for homeowner, a doctor whose last name was Smith, in the early 1930s and met her husband, Paul Johnson, (Kremskis father) while he was employed as the family driver.

Johnson moved from her home at the iconic Lakso Farm, currently on the market for some $5 million, to serve as the Smith family live-in cook, recalled Kremski. Smith worked at Waterbury Hospital, she noted.

One memory stood out for Johnsons granddaughter, Allison Herold, who remembered traveling with Johnson in her later years.

Herold recalled hearing about Johnsons time sheltered at the Pine Orchard home during the Hurricane of 1938.

Whenever they saw a home on the water, Johnson would say, Wait until the big storm comes, theyll be sorry, Herold said. If I had a dollar for every time she said that, I would be a wealthy woman.

Eunice Lasala, a 50-plus year Pine Orchard resident, has warm memories of the Warner house and doesnt consider it a white elephant.

She remembered, as a young bride, meeting the lady of the house in 1970 whom she described as a beautiful blonde woman.

I met her very casually. Somehow she invited Tony (Lasalas husband) and me to a dinner party at this house and didnt say much about it.

When the young couple came to the home, We were so overwhelmed. I was in complete awe. She had 200 people at a sit-down dinner in that big room.

What impressed me so much was that she had matching silver for everybody and I loved silver.

She remembered asking the hostess, Did you rent this? and her telling her Oh no thats part of my silver. Part of it! Lasala cried.

Lasala, active in Branford civic organizations for decades, noted that the house had hosted memorable events for nonprofit groups for years, from opera concerts, arts and crafts shows, to lavish parties.

In the 1990s, Lasala recalled a fundraiser for the Blackstone Library, where she served as a board member.

Then-owner Paul Halley, whom she described as enormously generous, allowed the library group to hold a very festive Kentucky Derby party.

He just turned it over completely to us, she said.

We had [live] horses provided by the Chambers from Shelleys. All the women wore big fancy hats, the men were dressed up  it was elegant. Everybody was given mint juleps.

It was just so elegant  what you would think that house would be befitting of, she said.

Lasala said she will miss the house, although, I wouldnt say Im sad. This is progress. Things keep moving, We have to accept it whether we like it or not.

Still, as a neighbor, she said, I kind of enjoyed going by it, having those memories. Its just what happens.

A shoreline community with history

Although these residents might not agree, the iconic house and other existing historic structures are an important part of Pine Orchard and part of what makes the hamlet unique, according to Montanaro. Pine Orchard, she said, has a whole lot of historic integrity as a shoreline community.

Montanaro sees her role as helping owners of historic properties to be in touch with what attracted them to a historic area in the first place. She said she aims to help them see the value of preserving historic elements or incorporating original features in their new dream house.

It seems contradictory to Montanaro when homeowners tell her: I love this historic district  but Im going to drop my dream house right here in the middle.

Now that the Warner house is demolished, she has hope that some Pine Orchard residents may consider becoming part of a National Register historic district.

She stressed that under the auspices of the National Register, there is no local oversight regarding homeowners making improvements and there are tax credits and incentives available.

Were hoping that something like this happening may cause the neighbors to maybe reconsider, she said.
WHITERIVER, ARIZONA  The COVID-19 pandemic hit Native Americans especially hard. But as the spotlight turned to larger communities, including the Navajo Nation, the White Mountain Apache Tribe quietly battled to save its 15,000 members.

Now, more than a year since the first COVID-19 cases were recorded in the U.S., the tribe in eastern Arizona has slowed the spread of the disease and helped curb death rates through a combination of intense contact-tracing, surveillance of high-risk individuals and, finally, vaccinations.

Last year, the reservation was considered a hotspot. By Sept. 1, five months after the tribes first recorded COVID-19 case, it had 2,400 cases and had lost 39 people. Over the next six months, there were 1,500 new cases and just 10 additional deaths.

Systemic social and health inequities, along with multiple generations living under one roof, have put residents of rural towns like Whiteriver at greater risk of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

The White Mountain Apache slowed the spread of the disease and helped curb death rates through intense contact tracing, surveillance of high-risk individuals and vaccinations.

Each day at 9 a.m., a team of medical professionals and tribal members gathers at the Whiteriver Indian Hospital to evaluate the spread of the virus. The morning session lasts about half an hour, then staff are assigned cases to follow up.

They separate into smaller teams and head out across the reservation, going door to door to check on those who are positive with COVID-19, to monitor vital signs of those at-risk and to vaccinate those who agree.

Early on, the medical team used pulse oximeters to assess patients vital signs more accurately and spot positive cases before more pronounced symptoms developed.

This outreach effort helped the team form a stronger bond with tribal members, which medical workers say allowed them to get better information about who might have been exposed to the virus and respond quickly to any deteriorating cases.

This familiarity with the community is partly attributed to health outreach programs that were in place before the COVID-19 outbreak last spring, and the inclusion of tribal members among the contact-tracing team.

Now that vaccinations are underway, that bond has been a valuable tool to deter skepticism about whether the shots are safe. Kristen Parker, outreach director for Public Health Service, notes that everyone in the community has been touched by tragedy during the pandemic. But now that shes able to deliver vaccines, she says, It feels amazing to be part of the solution.

Once vaccines became available, health care workers went directly to homes to administer them because not everyone can easily get to mass vaccination events. Often, more than one member of a household is vaccinated during a single visit.

Bonnie Lewis gets her second shot  completing her vaccinations series  and urges others to do the same. Go ahead and get it, because a lot of my family members have got COVID-19 and a lot of us have ended up in the hospital. Thats what happens if you dont, she says.

Bernard Henry, a father of nine, was scheduled to get his first shot when this photo was taken. Although he remains wary of potential vaccine side effects, he says hes relieved to get protected. He got COVID-19 but experienced only mild symptoms, but his wife was hospitalized last year.

Even though some skepticism about the vaccine persists among the White Mountain Apache, medical officers say theyre confident theyll be able to vaccinate most tribal members.

For more stories from Cronkite News, visit cronkitenews.azpbs.org.
GREAT FALLS, Mont. All Great Falls area Veterans (enrolled and unenrolled), their spouses, and their caregivers are invited to receive a COVID-19 vaccine from the Montana VA Health Care System (MTVAHCS) this Saturday. The vaccine clinic will be providing the second dose of the two-dose Moderna vaccine for Veterans who previously received their first dose from MTVAHCS on April 10. All Veterans and their spouses and caregivers can walk-in from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. to receive the single dose Janssen COVID-19 vaccine. The MTVAHCS Saturday vaccine clinic will take place at the Paris Gibson Education Center located at 2400 Central Avenue.

Veterans and their spouses and caregivers are encouraged to schedule a vaccine appointment in advance. Walk-in vaccines will be available, based on availability, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

To schedule an appointment:

Enrolled Veterans should call (877) 468-8387 and select Option 2, and then Option 2 to schedule a COVID-19 vaccine appointment. Non-enrolled Veterans, their spouses and/or caregivers, and CHAMPVA recipients will need to sign up online to register to receive a vaccine at https://www.va.gov/health-care/covid-19-vaccine/sign-up/introduction. Once registered, MTVAHCS will then contact each individual to schedule a vaccine appointment. Walk-in appointments are also available at most MTVAHCS vaccine clinics.

Under the SAVE Lives Act (also known as H.R. 1276), which was signed into law on March 23, the VAs legal authority to provide COVID-19 vaccines expanded to include all Veterans, regardless of their VA health care enrollment status, as well as Veteran spouses, caregivers, and some beneficiaries.

Montana VA has been able to bring over 18,000 vaccine doses to Veterans, their spouses, and their caregivers, said MTVAHCS Executive Director Dr. Judy Hayman. These doses mean that almost 10,000 Montana Veterans are fully vaccinated. Creating herd immunity is our best shot at ending this pandemic, and we thank each of the 10,000 Montanans and each Great Falls Veteran and their family members who are showing up this Saturday to get a COVID-19 vaccine and help keep themselves and their communities safe.

Any Veteran who has questions about the COVID-19 vaccines is encouraged to call in this Friday to speak with Montana VA providers. From 12:30-1:30 p.m., MTVAHCS staff are fielding any and all COVID-19 vaccine questions. All questions are welcome. To access the conversation, people should dial in at 12:30 p.m. at 1-872-701-0185. When prompted, enter 959 246 368#.

The MTVAHCS serves over 47,000 enrolled Veterans across Montanaan area roughly 147,000 square miles in size. Veterans are cared for by a staff of 1,400 at 17 sites of care across the state. One third of Montana VA employees are Veterans. This event will be held at the at Billings VA Health Care Center, Montana VA Health Care System on 1766 Majestic Lane.

Veterans can follow COVID-19 vaccination updates via email (sign up here), Facebook (@VAMontana), or Twitter (@VAMontanaHCS). If a Veteran has questions about receiving the vaccine, they can send their healthcare team a secure message through MyHealtheVet or call (877) 468-8387 (Option 2) to set up a time to discuss the COVID-19 vaccine. Any Veteran who has received a COVID-19 vaccine from a community (non VA ) provider is encouraged to notify their MTVAHCS healthcare team to have their records updated.
In a major decision on Monday, the Chief Minister directed the police not to allow Covid patients from the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh to enter into the state as the city hospitals were clogged with outsiders.  PTI

Hyderabad: Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao is likely to impose more restrictions on the movement of people while continuing to allow the economic activity as part of the revised containment strategy for Covid-19, the second wave of which turned more fatal, claiming hundreds of lives in the state.

The Chief Minister will hold a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday to discuss the pros and cons of imposing lockdown amidst divergent views on the move and the adverse impact it will have on paddy procurement, according to an official press release. There were reports that suggested that cases did not decrease despite a lockdown while some sections were arguing in favour of imposing the shutdown, said the press release.

According to sources, the government was considering extending the curfew hours and total shutdown during weekends. While restrictions will be more in Hyderabad and other urban agglomerations, a liberal approach would be adopted in rural areas to ensure smooth transportation of paddy to the procurement centres.

The neighbouring Andhra Pradesh has clamped curfew from 12 noon to 6 am and the state for the first time saw a decline in the number of positive cases. There are different options on curfew timings and a final decision would be taken in the Cabinet meeting, a senior official said adding that there would not be total lockdown in the State as it would derail the economy which had been witnessing revival.

Meanwhile, in a major decision on Monday, the Chief Minister directed the police not to allow Covid patients from the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh to enter into the state as the city hospitals were clogged with outsiders. Ambulances were intercepted on all the inter-state borders and those patients who secured admission in city hospitals alone were allowed leaving many with no option but to go back to their respective places.

Defending the decision to seal borders for Covid patients, senior officials explained that the Centre had been allocating oxygen, vaccines and essential drugs on a pro-rata population basis. While the respective states are getting these supplies, people from those states have been consuming them in city hospitals depriving the local people of the same, said a health official.

Raos decision to explore the possibilities of imposing lockdown two days after dismissing it as an ineffective measure also comes in the wake of the Telangana High Court taking up hearing on Covid containment measures by the state government on Tuesday. The Opposition parties also stepped up their campaign for lockdown and Bharatiya Janata Party went a step ahead and accused the Chief Minister of appeasing Muslims by not imposing any restrictions in view of Ramzan.
PHOENIX  Arizona is not just a desert.

The state boasts six national forests, tied for the ninth-most for any state in the country. Approximately 15 percent of the states land is designated as forest, including the largest ponderosa pine forest in North America.

Mountainous grassland and chaparral in the states transition zone separates the true desert and the woods, creating a paradox in the eyes and mind of visitors.

But some of those who venture into Arizonas vast wilderness arent properly prepared for it. They become lost, run out of supplies or dont have enough water. And the COVID-19 pandemic has drawn even more people outside, creating more problems.

Enter SPOT, a company that makes satellite communication devices that can make exploring remote areas in Arizona and other places safer, especially for newcomers to the outdoors.

With (the) trend of more and more people going outdoors because of COVID-19 restrictions, people are not as skilled in doing some of these outdoor activities, said Denise Davila, corporate communications director for SPOT. Whether thats hiking or whitewater rafting or whatever outdoor activity youre engaging in, maybe youre a newbie. So it makes even more of a case for having a device like this, because its a little bit of insurance.

SPOT works directly with sheriff offices throughout Arizona to coordinate rescues of people stranded, whether they are hikers, climbers, rafters or other adventure seekers.

The technology is also popular among thru-hikers  those who traverse some of the countrys National Scenic Trails, like the 800-mile Arizona National Scenic Trail  allowing family or friends to track their progress or for rescue teams to find them in times of peril.

(Its) tremendously helpful for search and rescue units to determine fairly precisely where the location of an incident is, said Sgt. Aaron Dick, who leads Coconino Countys search and rescue unit. We may get a better understanding of, What is the problem? Like if somebody is missing from the party, or if we have a search situation, or if theres an injury or a medical problem or if youre stuck in the snow.

That gives us a better idea of what tools we should bring and what personnel (is needed).

It works like this: SPOTs hand-held, carriable, satellite-linked devices are connected 24 hours a day, every day of the week, to an international rescue center run by GEOS. It fields calls and determines location coordinates when someone pushes the SOS button on a SPOT device.

The center alerts the closest municipalities to a stranded individual or group, which triggers a rescue response from the local squad.

There is a potential for two-way communication to help us better understand what the problem is and so we know what kind of resources we need to bring to that situation, Dick said.

Since January of 2010, SPOT has fielded 165 punches of the SOS button on its devices in Arizona. Of those, 77 were designated as hiking/mountain sports rescues. Motor vehicle and medical rescues are next with just 22 and 21 incidents, respectively.

Specifically in Arizona, as you might suspect, a lot of the activity that we see tends to occur around the national parks area, Davila said. So you know, Grand Canyon National Park, Lake Mead, Grand Canyon Village, Saguaro National Park.

Dick said device activations like those on SPOT systems are rare, but he has seen an uptick lately.

More recently, its on the increase, he said. There are more of these devices getting out there and people are buying them. We expect that we will see more activations of these types of devices. In the past 10-15 years, weve responded to about 12 PLBs (Personal Locator Beacon distress signals) throughout Coconino County, and in the past few years weve responded to six or seven devices.

Coconino County covers a large swath of Northern Arizona, including Grand Canyon National Park, the San Francisco Peaks, the northern, more remote areas of Sedona, inner Sycamore Canyon and the top of the Mogollon Rim  all vast landscapes with plenty of beauty, but also plenty of potential trouble.

Thats when devices like SPOT can be a life-saver. Davila had multiple examples of hikers, adventurers or even farmers finding themselves in sticky situations all across the country  from Colorado to Montana to Californias Yosemite National Park.

Its the type of device that you want to think about like, you dont want to have it. But in the event that you do need it, youre very, very grateful that you have it, Davila said.

Michael Gelfeld, a private tutor and Flagstaff resident, can relate. During a thru-hike of the 2,190-mile Appalachian Trail in 2016, Gelfeld was caught in a blizzard in the mountains of North Carolina.

Because of some summer commitments I had, I ended up starting that hike in the middle of January, which is very early to get on that trail, Gelfeld said.

After hitching up to the top of 5,280 foot Albert Mountain, which the Appalachian Trail crosses at the summit and features a forest service road to the top, Gelfeld called the Forest Service, asking for advice and assistance. With the snow continuing to come down, rangers failed to get a snowmobile up the road.

At that point, Gelfeld was stuck. The Forest Service told him to head down an old use trail and attempt to meet up with a ranger at the end of the snow-covered road, but he had little success.

I didnt really have a choice, Gelfeld said. So I followed their instructions and basically as soon as I went down that trail and left the top of the mountain, I lost my cell phone coverage. The conditions got so bad that I would say within a half mile I lost the trail.

(So) Im just out in the woods in a blizzard at that point.

Accepting his fate, Gelfeld decided to hunker down for the night. He made a small structure with leaves and branches, and bundled himself up into a sleeping bag.

I fell asleep very frightened but I did go to sleep, he said.

But just before Gelfeld closed his eyes, he pressed the SOS button on his SPOT device, hoping that someone  anyone  would be able to locate and find him. Knowing the Forest Service was already aware of the situation, he figured people were looking. It was 7 p.m. when Gelfeld drifted off.

Around six hours later, Gelfeld was awoken. Surrounding him were four local volunteer firefighters.

(They) walked right to my position because of the GPS locator, Gelfeld said.

Without it, Gelfeld said his experience on the trail would have only worsened. His two options were either to hike back up to the summit of Albert, or wade his way through the dense woods. Either would have him trekking through three feet of snow.

I guess the other option (would have been) to stay put, Gelfeld said. (But) theres no guarantee I would have been found any time soon. So it would have been a pretty difficult spot for me to make a very important decision under stressful conditions.

Dick worries that technology like SPOTs can create bad habits among both experienced adventure junkies and outdoors newbies. He believes the devices can provide a convenient excuse for people to take chances or act stupidly.

These devices shouldnt substitute for quality training or other preparation, he said. I think thats one of the fears among those involved with search and rescue.

Gelfeld echoed a similar sentiment.

I would tell people that the SOS button needs to remain as a last resort kind of thing, Gelfeld said. I called the local Forest Service before I pressed an emergency button. Try and exercise resources and really assess your ability to get yourself out of a situation before you press a button that is going to get four volunteer firefighters to walk out in the middle of a blizzard. The people that come rescue you wherever you are and risking their own lives and safety.

Dick implores people to take proper precautions and heed warnings from Mother Nature so that they dont end up in situations like Gelfelds.

Evaluate the weather, and be prepared if you get out in the field and things dont start going well  like if the weather is changing or if the conditions arent what you expected, Dick said. Do not be afraid to turn around and try again another time, and dont press on because you had the time off.

The mountains and canyons will still be there.

For more stories from Cronkite News, visit cronkitenews.azpbs.org.
It wasnt the exact same speech, but the words were familiar and the message was identical.

President Biden addressed the disappointing April jobs report on Monday, just as he did on Friday. Economists had expected the economy to create as many as 1 million jobs in that month, but employers added just 266,000. Biden insists that everything will be all right.

It takes time to recover from a once-in-a-century pandemic, he said, urging patience both days and no doubt sensing the political danger a slowing economy puts on his ambitious infrastructure package and other spending proposals.

On Friday, the president asserted that his $1.9 trillion stimulus package was a long-term play: We never thought that after the first 50 or 60 days everything would be fine. On Monday, he reiterated that he never said, and no serious analyst ever said, that climbing out of the deep, deep hole our economy was in would be simple, easy, immediate, or perfectly studied.

There will be good months, and bad months. But what really matters, according to the president, is the overall picture. The question is: What is the trend line? Are we headed in the right direction? Are we taking the right steps to keep it going? And the answer clearly is yes.

While economists were wrong with their rosy jobs forecast, Biden touted the fact that his administration oversaw the most jobs created in the first 100 days [in office] of any president on record. He inherited a vaccine but a slow economy, one that was adding just 60,000 new jobs a month. More than half the adult population has now received at least one dose of that vaccine, and the economy has added more than 1.5 million jobs. For any historian keeping track at home, Biden noted that that figure was more than three times the solid job creation President Carter saw in his first 100 days. And more than six times what President Reagan saw.

He spoke into a camera in the East Room while accompanied by Vice President Harris. His only audience was a small group of reporters, many of whom had heard him the first time when he said the April jobs report was nothing to worry about. And on Monday, the president outlined a little more of how his mammoth American Rescue Plan would be spent.

The Treasury Department opened the flood gates Monday for state and local governments to get a share of the $350 billion in relief that Congress appropriated earlier in the year. And on the same day, the administration sent relief checks to 16,000 of the hardest hit restaurants and bars.

None of this is enough, though, and the buzzwords of the Biden administration thus far have been urgency and investment. It branded the first stimulus as a rescue plan that was urgently needed to shore up the economy. It is now pushing a $2.3 trillion infrastructure package and a $1.8 trillion American Families Plan as the follow-through part of the campaign promise to build back better.

But the April numbers may have impacted momentum. Before the White House announced that Biden would make a second address on Monday, Republicans and Democrats were already arguing on the Sunday shows that the slowing economy was evidence for each of their dueling political positions.

It is a terrible jobs report, not what we were expecting at all, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said on CNN, making the Republican case that the numbers were the predictable consequence of too generous unemployment benefits. But thats what happens when we pay people not to work.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn said on the same news channel that the idea that anyone would collect unemployment rather than look for work was akin to the big lie that the election had been stolen from Donald Trump. This notion that people don't want to go to work because they'd rather stay at home, that they will make more money drawing unemployment, I've been hearing that all of my life, Clyburn said. It has never been true. It's not true now. I don't think it will ever be true.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has also said as much, telling reporters on Friday that generous benefits were not hurting employment, and White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the same Monday, insisting that we dont see much evidence that the extra unemployment insurance is a major driver in people not rejoining the workforce. Then, less than an hour later, the president addressed at length an issue that his team said was not a problem.

It was not the first time. Asked on Friday if unemployment benefits were creating a disincentive for people returning to work, Biden answered with just three words: No, nothing measurable. Republican criticism apparently landed over the weekend, though, because Biden gave a more robust defense in his prepared remarks on Monday.

If youre receiving unemployment benefits and youre offered a suitable job, you cant refuse that job and just keep getting unemployment benefits, he said. There are some COVID specific exceptions, he noted, but thats the law.

According to economists at Bank of America, anyone previously making less than $32,000 a year is better in the short term just receiving unemployment benefits. There is definitely a job paradox thats going on, Joe Song, senior U.S. economist at Bank of America Corp., told Bloomberg News. Its difficult to quantify, but its clearly a challenge thats weighing on a quicker pace of recovery.

Biden didnt make much of such reports. He dismissed the analysis as patronizing, if not unpatriotic: I think the people who claim Americans wont work, even if they find a good and fair opportunity, underestimate the American people.
Fairfield, MT (59436)

Today

Cloudy skies with periods of rain this afternoon. High 58F. Winds NW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Low 39F. Winds WSW at 15 to 25 mph. Higher wind gusts possible.
A charity has developed a campaign to encourage farmers to talk about personal wellbeing during this year's mental health awareness week.

The Farming Community Network (FCN) is asking farmers if they really are 'as tough as old boots' throughout the course of this week's annual initiative.

The charity's campaign seeks to break down some of the ways in which farmers might put on a brave face and avoid talking about difficult topics such as suicide, bereavement and loneliness.

The FCN says it wants farmers and others in the industry to share the poster to let those living and working in rural areas know that help is always available.

Alex Phillimore, of the FCN, said those in the farming community had the reputation for being able to weather any storm and overcome any challenge.

Are you really as tough as old boots? During #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek we're highlighting why it isn't a sign of weakness to talk about #mentalhealth and some of the ways FCN can help farming families during stressful and difficult times. #mhaw2021 #mentalhealth #mhaw pic.twitter.com/HdGxNH7Ova  The Farming Community Network (@FCNcharity) May 10, 2021

"While farmers are incredibly resilient, there is no harm in letting people know when we need an extra hand, or when were worried about something and dont know how to resolve it on our own.

Were certainly stronger together and we hope this campaign will help to challenge preconceived notions and remind farming families that FCN and other charities are here to help.

"Our tough as old boots communication builds upon a similar message that FCN promoted in the past to encourage people to ask for help, before mental health was as widely talked about.

Last month the FCN, working with the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs, launched new Rural+ mental health awareness training modules.

The charity is also involved in research with the University of Exeter examining farmers experiences of loneliness, isolation and mental ill-health.
A survey of farms in the East Midlands region has found that net income from the latest harvest season fell by nearly a quarter.

The survey, which covers a total of 20,000 acres of farmland in the region, was carried out by accountancy firm Duncan & Toplis.

It found the average net farm income for the 2020 harvest fell to 109 per hectare, down from 133 the year before.

However, this 18 percent fall was better than the 30 percent predicted a year ago.

Every year, Duncan & Toplis surveys farms in the region with year ends between September and January to identify the overall trends across the sector.

This year's survey shows that the main cause of the income reduction was the wet winter and flooding of 2019/20, followed by a extremely dry spring.

The flooding across parts of the East Midlands, including Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire in late 2019, meant farmers were unable to drill much of their winter wheat.

This left large areas of land unused until spring crops could be planted, and a dry spring followed which led to difficult growing conditions, limiting yields further.

Increases in commodity prices helped to offset the cost of the reduced yields, but gross margins still fell from 665 to 627 per hectare, making this the third year in a row in which profit margins have tightened.

Mark Chatterton, head of agriculture at Duncan & Toplis said: While net income is still far better than the low-point in 2016, it has been a difficult year for many.

"Fuel saw a considerable fall due to a price reduction and a change in cropping mix to more spring crops and fallow. Machinery repairs and contract and hire costs also fell.

Meanwhile, depreciation increased slightly. This figure is net of profit on sale and this had a greater impact in 2019 when there were more trade-ins.

"Property repairs also reduced back to 2018 levels as farmers did not carry out as many planned projects because they anticipated a poorer year.

"Other overheads remained consistent, but rent and finance costs increased as the fall in profits increased overdrafts," he added.

Looking ahead to the 2021 harvest, the firm expects average yields to be below the five year average once again because weather patterns have not been favourable.

More winter crops were sown last autumn than in the previous year, but many farmers report having bare patches in their fields as a result of poor drainage.

Fortunately, crop prices remain high: Most farmers budgeted realistic prices for wheat of 155 per tonne and 375 per tonne for oilseed rape," Mr Chatterton said.

"Forward prices are now a lot higher, but many have locked into a selling strategy already and so they will not reach these higher prices on average.

"On average, farms will also experience the effects of an 15% drop in the Basic Payment subsidy."

He said farm gross margins for the upcoming harvest could be 50/ha higher at 677/ha, but net profits would depend on the ability for farms to control costs.

"This might be more difficult to achieve this year, because many investments will have been postponed due to the poor harvests of recent years and there may be new challenges in securing seasonal workers due to Covid and Brexit," he said.
Opportunities to stem methane emissions from livestock could be lost if the way the UK accounts for its greenhouse gas emissions is not addressed urgently, a farmer-funded thinktank has said.

The Commercial Farmers Group (CFG) has called on the UK to urgently adopt a dual accounting approach using two different models side-by-side.

The group said this approach would help cattle and sheep farmers manage methane outputs better and even provide offsetting opportunities for other industries.

The call comes as a new United Nations report on the potential for methane mitigation was recently published.

It said curbing emissions from ruminant livestock presents opportunities, but the potential is hard to measure and estimates fluctuate significantly.

Andrew Loftus, Yorkshire farmer and member of CFG, said the lack of suitable accounting methods only confounded this further.

It means the UK livestock industry cannot access accurate and consistent feedback on the real warming impact of methane emissions and the success of different mitigation efforts.

He said the commonly used GWP100 accounting method was reliable at measuring gases which lasted hundreds or thousands of years, but it did not work for biogenic methane from ruminant livestock,.

This is methane that is belched when the animals digest forage, broken down after only 12 years into water and CO2, then locked back up by pasture and forage crops through photosynthesis.

He said this was a completely different proposition from, for example, CO2 produced from burning fossil fuels: "Thats why we need a different way of measuring methanes impact."

The alternative model to address this problem already exists. GWP*, developed at University of Oxford, reflects the true warming impact of individual gases, particularly those of short-lived climate pollutants such as methane.

It is this model the CFG wants to see officially recognised by the UK governments for accounting purposes alongside GWP100.

Mr Loftus said New Zealand already led the way in adopting GWP* alongside GWP100, but the concept had not yet gained wider traction.

Everyone we speak to who understands the scientific principles behind greenhouse gas accounting, whether researcher or politician, has acknowledged the superior ability of GWP* to measure actual climate warming  its validity is not questioned.

"The issue with adoption seems to be inertia and reluctance to move away from the status quo, Mr Loftus explained.

Professor Myles Allen of Oxford Martin School at University of Oxford, whose team developed GWP*, has stressed the importance of using the correct measures to achieve the required results.

He said that having decided to aim for climate neutrality, there was a simple choice: We can define climate neutrality in terms of metric-equivalent emissionsor in terms of warming-equivalent emissions.

"This should be an open and public discussion, because the implications, particularly for agriculture, are profound.

Achieving climate neutrality in terms of metric-equivalent emissions could mean eliminating practices, such as ruminant agriculture, that are not actually causing global warming.

"Warming-equivalent emissions [such as GWP*] resolve this problem, Professor Allen stated.

He also warned that failure to address fossil fuel emissions continues to be the bigger issue which overrides any discussion on how to measure methane.

Fossil fuel emissions are driving up global temperatures by two-tenths of a degree a decade. Until we stop doing that, everything else is kind of moot.

With the UK hosting both the G7 summit in June and COP26 in November, the CFG said the UK had a unique opportunity to lead on meaningful greenhouse gas accounting.

Mr Loftus added: Accurate measurement would unlock new technologies to mitigate warming and balance high quality, home-grown protein production with the complexities of optimising land use and reinstating biodiversity.

"It would show tremendous leadership if the UK became the first G7 country to implement dual accounting.
Insecticide Insyst (acetamiprid) has received an emergency authorisation from the government following an application by the NFU and British Sugar.

Sugar beet growers can use one application of Certis insecticide InSyst to control peachpotato aphid to prevent virus yellows infection this year.

The application was made jointly by the NFU and British Sugar with technical input from the British Beet Research Organisation (BBRO).

The BBRO said the arrival of peachpotato aphids was anticipated in the third week of May.

Professor Mark Stevens, the firm's head of science, said June would be the 'crucial month' for aphids in sugar beet this year.

He added that InSyst offered additional protection alongside Teppeki if needed to keep aphids and virus yellows in check.

There are potentially a lot of reservoirs left over from the 2020/21 campaign," Professor Stevens said.

"Groundkeepers, spoil heaps and energy beet still waiting to be moved are all sources with the potential to cause virus hot spots.

He also reminded growers to only apply aphicides once the threshold of one green wingless aphid per four plants up to the 12 true leaf stage was met.

The InSyst emergency authorisation states that crops must only be sprayed if following an initial spray of Teppeki this threshold is still met.

The emergency authorisation expires on 31 July.
Farming groups have criticised Natural England's approval for 60 white-tailed eagles to be reintroduced in an area of Norfolk known for its pig and poultry production.

The eagles, the UK's largest bird of prey, will be released over a 10-year period on the Ken Hill estate, west Norfolk, which is operating an early-stage lowland rewilding project.

The juvenile birds will be sourced from Poland, where there are around 1,000 pairs of white-tailed eagles.

Natural England issued the licence of approval to the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation, whose project will start from next year.

The charity said the white-tailed eagles would 'fit into the landscape very well', with Natural England saying it was 'satisfied' that there were 'no significant risks associated involved'.

But farming groups have expressed concern that it will see the introduction of an apex predator species in one of the UK's most densely-populated pig and poultry production areas.

The National Pig Association (NPA) highlighted that pig producers were 'rightly worried' about the impact of the birds on their businesses.

We are disappointed that Natural England has given the project the green light without addressing the concerns of NPA members," senior policy adviser Charlie Dewhirst said.

"East Anglia is home to a significant proportion of the UKs outdoor pig herd and farmers are rightly worried by the potential impact of introducing these large apex predators."

Natural England responded by saying it 'understood' farmers' concerns about the potential impact that the white-tailed eagles would have on livestock businesses.

However, the agency added: "Having examined evidence from elsewhere in Europe we have concluded that the risks are low and are manageable."

The NFU has also criticised the decision, explaining that the area is home to around half of the country's outdoor reared pigs and poultry.

The union's East Anglia environment adviser Rob Wise said: Farmers are worried that the sea eagles will prey on livestock including lambs, piglets and free-range poultry.

Many members are also concerned about the impact sea eagles will have on their conservation efforts.

It comes after farmers in Scotland - home to more than 130 breeding pairs of white-tailed eagles - called for more action to better protect vulnerable livestock from the birds.

NFU Scotland said last month that farmers were frustrated by the lack of progress to date in relation to the management of the eagles.

In a report released in 2019, one farm in the country demonstrated a loss of 181 lambs during the period between 2012 and 2018.
Police in Cumbria have arrested a man and woman after a fight broke out at a Limousin cattle sale at Borderway Mart.

Police were called to the dispute at the livestock mart in Carlisle on Thursday 6 May at 8.50pm.

A 61-year-old man sustained a 'slight injury to his head' during the incident, according to Cumbria Police.

The force's spokesperson said: A 61-year-old male, from Sheffield, sustained a slight injury to his head.

A 53-year-old male from Shropshire was arrested for assault and later cautioned for the offence.

Also, a 57-year-old female from Shropshire was arrested for public order offence and also cautioned.
Any overzealous, though well-meaning judicial intervention may lead to unforeseen and unintended consequences in absence of any expert advice, the Centre told the top court.  AFP

New Delhi: The Centre has justified differential Covid vaccine pricing, telling the Supreme Court that the three-slab liberalised, market driven rates for the Centre, states and private hospitals will incentivise demand, lead to higher production, competition and attract overseas investors. While it did not explain why the Centre was procuring the vaccines at one rate and states have to buy the same vaccines for double or more, it emphasised that citizens of all age groups will get free vaccination throughout the country.

The Centre also told the Supreme Court in no uncertain terms to stay away from the vaccination issue that squarely falls within the executive domain, adding that judicial intervention may have serious consequences.

Standing firm on the differential pricing of the two vaccines it has negotiated, the Centre told the top court in an affidavit submitted late on Sunday that differential pricing would incentivised demand for the private vaccine manufacturers and added that its vaccination policy  response and strategy  is completely driven by expert medical and scientific opinion, leaving little room for judicial interference.

Any overzealous, though well-meaning judicial intervention may lead to unforeseen and unintended consequences in absence of any expert advice, the Centre told the top court, adding that in such a grave and unprecedented crisis, the wisdom of the executive should be trusted.

In its April 30, 2021, judgment, the Supreme Court had asked the government to revisit differential pricing of the Covid vaccines it had negotiated. It had also asked the Centre to opt for centralised procurement and decentralised distribution of Covid vaccine while noting that the existing policy, which burdens states to individually source the vaccine, may lead to chaotic situations.

The Serum Institute on India, which is producing Covishield, is selling it to the Central government for Rs 150 a shot. But state governments are paying Rs 300 a shot, and private hospitals Rs 600 a shot.

Bharat Biotech, which is also selling each shot of Covaxin to the Centre for Rs 150, is charging state governments Rs 400 for a dose, while private hospitals have to pay Rs 1,200 for each dose.

In its 218-page affidavit, including annexures, the Centre has said that differential pricing will not impact people in the age group of 18-44 as all of them will be vaccinated free of cost.

while it is ensured that the two vaccine manufacturers are not unduly enriched from out of public money, the citizens are not supposed to make any payment for getting both doses of the vaccine, the Centre said in its affidavit.

It also told the court that in its informal consultations with vaccine manufacturers it ensured that the price of vaccine is uniform for all the states so as to avoid any disparity resulting from one state ending up buying the vaccine at a higher price than the other. It added that based on the number of persons in the 18-44 age group in each state, the Centre has fixed the limit of the vaccines that each state can procure.

The Centre also told the court that those who choose and can pay the price, can go to private hospitals to be vaccinated. Vaccination through the private sector would facilitate better access and will reduce the operational stress on the government vaccination facilities, it said.

While ruling out door-to-door vaccination as not feasible, the Centre also declined to project the availability of vaccines for the next six months. It said that everything would depend on the successful augmentation in existing manufacturing capacity by two vaccine manufacturers by July and procurement of other vaccines from other countries and its quantity.

In its affidavit, the Centre also addressed the issue of the allocation of Remdesivir injection to states/Union Territories, pricing of essential drugs, their sale on inflated prices and fakes.
The American Rescue Plan Act

This years wide-ranging stimulus bill was passed along party lines by congressional Democrats (no Republican voted for the bill) and signed into law March 11, almost exactly a year after the passage of the CARES Act.

The latest stimulus bill sets aside $350 billion for state and local governments across the country, part of a $1.9 trillion spending package that included $1,400 direct payments to most Americans along with more than $120 billion for K-12 schools and billions more for vaccination efforts, aid to small businesses, childcare, mental health services and a major, one-year expansion of the Child Tax Credit  among a host of other items.

Another part of the bill is $10 billion for infrastructure projects around the country, including $100 million for projects in Virginia. Included on the Fauquier supervisors agenda is a resolution to send a letter to the Fauquier delegation to the Virginia General Assembly supporting the prioritization of school construction-ready projects in the allocation of State ARP funding.

The resolution mentions two Fauquier County school projects, the renovations of Cedar Lee Middle School and Taylor Middle School, as potential recipients of aid. The Cedar Lee project is scheduled to break ground this fall, and construction at Taylor will begin next year.
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Actor Amitabh Bachchan has finally spoken out about the offensive trolling and comments that Bollywood celebrities are subjected to every time there is a national or state-wise issue. As India battles the second wave of COVID-19, many on social media have taken to trolling celebrities for allegedly not doing anything and also when a celebrity does something and shares about it on social media. Bachchan revealed that he had contributed a2 crore towards a Covid-19 facility in Delhi and much more but doesn't talk about it as he finds it "embarrassing" to speak publicly about charitable efforts.

"Over a 1500 farmers bank loans paid off by my personal fund and prevented them from suicide," Bachchan wrote in his blog, adding that he had provided "food for over 400,000 daily wage earners in the country for a month  feeding almost 5000 in the city each day lunch and dinner and provided masks, PPE units to front line warriors, police hospitals in the thousands  through personal funds".

When migrant workers had been stranded due to the lockdowns, Bachchan had "booked 30 buses to locations in UP and Bihar and supplied them food and water for the overnight travel" and "booked an entire train from Mumbai to UP to carry 2800 migrant passengers free of cost at my expense  and when the destination State blocked the train from coming into their state and cancelled the train .. immediately chartered 3 Indigo Airline planes and flew almost 180 migrants in each flight to UP and Bihar and some to Rajasthan and J&K," he said.
CALGARY, AB, May 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Pembina Pipeline Corporation ("Pembina" or the "Company") (TSX: PPL) (NYSE: PBA) reported the voting results from its annual meeting of common shareholders held virtually on May 7, 2021 (the "Meeting"). Each of the matters voted upon at the Meeting is discussed in detail in the Company's Management Information Circular dated March 19, 2021 (the "Information Circular") and is available on the Company's website under "Investors - Shareholder Information" at www.pembina.com.

A total of 328,903,599 common shares representing 59.81 percent of the Company's issued and outstanding common shares were voted in person and by proxy in connection with the Meeting. The voting results for each matter presented at the Meeting are provided below:

1.Election of Directors

The following 11 nominees were appointed as directors of Pembina to serve until the next annual meeting of shareholders of the Company, or until their successors are elected or appointed:

Nominee Votes in Favour Votes Withheld

Percentage Number Percentage Number Anne-Marie N. Ainsworth 90.61% 282,410,283 9.39% 29,264,713 Cynthia Carroll 98.11% 305,771,267 1.89% 5,903,729 Michael H. Dilger 99.51% 310,132,360 0.49% 1,542,635 Randall J. Findlay 97.22% 303,024,793 2.78% 8,650,203 Robert G. Gwin 98.72% 307,679,573 1.28% 3,995,423 Maureen E. Howe 99.07% 308,770,678 0.93% 2,904,317 Gordon J. Kerr 98.11% 305,788,821 1.89% 5,886,174 David M.B. LeGresley 98.45% 306,848,586 1.55% 4,826,409 Leslie A. O'Donoghue 98.82% 308,004,182 1.18% 3,670,814 Bruce D. Rubin 99.75% 310,892,115 0.25% 782,881 Henry W. Sykes 98.88% 308,184,170 1.12% 3,490,825

2.Appointment of Auditors

KPMG LLP, Chartered Accountants, were appointed to serve as the auditors of the Company until the close of the next annual meeting, at remuneration to be fixed by the directors on the recommendation of the Audit Committee.

3.Acceptance of Company's Approach to Executive Compensation

On an advisory basis and not to diminish the role and responsibility of the board of directors, the approach to executive compensation disclosed in the Information Circular was approved with approximately 93.75 percent of votes cast in favour.

Additional details in respect of the Meeting's voting results can be found on Pembina's profile at www.sedar.com and www.sec.gov.

About Pembina

Pembina is a leading transportation and midstream service provider that has been serving North America's energy industry for more than 65 years. Pembina owns an integrated system of pipelines that transport various hydrocarbon liquids and natural gas products produced primarily in western Canada. The Company also owns gas gathering and processing facilities; an oil and natural gas liquids infrastructure and logistics business; and is growing an export terminals business. Pembina's integrated assets and commercial operations along the majority of the hydrocarbon value chain allow it to offer a full spectrum of midstream and marketing services to the energy sector. Pembina is committed to identifying additional opportunities to connect hydrocarbon production to new demand locations through the development of infrastructure that would extend Pembina's service offering even further along the hydrocarbon value chain. These new developments will contribute to ensuring that hydrocarbons produced in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin and the other basins where Pembina operates can reach the highest value markets throughout the world.

Purpose of Pembina:

To be the leader in delivering integrated infrastructure solutions connecting global markets;

Customers choose us first for reliable and value-added services;

choose us first for reliable and value-added services; Investors receive sustainable industry-leading total returns;

receive sustainable industry-leading total returns; Employees say we are the 'employer of choice' and value our safe, respectful, collaborative and fair work culture; and

say we are the 'employer of choice' and value our safe, respectful, collaborative and fair work culture; and Communities welcome us and recognize the net positive impact of our social and environmental commitment.

Pembina is structured into three Divisions: Pipelines Division, Facilities Division and Marketing & New Ventures Division.

Pembina's common shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under PPL and PBA, respectively. For more information, visit www.pembina.com.

Investor Relations, Scott Arnold, (403) 231-3156, 1-855-880-7404, e-mail: investor-relations@pembina.com, www.pembina.com
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - May 10, 2021) - Justify Capital Corp. (TSXV: JST.P) ("Justify") and Everyday People Financial Inc. ("EP") are pleased to announce that they have entered into a non-binding letter of intent (the "LOI") dated May 7, 2021, which outlines the general terms and conditions of a proposed business combination, by way of an amalgamation, arrangement, take-over bid or other similar form of transaction, which will result in EP, and in turn its subsidiaries, at the applicable time (or successor corporation, as the case may be) becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of Justify or otherwise combining its corporate existence with that of Justify (the "Transaction"). Justify, after completion of the Transaction, is referred to herein as the "Resulting Issuer".

Justify is a "capital pool company" that completed its initial public offering in October, 2020. The common shares of Justify ("Justify Shares") are listed for trading on the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSXV") under the stock symbol JST.P. Justify has not commenced commercial operations and has no assets other than cash. It is intended that the Transaction, when completed, will constitute the "Qualifying Transaction" of Justify pursuant to Policy 2.4 - Capital Pool Companies (the "CPC Policy") of the TSXV.

Terms of the Transaction

Pursuant to the terms and conditions of the LOI, Justify and EP will negotiate and enter into a definitive agreement (the "Definitive Agreement") incorporating the principal terms of the Transaction as described in the LOI and this press release. There is no assurance that a Definitive Agreement will be successfully negotiated or entered into.

The LOI was negotiated at arm's length. The terms and conditions outlined in the LOI are non-binding on the parties and the LOI is expected to be superseded by the Definitive Agreement to be negotiated between the parties. Pursuant to the Transaction, all of the issued and outstanding Class "A" shares of EP ("EP Shares") will be exchanged for Justify Shares on a 1:1 basis. It is intended that any outstanding stock options and warrants of EP will be exercisable for comparable securities of the Resulting Issuer on the same economic terms.

Justify currently has issued and outstanding 3,360,000 Justify Shares, 300,000 stock options and 100,000 warrants to purchase Justify Shares.

EP currently has issued and outstanding 85,688,456 EP Shares, 2,850,000 stock options and 5,320,188 warrants to purchase EP Shares. EP may issue additional securities in connection with certain proposed acquisitions prior to the completion of the Transaction.

Concurrent Financing

The parties currently contemplate that EP will complete one or more brokered private placements of securities, which may include convertible debentures, subscription receipts or other convertible securities, which are currently being negotiated (the "Concurrent Financings"). It is intended that the Concurrent Financings would close prior to the closing of the Transaction. Further disclosure will be provided upon the successful negotiation. There is no assurance that such negotiations will be concluded successfully.

About EP

Everyday People Financial Inc. is a Canadian based FinTech company comprised of subsidiaries specializing in credit cards, lending, payment processing, homeownership facilitation and a collections agency. EP operates an advanced digital lending and banking services platform in partnership with DC Bank, a Schedule 1 Canadian Bank.

EP has operations in Canada, the United Kingdom and Europe with each subsidiary organized to carry-out operations in their own respective countries. The combined entities result in a vertically integrated finance company poised to serve a broad spectrum of large-scale corporate clients as well as underbanked and under-served consumers across the globe.

EP is headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta. For more information on Everyday People Financial Inc., visit www.epfinancial.com and www.ephomes.ca.

Management of the Resulting Issuer

As a result of the Transaction, the Resulting Issuer will indirectly carry on the business of EP and will change the Resulting Issuer's name to "Everyday People Financial Inc." or such other name as determined by EP and as may be accepted by the TSXV and any other relevant regulatory authorities.

If the Transaction is completed, it is expected that the board of directors of the Resulting Issuer on closing will be comprised of suitable nominees, each of whom will be appointed by EP. At the closing of the Transaction, the current directors of Justify will resign and be replaced by the nominees of EP, in accordance with corporate law and with the approval of the TSXV.

Conditions Precedent

Completion of the Transaction is subject to a number of conditions, including but not limited to:

satisfactory completion of due diligence;

execution of the Definitive Agreement;

completion of the Concurrent Financings;

receipt of all director, shareholder (if necessary) and requisite regulatory approvals, including the acceptance of the TSXV; and

preparation and filing of a management information circular or filing statement outlining the definitive terms of the Transaction and describing the business to be conducted by the Resulting Issuer following completion of the Transaction, in accordance with the policies of the TSXV.

About Justify

Justify's principal business is the identification and evaluation of assets or businesses with a view to completing a Qualifying Transaction. Investors are cautioned that trading in the securities of a capital pool company should be considered highly speculative.

Special Meeting of Justify Shareholders

The Transaction will be carried out by parties dealing at arm's length to one another and therefore will not be considered a "Non-Arm's Length Qualifying Transaction" as such term is defined in the CPC Policy. As a result, a special meeting of the shareholders of Justify is not required by the TSXV to approve the Transaction. However, the structure of the Transaction has not yet been finalized so shareholder approval under corporate law may be required.

Sponsorship

Justify intends to make an application for exemption from the sponsorship requirements of the TSXV in connection with the Transaction; however, there is no assurance that the TSXV will exempt Justify from all or part of the applicable sponsorship requirements.

Trading Halt

Trading in the Justify Shares has been halted and is not expected to resume trading until completion of the Transaction or until the TSXV receives the requisite documentation to resume trading.

Further Information

Justify will provide further details in respect of the Transaction in due course by way of press release in accordance with the requirements of TSXV Policy 2.4 - Capital Pool Companies. However, Justify will make available to the TSXV all information, including financial information, as required by the TSXV and will provide, in a press release to be disseminated at a later date, required disclosure.

All information contained in this press release with respect to Justify and EP was supplied by the respective party for inclusion herein, without independent review by the other party, and each party and its directors and officers have relied on the other party for any information concerning the other party.

Completion of the Transaction is subject to a number of conditions, including but not limited to, acceptance of the TSXV and if applicable pursuant to the requirements of the TSXV, majority of the minority approval. Where applicable, the Transaction cannot close until the required shareholder approval is obtained. There can be no assurance that the Transaction will be completed as proposed or at all.

Investors are cautioned that, except as disclosed in the management information circular or filing statement to be prepared in connection with the Transaction, any information released or received with respect to the Transaction may not be accurate or complete and should not be relied upon. Trading in the securities of a capital pool company should be considered highly speculative.

The TSX Venture Exchange Inc. has in no way passed upon the merits of the proposed Transaction and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to or for the account or benefit of U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.

For further information:

Justify Capital Corp.

Richard A. Graham - President, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Secretary and Director

Phone: (604) 689-1428

Everyday People Financial Inc.

Barret Reykdal - Chief Executive Officer

Phone: (780) 905-4444

Email: letsconnect@epfinancial.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Notice on Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Any statements that are contained in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often identified by terms such as "may", "should", "anticipate", "will", "estimates", "believes", "intends" "expects" and similar expressions which are intended to identify forward-looking statements. More particularly and without limitation, this press release contains forward-looking statements concerning the Transaction, the Concurrent Financings, the expected composition of the board of directors of the Resulting Issuer, the completion and timing of the application to the TSXV in respect of the Transaction, the proposed structure by which the Transaction is to be completed, the ability of Justify and EP to meet the conditions of the Transaction in the required timeframes, obtaining the necessary exemptions and approvals from the TSXV or other regulatory bodies, including the business, name and function of the Resulting Issuer and certain financial information and forecasts. Justify cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, assumptions and expectations, many of which are beyond the control of Justify and EP, including expectations and assumptions concerning Justify, EP, the Resulting Issuer, the Transaction, the negotiation of the Definitive Agreement on satisfactory terms, the timely receipt of all required shareholder, court and regulatory approvals (as applicable), including the acceptance of the TSXV, the satisfaction of other closing conditions in accordance with the terms of the Definitive Agreement, as well as other risks and uncertainties, including those described in Justify's final prospectus dated September 14, 2020 filed with the British Columbia Securities Commission, the Alberta Securities Commission and the Ontario Securities Commission and available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking statements may prove to be incorrect. Events or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted as a result of numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of Justify. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, and Justify does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by securities law.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in any jurisdiction.

Not for distribution to U.S. news wire services or for dissemination in the United States.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83533
Odgers Berndtson and BoardEx surveyed over 600 UK non-executive directors (NEDs) and C-suite members to find out which recruitment and retention initiatives boosted leadership diversity.

- UK-wide study reveals how some of Britain's most diverse companies are attracting underrepresented candidates to their Boards and leadership teams.

- The study reveals diverse Boards are more likely to use three specific I&D initiatives than non-diverse Boards.

- The study finds that UK business leaders view I&D as something that should be led by HR rather than any other function.

LONDON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A study released by Odgers Berndtson, a leading global executive search firm, and BoardEx, a global executive intelligence service, has revealed how companies with strong diversity on their Boards and leadership teams have hired candidates from underrepresented groups.

The UK Leadership Diversity Report follows an in-depth survey of 623 non-executive directors and C-suite members from companies across the UK.

The major finding of the report is a clear distinction between the actions taken by diverse companies and non-diverse companies when it comes to recruiting Board and leadership team members.

Diverse companies are three times more likely (36%) than non-diverse companies (10%) to partner with I&D membership organisations and they are twice as likely (38%) to set targets for diversity. In comparison, a mere 15% of non-diverse companies set Board or C-suite level I&D targets.

Reducing unconscious bias in the recruitment process is another hallmark of diverse organisations. Respondents working for an organisation with strong diversity on their Board are twice as likely (73%) to also be working for an organisation that has measures in place to reduce bias in the recruitment of Board members. Only 31% of non-diverse organisations had these measures in place.

Kester Scrope, CEO of Odgers Berndtson, said: "Achieving truly diverse Boards and leadership teams is a strategic imperative all organisations need to work towards. But it's a challenge that requires an exceptional level of commitment and effort. This report provides clear insights into the measures that can be implemented and the actions that can be taken to help organisations make diversity at the top table a reality."

In addition to implementing specific I&D measures, diverse organisations also demonstrated a clear difference in mindset when it came to approaching I&D.

Respondents from companies with no diversity on their Board were nearly three times (30%) as likely to offer a job to a leadership team candidate who was not able to demonstrate an understanding of I&D. On the other hand, just 13% of respondents from diverse companies would do the same, even if that candidate were an otherwise perfect fit for the job.

The report also offers an insight into the priority of I&D on the Board agenda, and into the role of the Chief Diversity Officer.

Over a third (36%) of NEDs said the Boards they sit on discuss I&D more than five times a year - a frequency that reflects the growing importance of I&D in the Boardroom. However, over two-thirds of NEDs and C-suite members do not believe that large organisations require a dedicated Chief Diversity Officer. Of those that believe the role is unnecessary, the majority (77% of NEDs and 86% of the C-suite) think that the responsibility for I&D should rest with the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO). It strongly suggests that UK business leaders view I&D as something that should be led by HR rather than any other function.

Read the full report here.

About Odgers Berndtson:

For over 50 years, Odgers Berndtson has helped some of the world's biggest and best organisations find the senior talent to drive their agendas. We deliver executive search, assessment and development to businesses and organisations varying in size, structure and maturity. We work across 50 sectors, whether commercial, public or not-for-profit and draw on the experience of partners and their teams in 30 countries. www.odgersberndtson.com/en-co, @OdgersUKNews.

About BoardEx

BoardEx is the leading provider of executive intelligence and relationship mapping solutions. Companies trust BoardEx to identify, qualify and map connection paths to 2 million organisations and the 1.5 million people who lead them. BoardEx is a part of Euromoney People Intelligence, a division of Euromoney PLC which provides organisations with unique data intelligence that connects them with the individuals who will have the greatest impact on their goals. Euromoney People Intelligence is comprised of three unique brands: BoardEx, WealthEngine, and Wealth-X. We empower our clients to build greater relationships, obtain and manage their best talent and reduce commercial risk.

Learn more at boardex.com. Email press@BoardEx.com for inquiries.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1506961/BoardEx_UK_Leadership_Diversity_Report_2021.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1425805/BoardEx_Logo_blue_2017_Logo.jpg
50,000-55,000 Oz 2021 Production Guidance Intact

Q2 2021 Consolidated Highlights:

On track to meet FY2021 guidance of 50,000-55,000 gold ounces and 7.0-8.5 million copper pounds.

Production of 14,197 gold equivalent ounces (10,785 gold ounces, 1.4 million copper pounds and 35,206 silver ounces).

7,686 gold ounces and 0.8 million copper pounds produced in stock as at March 31, 2021 .

. Revenue of $19.7 million ; Average realized gold price per ounce of $1,822 and copper price per pound of $3.74 .

; Average realized gold price per ounce of and copper price per pound of . EBITDA of $2.7 million .

. Free cash flow of ($0.5) million .

. Cash balance of $13.4 million as at March 31, 2021 .

as at . Cash Operating Costs ("COC") and All in Sustaining Costs ("AISC") of $1,193 and $1,769 .

Juan Gavidia, CEO of Orvana Minerals stated: "I am very proud that our field teams in Spain, Argentina and Bolivia were able to deliver on results, as expected, notwithstanding COVID-related logistical restrictions and execution risks. With Spain's steady cash-flow, Argentina's progress in expanding its mineral resource, and Bolivia advancing with its final phase of metallurgical testing; Orvana is on target to meet its strategic objectives for FY2021."

TORONTO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Orvana Minerals Corp. (TSX: ORV) (the "Company" or "Orvana") announced today financial and operational results for the second quarter of fiscal 2021 ("Q2 2021") and the completion of Taguas Drilling Campaign.

OroValle

Quarterly gold production of 10,785 ounces, 24% lower than previous quarter due to 12% lower throughput and 11% lower grade. The start of the quarter was impacted by infrastructure issues in one sector of the mine; the mine schedule was successfully rectified to be on track to meet FY2021 guidance.

Copper production was 1.4 million pounds, 34% lower than previous quarter, due 12% lower throughput and 26% lower grade.

Revenue of $19.7 million .

. OroValle COC & AISC of $1,067 and $1,558 .

and . Drilling:

Orovalle drilled 6,530 meters in El Valle in the second quarter of fiscal 2021; 4,487 meters were infill drilling and 2,043 meters were brownfield drilling.



638 meters were drilling in Lidia in the second quarter, completing the first phase of the program with a total of 1,017 meters.



Ortosa Godan permitting completed, drilling starting in May.

Taguas

Drilling campaign to enlarge the Mineral Resource started last February and was completed in April, with a total of 4,689 meters. Distribution of drilled meters is as follows (Figure 1):

3,455 meters in Cerros Taguas to enlarge oxide resources (main target of this campaign).



734 meters in Cerro Campamento with the aim of testing continuity of mineralized structures towards the southwest.



500 meters in CARDS target 1 & 2 to explore the mineralogy potential of this area.

Laboratory assays and evaluation in progress, with expected completion by late May.

A new Mineral Resource Estimate is being updated in compliance with Canadian National Instrument 43-101, by Geosim Services Inc, an independent consulting firm, with expected completion by the third quarter of fiscal 2021.

EMIPA

The Oxides Stockpile Project quality assurance (metallurgical) testing continues and a decision on the project is expected by the end of fiscal year 2021.

New reprocessing and interpretation of historical geological data was completed in December 2020 . As a result, a brand-new comprehensive exploration program will be launched in the third quarter. Areas of interest will be subject to non-drilling exploration fieldwork during the second half of fiscal 2021. The goal is to develop drilling targets for fiscal 2022.

Selected Q2 2021 Consolidated Operational and Financial Information



Q2 2021 Q1 2021 Q2 2020 YTD 2021 YTD 2020 Operating Performance









Gold









Grade (g/t) 2.31 2.60 2.74 2.47 2.55 Recovery (%) 90.9 92.6 92.9 92.4 92.5 Production (oz) 10,785 14,127 12,139 24,912 27,954 Sales (oz) 8,523 12,085 12,216 20,609 30,879 Average realized price / oz $1,822 $1,868 $1,528 $1,849 $1,494 Copper









Grade (%) 0.47 0.63 0.52 0.55 0.44 Recovery (%) 82.3 81.6 83.1 81.9 78.2 Production ('000 lbs) 1,355 2,044 1,422 3,399 2,314 Sales ('000 lbs) 1,475 1,645 1,413 3,120 2,464 Average realized price / lb 3.74 3.29 2.60 3.51 2.62 Financial Performance (in 000's, except per share amounts)







Revenue $19,678 $27,815 $21,245 $47,493 $50,265 Mining costs $14,880 $17,657 $18,657 $32,537 $44,661 Gross margin $1,746 $6,263 ($2,823) $8,009 ($5,436) Net income (loss) ($818) $1,919 ($2,776) $1,101 ($5,521) Net income (loss) per share (basic/diluted) ($0.01) $0.01 ($0.02) $0.01 ($0.04) EBITDA (1) $2,683 $7,282 $1,688 $9,965 $3,203 Operating cash flows before non-cash working capital changes $3,446 $7,494 $1,384 $10,940 $3,492 Operating cash flows ($594) $5,087 ($3,311) $4,493 ($1,135) Free cash flow(1) ($449) $5,087 ($1,478) $4,638 ($1,150) Ending cash and cash equivalents $13,390 $15,562 $6,256 $13,390 $6,256 Capital expenditures $3,895 $2,407 $2,862 $6,302 $4,642 Cash operating costs (by-product) ($/oz) gold $1,193 $1,051 $1,363 $1,110 $1,268 All-in sustaining costs (by-product) ($/oz) gold $1,769 $1,467 $1,765 $1,592 $1,527 All-in costs (by-product) ($/oz) gold $1,958 $1,518 $1,787 $1,700 $1,542

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("EBITDA"), free cash flow, cash operating costs, all-in sustaining costs and all-in costs are non-IFRS performance measures.

Capital expenditures are presented in the consolidated cash flows in the Audited Financials on a cash basis.

ABOUT ORVANA - Orvana is a multi-mine gold-copper-silver company. Orvana's assets consist of the producing El Valle and Carles gold-copper-silver mines in northern Spain, and the Don Mario gold-silver property in Bolivia, currently in care and maintenance. Orvana is in the process of completing the registration of transfer documents with the mining authorities in connection with the acquisition of Taguas, Argentina. Additional information is available at Orvana's website (www.orvana.com).

Cautionary Statements - Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements made herein constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws ("forward-looking statements"). Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, potentials, future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "believes", "expects", "plans", "estimates", "intends" or "anticipates" or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", "will" or "are projected to" be taken or achieved) are not statements of historical fact, but are forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements herein relate to, among other things: Orvana's ability to achieve improvement in free cash flow; the potential to extend the mine life of El Valle and Don Mario beyond their current life-of-mine estimates including specifically, but not limited to in the case of Don Mario, the processing of the mineral stockpiles and the reprocessing of the tailings material; the timing of the completion of the evaluation of laboratory assays and preparation of an NI 43-101 report on Taguas; Orvana's ability to optimize its assets to deliver shareholder value; the Company's ability to optimize productivity at Don Mario and El Valle; any measures taken by the Company to prevent and/or mitigate the impact of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases at or near the Company's mines and support the sustainability of its business including through the development of crisis management plans, increasing stock levels for key supplies, monitoring of guidance from the medical community, and engagement with local communities and authorities; estimates of future production, operating costs and capital expenditures; mineral resource and reserve estimates; statements and information regarding future feasibility studies and their results; future transactions (including the completion of the acquisition of Taguas and subsequent results of any exploration work on Taguas); future metal prices; the ability to achieve additional growth and geographic diversification; future financial performance, including the ability to increase cash flow and profits; future financing requirements; and mine development plans. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company as of the date of such statements, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. The estimates and assumptions of the Company contained or incorporated by reference in this news release, which may prove to be incorrect, include, but are not limited to, the various assumptions set forth herein and in Orvana's most recently filed Management's Discussion & Analysis and Annual Information Form in respect of the Company's most recently completed fiscal year (the "Company Disclosures") or as otherwise expressly incorporated herein by reference as well as: there being no significant disruptions affecting operations, whether due to labour disruptions, supply disruptions, power disruptions, damage to equipment or otherwise; permitting, development, operations, expansion and acquisitions at El Valle and Don Mario being consistent with the Company's current expectations; political developments in any jurisdiction in which the Company operates being consistent with its current expectations; certain price assumptions for gold, copper and silver; prices for key supplies being approximately consistent with current levels; production and cost of sales forecasts meeting expectations; the accuracy of the Company's current mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates; and labour and materials costs increasing on a basis consistent with Orvana's current expectations.

A variety of inherent risks, uncertainties and factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control, affect the operations, performance and results of the Company and its business, and could cause actual events or results to differ materially from estimated or anticipated events or results expressed or implied by forward looking statements. Some of these risks, uncertainties and factors include the effect of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases on the Company's operations, workforce and supply chain, fluctuations in the price of gold, silver and copper; the need to recalculate estimates of resources based on actual production experience; the failure to achieve production estimates; variations in the grade of ore mined; variations in the cost of operations; the availability of qualified personnel; the Company's ability to obtain and maintain all necessary regulatory approvals and licenses; the Company's ability to use cyanide in its mining operations; risks generally associated with mineral exploration and development, including the Company's ability to continue to operate the El Valle and/or Don Mario and/or ability to resume long-term operations at the Carles Mine; the Company's ability to successfully implement a sulphidization circuit and ancillary facilities to process the current oxides stockpiles at Don Mario; the Company's ability to acquire and develop mineral properties and to successfully integrate such acquisitions; the Company's ability to execute on its strategy; the Company's ability to obtain financing when required on terms that are acceptable to the Company; challenges to the Company's interests in its property and mineral rights; current, pending and proposed legislative or regulatory developments or changes in political, social or economic conditions in the countries in which the Company operates; general economic conditions worldwide; and the risks identified in the Company's disclosures. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Company's forward-looking statements and reference should also be made to the Company's Disclosures for a description of additional risk factors.

Any forward-looking statements made herein with respect to the anticipated development and exploration of the Company's mineral projects are intended to provide an overview of management's expectations with respect to certain future activities of the Company and may not be appropriate for other purposes.

Forward-looking statements are based on management's current plans, estimates, projections, beliefs and opinions and, except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements should assumptions related to these plans, estimates, projections, beliefs and opinions change. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

Nuria Menendez, Chief Financial Officer, E: nmenendez@orvana.com; Joanne Jobin, Investor Relations Officer, E: jjobin@orvana.com, T: 647 964 0292
Hyderabad: Once again, the High Court on Tuesday came down heavily on the Telangana government for showing complacency in dealing with the second wave surge of Covid 19.

The division bench comprising Chief Justice Hima Kohli and Justice B Vijaysen Reddy observed that the government itself had been causing damage to Telangana and its people. It rapped Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar for his infamous situation under control remarks at a recent press conference which it described as a tame campaign.

The Bench took notice of the highest executive authority in the State dismissing the need for lockdown immediately after the High Court suggested additional restrictions like weekend lockdowns to contain the spread. The Bench also hinted at initiating contempt against the higher authorities of the government for constantly ignoring the court directives on Covid testing and sharing the crucial data in public fora. The Court held the governments underplaying of cases solely responsible for the short allocation of oxygen and other life-saving medicines by the Centre.

In a sarcastic way, the Chief Justice asked Advocate General B S Prasad where was the need to review the situation when everything was under control. You cleverly bring down the infection rate by just lowering the testing. Now what made you to review the situation and opt for lockdown, she said.

Maintaining that the government was not heeding to its suggestions, the court observed that the higher echelons of power were patting their back by presenting a hunky-dory situation with some cosmetic exercises. The state government has been attempting to portray a rosy picture in contrast to the ground realities, it said.

The Chief Justice told the AG that the court felt sorry about the governments attitude and not acting strictly to contain the spread of the virus till the court insisted. We are sailing in the same boat but discard every direction given by us, the court said.

When senior counsel L Ravichander drew Benchs attention to overcrowding at food joints and shops giving a go by to social distancing, the Chief Justice said the court was flooded with mails and reports with photographic evidence to establish non serious implementation of the night curfew. You impose curfew and make the shop close by 7 pm but allow them to carry out their business through the backdoor till midnight, Justice Kohli pointed out.
DGAP-Ad-hoc: Dexus Finance Pty Limited / Key word(s): Acquisition/Corporate Action

Dexus Finance Pty Limited: Acquisition of APN Property Group to further strengthen Funds Management business



11-May-2021 / 02:44 CET/CEST

Disclosure of an inside information acc. to Article 17 MAR of the Regulation (EU) No 596/2014, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.





Dexus (ASX: DXS)

ASX release

11 May 2021

Acquisition of APN Property Group to further strengthen Funds Management business

Dexus today announces that following the completion of due diligence, it has entered into a binding Scheme Implementation Deed ('SID') with APN Property Group ('APN') in relation to a proposal for Dexus to acquire all of the stapled securities in APN (the 'Proposal') for an all-cash consideration of 91.5 cents per security ('Offer Price')[1]. The SID is provided in Annexure A.

In the absence of a superior proposal and subject to the Independent Expert concluding that the Proposal is in the best interests of APN securityholders, the directors of APN and APN RE Limited (the "APD Directors") unanimously recommend that APN securityholders vote in favour of the Proposal. Subject to those same qualifications, each APD Director intends to vote all of the securities held or controlled by them in favour of the Proposal. Including APN's Chairman, Mr Chris Aylward, this represents intentions with respect to 33.0% of APN's issued securities.

In addition, APN's Chairman and largest securityholder, Chris Aylward, via his related entities, has granted a call option to Dexus over APN securities equivalent to 19.9% of issued capital, at the Offer Price ('Call Option Agreement'), exercisable in certain circumstances.

APN Property Group

APN Property Group is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange ('ASX') (ASX: APD) and is a specialist real estate investment manager of two ASX-listed Real Estate Investment Trusts ('REITs'), APN Industria REIT (ASX: ADI) and APN Convenience Retail REIT (ASX: AQR), and also manages direct unlisted property and securities funds. As at 31 December 2020, APN had $2.9 billion of Funds Under Management ('FUM') and $134 million of co-investments in its managed vehicles.

Investment rationale

On completion of the transaction, Dexus will have a funds management portfolio comprising $23.9 billion[2] that includes institutional wholesale capital, listed REITs, real estate securities and a direct unlisted property business.

The Proposal is underpinned by a strong investment rationale for Dexus:

Access to a complementary and scalable business with a high-quality team and like-minded investment philosophy;

Ability to utilise Dexus's market leading funds and property management platform to drive growth and performance for new and existing APN funds;

Provides Dexus with a range of new growth opportunities via access to new investor groups and products;

Adds $2.9 billion of incremental FUM which will be immediately accretive to Adjusted Funds From Operations (AFFO) per security on completion of the transaction in FY22; and

Potential to realise cost and revenue synergies and achieve margin expansion across the platform

Dexus Chief Executive Officer, Darren Steinberg said: "This transaction supports our strategic initiative of expanding and diversifying our funds management business, increasing our suite of funds on offer outside of wholesale funds into listed REITs, real estate securities funds and unlisted direct property funds. The transaction also expands our investor network to include retail and high net worth capital.

"We believe APN is a high quality real estate funds management business that complements our existing platform, and we look forward to APN's executives joining and strengthening the Dexus team while continuing to deliver strong results for investors".

APN's Chairman and largest securityholder, Chris Aylward said: "Dexus's proposal represents compelling value to APN securityholders including a material premium to APN's trading price. We believe the combination of the two platforms will provide incremental growth opportunities for the APN business as well as its underlying funds, investors and team members."

Consideration

Dexus proposes an all-cash Offer Price of 91.5 cents per APN security. The Offer Price will be reduced by the value of any distributions declared by APN on or after the date of this announcement and prior to 30 September 2021, up to 1.5 cents per security.

Total consideration payable by Dexus represents an equity value of $320 million[3] and enterprise value of $308 million.

Dexus expects that on completion of the transaction in FY22 it will be immediately accretive to its Adjusted Funds From Operations (AFFO) per security.

Implementation

Implementation of the Proposal will be via a company and trust scheme. The Proposal is subject to approval by APN securityholders as well as other conditions including obtaining court approval and judicial advice in relation to the Proposal, no court or other government agency-ordered restraints, no material adverse change or prescribed occurrence in APN, regulatory approvals and other customary conditions.

The obligations of Dexus and APN regarding the implementation of the Proposal are governed by the SID. This includes customary "no shop, no talk" provisions, notification and matching rights, a break fee, a reverse break fee and the conditions to implementation of the Proposal.

The Proposal relates only to the acquisition by Dexus of 100% of the securities in APN. The Proposal does not involve the removal of the responsible entity of the funds managed by APN or any change in the management arrangements of those funds.

Next steps and indicative timetable

All APN securityholders will receive a Notice of Meeting and an Explanatory Memorandum (which will include an Independent Expert's report) to enable them to assess the merits of the Proposal.

APN securityholders who are entitled to vote will then vote on the Proposal at the APN securityholder meeting (in person or by proxy) to approve the Proposal. The APN securityholder meeting is expected to be held in July 2021.

Existing Dexus Security holders do not need to take any action in relation to this Proposal.

The expected key dates relevant to this Proposal include:

Key milestone Date First Court Hearing Mid June 2021 Scheme booklet dispatched to APN securityholders Late June 2021 APN securityholder meetings to approve the Proposal Mid July 2021 Second Court Hearing Late July 2021 Scheme becomes effective Late July 2021 Record date for participating in Scheme Early August 2021 Scheme implementation date Early August 2021

Dexus has appointed Macquarie Capital as financial adviser and King & Wood Mallesons as legal adviser.

Attachments

Annexure A - Scheme Implementation Deed

Authorised by Brett Cameron, General Counsel and Company Secretary of Dexus Funds Management Limited

For further information please contact:

Investors

Rowena Causley

Senior Manager, Investor Relations

+61 2 9017 1390

+61 416 122 383

rowena.causley@dexus.com Media

Louise Murray

Senior Manager, Corporate Communications

+61 2 9017 1446

+61 403 260 754

louise.murray@dexus.com

[1] The Offer Price will be reduced by the value of any distributions declared by APN on or after the date of this announcement and prior to 30 September 2021, up to 1.5 cents per security.

[2] Figures are as at 31 December 2020, pro forma to include new APN funds, the merger of ADPF and DWPF (prior to circa $2 billion of redemptions) as well as the previously announced sales of Grosvenor Place, Sydney, 60 Miller Street, North Sydney, 10 Eagle Street, Brisbane, acquisition of an interest in 1 Bligh Street, Sydney, and previously announced industrial and healthcare acquisitions.

[3] Equity value calculated based on Offer Price of 91.5 cents per security and total diluted securities of 349,638,821 including 20,090,778 unvested performance rights.
Winnipeg, Manitoba--(Newsfile Corp. - May 10, 2021) - Novra Technologies Inc. (TSXV: NVI) ("Novra") announced today that Novra Group has received a major order for Audiocaster Pro professional broadcast audio receivers. The order is valued at more than $3.2 million and is expected to ship later in 2021.

The customer is a leading US radio broadcaster and longtime Novra Group customer, operating an extensive and sophisticated network. Audiocaster Pro - a new product launched in 2020 - boasts state-of-the-art versatile features like the ability to operate over satellite or internet connections and switching between live streams and stored files.

Novra Group President and CEO Harris Liontas commented, "We are extremely gratified to receive this follow-on order for Audiocaster Pro. It is the second large order for this new product from the same customer. It's a testament to their satisfaction with their previous order and a tribute to the work our team has done to develop the Audiocaster Pro receivers. We appreciate their vote of confidence in Novra Group and the products and services we provide."

In addition to this large audio order, Novra Group is enjoying strong year-to-date bookings from our North American and international clients for our other product lines including our next-generation digital cinema solutions.

Liontas continued, "We are very happy to see healthy orders coming in from our various traditional vertical markets - it validates our strategy of using common core technologies for diversified applications and it is a positive indicator that our industry may be starting to recover from the economic impact of COVID-19."

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws, concerning but not limited to: our profitability outlook and anticipated developments in our operations in future periods. Forward-looking statements are generally identifiable by words such as "expect", "anticipate", "believe", "intend", "estimate", "predict", "outlook", "opportunity", "momentum", "potential", "targeted", "plans" "possible", "position for", "looking forward to", "getting ready to", and similar expressions, or statements that events, conditions or results "will", "may", "could" or "should" occur or be achieved. As such, forward-looking statements are not historical facts but reflect our current assumptions and expectations regarding future events. These are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations and assumptions.

For the above reasons, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

###

About the Novra Group: (Novra) (TSXV: NVI) The Novra Group of companies includes Novra Technologies, International Datacasting Corporation, and Wegener Communications. The companies in the group are known for a strong focus on applications-broadcast video and radio, digital cinema, digital signage, and highly reliable data communications - as well as a strong tradition of innovation, excellence, and flexibility. Novra Group is proud to work with a global network of trained partners and resellers. For more information visit: www.novragroup.com.

CONTACT:

Diana Cantu, VP Marketing & Sales

+1-613-596-4120 x2211

dcantu@datacast.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83560
MONTREAL, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- After ten years of war that have scourged a historic civilization, the Montreal-based online visual art gallery Arte Arta is proud to announce that it is representing the important Syrian Sarcophaguses collection by renowned Syrian artist Dr. Nizar Sabour. The collection is an important reminder that Syria has cultural riches to offer and much that is positive to remember.

The Syrian Sarcophaguses comprises 55 original works that depict images of prominent Syrian cultural icons presented in a style and shape inspired by ancient Phoenician anthropoid sarcophaguses. It is a generous attempt to bring the past into the present, to use the rites of death to celebrate the work of life.

Arte Arta is the exclusive representative for this captivating art collection, making it available to interested members of the public or to museums and art galleries. Dr. Sabour wishes to make his art available to as broad an audience as possible, ensuring that the collection is ultimately acquired by a collector or organization that will appreciate its full value and importance.

"The river of death is parallel to the river of life, and one is not greater than the other. Life's value comes from what one does while we are alive, our contributions and generosity of spirit. This is what I always focus on." said Dr. Sabour when asked about the meaning of his collection.

Arte Arta chooses to spotlight the positive and to emphasize the life-giving force of art. The online visual art gallery, based in Montreal, is motivated by the desire to make art accessible to collectors around the world. When it comes to Syria, it is time to focus not just on destruction and ruination, but on the beauty and inspiration of the human spirit.

About the Gallery:

Arte Arta is an online art gallery that showcases the human experience behind the work on display. Our digital gallery promotes art as a vehicle for social transformation. Founded in 2019, we work under a new model of art distribution that is rooted in tradition but attuned to contemporary realities, establishing long-term relationships with the artists we feature on our website. Our artists represent a broad cross-section of themes and styles: from hyper-technical digital art to traditional painting styles.

Related Links

https://artearta.com/

https://artearta.com/the-syrian-sarcophaguses/

Social Media

@artearta_gallery

Arte Arta Gallery | Facebook

Contact: +1 (514) 605 4666, info@artearta.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1507365/Sarcophaguses.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1506219/Arte_Arta_Gallery_Remarkable_Collection_of_Syrian_Art_Transcends.jpg
EEZY PLC -- INTERIM REPORT -- 11 MAY 2021 AT 8:00

Eezy Plc's Interim Report 1-3/2021: Corona continues, focus on the re-opening society

January-March 2021

Revenue was EUR 36.6 million (EUR 55.1 million in January-March 2020).

EBITDA was EUR 2.8 million (2.8).

EBIT was EUR 0.9 million (1.0).

Earnings per share was EUR 0.01 (0.02).

Continuing corona pandemic continued to decrease business volume.

Outlook for 2021

Due to the Corona pandemic, Eezy does not give guidance for year 2021.

The goal is to give guidance when visibility improves along the re-opening of the society.

Key figures (IFRS)

EUR million, unless

otherwise specified 1-3/2021 1-3/2020 1-12/2020 Revenue 36.6 55.1 190.6 EBITDA 2.8 2.8 13.5 EBITDA, % 7.5% 5.1% 7.1% EBIT 0.9 1.0 5.6 EBIT, % 2.5% 1.8% 2.9% EPS, undiluted, EUR 0.01 0.02 0.11 EPS, diluted, EUR 0.01 0.02 0.11 Net debt / EBITDA 4.1 x 2.9 x 3.1 x Chain-wide revenue 56.4 77.9 282.6

CEO Sami Asikainen:

Back to growth track during summer

"Eezy's performance was burdened by the lockdown and clear tightening of the Corona related restrictions. Fortunately, the infection rates are going down, vaccination progresses, and we expect the society to open up during the summer months. In the difficult conditions, we have successfully implemented our strategy and our focus is now tightly on the post-corona times.

Smallest quarter for staffing services

The first quarter is the smallest one even in normal conditions, and this time the tightening restrictions significantly affected our business. Our revenue was only approx. EUR 37 million. The decrease compared to last year comes especially from our horeca business, where our revenue was almost EUR 10 million below the corresponding quarter last year.

We estimate that the staffing services market has contracted by some 20% during Q1. For Eezy, the decrease has been visible, in addition to horeca, in our largest sectors, industry, construction and logistics, especially in the largest city areas. Our other units have been near the 2020 volumes. The franchise units have performed clearly better than the total market. This shows how corona's impact to our customers has been strongly polarised. The retail sector decreased mildly as some customers moved their own horeca sector employees to the retail sector.

During our history, we have consistently expanded into new customer segments. E.g. Eezy Doctors has already established its position in staffing of doctors. Eezy United has quickly found its place in bringing athletes and work together. We have also recently invested in developing office personnel staffing services and outsourcing services. All together, these developing business areas correspond to approx. 7% of the revenue in this small quarter. Our intention is to widen our offering further.

Professional services grew according to our strategy

We strengthened our professional services last autumn through acquisitions. Integrations inside both teams - Eezy Personnel and Eezy Flow - have been efficient and successful. Organisations, values and services have been combined to be part of Eezy. The revenue of professional services grew by 48% from last year, and its share of the total revenue doubled to 8%. We seek higher profitability from the professional services, so good progress there is vital in our journey toward our long-term profitability goals.

Recovery from corona conditions to normal will offer a great basis for growth of Eezy's employee and customer experience services, the change management services, and the recruiting services. Our goal is to grow the professional services both organically and inorganically, and that way widen the scope of the working-life services offered to our customers.

Success is built by operational abilities and good spirit

We focused last year in improving our efficiency, and thanks achieved a new productivity level. The main theme for this year is growth. We will not achieve growth by cost-cutting, so instead of one-time cost savings we have increased our sales activity and invested into good spirits and into enhancing the operational abilities of our employees. I am happy to note that the employee satisfaction surveys - done by Eezy Flow - confirm that we are on the right path. I am also delighted that some of our key persons have increased their ownership in the company during the spring. The ownership of our key persons and employees is currently almost 10%. This boosts our belief in Eezy's good future.

Toward growth

We expect the first quarter to be clearly the smallest in 2021. Naturally the corona restrictions will still have impact on the second quarter, but the activity level of customers has clearly increased in the last few weeks. This shows up as growth in open jobs and amount of applications, as well as growth in the number of projects in the professional services. Third quarter will likely be a clear step toward recovery, and we expect the last quarter to be near normal conditions. If all goes well, the opening of the society may trigger the pent-up demand and the domestic consumption springs into wild increase.

Availability of workforce will again rise as a competitive factor when the economic recovery is brisk. Also, as the underlying megatrends have not changed, we may need to import foreign labour into Finland to cover the resource gap in several sectors. The pandemic has also increased the customers' needs for flexible workforce, so we expect the share of staffing services of the total market to grow.

The positive result impact of our more efficient organisation will become visible along the revenue growth. We can clearly scale up the business from the current level with the current staff. During the corona we have also continued the active development of the company, e.g. digitalisation of our services, and we focus our growth investments according to our growth strategy. We, the Eezy employees, aim to build good team spirit via successful work experiences. I encourage everybody to use domestics services and products, and this way help the Finnish economy back to growth track."





Result publication event:

A Finnish-language briefing for analysts and media will be held on 11 May 2021 at 13.00 as a webcast at https://eezy.videosync.fi/2021-q1-tulos

The briefing will be hosted by CEO Sami Asikainen and CFO Hannu Nyman. During the presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. The presentation material will be available at the company website at https://sijoittajat.eezy.fi/en/investors/reports-and-presentations/ before the conference. A recording of the audiocast will be available at the same website later.

Attachment: Interim Report January-March 2021 in PDF format

Further information:

Sami Asikainen

CEO

sami.asikainen@eezy.fi

tel. +358 (0)40 700 9915

Hannu Nyman

CFO

Eezy Plc

hannu.nyman@eezy.fi

tel. +358 (0)50 306 9913

Attachment
ROTTERDAM, The Netherlands (11 May 2021) - IMCD N.V. ("IMCD" or "Company"), a leading distributor of speciality chemicals and ingredients, today published the convocation and agenda for its Annual General Meeting of shareholders ("AGM"), which will be held on Tuesday 22 June 2021 at 10:30 CET in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

The convocation, agenda, and further documentation for the AGM are available in the Investors' section of IMCD's website.

In view of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, precautionary measures apply to limit exposure for IMCD's employees, shareholders, and other stakeholders. IMCD encourages shareholders to exercise their online proxy voting rights in advance of the meeting, instead of attending the meeting in person. There will be no social gathering surrounding the AGM and depending on the circumstances at the time, the number of board members participating may be limited. Shareholders are advised to regularly check the Investors' section of IMCD's website for any updates.

A full overview of IMCD's financial calendar is available in the Investors' section of IMCD's website.

Attached, please find the press release in pdf format.

This press release contains information that qualifies as inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation.

Attachment
Paul Jones, Simon Partridge and Christian Bourne, previously from Illumina and Genomics England, have joined Dante Labs in its new Cambridge, UK office to spearhead its ground-breaking global population genomics offer

CAMBRIDGE, United Kingdom, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dante Labs today announced Paul Jones, Simon Partridge and Christian Bourne have joined the Company's Executive Team as part of its mission to enable faster, more effective population genomics programmes globally.



"We are excited to welcome Paul, Simon, and Christian to our team," said Andrea Riposati, Chief Executive Officer of Dante Labs. "We share the vision for innovative solutions to accelerate the adoption of population genomics and precision medicine initiatives by healthcare systems and governments worldwide."

The trio will drive Dante Labs' clinical, research, industry engagement and economic development agendas for large-scale national programmes around the world. Jones, Partridge and Bourne were all formerly part of the population genomics team at S&P 500 company Illumina, and were involved in the development and acceleration of Genomics England, now considered the global benchmark programme for population genomics.

Paul Jones joins Dante Labs as Chief Business Officer. Paul brings 30 years of life sciences, technology, and healthcare experience to the organisation. Most recently, he was the Global Head of Population Genomics at Illumina where he led a team that created, developed and actively managed large-scale population genomics programmes across the world. Previously, Paul was CEO of Genomics Enterprises at Genomics England and Leader of Global Life Sciences at Cisco. He has also held senior positions at IMS Health, Novartis, and PwC Consulting.

Simon Partridge joins Dante Labs as VP, Global Head of Business Operations. He was most recently Global Market Development Lead for Population Genomics at Illumina, building upon past experience as Director of Industry Engagement and then Acting CEO of Genomics Enterprises at Genomics England. Prior to that Simon held several senior operational roles with start-ups, consultancies and large corporations across multiple sectors.

Christian Bourne has been appointed as Senior Director, Global Head of Lab Operations after seven years at Illumina, where he was instrumental in creating the highly successful ISO:15189 accredited lab that delivered the 100,000 genomes for the Genomics England programme - going on to utilise this experience with many other programmes around the world. Prior to this, Christian worked in high throughput genomic sequencing and core lab environments at The Centre for Genomic Research, the University of Liverpool, Cancer Research UK, AstraZeneca and DEFRA.

About Dante Labs

Dante Labs is a global genomic data company building and commercialising a new class of transformative health and longevity applications based on whole genome sequencing and AI. Our assets include one of the largest private genome databases with research consent, a proprietary software platform designed to unleash the power of genomic data at scale and proprietary processes which enable an industrial approach to genomic sequencing.

Headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom, with a research laboratory in Wolverhampton, Dante Labs supported the UK Government's urgent requirement to scale-up a high-capacity, highly automated testing solution for Covid-19, including infected patients as well as those with antibodies. Dante Labs was able to deliver by leveraging existing technology that had been developed for whole genome sequencing.

Giorgio Lodi, giorgio.lodi@dantelabs.com. +39 0862 191 0671
Mississauga, Ontario and Sacramento, California--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Bee Vectoring Technologies International Inc. (CSE: BEE) (OTCQB: BEVVF) (CVE: BEE) (the "Company" or "BVT") today announced that it has secured its first revenue commitments in the US Pacific Northwest from four blueberry growers in Oregon and Washington. BVT also has secured two R&D demonstration trials in the region.

"This rapid market penetration continues the progress that BVT is seeing in 2021. This is our first year in the Pacific Northwest since the early work done last year was cut short because of escalating restrictions with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic," said Ian Collinson, Sales Manager at Bee Vectoring Technologies. "These new commitments align with our 2021 commercialization objectives and demonstrate that our focus on sales and marketing is paying off. We have accelerated penetration in the US Southeast, Midwest and the Pacific Northwest berry markets with revenues secured. This is in addition to kick-starting California and New Jersey with initial trials. We anticipate this strong commercial momentum to continue to build in the US in coming seasons."

The market opportunity for BVT in the Pacific Northwest is significant, with 25,000 acres of blueberries and caneberries in Oregon and Washington.(1) There is high market demand for Pacific Northwest berries both domestically and overseas, with a large export market to Asia in fresh-packed and frozen berries.

The blueberry bloom period commenced in mid-April and these growers are already using BVT's proprietary Vectorite with CR-7 (Clonostachys rosea CR-7) (CR-7) biological fungicide and natural precision agriculture system for commercially-managed honeybees on about 80 acres of their approximately 5,000 overall acres of blueberry acres under production. The growers have both conventional and organic acres utilizing the BVT system. Based on common practice and the actions of previous growers trialing the system, the Company expects these growers will add BVT on more acreage across their operations in the coming two to three seasons based on positive results.

BVT VectorHive honeybee dispensers in the US Pacific Northwest at the start of the blueberry bloom period in mid April 2021



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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Commercial hives with BVT VectorHive Honeybee Dispensers on blueberry field in PNW region - April 2021



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BVT VectorHive honeybee dispensers in the US Pacific Northwest at the start of the blueberry bloom period in mid April 2021

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Above: BVT set up of its VectorHive honeybee dispensers in the US Pacific Northwest at the start of the blueberry bloom period in mid April.

BVT has grower commitments from all three major growing regions in the Pacific Northwest: Northern Washington, Eastern Washington, and North Western Oregon. "We are in the second pilot stage of BVT's sales adoption cycle in the Pacific Northwest, and our second season in the region," said Ryan Dragoo, Pacific Northwest Territory Manager at Bee Vectoring Technologies. "Now that we have a foothold in the three major growing regions in the Pacific Northwest, we will leverage grower trial data and endorsements to expand our reach into each region annually."

Dragoo has strong grower community connections in the Pacific Northwest and extensive agriculture industry experience in Mexico, Canada, California, Arizona and Washington. Prior to joining BVT late last year, he was the General Manager of a 300-acre, 3-location farm in Central Washington.

"I am pleased with the strong positive response we've received from growers since starting with BVT. Growers have commented that with the BVT system, they see long-term benefits to their crops and that the system can address "missed" acreage," added Mr. Dragoo. "Since many continue to use spray pesticides as part of an integrated pest management program, they say the BVT system can help cover areas that a traditional sprayer might miss due to drift, wind, rain, or flower position."

BVT's sales adoption cycle consists of four market stages that span three to four growing seasons. To learn more about the sales adoption cycle, read BVT's blog "From initial trial to commercial expansion: how BVT sells to growers."

"Our investment in a new salesperson for the Pacific Northwest is paying off," continued Mr. Collinson. "We have feet on the ground in the region, and are hearing excellent feedback from growers. The market is eager for our technology: growers see BVT's sustainable system as the perfect solution for combating disease and increasing yield. We look forward to building even greater momentum in the Pacific Northwest, forging stronger relationships with existing growers and establishing even more grower relationships."

(1) Source: USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

About Bee Vectoring Technologies International Inc.

BVT, an agriculture technology company, is a market disruptor with a significant global market opportunity in the $240 billion crop protection and fertilizer market. BVT has pioneered a natural precision agriculture system that replaces chemical pesticides and wasteful plant protection product spray applications by delivering biological pesticide alternatives to crops using commercially grown bees. BVT's award-winning technology, precision vectoring, is completely harmless to bees and allows minute amounts of naturally-derived pesticides (called biologicals) to be delivered directly to blooms, providing improved crop protection and yield results than traditional chemical pesticides - and improving the health of the soil, the microbiome and the environment. Currently, BVT has over 65 granted patents, over 35 patents pending in all major agricultural countries worldwide, and has US EPA registration of its Vectorite with CR-7 (EPA Registration No. 90641-2) for sale as a registered biological fungicide for use on the labeled crops.

Additional information can be viewed at the Company's website www.beevt.com. To receive regular news updates from the Company, subscribe at www.beevt.com/newsletter.

Company Contact:

Ashish Malik, President & CEO

info@beevt.com

Investor Contact:

Babak Pedram, Investor Relations

Virtus Advisory Group

Tel: 416-995-8651

bpedram@virtusadvisory.com

The CSE has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release. The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Certain statements contained in this press release constitute "forward-looking information" as such term is defined in applicable Canadian securities legislation. The words "may", "would", "could", "should", "potential", "will", "seek", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect" and similar expressions as they relate to the Company, "annual revenue potential", are intended to identify forward-looking information. All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking information. Such statements reflect the Company's current views and intentions with respect to future events, and current information available to the Company, and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including: planted acres, selling price of competitive chemical pesticides and the US to Canadian dollar exchange rate. Material factors or assumptions were applied in providing forward-looking information. Many factors could cause the actual results, performance or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking information to vary from those described herein should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize. These factors include changes in law, competition, litigation, the ability to implement business strategies and pursue business opportunities, state of the capital markets, the availability of funds and resources to pursue operations, new technologies, the ability to protect intellectual property rights, the ability to obtain patent protection for products, third-party intellectual property infringement claims, regulatory changes affecting products, failing research and development activities, the ability to reach and sustain profitability, dependence on business and technical experts, the ability to effectively manage business operations and growth, issuance of debt, dilution of existing securities, volatility of publicly traded securities, potential conflicts of interest, unlikelihood of dividend payments, the potential costs stemming from defending third-party intellectual property infringement claims, the ability to secure relationships with manufacturers and purchasers, as well as general economic, market and business conditions, as well as those risk factors discussed or referred to in the Company's Filing Statement dated August 14,2020, filed with the CSE and securities regulatory authorities in certain provinces of Canada and available at www.sedar.com. Should any factor affect the Company in an unexpected manner, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking information prove incorrect, the actual results or events may differ materially from the results or events predicted. Any such forward-looking information is expressly qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement. Moreover, the Company does not assume responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of such forward-looking information. The forward-looking information included in this press release is made as of the date of this press release and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information, other than as required by applicable law. All figures are in Canadian dollars.

###

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SUCCESSFUL START TO 2021 WITH STRONG STRATEGIC POSITION AND LONG-TERM STRATEGY: ACTION PLAN 2025 "THE DATA-DRIVEN R&D AUTOBAHN TO CURES"

GOOD PROGRESS WITHIN PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIPS AND CO-OWNED PORTFOLIO

CONTINUED POSITIVE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE; NO MATERIAL IMPACT THROUGH COVID-19 PANDEMIC

HAMBURG, GERMANY / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Evotec SE (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: EVT, MDAX/TecDAX, ISIN: DE0005664809) today announced the financial results and corporate updates for the first quarter 2021.

HIGHLIGHTS

RECORD LIKE-FOR-LIKE GROWTH OF BASE BUSINESS, STRONG BALANCE SHEET SUPPORTS ACCELERATING GROWTH

Group revenues from contracts with customers increased by 11% to  133.1 m (Q1 2020:  119.4 m); Base business growth of 28%, adjusted for the end of the Sanofi payment (since April 2020) and unfavourable fx effects

EVT Execute revenue growth of 16% (11% adjusted for material recharges) to  136.9 m (Q1 2020:  118.2 m), EVT Innovate revenues up 21% (20% adjusted for material recharges) to  28.2 m (Q1 2020:  23.3 m)

Just - Evotec Biologics grew by more than 60% to  9.7 m (Q1 2020:  5.9 m)

Like-for-like growth of adjusted Group EBITDA of 16%, despite higher R&D expenses; adjusted Group EBITDA of  21.1 m (Q1 2020:  30.0 m) affected by the anticipated end of the Sanofi payment (since April 2020) and unfavourable fx effects

Increased expenses for unpartnered R&D of  14.9 m (Q1 2020:  11.4 m) according to strategy

Strong balance sheet with comfortable net debt position of  56 m (equivalent to 0.6x EBITDA) provides significant room for financing further growth; non-operating result benefits from fair value adjustment of the investment in Exscientia Ltd.

POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT WITH SEVERAL NEW AND EXPANDED PARTNERSHIPS; JUST - EVOTEC BIOLOGICS FURTHER GAINING MOMENTUM

Multiple new and extended partnerships and alliances (e.g. with Annexon, Chinook Therapeutics, Related Sciences, Takeda, The Mark Foundation, ...) New development collaborations and INDiGO contracts signed (e.g. Riboscience, Step Pharma, ...)

New iPSC- multi-year partnership with the Medical Center Hamburg Eppendorf ("UKE")

Bristol Myers Squibb extend partnership in the field of targeted protein degradation

Just - Evotec Biologics continuing on its success course: progress of the first J.POD (R) facility in Redmond on schedule; construction of first European "J.POD (R) 2 EU" expected to start in H2 2021

facility in Redmond on schedule; construction of first European "J.POD 2 EU" expected to start in H2 2021 Partnership on oncology project EVT801 with Kazia Therapeutics (after period-end)

New BRIDGEs ("beLAB2122" and "beLAB1407" (after period-end))

Projects entering into clinical phases (EVT894 (Chik-V); Immuno-oncology project A2a receptor antagonist (Exscientia))

CORPORATE HIGHLIGHTS

Implementation of next long-term strategic framework Action Plan 2025 "The data-driven R&D Autobahn to Cures"

Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Evotec to retire from office effective as of the end of the Annual General Meeting on 15 June 2021 (after period-end)

GUIDANCE FOR FULL-YEAR 2021 CONFIRMED

Business outlook for 2021 confirmed and mid-term targets given for the first time

Group revenues expected to be in a range of  550 - 570 m ( 565 - 585 m at constant exchange rates) (2020:  500.9 m)

Adjusted Group EBITDA expected to be in the range of  105 - 120 m ( 115 - 130 m at constant exchange rates) (2020:  106.6 m)

Unpartnered research and development expenses expected to be in a range of  50 - 60 m (2020:  46.4 m)

INTRODUCTION OF MID-TERM GOALS ALIGNED WITH ACTION PLAN 2025

Introduction of mid-term goals until 2025 at Capital Markets Day on 20 April 2021, targeting revenues growth to >  1,000 m, adjusted EBITDA of >=  300 m and unpartnered research and development expenses of >  100 m

Given current global insecurities surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, a likely negative impact - though less pronounced than in 2020 - is already estimated within the guidance for revenues and adjusted EBITDA stated above.

Key figures of consolidated income statement & segment information

Evotec SE & subsidiaries - First quarter of 2021





In T

EVT

Execute4)

EVT

Innovate5)

Intersegment Eliminations Evotec Group

Q1 2021 Evotec Group

Q1 2020 External revenues1) 104,880 28,205 - 133,085 119,402 Intersegment revenues 32,033 - (32,033) - - Costs of revenue (107,654) (25,149) 30,397 (102,406) (86,130) Gross profit 29,259 3,056 (1,636) 30,679 33,272 Gross margin in % 21.4 10.8 - 23.1 27.9 R&D expenses2) (2,001) (18,095) 1,636 (18,460) (15,056) SG&A expenses (17,033) (4,161) - (21,194) (17,254) Other operating

income (expenses), net 4,587 11,166 - 15,753 15,133 Operating result 14,812 (8,034) - 6,778 16,095 Adjusted EBITDA3) 28,320 (7,215) - 21,105 30,002

1) Adjusted for negative exchange rate effects of  6.0 m, Group revenues amount to  139.1 m

2) Of which unpartnered R&D expenses of  14.9 m in Q1 2021 (Q1 2020:  11.4 m)

3) Before changes in contingent considerations, income from bargain purchase and excluding impairments on goodwill, other intangible and tangible assets as well as the total non-operating result

4) Revenues from material recharges of  5.6 m are allocated to EVT Execute as of Q1 2021

5) Revenues from material recharges of  0.3 m are allocated to EVT Innovate as of Q1 2021

More detailed information and financial tables are available in our interim statement for the first quarter published on the Evotec website under the following link:

https://www.evotec.com/en/invest/financial-publications

Webcast/Conference Call

The Company is going to hold a conference call to discuss the results of the first quarter 2021 as well as to provide an update on its performance in the reporting period. The conference call will be held in English.



Conference call details

Date: Tuesday, 11 May 2021

Time: 02.00 pm CET (08.00 am EST, 01.00 pm GMT)



From Germany: +49 69 20 17 44 220

From France: +33 170 709 502

From Italy: +39 023 600 6663

From UK: +44 20 3009 2470

From USA: +1 877 423 0830

Access Code: 94660964#

A simultaneous slide presentation for participants dialling in via phone is available at https://www.webcast-eqs.com/evotec20210511/no-audio.

Webcast details

To join the audio webcast and to access the presentation slides you will find a link on our homepage www.evotec.com shortly before the event.

A replay of the conference call will be available for seven days and can be accessed from Germany by dialling +49 69 201744221, from UK by dialling +44 20 3364 5150 and from USA by dialling +1 (844) 307-9362.

The access code is 315614523#. The on-demand version of the webcast will be available on our website: https://www.evotec.com/financial-reports.

ABOUT EVOTEC SE

Evotec is a drug discovery alliance and development partnership company focused on rapidly progressing innovative product approaches with leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, academics, patient advocacy groups and venture capitalists. We operate worldwide and our more than 3,700 employees provide the highest quality stand-alone and integrated drug discovery and development solutions. We cover all activities from target-to-clinic to meet the industry's need for innovation and efficiency in drug discovery and development (EVT Execute). The Company has established a unique position by assembling top-class scientific experts and integrating state-of-the-art technologies as well as substantial experience and expertise in key therapeutic areas including neuronal diseases, diabetes and complications of diabetes, pain and inflammation, oncology, infectious diseases, respiratory diseases, fibrosis, rare diseases and women's health. On this basis, Evotec has built a broad and deep pipeline of more than 100 co-owned product opportunities at clinical, pre-clinical and discovery stages (EVT Innovate). Evotec has established multiple long-term alliances with partners including Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, CHDI, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, Sanofi, Takeda, UCB and others. For additional information please go to www.evotec.com and follow us on Twitter @Evotec.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Information set forth in this press release contains forward-looking statements, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the judgement of Evotec as of the date of this press release. Such forward-looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, and which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statements to reflect any change in our expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

IR Contact Evotec SE:

Volker Braun, SVP Head of Global Investor Relations & ESG, Phone: +49.(0)40.56081-775, volker.braun@evotec.com

SOURCE: Evotec AG

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646357/Evotec-SE-Reports-Results-for-The-First-Quarter-2021-and-Provides-Corporate-Update
DUESSELDORF (dpa-AFX) - German electric utility E.ON AG (EONGY.PK) reported that its first-quarter adjusted EBIT rose by 14 percent year on year to 1.7 billion euros and adjusted net income increased by 19 percent to 809 million euros from the prior year. Earnings driven by operating improvements at Customer Solutions business. Earnings at the Customer Solutions segment improved by just under 300 million euros relative to the prior-year period and thus almost doubled. A weather-related increase in gas sales volume and successful restructuring in the United Kingdom were key factors. E.ON expects to achieve all its targets for 2021 and its medium-term earnings plan through 2023, including its dividend promise. The company said it is confident that it will achieve its adjusted EBITDA target of 7.2 billion euros to 7.5 billion euros and adjusted EBIT target of 3.8 billion euros to 4 billion euros for the 2021 financial year. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
May 11, 2021

This document in English is a translation of the original in Swedish. In case of any discrepancy, the Swedish original will prevail.



Continued focus on Sweden to meet increased demand, SaaS subscriptions on a steady level

January - March 2021

 Net sales were KSEK 5,770 (6,085) *

 Profit/loss after financial items was KSEK -3,570 (-3,569)

 The operating result was KSEK -3,355 (-4,987)

 Earnings per share were SEK -0.1 (-0.2)

* The decrease in net sales is attributable to changes in exchange rates.

At the end of Q1 2021, the company had about MSEK 2.1 in accounts receivable from result-based contracts, accrued during Q42018-Q42020, of which SEK 2 million have been taken up as revenue during Q4 2019 and Q4 2020.

During the first quarter of the year, we have seen that the sales situation has stabilised and we can see that our sales pipeline is growing again.

We have gained new clients - including DHL Supply Chain Sweden AB, which has initiated a pilot project that is currently being implemented. We are very pleased to be working with one of the largest employers in the world and look forward to a long collaboration after the pilot phase. In Finland, Wihuri Oy has chosen to extend their HealthManager licenses to the operations throughout Finland, which has added another 700 SaaS subscribers.

We have continued to invest heavily in marketing and sales, especially in Sweden. This has resulted in higher costs but has also had results in the form of increased activity levels, the outcome of which will be seen in the coming quarters.

As of the last of March, we have around 50,000 subscribers.

Thanks to the improved sales situation in Sweden and the high activity level we have, I look forward to a continued strong 2021 that will bring us new clients, better visibility for Aino and an even better SaaS solution that will continue to support our clients in keeping their employees healthy and engaged.

Jyrki Eklund

CEO and President Aino Health AB

The information contained herein is such as shall be made public by Aino Health AB (publ), in accordance with the EU Market Abuse Regulation. This information was made public, through the agency of Jyrki Eklund, CEO and President of Aino Health AB, at 08.30 AM CET on May 11, 2021.

For more information:

Jyrki Eklund, CEO Aino Health, Phone: +358 40 042 4221

Certified adviser

Erik Penser Bank

+46 8 463 83 00

certifiedadviser@penser.se

About Aino Health.

Attachments
The leaders discussed the current political situation in the state and their future course of action for more than 35 minutes, it is learnt. (Photo: Twitter @Eatala_Rajender)

Hyderabad: In an interesting turn of events, estranged TRS MLA and former health minister Etala Rajendar paid a quick visit to Congress Legislative Party (CLP) leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka at the latters residence in Banjara Hills in Hyderabad on Tuesday afternoon.

The senior TRS leader, accompanied by former MLA Yenugu Ravinder Reddy, received a warm welcome at Bhatti Vikramarkas residence. The leaders discussed the current political situation in the state and their future course of action for more than 35 minutes, it is learnt.

Speaking to this correspondent, Bhatti said Rajendars visit was just a courtesy call and there was nothing political about it. He came to our residence for the first time and we welcomed him with respect, Bhatti said, adding that Rajendar might reveal his political action plan in their next meeting. He said if Rajendar wanted to travel with the Congress, the party high command would take a decision.

But close associates of Huzurabad MLA said Rajendar was unhappy with the way the government was functioning. They said Rajendar might seek the support of the Congress in case the TRS forced him to resign from the post of MLA.

In a dramatic move, immediately after Rajendar left Bhattis house, his rival candidate in the last Assembly elections in Huzurabad constituency Padi Koushik Reddy reached Bhatti Vikramarkas residence, ostensibly upset with Rajendars visit to Bhatti.

Koushik Reddy is understood to have reacted in an aggressive manner and questioned Bhatti why he spoke to Rajendar. Asked about Koushik Reddys visit, Bhatti said Koushik visited his home regularly and it was accidental not incidental.

Sources said Koushik Reddy was not keen on admitting Rajendar into the Congress if the TRS sacked from the party. However, speculations are flying thick and fast among political circles on the next move of Rajendar.
Good morning,

Please find below the press release issued today.

Best regards,

___________________________________________________________________

Marishka Martins

Group PR Consultant | Marketing & Creative Services

Capgemini India | Mumbai

www.capgemini.com

Tel.: +91 9930835325

Email: marishka.martins@capgemini.com

_____________________________

Capgemini to enable a "Digital Workplace" transformation at Airbus

Paris, France - Mai 11, 2021 - Capgemini has signed a five-year contract with Airbus to support the redesign of its global collaborative workplace, both in terms of working methods and tools.

In terms of tools and technology Capgemini will enable online publishing and sharing services, collaboration and productivity tools, messaging services, instant messaging, video conferencing, and digital telephony services.

"It was our ability to handle this project end-to-end, from strategic scoping through to operational transformation, integrating new technologies and cloud, that made the difference. We are extremely proud to be supporting Airbus in this major redesign," said Nive Bhagat, CEO of Capgemini's Cloud & Infrastructure Services and member of the Group Executive Committee.



About Capgemini

Capgemini is a global leader in partnering with companies to transform and manage their business by harnessing the power of technology. The Group is guided everyday by its purpose of unleashing human energy through technology for an inclusive and sustainable future. It is a responsible and diverse organization of 270,000 team members in nearly 50 countries. With its strong 50 year heritage and deep industry expertise, Capgemini is trusted by its clients to address the entire breadth of their business needs, from strategy and design to operations, fueled by the fast evolving and innovative world of cloud, data, AI, connectivity, software, digital engineering and platforms. The Group reported in 2020 global revenues of 16 billion.

Get the Future You Want | www.capgemini.com

Attachment
Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WEST MINING CORP. ("WEST" OR THE "COMPANY") (CSE: WEST) (OTC: WESMF) (FRA: 1HL) is pleased to announce the completion of an updated NI43-101 Technical Report on its 100% owned Kena and Daylight Properties, collectively known as the Company's flagship "Kena" Gold and Copper Project, located in the Nelson Mining District of southeastern British Columbia. This Report was completed by Moose Mountain Technical Services ("Moose Mountain" or "MMTS") and highlights over 2,773,000 ounces of goldin the inferred category as well as over 561,000 ounces of gold in the indicated category.



Mineral Resource

The Table below summarizes the Total Mineral Resource estimate for the Kena Project. The base case cut-off grade within the "reasonable prospects of eventual economic extraction" constraining pit is 0.25 g/t gold (Au), as highlighted in Table 1.

TABLE 1: MINERAL RESOURCE ESTIMATE (effective date March 25, 2021)

Class Cutoff Tonnage Au NSR Au Metal Au (gpt) (ktonnes) (gpt) (CDN$) (Koz) Indicated 0.25 32,146 0.544 41.48 561.9 Inferred 177,508 0.486 35.57 2,773.1

Notes for Tables1 and 2:

1. The Mineral Resource estimate has been prepared by Sue Bird, P.Eng., an independent Qualified Person.

2. Resources are reported using the 2014 CIM Definition Standards and were estimated using the 2019 CIM Best Practices Guidelines.

3. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.

4. The Mineral Resource has been confined by a "reasonable prospects of eventual economic extraction" pit using the following assumptions: US $2000/oz. Au at a currency exchange rate of 0.77 US$ per $CDN; 99.95% payable Au, 96.5% payable Cu; $4.30/oz Au offsite costs (refining, transport and insurance), 0.467 Cu offsite; a 3% NSR royalty; and uses a 88% metallurgical recovery for gold for all areas and 85% recovery for Cu in the Cu zone only.

5. Pit slope angles are assumed at 45.

6. The specific gravity of the deposit has been assigned as 2.8 based on sg measurements in the Kena deposit.

7. Numbers may not add due to rounding.

The QP is not aware of any other factors or issues that materially affect the Mineral Resource estimate other than normal risks faced by mining projects in the province in terms of environmental, permitting, taxation, socio-economic, marketing, and political factors and additional risk factors as listed in the "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information" section below.

"With over 2,773,000 oz Au Inferred and over 561,000 oz Au Indicated and an economically viable cut off of 0.25 g/t gold, this updated resource is tremendous news for the shareholders and the Company," stated Nicholas Houghton President and CEO. "With the continuation of the anomaly defined by our recent geophysical survey of the Kena Southern zone not assimilated into the Report, the area hosting the Indicated and Inferred resource represents only a portion of the expansive Kena project. As the resource remains open at depth and along strike, the Company is fully financed and excited for the upcoming field season and potential of this year's drill program."

The Kena Project consists of 5 deposit areas including the Kena Gold, Gold Mountain, Daylight, Great Eastern/Western and Kena Copper Zone. This Resource estimate is based on Ordinary Kriging of Au grades capped at values between 0.3 g/t Au and 40 g/t Au and outlier restriction of Au grades during interpolation at values of 10 g/t depending on the area and domain. Blocks were assigned preliminary Classifications of Indicated based on the average distances to at least two drillholes to be less than 30m. Two solids in constrained areas of the Kena Gold and Gold Mountain area were defined based on this criteria. Blocks within this solid, are classified as Indicated. The distance of 30m is based on the R80 value from the variography; as the range at approximately 80% of the sill. All other blocks that have an interpolated Au grade within the Kena and Daylight deposits are defined as Inferred. Blocks within the Copper Zone and Great Eastern and Great Western deposits are currently considered un-classed and not included in the final Resource estimate.

The total drilling to date on the Kena Property is 252 holes totalling 39,819.19 metres. The Mineral Resource is estimated from 221 drill holes within the Kena, Gold Mountain and Daylight areas having a total of 31,641.54 metres of Au assays. Data prior to 1984, consisting of 4 percussion holes, was not used in the interpolations. Historic assays have been validated by check assays on 12 core samples collected in 2021. Verification of data lacking QAQC was done statistically using point validation to compare Au grades to adjacent assays. Both methods indicate no bias in the historic data used. Significant confirmation work has been completed in 2021 to verify the assay database with the certificates and drill logs.

Table 2 is the Total Resource and includes a range of Au cut-off grades to show the sensitivity of the resource estimate to variations in cut-off grade, with the base cutoff highlighted. At a 0.25 g/t Au base cut-off, the total Indicated Mineral Resource is estimated at 32.1 Mt at 0.544 g/t Au, for a total of 562 Koz of gold and the Inferred Mineral Resource is estimated at 177.5 Mt at 0.486 g/t Au, for a total of 2,773 Koz of gold.

TABLE 2: SENSITIVITY OF THE TOTAL RESOURCE ESTIMATE TO CUTOFF GRADE (effective date March 25, 2021)

Class Cut-off Tonnage Au NSR Au Metal Au (gpt) (ktonnes) (gpt) (CDN$) (Koz) INDICATED 0.10 44,006 0.449 34.51 635.0 0.15 41,895 0.465 35.69 625.7 0.20 37,663 0.497 38.09 602.0 0.25 32,146 0.544 41.48 561.9 0.30 26,274 0.604 45.78 510.2 0.50 11,863 0.869 65.92 331.4 1.00 2,662 1.526 113.34 130.6 INFERRED 0.10 348,491 0.330 23.78 3,697.0 0.15 281,957 0.378 27.59 3,428.2 0.20 223,301 0.432 31.56 3,103.0 0.25 177,508 0.486 35.57 2,773.1 0.30 135,814 0.552 40.83 2,410.1 0.50 53,060 0.813 61.33 1,386.7 1.00 9,136 1.588 115.44 466.4

A gold price of US$1800/oz and a processing cost of $14.00/t requires an Au grade of approximately 0.25 g/t. Therefore, a cut-off of 0.25g/t Au is considered appropriate for current gold prices. An open pit created using Lerchs-Grossmann (LG) pit optimization has been done on a series of pits with varying price assumptions (see Table Note 4). The pit size is larger than that used for the cutoff grade in order to ensure that all material with a "reasonable prospect of eventual economic extraction" is included. Constant pit slopes at 45 were used for the Resource pit.

Figures A, B and C show the Kena and Gold Mountain Zones in plan and section views with the confining pit shape also shown. On the sections, the drillhole data shown is 30m of the section.

FIGURE A: Plan View of the Classification, the Drill Pattern, and the Resource Pit

FIGURE B: Section through Gold Mountain Zone

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/5223905d-a6f8-4aea-b2f8-927d9ea8525c

FIGURE C: Section through Kena Gold Zone

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/52d2bd34-8319-449c-8a8b-7f1dffb91773

Moose Mountain recommends that a drilling program be conducted in two phases one exploring targets on the Daylight portion of the property and the other on the Kena side. Phase 2 is not contingent upon the results of the Phase 1 as the phases target separate zones. In Phase 1, up to twelve short step-out diamond drillholes will test the Starlight Vein system and two fences of six to eight holes drilled in the Great Western area to expand on previously identified intrusive related gold mineralization in that zone. Phase 2 consists of diamond drilling on the Kena portion of the property with two priority target areas, the Kena Copper Zone with fifteen holes and the Gold Mountain-Kena Gold zone to build ounces and to potentially upgrade the Inferred resource into the Measured and Indicated categories. Total estimated cost of drilling is $1,165,000 CDN.



Moose Mountain also recommends that although the Resource database has been verified and is deemed acceptable, a robust check assay sampling program including QAQC samples be conducted using a certified laboratory comprising 5-10% of core for years for which drill core is available to compensate for missing certificates, lack of QAQC samples and potential bias noted in the 2012 drilling QAQC and 2001-2002 check assays. It is also recommended that the assay database be amended to include silver and copper for all available samples from certificates.

The Company is fully financed to complete the recommended exploration program anticipated to commence before June 1st, 2021.

Linda Dandy, P.Geo., a "Qualified Person" for the purpose of National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the contents of this news release.

About West Mining Corp.

West Mining Corp. is a mineral exploration company acquiring and developing advanced and prospective early-stage exploration projects. It is fully focused on its 100% owned 8,000 hectare Kena Project located near Nelson, British Columbia. There has been over 39,000 metres of drilling completed to date on the project. The Kena Project comprises three adjoining Properties: Kena, Daylight and Athabasca. The Kena Property hosts the Kena Gold, Gold Mountain and Copper King showings together with the historic Euphrates and Gold Cup gold mines. The Daylight property contains the historic past producing Daylight, Starlight, Victoria and Great Eastern gold mines. Along trend to the north is the Athabasca Property, with the historic Athabasca Gold Mine. The historic mines and known mineralized zones on these three properties are structurally controlled along a 15 kilometre strike as identified by strong geophysical signatures.

For additional information, please refer to the Company's public disclosure record available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com .

West Mining Corp.

Nicholas Houghton

President & CEO

e-mail: nick@westminingcorp.com

website: www.westminingcorp.com

The Canadian Securities Exchange accepts no responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Certain statements contained in this press release constitute "forward-looking information" as such term is defined in applicable Canadian securities legislation. The words "may", "would", "could", "should", "potential", "will", "seek", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect" and similar expressions as they relate to the Company, are intended to identify forward-looking information. All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking information. Such statements reflect the Company's current views and intentions with respect to future events, and current information available to them, and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including, without limitation: the potential of the Company's mineral properties; the estimation of capital requirements; the estimation of operating costs; the timing and amount of future business expenditures; and the availability of necessary financing. Many factors could cause the actual results, performance or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking information to vary from those described herein should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize. Such factors include but are not limited to: changes in economic conditions or financial markets; increases in costs; litigation; legislative, environmental and other judicial, regulatory, political and competitive developments; and exploration or operational difficulties. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect forward-looking information. These and other factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking information. Should any factor affect the Company in an unexpected manner, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking information prove incorrect, the actual results or events may differ materially from the results or events predicted. Any such forward-looking information is expressly qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement. Moreover, the Company does not assume responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of such forward-looking information. The forward-looking information included in this press release is made as of the date of this press release and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information, other than as required by applicable law.
- Almost 2% of worldwide population have white patches on the skin caused by lack of pigmentation1

- World Vitiligo Day is observed on 25th June

MADRID, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Bella Aurora Labs, a pioneering company that for more than 130 years has specialised in the study of melanocytes, has announced the launch of Repigment, its first ever line formulated to treat white patches on the skin. Repigment is the culmination of a more than four-year collaboration with Italian dermatologist and vitiligo specialist Dr Matteo Bordignon.

"As experts in the study of melanocytes and skin pigmentation, we can offer a solution to skins with abnormal pigmentation. Approximately two per cent of the global population has this skin condition which, although it is not painful, has a psychological impact." says Jordi Segura, R&D Director at Bella Aurora.

"In the course of my work as a dermatologist, I treat numerous people with hypo- pigmentation, most of whom are desperate to find an effective treatment. With Repigment, we now have an opportunity to improve these people's lives, making my ten years of research even more significant." says Dr Matteo Bordignon.

It was in 2013 that Dr Bordignon published2 his discovery that the MIA protein, produced abnormally by melanocytes, is responsible for hypopigmentation or the formation of white patches on the skin. His studies demonstrate how the MIA protein breaks the adhesion system of melanocytes to the basal membrane, from which they become detached and are lost. It is the absence of melanocytes that causes the appearance of white patches.

REPIGMENT

The new treatment for hypopigmentation

Repigment is Bella Aurora's first ever effective treatment for white patches. As well as stopping new white patches from developing, this patented product also restores the pigment to the affected areas.

The new Repigment line consists of the repigmenting cream that contains the Repigma12 peptide to block the MIA protein, and RepigmentSun capsules, a food supplement that prepares the skin for exposure to the sun or for booth radiation sessions.

Recommendations: apply the cream twice daily to the affected areas and take one capsule with a glass of water with a meal to protect the skin. The treatment must be accompanied by exposure to natural sunlight or artificial UV light under the supervision of a health professional. It is recommended to follow the treatment for at least six months or until the area is fully repigmented.

Repigment is available on www.bella-aurora.com.

PROVEN RESULTS

Results of 150 days of treatment and phototherapy3.

It is necessary to continue with the treatment until the complete repigmentation.

Repigment WhitePatchesTreatment

About Bella Aurora

Bella Aurora, as part of Bella Aurora Labs, has a history that dates back 130 years. As a result of its experience in the study of melanocytes, Bella Aurora has developed an efficient solution that eliminates dark spots from the skin.

Bella Aurora has invested in decades of research into the different mechanisms that influence skin pigmentation processes. The company's scientific expertise in this area has resulted in the launch of patented B-CORE 221TM on the market, an exclusive technology that will represent a turning point in the treatment of abnormal pigmentation.

It already has a solid presence in Europe, Asia and the US and is on a mission to become an established world leader in skin pigmentation and the number one for eliminating dark spots and white patches.

About Dr Matteo Bordignon

Dr Matteo Bordignon qualified in Medicine and Surgery with the highest scores and honours from the University of Padua. In 2009, he specialised with honours in Dermatology and Venereology at the University of Padua, one of the most prestigious in Italy and one of the oldest in the world. He is also the author and co-author of numerous articles in international scientific journals and during his training he took part in clinical trials and laboratory activities. In the research field, after years studying vitiligo, Dr Bordignon was the first to identify the relationship between the MIA protein and this skin condition.

To request an interview with Dr Matteo Bordignon, please contact Alejandra Delgado.





1. Source: European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.

2. Bordignon M, Castellani C, Fedrigo M, Thiene G, Peserico A, Alaibac M, et al. Role of alpha5beta1 integrin and MIA (melanoma inhibitory activity) in the pathogenesis of vitiligo. J Dermatol Sci. 2013 Aug;71(2):142-5.

3. Source: Bordignon M. Development of a new topical treatment for vitiligo based on the MIA-inhibitors technology. 2020; Jan. Data on File.

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / FALCON GOLD CORP. (TSX-V:FG)(GR:3FA)(OTC PINK:FGLDF); ("Falcon" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the Company has commenced its 2021 work programs on the Central Canada Gold Project in the Atikokan mining camp of northwestern Ontario. The first activities will be focusing on the outcrop exposures and trench areas where the geological team will be conducting detailed structural mapping along the 275 metre ("m") long strike of the Central Canada mine trend. In addition, the team intends to expand its attention onto the other high-priority gold targets along strike and paralleling the mine trend.

In its release of March 18, 2021, Falcon reported the last of the 17 drill holes of the initial drilling campaign by the Company in 2020. Figure One is a surface plan of the results of Falcon's program plus the drilling by predecessor companies.

Mr. Karim Rayani, Falcon's Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We are looking forward to commencing phase 3 drilling shortly, the intent is to target the historic shaft area initially and complete further infill along the 275 m strike of the Central Canada mine trend. With the recent airborne and survey interpretations completed we are now gathering the necessary modeling of the folding and faulting structures to better predict how the gold zones behave below surface. We are looking at a very busy season ahead of us."

Next Steps for 2021 Work Programs

In addition to the mapping of the outcrop exposures of the Central Canada mine trend, Falcon has begun the reinterpretation of the 2020 heliborne high-resolution magnetic and time-domain electromagnetic survey utilizing artificial intelligent ("AI") computer analyses. This type of AI system is an evolving and promising application that may be capable of identifying areas of complex folding and faulting and could accelerate the process of deciphering and modelling the complex structural setting of the Property.

For the 2021 drill program, the Company is planning to complete up to 20 diamond drill holes for approximately 2,000m of core. The intent will be to target the gold mineralization in the shaft area and to test other excellent gold zones such as mineralized quartz-feldspar porphyries and the Northern Vein also known as the No. 2 Vein. Based upon the surface mapping and the AI analyses, the drilling will be directed to intersect those targets recommended by the studies.

In Figure one, it is evident the gold enrichment appears greatest in the vicinity of the mine shaft. However, what is yet to be shown by the drilling is any preferential location of mineralization or control of its placement by folding or faulting.

Figure One. Surface level plan view of the 2020 drill program showing the Falcon, TerraX and Anjamin drill intersections. Gold intervals define a broad mineralized trend that includes the historical shaft vein. Note Falcon's drill hole CC 20 -17 results show an encouraging trend to the west.

E-Metals Exploration

The geology of the Central Canada project is divided into two distinct parts with Wabigoon Subprovince underlying the northern area and the Quetico Subprovince to the south. The boundary between the Subprovinces is a narrow zone, typically less than 100m wide and commonly occupied by lakes or swamps. This boundary is called the Quetico Fault Zone ("QFZ") and has been traced for more than 100km as an important structural feature particularly in its affiliation with a variety of mineral deposits. A report in the 1985 Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5539 described the QFZ mineralization near the Central Canada claims as a massive sulphide zone located beneath Sapawe Lake of two parallel sulphide zones. The lenses or irregular masses of sulphide occur within a volcanogenic environment. There is an ultramafic to mafic intrusive associated with some of the massive sulphide zones. Sulphide mineralization consists mainly of pyrite, pyrrhotite, magnetite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite with associated pentlandite and carrollite.

The historical 1980 government-sponsored regional airborne geophysical surveys and Falcon's 2020 survey suggest that Falcon may have a significant zone or zones of conductive massive sulphide mineralization having an east northeast trending strike length of more than 3km beneath Sapawe Lake. An historical drill intersection known as the Staines Occurrence on Falcon's claims at the west end of Sapawe Lake had reported a wide sulphide-rich zone averaging 0.64% Cu, 0.15% Co, 1.1% Zn and 0.35 g/t Au over a true width of 40 m. The Company is planning to commence permitting a drill program to test the continuation of the sulphide horizon as indicated by the geophysical surveys. Drilling will likely be done during the winter when Sapawe Lake is frozen over.

Qualified Person

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Mike Kilbourne, P.Geo., who is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

About Falcon Gold Corp., the Central Canada Gold Mine Project, and Jack Lake Trend

Falcon is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on generating, acquiring, and exploring opportunities in the Americas. Falcon's flagship project, the Central Canada Gold Mine, is approximately 20 km south east of Agnico Eagle's Hammond Reef Gold Deposit which has currently estimated 3.32 million ounces of gold (123.5 million tonnes grading 0.84 g/t gold) mineral reserves, and 2.3 million ounces of measured and indicated mineral resources (133.4 million tonnes grading 0.54 g/t gold). The Hammond Reef gold property lies on the Hammond shear zone, which is a northeast-trending splay off of the Quetico Fault Zone ("QFZ") and may be the control for the gold deposit. The Central Gold property lies on a similar major northeast-trending splay of the QFZ.

History of Central Canada gold mine includes;

1901 to 1907 - Shaft constructed to a depth of 12 m and 27 oz of gold from 18 tons using a stamp mill.

1930 to 1934 - Central Canada Mines Ltd. installed a 75 ton per day gold mill. Development work included 1,829 m of drilling and a vertical shaft to a depth of 45 m with about 42 m of crosscuts and drifts on the 100-foot level. In December, 1934 the mine had reportedly outlined approximately 230,000 ounces of gold with an average grade of 9.9 g/t Au.

1935 - With the on-going financial crisis of the Great Depression, the Central Canada Mines was unable to fund operations and the mine ceased operations.

1965 - Anjamin Mines completed diamond drilling and in hole S2 returned a 2 ft section of 37.0 g/t Au and hole S3 assayed 44.0 g/t Au across 7 ft.

1985 - Interquest Resources Corp. drilled 13 diamond holes totaling 1,840 m in which a 3.8 ft intersection showed 30.0 g/t Au.

2010 to 2012 - TerraX Minerals Inc. conducted programs that included line cutting, geological surveys and 363 m of drilling.

2020 - Falcon Gold Corp. completed its inaugural 17-hole program totaling 2,942.5 m of core.

The Company holds 5 additional projects. The Camping Lake Gold property and the Springpole West Property in the world-renowned Red Lake mining camp; a 49% interest in the Burton Gold property near Sudbury Ontario; and in BC, the Spitfire-Sunny Boy Gold Claims and the Gaspard property.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Falcon Gold Corp.

"Karim Rayani"

Karim Rayani

Chief Executive Officer, Director

Telephone: (604) 716-0551

Email: info@falcongold.ca

Cautionary Language and Forward-Looking Statements

This news release may contain forward looking statements including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content of upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt of property titles, etc. Forward looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore, involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Falcon Gold Corp

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646356/Falcon-Starts-2021-Exploration-at-Central-Canada-Gold-Mine-NW-Ontario
TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - Japan's Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. (TAK) reported Tuesday that its fiscal 2020 net profit was 376 billion yen, a 750 percent increase from the prior year, reflecting gains on non-core asset sales and lower acquisition-related expenses. Earnings per share were 241 yen, up 747.3 percent from last year. Core net profit was 655.5 billion yen or 420 yen per share, up 9 percent from last year. Operating profit for the year grew 407.2 percent year-on-year to 509.3 billion yen or about $4.6 billion. Core operating profit was 967.9 billion yen or about $8.8 billion, up 0.6 percent from the previous year. Revenue was 3.20 trillion yen or about $28.9 billion, down 2.8 percent from last year. On an underlying basis, revenue grew 2.2 percent, driven by the growth of Takeda's 14 global brands, up 16 percent year-on-year. For fiscal 2021 ending March 31, 2022, the company projects net profit of 250 billion yen or 160 yen per share, core earnings per share of 394 yen, operating profit of 488 billion yen, and core operating profit of 930 billion yen, all lower than the previous year. However, revenue for the year are expected to be 3.37 trillion yen, 5.4 percent higher than last year. The company expects underlying revenue growth to accelerate to 'mid-single-digit' driven by continued momentum of Takeda's 14 global brands. Underlying core operating profit and underlying core earnings per share are expected to also grow at 'mid-single-digit'. The company said fiscal 2021 is expected to be an inflection year for Takeda as it anticipates up to six regulatory submissions by year-end FY2021, with the potential for four approvals. Takeda President and Chief Executive Officer Christophe Weber said, 'With FY2021 anticipated to serve as a critical inflection year, we remain focused on leveraging our expected topline growth to ramp up our R&D investment and further fuel our transformative pipeline. We are well-positioned to reach our goal of mid-single-digit revenue growth over the next decade amounting to JPY5 trillion ($47 billion) by FY2030.' Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Sierra Madre Gold and Silver Ltd. ("Sierra Madre" or the "Company") (TSXV:SM) is pleased to announce drilling has begun at its 2,600 hectare Tepic Silver Gold project located in the State of Nayarit, Mexico. The drilling contractor is Tornado Drilling S.A. de C.V with main offices in Hermosillo, Sonora. The Phase 1 drilling program is scheduled for 21 holes. The Company is currently permitted for a total of 67 drill holes.

Reverse circulation drilling methods are being employed as the previous operator experienced poor core recovery, especially within the mineralized zones of interest. Samples will be collected at 5-foot intervals for the entire hole. The contractor will use face sampling air hammers throughout the drill hole. The air pressure caused by the reverse circulation hammer bit face and center passage tube, create a vacuuming effect, forcing sample cuttings into the center passage of the dual walled pipe. This method of drilling can achieve near 100 % sample recovery with very little risk of contamination.

The targets for this drilling are mineralized structures located in the Central Area of the Tepic project. See the Sierra Madre press release dated May 4, 2021 for the location of the various project areas at Tepic:

(https://sierramadregoldandsilver.com/system/uploads/SM-PressRelease-20210504.pdf).

Sierra Madre Gold and Silver Best Practice

Sierra Madre is committed to best practice standards for all exploration and sampling activities. The Company's exploration programs have been conducted following CIM Exploration Best Practice Guidelines which are incorporated by reference in NI 43-101. Analytical quality assurance and quality control procedures include the systematic insertion of blanks, standards and duplicates into the sample strings. Samples are placed in sealed bags and shipped directly to Bureau Veritas Lab located in Durango, Mexico for 30 gram gold fire assay and multi-element analyses by acid digestion.

Qualified Person

Mr. Gregory Smith, P. Geo, Vice President of Exploration of Sierra Madre, is a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, and has reviewed and approved the technical data and information contained in this news release. Mr. Smith has verified the technical and scientific data disclosed herein and has conducted appropriate verification on the underlying data including confirmation of the assay data files against the original sample descriptions and assay certificates.

About the Company

Sierra Madre Gold and Silver Ltd. is a mineral exploration company, currently focused on the acquisition, exploration and development of the Tepic Property in Nayarit, Mexico. The Company has an experienced management team with a proven track record of wealth creation in Mexico through project discovery, advancement and monetization. Sierra Madre's key objective is to advance exploration on the Tepic Property to determine whether it contains commercially exploitable deposits of precious or base metals.

On behalf of the board of directors of Sierra Madre Gold and Silver Ltd.,

"Alexander Langer"

Alexander Langer

President, Chief Executive Officer and Director

Cautionary Note

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. The forward-looking statements herein are made as of the date of this press release only, and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new information, estimates or opinions, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budgets", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "predicts", "projects", "intends", "targets", "aims", "anticipates" or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases or may be identified by statements to the effect that certain actions "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking information in this press release includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to future events or future performance of the Company, results of or benefits arising from the listing of the Common Shares on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, the services to be provided pursuant to the Agreements, receipt of all required regulatory approvals including TSXV approval of the Agreements and the Company's plans with respect to the exploration and development of the Tepic Property. Forward-looking statements and information are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the ability of the Company to control or predict, that may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied thereby, and are developed based on assumptions about such risks, uncertainties and other factors set out herein, including, but not limited to, the risk that the Agreements bay not be approved by the TSXV and the factors set out under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's final long form non-offering prospectus dated March 31, 2021 available for review on the Company's profile at www.sedar.com. Such forward-looking information represents management's best judgment based on information currently available. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual future results may vary materially. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.

SOURCE: Sierra Madre Gold and Silver

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646350/Sierra-Madre-Announces-Commencement-of-Drilling-at-Tepic
Landmark legal action aims to force Apple to cut its controversial 30% commission on App Store purchases and to compensate UK iPhone and iPad users for years of alleged overcharging

Alleges Apple's 30% surcharge is in breach of European and UK competition laws and that Apple is abusing its dominant position in the app market at the expense of ordinary people

Class action seeks estimated damages of up to 1.5 billion for UK users of the App Store

Argues that people who buy apps and make digital purchases in apps (not app developers) are at the front of the line for compensation from Apple

Apple has systematically broken the law and overcharged millions of UK users for apps and other purchases made on its market-leading App Store, according to a groundbreaking legal action brought in a UK court against the technology giant.

The claim has been filed in the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London on behalf of around 19.6 million eligible UK iPhone and iPad users. It alleges that Apple deliberately shuts out potential competition and forces ordinary users to use Apple's own payment processing system, generating illegally excessive levels of profit for the company. Typically, 30% of the money app purchasers spend in the App Store goes straight to Apple.

This 30% commission is an unlawful raid on Apple's customers' purses, bears no relationship to the costs of providing the services in question, and cannot be justified, the claim argues. It is also alleged that the restrictive terms Apple imposes on app developers damage app purchasers' interests and break competition law. Apple faces an estimated bill for damages of up to 1.5 billion from the claim.

Bringing this collective action is Dr Rachael Kent, an expert in the digital economy and lecturer at King's College, University of London. It is a representative opt-out collective action, which is a claim brought on behalf of a class of potential claimants without the need for them to actively opt into the claim. An estimated 19.6 million UK users are eligible for compensation, according to the claim.

Who is eligible

Any UK user of an iPhone or iPad who purchased paid apps, paid subscriptions or made other in-app purchases within the UK version of the App Store at any point since October 1, 2015 is entitled to compensation from Apple for its anti-competitive practices, the claim says. The purchases must have been made on iPhone and/or iPad devices.

All such purchasers are automatically included within the claimant class. Device users can check their eligibility for compensation by logging into their App Store account and checking their "Purchase History". Purchasers who are interested in finding out more about the claim and signing up for regular updates should visit www.appstoreclaims.co.uk.

The case against Apple

The company is accused of using its dominant position as a platform for selling apps by imposing restrictive terms on app developers, stifling efforts by other would-be distributors to offer app purchasers better value for money.

Apple has also allegedly abused its dominant position by blocking users' ability to pay for many app services other than through the company's own App Store Payment System, which typically also includes the 30% commission payment to Apple. It is argued that this practice is monopolistic and unlawful, and that Apple would be unable to charge customers such an excessive mark-up if its devices were open to competitors.

The claim alleges that Apple's conduct violates section 18 of the UK Competition Act 1998 and Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

The UK collective action lawsuit coincides with increased public concern about Apple's dominant position. A committee of the US Congress concluded in October 2020 that Apple has leveraged its monopoly power in mobile app distribution to discriminate against and exclude rivals and charge excessive and unfair commission for purchases from and within the App Store. In the UK, the Competition and Markets Authority is investigating complaints that the terms and conditions Apple imposes on app developers to sell their apps via Apple's App Store are unfair and anti-competitive. And last month the European Commission issued a formal statement of objections against Apple, accusing Apple of breaking European competition law.

In the past year, Apple has been hit with lawsuits in several jurisdictions from app developers and app purchasers. The case brought by Dr Kent today on behalf of UK app purchasers argues that ordinary App Store customers are the direct victims of Apple's anti-competitive behaviour, and entitled to compensation, since they foot the bill.

About the class representative

Dr Kent has more than 15 years' academic and consultancy experience of consumer welfare issues relating to smart mobile technology. At King's College, her research focuses on how consumers use apps and digital platforms, and the impact apps have on choice, spending and other aspects of consumers' everyday lives.

She has made purchases in the App Store; and, as such, has overpaid for her purchases in the same way as other members of the claimant class have overpaid. Like them, she has also had her choices as an app purchaser unlawfully restricted by Apple's anti-competitive efforts to suppress alternative platforms for distributing apps, and alternative means of making payments without being hit by Apple's 30% surcharge.

Statements

Rachael Kent, the class representative in the action, said: "The App Store was a brilliant gateway for a range of interesting and innovative services that millions of us find useful, myself included. But thirteen years after its launch, it has become the only gateway for millions of consumers. Apple guards access to the world of apps jealously, and charges entry and usage fees that are completely unjustified.

"This is the behaviour of a monopolist and is unacceptable. Ordinary people's use of apps is growing all the time, and the last year in particular has increased our dependence on this technology. Apple has no right to charge us a 30% rent for so much of what we pay for on our phones particularly when Apple itself is blocking our access to platforms and developers that are able to offer us much better deals. This is why I am taking this action."

"Last year's US Congress inquiry estimated that Apple's annual global revenue from the App Store is at least $15 billion a year, but the company's costs for running the platform are just $100m. Apple achieves this by slapping unjustified charges on its users. It would not be able to impose these exorbitant charges if competitor platforms and payment systems were allowed to compete on its devices. It is a clear abuse by Apple of the law and its own customers."

Lesley Hannah, Partner at legal firm Hausfeld Co LLP, who is leading the litigation, said:

"Apple has created a captive market where people who own Apple devices are reliant on it for the provision of both apps and payment processing services for digital purchases. It has been exploiting that market for years, by charging excessive fees that in no way reflect the actual cost of providing those services and making sure no one else can compete. App purchasers have been paying the price. This action seeks fair redress for those purchasers.

"Apple should be held to account for its unlawful anticompetitive conduct. Competition laws are there to protect everyone. Every company especially one as popular and powerful as Apple needs to obey the law. Millions of people use the App Store to buy apps and make digital purchases within apps, so it is more essential than ever that those purchasers are treated fairly."

Further information

The legal claim applies to most popular apps on iPhones and iPads, including Fortnite, YouTube, Tinder and many others, that require payment at point of download, subscription payments, or allow for in-app purchases. It does not apply to apps providing "physical goods or services that will be consumed outside of the app". These include Deliveroo and Uber, which are not required to use Apple's payments system or pay Apple the disputed 30% commission.

Affected app purchasers, on whose behalf the class action is brought, will not pay costs or fees to participate in this legal action, which is being funded by Vannin Capital, a global litigation funder. The action is insured, which means that class members have no financial risk in relation to the claim.

Dr Kent is represented by Hausfeld Co LLP, and Mark Hoskins QC, Jennifer MacLeod and Aaron Khan of Brick Court and Ronit Kreisberger QC of Monckton Chambers.

Dr Kent is also advised on the claim by a consultative group with expertise and experience in group claims management, digital markets and consumer rights matters. This group consists of Dame Elizabeth Gloster, formerly a judge in the Court of Appeal; James Walker, an adviser to the Scottish government on consumer protection and founder of Resolver, which helps customers resolve complaints with companies; and Kevin Jenkins, former CEO of Visa UK and a veteran of the payments industry.

Notes for Editors

About Hausfeld Co

Hausfeld Co LLP is a leading disputes-only law firm which specialises in claimant litigation with 12 offices in Europe and the US. The firm possesses significant experience in all aspects of collective redress and group claims, including abuse of dominance litigation against large corporates, including "Big Tech".

The firm pioneered the trucks competition litigation in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands. It has acted on some of the most complex damages claims of the last decade: on the "Interchange Fee" litigation against Visa and Mastercard, in "Google Shopping" claims on behalf of price comparison websites against Google; against six financial institutions over their participation in unlawful price-fixing of the foreign exchange currency markets; and against Marriott International, YouTube and Facebook in data breach litigations.

ENDS

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005119/en/

Contacts:

Media enquiries:

Conal Walsh Amy Murphy Andreas Grueter, Palatine Communications

AppleClaim@palatine-media.com
Iconic British retailer digitally transforms supply chain with Blue Yonder's Luminate Planning

With consumer demand and shopping preferences changing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, retailers need an even more strategic approach to forecasting and fulfillment. That's why Marks Spencer (M&S), a leading and iconic British retailer, has been working with Blue Yonder, a leader in digital supply chain and omni-channel commerce fulfillment, as part of M&S's plans to reduce costs and improve stock flow by re-engineering its end-to-end supply chain.

Blue Yonder has now completed implementation of its demand and fulfillment capabilities through LuminateTM Planning so M&S can quickly pivot to consumers' rapidly changing shopping patterns in order to address demand, particularly across online channels.

Blue Yonder's Luminate Planning, a cloud-based solutions portfolio built on Microsoft Azure, provides M&S with a more accurate view into demand by consolidating and synchronizing demand signals, as well as external variables across the retailers' 1,000 stores. M&S can now evaluate demand scenarios and use prescriptive recommendations to make more accurate decisions; from staging the right inventory through the distribution network to minimizing stock-outs and maximizing inventory turns.

Implementing Blue Yonder's solution is an important early step in M&S's supply chain modernization and provides a strong foundation for its supply chain, removing barriers to further accelerate the supply chain speed to provide the best service for its customers. For M&S colleagues it offers a better experience with a modern, user-friendly and highly-configurable solution to respond to fast changes in the market.

"As part of our fast-moving Never the Same Again programme we're re-engineering our Clothing Home supply chain, this means ensuring our market-leading demand platform remains up to date. We've worked collaboratively with Blue Yonder, our long-time supply chain provider, and other partners to digitally transform from on-premises to cloud-based architecture," said Matt Horwood, chief technology officer, M&S Clothing Home. "The ability to access new Luminate Planning capabilities will help us increase the speed of our supply chain to be more agile, with a strong, modern, supply chain platform foundation ultimately better serving our customer online and in-store."

"By migrating to our cloud-based solution built on Microsoft Azure, M&S now has a more adaptive supply chain that can quickly pivot as customer demand changes whether in stores, online or other channels," said Johan Reventberg, president, EMEA, Blue Yonder. "M&S is a very strategic customer for Blue Yonder, we continue to enable the M&S transformation journey hand-in-hand with our strategic partners. It is exciting to participate in the acceleration of M&S's transformation into a leaner, faster, bolder business."

As strategic partner to M&S, Blue Yonder and Microsoft, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) played a critical role in executing the journey to the cloud by leading the overall program delivery and implementing sophisticated data and integration patterns. TCS also supported the enhancement of Power BI reports to M&S business KPIs to enhance visibility on its business performance.

"With the help of our long-standing partner, Blue Yonder, TCS delivered a complex and business critical program to support M&S in their digital transformation journey," said Abhijit Niyogi, vice president and business head Retail, Europe, Tata Consultancy Services.

This new deployment is the latest example of Blue Yonder working in collaboration with M&S and other tech partners as part of the retailer's transformation. Last year, M&S combined Blue Yonder's workforce management solution and Microsoft Teams to ensure that each of its stores has the right colleague working the right shift at the right time; M&S's workforce can see and swap shifts, review their schedule and make changes as needed no matter where they are.

Additional Resources:

Learn more about Blue Yonder's Luminate Planning solutions portfolio

About Blue Yonder

Blue Yonder is the world leader in digital supply chain and omni-channel commerce fulfillment. Our intelligent, end-to-end platform enables retailers, manufacturers and logistics providers to seamlessly predict, pivot and fulfill customer demand. With Blue Yonder, you can make more automated, profitable business decisions that deliver greater growth and re-imagined customer experiences. Blue Yonder Fulfill your PotentialTM blueyonder.com

"Blue Yonder" is a trademark or registered trademark of Blue Yonder Group, Inc. Any trade, product or service name referenced in this document using the name "Blue Yonder" is a trademark and/or property of Blue Yonder Group, Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks, registered trademarks or service marks of the companies with which they are associated.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005128/en/

Contacts:

Blue Yonder Public Relations Contacts:

Jolene Peixoto, Vice President, Corporate Communications

Tel: +1 978-475-0524, jolene.peixoto@blueyonder.com



Marina Renneke, APR, Corporate Communications Manager

Tel: +1 480-308-3037, marina.renneke@blueyonder.com


LifeSpeak Further Expands UK Presence by Partnering with Market Disrupting Provider of Extended Healthcare Coverage

LifeSpeak, the mental health and wellbeing platform for employee and customer-focused organizations, today announced a partnership with Lime, the online-only provider of affordable top-ups that complement UK public health services. Through the partnership, Lime customers will gain complimentary access to LifeSpeak's curated expert-led mental health and wellbeing education solution directly through the Lime platform.

"Over the last few years, we have seen a dramatic increase in the number of organizations around the world that are making our preventive mental health and wellbeing solution a key element of their employee benefits programs. Recognizing the value that these offerings bring to their employees, a growing number of these organizations, especially those in the financial services and insurance fields, are now adding our solution as a value-added service for their customers," said Michael Held, CEO, and founder of LifeSpeak. "We are excited to partner with Lime, a highly innovative and customer-focused organization that's leading the way in whole-person care to bring our services to their clients."

At launch, Lime will offer expert-led micro-learning videos and other digital content drawn from LifeSpeak's mental health and wellbeing solution to approximately 850,000 employees of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) via their distribution partners. The content will be carefully selected to help SME employers support their employees' mental health and wellbeing as the UK emerges from lockdown. Lime will then extend the offering through additional channels and new services the company is launching this summer. Beyond the value-add of offering these resources to people seeking extra coverage on top of what the UK's world-class public health services provide, Lime will also provide access to all employees. Offering these resources as an employee benefit demonstrates Lime's commitment to ensuring a happy and healthy team and workplace.

"We are excited and proud to partner with LifeSpeak. After an incredibly challenging year for so many people, we look forward to working with LifeSpeak to support existing and potential customers across the UK with relevant, trusted, health and wellbeing content that will help them build the resilience they need to succeed," said Shaun Williams, CEO, Lime Global Ltd. "At Lime, we are concerned with providing products, services, and resources that people will really use and that will make a tangible difference to their lives. What I love about LifeSpeak is the fact that their content is expert-led yet completely accessible. As such, this partnership will provide a valuable, practical tool for our mission to help people stay healthy for longer by providing super-simple, affordable top-ups to public healthcare."

The LifeSpeak platform provides employers around the globe with a mental health and wellbeing resource for their employees, their customers, and their families. LifeSpeak's curated and proprietary content includes thousands of micro-learning videos, podcasts, tip sheets, and other assets from hundreds of the world's leading experts. People can access this content at any time and through any device to get the support they need on a wide range of issues, including mental health, addiction, stress management, relationships, financial health, parenting, caregiving, leadership skills, and more.

Lime joins a fast-growing community of LifeSpeak partners and customers in the UK and globally. For more information about LifeSpeak and to learn more about how LifeSpeak helps companies around the world support their people, visit www.lifespeak.com.

About LifeSpeak Inc.

LifeSpeak is the premier mental health and wellbeing platform for organizations committed to taking care of their employees and customers. With two decades of experience creating and curating thousands of expert-led micro-learning videos and other digital content, LifeSpeak offers the largest breadth of proprietary resources to help companies around the world support their people anytime and anywhere. With a worldwide client base spanning all industries and sectors, LifeSpeak maintains a customer renewal rate of more than 97 percent. To learn more, follow LifeSpeak on LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/company/lifespeak-inc), or visit www.LifeSpeak.com.

About Lime Global Ltd (trading as Lime)

Lime is on a mission to help the many stay healthy for longer by providing super-simple affordable top-ups to public healthcare, just where people need it most. Our customers can pick and choose the products and services that suit them best when they need them. Lime turns traditional health insurance on its head, offering customers a new, affordable way to safeguard their health, topping up the care they receive from the NHS not replacing or duplicating it. We offer a top-up where it's most needed, for just a few pounds a month, because we want everyone to have access to the best healthcare possible, no matter what their income. We're a small but fast-growing UK-based team, dedicated to providing outstanding customer service. We've designed Lime from the ground up to make it as simple and affordable for our customers as possible. From buying a product through to making a claim, we've reduced steps, simplified language and removed small print. We're an online business meaning our customers can access and manage their account themselves at any time with ease, plus, with no call centre, we can keep our prices as affordable as possible (although we will always be here to help when needed).

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005181/en/

Contacts:

Kristin Foley

fama PR for LifeSpeak

LifeSpeak@famapr.com

508-269-3714
Farmers are urging the state government to rescue them from clutches of PACS and rice millers. (Reprsenatational Photo:DC)

Nizamabad/Kamareddy: Taking advantage of Covid-19 pandemic, big traders and middlemen are looting farmers in paddy procurement in connivance with a few primary agriculture cooperative societies (PACS), rice millers and transport operators.

Impact of the second wave of Covid-19 and unseasonal rains created troubles to farmers in selling their produce. Paddy bags were piled up either at primary agricultural societies or on rice mills premises as no authorities came forward to complete the procurement process. Allegedly, a few revenue and civil supplies officials ignored the plight of farmers and supported errant transport operators, rice millers and societies chairmen.

To ensure minimum support price (MSP) to paddy, the state government has set up 432 paddy purchasing centres (PPC) in Nizamabad district and 33 centres in Kamareddy district. Of the total 432 PPCs in Nizamabad, officials allotted 375 centres to PACS and restricted 43 PPCs run by women self-help groups.

Usually, women groups smoothly conduct the procurement at village level and it also benefits them for income generation. A few PACS leaders neglected paddy procurement due to political reasons. They also allegedly indulged in irregularities.

Meantime, shortage of labourers and lorries are also adversely affecting the paddy procurement process in both the districts. Reportedly, a few transport operators demand extra money to shift paddy from villages to rice mills. Lack of coordination between officials and rice millers also worsened the situation. Farmers are urging the state government to rescue them from clutches of PACS and rice millers.

Speaking to this newspaper, Nizamabad additional collector Chandrasekhar said they were keenly monitoring paddy procurement in the district. We slapped a penalty on transport contractors and warned rice millers for scheduled procurement of paddy, he said. Of 110 rice mills, 70 mills opted for boiled rice and 40 mills for raw rice, he added. There are regular complaints of under-weighment, soaked paddy, loading/unloading and others, but we are trying to resolve them, he said.

Kamareddy district rural development officer Venkata Madhava Rao said paddy procurement was continuing smoothly in the district. He said that no complaint was received against anyone including primary agriculture cooperative societies. We will initiate action against primary agriculture cooperative societies, if we receive any specific complaint, he said.

Meanwhile, Kamareddy district collector A Sharath conducted a review meeting on paddy procurement at Banswada on Tuesday and directed officials to complete the process smoothly. He said rice millers should take paddy as per their milling capacity and deviations would be treated seriously.
New Marqeta survey shows that 68% of people surveyed in the UK are more concerned about fraud since the start of the pandemic, with 79% believing banks should more accurately predict fraudulent transactions

Marqeta, the global modern card issuing platform, today released the annual findings of a survey of more than 2000 UK and US consumers, looking at their attitudes and experiences regarding financial fraud. The survey revealed that COVID-19 has been hugely impactful, with 68% of UK respondents reporting being more concerned about fraud since the start of the pandemic. Almost 1-in-5 (19%) of UK adults surveyed by Marqeta reported becoming first-time victims of fraud in the last 12 months, a significant increase from last year's findings from Marqeta's 2020 Fraud Report. This figure rises to 31% among 18-34-year-olds. Under this heightened concern, UK consumers feel banks need to do more to protect their customers, with four-in-five (79%) UK respondents saying they believe their bank should be able to more accurately predict when a transaction is fraudulent, and 63% admitting they are concerned about their bank's ability to spot fraud.

Marqeta's survey also found that 65% of UK respondents said they do not believe that the risk of fraud is a fair trade-off for the convenience of a more seamless and digital economy. Other key findings from the report include:

More than four in five (84%) UK respondents said they shop online now more than ever before, while 74% said they think shopping online puts them at higher risk of fraud.

Sixty percent said they have noticed more phishing attempts to steal payment details over the last 12 months.

Almost one third (32%) of UK respondents said they worry about entering card details online regularly, whilst 22% said they worry about it every time they make a transaction.

Eighty-five percent of UK respondents said they are happy for online transactions to take longer and have extra steps if it significantly reduces the risk of fraudulent activity on their account.

"Earlier this year, the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) warned that fraud in the UK had reached 'epidemic levels'. The findings of this year's annual fraud survey appear to reflect this, with worrying numbers of people falling victim to fraud," comments Ian Johnson, SVP, Managing Director Europe, Marqeta. "It's understandable that consumer concern around banks' ability to fight fraud is high. It will be vital that banks keep pace with this ongoing threat, and have the infrastructure in place to authenticate transactions and spot fraud as fast as possible. This will mean utilising tools like modern card issuing to give banks the digital context and data needed to make real-time, intelligence-driven decisions on authenticating transactions."

The survey also found that 80% of UK respondents said they believe that the new 100 contactless limit, rolled out in March 2021 as part of the annual budget, puts cardholders at higher risk of fraud if their card is lost or stolen. This is a valid concern, as the most common figure for fraud appears to be between 45-100, with the survey finding that 79% of cases fall into this bracket. Faced with this level of threat, many UK adults believe that increased cautiousness is vital. Nearly half (48%) of UK respondents say they're trying to be more careful (although admit they could do better) and 43% say they're very careful. Despite this, the data suggests that UK citizens could be doing more:

More than a quarter (28%) of UK respondents said they lose a credit/debit card at least once a year.

More than a third (36%) of UK respondents who reported being victims of fraud said they did not know the card was missing when the transaction occurred.

Eighty-six percent said they always cancel their lost or stolen card, but only 41% said they cancelled their lost or stolen card immediately. However, this is still an enormous improvement from last year where just 23% said they cancelled their lost or stolen card immediately.

Noticing quickly when a card is missing is critical: 89% of those who reported experiencing fraud on a lost or stolen card said fraudulent transactions took place within the first 30 minutes.

"The new 100 contactless card limit certainly raises extra security concerns for physical cardholders," continues Johnson. "The problem is, while convenient, the new limit makes it significantly easier for fraudsters to steal larger sums of money in a single swoop or tap. When you consider how many of us tend to lose our cards and either forget, or put-off, cancelling it, it makes sense to consider the other options available to us. Digital wallets and virtual cards, for instance, offer all the convenience of contactless cards but with far less security risks they often have no spend limit and are also protected by the phone's built-in biometrics. With more than 80 percent of UK adults owning a smartphone, rolling out digital payments at scale seems to be the next obvious step to help protect consumers' finances."

Download the full report here: https://www.marqeta.com/uk/2021-fraud-report

About Marqeta

Marqeta is the global modern card issuing platform empowering builders to bring the most innovative products to the world. Marqeta provides developers advanced infrastructure and tools for building highly configurable payment cards. With its open APIs, the Marqeta platform is used by leading European fintechs like Capital on Tap, Lydia and Twisto, who want to easily build tailored payment solutions to create best-in-class experiences and power new modes of money movement. Marqeta is headquartered in Oakland, California, is enabled in 36 countries globally and has offices in London, United Kingdom and Melbourne, Australia. For more information, visit www.marqeta.com, Twitter and LinkedIn.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005235/en/

Contacts:

Robert Fretwell

Spark Communications for Marqeta

0207 436 0420

marqeta@sparkcomms.co.uk
Process engineering specialist serving brewing, pharma and food sectors optimises digital transformation with SAP S/4HANA Cloud via RISE with SAP

LONDON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Sapphire Systems, a leading digital operating platform provider, today announced that Briggs of Burton, has selected RISE with SAP. The transformational SAP S/4HANA Cloud ERP system, which has embedded AI and machine learning, is set to boost visibility, support decision-making and planning for the process engineering specialist, underpinning an ambitious growth strategy which will see its turnover increase to 100m by 2024. Briggs of Burton also represents the first company in the UK to sign up for SAP's new RISE with SAP offering, a comprehensive, intelligent, customer specific business-transformation-as-a-service offering. The project is set to go live by the end of the year following a six-month deployment.

Focused on the design, engineering and build of hygiene-led facilities for brewers, distilleries, pharma and biotech companies, and specialist food sectors, Briggs of Burton needed to replace an outdated legacy system with new future-proof ERP capabilities. Crucially these capabilities needed to include the very latest technologies, and maximise visibility and transparency from which to seamlessly manage projects, as well as in-depth reporting.

Working closely with Sapphire Systems, an SAP technology partner selected based on its extensive knowledge and experience of SAP platforms, as well as professionalism, dedication and team chemistry, Briggs of Burton anticipates that the project will deliver improved accuracy, visibility, insights and decision-making, as well as comprehensive reporting from which to shape planning. The RISE with SAP package was particularly appealing based on its ability to bring all aspects of a transformation together to simplify and integrate processes, crucially without the need to make high up front investments.

Facilitated by RISE, SAP's Ariba Network in particular will allow Briggs to tap into the world's largest B2B marketplace, and in doing so work more efficiently and effectively on all shared aspects of business commerce, proposals, contracts, invoices and payments, saving time and money.





"A true consulting partner and trusted advisor, Sapphire Systems helped us to review all of SAP's platforms in granular detail, drawing upon the team's extensive experience of SAP deployments, to ensure we opted for the best fit for our future business requirements," comments Nathan Beddoe, finance director at Briggs of Burton. "They paid close attention to understand all our specific needs and nuances, both those specific to our business and those of our parent company in China, and worked closely with us to scope out the best, most efficient platform for digital transformation, and indeed the best methodology to support our journey."

"As well as helping us to create a robust business case from which to help secure buy-in from stakeholders across the organisation, they guided us fully on the best path to seeing maximum value from our investment in SAP S/4HANA Cloud."

"Briggs of Burton is a great example of a company embracing a true cloud mind set to future proof its ERP and scale to support long term growth," comments Ian Caswell, CEO, Sapphire Systems. "Having worked closely with Briggs' team to review and analyse the respective capabilities of each SAP solutions with Sapphire, the team opted for S/4HANA Cloud on the basis of its breadth, depth and scale, and because it incorporates AI and machine learning."

"As a result of selecting RISE with SAP, and adopting S/4HANA on a cloud model, we anticipate that Briggs will be live within just six months, allowing them to progress their transformational journey quickly, and pursue their growth plans underpinned by the very best platform for their business."

"RISE with SAP is designed to help organisations who face challenges in migrating from on-premise legacy ERP systems to SAP S/4HANA Cloud, through simplifying, focusing and supporting transformation to a truly intelligent enterprise," comments Michiel Verhoeven, managing director for UK and Ireland, SAP. "Garnering customer input and feedback was vital in the development of RISE, to understanding precisely what customers really need to drive transformation within their businesses, and we are delighted that Briggs of Burton has capitalised on RISE to embrace its own transformational journey with SAP S/4HANA Cloud at the helm."

About Sapphire

Sapphire Systems is a leading enterprise software applications and digital operations technology provider enabling organizations to transform and run with intelligence, speed, agility and operational excellence. We empower our employees to work alongside our 1,000 customers worldwide to develop advanced technology innovation and cloud services and turn their operations into significant business advantage. Headquartered in London, England, with sales, services and development locations throughout the UK, USA, Latin America and Asia, Sapphire delivers industry leading customer satisfaction, 24-hour support and expertise to accelerate our customers' digital futures with confidence. For more information, visit www.sapphiresystems.com.



About Briggs of Burton

Briggs of Burton is a global process engineering, project management, and fabrication company that designs and builds world class facilities. For more than 285 years, Briggs of Burton has served its clients by delivering innovative and integrated process solutions across the globe. Delivering safe, efficient, and hygienic process designs to the brewing, distilling, food, and pharmaceutical industries. Briggs of Burton has offices in the US, UK, and China, and is now part of CIMC Tank and Process (CETP) Business Unit Liquid Food. For more information, visit www.briggsplc.com.
Health food supplement brand MYALIXIR is taking an environmentally friendly approach to its product line.

is taking an environmentally friendly approach to its product line. MYALIXIR provides vegan and vegetarian suitable health food supplements.

provides vegan and vegetarian suitable health food supplements. All primary packaging is recyclable and plastic-free.

CAMBRIDGE, England, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Health food supplement brand MYALIXIR is taking a different approach to providing customers with their high-quality products. Not only do they contain science-based formulas designed to improve your inner health, but the brand also only sources products with consideration to animal welfare and environmental impact.

As stated on MYALIXIR website, the brand is passionately committed to doing things the right way and creating a culture that provides value first whilst outperforming expectations. This isn't just a mission statement. The products on sale at MYALIXIR feature recyclable and plastic free primary packaging, there are vegan and vegetarian suitable options, and they're all made in the UK inside BRC approved facilities.

MYALIXIR's impact on the planet goes beyond their website. The brand is also involved in many ongoing innovative projects which is currently driving interest with the venture capital community. They have also pledged a commitment to the community through various charity initiatives.

The MYALIXIR website is home to a wide assortment of health food supplements. Some of the most popular products available in the store include:

Organic Turmeric, Ginger and Black Pepper - a 100% organic product formulated to maintain flexible joints, keep skin healthy, and support a healthy liver.

- a 100% organic product formulated to maintain flexible joints, keep skin healthy, and support a healthy liver. Vegan Omega 3 - a unique recipe designed to offer high-quality algae oil that can support your vision, brain function, and blood pressure.

- a unique recipe designed to offer high-quality algae oil that can support your vision, brain function, and blood pressure. Daily Immune Support - a combination of botanicals, vitamins, and minerals that work collaboratively to maintain resistance to allergies, facilitate fat digestion, and reduce fatigue.

- a combination of botanicals, vitamins, and minerals that work collaboratively to maintain resistance to allergies, facilitate fat digestion, and reduce fatigue. Daily Bioculture Complex - this vegan-friendly product made in a Good Manufacturing Practice approved facility helps support your digestive system.

- this vegan-friendly product made in a Good Manufacturing Practice approved facility helps support your digestive system. Daily Vitamin D3 - a distinctive formula that aims to improve teeth, muscle support, and strengthen immunity.

These popular products, as well as the rest of the items available in the MYALIXIR store, are all made in the UK. They are created from high-quality products and designed to provide customers with the best health outcomes. Besides featuring vegan and vegetarian suitable ingredients, all of the products on the MYALIXIR website are produced in a Brand Reputation Compliance (BRC) approved facility, which is a globally recognised UK trade organisation.

The MYALIXIR range of products can be found at myalixir.co.uk. For more information on the high-quality ingredients, vegan and vegetarian-friendly details, or recyclable plastic free containers, you can get in touch with the founders at info@myalixir.co.uk. You can also use this address to get in touch about interviews or for quotes about the health food supplement brand.

About MYALIXIR Supplements

MYALIXIR (MY ALIXIR LIMITED) supplements is a vegan focused supplement brand based in the UK. They offer unique formulas produced with the highest quality ingredient and manufactured in UK with 99% plastic free primary package. Their purpose is to create a proactive approach to health through food supplements whilst considering animal welfare and environmental impact.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1507014/MYALIXIR.jpg
Acquisition would enhance Accenture Cloud First capabilities supporting clients' cloud migrations and business transformations

Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has announced its intent to acquire Linkbynet, a leading French cloud services provider specializing in cloud optimization and managed services, cloud transformation and cloud security. Financial terms of the transaction are not being disclosed.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005353/en/

Accenture to acquire Linkbynet (Graphic: Business Wire)

Founded in 2000, Linkbynet is a cloud-native solutions provider based in Saint-Denis, France, with additional offices in Belgium, Canada, China, France, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Singapore and Vietnam. The addition of the company's team of more than 900 highly skilled professionals, who hold 400 certifications from major cloud providers such as Alibaba, Amazon, Google and Microsoft, would further enhance the global capabilities of Accenture Cloud First.

"Acquiring Linkbynet would be another strategic step in strengthening our Accenture Cloud First capabilities," said Karthik Narain, global lead, Accenture Cloud First. "Linkbynet's talented team would bring deep cloud and engineering specialization, managed services, sophisticated technology tools and cybersecurity intelligence."

Backed by a $3 billion investment over three years, Accenture Cloud First is a multi-service group of 70,000 cloud professionals offering an unmatched depth and breadth of cloud expertise, industry cloud solutions, ecosystem partner capabilities and assets to help clients realize greater value from cloud at speed and scale.

Olivier Girard, market unit lead for Accenture France Benelux, said, "Entire industries have been challenged to not only reinvent their customer experience, but also their core offerings, while imagining new business models for the future. With advisory and digital transformation experience across cloud implementation, security, management and optimization, the Linkbynet team brings critical skills that would help Accenture clients adopt emerging technologies and scale them across their enterprise for strategic agility in a challenging business environment."

Patrick and Stephane Aisenberg, co-founders of Linkbynet said, "We are proud to be one of the first French cloud-native players and a pioneer in the synergistic models between technological transformation (cloud adoption), security and cloud managed services. The combination of Accenture's and Linkbynet's unique working culture, values, and technical expertise would enable us to better support our customers' digital projects across multiple sectors while providing their organizations with the same exceptional levels of service and resilience they've come to expect. We are excited about the opportunity to join Accenture in helping companies reimagine their business and rebuild differently for the benefit of all from their customers and people to society at large."

Over the past 24 months, Accenture has made a number of strategic investments to expand and enhance its cloud services capabilities. These include in France the acquisition of Gekko in June 2020 and Cirruseo in June 2019 and more recently in Europe the acquisition of Edenhouse (UK), Infinity (UK) and Cygni (Sweden).

Accenture invested nearly $1.5 billion globally on 34 acquisitions in its 2020 fiscal year to acquire critical skills and capabilities in strategic, high-growth areas of the market.

The acquisition requires prior consultation with the relevant works councils and approvals from the relevant authorities and would be subject to customary closing conditions.

About Accenture

Accenture is a global professional services company with leading capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries, we offer Strategy and Consulting, Interactive, Technology and Operations services all powered by the world's largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. Our 537,000 people deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity every day, serving clients in more than 120 countries. We embrace the power of change to create value and shared success for our clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at www.accenture.com

Forward-Looking Statements

Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "may," "will," "should," "likely," "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "projects," "believes," "estimates," "positioned," "outlook" and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. Many of the following risks, uncertainties and other factors identified below are, and will be, amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. These risks include, without limitation, risks that: Accenture and Linkbynet will not be able to close the transaction in the time period anticipated, or at all, which is dependent on the parties' ability to satisfy certain closing conditions; the transaction might not achieve the anticipated benefits for Accenture; Accenture's results of operations have been significantly adversely affected and could in the future be materially adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; Accenture's results of operations have been, and may in the future be, adversely affected by volatile, negative or uncertain economic and political conditions and the effects of these conditions on the company's clients' businesses and levels of business activity; Accenture's business depends on generating and maintaining ongoing, profitable client demand for the company's services and solutions including through the adaptation and expansion of its services and solutions in response to ongoing changes in technology and offerings, and a significant reduction in such demand or an inability to respond to the evolving technological environment could materially affect the company's results of operations; if Accenture is unable to keep its supply of skills and resources in balance with client demand around the world and attract and retain professionals with strong leadership skills, the company's business, the utilization rate of the company's professionals and the company's results of operations may be materially adversely affected; Accenture could face legal, reputational and financial risks if the company fails to protect client and/or company data from security incidents or cyberattacks; the markets in which Accenture operates are highly competitive, and Accenture might not be able to compete effectively; Accenture's profitability could materially suffer if the company is unable to obtain favorable pricing for its services and solutions, if the company is unable to remain competitive, if its cost-management strategies are unsuccessful or if it experiences delivery inefficiencies or fail to satisfy certain agreed-upon targets or specific service levels; changes in Accenture's level of taxes, as well as audits, investigations and tax proceedings, or changes in tax laws or in their interpretation or enforcement, could have a material adverse effect on the company's effective tax rate, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition; Accenture's ability to attract and retain business and employees may depend on its reputation in the marketplace; as a result of Accenture's geographically diverse operations and its growth strategy to continue to expand in its key markets around the world, the company is more susceptible to certain risks; Accenture's business could be materially adversely affected if the company incurs legal liability; Accenture's work with government clients exposes the company to additional risks inherent in the government contracting environment; Accenture's results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; if Accenture is unable to manage the organizational challenges associated with its size, the company might be unable to achieve its business objectives; if Accenture does not successfully manage and develop its relationships with key alliance partners or fails to anticipate and establish new alliances in new technologies, the company's results of operations could be adversely affected; Accenture might not be successful at acquiring, investing in or integrating businesses, entering into joint ventures or divesting businesses; if Accenture is unable to protect or enforce its intellectual property rights or if Accenture's services or solutions infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others or the company loses its ability to utilize the intellectual property of others, its business could be adversely affected; Accenture's results of operations and share price could be adversely affected if it is unable to maintain effective internal controls; changes to accounting standards or in the estimates and assumptions Accenture makes in connection with the preparation of its consolidated financial statements could adversely affect its financial results; Accenture might be unable to access additional capital on favorable terms or at all and if the company raises equity capital, it may dilute its shareholders' ownership interest in the company; Accenture may be subject to criticism and negative publicity related to its incorporation in Ireland; as well as the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed under the "Risk Factors" heading in Accenture plc's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and other documents filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this news release speak only as of the date they were made, and Accenture undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made in this news release or to conform such statements to actual results or changes in Accenture's expectations.

Copyright 2021 Accenture. All rights reserved. Accenture and its logo are registered trademarks of Accenture.

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Contacts:

Velislava Le Fevre

Accenture France

+33 1 53 23 46 18

velislava.lefevre@accenture.com

Bonnie Olivier

Accenture France

+33 1 53 23 54 61

bonnie.olivier@accenture.com

Mylissa Tsai

Accenture

+1 917 452 9729

mylissa.tsai@accenture.com
SHENZHEN, China, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 7, 2021, at the Automotive Aftermarket Industry and Tuning Trade Fair, Neoway Technology (Shanghai:688159) officially released the 5G+C-V2X full-function automotive-grade module A590. This further enriches the 5G series products of Neoway Technology, and helps the smart connected vehicle industry accelerate into the 5G era.

"With its advantages of large bandwidth and low latency, and with C-V2X's PC5 direct communication technology, 5G technology can collaboratively implement rich smart driving scenarios such as V2V, V2I, V2P, and V2N, providing drivers with optimal smart mobility experience," said Felix, vice president of Neoway Technology.

Neoway Technology 5G+C-V2X full-function automotive-grade module A590 has outstanding performance in product performance, communications stability and reliability, size of cellular modules and many other aspects.

Automotive-grade: A590 is developed based on the Qualcomm automotive-grade chip SA515M. It is a true automotive-grade module that complies with IATF 16949 and ACE-Q100 standards, and can operate in the range of -40C to +85C.

Small size, but powerful functions: A590 has a size of only 52 mm  52 mm, but it has very powerful functions. It fully supports 5G, C-V2X, eCall, dual SIM dual active (DSDA), and multi-frequency multi-satellite GNSS. It can well meet the needs of products with high size requirements, such as shark fin smart antennas.

High-precision positioning: A590 supports a full range of positioning systems such as GPS and BDS. It can implement high-precision positioning, by using RTK and QDR, regardless of whether in open spaces, or special scenarios such as tunnels and basements.

DSDA: A590 supports simultaneous working of two cards, and can keep the data services of two operators online at the same time. This reduces network coverage blind areas exponentially, guarantees the online rate, and improves the safety of smart driving. By using a unique bandwidth aggregation/balancing mechanism and link quality prediction algorithm, A590 can guarantee the data quality of high-priority services, implementing more stable wireless communications and safer driving experience.

High security: A590 provides a seamless combination of software and hardware security solutions in aspects including startup security, system security, and communications security.

A590 can be used in a variety of smart connected vehicle scenarios, such as T-BOX, smart antenna, OBU, RSU, smart cockpit, and vehicle central control, providing strong support for safe driving of smart vehicles and even autonomous driving.

For more information, please visit www.neoway.com.
NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Due to the growing environmental concerns, governments across the globe are offering strong support for the manufacturing and sales of electric vehicles (EV) and installation of the related charging stations. As a result of such efforts, the global EV charging cable market reached $250 million in 2020, and it is expected to expand massively during 2021-2030, according to P&S Intelligence.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the lockdowns, social distancing measures, and people's reduced earnings badly impacted the worldwide automotive industry on the demand and supply sides. This effect was clearly visible in the halted production of EVs and people's unwillingness to spend on them. In addition, EV charging station installation activities were also suspended, which had a negative impact on the EV charging cable market, by reducing the demand for these wires.

Get the sample copy of this report at: https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/electric-vehicle-charging-cables-market/report-sample

AC cables are expected to continue to dominate the EV charging cable market, on the basis of power supply, in the years to come. This is because most of the charging stations are presently installed in private spaces, such as homes and offices, which receive AC supply.

Till now, Asia-Pacific (APAC) has held the largest share in the EV charging cable market because this region, led by Japan, South Korea, and China, is the largest EV manufacturer and user in the world. Besides, the governments here are taking strong initiatives for EV charging station installation, considering the high levels of air pollution.

Browse detailed report with COVID-19 impact analysis on Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Cables Market Research Report: By Power Supply (AC, DC), Charging Level (Level 1, Level 2, Level 3), Application (Public, Private), Shape (Straight, Coiled), Cable Length (Up to 5 Meters, 6 Meters to 10 Meters, Above 10 Meters) - Global Industry Analysis and Growth Forecast to 2030 @ https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/electric-vehicle-charging-cables-market

The advent of dynamic load management systems and type-2 connecter plugs, integration of EV charging services with the existing systems of payment, availability of better control on charging and high security, and the ability of the EV to be identified via the powerlines reflect numerous opportunities for EV charging cable market players. This is why cable providers are engaging in partnerships and collaborations to technologically advanced the complete EV charging ecosystem.

Make Enquiry Before Purchase at: https://www.psmarketresearch.com/send-enquiry?enquiry-url=electric-vehicle-charging-cables-market

For instance, AMPLY Power and BYD Co. Ltd. began a partnership in November 2019 to develop EV charging stations and offer comprehensive services to fleet owners. The services include utility interconnections, operational upgrades, usage of drive cycle and duty cycle for offering optimal charging strategies, and debt funding and financing, all of which are ultimately aimed at helping customers reduce their operational expenses.

The most-significant companies in the global EV charging cable market are TE Connectivity Ltd., Dyden Corporation, Leoni AG, Chengdu Khons Technology Co. Ltd., General Cable Technologies Corporation, Coroplast Group, Aptiv plc, PHOENIX CONTACT GmbH & Co. KG., and BESEN-Group.

Browse More Reports

Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment Market Report - Valued at $1.5 billion in 2019, the global electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) market is projected to reach $2.7 billion by 2025, growing with a CAGR of 10.7% between 2020 and 2025. The alternating current (AC) charger category dominated the market in 2019.

Electric Bus Charging Station Market Report - The global electric bus charging station market is expected to be valued at $12.3 billion by 2025, and grow at a CAGR of 9.7% during the forecast period. The electric bus charging station market is at the early stage of development and is hugely dependent on government funding and other conducive schemes.

About P&S Intelligence

P&S Intelligence is a provider of market research and consulting services catering to the market information needs of burgeoning industries across the world. Providing the plinth of market intelligence, P&S as an enterprising research and consulting company, believes in providing thorough landscape analyses on the ever-changing market scenario, to empower companies to make informed decisions and base their business strategies with astuteness.

Contact:

Prajneesh Kumar

P&S Intelligence

Contact: +1-347-960-6455

Email: enquiry@psmarketresearch.com

Web: https://www.psmarketresearch.com

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LONDON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ferdinand von Hapsburg, the APR racing driver, has joined forces with Merchant Tailor, the sustainable apparel designer and merchandiser, to collaborate on a series of new collections with sustainability at its heart.

In a meeting of minds and values, Ferdinand and Peter Hall, Merchant Tailors' Founder, are launching the APR team kit, sourced from Ocean plastic and other recycled materials.

The collection of sweats, tees, and caps, celebrates Ferdinand's recent gear change to offset all his carbon emissions to a tenth of a tonne by buying and protecting hundreds of acres of forest in the Narupa reserve in Ecuador.

As Ferdinand will be competing for APR at the European Lemans under his Green Future Project and Drive Fast, Act Faster environmental campaigns, these logos and their pioneering message remain forefront in the designs.

For Merchant Tailor, this new relationship also presents the ideal opportunity to jointly co-launch its own brand 8SIX400 www.8six400.world. It's the first sustainable, motorsport apparel collection made entirely from recycled materials.

86400 is the number of seconds that populate a 24-hour day. In the case of Lemans, this represents the most gruelling endurance 24-hour motorsports race in the world.

Ferdinand joins a long list of esteemed Merchant Tailor clients including Pierre Gasly, Andretti United and Brabham. Beyond motorsports other customers include PADI, Bremont and WWF.

Ferdinand von Hapsburg, APR, said: "Drive Fast, Act Faster has been an incredible journey to date. It's only been made possible by partners such as Merchant Tailor who understand that change is incremental and about choices. As a company, its sustainability credentials are superb and its mission to provide purely sustainable solutions is the future of this and every sport."

Peter Hall, Merchant Tailor commented: "We are delighted to set up this new collaboration with Ferdinand whose carbon offsetting agenda with Green Future Project is setting new examples to other drivers across motorsports. This new partnership, confronting and tackling environmental issues, perfectly aligns with our values at Merchant Tailor, where sustainable choices come first."

For interviews with Peter Hall and Ferdinand von Hapsburg

Contact: Tom Batchelar, Merchant Tailor, tom.batchelar@merchanttailor.co.uk

For Images: https://www.merchanttailor.co.uk/
BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - German luxury fashion brand Hugo Boss AG (HUGSF.PK) Tuesday said it expects a significant increase in Group sales and EBIT for full year 2021. The company projects strategic growth drivers China and Online to continue recording significant double-digit growth in the year. Hugo Boss said it is currently not able to provide a precise outlook for fiscal year 2021 as a result of the ongoing short-term uncertainty related to extended lockdowns in key European markets. The company further said it remains confident that the global retail environment will continue to gradually improve and that global business will recover noticeably in the further course of 2021. In this context, the anticipated further progress in global vaccination campaigns and the gradual lifting of lockdowns and restrictions on public life are expected to fuel consumer sentiment, especially in the second half of the year, it said. The company maintained its stated target of increasing own online sales to more than 400 million euros by 2022. the company is confident to cross the 300 million euros mark already in the course of this year. Hugo Boss added that it will generate a significantly positive free cash flow in the future. In Germany, Hugo Boss shares were losing around 1.7 percent to trade at 41.85 euros. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
BEIJING, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "2021 China Brand Value Evaluation Information" released on May 9 amid the Fifth China Brand Day celebration, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (HKG: 0386, "Sinopec") ranks No.1 across the energy and chemical industry in China with a brand value of 308.59 billion yuan ($48.01 billion), a 9.491 billion yuan ($1.48 billion) growth compare to 2020. Brands value of its Easy Joy, Epec.com, Sinopec Lubricant Company, and Sinopec Donghai Asphalt raised significantly.

At the forum on China Corporate Brand Building held on May 10, Mr. Zhang Yuzhuo's keynote speech solemnly stated that Sinopec will accelerate to build a world-class independent brand to better lead the high-quality development of the enterprise.

Manufacturing capacity in China continues to grow and develop, showing vigorous vitality and creativity with increased number of Chinese brands going abroad.

For 38 years, Sinopec has emphasized on strengthening brand building and committed to bring the society cleaner, higher-end and more diverse energy and chemical products. Fulfilled its brand promises with actions and responsibilities, Sinopec will continue to meet people's needs for better life and promote the company's brand value, reputation and influence.

"Sinopec will step up in building a world-class brand, adhering to the brand value proposition of 'Innovation leads the future of the industry, creating better life with responsibility," as well as making the brand slogan of 'Cleaner Energy, Better Life' deeply rooted in customers' hearts, entering thousands upon thousands of households as a responsible international enterprise," said Zhang Yuzhuo, chairman of Sinopec.

In the future, Sinopec will Implement the brand strategy vigorously and firmly establish the concept of "quality is always one step ahead" and "every drop of oil is a promise" to highlight Sinopec's commitment to quality first, speeding up the promotion of brand vitality. Guided by the implementation of a world-leading development strategy, Sinopec will strengthen its operation management and speed up to improve brand support.

By taking the opportunity of building a pioneering technology company, Sinopec will also continue to innovate and boost its brand competitiveness, along with speed up the green and low-carbon transition, promoting clean fossil energy, scaled non-fossil energy and low-carbon production process to ensure that it reaches the carbon emissions peak before China's goal and strives to achieve carbon neutral by 2050.

In addition, Sinopec will support key projects of rural revitalization, Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, health express initiative, public open days, charity gas stations for sanitation workers and more to consolidate social responsibility and elevate brand influence, making "responsible" a keyword of the Sinopec brand.

About Sinopec

Sinopec Corp. is one of the largest integrated energy and chemical companies in China. Its principal operations include the exploration and production, pipeline transportation and sale of petroleum and natural gas; the sale, storage and transportation of petroleum products, petrochemical products, coal chemical products, synthetic fiber, fertilizer and other chemical products; the import and export, including an import and export agency business, of petroleum, natural gas, petroleum products, petrochemical and chemical products, and other commodities and technologies; and research, development and application of technologies and information.

Sinopec sets 'fueling beautiful life' as its corporate mission, puts 'people, responsibility, integrity, precision, innovation and win-win' as its corporate core values, pursues strategies of value-orientation, innovation-driven development, integrated resource allocation, open cooperation, and green and low-carbon growth, and strives to achieve its corporate vision of building a world leading energy and chemical company.

For more information, please visit: http://www.sinopecgroup.com/group/en/.

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NEW YORK, NY and KUALA LUMPUR, TAIPEI / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Sino United Worldwide Consolidated Ltd. (OTC PINK:SUIC) has signed an agreement with ClickPro of Malaysia, one of the leading digital marketing stalwarts to do display advertisements through Google Display Network (GDN). This SUIC-ClickPro team is currently working on the digital marketing campaigns in time for the launch of the Fintech, AI, Global Supply Chain Finance and DeFi projects of SUIC this year.

About Google Display Network (GDN)

Google Display Network (GDN) is a group of more than two million websites, videos, and apps where your Google Ads can appear. GDN offers digital marketing services across global media platforms through video platforms and blogs and allows businesses to place display ads on its huge network of sites across the internet. GDN targeting allows for smart display ad campaigns that could reach target consumers and narrow down high-performing audience based on their interests and demographics. Google Display ads communicate across all devices and media platforms, featuring an effective combination of placement, contextual and audience targeting tools to help businesses find, reach and connect with their audience more efficiently. GDN is the largest and most commonly used contextual online advertising network available. According to Google, the Display Network reaches over 90% of global internet users expanding across 2 million sites, with more than a trillion impressions served to over 1 billion users every month.

About ClickPro Media Sdn Bhd.

As one of the top digital marketing companies in Malaysia, Clickpro Media Sdn Bhd has been successful in the digital marketing industry since 2010. ClickPro has been appointed and certified as a trusted partner of Yahoo! Southeast Asia for Search Marketing. ClickPro as a digital marketing company, provides various types of services, such as search engine optimization (SEO), website development as well as Google Display Network (GDN). ClickPro has many clients from other countries such as Singapore, China and also many local Malaysian companies, such as the car manufacturer Proton, home appliances company, Aiwa, branding and advertising design company, M. Creative Sdn. Bhd., among others. For more info, visit their website at https://www.clickpro.com.my/

About Sino United Worldwide Consolidated Company, USA

The Sino United Worldwide Consolidated Company provides research and development, venture financing for and investing in private enterprises and the public sector that develop products and services adopting core capabilities of the Internet of Things, cloud computing, mobile payment, Big Data, Blockchain, and Artificial Intelligence, to enhance and streamline existing processes, and establish new and exciting business models that will create revolutionary products and services. Shareholders of SUIC will be exposed to the diverse application of advanced services in various parts of the economy. Additionally, existing and potential customers can benefit from this company's diversified portfolio of technologies. As one of the pioneering publicly traded technology companies, SUIC will help build tech-enabled businesses of the future. To learn more, please visit www.sinounitedco.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

Certain the information set forth herein contains "forward-looking information", including "future-oriented financial information"; and "financial outlook" under applicable securities laws (collectively referred to herein as forward-looking statements). Except for statements of historical fact, the information contained herein constitutes forward-looking statements and includes, but is not limited to, the (i) projected financial performance of the Company; (ii) completion of, and the use of proceeds from, the sale of shares being offered hereunder; (iii) the expected development of the Company's business, projects, and joint ventures; (iv) execution of the Company's vision and growth strategy, including with respect to future M&A activity and global growth; (v) sources and availability of third-party financing for the Company's projects; (vi) completion of the Company's projects that are currently underway, in development, or otherwise under consideration; (vi) renewal of the Company's current agreements; and (vii) future liquidity, working capital, and capital requirements. Forward-looking statements are provided to allow potential investors the opportunity to understand management's beliefs and opinions in respect of the future so that they may use such beliefs and opinions as one factor in evaluating an investment.

These statements are not guarantees of future performance and undue reliance should not be placed on them. Such forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual performance and financial results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future performance or result expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

Although forward-looking statements contained herein are based upon what management of the Company believes are reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable securities laws. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

Contacts

Sino United Worldwide Consolidated Ltd.

New Release Department

929-391-2550

SOURCE: Sino United Worldwide Consolidated Ltd.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/645985/SUIC-has-Signed-Agreement-with-ClickPro-To-do-Advertisements-through-Google-Display-Network-and-Develop-A-Specialized-Website-Marketing-Strategy-for-SUICs-Global-Fintech-AI-Global-Supply-Chain-Finance-and-DeFi-Projects
The CM also instructed District Collectors to take up more responsibilities and to set up oxygen war rooms in their districts along with SOS service.  Twitter

VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has claimed that better medical services are now being provided in Andhra Pradesh than anywhere else in the country, despite not having Tier-1 cities like Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Chennai. He also noted that even the death rate in Andhra Pradesh is much better compared to that in most states.

Reddy said that the government had spent over Rs 87,000 crore in the last 22 months, by crediting money directly into the beneficiaries bank accounts without any corruption or discrimination. He asked, Would such a government be reluctant to give vaccines at a cost of Rs 1,600 crore?

He said Joint Collectors (Village/Ward Secretariat, development) should completely focus on tackling Covid in districts. They should ensure good sanitation facilities, quality food supply, availability of doctors and paramedical staff, setting up of help desks etc. They should monitor the performance of Aarogya Mitras through CCTV cameras. They also should coordinate with call centre and ensure all works are done on time.

The CM also instructed District Collectors to take up more responsibilities and to set up oxygen war rooms in their districts along with SOS service. Immediate action should be taken when an emergency request comes through. He instructed that 50 per cent of beds should be allocated to Aarogyasri beneficiaries in temporary empanelled hospitals and also in non-empanelled hospitals notified by the district authorities.

He told the officials to monitor whether the medications were being received regularly, check availability of Remdesivir injections and ensure that there were no lapses.
Early identification of unique cell markers is expected to have valuable impact on patents, clinical efficacy, and manufacturing optimization

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / RepliCel Life Sciences Inc. (OTC PINK:REPCF)(TSXV:RP)(FRA:P6P2) ("RepliCel" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it has now signed and launched a new collaborative research project agreement with the University of British Columbia ("UBC") that enables the second stage of its cell marker research. The project is being co-led by RepliCel's Dr. Kevin McElwee and UBC's Professor Youwen Zhou.

The project commenced in 2017, is designed to deliver a gene and protein expression "map" of healthy hair follicle cells expected to be critically important to improving key components of the manufacturing, regulatory, and clinical profile of RepliCel's cell therapy products.

The initial stage of the study examined multiple cell types from human hair follicles to identify differences, and similarities, in gene and protein expression with the goal of finding markers of interest that would allow potential optimization in target cell isolation from the initial patient tissue biopsy as well as post-manufacturing final product formulation and correlation of specific cellular sub-populations to clinical efficacy. New patents filed around the discoveries made during this collaboration will accrete value to RepliCel's overall technology and product portfolio.

This second stage of the project specifically aims to confirm the presence and in situ localization of cells expressing unique markers selected from the initial project's indicative data and establish robust selection technologies and protocols for the use of the markers in cell isolation and manufacturing of RepliCel's proprietary tissue regenerative cell therapy products.

About Professor Youwen Zhou, M.D., Ph.D.

Dr. Youwen Zhou is a physician-scientist who is a Professor at UBC's Department of Dermatology and Skin Science. He received his BS degree from Nankai University, China, a PhD in Molecular Genetics from the State University of New York, and an MD degree from the University of Toronto. After completing dermatology specialty training at UBC, he joined UBC Faculty of Medicine as a physician-scientist in dermatology in 2000, and was promoted to full professor in 2013. He founded the UBC Molecular Medicine Lab and Chieng Genomics Center at Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute (VCHRI) with infrastructure funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation in 2001. Dr. Zhou's research is centered on biomarkers of skin diseases such as skin lymphoma, melanoma, and vitiligo, using a wide variety of methods and approaches, including genome-wide association studies (GWAS), linkage analysis, next generational sequencing, transcriptional profiling, cellular models, as well as genome editing.

Dr. Zhou has published more than 100 articles in journals such as Nature, Cell, Nature Genetics, and Blood, and holds multiple patents in skin lymphoma diagnostic biomarkers. In 2013, Dr. Zhou was awarded a Barney Usher Award for Outstanding Achievements in Dermatology Research from the Canadian Dermatology Association. Dr. Zhou specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancers and skin pigmentation disorders and is a consultant dermatologist at Vancouver General Hospital and British Columbia Cancer Agency. He teaches graduate students, medical students, dermatology residents, and postdoctoral fellows. Dr. Zhou is the past president of the Canadian Society of Investigative Dermatology and served as a board member for Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (IMHA). He is also a grant reviewer for CIHR, the Canadian Dermatology Foundation, and the Natural Sciences Foundation of China.

About Dr. Kevin McElwee, Ph.D.

Dr. McElwee, co-discoverer of the Company's technology and co-founder of RepliCel, is a former Professor of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Bradford's Center for Skin Sciences. Previously, he was an Associate Professor in the Department of Dermatology and Skin Health at the University of British Columbia, and Director of the Hair Research Laboratory in the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute at Vancouver General Hospital. His research has been funded by competitive grants awarded by multiple organizations including the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (the equivalent of the National Institutes for Health in the USA).

Dr. McElwee is one of only a small group of research scientists worldwide who studies hair biology and associated diseases. He has worked as a hair research scientist for 25 years and has published over 120 medical journal articles and academic book chapters on hair loss research. Dr. McElwee received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, and his PhD from the University of Dundee, Scotland. Postdoctoral training included three years at the Jackson Laboratory in Maine and four years at the University of Marburg, Germany, studying various hair loss diseases. Dr. McElwee continues to serve as the Company's Chief Scientific Officer.

About RepliCel Life Sciences

RepliCel is a regenerative medicine company focused on developing cell therapies for aesthetic and orthopedic conditions affecting what the Company believes is approximately one in three people in industrialized nations, including aging/sun-damaged skin, pattern baldness, and chronic tendon degeneration. These conditions, often associated with aging, are caused by a deficit of healthy cells required for normal tissue healing and function. These cell therapy product candidates are based on RepliCel's innovative technology, utilizing cell populations isolated from a patient's healthy hair follicles.

The Company's product pipeline is comprised of RCT-01 for tendon repair, RCS-01 for skin rejuvenation, and RCH-01 for hair restoration. RCH-01 is exclusively licensed in Asia to Shiseido Company. RepliCel maintains the rights to RCH-01 for the rest of the world. RCT-01 and RCS-01 are exclusively licensed in Greater China to YOFOTO (China) Health Company. RepliCel and YOFOTO are currently co-developing these products in China. RepliCel maintains the rights to these products outside of Greater China.

RepliCel has also developed a proprietary injection device, RCI-02, and related consumables, which is expected to improve the administration of its cell therapy products and certain other injectables. YOFOTO has exclusively licensed the commercial rights for the RCI-02 device and consumables in Greater China for dermatology applications and is expected to first launch the product in Hong Kong upon it being approved for market launch in either the United States or Europe.

Please visit www.replicel.com for additional information.

Notable Facts:

RepliCel's three cell therapy products have now been tested in over 100 patients in four countries on three continents having been successfully reviewed by three regulatory agencies.

RepliCel now has key strategic partners in the United States, China, and Japan each of which are now investing heavily in the further clinical testing and development of RepliCel's products for their markets. Data from each of the clinical programs will strengthen the product development initiatives for RepliCel and its other partners worldwide.

For more information, please contact:

Lee Buckler, CEO and President

info@replicel.com

SOURCE: RepliCel Life Sciences, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/645993/RepliCel-Launches-the-Next-Stage-of-a-Research-Project-with-the-University-of-British-Columbia-to-Build-World-Class-Hair-Follicle-Cell-Data-Map
Indesso benefits from the global demand and growing consumer awareness for natural ingredients, and contributes to the development of a sustainable value chain in the flavors & fragrances and wider consumer goods industries

EQT Private Equity will support Indesso's ambition for continued research driven product innovation and geographical expansion, as well as in enhancing digital capabilities and sustainability, leveraging on EQT's inhouse expertise and global advisory network

STOCKHOLM, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- EQT is pleased to announce that the EQT Mid Market Asia III fund ("EQT Private Equity") has invested in Indesso Group ("Indesso" or "the Group"). The founding Gunawan family will retain a majority stake in the Group and remains as management following the transaction.

Established in 1968 and headquartered in Jakarta, Indonesia, Indesso is a leading provider of natural ingredients, serving over 2,000 customers in the Flavors & Fragrances ("F&F") industry in more than 50 countries globally. Indesso's natural products are essential elements used in the formulation of a wide range of flavor ingredients in food and beverage products, as well as aromatherapy and fragrances in consumer products and nutraceuticals.

Over the years, Indesso has established a strong presence as a manufacturer of essential oils including their derivatives and botanical extracts unique to Indonesia. Through continuous research and innovation, it has transformed into an integrated solutions provider across the F&F ecosystem. Indesso is also one of the market leaders in Indonesia supplying F&F products and food ingredients on behalf of its global principals to the fast-growing local consumer goods industry.

Indesso's underlying market is supported by global megatrends, such as the shift to natural based products, and the growing importance of sustainable supply chains. The Group supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through its "People - Partnership - Planet" program, which seeks to develop a traceable and responsible natural raw material sourcing and reduce the environmental impact of its business activities.

EQT has vast expertise and a long history in developing strong assets in the sector, including a global F&F company, and existing portfolio companies Azelis and Chr. Hansen Natural Colors. EQT Private Equity intends to leverage on this experience and its global advisory network, to support Indesso's ambitions for accelerating product innovation and enhancing its raw material sourcing capabilities to continue serving its customers with the best product offering and highest service standards. EQT Private Equity also intends to back Indesso's inorganic growth plans in the region and invest further in the Group's digital infrastructure and sustainability, drawing on its inhouse expert capabilities.

Brian Chang, Partner and Investment Advisor, Head of Southeast Asia at EQT Partners, said "Indesso started on its journey more than 50 years ago, bringing natural ingredients to the world. We are truly humbled by the opportunity to invest in a market leader in this highly thematic space as it prepares for the next phase of its journey to expand further. We have full confidence in the talented team and high quality business that Pak Robby is leading and are excited about the ample opportunities to further invest in innovation, sustainability and digitalization to continue to add value to Indesso's customers and principals."

Robby Gunawan, CEO of Indesso Group, said "This partnership with EQT represents a new chapter in Indesso's 'Journey of Unlocking Nature'. This will accelerate our corporate mission of creating innovative solutions with 'sustainable natural based ingredients for life'. In the last 10 years, we have enjoyed robust growth in our business built upon solid relationships with current business and supply partners, principals and customers, something that we want to continue and further strengthen. EQT's expertise and experience in our business space will support us in realizing new opportunities to provide better and innovative solutions for our customers."

The transaction was closed on 10 May 2021.

Contact

APAC media inquiries: KEKST CNC, daniel.delre@kekstcnc.com, +852 9212 3105

EQT Press Office, press@eqtpartners.com, +46 8 506 55 334

Indesso Corporate Communication, arianto.mulyadi@indesso.com, +62811965808

About EQT

EQT is a purpose-driven global investment organization with more than EUR 67 billion in assets under management across 26 active funds. EQT funds have portfolio companies in Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Americas with total sales of approximately EUR 29 billion and more than 175,000 employees. EQT works with portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth, operational excellence and market leadership.

More info: www.eqtgroup.com

Follow EQT on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram

About Indesso

Established in 1968, Indesso is one of Indonesia's key manufacturers of food, flavor, and fragrance ingredients. Through strict quality assurance, we ensure that all customers receive high quality products, which comply with international standards and regulations. Indesso is devoted to providing value-added ingredients through innovation, efficiency, and sustainable business practices.

More info: www.indesso.com

Follow Indesso on LinkedIn and Instagram

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/eqt/r/eqt-private-equity-invests-in-indesso--southeast-asia-s-largest-natural-flavor---fragrance-ingredien,c3345031

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Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Copper Fox Metals Inc. (TSXV: CUU) (OTC Pink: CPFXF) ("Copper Fox" or the "Company") is pleased to report that it has filed on SEDAR a National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") Technical Report (the "Technical Report") which includes the results of a resource estimate update for the Schaft Creek copper-gold-molybdenum-silver porphyry project located in northwest British Columbia (see news release dated March 22, 2021). The Schaft Creek project is managed through the Schaft Creek Joint Venture ("SCJV") formed in 2013 between Teck Resources Limited (75%) and Copper Fox (25%) with Teck being the operator.

The Technical Report, titled "Mineral Resource Estimate Update for the Schaft Creek Property, British Columbia, Canada", with an effective date of January 15, 2021, was prepared by H. Ghaffari. M.A.Sc., P. Eng. and J. Huang, Ph.D., P.Eng., of Tetra Tech Canada Inc. ("Tetra Tech") and Michael F. O'Brien, P. Geo. of Red Pennant Geosciences.

Elmer B. Stewart, President and CEO of Copper Fox stated, "The updated resource estimate forms the basis of the Schaft Creek Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") that is underway and identifies opportunities to grow the project resource base. The Technical Report recommends a multi-purpose drill program including the collection of geological, geotechnical and metallurgical information."

Resource Estimate for the Schaft Creek Project, effective date January 15, 2021:



Category





Average Value

Metal Content Mass Cu Au Mo Ag CuEq Cu Au Mo Ag Mt % g/t % g/t % Mlb Moz Mlb Moz Measured 176.4 0.32 0.22 0.018 1.46 0.48 1,261.49 1.28 71.03 8.26 Indicated 1,169.1 0.25 0.15 0.017 1.22 0.37 6,502.98 5.69 439.56 46.00 Total M&I 1,345.5 0.26 0.16 0.017 1.25 0.39 7,764.47 6.97 510.59 54.26 Inferred 343.6 0.17 0.11 0.013 0.84 0.26 1,303.07 1.18 95.50 9.28

Mt=millions of tonnes, Cu=copper, Au=gold, Mo=molybdenum, Ag=silver, CuEq=copper equivalent, Mlb=millions of pounds, Moz=millions of ounces.

Mineral Resources are reported using the 2014 CIM Definition Standards.

Mineral Resources are reported within a conceptual constraining pit shell that includes the following input parameters:

Metal prices of $3/lb Cu, $1,200/oz Au, $10/lb Mo, $20/oz Ag, and pit slope angles that vary from 40-44, metal prices are in US$.

Metallurgical recoveries reflective of prior test work that averages: 86.6% for copper, 73.0% for gold, 58.8% for molybdenum and 48.3% for silver.

Mineral Resources are reported using a net smelter return ("NSR") cut-off of US$4.31/t.

Tonnes are metric tonnes, with copper and molybdenum grades as percentages, and gold and silver grades as gram per tonne units.

Copper and molybdenum metal content is reported in pounds and gold and silver content is reported in troy ounces.

Totals and Metal Content may not sum due to rounding and significant digits used in calculations.

Copper Equivalent % was estimated using average metallurgical recoveries for copper, gold, molybdenum and silver and metal prices stated in this release.

Cautionary Note to Investors:

While the terms "measured (mineral) resource", "indicated (mineral) resource" and "inferred (mineral) resource" are recognized and required by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, investors are cautioned that except for that portion of mineral resources classified as mineral reserves, mineral resources do not have demonstrated economic viability. Investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of measured or indicated mineral resources will ever be upgraded into mineral reserves. Additionally, investors are cautioned that inferred mineral resources have a high degree of uncertainty as to their existence, as to whether they can be economically or legally mined, or will ever be upgraded to a higher category.

Investors are advised that current Mineral Resources are not current Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.

Recommended Program:

The program is designed to allow several of the proposed drill holes to be utilized for metallurgical and geotechnical investigation while increasing confidence in the mineral resource.

Tetra Tech recommends a program consisting of 7,300m of drilling within the core of the known resource area to collect geotechnical data, provide samples for metallurgical test work, increase the confidence of the mineral resource categories and investigate potential extension to the mineralization. The cost of the recommended program is estimated to be CAD$4.96 million.

Qualified Persons:

Mr. Michael F. O'Brien, P. Geo., of Red Pennant Geosciences is the Qualified Person ("QP") who prepared the resource estimate, J. Huang, Ph.D., P.Eng., of Tetra Tech is the QP who completed the metallurgical review and H. Ghaffari. M.A.Sc., P. Eng., of Tetra Tech is the QP who compiled and reviewed the QA/QC for the resource estimate disclosed in this news release. The QPs have approved the scientific and technical content of this news release. Elmer B. Stewart, MSc. P. Geol., President of Copper Fox, the Company's nominated QP pursuant to National Instrument 43-101, Standards for Disclosure for Mineral Projects, has reviewed the scientific and technical information disclosed in this news release. Mr. Stewart is not independent of Copper Fox.

About Copper Fox:

Copper Fox is a Tier 1 Canadian resource company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV: CUU) focused on copper exploration and development in Canada and the United States. The principal assets of Copper Fox and its wholly owned Canadian and United States subsidiaries, being Northern Fox Copper Inc. and Desert Fox Copper Inc., are the 25% interest in the Schaft Creek Joint Venture with Teck Resources Limited on the Schaft Creek copper-gold-molybdenum-silver project located in northwestern British Columbia and the 100% ownership of the Schaft Creek oxide copper project located in Miami, Arizona. For more information on Copper Fox's other mineral properties and investments visit the Company's website at http://www.copperfoxmetals.com.

For additional information contact: Investor line 1-844-464-2820 or Lynn Ball, at 1-403-264-2820.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Elmer B. Stewart

President and Chief Executive Officer

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and forward-looking information within the meaning of the Canadian securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking information"). Forward-looking information is generally identifiable by use of the words "believes," "may," "plans," "will," "anticipates," "intends," "budgets", "could", "estimates", "expects", "forecasts", "projects" and similar expressions, and the negative of such expressions. Forward-looking information in this news release include statements regarding: the Resource Estimate is the basis of the PEA currently in preparation; the resource estimate update forms the basis of the Schaft Creek PEA currently underway; recommendations for future programs; a greater confidence in the geological and resource models; a recommended work program estimated to cost CAD$4.96 million; recommendations for future work; estimated costs of future programs and statements about Copper Fox's strategy, future operations, prospects, and the plans of management. Information concerning mineral resource estimates also may be deemed to be forward-looking information in that it reflects a prediction of the mineralization that would be encountered if a mineral deposit were developed and mined. Information concerning indicated and inferred mineral resource estimates also may be deemed to be forward-looking information in that it reflects a prediction of the mineralization that would be encountered if a mineral deposit were developed and mined.

In connection with the forward-looking information contained in this news release, Copper Fox and its subsidiary have made numerous assumptions regarding, among other things: the geological, metallurgical, engineering, financial and economic advice that Copper Fox has received is reliable and is based upon practices and methodologies which are consistent with industry standards; and the stability of economic and market conditions. While Copper Fox considers these assumptions to be reasonable, these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies.

Additionally, there are known and unknown risk factors which could cause Copper Fox's actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information contained herein. Known risk factors include among others: the PEA currently in preparation may not be completed as contemplated or at all; the recommendations of the Technical Report may not be completed as suggested, or at all; the CAD$4.96 million estimated cost may not be sufficient to complete the recommended program; uncertainties relating to interpretation of the previous drill results; the actual mineralization in the Schaft Creek deposit may not be as favorable as suggested by the resource estimate; the possibility that future drilling on the Schaft Creek project may not occur on a timely basis, or at all; the need to obtain additional financing to develop properties and uncertainty as to the availability and terms of future financing; the possibility of delay in exploration or development programs or in construction projects; the uncertainty of meeting anticipated program milestones; uncertainty as to timely availability of permits and other governmental approvals; fluctuations in copper prices and demand; currency exchange rates; and conditions in the financial markets and the overall economy may deteriorate.

A more complete discussion of the risks and uncertainties facing Copper Fox is disclosed in Copper Fox's continuous disclosure filings with Canadian securities regulatory authorities at www.sedar.com. All forward-looking information herein is qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement, and Copper Fox disclaims any obligation to revise or update any such forward-looking information or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking information contained herein to reflect future results, events, or developments, except as required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83534
First ever clinical trial using pharmaceutical grade cannabis medication for use in managing uncontrolled cancer pain due to advanced cancer

QIXLEEF has the potential to transform the pain market

OTTAWA, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Tetra Bio-Pharma Inc. ("Tetra" or the "Company") (TSX:TBP)(OTCQB:TBPMF)(FRA:JAM1), a leader in cannabinoid-derived drug discovery and development announced today the acceleration of a revolutionary Phase 2 clinical trial, PLENITUDE, to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the investigational cannabis medicine, QIXLEEF, for use in managing uncontrolled pain in patients with advanced cancer.

QIXLEEF is the Company's inhaled proprietary drug formulation which has a fixed ratio of THC and CBD. The medication is inhaled through a Class II medical vaporizer. When pharmaceutical grade cannabis is vaporized rather than smoked, the beneficial components can be inhaled without the generation of smoke and combusted by-products.

Dr. Guy Chamberland, CEO and CRO comments, "The PLENITUDE study has been underway for many months and we are now accelerating its enrollment activities. Tetra currently has two Phase 2 clinical trials ongoing in the United States. Though both trials, PLENITUDE and REBORN1, will evaluate QIXLEEF, each has a very different objective. The PLENITUDE trial will assess how QIXLEEF may manage uncontrolled cancer pain in patients living with advanced cancer and the REBORN1 trial is a head-to-head study against an opioid treatment in the management of short and frequent episodes of incapacitating pain requesting immediate release opioid treatment in cancer patients. We believe based on our years of research that QIXLEEF will be proven to be safe and effective, and if so, provide patients with cancer pain a safer treatment option with potentially greater benefits than the current standard of care."

The PLENITUDE trial is a four-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study and has been reviewed by an ethics committee and follows Good Clinical Practices. Patients will receive four weeks of either the study treatment or a placebo, after which all patients will be eligible to receive the active study drug for up to an additional 48 weeks. Pain levels will be measured throughout the course of the study to determine the efficacy of the study medication.

Dr. Sue Sisley, Medical Expert and Principal Investigator states, "The goal of the PLENITUDE study is to help patients with advanced cancer manage their pain to improve their overall quality of life. I am excited about this study because it offers hope to patients who experience severe pain. Many patients have difficulty tolerating powerful therapies, like opioids. I am encouraged because cannabis has been long considered a low-risk option for patients with cancer with few and tolerable side effects. Together we may discover a new treatment option for managing pain!"

About Advanced Cancer Pain

Advanced cancer pain is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain as "unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage". Pain is a common symptom associated with a cancer diagnosis. Market studies performed on behalf of Tetra for advanced cancer pain in the United States estimate that the addressable market will be worth over USD$900 million by 2030. This figure takes in consideration the off-label market, which will continue to demand non-opioid treatments.

To learn more about the PLENITUDE study and eligibility requirements, please visit: www.plenitude-study.com.

About Dr. Sue Sisley, MD:

Dr. Sue Sisley MD is an Arizona-based physician practicing Internal Medicine & Psychiatry. She is President of Scottsdale Research Institute, a company which coordinates rigorous, scientific studies to assess the safety and efficacy of cannabis and cannabis compounds for treating medical conditions. Dr. Sisley is committed to evaluating the use of pharmaceutical grade cannabis to treat chronic pain, opioid dependence, and PTSD as a safer alternative to synthetic pharmaceuticals.

About Tetra Bio-Pharma

Tetra Bio-Pharma (TSX:TBP)(OTCQB:TBPMF)(FRA:JAM1) is a leader in cannabinoid-derived drug discovery and development with a FDA and a Health Canada cleared clinical program aimed at bringing novel prescription drugs and treatments to patients and their healthcare providers. Our evidence-based scientific approach has enabled us to develop a pipeline of cannabinoid-based drug products for a range of medical conditions, including pain, inflammation, and oncology. With patients at the core of what we do, Tetra Bio-Pharma is focused on providing rigorous scientific validation and safety data required for inclusion into the existing biopharma industry by regulators, physicians and insurance companies.

For more information visit: www.tetrabiopharma.com

Neither the TSX Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-looking statements

Some statements in this release may contain forward-looking information. All statements, other than of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future (including, without limitation, statements regarding potential acquisitions and financings) are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are generally identifiable by use of the words "may", "will", "should", "continue", "expect", "anticipate", "estimate", "believe", "intend", "plan" or "project" or the negative of these words or other variations on these words or comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's ability to control or predict, that may cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things, without limitation, the inability of the Company to obtain sufficient financing to execute the Company's business plan; competition; regulation and anticipated and unanticipated costs and delays, the success of the Company's research and development strategies, including the success of this product or any other product, the applicability of the discoveries made therein, the successful and timely completion and uncertainties related to the regulatory process, the timing of clinical trials, the timing and outcomes of regulatory or intellectual property decisions and other risks disclosed in the Company's public disclosure record on file with the relevant securities regulatory authorities. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results or events not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements included in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company does not undertake an obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, subsequent events or otherwise unless required by applicable securities legislation.

For further information, please contact Tetra Bio-Pharma Inc.:

Tetra Bio-Pharma Inc.

Ms. Natalie Leroux

Phone: + 1 (833) 977-7575

Email: investors@tetrabiopharma.com

media@tetrabiopharma.com

SOURCE: Tetra Bio-Pharma

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646338/Tetra-Bio-Pharma-Accelerates-PLENITUDEC-Clinical-Trial-to-Evaluate-the-Effect-of-Cannabis-for-Use-in-Managing-Uncontrolled-Cancer-Pain
Berwyn, Pennsylvania--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Annovis Bio Inc. (NYSE American: ANVS), a clinical-stage drug platform company addressing Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD) and other neurodegenerative diseases, today announced that management will participate at the Benzinga Global Small Cap Conference taking place online May 13-14, 2021.

Annovis Bio CEO Maria Maccecchini, Ph.D. will deliver a corporate presentation at 3:10 p.m. ET on May 13, 2021.

Investors can request a one-on-one meeting with Dr. Maccecchini and Annovis Bio CFO Jeff McGroarty using the networking feature within the virtual conference platform.

To register for the conference, visit: https://www.benzinga.com/events/small-cap/global/

About Annovis Bio

Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, Annovis Bio, Inc. (Annovis) is a clinical-stage, drug platform company addressing neurodegeneration, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD) and Alzheimer's in Down Syndrome (AD-DS). We believe that we are the only company developing a drug for AD, PD and AD-DS that inhibits more than one neurotoxic protein and, thereby, improves the information highway of the nerve cell, known as axonal transport. When this information flow is impaired, the nerve cell gets sick and dies. We expect our treatment to improve memory loss and dementia associated with AD and AD-DS, as well as body and brain function in PD. We have two ongoing Phase 2a studies: one in AD patients and one in both AD and PD patients. For more information on Annovis, please visit the company's website: www.annovisbio.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release contain "forward-looking statements" that are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release may be identified by the use of words such as "anticipate," "expect," "believe," "will," "may," "should," "estimate," "project," "outlook," "forecast" or other similar words, and include, without limitation, statements regarding the timing, effectiveness and anticipated results of ANVS401 clinical trials. Forward-looking statements are based on Annovis Bio, Inc.'s current expectations and are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Further, certain forward-looking statements are based on assumptions as to future events that may not prove to be accurate, including that clinical trials may be delayed. These and other risks and uncertainties are described more fully in the section titled "Risk Factors" in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are made as of this date, and Annovis Bio, Inc. undertakes no duty to update such information except as required under applicable law.

Investor Relations:

Dave Gentry, CEO

RedChip Companies Inc.

407-491-4498

Dave@redchip.com

SOURCE: Annovis Bio, Inc.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83598
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Fury Gold Mines Limited (TSX:FURY) (NYSE American:FURY) ("Fury" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an exploration, sustainability and corporate update.

Since the formation of Fury seven months ago, the Company has successfully met key project milestones across the platform. Highlights include:

Initiated an ongoing 50,000-metre (m) drill program at Eau Claire, Quebec, while mitigating the impacts and constraints of the global COVID-19 pandemic to date;

Completed approximately 40% of the Eau Claire drill program, with 13 holes released, and results for 12 holes pending;

Demonstrated resource expansion potential through step-out drilling east of Eau Claire;

Advanced the technical understanding of Eau Claire resulting in the identification of two new target horizons that could meaningfully re-shape the project's development scope - the Snake Lake structure and the 850 Zone (i.e. western extension targets);

Outlined drill programs for Homestake Ridge, B.C., and Committee Bay, Nunavut, with high-grade extension targets at a drill-ready stage;

Filed a C$200mm base shelf prospectus, which provides the Company with additional flexibility and efficiency for future fundraisings;

Partnered with Digbee, an ESG disclosure platform, to help communicate the Company's sustainability activities to stakeholders and community members; and

Switched assay labs to improve turn-around times on results from 6-8 weeks to approximately 3-4 weeks.

"Over the past seven months, we have been busy at Fury putting the Company in a strong position to leverage its growing, high-grade Canadian gold projects. We are excited about two new Eau Claire targets, the Snake Lake structure and the 850 Zone, which could add an entirely new dimension to the project," commented Mike Timmins, President and CEO of Fury. "We believe the opportunity at Eau Claire is much bigger than simply expanding the deposit trend, as we are now seeing several regional and highly prospective discovery opportunities within the 54,000-hectare land package that we will be exploring this summer."

Exploration Update

Fury has drilled a total of 19,750m and 25 holes at Eau Claire to date. Of this total, approximately 8,772m have been drilled within the Eau Claire deposit area. The remaining meterage has been focused on exploration drilling along the 7-kilometre (km) deposit trend to test targets and identify additional areas of potential scale to support an increased development scenario. The Company is awaiting assay results from Panel A, Panel C and from the first three holes into the Snake Lake structure, with results expected to be released over the next two to four weeks.

Deposit drilling has focused on the highest-grade and under explored area of the resource at the lower eastern margin of the deposit, intersecting new areas of mineralization outside of the defined resource blocks, demonstrating a strong potential to expand the resource east.

Fury has also made good progress with exploration drilling, stepping out east of Eau Claire across a 1km down plunge extension (target Panel A, B and C); nine exploration holes have been drilled to date of which four holes have been released (see news releases dated January 25, 2021 and March 30, 2021). Exploration of the target Panel B included an intersection of 6.5 g/t gold over 1.5m at the contact between a mafic volcanic unit and a sedimentary unit located along a distinct sub-parallel structure, north of the Eau Claire structure. This intercept is located approximately 1,100m down plunge from the Snake Lake surface expression, which hosts limited historical drilling. Fury has completed three step-out drill holes at 150m and 300m intervals to test the depth extensions down plunge of the known Snake Lake mineralization.

Two new targets were identified on the western limit of the resource below the 850 Zone, the Fold Hinge and Limb targets. These targets have the potential to significantly expand the deposit (see news release dated April 12, 2021). Drilling of the Limb target is currently underway.

Homestake Ridge and Committee Bay

The Company has completed targeting work necessary for drilling and field programs at Homestake Ridge and Committee Bay, which are optional at this time and subject to market conditions. The primary objective at Homestake Ridge is to expand the resource and test high-quality gold and silver targets outside of the current resource area. At Committee Bay the main goals are to expand the Three Bluffs high-grade gold deposit and to drill the underexplored Raven regional target.

Environmental, Social and Governance - ESG

Fury is pleased to announce that it has partnered with UK-based data, research & ESG platform provider Digbee, who has developed a robust and tailored ESG disclosure platform for the mining sector. This tool focuses on the information that investors need to understand ESG risks in the mining sector, and the delineation of those risks associated with each stage of a mining company, from exploration through to production stage. The Company will use this disclosure tool to communicate its many ESG activities, ensuring the alignment of our initiatives with our corporate values and objectives and provide the transparency that investors seek in evaluating mining and mineral exploration investment opportunities.

Other key ESG initiatives that are currently underway or recently completed include:

Ongoing site health and safety training;

The establishment of a Board-level Indigenous and Community Relations committee;

Government approved on-site pilot COVID rapid testing program at Eau Claire;

Various sponsorships to support education, diversity and Indigenous communities;

Establishment of a disclosure committee and charter providing supportive internal governance mechanisms; and

Creation of an independent Lead Director role.

Observing COVID protocols across all Fury workplace environments (at site and in office settings) remains a top priority. The Company is supporting all employees, with participation in the various vaccination programs underway in each province; to date, all site crew have received the first vaccination, with second vaccinations scheduled for May.

Technical Disclosure

Analytical samples from exploration drill holes completed by Fury were taken by sawing NQ diameter core into equal halves on site with one half being sent to Actlabs in Val d'Or, QC for preparation and then to Actlabs in Thunder Bay, ON for analysis. All samples are assayed using 50 g nominal weight fire assay with atomic absorption finish (1A2B-50) and multi-element four acid digest ICP-AES/ICP-MS method (1F2). Where 1A2B-50 results were greater than 5 ppm Au the assay were repeated with 50 g nominal weight fire assay with gravimetric finish (1A3-50). QA/QC programs using internal standard samples, field and lab duplicates and blanks indicate good overall accuracy and precision.

David Rivard, P.Geo, Exploration Manager at Fury, is a "qualified person" within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical disclosures in this press release.

About Fury Gold Mines Limited

Fury Gold Mines Limited is a Canadian-focused gold exploration and development company positioned in three prolific mining regions across the country. Led by a management team and board of directors with proven success in financing and developing mining assets, Fury intends to grow and advance its multi-million-ounce gold platform through potential new discoveries and project development. Fury is committed to upholding the highest industry standards for corporate governance, environmental stewardship, community engagement and sustainable mining. For more information on Fury Gold Mines Limited, visit www.furygoldmines.com.

For further information on Fury Gold Mines Limited, please contact:

Salisha Ilyas

Vice President, Investor Relations

Tel: (437) 500-2529

Email: info@furygoldmines.com

Website: www.furygoldmines.com

Forward-Looking Statements and Additional Cautionary Language

This release includes certain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canada and United States securities laws ("forward-looking statements"), which relate to the future operations of the Company and other statements that are not historical facts. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes", or the negatives and/or variations of such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur", "be achieved" or "has the potential to". Forward-looking statements are information that includes implied future performance and/or forecast information. Forward-looking statements in this release reflect management's current estimates, predictions, expectations or beliefs regarding future events. Specific forward-looking statements contained in this release, include information relating to: the Eau Claire deposit, including drilling and exploration results; Eau Claire's mineral resource and the expansion and potential of thereof; exploration programs at Homestake Ridge and Committee Bay and the need to raise additional funds to pursue such programs; Fury's exploration programs and growth plans; ESG activities and disclosure; COVID-19; and the Prospectus and the Registration Statement, including any future issuance of Securities.

There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date such statements are made and are based on a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable at the time, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Such assumptions, which may prove to be incorrect, include: general economic and industry growth rates; the Company's budget, including expected costs and the assumptions regarding market conditions; the Company's ability to raise additional capital to proceed with its exploration, development and operations plans; the Company's ability to obtain or renew the licenses and permits necessary for its current and future operations; and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and expectations reflected in those forward-looking statements were reasonable at the time such statements were made, there can be no assurance that such assumptions and expectations will prove to be correct.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different (either positively or negatively) from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including risks relating, but not limited, to: the COVID-19 pandemic; the future price of minerals, including gold and other metals; and the success of the Company's exploration and development activities. Readers should refer to the risks discussed in the Company's Annual Information Form and MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2020 and subsequent continuous disclosure filings with the Canadian Securities Administrators available at www.sedar.com and the Company's Annual Report on Form 40-F for the year ended December 31, 2020 filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and available at www.sec.gov. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release represent the Company's expectations as of the date of this press release or the date indicated. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable securities law.

Cautionary Note to United States Investors Concerning Estimates of Mining Disclosure

The mining and technical disclosure throughout this release is made in accordance with applicable Canadian law and the guidelines set out in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum CIM Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves. The Company's descriptions of its projects using applicable Canadian law and CIM Standards may not be comparable to similar information made public by U.S. companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements under the United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

SOURCE: Fury Gold Mines

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646306/Fury-Provides-Exploration-and-Corporate-Update
Gross profit increased by 11% year-over-year

Gross Profit after Fulfillment expense was up 149% year-over-year

Adjusted EBITDA loss decreased by 24% year-over-year

LAGOS, NIGERIA / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Jumia Technologies AG (NYSE:JMIA) ("Jumia" or the "Company") announced today its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021.

Results highlights for the first quarter 2021

For the three months ended March 31 As reported YoY As reported Constant currency YoY In  million, except percentages 2020 2021 Change 2020 2021 Change GMV 189.6 165.0 (13.0) % 189.6 180.0 (5.1) % TPV 35.5 42.9 20.9 % 35.5 47.9 35.1 % TPV as % of GMV 18.7 % 26.0 % 18.7 % 26.6 % Gross Profit 18.4 20.4 10.9 % 18.4 22.2 20.9 % Fulfillment expense (15.9 ) (14.2 ) (10.7) % (15.9 ) (15.4 ) (3.0) % Gross Profit after Fulfillment expense 2.5 6.2 149.5 % 2.5 6.8 174.6 % Sales and advertising expense (8.9 ) (8.1 ) (9.1) % (8.9 ) (8.8 ) (1.3) % Technology and content expense (7.2 ) (6.9 ) (4.2) % (7.2 ) (6.9 ) (3.7) % G&A expense, excluding SBC (24.4 ) (20.3 ) (17.0) % (24.4 ) (22.4 ) (8.1) % Adjusted EBITDA (35.6 ) (27.0 ) (24.2) % (35.6 ) (28.6 ) (19.6) % Operating Loss (43.7 ) (33.7 ) (23.0) % (43.7 ) (35.6 ) (18.6) %

"Our first quarter results reflect solid progress towards profitability. The drivers remain consistent: selective and disciplined usage growth, gradual monetization and continued cost discipline. The first quarter of 2021 was the sixth consecutive quarter of positive gross profit after fulfillment expense, which reached 6.2 million, more than doubling year-over-year, while Adjusted EBITDA loss contracted by 24% year-over-year, reaching 27.0 million", commented Jeremy Hodara and Sacha Poignonnec, Co-Chief Executive Officers of Jumia.

"Our strategy to increase our exposure to everyday product categories continues to yield positive results, enhancing the relevance of our marketplace for consumers. We are making further inroads in payment and fintech with 37% of Orders in the first quarter of 2021 completed using JumiaPay. Last but not least, we have raised over $570 million over the past six months, strengthening our balance sheet and increasing our strategic flexibility. We are confident we have all the right ingredients to continue to build a growing business across both our e-commerce and fintech activities."

FIRST QUARTER 2021 - SELECTED BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS

Jumia Brand Strength

Jumia was ranked #7 in the 2020 Most Influential Brands survey in Egypt released by Ipsos in March 2021. The 'Most Influential Brands Survey' is a global Ipsos initiative, covering 14 markets and close to 800 brands worldwide in 2020. The survey was conducted in Egypt for the first time covering 120 national and international brands and assessed their impact on Egyptian consumers based on multiple dimensions including "Trustworthiness", "Leadership", "Presence" and "Leading Edge". Jumia topped the list in the digital and e-commerce sector in Egypt.

Increased Consumer Convenience

To offer more convenience to consumers and relevance as part of their everyday needs, we are developing our quick commerce ("q-commerce") proposition leveraging our Jumia Food platform: We have been successfully operating Jumia Food for the past 9 years and are now present across 10 countries and 48 cities in Africa with a wide range of restaurants and convenience outlets active on our platform. Jumia Food and on-demand services accounted for c. 22% of Orders and 9% of GMV in the first quarter of 2021. We operate a delivery-enabled marketplace model with dedicated on-demand logistics and technology infrastructure for the delivery of meals and other convenience items in less than 60 minutes. We are currently piloting the possibility to leverage our on-demand logistics infrastructure to reduce the delivery times of a broader range of everyday product categories such as grocery and FMCG.

We expanded our network of pick-up stations for increased convenience and had over 1,600 pick-up stations across Africa with 23% of packages delivered in pick-up stations in the first quarter of 2021. We view pick-up stations as a strategic asset for the future growth of our platform. In addition to providing more convenience options for consumers and cheaper delivery costs, they are physical touch points that bring the Jumia brand closer to consumers. We are increasingly leveraging them as ordering points where consumers can place orders with the help of the pick-up station staff which helps educate consumers and build further trust. In some countries such as Ivory Coast, pick-up stations are proving to be a compelling alternative to door delivery and a key tool to expand e-commerce penetration beyond primary cities. We see meaningful opportunity in supporting equitable economic development in secondary cities and rural areas, which led us to establish a scalable pick-up station model in partnership with CDC, the UK's development finance institution. These outlets serve as both pick-up stations and ordering points. They are operated by local entrepreneurs who earn income from the delivery fees they receive on packages delivery and commissions on orders placed from the outlet.



Monetization initiatives

We remain focused on diversifying monetization streams beyond commissions and fulfillment costs pass-through.

Jumia Advertising, our in-house digital advertising agency catering to both Jumia sellers and third parties, ran over 283 campaigns on behalf of 137 advertisers. These include high profile partners such as l'Oreal, Leroy Merlin, Adidas, Unilever, Danone and many more.

On the back of the successful pilot conducted in 2020, we continued rolling out logistics services to third parties in the first quarter of 2021. Over 750,000 packages were delivered during the quarter, more than the total handled in 2020 as part of the pilot, on behalf of more than 250 clients. Logistics-as-a-service clients during the quarter included: Weetabix in Kenya: Jumia Logistics was appointed their preferred partner for modern trade deliveries across Kenya. ZECI Solar Panel Ivory Coast - Joint Venture between Zola Electric (American off-grid electricity company) and Electricite De France (EDF) - providing solar power to rural communities as a means to eradicating poverty: Jumia Logistics offers the storage and distribution of solar panels from Abidjan to up country households. Zaron Cosmetics, leading cosmetics brand in West Africa: Jumia Logistics provides delivery services for their customer orders - placed within and outside the Jumia platform - across Nigeria.



Impact initiatives

In Egypt, Jumia partnered with Alexbank, a leading Egyptian bank alongside the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development (SFSD), to bring Egypt's creative economy online amidst COVID-19. The partnership includes the set-up of a dedicated brand store on Jumia aimed at promoting authentic Egyptian handicraft and offering craftsmen a digital access to consumers. The initial phase of this initiative covered 3,700 artisans, of which 80% women, and included 15 groups of artisans with disabilities coming from 22 different Egyptian Governorates.

In an effort to improve our SME sellers' access to credit, we continued to expand our financial services marketplace activities through JumiaPay. We leverage the business and transactional data of our sellers to help financial institutions pre-score their credit on an anonymized basis and offer them short term loans and working capital financing. In the first quarter of 2021, 380 loans were disbursed as part of this initiative, 90% more than in the first quarter of 2020, benefiting 291 unique sellers, 62% more than in the first quarter of 2020.

To support the emerging intra-Africa trade initiatives championed by some governments, we have been exploring the set-up of trade corridors between our countries of operation. We established an initial logistics corridor Egypt-Morocco with the first deliveries completed in the first quarter of 2021. We are currently in the process of setting up Egypt-Ghana and Egypt-Kenya and are testing Egypt-Nigeria as well.

SELECTED OPERATIONAL KPIs

1. Marketplace KPIs

For the three months ended March 31, YoY 2020 2021 Change Annual Active Consumers (mm) 6.4 6.9 6.9 % Orders (mm) 6.4 6.6 3.3 % GMV ( mm) 189.6 165.0 (13.0) %

Annual Active Consumers reached 6.9 million in the first quarter of 2021, up 7% year-over-year, as we continued to acquire new consumers and engage existing ones.

Orders reached 6.6 million, up 3% year-over-year, a reversal of the declining trend observed over the prior 2 quarters. The fastest growing categories in terms of volumes continue to be the everyday product categories such as beauty, food delivery and fashion while we continued to see volume declines in electronics albeit with a modest recovery observed in the phone category.

GMV was 165.0 million, down 13% on a year-over-year basis and 5% on a constant currency basis. Key drivers of GMV performance this quarter included: FX headwinds as a result of local currency depreciations against the Euro over the past year, with the Nigerian Naira, Egyptian Pound and Kenyan Shilling declining by 15%, 9% and 19% respectively against the Euro in the first quarter of 2021, year-over-year. FX effects were more modest in 2020 due to the application of year-to-date averages for disclosure purposes - reconciliation information available in appendix. On a constant currency basis, GMV was down 5% on a year-over-year basis. Continued GMV mix shift towards lower ticket-size, every-day product categories with phones and electronics accounting for 37% of GMV compared to 45% in the first quarter of 2020, driving a decline in average order value of 16% from 29.5 in the first quarter of 2020 to 24.9 in the first quarter 2021. This is consistent with the business mix rebalancing strategy initiated in 2020 as part of which we sought to increase our focus on every-day product categories to drive consumer adoption and usage while reducing our reliance on phones and electronics.

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continued playing out in the first quarter of 2021 with selected countries reinstating some movement restrictions such as Morocco tightening their curfews measures or Kenya imposing localized lockdowns late March. These measures did not lead to meaningful changes in consumer behavior but instead created supply and logistics disruption, especially for our food delivery business where dinner deliveries were affected by curfews in these countries.

The development of the pandemic remains a fluid situation and we expect it to drive continued operating environment uncertainty. We also expect the economic challenges induced by the pandemic to negatively impact consumer sentiment and spending power.

2. JumiaPay KPIs

For the three months ended March 31, YoY 2020 2021 Change TPV ( million) 35.5 42.9 20.9 % JumiaPay Transactions (million) 2.3 2.4 6.7 %

TPV increased by 21% from 35.5 million in the first quarter of 2020 to 42.9 million in the first quarter of 2021. On a constant currency basis, TPV increased by 35% year-over-year. On-platform penetration of JumiaPay as a percentage of GMV increased to 26.0% in the first quarter of 2021 from 18.7% in the first quarter of 2020.

JumiaPay Transactions increased by 7% from 2.3 million in the first quarter of 2020 to 2.4 million in the first quarter of 2021, with JumiaPay Transactions above 10, which include prepaid purchases on the Jumia physical goods marketplace and Jumia Food platforms, growing by 30% over the same period. JumiaPay Transactions below 10 which mostly consist of transactions on the JumiaPay app, declined by 3% over this period. This trend was concentrated in the airtime recharge category as a result of reduced consumer incentives within this category which has historically been promotionally intensive. Overall, 36.7% of Orders placed on the Jumia platform in the first quarter of 2021 were completed using JumiaPay, compared to 35.5% in the first quarter of 2020.

SELECTED FINANCIAL INFORMATION

For the three months ended March 31, YoY ( million) 2020 2021 Change Revenue 29.3 27.4 (6.4) % Marketplace revenue 19.1 20.2 5.9 % Commissions 6.9 7.6 8.8 % Fulfillment 6.5 7.1 10.6 % Marketing & Advertising 1.2 1.6 35.6 % Value Added Services 4.5 3.9 (12.8) % First Party revenue 9.9 6.5 (34.7) % Platform revenue 29.0 26.7 (8.0) % Non-Platform revenue 0.3 0.7 157.4 % Gross Profit 18.4 20.4 10.9 % Fulfillment expense (15.9) (14.2) (10.7) % Sales & Advertising expense (8.9) (8.1) (9.1) % Technology and Content expense (7.2) (6.9) (4.2) % General and Administrative expense ("G&A") (30.4) (25.0) (17.6) % of which Share Based Compensation ("SBC") (6.0) (4.8) (20.1) % G&A expense, excluding SBC (24.4) (20.3) (17.0) % Adjusted EBITDA (35.6) (27.0) (24.2) % Operating loss (43.7) (33.7) (23.0) %

Revenue

First Party revenue decreased by 35% in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the first quarter of 2020. This was in line with our strategy to undertake fewer sales on a first party basis as we focus on running an asset light marketplace model where third-party sellers offer consumers an expanding range of products and services. Shifts in the mix between first party and marketplace activities trigger substantial variations in our Revenue as we record the full sales price net of returns as First Party revenue and only commissions and fees in the case of Marketplace revenue. Accordingly, we steer our operations not on the basis of our total Revenue, but rather on the basis of Gross profit, as changes between third-party and first-party sales are largely eliminated at the Gross profit level.

Marketplace revenue reached 20.2 million in the first quarter of 2021, up 6% compared to the first quarter of 2020. This was mostly driven by increases in Commissions, Fulfillment and Marketing & Advertising revenue streams, which increased by 9%, 11% and 36% year-over-year respectively. Commissions grew by 9% largely due to an increase in the share of higher commission rate categories including fashion, beauty or food delivery. Fulfillment revenue increased by 11% largely as a result of pricing changes within our cross-border logistics which were initiated in the second half of 2020. As part of these changes, part of the international shipping fees that were previously charged to sellers were instead passed on to consumers. This change resulted in some of our international logistics revenue being recorded as Fulfillment revenue instead of revenue from Value Added Services. Value Added Services decreased by 13% as a result of the aforementioned pricing changes in our cross-border logistics pricing. Marketing & Advertising revenue increased by 36% as a result of the robust take-up by advertisers, both Jumia sellers and third parties, of Jumia Advertising solutions as we continue to improve the relevance and user experience of our ad solutions.



Gross Profit

Gross profit increased by 11% to 20.4 million in the first quarter of 2021 from 18.4 million in the first quarter of 2020 as a result of the increase in Marketplace revenue. On a constant currency basis, Gross profit in the first quarter of 2021 increased by 21% year-over-year.

Fulfillment Expense

Fulfillment expense decreased by 11% in the first quarter of 2021 on a year-over-year basis. This was mostly a result of fulfillment staff costs savings as well the change in our delivery pricing model from cost per package to cost per stop which was implemented starting from the second quarter of 2020.

During the first quarter of 2021, Gross profit after Fulfillment expense reached 6.2 million compared to 2.5 million in the first quarter of 2020, demonstrating continued unit economics improvement as we drive usage on our platform.

Lastly, we are able to pass-on an increasing proportion of our Fulfillment expense to the combination of consumers and sellers via our Fulfillment and Value Added Services revenue streams respectively. The pass-through of our Fulfillment expense, measured as the ratio of the sum of Fulfillment and Value Added Services revenue over Fulfillment expense, increased from 69% in the first quarter of 2020 to 78% in the first quarter of 2021.

Sales & Advertising Expense

Sales & Advertising expense decreased by 9% from 8.9 million in the first quarter of 2020 to 8.1 million in the first quarter of 2021. This drove marketing efficiencies with Sales & Advertising expense per Order decreasing by 12%, from 1.4 per Order in the first quarter of 2020 to 1.2 in the first quarter of 2021. This was a result of continued programmatic marketing improvements with better targeted and more engaging campaigns across social media and search engines.

General and Administrative Expense

General & Administrative expense, excluding SBC, reached 20.3 million, down 17% on a year-over-year basis. This decrease was attributable to staff costs savings as a result of the portfolio optimization and headcount rationalization initiatives launched in the first quarter of 2020, alongside a decrease in professional fees, including legal expenses.

Operating loss

Operating loss was 33.7 million in the first quarter of 2021 while Adjusted EBITDA loss was 27.0 million, decreasing by 23% and 24% on a year-over-year basis respectively, demonstrating meaningful progress on our path to profitability. The depreciation of a number of local currencies against the Euro provided some support to costs - on a constant currency basis, operating loss and adjusted EBITDA loss decreased by 19% and 20% on a year-over-year basis respectively.

Cash Position

At the end of March 31, 2021, we had 485.6 million of cash on our balance sheet. This includes approximately 205 million of the total gross proceeds from the offering completed on March 30, 2021 with a remaining 88 million of cash booked in April 2021.

GUIDANCE

We remain focused on executing across the four pillars of our strategy, driving usage in a disciplined manner, developing our payment and fintech business JumiaPay, while driving gradual monetization of our platform and cost efficiencies. Leveraging the strength of our unit economics, we intend to gradually increase Sales & Advertising as well as Technology investments to support the long-term growth of the business, while remaining committed to reducing Adjusted EBITDA loss in absolute terms in 2021 compared to 2020.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic as well as the ensuing macroeconomic challenges result in substantial uncertainty concerning our operating environment and financial outlook. This may be further exacerbated by instances of social protests or political disruption, as experienced in Nigeria in late 2020 and early 2021.

CONFERENCE CALL AND WEBCAST INFORMATION

Jumia will host a conference call today, May 11, 2021 at 8:30 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time to discuss Jumia's results. Details of the conference call are as follows:

Participant Dial in (Toll Free): 1-844-750-4870

Participant International Dial in: 1-412-317-5165

Canada Toll Free: 1-855-669-9657

UK Toll Free: 0800-279-9489

A live webcast of the earnings conference call can be accessed on the Jumia Investor Relations website: https://investor.jumia.com/

An archived webcast will be available following the call.

(UNAUDITED)

Consolidated statement of comprehensive income as of March 31, 2020 and 2021

For the three months ended March 31, March 31, In thousands of EUR 2020 2021 Revenue 29,252 27,369 Cost of revenue 10,860 6,972 Gross profit 18,392 20,397 Fulfillment expense 15,915 14,218 Sale and advertising expense 8,875 8,063 Technology and content expense 7,177 6,873 General and administrative expense 30,390 25,049 Other operating income 314 178 Other operating expense 95 58 Operating loss (43,746) (33,686) Finance income 2,637 15,118 Finance costs, net 1,060 1,843 Loss before Income tax (42,169) (20,411) Income tax expense 115 229 Loss for the period (42,284) (20,640) Attributable to: Equity holders of the Company (42,217 ) (20,634 ) Non-controlling interests (67 ) (6 ) Loss for the period (42,284) (20,640) Other comprehensive income/loss to be classified to profit or loss in subsequent periods Exchange differences on translation of foreign operations - net of tax 10,103 (29,544 ) Other comprehensive income / (loss) on net investment in foreign operations - net of tax (10,706 ) 29,287 Other comprehensive income / (loss) (603 ) (257 ) Total comprehensive loss for the period (42,887) (20,897) Attributable to: Equity holders of the Company (42,818 ) (20,891 ) Non-controlling interests (69 ) (6 ) Total comprehensive loss for the period (42,887) (20,897)

(UNAUDITED)

Consolidated statement of financial position as of December 31, 2020 and March 31, 2021

As of December 31, March 31, In thousands of EUR 2020 2021 Assets Non-current assets Property and equipment 16,559 16,080 Intangible assets 442 411 Deferred tax assets 102 102 Other non-current assets 1,377 1,386 Total Non-current assets 18,480 17,979 Current assets Inventories 6,703 8,073 Trade and other receivables 10,722 97,666 Income tax receivables 635 786 Other taxes receivables 3,084 3,313 Prepaid expenses 10,405 10,544 Term deposits and other current assets 991 927 Cash and cash equivalents 304,901 485,575 Total Current assets 337,441 606,884 Total Assets 355,921 624,863 Equity and Liabilities Equity Share capital 179,259 197,185 Share premium 1,205,340 1,480,737 Other reserves 108,623 110,244 Accumulated losses (1,268,719 ) (1,295,793 ) Equity attributable to the equity holders of the Company 224,503 492,373 Non-controlling interests (343) (349) Total Equity 224,160 492,024 Liabilities Non-current liabilities Non-current borrowings 7,950 7,981 Deferred tax liabilities 50 7 Provisions for liabilities and other charges - non-current 361 429 Deferred income - non-current 831 739 Total Non-current liabilities 9,192 9,156 Current liabilities Current borrowings 2,966 3,228 Trade and other payables 61,772 61,601 Income tax payables 11,436 11,583 Other taxes payable 10,327 10,914 Provisions for liabilities and other charges 31,804 32,741 Deferred income 4,264 3,616 Total Current liabilities 122,569 123,683 Total Liabilities 131,761 132,839 Total Equity and Liabilities 355,921 624,863

(UNAUDITED)

Consolidated statement of cash flows as of March 31, 2020 and 2021

For the three months ended March 31, March 31, In thousands of EUR 2020 2021 Loss before Income tax (42,169) (20,411) Depreciation and amortization of tangible and intangible assets 2,128 1,910 Impairment losses on loans, receivables and other assets 1,118 493 Impairment losses on obsolete inventories 235 274 Share-based payment expense 5,973 4,774 Net (gain)/loss from disposal of tangible and intangible assets 10 26 Change in provision for other liabilities and charges 1,235 819 Lease modification (income)/expense - (6 ) Interest (income)/expenses (66 ) 299 Net foreign exchange (gain)/loss (1,370 ) (12,517 ) (Increase)/Decrease in trade and other receivables, prepayments and VAT receivables 1,353 531 (Increase)/Decrease in inventories (790 ) (1,384 ) Increase/(Decrease) in trade and other payables, deferred income and VAT payables (6,455 ) (4,032 ) Income taxes paid (467 ) (266 ) Net cash flows used in operating activities (39,265) (29,490) Cash flows from investing activities Purchase of property and equipment (453 ) (367 ) Proceeds from disposal of property and equipment - 8 Purchase of intangible assets - (15 ) Interest received 90 40 Movement in other non-current assets 58 23 Movement in term deposits and other current assets 62,278 84 Net cash flows (used in) / from investing activities 61,973 (227) Cash flows from financing activities Interest settled - financing (20 ) (7 ) Payment of lease interest (278 ) (324 ) Repayment of lease liabilities (1,284 ) (505 ) Equity transaction costs - (4,068 ) Capital contributions - 205,076 Net cash flows (used in) / from financing activities (1,582) 200,172 Net decrease/increase in cash and cash equivalents 21,126 170,455 Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents (1 ) 10,219 Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period 170,021 304,901 Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 191,146 485,575

Forward Looking Statements

This release includes forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this release, including statements regarding our future results of operations and financial position, industry dynamics, business strategy and plans and our objectives for future operations, are forward-looking statements. These statements represent our opinions, expectations, beliefs, intentions, estimates or strategies regarding the future, which may not be realized. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as "may," "will," "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "could," "intends," "targets," "projects," "believes," "estimates", "potential" or "continue" or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions that are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy, short-term and long-term business operations and objectives, and financial needs. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statement, including, without limitation, the risks described under Item 3. "Key Information-D. Risk Factors," in our Annual Report on Form 20-F as filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Moreover, new risks emerge from time to time. It is not possible for our management to predict all risks, nor can we assess the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements we may make. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events and circumstances discussed in this release may not occur and actual results could differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. We caution you therefore against relying on these forward-looking statements, and we qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements.

The forward-looking statements included in this release are made only as of the date hereof. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee that the future results, levels of activity, performance or events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements will be achieved or occur. Moreover, neither we nor our advisors nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of the forward-looking statements. Neither we nor our advisors undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements for any reason after the date of this release to conform these statements to actual results or to changes in our expectations, except as may be required by law. You should read this release with the understanding that our actual future results, levels of activity, performance and events and circumstances may be materially different from what we expect.

Non-IFRS and Other Financial and Operating Metrics

Changes, percentages, ratios and aggregate amounts presented have been calculated on the basis of unrounded figures.

This release includes certain financial measures and metrics not based on IFRS, including Adjusted EBITDA, as well as operating metrics, including Annual Active Consumers, Orders and GMV. We define Annual Active Consumers, Orders, GMV, Total Payment Volume, JumiaPay Transactions and Adjusted EBITDA as follows:

Annual Active Consumers means unique consumers who placed an order for a product or a service on our platform, within the 12-month period preceding the relevant date, irrespective of cancellations or returns.

We believe that Annual Active Consumers is a useful indicator for adoption of our offering by consumers in our markets.

Orders corresponds to the total number of orders for products and services on our platform, irrespective of cancellations or returns, for the relevant period.

We believe that the number of orders is a useful indicator to measure the total usage of our platform, irrespective of the monetary value of the individual transactions.

GMV corresponds to the total value of orders for products and services, including shipping fees, value added tax, and before deductions of any discounts or vouchers, irrespective of cancellations or returns for the relevant period.

We believe that GMV is a useful indicator for the usage of our platform that is not influenced by shifts in our sales between first-party and third-party sales or the method of payment.

We use Annual Active Consumers, Orders and GMV as some of many indicators to monitor usage of our platform.

Total Payment Volume ("TPV") corresponds to the total value of orders for products and services for which JumiaPay was used including shipping fees, value-added tax, and before deductions of any discounts or vouchers, irrespective of cancellations or returns, for the relevant period.

We believe that TPV, which corresponds to the share of GMV for which JumiaPay was used, provides a useful indicator of the development, and adoption by consumers, of the payment services offerings we make

available, directly and indirectly, through JumiaPay.

JumiaPay Transactions corresponds to the total number of orders for products and services on our marketplace for which JumiaPay was used, irrespective of cancellations or returns, for the relevant period.

We believe that JumiaPay Transactions provides a useful indicator of the development, and adoption by consumers, of the cashless payment services offerings we make available for orders on our platform irrespective of the monetary value of the individual transactions.

We use TPV and the number of JumiaPay Transactions to measure the development of our payment services and the progressive conversion of cash on delivery orders into prepaid orders.

Adjusted EBITDA corresponds to loss for the period, adjusted for income tax expense (benefit), finance income, finance costs, depreciation and amortization and further adjusted for share-based payment expense.

Adjusted EBITDA is a supplemental non-IFRS measure of our operating performance that is not required by, or presented in accordance with, IFRS. Adjusted EBITDA is not a measurement of our financial performance under IFRS and should not be considered as an alternative to loss for the period, loss before income tax or any other performance measure derived in accordance with IFRS. We caution investors that amounts presented in accordance with our definition of Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to similar measures disclosed by other companies, because not all companies and analysts calculate Adjusted EBITDA in the same manner. We present Adjusted EBITDA because we consider it to be an important supplemental measure of our operating performance. Management believes that investors' understanding of our performance is enhanced by including non-IFRS financial measures as a reasonable basis for comparing our ongoing results of operations. By providing this non-IFRS financial measure, together with a reconciliation to the nearest IFRS financial measure, we believe we are enhancing investors' understanding of our business and our results of operations, as well as assisting investors in evaluating how well we are executing our strategic initiatives.

Management uses Adjusted EBITDA:

as a measurement of operating performance because it assists us in comparing our operating performance on a consistent basis, as it removes the impact of items not directly resulting from our core operations;

for planning purposes, including the preparation of our internal annual operating budget and financial projections;

to evaluate the performance and effectiveness of our strategic initiatives; and

to evaluate our capacity to expand our business.

Items excluded from this non-IFRS measure are significant components in understanding and assessing financial performance. Adjusted EBITDA has limitations as an analytical tool and should not be considered in isolation, or as an alternative to, or a substitute for analysis of our results reported in accordance with IFRS, including loss for the period. Some of the limitations are:

Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect our share-based payments, income tax expense (benefit) or the amounts necessary to pay our taxes;

although depreciation and amortization are eliminated in the calculation of Adjusted EBITDA, the assets being depreciated and amortized will often have to be replaced in the future and such measures do not reflect any costs for such replacements; and

other companies may calculate Adjusted EBITDA differently than we do, limiting its usefulness as a comparative measure.

Due to these limitations, Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered as a measure of discretionary cash available to us to invest in the growth of our business. We compensate for these and other limitations by providing a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to the most directly comparable IFRS financial measure, loss for the period.

The following table provides a reconciliation of loss for the period to Adjusted EBITDA for the periods indicated:

For the three months ended March 31, ( million) 2020 2021 Loss for the period (42.3) (20.6) Income tax expense 0.1 0.2 Net Finance costs / (income) (1.6 ) (13.3 ) Depreciation and amortization 2.1 1.9 Share-based payment expense 6.0 4.8 Adjusted EBITDA (35.6) (27.0)

Certain metrics have also been presented on a constant currency basis. We use constant currency information to provide us with a picture of underlying business dynamics, excluding currency effects.

Constant currency metrics are calculated using the average monthly exchange rates for each month during 2020 and applying them to the corresponding months in 2021, so as to calculate what our results would have been had exchange rates remained stable from one year to the next. Constant currency information is not a measure calculated in accordance with IFRS. While we believe that constant currency information may be useful to investors in understanding and evaluating our results of operations in the same manner as our management, our use of constant currency metrics has limitations as an analytical tool, and you should not consider it in isolation, or as an alternative to, or a substitute for analysis of our financial results as reported under IFRS. Further, other companies, including companies in our industry, may report the impact of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates differently, which may reduce the value of our constant currency information as a comparative measure.

The following table sets forth the constant currency data for selected metrics.

For the three months ended March 31 As reported YoY As reported Constant currency YoY In  million, except percentages 2020 2021 Change 2020 2021 Change GMV 189.6 165.0 (13.0) % 189.6 180.0 (5.1) % TPV 35.5 42.9 20.9 % 35.5 47.9 35.1 % TPV as % of GMV 18.7 % 26.0 % 18.7 % 26.6 % Gross Profit 18.4 20.4 10.9 % 18.4 22.2 20.9 % Fulfillment expense (15.9 ) (14.2 ) (10.7) % (15.9 ) (15.4 ) (3.0) % Gross Profit after Fulfillment expense 2.5 6.2 149.5 % 2.5 6.8 174.6 % Sales and advertising expense (8.9 ) (8.1 ) (9.1) % (8.9 ) (8.8 ) (1.3) % Technology and content expense (7.2 ) (6.9 ) (4.2) % (7.2 ) (6.9 ) (3.7) % G&A expense, excluding SBC (24.4 ) (20.3 ) (17.0) % (24.4 ) (22.4 ) (8.1) % Adjusted EBITDA (35.6 ) (27.0 ) (24.2) % (35.6 ) (28.6 ) (19.6) % Operating Loss (43.7 ) (33.7 ) (23.0) % (43.7 ) (35.6 ) (18.6) %



For the full year ended December 31 As reported YoY As reported Constant currency YoY In  million, except percentages 2019 2020 Change 2019 2020 Change GMV 1,030.9 (1) 836.5 (18.9) % 1,030.9 861.5 (16.4) % TPV 124.3 196.4 58.0 % 124.3 203.6 63.8 % TPV as % of GMV 12.1 % 23.5 % 12.1 % 23.6 % Gross Profit 75.9 92.8 22.3 % 75.9 96.3 26.9 % Fulfillment expense (77.4 ) (69.3 ) (10.4) % (77.4 ) (71.6 ) (7.5) % Gross Profit after Fulfillment expense (1.5 ) 23.5 n.m. (1.5 ) 24.7 n.m. Sales and advertising expense (56.0 ) (32.5 ) (42.0) % (56.0 ) (33.0 ) (41.2) % Technology and content expense (27.3 ) (27.8 ) 2.0 % (27.3 ) (27.9 ) 2.4 % G&A expense, excluding SBC (107.3 ) (94.0 ) (12.3) % (107.3 ) (97.9 ) (8.7) % Adjusted EBITDA (182.7 ) (119.5 ) (34.6) % (182.7 ) (122.5 ) (32.9) % Operating Loss (227.9 ) (149.2 ) (34.5) % (227.9 ) (152.5 ) (33.1) %

(1) Adjusted for perimeter changes: exit of Cameroon, Rwanda, Tanzania and the travel activities and improper sales practices.

CONTACTS:

Safae Damir

Head of Investor Relations

investor-relations@jumia.com

Abdesslam Benzitouni

Head of PR and Communications

press@jumia.com

SOURCE: Jumia Technologies AG

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646254/Jumia-Reports-First-Quarter-2021-Results-Continued-Progress-Towards-Profitability
Powerful new feature secures data with the ultimate protection against ransomware, malicious or accidental alteration and deletion

Boston, MA, May 11, 2021, thehot cloud storage company, today announces S3 Object Lock, a new feature that allows users to store immutable objects in Wasabi's cloud using applications that support S3 object locking likeVeeamBackup & Replication. Wasabi's support for S3 Object Lock introduces a new level of data protection, preventing malicious or accidental operations that can lead to significant data loss or alteration. The feature further enhances Wasabi's commitment to data security, including 11x9s of data durability, strong identity & multi-factor authentication, and compliance with the latest privacy and security standards.

Whether accidental or malicious, preventing catastrophic data loss is increasingly challenging, especially when defending against ransomware attacks, mitigating the impact of human error or ensuring the chain of custody and regulatory compliance of data. With S3 Object Lock, applications or storage administrators can designate certain data objects as immutable, meaning the content cannot be altered or deleted by any application or user, including ransomware attacks. Immutability is set for a specific period of time, allowing businesses to more simply meet governance compliance requirements.

"Providing seamless, timely, and secure data backup and replication is key to any company's long-term cloud storage strategy," said Andreas Neufert, Vice President of Product Management, Alliances at Veeam. "Our partnership with Wasabi has allowed us to provide this capability to our joint customers for years. With the addition of S3 Object Lock, Wasabi has earned Veeam Ready Object with Immutability qualification which ensures our joint customers have the highest level of protection for their cloud storage needs. This aligns with our '3-2-1-1-0' rule for ultimate data protection: Maintain at least 3 copies of your data on 2 different media with at least 1 copy at an off-site location and 1 copy offline or immutable, and ensure verified backups with 0 errors."

Object Lock is offered free of charge, included with Wasabi's flexible, predictable and industry-leading pricing model. This provides users with the freedom to test business continuity and conduct the day-to-day monitoring and management required of critical data protection practices. Wasabi with Object Lock is verified as "Veeam Ready - Object with Immutability" with Veeam Backup & Replication v10 and v11 and meets the regulatory requirements for data immutability and retention management supported by Veeam.

"Data immutability is a critical, but often challenging step, in the data protection process. The addition of S3 Object Lock makes it easier than ever for customers to ensure their data is protected from any threat and enables them to cost-effectively validate their data protection strategy," said David Boland, Senior Director of Product Marketing at Wasabi. "Wasabi's support for S3 Object Lock is just the latest offering to help companies improve their cloud storage strategies without breaking the bank."

To learn more about Wasabi Object Lock, visit ourwebsite.

About Wasabi:

Wasabi provides simple, predictable and affordable hot cloud storage for businesses all over the world. It enables organizations to store and instantly access an infinite amount of data at 1/5th the price of the competition with no complex tiers or unpredictable egress fees. Trusted by tens of thousands of customers worldwide, Wasabi has been recognized as one of technology's fastest-growing and most visionary companies. Created by Carbonite co-founders and cloud storage pioneers David Friend and Jeff Flowers, Wasabi has secured nearly $250 million in funding to date and is a privately held company based in Boston.

Follow and connect with Wasabi onTwitter,Facebook,Instagramand ourblog.
China releases 7th population census data

Chinadaily.com.cn) 10:51, May 11, 2021

Tourists visit Senado Square in South China's Macao on May 3, 2021, the third day of China's five-day May Day holiday. [Photo/Xinhua]

The State Council Information Office held a news conference on the outcome of the seventh national population census on Tuesday. Here are the highlights:

- Chinese mainland registers a population of 1.41 billion, with an annual growth rate of 0.53 percent in the past decade, down from 0.57 percent recorded from 2000 to 2010.

- Chinese aged 60 and above reached 264.02 million, or 18.70 percent of population, up 5.44 percentage points from 2010.

- A total of 845,697 foreigners are living on the Chinese mainland, compared with 593,832 a decade ago.

Sex ratio heading to a more balanced direction

- The number of male in China has reached 723.34 million, accounting for 51.24 of the whole population, while the female reached 688.44 million, or 48.76 percent.

- The male to female ratio stands at 105.07, which is a slight drop compared with that in 2010.

- The sex ratio at birth is 111.3, falling 6.8 from that in the last census.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
Annual study from Widen finds a renewed focus on product information among marketers as they work to connect with customers online in the post-COVID economy

MADISON, Wisc., May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Widen, maker of digital asset management (DAM) and product information management (PIM) software, today published the 2021 Widen Connectivity Report: Connecting the dots between marketing, information, and customer experience (https://www.widen.com/connectivity). Widen's research team explored how brands have reached their audiences despite lockdowns, social distancing, and other challenges of the COVID-19 economy. The report finds that although marketers consider product information critical to establishing trust and driving sales online, they struggle to use this information to its fullest potential.



"We felt that the role of product information in building customer connections was an important topic in the midst of a pandemic that left so many of us feeling disconnected," said Leah Ujda, Senior Director of Research and Design at Widen. "We've learned that most brands have a rich trove of product information that could be used to rebuild or strengthen relationships with their audiences. The question for us was how? What works according to marketers from iconic brands?"

The Widen Connectivity Report is an ongoing study about the challenges marketers and creatives face when trying to balance technology with human touch. For the 2021 Connectivity Report, Widen surveyed 155 marketers and creatives from the US and UK between August and September 2020. The respondents represented 25 industries with employers ranging from Fortune 100 brands to local nonprofits. The questions focused on the role of product information-the product data, product marketing copy, and product digital assets that brands use to describe and market their products-in connecting with audiences online.

Key findings from the 2021 Connectivity Report include the following:

Product data establishes trust, while product marketing assets and content drives sales

Nearly 50% of respondents said product data is the information type that has the biggest impact on customer trust. However, 72% of respondents believe that digital assets like photography and videos, along with product marketing content like item descriptions, have the biggest impact on sales. These different types of product information appear to offer a superior buying experience when they are presented together rather than in isolation.



Inaccurate product information is likely - and risky

Just 36% of respondents claimed to have "very high" control over the product information their brand publishes on e-commerce sites. 55% say they have "very high" control over the information presented on their own website. These low numbers present a risk given that one in five US adults have returned an item bought online (https://www.forrester.com/report/Forrester+Infographic+Focus+On+Digital+Customer+Experience+Puts+PIM+In+The+Spotlight/-/E-RES161484#) because the description was inaccurate.



Objective product information fuels brand and marketing stories

57% of respondents said they use objective product information (e.g., ingredients, manufacturing methods, third-party certifications) to tell stories about their brands, and 71% use it to tell stories about their products. This information enables marketers to highlight sustainability, local manufacturing, and other brand values.



Brands striving to personalize product marketing could find the answer in product information

Brands that dominate search engine optimization (SEO) on Google as well as e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Target reach the shoppers most interested in their goods. This form of "personalization," built on quality product information, can reach new customers whereas most personalization technologies only target existing customers or consumers aware of the brand.



Marketers have ideas for translating product information into compelling experiences, but they struggle to scale them

When asked how they translate product information into engaging content, respondents mentioned everything from virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and 3D imagery to photos, graphics, and promotions The common thread is that respondents struggle to scale these experiences without marketing technology stacks that can assemble product information and then automate, organize, and control the process of delivering these experiences.

The 2021 Widen Connectivity Report is available at go.widen.com/2021-connectivity-report (http://go.widen.com/2021-connectivity-report).

About Widen

Widen helps brands deliver content with confidence. Their cloud-based DAM and PIM software, the Widen Collective, empowers marketers to bring content together, send it anywhere, and automate in-between. Trusted by more than 700 companies and one million users, Widen boasts a 73-year track record of innovation and customer success. Customers include Dyson, New Balance, Crayola, and Hootsuite.

Widen is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, USA and London, UK. For more information, visit www.widen.com (https://go.widen.com/3xDnBeQ).
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / StageZero Life Sciences, Ltd. (TSX:SZLS) ("StageZero" or the "Company"), a specialist in PCR testing dedicated to the early detection of multiple disease states through whole blood, today announced Rexall as the retail outlet that will distribute its COVID-19 PCR saliva test kits in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario beginning May 5. Rexall is a leading drugstore operator with more than 400 pharmacies across Canada.

"StageZero is proud to work with Rexall to make our at-home COVID-19 PCR saliva test kits available to Canadians to enable immediate and convenient testing via supervised telehealth, for families, companies and travelers," said James Howard-Tripp, Chairman and CEO of StageZero Life Sciences.

Rexall customers will be able to purchase COVID-19 PCR saliva test kits in select stores, nationally. Individual test kits as well as two-user test kits will be available for purchase, and pricing includes the shipping and handling of test samples. Testing will require an online appointment for specimen collection supervision and guidance on returning samples to the lab. Customers will receive their test results within 24 hours after their samples arrive at the lab.

For more information on the program please visit https://www.rexall.ca/covid-19/home-travel-test.

About StageZero Life Sciences, Ltd.

StageZero Life Sciences is dedicated to the early detection of multiple diseases through whole blood tests. The Company's next-generation test, Aristotle, is the first-ever multi-cancer panel for simultaneously screening for 10 cancers from a single sample of blood with high sensitivity and specificity for each cancer. StageZero's full service, telehealth platform includes access to physicians and phlebotomists who can prescribe and draw samples for individuals and groups, and the Company operates a CAP accredited and CLIA certified high-complexity reference laboratory in Richmond, Virginia. In addition, leveraging its specialty in polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing for the early identification of cancer through blood, StageZero also provides both COVID PCR testing (swab and saliva) and blood test analysis (Antibody testing). For more information, please visit www.stagezerolifesciences.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements identified by words such as "expects", "will" and similar expressions, which reflect the Company's current expectations regarding future events. The forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause the Company's actual events to differ materially from those projected herein. Investors should consult the Company's ongoing quarterly filings and annual reports for additional information on risks and uncertainties relating to these forward-looking statements. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. The Company disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

STAGEZERO LIFE SCIENCES LTD.

James Howard-Tripp

Chairman & CEO

For further information please contact:

Rebecca Greco

Investor Relations

Tel: 1-855-420-7140 ext. 1838

rgreco@stagezerols.com

SOURCE: StageZero Life Sciences Ltd

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646373/StageZero-Life-Sciences-Announces-Rexall-as-Retailer-for-COVID-19-Saliva-Test-Kits-Throughout-Canada
About Miravo HealthcareMiravo is a Canadian focused, healthcare company with global reach and a diversified portfolio of commercial products. The Company's products target several therapeutic areas, including pain, allergy, neurology and dermatology. The Company's strategy is to in-license and acquire growth-oriented, complementary products for Canadian and international markets. Miravo's head office is located in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, the international operations are located in Dublin, Ireland and the Company's manufacturing facility is located in Varennes, Quebec, Canada. The Varennes facility operates in a Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) environment respecting the U.S, Canada and E.U. GMP regulations and is regularly inspected by Health Canada and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. For additional information, please visit www.miravohealthcare.com.

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Crew Energy Inc. (TSX: CR) today announced that Dale Shwed and John Leach will be attending the Q2 Virtual Investor Summit.

Event Q2 Investor Summit Date May 17-18th, 2021 Presentation May 18th at 2:00pm ET Location https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_4dy5fwnDTf2i_Ah5gHKRlQ

About Crew Energy Inc.

Crew is a growth-oriented oil and natural gas producer, committed to pursuing sustainable per share growth through a balanced mix of financially and socially responsible exploration and development complemented by strategic acquisitions. The Company's operations are primarily focused in the vast Montney resource, situated in northeast British Columbia, and include a large contiguous land base. Greater Septimus along with Groundbirch and the light oil area at Tower in British Columbia offer significant development potential over the long-term. The Company has access to diversified markets with operated infrastructure and access to multiple pipeline egress options. Crew adheres to safe and environmentally responsible operations while remaining committed to sound ESG practices that underpin Crew's fundamental business tenets. Crew's common shares are listed for trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") under the symbol "CR".

For further information:

Crew Energy Inc.

Dale Shwed, CEO / John Leach, CFO

(403) 266-2088

investor@crewenergy.com

About the Investor Summit

The Investor Summit (formerly MicroCap Conference) is an exclusive, independent conference dedicated to connecting smallcap and microcap companies with qualified investors. The Q2 Investor Summit will take place virtually, featuring 80+ companies and over 300 institutional and retail investors.

To request complimentary investor registration: please visit our website at www.investorsummitgroup.com.

Contact:

Sasha Murray at sasha@investorsummitgroup.com
Mississauga, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Bee Vectoring Technologies (CSE: BEE) today announced that Ashish Malik will be attending the Q2 Virtual Investor Summit.

Event Q2 Investor Summit Date May 17-18th, 2021 Presentation May 18th at 3:30pm ET Location https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_hBMUG13YQWuwFyGI_E8OCQ

About Bee Vectoring Technologies

BVT, an agriculture technology company, is a market disruptor with a significant global market opportunity in the $240 billion crop protection and fertilizer market. BVT has pioneered a natural precision agriculture system that replaces chemical pesticides and wasteful plant protection product spray applications by delivering biological pesticide alternatives to crops using commercially grown bees. BVT's award-winning technology, precision vectoring, is completely harmless to bees and allows minute amounts of naturally-derived pesticides (called biologicals) to be delivered directly, continuously and daily throughout the bloom process, providing improved crop protection and yield results than traditional chemical pesticides - and improving the health of the soil, the microbiome and the environment. Currently, BVT has over 65 granted patents, over 35 patents pending in all major agricultural countries worldwide, and has US EPA registration of its Vectorite with CR-7 (EPA Registration No. 90641-2) for sale as a registered biological fungicide for use on the labeled crops.Additional information can be viewed at the Company's website www.beevt.com.

For further information:

Bee Vectoring Technologies

Babak Pedram

416-644-5081

info@virtusadvisory.com

About the Investor Summit

The Investor Summit (formerly MicroCap Conference) is an exclusive, independent conference dedicated to connecting smallcap and microcap companies with qualified investors. The Q2 Investor Summit will take place virtually, featuring 80+ companies and over 300 institutional and retail investors.

To request complimentary investor registration: please visit our website at www.investorsummitgroup.com.

Contact:

Sasha Murray at sasha@investorsummitgroup.com
- Deliver end-to-end IT services across applications and infrastructure

BENGALURU, India, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Infosys (NYSE: INFY), the global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting, today announced that it has been selected by Britvic, one of the leading branded soft drinks businesses in Europe, as a strategic end-to-end partner to help them deliver their strategic transformation roadmap and operations, across Applications, Cloud Infrastructure, Service Management and End User Computing.

As Britvic's strategic partner, Infosys will provide end-to-end IT services and deliver a technology-driven approach to fulfill Britvic's business goals and strategic digital transformation roadmap. Infosys will also simplify and streamline its cloud infrastructure and operations leveraging Infosys Cobalt while improving service delivery through analytics, automation and process maturity.

Ambeshwar Nath, Senior Vice President, Infosys, said, "Through robust investments, we have developed capabilities to provide best in class digital services and deliver end-to-end solutions to customers in the consumer goods industry. We are collaborating with Britvic on building new digital capabilities, driving continuous innovation and leveraging our cognitive-first approach to simplify operations further accelerating Britvic's digital transformation journey."

Talking about the collaboration, Neal Johnson, IT Director Operations & Infrastructure at Britvic, said, "Britvic's aim is to be the most dynamic, creative and admired soft drinks company in the world which means IT needs to transform the way service and operations are delivered - with Infosys we have a strategic partner to take our operations to the next level by leveraging automation and digitalisation, thereby offering a seamless digital experience for our enterprise users. This partnership will also help us innovate faster, be more agile and to transform quickly by leveraging Infosys's thought leadership as a market leader in IT services for Consumer Goods companies."

About Infosys

Infosys is a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting. We enable clients in 46 countries to navigate their digital transformation. With nearly four decades of experience in managing the systems and workings of global enterprises, we expertly steer our clients through their digital journey. We do it by enabling the enterprise with an AI-powered core that helps prioritize the execution of change. We also empower the business with agile digital at scale to deliver unprecedented levels of performance and customer delight. Our always-on learning agenda drives their continuous improvement through building and transferring digital skills, expertise, and ideas from our innovation ecosystem.

Visit www.infosys.com to see how Infosys (NYSE: INFY) can help your enterprise navigate your next.

Safe Harbor

Certain statements in this release concerning our future growth prospects, financial expectations and plans for navigating the COVID-19 impact on our employees, clients and stakeholders are forward-looking statements intended to qualify for the 'safe harbor' under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties relating to these statements include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties regarding COVID-19 and the effects of government and other measures seeking to contain its spread, risks related to an economic downturn or recession in India, the United States and other countries around the world, changes in political, business, and economic conditions, fluctuations in earnings, fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, our ability to manage growth, intense competition in IT services including those factors which may affect our cost advantage, wage increases in India, our ability to attract and retain highly skilled professionals, time and cost overruns on fixed-price, fixed-time frame contracts, client concentration, restrictions on immigration, industry segment concentration, our ability to manage our international operations, reduced demand for technology in our key focus areas, disruptions in telecommunication networks or system failures, our ability to successfully complete and integrate potential acquisitions, liability for damages on our service contracts, the success of the companies in which Infosys has made strategic investments, withdrawal or expiration of governmental fiscal incentives, political instability and regional conflicts, legal restrictions on raising capital or acquiring companies outside India, unauthorized use of our intellectual property and general economic conditions affecting our industry and the outcome of pending litigation and government investigation. Additional risks that could affect our future operating results are more fully described in our United States Securities and Exchange Commission filings including our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020. These filings are available at www.sec.gov. Infosys may, from time to time, make additional written and oral forward-looking statements, including statements contained in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and our reports to shareholders. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements that may be made from time to time by or on behalf of the Company unless it is required by law.

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/633365/Infosys_Logo.jpg
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Sun Summit Minerals Inc. (TSXV: SMN) (OTC Pink: SMREF) ("Sun Summit" or the "Company") is pleased to report initial drill results from its fully funded, 2021 exploration program on its Buck Property, central B.C. Assays from five of the 18 completed holes are reported.

Highlights

Significant high-grade gold mineralization was intersected in the Trench zone: 31.6 grams per tonne (g/t) gold over 4.0 metres, including 246 g/t gold over 0.5 metres (BK21-020). 7.36 g/t gold over 3.0 metres including 21.70 g/t gold over 1.0 metre (BK21-019). These initial results from BK20-012 step-out holes confirm the high-grade potential of this newly discovered area.



Broad zones of bulk-tonnage style gold mineralization was intersected in the Horseshoe zone : 0.78 g/t gold over 186 metres including 1.07 g/t gold over 109 metres and including 7.17 g/t gold over 5.2 metres (BK21-017). This interval represents the longest continuous zone of significant gold and silver mineralization ever drilled on the property. 0.81 g/t gold over 70.0 metres including 1.04 g/t gold over 43.0 metres (BK21-018).



Note: Intervals are downhole core lengths. True widths are unknown.

Bob Willis, Sun Summit's CEO, stated: "The 2021 program has started off with exceptional results. Our first hole in the Horseshoe zone cut a long and continuous interval of significant gold mineralization which contained a high-grade zone which clearly indicates the potential of high-grade sweeteners within bulk tonnage-style grades.

Assays from drill hole BK21-020, a 100-metre step-out from discovery hole BK20-012, in the Trench zone confirms the considerable potential of this area. The vein-hosted mineralization in this new hole yielded the highest gold grade ever drilled at Buck.

Our systematic approach to investigating the potential of the Buck property is paying off and we look forward to keeping our shareholders informed on our progress as assays are returned from the lab. The current drill phase expanded the footprint of the Trench-Horseshoe mineralized system. The limits of the system have not been reached and it remains open in all directions."

Trench zone

The three Trench zone holes (BK21-019, 020, and 022; Table 1) were designed to investigate the extent of multiple zones of high-grade gold mineralization discovered in BK20-012 (see news release dated January 5, 2021).

Table 1. Assay results - Trench zone



From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Gold (g/t) Silver (g/t) AuEQ (g/t) Trench Zone













BK21-019 59.0 73.0 14.0 0.38 5.93 0.48 and 80.0 84.0 4.0 0.27 2.86 0.31 and 131.0 154.1 23.1 1.51 3.58 1.57 inc 131.0 134.0 3.0 7.36 8.70 7.49 inc 133.0 134.0 1.0 21.70 22.20 22.04 inc 145.2 146.0 0.8 8.38 5.39 8.46 and 158.0 175.0 17.0 0.40 2.28 0.44 and 195.0 203.2 8.2 0.98 2.22 1.01 and 239.0 243.0 4.0 0.36 4.44 0.43













BK21-020 57.0 63.0 6.0 0.15 11.72 0.33 and 74.0 79.0 5.0 0.68 8.35 0.81 and 115.0 119.0 4.0 0.37 7.69 0.49 and 154.0 161.0 7.0 0.50 5.58 0.58 and 174.0 184.0 10.0 0.37 1.08 0.39 and 203.0 211.0 8.0 0.48 1.61 0.50 and 214.9 228.0 13.1 0.21 0.97 0.23 and 233.0 243.2 10.2 0.36 1.04 0.38 and 326.0 330.0 4.0 31.61 9.35 31.75 inc 326.0 327.0 1.0 125.62 34.24 126.14 inc 326.5 327.0 0.5 246.00 66.70 247.03













BK21-021 Assays Pending













BK21-022 41.0 49.0 8.0 0.34 4.84 0.42 and 84.0 91.7 7.7 0.55 7.02 0.66 and 110.3 136.0 25.8 0.44 3.93 0.50 and 147.0 182.9 35.9 0.28 2.35 0.32 and 189.0 193.2 4.2 0.59 4.92 0.67 and 247.0 255.7 8.7 1.04 6.18 1.14 and 284.5 301.0 16.5 0.23 3.30 0.28

AuEQ (gold equivalent) based on a 65:1 silver to gold (Ag:Au) ratio. Calculations are uncut and length-weighted using a 0.15 g/t gold cutoff with less than five continuous metres of internal dilution. Intervals are downhole core lengths. True widths are unknown.

BK21-020 was drilled to the south and cut across the west-dipping BK20-012 and intersected (intervals are not true widths) 31.75 g/t AuEQ (gold equivalent; 31.6 g/t gold, 9.4 g/t silver) over 4.0 metres including 247 g/t AuEQ (246 g/t gold, 66.7 g/t silver) over 0.5 metres approximately 100 metres to the southeast of the 49.6 g/t gold over 1.5 metre interval in BK20-012 (Figures 1 and 3; see news release dated January 5, 2021). Here, local quartz + carbonate + sulfide vein-hosted gold mineralization is associated with a broad zone of quartz + sericite alteration peripheral to quartz + feldspar porphyritic dykes. Similarly, BK21-019 cut numerous zones of gold mineralization highlighted by 1.57 g/t AuEQ (1.51 g/t gold, 3.58 g/t silver) over 23.1 metres including 22.04 g/t AuEQ (21.70 g/t gold, 22.20 g/t silver) over 1.0 metre at 133 metres downhole. The higher-grade interval in BK21-019 was cut approximately 25 metres north of the 23.05 g/t gold over 3.0 metre interval in BK20-012 (see news release dated January 5, 2021). Results from all three holes demonstrate the high-grade potential of this new target area. Tighter-spaced drilling with oriented core is warranted to better define structural orientations of high-grade veins. Assays are pending from nine additional holes in the Trench zone.

Horseshoe zone

The two Horseshoe zone holes (BK21-017 and 018; Table 2) were designed to test the strike-extent of bulk-tonnage, sulfide-cemented breccia-hosted gold mineralization.

Table 2. Assay results - Horseshoe zone



From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Gold (g/t) Silver (g/t) AuEQ (g/t) Horseshoe Zone













BK21-017 11.0 55.3 44.3 0.47 6.95 0.57 and 66.0 252.0 186.0 0.78 4.91 0.85 inc 129.0 238.0 109.0 1.07 5.48 1.15 inc 129.0 174.0 45.0 1.64 7.69 1.76 inc 134.0 139.2 5.2 7.17 18.23 7.45 Inc 137.5 138.1 0.6 17.3 27.50 17.7 and 275.0 293.0 18.0 0.20 1.52 0.22 and 361.0 369.0 8.0 0.20 3.62 0.25













BK21-018 147.0 160.2 13.2 1.13 2.35 1.17 inc 151.0 153.0 2.0 5.27 3.38 5.32 and 166.0 236.0 70.0 0.81 2.52 0.85 inc 181.0 224.0 43.0 1.04 2.11 1.07 inc 186.0 190.0 4.0 3.93 1.48 3.95

AuEQ (gold equivalent) based on a 65:1 silver to gold (Ag:Au) ratio. Calculations are uncut and length-weighted using a 0.15 g/t gold cutoff with less than five continuous metres of internal dilution. Intervals are downhole core lengths. True widths are unknown.

BK21-017 was collared on the same pad as BK20-012 but drilled in an opposite direction to the east (Figure 1). The hole returned 1.15 g/t AuEQ (1.07 g/t gold, 5.48 g/t silver) over 109 metres associated with a dacite matrix-rich and local sulfide + quartz + carbonate-cemented hydrothermal breccia. BK21-018 was collared 65 metres south of BK21-017 and drilled to the north under BK21-017. The hole returned 0.85 g/t AuEQ (0.81 g/t gold, 2.52 g/t silver) over 70.0 metres including 1.07 g/t AuEQ (1.04 g/t gold, 2.11 g/t silver) over 43 metres associated with sphalerite-rich sulfide-cemented breccias. Together, both holes build on results from 2020 (e.g., BK20-006, 007, 009 and top of 012) and further expand the zone of near-surface, bulk-tonnage style gold mineralization to the east (Figures 1 and 2). All phases of breccias contain gold and silver mineralization associated with clotted, disseminated and breccia-hosted sphalerite (zinc sulfide) and pyrite. Assays are pending from two additional holes in the Horseshoe zone.







Figure 1. Map showing drill hole locations

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Figure 2. A-A' Cross section from the Trench to Horseshoe zones showing selected highlights

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Figure 3. B-B' Cross section in the Trench Zone showing selected highlights

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Table 3. Drill collar locations

Hole ID UTM E* UTM N* Elevation (m) EOH (m) Azimuth Dip BK21-017 654564 6019732 909 384 105 -55 BK21-018 654552 6019670 919 330 40 -75 BK21-019 654406 6019805 884 288 170 -70 BK21-020 654406 6019805 884 354 175 -60 BK21-022 654396 6019798 898 303 240 -50

Notes: * NAD 83 Zone 9N

Quality Assurance and Quality Control

All sample assay results have been monitored through the Company's quality assurance / quality control (QA/QC) program. Drill core was sawn in half at Sun Summit's core logging and processing facility in Houston, B.C. Half the core was sampled and shipped in sealed and secure bags to the ALS Global preparation facilities in Yellowknife, N.T. Samples were prepared using standard preparation procedures. Following sample preparation, the pulps were sent to the ALS Global analytical laboratory in North Vancouver, B.C., for analysis.

Core samples were analyzed for 48 elements by ICP-MS on a 0.25 gram sample using a four acid digestion (method ME-MS61L). Gold was analyzed by fire assay on a 30 gram sample with an AAS finish (method Au-AA23). Over limit gold (>10 ppm) was re-analyzed by fire assay using a gravimetric finish on a 30 gram sample. Over limit silver (>100 ppm) was re-analyzed using a four acid digestion and ICP-AES finish. Over limit zinc (> 10,000 ppm) was re-analysed using a four acid digestion and ICP-AES finish. ALS Global is registered to ISO / IEC 17025:2017 accreditations for laboratory procedures.

In addition to ALS Global laboratory QA/QC protocols, Sun Summit implements an internal QA/QC program that includes the insertion of duplicates, standards and blanks into the sample stream.

National Instrument 43-101 Disclosure

This news release has been approved by Sun Summit's CEO, Robert D. Willis, P. Eng. a "Qualified Person" as defined in National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects of the Canadian Securities Administrators. He has also verified the data disclosed, including sampling, analytical and test data, underlying the technical information in this news release.

Community Engagement

Sun Summit is working to engage with First Nations whose territory includes the Buck Property, to discuss their interests and identify contract and work opportunities, as well as opportunities to support community initiatives. We look forward to continuing to work with local and regional First Nations as the project continues.

Buck Property

The recently expanded 33,000-hectare property, approximately 12 kilometres south of Houston, British Columbia, has excellent nearby infrastructure and allows for year-round road-accessible exploration.

Health and Safety

The Company's exploration programs are being carried out in full compliance with federal, provincial, and municipal guidelines established in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Sun Summit has a rigorous infection prevention and control protocol in place to protect the health of employees and contractors, as well as surrounding communities in which the Company works.

About Sun Summit

Sun Summit Minerals is an exploration company focused on expanding its epithermal gold discovery at their flagship Buck Project located in north-central British Columbia.

The Company is exploring multiple high priority gold and silver targets through methodical, well funded exploration campaigns with year round drilling access. The property has high-grade and bulk-tonnage gold and silver potential and is located in a mining-established region that includes many former operating mines and current exploration projects.

Sun Summit is committed to environmental and social responsibility with a focus on responsible development to generate positive outcomes for all stakeholders.

Further details are available at www.sunsummitminerals.com

Figures

Figure 1:

https://sunsummitminerals.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Buck_Fig1_Drilling_May11_NR-Au-scaled.jpg

Figure 2:

https://sunsummitminerals.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Buck_Fig2_EW_Section_May11_NR-Au-scaled.jpg

Figure 3:

https://sunsummitminerals.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Buck_Fig3_NS_Section_May11_NR-scaled.jpg

For further information, contact:

Sharyn Alexander, M.Sc.

VP Technical Services

Nancy Curry

Corporate Communications

info@sunsummitminerals.com

Tel. 778-588-9606

Forward Looking Information

Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts may be forward-looking statements, which involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause such differences, without limiting the generality of the following, include: risks inherent in exploration activities; volatility and sensitivity to market prices; volatility and sensitivity to capital market fluctuations; the impact of exploration competition; the ability to raise funds through private or public equity financings; environmental and safety risks including increased regulatory burdens; unexpected geological or hydrological conditions; changes in government regulations and policies, including trade laws and policies; failure to obtain necessary permits and approvals from government authorities; weather and other natural phenomena; and other exploration, development, operating, financial market and regulatory risks. Except as required by applicable securities laws and regulation, Sun Summit Minerals Corp. disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83531
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Kodiak Copper Corp. (TSXV: KDK) (the "Company" or "Kodiak") provides an update on its fully funded drill program at its 100% owned MPD copper-gold porphyry project ("MPD") in Southern British Columbia.

Plans for 2021 include up to 30,000 metres of drilling at several priority target areas, as well as further geotechnical studies, prospecting and geophysical, geochemical and environmental surveying.

Kodiak recommenced drilling at MPD in March (see news release dated March 15, 2021) and the program is progressing well and remains on schedule. Highlights so far include:

New drilling at the Gate Zone in 2021 has intersected prospective, sulphide-bearing altered porphyritic host rock at least another 125 metres south, and 75 metres north of last year's drilling (see Figure 1).

Step-out drilling on the Gate Zone will continue to systematically evaluate the related one kilometre long copper-in-soil anomaly, which also lies central to a regional magnetic low spanning three kilometres.

In 2021, six holes totalling 3,711 metres have been completed, as of May 10. The program is currently operating with one drill rig, with plans to add a second rig in Q2.

Core samples are being shipped to ALS Canada Ltd. in North Vancouver, British Columbia for preparation and final analysis. Assay results from the drilling will start being reported from late Q2 or Q3.

Drilling since March has focused on testing the northern and southern extents of the Gate Zone from previously approved sites. The Company recently received an amendment to its current multi-year area-based exploration permit that authorizes new drill sites and expanded exploration activity across the MPD property to 2026.

In 2020, significant copper-gold mineralization at Gate was intersected across 350 metres in width (east-west), over 100 metres in length (north-south) and to a depth 800 metres, being open in all directions.

High-priority targets like Dillard and Dillard East exhibit similar copper-in-soil anomalies, geophysical responses and encouraging historic drilling like the Gate Zone, indicating considerable potential for more copper-gold porphyry centres on the MPD property.

On April 19, 2021 Kodiak announced the acquisition of the contiguous Axe claims. As part of the 2021 program, Kodiak will visit the property and review historic core, with a goal toward generating and permitting near-term "Gate Zone-style" drill targets at Axe.

Claudia Tornquist, President and CEO of Kodiak, said, "It is a truly exciting time for Kodiak as we are following up on our transformative Gate Zone discovery with a fully funded and permitted, significantly larger drill program of up to 30,000 metres at the MPD project. We are pleased with the progress of the program to date and are looking forward to new results from expanded drilling at the Gate Zone. The pace of our drill program will accelerate as the year progresses with the addition of further drills and the testing of other target areas such as Dillard. Our shareholders can expect a steady flow of drill results throughout the remainder of 2021."





Figure 1: Plan map of the Gate Zone showing drill traces of 2021 to date (yellow). Background data is contoured historic copper-in-soil data that shows a 300 metre wide copper anomaly related to and extending over 1 kilometre south from the Gate Zone.

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Figure 2: 2021 Drilling at Gate Zone, MPD and Core Logging Facility, Merritt BC

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Figure 3: 2021 Drilling at Gate Zone, MPD and Core Logging Facility, Merritt BC

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MPD is a large, consolidated land package (14,716 hectares with the recent Axe acquisition) located near several operating mines in the southern Quesnel Terrane, British Columbia's primary copper-gold producing belt. The project is located midway between the towns of Merritt and Princeton, with year-round accessibility and excellent infrastructure nearby.

Jeff Ward, P.Geo, Vice President Exploration and the Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this release. Kodiak believes historic results referenced herein to be from reliable sources using industry standards at the time. However, the Company has not independently verified, or cannot guarantee, the accuracy of this historic information.

For further information please contact Mr. Knox Henderson, Investor Relations, at +1 604 646 8362 or khenderson@kodiakcoppercorp.com.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Kodiak Copper Corp.

Claudia Tornquist

President & CEO

About Kodiak Copper Corp.

Kodiak is focused on its 100% owned copper porphyry projects in Canada and the USA. The Company's most advanced asset is the MPD copper-gold porphyry project in the prolific Quesnel Trough in south-central British Columbia, Canada, where the Company made a discovery of high-grade mineralization within a wide mineralized envelope in 2020. Kodiak also holds the Mohave copper-molybdenum-silver porphyry project in Arizona, USA, near the world-class Bagdad mine. Kodiak's porphyry projects have both been historically drilled and present known mineral discoveries with the potential to hold large-scale deposits.

Kodiak's founder and Chairman is Chris Taylor who is well-known for his gold discovery success with Great Bear Resources. Kodiak is also part of Discovery Group led by John Robins, one of the most successful mining entrepreneurs in Canada.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statement (Safe Harbor Statement): This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The use of any of the words "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "expect", "estimate", "objective", "may", "will", "project", "should", "predict", "potential" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking statements concerning the Company's exploration plans. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements because the Company cannot give any assurance that they will prove correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, they involve inherent assumptions, risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of assumptions, factors and risks. These assumptions and risks include, but are not limited to, assumptions and risks associated with conditions in the equity financing markets, and assumptions and risks regarding receipt of regulatory and shareholder approvals.

Management has provided the above summary of risks and assumptions related to forward-looking statements in this press release in order to provide readers with a more comprehensive perspective on the Company's future operations. The Company's actual results, performance or achievement could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements and, accordingly, no assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so, what benefits the Company will derive from them. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release, and, other than as required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83554
LAS VEGAS, NV / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (OTCQB:CLSH) (CSE:CLSH), the 'Company' or 'CLS', a diversified cannabis company operating as Cannabis Life Sciences, today announced the financial and operational results for its Nevada wholly owned subsidiaries for the month of April 2021 with net revenues of $2.16M and a gross margin of 48%. These results represent a 128.5% year-over-year increase in revenue and 4.3% increase in gross margin. Both wholesale and retail divisions achieved record monthly revenue. The Company also finalized its plans to expand its wholesale brand, City Trees, into New Mexico through a collaborative venture with Herbal Edibles Inc.

CLS Nevada April 2021 Financial and Operational Highlights

Retail subsidiary, Oasis Cannabis, achieved a 110.2% increase in net revenue year-over-year, alongside a 131.9% increase in the number of transactions processed. Gross margin for the dispensary was 48.1%.

Oasis Cannabis achieved its highest single-day net revenue on 4/20 at $96,791.

Branded wholesale division, City Trees, recorded a 188.7% increase in year-over-year net revenue, achieving a second record month in a row, and a 47.8% gross margin.

The Company finalized its plans to bring City Trees products to New Mexico through a collaborative partnership with Albuquerque-based Herbal Edibles Inc. This partnership marks the Company's first market entry outside of Nevada. The Company also plans to bring Herbal Edibles' gourmet, organic, non-GMO edible products to Nevada later in 2021.

The Company's Nevada retail and wholesale subsidiaries both achieved their highest revenue month to date in April 2021 for the second month in a row. At the Company's dispensary, Oasis Cannabis, net revenue increased by more than 110% year over year, driven by a 131.9% increase in the number of transactions processed. The 4/20 cannabis "holiday" also marked the single highest revenue day for the dispensary, achieving $96,791 in net revenue at a 51.9% gross margin with over 1100 transactions. "Between increasing vaccination rates among locals, tourists making their return, and our team operating at their best, we're seeing Oasis perform at its highest level ever." noted general manager Lissa Lawatsch.

The Company's manufacturing and wholesale division, City Trees, also achieved record revenue in the month of April 2021, with its best performance in the company's history. The brand sold and shipped $640,390 in products - a 188.7% increase in revenue year-over-year, and a 27.5% increase over the previous month. This result was achieved in part by increasingly efficient production standards that allowed the brand to ship over 12,900 grams of bulk THC distillate and 39,000 units of its finished products in the month of April. The brand continues to grow in popularity across Nevada, seeing rapid sell-through of its products at its dispensary partners. Driven by these successes, the Company finalized its arrangements with Herbal Edibles Inc. in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and its products will be released into the market in May 2021, starting with three of its award-winning tinctures. "The New Mexico cannabis market is primed to grow exponentially in the coming year," noted Company President & COO Andrew Glashow. "We believe the state's well-established medical program will bloom into a thriving adult-use market as well, and we're excited to have products of our outstanding caliber made available to the good people there." The Company expects City Trees to continue growing its foothold in the region through innovative product development and uniquely high quality and consistency.

About CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (CLSH) is a diversified cannabis company that acts as an integrated cannabis producer and retailer through its Oasis Cannabis subsidiaries in Nevada and plans to expand to other states. CLS stands for "Cannabis Life Sciences," in recognition of the Company's patented proprietary method of extracting various cannabinoids from the marijuana plant and converting them into products with a higher level of quality and consistency. The Company's business model includes licensing operations, processing operations, processing facilities, sale of products, brand creation and consulting services. https://www.clsholdingsinc.com/

Twitter: @CLSHoldingsUSA

Oasis Cannabis has operated a cannabis dispensary in the Las Vegas market since dispensaries first opened in Nevada in 2015 and has been recognized as one of the top marijuana retailers in the state. Its location within walking distance to the Las Vegas Strip and Downtown Las Vegas in combination with its delivery service to residents allows it to efficiently serve both locals and tourists in the Las Vegas area. In February 2019, it was named "Best Dispensary for Pot Pros" by Desert Companion Magazine. In August 2017, the company commenced wholesale offerings of cannabis in Nevada with the launch of its City Trees brand of cannabis concentrates and cannabis-infused products. http://oasiscannabis.com

Founded in 2017, City Trees is a Nevada-based cannabis cultivation, production and distribution company. Offering a wide variety of products with consistent results, City Trees products are available in numerous dispensaries throughout the state of Nevada. https://citytrees.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and 'forward-looking statements' as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (collectively, the 'forward-looking statements'). These statements relate to, among other things, the impact of the COVID-19 virus on our business, the results of our initiatives to retain our employees and strengthen our relationships with our customers and community during the pandemic, the effect of our initiatives to expand market share and achieve growth during and following the pandemic, results of operations and financial performance, anticipated future events, and the effectiveness of our business practices during the pandemic. The continued spread of COVID-19 could have, and in some cases already has had, an adverse impact on our business, operations and financial results, including through disruptions in our cultivation and processing activities, supply chains and sales channels, and retail dispensary operations as well as a deterioration of general economic conditions including a possible national or global recession. Due to the uncertainties associated with the continued spread of COVID-19 and the timing of vaccinations, it is not possible to estimate its impact on our business, operations or financial results; however, the impact could be material. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as 'may,' 'might,' 'will,' 'should,' 'intends,' 'expects,' 'plans,' 'goals,' 'projects,' 'anticipates,' 'believes,' 'estimates,' 'predicts,' 'potential,' or 'continue' or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are only predictions, are uncertain and involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, levels of activity or performance to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity or performance expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. We cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity or performance. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date that they were made. These cautionary statements should be considered together with any written or oral forward-looking statements that we may issue in the future. Except as required by applicable law, we do not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to reflect actual results, later events or circumstances or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. See CLS Holdings USA filings with the SEC and on its SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com for additional details.

Contact Information:

Corporate:

Chairman and CEO

Jeff Binder

President and COO

Andrew Glashow

888-438-9132

Investor Relations:

investors@clsholdingsinc.com

SOURCE: CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646286/CLS-Holdings-USA-Inc-Achieves-Monumental-April-Results-with-Record-420-and-Wholesale-Wins
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / AurCrest Gold Inc. ("AurCrest" or the "Company") (TSXV:AGO) is pleased to announce that drilling has commenced on the Company's 100%-owned Ranger Lake Gold Property (the "Property") in the Red Lake Mining District.

Mr. Christopher Angeconeb, President & CEO, states, "The Company would like to thank all the small towns, First Nations, and cities of Northern Ontario for their support for the mineral exploration and mining industry, and in particular the communities of the Red Lake Mining District, as we begin drilling on the Ranger Lake gold property."

AurCrest utilized two separate technologies to identify drill targets on the Property, including the CARDS artificial intelligence system developed by Windfall Geotek Inc. and subsequently, Spatiotemporal Geochemical Hydrocarbon ("SGH") analysis by Activation Laboratories Inc. ("ActLabs"). The initial three-hole 600 m drill program has been designed to test three significant targets identified by the Company's field program.

AurCrest is a leader in the First Nations advancement into shared participation and inclusion in the regional mining opportunities and counts as its board of directors and management, past and present, many indigenous business and cultural leaders. AurCrest is proud to play a leading role in the gold exploration of Northwestern Ontario, especially in the Birch-Uchi Greenstone Belt and the Red Lake mining district, as it forges new business relationships between Canada's founding cultures.

About AurCrest Gold Inc.

AurCrest is a mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of gold properties. AurCrest has a portfolio of properties in Ontario, which include the Richardson Lake, Ranger Lake, and Bridget Lake gold properties.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

AurCrest Gold Inc.

Christopher Angeconeb

President and C.E.O

(807) 737-5353

christopherangeconeb@gmail.com

Ian Brodie-Brown

Director of Business Development

(416) 844-9969

ianbrodiebrown@gmail.com

Forward Looking Statement:

Some of the statements contained herein may be forward-looking statements which involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization and resources, exploration results, and future plans and objectives of the Company are forward looking statements that involve various risks. The following are important factors that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements: changes in the world wide price of mineral commodities, general market conditions, risks inherent in mineral exploration, risks associated with development, construction and mining operations, the uncertainty of future profitability and the uncertainty of access to additional capital. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events may differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. AurCrest undertakes no obligation to update such forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: AurCrest Gold Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646349/Aurcrest-Gold-Commences-Drilling-at-Ranger-Lake-Property
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / BTU METALS CORP. ("BTU" or the "Company") (TSX:V:BTU)(OTC PINK:BTUMF) today announces the results of recently completed geophysical surveys and re-interpretation of various previously completed geophysical surveys as they relate to last year's TNT copper silver gold discovery in the Dixie Lake area near Red Lake, Ontario.

Highlights

TNT target - line 500S targets to be drilled immediately - two moderately to strongly conductive targets to be tested this month.

Both targets dip to the east and have conductivity values in the range of typical sulphide rich base metal mineralization.

The targets are interpreted to be more conductive than other areas of chalcopyrite pyrite mineralization intersected farther north on the TNT target.

Line 500S targets were identified during a review and re-interpretation of all geological and geophysical data in the TNT area.

Information from historic airborne electromagnetic data, recently completed induced polarization surveys ("IP") and a Crone electromagnetic survey ("PEM") has resulted in the identification of priority targets on the Pakwash North property, one of which is interpreted to be laterally extensive and strongly mineralized.

Ten drill holes totalling 2,873 metres have been completed in the northeast part of the property targeting areas of potential gold mineralization. Drill core from these holes is currently being logged, cut and sampled. One highlight is a ~40m altered interval that contains up to 5% intermittent pyrite arsenopyrite mineralization along with quartz veining.

Paul Wood, BTU CEO, said, "The conclusion of our geochemical and geophysical review of the TNT mineralization over the course of the winter has revealed several compelling targets on both the southeastern part of the immediate TNT area as well as on the recently optioned BTU Pakwash North property. Specifically, we have identified and refined the location of a pair of conductive targets near the southern limit of our database for the TNT area. We will be drill testing those targets this month. In addition to those targets and based on the interpretation that the mineralization we discovered at TNT is largely VMS footwall style mineralization in an east facing succession, we completed winter geophysical surveys that successfully identified new targets on the Pakwash North property that also warrant drill testing.

On the gold side, since re-starting our drill program in the general northeast corner of the Dixie Halo property, where we share a long property boundary with Great Bear not too far from their interpreted location of the extension of the LP Fault structure, we have completed 10 drill holes. Alteration and quartz veining has been observed in all holes and pyrite arsenopyrite mineralization has been found in two areas 800m apart along the same structure - some of these samples are already in the lab and we expect the remaining samples to be shipped to the lab in short order."

Geological, geochemical, and geophysical studies and evaluations by geological consultant Harold Gibson, Professor of Volcanology and Ore Deposits at Laurentian University, Company personnel, as well as geophysical consultant Alan King have now been largely completed for the TNT and Pakwash North area. The studies indicate that the TNT area mineralization clearly has direct copper-silver-gold correlation, similar to some known high temperature base metal mineralization and the studies indicate the mineralization is associated with strong alteration including some areas with sodium depletion and strong potassium enrichment rather typical of volcanogenic massive sulphide mineralization ("VMS") systems. Work by the group has identified several targets with the potential to be base metal bearing and that warrant drill testing.

Winter Induced Polarization ("IP") geophysical survey work on Pakwash Lake identified a significant chargeability target and a coincident resistivity low feature that extend for at least 600 metres and remain open to the north. Follow-up PEM survey work on the target confirmed the interpretation from the IP survey. Such features are often an indication of the presence of accumulations of sulphide minerals. Additionally, the PEM survey identified a secondary weaker target just to the west of the strong new target. There is no geological information available within 1 km of the new targets.

Additional information regarding the new surveys, targets and planned drilling as well as a technical commentary will be available on the Company's website at: www.btumetals.com/ in the coming days.

Additional information regarding the work of Harold Gibson and Alan King is available as a supplement on the Company's website at: www.btumetals.com/TNTstudy

Red Lake Activities

The Red Lake mining area is extremely busy with the highlights being the purchase of the Newmont Mining assets in the camp by Evolution Mining, their recent offer to purchase Battle North Gold Corporation, the progression of several local properties toward commercial production, as well as the establishment of the gold discoveries of Great Bear as significant new areas and styles of gold mineralization that have the potential to rewrite the geology of this high-grade gold camp that has already produced more than 28 million ounces of gold. The area where Great Bear has been busy outlining strong gold mineralization on the Dixie property is not far from the BTU Dixie Halo property in an area that was historically under-explored and poorly understood largely due to the extensive overburden cover. As exploration by Great Bear and others progresses in the area, and the geology as well as controls on gold mineralization are better understood, new gold discoveries will almost certainly be outlined. Great Bear is extremely well funded for its ongoing exploration efforts. Great Bear continues to define gold mineralization along the LP Fault as they prepare for upcoming resource evaluation work which clearly makes the Dixie area a focus for gold exploration in Ontario. BTU is the largest landholder in the immediate area of the Great Bear discoveries.

COVID-19

The Company's exploration work at its Red Lake, Ontario projects remains largely on schedule with no major disruption due to the COVID-19 government guidelines. The Company continues to monitor this situation, continues to be careful to conduct all work in compliance with COVID-19 guidelines and will adjust its activities and timelines as deemed appropriate.

Bruce Durham, P. Geo., a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 has reviewed and approved the technical information in this press release.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

"Paul Wood"

Paul Wood, CEO, Director

pwood@btumetals.com

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Andreas Curkovic, Investor Relations

Telephone 1-416-577-9927

BTU Metals Corp.

Telephone: 1-604-683-3995

Toll Free: 1-888-945-4770

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS: This news release contains forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or future performance and reflect management's current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements reflect management's current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and using information currently available to the Company. Investors are cautioned that these forward-looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, and they are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to differ materially from those expected. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and, except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. All forward-looking statements made in this press release are qualified by these cautionary statements and by those made in our filings with SEDAR in Canada (available at WWW.SEDAR.COM).

SOURCE: BTU Metals Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646363/BTU-Defines-New-Base-Metal-Drill-Targets-East-and-South-of-the-TNT-Copper-Silver-Gold-Discovery-and-Provides-Drilling-Update
Following Brexit, British tourists are now eligible for Tax Free Shopping in the EU and as a result are expected to account for 1.1billion of Tax Free Shopping sales in European stores

In parallel, following the abolition of the UK's Tax Free Shopping scheme in January, international shoppers who used to shop Tax Free in the UK are expected to reallocate at least 1.5billion of their shopping budget to alternative destinations such as France and Italy for their next shopping trip

In its latest quarterly 'Observatory' report, Global Blue (NYSE:GB) has examined the potential impact of recent changes to Tax Free Shopping legislation in the UK on international shopper behaviour in Europe. The report includes findings of surveys amongst international shoppers1 and UK travellers2

With the gradual reopening of UK borders and their new eligibility to shop Tax Free in the EU, UK residents represent a new opportunity for European retailers

With the reopening of the UK borders planned after 17th May 2021, UK tourists are eager to return to travel and spending in Europe. 65% of them intend to travel abroad this year. Affluent tourists3 are the most likely to start travelling again soon, with 35% planning to travel during this summer's holidays, versus 25% on average.

For summer 2021, their preferred destinations are influenced by sanitary conditions in relation to Covid-19, and are expected4 to be:

Spain (30%), 12pt vs 2019

Greece (11%), 7pt vs 2019

Italy (9%), 4pt vs 2019

Portugal (9%), +5pt vs 2019

France (6%), -5pt vs 2019

However, preferred destinations are likely to evolve now that the UK Government's 'red, amber and green lists' are now official. Portugal is on the green list, while Spain, Greece, Italy and France remain on the amber one.

As of 1st January 2021, UK tourists are no longer considered as residents of the EU and are therefore now eligible for Tax Free Shopping in European stores. With British tourists taking around 70 million trips to Europe in 2019 and representing a total spend of around 40Bn, this market offers a strong opportunity for European retailers. British residents are expected to spend approximatively 1.1billion5 in sales-in-store in Europe per year once post-pandemic activity has fully resumed.

Currently, only 45% of those surveyed are already aware of Tax Free Shopping, with the remaining 55% needing to be informed of their new eligibility in European stores. Overall, 60% said they are more likely to spend in shops at destination if they can claim back the VAT. They are most likely to spend on clothes and accessories (70%), wine and alcohol (45%) and perfume and cosmetics (45%).

Continental European shopping destinations will attract more international shoppers following the abolition of the Tax Free Shopping scheme in the UK

A survey of 45,000 international shoppers by Global Blue showed that following the UK's abolition of Tax Free Shopping on 1st January 2021, 90% of those who have shopped Tax Free in the UK over the last two years intend to choose an alternative destination for their next shopping trip, despite a large number of them still considering visiting the UK. Indeed, international shoppers visit 2.6 countries on average when coming to Europe and therefore have a choice of where to shop.

Overall, international shoppers are expected to reallocate at least 1.5billion of their shopping budget to alternative destinations: France is expected to attract the largest portion of these shoppers (40%), followed by Italy (30%), Germany (10%) and Spain (10%).

Mathieu Grac, VP Intelligence at Global Blue comment: "The new rules resulting from Brexit and the abolition of the Tax Free Shopping scheme in the UK have created a large opportunity for EU retailers to capture more business from international shoppers in the coming years. To realise this potential, it is important for the Europe's retailers to understand the profiles of the new shoppers that will be coming into their stores and ensure that they can cater to their specific set of expectations."

ABOUT GLOBAL BLUE

For more information: globalblue.com/corporate

1 Based on a survey at the end of 2020 of ~45,000 international shoppers who have shopped in the UK since Sept. 2018

2 Survey carried out in April 2021. 500+ answers collected from external panel of UK travellers and Global Blue's database of UK shoppers

3 Affluent tourists are defined as those with a shopping budget of more than 1,000

4 Based on traveller assumption in April 2021

5 Global Blue and consulting firm estimates

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005702/en/

Contacts:

MEDIA CONTACTS

Domitille Pinta VP Group Communication

Mob: 00 33 6 11 07 52 90 Mail: dpinta@globalblue.com

Alix Bonnet PR Brand Manager

Mob: 00 33 6 23 73 94 51 Mail: abonnet@globalblue.com
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - ArcPacific Resources Corp. (TSXV: ACP) ("ACP" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that its ongoing drilling program at the Rickard gold project (the "Property") near Timmins, Ontario continues to intersect multiple zones of quartz-carbonate veining occurring over (up to) a 90 metre wide section in hole 11 (ACP-R-21-011). The Company has identified additional sulphide minerals including molybdenite occurring in stylolitic bands with graphite and possible tellurides locally associated with smoky to dark quartz similar-to one mineralization style seen at the Macassa mine approximately 70 kilometres to the south (see figures 1, 3 and 4). Additionally hole 12 (ACP-R-2012) cut a section of massive sulphides (see figure 2) individually up to 0.45 metres wide within a wider quartz-carbonate vein and bordered by zones of intense albite-sericite-silica alteration.

Highlights

All drill holes cut a wide interval (up to 90 meters overall in hole 11) containing zones of quartz carbonate veining with strong albite-sericite-silica alteration halos.

Stylolite bands containing molybdenum with possible graphite and local tellurides, present in variable amounts and related to smoky quartz and locally chalcopyrite.

Mineral assemblages observed in veining at the Rickard appears similar-to the gold bearing assemblage at the Macassa Mine operated by Kirkland Lake Gold approximately 70 kilometers to the south.

Phase one drilling is currently underway is planned to complete 15 or more drill holes.

Adrian Smith CEO of ACP comments, "Drilling continues to demonstrate the robust nature of the mineralizing system present on the Property, exemplified by strong alteration halos surrounding veins which have now shown to contain significant amounts of massive and semi massive to disseminated sulphide and other more discrete minerals. As we continue to unveil drill core, we continue to learn more about the unique structural setting at the Property. This project presents an excellent opportunity in a prolific world-renowned gold belt, within an area that has been significantly underexplored."





Figure 1: Hole 9 (ACP-R-21009) 103.09 to 103.28 metres showing smoky quartz vein section within larger quartz carbonate vein interval with abundant sulphide content and strongly altered clasts.



To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6963/83561_e6431580f4ec9b65_001full.jpg

Twelve holes have now been completed at the Property; holes 9 through 12 (ACP-R-21009 - ACP-R-21012) have continued to cut wide intervals of veining in every drill hole with variable amounts of sulphide and other minerals concentrated within strong alteration halos and quartz-carbonate veins. Drill holes 9, 10 and 11 were drilled in a vertical fan pattern from the same pad at variable dips of 60 degrees, 75 degrees, and 85 degrees respectively. Drill hole 12 was collared from the furthest east pad to date which is a 27-metre step-out from the aforementioned pad and drilled at 45 degree dip.





Figure 2: Hole 12 (ACP-R-210012) 60.89 metres - 61.25 metres showing partial section of a massive sulphide intersection contained within the center of a larger quartz-carbonate vein.



To view an enhanced version of Figure 2, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6963/83561_e6431580f4ec9b65_002full.jpg

Phase one drilling is focusing on the Rickard main zone, which is proximal to a historic underground gold mine. The ongoing drilling program continues to successfully show continuity of strong albite-sericite-silica-pyrite alteration around quartz-carbonate veining laterally and vertically stepping away from the historic underground workings. The program was designed to identify mineralization within the veins and determine any secondary control on distribution of the mineralization within the veins themselves. Initial visual indications suggest there is a spatial variation of mineralization possibly representing a chimney structure or multiple shoots type features.





Figure 3: ACP-R-21009 - Quartz-carb veins with Stylolitic band showing molybdenite, with possibly graphite and telluride minerals, similar-to those seen in the Macassa Mine 70km to the south.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 3, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6963/83561_e6431580f4ec9b65_003full.jpg

Initial results are anticipated to be released as they become available within the coming month and will enable the Company to plan for a potential ramped up phase two program. Results from the phase one program will be incorporated into the Company's newly developed 3D project model.

More information regarding the ongoing drilling program will be released as it becomes available, including more detailed maps, cross-sections and assays. Additional pictures of the core have also been uploaded to the Company's website on the Rickard Gold Project page.





Figure 4: Hole 11 (ACP-R-21011) 98.89 metres - 99.10 metres showing milky to smoky quartz-carb veins with stylolitic bands of molybdenite, possible graphite with local tellurides, and disseminated to blebby pyrite.



To view an enhanced version of Figure 4, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6963/83561_e6431580f4ec9b65_004full.jpg

The Property covers a prospective 5,656 hectares of the Abitibi Greenstone Belt located approximately 70 kilometres from the town of Timmins in the Timmins Gold Camp which has produced over 80 million ounces of gold over the last 100 years. The Property is road accessible and sits within 25 to 60 kilometers of six currently producing gold mines and eight previous producers. Large areas of the Property remain untested and under cover.

Disclosure

Apparent widths of veins intersected are estimated to be 90% of true widths in holes ACP-R-21012, 80% in hole ACP-R-21009 and ACP-R-21010, and 70% in hole ACP-R-21011.

Adrian Smith, P.Geo., is a QP as defined by National Instrument 43-101 for the above-mentioned project. The QP is a member in good standing of the Professional Geoscientists Ontario (PGO) and is a registered Professional Geoscientist (P.Geo.). Mr. Smith has reviewed and approved the technical information disclosed above.

About ArcPacific Resources Corp.

ArcPacific Resources Corp. (TSXV: ACP) is a Canadian based exploration company expanding the exploration initiative at multiple historic past producing gold and silver mines in the Timmins Gold Camp, Ontario, and in the Nicola Mining Division in Southern British Columbia. The Company is focused on creating shareholder value through new discoveries and strategic development of its mineral properties. For further information, please visit http://www.arcpacific.ca.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

/S "Adrian Smith"

CEO and Director

The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and ArcPacific Resources Corp. undertakes no obligations to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For further information, please contact us at info@arcpacific.ca or 1.778.331.3816.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83561
Ottawa, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - C-COM Satellite Systems Inc. (TSXV: CMI) (OTCQB: CYSNF), a leading global provider of commercial grade mobile auto-deploying satellite antenna systems, announced today that it has successfully tested its electronically steerable phased array antenna over the Telesat Anik F3 satellite.





4x4 Modules

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/5445/83468_da07b918b47468f4_004full.jpg

"We are excited to have reached this critical milestone in our development of a fully electronically steerable Ka-band, Phased Array, Mobile Satellite Antenna," said Bilal Awada, CTO of C-COM Satellite Systems Inc. "The 1024-element prototype antenna has performed better than expected. We were able to stream video, surf the net, perform speed tests and conduct an uninterrupted video conference over Webex," added Awada.

"Measured over-the-air results have demonstrated the high performance of the compact, scalable antenna modules and validated our simulation model of the architecture for larger panels," said Professor Ali Safavi-Naeini, Director of CIARS (Centre for Intelligent Antenna and Radio Systems) at the University of Waterloo.

"This modular, intelligent technology platform provides a cost-effective solution for a wide range of applications-from fixed to mobility satellite broadband services, and for the rapidly emerging millimeter-wave 5G cellular services", he added.

Phased Array Antenna

These successful initial tests are a significant development for C-COM. The Company can now move forward with confidence and continue testing over several different satellites to confirm interoperability of this new antenna design. Ensuring interoperability with satellites is a key step before the Company dedicates additional resources needed to develop a commercial product based on this new technology. The new phased array Ka-band antenna is expected to open new mobile vertical markets (land based, marine, aero) for the Company. The prototyping of a 4000-element antenna using the same building blocks used to build the 1000 element antenna is in progress and so is the planning of the commercialization phase of this new antenna.

"Today, we are much closer to achieving our objective of delivering an affordable, electronically steerable antenna system capable of operating over the latest constellations of LEO, MEO and GEO satellites, which will play a significant role in delivering broadband solutions to consumer and enterprise markets worldwide," said Dr. Leslie Klein, President & CEO of C-COM Satellite Systems Inc.

1024 Element RX/TX



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/5445/83468_da07b918b47468f4_006full.jpg

About C-COM Satellite Systems Inc.

C-COM Satellite Systems Inc. is an innovator and leading global provider of mobile on the pause satellite-based antenna systems. The Company designs, develops and manufactures proprietary, auto-acquisition antenna systems for rapid antenna pointing to a satellite, with just the press of a button. This technology makes it possible to deliver, Broadband Internet via Satellite across a wide range of market applications worldwide, including regions unserved or underserved by terrestrial access technologies.

C-COM has sold more than 8,500 antenna systems, in over 100 countries, through a dedicated dealer network that provides service to a wide range of vertical markets such as Oil & Gas Exploration, Military Communications, Disaster Management, SNG, Emergency Communications, Cellular Backhaul, Telemedicine, Mobile Education, Government Services, Mobile Banking, and others. The Company's iNetVu brand is synonymous with high quality, reliability, and cost-effectiveness.

C-COM is in late-stage development of a potentially revolutionary Ka-band, electronically steerable, modular, conformal, flat panel phased array antenna. In cooperation with the University of Waterloo, C-COM is engaged in the design of this unique antenna with the intent of providing low-cost, high-throughput mobility applications over satellite for land, airborne and maritime verticals. For additional information please visit www.c-comsat.com

iNetVu is a registered trademark of C-COM Satellite Systems Inc.

The Company is publicly traded on the Canadian Venture Exchange (TSXV: CMI) and on the US OTCQB Exchange (OTCQB: CYSNF).

Forward Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or future performance and reflect management's current expectations and assumptions. Statements about the Company's expectations as to its ability to complete development and commercialize a product based on the technology described above and the impact such a product might have on the consumers, enterprises and the Company, including the opening of vertical markets and its impact on the Company's financial results, are all forward-looking statements. A number of factors could cause actual events, performance or results to differ materially from the events, performance and results discussed in the forward-looking statements. The positive test results described above are just one step toward commercialization. Commercialization of a product is dependant on further successful testing. The Company's ability to convert this technology into a commercially and financially viable product depends on a number of factors and is subject to a number of risks, many of which are outside of the Company's control. Further test results may not be positive. Anticipated benefits of the new technology may not be realized, and new products and services may not be released or, if released, may not gain market acceptance. Any of those events and others could have an effect on future performance and C-COM Satellite Systems Inc.'s ability to achieve the results mentioned above. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and C-COM Satellite Systems Inc. does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. Readers are directed to the risk factors associated with the business of C-COM Satellite Systems in the company's most recent MD&A available at www.SEDAR.com.

Contact:

Investor Relations

C-COM Satellite Systems Inc.

Tel: (613) 745-4110 ext. 4950

Fax: (613) 745-7144

investor@c-comsat.com

###

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83468
Elliott investment supports Paper Source for a bright future of its own and in teaming with Barnes Noble

Elliott Investment Management L.P. ("Elliott") announces today that funds it advises have entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the assets and business operations of Paper Source Inc.

The acquisition of Paper Source by Elliott allows the stationery and gift retailer to emerge from Chapter 11 with the support of a well-capitalized owner committed to the development and growth of the business. Following the Chapter 11 process, Paper Source will benefit from significantly less debt on its balance sheet. It will operate from approximately 130 stores across the US, from Papersource.com, as well as its wholesale division, Waste Not Paper by Paper Source.

Elliott is also the owner of Barnes Noble, the leading bookseller in the US with bookstores in every state. The businesses are highly complementary, with shared product ranges and a common commitment to excellent customer service. While the businesses will continue to operate independently, considerable opportunities exist for mutually beneficial retail partnerships.

Barnes Noble has enjoyed a strong performance since its acquisition by Elliott in September 2019, overcoming a number of pandemic-imposed challenges. Elliott now looks forward to the continued progress of both retailers. James Daunt, CEO of Barnes Noble, will have oversight responsibilities for both companies.

James Daunt, CEO of Barnes Noble said: "I look forward to working closely with everyone at Paper Source. This is a wonderful brand, with a unique culture and community. With Paper Source's management team, we will support and accelerate the brand's strategic growth initiatives. Alongside this, the opportunities for Paper Source to work with Barnes Noble are tremendously exciting for both businesses."

Winnie Park, CEO of Paper Source said: "All of us at Paper Source are delighted with Elliott's investment in the brand and look forward to working with them, and with James and the team at Barnes Noble. I am so grateful for the community who have supported Paper Source through both the pandemic and the Chapter 11 process our amazing teams, our incredibly loyal customers, landlords, and our partner and vendor community."

Paul Best, Portfolio Manager and Head of European Private Equity at Elliott said: "As the country's leading specialty retailer of stationery, cards and gifts, we see tremendous future potential in Paper Source's business. We look forward to working closely with the management team to position the brand for continued growth coming out of the pandemic."

About Paper Source

Founded in 1983, Paper Source is a premier lifestyle brand that offers a curated selection of fine papers, gifts, crafts, party supplies, wrap, greeting cards and an exclusive collection of envelopes and cards. With a mission to inspire people to Do Something Creative Every Day, Paper Source offers a creative aesthetic with a unique color palette and proprietary designs that are hand-illustrated by an in-house art and design team, as well as over 1000 artists and makers around the world. Paper Source is an iconic brand with approximately 130 stores across the U.S., a direct-to-consumer eCommerce business, and a robust wholesale network. For more information, please visit www.papersource.com.

About Barnes Noble

Barnes Noble, Inc. is the largest retail bookseller in the United States, and a leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products. The Company has over 600 Barnes Noble bookstores in 50 states, as well as the Nook Digital business and one of the Web's premier e-commerce sites, BN.com. General information on Barnes Noble, Inc. can be found on the Company's website at www.bn.com.

About Elliott

Elliott Investment Management L.P. manages more than $42 billion of assets. Its flagship fund, Elliott Associates, L.P., was founded in 1977, making it one of the oldest funds under continuous management. The Elliott funds' investors include pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, endowments, foundations, funds-of-funds, high net worth individuals and families, and employees of the firm. Elliott Advisors (UK) Limited is an affiliate of Elliott Investment Management L.P.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005710/en/

Contacts:

Media Contacts

Paper Source (Chicago)

Noreen Heron

Heron Agency

noreen@heronagency.com

Or

Elizabeth Owens

Paper Source

eowens@papersource.com

Barnes Noble (New York)

Amelia Mulinder

Barnes Noble

amulinder@bn.com

Elliott (London)

Sarah Rajani CFA

Elliott Advisors (UK) Limited

T: +44 (0)20 3009 1475

srajani@elliottadvisors.co.uk
HELSINKI, Finland, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Helsinki Biennial will take place for the first time from 12 June to 26 September 2021 on Vallisaari island, located in the Helsinki Archipelago. Uniting the maritime island with the city of Helsinki, the inaugural edition of the biennial, titled The Same Sea, will also extend to the mainland, with artworks and events invigorating the Finnish capital.

An extensive programme of real-life contemporary art exhibitions, workshops, events, and educational activities will be available to in-person audiences as permitted by COVID-19 restrictions, as well as a vast array of digital initiatives accessible for remote audiences, including a new collaboration with Facebook Open Arts. Despite the challenges posed over the last year, all announced artists and artist groups** will exhibit their artworks as originally envisioned.

Maija Tanninen-Mattila, director of Helsinki Biennial, explains:

"I believe that in these challenging times, people long for art and cultural experiences more than ever before. As we enter a new reality, it is integral to rethink existing patterns of behaviour and create safe experiences for engaging with art. Helsinki Biennial launches with a future-orientated vision, advocating ecological ethics and celebrating the synthesis of art and nature. The bridge we are building between the Finnish and international art worlds reflects our interest in interdependence, connectedness and mutual understanding across vastly different geographies and cultures. I hope that the biennial will bring all visitors hope, light, and joy."

Jan Vapaavuori, Mayor of Helsinki, says:

"Access to outstanding art and creativity is crucial for how citizens engage with the pressing issues that we face today. Helsinki Biennial's messages of environmental consciousness, sustainable practice and global interconnectedness reflect the city of Helsinki's own values and ambitions. This world-class new initiative further enhances Helsinki's position as a leading creative hub, adding tremendous value not just for its own residents but also for its position on the international stage."

Helsinki Biennial Programme

Helsinki Biennial 2021 presents over 40 artists and artist groups from Finland and across the globe, including 75% new commissions and site-specific works sensitively positioned across its remarkable setting in the Baltic Sea. Approximately one third of the artworks on Vallisaari are located outdoors along marked trails, amidst the natural greenery and diverse flora of the island, and others inside former gunpowder cellars and old residential buildings.

Responding to, whilst safeguarding, Vallisaari's natural environment, the exhibition The Same Sea reflects upon the ever-pressing notion of interdependence. Curated by Pirkko Siitari and Taru Tappola, head curators of Helsinki Art Museum (HAM), new commissions embrace diverse themes like nature, borders, identities, human traces, time and empathy. A number of artists have taken inspiration from subjects relating to the daily lives of Vallisaari's former residents and the island's natural landscape and military history, as well as wider topics around the local and global consequences of human activity and alternative visions of the future.

Some biennial artworks are located on mainland Helsinki, including Janet Echelman's aerial sculpture1.78 which will be suspended above the city's central Senate Square during August; and Helsinki Art Museum, responsible for organising the biennial, will host an installation and series of events by Rirkrit Tiravanija and Antto Melasniemi in collaboration with Finnish furniture company Artek.

Also at Helsinki Art Museum is an exhibition of works by Katharina Grosse. In her first solo show in Finland, Chill Seeping From The Walls Gets Between Us, HAM will display two new installations by Grosse that transform the exhibition spaces into massive, all-encompassing spatial works of art. Grosse has also produced a new site-specific work on Vallisaari Island for Helsinki Biennial.

The Helsinki Biennial Inspired collateral programme presents other cultural and artistic events across Helsinki, created in collaboration with the city's services, communities, and residents, and reflecting the themes and motifs of the biennial. For instance, Helsinki's cultural hub and theatre venue Kanneltalo will present the Climate Confessional, an interactive, sculptural installation from Finnish design studio Paja&Bureau, which allows users to consider the climate crisis.

Other islands in the Helsinki Archipelago offer inspiration and locations for collateral exhibitions; the neighbouring fortress island of Suomenlinna, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, plays host to two group exhibitions So long, thanks again for the fish and Island of Empathy.

Throughout its run, the Helsinki Biennial will be brought to life with a programme of artist-led performances, workshops, and talks. BIOS Research Unit will set up the Vallisaari Research Station within the island's former fire-fighting depot, hosting seminars and lectures from visiting scientists. Meanwhile artists Dafna Maimon and Andrew Kerton will offer a sensory workshop exploring the digestive system.

Helsinki Biennial Digital Initiatives

Considering accessibility, inclusivity, environmental responsibility and potential COVID-19 restrictions, Helsinki Biennial has created an exhaustive online and virtual offering which will bring the biennial to audiences remotely.

Digital artworks which feature in the Helsinki Biennial can be encountered on the biennial website, including those by BIOS, Gustafsson&Haapoja, and Niskanen & Salo. Selected biennial events will also be livestreamed on social media, and recordings of performance pieces will be made available online, such as those by WAUHAUS, Samir Bhowmik, Meiju Niskala, and Hanna Tuulikki.

Remote audiences can also join live tours with local biennial guides, who will create meaningful, insightful experiences for those unable to travel to Helsinki. In addition, extensive video interviews with exhibited artists will also be available digitally.

Two new interactive VR experiences have been created to transport audiences to Vallisaari island and embrace the biennial's unique location. Produced by award winning Helsinki-based VR studio Zoan, viewers can immerse themselves in Vallisaari's natural surrounds, discover historical buildings and journey through its changing seasons. The VR experiences will be available on the Virtual Helsinki platform, accessible with devices like HTC VIVE, VIVE Cosmos, VIVE Pro, Oculus Rift and Oculus Quest. The experiences will also be available for download from Oculus Store in June.

Through a partnership with Facebook Open Arts, Helsinki Biennial will present new digital artwork, the production of a new podcast series and a live-streamed talk to investigate digital solutions in art, responsibility and locality. More details on Helsinki Biennial's partnership with Facebook Open Arts will be announced soon.

**The Helsinki Biennial 2021 participants include:

Pawel Althamer*, PL Jussi Kivi*, FI ATTAKWAD* Alicja Kwade*, PL/DE Pasi Autio*, FI Hayoun Kwon, KR/FR Samir Bhowmik*, IN/FI Laura Kononen*, FI BIOS Research Unit*, FI Tuomas A. Laitinen*, FI Baran Caginli*, TR/FI Teemu Lehmusruusu*, FI Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller, CA Dafna Maimon*, FI/DE Kyungwoo Chun*, KR Antti Majava*, FI Janet Echelman, US Inga Meldere* LV/FI EGS*, FI Jaakko Niemela*, FI Katharina Grosse*, DE Meiju Niskala*, FI Gustafsson&Haapoja*, FI Niskanen & Salo*, FI/US Hanna Tuulikki*, UK Sari Palosaari*, FI Honkasalo-Niemi-Virtanen*, FI Outi Pieski, Birit and Katja Haarla*, FI/BE IC-98, FI Mario Rizzi, IT/DE Uwa Iduozee, FI/US Rirkrit Tiravanija & Antto Melasniemi*, AR & FI Wanuri Kahiu, KE WAUHAUS, FI Marja Kanervo*, FI Christine and Margaret Wertheim*, AU/US Topi Kautonen, FI Maaria Wirkkala*, FI Tadashi Kawamata*, JP/FR Zodiak presents: Joni Karkkainen & Jukka Tarvainen*, FI Khvay Samnang, KH

*An asterisk denotes a new commission.



For more information on the artworks and artists participating in Helsinki Biennial 2021: The Same Sea, click here.

Keep updated on Instagram, Facebook ( @helsinkibiennia l) and Twitter ( @HELbiennial ) HelsinkiBiennial

The main partners of Helsinki Biennial 2021 include Metsahallitus and Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation, and it is also supported by Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation, Svenska Kulturfonden, and Pro Artibus Foundation. The main corporate partner of Helsinki Biennial 2021 is Clear Channel. Other partners include Helen and Artek. Korkeasaari Zoo and the Helsinki Festival are Helsinki Biennial's event partners.

Notes to Editors

International PR

Milly Carter Hepplewhite

milly@pelhamcommunications.com

+44 20 8969 3959

Helsinki Biennial

Helsinki Biennial is an international contemporary art event which takes place on Vallisaari island. Informed by Vallisaari - a former military island fusing wild nature and urban heritage - sustainable and responsible values lie at the core of Helsinki Biennial. Free to the public, each edition will primarily comprise of major new, site-specific commissions by leading international artists. Helsinki Biennial embodies the city's ambitious, cultural vision, committed to developing Helsinki's art scene both on a grassroots and institutional level. A major initiative of the City of Helsinki and Helsinki Art Museum (HAM), the biennial is directed by HAM's director Maija Tanninen-Mattila and the inaugural edition, 'The Same Sea', is curated by HAM's head curators Pirkko Siitari and Taru Tappola. The biennial is further supported by an international advisory committee made up of curators and academics including Kari Conte, Director of Programs and Exhibitions at the International Studio and Curatorial Programme (ISCP), New York; Lena From, Head of Special Projects at the Public Art Agency Sweden; and Joasia Krysa, Professor of Exhibition Research at Liverpool John Moores University and Liverpool Biennial.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/helsinki-marketing/r/the-inaugural-helsinki-biennial-will-open-on-12-june-2021-with-an-extensive-programme-of-art--events,c3344890

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MONTREAL, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- CellCarta, a global provider of precision medicine services, announced today the acquisition of Reveal Biosciences ("Reveal"), a San Diego California based computational pathology company offering cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI)-based quantitative pathology and immunohistochemistry services to the biopharmaceutical industry. This acquisition further strengthens CellCarta's position as a leading provider of histopathology biomarker services and will enable the company to broaden its offering in AI-enabled multi-omic data analysis services and applications.

Reveal Biosciences has created a new generation of Pathology Intelligence to enhance research, clinical trials, and improve patient outcomes globally. Reveal's imageDx pathology platform combines cutting edge machine learning (ML)-AI with traditional histopathology to transform tissue biology into actionable data. Reveal's unique proprietary pipeline architecture and biomarker-based training methods also enable the development of scalable custom AI models for specific pathology endpoints, companion diagnostics and predictive models integrating multi-omic data.

"Reveal's exceptional AI and machine learning capabilities will support more objective tissue biomarker quantitation and will enable a broader and faster deployment of our histological services," said Martin LeBlanc, CEO of CellCarta. "Acquiring this leading business is part of a game-changing strategy to expand our services to better support our global clients who are actively seeking more objective, reproducible and scalable methods for tissue biomarker assessment, deployed within a robust quality and regulatory platform."

"We are excited to join forces with CellCarta," said Claire Weston, PhD, CEO and Co-Founder of Reveal. "Reveal's broad portfolio of automated digital assays target Oncology, NASH, Neuroscience, Fibrosis, Inflammation and other therapeutic areas. We see great opportunity in combining these AI capabilities with CellCarta driving towards better diagnoses and more meaningful clinical trials on a global scale."

About CellCarta

CellCarta is a leading provider of specialized precision medicine laboratory services to the biopharmaceutical industry. Leveraging its integrated analytical platforms in immunology, histopathology, proteomics and genomics, as well as related specimen collection and logistics services, CellCarta supports the entire drug development cycle, from discovery to late-stage clinical trials. The company operates globally with 10 facilities located in Canada, USA, Belgium, Australia, and China.

For more information: cellcarta.com

About Reveal Biosciences

Reveal Biosciences has created a new generation of Pathology Intelligence to enhance research and improve patient outcomes globally. Reveal's imageDx pathology platform provides AI data analytics and cloud-based whole slide image management to Life Sciences and Healthcare. With a world class team of data and research scientists focused on addressing some of the biggest problems in healthcare, Reveal has developed a pipeline of AI-based digital assays for preclinical research, clinical trials, and diagnostics.

For more information: revealbio.com

Media Contact for CellCarta: Prosek Partners, Brian Schaffer / Kristen Duarte, bschaffer@prosek.com / kduarte@prosek.com; Marketing & Communications: Guylaine Galipeau, Global Marketing Director, CellCarta, ggalipeau@caprion.com

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SKANEATELES, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Cannonau Corp (OTC PINK:CNNC) is pleased to announce the engagement of Mr. Fruqan Mouzon, Esq as an Advisor for the company and a specialist in Cannabis Law.

Mr. Mouzon has extensive experience in New Jersey government, and as a private practice attorney with two highly respected firms. In addition to his State Senate role, which he held for nearly 5 years, he also served as Assistant Counsel for Governor Jon S. Corzine, and was an Adjunct Professor at Seton Hall University School of Law and is currently Of Counsel and Chair of the Firm's Cannabis Practice Group.

In his State Senate position, Mr. Mouzon was directly involved in the constitutional, procedural, legal and ethical issues related to the availability and sale of cannabis in New Jersey, and was an advocate for the creation of opportunities for minorities, women and smaller businesses to enter the industry. Mr. Mouzon noted that, "our Cannabis Practice Group will work to assist clients of all types and economic means, in their effort to establish a cannabis business. To address what can be a high financial bar of entry for many people, we are also exploring creative ways - including a fund that can match applicants with investors - to help make their dream of creating a cannabis business a reality."

Mr. Mouzon's legal advice and guidance in the cannabis space pertaining to perspective mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, and other opportunities that Cannonau is perusing will be invaluable, as he will also be introducing other growth situations to us as well. We are very egger to move forward and build a solid team for our company and shareholders," stated, Carmen Carbona/CEO.

With the help of Mr. Mouzon's extensive legal expertise, Cannonau is confident this relationship will help with the company's continued growth and development and will play a valuable role in guiding strategic decisions and broadening our client relationships.

About Cannonau Corp.

Cannonau Corp. markets, packages and distributes an assortment of Full-Spectrum Hemp-CBD based products for the health-conscious consumer on our website https://shop.cannonau.biz. It is the mission of Cannonau Corp. to produce high-quality, pure, and 100% natural cannabidiol (CBD) products. The company takes pride in offering to the public pure full spectrum products that they stand behind with complete transparency. As CBD continues to be recognized for its many therapeutic qualities, Cannonau Corp. strives to educate the world on its natural and effective benefits and help them live a happier and healthier life.

Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about Cannonau Corporation's beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, and a number of factors could cause actual results to differ looking statements can be identified by words or phrases such as "may," "will," "expect," "anticipate," "target," "aim," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "believe," "potential," "continue," "is/are likely to" or other similar expressions. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and Cannonau Corp undertakes no duty to update such information, except as required under applicable law.

For more information, please contact: info@cannonau.biz

SOURCE: Cannonau Corporation

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646334/Cannonau-Corporation-Announces-New-Cannabis-Legal-Advisor
Recruiter.com secures a roster of over 150 clients and over 700,000 financial professionals

HOUSTON, TX / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Recruiter.com Group, Inc. (OTCQB:RCRT), an online hiring platform delivering on-demand recruiting technology, today announced the finalization of its acquisition of OneWire, a leading SaaS-based recruiting and sourcing platform that hosts one of the largest communities of professionals in the financial services industry. The acquisition includes the OneWire SaaS platform as well as the candidate-matching service Matchbook.

"With more than 700,000 members, OneWire's candidate database is one of the largest talent pools in the financial sector," said Evan Sohn, CEO of Recruiter.com. "Through its SaaS platform, tailored executive search services, and pre-vetted candidate matches, OneWire helps investment banks, hedge funds, private equity, and venture capital firms get matched with top financial services professionals. Recruiter.com's AI sourcing and curation services, and on-demand recruiting services, combined with OneWire, will offer an unmatched array of services to the finance and banking sectors."

The acquisition further cements Recruiter.com as a leading destination for innovative recruiting tools and expert on-demand recruiting services that help employers across industries hire the best talent in less time. For example, with the introduction of Recruiter.com Video in Q4 of last year, Recruiter.com brought to market a powerful video-screening platform that drastically cuts time to hire by replacing resume reviews and phone screens with short candidate videos.

OneWire's expansive candidate database and candidate-matching service amplify Recruiter.com's impressive reach, building upon Recruiter.com's previous acquisitions to give employers and recruiters access to an even broader pool of specialized talent.

In late Q1 of 2021, Recruiter.com acquired artificial intelligence sourcing software Upsider.ai, which uses adaptive machine learning to automate candidate sourcing, ranking, and engagement across a database of millions of candidates. In Q1, Recruiter.com also acquired video-enabled talent-matching platform Scouted.io and launched a candidate curation subscription delivering diverse pools of qualified candidates to employers every week. The acquisition of OneWire brings hundreds of thousands of highly skilled financial services professionals into Recruiter.com's growing database of candidates and portfolio of proprietary recruiting technologies.

OneWire's SaaS platform provides financial services professionals with a centralized place to manage their job search, from finding and applying to current openings to joining talent communities to staying in touch with prospective employers. In addition, OneWire accelerates the sourcing process by pre-vetting top candidates in advance, ensuring that employers only connect with the most qualified candidates for their unique roles.

"Financial services talent is always in high demand, and for that reason, they can be some of the hardest professionals to identify and properly engage," Sohn said. "OneWire's candidate database and candidate-matching services will give Recruiter.com's clients better access to this pool of uniquely skilled candidates, allowing them to source, vet, and hire financial professionals before their competitors can."

Following the acquisition, OneWire and Recruiter.com will integrate their assets to create a unified, subscription-based hiring solution allowing employers to source financial services candidates on their own or tap Recruiter.com's network of on-demand recruiting professionals for hiring help.

"From day one, we set out to build an application that confidentially connects candidates with job opportunities in the financial services sector while providing employers a self-service platform to source, search and hire the top talent across the industry," said Eric Stutzke, CEO of OneWire. "Along the way, we innovated by building new technology that has allowed us to differentiate our offerings, attract new customers and increase overall engagement. Under Recruiter.com, candidates will enjoy broader access to additional content and career opportunities, while employers can leverage the Recruiter.com portfolio of products and services on a global scale. I'm proud of everything our team has accomplished, and I look forward to helping transition and support the business."

Recruiter.com's purchase of OneWire was successfully closed on May 10, 2021, through an asset purchase agreement. Recruiter.com paid for the acquisition in restricted common stock.

Recruiter.com Group, Inc.

Recruiter.com is an online hiring platform delivering on-demand recruiting technology and services to both large and small businesses. With AI and video technology, and the world's largest network of recruiters, Recruiter.com delivers on-tap recruiting that flexes with hiring needs. To learn more, visit https://www.recruiter.com. For investor information, visit http://investors.recruiter.com

Please follow social media channels for additional updates:

LinkedIn Recruiter Network Group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/42370/

LinkedIn Company Page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/1240434

Twitter Company Page: https://twitter.com/recruiterdotcom

Facebook Company Page: https://www.facebook.com/RecruiterDotCom

OneWire, Inc.

OneWire is a SaaS-based recruiting platform that hosts the largest community of professionals in the financial services industry. Candidates can confidentially search and apply to jobs, while employers can advertise open opportunities or search directly from our candidate database. In addition, through the Company's Matchbook product, candidates are pre-screened in advance and showcased in a talent marketplace where employers can directly send interview requests and pay on success. The Company also offers tech-enabled executive search services customized for each firm.

Company Contact:

Sarah Schultz

Director of Communications

Recruiter.com Group, Inc.

sschultz@recruiter.com

Phone: (855) 931-1500

Investor Relations:

Dave Gentry

RedChip Companies, Inc.

Phone: (407) 491-4498

dave@redchip.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words "forecasts," "forecasting," "believe," "may," "estimate," "continue," "anticipate," "intend," "should," "plan," "could," "target," "potential," "is likely," "will," "expect" and similar expressions, as they relate to us, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. We have based these forward-looking statements primarily on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy, and financial needs. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from those in the forward-looking statements include continued demand for professional hiring, the accuracy of the Recruiter Index survey, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the job market and the economy as virus levels are again rising in many states, and the Risk Factors contained within our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020. Any forward-looking statement made by us herein speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Factors or events that could cause our actual results to differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of them. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

SOURCE: Recruiter.com Group, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646345/Recruitercom-Finalizes-Acquisition-of-SaaS-Based-Financial-Services-Recruiting-Platform-OneWire
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Red Light Holland Corp. (CSE: TRIP) (FSE: 4YX) (OTC Pink: TRUFF) ("Red Light Holland" or the "Company") is pleased to announce its ground-breaking iMicro app, which includes Virtual Telecounseling and uses biometric pose detection data to help people find their optimal dose, after months of beta testing, is now live on https://www.imicroapp.com/. The app was developed based on the latest behavioural science as well as interviews with Microdosing individuals to understand their pain points, for example the difficulty of sticking to a non-daily dosing regimen, the lack of a supporting community and the difficulty of finding a personal optimal dose.

"Our goal is to promote mindfulness and responsible use of microdosing. The iMicro app does that by using the most advanced pose detection technology that can give people objective insights into their body and subconsciousness and by connecting people to the best Microdosing experts in the world. The app also promotes a well-established practice of journaling and does all that while being focused on users privacy," said Sarah Hashkes CTIO or Red Light Holland. "There are too many apps out there that sell users' data and are not aligned with their users' well being. Red Light Holland strongly believes that the psychedelic ecosystem needs to be different and we are glad to lead by example with our technology in hopes that other psychedelic companies will follow."

"We are continuing our path as a trailblazing company creating unique technology and intellectual property that we believe will benefit humanity. This app along with the consensual data we get from it will help us build more infrastructure and support structures to promote the responsible use and legalization of psychedelics worldwide," said Red Light Holland CEO and Director, Todd Shapiro. "Feel free to go to www.iMicroapp.com to learn more as we push forward with our carefully thought out movement via our educational, informational and supportive approach to FreeTheMagic."

About Red Light Holland Corp.

The Company is an Ontario-based corporation engaged in the production, growth and sale (through existing Smart Shops operators and an advanced e-commerce platform) of a premium brand of magic truffles to the legal market within the Netherlands, in accordance with the highest standards, in compliance with all applicable laws.

For additional information on the Company:

Todd Shapiro

Chief Executive Officer & Director

Tel: 647-204-7129

Email: todd@redlighttruffles.com

Website: https://redlighttruffles.com/

Forward-Looking Statements

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of Red Light Holland. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "continue", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements include, but are not limited to: statements pertaining to the intended uses and expected functions of the iMicro app, data collection and privacy protection, statements regarding the Company's technology and intellectual property, and the optimism surrounding the Company's anticipated positive outcomes of the use of the Company's products in the psychedelics sector.

Forward-looking information is based on a number of key expectations and assumptions made by Red Light Holland, including without limitation: no change to laws or regulations that negatively affect Red Light Holland's business; there will be a demand for Red Light Holland's products in the future; no unanticipated expenses or costs arise; and the Company will be able to continue to develop products that are used and sold in the psychedelics industry. Although the forward-looking information contained in this news release is based upon what the Company believes to be reasonable assumptions, it cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with such information.

Forward-looking information is provided for the purpose of presenting information about management's current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. Forward-looking information involves significant risks and uncertainties and should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results, as actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking information. Those risks and uncertainties include, among other things, risks related to: renewing federal, provincial, municipal, local or other licenses and any inability to obtain all necessary governmental approvals, licenses, and permits to operate and expand the Company's facilities; regulatory or political change such as changes in applicable laws and regulations, including federal and provincial legalization, due to inconsistent public opinion, perception of the medical-use and adult-use psilocybin industry, bureaucratic delays or inefficiencies or any other reasons; any other factors or developments which may hinder market growth; the Company's limited operating history; reliance on management; the Company's requirements for additional financing; and competition for mental health and wellness investments. These factors should be considered carefully, and readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Although the Company has attempted to identify important risk factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other risk factors that cause actions, events or results to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements.

The Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

Not for distribution to United States newswire services or for dissemination in the United States.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83613
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Spanish Mountain Gold Ltd. (TSXV: SPA) (the "Company") is pleased to announce the positive results of the Pre-Feasibility Study (the "PFS") for the 100% owned Spanish Mountain gold project (the "Project") located in central British Columbia, Canada. The PFS, which is prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, delineates a Mineral Reserve within the near-surface/ higher-grade portion of the Mineral Resource. All dollars figures are in Canadian (CAD) unless otherwise noted. In accordance with industry practice, certain key economic metrics are stated in USD to facilitate comparison with projects/ mines globally.

The highlights of the PFS results are as follows:

Proven & Probable Mineral Reserves of 2.3 million ounces ( Moz ) of gold and 2.2 Moz of silver. Details of the tonnages and grades are presented under "Mineral Reserves" below.

Measured & Indicated ( M&I ) Mineral Resources of 4.7 Moz of gold and 6.8 Moz of silver, an increase of 0.6 Moz of gold from previous estimates due to optimization and an increased gold price assumption. Details for the tonnages and grades for Mineral Resources are presented under "Mineral Resources" below. (As previously reported, this increase in Mineral Resources does not yet reflect the drilling results from the 2020 winter program due to industry-wide delays at assaying laboratories. These results will be incorporated in a future resource update.)

Life of mine ( LOM ) production of 2.1 Moz of gold and 0.9 Moz of silver over 14 years

Average annual gold production: 183,000 oz (first 6 years) and 150,000 oz (LOM) with peak production of 210,000 oz in year 6

Average all-in-sustaining cost ( AISC ) of production: US$707 per oz (first 6 years) and US$801 per oz (LOM)

Pre-tax project economics: NPV(5%) of $848M, IRR of 25% and payback of construction capital in 3.2 years @ US$1,600 gold (" Base Case "); NPV(5%) of $1,209M, IRR of 31% and payback in 2.7 years @ US$1,800 gold

Post-tax project economics: NPV(5%) of $655M, IRR of 22% and payback of construction capital in 3.3 years @ US$1,600 gold; NPV(5%) of $888M, IRR of 27% and payback in 2.8 years @ US$1,800 gold

Post-tax average annual free cashflow from operations: $189M (first 6-yr) and $128M (LOM) @ US$1,600 gold; $220M (first 6-yr) and $153M (LOM) @ US$1,800 gold

Post-tax LOM cumulative tax free cashflow from operations: $1,797M @US$1,600 gold; $2,140M @US$1,800 gold

An initial capital cost of $607 million (US$461 million), including a contingency of $75 million

The PFS is based on a 20,000 tonnes per day (tpd) milling rate to process the delineated Proven & Probable Reserves as a standalone open pit operation for 14 years. The proposed mine is expected to be owner-operated using a conventional open-pit mining method to produce a total of 96 million tonnes (Mt) of ore with an average diluted gold grade of 0.88 grams per tonne (g/t) for the first six years and 0.76 g/t LOM. The milling process involves a primary crushing circuit followed by a SAG mill and ball mill to produce a relatively coarse grind of 180 microns which is concentrated by gravity concentration and flotation to produce concentrates for fine grinding and CIL cyanidation at an overall LOM average gold recovery of 90% and silver recovery of 40%. Dore will be produced on-site as an end product.

Larry Yau, CEO, commented: "Against the backdrop of a large and growing resource, the PFS once again affirms our Project's potential as a gold mine with robust production and profitability. The PFS has also identified several tangible targets for project optimization. Our technical team has already started investigating these opportunities with the objective of incorporating any potential benefits in a definitive feasibility study.

"The PFS represents a significant project milestone and bears the fruits of our de-risking initiatives in the past five years. Congratulations to our project team for the comprehensive study presenting our Project's technical merits as well as opportunities. We look forward to expeditiously advancing our Project on multiple fronts including our strong commitments to addressing issues related to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)."

Please refer to the Company's updated website and corporate presentation for additional details on the PFS and the project: www.spanishmountaingold.com

Mineral Reserves

The Project's Mineral Reserves, which are a subset of the M&I Mineral Resources, are based on the mine plan developed for the PFS. All Inferred Mineral Resources mined are treated as waste. Mineral Reserves are estimated in accordance with the CIM 2019 Best Practices Guidelines and are classified using the 2014 CIM Definition Standards.

Reserve

Class Mill Feed

(Mt) Mill Feed Gold

Grade

(g/t) Contained Gold

(Moz) Mill Feed Silver

Grade

(g/t) Contained Silver

(Moz) Proven 40.8 0.79 1.03 0.67 0.88 Probable 55.1 0.74 1.31 0.74 1.30 Total 95.9 0.76 2.34 0.71 2.18

Notes:

The Mineral Reserve estimates were prepared by Marc Schulte, P.Eng. (who is also the independent Qualified Person for these Mineral Reserve estimates), reported using the 2014 CIM Definition Standards, and have an effective date of March 31, 2021. Mineral Reserves are based on the PFS Life of Mine Plan. Mineral Reserves are mined tonnes and grade, the reference point is the mill feed at the primary crusher and includes consideration for operational modifying factors Mineral Reserves are reported at a cut-off grade of 0.3 g/t Au. Cut-off grade assumes US$1,500/oz. Au and US$20/oz Ag at a currency exchange rate of 0.76 US$ per C$; 99.8% payable gold; 95.0% payable silver; $5.00/oz Au offsite costs (refining, transport and insurance); a 1.5% NSR royalty; and uses a 91% metallurgical recovery for gold and 25% recovery for silver. The cut-off grade equates to incremental operating costs of $17/t, which covers process, G&A and site, stockpile reclaim, and sustaining and closure capital costs. Mined tonnes and grade are based on a selective mining unit (SMU) of 15mx15mx5m, including additional estimates for mining loss (3%) and dilution between ore and waste zones (6.6%, 0.24 g/t Au, 0.6 g/t Ag). Factors that may affect the Mineral Reserve estimates include metal prices, changes in interpretations of mineralisation geometry and continuity of mineralisation zones, geotechnical and hydrogeological assumptions, ability of the mining operation to meet the annual production rate, process plant and mining recoveries, the ability to meet and maintain permitting and environmental licence conditions, and the ability to maintain the social licence to operate. Numbers have been rounded as required by reporting guidelines.

There are no other known factors or issues that materially affect the Mineral Reserve estimate other than normal risks faced by mining projects in the province in terms of environmental, permitting, taxation, socio-economic, marketing, and political factors and additional risk factors as listed in the accompanying cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements below.

Mining Operations

The PFS mine plan provides 96 Mt of mill feed which produces a total of 2.1 million ounces of gold and 875 thousand ounces of silver and 383 Mt of waste over the 14-year project life. Approximately 5.6 Mt of Inferred Resource within the pit has been treated as waste for this study.

Stockpiling of some material is utilized to maximize mill feed grade early in the project life. This material is reclaimed for processing over the course of the operation.

Processing of the mill feed at 20,000 tpd (or 7.3 Mt per annum) is by means of a conventional process flowsheet including primary grinding, gravity concentration, flotation, and regrinding of the concentrate followed by cyanidation via a CIL circuit to produce dore. The process achieves an average overall LOM gold recovery of 90%. The average silver recovery as a by-product of the milling process for the life of the project is 40%. Tailings from the plant are stored in a tailings storage facility that has been designed to minimize water held within the tailings facility. All of the site water is managed through a separate water management pond that includes a water treatment plant for any water to be discharged during the LOM.

Selected operational and cost metrics:



Unit Yrs 1-6

Avg. LOM

Avg.

Gold Grade g/t 0.88 0.76

Annual Gold Production Koz 183 150 (peak production 211Koz) Annual Silver Production Koz 68 63

Cash Cost /oz US$ $602 $696

All-in-sustainable Cost/oz US$ $707 $801

Total Cost/ oz US$ $974 $1,068



Unit costs of production:



Unit CAD USD Mining $/t mined $2.22 $1.69 Mining $/t milled $10.80 $8.21 Processing $/t milled $6.58 $5.00 G&A $/t milled $1.36 $1.04 TSF $/t milled $0.17 $0.13 Water treatment $/t milled $0.47 $0.36 Total $/t milled $19.38 $14.73

Project Economics & Sensitivities

For the purpose of presenting the Project's economics and investment returns, a constant LOM gold price of US$1,600 per ounce and silver price of US$24 per ounce are used as the base case with an exchange rate of C$1=US$0.76. The gold price assumption has the most significant impact on the Project's financial results.

The Project's financial metrics and their sensitivity to gold price are shown below. These metrics are widely used by the mining industry to evaluate mineral projects.





Gold Price (USD) Pre-tax Economics

$1,200 $1,400 $1,600 $1,800 $2,000 $2,200 $2,400 NPV (@5%) $M $125 $487 $848 $1,209 $1,570 $1,932 $2,293 IRR % 9% 18% 25% 31% 36% 42% 47% Payback Yrs 5.4 4.0 3.2 2.7 2.4 2.1 1.9 Cumulative Free Cashflow from Operations $M $1,040 $1,583 $2,127 $2,670 $3,214 $3,758 $4,301





Gold Price (USD) Post-tax Economics

$1,200 $1,400 $1,600 $1,800 $2,000 $2,200 $2,400 NPV (@5%) $M $129 $415 $655 $888 $1,119 $1,350 $1,580 IRR % 9% 16% 22% 27% 31% 36% 39% Payback Yrs 5.5 4.0 3.3 2.8 2.5 2.2 2.0 Cumulative Free Cashflow from Operations $M $1,041 $1,454 $1,797 $2,140 $2,484 $2,828 $3,173

Capital Expenditures

Project construction is expected to be completed over a period of approximately two years at a total cost of $607M (US$461M), including an allowance of $75M for contingencies. The PFS assumes leasing of the mining fleet in order to reduce the upfront capital required. Although the PFS assumes an owner-operated mining fleet, the Company believes that the Project's proximity to contractors/suppliers makes contract mining a potentially compelling option providing another opportunity to further reduce the initial capital. The breakdown of initial capital expenditures by major category is as follows:

Initial Capital C$M US$M Overall Site $26 $19 Open Pit Mining $73 $56 Ore Handling $34 $26 Process $125 $95 Tailings and Water Management $40 $30 Environmental Monitoring $2 $2 On-site Infrastructures $42 $32 Off-site Infrastructures $64 $49 Water treatment Plant $10 $7 TOTAL DIRECT COSTS $416 $316 Project Indirects $102 $78 Owner's Costs $14 $10 Contingencies $75 $57 TOTAL C$607 US$461

Sustaining capital expenditures required to support the ongoing production of gold and silver are estimated to be $290M, to be incurred over the mine life of 14 years.

Following the standards required by NI 43-101, the PFS has been prepared on the basis of mining and processing of the Mineral Reserves as a standalone operation over the mine life of 14 years in accordance with environmental laws and industry's best practice. As such, closure costs totalling $130M (net of salvage value of $30M) have been included in the cashflow model reflecting a scenario under which the operations would cease after 14 years with the mine site then being reclaimed and restored based on current environmental regulations.

Mineral Resources

As part of the PFS, an update of the Mineral Resources has been prepared based on the pit shell developed using assumed cost parameters and assumptions. The Project's Mineral Resources, inclusive of the Mineral Reserves reported above, are as follows:

Classification Run of Mine

(Mt) Gold Grade

(g/t) Silver Grade

(g/t) Contained

Gold (Moz) Contained

Silver (Moz) Measured 68.4 0.59 0.67 1.3 1.5 Indicated 225.7 0.47 0.73 3.4 5.3 M&I Resources 294.2 0.50 0.72 4.7 6.8 Inferred Resource 18.3 0.63 0.76 0.4 0.4

Notes:

The Mineral Resource Estimates were prepared by Marc Jutras, P.Eng.; M.A.Sc. (who is also the independent Qualified Person for these Mineral Resource Estimates), in accordance to the 2014 Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum ("CIM") Definition Standards for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves, with an effective date of February 3, 2021. The Mineral Resource Estimates are reported at a cutoff grade of 0.15 g/t Au. Cut-off grade assumes US$1,600/oz. Au at a currency exchange rate of 0.75 C$ per US$; 99.8% payable gold; $4.00/oz. offsite costs (refining and transport), a 1.5% royalty; and uses a 91% metallurgical recovery for Au and a 25% recovery for Ag. The cut off-grade covers processing costs of $7.33/t and general and administrative (G&A) costs of $2.67/t. The Mineral Resources are constrained by an open pit shell generated by applying the Lerchs-Grossman algorithm to the Spanish Mountain deposit. The pit shell was generated using the same inputs as the cutoff grade determination, as well as a $2.40/t mining cost for ore and a $2.20/t mining cost for waste. Overall pit slope angles range from 21 degrees to 35 degrees and are estimated based on geotechnical analysis of various zones in the deposit. Factors that may affect the estimates include: metal price assumptions, changes in interpretations of mineralization geometry and continuity of mineralization zones, changes to kriging assumptions, metallurgical recovery assumptions, operating cost assumptions, confidence in the modifying factors, including assumptions that surface rights to allow mining infrastructure to be constructed will be forthcoming, delays or other issues in reaching agreements with local or regulatory authorities and stakeholders, and changes in land tenure requirements or in permitting requirement. Any other known legal, political, environmental, or other risks that could materially affect the potential development of the Mineral Reserves are detailed below in the section entitled "Forward-Looking Statements". Estimates have been rounded and may result in summation differences.

Mineral Resources, which are not Mineral Reserves, do not have demonstrated economic viability. Inferred Mineral Resources have insufficient confidence to allow the meaningful application of technical and economic parameters or to enable an evaluation of economic viability suitable for public disclosure.

Technical Team

The PFS was coordinated and prepared by Moose Mountain Technical Services (MMTS) and the following team of Qualified Persons and independent consultants. Each consultant was responsible for the initial, sustaining and closure capital and operating cost estimate for their area of responsibility (with the exception of pHase Geochemistry who did not contribute any cost estimates to the study):

Company Areas of Responsibility Qualified Person MMTS Overall co-ordination of the report Frank Grills., P.Eng. MMTS Mineral Reserves, Mining Methods, Economic Analysis Marc Schulte, P,Eng Ausenco Mineral Processing Recovery Methods and Site Infrastructure Paul Staples, P.Eng. Ginto Consulting Inc. Mineral Resource Estimate Marc Jutras, P.Eng. Discovery Consultants Geology, Exploration, and Drilling Bill Gilmour, P.Geo. Linkan Engineering Water Treatment Sam Billin. P.Eng. Knight Piesold Ltd. Tailings, Water Management, Environmental, and Permitting Les Galbraith, P.Eng. MCA Engineering Power Supply Malcolm Cameron, P.Eng pHase Geochemistry Geochemical Characterization Andrea Samuels, P. Geo. BGC Engineering Geotechnical and Hydrogeological

PricewaterhouseCoopers Tax Model Review



Marc Schulte, P. Eng., a Qualified Person (as defined under National Instrument 43-101) who is independent of Spanish Mountain Gold Ltd. has reviewed and approved this news release.

A NI 43-101 compliant Technical Report is currently being prepared by MMTS and will be filed on SEDAR within 45 days of this news release.

Opportunities to Enhance Value

On top of demonstrating the Project's potential as a robust mining operation focused on the delineated Mineral Reserves, the comprehensive evaluation process undertaken by the PFS team has generated significant information to support the ongoing environment assessment as well as having identified tangible targets to further optimize the Project's value.

The Company expects to conduct additional field work to further optimize the Project in a number of areas including metallurgical process, water management and treatment, environmental strategies and pit optimization in order to capture all potential benefits in a feasibility study in due course. In addition, the Company intends to continue the campaign to expand its multi-million ounce gold resource and other field activities to support the environmental assessment process.

About Spanish Mountain Gold

Spanish Mountain Gold Ltd. is focused on advancing its 100%-owned Spanish Mountain gold project in southern central British Columbia. The Company is simultaneously pursuing the dual objectives of delivering critical project milestones for the multi-million ounce Mineral Reserve and further expanding the overall Mineral Resource. The Preliminary Feasibility Study (2021) demonstrates the Project's potential to be a mining operation with a robust production profile (>150,000 oz per year) and profitability (AISC $801 per oz) over a mine life of 14 years. Details on the Project and the Company are available on www.sedar.com and on the Company's website: www.spanishmountaingold.com

On Behalf of the Board,

SPANISH MOUNTAIN GOLD LTD.

Larry Yau,

Chief Executive Officer

Inquiries:

SPANISH MOUNTAIN GOLD LTD.

Phone: (604) 601-3651

E-mail: info@spanishmountaingold.com

Website: www.spanishmountaingold.com



FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS: Certain of the statements and information in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" Any statements or information that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "estimates", "intends", "targets", "goals", "forecasts", "objectives", "potential" or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements or information.



Forward-looking statements or information relate to, among other things, the timing and scope of NI 43-101 technical reports in respect of the Spanish Mountain Gold Project.

Forward-looking statements or information are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or information, including, without limitation, risks relating to: results from infill and exploration drilling, geotechnical studies, metallurgical studies, planning of tailings facilities, access to power supply, fluctuations in the spot and forward price of gold or certain other commodities; timing of receipt of permits and regulatory approvals; the sufficiency of the Company's capital to finance the Company's operations; geological interpretations and potential mineral recovery processes, changes in national and local government legislation, taxation, controls, regulations and political or economic developments in Canada or other countries in which the Company may carry on business in the future; the uncertainties involved in interpreting geological data; business opportunities that may be presented to, or pursued by, the Company; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining activities; the speculative nature of gold exploration and development, including the risks of obtaining necessary licenses and permits; diminishing quantities or grades of reserves; and contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties. In addition, there are risks and hazards associated with the business of gold exploration, development and mining, including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected formations, pressures, cave-ins, flooding and gold bullion losses (and the risk of inadequate insurance, or the inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks).

This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Company's forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements or information are statements about the future and are inherently uncertain, and actual achievements of the Company or other future events or conditions may differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or information due to a variety of risks, uncertainties and other factors, including, without limitation, those referred to in the Company's continuous disclosure documents under the heading "Risk Factors". Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, described or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.

The Company's forward-looking statements and information are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions of management as of the date of this press release, and other than as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements and information if circumstances or management's assumptions, beliefs, expectations or opinions should change, or changes in any other events affecting such statements or information. For the reasons set forth above, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and information.

Cautionary Note Regarding Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves

Readers should refer to the Company's current technical reports and other continuous disclosure documents filed by the Company, available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com for further information on the mineral resource estimates of the Company's projects, which are subject to the qualifications and notes set forth therein, as well as for additional information relating to the Company more generally.

Neither the Company, nor readers, should assume that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource will be upgraded to indicated or measured mineral resources. Most projects at the inferred mineral resource stage do not ever form the basis of feasibility or other economic studies, or achieve successful commercial production. Each stage of a project is contingent on the positive results of the previous stage and that there is a significant risk that the results may not support or justify moving to the next stage.

Cautionary Note Regarding Non-IFRS Performance Measurement

International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board, are recognized standards for financial reporting in Canada and most jurisdictions. The Company provided certain non-IFRS performance figures for the Project based on guidance issued by the World Gold Council. These non-IFRS measures are intended to provide additional information to evaluate the underlying performance of the Project and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. These measures do not have any standardized meaning prescribed under IFRS and therefore may not be comparable with other issuers.

Cash cost per ounce

Cash costs include indirect production costs incurred to operate the proposed mining operation. They include such input costs as mining, processing, refining, royalty payments and site administration, less gross revenue generated from silver sales, divided by gold ounces sold to arrive at total cash cost per gold ounce sold. Cash cost per ounce is stated in USD*, based on the general practice by the gold sector, to facilitate comparison across mines located around the globe.

All-in-sustaining cost (AISC) per ounce

All-in-sustaining costs includes the total cash cost plus the sustainable capital required to support the ongoing production of gold and silver over the life of mine. The Company calculates the Project's all-in sustaining cost per ounce as the sum of total cash costs (as described above), reclamation and sustaining capital for operating the proposed mine, divided by the gold ounces sold. The Company excludes corporate administrative expenses, financing costs, corporate taxation and other non-cash expenditures in the calculation as it intends to present the Project as a standalone operation. AISC per ounce is stated in USD*, based on the general practice by the gold sector, to facilitate comparison across mines located around the globe.

*where USD metrics are used for comparison, 0.76USD per 1CAD is assumed based on recent historical exchange between the two currencies.

The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83542
HIGHLIGHTS

Near surface, visible gold encountered in quartz veining

6.95 meters of 1.7g/t gold including 3.36 meters of 2.40 g/t gold reported

Evidence of syenite-like gold bearing dykes provides strong evidence for analogies to Kirkland Lake and Timmins-style gold camps

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) -PORTOFINO RESOURCES INC. (TSXV: POR) (OTCQB: PFFOF) (FSE: POTA) ("Portofino" or the "Company") is pleased to report that gold assay results have been received for the Gold Creek drilling program completed in March 2021. A total of 798 metres ("m") of diamond drilling were completed through four (4) holes on its Gold Creek Project located 65km west of Thunder Bay, Ontario.

The Phase 1 drill program tested targets at the 'New Road Zone' and 'S1 Zone' where 2020 fall sampling programs confirmed the presence of anomalous to high-grade gold in grab samples. Two holes were completed at each zone. Drill hole results are presented in Table 1. All intervals reported are downhole.

Table 1. Phase 1 gold assay results from the Gold Creek drill program.

Gold Creek Drilling Result Highlights

Hole No. Target From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Au g/t GC-2021-01 New Road Zone 31.4 37 5.6 0.090 GC-2021-02 New Road Zone NSA





GC-2021-03 S1-Zone 47 49.6 2.6 0.133 GC-2021-04 S1-Zone 73.48 80.43 6.95 1.712 including

77.07 80.43 3.36 2.40 NSA: No significant assays







Broad zones of alteration including silicification and potassic metasomatism with pyrite mineralization were common in all the drill holes, with hole GC-2021-04 reporting visible gold and 1.712g/t Au over 6.95m.

Two holes were drilled at the S1-Zone where a historical grab sample assayed 175 grams per tonne gold ("g/t Au") and a 2020 grab sample reported 5.12 g/t Au. Assay results from hole GC-2021-04 were reported from a strongly bleached (potassic alteration and silicification) intermediate dyke with moderate quartz veining and 0.5 to 2% blebby to disseminated pyrite with trace galena and chalcopyrite intersected from 73.48m to 80.43m (6.95m). A few fine grains of visible gold were noted in the quartz veining. This interval included a 0.74m mafic tuff.

The results from holes GC-2021-01 and 02 intersected little in significant gold values, however opened a geological window into the environment along the Crayfish Creek Fault. Timiskaming clastic sediments consisting of conglomerate, finer grained clastic sediments and iron formation were intersected in the drilling. Local pervasive shearing, silicification, chlorite, sericite and quartz-carbonate stringers and veins with minor 1-3% disseminated pyrite in the groundmass is suggestive of an active deformation and hydrothermal environment. Potassium-altered and bleached gabbro to diorite intrusive bodies were also intersected in the drill holes. This geological setting of Timiskaming clastic sediments in a preserved basin along a crustal scale fault (Crayfish Creek Fault) with intrusive rocks in a halo of observed alteration, deformation and mineralizing features bears many similarities to the Timmins and Kirkland Lake gold camps.

Commentary

David Tafel, CEO of Portofino comments: "Drilling at the S1-Zone has confirmed that the quartz-veined, altered and mineralized dyke is gold-bearing and represents the strongest interval drilled at the S1-Zone to date. The geological setting at the New Road zone provides strong evidence for analogies to Kirkland Lake and Timmins-style gold mineralization. Our geological team will continue to advance the Crayfish Creek Fault exploratory work as well as our other high priority targets including the I-Zone, the U-Zone and AF-Zone.

Next Steps

The recently completed Phase 1 drill program was to have included drilling at the I-Zone North where historic property work includes multi-ounce gold grab samples, as well as historical drill intercepts of 4.32 g/t gold over 41 metres and 4.36 g/t gold over 20.42 metres completed in 1995 and a 1 tonne bulk sample in 2008 returning an average grade of 9.9 g/t gold. An early spring thaw prevented mobilization of the drill rig to this site. Portofino considers the I-Zone North a Priority 1 target as it is drill ready for a Phase 2 drill program.

In addition to preparing the Priority 1 targets for a Phase 2 drill program, targets of merit identified through the structural interpretation of the property will be reviewed. This includes the geology along the Crayfish Fault as well as F1 and F2 folds in the southeastern mafic to intermediate package of rocks.

Portofino's technical team will continue to evaluate the U-Zone and AF-Zone (Figure 1). Portofino is confident these two occurrences are geologically connected through a common felsic intrusive body. Both the U-Zone and AF-Zone have returned high-grade gold surface samples as well as drilling (8 short drill holes totaling 485m) at the U-zone with assay highlights of 2.38 g/t Au over 8.3m.

QA/QC Protocol

Drill core was logged and sampled on site. Core samples (BTW) from the program were cut in half, using a diamond cutting saw, and were hand-delivered to AGAT Labs in Thunder Bay, Ontario. AGAT Labs is an accredited mineral analysis laboratory. The primary analytical method by AGAT for Au was 202-551, a 50g Fire Assay with an AAS finish. Over-limits for Au beyond 5,000 ppb were then analyzed using method 202-564, a fire assay method with a gravimetric finish. Samples were also analyzed by method 201-071, a 48-element package using acid digest with ICP/ICP-MS finish. Eighty-nine samples were analyzed using method 202-055 for Au, Pt and Pd, a 30g fire assay with ICP-OES finish. Certified reference standards, blanks and field duplicates totaling 12% of all samples analyzed were routinely inserted into the sample stream, as part of Portofino's quality control/quality assurance program (QAQC).

Figure 1. Phase 1 drilling areas and Priority 1 exploration targets on the eastern portion of the Gold Creek property.



To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/3751/83526_84b48402747ce86d_002full.jpg

Qualified Person

Mike Kilbourne, P. Geo, an independent qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this news release on behalf of the Company.

About Portofino Resources Inc.

Portofino is a Vancouver-based Canadian company focused on exploring and developing mineral resource projects in the Americas. Its South of Otter and Bruce Lake projects are in the historic gold mining district of Red Lake, Ontario, Canada proximal to the high-grade Dixie gold project owned by Great Bear Resources Ltd. In addition, Portofino holds three other northwestern Ontario gold projects; the Gold Creek property located immediately south of the historic Shebandowan Nickel-Copper mine, as well as the Sapawe West and Melema West properties located in the rapidly developing Atikokan gold mining camp.

The Company also holds the right to a 100% interest in the Yergo lithium salar property located within the world-renowned "Lithium Triangle" in Argentina.

For further information on the Company, its projects and its management please visit our website:

https://www.portofinoresources.com/.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

"David G. Tafel"

Chief Executive Officer

For Further Information Contact:

David Tafel CEO, Director 604-683-1991

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release may contain forward looking statements concerning future operations of Portofino Resources Inc. (the "Company"). All forward- looking statements concerning the Company's future plans and operations, including management's assessment of the Company's project expectations or beliefs may be subject to certain assumptions, risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's control. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and that actual performance and exploration and financial results may differ materially from any estimates or projections.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83526
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Tsodilo Resources Limited ("Tsodilo" or the "Company") (TSXV:TSD)(OTCQB:TSDRF)(FSE:TZO) is pleased to provide an update on its wholly owned Xaudum Iron Project. The Company has initiated geochemical analysis for grade determination and geotechnical test-work for Rock Mass Rating ("RMR") evaluation for the Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") of its Xaudum Iron Formation ("XIF") project.

The following analysis and test works will be conducted:

755 samples from 10 drill holes within the XIF Block 2 area have been sent to ALS Chemex for analysis by: Element analysis by X-ray fluorescence ("XRF") using borate fusion beads; and LOI by muffle furnace (Table 1);

34 samples from 7 drill holes representing the main XIF geological domains (Table 2) have been sent for geotechnical laboratory test-work assessment to the Department of Mining and Geological Engineering at the Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST), where: 18 samples will undergo Unconfined Compressive Strength ("UCS") testing; 8 samples will undergo Brazilian Tensile Strength (Brazilian Test) testing; and 8 samples will undergo Direct Shear Strength tests on a selection of common discontinuities.



Overview

Metallurgical results show that the XIF magnetite product is expected to be a premium product containing 67% Fe which is preferable over lower grade iron ores (See, Press Release of 12/17/2013 on the Company's website). These high-grade ores and products currently command larger price premiums over standard ores (62% Fe) resulting in higher margins for suppliers of high-grade products. Further to this, "cleaner" iron ores with a Fe content equal to or greater than 65% use less coal per unit of steel and as such produce lower emissions. The current global drive for lower emission steel production results in steel producers dramatically increasing their demand for these high-grade green ores. As this shift towards green steel and emission reduction continues the high grade XIF is uniquely placed to meet this emerging market.

Preliminary work on the Xaudum Iron project has defined a CIM compliant Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate of 441 million tonnes (Mt) with an average grade of 29.4% Fe, 41.0% SiO2, 6.1% Al2O3 and 0.3% P for the Block 1 magnetite XIF. Block 1 is a fraction of the potential XIF magnetite resource. An extrapolated exploration target has defined the XIF to be in the order of 5 to 7 billion tonnes at 15-40% Fe. This exploration target was generated by inversion modelling of ground magnetic geophysical data which was compared and moderated to volumes from drilling data within Block 1 and its potential quantity and grade is conceptual in nature. To date, there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource other than in Block 1 and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a mineral resource.

Tsodilo's Chairman and CEO, James M. Bruchs, commented "These results will be important to the technical evaluation and economic understanding of the project and will be included in the PEA. The iron ore market is entering a new "Super Cycle" based on improving fundamentals and a healthy market and has recently recorded the highest price on record. This encouraging market outlook coupled with the gathering pace of the green steel revolution means that we are confident that the PEA will bring strong added value to the Company as we develop this project towards mining."

Iron Analysis

755 samples have been consigned for XRF chemical assay to the ALS Chemex Minerals Division Geochemistry laboratory (ALS) in Johannesburg, South Africa for Fe analysis by industry standard XRF borate fusion beads and LOI by muffle furnace. These samples represent 1,230 meters of high grade XIF mineralization within the Block 2a area, see Table 1 for the details of these samples sent for assay.

Table 1. Table showing the drill holes and total meters of XIF mineralization contained in the samples sent for assay. Also shown is the average density and magnetic susceptibility for the Fe mineralization in these holes.

Hole ID From

(m) To

(m) Number of Samples XIF Mineralization

(m) Density

(g/cm3) Magnetic Susceptibility

(x10-3) XIF0013V 18.0 150.0 78 108.0 3.18 642.7 XIF0015V 47.7 200.7 88 150.7 3.22 479.7 XIF0014V 48.0 201.0 92 166.0 3.23 578.0 XIF0017V 44.0 200.6 91 150.7 3.18 650.1 XIF0016V 35.6 185.2 90 147.2 3.19 406.1 XIF0010E_2 21.0 75.0 32 43.0 3.20 205.0 XIF0010W_1 9.3 201.0 113 208.7 3.26 609.6 XIF0011E_1 18.5 132.0 68 81.5 3.26 456.2 L9650_8 36.7 128.6 55 91.9 NA 513.5 L9630_15 77.7 160.2 48 82.3 NA NA Totals /Average 755 1,230.0 m 3.22 536.6



Geotechnical Test-Works

34 samples from the main XIF geological domains that will comprise the majority of the envisioned pit walls have been sent for geotechnical test-work to the Department of Mining and Geological Engineering at BIUST.

Laboratory tests to be conducted:

18 samples will undergo Unconfined Compressive Strength ("UCS") testing. UCS tests the maximum axial compressive stress that a specimen can bear under zero confining stress. USC testing is a common test to understand the rock strength of a sample, and is widely used in geotechnical design for establishing an overall RMR for pit design;

8 samples will undergo Brazilian Tensile Strength testing. The Brazilian Test is a common laboratory test to indirectly determine a rock's tensile strength and is an important parameter in establishing a robust RMR for pit design. The Brazilian Test is the most widely used tensile strength test as the sample preparation and the testing procedure are efficient compared to other tensile strength tests;

8 samples will undergo Direct Shear Strength tests on a selection of common discontinuities to aid in the establishment of a robust RMR for pit design.

Table 2. Shows the breakdown of the geotechnical samples by Geodomain

and the test works to be performed

Geodomain UCS Brazilian Tensile Strength Direct Shear Strength Kalahari Overburden (KAS) 4 Diamictite schist (DIA) 5 4 4 Weathered Diamictite schist (DIA) 4 Banded magnetite (MBA) 4 4 4 Weathered Banded magnetite MBW) 1 Weathered magnetic diamictite schist (DMW) Sub-Total 18 8 8 Total 34



Density and Magnetic Susceptibility

The samples sent for iron assay have been measured for density using the Archimedean method of weighing dry and then weighing submerged in water. The average density for the Fe mineralization in these holes can be seen in Table 1.

Magnetic susceptibility readings (Table 1) have been recorded on these samples providing an instant first-order understanding of the mineralogy of the iron bearing rocks being drilled. Any magnetic susceptibility readings over 100 (x10-3) are considered high and indicate a high proportion of magnetite where magnetite is the dominant magnetitic and iron bearing component within the XIF.

About Botswana International University of Science and Technology

The Botswana International University of Science and Technology is a Government of Botswana supported institution established as a research-intensive University that specializes in Engineering, Science and Technology at both undergraduate and graduate (Master's and Doctoral) levels.

The University is a national strategic initiative that is intended to serve as one of the key platforms for transforming Botswana's economy. Because of its research emphasis, BIUST works with the private sector to meet emerging skills needs of the industry, as well as identifies challenges that can be solved through applied research.

About ALS Chemex, South Africa

ALS is a global leader in providing laboratory testing, inspection, certification and verification solutions with a reputation for providing quality analytical services to the global mining industry in the fields of analytical chemistry, mineralogy and metallurgical testing, commodity analysis and certification.

About the XIF Project

the project is located in the North-West District of Botswana and is proximate to the Namibian boarder and lies thirty (30) miles from the town of Divundu in Namibia. The Trans Caprivi Railway (TCR) line linking Zambia and Namibia is planned to pass through Divundu providing access to Walvis Bay, Namibia's deep-sea port. The project is also located within forty-three (43) miles of the proposed Mucusso line to Angola's Namibe Port;

preliminary work on the Xaudum Iron project has defined a CIM compliant Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate of 441 million tonnes (Mt) with an average grade of 29.4% Fe, 41.0% SiO2, 6.1% Al2O3 and 0.3% P for the Block 1 magnetite XIF;

Block 1 is a fraction of the potential XIF magnetite resource. An extrapolated exploration target has defined the XIF to be in the order of 5 to 7 billion tonnes at 15- 40% Fe. This exploration target was generated by inversion modelling of ground magnetic geophysical data which was compared and moderated to volumes from drilling data within Block 1 and its potential quantity and grade is conceptual in nature. To date, there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource other than in Block 1 and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a mineral resource. See, Press Release of 9/14/2014 on the Company's website for further details;

metallurgical magnetic separation results (Davis Tube Recovery) show an average concentrate of 67.2% Fe, 4.2% SiO2, 0.5% Al2O3, 0.07% P is obtained at P80 grind size of 80 microns, although higher grades are possible at finer P80's. See, Press Release of 12/17/2013 on the Company's website ;

further exploration will be focused on Block 2 where the Company expects an increase in the resource;

the XIF Project is a potential large and long-life Tier 1 mining project;

the PEA will evaluate a number of options for development of the project at a variety of scales including: non-traditional but potentially profitable small-scale startup mining production options such as Ferrosilicon (FeSi) production from a magnetite concentrate, mid-size scenarios, whereby magnetite concentrate would be processed through a concentrator and transported to railhead and onto port facilities; large-scale mining options where full-scale mining would produce a magnetite concentrate processed by a concentrator plant with further potential modification to a pellet which would then be transported to port facilities;

Botswana has significant coal reserves which can be a major advantage for the Xaudum Iron project, allowing for coal to be used in the beneficiation process to generate iron products such as iron pellets, sponge iron, pig iron, and also steel; and,

the project would represent the first iron deposit to be considered for development in Botswana. Gcwihaba has identified the project as having the potential to positively impact the future economy of Botswana as the country looks to diversify its economy, and help Botswana to reach its goal of moving away from a dependence on diamond revenues.

For more information, refer to the technical report prepared by SRK Consulting (UK) Ltd. for Gcwihaba Resources (Pty) Ltd. titled "Mineral Resource Estimate for the Xaudum Iron Project (Block 1), Republic of Botswana" with an effective date of August 29, 2014 and filed on SEDAR under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com.

An informational presentation of the project can be found on the Company's website at www.tsodiloresources.com/i/pdf/3)-Tsodilo-Iron-Project-Overview_March-2021.pdf.

About Tsodilo Resources Limited

Tsodilo Resources Limited is an international diamond and metals exploration company engaged in the search for economic diamond, metal deposits and industrial stone at its Bosoto (Pty) Limited ("Bosoto"), Gcwihaba Resources (Pty) Limited ("Gcwihaba") and Newdico (Pty) Ltd. ("Newdico) projects in Botswana and its Idada 361 (Pty) Limited ("Idada") project in Barberton, South Africa. The Company has a 100% stake in Bosoto (Pty) Ltd. which holds the BK16 kimberlite project in the Orapa Kimberlite Field (OKF) in Botswana and the PL216/2017 diamond prospection license also in the OKF. The Company has a 100% stake in its Gcwihaba project area consisting of seven metal (base, precious, platinum group, and rare earth) prospecting licenses all located in the North-West district of Botswana. The Company has a 100% interest in its Newdico industrial stone project located in Botswana's Central District. Additionally, Tsodilo has a 70% stake in Idada Trading 361 (Pty) Limited which holds the gold and silver exploration license in the Barberton area of South Africa. Tsodilo manages the exploration of the Newdico, Gcwihaba, Bosoto and Idada projects. Overall supervision of the Company's exploration program is the responsibility of Dr. Alistair Jeffcoate, Project Manager and Chief Geologist of the Company and a "qualified person" as such term is defined in National Instrument 43-101.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future (including, without limitation, statements pertaining to the use of proceeds, the impact of strategic partnerships and statements that describe the Company's future plans, objectives or goals) are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect the current expectations or beliefs of the Company based on information currently available to the Company. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward- looking statements, and even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on the Company. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things, changes in equity markets, changes in general economic conditions, market volatility, political developments in Botswana and surrounding countries, changes to regulations affecting the Company's activities, uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future, exploration and development risks, the uncertainties involved in interpreting exploration results and the other risks involved in the mineral exploration business. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. Although the Company believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.

Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements and, even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, the Company. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things, uncertainties relating to availability and cost of funds, timing and content of work programs, results of exploration activities, interpretation of drilling results and other geological data, risks relating to variations in the diamond grade and kimberlite lithologies; variations in rates of recovery and breakage; estimates of grade and quality of diamonds, variations in diamond valuations and future diamond prices; the state of world diamond markets, reliability of mineral property titles, changes to regulations affecting the Company's activities, delays in obtaining or failure to obtain required project approvals, operational and infrastructure risk and other risks involved in the diamond exploration and development business. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. Although the Company believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to their inherent uncertainty.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSXV") nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. This news release may contain assumptions, estimates, and other forward-looking statements regarding future events. Such forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties and are subject to factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control, which may cause actual results or performance to differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

James M. Bruchs

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

JBruchs@TsodiloResources.com

Dr. Alistair Jeffcoate

Project Manager and Chief Geologist

Alistair.Jeffcoate@tsodiloresources.com

Head Office

Telephone +1 416 572 2033

Facsimile + 1 416 987 4369

Website

http://www.TsodiloResources.com

SOURCE: Tsodilo Resources Limited

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646379/Tsodilo-Resources-Limited-Initiates-Studies-for-the-Preliminary-Economic-Assessment-for-the-High-Grade-Xaudum-Iron-Project-in-Botswana
Specialty property and casualty insurer chooses Duck Creek Reinsurance Management to increase its scalability, speed, and process efficiency

Boston, May 11, 2021to handle its reinsurance processing needs with a modern, cloud-based solution. The company cited their desire to eliminate manual processes and increase risk management efforts regarding data accuracy and claims administration as factors in their decision in support of their continuous improvement.

Topa specializes in small to medium size businesses with low and moderate hazard exposures. Over the past year, the company has announced an effort to increase its focus on commercial lines products. The organization's finance team is modernizing all back-end financial planning and accounting systems in an effort to shorten its closing cycle. The partnership with Duck Creek reinforces Topa's customer-centric focus and drive to exceed expectations with sophisticated technologies.

"Given the challenges that many implementation projects face, Topa sought an advanced, attentive partner we could trust to provide a detailed plan around solution deployment and post-go-live support," said Lawrence Genalo, Chief Financial Officer of Topa Insurance Group. "The Duck Creek team has impressed us with their agile implementation approach and attention to detail from a features and functionality standpoint. We are confident that Duck Creek Reinsurance Management is the right solution to maximize our return on investment."

By automating critical reinsurance financial and administrative processes, Duck Creek Reinsurance Managementhelps cedants improve operational efficiencies, maximize recoverables, reduce claims leakage, and improve data analytics and financial reporting. Digitally transforming reinsurance administration creates opportunities to strategically leverage data in ways that were previously extremely difficult. With the ability to better understand reinsurance transactions and outcomes, finance and risk management teams can leverage data to make critical decisions regarding risk appetite and support reinsurance contract negotiations. In addition, through rules-based automation, standardization, and data transparency, Reinsurance Management creates a more efficient and productive reinsurance administration program.

"We are very happy that Topa has chosen Duck Creek to support its business," said Jeff Wargin, Chief Product Officer of Duck Creek Technologies. "Labor-intensive tools such as spreadsheets and databases are not cut out to manage today's increasingly complex reinsurance programs, and lack the scalability and speed of our cloud-based solution. Reinsurance Management ensures that all reinsurance purchases achieve their intended goals of helping insurance companies manage risks and making available the capital needed to support those risks, so this was a great choice for Topa as they look to continued growth and diversification."

About Topa Insurance Group:

Topa Insurance Group is a boutique insurance holding company, made up of core company Topa Insurance Company, as well as Dorchester Insurance Company.

About Duck Creek Technologies:

Duck Creek Technologies, the company's enterprise Software-as-a-Service solution, insurance carriers are able to navigate uncertainty and capture market opportunities faster than their competitors. Duck Creek's functionally rich solutions are available on a stand-alone basis or as a full suite, and all are available via Duck Creek OnDemand. For more information, visit www.duckcreek.com.

Media Contact:

Paul Rechichi

Racepoint Global

617-624-3295

prechichi@racepointglobal.com
WEST MELBOURNE, FL / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / BK Technologies Corporation (NYSE American:BKTI) today announced its BKR 5000 communications technology was selected by Boardman Fire & Rescue District, in Boardman, Oregon.

BK President Tim Vitou commented, "We're pleased to deliver the BKR 5000 to Boardman Fire and Rescue. The 5000s will go into their Wildland Fire Cache and be used for that purpose, interoperating with State and Federal Agencies using BK technology. The BKR5000 was selected due the option for the high-visibility yellow housing, top display, integrated GPS, high-capacity battery, and rugged design. We are honored to provide this major Oregon city with our new BKR 5000 portable communications technology, the first model in a new line of technology incorporating multi-band products this year."

The BKR 5000 comes in three tiers allowing maximum flexibility and customization for the user's mission-critical needs and has been designed to meet the requirements of today's tough Public Safety communications environment. The BKR 5000 was designed and developed by the BK Technologies engineering team with extensive input from customers to incorporate the features and options needed by first responders. A full line of accessories is available including intelligent battery and charging solutions, IP68 remote speaker microphones, and the popular BK wildland fire alkaline battery "clamshell". The new BKR 5000 is expected to be a platform that enhances BK's ability to address significant new vertical markets leading to expanded growth and market share.

About BK Technologies

BK Technologies Corporation manufactures high-specification, American-made communications equipment of unsurpassed reliability and value for use by public safety professionals and government agencies. BK Technologies is honored to serve these heroes with reliable equipment when every moment counts. The Company's common stock trades on the NYSE American market under the symbol "BKTI". Maintaining its headquarters in West Melbourne, Florida, BK Technologies can be contacted through its web site at www.bktechnologies.com or directly at 1-800-821-2900.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the "Safe Harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements concern the Company's operations, economic performance and financial condition and are based largely on the Company's beliefs and expectations. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors and risks, some of which have been, and may further be, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, include, among others, the following: changes or advances in technology; the success of our land mobile radio product line; successful introduction of new products and technologies, including our ability to successfully develop and sell our anticipated new multiband product and other related products in the planned new BKR Series product line; competition in the land mobile radio industry; general economic and business conditions, including federal, state and local government budget deficits and spending limitations, any impact from a prolonged shutdown of the U.S. Government, and the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic; the availability, terms and deployment of capital; reliance on contract manufacturers and suppliers; risks associated with fixed-price contracts; heavy reliance on sales to agencies of the U.S. Government and our ability to comply with the requirements of contracts, laws and regulations related to such sales; allocations by government agencies among multiple approved suppliers under existing agreements; our ability to comply with U.S. tax laws and utilize deferred tax assets; our ability to attract and retain executive officers, skilled workers and key personnel; our ability to manage our growth; our ability to identify potential candidates for, and consummate, acquisition, disposition or investment transactions, and risks incumbent to being a noncontrolling interest stockholder in a corporation; impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the companies in which the Company holds investments; impact of our capital allocation strategy; risks related to maintaining our brand and reputation; impact of government regulation; rising health care costs; our business with manufacturers located in other countries, including changes in the U.S. Government and foreign governments' trade and tariff policies, as well as any further impact resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic; our inventory and debt levels; protection of our intellectual property rights; fluctuation in our operating results and stock price; acts of war or terrorism, natural disasters and other catastrophic events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic; any infringement claims; data security breaches, cyber-attacks and other factors impacting our technology systems; availability of adequate insurance coverage; maintenance of our NYSE American listing; risks related to being a holding company; and the effect on our stock price and ability to raise equity capital of future sales of shares of our common stock. Certain of these factors and risks, as well as other risks and uncertainties, are stated in more detail in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020 and in the Company's subsequent filings with the SEC. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements.

Company Contact:

Hayden IR

James Carbonara

james@haydenir.com

(646)-755-7412

SOURCE: BK Technologies Corporation

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646304/BK-Technologies-Announces-Award-from-Boardman-Fire-Rescue-District-for-New-BKR-5000-Portable-Communications-Technology
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Brigadier Gold Limited (the "Company" or "Brigadier") (TSXV:BRG)(FSE:B7LM)(OTC PINK:BGADF) is pleased to provide a summary of the recently completed phase-one exploration program at it Picachos gold-silver-copper project Sinaloa, Mexico (the "Picachos Project", "Picachos" or the "Property"). In total 5057 metres of diamond drill was completed in 50-holes across eleven different prospects on the Property, most of which were never previously drill tested. Remaining assays are anticipated to be received in June.

Phase-one Drilling Highlights:

San Agustin past-producing gold mine with a principal result of 7.45 g/t gold and 51 g/t silver across 7 metres in DH-BRG-001. Significant widths and grades were intercepted in several holes from San Agustin.

San Antonio historic gold-copper mine with 12.62 g/t gold and 78 g/t silver with 4.5% copper across 0.8 metres in DH-BRG-026.

La Gloria historic gold mine with values of 10.65 g/t gold across 1 metre in a larger interval of 2.29 g/t gold across 8 metres in DH-BRG-028.

Rob Birmingham, President & CEO, comments, "With Picachos' first ever diamond drill program concluded, Brigadier now has a robust dataset from which to plan the next phase of exploration. Over the course of the last eight months, exploration efforts have produced several high priority targets which the Company intends to follow up on, including a copper and base metals porphyry on the North end of the Picachos Project. With copper reaching all time high's, it is truly an exciting time to take a closer look at this aspect of the Property."

Assays are still pending for 518 metres of drilling completed in phase-one, most of which is from a 3-hole fence drilled across El Placer Norte where underground sampling returned grades of up to 12.79 g/t across the Huarache Vein. Perhaps more significantly, a surface trench across the El Placer trend returned values of 0.5 g/t gold across 65 metres in BRG-117154. This was followed by 8 metres of 2.14 g/t gold in adjacent trench BRG-117146.

Further indications of a possible bulk tonnage gold target were returned from trench BRG-26892 with values of 1.07 g/t gold across 6 metres from a newly discovered mineralized outcrop of porphyritic rhyolite on the Santa Elena ridge, about 850 metres southwest of Garabato and 750 metres north of El Placer Norte.

A copper porphyry target with associated base metals was confirmed in the northwestern part of the Property where approximately 350 metres of semi-continuous hand trenching on Line 2569200 uncovered sericitic alteration with values mainly greater than 240 ppm molybdenum (Mo) with up to 0.22% Mo across 6 metres. These results confirm the bedrock source for overlying Mo-in-soil results of up to 456 ppm Mo. This anomaly is about 400 hectares in size and is roughly defined by soil samples at 50 metre spacing on survey lines spaced 400 metres apart. Sericite with molybdenite is interpreted to represent part of a hydrolytic alteration shell around a buried porphyry system.

Brigadier has 17.7 line kilometres of first-order geochemical anomalies for gold, copper and molybdenum outside the drilled areas that merit systematic mapping and trenching. A portion of these have been selected for near-term work this summer. Access routes for heavy equipment have been surveyed both to Garabato and to the porphyry area. The Company is considering an airborne geophysical survey to better understand both faulting and intrusions related to mineralization.

National Instrument 43-101 Disclosure

The technical information in this press release has been reviewed by Michelle Robinson, MASc., P.Eng., a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Core and sample handling procedures are documented in the Company's press release dated October 22, 2020. Standard pulps, field duplicates, pulp duplicates and blanks are inserted into the sample stream. The samples were analyzed by SGS Laboratories in Durango using fire-assay methods for gold, and ICP methods with a 4-acid digestion for silver and base metals. SGS is an accredited laboratory. It is the Qualified Person's opinion that the technical information disclosed in this press release is reliable.

Please visit our website to learn more about Brigadier Gold.

About Brigadier Gold Limited

Brigadier was formed to leverage the next major bull market in the natural resource sector, particularly precious metals. Our mandate is to acquire undervalued and overlooked projects with demonstrable potential for advancement.

Led by a management team with decades of experience in mineral exploration and capital markets development, we are focused on advanced exploration opportunities in politically stable jurisdictions.

For further information, please contact:

Brigadier Gold Limited

www.brigadiergold.ca

Rob Birmingham, Chief Executive Officer

rob@brigadiergold.ca

Leah Hodges, Corporate Secretary

(604) 377-0403

Reader Advisory

This news release may contain statements which constitute "forward-looking information", including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs and current expectations of the Company, its directors, or its officers with respect to the future business activities of the Company. The words "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect" and similar expressions, as they relate to the Company, or its management, are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future business activities and involve risks and uncertainties, and that the Company's future business activities may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, fluctuations in market prices, successes of the operations of the Company, continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such information will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. The Company does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking information except as required under the applicable securities laws.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Brigadier Gold Limited

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646307/Brigadier-Completes-Phase-One-Exploration-at-Picachos-With-Multiple-Follow-up-Drill-Targets-Assays-Pending-for-Prospective-El-Placer-Norte-Target-where-sampling-returned-up-to-1279-gt-Gold
TransPerfect, the world's largest provider of language and technology solutions for global business, today announced the launch of three websites with an aligned content approach for ABN AMRO Private Banking.

Based in the Netherlands, ABN AMRO Private Banking serves clients both domestically and in Northwest Europe with a full range of products and financial services for private banking customers. In an effort to streamline brand continuity across regions, they undertook a full web refresh and centralized content publishing with the goal of being able to deploy and update relevant financial content to Dutch, English, French, and German.

Brand guidelines specific to each market that detail corporate requirements for tone and terminology were developed using TransPerfect's global networks of copywriters and native-speaking linguists. TransPerfect collaborated closely with both ABN AMRO Private Banking's central content team and local language reviewers to provide localized website content with brand voice continuity.

Linde van Loenen, Digital Marketing Strategist from ABN AMRO Private Banking, commented, "The assignment was a real challenge with a big deadline. We needed a lot of new content for different countries, provided by local experts with their own style and vision. Every piece of content was related to our complex financial services, in a high demanding niche market. TransPerfect did a great job and delivered everything on time, with high quality-a powerful start for a new long-term partnership."

TransPerfect President and CEO Phil Shawe stated, "As ABN AMRO Private Banking continues to operate in various markets across Europe, we are proud to stand alongside them and help create meaningful customer interactions through localized websites."

About ABN AMRO Private Banking

Today's ABN AMRO Private Banking offers a full range of products and services to retail, private, commercial, and merchant banking clients. ABN AMRO Private Banking is one of the leading banks in the Netherlands. With a main focus on Northwest Europe, they provide loans, mortgages, and other banking services and solutions to companies and individuals.

About TransPerfect

TransPerfect is the world's largest provider of language and technology solutions for global business. From offices in over 100 cities on six continents, TransPerfect offers a full range of services in 170+ languages to clients worldwide. More than 5,000 global organizations employ TransPerfect's GlobalLink technology to simplify management of multilingual content. With an unparalleled commitment to quality and client service, TransPerfect is fully ISO 9001 and ISO 17100 certified. TransPerfect has global headquarters in New York, with regional headquarters in London and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit our website at www.transperfect.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005288/en/

Contacts:

Ryan Simper +1 212.689.5555

mediainquiry@transperfect.com
Biolog-id, a global service provider of connected healthcare solutions, and Nicholson Consulting Ltd, an innovative consulting and engineering company specialized in the blood transfusion field, join their forces to set up a demonstration lab located at Malvern Hills Science Park, in the south of Birmingham. This co-branded demo environment will showcase to the UK market the biolog-id's cutting-edge product-line: Biolog Transfusion Solution.

Based on the RFID technology, Biolog Transfusion Solution has been designed to respond to the needs of all the actors involved along the blood transfusion supply chain. By combining software, equipment and tags, this breakthrough innovation offers to manage in real-time each application area, from collection and manufacturing at the blood centre, central and remote inventory at the blood banks to blood compound administration at patient's bedside.

Flexible and reliable, the biolog-id technology generates value throughout the lifecycle of blood products to help healthcare professionals better drive their operations. Benefits that customers will be able to discover from the opening of the showroom, scheduled for early June.

"We are very pleased to collaborate with biolog-id to successfully implement this project. This demonstration lab will be a real asset for our potential customers: this will not only allow them to see Biolog Transfusion Solution in real-world but also experiment and handle it", declares Gordon Nicholson, Managing Director at Nicholson Consulting Ltd.

"Beyond presenting our solutions, this demonstration laboratory will allow us to test and validate new equipment aimed at strengthening our offer. We have full confidence in our local partner who will be able to effectively manage this innovation facility, the first for biolog-id", says Philippe Jacquet, Executive Director of Sales EMEA/LATAM at biolog-id.

Present in 14 countries all over the world, biolog-id continues its development over the Channel with the implementation of this new demonstration laboratory. In the United Kingdom, the Biolog Transfusion Solution has already been adopted by the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS) to efficiently manage the supply of blood products to different remote centres and communities.

About biolog-id:

Biolog-id develops and implements innovative solutions, that digitally transform routine processes into actionable data supporting better operational and strategic decisions for sensitive therapeutic products: blood products (red blood cells, platelets, plasma), chemotherapies, parenteral nutrition.

The information generated by biolog-id solutions is available to Healthcare Professionals at any time, enhancing their processes efficiency, work conditions and ultimately the safety of the therapeutics administered to patients.

Biolog-id's patented platform is utilized in North America, Europe, Middle East, India, and Asia Pacific. Biolog-id is owned by its founder, managers, and the Xerys Funds. Xerys Gestion is a French investment company primarily positioned on trending sectors that include healthcare Life Sciences, renewable energy/GreenTech and new digital technologies.

Company URL: www.biolog-id.com

About Nicholson Consulting Ltd:

Nicholson Consulting Ltd is a SME innovation company working in the specialist field of blood component production and in the design of blood collection systems both for human and animal transfusion. The company is based in the Malvern Hills Science Park and the staff have a combined experience of over 50 years working in Blood Transfusion Service and hospital haematology laboratories. More recently the company has been in a collaboration with a major blood pack supplier to assist in their R&D and product validation programmes.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005757/en/

Contacts:

Astrid Billard, astrid.billard@biolog-id.com
EP Global Opportunities Trust plc (the "Company")

The Company announces that on 10 May 2021 it purchased 50,000 of its own Ordinary 1p shares at a price of 2.875 per share. The shares have been placed into Treasury.

Following this transaction, the Company has 27,516,917 Ordinary shares held in Treasury and 36,992,725 Ordinary shares in circulation. Accordingly, the total voting rights in the Company are 36,992,725. The total number of shares in issue remains as 64,509,642.

The above total voting rights figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine whether they are required to notify their interest in EP Global Opportunities Trust plc under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

11 May 2021

LEI: 2138005T5CT5ITZ7ZX58

Enquiries:

Kenneth J Greig

Edinburgh Partners AIFM Limited

Tel: 0131 270 3800

The Company's registered office address is:

27-31 Melville Street

Edinburgh

EH3 7JF
OXFORD, United Kingdom and MARLBOROUGH, Mass., May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Oxford Immunotec a global, high-growth diagnostics company part of PerkinElmer, announced that its T-SPOT.COVID test will be used for T cell testing in the COV-AD (COVID infection in patients with Antibody Deficiency) study in collaboration with the University of Birmingham. The study will monitor the clinical course of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the immunological response of patients to vaccination. The study will collect samples from 13 sites around the UK.



The COV-AD study aims to build on the UK Primary Immunodeficiency Network (UKPIN) data by determining the prevalence, course and outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients with Primary Antibody Deficiency (PAD)/Secondary Antibody Deficiency (SAD). This study should lead to a clearer understanding of whether individuals with antibody deficiency mount durable immune responses, and if they do not, the impact that has on the virus itself. Development of anti-SARS-CoV-2 immunity to COVID infection or vaccination will be tested by blood sampling to measure specific antibody titre and for the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 T cells. The results of this study will be widely applicable to immunosuppressed patients, development of vaccination strategies and the understanding of risk for continuous virus transmission.

Oxford Immunotec's T-SPOT.COVID kit is CE marked for IVD use and will be used to assess the T cell response in patients following SARS-CoV-2 infection or vaccination. The kit uses the T-SPOT technology platform, a commercialized, modified ELISPOT platform, which allows for the standardized and reproducible measurement of T cells reactive to SARS-CoV-2. The T-SPOT technology has previously been used in TB testing (the T-SPOT.TB test) where it is known to maintain its high performance even in immunosuppressed individuals. PAD/SAD are a diverse group of disorders, characterised by various degrees of dysfunctional antibody production. Understanding the T cell response to infection or vaccination in study subjects is therefore of critical importance to determining if the immune system is responding in these individuals at all. It could also help to increase the understanding of the role T cells play in combating COVID-19 in the general population.

Chief Investigator of COV-AD Professor Alex Richter, of the University of Birmingham, said: "Nationally, a number of patients with immunodeficiency have had severe or prolonged illness with COVID-19. Understanding why some patients do well and others do not, is so important. Being unable to clear the virus is not just a problem to the patient but is potentially a public health problem too."

Dr. Andrew Makin, VP of Medical Affairs at Oxford Immunotec stated; "We are pleased to be partnering with the University of Birmingham on this clinical trial which will help characterize COVID-19 infection in patients with antibody deficiency. Measuring the T cell response in immune deficient patients will allow for a more comprehensive understanding of the immune response and inform on the vital role T cells may play in SARS-CoV-2 infection."

For further information visit www.tspotcovid.com.

About Oxford Immunotec

Oxford Immunotec is a global, high-growth diagnostics company and part of the PerkinElmer group. We bring energy and invention to a world in need of diagnostic truth. We are uniquely placed as the only company in the world offering regulated ELISPOT assays for T cell measurement, with approval around the globe. Our leading product, the T-SPOT.TB test, is used for diagnosing infection with Tuberculosis, the world's largest cause of death from infectious disease. The Company is an experienced manufacturer of IVD tests, operating under a fully audited Quality Management System, ensuring rigorous batch control. The company has manufactured in excess of 20 million clinical T cell tests for TB infection. The T-SPOT.TB test has been approved for sale in over 50 countries, including the United States). The Company is headquartered near Oxford, U.K. and in Marlborough, MA. Additional information can be found at www.oxfordimmunotec.com.

About PerkinElmer

PerkinElmer enables scientists, researchers and clinicians to address their most critical challenges across science and healthcare. With a mission focused on innovating for a healthier world, we deliver unique solutions to serve the diagnostics, life sciences, food and applied markets. We strategically partner with customers to enable earlier and more accurate insights supported by deep market knowledge and technical expertise. Our dedicated team of about 14,000 employees worldwide is passionate about helping customers work to create healthier families, improve the quality of life, and sustain the wellbeing and longevity of people globally. The Company reported revenue of approximately $3.8 billion in 2020, serves customers in 190 countries, and is a component of the S&P 500 index. Additional information is available through 1-877-PKI-NYSE, or at www.perkinelmer.com.

About the University of Birmingham

The University of Birmingham is ranked amongst the world's top 100 institutions, and its work brings people from across the world to Birmingham, including researchers and teachers and more than 6,500 international students from nearly 150 countries. www.birmingham.ac.uk

For Media Inquiries:

US: Mary Conway

MKC Strategies, LLC

Tel: +1

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Megan Anderson

ZPB Associates

Mobile: 07597572287

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Regulatory News:

Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) (NYSE: PM) will host a live video webcast of the company's remarks and question-and-answer session by Jacek Olczak, Chief Executive Officer, at the 2021 Goldman Sachs Global Staples Forum at www.pmi.com/2021goldmansachs on Tuesday, May 18, 2021, at approximately 9:40 a.m. ET.

The webcast will be held in a virtual format and provide a live video of the entire PMI session.

The webcast can also be accessed on iOS or Android devices by downloading PMI's free Investor Relations Mobile Application at www.pmi.com/irapp.

An archived copy of the webcast will be available at www.pmi.com/2021goldmansachs until 5:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, June 16, 2021.

Presentation slides will be available on the same site.

Philip Morris International: Delivering a Smoke-Free Future

Philip Morris International (PMI) is leading a transformation in the tobacco industry to create a smoke-free future and ultimately replace cigarettes with smoke-free products to the benefit of adults who would otherwise continue to smoke, society, the company and its shareholders. PMI is a leading international tobacco company engaged in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes, as well as smoke-free products, associated electronic devices and accessories, and other nicotine-containing products in markets outside the U.S. In addition, PMI ships versions of its IQOS Platform 1 device and consumables to Altria Group, Inc. for sale under license in the U.S., where these products have received marketing authorizations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) pathway; the FDA has also authorized the marketing of a version of IQOS and its consumables as a Modified Risk Tobacco Product (MRTP), finding that an exposure modification order for these products is appropriate to promote the public health. PMI is building a future on a new category of smoke-free products that, while not risk-free, are a much better choice than continuing to smoke. Through multidisciplinary capabilities in product development, state-of-the-art facilities and scientific substantiation, PMI aims to ensure that its smoke-free products meet adult consumer preferences and rigorous regulatory requirements. PMI's smoke-free product portfolio includes heat-not-burn and nicotine-containing vapor products. As of March 31, 2021, PMI's smoke-free products are available for sale in 66 markets in key cities or nationwide, and PMI estimates that approximately 14.0 million adults around the world have already switched to IQOS and stopped smoking. For more information, please visit www.pmi.com and www.pmiscience.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005762/en/

Contacts:

Philip Morris International

Investor Relations:

New York: +1 (917) 663 2233

Lausanne: +41 (0)58 242 4666

Email: InvestorRelations@pmi.com



Media:

Lausanne: +41 (0)58 242 4500

Email: Iro.Antoniadou@pmi.com
San Diego, California and Roxboro, North Carolina--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Hempacco, Co. Inc. and Open Book Extracts today announced the debut of their proprietary Cannabinoid Hemp Cigarette Spraying and Flavoring Technology at this year's Tobacco Plus Expo (TPE), being held this week from May 12-14 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The TPE conference will represent the first major trade show to return to the Las Vegas Convention Center following a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Hempacco and Open Book Extracts will exhibit together at Booth 10106 of the TPE trade show where they will largely focus on introducing their latest spraying and flavoring technologies for CBD, CBG, and Hemp Cigarettes. The Companies will also host a daily happy hour social event with various distributors, investors, and buyers in their hotel suite.

"Open Book Extracts is proud to join Hempacco at this year's Tobacco Plus Expo, together offering a wide range of innovative flavoring and infusing products and services to the rapidly evolving hemp cigarette and cannabinoid industries," said Dave Neundorfer, OBX CEO. "As an industry-leading developer and manufacturer of cannabinoid products, OBX is excited to have the ability to showcase our collection of turnkey finished goods available for private label, including gummies, tablets, soft gels, oral dissolving strips, and single-dose Easysnaps. In addition, OBX holds the patent for smokable applications of terpenoids, to create finished smokable products with consistent, repeatable, and reliable terpene profiles, delivering products that companies and consumers can trust."

"The timing of our initiative to become the industry's largest publicly-traded hemp cigarette company could not have been better as the TPE is the perfect venue to sell our Hemp Cigarettes to some of the largest distributors in the country," said Sandro Piancone, Founder and CEO of Hempacco, Co. Inc. "OBX is the perfect joint venture partner to take to the expo; because of their innovative products and patented technologies, which we can use to change the flavor of any hemp smokable or enhance the cannabinoid profile. In addition to OBX, we are looking forward to meeting several of our other joint venture partners in addition to existing and new investors in Hempacco. Our investors have been instrumental in helping us deliver consecutive years of strong revenue and earnings growth and, more importantly, will be taking a much more influential role going forward as we take the final steps to finalize our capital raise and prepare for our first trading day as a publicly-listed entity."

Hempacco and Open Book Extracts will be actively introducing their Hemp Cigarettes infused with OBX's patented flavoring and terpenoid enhancing technology for some of the industry's largest tobacco distributors at the TPE show. As the tobacco industry's largest annual trade show, the TPE show is expected to provide the perfect venue to introduce the Company's new CBD and CBG-rich Hemp Smokables to both regional and master distributors.

OBX will also be actively exploring commercialization and licensing opportunities for the various applications of its smokable product patent. For further details on licensing and partnership opportunities or to learn more about OBX products and services, please contact Nicole Brown, Chief Revenue Officer at OBX, at nicole@openbookextracts.com.

In addition to its scheduled meetings with distributors and other integral participants of the tobacco and cigarette industry, Hempacco will also be meeting with investors that have expressed interest in participating in Hempacco' s next capital raise as it prepares to become one of the only "pure-play" hemp cigarette publicly-traded companies on Wall Street. Interested investors should contact Hempacco via phone at 775-473-1201 to schedule private meetings with management in the evenings from May 11-14.

To be added to the Company's email list please click this link or for additional information, please call our public relations department at 323-380-4500.

About Open Book Extracts

Headquartered in Roxboro, N.C., Open Book Extracts is a cGMP-certified manufacturer of premium plant-based cannabinoid products, aiming to be the industry's true north by delivering premium products, exceptional service, and industry-leading transparency. With control of the entire supply chain, a state-of-the-art extraction campus near North Carolina's Research Triangle, proprietary refinement and conversion methods backed by a growing IP portfolio, and a team of PhD chemists and seasoned business leaders, OBX is the trusted partner for global brands seeking to enter the marketplace. OBX Asia, with its headquarters in Hong Kong, provides strategic guidance and on-the-ground support for our Asia customers. For more information, visit https://www.openbookextracts.com.

About Hempacco, Co. Inc.:

Hempacco is Disrupting Tobacco's nearly $1 Trillion industry with herb and hemp-based alternatives to cigarettes by manufacturing and marketing consumer goods.

The Company owns research and development, manufacturing, and sales of smokable hemp brands, including The Real Stuff Hemp Smokables. Hempacco' s profit centers include private label agreements, Intellectual Property licensing, and the development and sales of their brands using patented counter displays as well as six hundred Kiosk vending machines called HempBoxes.

Contact us by Phone for Investment Opportunities: (775) 473 1201

Hempacco is raising capital; get the investment deck here: https://www.hempaccoinc.com

Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements

(This news release may include forward-looking statements including opinions, assumptions, estimates, the Company's assessment of future and operations, including but not limited to statements concerning a potential combination and the timing thereof. When used in this document, the words "will," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intent," "may," "project," "should," and similar expressions are intended to be among the statements that identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements are founded on the basis of expectations and assumptions made by the Company. Forward-looking statements are subject to a wide range of risks and uncertainties, and although the Company believes that the expectations represented by such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will be realized. Any number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements including, but not limited to: regulatory and third party approvals not being obtained in the manner or timing anticipated; the ability to implement corporate strategies; the state of domestic capital markets; the ability to obtain financing; changes in general market conditions; industry conditions and events; and other factors more fully described from time to time in the reports and filings made by the Company with OTC Markets Group, Inc. and/or the securities regulatory authorities. Except as required by applicable laws, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. We intend that all forward-looking statements be subject to the safe-harbor provisions of relevant securities laws, and to be considered forward-looking information within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.)

Company Contact:

info@hempaccopackaging.com

# # #

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83617
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - NSJ Gold Corp. (CSE: NSJ) (FSE: 9PZ) ("NSJ" or the "Company") announces the expansion of the Company's claim position at the Golden Hills Project, Arizona, USA. The new block of 20 unpatented lode claims totaling 162 hectares or 400 acres is contiguous with the original block of claims and includes ground covered by alluvium. This thin cover conceals any mineral potential in the area.

To the southeast of the new claim block, structures containing copper oxides can be seen trending northwest. Several shafts and prospect pits indicate strong interest by previous prospectors. To date, all major mineralized structures at the project have trended northwest. It is therefore believed some of these outcropping structures, may continue under the alluvial cover onto the newly staked lands.

Qualified Person

Richard Kern, Certified Professional Geologist, a qualified person as defined by Canadian National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release. Mr. Kern is not independent of the Company as he is Vice President of Exploration of NSJ Gold Corp.

About NSJ Gold Corp.

NSJ holds an option to acquire a 100% interest in the Golden Hills Project (the "Property") in Arizona USA, subject to a 3% net smelter returns royalty. The property is located 100 miles west of the Kay mine (owned by Arizona Metals Corp.) and 80 miles south of the Moss Mine (owned by Northern Vertex Mining Corp.). The Property consists of 7 patented claims and 114 unpatented mining claims covering a total of 2,370 acres (9.6 km2). NSJ's management team possess extensive experience in financing, exploration, development and mining.

WWW.NSJGOLD.COM

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Jag Sandhu, CEO and President 778-218-9638

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83521
CHICAGO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the new market research report "Thermoelectric Modules Market with COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Model (Single Stage, Multi Stage), Type (Bulk, Micro, Thin Film), Functionality (General Purpose, Deep Cooling), End-Use Application, and Region - Global Forecast to 2026", published by MarketsandMarkets, the market is projected to grow from USD 593 million in 2021 to USD 872 million by 2026; it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.0% during the forecast period. Owing to COVID-19, the thermoelectric modules market is estimated to face headwinds for 2020-2021. The growth of the thermoelectric modules market is driven by factors such as increasing demand for electric and luxury vehicles and the growing deployment of 5G connectivity. The new high-speed 5G telecommunication standard presents thermal challenges for critical components such as optical transceivers. Optical transceivers contain a laser diode that needs to be kept below 70C to ensure no loss of data transmission wherein TEMs need to be deployed. Hence, with the increasing deployment of 5G equipment, there will be an increasing demand for TEMs in telecommunications. TEMs are expected to be used in future electric vehicles. TEMs are used in electric vehicles to stabilize the temperature of a car's battery-operated system, especially for colder climates where battery efficiency can be reduced by up to 40%.

Ask for PDF Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=133137155

Single stage thermoelectric modules to account for larger share of thermoelectric modules market in 2021

Single-stage thermoelectric modules account for a larger share of the thermoelectric modules market and the trend will remain the same during the forecast period. Single-stage thermoelectric modules are suitable for a wide range of cooling and heating applications with low to high heat pumping capacities (depending on the module specifications). The main advantage of a single-stage module is that it covers a vast array of consumer, commercial, and industrial needs as it is available in many shapes and sizes while offering different levels of heat pumping capabilities. It is also less complex to design and manufacture compared to multistage modules.

Bulk thermoelectric modules segment to dominate thermoelectric modules market during forecast period

Bulk thermoelectric modules accounted for the largest share of the thermoelectric modules market and the trend will remain the same during the forecast period. Bulk thermoelectric modules are suitable for a wide variety of applications and have no design constraints compared to micro or thin-film thermoelectric modules. These modules can be configured for different power draw and cooling capabilities based on their design. They are also less complex to design, and manufacture compared to smaller modules. Bulk thermoelectric modules are widely used to make related components such as thermoelectric generators (TEGs) and heat pumps. TEGs are used in power plants to convert waste heat into additional electrical power. They are prevalent in industrial processes and heating as TEGs have long service-free lifetimes compared to other conventional generators.

Consumer Electronics application to register highest share for thermoelectric modules market in 2021

Thermoelectric modules used in consumer electronics accounted for the largest share of the thermoelectric modules market and the trend will remain the same during the forecast period. Consumer electronics manufacturers must constantly innovate and improve designs to create smaller, thinner, lighter, and more reliable products that meet customer demands. Due to fast-changing consumer preferences, thermoelectric cooling solutions offer a competitive advantage by enabling OEMs to develop desirable products and bring them faster to the market. Beverage dispensers including coffee and juice/milk machines require a thermoelectric module that delivers efficient performance, low operating noise, and low maintenance requirements. Water purification systems are another application area, which requires thermoelectric coolers for both cooling and heating water. Thermoelectric solutions are also expected to be featured in consumer wearables in the future. Hence, consumer electronics holds the largest market for thermoelectric modules.

Browse in-depth TOC on "Thermoelectric Modules Market"

159 - Tables

47 - Figures

211 - Pages

Inquiry Before Buying: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_BuyingNew.asp?id=133137155

Market in APAC estimated to have largest share during forecast period

APAC has emerged as a global focal point for large investments and business expansion opportunities. The region represents the fastest-growing market worldwide for thermoelectric modules. The increased demand for waste heat recovery, consumer goods, industrial automation, and healthcare monitoring devices is expected to drive this market in the region. APAC has a large consumer electronics industry consisting of countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea, which is the largest manufacturer and end user of consumer devices. South Korea is an important country for manufacturing portable consumer devices while China is the largest exporter of consumer refrigeration devices. Hence, for consumer electronics, the market in APAC is expected to continue to grow as markets in North America and Europe continue to stagnate over time.

North America is the most adversely affected region by the pandemic. Hesitant consumer spending on refrigerator and freezer replacements will drive the demand down for thermoelectric modules for consumer electronics. A decrease in disposable personal income is driving consumer reluctance to replace old appliances as a result of lower spending power in the US and Canada. The North American automotive market witnessed a sharp decline in 2020, resulting in fewer vehicle sales despite the introduction of new vehicle models by major automobile manufacturers. Many existing and potential vehicle buyers in North America are deferring their purchases at present. The commercial aerospace market in North America has also been severely affected, particularly in the US. The purchase of civilian aircraft production in 2020 has declined to around half of that of 2019, which, in turn, has reduced the demand for thermoelectric modules in aerospace applications.

Major vendors in the thermoelectric modules market include Ferrotec (US), II-VI Incorporated (US), KELK (Japan), Laird Thermal Systems (US), Guangdong Fuxin Technology (China), TE Technology (US), Phononic (US), INHECO Industrial Heating & Cooling (Germany), TEC Microsystems (Germany), Crystal (Russia), Kryotherm (Russia), Z-Max (Japan), Kyocera Corporation (Japan), Align Sourcing (US), HiTECH Technologies (US), Hi-Z Technology (US), Merit Technology Group (China), KJLP ELECTRONICS (China), P&N Technology (China), Thermonamic Electronics (China), Hui Mao (China), Wellen Technology (China), and Xiamen HIcool Electronics (China).

Related Reports:

Thermal Management Market with COVID-19 impact Analysis by Material, Device (Conduction, Convection, Advanced, and Hybrid), Service (Installation & Calibration and Optimization & Post-sales Support), End-Use Industry, and Region - Global Forecast to 2025

Energy Harvesting System Market by Technology (Light, Vibration, RF, Thermal), Component, Application (Building & Home Automation, Consumer Electronics, Industrial, Transportation, Security), and Region - Global Forecast to 2025

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Press release

May 11, 2021

Edenred unveils its purpose:

Enrich connections. For good.

Edenred unveiled its purpose at its General Meeting on May 11, 2021. Defined by its employees and approved by the Board of Directors, the Group's overriding goal is to "Enrich connections. For good."

Since it was founded, Edenred has been the everyday companion for people at work. The Group connects over 50 million users and 2 million partner merchants in 46 countries via more than 850,000 corporate clients, driving a virtuous circle through its 250-plus specific-purpose payment programs for food, mobility, incentives and corporate payments. With the unveiling of its purpose, Edenred is reaffirming its commitment to creating sustainable value for all its stakeholders thanks to these connections.

"Enrich connections. For good." brings new light to Edenred's ambition, making a strong link between the Group's roots, its current position, and the future that it envisages. This purpose is intended to inform the Group's strategic decisions and unite its teams by giving meaning to its organization, in line with its "Ideal" corporate social responsibility policy.

Enrich connections.

"Enrich connections." reflects the Group's expertise in transforming each transaction into an enhanced experience, into a smart, safe and efficient connection, while enhancing its value. Indeed, beyond payments, each transaction, each connection, addresses specific needs to enhance employees' well-being and purchasing power, improve companies' attractiveness and efficiency, and vitalize the employment market and the local economy.

For good.

"For good." is a message of progress and the possibility of a better future. Edenred's solutions have a positive impact on health and well-being. They support the local economy, protect vulnerable communities and preserve the environment.

"For good." is also a promise: in a world where many connections are fleeting, Edenred sets out to form solid, lasting bonds - meaningful, trust-based connections.

Bertrand Dumazy, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Edenred, said: "Defining our purpose marks a new chapter in Edenred's history, which started with the invention of the Ticket Restaurant in 1962, and has seen the Group spread its wings since its establishment in 2010. I would like to thank our employees for boldly taking up this challenge. Together, we took the time to think about what brings us together: our values, our strategic ambitions, our role as an economic player and corporate citizen, our relationships with our stakeholders, and our CSR policy. We managed to sum up all of these bonds in a meaningful expression that captures the essence of Edenred as it is today, and will guide us as we build the Edenred of tomorrow: 'Enrich connections. For good.'"

"Ideal": 3 commitments that embody Edenred's purpose

Edenred's purpose is embedded in all the Group's strategic thinking. It can be seen in action in its corporate social responsibility policy, through three strong commitments.

People: 40% women among executive position by 2030

Planet: -52% greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 vs. 2013

Progress: 85% of merchants & users sensitized to nutrition and food waste by 2030

The Combined General Meeting of Edenred shareholders, which was held in Paris on Tuesday, May 11, 2021 under the chairmanship of Bertrand Dumazy, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, also adopted resolution no. 17 proposed by the Board of Directors, which notably aims to make the authorization to proceed with 25% of the free share allocation plan contingent on the achievement of these criteria, assessed over three consecutive financial years.

A project driven by 10,000 committed employees in 46 countries

The development of Edenred's purpose was a truly collective undertaking, involving several hundred Group employees around the world.

Launched in April 2020, the project was initially driven by young Edenred talent taking part in the Group's "Edenstep" graduate program. Participants were divided into two working groups and asked to reflect on the concept of purpose, which involved organizing numerous workshops, benchmarks, surveys and interviews with other employees.

The young graduates then handed the project over to a "mirror group" of some 20 employees representing Edenred's various businesses and geographies, so that they could provide an operational perspective. Lastly, a larger group of roughly 300 employees was consulted by means of a questionnaire to establish Edenred's main assets and strengths in its environment.

While this was taking place, an independent study was conducted to stimulate the thought process, seeking input from internal and external stakeholders including clients, partners, public authorities, investors, sociologists and philosophers.

Watch Edenred's purpose in motion

Our manifesto: Enrich connections. For good.

It all started with a small piece of paper. A voucher.

This is what we first used to connect restaurants and employees.

Since then, we Edenreders never stopped. Connecting here. Connecting on all continents.

Merchants, users, companies, public authorities, we make connections happen. But more importantly, we make them matter. Today, they are often temporary, we make them last. Many are unsafe, we build trust. Because it is about a shared moment. The joy of a gift. An easier day at work. More freedom on the drive. New guests in the restaurant.

At Edenred, we believe great connections are an unstoppable force. We channel them to strengthen businesses and to foster inclusive solutions. We craft local ecosystems that create more wealth. And more health. Not only for people, but also for our environment. Better bonds can better life. We give them a purpose: grow progress.

There is so much we can do with smarter ways to eat, move, care, pay and more, for people at work.

We look different today as we embrace new technologies.

Still, we will always be a passport for sharing great stories.

By turning networks into net worth, we make people and our planet win.

This is our purpose.

Enrich connections. For good.

To find out more about Edenred ' s purpose and 2020 highlights,

visit the Group ' s Integrated Report website.

??

Edenred is a leading digital platform for services and payments and the everyday companion for people at work, connecting over 50 million users and 2 million partner merchants in 46 countries via more than 850,000 corporate clients.

Edenred offers specific-purpose payment solutions for food (such as meal benefits), mobility (such as multi-energy, maintenance, toll, parking and commuter solutions), incentives (such as gift cards, employee engagement platforms) and corporate payments (such as virtual cards).

True to the Group's purpose, "Enrich connections. For good." these solutions enhance users' well-being and purchasing power. They improve companies' attractiveness and efficiency, and vitalize the employment market and the local economy. They also foster access to healthier food, more environmentally friendly products and softer mobility.

Edenred's 10,000 employees are committed to making the world of work a connected ecosystem that is safer, more efficient and more responsible every day.

In 2020, thanks to its global technology assets, the Group managed close to 30 billion in business volume, primarily carried out via mobile applications, online platforms and cards.

Edenred is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange and included in the following indices: CAC Next 20, FTSE4Good and MSCI Europe.

The logos and other trademarks mentioned and featured in this press release are registered trademarks of Edenred S.A., its subsidiaries or third parties. They may not be used for commercial purposes without prior written consent from their owners.

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CONTACTS

Communications Department







Emmanuelle Chatelain

+33 (0)1 86 67 24 36 emmanuelle.chatelain@edenred.com (mailto:emmanuelle.chatelain@edenred.com)











Media Relations







Matthieu Santalucia

+33 (0)1 86 67 22 63

matthieu.santalucia@edenred.com (mailto:anne-sophie.sergent@edenred.com) Investor Relations







Cedric Appert

+33 (0)1 86 67 24 99

cedric.appert@edenred.com (mailto:cedric.appert@edenred.com)







Loic Da Silva

+33 (0)1 86 67 20 67

loic.dasilva@edenred.com









Attachment
Campaign Driving Substantial 892% Increase in New Purchase Sales by First-Time Customers

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Reviv3 Procare Company (OTCQB:RVIV), an emerging global e-commerce brand in the premium hair care products industry, today announced strong initial campaign performance results from the Company's first mass market advertising effort launched in late April 2021, aimed at growing direct-to-consumer sales and raising awareness of Reviv3's flagship 3-part hair care system as well as other complementary products.

As compared to the same year-ago period, the campaign has thus far driven a 338% increase in direct-to-consumer channel sales, with an 892% increase in new purchase sales by first-time customers.

The "Beautiful Hair, Beautiful You" campaign is the Company's largest and broadest campaign to date. The national advertising effort targets the Company's core customer base as well as younger consumers through a multi-faceted digital media advertising campaign spanning multiple social media channels, driving targeted sales and new user traffic. The initial campaign is scheduled to continue through May 30, 2021.

"Our first mass market ad campaign has shown substantial performance thus far, notably expanding our high-margin direct-to-consumer business," said Jeff Toghraie, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Reviv3 Procare. "We are seeing strong traction in our target demographics, driving new users to the Reviv3 product platform. Given the recurring nature of our product sales, we believe this influx of new users will help to drive a large base of long-term, passionate customers.

"With these positive initial results in hand, we have continued to optimize our target audience and adjust ad spend to increase our reach and effectiveness. Given the success we have seen to-date, we expect to significantly ramp our advertising spend in the coming weeks to capture additional market share. I look forward to providing further updates upon the conclusion of this initial campaign as we strive to create sustainable, long-term value for our shareholders," concluded Toghraie.

About Reviv3 Procare Company

Reviv3 Procare Company (OTCQB:RVIV) is an emerging global e-commerce brand in the $90 billion hair care products industry. The Company is a predominantly direct-to-consumer marketer of premium hair and skincare products under its in-house Reviv3 Procare brand - selling products in the United States, Canada, the European Union and throughout Asia. To learn more, please visit the Company's website at www.reviv3.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains a number of forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. The use of words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "confident that" and "believes," among others, generally identify forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements are based on currently available information, and management's beliefs, projections, and current expectations subject to a number of significant risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include, among other things: (i) Reviv3's ability to grow net sales and adjusted EBITDA as anticipated; (ii) our ability to fund our operating expenses (iii) potential difficulties or delays Reviv3 may experience in implementing its cost savings and efficiency initiatives; (iv) Reviv3's ability to compete effectively with other hair and skincare companies (v) the concentration of Reviv3's customers, potentially increasing the negative impact to Reviv3 by changing purchasing or selling patterns (vi) changes in laws or regulations in the United States and/or in other major markets, such as China, in which Reviv3 operates, including, without limitation, with respect to taxes, tariffs, trade policies or product safety, which may increase Reviv3's product costs and other costs of doing business, and reduce Reviv3's earnings. Potential investors are urged to consider these factors carefully in evaluating the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. Except as required by law, Reviv3 does not assume any obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, even if new information becomes available in the future.

Investor Contact:

Lucas A. Zimmerman

Senior Vice President

MZ Group - MZ North America

949-259-4987

RVIV@mzgroup.us

www.mzgroup.us

SOURCE: REVIV3 PROCARE COMPANY

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646313/Reviv3-Procare-Announces-Strong-Initial-Campaign-Results-from-Mass-Market-National-Advertising-Effort
Montreal, Quebec--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Quantum Numbers Corp. (TSXV: QNC) (OTC Pink: QNCCF) (FSE: 34Q) ("QNC" or the "Corporation") announces its participation at the next Inside Quantum Technology Conference and Exhibition that will be held online May 17-20, 2021.

The conference will be the fourth edition of such an event and is considered a foremost gathering of business leaders, product developers, marketing strategists and investors who focus on quantum technology. The organizers anticipate that over 1,000 people will be attending this event from all over the world and from every area of quantum technology.

Francis Bellido, QNC's CEO, will take part of the panel "QRNGs: The First Mass Market Quantum Technology" that will be held on May 17 at 2.20 pm ET. He will be presenting the advantages of QNC technology based on quantum tunneling to develop the next generation of QRNGs.

About QNC

The Corporation's mission is to address the growing demand for affordable hardware security for connected devices. The patented solution for a Quantum Random Number Generator exploits the built-in unpredictability of quantum mechanics and promises to provide enhanced security for protecting high value assets and critical systems.

The Corporation intends to target the highly valued Healthcare Services industry while ensuring its technology is also relevant and applicable to others, such as Financial Services, Cloud-Based IT Security Infrastructure, Classified Government Networks and Communication Systems, Secure Device Keying (IOT, Automotive, Consumer Electronics) and Quantum Cryptography.

For further information, please contact:

Francis Bellido, Chief Executive Officer

Tel: 514.887.5469

Email: info@quantumnumberscorp.com

Website: www.quantumnumberscorp.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to vary materially from targeted results. Such risks and uncertainties include those described in the Corporation's periodic reports including the annual report or in the filings made by Quantum from time to time with securities regulatory authorities.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83623
Sudbury, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Transition Metals Corp (TSXV: XTM) ("Transition", "the Company") is pleased to announce that it has secured a 100% interest in the Cryderman property located in southwest Macmurchy Township, Larder Lake Mining District, Ontario. The property consists of six mining and surface rights leases, totaling approximately 106 hectares which host a system of quartz veining partially exposed around a 40 foot (12.2m) deep historical shaft sunk in 1917 to explore the Queen Elizabeth vein.

Channel sampling by Transition in 2019 included 21 channels totalling 46 samples spaced along the approximately 100 metres of the exposed strike length of the Queen Elizabeth Vein (QEV). The southerly most channel returned 9.15 g/t Au over 1.07 metres including 11.30 g/t Au over 0.47 metres; and the northerly most channel returned 11.55 g/t Au over 0.54 metres. The channels located in between returned from 15.70 g/t Au over 0.49 metres to 0.08 g/t Au over 0.71 metres. Sampling of peripheral alteration and quartz stringers to the QEV returned values between 3.44 g/t Au over 1.63 metres and 0.44 g/t Au over 0.58 metres suggesting potential for a much wider mineralized zone. (Refer to news release dated November 27, 2019).

Transition President and CEO Scott McLean commented "This property is strategically located near the center of a real hot spot for gold mineralization in a part of the Abitibi undergoing a resurgence of exploration and development activity. Investments in the area from major companies such as IAMGOLD who are developing the 6.6 million oz Cote Gold project approximately 55 km to the west, and Caldas Resources who are conducting advanced stage exploration to expand the 2.2 million oz Juby deposit located approximately 16 km to the east demonstrate the emerging potential of this district to yield significant new gold deposits. The Company intends to complete additional programs of mapping, trenching and sampling to explore for new exposures of mineralized bedrock along the interpreted northwest-southeast trending strike of the Violet Lake structure and peripheral to the QEV to further develop targets in preparation for drilling on the property later this year."

 Measured and Indicated Resources - IAMGOLD Report of Mineral Reserves and Resources dated December 31, 2020.

 Indicated and Inferred Resources - 43-101 Technical Report on the Updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the Juby Gold Project dated October 5, 2020

*Note: mineralization hosted at Cote and Juby properties is not necessarily reflective of the mineralization hosted on the Company's Cryderman Au property.

Update Regarding the Cryderman Agreement:

In 2019 Transition entered into an option agreement with a Vendor to earn a 100% interest in the property by issuing $60,000 in cash ($20,000 paid) and up to 650,000 in shares (100,000 issued) to the Vendor and by completing $300,000 (approximately $150,000 completed) in work over a 3 year period subject to a 2% Net Smelter Return royalty (NSR) with Transition retaining the right to buy back 1% of the NSR for $1.0 million.

In April 2021, the Company negotiated an accelerated earn-in with the Vendor to fully vest a 100% interest in the property in exchange for a lump sum payment of $25,000 in cash and the issuance of 250,000 shares. In addition the parties amended the terms of the NSR agreement such that the maximum NSR encumbrance is reduced from 2.0% to 1.5% with Transition retaining the right to buy down 0.5% for $1.0 million at any time.

Geology of the Cryderman Property

The Property is located in the western portion of the Shining Tree gold camp, approximately 7 kilometres northeast of the village of Shining Tree and 32 kilometres west of Gowganda, Ontario. Geologically, the Property is underlain by Archean ultramafic, mafic and felsic flows, volcaniclastics, interflow epiclastics and chemical sedimentary rocks of the southwest portion of the Abitibi greenstone belt near an unconformable contact with Timiskaming-type rocks to the north. These lithologies are cut by late, north-trending, regional faults, such as the Michiwakenda Lake fault. Gold mineralization in the area appears to be hosted by early veins transposed by east-northeast faulting and shearing into sigmoid and z-folded vein sets.

 Ayer et al. 2013. Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Release-Data 294.

Qualified Person

The technical elements of this press release have been reviewed and approved by Mr. Thomas Hart, P.Geo. (PGO), a Qualified Person as defined under National Instrument 43-101.

Transition Metals Corp

Transition Metals Corp (TSXV: XTM) is a Canadian-based, multi-commodity project generator that specializes in converting new exploration ideas into discoveries. The award-winning team of geoscientists has extensive exploration experience which actively develops and tests new ideas for discovering mineralization in places that others have not looked, often allowing the company to acquire properties inexpensively. Joint venture partners earn an interest in the projects by funding a portion of higher-risk drilling and exploration, allowing Transition to conserve capital and minimize shareholder's equity dilution.

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Information

Except for statements of historical fact contained herein, the information in this news release constitutes "forward-looking information" within the meaning of Canadian securities law. Such forward-looking information may be identified by words such as "plans", "proposes", "estimates", "intends", "expects", "believes", "may", "will" and include without limitation, statements regarding estimated capital and operating costs, expected production timeline, benefits of updated development plans, foreign exchange assumptions and regulatory approvals. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate; actual results and future events could differ materially from such statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, among others, metal prices, competition, risks inherent in the mining industry, and regulatory risks. Most of these factors are outside the control of the Company. Investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking information. Except as otherwise required by applicable securities statutes or regulation, the Company expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Further information is available at www.transitionmetalscorp.com or by contacting:

Scott McLean

President and CEO

Transition Metals Corp.

Tel: (705) 669-1777

Visit us on LinkedIn or Twitter

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83621
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - New Break Resources Ltd. ("New Break" or the "Company") is extremely pleased to announce the launch of the Company's new website at www.newbreakresources.ca, built and powered by Blender Media Inc. ("Blender"). Michael Farrant, President of New Break commented, "After the past few months of hard work and dedication, we are delighted to officially announce the launch on May 10, 2021."

As a junior mining company, New Break is provided the ability to advance its business and mineral properties through the support of investors and shareholders. It is important for to make information about New Break, easily and publicly accessible, prior to being publicly traded in order that existing shareholders, potential investors and all of the Company's stakeholders are provided with the most accurate and up to date information.

"Our goal with this new website is to provide our visitors an easier way to learn about New Break and to browse information based on their own choice. The new website gives access to Who We Are, Our People, our Mineral Properties and our commitment to Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance ("ESG"). We recognize that a big part of that is being transparent in everything we do and keeping all of our stakeholders well informed."

The website contains New Break's latest corporate presentation as well as a copy of the term sheet and subscription agreement for the Company's concurrently announced $0.10 unit financing. Shareholders and potential investors will find extremely useful information about New Break's Ontario and Nunavut mineral properties, including a recently completed National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report on the Moray Gold Property.

The site tracks the latest gold price in U.S. and Canadian dollars. As all of New Break's projects are located in Canada, the significantly higher Canadian dollar gold price is far more relevant in respect of these mineral properties and really represents a premium for investing in Canadian mineral properties. The site will also integrate social media buttons for Linkedin, Facebook and Twitter, to foster improved communications with a wider range of potential investors and interested parties, as the Company broadens its awareness on social media in the future.

Michael Farrant further noted, "We will be continually updating our content with our most recent news, latest financial information, latest corporate presentation and any other information that we think may be relevant to maintaining proper communication and transparency and an ongoing commitment to ESG. The website offers a sign-up feature to receive regular e-mail updates from New Break and I encourage anyone interested in following our progress to do so. Finally, I'd like to personally thank all those who contributed to making this launch a success and bringing the New Break story to life for the world to see. A special thanks goes out to the folks at Blender who did a wonderful job with branding, logo and website design. Our people and our commitment to exploration excellence and ESG are the keys to our success and now we have the means of showcasing this. We are also one step closer to having all the necessary pieces in place to successfully go public in 2021."

About New Break Resources Ltd.

New Break is a private Canadian mineral exploration and development company with a dual vision for value creation. In northern Ontario, New Break is focused on acquiring highly prospective gold projects in well-established mining camps, within proximity to existing infrastructure, while at the same time, allowing our shareholders to "dream big" through our prospective land holdings in Nunavut, where vast potential exists for exploration success in one of the most up and coming regions in Canada for gold exploration and production. These complimentary visions are supported by a highly experienced team of mining professionals committed to placing a premium on Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance, respecting the values and interests of all our stakeholders.

For further information on New Break, please visit www.newbreakresources.ca or contact:

Michael Farrant, President and Director

Tel: 416-278-4149

mfarrant@newbreakresources.ca

No stock exchange, regulation securities provider, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained in this news release.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

Except for statements of historic fact, this news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements including, but not limited to comments regarding the timing and expectations for finalizing property agreements, timing and content of upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt of property titles etc. Forward-looking information addresses future events and conditions and therefore involves inherent risks and uncertainties, including factors beyond the Company's control. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise any forward-looking information, except as may be required by law. Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties that could affect financial results is contained in the Company's financial statements and management's discussion and analysis (the "Filings"), such Filings available upon request.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83619
Dieppe, New Brunswick--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Colibri Resource Corporation (TSXV: CBI) ("Colibri" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that its partner, Tocvan Ventures Corp. ("Tocvan") has reported its progress regarding the Phase 2 drill program at the Pilar Gold & Silver Project. Tocvan is in year two of a five-year option agreement with Colibri to earn an initial 51% ownership of the Pilar Gold-Silver Project. For full details of the agreement see Colibri's news release dated September 24th, 2019.

To date, eleven (11) drill holes have been completed for a total of 1,811 meters (see Illustration 1). Samples for the first five holes have been submitted to ALS Labs in Hermosillo, the remaining samples from the holes completed to date will be submitted later this week. Initial drilling has focused on the extension of the Main Zone by testing down-dip extensions of mineralization and stepping out along strike. Drill has now shifted towards testing new targets at the 4-Trench Extension and Triple Vein Zone zones.





Illustration 1 - 2020 and 2021 drilling map at Pilar Gold & Silver Project



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/4269/83620_355b03c904e99879_001full.jpg

ABOUT THE PILAR PROPERTY:

The Pilar Gold-Silver property is interpreted as a structurally controlled low-sulphidation epithermal project hosted in andesite rocks. Three zones of mineralization have been identified in the north-west part of the property from historic surface work and drilling and are referred to as the Main Zone, North Hill and 4-Trench. Structural features and zones of mineralization within the structures follow an overall NW-SE trend of mineralization. Over 19,200 m of drilling have been completed to date. Significant results are highlighted below:

2020 Phase I RC Drilling Highlights include ( all lengths are drilled thicknesses ): 94.6m @ 1.6 g/t Au, including 1.5 m @ 9.2m @ 10.8 g/t Au and 38 g/t Ag; 41.2m @ 1.1 g/t Au, including 3.1m @ 6.0g/t Au and 12 g/t Ag ; 24.4m @ 2.5 g/t Au and 73 g/t Ag, including 1.5m @ 33.4 g/t Au and 1,090 g/t Ag

): 17,700m of Historic Core & RC drilling. Highlights include: 61.0m @ 0.8 g/t Au 16.5m @ 53.5g/t Au and 53 g/t Ag 13.0m @ 9.6 g/t Au 9.0m @ 10.2 g/t Au and 46 g/t Ag



ABOUT COLIBRI RESOURCE CORPORATION:

Colibri is a Canadian-based mineral exploration company listed on the TSX-V (CBI) and is focused on acquiring and exploring prospective gold & silver properties in Mexico. The Company has six exploration projects of which five currently have exploration programs being executed or planned for 2021. The flagship Evelyn Gold Project is 100% owned and explored by Colibri. The Company has four additional projects, Pilar Gold & Silver Project (optioned to Tocvan Ventures- (CSE:TOC)), El Mezquite Gold & Silver Project , Jackie Gold & Silver Project, and the Diamante Gold & Silver Project (earn-in agreements with Silver Spruce Resources - (TSXV: SSE)) are also currently being actively advanced.

For more information about all Company projects please visit: www.colibriresource.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

This news release contains "forward-looking statements". Statements in this press release which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the plans, expectations and intentions contained in this press release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that they will prove to be accurate.

For further information: Ronald J. Goguen, President, Chairperson and Director, Tel: (506) 383-4274, rongoguen@colibriresource.com.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83620
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Infratrader, one of the leading brokers in the world, has include tradable cryptocurrencies, including BTC, XRP, ETH, BCH, and etc. With the introduction of these cryptocurrencies, Infratrader investors and traders are now able to leverage on the volume and potential of these tokens to tighten their trading strategies and strengthen their portfolios

The cryptocurrencies added all have market capitalizations in excess of 10 Billion USD, are highly liquid and well supported across multiple exchanges. Infratrader, well known for its deep liquidity, low fees and best execution prices, has one of the best environments for traders trade various instruments easily and efficiently. In addition to cryptocurrencies, Infratrader also allows traders to access various other markets such as commodities, ETFs, futures & shares.

Infratrader representative Mr. Damon Phillips added: "In 2021, no investment vehicles provide the same ease of entry and profit potential as cryptocurrencies. Our members benefit greatly from the new opportunities as well as our award winning trading environment and conditions. These additions highlight our commitment to provide our members with the latest and best trading opportunities to allow them to trade with no holds barred."

About Infratrader

Infratrader is one of the world's leading brokerage, focusing on commodities and cryptocurrencies. Driven by an unrelenting passion to serve our members, Infratrader constantly pursue the light of intellectual innovation, creating golden solutions that build fortunes for our clients every possible instance. We imbue our efforts with values that are essential to our success, to expand internationally and become a global financial powerhouse. Infratrader boasts a comprehensive administrative support, state-of-the-art IT systems and excellent risk control protocols.

Media Contact

Company: Infratrader

Contact: Damon Phillips

Email: contact@infratrader.com

Website: https://www.infratrader.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Infratrader-112401144269790/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/infra_trader/

SOURCE: Infratrader

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646390/Infratrader-Expands-Its-Trading-Instruments-to-Include-Cryptocurrencies
Henan province immediately responded with a plan to deploy another 20 GW of solar and wind by 2025.Wafer producer Zhonghuan Semiconductor has released the new product prices for May and all prices were raised, compared to the previous list. The price for G12 (210mm) wafers was raised by RMB0.60 to RMB7.23 per piece. The M6 (166mm) and G1 (158.75mm) wafers were priced at RMB4.50 and RMB4.31, respectively, both with an increase of RMB0.30. This price increase represents the largest growth registered in recent months. Chinese president Xi Jinping has urged all regional governments, including provincial, ...

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - New Break Resources Ltd. ("New Break" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it intends to complete a non-brokered private placement offering of up to 7,500,000 units (each a "Unit") at a price of $0.10 per Unit for gross proceeds of up to $750,000 (the "Offering"). Each Unit will consist of one common share (a "Common Share") of the Company and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole warrant a "Warrant"). Each whole Warrant will entitle the holder thereof, to purchase one additional Common Share of the Company at a price of $0.15 for a period of twenty-four (24) months from the date of closing. The Warrants are subject to an acceleration clause in the event the Common Shares become listed for trading on a stock exchange in Canada and the volume-weighted average trading price equals or exceeds $0.25 for a period of ten (10) consecutive trading days. The Offering may include closing in tranches and multiple closing dates.

The Company will make a provision for an over-allotment option (the "Over-Allotment Option") to allow the purchase of up to 2,500,000 additional Units beyond the number of Units contemplated in this Offering. If the Over-Allotment Option is fully exercised, the total proceeds of the Offering will be an aggregate of 10,000,000 Units for gross proceeds of $1,000,000.

The proceeds of the Offering will be used for exploration activities at the Company's Moray Gold Project located in Ontario on the Cadillac Larder-Lake Fault Zone, for additional geological compilation work on the Company's Nunavut properties and for general working capital purposes, including preparation for going public. In connection with the Offering, the Company may pay finder's fees of 6% of the gross proceeds of the Offering payable in cash to eligible finders.

Any persons, including accredited investors, that are interested in learning more about New Break or are interested in participating in the Offering, are encouraged to visit the Company's newly launched website at www.newbreakresources.ca and to contact the Company directly. A copy of the term sheet outlining the details of the Offering and associated subscription agreement can be found on the Company's website.

The securities issued pursuant to the Offering will be subject to a statutory hold period in accordance with applicable securities laws. The securities offered have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or applicable exemption from the registration requirements.

About New Break Resources Ltd.

New Break is a private Canadian mineral exploration and development company with a dual vision for value creation. In northern Ontario, New Break is focused on acquiring highly prospective gold projects in well-established mining camps, within proximity to existing infrastructure, while at the same time, allowing our shareholders to "dream big" through our prospective land holdings in Nunavut, where vast potential exists for exploration success in one of the most up and coming regions in Canada for gold exploration and production. These complimentary visions are supported by a highly experienced team of mining professionals committed to placing a premium on Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance, respecting the values and interests of all our stakeholders.

For further information on New Break, please visit www.newbreakresources.ca or contact:



Michael Farrant, President and Director

Tel: 416-278-4149

mfarrant@newbreakresources.ca

No stock exchange, regulation securities provider, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained in this news release.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

Except for statements of historic fact, this news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements including, but not limited to comments regarding the timing and expectations for finalizing property agreements, timing and content of upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt of property titles etc. Forward-looking information addresses future events and conditions and therefore involves inherent risks and uncertainties, including factors beyond the Company's control. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise any forward-looking information, except as may be required by law. Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties that could affect financial results is contained in the Company's financial statements and management's discussion and analysis (the "Filings"), such Filings available upon request.

Not for dissemination in the United States of America or through U.S. newswire services.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83625
CLEARWATER, FL / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Building on their existing partnership to promote ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia, Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc. and Medovate, will showcase their combined solution and sponsor educational and training sessions at the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA) 46th Annual Meeting. Mercury Medical, the primary US distributor of Medovate's SAFIRA (SAFer Injection for Regional Anesthesia) will join the two companies in highlighting the importance of using ultrasound-guidance with SAFIRA to improve patient safety and clinical efficiency during regional anesthesia procedures. The meeting will be held May 13-15 in Orlando, Florida.

The combined solution from Konica Minolta and Medovate unites two innovative systems that help promote accuracy and safety while streamlining regional anesthesia procedures. The SONIMAGE HS2 Compact Ultrasound System features Simple Needle Visualization (SNV), an advanced algorithm that improves needle visibility and increases accuracy in needle placement, both for in-plane and out-of-plane approaches. SNV also adjusts the sensitivity of needle visualization depending on the type of tissue. At ASRA, attendees can get hands-on experience with the HS2 and SNV in Konica Minolta's booth #209 and with SAFIRA in Medovate's booth #211.

SAFIRA is a novel FDA-cleared device designed to limit injection pressure and automatically stop injection above 20psi to help reduce the risk of nerve injury. In addition to helping limit injectate pressure, SAFIRA also transforms regional anesthesia into a one-physician procedure by allowing a single anesthesiologist to conduct the entire procedure. Previously, an assistant was required to inject the anesthetic solution at the required pressure while the anesthesiologist inserted the needle tip using ultrasound guidance.

Mercury Medical, Inc. is dedicated to delivering clinically differentiated critical care technology that saves lives throughout the world. For over 55 years clinicians have relied on Mercury Medical as their resource for quickly responding to clinical needs with solutions that improve patient outcomes effectively. The company provides a legacy of innovative products to critical care areas of neonatal, anesthesia, respiratory and EMS markets in more than 58 countries.

At ASRA's 2021 meeting, Medovate is supporting an abstract presentation and poster, "Evaluation of a New Regional Anaesthesia Pump Designed to Help Prevent Nerve Injury," discussing the results of a clinical evaluation involving 34 patients. Additionally, Konica Minolta is sponsoring a webinar with Douglas Jaffe, DO, an anesthesiologist with Wake Forest Baptist Health on regional anesthesia. Dr. Jaffe is an expert in ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia procedures and has published and lectured extensively on the topic.

"At Konica Minolta, we are committed to providing educational and training resources to anesthesiologists who want to adopt best practices and utilize advanced technologies that promote safety and efficiency in regional anesthesia procedures," says Eric Sumner, Executive Vice President Ultrasound Sales at Konica Minolta. "Our collaboration with Medovate and Mercury Medical will highlight the clinical value and patient benefits of regional anesthesia, and help more anesthesiologists provide this important service in their practice."

There are numerous patient benefits resulting from the use of regional anesthesia, including better post-operative analgesia, decreased opioid consumption and length of stay, early rehabilitation, fewer anesthesia-related side effects and high patient satisfaction compared to general anesthesia1,2.

Chris Rogers, Sales & Marketing Director at Medovate comments, "Innovation and improving patient care are at the foundation of the development of SAFIRA. We are delighted to demonstrate the SAFIRA device at the upcoming ASRA meeting. Enabling clinicians to get 'hands on' with the SAFIRA device will really help them understand and see for themselves the potential benefits of the technology for improving outcomes. We look forward to supporting our distributor Mercury Medical and working with Konica Minolta at the 46th Annual ASRA Meeting to help anesthesiologists understand the benefits of a combined solution for regional anesthesia using SAFIRA and leading ultrasound technology from Konica Minolta to help improve patient safety and realize potential cost optimization benefits."

John Gargaro, MD, President and CEO at Mercury Medical adds, "We believe SAFIRA along with the SONIMAGE HS2 will revolutionize regional anesthesia across the United States. As a company, Mercury Medical has a rich experience in bringing innovative, clinically differentiated medical devices to market. These ingenious devices will improve patient safety and operating room efficiency simultaneously by putting the entire regional block procedure back where it belongs - in the anesthesiologists' hands. We are excited to work with Medovate and Konica Minolta to provide additional clinical resources to the attendees at the ASRA event and beyond through our clinical resources. The combination of the SONIMAGE HS2 and SAFIRA delivers the innovation in regional anesthesia that will help drive clinical adoption."

Cozowicz C, Poeran J, Zubizarreta N, et al. Trends in the Use of Regional Anesthesia: Neuraxial and Peripheral Nerve Blocks. Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine 2016;41:43-49. Albrecht, E. and Chin, K.J. Advances in regional anaesthesia and acute pain management: a narrative review. Anaesthesia, 2020; 75: e101-e110.

About Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc.

Konica Minolta Healthcare is a world-class provider and market leader in medical diagnostic imaging and healthcare information technology. With over 75 years of endless innovation, Konica Minolta is globally recognized as a leader providing cutting-edge technologies and comprehensive support aimed at providing real solutions to meet customer's needs and helping make better decisions sooner. Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc., headquartered in Wayne, NJ, is a unit of Konica Minolta, Inc. (TSE:4902). For more information on Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc., please visit www.konicaminolta.com/medicalusa.

About Medovate

Medovate is a UK based medical device company dedicated to the development and commercialisation of innovative medical technologies created within the National Health Service (NHS) and beyond. Medovate identifies and works with high potential medtech innovations, providing the specialist management and technical resources to guide medical technologies through development, clinical trials, regulatory approval, into manufacture and on through to successful market launch. Medovate accelerates medical device innovations to market in order to benefit patient care and healthcare delivery. The company has a strong portfolio relating to specialisms in anaesthesia, airway management, critical care and surgery. For more information, visit www.medovate.co.uk.

For more information about Mercury Medical, please visit www.mercurymed.com

CONTACT:

D. Olson

Mercury Medical

727-573-4980

www.mercurymed.com

SOURCE: Mercury Medical

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646400/Konica-Minolta-Medovate-and-Mercury-Medical-Collaborate-on-Ultrasound-Guided-Regional-Anesthesia-Education-at-ASRA-2021
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Giga Metals Corp. (TSXV: GIGA) (OTCQB: HNCKF) (FSE: BRR2), a Canadian junior mining company with 100% ownership of a significant nickel sulphide project, are pleased to speak at a live investor summit hosted by 6ix on Wednesday, May 12th at 2:00 PM EDT / 11:00 AM PDT.

Join Giga Metals' CEO Mark Jarvis and Manager of Development, Lyle Trytten, for a virtual webinar where they will provide an update on the Turnagain project. Hear about Giga Metals' plans for the near future, including the drill program starting this summer at the Turnagain deposit in Northern BC.

Guests will be invited to ask questions and join the conversation. Click the link to register now: https://my.6ix.com/5B5yyGHO.

About Giga Metals

Giga Metals Corporation is focused on metals critical to modern batteries, especially those used in Electric Vehicles and Energy Storage. The Company's core asset is the Turnagain Project, located in northern British Columbia, which contains one of the few significant undeveloped sulphide nickel and cobalt resources in the world.

Giga is also exploring for copper, another critical battery metal, in Brazil.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

"Mark Jarvis"



MARK JARVIS, CEO

GIGA METALS CORPORATION

Tel - 604 681 2300

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Suite 203 - 700 West Pender St., Vancouver, BC, Canada V6C 1G8

T: 604-681-2300 E: info@gigametals.com W: www.gigametals.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83632
The Event Will Take Place at the Confidante Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida

MIAMI BEACH, FL / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Athena Severi and Dan Ashburn, co-founders of Titan Network, are pleased to announce that they will host the Titan Social Event for Amazon Sellers in Miami Beach, Florida on Friday, May 14, 2021. The event will take place at the Confidante Hotel.

To learn more about the Titan Social Event, please visit https://secure.titannetwork.com/miami2021.

As Athena noted, she and Dan know that networking is an essential part of being a successful seller on Amazon. In addition, getting out of the house and meeting like-minded people is great for everybody's mindset, energy and drive.

This knowledge inspired the duo to once again host a Titan Social; these relaxed, welcoming and engaging events are open to the public.

"You won't be walking around with a name tag on, feeling the pressure to strike up a conversation with a complete stranger," Dan said, adding that he and Athena will make sure attendees feel at home and have an enjoyable time.

The Titan Social will begin at 5:30 p.m. with a cocktail reception at the hotel's Vista Terrace. Attendees can mingle with other Amazon sellers as the sun sets, before heading to the ballroom for some delicious food and more networking.

The evening will also include music and dancing with the help of a DJ and plenty of great conversation and connecting with Amazon sellers from around the world.

"These events are our way of harnessing the power of networking and connecting with others, and making it accessible to ambitious people who can directly benefit from it," Athena said, adding that this event will be solely focused on socializing and networking.

"There will be no presentations or Master classes, but there will be lots of tasty beverages, delicious food, dancing and life-long memories to be made, along with countless opportunities to network with elite Amazon sellers in a relaxed, fun and engaging environment."

As Dan noted, he and Athena are looking forward to the upcoming Titan Social Event and getting the opportunity to put work aside for an evening of fun with other Amazon sellers.

"Events like this give us an opportunity to push work aside and let our hair down while growing our network and making connections that last a lifetime," he said.

About Titan Network:

Titan Network is the exclusive membership organization for elite Amazon sellers who wish to scale faster. Titan Network was co-founded by Athena Severi and Dan Ashburn, two of the leading figures in the Amazon industry. For more information, please visit: https://www.titannetwork.com.

Contact:

Victoria Kennedy

manager@victoriakennedyofficial.com

702 710 7621

SOURCE: Titan Network

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646408/Titan-Network-to-Host-Titan-Social-Event-for-Amazon-Sellers-on-Friday-May-14-2021
DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Dodge & Cox announced today the opening of the Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds Emerging Markets Stock Fund.

Charles Pohl, Chairman and Chief Investment Officer of Dodge & Cox, said, "Over the past several decades we have expanded and deepened our knowledge of the global investment universe, including the emerging markets, as manager of the Worldwide Funds Global Stock and Global Bond Funds. We are opening the Dodge & Cox Emerging Markets Stock Fund to provide its shareholders with access to the most compelling emerging and frontier market opportunities that we uncover as long-term, active investors."

The Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds Emerging Markets Stock Fund utilises the firm's team-based approach to selecting undervalued companies, with a focus on fundamental research, individual security selection, and low expenses. The Fund invests selectively across a large, all-cap universe of emerging and frontier markets companies that we believe have a favourable outlook for long-term earnings and cash flow growth. Many of these companies are not included in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index.

Dana Emery, Chief Executive Officer and President of Dodge & Cox, also commented, "The Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds Emerging Markets Stock Fund is a natural extension of our capabilities. We believe our global industry analysts' understanding of companies and sectors, coupled with our analysis of macroeconomic, currency, and other factors, enables us to identify attractive long-term return opportunities for our clients in every corner of the world."

The Fund is available in the following share classes:

USD Accumulating (DOEMSUA)

GBP Accumulating (DCEMSGA)

GBP Distributing (DCEMSGI)

EUR Accumulating (DCEMSEA)

The Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds Emerging Markets Stock Fund is open to the public for investment as of today. Additional information can be found on the Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds' website at www.dodgeandcoxworldwide.com.

Founded in 1930, Dodge & Cox manages over $341 billion for individual and institutional investors in mutual funds, UCITS, and private accounts as of 31 March 2021. For more information about Dodge & Cox, please visit our website: www.dodgeandcoxworldwide.com.

Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds plc provides UCITS Funds for non-U.S. investors. The Funds are registered in Ireland and are available only to residents of those jurisdictions where allowed by applicable law. This information is for informational purposes only, does not constitute an offer for products or services, and should not be construed as an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy to any persons who are prohibited from receiving such information under the laws applicable to their place of citizenship, domicile, or residence. The views expressed herein represent the opinions of Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds and its affiliates and are not intended as a forecast or guarantee of future results for any product or service. To obtain more information about the Funds, please refer to the Funds' prospectus at dodgeandcoxworldwide.com.

Media Contact:

Scot Hoffman

Dodge & Cox

555 California Street, 40th Floor

San Francisco, CA 94401

USA

+1 415.273.7641

scot.hoffman@dodgeandcox.com


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The Pentagon said its guard vessels thwarted a number of Iranian 'fast attack boats' that were approaching guided missile submarine, the USS Georgia, in the Strait of Hormuz.



On Monday, 13 'fast boats' with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy dangerously approached U.S. Navy and Coast Guard vessels that were operating in the Strait of Hormuz. After those ships failed to heed warnings to move away to a safe distance, the U.S. fired warning shots, Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby said at a news conference.



Kirby said six U.S. Navy vessels that were escorting the guided missile submarine encountered a group of 13 IRGCN 'fast attack boats' as they were approaching the U.S. formation 'at high speed, closing in as close as 150 yards.'



'After following all the appropriate and established procedures involving ships: horn blast, bridge-to-bridge radio transmissions and other ways of communicating, the [U.S.] Coast Guard Cutter Maui ... fired approximately 30 warning shots from a 50 caliber machine gun,' Kirby told reporters.



All the Iranian boats retreated after the second round of warning shots, he added.



Iranian 'fast attack boats' are attack craft, a type of speedboat armed with machine guns.



It's not clear under whose direction they were operating, but harassment by the IRGC Navy targeting U.S. vessels is not a new thing.



On April 26, three Iranian fast inshore attack craft approached U.S. Navy vessels. After they failed to heed U.S. warning, the USS Firebolt fired warning shots and the IRGCN ships moved away to a safe distance.



Kirby warned, 'This kind of activity could lead to somebody getting hurt, and could lead to a real miscalculation in the region, and that doesn't serve anybody's interests.'



The Pentagon did not specify for what purpose the U.S. navy fleet was transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Located between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, it provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean and is one of the world's most strategically important choke points.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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CircleCI, the leading continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) platform, today announced the acquisition of release orchestration platform, Vamp. Combining Vamp's industry-leading release orchestration capabilities with CircleCI's robust CI/CD platform will be transformative for engineering teams amid a growing need for increased change validation in the industry.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005280/en/

CircleCI has acquired Vamp, the first cloud-native release orchestration platform. (Graphic: Business Wire)

CircleCI has helped engineering teams automate software delivery at scale for nearly a decade. Their CI/CD platform allows teams to quickly build, test, and deploy software, letting engineering organizations focus on delivering value to users.

As nearly every company in every industry becomes software-based, the pace of change is set to increase. With this growth comes more complexities, broadening the responsibilities and importance of developers and engineering teams. CircleCI's acquisition of Vamp will empower these teams to keep up with evolving demands, allowing CircleCI to be a one-stop-shop for DevOps automation and change validation needs.

"At CircleCI, we recognize that the world of software development has evolved, and we are evolving right along with it. The emphasis on change validation is at the core of where we see the CI/CD market heading," said Jim Rose, CEO, CircleCI. "Vamp's product and talent, combined with ours, accelerate us to provide the solutions our customers need to quickly and confidently build, test, and deploy software."

As the two companies integrate their offerings, users will have access to a robust set of automated deployment capabilities as part of CircleCI's best-in-class CI/CD offering.

"We have worked hard over the last eight years to build a platform that makes software releases self-driving and self-healing for users. Joining CircleCI was an organic fit that will provide enhanced visibility and control for developers to build software in a more streamlined way," said Nico Vierhout, CEO, Vamp.

In the coming months, Vamp will continue to support their product and customers like Parkius, Mimecast, and WeGroup as the product integration takes place.

In parallel, the team will join CircleCI, bringing the company's global employee headcount to 550 and growing, doubling the size since early 2020.

"CircleCI's rapid growth over the past several years demonstrates how critical DevOps practices like CI/CD are for companies to rapidly grow, innovate, and scale. The addition of Vamp to the platform broadens CircleCI's surface area in the software delivery supply chain and brings CircleCI closer to the ultimate software end-user. This cements CircleCI as the leading cloud CI/CD platform available today," said Cack Wilhelm, partner, IVP.

Learn more about CircleCI and Vamp here.

About CircleCI

CircleCI is the leading continuous integration and delivery platform for software innovation at scale. With intelligent automation and delivery tools, CircleCI is used by the world's best engineering teams to radically reduce the time from idea to execution. The company has been recognized as an innovative leader in cloud-native continuous integration by independent research firms and industry awards like the DEVIES, Forbes' Best Startup Employers of the Year, and Deloitte's Technology Fast 500.

Founded in 2011 and headquartered in downtown San Francisco with a global, remote workforce, CircleCI is venture-backed by Greenspring Associates, Eleven Prime, IVP, Sapphire Ventures, Top Tier Capital Partners, Baseline Ventures, Threshold Ventures, Scale Venture Partners, Owl Rock Capital, Next Equity Partners, Heavybit and Harrison Metal Capital. Learn more at https://circleci.com.

About Vamp

Based in Amsterdam, Vamp is the industry's first Cloud-Native Release Orchestration platform designed to help engineering, DevOps and SRE teams to release reliable software faster and more frequently into production. Vamp continuously validates the required performance, quality and business impact of each release. Using ML and AI intelligence Vamp will automatically detect regressions and anomalies, and rollback failed ones, avoiding customer-facing failures and lost revenue. Vamp was founded in 2015 by Olaf Molenveld, and is backed by European venture capital firms. Follow Vamp on Twitter and request a demo at vamp.io.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005280/en/

Contacts:

Media contact

Summer Falgiano, CircleCI

press@circleci.com
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- The escalating pollution levels due to the use of disposable plastic bottles is increasing the popularity of reusable water bottles, which will help in increasing the growth prospects of the market extensively

- The reusable water bottles market is estimated to expand at a CAGR of 4 percent during the forecast period of 2019-2027

ALBANY, N.Y., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Reusable Water Bottles Market: Current and Subsequent Growth Prospects

The reusable water bottles market is expected to gain tremendous growth opportunities on the back of the rising awareness about environmental conservation prospects across many individuals. The use of single-use and disposable water bottles has caused great harm to the environment and hence, this aspect will help in increasing the growth rate of the reusable water bottles market.

Reusable water bottles, as the name suggests, can be reused several times. These bottles can be washed and reused repeatedly. These bottles are made from different materials such as plastic, glass, stainless steel, silicone, and others. The benefits and functionalities attached to these bottles will bring extensive growth prospects for the reusable water bottles market.

The analysts at Transparency Market Research (TMR) have projected a stable growth trajectory for the reusable water bottles market after thorough research. The reusable water bottles market is estimated to expand at a CAGR of 4% across the assessment period of 2018-2027. The global reusable water bottles market was valued at ~US$ 8 bn in 2019 and is expected to be worth ~US$ 11 bn by 2027, the end year of the forecast period.

Download PDF Brochure - https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=B&rep_id=11582

The rising urbanization levels have changed the lifestyle of many people. Numerous people around the globe are choosing a healthy and sustainable life. This factor will increase the growth opportunities of the reusable water bottles market greatly. Furthermore, the initiatives taken by various government and non-government organizations to discourage the use of disposable plastics will invite extensive growth for the reusable water bottles market.

Explore 170 pages of superlative research, current market scenario, and extensive geographical projections. Gain insights into the Reusable Water Bottles Market (Material Type: Glass, Metal, Polymer, and Silicone; Distribution Network: Hypermarkets/Supermarkets, Independent Stores, Online Sales, and Others; and Primary Usage: Everyday, Sports, Travel, and Others) - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast, 2019 - 2027 at https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/reusable-water-bottles-market.html

Key Findings of the Report

Heightening Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Initiatives are Inviting Immense Demand for Reusable Water Bottles

A large number of organizations and firms are stepping ahead for making an impact on environment conservation initiatives around the world. Many campaigns are organized under the CSR initiatives regarding environment conservation. Diverse firms and companies are avoiding using single-use plastic bottles and are encouraging the use of reusable water bottles, which helps in increasing the growth rate.

Analyze global reusable water bottles market growth in 30+ countries including US, Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Russia, Poland, Benelux, Nordic, China, Japan, India, and South Korea. Request a sample of the study

Protecting Marine Life from Plastic Pollution Playing a Crucial Role in the Growth of the Reusable Water Bottles Market

According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, plastic debris causes more than a million seabird deaths and nearly 100.100 marine mammals. These distressing numbers are urging many people to dump the use of single-use and disposable plastics, thus boosting the growth prospects of the reusable water bottles market.

Request the Covid19 Impact Analysis at https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=covid19&rep_id=11582

Popularity of Copper Bottles to Add Extra Stars of Growth

Copper bottles are gaining immense popularity due to their sturdiness and associated health benefits. They are helpful in keeping the digestive system active and healthy. It also helps in the overall detoxification of the liver and kidneys. All these aspects prove to be prominent growth generators for the reusable water bottles market.

Reusable Water Bottles Market: Growth Drivers

Awareness regarding the use of reusable water bottles to prevent plastic pollution will prove to be profitable for the growth of the reusable water bottles market.

Rising urbanization levels are encouraging many individuals to switch to sustainable products, which is further bringing immense growth prospects for the reusable water bottles market.

Strategic collaborations and expansion activities will help in stabilizing the growth across the reusable water bottles market.

Explore Transparency Market Research's award-winning coverage of the Global Packaging Industry:

Biodegradable Water Bottles Market - In terms of growth, the global biodegradable water bottles market is estimated to expand 1.5 times the current market value by the end of 2030, owing to the increasing scope of biodegradable water bottles in end-use applications such as residential, commercial, institutional, and for specialty purpose.

Eco-friendly Labels Market - The growing demand for eco-friendly labels has enabled an extensive range of sustainable labels produced from renewable fabrics and papers, post-consumer scrap, dissolvable and repulpable papers, etc. With the rise of environment-conscious consumers around the world, the eco-friendly labels market is expected to grow during the forecast period.

About Transparency Market Research

Transparency Market Research is a global market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. Our experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyse information.

Our data repository is continuously updated and revised by a team of research experts, so that it always reflects the latest trends and information. With a broad research and analysis capability, Transparency Market Research employs rigorous primary and secondary research techniques in developing distinctive data sets and research material for business reports.

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Mr Rohit Bhisey

Transparency Market Research

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Suite 700,

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United States

USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453

Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.com

Website: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com

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POXEL SA (Euronext POXEL FR0012432516), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of innovative treatments for metabolic disorders, including type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) today announced its participation at the 64th Annual Meeting of the Japan Diabetes Society (May 20-22, 2021).

Three presentations on Imeglimin will be included in an oral session for large clinical studies in the afternoon (2:30 pm to 3:40 pm JST) of May 20. These presentations will be focused on the analysis and interpretation of clinical data derived from Phase 2 and Phase 3 (TIMES program) trials with Imeglimin, Poxel's novel antidiabetic investigational drug, where Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) were enrolled and studied:

TIMES 2: Long-term Phase 3 study with Imeglimin as a mono- and add-on therapies in Japanese T2DM

Phase 2 and TIMES Post-hoc analysis of clinical studies in Japan: efficacy safety by age, kidney function and body mass index

Phase 2 and TIMES Post-hoc analysis of clinical studies in Japan: efficacy by insulin secretion deficiency or insulin resistance

Further, Imeglimin will also be discussed in Symposium 21, "New therapies utilizing metformin and concomitant use of new drugs" on May 22 (8:30 am to 11:30 am JST).

The event is dedicated to diabetes care and research. To learn more about the event: https://site.convention.co.jp/64jds/en/

About Poxel SA

Poxel is a dynamic biopharmaceutical company that uses its extensive expertise in developing innovative drugs for metabolic diseases, with a focus on type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). In its mid-to-late-stage pipeline, the Company is currently advancing three drug candidates as well as earlier-stage opportunities. Imeglimin, Poxel's first-in-class lead product, targets mitochondrial dysfunction. Poxel has a strategic partnership with Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma for Imeglimin in Japan, China, South Korea, Taiwan and nine other Southeast Asian countries. A Japanese new drug application (J-NDA) is under review by the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) to request approval for the manufacturing and marketing of Imeglimin for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. After successfully completing a Phase 2a proof-of-concept trial for the treatment of NASH, which met its primary endpoint and study objectives, for PXL770, a first-in-class direct adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activator, Poxel plans to initiate a Phase 2b program in the second half of 2021. PXL770 could also have the potential to treat additional metabolic diseases. PXL065 (deuterium-stabilized R-pioglitazone), a MPC inhibitor, is in a streamlined Phase 2 trial for the treatment of NASH. Poxel also has additional earlier-stage programs from its AMPK activator and deuterated TZD platforms targeting chronic and rare metabolic diseases. The Company intends to generate further growth through strategic partnerships and pipeline development. Listed on Euronext Paris, Poxel is headquartered in Lyon, France, and has subsidiaries in Boston, MA, and Tokyo, Japan. For more information, please visit: www.poxelpharma.com

In the context of the COVID-19 outbreak, which was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 12, 2020, the Company is regularly reviewing the impact of the outbreak on its business.

As of the date of this press release, and based on publicly available information, the Company has not identified the occurrence of any material negative effect on its business due to the COVID-19 pandemic that remains unresolved. However, the Company anticipates that the COVID-19 pandemic could have further material negative impact on its business operations. The worldwide impact of COVID-19 may notably affect the Company's internal organization and efficiency, particularly in countries where it operates and where confinement measures are implemented by the authorities. In addition, COVID-19 may impact market conditions and the Company's ability to seek additional funding or enter into partnerships. Particularly, delays in the supply of drug substance or drug products, in the initiation or the timing of results of preclinical and/or clinical trials, as well as delays linked to the responsiveness of regulatory authorities could occur, which could potentially have an impact on the Company's development programs and partnered programs. The Company will continue to actively monitor the situation.

All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this press release about future events are subject to (i) change without notice and (ii) factors beyond the Company's control. These statements may include, without limitation, any statements preceded by, followed by or including words such as "target," "believe," "expect," "aim," "intend," "may," "anticipate," "estimate," "plan," "project," "will," "can have," "likely," "should," "would," "could" and other words and terms of similar meaning or the negative thereof. Forward-looking statements are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's control that could cause the Company's actual results or performance to be materially different from the expected results or performance expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005905/en/

Contacts:

Poxel SA

Catherine David

Investor Relations Communication Manager

catherine.david@poxelpharma.com

+33 7 64 57 61 78



Investor relations Media EU/US

Trophic Communications

Stephanie May or Valeria Fisher

poxel@trophic.eu

+49 171 185 56 82 or +49 175 804 1816



Investor relations Media France

NewCap

Emmanuel Huynh or Arthur Rouille

poxel@newcap.eu

+33 1 44 71 94 94
Westminster's All Party Writers Group sets out the impact of the pandemic on authors' earnings and proposals for future recovery.

LONDON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The All Party Parliamentary Writers Group (APWG) has laid bare Covid-19's devastating impact on the livelihoods of the UK's authors and writers and, in its latest report published today, has set out a 'Ten Point Plan' to help post-pandemic recovery.

The report is the latest calling for further targeted support for the country's fragile creative and cultural sectors beyond the emergency funding so far, and for better engagement by Government with the creative workforce itself, including the vast number of freelancers, and not just industry.

It follows the APWG's 2018 inquiry into the already parlous state of authors' earnings. In compiling the report, the Group drew widely on membership surveys and held an inquiry session in November 2020, with witnesses from across the literary sector including authors, playwrights and leading writers' representatives such as the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS), the Society of Authors, Writers' Guild of Great Britain and Association of Authors' Agents.

The session focused on challenges authors had experienced since the start of the pandemic, including cancelled commissions, loss of personal appearances during lockdown, the closure of high-street bookshops and the gaps in Government support, which failed so many freelancers.

The report advances a series of recommendations for the Government to implement to ensure that writers can feel more secure, and supported, in carrying on creating works for the British public, and in contributing to the revived success of the UK's cultural and creative industries.

The recommendations include:

Establish a 'Creators Council', as a clear line of communication between the Government and the creative workforce, including freelancers, to assist policy-making and recovery.

Fair and modern contract rights for authors in the digital age.

Protect and promote the UK's effective copyright system amid online exploitation.

Secure ongoing targeted support for the creative industries after the pandemic, to help recovery and enable career development.

Review the gaps in Government support for freelancers, and reform tax and benefit rules.

Remove VAT on audiobooks to establish a truly level playing field with printed publications.

Increase funding for the Public Lending Right scheme to reward authors for library book loans.

Improve access to grants, beyond venues, to better help authors and individual creators.

Increase opportunity, with more development support for writers beyond London.

Create a level playing field between high-street and online booksellers, which has become even more unbalanced through the Covid-19 crisis.

Writers are central to the creative economy in the UK, helping to produce the stage plays, television, film and books we all enjoy despite being often overlooked. The recommendations made in the report will also help to address inequalities, exacerbated over the last year for writers.

The APWG heard in the last inquiry that authors' earnings had declined by 42% from 2005 to 2018 in a survey by ALCS, which helps to support the Group.

Further to this, surveys by the Society of Authors in 2020 discovered that 65% of writers had lost income during the first half of the Covid-19 pandemic, with more losses expected. Testimonies from witnesses, including children's author Dawn Finch, discussed the impact, explaining that income sources on which many writers rely had simply been wiped out, leaving their future uncertain.

There is also widespread concern that the impact on earnings will further affect diversity within the industry. Writers are typically freelancers, and much-criticised gaps in eligibility for government support, such as the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS), have meant large numbers have been unable to access funds to sustain themselves during the pandemic. The same has also happened with grants and loans for individuals, beyond the support focused on venues.

The report follows studies by the Royal Society of Literature and statistics from DCMS that suggest writing as a profession, and the creative industries more broadly, are disproportionately a career path for those who already have independent means.

Poppy Corbett, inquiry witness and playwright, said:

"This is a real issue in terms of inclusion and diversity as, frustratingly, SEISS only applies to authors who can afford to be self-employed full time and who do not need any other supplementary income, so there's a danger in losing talent forever from the theatre industry."

On the release of the report, Giles Watling MP, Chair of the All Party Writers Group, commented:

"With this new inquiry, we can see the need to act to support the creative workforce across the country. Throughout the UK, authors have ensured that we have the books, film, television and dramatic works to help us through the pandemic and to support the next generation. We need to make sure that authors are fairly rewarded and can keep doing the fantastic work they do."

Read the full report here.

Editor's notes:

About All Party Groups

All Party Groups provide an opportunity for Members of Parliament to help keep the Government and Opposition informed of opinion both inside and outside Parliament on policy issues.

About the All Party Parliamentary Writers Group (APWG)

The All Party Parliamentary Writers Group was established in 2007. Its aims are: to represent the interests of all writers, to safeguard their intellectual property rights and to ensure they receive a fair level of recognition and reward for their contribution to the economy and society as a whole. There are currently over 65 members of the cross-party group across both Houses. The Group Officers are: Giles Watling MP (Chair), Pete Wishart MP (Vice-Chair), Lord Clement-Jones (Vice-Chair), Baroness Benjamin (Secretary) and Lord Dubs (Treasurer).

The APWG is administered by the Authors' Licensing & Collecting Society (ALCS).

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Outcome of 2021 Shareholders' Meeting

Brussels, May 11, 2021, 17:45 CEST - Solvay today held its General Shareholders' Meeting virtually.

Shareholders voted in favor of all the resolutions proposed. More specifically, they approved the payment of a gross dividend of 3.75 per share for the year 2020. After deduction of the interim dividend of 1.50 gross per share, paid in January 2021, the balance amounts to 2.25 gross per share (1.575 net, after deduction of 30% of withholding tax).

Calendar of payment related to the 2020 final dividend

May 17, 2021: ex-date

May 18, 2021: record date

May 19, 2021: payment date

During the meeting, shareholders approved the reelection for a four year mandate for Nicolas Boel, Ilham Kadri, Bernard de Laguiche, Francoise de Viron and Agnes Lemarchand and for a three year mandate for Herve Coppens d'Eeckenbrugge. They also approved the appointment of two new directors, Dr. Wolfgang Colberg and Edouard Janssen, to replace Amparo Moraleda and Evelyn du Monceau, whose mandates came to an end at this meeting.

Details of the votes and the presentations of the Chairman and the CEO are now available on Solvay's website, in the Investors section .

Attachment
Another quarter of strong growth:

A very strong Q3 1 with revenue up 39% at constant exchange rates (+30% like-for-like 2

Forward momentum driven by PlanetArt's robust gains (+ 55% at constant exchange rates) and Avanquest's return to top line growth

373 million in revenue for the first nine months, up 28% at constant exchange rates (+20% like-for-like)

This press release presents unaudited Group consolidated revenue, prepared in accordance with IFRS.

Regulatory News:

Q3 2020-2021 (January-March 2021) was Claranova's (Paris:CLA) 17th consecutive quarter of growth with revenue of 96 million, up 39% at constant exchange rates and 30% like-for-like from the same period last year.

This quarterly momentum reflected robust gains by the personalized e-commerce activities (PlanetArt), up 55% at constant exchange rates and the return to growth by the software publishing activities (Avanquest). Based on this particularly strong third quarter performance, Claranova reported revenue of 373 million for the first nine months (July 2020-March 2021) or growth of 28% at constant exchange rates and 20% like-for-like.

Revenue by division for Q3 2020-2021:

In m Jan. to Mar.

2021

(3 months) Jan. to Mar.

2020

(3 months) Change Change at

constant

exchange rates Change at const.

consolidation

scope Change at const.

consolidation

scope and

exchange rates PlanetArt 72 50 45% 55% 35% 42% Avanquest 23 22 4% 7% 4% 7% myDevices 1 1 -34% -28% -34% -28% Revenue 96 73 31% 39% 24% 30%

Revenue by division for the first nine months of FY 2020-2021:

In m Jul. 2020 to

Mar. 2021

(9 months) Jul. 2019 to

Mar. 2020

(9 months) Change Change at

constant

exchange rates Change at

constant

consolidation

scope Change at

constant

consolidation

scope and

exchange rates PlanetArt 306 236 30% 37% 20% 27% Avanquest 65 68 -5% -1% -5% -1% myDevices 3 4 -14% -8% -14% -8% Revenue 373 307 22% 28% 14% 20%

PlanetArt: Q3 revenue up more than 50% at constant exchange rates

PlanetArt, Claranova's personalized e-commerce division registered another quarter of very strong growth with revenue of 72 million, up 55% at constant exchange rates. All geographies (the United States and Europe) and e-commerce activities (web and mobile), including both photo products and personalized gifts, benefited from this strong growth momentum. This performance notably reflects both the successful integration of the Personal Creations businesses and the successful launch in the US market at the beginning of the year of FreePrints Gifts, the new mobile app in the FreePrints range for creating personalized gifts. The excellent results achieved by FreePrints Gifts over the first nine months of FY 2020-2021 highlight PlanetArt's ability to monetize its existing customer base.

PlanetArt's revenue exceeded 300 million (306 million) for the first nine months of FY 2020-2021 with growth of 37% at constant exchange rates. On a like-for-like basis (at constant consolidation scope and exchange rates), PlanetArt's revenue grew 27% over the period.

Avanquest: software publishing activities back on track in Q3

Avanquest, Claranova's software publishing division, was back on a track of top line growth in Q3 2020-2021 with revenue of 23 million, up 7% at constant exchange rates. This completes the transition to a software subscription-based model (SaaS)3 with the division's proprietary software (PDF, Security, Photo) now accounting for more than three quarters of its revenue. As a result, Avanquest's recurring revenue (including SaaS) are increasing steadily, reaching 60% of total revenue in Q3 (up from 56% in Q1 2020-2021).

Growth in overall sales continues to be impacted by decreasing contributions from non-strategic activities, and notably the residual volume of physical software sales whose percentage in Avanquest's revenue mix continues to decline. Outside of these legacy revenues, the rest of the division registered double-digit growth in Q3 2020-2021.

On that basis, revenue from software publishing activities remained steady for the first nine months of the period at 65 million, (-1% at constant exchange rates).

myDevices: sales momentum continues to be impacted by the pandemic

myDevices' IoT activities had revenue of close to 1 million in Q3 2020-2021, down 28% at constant exchange rates. This third quarter trend reflects a further slowdown in the pace of deployment in the division's main industry sectors in response to the current health situation. It also reflects an unfavorable comparison base in relation to Q3 2019-2020, a period that included non-recurring revenue from commercial agreements with certain of its channel partners (including the US phone carrier, T-Mobile/Sprint). The increasingly rapid pace of vaccination rollouts, notably in the United States where one third of the population is now already fully vaccinated, should contribute to a reacceleration in myDevices' commercial deployment in the upcoming months.

myDevices had revenue of 3 million in the first nine months, down 8% at constant exchange rates.

"After a second quarter that confirmed the potential for profitability of our personalized e-commerce activities within an environment of reduced marketing investments, this third quarter offered yet another demonstration of Claranova's growth potential. With nearly 100 million in revenue in this quarter and growth at constant exchange rates of 39%, Claranova registered another quarter of very strong growth and confirmed the relevance of our target for revenue of 700 million by 2023", commented Pierre Cesarini, CEO of Claranova group.

Financial calendar:

August 4, 2021: FY 2020-2021 revenue.

About Claranova:

Claranova is a high-growth international technology group with a long-term vision and resilient business models operating in high potential markets. As the leader in personalized e-commerce (PlanetArt), Claranova provides added value through technological expertise in software publishing (Avanquest) and the Internet of Things (myDevices). These three business divisions share a common mission to simplify access to new technologies through solutions combining innovation and ease of use. Based on these strengths, Claranova has maintained an average annual rate of growth for the past three years of more than 45% and in FY 2019-2020 had revenue of 409 million.

For more information on Claranova group:

https://www.claranova.com or https://twitter.com/claranova_group

CODES

Ticker :? CLA

ISIN : FR0013426004

www.claranova.com

Disclaimer:

All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this press release about future events are subject to (i) change without notice and (ii) factors beyond the Company's control. Forward-looking statements are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's control that could cause the Company's actual results or performance to be materially different from the expected results or performance expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

1 Q3 2020-2021 covers the period from January to March 2021

2 Like-for-like (organic) growth equals the increase in revenue at constant consolidation scope and exchange rates. Like-for-like growth for the first nine months of FY 2020-2021 was restated to eliminate the effects of acquisitions, i.e. the CafePress businesses integrated in September 2020 and the Personal Creations businesses acquired in August 2019. As a result, this excludes the months of September 2020 to March 2021 for CafePress and July 2020 for Personal Creations. Revenue from recent acquisitions by the Avanquest division (PDFescape, Gamulator, Kubadownload) was not restated in calculating growth at constant scope as the impact of these amounts on revenue of the division and the Group over the periods in question was not material.

3 Software as a Service.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005875/en/

Contacts:

ANALYSTS INVESTORS

+33 1 41 27 19 74

ir@claranova.com

FINANCIAL COMMUNICATIONS

+33 1 75 77 54 65

ir@claranova.com
CHICAGO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In-depth analysis and data-driven insights on the impact of COVID-19 included in this global waterborne coatings market report.

The global waterborne coatings market is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 5% during the period 2020-2026.

Key Highlights Offered in the Report:

The major driver of waterborne coatings markets includes the growth of the construction sector, infrastructure development, the automotive industry, packaging, and various other end-use industries such as marine, aerospace, and aircraft. Acrylic resins are widely used in the manufacturing of water-borne coatings industry due to their excellent properties of UV and weather resistance. Acrylic resins held around 22% market share in 2020 and it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6% during 2021-2026. Acrylic resins possess excellent weather resistance, retain color and gloss, have excellent durability, and are resistant to water and UV rays. They are also easy to apply, stable under extremely cold temperatures, and cost-effective compared to other materials APAC is the largest contributing region in the water-borne coatings market. A rising population in APAC, government initiatives toward the construction sector, and foreign investments in commercial spaces are expected to raise the demand for waterborne coatings in the APAC region. Other countries in the APAC region such as the Philippines and Vietnam are expected to invest in the infrastructure sector. The MEA region is diversifying by reducing their dependency on oil & gas and investing in the construction and infrastructure sector, which will boost the waterborne coatings market in the region.

Key Offerings:

Market Size & Forecast by Revenue | 2020-2026

Market Dynamics - Leading trends, growth drivers, restraints, and investment opportunities

Market Segmentation - A detailed analysis by resin type, end-user, and geography

Competitive Landscape - 5 key vendors and 32 other vendors

Get your sample today! https://www.arizton.com/market-reports/waterborne-coatings-market

Waterborne Coatings Market - Segmentation

The global acrylic waterborne coatings market is likely to grow at a CAGR of approx. 6% during 2020-2026. Stringency in government regulations and environment protection laws expect to increase demand for waterborne acrylic resins. As these resins offer excellent performance and environmental protection, the demand is likely to grow in residential and non-residential applications worldwide.

The global epoxy-based water-borne coating market is expected to reach over USD 18 billion in 2026. The demand for epoxy-based coatings is likely to come from the industrial and automotive sectors during the forecast period. Epoxy resins witness high application in end-users such as aerospace, race cars, and marine.

in 2026. The demand for epoxy-based coatings is likely to come from the industrial and automotive sectors during the forecast period. Epoxy resins witness high application in end-users such as aerospace, race cars, and marine. The architectural coatings segment accounts for over 55% of the global water-borne coatings market. Increased investments in infrastructure projects and construction and renovation of residential and commercial buildings are the significant factors driving the demand for architectural coating solutions.

Waterborne Coatings Market by Resin Type

Epoxy

Polyester

Acrylic

Polyurethane

Alkyd

Others

Waterborne Coatings Market by End-User Industry

Automotive

General Industrial

Architectural

Wood Industry

Packaging

Others

Waterborne Coatings Market - Dynamics

The growing awareness among consumers and stringent government regulations in various regions enforced paint and coating manufacturers to produce better products. The manufacturers' old ways of doing business relied on unsustainable chemicals that harmed the environment and humans. Improvements have come about largely due to protests championing anti-pollution practices and stringent government regulations supporting eco-friendly, clean products that are humanely produced, giving the idea of eco-conscious paints a boost. Consumers are looking at going back to the basics and using products that are as natural and breathable as possible. The movement against ammonia, formaldehyde, and heavy metals such as arsenic and lead is well spread and is only growing.

Key Drivers and Trends fueling Market Growth:

High Growth Potential in Emerging Economies

Growing Demand from Construction Industry

Increasing Automotive Production

Rising Home Improvement Activities

Waterborne Coatings Market - Geography

North America, which includes the key countries of the US and Canada, constitutes a significant region as it hosts the most advanced and largest economies of the world. North America is the third-largest market for water-borne coatings and accounts for over 18% of the total water-borne coatings market. The US is the major revenue contributor to the North American water-borne coatings market and accounted for a share of around 89% in 2020. The automobile industry is crucial in North America and is going through major transformations. The development of electric vehicle infrastructure is one of the key highlights in the automobile industry in the North American region. In addition, in terms of exports, automobiles accounted for the largest share in recent years.

Get your sample today! https://www.arizton.com/market-reports/waterborne-coatings-market

Waterborne Coatings Market by Geography

North America

US



Canada

Europe

UK



Germany



France



Russia



Spain



Italy

APAC

China



Japan



South Korea



India



Indonesia

Latin America

Brazil



Mexico

Middle East & Africa

Saudi Arabia



UAE



South Africa

Major Vendors

AkzoNobel

PPG Industries Inc.

Sherwin Williams

RPM International Inc.

Axalta Coating Systems

Other Prominent Vendors

Asian Paints Limited

Nippon Paint Holdings Limited

Masco Corporation

Diamond Vogel

Sacal Paints

DSM

DAW SE

Berger Paints India Ltd

Cabot Corporation

Clariant AG

Eastman Chemical Company

Tikkurila Group

Cromology SAS

Nuplex Industries Limited

SK Kaken Company Limited

BASF Coating

Benjamin Moore

Dunn Edwards

Dulux Group

H.B. Fuller

Teknos

Hempel A/S

Arkema SA

Jotun

Tnemec Company Inc.

Wacker Chemie AG

Kansai Paint

KCC Corporation

NOROO Paint & Coatings

Premium Coatings and Chemicals

Fujikura Kasei Company Limited

Carpoly Chemical Group

Brillux Gmbh

Explore our chemicals and materials profile to know more about the industry.

Read some of the top-selling reports:

Protective Coatings Market - Global Outlook and Forecast 2021-2026

Industrial Coatings Market - Global Outlook and Forecast 2021-2026

Antimicrobial Medical Device Coatings Market - Global Outlook and Forecast 2021-2026

Powder Coatings Market - Global Outlook and Forecast 2021-2026

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Arizton Advisory and Intelligence is an innovation and quality-driven firm, which offers cutting-edge research solutions to clients across the world. We excel in providing comprehensive market intelligence reports and advisory and consulting services.

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First-quarter 2021 turnover grew 32.3%, buoyed by an upturn in business and the Group's positioning



French GAAP -  million

Turnover 2021 (1) 2020 2021/2020 change 2021/2019 change(3) Current Like-for-like(2) Current Like-for-like 1st quarter 175.6 132.8 +32.3% +31.4% +14.1% +12.3% TOTAL 175.6 132.8 +32.3% +31.4% +14.1% +12.3% Building Materials Trading 93.9 75.4 +24.5% +25.2% +7.4% +9.4% Concrete Industry 31.8 23.0 +38.5% +30.7% +32.2% +12.8% Industrial Joinery 45.9 31.9 +43.8% +43.8% +21.2% +23.2% Other 11.6 9.3 +25.3% +25.3% -16.7% -9.5% Inter-segment eliminations -7.5 -6.8 - - - -

(1) Unaudited figures.

(2) Excluding the closure of Brem, La Rochelle, Brico Le Blanc, Brico Mirebeau for the Building Materials Trading business - Excluding sites in the Sarthe-Mayenne sector for the Concrete Industry business.

(3) In order to take into consideration the impact of the spring-2020 lockdown, the 2021/2019 change will be provided for first-half 2021.



A good start to 2021, with robust growth in the first quarter

In line with the end of the year 2020, HERIGE Group enjoyed a very strong start to 2021, with first-quarter turnover up a robust 32.3% (31.4% like-for-like) to 175.6 million. The 2020 comparison base was distorted by a work stoppage followed by part-time working at the Group's three businesses, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, when compared with the same period in 2019, turnover was up 14.1% (12.3% on a like-for-like basis).

The Group's three businesses continued their strong rebound, thanks to its full range of products and innovative services.

Turnover for Building Materials Trading rose 24.5% (25.2% like-for-like), propelled by general contracting and the very high business levels in the public works sector. Compared to first-quarter 2019, turnover was up 9.4% on a like-for-like basis.

Concrete Industry reported growth of 38.5% (30.7% like-for-like). This performance was buoyed by strong sales in the ready mix concrete division and pre-fabricated concrete products, and the integration of new plants in the Sarthe Mayenne sector at current scope. Compared to first-quarter 2019, Concrete Industry turnover was up 12.8% like-for-like.

Industrial Joinery continued its offensive, posting double-digit (43.8%) growth. The business recorded significant growth in all of its distribution channels focused on the renovation market, and its AM-X product continued to enjoy very positive momentum benefiting from the new production capacities of the Saint?Sauveur-des-Landes plant. On a like-for-like basis, turnover rose 23.2% on the same period in 2019.

Outlook and developments

Buoyed by the strong start to 2021 and its positioning in energy renovation, HERIGE intends to pursue its profitable development while keeping a watchful eye on developments in the health crisis.

Furthermore, the Group confirms its ambition to participate in the transformation of its sector by providing practical and sustainable solutions to construction stakeholders. For example, in March HERIGE Group entered into a technical partnership through its concrete subsidiary EDYCEM with Hoffmann Green Cement. The objective is to enable EDYCEM to develop a concrete formula with Hoffmann's low-carbon cement.



next publication: Q2 2021 turnover on July 27, 2021 (after the close of trading)

All our financial communications are available on our website www.groupe-herige.fr



About HERIGE

HERIGE Group focuses on three sectors of the building industry: Building Materials Trading, the Concrete Industry and Industrial Joinery. Originally based in the Vendee region, HERIGE currently employs more than 2,300 people and has a strong presence in Western France.



HERIGE is listed on Euronext Growth

PEA/PME eligible

Indices: EURONEXT FAMILY BUSINESS, EURONEXT GROWTH ALL SHARE, ENTERNEXTPEA-PME 150

ISIN FR0000066540, Ticker: ALHRG, Reuters ALHRG.PA

HERIGE

Benoit Hennaut - Chairman of the Executive Board

Caroline Lutinier - Head of Group Communication & CSR

Tel.: +33 (0)2 51 08 08 08

E-mail: communication@groupe-herige.fr



ACTUS finance & communication

Corinne Puissant - Analyst/Investor Relations

Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 67 36 77 - E-mail: cpuissant@actus.fr

Anne-Catherine Bonjour - Press Relations

Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 67 36 93 - E-mail: acbonjour@actus.fr

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2020-2021 financial year affected by the health crisis

2020-2021 total sales: 39.7 million (37.9 million proforma)

Return to proforma growth in Q4 (+12%)





Significant points

Printing activity returned to growth in Q4 (+3.7%) notably thanks to a dynamic Home Decor activity offsetting the downturn in business during the period.

Hardware proforma activity (excluding Anthem Displays) is up +11% for the year with significant growth in Q4 (+41%).

Order backlog on March 31, 2021 stands at 11.5 million.

Annual consolidated sales figures (April 1, 2020 - March 31, 2021)

To facilitate the comparability, the Group presents a proforma total revenue for 2020-2021 and 2019-2020, excluding the contribution from its American subsidiary Anthem Displays that, as of December 23, 2020 when the Group sold off part of its stake in the entity, is no longer fully integrated but instead consolidated on an equity basis.

April 1, 2020- March 31, 2021 Q4: 1st Jan - 31 March Non audited 12 Months 12 Months 3 Months 3 Months In  million 2020-2021 2019-2020 Var. % Q4 20-21 Q4 19-20 Var. % Printing activity 24.84 32.26 -23.0% 7.06 6.80 +3.7% Hardware activity excl. Anthem D 13.09 11.75 +11.4% 2.79 1.98 +41.4% Proforma1 total sales 37.93 44.01 -13.8% 9.85 8.78 +12.2% Proforma total (constant currencies) 38.44 44.01 -12.7% 10.00 8.78 +13.9% Anthem Displays1 (hardware) total sales 1.76 7.21 ns - 1.59 ns Reported total sales 39.69 51.23 -22.5% 9.85 10.37 -5.0% Total (constant currencies) 40.27 51.23 -21.4% 10.00 10.37 -3.6%

Foreign currency impact is mainly due to fluctuations in the South African Rand, the USD and CAD.

1 Anthem Displays activity is consolidated over 12 months in 2019-2020 and over almost 9 months in 2020-2021

(April 1, 2020 - December 23, 2020).



Q4 2020-2021 reflects a significant upturn in activity. After being hard hit by the health crisis during the first 9 months of the period and despite a context that remains uncertain, notably in Europe, Prismaflex returned to proforma growth in the 4th quarter partly due to a favourable base effect. Total sales for the quarter are up +12.2% (+13.9% on a constant exchange rate basis).

This upturn at the end of the financial year limited the fall in proforma annual sales to -13.8%, with total sales standing at 37.9 million.

For the year, Printing activity was impacted by a drop in orders from customers highly exposed to the crisis and stands for the year at 24.8 million, down by -23.0%. Printing activity did however return to growth in Q4 (+3.7%), thanks to a dynamic Home Decor activity throughout the financial year (+140% at 1.7 million in Q4, +34% at 5.2 million for the 12-month period). This performance allowed to limit the impact of the health crisis on other more traditional activities (bills, banners for events and promotional campaigns) that continued to be impacted at the end of the period, notably in Great Britain and South Africa.

Proforma Hardware activity for the period stands at 13.1 million, up +11.4%. One key contributory factor has been the increase in sales of LED displays in Europe (excluding the United Kingdom) and Latin America following the signing of a partnership with Clear Channel (cf press release dated March 5, 2021). The Division pursued its penetration of the French municipalities sector, despite the difficult context. Q4 also saw an upturn in orders for the more traditional product offers (billboards, street furniture) after 9 flat months.

The American subsidiary Anthem Displays (currently 27% of the capital held by Prismaflex International) recorded total sales for the period of 3.4 million (1.8 million accounted for in the published results).

Prismaflex International continued to control operating costs over the period to limit as far as possible the impact of the downturn in business on its operating profit and to record positive proforma EBITDA and limit proforma current operating losses.

Outlook 2021-2022

Despite a context that remains uncertain and difficulties concerning the supply of raw materials, Prismaflex International is aiming for profitable growth in 2021-2022. The Group will benefit from a favourable basis for comparison as of Q1 and should begin to reap the rewards of its marketing actions and efforts to control operating costs and manage its cash-flow. Order backlog at the start of the year is solid and stands at 11.5 million, significantly up compared with December 31, 2020, following orders and the signing of contracts during the last quarter for both the Printing and Hardware activities.

Printing activity is anticipating a progressive return to normalised activity with a gradual upturn in orders from those sectors worst hit by the crisis in 2020. Home Decor will pursue its progression with order commitments from its key customer and an anticipated rise in on-line sales.

Hardware activity has a diversified order backlog with clients in France, Germany and Africa. The division aims to increase its share of the mass retail market and the French municipalities sector while pursuing its collaboration with professionals of the advertising world.





Forthcoming dates :

Publication of 2020-2021 annual results:

Press release June 21, 2021 after closure and conference call June 22, 2021

PRISMAFLEX INTERNATIONAL

OUTDOOR ADVERTISING SOLUTIONS MANUFACTURER AND WIDE FORMAT DIGITAL PRINTING

ISIN: FR0004044600-ALPRI - Reuters: ALPRI.PA - Bloomberg: ALPRI.FP

EURONEXT GROWTHTM

www.prismaflex.com



Contacts :

Florence Therond - CFO - Phone: +33 (0)4 74 70 68 00 - finance@prismaflex.com

Guillaume Le Floch - Analysts/investors/press contacts - +33 (0)1 53 67 36 70 - glefloch@actus.fr

Marie-Claude Triquet - Press relations - Phone: +33 (0)4 72 18 04 93 - mctriquet@actus.fr

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The Board of Directors of Oeneo Group decided to authorize the Managing Director of the Company to implement a share buyback program. Under this authorization, an agreement was entered into with an investment service provider to buy back Oeneo's shares.

The agreement concerns up to 2,000,000 shares, representing 3.07% of Oeneo's share capital, in accordance with the conditions set out in the 19th resolution adopted by the Shareholders' Meeting of September 14, 2020.

The buyback program is intended to enable the following operations, in descending order of priority:

1. Meet the requirements arising from programs for the allocation of free shares to employees and/or corporate officers of the company and/or of affiliated companies;

2. Reduce the share capital by canceling treasury shares;

3. Meet the requirements arising from securities granting access to the share capital.

Shares can be bought back under the agreement for a 12-month period as of today. Oeneo reserves the right to interrupt the share buyback program at any time, which will not affect the performance of the liquidity agreement entered into by the Company.

The details of the share buyback program, provided on page 201 of Oeneo's Annual Report filed with the French Financial Markets Authority (Autorite des marches financiers) on July 27, 2020, and the related resolutions are available on the Company's website, www.oeneo.com.

About OENEO Group

Oeneo Group is a major wine industry player with high-end and innovative brands. Present around the world, the Group covers each stage in the winemaking process through two core and complementary divisions:

Closures, involving the manufacture and sale of cork closures, including high value?added technological closures through its Diam and Pietec ranges.

Winemaking, providing high-end solutions in winemaking and spirits for leading market players through its cooperage brands Seguin Moreau, Boise, Millet, Fine Northern Oak and Galileo, and developing innovative solutions for the wine industry with Vivelys (R&D, consulting, systems).

Oeneo prides itself in offering solutions in the production, maturing, preservation and enhancement of wines or spirits that faithfully convey all of the emotion and passion of each winegrower and improve their performance.

WE CARE ABOUT YOUR WINE

INFORMATION AND PRESS RELATIONS

Oeneo Actus Finance Philippe Doray

Chief Administrative and

Financial Officer

+33 (0)5 45 82 99 93

Guillaume Le Floch

Analysts - Investors

+33 (0)1 53 67 36 70 Anne-Catherine Bonjour

Media Relations

+ 33 (0) 1 53 67 36 90

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Employees offered more choice about setting their own working environment. Investments in technology and collaboration will empower people to work anywhere.

Experian, the global information services company, has today announced a new global approach to work. The aim is to take the learnings from the experience of Covid-19 lockdown and create a working environment which suits everyone's situation.

Experian is committing to promote more individual choice by creating a new hybrid model, where employees will be encouraged to 'work your way'. Through the lockdown, Experian moved its global operations to remote working with very limited disruption.

Most employees will be offered increased flexibility, with the majority moving to a hybrid model, some working fully remotely, and some in the office.

Experian which operates in 45 countries around the world believes this will continue to boost productivity and improve the work life balance options for its 17,800 global employee base.

What the Covid-19 crisis has reminded us, beyond everything else, is that we are all individuals living very different lives. That's prompted Experian to go down the route of offering a flexible working culture, giving employees the choice to work remotely, in the office, or a mix of both if they prefer.

Jacky Simmonds, Chief People Officer at Experian said:

"We are embracing the technology of connectivity more than ever before, making investments in the right digital tools to ensure that our people can work productively from anywhere.

"When you're working in a global business like ours, it's been great to get more facetime with colleagues around the world technology can deliver that for us, but it's taken a pandemic for us to really embrace it. Many of us are also keen to meet up in person regularly and stay in touch with colleagues beyond the virtual.

"Our ultimate aim is to ensure our people can bring more balance to their lives while preserving our hugely vibrant culture and living up to our purpose as an organisation. We can all look forward to this exciting new chapter in the Experian story."

About Experian

Experian is the world's leading global information services company. During life's big moments from buying a home or a car, to sending a child to college, to growing a business by connecting with new customers we empower consumers and our clients to manage their data with confidence.

We help individuals to take financial control and access financial services, businesses to make smarter decisions and thrive, lenders to lend more responsibly, and organisations to prevent identity fraud and crime.

We have 17,800 people operating across 45 countries and every day we're investing in new technologies, talented people and innovation to help all our clients maximise every opportunity. We are listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and are a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.

Learn more at www.experianplc.com or visit our global content hub at our global news blog for the latest news and insights from the Group.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005979/en/

Contacts:

Tulchan for Experian

Graeme Wilson, Louise Male and Guy Bates

Tel: +44 (0)20 7353 4200 Email: experian@tulchangroup.com

Experian

Nick Jones

Financial PR Lead, Global

Tel: +44 07976 734 702 Email: nick.jones@experian.com
Paris, 11 May 2021 - Altamir's Net Asset Value per share was 31.24 as of 31 March 2021, up 1.1% from 31 December 2020 (30.90).

We remind investors that as of 31 March and 30 September Altamir revalues only the listed companies in the portfolio and those whose divestment is announced during the quarter; Apax Partners LLP, however, revalues its entire portfolio. If Altamir had used the new valuations communicated by Apax Partners LLP as of 31 March the NAV would have been 32.23/share (i.e. an increase of 4.4% over the quarter, vs the reported increase of 1.1%).

1. PERFORMANCE

Net Asset Value (shareholders' equity, IFRS basis) stood at 1,140.7m as of 31 March 2021 (vs 1,128.2m as of 31 December 2020).

The change in NAV during the quarter resulted from the following factors:



In m Portfolio Cash (Debt) Carried interest provision Other assets and liabilities NAV NAV 31/12/2020 1,266.7 (4.9) (118.9) (14.6) 1,128.2 + Investments 110.6 (110.6) - - - - Divestments (189.6) 189.6 - - - + Interest and other financial income (including dividends)

- 1.5 - - 1.5 +/- Positive or negative change in fair value

79.0 (56.1) (4.1) - 18.9 +/- Purchases and external expenses

- (5.8) 0.7 (2.8) (7.9) - Dividends paid - - - - - NAV 31/03/2021 1,266.7 13.7 (122.3) (17.4) 1,140.7

Value creation of 23.0m reflected principally:

Uplift in InnovAge at the time of its IPO and the increase in the share price realised since then (10.0m),

at the time of its IPO and the increase in the share price realised since then (10.0m), A 7.8m revaluation of the investment in Sandaya to align it with its sale price,

to align it with its sale price, The 2.8m rise in the share price of Duck Creek Technologies.

2. ACTIVITY

Altamir was very active in the first quarter of 2021, with 135.3m invested and committed, vs 113.1m over all of 2020, and 222.0m in divestment proceeds and revenue, vs 158.9m in 2020.

These amounts included the transaction finalised on 26 February 2021, during which Altamir sold the investment it held in THOM Group (directly and via the Aho20 fund) and reinvested 100m in THOM Group's controlling holding company, thereby becoming its principal shareholder, alongside management and new shareholders.

a) 135.3m invested and committed during the quarter

Excluding the THOM Group transaction, the amounts invested and committed related primarily to five companies acquired via the Apax X LP fund for a total of 31.6m:

10.1m in PIB Group, an insurance broker based in the United Kingdom with a presence in continental Europe and India,

9.1m in Rodenstock, a leading eyewear company (lenses and frames) based in Munich (transaction not yet finalised as of 31 March),

5.2m in Idealista, the largest online real-estate marketplace in Spain and Italy, sold in 2020 via the Apax VIII LP fund, in which Apax X LP acquired a minority holding alongside the new shareholders,

4.4m in Lutech, an Italian IT services and solutions provider (transaction not yet finalised as of 31 March),

2.8m in Herjavec Group, a Canadian company specialised in corporate cyber security solutions (transaction not yet finalised as of 31 March).

In addition, 2m was invested in Apax Development, which realised a transaction during the quarter.

Lastly, 1.7m in follow-on investments and adjustments were recognised, including 0.9m to strengthen the financial condition of Matchesfashion.

b) 222.0m in divestment proceeds and revenue

Excluding THOM Group, two other transactions were closed during the quarter via the Apax Midmarket IX fund (ex-Apax France IX):

Expereo was partially sold; the fund retains a minority stake equal to around 30% of the amount of its sale proceeds, alongside the new shareholder, Vitruvian Partners, and the management team (transaction finalised on 29 April at a price of 63.0m);

was partially sold; the fund retains a minority stake equal to around 30% of the amount of its sale proceeds, alongside the new shareholder, Vitruvian Partners, and the management team (transaction finalised on 29 April at a price of 63.0m); Sandaya was fully sold to a fund managed by InfraVia Capital Partners (transaction finalised on 22 April at a price of 45.3m).

In addition, Apax Digital sold one of its investments to the SAP group at excellent terms (1m in sale proceeds for Altamir).

Lastly, 1.1m in adjustments on the amount received on the sale of Boats Group was recognised during the quarter, as well as 7.1m in sundry revenue, principally deriving from the sale of Duck Creek Technologies shares (2.2m), a dividend distributed by Inmarsat (1.7m), a dividend recap from BIP (1.3m) and the sale of TietoEVRY shares (1.3m).

3. CASH AND COMMITMENTS

Altamir's net cash position as of 31 March 2021 on a statutory basis was 42.3m (vs 42.4m as of 31 December 2020).

Altamir has lines of credit of 100m, including 70m at the Company level and 30m via the dedicated Astra fund, created in October 2020. This fund includes virtually all co-investments made by Altamir up to that date.

As of 31 December 2021, maximum outstanding commitments totalled 562m (including 126.3m committed but not yet called), which will be invested over the next four years, principally as follows:

2016 vintage: 29.4m , of which:

16.4m in the Apax IX LP fund (including 13.4m in recallable distributions);

8.7m in the Apax France IX fund (ex-Apax France IX);

3.8m in distributions recallable by the Apax VIII LP fund.

2019 vintage: 532.6m , of which:

341.3m in the Apax Midmarket X fund (ex-Apax France X);

179.6m in the Apax X LP fund (including 20m corresponding to the additional commitment Altamir made to the fund in January 2021);

10.0m in the Apax Development fund;

1.7m in the Apax Digital fund.

4. EVENTS SINCE 31 MARCH 2021

The Management Company has decided to increase the amount allocated to the Apax Midmarket X fund to 414m, vs 350m initially. Altamir's opt-out clause, under which it can adjust the level of its commitment to this fund to its available cash every six months, has been increased to 100m to take into account the new commitment amount.

In addition, Altamir made follow-on investments in companies in the existing portfolio, principally in InfoVista (2.8m), to finance the acquisition of Empirix, and in Entoria (1.1m) to strengthen its financial condition.

In addition, the Apax Digital fund announced a new investment.

5. DIVIDEND PAYMENT

At their General Meeting of 27 April 2021, Altamir's shareholders approved a dividend of 1.09 per share, composed of 0.92 with respect to the 2020 financial year (3% of NAV as of 31 December 2020) and 0.17 as a catch-up on 2019, so as to bring the dividend with respect to that financial year to 3% of NAV as of 31 December 2019.

The dividend will be paid on 27 May 2021 (ex-dividend date: 25 May 2021).

6. GOVERNANCE

At the General Meeting of 27 April 2021, shareholders approved all of the proposed resolutions by a very wide majority (from 85.18% to 100%).

Among these were the renewal of the term of Marleen Groen as a member of the Supervisory Board for two years and the terms of Gerard Hascoet and Philippe Santini as non-voting members, also for two years.

7. FORTHCOMING EVENTS

H1 2021 earnings and NAV as of 30/06/2021 9 September 2021, post-trading NAV as of 30/09/2021 4 November 2021, post-trading

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

About Altamir

Altamir is a listed private equity company (Euronext Paris-B, ticker: LTA) founded in 1995 and with a NAV of more than 1.1bn. Its objective is to provide shareholders with long-term capital appreciation and regular dividends by investing in a diversified portfolio of private equity investments.

Altamir's investment policy is to invest primarily via and with the funds managed or advised by Apax Partners SAS and Apax Partners LLP, two leading private equity firms that take majority or lead positions in buyouts and growth capital transactions and seek ambitious value creation objectives.

In this way, Altamir provides access to a diversified portfolio of fast-growing companies across Apax's sectors of specialisation (TMT, Consumer, Healthcare, Services) and in complementary market segments (mid-sized companies in continental Europe and large companies in Europe, North America and key emerging markets).

Altamir derives certain tax benefits from its status as a SCR ("Societe de Capital Risque"). As such, Altamir is exempt from corporate tax and the company's investors may benefit from tax exemptions, subject to specific holding-period and dividend-reinvestment conditions.

For more information: www.altamir.fr

Contact

Claire Peyssard Moses

Tel.: +33 1 53 65 01 74 / +33 6 34 32 38 97

E-mail: investors@altamir.fr

GLOSSARY

EBITDA: Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation

NAV: Net asset value net of tax, share attributable to the limited partners holding ordinary shares

Organic growth: growth at constant scope and exchange rates

Uplift: difference between the sale price of an asset and its most recent valuation on our books prior to the divestment

Net cash: cash on hand less short-term financial debt

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EsriIs Joining the Call for Code Global Challenge alongside IBM to Support the Developer Ecosystem and Open-Source Community in Combating Climate Change

Esri, the global leader in location intelligence, today announced it is joining the fourth annual Call for Code Global Challenge. Created by David Clark Cause and launched in partnership with IBM, United Nations Human Rights, and the Linux Foundation, Call for Code is designed to make an immediate and lasting global impact on humanitarian issues, using open-source-powered technology. In this year's competition, software developers and innovators around the world will take on climate change with open-source software, including Red Hat OpenShift, IBM Cloud, IBM Watson, IBM Blockchain, and data from The Weather Company.

Since Call for Code was launched in 2018, more than 400,000 developers and problem solvers across 179 nations have participated, creating more than 15,000 applications. This year's competition focuses on three sub-themes related to combating climate change: water availability and consumption, food production and delivery, and economic production and consumption.

The winning team will receive $200,000 and support from the IBM Service Corps, technical experts, and partners-to develop their technology, make their code available for anyone to use in open-source, and deploy their solution on the ground in communities around the world.

For its role in the Call for Code Global Challenge, Esri has made its geospatial analytics software and resources available to each participant, including the following:

A free ArcGIS Platform developer account.

A $100 voucher applied to the participant's ArcGIS account, allowing them to kick-start their solution with cloud hosting, analytical processing, and location services (This is available to the first 100 participants.)

Access to dedicated community support where participants can connect with mentors that can help them accelerate app development.

"Esri has just released a location platform as a service product that makes it easy for software developers to access geospatial technology," said David Cardella, Product Manager-Developer Technologies, Esri. "Some of the most exciting ways users are putting our software to work is in creating apps that help meet challenges related to climate change. We are excited to introduce our flexible, scalable location services that make content and capabilities available to developers who are building the next generation of geospatial solutions."

For more information and to learn how to get started on the Call for Code Global Challenge with Esri's offer, visit the ArcGIS Blog. Watch Kareem Yusuf, General Manager, AI Applications and Blockchain, IBM and Jack Dangermond, Founder and President, Esri, discuss their partnership and the importance of technology to address climate change here.

"We are excited to work with Esriand our global ecosystem throughout the 2021 Call for Code Global Challenge to drive, incubate, and deploy solutions that will combat climate change," said Willie M. Tejada, IBM Chief Developer Advocate and General Manager ISV/Build Ecosystem. "Climate change is a monumental challenge and demands the participation of world-renowned humanitarian experts, business leaders, and technology partners like Esrito have an immediate and lasting effect."

What makes Call for Code unique is the impact it is making on the ground through deployments in communities around the world. Last year's winning solution, Agrolly, was designed to support small farmers by providing climate and crop predictions and recommendations. The agriculture industry is one of the most vulnerable to climate change due to its dependence on rainfall and temperature. Since October, the Agrolly team has expanded the solution to new markets and provided hands-on training to more than 500 rural farmers in Mongolia, India, and Brazil, who are testing and using the app to fight the effects of climate change.

About Esri

Esri, the global market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, location intelligence, and mapping, helps customers unlock the full potential of data to improve operational and business results. Founded in 1969 in Redlands, California, USA, Esri software is deployed in more than 350,000 organizations globally and in over 200,000 institutions in the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, including Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, nonprofits, and universities. Esri has regional offices, international distributors, and partners providing local support in over 100 countries on six continents. With its pioneering commitment to geospatial information technology, Esri engineers the most innovative solutions for digital transformation, the Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics. Visit us at esri.com.

Copyright 2021 Esri. All rights reserved. Esri, the Esri globe logo, ArcGIS, The Science of Where, esri.com, and @esri.com are trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of Esri in the United States, the European Community, or certain other jurisdictions. Other companies and products or services mentioned herein may be trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of their respective mark owners.

About Call for Code Global Challenge

Developers have revolutionized the way people live and interact with virtually everyone and everything. Where most people see challenges, developers see possibilities. That's why David Clark, the CEO of David Clark Cause, created Call for Code in 2018, and launched it alongside Founding Partner IBM and Charitable Partner UN Human rights. Since then, Call for Code has scaled to include an annual University Challenge in addition to regional prizes and the creation of Call for Code for Racial Justice. This multi-year global initiative is a rallying cry to developers to use their mastery of the latest technologies to drive positive and long-lasting change across the world through code. Call for Code Global Challenge winning solutions are further developed, incubated, and deployed as sustainable open source projects to ensure they can drive positive change. To learn more about past winners and their progress, visit IBM Developer.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006031/en/

Contacts:

Jo Ann Pruchniewski

Public Relations, Esri

Mobile: 301-693-2643

Email: jpruchniewski@esri.com
ATLANTA, GA / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Luvu Brands, Inc. (OTCQB:LUVU) will release results for the nine months and third fiscal quarter ended March 31, 2021 on Monday, May 17, 2021.

Management will host a conference call at 12:00 p.m. EDT (11:00 a.m. CDT; 9:00 a.m. PDT) on Tuesday, May 18, 2021 to review the results for the third quarter and nine months of fiscal 2021. To listen and participate in the call, please register on this web link https://www.webcaster4.com/Webcast/Page/2527/41359. After the formal presentation, there will be a Q&A session. Shareholders and other interested parties may ask questions through either the web link or by calling 877-407-0778 (international 201-689-8565). The replay of the call will remain available on the Company's investor relations website, www.luvubrands.com, until August 18, 2021.

About Luvu Brands

Luvu Brands, Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets a portfolio of consumer lifestyle brands through the Company's websites, online mass merchants, and specialty retail stores worldwide. Brands include Liberator, a brand category of iconic products for enhancing sexual performance; Avana, inclined bed therapy products, assistive in relieving medical conditions associated with acid reflux, surgery recovery, and chronic pain; and Jaxx, a diverse range of casual fashion daybeds, sofas and beanbags made from polyurethane foam and repurposed polyurethane foam trim. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the Company occupies a 140,000 square foot vertically integrated manufacturing facility and employs over 200 people. The Company's brand sites include www.liberator.com, www.jaxxliving.com, www.avanacomfort.com, plus other global e-commerce sites. For more information about Luvu Brands, please visit www.luvubrands.com.

Company Contact:

Luvu Brands, Inc.

Ronald Scott

Chief Financial Officer

770-246-6426

ron@LuvuBrands.com

SOURCE: Luvu Brands, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646533/Luvu-Brands-to-Announce-Fiscal-2021-Third-Quarter-Financial-Results
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Euro Asia Pay Holdings Inc. (CSE: EAP) ("EAP" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the launch of a new and enhanced SideKickTM product powered by Mastercard. The new product includes a variety of card features including an exclusive Budget Tool that allows parents to set spending budgets for their students.

Peter MacKay, EAP's Chief Executive Officer, commented: "The new SideKick Card brings the ability of monitoring and budgeting living expenses to parents of international students who wouldn't normally be able to do so using other alternatives. This provides a substantial benefit to customers who use our product and a unique selling point for agent partners who introduce the financial solution to their clients."

Following the launch of the new product, international students will have access to a physical SideKick Card issued by Mastercard that makes it easy and safe for them and their parents to monitor, budget and spend funds in Canada. Parents can decide how much money to deposit onto the student's SideKick Card and use the Budget Tool to control funds while students can keep track of their spending on the SideKick app.

International students in Canada can use their SideKick Card wherever a prepaid Mastercard is accepted - which is virtually everywhere, in-store and online. The new card also allows students to enjoy other functionalities that were not part of the previous version of SideKick, such as contactless payments (tap), secured payments with chip and pin, and ATM withdrawals.

"The additions of the Budget Tool and other card functionalities to the SideKick product are a game-changer for both existing and new customers," continued Mr. MacKay. "Until now, parents had no ability to monitor how the money was spent when sending their kids to study in Canada and usually had to send more money to cover non-essential expenses. With SideKick, parents have more control over their kids' spending and can have peace of mind that students won't mismanage their funds and spend large sums on unnecessary items."

According to The Globe and Mail, international students contribute an estimated $22 billion a year to the Canadian economy. "SideKick attends the demand for a better solution to help parents and students to manage these funds," declared Mr. MacKay.

About Euro Asia Pay Holdings Inc.

Euro Asia Pay Holdings Inc. is a developer of innovative financial solutions for the next generation of consumers. Its first product, SideKick, enables parents to transfer, control and monitor payments to their children in a simple, intuitive manner. The product includes a student-facing mobile application, a prepaid student payment card and a parent portal, among other features.

To learn more about EAP's products and services, visit www.euroasiapay.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Peter MacKay

Chief Executive Officer & Director

For further information, please contact:

Peter MacKay

Chief Executive Officer & Director

(800) 508-8813

ir@euroasiapay.com

For all media queries, please contact:

Swati Mehta

PR Associates

(403) 804-0768

smehta@prassociates.com

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this news release include forward-looking statements or information (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. The Company is providing cautionary statements identifying important factors that could cause its actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements. Any statements that express, or involve discussions as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, through the use of words or phrases such as "may", "anticipates", "is expected to", "estimates", "intends", "plans", "projection", "could", "vision", "goals", "objective" and "outlook") are not historical facts and may be forward-looking. The Company has based the forward-looking statements largely on its current estimates, assumptions and projections about future events and trends that it believes may affect its business, financial condition and results of operations.

By their nature, forward-looking statements involve numerous assumptions, inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, which contribute to the possibility that the predicted outcomes may not occur or may be delayed. The risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control, include, but are not limited to: the ability of the Company to establish a market for its products; competitive conditions in the mobile payments industry which could prevent the Company from becoming profitable; the effectiveness and efficiency of advertising and promotional expenditures to generate interest in the Company's products; dependency on continued growth in the adoption of mobile payment technology; volatility of the market price of the Company's securities; the inability to secure additional financing; the Company's intention not to pay dividends; claims, lawsuits and other legal proceedings and challenges; conflicts of interest with directors and management; and other relevant factors.

Factors that could cause the Company's actual results to differ from the forward-looking statements include its history of losses from operations; technology risks; its ability to obtain the additional financing required to meet long-term goals; its dependence on key personnel, including its executive officers; and uninsured risks. These factors are not exhaustive.

Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which such statement is made, and, except as required by applicable law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which such statement is made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for management to predict all such factors and to assess in advance the impact of each such factor on the Company's business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83651
Will Enable Company To Begin Roll-Out Of Its Proprietary Technology Products/Services: Gigabyte Slayer Retail Mobile App, Warp-G Data Software Solution and Webstar eCampus Virtual On-Demand Classroom.

JACKSONVILLE, FL / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Webstar Technology Group Inc. (OTC Pink: WBSR) a software marketing and technology company that identifies, incubates and acquires exclusive rights to promising proprietary technology products and services and provides its shareholders access to participate in cutting edge technology opportunities focused on the internet and global data delivery capabilities, today announced that it received notification from FINRA that it was granted a trading symbol, clearing a final hurdle to begin trading. The approval provides the Company the ability to list on the public markets.

The Company plans to have its broker/dealer initiate a quotation for WBSR within three business days from its receipt of the notification from FINRA.

On 05/04/2021, FINRA processed a Form 211 relating to the initiation of priced quotations of WBSR, which means that the submitting broker-dealer has demonstrated to FINRA compliance with FINRA Rule 6432 and therefore has met the requirements under that rule to initiate a quotation for WBSR within three days of 05/04/2021. FINRA's processing of a Form 211 in no way constitutes FINRA's approval of the security, the issuer, or the issuer's business and relates solely to the submitting broker-dealer's obligation to comply with FINRA Rule 6432 and SEA Rule 15c2-11 when quoting a security.

James Owens, the Chairman of the Company said: "This is a big step for the company as the listing of the company's stock will assist us in implementing our full business plan to roll out our line of products and services including our, Gigabyte Slayer Retail Mobile App, Warp-G Data Software Solution and our Webstar eCampus Virtual On-Demand Classroom."

About Webstar Technology Group, Inc.

Webstar Technology is pioneering a new era of innovation that will unleash the power of the internet and global data delivery capabilities that have never before been realized. Our Warp-G Enterprise Software and Gigabyte Slayer mobile application are designed to increase data stream delivery well beyond existing 4G and projected 5G. Combined with our "Smart-Caching" encryption technology and advanced storage optimization capabilities, Webstar will provide disruptive global data delivery, storage, and protection capabilities for every business, every customer. Webstar Technology Group-"Transforming the Connected World through innovative technologies that help businesses thrive and enrich people's lives!"

For more information on Webstar Technology Group Inc. please go to our website: https://webstartechnologygroup.com

Forward Looking Statements Disclaimer: This release may contain statements that constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Webstar Technology Group Inc.'s ability to control, and that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. Such forward -looking statements include the words "vision," "seek", "grow", "plan" and other expressions of a forward-looking nature. More information about the potential factors that could affect the business and financial results is and will be included in Webstar Technology Group Inc.'s filings with the OTC Markets, Securities and Exchange Commission and/or posted on the company's website.

CONTACT:

Webstar Technology Group, Inc.

(888) 405-7680

info@webstartechnologygroup.com

SOURCE: Webstar Technology Group Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646541/Webstar-Technology-Group-Inc-WBSR-Receives-Ticker-Symbol-From-FINRA-and-Clears-Final-Regulatory-Hurdle-to-Begin-Trading
Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) today announced that it will hold its first quarter investor conference call on 25 May 2021 at 16:00 BST (11:00 EDT). During the call, CEO Bill Ackman and the other members of the Pershing Square investment team will provide an update on the portfolio and address questions e-mailed in advance by investors to: ir@persq.com.

An audio webcast of the conference call will be available on PSH's website at www.pershingsquareholdings.com. The conference call will also be available by phone. The dial-in details are available at www.pershingsquareholdings.com.

Following the call, a replay of the event will be available by audio webcast until Tuesday, 8 June 2021 at 16:00 BST (11:00 EDT). To access the audio webcast, please visit PSH's website at www.pershingsquareholdings.com.

About Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd.

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) is an investment holding company structured as a closed-ended fund that makes concentrated investments principally in North American domiciled companies.

Category: (PSH:Events)

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006122/en/

Contacts:

Media

Camarco

Ed Gascoigne-Pees Hazel Stevenson +44 020 3757 4989, media-pershingsquareholdings@camarco.co.uk
Oslo, Norway - May 11, 2021: The Annual General Meeting of the shareholders of REC Silicon ASA (REC Silicon) was held on May 11, 2021 at 4:00 pm CEST.

The minutes from the Annual General Meeting recording the resolutions made are enclosed hereto and are also available on REC Silicon's website www.recsilicon.com.

134,647,476 shares were represented at the general meeting. Thus, approximately 36.16% of the Company's total share were represented at the Annual General Meeting.

Further to the Notice of the Annual General Meeting issued on April 20, 2021, the Annual General Meeting approved, as follows from the minutes, all resolutions as proposed by the Board.

For further information, please contact:

James A. May II, Chief Financial Officer

Phone: +1 509 989 1023

Email: james.may@recsilicon.com

Nils O. Kjerstad, IR Contact

Phone: +47 9135 6659

Email: nils.kjerstad@crux.no

About REC Silicon

REC Silicon is a leading producer of advanced silicon materials, delivering high-purity polysilicon and silicon gas to the solar and electronics industries worldwide. We combine 30 years of experience and proprietary technology with the needs of our customers, with annual production capacity of more than 20,000 MT of polysilicon from our two US-based manufacturing plants. Listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange (ticker: RECSI), the company is headquartered in Lysaker, Norway.

For more information, go to: www.recsilicon.com



This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

Attachment
With the upcoming World Health Assembly at the end of May, and indications that the World Health Organization (WHO) director-general plans to seek a second term in office, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the world's largest provider of HIV/AIDS care globally, calls on the United Nations Member States to consider and address the many ways in which the WHO did not measure up to the task of protecting the world from COVID-19.

"It is now fourteen months since the WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic, and the world was thrown into chaos. Vaccinations are ramping up, but much too slowly in many parts of the world and countries like India are on 'fire,'" said AHF President Michael Weinstein. "Coordinated international efforts to control COVID-19 have been virtually non-existent, raising the question-why was the world so unprepared for this pandemic? And more importantly, why did the institution with the primary responsibility of protecting global public health, the World Health Organization, fail so catastrophically?"

As the 10 points below will detail, missteps at the highest levels of the WHO led to delays and confusion with dire consequences across the world. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus ultimately bears responsibility for WHO's actions, or lack thereof, from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. In light of these facts, it is clear that Dr. Tedros should not be re-elected as director-general for a second five-year term at the WHO.

As evidenced by SARS, Ebola, Zika, and COVID-19, every new infectious disease outbreak carries a unique set of properties that poses unexpected challenges and requires a specialized response. There is no ready-made solution for all outbreaks, but in terms of evidence-based public health best practices, there are basic universal principles, such as transparency, accountability, and coordination. WHO, under Tedros's guidance, has largely failed to implement and maintain these principles while responding to COVID-19 in the following ways:

While it is still unclear exactly when and where COVID-19 first erupted, we do know that it was earlier than first reported by the WHO. A recent study in Italy puts their first case before the first identified case in China. Additionally, eight scientists in China raised the alarm about a novel virus in December 2019 and were detained and interrogated by authorities. A Harvard University analysis showed increased traffic at Wuhan health facilities going back to August 2019. WHO either did not have an effective early warning system, knew about this virus and didn't report it, or was prevented from knowing about it by the Chinese government. The result is that COVID-19 spread for months under the radar, thereby preventing effective containment and paving the way for a disastrous pandemic.



Once WHO acknowledged the emergence of the virus in early January 2020, it resisted pressure from key stakeholders, including AHF, and did not declare a Public Health Emergency of International Concern until January 30, 2020. By the end of January, there were already over 8,000 officially reported cases of COVID-19. This contributed to complacency on the part of countries in preparing and responding effectively.



Despite the spread of COVID-19 to multiple countries, the WHO waited an additional 40 days until March 11, 2020, to declare a pandemic.



The WHO director-general repeatedly praised China's response to COVID-19 despite knowing that its authorities failed to act quickly and transparently, wasting precious time for the world to respond. In addition, WHO knew that China was withholding vital data about the virus and was blocking independent scientists from coming in to investigate the origins of the virus. The WHO delegation only recently went to China and was denied access to source data and was carefully managed by Chinese authorities.



The WHO panel, which was sent to China to investigate the origins of COVID-19, was not entirely independent. It was selected in coordination with the Chinese government and included people who had clear conflicts of interest due to prior work with the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Even in a situation where impartiality was essential, WHO did not have sufficient leadership or power to hold countries accountable.



Throughout this pandemic, WHO failed to provide authoritative scientific information, data, and pragmatic operational guidance that could inform global efforts to control the virus. As a result, almost every country acted on its own with respect to case reporting, travel restrictions, and guidance, causing chaos and contributing to the spread of the disease.



WHO lacked a coherent communications strategy. They spoke authoritatively on matters they didn't understand but equivocated on things that were quite clear. Some examples include initial inconsistencies in whether there was ongoing human-to-human transmission, the effectiveness of face masks, and the efficacy and safety of Ibuprofen or dexamethasone use among COVID-19 patients.



WHO did not develop an effective vaccine strategy. Working with COVAX, they failed to garner the resources necessary to guarantee vaccine access for the developing world, failed to advocate for essential patent waivers, and failed to provide effective guidance on minimum standards or side effects. At present, COVAX expects to provide enough vaccines to protect 20% of people in 92 lower-income nations, but WHO says that to stop COVID-19, at least 70% of people need to be vaccinated.



WHO failed to approach and incentivize mobilization of civil society to help educate and convince communities to cooperate with prevention measures.



WHO failed to provide or even establish timely workable standards for basic protective equipment.



For these and many other reasons, the world needs a new public health security architecture. The very nature of WHO, which answers to 194 health ministers, is highly politicized, and is luxuriously ensconced in Geneva far from the battlefield which makes it ineffective in fighting this and any future pandemics.

This press release is Part 1 of a two-part statement on the urgent need for fundamental reforms of the global public health system. Part 2 will highlight how the structure for a new and improved Global Public Health Convention should be designed.

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to over 1.5 million clients in 45 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region and Europe. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: www.aidshealth.org, find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aidshealth and follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare and Instagram: @aidshealthcare

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006230/en/

Contacts:

US MEDIA CONTACT:

Denys Nazarov, Director of Global Policy

Communications, AHF

+1 323.308.1829

denys.nazarov@ahf.org

Terri Ford, Chief of Global Advocacy

Policy, AHF

+1 323.308.1820

terri.ford@ahf.org
Breaking the American technology monopoly, China conquering cutting-edge high-speed rail bearings, high-speed rail finally used Chinese axles

In recent years, Chinese high-speed rail has been developing rapidly. By the end of 2020, high-speed rail operating mileage in our country will reach 35,000 miles, accounting for two-thirds of the global rail operating mileage. In other words, most of the g lobal railway operating mileage routes are all In China, it is a pity that the "core" of high-speed rail operation, the bearing, is not independently developed by my country. Nowadays, the basic speed of my country\'s high-speed rail exceeds 200 kilometers per hour, but the bearings are basically imported. As we all know, bearings are generally widely used in automobile manufacturing, power tools, engineering machinery, aerospace, rail transit and other equipment. Therefore, bearings are also an essential part of the entire high-speed railway development. The quality of bearings will directly affect mechanical equipment. Performance and quality.

Now our country has fully mastered the ability to build high-speed rail. After years of research, Chin ese high-speed rail has a complete operation control system. Building high-speed rail bearings is an extremely complicated task. Comparing my country with high-end bearing companies, we currently need to overcome the two most basic difficulties. One is the basic research on bearing steel, and the second is that China has not increased the research and development of high-end bearing special steel. It can save 350 million yuan every year on imported bearings. The research and development of this technology in my country has completely broken the monopoly of EU countries in one field, so from now on, high-speed rail bearings in our country will no longer be stuck by foreign countries.

Affected by Saudi Arabia cut petroleum production is 7 trillion US dollars, the 15125 bearing market is changing rapidly. These changes are indicators of market rising. Bearings are an important part of modern machinery and equipment, and its downstream is widely used in industrial automation, high-end equipment, robotics, automobile manufacturing and other fields. In recent years, due to the decline in demand from downstream industries such as automobiles and machine tools, as well as the adjustment of industrial structure, the phase of transformation and upgrading, the phasing out of backward production capacity has changed the relationship between supply and demand. If you are looking for 15125 bearing or get more information about 15125 bearing, please send an email to sales@spark-bearing.com .

The price of 15125 bearing continues to be affected by some kind of factors such as market rising momentum, various opportunities and challenges. However, during the forecast period from 2022 to 2027, the global 15125 bearing sales market is expected to continue to be above average. The growth rate will continue to increase. It is expected that In the second half of this year, the price of 15125 bearing will increase to a certain extent.

Due to changes in the raw material price of bearings rising, consumer demand, import and export conditions, and various investigations on the development of 15125 bearing, the cost of 15125 bearing is constantly changing. Taking into account the current market macroeconomic parameters, value chain analysis, channel partners, demand and supply, the cost of 15125 bearing will also be affected to a certain extent. It is estimated that the cost of 15125 bearing will increase slightly from next year.

The market trend of 15125 bearing?

The cost of raw materials is still the biggest concern for manufacturers. Raw materials account for approximately 60-62% of bearing manufacturers revenue. The price of raw materials for bearings fluctuates continuously according to market economic conditions. Such fluctuations in raw material prices are becoming a real challenge for companies to maintain competitiveness and ensure sustainable profits. As high-grade steel and alloy steel are the main raw materials used to manufacture 15125 bearing, bearing prices are highly correlated with global steel price trends. Therefore, fluctuations in the price of raw materials have brought challenges for bearing manufacturers to compare prices and quality to manufacture bearings. In addition, the bearings require regular maintenance to avoid failures and extend their service life, which further increases maintenance costs. Therefore, factors such as raw material price fluctuations and regular maintenance costs are expected to hinder the growth of the bearing market.

The market demand for 15125 bearing?

The global bearing market value in 2020 is 123.34 billion U.S. dollars and is expected to reach 153.62 billion U.S. dollars by 2027, and the compound annual growth rate will also increase steadily.

A bearing is a mechanical element that supports relative movement and helps reduce friction caused between moving parts. Bearings are widely used in various industries such as automobiles, wind turbines, construction machinery, mining machinery, agricultural equipment, and machine tools. It is used in automobiles to ensure smooth driving of automobiles, electric vehicles (EV) and other types of vehicles (such as light commercial vehicles and heavy vehicles such as trucks). Due to the increasing utilization of bearing 15125 bearing in various end-use industries, rolling mills and electric vehicles, the global 15125 bearing market has become more and more important. The development of technology has improved the overall efficiency of bearing products in the field and extended the product shelf life.

About WSBC bearing

Wuxi Spark Bearing Co., Ltd is a complete, one-stop 15125 bearing supplier and manufacturer. All bearings products are qualified and have passed the ISO 9001 certification. We have more than 12 years of experience in bearings, is a modern high-tech professional high-quality roller bearing manufacturer specializing in R&D, manufacturing, sales and service. In order to keep WSBC bearings in sync with the world, we have invested in many advanced CNC equipment and a complete set of precision testing equipment committed to building a high-quality workforce and introducing advanced manufacturing and management technologies. We have strict quality control and environmental protection. If you are looking for 15125 bearing or get more information about bearings, please send an email to sales@spark-bearing.com
CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Japan will on Wednesday release preliminary March figures for its leading and coincident economic indexes, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. Their previous readings were 98.7 and 89.9, respectively. South Korea will see April numbers for unemployment; in March, the jobless rate was 3.9 percent. Australia will release March data for building permits, with forecasts suggesting an increase of 17.4 percent on month following the 20.1 percent jump in February. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
The investment arms of leading health and technology companies, Bayer, Hitachi, Samsung, Sony Innovation Fund by IGV, Unilever and the PE fund HAT, are financing Huma to bring proactive, predictive care to all.

LONDON and NEW YORK , May 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Huma Therapeutics Limited today announces the completion of its latest funding round with financing of approximately $130 million. The investment will scale Huma's modular platform which can power digital 'hospitals at home' nationally, and support the pharmaceutical and research industries to run the largest ever decentralized clinical trials. Huma's platform combines predictive algorithms, digital biomarkers and real-world data to advance proactive care and research.

Leaps by Bayer and Hitachi Ventures led the Series C funding round, which also saw new strategic and financial investors become shareholders. Samsung Next, Sony Innovation Fund by IGV*, Unilever Ventures and HAT Technology & Innovation Fund by HAT, as well as individuals Nikesh Arora (former president of SoftBank) and Michael Diekmann (Chairman of Allianz) are also new shareholders.

A further commitment of $70 million that can be exercised at a later date has also been agreed as part of the Series C funding round and takes the total financing raised to more than $200 million. Goldman Sachs International acted as lead placement agent to Huma. HSBC Bank plc and Nomura acted as joint placement agents, with the latter also becoming a shareholder.

The new investment will be used to expand Huma's digital platform in the US, Asia and the Middle East, with Huma having recently been named Europe's fastest growing healthcare company by the Financial Times1. Huma has established a reputation as a trusted health technology and innovation partner to four national governments (England's NHS, Wales, Germany and UAE). Its digital 'hospital at home' was co-created with clinicians and has been independently shown2,3 to almost double clinical capacity, reduce hospital readmissions by over a third and has patient adherence levels of over 90%. The service is supporting governments' pandemic responses on a not-for-profit basis and is now used for a range of patients including those going through knee- and hip-replacement surgery e.g. with Smith+Nephew4.

Huma advanced its work in the US in 2021 with an experienced leadership team that has fostered new partnerships with clinical research organisations, health care providers, payers, research organisations, and technology companies.

Huma works with leading life science companies including AstraZeneca, Bayer and Janssen and academic institutions such as Stanford Medicine, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the University of Cambridge5,6. Huma's research at the intersection of predictive care and machine learning has been peer-reviewed and published across a range of scientific and medical journals7,8,9,10,11.

Huma is bringing in new talent to every aspect of the organisation from bench to boardroom to scale plans for global expansion. Dr Claudia Suessmuth Dyckerhoff joined Huma's Board of Directors in April, bringing a wealth of global experience in life sciences and healthcare. In the past year, the Huma leadership team has matured with the recruitment of specialists across technology and AI, legal, healthcare, life sciences and corporate affairs12.

Dan Vahdat, Founder and CEO of Huma, said, "This is a pivotal moment in Huma's development. We have exceptional partners and strategic investors who will support us in our mission to help people worldwide live longer and fuller lives. We're already demonstrating how 'hospital at home' can transform healthcare, and how decentralized clinical trials can advance research in ways that weren't imaginable even one year ago. Now we want to accelerate the pace of change and continue to innovate for better care and research worldwide.'

Alan Milburn, former UK Health Secretary and Chairman of Huma's Board, said, "This is a significant moment in Huma's history and I will work to build enduring, trusted relationships with our new partners. We are living through unprecedented times and the importance of health and well-being is underlined as never before. Together with our partners we can use our expertise, technology, and innovation to change the face of healthcare and research and impact people's health everywhere."

Dr Claudia Suessmuth Dyckerhoff, Huma Board Director, said: "The pandemic has exposed weaknesses across health systems around the world but through collaboration, innovation, and compassionate leadership Huma can support faster and safer care for patients through digital technologies and rapid access to treatments by accelerating clinical research."

Huma's ambition to improve people's health across the world will be accelerated with its new global partnerships. Juergen Eckhardt, Head of Leaps by Bayer, comments, "Aligned with the vision of Leaps by Bayer, Huma's expertise and technology will help drive a global paradigm shift towards prevention and care and may boost research efforts using data and digital technology. We invest into the most disruptive technologies of our time that have the potential to change the world for the better. As an early investor into Huma we know how perfectly the company fits into that frame as one of the leading digital innovators in healthcare and lifesciences."

Keiji Kojima, Executive Vice President of Hitachi's Smart Life division, added,"Huma has built a comprehensive remote patient monitoring platform and established a strong track-record and we are excited to be working with Huma to bring its world-leading health technology to new markets in Asia. We believe that together we can advance new digital health products to power better care and research for all."

Jonathan Machado, Senior Investment Director of Samsung Next, said, "Huma is advancing the necessary transition of medicine from reactive to proactive, and we are thrilled to be a part of their journey. The company's evidence-based approach, validated by leading scientific publications, together with their impressive record of rapid, large-scale delivery is unparalleled. We are excited to explore how the Huma platform and its digital biomarkers portfolio could work with the Samsung ecosystem for lasting impact in proactive care across hospitals, life sciences and population health initiatives."

Gen Tsuchikawa, CEO and Chief Investment Manager for Sony Innovation Fund (SIF) and Chief Investment Officer for Innovation Growth Ventures (IGV), said, "We believe Huma's digital 'hospital at home' platform and data driven approach is redefining healthcare across the globe. We're excited to support Huma as they continue to accelerate their work in theUS, Europe, Middle East and Asia."

Ignazio Castiglioni, CEO of HAT, said, "Huma's pioneering technology can be a complete game-changer for the health industry. HAT, with its fourth PE fund, is thrilled to partner with Huma and their world-class people by supporting the company in the next phase of this exciting journey."

About Huma

Huma is a global health technology company that helps people live longer, fuller lives. Our modular platform supports digital 'hospitals at home' across different disease areas. In life sciences we power some of the world's largest decentralized clinical trials and studies. Our platform combines predictive algorithms, digital biomarkers and real-world data to advance proactive, predictive care and research.

Our 'hospitals at home' help care for patients across the England NHS, Wales, Germany, and the UAE - evidence shows they can double clinical capacity, reduce readmission rates by a third, and reduce costs whilst providing safe, high-quality care. We offer Covid-19 digital services, not-for-profit, to national governments to help fight against the pandemic and have shipped over a million devices that complement our 'hospitals at home' to help power them. www.huma.com

Additional resources:

Huma named Europe's fastest growing healthcare company: https://huma.com/Huma-FT1000-Press-Release.pdf NHSX report into the impact of Huma's digital 'hospital at home' for Covid-19 patients: https://www.nhsx.nhs.uk/media/documents/Evaluation_of_the_remote_digital_care_platform_221220.pdf Huma's digital 'hospital at home' for Covid-19 patients is part of a project shortlisted for HSJ Award 2021: https://huma.com/thoughtpiece/hsj-value-awards-2021 Huma operates peri-operative care for patients undergoing knee- and hip-replacements: https://www.smith-nephew.com/news-and-media/media-releases/news/smithnephew-and-huma-develop-remote-patient-monitoring-app-to-assist-the-safe-restart-of-uk-orthopaedic-surgery/ Huma is helping to power research detecting Covid-19 in asymptomatic patients as part of the Fenland research study by University of Cambridge's MRC Epidemiology unit Huma is helping to power research into a decentralized digital health trial for patients with atrial-fibrillation: Bayer and Stanford University's Center for Digital Health Decentralized Trial in Atrial Fibrillation Patients (DeTAP) study Huma published research into using data from wearable heart rate monitors to assess cardiovascular health: Sensors Huma published research on deep learning with wearable based heart rate variability for prediction of mental and general health: Journal of Biomedical Informatics Huma published research into using smartphone data to predict 'all cause mortality': JMIR mHealth Huma helped publish research into the impact of digital health through an app in acute medicine: JMIR Formative Research Huma's work on digital Covid-19 'hospitals at home' was discussed in the British Medical Journal: The British Medical Journal Huma hires leaders in digital health: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-digital-health-leader-huma-announces-us-expansion-to-advance-virtual-care-and-research-301216230.html Huma has been selected to be part of the World Economic Forum's Global Innovators Community, 'an invitation-only group of the world's most promising start-ups and scale-ups that are at the forefront of technological and business model model innovation': https://www.weforum.org/about/global-innovators/ Huma acquires Biobeats and TLT: https://huma.com/files/HumaRebrandPressRelease_20200416.pdf

*Innovation Growth Ventures Co., Ltd. (IGV) is managed by Sony Innovation Fund and Daiwa Capital Holdings.

 HSBC Bank plc ("HSBC"), which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority, is acting as financial adviser to Huma Therapeutics and no one else in connection with the matters described in this Announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Huma Therapeutics for providing the protections afforded to clients of HSBC, or for providing advice in connection with the matters referred to herein. Neither HSBC nor any of its group undertakings or affiliates owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of HSBC in connection with this Announcement or any matter referred to herein.
VIENNA, May 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Going for a coffee with a friend or family member is lock-down's most missed moment, with an estimated 13bn moments missed in the past 12 months across Europe's cities, according to premium coffee brand Julius Meinl.

A survey of 4,000 adults living in European cities has revealed that during the pandemic over two-thirds have missed the simple, everyday pleasure of meeting in a cafe for a coffee and a chat.

Most of those surveyed missed the social connection and 81% said that having a conversation with a friend or stranger had a positive impact on their wellbeing.

The study conducted by Viennese coffee roaster Julius Meinl and OnePoll across London, Vienna, Milan and Bucharest in April 2021, showed that between March 2020 and March 2021 European city dwellers on average missed a quarter of the conversations they usually had with strangers.

Londoners missed the most having lost 6.3m opportunities to meet someone new, whilst the Viennese missed 2.5m and the people of Milan missed 2.1 million moments.

Julius Meinl asked city-dwellers whether their attitudes towards strangers had changed during the pandemic. 36% of people said they are now more likely to say 'hello' to a stranger than they were pre Covid-19.

One in 10 said they would be much more likely to say 'hello', claiming they now felt 'more connected' to others as a result of the global crisis. Just 20% said they were less likely to say 'hello' with barriers to striking up a new conversation including a lack of confidence, nervousness about talking to people and fear of the virus spreading.

Londoners are the most sociable with almost half (48%) saying they would be more likely to say 'hello' and one in five (20%) being much more likely. Just 12% said they would be less likely compared with a quarter of those living in Bucharest and Milan.

One in five surveyed said the place they would most likely start up a new conversation was in a cafe.

To support cafes, hotels and restaurants around the globe as they begin to reopen and to make up for the thousands of missed moments Julius Meinl will be increasing connections over coffee with their "Say Hello" campaign. Launching globally from 1st June 2021, Julius Meinl coffee drinkers will be encouraged to "Say Hello" to a friend or a stranger, gift them a complimentary cup of Julius Meinl coffee and share a moment together. www.juliusmeinl.com/Say-Hello

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1507658/Julius_Meinl_Say_Hello.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1507657/Julius_Meinl_Logo.jpg
COVID-19 testing provided by Empower subsidiary Kai Medical Laboratory

VANCOUVER BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / EMPOWER CLINICS INC. (CSE:CBDT)(Frankfurt:8EC)(OTCQB:EPWCF) ("Empower" or the "Company") an integrated healthcare company - serving patients through medical centers, telemedicine platforms and a high complexity medical diagnostics laboratory processing thousands of COVID-19 specimens - is pleased to announce pursuant to a Referral Agreement dated May 10, 2021 that a major Canadian airline will now refer its passengers to Kai Care for expedited COVID-19 testing.

As we work to close the chapter on these truly extraordinary times, people are looking to the near future to resume their pre-pandemic lives. While COVID-19 has fundamentally shifted the way we live, work and travel, reliable and efficient testing protocols are the key to living life fully in our new normal.

Today, Empower Clinics is announcing an agreement with a major Canadian airline, whereby passengers will have access to and benefit from a Kai Medical Laboratory COVID-19 test. Kai Care is a customized direct-to-consumer easy five step RT- PCR at Home Saliva Test Kit, that doesn't need to be administered by a health care provider.

When booking a flight or navigating the airline website passengers will have options to click a link to be referred to Kai Care websites www.kaitests.com and www.kaitests.ca to purchase an RT- PCR Kai Saliva Test Kit.

With most countries and airlines requiring pre-departure negative COVID-19 test results, travelers are encouraged to order enough test kits to use for pre-departure and for prior to their return. Kai Care provides test kits by UPS overnight courier in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean (excluding Mexico).

"Our industry leading COVID-19 tests are key to getting passengers back in their seats for business and leisure travel," said Steven McAuley, Chairman & CEO of Empower. "I am proud that a major Canadian airline has chosen Empower as a trusted supplier to assist with a safe restart for travel. Kai Care at home saliva tests offer passengers a convenient, non-invasive and private way to take a COVID-19 test during what can be a stressful travel preparation period."

Kai Medical Laboratory testing method is the gold standard, detecting the active SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) in patients that are symptomatic or asymptomatic. It also offers the option to test for a combination of COVID-19 and Influenza A/B, should the traveler wish. The test product and the method of test result reporting meet the current guidelines of executive travel orders to enable travelers the ability to complete the check-in, customs clearance and boarding requirements for flight travel.

This press release is available on the Empower Clinics Verified Forum on AGORACOM for shareholder discussion, questions and engagement with management https://agoracom.com/ir/EmpowerClinics

ABOUT KAI MEDICAL LABORATORY:

Kai Medical Laboratory, a state-of-the-art diagnostics laboratory in Dallas, TX was acquired by Empower Clinics on October 6, 2020 to further advance the Company's COVID-19 national testing programs for enterprise clients, including movie and television studios, businesses and the travel industry.

ABOUT EMPOWER:

Empower is an integrated healthcare company that provides body and mind wellness for patients through its clinics, with digital and telemedicine care, and world-class medical diagnostics laboratories. Supported by an experienced leadership team, Empower is aggressively growing its clinical and digital presence across North America. Our Health & Wellness and Diagnostics & Technology business units are positioned to positively impact the integrated health of our patients, while simultaneously providing long term value for our shareholders.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS:

Steven McAuley

Chief Executive Officer

CONTACTS:

Investors:

Steven McAuley CEO

s.mcauley@empowerclinics.com

604-789-2146

Investors:

Tamara Mason

Business Development & Communications

t.mason@empowerclinics.com

416-671-5617

DISCLAIMER FOR FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release contains certain "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" (collectively "forward looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements and are based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements can frequently be identified by words such as "plans", "continues", "expects", "projects", "intends", "believes", "anticipates", "estimates", "may", "will", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or information that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: the expected benefits to the Company and its shareholders as a result of the acquisition of Kai Medical Laboratory; the transaction terms; the expected number of clinics and patients following the closing; the future potential success of Kai Medical Laboratory, Sun Valley's franchise model; launch of new healthcare centers and the occurrence thereof; that the Company can bring healthcare to millions of Canadians; that new healthcare services can be added and that the Company will be positioned to be a market- leading service provider for complex patient requirements in 2020 and beyond. Such statements are only projections, are based on assumptions known to management at this time, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements, including: that Kai Medical Laboratory will successfully win any US Government RFP; that the MedX Health pilot program will be successful; that Empower will place the MedX Health teledermatology product in health centers in North America; that the Company's products may not work as expected; that the Company may not be able to expand COVID-19 testing; that Air Canada will successfully refer travelers to Kai Care; that legislative changes may have an adverse effect on the Company's business and product development; that the Company may not be able to obtain adequate financing to pursue its business plan; that the Company will be able to commence and/or complete build-outs and tenants improvements for Canadian clinics or Kai Medical Laboratory expansion in 2Q 2021; that general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; failure to obtain any necessary approvals in connection with the proposed transaction; and other factors beyond the Company's control. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occur or, if they do occur, what benefits the Company will obtain from them. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements in this release, which are qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. The Company is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements in this release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable laws.

SOURCE: Empower Clinics Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/646691/Empower-Clinics-Announces-COVID-19-Referral-Agreement-with-Major-Canadian-Airline
Caris Life Sciences, an Irving, Texas-based innovator in molecular science and artificial intelligence (AI) focused on fulfilling the promise of precision medicine, raised $830m in growth equity funding at a post-money valuation of $7.83 billion.

The round was led by Sixth Street, with participation from funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., Silver Lake, Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC, Coatue, Columbia Threadneedle Investments, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Millennium Management, Neuberger Berman Funds, Highland Capital Management, Rock Springs Capital, OrbiMed, ClearBridge Investments, Tudor Investment Corporation, Eaton Vance Equity (Morgan Stanley), Pura Vida Investments and First Light Asset Management.

Led by David D. Halbert, Chairman and CEO, Caris Life Sciences is an innovator in molecular science and artificial intelligence focused on precision medicine. The companys suite of molecular profiling offerings assesses DNA, RNA and proteins to reveal a molecular blueprint that allows physicians and cancer patients to make personalized treatment decisions.

Caris is also advancing precision medicine with Caris Artificial Intelligence, combining its service offering, Caris Molecular Intelligence with its proprietary artificial intelligence analytics engine, DEAN, to analyze the whole exome, whole transcriptome and complete cancer proteome. This information, coupled with mature clinical outcomes on thousands of patients, provides molecular solutions for patients, physicians, payers and biopharmaceutical organizations.

Headquartered in Irving, Texas, the company has offices in Phoenix, Denver, New York, and Basel, Switzerland. Caris provides services throughout the U.S., Europe, Asia and other international markets.

FinSMEs

11/05/2021
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Retirement Truck Mods

I will be taking delivery of a F350 CCLB 6.7 in a couple weeks. This is a vehicle that I will be using to pull a occasionally pull a 10K trailer, travel to the backwoods of Maine, and hunt with. It is ordered with the front winch. After delivery, it will be getting a cap, ARB compressor, Airlift rear air springs and a front hitch mount. At some point, it may end up with some new rubber.



What modifications have people found that make your truck more livable on long rides, improve trailering, and help when off-road recovery is needed? Thanks
2020 F-450 first real tow impressions

Came from a 2011 F-350 DRW (400/800, no turbo brake) and with a hybrid rear air suspension.Trailer is 41 long wide body DRV, 22K+1600 miles into the current trip, from Delaware down almost to the Florida line, across Georgia, than up through the Chattanooga area to Sevierville, TN.First impressions are good.The 31% increase in torque is very welcome and noticeable.10 speed worked great and mileage was about 1 mpg more than the 2011 at 9.6 so far.Most impressive was the lack of downshifting on up-grades. We did over 1200 miles before seeing a hill steep enough to downshift and than it was only once from10th to 8th.Had no trouble maintaining my 64 mph set cruise speed. With my 2011 on similar hills Id be in the truck lane with the flashers.its a limited so has the upgraded seats which we found comfortable and the massage feature is nice as well.Cooled seats works different in this truck and it took me a bit to figure out the wind noise I was hearing was not a window leak, rather air blowing through the sear back.Ride was OK, certainly not as soft as my 350 with air ride, maybe bags will soften the ride.For 1300 miles I ran the front tires at 75, seemed fine. The last 300 I bumped them up to 85, seems to wander a lot more. Will drop them back down to 75 for the next 800 miles.Only drivability negative was that I was unable to back into a site going uphill a bit. Had the dead pedal syndrome.Truck negatives are they are too tall and the new tailgate looks to be about 3 thicker at the top and 2-3 taller with that up sweep.I had to lower the tailgate to back in one site (same one with dead pedal) to keep from hitting the trailer over hang.
(AP)  Publix pharmacies are now accepting walk-ins for the COVID-19 vaccine at all of their locations across seven states.

The Lakeland-based supermarket chain said on its website that customers have the choice of the two-dose Moderna vaccine, or the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, subject to availability.

The website still offers appointments as well.

Publix had already been offering walk-in availability at stores in Alabama, North Carolina and Tennessee.

The notice that walk-ins are also welcome at stores in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Virginia comes about a week after President Joe Biden issued a federal mandate that requires pharmacies in the federal retail pharmacy program to offer walk-in vaccinations.

Florida health statistics show that as of Sunday, 7,021,068 people have completed the series of doses required to be fully vaccinated, with either the two-dose Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or the one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot. That represents about 33% of the state's population.

Another 2,244,748 people  or about 10% of Florida's population  have had at least one dose.
More backlash for Facebook as it plans to launch a version of Instagram for children under the age of 13.

On Monday, 44 attorneys general signed a letter addressed to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, urging him to scrap plans for an Instagram intended for younger users, citing mental health and privacy concerns.

States on the letter include Massachusetts, Nebraska, Vermont, Tennessee, Alaska, California, Connecticut, and the District of Columbia, as well as the territories of Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, and Puerto Rico.

The letter comes less than a month after child safety groups and Congress expressed similar concerns.

"Use of social media can be detrimental to the health and well-being of children, who are not equipped to navigate the challenges of having a social media account," the latest letter said. "Further, Facebook has historically failed to protect the welfare of children on its platforms. The attorneys general have an interest in protecting our youngest citizens, and Facebook's plans to create a platform where kids under the age of 13 are encouraged to share content online is contrary to that interest."

Facebook claims such a service would give parents greater control over their children's online activity.

"As every parent knows, kids are already online. We want to improve this situation by delivering experiences that give parents visibility and control over what their kids are doing," a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement. "We are developing these experiences in consultation with experts in child development, child safety and mental health, and privacy advocates. We also look forward to working with legislators and regulators, including the nation's attorneys general. In addition, we commit today to not showing ads in any Instagram experience we develop for people under the age of 13."

Instagram doesn't formally allow users under the age of 13 onto the platform. But because there is not a strict age verification, some younger users have accounts.

This wouldn't be Facebook's first time showing interest in developing a children version of one of its services. Its Messenger Kids messaging app targets users ages six to 12.

The state AGs referencing the design flaw in the 2019 application that resulted in kids bypassing the restrictions and connecting with adults. Facebook has said the error affected group chats and was detected and resolved.
(CNN) -- A lightning strike sent a chunk of highway through the windshield of a truck in Florida on Monday and authorities say the truck's occupants are lucky that their injuries weren't more severe.

When fire rescue crews in Walton County, 40 miles north of Destin, responded to the scene of a traffic accident near mile marker 81 eastbound on Interstate 10 they found a Ford truck with both its windshield and rear window shattered.

Radar picked up on a lightning strike in the area, according to CNN meteorologist Haley Brink.

Two occupants of the vehicle where hurt and were transported to a local hospital. Fortunately, their injuries weren't major or life-threatening, Lindsey Darby, public information officer for Walton County Fire Rescue, told CNN.

"The energy from a lightning strike has to go somewhere," Brink said. "And when lightning strikes an object, such as pavement, it can cause that object to "explode" due to the lightning's pressure blast wave which is caused by the sudden superheating of the air surrounding the lightning strike."

Darby said she spoke with their Battalion Chief, Christopher Brown, about the incident afterward and he was surprised by what happened.

"He said, 'I've been in the fire service for 19 years, and I have never seen anything like this,'" Darby said.

Darby has been in contact with the driver of the truck but said he doesn't remember much about the accident "because it all happened so quickly."

CNN's Haley Brink contributed to this report.
(CNN) -- A 23-year-old woman who was mistakenly given six doses of the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine has been discharged from the hospital where she was being monitored for any adverse reaction.

The woman was administered the vaccine at the Noa hospital in Tuscany, central Italy, on Sunday, hospital spokeswoman Daniella Gianelli told CNN on Monday.

The patient, who is in "good health" with no underlying conditions, was kept in the hospital under strict observation for 24 hours and discharged Monday, Gianelli said.

A health worker accidentally filled a syringe with an entire bottle of the vaccine, containing a total of six doses, and only realized her mistake shortly after the shot was administered.

"She saw five empty syringes and realized her mistake," Gianelli said.

Doctors will continue to monitor the patient's immune response to the "massive dose of vaccine," the spokeswoman said.

The patient was entitled to get the vaccine before other people in her age group because she is an intern in the hospital's psychology department, she added.

An internal investigation has been opened, said Gianelli, who added that it was "maybe just human error, definitively not on purpose."

At the beginning of April, the Italian government passed a decree making vaccination mandatory for all healthcare and pharmacy workers, with the aim of protecting medical staff, patients and vulnerable people.

Healthcare workers who refuse the vaccine will be reassigned where possible to roles where they are not in contact with patients. Where that is not an option they now face being suspended without pay.

It remains unclear whether the decree is constitutional, and many believe future legal cases on the vaccines are likely.

After months of recording some of the highest infection rates in Europe, Italy is seeing a reduction of COVID-19 figures.
The Treasury Department is considering extending the April 15 tax filing deadline to curb the financial impact of coronavirus on American households and businesses, according to The Wall Street Journal. The US Treasury Department building is seen in Washington, DC, on July 22, 2019.
Consumer products expo showcases China's "dual circulation"

Xinhua) 10:54, May 11, 2021

BEIJING, May 10 (Xinhua) -- One of the key misunderstandings of China's new development paradigm of "dual circulation" has been that the world's second-largest economy is withdrawing to its domestic market and shying away from the world. Quite the opposite, Beijing continues to facilitate its huge domestic market to foreigners and the China International Consumer Products Expo is a good example.

The expo, which closes on Monday, presents an unprecedented platform to access the Chinese consumer market. Products of companies and brands from 69 countries and regions worldwide were on display. According to the Ministry of Commerce, foreign-funded enterprises and brands were the majority of participants at the event, a testament to the Chinese market's attractiveness and potential for foreign businesses.

The expo is an integral part of the overseas circulation in the new development paradigm featuring "dual circulation," in which domestic and overseas markets reinforce each other, with the domestic market as the mainstay.

"Behind the technical-sounding phrase lies an idea that could change the global economic order," Mark Leonard, co-founder and director of the European Council on Foreign Relations, wrote in an April commentary. "One realm ('external market') will remain in contact with the rest of the world, but it will gradually be overshadowed by another one ('internal market') that will cultivate domestic demand, capital, and ideas."

Such is typical of the foreign analysis over the "dual circulation" in recent months, which envisioned China looking or turning "inward," a word that has been splashed across the headlines in The New York Times, Financial Times, and South China Morning Post.

Earlier this month, Qiushi, the Communist Party of China's flagship journal, published Chinese President Xi Jinping's key speech illustrating the new development paradigm. The first misunderstanding that shall be avoided, Xi said, was the one-sided emphasis on the domestic market advocating a substantial contraction in the opening up to the outside world.

In other words, the domestic market as the "mainstay" does not mean it comes at the expense of overseas market. This may be difficult to understand for outsiders, but it is in line with the dialectical logic that has been preached and practised by the Communist Party of China for decades. In theory, the unity of opposites is the central category of dialectics: whereas two conditions, in this case, two markets, appear opposite to each other, they are yet dependent on each other and presupposing each other.

In practice, China has never ceased its steps to open up. In recent years, China has been holding a series of national-level trade fairs that also include the Canton Fair, the China International Fair for Trade in Services, and the China International Import Expo. The China International Consumer Products Expo is the latest addition.

Hainan, the island province that hosted the expo, is being built into a free trade port, a move that demonstrates Beijing's resolve to advance reform and opening-up, widen market access, improve the business environment, and expand imports and outbound investment.

President Xi has also underlined the enormous importance of building an ultra-large market in a sustainable fashion. On the whole, China is expected to become the world's largest goods consumption market during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) period and the biggest services trader by 2035, Chi Fulin, head of the Hainan-based China Institute for Reform and Development, said at a forum during the expo.

The data for this year already looks promising. According to the General Administration of Customs, China's import and export value in the first four months rose 21.8 percent compared with the same period in 2019, beating expectations.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Liang Jun)
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William Weber West, 93 of Gainesville, Texas passed away on June 2, 2021. He was born on April 7, 1928 in Atchison, Kansas to Lee West and Elizabeth (Weber) West. He married Mary Ellen Peyrot on May 17, 1951 in Gainesville, Texas. William enlisted in the U.S. Army on January 5, 1951 in Gaine
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Paradox CEO Ebba Ljungerud has expressed disappointment at the publisher's quarterly financials after sales and profits took a hit.

According to the company's interim report for the quarter ended March 31, 2021, revenues fell by 9 percent year-on-year to SEK 364.5 million ($43.9 million), while operating profit decreased by 44 percent to SEK 92.5 million ($11.1 million).

The Swedish company said revenues for the quarter were mainly attributable to titles including Cities: Skylines, Crusader Kings III, Europa Universalis IV, Hearts of Iron IV, and Stellaris.

Ljungerud, however, indicated that a lack of major releases has hindered the company over the past three months, and said it was also impacted by falling exchange rates. They also revealed the company chose to cancel two unnanounced projects that were being developed by external studios.

"Since a large part of our revenue is in USD and other foreign currencies, our revenue and result are affected by changes in exchange rates. The USD / SEK exchange rate has decreased by 13 percent from the first quarter of 2020 to the first quarter of this year, which has had a significant negative impact on the quarter's revenue," they commented.

"We are not satisfied with the quarter. Sometimes there are periods with fewer and smaller game and expansion releases -- but we can do better than this and our ambitions are higher."

Beyond that, the CEO noted that while player growth has been strong during the pandemic, Paradox has "lost some efficiency in certain areas" after being forced to implement remote working. She said the company intends to re-open its offices around the world in the "not too distant future" in a bid to regain some of that productivity.
Deschutes County reported 542.6 cases per 100,000 people this week, the second highest of Oregon's larger counties behind only Klamath County.

Allen said that high vaccination rates were more important than high infection rates in determining progress against COVID-19. Even if infection rates are high, vaccination rates above 65% meant that cases were unlikely to result in severe illness or death.

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On the flip side, if the state reaches a 70% overall vaccination rate, even counties such as Umatilla and Malheur, where vaccination rates are at the low end of the statewide scale, would move out of the restrictions along with all other counties.

Asked if meeting the 70% vaccination goal would likely mean that the Pendleton Round-Up could be held in September, Brown was upbeat.

"Let 'er buck," Brown forecast.

While the Centers for Disease Control may suggest some mask requirements, most likely the event would go off much closer to normal than forecast earlier. The Round-Up was cancelled last year because of COVID-19 concerns.

Brown said the moves were possible because data showing the most recent spike in cases over the past month has begun to fade.
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Counties will not be put in the extreme risk level regardless of their own COVID-19 numbers if the state overall has under 300 hospitalizations for COVID-19. After that threshold is crossed, an increase of 15% has to be met to hit the extreme risk level.

As of Monday, the Oregon Health Authority reported 324 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state, a slight reduction over the last period.

Under the rules, those numbers mean no counties will be put in extreme risk level when the new limits are announced Tuesday and go into effect May 14.

The new numbers show Central Oregon has among the highest levels of infection and rates. Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson counties are well above the 200 infections per 100,000 mark. But because of the statewide metric requirement, they will almost certainly stay in the high risk limit level, the second more restrictive of the state's four tiers.

Deschutes County reported 1,069 COVID-19 cases over the past two weeks, with the cases per 100,000 rising to 542.6. Also up is the positive test rate, which at 9% is seen by health officials as a figure that could lead to future exponential growth of cases.
Nathan said she believed Maxwell was a risk to flee despite the U.S. citizen's claims that she was willing to renounce her citizenship in England and France to prove her willingness to appear for trial.

Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to charges that she recruited teenage girls from 1994 to 2004 for Epstein to sexually abuse during encounters that sometimes were described as sexualized massages.

Prosecutors say their case hinges primarily on the testimony of four women who were abused, including two who say they were recruited when they were 14 years old.

Defense lawyers have challenged the charges on numerous grounds, though Nathan has rejected most of them. They have succeeded in severing perjury charges from those alleging sex abuse.

Epstein took his life in August 2019 in a federal Manhattan lockup as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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Today is Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Let's get caught up.

These headlines are in the news this morning: Israel unleashed new airstrikes in Gaza as Hamas fires rockets in escalating violence; a gunman attacked a school in Russia, killing seven students and a teacher; the GOP is planning a voting blitz against Dems' voting rights bill.

Read on for these stories, other top headlines, celebrity birthdays and more.

TOP STORIES

Gaza militants, children among 24 dead as Israel hits Hamas

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  Israel unleashed new airstrikes on Gaza early Tuesday, hitting the high-rise home of a Hamas field commander and two border tunnels dug by militants, as Hamas and other armed groups fired dozens of rockets toward Israel. The escalation in the conflict was sparked by weeks of tensions in contested Jerusalem.
This is a community calendar. To accommodate demand for the print edition, we ask that items be brief and include time, date, place, address, admission cost and a contact number for publication. Inclusion of items is at the discretion of the newspaper. Further information is available at 541-812-6078 or jane.stoltz@lee.net.

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Food distribution, by appointment, food pantry, North Corvallis Ministry Center, 5050 NE Elliott Circle. Call 541-220-1040 to arrange a time to pick up a box of food.

Emergency food distribution applications accepted, 9 to 11:30 a.m., Sweet Home Emergency Ministries, 1115 Long St.

Food pantry for veterans and active military members and their families, American Legion Post 10, 1215 Pacific Blvd. SE, Albany. Call 541-926-0127 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Mondays through Fridays for more information.

Corvallis School District free grab-and-go breakfast, lunch and supper for all children 18 years old or under, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Corvallis High School, 1400 NW Buchanan Ave. (enter at 16th Street). Meal pre-order available. Information: 541-757-5859 or csd509j.net.
Lee Ae-ju, a master of religious folk dance Seungmu and chairperson of the Gyeonggi Arts Center, performs at Seoul Plaza on June 9, 2007, during an event to mark the 20th anniversary of the death of Lee Han-yeol, a student activist who died after being hit by a tear gas canister fired by riot police in July 1987. Lee Ae-ju, a master of religious folk dance Seungmu and who is famous for performing at pro-democracy protests, died of cancer, Monday. She was 73. Yonhap





By Park Ji-won







Lee Ae-ju, a cultural icon of the pro-democracy movement in the 1970s and 1980s and master of religious folk dance Seungmu, died of cancer, Monday. She was 73.







Lee, chairperson of Gyeonggi Arts Center, was diagnosed with the disease last October and was hospitalized at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital.







Born in Oct. 17, 1947, she dedicated her life to preserving and developing Korean traditional dance. She started to learn Seungmu (a combination of the Korean words for "monk" and "dance") which was performed by monks in the past) under Kim Bo-nam when she was a second grader. Since 1970, she was taught by Han Young-sook, the holder of the dance form as an intangible cultural property. Lee became the official holder of Seungmu in 1996, according to the Cultural Heritage Administration.







She had been serving as a dance professor at Seoul National University since 1982 after graduating from the university and became an honorary professor after her retirement in 2013.







Lee has been called a cultural icon of pro-democracy activism due to her performances at the funerals of two key figures of the period  Park Jong-chul and Lee Han-yeol.







Park, then a student of Seoul National University, was tortured by police resulting in death, while Lee, then 21 at Yonsei University, was killed after being hit by a tear gas canister fired by riot police.







Her bare-footed performance in white hanbok on July 9, 1987, during the funeral for the fallen student protester Lee was dubbed "Dance to Console the Dead."







Since then, she became known as the dancer who fought against military dictatorship.







As a scholar, she also worked hard to preserve and retrieve the original form of Korean dance which suffered distortions during the 1910-45 Japanese occupation.







She also traveled to Asian countries to find traces of the origins of the Korean dance form.







This file photo shows Lee Ae-ju, a master of religious folk dance Seungmu and chairperson of the Gyeonggi Arts Center, performs for the launching ceremony of the pro-democracy movement in June 1987. Yonhap





"The principal of Korean dance is the movement of life. The dance is at the peak of the connection between body and mind. For example, the movements when farming are a dance themselves," she said in a January 2009 interview with Hankook Ilbo, the sister paper of The Korea Times.







"The definition of dance not only includes the movements on stage. I can dance with language, sounds and texts. I am the evidence and resources of the dance. I cannot express unless my body digests, which means that I integrate with the life of the people."







She participated in a dance-photography project from 1999 to 2012 where she and photographer Kim Young-soo traveled to symbolic sites of the nation where she danced while Kim photographed her.







Lee's funeral service is being held at Seoul National University Hospital in Hyehwa-dong, northeastern Seoul.


Cases of mucormycosis, a rare fungal infection, have been on the rise in India.

Hospitals across India have been reporting cases of recovered COVID patients contracting a rare fungal infection called mucormycosis, or black fungus. This infection has a mortality rate of 50% and the increasing number of cases have begun to worry medical experts in the country.

What is Mucormycosis?

Mucormycosis is an incredibly rare, but dangerous fungal infection that affects the sinuses, the brain and the lungs. The infection develops when one comes into contact with a group of moulds called mucormycetes. This particular fungus is found in soil, plants, manure, and decaying fruits and vegetables.

Given that these fungal spores are everywhere, including the mucus of healthy people, our bodies are used to protecting us against these germs. However, cases of black fungus have been rising rapidly in India amongst recovering COVID patients because of the use of steroids during treatment.

Post-COVID complication

Steroids have proven to be a critical treatmentfor those battling with severe forms of COVID, but in the process the drug also reduces immunity and increases blood sugar levelsmaking it harder to fight against fungal spores like mucormycetes.

This combination is especially deadly for patients who have diabetes and for those who are already immunocompromised. Dr. Akshay Nair, an eye surgeon in Mumbai, has seen 40 patients with this infection so far, and a majority of them were diabetic. He told BBC:

Diabetes lowers the body's immune defences, coronavirus exacerbates it, and then steroids which help fight Covid-19 act like fuel to the fire.

In many cases, doctors have had to remove jaw bones, noses, and eyes to stop the infection from spreading to the brain. Currently, the only treatment available is an anti-fungal intravenous injection. The jab costs around 33, and needs to be administered once every day for up to eight weeks.

Before the pandemic, doctors only received a handful of patients every year with this deadly disease. But now, hospitals have been reporting multiple cases of black fungus every single day.

Dr. Prashant Rahate, chairman of Seven Star Hospital in Nagpur told The Telegraph:

Mucormycosis is now playing absolute havoc. We are seeing four to five new patients every day and have around 35 patients still admitted.
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Young people's investments in virtual assets mirror their anxieties about the future



By Jung Da-min



Park Min-soo, 25, a college student in Seoul, has recently bought Dogecoin, a meme-based cryptocurrency.



Whether it is a small or large amount of money, many of her friends, including herself, are investing in various kinds of cryptocurrencies.



But as the cryptocurrency market is unpredictable, they often buy one randomly, rather than based on specific, detailed analyses.



"Buying cryptocurrency has become a trend among our generation. We make a joke about randomly buying a type of cryptocurrency. We say, 'If you drink milk, then you should buy Milk Coin. If you made an online comment in reply to something, then you should buy Ripple Coin," Park said, referring to the names of two different kinds of cryptocurrency.



While some young people invest in cryptocurrencies with a relatively small amount of money simply to learn about the new investment market, there are also others who try to earn large returns by investing a relatively large amount.



"I heard from my friend that his friend recently lost 10 million won ($8,980) that he borrowed," Park said, adding that it was a big loss for a college student without any regular income.





A woman looks at the prices of virtual currencies displayed on an electronic billboard in the Upbit Lounge in southern Seoul, Monday. Yonhap



Yee, 28, a government employee from Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, said many of his friends invested a relatively large amount of money in cryptocurrencies  considering their income levels  anywhere from 100 million won to 400 million won.



But Yee said he has neither invested in cryptocurrencies, nor is he planning to do so, as he believes buying them is too risky.



Although many young people share a similar view to Yee's, a growing number of people in their 20s and 30s are opting to invest in digital coins.



According to data from the nation's top four cryptocurrency exchanges  Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone and Korbit  about 1.58 million people in their 20s and 30s newly entered the market during the first quarter of this year, accounting for 63.5 percent of total new users during that period.





A man checks the prices of virtual currencies displayed on an electronic billboard in Bithumb's customer center in southern Seoul, April 27. Yonhap



Young people say the cryptocurrency boom among them reflects the structural problems of Korean society, in which housing prices are soaring and most young people cannot buy a home with their regular job income  and many young people cannot even get regular jobs.



"As young people living in Seoul, we will not be able to purchase a house like that owned by our parents, unless we never spend money on anything and rather just save money for three decades," said Lee Jae-yeon, 25, from Seoul.



"If we go along the path determined for us by society, we will not be able to buy a house in our lifetime. So, many of us are choosing to take a different path by investing in cryptocurrencies. Although not yet designated by the government as a new asset class, they could bring bigger returns, if successful."



Lee said the younger generation has been taught by the older generation that there would be due compensation in accordance with their efforts, which was true for those growing up during the nation's rapid growth and development period. But the situation is totally different today, he said.



"Such a mismatch between what we've been taught to believe and reality has sparked protests among us," he said.



Reacting to the desperate roots of the youth boom in crypto investing, Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Eun Sung-soo said last month, while warning about the high volatility of cryptocurrencies, that older people "should guide young people in the right direction if they are on the wrong path."



This comment drew an immediate backlash from young investors. A person who identified himself as an office worker in his 30s filed a petition on the Cheong Wa Dae website demanding Eun's resignation, which gained more than 40,000 signatures in a day.



"It seems that the FSC head himself has gained profits through real estate investment. While the older generation has gained wealth through real estate investment, they say young people should stop investing in cryptocurrencies because that is speculation," the petitioner wrote.



Young people also say that it is time for the government to acknowledge cryptocurrencies as real currencies and introduce relevant regulations or laws for those investing in the market.



The government's stance that it will impose a tax on the profits from crypto investments, but will not introduce protection for crypto investors, also brought out a strong reaction from the investors.



While the government is planning to levy a 20 percent (other) income tax on cryptocurrency transactions starting next year, it has not come up with proper systems or regulations on the market, which means that there is no safety net for investors.





An illustration of the virtual currency, Ethereum, from Feb. 19. Reuters-Yonhap




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Barton - Miriam A. (Jacobs) Carter, 98, died from declining health on Monday, June 1, 2020, in Barton, Vt. She was the widow of John C. Carter. Born in Rockland, Mass., on April 20, 1922, she was the second daughter of the late David Percy and Ethel Agnes (Belcher) Jacobs. She was a graduate
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A photo taken on Sept. 10, 2019, shows the terminal building of the airport in North Korea's northern city of Samjiyon, Ryanggang Province. AFP-Yonhap



By Nam Hyun-woo



Incheon Metropolitan Government has sparked a controversy for contracting out a study on developing airports in North Korea, drawing criticisms from conservative lawmakers over the plan's feasibility and political motivation.



According to Incheon Metropolitan Government's data submitted to Rep. Han Ki-ho of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), the city government contracted out the study to a consortium led by Korea National University of Transportation in May last year, at a cost of 135 million won ($120,000).



The study was aimed at exploring ways to nurture Incheon International Airport as a travel hub for North Korea. For this purpose, the study proposed improvements to eight existing airports in North Korea and the building of a new one there.



According to the plan, three airports  Pyongyang Sunan International Airport, Wonsan Kalma Airport and Samjiyon Airport near Mount Paektu  need to be developed as hub airports, as they are located near tourist destinations. The plan also states that a new airport needs to be built in Rason, a port city close to the North Korea-Russia border.



To execute the plan, the study anticipates costs of about 4.4 trillion won to be financed by South Korea and the local government of Incheon with either state budget or through public-private partnerships.



Along with the airport plan, the study also proposed a 1.8 trillion won road project linking the two Koreas along the western coast, a 78 billion won logistics terminal and a slew of other projects, raising the total spending to 6.32 trillion won.



Incheon Mayor Park Nam-choon wrote on Facebook that the study is aimed at "exploring the role of Incheon, which has the country's biggest airport, in case inter-Korean relations improve greatly."



Park, a former lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, wrote in the post Monday that, "Depending on how inter-Korean relations unfold, there could be a necessity to develop aviation infrastructure in the North. Given this, the study is about building administrative knowhow and exploring the potential roles of Incheon in advance." The city government also released a similar press release.





President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un talk in this Sept. 20, 2018, photo as the former lands at Samjiyon Airport for an inter-Korean summit. Yonhap
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Lewis Hamilton won the Spanish Grand Prix with an extra stint on the medium tyre. According to Martin Brundle, Red Bull Racing were therefore in checkmate before the race even started.

Masterstroke by Mercedes

This season all teams have exactly the same number of sets of soft, medium and hard tyres prior to a race weekend. How the teams use these sets is entirely up to them, and this provides a strategic element. This is how Mercedes managed to have an advantage over Red Bull Racing on Sunday.

All the drivers in the top ten had a fresh hard tyre leftover that everyone thought was too slow for the race and a set of new medium tyres. However, Mercedes was the only team to also have a used set of mediums in reserve, which came in handy for the team in the race. ''These would be deployed for the 'Checkmate' move later in the race,'' said Brundle in his column for Sky Sports.

Hamilton wins again

''This was the checkmate move because it was too late for Red Bull to react, and as Max's engineer described it on the radio 'a Budapest 2019' where Hamilton steamed back past Verstappen on much better tyres to take victory, as indeed he would do again for his fifth consecutive victory here.''

''Red Bull might have seen that coming and pitted Max first ambitiously risking that his new soft tyre could last and hoping he could hang on at the front somehow as Hamilton did on ailing tyres in Bahrain, '' Brundle concludes.

Read more Verstappen alone: This is how many points Max lost already because of Perez
A Spring Lake woman, who said she was in a bad spot when her husband was sent to prison fo
Formula 1 should seek a "simple solution" to the controversy about so-called track limits, according to Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto.

The issue has been prominent in 2021 so far, with FIA officials now regularly accused of being too harsh, too lenient or too inconsistent with their rulings and penalties.

Some believe F1 should instead take an extremely hard interpretation of 'track limits' based on the white lines, while others think the drivers should be free to use the track as they wish.

Another option is to install natural track limits at the circuits, such as much higher kerbs, grass or gravel, or Monaco-like barriers.

"It would be great if we could put guardrails everywhere next to the circuit, like in two weeks in Monaco or later this year in Baku, but from a safety point of view you have to strike a balance," said F1 race director Michael Masi.

"Besides, every circuit and every corner is different and track limits can be a big issue somewhere one year and not the next."

Ferrari boss Binotto revealed that his fellow team chiefs discussed the issue when they got together for a meeting in Barcelona.

"The question was raised about modifying the tracks, but this cannot be done overnight," he said.

"But we do need to find a simple solution that will be understandable to the fans. It does nothing good for the show when there are constant disputes about the track boundaries during the race or even after the finish.

"What can be implemented right now? I don't even know," the Italian admitted.

"Give the riders complete freedom? Maybe that would cause the discussion about the boundaries of the circuit stop. I do believe that if we find a simple solution to this issue, that would be the best for everyone," said Binotto.

(GMM)
The Dutch GP cannot take place as a 'ghost race', according to well-known Dutch commentator Olav Mol.

The recent messages from the race organisers at Zandvoort have been similar, as covid continues to cause cancellations like Montreal and now even endanger the recently scheduled Canadian GP replacement venue in Istanbul.

As for the Dutch GP, scheduled for September, Mol told Dutch radio NPO Radio 1: "Time is going unbelievably fast.

"We are already in May so we will be racing in four months - that will come in no time. We're still living in the corona crisis and Zandvoort still has to continue with their preparations.

"Ultimately, there is a point at which the grandstands have to be installed, as those stands are largely temporary," Mol added.

He says the deadline for erecting the grandstands will be the moment at which the decision about whether to push ahead or wait yet another year must be taken.

"As soon as grandstands appear, that will be a good sign that the race will go on. A race at Zandvoort without an audience is not really an option," said Mol.

"Remember, the race came about largely because FOM saw that thousands of fans wearing orange were being seen all around the world. They wanted to organise a mega party in the Netherlands, with an even bigger sea of orange," he added.

"They are also planning to build a large festival around it, so it will be a whole experience on and also around the circuit."

(GMM)




By Kang Seung-woo







A man received a COVID-19 vaccine injection instead of a shingles shot due to a nurse's mistake at a general hospital in Sejong City, local government officials there said, Monday.







According to the special self-governing city, the 54-year-old man visited the hospital on May 4 to get a shingles vaccine. But after the injection, the nurse said a single dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine was administered instead.







After receiving the shot, the man experienced muscle pain, one of the side effects found among people who receive coronavirus vaccine injections.







Recognizing the administrative error, the hospital told the man to be hospitalized for close monitoring. Luckily, he did not have any other symptoms.







The local government found that the hospital failed to confirm the prescription and check it with the patient before administering the vaccine.







Despite the blunder, the hospital will not be subject to any punishment as the man did not suffer any further ill effects from the medical malpractice, according to the local government.







"There are no legal grounds on which to take action against the hospital for now," a local government official said.







But the local government ordered the hospital to suspend COVID-19 vaccinations for the time being. It is also reviewing whether to remove the hospital from the list of medical institutions giving coronavirus shots on behalf of the government.


Protesters make the three-finger salute during a demonstration against the military coup in Yangon, Myanmar, April 27. AFP-Yonhap



By Lee Hyo-jin



A coalition of human rights institutions in the Asia Pacific region, including the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK), has condemned the ongoing military coup in Myanmar and urged the junta there to cease all forms of violence against civilians.



The Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions (APF), a grouping of 25 national human rights institutions in the region, released a statement, Monday, expressing deep concerns about the continuing violence and killing of civilians in the country which began when the military seized power in February.



"We are deeply concerned about the continuing violence in Myanmar, where more than 765 civilian protesters have reportedly been killed, and at least 3,500 people imprisoned, since the events of Feb.1," read the statement issued under the APF chairperson's name.



It called on the Myanmar military to immediately stop all forms of violence against protesters and release all political prisoners, while encouraging it to adopt ASEAN's five-point consensus plan and work toward a peaceful political solution to the current situation, including a return to democracy and respect for the rule of law.



In addition, the APF expressed deep concerns about the current inability of the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission to perform its mandated functions in line with the Paris Principles.



"All national human rights commissions must operate to be legitimate, credible and effective in promoting and protecting human rights. The chairperson, commissioners and staff of the commission should also face no reprisals for performing their role," it said.





A man is held by police during a crackdown on anti-coup protesters in front of the Myanmar Economic Bank in Mandalay, Myanmar, Feb. 15. AP-Yonhap
With the start of production of the Audi Q6 e-tron electric SUV in Ingolstadt in 2022, Audi is introducing the second-generation steel coil lubrication Prelube II. This new product will help to reduce significantly the amount of lubricant required for protecting against corrosion and machining the metal sheets in the press shop. The idea originated from Audi employees in the press shop in Ingolstadt, and has already caught on at the Volkswagen Group.





With the conventional lubrication Prelube I (left), one gram of oil is applied over every square meter of sheet steel. With the new lubrication class Prelube II (right), however, just 0.7 grams of oil are required for every square meter. The new oil class creates a protective film on the surface of a metal sheet that is thicker and does not run off.

For the reinforcement frame of the roof of the Audi A4, for example, just 2.7 grams of Prelube II are needed instead of the usual 3.9 grams of conventional oil. Extrapolated to all steel components that Audi machines at its production locations in Europe and Mexico, this offers incredible savings potential of around 40 metric tonnes of oil every year compared with the same period in 2018.

At Audi, were always thinking about how to make our process steps in production and logistics more sustainable over the long term. Every contribution to increasing resource efficiency and achieving the ambitious targets behind our Audi environmental campaign Mission:Zero helps. Peter Kossler, Board Member for Production and Logistics at AUDI AG

With the start of production of the Audi Q6 e-tron in Ingolstadt, the Prelube II oil class has been set as the new standard for steel coil lubrication. Audi will then look at the other model series that are currently in production, trial the new product for each and every component and then switch the production process to Prelube II.

We have managed to persuade our steel suppliers to switch to Prelube IIa technically challenging process but one that will help to conserve resources over the long term. The Volkswagen Group, too, has eagerly adopted our initiative and is planning to introduce the new oil class in Europe as the standard. This will increase the savings potential even more. Dr. Ingo Faass from operations management at the press shop in Ingolstadt

The VDA has also been talking about the optimized lubrication, with other manufacturers likely to start using Prelube II in the coming years.

The Prelube protective film applied by the steel producers prevents corrosion and ensures that the process of forming the flat sheets into individual pieces in the Audi press shop quite literally runs like a well-oiled machine. The first-generation Prelube oils, however, always suffered from the problem that oil would escape from the sheet steel rolls and contaminate the storage areas in the press shop. On top of this, the thin and sometimes unevenly applied lubrication would lead to problems during subsequent machining of the steel panels. A better solution was needed.

To fix these problems, employees from different departmentstechnology development, the tool and body shop and purchasingcollaborated very closely to develop and approve Prelube II. Compared with Prelube I, this second-generation product offers another key benefit. Since the protective lubrication needs to be washed off thoroughly before the body can be painted, a thinner film of oil on the steel coils is much more environmentally friendly.

In future degreasing processes, we will be able to significantly reduce the amount of cleaner that we use and, in particular, its surfactant content. Martin Michallek from Paint Shop Production Planning in Ingolstadt

The Q6 e-tron will, like the upcoming electric Porsche Macan, be based on the Premium Platform Electric (PPE) architecture.
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Greenwich, Darien and New Canaan outpaced rival towns in Westchester County, N.Y. by a comfortable margin as a pandemic destination or escape in 2020, according to a CBRE analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.

The top tier sections of the three towns studied by CBRE generated nearly 1,700 changes of address with the U.S. Postal Service in 2020, compared to 1,100 for the wealthiest six Westchester County ZIP codes directly west that add up to roughly the same aggregate population approaching 100,000 people.

Mark Pruner, a broker in the Greenwich office with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties, said many wealthy buyers are choosing Greenwich over Westchester County because of lower taxes in Connecticut versus New York.

Those decisions make a difference in Hartford, Pruner said, as wealthy New York City pandemic transplants settle in and send out their first income tax payments to Connecticut.

Westchester has some of the highest property taxes in the country, said Pruner. And a recurring issue is the effort to tax high-income people in New York. They just passed the millionaires tax  thats a big deal.

Tyler Sizemore / Hearst Connecticut Media

If 2020 was a harbinger of things to come, the pendulum could be swinging east into Connecticut  and with Greenwich taxpayers averaging $28,000 in income taxes according to state data, giving a nudge to the state budget that could add up to well in excess of $20 million annually.

But any further big increase in new arrivals is constrained by a limited number of properties on the market. More than 225 Greenwich homes became available in April, Berkshire Hathway reports, and more than 100 sold in the town that month.

CBRE reserves the term top tier for just 5 percent of ZIP codes in Connecticut and New York. That includes four Greenwich ZIP codes, two more in Darien and New Canaan, and nine just across the border in Westchester County, N.Y.  often looked at by higher-income workers leaving New York City or transferring from other parts of the country as potential places to live.

In 2020, the momentum was on the Connecticut side of the border; Greenwich, Darien and New Canaan saw a year-over-year gain of more than 1,200 relocations, compared with a gain of less than 40 across a pair of Harrison ZIP codes and four more in Scarsdale, Larchmont, Rye and New Rochelle, as analyzed by CBRE.

Add to that net moves to and from the inland Westchester communities of Armonk, Bedford and Katanoh  the latter landing Connecticuts most famous wantaway, after Martha Stewart moved there more than 15 years ago from Westport  and Westchesters eastern top tier towns surpass their counterpart Connecticut towns by a mere 30 changes of address on a net basis, but having a combined population base of 40,000 more residents.

Tack on Cos Cob to the Greenwich totals, however, and the three Connecticut towns push out front of nine ZIP codes in Greenwich.

Tyler Sizemore / Hearst Connecticut Media

With its mix of families, singles and white-collar earners, Cos Cob falls under the urban chic category in the CBRE report  a description borrowed from GIS mapping software Esri.

The urban chic also applies to a small group of communities ranging from Westport, Southport and East Hampton, N.Y.; to the West Rocks area of New Haven and north to Farmington.

Paul Breunich, CEO of William Pitt Sothebys International Realty in Stamford, said the pendulums direction this year in any community is tied directly to where new listings are surfacing.

Westchester ... was down hard for something like three months last year so they were behind Connecticut, but theyve started to catch back up, said Breunich. Theres so much outside demand coming in, I think people are looking everywhere.

Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-842-2545; @casoulman




Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong and his New Zealand counterpart Nanaia Mahuta held telephone talks on Tuesday and shared concerns about Japan's planned release of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant, the ministry said.







Last month, Tokyo approved a plan to dump more than 1 million tons of radioactive water from the wrecked nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean, sparking strong criticism from its local fishing industry and neighboring countries.







During the talks, Chung expressed concerns about the plan, and stressed the importance of the verification by international organizations, such as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), according to the ministry.







Mahuta also mentioned worries about Japan's plan among island nations in the Pacific, vowing to continue consultations with the IAEA, it added.







Minister Chung also asked for Mahuta's attention to the swift resumption of the bilateral working holiday program which has been suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.







"The ministers agreed to deepen friendly, cooperative relations in various fields, such as human exchanges and economic cooperation in the post-coronavirus era, as they mark the 60th anniversary of the diplomatic relations next year," the ministry said in a release. (Yonhap)






GREENWICH  The immediate future of the Cardinal Stadium project may hinge on a single decision about the fate of a group of trees.

Town Tree Warden Gregory Kramer will preside over a public hearing at 1 p.m. Wednesday on the case of 34 trees, which the Board of Education plans to remove to make way for proposed handicapped parking at the stadium at Greenwich High School.

Some in town, including the nonprofit Greenwich Tree Conservancy, say that too many trees have already been removed from the GHS campus and that the trees provide an important buffer and are not easily replaceable. Proponents of the project say a ruling in favor of preserving the trees could mean further disruption, or possibly even a full stop, to the oft-delayed project to revamp Greenwich Highs most important playing field. At the least, it could force to school board back to the drawing board to redesign aspects of the stadium project.

If they were to deny us the ability to create federally mandated ADA-compliant parking, it stops us from opening the bleachers, said Board of Education member Joe Kelly, who has a leading role in the project. We cannot have our stadium opened unless we have our federally mandated ADA parking within proximity of the bleachers.

He urged supporters of the Cardinal Stadium project to attend Wednesday virtual public hearing.

Without the ADA parking, which are required under federal law, the town could not issue a certificate of occupancy for the stadium, Kelly said.

The new home-side bleachers are expected to be finished by the fall. But without ADA accessibility to the stadium, those bleachers would remain empty, Kelly said. The towns Building Inspection Department did not respond to a request for comment.

But Kramer said he did not see his impending decision on the trees as make-or-break for the project. Of the 34 trees, most are not of any significance and the roughly eight trees in the footprint of the proposed ADA parking could likely be easily replaced, allowing that part of the project to proceed, he said.

Others, which would need to be removed to allow for an access road connecting the stadium to East Putnam Avenue, have greater value, Kramer said.

This is not holding up any ADA parking lots or any type of ADA accessibility, he said. Its really trying to save trees that are in the infrastructural areas.

It could delay the work of the Board of Education, Kramer said. But if the members are willing to work with him and rethink the design, trees could be saved and the project could move forward, he said.

I think if the design team understands the scope of what I was looking for, in terms of retaining some of the trees, and can make those mitigations, I think it should be able to move forward as planned, Kramer said.

Kelly said he has made it clear that the Board of Education is willing to plant an equivalent number of trees elsewhere on the property in exchange for ADA parking. That would be a start, Kramer said, but only the bare minimum. More new trees would be better, he said.

Tree hearing To get a link to watch the public hearing via Zoom at 1 p.m. Wednesday, visit https://www.greenwichct.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05122021-4729 See More Collapse

Peter Malkin, founder and chair of the Greenwich Tree Conservancy, went further in a letter to Kramer urging caution ahead of Wednesdays meeting.

The trees in question include many that are major in size and quality and irreplaceable, Malkin wrote. Planting of trees in the usual size will take decades to compensate and will not be located to provide the same buffer.

According to Kelly and Stephanie Cowie, a GHS Parent Teacher Association co-president and member of the First Selectmans Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities, there is little space on the campus to resituate ADA parking and the egress, which would allow access for emergency vehicles.

A plot behind the home-side bleachers was briefly considered for ADA parking, but town officials nixed it over concerns about safety. It would have meant parking cars close to  and without a buffer  an area where large groups of people congregate.

There is not a lot of ability to move things and do things at the high school, to expand, Cowie said. There was significant discussion with the architect, engineers, wetlands (the town Inland Wetlands & Watercourses Agency), the Department of Transportation. ... There arent many places that parking can go.

For Cowie, the situation at Greenwich High is frustratingly similar to another project. She cited the appeal over an oak tree on Greenwich Avenue, which is slated for removal as part of an intersection improvement project that would, in part, enhance ADA parking.

Cowie, who uses a wheelchair, acknowledged the importance of trees. But the federal ADA takes legal precedent over the charge of the tree warden, a position given authority according to Connecticut state statute, she said.

Its ADA that should be driving the conversation, not the trees, Cowie said. They are not majestic, they are not specimen trees of any kind. It is an overgrown area that has never been taken care of.

But Kramer is not taking a binary view. The Board of Education can have its way  itll just have to spend more money and get creative with its design work, he said.

Kramer but lamented that he was consulted late in the process of this project.

Ive worked on numerous projects and engineers, they come up with a lot of ingenious solutions to a lot of different problems, he said. I do believe there could be some very ingenious replanning, or redesigning.

Asked about design alternatives, Kelly said, We went back and looked at it from engineering, architectural standpoint and some of the trees cant be saved. Those sorts of things are what they are, we have no alternatives.

Kramer said that he can have up to three business days after the hearing before issuing his ruling.

Should he role in favor of the preservationists, the Board of Education could file an appeal with the state Superior Court in Stamford. According to Kelly, he has been told the appeal process could take a year, during which time, the project would likely come to a halt.

Cowie also suggested that an unfavorable ruling by the tree warden could result in involvement from the federal Department of Justice, which upholds the ADA.

For Kelly, any such obstacle would be more than merely disappointing.

Its complicated, Kelly said. Its devastating. Its a real gut punch.

justin.papp@scni.com; @justinjpapp1; 203-842-2586
Volunteers at Hindu temples, Muslim groups and Sikh relief organizations across the United States are mobilizing to support India as the world's second most populous country struggles to handle a devastating surge of the coronavirus.

From coast to coast, faith groups tied to the Indian diaspora have collected hundreds of oxygen concentrators and electrical transformers to ship to overwhelmed hospitals, raised millions for everything from food to firewood for funeral pyres and gathered in prayer for spiritual support for the Asian nation.

This is a human tragedy, said Manzoor Ghori, executive director of the California-based Indian Muslim Relief and Charities, which has donated more than $1 million for purposes including supporting teachers and providing families with thousands of medical kits and more than 300,000 meals.

Ghori said he has had five loved ones, including two nephews, die in India from COVID-19  so, it is a personal tragedy as well.

He's one of many in the U.S. diaspora to have lost relatives to the virus in India, where total confirmed infections and deaths have surpassed 22.6 million and 246,000, respectively, though the true numbers are believed to be much higher.

Kashyap Patel, an Atlanta-based physician, said the pandemic has been catastrophic for him, with about a dozen members of his extended family in India contracting the virus, from teenagers to octogenarians, and his 73-year-old uncle dying from it.

He volunteers for the North America branch of the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha Hindu organization, which has provided 250 oxygen concentrators and several hundred thousand dollars in COVID-19 relief to help with India's overwhelmed health system.

It is challenging to find hospital beds," Patel said. "It is challenging to find oxygen, to find contemporary medicine.

Indias Supreme Court recently said it would set up a national task force consisting of top experts and doctors to conduct an oxygen audit to determine whether supplies from the government were reaching states in the country of nearly 1.4 billion people amid widespread complaints of shortages.

The U.S. branch of Khalsa Aid, a U.K.-based Sikh humanitarian organization, is sending another 500 concentrators and 500 electrical transformers this week to New Delhi, where the groups team is already helping COVID-19 patients, hospitals and NGOS with essential supplies as well as wood for cremations.

At a warehouse on New York's Long Island, workers busily packed, sorted and labeled dozens of boxes containing transformers on a recent day ahead of their shipment.

In these last two weeks, many of us havent slept. Weve been running our day jobs at the same time, one of the groups directors, Manpreet Kaur said.

Its been an intense period of time, but for us, its about giving back to the community," Kaur continued. "And the people in India definitely need that support.

Khalsa Aid's India relief effort has gotten grassroots support from individuals all over the country, such as Tahil Sharma, a Los Angeles-based interfaith activist born to a Hindu father and a Sikh mother. He raised nearly $3,000 on Facebook for the initiative.

Its a small amount for a really big crisis, Sharma said. But it helps mitigate the costs that Khalsa Aid needs to take upon itself sometimes in being able to get oxygen concentrators, to be able to secure beds at gurdwaras (Sikh houses of worship) on the ground in New Delhi, to help them get the resources that they need so people dont get hit by more waves of deaths.

Seeing individual pledges like that on social media platforms motivated members of Shri Shirdi Saibaba, a Hindu Temple in South Brunswick Township, New Jersey, to organize as a religious organization for their own effort, temple founder and chairman Rajesh Anand said. So far the temple has raised about $3,000 to buy concentrators for two hospitals in New Delhi.

We are one among many to help the cause, Anand said.

In the New York City borough of Queens, the Hindu Temple Society of North America has also been fundraising online and has so far donated more than $50,000 to the India Development and Relief Fund in Washington, D.C., for concentrators and other medical needs.

The temple also organized special group prayers for those who have died of COVID-19 and a virtual vigil featuring music, prayer and speeches by interfaith leaders and elected officials.

When we learned more about the difficulties the country was facing, said Ravi Vaidyanaat, the temples director of religious affairs, "we immediately thought we had to do something.

Support for India has come, too, from the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, which sent ventilators to hospitals in Mumbai and Ahmedabad and personal protective equipment to rural communities. It is also recruiting U.S. and Israeli intensive-care doctors and nurses for a telemedicine training program.

In the efforts that were making in India ... what we keep in mind is that with each action that we engage in, we can save one life, said Michael Geller, the groups director of communications and media relations. "And that one life represents an entire world of people who can be impacted.

Nepal, India's much-smaller neighbor, is seeing its own pandemic spike, with doctors there warning recently of a major crisis as hospitals run out of beds and oxygen. That has prompted similar aid efforts by Nepalese in the United States.

Its a landlocked country, and theres a lack of resources there. ... The situation in Nepal is very bad, said Urgen Sherpa, a former president and current adviser of New York Citys United Sherpa Association, which has raised about $5,000 for Nepal.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support from the Lilly Endowment through The Conversation U.S. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
WASHINGTON (AP)  President Joe Biden is expected to nominate former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Japan, according to a person familiar with the president's decision.

The person, who was not authorized to comment publicly about the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity Tuesday, said the White House plans to announce Emanuel's nomination later this month.

Emanuel is a former three-term congressman who served as Barack Obamas first White House chief of staff and was a senior adviser in Bill Clintons administration. Biden had considered naming Emanuel to serve as his transportation secretary but ultimately passed him over in the face of fierce opposition from some in the liberal wing of the Democratic Party and liberal activists.

The White House declined to comment and stressed no nomination is final until formally announced.

In selecting Emanuel to serve as his chief envoy to Japan, Biden will reward an informal adviser to his campaign and a significant force in Democratic Party politics for much of the last three decades with one of the highest-profile ambassadorial roles.

Emanuel, if confirmed by the Senate, could be in place in Tokyo ahead of the Summer Olympics. He also would head to Japan at a moment when Biden wants to increase focus on the Indo-Pacific and strengthen the U.S.-Japan relationship.

The pick of Emanuel could rankle some in the progressive wing of the Democratic Party. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, in particular, has criticized his handling of the high-profile shooting death of Laquan McDonald, a Black teenager, by a white police officer during Emanuel's time as Chicagos mayor.

The Financial Times was first to report Biden's pick of Emanuel.

Biden last month hosted Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga at the White House, the first in-person foreign leader visit of his presidency, and is set to host South Korea President Moon Jae-in on May 21.

The administration has made strengthening relations with partners in the region a priority as Biden increases focus on China. Biden has repeatedly cited China as the greatest economic competitor to the U.S. and admonished Beijing for human rights violations and unfair trade practices.

In a news conference during his White House visit, Suga made repeated references to the severe security environment in East Asia, where China under Xi Jinping is exerting its economic and military strength, including with military deployments meant to assert its disputed territorial claims in the region.

Biden for his part has stressed U.S. commitments to Japans defense and said the alliance would prove that democracies can still commit and win and deliver for our people.
A year after an EF-5 tornado blew through Joplin, Mo., then-President Barack Obama came to deliver the commencement speech for Joplin High School graduates, class of 2012. That ill wind has killed 162 people and injured more than 1,000. The rubble had been cleared, but the scars remained.

Joplin was not  and still isnt  Obama country. It is solidly conservative, but people lined the highways to see the presidential motorcade pass.

When Obama took the stage at Missouri Southern State College, he told the graduates that the tornado had changed them, and that people will always remember how others responded after that wind blew their lives to smithereens.

Because theyre from Joplin, he said, they would always remember the kindness of strangers. Because theyre from Joplin, those students would go through their lives understanding that they possessed the ability to live through awful events, often with grace and often with humor.

I am from the Joplin area, and I can still work up tears reading the transcript of that speech. Ive been reading it as I think about this years college seniors.

On a recent morning, I met with one of those students over Zoom, a video conferencing platform Ive come to loathe. It was 9 a.m., and the student looked tired. I commented on his eyes being at half-mast, and he laughed and said he was just getting home from his job at a laundromat, where hed already put in a three-hour shift. After our meeting, he said, hed go to class, then maybe take a nap. I think there was another class later that day, and then practice.

At some point, he said he would sit down and do homework, then go to bed, only to wake up and do the whole thing all over again.

In a little more than a week, that student  the first of his family to attend college  will get his degree. Although faculty members are supposed to sit quietly until all the names are called, I dont think I will.

Students juggled jobs, and concerns and fears. They worked through quarantines, and sometimes, they Zoomed into class when they were as sick as theyve ever been. They fell behind, caught back up, and lived and sometimes thrived in an unprecedented time when college life looked nothing like the college life for which they prepared. They turned their cameras on. They turned their cameras off. They let family pets walk through the frame. They  in the finest sense of the word  persisted.

I am so proud of those students. We professors may have struggled, as well, but we professors are older and had the benefit of experience to fall back on. Students made it through a challenging time with scant little perspective on what it is to live through a challenging time.

These seniors were toddlers when the terrorists flew planes into the World Trade Center. What they know of 9/11, of the world wars, theyve read in books.

Everyone in academia is feeling the pandemics long reach. A 2020 study said 35 percent of undergraduates screened positive for major depressive disorder, while 39 percent of undergraduate and graduate and professional students screened positive for generalized anxiety disorder. This was especially true for low-income students, students of color, and students in the LGBTQ community, the type of student higher institutions of learning very much want to retain. Those figures are twice as high as the year before.

Students have been challenged individually, while colleges and universities might be facing a bleak fall, if certain data play out. For one, vulnerable students may have to drop out  or they may have dropped out already. One recent study marked a decline in students filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), a form that helps students determine their eligibility for financial aid. Considering so many families have struggled to meet their bills during the pandemic, this is troubling.

As of late April 2020 - the early days of the pandemic  there were 1.89 million FAFSA applications filed, compared to roughly 1.78 million this year. Thats a drop of roughly 6 percent. That may not sound like much, but its enough to send alarm bells through college recruitment offices. According to the National College Attainment Networks FAFSA Tracker, the most recent data says Connecticut was doing slightly better than the national average, with a 4.5 percent drop.

This comes after the number of first-year students dropped 13 percent nationwide last fall, from the National Student Clearinghouse. Community colleges, which have played an increasingly important role as a gateway into higher education, have been hit especially hard.

Add to that the U.S. Census Bureau recent release of 2020 census figures that say the country has entered a period of record low population growth  and a population shift that is tipping the scale toward the elderly.

None of these numbers bode well for Connecticuts colleges and universities, but numbers can change, and those of us on college campuses just met some pretty incredible challenges.

And graduating seniors? Because youre from Joplin  or, rather, because you are a member of the Class of 2021 and an honorary resident of Joplin  youve already done a very hard thing. We who struggled along with you cannot wait to see what you make of yourself.
May 8 is the anniversary of the close of the European Theatre of the Second World War, but even before the end of hostilities, the myth of the Greatest Generation was already being born. The narrative that would shape the next half century of square-jawed, citizen soldiers coming from all corners of America, resolutely banding together to rid the world of fascism.

But while myth and reality dont always match, most WWII storytelling makes sure its the myth that gets published. Luckily we have museums for reality and in 2014 the National World War Two Museum added an essay titled Men Weep by my uncle, artist and novelist George Mandel. Far from being a gung-ho memoir of the type of heroics Hollywood usually presents, Georges story is about ordinary American kids just trying to ride out the end of the war without getting killed. As George always told it, they werent fighting for some noble cause, they were fighting for each other.

In 1945, after dictating a final letter to his sister from a French field hospital where he wasnt expected to recover, George arrived home to the astonishment of his family and would go on to be friends and contemporaries with other literary greats of the time including Joseph Heller, William Styron, Norman Mailer, Mel Brooks and Mario Puzo. In his writing and the way he lived his life, he never strayed from his conviction that he was simply a soldier whose job it was to have the backs of his comrades. George passed away earlier this year, but in writing Men Weep in 2011 when he was 91 and one of a dwindling few who had fought in Europe, he illustrated that what makes a generation great isnt about cinematic heroics and swashbuckling leading men, its the quiet heroism of doing what you have to do because others are counting on you.

Men Weep by George Mandel

Eddie Hagen was the oldest, weariest, most gentle-minded combat soldier I met in all of World War Two. Eddie Moran was the most tough-minded. The one had been vice president of The Hagen Insurance Company of Jersey City, and I never learned how he came to be an ordinary GI like the rest of us draftees. The other was a former singing waiter in Brooklyn, and served as a Browning Automatic Rifle man, who survived by sheer luck to warn others never to become one. Not that anybody needed such advice. You didnt have to be in action long before you learned that a BAR man was the natural target of entire enemy forces as soon as he opened fire with his requisite bursts of twos and threes. Moran had attracted heavy German retaliation that was still working its way out of him in emissions of shell fragments that kept driving him back to the medics.

There were other interesting men in our barracks of recuperating casualties in England, but I can no longer recollect even the surname of another Eddie who entertained us by getting beat up in a fist fight with a buxom blonde nurse. I remember the main pair of Eddies for two reasons. One, that they were the most colorful, the other that they came up with cold, life-and-death insights for my group.

The first thing Moran did when we were transferred to that convalescent camp from our hospital wards was to eat up a salami chunk from the customary package my mother sent. Next he taught us the A to F system that determined when a man was well enough for return to combat duty. Every Monday they march us to the infirmary, he instructed, for a doc to probe our hits. Soon as he gets an inch near your scar, let out a yelp of pain, and youll stay high on the scale.

Then he ate up my mothers Danish pastry as Hagen rested his disillusioned eyes on each of us, and said, Holler loud enough, you could stay up near Group F. One sensitive glance at my look of possible misgivings and he added, Give some other guys a chance to become heroes. The savage realities of war were heavy on me without that pert little homily, but his face crystallized them at lunchtime that day with the mask of wars despair it seemed to become when a woman employed in the vast crowded mess hall screeched, in refusing him an extra pat of butter, Dont you know theres a war on?

All the jeopardy and horror we had endured seemed pointless. I felt again the misery of mud we slogged through up to our hips, that autumn of 1944. Acutely I recalled lost buddies, the agony of Europes severest winter in history, the two consecutive wounds I took in the tumult of my last action, and the even worse dread of seeing new hospital arrivals with their toes forfeited to frostbite. More beneficent ladies accommodated us to their brazen wartime pleasure, voiced amid the buzz bombs in the popular tune of Roll me over in the clover, roll me over, lay me down and do it again, and to the good-natured resentment of Englishmen out in the hazardous noonday sun with complaints that we were overpaid, oversexed, and over here.

But for the chatter of recovering comrades Eddie Moran had no patience. I de-test GIs, he would enunciate, and amuse me distinguishing some we strolled past with Looks like he must have been an undertaker, or That one sold for two cents halvah, and so on. Yet when not back in the wards spewing metal from his hide, he got us drinking with him in pubs loud with their exchanges as high-pitched as our noisy hostesses  until the night the news broke about the Battle of the Bulge.

Its history book now that on Dec. 16 Marshal Gerd von Runstedt hurled three armies at the Allies on a ninety-mile front, every tank and aircraft the Germans still possessed in a surprise attack, but we heard nothing about it till our north and south assaults were stalled. We were already having some Christmas fun at a Birmingham pub when word spread about the enemy breakthrough in Belgium.

I had been out of action since October the third, and so had the others for months. In fact we were enthusiastically celebrating the infirmity of our crowd, which still managed to range from C to Group E and betrayed no sign of improvement. But suddenly big cynical Moran was in tears. The news was shocking. The breakthrough had caught our troops off-balance and entrapped them. They were mercilessly being slaughtered at Bastogne. It threw Moran into a crying jag, and next to go was old Hagen, whimpering about the green kids left all alone on the line to face quick and seasoned Panzer divisions. The rest of us broke down weeping over word that the Nazis were taking no prisoners.

We knew that to be more than just a rumor because no other tactical way remained for the Germans. This was their last whisper of a chance. They needed every drop of gasoline, they could not even afford a morsel of food for prisoners of war, much less the fuel to transport them behind the lines, and thus could not spare their lives. Hardened men became again the boys we were, and wept.

We had it made when we first arrived at the convalescent barracks. The Nazis were through. Nothing could save them. It was going to be just one big mop-up until our people made contact with the Russians and closed the book on the European Theater of Operations. Everybody believed that. All we had to do was to scorn the buzz bombs, have our fun, and stay no lower than Group C by crying pain at the slightest examining touch of our wounds while playing easy kindergarten games for slow rehabilitation to humor garrison non-coms in gym clothes. But the bubble had burst.

Now, incredibly, with shocking suddenness, our men were being butchered on the line, most of them too inept to chop back fast enough, and dying just for the lack of combat experience. It took a funny guy who thought he loathed GIs to make so many war-weary men break down and go bucking for the Group A fully healed status in the middle of a holiday night.

We took leave of the blubbering goodbyes of our playmates. By morning we had the examining doctors out though it was not Monday, and the next morning we were all in gear, lined up in formation, all set for shipment back to our respective outfits. No one spoke. Just before the trucks came for us a small weathered voice echoed through the eerie silence of the snow-banked frost. I never got to see Germany, Beneath his steel helmet Eddie Hagen gave a weary smile.

Well, we knocked out the Nazi horde, out of Belgium and back into their own hapless territory again. Whenever we passed long timber the enemy erected to resemble cannon from the air, I thought of Eddie Hagen. Whenever I saw old women wring their hands and moan, Alles Kaput, I wondered how he took his tour of the wasteland called Germany, and the master race of Hitler that had learned to feel so sorry for itself.

By March my armored cavalry reconnaissance squadron turned into task force had probed hell to the Rhine and, minus our casualties, stood there for the massing assault forces to catch up with us. We attacked on the Eighth.

That morning I became a casualty again, with a snipers bullet in my head. There I quit the war, too disabled, disoriented and agonized to find out how it went for Moran and Hagen. Later on the terrible impairment kept me reluctant to search out news that might be bad. I dont know what happened to any of the others. I never looked back. But I guessed that if they lived, like me they never regretted going back to get the dirty job done for the kids who died en masse.

David Rafferty is a Greenwich resident.
AP

MINNEAPOLIS (AP)  A Minnesota judge on Tuesday denied media requests to allow cameras at an upcoming hearing for a suburban Minneapolis police officer charged in Daunte Wright's death.

Kim Potter, 48, is charged with manslaughter in Wright's death during a traffic stop April 11 in Brooklyn Center. The city's police chief at the time said he believed Potter, who is white, mixed up her Taser with her handgun when she shot Wright, who is Black.
The state House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a resolution that could ultimately end Connecticut's long-standing, tight restrictions on when residents are allowed to vote by absentee ballot.

However, the proposal fell short of passing with enough support so voters can make that decision in 2022. Instead, if the Senate passes the same measure, 2024 is the soonest that a question could appear on the general election ballot as to whether Connecticut's constitution should be changed to allow no-excuses absentee voting.

Democratic Secretary of the State Denise Merrill called the House vote an important first step to bringing Connecticut in line with rest of the country by making voting more convenient through universal access to absentee ballots. But she said in a statement that it was disappointing and a shame that more Republicans didn't back the resolution.

The legislation passed the House on a 103 to 44 vote, with nine Republicans joining the Democrats in support. In order for the question to have appeared on the November 2022 ballot, the resolution needed 75% of the chamber's support.

The resolution now awaits action in the Senate. If it passes by a simple majority, both chambers must approve it again by a simple majority during the 2023 legislative session in order for the question to appear on the 2024 ballot.

Proponents contend Connecticut needs to finally join the majority of states that allow early voting and/or no-excuse absentee voting, noting that voters welcomed the opportunity to vote safely by absentee during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont temporarily allowed it through an executive order.

The resolution would place a question before the voters, asking whether the state constitution should be amended to allow people to be vote by absentee for any reason. Prior to Lamont's action, it has been restricted to excuses such as being out of town on Election Day, sickness or physical disability.

Its time to make this commonsense measure permanent. If the legislature doesnt pass the no-excuse absentee ballot resolution this session, voters will quickly lose the rights they gained just months ago, Cheri Quickmire, executive director of Common Cause in Connecticut, said in a statement.

But critics of the bill, mostly Republicans, questioned the safeguards surrounding the state's current absentee ballot system, noting past absentee ballot controversies in places like Bridgeport where there were allegations of irregularities in the 2019 Democratic primary for mayor.

We don't need to open the floodgates to ballot fraud. We don't need to open the floodgates to bad actors to take advantage of a system where there's no protections, said state Rep. David Labriola, R-Naugatuck.

Republicans unsuccessfully tried to amend the legislation to require that a photo ID be presented at the polls and a signature verification process, arguing they would create confidence among voters in the accuracy of the vote. Democrats, who control the General Assembly, argued that people without IDs would be disenfranchised.

Tuesday's debate on whether to expand absentee voting comes nearly a week after the House of Representatives passed another resolution, 115 to 26, that would place a question on the 2022 general election ballot asking voters if the state constitution should be amended to allow in-person, early voting before an election or referendum. The resolution awaits action in the Senate.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP)  State and local governments in South Carolina are getting nearly $2.5 billion in new federal coronavirus aid, as the state begins to phase out a different federal jobless benefit the governor says is disincentivizing people to return to the workplace.

The funds announced this week are part of a $350 billion allocation being distributed to state and local governments, a piece of President Joe Bidens larger $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package that became law in March.

All of South Carolina's 46 counties and some cities will get the money, which could soon begin arriving in state and local hands, according to the White House.

Treasury Department guidance listed broad categories for spending the funds, like public health costs, or offsetting harm from the downturn to workers, small businesses and affected industries. Money can also replace lost public sector revenues and be invested in water, sewer and broadband internet.

But the Treasury Department has also placed restrictions, including a prohibition on using the money to cut taxes, pay down debt or bolster reserve funds.

The distribution comes as South Carolina phases out its participation in another federal coronavirus aid component. Last week, Gov. Henry McMaster announced that, starting June 30, South Carolina will opt out of the federal unemployment programs that have been providing extra money to jobless residents, in light of unprecedented workforce shortages across the state.

With more than 80,000 job openings and a labor shortage affecting all areas of the states economy, McMaster argued last week that the shortfall was created in large part due to the supplemental federal payments, which include an extra weekly $300 to unemployed workers.

During an online meeting Tuesday with the director of the states jobless benefits agency and members of the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce, McMaster noted other governors, including Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, have taken similar action on unemployment assistance.

The governor also said he saw the state as well-positioned to return to its pre-pandemic economic vibrance, particularly if businesses in the multibillion dollar tourism industry can staff up in time for the burgeoning summer tourist season. That is a task he said would be assisted by removing the unemployment benefit.

All things considered, it looks like the threat is much less than it was before, McMaster said, enumerating increasing numbers of South Carolinians who have already been vaccinated against the coronavirus. And at the same time, we know that these employment benefits  which were very generous and, I think, were good and purposeful at the beginning  have now seemingly turned into an entitlement. ... I have a very positive, happy outlook about the future right now, and the way we're going.

___

Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP.

___

Follow APs coverage of the pandemic at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.
The millenary Huangpu, a beginning of entrepreneurship

11:15, May 11, 2021 By Wei Deng ( People's Daily Online

How do foreigners start a business in China? Where do they start their dreams? Chinas economy grew 18.3% year on year in Q1 of 2021. In 2020, while facing the raging pandemic, China took the lead in containing the coronavirus and became the only country in the world to achieve positive economic growth. As such, it has attracted a host of domestic and foreign venture capitalists and young people with dreams to start businesses. James hopes that through his visit he can share his story with people that also have dreams of their own.

The new docuseries Viewing China from Afar Season III produced by People's Daily Online West USA Inc. provided us a glimpse into the life of a crowd of foreigners in China in 2020. This episode narrates the motivation of James for starting a business there in China in the second half of 2020. James visited Huangpu district of Guangzhou upon learning about the favorable business climate there, hoping that his local friends could show him around.

James' friend, Zuo Zhijun, a precursor who has been working in Huangpu for two years, introduced to him the working and living environment in Huangpu. In 2020, Huangpu secured itself as the first among all economic development zones in China in terms of six major indicators including the GDP. The company where Zuo works has grown into an industry leader after over a decades dedication in Huangpu.

James was told by Zuo that the most attractive thing about Huangpu district is that its not only a land for entrepreneurship, but also retains the ancient culture it once had. As historical sites meet Business Accelerator Park, what highlights can be expected from the integration of history and innovation? Zuo took James to Nanhai God Temple, a temple with a history of 1,400 years in China, to tell him the amazing story about the foreign deity that stayed behind during the Tang dynasty. They walked through narrow alleys made of the century-old blue bricks, ancient ancestral halls, small bridges, and strolled through ancient villages to experience the history of Huangpu. They also went to Business Accelerator Park to see the efficiency of flexible car lines from which a car can be produced in half the time compared to the traditional production method. James experienced the research and development, verification and trial production process carried out by global experts using VR technology. These represent a dynamic Huangpu today.

During a full day trip in Huangpu, James made this decision and said: The amazing Huangpu is both traditional and modern, so I like it very much and I think I might settle down here. If you are thinking of starting a business in China, why not follow James journey and experience the "past and present" of Huangpu, Guangzhou.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)




By Ko Dong-hwan







Three conscripted police officers are being investigated for allegedly selling an electric air purifier installed in their dormitory to make money for a party, police said Monday.







According to Jeonbuk Provincial Police Agency in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, the members of the Korea National Police Agency Auxiliary Police are suspected of stealing the appliance installed in their shared living quarters. The suspects were serving as auxiliary police as an alternative to mandatory military duty.







The suspects allegedly sold the device for 500,000 won ($446) on Saturday after posting an ad on an online second-hand market. They said they needed money "to have a party" before being transferred to a riot control squad.







"The air purifier was a donation from our agency's local partner group," a police officer was quoted as saying by News 1. "We are looking into the case to decide whether to seek prosecution."


ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP)  America's commercial casinos matched their best quarter ever in the first three months of this year, as customers continued returning amid the COVID-19 pandemic and internet and sports betting money helped boost revenue numbers.

Figures released Tuesday by the American Gaming Association, the casino industry's national trade group, show the nation's commercial casinos took in over $11.1 billion in the first quarter of this year.

That matched the industry's best quarter in history, the third quarter of 2019. The figures do not include tribal casinos.

And March was a particularly good month: 12 states reported their highest-ever levels of monthly gambling revenue.

The 2021 first-quarter revenue numbers represented a nearly 18% increase over the first quarter of 2020, when the pandemic began to take hold nationwide, and an increase of more than 4% from the first quarter of 2019, before the pandemic began.

The numbers were even more heartening to industry executives because they came while most casinos were still operating under capacity restrictions designed to slow the spread of the virus.

Todays report shows gamings comeback is ahead of schedule, said Bill Miller, the association's president and CEO. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, our industry has faced numerous challenges head-on while still reopening responsibly and providing a safe, exciting environment for customers. The gaming industry is generating these impressive results with one hand tied behind our back as capacity and amenity restrictions remain across the country.

Some state-mandated closures remained in effect in the first quarter of this year. Casinos in Pennsylvania and Illinois were allowed to reopen from a second mandated shutdown on January 4 and January 16, respectively. In early March, New Mexico became the last commercial gaming market to resume operations after having been shuttered for just under a year.

Fourteen out of the 25 commercial casino states  home to more than 75% of the nation's commercial casinos  limited casino occupancy to below 50% during the quarter.

One of the few places where commercial casinos were operating at full capacity in the first quarter was South Dakota. It was the first commercial casino state to reopen last year, on May 7, 2020.

Terry Glebocki, CEO of the Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City, said customer volumes at her property have been increasing this year, due in part to a multimillion-dollar reinvestment the casino is making.

But there is another factor at play, she said.

I do think we're seeing more and more people feeling more comfortable coming out to casinos, she said. There's a ton of pent-up demand out there. People want to go out and have fun, and that's what you do at a casino.

Callie Driehorst, a spokeswoman for MGM Resorts International, said things are looking up.

Weve seen significant progress since the start of the year in COVID trends, vaccinations, consumer sentiment, and state-by-state operating restrictions, she said. Its been exciting to see our domestic business improve significantly, and to play a role in the industrys recovery. As business trends continue to improve, well continue to position our business for long-term, sustainable growth."

Traditional brick-and-mortar casino games generated 90% of their first-quarter 2019 revenue. March was particularly strong, with revenue from slots and table games coming within 1% of March 2019 totals.

Sports betting revenue set a new quarterly record this year at $961 million, up 270% from a year earlier, and surpassing 2019s full-year total of $909 million.

Helped by the successful opening of online casinos in Michigan, internet gambling generated $784 million nationwide in the first quarter of this year, more than three times the amount from a year ago.

In March, a dozen states set monthly gambling revenue records: Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota and Virginia.

___

 Associated Press writer Ken Ritter in Las Vegas contributed to this story.

Follow Wayne Parry at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC
Google I/O is taking place next week where the company will announce updates and future improvements across its various platforms, operating systems, and online services. Android Central reports that some users on Android have been prompted to fill a survey to help improve Wear OS.

There has been much speculation about Wear OS and what direction Google may be steering the platform. Ever since Googles Acquisition of Fitbit, it was rumored that Google planned to launch a Pixel-branded smartwatch, but that never materialized.

Scrolling through Wear OS App drawer on Skagen Faslter 3 using its rotating dial

In recent months, Wear OS has been seeing gradual updates to core features like Google Fit, and more recently, it received an update to the built-in Gboard formatted for tiny-screen input. Custom Tiles are expected to come with the Spring update as well.

Wear OS is expected to be a significant focus at this years Google I/O given the amount of time its been since Wear OS received a significant update. As of this writing, there is currently no replacement app for Google Play Music, which was fully retired last year and succeeded by YouTube Music, which still has no app for Wear OS.

Its going to be interesting to see how Google will optimize Wear OS for Qualcomms latest Snapdragon Wear 4100 platform.

Source  Via
Apple started manufacturing iPhone 12 in India recently, but according to a report by Reuters the production capacity at one of the factories has shrunken by half. The cause is that over 100 employees at the Foxconn-operated facility have tested positive for COVID-19.

There are dormitories on site where employees can stay, they are the ones keeping production running. Employees are allowed to leave, but as a precaution no one is allowed to get in. The two sources quoted by the publication do not know how many workers are at the factory in total.

The factory is located in southern state of Tamil Nadu, near the capital of Chennai. The state is one of the worst affected by the second wave of the pandemic and it entered a full lockdown on Monday when public transport and shops were shut down in an attempt to stem the spread of the disease.

Foxconn's facility in Tamil Nadu, India

Foxconn places the health and safety of our employees as our highest priority and that is why we have been working closely with local government and public health authorities in India to address the challenges that we and all companies are facing in dealing with the COVID-19 crisis, Foxconn told Reuters.

The Foxconn facility was set up in 2019 to produce high-end iPhones for the Indian market. There is also a Wistron facility, which is located near Bengaluru in the neighboring state of Karnataka and it started making lower end models like the original SE and iPhone 6S in 2017.

As India went into lockdown last year many factories had to stop work. After the lockdown ended, plans to reopen quickly ran into trouble. In mid-May Oppo had to temporarily shut down its factory in Greater Noida as six employees tested positive for COVID-19. A few days later a Nokia Networks factory shut down after 18 employees tested positive.

Source
The Mobile World Congress is set to make a comeback last year after skipping 2020. The exhibition is set to take place between June 28 and July 1 in Barcelona, Spain with as many as 50,000 people attending.

However, many tech companies have decided it is still not safe to send out their employees to do in-person presentations. The latest to pull out is Samsung Electronics  if the company has anything to unveil at the MWC, it will do so virtually.

The health and safety of our employees, partners and customers is our number one priority, so we have made the decision to withdraw from exhibiting in-person at this year's MWC. We look forward to participating virtually and continuing to work with GSMA and industry partners to advance new mobile experiences, wrote Samsung in a statement.

The organizer of the MWC, the GSMA, will require attendees to show a negative test before arriving and they will have to be retested every three days as well. Even so, Samsung and many others think its better to play it safe.

Sony, Nokia, Google and Ericsson are among the biggest names that have pulled out of the exhibition. British Telecom, Facebook, Oracle and others will skip the event as well.

Source
Back in March is when we heard the first reports from Buzzfeed about discussions within the company to plan an Instagram for Kids app that would allow children under the age of 13 to begin using the popular photos-sharing app in a supposedly safe way.

A coalition of 44 US attorneys general all signed a letter to Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg dated this Monday. The letter lists reasons and cites research to show that Facebook should not go forth with its plans to develop and market a kid-friendly version of the Instagram app.

Facebook has repeatedly failed to protect the health and wellbeing of children on its platforms. "Instagram for Kids" is a shameful attempt to exploit and profit off vulnerable people. I'm leading a letter to Mark Zuckerberg with 44 AGs to demand they abandon this plan.  Maura Healey (@MassAGO) May 10, 2021

Among the reasons listed in the letter are: Facebooks poor history of protecting childrens privacy and data on the platform, research showing that social media can be harmful to children on physical and psychological levels, children do not have a fully-developed understanding of privacy and can easily be targeted by anonymous predators, and a large percentage of surveyed young Instagram users have experienced cyber bullying on the app.

It appears that Facebook is not responding to a need, but instead creating one, as this platform appeals primarily to children who otherwise do not or would not have an Instagram account. In short, an Instagram platform for young children is harmful for myriad reasons. The attorneys general urge Facebook to abandon its plans to launch this new platform.

In the release published by the coalition head Attorney General Maura Healey, she cited Zuckerbergs dismissal of the idea that social media is harmful to children. The release points out there is much strong evidence and research that contradicts Zuckerbergs denial.

Currently, children under 13 are not allowed to have an Instagram account unless it is explicitly written in the profiles description that the account is being managed by a parent or guardian. Back in March, Instagram released a blog post showing the ways that its protecting minors under 18 on the platform. The AG coalition doesnt think this will be enough, especially if Instagram begins inviting users that are even younger than 13.

Source 1  2
MOSS POINT, Miss. -- A man wanted for the New Years Eve shooting death of a 22-year-old Moss Point man has been captured in Florida, according to Moss Point police.

On Dec. 31, 2020, Javantavous Davison was found shot to death in the Kreole area of Moss Point. Police identified 21-year-old Nathan Ramon Dubose -- aka Lil Nate, Kreole Nate -- as the suspect.

Dubose is suspected of firing multiple rounds at a Honda Civic near Mill Avenue, not only killing Davison but injuring a passenger in the vehicle, as well. Dubose fled the area and in April was listed among Mississippis Most Wanted by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.

Last week, Dubose was taken into custody in Panama City, Fla. According to reports, Dubose was in a fast food restaurant when a police officer came in and was told by an employee that Dubose had filled a fountain drink without paying.

After obtaining Duboses name, a NCIC search revealed he was wanted for murder in Moss Point and he was taken into custody.

As of Tuesday, Dubose remained in the Bay County (Fla.) jail, charged with 1st degree murder and aggravated assault. He is being held without bond awaiting the extradition process.
Grillmasters insist that just about everything tastes a little better when cooked over a flame. Even though grilling often is reserved for lun
The wait-and-see approach to travel right now is prudent from a health perspective. From a booking perspective, maybe not so much.
Kim Tae-il, head of the New National Council of Student Representatives, a conservative college students' group, stages anti-government protest near Cheong Wa Dae, Sunday. Courtesy of New National Council of Student Representatives



By Bahk Eun-ji



A conservative college students' group has put up posters satirizing President Moon Jae-in at around 100 universities and the National Assembly building.



The poster, created by the New National Council of Student Representatives (NCSR), is written in the form of a letter of apology, but in fact satirizes the high-handed manner the Moon administration has shown on many controversial issues.



Titled "Letter of Apology," the poster references President Moon's recent decision not to take legal action against a 34-year-old man who allegedly "insulted" him by distributing leaflets that called him "a dog of North Korea."



Announcing the withdrawal of the complaint against the man, presidential spokeswoman Park Kyung-mee said at the time that if similar case took place in future, Cheong Wa Dae would decide whether to take legal action or not after reviewing it each case, apparently issuing a warning.



She then said, "We hope the decision will give an opportunity for the man to learn how the spreading of false information can have a negative influence on the nation's stature, people's dignity and the country's future."



In the poster, the council said it had distributed leaflets and put up posters critical of the President for the past three years, adding sarcastically that they were writing the letter of apology so as to escape punishment in future according to the President's warning.



"We, university students, believe the Moon administration has been destroying the lives of people in their 20s and 30s by damaging fairness in this country," the poster read.



The council cited a series of controversies involving Moon's aides, including allegations that Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae abused her power to get special favors for her son during his military service in 2017, and former Justice Minister Cho Kuk committed corruption and admissions fraud for his children in 2019.



It also stated that Moon's economy-related policies, including those on estate and employment, have failed and left young people with little hope of owning a home, getting married and having a job.



"In order to protest such injustice, we took part in candlelit vigils and put up posters. We thought this level of freedom of expression would be tolerated because the people in the administration had the experience of throwing Molotov Cocktails and creating such posters throughout their university days," said Kim Tae-il, head of the NNCSR, referring to Moon and many of his aides who were "engaged" in pro-democracy activities in the 1980s.



"But it was our huge misunderstanding. All channels of criticisms have been suppressed, whether they are comments, posters, or leaflets," the poster read.



"So we apologize for telling the truth, having a different opinion from yours, wishing for freedom of speech, and requesting a fair opportunity. We are truly sorry for getting on the President's nerves."



Kim held a one-person protest near Cheong Wa Dae, Sunday, and read the message on the poster out loud.






iciHaiti - Road report : 38 accidents at least 132 victims





The Haitian organization Technical and Operational Services to Stop Accidents (STOP-Accidents), informs us that for the week of May 3 to 9, 2021, 38 accidents on the national territory (+ 15.1% compared to the previous week) https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-33641-icihaiti-road-report-33-accidents-at-least-151-victims.html made at least 114 victims (-24.5%): 18 dead ( -53.8%) and 114 injured (+ 1.7%) including several seriously...



Lalue, Bel air (Cap-Haitien), Autoroute de Delmas, Morne Preng (Bombardopolis), Mapoux (Cayes), Deglewo (Quartier-morin), Bassin bleu, Lillavois, Morne Calvaire ... are the main communes and zones where these accidents have occurred. been registered.



Remember that this weekly report was carried out in partnership with the National Ambulance Center (CAN) and the Haitian Red Cross. However, due to lack of financial resources STOP-Accident is unable to monitor the state of health of the injured, some of whom die as a result of their injuries and are not counted.



STOP-Accidents, reiterates its call for caution on our roads and urges the Government to strengthen prevention measures and to set up a systematic vehicle inspection service. In addition, the Organization invites road users to maintain responsible behavior to reduce the risk of accidents.



See also :/B>

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-33641-icihaiti-road-report-33-accidents-at-least-151-victims.html



IH/ iciHaiti


















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Sun and clouds mixed. A stray afternoon thunderstorm is possible. High 79F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph..

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President Moon Jae-in presides over a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae, Tuesday. Yonhap



By Jung Da-min



Comments made by President Moon Jae-in have triggered debate over the effectiveness of the National Assembly confirmation hearing system for ministers and other ranking government officials.



Moon said during a special address at Cheong Wa Dae, Monday, to mark the fourth anniversary of his inauguration, that the current system, usually led by the opposition, is being misused to humiliate nominees rather than reviewing whether the candidates are good fits for the jobs.



Late last month, the President named his nominees for prime minister and five Cabinet members. But Moon's pick for Land Minister, Noh Hyeong-ouk, as well as Science Minister nominee Lim Hye-sook and Oceans Minister nominee Park Jun-young, have been embroiled in controversies over their respective ethical lapses.



During the speech, Moon said that the three nominees are good fits for the jobs, considering their expertise and career backgrounds. The National Assembly turned down Moon's request to approve their nominations by Monday, the legal deadline after their hearings. Moon made another request to the National Assembly, Tuesday, to approve the nominations by Friday.



"With the current confirmation hearing system which focuses on humiliating the nominees, we cannot appoint good candidates who are fit for the jobs," Moon said during a press conference following the speech. "The part of verifying the moral standards of nominees is important, but we could do that separately at a closed hearing while making the public hearing focus on the verification of the nominee's capabilities and policy plans, so that we could effectively weigh the two parts together."



Along with the President's call to improve the confirmation system, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) issued a similar message, urging the improvement of the system before the inauguration of the next president.



DPK's chief spokesman, Rep. Koh Young-jin, told reporters that the party leadership discussed the matter at a closed-door Supreme Council meeting.



In June of 2020, DPK Rep. Hong Young-pyo had proposed a law to revise the parliamentary confirmation hearing system in such a direction.



However, opponents claim that open confirmation hearings have often played the role of sorting out unqualified nominees, saying private hearings could infringe on the public's right to information.



The conflict over the nominations of ministers is expected to continue, as not only the conservative main opposition People Power Party (PPP), but other opposition parties, including the liberal minor opposition Justice Party, have been strongly protesting the nomination of the three candidates, citing their ethical lapses.



In protest of the President's strong message on the nomination of the three, the PPP refused to attend a scheduled National Assembly session to discuss the approval of Prime Minister nominee Kim Boo-kyum, Monday. The session was eventually cancelled due to the PPP's boycott.


A Senate panel voted Wednesday to give themselves and their colleagues a big increase in their allowance  and do it as soon as possible.

You voted:
(The Center Square)  Kentuckys recent economic recovery will end up costing the state more than a quarter of a billion dollars in federal funding.

On Monday afternoon, Gov. Andy Beshear announced the state will now receive $2.18 billion from the federal government from the American Rescue Plan, which became law two months ago.

Lawmakers previously announced that Kentucky would receive $2.44 billion. However, Beshear and officials in his administration claimed the cut was due to a better than expected economic recovery.

The preliminary estimated amounts available during the budget process did not yet recognize the level of reduction in the number of unemployed Kentuckians, said state Budget Director John Hicks in a statement. "Kentuckys downward revision was the seventh largest among the states with better unemployment figures.

Kentucky, as well as its communities and 120 counties, was in line to receive more than $4 billion from the American Rescue Plan, which had set aside $350 billion in direct aid to state and local governments.

The U.S. Treasury Department released the updated funding as well, and the numbers were also adjusted for counties and communities in the state. For example, Louisville, Kentuckys largest city, was initially set to receive $435 million in funding.

Mondays data now shows the city will receive $388.2 million.

A message seeking comment from city officials was not immediately returned.

Last week, Kentucky officials announced the state reported record monthly totals in sales tax and motor vehicle usage tax receipts. In April, the state collected $486.5 million in sales tax revenue and $64 million from the vehicle usage tax.

State officials said the record sales tax haul was linked to the $1,400 stimulus checks - another facet of the American Rescue Plan - many taxpayers received in March.

The state is reporting that sales tax revenue is up 9.5% through the first 10 months of the 2020-21 fiscal year.

Our economy is surging and strong, Beshear said in a statement Monday. We are in a strong position to sprint out of this pandemic with continued positive economic indicators and with this funding that will create jobs, momentum and a better quality of life in every corner of the commonwealth.

In late March, Beshear and Republican leaders in the General Assembly reached an agreement on how to spend $1.3 billion of the American Rescue Plan funds. That deal included expanding broadband internet access statewide as well as bolstering funding for water lines and schools.

In all, officials said the plan could create about 14,500 jobs.

In a statement, House Speaker David Osborne, R-Prospect, said the federal governments decision means its even more critical for the state to maintain conservative fiscal policies.

We have to be realistic and recognize that this economic performance is not one driven by job growth and business investment but one driven by federal stimulus, making it even more important that we are good stewards of taxpayer dollars, he said.
Chief justice visits Grove Street Courthouse on Wednesday

Chief Justice Paul Newby in front of the Cherokee County Courthouse in Murphy, North Carolina

Chief Justice Paul Newby began a tour of 100 counties on Monday in Western North Carolina, the first chief justice to visit all of North Carolina's courthouses.

The first phase of the tour covered Cherokee, Graham, Clay, Macon and Swain counties, followed by Jackson, Haywood, Transylvania, Henderson, Polk, and Rutherford counties as well as the Cherokee tribal court. He's scheduled to visit the Grove Street Courthouse in Hendersonville at 11 a.m. Wednesday.

The tour began in Murphy and will end in Manteo. At each courthouse, Chief Justice Newby will greet judges and courthouse personnel to express his appreciation for their commitment and dedication during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Chief Justice's Commission on Professionalism is presenting professional programs during some tours' phases.

Our judges and courthouse personnel are the battle-tested heroes of the past year. They came to work, day-in and day-out, facing real and often undefined dangers to fulfill the 'open courts' mandate of the North Carolina Constitution, Newby said. Our courthouse stakeholders are doing their best to ensure that justice is administered without favor, denial, or delay. Our state needs these dedicated public servants now more than ever to help address the large backlog of cases left in the wake of this pandemic.

After completing the far-western phase of the tour, Chief Justice Newby will soon visit other courthouses spanning the mountains, foothills, piedmont, sandhills, and eastern North Carolina. The tour is planned to be completed within the next two years.
Moffitt's broad ABC bill clears committee

RALEIGH  A House committee discussion over an omnibus alcohol bill amounted to yet another debate involving people wanting to free regulations on spirituous liquor and those wanting to tighten the states stranglehold.





House Bill 890, after an hour-long discussion Monday, May 10, moved out of the House Alcoholic Beverage Control Committee and on to the Rules Committee. A budget-related amendment in the ABC Committee ensured that the bill would not have to meet this weeks legislative crossover deadline. The content of the bill when, and if, it makes it to the House floor is anyones guess.



No issue before N.C. lawmakers is more divisive than how the state regulates spirituous liquor. Debate over this bill, like others before it loosening ABC rules, will be no different, each contingent effectively daring the other to blink.



The bill, sponsored by Rep. Tim Moffitt, R-Henderson, is all-encompassing, incorporating some measures that have already cleared one chamber of the General Assembly. It would allow people to order online and pick products up from state ABC stores, expand the size of growlers from two liters to four, loosen rules for tours in N.C. distilleries, and allow distillers to sell their products at festivals.



Maybe most important  and also probably the biggest point of contention  is a provision in the bill that levels the proverbial playing field, allowing distilleries to operate like their beer and wine counterparts, apart from ABC control regarding hours of operation. As it stands, distilleries cant open if a local ABC is not open.



This bill removes that draconian provision, allowing distilleries to offer tours, tastings, and cocktails from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m., although to think a distiller would hold such hours isnt realistic. The bill would also establish a spirituous liquor council, basically a distillers version of the N.C. Wine and Grape Council.



Rep. Pat Hurley, R-Randolph, is a consistent critic of legislative efforts to ease restrictions on alcohol. She proposed a pair of amendments that would have eliminated large swaths from the bill. Both failed. Another amendment, a common-sense measure that clarifies language for people who buy liquor, was approved.



I wish I could do the whole bill, Hurley said in referring to complete removal of H.B. 890.



Moffitt said, I would ask that the committee trust us in our endeavors to get this right.



The biggest flashpoint came during talk of operating hours for distilleries.



Pete Barger is president of the Distillers Association of North Carolina. He is an owner of Southern Distilling Co. in Statesville, one of some 90 licensed distilleries in North Carolina. He told lawmakers his distillery, and those like his, are private businesses, built and operated by entrepreneurs trying to grow their businesses and to succeed. The ability to operate on a timeline like those of breweries and wineries is critical to meeting those goals, even as, Barger said, most N.C. distillers support the ABC system.



Distillers in North Carolina  Im not aware of anyone who is interested in operating as if they were a bar, he said.



Rather, its a question of tourism, especially as that relates to Sundays, which comprise half of a typical weekend.



We dont think its appropriate that we are limited because the ABC store isnt open, Barger said. Its just that simple.



State rules that disallow Sunday sales, he said, are a big hit to us, and, I think, its a big hit to the state.



Its less about consumption, Barger said, and more about opportunity. He said his distillery goes through about 40,000 pounds of N.C.-produced grain daily. He assured lawmakers the distillers would be great partners toward ensuring people consume alcohol in a responsible way.



Another consistent opponent of alcohol, the Rev. Mark Creech of the Christian Action League, called the measure too aggressive. He said lawmakers  as well as constituents  have had little time to vet the proposed bill. He wants it held over to the next biennium.



We just dont have enough facts yet, Creech told lawmakers. This is privatization light, and were not ready for that.


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The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) said Tuesday it will hold a convention next month to elect the new party leadership.







The party's central election committee decided to host the party convention on June 11 to pick the new chairman and the new members of the supreme council, during its inaugural meeting held earlier in the day.







Currently, about 12 party members have declared or are reportedly considering running for the party chairmanship.







As the competition for the chairman seat became heated, the party committee deferred its decision on setting the ground rules for a primary for the election and said it will make the decision after the deadline for candidacy registration on May 22.







So far, five heavyweight incumbent legislators declared their bids for the chairman post left vacant by the departure of interim party leader Kim Chong-in last month. They include the previous floor leader Joo Ho-young as well as Cho Hae-jin and Hong Moon-pyo, three- and four-term lawmakers, respectively.







At least three high-profile former lawmakers, including ex-floor leader Na Kyung-won, are reportedly weighing the option of joining the election alongside two sitting first-term lawmakers. (Yonhap)






Huntington, WV (25701)

Today

Cloudy this morning with thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 82F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Variably cloudy with scattered thunderstorms. Low 68F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
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By Lee Seong-hyon





In early April, the government said, "As soon as the coronavirus situation stabilizes, we have decided to push forward Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Korea to an early date." The announcement came after a meeting of the foreign ministers of South Korea and China in the Chinese coastal city of Xiamen.



Xi's visit to South Korea falls in the realm of diplomatic negotiations and political decisions between the two countries. As a result, the possibility of the visit remains open. However, from an analytical perspective, there are also some factors that may make it difficult for the summit to materialize. Here are some observations that support this rationale.



First, China tends to withhold new diplomatic initiatives with South Korea when the President of Korea enters the fourth year in office. It is because she or he enters the supposed "lame duck period." China waits for the next South Korean government. China displayed this pattern during the Lee Myung-bak, as well as the Park Geun-hye, administrations. Park's term was prematurely terminated due to her impeachment.



The Korean Constitution stipulates that the president serves a single, five-year term. It is difficult to ensure the continuity of diplomatic agreements, especially long-term projects, under the South Korean presidential system. In addition, the polarized, partisan politics of South Korea often abandons or repeals the previous administrations' policies.



This aspect is especially true when it comes to North Korea policies, which China considers sensitive. China is well aware that the North Korean issue is the most important agenda item for the South Korean side. At the same time, China has also learned that the South Korean government in the past pursued completely different, even contradictory, policies toward North Korea, based on its ideological tendencies, and asked for China to be in line with the South Korean government's policy position at the time. "Last time, the South Korean government asked us to choke North Korea's neck. This time, the South Korean government asked us not to. We don't know whose rhythm to match," a Chinese interlocutor once complained.



Second, it doesn't seem clear what both South Korea and China can achieve from the summit. A summit is an occasion where the top decision-makers of both countries meet in person and sign major policy and diplomatic initiatives. As mentioned, however, President Moon Jae-in has entered his final year in office. China is well aware that Moon's power is waning.



China's biggest foreign policy mandate is how to manage the current U.S.-China rivalry. Under such a strategic calculus, its ultimate concern with Seoul, a U.S. ally, is how the latter positions itself between the two global superpowers.



This situation has a lot of geopolitical ramifications. For instance, it involves whether South Korea will join the Quad, or whether South Korea will continue to cooperate with China and supply advanced semiconductor chips. The same is true of the human rights issues concerning China, as well as the possible consideration by Washington of boycotting the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, in case the U.S.-China rivalry intensifies further. As a U.S. ally, South Korea has to make decisions.



China seems to believe that South Korea, a democratic nation, is, eventually, likely to lean toward the U.S. side in the overall scheme of policies. This calculation will be especially true if the next South Korean government is from the conservative wing.



Third, COVID-19 infection numbers remain in the triple digits in South Korea. It was reported that China considered Xi's visit last fall, but scrapped the plan, as the number of infection cases in South Korea rebounded. The Chinese side hoped to use the summit to highlight the fact that both China and South Korea are Asian countries that successfully contained the pandemic, underscoring Asian values and Asian governance. Xi reportedly has said, "The East rising, the West declining" (dong sheng xi jiang).



Fourth, currently, there is an unprecedented level of anti-Chinese sentiment in South Korea. The gradually rising South Korean antipathy toward China has been, in fact, snowballing, since Beijing's economic retaliation against Seoul for the deployment of THAAD, followed by Xi's revisionist speech on the Korean War. When it rains it pours. Unfortunate skirmishes ensued. There was the Chinese uproar over K-pop band BTS displaying solidarity with the United States. Many South Koreans took great offense when some Chinese people claimed the Chinese origin of Korean cultural staples kimchi and hanbok, to name a few.



All politics is local. Xi Jinping's visit to South Korea, if it materializes, will also be factored into South Korean politics, which is entering the presidential campaign season. The government here will take that into consideration.





Lee Seong-hyon (sunnybbsfs@gmail.com), Ph.D., is the director of the Center for Chinese Studies at the Sejong Institute


James Edward Wygal, 69, of Emory, passed away May 30, 2021, at home. Visitation will be Tuesday, June 8, 2021, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Coker-Mathews Funeral Home. A celebration of life service will be held at a later date at his home, which was his sanctuary and his favorite place. Mr. Wygal was
Today marks the beginning of a new term for the Greenville City Council, along with the departure of two veteran members of the seven-person governing body, but it also comes as the city will wrestle with some important challenges in the weeks and months ahead.
A Samsung Electronics DRAM chip developed by CXL-based technology / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics





By Kim Yoo-chul







Samsung Electronics unveiled the industry's first memory module supporting the new compute express link (CXL) interconnect standard, it said Tuesday.







Integrated with its in-house double data rate 5 (DDR5) technology, this CXL-based module will enable server systems to significantly scale memory capacity and bandwidth, accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) workloads in data centers.







The rise of AI and big data has been fueling the trend toward heterogeneous computing, where multiple processors work in parallel to handle massive volumes of data. CXL  an open, industry-supported interconnect based on the PCI Express (PCIe) 5.0 interface  enables high-speed, low-latency communication between the host processor and devices such as accelerators, memory buffers and smart devices, while expanding memory capacity and bandwidth well beyond what is possible today, according to its statement.






The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) extended the emergency use authorization for Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 12-15, allowing millions of younger teens to receive the vaccine. Among other companies, only the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine has been authorized for the use of 16-18-year-olds.

Younger teens could now receive Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine

The vaccine was shown to be 100 percent effective in combating COVID-19 in a study involving 1,005 participants in this age group.

Per CBS News, acting FDA commissioner Janet Woodcock, MD, said, "The FDA's extension of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine's emergency use authorization to cover teens aged 12 to 15 years is a significant development in the battle against the pandemic."

She continued by saying that today's intervention protects a younger generation from COVID-19, taking us closer to restoring normalcy and bringing the pandemic to an end. Parents and guardians should be assured that, as with all of their COVID-19 vaccine emergency use authorizations, the department conducted a comprehensive and detailed analysis of all available evidence.

When it comes to schools, the emergency use permit may be more beneficial to students and families, making it possible for students to return to normal education in person by the fall if they aren't already. According to Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, expanding the vaccine to this age bracket is a crucial move towards helping to reduce the massive public health burden created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pfizer has since requested full authorization of its COVID-19 vaccine from the FDA, indicating that it will no longer be sold under the emergency use approval. It would be critical to vaccinate children of all ages to return to normalcy.

The majority of COVID-19 vaccines for adults that are being rolled out worldwide have been approved. Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine is now being used in several countries by teenagers as young as 16, with Canada being the first to extend its use to include those aged 12 and up.

Parents, school officials, and public health authorities across the country are eagerly anticipating the vaccine's availability to more children. Dr. Bill Gruber, a Pfizer senior vice president who is also a pediatrician, told The Associated Press, "This is a watershed moment in our ability to beat back the COVID-19 pandemic."

Read Also: Fauci Claims COVID-19 Surge in Fall, Winter Unlikely to Happen; Could be Back to Normal Next Mother's Day

Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine is 100% effective for teens

In the study, there were no cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated teenagers, but 18 among children received dummy shots. Researchers discovered that the children developed higher levels of virus-fighting antibodies than young adults in previous trials.

The younger teens received the same vaccine dose as adults. They experienced the same side effects, including sore arms, flu-like fever, chills, or aches, which indicate an overactive immune system, especially after the second dose. Pfizer's adolescent testing met the FDA's high expectations, said the FDA vaccine chief Dr. Peter Marks.

Pfizer-BioNTech recently applied for a similar approval in the European Union, with more countries expected to follow. The latest news is welcome for American families trying to figure out what activities are safe to continue because only the youngest family members have not been vaccinated.

In remarks at the White House last week, President Joe Biden said the administration was "ready to start quickly to make approximately 20,000 pharmacy sites across the country ready to immunize those teenagers as soon as the FDA grants its OK," as per TODAY.com. Vaccines may also be sent directly to pediatricians' offices, where parents may feel more at ease about their children's vaccinations.

Vaccinations will also be accessible at healthcare facilities and other locations. Pfizer announced in late March that results from a Phase 3 clinical trial found that its COVID-19 vaccine was 100 percent effective in preventing the infection in children aged 12 to 15.

Related Article: COVID-19 Long Haulers Can Experience Functional Neurological Disorder, Claims New Analysis

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The horrific incident that left one tourist trapped on a 330 feet glass-bottomed suspension bridge in northeast China's Jilin province on May 7 is being blamed on extreme weather. The bridge is placed outside of Longjing, in the Piyan Mountain Cultural Tourism Scenic Area.

Chinese glass bridge breaks, traps a tourist high up

The incident occurred at 12:45 p.m. on Friday, when the area was struck by record-high winds of up to 150 kilometers per hour, according to a statement posted on the local government's Weibo account. An individual can be seen clinging to the bridge's rail, separated by missing and broken glass platform panels, in an image posted by Chinese state media Xinhua on Chinese social media site Weibo.

Officials say emergency teams were sent to help the trapped tourist, who safely exited the bridge at 1:20 p.m. Since then, the Piyan Mountain Scenic Area has been closed, and officials have requested a thorough safety inspection of all attractions in the area, including the bridge, as per CNN.

Some Chinese netizens are concerned about the incident in Jilin province. According to a Xinhua report, several local authorities have also implemented additional protection measures. For example, Hebei Province in north China, which has a 488-meter-long bridge in the Hongyagu Scenic Area, issued new technical specifications for glass bridges and scenic area walkways in 2018, outlining basic materials, architecture, and construction guidelines.

Glass panels under the tourists' feet shattered and fell through the cliffs underneath the bridge, according to reports. Per Hong Kong's Apple Daily newspaper, the man clung to the bridge's guardrails, with multiple gaps visible in front of him between beams that stretch 8.2 meters horizontally across the bridge.

Read Also: Chinese Rocket Expected To Fall Back to Earth This Weekend, Where Will the Debris Fall?

Combined rescue efforts made to save a man from a broken glass bridge

The man was trapped on the 1,310-foot (400-meter) long bridge when many fragments of the glass deck were swept off by wind gusts of up to 93 miles per hour in the area at about 12:45 p.m. local time on Friday, according to the city government. Following the combined rescue efforts of firefighters, police, forestry, and tourism workers, the tourist finally crawled back to safety at about 1:20 p.m. local time.

"Our workers rushed to the scene with rescue supplies and safely moved the trapped individual to safety," according to a statement posted on Weibo, Newsweek via MSN reported. "There were no injuries as a result of the incident." The person who was stuck was admitted to the hospital for observation. He was released because his emotional and physical conditions were stable, said the statement.

The Earth magazine published by the Geological Museum of China said that the latest incident had sparked questions about the safety of glass-bottomed bridges in China. At least 60 such bridges have been constructed or are being built since 2016. Glass bridges are famous in China's mountainous provinces, such as Jiangxi, Yunnan, and Hunan, home to one of the country's most prominent glass bridges in Zhangjiajie, which measures 1,410 feet long and 20 feet high.

It is suspended 980 feet above ground between two cliffs. A recent 526-meter-long glass-bottom bridge in Qingyuan, Guangdong, holds the Guinness World Record for the longest glass-bottom bridge.

Bad weather has wreaked havoc on China's five-day Labor Day holiday this week, affecting travel for tens of thousands of people who had planned to travel around the mainland under more relaxed social-distancing rules. The Guizhou provincial meteorological agency released thunderstorm warnings on Sunday, citing heavy rain, hail, and gale-force winds in some regions.

Related Article: North Korea Claims COVID-19 Could Enter Via South's Propaganda Leaflets Sent Through Balloons

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As the economy gets better in the United States, Montana, South Carolina, and Arkansas will no longer pay the extra $300 a week in unemployment benefits. Montana Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte declared last week that unemployed people would no longer collect the additional $300 beginning June 27, claiming that it is doing more damage than good.

More states are canceling unemployment benefits

Employers across the country are urgently looking to recruit workers as the economy recovers 14 months after hundreds of thousands of people lost their employment when the pandemic started. Employers added 266,000 jobs nationwide on Friday, slightly less than predicted.

Companies said they could not find workers to fill the opportunities they had to keep up with the steadily improving economic recovery. According to Newsweek via MSN, more states are making it more difficult for individuals to be unemployed to enable them to return to work.

Many people blame the pandemic's simple incentives, including a $300 weekly additional federal payout on top of state benefits. People make more money living at home than going back to work, according to the argument.

Several states have started encouraging recipients of unemployment benefits to demonstrate that they are voluntarily looking for jobs, and a handful has decided to avoid supplying federal aid. It is not just the hospitality industry that is having trouble filling positions.

To meet the demand for the holiday season, Alene Candles, headquartered in Milford, New Hampshire, is looking to fill 1,500 vacancies at its Milford and New Albany facilities. This month, company executives will attend a variety of simulated career fairs.

Republicans have suggested that supplemental federal unemployment benefits are a disincentive to return to work and could stifle economic growth since the Cares Act was enacted in 2020. Like many other Republicans, Senator Lindsey Graham warned last year that the additional funds could hinder companies' willingness to recruit, stifling the recovery. "It's going to be difficult to get you back to work for a $17/hour job if you're paying $23 an hour on unemployment," Graham stated, as per Forbes.

Read Also: Fourth Stimulus Check: Will It Ever Come as Payment Faces Uphill Battle? The Truth About the American Rescue Plan

Biden to cut down unemployment benefits, to reinstate the job-seeking policy

In a speech on Monday, President Joe Biden said that Americans receiving unemployment benefits must either take a good job or forfeit their benefits. He urged states to reinstate a pre-pandemic program of forcing individuals to look for jobs. "Anyone receiving unemployment insurance who is given a good position must take the job or risk their unemployment benefits," Biden said at the White House, Business Insider reported.

The Department of Labor would reaffirm long-standing unemployment benefits policies, according to a White House fact sheet issued after the speech, to ensure that governments, employees, and businesses recognize the laws. The Department of Labor will also send states a letter reiterating that workers on welfare cannot refuse a good position to save their benefits.

According to experts, these job-seeking policies existed before the pandemic, but states repealed them last year when the economy collapsed, increasing unemployment. Although the economy is improving, economists say issues such as shortage of childcare and school closures are forcing some people out of work.

Related Article: Did Not Get Your Third Stimulus Check Yet? Track Yours Using the IRS Get My Payment Tool

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A choir conductor was executed in North Korea after criticizing an event where Prime Minister Kim Jong Un and his wife attended.

Execution of a Choir Leader

In a recently published article in MSN News, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un allegedly ordered the execution of a choir leader who was shot 90 times. It was also reported that members of the choir were forced to march and passed the dead body.

This incident was first reported by Joo Seong-ha, who is an article contributor in Dong-A Ilbo daily paper in North Korea. Thie account of the execution was first reported on April 29 and became viral online since then.

How Did It All Start?

According to a published report in Newsweek, this all began during Kim's birthday on February 16 as reported by Joo. North Kore also celebrates that day as the Day of the Shining Star. The North Korean leader and his wife appeared at the Mansudae Arts Theater in Pyongyang for a night of performances to mark the holiday.

One of the shows that night, according to Joo, was called "Ghost Magic," and it showed actors doing magic tricks behind screens as if they were shadows. Kim allegedly lauded the performance afterward, but a conductor nearby commented that he did not think the show was all that great. The conductor was arrested later that night, Joo wrote.

According to Joo, two days later, an order was given for all artists in Pyongyang to assemble. According to the reporter, on February 20, crowds assembled at an execution spot to see the conductor of the choir bound up.

Read Also: How North Korea's Leader Kim Jong Un Keeps Advancing With His Nuclear Missile Plans

Accounts from North Korean Reporter

According to Climax Newsroom, Joo wrote in the article "The conductor of the choir...died horribly in front of his men.... The execution was carried out by three AK-47 automatic riflemen and shooting one magazine (30 rounds) each from a distance of 10m. It is said that the body, which was hit by 90 shots, became so full that it could not be lifted."

Meanwhile, Joo also mentioned in the article that the man who was executed was the conductor from the ceremony and his name was heard to be Hyun-woo Cho. However, he tried to verify the identity of the choir conductor and only the name Hyun-ho Ryu who sounds alike to the one who was executed can be found.

Joo was still unsure if the executed person's name was Hyun-ho Ryu, Hyun-woo Cho, or anything else when he wrote the post, but he said: "it is clear that the conductor was publicly executed anyway."

A North Korean Activity Criticize the Execution

Yeonmi Park, a North Korean defector, detailed the story on her YouTube page. Yeonmi is a well-known activist, despite the fact that some of her personal records from her upbringing in North Korea have been blamed for inconsistencies.

However, she attributes these occurrences to translation errors. Despite this, her video about the incident has gained over a million views.

A news outlet tried to reach out to the official website of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea as well as the local newspaper but they did not yet give any comments.

Related Article: Kim Jong-Un Orders North Korea Missiles To Be Fired 'Any Time'

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Due to a gasoline shortage caused by the Colonial Pipeline hack, gas stations from Florida to Atlanta and Virginia are shutting their pumps, and the governor of North Carolina has declared a state of emergency.

Gas shortage possible amid Colonial Pipeline cyberattack

According to CNBC, American Airlines is adding stops to two of its long-haul routes, including the trans-Atlantic route from Charlotte, NC to London, as well as the Charlotte-Honolulu flight. When the ransomware attack was conducted on Friday evening, the corporation shut down the 5,500-mile pipeline. On Monday, service was eventually reinstated.

The ransomware attack also impacted at least 12 other businesses. The pipeline supplies 45 percent of all fuel needs on the East Coast, including Atlanta Airport, which is the world's busiest in terms of passenger traffic. The pipeline connects 90 military facilities and 26 oil refineries in the United States.

On Monday evening, commuters began to complain about gas station shortages. Race Trac, which owns and operates gas stations in Atlanta, confirmed the shortage to WSBTV-2.

Bloomberg announced that at least two gas stations in Tallahassee, Florida, were totally out of stock. Patrick de Haan, an energy expert who operates the tracking site GasBuddy Tracker, said that 5% of gas stations in Virginia are running out of gas.

Gas prices in the Georgia region are expected to increase three to seven cents per gallon this week, according to AAA, and there could be poor fuel supply in some areas. The governor of North Carolina, Roy Cooper, said the state of emergency would help residents brace for future shortages.

Motorists in Atlanta reported having to fuel up at three separate gas stations on Twitter. A WLOS reporter in North Carolina talked with a cashier at a gas station in Robbinsville where the pumps were dry.

The pipeline, which is the longest in the US, transports more than 100 million gallons of fuel a day, or 2.5 million barrels, through pipelines that run between Texas and New Jersey. Trucks carrying emergency fuel and diesel supplies from Texas are now making their way to Atlanta and other southeast cities. Airlines flying out of Philadelphia International Airport are depleting jet fuel supplies, but a spokeswoman said the airport has enough to last a couple of weeks.

Read Also: 3 States To Stop Giving Unemployment Benefits; Biden Said He Might Cut It Down

FBI identifies criminal group behind Colonial Pipeline hack

DarkSide, a Russian-based hacker group, is suspected of being behind the attack. The group issued an apology on the dark web on Monday, stating that they did not seek social repercussions or political control, Daily Mail reported. The Russian criminal group known as DarkSide, which is responsible for the attack that shut down the Colonial Pipeline, has stated that their only goal is to make money, not to cause chaos, as experts warn that if the country's largest fuel pipeline remains shut down, gas prices could rise to $3 per gallon.

The FBI announced on Monday that the attack on Colonial Pipeline, which stretches from Texas to New Jersey and transports 45 percent of the East Coast's fuel supply, was carried out by DarkSide, a Russian hacker group made up of ransomware veterans. DarkSide, which promotes a Robin Hood stereotype of robbing businesses and donating a portion of the proceeds to charity, said in a statement released on the dark web on Monday that their main intention was to make money, not to cause social problems.

Despite claims that they want to prevent chaos, analysts have cautioned that the Colonial pipeline outage last Friday might cause significant damage and lead to a rise in gas prices the longer it is offline. Colonial has stated that it hopes to resume operations by the end of the week after being forced to shut down all of its pipeline operations on Friday due to a ransomware cyberattack.

Read Also: 60 New SpaceX Starlink Satellites Aboard Into Orbit as Over 500,000 People Order Internet Service





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For the last three days, unrest has shaken the holy city, which features the holiest sites for Jews, Muslims, and Christians. Hamas launched a rocket assault on the capital in the current escalation of tensions, according to a published report in Reuters.

So far, on Monday, Hamas claimed to have fired over 100 missiles at Israel. The most recent volley of rockets was aimed at Ashkelon, a city along the Gaza Strip's northern boundary.

Israel's Defense Forces said and confirmed that at least seven of the more than 150 missiles fired by the terrorist group Hamas were aimed at Jerusalem, according to a recently published article in Yahoo News.

Tension Escalates at Jerusalem, Israel Released A Strong Warning

In an ABC NEWS on MSN report, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the launch of rockets from Gaza into Jerusalem crossed a line, which escalated the tensions between the two nations.

In an official statement released by Israel's Prime Minister's Office, it said that they will respond with great force and will not tolerate attacks on the territory. The Prime Minister also said, "Whoever attacks us will pay a heavy price."

The Israel Defense Forces also released a statement saying, "In response to continuous rocket fire from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory, over the past few hours, the IDF struck a number of terror targets belonging to the Hamas terror organization in the Gaza Strip."

Read Also: Israeli Bar Offers Free Drinks for Those Who Will Get COVID-19 Vaccines

Death Toll in the Air Strike Attack

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, 20 people were killed in the IDF attack, including nine children, and at least 65 were injured. The rocket attacks from Gaza came in reaction to clashes earlier on Monday between Palestinians protesting building evictions and Israeli police near Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque, recognized as Islam's third holiest site and situated on the Temple Mount.

According to the Israeli Police authorities, thousands of worshippers began to disturb the order at the end of the prayer on the Temple Mount. They also confirmed that six Israeli policemen got injured.

The US Condemns the Attack

During a press conference on Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken denounced the attacks. They "need to stop immediately," he said, according to US State Department spokesman Ned Price. According to the State Department, while the US has called for a de-escalation of violence, there is still a chance that the attacks will continue.

He also said, "I don't want to speak to what would happen in the absence of de-escalation, but of course the possibility of additional violence, of extended violence is something we're concerned about," according to a published article in DW.

Further, Emanuele Giaufret, the EU Ambassador to Israel, has also stated that escalating tensions between Israelis and Palestinians are "extremely concerning."

Related Article: Syria Launches Missile Towards Israel, IDF Responds With Airstrikes

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US President Joe Biden holds up a silicon wafer in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, April 12, during the virtual CEO Summit on Semiconductor and Supply Chain Resilience. AP-Yonhap



By Kim Yoo-chul



Samsung Electronics is apparently facing growing pressure to expand its investment in the United States, according to analysts, as the tech giant has reportedly been invited to a second meeting with the U.S. administration on tackling the global semiconductor shortage.



The invitation comes just over a week ahead of a summit between President Moon Jae-in and his counterpart Joe Biden slated to be held in Washington, May 22 (KST).



According to a Bloomberg report Tuesday, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo will preside over the meeting to be participated in by Samsung Electronics, TSMC, Google, Amazon, General Motors and Ford, May 21 (KST), to hammer out the specifics for increasing the supply of chips in the United States.






The United States Navy has shared photos of an illicit arms shipment that it stated it discovered aboard an intercepted ship in the Arabian Sea. The images were taken on Saturday.

Arabian Sea Weapons

The announcement regarding the seizure of an arms shipment of thousands of machine guns, assault weapons, and sniper rifles concealed aboard a ship in the Arabian Sea was made on Sunday. The ship was reportedly bound for Yemen in support of the nation's Houthi rebels. According to an American defense official, the Navy's earlier investigation discovered the vessel originated from Iran. This again ties the Islamic Republic to arming the Houthis, notwithstanding a UN arms embargo.

According to the Navy, the cruiser USS Monterey halted the stateless dhow on May 6 amid a routine operation to verify its registry. A United States Coast Guard Advanced Interdiction Team designated on the Navy ship then rode the dhow and discovered the stash of weapons.

The photographs displayed thousands of weapons laid out across the USS Monterey's rear deck, part of the Navy's 5th Fleet, placed in Bahrain's headquarters. The 5th Fleet released a statement indicating that the weapons included numerous advanced Russian-made anti-tank guided missiles and thousands of Type 56 assault rifles from China. These had hundreds of Kalashnikov sniper rifles, machine guns, and rocket-propelled grenade launchers, reported The Nation Thailand.

According to a statement by the Navy, the source and purported destination of the arms shipment were under probing. It also indicated the USS Monterey, a guided-missile cruiser, had halted the ship amid a routine boarding, reported BBC.

Read Also: Alabama Military Plane Crash Kills 2 People

Lt. Cmdr. Pete Pagano, a spokesperson for the Navy's Fifth Fleet, said they had done three similar seizures in the past few years. The guided-missile destroyer USS Winston Churchill halted two dhows off Somali's coast on February 12. Weapons were onboard, including crew-served weapons, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, and small arms. The cruiser USS Normandy halted a dhow in the Arabian Sea and seized missile components on February 9, 2020. Lastly, the destroyer USS Forrest Sherman discovered missile components on a dhow it halted in the Arabian Sea on November 25, 2019.

According to the Navy, the weapons were detected amid a routine flag verification check of a stateless dhow cruising in international waters. Members of the USS Monterey's US Coast Guard Advanced Interdiction Team participated in the inspection.

According to Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) on Sunday, "That the US Navy seized another shipment of Iranian weapons bound for Yemen should come as no surprise." A United Nations Security Council Resolution in 2015 imposed a weapons embargo on the Houthis, reported The Washington Post.

Iran's mission to the United Nations did not immediately answer a request for comment. However, Tehran has denied earlier providing the rebels with weapons. The seizure, one of many amid the years-long war in Yemen, arrives as the United States and other countries attempt to end a conflict that spawned one of the globe's worst humanitarian disasters.

Related Article: Sydney Barber First Black Woman to Serve as US Naval Academy Brigade Commander

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Attorneys general from 44 states and territories in the United States persuaded Facebook to abandon its plans to develop an Instagram service for kids under 13. They cited detrimental health effects of social media on children and the social media giant's reportedly checkered past of protecting children on its website.

Instagram for Children Plans Called to be Ditched by 44 States

According to officials, research has painted a sad picture of younger people's social media usage in a letter to Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg on Monday. They cited links to bullying and mental health problems. This letter adds bipartisan weight to pressure that the company had faced over its plans for the Instagram version since March when Zuckerberg spoke about it in a congressional hearing. The attorneys general included the top prosecutor from New York, Texas, and California, and the letter cautioned that social media leads children to be concerned about their social status and personal appearance.

The social media platform currently prohibits anyone under the aforementioned age from using their products. However, it stated numerous children lie about their age to gain access, reported Independent.

The letter underscored such a service would pose harm for a myriad of reasons. The group also expressed concern regarding predatory adults, the physical and emotional well-being of children, and Facebook's missteps on data protection and privacy, reported Mint Lounge.

According to the officials in the letter, "Use of social media can be detrimental to the health and well-being of children, who are not equipped to navigate the challenges of having a social media account. Further, Facebook has historically failed to protect the welfare of children on its platforms," reported Gadgets 360.

Read Also: Trump Establishes New Communications Platform; Blog That Lets Users Share on Twitter, Facebook

Monday's letter follows interrogation from federal lawmakers who have voiced concern over children's social media effects. The topic was a significant theme that emerged from lawmakers at a House hearing in March with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, and Google CEO Sundar Pichai. In April, Democratic lawmakers also sent Facebook's CEO a letter criticizing its planned platform for children.

According to Zuckerberg at the congressional hearing in March regarding the plans, it contended that social media was a good way for youngsters to connect with family and friends. The AGs rejected this argument in their letter.

Attorney General Letitia James stated social media is not only an influential tool that can be harmful to children who are not of appropriate age. She added there are too many concerns to let Facebook set forth with this "ill-conceived" concept. The plea echoed sentiments expressed by advocates for children. They also prompted Zuckerberg to scrap Instagram for pre-teens.

The letter was also signed by the AGs of the District of Columbia and three US territories. According to a Facebook spokesperson, the company has just started navigating through a version of Instagram for children and said it was committing not to display advertisements in any Instagram experience they develop for people under 13 years old.

Related Article: Facebook Delays Decision on Lifting Trump Ban To Coming Weeks

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According to a recent report released by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the United States has finally reached a major milestone in slowing the spread of COVID-19. As of May 07, nearly one in three Americans are fully vaccinated, with another 150 million having already received their first vaccine shot.

While the pace of the vaccinations has slowed from its peak, which was 4.6 million daily shots back on April 10, it still signals a success in finally achieving partial immunity within the U.S. Current data shows that 111 million Americans are now fully vaccinated, thanks to a concerted effort from public health workers. With President Joe Biden stating that he would like for 70% of the population to have their first shot by July 04, this report further demonstrates that the U.S. is on track to achieve that goal.

Not All Good News

However, not all news is as optimistic as the CDC data. Another report has been released, albeit one which is considerably more grim. According to a study from the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, the death toll from coronavirus in the United States may be much higher than initially thought.

Official figures for the death toll estimated that some 574,000 people had died due to COVID-19 in the U.S since the start of the pandemic. However, according to this new report, the number may be significantly greater, at closer to 900,000. This is 57% higher than what had been believed to be the current death toll of the virus in America.

To determine this number, researchers closely analyzed the available information regarding the excess mortality between March 2020 and May 03, 2021. They then compared this data to what could typically be expected during a non-pandemic year. After adjusting those figures to account for other pandemic-related considerations, they discovered that current estimations were dramatically incorrect.

This tally, according to the authors of the study, estimates deaths exclusively "caused directly by the SARS-CoV-2 virus," the virus which has been shown to cause COVID-19 infection in people. Furthermore, these same researchers discovered that estimates in other countries -- including Mexico, Russia, and India (which is currently struggling with its own second wave of the virus) -- may have also been severely underreported.

According to their research, the official death counts may be as high as 400,000 greater than originally believed in these countries. In other countries, such as Egypt, Japan, and other Central Asian nations, the death toll may be as great as 10 times higher than what has been reported by public officials.

Pfizer and BioNTech Seeking FDA Approval

In light of the pandemic, the FDA had authorized the emergency use of the vaccines, including those released by Pfizer and BioNTech. The reasoning was that it was far more important to get the vaccines administered rather than wait for the laborious process of attaining official approval from the FDA.

Nevertheless, both Pfizer and BioNTech have recently made bids to achieve FDA approval, submitting their application on May 07. BioNTech has been a German collaborator, working alongside Pfizer in the race to create a vaccine, and it is believed that both companies will be submitting data to the FDA over the next few weeks in order to earn their approval. They have also requested a priority review.

How long this process will take is currently unknown, but in a prepared statement, Pfizer's CEO Albert Bourla revealed that their ultimate goal is to secure the "full regulatory approval of the vaccine in the coming months" for all people ages 16 and older.

Staying Safe Against the Virus

While many Americans are fully vaccinated, and Pfizer and BioNTech are making strides to become officially approved by the FDA, it does not mean that the virus is no longer a threat. With the death toll as high as it is, it is still especially important to be mindful of the safety protocols in place to help minimize the risk of viral infection.

According to the CDC, safety guidelines are still in place for everyone, including those who have already been vaccinated. While one is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their second shot, they should still be sure to enforce social distance and continue to wear their masks. Regular washing of hands has also been shown to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

If anyone does suspect that they may have been exposed to coronavirus, it is advised that they self-quarantine for a minimum of two weeks. Many healthcare facilities are offering complimentary or low-cost COVID-19 tests, or an at home COVID test kit can provide fast and accurate results without requiring the breaking of a quarantine. Results can be made available in as little as a few hours, or up to 48 hours with the aid of the home test kit, allowing one to know sooner if they have contracted COVID-19.

While the pandemic has been an incredibly challenging time in the U.S., it is fortunately finally reaching its termination. By continuing to stay safe and mindful about preventing its spread, and by choosing to get the vaccine (for qualified individuals), we can all hope to see an end of this pandemic sooner rather than later.

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A US ship fires 30 warning shots to zipping fast attack boats harassing the US guided-missile submarine Georgia running on the surface of the Hormuz Straits. The US Coast armed with .50-cal machine guns fired to keep the Iranian Red Guard away from the unsubmerged submersible.

US Ship Fires 30 Warning Shots to keep motorboats at bay

The Pentagon spokesman John Kirby reported US escort ships encountered the notorious paramilitary Revolutionary Guard harassing American ships that enter the Strait of Hormuz last Monday, noted CNBC. As many as 13 armed speedy attack boats harassed the American convoy as it made its way into that part of Persian Gulf, reported the Daily Mail.

The 30 warning shots fired by the US ships are just the second occasion that the harassing Iranian maritime militia has targeted US ships in the gulf. Based on the encounter, the Iranian boats were more aggressive in their maneuvers.

Based on account of the encounter, American gunners trained their 50-cals in controlled bursts to warn the aggressive boats before they left the area.

Kirby declined to elaborate on the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's behavior when asked if they appeared to be seeking to pick a confrontation with the US Navy.

He added," 'Regrettably, IRGC Navy harassment is not a new development. It's something that all of our commanding officers and vessel crews have been prepared to contend with." ABC Net Australia mentioned the incident.

Pentagon reporters were told that the aggressive activity directed against US assets in the Persia Gulf could end badly for someone. Anything wrong that can happen will not serve in the good interest of Iran or the US, as US ship fires 30 warning shots.

Related article: US Navy Warns Foreign Ships in the Persian Gulf to Keep Distance or Face the Consequences

A guided-missile cruiser, the USS Monterey, was among six Navy escort ships.

The Monterey had confiscated an arms cargo aboard a dhow in the Arabian Sea just before, seemingly bound for Yemen, where Iran supports the Houthi rebels.

Two Iranian boats repositioned from the others and put themselves on the opposite side of the US ship formation.

After that, the two sped up to the US ships, menacingly alarming the US sailors.

US crews gave several alerts to both groups of Iranian boats in an attempt to de-escalate the scenario, including repeated bridge-to-bridge verbal warnings, according to Navy Cmdr. Rebecca Rebarich, a Navy 5th Fleet spokesperson.

The Coast Guard cutter Maui unleashed a volley of warning shots from its.50-caliber machine gun after two Iranian boats failed to respond to multiple warnings and drifted to within a dangerous 300 yards.

When the Iranian boats got within 150 yards, it fired another salvo of warning shots. These two Iranian boats then 'changed course and distanced away from US forces,' according to Rebarich.

When asked if US ships can fire directly at hostile Iranian boats to sink them, the official refused to elaborate on the rules of engagement.

They always have the right to defend themselves, and they understand how to use it,' he said.

Iranians choose the straits of Hormuz that are narrow for larger US ships but perfect for smaller attack craft.

US ship fires 30 warning shots will not be the end as the strait will be where Iranians prefer to operate against bigger US ships.

Related article: US Navy Sends the USS Makin Island, Marine F-35s to the Persian Gulf

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The U.S. military will withdraw its troops on September 11 and destroy its military equipment as part of the protocol.





Thousands of Military Equipment Destroyed

In a recently published article in Newsweek, at least 1,300 pieces of military equipment that can no longer be used were destroyed in scrap yards. Officials said that these are in poor condition that Afghan troops can no longer use anymore.

The U.S. military officials also said that more equipment would be destroyed as they prepare to leave Afghanistan. They said that the decision to destroy the military equipment is part of the process and protocol.

According to a published article in Yahoo News, this is to ensure that the U.S. military equipment will not fall into the hands of the militants. However, scrap sellers across the country see this process as waste.

Read Also: US General Says Withdrawing From Afghanistan Is a Problem

Scrapyard Owners Feel Bad About the Destruction

Even though the purpose of the U.S. military troops is to benefit both countries for security purposes. The scrapyard owners across Afghanistan clamor. They said that this process is a waste because they cannot benefit from it, according to a published article in Laptrinhx.

One of the scrapyard owners told a new outlet that what American troops are doing is an act of betrayal. He said, "Like they have destroyed this vehicle, they have destroyed us," This is because they can no longer sell any part of it anymore.

The scrapyard owner also shared the possible income that he could earn if the military equipment were not destroyed. He said that $40,000 is just a fraction of his potential profit only if that equipment remained intact.

Equipment that Will Be Given to the Afghan Troops

Officials are keeping their decisions on what stays and not under wraps. According to the U.S and Western officials who talked on the condition of anonymity to speak frankly about departing soldiers, the majority of what is being sent home is critical equipment that should never have been left behind.

Other items, such as helicopters, military vehicles, weapons, and ammunition, will be delivered to Afghanistan's National Defense and Security Forces. They will also be given some bases. The New Antonik base in Helmand province, where the Taliban are said to dominate approximately 80% of the rural area, was one of the most recently handed over.

This is not an everyday activity. The same thing happened in 2014 when thousands of soldiers left when the United States and NATO turned over stability in Afghanistan to Afghans.

A spokeswoman for the military's Defense Logistics Agency in Virginia said at the time that more than 387 million pounds (176 million kilograms) of scrap from scrapped equipment and vehicles were sold to Afghans for $46.5 million.

According to a Western official familiar with the packaging procedure, US forces are in a pickle. It could be to hand over mostly defunct but intact equipment and avoid letting it fall into the hands of hostile troops, or it could be to trash them and enrage Afghans.

It can be remembered, and the U.S forces uncovered two Humvees that had gotten into the hands of the enemy. They might have been modified and loaded with explosives. U.S forces demolished the cars, and the incident enforced a campaign of trashing facilities.

Related Article: US Troops Afghanistan Withdrawal: It Has Began, Top General Says



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The House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy votes on Liz Cheney, keeping her position as House GOP conference chair; she will be ousted or keep her role depending on the vote set for May 12.

Kevin McCarthy vote on Liz Cheney comes after fellow Republican's contest her leadership

According to House minority leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), she decided to keep her chairwoman position. Depending on the votes on May 12. He then endorsed Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) for the coveted third spot on the Lower House of Congress, reported the Epoch Times.

He and other Republicans, including House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La. ), have also said Cheney's statements to the media have knocked the Republican Party off-track as the party is trying to unite run-up before the crucial 2022 election.

Cheney wanted to impeach Trump during his second impeachment hearing, attracting backlash from Trump and his party's large base. She has been criticized by several Republicans for bowing into the Democrats, noted CNN.

She has earned the ire of top House Republican leaders in recent weeks since she continued to criticize former President Donald Trump while undermining the GOP's strategy and outreach efforts plan.

As far as the Republicans are concerned in the Lower House, her efforts are causing problems within the party. One of the biggest reprimands is her censuring to go beyond party lines in the impeachment vote with Senator Mitt Romney and other republicans.

He added in a letter addressed on May 10 to House Republicans," "I had expected that winning back the House in 2022 and placing our Commitment to America into actions would be our main priority." Kevin McCarthy's vote on Liz Cheney will be crucial to the GOP's next moves.

Related article: Pelosi Ignores Maxine Waters' Inflammatory Behavior, Liz Cheney Speaks Out

He cited the uphill fight as the Democrats were covered by the mainstream media working to undermine the Republicans and protect a fumbling President and Vice-president. He assumed they still have a good chance of succeeding.

Sadly, every day spend regurgitating the past is one less day we have to capture the future. The minority leader went on to say now's not the time to "take our eye off the ball," and that "these internal conflicts must be addressed so as not to divert from our joint continued efforts."

Mentioning after all the discussions in the GOP that change is crucial to start from somewhere positive. One of them is to vote whether the Conference Chair deserves to keep the position with a vote this Wednesday.

McCarthy said in an interview last May 9 that instead of Cheney, the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, he would endorse Stefanik for the role. Trump-backed Stefanik as well, praising her communications skills, told Reuters.

Impeaching Trump is not why she will undergo a party vote to oust her or let her stay. Her divisive views that create disunity in the GOP are costing them and accepting of Joe Biden's leadership.

Few Republicans have come to Cheney's defense in the leadership crisis. Her party mates are distancing from her due to her actions which are under question.

Republicans represent all Americans, and free thought and debate mentioned the GOP leader. Kevin McCarthy's vote on Liz Cheney will decide what happens next.

Related article: Republicans say Democrats Shouldn't Change the President's Nuclear Authority, Call it Dangerous Precedent

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By Kim Jae-heun







The Korea International Trade Association (KITA), led by Chairman Koo Ja-yeol, introduced its 31st board, which includes 15 new representatives from various sectors, Tuesday.







The export promotion body's triennial 31st board held its first meeting in the Trade Tower in Samseong-dong, Seoul, where it discussed ways for the trade industry to cope with changes in the global supply system, affected by the trade conflict between the United States and China.







"The board is formed by gathering representatives from the traditional manufacturing and future export industries, experienced and next-generation young managers, large companies, and small- and medium-sized enterprises, as well as both metropolitan and rural trade industries," Koo said. "KITA will take the lead in digital innovation and new export-oriented growth industries with a diverse and balanced perspective, while establishing a new direction for our trade by playing the role of a linker."







KITA will further come up with solutions to respond effectively to the ongoing trend of digital innovation and the discovery of future export-oriented growth industries.







The new members include presidents from various fields, including: media (CJ ENM), games (Smilegate), food and beverage (Dongwon), electronics (INFAC Korea) and eco-friendly construction materials (Dongwha Group). General trading companies like LG International and GS Global have also joined KITA to cooperate in expanding mutual growth marketing with local SMEs here.







Trade support agencies, like the Export-Import Bank of Korea, the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency, the Korea Import Association, the Women's Business Association and the Venture Business Association, will take part in KITA's effort to promote the country's international trade activities.







Other new members of KITA are: Samsung C&T CEO Koh Jung-suk, Vice President of Nexen Tire Kang Ho-chan, L&P Cosmetic Chairman Kwon Oh-sub, Aurora World Chairman Noh Heui-yul and Iljin Group President Lee Dong-seob.


Rockets are fired from Gaza City, controlled by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, toward Israel, May 10. AFP-Yonhap



The Hamas militant group on Monday launched a rare rocket strike on Jerusalem after hundreds of Palestinians were hurt in clashes with Israeli police at an iconic mosque, as tensions in the holy city pushed the region closer to full-fledged war.



Israel responded with airstrikes across the Gaza Strip, where 20 people, including nine children, were killed in fighting. More than 700 Palestinians were hurt in clashes with Israeli security forces in Jerusalem and across the West Bank, including nearly 500 who were treated at hospitals.



It was a long day of anger and deadly violence that laid bare Jerusalem's deep divisions, even as Israel tried to celebrate its capture of the city's eastern sector and its sensitive holy sites more than half a century ago. With dozens of rockets flying into Israel throughout the night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with top security officials and warned that the fighting could drag on, despite calls for calm from the U.S., Europe and elsewhere.



''The terrorist organizations in Gaza have crossed a red line and attacked us with missiles in the outskirts of Jerusalem,'' Netanyahu said. ''Whoever attacks us will pay a heavy price,'' he said, warning that the fighting could ''continue for some time.''



By late Monday, the military had carried out dozens of airstrikes across Gaza, targeting what it said were Hamas military installations and operatives. It said a Hamas tunnel, rocket launchers and at least eight militants had been hit.



Gaza health officials gave no further breakdowns on the casualties. At least 13 of the 20 deaths in Gaza were attributed to the airstrikes. Seven of the deaths were members of a single family, including three children, who died in a mysterious explosion in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun. It was not clear if the blast was caused by an Israeli airstrike or errant rocket.



Shortly before midnight, the Israeli army said at least 150 rockets had been fired into Israel. That included a barrage of six rockets that targeted Jerusalem, some 100 kilometers (60 miles) away. It set off air raid sirens throughout Jerusalem, and explosions could be heard in what was believed to be the first time the city had been targeted since a 2014 war.



Dozens of rockets were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome defense system. But one landed near a home on the outskirts of Jerusalem, causing light damage to the structure and sparking a brush fire nearby. In southern Israel, an Israeli man was lightly wounded after a missile struck a vehicle.



In a statement issued early Tuesday, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said the rocket attacks would continue until Israel stops ''all scenes of terrorism and aggression in Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa mosque.''



The mosque is in a hilltop compound that is the third-holiest site in Islam and the holiest in Judaism. Tensions at the site, known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount, have triggered repeated bouts of violence in the past.





Fire billows from Israeli air strikes in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, May 11. AFP-Yonhap
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A man and child wearing masks visit Tiananmen Gate near the portrait of Mao Zedong in Beijing on May 3. China's population growth is falling closer to zero as fewer couples have children, the government announced May 11. AP-Yonhap



China's population has grown at its slowest pace in decades, reaching 1.41 billion, census results showed on Tuesday, highlighting fears of a looming crisis over an ageing society.



The growth of 5.4 percent was the slowest since the 1960s, due in part to falling birthrates and a sharp drop in the number of working-age people.



After decades of a controversial "one-child" policy, Beijing in 2016 allowed families to have two children as fears grew about China's shrinking workforce.



But it is yet to produce the expected baby boom to help offset the country's ageing population.



"The adjustment of China's fertility policy has achieved positive results," said Ning Jizhe, an official from the National Bureau of Statistics.



But he added that the "ageing of the population imposed continued pressure on the long-term balanced development of the population."



The number of people aged between 15 and 59 dropped nearly seven percentage points, while those over 60 was up more than five percentage points.



Falling marriage rates in recent years have impacted on birth rates, as well as rising costs, plus women naturally delaying or avoiding childbirth due to their growing empowerment.



He said the coronavirus pandemic had also slowed birthrates.



"The Covid-19 epidemic increased the uncertainty of everyday life and increased worries around hospitalised childbirth, which further reduced residents' willingness to give birth," Ning added.



There were around 12 million births in 2020, he told reporters. This is down from 14.65 million births the year before  when Beijing reported the slowest birthrate since Communist China was founded in 1949.



The average size of a family is now 2.62 people, census data showed, down from 3.10 people 10 years ago.





Visitors to a mall attend a concert during the May Day holidays in Beijing on May 4. AP-Yonhap
Carol Johnson

Hoosier Times

BEDFORD  Braylie Neeley walked into the auto dealership with her mom expecting to test drive a few cars. Neeley, who turns 16 in August, had been car shopping and was hoping to have a car soon when she starts drivers education.

The sales person asked her what type of car she was interested in and when Braylie told her a Chevrolet Trailblazer, the sales person said they did indeed have one and led her to where it was.

But unbeknownst to Braylie, this wasnt going to be a test drive.

Braylie walked through a set of doors with her mom and family members to see a 2021 Trailblazer with a giant bow on the hood.

The Bedford North Lawrence sophomore couldnt believe what she was seeing. Emotions quickly overcame Braylie and she turned to her mom for a comforting hug.

How the gift of a car came to be is a story of loss, faith, sacrifice and love for others.

Derek Neeley looked forward to the day he could take Braylie car shopping.

It was really important to him. He always talked about wanting to get her a car, said Courtney Smith, Braylies mom.

Neeley died March 1, 2020, after suffering a brain aneurysm. He was 35. Braylie, 14 at the time, was his only daughter.

Justin Kemp knew Neeley through their church, Bedford First Church of God.

He wasnt my best friend in the world but he was my best godly friend, Kemp said.

The two were members of Fight Club, a mens group at their church. Neeley played a major role in Fight Club, formed in 2016 to show men how to be men who take care of their families and loved ones.

The experience of learning to drive and getting that first car is a rite of passage, and it weighed on the minds of Kemp and others in Fight Club that Braylies dad wouldnt be part of it.

Getting your first car, thats a dad thing and we felt bad for her, Kemp said. So about 15 of us decided it would be a good idea to raise money for her first car.

They set a goal of $20,000 to be raised before her 16th birthday in August. Fight Club has done other things for people in the community, like buying groceries for someone in need and giving away gift cards, but this was something bigger and much closer to their hearts. The money was collected quietly without any fundraisers.

They told Smith of their plan and she told Braylie the group wanted to help her with getting a car, but she had no idea they were planning to buy a new car. A few weeks ago, the Fight Club dads took Braylie and her mom to a dealership to look at cars and pick five.

Her first choice, a Trailblazer, was above their price range, but Kemp wasnt deterred. He began calling dealerships but the $20,000 was below the list price of a 2021 Trailblazer, Braylies first choice. A few places offered to work with him on other cars that were within the price range, but Kemp wasnt settling. Running out of options, he turned to autotrader.com and began emailing dealerships.

They only give you three lines to use so I typed in, Girls dad passed away, church group buying her a car. Can you give us a deal? he recalled, hoping someone would be moved by those 16 words.

He emailed 25 car dealerships from Clarksville to Indianapolis.

Basically, almost everyone I talked to said we can help, but they only wanted to sell us what we could afford, he said.

Over lunch with his wife he admitted he was worried it wasnt going to happen. Despite the group raising $20,000 it wasnt going to be enough to get Braylie the car of her dreams. His wife reassured him that it could still happen and not to give up.

Im sitting there and a lady calls me. She said, This is Merritt Day from Greg Hubler Chevrolet in Mooresville, Kemp said.

Day had seen his email and after checking out to make sure Kemp was sincere, the two began negotiating.

The list price on the Trailblazer was $26,000. But Day and dealership owners Greg and Heidi Hubler worked some magic, applying a GM discount and a couple of rebates to bring the price down.

Day said Braylies story tugged at her heart and hit close to home.

A few years ago, Days father had a Bells palsy attack at work.

They thought he had a stroke and learned that he had a brain aneurysm on his brain stem, Day said. When I heard about Braylie I just wanted to do something special for her. I cant imagine losing my dad at 14 ... everything is fine and then one day hes gone.

When Day told Greg and Heidi about Braylie, they agreed to pitch in the rest of the cost of the car.

It wasnt just me. I work for two loving, giving people, she said. They are not your typical dealership owner.

Days father was fortunate that he was able to have surgery to remove the aneurysm and is doing well today.

Day had one more surprise for Braylie. She had a decal made with Dereks photo and placed it on the rear window.

She would probably give the car back to get her dad back, she said. Anything I could do to make the day easier for her, I wanted to do that.

The dealership assembled a basket of gifts that included concert tickets, a remote start key and a Chevy girl T-shirt.

With the sale all but final, Kemp and Smith coordinated on getting Braylie up to Camby under the guise of testing out a few cars. Day and Hubler would be there for the surprise, too.

I kind of tricked her, Smith said. I told her there wasnt much of a selection here and I wanted her to test drive a few at the lot.

A video shows the emotions of the moment Braylie realized the car was for her. Smith said the experience of seeing Braylies reaction and what the Fight Club dads did for her daughter is still resonating.

Its hard to put into words  this has meant so much to everyone, Smith said. They really went above and beyond. Its made her feel so good, it was an awesome experience.

Losing her dad at 14 has been difficult for Braylie and Smith said they take it day by day.

We talk about Derek and tell stories so we keep everything going and I know hes watching over her, she said. She has a strong support system and knows that people love her and want to be there for her. Derek was a very special person and her seeing what an impact he made on others helps her with everything.

The Fight Club is part of that support system. The group has vowed to stay in touch with Braylie as she grows up.

Its humbling to know that even though Derek isnt here that he lives on through this group, she said.

For the dads of Fight Club, the experience has strengthened their faith.

It was 100 percent a God thing, Kemp said. The money wasnt there, the car was too expensive, basically all of Indiana told us no. But its like I told one man, I believe in a great big God.

Braylie will begin drivers education in a few weeks and once she has her learners permit, she can begin driving with her mom.

She is on cloud 9, said Smith. She will go out sit in it and listen to music and drive up and down the driveway. Shes just loving it and is so proud.
Jeff Routh

Times-Mail

MITCHELL  Its something Carol Roop has known about all of her life.

Her great-grandfather Joseph C. Fishback Sr. was a police officer killed in the line of duty 120 years ago.

But while it was a family memory, Fishback never received the recognition he deserved.

Until now.

A Mitchell resident, Roop was recently contacted by the chief of police in Cannelton, located on the Ohio River in Perry County, about her great-grandfather.

He told me that my ancestor had not received the recognition he was due, Roop said. He said it had been a long time ago and Cannelton was a small place, but he still deserved to be recognized.

That recognition is happening this week in Washington, D.C, as part of National Law Enforcement Week. Fishbacks name will be added to the National Law Enforcement Memorial. His name, along with three other Hoosier officers, TeJuan Fontrese Johnson of Charlestown, Breann Rochelle Leath of Indianapolis and Kenneth Reid Lester, will be read in the roll call starting at 8 p.m. on Thursday.

The four are part of the 394 officers that were added to the memorial in 2021.

The event will be live streamed for anyone wishing to participate.

Fishback was just 38 when he was shot on Nov. 6, 1900, and died two days later. He had only been on the force for a year and 10 months. He was serving as the city marshal at the time.

According to information provided by the Cannelton Police Department, he was shot while attempting to arrest a man for disturbing the peace. A man threatened to kill the marshals brother for not voting on election day. The man went home to get his gun and the marshal was notified of the threat.

When the man returned, an argument ensued and Marshal Fishback was shot twice in the abdomen. He was taken to his residence where he died two days later. He was survived by a wife, four sons, two daughters, three brothers and two sisters. He was laid to rest in St. Michaels Cemetery in Cannelton.

The 22-year-old suspect was charged with murder. He was convicted of manslaughter and served a term in prison.

In addition to the honors in Washington, D.C., Fishbacks name will be added to the Indiana Law Enforcement Hall of Fame near the statehouse in Indianapolis. The name will be unveiled there in October 2021.

I was all set to go to that, but I think they are just going to do it virtually this year, she said.

Streaming of Thursdays event will be available on Facebook, You Tube and at https://nleomf.org/programs-events/national-police-week/candlelight -vigil.
Now Open

11 May 2021

Melia Hotels International, the renowned Spanish hotel group, is pleased to announce its debut in Chongqing, China with the opening of Melia Chongqing.

Melia Chongqing is an urban resort located amid the beautiful Tieshanping Forest Park. It is conveniently accessible, only 30 minutes' drive from Chongqing downtown and the city's main attractions such as Liberation Square or Hongyadong Scenic Spot; 20 minutes by car from Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport and Chongqing North Railway Station; and 10 minutes from Metro Line 4.

Melia Chongqing consists of 230 guestrooms from 45 to 225 m2 with balconies featuring breathtaking views of Tieshanping Forest Park. Every type of room delivers a unique experience of being in the tranquility of nature away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

The hotel provides a wide range of facilities for guests to make the most of their stay: Melia's signature YHI Spa, a wellness experience with pampering treatments and Spanish caring products, a 24-hour fitness centre, indoor and outdoor heated pools, and a kids club suitable for children of all ages. The mountain resort also boasts a choice of dining experiences with six different options ranging from traditional Chinese cuisine to international delights with the unique Spanish passion for gastronomy. In addition, the hotel brings the possibility to enjoy The Level program, the most elevated and exclusive hotel experience for the most discerning guests, with private facilities, upgraded amenities, personalised and butler service, among other benefits.

It is worth mentioning that the convention center is the highlight of Melia Chongqing's hotel complex. The hotel's convention center features a meeting space of more than 6,200 square meters including a pillar-less Grand Ballroom, Grand Theater, Oval Room, multi-functional conference rooms, Board room, and VIP rooms, all equipped with high-speed internet access and state-of-art facilities. Outdoor wedding lawns and helipad are designed for hosting different outdoor events such as wedding ceremonies, corporate celebrations, and new product launches.

Last but not least, the hotel positively contributes towards sustainability and well-being, two main pillars of Melia Hotels International's hospitality essence. Melia Chongqing is very focused on the well-being of its guests as well as the respect for the local environment and surrounding community.
Appointment

11 May 2021

Commonwealth Hotels is excited to announce the hiring of Daniel Speulda as the new Dual General Manager of the Hyatt House and Hyatt Place Chicago/Naperville/Warrenville. Speulda joins the growing organization after holding numerous management positions across the country, from Austin to the suburbs of Philadelphia.

Speulda joins two hotels recently acquired by Commonwealth in April. His previous four years of experience at the Hyatt Place Austin Downtown will make this a seamless transition. Accompanying a talented Dual Director of Sales in Shannon Schurr, the properties are in a position to set the standard for hospitality in the Chicago suburb of Warrenville.
Appointment

11 May 2021

Five-star property Anantara The Palm Dubai Resort has named Nawfal Abdullah Mbamba as its new marketing and communications manager, a promotion for the young hotelier who has been trained within the brand.

Born in Dubai, Mbamba received his tourism management degree from Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia. With Omani and Zanzibari heritage, Mbamba's first role was at Al Baleed Resort Salalah by Anantara as a management trainee in 2017.

With a knack for learning languages and a passion for people and tourism, he rose the ranks of the luxury Minor Group brand, being made marketing executive, followed by assistant manager marketing communications in the Sultanate.

His new role on Dubai's Palm island is his most senior to date, now being entrusted with driving the promotion of the resort, brand and destination on an international scale.
China's rural revitalization uses aesthetics to transform countryside into lands of enchantment

People's Daily Online) 13:13, May 11, 2021

In Jingyuan county, northwest China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region, vast wastelands and dilapidated houses have been transformed into ancient-style courtyards and dwellings, which buttress not only a local B&B business, but also beautify what has become an even more aesthetically pleasing rural landscape.

A homestay in Jingyuan (Photo/Li Peishan)

Chalky walls, grey tiles and flagstone lodgings at the site are luring visitors seeking a leisurely and more poetic lifestyle.

"The villages here are exquisitely original. The clean and tidy B&B rooms are a great escape from urban life," as a comment dropped by a visitor to the county conveyed on an online tourism service platform.

In the opinion of Ma Xiaoyong, an official with Jingyuan county's tourism authority, aesthetics should be valued when it comes to rural tourism, and that's exactly what the county is doing  enhancing the localitys aesthetic appeal with the addition of fine art and creative elements in an effort to develop a holistic tourism experience.

"Jingyuan county has a forest coverage of 50 percent, the highest in the west," said Tang Xuzhao, general manager of a homestay in Jingyuan whose investor is a Wuhan-based company.

A homestay in Jingyuan (Photo/Li Peishan)

"By fusing ancient-style structures with modern interior decorations, we have erected brand new B&B rooms where tourists can come and enjoy a simpler lifestyle," Tang introduced.

According to him, tourists from southern provinces, such as Sichuan and Fujian, are a major source for guests visiting the homestay. Its revenue exceeded 2 million yuan ($310,921) in 2020 alone.

"The county plays host to over 180 agritainment facilities, half of which are run by young returnees who used to work in urban areas," said Ma. Besides, there are also four hotels and five B&Bs, he added.

While ensuring sound environmental protection, the young entrepreneurs are also working to employ aesthetic designs and treasured cultural elements, in this way avoiding the possibility of "urbanizing" rural areas while enhancing the nostalgic qualities of the countryside, Ma explained.

Two children play in a homestay in Jingyuan. (Photo/Li Peishan)

In today's Jingyuan, rundown courtyards have been turned into B&Bs after full-scale renovation and reconstruction; disused workshops have become specialty shops for exhibiting local products; while scrap tires were transformed into swings and seesaws for childrens amusement.

Last year, the county received 1.1 million visits, up from 650,000 in 2016, generating tourism revenues adding up to 900 million yuan. It was also named one of the top 100 poetic and aesthetic counties of 2021 by Insight China magazine.

A homestay in Jingyuan (Photo/Li Peishan)

The application of aesthetics need not only be of assistance to Jingyuan county alone, but can also be adopted for use to energize rural revitalization in localities all over China.

Wang Shengze, deputy dean of the College of Fine Arts at Ningxia University, has witnessed the development of rural China as an artist who has conducted sketching tours while traveling to many rural areas around the country, including Jingyuan's Yejia village as well as Hongcun village in east China's Anhui province.

He believes aesthetic concepts should be closely integrated into rural development so as to inject renewed vigor into the countryside and revamp these areas into lands of enchantment.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Bianji)
People check in to get a Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at a pop-up vaccination center at the beach in South Beach, Fla., May 9. AFP-Yonhap



A long line of people snaked across the sand of Miami Beach, Florida, as dozens of travelers from Latin America waited their turn at a pop-up coronavirus vaccination booth.



Sweating under the Sunday afternoon sun, visitors checked into an online system  no proof of residence required  and soon after received a free, single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine and a vaccination card.



People had come from all over Latin America  Ecuador, El Salvador, Venezuela  where the vaccine rollout has been slow and hampered by supply shortages.



"In my country, (COVID-19) is getting out of hand and there's not much chance we'll have access to the vaccine soon," Maria Bonilla, who arrived Saturday from Honduras, told AFP.



The 40-year-old accountant flew in with her parents, aged 63 and 73. The three of them stood in line, wearing masks. "We had to make the decision to look for a solution outside the country," Bonilla said.



Blanca Diaz, 50, who arrived Friday from Mexico, came to the same conclusion: "They are just starting to vaccinate older people," she said of her home country.



The rush to find a vaccine has been accompanied by a sharp surge in airfares. Flights from Buenos Aires to Miami, which usually cost around $1,000, have jumped to $2,000 in May.



Bonilla is acutely aware of her privilege to be able to travel with her parents to get vaccinated. "It's unfortunate. It already creates this division that some of us have access to health and others do not," she said.



Miami Beach city commissioner David Richardson, a Democrat, who oversaw the facility, told AFP he has mixed feelings about the vaccine tourists.



"I think we, the United States government, should help as many people as possible," he said.



"My only concern is that it seems that the people who can afford to buy an airfare can come to the United States and get a vaccine now.



"And what about the poor people in South America?" Richardson asked, urging the U.S. government to send vaccines overseas "so that everybody can have access to the vaccine, not just the people who can afford to come here."





People wait in line to get Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at a pop-up vaccination center at the beach in South Beach, Fla., May 9. AFP-Yonhap
Press Release

10 May 2021

Ready to take part in relief efforts to allay the heightened Covid-19 crisis in India, Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP) has organized a fundraiser to support organizations providing much-needed medical equipment to India.

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HFTP Global is working in partnership with its HFTP India members and HFTP Dubai Chapter to encourage its network of hospitality professionals to donate to the HFTP Helps Covid-19 India Relief Drive. The aggregated donations will be distributed to vetted organizations working to supply equipment such as oxygen concentrators and ventilators. Due to the urgency of the situation, the fundraiser will run through May 31, wherein HFTP will quickly distribute the funds.

India, with the world's largest vaccine-making capacity, had donated or exported more than 66 million doses of vaccine before its own needs jumped because of the recent surge in infections. It is currently in dire need of oxygen and will soon need ventilators to meet the surge of critically ill patients.

"With this unfathomable crisis emerging in the region, it is critical to model the same kind of compassion India offered the world prior to the surge. This very much aligns with the tradition of Seva, the practice of selfless service," said HFTP Global Past President, Raman (R. P.) Rama, B. Com, CHA Emeritus, CHTP, CHAE, president and CTO/CIO of Sarona Hotels & Holdings. "Beyond its role as a professional organization supporting industry education and resources, HFTP has traditionally drawn from its network to support communities in need. Our 'hospitality' roots `inspire us to give."

HFTP has a growing network of members throughout India and the association is set to charter its first chapter in the country at the end of May. HFTP Dubai Chapter is also working to assist the India crisis as it prepares to host HITEC Dubai later this month.

"Our members have provided assistance during many disasters over the years" said Mark Pate, CHAE, CHTP, HFTP Global President, and IT Director of Highpointe Hotel Corporation. "Our members offer a connection for local educational and networking events, but we are also a global hospitality family."

Donate to the HFTP Helps Covid-19 India Relief Drive.
Press Release

11 May 2021

Los Angeles - Global experts have confirmed their participation at the 9th annual Boutique Hotel Investment Conference on June 2-3, 2021, produced by BLLA (Boutique Lifestyle Leaders Association). They are all coming together to shape the year's most sought-after sector of hospitality. From workshops to mentorship circles, to debates, to keynotes, to investment opportunity presentations, and more, there will be a range of content and networking opportunities for all hotel investment professionals. The time has finally come where the most profitable assets have become boutique hotels, making this the most highly-anticipated conference for hospitality.

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Returning to the virtual stage are icons like Ian Schrager, Avi Brosh, Michael Fuerstman, Rami Zeidan and Andrew Zobler. The global roster of leaders are the top owners, investors, and creators of some of the world's best independent brands and properties who will be talking candidly about what's really going on in the industry.

The day and a half digital event include more than 50 sessions broken up into segments including:

Pre-conference activities

Development and operations

Financing, ownership, and investment strategies

Valuation and optimization

Perspectives on the future of the industry

Post-conference activities

Many of these experts are surviving and some are thriving post-pandemic due to the increased interest in boutique hotels in general. Bringing them together supports the strong possibilities for the independent and boutique sectors as they share their wisdom and experience toward a hopeful outlook for the future of an industry that is clearly struggling in other segments. The day's curriculum is extremely engaging throughout with content formats like mentorship circles, virtual speed dating, case studies, new hotel opportunity presentations, workshops, and more.

Interested parties who would like to participate in the program 'Present Your Hotel Project' as well as Exhibitors and Sponsors may contact BLLA directly at [email protected] or +1-818-264-4810. To register to attend the conference, follow this link.

The enticing agenda has also caught the attention of global hospitality students with more than 100 attending from Europe as an example. Some of the agenda topics (nearly 60 in total) include:

Securing a Big Deal

View from the Chief Investment Officer

Financing a Boutique Hotel in Today's Landscape

Transforming the Owner Operator Relationship

Investing in Women-Owned Boutique Hotels

The Rising Stars of Boutique Hotel Investment

The Legacy that Schrager Built

Scaling a Boutique Hotel Collection

Additionally, there will be presentations of current hotel projects in various phases of development, showcased throughout the event. A few examples include:

The first alternative lodging flag specifically designed to satisfy the evolved wants and aspirations of UHNW (Ultra High Net Work) travelers.

Opportunity Zone project in upstate New York with under 75 rooms upscale boutique hotel utilizing an existing building and an add-on, creating the best product in the market.

The boutique hotel ranked in the Top 20 of all hotels in Puerta Vallarta, Mexico containing 3 buildings with room to expand up to 25 additional suites.

Sponsors include Greenberg Traurig, C2C Designs, Lutron Electronics, Leo A Daly, Marsh & McLennan, StayBoutique and Boutique Money Group along with Supporting Sponsors - Hotel Business, The Lodging Conference, Today's Hotelier, LODGING, JMBM, TLC, Hotel Online, Hotel Management, The Company Dime, Boutique Design, CoStar, Hotel Executive, eHotelier.

Companies speaking include: Virgin Hotels, LEO A DALY, Marcus Hotels & Resorts, The Sydell Group, ASH NYC, BLLA / Boutique Money Group, Limestone Capital, Citi, Proper Hospitality, Skift, Makeready, J.P. Morgan, Homage Hospitality, Relevant Group, LW Hospitality Advisors, Hodges Ward Elliott, LLC, Salt Hotels, Graduate Hotels, Skoloff & Wolfe, P.C., The Vonne Group, Casa Cupula, Edyn Group, LW Hospitality Advisors LLC, JLL Hotels & Hospitality Americas, Glencove Capital, Viceroy Hotel Group, Ian Schrager Company, Manhattan Hospitality Advisors, Horwath HTL, Sage Investments, Dream Hotel Group, Curator Collection, JMBM, cb5 Hospitality Group, KHP Capital Partners, Evolution Hospitality, Valencia Group, JF Capital Advisors, Paligroup Management LLC, Marcus Samuelsson Group, Jones Lang LaSalle, Accor, KIPR Global, Montecito Venture Partners, Cornell University, Amek Group, SH Hotels & Resorts, Prospect Ridge, Pendry Hotels, Aparium, Goldman Sachs, The Downtown Clifton, Lord & Liberty Hotels, Neil Locke & Associates, Capella Hotel Group, Studio Nilebrand, Geolo Capital, Dovetail + Co, HEI Hotels & Resorts, Life House, Pod Hotels, Pebblebrook Hotel Trust, Auberge Resorts, JC Hospitality Partners; Bosworth Hospitality Partners, LLC, Lark Hotels, Tiny Urban Escapes, Hospitality Brookfield Asset Management, Copeland Ltd., Hiatus Homes, Greenberg Traurig LLP, 21c Museum Hotels, Equinox Hotels, Marsh & McLennan Agency, Strategic Hotel Consulting, FOC, APICII, She Has a Deal, Sage Hospitality Group, ACORE Capital.

See the full agenda
Press Release

11 May 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed every aspect of our lives  including the way in which we work, travel and live. For many, the remote working trend sparked by the pandemic has created a more flexible lifestyle, providing opportunities to move closer to family or seek a lower cost of living, and empowering us to live anywhere.

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As some consumers think through relocating, they are looking to the local, hosted stays enabled by Airbnb as a way to consider their options before making their decision. In a new Airbnb survey, 44 percent of consumers across five countries are interested in trying out a new city before buying a home there, including 47 percent of Americans. Specifically, 62 percent of US survey respondents who identify as Latinx and 50 percent who identify as Black  as well as 50 percent of Californians  are open to the idea of "try before you buy".

Earlier this year, Airbnb announced a new partnership with Tulsa Remote  the leading organization working to build a thriving community of remote workers in Tulsa  to provide members with gift cards for stays to "try before they buy" a new home. Today, Airbnb is expanding this program, to support even more cities that are tapping into the "try before you buy" trend and to help remote workers to discover everything that life in a new town could offer.

"As the work landscape continues to shift and allow for a more flexible work style, we are excited for the opportunity Tulsa Remote offers remote professionals who now have the ability to relocate. We are thrilled to continue our 'try before you buy' partnership with Airbnb to enable prospective Tulsa Remote members to explore the city like a local. This benefit has been a valuable way to welcome prospective members into the Tulsa community from the moment they step foot in Oklahoma."

Ben Stewart, Executive Director of Tulsa Remote

Through this program, Airbnb will partner with remote working initiatives across the United States, providing their members with Airbnb coupons to visit their city; sharing data and insights on the remote working and "try before you buy" trends; collaborate on Airbnb Online Experiences to introduce their city to anyone who may be considering relocation and answer questions on local life; and more. Current partners include:

"What started out as a vision to develop West Virginia's premier remote worker recruitment program has quickly transformed into a national movement. The Ascend WV program is proud to partner with Airbnb on developing ways to elevate and expand our program offerings to those interested in moving to the mountains of West Virginia. The Mountain State's culture, outdoor recreation and warm hospitality can best be found through unique stays and experiences, and that's exactly what Airbnb brings to the table. I appreciate Airbnb's willingness to support these growing workforce trends and look forward to crafting a unique partnership for all Ascend WV applicants," said Brad Smith, Ascend WV Founder and Chairman of Intuit.

"As consumers think through relocating, local, hosted stays enabled by Airbnb provide a fantastic option to explore neighborhoods before making a decision," said Barbara Stapleton, vice president of business retention and talent initiatives at Go Topeka. "Through this partnership, potential residents will be able to 'try before you buy,' prior to making the commitment to the Choose Topeka program  and can truly experience what life could look like here if selected."

"Northwest Arkansas consistently ranks as one of best places to live in the country due to its fast-growing economy and unique quality of life. The collaboration with Airbnb will give potential residents a taste of our thriving community, and we're certain they will experience how perfectly Life Works Here," said Nelson Peacock, President and CEO of the Northwest Arkansas Council.

"We are excited to partner with Airbnb to help expand the number of talented people who call Maine home. While our state has been well-known for our fresh air, clean water and diverse geography, the year 2020 saw thousands of people from all around the world discover their new home in communities from the southern tip of our state to the northern border with Canada. This has given us a once in a lifetime opportunity to welcome those folks Home to Maine, and provide them with opportunities and confidence to stay. The "Maine Benefits Package" of world-class quality of life applies to our entire state, but the choice of community and amenities out your backdoor varies widely. Our partnership with Airbnb will give us the tools to help many people upgrade their quality of life, discover the right career, and call Maine home," said Nate Wildes, Executive Director for Live + Work in Maine.

"P33 is thrilled to partner with Airbnb on their effort to make it easy for tech talent across the country to experience all the wonderful things Chicago has to offer," said Erin Amico, Chief Marketing Officer for P33.

"The Shoals EDA is delighted to partner with Airbnb to provide Remote Shoals participants new avenues to explore and experience our community. We're grateful to Airbnb for supporting our efforts of inviting remote workers to call The Shoals home and are eager to see this partnership flourish," said Mackenzie Cottles, Marketing & Communications Specialist for Remote Shoals.

"Remote Tucson is very excited to partner with Airbnb to provide additional value for individuals and families in our program. As our candidates are considering a relocation, getting a feel for where they might live within our city is so important. By giving them the option to try out a neighborhood at Airbnb properties, they'll be able to choose a new home that fits their relocation goals and truly lets them plug into our community," said Liz Pocock, CEO of Remote Tucson.

Airbnb will continue to work with other organizations, to support them in tapping into the remote working trend and promoting their communities. Any nonprofit or government looking to partner with Airbnb through this program can learn more information and get in touch here.

And for those considering relocating to a new place, Airbnb has rounded up some of our most wishlisted listings in a few thriving remote working communities, to perhaps "try out" life in a new potential home.
Press Release

11 May 2021

At Swiss-Belhotel International our business strategy is focused on responsible recovery while delivering value. We are thrilled to unveil our latest upscale lifestyle brands Maua and Bohemia Collection designed to offer inspiring and unique experiences to our guests. These fit perfectly into our extensive portfolio of brands and will give us a tremendous opportunity to leverage our offering across a wider spectrum of segments and markets for future growth.

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As part of Swiss-Belhotel International's commitment to people's well-being and the environment, Maua focuses on wellness, peace and health in exclusive, isolated and eco-friendly settings; while Bohemia Collection puts forth a bold statement of being the luxury brand created to cater to an ego that is hungry for a lively, chic and a special experience.

Maua's brand story is built around togetherness, strength of people and nature. The brand name is created from the Maori Culture of New Zealand. Dating back to the 13th century A.D. and taken from Te Reo Maori  the indigenous language of the Maori people, Maua will add a new dimension to the branding of Swiss-Belhotel International. Maua also reflects the heritage of Swiss-Belhotel International with the ownership of the company being New Zealanders.

Bohemia is an emotional brand that is all about 'you'. It is 'your' place to be alive. When the guests arrive in these hotels, they should feel like they have stepped into a timeless space, with exotic sensuality, which is vibrant and chic. The brand's appeal lies in being raw, vivid and dreamy.
Opinion Article

11 May 2021

If you hadn't heard, hotels are facing a labor crisis. After major furloughs and layoffs last year due to the pandemic, properties now need to staff up to be prepared for the return of business. But they are facing a drought of workers, which some call the worst recruiting climate in the industry's history.

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Making conditions even more challenging is the fact that the dearth of prospective employees could be attributed to several factors, and it's unclear which ones are the biggest obstacles. These include immigration issues, specifically over H-2B visas, which, in the U.S., the Biden Administration is addressing, unemployment insurance and a migration of talent to other industries.

"The million-dollar question is how do we entice people back," said Paul Mengacci, VP of Finance & Analytics at Prism Hotels & Resorts, a hotel management company based in Dallas. "Is the issue that people still are unsure about the safety of coming back? Have childcare challenges come up related to what schools are doing, or are government support programs playing a part?"

The issue is vexing, particularly because the worker shortage is eating further into already stunted hotel revenue. From April 2019 to March 2020, total labor costs as a percentage of total revenue in the United States was 37.4%, according to HotStats data, but that number jumped to 60.5% between April 2020 and March 2021.

The good news is that as revenue returns, the labor piece should stabilize. However, if hotels can't fill vacant positions, the result will be employers having to pay more to entice prospective employees to take those jobs, which will increase labor costs.

US: Total Labor Costs as Percentage of Total Revenue  Photo: HotStats Limited

Talent Acquisition

In the meantime, the labor shortage has prompted hoteliers to get more creative with hiring. Some measures being taken (or considered) are finders fees for candidate referrals, retention bonuses and even providing child or pet care while workers are on-site.

"Though providing these items does come at a cost," Mengacci said, "that needs to be weighed against the impact of not having employees, specifically lost revenue that we may need to turn down because we don't have staff to support operations."

Prism also is trying "utility players who can fill multiple roles," he said. "So a houseman helping in the lobby today may be setting up banquets tomorrow."

Such cross-training could be the recipe for labor success, said Del Ross, Chief Revenue Officer at Hotel Effectiveness, a labor management technology company. "It gives employees additional hours and experience, more money and greater exposure to different people and jobs, instead of having a burnout situation. The better companies started looking at this and institutionalizing it."

He continued, "Not a lot of people aspire to cleaning rooms but with variety, and even asking what roles workers like best, we can make their jobs more interesting and provide a career path."

The shift from perceiving an entry-level job as just a paycheck, to seeing it as the start of a careerand promoting the idea that upward mobility can happen quicklycould help solve the labor crisis.

"You can go from a cook to CEO in this industry without going to Harvard," said Chris Green, CEO of Chesapeake Hospitality, a management company based in Greenbelt, Md. "And if you're 24-years-old and you want a six-figure job, you can make that leap in three to four years. We need messaging that conveys the opportunity people have to move to the next level in their career, and we're training our teams to share that when they meet with candidates."

That type of messaging is important for members of Generation Z, Green said."This generation of workers is different, they've heard a lot about writing their own story. We need to be able to speak to that. Under the old guard, you weren't even considered for promotion unless you spent 70 hours a week at the hotel. Members of the new generation want quality of life and if we're not open to that, we're going to lose them."
CLEMMONS, N.C. (AP)  The nation's largest fuel pipeline restarted operations Wednesday, days after it was forced to shut down by a gang of hackers.

The disruption of Colonial Pipeline caused long lines at gas stations in the Southeast due to distribution problems and panic-buying, draining supplies at thousands of gas stations.

Colonial initiated the restart of pipeline operations late Wednesday, saying in a statement that all lines, including those lateral lines that have been running manually, will return to normal operations.

But it will take several days for deliveries to return to normal, the company said.

In the meantime, drivers have been finding gas stations with little or no gas in some Southeast states.

The Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, was hit on Friday with a cyberattack by hackers who lock up computer systems and demand a ransom to release them. The hackers didn't take control of the pipeline operations, but Colonial shut the pipeline down to contain the damage.

The attack raised concerns, once again, about the vulnerability of the nations critical infrastructure.

Now Playing: State and federal officials are scrambling to find alternate routes to deliver gasoline in the Southeast U.S. after a hack of the nation's largest fuel pipeline led to panic-buying. (May 12) Video: Associated Press

What youre feeling is not a lack of supply or a supply issue. What we have is a transportation issue, said Jeanette McGee, spokeswoman for the AAA auto club. There is ample supply to fuel the United States for the summer, but what were having is an issue with is getting it to those gas stations" because the pipeline is down.

The pipeline runs from the Gulf Coast to the New York metropolitan region, but states in the Southeast are more reliant on it. Other parts of the country have more sources to tap. For example, a substantial amount of fuel is delivered to states in the Northeast by massive tankers.

Jamar Gatison, 36, was filling up his tank in Norfolk, Virginia, Wednesday before a doctors appointment.

Im about to run out of gas, so I have no choice, the construction worker said while waiting in line at a 7-Eleven.

Im also an Uber Eats driver. I also need gas for that, said Gatison, who added he probably wont deliver food Wednesday night because he doesnt want to wait in line again while the shortage continues.

In North Carolina, more than half of gas stations were out of fuel, according to Gasbuddy.com, a technology firm that tracks real-time fuel prices across the country. Just outside Raleigh, two people were charged with assault after fighting and spitting in each others faces while arguing over their spots in line Tuesday at a Marathon gas station, authorities said.

North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper urged people Wednesday to only buy gas if their tank is low, and to report any instances of price gouging.

Now Playing: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says the Biden administration is "working around the clock" to help Colonial Pipeline return its operations to normal and correct gas supply shortages. He urged Americans to be "sensible" and not hoard gas. (May 12) Video: Associated Press

This news is another reason people do not need to panic buy gas right now unless they really need it, he tweeted after Colonial announced it was restarting the pipeline.

Georgians and Virginians were also getting squeezed, with about half of stations there out of gas, according to Gasbuddy.com.

Along the Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine through some of the most rugged and remote terrain in the Southeast, hikers depend on car and van shuttles to ferry them to and from the trail and get them back to civilization.

If I dont have the gas, Im not running, said Ron Brown of Ellijay, Georgia, who operates Rons Appalachian Trail Shuttles and often takes hikers on hourslong trips from Atlantas airport into the north Georgia mountains, and to and from many points along the trail.

Mary Goldburg, 60, of Norfolk, Virginia, waited more than 20 minutes for a slow-operating pump at a 7-Eleven to fill up her tank on Wednesday. Her job includes delivering T-shirts for events and other promotional products.

I cant get paid until my customers get their products, Goldburg said.

The disruption is taking place at the time of year when Americans begin to become more mobile, especially as the nation emerges from the pandemic.

Four to five cars were lined up at each pump at a Circle K in Clemmons, North Carolina. Several people said they had driven to multiple gas stations to find one that had gas. Across the street, gas stations were out of fuel.

Mair Martinez, who works in landscaping, was filling up his lawn equipment and truck after checking several other gas stations without luck.

Thats why weve come in today, to fill up everything, he said.

Johnathan King, who works for an area towing company, was filling up his tow truck. He said he typically does 10 to 12 service calls a day, driving between several area cities.

Its going to be very hard for us. Hopefully well be able to get through it, he said.

Multiple U.S. agencies coordinated to relax rules and enable fuel to be shipped faster using trucks, trains or ships, but those changes had little impact Wednesday.

The White House said the Department of Transportation is now allowing states served by the pipeline to use interstate highways to transport overweight loads of gasoline and other fuels. But theres a national trucker shortage, so the industry isnt able to put many more trucks on the road.

Nationwide there are about 121,000 convenience stores that sell about 5,300 gallons per day of gasoline, accounting for about 80% of retail fuel sales. At many stores demand has been two to five times the normal amount, said Jeff Lenard of the National Association of Convenience Stores, in a conference call with reporters. Retailers were even running out of fuel in parts of Florida that are not dependent on the pipeline, he said.

Rationing has been imposed after some natural disasters, including Hurricane Sandy in 2012, but there could be resistance to that this time, especially if it looks like the pipeline could return to normal operation in a few days.

It could also backfire. Once rationing occurs, more panic buying ensues, said Ryan McNutt, CEO of the Society of Independent Gasoline Marketers of America.

The national average price for a gallon of gasoline ticked above $3 for the first time since 2016 Wednesday, according to the AAA. Prices begin to rise around this time every year and the auto club said Wednesday that the average price hit $3.008 nationally.

You go to some states, and youre going to see much higher increases, especially in the South, because thats where youre seeing the largest impact in terms of strain of gasoline, or strain of people, McGee said.

___

Bussewitz reported from New York and Finley reported from Norfolk, Virginia. Associated Press Writers Frank Bajak in Boston, Jeff Martin in Marietta, Georgia, David Koenig in Dallas and Julie Walker in New York contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON - The ransomware attack on the East Coasts Colonial Pipeline has raised the prospect of increased government oversight of cybersecurity in the U.S. energy sector, amid questions of the vulnerability of a loosely regulated network of pipelines, oil wells and other infrastructure to sophisticated cybercriminals.

The energy industry, centered in Texas, is critical to keeping cars and trucks moving and power plants running. But companies cybersecurity measures are uneven, experts said. While the biggest companies, such as Exxon Mobil or the Houston pipeline giant Kinder Morgan tend to be well protected, small and mid-size firms have less sophisticated defenses, providing enticing targets for hackers.

If youre handling a lot of product and you have a lot of cash flow, the expectation would be youre going to spend on cybersecurity, but not everyone is at the same strategic level as an organization like Exxon or Chevron, said Charles McConnell, a former U.S. assistant energy secretary now at the University of Houston. The question you have to ask is, Does the federal government need to step in to protect the folks that cant protect themselves?

That question is particularly relevant in Houston and along the Gulf Coast, home to thousands of miles of pipelines and one of the worlds biggest concentrations of oil refiners, chemical makers and liquefied natural gas exporters.

On HoustonChronicle.com: How long can the U.S. keep hackers at Bay and the lights on?

Colonial, a joint venture between energy and investments firms including Koch Industries, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Royal Dutch Shell, said Friday that hackers broke into its computer network and threatened to delete critical customer data and make public other potentially sensitive information unless the company paid an undisclosed ransom.

The company then shut down the more than 5,000-mile-long pipeline, cutting off almost half the fuel supply of the East Coast. Fuel prices are stable so far, but that could change if Colonial does not return the line to service soon, analysts said.

The details of the attack, including how hackers got into the system, remain private. But the extent of Colonials cybersecurity measures is likely to come under scrutiny in the weeks and months ahead, as federal officials investigate.

At a White House briefing Monday, national security officials outlined a series of moves by the Biden administration to offer aid to critical industries such as energy, health care and transportation.

This weekends events put the spotlight on the fact this nations infrastructure is largely operated by private companies, and when they are attacked, we depend on the effectiveness of their defenses, said Deputy National Security Adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall.

Colonial said Saturday it had retained a leading, third-party cybersecurity firm and was taking steps to understand and resolve this issue, but so far has offered limited information on what went wrong.

Hodgpodge

For years, cybersecurity experts have warned that U.S. infrastructure, with its hodgepodge of private firms operating independently, remain particularly vulnerable to cyberattack by both criminals and nations such as China and Russia.

Some have advocated for a more centralized system, with government effectively providing cybersecurity for industry.

On Monday, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Richard Glick and Commissioner Allison Clements, both Democrats, called for minimum standards for cybersecurity on oil and gas pipelines, like those in place for power companies.

Simply encouraging pipelines to voluntarily adopt best practices is an inadequate response, they said.

On HoustonChronicle.com: FERC chairman warns U.S. needs to improve energy security

Thomas Fanning, CEO of the Atlanta-based power firm Southern Co., told the New York Times in a recent interview that the United States needed a national cyberdefense system similar to systems developed during the Cold War to protect against Soviet missile attacks.

A real-time view of that battlefield that allows cybercommand to see my critical systems at the same moment and the same time I see them, he said. Sharing isnt fast enough. Its not comprehensive, and you cant rely on it on matters of national security.

But so far most companies have shown little interest in letting government officials into their systems. Colonial, for instance, declined offers for assistance from federal officials after the attack, said Deputy National Security Adviser Anne Neuberger.

The government remains willing and able as a partner, she said.

Cyberarms race

The threat, however, is unlikely to diminish. As companies ramp up cybersecurity measures, hacker groups and foreign security services are launching increasingly sophisticated attacks

Even if the government sets tougher cybersecurity standards, new methods to circumvent those defenses would inevitably follow, said Chris Bronk, an information technology professor at the University of Houston. Government and industry must become better at gathering and sharing intelligence about cyberattackers and supporting each others efforts, he said.

This is a multi-pronged problem, and regulation is only one part of it, Bronk said. This ransomware epidemic is getting a lot worse. Business as usual seems a really weak prospect.

james.osborne@chron.com

Twitter.com/@osborneja
Seven Katy Independent School District graduating seniors have been selected as the 2020-21 Katy Area Retired Educators Scholarship recipients.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Katy ISD names its 2021 valedictorians, salutatorians

KARE is Teacher Retirement System of Texas local chapter. The nonprofit organization has more than 200 retired teachers, librarians, counselors and administrators as members.

KARE started the scholarship a few years back. Each award is $1200 and funded through donations from KARE members, special spirit night donations from partnering with area restaurants and the organizations Friendship/Chocolate Silent Auction.

The recipients are graduating later this month from Katy ISD high schools and look forward to careers as teachers.

KARE Scholarships are only available to those students who plan a career in education  we see this as an investment in the future of teachers; just a small help on their way to the noble calling of a teaching career, a news release stated.

The following students are this years recipients:

Samantha Gardner is graduating from Katy High School and plans to attend Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, where she will major in special education. She hopes to teach life skills classes to high school students.

On HoustonChronicle.com: With bond passed, Katy ISD board set to consider first sale

Graduating from Katy High School, Riley Hull is headed for Texas A&M University to major in special education. She plans to become an elementary school speech therapist.

Hannah Mikaela Kirby is graduating from Tompkins High School and is set for Sam Houston State University. She plans to major in music education and become a high school band director.

Graduating from Katy High School, Reagan Nattinger plans to major in music education at Louisiana State University. She looks forward to becoming a high school choir director.

Addison Poth is graduating from Seven Lakes High School and is set to major in education at Texas A&M University, with an emphasis in elementary education. She hopes to become an elementary school teacher.

After graduating from Seven Lakes High School, Ashton Diane Poth plans to major in education at Texas A&M University. She aspires to become an elementary English language arts teacher.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Deadline to seek federal assistance for winter storm damages is May 20.

Corinne Slay is graduating from Mayde Creek High School and plans to attend Sam Houston State University, where she will major in education with a focus in composite science. She hopes to become a high school life science teacher.

tracy.maness@hcnonline.com
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has taken over the recovery operation of the boyfriend and girlfriend who went missing Friday on Lake Conroe.

Around 6 p.m., a 26-year-old woman fell off an unanchored pontoon boat near Ayers Island and her 24-year-old boyfriend jumped in after her, according to the Montgomery County Precinct 1 Constables Office. The pair  neither of which were wearing a life jacket or knew how to swim  went missing for 10 minutes when calls came in, The Courier reported Saturday.

A second man jumped in the water to try and help them as the pair struggled and a passerby on a boat helped him out of the water. The missing man and missing woman were part of a five-person boat rented off the lake, according to Precinct 1.

None of the others on the boat were wearing life jackets or knew how to swim, Pct. 1 Cpt. Joe Sclider said Saturday.

The search was suspended a little after 10 p.m. Friday night and resumed Saturday morning, according to Precinct 1. TPWD has not released any updates since taking over the investigation, but spokeswoman Megan Radke confirmed game wardens were on site Monday afternoon searching for the missing pair.

Authorities have yet to release the names of the victims, who are reportedly from the Houston area.

The recovery effort parallels the search for a drowned victim from two months ago. A 36-year-old Magnolia man on March 13 went missing near Ayers Island after jumping off an unsecured boat and swimming without a life jacket.

Following four days of searching, the mans remains were found through the use of side-scan sonar. The technology can detect objects on the bottom of the black water lake, including fish-spawning beds, tires and sunken vessels. It is being used by both constables patrol deputies and game wardens to try and find the missing couple, Sclider said Monday.

Fridays drownings mark at least the third and fourth deaths on Lake Conroe this year. This fatality rate is approaching last years five drownings, which were four more than in 2019.

An increase in drownings appears to come as the popular lake has generated more activity during the pandemic.

jose.gonzalez@chron.com

twitter.com/jrgzztx
1. Comedian Amanda Seales (of HBOs Insecure) is about to take you to school. Sick of the stereotypes about African Americans in media and the overall lack of knowledge of black history, Seales mixes humor and her doctorate in African American studies with her love of games and music to cr
ATLANTA (AP)  Twelve-year-old Jane Ellen Norman is looking forward to a little more freedom in her life and a possible return to summer camp after getting her first dose of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine in Atlanta on Tuesday  one day after U.S. regulators expanded its use to children her age through 15.

Being able to see her friends without staying far apart and worrying they might get sick was top of mind for the sixth grader following the shot at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in downtown Atlanta.

I hope they all get vaccinated, Jane Ellen said.

The Food and Drug Administration declared Monday that the Pfizer vaccine is safe and offers strong protection for younger teens based on testing of more than 2,000 U.S. volunteers ages 12 to 15.

The agency noted there were no cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated adolescents compared with 16 among kids given dummy shots. More intriguing, researchers found the kids developed higher levels of virus-fighting antibodies than earlier studies measured in young adults. Teens aged 16 and older were previously eligible for a vaccine.

Jane Ellen's mom, English Norman, said she scheduled an appointment for her daughter and 14-year-old son, Owen Norman, immediately after hearing about the FDA authorization. Owen also got a shot Tuesday.

Norman said her kids have been good about wearing their masks, washing their hands and staying socially distant, but they have still been very anxious about leaving the house.

"I think its exciting that now their anxiety can start to lessen and they can feel safe, she said.

The FDA authorization should allow kids to get vaccinated before returning to school in the fall. Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock said in a statement Monday it brings the country closer to returning to a sense of normalcy and to ending the pandemic.

For Jane Ellen, that means a chance to go back to her summer camp, which was canceled last year as the pandemic raged.

Im excited to go there and see all my camp friends," she said.

___

Follow APs coverage of the pandemic at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Kristine Bowman, Michigan State University

(THE CONVERSATION) With the first COVID-19 vaccine now authorized for adolescents, ages 12 and up, a big question looms: Will students be required to get the vaccine before returning to their classrooms in the fall?

As a professor of education policy and law and a former attorney for school districts, I regularly think about this sort of question.

In the United States, school vaccination requirements are established by states rather than the federal government. The 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution allows states to make regulations protecting public health.

Every state currently requires K-12 students to be vaccinated against some diseases, although the requirements  including which shots are deemed necessary and the reasons students can opt out  vary from one state to another.

Who can opt out of school shots?

No state yet requires students to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, but how states manage other vaccines and exemptions, and how the rules can change during outbreaks, can help us think about how a COVID-19 vaccine requirement might work.

For example, students in all states can be exempt from vaccination requirements if they have a valid medical reason, such as a weakened immune system or allergic reaction to a vaccine.

In 44 states, students also can opt out of vaccination requirements for religious reasons, though most major religions do not prohibit vaccines. Some states are considering rescinding religious exemptions because of concern about declining levels of vaccinations and local outbreaks of diseases such as measles. Connecticut rescinded its religious exemption in April 2021.

Fifteen states permit philosophical exemptions based on moral or ethical concerns. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only about 2.5% of U.S. kindergartners used an exemption last year, the same as the previous year, and most were for religious or philosophical reasons.

Of particular importance right now is that states also take different approaches to exemptions during an outbreak. Thirty-two states ban unvaccinated students from attending school during an outbreak. A handful of states do not allow vaccine exemptions during an outbreak.

What the courts say about mandatory vaccines

The U.S. Supreme Court has supported states authority to make these decisions for over a century.

In May 1901, a smallpox epidemic began in Boston. Now-familiar disease prevention measures were put into place: Sick patients were quarantined for treatment, and the city began a free, voluntary vaccination program. By December of that same year, the city had not contained the epidemic, so a local health commission required all adult residents to be vaccinated under the authority granted by the state.

The local government fined those who refused to be vaccinated, and one man disputed this fine by suing the state of Massachusetts. In 1905, the Supreme Court heard his case and held that a state can require vaccination in the interest of public health.

Today, some health law experts think vaccination requirements are important enough that they can still trump claims including individual religious liberty, while others are more skeptical.

The COVID-19 vaccines have one key difference  they have only emergency use authorization at this point, not full FDA approval. The FDAs emergency use statute says people receiving the drug must be informed of the option to accept or refuse administration of the product but also of the consequences, if any, of refusing. How a lack of full approval would affect state decisions about school vaccine mandates and how the courts might view those decisions remains to be seen.

In another context, military service members can be required to receive vaccines but are allowed under federal law to opt out of vaccines that have only emergency use authorization, unless the president waives that provision.

Pfizer  the drugmaker whose vaccine received emergency use authorization for adolescents on May 10, 2021, and was recommended for that age range by the CDC on May 12  has started the review process for full FDA approval for use in ages 16 and older. The same review for adolescents will start later. Vaccine testing is still underway for younger children.

Can individual schools issue their own requirements?

Because states enact vaccine requirements to protect public health, school vaccine requirements generally apply to public and private K-12 schools, and also to daycare facilities. Only a handful of states require college and university students to be vaccinated, so in practice, determining and enforcing vaccine requirements is usually up to individual higher education institutions.

A growing number of colleges and universities have announced that they will require all students who plan to be on campus to receive the COVID vaccine. Other institutions are requiring the vaccine only for students who want to live in dorms. However, at least one state legislature  Michigans  is considering barring state universities from requiring vaccines as a condition of taking in-person classes, contending a vaccine requirement would infringe on matters of individual choice.

This raises the interesting question of whether an individual school district, like an individual college or university, could require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

When school vaccine requirements began in the late 19th century, the goal was to prevent the spread of smallpox. By 1915, 15 states and Washington, D.C., required students to receive the smallpox vaccine, and 21 other states allowed local governments such as school districts and county health departments to impose such a requirement.

School vaccination requirements have proliferated over the past century, in response to both specific outbreaks and the growing acceptance of vaccine mandates as public health policy. Although most vaccination requirements have been issued at the state level in recent decades, whether school districts can add to the list of required vaccines remains an open question, and may vary by state.

It is also a question that courts will likely soon engage. In January 2021, the Los Angeles Unified School District announced that it plans to require its students to receive the COVID vaccine once a vaccine is approved and available. Los Angeles Unified is the nations largest school district. As fall nears  and assuming clinical trials continue to demonstrate both efficacy and safety  we may see more districts pursue this option.

[Over 100,000 readers rely on The Conversations newsletter to understand the world. Sign up today.]

This article was updated with the CDCs endorsement.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/can-schools-require-covid-19-vaccines-for-students-now-that-pfizers-shot-is-authorized-for-kids-12-and-up-158385.
BENI, Congo (AP)  When Shekinah was working as a nurses aide in northeastern Congo in January 2019, she said, she was offered a job from a World Health Organization doctor at double her salary  in exchange for sex.

Given the financial difficulties of my family  I accepted, said Shekinah, 25, who asked that only her first name be used for fear of repercussions. She said the Canadian doctor, Boubacar Diallo, who often bragged about his connections to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, made the same proposition to several of her friends.

When a staffer and three Ebola experts working in Congo informed WHO management about sex abuse concerns regarding Diallo, they were told not to take the matter further, The Associated Press has found.

WHO has been facing widespread public allegations of systemic abuse of women by unnamed staffers, to which Tedros declared outrage and emergencies director Dr. Michael Ryan said, We have no more information than you have. However, an AP investigation has now found that despite its public denial of knowledge, senior WHO management wasn't only informed of alleged sexual misconduct in 2019 but was asked how to handle it.

The AP has also for the first time tracked down the names of two doctors accused of sexual misconduct, Diallo and Dr. Jean-Paul Ngandu, both of whom were reported to WHO.

Ngandu was accused by a young woman of impregnating her. In a notarized contract obtained by the AP, two WHO staffers, including a manager, signed as witnesses to an agreement for Ngandu to pay the young woman, cover her health costs and buy her land. The deal was made to protect the integrity and reputation of WHO, Ngandu said.

When reached by the AP, both Diallo and Ngandu denied wrongdoing. The investigation was based on interviews with dozens of WHO staffers, Ebola officials in Congo, private emails, legal documents and recordings of internal meetings obtained by the AP.

Eight top officials privately acknowledged WHO failed to effectively tackle sex abuse during the Ebola outbreak, emails, recordings of internal meetings, legal documents and interviews with dozens of aid workers and WHO staffers show. WHO declined to comment on any specific sex abuse allegations or how they were managed and said it had taken steps to address the problem.

We are aware that more work is needed to achieve our vision of emergency operations that serve the vulnerable while protecting them from all forms of abuse, WHO spokeswoman Marcia Poole said in an email.

WHO emergencies chief Dr. Michael Ryan acknowledged in internal meetings that sexual abuse problems during the agencys outbreak responses were unlikely to be exceptional.

You cant just pin this and say you have one field operation that went badly wrong, he said. This is in some sense the tip of an iceberg.

As WHO struggled to control spiraling Ebola cases in Congo in early 2019, emergency operations manager Dr. Michel Yao received an email with the subject line: Private. Chat.

We cannot afford to have people tarnishing the sweat and effort of individuals sacrificing themselves thru (sic) inappropriate sexual harassment and bullying, the staffer wrote, saying he was concerned about Diallo.

Yao responded that the matter would be handled, but the staffer said his concerns were dismissed. An internal WHO investigation failed to corroborate the charges, but those who complained about Diallo were not interviewed.

Diallo was described as a charismatic manager with connections to WHOs senior leaders, including director-general Tedros. On WHOs website, Tedros, Yao and Diallo are pictured smiling and bumping elbows during one of Tedros 14 trips to Congo during the outbreak.

Diallo rejected claims of sexual misconduct.

I have never offered a woman a job in exchange for sex and I have never sexually harassed a woman in my life, he told the AP.

In April 2019, Yao received another email detailing more alleged sexual misconduct, this time about the other doctor the AP tracked down, Ngandu.

I hereby inform you that we have a colleague who has impregnated a girl from Beni, outbreak manager Mory Keita wrote to Yao. Keita told Yao a young woman and her aunt had come to Benis Hotel Okapi looking for WHO managers, with two armed police officers. The womans aunt said the young woman had been having an affair with Ngandu and was now pregnant.

They asked WHO to cover the cost of the womans medical costs and for money to buy land, given that Dr. Jean-Paul will abandon the girl and she will be obliged to raise her child alone.

Keita said he felt that Yao should be informed so that you would give us your directions for how to better manage this problem.

One week after the email was sent, Ngandu signed a notarized contract confirming he would pay the young woman $100 a month until her baby was born, cover her pregnancy costs and buy her a plot of land. Keita and Achile Mboko, a WHO human resources staffer, signed as witnesses.

Ngandu said he wasn't the father of the baby and the deal was a private matter. He said he agreed to it after his WHO colleagues, including Keita, advised me to settle out of court to avoid sullying the reputation of the organization and myself. The young woman declined to talk to the AP.

It is unclear if Yao reported the abuse allegations to his superiors, as required by WHO protocol. He has since been promoted to be director of WHO Genevas Strategic Health Operations Department.

On Oct. 15, Tedros appointed an independent panel to investigate sex abuse during the Ebola outbreak in Congo; no findings are expected until the end of August. At a town hall meeting in November, Ryan acknowledged sex abuse issues had been neglected for years.

Many WHO staffers, especially women, were unconvinced.

This is not good enough, said Maria Van Kerkhove, WHOs technical lead on COVID-19, at the same meeting. We know in every situation we go in, were at risk.

Back in Congo, Shekinah said she couldnt count how many times she had slept with WHOs Diallo after accepting a job for which she was not qualified.

I wanted to quit. But because of my financial problems, I endured it, she said. Even after they separated, Shekinah said he continued to message her, asking her to send him nude pictures.

Diallo should be punished for his sexual abuse of all those girls in Beni as a lesson to these international organizations that this should not happen again, she said. I would like justice to be done.

___

Maria Cheng reported from London. Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report.
Mayor Sylvester Turner plans to use an influx of federal cash to give firefighters a raise the city can afford, expand the Houston Police Department and replace lost revenue from the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the mayors $5.1 billion annual spending plan.

Turners budget proposal relies on roughly $304 million in federal relief money that was set to be deposited into the citys coffers this week. The administration would use $188 million of that money to close most of the citys projected $201 million deficit for the upcoming fiscal year, while fully replenishing the $20 million rainy day fund ahead of hurricane season.

Without this flexibility, the city would be facing catastrophic cuts across all services, Turner said, a nod to the citys estimated $178 million in lost revenue during the pandemic, mostly driven by sales tax.

The proposed spending plan largely would leave the citys $214 million in reserves, which officials have relied on in recent years to help balance the annual budget, untouched. Turner also did not account for $112 million of the citys stimulus funds in his initial spending plan, leaving the door open for other initiatives that he declined to detail Tuesday.

A portion of the extra federal aid likely will cover the firefighter raises, which Turner did not include in the budget as proposed Tuesday. The mayor declined to reveal the size of the firefighter pay increase, saying only that he plans to implement raises over three years, starting July 1, when the 2022 fiscal year begins.

Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association President Marty Lancton criticized Turner for granting the raises without involving the fire union. He also questioned the timing of the mayors announcement Tuesday, which came days after an appeals court ruling cleared the way for a trial court judge to set firefighters pay for up to a year and compensate them for past losses.

We appreciate any money that is provided to firefighters, Lancton said. We certainly hope this means (the mayor) will not be appealing his attacks on collective bargaining and now recognizes that the law provides a procedure to bargain as determined by the court.

Houston firefighters have been locked in a pay dispute with Turner for much of his time as mayor and have received raises of just 3 percent since 2011, after rejecting offers they say included too many concessions.

The recent court ruling came in a case that arose in June 2017, after Turner and the firefighters failed to agree on a new contract through collective bargaining. As part of that lawsuit, the firefighters invoked a provision of state law that allows a state district judge to set their pay after Turner declined to enter contract arbitration.

The city contended it was unconstitutional for judges to determine firefighter pay, an argument rejected down by the appellate court last week.

Without the firefighter raises, Turners spending plan represents a 4.7 percent increase from last years budget. The tax- and fee-supported general fund, which pays for core city services, would total $2.58 billion next year, up 3.9 percent. The largest increase would come from the police department, which would see its budget rise to $984 million, about $33 million more than city officials expect to spend this year.

The additional police spending would fund six cadet classes instead of the usual five, and cover a 2 percent raise for officers. The citys contract with police officers has expired and the two sides have not agreed on a new one, but an evergreen clause in that deal secured the raise. The raise accounts for $11.7 million of the added funds.

The Houston Fire Department also would see a modest budget increase, with funding for four cadet classes. The initial $515 million HFD budget includes funding for 3,648 classified firefighters, according to city finance officials, about 76 fewer than the current budget.

For now, the two public safety departments account for roughly a quarter of the mayors proposed budget for the next fiscal year and half the general fund costs.

Controller Chris Brown said the federal stimulus money bailed the city out of a truly dire scenario  Houstons worst-ever deficit, which could have resulted in as many as 2,500 layoffs.

Id breath a sigh of relief and look at the fact that the city really dodged a bullet this budget cycle, Brown said, adding that his biggest concern is the citys continuing structural imbalance. Its recurring expenditures outweigh revenues, meaning the city usually has to employ stop-gap measures such as land sales and deferrals to balance its books.

Turner said the city did not have to use those maneuvers this year. The budget proposal would use $7.2 million in cuts across city departments and $5.2 million from a Public Works debt payment to close the remainder of the deficit left uncovered by federal aid.

The General Fund Your property and sales taxes pay for 70 percent of the city's $2.58 billion general fund. So, where does the money go? $1.5 billion, Public Safety: Police ($955 million) and Fire ($515 million) mark the city's largest operating expenses $415 million, Debt service $213 million, General Government: miscellaneous costs, such as annexations, funds for forensic sciences, and health benefit costs for retirees $184 million, Human & Cultural Services: like Parks ($67 million), Health ($60 million), and Libraries ($44 million) $157 million, Maintenance services: which includes Solid Waste ($89 million) and General Services ($42 million) among others $101 million, Administrative Services: such as Regulatory Affairs ($29 million), and the city's finance ($19 million) and legal ($17 million) departments *Note: Some city departments, such as Public Works and the Airport System, rely on revenue that comes from dedicated fees See More Collapse

At-Large Councilmember Sallie Alcorn said the budget appeared pretty uneventful, reflecting modest year-over-year growth after the bailout closed the deficit.

The real interest lies in where the remaining (federal) funds, $112 million this year, will be spent, Alcorn said.

The mayor also indicated Tuesday that some of those funds would go toward helping Solid Waste catch up on heavy trash collection and other services amid the pandemic, though his administration still is crafting those details.

The proposal released Tuesday only modestly would increase the Solid Waste budget to $89.2 million, up about 2.8 percent from last years budget, and add five full-time employees to the current payroll.

City Council will review the proposal over the next month, and is scheduled to consider it June 2.

The city is set to receive a similar sum of federal aid next year, amounting to $607.8 million from the March stimulus and more than $1 billion in direct federal relief throughout the pandemic. The money has to be spent by the end of 2024.

dylan.mcguinness@chron.com

jasper.scherer@chron.com
Houstonians are optimistic about their personal futures, but feel less positive about race relations in the city and want the government to intervene, according to a survey by Rice Universitys Kinder Institute for Urban Research.

Stephen Klineberg, founding director of the Kinder Institute, and Robert Bozick, a senior research fellow at Kinder, conducted the survey between January and March with the help of the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago. More than 1,050 adults completed the survey online and by phone.

For the first time, Anglos and Hispanics were significantly more likely than African Americans to agree with the general statement that Blacks are still a long way from having the same chance in life as Whites, Klineberg and Bozick wrote.

The racial justice movement in the wake of the 2020 murder of George Floyd played a role in those responses.

The annual survey, now marking 40 years, showed Houston residents positive feelings about race relations, inequality and poverty declined after the death of Floyd, a man with Houston ties who died in Minneapolis police custody last May.

Blacks were far more likely than Anglos or Hispanics to assert that people often seemed suspicious of them simply because of their race, that Blacks are frequently discriminated against in Houston, and that they are often unfairly stopped by the police, the survey authors noted.

Yi-Chin Lee, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

In the results, released Tuesday, 54 percent of people who answered the survey said the criminal justice system is biased against Black people  an increase from 32 percent in 2015.

Houstonians, particularly white residents, were more likely to agree in this years survey that Black people are still a long way from having the same opportunities in their life as white people and were also more supportive of allowing children of undocumented immigrants to become U.S. citizens.

Klineberg said embracing diversity in Harris County could be key in creating a more successful metropolitan city.

The Houston area has gone through a remarkable demographic change since the oil boom in the 1960s and 70s, during which the region was biracial  largely Black and white. But in 1982, when oil collapsed, the white population stopped growing and began to decline. The Black population, however, kept the same pace of growth, while the population of Latinos and Asians surged, he said.

The countys diverse makeup  which the U.S. Census estimates is 42 percent Hispanic, 31 percent white, 19 percent Black and 8.5 percent Asian  is only expected to grow, Klineberg said.

No city has been transformed so rapidly. This is the story of Houston. Houston is where America is going to be as the 21st century unfolds, Klineberg said Tuesday, adding that Houston paints a powerful picture of the countrys future landscape.

No force in the world is going to stop Houston from becoming more diverse, he said.

An important lesson, however, is that those who are disproportionately living in poverty also will make up most of Houston in the future.

A majority of residents under the age of 20  the future voters, workers and taxpayers of Houston will be 51 percent Latino, 19 percent Black and 9 percent Asian, Klineberg said. And with 70 percent of young people in Houston being African American or Latino, he stressed the need to ensure that they have essential tools for success.

If those folks are not prepared to succeed in the global knowledge economy of the 21st century, it is difficult to envision a prosperous future for Houston, he said.

The region could be an example of how to best invest in education and support systems that enable young people to succeed. If this city is going to flourish, it needs to grow much more unified, equitable and inclusive, multi-ethnic society, Klineberg said.

COVID-19s impact

Klineberg said the pandemic or health-related issues helped underline and lay bare inequalities, differences and vulnerabilities in the region.

Public health, which was seldom mentioned in previous surveys, was cited as the top issue in Houston this year.

And many respondents  including 58 percent of Black people, 66 percent of Hispanics, 41 percent Asian and 36 percent of white people surveyed  said they risked exposure to the COVID-19 virus to keep their jobs during the pandemic. Blacks and Hispanics were also more likely to know someone who was hospitalized or died as a result of being infected with the virus, according to the survey.

Mental health was also a major issue across all ethnic communities, with more than half of all respondents saying they felt more stress and experienced more emotional problems during the past year than a year ago.

Politics and money

A powerful reflection of the growing partisan divides was evident in the 2021 survey results.

After the defeat of Donald Trump in the 2020 election, the proportion of Houston Republicans who thought the country was headed for better times dropped by a whopping 50 percentage points, from 69 percent before the election to just 19 percent by the time of the 2021 survey, Klineberg and Bozick wrote. Meanwhile, the proportion of Democrats who foresaw better times for the country grew from 38 percent last year to 58 percent in 2021.

And the economy ranked high among the respondents. For the first time in the 40-year history of the survey, more than 25 percent said their financial situations were getting worse. More than a third of all survey respondents said they could not come up with $400 for an emergency expense, 25 percent indicated that they had no health insurance, and 28 percent had trouble paying for their housing.

Among other findings, the survey showed that Black and Hispanic communities experienced a greater loss of income and financial hardships than local Asian and white communities and had to receive more help from government programs, which Klineberg and Bozick cited as a testament to the inequalities communities face when attempting to access resources in the city.

More Houstonians also want more action from the government to help solve the countrys problems, with 58 percent saying that the government has a responsibility to help reduce the countrys inequalities and 80 percent noting that they believed most people are poor because of circumstances they cant control.

Still, Klineberg and Bozick noted that Houstonians are optimistic about the future, with 57 percent of respondents stating that they were confident that things would improve for them in the next three to four years.

The dire effects of the economic shutdown may well be lessening for many as businesses are re-opening and vaccination rates increase, area residents are feeling optimistic once again, they said. But the pandemic has also exacerbated the differential vulnerabilities and the deepening inequalities in the Houston region.

brittany.britto@chron.com
Republicans in the Texas House voted Tuesday to limit how racism and the history of American slavery is taught in Texas classrooms, a controversial measure that Democrats have denounced as whitewashing a central chapter of the countrys founding.

The measure passed along party lines, but not before Democrats were able to tack on several small amendments, mostly adding texts from historical figures of color into the list of required reading for students. Those included the work of womens rights activist Susan B. Anthony and William Stills records of the Underground Railroad.

Republicans rejected other key suggestions, including one to weaken a provision that would ban course credit for student volunteer work with certain outside groups.

Supporters said that provision keeps partisanship out of education. Democrats argued it will only block students from essential service learning opportunities, such as volunteering with the Boys and Girls Club of America or a local chapter of 4-H.

Thats not left or right, thats across the board discouraging civic engagement, said Rep. Erin Zweiner, D-Driftwood.

BACKGROUND: Texas Republicans target critical race theory with bill to muzzle teachers on sexism, racism

Republicans have framed the legislation as a referendum on critical race theory, a decades-old academic movement that has become a buzzword among conservatives who dispute the existence of white privilege and systemic racism. The bill would limit teachers from pushing its core tenets, such as connecting modern-day inequities to historical patterns of discrimination.

The measure now heads to the Senate, which passed its own version last month.

House Republicans also added language to the bill Tuesday to prohibit teachers from requiring their students to read the New York Times 1619 Project, an essay collection asserting that slavery and its remnants are more integral to the countrys founding than is commonly acknowledged. The bill also bars teachers from presenting The Times findings as fact.

Under the amendment, teachers would be required to describe racism and slavery as antithetical to the countrys founding principles, though the founding documents referenced slavery and didnt treat Black people equally to white Americans.

NEWSLETTERS Join the conversation with HouWeAre We want to foster conversation and highlight the intersection of race, identity and culture in one of America's most diverse cities. Sign up for the HouWeAre newsletter here.

Democrats and educators say the legislation infringes on free speech and contradict aspects of the states existing social studies curriculum. Rep. James Talarico, a former teacher, accused the bills chief sponsor, Republican Rep. Steve Toth, of trying to downplay the significance of slavery and the persistence of discrimination.

This lengthy bill about civics makes no effort to teach the history of racism or white supremacy and its impact on the founding of our country politically, socially, economically, he said. The only thing youre doing is preventing us from talking about race in a way that makes you uncomfortable.

Toth, at one point invoking the words of Martin Luther King, said the bill will not limit what teachers can discuss, only what they can advocate for. But he also made conflicting remarks about what was actually included in the legislation.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

At one point, for example, he said it would only ban course credit for volunteer work if the work advocates for critical race theory, even though that phrase was nowhere in the original text. He later said it would only ban overtly political activities, like volunteering for the National Rifle Association or for Planned Parenthood.

That may be your desire, Mr. Toth, but thats not your bill, Talarico said.

That is the bill, Toth replied. The child chooses to do that on their own. They can do that on their own.

Toth said parents should be deciding what activities students take part in, not teachers, and he gave the example of taking his kids on educational family trips when they were young.

The concern is that if we remove the service learning programs from our civics classrooms or our social studies classrooms, that it will be affluent kids like your own that will have access to these types of training and democracy, Talarico said. But not the students who need it most, like the ones that I used to teach on the West Side of San Antonio.

jeremy.blackman@chron.com
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Guide to spending first $500 to promote a new music release

Dropping a stack on music promotion can be unnerving, so music marketer extraordinaire Amber Horsburgh shares how to best spend a $500 promotional budget.

Guest post from Amber Horsburgh

Spending money on music promotion can be unnerving.

1. Its difficult to ascertain ROI.

In music, we spend dollars to make fractions of pennies in order to grow. Most other industries spend dollars to make more dollars on a product.

2. We dont have access to the full consumer journey to know which marketing channel is most impactful.

Once you spend money on ads to drive a stream on Apple Music, you have no idea what happens next. Do they stream once? Do they stream at all or do they go on to follow you and listen on repeat?

3. Costs are inconsistent.

We deal with services, i.e.: press, music video directors, photographers, radio pluggers, digital agencies, and editors. Their fees are consistent with the talent, however, are determined by the individual and not the market necessarily. What one label partner deems an acceptable spend might seem ludicrous to you.

This happens with music videos a lot. Youll be used to making music videos for $500  $2,000 on your own, then once you get a label partner theyre used to spending $5,000  $20,000 on a video. You get a flashy $10,000 video yet it does the same numbers as when you DIYed a cheaper version. Now you owe more money.

The difficulty ascertaining ROI, inconsistent fees and inability to track the entire consumer journey makes spending money on your career difficult.

Regardless of the fear, you must spend money to reach a wider audience through marketing.

As a label marketer, Ive managed budgets as large as $500,000 and as small as $50. What I know is

Its never about the amount of money you have. There will never be enough money.

How you prioritize that budget will get you further than finding more money.

Table of contents

In this blog post Ill lay out what spending your first $500 on music promotion looks like.

Youll learn:

How to maximize $500 to hit the most impactful areas of music marketing

Marketing tactics for little or no budget

How to get on playlists without paying for a playlist plugger or signing to a label

Bootstrapping your own PR

Where to focus to lay solid foundations for marketing

A note before we dive in. This is not a prescription, this is a guide for spending based on a label marketers experience. No two artists are the same so you need to figure out what works for you.

This guide should serve as a peek behind the curtain to how labels prioritize budgeting for new acts that you can build on top of.

$300 Conduct a batch music video shoot

Music videos convey the audible message of the song through visuals. This asset is extremely important because:

Humans remember visuals easier than they do sound.

So, if someone hears your music through a music video, they are more likely to remember the song than if they were just hearing it through a playlist .

2. The landscape of how people discover and connect with new artists are visual mediums. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, etc. In order to capture attention on these platforms, you need a video

3. Establishes your brand aesthetic and world, which creates deeper connection points in the mind of the new listener

All this to say  you need a music video to increase discoverability.

Music videos are expensive. Maximize the cost by conducting a batch shoot.

Use the day to get all your promotional content for the single release. This means getting:

Actual music video

Press shots

Single artwork

Social content

YouTube thumbnail

You can achieve all these assets on the same day by doubling up roles. Your DP can shoot your press shots in the morning before you get started while hair and make-up is fresh. You can get a friend to be a second shooter to capture BTS for socials. Once the music video is edited, you can use hi-res stills for single artwork and YouTube thumbnails as well as additional social content.

If you dont do an actual shoot, look at other creative ways to make visuals like engaging an editor to make a video based on found footage or animation like the below example from alternative pop artist, Hollis.

Music videos are a big ticket item so squeeze them for the most value.

$100: Deploy paid social ads

Youve got a good visual for the music, now youve got to get it seen. Paid social ads will give it the nudge to reach a wider audience than youve currently got.

My rule for how much to spend on promoting a video vs. creating it is 20  50% of the production budget.

Meaning, if you spend $300 on a music video then you should spend between $60  $150 on promoting it. I like paid social ads because they are cheap to start with and meticulously measurable.

You can do damage with as little as $60 and you can dial down on whats working and change it along the way. You cannot do this if youre hiring a service e.g.: playlist pusher.

The platform you choose to spend on (either Instagram, TikTok, YouTube or Facebook) will depend on where your audience is and your core social channel.

If you have not determined your core social media channel, Ive created a quiz that pinpoints which channel is best for your music. Take it here.

You will achieve more on social media by focusing on one core content channel rather than stretching yourself to be across everything. Take the quiz to determine which social media channel is optimal for your music.

$20  $100: Get on playlists

No question that playlist adds will generate streams on your track. However, theres a lot of sharks in this area willing to take your money to put your music on playlists that no one listens to.

Instead, develop relationships with playlist curators yourself.

This is far more sustainable than paying a service to pitch to dodgy playlists with bot followers. When you develop personal relationships youll have supporters to draw on for every future release.

How to find playlist curators to feature your music:

A tool like Playlist Supply helps find the contact info of independent playlisters. Build up a database of 100 curators who feature similar artists to you and begin pitching them.

Use a tool like Playlist Supply or Playlist Search. Both offer inexpensive monthly memberships (~$20) to access contact information of independent playlist curators. Build up a database of 100 curators who feature similar artists to you and begin pitching them.

This is tedious work that takes a lot of time. Im not gonna lie. If you do not have the time and can afford help, you can engage a virtual assistant to pull names for you for half a day and assist with building the database and outreach.

If youre interested in other tools for music promotion, Ive compiled a list of 140+ tools (free and paid) in the Music Marketing Toolbox.

>>> Get your copy here.

I just finished compiling 138 tools major & indie labels use to promote music.



Includes cost info so you can compare competitors, links, & integrations w/ Spotify, IG, Apple Music etc.



This is one spicy spreadsheet.



Get it in your Google Drive here: https://t.co/iqm2RvUKRs pic.twitter.com/HaHJnoLpiU  Amber Horsburgh (@AmberHorsburgh) March 24, 2021

Build up Google front page credibility through press, $60

When people discover a new artist, they google them. What comes up helps determine where they place you in their mind.

When youre a brand new artist, populating the front page of Google with blog links helps legitimize you when people  new fans, a&rs, publishers, promoters and other gatekeepers look at you for an opportunity.

You have 2 options when bootstrapping your own PR. You can either:

Do it yourself using a similar approach to the above playlist curator outreach exercise.

2. Use a platform like Submithub to blast to their database.

Most people have an opinion of SubmitHub. It can work, it can also be a crapshoot.

If you do use it, see it as a tool in your overall PR outreach approach and not the silver bullet that will unlock the whole project.

Set yourself up by:

Do your research on who youre reaching out to. Look at the actual writer/editor/curator and determine if theyre a good fit for you. Some questions to ask yourself:

Do they approve a lot of tracks or only from established acts?

What are they like outside of their job?

What lights them up?

Have they featured artists at my level?

2. Craft a personal quick pitch using the above information. Most artists will just blast out the same pitch to as many people as they can afford with their credits.

Your pitch will stand out if its tailored to who youre sending it to. Think of this as a cover letter youre writing to a potential employer. Hi {NAME} goes a lot further than to whom it may concern

3. Expand your pitch targets until you reach a comfortable level of rejections. For many artists, an easy number is 50%. If youre getting knocked back more than once for every 2 pitches its likely not worth your time anymore

If you havent used Submithub before, check out this podcast with a new ambient electronic artist, Ascending Everest, who laid out his most recent experience with Submithub.

Its a good listen for artists just starting out as well as those in challenging genres.

Bonus: Get your house in order, $20

If you havent already, claim all your domains for your artist name. Ensure theyre consistent across all channels. Heres a quick checklist:

Website domain (~$20)

Social media channels. Even if youre not currently using a particular platform, its good to have them all in case you do expand.

Facebook

TikTok

Twitter

YouTube

Twitch

Snap

Instagram

Triller

Clubhouse

Linktree

Email service provider

tl;dr to wrap it all up

Its not about how big your budget is, its how you prioritize it.

This post lays out how a label marketer would spend $500 to promote a single from a new artist.

Item Cost Music video batch shoot:



 Music video

 Press photos

 Social content

 Single artwork $300 Paid social ads



 Facebook, Instagram or YouTube $100 Playlist outreach



 Tool to obtain contact information ($20)

 Virtual assistant to support research & outreach ($80) $20  $100 PR outreach



 DIY ($0)

 Submithub ($60) $60 Domain purchase $20 Total $500  $580

If you liked this post then come to my FREE workshop where Ill delve in far more detail.

Music Marketing 101: How Labels Promote Records. How You Can Do It Yourself.

Session times are on May 10, 11 and 13, 2021. Sign up here.

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Drury High students return to the classroom full time next week.

North Adams Schools Fully Open Beginning Next Week

NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  High school seniors will be returning to classrooms full time beginning next week on May 17, following the return of Grades 7 and 8 on April 28.

The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education in March voted to give the commissioner discretion to require in-classroom instruction to count as learning time. Most elementary children returned to classrooms April 5, although some students and schools were allowed to remain remote.

"It looks as if about 75 percent of our seventh- and eighth-grade population returned for full in person, and we are currently processing the data for the high school return," Superintendent Barbara Malkas told the School Committee last week. An earlier survey to parents got very little response so a second was issued the week before. "We really needed to make sure we had a full complement of data."

She noted that the federal government was expected to approve use of the Pfizer vaccine to ages 12 and up; those 16 and older can already receive the shot. The more members of the school community are vaccinated, she said, the less disruption in learning since vaccinated people are not required to quarantine after contact with someone who has COVID-19.

"I think that as we get into the summer, we'll start to see movement around further FDA approvals, down to 6, down to prior to entry to school," she said. "Just like we have seen with other other vaccination programs."

About 66 percent of the students in classrooms are participating in the pool testing, a state-funded program in which an entire classroom or group is tested for the virus in one sample. Only those who have a signed consent form are being tested weekly.

"Our total number of students [tested] is about half of the number of students who are attending for full in person," Malkas said. "We do have some remote students who are also participating in pool testing, and they come in in order to be tested."

The participation number ranges between schools with Grades 7 and 8 at Drury highest at 80 percent and Brayton the lowest at 42 percent. There are currently 828 students now attending full time.

Staff participating is less than half with only 236 of the 425 in-person employees giving consent. Malkas said this is likely lower as more staff are vaccinated or simply don't have the ability to be tested every week, although she did not think the number significant.

Committee member Ian Bergeron said he was disappointed in the low participation of staff in the program.

"I know that when I've spoken to folks who are doing the testing here, when [school nurse leader] Lauren [Gage]'s been here, she encourages everyone to continue testing even though they've been fully vaccinated because being fully vaccinated doesn't mean you can't get exposed," Malkas said.

She did not know how many staff members had been vaccinated because of medical privacy issues. They have been encouraged to voluntarily inform Gage, who has been doing the contact tracing.

"But I'm glad that we have implemented the pool testing program because I think it is providing us with valuable data to really assist us in making good on-time decisions with respect to identifying whether or not we have community spread," Malkas said.

The superintendent said the district is seeing less use of busing for those children who have returned to school, although data is still out for Grades 7 through 12.

"One trend that we have seen is that sometimes parents are, in fact, indicating that they want transportation for their child, and then not actually electing to use it," she said.

The buses have a capacity of 71 for larger vehicles and 29 for smaller, with three (young) children to a seat. The district has reduced that to allow for greater social distancing so the maximum capacity for a large bus with one child to a seat is 22.

According to the report presented by Thomas Simon, director of student support services, the most crowded bus is Brayton Yellow with 33 children. The next closest routes have 30, 29, 25, 24 and 23 for morning, afternoon or both. But those are not the actual number of students riding, said Simon.

"Those were the ones that had raised their hand wanting to ride, and we scheduled them in. It's not necessarily the number that are riding on a daily basis," he said. "At the moment, we don't have a solid means of regular attendance-taking on the buses."

Committee member Tara Jacobs asked if there was another way checking attendance or if it was too late to reconfigure. Simon said the district was not doing anything it shouldn't be and that balancing buses "would mean completely rerouting everything."

The state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education lifted capacity requirements in February as long as other protocols such as masking and open windows were in place.

Malkas said schoolchildren have been "really, really good" in mask compliance and the bus windows are always open. There also haven't been the behavioral problems as in the past because they want to go to school.

"I think it's important to reiterate that those three buses are still in compliance with the state guidance," she said. "And that it's not as widespread a problem, as some would would believe or want to have it be believed."
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20th Session of High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation to be held at UN, New York, 1-4 June 2021

May 11,2021 | Source: UNOSSC

The 20th session of the High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation will meet on 1-4 June 2021 to review progress made in implementing the Buenos Aires Plan of Action, the new directions strategy for South-South cooperation, the Nairobi outcome document of the High-level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation and the Buenos Aires outcome document of the second High-level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation (BAPA+40). An organizational meeting will precede the twentieth session on 11 May 2021.



Delegates, at this first High-level Committee following BAPA+40, will also consider follow-up actions arising from previous sessions of the High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation, notably at its nineteenth session, in 2016. Deliberations will also focus on actions arising out of the consideration of the Report of the Secretary-General to the nineteenth session (SSC/19/2), which contained a comprehensive proposal on concrete ways to enhance the role and impact of the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation, as well as the key measures taken to improve the coordination and coherence of United Nations support to South-South cooperation.



At the request of the Secretary-General, UNOSSC coordinated the preparation of the United Nations system-wide South-South strategy on South-South and triangulation cooperation for sustainable development with the engagement of the United Nations Inter-Agency Mechanism for South-South and Triangular Cooperation and other stakeholders. As requested by the BAPA+40 outcome (A/RES/73/291, para 27 (f)), Member States will be informed about the Strategy during the 20th Session of the High-level Committee.

 Copyright: UNOSSC/UNDP

Theme(s): Others.
350,000 tonne aquaculture target set by Southern African Development Community

May 11,2021 | Source: The Fish Site

Plans to increase aquaculture output in Sub-Saharan Africa to 350,000 tonnes a year have been announced by the Southern African Development Community.



On 7 May, the Mozambican Minister of the Sea, Inland Waters and Fisheries, Augusta Maita, said that the Southern African Development Community (SADC) envisages achieving over 350,000 tonnes of annual aquaculture production by 2030, up from 100,950 tonnes in 2020.



Addressing the opening session of the joint meeting of SADC Ministers of Agriculture and Food Security and Fisheries, on 7 May, she said this goal required diversified production and integrated value chains.



"The implementation of the SADC Action Plan for Aquaculture is fundamental, because it will contribute to poverty eradication and food security. It is also an opportunity for the private sector to generate wealth and employment," she said.

The joint meeting was attended by 92 delegates from the SADCs fourteen Member States, namely Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.



The Ministers applauded the positive development trajectory witnessed in the area of fisheries and aquaculture which now employs approximately 3 million people in the region and contributes about 9 percent of the region's agriculture GDP.



Maita argued that the member states must be aligned to take advantage of aquaculture, given the current low levels of capture fisheries. She also praised the regional initiative for the creation of a regional Centre for Monitoring, Coordination, Control and Inspection of Fisheries, which will be based in Mozambique, and will assist member countries in reacting to illegal fishing, which requires a regional and multinational approach.



Ministers noted with concern, the high numbers of food and nutritionally insecure people in the region (50.8 million) and urged Member States to continue implementing and domesticating the SADC Food and Nutrition Security Strategy (FNSS) in National Food and Nutrition Strategies in order to improve food and nutrition security. They encouraged Member States to attend and actively participate at the upcoming United Nations Food Systems Summit to be held in September 2021 which is intended to transform global food systems. They also urged Member States strengthen and expand coverage of social protection and safety-nets programmes to cater for increasing numbers of food insecure population and to promote value addition through agro-processing value chains so as to increase period of consumption, reduce malnutrition, reduce post-harvest losses and create employment.

 2021 ? Hatch Accelerator Holding Limited, 7/8 Liberty Street, Cork, T12T85H, Ireland

Theme(s): Fisheries Development and Aquaculture.
Kelp parachutes: Green gravel reforestation projects showing promise

by Lauren Kramer

May 11,2021 | Source: GAA

As kelp forests worldwide show dramatic signs of decline in density, scientists are racing to find ways to cost-effectively reforest the coastlines and re-establish these crucial ecosystems. One promising strategy is the green gravel approach, wherein kelp seedlings are grown on gravel and then scattered on the ocean floor, where theyd hopefully anchor and flourish.



The need to meet this reforestation challenge is urgent, said Karen Filbee-Dexter, a research fellow in marine ecology at the University of Western Australia. Filbee-Dexter was one of the founders of the Green Gravel Action Group, whose purpose is to unite scientists working on kelp-loss mitigation strategies worldwide so they can share ideas and exchange information.



Kelp forests provide fish habitat, store carbon and protect the coast from storm surges and sea level rise, so having intact sea forests is really important, she said. By restoring and reforesting the kelp we can revive coastal fish stocks, increase our natural carbon sinks and protect our coast and our coastal communities from future changes.



A marine heatwave in 2011 resulted in loss of kelp forests along an extensive area of Australias west coast and even though marine temperatures have cooled since then, the kelp hasnt recovered, she said.



Instead of kelp forests we now have turf reefs  mats of algae that change the whole habitat structure of the reef. Its like going from a skyscraper to a flat field. The same thing happened in Nova Scotia, and in Norway, where the green gravel restoration tool was developed.



Kjell Magnus Norderhaug, a scientist at the Institute of Marine Research in Bergen, Norway, said the green gravel concept was developed 10 years ago and remains in pilot stage.



Basically were seeding sugar kelp onto small stones in a lab, letting them grow until theyre a few centimeters in size, and then sprinkling them overboard into the ocean where they fall down like small parachutes. As the kelp grows on the stones it either overgrows the stones or attaches to the surface.



Small-scale pilot tests have been successful but important scientific questions remain unanswered: We still dont know at what stage its most efficient to put out this gravel, how long to keep it in the lab, what season to distribute the gravel or the arrangement of density and the size of the stones, Norderhaug said. So there are still a lot of questions before we know this concept will work and can be upscaled on larger areas. But its very promising and the pilots weve performed over the past nine months in an archipelago in southern Norway have been very successful.



Other green gravel pilot projects are ongoing in Portugal and Canada. In British Columbia, Dr. Chris Neufeld, associate researcher at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre on Vancouver Island, noted that sunflower sea stars, which were predators of sea urchins, decreased in an outbreak of Sea Star Wasting Syndrome, a situation exacerbated by the marine heatwave. As a result, urchin populations have increased dramatically from California all the way to Alaska.



The urchins are moving into the kelp forests, mowing them down and turning them into urchin barrens, he said.



Neufeld and his team are collaborating with Canadian Kelp Resources, a company that produces seaweed kelp vegetables, to grow and distribute kelp on green gravel. The hope is that things will be ramped up significantly over the next year, but again, there are still many unknowns.



Theres no point trying to restore lost kelp forests in places where they wont survive, so understanding which locations are good for successful restoration is crucial. We also want to identify particular strains of kelp that might be naturally more heat resistant and develop lineages more resistant to the conditions we know are coming, Neufeld said.



In Portugal, Axel Bugge, co-founder of SeaForester, is working to encourage sea forestation projects worldwide and hopes to ultimately partner with seaweed farmers to grow and distribute kelp seedlings.



This is a big environmental issue, and its overlooked, he noted. Weve had two or three projects in Portugal which have tested seaweed restoration approaches, including green gravel and older style methods using ropes and sending lines with seaweed spores into the sea. Its only in the last eight months that weve concluded green gravel is extremely promising in its potential to dramatically cut costs.



Ultimately, replanting seaweed forests is costly, but the green gravel approach in its simplest sense  taking a rock with a spore growing on it and throwing it off the side of a boat  could dramatically alter the cost-benefit equation. From the initial results weve seen in Portugal theres no doubt in my mind that this can work on a large scale.

 20162021 Global Aquaculture Alliance All rights reserved.

Theme(s): Others.
Bahamian fishermen praise monumental blow to illegal harvesting

by NEIL HARTNELL

May 11,2021 | Source: The Tribune

Bahamian fishermen have hailed the US prosecution of a Florida Keys man for illegally fishing in this nations waters as monumental in the fight to safeguard the industrys sustainability and stocks.



#Industry participants told Tribune Business that the sentence imposed on Henry Danzig, ordering him to hand over a brand new boat to the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) to aid with fisheries enforcement, will send a strong message to go-fast fishermen out of Florida and is something they have been waiting decades for.



#The case, brought as part of Operation Bahamarama, a joint effort between Bahamian and US law enforcement agencies to crack down on illegal and unreported fishing in Bahamian waters, was described by local fishermen as the only way that this nation can deter poaching of fisheries stocks on all fronts.



#They added that the illegal exploitation of Bahamian fisheries by US persons had often been ignored or overlooked, which they said stemmed partly from fears that any crackdown would damage the tourism and boating industry on which the countrys marina sector depends.



#This apprehension and prosecution was monumental in the fight against poaching from US nationals, Paul Maillis, the National Fisheries Association (NFA) director, told this newspaper. The boat owner was also supplying his restaurant with Bahamian seafood for some time, as the interrogation by Florida Fish & Wildlife revealed.



#In this instance, not only was he over limit, but he had intent to supply in violation of the US Lacey Act. It sends a strong message to these go-fast fishermen out of Florida that the relationship between our states is strong, and conservation efforts on either side of the pond are critical to our mutual interests.



#What is notable about the Danzig case is that while the prosecution and sentencing took place in the south Florida federal courts, the forfeiture will benefit The Bahamas. The major part of the punishment requires him to turn over a new 30-foot Contender Tournament boat, which will be used by the Royal Bahamas Defense Force to combat illegal and unreported fishing.



#Danzig, who pled guilty on April 26 to illegally harvesting fish in Bahamian waters without the necessary export and other permits required from this nation, was intercepted at sea by the US Coast Guard on May 9, 2020, on his return from the Cay Sal Bank.



#A search of his vessel revealed 167 reef fish, collectively weighing 529 pounds, which had been caught at a time when Bahamian waters were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.



#Keith Carroll, the NFA president, told Tribune Business that The Bahamas, its fishing industry and stocks have been grappling with the problems created by US citizens who exceed this nations catch limits, fish out of season or harvest illegally ever since he entered the sector some 38 years ago.



#Suggesting that hundreds of boats were entering The Bahamas waters daily to fish in areas such as the Little Bahama Bank, Cat Cay and Bimini, as well as Cay Sal Bank, he said: I think this is a good thing. It sends a strong message that The Bahamas and the US are working together.....



#I hope that the message gets out and they will think twice about coming this way. Its a big, big problem. The boats out of south Florida, they come to The Bahamas every day, get lobster, get snapper, and whatever they get they take back. We have this mega yachts that go in and out of the marina, fillet a load of fish, put it in the freezer and take it back to the US.



#I have complaints from fishermen in Long Island, Abaco and all over the place. We have complaints about it all over the place. They take a lot out of here, and have been doing it for years and years.



#Arguing that Danzigs catch was a drop in the bucket compared to what is being illegally removed from The Bahamas waters, Mr Carroll added: We have to send a strong message to US boats that you are welcome to come and snorkel, and enjoy our waters, but leave our fish. If you want to eat in our restaurants do so, but leave our crawfish and conch alone.



#He added that it was vital The Bahamas use the Danzig prosecution and guilty plea to show were not playing, and that this could happen to you - your boat will be confiscated - if you do these things in The Bahamas. Ive been in fishing, commercial fishing, for 38 years, and have been waiting for this to happen from before I started fishing and up to now.



#Mr Carroll also voiced optimism that the newly-enforced requirement for vessels to clear Customs on their way out of The Bahamas will further help to crackdown on boaters who exceed this nations catch limits or are engaged in illegal fisheries harvesting.



#The Government is cracking down on these loopholes that people used to get away with years ago, and in years to come I hope our fisheries stocks get back, he said. We see hundreds of boats come here every week, and each goes back with 100 pounds of fish. Thats a lot of fish. That adds up to millions of pounds of fish.



#Mr Maillis, meanwhile, told Tribune Business he felt poaching and illegal fisheries activities by US boats and citizens was often neglected due to the much greater focus placed on Dominicans and others who frequented The Bahamas southern waters.



#The impact of illegal poaching by US citizens is often unexamined especially at the leadership level, he said. Fears of impacting tourism and marinas, which are the lifeblood of many Family Island communities are often the main reasons behind inaction on our part as a country.



#However, even the legal anglers are given generous bag limits, which are argued by many to be damaging to the sustainability of the commercial fishing sector, as well as many vulnerable species like hogfish, conch and out-of-season lobster.



#The impact of those operating illegally and with impunity can only be magnitudes more destructive, Mr Maillis added. It is certainly not only commercial poachers from the Dominican Republic that we must be actively engaged in deterring. Only through creating this web of international enforcement can we hope to deter poaching on all fronts.



#Operation Bahamarama involves the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS); Office for Law Enforcement (OLE); the US Coast Guard (USCG); and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC).



#It is designed to target illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing to and from the waters of the US Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The Royal Bahamas Defence Forces (BDF) air and marine assets, and intelligence gathering efforts, were described as critical to the Danzig prosecution.



#Information had been received by NOAA special agents regarding Florida-origin IUU fishing in The Bahamas, resulting in enforcement efforts focused on known violators, the US attorneys office for the southern district of Florida said in a statement.

 2021 Ellington. All rights reserved.

Theme(s): Fishing Craft, Gear and Fishing Methods.
Taiwan Coast Guard seizes 4th boat in 10 days near Penghu

by Stas Butler

May 11,2021 | Source: Rti

Taiwans Coast Guard says it has detained a Chinese fishing boat in restricted waters near the Penghu Islands. That means the Taiwanese island chain has now seen four arrests in just ten days.



Taiwans Coast Guard Administration says it discovered a Chinese vessel fishing in restricted waters on Sunday during a routine patrol. Coast guard officials impounded the vessel, confiscated 20kg of fish found on board, and detained three crew members for further questioning. Authorities say there were no restricted meat products on board, and none of the crew members showed signs of a fever.



The latest arrest brings the total up to ten this month. The sharp rise in detentions comes shortly after a Chinese moratorium on fishing came into effect on May 1. The Chinese governments yearly ban on fishing in the South China Sea is to protect fish stocks. It will last until September 16.

 RTI (Radio Taiwan International). All rights reserved.

Theme(s): Fishing Craft, Gear and Fishing Methods.
Indonesian fishers plead with president on seine nets and other assistance

by Falahi Mubarok

May 11,2021 | Source: Mongabay

President Joko Widodo met with fishermen in East Java last week for a discussion on fishing gear policy, infrastructure and how the COVID-19 pandemic had affected their business.



After inspecting the fish on display at a market at Brondong National Fisheries Port, Jokowi, as the president is popularly known, and his entourage of local officials and the minister of fisheries went out to the docks, where they were met by a throng of fishermen who yelled greetings in Javanese, his native language.



Many of the fishermen previously used seine nets, known locally as cantrang, and wanted to obtain permits to resume using the devices in the wake of the lifting of a ban on their use, Agus Mulyono, chairman of the local chapter of the All Indonesian Fishermens Association (HNSI), said at the event.



The ban on seine nets, which are highly effective, if indiscriminate, tools for sweeping up large amounts of fish, was lifted last November partly on the grounds that it was difficult to enforce, the fisheries ministry said at the time, adding that permits would only be issued to boats already using the nets.



The fishermen were ready to pay taxes on their use of the nets, Agus added.



Some fishermen complained about silting at the port preventing boats from docking at low tide, a problem Jokowi said hed look into.



I have told them that we will conduct dredging operations in the next two or three months, Jokowi said in a statement.



The fishermen said the pandemic hadnt affected their work much, though they did complain about unstable fish prices  something Jokowi said he couldnt do much about.

 2021 Copyright Conservation news

Theme(s): Others.
Pakistan fishermen protest against Japan

by Mohammad Zafar

May 11,2021 | Source: The Express Tribune

Hundreds of fishermen staged a protest on Sunday at Gwadar Press Club against the Japanese governments decision to release contaminated water from its crippled Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea.



They carried placards and banners inscribed with their demands as they chanted slogans against the Japanese government in a bid to show solidarity with the world fishermen.



Criticising the anti-human rights and anti-fishermen rights policies of the incumbent Japanese government, senior leaders of the Gwadar Fisherman Association (GFA), while addressing a press conference explained how Japans decision will affect the livelihood of fishermen and will also damage the eco systems and marine life.



They added that marine analysts and environmental groups have raised doubts over whether Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the company in charge of the plant, can eventually clean up the Fukushima radioactive water before it discharges into the ocean.



GFA affirmed their support for the world fishermen and demanded the Japanese government through its ambassador in Pakistan to request his government to stop such harmful policies.



GFA leaders Afzal Jan, Ghafoor Sajjid, Nakhuda Nabi, Illahi Baksh, Nakuda Obaid and Abdual Khaliq Mengal were also in attendance.

 2021 The Express Tribune

Theme(s): Others.
Costa Ricas tuna regulations affect dolphins and national fishermen

by Todd Staley

May 11,2021 | Source: The Tico Times

For more than two years, a couple of proposed laws have been floating in and out of the Costa Rican congress regarding tuna reform for the foreign purse sein net fleets that fish Costa Ricas marine economic zone, which is 11 times greater than the countrys terrestrial area. To this date it has yet to be voted on.



Costa Rica has no tuna purse sein fleet of its own and sells 60-day licenses to foreign flagged boats to supply the cannery in Puntarenas with product. They were extracting 9,000 tons annually for the plant. That amount was raised because of demand during the pandemic to just over 11,000 tons. At one time they were extracting 25,000 ton a year. One foreign tuna seiner extracts more tuna in one 60 day trip than the entire National commercial fishing fleet of 400 boats extracts in one year.



The Executive President of Incopesca, Daniel Carrasco, who governs all fishing activities in Costa Rica, recently attended workshops with different sectors of sport and commercial fishermen, cannery representatives, seafood exporters as well as members of congress regarding the proposed law. He recently sent his recommendations to the Vice Minister of Agriculture Marlon Monge in a 15-page letter to the Minister.



The letter covered issues concerning several things including, zoning, dolphins and other bycatch, licenses, and establishing a National purse seine fleet. Two items affect Costa Ricans the most, dolphins and zoning. This column does not have space to cover 15 pages item by item so I will address those two.



Carrascos letter to the Vice Minister started:



With the pleasure of greeting you, I am writing to you in order to follow up on the sessions of work that have been carried out for the review of Legislative Files N  21,316 and 21,531, being that both projects contemplate an amendment to the Fisheries and Aquaculture Law (LPA), which promotes the best use of the Tuna resource.



In this regard, I allow myself to reaffirm the commitment of the Costa Rican Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture (INCOPESCA) to continue participating in such an important process and contribute the necessary inputs to help decision-making to promote the



development of the fishing sector under the principles of sustainable development; as well as guide national actions to achieve a timely and effective management that satisfies the interests of the country.



Oh, really!



A little History: Yellowfin tuna and several species of dolphins have a symbiotic relationship in Costa Ricas Pacific waters. They swim together. Giant schools of tuna with massive pods of dolphins at times dolphin pods in the thousands.



Up until 2014 foreign tuna boats just about had the run of Costa Ricas entire Economic Zone. They could set their nets in entire Costa Rican waters up to within 12 miles of the coast while the majority of the National commercial and sport fishing sectors are limited by law to fish within 40 miles of the coast and compete for the same resources.



Costa Rica was only benefiting $37 for every ton of tuna extracted by the foreign vessels from the sale of licenses. Over the years, more than 3000 tons of bycatch, most of it dead was also captured and destroyed from our waters.



This included dolphins, sharks, turtles, manta rays, sailfish, marlin and a total of 100 or more other species. Also over the years more than 6 million dolphins have perished in the Eastern Tropical Pacific in tuna nets. Today they use a method to release most of the dolphins but thousands are harassed and captured over and over again each year. It is estimated around 2000 perish annually in the nets and no one knows how many die after release. Mothers and young are often separated and many of the calves cannot survive on their own.



In 2014 a decree was passed creating protected zones from the tuna fleet for a total of roughly 200,000 square kilometers, (120,000 square miles). Included in that was a coastal zone that extended 40 miles from the coast with an additional 5-mile buffer zone.



A couple of years ago Carrasco asked Da. Marina Marrari if Incopesca could justify moving the tuna boats out from 45 to 60 miles. Marrari, a Phd is a marine scientist and satellite expert who worked for NASA before moving to Costa Rica. She had begun collecting catch data from the sport fishing fleet and comparing catch records before and after the 2014 tuna decree inside the 40 mile coastal protected area.



At the time she was a private consultant and today is Executive Director of the Federacion Costarricense de Pesca. (Costa Rican Fishing Federation) She also noted in her report that there were two subspecies of dolphins that lived mainly within 60 miles of the coast and a 60-mile buffer would protect those two subspecies..



Marrari has continued her research over the last two years and concluded moving tuna boats out further than 60 miles is a much better idea. Carrasco decided to include only her two year old preliminary results in Incopescas recommendation letter rather than the most current data which has been presented publicly many times and shows 60 miles is not enough.



The tuna reform law has bounced in and out of session in the congress and in that time others groups have had time to weigh in on the issue. Although Incopescas recommendation to congress is move the tuna boats out only 60 miles, they and maybe the tuna industry are the only groups that think that is far enough.



The feeling of the different fishing and conservation groups range from moving the boats 100 to 200 miles from the coast to not allowing the netting of dolphins at all in the tuna purse seine industry at all. Over 80% of the net sets in Costa Rica by tuna boats currently surround dolphin pods.



Carrascos letter to the Vice Minister continued, Incidental fishing and impact on other species that are fished with tunas. Purse-seine fishing incidentally captures more than 100 species that are not targeted, with the majority dying in the nets. Of the total purse-seine sets that are made in Costa Rican waters, around 70% have incidental fishing impacts on other species.



Dolphins, sharks, rays and manta rays, dorado, marlins and sailfish are among the most affected species. Among the coastal dolphins (coastal spotted and coastal spinner), they are exclusively affected within the first 60 nautical miles.



hese are PreSubspecies populations of these restricted dolphins mainly within the first 60 nautical miles, as can be seen from the observed catches. In this way, if the first 60 nautical miles of purse-seine fishing are protected, with them the survival of the tunas associated with these herds, as well as the other fauna that exists in this coastal band, will be ensured.



A well written paragraph, written by professional in law rather than science with all the finesse of the best sleight of hand magician. To someone who does not know, it appears to be great, it would protect the dolphins. A quick check with the University of Costa Ricas CIMAR, (the ocean science department) would have told him about the super pods of spinner, spotted, and common dolphins that inhabit the entire Costa Rican territorial waters. These dolphins are constantly affected by tuna purse seine boats.



The adding of protected areas in our coastal waters have actually made the tuna industry more efficient. Their average catch rate per net set has gone up from around 12 tons per set in 2014 before zoning to nearly 20 tons per set in 2019. Ocean management and zoning works.

Theme(s): Fishing Craft, Gear and Fishing Methods.
Five Vietnamese fishermen from sunken ship off Thai coast set to return home

May 11,2021 | Source: VNA

The Embassy of Vietnam in Thailand is doing everything possible to bring home five Vietnamese fishermen found adrift at sea and rescued by Thai seafarers after their ship sank off Vietnams coast last week.



They were aboard a squid fishing vessel that set out from An Thoi Port in Kien Giang provinces Phu Quoc Island. The boat was at anchor in waters adjacent to Thailand and Cambodia early May 7 when its gas tank became leaky and exploded, causing the boat to sink.



The fishermen, having survived the explosion, were adrift until they were rescued by Thai fishermen at around 2pm on the same day. They were later handed over to police in Rayong province.



Two of the fishermen are receiving treatment at a hospital in Rayong, according to the embassy. One suffered burns while the other has a leg injury. Doctors said they will be discharged in one or two weeks.



The three other crewmen are staying at the Rayong police headquarters while they wait for a COVID-19 test.



The Vietnamese embassy has reported the accident to the ships owner and the fishermens families. It has been also working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Consular Department and relevant authorities to complete necessary procedures to bring them back to Vietnam on a flight scheduled in late this month.



The embassy safely brought home four fishermen involved in a similar incident two years ago.

 Copyright, VietnamPlus, Vietnam News Agency (VNA)

Theme(s): Communities and Organisations.
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Why? Vandals destroy lights and windows at Grant County Fairgrounds, causing over $25,000 in damage
In an evolving media landscape, the influence of China in reshaping the entire global information environment cannot be understated. As the worlds media confronts the economic and professional fallout of digital disruption and now the Covid-19 pandemic, Chinas international strategy to exert influence on foreign media has become increasingly sophisticated and influential.

Over the past decade, this international engagement has seen local media outlets from Africa to Europe to Latin America sign MOUs with Chinese media and with Chinas perspective on major issues amplified in a way like never before. Likewise, the ability of China-backed outlets to buck market trends, influence alternative narratives and invest heavily in new digital products is tilting the media playing field in new directions that warrant closer examination.

IFJ is working to build awareness, dialogue on media engagement on China media issues at the international level on issues of labour rights and future of media, while also continuing to strengthen and support media freedom monitoring and advocacy in the East Asia region.

This portal has been established to help understand Chinas rising global media voice. It brings together innovative and ground-breaking IFJ-led research, news and experiences from IFJ affiliates around the world, as well as NGO partners engaged in the China and media development space. An important aim of this work is helping journalists and their unions to better understand the risks and rewards for working with China.
Three journalists from the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) were arrested in Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand, in a police search on May 9. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the National Union of Journalists, Thailand (NUJT), remain concerned for the well-being of the journalists and urge Thai authorities to not deport them.

The three senior journalists, who have not yet been named, fled Myanmar after the military coup ordered the shutdown of DVBs operations in March. According to sources, all three journalists covered anti-coup demonstrations in the country following the coup by the Myanmar military on February 1.

In a statement to US ABC News, DVBs executive director and chief editor, Aye Chan Naing, said the three journalists, along with two activists, were arrested during a random police search and charged with illegal entry into Thailand.

IFJ investigations in Thailand also suggest the journalists were also allegedly arrested for failure to comply with Covid-19 prevention measures.

Since the military coup on February 1, many journalists and media organisation have been targeted under the Penal Code, which stipulates up to three years in prison for spreading false news and causing fear or agitating directly or indirectly a criminal offense against a government employee. There are currently 40 journalists in detention, including two other DVB staff members.

The NUJT said: The Burmese journalists should be provided a team of lawyers to help negotiate. The journalists should be afforded refuge in the city before being transported to a third country temporarily, in order to not be repatriated.

The IFJ said:We call upon Thai authorities to consider appropriate humanitarian responses for the arrested DVB journalists. Unable to work safely in Myanmar, many Burmese journalists have little choice but to flee the country for personal security and in an attempt to continue their important work. The Myanmar army has specifically targeted and jailed journalists and, for this reason, every effort must be made to appeal to Thailands authorities to honour its obligations to support their safe refuge.
Accelerating the vision of preserving memories with its memory and storage products, Kingston Technology today announced its Kingston Is With You campaign. With the new brand positioning message, Kingston Is With You, Kingston aims to bring alive the invincible impact of memories in our lives and emphasizes that memories not only exist in the past, but can also be the driving force that motivates one to move forward in life.

A series of Kingston Is With You themed online and offline activities begin today, kicking off with the premiere of the micro-film, Memories Empower, which unveils a self-recovery journey through memories. In addition, Kingston specially designed a limited-edition gift box that connects memories with the five senses. The gift box comes with 7-Day Memory Challenge cards, assigning 7 mini-tasks to recipients, helping them relive their most precious moments and provide a chance to win heartwarming gifts. Retail channels will also run promotional activities for customers to preserve their meaningful moments and experience the strength in memory with Kingstons products.

Kevin Wu, Sales/Marketing and Business Development Vice President of APAC region, Kingston, said, Kingston has always been a leader in enabling people to preserve their memories through our most reliable and high-performing memory and storage solutions products for business, creative and daily settings. We staunchly believe in the power of memories and its unlimited impact. During these times, we want to bring inspiration and strength to people with a promise that Kingston Is With You. We strive to stand alongside all our customers, to celebrate cherished moments and be there with them during tough times. We would also like to express our deepest admiration and respect, and pay homage to those who show courage, resilience and strength during these testing times.

Brand New Micro-film Brings Memories From the Past to Future

Kingston believes that video is one of the best ways to tell a story. The previously released A Memory to Remember Trilogy micro-film series centered around the significance of past memories and has touched the hearts of millions. This year, to show how Kingston Is With You, Kingston has brought back celebrated advertising director Lo Ging-zim to direct its latest micro-film. Mr. Lo also directed Kingstons three previous micro-films.

While the A Memory to Remember Trilogy micro-film series focused on the memorable past, Memories Empower expands time and space to the present and future. The story depicts a young girls encounters after an abrupt change in life and exploring the theme that memories not only connect people to their past, but it also provides the courage to continue moving forward. Kingston invites viewers to embark on this journey of self-recovery through this micro-film.

Experience the Power of Memories with Kingstons Limited-edition Giftbox

Extending its credo of Memories Empower further, Kingston has specially designed a limited-edition memory gift box that stimulates the five senses: sight, touch, taste, hearing and smell. Cards for each day of the 7 memory-related challenges, along with a Kingston x CSD face mask are included in the gift box, encouraging people to revisit small but treasured moments and rediscover the happiness of little things in life.

From May 14-18, Kingston will recruit its users to participate in the 7-Day Memory Challenge. Participants selected will be announced on Kingstons Facebook Fan Page on May 20. Those who share their challenges online will have a chance to win an iPhone 12 and other exciting gifts.

Kingstons exciting Summer Sale Promotion will start from May 13 to Jun 24. Customer will receive the Kingston x CSD limited-edition masks (3pcs) with any purchase of SSD 480G and above or HyperX RGB memory.

From cherishing memorable moments of the past to continuing the journey forward, Kingston Is With You.
Imperial Valley News Center

No COVID Vax, No College?

Tucson, Arizona - Students looking forward to getting back to college are getting letters from 100 to 200 colleges notifying them of a new prerequisite: getting fully vaccinated against COVID-19. As one letter states, this is because of our our continued desire to protect the health and safety of our community. This includes high-risk individuals in the surrounding community or wherever the students go in the mass migration at the end of the semester, according to the American College Health Association (ACHA).

The main purpose of the requirement is not to protect the students themselves. Of all COVID deaths, only about 0.1% have been in 15-to-24-year-olds. Yet young people can suffer death or serious disability after getting the jab. (Authorities point out that it is not necessarily because of the jab.) According to a controversial independent analysis, the aggressive Israeli vaccination campaign killed more than 200 times as many young persons as the coronavirus itself could have killed during the same 35-week period.

One of the commenters on the ACHAs recommendation wrote: It is perfectly reasonable for a society to expect its members, *all* of its members, to take up such risks on behalf of everyone. Unless you plan on putting a bullet in your own head on your thirty ninth birthday, one day *you* will be that elderly person who benefits disproportionately from universal vaccination. To not accept that risk now, yet expect that protection later, would make you a hypocrite.

So much for the parental instinct to protect childreninstead of using or sacrificing them!

We do not know the precise number of post-vaccine adverse events, because of incomplete reporting, or the percentage that were caused by the jab and not coincidental. But one can see the number and types of events reported to the U.S. Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) or the more user-friendly British Yellow Card system. These include death, clotting or bleeding problems, paralysis, blindness, and miscarriages (213 in VAERS as of today).

The long-term adverse events cannot yet be known. The prospect of most concern to the young women calling our office is infertility. There is no evidence that the products currently available cause infertility. And also no evidence that they dont. There are plausible reasons to worry. Viral spike protein has been found in placentas from mothers who gave birth after having COVID. And the spike protein itself, without any virus, can attach to the lining of blood vessels and many tissues, and even cross the blood-brain barrier, and wreak havoc.

Getting your own body to make spike protein is what these genetically engineered products do.

Concerning fertility, the one relevant animal experiment, in 1,273 Sprague-Dawley rats, showed a numerically lower pregnancy rate, but within the facilitys historical range. The rats were not injected in early pregnancy when organs are forming, to check for birth defects.

There are thousands of reports of menstrual irregularities, though these are not officially recognized as side effects, and many things including anxiety can affect the menstrual cycle. There are worries disseminated in social media but debunked by fact-checkers that menstrual problems and other effects can result from contacts with vaccinated persons.

The vaccine-induced spike proteins are supposed to stay attached to your cells and cause your body to make antibodies that will recognize the virus. Can they be shed into the environment and picked up by others by contact or inhalation? I dont know of a mechanism. But it seems odd to me that the Pfizer experimental trials not only excluded women who were or might soon become pregnant, but also required men to abstain or use a condom for 28 days post injection. Just FDA bureaucracy and abundance of caution?

There is no abundance of caution in forcing this product onto students entering their prime reproductive years. No concern about reproductive rights.

It is unlawful to use coercion to gain acceptance of products available only through an Emergency Use Authorization, but colleges are confident of quick FDA approval, even though trials wont be complete until 2022 or 2023.

The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons has written to college administrators urging them to withdraw the mandate but has received no reply. Grants from ACHA, which receives grants from Pfizer and CDC, probably talk louder.

So, what can students do? Be cheerful or reluctant participants in a massive uncontrolled experiment and hope for the best? Seek an exemption? Or pause their education plansand outrageous tuition?

There are help wanted signs everywhere. For learning, there are libraries, and more on-line opportunities will spring up. A college degree may be unnecessary or can wait. The biological window for having a family will close. How much risk of infertility should young people take?
Imperial Valley News Center

Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia Applauds Governor Newsoms $220 Million Proposal for the Salton Sea

Sacramento, California - Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks, and Wildlife, applauds Governor Gavin Newsoms $5.1 billion water infrastructure, drought response, and climate resilience proposal, which includes $220 million for the Salton Sea. After Garcias persistent advocacy efforts, the newly announced Salton Sea funding would maximize habitat outcomes and provide immediate economic relief to the community.

The Governors new water infrastructure proposal brings big news and potentially big dollars for the Salton Sea. Working in active coordination with the Governor and his administration, we are grateful to have the Governors support to ramp up Salton Sea mitigation efforts and excited for this opportunity to build on our progress with an additional $220 million state investment, said Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia.

This newly proposed $220 million would reinforce the $200 million we previously secured in Proposition 68 and align with our current legislative push to unlock $240 million for the Salton Sea along with other necessary allocations for community climate resilience and water infrastructure investments. The clock is ticking, and we must focus all of our energy to bring home these funds, meet our mitigation benchmarks, and improve the urgent public health, ecological, and economic conditions for our region, said Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia.

Last week, Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia convened a special Water, Parks, and Wildlife Committee informational hearing on California drought preparedness, highlighting the need for additional investments in climate resilience. This year, Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia introduced AB 1500, a climate resilience bond that includes $240 million for the Salton Sea and $15 million for the New River. This initiative goes hand in hand to achieve Governor Newsoms water infrastructure and climate resilience goals for California.

Newly proposed investments for the Salton Sea would build on the $200 million Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia previously secured for the Salton Sea and New River through Proposition 68. Since Garcias landmark $200 million investment, the California Natural Resources Agency was able to kick off construction on the Species Conservation Habitat (SCH) project in January 2021. As part of the Salton Sea Management Plan, this project would create approximately 3,000 jobs and marks the states first large-scale project to create habitat and reduce exposed lakebed around the Sea. Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia and Senator Ben Hueso also supported legislation to expedite the delivery of the project.
Are you yelling at the rain as a leader? It's easy to imagine that on some days, especially if you operate in the tourism or agriculture business, you might begin to see the weather as your enemy. But if you find yourself actually yelling at the rain, blaming the weather or some other uncontrollable factor for a downturn in your business, then you're missing a key point.

While the weather might be negatively impacting your business, it's doing the same thing to your competitors. In other words, if your business is suffering, it's not the rain's fault. It's your job as a leader to dig deeper and identify the real constraint inside your business.

It's not the weather's fault.

This is a bad habit that some CEOs fall into--they begin to blame external factors for the poor performance of their business. Aside from the weather, other common targets of fury are the economy, the job market, and whatever administration is in the White House. It doesn't matter which party is in control--someone will blame them for doing things wrong.

The catch, just like with the weather, is that whatever the administration is doing is also impacting your competitors as well. Meaning, it isn't really creating a disadvantage to your business. The rain falls on everyone.

The other problem with blaming the weather and the politicians is that there isn't anything you can do directly to change things. Sure, you might be able to lobby or put some pressure on a local elected official. But that's going to result only in limited change. And forget about trying to change the weather.

One of my favorite books is a classic by the famed Dale Carnegie called Stop Worrying and Start Living. The main takeaway from Dale's book is that if you can't do anything about a particular problem, and you can live with the worst-case scenario, then it's best to stop worrying about it and just move on and spend your time and energy elsewhere.

Finding your kink.

As I wrote about in my book, Great CEOs Are Lazy, one of the most impactful activities any leader can do with their time is to spend it identifying that "kink" in their hose--the real point of constraint that's holding up the growth of their business.

Maybe it's a business model problem, like the lack of recurring revenue or a non-defensible market position. Or it could even be a systems problem that makes onboarding new employees difficult and inefficient.

But when I talk to CEOs, only about half of them really understand what their constraint is. They're more worried about the economy or regulatory environment--which, as we have defined, are not factors that can control.

Even the war for top talent is something that every business is dealing with--including your competitors.

The power of change.

One way to help understand if you are dealing with an "environmental" constraint--one that is impacting your entire market--versus your true point of constraint is to answer the question: Can you change it?

If you can't change it, then it's best to embrace Dale Carnegie and stop worrying about it. That doesn't mean you can't do anything about it or take action to adapt to those environmental conditions. It's just that you must stop blaming it as the primary reason for the slowing growth of your business.
In the era of Covid-19, the concept of time took on a particularly meaningful role. For some, this was an occasion to slow down and take stock of priorities. For others, this was a moment to speed up and focus on passions before opportunity passed them by. The pandemic was a reminder that rather than allow time to dictate our lives, we should instead direct how we spend our own time. The significance of the moment was not lost on Jess Chow, co-founder of the Vieren luxury watch company, who, in March 2020, was readying to launch a modern take on the traditional automatic watch. Jess and her co-founder, renowned Canadian fashion designer and Project Runway all-star Sunny Fong, were forced to decide if they would put their entrepreneurial dreams on hold or follow their ambitions to launch a new venture. As Jess details it, since their brand celebrates "making the most of time as opposed to wasting time," they were moved to go for it. Jess spoke to us from her home office in Toronto to share her perspective on introducing the next generation to an old-world craft, turning obstacles into opportunities, and going all in on your dreams.

What's your founder's story?

I come from a family of watchmakers. My mom and dad make watches. Growing up, my parents talked about it all the time at home. So, naturally, I didn't like it at all. It was not something I wanted to pursue. Instead, I became a management consultant--advising brands, building businesses, and learning as much as possible about many other industries. But as I got older, my perspective changed.

I have long had an interest in entrepreneurship--in starting my own company--though it was something I thought I'd pursue much later in life. As a kid, you sort of always think that you have so much time. But when I turned 30, I better understood that time is so precious. And all the effort I was investing in other peoples' business priorities was effort not being spent on my own passions and priorities. That is when I told myself that if I was going to start a company, now was the time.

It was kismet, because I met a designer, now my business partner, Sunny Fong, who looks at the world the same way I do. When I told Sunny about my family's background, he recalled getting a unique timepiece, a watch with a rectangular face, when he graduated from high school. As a designer, he was inspired to create something that honored his past. As the daughter of watchmakers, I was similarly inspired to reconnect with my roots, albeit with a twist. Neither of us wanted to literally repeat the past. We wanted to bring things forward--pairing aspects of traditional watchmaking with modern design thinking.

As a starting place, Sunny and I traveled to Switzerland. We went to go learn from the best about the state of the watchmaking industry, including the craft. Our view as outsiders, affirmed by those on the inside, was that there was too much sameness. Too many watch brands were doing a lot of the same things--including replicating one another's designs. As next-generation leaders, we were going to do things differently--pushing beyond what was familiar to deliver something surprising.

Foundationally, Sunny and I both had a fascination with automatic watches. When Sunny turned 40, he started wearing his dad's automatic watch as a way to remind himself to always keep moving--because that is how you power it, by wearing it. And when you don't wear it, time stops. Today, when too many are sitting still, staring at a screen, wasting time, we believed that reintroducing the automatic solution would be an important piece of history to bring forward. When we told our friends about it, they would often ask, "Is it like an Apple watch?" Our response: "Well, actually, it's like the opposite." So, we knew we were on to something--investing in handcrafted heritage art from centuries ago, giving it a modern design aesthetic, and granting a new generation access to experience it for the first time.

With Vieren, we would challenge what an automatic watch could look like, we would challenge gender stereotypes--to demonstrate that watch designs do not have to be separated into conventional male versus female options--and we would challenge the idea that obtaining a very high-quality timepiece required paying Rolex prices. We were going to bring a modern sensibility to a traditional space.

That is our brand's origin story. Born of a shared ambition, inspired by our upbringing, and encouraged by some modern masters. Together, Sunny and I are passionately working to write the next chapter of the automatic watch for new generations.

You mentioned taking an important trip to Switzerland. In today's marketplace, how important, or relevant, is it to brand a watch as "Swiss-made"? Does it even matter?

A number of industry insiders told us that nobody in this new generation really knows what Swiss-made means. They advised us against investing so much time and effort into something that didn't matter as much to today's audience. We pushed back on that.

Too many brands and leaders cut corners to make things faster and easier, but not better. We wanted to produce a quality product that would last a lifetime. For Sunny, a world-renowned fashion designer, and for me, having grown up surrounded by the business, it was essential to start with exceptional engineering and craftsmanship. While others were prepared to lean away from the Swiss tradition, we were going to lean into it--to celebrate it and revitalize it for new generations, who, by the way, do have respect for quality and craft. Our brand of watches was going to be both timely and timeless, not trendy and fleeting.

Was it easy to follow through on our plan? No.

First, most Swiss watch manufacturers require a commitment to manufacturing at least 100,000 pieces. As we were creating limited editions, only 500 pieces in our first collection, we couldn't just buy our way into a conventional production agreement.

Second, since our design featured a unique rectangular case, inspired by the same watch Sunny received years ago at his graduation, new processes had to be developed to make our vision real. Putting a watch movement inside required fitting a circle perfectly into a rectangle. And because it's an automatic watch movement, you're talking about a bigger circle. If your measurements are off by the slightest fraction, it just will not fit together. It took five to six months to master the prototypes. Not only were we asking an established Swiss institution to make a financial commitment in our brand, we were also asking them to invest their valuable time without any guarantee of a high return on investment.

Still, we succeeded for one main reason: The Swiss watchmaking industry had to evolve if it was going to stay vital. The industry had to become more agile, flexible, and modern. Ultimately, we partnered with a Swiss manufacturer who shared our ambition--to help bring the past forward.

It's actually really cool. If you watch some of the videos of our factory in motion, you'll see that youth are well represented. So, it is older and younger, mentors and proteges, working to make something new with the potential to last for generations.

When it came to where you manufactured, you didn't take the easy route. The same could be said for when you chose to launch, in 2020. How, if at all, did Covid-19 impact your brand's early success?

Doing things the hard way, turning obstacles into opportunity, has definitely been a recurring theme for us. We were readying to launch Vieren in March 2020, when many other businesses were closing because of the Covid-19 global pandemic. So, we took a brief pause and asked ourselves if this was really the right time to launch. Would it be tone-deaf to launch a luxury product at a time when the world was more focused on essential items ahead of extravagant ones?

As the focus of our work was on making the most of time, not on wasting time, we felt like our work had relevance. So, while we took a brief pause to assess in March, we moved forward, in a thoughtful way, in September 2020. We held a Covid-safe launch event at a restaurant in Toronto. We could host up to 10 people at a time on the restaurant's patio. Since I love tasting menus, Sunny and I created a mash-up--taking the tradition of the tasting menu and reimagining it with aspects of our work: cocktails, an amuse-bouche, a first and second course, plus a sampling of the Vieren brand. For 30 minutes at a time, special guests could learn about how automatic watches work, learn about our story, and, of course, experience our products.

The product launch, as we hoped, was a success. However, there was another success that I am equally proud of. Event-goers did not just love the brand, they also were moved by our founders' story of having an ambition and pursuing it despite big hurdles. Our story helped inspire others to move from dreaming to doing--to elevate their side hustles into priorities and new business startups, too.

Sunny and I said at the outset of this venture that, as individuals and as a team, we wanted to make the most of our time. It's meaningful that, through Vieren, we are motivating others to do the same.

You talked about going back to founding ideas and ideals to help you navigate through difficult times. Can you elaborate on that theme a little more?

Our internal slogan, our mantra, is to "power your time." It is directly related to the idea that when you wear an automatic watch, you are powering the movement--it is your power, your time, your life. All of us have the opportunity and strength to make time move for us. In an out-of-control world, we're giving people a sense of personal power and control.

I find that, especially during this Covid era, some days time moves very quickly and some days it seems to move not at all. By wearing my watch every day it reminds me, when it stops, that I have not gotten out of the house all day. I need to keep it powered. Sunny and I sometimes joke that the automatic watch is, in fact, the original Fitbit. But it works.

As an important aside, when Sunny and I originally conceived the brand, we called it Gordon, after my father. That said, we ran into a legal issue with the name--another obstacle for our launch. We turned to our brand purpose to help solve the problem. Powering your time--being powerful with your time--motivated us to do a language search. Vieren is Dutch for "celebrate," to feast in life's most important moments. Through our work, we are celebrating those who choose to take power over their time.

Given all you have learned launching Vieren, what advice do you have for aspiring entrepreneurs and future leaders looking to power their ideas?

Have clarity about why you are doing the work you're doing--your purpose. Trust your intuition. And go all in on your dreams.

As it relates to purpose, when Sunny and I began our collaboration, we had an ambition, but we didn't go from zero to 100 right away. We took the time to research, talk to mentors, and evaluate if there was a white space opportunity. We did lots of reasonable work. In fact, we spoke to so many people that the situation started to become unreasonable. There was too much research. And too many opinions. If we did not have a clear sense of purpose, it would have been easy to get lost and give up. Each time we're at a crossroads, we go back to our purpose to gain focus and make good long-term decisions, even in the short-term.

As it relates to intuition, as we continue to grow Vieren, we find that we have lots of ideas. We always want to improve and refine to get to that one perfect answer. But often, our best idea is the first one. That's why we named our inaugural collection OG Automatic. Because whenever we get lost, we always go back to our original idea. And today, we look to it as a reminder to ourselves to always trust our gut.
Jack Whitehall took a swipe at failed London mayoral candidate Laurence Fox while hosting the Brit Awards 2021.

Looking for positives after what he described as a tough year for the music industry, the comedian pointed out that Foxs tragic foray into politics means that at least he finally stopped making music.

Tonights Brit Awards mark the first live large-scale indoor event in London since March last year. The ceremony is taking place as usual at the O2 Arena and features live performances from the likes of The Weeknd, Olivia Rodrigo, Arlo Parks, Headie One, and this years BRITs Rising Star-award winner Griff.

The show will also feature a special performance by RagnBone Man and P!nk accompanied by the Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust Choir. Taylor Swift is also set to be honoured with this years Global Icon award, as she attends the event in person.

To watch from home, you can tune in to the Brit Awards YouTube channel, or watch from ITV and ITV Hub.

You can also follow The Independents live coverage here.
Dozens of bodies have been pulled out from the banks of Ganges river in two bordering states of Northern India suspected to be of Covid-19 patients  as the countrys deadly second wave continues tro ravage the country.

On Tuesday, 100 bodies were found floating in in the Ganges in Uttar Pradesh, northern India, according to media reports. That came after similar sightings in the state of Bihar, in the village Chausa, where bodies of over 40 people were pulled out from the river on Monday.

Officials have not confirmed whether these bodies are of Covid-19 patients.

Ghazipurs District Magistrate MP Singh told the ANI news agency that an investigation has been launched to find out where the bodies came from.

"We got the information, our officers are present on the spot and an investigation is underway. We are trying to find out where they came from," Mr Singh said.

The town of Ghazipur is just 55 kilometres away from Bihars Buxar district, where the bodies were found on Monday.

Video of the incident in Chausas Mahadev Ghat has gone viral. Several locals quoted in various reports claimed the number of dead bodies was as high as 100, but officials have claimed there were only about 50 dead bodies.

The authorities have said that an autopsy will be done to find out whether these are bodies of Covid-19 patients or not. Locals have, however, accused officials of denial.

"We informed the administration about the matter, but no action has been taken by them. If the situation continues like this, there is fear of us getting infected by coronavirus," said Akhand, a resident to news agency ANI.

There is also a shortage of wood and other material required for cremation, one local who was not named told news agency PTI. So many bereaved family members are impelled to immerse the bodies of their departed relatives in the river, he said.

In absence of any Covid protocols at rural crematoriums, there are fears of further spread of the infection through deadbodies if they are dumped in water.

The Ganges river flows through the states of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and finally into West Bengal where it empties out into the Bay of Bengal.

India reported 329,000 fresh cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday, with 3,876 more people dying of the infection in the last 24 hours.
Mahavir Narwal, 71, the father of jailed Indian political activist Natasha Narwal, died from coronavirus on Sunday. He passed away after talking about never being able to see his daughter again in an interview, a fear that seemingly came true.

Natasha has been in jail in New Delhi for the last year for allegedly being part of a premeditated conspiracy in the deadly 2020 Delhi riots that rocked the city in February, killing about 50 people, but was not allowed to leave prison to see her ailing father one last time.

The 31-year-old was only granted interim bail on Monday, a day after his death, to cremate her father.

Speaking to The Independent over the phone from Mahavirs house, Jagmati Sangwan an activist and close friend of his, said it was unfair and heartless for the judge to schedule the urgent bail plea for Monday.

It is unfair that the bail was not scheduled on urgency. Her aged father was in a serious condition and her brother was also down with Covid, there was literally no one to look after the two as her mother passed away when she was young. The judge snatched away the opportunity for the two to meet one last time, said Ms Sangwan.

Natasha took part in protests against Indias Citizenship (Amendment) Act, a contentious law approved in 2019 to grant citizenship to illegal migrants from the Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Christian, Parsi, and Jain faiths, but excluded Muslims.

A source close to the family told PTI news agency that Mahavir was not able to speak to his daughter who is in jail.

Devika Shekhawat, a close friend of Natasha, told The Independent that the urgent plea to see her ailing father was not listed by the courts on Friday.

She should have been allowed to visit her ailing father and be by his side during these difficult times and be able to support the family, Ms Shekhawat said. He was pillar of strength and support not just for Natasha but for all of us who felt unsure and broken.

Activist Kavita Krishnan and a member of the Communist Party of India (CPI) described it as cruel and torture to keep political prisoners jailed during covid.

"This is so bloody cruel & sadistic: its a form of torture to keep political prisoners jailed during a pandemic, forced to suffer not only prison, but the pain of being away from loved ones who are dying. Natashas brother also has Covid-19," she said on Twitter.

Activist Harsh Mander also offered his condolences remembering Mahavir, describing him as a hero for supporting Natasha.

An interview of Mahavir, a senior member of the Communist Party of India, is going viral in social media in which he showed Natashas room and the library he was making for the time when she would return from prison.

I hope shes not in jail so long she doesnt see my face, he said.
If there is one measure in the Queens Speech that appears to be a more or less naked attempt at suppression of the Labour vote, it is the proposal for compulsory voter ID at polling stations. The many critics of the idea, again mostly on the opposition benches, argue it is as unnecessary as it is undemocratic. They note that in recent years there has been only one conviction for this particular type of election fraud, personation, as impersonation is known in this context. The Electoral Commission noted with some satisfaction in a 2014 review that there is no evidence to suggest that there have been widespread, systematic attempts to undermine or interfere with recent elections through electoral fraud.

In the course of their discussions with election officials in town halls, the police and others, the Electoral Commission concluded this: Electoral fraud is not widespread, and reports of specific fraud are focused on specific places in England in a few local authority areas. Even in those cases, the type of fraud tended to be harvesting of postal votes by campaigners, rather than the very rare examples of personation. Outside Northern Ireland, where the old slogan was vote early, vote often, personation has never been an issue in UK elections. The problem of dishonesty, one might add, is more likely to lie with those who get elected rather than the electorate, given what we know about the MPs expenses scandal and various instances of hypocrisy and worse perpetrated by serving ministers.
In the summer of 2019, Stephen Paskey, 60, was on vacation, sitting in an Istanbul cafe, smoking a hookah. As much as he had hoped to meet a life partner by then, it just wasnt happening. In a few years, he thought, he would retire and maybe move to South America.

Eight months later, back home in Buffalo, New York, he connected online with Sarah Lenz, 57. Given how well they clicked, both say that, under normal circumstances, they probably would have met within a day or two  but times were anything but normal. It was late March 2020, two weeks after the country shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic. And then, of course, there was another obstacle: the 2,654 miles between them.

Lenz had recently moved from her home in Philadelphia across the country to Santa Rosa, California, to live with her father, Peter Dodge, who had Alzheimers disease. She changed the parameters on her OkCupid account to show the highest matches possible, regardless of geography. Paskey registered as a 99 per cent match.

Lenz already knew a thing or two about online dating. The first time she tried it was after the break up of her marriage  she and her former husband had been together for 30 years and had two children  and she felt she had nothing to lose. Embracing what she called radical honesty, she felt she would rather be upfront about who she was from the start. She followed that approach when she connected with Paskey.

He, too, put some really vulnerable stuff in his profile, she says.

Sarahs willingness and fearlessness in being honest is what brought us together, adds Paskey.

Lenz, a graphic designer and artist, grew up in Berkeley, California, while Paskey, raised in Kalamazoo, Michigan, is a lecturer in law, legal analysis, writing and research at the University at Buffalo School of Law. He spent more than a decade working in the Department of Justice, bringing to trial Nazi collaborators who came to the United States after the war. But he began his career working in desktop publishing and typesetting, the field in which Lenz also began her career.

Given the shutdown and the distance between them, there was plenty of time for long, rambling conversations on the phone or online. Paskey opened up about his two short-term marriages and other relationships, while Lenz had a more recent story to tell. She had met her husband when she was 17, and theirs was an open marriage. In 2013, she left him, taking a few years to be on her own as an adult for the first time. She then moved to Philadelphia, where her first grandchild was born. Urged by one of her sons to go on OkCupid, she met someone and fell in love. She and her new partner started living together in a polyamorous relationship until, in June 2019, he was diagnosed with metastasised colon cancer. Six weeks later, he died.

Lenz says that one of the last things he said to her was: Im not worried about you. You will find love again.

She believes he not only gave her permission, but willed it to happen. Lenz flew back to Philadelphia for his memorial service in March 2020, only to turn right around and fly back. The service couldnt be held because of Covid-19.

Lenz went on OkCupid for the second time after she returned. Within days of Paskey and Lenz connecting, they were talking and texting numerous times a day.

Given their mutual love of language, Lenz quickly fell for how Paskey expressed himself.

And theres a way we relate to the world thats really similar, she says.

He felt so familiar, and it was so comfortable, it was such a confirmation of what we already knew

But words were not the only way they used to expressed themselves long distance. They also have a fondness for emojis, and within weeks Paskey used them to tell Lenz he loved her.

About six weeks in, they began discussing the logistics of meeting in person. Since flying was not an option and Lenz needed to be with her father, Paskey calculated he could drive across the country between the end of the semester and the start of summer school, since he could teach remotely from anywhere.

The possibility that their online chemistry wouldnt translate to real life was broached, but both sensed that this wouldnt happen. In fact, a week before he left, Lenz told a friend: I think Im going to marry this man.

In late May, he set out, with a hand-lettered sign in his back window that read: Love or Bust, 2,654 miles. Each day, he crossed out that number, going from 2,654 to 2,149 to 1,793 to 1,202 to 730 to 223, posting his progress on Facebook, until he met Lenz on 1 June in a park in Santa Rosa. Crossing out the last number fell to Lenz.

He felt so familiar, and it was so comfortable, she says. It was such a confirmation of what we already knew.

A few days later, they went away for the weekend, to Sea Ranch, an unincorporated community on the Sonoma coast, where her father had designed some of the homes.

Sarah has this remarkable resilience, and I love the open and curious, engaged and joyful, nonjudgmental way she approaches her life, and thinking about her past, present and future, Paskey says. And how she can go from talking about rainbows and unicorns with her granddaughter to long conversations with me about how we experience time, or how language shapes our thoughts.

Lenz echoes his sentiments: I love him for his brilliant mind, and that hes a total goofball.

The night they returned, they were having dinner in Paskeys trailer rental, when he told her he had a retirement account whose beneficiary needed updating. He asked Lenz if he could name her.

I dont want you to do that unless youre going to marry me, she said.

Even though Paskey hadnt planned on proposing yet, he dropped to one knee.

With most of the state shut down because of the pandemic, there was little to do but take long walks. Nevertheless, Paskey soon began joining Lenz and her father for dinner.

Rather than simply accepting prevailing cultural norms and prescriptions for love and legal marriage, you stand together now to be explicit about your commitments to each other

After two months, Paskey returned to Buffalo. By now, Lenzs father had moved into a memory-care facility. Soon after, it was Lenzs turn to drive across country. When she entered Paskeys house in Buffalo, she felt instantly at home.

On Paskeys agenda was showing Lenz a spot in an industrial park that he could envision for their wedding. When they visited it, they saw a white stag. A close friend of Paskeys lived nearby, and while deer are known to frequent the area, he had never seen the stag before.

It felt like the magic of our relationship, so unexpected and precious, and once in a lifetime, Lenz says.

They were married at 12:34 pm by Arann Harris, a Universal Life Church minister, on an overcast 3 April at the Sea Ranch Chapel, back in Sea Ranch on the Sonoma coast. The only witnesses were a photographer and a stuffed teddy bear containing the ashes of Lenzs late partner. The partner, she said, encouraged me to look, and there was Stephen.

The couple have agreed to enter what they call an ethical non-monogamous relationship.

Rather than simply accepting prevailing cultural norms and prescriptions for love and legal marriage, you stand together now to be explicit about your commitments to each other, the minister told them. You share the understanding that love is abundant, and every relationship is unique. You choose to build your relationship on love and respect rather than entitlement.

During the ceremony, Harris read a number of emails from friends, filling the space with the wishes of our communities, as Lenz puts it.

The pandemic has been exhausting in every way, and watching the two of them find each other, despite all the obstacles, both real and ridiculous, has brought me such delight, and delight to everyone Ive told about them, said Robyn Rime, one of Paskeys close friends. Theyve managed to transcend whats going on in the world.

 The New York Times
A 21-year-old man has been charged with the murder of PCSO Julia James.

James, a well-respected police community support officer known for her work helping domestic violence victims, was found dead in Akholt Wood near her home in Snowdown, Kent, on 27 April.

Callum Wheeler, from Aylesham, has been charged with her murder, Kent Police said.

He remains in custody and is due to appear via videolink at Medway Magistrates' Court on Tuesday.

James, who has been described as "fiercely loyal" by her family, died from serious head injuries while out walking her dog.

Police issued an image of Julia James in the clothes she was wearing before she was killed (Kent Police)

On Wednesday, police issued an image of her in the clothes she was wearing before she was killed.

The picture shows James walking her Jack Russell, Toby, while wearing a light blue waterproof coat, blue jeans and dark Wellington-style brown boots.

Police said it was the same clothing, apart from the gloves, which she wore on the day she died.

Large numbers of police, from several forces, were in Aylesham on Monday as the probe into her death continued.

Dozens of officers used poles to painstakingly search through undergrowth in a field and beside a lane.

The searches have been taking place around a field less than two miles from James' home in the hamlet of Snowdown.

Elsewhere in the village, a row of houses was cordoned off and a forensic van was seen driving away from the scene.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) said one of its national senior investigating officer advisors (NSIOA) was leading a team of officers from the agency's major crime investigative support unit (MCIS), who are providing advice and guidance, as well as access to a number of specialists, to Kent Police.

The NCA said its support included a national family liaison adviser, national interview adviser (witnesses and suspects), digital media adviser, geographical and behavioural profiling, a forensic clinical psychologist and national injuries specialist.

Additional reporting by PA
An inquest has been launched into the death of a stroke patient thought to have been sexually assaulted in hospital, but has been adjourned for five months.

Valerie Kneale, 75, died on 16 November 2018 at Blackpool Victoria Hospital.

Ms Kneale died four days after suffering a stroke and breaking her leg after falling from a chair.

However, a post mortem found that Ms Kneale died due to an internal and external haemorrhage which was in turn due to a vaginal laceration or tear, Alan Wilson, coroner for Blackpool and Fylde said.

The pathologists report believed her death was caused by a sexual assault after she was admitted to hospital.

Following a murder inquiry into Ms Kneales death, further allegations of serious sexual assault against two patients and the sexual assault of a healthcare professional working on the stroke unit were reported.

A male hospital worker was arrested on suspicion of murder, two offences of rape and one of sexual assault. He was released on bail until 3 June.

Mr Wilson adjourned the hearing for five months while police continue their investigations into what happened.

It is clearly necessary for this court to further adjourn the investigation into Mrs Kneales death in order to allow the police to continue with their investigations, he said. We ought not to hold an inquest while the police are actively pursuing their own investigation.
Schoolchildren and hospital patients could be fed meat from hormone-fed cattle, chlorine-washed chicken and pigs kept in cruel stalls that are illegal in the UK under a trade deal with Australia, experts are warning.

Farmers and environmentalists say allowing imports that create high greenhouse gas emissions and undermine animal welfare would be grossly hypocritical of the government.

The UK and Australia have agreed the vast majority of a post-Brexit free trade deal, aiming to seal a deal by next month. Ministers hope a deal would help the economy to surge ahead as it recovers from the pandemic.

But a clause in government buying guidelines allows public-sector bodies to use imported food that would be illegal to produce in the UK if they can justify doing so on cost grounds.

MPs on the Commons food and rural affairs committee have called for the closure of the loophole for hospitals, schools, prisons and government departments, warning that ministers should lead by example on food standards.

The government points out that importing hormone beef or chlorinated chicken would be illegal, and trade secretary Liz Truss, who has been negotiating with Australia, has promised not to lower food import standards.

Additionally, the Conservative manifesto states: In all of our trade negotiations, we will not compromise on our high environmental protection, animal welfare and food standards.

However, fears have arisen that the combination of the buying loophole, together with Australian pressure for a deal, could mean people in institutions being served cheaper products that undercut UK production standards and cause more eco damage.

It includes meat from pigs kept in confined sow stalls that are banned in the UK and from cattle treated with growth hormones that are banned in the EU; wool from sheep that have had their back ends painfully cut, and powdered eggs from battery-caged hens, outlawed in Britain since 2012.

Farmers in Australia and the US use artificial hormones to fatten cattle more quickly although there are suspicions that at least one of them is carcinogenic.

And chicken carcasses are often washed with chlorine to kill bacteria that have infected the birds, according to evidence from Compassion in World Farming submitted to the government.

Campaigners say the step would also undermine Britains farmers and be bad for human and animal health.

The warnings echo those given over chlorinated chicken and hormone beef from the US under a trade deal.

Rob Percival, of the Soil Association, said: It would be grossly hypocritical for the UK government to allow unsustainable meat to be served in schools and hospitals.

As the hosts of Cop26, the UK should be leading by example, prioritising the purchase of low-carbon and higher welfare foods. This means buying British, and serving less and better meat.

He called for the loophole to be closed urgently to avoid exporting carbon emissions and betraying British citizens and farmers.

David Bowles, the RSPCAs head of public affairs, told The Independent more of Australias farm animals were farmed intensively than the UKs, with only 7 per cent of hens free-range, against 55 per cent in Britain.

Merino wool sheep are subjected to mulesing, where folds of skin and flesh are cut off without anaesthetic to prevent flystrike, a practice illegal in the UK, he said.

And a recent Australian government-commissioned report last month found big problems with humaneness of slaughter in abattoirs that would fail British standards.

Id also say their standard of farming is not as good as here. Standards are poorer and standards of care are poorer, he said. And he warned the government not to break its promise on animal welfare.

Australia uses sow stalls, in which pigs cannot turn round (Jo-Anne McArthur / Animal Equality / We Animals Media)

Martin Lines, UK chairman of the Nature Friendly Farming Network said: Farmers across the UK have been working tirelessly to raise their concerns about the threat of being undercut by low-standard imported products, and these concerns about potential imports of low-environmental standards, high-carbon Australian meat are exactly what we were afraid of.

Kate Norgrove, of WWF said: Its vital that any new trade deal the UK government signs up to ensures that all food sold in the UK, including that served in hospitals and schools, is produced in ways that protect peoples health and the environment.

Australia is the only developed country on the list of the worlds largest 24 deforestation hot spots, she said.

Ms Truss told the BBCs Andrew Marr last month: I can absolutely promise that were not going to lower our excellent food standards to do this trade deal.

In their report, the MPs said they were surprised and disappointed the government buying standards had not been used to improve animal welfare, sustainability and support for domestic producers.

They wrote: As well as sending the wrong message about the importance of such standards, it is inappropriate for the government to advocate high food production standards for imports in future trade deals when any part of our public sector is exempt. The loophole, even if rarely used, must be closed.

A government spokesperson said: This government has been clear that in all of our trade negotiations we will not compromise on our high environmental protection, animal-welfare and food standards, and we will stand firm in trade negotiations to ensure any future trade deals live up to the values of farmers and consumers across the UK.

We will not undercut our own reputation for quality by lowering our food and animal welfare standards in pursuit of a trade deal.
Jerseys fishermen say they are suffering considerably more than their French counterparts in the ongoing row over fishing rights and claim their trawlers are being turned away from port by a mob of aggressors.

Following a day of high drama on Thursday when 60 French boats blockaded St Helier harbour, the fishermen allege that off the north coast of France a Jersey fisherman was harassed by French dockworkers.

Michael Michieli, who runs a trawler out of St Helier, told The Independent one of his colleagues had been unceremoniously dismissed from port by a hostile group.

The veteran fisherman said: Jason tried yesterday and he was met by a load of bullies on top of the quay.

Hed done all his paperwork. He had permission to land and at the bottom of the ladder hes looking up and theres this mob.

The Independent reached out to the fisherman in question, who is keen to speak to the Jersey government about the problems facing fishing crews.

Another fisherman, Josh Dearing, said that Thursdays protest had been quite frightening and that it had been absolutely brilliant to have two Royal Navy offshore patrol vessels, the HMS Severn and HMS Tamar, in place to monitor the situation.

Looking out onto the horizon you could see loads of like lights from the vessels themselves, red flares as they were making their way down towards the St Helier harbour and it was just a mass of white lights really, he said.

Earlier today, three French naval ships and a number of fishing boats were spotted on a marine tracking website just outside Jerseys territorial waters.

Mr Michieli, who has fished in Jersey waters for 45 years, suggested that locals had it tougher than their French counterparts.

Theyre away fishing in our waters and are here jumping up and down, and were not allowed to go fishing because we can land nothing, he said.

Don Thompson, president of Jerseys Fishermens Association, agreed, saying it is Jersey fishermen who are really suffering from the impasse.

The real hardship genuinely is on this side and Im seeing my colleagues going out of business, fishermen that have done nothing else all their life, made a commitment to the industry since they were very young, having to sell their boats and walk away from the industry, he said.

Mr Thompson has meanwhile called for a show of good faith from France amid diplomatic efforts to resolve the feud, which erupted a week after authorities in Jersey issued 41 new post-Brexit licences to French fishermen.

The latter claim the licences put unfair limits on where and when they can work and do not offer the same terms they enjoyed under the preceding 2000 Granville Bay Agreement, threatening their livelihood.

HMS Tamar patrolling the English Channel off St Helier (Getty)

The new fishing rules brought in by the islands government under the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement now require French boats to prove they have a history of fishing in Jerseys waters before they can be granted a permit, but the applicants complain that additional technical requirements were also added without prior notice.

Mr Thompson lamented the pretty extreme threats that have subsequently come from the south side of the English Channel, which included French maritime minister Annick Girardin suggesting earlier this week that Paris could cut off the islands electricity supply, of which it supplies 95 per cent, if the dispute is not resolved.

Our expectations were that things probably werent going to get out of hand, but on the other hand if you consider a government-level threat to sever electricity ties that would have meant hospitals being shut down he said.

In other parts of the world if something like that happened to Iran or Russia or other countries, other states, that would be considered almost an act of war.

Authorities in Jersey have promised further talks to help resolve the row and pledged it will absolutely not lead to war, but the French government has hit out at what it considers to be the British failure to abide by the terms of the UK-EU trade deal and warned it would use all the leverage at our disposal to protect its own fishing industry.

The EU has likewise accused Jersey of breaching the deal signed by the UK and Brussels.

But, Mr Thompson argues: Jersey people didnt even vote, didnt even have the right to vote in Brexit. Everything thats happened here in the way that weve become a third world state is entirely by default.

Its really unfortunate that we seem to be coming under the spotlight and being accused of using the Brexit scenario to our advantage when actually the opposite is true.

French fishing vessels staging their protest outside the harbour at St Helier (PA)

UK communities secretary Robert Jenrick told the BBCs Question Time on Thursday night that efforts would be made to come to an agreement with Emmanuel Macrons government and the EU.

What we have done is make very clear to the French ministers who said some very unwise and disproportionate comments that we will stand with the people of Jersey, the Cabinet minister said.

This issue now needs to be resolved by diplomacy, by the chief minister and the ministers of Jersey - with the support of the UK government - working with their counterparts in France and the European Union.

Mr Jenrick added: We are going to ensure that this is sorted out as quickly as possible.

Brexit minister Lord Frost likewise spoke to the French government on Thursday in the interests of breaking the deadlock.

Also speaking on Question Time was former House of Commons speaker John Bercow, who accused British prime minister Boris Johnson of engaging in an absurd act of gunboat diplomacy on the day of crucial local elections and dismissed the affair as a bit of jingoistic sabre rattling.
A terrorist launched a deadly knife rampage while being monitored by inexperienced, untrained police officers whose previous charge had planned a different terror attack, an inquest has heard.

Usman Khan murdered two victims at Fishmongers Hall in London on 29 November 2019, 11 months after being released from prison.

The 28-year-old was placed under strict licence conditions and monitoring because of his previous conviction for preparing acts of terrorism.

The inquests into his victims deaths heard that his compliance with terrorist notification requirements was being monitored by Prevent counter-extremism officers.

The same team had only monitored one released terror offender previously, Mohibur Rahman.

He was one of Khans original co-defendants and associates in a Stoke-based cell of Islamist extremists.

After he was released from prison, Rahman was jailed for life for planning a new terror attack with a cell of plotters who called themselves the Three Musketeers.

Sergeant Calum Forsyth, one of the Staffordshire Police Prevent officers who managed Khan, acknowledged that the Rahman case had not gone well on Tuesday.

The hearing was shown a risk assessment completed on 6 November 2019, around three weeks before Khans deadly rampage, finding no terrorist intent, weak terrorist engagement and moderate capability.

Sgt Forsyth defended his ratings and said that probation officers carried out more detailed risk assessments.

At the time with what I was assessing and what I was seeing it felt right, he added.

The inquests heard that he and other Prevent officers were not trained in offender management or terrorism investigations, and normally focused on diverting people away from radicalisation.

(West Midlands Police)

In statements read to the hearing, other officers on the team said they did not have any previous experience in managing offenders and took Khans claims to have turned away from terrorism at face value in the months before his attack.

One officer, Craig Hemmings, said: We didnt receive any training for dealing with part four [terrorist notification requirements]. I had an idea of what was needed but I did feel I could have done with some training.

Another officer on the same team, Victoria Barker, said none of her training had any relevance to the role she had for Khan, adding: There were no policies in place, as far as I was aware, for how to manage Khan.

Nick Armstrong, a lawyer representing the family of victim Jack Merritt, said the documents portrayed the team as inexperienced, untrained, informal, like a family - not a crack anti-terrorist team.

Sgt Forsyth replied: No, but thats not what Prevent is.

The inquests heard that the officer did not oppose Khans request to attend a dumper truck training course that was later refused, despite being warned of the use of vehicles in terror attacks.

He said he also did not oppose Khans attendance at an event held by Cambridge Universitys Learning Together scheme at Fishmongers Hall in November 2019, because Khan had previously attended its courses.

The officer said Khan appeared to be complying with all his conditions and engaging with officers and mentors, adding: On the face of it, I had nothing to base an objection on.

 Terrorist Usman Khan talks to victim Saskia Jones before attack

Sgt Forsyth said there were no alarm bells ringing about the threat posed by Khan, despite him being unemployed, socially isolated, spending most of his days playing violent video games and stopping attending a mosque.

Khan was meant to be having regular mentoring sessions under the governments Desisistance and Disengagement Programme, but they stopped in August 2019 because of a contract dispute between the provider and the Home Office.

Sgt Forsyth said there was no formal discussion about the risk of Khan going to the Fishmongers Hall event at a public protection meeting, and that the final decision lay with probation officers.

I didnt know Fishmongers Hall would be an iconic building, Id never heard of it before, he added. Id completely overlooked the connection with London Bridge.

The hearing was shown an email on 1 November 2019 where Sgt Forsyth said a police escort for Khan cannot be justified, and said he could travel from Stafford to London Euston station alone before being met by Learning Together staff.

Khan is believed to have used the unaccompanied train journey to strap a fake suicide vest to himself and conceal it under clothing.

Cambridge graduates Jack Merritt, 25, and Saskia Jones, 23, who were stabbed to death by terrorist Usman Khan during a prisoner rehabilitation event at the Fishmongers Hall in London (Metropolitan Police/PA)

He arrived at Fishmongers Hall carrying a bag containing knives, which he taped to his hands in a break before launching his attack.

Khan murdered Jack Merritt, 25, and Saskia Jones, 23, and stabbed three other people before being shot dead by police on London Bridge.

Sgt Forsyth said he believed the purpose of accompanying Khan was to make him feel more comfortable because he was apprehensive about the journey, rather than preventing him committing a crime.

I couldnt justify a third of my team to essentially go and hold their hand, he added. If somebody had come back saying weve assessed that decision and we want you to do something different we could have.

The inquests, which are examining the circumstances of the victims deaths and whether they could have been prevented, continue.
Keir Starmer is to embark on a major shake-up of Labours top team after devastating election results, including the loss of Hartlepool to the Tories for the first time in more than 60 years.

Shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds is thought likely to be the most high-profile victim of a reshuffle expected within weeks rather than days, though allies told The Independent her record on the economy, government waste and the Greensill affair should save her from the axe.

Starmer said he took full responsibility for a woeful performance which sparked a open battle for Labours soul between the partys left and centrist wings.

Former defence spokesman Khalid Mahmood announced his resignation from Starmers frontbench, warning the party had been taken over by a London-based bourgeoisie, with the support of brigades of woke social media warriors.

Leading left-wingers like Unite union boss Len McCluskey demanded a return to the policy agenda of Starmers predecessor Jeremy Corbyn.

But there were calls from centrist MPs and shadow ministers for Starmer to hold firm to his mission to reshape Labour, with one telling The Independent: The idea we can solve the problems we are now facing by going to Corbyn 2.0 is ludicrous. Going back will not work, we have to go forwards.

And a senior backbencher said: Keir needs to decide whether he is serious about wanting to be leader or not, because if he does it is going to take some tough decisions, including looking at who is in the shadow cabinet, who is in his office and who is in the party structure.

Labours campaigning machine had been denuded of talent due to experienced officials being forced out under Corbyn and too many in the party were still hoping to offer voters a package that was comprehensively rejected as recently as 2019, said the MP.

(Press Association Images)

Blairite former minister Andrew Adonis called for Starmers replacement as leader, arguing that Thursdays results showed that the former public prosecutor did not have the political skills or antennae needed to make Labour electable.

But McCluskey said there should be no calls for his resignation. He has to be given time, said the union leader and close Corbyn ally. But he needs to learn lessons he has to tell people what the vision is. He has to demonstrate that he is on the side of ordinary working people He needs to reach out and embrace the left.

In a triumphant set of results for Conservatives, Boris Johnson not only claimed Hartlepool for the first time since the 1960s but also saw Ben Houchen re-elected Tees Valley mayor with an overwhelming 73 per cent of the vote, setting the scene for a hat-trick of high-profile victories with the West Midlands mayoralty announced on Saturday.

Tories picked up more than 130 seats and won overall control of five councils including Northumberland, Nottinghamshire and Cornwall, snatching Harlow direct from Labour.

Labour lost three town halls and more than 125 councillors in a round of elections which had been expected to deliver gains for the party, which was at a low-point when many of the seats were last contested in 2017.

Starmer ordered a review to root out policies no longer seen as relevant to voters needs, as well as a drive to modernise a party machine which one insider described as dysfunctional and which is thought to have contributed to the election debacle.

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He declared himself bitterly disappointed by the results and admitted the party had too often been talking to ourselves rather than to the people it hoped to lead.

I take full responsibility for the results, and I will take full responsibility for fixing things, said the Labour leader.

We have changed as a party, but we havent set out a strong enough case to the country.

Very often, weve been talking to ourselves instead of to the country, and weve lost the trust of working people, particularly in places like Hartlepool.

I intend to do whatever is necessary to fix that.

Centre-left members of Starmers frontbench team like Wes Streeting and Jess Phillips were being tipped by MPs for elevation to the shadow cabinet, while some expected promotions for current members including Jonathan Reynolds and Bridget Phillipson. Rachel Reeves and Yvette Cooper were named as possible candidates for the shadow chancellors job if Ms Dodds loses her post.

Nick Thomas-Symonds, the shadow home secretary, said there would also be a policy review in a bid to reconnect with voters.

He told BBC Breakfast that in places such Hartlepool and the partys traditional heartlands elsewhere, people do not now see Labour as answering their concerns.

He added: Thats now what we have to reflect on and why we have to change.

Keir has started that process of change over the past 12 months, hes led very courageously on things like tackling anti-semitism in the Labour Party - now it is a question of moving on, having that review of our policies, economically setting out the difference that we will not go back to the insecure economy of the past and reimagine our economy.

But Richard Burgon, a member of Corbyns shadow cabinet, told The Independent that Starmer needed to reach out to the left, with proper representation in the shadow cabinet and the readmission of the ex-leader to the parliamentary party.

Writing for The Independent, he said: Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner have waged war on the left to show Labour was under new management. That approach has failed.

Labour cant go on as we are. The leadership urgently needs to change direction. We have the popular policies needed to rebuild our support. The leadership needs to start championing them.

Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell accused Sir Keir of sending Labour activists and candidates into the election battle naked and almost policy-less, while Corbyn himself said Labour needed to offer a bolder vision to transform peoples lives and give them the confidence to strive for a more equal world.

But Peter Mandelson, the architect of New Labour and one-time MP for Hartlepool, said the disastrous outcome could be blamed on two Cs: Covid and Corbyn.

Centrist MP Neil Coyle said the electorate were still punishing us for being so out of touch in 2019 and called for more distance from those who caused the damage - the likes of Momentum.

But the co-chair of the Corbyn-backing Momentum movement Andrew Scattergood pointed the finger of blame at the leader: Starmers strategy of isolating the left and replacing meaningful policy with empty buzzwords has comprehensively failed. If he doesnt change direction, not only will he be out of a job  but the Labour Party may be out of government forever.

Labour MPs engaging in a post mortem of the elections were focusing on the apparent shift in the partys support base away from the traditional working classes and towards a younger group of urban graduates, with some arguing for a more explicit patriotism or an apology for the Brexit second referendum strategy to rebuild trust, while others demanded a focus on jobs and investment.

In an article for the Policy Exchange think tank, Mr Mahmood said: My view is simple: in the past decade, Labour has lost touch with ordinary British people. A London-based bourgeoisie, with the support of brigades of woke social media warriors, has effectively captured the party.
Matt Hancock has admitted there were only 6 cases of ballot fraud at the last election, as new rules demanding photo ID spark fears of US-style voter suppression.

The Queens Speech will include a Bill to introduce the requirement at polling stations  despite warnings that large numbers of poorer and ethnic minority voters will be turned away.

Quizzed on that criticism  and on the tiny number of fraud cases at the last election  Mr Hancock replied: Well, I think thats six cases too many.

On Sky News, the health secretary was warned that 47 per cent of black people do not have a drivers licence, compared with only 26 per cent of white people.

There is a real danger, isnt there, that you could ultimately prevent key constituents in society from having their say? he was asked.

But Mr Hancock said: No know its about fairness, its about making sure that when people do something as important as voting, then they are who they say they are.

We piloted this, weve looked at it in great detail, we are committed to making it happen  and I think people across this country want to know for sure that elections are fair.

The civil rights group Liberty has condemned the shake-up, expected to kick-in before the next general election in either 2023 or 2024.

Our current voting system is safe and secure, said head of policy Sam Grant. It feels like an opportunistic attack on the rights of some of the most marginalised people in society.

Trials in 2019 suggested many tens of thousands of people could be turned away from polling stations because they dont have the ID required.

The Electoral Commission warned young people, people from ethnic minorities, women and the elderly were most likely to be penalised.

Mr Hancock also faced criticism as he confirmed the social care plan  promised by Boris Johnson on his first day in office, in 2019  would not be part of the Queens Speech.

He blamed the pandemic for preventing the government from giving it as much focus as hoped, adding: I think people will understand that.

Jeremy Hunt, the former Conservative health secretary, said a failure to announce a cap on catastrophic care costs would be an incredible worry for people.

Im hoping to hear that we will introduce a cap on peoples care costs, because around one in 10 of us will have catastrophically high care costs, he said.

Its an incredible worry for people. Its a lottery. You dont know - that could be you. I think in a civilised society we should find a way of taking away that worry.

Mr Hunt also said problems in the NHS will not be fixed without a solution to the social care crisis, adding: So, it really doesnt make any sense to fund one sector properly and then to ignore the other.
The Queens Speech has set out government plans to introduce new laws designed to safeguard freedom of speech at universities.

It marks the governments intention to push ahead with a Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill for universities in England.

In a speech setting out proposals for the next year, QueenElizabeth II said on Tuesday that legislation will be introduced to protect freedom of speech.

Under the proposed legislation, new requirements will be imposed on universities and student unions, with a regulator able to issue fines for any breaches.

Student unions will also have to ensure freedom of speech for members and visiting speakers.

It follows controversy over cases of no-platforming of speakers - where they are refused a platform to speak - on campuses, including of former home secretary Amber Rudd.

The new Bill also covers the creation of a free speech champion at the Office for Students (OfS), with the power to issue sanctions.

The new role at the regulator - called director for freedom of speech and academic freedom - will be responsible for investigations of potential breaches of freedom of speech duties.

The new legal measures will also allow individuals to seek compensation through courts for any losses suffered due to infringements of freedom of speech in higher education.

In her speech on Tuesday, the Queen said: My government will strengthen and renew democracy and the constitution.

Legislation will be introduced to ensure the integrity of elections, protect freedom of speech and restore the balance of power between the executive, legislature and the courts.

Freedom of speech has been a hotly-contested topic at UK universities, with the government vowing to introduce greater safeguards.

Gavin Williamson, the education secretary, said he was deeply worried about the chilling effect on campuses of unacceptable silencing and censoring as he unveiled new legal protections earlier this year.

But Labour accused the government of manufacturing a culture war controversy as a distraction tactic as the plans were revealed.

A university union said the government was fighting phantom threats while the National Union for Students claimed there was no evidence of a freedom of expression crisis on campus.

Last month, top universities vowed to protect freedom of speech on their campuses, adding their institutions - traditionally the UKs most selective - already facilitate free and frank intellectual exchanges.
Controversial plans to make ID mandatory for people who want to vote in elections are expected to be outlined in Tuesdays Queens Speech.

The proposal forms part of Boris Johnsons governments plans to reform electoral laws, sections of which ministers claim are aimed at tackling voter fraud.

In an exclusive interview with The Independent on Monday, one of the prime ministers own senior MPs, David Davis, described the voter ID proposal as an illiberal solution for a non-existent problem.

The Queen's Speech is delivered to mark the start of the parliamentary year.

It is written by the government, and designed to allow the prime minister of the day to outline his or her priorities for the months ahead, and can include proposals to reform areas such as social care, the environment and the economy.

Multimillion pound plan

In this year's Queen's Speech, the government is expected to announce a multimillion-pound plan that would stop people from voting unless they can show photographic ID. Voters in Northern Ireland are already required to do this.

Mr Johnsons administration first committed to introducing checks at polling stations in October 2019  for both parliamentary elections in Great Britain and local elections in England  but the plans failed to materialise during the last parliament.

Under current rules, anyone who is registered to vote can do so simply by showing up to their local polling station and giving an official their name and address.

Downing Street has said voter ID requirements are reasonable and necessary to crack down on voter fraud.

Defending the plans earlier this week, Mr Johnson's official spokesman said: "Showing ID to vote is a reasonable approach to combat the inexcusable potential for voter fraud in our current system and to strengthen the integrity of our elections.

"Showing ID is something people do when they pick up a parcel at the post office or a library book."

He added: "The 2019 voter ID pilots showed that in elections where photo ID was required, 99.6 per cent of electors were able to cast their votes without a problem."

Low levels of voter fraud

According to the Local Government Chronicle, a total of 819 people were turned away from polling stations because they did not have formal ID and did not return during a May 2019 trial of the scheme.

MPs and campaigners have hit out at plans to make voter ID mandatory, with the Labour Party describing them as "cynical and ugly".

Critics say that barriers could be erected for millions of eligible voters who lack photo ID, which they said were disproportionately from ethnic minority and working-class backgrounds.

Young people are often also less likely to have a drivers licence or passport, critics of the plans say.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 9 June 2021 Adam Chamberlain, 45, general manager of Big Tree pub in Sheffield, has put up over 500 flags, taking 36 hours, in preparation for Euro 2020, which kicks off this weekend Tom Maddick / SWNS UK news in pictures 8 June 2021 REUTERS UK news in pictures 7 June 2021 A pedestrian wearing a face covering walks over Westminster Bridge near the Houses of Parliament in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 6 June 2021 Isobel Salamon, founder of the Edinburgh Cinema Club, poses alongside the Leith Trainspotting murals in Quality Yard, Leith, Edinburgh, for the programme launch of the Cinescapes Festival which starts on July 4 with a Trainspotting 1 and 2 double bill PA UK news in pictures 5 June 2021 A long exposure photograph captures the rotation of the earth as the stars blur into circles over Knowlton church ruins in Dorset Nick Lucas/SWNS UK news in pictures 4 June 2021 Balloonists take flight during the opening of the Midlands Air Festival in Alcester, Warwickshire PA UK news in pictures 3 June 2021 Members of the Household Cavalry during the Major General's annual inspection of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment in Hyde Park, London PA UK news in pictures 2 June 2021 Hannah Vitos of the Blenheim Art Foundation, poses for a photograph next to artist Ai Weiwei's Gilded Cage (2017) sculpture in the grounds of Blenheim Palace in Woodstock, Britain Reuters UK news in pictures 1 June 2021 People swim in the Sky Pool, a transparent swimming pool bridge across two exclusive residential blocks standing next to the US Embassy in Nine Elms, in London, Tuesday, June 1, 2021 AP UK news in pictures 31 May 2021 People enjoy the hot weather at Brighton beach Reuters UK news in pictures 30 May 2021 People venture into the sea as they enjoy themselves during a hot day on Brighton Beach AP UK news in pictures 29 May 2021 Swimmers at the Stonehaven Open Air Pool in Aberdeenshire, which reopens after lockdown restrictions were eased PA UK news in pictures 28 May 2021 Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures as he meets Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at Downing Street in London REUTERS UK news in pictures 27 May 2021 White Pelicans in the sunshine in St James's Park, London PA UK news in pictures 26 May 2021 Boats are seen at Southsea Moorings in Portsmouth Reuters UK news in pictures 25 May 2021 York Glaziers Trust employees Kieran Muir (left) and Emily Price (right) remove a stained glass window panel at the start of a new five year, 5m project to conserve York Minsters South East Transept and its medieval St Cuthbert Window PA UK news in pictures 24 May 2021 Dark rain clouds above an oast house at Bewl Water reservoir near Lamberhurst in Kent during one of the rainiest Mays on record, with the UK seeing 131 per cent of the usual months rainfall already PA UK news in pictures 23 May 2021 The Premier League trophy with the Manchester City club colour ribbons on, at Etihad Stadium, prior to the last Premier League match of the season. 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The Blues won the game 4-1, (and the tie 5-3 on aggregate) sending them through to their first Champions League final AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 1 May 2020 Demonstrators during a march through London during a 'Kill the Bill' protest Angela Christofilou UK news in pictures 30 April 2021 Shoppers queue outside Primark in Belfast as shops reopen and hospitality is able to open outdoors in Northern Ireland where lockdown restrictions have begun to gradually ease PA UK news in pictures 29 April 2021 Specialist operators at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford, near Telford, Shropshire, clean the Hawker Hunter aircraft displayed within the museum's National Cold War Exhibition, during annual high-level aircraft cleaning and maintenance PA UK news in pictures 28 April 2021 Millions of tulips in flower near Kings Lynn in Norfolk, as Belmont Nurseries, the UK's largest commercial grower of outdoor tulips, offers socially-distanced visits to its tulip fields at Hillington to raise funds for local charity The Norfolk Hospice Tapping House PA UK news in pictures 27 April 2021 Paula Laughton checks one of the newly installed Lego models in the new Lego Mythica land at Legoland Windsor Resort PA UK news in pictures 26 April 2021 A red panda rests on a tree at Manor Wildlife park, which reopened its doors as lockdown restrictions continue to ease, in Tenby, Wales Reuters UK news in pictures 25 April 2021 Sheep climb the hillside as flames from a moor fire are seen on Marsden moor, near Huddersfield AFP via Getty UK news in pictures 24 April 2021 Supporters protest against Manchester United's owners, outside English Premier League club Manchester United's Old Trafford stadium in Manchester AFP via Getty UK news in pictures 23 April 2021 People enjoy the warm weather at City Hall near Tower Bridge in central London PA UK news in pictures 22 April 2021 Uyghurs during a demonstration in Parliament Square, London, which is being held ahead of a House of Commons debate, bought by backbench MP Nus Ghani, on whether Uyghurs in China's Xinjiang province are suffering crimes against humanity and genocide PA UK news in pictures 21 April 2021 People walk at the Taihaku Cherry Orchard in Alnwick REUTERS UK news in pictures 20 April 2021 People stand in front of anti Super League banners outside Anfield as twelve of Europe's top football clubs, including Liverpool, launch a breakaway league Reuters UK news in pictures 19 April 2021 Women enjoy sunny weather in Greenwich, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in London, Britain, Reuters

According to the most recent data from the Electoral Commission, 595 cases of alleged voter fraud were investigated by police in 2019, with just a handful leading to a conviction and two individuals given a police caution.

The electoral watchdog concluded in the same year that the UK has low levels of proven electoral fraud and that there remains no evidence of large-scale electoral fraud.

In the aftermath of previous trials, the body previously said that it could not "draw definitive conclusions...about how an ID requirement would work in practice, particularly at a national poll with higher levels of turnout or in areas with different socio-demographic profiles not fully represented in the pilot scheme".

Cynical and ugly

Labour's shadow justice minister and Tottenham MP, David Lammy, said: "This is a cynical and ugly attempt to rig the system to disempower the poorest and most marginalised groups."

Alba Kapoor, a policy officer at the race equality think tank Runnymede Trust, told The Independent: One in five people in the UK electorate do not have any form of photo ID. These people are disproportionately BME and working class, who will effectively become disenfranchised as a result of this legislation.

Focus should be on the fact that voter registration numbers are far lower among the BME electorate, instead of unnecessary Voter ID legislation.

The Electoral Reform Society that has been pushing against the ID plans since they were first floated by Mr Johnsons administration, said: Voting is safe and secure in the UK, so rather than inventing problems, the government should focus on the real issue in politics  including 9 million people missing on the electoral roll, and the glaring loopholes in our lobbying laws.

Mr Davis said plans were "unnecessary" and "pointless", adding: Its yet another unnecessary ID card approach from the government. Theres no evidence that Im aware of that there is a problem with voter fraud at polling stations.
Immigrants and refugees will be stripped of the right to challenge deportation orders in the High Court, under a new crackdown to speed up removals.

A Judicial Review Bill will overturn a Supreme Court ruling  nearly a decade ago  which allows tribunal decisions to be put forward before the court.

Around 700 such appeals are pursued every year, with fierce disputes over how many are won outright while many other cases reach a settlement.

The government admits it does not know the success rate, the Queens Speech stating: We are investigating how many of these cases result in a successful outcome for the claimant.

It has briefed Tory-friendly papers that the crackdown is to stamp out hopeless claims that have already been adjudicated by tribunal judges which frustrate removals at the last minute.

But the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) attacked a grave injustice, not least because the Home Office regularly gets decisions wrong.

People seeking protection in the UK deserve to have their voices heard, and their claims calmy and fairly assessed, said Minnie Rahman, the organisations campaigns director:

These plans will deny refugees rights and status and leave many more people in limbo as governments asylum return deals with third countries appear completely mythical.

Nazek Ramadan, director of Migrant Voice, said: The governments plans mean that a significant number of those who would have won their claim in the High Court could be deported.

The government is taking legal rights away from people who need protection - with individuals deported to countries where they are at risk of harm or persecution. What does this say about us as a country?

And the Free Movement website pointed out the government had admitted that abolishing the so-called Cart Judgement may cause some injustice.

The Cart safeguard is an important supervisory check on the immigration tribunal and the Ministry of Justice should not be in the business of causing avoidable injustice, said CJ McKinney, its deputy editor.

The Judicial Review Bill will also protect the judiciary from being drawn into political questions and preserve the integrity of judicial review for its intended purpose, the Queens Speech document says.

But critics see the legislation as an attack on the power of people to mount legal challenges, in revenge for embarrassing court defeats during the Brexit saga.

Theresa May was humbled over invoking the Article 50 exit notice without MPs approval and Boris Johnson humiliated when judges ruled his shutdown of parliament was unlawful.

A claim that just 0.22 per cent of immigration judicial reviews are successful  made in a review for the government  has been discredited, lawyers say.

In fact, up to one in 11 result in victories, it is now thought, after more complete data was used.

Downing Street defended the shake-up, insisting it is necessary to increase the efficiency of the court and tribunal system and clarify the status of the upper tribunal.

We want fair access to the legal system for all, but it is right we take action to clarify any issues that need reviewing and make sure we are running an efficient system, the prime ministers spokesman said.
As the US reckons with the potential impact of a ransomeware attack on one of its largest fuel delivery systems, Russia has denied any role in the hack that effectively shut the pipeline down.

The Colonial Pipeline was hit on Friday by an attack that saw 100GB of its data stolen and many of its computer systems locked pending the payment of a ransom to the hackers. The size of the ransom has not been made clear, and nor is it known whether the company has paid it or intends to.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was emphatic in his denial of any Russian involvement. Russia has nothing to do with these hacking attacks. Russia didnt have anything to do with hacking attacks that had taken place earlier. We categorically dont accept any accusations against us in this regard.

President Joe Biden on Monday stopped short of accusing Russia of any role in the event, though he made clear he would be having words with his Moscow counterpart about it. Im going to be meeting with President Putin, Mr Biden said, and so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved, although there is evidence that the actors, ransomware, is in Russia.

"They have some responsibility to deal with this.

DarkSide, the group of ransomware attackers named by the FBI as the aggressor, has a reputation for the unusually professional approach it takes to its attacks. In statements put out via its site on the dark net, it has said its not motivated by a political agenda and is purely interested in money  and that it will never attack medical, educational, or non-profit organisations.

However, one cybersecurity firm that has reverse-engineered the groups malware says that it will check device language settings to ensure they dont attack Russia-based organisations, and that the group is known to have actively recruited Russian-speaking partners.

The Kremlin has been blamed by the White House for a major attack in December 2020, the so-called SolarWinds hack that penetrated deep into scores of government and private sector systems, including the Treasury and Commerce departments.

That hack was such a serious incursion that the incoming Biden administration slapped Russia with new sanctions in response, not only expelling certain Russian diplomats and targeting certain individuals but also making it harder for the Russian government to borrow.

The White House admitted late on Monday that fuel concerns following the pipeline hack are very much ongoing. Gas stations from Virginia to Florida have reported running out of fuel, and the governor of North Carolina has declared a state of emergency to ensure that drivers have access to enough fuel in case of a shortage to come.

Worries of a rise in fuel prices are particularly acute given the approach of Memorial Day weekend, when millions of Americans are planning to travel by car  many for their first bona fide vacation trips in as much as a year amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The outages effects are also extending to airlines. The Colonial Pipeline supplies fuel to several of the East Coasts major airports, and the anticipated drop in supply after the hack has led carriers to introduce new stops on long routes to allow refuelling at unaffected airports.
Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for the man accused of carrying out a spree of shootings in the Atlanta, Georgia area two months ago, a district attorney announced on Tuesday.

Robert Aaron Long , 22, is accused of killing eight people at three different spas on 16 March. On Tuesday, he was officially charged with the murder of the four who died in Atlanta. He had previously been charged with murdering the other four victims in Cherokee County.

Fulton Countys district attorney, Fani Willis, also announced on Tuesday that she will prosecute the Atlanta killings as hate crimes. All four of the victims there, she says, were targeted because they were women of Asian descent.

A new hate crime law passed in Georgia last year allows for increased penalties when victims are singled out for their race, gender, or sex. Ms Willis says the four Atlanta victims were targeted for all three of those reasons.

Those four victims were Soon Chung Park, 74; Suncha Kim, 69; Yong Ae Yue, 63; and Hyun Jung Grant, 51.

Ms Willis has filed a notice in court that she will seek the additional punishments enabled by the hate crimes law. For homicide, those punishments include life in prison with the possibility of parole after 30 years, life without parole, or the death penalty. Ms Willis will seek the death penalty.

According to prosecutors, Mr Long began his spree around 5pm on 16 March, when he fatally shot four people at Youngs Asian Massage near Woodstock, Georgia.

Then, police say, he drove about 30 miles to Atlanta, where he killed three women at Gold Spa and another woman at Aromatherapy Spa.

Mr Long then started driving south, at which point police say his parents called them to say they recognised him in footage posted by the Cherokee County Sheriffs Office. Police then tracked him down on Interstate 75 in Crisp County, where after a brief chase they forced his SUV to stop. Mr Long then surrendered.

Initially, Mr Long explained his actions to investigators by saying he had a sex addiction, and targeted businesses that were a temptation to him. However, six of his eight alleged victims were of Asian descent, and prosecutors appear to be focusing more on alleged anti-Asian hate as the motive for the shootings.
A nursing assistant in West Virginia was sentenced to seven consecutive life sentences plus 20 years for killing seven elderly veterans and trying to kill an eighth.

Reta Mays, 46, was sentenced on Tuesday for the murders at Clarksburg Veterans Affairs hospital. The sentencing means she will spend the rest of her life behind bars as theres no parole in the federal prison system.

US District Judge Thomas Kleeh said: Several times your counsel has made the point that you shouldnt be considered a monster. Respectfully, I disagree with that. Youre the worst kind of monster. Youre the kind of monster that no one sees coming.

Most of the victims were men in their 80s who had served in the wars in Korea and Vietnam. Two of the fathers and grandfathers who were killed were in their 90s and had served in the Second World War. Seven of the victims had some form of dementia.

The killings took place over a period lasting less than a year, with the first murder occurring in July 2017 and the last in June 2018.

Assistant US Attorney Jarod Douglas said the victims were improving and were moving towards leaving the hospital when Mays injected them with insulin they didnt need, WV News reported.

Mr Douglas added that death by insulin is agonizing, mentioning symptoms such as tremors, palpitations, anxiety, sweating, hunger, and seizures. The patients dementia made it impossible for them to call for help.

Judge Kleeh said all of the victims had almost completed their journey and deserved commendation, respect and thanks but instead, Mays had treated them like garbage.

To a man, they were good and decent people, who served their country honourably. As has become abundantly clear to this court in not only the materials submitted but what we heard today, they were good and decent men loved not only by their families but their communities. And to who this country owes a very deep debt, the judge said.

He told Mays: It wasnt your call. It wasnt your decision... You substituted your judgment for that of God, whatever higher power that you believe in. And you stole that time from these gentlemen that you were charged to care for.

The judge added that there was no explanation and no justification for what Mays did. She pleaded guilty on 14 July 2020 to seven counts of second-degree murder and one count of assault with intent to commit murder. As a result, the government agreed not to push for the death penalty.

Amanda Edgell said during the sentencing hearing that her mother-in-law, the wife of victim Archie Edgell, grieved herself to death, dying a little over a year after her husband was killed by Mays.

She added that the widow, Frances Edgell, was shocked when investigators asked if they could exhume her husband.

She would just randomly be saying, Why would anyone want to kill Dad? And thats our big question, too: Why would anyone want to kill him? Amanda Edgell said.

Well never know what he actually went through in those final days. And thats hard to live with... Theres so many life events that hes not there for, and thats just not fair... We would like justice for each person that [Mays] harmed, and all of their family members, whether theyre still with us, or not. They all deserve that. None of these men deserve what she did to them. None of them.

Norma Shaw lost her husband of 59 years, George Shaw.

I dont know how I feel about Reta. In my heart, I know I need to forgive her for what she did, she said. Someday I will, but not today. No matter what punishment we do, that wont be anything like what God has in store for her. Shes going to have to answer for this... I know that judgment will come one day.

Mr Douglas went after the defence team for claiming that the murders were mercy killings and for arguing that the sentence should be limited to 30 years, less than four years per victim. Mr Douglas argued for the maximum sentence.

These men were not in need of mercy from the defendant, he said noting the family members caring for the men. He said Mayss actions were shockingly horrific, adding that her method was unforgiving and brutal.

The acts were planned and repeated. The opportunities were carefully selected, he said, adding: On multiple occasions, the defendant went out of her way to murder these men.

Defence lawyer Jay McCamic said Mays has had problems with her mental and medical health, suffering from things such as PTSD and military sexual trauma from her time serving in Iraq between 2003 and 2004. He noted that there was documentation of these issues, including at the very same hospital where she later committed the murders following her hire in 2015.

Mr McCamic also said the hospital had two opportunities to intervene and remove Mays from her post as a nursing assistant, in May 2016 and September 2017. But Judge Kleeh noted that others with similar traumatic experiences as those endured by Mays had not gone on to become serial killers, adding that she had watched Nurses Who Kill on Netflix after her first murder and later started googling female serial killers.

The judge told Mays: You knew what you were doing... You researched how to do it. In all candour, Ms Mays, it appears to this court that you then began to compare the number of people you had killed with others.

Mays lied to investigators three times in 2018, Judge Kleeh said. The deaths have resulted in 10 lawsuits being settled by the government for almost $5m. Other lawsuits are still awaiting decisions.

Without question, the [Department of Veterans Affairs] is responsible for its own institutional failures here, but in absolutely no way are they responsible for your intentional homicidal actions, Judge Kleeh said.

Investigators found more than a dozen unexplained deaths that occurred during Ms Mays employment, but according to former US attorney Bill Powell, Mays was only charged with the deaths where there was sufficient evidence against her.

She was also ordered to pay restitution to the families of the victims. Judge Kleeh will recommend that she is placed at the Federal Medical Center Carswell in Fort Worth, Texas where mental health treatment is provided. That placement was requested by Mr McCamic without objection from Mr Douglas.

This article was amended on May 17 2021. The headline previously referred to Reta Mays as a nurse, but she was a nursing assistant.
Police in Texas issued an arrest warrant for a YouTuber accused of breaking into the SpaceX launch site in Boca Chica.

Officials in Cameron County allege that Caesar Galaviz broke into the Boca Chica base of SpaceX  founded by Tesla CEO Elon Musk  in March without consent.

The incident occurred within days of a test flight of a SpaceX prototype from Boca Chica.

Confirming the arrest warrant, Sheriff Eric Garza said on Monday that police wanted Mr Galaviz "for intentionally going onto the SpaceX property without their consent."

Mr Galaviz, who was last seen in Conroe, Texas, filmed the alleged break-in at the SpaceX facility for YouTube channel Loco VlogS, before deleting the video days later.

The YouTuber was able to walk around the SpaceX facility without any interruption from on-site security, and filmed close-ups of equipment, as reported by The Verge.

In the days following the break-in, Mr Galaviz appeared in another video to apologise for the incident and for not thinking about trespassing.

Yes it was wrong, yes it was illegal. But in my eyes, in that time of moment, I didnt really think about that...What went through my mind was, Okay, Im never gonna get this opportunity again. So I went for it. And, well, this happened, said Mr Galaviz.

SpaceX informed NASA  with whom the company has a $2.89bn (2bn) contract for the first commercial moon lander  of the incident in March, The Verge reported.

The Independent has approached SpaceX for comment.
A high school senior has gone viral for sharing the college admissions essay about losing a parent to cancer that got her accepted into Harvard University.

Abigail Mack is an 18-year-old high school senior whose essay went viral on video-sharing platform TikTok, according to Buzzfeed, which first reported the news.

The essay from the future member of the class of 2025 is a clever and heartfelt riff on going from a life of two parents to one with a single parent, and it returns to that subtle spelling difference, just the letter s to make its larger point.

As I write this essay, there is a blue line under the word parent telling me to check my grammar; even Grammarly assumes that I should have parents, but cancer doesnt listen to edit suggestions. Ms Mack says in the TikTok video.

The story continues with a discussion about how the young student filled her life with a number of extra-curricular activities to cope with the loss.

Any spare time that I had, I filled. I would be known as the busy kid, the one that everyone always asks, How do you have time?

Eventually, however, this pursuit led Ms Mack to a deeper set of interests like politics and art, and she concludes by writing she began chasing a double s: passion.

Perhaps even more impressive than the fact Ms Macks video was seen by 19 million people on TikTok, is the fact that she got into Harvard during its most competitive application season of all time.

During the pandemic, applications spiked 30 per cent over previous years, and the school accepted 1,968 out of 57,435 first-year applicants, less than 4 per cent. Facing such a deluge of potential students, the school delayed its application decision for a week.

These applicants have faced and overcome unprecedented challenges over the past year, dean of admissions and financial aid William R Fitzsimmons wrote in a statement at the time. Their applications and personal stories revealed a window into their resilience, their intellectual curiosity, and their many positive contributions to family, school, and community. They are truly inspiring.

Ms Mack, according to other TikTok videos, is from Brockton, Massachusetts, and performed in professional theatre productions, volunteered with senator Ed Markey and president Joe Bidens presidential campaign, and teaches young people dance at her familys dance studio. She was valedictorian of her high school class.

She regularly posts college admissions advice videos on her TikTok, and has nearly 100,000 followers.
Voice actor Bev Standing has sued TikTok for using her voice for its text-to-speech function in the North American version of the app.

The lawsuit revealed that the actors voice is being used in thousands of viral videos containing foul and offensive language causing irreparable harm to her reputation.

In 2018, for translation purposes, Ms Standing recorded 10,000 sentences of audio for the Chinese Institute of Acoustics.

The Canada-based actor told the BBC that she didnt give consent for those recordings to be reused or resold to any other entity.

My voice is my product - its my business, she said.

You cant just use it and not reimburse me for what I do. If you want to use someones voice, pay for it, she said.

Her lawyer Robert Sciglimpaglia commented: The technology exists where anyones voice can be replicated through artificial intelligence.

This is not an issue just about celebrities or voice actors, who of course will be hugely impacted because their livelihood is literally being taken away from them. This is also about ordinary people, he said.

Sciglimpaglia disclosed that the legal suit was filed in New York this month and neither TikTok nor Bytedance have responded to the filings so far.

The Independent has reached out to TikTok for a comment.
An explicit billboard depicting the heads of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on top of piles of faeces, and referring to them as s**t heads is causing a controversy in Maryland.

The billboard was put up in Huntingtown, southeast of Washington, DC and says Dont blame Trump! You are stuck with these two s**theads!!! From all your deplorables in Calvert County.

Some Trump supporters have been calling themselves deplorables ever since 2016 Democratic Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton said during the campaign that supporters of then-candidate Trump could be sorted into two baskets: everyday, regular Republicans, and what she called the basket of deplorables. In September 2016, she said: They're racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic, you name it.

Jeanette Flaim, the chair of the Calvert County Democratic Central Committee, told Fox 5 that the billboard is vulgar, and it doesn't reflect Calvert County.

She added: Kids are going to school, and theyre going by it every day, and parents are driving their kids. We just dont think kids should have to see that or parents should have to explain that.

But Board of County Commissioners President Buddy Hance has indicated that taking the sign down might not be easy. He said: There is nothing that we as county government can do for language thats on a legal sign.

You know this country was built on the foundation of free speech, and sometimes we like what that free speech says and sometimes we dont, he added.

But Ms Flaim told Fox 5 it's not just an issue of free speech, as numerous signs blasting Mr Biden and supporting Mr Trump have gone up in the same place without pushback for years. What she takes issue with is the language and imagery used on this particular billboard.

We have not complained about any other signs. Its this sign we think is, again, damaging to all of us, all of us in Calvert. The GOP, the Independents, everybody, she said.

A statement on the Calvert County Government Facebook page says they cannot regulate sign content based on the Supreme Court case decision Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015). The Calvert County local sign regulations are based on location, materials and size, not verbiage. Regulating any content based on the Supreme Court decision would be illegal.

Ms Flaim told WTOP News that the sign does not reflect the values of our county, regardless of party... Our county welcomes visitors from far and wide. She added that the billboard certainly shouldnt be what our visitors remember us for.

The person or group behind the billboard has proved to be elusive and has yet to be identified. Another billboard in the same location went viral in 2018. It said: Hey liberals, better get your guns if you try to impeach President Trump. That sign also indicated that it was put up by a group referring to themselves as deplorables.
The US government declared a regional emergency after a key pipeline was hit by a cyberattack and warned that such attacks are here to stay.

The Colonial Pipeline, the largest fuel pipeline system in the America, was subjected to a highly sophisticated cyber attack on Friday, drawing attention to the threat of hacking for businesses and government infrastructure.

The supply line, which carries 45 per cent of the East Coasts supply of diesel, gasoline and jet fuel, still remains largely shut after two days.

On Sunday, the US government enacted the emergency declaration, in order to keep the supply lines open as fears of shortages rose. The declaration allows the fuel to now be transported by road to the affected states.

The disruption has affected 18 states which have been granted temporary hours of service waiver for transporting gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other refined petroleum products.

It includes Alabama, Arkansas, District of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

It also provides regulatory relief to commercial motor vehicle operations that are part of the emergency support efforts.

However, the cyberattack has also led to the fuel prices rising on Monday, as brent crude climbed 1 per cent.

The US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo warned businesses on Sunday about the rising threat of cyberattacks, and said: This is what businesses now have to worry about.

Unfortunately, these sorts of attacks are becoming more frequent, Ms Raimondo told CBC news. Theyre here to stay, and we have to work in partnership with business to secure networks to defend ourselves against these attacks.

She also said that President Joe Biden was briefed about the attack. However, there is no clarity on when the pipeline could be restored, she said.

Its an all hands on deck effort right now, she said. And we are working closely with the company, state and local officials to, you know, make sure that they get back up to normal operations as quickly as possible and there arent disruptions in supply.
A Republican governor has dared to speak out against former president Trump, claiming the former commander-in-chief who still has a stranglehold over the GOP is dividing our party.

Speaking to John Berman on CNNs New Day on Tuesday, Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson urged his party to drop its fealty to Mr Trump.

Whenever we do not have the President in power from our party, you have divided leadership, many different voices, and former President Trump dividing our party, and so its important that we not unite with someone who is dividing our party, Mr Hutchinson said.

Mr Hutchinson is unable to run for another term as governor, which gives the Republican a bit more runway to cross Mr Trump.

In recent weeks, top Republicans have pushed to remove Rep Liz Cheney, a notable Trump critic who voted to impeach Mr Trump after the insurrection on 6 January, from her position of chairman of the Republican conference.

Mr Trump has published several posts on his new makeshift blog calling for Ms Cheneys ouster and the appointment of loyalist Rep Elise Stefanik.

The House GOP has a massive opportunity to upgrade this week from warmonger Liz Cheney to gifted communicator Elise Stefanik, he said.

Instead of concerning themselves over petty leadership spats, Mr Hutchinson proposed that the Republican party talk about those ideas, lets, talk about the future, let's talk about the Biden administration, thats what builds our party, thats what brings people together, and that has to be our focus.

I dont believe that Liz Cheney should be ousted for a vote of conscious. I believe we need to concentrate on things that unite us together than to separate us.

Since January, there has been a clear divide within the Republican party following Mr Trumps second impeachment. It has reached a boiling point with calls to remove Ms Cheney as the most senior woman within the GOP and replace her with Ms Stefanik, a move supported by Rep Kevin McCarthy, the leader of the House Republicans.

We have got to respond to the people that like Trump. We have got to respond and identify with the issues that gave him in the first election and gave him support throughout his presidency... but we have got to handle it in a different way with different personalities, Mr Hutchinson said.
As a ploddingly slow election recount in Arizona drags on, some of the Republicans who originally called for it are expressing regret.

It makes us look like idiots, Republican State Senator Paul Boyer told The New York Times . Looking back, I didnt think it would be this ridiculous. Its embarrassing to be a state senator at this point.

Arizonas State Senate is conducting a painstaking audit of the 2020 election in Maricopa County, which includes the city of Phoenix and most of the states population. President Joe Biden won the county last year, carrying the state by about 11,000 votes.

No evidence has emerged to indicate that the results were fraudulent. But former president Donald Trump has convinced much of his base that Democrats stole the election, and Arizona Republicans have called for a recount to show they take their voters concerns seriously.

Some are now wondering if its worth it. Rejecting the work done by state election officials six months ago, the State Senate has volunteered to count the vote with its own auditors, subpoenaing all 21 million ballots.

To house the effort, the Senate has rented out the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum until 14 May  this Friday. So far their auditors have recounted about 250,000 votes. At that rate, theyll be done some time in August.

Arizonas secretary of state, Katie Hobbs, has condemned the effort, saying the equipment being used is uncertified and the counting methods deviate from standard best practices.

Though conspiracy theorists are undoubtedly cheering on these types of inspections  and perhaps providing financial support because of their use  they do little other than further marginalise the professionalism and intent of this audit, she said on Wednesday.

Since making those comments, Ms Hobbs has received death threats, and Governor Doug Ducey has ordered state police to protect her.

Even before the current review, Arizonas 2020 vote had already been audited. In accordance with Arizona state law, county election officials performed hand-counts of large numbers of ballots and compared them to the original machine counts. According to county officials, the machine counts were found to be 100 per cent accurate .

Officials worry the new recount effort will cast doubt on legitimate election results.
At least eight people have died after a school shooting incident in Kazan, Russias fifth-largest city.

Early reports indicated that two gunmen attacked secondary school number 175, on Dzhaudata Faizi Street, early on Tuesday morning.

That information was later contradicted by a spokesperson for local police, who said there was one attacker, acting alone. The attacker was detained in the course of the police operation.

Local media named the gunman as 19-year old Ilnaz Galyaliyev, a former pupil at the school.

A video, leaked on social media, purportedly showing Mr Galyaliyevs interrogation by police suggests the gunman may have been suffering from a psychiatric disorder.

I realised I was God about two months ago, he says in the video. In the summer, a monster began to awaken in me. Ive always hated everyone.

Footage released by state-affiliated media shows how the gunman entered the school by its main entrance, before opening fire from a semi-automatic firearm while still on the street outside.

Distressing videos distributed on social media show schoolchildren jumping from the top floors to the ground below  and then, bloodied, receiving emergency first aid.

A Russian police special unit near the scene at a school after a shooting in Kazan (AP)

The injuries were fatal in at least two cases. Other children were evacuated via ladders provided by fire engines.

The number of those confirmed dead as a result of the attack stands between eight and 13, according to different reports.

Another 21 students have been hospitalised, with at least six in intensive care.

A student who witnessed the attack suggested to the online publication Mediazona that the quick-witted actions of the school director may have averted more catastrophic loss of life.

Everyone started making a fuss, the student was reported as saying.

About a minute later, the director started shouting over the tannoy, Close the doors! We closed the doors. Then two minutes later, they said devils had arrived in our school.

The student, who said he saw the gunman from behind, said his class was later evacuated by police.

Aside from the gunfire, witnesses also reported several explosions.

It is unclear whether these related to the operation to apprehend the gunman.

The Kremlin said the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, had been informed of the incident, and had already ordered a review into public gun ownership.

Some assault firearms were being incorrectly registered as hunting rifles, said spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

Earlier, Rustam Minnikhanov, head of Russias Tatarstan republic, of which Kazan is the capital, said the firearms used in the attack had been legally registered.

School shootings are relatively rare in Russia, but authorities have been on guard since a 2018 incident at a polytechnic in Kerch, Crimea.

That shooting left 20 people dead, the greatest number lost to school violence since the 2004 Beslan terror attack in which 333 died.
The crisis between Israel and Hamas in Gaza moved towards all out conflict after one of the most violent days in years left some 30 people dead and with both sides vowing to continue hostilities.

Up to 28 Palestinians were killed by airstrikes in Gaza and three people died in Israel following rocket attacks on Tel Aviv and Ashkelon.

A day of violence ended with Hamas firing over 130 rockets towards Tel Aviv. The fire was so relentless that Israels Iron Dome rocket-defence system seemed to be overwhelmed.

A 50-year-old woman was killed in Rishon LeTsiyon, just south of Tel Aviv. Israels police spokesperson, Mickey Rosenfeld, told The Independent, the barrage had struck at the very heart of Israel.

It came in response to an Israeli airstrike that had earlier flattened a Gaza tower block. Residents had been told to evacuate before the block was hit.

With tensions rising, both sides stood on the precipice of all-out war but both vowed to continue exchanging fire.

Grieving Palestinians said they had little to lose following the latest airstrikes, while Israels prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it would increase the intensity and frequency of attacks in Gaza.

In a nationally televised speech late Tuesday, he said Hamas and Islamic Jihad have paid, and will pay, a heavy price.

Israel also announced it had mobilised 5,000 reserve troops.

Israelis take cover under a bridge in Tel Aviv after rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip (AFP via Getty Images)

The confrontations led to the UN to call for a de-escalation of tensions with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres saying he was saddened by the increasingly large numbers of casualties.

The surge in deadly violence was triggered by days of unrest in Jerusalem that saw Israeli police storm Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem with stun grenades and tear gas and Palestinians throw rocks, bottles and fireworks at police.

The holy city has been tense during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, with sporadic unrest and the possible evictions of Palestinians from homes claimed by Jewish settlers in a court case adding to the friction.

Tuesday began with burials for 26 Palestinians killed in overnight airstrikes.

Gazas health ministry said among its dead were 10 children. More than 100 people were also injured. The Israeli military disputed the figures and claimed that at least 16 of the dead were militants.

In Beit Hanoun, a town in northern Gaza, Abdel-Hamid Hamad said his nephew Hussein, 11, was killed on Monday in what residents stated was an Israeli air strike. He told Reuters the boy was collecting wood when he was hit.

Gaza has had enough, and nothing makes a difference now. Our children are getting killed. What should we do? Hamad said.

A Palestinian man holds an injured girl awaiting medical care at al-Shifa hospital in Gaza city (AFP via Getty Images)

One father who lost two of his children and eight relatives in an airstrike said there had been no warnings before the attacks.

We didnt see it coming, we just heard two big explosions, said Youssif al Massir, in the north of Gaza.

Two of his children, Ibrahim and Marwan were instantly killed .

Everyone was running in the street, children were bleeding, mothers were crying, blood was everywhere.

Hamas had warned on Monday of a serious escalation after Israeli forces stormed Jerusalems Al-Aqsa mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, amid a wave of unrest in the contested city, which saw Israeli police deploy tear gas, skunk water and stun grenades against Palestinian protesters who threw rocks and bottles back.

Israel had unleashed the air raids on the tiny blockaded strip after Hamas fired long-range rockets on Monday towards Jerusalem, over 100km away, for the first time since 2014.

Military officials added that Israel had hit 130 targets in Gaza, including the home of a top Hamas commander.

Rockets were fired by Hamas on the southern Israeli town of Ashkelon on Tuesday afternoon, killing two women, including an Indian domestic worker.

It was reported that the women died after a rocket hit a residential building and two landed in an open area.

A third person was also said to be in a critical condition, and 10 people were said to be injured in total.

Paramedics at the scene confirmed the two fatalities. We had two direct hits in Ashkelon of two buildings. Due to these direct hits, two people were killed and several more injured, Uri Shacham, a spokesperson for Magen David Adom, Israels national medical and ambulance service told The Independent. Its a very hard day for the people of Israel and Ashkelon.

At the site of the rocket attack a huge hole was seen in one building. Witnesses described how they just had seconds to dive for cover.

Isarelis take cover in Tel Aviv (AFP via Getty Images)

We dived for the shelter when the rocket hit and after saw a massive hole in the building, said Oshi Aohnah, a shop owner.

We ran upstairs and found an old man shouting that his wife was missing. She was buried under part of the building which had collapsed on her.

More than 700 Palestinians were injured in the 24 hours of violence, including six medics, according to the Palestinian health authorities.

Several Israeli police officers were also wounded.

International attempts at mediation have also begun.

Egypt, Qatar and the UN were trying to stem the violence, a Palestinian official said and the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, urged all sides to take steps to reduce tensions.
 Close Harrowing footage shows Palestinian fathers final moments before he is killed in Israeli air strikes.mp4

More than 52,000 Palestinians have been displaced by Israeli airstrikes, the United Nations aid agency said on Tuesday.

About 47,000 of the people displaced people have sought shelter in 58 UN-run schools in Gaza, Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told reporters, according to Reuters.

It comes as the Israeli army unleashed a fresh wave of airstrikes on Gaza overnight.

Israels army said it was once again targeting an underground metro system it says is being used by Hamas operatives to evade surveillance.

The residences of five Hamas commanders were also struck, with the Israeli military asserting that some of the homes had been used as command and control centres, while an anti-tank squad in Gaza City was also targeted.

On Monday, President Joe Biden expressed support for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas rulers in a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The US leader stopped short of demanding an immediate end to the violence, but expressed his support for a ceasefire and encouraged Israel to make every effort to ensure the protection of innocent civilians, the White House said.

Mr Biden also renewed his his firm support for Israels right to defend itself against indiscriminate rocket attacks, a readout of the call said.

At least 213 Palestinians have been killed in airstrikes so far, including 61 children, with more than 1,400 people wounded, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Meanwhile, ten people have been killed in Israel, including two children, Israeli authorities have said.
Gazas health ministry has said that 20 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes, launched after Hamas fired a barrage of rockets earlier in the day towards Jerusalem.

Health officials told The Independent that nine children were among the 20 dead and the youngest victim was just 10 years old. A further 65 people were injured.

Israel had warned that Palestinian militants would pay a heavy price for launching rockets towards Jerusalem.

Mondays cross-border fire was the culmination  so far  of another day of violence that has raged through the contested city. Earlier, more than 300 Palestinians were injured in clashes that also saw Israeli security forces storm al-Aqsa mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam.

Furious Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza, warned hostilities would escalate if Israeli forces did not withdraw from the al-Aqsa compound.

At 6pm, after the expiry of its ultimatum, Hamas fired six rockets towards Jerusalem, over 100 km away, for the first time in seven years.

Minutes later, rocket sirens wailed across the holy city, in nearby towns and in communities near Gaza. The Israeli military said some 50 rockets were fired in total.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu later accused Hamas of crossing a red line with its rocket attack on Jerusalem, and promised a tough response that could continue for a while.

Palestinians inside a hospital in the northern Gaza Strip, injured during the flare-up of violence (AFP/Getty)

The Israeli military said it had begun bombing Gaza, adding that it was gearing up, preparing for an open-ended military operation.

We have started to attack Hamas military targets, spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus said, adding that six of the dozens of rockets fired from Gaza were launched towards Jerusalems outskirts, where a house was hit. No casualties were reported.

We have the capabilities and authority and intention to deliver a severe blow to Hamas, he added. We are gearing up, preparing and allocating troops.

Meanwhile, Abu Obeida, spokesperson for Hamass military wing, said the attack on Jerusalem was a response to what he called Israeli crimes and aggression in the city.

This is a message the enemy has to understand well, he said.

The US condemned the rocket fire as unacceptable, with US secretary of state Anthony Blinken saying that the rocket attacks needed to stop, and that all sides needed to take steps to de-escalate.

Rockets fired towards Israel from Gaza City, controlled by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas (AFP/Getty)

Jerusalem reached boiling point this weekend after weeks of simmering tensions during the holy month of Ramadan.

The touch-paper was a decision by Israeli authorities to cordon off the historic Damascus Gate to the Old City, where Palestinian families traditionally like to gather during Iftar, the evening meal to break the fast during this time.

After weeks of nightly unrest, Israeli police eventually withdrew the barricades.

But anger only boiled over again, in response to the possibility of the forced eviction of four Palestinian families from the nearby East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah, on land claimed by Jewish settlers.

The deeply controversial decision, which Israels Supreme Court was due to rule on today but postponed due to unrest, could amount to war crimes according to the United Nations.

Despite international anger, the issue has been dismissed by Israels foreign ministry as a private real-estate dispute.

Amid protests and clashes, Israeli forces then beefed up their security presence in and around the Old City, the volcanic and emotional heart of the conflict, and later stormed the al-Aqsa mosque, throwing stun-grenades and tear-gas canisters at worshippers inside the building.

Palestinian protesters meanwhile hurled rockets, bottles and fireworks back at the security forces.

Tensions then reached breaking point on Monday afternoon as religious nationalist Israelis also gathered to celebrate Jerusalem day, an annual celebration marking Israels capture of East Jerusalem and the walled Old City during the 1967 Middle East war.

Many Palestinians regard it as a provocation, and it is often a flashpoint event.

Likely concerned about even more violence, Israeli security forces ordered that the route of the march celebrating Jerusalem Day be changed, and cordoned off Damascus Gate, bolstering the security presence in the area.

By the evening the booms of stun-grenades being thrown sounded across Jerusalem, as violence erupted in Sheikh Jarrah and al-Aqsa mosque once again.

A Palestinian demonstrator hurls rocks next to burning tyres during a protest near to the border with Israel (AFP/Getty)

In the south of the country, rocket fire continued to pound Israel while the Israelis bombarded targets in the blockaded strip.

The Israeli military said that they had struck two rocket launchers, two military posts and eight Hamas operatives.

One strike in northern Gaza killed nine people including three children.

A Gaza health spokesperson did not explicitly say that Israel was responsible, but told The Independent that no one attacks Gaza apart from the Israelis.

Ashraf al-Masri, a relative of those killed, told the Associated Press there was an explosion outside the house. We dont know where it came from, he said. We are trying to get the children for burial but the situation is difficult in Beit Hanoun and we are afraid to leave our houses.

Back in Jerusalem in Sheikh Jarrah, where residents are still at threat of imminent eviction, protesters vowed to continue the rallies, telling The Independent they were defending their own homes and their families.

We have been attacked for protecting our own houses, said one Palestinian man who declined to be named. The police are not protecting us  they are here to enforce the settler movement on us, to force us from our homes.

The UN Security Council scheduled closed consultations on the situation on Monday.

Dominic Raab, the UK foreign secretary, called for an immediate de-escalation on all sides.

The United States and European Union have expressed deep concern over the unrest in Jerusalem, urging Israel to calm the situation and not carry out the planned evictions.

Arab allies of Israel, along with Turkey, have also condemned Israels actions.
International leisure travel is finally legal again in England.

Jetting off on a foreign holiday is now possible under a traffic light system, with countries classified as green, amber or red and prescribed restrictions to match based on the risk of arrivals importing new Covid-19 infections.

Although holidays are no longer prohibited, there are still myriad hoops travellers must jump through, including pre-departure and post-arrival coronavirus tests taken within a certain timeframe. The government is currently advising that Brits should not be visiting amber or red countries for recreational purposes.

On 7 May, transport secretary, Grant Shapps announced that just 12 of countries would be granted green status and, to the disappointment of many UK holidaymakers, Spain was not one of them.

He said that the removal of international travel restrictions on 17 May was necessarily cautious, adding: We must make sure the countries we reconnect with are safe.

The lists are expected to be reviewed and updated every three weeks.

Spain and its islands have long been a favourite destination for Britons, with more than 18 million holidaymakers visiting this Mediterranean hotspot in a normal year. However, the coronavirus pandemic has decimated the travel industry.

But how likely is a Spanish getaway this summer  and what are the current rules on travel? Heres everything you need to know.

Will British holidaymakers be allowed to travel to Spain this summer?

The Alhambra Palace in Granada (Getty Images)

Those who have been missing Spains exquisite coastline and vibrant cities may be in luck  although circumstances may change depending on Covid case numbers.

Spain's Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, has said that from 24 May the nation will be more than delighted to welcome back British tourists without any restrictions - therell be no testing, quarantine or vaccination requirements.

To sign up to Simon Calders free weekly travel newsletter click here

However, Spain remains on the governments amber list and current advice states that Brits should not be visiting amber or red countries for recreational purposes.

Travel to an amber country also triggers 10 days of self-isolation and three negative Covid tests for those arriving back into the UK.

Spain is on the amber list - but for how long?

The aquamarine waters surrounding Majorca (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Only a smattering of tourist destinations are on the green list and, at this stage, Spain has not made the cut.

The number of Covid cases, coupled with the speed of its vaccination campaign (to date, less than a third of the country has received a first dose of the vaccine) mean that Spain has been relegated to the amber list.

Its expected that further updates June may see the country promoted to the green list, with popular holiday hotspots, such as the Balearic and Canary Islands, possibly being awarded green status before the mainland.

The Balearic Islands and the Valencia region  which includes the Costa Blanca  have significantly lower coronavirus contagion rates compared with the rest of the country.

Rosa Ana Morilla Rodriguez, director general of tourism for the islands, told Sky News: We have the right numbers, we have the right measures in place that will allow us to be considered green.

I think Mallorca is such an important destination for the UK that Im confident we could have this travel corridor. We have told the British ambassador that we have all the factors needed to be considered green for the UK, she said.

Yaiza Castilla, the Canary Islands tourism minister, has also asked the British government to treat the Canaries as a special case, separate from the rest of Spain based on their low rate of coronavirus cases.

The Canary Islands has been characterised by their control of the pandemic with results much lower than in infections which are much lower in other European territories, she told The Independent.

However, it looks unlikely that Spain will be added to the green list in the next update, due to be announced in the first week of March.

What will travel to an amber list country entail?

Barcelonas Sagrada Familia cathedral (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Holidaymakers travelling home from a destination on the amber list will need to take a pre-departure test - which can be a lateral flow or rapid antigen test, as well as a PCR test - with proof of a negative result.

Upon arrival to the UK from an amber list country, travellers must self-isolate at home for 10 days, plus have pre-booked and paid to take two PCR tests: one on day two and one on day eight.

Returning travellers in England can opt to pay for a further test on day five and end self-isolation early if its negative.

Will I need to have been vaccinated to visit Spain?

No - and, from 24 May, British tourists will be free to enter the country without the requirement to present a negative PCR test.

What restrictions are in place in Spain?

While the country is not currently in lockdown, it is subject to curfew restrictions that limit travel around the country, the opening hours of restaurants and bars and the number of people who can gather for social purposes.

The use of face coverings is mandatory for anyone over the age of six years old on all forms of public transport, and in many other outdoor and indoor public spaces, even when social distancing is observed.

Its possible that such restrictions may be relaxed when holidaymakers are allowed to re-enter the country.
Since 1963, The Independent has helped create a great community!

Since our founding in September of 1963, The Independent has been dedicated to giving Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, and Sunol readers the news they need to be in-the-know about what's going on in the Tri-Valley region.
1,400-year-old Chinese irrigation project resumes operations

People's Daily Online) 13:25, May 11, 2021

The ancient Huang Ju Irrigation Project, located in southeast China's Fujian province, has started to supply water once again, having been put into operations in early May.

A bird's-eye view of the project (Photo/Liao Min)

The project, with a history of more than 1,400 years, was named after its designer Huang Ju, an official of the Sui Dynasty (581-618). The system comprises two canals and could provide water to a total land area of more than 20,000 mu (1,333 hectares) when it was first put into practical use in ancient China. It was the most advanced irrigation project constructed during the Sui Dynasty.

The Huang Ju Irrigation Project was recognized as a World Heritage Irrigation Structure in October 2017. In 2019, it was listed as a major historical and cultural site protected at the national level in China.

The project, incorporating the functions of agricultural irrigation, drinking water supply, and hydraulic processing, reflects the traditional Chinese concept of harmony between humans and nature, including water resources.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Bianji)


AI/ML Rotation Program Seattle , Washington , United States Software and Services Summary

Posted: May 10, 2021 Weekly Hours: 40 Role Number: 200246144 Imagine what you could do here. At Apple, new ideas have a way of becoming extraordinary products, services, and customer experiences very quickly - and making the kind of impact that changes people's lives. Bring passion and dedication to your job and there's no telling what you could accomplish. The people here at Apple don't just craft products - they build the kind of wonder that's revolutionized entire industries. It's the diversity of those people and their ideas that inspires the innovation that runs through everything we do, from amazing technology to industry-leading environmental efforts. Play a part in the next revolution in human-computer interaction. Contribute to a product that is redefining mobile computing. Create groundbreaking technology for artificial intelligence. Work with the people who created the intelligent assistant that helps millions of people get things done - just by asking. You will also have a unique and rewarding opportunity to contribute to cool projects around Apple, and use your data science, machine learning, natural language, computer vision and artificial intelligence skills to transfer your ideas into solutions for some of the most challenging technical problems in the next generation of products that will surprise and delight millions of people. We want new ambitious team members to join the AI/ML Rotation Program at Apple. Key Qualifications Strong Computer Science fundamentals including familiarity with basic algorithms and data structures

Strong object-oriented programming and design skills

Excellent problem solving, critical thinking, and communication skills Description Apple's central AI/ML org is looking for engineers who are passionate about using machine learning to build new user experiences. The team you will join is looking for someone with a combination of strong programming skills and a creative, user-focused mindset. We seek a true team player who can collaborate with engineers in several technical areas. In this role, you should be able to thrive in a fast-paced environment with rapidly changing priorities and get up to speed quickly in new technical areas. SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE: - A wide range of software engineering tasks across multiple domain areas - Machine learning projects involving state of the art modeling techniques - Collaborate with cross functional teams to gather requirements, understand dependencies, define an architecture, and implement solutions to well-defined projects - Work with multiple teams across the organization to gain a broad understanding of the Siri architecture Education & Experience BS/MS in Computer Science or equivalent


Television | Production House

CINTAA urges producers to follow Covid SOPs, says lapse could impact the whole unit The Cine and Television Actors' Association (CINTAA) has urged producers to follow standard operating procedures (SOP) during the shooting and production stages to protect actors from Covid-19. The request from CINTAA comes at a time when several actors have tested positive for Covid, and some of them have even succumbed to the deadly virus. Read More...

Movies | Hindi

US Network NBC drops broadcast of 2022 Golden Globes US television network NBC has announced that it will drop its broadcast of the Golden Globes ceremony in 2022. The decision comes after the Hollywood backlash over the lack of diversity and the ethics of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), whose members vote on the annual awards for film and television. Read More...

MAM | Marketing

Telco gear maker HFCL posts PAT of Rs 84.67 crore in Q4 Homegrown telecom gear maker HFCL reported net profit of Rs 86.47-crore for the quarter ended 31 March 2021, a 1.6 per cent increase over the previous quarter's Rs 85.11 crores. Read More...

Television | TV Channels PayTM pledges 100 oxygen concentrators, one oxygen plant for Covid relief Indian e-wallet and fintech company PayTM has pledged to donate 100 concentrators and one oxygen plant for Covid relief efforts in Gujarat. The donations were made to the Corona Sewa Yagna initiative spearheaded by Gujarat governor Acharya Devvrat. Read More...

Television | TV Channels

The Q India promotes Krishna Menon as COO The QYOU Media Inc has appointed Krishna Menon as the COO of its Hindi language youth-oriented channel The Q India, available in over 100 million TV households and to over 612 million OTT and mobile users. Read More...
Representational Image

A growing number of current and recovered Covid-19 patients in India are contracting a deadly and rare fungal infection, as the country battles to contain a massive outbreak of virus in the second wave. Read more

Here's more top news of the day:

1) WHO Says COVID Variant First Found In India Is Now A 'Variant Of Concern': What We Know So Far

Getty Images

WHO said that the B.1.617 variant first identified in India in 2020 was being classified as a variant of global concern, as per Reuters. Read more

2) 'An Eid Gift': Muslim Cleric Elected Gram Pradhan In A Hindu-Majority Village In Ayodhya

File Photo

Residents of village Rajanpur of Mavai block in Rudauli assembly constituency, a Hindu-majority village, elected Hafiz Azimuddin Khan as their gram pradhan (village head). Read more

3) COVID Horror: Doctor Allegedly Molests Woman; Delhi Man Asks For Sexual Favours For O2 Cylinder

Representational Image

Sharing her plight, the woman said that the entire family, living in Noida, came to Bhagalpur to celebrate Holi, and decided to stay back as COVID cases started to surge. Read more

4) Accused Of 'Corona Jihad', A Group Of Tablighis Are Now Performing Last Rites Of COVID Victims

BCCL

Now a year down the line, members of this Muslim religious organisation in this Andhra Pradesh town are conducting the last rites of Covid victims, irrespective of their religion. Read more

5) People With AB And B Blood Groups More Susceptible To COVID, Says CSIR Report: What We Know

Reuters

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research or CSIR's report says people with AB and B blood groups have higher chances of testing COVID positive than other blood groups. Read more
In Himachal Pradesh's remote Kaza village, people have gone a step further to keep COVID pandemic at bay.

How's Kaza warding off pandemic

Kaza subdivision has framed its own Covid-19 health protocols that include mandatory rapid tests for all those who are coming to the area, even from within the state, as there is a shortage of health infrastructure.

Most of the visitors, comprising a large number of construction workers, now voluntarily prefer quarantine for minimum 14 days to contain the spread of the virus, a government official, who is daily monitoring the arrival of people, told IANS.



File Photo

The picturesque Spiti Valley in Kaza subdivision, a cold desert dotted by tiny hamlets spread over the Himalayan peaks, adjoining Tibet, takes you to a land of Buddhism and virgin nature.



Currently, the footfall of the tourists is almost negligible. The arrival is mainly of the construction workers from Bihar and Jharkhand and Himalayan nation Nepal.

As per the local health bulletin, a total of 651 tested positive till date and 611 of them recovered. The active cases are 37. Three deaths have been reported.

Kaza subdivision was the first in Himachal Pradesh last year to sanitise the entire block to prevent the spread of the pandemic.

Kaza village

Kaza subdivision in Lahaul-Spiti district reported 46 positive cases in the past two weeks.

Last year, local women dared state Cabinet minister Ram Lal Markanda, a local legislator too, to go back as he was violating the 'local' health protocol of mandatory quarantine for all those who were coming to Kaza.

Sensing trouble, the minister preferred to leave the place and headed straight to the state capital.

Notably, Kaza is a Schedule V area and the constitution empowers the local communities for self-governance.
A bloody suppressed popular uprising, an economy crippled by an unprecedented general strike, intense fighting between the army and rebel factions in 100 days, Burma has plunged into chaos. On the morning of February 1, the Burmese generals overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, abruptly ending a 10-year democratic parenthesis. Tuesday marks the 100 days of their putsch, a period when the junta has never ceased to weave a judicial web around Aung San Suu Kyi, the winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize. Here are some pictures:
Coronavirus pandemic is testing our limits like never before. And the cruellest part is that the disease is not limited to any specific age group. Rather it is impacting all people regardless of their age, class or region.



The situation becomes more upsetting when young children directly or indirectly get impacted by the disease. As has been reported in the news, a significant number of children have either lost one or both parents to Covid or are left alone at home after both their parents test positive and admitted to the hospital.

Several SOS and desperate calls are being made on social media to help such children.

In a similar kind of situation, A relative of a couple in Radio Colony in GTB Nagar reached out to the Head Constable of the Delhi Police and sought help for their 6-month-old boy on Sunday.

NDTV/ANI

According to a news report in NDTV, both the parents of the six-month-old boy tested positive and were advised to quarantine. However, they were worried about the well being of their toddler who tested negative.

As bad as could happen, none of their relatives from different parts of Delhi and UP could reach them due to the ongoing lockdown and emergency passes could not be arranged immediately.

Considering their condition, one of their relatives from Meerut reached out to the Head Constable Rakhi who is posted in DCP Shahdara police. On becoming aware of the couple's situation, the HC informed her senior about the couple and expressed her desire to take care of the toddler till his parents or any relative becomes available to attend to the child. On receiving the approval, Head Constable Rakhi reached the given address and brought the toddler to her house.

NDTV/ANI

Later, when the situation improved the constable ensured to take the child to his grandparents in Modinagar, Uttar Pradesh.

In the present case, the Delhi police played the role of caregiver besides providing protection.

But there are many other cases where young children are left with no senior members at their house or anyone to take care of them. Covid 19 has disturbed the social structure for many.

Though the government is trying to put a redressal mechanism in place for such kids, it is our responsibility as well as a society to take care of our most vulnerable sections of the people in these trying times.
The Dr. Raj Bhayani-led Federation of Indian Physicians Association has said it is sending 5,000 oxygen concentrators to India to help the country ward off the latest COVID-19 surge. (Facebook photo)
A "Notice to Vacate" is seen in the window of a foreclosed home. Media reports say that by skipping out on payments and interest, Guramrit Hanspal has reportedly saved more than $440,000 over the past 23 years. (representational image/Robyn Beck/AFP/GettyImages)
Forney, TX (75126)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy this afternoon. Hot and humid. High 91F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Mainly clear skies. Low 73F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph.
Woodbridge, VA (22192)

Today

Partly cloudy this morning. Increasing clouds with periods of showers this afternoon. High 84F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Considerable cloudiness with occasional rain showers. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%.
This time of year usually means one thing: graduation! Whether students are graduating from high school, community college or from a university, a new crop of talented and motivated individuals is entering the workforce. Workforce development has become a top-three priority for the Tucson Me
Massachusetts top prosecutor on Thursday sued a global marketing company that she alleges played a role in fueling the opioid epidemic.

State Attorney General Maura Healey said Publicis Health designed and deployed unfair and deceptive marketing schemes to help Purdue Pharma, a Connecticut drug maker, sell OxyContin, a powerful and addictive prescription painkiller.

In a suit filed in Boston, she alleges that the New York-based firm was paid more than $50 million to develop marketing strategies to get doctors to prescribe Purdue Pharmas opioids to more patients, in higher doses and for longer periods of time while the epidemic was raging.

The work included creating sales training materials and emails and other information distributed to prescribers to humanize the OxyContin brand, Healey said.

As a result, patients in Massachusetts suffered, overdosed, and died, while Publicis collected tens of millions of dollars, she said.

Healeys suit seeks restitution for victims, civil penalties and other measures.

The company, which is a subsidiary of Publicis Groupe, a global marketing firm based in Paris, dismissed the lawsuit as completely without basis.

Publicis Health maintained its role was limited to implementing Purdues advertising plan and buying media space. It also said the statute of limitations bars the suit.

The Massachusetts Attorney Generals complaint cherry picks unrelated statements made over the course of a multiyear engagement, the company said in a statement Thursday. It takes them out of context to create a completely false and misleading narrative.

Federal officials say roughly 500,000 people died from opioid overdoses from 1999 to 2019, and thousands of lawsuits have been filed against drug makers and others in response.

Healey, a Democrat, was among the attorneys general who recently reached a $573 million settlement with McKinsey & Company for advising Purdue on how to boost OxyContin sales. She was also the first state attorney general to sue members of the family that owns Purdue Pharma.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Lawsuits Massachusetts
Connecticut regulators on Thursday proposed a $30 million fine for Eversource and a $2.1 million fine for United Illuminating for what officials called the utilities failures in their preparation and response to Tropical Storm Isaias, which left hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in the state without power last August.

The state Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, or PURA, issued violation notices to the two companies, a week after releasing final reports on its investigation of the utilities storm responses.

Eversource, the states largest electricity distributor with nearly 1.3 million customers in the state, and United Illuminating, with 340,000 electricity customers in southwestern Connecticut, have 20 days to request a hearing to contest the proposed fines.

Officials at both companies, which have defended their responses to the storm, said they were reviewing the proposed sanctions and will be deciding how to respond.

While our employees worked tirelessly to restore power as quickly as possible, we recognize the hardships our customers and communities experienced, and we acknowledge there are areas for improvement, Eversource spokesperson Tricia Modifica said in a statement. We are working  and will continue to work  in good faith with our communities, customers and regulators to improve our performance.

United Illuminating spokesperson Ed Crowder said company officials are disappointed PURA did not consider the facts the utility presented to the agency during the investigation.

The facts show that we faithfully followed our Emergency Response Plan, Crowder said in a statement. We will continue to work with PURA to improve our preparation for and response to storms and other emergencies.

PURA officials said they could not comment on the proposed fines until they are finalized.

The fines would be in addition to profit reductions PURA ordered for Eversource and United Illuminating as a result of the Isaias investigation. Eversource stands to lose about $25 million a year and United Illuminating would lose about $1.3 million a year in their returns on equity, PURA said.

Isaias knocked down scores of trees and utility wires, causing more than 740,000 outages at its peak and a total of more than 1.3 million outages for Eversource and United Illuminating customers. Many customers and local officials expressed anger and frustration at the companies power restoration efforts, which took more than a week in some places.

The reports PURA issued last week determined the companies failed to comply with standards of acceptable performance in emergency preparation and restoration of power outages in an emergency, including failing to deploy enough line workers. Regulators also said the utilities violated state reporting requirements by not disclosing minor accidents involving workers during their storm responses.

PURA also ordered the companies and their affiliates to improve how they respond to major storms. The orders include increasing the number of line workers and other responders who restore power and clear blocked roads, and improving communications with customers. It also ordered management audits of the companies by independent firms.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Windstorm Connecticut
CAIRO  UK Club, an insurer of the container ship that blocked the Suez Canal in March, said on Monday a reduced compensation claim made by the Egyptian authorities for almost $600 million to free the vessel and cover related losses was still exceptionally large.

The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) adjusted its claim from an initial $916 million in an effort to settle out of court, SCA head Osama Rabie told private TV network MBC Masr on Saturday.

The Ever Given, one of the worlds largest container ships, was jammed across the canal for six days from March 23, stopping traffic in both directions.

The vessel, still loaded with thousands of containers, is being held in a lake between two stretches of the canal amid the dispute about the level of compensation SCA has claimed from the Japanese owner Shoei Kisen.

Rabie said on Saturday there was no immediate prospect of a settlement. We havent seen any response from their side so far, so we are moving forward with the issue, as we were, in the court, he said.

UK Club said the reduced amount proposed had not been reflected in SCAs claim filed at court.

The Ever Givens owners still have not been provided with evidence that would support a claim of this size, which remains exceptionally large. The Ever Givens interests continue to negotiate in good faith with the SCA, it added.

An Egyptian economic court is due to hold a hearing on May 22 to consider the SCA claim for what it describes as losses due to the blockage and costs for dislodging the ship, SCA sources said.

An Egyptian investigation into the incident found no wrongdoing by the SCA or its pilots, the sources said, without elaborating.

One source said the court could authorize the SCA to auction off the ship if the owner rejected any ruling to compensate the canal authority. Rabie has also mentioned such an outcome.

An Egyptian court rejected an appeal by Shoei Kisen against the Ever Givens detention earlier this month.

(Reporting by Jonathan Saul in London and Yousry Mohamed in Ismailia; Writing by Mahmoud Mourad; Editing by Aidan Lewis and Edmund Blair)

Top Photo: In this photo released by the Suez Canal Authority, a cargo ship, named the Ever Given, sits with its bow stuck into the wall Wednesday, March 24, 2021, after becoming wedged across Egypts Suez Canal and blocked all traffic in the vital waterway. Photo credit: Suez Canal Authority via AP.

Topics Lawsuits Carriers
PARIS  A French court on Monday threw out a lawsuit by a French-Vietnamese woman against more than a dozen multinationals that produced and sold a toxic herbicide dubbed Agent Orange, used by U.S. troops during the war in Vietnam.

Filed in 2014, the case has pitched Tran To Nga, a 79-year-old who claims she was a victim of Agent Orange, against 14 chemical firms, including U.S. companies Dow Chemical and Monsanto, now owned by Germanys Bayer.

Tran To Nga told Reuters the case had been thrown out but that she would appeal.

Tran, who worked as a journalist and activist in Vietnam in her 20s, has said she was suffering from effects including type 2 diabetes and a rare insulin allergy.

U.S. warplanes dropped about 18 million gallons (68 million liters) of Agent Orange  so-called because it was stored in drums with orange bands  between the early 1960s and early 1970s to defoliate jungles and destroy Viet Cong crops.

Multinationals Say Not Responsible

The multinationals had argued they could not be held responsible for use the U.S. military made of their product.

The court ruled it did not have jurisdiction to judge a case involving the U.S. governments wartime actions, Agence France Presse reported. Reuters could not immediately see the ruling.

One of Trans lawyers, William Bourdon, said in a statement on Twitter that the court was applying an obsolete definition of the immunity of jurisdiction principle which contradicted modern principles of international and national law.

He said it was astounding that the court had backed the companies contention that they were acting on orders when responding to U.S. government tenders for contracts.

In a statement, Bayer said it welcomed the courts decision while saying it had great sympathy for Ms. Tran To Nga and all those who suffered during the Vietnam war.

But it said it had been well-established by courts for many years that wartime contractors like the nine former manufacturers, operating at the behest of the U.S. government, are not responsible for the alleged damage claims associated with the governments use of such product during wartime.

So far, only military veterans from the United States and other countries involved in the war have won compensation over Agent Orange. In 2008, a U.S. federal appeals court upheld the dismissal of a civil lawsuit against major U.S. chemical companies brought by Vietnamese plaintiffs.

The United States has maintained there is no scientifically proven link between the wartime spraying and the claims of dioxin poisoning of many Vietnamese.

(Reporting by Dominique Vidalon and Yiming Woo; editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Andrew Cawthorne)

Topics Lawsuits Agencies France
Criminals launched more websites to trick people into giving up data, downloading malware and sending them money during 2020, taking advantage of pandemic lockdown by pretending to be celebrities, shops and government agencies.

The UKs National Cyber Security Centre took down 700,595 malicious campaigns last year, 15-times more than a year earlier as the number of scams increased and it began targeting new types of fraud, the agency said in a report published on Monday.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to a surge in malicious hacking and phishing attempts globally as fraudsters took advantage of more people working from home, which led to weaknesses in corporate security and fears about the virus that led people to click on links purporting to have information about the disease.

And the stakes are getting higher with hackers increasingly targeting hospitals and companies that operate critical infrastructure. A ransomware attack forced the operator of the biggest gasoline pipeline in the U.S. to shut down late Friday in an incident thats threatening to destabilize fuel supplies.

A popular tactic for defrauding people during lockdowns was to impersonate the UK government, with pages pretending to be tax or health authorities to exploit people searching for information amid upheavals including Brexit and emergency coronavirus measures. U.S. domain host NameCheap hosted almost a third of this category, according to the report.

By mid-year, the median take-down times were consistently in excess of 60 hours, the NCSC said regarding the campaigns hosted by the company. This undoubtedly made NameCheap an attractive proposition to host phishing and may explain the rise in monthly hosted campaigns that followed.

A representative for NameCheap said that the company has seen the number of fraud and abuse cases reported double since the start of the pandemic and the amount of incidents they identified themselves rose tenfold. The company said its increased staff and rolled out technology to help block abuse from domains using COVID-19 and Royal Mail terminology.

We work closely with our colleagues in law enforcement. This includes the NCSC in the UK, with whom we have a direct reporting line to communicate suspected fraud and abuse cases, the company said in a statement. We continue to work diligently to bring our response time down, having reduced our response time to less than 24 hours.

Some 46.4% of schemes impersonating celebrity endorsements from the likes of billionaire Richard Branson came from servers owned by the Seattle-based tech giant Amazon.com Inc., which is a dominant player in the hosting market. They were taken down in a median of 19 hours following requests from the British cyber security agency, giving Amazon one of the fastest response times for this type of scam.

A representative for Amazon didnt immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours.

One such scam relied on a fake news article which fabricated Branson quotes extolling the benefits of an alleged crypto-currency platform, while another spoofed a Bitcoin trading platform endorsement by British financial expert Martin Lewis, with made-up quotes such as, Brits are using this to make an average of 450 pounds a day and quitting their jobs!

Photograph: Commuters cross London Bridge in the City of London, on Monday, Feb. 15, 2021. Photo credit: Jason Alden/Bloomberg.

Copyright 2021 Bloomberg.

Topics Cyber
Britains Financial Conduct Authority said on Tuesday it was formally investigating the UK operations of collapsed supply chain finance company Greensill as part of global probes.

We are also cooperating with counterparts in other UK enforcement and regulatory agencies, as well as authorities in a number of overseas jurisdictions, FCA CEO Nikhil Rathi said in a letter to parliaments Treasury Select Committee.

Greensill Capital lent money to firms by buying their invoices at a discount, but it collapsed in March 2021 after insurers pulled their cover. Among the investors burnt in the widespread fallout included clients of Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse, steel magnate Sanjeev Guptas GFG Alliance and some 26 German towns.

Lawmakers have opened an inquiry into lessons from Greensills implosion and later on Tuesday will meet with the companys founder Lex Greensill in a public hearing. Rathi will appear before the committee on Wednesday.

The FCA is investigating matters relating to Greensill Capital UK, Greensill Capital Securities and the oversight of the latter by its principal, Mirabella Advisers LLP, Rathi said.

We are also cooperating with counterparts in other UK enforcement and regulatory agencies, as well as authorities in a number of overseas jurisdictions, Rathi said.

The FCA said it was only responsible for supervising how Greensill Capital UK complied with anti-money laundering (AML)safeguards.

The wider activities that GCUK undertook were not regulated by the FCA.and the origination of a supply-chain finance instrument is not a regulated activity, Rathi said.

To help with the smooth functioning of the administration of Greensill, the FCA has decided that for now it wont cancel the firms registration for AML compliance.

We agree with the Bank of Englands assessment that the Greensill entities were not systemically important for the purposes of UK financial stability, Rathi said.

GCUK was not regulated by the FCA to conduct regulated activities and, in line with the Banks assessment of Greensill, no specific analysis was done for reasons other than direct supervision.

(Reporting by Huw Jones, editing by Louise Heavens and Carmel Crimmins)

Top Photo: Financial Conduct Authority Building

Topics Uk
Riverview Insurance Solutions (RIS), the Alberta, Canada-based middle-market benefit consulting firm, announced it will merge with Sterling Capital Brokers (SCB).

The combined company will create the largest independent employee-owned benefit consulting firm in Canada, said SCB in a statement.

Founded in 2015 by Derrick Peterson, RIS oversees benefit consulting for more than 200 high growth clients in Alberta. Headquartered in Red Deer, Alberta, RIS works with clients in both Edmonton and Calgary. The team has combined consulting experience of more than 80 years in the areas of benefit plan reviews, plan management, retirement account planning, market analysis, member communication and corporate insurance planning.

SCB was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. SCB is Canadas largest independent benefit consulting firm that specializes in servicing high-growth small-to-medium size businesses. SCB offers its clients comprehensive benefit consulting and customized plan management technology services which provides rapid and bespoke solutions to its client base.

Sterlings geographical breadth and technology combined with RIS consulting expertise and servicing protocols will drive tremendous value for RIS existing client base, said Peterson, president of RIS.

Sterling has been leading with technology since inception; we have always known that true innovation in the insurance landscape was going to come from independent insurance brokers, commented SCB Co-Founder Stefan Ionescu.

The combination of the leading independent Ontario benefits adviser with the leading Alberta benefits brokerage is a great outcome for the two firms and their clients, Ionescu added.

With the addition of a presence in Western Canada, following our merger with Luedey Consultants Inc. in Atlantic Canada, we are excited to establish a national presence and to continue to lead the way as a tech-enabled service provider to more than a thousand clients across Canada, he said.

Source: Sterling Capital Brokers

Topics Agencies Canada
Chubbs Goldie Joins IAT Insurance Group as SVP, Moving & Storage, Distribution Strategy

IAT Insurance Group, a provider of specialty property/casualty and surety products, has hired Bobbie Goldie as senior vice president of the companys Moving & Storage division as well as Distribution Strategy. She will also serve as a member of IATs Management Committee.

Goldie joins IAT with more than 25 years of industry experience most recently at Chubb Insurance Company where she was senior vice president, Cyber. Prior to that role, Goldie led Chubbs Canadian Major Accounts businesses which included Property, Global Casualty, Environmental/Construction, Excess, Specialty Casualty, and Financial Lines. In this role she worked on the integration of ACE and Chubbs Canadian operations.

In addition to her insurance company experience with Chubb, Goldie also has broker experience with roles at Hays Companies, Arthur J. Gallagher, and Willis.

Todd Bateson, IATs executive vice president, Commercial Transportation, said Goldie will be part of the companys work to expand its Moving & Storage capabilities and relationships with brokers across IAT.

Goldie will work out of IATs office in Alpharetta, Ga.

IAT Insurance Group is a privately owned, specialty insurance company providing property casualty and surety products for niche markets. IAT goes to market through eight business units  Commercial Transportation, Specialty, Programs, Inland Marine, Excess Casualty Mid-Market, Reinsurance, Surety and Management Liability.

GIC Underwriters Diaz-Padron Appointed to Latin American Association of Insurance Agencies Board

VP of Underwriting at Florida-based GIC Underwriters Juan Carlos Diaz-Padron has been named to the national board of the Latin American Association of Insurance Agencies (LAAIA).

Diaz-Padron has more than 12 years of experience in the insurance industry. He has been active in the LAAIA, working to advance the organizations goals and promote the insurance industry within the Latino community.

Diaz-Padron joins 8 other insurance business leaders from various states serving on the National LAAIA board.

The Latin American Association of Insurance Agencies (LAAIA) was founded in 1969 and now represents more than $1 billion in premiums. It offers continuing education, legislative advocacy, representation on national advisory councils, monthly networking events, community outreach and an annual insurance convention and trade fair in South Florida. LAAIA is a 501 (c) (6) not-for-profit professional association administered by a volunteer board of directors.

GIC Underwriters operates as an MGA and wholesale broker for admitted and non-admitted carriers, servicing agents in Florida, Texas, Georgia, and Arizona. It writes commercial auto, artisan contractors, workers compensation and main-street commercial general liability products.

Comer to Lead Southeast Territory for MEMIC Group

The MEMIC Group has named Roger Comer of Fort Myers, Fla., to lead its Southeast territory in the states of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina.

Comer joined MEMIC in 2014 and has more than 30 years experience in the insurance business. He has earned industry designations of Accredited Adviser in Insurance, Associate in Claims, Certified School Risk Manager, Construction Risk and Insurance Specialist, Certified Insurance Service Representative, and Certified Workers Compensation Professional.

The MEMIC Group works exclusively through independent agents and brokers to provide coverage, safety training services and injury management for small, medium and large employers.

The MEMIC Group includes MEMIC Indemnity Company, MEMIC Casualty Company, and parent company Maine Employers Mutual Insurance Company. It holds licenses to write workers compensation across the entire country. The group insures more than 22,000 employers and their estimated 300,000 employees, and maintains offices in Manchester, N.H.; Glastonbury, Conn.; Albany, N.Y.; Weehawken, N.J.; West Conshohocken, Pa.; Tysons Corner, Va; and Tampa, Fla.; in addition to its headquarters in Portland, Maine.

Topics Chubb
A construction company owner was arrested in Florida this month for workers compensation premium fraud and grand theft for allegedly concealing payroll information to avoid paying more than $88,000 in workers compensation premiums, according to a statement from the Florida Department of Financial Services.

Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis said Yoni O. Martinez, president and owner of LAMX Construction Company Corp. was arrested May 3, 2021, after an investigation by the departments Division of Investigative & Forensic Services (DIFS), Bureau of Workers Compensation Fraud.

The investigation revealed that the president that Martinez actively concealed payroll to avoid paying a higher workers compensation premium. Martinez claimed $119,150 in annual payroll to Southeast Personnel Leasing for the policy periods of July 2014 to January 2017. Due to the estimated annual payroll provided, the estimated premium calculated for the policy period was $19,433.

During the investigation, detectives discovered that the company cashed more than $635,636 in labor instead of the $119,150 Martinez had originally reported when obtaining the policy with Southeast Personnel Leasing. DFS said had the payroll been properly reported, LAMX Construction Company Corporation would have been charged a total of $107,549 in workers compensation premium. This resulted in a net loss of $88,116 in workers compensation premiums based on the owners alleged fraudulent actions, the department said.

Yoni O. Martinez was arrested on May 3, 2021 and booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami-Dade County. Martinez faces charges of workers compensation premium fraud and grand theft. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. Individuals charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

I hope this arrest serves as a warning to other criminals that if they commit fraud they will be held accountable, Patronis said. I thank the hard work of my fraud detectives for bringing alleged criminals to justice.

Source: Florida Department of Financial Services

Topics Workers' Compensation Fraud Construction
A San Diego sheriffs department employee who sued the county and a former assistant sheriff over sexual harassment allegations was awarded $60,000 by a judge.

Superior Court Judge Katherine Bacal issued her ruling late last month in a civil lawsuit brought by administrative secretary Louise LaFoy, awarding her $50,000 for the sexual harassment claim and $10,000 for claiming the department failed to prevent the harassment, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported Saturday.

LaFoy said former San Diego Assistant Sheriff Rich Miller improperly touched her buttocks during hugs in the workplace. LaFoy said she told a commander after the first time in 2014 but the report never went higher up the chain. She filed a formal complaint after the second incident in 2017.

Miller retired in 2018. During the trial he denied any inappropriate conduct. He was not immediately available for comment on the allegations or the ruling.

The San Diego sheriffs department said in response to the ruling that it does not tolerate sexual harassment of any kind and thoroughly investigates all reported or observed allegations.

LaFoy said the ruling was an awesome moment because my character and my truthfulness was on trial.

Her attorney Jenna Rangel said the ruling emphasizes that employers have to take every report of misconduct seriously. It is a big deal, and you need cases like these to show that this is a big deal.

Topics Lawsuits California
A trust approved by a federal judge to help compensate victims of deadly California wildfires sparked by Pacific Gas & Electric equipment paid survivors just $7 million while racking up $51 million in overhead in its first year of operation, KQED News reported.

The Fire Victim Trust was set up to compensate 67,000 victims as part of a bankruptcy settlement. Attorneys for the fire victims negotiated the deal on behalf of survivors, and it was funded half with cash and half with foundering PG&E stock.

PG&E was forced into bankruptcy after its equipment sparked the Camp Fire that killed at least 85 people and nearly wiped out the Northern California town of Paradise.

The investigation by KQED found that in its first year of operation, the trust spent nearly 90% of its funds on overhead while fire victims, many of whom lost their homes, waited for reimbursement. KQED analyzed federal bankruptcy court filings, court transcripts and correspondence between victims and staff of the Fire Victim Trust.

An unidentified spokesman for the Fire Victim Trust told KQED the fund has now increased its payments to families, putting $195.2 million into the hands of those who lost loved ones, homes and businesses to fires caused by PG&E. He said the trust had begun to make partial payments to about 9,500 of the 67,170 victims. The payments average approximately $13,000.

Bill Cook, a retired U.S. foreign service officer, lost his Paradise home in the Camp Fire, which was the deadliest and most destructive fire in California history. Cook, 70, and his family are scraping by, living in a rented home 100 miles (161 kilometers) away in Davis, where he shares a three-bedroom rental with his 68-year-old wife, Leslie, their four adult children and three grandchildren. He said his rent is triple what he paid for his mortgage in Paradise.

Theyre paying themselves very well, Cook said of the overhead costs. They have these enormous legal costs and theres not much to show for it.

Officials for the trust declined to provide KQED with a list of companies it is working with and what it has paid them. But KQEDs review of documents identified more than half a dozen law firms and financial institutions that have profited from the Fire Victim Trust.

In a letter to fire victims in April, fund trustee John Trotter said it had retained Richmond, Virginia-based BrownGreer to process claims and that the firm has 300 staff members committed to this project, including attorneys, project managers, analysts, claim reviewers, and software developers.

My goal is to keep the cost of administration below or as close to 1% as possible, Trotter wrote of the Fire Victim Trust.

Trotter, a retired California Appeals Court judge, charges $1,500 an hour, according to court filings, while claims administrator Cathy Yanni bills $1,250 an hour.

Scott McNutt, a former California State Bar governor and veteran bankruptcy attorney, told KQED the amounts charged are excessive for the meager results obtained so far and that the trust has been completely non-transparent about what its doing for this money.

One of the hallmarks of the bankruptcy process is transparency, he said. One of the hallmarks of trust administration is transparency. Thats why theyre called trusts.

Related:

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Topics California Catastrophe Natural Disasters Wildfire
Former insurance agent Wendy Judd, 47, of Madera, Calif., pleaded guilty this week to felony grand theft after embezzling over $20,000 of insurance premium payments from consumers.

The California Department of Insurance launched an investigation after receiving a referral from the insurance company that employed Judd. The investigation reportedly showed that between March 2014 and January 2015 she collected $20,982 in cash premium payments from consumers that were not remitted to the insurance company.

Judd allegedly credited the consumers policies with the payments to keep them in force, but failed to deposit the funds into a premium trust account for the insurance company to pull the payments from. Instead, she reportedly kept the cash for her personal benefit. Judd reportedly attempted to conceal her actions by depositing personal checks into the premium trust account weeks later, but most of those checks were returned due to insufficient funds.

In October 2015, after resigning from the insurance company, Judd allegedly embezzled more money by withdrawing an additional $3,000 of premium payments from the trust account. When interviewed by CDI investigators, Judd disputed the amount of money she had taken, but admitted that she had borrowed some premium payments with the intent of eventually paying it back.

Judds insurance license expired in September 2020. The CDI is in the process of initiating an administrative action to prevent her from reinstating the license. The case was prosecuted by the Madera County District Attorneys Office.

Topics California Agencies
This past week Colonial Pipeline company, which operates a pipeline that carries gasoline, diesel fuel, and natural gas along a 5,500-mile path from Texas to New Jersey, was forced to take itself offline after being attacked by a criminal cyber gang. The Colonial Pipeline, which carries 2.5 million barrels a day, nearly 50% of the East Coast supply of diesel, gasoline, and jet fuel, is still working to restore service and gain access to its systems after the malicious cyberattack while its four mainlines remain offline.

The attack comes at a pivotal time for oil future traders, as the demand for vehicle fuel is bound to skyrocket as consumers return to their workplaces to attempt to negate the effects of the pandemic. The U.S. government is now allowing fuel transportation vehicles to go beyond their normal delivery limits in order to lessen the blow of the Colonial Pipeline shutdown, but the amount of fuel currently available still doesn't meet demands.

For years, the cybersecurity industry has warned that state-sponsored hackers could shut down large swathes of U.S. energy infrastructure in a geo-politically motivated act of cyberwar. Now, this incident represents one of the largest disruptions of critical American infrastructure by hackers in history, while it also provides yet another demonstration of how essential cybersecurity has become today.

"With an increasing number of users, devices, and programs in the modern enterprise, combined with the increased deluge of data, much of which is sensitive or confidential, the importance of cybersecurity continues to grow," said Mohie Ahmed, Solutions Architect at Ironsphere, a software and privileged access management company, when asked about the importance of cybersecurity. "The growing volume and sophistication of cyber attackers and attack techniques only make a good cybersecurity system all the more necessary."

The attack itself is ransomware, which is a form of malware in which an attacker locks the victim's computer system files and demands a payment to decrypt and unlock them. Ransom software works by encrypting victims' data, in which typically hackers will then offer the victim a key in return for payments, which will usually cost hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars. If the victim resists, hackers will increasingly threaten to leak confidential data in a bid to pile on the pressure.

And while ransomware attacks will usually target an organization or a business for the greatest potential payout, individuals must also be wary of cyber ransomware attacks. Anyone with a computer connected to the internet and anyone with important data stored on their computer or network is at risk.

However, the U.S. energy sector is growing particularly vulnerable to ransomware attacks as O.T. merges with I.T. like business and email networks. The increasing digitization of power grid and pipeline equipment means it's becoming easier for ransomware attackers to move from the I.T. side to the O.T., making cybersecurity systems like privileged access management crucial for every business today.

"A growing number of ransomware groups are working to infect the O.T. systems that control industrial and manufacturing equipment, with the aim of totally disrupting their victims' operations," said Ahmed. "Organizations increasingly connect those more sensitive networks to the internet for efficiency and remote automation, and a spate of vulnerabilities in the VPNs companies use to remotely connect to those networks has left them more exposed."

It's not yet clear if the hackers bridged that gap to systems that could have actually allowed them to meddle with the physical state of the pipeline or create potentially dangerous physical conditions at Colonial Pipeline. However, merely gaining broad access to the I.T. network was cause enough for the company to shut down the pipeline's operation as a safety precaution.

The attackers in the Colonial Pipeline attack were confirmed by multiple sources to be DarkSide, a cyber-criminal gang that is highly organized and "runs like a business." A research study done on the cyber gang found information that points to DarkSide being of a Russian speaking country, with Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan being on their list of countries to avoid attacking.

The group, which stole almost 100GB of data from Colonial Pipeline during the attack, is just one of many in the new digital age that use ransomware almost as if it is a service. The estimated cost for businesses to restore and mitigate ransomware attacks is projected to be over 20 billion in 2021, according to research from Cybersecurity Ventures, with the same projections showing that in 2021 a business will fall victim to a ransomware attack every 11 seconds.

Cyber threats such as ransomware became worse during the pandemic, as the number of cyber breaches went up 273 percent during the first quarter of the pandemic. And even with vaccines starting to roll out and some businesses switching back to traditional workspaces, Ahmed states that businesses better prioritize cybersecurity, or they will be left to experience the unfortunate consequences.

"As reliance on digital technologies continues to increase, cyberattacks have become too sophisticated. Thus, organizations that rely on outmoded cybersecurity strategies leave themselves vulnerable to a potential cyberattack," said Ahmed. "That leaves critical infrastructure providers in the U.S. with little choice but to bolster their defenses. Privileged Access Management solutions, such as Ironsphere's, are now must-haves against an onslaught of loosely organized criminal hackers, whose disruptive ambitions are only growing."

Arti Loftus is an experienced Information Technology specialist with a demonstrated history of working in the research, writing, and editing industry with many published articles under her belt.Edited by Luke Bellos
Burma Media Groups Urge Thai Govt Not to Deport Detained Myanmar Journalists

Thai authorities conduct a search at the residence of DVB reporters in Chiang Mai on Sunday.

A press freedom advocacy group and a foreign correspondents organization in Thailand have urged authorities there to refrain from deporting three Myanmar journalists working for Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) who were arrested in northern Thailand on Sunday for illegal entry into the country.

The DVB said in a statement that three of its journalists were arrested in the Thai city of Chiang Mais San Sai district during a random search on Sunday and charged with illegal entry. The statement said all three had covered the anti-coup demonstrations that have been taking place in Myanmar since the military seized power in a Feb. 1 coup.

Two associates of the journalists were also detained during the search. The five were scheduled to appear in a Chiang Mai court on Tuesday.

The Myanmar regime in March revoked DVB and four other media organizations licenses to operate in the country over their coverage of the regimes atrocities against protesters, making reporting for them an illegal act. The journalists continued to do their jobs, however, making them targets for the junta.

Shawn Crispin, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)s senior Southeast Asia representative, said Thai authorities should uphold the countrys proud history as a sanctuary for journalists fleeing military repression in Myanmar, and on humanitarian grounds should not deport the three DVB journalists.

Myanmars military regime has repeatedly abused and detained journalists, and Thai authorities should not force these members of the press to face potentially severe retaliation for their work, he added.

The Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT) also said its members are seriously concerned over the arrest of the three journalists and their associates. It said that under no circumstances should they be deported back to Myanmar, because they would face certain arrest and persecution there, if not worse, for their work and association with DVB.

Rather, the DVB journalists and their associates should be released from detention, urgently offered protection, and granted the right to remain temporarily in Thailand, the FCCT said in a statement.

More than 70 journalists are among around 5,000 people arrested by security forces in Myanmar since a military coup on Feb. 1. The vast majority remain in detention amid widespread reports of torture and extrajudicial killings.

The world is watching what the Thai authorities do in this important case for press freedom in Myanmar and the region, and for the protection of those fleeing the juntas brutal crackdown on independent media and civil society, the FCCT said.



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Burma Myanmar Civilian Fighters Kill Three Junta Soldiers During Shootout

In this undated photo, villagers guard the entrance gate of Talokmyo to prevent the entry of junta troops. / CJ

At least three junta soldiers were reportedly killed and several troops wounded during a shootout with civilian resistance fighters in Talokmyo of Myingyan Township of Mandalay Region on Tuesday.

The shootouts began about 2 p.m. on Tuesday when 13 vehicles loaded with more than 100 junta troops approached Talokmyo, a community comprised of four villages, and attempted to enter the village without reason, a local resident told the Irrawaddy.

During the firefight, three junta troops were reportedly killed. Several troops were injured, while two civilian resistance fighters were wounded, according to local sources.

However, The Irrawaddy was not able to confirm the military casualties independently.

After being reinforced in the evening with about six more vehicles loaded with troops from Myingyan, junta forces continued firing on the villagers resisting them at the entrance of Talokmyo beginning about 6 p.m.

They are deliberately shooting us. This is not the first time. This is third time they tried to enter the village, a resident told the Irrawaddy.

Due to the shootouts, hundreds of villagers including women, children and elderly have fled their homes.

The junta troops who were wounded in the shootout have been treated at the hospital in Myingyan, a witness also told The Irrawaddy.

In addition, about 13 explosions rocked several locations in Myingyan Town including state-owned offices and schools while the shootout was occurring at Talokmyo, 15.4 kilometers away.

On April 19, a shootout also occurred between the residents and junta troops in Myingyan. At least six junta soldiers and three civilians were killed in that clash.

Between March 3 and April 17, about 25 peaceful anti-regime protesters and bystanders in Myingyan have been slain by junta soldiers and police during their deadly crackdowns and random shootings.

Now, Myanmar is seeing armed resistance on the part of civilians against the junta troops in several townships in Sagaing, Mandalay, Magwe regions and Chin State.



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Burma Myanmar Junta Destroys Democracy Monument in Bago

The monument of the 1988 pro-democracy uprising.

Junta forces destroyed a monument in Bago commemorating the 1988 pro-democracy uprising on Sunday evening, according to local residents. The monument stood in a public park in Hanthawaddy Ward.

They came around 8pm and bulldozed the monument. The democracy monument was brought down, a local resident told The Irrawaddy.

Junta forces also razed the public square inside the park where Bago residents mark the anniversary of the 1998 pro-democracy uprising, and where they have staged anti-regime protests since the juntas Feb. 1 coup.

Charity groups in the town were previously forced by the junta in April to split a mausoleum into separate tombs for 14 civilians slain by the regime during their crackdowns on anti-coup protests.

On Sunday night, junta forces also arrested 88-Generation student leader Ko Hla Phone at his house. It remains unclear why he was detained and where he is being held. The wife and child of a striking educator from Bago University were also arrested, said a resident close to the man.

He has been in hiding, so junta forces took his wife and child instead as he was not at home. The child is just four years old, said the resident.

At least 82 people died in a bloody massacre in Bago on April 9 after more than 250 junta troops attacked four residential wards: Shinsawpu, Hmawkan, Nantawyar and Ponnasu.

Soldiers opened fire with automatic weapons and explosives during the raids. The explosives are believed to have been rifle grenades, which were fired at anti-regime defense team members and night watchmen guarding protest assembly areas in the wards.

More than one month after the regimes onslaught on Bago, locals are still subject to arbitrary arrests and other threats, said residents.



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Burma Myanmar Regime Troops Killed in Guerilla Attacks by Civilian Fighters

Hundreds of residents of Taze resisting junta soldiers attempting to enter the town to crackdown on anti-regime protests on April 7. / CJ

Three junta soldiers were killed and several wounded during a shootout with civilian resistance fighters in Taze Township, Sagaing Region on Monday evening, according to the Sagaing Region Peoples Defense Force and local residents.

At around 7pm on Monday, civilian resistance forces against the regime ambushed three military vehicles loaded with around 60 troops. The trucks were returning to Taze from Maharmyaing forest and traveling on the Taze-Kalaywa Highway, in the western part of Taze Township.

Three soldiers were killed and at least 14 injured during the hour-long clash, according to local residents. There were no reported casualties on the civilian defense force side. The Irrawaddy was unable to confirm the military casualties independently.

Following the shootout, the regime forces opened fire on villages that they passed through and continued firing as they entered Taze. Residents said that the junta troops also conducted searches for people who have been charged with incitement under Article 505 of the Penal Code on their return to Taze.

After the guerilla-style attack by the civilian resistance fighters, the junta soldiers were angry and opening fire on everything they could see. They were firing when they came back to Taze. Then, they searched the houses of those who have been charged under Article 505, a resident told The Irrawaddy.

Earlier on Monday, junta forces had raided Kaduma village in the morning. They destroyed some houses and threatened villagers with being sent as prisoners to a work camp in Maharmyaing forest, sources said.

On April 7, a shootout occurred near the entrance of Taze when hundreds of residents attempted to prevent seven truckloads of troops from entering the town to crackdown on anti-regime demonstrations.

During that clash, 12 civilians were killed and more than 20 were injured after troops opened fire on them with automatic weapons and sniper rifles. Since then, regime soldiers have been permanently deployed in Taze.

Peoples Defense Forces have been formed in several townships in Sagaing and Magwe regions and Chin State, with local residents resisting the military regime by using traditional and homemade weapons.

Last Saturday, the National Unity Government, its parliamentary committee and their offshoot civilian defense forces were branded as terrorist groups by the military regime, which accused them of incitement against the junta.

The military regime said that it will not tolerate any armed resistance to their coup.



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Burma Myanmars Failed Mutinies in History

The Armed Forces Day parade in Naypyitaw in 2018. / The Irrawaddy

After Myanmars military coup on Feb. 1, some military personnel have joined the civil disobedience movement and left the armed forces.

The National Union Government (NUG), a shadow cabinet formed to rival the military regime, has urged personnel to mutiny and join the NUGs Peoples Defence Force.

It is widely believed that a counter-coup by disgruntled military officers or a large-scale mutiny could resolve the crisis.

However, analysts say any major mutiny is unlikely because of the leaderships tight grip on personnel, including their families. Generally, the immediate family of personnel live inside military camps.

The first post-independence mutiny took place on August 10, 1948, eight months after independence in January.

Battalion 1, based in Thayet in todays Magwe Region, and Battalion 3 in Mingaladon Township, Yangon (then Rangoon), which were pro-communist and opposed the Anti-Fascist Peoples Freedom League government, seized weapons and ammunition and rebelled.

Only around 2,000 personnel were left in the military, excluding the Karen Battalion.

The Communist Party of Burma (CPB) rebelled against the government less than three months after independence. It had a serious impact on the Tatmadaw (military) and caused upheavals within the establishment. Some soldiers shot their superiors and joined the CPB.

Against the backdrop of the rise of communism, the Leftist Unity Council was formed on July 16, 1948, to build mutual understanding with the communists. The committee consisted of leftists from Myanmars military, the Burma Socialist Party, Peoples Volunteer Organization and communists. It was led by Major General Ne Win, who staged a coup in 1962 and ruled the country as a military dictator for decades.

A faction within the Leftist Unity Council planned a coup, purportedly to build peace and unity, claiming it would form a left-wing coalition government after seizing power.

Maj-Gen Ne Win, however, refused to get involved in the plan for fear that the right-wing would seek international military assistance and defeat left-wing forces.

However, members of the Thirty Comrades  Burma Independence Army founders Bo Zeya and commander of Battalion 3 Bo Ye Htut  continued with their plan to stage an armed revolt. The CPB also instructed communist personnel to go underground and launch an armed revolt. And pro-communist military personnel persuaded their peers to join the uprising.

On August 10, 1948, led by Bo Zeya and Bo Ye Htut, around 350 troops, including more than half of the Mingaladon-based Battalion 3, members of the second engineering unit and Bago-based Battalion 6, mutinied in 32 military trucks.

U San Yu, who would later become the nations fifth president, was a henchman of dictator Gen. Ne Win serving with Battalion 3 at the time. He did not join his commander Bo Ye Htut chose to fight the government to establish a communist state.

At the same time, Battalion 1 in Thayet mutinied and occupied Pyay and its surrounding areas. As the revolting troops contacted one another and attempted to march on Yangon, the air force intercepted them, much to the relief of Prime Minister U Nu.

The RBA led by Bo Zeya and Bo Ye Htut continued to revolt against the government.

In 1949, it merged with CPB and the Peoples Volunteer Organization in Pyay to form a military alliance against the government. The alliance collapsed in 1950 and the RBA disbanded.

In 1976 a youthful army captain, Ohn Kyaw Myint, and some of his comrades failed in an attempt to assassinate the military

leaders to topple the Burma Socialist Programme Party government led by General Ne Win.

Many military personnel joined the pro-democracy uprising in 1988 but they brought no significant change.



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Guest Column Responding to Myanmars Junta: An Alternative to Sanctions and Boycotts

Coup leader Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing participates in the Armed Forces Day parade in Naypyitaw in March. / Commander-in-Chief of Defense Services Office

It has long been argued that sanctions against rogue regimes such as Myanmars military dictatorships are ineffectual and may hurt ordinary people more than those responsible for the acts that made outside powers take action against them. That would also apply for so-called smart sanctions, which in the case of Myanmar would mean freezing the generals non-existent foreign bank accounts or barring entry to Western nations they have no intention of traveling to. And any attempt to bring the generals to face charges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) or the International Court of Justice (ICJ) are bound to fail because China and Russia would block necessary UN Security Council resolutions for the latter to enforce any verdict the court may pass and Myanmar is not a signatory to the Rome statute which created the former.

But there is a new kind of action that may actually work: to bring prosecutions against named individuals in countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden. Called the Myanmar Accountability Project, or MAP, it was launched in the UK after the Feb. 1 coup at the initiative of Christopher Gunness, a former BBC correspondent who covered the 1988 pro-democracy uprising in Myanmar and later became a UN official working in the Middle East. Section 134 of the UK Criminal Justice Act of 1988 establishes universal jurisdiction over cases that may be filed in the UK or wherever the alleged offense was committed. According to a statement issued by MAP, The provisions enact the UKs obligations under the UN Convention against Torture (UNCAT), specifically the obligation to extradite and prosecute, in Article 5 of UNCAT. Working with Gunness are three legal experts: Tatyana Eatwell of Doughty Street Chambers in London and an expert in public international law, Michael OKane, a senior partner at Peters & Peters solicitors in London, and Damian Lilly, a protection and human rights expert with more than 20 years experience working with the United Nations.

Behind the legalese and expertise lies a simple concept: The generals are being scrutinized on many fronts, not least because the criminal acts they ordered are being widely shared online. We can see their insignia on the uniforms and we understand the chain of command. They can run, but they cant hide in this digital age, Gunness told The Irrawaddy.

The first test case was filed at the beginning of May against the juntas attempts to remove U Kyaw Zwar Minn, Myanmars former ambassador to London, from his residence. He went public with his support for Myanmars civil disobedience movement, and was subsequently fired by the junta. The plan is to persuade an English court to rule that the junta is illegitimate and has no legal standing. Peters & Peters sent a letter to the junta-appointed successor U Chit Win warning him that any attempt to evict U Kyaw Zwar Minn would be unlawful and any attempt to secure access to any part of the property will be reported immediately to the police.

The next step, according to Gunness, will be to go after those who are committing atrocities: And that will be done whether its the torturers in detention centers, the snipers shooting demonstrators in the head or the commanding officers that gave the orders.

It remains to be seen howand ifthe perpetrators can be more than exposed on social media and face justice in foreign courts. There is nothing in international law that prohibits solicitors in the UK from investigating such atrocities and UK courts from prosecuting them. They will be named, shamed and convicted, which will make it difficult for them to travel to any country that has an extradition treaty with the UK, or any other country where similar verdicts have been passed. Red alerts issued by Interpol could also be a legal consequence of such lawsuits.

A legal precedent can be found when the ousted Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet was arrested in the UK in 1998 on the same principle of universal jurisdiction which the MAP refers to. He spent two years under house arrest in a resort outside London while awaiting extradition to Spain, where he had been indicted. Because of his advanced agehe was in his early 80she was not seen as fit to stand trial, and was sent back to Chile in March 2000.

Currently, 25 junta leaders and other military officers have been identified and sanctioned by the European Union for what it has termed serious human rights violations and abuses, among them Senior General and coupmaker Min Aung Hlaing, his deputy Vice Senior General Soe Win, Defense Minister General Mya Tun Oo and Lieutenant-General Than Hlaing, who in mid-April took part in a video conference organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). On Feb. 2, Lt-Gen Than Hlaing was appointed deputy minister of home affairs and chief of police and as such has overseen the crackdown on the civil disobedience movement and the killings of hundreds of pro-democracy demonstrators.

That resulted in a storm of protests from pro-democracy organizations all over the world, who also pointed out that UNODC has a long history of turning a blind eye to official complicity in the trade and that the outfits annual opium surveys often distort the realities in the poppy growing areas. Its 2019 survey claimed that opium production had increased in areas controlled by the rebel Kachin Independence Army while independent sources refuted such claims, pointing out that the local drug trade in Kachin State was and is run by local militias allied with the Myanmar military.

Such bias makes it difficult for any international sanctions to be effective, as it would be seen as if a UN organ is legitimizing the junta in Naypyitaw. Other UN agencies on Myanmar are also said to be negotiating with the junta-appointed government, which is against the advice of the UN Secretary-Generals own adviser not to legitimize or recognize the coup regime. But lucrative jobs are at stake, and money is also the reason why international oil companies are lobbying against sanctions.

Van Tran, a researcher on social movements in Myanmar at Cornell University in the US wrote for the Brookings Institutions website on Feb. 9 that Western sanctions have not and will not propel Myanmars military dictators toward democracy because Myanmars neighbors in Asia are sure to continue prioritizing economic engagement, regardless of Myanmars political circumstances.

In 2008, when Myanmar was ruled by another junta, the US Congress passed the most extensive sanctions ever, called the Block Burma Jade (Juntas Anti-Democratic Efforts) Act, which prohibited the importation of gemstones from Myanmar even through third countries. Precious stones were seen as a major source of revenue for the then junta, the State Peace and Development Council, and the aim was to cut its economic lifeline. But most of Myanmars economy does not show up in official statistics and monetary transactions are mostly carried out through an informal, underground transmittance system known locally as hundiesand that includes money transfers between Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and other countries in the region. The Myanmar military has always managed not only to survive but also to prosper when Western sanctions have been imposed on their businesses.

MAPs initiative may therefore make a difference because it avoids all those unseen transactions and official trade channels that are associated with sanctions and focuses on individual officers who have committed crimes against humanityand does so outside of cumbersome ICJ and ICC bureaucracies. The campaign may not force the generals to reverse the coup, but it will deprive the worst offenders in the leadership of legitimacy and, perhaps, prompt some elements within the armed forces to question the wisdom of supporting the current order.

Correction: The previous version of this story misstated the year of the UNODC survey. It has been updated to reflect the correct year.



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Monday, City of Miami manager Art Noreiga announced the promotion of Dr. Nzeribe (Zerry) Ihekwaba to Deputy City Manager.

Noriega also promoted Suzanne S. Hollander to Director of the Department of Real Estate Asset Management (DREAM).

Noriega said that Zerrys demonstrated leadership at the City, and high-value character make him an ideal candidate to serve as Deputy City Manager. In this position, Ihekwaba will execute the City Managers directives as required.

He will oversee and coordinate various departments of the city, such as Building and Public Works--positions he has experience in, especially since he is designated as the Citys Chief of Infrastructure.

In 1985, Dr. Ihekwaba earned his Civil Engineering degree at the University of Nigeria. He subsequently earned his doctorate (Ph.D.) in Structural and Materials Engineering at Queens University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada in 1996.

Hollander is an expert in the real estate market, with demonstrated knowledge in the complex real estate sector of our community. She was appointed by the U.S. Department of State to its Fulbright Specialist Roster as an Expert in Real Estate.

She serves on the board of many high-profile real estate networks and has experience in urban and regional development in both the United States and Latin America.

Hollander worked as a Professor at Florida International Universitys Hollo School of Real Estate teaching real estate law and leading real estate industry events for over 11 years.
Elon Musk's appearance on "Saturday Night Live" did not help Dogecoin at all. In fact, the cryptocurrency even saw a decrease after the Tesla CEO's highly anticipated hosting in the popular show.

Before his guesting on the show, Musk labeled himself as The Dogefather," sending investors and the community in a frenzy as they try to get a hold of the popular digital asset. Moreover, ahead of "SNL" on May 8, there was much hype surrounding the value of the cryptocurrency--with several Dogecoin price predictions seeing the possibility of it hitting the $1 mark.

Unfortunately, that didn't happen at all, though Dogecoin value peaked at 70 cents in a new high for what has been called as the meme coin.

Dogecoin Price Prediction Fail: 40% Decrease

As revealed by Hypebeast, Dogecoin's value decreased by nearly 40 percent after Elon Musk's SNL appearance--contrary to what analysts predicted.

Per the report, the once-called joke coin reached $0.73 before Musk hosted SNL. However, it then plummeted to $0.49 despite Musk mentioning it twice during the show--the first one in his opening monologue and the second one during the satire segment where he called himself the "Dogefather" once again.

For what it's worth, as of time of writing, the Dogecoin value is at $0.55 according to Coin Market Cap.

While it is not a bad result for Dogecoin at all, it is still quite disappointing for investors and the people who expected it to break through the $1 mark. After all, the community behind it has been rallying for the cryptocurrency to gather momentum to reach the said threshold.

Read Also: Investor Warns 'Dangerous' Nature of Dogecoin

Dogecoin to the Moon!

While the Dogecoin price predictions did not live up to expectations, it is still not too late for the meme coin to bounce back and maybe reach $1.

As Reuters noted, SpaceX will be launching a Dogecoin-funded moon satellite in 2022. In a tweet, Musk confirmed the development and noted that the "DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon" will be the first cypto and meme to be in space.

SpaceX is now accepting Dogecoin as payment to fund the project, which is an opportunity for the cryptocurrency to further elevate its value.

With this development, it is more than likely that Dogecoin's value will reach its target sooner rather than later.\

Related Article: Ethereum Price Prediction: Crypto Analyst Sees $10000 Value Peak!
True to its tradition of fast-paced activity on the gadget space, Samsung has a lot of new phones for users to unbox very soon. The latest its avid users are getting their hands on would be two of its foldable varieties: the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 and the Galaxy Z Flip 3.

However, it seemed no new version of its fabled phablet, Samsung Galaxy Note, will be announced. Some rumors even claim that it has been killed off.

Galaxy Z Flip 3, Fold 3 Launch Date: August

What can users expect from these two new exciting models? A new leak by Gizmo China gave some hints about these soon-to-unveiled smartphones. It quoted a claim that all the aforementioned models will be released in August--confirming previous rumors circulating about the products.

Read Also: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip: Putting a Screen Protector Could Void Your Warranty

On the other hand, a major Korean news outlet Yonhap News reported that Samsung has scheduled an "Unpacked" event for the Fold 3 and Flip 3 around early to mid-August. Previous reports claimed thatthe South Korean phone maker will announce the foldables in July.

Other rumors point to an August launch date for the Samsung S21 FE (Fan Edition), without mentioning both the Fold 3 and the Flip 3, while other reports say only the foldables will be launched three months from now.

What's exciting about the Fold 3 and the Flip 3 is that Samsung has previously addressed some user complaints about its form factor, BGR.com revealed. Previous foldables had been beset with a number issues, primary of which is the phone's fragileness and high cost. To address this, Samsung has been working on upgrades to both foldables to enhance their durability, and if reports in Korea are to be believed, its entry price is likewise expected to be slashed.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, Flip 3 Specs, Price Range

New features, such as sturdier glass displays and being water- and dust-resistant, are quite promising. In addition, the Korean phone maker is said to be enhancing component quality and the actual design of the product to avoid accidental damage. It is also working on offering foldable cases to go with the foldable handsets.

While the leaks did not offer any details on the price range or release dates, there are some reports that mention an August 3 launch for the Flip 3, according to Korea's Infostock Daily. But what would make the Flip 3 eagerly anticipated by fans is its reported price of $990, which could be up to 30 percent cheaper than the $1449 Galaxy Z Flip 5G, per Yahoo.

As for the Fold 3, it could be similarly more affordable than its predecessor, but not likely to match or go under the $1000 level.

To track Samsung's previous releases, the Galaxy S20 FE was unveiled in October 2020, while the 5G version of the Galaxy Z Flip was launched in July 2020. On the other hand, the Fold 2 was rolled out back in September 2020.

Related Article: Samsung Galaxy Note 9 with a Green Screen? You're Not the Only One
Shelton, CT  5/11/2021  TMC today announced Diego Gosmar, Vice President International Operations, XCALLY will present a conference session at Open Source World being held June 22-25, 2021 at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami, Florida.

Through interactive sessions, quality keynotes, exciting networking experiences and a recently expanded exhibit floor, ITEXPO connects businesses with the solutions, partners and education they need to drive digital transformation. As one of the only vendor neutral shows in the marketplace, thousands of Resellers, enterprises, service providers, media, manufacturers and developers come to ITEXPO year after year to make their purchasing decisions and select new partners.

Here are the details for Diego Gosmars Presentation:

Conference Track: Open Source World

Session title: Part I: AI and Machine Learning: Customer Care Applications and Challenges

Part II: AI and Machine Learning: Customer Care Applications and Challenges

Date: 6/23/2021

Time: 2:00-2:25 pm, 2:30-2:55 pm

View all keynotes, speakers, special events, exhibitors and the entire Open Source World conference program here.

For more information or to register for Open Source World, contact events@tmcnet.com. Companies interested in exhibiting, sponsorship or advertising packages for Open Source World should contact TMC's Joe Fabiano at 203-852-6800 x132 or Maureen Gambino at 203-852-6800 x109.

About TMC

Through education, industry news, live events and social influence, global buyers rely on TMC's content-driven marketplaces to make purchase decisions and navigate markets. As a result, leading technology vendors turn to TMC for unparalleled branding, thought leadership and lead generation opportunities. Our in-person and online events deliver unmatched visibility and sales prospects for all participants. Through our custom lead generation programs, we provide clients with an ongoing stream of leads that turn into sales opportunities and build databases. Additionally, we bolster brand reputations with the millions of impressions from display advertising on our news sites and newsletters. Making TMC a 360-degree marketing solution, we offer comprehensive event and road show management services and custom content creation with expertly ghost-crafted blogs, press releases, articles and marketing collateral to help with SEO, branding, and overall marketing efforts. For more information about TMC and to learn how we can help you reach your marketing goals, please visit www.tmcnet.com and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, @tmcnet .

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Edited by Luke Bellos
The Black Dog Institute's mental health platform tailored to frontline healthcare workers - TEN - was built with the analytical power of SAS and has reached 33,000 Australian healthcare professionals. However, its continued funding now rests on the result of the 2021-22 federal budget.

COVID-19 has hit everyone hard, and frontline healthcare workers are no exception, with relentless demands and pressures affecting their mental wellbeing in their professional and personal life. As part of its $74 million package to support the mental and health and wellbeing of all Australians, the Commonwealth Department of Health funded the Black Dog Institute to develop an online support platform tailored to these workers. This was released as The Essential Network, or TEN.

TEN providers tools and resources to frontline healthcare workers helping them cope with, and manage, stress, burnout, anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions. TEN was launched in two weeks, in its first iteration, and has since reached 33,000 healthcare professionals Australia-wide.

The Black Dog Institute drew upon the research of Australian health professionals showing more than 50% were worried about contracting COVID-19, and 80% were concerned for their loved ones. Elevated psychological distress rates, and reports of depression, anxiety and stress higher than expected, meant the platform had to be rolled out swiftly and efficiently.

The platform was optimised based on informed insights from SAS' customer intelligence and cloud platforms, user consultation and the projects wider partner community.

Dr Simon Judkins, Director of Emergency Medicine said, as a doctor of over 25 years and having worked as an Emergency Physician for 20 of those, Im acutely aware of my own mental wellbeing and of those around me, however, this hasnt always been the case. As healthcare professionals, we default to putting the health and wellbeing of others before our own and will often find little time to prioritise ourselves. We dont seek help until we feel we really need it, or until family, friends or colleagues strongly encourage it ... even then we find it difficult to ask for help.

Personally, I've found the TEN platform really helpful and easily accessible. With self-management tools, tips for having conversations with colleagues, as well as options for telehealth sessions  its an all-encapsulating platform which gives us the tailored support we need.

Nicole Cockayne, Director Strategy and Operations, Black Dog Institute said our existing partnership with SAS was a significant contributor in ensuring we met the tight project deadline. As an organisation, they are agile, fast-moving and provide the essential knowledge and insights we require to develop solutions that not only work but are effective and maintain their relevance due to their focus on continuous improvement through informed insights.

Following the initial stages of the project, working with SAS was crucial in prioritising the ongoing direction of the project, and specifically which channel  out of the mobile app and online website  we should continue investing in.

With significantly higher traffic on the website and lower demand for telehealth interactions, we quickly realised users were looking to leverage the website for self-management tools and resources. We have since relaunched a new and improved version of the TEN online website in response to this, with more than 40 additional resources added, based on user engagements, continued Cockayne.

TEN saw an uptake of over 10,000 users in its first two months, growing to 33,000 in its first 10 months. The platform was re-launched in March 2021 and experienced a 500% spike in click-throughs to the self-help resources and online assessments.

The SAS customer intelligence technology products SAS 360 Discover, SAS 360 Engage, and SAS Viya consistently ensured the platform focused on the resources users were seeking and engaging with.

SAS turned insights into actionable outcomes for the project, including highlighting new and updated resources and leveraging A/B user experience testing.

Lynette Clunies-Ross, Region Vice President, SAS Australia and New Zealand said, we are proud to work with Black Dog Institute on such an important initiative for our frontline healthcare workers, and it is really encouraging to have the Federal Government recognise mental health as a priority and invest in the digital transformation of our health sector. Our SAS platform is designed to augment and enable the capabilities and services of the Black Dog Institute and its partners in support of frontline health workers. Its great to see professionals across the services spectrum drawing insights about the effectiveness of TEN in real-time and making quick decisions to fine-tune their offerings. The platform is truly designed by medical professionals, for medical professionals.

Continued Government investment in the platform will be determined following this weeks 2021-22 Federal Budget. With frontline healthcare workers some of the hardest hit throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and with the continued rollout of the vaccine, the platform and its resources are in high demand.
The Worlds Top 50 Innovators 2021 (T50 Melbourne) conference will bring the cream of the crop names in innovation, business, science, technology, politics, media, and academia.

World leading organisations including Pfizer and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are set to take centre stage at the Worlds Top 50 Innovators 2021 (T50 Melbourne) to be held in Melbourne on October 14-22, co-hosted by Swinburne University of Technology and Codex.

For the first time, the event will take place outside London since it launched in 2005. The T50 Melbourne presented by Swinburne and Codex will gather some of the biggest names in innovation, business, science, technology, politics, media, and academia to Victoria in a unique and accessible conference.

Keynote speakers include:

Dr Albert Bourla  CEO and chair, Pfizer

Dr Douglas Terrier - chief technologist at NASA (Space Exploration)

Tom Chi - co-founder at GoogleX (Planet Earth)

Chloe White - national blockchain roadmap lead for the Australian Government

Professor Pascale Quester  vice-chancellor and president of Swinburne University of Technology

Cam Adams  co-founder at Canva

Professor Lucy Bernholz - co-director at Stanford PACS, Stanford University

Dr Richard Hames - CEO and founder at Centre for the Future

Adam Jacoby, director of global and strategic innovation at Swinburne and former Codex T50 innovator, feels thrilled to be bringing the event to Australia.

This October, we will see leaders from around the world convene in the heart of Melbourne to share their vision for a better future. For the first time, T50 Melbourne will be held outside Londona strong endorsement of Swinburnes leadership in innovation. We are pleased to be able to share this experience with Victorians, Australians, and people across the globe, Jacoby says.

Through T50 Melbourne, we will work with Australian innovation and technology ambassadors to showcase how Australian science and technology is making a global impact in so many areas of our lives, Jacoby adds.

T50 Melbourne will take place for seven days in Melbourne, Geelong, Bendigo, and Traralgon.

The majority of T50 Melbourne will be conducted at the State Library of Victoria including a series of events to be held on Swinburnes Hawthorn campus.

Call for final nominations

A unique aspect of T50 Melbourne is the opportunity for innovators worldwide to nominate and to present.

Nominations for T50 Melbourne close next month, with nominations already received from applicants in Europe, Asia, US, New Zealand, and Australia.

Nominations remain open across key categories including Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Future of Mobility, Biotechnology, Materials Science, Space Technologies, Blockchain Technologies, Quantum Computing, and Technology and the Impact on Society.

Professor Bronwyn Fox, Swinburne deputy vice-chancellor (research and enterprise), is on the T50 Melbourne speaker selection committee and has been impressed upon by the calibre of local and international nominees.

The brands, leaders, and entrepreneurs come through the nomination process are extraordinary, and choosing just 50 will be a challenge for the selection committee. What we do know, is that the final T50 speakers will represent the very best world-leading innovators including local talent giving us valuable insights, actionable information, and renewed optimism, Fox concludes.
IT services company Trovio has established a new office in Singapore, citing that the country has built a reputation as a stable financial centre and proven itself a bullion hub.

Trovio establishes its new office in Singapore as the country proves itself as an important focal point for gold trading in the Asean region.

Trovio says Singapore has already cemented its reputation as a stable financial centre and has taken steps to position itself as a bullion hub, exempting investment-grade gold, silver and platinum from a goods and services tax.

Furthermore, 80% of the worlds top 100 tech firms have a regional headquarter in the country, according to the Economic Development Board (EDB) of Singapore. This includes industry giants Google, Alibaba, Grab, Sea, and PayPal.

In establishing their regional office in Singapore, Trovio claims it became the first fintech company to be welcomed into the Singapore Bullion Market Association (SBMA), as the gold industry looks to leverage the new methods and technologies offered by digitisation.

Trovios vision is to improve the efficiency and transparency of the global commodities market. Its innovations enable its partners to access new markets, develop new distribution channels such as blockchain, and offer investment products that meet the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) needs of the modern investor. 

Trovio announced that it is launching the worlds first carbon-neutral gold (exchange traded fund) ETF on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX).

Jon Deane, Trovio CEO, notes: The global precious metals industry is making huge strides in working to both understand its carbon footprint and ensure that the physical metal is responsibly sourced.

Deane says joining the SMBA is particularly apt for Trovio as we are committed to providing our partners in APAC with technologies that enable new digital market pathways, traceability on supply, and access to an increasing suite of sustainable precious metals products.

Trovio has also recently joined the Singapore Fintech Association (SFA), whose membership had jumped from 350 groups in March to 780 as of September 2020. The fintech community in Singapore has grown rapidly over the past five years, Trovio claims, with traditional financial institutions increasingly adopting technology as a means to innovate and transform.

Trovio is leveraging Singapore as a launchpad into the rest of Southeast Asiaproviding an opportunity to access more than 650m people in the region. With Chinas largest technology and financial services companies recently expanding into Singapore, the Asian finance hub has become crucial for international growth and access to the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE)the largest purely physical gold spot exchange in the world.

Deane concludes: As Singapores fintech ecosystem continues to grow and mature, Trovio strives to collaborate with strong ecosystem players to empower our community and vision, in deploying new technology solutions for the next generation and the quickly evolving investment landscape with regards to ESG and market access.
Production of the iPhone 12 at Foxconn's plant in India's Tamil Nadu state has fallen by more than half due to employees being hit by COVID-19, the British news agency Reuters reports .

The south Indian state was shut down on Monday, with officials withdrawing public transport services and ordering retail outlets to shut, in a bid to lower the daily infection rate from the disease which has been above 400,000 for at least a week

The Foxconn facility in Tamil Nadu was set up to cater to the market in India, the second biggest market in the world. Foxconn also has a facility in Andhra Pradesh, another southern state.

Reuters said more than 100 Foxconn workers had tested positive for the coronavirus and an entry ban had been placed on the factory in Chennai, formerly Madras, until the end of May.

Apple is not the only smartphone manufacturer to be hit by the rampant spread of COVID-19 in India. As iTWire reported on Monday, Xiaomi, realme, OPPO and vivo, all of which have been increasing sales in India in recent years, could also be affected.

One source told Reuters: "Employees are only allowed to leave, but not to enter the facility since yesterday (Monday). Only a small part of output is being kept."

India is not a very big market for the iPhone, but the setting up of the Foxconn facility has helped push sales.

It has also helped Apple's cause as the company has had to take into account the tensions between the US and China and shift some of its production out of the Middle Kingdom.

The Taiwan-based technology research firm Trendforce said it was revising its forecasted year-on-year growth in global smartphone production for 2021 from 9.4% down to 8.5%, with a yearly production volume of 1.36 billion units and potential for further decreases ahead

"Judging from the current state of Indian smartphone manufacturing, TrendForce expects the second wave to reduce the countrys smartphone production volume for 2Q21 and 3Q21 by a total of 12 million units, in turn resulting in a 7.5% year-on-year decrease in smartphone production in India for the whole year," it said in a statement on Monday.
Australias second largest telco Optus says that in 10 years working together with global anti-phishing and online brand protection company FraudWatch they have taken down more than 3,171 phishing emails, brand abuse, fake mobile apps and fake social media sites.

The detections have been made from a combination of proactive detection by FraudWatch and from reports from Optus and its customers.

Andrew Sheridan, Optus Vice President Regulatory and Public Affairs, said criminals imitate well-known brands to trick customers into divulging information which could result in financial loss.

Every malicious operation that is shutdown helps protect customers from cyber criminals, said Sheridan.

During our decade of working with FraudWatch, weve seen a significant reduction in incidents, which means criminals are targeting Optus customers less, and confidence in our brand increases.

Sheridan says that by using its proprietary detection technology to hunt the Internet for cyber threats, FraudWatch then typically takes down most malicious, phishing websites within three hours of detection - and through its international network and 18 years of experience, FraudWatch keeps abreast of cybercrime activity both in the clear and dark net to respond to ever changing cybercrime trends in order to protect their clients, and their clients customers.

Trent Youl, FraudWatch founder and CEO, said, FraudWatch is proud to have been working with and protecting Optus and their customers for more than ten years.

Cybercrime is forever evolving and the fact that we have been a trusted partner for Optus and their large customer base is testament to the commitment of our staff to deliver effective services delivering real value for our clients, and demonstrates that Optus is committed to protecting their customers.

As a connectivity provider, Optus says it recognises scam calls are also a concern  and so does Government - and ACMA has worked closely with telcos and peak body Communications Alliance to develop recently-released rules and pilot initiatives to reduce the scale and impact on Australians of scam calls.

Since ACMAs Reducing Scam Calls Code came into effect, Optus says it has successfully blocked more than 35.2 million scam calls.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's (ACCC) Scamwatch reports that last year Australians lost a reported $176.1 million to scams, up by 23.1% compared to 2019

Sheridan encouraged Australians to acknowledge the alarming statistics.

These numbers send a clear message to all Australians: be vigilant. Optus will continue to derail scams and do what we can to keep you safe, but if in doubt, dont click. Only use channels of communications to all your providers  telcos, banks and other services  that are established and secure.
Construction work on the Presbyterian Church in Nkom, Cameroon in 2011, financed by the First Presbyterian Church of Magnolia.
In order to provide additional regional capacity for the Sophos Central cloud platform for its security products, Sophos says it will open new data centres in Montreal in July, in Sydney in August, and in Tokyo in September.

They will add to the existing capacity in the United States, Ireland and Germany.

The move will give more customers the opportunity to use an in-country data centre to store, manage and access Sophos Central data.

"As a global leader in cybersecurity, Sophos understands the growing need to provide solutions to data sovereignty for organisations with strict national or local regulatory or policy requirements," said Sophos APJ regional vice president Gavin Struthers.

"Additionally, with the fast and massive migration to cloud computing, some organisations simply want to store their data in a specific geographical location.

"With a planned data centre in Australia, Sophos would be able to address these critical business issues, both of which impact Australian cybersecurity buying decisions.

"With cyberattacks like ransomware now more complex and costly, organisations need to prioritise innovative cybersecurity products and services that are intuitive and operate from a single, integrated cloud management console. We want to make it as easy as possible for organisations and channel partners to align with Sophos for the world's best threat protection and detection and data storage options."
More than 600 technicians employed by the NBN Co, the company rolling out Australia's national broadband network, will walk off the job on Wednesday as part of a national day of action.

This means that any installations or repairs scheduled for the day cannot go ahead. The workers want the Federal Government to set up a Parliamentary inquiry to look into issues which they say are plaguing the NBN Co.

The Australia-wide strike comes after action to protest about a number of issues. These include "cuts to sub-contractors' pay rates, an Uber-style job booking app causing chaos for workers and consumers, pyramid sham contracting arrangements and the NBN rollout debacle", the union representing the workers said in a statement.

In February, it was reported that the executive staff at the company were paid $78 million in bonuses for 2020, almost double the $43 million paid in 2019. Australia experienced a recession in 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chief executive Stephen Rue received $4.3 million as a short-term incentive, with all bonuses being paid because the NBN Co exceeded its targets for the financial year.

Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union national president Shane Murphy said the NBN Co's existing employment set-up was broken and claimed it was a government-endorsed pyramid scheme.

"The NBN has been a mess from day one  and the government continues to turn a blind eye and look the other way," he said.

"It's time for a national inquiry into the NBN so that we can get these issues fixed for customers and workers once and for all.

"You have senior employees on top salaries and multi-million dollar bonuses while [ordinary] workers are squeezed for pay and conditions at the other end and service suffers.

"We need an independent inquiry to get to the bottom of the dodgy dealings in the NBN rollout, how workers have been treated unfairly and how customer service has been impacted.

"One of the key areas for investigation is the NBN Co's pyramid-style contracting model where NBN contracts work to their 'delivery partners' who then sub-contract that work to a 'prime' who then sub-contracts it again. Everyone in the chain takes their cut, leaving workers' pay squeezed and the taxpayer to foot the bill.

"NBN Co needs to scrap their dodgy pyramid contracting model, improve pay rates and ditch the shonky Uber-style job booking app."

Last week, NBN Co technicians in Sydney walked off the job to protest against the same issues.

Contacted for comment, an NBN Co spokesperson said: "NBN Co engages delivery partners to fulfil many of the company's construction and maintenance programs on its behalf. As is standard industry practice in the telecommunications and construction industries, our construction and maintenance contracts place responsibility for compliance with the law and relevant legislation on our delivery partners in relation to the contracted services. Delivery partners are free to use their own employees or sub-contractors when fulfilling the work and maintenance outlined in our contracts with them.

"We are working constructively with the CEPU and we are seeking to maintain and support strong, productive working relationships with our delivery partners and their respective subcontractors. NBN Co appreciates the ongoing dedication and diligence of the thousands of highly qualified field technicians and network engineers who are not directly involved in the industrial action and are continuing to work hard to maintain the reliability and performance of the nbn network across Australia.

"NBN Co and its key delivery partners are engaged in an ongoing discussion with the CEPU. We have met with CEPU representatives in recent weeks and we will continue to engage with the union.

"NBN Co is aware of some issues that our delivery partners and field technicians have experienced with our recently deployed mobile application for managing and logging work requests. We have significantly improved the app over the last few weeks to address functionality, system performance and general user experience pain-points, and will continue to modify and enhance the app in the coming weeks. We appreciate technicians' patience while we work to improve the app."
With TPG Telecom, Optus and prepaid the most impacted, the total number of services has dropped 1.7% from 2019 levels thanks to the pandemic.

The Australian mobile services market was hit hard by the pandemic in 2020, with the total number of Services in Operation (SIOs) declining by 606,000 (or 1.7%) from 2019, compared to a typical net increase of 800,000 to 1.1 million SIOs annually since 2016, according to new research from Australian emerging technology analyst firm, Telsyte.

The Telsyte Australian Mobile Services Market Study 2021 tracks SIOs in mobile handsets, mobile broadband and mobile IoT for business applications.

So, why was there decline?

Were told it was primarily due to the reduction in prepaid handset SIOs which was impacted heavily by the disappearance of temporary visitors and new migrants. This was compounded by lower demand for connecting additional devices to mobile networks, in line with spending more time at home.

According to the study, TPG Telecom and Optus were most impacted, losing 15 and 9 per cent of their total mobile SIOs in 2020 respectively.

Overall, the MVNO segment outperformed mobile carriers in 2020 as consumers looked for better deals. The segments total SIO grew by 13 per cent during the same period as 1 in 6 mobile users switched service provider during 2020, mainly due to finding a better deal. If carriers sub brands are excluded (e.g. Belong, Gomo, felix Mobile), the MVNO segment still grew 14 per cent during the same period.

MVNOs made up 16 per cent of total SIOs at the end of 2020, up 2 per cent from 2019.

Telsyte says it expects the downward trend of SIOs will ease in 2021 as mobile services remain essential for Australians and believes the negative impact from losing temporary visitors and migrants will remain in the next two years due to limited population growth and the gradual reopening of international borders.

Telsyte expects further market consolidation as margin pressures bite.

The current climate is challenging for low-margin players and it will be increasingly difficult for mobile service providers to continue to compete only on price, Telsyte Senior Analyst, Alvin Lee, says.

Uptake of fifth generation mobile services begins ramping up

Telsyte estimates there were around 2 million 5G mobile services in operation at the end of December 2020, increasing nearly 5-fold from 6 months ago due to better availability of 5G handsets such as the iPhone 12 series, Google Pixel 5 and Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G. Telsyte anticipates more than 60 per cent of smartphones sold in 2021 will support 5G and more MVNOs will begin to offer 5G mobile services this year, helping drive uptake.

Telsyte expects demand to ramp up quickly with over 55 per cent of SIOs expected to be on 5G by 2024 (currently at 6%).

Additionally, Telsyte expects more Internet service providers to begin offering 5G home Internet services as a potential alternative to nbn if it can provide better margins.

According to Telsytes most recent consumer survey, around a quarter of Australians are interested in subscribing to home Internet services based on 5G. The flexibility of installation and the prospect of ultra-fast Internet speeds is making 5G home services particularly appealing for those living in shared accommodation (34%) and hardcore gamers (43%).

However, nearly half (46%) of Australians said the cost of the plan is the most important factor when choosing a fixed wireless home Internet service. Going forward, Telsyte estimates over 1 million homes could potentially opt for fixed wireless services by 2023. Critical to this will be mmWave gigabit speeds, at competitive prices and with large or unlimited data caps.

5G home Internet services are increasingly strategic to carriers as they look to drive value out of their infrastructure investments Lee says.

IoT and wearables



Even during a pandemic, uptake of Internet of Things (IoT) devices continued to grow strongly.

Telsytes study found mobile IoT was the only category that grew in 2020 (the number of connections increased by almost 800,000), with handsets and mobile broadband both experiencing declines.

The uptake of mobile IoT connectivity will remain strong, particularly as more businesses continue to invest in digital transformation.

Telsyte predicts eSIM number sharing services will grow as MVNOs begin offering it this year.

The study also found 1 in 3 Australians with an eSIM enabled smartwatch are willing to pay for number sharing service at an average of $6 per month.

With number sharing, people can receive calls, SMS and use mobile data on a smartwatch even if they do not have a smartphone connected to it.

The Telsyte Australian Mobile Services Market Study 2021 is a comprehensive study which provides subscribers with:

Market sizing and forecasts of the Australian mobile services market

Analysis of market share and carrier performance

End-user trends

Market trends

Mobile services market KPIs

In preparing this study, Telsyte used:

Market sizing and forecasts of the Australian mobile services market

Analysis of market share and carrier performance

End-user trends

Market trends

Mobile services market KPIs

Telsyte notes the MVNO (or Other) market measured by Telsyte include all non-carrier brands. This include carrier-owned but separately operated brands such as Belong, Gomo and felix Mobile.

Telsyte believes this is a more appropriate comparison as these brands have been setup to compete in the value-driven market that most of MVNOs are focusing on. Telsyte uses a comprehensive methodology that includes surveys of consumers, discussions with vendors, carriers and their partners, retailers, and financial analysts. In addition, public financial results from carriers and service providers are used.
Social media platform Clubhouse announced its app for Android will start rolling out in beta, now available to Android users in the US, and it will soon to be available to those in Australia and other markets in the days following this week.

Android users in markets around the world will be able to pre-register via the Clubhouse page in the Google Play Store to be notified as soon as the app is available in their area.

As a part of the effort to keep the growth measured, Clubhouse says will be continuing its invitation system which allows existing community members to invite a handful of friends as we focus on carefully growing the platform.

Clubhouse will also begin migrating the millions of iOS users, who have been waitlisted while they assembled a team and built sustainable infrastructure, into the app.

Access to Clubhouse via Android has been by far the top request from its community of users and naturally, Clubhouse says it could not be more excited to welcome them!

Heres the Clubhouse blog post welcoming Android users:

It has been a little over a year since we set out to build a new type of networka more human place on the Internet based on voice, where people from all corners of the world could come together to talk, listen, hang out, share, debate, learn from each other, deepen friendships, meet new people, and experience unforgettable moments together.

Weve always taken a measured approach to growth, keeping the team small, building in public, and getting feedback from the community along the way. When you scale communities too quickly, things can break. So we started Clubhouse on a single platform and have expanded gradually through an invite model.

Earlier this year, Clubhouse started growing very quickly, as people all over the world began inviting their friends faster than we had ever expected. This had its downsides, as the load stressed our systemscausing widespread server outages and notification failures, and surpassing the limits of our early discovery algorithms.

It made us shift our focus to hiring, fixing, and company building, rather than the community meetups and product features that we normally like to focus on. It was an important time of investment, which we think will help us serve the community much better in the long run.

The good thing about this period is that it has shown us how universal voice is as a medium. The same types of rooms that we saw forming last year in the U.S. quickly started forming in Japan, Brazil, and Nigeria. Farmers in rural Georgia have been making friends with entrepreneurs in Tanzania.

Film clubs have formed in India. Weve seen German debate rooms, Italian singalongs, and Middle Eastern quiz shows. Weve seen firsthand what weve always believedthat the need to gather with other humans is universal. Throughout this period, we have felt the need to be cross-platform more strongly than ever.

Today, we are thrilled to share that Clubhouse for Android will start rolling out in beta immediately. We will begin gradually, with the U.S. today, followed by other English-speaking countries and then the rest of the world. Our plan over the next few weeks is to collect feedback from the community, fix any issues we see and work to add a few final features like payments and club creation before rolling it out more broadly.

If you are an Android user, you can download Clubhouse for Android and sign up now to be alerted once its available in your area, and read the FAQ here.

As a part of the effort to keep the growth measured, we will be continuing the waitlist and invite system, ensuring that each new community member can bring along a few close friends.

As we continue to scale out the backend, we plan to begin opening up even further, welcoming millions more people in from the iOS waitlist, expanding language support, and adding more accessibility features, so that people worldwide can experience Clubhouse in a way that feels native to them.

With Android, we believe that Clubhouse will feel more complete. We are so grateful to all of the Android users out there for their patience. Whether you are a creator, a club organiser, or someone who just wants to explore, we are so excited to welcome you to the community. :)




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Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 92F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Some clouds. Low 74F. Winds light and variable.
Using IMDb and Metacritic scores, Stacker counts down from 25 the best mythological movies that cinema has to offer. Click for more.
MiMi-Sandra of Fort Worth, born 7 September 1945 in Jacksonville to Joe Selman Gore and Jeffie Gwendolyn (Lazenby) Gore. Preceded by her parents and five siblings. Survived by her husband, daughters, four siblings, nieces and nephews.




Donate Now As a public service during this pandemic, the Jewish News is providing free, unlimited access to all articles. Jewish News is a nonprofit publication that is owned by the community and relies on community support.
Jennifer Dorsey is chief copy editor and Business section coordinator. She worked in Washington, D.C., and Chicago before moving to the Tetons.
Americans on Cusp of Losing Their Homes as New Pandemic Crisis Looms
Robert Reich, former U.S. secretary of labor, is professor of public policy at the University of California at Berkeley and the author of The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It.
Taiwan reports four more local cluster infection COVID-19 cases

Xinhua) 14:06, May 11, 2021

TAIPEI, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Taiwan on Monday reported four new COVID-19 cases associated with a cluster involving Taiwan-based China Airlines cargo pilots and Novotel Taipei Taoyuan International Airport hotel employees, bringing the total number of infections to 35.

The latest cases include a China Airlines pilot, a shuttle bus driver and two family members of an earlier confirmed case, said the local disease monitoring agency.

Taiwan also reported 11 new imported COVID-19 cases from the Philippines, Syria, India and Indonesia on Monday.

The total number of confirmed cases on the island has risen to 1,199, including 12 deaths, the agency said.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Liang Jun)
Today

Rain showers this morning with numerous thunderstorms developing during the afternoon hours. High 81F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms during the evening, with mostly cloudy skies after midnight. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.

Tomorrow

Thunderstorms. High 83F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%. Locally heavy rainfall possible.
Ford Romania plant was once owned by Daewoo

Freight trains which carry cars from the Ford plant in Craiova, southern Romania, to western Europe frequently need about 26 hours to travel the 400km (250 miles) to Romanias western border with Hungary. Then, they spend another nine hours on border control because Romania is not part of Schengen. This generates high costs for the carmaker, romaniainsider.com reported .

The average speed (of trains) is 15-20 km/h which is slower than I can go by bike. And Im no Olympic athlete, I dont pedal very fast, but I can overtake this train. Certainly, this is a problem for us, Ford Romania president Josephine Payne told local TV station PRO TV.

The poor rail infrastructure in Romania prevents the Ford cars produced in Romania from reaching their customers in western Europe on time. Ford said it loses tens of millions of euros each year because of transport times. The company would prefer to invest the money in its factory instead. Ford sends over 100,000 cars from Romania to western Europe by train each year. The Ford trains are over 700 metres long and transport over 700 cars each.

The average speed of freight trains in Romania is under 20km/h due to the many restrictions. Even on the segments that have been rehabilitated with EU funds, such as Arad-Curtici, the maximum speed is 80km/h, Hotnews.ro reported.

We operate trains throughout Europe. The European average speed for freight trains is 50km/h. In Romania, the average speed is currently 17 kilometers per hour, the lowest in Europe, Eduard Iancu, manager Deutsche Bahn Cargo Romania, told PRO TV.



The low railway travel speed in Romania is due to the poor state of the rail infrastructure and the many delays in refurbishing it, romania-insider.com said.

Poor infrastructure cost Romania a Mercedes plant some years ago. Fords plant was once owned by Daewoo.
Three-month sales decline 4.5% to EUR3.09bn (US$3.76bn) on pro-forma basis

Europe down 7.5% at EUR2.29bn

Australia, Pacific & Indonesia rises 6% to EUR797m

The group, which came into being this week following Coca-Cola European Partners purchase of Coca-Cola Amatil, today posted a decrease of 4.5% in pro-forma sales from the first three months of 2021. While operations in Europe fell 7.5%, the Australia, Pacific & Indonesia reporting region climbed 6%.

The Coca-Cola bottler highlighted the presence of COVID-related restrictions in Europe throughout the quarter, although sales in Great Britain  comprising England, Scotland & Wales  bucked the Europe-wide trend, rising by 1.5%. CCEP said the markets home consumption channel enjoyed a robust period.

While todays results announcement provided scant commentary on the former CCA operations, category performance in Europe was covered: Brand Coca-Cola was down in volume terms in the region by 8% as regular standout Coca-Cola Zero Sugar came in flat  +0.5%. The flavours, mixers & energy reporting segment  down 5.5% in volumes  provided optimism, with Schweppes mixers capitalising on at-home cocktails/spirits plus mixers consumption and energy drinks on track to double in size on 2019s showing.

Hydration, comprising bottled water brands, slumped by 41.5% in European volumes, continuing the downward trend for bottled water in the region last year.

CEO Damian Gammell



Trading conditions remained similar to the last quarter of 2020, with renewed restrictions in many of our markets impacting the away-from-home channel. We have been able to keep on winning, gaining value share in-store and online, through our ability to adapt, strong execution and continued focus on our core brands.

While the pandemic persists and the precise nature and timing of the recovery is unknown, there is optimism ahead. Indeed, the strong post-pandemic recovery in two of our new markets, Australia & New Zealand, highlight the positive impact of increased mobility, which will in time come to our other markets. In Europe, although conditions remain challenging, we are encouraged by an improving trend across the quarter, especially in Great Britain, with good at-home consumption.

We are delighted that as of yesterday the acquisition of Coca-Cola Amatil has closed and we are now Coca-Cola Europacific Partners. Bringing together two of the worlds best bottlers provides exciting growth opportunities and an even stronger strategic relationship with The Coca-Cola Co. We will go further, together, creating value for shareholders and a better, more sustainable future for all stakeholders.

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, which is the largest bottler in the Coca-Cola system, covers 29 countries.

Thematic Reports Are you worried about the pace of innovation in your industry? GlobalData's TMT Themes 2021 Report tells you everything you need to know about disruptive tech themes and which companies are best placed to help you digitally transform your business. Find out more

To access Coca-Cola Europacific Partners official Q1 results statement, click here.

How soft drinks can make the most of the reopening on-premise and foodservice channels  Click here for a just-drinks comment
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New Zealand-based Natural Pet Food Group has been acquired by US private-equity major KKR.

New Yorks KKR said it plans to support the companys growth domestically and overseas. The financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

Christchurch-based Natural Pet Food said the deal will advance its mission to supply safe, sustainably sourced high-meat pet food from New Zealand to more customers and their pets worldwide.

Natural Pet Food owns premium dog- and cat-food brands K9 Natural, Feline Natural, and Meat Mates. The company says its pet food is produced from ethically-sourced ingredients, such as grass-fed and meat and cage-free chicken.

The business was set up in 2006 and, outside New Zealand, sells into markets including, Australia, China, Japan, the US and Canada.



Neil Hinton, the companys CEO, who joined the business in 2015, said: My team is excited about the opportunities and connections that KKR can provide. Our business is about providing pet owners with the very best in natural, high-meat nutrition for the four-legged members of their families. KKR has an impeccable pedigree in our sector which will help us grow, develop new products and take our brands to new customers and new markets, all over the world.

He added: KKRs investment marks the next phase of our evolution and their support is a strong endorsement of the outlook for our business.

Michael Robson, managing director of the private-equity firms KKR Capstone unit, will join the pet food companys board. According to the KKR website, KKR Capstone is one of the largest and most experienced operations firms within the alternative investment community and involved with KKRs portfolio company investments through the entire life cycle of the asset.

Robson said: Natural Pet Food Group is a pioneer in New Zealands sustainable pet food industry with a strongly defined mission and set of values. We could not be more excited to work with Neil and his talented team to support the companys operations by leveraging KKRs experience, network and expertise to strengthen Natural Pet Food Groups leadership in key markets and create opportunities in new ones.

Thematic Reports Are you worried about the pace of innovation in your industry? GlobalData's TMT Themes 2021 Report tells you everything you need to know about disruptive tech themes and which companies are best placed to help you digitally transform your business. Find out more

This investment also reflects KKRs commitment to supporting fast-growing companies in New Zealand that are seeking opportunities to expand into new sectors, verticals, and markets.

KKR has been involved in two food industry deals in the last month. In April, it invested in China-based D2C dairy firm Adopt A Cow and sold core brands of its US-based vitamins and supplements business The Bountiful Company to Nestle for US$5.75bn.

In Australia, KKR owns The Arnotts Company, a snacks business built around assets the private-equity firm bought from Campbell Soup Co. in 2019.
The Phnom Penh city municipality on Wednesday night (5 May) reduced the number of areas under strictest red zone lockdown measures to a few patches on the map, where factories are unable to open.

This includes parts of Choam Chao I commune (city district), Toul Sangke I commune, and neighbourhoods just outside the city in Kandal provinces Bek Chan commune.

However, these areas have a high density of factories and worker housing, with the continued restrictions sustaining the industrys troubles after 1,673 factory workers in Cambodia (1,598 in Phnom Penh) were found Covid-19 positive.

Red zone restrictions ban almost all economic activity, down to the small local markets providing fresh vegetables, meat and staples to workers, while individuals living in these areas are forced to remain in their homes unless there is a medical emergency.

As of Thursday (6 May), some other areas of the capital had been allocated easier orange zone rules. Here factory owners and unions had hoped their factories might open, but they are expected to remain shut.



Only in the yellow zones proportion of Phnom Penh can manufacturing plants reopen, albeit at partial capacity. Also, some workers live in the restricted zones, making a return to work impossible.

Ahead of the easing of restrictions, a labour advisory committee  including labour and vocational training ministry officials and garment industry members  drafted suggestions for reopening factories outside the red zones.

The committee suggested that factories resume operations at 50% of their workforce, splitting workers shifts at two-week periods and paying 50% of wages.

Along with previously recommended measures to spray disinfectant frequently and provide masks, the committee also recommended supplying worker names and contacts to the labour ministry to aid testing.

Thematic Reports Are you worried about the pace of innovation in your industry? GlobalData's TMT Themes 2021 Report tells you everything you need to know about disruptive tech themes and which companies are best placed to help you digitally transform your business. Find out more

It also pushed for the vaccination of workers, as well as food vendors and drivers who operate near factories. The committee also recommended closing factory operations if one employee tested positive, according to the document.

Mixed experiences

Khun Tharo, a coordinator for labour advocacy group Central, praised the committees stricter health and safety proposals, but added a proposal that workers should be allowed to stay home out of concern for their health without losing pay, and that such measures should be implemented transparently.

He also said there was no real assurance regarding workplace health standards unless theres a concrete measure to inspect or monitor plants. Without that, I still imagine theres a risk of workers going back at this time, he said.

Ken Loo, secretary general of the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC), said its members had had mixed experiences  some were able to continue operations in recent weeks, while others closed completely or had limited because workforces lived in red zones.

It looks like factories that continue to be in red zones will not be able to resume operations, and this has impacted our ability to fulfil our contract obligations to buyers  if we dont deliver, we dont get paid, he said.

Asked about the governments changing lockdown measures, he said it would have an impact on factories, noting that factories just had to adapt.

However, Raymond Tam, executive director at Phnom Penh-based Jie Wei Cambodia Garment Factory and a GMAC member, noted that factories were under pressure from big financial losses after losing four weeks production time or reduced operations through limited worker availability.

He said some buyers production demands were crazy. He warned that brands may move production in future to more stable countries like Vietnam and China, where the pandemic is more controlled.

This is now the whole worlds problem and [buyers are] still pushing us for on time shipment, he commented.

As reported on just-style last autumn, the Covid-19 pandemic and the partial withdrawal of Cambodias duty-free access to the European Union (EU) have dealt a double blow to the country.
Some 60 retailers and brands brought a record 276m Cotton made in Africa (CmiA)-labelled textiles to market in 2020  a 120% increase over the previous year.

CmiA is an internationally recognised standard for sustainably produced cotton from Africa, connecting African small-scale farmers with trading companies and fashion brands throughout the global textile value chain. The initiatives objective is to employ trade rather than donations to offer help for self-help in order to improve the living conditions of around one million cotton farmers and their families in Sub-Saharan Africa while protecting the environment.

CmiA was also able to significantly expand within the textile value chain in 2020, with its global network of registered partners rising by 58% to reach a total of 217 spinning mills and fabric producers throughout 20 countries, including eight in Africa.

This growing demand is especially good news because it gives us more resources for our work in the field. Our principle of providing aid through trade is paying off, says Tina Stridde, the managing director of the Aid by Trade Foundation, the parent organisation of CmiA.

Around 630,000 tonnes of ginned cotton from Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote dIvoire, Cameroon, Mozambique, Nigeria, Zambia, Tanzania, Chad, and Uganda were produced in accordance with Cotton made in Africas criteria in the past year. More than 20 African cotton companies are working together with the Cotton made in Africa initiative to conduct agricultural training for small-scale farmers. The knowledge they acquire through this training enables the cotton growers to improve their harvests while cultivating this commodity in a more efficient and environmentally friendly way.



The CmiA initiative recently joined forces with the African Cotton Foundation (ACF) to promote socially and ecologically sustainable cotton cultivation.
The SADC Ministers responsible for Agriculture and Food Security, Fisheries and Aquaculture participated in a joint meeting through video-conferencing on 7 May 2021, to review progress in the implementation of the SADC relevant sectoral programmes, projects and related strategies under the Regional Agricultural Policy (RAP), in line with the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (2020-2030).



The joint meeting, chaired by the Minister of Seas, Inland Waters and Fisheries of the Republic of Mozambique, Ms Augusta de Fatima Charifo Maita, was attended by 92 delegates from the 14 Member States, namely Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

The SADC Deputy Executive Secretary, Dr Thembinkosi Mhlongo pointed out that despite the prospects of improved food and nutrition security for the just commenced marketing year, the region is still experiencing negative effects of climate change experienced during the past few seasons and the COVID-19 pandemic.

As for Minister Augusta de Fatima Charifo Maita, she congratulated the Member States for their efforts in promoting agricultural production and productivity, despite the challenges created by adverse climatic conditions, in the past cropping seasons, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

She also highlighted important regional strategies that are key to enable agriculture production in the region, including the SADC Industrialization Strategy and Roadmap (2015-2063), the RAP, the Livestock and Crop Development Programmes, the Regional Food and Nutrition Security Strategy, and Regional Aquaculture Strategy. She encouraged all Member States to actively implement the RAP and the Protocol of Fisheries to ensure agricultural transformation and achieve food and nutrition security in the region.

During the joint meeting, the Ministers noted with concern, the high numbers of food and nutritionally insecure people in the region (50.8 million) and urged Member States to continue implementing and domesticating the SADC Food and Nutrition Security Strategy in National Food and Nutrition Strategies in order to improve food and nutrition security.

They encouraged Member States to attend and actively participate at the upcoming United Nations Food Systems Summit to be held in September 2021 which is intended to transform global food systems. They also urged Member States strengthen and expand coverage of social protection and safety-nets programmes so as to increase period of consumption, reduce malnutrition, reduce post-harvest losses and create employment.

The Ministers commended the positive development trajectory witnessed in the area of fisheries and aquaculture which now employs approximately 3 million people in the region and contributes about 9% of the regions agriculture GDP.

The Ministers approved the regional strategies for the management of transboundary pests and diseases including Regional Strategy for Management of Fruit Flies, Fall Armyworm, and Tuta absoluta.

They also approved the SADC Framework for Antimicrobial Resistance Control and the SADC Regional Fisheries Monitoring Control and Surveillance Strategy, as well as Guidelines on the Operations of the SADC Plant Genetic Resources Centre and directed that conservation of crop wild relatives be included among the responsibilities of National Plant Genetic Resources Centres.

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Landmark hearings into alleged war crimes committed in Liberia began in Sierra Leones capital Freetown on Tuesday, an AFP journalist said.

In an unprecedented case, a Finnish court has gone to West Africa to hear testimony into atrocities into one of the most brutal wars in the continents recent history.

The court gathered testimony in Liberia between February and April as part of a case against Gibril Massaquoi, an ex-rebel commander accused of committing war crimes there with a Sierra Leonean group.

Around a quarter of a million people were killed between 1989 to 2003 in Liberia, in a conflict marked by brutal violence and rape.

Massaquoi is a former senior member of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF)  a Sierra Leone rebel group that also fought in Liberia and amputated the limbs of thousands of people.

The 51-year-old has lived in Finland since 2008.

He was arrested there in March last year after a rights group investigated his war record.

Finnish court documents seen by AFP detail a litany of accusations of abuse committed or ordered by Massaquoi in Liberia, including murder, rape, torture, enslavement and use of child soldiers.

The Finnish courts unusual step to travel to the country to interview witnesses marked the first time war crimes hearings have been heard on Liberian soil.

The court is also holding hearings in neighbouring Sierra Leone, however, it is only examining charges that Massaquoi committed abuses in Liberia.

The former rebel received legal immunity for his role in Sierra Leones separate civil war in exchange for evidence provided to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 2003.

Hearings in Freetown are due to continue until May 19, accrording to Kerttu Henriksson, a spokeswoman for Finlands national bureau of investigation
Ab Hassan Ali, on top of the lighthouse on the deserted headland, crossed the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and headed to war-torn Yemen. Then, behind him, went to Ethiopia, which was suffering from the war. Then, on his right, in troubled Somalia. Finally, on the left of Eritrea, the dictatorship participated in the Tigri conflict in neighboring countries.

This is a peaceful trading point, said the witty man in charge of this work. Djibouti used to be a French colony. Only 1 million people lived in the past. This is a rare point of stability on the way to the Suez Canal (the hub of global trade) at a very strategic location (the southern end of the Red Sea).

About one-third of the worlds daily transportation passes through the northeastern edge of Africa, where the current narrows to a bottleneck across Yemen.

According to the forecast of the Ministry of Finance of China, Africas average economic growth rate this year will reach 7%. With the help of Chinas huge investment in ports, free trade zones and the railway to inland Ethiopia, Djibouti will become the fastest growing African economy One of the countries. The fastest growing economy on the African continent.

It is Chinas first overseas military base since 2017. This is the location of five naval bases. Its significance is not only in the geopolitical sense, but also in the economic sense. Aboubaker Omar Hadi, chairman of the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority and one of the most influential figures in the country, said that this is all about location, location, location.

Whispers, spies and snoops

Its all location with Nima Dirieh Warsama, CEO of ATD-GIE, a transport industry organization, emphasized. French tanks, American helicopters, Chinese soldiers and Japanese ships helped to achieve this stabilization, because the area around Djibouti is powder barrels and therefore common, said a Western military official in the country.

Despite this, the government still plays a pivotal role, becoming the neutral host country of the global powers, and sometimes easing the tension between the Americans and the Chinese. Senior government officials called it return to the Cold War, in which Djibouti is definitely a center. The official added: The reason Djibouti is effervescent is that there are big powers here, so it means it is safe.

The French have trained 11,000 regional soldiers, mainly Djiboutians, and have used Mirage fighter jets to protect the countrys airspace. We are indeed a guarantee of safety here, said Gen Stephane Dupont, the base commander with 1,500 French soldiers. The United States and other major countries also agree. Djibouti is the backbone of the global coalition against Al-Qaeda-linked Somali terrorist organization Al-Shabaab, and it is also the current declining threat of piracy.

But for some people, the arrival of China is disturbing. Between 2005 and 2019, Chinas investment reached US$853 billion, accounting for 30% of Djiboutis total debt. A senior Western official in Djibouti said: This is a tsunami, it is actually a tsunami. He was referring to the presence of Chinese people, from investments to soldiers. They are not enemies, but they are not friends. We must live together.

Djiboutian politicians, American contractors and French officials gathered at the Lagar Cafe, whispering to what the Chinese military might be doing on its specific fort. It is Chinas first overseas military base to maintain merchant ships. Gen Stephen Townsend, the Supreme Commander of the United States in Africa, has a dock that can support Chinas future aircraft carrier. Recently said.

Chinese military personnel participated in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Naval Base in Djibouti in 2017  AFP/Getty

Foreign Minister Mahmoud Ali Youssouf said: Djibouti is located in an important geostrategic area, and all members of the international community have vested interests. He added: We recognize that there are serious problems between major powers. Economic competition, he emphasized that his country does not belong to any sphere of influence.

The countrys finance minister, Ilyas Moussa Dawaleh, did say: This statement is completely wrong, that is, China will completely take over Djibouti. This is a myth. 

Many people agree that the atmosphere of the port city where the majority of the population lives is similar to Casablanca, This is a movie about conspiracy and romance in World War II. A senior foreign diplomat quipped: Everyone is spying on each other.

We know very well that the Chinese want to engage in espionage activities. This does not mean that we will not do the same thing, said the Western military officer in Djibouti. We are all friends here, but we all want to know what the other person is doing.

Democracy erosion or 99% support?

Many people say that another key factor in stability is the 73-year-old President Ismail Omar Guelleh. He has been in charge of the country since 1999 and is widely known as the clever and astute leader of what critics call a centralized and authoritarian regime.

A non-African diplomat said: He is the only game in town. Over time, the democratic front has been eroding.

Guelleh is believed to have made Djibouti a base for freight and foreign troops. The size of the economy has jumped from US$536 million when he took office to US$3.3 billion in 2019. His portraits are everywhere in every shop, office and building. last month, He won the fifth semester Has 99% of the votes.

Djibouti President Ismail Omar Guelleh and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the 2019 Beijing Conference  Madoka Ikegami / AFP / Getty

Newcomer Zakaria Ismail Farah, a major opposition rival, said: Apart from an extreme dictatorship, 99% of incidents have never occurred in the world. He said that Djiboutis foreign powers sacrificed Djiboutis democracy for regional stability.

The Presidents Supreme Adviser Alexis Mohamed (Alexis Mohamed) refuted Farahs criticism and emphasized that there have been discussions about Djiboutis political future after Farah. Legally speaking, this is the last term of the president.

He said: The president has managed to maintain peace and social cohesion in Djibouti. Djibouti is a tense area in Ethiopia and Somalia. He added: God did not provide us with oil, but the lighthouse gave us a strategic point. .
The British Awards paid tribute to the convicted killer Phil Spector on its memorial page.

Due to Covid complications, the producer of Wall Of Sound passed away early this year at the age of 81.

3 Phil Spector is remembered by the Brit Awards Credit: AP

He was sentenced to 19 years in prison for the murder of Kuwait. Lana Clarkson.

In 2003, he fatally shot the actress in the mouth, but he remained faithful until 2009.

In the live performance on Tuesday night, there will be no commemorative events section, but the boss decided to include him on the website.

3 Jack Whitehall hosts the show Credit: Getty

His compliment read: The American record producer, songwriter and creator of the iconic Wall of Sound, his conviction for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson will also be remembered.

Spector has collaborated with many celebrities including the Beatles, and has worked as a band to produce Let it Be and Imagine, Brothers of Justice, Leonard Cohen and Ronettes.

Tuesday nights performance is part of the governments Event Research Program, which studies the risk of illness. Coronavirus disease Disseminate in public events to find ways to protect them safely-so the British can set a precedent for all upcoming indoor British music performances.

The performance at the London O2 Arena is part of the government activities research program

It will see some prominent figures in the music industry, including Taylor Swift (Taylor Swift), who will receive the Global Idol Award, which is awarded to stars whose music has had a profound impact on British culture.

In the past few years, nearly 20,000 people will pack O2, but this year the crowd is even more limited.

Among the only 4,000 tickets provided, the organizers distributed 2,500 tickets to the main staff who participated in the voting free of charge. These votes were created on a dedicated website in just five days. Successful participants will receive their own Tickets and a guest.

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On the floor, there are far fewer seats for artists and nominees to sit at the table, although drinking and snacking are usually free.

Although nominees are usually surrounded by assistants and relatives, each person can only sit at a table with one person this year, so there are only two people on most tables.

The Brit Awards will be broadcast on ITV at 8pm tonight
Spain, Greece and France are all on the next green list

European holiday hot spots Spain, Greece and France may miss the next green list update, although they hope to add them in time for the summer.

After the Minister of Transport Grant Schapps announced that the British could finally get their support, Booked a holiday abroad -But the list in the green list area is very short.

They include Israel, Singapore, Portugal, Falkland Islands, Ascension, St. Helena, Tristan da Cunha, Gibraltar, Faroe Islands, Iceland and Brunei.

As well as New Zealand and Australia Also on the list -But they have their own entry requirements and it is currently not possible to allow tourists to enter.

Since France, Greece and Spain have not yet been included in the green list, I hope they can be added from June 7th, but due to their own Covid and vaccine conditions, they are likely to miss July or even August.
COPS is digging under a cafe today, hoping to find the body of a female student murdered by serial killer Fred West.

Mary Bastholm, 15, was waiting for someone in Gloucester on January 6, 1968 when she disappeared while waiting for a bus to see her boyfriend.

Although she never saw her again and found her body, the police believed that she was likely to be picked up by a serial killer. Fred West Then murdered

Sadly, her parents died before they found out what happened to their daughter.

but Todays Sun Exclusive Disclosure In the extraordinary development 26 years after West committed suicide, The police are digging the basement of the Clean Plate Cafe in Gloucester, where Mary works as a waiter.

The police warned that the search was initiated after the recent discovery and may take several weeks.

Please follow the Fred West mining live blog below for the latest updates
The DOG of the TV documentary film crew discovered the remains of a missing 15-year-old girl who was excavated by the police at the site today. The girl was worried about being murdered by the serial killer Fred West.

Female student Mary Bastholm disappeared on January 6, 1968. He was waiting for the bus to find her boyfriend.

? Read our Fred West live blog The latest update

14 Mary Bastholm died in 1968 at the age of 15 Credit: Brad Wakefield-Sun

14 Fred and Rose West murdered at least ten women Image source: SWNS: Southwest News Service

14 The policeman at Clean Plate Cafe where Mary used to work Credit: Sun

14 Officials confirmed that a search is being conducted on the case of Marys disappearance Credit: Sun

The police are now warning to search for the nearest victim, which was initiated after the recent discovery and may take weeks.

It is said that she was picked up by a serial killer Fred West Then murdered

Marys body was never found, and her parents passed away tragically, only to discover what had happened to her daughter.

Now in the extraordinary development, 26 years after West committed suicide, The police are digging the basement of the Clean Plate cafe in Gloucester, where Mary used to work as a waiter.

The new excavations are all due to a corpse dog, who was recently taken to the scene by a TV documentary team and reportedly showed a positive reaction in the basement.

In addition, radar penetrating the ground is said to show suspicious images beneath the concrete surface.

After Mary disappeared, West was a regular customer of the cafe-then known as The Pop In-.

It is said that one month before Marys disappearance, the builders had already laid concrete floors in the basement of the restaurant.

The TV team contacted the Gloucestershire Police with their findings and conducted a full search of the basement under the guidance of archaeologists this morning.

It is understood that it may be Sir Trevor MacDonalds documentary film crew.

14 When Mary was working there, West used to frequent the cafe in Gloucester. Credit: Sun

14 The police warned that the search may take several weeks Credit: Sun

West was charged with 12 murders, but he confessed to killing 30 victims and then sent himself to jail when he was remanded in January 1995.

His wife Rose West He was convicted of 10 murders in November 1995 and sentenced to 10 life imprisonment.

Assistant Chief Police Officer Craig Holden said today: This is a major development. Over the years, the case has attracted widespread public attention.

Based on the information provided to us, we believe this is new and possibly important evidence for Mary Pastham, but further detailed evaluation will be conducted in the next few days to determine the level of excavation .

The police have always said that any new evidence will be reviewed. This has already happened and a targeted and proportional investigation will now be conducted.

Marys heartbroken family who learned the latest news previously urged Roswest to tell them the whereabouts of the missing teenager.

The serial killers own lawyer suggested in 2019 that she might be an accomplice in Marys disappearance.

Marys family said in a statement today: We are aware of the developments before and after Marys disappearance and have received the latest support from the Gloucestershire Police Family Liaison Officer.

Please let us ask for privacy so that we can feel sad for Mary.

Leo Goatley believes that she met West two years earlier than previously thought, and could lure them into their car while Mary was waiting at the bus stop.

The police also found a small silver box pendant on a chain at the residence at 25 Cromwell Street in the West End. The family believed that the pendant belonged to Mary.

Home-called House of Terror -Its only half a mile from the Southgate Street cafe that is being searched today.

14 Ten young victims of the West

14 They were found buried in the creepy cellar at 25 Cromwell Street Image source: SWNS: Southwest News Service

14 The house has since been demolished Image source: SWNS: Southwest News Service

This house is called the House of Terror, and the body is buried under the patio

According to reports, before committing suicide, West admitted to killing Mary to his son Stephen and Janet Leach, who was a social worker. Wests appropriate adult During the police interrogation.

Marys relatives and friends have been fighting in vain for the cafe where the police searched her body for years.

14 West used to frequent the cafe where Mary worked Credit: Rex Features

14 That monster was working as a construction worker Credit: Shutterstock

A source said: This is an extraordinary development that is expected to finally resolve the mysterious incident that happened to Mary.

She disappeared more than half a century ago. Obviously, extra care must be taken during the excavation to protect any remains and potential forensic evidence.

However, the Gloucestershire police are likely to face the question of why they waited so long to dig the cafe.

When Fred and Rose West were arrested in 1994, they first noticed this.

According to Marys childhood friend Chris Roberts, the tenant of this cafe told the police that he found a school workbook that may have belonged to Mary in the bathroom area of ??the basement, which was hidden behind the brickwork. .

The book was collected by the police, but did not inform the Pasteurs about the information they found.

Mr. Roberts initiated a petition in 2012, calling on the police to search the basement of the cafe called The Oasis at the time.

However, the police rejected the petition appeal.

Then Chief Police Officer Tony Melville wrote to Mr. Roberts and told him: The evidence is by no means absolute.

He said that the book found by the former coffee house tenant was an old diary that had nothing to do with Mary.

The chief of police added Marys fate: West is the only suspect in the murder, but the details of her whereabouts have not yet been revealed.

Lost lives: Fred and Rose Wests victims Anna McFall McFall, the nanny of Fred and Rena Wests children, is believed to have been murdered in 1967. She was pregnant when she died and West is believed to be the father. In June 1994, her body was found in a shallow grave. Fred West denied murdering McFall, but he is said to have confided to visitors after his arrest that he stabbed her after a fight. This happened before Rosemary West met him. Charm West Fred goes to jail for stealing car tires and vehicle tax records, and Rosemary is taken care of by Charmaine, who is eight years old. It is said that the neighbor found Charmaine tied to a wooden chair with his hands behind his back, and Rosemary was standing with a large wooden spoon. Rosemary claimed that she had been kidnapped by her mother Rena, but her bones were found in the property on Midland Road (Midland Road). The bones were hidden and missing. Rena West It is believed that Rena was strangled to avoid investigation of Charmaines whereabouts and was hanged. Rosemary has not been charged with this murder. Linda Gough The 21-year-old Lynda Gough was the first sexually motivated killing by a Westerner. In April 1973, she moved into Cromwell Street after having affairs with several tenants. Westerners later claimed that she was asked to leave after being hit by a child. Strangulation and suffocation are possible causes of death. Carol Ann Cooper Cooper was murdered in November 1973 when he was only 15 years old. The next morning, she was allowed to spend the night in her grandmothers house before going to the doctor. But somehow she eventually reached Cromwell Street and was killed by the couple. Her body was found more than two decades later. Lucy Partington She is a 21-year-old Medieval English student at the University of Exeter. She returned home on Christmas Day in December 1973. She hurriedly left her friends house and took the last bus from Cheltenham to Gretton on December 27, where she was kidnapped. More than twenty years later, she was found, mutilated in a cellar on Cromwell Street. Therese Siegenthaler A 21-year-old Swiss sociology student at Woolwich Polytechnic. She had planned to hike to Ireland before Easter 1974. Her family reported that she had been missing for some time. The prosecutor believed that she was kidnapped before she was killed, and Fred West later built a fake chimney on the grave. Shirley Hubbard It is believed that Hubbard was only 15 years old when he died and was kidnapped by the West. Her body was found after excavation in the concrete and plastic film in the basement. Juanita Mott In the summer of 1974, Mott, now 19, moved to 25 Cromwell Street, but then disappeared while living in Newent. In March 1994, 19 years later, her body was found, and West poured cement on the floor of the cellar. Shirley Robinson Robinson was the first victim buried outside the house. She had an affair with Fred West, and by the fall of 1977, she was pregnant with his child. It was initially claimed that the 18-year-old boy had moved to Scotland, but her body was later found. When questioned, Rosemary West was pregnant with her daughter Tara at the time of the murder, claiming that she did not remember her, and the prosecutor called her ridiculous. Alison Chambers The last murder with sexual motives was established.She disappeared before she was 17day I watched my birthday at 25 Cromwell Street all summer. Her body was buried under the terrace. Heather West The first child of Fred and Rosemary West was born. There is no evidence that the 16-year-old was aware of the murder. Her parents were sexually abused and told friends that she suddenly disappeared in 1987 and Rosemary claimed that she was a lesbian partner when she went to Wales. The couple joked that their other children would die under the patio like Heather if they misbehave. Fred abused his other daughter-leading to a search warrant on the property, and then arresting them.

The fallen couple began a 17-year crazy killing-kidnapping young girls from the bus stop, raped and tortured them.

They murdered at least ten girls and buried them in their own house of horror. 25 Cromwell Street.

Twenty years later, their mutilated bodies were found buried under the terrace and in the cellar of the house.

None of the nine bones excavated are complete.

Fred found three other bodies in his former residence on Midland Road and two oil fields in Much Marcle.

Anyone who knows about Marys disappearance can do it Online form Use the reference number 99 on May 11.

Shack of fear The family warned that they would face the demolished bicycle shed in the David & Goliath lawsuit Burglar Terror British mother was tortured to death in front of her baby and husband by thieves in Greece Abuse of trial The widow of a 77-year-old High Court judge a little boy who was repeatedly sexually abused in the 1980s The killer in junk food Julia James murder suspect, now 21 years old, sticks out his tongue as he leaves the court exclusive Western shock The police dug the 15-year-old new Fred West victim under the waitress working in the cafe Bitter button A new crackdown on junk food in the obesity war after Covid

14 Rose West is serving life in prison Credit: PA: Press Association

14 Fred committed suicide in 1995 Credit: Rex Features




When I was a young professional in healthcare design, I vividly remembered the process of conducting a conference call from inside the closet, so my client could not hear the children in the entire room. This was the early 1990s, when the idea of ??women at work was very boring: women were either full-time employees or full-time parents. But I rejected either option, and instead created my own hybrid solution, established my own studio in my own home, and worked directly with clients with a cooperative team of other independent consultants. This method provides me with a flexible schedule to balance parenting while maintaining my professional development. Nevertheless, I still cannot let clients know that I am working at home, otherwise it will have a potential negative impact on my career.

Decades later, because our company and family roles can no longer operate in silos, the pandemic has to some extent accelerated the shift in our tolerance for working parents. Children and pets that suddenly appear in video conferences are now regarded as likable and have become the norm. Acknowledging and adapting to our larger lives has taken a step forward: COVID-19 has taught us in some ways that people can work effectively and impactfully, and still balance individual commitments and interests.

Despite these positive changes, it is hard to believe how far we need to go.Although this epidemic has made great progress in changing peoples perceptions of the ability of executives to perform family duties with Do your best, this also draws attention to the gender inequality that still exists, and in some cases exacerbates it.For example, as far as we know, women are more affected by COVID-19, and it is reported that more women are unemployed than men PricewaterhouseCoopers. In addition, due to the closure of schools, nurseries and other extracurricular programs or reduced capacity, more women choose to leave the work force after it is difficult to balance work and childcare. 2020 year Women in the workplace learner rely (Palo Alto, California) and McKinsey & Company (New York) found that 25% of women are considering leaving. Three-quarters of women in leadership positions cited burnout as the main reason.

Even before the pandemic, these stressors have become the norm in the construction industry. Although I have more female healthcare leadership positions than ten years ago, most healthcare planning leaders, business leaders and healthcare senior technical architects are men. This is consistent with the data: A 2017 Polls Through architectural publications ocean The report pointed out that women accounted for only 18% of construction company partners or principals, but they accounted for 50% of architecture graduates and new employees. These indicators are usually labeled as missing 32%, telling us that the recruitment and retention of women is still a blind spot. According to the survey, for those women who left the industry, the cited reasons included long working hours, lack of support and lack of opportunities to create.

Healthcare projects are very complex, and our work in project development is closely integrated with construction managers and owners representatives. For women, we are usually the only person on the team that represents project industries (such as engineering and construction) because they are also male-dominated fields. For only one person, work culture can be difficult. Following a dominant work culture can be an exhausting balancing act, while being keenly focused on ones own contribution, influence and faithfulness to ones own path.

Recent experience illustrates this problem. In an on-site meeting to review the ward model with the client and contractor, only one female member of the contractor team responsible for the simulation process attended the review. At the end of the meeting, a male team leader thanked the team and shook hands with the people in the circle. Surprisingly, he ignored the woman and shook hands with her male colleagues on the left and right. She took a step forward and extended a helping hand, but did not see her at all. The invisible tingling was obvious on her face. Neither she nor her efforts to coordinate construction efforts have been recognized. When you put these experiences together day after day, is it no wonder that many women think that the struggle for opportunities and support is not worthwhile?

But we can change the trajectory. First of all, we must have more plans for our employees, and be more strategic about how we support, promote and promote womens leadership positions. For example, recognizing that womens career paths may not be as linear as mens, we need to develop different career development strategies to provide opportunities for development and promotion. For example, embracing the mixed work environment that I have maintained a few years ago can now become a work model that provides different options for women with young children, thus avoiding resumes, career development, and earning potential. Regardless of the workplace, women can and should be positioned as leaders in clients and project teams to help change demographics.

Second, the role of alliances, or advocacy and support for the traditionally abandoned peoples positive and consistent practices, is crucial to fostering an inclusive culture. We need men in the field of healthcare design to consciously advocate and sponsor female colleagues, and to guide and position women as healthcare planners, technical architects, and design leaders. Crucially, the representation and visibility of women in leadership positions needs to be increased to encourage young colleagues or recent graduates to pursue a career in architecture. Women must be able to meet other women and conceive a path for themselves.

We know that when we work as a multidisciplinary integrated team, we will get the best design results-the diversity of trade disciplines contributes to the overall solution. When providing services to our healthcare customers, we must ask ourselves: How can the design solutions of a diverse team better meet the needs of diverse workplaces, where women are the leaders of all healthcare jobs 76% and drive 80% of industry growth?

When we promote women, everyone wins.

Brenda Smith is Perkins+will (new York).You can contact her in the following ways [email protected].





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Experts say that McGhan Markle and Harry are participating in a little transatlantic popularity contest with Kate and Williams

Royal experts said that Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are participating in the Small Transatlantic Popularity Contest with Kate Middleton and Prince William.

Since stepping down as senior royals, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have initiated a series of projects, including Megans new book and started their Archewell podcast.

At the same time, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge seem to have Rebranding started in the past few months, With the launch of their new products YouTube channel And change the Instagram name.

Royal writer Duncan Larcome told Fabulous: Whether William and Kate like it or not, they are now participating in the transatlantic popularity contest with their own flesh and blood.

Harry and Meghan showed that modern royals can only survive when they are absolutely at the forefront of social media and their image becomes a narrative of celebrity worship. This is completely different from the time of Prince Philip. It was never about royals. Its about the cause, never complaining, never explaining, ignoring about about your problems and explaining your cause.
Enya, the provider of the privacy-preserving computing software framework, and OMG Network, the provider of the expansion of Ethereum, announced today the public testnet of OMGX. OMGX is a second-tier platform that supports smart contracts compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). Token mortgage and simplified cross-chain liquidity.

OMGX is the result of research on rapid cross-chain liquidity and new mortgage capabilities through the open source Optimistic Rollup platform developed by Enya and OMG Network. Optimistic Peoples Bank of China, Enabling DeFi and NFT projects to scale up more cost-effectively and at the same time provide a smoother user experience.

The Enya team laid the foundation for OMGX not only to extend Ethereum, but also to expand it by enabling developers to perform complex and verifiable calculations off-chain. This allows smart contracts to utilize complex algorithms such as machine learning classifiers and Enyas privacy protection matching technology.

Alan Chiu Chiu, CEO and co-founder of Enya, said: We are delighted to help create a more inclusive Ethereum ecosystem through OMGX by reducing the barriers to adoption by users and developers. OMGX is moving towards respecting personal privacy An important step towards a more open financial system. 

With OMGX, Enya is developing the OMG network to enable more cost-effective deployment and execution of Ethereum smart contracts, and to extend its capabilities through complex calculations that are not possible in todays decentralized applications (dApps). New developers and project teams who have deployed smart contracts on Ethereum can start migrating to the OMGX public testnet today.

OMGXs dedicated onboarding team will Assist the developer To ensure a smooth transition. In addition, OMGX will provide opportunities for community participation in providing liquidity and operating networks in exchange for certain rewards.

Clement Ip, a partner at Genesis Block Ventures (GBV), the parent company of OMG Network, said: We are very excited about OMGXs vision, which brings us back to OMGs core mission of expanding Ethereum. Able to expand. dApps At the same time providing compelling tokenomics and incentives means the world to us. We are very grateful to the community for bringing Ethereum to today. Both OMG and the future of ETH expansion have maintained a good relationship with Enya. 
Russian officials said that on Tuesday morning, a gunman attacked a school in Kazan, Russia, killing eight people, including seven students and a teacher, and wounding 21 others.

The governor of the Republic of Tarstan with Kazan as the capital, Rustam Minnikhanov, said on Tuesday that four males and three female eighth graders were killed in the shooting. Minnikhanovs press service later stated that a teacher was also killed.

The terrorist has been arrested, [he is] 19 years old. The gun is registered in his name. Other accomplices have not yet been established and are under investigation. Minnikonov said after visiting the school, noting that the school has returned to safety.

Law enforcement officers were seen at the scene of the shooting at School No. 175 in Kazan on Tuesday. (Roma Kruchining/AFP/Getty Images)

According to health officials in the Republic of Tastan, 21 people were injured after the attack, including 18 children, and 6 of them were in intensive care.

The Russian state RIA Novosti news agency earlier reported that 11 people were killed in the Kazan school shooting. There is no way to immediately reconcile the different death tolls.

Increased safety measures

Authorities say that in Kazan, 700 kilometers east of Moscow, all schools have taken additional security measures.

The police launched a criminal investigation into the shooting. Video footage from the school building on Tuesday showed dozens of ambulances in front of the entrance.

Although shootings in Russian schools are relatively rare, there have been several violent attacks against schools in recent years, most of which were carried out by students.
Planters in Red Zone 1 (Riviere des Anguilles, Batimarais, St-Aubin, Tyack, Benares) and Red Zone 3 (Bonne Terre) are informed that they are being allowed to attend to their fields within the Red Zone.

Subject to the following conditions:

a. In possession of Planters Card

b. Movement within the Red Zone and may be accompanied by not more than two (2) workers;

c. Wearing of sanitary masks;

d. Not more than three (3) persons per vehicle; and

e. No interaction with other inhabitants

Planters in these two Red Zones will also be allowed to deliver their products to wholesalers / dealers at the following Police Control Points on Wednesdays only from 05 00hrs to 08 00hrs with effect from Wednesday 12 May 2021.

For  Red Zone 1  (Riviere des Anguilles, Batimarais, St-Aubin, Tyack, Benares), the delivery point will be at Beau Bois, Tyack.

For  Red Zone 3  (Bonne Terre), delivery point will be at Remy Ollier Street, Bonne Terre, near CNT Depot

Planters should liaise with their respective wholesalers / dealers so that transactions take place in the best conditions. They should be in possession of their Planters Card and adhere to Police instructions as well as sanitary measures at these delivery points.

The delivery exercise shall be carried out under the following conditions:

I. For planters in possession of Planters Card and residing in the respective RED ZONE only;

II. Compulsory wearing of masks and physical distancing;

III. On Wednesdays from 5 a.m (05 00hrs) to 8 a.m (08 00 hrs); and

IV. Strict adherence to Police instructions.

The Ministry of Agro-Industry and Food Security wishes to inform planters that the Ministry of Health and Wellness has advised that the above arrangements cannot be implemented for the Red Zone 2 (Camp Diable) for the time being owing to the present situation of the spread of COVID-19 in that locality.

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It seems that it was not until yesterday that Tezos carried out the fifth upgrade (codenamed Edo), adding some important features to the evolving platform, such as tickets, adoption period and saplings.

Only three months after this milestone, the Tezos network passed the sixth upgrade, named Florence Following the iconic city of Italy. So, what does this upgrade bring to the fast-developing Tezos blockchain?

Let us delve into it.

Just like Edo Brings some functional upgrades and improvements, Florence Continuing a good record of optimization and improvement, Tezos has become synonymous with rapid development, and it can absorb the latest and greatest features in the space.

Before we dive into Florence, Lets take a moment to look at the exponential growth of network activity over the past few months.

This exponential growth was indeed catalyzed in the Delphi version, which switched to a rapid release model and included changes to make smart contract activities more feasible. The subsequent activities illustrate the effectiveness of this on the Tezos ecosystem as a whole.

Network activity surpassed more than 1 million contract calls in a month, which shows that interest is growing rapidly. And participate in Tezos ecosystem tools and projects.

Among them, NFT-focused projects such as Here and now with Karamante Artists of all types are looking for alternatives to Tezos to meet their NFT needs, which is driving this growth.

Tezos provides a high-performance, fast-growing and low-carbon footprint platform that greatly surpasses competitors. Tezos current growth or advantages are not accidental-these are by design, and its rapid development and upgrade capabilities have further promoted this development.

Florence

Just as the city of Florence is in the Renaissance, architecture, art, literature, mathematics, music, philosophy, politics, religion and science are all integrated into a creative melting pot. Florence, The protocol is upgraded.

What we mean is that in a literal sense-protocol upgrades are carried out when artists, programmers, scientists, entertainers, architects, brands, etc. discover NFT and blockchain through agents. The resulting experience and interaction is similar to a true digital renaissance.

In the sixth protocol upgrade, Florence Brings the following improvements:

Twice the maximum operation size For this update, the maximum size of operations has doubled, which has caused the maximum size of smart contracts to more than double. This is especially attractive for developers who are developing complex applications that require this smart contract size. Gas optimization -At Florence due to Gas optimization That has already happened. Overall, the speed of gas calculations has also been increased tenfold, thereby improving the overall performance of the Michelson interpreter in the typical execution cycle of 2004. Florence A reduction of 35%. This allows smart contracts with more complex functions to run more economically. More intuitive smart contract development  with FlorenceFor developers, it is easier than ever to write complex smart contract systems without worrying about their abnormal behavior.This is because Florence Change the application order of the inter-contract calls issued by the smart contract to Depth-first execution order For most developers, this is much more intuitive. More reliable correction procedure  Florence Deactivate the test chain function in the Economic Agreement, which has never actually been used, is unnecessarily complicated, and causes reliability issues. With this change, the modification process becomes more simplified and trouble-free.

The rapid development and evolutionary pace of Tezos supports the rapid expansion of network activities, thereby ensuring that the platform is optimized, reliable and fully functional.

Florence It once again demonstrated Tezoss meticulous design, combined with its proven on-chain governance model and self-correction mechanism, making Tezos the best blockchain in the world.

Long live Florence!

To learn more about Florence And the various optimizations it brings to Tezos, go directly to Tezos now.
The House Committee heard a profound private story today about how the militarys sexist double standards shortened the career of an accomplished woman and allowed a senior male official to continue to serve in a similar but separate case.

Leah West, a former armor officer, attorney at the Department of Justice, and now a counter-terrorism expert at Carleton University, testified that she reached a consensus with members of the same level in the U.S. military when she was deployed, so Rejected and expelled from the army. In Afghanistan about ten years ago.

She told the Womens House of Commons Status Committee that she was indicted, convicted, fined and returned to her hometown of Canada, where she assumed trivial tasks in an isolated work space.

West told the committee: The message is clear-my career in the regular army is over. The committee is investigating the impact of the sexual misconduct crisis on women in the military and veterans.

My experience is an extreme example of double-standard women who wear uniform standard clothing every day.

Her experience contrasted sharply with that of the lieutenant. Christopher Coates-then the deputy commander of NORAD-reached a consensus with a civilian woman serving the US military in Colorado Springs. Last summer, he was allowed to continue his post and was sent home to take over the joint operations command of the army.

Coates was originally scheduled to be transferred to a senior NATO position in Naples, Italy, until news of the incident became public. The move was cancelled and he now plans to retire.

The gendarmerie conducted an investigation, but said it did not violate the regulations.

West said that in her case, she could accept punishment for violating military regulations and prohibiting siblings during deployment.

She told members of Congress: However, what I no longer accept is that I was given a derogatory name, told me that I was not worthy to lead soldiers, and even was threatened by my commander to use violence, and was repeatedly severely punished by senior officials. Womens Committee.

Lieutenant General Jennie Carignan (Jennie Carignan), the militarys new professional ethics section chief. (CBC News)

At todays hearing, Conservative Party member Leona Alleslev (Leona Alleslev) appointed the militarys new professional ethics lieutenant general. Jennie Carignan, in the hot seat above that double standard.

Carignan said she could not tell the details of these two situations.

She said: We must ensure that the same rules apply to everyone. This is part of the work we will do.

Aleslev said that Wests actions were far less serious than those of Coates. The latter was one of the most important positions in the Canadian military, but West was eventually accused of carrying a black mark on his records.

Aleslev told Kalinya: We hope you will return to the committee and clarify that in the case of Dr. West, or in the case of a lieutenant general who is still in service, no rules are actually violated. 

The Liberal government recently appointed the retired Supreme Court Justice Louise Arbor to conduct an independent review of sexual misconduct in the military and drafted recommendations on how to implement the recommendations in the review six years ago.

The most prominent of these recommendations is the call for the establishment of an independent center so that victims of misconduct can report what has happened to them without fear of retaliation.

West said she believes that Arbours findings can be implemented in her work-the government does not have to wait for the final report.
A mother whose mothers young daughter died of sepsis attacked an insensitive comic relief advertisement, joking to keep the baby alive.

Charlotte Coopers lifeless nine-month-old Heidi was taken to hospital after contracting pneumococcal sepsis in 2019, and unfortunately died shortly afterwards.

6 Nine-month-old Heidi died in 2019 after suffering from sepsis Credit: Jam Press

6 Charlotte Coopers mother slammed the comic relief ad for joking to keep the child alive Credit: Jam Press

The 41-year-old husband and the 41-year-old husband Andrew (Andrew) have had a heartbreaking death in the past 18 months.

Last week, Charlotte was horrified to see a billboard promoting comic relief near her home in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Scotland.

This ad, in collaboration with the chaotic favorite Maltesers, shows a social post: As the babys survival brings a heavy sense of responsibility, I sometimes wonder if I should own a guinea pig. #themassiveovershare.

Charlotte said that the scarred poster forced her to relive the worst moments in her life when Heidis heart stopped beating.

She told Log: I couldnt believe what I was reading. It was fascinating.

I fully support the mental health of pregnant women, but it is not a good thing to support a persons mental health by destroying the psychology of others.

Its disappointing that they chose to use a comment, joking about keeping the baby alive.

I cant keep my baby alive, so it is very painful to see such a thing.

I dont think its sensitive at all. They havent considered the impact of comments like this on people who have lost children, let alone those who are trying to solve fertility problems or have lost children. This is very harmful.

6 Heidi was taken to the hospital with fever and vomiting Credit: Jam Press

6 The warning signs that her torn parents warn others of sepsis Credit: Jam Press

Malteser produced Mars Wrigleys UK and Comic Relief and stated that the campaign aims to raise funds and raise awareness about the mental health of pregnant women.

The fund will support projects such as the Happy Mother Foundation and Smile Group, which can provide important assistance to mothers in need.

A Comic Relief spokesperson said: We are sorry to hear about Mrs. Coopers loss. We have been in contact with her to discuss her concerns directly.

The offer is part of the MaltesersOver Share campaign, personal anecdotes from parents, encouraging moms to share their experiences online.

This campaign aims to emphasize the importance of maternal mental health in a relevant way and to help people access critical support services when they need it.

Sadly, this is not Mrs. Coopers experience. We will bring her important feedback on board in future work.

6 Heidi (Baby Heidi) and 41-year-old father Andrew (Andrew) Credit: Jam Press

6 The doctor later told Heidis parents that she had developed meningitis and sepsis and was probably caught because of sneezing or coughing. Credit: Jam Press

A spokesperson for Mars Wrigley UK said: We are very sorry to learn of Charlotte Coopers loss. This is something that no parent should experience.

Thelarge-scale over-sharing campaign that we launched in cooperation with leading maternal mental health charities provides an important platform for the British public to openly talk about motherhood.

This sport is bringing meaningful changes to those who need support. Almost 50,000 people have visited the Manga Relief Maternal Mental Health Center.

After Heidi started vomiting and developed a fever in July 2019, she was treated for a viral disease, but when her joints were sore and lifeless, she was quickly sent back to the hospital.

The child was diagnosed with suspicious sepsis, but tragically, her heart stopped until she could undergo surgery at Wishaw General Hospital.

The doctor later told Charlotte and Andrew, who were upset, that she had meningitis and sepsis, which might have been caused by sneezing or coughing.

What is sepsis? This situation is always caused by infection. The culprit is usually We all recognize the infection  pneumonia, Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), skin infections (including cellulitis) and stomach infections (for example) appendicitis. Usually, when a person receives a minor cut, the area around the wound becomes red, swollen and warm to the touch. This proves that the bodys immune system has begun to work, releasing white blood cells to the injured area to kill the bacteria that cause the infection. White blood cells and platelets form blood clots in the tissue surrounding the wound. The blood vessels swell, allowing more blood to flow and leaking, allowing infection-fighting cells to escape from the blood and enter the tissues that need it. This causes inflammation, which in our opinion is a warm red swelling. When septicemia As it happens, the system goes into overdrive. Inflammation that is usually only visible near small incisions can spread throughout the body, affecting healthy tissues and organs. The immune system-the bodys defense mechanism-overreacts, and as a result it attacks the body. It can cause organ failure and septic shock, which can be fatal.

Julia Chag 21-year-old man was charged with killing PCSO 13 days after being found dead APPY days Hancock said the NHS app allows the assassinated Briton to go abroad and will prepare for next Monday Hospitalmurder 75-year-old stroke patient died after being sexually assaulted in the hospital Killer signs Call for Britons to be tested for type 2 diabetes risk-record number of cases Sepsis inquiry A 17-year-old girl was killed on a school trip in New York City after Teacher prioritizes the view Clemy Moody Keir Starmer, wake up!Labor Party has womens issues

Charlotte Charlotte was sad at the time: Parents need to learn more about sepsis because it kills many people.

Every hour there is a chance of sepsis and survival. I cant help but think that if we know more, Heidi Anne might still be here.

Heidi has been vaccinated against pneumococcal bacteria, but she caught a strain that was not included in the vaccination from a cough or sneeze from a stranger.
After the free gift basket was sent to the mother on Mothers Day, a brief kidnapping and the subsequent rescue of neighbors began on Mothers Day.

31-year-old Melissa Armstrong (Melissa Armstrong) said she was connected to a woman on her Facebook page who gave a free gift to her mother in the Ottawa area and met her on Friday when she was a newborn son. Put down the free clothes.

The woman told Armstrong that after her employer sent a free gift basket for Mothers Day, the two arranged to meet again on Sunday. When she came to the door, Armstrong said that she soon realized that there was no basket.

Armstrong said: My face is covered with tears. How the woman pushed her away after being sprayed with toxic substances.

We wrestled. I tried to keep her away from my son.

According to Armstrong, during the struggle, the woman claimed to be the true mother of the child.

Watch | Family recovery after suffering on Mothers Day:

New mother Melissa Armstrong (Melissa Armstrong) is looking forward to giving birth to a Quebec woman she met from a local Facebook group on Sunday afternoon. Instead, she said, before the woman pushed her home into the house and left with her eighth eldest son, she was attacked by bear spray. 2:13

She finally picked up my son [and] At this point, I realized that she would not hurt him because she thought it was her son, Armstrong said.

Armstrong said that she was almost blindfolded by the bear spray, but still recovered from the C-section. She decided it was best to stop fighting and ask for help. She screamed and ran out the back door. Her neighbor Bobby Emmerson and his teenage son started chasing.

Emerson said: I started to run down the street. I dont know where to go. I just ran.

Emmerson said the woman was holding her eight-day-old baby in her arms and trying to get in the car. When he faced her, he said that she put the baby on the ground. Emmerson was able to detain the woman, while his son picked up the baby.

His son declined to be interviewed. His mother accepted CBC News for him.

Watch | A neighbor came to help:

Bobby Emmerson was outside on Sunday and heard a neighbor calling for help saying that her son had been taken away. He said he pursued the suspect, found the eight-year-old Mason, and detained the woman until the Ottawa police arrived. 0:56

Christina Feher said of her: I dont know how many 14-year-olds you know dared to do what he did, but he did it. He followed his father until the girl. Was handcuffed. Son.

Armstrongs nine-year-old daughter was also at home at the time, but was upstairs in her room. Armstrong said the smoke in the spray was so strong that when the paramedics arrived, her daughters eyes were swollen.

Ottawa police arrested 32-year-old Nicole Shanks in Shawville, Que.she was Faced with ten charges This includes kidnapping and beating people under the age of 14 with weapons. According to police, Calf appeared in court on Monday morning and was detained until she is expected to appear in court next Friday.

The police said investigators from the Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Department believed that the defendant may have spoken with other new mothers in similar groups.

Armstrong said that the painful ordeal had shaken her.

Armstrong said: I definitely dont use free groups anymore. I want to tell everyone to be careful because we provide addresses on the Internet and we are told not to.

She and the babys father, Nicholas Freda, said they are forever grateful that their son returned home unharmed and thanked those who helped rescue him.

Freda said: I cried because I am so happy that he came back. And what has been bothering me is our reason.

Armstrong said: I may never answer this door again. It will take some time to get me back to normal.
Accusations of racial profiling at the U.S. border are nothing new: many reports event Has made headlines, including the detention of Iranian-born people last year Traveler .

What is more unusual is how these allegations are now issued from within the agency that monitors the US border, and these allegations come from the border officials themselves.

They were trapped in a lawsuit against the US government by three police officers at the Michigan-Ontario border crossing.

These officers are all black, all veterans of the U.S. Army, and are employed by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency at the Blue Water Bridge Ferry between Port Huron, Michigan and Sarnia, Ontario.

Their lawsuit coincides with Publish data from thousands of arrest records The American Civil Liberties Union says this proves blatant racial discrimination on the borders of Michigan.

Micah Williams, one of the three police officers who filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Eastern Michigan a few weeks ago, said: I have seen it with my two eyes.

Travelers of color [are] Subject to more scrutiny. 

What are the litigation charges

The three officials filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the Department of Homeland Security, and will require the court to award exemplary and punitive damages for an unspecified amount.

Their allegations have not yet been tested in court.

The border agency has not filed a lawsuit, and a spokesperson said its policy is not to comment on pending litigation matters.

The plaintiff stated that the legal complaint recounted several anecdotes, in which white colleagues were more harsh on people of color from Canada than white people.

Border guard Jermaine Broderick (Jermaine Broderick) screened at the U.S. Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Georgia in 2019. He said that after 14 years of service in the U.S. military, he was troubled by seeing and experiencing job discrimination. (Submitted by Jermaine Broderick)

One example in the court documents involved 17 American citizens, all black, returning home from Toronto in a pulled SUV. [They] The lawsuit claimed: This is the respect and insult received because of their race

Another suspected incident involved a black family in Texas. The black family accidentally turned to a bridge leading to Canada and was stopped while turning the car to the south.

The lawsuit stated that the border police called the local police station when they discovered that the driver lacked a valid drivers license. This was not the way to handle similar incidents with white drivers.

Then, a supervisor threatened to arrest the driver unless someone came to the border to drive home. This was once again called an anomaly by the lawsuit.

One of the plaintiffs, Jermaine Broderick, said in an interview with CBC News: The management tried to arrest this person for work beyond management. He has no arrest warrant and no criminal record.

There is no reason to try to put this man in jail.

Stop that black guy

Another family was stopped on their way out of the United States. It was an American family on the bridge. They left the country and headed north for Canada.

The lawsuit accused a boss of claiming that the family looked suspicious and stated that this opinion was based solely on the fact that they were blacks in luxury cars.

I was instructed by a senior military officer tostop that black man, a 13-year veteran of the agency with 8 years of work experience at the Port Huron border crossing, Johnny Grace said in an interview.

[He was] Refers to a family crossing the border. 

All three plaintiffs are American veterans. Here, Johnny Grays (left) is shown when deploying troops to Iraq with colleagues and children in 2009. (Submitted by Johnny Grays)

Grace said stopping a black family for no reason caused him harm, because when he saw the frightened child in the car, he thought of his own child.

The lawsuit alleges that after the incident, a senior officer at the border told the officers that they did a good job.

When asked if he saw Canadians being treated unfairly, Grace told CBC News: Absolutely. He said that dark-skinned people from all ethnic groups tend to be subject to more scrutiny.

Unfair review Whether it is a Canadian or a US citizen. Generally speaking, it is Brown.

The plaintiffs request to leave the border was denied

The law complained that black employees themselves were discriminated against at work.

Grace said that even if he objected, senior officials still asked to stroke his hair. He said that a senior employee repeatedly asked him how to find a job in Port Huron instead of Detroit, which has a much larger black population.

According to the lawsuit, during last years Black Life Issue protest, a colleague joked that Grace could wear casual clothes and infiltrate the protest.

It claimed that the colleague told Grace: Tell the protesters that your name is Indike Mfufu, using the African pronunciation.

Jermaine Broderick said that as an immigrant from Jamaica, he served in the US military for 14 years, so seeing this discrimination bothers him.

that [service] Yes [apparently] Not good enough, he said in an interview.

From the US Customs and Border Protection Black Hawk helicopter, it can be seen that the vehicle entered Port Huron, Michigan from Sarnia, Ontario on the Blue Water Bridge. (Rebecca Cook/Reuters)

The shade of my skin tone has caused me to be censored inappropriately.

Broderick said he asked to leave the border crossing but was refused. After a dispute with a supervisor mentioned in the lawsuit, Grace filed a union complaint last year, which was later eliminated by his regular work.

In an interview, he said: take the position.

Research data from Michigan

At the same time, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan said it has statistical evidence that travelers are treated differently on the basis of race.

It sued to obtain and has published thousands of federal documents for seven years, including more than 13,000 CBP arrests Record records from 2012 to 2019 In Michigan.

Report based on ethnicity data On people detained by the CBP law enforcement department released by the American Civil Liberties Association (ACLU), it was found that 96.5% of the people stopped had dark, dark brown, light brown, medium brown, medium or black skin.

Only 3.5% of people have light or medium skin.

The U.S. Border Patrol, the law enforcement agency of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, has been accused in a new American Civil Liberties Union report to stop large numbers of people of color in Michigan. (Todd Kroll/Reuters)

The American Civil Liberties Union report says these numbers are far out of proportion, not only for the population of Michigan, but also for the demographics of people who were eventually arrested for illegally crossing the border.

People of Latin American descent include Less than 20% The report said that the states foreign-born population as a percentage of the total population, but 85% of non-citizens arrested by Michigan came from Latin America.

Since U.S. border officials exercise jurisdiction within 160 kilometers (100 miles) of any international waterway, they Can prevent travelers from going anywhere The furthest point from the Canadian border to the state.

The ACLU report began with the story of a legal American resident, Arnulfo Gomez, who was arrested for pulling down the exhaust system of his car.

The report said that although he had a valid Michigan drivers license, he was forced to sit on the side of the road for half an hour when asked about him and his wife.

The report quoted Gomez as saying: There is no reason for him to drag us down. As soon as he saw that we were brown, he followed us.

He has never been fined for a loud exhaust.
TYLER Flip Priddy starred in the Discovery reality series Street Outlaws.

Street Outlaws premiered on the Discovery Channel in 2013 and followed a group of street racers including Priddy, who died in 2013 at the age of 31.

3 Tyler Flip Priddy died in 2013 Credit: found

Who is Taylors flip trophy?

Flip was born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, the home of Street Outlaws.

When they were children, he met the car and racing enthusiast Justin Great Chief Shearer.

They used to ride bicycles to watch Drag racing When I was young.

Flip appeared in Street Outlaws first season with Big Chief in 2013, where he continued to love street racing.

3 Flip appeared with Big Chief in the first season of Street Fighter in 2013, where he continued to love street racing. Credit: found

What happened to Flip?

Flip died on May 28, 2013 at his home in Yukon, Oklahoma.

He was only 31 years old when he died.

Flip died a few weeks before the premiere of the first season of Street Outlaw.

Flips family and friends did not confirm the cause of his death, but it is certain that his death has nothing to do with racing.

3 Street-out actors including the Warchief often talk about him on the show, sometimes even suffocating. Credit: found

How is Flip remembered?

Flips wife Amber and her four sons survived.

After his death, drag racers gathered to pay tribute to Flip.

Actors of Street OutlawsPrograms including the Warchief often talk about him, sometimes even suffocating.

Street Outlaws recently concluded its 17th season.

Looking back at the beginning of the show and Flips memories, Street Outlaws premiered a comeback special in May 2021.

Flips biography in the show shared that he was known for holding a beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other. Moreover, when it comes to street racing, the never-spoken conversation never stops. 

Fans of the exhibition will remember the 1980 Chevrolet El Camino that Flip loved.

Live blog Heroic Spirit Taylor Swift captures Global Icon, Haim wins International Group Fighting Great Britain Piers Morgan savagely strikes new GMB host Alastair Campbell Spoiler Run away Bailey Baker of EastEnders was discovered after Amy Mitchells evil plan was exposed home Sweet Home The Manchester apartment of the star Mollie Gallagher in Coronation Street Golden amber Amber Gill reveals stunning new blonde hair that looks unrecognizable Mothers words Dani Dyer showed amazing post-birth body in a new range five months after the baby was born

How do I watch Street Outlaw?

Street Outlaws is broadcast on the Discovery Channel. Fans can watch Discovery+, the channels streaming service.

It can also be used on Hulu, Sling and YouTube TV.
A woman in British Columbia learned from second-hand information about her breast implants and a rare type of cancer. She asked the federal government to develop a personalized recall alert system for all items implanted in the human body through surgery. .

To prevent cancer, Carmen Smith chose surgery to remove both breasts and underwent implantation surgery five months later as part of her reconstructive surgery. Seven years later, she paid $10,000 to remove the breast implant after the manufacturer withdrew it.

The 48-year-old mother is a two-year-old mother who lives in Port Coquitlam and works as a real estate agent. She was shocked to learn that there is no central registry or request that the central registry ensure that the breast implant can be notified in person if there is a problem.

She hopes that Canada will require manufacturers to create registration forms and work with surgeons to ensure that patients are notified as soon as possible even if there is a possible problem.

The federal government stated that the responsibility for notifying patients lies with the manufacturer, not Health Canada, and when there is a problem with the implant, Canadian plastic surgeons stated that a government-authorized registration agency is indeed required and pointed out that the country has thousands Of people are affected by the recall of breast implants.

Smith said: We cannot take better measures to recall cars. This is simply unacceptable. We are talking about medical equipment in humans.

When Smith learned from the 2019 news that Allergans Biocell textured implants were recalled, she had to look for her medical records to confirm which implants had been inserted into her body. Smith said she is worried that some people will never realize that they have recalled the device in their body.

On April 4, 2019, Health Canada announced its intention to suspend licenses Due to the rare but serious risk of anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL) associated with breast implants, Biocell implants are used as a preventive measure.

At the end of May 2019, Allergan voluntarily recalls the product Thousands of Canadians have been surgically implanted.

Health Canada says regulations are in place

In an e-mail to CBC News, Health Canada stated that it is not responsible for tracking breast implants and has enacted regulations that have recently been strengthened to ensure that manufacturers have a responsibility to notify patients.

But Smith said that it did not happen in her case.

She said: After the operation, I got a card with the serial number and reference number of the device my plastic surgeon placed in my body.

After the product was associated with anaplastic large cell lymphoma (a rare cancer) associated with breast implants, the company recalled a Biocell-textured breast implant from Allergan Aesthetics in May 2019. (CBC)

I always thought it was strange that Allergan didnt contact the recipient with the product, because the card I received was the way they recorded it for warranty purposes. [Its] Its so strange that they didnt use the same system to remind recipients about implant recalls or any important information. 

Allergan Aesthetics, a Dublin-based AbbVie company, declined to be interviewed on the case, but said in a statement to CBC News that it can indeed inform patients. The company stated that Health Canada does not recommend the removal of textured breast implants in asymptomatic patients, adding: Patient safety is the top priority of Allergan Aesthetics.

Smith underwent two mastectomy procedures in 2011 after learning that he was at a high risk of cancer.

She said: The doctor said you have two time bombs on your chest, not when, but when.

Therefore, when she learned that her implants were related to a rare cancer, she said she hoped they would disappear.

Her former plastic surgeon told her that the provincial medical service plan would not pay for the removal of these equipment unless deemed medically necessary, and the Ministry of Health confirmed this fact.

So Smith spent $10,000 to remove the implant, and then she learned that the implant was broken.

Watch | More cancer cases related to textured breast implants:

A type of cancer associated with textured breast implants may be more common than originally thought. CBC News explored why the number of cases of this rare cancer continues to increase. 2:34

The surgeon discovered that the silicone in the gel capsule had migrated to her chest cavity and lymph nodes.

Smith said that although she was told that it was not life-threatening, she was shocked by the news.

It caused a lot of anxiety among patients

Smith said she still firmly believes that her symptoms (from hot flashes to itchy skin) before the removal were autoimmune reactions related to silicone leaks.

Therefore, she chose not to replace the implant. She hoped that there would be more communication to remind people of the implant problem.

Smith said: I found that we dont have a tracking system for medical equipment, which is regrettable in my opinion.

Dr. Nancy Van Laeken, a plastic surgeon in Vancouver who removed Smiths implant, said that the registration of implant patients is very important.

Van Laeken said that Allergans Biocells are buy teardrop-like texture implants, which are related to the consistency of the gummy bear and can create a more natural shape. She said the recall has affected thousands of patients in Canada.

Dr. Peter Lennox, who served as the chairman of CSPS, said that the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgeons (CSPS) has discussed the issue of registry with Health Canada for many years and urged the government to take over, but to no avail. 17 semesters.

He said that at present, the association has established an unofficial database and tried its best to remind individual patients, adding that the groups position is that the data in the registry should be managed by the government.

Vancouver plastic surgeon Dr. Nancy Van Laeken said that the Canadian Association of Plastic Surgeons and Health Canada have discussed registration issues for many years, but to no avail. She said that the registration of implant patients is very important. (Maggie MacPherson/CBC)

One of our biggest disappointments is that we found that there is indeed no registration system. It caused great anxiety for patients. It is difficult for us to track [patients] Its all down. Van Lyken said.

Health Canada says that manufacturers of medical devices (such as implants) must keep records of who and where the operation was performed. In the case of a recall, the manufacturer is also responsible for developing communications to notify the affected party.

But the federal government is not responsible for tracking breast implants, nor does it require a registration agency.

Since the patients complained that Allergan had not notified them, CBC News asked Health Canada what measures would be taken, but has not yet received an answer.
LOUISIANA (KADN) - Right now, Louisiana is one of 31 states that require a permit in order to conceal carry a firearm but a house bill could soon change that.

House Bill 596 would allow Louisiana citizens 21 and older to conceal carry a handgun without a permit. Supporters of this bill, including its author Bryan Fontenot believe requiring a permit infringes upon citizens second amendment rights.

"We should never have restrictions on our constitutional freedoms. We see across America now that 20 states, soon to be 21 states across this country, are allowing citizens to exercise their right without any requirements in front of those rights," Fontenot said.

A 2012 amendment to the Louisiana constitution removed language about concealed carrying of a gun. Now, a group of Louisiana lawmakers is working to change that with a bill that would do away with concealed carry permits.

Political Science professor Dr. Pearson Cross of UL-Lafayette says it means opponents of the bill must prove why current laws should remain in effect.

"The Louisiana constitution after the 2012 changes make it very hard to limit any guns at all in Louisiana because they say any limitations on guns must pass whats called strict scrutiny,'" Cross said.

Fontenot and other supporters of the bill believe requiring a permit to conceal carry is a limitation being put on a persons right to carry a firearm.

"When you purchase a firearm now in the state of Louisiana and you go to a federal firearms licensed dealer, you have a background check. So I believe mandating an honest citizen to prove that theyre honest is just a burden," Cross said.

Some opponents of the bill argue that it could result in a higher number of accidental shootings from a lack of firearm safety. Cross says freedom often comes at a price. "Theres a price for freedom, so this may be a tradeoff that youre willing to protect a constitutional right with more shootings, but thats something for the legislature to decide," he said.

Fontenot says there is already evidence suggesting that citizens are still willing to receive proper training regardless of permit laws.

"In the 20 states where constitutional carry was passed, that the individuals who sought training, went up in a large amount. So we know that individuals that want to legally possess a firearm will go out and seek that training," said Cross.

House Bill 596 cleared the house last week with a 73-28 vote and a veto proof majority. It will make its way to the senate committee sometime next week.

Fontenots bill, if passed, would also provide a free one hour training through Louisiana State Police for new gun owners.
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In recent years, there have been a number of acquisitions and examples of consolidation in the ski resort industry, highlighted by Vails acquisition of Peak a couple years ago, said Adrienne Saia Isaac, director of marketing and communications at the NSAA who grew up in the Lehigh Valley, skiing at Blue Mountain. Despite those moves, she said there are still many family-owned ski areas going strong across the country, as they have for generations.
Korean drama "Taxi Driver" featuring Lee Je Hoon and Esom is making waves not just in social media but has slowly captivated the audience's hearts with increasing viewership ratings.

This has cemented their spot as the reigning Friday and Saturday evening drama as they sustain a decent hold on the rating chart with the impressive portrayal and remarkable storyline.

"Taxi Driver" Episode 10 Recap

In the new episode of the SBS crime thriller drama, Lee Je Hoon, who plays Kim Do Ki, proved that he is a master of disguise.

"Taxi Driver" episode 10 shows how Do Ki poses as a wealthy businessman from Harbin, China named Mr. Wang and the group's new mission to infiltrate a voice phishing organization headed by Lim Bok Ja, portrayed by actress Shim So Young.

The drama continues with Prosecutor Kang Ha Na (Esom) visiting the Rainbow Taxi company to check on Do Ki but found out that he was on vacation alongside his other colleagues.

Luckily for the feisty prosecutor, she happened to bump into Choi Kyung Goo (Jang Hyuk Jin), who was looking dashing due to his disguise. Kang Ha Na asked him if he is on vacation too, to which he denied.

However, he saw Choi Kyung Goo riding a different taxi cab and followed him to his destination.

Upon reaching the port, he told Ahn Go Eun (Pyo Ye Jin) that he couldn't proceed with the plan because he was being followed by the prosecutor.

Mr. Wang Wooed Madam Lim with his Charm

"Taxi Driver" episode 10 also showed how the Rainbow taxi member Park Jin-Eon (Bae Yoo Ram) struggled with his disguise as an employee of Madam Lin's organization.

It came after he successfully called a ton of victims through the help of Ahn Go Eun. However, Lim Bok Ja learned that the newcomer was able to steal a small amount of money that can't even buy a single burner phone.

This has prompted madam Lin to source more burner phones but seems to can't find her luck.

Meanwhile, the gang learned that Mr. Wang is in the restaurant. During their conversation, the flashy entrepreneur tried to woo her by mentioning that he was also from Harbin and showered her compliments.

She then tried to make a transaction by asking him to sell his burner phone to her, but Mr. Wang mentioned that he made a deal with someone - it turns out that it was Lim Bok Ja's rival group.

The gang boss insulted Madam Lin, but since Kim Do Ki had a goal to get to her good side, he defended her and threatened the rival gang leader not to lay his hands on Madam Lin.

Interestingly, with charismatic looks, she seems to fall head over heels in Kim Do Ki's trap as the duo went on their first date.

Madam Lin and Mr. Wang bonded over a snow crab date as he helped open a shell for her.

The Sacrificial Lamb

Park Jin Eon ( Bae Yoo Ram) 's disguise was busted after one of Madam Lin's men heard that he spoke to someone regarding the organization's illegal transaction.

He was presented to Madam Lin, who was about to kill him but luckily, Mr. Wang appeared, saying that he was a cop, who caused his transaction to fail, making him lose all his money and his group.

To gain the trust of Madam Lin, Do Ki and the rest of the group staged a scene where Park Jin Eon was thrown out in the ocean.

Kim Do Ki Gets the Upper Hand

With Ahn Go Eun's astounding hacking skills, the voice phishing organization failed to victimize innocent people and slowly lost their transactions, which made Madam Lin very furious.

At her headquarters, his men barged into his office, saying that they haven't received any salaries yet. At this time, Madam Lin received a notification error from her bank regarding her account password and believed that someone is messing with her.

On her way to the bank, he bumped into Mr. Wang, who previously mentioned that he would be leaving the area after being hunted by a prosecutor.

There, she was shocked after learning that her bank account was emptied. She then asked help from Mr. Wang, telling her that she also wanted to escape the area.

At the boat, Madam Lin was surprised upon seeing his men, who were also locked up in the vessel. There, Kim Do Ki revealed the truth and mentioned that this revenge is for all the countless people that the group has been scammed.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 'Taxi Driver' Episode 8: Lee Je Hoon Gave Viewers a Worthy Ride as He Crushed U Data Chairman

KDramastars owns this article.

Written by Geca Wills
Kim Seon Ho expressed his love for his legion of fans with a heartwarming message.

The "Start-Up" actor has just celebrated another milestone in his life as he turned 35 last May 8, and in return, he dedicated his recent social media post to his supporters.

Over Kim Seon Ho's Instagram account, the birthday celebrant shared a simple yet heartfelt message as a form of thank you for everyone's love and support.

In the caption, the rising star mentioned that he had an "incredibly overwhelming and moving birthday," adding, "I'll cherish each and every one of your support and heart in my heart! May 8th, 21st, too. It's a series of unforgettable days. Thank you again!"

He then concluded his caption by assuring fans that he will be a "better actor" alongside a series of candid photos wearing a white button-down top paired with jeans and a bucket hat as he stood in front of a flower field with a peace sign pose.

Fans React to Kim Seon Ho's Thank You Post on Instagram

As of this writing, Kim Seon Ho's Instagram post garnered 1.3 million likes and over 22,200 comments, mostly with positive responses from his followers.

The multi-talented rapper, record producer, and GROOVL1N CEO, Ravi, whose real name is Kim Won-sik, also greeted the actor with cake and heart emojis.

In addition, social media star Vincent, also wrote a funny message saying, "are you McDonalds cuz I'm McLovin it."

Meanwhile, one user expressed how the "Catch the Ghost" actor has impacted the lives of his fans and thanked him for "being such a huge motivation."

The fan also described him as a "kind-hearted, down to earth and genuine person."

Kim Seon Ho's "Start-Up" Success

Kim Seon Ho gained massive popularity following his breakthrough performance in the 2020 hit series "Start-Up" together with Bae Suzy, Nam Joo Hyuk, and Kang Han Na.

He played the role of a young CEO Han Ji-pyeong, who was often referred to as "good boy."

In a previous interview with Forbes, the 35-year-old actor mentioned that he was "really grateful and happy to play the role."

Moreover, he also spoke about working with his co-stars and shared that he was able to learn more about the craft, all thanks to them.

"I was glad to just be able to work together, and I feel like my worldview got wider. I also felt a lot of different emotions after observing the attitude of the actors I worked with."

Kim Seon Ho also recognized the drama as a "gift" that allowed him to meet Han Ji-pyeong that prompted the people to recognize his effort to portray the character.

Kim Seon Ho's Baeksang Arts Awards 2021 Nomination

Following his impressive success in "Start-Up," he was nominated at the 57th Baeksang Arts Awards for Best Supporting Actor in TV with fellow nominees Kim Ji-hoon, Oh Jung-Se, and Lee Hee Joon.

In addition, he also ranked as the number one most popular actor by receiving 1.3 million votes online.

KDramastars owns this article.

Written by Geca Wills
President Joe Biden announced additional steps toward promoting vaccine accessibility, including free rides on Uber and Lyft to vaccination sites, to help meet the administration's goal of 70% of adults getting at least one coronavirus shot by July 4.

Uber and Lyft will provide free rides to and from vaccination sites until July 4 as part of a new partnership with the White House, Biden confirmed on Tuesday.

'To ensure that transportation is less of a barrier, from May 24th through July 4th, Uber and Lyft are both going to offer everyone free rides to and from vaccination sites. I think that is really stepping up,' Biden said during a virtual meeting with governors at the White House on Tuesday.

The White House did not allow members of the press to observe the event, as is typical of Biden's events each day. The event was instead live streamed online by the White House.

White House Covid-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients detailed the new steps in a call with governors on Tuesday, and Biden will highlight the program during a virtual meeting with a bipartisan group of governors on Tuesday afternoon.

The White House shared information on the location of about 80,000 vaccination sites with the ride share companies and the two companies plan to promote the free rides in their apps.

'People will be able to simply select a vaccination site near them, follow simple directions to redeem their ride, and then get a ride to take them to and from a nearby vaccination site free of charge. The feature will launch in the next two weeks and run until July 4,' the White House said in a statement. 'By helping Americans get a free ride to a vaccination site, Lyft and Uber are eliminating a potential barrier and driving America closer to the President's goal of getting 70% of the U.S. adult population with at least one shot by July 4th.'

The Wall Street Journal first reported on the new partnership.

Additionally, the administration is ramping up vaccination sites with new partnerships with the nation's community colleges, providing on-site vaccination clinics.

'These community colleges will work to get word out to students, staff, and local communities to make use of these clinics, especially for students who are on or nearby campus this summer,' the White House said in the statement.

And Biden said the new initiatives being rolled out on Tuesday will make 'it easy for students who will work with federal pharmacy partners to bring on-campus vaccine sites to dozens of the nation's largest community colleges this summer.'

The President also announced additional funding for state, territorial, tribal and local governments for 'community outreach and engagement.' That funding will help boost educational efforts via phone, text and in-person outreach, setting up pop-up sites, and other partnerships.

During the virtual governors meeting -- which included Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Maine Gov. Janet Mills, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz -- Biden asked the governors about their states' best practices in getting Americans vaccinated.

The new efforts come as supply is beginning to outpace demand. It also comes one week after Biden set a new goal of administering at least one vaccine dose to 70% of the population and having 160 million US adults fully vaccinated by July 4.

So far, about 153 million adults -- about 58% of the adult population in the US -- have received at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccine, according to the latest data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
PORT ORFORD, Ore.  A fugitive wanted on attempted murder charges in California surfaced in Curry County last week. He was arrested after a brief chase and subsequent standoff, according to the Curry County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies in Curry County first got onto the trail of 34-year-old Kevin Gerolaga while investigating a series of thefts. On May 6, a CCSO detective was investigating a burglary on Elk River Road in Port Orford where the perpetrators took roughly $8,000 in items. A witness reported seeing two vehicles leaving the house before daylight that morning.

While searching for the suspect vehicles, detective Maia Mellow found a pair of vehicles at a home on Langlois Mountain Road that had been reported stolen out of Coos County. After talking to the owner of the property, Mello identified a possible suspect "known to deal with stolen vehicles in both Coos and Curry counties," the Sheriff's Office said.

The investigation continued the next day, when Sheriff John Ward and deputy Tim King found a 2003 Chevy Tahoe spotted by detective Mello the day before, parked near a house frequented by the suspect. A few minutes later, someone driving the Tahoe turned onto Elk River Road, speeding away after seeing the deputy.

The suspect passed deputy King and Sheriff Ward, but the deputy tracked it to a driveway before finding the Tahoe parked behind a house.

"Deputy King then saw a Hispanic male with a female trying to get in the back door of the residence. The male took off running towards the neighbors residence which was a duplex and obscured by brush while Deputy King kept yelling for him to stop," Sheriff Ward said.

According to Ward, the deputy stopped with his K-9, "Nero," to search the Tahoe, finding evidence that identified the suspect as Kevin Gerolaga.

Gerolaga had a felony warrant out of San Joaquin County, California, for attempted murder. In April, Gerolaga had allegedly shot his girlfriend in the face and was considered "armed and dangerous."

Deputy King and Nero tracked Gerolaga to the back of the nearby duplex, but the residents said that he was not inside. Someone in the adjacent duplex reported that a Hispanic man had broken into his place and was still inside.

Troopers from Oregon State Police and an officer from Port Orford Police arrived to set up a perimeter around the duplex, while detectives applied for a search warrant. Officers outside tried hailing Gerolaga over a PA system. About fifteen minutes after the first hails, Gerolaga came outside and was taken into custody.

The Sheriff's Office held Gerolaga at the Curry County Jail until he was handed over the next day to two deputies from San Joaquin County.
PORT ORFORD, Ore.  A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew rescued a 21-year-old hiker who fell from the cliffs above Nellies Cove near Port Orford on Monday evening.

Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector North Bend received a request for assistance from Curry County dispatch around 6:30 p.m. on Monday evening. According to dispatch, the hiker had fallen and sustained multiple injuries that needed emergency medical attention.

USCG sent out a MH-65 Dolphin rescue helicopter crew that arrived on the scene around 8 p.m. Local first responders were already on the scene, rendering first aid to the fallen hiker. The Coast Guard crew airlifted the injured hiker into the helicopter by 8:40 p.m. and brought him to Bay Area Hospital in Coos Bay.

According to the Coast Guard, the hiker was conscious and in stable condition when he was delivered to hospital staff a few minutes later.

"The fast and efficient response by our local partners was essential in getting this man to the care he needed," said Lt. Robert Pfaff, MH-65 pilot and flight commander. "We're glad the hiker was prepared to call for help so we could respond quickly. His preparedness probably saved his life."

USCG urged mariners and hikers to always carry a means of calling for help in case of emergency.
SALEM, Ore.  In a press conference on Tuesday, Governor Kate Brown outlined Oregon's next benchmarks for reducing coronavirus restrictions throughout the state, which will be directly tied to vaccination targets.

Brown's office said that "most" COVID-19 restrictions will be lifted when 70 percent of Oregon's population 16 and older has received at least a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Mask and physical distancing requirements are likely to persist in some form even after this benchmark is reached, with Brown's office pledging to evaluate those remaining mandates based on CDC recommendations and Oregon's "conditions and experience."

Thanks to you, Oregon, it looks like weve crossed the tipping point of the fourth surge, said Governor Brown. "Our hospitalization rates have stabilized. Our infection rates are on a downward trajectory. And in the race between vaccines and variants, our efforts to vaccinate Oregonians are taking the lead."

Brown said that more than half of Oregon adults have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, with the state expected to have reached two million people this week.

"We still have some work to do to reach our 70 percent goal, but I am confident we can get there in June and return Oregon to a sense of normalcy," Brown continued.

In the meantime, individual counties will have the option to see loosened restrictions based on vaccination progress. Starting May 21, counties that have reached 65 percent of residents 16 and older with a first dose can move to Lower Risk. Counties will also have to submit a plan to the Oregon Health Authority detailing their efforts to close vaccination equity gaps.

Brown previously pledged to take Extreme Risk restrictions off the table, but the state will otherwise resume risk level movement every two weeks. As of May 14, 21 Oregon counties will remain in High Risk, with seven at Moderate Risk, and eight counties at Lower Risk.

In southern Oregon, this means that counties will see a plateau in restrictions for at least the next two weeks. Jackson, Josephine, and Klamath counties will remain at High Risk, with Curry County at Moderate Risk, and Lake County at Lower Risk.

Despite COVID-19 vaccines becoming increasingly available in southern Oregon, the available data suggests that local counties are still far from reaching the 65 percent vaccination target set by Governor Brown as demand continues to plateau.

According to data distributed by the Oregon Department of Education last week, southern Oregon counties had provided at least first doses to people 16 and older as follows: 45 percent in Curry County, 39 percent in Josephine County, 44 percent in Jackson County, 38 percent in Klamath County, and 31 percent in Lake County.

Several Oregon counties have already reached 65 percent of adults or are within striking distance of the goal, according to OHA director Patrick Allen.
EUGENE, Ore.  The University of Oregon will require that students and staff be vaccinated against COVID-19 before coming on campus for the fall term, administrators announced Monday. UO joins a growing list of Oregon colleges with a similar requirement, including Oregon State University, Portland State University, and Western Oregon University.

"The requirement will help us to reach the highest level of protection possible, reduce infections and protect the health and safety of our university community and the communities we serve," UO said in a statement.

People will be able to request exemptions for both medical and non-medical reasons  including religious, philosophical, or other personal reasons.

The vaccination requirement applies to all students and employees who learn, work, or live on the UO campuses and property. They must be fully vaccinated before the fall 2021 academic term begins.

Administrators said that they consulted with experts and stakeholders before making the decision, basing it on data that shows the COVID-19 vaccine effectively eliminates the risk of death or serious illness from coronavirus in the vast majority of infections.

"This announcement today is designed to provide us with ample time to work with our stakeholders on important implementation details," said UO President Michael Schill. "As the policy is finalized we will provide additional information about how students and employees can confirm they have been vaccinated or request exemptions."
Less: Just look at London, Ont.

Same: We hear more bad news.

More: Canada is on the right path.

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More detailed information on the COVID-19 pandemic in B.C., including data on infection and vaccination rates at the neighborhood level, will be released soon by the BC Centre for Disease Control, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Monday.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health is anxious to stanch the decline in foot traffic into clinics and pharmacies as the average number of daily COVID-19 vaccinations has fallen 38% from a peak of almost 112,000 per day over seven days on Apr. 14 to fewer than 70,000 per day as of May 6. Vaccinators have several days to get their numbers into the states immunization system.
RCMP Assistant Commissioner Dwayne McDonald pauses while speaking during a news conference in Burnaby, B.C., on Monday, May 10, 2021. Top police officials in British Columbia are trying to reassure the public about safety after a gang war left two men dead and an innocent bystander hurt this weekend. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Hopkinsville, KY (42240)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms this morning, then mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High 82F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms, especially during the evening. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%.
Katelyns birthday wish is coming true. On Monday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine for children as young as 12 years old based on results from clinical trials that show the vaccine is safe and highly effective at preventing COVID-19 for adolescents. Though the Center for Disease Control and Preventions vaccine advisory committee is still required to issue a recommendation before shots can be put into young arms  something that isnt expected to happen until Wednesday  the move is a much-anticipated step in the U.S. vaccination rollout.
EUGENE, Ore.  After a string of large parties in the campus area, University of Oregon Police will be partnering with Eugene police to ramp up party patrols.

Over the weekend, hundreds of people gathered at East 15th Avenue and Mill Street. Officers arrived to the scene at about 10:30 p.m. on Saturday after callers complained about noise.

Below is the full statement from the University of Oregon: "The university is aware of and concerned about reports of unruly and potentially unsafe behavior at off-campus parties. We continue to remind the campus community that we must continue to remain steadfast in following public health guidelines established by the OHA and other public health authorities. "Additionally, beginning this week, the University of Oregon Police Department and Eugene Police Department will partner on enhanced party patrols to monitor social gatherings in the neighborhoods near campus. Any student or member of the community can report an unruly gathering by calling EPDs non-emergency number: 541-682-5111. "The majority of UO students are following proper health protocols, engaging with us on with our Duck Pledge, with the Crush COVID-19 Challenge, and within our social media channels. They better represent a student body that understands the need to continue to follow guidance on social gatherings and physical distancing. "The Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards is investigating any complaints it receives related to students who might not be complying with COVID-19 protocol, and it will take any necessary appropriate actions. The consequences of violating the UOs Student Conduct Code may include educational sanctions, disciplinary probation or suspension depending on the egregiousness of the behavior."

"It sounded like they were having quite a party because I looked at the video and saw a lot of people going around the front," Lt. Doug Mozan said. "There were folks coming in and out that had alcohol, and mostly they were disturbing the neighborhood."

RELATED: POLICE BREAK UP MASSIVE PARTY IN EUGENE

Police said hundreds of people were grouped together outside and in the street.

Up to 600 people exited the backyard after police ordered people to leave over a loud speaker. The crowd was reportedly hostile with officers.

Residents Lucas Ferrendelli, 20, and Robert Morehouse, 21, were cited for prohibited noise. Police said Ferrendelli threatened to fight officers and was handcuffed and later released.

Last weekend, fans were barred from coming to the University of Oregon's spring game due to increased COVID-19 restrictions in the extreme risk category. However, police encountered multiple tailgates happening in the West University area. That weekend, they did not issue any citations or tickets.

RELATED: PACKED UO PARTIES DRAW SLOW POLICE RESPONSE

Mozan said police issue citations on a case-by-case basis. He said the two citations were issued Saturday because of "the scope of the problem and the fact that ongoing, repeated efforts to mitigate the problem weren't being met very efficiently."

RELATED: STUDENTS REACT TO VIRAL PICTURES OF PACKED TAILGATES FOR SPRING GAME

Several people who live in the West University neighborhood said large parties happen on a regular basis.

"If you walk around campus at night, you see a lot of people walking in big groups, you see them walking around, just going from party to party," said Samanthah Santana, a University of Oregon senior who lives in the neighborhood.

Some residents said they think students are partying more now because many of them have been partially vaccinated, and the warmer weather allows for groups to gather outside.

"They've been a lot worse recently just because of the good weather," Santana said.

According to Mozan, it's not unusual to see large parties in the West University area during this time of the year.

"What we're seeing is some fairly normal college activity," Mozan said. "It's just that we're not in a normal time."

KEZI spoke to some residents who are frustrated with the constant parties.

"I think that they're literally terrorizing the neighborhood and our community by not practicing safe social distancing guidelines," said Eve Beeker, who lives in the neighborhood. "There's people on the roofs, people crowding around the yard and into the street."

In a statement, a spokesperson for the University of Oregon said UOPD will work with Eugene police to more closely monitor off-campus gatherings.
EUGENE, Ore. -- Three Eugene City Councilors woke up Monday morning to vandalism on their properties with messages supporting defunding police.

The city said two councilors had walls and fences spray-painted with graffiti and one had a sign left on their property. The Eugene Police Department said they're not releasing photos of the vandalism to protect the investigation.

However, Eugene Police Chief Chris Skinner said in a statement this vandalism is an affront to the local government and the community.

"Attempting to intimidate elected officials by defacing their homes is criminal behavior," Skinner said. "Our elected officials put in long hours, make themselves available, and do the heavy lifting to represent residents in their ward as well as the city. This graffiti is the opposite of free speech; it flies in the face of our local democratic processes. I am making sure we will investigate and hold the offenders accountable, as well as protect our elected officials.

Mayor Lucy Vinis said the graffiti is an infuriating and cowardly act.

"It's counter-productive," Vinis said. "Most of this community wishes to engage in constructive problem-solving."

The city said they won't release the names of the councilors to respect their privacy.
EUGENE, Ore.  Phoenix is a 2-year-old Boxer-mix looking for a family willing to spend lots of time with her.

Her ideal home will be with an active family who will take her on adventures and play with her outdoors. She also needs a patient family who will see that she gets some basic obedience training to help her learn the manners she will need to become a great dog.

Phoenix can go to a home with older, respectful children. She still has a lot of puppy behaviors such as mouthing and jumping. Phoenix gets lonely when left on her own, and is likely to vocalize her unhappiness.

Phoenix had a rough time before arriving at the shelter, but after getting lots of tender loving care and some medical attention she is ready to start a new life with a family. For now, Phoenix should be the only pet in the household.

She weighs about 45 pounds and her fee is $100. This fee helps pay for shelter expenses such as vaccinations, microchip identification, spaying or neutering, a certificate for a free veterinary exam, post-adoption support and more.

Phoenix was Tuesdays Pet of the Week on KEZI 9 News. Every Tuesday, KEZI showcases a homeless pet on the Midday newscast at 11 a.m. and again at 4 p.m.

If you are interested in Phoenix or the other animals at Greenhill Humane Society, more information is available here. A video of Phoenix can be watched here.

Greenhill Humane Society is located at 88530 Green Hill Road and is open daily from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Its phone number is 541-689-1503. Appointments are available.

To ensure a good match is made, potential adopters must go to the animal shelter in person to meet with the animal and kennel staff. All family members should be present to ensure the animal is compatible with everyone in the household.
EUGENE, Ore.  The University of Oregon will require students, faculty and staff to be vaccinated prior to the start of the fall 2021 academic term, the UO announced Monday.

UO President Michael Schill said requiring vaccinations is critical for public health.

It will help us to reach the highest level of protection possible, reduce infections, limit many of the disruptions of COVID-19, and safeguard the community we live in, he said in a statement online. It will also allow our campus community to return to the in-person and on-campus experience that is the cornerstone of academic success, student experience and research innovation.

The UO said that in the past couple of weeks its leadership has discussed the vaccination policy with experts, students, faculty and staff.

We have concluded that to protect the health and safety of our university community and the communities we serve, the University of Oregon will require students, faculty, and staff who will be on campus to be vaccinated prior to the start of the fall 2021 academic term." Schill said. "Individuals will be able to request exemptions for medical and non-medical reasons. The science is clear: the COVID19 vaccine effectively eliminates the chances of death or serious illness in nearly all COVID19 infections.

Students will be exempted from the vaccination requirement if they have a medical or non-medical reason such as a religious, philosophical or other belief. These exemptions will also be extended to faculty and staff.

More information on these exemptions and other updates on the policy will be available on the UO's COVID-19 Vaccine FAQ webpage.

The UO said the announcement is intended to provide plenty of time to implement the policy. As the policy is finalized more information will be provided about how students and employees can confirm they have been vaccinated or request exemptions.
By Moses Ndhaye

The National Social Security Fund (NSSF), in partnership with MasterCard Foundation, has announced a Shs35bn innovation program to support local Small and Medium Enterprises in the country.

The program, dubbed the NSSF Hi-Innovator will also provide practical entrepreneurship training to more than 75,000 youth to enable them gainfully engage in various to businesses.

The NSSF Managing Director Richard Byarugaba says engaging the youth in developing innovative solutions which address the problem of unemployment is the way to go.

He says the five year innovation program is co-funded by MasterCard Foundation, through its Young Africa Works initiative, while Outbox Uganda, an innovations hub is the lead implementation partner.
The last thing I want is large trucks coming in and out of that facility, he said. I can tell you now that wont be the case. ... I just dont really have anything else to do with that space because of the way its currently designed, and we have to work with the existing conditions.
By Ritah Kemigisa

The leadership of the Nurses and Midwives Union is urging all its members to return to work immediately.

This is after the government finally yielded to pressure and committed to provide at least Shs44.9 billion for their lunch allowances.

The Unions president Justus Cherop says they have been convinced to call off their industrial action because this time they have commitment from the finance minister himself.

The Nurses and midwives under the Uganda Nurses and Midwives Union went on strike over lunch allowances estimated at Shs70bn, vowing not to return to work until the money was included in the 2021/2022 financial year budget.

They now return to work after the government promised to provide Sh10,000 to each nurse per day for 22 days as opposed to the Shs15,000 pledged by the president.

According to the state minister in charge of primary health care Dr. Joyce Kaducu, the balance of the money will be provided in the 2022/2023 financial year and the mid-term.

Meanwhile, this comes a day after the Federation for Uganda Medical Interns also announced a sit down strike, with effect from 17th May 2021, over issues relating to their welfare.

According to the federations president Dr Faith Nabushawo, they took the decision after the government failed to consider their allowance increment in the 2021/22 national budget.
By Juliet Nalwooga

Police have warned that media houses, journalists and Judicial officers against covering any parallel presidential swear in ceremony, risk to be charged with treason.

While addressing a weekly press briefing at Naguru, Mr Fred Enanga the police spokesperson said that based on intelligence, they are aware of plans by the opposition to have a kangaroo swear in ceremony in Iganga District.

He has warned opposition politicians he didnt name, along with media houses against covering the said event as they all will suffer the consequences .

These are ceremonies which simply remain symbolic without any accompanying entitlement and privileges of a legitimate head of state. So to a big extent, its a waste of time. Therefore any judicial officer, orgainsers, media houses that will participate in covering illegitimate parallel swearing in ceremony; let it be in Iganga should be prepared to face the consequences because these are acts of impunity that must stop in exchange for rule of law. It therefore illegal and treasonous said Mr Enanga.

Former FDC presidential candidate Kizza Besigye was in 2016 charged with unlawful swearing in as the elected president of Uganda.

Meanwhile, the Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) has explained that the deployment at former presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyis residence is for his own good.

With just a day to the presidents swear-in ceremony there have been growing concern among sections of the general public about the increased security deployment at the homes of some political figures.
In the last year we've lost thousands of family members, friends and co-workers to COVID-19. We'd like to give you a chance to honor their memory.

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A Circuit Court judge has commended the combined actions of the emergency services and medics who saved the life of a man after he was stabbed in the chest.

Wayne Robinson who had an address at 68 Cois Abhainn, Old Burren Road, Carlow at the time of the offence pleaded guilty to assault causing serious harm to a man at Lower New Street on October 12, 2011.

Robinson entered a plea to assault causing harm and possession of a knife in 2012 but took a bench warrant and was extradited on foot of a European Arrest Warrant from the UK and was brought back to Ireland to face the charges.

Detective Garda Sharon McMeel said that the victim in the case was living in Kilkenny up to 2015 with his mother. The garda said that she was unable to make contact with the victim but thinks he is now living in Austria.

His mother lived in Kilkenny until 2018 but it is not known now where she lives. It is in these circumstances that there is no victim impact statement.

The detective gave evidence that on October 12, 2011 a number of people including the defendant were drinking for the afternoon in a private apartment.

The defendant had taken alcohol and was out on the balcony and he began to urinate from the balcony building onto the footpath. The injured party was coming into the building proceeded up the stairwell.

The court heard that the injured party was making their way up the stairs to his mothers apartment when he met Wayne Robinson armed with a knife.

A witness came out and asked if everything was okay. Wayne Robinson made a lunge at the injured party and punched him in the face.

The witness, who had been in the company of Wayne Robinson in the apartment was trying to pull Robinson back.

The injured party tried to run up the stairs and Wayne Robinson lunged at him and broke the banister in the stairs and stabbed him in the side.

The injured party made his way to his mothers apartment and his mother who heard shouting went to the front door and could see him bleeding from the forehead.

He said that there were people drinking in the corridor and someone stabbed him.

Emergency services were called and when gardai arrived the injured party was in a grave way and the ambulance was some distance away. Caredoc were called and said that the injured party needed to be brought to hospital immediately and gardai brought him in a patrol car.

Robinson went back into the apartment following the stabbing and put the knife in the sink, left via the balcony and went towards The Fairgreen. He then called gardai and used a false name and said that a friend had been stabbed and that he might be at the Fairgreen. Robinson voluntarily went to the garda station. While at the garda station his real identity was established and he was arrested on suspicion of assault causing serious harm.

The injured party was treated in hospital and a medical report was handed into the court which outlined how full life support measures were employed. The injured party underwent multiple surgeries, including one to mend his aorta which has been cut. He spent one month in hospital and his recovery was described as complicated by medics.

This was an assault of the gravest nature which could easily have cost him his life, the report stated.

The court heard that prior to 2012 Robinson had thirty previous convictions in Ireland, including three for assault, two for possession of knives and 24 for public order offences. The defendant expressed remorse and apologised during interviews.

Defence barrister, Kathleen Leader said that the assault had occurred after a day of drinking.

My client told gardai he had taken the bus from Carlow earlier in the day and had arrived at 2pm. He met a girlfriend of his and went off and drank 12 cans, she said.

He met a group of people and drank more at the Fairgreen and then went to someones apartment, she said.

Ms Leader told the court that her client went white after he realised he had stabbed the injured party and repeatedly apologised during interview.

The court heard that he has been in custody in relation to the matter since April 2020. A probation report were handed into the court which outlined that Robinson had a difficult childhood and had addiction issues and had left the jurisdiction in 2012 because of a drugs debt.

Judge James McCourt convicted the defendant and sentenced him to eight years and suspended the final two years for two years on condition he engage with all services and backdated the sentence to April 2020.
A local business owner has slammed the lack of clarity over re-opening for indoor dining in Ireland and is calling for all pubs and restaurants to re-open on the same date.

Pat Crotty, who owns the award-winning gastro-pub, Paris Texas on High Street has said that outdoor dining is not viable in Ireland given the inclement weather.

Ireland doesnt have the weather for it. What happens when you have all your staff in and your food prepped and then there is bad weather? he asks.

Mr Crotty thinks the solution lies with policing of any breaches of regulations by gardai and imposing closure orders on premises that refuse to comply.

The Government needs to give gardai proper rules in relation and let them enforce them. A breach needs to be treated like a breach of any other regulations. There needs to be clear instructions given and if there is a breach then gardai have the power to close them. That would quickly solve any issues around safety and risk and there would be 100% compliance if people saw other places being shut down, he said.

Although there is an outdoor space in his premises Mr Crotty says he will not be re-opening on June 7, when outdoor dining is permitted as it is not a viable option.

Our outdoor space is not big enough to justify opening. We cant re-open without incurring full operational costs and it makes no sense to do so.

The popular vintner also slammed the decision by government to allow hotels to open for indoor dining from June 2.

The 9 meal last year was a stupid, kneejerk reaction by government and the same. I think some unscrupulous hotel owners will rent rooms by the hour for close to free and people will go there for food or drinks, he said.

At present there is no date for when indoor dining will resume although the Tanaiste Leo Varadkar has stated that it may happen in July if Covid cases remain stable.

People working in hospitality will leave and work elsewhere if we cant tell them when we can re-open.

If all the risk groups are vaccinated, which they are and the numbers in hospitals and ICU continue to fall then we should all be allowed to re-open together with all the restrictions still in place to ensure the safety of our staff and customers. The hospitals are empty, says Mr Crotty.

We have spent thousands on screens and air filters which kill the virus and have had extra staff on for cleaning when we were open last year. We have invested hugely in doing the right thing and it has counted for nothing as we were closed anyway, he said.

Once we do finally re-open this has to be in. Lockdown cannot be the first and only response, added Mr Crotty.
The Taoiseach has intervened in the ongoing saga over a cheesemaking plant proposed for Belview in South Kilkenny.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin spoke in the Dail where he asked for no more appeals regarding the granting permission for the Glanbia plant.

That project is of immense economic importance to the region and also to the expansion of the dairy industry, said Mr Martin.

It has gone through a very lengthy process already  it has gone through the judicial process. I would appeal that there be no further appeals against this project now, given the fact that the courts have ruled very clearly in relation to it and that many, many jobs depend on it. There has to be balance in terms of how we all behave in society.

"We can't all be absolutist in the pursuit of our own objectives to the exclusion of the wellbeing of others in society - and I think the balance has been tipped to the wrong scale here now completely."

An Taoiseach @MichealMartinTD tells the Dail that the latest objection by An Taisce to Glanbia's Belview plant "will create unnecessary tensions and division." pic.twitter.com/Zkh4ZpLYQr  Niall Hurson (@HursonNiall) May 11, 2021

DISAPPOINTED

Earlier in the week, Glanbia Ireland said it was deeply disappointed with An Taisces decision to seek leave to appeal the High Court decision to dismiss its challenge against An Bord Pleanalas grant of planning permission for the cheese processing facility.

The High Court last month upheld the planning approval granted by An Bord Pleanala for a new continental cheese facility at Belview. It was previously given the go-ahead by Kilkenny County Council.

We passionately believe in this project, which is critical to our market diversification post Brexit and will support Irelands post-Covid recovery, said Glanbia Ireland chairman John Murphy said.

The combined impact of An Taisce objections to this project has been a two-year delay to 2024, but an appeal could delay the project even further. This would be bad for farmers, bad for rural communities and would hurt Irelands reputation internationally as a location for much-needed Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

As an organisation we are fully committed to sustainability best practice and are actively engaged in the consultation process on Government policies to secure a sustainable future for the agricultural sector, through AgClimatise and FoodWise 2030.

As has always been the case, we remain available to meet with An Taisce to address their concerns through constructive dialogue.

CRITICISED

Meanwhile, a group of six Fine Gael Oireachtas members, including Kilkenny TD John Paul Phelan strongly criticised An Taisce and said the decision to appeal would be a major blow to thousands of dairy farmers.

This notice to appeal the decision made by Kilkenny County Council, An Bord Pleanala and now the High Court doesnt cast Ireland in a good light locally, regionally or internationally  particularly at a time when we urgently need foreign direct investment and sustainable, well-paying jobs in our rural economy, said the group in a statement.

How An Taisce (funded by the taxpayer) are taking the planning system and Government policy to a second court is beyond comprehension, as is how they are also objecting to housing, and forestry up and down the country.

The group described An Taisce as a threat to rural Ireland and called for the Government to look at its funding.

In taking this further appeal An Taisce is alienating the main group involved in environmental protection across Ireland  our farmers and their families, the statement said.
If the board gives final approval to the budget in June with the 2% hike, it would increase the millage rate in Lehigh County from 18.65 to 19.02, and in Northampton County, from 56.17 to 57.29.
A growing number of gas stations along the East Coast are without fuel as nervous drivers aggressively fill up their tanks following a ransomware attack that shut down the Colonial Pipeline, a critical artery for gasoline. The panic-buying threatens to exacerbate the supply shock.

As of 9 pm ET Tuesday, 12.3% of gas stations in North Carolina and 8.6% in Virginia didn't have gasoline, according to outage figures reported by GasBuddy, an app that tracks fuel prices and demand. The Virginia figure was up from 7.7% at 4p ET, while North Carolina was up from 8.5% previously.

Rising outages are also being reported at gas stations in Georgia (8.0%), Florida (3.0%) and South Carolina (5.9%), according to GasBuddy, which collects user reports and shares the information with the government during emergencies.

'Panicked buying' is 'running stations in the region dry,' Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, told CNN Business.

He warned that the 'irrational behavior' could prolong supply issues 'for weeks.'

Tiffany Wright of AAA Carolinas criticized what she described as 'irresponsible behavior at the pump.'

'People are taking their entire family fleet of vehicles to the gas station and filing up when they don't need to,' Wright told CNN's Dianne Gallagher. 'We are our own worst enemy in this situation because we are over-consuming at the pump.'

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm pleaded with Americans not to hoard gas as the pipeline attempts to resume operations.

'Let me emphasize that much as there was no cause for say, hoarding toilet paper at the beginning of the pandemic, there should be no cause for hoarding gasoline,' Granholm said during Tuesday's White House press briefing, 'especially in light of the fact that the pipeline should be substantially operational by the end of this week and over the weekend.'

Demand for information on gasoline availability is so intense that GasBuddy itself experienced outages. De Haan told CNN the platform is experiencing 'slowdowns' because of 'extreme traffic,' so users may experience 'periodic timeouts' on its website and app.

Gas prices flirt with $3 a gallon

US gasoline demand jumped 20% on Monday compared with the prior week, according to GasBuddy.

In just five states served by Colonial Pipeline  Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia -- demand was up by a collective 40.1%, GasBuddy said.

'I got scared that I could not go to work or take my daughters to school,' Florida resident Linderly Bedoya told CNN on Tuesday. 'All the gas stations in my area were without gas and when I finally found one I had to stay an hour in line and I had to fill up with the premium unleaded.'

Bedoya posted a photo on Twitter of a sign from a gas station in Tallahassee that warns drivers only premium fuel is available.

GasBuddy lists smaller outages, impacting less than 1% of the gas stations, in Alabama and Tennessee.

The national price at the pump ticked up to $2.985 on Tuesday, the highest level in nearly six years, according to AAA.

Investors are taking the supply shock in stride. RBOB gasoline futures are little changed from Friday.

Emergency steps to ease supply concerns

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam issued a state of emergency declaration Tuesday afternoon 'to prepare and coordinate our response' to the Colonial Pipeline shutdown. Northam said that while gasoline reserves in Virginia are 'sufficient to address immediate supply concerns, he acknowledged that a prolonged pipeline closure will cause 'gasoline supply disruptions to various retailers.'

In Georgia, Governor Brian Kemp signed an executive order suspending the state's gas tax to help drivers cope with higher prices caused by the Colonial Pipeline hack. Kemp's order also allows for increased weight limits for trucks transporting fuel and prohibits price gouging.

Meanwhile, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency Monday evening, a move that allowed him to temporarily suspend some fuel regulations in a bid to ensure adequate supply.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis also declared a state of emergency for the Sunshine State on Tuesday, as the disruption of fuel supplies pose 'a severe threat to the State of Florida and requires that immediate measures be taken to protect and to facilitate the continued delivery of such fuel products to this State.'

DeSantis also ordered the Adjutant General to activate the Florida National Guard, as needed, to deal with the emergency.

The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday issued an emergency fuel waiver aimed at easing fuel shortages caused by the Colonial Pipeline shutdown.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan cited 'extreme and unusual fuel supply circumstances' for waiving certain federal requirements for fuels sold in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The waiver will continue through May 18.

The Colonial Pipeline, which supplies nearly half the diesel and gasoline to the East Coast, said Monday it hopes to be substantially operational by the end of the week after a hack that authorities believe was carried out by a criminal group called DarkSide.

'This is a hugely important part of our energy infrastructure on the East Coast,' Neil Chatterjee, a commissioner at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, told CNN Business on Monday. 'These pipelines are now, in many ways, on the front lines of our national defense.'

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey urged residents not to panic and 'only fill up if you need to, and do not fill up multiple containers.'
ALBERT LEA, Minn. - An Albert Lea man is facing multiple criminal sexual conduct charges after alleged incidents earlier this month.

Ma Nae Gaw, 30, is facing charges of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Court documents say that Gaw knew or had reason to know that the victim, who is under 18, was impaired, incapacitated or physically helpful during the alleged incidents.

A conviction for first-degree criminal sexual conduct carries a 30-year prison sentence and a $40,000 fine.
AUSTIN, Minn.  A southern Minnesota man accused of 12 felonies is taking a plea deal.

Dustin Palfrey Cummings, 43 of Austin, was arrested in January 2019 and charged with first-degree burglary, aiding and abetting first-degree burglary, theft, eight counts of violent felon in possession of a firearm, and one count of firearm violation by a felon convicted of a crime of violence.

Investigators say Cummings was involved in the theft of a safe in Adams Township on December 31, 2018. Court documents state the safe contained several firearms, including five rifles and two shotguns.

Cummings has now pleaded guilty to second-degree burglary, two counts of violent felon in possession of a firearm, and a firearm violation by a felon convicted of a crime of violence. His sentencing is set for June 3.

Cummings was convicted of second-degree burglary in Mower County in 2015.
CHARLES CITY, Iowa  A Floyd County man accused of passing multiple forged checks is pleading not guilty.

Donald Francis Fairholm, 49 of Charles City, is charged with ongoing criminal conduct and forgery.

Authorities say Fairholm forged someone elses signature on $1,065 worth of checks at various locations in Charles City between February 3 and March 1.

A trial is now set to start on July 7.
ROCHESTER, Minn. - Governor Tim Walz is urging state lawmakers to boost funding for child care providers serving low-income families.

During a visit to a child care center in St. Paul Monday, the governor urged legislators to increase reimbursement rates for providers available through Minnesota's Child Care Assistance Program. The program helps families with low incomes pay for child care while parents pursue employment or education.

Governor Walz says working families were hit hard by the pandemic, and increasing reimbursements rates will preserve their access to affordable child care by helping providers stay in business.

"Investing in our states Child Care Assistance Program increases access to affordable, quality child care and reduces out-of-pocket costs for families. This investment supports both our littlest learners and our small businesses across the state, Walz said.

"It's a win-win situation. We make sure that our littlest ones have the best opportunities, we make sure that centers are kept up and going and we make sure we're providing that workforce behind the workforce so that we can get our economy going again when people move from virtual work place."

The governor says increased payments for providers can be funded almost entirely using available federal resources. He adds if rate increases don't take place this legislative session, Minnesota could be fined or being out of compliance with federal law on child care access.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP)  The public will be able to watch the trial of the man charged with killing University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts  but not in person.

Citing COVID-19 protocols, Judge Joel Yates said in an order dated Monday that members of the public and news media will not be allowed to attend the trial of Cristhian Bahena Rivera that starts next week.

But he said news outlets can operate remote-controlled video cameras to broadcast the proceedings live on the internet or television.

Rivera is expected to stand trial beginning Monday in Davenport for first-degree murder in the death of Tibbetts, 20, who disappeared in July 2018 while out for a run in her hometown of Brooklyn, Iowa
MASON CITY, Iowa  A North Iowa woman has pleaded guilty to stealing money from a disabled person.

Tayla De Register, 30 of Mason City, has entered a guilty plea to dependent adult abuse  exploitation over $100. De Register was accused of stealing a disabled persons debit/credit card while working as a caretaker.

Investigators say De Register used the stolen card to make ATM cash withdrawals and online purchases totaling $4,033.20 between June 5 and September 3 of 2020.

De Register has been granted a deferred judgment and ordered to spend a year on supervised probation and pay $2,000 in damages. If she successfully completes probation, this conviction will be removed from her record
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP)  Police in a St. Paul suburb are investigating the theft of coronavirus vaccines after a man recorded and posted videos on social media of him walking away with vials of what he said was poison and that he had plans to have the vaccines tested at a lab.

Allina Health told police the man, who has been identified by law enforcement as Thomas Humphrey, took a vial of the Pfizer vaccine from a clinic vaccination site in Oakdale May 4 and left before officers arrived.

The 32-year-old St. Paul man recorded the alleged theft, as well as one the next day at a CVS pharmacy.
ROCHESTER, Minn.  An inmate already serving time for drug possession and DWI gets another prison sentence.

Ryan Daniel Seavey, 37, was ordered Monday to spend three years and five months behind bars, with credit for 670 days already served. Seavey pleaded guilty to one count of stalking and three counts of kidnapping, one count of domestic assault, and one count of pattern of stalking conduct were dismissed.

Seavey was accused of taking a woman and two children prisoner in Olmsted County on June 3, 2019, and driving them to Grand Meadow before releasing them.

Seavey began another prison sentence in September 2019 after pleading guilty to second-degree drug possession and DWI in Mower County.
MASON CITY, Iowa - It's been a tough year for many, including families with young children. But the River City Morning Kiwanis club is looking to help ease the burden.

The club is splitting their $9,000 of membership dues to youth organizations like daycares such as Sunbeam Daycare & Preschool, food programs like Mohawk Market, and the Mason City Family YMCA. The Y's CEO Heath Hupke says $750 went to cover program fees for families, including the after school and summer day camp programs.

"It's going right back into North Iowa, keeping our families happy and safe, and providing great programs for them all."

During these trying times, Hupke says it's all about pulling together.

"Businesses, organizations, service clubs...they go above and beyond to meet the needs in our community, for our nonprofits, those seeking and needing help. I think Mason City is really lucky to have groups like Kiwanis and other organizations, other businesses that donate to worthy organizations."

Altogether, donations are being distributed to the following:

*Community Kitchen of North Iowa-$750

*Hawkeye Harvest Food Bank-$500

*Mohawk Market Food Pantry-$1,000

*John Adams Food Pantry-$500

*Salvation Army-$750

*North Iowa Youth Center-$500

*Mason City Alternative School-$250

*Youth For Christ-$500

*Charlie Brown Daycare & Preschool-$500

*Tugs Daycare & Preschool-$500

*Sunbeam Daycare & Preschool-$500

*Little Angels Daycare & Preschool-$500

*Newman Catholic Daycare & Preschool-$500

*North Iowa Christian School-$500

*Children's Autism Center-$500

*YMCA-$750

In addition, another $1,000 is going to Newman Catholic Elementary School for new Chrome tablets for students who have fallen behind.
As we continue implementing our reopening plan as quickly as possible, the safety of Pennsylvanians remains at the forefront of our decision making, Wolf said. During the pandemic, all Pennsylvanians have worked collaboratively to stop the spread of COVID-19. We must continue that same mindset during our reopening efforts.
ROCHESTER, Minn. - There will soon be funds available for students looking to pursue higher education at Rochester Community and Technical College.

A former RCTC alumnus and Hollywood screenwriter is supporting students facing barriers through a charitable trust. The Warren Skaaren Charitable Trust is gifting $75,000 to RCTC for scholarships over the next three years.

The gift is specifically intended to help make college education more accessible and affordable for high-need students who often face barriers when going to college such as students of color and single parents.

RCTC President Jeffery Boyd explained, "They had a special place in Warren's heart and so his Trust, knowing what his intentions were, and those things that were near and dear to his heart and then also understanding that those are some of the most vulnerable people as far as getting an education so I think those were people that he wanted to make sure his dollars paid for."

Notable films Skaaren worked on include Batman, Top Gun, and Beetlejuice.

He passed away in 1990 but the Trust he created continues to support causes that matter to him.

Students can begin applying for the scholarships on May 10th. You can find more information on how to apply by clicking here.
'It should never have happened'; Department of Conservation investigating after hiker shot in St. Charles County
Police: Gunman who killed 6 at Colorado party over weekend opened fire because he wasn't invited, then killed himself
Kokomo, IN (46901)

Today

Clouds and some sun this morning with more clouds for this afternoon. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High around 85F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Some clouds. Low 67F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.
Buck, who was elected in 2019, claims that she was not aware her $1.5 million budget request was slashed to $514,000 for the year until nearly a month after the final budget was adopted, when she submitted requisitions and was told by the finance office that she was over budget, according to the suit.
Kokomo, IN (46901)

Today

Clouds and some sun this morning with more clouds for this afternoon. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High around 85F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly to mostly cloudy. Low 67F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.
Shanghai represents China's passion for honoring agreements and contracts: CEO of a Korean financial group

(People's Daily App) 14:20, May 11, 2021

I think Shanghai represents Chinas passion for honoring agreements and contracts, says Shin Hyungkwan, the CEO of Koreas Mirae Asset Financial Group.

He uses two words to define his career in financial investment: people and paper. Paper represents agreements and contracts, which are the tool to connect people. To do business in Shanghai, especially in our industry, is definitely the best choice, he adds.

(Video source: Xinmin Evening News)

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Liang Jun)
Proponents of the jobs plan say it will help raise the pay of home care aides, people who provide needed service to the sick and elderly and free up their families to pursue their own careers. Lynn Weidner, a home health aide and member of the United Healthcare Workers of Pennsylvania, said she makes just $12.57 an hour caring for Brandon Kingsmore, a 32-year-old Allentown man with spastic quadriplegia cerebral palsy. Kingsmores physical limitations require her to help him with everyday actions able-bodied people take for granted, from leaving the house to getting out of bed to scratching his nose.
COLUMBIA- The Columbia Public School Board of Education will discuss the possible changes in attendance areas at Monday night's meeting.

According to CPS spokesperson Michelle Baumstark, the district works hand and hand with Cooperative Strategies, a company that specializes in redistricting.

Right now, the focus is on Parkade Elementary. The vote has been postponed two times due to the pandemic.

"Tonights vote is only about Phase 1  provided relief for Parkade Elementary School which is overcapacity. The change to Parkades attendance area would go into effect this coming school year," Baumstark said. "The overcapacity that you're seeing at Parkade Elementary School affects between 80 and 100 families and that particular change will go into effect for this fall."

The board will also listen to recommendations and look at guiding principles for all other attendance areas. There are four possible scenarios, and each brings its own changes to the current zoning.

"The board is continuing to gather feedback from the community on the rest of the possible attendance area changes. It wont vote until June [9] regarding those changes, which also wont go into effect until the '22-23 school year," Baumstark said.

Many factors and principles go into making this decision according to the CPS website, including:

The anticipation of future growth of neighborhoods,

Accessibility for families is important (volunteering and attending school functions are easier when the school is near),

Consider time students spend on a bus and the distance traveled to and from school,

Consider attendance areas boundary lines that follow natural/manmade boundaries,

Consider a transfer policy that allows 8th and 12th graders to remain at their previous school and policies that allow siblings to remain.

One CPS parent voiced feedback to the district regarding the possible rezoning.

"I'm really hopeful that this change won't affect us. It makes a lot of sense for our neighborhood to stay at Fairview. Our homes are within walking and biking distance to Fairview," Shannon Young said.

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Young wants to prioritize this for her daughter.

"Walking and biking is a priority for our neighborhood. I'm hopeful that they won't come to that and that they will see that it makes sense for us to stay at Fairview," Young said.

According to Baumstark, the district tries their best to be cognizant of not impacting the same neighborhood multiple times, but the community is constantly growing.

"We really do try to be cognizant of not impacting the same neighborhoods over and over again. The district has been very mindful and thoughtful of that and and while it is difficult, you're experiencing significant growth in our community and and have been for over a decade now," Baumstark said.

The school board will also discuss the potential recordings in IEP (Individualized Education Programs) classrooms. The district calls it the KKB policy and it currently prohibits audio or visual recordings on district property, unless authorized.

IEP meetings happen at least once annually for parents, teachers, district faculty and staff, and specialists. Missouri is the only one-party consent state where school districts have banned parents and guardians, according to previous KOMU 8 reporting.

According to Baumstark, no other schools in Missouri currently allow this, and it comes down to policy.

"The Board of Education would determine if they would like to broaden what their policy currently allows to allow families to do recordings or if they would like to continue with how it is," Baumstark said.

Some families currently if the parent or guardian has a disability can be allowed to record those meetings if they request to do so, Baumstark said.

House Bill 228 passed unanimously in March, which would allow parent to record IEP and 504 meetings and bans districts from prohibiting those recordings.

CPS parents were at the State Capitol Wednesday, lobbying for the bill to pass in the Senate.

HAPPENING RIGHT NOW: Columbia Public Schools parents are advocating for the passage of a senate bill that would allow recordings of IEP meetings in schools. Right now, parents have to ask permission to record meetings with teachers regarding their kids. @KOMUnews pic.twitter.com/JssC2SQC5l  Isabella Ledonne (@IsabellaLedonne) May 10, 2021

KOMU 8 will stream the meeting in the above media player, at 6:30 p.m.
In this Feb. 12 file photo, a vial of Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine sits ready to be loaded into a syringe at the Steuben County Vaccine Clinic at the Steuben County Event Center at Crooked Lake. Federal regulators are approving use of this vaccine for people as young as age 12 this week.
We have a god-awful election law, Im not going to sugarcoat it, Grove said in an interview Monday before the reports release. How do we improve access? We need to make voting easier, and harder to cheat. How do we make sure we have full accessibility for those who are legally allowed to vote, with the right security, integrity provisions put in there to make sure you do have a secure election, minimizing any disenfranchisement?
Kendallville, IN (46755)

Today

A mix of clouds and sun this morning followed by increasing clouds with showers developing this afternoon. High 83F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Low 63F. Winds light and variable.
Pocatello, ID (83201)

Today

Showers this morning with clearing during the afternoon hours as drier air moves in on gusty breezes. High 58F. Winds WSW at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 40%. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph..

Tonight

Mostly clear. Gusty winds diminishing after midnight. Low 37F. S winds at 20 to 30 mph, decreasing to 5 to 10 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph.
The most commonly referred claim is for tuition owed to a college or university, and there are a variety of reasons tuition may be owed. For example, a student could decide to terminate enrollment during a semester after an add/drop deadline, leaving a balance due to the university. Other examples of claims referred to the attorney general include items like unpaid student activity fees, year-end room cleaning charges and other items outside of regular tuition.
Bill to legalize marijuana to be taken up Wednesday
She intends to have more surgeries including a mastectomy and breast reconstruction. She advises women to get a 3-D mammogram and if they have dense breast tissue, they are entitled to have their insurance pay for an ultrasound based on a state law passed in 2014. Her message to women is to take responsibility for their health care and be vigilant. If you think you cant pay for something you need to call your hospital or call your clinic because there are ways to pay for things. But it is really important.
GREAT FALLS, Mont. - You may be starting to plan a hunting trip with family and friends, but some changes could be coming soon for any out of state visitors looking to grab a license.

Avid hunters are familiar with the term outfitters, private or chain companies who set up and lead guided hunting trips all across the state. These new changes to non-resident hunting license laws have been years in the making, and impact outfitters' operations too, proving to be a hot button issue for years.

'"Cleanup" legislation for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks became one of the most hotly debated hunting bills of the session. A late amendment to House Bill 637 allows outfitted nonresident hunters who were unsuccessful in getting a big game license this year in the lottery to purchase one. It also revamps nonresident preference points to give hunters using an outfitter an advantage in the draw over do-it-yourself hunters.' The FWP licensing system is a lottery; meaning not everyone who signs up will obtain a license even if they met the criteria and applied before a deadline. However, there is a limited amount of resident and non-resident hunters. Licenses for people who live in Montana and all visitors are separated in the FWP sign up system.

7 Lazy P Ranch and Outfitter, Dusty Crary, from Choteau understands both sides, and explained why these new regulations won't have an impact on Montana hunters.

"This legislation is not going to have any kind of direct cause and effect on the residents' ability to hunt and how many non-residents are coming, Crary said.

According to Crary, the bill would provide stability to hurting outfitting businesses because visitors could potentially access licenses easier.

If signed into law, out of state visitors will have to apply early and pay more for their big game hunting licenses. All proceeds will benefit the habitat Montana access program.

Governor Gianforte must approve HB 637 before any of these stipulations take effect. Hunters always have access to look up your hunting license status online through FWP.
Weather Alert

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM THIS MORNING TO 10 PM MDT THIS EVENING... * IMPACTS: Low humidities, hot temperatures, strong gusty winds, and wind shift with a cold front will create erratic fire behavior. * AFFECTED AREA: In North Central WY Fire Zone...274. In South Central MT Fire Zones...127...128...129. In Southeast MT Fire Zones...130...131...132. In Southeast MT and Northwest SD Fire Zone...133. * COUNTIES AFFECTED: In Central MT...Golden Valley...Musselshell. In North Central WY...Sheridan. In Northwest SD...Harding. In South Central MT...Big Horn...Carbon...Yellowstone. In Southeast MT...Carter...Custer...Fallon...Powder River Rosebud...Treasure. * HUMIDITY: 10 to 18 percent. * TEMPERATURES: Highs in the upper 80s to upper 90s. * WIND: West to northwest 30 to 45 mph with gusts up to 60 mph. * COLD FRONT: Cold front will push through this afternoon and evening and switch winds to the northwest. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now, or will shortly. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior. &&
Harrisburg, PA - Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding and State Veterinarian Dr. Kevin Brightbill recently discussed a variety of dangerous transmissible animal diseases that threaten Pennsylvanias $34.6 billion animal agriculture industry. Should these diseases  which are currently present in other countries  arise anywhere in the United States, Pennsylvania would need to immediately declare a state of emergency to support the industry.

Pennsylvanias animal agriculture industry is worth billions to our economy but could be taken out in a heartbeat with one animal health pandemic like were experiencing today with COVID-19, said Redding. Inserting politics into emergency response, like is proposed with the constitutional amendments on the ballot, will slow response time and put critical resources and cross-agency collaboration out of reach for the industry we all rely on.

High Path Avian Influenza (HPAI) and African Swine Fever (ASF) are just two of many potential threats to Pennsylvanias animal agriculture industry. ASF is currently sweeping through China. In 2018, they lost 50 percent of their hog population but after an exceptionally cold winter the disease slowed. However, in 2021 they saw a fresh wave of ASF and have again lost 20-30 percent of their remaining population. Should either of these diseases be identified in the United States, it would be critical for an emergency to be declared in the commonwealth so that immediate cross-agency collaboration could begin, and federal funding enhanced.

Every state in the U.S. has agreed to immediately place a 72-hour hold on transportation of hogs in and out of their state in the instance of African Swine Fever being identified in any of our states, said Dr. Brightbill. Placing checkpoints at our borders and at strategic locations within the state to monitor movement, in coordination with the Pennsylvania State Police or even the National Guard, may need implemented immediately with help from an Emergency Declaration.

In 2014, an outbreak of HPAI in the United States led to the infection and loss of more than 50 million birds with estimated losses of $1.6 billion and economic losses of $3.3 billion. Pennsylvanias poultry industry supports more than 26,000 jobs and 69 out of every 100 poultry or egg products are produced locally.

On the election ballot in May are two proposed constitutional amendments that could hinder the ability of Pennsylvanias executive branch to make quick, coordinated actions to respond to an animal health emergency and protect those who work in and rely on the products from this multi-billion-dollar industry. The ability for the industry to overcome the challenges of the future would be at risk.

Representative Steve Malagari, who represents a multitude of Pennsylvanias large meat processors including Clemens Food Group, Marcho Farms, Godshalls Quality Meats and JBS USA, joined Secretary Redding in his plea for Pennsylvanians to consider future emergency response scenarios when voting.

Being able to respond to and recover from disasters quickly and effectively is imperative for our state to be able to protect livestock and people. Not only does our state rely on food and animal processing as a huge economic driver, we all need stability in our food supply chain, said Representative Steve Malagari. Hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians depend on this industry, including farmers, hospitality workers, and other businesses. When disasters arise, decisions must be made quickly to respond effectively, allocate resources, and keep people safe. In times like that, there is no time to debate how to respond, however difficult those decisions might be.
PARK COUNTY, Mont. - The Producer Partnership announced plans to open the first non-profit, federally inspected livestock processing facility in Montana. The Producer Partnership was organized in April 2020 with the mission of farmers and ranchers working to end hunger in Montana.

The facility will be located 12 miles east of Livingston and able to process up to 300 animals per month when operating at full capacity.

To date, the Partnership has donated more than 80,000 pounds of hamburger to the Montana Food Bank Network (MFBN) to support individuals and families facing food insecurity across the state.

We could have done twice that number if we could have booked more slots with one of the five federal processing facilities in the state. From day one, it has been an uphill battle processing donated cull animals, Producer Partnership Founder and President Matt Pierson said. You know, every step of the way that we've taken, this whole project has been a milestone and the first of its kind. This is just the next step in the evolution of being able to control our own destiny.

In March, Friesla (a Washington-state-based company) was contracted to build the modular processing facility. These units operate at half the cost of the traditional brick and mortar facilities and are significantly less expensive to build.

"Were honored to support Producer Partnerships mission of working to end hunger in Montana," Friesla Founder and President Bob Lodder said.

The total investment, when the Partnerships doors open, is projected to be around $2.5 million.

Last year, we turned away more live animals than Id like to admit because we couldnt find and kill and process date, so we were forced to go out of state and work with Yellowstone River Beef in North Dakota, Pierson said. I knew we needed something of our own to reduce processing fees, insure we could process animals on demand, and if we truly want to end hunger in Montana, at least with hamburger, we needed our own processing plant.

Lodder added to Piersons statement, and explained the basics of the unit to be constructed for the Producer Partnership.

"Their modular Meat Processing System  proudly designed and built in the USA by our Friesla family  will allow them to take full control of their meat processing operations: from donation to harvest to distribution, Lodder said.

Lodder said processing onsite will help the Partnership ensure meat quality and traceability, minimize transportation costs and use less power and water than a traditional brick and mortar facility  ultimately saving time and money that can instead be invested in helping feed people in need.

The Partnership says their first service goal will be to process at least seven animals per week or a total of 140,000 pounds of hamburger for the MFNB.

Concurrently, to help offset costs and pay for the facilities operation, retail processing services will be made available to producers who are part of the Producer Partnership family.

Producers wanting to tap into the direct pasture to plate market are centralized to process, package and distribute their products will be enrolled as partners. While the program partnership is evolving daily, Piersons vision is to provide a fair priced retail processing facility to donors of cull animals and hamburger while serving the local farm to table meat business.

Not only will the unit benefit the Producer Partnership for their own processing of donated animals for hamburger, but other producers eager to sell their own products as well.

We hope to provide the MFBN with all its hamburger annually, support local producers with local processing of animals, and pay for the operation through donations and retail sales. It truly is a meaningful and beneficial partnership at all levels, Pierson added. Theres multiple benefits to the entire Producer Partnership mission. It started by soliciting cull animals for local producers, lining up processing of the animals and paying for the service, then facilitating the donation of hamburger by the producer to the MFBN and other qualified community centers. A producer that donates animals may receive a tax donation benefit for the value of the hamburger.

Other benefits of the Producer Partnerships processing unit are employment and volunteer opportunities.

Well need meat cutters, people to package the meat, a supervisor to run the plantthe whole nine yards, Pierson said. Were looking for the right kind of people who want to learn while helping the community.

Although the construction of a processing unit is a large step for the organization, Pierson said hes already looking on to the Producer Partnerships next steps. During their Quiet Phase of a fund-raising campaign, they have already raised $1,250,000 toward their goal.

Now, they are looking to get another $1,250,000 to reach their goal.

Pierson went on to discuss other goals, hopes and plans for the Producer Partnership.

The goal, to start, is to be able to make it so that the MFBN will never have to buy any hamburger. After that, we want to go after every school in the state and continue to grow, Pierson said with anticipation in his eyes.

You can donate to the facility here: www.producerpartnership.com/donate.
Under all relevant legal authority, once the FDA gives approval, a prescriber is permitted to prescribe the vaccine, said Montgomery County spokesperson Kelly Cofrancisco. Since the vaccine committee does not have any role in determining whether we begin administering the Pfizer vaccine to those 12 and up starting today, we chose to move ahead.
The Drought Monitor designates abnormally dry areas as those that are not in drought, but are experiencing abnormally dry conditions that could turn into drought or are recovering from drought but are not yet back to normal.
HANOVER  During his career as an author and illustrator, Theodor Geisel was sensitive to how he depicted people of different races and cultur
ROME, MAY 11 - Carabinieri police on Tuesday staged a series of operations to search the homes of 11 people who are under investigation for online attacks on President Sergio Mattarella. Properties were searched in the cities of Rome, Latina, Padua, Bologna, Trento, Perugia, Turin and Verbania. Investigators said they uncovered a strategy of online aggression targetting the head of State with social media posts and content published between April 2020 and February 2021. Office workers and professionals are among the people under investigation. Some of the suspects have links to far-right groups. (ANSA).
ROME, MAY 11 - An Italian fishing boat based in the Sicilian port of Mazara del Vallo came under attack from a Turkish vessel in international waters some 27 miles off the Turkish coast, the owner told ANSA on Tuesday. The boat came under a barrage of rocks and other objects, said the owner, Luciano Giacalone, who went to the Italian authorities to report the attack after being in contact with the captain The incident comes after the captain of another Italian fishing boat was injured last week when the vessel came under fire from the Libyan coast guard while in the southern Mediterranean. "The European Union must tell us once and for all where we should go and fish," Giacalone said. "We are ruined". (ANSA).


Earl Bain was wrongfully convicted in Malheur County in 2009 and spent six years in prison. After the complaining witness in his case recanted her story, with the help of the Oregon Innocence Project he was pardoned on the grounds of innocence by Gov. Kate Brown in August 2020.
Investigators dont know yet how the shooter got the weapon, which Frabbiele described as a Smith & Wesson handgun. He said it was originally purchased by someone else in 2014 at a local gun store but was not reported stolen. The gunman had two 15-round magazines, one of which was empty, and police recovered 17 spent shells at the scene.

The shooting occurred at a home in the Canterbury Mobile Home Park on the east side of Colorados second-largest city. Three children at the party, ages 2, 5 and 11, were not hurt.

Two families were celebrating the birthdays of family members, and 10 people were inside the home when the gunman arrived and shot all six victims in quick succession before turning the gun on himself, Frabbiele said. The children inside were in close proximity to the shots fired, he said.

Police received the first of three 911 calls from inside the home. Another was made by an adult who managed to escape.

Three teenagers had left the party just before the shooting, Frabbiele said. They returned shortly after to discover what happened. Arriving officers found Jose Gutierrez gravely wounded inside; he told the officers the suspect was in the home, Frabbiele said. Gutierrez died later at a hospital.
Pensions are rigid formula-driven promises to make future payments. Public sector pension promises in Pennsylvania are inviolate and virtually risk-free. They should be discounted to the present at a risk-free rate of, say, 2%, not the typical risk-adjusted rate of, say, 8%.
The number of women in farming is on the rise.

The 2017 U.S. Census of Agriculture, which has been surveying the gender, race and ethnic origin of principal farm operators since 2007, reported more than 36% of American farmers are women. Twenty-nine percent are principal operators, and 78% of all female producers are involved in daily decisions.

In Virginia, female farmers are involved with 23,575 farms, and they are principal operators of 16,456 of them.

Joanne Jones, who manages Dark Leaf Farm in Appomattox County, is one of them.

I feel like women always have played more of a role than whats been recognized, she said.

At her husbands familys third-generation tobacco farm, Jones plants and harvests dark leaf tobacco, soybeans and wheat, and oversees the operations varied agritourism and pick-your-own activities. She also handles the farms paperwork.

If youre the one doing that, you know whats making money and whats not  whats losing, whats gaining.

Jones, who also works as a full-time Virginia Cooperative Extension agent in Charlotte County, admits it was difficult getting people to take her seriously in the early days, but six years as president of Appomattox County Farm Bureau helped her build respect.

A Place for Everyone in Ag

Third-generation farmer Sarah Morton believes theres a place for everybody within the culture of agriculture.

She became principal operator of Cattle Run Farm in Greene County in 2011. Her father previously operated the beef cattle farm but when he scaled down operations, Morton and her brother, Ralph, who is a military veteran, took over.

After my brother transitioned back, we began a phase approach to diversify our operation, taking it beyond a hobby, she said. They connected with the Virginia Cooperative Extension Small Farm Outreach Program at Virginia State University, where they were introduced to blackberry production.

Today we have thornless blackberries, raised-bed vegetable production, and currently utilize grow towers for indoor lettuce and Swiss chard production, Morton said.

Last year they expanded into pasture-raised pork, and they plan to build a high tunnel to extend their produce-growing season in the fall. This spring, Morton will launch an on-site agribusiness  rental accommodations called the Sarah-James Inn, named in memory of her parents.

Beyond managing the farms strategic initiatives, Morton assists with planting and harvesting. She also owns a small berry farm in Albemarle County called Five Oaks Farm, where she plans to expand into viticulture.

Rockbridge County farmer Jennifer Leech also manages the bulk of the work relating to her familys dairy farm.

She serves as the herdsman for Ingleside Dairy Farm, a role she inherited two months after graduating with a degree in dairy science from Virginia Tech in 2006. Since then, the third-generation farmer manages the farms 340 dairy cows.

Leech makes decisions on when the animals are vaccinated and how health abnormalities are addressed. She also handles breeding responsibilities and facilitates group changes within the herd.

Ingleside has been equipped with robotic milking machines since 2012, technology which Leech noted has lessened the dairy industrys emphasis on brawn.

You dont need to have broad shoulders to do the work anymore, she said.

Encouraged by the growing number of women who are choosing careers in production agriculture, Leech said the trend makes sense.

In general, women tend to be nurturing and caring, she said. When you think about a farm, thats exactly what you need. You need someone whos patient, nurturing and caring with the animals or crops, and it just makes sense that women are drawn to these kinds of careers.
Richmond (Canada), May 10 (AP) A man was shot to death at the Vancouver International Airport in what authorities said appeared to be a gang-related incident Sunday, and police were later fired on while pursuing suspects.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said officers intercepted the suspected getaway car shortly after the 3 p.m. shooting at the airport and came under gunfire from the car. An unspecified number of suspects escaped, and no officers were injured.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team confirmed that a man was fatally shot near the departure terminal at Vancouver's airport, which is in neighboring Richmond, British Columbia.

Traffic cones blocked off a section of the international and domestic departure areas at the airport, and police erected tall, white screens in front of an entrance, blocking views of the shooting scene. Most of the shops in the area were shut down.

The Vancouver Airport Authority referred questions about the shooting death to police. It said the airport remained open.

Federal Public Safety Minister Bill Blair said in a statement on Twitter that the shooting was disturbing and indicated it was tied to gang activities.

``My thoughts are with the communities in the Lower Mainland who have been impacted by gun and gang violence far too often, particularly over the last week,? Blair said.

There has been a string of shootings in the Vancouver area over the last several days, including two separate daytime shooting deaths in busy shopping malls. Police said both were targeted killings. One of the victims was a prison corrections officer. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared Pfizer's vaccine on Monday for emergency use in adolescents as young as 12.

This marks another milestone for the country as it poses a possibility of implementing an in-person education next school year, according to The Washington Post report.

Evidence shows that schools can work at low risk with prevention measures. However, a vaccine would increase the confidence in resuming face-to-face classes.

Kawsar R. Talaat, an assistant professor of international health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, noted that adolescents have also suffered during the pandemic despite low severe illness and hospitalization among the age group.

Talaat said that a vaccine would allow them to go back to being normal children again.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccine advisory is set to review the Pfizer vaccine shots for children.

Pfizer vaccine can distribute its shots to adolescents as early as next week.

Meanwhile, acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock assured that the administration had thoroughly studied available data before clearing it for use, according to a CNBC report.

READ MORE: Moderna Booster Shots Work Well Against Variants: Early Data

Pfizer Vaccine Clinical Trial

Pfizer had enrolled participants ages 12 and 15 and gave them either two doses of the vaccine or placebo three weeks apart.

The placebo group had noted symptomatic COVID infection, while the group who had received the vaccine had none, according to The New York Times report.

The vaccine had also appeared safe for the said age group with the usual side effects.

About 20 percent of the younger participants had fevers, while 17 percent were noted in the older age group.

Pfizer began testing its vaccine on adolescents in March. They then extended the trial to younger children, ages 2 to 5, last month.

The company is eyeing to test its vaccine to younger groups, such as six months to two years old.

Federal data recorded that children make up around 20 percent of the total U.S. population.

Experts claim that between 70 percent and 85 percent of the population needs to be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity while also noting that some adults may refuse to get the vaccine.

COVID Vaccines

On Thursday, Moderna announced that its vaccine candidate is 96 percent effective in the 12- to 17-years-old age group.

Moderna had enrolled 3,200 participants, which included 12 cases that started 14 days after the first dose.

According to a CBS News report, the company noted no severe side effects observed, aside from the usual pain at the injection site, headache, fatigue, myalgia, and chills.

The company said that it is still collecting data in the teen trial and discussing possible changes to its regulatory filings.

Last month, Johnson & Johnson also had started to test its vaccine in adolescents 12 to 17 years old.

The J&J vaccine was authorized in February for use in adults. It is also authorized in Canada and other countries.

However, the company had experienced some hurdles on future shipments after a mix-up in ingredients.

READ NEXT: Pfizer's COVID-19 Pill Could Be Available This Year: Report

WATCH: Pfizer Vaccine For Kids 12-15 Set For Approval By FDA -from TODAY




The birthday celebrant identified the victims of the recent Colorado Springs shooting that happened Sunday. At least seven deaths were discovered by the law enforcement officers when they arrived at the scene.

READ NEXT: Colorado Shooting Leaves 10 Dead, Including a Police Officer

Birthday Celebrant Names the Victims of the Shooting

The party where the shooting occurred was for three celebrants, including 28-year-old Nuvia Marquez's, as reported by The Gazette. Marquez shared that the party was a triple birthday celebration with her brother and their mother, who were both killed in the tragic incident. The brother, Melvin Perez, would have turned 31 this week. Joana Cruz, their mom, would have turned 54.

Nuvia Marquez attended the party with her husband, Freddy Marquez, and her children. Freddy Marquez said in USA Today that his family left at 10:00 p.m. because his wife had to work the next day.

The victims identified by Nuvia and Freddy Marquez were part of their family. Apart from Melvin Perez and Joana Cruz, Nuvia's other brother, Jose Gutierrez, also died in the incident, as well as Melvin's wife, Mayra Perez. Mayra's sister and brother, Sandra and Jose Ibarra, also lost their lives because of the shooting.

Freddy also identified the suspect as "Junior," Sandra Ibarra's boyfriend, New York Post reported. Freddy Marquez noted that he only met the gunman once, and they only knew him by his nickname. Marquez furthered that Junior was quiet and serious and that there was nothing "out of the ordinary" about him.

The suspect was reported to have arrived at the birthday party shortly after midnight. He fired shots at the victims then took his own life after.

The authorities have not yet identified the motive for the shooting. USA Today noted that a mobile crime lab was parked outside the residence, which was surrounded by police tape. By mid-afternoon, the police tape was removed.

A small table was set up in front of the residence, where mourners left devotional candles and yellow roses to pay their respects.

Colorado Springs Shootings

Colorado Springs Police Department historian Dwight Haverkorn noted that the recent incident is one of the deadliest mass murders in the history of Colorado Springs. Furthermore, the tragic incident in Colorado Springs comes after the boulder shooting inside a grocery store, killing at least ten people, including a police officer.

In 2015, ABC News noted that a police officer and two others were killed after an attack on a Planned Parenthood clinic. Eight other individuals wer injured in the incident. In 2007, a man killed two people and wounded three at a church in Colorado Springs. After which, he went on to shoot more people in Youth with a Mission Center in the suburb of Denver. Two more were killed and two others were injured.

Meanwhile, USA Today noted that in May alone, 25 mass shootings have been recorded across the U.S.

READ MORE: 17-Year-Old Suspect Arrested for Mass Shooting That Killed 5 People, Including Pregnant Woman

WATCH: 6 victims killed in shooting at Colorado Springs birthday party, suspect takes own life - from 9NEWS
The Houston Police Department said that a tiger was seen roaming around a Houston neighborhood on Sunday.

Neighbors and passersby had also seen the tiger and they were terrified. The animal was reported to be wearing a collar and walking outside of a home.

An off-duty officer encountered the tiger. The encounter was recorded on video by a neighbor. The sheriff's deputy was seen pointing a gun at the tiger as the animal slowly walks toward him, NBC News reported.

The tiger's owner then went out and said not to shoot the animal. He then took the animal inside the home. One neighbor said that the owner came up to the tiger and leaned down to kiss the tiger. The tiger owner then took the animal by the collar, according to a KPRC 2 News report.

The man loaded the tiger into his truck and drove away when police got to the scene. Victor Senties, a spokesperson for the Houston Police Department, earlier said that police are still searching for the exotic animal and the owner after they fled the scene.

Houston Police Commander Ron Borza said that his concern is finding the tiger to ensure that the tiger will not be harmed.

READ NEXT: USDA Suspends Tiger King Star Zoo License

Tigers in Houston

Houston prohibits the private ownership of a tiger. However, they are allowed in the surrounding Harris County on conditions that they are properly registered.

It should also include $100,000 in animal insurance and keeping the tiger secured at least 1,000 feet away from another home, school, or child care facility.

The state of Texas allows the private ownership of tigers and other wild animals as long as it is registered with their sheriff and file paperwork with the state.

Tiger's Owner Found

Meanwhile, Borza announced that the police had identified Victor Hugo Cuevas, 26, as the tiger's owner. Cuevas had a prior record in July 2020 and was charged with murder from a 2017 fatal shooting outside a sushi restaurant. He is currently free on $250,000 bail, according to an ABC News Go report.

Police said Victor Hugo Cuevas was also now charged with felony evading police. Borza added that Cuevas also has two monkeys. However, he said that they are legal to possess in Houston if they are under 30 pounds.

Reports said that Cuevas and his girlfriend live a quiet, fairly secluded life. Cuevas' lawyer noted that the suspect is up to date on all court appearances related to the murder charge. However, the lawyer admitted that Victor Hugo Cuevas was not aware of the tiger situation until they informed him.

UPDATE #2: Victor Hugo Cuevas is in custody. The whereabouts of the tiger are not yet known.



Anyone with information on the tiger is urged to contact HPD Major Offenders at 713-308-3100.#hounews https://t.co/TkaAtK45MC  Houston Police (@houstonpolice) May 11, 2021

In February 2019, police had also encountered a 350-pound Bengal tiger that they found caged inside an empty Houston home garage. The owner was Brittany Garza, who was arrested in May 2019.

She was charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty for failing to provide water, food, care, and shelter for the tiger. The tiger that was seized in 2019 was sent to the Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch, an animal sanctuary in Texas.

Garza earlier said that she felt like she lost her child. Garza told in an interview that she raised the tiger from a cub and named him "Rajah."

Last month, U.S. Senate lawmakers were urging the passage of a measure to ban the private ownership of big cats, such as lions and tigers.

This was in light of the Netflix documentary series "Tiger King," according to a BBC News report. The Animal Welfare Institute said that the series had helped highlight the situation of captive wild cats.

The "Tiger King" documentary series tells of the colorful life of Joe Exotic as the zoo owner in Oklahoma. Exotic, real name Joseph Maldonado-Passage, is now serving a 22-year-sentence for his involvement in animal abuse and a contract killing plot.

READ MORE: Rich Guys With Lions Of Instagram: Lions, Porsches, and Mansions...Oh My!

WATCH: Tiger Spotted Roaming Houston Neighborhood - From TODAY




Mexican officials recently discovered a 650-foot tunnel built by Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman across the street from a National Guard base in Tijuana, Mexico.

The narco tunnel includes ventilation, lighting, carts, and rails. It was found after a package of marijuana was left outside a house where the narco tunnel was hidden, New York Post reported.

Law enforcement officials believed that the narco tunnel was planned to connect Tijuana to the San Diego underpass, which was found in 2019, as part of a network built by the now-jailed El Chapo.

Electrical cables were found ready to be installed in the narco tunnel after authorities did a house sweep.

READ NEXT: El Chapo's Wife Emma Coronel Could Dismantle Sinaloa Cartel by Cutting Deal With U.S.: Report

Narco Tunnels Link to El Chapo and his Sinaloa Cartel

Border authorities have found at least 200 narco tunnels, including the one discovered in 2019, Mexico News Daily reported.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) noted that there at least 13,300 narco tunnels in Mexico, most of them were established in areas where the Sinaloa Cartel is doing its operations.

The DEA said that El Chapo was behind the construction of the tunnels. Primarily, the tunnels were used to transport drugs, cash, and sometimes migrants.

El Chapo escaped from two maximum-security Mexican prisons in 2001 and 2015 through a tunnel underneath the shower in his jail cell.

Arturo Fontes, a retired Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent, said that El Chapo could not have done it alone. Fontes noted that El Chapo could have had help inside and outside the prison. Fontes was an FBI agent who investigated El Chapo for years, according to a WNYC Studios report.

El Chapo's Escape Concerns

El Chapo's escape has brought concerns to law enforcement officials. In 2019, a federal judge in Brooklyn sentenced El Chapo to life in prison. El Chapo is currently imprisoned in the Administrative Maximum Facility, which is also known as ADX.

Since opening the facility in 1994, no prisoner had managed to escape the maximum facility. A retired federal corrections officer said that he would have to have a warden in his packet for El Chapo to escape.

The retired officer noted that it is a very controlled environment, adding that no two inmates move in the facility at the same time, according to a Washington Post report.

The ADX is housing some of the notorious convicted felons, such as Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber. Terry Nichols, a co-conspirator in the Oklahoma City bombing; Zacarias Moussaoui, al-Qaeda operative and 9/11 conspirator; and Robert Hanssen, the traitorous double agent, are also inside the maximum-security facility.

One prosecutor said that he did not think he saw another inmate while visiting his client, Sal Magluta. Allan Kaiser was representing Magluta, who was convicted of leading a huge drug organization in South Florida. Magluta was sentenced to 200 years.

Deborah Golden, staff attorney at the Human Rights Defense Center, said that the ADX inmates are locked in small cubicles the size of a bathroom for 23 hours per day.

Prisoners were sent to ADX for two reasons: one for disciplinary or management reasons. Other prisons were sent there directly for their conviction or previous history.

READ MORE: Gun Battle Between Rival Mexican Drug Cartels Left 8 People Dead

WATCH: Record-Length U.S.-Mexico Drug Tunnel Discovered - From CBS Evening News




Cali, Colombia's third-largest city, emerged as the epicenter of the deadly demonstrations as mass protests in the country continued.

The city became the focal point of anti-government demonstrations that involves a surge in violence between police officers, protesters, and armed civilians, Al Jazeera reported.

More than a week has passed since the demonstrations erupted in Colombia against the controversial tax reform proposed by President Ivan Duque.

To stop the mass protests, the president announced that the tax reform would be shelved. BBC reported that the Colombian government agreed to meet with the protest leaders. However, the outlet noted that the demand of the people on the street has also widened.

READ NEXT: Colombia's Finance Minister Quits After Tax Reform Plan Withdrawn

Colombia's Mass Protests

As Colombia's mass protests continue, blockades were placed on the major highways of Cali. Because of this, the arrival of food and fuel supply to the city is disturbed.

With their aim to end the blockades in the city, armed civilians attacked the demonstrators, leaving more than a dozen injured after the incident. Those wounded were mostly indigenous people who went to the city to join the protests.

President Ivan Duque visited Cali early Monday and announced that security reinforcement would be sent to the city to remove the blockades. Duque also "called for" the indigenous people to return to their territories.

Gimena Sanchez, Andes director for the think-tank Washington Office on Latin America, questioned Duque's trip to Cali on Monday.

Sanchez noted that Ivan Duque's response and his party's pressure to stop the protests "using all force necessary" will lengthen the people's anger.

Police Violence

Apart from violent encounters between armed civilians and protesters, police violence is also rising in the city. Al Jazeera reported that in the previous week, protesters in Cali were in the middle of protests when law enforcement officers opened fire on them, resulting in several deaths.

Because of this, the Colombian National Police that reports directly to the country's Ministry of Defense was under fire for using excessive force on protesters.

The death toll from Colombia's mass protest is still unclear. Human Rights Watch reported at least 38 deaths. Local NGOs in the country placed the death toll at 47. Meanwhile, the human rights ombudsman said at least 26 people had died, mostly due to police violence.

Among the dead reported was a 17-year-old boy allegedly fatally shot by a police officer in Cali, according to ABC News. The incident reportedly stemmed out when the victim kicked a police officer sitting in a motorbike. An agency is now investigating the case.

Despite the number of fatalities, Al Jazeera noted that another national strike would take place on Wednesday. The said strike will mark the third week of Colombia's mass protest.

Elizabeth Dickinson from the International Crisis Group noted that the Colombian government continues to treat the situation like a law enforcement problem instead of a political crisis.

BBC noted that although the protest was prompted because of the proposed tax reform, the demonstrations are still a continuation of the protests that began in 2019.

READ MORE: Colombia Mass Protests Continue, Police Deploy Tear Gas

WATCH: Colombia's Deadly Fight for Justice - From VICE News
Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck were seen having a rumored romantic getaway trip to a luxury ski resort in Montana.

Ben Affleck was known to own a ski chalet at the Yellowstone Club in Big Sky, Montana. Daily Mail reported that Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck were seen in a photo relaxing and sitting next to each other in an SUV in Montana.

The actor was recently rumored to have been spending time at the pop star's Los Angeles mansion on several occasions. After reuniting in Los Angeles, one unnamed source told People that Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck jetted off to Montana for a weeklong vacation.

A different source added that the two were alone during the trip, HuffPost reported. Many sources have insisted that the two are just friends who had managed to stay close with one another.

RELATED ARTICLE: Jennifer Lopez, Alex Rodriguez Are a Couple No More

Jennifer Lopez's Engagement Called Off

Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez decided to call off their engagement in April as they ended their relationship.

One insider said that they spent time together in the Dominican Republic and decided to go separate ways. The insider noted that the former couple's split was very amicable, People reported.

The two earlier released a joint statement, saying that they are better as friends and look forward to remaining so. After two years of dating, the two had announced their engagement in March 2019. They canceled their wedding plans twice due to the ongoing health pandemic.

The breakup rumors between the two started when Lopez shared some photos on Instagram. It was a series of photos from the set of her new movie "Shotgun Wedding." She was seen not wearing her engagement ring in the photos.

One of their most recent public appearances together was at the inauguration of President Joe Biden, wherein Lopez was a performer at the event. She performed her hit, "Let's Get Loud."

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez

The two were formerly engaged in 2002. However, they postponed their 2003 wedding and officially went on separate ways in 2004.

On April 5, Ben Affleck had praised Jennifer Lopez in an InStyle profile of the Latina superstar. Affleck said that he was completely humbled and blown away by how committed Lopez is when it comes to her work, Marie Claire reported.

The actor added that Lopez is the hardest-working person he has come across in the business.

On May 2, both Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck were present in Global Citizen's Vax Live: The Concert To Reunite The World. Lopez had performed during the event, while Affleck appeared as a speaker with Jimmy Kimmel.

Three days later, the exes were reported to be hanging out when Affleck was seen leaving Lopez's home in Los Angeles. One source said at the time that the two had a great time hanging out and they are planning on hanging out together.

In 2008, Affleck talked about the reason behind their breakup. He said that they made a mistake "in that we fell in love, we were excited and maybe too accessible," Women's Health reported.

"I don't think either of us anticipated the degree to which it would take on a world of its own," he added.

For her part, Jennifer Lopez said in 2016 that they did not try to have a public relationship. She noted that they just happened to be "together at the birth of the tabloids," and it was just a lot of pressure at that time.

READ MORE: Jennifer Lopez to Launch Her Own Cosmetics Brand, JLo Beauty

WATCH: Jennifer Lopez Admits She Was Considering 'Going Back' With Ben Affleck After Both Broke Up - From New Century






The Montana Governor Greg Gianforte announced that the state will offer COVID-9 vaccines to Canadian truck drivers. According to the announcement, the program is in partnership with Alberta, Canada.

Premier Jason Kenney from Alberta also announced on the same day that Alberta and Montana signed a Memorandum of Agreement that will vaccinate truck drivers coming from their town to the United States. Associated Press reported that the announcement of the Montana government about the program followed the 1,000 doses of Pfizer and Moderna from the Blackfeet tribe in Northern Montana. The said doses were given to the tribe's relatives and neighbors across the border.

READ NEXT: Amazon Apologizes to Rep. Pocan Acknowledging their "Drivers Peeing in Bottle"

Canadian Truck Drivers Eligible for COVID Vaccines in Montana

Axios reported that the partnership between Alberta and Montana will vaccinate about 2,000 truck drivers who regularly drive and deliver goods into the United States. The drivers will be vaccinated at a stop in Conrad, Montanna. The program will run for at least two weeks, from May 10 to May 23. The said service will be open to truck drivers from eight in the morning until eight in the evening.

The Montana government did not initially reveal what vaccine will be administered to the truck drivers. However, the government of Alberta pointed out that the said truck drivers will be administered with Johnson and Johnson's Janssen COVID-19 vaccine.

Montana's Department of Public Health and Human Services will collaborate with Best Practice Medicine in inoculating the vaccine jabs into the arms of the truck drivers. Best Practice Medicines is a clinical staffing deployment vendor. Meanwhile, Montana and other truck drivers from the U.S. are also eligible to get the vaccines.

Electronic signage on I-15 was reported to offer guidance to truck drivers and find out where to go to avail of the vaccine.

Montana and Alberta Partnership

Governor Gianforte, in the release, emphasized that the pandemic has severe impacts on both economies of the two states.

"By working together and taking this critical action, we keep our trade channels open between Montana and Alberta," he said.

Associated Press noted that the border between the United States and Canada have been closed due to pandemic. However, the area opened to essential traffic last spring. Moreover, about 800 commercial carriers cross the border located in Alberta and Montana.

"We are very grateful to Montana Governor Gianforte for the generous donations of vaccines to protect our truckers," said Premier Jason Kenney in a press release. Kenney also noted that Alberta depends on trade with their American neighbors, highlighting that the partnership will put the goods to the market "while stopping the spike of COVID."

Meanwhile, Canada's Minister of Transportation and Minister of Municipal Affairs Ric McIver commented that the agreement with their American neighbors will help them protect truck drivers who cross the border while they are working on administering vaccines to Albertans as quickly as possible.

READ MORE: Meet Dr. B: This New Website Sends Alert on Leftover COVID-19 Vaccines

WATCH: Alberta announces vaccine partnership with Montana - from YourAlberta
An Amber Alert was issued by the Muskogee Police Department after an 8-year-old boy went missing at a bus stop in Tusla, Oklahoma.

The boy was identified as Jaiden Johnson. He was last seen on Monday around 5:13 PM, wearing jeans, a black shirt, and purple and black Jordan sneakers, according to Muskogee authorities.

At around 4:00 AM on Tuesday, the Amber Alert on Jaiden Johnson was issued.

According to the police, Johnson could be with 39-year-old Temicah Simpson, his mother. The pair may possibly be aboard a white 2011 Nissan Maxima vehicle with license plate number LKL-668 issued in Oklahoma.

Moreover, according to KTUL, the police stated that the 8-year-old kid, who was taken from a bus stop, needs weekly treatment for the kidney disorder that he is suffering from.

Based on a press release issued by the Muskogee Police Department, Simpson is the noncustodial parent of Johnson. They also stated that she is possibly suffering from a sort of mental breakdown. In addition, they noted that it is not known if she will be able to take the 8-year-old to his weekly treatment, which is necessary to keep him healthy.

The police are still looking for Johnson's whereabouts. The police are also requesting anyone who has information on the 8-year-old to contact the Muskogee Police Department at 918-683-8000 or call 911 immediately.

ALSO READ: Art Gensler: World-Renowned Bay Area Architect Dies at 85

Girl in New Jersey Found After Amber Alert

Meanwhile, an infant girl who was the subject of an Amber Alert in New Jersey was found and is now safe, according to the New Jersey State Police. The person who abducted the infant was apprehended by the police.

On Monday afternoon, an Amber Alert was issued after a weeks-old infant Chinna Payne went missing in East Orange County. According to the alert issued, the suspect on Chinna Payne's disappearance was 27-year-old Damion Payne, the child's father, who was said to be driving a white Nissan Altima with Virginia registered license plates, ABC Action News reported.

Hours after the Amber Alert was sent, New Jersey authorities announced that the infant girl was located safely. Her father was also taken into custody and was said to be armed with a handgun.

In a statement by the City of Orange's Public Information Officer, Connie Jackson, the EMS has deemed Chinna Payne healthy. She was eventually returned to her mother.

Meanwhile, Damion Payne has been charged with endangering a child's welfare, unlawful possession of a firearm, and robbery. As of the moment, it has not yet been announced if the father has retained an attorney.

AMBER or America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response is an emergency response system which is used to spread information about a missing person, usually a child. AMBER alerts usually use the media and electronic broadway signs to inform the public.

The AMBER Alert was initially created to honor 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, who was abducted and murdered in Arlington, Texas. Amber Hagerman was riding her bicycle when she was kidnapped, ojp.gov stated.

RELATED ARTICLE: Hundreds of Mexican Moms March on Mothers' Day to Call on Authorities to Find Missing Children

WATCH: AMBER ALERT: Jaiden Johnson missing from Muskogee - AK Shah




Key Takeaways

 Same-sex marriage was legalized in 2017, but a Green Party bill to automatically recognize lesbian spouses as co-parents were defeated by parliament.

 Only the biological mother is legally recognized as a parent in Germany, and her female spouse, even if they are married, must go through a formal adoption procedure to become the child's second parent.

 Since the 1960s, gay sex has been legal, and LGBT+ people are protected from workplace discrimination and are eligible to serve in the military.

 In India, LGBTQ+ people can adopt, but same-sex couples cannot.

 You and your spouse may adopt a child separately and raise him or her together if you are a same-sex couple, but you and your spouse cannot be the legal parents of that child in India.

Introduction

When Inga and her wife Jenny welcomed the birth of their first child, the last thing she planned was a criminal record search in her quest to be recognized as the baby's second mother. As a result, Inga went to court to get the legislation changed.

Only the biological mother is legally recognized as a parent in Germany, and her female spouse, even if they are married, must go through a formal adoption procedure to become the child's second parent. And it can take years for the process to complete.

"Among other items, they asked for a medical certificate, an HIV test, my criminal history, a self-written account of my life, and photos of me with the boy," says Inga, 38, a Berlin resident. She went on to say, "There is no knowledge available about how these items are evaluated: how safe must I be in order to be a parent? Is there a limit to how much I have to smile in photos? Alternatively, how much money should I make?" Inga refused to give her full name because her parental rights lawsuit, which she filed in December, is still pending.

LGBT Rights In Germany

In terms of LGBT+ citizenship, Germany is one of the most liberal countries in the world. Since the 1960s, gay sex has been legal, and LGBT+ people are protected from workplace discrimination and are eligible to serve in the military. It is, however, still a conservative country in pieces.

According to a 2019 study conducted by Robert Bosch Stiftung, 21% of Germans believe gay men and lesbians should not be allowed to have children.

According to the Network of European LGBTIQ Families Associations, Germany is halfway between countries like the United Kingdom, Spain, and Austria, which grant joint parenthood from birth, and East European states that do not allow second-parent adoption.

Based in Berlin, in March of this year, Carrie and Marie-Luise were one of two couples whose case was referred to the constitutional court. "We're doing it for our kids, but also for all the other rainbow families that are in a similar situation," Carrie said, declining to give her full name.

Lawyer Lucy Chebout, who represents many 'Nodoption' families, estimates that a decision will take two years. She is, however, upbeat. "The winds seem to be shifting," Chebout said, adding that the law "urgently needs to be reformed."



Recognition As Parents For Lesbians

Same-sex marriage was legalized in 2017, but a Green Party bill to automatically recognize lesbian spouses as co-parents were defeated by parliament. Last year, the Social Democrats (SPD) proposed a bill that never made it to parliament.

Inga and Jenny are one of more than a dozen lesbian couples who have taken their case to court since August of last year, attempting to change Germany's civil code, which does not recognize lesbian parents, requiring the second woman to apply for adoption of her own child.

Cases are currently being heard in family courts around the country, with two of them headed to the federal constitutional court, where a favourable decision could compel the government to amend the rule.

The nine-month wait for Inga to be recognized as the mother of her son, who was born in 2018, was traumatic. Jenny had returned to work and had to take him to the hospital several times when he became seriously ill, but she had no legitimate parental rights. "They wouldn't consider me his mother legally," Inga said, "so I wasn't allowed to make any decisions about his health."

Christina Klitzsch-Eulenburg and Janina Eulenburg started the 'Nodoption' or no adoption movement in August when they filed a case to be recognized as co-parents of their child. "The requirement that we raise our own child is discriminatory. When a minority is too badly covered in a democracy, something is wrong "Klitzsch-case Eulenburg's has been postponed until the constitutional court decides on the other two lawsuits, according to her lawyer.

Election Delay

Meanwhile, Germany's largest LGBT+ organization, LSVD, has launched a petition to convince German legislators to amend the law. However, intervention is unlikely before Germany's election on September 26th, which will see Chancellor Angela Merkel step down, giving the country its first new leader in 16 years.

According to polls, the Green Party is gaining ground on Merkel's ruling CDU/CSU coalition, with a coalition between the two parties seen as the most likely outcome following the election.

"If they don't act now, nothing will happen in the next year and a half," said LSVD spokesman Markus Ulrich, referring to the September general elections and subsequent coalition talks.

However, LGBT+ advocates believe that reforming the legislation through parliament is unlikely, considering that the conservative CDU/CSU, which is in a grand coalition with the SPD, did not support its junior partner's proposed bill last year. Requests for comment from the CDU/CSU were not returned.

The delays upset Klitzsch-Eulenburg. "It can't be that my son won't have two legal parents until he's five or six years old," she said.

Conclusion

In India, LGBTQ+ people can adopt, but same-sex couples cannot. You and your spouse may adopt a child separately and raise him or her together if you are a same-sex couple, but you and your spouse cannot be the legal parents of that child in India. As single parents, many Indian LGBT people in same-sex relationships have adopted children, but their partners have no legal rights to the child.

The Union cabinet has voted to exclude same-sex couples from adopting children, a step that could also bar members of the LGBT community from becoming adoptive parents.

Unmarried men and women over the age of 30 may adopt under current law. Adoption is not explicitly prohibited for single LGBT Indians.
Burley, ID (83318)

Today

A mix of clouds and sun with gusty winds. High 56F. Winds W at 20 to 30 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph..

Tonight

Clear to partly cloudy. Low 38F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph.
An Allentown man is now facing homicide charges in connection with a New Years Day crash that killed a woman and her 1-year-old son.

Lazarus Roldan, 31, initially faced accidents involving death and related charges in the Allentown crash.

On Tuesday, Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin announced he was adding homicide by vehicle, aggravated assault by vehicle, and other charges.

Roldan was arraigned in the new case and bail was set at 10% of $50,000 for the new charges. An attorney has not yet entered an appearance for him in the case, according to court records.

Police were called at about 2:44 a.m. Jan. 1 for a crash in the 1200 block of South Eighth Street in Allentown, and found the wreckage of a BMW and a Trailblazer.

Kisha Cora, 22, and her 1-year-old son were in the BMW with two other people, police said. Roldan was driving the Trailblazer.

Kisha Cora was pronounced dead shortly after the crash. Rivera Cora was pronounced dead Monday night at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Salisbury Township, the Lehigh County Coroners Office said.

Both died from multiple blunt force trauma and their deaths were ruled an accident by the coroners office. Two other people in the sedan were treated for their injuries, police said.

Police said the morning of the crash, the BMW was traveling north on South Eighth Street and the Trailblazer was traveling south. Roldan lost control of the Trailblazer and traveled into the opposing lane of traffic, hitting the drivers side of the BMW, police said.

An off-duty state trooper came upon the scene shortly after the collision, and briefly spoke to Roldan, who then fled, investigators said.

Roldan later surrendered to authorities.

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Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com.
Verizon Wireless plans to hire more than 1,000 employees nationally as part of its largest recruitment effort in over five years.

The push comes as states are easing up on COVID-19 restrictions inside retail stores.

In Pennsylvania, the Wolf administration is lifting all restrictions on businesses and gatherings on May 31, pennlive.com reports. In New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy announced that, as the states COVID-19 numbers improve and vaccinations increase, businesses will be allowed to operate at full capacity May 19  as long as they can maintain six feet of social distancing between patrons and groups, according to nj.com.

The Verizon positions, all retail, are designed to ensure a consistent customer experience as interest and excitement around the companys 5G Ultra Wideband network grows and more customers return to stores, company representatives said. The company said it specifically is looking for potential employers who are early adopters of new technology; excited about 5G and its potential; interested in sharing their tech knowledge with others; and team-players who enjoy sharing goals and celebrating successes.

The company also wants employees who are customer-focused; committed to driving meaningful change in their careers and community; are motivated by the chance to continuously grow, learn and realize new ambitions; are gamers who rely on fast connections to reduce delays and buffering; and are looking to be part of a network of people who are moving forward in worldwide initiatives, representatives added.

Verizon spokesman Chris Serico told lehighvalleylive.com the latest recruitment includes 28 retail-oriented positions in 16 Pennsylvania areas, including Allentown. Another 15 positions were created in eight New Jersey areas, with the closest to the Lehigh Valley being in Flemington, Hunterdon County and Bridgewater, Somerset County.

Benefits listed on the companys website indicate paid leave for new parents, performance-based incentive bonuses, a 401(k) savings plan, training plans, employee assistance plans, and paid vacation and personal time, as well as holidays.

All the jobs are listed at verizon.com.

Verizon additionally announced Tuesday it is bringing back its offer for patrons to trade in existing cracked or water-damaged phones and receive up to a $1,000 credit on a new 5G phone.

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Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com.
The Bethlehem Area School Board backed a $315.5 million proposed spending plan that hikes taxes by 2% and relies on $3.8 million in district savings to balance the budget.

The district is facing a $7.7 million funding gap in its 2021-22 budget. Superintendent Joseph Roy said the administration wants to close that hole by hiking taxes and dipping into the fund balance. The board unanimously approved the proposal at its Monday night school board meeting.

Roy emphasized that on Monday the board just needed to approve a proposed budget 30 days ahead of the final budget adoption scheduled for June 14.

The decision tonight is really approving this budget and the total expenditures, we can make adjustments going forward, Roy said.

Bethlehems committed to staying below its 3.7% Act 1 cap on annual property tax increases.

The proposal passed Monday would increase the school taxes of the median Northampton County homeowner by $89.32 and $28.34 for the average Lehigh County taxpayer, Roy said. He did not specify the median home assessment.

The districts biggest financial stressors continue to be its $40.9 million of mandated employee pension contributions, up 5.14% this year, and the almost $34 million it will send to charter schools, a 5.3% increase. The charter school tuition payment equals the districts entire basic education funding.

This is a very, very tight budget, Roy said.

Bethlehems proposed budget assumes state funding wont increase, he noted. Any increase in funding could be used to lessen the tax increase or allow the district to take less from savings, Roy said. Excluding federal stimulus dollars, the districts operational budget increased by just 2.3%, he noted.

Gov. Tom Wolf wants to increases state education funding by $1.3 billion, including $200 million more of basic education funding. Wolf wants to start running all state basic ed dollars through the fair funding formula, which was created in 2016 and only applies to new funding.

Only 11% of state education funding ran through it last year, while the remaining $5.5 billion is distributed based on 1991-92 student enrollment. To ease the transition to fully using the formula, the governor proposes allocating $1.15 billion to protect schools that might lose money.

Republican lawmakers have called the spending plan, which would legalize and tax marijuana, a nonstarter. This is sure to set off another protracted budget battle between the Democratic governor and the GOP-controlled Legislature. The budget is due to be passed by the time the current fiscal year ends June 30.

School Director Karen Beck Pooley emphasized that while the district is projected to receive $49.2 million in federal stimulus funds from the three coronavirus relief bills, the state has advised districts to only use that money for one-time expenses. The money must be spent by September 2023.

The 2021-22 proposed spending plan relies on about $11.3 million in stimulus funding to cover coronavirus-related education expenses, like mobile hotspots and personal protective equipment for staff, and educational programs aimed up at erasing COVID-learning loss.

The district plans to use a major chunk of the money to address a long list of major capital needs, like 16 new buses and HVAC systems at six schools, that otherwise would take years to tackle.

The school district has not raised school taxes for the last two years.

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Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@lehighvalleylive.com.
Everyone knows a beer and a shot go together during a night out at the bar. Eastons Weyerbacher Brewing Company is offering a great deal on the classic, but its not the kind of shot youre thinking of.

The Easton brewery posted on Instagram on Tuesday offering a free pint for anyone who brings in their COVID-19 vaccination card. Its a great opportunity to get vaccinated against COVID-19 while enjoying a pint with friends out and about for the first time in a while.

The post didnt specify if the deal is only applicable for vaccine cards noting full vaccination.

Every adult in Pennsylvania is eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine now. Data from the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the City of Philadelphia shows that over 4.5 million residents are fully covered against COVID-19, over one-third of the states total population. More than 50% of the states population has at least one shot.

The states health department recently dropped its own vaccine provider map in favor of vaccines.gov, the federal governments online tool to help find providers near you carrying particular brands of the vaccine  the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine or the two-dose Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines.

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Connor Lagore may be reached at clagore@njadvancemedia.com.
The Lehigh Valleys average cost for a gallon of unleaded gasoline is up a dime in a week and 18 cents over a month ago, with more increases forecast across the United States, according to AAA.

Nationally, Tuesdays average cost was $2.985. Thats approaching the most expensive since November 2014 -- the last time we saw average prices at $2.99 and higher, AAA says. A year ago, with driving severely depressed due to the coronavirus pandemic and economic shutdowns, a gallon of gas cost on average about $1.85 nationally.

AAA forecasts gas prices to climb this week in reaction to the cyberattack shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, which delivers around 45% of all fuel to the East Coast.

This shutdown will have implications on both gasoline supply and prices, but the impact will vary regionally. Areas including Mississippi, Tennessee and the east coast from Georgia into Delaware are most likely to experience limited fuel availability and price increases, as early as this week, AAA spokeswoman Jeanette McGee stated Monday. These states may see prices increase three to seven cents this week.

Here is a breakdown of current regular unleaded gas prices nationally, in Pennsylvania, Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, New Jersey and Warren County. Click here to view the chart since it may display on all platforms.

More than 1,000 gas stations in the Southeast reported running out of fuel, primarily because of what analysts say is unwarranted panic-buying among drivers, as the shutdown of a major pipeline by a gang of hackers entered its fifth day Tuesday.

Government officials acted swiftly to waive safety and environmental rules to speed the delivery of fuel by truck, ship or rail to motorists and airports, even as they sought to assure the public that there was no cause for alarm.

The Colonial Pipeline, the biggest fuel pipeline in the U.S., was hit on Friday with a cyberattack by hackers who lock up computer systems and demand a ransom to release them. The attack raised concerns, once again, about the vulnerability of the nations critical infrastructure.

A large part of the pipeline resumed operations manually late Monday, and Colonial anticipates restarting most of its operations by the end of the week, U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said.

Motorists may still feel a crunch because it takes a few days to ramp up operations, but she said there is no reason to hoard gasoline.

We know that we have gasoline; we just have to get it to the right places, she said.

The Colonial Pipeline carries jet fuel as well. American Airlines rerouted two long-haul flights from Charlotte, North Carolina, because of possible shortages. Passengers flying to Honolulu will have to change planes in Dallas, and those heading to London will stop in Boston to refuel.

Southwest and United flights carried extra fuel on flights to Nashville, Tennessee, Baltimore and some other airports in case jet fuel was unavailable at those airports. Normally airlines load only enough fuel for a single flight, because topping off adds to the planes weight and hurts mileage. Most planes can carry enough fuel for a round trip, but the extra fuel burn costs money.

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The Associated Press and supervising reporter Kurt Bresswein contributed to this report. Reach him at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
A 29-year-old Allentown man died early Tuesday after being shot Monday night in Allentown, the Lehigh County Coroners Office and city police report.

Erik Mondragon was pronounced dead at 12:22 a.m. at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Salisbury Township. An autopsy was performed Tuesday, and Coroner Eric Minnich said just before noon that Mondragon died from a gunshot wound to the body. Minnich ruled the death a homicide.

Officers responded about 10:50 p.m. to the 700 block Lehigh Street and found the wounded victim, police said. He was treated at the scene and city EMS took him to the hospital, police said.

Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin on Tuesday afternoon said there were actually two shooting victims in the Lehigh Street incident, the second person suffering non-life-threatening injuries.

It was not a random act and was a dispute with a group of people, Martin said, adding that the investigation is continuing. The district attorneys offices Homicide Task Force is also involved in the probe.

The Lehigh Street shootings do not appear to be related to a shooting about 20 minutes later in the 500 block of North Fifth Street in the city in which a person suffered a leg wound, Martin and police said.

Police are asking anyone with information to call city detectives at 610-437-7721 or the police desk at 610-437-7753 (Ext. 1). Anonymous text tips can be sent by the Tip411 app available on the department Facebook page or website.

This is a breaking news post and it will be updated if more information becomes available.

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Tony Rhodin can be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com.
The occupancy limits on events and gatherings are being eased next week, Gov. Tom Wolf said Tuesday.

Beginning May 17, the Wolf administration is lifting the occupancy limit for indoor events to 50% of capacity, while outdoor events and gatherings can move to 75% of capacity. Limits on events have been a fact of life since the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As more Pennsylvania adults get vaccinated and guidance from the CDC evolves, we can continue to move forward with the commonwealths reopening efforts, Wolf said in a statement. We recognize the significant strain businesses have faced during COVID-19 mitigation efforts. Throughout the last year and half, we have seen businesses continue to put the safety of their patrons first and I believe they will continue to do so even with this capacity increase.

Later in May, the COVID-19 restrictions on businesses and restaurants will become a memory.

Wolf has previously said all restrictions on businesses and gatherings will end on May 31. The states order on wearing masks will remain in effect until 70% of the states adults are vaccinated, Wolf has said.

Municipalities and schools, along with businesses and restaurants, are welcome to continue to implement their own limits on capacity as they wish, the Wolf administration said.

For those wondering what qualifies as events and gatherings, the Wolf administration includes fairs, festivals, concerts or shows and groupings that occur within larger, more permanent businesses, such as shows or performances within amusements parks, individual showings of movies on a single screen/auditorium within a multiplex, business meetings or conferences, or each party or reception within a multiroom venue.

Last week, some state senators asked the governor to remove the COVID-19 restrictions on businesses and gatherings on Friday, May 28, so businesses can get a full holiday weekend at full capacity.

After the governor announced the occupancy limits will be raised next week, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced capacity for playoff games would rise to 50% as of Monday, May 17. With the move, the Penguins will be able to have more than 9,000 fans for their first-round series with the New York Islanders.

The Philadelphia 76ers also said in a statement the team is thrilled the city will allow up to 50% of capacity in time for the first round of the NBA playoffs.
When Easton got just a fraction of the COVID-related federal aid offered to Bethlehem and Allentown, the mayor cried foul.

His cries were answered this wek with a revised aid package.

The city initially was slated to receive $2.7 million, which wasnt enough to plug holes in the budget or make payroll.

Now the city will get $20.7 million through the American Rescue Plan aid package. That stacks up more proportionally correct next to Bethlehems $34.5 million and Allentowns $57.1 million.

From $2.7 million to $20.7 million, thats a huge difference. But its right, Easton Mayor Sal Panto Jr. said Tuesday during a news conference at city hall.

Losses in revenues due to COVID-19 forced the city to mandate 10-week furloughs for 81 employees. With the new federal aid, those furloughs wont have to take place, the mayor said. The city will also move to fill vacant jobs, he said.

Now the city has to decide what to do with the rest of the newfound relief funds. The mayor said there will be a hearing at 7 p.m. June 1 where the public can weigh in on how to spend the funds. The hearing is tentatively set for city council chambers.

Some of the funds will plug holes in the budget. For instance, the city is short about $3 million in anticipated revenue such as the amusement tax. With venues closed, no one bought concert tickets and no one paid the tax. Panto anticipates shortfalls over the next three years for a cumulative estimated $6 million.

The federal relief funds can go toward such things as public health expenditures, small business relief, pay for hospitality workers and premium pay for essential workers.

The mayor said the police and fire departments were fully staffed during the pandemic, but other departments were short. That left department supervisors trimming grass or repairing leaks at the wastewater treatment plant, Panto said.

The funds could help with programs for affordable housing, facade improvement grants, infrastructure and internet connectivity. Panto said 37% of Eastons kids dont have access to the internet in their homes.

Its critically important that these kids dont get further and further behind, Panto said.

So what changed between the citys initial allocation and the revised allocation?

Whats changed is we made the noise. We made people in the right positions know we werent allocated properly, Panto said. Earlier in the news conference, he said, Our initial $2.68 million was incorrect and simply unfair.

He thanked U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and U.S. Rep. Susan Wild for their help lobbying for aid. Both are Democrats. Wild represents the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvanias 7th Congressional District.

Our continued recovery from the pandemic and resulting economic crisis depends on targeted relief for working families and small businesses, so Im glad we were able to get this done for communities across the Lehigh Valley, Wild said in a news release.

By the numbers

Wild shared these updated PA-07 district funding numbers from the American Rescue Plan:

Amounts for Counties:

Lehigh County - $71,735,692

Northampton County - $61,187,165

Monroe County - $33,073,146

Source for county allocations here

Amounts for Cities:

Allentown  $57,132,604

Bethlehem  $34,467,364

Easton - $20,665,806

East Stroudsburg Borough -- $2,813,500

Source for city allocations here

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Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com.
UPDATE: Cause of Phillipsburg blaze probed, 2 apartment houses unlivable

Eight people are displaced following a Monday evening fire in Phillipsburg.

Phillipsburg Fire Chief Rich Hay said no one was injured in the blaze that began at an aging apartment building at 786 S. Main St. and spread to an adjoining apartment building at 784 S. Main St. The initial call came in at 7:15 p.m.

Two families living in apartments at both buildings escaped safely. Crews were able to get the flames under control in about an hour, said Hay, noting by 9:15 p.m. firefighters were still checking for hot spots.

The fire began somewhere on the first floor of the apartment building at 786 S. Main St. and spread to a common porch overhang and into the apartment building at 784 S. Main St., Hay said.

The flames were blowing out upon our arrival, Hay told lehighvalleylive.com from the scene.

Both units are being deemed uninhabitable. The Morris County Chapter of the American Red Cross is assisting the eight residents with shelter.

Mondays fire remains under investigation.

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A New Jersey environmental group and two Harmony Township residents have filed suit against the township, saying its proposed 600-acre industrial solar project and electrical substation would impact soil for agriculture, diminish property values and destroy quality of life.

The suit was filed April 21 in New Jersey Superior Court by members of the New Jersey Highlands Coalition and township residents Richard Dalrymple and Manuel Escaleira, whose properties neighbor the proposed project. The group is challenging the Harmony Township Land Use Boards granting of various land use approvals to Harmony Plains Solar I LLC.

Denver, Colorado-based developer Dakota Power Partners plans to build the solar project on the 600 acres of open space known as Harmony Plains between River Road and Garrison Road. The project includes 150 acres of land owned by the township and the rest is farmland and on the property of some private residences, according to plans by the developer.

The developers proposed commercial operations date is by as early as 2022 and the projects design life is about 30 years, according to plans.

Kelley Smith, township municipal clerk/administrator and land use board secretary/registrar, said the project was approved by the Land Use Board on Jan. 5 and a resolution memorializing the proposal was adopted March 3.

The plaintiffs are seeking a reversal of the boards approvals and allege due to the coronavirus pandemic, municipal officials rushed approving the project knowing not many residents would be able to attend an in-person meeting and others wouldnt have the technology able to connect for a Zoom meeting.

Greg Gianforcaro, attorney for the Harmony Land Use Board, said the board heard the application, the meeting was then opened up to the public and after hearing everything, the board then voted to grant the application.

This is the same process that our board and hundreds of other boards around the state have followed for decades, Gianforcaro told lehighvalleylive.com.

No matter what the allegations are that are set forth in the lawsuit, the board never once deviated from their obligations or their responsibilities, he added.

Among the suits allegations are the following:

Harmony Plains Solar I failed to properly notice the application or prove the necessary criteria to warrant the approvals.

The Harmony Township ordinance does not permit an electrical substation, which is an essential part of the application.

The board ignored its own regulations in approving an application without proof the application would not result in diminished land use values, or that it would not impact upon the visual impact of the area in which the application is proposed.

The applicant failed to provide a proper ownership disclosure statement.

Various parcels were involved in the application, one of which is owned by the township, which provides for an annual payment to the township of $350,000 by the applicant.

Julia Somers, executive director of the New Jersey Highlands Coalition, said she was stunned to learn the approval happened in a single meeting.

By doing that, they sought to ensure the publics ability to provide comments was almost extinguished and, in that rush, made sloppy mistakes they likely would not have made if the application was approved in a timely manner, Somers said.

She told lehighvalleylive.com at issue the most is the project would take out production of much needed agricultural soils for solar. She said solar panels would better be suited on top of roofs of warehouses or along highway medians.

Residents of Harmony have created the community action group, the Harmony Chapter of the Citizens for Sustainable Development, working in opposition of the project. That group has joined the New Jersey Highlands Coalition as a member organization and also is working with the New Jersey Conservation Foundation.

The organizations say they are deeply concerned by recent statewide proposals to build utility-scale, solar power facilities on farmland with prime agricultural soils, of which the Harmony site would be one of the first in New Jersey. The state, the groups say, has invested heavily over the past few decades in preserving and protecting high-quality farmland, and the coalition and the conservation foundation joined many other groups who see a profound conflict between these uses.

Dalrymple argued the project is proposed on prime farmland in a residential area, with some property owned by the township, and is a limited and nonrenewable resource.

To squander it is to irretrievably destroy our proud historic heritage as a farming community, Dalrymple said. As it concerns all residents, it also should have been a ballot question, and could have waited until the post-COVID period when in-person township meetings resume.

Resident Lois Markles property also neighbors the proposed solar project. She also expressed frustration over the plans, saying many residents are against the proposal.

Who does our committee represent, if not us, their constituency?, she asked. Our highly-productive farms help feed America. Destroying our farmlands is also destroying our agrarian heritage, of which we are extremely proud.

Developer Dakota Power Partners plans to build the solar project on the 600 acres of open space known as Harmony Plains between River Road and Garrison Road.

Escaleira, one of the plaintiffs, said the project would ravish prime farmland, alter picturesque scenery, compromise natural habitat, and devalue property values. He blasted municipal officials, echoing he feels they took advantage of residents who wouldnt be able to attend the in-person meetings.

They chose to have their meetings through Zoom, knowing well this would cause difficulty for some of us, Escaleira said. A lot of our elderly residents dont have computers, or those who do dont really know how to navigate that well beyond their routine use. They took advantage of this and succeeded in railroading our town.

Tom Gilbert, campaign director for NJ Conservation Foundation and Rethink Energy N.J., called the project the poster child for poor siting.

We should not be putting massive solar arrays on our best farmland soils within agricultural development areas and should instead steer solar to brown fields, landfills, rooftops, parking lots and marginal lands, as the state Energy Master Plan suggests, he said.

Dakota Power Partners currently is the only developer of utility-scale solar projects in New Jersey with approximately a dozen projects under development, representing approximately $1 billion in planned investments, according to project plans.

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Laois and Ireland in general are keeping new Covid-19 numbers "under control" according to Dr Tony Holohan.

In today's statement by the National Public Health Emergency Team, Laois is seen to be down to an average 2 new cases per day over the past five days.

The latest case number for Laois is <5, as it is for eight other Irish counties.

Laois had just 36 new cases of Covid in the past 14 days, with the incidence rate dropped now to 42.5.

The national incidence rate is at 128.1, as Donegal and Kildare still push up the average with new cases.

FULL COUNTY TABLE BELOW

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has today been notified of 9 additional deaths related to COVID-19. There has been a total of 4,929* COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland.

As of midnight, Monday 10th May, the HPSC has been notified of 379 confirmed cases of COVID-19. There is now a total of 253,567** confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.

Of the cases notified today:

190 are men / 185 are women, 77% are under 45 years of age. The median age is 29 years old

There were 171 in Dublin, 27 in Donegal, 28 in Kildare, 24 in Limerick, 22 in Cork and the remaining 107 cases are spread across 18 other counties.



As of 8am today, 117 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 34 are in ICU, 20 additional hospitalisations in the past 24 hours.

Vaccine numbers are nearing the 2 million mark.

As of Sunday 9th May, 1,848,747 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Ireland:

1,347,561 people have received their first dose and 501,186 people their second dose.

Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Health praised the country for getting to the goal of relaxing restrictions this week.

This week is a hopeful week and one that we have all been looking forward to. We have gotten to this point by working together in following the public health advice and reducing incidence of disease in our communities.

We need to continue to focus on the measures that we know can protect ourselves and our loved ones from COVID-19 - we can plan to meet friends and family where it is safe to do so and those who have been vaccinated can have confidence in their vaccine. They are now able to get out and about and enjoy the benefits of the vaccine.

The two primary targets as we try to exit the pandemic are vaccination and low transmission. If we can keep cases low and continue to vaccinate as many people as possible, we will find ourselves in a very different risk environment where we can see further easing of measures. Our task now is to keep the disease under control by following the basic measures and taking up our vaccine when it is offered to us.
Funding of just over 1 million is set to be spent in Laois this year to make homes livable for people with disabilities.

In total, 1,031,693 will be spent on Disabled Persons Grant Scheme and the Improvement Works in Lieu of Local Authority Housing Scheme in Laois this year.

A total of 928,524 of this funding is provided by the Department of Housing and the 10% balance is being provided by Laois County Council.

"The Disabled Persons Grant Scheme provides funding for extensions and adaptations to existing social housing stock such as grab rails, disabled access ramps, wet rooms, etc. The scheme also provides extensions in cases of overcrowding. The Improvement Works in Lieu of social housing scheme (IWILs) allows local authorities to improve or extend privately owned accommodation, where the occupant has been approved for social housing.

The funding was welcomed by Laois Offaly Minister of State Sean Fleming and his constituency colleague Charlie Flanagan.

Minister Fleming said Laois County Council has the best track record of any Local Authority in Ireland for assisting people with Housing Adaptation Grants for older people and people with a disability living in their own homes.

The amount of funding and people assisted under these schemes, for the size of the county, is way ahead of any other county in Ireland.

"Every year I hear TDs from other counties complaining about the lack of progress in their area under these schemes. Laois County Council has always provided the 10% matching funding when other Councils were slower to do so. This has resulted in Laois having a historic high level of funding for this scheme.

"There is always a high demand for this scheme in Co. Laois and the Council assist as many applicants as possible with funding every year. This is one very important area for assisting elderly people and people with disabilities in their own homes.

"Finally, this funding is very welcome and I know Laois County Council will do their best to make sure this funding is used to the best advantage in Laois this year. Laois County Council has a very equitable policy in place for helping as many people as possible under this scheme," he said.

Fine Gael TD Charlie Flanagan said Laois will receive the funds they have requested to carry out works this year in 2021.

I am delighted that Laois will benefit from 1,031,693 in funding through these schemes. 928,524 will be paid by the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, with an additional 103,169 coming from the Local Authority.

This will greatly improve the housing conditions for those living with disabilities and addresses issues of overcrowding in existing social housing stock, while Improvement Works in Lieu provide an alternative to social housing for approved social housing applicants currently in private accommodation," he said.
A group of midwives are planning a protest outside Midlands Regional Hospital Portlaoise this week.

The Irish Birth Movement group which favours "self determined, informed and sacred birth" is to protest against the current restrictions on partners in maternity units due to Covid-19 restrictions.

Their socially distanced masked protest at Portlaoise is the first of two planned at the hospital. It will take place this Wednesday May 12 at 11am, with a second on May 22.

Another is planned at St Luke's Hospital Kilkenny on May 13 at 11am, and at University Hospital Limerick on May 16 at 12noon.

"We are calling now for a nationwide protest for partners to have unrestricted access so they can support the birthing person at all times. We are asking Pregnant people, partners, new parents, midwives doulas friends and family come join us.

"We are asking for restrictions in maternity hospitals to be lifted. We want the birth partners to stay with the birthing person through all of labour and birth. Partners are not visitors! They are essential to the well being of the war birthing person and the baby. We also call for restrictions to be lifted during antenatal appointments, scan appointments, on hearing sad news and on visiting their child/children in the NICU unit," a spokesperson said.

The group say they are in collaboration with @MAI, (Midwives association of Ireland) @ommunitymidwives association @AIMSireland
Electric Picnic is appearing more and more likely to happen as Covid-19 abates, vaccinations speed up and test outdoor gatherings are being talked about for June in Ireland.

This week festival organiser Festival Republic MD Melvin Benn explained how it would be a full festival as normal with no social distancing or masks, but with everybody there having passed a test for the virus. Read that interview there.

The 2020 event was cancelled and many of the 70,000 ticket holders held on to them for this year.

While other county residents can decide whether they want to risk travelling and gathering for what is the biggest and best music and arts festival in Ireland, we in Laois and especially in the town of Stradbally are the proud hosts of Electric Picnic.

Will you welcome the festival's return this September 3 to 5? Have your say. Our Poll closes at 5pm today.
The death has occurred of John Courtney

Dara Park, Newbridge, Kildare



Ex Corporal, McDonagh Barracks,

formerly of The Curragh. Sadly missed by his loving wife Maureen, son Eric, daughter in law Edel, grandchildren Ella and Laura, sisters Phyllis and Ita, brother Tony, extended family, neighbours and friends.

May John Rest in Peace.

Due to current government guidelines regarding public gatherings, a private family funeral will take place. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral, but due to current restrictions cannot, please feel free to leave a message in the condolence page below.

Removal on Thursday morning to arrive at St. Brigid's Church, The Curragh, for Requiem Mass at 11o'clock. Burial afterwards in St. Conleths cemetery, Newbridge. Funeral Mass will be live streamed on the St. Brigid's Church, The Curragh, Facebook page.

The death has occurred of Jack (John) DEMPSEY

Leixlip, Kildare



DEMPSEY (Leixlip, Co. Kildare and late of Dublin Corporation, Housing Dept.) May 9th. 2021 (peacefully) at his home. Jack (John), beloved son of the late Mary and James and dear brother of Frank (Joe) and the late Terasa, Mary, Lil and Jimmy. Sadly missed by his loving brother, nieces, nephews, relatives and friends.

Rest in Peace

Due to Government advice and restrictions regarding public gatherings and to protect our most vulnerable family members and our friends, a private family funeral will take place. Johns Funeral cortege will pass his home on Thursday morning (13th May 2021) at 10.30 am (approx) for friends and family to pay their respects. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral; but due to current restrictions cannot, may view Johns funeral mass online on Thursday (13th May 2021) at 11.00 am by following this link; https://confeyparish.ie/. You may also leave your personal message by selecting Condolences below or alternatively leaving a message at www.cunninghamsfunerals.com. Family flowers only, please. Donations, if desired, to St. Francis Hospice, Blanchardstown.

Ar dheis De go raibh a anam dilis

The death has occurred of John Keogh

1104 Coneyboro, Athy, Kildare



Deeply regretted by his loving wife Geraldine, children John, Brian, Gary, Edel, Pa, Karla and Darragh, brothers Mick and Brendan, sister Maree, son-in-law, daughters-in-law, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, relatives and friends.

Rest in Peace

Due to government restrictions a private family Requiem Mass will take place at 11am on Thursday morning (13th May) in St. Michael's Parish Church, Athy, limited to 50 people. The Mass will be livestreamed, see www.parishofathy.ie. Burial afterwards in St. Michael's New Cemetery, Athy.

Those who would have liked to attend the funeral but cannot due to current restrictions may leave a message in the 'Condolences' section below.

The death has occurred of Rita PENFOLD (nee Cronin)

St. Patrick's Terrace, Naas, Kildare



Formerly of St. Patrick's Terrace, Naas. After a short illness in Cheam, Sutton, England. Predeceased by her husband Tony. Sadly missed by her sons Adrian and Neil, sisters Chrissie, Kits and Phyllis, brothers Michael and Tony, daughter-in-law Lisa, grandchildren Luke and Emily, sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, nieces, nephews, relatives and friends.

"May Rita Rest In Peace"

Rita's Funeral will take place on Tuesday, 18th May 2021, with a Funeral Mass in Cheam followed by cremation at 1.20pm in North East Surrey Crematorium - Cremation Chapel.

The cremation service will be streamed on;

https://www.wesleymedia.co.uk/webcast-view

Login / Order ID: 94008

Password: vtxypnmh
Gardai have issued an appeal for information on a missing dog.

A Hungarian Vizsla named Vicky is missing from the Timahoe area.

Anyone who has seen her is asked to contact Clane Garda Station on (045) 868262.

Meanwhile gardai in Maynooth seized four collie pups in a vehicle near Kilcock on Saturday.

These puppies are currently in Leixlip Garda Station and enquiries are taking place regarding their ownership.

Anyone who can assist with this investigation is asked to contact Leixlip Garda Station on 01 6667800, The Garda Confidential Telephone Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.
Xinjiang cotton makes strong presence felt at China International Consumer Products Expo

People's Daily Online) 15:10, May 11, 2021

Products from northwest Chinas Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region garnered a great deal of attention during the China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE), an exhibition which ran from May 7 to 10 in Haikou, south Chinas Hainan province.

Information released on the website for the CICPE showed that a total of 184 companies from Xinjiang were present at the expo, including 48 from the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), having exhibited textile products, agricultural products, and cultural and creative products, among others.

(Photo/Global Times)

Yi Jing, deputy general manager of Siwei Textile from Awati county, Aksu prefecture of Xinjiang, said she had noticed recent media reports regarding the attacks on Xinjiang cotton by Western countries, but remarked that neither the U.S. sanctions nor the boycotts by some foreign companies have had an effect on her business.

Aksu prefecture produces 93 percent of the countrys long-staple cotton, Yi explained. We have 350,000 spindles and 1,050 air-jet looms that can produce 150 million meters of fabric annually. The products are still in short supply and production has been scheduled to run until the end of June this year, Yi said, adding that the CICPE is a good opportunity to introduce high-quality Xinjiang cotton to people at home and abroad, voicing her hope that their companys products could stand out among domestic and foreign peers via a variety of channels.

Gelinkai Eco Fruit Co., a company selling raisins and other fruits based in Aksu prefecture, also displayed its products at the expo. Huang Jinzhi, an executive from the company, said that they process more than 1,000 tons of grapes each year.

We do not aim for low-end markets, but instead produce high-quality products only. Weve sold our products in first-tier cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, as well as Guangzhou in southern Chinas Guangdong province, said Huang, adding that her company wanted to join the CICPE and seize the chance to explore whether they could expand their exports overseas.

(Photo/Global Times)

The journey to the expo was challenging for Liu Yucai, a sales manager for a sea buckthorn berry processing company based in Qinghe county, Altay prefecture, in northern Xinjiang. The company mainly produces sea buckthorn berry products, such as juice, puree, essential oils, capsules, teas, and dried fruits.

The county bid farewell to its status as an impoverished area in 2017. Qinghe is a very remote place, and because of this, we hope to take advantage of the opportunity provided by the expo to advertise our company and its products, said Liu. Weve exported sea buckthorn berry products to Russia and Kazakhstan, and we hope to export processed products in the future, he added.

This is my first time to Hainan, and weve brought almost all of the agricultural items produced by XPCC to the expo, including red jujubes, wolfberries, dried apricots, dairy products and grape wine, said You Liangying, head of a farmers cooperative in Alar city, Xinjiang.

Grape wine, grape juice, and melon seeds produced by the cooperative have already been sold to countries such as India and Malaysia, said You, who expressed that his intention was to further expand exports by making the most of the free trade port in Haikou.

When asked about whether the U.S.-imposed sanctions had impacted exports of the cooperatives products, You answered: We sell our products to places all over the world, adopting a sincere attitude, and were confident in our products. By employing the use of mechanization, green farming methods and scientific management techniques, and by ensuring our products pass through inspection, we are able to guarantee the safety and quality of our products.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
The Curragh Girls National School and Scoil Naomh Padraig, the boys primary school, are to amalgamate from next September.

The new entity, which will be based in the current girls school building on the Curragh Camp, will be known as St Catherine of Siena School. Two new classrooms and an ASD unit will also be provided as part of the amalgamation, Jonathan Healy, principal of Scoil Naomh Padraig, told parents in a letter last Friday.

Mr Healy, who currently teaches fifth and sixth class, will take up the role of administrative principal, effective this week.

The boards of management and staff of both schools were last Thursday informed of the move by the Department of Education and Skills.
Teenage entrepreneur, Roshana Houlihan from Newbridge College will represent Kildare at this years national Student Enterprise Programme National Final this Friday, May 14.

As with last years event, the National Final will take place virtually and will be livestreamed from Croke Park, with approximately 80 finalist teams due to log in from across Ireland.

TY student Roshana from Make Your Mark at Newbridge College took home the top prize at the county final in March.

Joining Roshana at the national final will be Katie Coughlan of Celbridge Community School, in the Most Creative Business Idea category of the competition, with her business Covid-19 Essentials.

Kildare has a successful track record in the student enterprise competition with students of St Marys College Naas awarded third place in the Senior Category at the National Final 2019 with their company The Struggle is Real, and students from Scoil Dara Kilcock winning an award at the National Finals the previous year with their business Eirlert.

Speaking about the programme Head of Enterprise at Kildare County Council, Jacqui McNabb said: We have a very successful student enterprise programme here in Kildare, with over 1,000 students from 14 local schools taking part this year.

Our national finalists are excellent ambassadors for the programme and we wish them the very best of luck on Friday 14th, well all be logged on to support them.
Protests will be held outside a number of hospitals from this morning to highlight how the Covid-19 restrictions are affecting maternity patients and their partners.

Maternity advocacy group AIMS will be at Letterkenny Hospital in Donegal, Holles Street and The Coombe in Dublin and Our Lady of Lourdes in Drogheda, Co. Louth.

They're calling for an easing of restrictions that prevent partners from attending scans.

Further protests are planned for later this week in Sligo, Cork, Killkenny, Westmeath, Laois, Limerick and Wexford.

Also read: Leitrim people urged not to buy supermarket Covid tests
Established in 2001, Gordon Hughes Estate Agents recently celebrated 20 years in business.

In Leitrim their offices are situated on the banks of the Shannon-Erne Waterway in the picturesque town of Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim, the "gateway" to the northwest of Ireland.

In 2017, they acquired the successful practice of John Fitzgerald Auctioneers in Ratoath, Co Meath and rebranded that office as Gordon Hughes. This now means they can offer houses for sale and to let Coast to Coast from The Atlantic Ocean to the Irish Sea as they now cover the following counties; Cavan, Leitrim, Longford, Roscommon, Sligo, Dublin, Meath and Westmeath.

Gordon Hughes Estate Agents provides a wide range of services including, Sales/Lettings of residential/commercial property, Property Management of commercial/residential & retail developments & Valuation work for probate purposes & various mortgage financial institutions.

They are committed to giving you the highest level of service that combines their expertise and local knowledge in helping clients achieve the best possible price for their property.

At Gordon Hughes Estate Agents, staff and management firmly believe in integrity, honesty and professional conduct and this enables them to offer an unrivalled experience in selling property.

If you are considering selling or letting your property please contact Gordon Hughes Estate Agents to avail of a "Free Valuation" appraisal of your property.

You can contact them by phone on 0719645555 or by email on info@ghproperty.com

Don't forget their new website is now live and can be viewed here - ghproperty.com- you can read all about the services on offer, the Gordon Hughes Estate Agents team and see what properties are on offer.

On social media check out their Facebook page: Leitrim

You can also follow them on Instagram here or Twitter here
Sinn Fein representatives in Leitrim must clarify whether they support comments from their colleague Aengus OSnodaigh who wrongly described the Provisional IRA as Oglaigh na hEireann, a Fine Gael TD has said.

Sligo Leitrim TD and Minister of State Frank Feighan said it is time Sinn Fein recognised there is only one Oglaigh na hEireann in this country  the Irish Defence Forces- and claims to the contrary are inaccurate and unacceptable.

Minister Feighan said: Last week, Sinn Fein Deputy Aengus OSnodaigh referred to the Provisional IRA as Oglaigh na hEireann in an interview on RTE Raidio na Gaeltachta on Tus Aite.

When speaking about a reported proposed amnesty for terrorists and British soldiers for horrific events that occurred during the Troubles, Deputy OSnodaigh said, For the most part, Oglaigh na hEireann have admitted what they have done, whether it was a bad attack or one they thought was good.'

The continued use of Oglaigh na hEireann, the Irish language title of the Irish Defence Forces, by Sinn Fein TDs when discussing the Provisional IRA is an affront to the proud men and women who serve our country at home and abroad with great pride and distinction.

Several Sinn Fein representatives have made this slight against the Irish Defence Forces, yet we have heard nothing from their party colleagues in Leitrim on the matter.

Their silence suggests that they fully endorse these remarks, which is completely wrong and cannot be tolerated in a country where democratic values are sacrosanct.

The fact Sinn Fein is perpetuating this falsehood should come as no surprise, as we have seen previously how they honour those responsible for acts of terrorism and violence on this island.

It is now time not only for the Sinn Fein leadership, but for representatives and members in Leitrim, to stop comparing terrorists and those orchestrating violence to our Defence Forces who serve this country so bravely and proudly.

Let me be very clear on this. There is only one Oglaigh na hEireann in this State  our Defence Forces. Nobody else has the right or honour to use that title. It is a cornerstone of our country.

Sinn Fein and its representatives must clarify whether they recognise the Irish Defence Forces? Does Sinn Fein recognise Oglaigh na hEireann as the official and only army in the State?

Given these recent remarks it appears they dont and the people of Leitrim need to be aware of this, Minister Feighan concluded.

Also read: Break in at Leitrim Animal Welfare
The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has today been notified of 9 additional deaths related to COVID-19.

There has been a total of 4,929 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland.

As of midnight, Monday 10th May, the HPSC has been notified of 379 confirmed cases of COVID-19. There is now a total of 253,567 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.

Of the cases notified today:

190 are men / 185 are women

77% are under 45 years of age

The median age is 29 years old

171 in Dublin, 27 in Donegal, 28 in Kildare, 24 in Limerick, 22 in Cork and the remaining 107 cases are spread across 18 other counties.

There were NO CASES recorded in Co Leitrim.

As of 8am today, 117 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 34 are in ICU, 20 additional hospitalisations in the past 24 hours.

As of Sunday 9th May, 1,848,747 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Ireland:

1,347,561 people have received their first dose

501,186 people have received their second dose

Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Health said:

This week is a hopeful week and one that we have all been looking forward to. We have gotten to this point by working together in following the public health advice and reducing incidence of disease in our communities.

We need to continue to focus on the measures that we know can protect ourselves and our loved ones from COVID-19 - we can plan to meet friends and family where it is safe to do so and those who have been vaccinated can have confidence in their vaccine. They are now able to get out and about and enjoy the benefits of the vaccine.

The two primary targets as we try to exit the pandemic are vaccination and low transmission. If we can keep cases low and continue to vaccinate as many people as possible, we will find ourselves in a very different risk environment where we can see further easing of measures. Our task now is to keep the disease under control by following the basic measures and taking up our vaccine when it is offered to us.

The COVID-19 Dashboard provides up-to-date information on the key indicators of COVID-19 in the community including daily data on Irelands COVID-19 Vaccination Programme.
THE Mayor of the City and County of Limerick has welcomed the re-opening of Limerick Museum and Limerick City Gallery of Art, and Limericks network of libraries.

The cultural institutions welcomed visitors back yesterday morning for the first time this year while libraries across the city and county will open this Tuesday.

With the reopening of libraries, people will allowed to browse and select their own books. However, reading spaces or access to the internet will not be available under the current government guidelines.

A full list of Library opening times is available here.

Commenting on the re-opening, Mayor of the City and County of Limerick Cllr Michael Collins said: I am delighted that we are starting to get back to our normal everyday lives with the re-opening of the libraries, museum and gallery. They are important outlets for us where we can learn about our history, open our minds and experience new things.

While the libraries, museum and gallery provided a great service online while closed, Mayor Collins is hoping people will now visit in person.

They have provided a great service online when they were closed but it really is important that these institutions open their doors and welcome visitors old and new," he said.

Mayor @cllrmcollins has welcomed the re-opening today of @LimerickMuseum and @limerickgallery, and Limericks Libraries from tomorrow



They are important outlets for us where we can learn about our history, open our minds and experience new things.  Limerick Council (@LimerickCouncil) May 10, 2021

Limerick Museum located in the Priory of the former Franciscans Church on Henry Street and Limerick City Gallery of Art on Pery Square, opened their doors yesterday morning following the easing of public health restrictions.

You now have a chance to see the At Home on the Farm exhibition featuring five local farms at Limerick City Gallery of Art.

The exhibition, which had been available virtually can now be seen in person, while a new exhibition, Skin Deep, by Mary Ruth Walsh will open on Friday 14 May.

Limerick Museum has a treasure trove of pieces and artefacts retracing Limericks history on display.

Both Limerick City Gallery of Art and Limerick Museum have free admission and no pre-booking is required.
A NORTHSIDE council home has been boarded up  with a councillor claiming all it needs is a painting to bring it back back in use.

Sinn Fein member Sharon Benson spoke out after the recently-built home at Cliona Park in Moyross was secured, despite its former occupants moving out only a few weeks ago.

Limerick City and County Council has said the move was taken due to fears of further damage.

But there has been criticism of the move by both Cllr Benson and her party colleague Cllr John Costelloe who've vowed to find answers.

Im livid at the situation. Where is the cohesion in the council? We have a perfectly good house ready to be allocated boarded up. Its sending out all the wrong signals in Moyross, an area which has had fantastic results. This is a step backwards. I cannot fathom how the council saw fit to board it up when there are families who would be ready to go into that house. Its very frustrating.

Cllr Benson said the council could have turned around the house very quickly.

There is very little to be done to that property. Painting as far as I know. Theres no reason why that should not have been turned over to a family thats in need. Theres a huge amount of overcrowding in Moyross and people are desperately waiting on houses, she said.

Its the first two bedroom council property to come up for rent in the estate a number of years, she added, claiming boarding it up actually costs 1,500.

Cllr Benson says there is a wider issue with the turning around of houses.

She said: Three properties were vacant in Moyross recently. One was allocated last week. But it was vacant a couple of months before it went to tender in a job-lot of three. You cant be waiting for other houses to come along to do work on one of them. The procurement process needs to be looked at.

In a statement issued elsewhere, a spokesperson for Limerick City and County Council said the house, which is currently vacant, was boarded up, this week after they were informed of a threat of a break-in.

They also stated that minor works are required before the house can be re-let.

A contractor is due to begin these works in the coming week. However, we were informed of the threat of a break-in to the house and on that basis it was boarded up, they said.

While the boarding up of the house is unfortunate and while the council wishes it did not need to take this course of action, it was necessary to prevent any further damage to the house which would result in it being vacant for even longer, they added.
THE Department of Public Health Mid-West is urging people in Limerick, Clare, and North Tipperary to avoid unnecessary social mixing to protect Leaving Certificate students as they prepare for examinations in the coming weeks.

More than 2,000 students, attending schools across Limerick, are due to sit the State exams from the beginning of next month.

Ahead of the easing of public health restrictions yesterday, Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan, suggested students would effectively have to quarantine in the immediate run-up to their exams.

Making a further appeal this Tuesday, Dr Mai Mannix, Director of Public Health Mid-West, said the next month will be particularly crucial for students who are studying for their Leaving Certificate examinations.

"We have seen the huge disappointment felt by families, schools, and young people who were unable to sit important exams in the past due to being confirmed cases or identified as close contacts. It is an upsetting disruption for many young people who look forward to progressing to further education," she said.

While we welcome the easing of restrictions, we should be extra conscious of those who need to be Covid-free in order to sit their Leaving Cert exams. With just a few weeks remaining in the school term, we can protect the school population by steering clear of high-risk behaviour, such as indoor gatherings, and social mixing without wearing face coverings or social distancing," she added.

Since the beginning of March, Public Health Mid-West has managed 27 outbreaks in schools and early education settings, involving 197 cases of Covid-19.

The vast majority of outbreaks in schools have been linked to clusters outside the school environment including birthday parties, indoor social gatherings, family and household clusters, household transmission linked to workplace situations, car-pooling, and public transport.

Dr Breda Cosgrove, Specialist in Public Health Medicine, who leads the Departments Schools Team, said: In recent months, we have seen social gatherings, including indoor parties, contribute to significant outbreaks in schools. These have resulted in major disruption to the lives of young people and their families. In the run-up to the Leaving Cert, we would urge students and their families to limit their social contacts and to avoid situations that might expose them to the risk of contracting Covid-19.

Dr Abigail Collins, Consultant in Public Health Medicine and HSE Schools lead, re-iterated the importance of all around the greater school community following national public health guidance and considering their exposures.

We have seen the impact of social gatherings, spread across multiple schools. To protect Leaving Certificate students, we all need to work together as school and family communities, to make sure they are best protected. This means limiting our contacts and minding our exposures, indoors and outdoors, to minimise the impact for this crucial next few weeks," she added.

You can help protect your local school community by:

Avoiding high-risk social events, such as indoor meetings, birthday parties, social gatherings in groups. Further social mixing outside the school environment creates additional risk and may affect the childs school experience.

Pupils and staff can be protected at school by a number of mitigation measures during break time, on the school bus, before and after school, etc. These measures include face coverings where recommended, socially distancing, and frequent hand washing.

If anyone in your household, student or adult, has symptoms consistent with COVID-19, the individual should isolate and contact a GP to schedule a test. You and other household members should stay at home until test results are known. Exercising this level of precaution could prevent an outbreak from occurring at your school or among friends and family.

If you are contacted by Public Health Mid-West, please follow all recommendations and instructions to best ensure the safety of everyone, and to minimise onward spread of any infection.
LIMERICK City and County Council has announced a new partnership to examine ways to fully realise the potential of the region when it come to the green digital economy.

The region is approaching a once in a generation opportunity to transform itself and the economic opportunities provided to its residents.

A coordinated regional approach is underway to maximise the regional benefits that can be gained from the significant renewable energy potential off the Atlantic coast.

The new partnership, which will feed into the Mid-West Regional Enterprise Plan, also includes Clare County Council and Tipperary County Council.

The Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate on a Green Digital Jobs Strategy for the Mid-West Region will see a strategy developed to achieve the vision of a proactive region which is the location of choice for innovative businesses who are committed to a green future.

Vincent Murray, Director of Economic Development with Limerick City and County Council said. Limerick City and County Council is delighted to be working with our partners on this exciting approach to the green economy. The Shannon Estuary is an ideal location for this type of industry and we will work with the various stakeholders to capitalise on this and realise our potential to its fullest.

Mr Murray says it important that the local authority takes advantage of our geographical location and the expertise that is available in the region to create further opportunities for all.

This is an emerging sector and we want to be ahead of the curve supporting entrepreneurs to use our natural hinterland in a green and sustainable way. We will work with our partners and stakeholders to help showcase the Mid-West and support the creation of a cluster with sustainable, high quality and long-term jobs and foster the innovative spirit that will allow the region to become a leader in the green digital space.

Limerick City and County Council has partnered with @ClareCoCo and @TipperaryCoCo and the Mid-West Regional Enterprise Plan to examine ways to fully realise the potential of the region when it come to the green digital economy #HowLimerick  Limerick Council (@LimerickCouncil) May 11, 2021

Liam Conneally, Director of Economic Development with Clare County Council said the local authority is delighted to be involved in the partnership and looks forward to advancing the Green Digital Jobs Strategy for the Mid-West Region.

ESBs Moneypoint site in County Clare will be transformed into a green energy hub. This will help the Mid-West Region and the Shannon Estuary to become a leader in green energy production and transmission. We are working closely with Shannon Foynes Port Company and other stakeholders in the region to advance and align our strategies," he said.

Pat Slattery, Director of Community and Economic Development with Tipperary County Council said: The MoU between the three local authorities to collaborate on a Green Digital Jobs Strategy is a statement of intent to make the Mid-West a leader in green energy and low carbon economy, and to provide attractive locations in the Mid-west for both energy development and digital industries looking for zero-carbon locations.

Eamonn Murphy, Chair of the Mid-West Regional Enterprise Plan added: The signing of this Memorandum of Understanding once again demonstrates the unique culture of collaboration that exists within the Mid-West region. The nature of industry is evolving, with the emergence of sustainability and digitalisation as key enterprise objectives. The three counties of Clare, Limerick and Tipperary recognise this and appreciate that the best way to achieve a balanced and resilient regional economy is by working together to support emerging opportunities and address common challenges.
GARDAI are warning of a so called 'romance fraud' after a Limerick man was recently targeted by criminals operating out of Africa.

The injured party - a man in his early 20s from the Roxboro area - reported to gardai the incident occurred sometime after he accepted a friend request from an unknown female on Facebook.

"After a number of messages back and forth, the young man forwarded a compromising image of himself to this female's account. Immediately the female stated that she would circulate his image on social media if he did not forward money to an

account and she provided details," stated divisional crime prevention officer Sergeant Ber Leetch.

While the man blocked the woman's account and did not transfer any money, gardai say he shouldnt have sent a compromising image of himself in the first place especially when he had no idea who he was sending it to.

Gardai say from their enquiries they believe the Facebook account is located on the Ivory Coast despite the young man being told that the woman was here in Ireland.

"Gardai know that if money is sent under these circumstances the person holding the image will just continue to try and get more money, so dont send any money and report it to gardai," said Sgt Leetch.
WASHINGTON, May 10 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden said on Monday there was no evidence so far that Russia was involved in the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack.

"I'm going to be meeting with President Putin, and so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved, although there's evidence that the actors' ransomware is in Russia," Biden said. "They have some responsibility to deal with this."

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.

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MTV has announced that Scarlett Johansson will be honored with the Generation Award during the 2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards.

The Generation Award celebrates beloved actors whose diverse contributions to both film and television have turned them into household names, according to MTV. Past recipients include Dwayne The Rock Johnson, Chris Pratt, Will Smith, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Downey Jr., Mark Wahlberg, Sandra Bullock, Jamie Foxx, Johnny Depp, Ben Stiller, Adam Sandler, Mike Myers, Tom Cruise, Jim Carrey and the entire Fast & Furious franchise.

Johansson is a six-time MTV Movie & TV Awards nominee, taking home her first golden popcorn in 2013 for best fight in The Avengers. She previously received nominations for best female breakthrough performance (Lost in Translation), best kiss (Don Jon, Captain America: The Winter Soldier), best female performance (Lucy) and best fight (Avengers: Infinity War).

MTV revealed previously announced that Sacha Baron Cohen will be honored with the Comedic Genius Award for his role in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.

Marvel Studios first Disney Plus series, WandaVision, received the most nominations at the awards ceremony this year. It earned five nominations in total, including best show, best performance in a show (Elizabeth Olsen), best hero (Teyonah Parris), best villain (Kathryn Hahn) and best fight (Wanda vs. Agatha). Netflixs Emily In Paris and Amazon Prime Videos The Boys received four nods apiece, while Netflixs Bridgerton, Disney Plus The Mandalorian and Amazon Studios Borat sequel all received three nominations.

Executive Producers for both the 2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards and the Movie & TV Awards: Unscripted are MTVs Bruce Gillmer, Wendy Plaut and Vanessa Whitewolf and Den Of Thieves Jesse Ignjatovic and Barb Bialkowski. Jackie Barba and Alicia Portugal are Executives in charge of production and Lisa Lauricella serves as the music talent executive for both events.

Leslie Jones will host this years MTV Movie & TV Awards, which will air live from Los Angeles on Sunday, May 16 at 9 p.m. ET.

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After the global success of Small Axe, the BBC and acclaimed British filmmaker Steve McQueen are teaming again for documentary series Uprising.

The three-part series will explore three seminal events of 1981 that changed race relations in the U.K. and defined them for a generation. In January 1981, a fire at a party in the London suburb of New Cross killed 13 Black teenagers. In March, more than 20,000 people joined Black Peoples Day of Action, the first organized protest by Black Britons. And April was when the Brixton riots took place.

Some of these events formed the backdrop for the Alex Wheatle episode of Small Axe.

James Rogan, who directed the BBC documentary mini-series Stephen: The Murder that Changed a Nation, about an epochal racially-charged U.K. killing, will co-direct Uprising with McQueen. Rogan and McQueen previously co-executive produced BBCs Black-themed documentaries Black Power and Subnormal.

The BBC One series was commissioned by Charlotte Moore, chief content officer, and Clare Sillery, head of commissioning, documentaries, history and religion. It is produced by Rogan Productions, Lammas Park and Turbine Studios. Executive producers are McQueen, Nancy Bornat, Rogan, Soleta Rogan, Tracey Scoffield, Anna Smith Tenser and David Tanner. The series producer is Helen Bart. Commissioning editors are Sillery and Carl Callam.

It is an honor to make these films with testimonials from the survivors, investigators, activists and representatives of the machinery of state, McQueen said. We can only learn if we look at things through the eyes of everyone concerned; the New Cross Fire passed into history as a tragic footnote, but that event and its aftermath can now be seen as momentous events in our nations history.

The New Cross Fire that claimed the lives of so many young people and affected many more remains one of the biggest losses of life in a house fire in modern British history, Rogan said. What happened and how Britain responded to it is a story that has been waiting to be told in depth for 40 years. In the series, survivors and the key participants will give their account of the fire, the aftermath, the impact it had on the historic events of 1981 and the profound legacy it has left behind.

It has been an honor to work with Steve McQueen to bring these powerful stories to BBC One, Moore added. With his visionary genius as a filmmaker he has created an incredibly important and evocative series that charts events that have defined race relations in Britain today, giving a voice to the people at the heart of these stories.

Small Axe, a BBC and Amazon co-production, leads the nominations at the upcoming BAFTA Television and Craft awards with 15 nods.

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Top female stars reflect on the secret weapon of being funny, their path to fame and their heroes in Lifetime Presents Varietys Power of Women: The Comedians, which premiered Monday on Lifetime.

The special featured interviews with Michaela Coel, Mindy Kaling, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Kate McKinnon, Maya Rudolph and Sofia Vergara, who were celebrated in the May 5 Power of Women edition of Variety. Tina Fey also paid tribute to the late Saturday Night Live icon Gilda Radner as part of the Lifetime special.

McKinnon, who started on Saturday Night Live in 2012, said she considers SNL executive producer Lorne Michaels to be one of her comedy heroes and dreamed of being on the show as a kid.

I memorized and I transcribed a lot of the sketches, McKinnon told friend and SNL castmate Aidy Bryant in an interview. Watching good nights at the end of the show, I was like, I have to be there.'

McKinnon said she also looks up to her mother and sister, who taught her how to be funny, along with her colleagues at SNL. Giving a glimpse into her creative process, she said she prefers working on impersonations over creating new characters.

I prepare for all impressions by just watching hours of footage on YouTube, and I just like to find one moment that delights me, McKinnon said. And so many of the women Ive played delight me to no end, so its not hard.

Louis-Dreyfus, who was interviewed by her son Charlie Hall, reflected on her career, from Seinfeld to Veep, and said she enjoys doing comedy and drama.

Im not a comedian, Im a comic actor, Louis-Dreyfus said. If youre a comedic actor, youre an actor whos adept at doing comedy, but youre not just in that lane. You can go to other genres.

Louis-Dreyfus, who describes her style of comedy as all risks, said she seeks out multi-dimensional characters.

I like playing characters that you dont see coming, that dont follow certain rules of character, she said. The more nuanced and complicated and crazy and wonderful the character, the better.

Kaling sat down with longtime friend and collaborator B.J. Novak to discuss her career as a writer, actor, director and producer. Kaling, who got her start as a writer and star with Novak on The Office, noted the importance of her series The Mindy Project and Never Have I Ever, which center Asian American and Indian women.

Audiences long to identify with people that dont look like them; they just have to be given that opportunity, Kaling said. I was really pleasantly surprised how something so personal could have a universal appeal.

Coel spoke with Natasha Lyonne about her creative process and turning down a million-dollar deal from Netflix for her award-winning HBO series I May Destroy You.

I decided that I would literally rather be homeless, Coel said, speaking on the importance of maintaining her creative control. I refuse to give you my rights.

Coels I May Destroy You has been praised for accurately and respectfully depicting sexual assault.

My creative intent became making the world aware of how nuanced and complicated sexual assault and rape can be, Coel said. It was about trying to figure out a way to make a show that didnt leave the viewer traumatized but instead tried to signal a way out of the trauma.

Vergara sat down with friend and manager of 25 years, Luis Balaguer to discuss her career as an actor and entrepreneur and what she considers her personal style of comedy.

I dont think about me looking beautiful or even being funny, Vergara said. I just try to have fun and show that to people.

Vergara said her best accomplishment is finding a show like Modern Family, which ran for 11 seasons. She is also proud to have broken barriers as a Latin women in comedy and worldwide star.

There are not many of us, so its great to help open doors.

Rudolph reminisced on her comedic journey in an interview with current SNL cast member Bowen Yang.

I definitely learned early on that if you use comedy, you can hide pain, Rudolph said. I love that as a secret weapon.

Fey paid tribute to Radner, one of the original cast members of SNL, who died of ovarian cancer in 1989.

Gilda slayed that audience every time she set foot on that stage, Fey said.

Citing her as an inspiration, Fey brought attention to Gildas Club, a collection of non-profit organizations named in Radners honor that provides meeting places for cancer support groups.

Louis-Dreyfus, who also recently battled breast cancer, said she looked up to Radners comedic presence.

She seemed to have no vanity, Louis-Dreyfus said. She was willing to do anything to get a laugh, and she did.

(Pictured: Michaela Coel)

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Jimmy Fallon showed up big for a South Side San Antonio mom this Mother's Day.

Sandra Arguello Cardona got a cheery drop-in from "The Tonight Show" host who had a Samsung gift bundle in tow and a $25,000 check to celebrate moms who go above and beyond.

Fallon spent last week highlighting women ahead of Mother's Day. Cardona was the final "Super Mom Surprise" on the show for the week. She knew her daughter, Crystal Martinez, nominated her a few weeks ago. Reading the nomination alone left her in tears, but she was not expecting any kind of national recognition.

Last week, her daughter called to ask if she'd like to go to dinner. Cardona was surprised by the early Mother's Day plans, but agreed. When she showed up at her daughter's home, a laptop was set up. Martinez told her mom the Jimmy Fallon show wanted them to watch a few videos before they left for dinner.

READ MORE FROM MADALYN: Raising babies and restaurants with rave reviews, San Antonio mom and chef does it all

Martinez was in on the ruse. Martinez and Cardona went through a series of backstage interviews with the show's producers, but she was growing hungrier and more impatient by the second.

"I said 'Hijole, I'm hungry already, I haven't eaten in all day,'" she joked.

Then, the star comedian appeared. He applauded Cardona for her work as an H-E-B manager, working throughout the pandemic to keep San Antonio's South Side community safe. She also showed up at the Military Drive location during the winter snow storm and cooked for her coworkers. Cardona also cares for her grandchildren and her husband, who is blind and on dialysis.

"Thank you for not only being a mom, but being a super mom. I love your story," Fallon told her. "I love that you are there during this whole pandemic, that you still worked and made sure everyone was taken care of. You worry about other people and put other people ahead of you and that's pretty courageous and cool."

RELATED: Larami Serrano, sons featured in shoe brands Mothers Day campaign

What came next was a surprise to both mother and daughter. Fallon pulled out a bundle of Samsung gadgets for Cardona followed by the check.

"What in tarnation," Cardona said. "I've never seen so many zeroes in my life."

Cardona is planning on investing some of the money for her grandkids and buying a few acres of property for them to run around.

She said her daughter's nomination meant the most to her. The gifts are a nice pat on the back for a woman who has been working to support her family nearly all of her life.

"My sister said 'Sandra, they just talked about know about one year, they don't know you've been working since you were 16, struggling and living check to check, working three jobs," Cardona said. "Can you imagine if they'd go back all of the years?"
PARIS (AP)  While the U.S. president is calling for suspending patents on COVID-19 vaccines, experts at UNESCO are quietly working on a more ambitious plan: a new global system for sharing scientific knowledge that would outlast the current pandemic.

At a meeting that concluded Tuesday, diplomats and legal and technical experts from UNESCO'S member states tried to draw up global guidelines under a project called Open Science.

UNESCOs specialists say the pandemic has shown that sharing sensitive research is possible: Chinese scientists sequenced and shared the genome of the then-new coronavirus in January 2020, allowing German researchers to then quickly devise a screening test shared around the world.

The crisis put a spotlight on how scientific information is produced, shared, communicated, said Ana Persic, chief of the science policy section at Paris-based UNESCO. It is a paradigm shift for the scientific community.

The Open Science talks aim to come up with a soft law by the end of this year that governments could use as a guide for setting science policies and systematically sharing data, software and research across borders, Persic said.

Suspending vaccine patents is more sensitive than genomes or testing protocols because of the huge investment and commercial concerns involved, Persic acknowledged. Discussions on the patent issue are centered at the World Trade Organization, not UNESCO, and theyre far from reaching consensus.

European leaders say lifting patent protections wont solve the problem of getting shots into the arms of people in poorer countries. Instead, they are pushing for more immediate action, like urging the U.S. to export vaccine doses that have already been produced.

But Persic told The Associated Press that "in times of emergency or crisis, there might be a way of lifting those patents ... One can protect the data in a certain way, and still share it.

President Joe Bidens surprise announcement last week in favor of suspending patent protections came just at experts started meeting at UNESCO to discuss the Open Science plan. Bidens move was was received as a positive nod to their efforts, Persic said.

In 2019, then-President Donald Trump pulled out of UNESCO, but U.S. diplomats are taking part in the Open Science talks as observers.

UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay said in a statement that lifting patent protection for coronavirus vaccines could save millions of lives and serve as a blueprint for the future of scientific cooperation. COVID-19 does not respect borders. No country will be safe until the people of every country have access to the vaccine.

___

Follow APs pandemic coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine
PHOENIX (AP)  Joshua Matthew Black said in a YouTube video that he was protecting the officer at the U.S. Capitol who had been pepper sprayed and fallen to the ground as the crowd rushed the building entrance on Jan. 6.

Let him out, hes done," Black claimed to have told rioters.

But federal prosecutors say surveillance footage doesnt back up Blacks account. They said he acknowledged that he wanted to get the officer out of the way  because the cop was blocking his path inside.

At least a dozen of the 400 people charged so far in the Jan. 6 insurrection have made dubious claims about their encounters with officers at the Capitol. The most frequent argument is that they can't be guilty of anything, because police stood by and welcomed them inside, even though the mob pushed past police barriers, sprayed chemical irritants and smashed windows as chaos enveloped the government complex.

The January melee to stop the certification of Joe Biden's victory was instigated by a mob of supporters of then-President Donald Trump who have professed their love of law enforcement and derided the mass police overhaul protests that shook the nation last year following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

But they quickly turned on police in one violent encounter after another.

We backed you guys in the summer, one protester screamed at three officers cornered against a door by dozens of men screaming for them to get out of their way. When the whole country hated you, we had your back!

The Capitol Police didn't plan for a riot. They were badly outnumbered and it took hours for reinforcements to arrive  a massive failure that is now under investigation. Throughout the insurrection, police officers were injured, mocked, ridiculed and threatened. One Capitol Police officer, Brian Sicknick, died after the riot.

Officers who spoke to The Associated Press said police had to decide on their own how to fight them off. There was no direction or plan and they were told not to fire on the crowd, they said. One cop ran from one side of the building to another, fighting hand-to-hand against rioters. Another decided to respond to any calls of officers in distress and spent three hours helping cops who had been immobilized by bear spray or other chemicals.

Three officers were able to handcuff one rioter. But a crowd swarmed the group and took the arrested man away with the handcuffs still on.

Still, some rioters claim police just gave up and told them that the building was now theirs. And a few  including one accused of trying to pull off an officers gas mask in a bid to expose the officer to bear spray  have claimed to be protecting police.

Matthew Martin, an employee for a defense contractor from Santa Fe, New Mexico, who has acknowledged being inside the building, claimed police were opening doors for people as they walked into the Capitol.

Dan Cron, Martins attorney, said a photo filed in court by authorities shows an officer using his back to hold a door open for people. No police barriers were in place when Martin walked into the Capitol area, nor was there anyone telling people they werent allowed in the building, Cron said.

He thought that was OK, Cron said, adding that his client was inside the Capitol for less than 10 minutes and didnt commit any violence. He doesnt know what the policies and procedures at the Capitol are, Cron said. He had never been there.

On the surface, images taken of officers who appear to step aside as the mob stormed the building could be beneficial to the rioters' claims. In the days after Jan. 6, those images fueled rumors that police had stood by on purpose, but they have not been substantiated.

Experts caution against drawing conclusions.

The context will be very important in claiming officers welcomed in a crowd, said Loyola Law School professor Laurie Levenson. They were trying to control a fast-developing, difficult, potentially explosive situation. So I dont think its enough to say, The officer didnt tackle me.

Authorities say Michael Quick of Springfield, Missouri, claimed that he didnt know at the time that he wasnt allowed in the Capitol when he and his brother climbed in through an open window. He believed police were letting people in, despite seeing officers in riot gear.

Attorney Dee Wampler, who represents Michael and Stephen Quick, said he doesnt currently have proof for the claim the officers were letting people into the building, but he pointed out that he has thousands of documents from prosecutors still left to review.

If this case was tried, the evidence would be that there was a fairly large number of officers that were standing around when my clients entered, and they didnt try to stop the Quicks, Wampler said, adding that his clients didnt commit any violence inside the Capitol.

But the argument did not work for Jacob Chansley, the Arizona man who sported face paint, a furry hat with horns and carried a spear during the riot.

Chansley's lawyer said an officer told his client that the building is yours and that he was among the third wave of rioters entering the Capitol.

In rejecting a request two months ago to free Chansley from jail, Judge Royce Lamberth said it wasnt clear who made the comment and concluded Chansley was unable to prove that officers waved him into the building, citing a video that the judge said proves that the Phoenix man was among the first wave of rioters in the building. The judge noted that rioters were crawling in through broken windows when Chansley entered the Capitol through a door.

Chansley's attorney, Albert Watkins, still insists that his client was in the third wave of rioters in the building and said it shouldnt shock the public that rioters who were hanging on to Trumps every word and believed the election was stolen legitimately believed they were allowed in the building. Its whats in their hearts and minds, Watkins said.

In all, Joshua Black made two claims that he helped officers at the Capitol.

Before encountering the officer he claimed to have protected at a Capitol doorway, Black said, police shot him in the cheek with a plastic projectile as he tried to keep another officer from being bootstomped by other rioters while outside the Capitol. But prosecutors say surveillance video doesnt depict an officer on the ground, nor is Black shown trying to help an officer.

Blacks attorney, Clark Fleckinger II, didnt return a phone call and email seeking comment.

___

Associated Press writer Colleen Long in Washington contributed to this report.
Its National Police Week, and Laredo College is honoring law enforcement and, most importantly, campus police officers at both campuses with various tokens of appreciation throughout the week.

Laredo College Campus Police continuously maintain order and are committed to safeguarding employees and students all year round, LC President Dr. Ricardo J. Solis said. They also take a proactive role in creating a positive learning environment. They engage daily with students, faculty, staff and community members to help promote safety at our institution.

LCs more than 18 experienced officers have the capabilities, professional training and responsibilities as other law enforcement agencies. They have persevered through difficult times, honored those who have fallen and protected the lives of many. Therefore, Laredo College is dedicating this week to its women and men in blue with a special recognition and celebration.

The week of celebration will include memorable events to honor police officers that serve both campuses. The institution has planned various surprises for its officers to extend its gratitude, remembrance, respect and support. The colleges social media platforms will also showcase the officers who lead the teams at both campuses to demonstrate appreciation and the vast gratitude for their service.

LCs celebration will also recognize those professionals who lead its current Law Enforcement Academy. For over four decades, Laredo College has cultivated excellent working relationships with regional law enforcement partners in Laredo, Webb County and surrounding areas.

The academy works closely with all the law enforcement agencies and administrators to ensure that they meet their training needs. Their impeccable standards of excellence are reflected in the impressive 100% pass rate of our cadets taking the state basic peace officer licensing test for over 12 consecutive years. A vital component of the programs success is the talented pool of over 20 instructors who are subject matter experts in different areas of law enforcement and assist with the delivery of specialized training.

National Police Week is a collaborative effort of many organizations dedicated to honoring Americas law enforcement community. In May 1962, President Kennedy proclaimed May 15 as National Peace Officers Memorial Day and the calendar week on May 15 falls as National Police Week. Established by a joint resolution of Congress in 1962, National Police Week pays special recognition to those law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty for the safety and protection of others.

For more information, you may contact 956-721-5140.


The Abuse Prevention Services clinical team, from left, Milly Darling, Suzanne Stewart, Alex Morgan-Murray and Liz Cole.

Many people hear the term domestic violence or abuse and imagine the perpetrator to be low income and under the influence of drugs or alcohol. However, while that can and does happen, abuse covers a much wider spectrum than that, according to Rodney-wide support body Abuse Prevention Services.

Clinical manager Liz Cole says abuse is often more about power and control, and it is something that affects all ages, backgrounds, ethnicities and suburbs  its not just a social-economic issue.

Just because youre rich, doesnt mean youre immune. There are a lot of narcissistic, dangerous men with money out there. But poverty does increase stress, which can increase family violence, she says.

And its not just physical. Its someone trying to control you or isolate you  cutting you off from family and friends, or checking all your movements.

It can also include using mind games, intimidation, put downs or threats, often using children as a weapon, or taking all the financial decisions and controlling any income.

Liz says male privilege, along with an inherent threat of violence, often holds family abuse in place.

Just being drunk isnt why it happens. Why do these people abuse and control their family, but nobody else? Its the idea that theyre king of the castle, she says.

Abuse Prevention runs a number of regular one-on-one and group programmes to support women, children and men who want to break free from or positively change abusive behaviour  for both victims and perpetrators  in and around Wellsford, Warkworth, Helensville, Orewa and the Hibiscus Coast.

The focus is on creating respectful, healthy relationships, knowing how to recognise the danger signs and supporting women to make their own choices.

However, the team of clinical workers and support staff, which relies on limited core funding from the Ministries of Justice and Social Development, is in need of help itself, to find more affordable premises to offer its services.

Funding is incredibly tight, were always looking for backing, Liz says. We work well above what we get, usually 100 per cent over  at least half our work is unfunded.

The group is hoping that local businesses or individuals might have a room the group could use for one-on-one sessions with women, child and youth clients, especially in Warkworth, where they are currently having to pay full counselling room rates.

Liz says the impact of family abuse of all kinds takes a huge toll on women and children and Abuse Prevention wants to keep being able to help everyone who needs it.

We want women to come to us regardless of whether they think its bad enough. Just ring us and have a chat, and if were not the right place, well help you find the right place and walk with you, she says.

Currently working from an office in Orewa, Abuse Prevention Services would also like to find a more visible HQ in future.

Anyone who might have a room Abuse Prevention could use can contact Liz Cole on 021 545975 or email clinicalmanager@abuseprevention.org.nz

Info: www.abuseprevention.org.nz


Gifts were warmly received by Womens Institute chapters in the UK. Insert, Moira Dye.

by Alisha McLennan

Communications student

Warkworth Womens Institute (WI) has used its relative freedom from lockdowns to make and send gifts to more restricted WI chapters in the United Kingdom.

We came up with the idea by thinking about the food parcels sent during wartime  they werent much but they made such a difference, Warkworth WI president Moira Dye says.

Womens Institutes in the UK have been unable to meet for months due to Covid-19 lockdown restrictions. Walking, film, and craft groups have been cancelled. One annual meeting was held via Zoom, but many members did not have computers and could not participate.

Moira says that even now, with lockdown restrictions being lifted, the people of England can only meet in groups up to six if they are in an open-air environment.

In a show of support, women from Warkworth WI set out to make presents and handmade cards for their more confined fellow members.

The group sent more than 40 gifts to the Great and Little Warely WI in Essex, and more than 40 more to the Shelford WI in Nottinghamshire. There were enough gifts and cards for each member of the WI chapters.

We wanted to let them know we were thinking of them and sort of brighten their day really, and we did.

Ive had emails back from the members, the president and the secretary, Moira says.

Moira says that WI leaders in the UK expect they will still not be able to meet with all of their members until June or July at the earliest.
Mason Lee Miller, of Lockport, son of Kaitlyn LaJoie and John Miller, Jr., passed away June 5, 2021. Brother of Isaiah and Jeremiah; grandson of Kenneth and Jennifer LaJoie, Sandra Green and John Miller, Sr.; also survived by great-grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. Services will be pr
The beginning of the school year when you got to show off your new duds, new cars, new looks!

Sports! Playing, cheering, watching high school athletics.

The arts: Dramatic arts, musical groups and shows, graphic arts groups, debate, etc.

The prom! No dancing the night away or punch bowl antics.

The daily interactions. Just being with the group, hanging with friends and classmates.

Access to college recruiters and advisors  its harder to line up higher education.

Walking onstage to get a diploma while all the family is watching with everyone elses family.

Vote

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Thunderstorms early, then variable clouds overnight with still a chance of showers. Low 63F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
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(Alliance News) - Angling Direct PLC on Tuesday reported strong annual results, as people prevented from taking foreign holidays went fishing instead.

The Norwich-based retailer posted revenue for the financial year that ended January 31 of GBP67.6 million, up 27% from GBP53.2 million the previous year.

Likely helped by lockdown restrictions, online sales of fishing equipment surged 40% to GBP35.3 million, with international sales accounting for 12% of the amount.

Profit before tax for the year was GBP2.6 million, swung from a GBP1.5 million loss in 2020. The significant improvement in results was driven by a "more disciplined approach to pricing" giving a healthier margin, while a rise in staycations boosted sales.

"In a year characterised by the unique challenges associated with the pandemic, I am extremely proud of the way our people responded to help deliver such a strong group performance," said Chief Executive Andy Torrance.

"We are ideally positioned to fulfil our ambition of becoming Europe's first choice omni-channel fishing tackle destination for all anglers, regardless of their experience or ability."

Looking ahead, Angling plans to "capitalise upon the growth in popularity of sea fishing given increased staycation during the summer months" and is focusing on international growth in Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Austria.

After a bright start to the year, first-quarter sales were up 54% year-on-year, with store sales 75% higher.

"Having reopened our stores on 12 April and with the UK emerging from the pandemic, I am cautiously optimistic when I look to the future: the strong foundations we have put in place through 2020 will ensure the group is able to take advantage of the numerous opportunities that will arise through the remainder of 2021 and beyond," commented Torrance.

Despite the positive results, Angling said it won't be declaring a dividend, the same as the prior year.

Shares in the company were down 1.1% to 84.06 pence each in London on Tuesday morning.

In boardroom news, Executive Chair Martyn Page will move to non-executive chair after Angling Direct's annual general meeting. Page is a co-founder of the company. Andy Torrance remains chief executive officer.

Meanwhile, Non-Executive Director Darren Bailey will step down from the board at the same time. Bailey was CEO until 2019.

Angling Direct didn't provide the date of its 2021 AGM. Last year, it was held on July 30.

By Will Paige; willpaige@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
(Alliance News) - Cairn Energy PLC on Tuesday said it "remains confident" in its position amid a long-running tax dispute with India, which has now gone to Dutch courts.

A tribunal ruled in favour of Cairn back in December, awarding the oil & gas explorer USD1.2 billion in damages, plus interest and costs.

"This ruling is binding and enforceable under international treaty law. Whilst India has sought to challenge the basis of the award through set-aside proceedings in the Dutch courts, we remain confident of our position and continue constructive engagement with the government of India whilst at the same time taking all necessary actions to protect our rights to the award and access the value of it as early as possible," Chief Executive Simon Thomson said ahead of the company's annual general meeting on Tuesday.

Thomson said Cairn is primed for its "next stage of growth". In March, Royal Dutch Shell PLC said it has agreed to sell upstream assets in Egypt's Western Desert to a consortium composed of Cairn and Cheiron Petroleum. The package of assets consists of Shell Egypt's interest in 13 onshore concessions and its share in Badr El-Din Petroleum Co.

The Egypt acquisitions are an "important first building block" for Cairn.

"This expands and diversifies our producing base with low-cost, sustainable gas-weighted production close to growing markets, and adds significant development and exploration growth potential. We are tremendously excited about the potential of these assets," CEO Thomson added.

"Together with our joint venture partner, Cheiron, we are actively engaged with Shell on transition arrangements. We continue to expect the acquisition to be completed in the second half of 2021 and we very much look forward to delivering the significant value these assets offer."

Also in March, Cairn said it agreed to sell its 20% interest in the Catcher field and 29.5% interest in the Kraken field, both in the UK, to Waldorf Production for USD460 million in cash, plus additional payments contingent on oil prices through to the end of 2025.

Completion of these disposals is still expected to occur in the second half of 2021.

Shares in the company were 1.6% lower at 168.80 pence each in London on Tuesday morning.

By Eric Cunha; ericcunha@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
(Alliance News) - The following is a round-up of London-listed company director and manager changes announced on Tuesday and not separately reported by Alliance News:







U&I Group PLC - London-based property regeneration developer and investor - Appoints James Christmas as chief financial officer with effect on June 19, after joining the group's board as executive director on Monday next week. He will be replacing current Chief Financial & Operating Officer Marcus Shepherd. Christmas's most recent executive role was as CFO at real estate and private equity investment firm RCL Partners.







Pressure Technologies PLC - Sheffield, England-based specialist engineering for pressure containment and control - Appoints James Locking as chief financial officer with immediate effect. Was first picked as interim finance director in October 2020 after prior CFO Joanna Allen stepped down.







Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd - developer and operator of consumer businesses in Myanmar - Proposes the appointment of Jonathan Kolb as executive director in the role of chief financial officer, subject to approval at the AGM on Monday next week. Kolb was appointed as CFO in a non-board position in July 2020.







Asiamet Resources Ltd - focused on the development of copper-gold deposits on the Indonesian islands - Appoints Eva Djauhari as non-executive director with immediate effect. Is currently the founding partner of Jakarta-based law firm Armila and Rako, which specialises in investments, M&A and project financing.







Macfarlane Group PLC - Glasgow-based packaging firm - Non-Executive Director Andrea Dunstan to step down from her role with effect at the end of her third-year term on September 1. Board has started a search process to find replacement.







AEX Gold Inc - Greenland-focused gold miner - Intends to appoint Line Frederiksen and David Neuhauser as non-executive directors with effect at the AGM on June 9 after gaining shareholder approval. Frederiksen is chief financial officer for Greenland-based telecom services provider Tele Greenland A/S.







By Dayo Laniyan; dayolaniyan@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
(Alliance News) - Scandal-hit financier Lex Greensill will be questioned by UK members of Parliament over the collapse of his firm and the lobbying controversy centred on former prime minister David Cameron.

MPs on the cross-party Treasury Committee will quiz the boss on Tuesday afternoon on the demise of Greensill Capital, which jeopardised 5,000 steelmaking jobs in the UK.

The committee's inquiry is also investigating how Cameron lobbied UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak over access to government-backed coronavirus loans for Greensill.

Ahead of his appearance, the MPs are expected to publish correspondence received from the subjects of the inquiry after they were issued with a series of questions.

Cameron, who was employed as an adviser to Greensill after leaving government, will appear before the Commons committee on Thursday.

A series of investigations is under way into the role the Conservative played in securing Whitehall access for Greensill.

Among the demands, committee chairman Mel Stride requested a full timeline of contacts that Treasury officials and ministers had with Cameron and other Greensill representatives

The senior Tory MP also asked Cameron to share the full texts he sent the chancellor, which the Treasury has declined to publish.

By Sam Blewett, PA Deputy Political Editor

source: PA

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
(Alliance News) - The EU executive is suing British-Swedish pharmaceutical group AstraZeneca PLC to force it to deliver 90 million more doses of its Covid-19 vaccine before July, a spokesman said on Tuesday.

"We want the court to order the company to deliver 90 million additional doses, in addition to the 30 million already delivered in the first quarter," European Commission spokesman Stefan De Keersmaecker told a media conference.

The demand stems from a row between Brussels and AstraZeneca over a shortfall of tens of millions of vaccine doses the company was meant to have delivered to the EU since the beginning of the year.

The commission has launched two emergency legal actions against the company in a Belgian court, first to have the urgency of the issue recognised, and then to have a judge rule on whether the EU's case is well-founded.

The European Commission, backed by the 27 EU member states, argues that AstraZeneca has breached a contract stipulating it would deliver 300 million vaccine doses to the EU in the first half of this year.

AstraZeneca has responded that it is bound only by a "best reasonable efforts" to meet that target.

After citing production problems in its EU manufacture, and refusing to divert doses from British factories listed as suppliers in the EU contract, the company offered revised deliveries.

Instead of 120 million doses originally promised for the first three months of this year, it delivered 30 million. For the second quarter, when it was to have supplied 180 million doses, it vowed it would instead deliver 70 million.

An EU official with knowledge of vaccine deliveries told AFP that AstraZeneca's current rhythm of 10 million doses delivered per month fell even short of that diminished schedule.

De Keersmaecker said the aim of the lawsuits was not to punish AstraZeneca with a fine or seek compensation but "to make sure that the doses are delivered". If a fine would spur the company to meet its obligations "we could ask them to pay a fine".

He said the Commission would only lay its arguments out in the court room, not in a media conference, but added: "We are convinced that we have a very sound argument in demanding what we're demanding before the courts."

The legal action piles further pressure on AstraZeneca after a link was made between its vaccine and very rare but often fatal blood clots coupled with low platelet levels.

After the European Medicines Agency said that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine outweighed the risk for all adults, the European Commission maintained AstraZeneca as one of the four vaccines it offers to member states.

But many EU countries have restricted AstraZeneca jabs to older people only, typically over 55 or 60. One, Denmark, has abandoned the vaccine entirely.

Non-EU member Norway has also received a recommendation from experts to drop AstraZeneca, while experts in Britain, a former EU member, recommended people under 40 be given an alternative vaccine.

source: AFP

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
(Alliance News) - International Consolidated Airlines Group SA on Tuesday launched EUR825.0 million convertible bond offering amid ongoing uncertainty over air travel.

The British Airways parent is offering senior unsecured bonds due 2028, which will carry a fixed rate of interest of 1.125% payable semi-annually in arrears.

The conversion price of the bonds has been set at EUR3.3694 per share, which represents a premium of 45% over the volume weighted average price of IAG shares.

The stock was trading 6.2% lower in London on Tuesday afternoon at 196.87 pence a share, giving IAG a market capitalisation of GBP9.59 billion.

Settlement of the bonds is expected to take place on Tuesday next week.

"Given the continuing uncertainty in respect of air travel, the net proceeds from the offering will be used by IAG to strengthen the group's balance sheet and increase the group's overall liquidity position and provide the group with increased operational and strategic flexibility to take advantage of a recovery in demand," the company said.

The offering comes after disappointment over the UK government's plans to reopen the travel industry. On Friday evening, Westminster revealed that Portugal, Gibraltar and Israel are among just 12 destinations on England's new 'green list' for travel, meaning visitors do not need to self-isolate on their return home.

Industry leaders said the government's approach represented an "excess of caution" and demanded greater clarity over the formation of the green list.

By Evelina Grecenko; evelinagrecenko@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
A Clinton Township woman wants to keep her sexual assaulter in prison but worries she may not be able to tell a judge about it.

Tiffany Henderson, 42, of Clinton Township, plans to observe a court hearing on the potential release of Richard McBrayer, 63, who has served about 25 years in prison for raping Henderson when she was a preteen in the early 1990s.

The hearing is scheduled for Thursday in front of Judge James Biernat Jr. in Macomb County Circuit Court. It will be conducted over Zoom and shown on YouTube.com.

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McBrayer was sentenced in 1994 to 20 to 40 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct. He was originally charged with additional offenses, and Henderson says McBrayer repeatedly raped her, sometimes brutally, over multiple years.

Henderson said she will attend Thursdays hearing but worries she will not be allowed to speak despite her right to do so.

I am not being respected and not being given my Constitutional rights," she said.

This is the sixth time over the past decade McBrayers release has been the subject of court proceedings as prosecutors and Henderson have tried to keep him locked up. McBrayer was released in 2016 but ordered back to prison in 2018. Macomb prosecutors and Henderson have contended McBrayer has not been rehabilitated, maintains an attraction to young girls and does not have an adequate release plan. They also point to the violent nature of McBrayers attacks, which caused Henderson permanent injuries.

The state Parole Boards decision last November to release McBrayer Dec. 9 was halted by Biernat after a filing by Assistant Macomb Prosecutor Todd Schmitz.

Henderson said she was not informed about McBrayer's 2016 release nor his address as his entry on the state sex offender registry was not current. She didnt learn he was out until she saw him in a vehicle while driving in Clinton Township. He lived in Roseville for a time, but she said she later learned he moved to Oxford and was working for a former fellow inmate's landscaping company.

I dont feel safe. Theyre not protecting me, she said. Theyre not even watching him when hes out and Im not being notified when he moves.

McBrayer was a security guard at Eastland Mall in Harper Woods and a karate instructor.
A Clinton Township woman wants to keep her sexual assaulter in prison but worries she may not be able to tell a judge about it.
Take a few minutes and scroll through some of the local news from the past week:
Exton, PA (19341)

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Sunshine and clouds mixed. High 82F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low around 60F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Mary Brown is currently a Visiting Fellow and Adjunct Professor of Latin at Saint Josephs University and has served as Executive Director of the Classical Association of the Atlantic States since 2009.
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Darren Marcy, a journalist since 1992, is the editor of the Manchester Journal. A New Mexico native, he previously worked for newspapers in the Land of Enchantment before moving to Vermont in 2004. He joined the Journal in October 2018.
MANISTEE  The Manistee Friendship Society has been instrumental in hosting the Feed America Food Truck since March 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been many families without employment and without enough money to buy food.

The needs in our community continue to rise and coming together as a whole to help support one another in a time of need has been quite the blessing," Cassandra Kamaloski, executive director of the Manistee Friendship Society, said in a news release. "When we put all hands on deck we can make quite the difference. We have people coming to donate their time to help unload the truck, packing over 100 food bags, and directing traffic to help make the experience go as smoothly as possible.
Brian Plakke,age 59 passed away May 23rd, 2021 at Hillcrest after a long battle with cancer. Brian was born to Donald and Marlene Plakke.( Howard True stepfather.) He graduated from Mankato West and journied to Alaska with friends,where he enjoyed fishing and traveling throughout the state. 
Animal protection officials say the death of a cat found bound with duct tape, burned and shot with a BB gun in Cambridge last week may be linked to other attacks on felines in the city.

A young male cat named Gosha went missing in front of his East Cambridge home on the morning of May 4. The feline was found three days later crying underneath a car near the intersection of Hurley and Sciarappa streets. By the time an animal control officer arrived, he had already died, apparently from being tortured, according to the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Gosha was discovered with his hind legs bound. He had suffered chemical or thermal burns and 11 BB gunshot wounds as well, the MSPCA said.

MSPCA Law Enforcement now says what happened to Gosha may not have been an isolated incident, as the case bears a striking resemblance to other attacks in Cambridge.

There are striking similarities between the Gosha case and what happened on March 4 to another pet cat from the same East Cambridge neighborhood, the organization said in a statement.

The other cat, whose owners have asked to remain anonymous, was let outside around 11:30 p.m. on March 3 and returned home by roughly 8:30 a.m. the following morning. The female feline had suffered multiple BB gunshot wounds across her left side, the MSPCA noted

Her owner filed a report with the Cambridge Police Department and rushed the cat to Angell Animal Medical Center in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston, where veterinarians were able to remove some but not all of the BBs, according to the organization.

The cat survived the ordeal and is now back home with her family, the MSPCA said.

The pet, an eight-year-old striped tortie, had been wearing an ID collar, which was missing when she returned home. Gosha was also wearing a collar the day he disappeared, and it was similarly missing when he was discovered dead on May 6, according to officials.

A third cat named Buddy went missing earlier this month and returned home on May 5. The feline too had been burned, authorities said.

The MSPCA described Gosha as a 12.3-pound, mostly black and shorthaired cat, who had patches of white on his face, neck and paws. Anyone with information about his death has been urged to call MSPCA Law Enforcement at (800) 628-5808 or Cambridge police at (617) 349-3300.

The organizations offering a $2,500 reward for information that leads to a conviction on animal cruelty in connection with the cats killing, which is felony crime in Massachusetts, punishable by up to seven years imprisonment as well as a $5,000 fine.

The Cambridge Animal Commissions urging cat owners in the area to keep their pets inside. Anyone who has lost their feline should call the commission immediately at (617) 349-4376, officials said.

We urge anyone with information about what may have happened to the March cat, or Gosha, to call us at 800-628-5808 or the Cambridge Police Dept. at 617-349-3300. We are offering a $2,500 reward for information leading to an animal cruelty conviction in the Gosha case.  MSPCA-Angell (@MspcaAngell) May 11, 2021

Related Content: Dead cat bound with duct tape, shot 11 times with BB gun; Massachusetts animal protection group offers reward for information leading to conviction
Delinquency Rates Leveled Off in February

Mortgage delinquency rates ticked up slightly in February, the first increase since August 2020. CoreLogic said the national delinquency rate at the end of the reporting period was 5.7 percent, up 0.1 percentage point from January. The rate indicates the percentage of all mortgages that were 30 or more days past due including those in foreclosure. The rate in February 2020, one month before the COVID-19 virus shut down much of the country, was 3.6 percent. It peaked at 4.3 percent in August 2020.

"Some families that had overspent during the year-end holiday season, and then faced financial stress in the new year, may slip behind on a mortgage payment by February," said Dr. Frank Nothaft, chief economist at CoreLogic. "During each of the last five years, the 30-day delinquency rate moved higher from January to February. With economic conditions improving, we expect delinquency rates to move lower in coming months."

The rate of early stage delinquencies, those 30 to 59 days past due, was 1.5 percent, down from 1.8 percent in February 2020. The share of loans that were 60 to 89 days past due was 0.5 percent, 0.1 point lower than a year earlier.

The impact of the pandemic is still apparent in the serious delinquency rate, loans 90 or more days past due including those in foreclosure. That rate was 3.7 percent in February, a 2.5 point annual increase.

Foreclosures have been reduced by the various pandemic-related moratoria. The foreclosure inventory rate, the share of loans in the process of foreclosure, was down 0.1 point from February 2020 at 0.3 percent.

"Overall delinquency ticked up slightly in February, but the serious delinquency and foreclosure rates continued a monthly decline," said Frank Martell, president and CEO of CoreLogic. "Consumer confidence continues to rise as the economy roars back to life. These factors bode well for housing fundamentals in 2021 and as far as the eye can see."

During the month of February 0.9 percent of mortgages that had been current in January transitioned to being 30 days past due. This is the same transition rate as in February 2020.

CoreLogic notes that government support throughout the pandemic, along with an improvement in the jobs picture, have enabled more borrowers to remain current on their mortgages than would otherwise have occurred.

All U.S. states and nearly all metro areas logged increases in annual overall delinquency rates in February. Hawaii and Nevada, both of which have highly tourist-dependent economies, had the largest annual increases at 4 percentage points each.
Multiple C-Mart Supermarket grocery stores in Massachusetts have been cited nearly $1 million by the state over claims they stole workers wage and were responsible for other offenses that impacted more than 150 employees, authorities said.

Three C-Mart stores in Downtown Boston and Quincy as well as their owners are accused of wage theft and multiple other violations. They have been issued 15 total citations, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced Tuesday.

One of my offices top priorities is enforcing our states strong wage and hour laws to protect workers and prevent exploitative workplace practices, Healey said in a statement. We are citing these grocery stores nearly $1 million for violations of these laws, and we encourage any current or former employees who believe their rights have been violated by these businesses to contact our office.

The three stores are located on Herald and Lincoln streets in Boston and on Hayward Street in Quincy. They are accused of failing to pay premiums for work done on Sundays, not posting minimum wage notices, violating overtime and earned sick time rules and failing to produce records of daily and weekly hours worked by employees, according to the attorney generals office.

Authorities investigation into the stores started in response to complaints from an employee at the Hayward Street location. The prosecutors office said it determined workers were denied paid sick leave, overtime and premium pay for work on Sundays. Healeys office also claimed one of the stores had minimum wage notices posted in languages other than English, though most C-Mart workers read Chinese.

Corporate presidents Maio Kun Fang, Bao Song Qu and Quxiang Lin were cited as well. Authorities noted the C-Mart on Lincoln Street closed permanently in 2020 and Fang previously settled with the prosecutors office in 2008 after it found Sunday premium pay, overtime and minimum wage violations at his stores.

The prosecutors office urged any workers who believe their workplace rights were violated while working at C-Mart to send a text message to Investigator Lili Wu of the attorney generals Fair Labor Division at (617) 963-2337 or an email to fldsettlement@mass.gov with their name and contact information.

Any other workers who believe their rights have been violated in their workplace have been urged to file a complaint at www.mass.gov/ago/wagetheft.
AAA expects Memorial Day travel to increase 60% from 2020 when the pandemic had most things closed and most gatherings banned, with 37 million Americans expected to travel over the holiday weekend in 2021.

But even with the rebound, travel will still be down 13%, or nearly 6 million, from pre-pandemic levels, AAA said Tuesday in its regular pre-holiday survey.

About 900,000 Massachusetts residents plan to travel from May 27 to May 31, according to the survey.

As more people get the COVID-19 vaccine and consumer confidence grows, Americans are demonstrating a strong desire to travel this Memorial Day, said Sandra Marsian, managing director of marketing for AAA Northeast Pioneer Valley Region. This pent-up demand will result in a significant increase in Memorial Day travel, which is a strong indicator for summer, though we must all remember to continue taking important safety precautions.

Gas prices could remain high through the holiday, although Colonial Pipeline says its working to reopen its operations following a cyberattack. Gas retailers were forced to raise prices by as much as 10 cents a gallon Monday.

AAA cited recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance saying fully vaccinated people can travel domestically at low risk to themselves, while taking proper precautions is one factor driving travel.

Also, in Massachusetts the state government is incrementally easing restrictions.

And the industry predicts travelers will flock to Western Massachusetts earlier than to other destinations because of the outdoor activities that are less encumbered by precautions.

AAA said Orlando, Florida, and Las Vegas are popular destinations.

Nationally, driving by car is expected to increase 52% compared to 2020. Nearly 12 million more Americans will travel by car this holiday than in 2020. That will still be 9% less than in 2019.

More than 9 in 10 Memorial Day travelers will drive to their destinations, as many Americans continue to substitute road trips for travel via planes, trains and other modes of transportation, AAA said.

After a historically low year of air travel in 2020, this Memorial Day will see nearly 2.5 million individuals flying for Memorial Day.

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A 23-year-old Italian woman was accidentally injected with six doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine on Sunday, but experienced no adverse effects, according to CBS.

A nurse had mistakenly administered the excess doses, given all at once, in the woman at Noa Hospital in Massa, Tuscany, CBS reports. The woman was kept under observation for 24 hours in the hospitals emergency room, and doctors had given her fluids and anti-inflammatory medications as preventative measures.

The director of patient security for the northwest Tuscany health authority said the nurse was distracted when administering the shot, and that the nurse and the attending doctor were heartbroken by the mistaken.

The woman was released from the hospital on Sunday without any apparently adverse effects, according to CBS. But doctors said they are unsure if there will be any long-term effects associated with the overdose, including on the womans antibody levels.

Doctors will continue to test her blood regularly to monitor her immune response and determine whether she should still get the second dose of the Pfizer vaccine at the normal interval, CBS reports.

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Bostons acting mayor Kim Janey on Tuesday said officials are looking to accelerate the citys COVID reopening as COVID hospitalizations, cases and deaths continue a sustained decline.

Janey said she has asked both chiefs of health and human services and economic development to take a look at speeding up the economic reopening amid continued positive COVID data.

We are approaching the end of the toughest days fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, Janey said during a press conference Tuesday. We are seeing the data, and this data is trending in the right direction, we are looking at accelerating our timeline in terms of reopening in the city of Boston.

Over the last 14 days, confirmed COVID infections in Boston declined by 38%, with an average of 80.1 new cases a day, Janey said. Test positivity is down to 2.4% citywide. There are 75 COVID patients in Boston hospitals currently, which is near the lowest point since the pandemic began, Janey said.

The potential acceleration comes as officials plan to expand in-person services at Boston City Hall, the Boston Public Library and at Boston Centers for Youth & Families, they announced on Tuesday.

On June 7, Boston City Hall will be open to the public by appointment four days a week. Appointments can only be booked Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. The Boston Public Library will reopen for limited in-person services in June. Additionally, activities and services in Boston Centers for Youth & Families will align with Phase 4 Step 1 of the states reopening plan.

The COVID data indicates that we are in a much stronger position to loosen some of the restrictions in terms of our timeline, Janey said. As always we have to be informed by the data and do what is best for the residents of Boston, so we are continuing to look at that closely.

Janey says she will make a decision on changes to the timeline in the coming days, perhaps next week.

New COVID cases and active infections have been declining statewide for weeks, with now 55% of the state having received at least one dose of vaccine, according to the latest data from the Department of Public Health. Nearly three million residents are fully vaccinated.

As of Monday, there are 18,441 active infections. State health officials confirmed 446 new COVID-19 cases and 14 deaths on Monday.

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CHICOPEE  Faced with multiple retirements and vacancies on the Police Department, the city is working to hire 13 new police officers.

The department is significantly short personnel. There are currently 90 patrol officers on staff and city regulations allow up to 120 on the force, Police Lt. Holly Davis said.

The shortage is not causing any safety issues, she said. We are filling all of our beats and units.

The fact that the police department is allowed 120 officers makes the shortage looks worse than it is, since the force is rarely expected to be that large. The complement of patrol officers was increased several years ago to allow candidates to be hired in anticipation of senior officers retiring so the two can overlap while the new officers are in training.

But, along with the current vacancies, two more members of the police department have expressed interest in retiring before the end of year, Davis said.

Mayor John L. Vieau, who is the appointing authority for the department, said he has been conducting interviews and is in the process of offering jobs to candidates.

Once they pass physical and psychological tests, the city is hoping to be able to secure 13 slots in the next Western Massachusetts Police Academy class which is scheduled to begin on Oct. 25, Davis said.

I feel public safety, the police department and the fire department, are the two most important parts of the City of Chicopee, Vieau said.

Vieau said he has also decided to hire an assessment center to evaluate police chief candidates. Chief William R. Jebb, who announced his plans to retire after a 34-year career, stepped down on March 26 and is currently on medical leave.

Capt. Lonny Dakin, who is serving as acting chief, has announced his own plans to retire at the end of the year, so Vieau said he has plenty of time to hire the next leader.

He promised a thorough and transparent process.

The city also recently hired a dozen firefighters after a perfect storm of retirements, resignations, injuries and deployments of members who are in military reservists or National Guard, left the department seriously short-handed. The COVID-19 pandemic also played a part because the Western Massachusetts Firefighter Training Academy is operating at half-capacity so it is difficult to educate recruits. At least six of the firefighters are expected to enter the academy for the next class.

There are many factors that have left the police department short-staffed, including the pandemic, Davis said.

I would say retention and recruiting for law enforcement is down across the country. It is not as desirable a job as it once was, she said.

To address that issue, the city recently held a career fair for anyone interested in becoming a police officer. Along with introducing candidates to the different divisions and opportunities in the department, human resource officials led them through the Civil Service hiring process, she said.

Following the session about 80 people registered to take the next Civil Service exam, which will be given in June, that will give the city candidates for future vacancies, Vieau said.

Even if all 13 recruits can enter the next academy class and graduate, it will nearly a year before they are ready to hit the streets on their own, Davis said.

The Police Academy lasts 24 weeks and new officers then spend 14 weeks working with a series of senior officers who are qualified to teach and evaluate their performance so any deficits can be corrected before they are working alone, Davis said.

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SPRINGFIELD  Police in Dalton and Peru allegedly stalled a well-being check on a woman who was dating a police officer, failing to intervene when a 911 caller warned she was suicidal, according to a complaint recently filed in U.S. District Court.

The lawsuit was filed May 11 on behalf of Sherilyn Hayes, 24 at the time she died in the apartment she shared with Peru Police Officer Kyle Nutting in 2019. It allegations of civil rights violations, negligence and conspiracy.

Nutting and Hayes got in an argument on Nov. 23, 2019, according to the complaint. Nutting left the apartment as Hayes announced she wanted to die, the lawsuit reads. A mutual friend of the two made a 911 call to Dalton police, warning them he feared Hayes was suicidal and attempting to enlist their help.

Rather than follow emergency protocol, officers began making phone calls to do damage control instead of immediately responding and potentially saving Hayes life, the lawsuit alleges.

The lawsuit was filed by Hayes mother, Patricia Hayes, of Pittsfield. It names both the towns of Dalton and Peru; former Dalton Police Chief Jeffrey E. Coe; former Dalton Police Officer John Marley; Dalton Police Officer Dylan Bencivenga; police dispatcher Frank M. Speth, III; and Nutting, who remains a police officer in Peru.

Marley was fired over the incident and Coe left his post last year, collecting an undisclosed severance payment from the town amid allegations of poor judgment, according to the Berkshire Eagle.

Timothy Burke, an attorney for Patricia Hayes, said Dalton police shattered emergency protocol when they didnt immediately go to Sherilyn Hayes apartment when her friend called.

Its clear in this case that the delay in response was without justification. The Dalton police department rules and regulations were specific and mandated an immediate response to the apartment of the deceased, regardless of who she was dating at the time, Burke said during an interview.

Town officials in Dalton and Peru could not immediately be reached for comment.

A friend of the couple, Tyler Hamilton, called police at 6:16 p.m. Speth fielded the call, according to the lawsuit.

My buddy and his girlfriend got into an argument. And I just wanted to see if somebody could swing over and do a wellness check, Hamilton said on the call, the complaint reads.

Mr. Hamilton urged Dispatcher Speth to hurry because he believed Ms. Hayes was in jeopardy of physically harming herself, the lawsuit says. Dispatcher Speth also learned from Mr. Hamilton that the Decedents fiance, was a Peru Police Officer.

Hamilton told police that Nutting left after the argument, taking their dog with him.

And she said some things, like ... she was going to kill herself, Hamilton told Speth, according to the 911 call transcript, adding that Nutting had called and texted him, disclosing that he was worried about his girlfriend.

Okay. All right. Ill send the officers over there. And she said that, uh, she was going to do harm to herself? Speth asked.

Yes, Hamilton answered, according to the lawsuit.

Speth then put a call out to area patrol officers about a domestic but told Marley, who was at Daltons police station when the call came in, that he was reluctant to disclose all the details over the airwaves since Nutting was a police officer, according to the complaint. An internal investigation concluded that Marleys obligation to immediately send officers to check on Hayes was subordinated by his instinct to offer Nutting professional courtesy, the lawsuit says.

More minutes ticked by. Bencivenga, the responding officer, waited near the apartment in his cruiser, waiting further instructions, according to the complaint. Dalton police then called Hamilton back, in what the lawsuit claims was an obvious attempt to dissuade Mr. Hamilton from insisting that the police go to Ms. Hayes apartment. They warned Hamilton that they may have to break the door down and may have to take Hayes into custody.

Through that conversation, the lawsuit claims, Officer Marley placed the onus on Mr. Hamilton to make the determination whether or not an immediate well-being check was required.

The lawsuit also alleges Dalton police flouted not only its emergency protocols, but specific guidance on domestic abuse calls involving a police officer. Nutting was not accused of abusing Hayes, however.

Speth closed out the emergency call at 6:50 p.m., according to the complaint, without any response to the scene by Dalton Police. Nutting and Hamilton found Hayes around 7 p.m.

The complaint also alleges Dalton police omitted critical parts of the story in initial police reports.

An anonymous tipster sent a letter to Dalton Select Board member Robert Bishop Jr., the lawsuit says. The letter alleged a cover-up.

The Dalton police never went to the house to check on her. They never showed up until AFTER she was dead. This is so wrong! the letter read, concluding: I WILL (go) to the news.

The Select Board voted to fire Marley that May, after an independent arbitrator issued a ruling finding he had violated eight of the departments policies. The findings including incompetence and ethics violations.

A pretrial hearing has not yet been scheduled in the case.

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available at 1-800-273-8255.
WHATELY  A Vermont man and a New Hampshire woman were charged with drug trafficking after police found more than 1,000 packets of heroin in their possession during a routine traffic stop.

Tommy Newhall, 37, of Chester, Vermont, and Jennifer West, 36, of Claremont, New Hampshire, were each charged with trafficking in heroin, possession of cocaine and conspiracy to violate drug laws. West was also charged with possession of Xanax and Newhall faces several motor vehicle charges, Massachusetts State Police officials said.

Trooper Tyler Hersom was on routine patrol on Interstate-91 in Whately when he pulled over a Chevrolet Equinox that was veering in and out of its lane at about 12:20 a.m., Friday. He then learned Newhall, who was driving, did not have a valid license, police said.

Because West also did not have a valid license, Hersom and Trooper Brendan OBrien, who arrived to assist in the traffic stop, said they had to have the car towed, police said.

While the police were speaking to the two, OBrien said he saw West remove something from her purse and stuff it between the front seats. The troopers then asked the two to step out of the car and searched them, police said.

Inside the purse troopers found 20 bundles of heroin, police said. The troopers on scene conducted a search of the vehicle and found bundles of heroin in quantities ranging from 10-20 packets, bound with rubber bands.

In total troopers found 1,008 individual packets of heroin, 7 grams of cocaine in a container, and 1 gram of Xanax during the search, police said.

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SPRINGFIELD  The American Rescue Plan includes nearly $90 million for colleges, universities and community colleges in Massachusetts First Congressional District, U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal announced Tuesday.

The funding included in the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan COVID relief package is meant to help institutions cope with the severe financial fallout from the pandemic and continue serving their students safely.

At least half of the funding each college or university receives will be distributed in the form of emergency cash assistance grants to students who are facing hunger, homelessness, and other hardship.

Students should contact their institutions for more information about how they can apply for an emergency grant, according to Neals office

The success of our local colleges and universities is critical to the success of our students and to the strength of our community, said Neal. Educational institutions here in western and central Massachusetts and across the country have been steadfast in their mission of delivering quality education in the face of this pandemic. The American Rescue Plan makes a historic investment that will secure the future of these valued institutions and provide struggling students with urgent relief that will allow them to stay on track and complete their education.

Neal is chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, which was responsible for $941 billion, or about half, the total package of the Rescue Plan approved in March.

The colleges and universities in Massachusetts First District receiving $89.9 million in funding under the American Rescue Plan are:

American International College: $5,686,696

Bay Path University: $4,881,677

Berkshire Community College: $3,969,913

College of Our Lady of the Elms: $3,608,828

Holyoke Community College: $13,291,667

Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts: $3,942,592

Mount Holyoke College: $4,217,824

Nichols College: $3,308,361

Springfield College: $8,898,028

Springfield Technical Community College: $14,223,805

Western New England University: $6,961,297

Westfield State University: $12,788,564

Williams College: $4,200,741

The University of Massachusetts Amherst is not in Neals district. But the UMass flagship received $50.2 million, according to a federal database available here.

Likewise, Smith College in Northampton received $5.5 million; Amherst College, $4 million; Hampshire College in Amherst, $3.1 million; and Greenfield Community College, $3.5 million.
Born and adopted in California, Joan Strauss decided after her birth mothers death from COVID-19 last year that she would seek access to her sealed birth records.

Strauss, now an East Brookfield resident, is an author and filmmaker who through that work has followed other adoptees in their quests for similar information. She said she knew when she submitted her application to California officials that it could be denied, but still burst into tears when she got the call back telling her the application wasnt enough and shed need to hire a lawyer and fly there to appear in court in person.

It was diminishing and dehumanizing, Strauss told the Public Health Committee. I am 66 years old. When will I be old enough to have access to a document that any other citizen can file a form for and get? When will I be considered a good enough citizen to be given that privilege? What do I have to do to be equal to them?

Strauss was one of several people to urge the committee to support a bill that seeks to create equal opportunities for all adopted people in Massachusetts to access their original birth certificates.

Though the bill would not apply to Strauss herself, she said that her personal experience underscored for her that it would provide Massachusetts adoptees with equality, dignity and the respect they need to feel like theyre full citizens.

Under Massachusetts law, birth certificates for adopted children born between July 17, 1974 and Jan. 1, 2008 are sealed, while adoptees born before and after that window can access their original birth certificates after turning 18 if they choose to do so.

A 2007 state law prohibited future application of a 1974 statute blocking adopted children from obtaining original birth records, which include the biological parents names, without a court order. As they passed the bill, lawmakers at the time said they were trying to strike a balance for parents who had expected confidentiality when placing a child for adoption.

Supporters of legislation (H 2294, S 1440) that would close the nearly 34-year gap and open up birth certificate access made their case to lawmakers Monday, pitching the bill as a matter of fairness and a way to help people who have been adopted learn about their own medical and personal histories.

The House passed a version of the bill last session, in July 2020, but it did not come up for a vote in the Senate.

Rep. Sean Garballey, an Arlington Democrat who filed the bill with Sen. Anne Gobi, said he and his twin brother were adopted and land in the age range where they cannot get their original birth certificates.

Garballey said he may not seek his own birth certificate if the option became available, but filed the bill because he believes all citizens should be able to access information about themselves.

To me this is about vital records, he said. Its about your identity and in Massachusetts we have three types of citizens -- citizens who were not adopted and they have their original birth certificate, that identity that says who they are, those who are adopted and can get access to their original birth certificate, and those who are adopted but cant get access because they were born within that 33-year gap.

Former Boston City Councilor Tito Jackson said his birth, in April 1975, came about nine months after the 1974 birth certificate lockout went into place.

Jackson recently connected with his birth mother, Rachel Twymon, and said that doing so completed my puzzle. He said that Twymon and he had likely been in Boston City Hall at the same times, and that he read Common Ground, a book that tells her familys story, including about his birth, five times without knowing the connection.

Jackson noted both he and Twymon had contracted COVID-19 over the past year.

We literally could have both missed one another in this life, based on this lack of information, he said, going on to tell the committee, I ask you, and honestly I beg of you, to actually move this legislation forward.

Rep. Marjorie Decker, who co-chairs the panel with Sen. Jo Comerford, said begging wasnt necessary, pointing to the Houses passage of the bill last term.

We voted it out. It went over to the Senate and I have to believe that for our ability to try to figure out how to respond quickly to a pandemic, I would have hoped that this would have gone through the Senate, Decker said.

Comerford said that, as a mom of two adopted kids, she feels the issue very personally. She said early in the hearing that shed never forget the personal stories bill supporters shared last session and that she expected to hear more as we urge this bill forward, as it should.
An idea for an Instagram platform dedicated for children isnt getting any love from the majority of the countrys lead state prosecutors.

Citing concerns about the wellbeing of children and looking at the harm social media poses to young people, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey and 43 other attorneys general across the U.S. sent a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Monday in which they urged him to abandon his companys plan to launch the version of Instagram for children under the age of 13.

In the letter to the billionaire social media titan, Healey, whos co-leading the large coalition of prosecutors, and the dozens of other attorneys general pointed out social media can be detrimental to children for a myriad of reasons and Facebook has historically failed to protect the welfare of kids on its platforms.

The prosecutors argued they have an interest in protecting the youngest citizens in their states, districts or territories. Facebooks plan to create a platform where kids under the age of 13 are encouraged to share content online is contrary to that interest, they asserted.

Its shameful that Facebook is ignoring the very real threat that social media poses to the safety and wellbeing of young children in an attempt to profit off of a vulnerable segment of our population, Healey said in a statement. Im joining my colleagues across the country who are heavily invested in protecting our youngest residents from harm, sexual predators, and cyberbullying to call on Facebook to abandon this reckless plan to exploit children.

Another letter penned by 100 public health advocates in April also called on Zuckerberg to cancel the companys plan for the Instagram for kids app. The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, which sent the document, thanked Healey and the 43 other attorneys general for making clear to Facebook whats at stake and that the wellbeing of children should be paramount.

Facebook faces a critical choice: Will they plow ahead with their ill-conceived plan to ensnare young children, or will they listen to the growing chorus of parents, experts, advocates, lawmakers and regulators who are telling them that an Instagram kids site will undermine young childrens healthy development and right to privacy?, said Josh Golin, executive director of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood.

This isnt the first time Healey has gone up against Silicon Valley.

Again joining a coalition of dozens of attorneys general, Healey told the heads of Facebook and Twitter they must do more to stop the spread of coronavirus vaccine disinformation on their platforms in a letter penned to the social media giants in March, only a day before Facebook, Twitter and Googles CEOs testified before Congress about social medias role in promoting extremism and disinformation.

At that congressional hearing, Zuckerberg dismissed the idea that social media is harmful to children, according to Healey, despite strong data and research suggesting a link between young peoples use of platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and an increase in mental distress, self-injurious behavior and serious thoughts about suicide.

Instagram has been frequently flagged for increasing suicidal ideation, depression and body image concerns in children, the Massachusetts prosecutor said.

In December, Healey and 37 other attorneys general sued Google. Alleging the company runs a search engine monopoly, the group of prosecutors asked the court to stop the company from unlawfully restraining trade and maintaining monopolies in markets that include general search services, general search text advertising, and general search advertising in the United States, and to remedy the effects of this conduct.

In the letter they sent Monday, the 44 attorneys general expressed various concerns over Facebooks proposal for the Instagram for kids platform, pointing out social medias harmful effects on the physical, emotional and mental wellbeing of children.

Concerns about cyberbullying on Instagram are rapidly worsening, and the platform continues to be used by predators to target children, the attorneys general pointed out.

A 2017 survey found 42% of young Instagram users had dealt with cyberbullying, the highest percentage of any platform measured, according to the prosecutors.

Another report found over a six-month period in 2018, there was a 200% increase in recorded instances of Instagram being used to target and abuse children. Last year, Facebook and Instagram reported 20 million child sexual abuse images, Healey said.

The coalition of prosecutors asserted Facebook has a checkered history protecting kids on its platform.

The company has a record of failing to protect the safety and privacy of children, Healey said. For instance, Facebooks Messenger Kids app contained a glitch that allowed children to circumvent restrictions and join group chats with strangers.

The attorneys general argued young children arent equipped to handle the many challenges that come with having an Instagram account, in part because they often lack a developed understanding of privacy

Many younger people lack the capacity to navigate the complexities of what they encounter online, including advertising, inappropriate content and relationships with strangers.

The attorneys general also cast doubt on Facebooks ability to protect children on their proposed Instagram platform and comply with relevant privacy laws such as the Childrens Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). They point out that the company has a record of failing to protect the safety and privacy of children. For instance, Facebooks Messenger Kids app contained a glitch that allowed children to circumvent restrictions and join group chats with strangers.

AG Healey has called on Facebook on other occasions to stop practices on its platform that put the public at risk. In March, AG Healey called on Facebook and Twitter to take stronger measures to stop the spread of anti-vaxxer coronavirus disinformation on their social media platforms. She also joined a coalition of attorneys general urging Facebook to take measures to prevent the spread of hate and disinformation and to provide stronger support for victims of online intimidation and harassment on its platforms. Following the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, AG Healey was part of an effort to urge Facebook to halt the advertising of military tactical gear and weapon accessories on its platform at least until after the presidential inauguration.

Along with 40 lead state prosecutors, the attorneys general for the Northern Mariana Islands, Washington, D.C., Guam and Puerto Rico also signed onto the letter. The only states whose attorneys general didnt sign onto the letter are Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Georgia, Pennsylvania, North Dakota and West Virginia.

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U.S. Reps. Jim McGovern and Ayanna Pressley on Monday called on the federal government to bolster access to safe and affordable housing for the millions of grandparents who raise children across the country.

The Massachusetts Democrats reintroduced the Grandfamily Housing Act, which would create a nationwide pilot program to help nonprofits and local authorities make housing modifications and invest in staff to help grandparents navigate the complexities of raising a grandchild, the lawmakers said in a statement to MassLive. The bill would also finance the upkeep of grandfamily housing and communal spaces, providing a more stable environment for children.

McGovern, chairman of the House Rules Committee, said millions of grandparent-led homes face unique challenges, including delaying retirement, accessing their grandchilds medical records and securing age-appropriate housing.

Grandparents often take on this role unexpectedly  providing love, support and stability, especially for children experiencing trauma, he said. But the bottom line is that the resources that are available to parents often arent there for grandparents. Every child in our country deserves to grow in a safe, loving environment that allows them to live up to their full potential, and thats what our bill is all about.

U.S. Census data shows more than 2.6 million children are being raised by their grandparents, and McGoverns and Pressleys bill comes as the COVID-19 pandemic has shone a spotlight on housing and other economic inequities, particularly for multigenerational families and communities of color. While the number of Americans living in multigenerational households has nearly quadrupled in the past decade, fewer than a third of eligible grandfamilies receive housing assistance.

Nearly half of all low-income grandparents who raise children are spending half their income on rent, in part because most subsidized and market-rate residences for seniors do not let children live in the buildings, the lawmakers note.

The bill calls for an investment of $100 million over the next two fiscal years, allowing non-profits, for-profits, public housing, and Section 202 and Section 8 project-based rental assistance programs to seek grants to hire on-site grandfamily service coordinators to help residents access available resources.

Pressley said the bill would help uplift our grandfamilies and affirm their right to thrive in the community by ensuring they have a safe, affordable, and age-appropriate place to call home.

For too long, our society has failed to recognize the contributions of grandparents raising grandchildren and provide them with the resources and support they need, she said.

The lawmakers, who have teamed up to address food assistance during COVID-19 and other issues, held a roundtable discussion on grandfamily housing in Worcester in 2019. Residents concerns helped inform the bill, which was first introduced in 2019 and is backed by national advocacy groups including the National Council on Aging, Generations United and LeadingAge.

Grandfamily caregivers grapple with unique and pressing issues that this bill would address by providing greatly needed support including funds for staffing, services, facilities, community outreach and other services, LeadingAge President and CEO Katie Smith Sloan said in a statement. LeadingAge represents 6,000 nonprofit aging services providers and other organizations.

National Council on Aging President and CEO Ramsey Alwin commended the lawmakers for seeking to address the urgent housing needs of grandfamilies.

The legislation will support innovations that will reinforce a part of the crucial safety net that is out of reach for too many grandparents raising grandchildren, Alwin said.

Ana Beltran, co-director of Generations Uniteds National Center on Grandfamilies, said grandfamilies frequently come together at a moments notice, often with a call in the middle of the night. Children may be prohibited from their caregivers existing housing or it may not be adequate. This legislation is a critical step in providing more grandfamilies with affordable housing opportunities that include vital supportive services for the caregivers and children.

For more on the bill, read here.

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Merriam-Webster isnt just defining NFT, its selling it.

An NFT or non-fungible token is a unique digital identifier that cannot be copied, substituted, or subdivided, that is recorded in a blockchain, and that is used to certify authenticity and ownership (as of a specific digital asset and specific rights relating to it), as defined by Merriam-Webster.

Wordsmiths can now bid on a collectible NFT featuring this definition.

By auctioning the NFT of our definition of NFT, were offering people a fun way to own a little bit of Merriam-Websters thought and meaning, said Peter Sokolowski, Merriam-Websters editor-at-large. And while the NFT itself may not be fungible, the knowledge weve created certainly is and were excited to share it.

The NFT is a collectible NFT of Merriam-Websters definition and not the definition itself.

The winning bidder will be granted a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to display the Art solely for the winning bidders personal non-commercial use, as further defined and set forth in the Agreement, the details on the bidding site OpenSea state.

Through this auction, the Springfield-based company is hopping on one of the latest trends.

Artwork by Beeple sold for $69.3 million, according to Forbes. An NFT version of Twitters first published tweet, which was by co-founder Jack Dorsey sold for $2.9 million in March. And the Disaster Girl meme sold for $500,000, according to The New York Times.

When a new word makes its way into the worlds lexicon, our ears at Merriam-Webster perk up, said Sokolowski. Over the past several months, NFT has rocketed into popular culture, and the team at Merriam-Webster crafted a definition to provide meaning to this emerging technology.

Like many NFT auctions, the one for Merriam-Webster is hosted on OpenSea, the worlds largest digital marketplace for crypto collectibles and NFTs. Bidding starts Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. and lasts until Friday 11:59 p.m.

The highest bidder will get the NFT and receive a link to their OpenSea profile from the NFT definition page on Merriam-Webster.com.

All net proceeds from the auction will go to Teach For All, a network of organizations in 60 countries working to ensure all children have the education, support, and opportunity to fulfill their potential, Merriam-Webster said.

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The 28-year-old man charged in connection with the killing of a widowed, father of four in Worcester over the weekend previously faced a murder charge in another case but was found not guilty, records show.

Angel Ortiz-Santos, who has a last known address in Worcester, was arraigned in Worcester District Court Tuesday on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury and carrying a firearm without a license in connection with the fatal shooting of Carlos Cruz on Saturday.

Ortiz-Santos was charged with murder in the March 2015 killing of 27-year-old Christian Omar Puello-Rosado during an after-hours party at 5 Narragansett Ave.

A jury trial in Worcester Superior Court later followed and Ortiz-Santos was found not guilty on murder, assault and firearms charges, records show. The jury reached the verdict in March 2018.

In the most recent case over the weekend, prosecutor Joseph Simmons said Ortiz-Santos fatally shot Cruz in the area outside the Paku Lounge at 215 Chandler St. in Worcester.

Police in Worcester were called to the area near the lounge around 1:30 a.m. on Saturday after officers received a ShotSpotter notification about gunfire in the area.

Authorities learned eight gunshots had been fired.

Officers arrived at the scene and saw several people outside on Chandler Street. Cruz was discovered on the sidewalk. He had been shot four times, Simmons said.

The widowed, father of four was rushed to UMass Memorial Medical Center where he was pronounced dead at 2:13 a.m.

Detectives recovered eight shell casings from the scene and were able to recover surveillance video from the scene.

Forty-four-year-old Carlos Cruz, pictured to the right, was shot and killed near the Paku Lounge in Worcester on May 8, 2021. He's remembered by his four sons, two of whom are now without both a father and a mother. A GoFundMe page has been set up to support Cruz's youngest sons in the wake of his death. Their mother died in 2019 from a brain aneurysm. (Courtesy the Cruz family)

Video also obtained from the Paku Lounge showed Cruz had been inside the establishment that night. Ortiz-Santos had also been inside the lounge.

While inside the lounge, Cruz and Ortiz-Santos never interacted, according to the video.

At some point in the evening, shortly before this incident happened, there was an altercation between Mr. Ortiz-Santos and another individual, Simmons said.

Cruz was not involved in that altercation.

Simmons said the video showed another person hand Ortiz-Santos what appeared to be a pistol. Ortiz-Santos then racked the gun and put it in his pants, the prosecutor said.

People then began to leave the lounge. A group of people were on the sidewalk outside the lounge.

Cruz was spotted going to his car and grabbing what appears to be a gun, Simmons said. He is then seen walking back to the group of people with a gun in his hand.

Cruz spoke to a group of people while another group, which included Ortiz-Santos, started to approach.

The prosecutor said Cruz then stood in between the two groups placed his left hand up in a type of stopping motion. The pistol was in his right hand but down, Simmons said.

Some people who were with Ortiz-Santos grabbed Cruz and they began struggling over the gun.

Mr. Carlos Cruz is pulled to the ground. At that time, the individual identified as Angel Ortiz-Santos appears to be firing his pistol, Simmons said. Mr. Carlos Cruz does not appear to get any shots off during that incident.

Cruz got up and ran across the street. Ortiz-Santos continued to shoot at him, Simmons said.

Cruz then collapsed in the area where he was found by authorities.

Ortiz-Santos then walked down the street, the prosecutor said.

A warrant was issued for Ortiz-Santos and he turned himself in to police Tuesday morning. His defense lawyer said Ortiz-Santos no longer lives in Massachusetts but did not say where.

Not guilty pleas were entered in the case. A judge revoked bail in a pending driving under the influence case out of Dudley District Court.

The judge also allowed the prosecutors motion to hold Ortiz-Santos without bail pending a dangerousness hearing which was scheduled for May 28.

The family of Cruz remembered him as a dedicated and loving father of four sons. They created a GoFundMe page set up to support his two youngest sons in the darkest days of their short lives, the mans family said.

Cruz was raising his children as a widowed father. He lost his partner, Maria A. Collazo, the mother of the two youngest sons, to a brain aneurysm three years ago, according to the GoFundMe page. His oldest sons, Juan and Carlos Cruz Jr., are in their 20s.

That was Carloss heart: his children and his family, a spokesperson for the Cruz family told MassLive.

Cruz had finished training as a personal care assistant and was working at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester in environmental services, according to a family spokesperson.

He was also in the process of buying a home outside of the city for his sons, as their safety, their security and their well-being was always his first priority, according to the Cruz family.

Carlos worked tirelessly through the worst days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the family wrote on the GoFundMe page. Even though he worked long hours in brutal conditions, he always took time to shower his sons with love and create lifetime memories with them.

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The hit series Dexter is back in Worcester for more filming and will stay through the rest of the week, sources tell MassLive.

The show began filming at the AC Marriott early Tuesday morning.

Large white tents were set up on the citys common Monday morning and various film crew vehicles and stations are set up throughout downtown.

Filming is expected to take place on Thursday and Friday as well, sources say.

The series has been filming in several Central Mass. locations including West Boylston, Boylston, Gardner, Lancaster, Shelburne Falls and Sterling.

The Dexter revival will be a continuation of the original 2006-2013 crime drama mystery, which centered on Dexter, a forensics expert in Miami who solved crimes in his public life and murdered serial killers in his private life.

The upcoming season will be a limited series, which will run for 10 episodes and premiere in October. The reboot brings back the award-winning, eight-season series after fans were disappointed with the shows ending.

Michael C. Hall will again star as Dexter Morgan, a serial killer-hunting serial killer.

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Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus Jr. on Monday submitted a recommended a $733.8 million fiscal 2022 budget, which kept the police department funding nearly the same as last year.

In fact, the proposed budget has Worcester police increasing by just $600.

Overall, the citys FY22 budget increased by $28 million over the previous fiscal year or by about 4%. The public safety budget, which includes police, fire and emergency services, increased by 0.6%.

Of the more than $733 million proposed budget, more than half or $420.8 million is dedicated toward education. The proposed education budget includes a 4.2% increase from last year  or $17 million. Of the education budget, $294 million will be part of the state aid for education, leaving the city on the hook for about $126.8 million.

Public safety, including police, fire and emergency services, has a proposed budget of $102.4 million.

This years budget comes almost a year after dozens of community members called into budget hearings last year to demand for cuts to the Worcester Police Departments budget.

In the prior fiscal year, the police budget included a $254,320 increase for the police department, bringing the departments total to $52,766,614.

This year, the proposed budget by Augustus increased polices funding to $52,767,291. The small increase may be in part because of recommendations in Augustus police reform executive order, which included a paid cadet program that involves individuals interested in pursuing a career in public safety to partner with the city.

The program would mimic a similar one run in Boston for individuals interested in becoming a police officer or firefighter.

Without the addition of the program, that works both with the Worcester fire and police department, its likely the police budget may have decreased from last year.

The operating budget for public safety is separate from the capital budget, which includes new vehicles and equipment for each department. However, some of the costs will be paid for through grant money.

The fire departments proposed budget is $41,820,212, the second-highest among departments. The fire departments budget would increase by roughly $500,000 in the proposed fiscal 2022 budget.

Public Works and Parks had the third-highest proposed budget at just shy of $23 million.

Augustus proposed budget also included a line item that addressed equity in the city and set aside more than $2 million, which was more than some departments in the city.

The $2 million initiative is meant to tackle several items included elevating the Chief Diversity Office to a cabinet-level position and adding a position to the department, a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Manager.

Another $250,000 is dedicated to equity audits within human health services, the WPD and human resources  as mentioned in Augustus executive order released in February.

The total also includes $750,000 geared toward ensuring that every full-time employee in the city earns above $15 per hour.

The initiative also includes $1 million for human health services to provide mental health services in emergency situations. The funding will go through the Human Health Services Department and work to provide social workers to aid in crisis situations.

The FY22 budget also includes funding for a contract compliance person.

The new position comes after Gilbane-Hunt, the construction manager at Polar Park, admitted to filing inaccurate spending reports to inflate the contracts with minority and women-owned businesses after a GBH report exposed that less than 1% of the $100-million project went to certified minority-owned businesses.

The effort here is to have a person to ensure that the city is tracking all the minority and women businesses involved and making sure that the compliance efforts are followed, City Chief Financial Officer Tim McGourthy said.

The budget also showed a focus on the citys green spaces. Public Works and Parks saw an increase of 3.3% or $736,258.

Its making Worcester everyones backyard, McGourthy said.

The proposed budget includes six positions to serve as part of the Quality of Life and Clean Teams. The team would clean up spaces when alerted to problems.

New positions would also be added for the citys parks and in forestry to sustain the citys parks and green spaces.

Augustus also recommended a $75,000 Community Development Block Grant that would fund youth involvement in neighborhood-improvement projects through the creation of a Green Corps.

Theres also $25,000 in funding to support community-based cleanup efforts with trash removal and supplies.

As part of the budget process in generating the funds to keep the city clean, Augustus also recommended a 25-cent increase to the cost of Worcester trash bags. The increase would be on a per-bag basis.

The bump in price would generate about $350,000 after the city hasnt raised the price of bags in 14 years.

The bump in bag costs coincides with the increase in public parking costs, which the city released last month.

Along with the increases, Augustus recommended the increase in parking control officers.

The proposed budget also outlines a major operational change within the city which establishes two new departments. Augustus is elevating Sustainability and Resilience to an independent department which will include members of the Energy and Asset Management Team and DPWs blue space team.

The hope is that the department will allow for the development and implementation of goals laid out in the Green Worcester Plan, which the city council adopted last month.

The proposed budget also outlines the elevation of Public Facilities to an independent department with the goal of maintaining and managing publicly-owned properties in the city.

Initially, the department will take responsibility for buildings like City Hall, the DCU Center and Union Station, Augustus envisions the department eventually expanding to the Worcester police and fire departments.

The proposed budget also includes a 51% increase in contingency funding over last years number of $4.2 million, which was also unusually high. Some of the funding comes from conservative projections due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Another part of the contingency funding has to do with cost-of-living increases for city employees, who didnt receive a raise in last years budget.

The contingency funding covers the cost of living wage increases for both the last budget and this fiscal year budget.

Some aspects still need to be addressed with unions within the city, McGourthy said.

The proposed budget will be presented to the city council on Wednesday. The council will meet with every department to discuss its budget.

Final budget approval is likely to occur in early June.
BALTIMORE  Danny Santanas rehab will continue in Worcester on Tuesday, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said before Bostons game in Baltimore on Monday.

The WooSox will play their first game at Polar Park on Tuesday and Santana is expected in the lineup.

Hes in Worcester now, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. Hes doing protocol, the intake. ... Hes supposed to play Tuesday in Worcester.

The 30-year-old went 4-for-10 with a homer and double, two RBIs and two runs in a rehab assignment this past week for High-A Greenville.

Santana, who belted 28 home runs for the Texas Rangers in 2019, spent time in the hospital during spring training because of a foot infection. He also underwent an ulnar collateral ligament repair and augmentation procedure last September (per MLB.com).

He signed a minor league with Boston in March. He likely will be added to Bostons active 26-man roster whenever hes ready.

He has played every position except for catcher during his major league career.

Santana batted .283 with a .324 on-base percentage, .534 slugging percentage, .857 OPS, 28 home runs, 23 doubles, six triples, 81 RBIs, 81 runs and 21 steals in 130 games (511 plate appearances) for the Rangers in 2019. That year was an outlier in his career, especially in terms of power. He has a .260/.299/.418/.717 slash line in 509 major league games in seven seasons (2014-20). He has played for the Twins, Braves and Rangers.

Brasier throws bullpen

Ryan Brasier threw a bullpen session this past week, Cora said.

It was a good one, Cora said. I think it was a 20, 25 pitch bullpen. And he was pretty solid.

There are no plans yet to send him out on a rehab assignment yet.

Brasier strained his calf late in spring training. He dealt with a right pinkie fracture this past offseason. He also was behind in spring training after leaving camp for a personal reason in February.

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A dream years in the making came true for Worcester on Tuesday, as Polar Park opened for the first Worcester Red Sox home game.

Around noon, fans started to trickle into the stadium that has nods to Worcesters history: steel to represent the iconic Higgins Armory, local eats like Wonder Bar pizza, and the Smiley Ball mascot, honoring Harvey Balls creation of the smiley face in the city.

Tuesdays game against the Syracuse Mets is scheduled to begin at 3:05 p.m. to a sell-out crowd of 2,377 fans. The number of fans currently allowed in the stadium is limited by the states COVID-19 guidelines. Guests got settled into Polar Park under sunny skies, wearing a mix of WooSox and PawSox attire.

Special opening day ceremonies are slated to kick off at 2 p.m.

Team officials said Tuesday marked 998 days since top executives from the then-Pawtucket Red Sox crowded Worcester City Hall on Aug. 17, 2018, to announced the team signed a letter of intent to move from Pawtucket, Rhode Island, to Worcester.

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Sherry Hassler, 55, of Lindsay, died Sunday, June 6, in Oklahoma City. The family will welcome friends at Brumley-Mills Funeral Home in Hartshorne for viewing and visitation on Thursday from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. Memorial services will be held on Friday, June 11, at 10:00 a.m. at Brumley-Mills F
The signature mane, the predatory stealthy movement, the fierce roar-it appears fitting to discover that there is just one species of lion (Panthera leo). However, there are several subspecies, which are different in appearance and other specific traits.

Almost all lions are indigenous to Sub-Saharan Africa, living here and there excluding the deserts and rainforests, apart from the Asiatic lion that inhabits one small region of India.

Below, are six types of lions that are brave, fierce, and, in need of protection, in most cases.

1. Northeast Congo Lion

The Congo lion or Northeast Congo lion (Panthera leo azandica) is also called the Uganda lion. Unsurprisingly, they are generally seen in Uganda or Congo, though they are likely not from there. Just like other lions, Northeast Congo Lions are enormous animals; males weigh around 420 pounds while females weigh a little less than the male. Northeast Congo males also display very dark manes; some of the manes are even black.

2. Barbary Lion

The Barbary lion (Panthera leo leo) was indigenous to the Atlas Mountains of Africa, which include some parts of Algeria, Maghreb, and Morocco. Because they are cold-weather animals, they grow thick, dark, long-haired manes that touches their shoulders.

Also Read: Rare Mountain Lions Spotted in Kansas

3. West African Lion

Also known as Senegalese lions, West African lions (Panthera leo senegalensis), are not that big in size and genetically different from other lions. They are also critically endangered. Around 350 west African lions inhabit a vast UNESCO heritage site located at the intersection of Niger, Burkina Faso, and Beni.

4. Asiatic Lion

The Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica) is a little bit smaller than African lions, and their manes are darker and shorter. They also possess a fold of skin that runs through their belly - a characteristic African lion does not possess. Asiatic lions are very rare; in the wild, there are only a few hundred. All of the wild Asiatic lions that are remaining inhabit the Gir Forest in India, a somewhat small wildlife reserve.

5. Katanga Lion

Katanga lions (Panthera leo melanochaita) inhabit southern and east Africa. At times called Cape lions or Transvaal, they are a special subspecies but are very akin to other Sub-Saraharan African lions. Katanga lions were almost wiped out due to trophy hunting, and they no longer exist in parts of their previous range. Today, these lion populations are recovering slowly thanks to the establishment of managed reserves in places like Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Botswana.

6. European Cave Lion

The European cave lion (Panthera spelaeacave) is a lion that is already extinct and is akin to modern lions. There were not less than two if not three subspecies of European cave lions which existed during the Ice Age. These were prehistoric mega predators, akin to the Beringian cave lion; both of them were bigger than the lions of today, but may have had some similar behaviors. About 14,000 years ago both the Beringian and European cave lions went extinct.

Related Article: Study Shows Male Lions are Ambush-Style Predators

For more news, updates about lions and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!
Marietta, GA (30060)

Today

Isolated thunderstorms during the morning becoming more widespread this afternoon. High near 80F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms. Low 69F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
Atlanta, GA (30303)

Today

Cloudy this morning with thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 81F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms. Low 69F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
A large-scale animal study has shown something very interesting about yawning: Vertebrates that have larger brains and more neurons are bound to have longer-lasting yawns.

Robust Positive Correlation

Researchers gathered data on 1,291 different yawns from videos online and zoo trips, covering a sum of 46 species of bird and 55 species of mammal, and discovered a "robust positive association" between the length of time an animal yawns for and the brain size. Jorg Massen, an ethologist from Utrecht University in the Netherlands said: "We went to various zoos with a camera and close to the animal cages for the animals to yawn. That was quite a long haul."

The study could add to our previous knowledge about yawning - both why it occurred in the first place, and why some animals like giraffes have no need to worry about yawning at all. "Although the pattern of yawning is stable, its length of time has co-evolved with the size of the brain and numbers of neurons," the researchers wrote in their new paper.

Also Read: Duke Researchers Find Link Between Contagious Yawning and Age

An Essential Way of Cooling the Brain

Besides, this function appears to be preserved across a different range of animals, in such a way that its evolutionary origin may be trailed back to at least birds and mammals' common ancestor and possibly even further. The analysis was initiated to test a hypothesis that was proposed in 2007 by one of the researchers that was involved in this study: that yawning is an important way of making the brain cool.

It, therefore, follows that bigger brains are in need of longer yawns to cool them properly.That would appear to be proved by this data, which also reveals that mammals have a longer yawning duration than birds. Birds have an increased core temperature than mammals, which implies a greater difference in temperature with the surrounding air, meaning a shorter yawn is sufficient to drag in some cooler air. In a 2016 study that involved humans, the same conclusions were reached, though just 24 species and 205 yawns were measured in that case.

Thermoregulatory Function

It discovered that the shortest yawns (0.8 seconds) were from mice, with the longest yawns lasting for 6.5 seconds coming from humans. Andrew Gallup, an ethologist from the State University of New York (SUNY) said: "Through the concurrent inhalation of cool air and the expanding of the muscles close to the oral cavities, yawning boosts the flow of cooler blood to the brain, and thereby has a thermoregulatory function."

The experts don't make any connections to intelligence, only the brain size and the number of neurons it packs in; nor is there any recommendation to the frequency of yawning. For instance, we humans usually yawn between 5-10 times a day. It can be infectious too, as you might have observed.

One hypothesis for this is that it acts as a social function, gathering groups into the same state of mind and possibly assisting to synchronize patterns of sleep. (Though more research will be required to puzzle out that one.)

Related Article: Experts Uncover How Yawning Helps Group of Lions Be Synchronized

For more news, updates about yawning animals and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!
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Atlanta, GA (30342)

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Cloudy this morning with thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 81F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

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UN Security Council condemns attack on UN peacekeeping mission in DRC

Xinhua) 15:54, May 11, 2021

UNITED NATIONS, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The Security Council strongly condemned Monday's attack on the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which killed one Malawian blue helmet.

The members of the Security Council expressed their deepest condolences to the family of the victim, the Malawian authorities and the UN in a press statement.

They condemned in the strongest terms all attacks and provocations against the peacekeeping mission, known by its French acronym as MONUSCO. The council members underlined that deliberate attacks targeting peacekeepers may constitute war crimes under international law. They called on the Congolese authorities to swiftly investigate the attack and bring the perpetrators to justice.

The council members stressed the importance of MONUSCO having the necessary capacities to fulfill its mandate and promote the safety and security of the UN peacekeepers, pursuant to relevant Security Council resolutions.

They reiterated their full support for the stabilizing action of MONUSCO and its contingents and expressed their deep appreciation to MONUSCO's troop- and police-contributing countries.

(Web editor: Guo Wenrui, Liang Jun)
There are many things about snake reproduction that appear bizarre, or even frightening to the human eye. Snake mating rituals often involve a single female being entangled with a handful of competing males, who all try to be the first to wrap themselves around her.

The sight seems straight out of a horror movie (or something you could make a death trap out of if said snakes are poisonous). However, what can be even stranger than that there is now proof that female snakes can hold on to the sperm without necessarily getting pregnant until a later time of their choosing.

How snakes store sperm is still a mystery

It is a rare occurrence that is thought to be theoretically possible but never actually been observed until very recently. It all began when scientists observe strange 'virgin birth' events, where snakes had suddenly laid eggs even without having any contact with a male for years. DNA samples were then taken and it was discovered that the offspring definitely carried genes of another parent. This led them to suspect that the female stored the sperm after mating.

Despite more study though, biologists are still puzzled as to the exact mechanisms that allow snakes to accomplish this feat. Some studies suggest that there are special cells somewhere near the female's reproductive organs that secrete sugars and proteins that keep the sperm alive.

Still, this only appears to be the case of snakes who can store sperm for as long as several months. On the other hand, other documented cases show snakes who have been storing sperm for even five years. To date, scientists are still pursuing these remaining secrets of the reptile's uncanny control over its own reproduction.

Also read: 80-year-old Australian Man Survives Tense Boat Ride with Deadly Tiger Snake!

Snake births and mating season

The study of this peculiar aspect of snake mating habits is very important in the larger study of their populations. Links have been drawn between a snake delaying reproduction and the availability of food in the area. This means that birthing seasons could also go hand in hand with increased chances of snakes conflicting with humans in their search for prey. Female snakes that are either pregnant or in heat tend to be larger and have voracious appetites (with some species being reported to even eat their mates soon after the dance is done).

But as gruesome as it all sounds, it helps to remember that these same snakes play a vital role as predators of smaller (and often disease-carrying) animals. Proper handling of pregnant snakes is vital because a healthy presence in the ecosystem keeps things in balance.

And as a side note, these habits could also have interesting implications in the field of population management. Snakes are one of the few species known to have this level of natural control over their reproduction and how these are related to the dynamics of available food in the natural environment. Do these decisions affect entire ecosystems or is it the other way around? These are just some more of the many mysterious still yet to be solved regarding snake reproduction.

Also read: Some Animals Possess Amazing Sixth Sense to Predict Natural Disasters Like Earthquake
HUMAN rights lawyers and civic groups are piling legal pressure for Chief Justice Luke Malaba to resign ahead of his 70th birthday on Friday, instead of accepting a flawed extension of his retirement age by five more years through the recently signed constitutional amendment.

Malaba turns 70 this Friday and was set to retire according to the Constitution, before President Emmerson Mnangagwa last week hastily signed the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No 2) Bill into law, which will now allow judges to continue serving on the bench until they reach 75.

Legal experts yesterday said the undue and indecent haste in which the amendments were pushed through raised suspicion that it was inextricably intertwined with Chief Justice Malabas impending retirement.

Harare lawyer and executive director of the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum, Musa Kika, on Monday filed an urgent High Court application suing Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi and all judges of the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court over the matter.

Kikas application comes at a time when civic society organisations, the opposition MDC Alliance and other stakeholders have threatened multi-faceted action to oppose the constitutional amendments, saying they would slide Zimbabwe into authoritarian rule.

The NGO Forum boss is seeking an order to have Chief Justice Malaba cease to hold the office of the Chief Justice at midnight on May 15, 2021 and have his deputy, Justice Elizabeth Gwaunza, take over in an acting capacity pending the appointment of a substantive Chief Justice below 70 years of age.

Any action, conduct or deed of Luke Malaba post the 15th of May 2021 purportedly as the Chief Justice of Zimbabwe is null and void and of no effect, Kika wrote in papers filed on Monday.

It was also clear that the purpose behind the amendment was to assail judicial independence. It is a matter of regret that the impression is given that the honourable and distinguished judges concerned are being made to receive a favour, one which is fundamentally improper under the circumstances.

In accordance with provisions of section 164(1) and (2), the developments that have led to this application also constitute a deliberate and calculated assault on the independence of the judges concerned. Such independence has been assaulted by the first respondent.

Kika, who is being represented by Advocate Thabani Mpofu instructed by Cinginkosi Dube of Scanlen and Holderness, added that the Constitution provided that members of the Judiciary should not receive any gift or favour that may give the appearance of judicial impropriety.

He said the clause on judges retirement age was rejected during public hearings in December 2019, but Parliament chose to pass it all the same, plunging the country into a constitutional crisis.

The Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment No 2 Bill was last month fast-tracked by Ziyambi in the National Assembly before Zanu PF and MDC-T senators voted for it on May 4 in the Senate, with Mnangagwa signing it into law three days later.

In view of the correct legal position, whether the amendment be valid or otherwise, the fact of the matter is that it cannot benefit the respondents, Kika added.

I also point out that the general failure to adhere to the law has caused an avoidable constitutional crisis. By now, the second respondent should have proceeded on leave to make for a proper transitional mechanism.

There is danger that the second respondent may continue in office post the 15th of May 2021 and that if he does that, all his actions would be void. These include the administration of the Judiciary and the resolution of disputes in court.

In another High Court application filed yesterday by Harare lawyer Paul Christopher under case number HC/21, the applicants, Young Lawyers Association of Zimbabwe, and Fraderick Charles Moses Mutanda, who is the second applicant, also stated that if Chief Justice Malabas term of office was extended, this would plunge the nation into a constitutional crisis.

They cited the Judicial Service Commission, Chief Justice Malaba and Attorney-General Prince Machaya as respondents.

In a tweet, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions said: If Chief Justice Malaba accepts the extension of his tenure under the circumstances, the Judiciary will lose any residual respect it still has. He then becomes a politician. Politicians usually do stupid things, but judges are expected to be beyond reproach.

Lawyer and MDC Alliance vice-president Tendai Biti said the fight to protect our Constitution is reaching fever pitch. By the end of the week, a record number of applications will have been filed to protect the Constitution. Our efforts as lawyers should be complemented by peaceful constitutional civic action.

Chief Justice Malaba, who has been accused of political bias in the manner he conducted his duties, was appointed to the post in March 2017, replacing the late Godfrey Chidyausiku. Newsday
THE Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (Artuz) yesterday claimed that its members were at the weekend forced to attend a Zanu PF rally at Kagande in Mutoko and were ordered to register as voters for the party in 2023.

Artuz tweeted that rural teachers affiliated to the union were now refusing to go back to their workstations for fear of victimisation.

Over the weekend, members of Zanu PF terrorised some teachers in Mutoko district, forcing them to register as part of the five million voters for Zanu PF. In some cases, Zanu PF had all the details of the teachers, they just visited to confirm. In Kagande, teachers were forced to attend a rally, Artuz posted on its Twitter handle.

A total of 31 teachers reported through our hotline. Our rapid response team is in Mutoko assessing the safety of some teachers who refused to attend the Kagande meeting and those who refused to register as Zanu PF voters for 2023.

But Zanu PF party spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo dismissed the claims and challenged the affected teachers to report the matter to the police.

Zanu PF is a party of law and order, we subscribe to the rule of law. If there are any instances of what Artuz is alleging, then they should report such matters to the police, he said.

If they want to get to the bottom of the issue, the Zanu PF provincial leadership is there. They should ask the provincial chairman what is happening. The police are there to contain such characters.

Primary and Secondary Education ministry spokesperson Taungana Ndoro said he had not received reports of teacher intimidation by ruling party supporters.

No, we have not received any reports of such nature, and please also note that some of these teachers unions who have a membership of at least 386 people only want to cause alarm and despondency, he said.

But Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe president Takavafira Zhou said teachers were being victimised, adding that government had dismally failed to fulfil its promises to teachers.

We also are witnessing a sad situation where village heads are teaming up with school development committee members and are evicting the incapacitated teachers from school accommodation, he said.

We want to warn such misguided figures that they have no locus standi in intervening in cases between teachers and their employer. Newsday
Meadville, PA (16335)

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Fifty Shades of Grey, a novel by E.L. James's that appeared in 2015 had made the whole book market inundated with a flood of erotic bestsellers. People from all corners began wondering what this type of novel's secret of success could be.



The readership of erotic novels and the causes of this literary predilection is now investigated, i.e., who reads erotic novels and why, by a research team at the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics (MPIEA) in Frankfurt/Main, Germany and is published as an Open Access article in the journal Humanities & Social Sciences Communications.

Reading erotic novels is reported as a diversion, and feelings of ease and relaxation  a motivating factor by many readers. This demonstrates for the first time that the readership and motivations for reading underlie a major contemporary cultural phenomenon.

The Phenomenon of Erotic Novels



The study enrolled around 420 female participants between 20 and 40 years of age, among which the majority of respondents were heterosexual women in stable relationships with an above-average level of education. They described themselves as being enthusiastic frequent readers who enjoyed sharing their reading experiences with others.



Reading erotic novels was indicated as a diversion, and feelings of ease and relaxation & were frequently named as a motivating factor by the majority of respondents. The sexual explicitness of the novels and their potential to provide orientation in readers' own lives also played a role for the participants, although this role was less significant than had been assumed in previous studies.



Readers' opinions about erotic novels also came as a surprise, by contrast with more general critical ideas about contemporary erotica. "Many of the study participants saw erotic novels - at least in part - as being emancipated, feminist, and progressive. We attribute this finding primarily to the respondents' more traditional views of male and female gender roles," says the lead author Maria Kraxenberger.



The present study is the first to investigate empirically the readership and motivations for reading that underlie a major contemporary cultural phenomenon. Although readers of erotica have a significant impact on the international book market, the mainstream conversation about literature and reading is still reserved for "serious" readers of "good," if less popular, kinds of books.



These findings underscore the need for more research that explores reading experiences outside the canon of serious literature.



Source: Medindia The study enrolled around 420 female participants between 20 and 40 years of age, among which the majority of respondents were heterosexual women in stable relationships with an above-average level of education. They described themselves as beingwho enjoyed sharing their reading experiences with others.Reading erotic novels was indicated as aThe sexual explicitness of the novels and their potential to provide orientation in readers' own lives also played a role for the participants, although this role was less significant than had been assumed in previous studies.Readers' opinions about erotic novels also came as a surprise, by contrast with moresays the lead author Maria Kraxenberger.The present study is the first to investigate empiricallyAlthough readers of erotica have a significant impact on the international book market, the mainstream conversation about literature and reading is still reserved for "serious" readers of "good," if less popular, kinds of books.These findings underscore theSource: Medindia

Critics and scholars tend to classify its readers as having mediocre to poor taste, without, however, examining their motivations and experiences in more detail.
Alpharetta, Georgia-based Colonial Pipeline was forced to shut down its oil and gas pipeline system on Friday after a ransomware attack that has slowed down the transportation of oil in the eastern U.S. On Sunday, the federal government announced an emergency declaration that extends through June 8 and can be renewed. On Monday, the FBI confirmed that the cyberattack was carried out by DarkSide, a cybercrime gang believed to operate out of Russia.
Farhan Akhtar has always been vocal about his opinions on social media and he also is someone who gets mocked on Twitter way too often. He doesnt mince words when it comes to showing trolls their place.

Recently, a Twitter user slammed him for using a drive-in vaccination facility after the filmmaker-actor had recently revealed that he received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.

The user tweeted, Another VIP brat @FarOutAkhtar gets out of turn vaccination at the drive-in reserved for 60+years senior citizens... Either he is 60+, physically challenged that we do not know off, or used his status for vaccination.

 Mukul Aggarwal Twitter

The actor didnt hold back and responded, The drive-in is for 45 + .. now do something constructive for society with your time like losing your phone.



 Farhan Akhtar Twitter

After Farhans tweet, people started to give him a reality check that the drive-in vaccine facility is only meant for people above 60 years of age. They also shared a circular wherein BMC has clearly mentioned that the drive-facility is for senior citizens.



These drive-in vaccination centers are primarily meant for specially-abled people or senior citizens who can get these jabs while they sit in their own vehicles. According to Mumbai municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal, those above 60 years can get vaccinated at drive-in centers only by appointment, and they shall not drive themselves but will be accompanied by an attendant or a driver.

And this is how people reacted:

 Farhan Akhtar Twitter

 Farhan Akhtar Twitter

 Farhan Akhtar Twitter

 Farhan Akhtar Twitter

 Farhan Akhtar Twitter

 Farhan Akhtar Twitter

 Farhan Akhtar Twitter

 Farhan Akhtar Twitter

Meanwhile, on the work front, Farhan Akhtar will be next seen in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's Toofaan. The sports-themed film was earlier scheduled to release on Prime Video on May 21. However, due to the rise in the Covid-19 cases in the country, the release of the film has been postponed. Farhan plays a boxer in the film, which also features Mrunal Thakur, Paresh Rawal, Supriya Pathak Shah, and Hussain Dalal in pivotal roles.


Social media giant Twitter has donated USD 15 million to help India fight the second wave of COVID-19. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey tweeted on Monday that the amount has been donated to three non-governmental organisations i.e. Care, Aid India and Sewa International USA.

 Reuters

If you want to know the exact breakdown, CARE has been given USD 10 million, Sewa International USA and Aid India received USD 2.5 million each.



Sewa International is a Hindu faith-based, humanitarian, non-profit service organisation. This grant will support the procurement of lifesaving equipment such as oxygen concentrators, ventilators, BiPAP (Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure) and CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) machines as part of Sewa International's 'Help India Defeat COVID-19' campaign," the non-governmental organisation based in San Francisco said in a statement.

 Reuters

"Equipment will be distributed to government hospitals and COVID-19 care centers and hospitals," it said.



Sewa Internationals vice president for Marketing and Fund Development Sandeep Khadkekar thanked Dorsey for his contribution and said it was gratifying that the NOGs work had been recognised.

We are a volunteer-driven non-profit organisation, and we believe in serving all, following the sacred Hindu benediction, ''Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah'' -- ''May all be happy''," Mr Khadkekar told PTI.

Our administrative costs are about five per cent, meaning that every dollar a donor offers, we spend 95 cents of it on the work that it is earmarked for. In these past two weeks, we have seen how overwhelmed India's healthcare system is, and we want to do as much as we can to come to the aid of people who are deeply affected. Twitter's generosity will go a long way in helping us do the work we want to do, and that we need to do," he said.

Association for India's Development (AID) is a volunteer movement that partners with grassroots organisations in India and focuses on areas such as healthcare, education, livelihoods, environment, and human rights, Twitter said.

"This grant will help under-resourced communities identify COVID symptoms, prevent spread, access care and treatment, benefit from medical equipment including oxygen, oximeters, thermometers, protective gear and vaccination, survive lockdowns, regain livelihoods and will strengthen hospitals and NGOs that serve rural and low-income communities," Twitter added.

India has been severely affected by the second wave of COVID-19 and the country is seeing the highest number of positive cases in the world. Many hospitals in several states are facing shortages of vaccines, oxygen, drugs, beds and health workers. India saw 4 lakh fresh cases for the fourth consecutive days which brought the total tally up to 2,26,62,575, according to the health ministry.
Meridian, MS (39302)

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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.
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Those who still havent gotten their COVID-19 shots can soon receive free Uber and Lyft rides to and from vaccination sites thanks to a new program rolled out by President Biden on Tuesday as part of his push for accelerating immunizations amid signs of diminishing demand.
In summer 2020, The New York Times coordinated a nationwide project to document the lives of Americans out of work because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study involved collaborating with 11 other local newsrooms around the U.S. The Messenger-Inquirer was the only newspaper from Kentucky in the collaboration. The resulting collection of stories was published Oct. 23, 2020, in the New York Times print edition and at nytimes.com/outofwork. The following list is the Messenger-Inquirer's local unemployment coverage from that time period; read more by clicking the "New York Times Project" header. Click on "Out Of Work In America" to go to the full
Several lots of about 27,000-32,000 tonnes were booked in Northern Europe, Italy, Spain and Poland at 1,200 ($1,460) per tonne delivered, two sources said. Transport and additional costs in Europe have been estimated at about 50 per tonne. The material will be exported by various Chinese suppliers. It will be shipped in August and delivered to Europe in October.One Italian source estimated that Chinese suppliers had sold about 30,000-50,000 tonnes of CRC to the Europe.The price was $1,050-1,100 per tonne cfr plus anti-dumping duty. The most important mills sold, he added.Offers are around 1,180 per tonne cif, duty paid from Shougang and Ansteel, another Italian distributor said.

At the end of last week,...
KABUL  Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the IRoA welcomes the worldwide condemnation of recent terrorist attacks in Afghanistan, particularly the atrocious attacks on children and students at Sayed al-Shuhada High School west of Kabul. We are grateful to all countries and international organizations, including the United Nations, the UN Security Council, and the European Union, for condemning the barbaric terrorist attacks, offering their sympathies, and standing in solidarity with Afghanistan.

We reiterate once again the legitimate and rightful demand of Afghans for ending the ongoing senseless bloodshed, establishing an immediate and permanent ceasefire, and resuming meaningful peace talks to achieve an inclusive negotiated settlement leading to durable peace in war-weary Afghanistan.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasizes that pursuing sincere negotiations is the only path toward ending the current conflict and stopping the killing of innocent people.
A public hearing to consider the possible parole of Raymond Murray, #201591

A public hearing to consider the possible parole of Raymond Murray, #201591

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Chris Gautz, Public Information Officer

517-335-2316

The Michigan Parole Board will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, May 25, 2021 at 11:00 a.m. to consider the possible parole of Raymond Murray, #201591. The hearing will be conducted via video through Microsoft Teams and can be accessed by clicking HERE.

Those planning to access the hearing must call 517-335-1736 no later than May 21, 2021 to confirm attendance.

Raymond Murray is serving a Life sentence for the crime of Robbery Unarmed. Raymond Murray was sentenced on May 7, 1996 out of Genesee County.

Sandra Wilson, Member of the Michigan Parole Board, will conduct the hearing under the provisions of the Lifer Law, MCLA 791.234.

When logging into the hearing, your video must be turned off and audio muted to eliminate distraction during the hearing.

Please be advised that recordings, photography or screenshots of the proceeding are prohibited.
Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson calls for passage of the For the People Act to protect democracy, freedom to vote

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson calls for passage of the For the People Act to protect democracy, freedom to vote

MAY 11, 2021

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson submitted a letter to the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and Administration calling for passage of the For the People Act (S.1) to provide a clear baseline of voting protections in the face of national, coordinated, partisan attacks on every citizen's voting rights by state legislatures.

"S.1 and the substitute amendment would put in place critical, minimum standards needed to protect our democracy and every citizen's freedom to vote," said Benson.

Michigan's 2020 elections demonstrated that many of the components of the For the People Act can be implemented effectively and efficiently when states utilize political will, funding, data and national best practices. After Michigan citizens voted to overwhelmingly amend the state constitution to enshrine voting rights in 2018, Michigan implemented automatic voter registration, same-day voter registration, no-excuse absentee voting, and an independent citizens redistricting commission in one election cycle, and in the midst of a global pandemic.

Yet state legislators have put forth a 39-bill package to restrict voting rights, joining a national, partisan effort using false information about the 2020 election that undermines voters' faith in democracy.

"The For the People Act is our best chance, and the U.S. Senate our greatest hope, to stop the rollback of voting rights and ensure the voice and vote of every citizen - no matter where they live or who they vote for - is protected," said Benson. "I urge the Senate to advance this legislation and stand ready to assist with supporting its implementation here in Michigan, and nationwide."

Copies of the letter were sent to the Committee Chairwoman Amy Klobuchar and Ranking Member Roy Blunt, as well as to Sen. Debbie Stabenow, Sen. Gary Peters and New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, who is president of the National Association of Secretaries of State.

Read a full copy of the letter.

# # #

For media questions, contact

Tracy Wimmer at 517-281-1876.

We welcome questions and comments at the Contact the Secretary of State page.

Customers may call the Department of State Information Center to

speak to a customer-service representative at 888-SOS-MICH (767-6424).
Where does the money go? New Grants and Loans Dashboard shows exactly where

Where does the money go? New Grants and Loans Dashboard shows exactly where

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 11, 2021

EGLE Media Office, EGLE-Assist@Michigan.gov, 517-284-9278

More than half EGLE's budget flows back to communities to help protect environment, health

Where is EGLE's budget spent? Most of it in communities across the state, which are the recipients of more than half of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy's (EGLE) budget in the form of grants, loans and other support.

Now, a new Grants and Loans Dashboard shows exactly where - from the Ohio border to the shores of Lake Superior - that funding goes. A simplified explanation of the dashboard is available via this story map.

This interactive dashboard provides access to a rich dataset of information. Fiscal Year 2019 and 2020 data is currently available, with plans to add additional fiscal years so users can search for projects funded in their communities and look at funding trends.

The money flowing back to municipal governments and other entities helps those communities protect the environment and public health through projects as diverse as water treatment equipment upgrades to flood control infrastructure. In Fiscal Years 2019 and 2020 alone, a total of over $500 million was disbursed to local municipalities and other entities. In Fiscal Year 2020, EGLE administered 485 grants through 50 grant programs and 64 loans across four programs.

"This furthers our commitment to transparency, accountability, and to the communities we partner with to help improve the systems critical to the environment and the health of Michiganders," said Amy Epkey, senior deputy director with EGLE. "We're excited to share this new and useful tool with the public."

# # #
MSHDA unveils $2 million modular housing program to create affordable builds

MSHDA unveils $2 million modular housing program to create affordable builds

Media Contacts:

Katie Bach, BachK@michigan.gov

Anna Vicari, VicariA@michigan.gov

May 11, 2021

LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) is pleased to launch its $2 million MSHDA MOD program following the success of a 2019 modular home construction pilot project. It's designed to help Michigan communities attract and retain new businesses, talent and homebuyers by creating affordable new construction housing using modular build/modified technology homes.

Through this program, MSHDA is awarding up to $200,000 per recipient to aid in the construction, marketing, and sale of a modular home that can serve as a catalyst to encourage new construction of affordable homes within the community. The activities financed include model delivery, taxes, site preparation, on-site finishing, and related construction costs.

By leveraging modular housing builds, the program offers communities a practical workforce housing solution by reducing the timeline for typical single-family home construction- allowing housing to be made available for immediate occupancy.

"Aligning with MSHDA's ongoing mission to ensure quality affordable housing is available to all Michigan residents, we are very excited to launch our organization's latest MOD program- positioned to help expedite single-family housing development," said Tonya Young, MSHDA's Neighborhood Enhancement Team Manager. "The program uses alternative strategies to help meet workforce housing demands statewide and attract homebuyers to Michigan communities."

MSHDA MOD program funding is available for use towards single-family modular construction opportunities, single-family modified technology/techniques, and small-scale multi-unit modular construction options.

Funding submissions for the program are limited to eligible nonprofit agencies (501c3), local units of government, and limited dividend housing associations in areas that are primarily residential and low to moderate income.

Electronic submissions will be accepted through June 1, 2021. For more information on the program and how to apply, visit MSHDA's website at www.michigan.gov/mshdamod.

MSHDA Mission

The Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA), established in 1966, serves the people of Michigan by partnering to provide quality housing that is affordable, a cornerstone of diverse, thriving communities.

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Its a step in the right direction, but we didnt see significant demographic changes, said Stefan Lallinger, a fellow at the left-leaning Century Foundation think tank. Choice in and of itself is not enough to ensure the diversity, economic, racial and academic, that we know makes schools and classrooms  really great places for kids to learn, he added.
The educational path for Austin Moody, a cum laude graduate of Ferris State Universitys Information Security and Intelligence program, took him on a journey across Lower Michigan. He landed in Big Rapids, ready to develop skills that now allow him to serve an essential operation of the federal government.

I attended a high school in the Thumb, where my interest in technology may not have been seen as high a priority for my district as its support of athletics and agriculture, Moody said. Through persistence, we started a robotics club my senior year. I am thankful for the technology director at my high school, the technology instructor with the Tuscola Intermediate School District. My father, a network engineer, offered me advice and encouraged me. Two of my key mentors were Ferris graduates. While it was not a hard sell they made, their guidance was most likely an influence in my decision to come to Ferris.

Michigans Tuition Incentive Program was another catalyst for action, which helped bring Austin to Big Rapids.

I did not know what to expect, as I am a first-generation student, but it excited me to start a new chapter in my life, Moody said. In my senior year, it seemed that I would be starting higher education as a community college student, but the TIP program gave me the financial freedom to broaden my opportunities.

His interest in technology took a while to define and refine the proper course of study to match his intentions.

I started in computer information technology, but I was keeping my eyes open, Moody said. I was unaware that Ferris had a curriculum focused on keeping technology secure from attacks, an area I could study and pursue for a career. It was the fall of my third year on campus when I met with an ISI advisor, and since I was a TIP student, choosing to change my degree was not as simple as just filing the necessary paperwork. I knew I would have to spend another year in college, but my program advisor said that amount of time is a small consideration compared to the length of a career in the industry.

Validation of his choice came quickly.

I knew ISI was right for me after the introductory session of my first class, Moody said.

His advance to a master of science in ISI has not been without its struggles, but he saw those situations as personal growth opportunities.

In my fourth year on campus, I found myself in difficult straits, financially, Moody said. My work in the ISI program was going well, but to stay on track, I had to take four years of core courses in two, which would not be possible in a proper pace of schedule. At one point, I had what amounted to a 26-credit load. Passion fueled my survival at that time. I gave it my all to succeed and show myself, as a first-generation college student, worthy of investment and opportunity.

Beyond academics, Moody found ways to get involved and to bring balance to his college experience.

Joining Housing and Residence Life as a resident advisor was a definite boost when I needed it the most, he said. I am so glad that I put my health above all else, with weight lifting as my go-to activity to relieve stress. Finally, having focused on time management proved extremely important in developing priorities to meet so many commitments. I am grateful to have learned these things at Ferris.

That balance has helped his academic focus.

Moody said that the ISI faculty has been incredibly supportive, encouraging him to take on leadership responsibilities related to the program and its students.

I have had terms as the secretary and vice president of the Information Security and Intelligence Alliance chapter, here, Moody said. As secretary, I was a key contributor in establishing the ISIA Discord. This platform became even more important as the COVID-19 pandemic changed the course of the Spring 2020 semester. Students in cybersecurity can use this to collaborate on coursework or other projects, share resources, or simply network in this fashion. I am proud that the Discord has more than 150 members.

This growth has been gratifying.

I feel great about the success of these efforts, but to see them grow and develop as I enter my career, I have given this over to the Women in Cybersecurity chapter and the ISIA registered student organization, he added.

Moody also said the Information Security and Intelligence seek and encourage a well-rounded student experience.

I believe the relationships between students and faculty in ISI are some of the strongest on campus, he said. I attribute much of my success to the collaborative efforts with other students and the support we receive from the faculty. Our professors go above and beyond with providing opportunities for success.

Moodys support of all things ISI includes volunteering in outreach opportunities the program arranges for high school students.

Being in a support role during these cybersecurity competitions was very rewarding, he said. Just being able to explain the opportunities that are possible by taking our program and helping young students.

Beyond his work to encourage visitors and prospects to consider the ISI program, Moody did his best to demonstrate its excellence during his time on campus, as a competitor in the National Cyber League, a cybersecurity competition.

I especially enjoyed the team aspect of NCL, Moody said. The team game is a unique experience and a great opportunity for students to bond and compete cooperatively. We scored in the 99th percentile consistently, over three seasons.

In 2019, Austin was one of three Ferris students to earn scholarships, providing them the opportunity to gain Global Information Assurance Certifications from the SANS Institute because of their success in the Cyber FastTrack competition.

That opened many doors for me, Moody said. I do feel that my proudest accomplishments are for the things that I won no awards for. I believe that if you contribute positively to the community, your rewards come back ten-fold. I am more about making a positive contribution than to concern myself with profits.

Another opportunity to distinguish himself came about in 2020, as Moody was one of three students to receive a scholarship from the United States Department of Defense, as part of an award that amassed $385,000 to build up the ISI curriculum to the point of their offering Artificial Intelligence instruction, as of the Spring 2021 semester. Moody also completed a summer of employment with the DoD, with his career to begin service to that federal department after graduation.

My entry into the workforce is not like what many of my student peers have found, Austin said. Theirs may be a quick advance from organization to organization, but I expect a path that is somewhat more rigid and steadily paced. I have networked with others who are looking at the same career start. Patience is an apparent virtue to succeed in public-sector cybersecurity.

The future looks bright to Moodys eyes.

I am heading into a substantial change in scenery since I join department operations in Tampa, Florida, he added. I cannot speak about my DoD responsibilities, as my position is classified Top Secret. I am hoping, in the long term, to work in the aerospace industry. Space exploration is something that has held my interest since childhood, so I would love to support that mission in any way that I can.

Moody has offered his talents to the ISI program beyond his academic and competitive excellence.

As a part of the new developments within ISI, another student and I were tasked with building a lab environment located in Room 102 of the Business Building, Austin said. This room contains an IoT network, where devices are interconnected and communicate without human involvement. There are also some vulnerable devices for instructional use and a podcast studio.

The dynamic nature of the ISI curriculum kept me on my toes. This year alone saw the introduction of new machine learning and satellite security courses, he added. I may not be around to see the result of the ongoing changes, but I cannot help but find them exciting. I know that I will not benefit directly from my efforts, but I am happy to help the next generation of ISI students. I hope to come back and visit the new departmental headquarters once the Center for Virtual Learning construction is complete.

As Moody looks to resume his professional pursuits, he considers his time on campus with pride and reflection, which he hopes can benefit others.

It was not until I got to Ferris that I felt at home, Moody said. I hope to give back to the university and the ISI program down the road. I would tell others who may reach a similar crossroads in their learning that they should not force themselves into a career path they have no passion for. It is never too late to change course because if you love what you are doing, time flies.
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP)  North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum has partially vetoed a bill aimed at penalizing the states 11 colleges and universities for funneling federal grant money to individuals or organizations that promote or perform abortions.

The Republican governor said in his veto message late Friday that the multimillion-dollar penalties directed toward our public higher education institutions and mandatory criminal charges against state employees is problematic.

Burgum vetoed the portion of the bill that contains the sanctions, citing state law that already forbids an agency of the state from funding or supporting programs that do not give preference, encouragement and support to normal childbirth. Burgum said the sections he did not veto were intended to clarify that unless institutions abide by anti-abortion policies, they are ineligible to receive challenge grant dollars.

The Republican-led North Dakota Legislature passed the bill, which was primarily aimed at preventing North Dakota State University from funneling grant money to Planned Parenthood for sex education in the state.

The bill says any institution that enters into a contract with a person that performs or promotes the performance of an abortion would have its operating budget cut by $2.8 million. The school official signing the contract also would face a misdemeanor charge punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a $1,500 fine.

The $250,000 annual grant to the Fargo-based research university comes from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NDSU President Dean Bresciani has said the grant expires in September and wont be renewed, but not because of the Legislatures threat of sanctions.

Bresciani said that he wont bow to political pressure or proposed sanctions against the school for having ties to Planned Parenthood. He called it a matter of academic freedom.

The bill appropriates $11.1 million from the states General Fund for the Challenge Grant program thats used at all schools for such things as scholarships and research. The money is matched two-to-one with private or other funds.

The Senate passed the bill, 35-11. The GOP-led House passed the measure 66-25.

Burgum cited state law already prevents agencies from funding, endorsing, or supporting "any program that, between normal childbirth and abortion, does not give preference, encouragement, and support to normal childbirth.

The Legislature adjourned April 30 and is unlikely to reconvene to challenge the veto.

In the veto message, Burgum reaffirmed the highly conservative states stance on abortion.

North Dakota has strong pro-life public policies, and our administration has a strong record of signing pro-life legislation into law, Burgum wrote. The North Dakota legislature has made clear, and our administration agrees, that taxpayer funding should not go toward funding abortions.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP)  The track record of global energy giant Iberdrola's U.S. subsidiary Avangrid has sparked concerns among utility regulators and others as the company seeks approval for a multibillion-dollar merger with New Mexicos largest electric provider.

Ashley Schannauer, a hearing examiner with the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission, said during a meeting Tuesday that utilities owned by Avangrid have been assessed a total of $25 million in penalties and disallowances in the past 16 months for poor performance and customer service issues in Maine, Connecticut and New York.

While the information was disclosed in filings with the federal Securities and Exchange Commission, Schannauer said Avangrid has been less than forthcoming with New Mexico regulators. He said the company failed to provide information about the enforcement actions in the other states as the Public Regulation Commission considers the company's proposed merger with PNM Resources.

He also pointed to audits requested by regulators in Maine and Connecticut that are aimed at the organizational structure of Avangrid affiliates and utilities in those states.

He called the failure to disclose the information troubling, saying it's relevant to the credibility of testimony provided by Avangrid's witnesses in the merger case and the transparency by which Avangrid and PNM would conduct their business if the merger is approved.

These enforcement actions are clearly relevant to the commissions consideration of the request in this case in my opinion. Will there be similar problems in New Mexico if the merger is approved? he asked.

Brian Haverly, an attorney for Avangrid, said the company has nothing to hide and will provide the information requested by the hearing examiner. The deadline was set for next Tuesday.

Staff members with the Public Regulation Commission in a filing Friday reiterated their concerns about the proposed merger. At issue is whether the deal is in the public's interest.

Some critics have said a proposed settlement agreement between Connecticut-based Avangrid and PNM Resources  the parent company of Public Service Co. of New Mexico  doesnt go far enough when it come to customer benefits or funds to support economic development in the state.

PNM and Avangrid announced concessions in April after their initial proposal failed to win the necessary support. The latest proposal includes $50 million in rate credits for customers, economic development donations of $7.5 million, additional money for energy efficiency assistance for low-income customers over five years, and promises of more jobs and being carbon-free by 2035.

Still, attorneys for some of the parties pointed Tuesday to Avangrid's regulatory troubles, saying New Mexico customers deserve to be protected and that more is at stake here because PNM is a vertically integrated utility that owns its own transmission and generation infrastructure in addition to selling electricity to customers.

Peter Gould, an attorney for the New Mexico Affordable Reliable Energy Alliance, accused Avangrid of not negotiating in good faith. He said not providing New Mexico regulators with information about the enforcement actions is just one example.

We have had very much difficulty in this case dealing with this company because they do not seem to understand that they have to play by the rules, he said.

State Attorney General Hector Balderas, who serves as the top consumer advocate for New Mexicans, signed off on the proposed settlement agreement in April, saying improvements were made that would prioritize underserved tribal communities and provide more resources for union workers and coal miners affected by the planned closures of two coal-fired power plants in northwestern New Mexico.

Matt Baca, a spokesman for Balderas, said Tuesday that the attorney general will advocate for strong consumer protections as the case proceeds.

New Mexico must have the highest customer service standards in addition to greater investment in impacted communities, he said.
LEWISTON, Maine (AP)  Police have referred an investigation into graffiti on the campus of Bates College that targeted Israel and supported Palestinian rights to the state Attorney Generals Office as a possible hate crime.

A social media account affiliated with some Bates College students posted photos on Sunday showing what appeared to be chalk graffiti on the college's campus that supported Palestinian rights and targeted Israel, the Lewiston Sun Journal reported.
EDEN, Texas (AP)  A man shot two West Texas sheriff's deputies dead and critically wounded a city employee answering a dog complaint, authorities said Tuesday.

Sgt. Justin Baker of the Texas Department of Public Safety said the suspect was taken into custody after Monday night's attack in Eden, a town of about 1,300 people roughly 210 miles (338 kilometers) southwest of Dallas.

Jeffrey Nicholas, 28, has been booked into Tom Green County Jail in nearby San Angelo with a bond set at $4 million and charged with capital murder of a peace officer. No attorney for Nicholas was listed in jail records.

The two Concho County sheriff's deputies and a city employee arrived at the home shortly after 8:40 p.m., Baker said. While making contact with people at the residence, an altercation occurred and quickly escalated to gunfire, he said.

The Lubbock Police Department said in a statement that it was heartbroken to learn of the deaths and that its officers on Tuesday would escort the deputies bodies to a forensics lab in Lubbock, which is about 200 miles (322 kilometers) northwest of Eden.

Gov. Greg Abbott said in a statement that our hearts are broken.

This terrible loss is a solemn reminder of the risks our brave law enforcement officers face while protecting our communities, Abbott said.
STAMFORD  New residents from far and wide landed in Connecticuts lap during pandemic-related exoduses, according to a new study. And among all of the states 169 municipalities, pockets of Stamford fared particularly well.

A Hearst Connecticut Media analysis of change-of-address notifications filed with the U.S. Postal Service found that Connecticut beat out regional competitors like Westchester and Long Island in terms of 2020 move-ins. The pandemic especially flipped the migration switch in two pockets of Stamford: the ZIP codes 06901 and 06903, according to real estate services firm CBRE.

The number of people moving from other, more populous places to the Stamford metro area exploded in 2020. Over 17,000 people moved to the Stamford-Bridgeport-Norwalk Metro from New York City and its surrounding communities in 2020. The year before, only 10,079 people made the same move, meaning the migration grew by 72 percent in one year, according to the Hearst analysis.

By population, the ZIP code for Stamfords downtown, 06901, saw some of the most precipitous growth in Connecticut, according to the USPS data. For every 1,000 residents, 65 more people moved downtown in 2020 than in 2019. Over the pandemic year, in particular, the increase in that neighborhood beat out the boom in some of the citys more suburban communities. And that only counts people who permanently changed their mailing address accordingly.

However, Stamfords 06903 ZIP code  which spans all of North Stamford  fared better overall in the regions population game. Even when accounting for residents who moved away, North Stamford gained at least 413 new residents by CBREs estimate.

Ive seen more baby carriages in the last six months than I have in the last six years, said city Rep. Bob Lion, who represents part of North Stamford. He said he sees young families everywhere in his neighborhood. Of course, the trend has picked up over the last year, but Lion thinks it goes back years.

The 06902 ZIP code, a vast and socioeconomically diverse swath of Stamford south of Interstate 95 up to Westover, led the entire state in newcomers during 2019 and 2020. Between the two years, 13,452 residents moved there. But that influx of people alone only means so much. In that same time frame, 15,006 residents moved out of the 06902. Unlike Downtown and North Stamford, the pandemics net migration from that zipcode was relatively flat.

New families, many with young children, are replacing longtime residents who are looking to downsize or cash in on the hottest housing market since 2006. Lion thinks that the churn of families moving in and out of North Stamford is different than in years past.

During its corporate heydey in the 1980s, when the city had the largest concentration of headquarters in the country, it used to be because people were transferring in and out, Lion said. By his estimates, the corporate professionals who settled here 40 years ago are now turning over, thinking of downsizing or flocking to warm-weather states like birds in the wintertime.

Combined with the pandemic-related influx, real estate agents say Stamford is experiencing a perfect storm.

Theres a severe lack of inventory right now in Stamford, local real estate agent Chris Carozza said. In April 2021, only 91 homes were listed for sale in the entire 06903 ZIP code, according to data from Realtor.com. Exactly a year prior, 215 homes were listed for sale in the same community. Fewer homes drive up the price of real estate and heighten the stakes in competitive markets. Between February 2020 and February 2021, the median listing price in North Stamford jumped 30 percent.

Carozza said sees cash offers happening in places like North Stamford more and more because of the New York City money flooding the market, along with waived mortgage and inspection contingencies.

Theres a downside, however, especially for more vulnerable house hunters.

If you have to sell your house to buy your next house ... youre competing with people who dont have anything to sell, and they have cash. Its very difficult to compete with those people. Thats really frustrating for a lot of Connecticut buyers right now, Carozza said.

In Fairfield County, the limited housing stock and competitive market have meant more people are moving farther away than before. CBRE data shows that a whopping majority of movers  more than 49,000 people  stayed within the county. But during the pandemic, the number of people moving between 100 and 500 miles from Fairfield County jumped by 19 percent.

That same zeal translated into enthusiasm about Stamfords rental market, which has changed the most because of the pandemic. In 2019, Downtown lost 433 residents. One year later, move-ins to the same neighborhood jumped by 620 people.

Just before the pandemic stuck, Urby  a brand of apartment buildings with a penchant for aesthetically minded flourishes  opened its Stamford location right on the corner of Greyrock Place. And like many of its Downtown compatriots, the influx of residents to the neighborhood has been welcome news.

Were definitely considering people who are saying I dont necessarily need to be tethered to a certain area of New York City. I can have the flexibility of being a little bit further away, Urby Marketing Director Tara Leavitt said.

Leavitt thinks the Urby is strategically positioned for even more growth as people emerge from their socially distanced cocoons. The building is significantly closer to the Stamford Transportation Center than some of the other luxury properties nearby, she said, and proximity to both the train and the central business district helps give its tenants the best of both worlds.

While the pandemic has brought hundreds of people to Stamford, its the citys job to convince them and their tax money to stay. A sure-fire way to to do that, according to Lion, is by investing in Stamfords amenities.

The city representative said he hopes to see more money going towards parks, more Downtown programming like farmers markets and its outdoor dining initiative, and more large-scale events geared towards young people and families.

Its not going to be for me, Lion said. Its going to be for those who buy my house.

veronica.delvalle@hearstmediact.com
WASHINGTON (AP)  Hit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said Monday it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end of the week as the FBI and administration officials identified the culprits as a gang of criminal hackers.

U.S. officials sought to soothe concerns about price spikes or damage to the economy by stressing that the fuel supply had so far not experienced widespread disruptions, and the company said it was working toward substantially restoring operational service by the weekend.

The White House said in a statement late Monday that it was monitoring supply shortages in parts of the Southeast and that President Joe Biden had directed federal agencies to bring their resources to bear.

Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a ransomware attack that it said had affected some of its systems.

Nonetheless, the attack underscored the vulnerabilities of the nation's energy sector and other critical industries whose infrastructure is largely privately owned. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data, paralyzing victim networks, and demand large payments to decrypt it.

The Colonial attack was a potent reminder of the real-world implications of the burgeoning threat. Even as the Biden administration works to confront organized hacking campaigns sponsored by foreign governments, it must still contend with difficult-to-prevent attacks from cybercriminals.

We need to invest to safeguard our critical infrastructure, Biden said Monday. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the attack tells you how utterly vulnerable we are to cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure.

The attack came as the administration, still grappling with its response to massive breaches by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations, works on an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity defenses. The Justice Department, meanwhile, has formed a ransomware task force designed for situations just like Colonial Pipeline, and the Energy Department on April 20 announced a 100-day initiative focused on protecting energy infrastructure from cyber threats. Similar actions are planned for other critical industries, such as water and natural gas.

Despite that, the challenge facing the government and the private sector remains immense.

In this case, the FBI publicly assigned blame Monday by saying the criminal syndicate whose ransomware was used in the attack is named DarkSide. The group's members are Russian speakers, and the syndicates malware is coded not to attack networks using Russian-language keyboards.

Anne Neuberger, the White House deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, said at a briefing that the group has been on the FBI's radar for months. She said its business model is to demand ransom payments from victims and then split the proceeds with the ransomware developers, relying on what she said was a new and very troubling variant.

She declined to say if Colonial Pipeline had paid any ransom, and the company has not given any indication of that one way or the other. Though the FBI has historically discouraged victims from making payments for fear of promoting additional attacks, she acknowledged the very difficult situation that victims face and said the administration needs to look thoughtfully at this area" of how best to deter ransomware.

"Given the rise in ransomware, that is one area were definitely looking at now to say, What should be the governments approach to ransomware actors and to ransoms overall?

Speaking later in the day at a conference on national security, Neuberger said the administration was committed to leveraging the government's massive buying power to ensure that software makers make their products less vulnerable to hackers.

Security can't be an afterthought, Neuberger said. We don't buy a car and only then decide if we want to pay for seatbelts and airbags.

The U.S. sanctioned the Kremlin last month for a hack of federal government agencies, known as the SolarWinds breach, that officials have linked to a Russian intelligence unit and characterized as an intelligence-gathering operation.

In this case, though, the hackers are not known to be working at the behest of any foreign government. The group posted a statement on its dark web site describing itself as apolitical. Our goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society, DarkSide said.

Asked Monday whether Russia was involved, Biden said, Im going to be meeting with President (Vladimir) Putin, and so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved, although there is evidence that the actors, ransomware, is in Russia.

They have some responsibility to deal with this, he added.

U.S. officials have sought to head off anxieties about the prospect of a lingering economic impact and disruption to the fuel supply, especially given Colonial Pipeline's key role in transporting gasoline, jet fuel, diesel and other petroleum products between Texas and the East Coast.

Colonial is in the process of restarting portions of its network. It said Monday that it was evaluating the product inventory in storage tanks at its facilities. Administration officials stressed that Colonial proactively took some of its systems offline to prevent the ransomware from migrating from business computer systems to those that control and operate the pipeline.

In response to the attack, the administration loosened regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an all-hands-on-deck effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.

The time of the outage is now approaching critical levels and if it continues to remain down we do expect an increase in East Coast gasoline and diesel prices, said Debnil Chowdhury, IHS Markit Executive Director. The last time there was an outage of this magnitude was in 2016, he said, when gas prices rose 15 to 20 cents per gallon. The Northeast had significantly more local refining capacity at that time.

The pipeline utilizes both common and custom technology systems, which could complicate efforts to bring the entire network back online, according to analysts at Third Bridge.

Granholm, the Energy Secretary, said Cyber attacks on our critical infrastructure  especially energy infrastructure  is not going away."

This is a serious example of what were seeing across the board in many places and it tells you that we need to invest in our systems, our transmission grid for electricity. We need to invest in cyber defense in these energy systems," she told Bloomberg TV.

The attack has not affected the supply of gasoline, she said, but if it goes on too long, of course that will change.

Gasoline futures ticked higher Monday. Futures for crude and fuel, prices that traders pay for contracts for delivery in the future, typically begin to rise anyway each year as the driving season approaches. The price you pay at the pump tends to follow.

The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline has jumped 6 cents over the past two weeks, to $3.02 per gallon, which is $1.05 higher than a year ago. The year-ago numbers are skewed somewhat because the nation was going into lockdown due to the pandemic.

The attack on the Colonial Pipeline could exacerbate the upward pressure on prices if it is unresolved for a period of time.

___

Associated Press writers Frank Bajak in Boston and Matthew Daly in Washington contributed to this report.
CHICAGO (AP)  The state of Illinois, working with business and labor organizations, plans to offer COVID-19 vaccinations to workers at offices around the state, officials announced Monday.

The initiative is being prompted by the return to offices by thousands of workers forced home by the pandemic. Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Monday having vaccine available where people are working makes getting vaccinations very convenient.

Thanks to this new initiative, people will be able to conveniently get this life-saving vaccine right in their workplace, furthering our efforts to create a safe return to work process for our residents in the economic heart of our city, regardless of their occupation, said Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot.

The effort will launch in mid-May with the opening of 10 vaccination sites in Chicago, Schaumburg and Rockford. The clinics, staffed by Walgreen pharmacists, offer two-dose vaccinations and will also take walk-ins.

State officials are encouraging Illinois building operators interested in hosting additional clinics to contact the Illinois Department of Public Health directly or to contact the Building Owners and Managers Association.

With enhanced air quality and ventilation, advanced cleanliness procedures, and reconfigurations, our buildings have been prepared to welcome tenants back to the office for over a year, Building Owners and Managers Association executive director Farzin Parang said in a statement.

While announcing the vaccination plans at a Chicago bank, Pritzker acknowledged Illinois has reached a vaccination plateau, as most people eager to be vaccinated have already received their shots.

State officials are also supporting vaccination clinics for community organizations such as churches and other religious organizations, neighborhood associations, mutual aid groups, nonprofits, immigrant service providers. Interested organizations can sign up to host a clinic at no cost to them and IDPH will provide the staff and supplies.

The efforts come as state health officials report 1,424 new cases of the coronavirus and 12 new deaths. The health department is reporting a total of 1,356,391 cases, including 22,235 deaths in the state since the start of the pandemic. More than 9.9 million vaccines had been administered in Illinois as of early Monday.
The Marco Polos arrival is made possible by Port Authority work to deepen the harbor around the New Jersey seaports in 2016 and by the raising of the Bayonne Bridges roadway in 2017. Such megaships are becoming more common in the global shipping industry.
Gov. Ned Lamont is offering up an additional $150 million in Medicaid funding to the nursing home industry, an increase of 4.5 percent for wage increases for workers in each of the next two years, in hopes of quelling the impending strike of thousands of employees Friday morning.

Were trying to do anything we can to avoid a strike, Lamont said late Monday afternoon, asked at his coronavirus briefing where strike negotiations stood.

Earlier in the day, his administration put forth an aggressive proposal, he said, which, in addition to the $150 million increase, would temporarily boost Medicaid reimbursement by 10 percent for a total of $86 million, and add $32 million in hazard pay and retirement enhancements.

Theres nothing more important than taking care of our seniors, Lamont said, and I hope to God the nurses are there to do it.

The Lamont administration is not a direct party in negotiations between the union and nursing home operators over a new contract. But as the major payer through the state-federal Medicaid system, the administration is in talks with both sides to avert a strike.

Word of the enhancements came as 600 more SEIU District 1199 workers at six additional nursing homes voted to authorize a walkout on May 28  bringing the strike threat to 4,000 total workers.

We are negotiating our union contracts to finally rise out of poverty, Rob Baril, president of District 1199, said in a written statement Monday evening. But were also fighting to make sure that residents can regularly count on having enough staff to meet their needs.

It was not clear late Monday whether the total Lamont made available would be enough to avert a strike, as both labor and management have said they need significantly more funding.

Baril said the union continues to negotiate with nursing home operators and members of the Lamont administration. Acknowledging receipt of the Lamont administrations offer, Baril said workers still plan to strike pending further negotiations.

We are hopeful that ongoing discussions with the administration will be productive, he said.

A report released Monday by the Yale Law Clinic outlined poor working conditions, including understaffing and low wages, at Connecticut nursing homes during the pandemic.

Starting at 6 a.m. Friday, about 3,400 workers at 33 nursing homes in Connecticut are planning to walk off the job. They work at facilities operated by Genesis, iCare, RegalCare and Autumn Lake, with Genesis and iCare operating most of the facilities. Mondays additional strike notices bring the total number of nursing homes under a formal strke threat to 39.

In addition to the nursing home employees, about 2,000 group home workers, also from District 1199, voted Friday to authorize a strike effective May 21  with many of the same issues as the nursing home workers.

The nursing home talks were all the more tense Monday as facilities prepared to relocate residents at homes that would be hit with by the Friday strike  some, perhaps, to facilities outside the state.

We understand that theres an urgency, said Paul Mounds, the governors chief of staff.

Any nursing home that receives a strike notice is required by law to submit contingency plans, including any discharge plans and how patients would be cared for, to the state Department of Public Health no later than five days before the possible strike.

The department is currently reviewing the plans submitted by impacted nursing homes. If the plans are deemed insufficient, the state could move to relocate residents to other facilities inside or outside the state.

It was unclear Monday afternoon how many nursing home residents would need to be relocated and how many would be cared for by replacement workers or managers. Mounds said close to 1,000 residents would be affected by Fridays strike.

Lamont is hoping the $280 million proposal will be enough to convince the union and nursing home operators to reach a deal. The proposal would mostly be paid for through the states Medicaid program, which is matched by federal money, as the Lamont administration seeks to tap into hundreds of millions of dollars in unspent Medicaid funds.

Of the total, $25.5 million in federal stimulus relief recently adopted American Rescue Plan would be spent on hazard pay enhancements and workforce development and training.

That stimulus money would be allowed because the industry is experiencing financial instability due to the pandemic.

The governors budget director Melissa McCaw and Dr. Deidre Gifford, commissioner of the Department of Social Services, presented the proposal in letters Monday to union and industry representatives, saying increases for workers have averaged 1.1 percent over the last 14 years.

This proposal is four times the average rate increase over that period and would be unprecedented, they said.

Lamont acknowledged that the state would be propping up an industry undergoing real tranistion.

A report on nursing home demand released before the pandemic found the number of nursing home beds in Connecticut is expected to be reduced by nearly 6,000 by 2040. And the most recent annual census of nursing home residents, found that on Sept. 30, 2020, there were 18,402 people residing in Connecticut nursing facilities, 3,795 fewer residents than a year prior.

That decline reflect the 3,875 Connecticut nursing home residents who died in COVOD-related cases.

There was a lot of vacancy in the nursing homes before Covid, Lamont said. Theres a lot more vacancy now after Covid.

The 10 percent boost to Medicaid reimbursement would last for nine months, from July 1 through March 31, 2022. At that point, Lamont said, Lets see what the norm looks like.

Maybe more people are going to be doing home health care in the future but were going to make sure we have an industry that reflects that, the governor said.

The state is attaching several stipulations to the money, including requiring nursing homes to reduce three- and four-bed rooms to single and double rooms, and ensuring they have full-time infection prevention staff.

Matt Barrett, president and CEO of Connecticut Association of Health Care Facilities, an association of one hundred and fifty skilled nursing facilities and assisted living communities, said in a written statement earlier Monday that the industry needs hundreds of millions of dollars per year in additional help.

The pandemic led to a 15 percent decline in occupancy at nursing homes, which was accompanied by a commensurate increase in operating costs, and new pressures to recognize the critically important work of nursing home employees with wage and benefit increases, Barrett said.

He added that its simply unreasonable and unrealistic to expect nursing home operators to enter into costly multi-year increased funding commitments to address collective bargaining issues without the resources needed to pay for those increased costs.

Any large-scale strike would further add to those costs.

Barrett said the strike contingency plans submitted by nursing homes include entering into non-refundable replacement worker contracts to secure staffing if employees dont show up to work. Nursing homes are also responsible for transportation and lodging of replacement workers and other costs such as increased security.

These increased costs would be paid for by state taxpayers under Connecticuts Medicaid program, he said.

Citing the effect on nursing home residents, Barrett said the abrupt change to their care could bring added stress and trauma on top of an already difficult year due to the pandemic.
BEIJING (AP)  Chinas weak population growth is falling closer to zero as fewer couples have children, government data showed Tuesday, adding to strains on an aging society with a shrinking workforce.

The population rose by 72 million people over the past 10 years to 1.411 billion in 2020, the National Bureau of Statistics announced after a once-a-decade census. It said annual growth averaged 0.53%, down by 0.04% from the previous decade.

Chinese leaders have enforced birth limits since 1980 to restrain population growth but worry the number of working-age people is falling too fast, disrupting efforts to create a prosperous economy. They have eased birth limits, but couples are put off by high costs, cramped housing and job discrimination against mothers.

Labor resources are still abundant, the statistics agency director, Ning Jizhe, said at a news conference.

The percentage of children in the population edged up compared with 2010, while the share 60 and older rose faster. The pool of potential workers aged 15 to 59 shrank to 894 million, down about 5% from a 2011 peak of 925 million.

Changes in birth limits and other policies promoted a rebound in the birth population, Ning said. However, he said there were 12 million babies born last year, which would be down 18% from 2019s report of 14.6 million.

China, along with Thailand and some other developing Asian countries that are aging fast, faces what economists call the challenge of whether it can grow rich before it grows old. Some forecasters warn China faces a demographic time bomb.

Reflecting the issues sensitivity, the statistics agency took the unusual step last month of announcing the population grew in 2020 but gave no total. That looked like an effort to calm companies and investors after The Financial Times reported the census might have found a surprise decline.

We are more concerned about the fast decline in the working-age population, said Lu Jiehua, a professor of population studies at Peking University.

The population of potential workers aged 15 to 59 will fall from three-quarters of the total in 2011 to just above half by 2050, according to Lu.

If the population gets too old, it will be impossible to solve the problem through immigration, said Lu. It needs to be dealt with at an early stage.

Couples who want a child face daunting challenges.

Many share crowded apartments with their parents. Child care is expensive and maternity leave short. Most single mothers are excluded from medical insurance and social welfare payments.

Some women worry giving birth could hurt their careers.

"When you have a kid, you take pregnancy leave, but will you still have this position after you take the leave? said He Yiwei, who is returning from the United States after obtaining a masters degree. Relative to men, when it comes to work, women have to sacrifice more.

Japan, Germany and some other rich countries face the same challenge of supporting aging populations with fewer workers. But they can draw on investments in factories, technology and foreign assets. By contrast, China still is a middle-income country with labor-intensive farming and manufacturing.

The decline in the working-age population will place a cap on Chinas potential economic growth, said Yue Su of the Economist Intelligence Unit in a report. That is a powerful incentive to introduce productivity-enhancing reforms.

The International Monetary Fund is forecasting Chinese economic growth of 8.4% this year following a rebound from the coronavirus pandemic. The ruling Communist Party wants to double output per person from 2020 levels by 2035, which would require annual growth of about 4.7%.

The numbers reported Thursday reflect a gain of 11.8 million people, or 0.8%, over the official estimate for 2019, when the government says the population edged above 1.4 billion for the first time.

The working-age population fell to 63.3% of the total from 70.1% a decade ago. The group up to age 14 expanded by 1.3 percentage points to 17.9%. Those 60 and older  a group of 264 million people who on their own would be the world's fourth-biggest country  rose 5.4 percentage points to 18.7% of the population.

The party took its biggest step in 2015 when rules that limited many couples to having only one child were eased to allow two.

However, Chinas birth rate, paralleling trends in South Korea, Thailand and other Asian economies, already was falling before the one-child rule. The average number of children per mother tumbled from above six in the 1960s to below three by 1980, according to the World Bank.

Demographers say official birth limits concealed what would have been a further fall in the number of children per family.

The one-child limit, enforced with threats of fines or loss of jobs, led to abuses including forced abortions. A preference for sons led parents to kill baby girls, prompting warnings millions of men might be unable to find a wife, fueling social tension.

Thursdays data showed China has 105.7 million men and boys for every 100 women and girls, or about 33 million more males.

The ruling party says the policy averted shortages of food and water by preventing as many as 400 million potential births. But demographers say if China followed Asian trends, the number of additional babies without controls might have been as low as a few million.

After limits were eased in 2015, many couples with one child had a second but total births fell because fewer had any at all.

Some researchers say Chinas population already is shrinking.

Yi Fuxian, a senior scientist in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, says the population started to fall in 2018. His book Big Country With An Empty Nest argued against the one-child limits.

Chinas economic, social, educational, tech, defense and foreign policies are built on the foundation of wrong numbers, said Yi.

Chinese regulators talk about raising the official retirement age of 55 to increase the pool of workers.

Female professionals welcome a chance to stay in satisfying careers. But others resent being forced to work more years. And keeping workers on the job, unable to help look after children, might discourage their daughters from having more.

The latest data put China closer to be overtaken by India as the most populous country, which is expected to happen by 2025.

Indias population last year was estimated by the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs at 1.38 billion, or 1.5% behind China. The agency says India should grow by 0.9% annually through 2025.

___

Wu reported from Taipei. AP researcher Yu Bing and video producer Liu Zheng in Beijing contributed.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Medicare will require nursing homes to report COVID-19 vaccination rates for residents and staff, the government said Tuesday. Officials hope to nudge facilities to keep giving shots as the worst ravages of the pandemic ease, but the danger of a rebound still lurks.

Were hoping to drive increased vaccination rates among residents and staff, as well as transparency for residents and their families," Dr. Lee Fleisher, chief medical officer at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, told The Associated Press.

Medicare's move to sustain the pace of vaccinations comes as an initial effort to get shots to nursing homes across the country has wound down. That partnership between the government and retail pharmacy giants CVS and Walgreens is being succeeded by an ongoing collaboration with specialized long-term care pharmacies that cater to the needs of the nursing home industry. Assisted living facilities and other care centers serving older people can also participate.

A smooth transition will be critical because the coronavirus is far from eradicated, even as new residents are being admitted to long-term care facilities and staffing ebbs and flows.

People living in long-term care facilities have borne a heavy toll from the pandemic. They represent about 1% of the U.S. population but accounted for roughly 1 in 3 deaths, according to previous estimates from the COVID Tracking Project.

This is an important development that is months overdue, said David Grabowski, a Harvard health policy professor who has tracked the industry's struggles with the outbreak. Many of us argued that this information should have been published starting in December when the federal long-term care vaccination effort began.

Nursing homes will now be required to submit weekly vaccination numbers for residents and staff to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That requirement will take effect within two weeks. Medicare officials say it may take two to four more weeks after that for the data to start flowing. The plan is to post facility-level information on the internet so residents and families can easily access the details from Medicare's Compare Care website.

Residents of nursing homes and their families have every right to this basic information, said Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., part of a bipartisan group urging the change.

Fleisher said the agency will also gain greater insight into levels of vaccination across the entire industry. That would let health officials direct vaccines and support services to nursing homes lagging behind.

For example, a new AP analysis of nursing homes in New York found that rates of vaccination have been far from even across the state. Overall, 79% of residents were fully vaccinated, as well as 55% of staff. But in Brooklyn, the corresponding vaccination rates were 63% for residents and 40% for staff. New York facilities reported 782 infections among staff and residents in the 14 days ending April 25, the most in the nation.

Academic researchers believe that the virus most likely entered nursing homes through staffers who were infected in their communities and became unwitting carriers. Many aides in the low-wage industry work shifts in different facilities.

Medicare's new rule also requires nursing homes and facilities serving people with intellectual disabilities to offer shots and factual education about vaccination to residents, staff and clients.

Nursing homes are now required to report COVID-19 cases and deaths but not vaccinations. A relatively small number of facilities provide the data voluntarily to the government.

Publicizing this information will hopefully encourage facilities and policymakers to continue efforts to vaccinate staff and residents, Grabowski said. Many staff were initially hesitant about the vaccine, and new staff and residents also need to be vaccinated. There is still a lot of work left to do.

Cases and deaths plummeted after the government launched a concerted effort to vaccinate residents and staff. The CDC reports that nearly 2.9 million nursing home residents and staffers are fully vaccinated. Nursing homes and other long-term care facilities have opened up family visits again after spending a year in lockdown.

Nursing homes are already required to report rates of flu vaccination. But until the new requirements were issued Tuesday, there was no similar requirement for COVID-19 vaccines even though disease from the coronavirus is far more lethal.

The main nursing home industry trade group, the American Health Care Association, says that it supports public reporting of vaccination data but that it shouldn't just apply to them. Hospitals, home health agencies and other providers should also be required to post their numbers. Results should not be used to judge nursing homes with low vaccine rates, the group said, but to help them improve.
The Army's top uniformed and civilian leaders said Monday they are remaining "open-minded" while weighing a proposal that commanders be removed from the process of deciding whether to prosecute sexual assaults.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville and Acting Secretary John Whitley said the service is examining the recommendations of an independent review panel as well as the data and analysis behind the decision before giving Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin their opinion.

But, McConville said during a discussion hosted by the Atlantic Council, the service is "open-minded" about the independent review and proposed legislation that would require the Defense Department to make the change.

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"Everyone is concerned about sexual harassment, sexual assault in the Army, in the military, and we tragically lost Vanessa Guillen, which, quite frankly, broke my heart," McConville said. "I talked to her mother at the memorial service, and I made a pledge to her that we would put in place procedures that would help make this better."

Guillen, an Army specialist, was killed just over a year ago at Fort Hood, Texas, allegedly by a fellow soldier who later took his own life. Guillen had tried to report twice that she had been sexually harassed, but her leadership failed to take action either time.

The independent review commission recommended that, for certain special victims crimes, an independent judge advocate who reports to the chief special victim prosecutor should decide whether to bring charges against alleged perpetrators and/or court-martial them.

The services have opposed this proposal since it was first introduced in Congress in 2013, arguing that it would undermine good order and discipline and send a message that commanders cannot be trusted to make difficult decisions.

But Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said last week he has dropped his opposition to the proposal. He told The Associated Press that he also is open to considering the panel's recommendations because sexual assault and harassment remain a problem despite all the DoD has done to address them.

"We've been at it for years, and we haven't effectively moved the needle," Milley said. "We have to. We must."

Austin is seeking input from the Joint Chiefs of Staff and civilian leaders of the branches before making a decision.

Whitley said Army officials have received a briefing on the review panel's recommendations and asked for all of the data and analysis that went into the recommendations.

The service is conducting its own analysis of the data and is "in the process of developing our response -- what our position will be."

"For us, it's really going to come down to what the analysis says -- what will this do? Will this move the needle in a positive direction on sexual assault or move the needle in a negative direction?" Whitley said.

He added that the Army is doing an analysis to understand the scope of the problem in the service and in society overall.

"What do we know about the relative magnitude of the problem and the drivers of the problem? We're asking a lot of questions right now," he said.

A survey of military personnel conducted in 2018 found that more than 20,000 service members had been sexually assaulted but just a third had filed a formal report.

Reporting of assaults has also increased, up 13% in 2018 and 3% in 2019, according to the DoD.

McConville said the Army is taking steps to combat sexual harassment and assault in the ranks "along with extremism and racism and preventing suicides related to those harmful behaviors," such as improving its sexual assault prevention training and holding leaders accountable for command climate.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., has pressed for years to take sexual assault cases out of the chain of command. A growing number of lawmakers are supporting her efforts this year in the wake of the Guillen case.

-- Patricia Kime can be reached at Patricia.Kime@Monster.com. Follow her on Twitter @patriciakime.

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The Army is focusing on supporting and maintaining an active-duty force of 485,000 -- the same size the service was on 9/11 but smaller than Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville previously said he wants.

Speaking with Acting Army Secretary John Whitley at a forum hosted by the Atlantic Council on Monday, McConville said they "have agreed  [that we're] not going to grow the Army above 485,000-ish with the resources that we're anticipating now."

Combined with Army Reserve and National Guard forces numbering slightly more than 500,000, it's a "million-person force" that serves as an "anchor" on which to base the service's planning and resources, McConville said.

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Just last week, McConville told the House Appropriations defense subcommittee that he believes the Army needs a force of 540,000 to 550,000 active-duty personnel but "recognizes that, quite frankly, we just can't afford that."

"What we must do is keep the force we have ready," he added.

As of March 31, the Army had 483,742 active-duty members, 187,260 reservists and 335,741 National Guard members.

The 485,000 projected number marks a flattening of Army active-duty end strength and allows the service to focus on modernization of equipment and weapons and supporting ongoing operations in the Middle East and elsewhere, McConville said.

"When you look at the levers, you have your readiness in your current operations, you have end strength and you have modernization," he said. "What we primarily are trying to do right now is fund that modernization."

Fiscal 2022 Army budget discussions have been hampered by a delay in the release of the full federal budget: The Biden administration released a preliminary plan that calls for $1.5 trillion in spending, including $715 billion for the Defense Department, but details of the proposal have yet to be released.

McConville said it is imperative that the Army pivot from a focus on irregular warfare and counterinsurgency operations to Russia and China -- the "Great Power" competition based on "peace through strength."

The need to transform the force has occurred every 40 years since 1940, McConville said -- right before World War II, again in the 1980s and now.

"We're standing up new doctrine. It's joint all-domain operations in which our contribution is multi-domain operations.  We're standing up a system that we're working very closely with our sister services and our allies and partners with a combined joint all-domain command-and-control system so we can pass data very, very quickly between each of our weapons systems. ... We're standing up organizations to help us deal with the information environment," he said.

Whitley said the Army has combed through its budget lines and reallocated $30 billion toward modernization. But as budgets get tighter, "We'll continue to have to make hard choices," he said.

Still, the service may see additional resources freed up as the United States pulls its troops from Afghanistan, he added.

"That'd be nice if that [funding] stayed with the Army. That probably won't be the department's position, so how much of that becomes available is to be viewed by the leadership at the bench level," Whitley said.

-- Patricia Kime can be reached at Patricia.Kime@Monster.com. Follow her on Twitter @patriciakime.

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Infantry Marines will get the chance to test the Army's new night vision goggles, which are being compared to something straight out of a video game.

Marine rifle squads will evaluate the Army's Enhanced Night Vision Goggle-Binocular, or ENVG-B, which soldiers have been using since 2019. There has been no official decision to swap the Marine Corps' Squad Binocular Night Vision Goggles for the Army gear, but tests are underway to evaluate the two systems, said Kelly Flynn, a Marine Corps Systems Command spokeswoman.

The Marine Corps currently has 195 pairs of ENVG-Bs. Soon, squads will be selected to conduct a larger user evaluation, Flynn said.

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"The Marine Corps is currently working ... to develop a timeline and evaluation plan," she added.

The Marine Corps started fielding its NVGs in 2020 after signing a $250 million contract for the devices in 2019. Brig. Gen. A.J. Pasagian, head of Marine Corps Systems Command, said service leaders still believe in the goggles because it's "ready technology today."

But leathernecks are keeping a close eye on the capabilities of the Army goggle-binocular, he added. The tests are part of an effort to equip infantry Marines with lighter, state-of-the-art gear that will help them keep the edge in a fight against a more sophisticated enemy, such as Chinese or Russian troops.

Flynn said the Army's night-vision system works on a network to share data and provide a common operational picture. The Marine Corps' NVGs, however, provide "increased depth perception, improved clarity and thermal-imaging capability to detect targets at extreme darkness or through battlefield obscurants," she added.

The Marines' new NVGs combine a night-vision binocular with clip-on thermal imager. They can detect targets in very low light, bad weather and through smoke.

The Army's goggle-binocular, a wireless system with a built-in thermal imager that officials say improves marksmanship during the day and night, has generated buzz since a brigade posted a video to social media showing soldiers' view when wearing them.

"You have never seen night vision like this!" the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team tweeted in April.

The brigade's video and photos show soldiers outlined in bright, glowing detail. Weapons, vehicles, walls and terrain appear outlined in a similar light. Machine-gun fire and mortar rounds give off a vibrant blue-green light.

"We own the night," the Lancer Brigade added in a separate tweet.

-- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins.

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A National Guard soldier deployed to the southern border found a bag of guns in Texas, U.S. Customs and Border Protection says.

Last week, a soldier assigned to the Eagle Pass South Station, less than 3 miles from Mexico, discovered an abandoned black gym bag in tall grass. Border agents at the scene found eight AK-47 style pistols and 10 30-round magazines.

Four of the weapons had already been reported stolen. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives took custody of the bag's contents.

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"This is the second time our agents encountered abandoned weapons and ammo in this area," Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Austin L. Skero II said in a Friday statement. "It's critical that our agents stay alert to all threats and work with our partners to stop criminal organizations from entering our communities."

It is unclear what unit was involved in discovering the weapons. U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not respond to a request for comment.

There are currently 3,800 National Guard troops deployed on the southern border, according to an Army spokesperson. The Guard has a long history of assisting law enforcement along the U.S.-Mexico border in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas going back to the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

Troops provide assistance with a range of tasks, including reconnaissance, air support, construction of border infrastructure and logistics.

The mission got widespread attention during Donald Trump's administration after he declared the situation a national emergency, opening up more funding and federal resources. He expanded the military's footprint as a component of his campaign promise to lock down the border. He added more than 5,000 troops on the border, surpassing the number of American forces in war zones abroad.

The Biden administration rolled back the Trump-era emergency declaration, but has not discussed significant changes to the Guard's mission.

The Guard's border mission continues amid the busiest time in its history after back-to-back missions the past year at home and overseas.

There are currently 32,000 Guardsmen supporting pandemic relief efforts, which includes vaccinating civilians, according to a Guard spokesperson. Just over 2,300 are on civil disturbance missions, including protecting the U.S. Capitol after the Jan. 6 assault. Some 20,000 Guardsmen are deployed overseas.

-- Steve Beynon can be reached at Steve.Beynon@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @StevenBeynon.

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Todays order reaffirms that the NRA does not get to dictate if and where it will answer for its actions. The rot runs deep, which is why we will now refocus on and continue our case in New York court. No one is above the law, not even one of the most powerful lobbying organizations in the country.
Capt. Taylor Bye was descending for a strafing run and about to unload rounds from her A-10C Thunderbolt II aircraft's 30mm GAU-8 Avenger Gatling gun last year when the training mission went sideways.

Her cannon suffered a dangerous malfunction, damaging the plane's landing gear, popping off panels and jettisoning the cockpit canopy. Despite the damage, Bye was able to bring the busted-up A-10 back to Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, performing a successful belly landing.

Bye's leadership presented her with the Air Combat Command Airmanship Award on May 5 for outstanding performance and dedication to safety during the incident, according to a news release.

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"My initial reaction was to climb away from the ground and then look at my engines," Bye, a 75th Fighter Squadron pilot and chief of standardization and evaluation, said in the release. "The amazing thing about the A-10 is, even though all these things happened, I had two perfectly working engines and hydraulic systems."

Bye was the flight leader for the exercise that day, the release states. She flew slowly so her wingman, Maj. Jack Ingber, also of the 75th, could catch up and assess the damage to her plane.

As the wingman, Ingber was tasked to "think of everything that [Bye] is not because she has a massive handful of an airplane that is falling apart," he said in the release.

Another pilot, identified only as the 75th's director of operations, took off from Moody to act as Bye's "chase" aircraft, closely following her and monitoring the surrounding airspace while on approach.

To reduce her wind exposure without the canopy, Bye lowered her seat, but that made it difficult to see the runway below, she said.

"I thought, 'Where's the ground, where's the ground?' ... I was holding my breath at that point," she said. "I guess I was nervous the whole time, but I didn't have time to think about being nervous. My job was to take care of myself and to take care of the jet."

"This doesn't happen very often in the history of the A-10," said Lt. Col. Stephen Joca, 75th Fighter Squadron commander. "What's most important is preventing total loss of the A-10 or, even worse, her life."

It wasn't the first time an A-10 has had to crash-land because of a gun malfunction.

In November, then-Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett presented the Distinguished Flying Cross to Maj. Brett DeVries, an A-10 pilot with the 107th Fighter Squadron at Michigan's Selfridge Air National Guard Base, for executing a successful emergency landing without his landing gear or canopy.

That landing took place in 2017 when DeVries, then a captain, was flying with other A-10 pilots over the Grayling Air Gunnery Range in the northern part of the state.

During one of the passes, his gun malfunctioned, creating turbulence that blew out the canopy. Minutes later, he belly-landed at Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center, east of the gunnery range.

At the time of DeVries' mishap, the service said it was "believed to be the first time in the roughly 40-year history of the A-10 that a pilot had to land with no canopy and with the landing gear up."

Capt. Tisha Yates, a spokeswoman for Air Combat Command, didn't rule out the possibility of Bye also receiving the Distinguished Flying Cross in the future.

"The ACC Airmanship award and Distinguished Flying Cross are not mutually exclusive, and receiving one does not prevent a member from being able to receive the other," she said in an email. "The decision of what award or decoration a member receives is at the discretion of local leadership, taking into consideration the requirements for the award, the actions of the member, the responsibilities of the member's rank, and the overall circumstances of the event the member is being recognized for. While two situations may appear similar, leaders' perspective at different locations of what type of award an act of bravery merits can differ."

-- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @Oriana0214.

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BUCHAREST, Romania  Romania's president told U.S. counterpart Joe Biden on Monday that more NATO troops are needed on the alliance's eastern flank given Russia actions that are perceived as threatening by many in the region.

The appeal by President Klaus Iohannis came during a conference of regional leaders which Biden joined by video.

The Polish and Romanian leaders hailed Biden's appearance as a sign of U.S. support for their security.

The United States is the greatest guarantor of peace in the world, Polish President Andrzej Duda said at a news conference in Bucharest after the meeting. The presence of Joe Biden at the summit is a very important signal for me. It shows that the Euro-Atlantic bond is still alive.

Duda and Iohannis gathered in person as the co-hosts of the meeting held in hybrid format. Other presidents, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and Biden joined by video.

In Washington, Biden's press secretary, Jen Psaki, said the president underscored his commitment to rebuilding alliances and stressed his desire to cooperate with the nine allies on a range of issues, including global health security, climate change and energy security.

She said he also expressed his support for enhancing NATOs deterrence and defense posture, as well as the importance of allies increasing their resilience against harmful economic and political actions by our strategic competitors.

Iohannis said increased Russian activity in the region, including in the Black Sea region where Romania is locked, has shown us that we need to remain vigilant.

Therefore, NATO must continue to strengthen its position of deterrence and defense, especially on the eastern flank, in a unified and coherent manner, from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea, Iohannis said. "I pleaded  including in the discussion with President Biden  for an increase in the allied military presence, including of the U.S., in Romania and in the south of the eastern flank.

The leaders represent the Bucharest Nine, a group of the easternmost members of the Western military alliance. Most of them share a concern about Russias attempts to reassert its influence over their region, their anxieties growing after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014.

NATO and the U.S. later deployed troops to the region, angering Russia. The calls for an intensified commitment come after Russia recently sent troops near Ukraine's border before bringing many back.

Duda said he was relieved Russia had pulled back many of the forces, saying he believed that reduced the risk of another Russian invasion.

But there is no doubt that the situation there is very difficult, that Ukrainian territory is occupied, Duda said. Neither Europe nor the world can take their eyes off this part of our continent.

Other issues under discussion included Afghanistan. Czech President Milos Zeman strongly criticized NATOs withdrawal from Afghanistan, saying he fears the country would become a new center for terrorism.

The members of the Bucharest Nine are Romania, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. They were all controlled by Moscow during the Cold War, with the three Baltic states incorporated into the Soviet Union. Today they are all members of the European Union and NATO.

The Bucharest Nine is an initiative which Romania and Poland launched in 2015 to give the Eastern alliance members a way to discuss regional issues and forge a united voice in the larger NATO forum.

Monday's meeting came ahead of a full NATO summit on June 14 in Brussels, where the alliance has its headquarters.

At the June summit, Biden and other leaders plan to discuss tense ties with Russia and China, the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan and the future of the 30-nation alliance.

___

Vanessa Gera reported from Warsaw. Alexandra Jaffe contributed to this report from Washington.

This article was written by STEPHEN McGRATH and VANESSA GERA from The Associated Press and was legally licensed through the Industry Dive publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.
When Reta Mays worked as a corrections officer for the North Central Regional Jail in Greenwood, West Virginia, she was investigated on charges of using excessive force.

This was before she applied for a job as a nursing assistant at the Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center in Clarksburg. Before she killed at least seven veterans by injecting them with deadly doses of insulin. Before she was sentenced to life in prison on all seven counts, plus 20 years for assault with intent to commit murder.

The Department of Veterans Affairs never reviewed those personnel records.

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"You're the worst kind. You're the monster no one sees coming," said Judge Thomas Kleeh before delivering Mays' sentence Tuesday.

Mays, 46, pleaded guilty last year to charges of second-degree murder in the deaths of seven veterans, as well as assault with attempt to murder an eighth patient at the VA facility.

The sentencing marked the culmination of a three-year investigation into the mysterious deaths, which came to light after examiners began exhuming the bodies of several of the victims.

Mays worked the night shift at the medical center's medical surgical ward and was accused of injecting patients with fatal doses of insulin in 2017 and 2018.

Before she pleaded guilty last year, she said she administered insulin to the veterans because she wanted to ease what she perceived as suffering and "because she had a lot of stress and chaos in her personal and professional life and these actions gave her a sense of control," according to the VA Office of Inspector General.

Her attorneys said Mays, a former member of the West Virginia Army National Guard, suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues related to a sexual assault she experienced in Iraq and pleaded for leniency in her sentencing.

But Kleeh showed little mercy, noting that Mays lied to investigators at least three times; watched a Netflix series, "Nurses Who Kill," after injecting her first victim; and Googled "female serial killers" from her work computer.

"You're not special," Kleeh said, pointing out that he sees many defendants with mental health issues who aren't killers.

All of Mays' victims were elderly but had been hospitalized for conditions from which they were expected to recover.

"We will forever miss him. I will never understand why you, Mrs. Mays, decided to play God," Amanda Edgell, daughter-in-law of Army veteran Archie Edgell, said in the sentencing hearing.

Following the announcement of the sentence Tuesday, the VA OIG released a damning report of failures at the facility that gave Mays access to medications and allowed her to kill veterans undetected for two years.

The VA OIG found that staff at the medical center failed to properly vet Mays before hiring her; didn't safeguard medication or conduct adequate medical investigations into the unexplained hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar caused by the unnecessary insulin injections; and failed to complete patient safety reports or recognize trends or spikes in mortality data.

"Our report found serious, pervasive and deep-rooted clinical and administrative deficiencies at the medical center," VA Inspector General Michael Missal said during a press conference. "It was a series of missed opportunities that contributed to the criminal action occurring, not being stopped and allowing it to go on as long as it did."

Specifically, according to the report, the VA failed to review Mays' personnel records from previous employers, nor did it contact them even as a federal background investigation found she had "potentially actionable issues ... which may be disqualifying under suitability/security considerations.'"

Also, Missal noted, when Mays received an award in 2017 for being an exemplary employee, another background check should have been initiated but wasn't -- another missed opportunity to root out a potentially dangerous employee.

In the ward where she worked, Mays had access to the medication room and medication carts, which, as a nursing assistant, she should not have been awarded. In fact, the entire staff on the ward had "full access to the medication room," and medication carts were often unlocked, the IG noted.

"Given the unexplained hypoglycemic events, open access to insulin stored in the medication room and medication carts is concerning," the VA OIG wrote.

Providers also failed to order diagnostic testing for seven of the eight patients; in the eighth case, they ordered the wrong test. Even when a series of hypoglycemic events occurred in a span of a few weeks, the providers didn't discuss the issues among themselves, nor were they reported as patient safety events.

The report made 15 recommendations to the VA, to include looking at the patients who had quality of care issues at the facility outside the hypoglycemic events.

"Nothing will bring back the veterans who are lost. Hopefully, the sentencing today and our health care inspections report will bring solace to the families and hopefully ensure that nothing as tragic as this ever happens again," Missal said.

Those who died at the hospital included:

Robert Edge, a Navy veteran who served from 1952 to 1956

Robert Kozul, an Army veteran who served from 1951 to 1953

Archie Edgell, an Army veteran who served from 1953 to 1955

George Shaw, an Air Force veteran who served from 1951 to 1982

Felix McDermott, an Army veteran who served 1962 to 1968

Raymond Golden, a dual Army and Air Force veteran who served from 1951 to 1953 and 1955 to 1973

William Holloway, who served in the Army from 1942 to 1945

The family of another veteran, Russell Posey, filed a lawsuit last year over the suspicious circumstances of his death, which included a hypoglycemic event. In addition to the seven second-degree murder pleas, Mays pleaded guilty to one count of assault with intent to commit murder related to a patient identified as RRP, Posey's initials.

"At every opportunity today, we should honor them," acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia Randy Bernard said during a press conference.

At her sentencing, Mays said she had no words that could "offer the families any comfort."

"I can only say I'm sorry for the pain I caused them and my family," she said.

Kleeh listed the letters he had received from the victims' family members, and let several speak prior to the hearing. Several said Mays had deprived them of their husbands, fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers.

"I do not forgive you. I would punish you with my own hands if it would do any good. I want you to experience what death feels like," said Robert Edge Jr.

-- Patricia Kime can be reached at Patricia.Kime@Monster.com. Follow her on Twitter @patriciakime.

Related: Wilkie Calls for Release of Information in Suspicious VA Deaths in West Virginia
The Defense Department released two brief videos Monday night showing part of an encounter between U.S. Navy and Coast Guard vessels and fast-moving, armed Iranian speedboats in the Strait of Hormuz earlier that day.

The military said Monday that 13 fast boats, armed with machine guns, from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy surrounded a formation of American ships transiting the strait and "conducted unsafe and unprofessional maneuvers."

After several attempts to communicate with the Iranian boats failed to dissuade them from their fast approaches, the military said, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Maui fired two volleys of warning shots from its .50-caliber machine gun. The Iranian boats broke off contact after the second volley, which was fired when they were within 150 yards.

Read Next: National Guard Soldier Finds Bag of Guns at US-Mexico Border

It is unclear from which ship the videos were taken. But the first video shows the Iranian boats near a U.S. vessel, with a pair of helicopters -- possibly from the guided missile cruiser Monterey, which carries helicopters -- hovering nearby. This video also includes shots of other American ships, including the guided missile submarine Georgia and a Coast Guard cutter, as the Iranian boats speed nearby.

The second video shows Coast Guardsmen standing behind their ship's guns, observing the Iranian boats. In this video, the Coast Guard ship can be heard sounding its horn five times in an attempt to warn the Iranians to break off.

The videos do not show the Maui firing warning shots.

-- Stephen Losey can be reached at stephen.losey@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @StephenLosey.

Related: Coast Guard Cutter Fires Warning Shots at Charging Iranian Speedboats
The Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League have signed infielder T.J. Rivera, the team announced.

This will be the second stint with the Ducks for Rivera, who spent 23 games with the club in 2019 and batted .270/.316/.427 with four home runs in 98 plate appearances. Of course, Riveras better known for what was a successful but short-lived major league tenure with the Mets. The former undrafted free agent appeared in 106 games with the Mets from 2016-17 and slashed an above-average .304/.335/.445 over 231 plate appearances, owing in part to an ability to avoid strikeouts at a solid clip.

Unfortunately, injury issues knocked Riveras career off course four years ago. Rivera underwent Tommy John surgery in 2017 and then suffered an elbow sprain the next season as he was trying to work his way back to New York. The 32-year-old has had runs with the Nationals and Phillies since the Mets released him in 2019, though he was unable to return to the majors with either Washington or Philadelphia.
Chef Gordon Ramsay had quite an adventure in Michigans Upper Peninsula and we will soon be able to see what he did on the upcoming third season of Uncharted. MLive first told you about his trip to the U.P. when he was there last September.

The third season of the National Geographic show debuts on Monday, May 31. The show sees Chef Ramsay traveling to some of the most remote places in the world where he immerses himself into different cultures and cuisines. He then interacts with local chefs to learn and compete with them.

Chef Ramsays adventures in the U.P. will air on Sunday, July 25 at 9 p.m. ET. He works with local chef, James Rigato, of Mabel Gray fame. You can see the two enjoying a Michigan pasty, cooking it in the middle of nowhere.

Chef, James Rigato introduces Gordon Ramsay to a pasty, a Yooper flagship food. (Photo by National Geographic/Justin Mandel)

Chef Ramsays adventures take him to Lake Superior where he dives in to search for burbot amongst shipwrecks. He also explores the forests to hunt for woodcock. If thats not enough, Ramsay helps a monk build a fence for his thimbleberry jam bushes.

Along with Michigans U.P., season three takes Chef Ramsay to Portugal, Croatia, Mexico, Texas, Maine, Puerto Rico, Iceland, Finland and the Smoky Mountains.

Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted airs every Sunday night after its Monday, May 31 season premiere and also streams on Disney+ where you can also stream seasons one and two.

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WELLSTON, MI - At least one Michigan music festival is ready for a return.

The Hoxeyville Music Festival announced its artist lineup today, as well as general public ticket information.

Organizers of the Americana and roots music festival said Grammy-award winning artist Billy Strings will anchor the 19th Hoxeyville Music Festival, scheduled for Aug. 13-15 in Wellston. He plays two nights.

With the changing atmosphere of events in the Covid-19 pandemic area, Hoxeyville is a testament to pure North Country peace and celebration, nestled in the heart of Northwest Michigans Manistee National Forest, organizers said in a release.

Artists announced include some new acts to the Wellston-based event, as well as long time favorites, including:

Billy Strings (2 nights), The Allman Betts Band, The Sam Bush Band, Yonder Mountain String Band, Lindsay Lou, The Sweetwater Warblers, Airborne or Aquatic, Luke Winslow King, Michigan Rattlers, 49 Winchester, Seth Bernard, Full Cord, The Go Rounds, Jaik Willis, Adam Joynt Band and Darcy Wilkin.

Strings, who is originally from Ionia and now a Nashville resident, has been receiving accolades for several years now. He won a Grammy this year for his album, Home, as Best Bluegrass Album at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards on March 14, 2021. In 2017, Rolling Stone named him among the top 10 country and Americana artist you need to hear.

Organizers pride themselves in offering the best Michigan, regional and national acts in a beautiful location.

Keeping with its founders original intent, Hoxeyville offers attendees an intimate musical experience among natural wooded beauty, said spokesperson Dave Weissman.

The site features spacious 25-foot by 25-foot wooded campsites and an intimate atmosphere.

The festivals 85-acre campgrounds are vast and offer enough room for everyone to camp and live just a short walk to the concert grounds, Weissman said.

In addition to music, Hoxeyville offers family friendly camping and playground, kids tent programming, food, and more.

In a Facebook post, organizers said:

While we cannot mandate attendees be vaccinated, we will protect our youngest campers for whom vaccines are not yet available by requiring ALL ADULTS to have properly worn masks and socially distance in shared public spaces - this includes Stage areas, Vending, Kids Tent and walking paths.

Learn more about the Covid-19 guidelines at hoxeyville.com/covid-safety-plan.

Each festival ticket includes music and camping for the entire weekend and the event is offering discounted passes for children. Tickets are $180 per adults 16 and older, and $75 for those ages 5-15. Ticket information is available at hoxeyville.com/admission.

The popular Hoxeyville Music Festival returns Aug. 13-15, 2021, to Wellston, Michigan, in the Manistee National Forest. The 19th annual festival features two nights of Grammy award-winning artist Billy Strings as well as several Americana and roots music acts.Provided by Hoxeyville Music Festival

IF YOU GO

Hoxeyville Music Festival

Aug. 13-15, Wellston, Michigan

More info: hoxeyville.com
GOGEBIC COUNTY, MI  Two pilots have been fired after an airplanes emergency exit door was in ripped off moments before a flight to Michigans Upper Peninsula.

WLUC-TV reports that the Boutique Airlines pilots failed to complete a pre-flight checklist, causing the door to open moments before take-off.

Tom Yon of Wakefield said that his carry-on bag was sucked out of the opening during a flight from Minneapolis to Ironwood. Several other passengers also relayed their uncomfortable experiences during the incident during a Gogebic-Iron County Airport board meeting on Monday

Were not trying to hide or deny anything, Shawn Simpson, CEO of Boutique Airlines said during the meeting.

WLUC also reported that the San Francisco based airline plans to resign from their contract with the Gogebic-Iron County Airport, but did not give a reason why. Boutique is the small, U.P. airports only commercial airline.

Boutique Airlines will continue to provide services until the airport finds another option, according to the TV station.
Over $36 billion in federal emergency relief funds will be allocated to 5,000 colleges and universities across the country  including 60 institutions in Michigan  in an effort to support students who have been hit the hardest by the coronavirus pandemic.

The emergency funding, provided through the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, will target vulnerable college students who need it the most, including those at under-resourced institutions like community colleges, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and minority-serving institutions.

Roughly half of the $36 billion in funding will provide direct relief to college students, the U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday, May 11. The grants are available to students who are eligible for federal or state financial aid, have lost unemployment, or face food and housing insecurities.

Those funds will be available to all students, including undocumented and international college students, U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona announced Monday, May 10. Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos issued guidance last June that prevented undocumented and international students from accessing the emergency cash because colleges could only provide it to students who qualify for federal financial aid.

The pandemic didnt discriminate on students, Cardona told reporters in a Monday evening phone call. We want to make sure that all students have an opportunity to have access to funds to help them get back on track. There are students in need, and the pandemic didnt discriminate.

The other half of the federal funding will be used by colleges and universities to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 on campus through testing and vaccination efforts, and to reengage students whose educations were disrupted by the pandemic  which could include discharging student debts accrued during the pandemic so students can re-enroll.

The funding is being allocated to schools based on the shares of federal Pell Grant recipients at each institution, according to the U.S. Department of Education.

The Biden administration is sending a huge portion of federal dollars to under-resourced institutions, including more than $10 billion to community colleges; $6 billion to minority-serving institutions such as Hispanic-serving institutions and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institutions; $2.6 billion to HBCUs; and $190 million to tribally controlled colleges and universities.

Thats more than double the federal funding that is currently available to those institutions.

Its critically important to show that these funds are intended to support all students in our nation, particularly those that were hit hardest by the pandemic, Cardona said Monday. We know that the pandemic affected some communities more than others.

We have to make sure that as we build back better and recover from this pandemic, were also making sure that the resources are aimed at helping those that were hit hardest.

Around 60 Michigan colleges and universities will receive funding through the American Rescue Plan, with Michigan State University receiving the largest portion, nearly $82 million.

Heres a look at how much each Michigan institution is getting, including how much each school is getting for student aid and institutional costs. You can look up the name of a college or university in the search bar. (Cant see the database? Click here)

Schools can also use the institutional portion of their funding to cover costs like lost revenue, reimbursement for expenses already incurred, technology costs associated with a transition to distance education, faculty and staff trainings, and payroll.

During Mondays call, Cardona called Grand Rapids Community College an exemplar for its use of previous federal relief dollars to help students. The education secretary invited GRCC President Bill Pink to share how the college reached students from both rural and urban communities with the funding.

GRCC distributed hundreds of loaner laptops and Wi-Fi hotspots to assist students with remote learning amid the pandemic, and partnered with the Kent District Library to provide Wi-Fi at 20 locations, including in parking lots so students could connect and complete assignments after hours.

RELATED: GRCC partners with Kent District Library to increase students access to wifi

The college also worked with community partners to replenish its food pantry in an effort to curb food insecurity amid the coronavirus pandemic. The pantry offered nonperishable foods as well as household cleaning and hygiene supplies, baby food, formula and diapers.

This pandemic has been hard on our state, and this institution has been focused on how we can support our students, no matter where they come to us from, Pink said during Mondays call.

GRCC distributed roughly $3.4 million in federal CARES Act funding directly to students this school year to help them with food, health care, child care and technology. Pink said the additional federal funding through the American Rescue Plan will provide even more assistance to students in need.

These funds will help us, and it will help these students, he said. We know many students told us this school year, Were sitting it out. Were not even going to college. Now that were able to get these types of funds in place, it will help us in helping those students re-engage because now, these funds can take some other barriers off the table.

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ANTRIM COUNTY, MI -- A 13-year-old Antrim County girl who jumped out of a moving car Monday morning was found safe after the Antrim County Sheriffs K9 team successfully located her.

According to the departments Facebook page, the K9 team was called shortly after 8 a.m. for a report of a teen who ran out of sight after jumping from her mothers car while the two were on their way to school. Deputy Skrobecki and K9 Deputy Bricko began the search shortly thereafter and were able to locate the teen around 10:15 a.m. in the garage of an abandoned house.

Deployments like these are ultimately what we put the extra time and effort into in training, so that these searches end in a positive outcome. Success in these types of situations are priceless, said Deputy Skrobecki. We have a world-class dog.

According to the department, Deputy Bricko is trained in human tracking, narcotics detection, building searches, article searches, obedience, suspect apprehension and handler protection.

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Once thats done, Ive accomplished what I set out to do, and so I think the timing is right [to leave], Brann told the Daily News. Im really proud of that. There was a lot of hard work done with that, there was a lot of compromise, a lot of discussion about how we could basically do this ... and we got it done.
Ready to plan your next family adventure but unsure where to go? Try these seven state parks on for size. Each site was recommended to us by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources for being especially kid-friendly: On this short but smart list, youll find giant slides, splash pads, nature centers, baby-friendly beaches, and even a waterfall you can swim in. Just pack some snacks, make sure you have a Recreation Passport, and hit the road.

Want more options? You can always use the Michigan DNRs Recreation Search site, which allows users to narrow search results by using filters for amenities like playgrounds, beaches and bike rentals.

Warren Dunes State Park. Photo by Michigan DNR, used with permisison

Warren Dunes State Park: This nearly 2,000-acre, year-round park south of St. Joseph has three miles of sandy shoreline for a fantastic beach day, and a 260-foot-tall dune that kids can climb for a knockout view. For families that love hiking, theres six miles of trails, too. Overnight options include a modern campground, semi-modern campground, and mini cabins. More info: Warren Dunes State Park

Kids spray one another with water cannons at the splash park inside Bay City State Park.

Bay City State Park: The beach at this east-side park is beautiful, but if its too wavy for a small-kids swim day, check out the Spray by the Bay splash park and Play by the Bay playscape. The park is also home to the Saginaw Bay Visitor Center, which offers youth programming and all-ages interactive exhibits for learning about Tobico Marsh, one of the largest coastal wetlands on the Great Lakes. More info: Bay City State Park and Friends of Bay City State Park

Duck Lake State Park offers a peaceful channel for splashing and swimming in. Photo by Michigan DNR, used with permission

Duck Lake State Park: This day-use park in Muskegon County is the perfect spot for even very young families who want to splash in the water without worrying about mighty Lake Michigan. Here, youll find an inland stream that allows for safe swimming, even on red-flag days. Its also a nice spot for fishing and picnicking, and theres a half-mile paved trail for short jaunts. More info: Duck Lake State Park

North Higgins Lake State Park: If you love a beach day but not necessarily big beach crowds, check out this year-round park near Grayling. According to Turek, the beach here is pleasantly quiet. Theres also two campgrounds, overnight lodging, a boat launch, a picnic area and more than 8 miles of trails. More info: North Higgins Lake State Park

The Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory, built in 1902, is one of the many family-friendly attractions at Belle Isle State Park.ANN ARBOR NEWS

Belle Isle State Park: Detroits beloved island day-use park has tons to offer all ages: Boat-watching, a beach, a nature center, picnic spots galore, the Dossin Great Lakes Museum, the historic Belle Isle Aquarium and Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory, and even a giant slide. Find more information, visit belleisleconservancy.org and Belle Isle State Park on the DNRs website.

Ocqueoc Falls. Photo by Michigan DNR, used with permission

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway: This Rogers City-area waterfall is a rare treasure: Not only is it the largest waterfall in the Lower Peninsula, its the only universally accessible falls system in the United States. Kids (and adults) can swim in the falls before or after hiking the nearby trails, which include multiple loops of varying lengths. Nearby, Ocqueoc Falls State Forest Campground offers rustic campsites, if you want to turn your adventure into an overnight. More info: Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway and Ocqueoc Falls State Forest Campground

Leelanau State Park. Photo by Michigan DNR, used with permission

Leelanau State Park: This state park and rustic campground at the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula is generally beloved for its quietude and simplicity. Kids, however, will love it for its brand-new playground, its historic lighthouse (where you can climb the stairs for a view from the light tower), and for the rock hunting all along its shoreline. More info: Leelanau State Park

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EAST LANSING, MI  Masks are no longer required outside while on Michigan State Universitys campus or MSU-affiliated properties.

Masks are no longer required outside unless a gathering has 100 or more people, according to a Monday, May 10 message to the MSU community from President Samuel Stanley, who cited an order from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

The change is for outdoor areas only. Face coverings are still required while indoors or in MSU-affiliated properties, Stanley said.

The University of Michigan announced a similar change on May 7. after the state relaxed its COVID-19 rules on masking outdoors to encourage outdoor activities. According to the order, masks are generally no longer required, and anyone who is fully vaccinated and not experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms is not required to wear a mask at residential gatherings, including indoors.

Masks no longer needed outdoors at University of Michigan, unless youre in a large gathering

The city of East Lansing has also informed the university it will potentially be changing its face covering policy as well, according to Stanley. East Lansing City Council will consider a policy resolution Tuesday, May 11, that, if approved, would eliminate the mask requirement in downtown outdoor public spaces beginning Wednesday, May 12, Stanley said.

While MSU is still working on its return to campus plan for the fall, officials are monitoring Gov. Gretchen Whitmers MI Vacc to Normal plan, which recently hit its first milestone of having 55% of residents age 16 and older having received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.

Michigan hits first COVID-19 vaccine milestone, starts 2-week clock for return to office work

Stanley encouraged everyone to get a COVID-19 vaccine, and MSU has COVID-19 vaccination clinics for students, faculty and staff at the north side of the Pavilion for Agriculture and Livestock Education as well as the MSU Health Care Pharmacy.

We are all looking forward to the summer, warmer weather and a chance to recharge. And just beyond that, a return to our beautiful campus where we can reconnect with one another. The more people in our community who receive the vaccine gets us closer to a more normal experience, together, in the fall, Stanley said.

MSU is reducing its hours for COVID-19 testing at Spartan Stadium. Testing will be available from 8:30 a.m. to noon on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays beginning May 17, Stanley said.

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CHELSEA, MI  A Chelsea resident was baffled when he came home to find someone waiting outside his house ready to pick up a dog they said they bought online, police said.

The problem? There was no dog and the resident never placed any ads saying he was selling one.

Police were contacted Thursday night, May 6, by the resident who reported a suspected fraud had taken place, according to the Chelsea Police Department.

The resident told police the person outside his home was there to pick up a dog they had made a deposit for online, police said.

He told the stranger he wasnt selling any dogs and, looking at the ad posting, he didnt recognize the name of the person associated with the sale directing him to his Chelsea address, police said.

The victim, still unknown, left without providing a name to the Chelsea resident and has not contacted Chelsea police regarding the alleged fraud, police said.

Police advise residents to use caution when interacting with sellers online.

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MONROE COUNTY, MI  A Texas man accused of killing his girlfriend during a domestic dispute in February is heading to trial on multiple felony charges.

Austin Taylor Lucas was bound over for trial Tuesday, May 11, for the slaying of Joy Dawn Boswell, who was fatally shot in the head at the Shady Creek RV Park and Resort in Frenchtown Township.

At Lucas preliminary examination Tuesday, Monroe County District Judge Michael Brown found there was sufficient evidence for original charges of open murder and felony firearms, as well as additional charges of unlawful imprisonment, carrying a concealed weapon and misdemeanor domestic violence added by prosecutors at the conclusion of the exam.

Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Yorkey argued Lucas was engaged in a domestic dispute with Boswell the evening of her death, and had held her against her will under fear of being shot.

Lucass attorney, Leon Weiss, disagreed with the prosecution, arguing that though there was information indicating a dispute, there was no evidence presented showing Boswell was being held against her will. Weiss said Boswell was trying to run Lucas over at the time of the shooting.

Texas man found covered in blood charged with murder in Monroe County RV park shooting

Lucas, 28, of Plano Texas, was arrested Feb. 3 after police found him covered in blood walking along a roadway north of the RV park where police were responding to a reported shooting, according to Michigan State Police.

Boswell, 35, was found shot in the face after police were called at 10:20 p.m. to a disturbance involving gunshots in the RV park located at 1600 Stumpmier Road, police said.

She was taken to Oakwood Southshore Hospital where she died from the injuries, police said. Investigators said they believe the shooting was a domestic incident and not random.

During the examination, investigators played surveillance video from a nearby gas station showing Lucas and Boswell allegedly arguing for several minutes inside their car parked at a gas pump.

There is no audio of the argument and the video did not have a clear view of what was going on inside the car.

At one point during the video, it appears as if Boswell attempted to get out of the car but was pulled back in by Lucas who was in the drivers seat.

Lucas is then seen getting out of the car and pointing what appeared to be a black handgun at Boswell before putting it in his back pocket.

Boswell gets out of the car and follows Lucas into the store where he buys a pack of cigarettes. Boswell is seen in the video shaking back and forth, appearing agitated, but does not speak to anyone else in the store before the pair leave and drive to the RV park.

A witness called 911 reporting a loud argument between the pair which ended with Lucas allegedly firing several rounds into the passenger side of their car, shooting Boswell.

Prosecutors allege the car was at a stop when Lucas opened fire while the defense argues the car was speeding toward Lucas.

Only the passenger side of the car and the inside of the drivers side door were damaged by gunfire, police testified.

The alleged gun seen in the surveillance video was never found, though police recovered several spent 40-caliber pistol shells at the scene of the shooting and one unspent 40-caliber pistol shell on Lucas when he was arrested.

Lucas bloody clothes are still undergoing DNA testing.

Lucas is currently being held without bond in the Monroe County Jail. He is scheduled for circuit court arraignment May 28.

Open murder allows a jury to determine the degree of murder a defendant is guilty of in convicted.

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI  Police are investigating overnight burglaries in which a brick was thrown through glass doors to gain entry.

Police stopped the suspects vehicle without incident early Tuesday, May 11, in Ottawa County.

The driver was cooperative, police said.

The first burglary was reported just before midnight at Boost Mobile, 3150 Plainfield Ave. NE.

Grand Rapids police responded to an intrusion alarm and found glass broken out from the front door. The rear door was open. Police determined that two burglars used a brick to break windows to enter and stole merchandise from the store. They took the brick with them.

The second burglary was reported at 1:11 a.m. at Sharpe Cars, 1010 28th Street SE. Burglars had smashed a back door with a brick to gain entry.

Once the burglars got inside, one of them took keys to a vehicle and stole it, police said. The vehicle has not been found.

Police said the same vehicle was used in both burglaries. It was stopped around 6 a.m. in Ottawa County.

Police are trying to determine if an attempted burglary at Joyology, 3769 of 28th Street SE, is related to the others.

Police responded to a 3:09 a.m. intrusion alarm. Kentwood police reported that a vehicle was leaving the parking lot as they arrived. The business was secure though police found evidence of an attempted break-in.

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KALAMAZOO, MI  Over the past four months, one former motel and one hotel, about 15 minutes apart, have become temporary homes for more than 200 individuals facing homelessness in Kalamazoo.

More than a short-term stopgap, both properties  the former Knights Inn motel at 1211 S. Westnedge Ave. and an undisclosed hotel on the western side of the county  have been buzzing with service providers working within strict time constraints to connect as many residents as possible to more permanent housing solutions.

We just sort of stay humble and keep pushing through, said Kristina Rodriguez, a mother of four who has been staying in the hotel with her children and fiance. Its definitely been a learning experience.

Rodriguez, 29, said she has been taking advantage of as many services as she can during her stay, and is among the fortunate ones to set up long-term housing arrangements. She hopes to move into her new home in the coming weeks.

Related: Despite community effort, future still uncertain for many who are homeless in Kalamazoo

While immediate needs for residents  such as securing food assistance, mental health and substance abuse treatment  are being met and long-term housing solutions explored, nonprofit leaders and employees at both properties face May 31 deadlines to vacate the rooms, inevitably leaving some residents without a place to go.

Nonprofit leaders working at the hotel on the west side are hopeful they will get an extension to continue serving the citys unhoused population through at least the end of July.

But at the former Knights Inn  purchased by the LIFT Foundation in January  most residents will be moved out by May 15. And everyone will have left by the end of the month, when construction is set to begin to transform the two-story motel into the LodgeHouse, which will be home to 60 new affordable housing units in the citys Vine Neighborhood.

Related: Kalamazoo motel being transformed into apartments for those without homes

The lack of affordable housing, in a city with a 97% occupancy rate, is the biggest challenge, said LIFT Foundation Vice President David Anderson, also the citys mayor and the director of housing and facilities at Integrated Services of Kalamazoo.

Knowing it would be late spring before the conversion began at the property, LIFT and ISK teamed up immediately after the property was purchased and began filling rooms, providing 67 people facing homelessness with short-term living solutions and on-site services to help them get back on their feet.

In the past few months, ISK staff on site has done everything it can to help as many residents at the motel connect to needed services, with housing vouchers being at the top of the list, Anderson said. There are many types of housing vouchers, but in general they help those with income restrictions get into subsidized or low-cost housing units.

LIFT nonprofit is not a shelter provider, thats not the space we are normally in. We are a permanent housing creator, Anderson said. Id like to say everyone is going to be connected to permanent housing, but it just doesnt exist.

Integrated Services Kalamazoo employees (from left) Ahja Surratt, Thomas Cass and Brandon Mion pose for a portrait at the LodgeHouse in Kalamazoo, Michigan on Monday, May 3, 2021. Surratt, Cass and Mion have been an integral part of helping breakdown barriers people need for affordable housing. Formerly home to the Knights Inn, the LodgeHouse has been part of Kalamazoo's Hotel Intervention Project and served as temporary housing for some of the city's un-housed population in recent months. The former hotel is set to undergo renovations and will become an affordable housing project. (Joel Bissell | MLive.com)Joel Bissell | MLive.com

Brandon Mion, a member of ISKs emergency harm reduction team, is one of a handful of ISK workers who help staff the motel around-the-clock. Mion said a large focus at the LodgeHouse right now is mental health services, which allows residents to focus on the root of their situation, something that can be complicated and layered regardless of whether an individual lives with a mental illness.

When youre experiencing homelessness, theres trauma, he said. But there was also trauma for a lot of these people that led up to them being homeless in the first place.

Related: Finding solutions for Kalamazoo homeless include overcoming prior trauma, criminal backgrounds

Without facing that trauma and getting to the root of it, Mion said, it can be hard to get to the end goal  housing.

Everyone has a story

The majority of the residents Mion and fellow ISK staff members have been helping were living in encampments or bouncing between shelters when LIFT took over the former motel. But others, like Rodriguez, were already living there.

We would joke about it, that for the first time we had been sold with the property, she said.

Rodriguez and her family became homeless right around the holidays, following a Christmas Day car crash that has prevented her from working and led to multiple knee surgeries. The third, and hopefully final one, is scheduled for later this month, she said.

With Rodriguez unable to work, and her fiance on disability, the family was unable to afford to stay in the mobile home they had been renting. Luckily, before they found themselves without a place to go, a family member who worked for the hotels previous owner was able to help get them in at the Knights Inn where they have been living in a double occupancy room for the past five-plus months.

Weve realized a hotel is not for us, Rodriguez said. I can see if it was one kid and a single adult  maybe.

We actually had them take one of the beds out and have an air mattress for the kids because it was too crowded.  As far as food-wise, we have a little fridge so its a lot of ordering out, money we dont have. With four children, $794 a month doesnt get us too far.

The LodgeHouse in Kalamazoo, Michigan on Monday, May 3, 2021. Formerly home to the Knights Inn, the LodgeHouse has been part of Kalamazoo's Hotel Intervention Project and served as temporary housing for some of the city's un-housed population in recent months. The former hotel is set to undergo renovations and will become an affordable housing project. (Joel Bissell | MLive.com)Joel Bissell | MLive.com

Fortunately, Rodriguez said, since the LIFT Foundation purchased the property, the family has been able to take advantage of on-site services and work with Integrated Services of Kalamazoo staff and other area nonprofits to obtain housing vouchers that will allow her family to move into a four-bedroom house on Kalamazoos Northside the third week of May.

The home, she said, is close enough to LaCrone Park that she and her children, ages 10 months, 2, 6 and 9, can walk to the new splash pad that is set to open this summer.

Related: Report shows 39% of Kalamazoo County households not financially stable in 2019

While there is much work to be done, about two-thirds of the 67 residents who have stayed at the former motel have, like Rodriguez, been successful in finding more permanent housing or secured a voucher and are on a wait list, Anderson said.

The other third, he said, have not been able to obtain more permanent housing or get on a wait list at this time. Most either have not shown interest in being helped or have left the motel, he said. Some opted to leave, Anderson said, and others did so at the encouragement of ISK staff due to a variety of circumstances ranging from domestic violence on site to drug use or other issues.

Continuing to help

Mion said ISK has provided residents who have returned to the encampment with new tents and other supplies and the organizations street outreach team continues to work with them. Others, he said, are being connected to one of eight shelters situated around the county  where they can continue to connect to services and keep a roof over their heads in the short-term.

The most challenging part of the job is the ones we were not able to successfully get some sort of (housing) voucher, Mion said. Unfortunately, a lot of times, they dont really engage with us too much or meet the criteria.

The other issue, he said, is for those who obtain vouchers, but have to wait for three or four months to get into a home.

Many vouchers, Mion said, only work for one-bedroom or studio apartments, and that doesnt work out well for families, who are often waiting the longest and can be split up at shelters. Its something that may drive them to encampments, where they can at least be together.

Housing is a human right, and I think we forgot that as a country, said Stephanie Hoffman, executive director with Open Doors Kalamazoo. And we have an ability and obligation to speak for those who dont have a voice or never had a voice.

That, she said, needs to be done with love, dignity and respect.

Hoffmans organization is one of a handful involved with the Hotel Intervention Project, or HIP, on the west side of the county at a hotel, which is not being named to protect the privacy of the residents.

Funded through a $665K collaboration between the Kalamazoo Foundation for Excellence and the United Way of the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo Region, the program has allowed for 143 people  many who had been living in the Mills Street encampment prior to its closure  to move temporarily into the 90-room hotel, HOPE thru Navigation Executive Director Gwendolyn Hooker said.

Related: Kalamazoo commits $250K to help people move from tent encampments to hotel rooms

Hookers organization, along with Urban Alliance, Open Doors Kalamazoo and the United Way worked from the hotel, turning four of its rooms into makeshift offices to connect with the residents and offer similar solution-based services as ISK has been doing at the LodgeHouse.

The other 86 rooms at the hotel are filled with residents,18 of whom are under the age of 18.

The contract at the hotel expires on May 31, but the organizations involved expect the original lease will be extended at least two additional months.

Adding two months is amazing, but in two months we are still not going to have those answers yet, said Jason Knight, connections coordinator with Urban Alliance. What we feel might be an equitable or better solution might not be realistic now.

We wont create a solution in two months, so then what do you do? Thats the part that keeps me up at night.

Knight, like Hooker, said while the end date may be unclear, they are using every minute they have now to help the 143 people living at the hotel.

Were just grateful for the opportunity to have the funding that we have to offer the wraparound services for our guests, Hooker said. Many of the folks, when we did the intake, had some really surprising but basic needs that werent being met, such as having proper identification or shoes.

Angie McBride, 46, poses for a portrait outside of her room in Kalamazoo, Michigan on Monday, May 3, 2021. She is one of many that are staying an undisclosed hotel as they work with organizations on next steps forward, including affordable housing. (Joel Bissell | MLive.com)Joel Bissell | MLive.com

Perceptions can be harmful

Angie McBride, 46, needed identification when she moved into the hotel. Identification is a major overlooked roadblock many homeless individuals face when looking for a place to stay or a job, Hoffman said.

A longtime resident of the area, McBride had been living in a multi-family unit with her husband in Battle Creek when she experienced a major mental health crisis, she said. Her husband, who had been working at the VA, took leave from work to help her.

Finding themselves broke, and with McBride in the throws of a mental breakdown, the couple had no place to stay and found themselves living in tent city at the Mills Street encampment in Kalamazoo. Her tent caught fire in January after a propane explosion, though she was not home at the time, she said.

It was not the first time in her life McBride had been homeless. But, unlike the last time, she said she was met by an abundance of resources and a network of organizations who have come together to help, both at the encampment and at the hotel.

Back then it was kind of like we were kind of like parasites, she said. It was kind of like we dont want to go by them, we dont want to help them, or they are drug addicts or alcoholics and thats not always the case with every homeless person.

In disbelief when a hotel room was offered to her and her family in March, McBride  who is also dealing with the recent death of her 27-year-old daughter said she has been taking advantage of all of the services that have been offered to her.

Shes received mental health care, obtained a new county ID card, been enjoying three meals a day and said she has felt safe due to the presence of security guards who are always on site.

Most importantly, like Rodriguez, McBride has secured a housing voucher. She hopes to use it to move into a home in Portage that gives veterans, like her husband, and their families preference.

Everybody needs help sometimes, she said.

Its not a choice that were homeless. We did put ourselves here with some of our choices that we made, but we dont enjoy it. We dont enjoy being homeless, McBride said.

Editors note: This story was reported in collaboration with WMUK 102.1 FM. For more on this topic from WMUKs Sehvilla Mann, click here. More, from WMUK 102.1FM:

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Protect and serve means serving homeless population for Kalamazoo police lieutenant

Kalamazoo will evacuate those living in flood-zone encampment after offering hotel stays

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KALAMAZOO, MI  Gov. Gretchen Whitmer visited the Kalamazoo Expo Center Vaccination Clinic Tuesday to observe ongoing COVID-19 vaccination efforts, the governors office said in a news release.

On Monday, May 11, Whitmer announced that 55% of Michiganders have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. The announcement marks the first milestone of the MI Vacc to Normal plan, which would enable in-person work to resume across all employment sectors on May 24, Whitmer said in a news release.

Our administration and countless frontline healthcare workers have been working around the clock to ensure that every Michigander has access to the free, safe, and effective vaccine, Whitmer said.

Related: Michigan hits first COVID-19 vaccine milestone, starts 2-week clock for return to office work

Under the plan, Michiganders can begin taking steps to return to in-person work, the governor said.

Looking ahead, the more people who get vaccinated, the sooner we can get Vacc to Normal and emerge from this pandemic together, Whitmer said. I encourage all Michiganders to be a part of the solution and get their shots as soon as possible to protect theirs friends, family, and community.

The trip was also so Whitmer could ensure that vaccines are being distributed efficiently and equitably, according to the statement from the governors office.

The goal is to equitably vaccinate at least 70% of Michiganders, ages 16 and older, as soon as possible. As part of the efforts, Michigan is partnering with organizations and venues like the Kalamazoo Expo Center to create more opportunities for Michigan residents to receive a vaccine, the governors office said.

Gov. Whitmer was also slated to visit the Interstate 94 construction project in Portage to highlight the administrations efforts to fix roads and bridges, the news release states.

Left to right: MDOT Director Paul C. Ajegba, MDOT Southwest Region Associate Region Engineer of Operations Janine Cooper, and Governor Gretchen Whitmer. (MDOT Nick Schirripa photo)

Read more:

Pfizer COVID-19 shot expanded to U.S. children as young as 12 years old

Deadlines loom for homeless living in Kalamazoo hotels while long-term fixes explored

Hospitals, stores, restaurants among 51 Michigan businesses fined for COVID-19 violations

Michigan police arrest 39 in operation against body mutilation, drugs, prostitution

Cancel extra $300, federal unemployment programs, Michigan business group urges

Ludington adds new harbor run to celebrate citys maritime legacy, SS Badgers sailing season
STANDISH, MI  A former police officer accused of trying to kill five Michigan State Police troopers by booby trapping his Twining home has been found competent to stand trial.

Arenac County Chief District Judge Richard E. Vollbach Jr. ruled this month that 67-year-old Roger A. Broadstone is psychologically competent to participate in court proceedings.

The judge based his rulings on a report from staff at the Center for Forensic Psychiatry in Ypsilanti, where Broadstone had been sent for an evaluation.

Defense attorney Duane L. Hadley said he, Broadstone, and the prosecution stipulated to the reports findings.

Broadstone faces 16 criminal counts in Arenac County, having been arraigned Feb. 1 on the following charges:

 Five counts of attempted murder

 Four counts of assaulting, resisting, or obstructing police

 One count of assaulting, resisting, or obstructing police causing injury

 One count of disarming a police officer, non-firearm

 One count of attempting to disarm a police officer of a firearm

 One count placing an offensive substance with intent to injure

 One count of arson-preparation to burn a dwelling

 One count of felon in possession of ammunition

 One count malicious destruction of police property

The charges stem from MSP troopers on Jan. 20 going to Broadstones home to interview him about a fraud complaint. Broadstone refused to come out and barricaded his house, police have said.

Troopers obtained a search warrant and entered Broadstones home, finding he had set up a booby trap and made other preparations to harm them. Broadstone resisted as he was being arrested and disarmed one trooper of his Taser, police have said.

At least one trooper was also injured, though police have declined to provide specifics of the injury.

Broadstone had allegedly leaked propane into the structure and had set up a method to trigger an explosion.

Police had come to Broadstones house after a Merritt woman alleged someone used her credit card information to buy $1,500 in merchandise from a West Branch Walmart.

Investigators have said the purchase was made online using the victims credit card and Broadstone was listed as a secondary person to pick up the order. Surveillance camera footage showed Broadstone picking up the order at Walmart.

Broadstone previously served as an Oscoda County Sheriffs deputy from June 30, 1986, to Sept. 5 of the same year. He also was employed by the Michigan Department of Corrections in the 1980s and 90s, staff have confirmed.

He also has a criminal record that includes convictions for malicious destruction of property in 1997 and maintaining a drug vehicle, assault with a dangerous weapon, unlawful imprisonment, carrying a concealed weapon, and delivering or manufacturing marijuana, all from 2011.

In September 2011, Broadstone was sentenced to 18 months probation on a concealed weapons conviction.

Broadstone in January 2020 attended a Bay County Board of Commissioners meeting, speaking about his support for gun rights and voicing his fear of law enforcement coming to seize citizens firearms.

Somebody tells me Im crazy  but then they will come out to your house and theyre gonna come with a SWAT team, Broadstone said at the meeting. Theyre not gonna come, knock on your door, and say, Please, give me your gun. They are gonna come in force.  they go up against a normal citizen that is alone in the house that has no way of protecting himself at all and they will either take the gun or kill that person.

Hadley said Broadstone was in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, the day insurrectionists stormed the U.S. Capitol in a bid to overthrow the 2020 election results of incumbent President Donald J. Trump losing to Democrat challenger Joseph R. Biden.

My understanding is him and a few other people from the Standish area went out there, Hadley said. They just wanted to see President Trump. They werent involved in the riots or anything like that. He wasnt involved in that.

Broadstone is to appear for a preliminary examination before Judge Vollbach at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, May 11.

Read more:

Michigan man accused of trying to kill police is former cop, championed 2nd Amendment sanctuary cities

Michigan man accused of trying to kill 5 state police by booby-trapping house

Body camera video shows Michigan man attack police with hockey stick at Captiol riots
VASSAR, MI - Wolverine Human Services CEO Judith Fischer Wollack thought an upcoming meeting with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services meant the juvenile corrections nonprofits secured facility in Buena Vista was coming off its provisional license.

Instead, she was shocked to learn the department was revoking the license altogether. She then went through the stages of grief, she said, becoming emotional while recalling the revocation.

It was difficult, its very sad, Wollack said. What we did there with kids was magnificent. We changed lives, we saved lives.

MDHHS used the results of special investigations into misconduct at Wolverines Buena Vista Township juvenile detention facility, which substantiated physical abuse and found willful and substantial violations of 10 state rules and regulations, as justification for recommending the state revoke the facilitys license in late March.

Wolverine operates non-secured facilities at its campus in Vassar, as well as a facility in Detroit. One, the Clarence Fischer Center, is also on a second provisional license after investigations into two incidents found corporal punishment and currently has no children in its substance abuse treatment program.

Other than a small group of special needs teenagers and their instructors, the facility sits empty until the status is lifted in July.

By now, the Buena Vista facility is closed completely, its residents moved to other facilities over the month of April.

It will be very sad if Michigan dismantles a system that could be refined and the best in the country, and its no longer here for the children we need to serve, Wollack said. Our children need, they deserve treatment.

Wollack doesnt place blame on the way the facility was being run, however. She said the company has dealt with personnel issues as they come along, and human behavior is inevitable.

Instead, Wollack said the states crackdown on licensing violations is doing the child welfare system more harm than good. She said the states actions against Wolverine are both disproportionate and subjective.

Every time weve had, as Ive said to them, stupid people do stupid, inappropriate things, they are terminated, Wollack said. I dont know what else were supposed to do.

Overcorrected

From Wollacks perspective, the states enforcement efforts stepped up dramatically after the May 2020 death of Cornelius Fredericks, who lived at the non-secured Lakeside Academy in Kalamazoo.

Frederick was restrained by multiple people and his death was ruled homicide by asphyxiation, an incident Wollack called inappropriate, disproportionate and likened to the murder of George Floyd. Charges in the incident include counts of involuntary manslaughter for at least three then-employees.

When the Cornelius event happened in Kalamazoo last May, the state, in our estimation, overcorrected, Wollack said.

According to MDHHS spokesman Bob Wheaton, eight facilities have closed because of disciplinary action since 2016, not including the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center or Lakeside Academy, which arent officially considered closed until the disciplinary process is complete.

The organization has worked to reduce its use of restraints, on its way to eliminating them entirely, said Wolverine Vice President of Residential Programs Paul Whitney. Wollack, however, said while the state is asking for a reduction in restraints, its not providing the roadmap or training dollars to make that feasible.

Rather than fixing the causes of issues at existing facilities, closing them down is just going to make things worse, she said.

Do you want to get rid of the ICU before you fix the front end? Wollack said.

Wollack has previously sounded the alarm about a shortage of workers in the child welfare system.

Now, the shortage is even worse, she said. Partially because of COVID-19, and partially because of expanded unemployment benefits. Nonprofits like Wolverine dont get the funding to be able to afford a competitive wage for workers, she said.

Several former staff members at Wolverines Vassar campus have left for a nearby adult care facility run by the state because of its higher starting pay, Wollack said.

When you can go work at McDonalds or Walmart or Krogers and start anywhere at $15, Starbucks is starting at $17, do you want to come here and get spit on today? Wollack said. If youre paid less, lets say, are you getting the same quality of staff?

This has contributed to unqualified staff slipping through the cracks, Wollack said.

Supervisor 1, the subject of one of the Buena Vista special reports, had apparently made it through more than one performance review without note of several formal reprimands for poor conduct at work. The organization did go through all its personnel files after the revocation and Supervisor 1 was the most egregious case, Wollack said.

In an ideal world, someone with his record wouldnt have lasted at Wolverine, but he got through the cracks, Wollack said.

One reason why hes still here is because hes breathing, and because of COVID, Wollack said. We used to terminate people because they were late. Were not doing that very often anymore. We cant afford to do it because we need people to work.

Wollacks solution would be to equalize pay and benefits for state and nonprofit workers. Some think since Wolverine is a nonprofit, they should fundraise to close the gap, Wollack said.

She said the state should pay nonprofits equally for the services they provide, and fundraising should cover extracurricular activities and benefits for residents.

Wolverines programs are about prevention, Wollack said. Kids arent picked up off the street, theyre brought there for a reason. Without the child welfare system, many residents would end up either on the streets or in prison, she said.

I cant tell you how many times when we dont have workers have a plan for their kids and the kids age out at 18, you know where they take them? Homeless shelter, Wollack said. Are we failing children? Yes. Not all the time, but sometimes.

Wolverine has an appeal hearing scheduled for Monday, May 10, during which the organization will argue the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center should be allowed to keep its license.

Whitney said he believes Wolverine has a good case, and some details were omitted or inaccurate in the special report. However, Wolverines attorney doesnt know of any case where one of the hearings has gotten a license revocation overturned, he said.

What weve learned from this process is I dont know if it matters, Whitney said.

MDHHS response

After Fredericks death, MDHHS has taken action to prevent something similar from happening again, Wheaton said in a statement to MLive. That action includes new rules phasing out physical restraints, updated policies for foster care caseworkers, and a statewide youth advisory board that will help each institution develop a similar board.

As of April 1, the department has implemented a new residential treatment program looking to improve the quality of care and make sure congregate care is only used for short amounts of time when absolutely necessary.

Of Michigans child care facilities, the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center had the most safety-related investigations of any Michigan facility over a 2-year period, Wheaton said. The next highest, the Evart Youth Center, is also pending revocation, he said.

The state is also experiencing a worker shortage, but it is not causing any wait for children to be placed in facilities, Wheaton said.

Private agencies are funded based on daily per-diem rates and operate with a bottom line relatively close to state-run facilities when at full capacity, and salaries and wages are determined by the facilities, he said.

In this situation, the department felt that the repeat rule violations were significant enough to warrant a recommendation for adverse action, Wheaton said. Protecting the safety and well-being of youth in our care is a top priority of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. The department has been working to reform the states child welfare system to make it safer for children, to keep children with their families whenever possible, and to reduce the reliance on child-caring institutions.

Read more on MLive:

Investigations into Michigan juvenile facility found corporal punishment, documents show

Documents show abuse allegations that led to closing of Wolverine juvenile facility in Buena Vista

Wolverine juvenile facility will close in Buena Vista by end of April
(This is the second of two installments. Click here to read the first installment: Fatal shooting puts spotlight on short-term rentals in Saginaw)

BAY CITY, MI -- One Bay City resident who said she was displaced from her apartment of about four years so it could be converted into an Airbnb is Nichole Bartel. Before she moved out, she shared common areas with Airbnb users who were renting other units in her building. Initially, that didnt bother her.

Then Bartel briefly left a crate of vinyl records outside her unit, only to have it disappear. She knocked on the door of an Airbnb rental and found those inside had taken the crate.

They all were going through my records like they found a Christmas present, she said. After that experience, it was a little unsettling to not know who was in the building. Strangers were around, and Im a female living alone. Anyone can book an Airbnb; they dont do a background check. That made me feel not as safe in the building as I used to feel.

On leaving her unit, Bartel was struck by the difficulty of finding an affordable rental in Bay City.

It was really hard to find a place, she said. Rents had gone up so much. The whole market had changed. Luckily, I found another apartment at the last minute with somebody I knew.

Bartel wondered if the prevalence of short-term rentals contributed to the spike in long-term rentals prices. Her speculation is supported by a study by Harvard Business Review, which found in part that absentee landlords are reducing the housing supply, which, in turn, increases the cost of living for local renters.

Forbes Magazine, in a February 2020 article, wrote that the Airbnb effect is to some extent remarkably similar to gentrification in that it slowly increases the value of an area to the detriment of the indigenous residents, many of whom are pushed out due to financial constraints.

I couldnt find a nice place for an affordable price, and Bay City always used to be that way, Bartel said. Now thats changed, and I imagine thats because a lot of these places are Airbnbs now.

Bartel said she is not opposed to short-term rentals but thinks there should be some local regulations on them. The Harvard Business Review study suggested one way of retaining the benefits of home-sharing while decreasing rising rent costs would be enacting a limit on how many places can be on the short-term rental market.

I think there should be regulations, Bartel said. Of course, tourism is important to Bay City and we want to encourage that but not at the cost of our residents not having a place to live. I realize tourism is important but regulations are necessary to ensure the safety of tenants.

Airbnb lists at least 38 rentals within Bay City, the majority clustered around downtown and the adjacent East Side. Prices range from $48 to $345 per night. By contrast, the site lists eight short-term rentals within Saginaws limits. They range from single rooms to entire houses, their prices running from $58 to $105 per night.

As short-term rentals of the Airbnb model proliferate in Bay City and are beginning to in Saginaw, city leaders and residents are sharing their perspectives on the matter.

Airbnb says it has democratized travel, bringing the benefits of tourism to communities that typically have not benefited from it before, and facilitating a more authentic experience on a global scale, enabling travelers to live like locals anywhere they go.

According to Forbes Magazine, Airbnbs revenue stands at $4.8 billion as of Nov. 23, 2020.

Criticism has been leveled at the so-called Airbnb effect in recent years, with opponents arguing it allows for unsafe or uncertified lodgings, displaces long-term renters, and contributes to community gentrification.

City officials respond

Saginaw City Council Member Annie Boensch said discussions occurred years ago with prior council members regarding short-term rentals, before Airbnbs model became so prominent.

We didnt really know at that time if Saginaw would be a tourist location, Boensch said. We didnt really know what kind of market there would be for Airbnb. We didnt really know of any at the time, so we wanted to wait until we had some.

She said the topic is now something that certainly should be revisited by the council and that its members should explore what other municipalities have enacted to regulate short-term rentals.

Its something that we need to explore and find out more information if there are some common-sense things that we can enforce, Boensch said. Thats really the issue is finding a way to enforce it, as with any other ordinance.

Boensch described the gap between long-term and short-term rentals as a gray territory when it comes to regulations. Rules for short-term rentals may need to be adopted, she said.

Asked if there is a concern of residents being displaced from their homes for landlords to turn their spaces into short-term rentals, Boensch said that is another aspect worth discussing.

We have such a high level of rentals in the city, she said. I have yet to have anybody come to me of people being displaced for that. I dont know what control wed have as far if someone wanted to take their registered rental and turn it into an Airbnb.

We didnt really know if wed have a huge market for them one way or the other but obviously theres enough of a market there that problems are occurring, she continued.

Bay City Commissioner Cordal D. Morris, 9th Ward, said the issue of short-term rentals proliferating has not been discussed by commission members.

It definitely should be in some capacity, to acknowledge at the very minimum that this is happening, he said. We have a decent amount compared to our neighbor city.

Morris said that in his opinion, an influx of Airbnbs could boost the local economy.

It brings tourists who are going to spend money while theyre here, he said.

He added he is not a proponent of landlords displacing long-term tenants to cater to tourists, however.

It is legal, but I personally dont think its right, he said. If people are being displaced, Im not a fan of that. I have a feeling it will be discussed in the future.

Bay City Commission President Jesse Dockett, 1st Ward, said he and Bay City Manager Dana L. Muscott had an unofficial discussion on short-term rentals and possibly introducing regulations, but that was before COVID-19 hit when there were only about 10 Airbnbs in the city. Currently, there are no plans to bring any proposed regulations before the commission, he said.

Dockett supports the entrepreneurship of property owners hosting Airbnbs to make ends meet, adding he often uses the service when traveling. Like Morris, he is not in favor of residents being pushed out, though.

Pushing out of a specific area of the city could become problematic, he said. Pushing out of the city as a whole, I dont think so. The city was designed to hold 50 to 70,000 people and right now we have 250 to 350 vacant properties. If we only have 38 Airbnbs, its not to that concerning level yet.

Dockett said he has mixed feelings on the issue but thinks a workable solution or balance can be struck for everyone.

Im not sure what that looks like, he said. There is a discussion starting to happen, but its pretty early stages still. Its one of those things that is probably going to end up being discussed sooner rather than later, but its not there yet.

What must be weighed is the value short-term rentals are bringing into a community, he said.

We want tourism and we want the population of the city to grow, but we definitely want it to be done in a way that its a net positive on the neighborhood and not something where one property is dragging everything down by being an Airbnb, he said. I think ultimately there is a place for Airbnbs. Im a supporter of people being entrepreneurial, but we definitely have to have a system in place so it makes it a net positive for the community.

Elsewhere in Michigan

Cities across the world  among them Paris, Barcelona, New York City, San Francisco, and Santa Monica  have implemented ordinances and regulations either banning or restricting short-term rentals. Some regulations include limiting hosting to full-time residents, capping how many days per year a property can be rented, and requiring hosts to register their rental units with local officials.

The issue of short-term rentals is having ramifications throughout Michigan.

Ann Arbors City Council voted 7-4 in September to prohibit non-owner-occupied short-term rentals, like year-round Airbnb houses, in residential zoning districts. The ordinance limits short-term rentals to mixed-use districts. Local residents who want to rent out part of their primary residence or their whole house on a short-term basis still could do so.

The ordinance went into effect on March 1.

During a September meeting, some council members argued the conversion of homes into dedicated short-term rentals is taking away housing that is needed for long-term residents and impacting affordability by reducing the local housing supply. Council member Jane Lumm said the ordinance was necessary to enact in preventing the further deterioration of permanent housing in the city, requiring licensing and registering of short-term rentals going forward.

The day after the ordinance took effect, Ann Arbors Planning Commission voted 8-1 to recommend new rules allowing the continuation of short-term rental properties that arent owner-occupied in residential zones if they were established prior to March 1.

If they can demonstrate they were licensed and operating before the ban took effect two days ago, theyll be granted legal non-conforming status under the pending rules, which head to City Council for final approval.

Elsewhere, St. Clair Shores resident Michael Dorr is seeking an appeal from the Michigan Supreme Court that would allow him to continue renting a home he owns as a short-term rental on Airbnb.

Dorr in February 2019 was found guilty by 40th District Judge Joseph Oster of violating a city zoning ordinance by providing short-term rentals in a single-family building in a residential district. Dorr paid a fine for hosting two overnight rentals in 2018, according to Macomb Daily.

Macomb County Circuit Judge Diane A. Druzinski upheld Dorrs conviction in July 2019.

A Michigan Court of Appeals upheld the two lower court judges rulings in October 2020. The Mackinac Center Legal Foundation, of Midland-based free-market think tank Mackinac Center for Public Policy, has taken up Dorrs case in seeking relief from the states highest court.

The Mackinac Center has argued that no city ordinance bans short-term rentals and that its zoning ordinance is unconstitutionally vague, Macomb Daily reports. The Michigan Realtors Association has joined the Mackinac Center and filed a brief supporting its position and urging the Supreme Court to take this case.

The decision of the Court of Appeals in this case, and its prior decisions addressing residential use of property, are contrary to the holdings in most states, the MRA wrote in its brief. The majority of states reject the reinterpretation of ordinances and restrictive covenants to prohibit short-term rentals, applying the same terms in zoning ordinances and property restrictions as those used in the (City Zoning Ordinance).

Read more:

Fatal shooting puts spotlight on short-term rentals in Saginaw

Police release name of Saginaw man killed during party at daily rental house

Ann Arbor banned Airbnb houses in neighborhoods. Now theyre in legal limbo.

Ann Arbor bans dedicated Airbnb short-term rental properties
Hong Kong: CE apologises over quarantine case

(To watch the full media session with sign language interpretation, click here.)

Chief Executive Carrie Lam today apologised to some residents who complained about their experience while under quarantine over a confirmed case of the COVID-19 variant of concern.

Mrs Lam emphasised that the Government has resolved the situation and is scrutinising the complaints with the goal of improving quarantine arrangements.

She said: I have already expressed my apology to affected residents during this very stringent measure of putting everyone in the same block where there was a confirmed case of the COVID-19 variant of concern under this 21-day quarantine. But we have also rectified the situation.

During their stay in the quarantine centre, I understand that the conditions were not the best that we would like to see - the service may be a bit substandard, particularly over this alleged food poisoning case. So we will review all these complaints and grievances with a view to improving the arrangements.

Mrs Lam explained that when it comes to problematic food during quarantine, the Centre for Health Protection will manage the situation.

As far as the procurement of the food supplier is concerned, this is a matter that the Centre for Health Protection, under the Department of Health, will handle.

I will just emphasise that within a government procurement regime, there is indeed something called a direct quotation. Because of the time, the urgency and so on, it is not possible to go through a full public tender.

So please do not draw a conclusion that we have breached the rules. There are rules which allow for the Government to act decisively and as a matter of urgency in order to meet the communitys needs.

This story has been published on: 2021-05-11. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
The State Council Information Office holds a press conference on the data of the seventh national population census in Beijing, capital of China, on May 11, 2021. [Photo/Xinhua]

China released the results of the seventh national census on Tuesday.

The census, the largest of its kind across the world, helps China figure out its population size, structure and distribution as well as the latest demographic changes and trends, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The latest census conducted last year is expected to offer strong statistical support for the country to advance high-quality development and formulate more targeted strategies and policies to promote long-term and balanced population development, the NBS said.

A total of 679,000 census-taking institutions were created in the country's provinces, cities, counties, townships and villages, and more than 7 million census takers were organized to document demographic information door to door across the country.

The census collected data including name, ID number, gender, marital status, education and profession of Chinese citizens.

China's population on the mainland has reached 1.41178 billion, up 5.38 percent from the previous census in 2010, the latest census data showed.

The figure does not include Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan residents and foreigners who live in the mainland's 31 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities, according to the NBS.

Previously, the country conducted national censuses in 2010, 2000, 1990, 1982, 1964 and 1953.




[Lambert] told me that I was insane for ever questioning him and that I should be ashamed of myself for questioning his integrity. He berated me on the phone and told me that I was irrational for ever questioning such an esteemed attorney from New York and started demanding that I send him a huge amount of money or that he would not do anymore work for me. In truth he had never done one bit of work for me, the victim wrote.
BAY CITY, MI  A man in the U.S. Army Reserve has been charged with accidentally shooting his roommate with an AR-15 inside their Bay City apartment.

Alexander T. Dicken on Friday, May 7, appeared in Bay County District Court for arraignment on single counts of careless discharge of a firearm causing injury or death and reckless use of a firearm.

The former charge is punishable by up to two years incarceration and a $2,000 fine, while the latter carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and a $500 fine.

The arraigning judge freed Dicken, who turns 24 on Thursday, on a personal recognizance bond.

Dickens charges stem from an incident that occurred the night of March 17 at his apartment in the 100 block of North Walnut Street on Bay Citys West Side. Dicken had called 911 at 8:47 p.m. to report that he had shot his 30-year-old roommate in his chest with an AR-15, police reports contained in court files state.

Police arrived on scene and found Dicken and his wounded roommate outside their building, the injured man lying in nearby grass, reports state. Police entered the apartment and found the AR-15 on a bed.

The victim was taken to Covenant HealthCare in Saginaw. He told police Dicken had accidentally shot him with his (the victims) own gun.

(He) stated that Alex retrieved (his) AR-15 from the safe and brought it to his bedroom, police reports state. The rifle was handed to him and after a short time handed back to Alex. During the handoff back to Alex the gun went off and (the victim) was struck in the chest.

Dicken told police he was in the Army National Guard and has knowledge of weapons, with a few of the guns in the apartments gun safe belonging to him. He said he had recently received a stimulus check and was considering buying an AR-15, so retrieved his roommates from the safe and brought it to the roommates room.

Dicken told police he had unloaded the gun before bringing it to his roommate, but had briefly left the room and did not realize his friend had reloaded the gun.

Dicken went on to say he rendered first aid to his friend and walked him outside so hed be more accessible to paramedics.

The victim also said he did not believe Dicken knew the gun was loaded.

I leave my AR-15 with one in the chamber and the safety on, he told police. I told Alex it was loaded and he must have not heard me and he just pulled the trigger. It all happened so fast. I handed it to him and it went bang.

The bullet entered the victims chest and exited it, with a fragment then lodging in his left arm, reports state.

Though Dicken told police he was in the National Guard, records indicate he is actually in the U.S. Army Reserve.

Dicken is to appear for preliminary examination at 2:30 p.m. on May 26.

Read more:

Police investigate shooting on Bay Citys West Side

Afternoon drive-by shooting in Saginaw leaves woman dead, man wounded

Bay City police investigate shooting of Saginaw man
President Joe Biden will tour Fords new electric vehicle plant in Dearborn next week, one day before the F-150 Lightning is revealed.

The White House confirmed reports that Biden will travel to Dearborn on Tuesday, May 18, but released no other details about the visit. A February tour of Pfizers vaccine manufacturing facility in Portage was Bidens first visit to Michigan since taking office.

Ford Motor Co. is set to unveil its new all-electric F-150 Lightning the following day. Production begins next spring at the Ford Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, with the first trucks set to roll off the assembly line in 2022.

Were honored to host President Biden at Ford Motor Company and excited to preview for him the new F-150 Lightning and the exciting technologies that made it possible, Melissa Miller, manager of government and public policy communications for Ford, said in a statement.

Miller emphasized that the F-150 Lightning will be built by UAW workers. Bidens push to strengthen labor unions was a key part of his campaign pitch to Michigan voters in 2020. The UAW International Board endorsed his candidacy for president.

Outside a UAW hall on the campaign trail, Biden pledged to replace the federal governments fleet of vehicles with electric models. He also vowed to build 550,000 EV charging stations and invest more in clean energy research. Since his inauguration, Biden kept a focus on clean energy, rejoining the Paris Climate Accords and appointing former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm to lead the U.S. Department of Energy.

Biden said theres no reason American workers cant lead the world in the production of electric vehicle technology during his first address to Congress in April.

Ford officials are making big investments to lead the production of electric vehicle technology. Ford committed to investing more than $22 billion in vehicle electrification through 2025, including $700 million to expand its pickup truck manufacturing capabilities in Dearborn.

In April, Ford announced an additional $185 million investment to create a learning lab in Southeast Michigan dedicated to developing building vehicle battery cells and cell arrays.

Ford representatives did not provide any additional details about Bidens upcoming visit.
As employers struggle to find workers, Michigan could make it easier by canceling the extra $300 in jobless benefits and getting rid of federal unemployment programs, a state business group says.

At least four states already decided to stop accepting federal unemployment benefits in mid-to-late June  Montana, South Carolina, North Dakota and Iowa.

Michigan should join them, says the Michigan chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business.

There are just too many jobs and too many people who are not incentivized to take them, said Charles Owens, Michigan director of the NFIB.

RELATED: Long hours, health risks and ghost applicants lead to desperate staffing situations at Michigan restaurants

Nationwide, 44% of small business owners report having job openings they cant fill, according to an NFIB survey of 10,000 business owners. The numbers are likely even higher in Michigan, Owens said.

Michigan currently offers up to $662 per week to unemployed workers, thanks to the extra $300 in benefits from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. The extra $300 and the federal unemployment programs  including the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program  dont expire until September.

Owens expects Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will want Michigan to keep the supplemental unemployment programs in place until September, but hopes to at least spur a conversation for change.

A representative from Whitmers office deferred questions about her stance on the issue to a representative with the Unemployment Insurance Agency, who said there are no plans to end the federal programs early.

Michigan only offers 20 weeks of state unemployment and gig workers and self-employed people are not eligible. Federal unemployment offers dozens of weeks of benefits for people who dont qualify for state unemployment.

Canceling the PUA and PEUC programs would toss more than a half-million Michiganders off unemployment. For the week of April 10, Michigan had about 860,000 people on federal unemployment and about 100,000 getting state unemployment.

But there are plenty of jobs for those people to fill, Owens said. The hospitality industry needs people if it wants to accommodate the summer tourism rush, he said.

Were a big tourism state and the hospitality industry is just in a big, big panic, as they should be, Owens said.

Another potential solution is in a proposal before Michigan Legislature  which would give people $1,000 to get a job or return to their old job and get off unemployment. The $400 million plan in House Bill 4420 would be enough money to give 400,000 people the $1,000 bonus.

The Detroit Regional Chamber is promoting a plan that would give $2,000 hiring bonuses and spend $150 million in stimulus funds to replenish Michigans employer-funded unemployment trust fund.

Its a carrot-and-stick approach, Owens said. Its not just cutting everybody off.

Now is the time to create policies to get people back to work, Owens said, as vaccinations are widely available and Michigans COVID-19 caseload has dropped substantially after a spring surge. Michigan still leads the nation in new cases per person, however.

Were turning the corner, Owens said. We need to have folks that can reengage in the workforce or this economic upturn is just going to run out of gas because there wont be anybody to work.

Opponents say the pandemic shutdowns gave restaurant workers the opportunity to reevaluate their career paths  many have found different jobs or started their own business to escape the low wages, long hours and tough conditions that come with restaurant gigs.

The unemployment money gives low-wage workers leverage. If employers are fair, the workers will come, President Joe Biden said Monday.

My expectation is that, as our economy comes back, these companies will provide fair wages and safe work environments, Biden said. And if they do, theyll find plenty of workers and were all going to come out of this together better than before.

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How Michigan governments can, cant spend their $11B in COVID-19 stimulus money
Every community in Michigan is about to get a hefty stimulus check.

And the money can be spent on a wide variety of uses, the U.S. Treasury announced this week.

Michigan is getting nearly $11 billion in stimulus funding via the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan  which sends $350 billion to governments across the nation. The first half of the funding will be sent this month, per the Treasury.

The second half of the funds will be sent in May 2022, and all the money must be spent by Dec. 31, 2024.

Michigans state government will get $6.5 billion to spend for itself. Michigan counties are getting a combined $1.9 billion, while cities, townships and villages get a combined $2.5 billion. Altogether, Michigan governments are getting $10.94 billion.

The list of ineligible uses for the COVID-19 stimulus funds is a short one. The Treasury forbids the funds be used on pension funds, tax cuts, debt service, legal settlements, rainy day funds, financial reserves and infrastructure not related to water, sewer or broadband.

Here are a few examples of what villages, townships, cities, counties and states can use the money for. To see the full list of allowable uses, click here.

COVID-19 mitigation, vaccination efforts

Behavioral health care needs

Assistance for needy people, including food and housing

Small business grants

Help for tourism, travel and hospitality businesses

Replenishing the unemployment trust fund

Remediating lead hazards in low-income areas

Replacing lost revenue for governments caused by the pandemic

Increasing pay for essential workers like hospital workers, educators, warehouse workers, nursing home staff, transit workers, restaurant employees, grocery store workers, etc.

Water and sewer infrastructure projects

Broadband infrastructure projects

The Treasury also announced Monday how much governments will get in stimulus funds.

For most places, the official total is similar to the estimates announced earlier this spring. However, there are some exceptions  like Ann Arbor, which will get $24.2 million, far higher than the original estimate of $11.8 million.

Detroit will get the most of all Michigan cities with $826.7 million  although thats more than $50 million less than the original estimate.

Heres how much cities and townships are receiving. Metro cities are highlighted in orange, as those are final numbers from the U.S. Treasury. Numbers for smaller cities and towns are still only initial estimates.

(Cant see the chart? Click here.)

The funding for larger cities is based on population, poverty, housing stability and other factors. Thats why Jackson, for example, is getting more money than Ann Arbor despite having only about 25% as many residents.

Money for smaller cities, counties, townships and villages is divvied up based solely on population.

Heres how much each Michigan county is getting. (Cant see the chart? Click here.)

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LANSING, MI - The Michigan Senate on Tuesday chipped away at negotiations for the next fiscal years budget, approving about half the bills on its agenda.

Lawmakers approved nine of 17 budget bills during the May 11 session, mostly along partisan lines. The bills passed Tuesday amount to about $15.7 billion of a plan that is expected to exceed $66 billion.

The current estimated plan figures to be about $700 million less than Gov. Gretchen Whitmers $67.1 billion proposal from earlier this year, Appropriations Chair Sen. Jim Stamas, R-Midland, told reporters Tuesday. The current estimate, pending future negotiations, is $66.4 billion, Stamas office confirmed.

Read more: What to know as Michigan budget talks advance

This budget and plan increases investments in top priorities while living within our means, Stamas said on the Senate floor about the entire budget package.

Sen. Curtis Hertel, D-East Lansing, who serves as Minority Appropriations Chair, called Tuesday a first step in negotiations before signaling Democratic opposition to much of the package.

While there are many promises in these budgets, there are still big priorities that are missing from our state, he said.

While Republicans and Democrats disagreed on several points of the budget, they unanimously agreed to tie the budget to provisions forcing the states Secretary of State and Unemployment Insurance Agency offices to provide in-person service.

The Secretary of State measure passed in Senate Bill 82, sponsored by Sen. Roger Victory, R-Hudsonville, while the UIA requirement was linked to Senate Bill 85, sponsored by Sen. Ken Horn, R-Frankenmuth.

The push for in-person services comes after Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announced last month that her offices would stick with appointments and end to first-come, first-served processing. Meanwhile, the UIA provision is in response to various unemployment benefit problems seen throughout the last year with the surge in claims due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Horn blasted the UIA after his bill passed Tuesday.

Discussions need to take place to repair the catastrophically horrible 2020 management of unemployment claims, he said. That should start immediately.

While in-person service received bipartisan support, the rest of Horns bill saw pushback from Senate Democrats.

Several lawmakers pushed for amendments to eliminate a 20% cut in funding to the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration budget.

Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit, said it would have a dramatic, negative impact on enforcing COVID-19 safety guidelines. Horn, meanwhile, countered that MIOSHA hasnt worked with the Legislature.

While Horns bill outlines $1.66 billion to the states Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, it cuts more than $177 million out of job creation and training programs pitched in Whitmers budget proposal. Horn countered that he has pushed for the programs in the past, but has deemed them ineffective.

However, Republicans and Democrats made bipartisan headway in some departmental budgets. Both sides approved a $250,000 addition to the Civil Rights Commission to research anti-Asian discrimination, as well as another sum to the Michigan Attorney Generals office to investigate instances of unemployment insurance fraud.

Additionally, both sides agreed to a pair of 2% increases proposed by Whitmer: one for corrections officer pay and the other for operational costs for higher education institutions.

Senate Bills 93 and 94, which address these education budgets, passed 33-2 and 32-3, respectively. They were the only two bills that didnt pass 20-15 along partisan lines.

Other bills passed included:

$72 million for the Department of Insurance and Financial Services.

$452 million for the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.

More than $6 billion for operations related to general government, the state Attorney General, the executive and legislative branches, the Civil Rights Commission, Department of Treasury and Department of Technology, Management and Budget.

$530 million for the Department of Education.

$122 million for the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Several major budget developments are in the works for Wednesdays session. Both the House and Senates school aid budget recommendations include a proposed per-pupil foundation allowance increase, ranging from $50 to $100 per pupil in the House and $125 to $250 per pupil in the Senate.

Other provisions include a full-year wage increase of $2.35 an hour for long-term care workers that amounts to $460 million.

Once the Senate completes budget voting, lawmakers will begin negotiating with the House and presumably with the Whitmer administration to resolve differences between the House, Senate and executive budget plans.

The hard deadline to get a state budget signed into law is Sept. 30, as the next fiscal year takes effect Oct. 1.

Read more from MLive:

Billions in stimulus money headed to Michigan schools, but slowly. Heres why

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signs $62.8B state budget

How to spend federal coronavirus money may be the next big battle between Whitmer and Republicans

Yes, Michigan is in a recession, and a quick recovery is unlikely

When and how will it end? Considering the end-game for Michigans coronavirus crisis

Michigan Senate Republicans unveil $2B plan for spending federal coronavirus money

Whitmer budget to include K-12 increase of up to $164 per pupil, more funding for higher education

Heres what the states $465 million, the feds $908 billion COVID aid bills mean for Michiganders
Michigan voters in November 2018 chose a new way to map out the states federal and legislative political districts. Starting Tuesday, theyll have the chance to participate in that process in person.

That initiative, put on the ballot by the group Voters Not Politicians, took political redistricting  the process of redrawing Congressional and state House and Senate districts every 10 years based on U.S. Census population data  out of the state Legislatures hands and created an independent commission to do the job. Supporters argued the change would help prevent gerrymandering to benefit certain lawmakers or political parties and give every Michigan resident more of a say in what their political districts look like.

Members of the 13-member commission made up of five independents, four Republicans and four Democrats were randomly selected last summer from a pool of thousands of applicants and have been meeting periodically for months to work out the logistics of a redistricting structure unlike any Michigan has ever seen before.

Theyre now ready to hear from citizens. Through July 1, commissioners will be traveling to conference and event centers throughout the state on Tuesdays and Thursdays to host constitutionally mandated public hearings on what Michigan residents want their political maps to look like.

This is an entirely new process for the state of Michigan and its a very exciting time, Rebecca Szetela, the commissions vice-chair, said during a Monday press conference. The new redistricting process ensures that redistricting occurs in an open and transparent manner with the opportunity for statewide participation.

Public hearings begin Tuesday

Under the constitutional amendment, commissioners are obligated to hold at least 10 public hearings prior to releasing a draft set of maps. Additional hearings are required after draft maps are released.

The commission scheduled 16 public hearings in various locations throughout the state at this stage, setting a goal of getting at least 10,000 public comments from a mix of in-person and virtual testimony and online submissions.

The hearings will take place 6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. To testify virtually at the hearings, residents must sign up by noon the day of the hearing here. In-person commenters have until 8 p.m. the day of the hearing to register to comment.

Public commenters will have up to two minutes to address commissioners. Those attending in person will be subject to COVID-19 precautions, including mask-wearing and social distancing.

Hearing locations include:

May 11: Jackson - American 1 Event Center, 128 W. Ganson St.

May 13: Kalamazoo - Wings Event Center, 3600 Vanrick Dr.

May 18: Marquette - The Northern Center at Northern Michigan University, 1402 Presque Isle Ave.

May 20: Gaylord - Treetop Resorts, 3962 Wilkinson Rd.

May 25: Midland - Great Hall Banquet & Convention Center, 5121 Bay City Rd.

May 27: Lansing - Lansing Center, 333 E. Michigan Ave.

June 1: Flint - Dort Financial Center, 3501 Lapeer Rd.

June 3: Dearborn - Ford Community and Performing Arts Center, 15801 Michigan Ave.

June 8: Novi - Suburban Collection Showplace, 46100 Grand River Ave.

June 10: Pontiac - Centerpoint Marriott, 3555 Centerpoint Pkwy.

June 15: Detroit - The Village Dome at Fellowship Chapel, 7707 W. Outer Dr. June 17 Detroit - TCF Center (formerly Cobo Hall), 1 Washington Blvd.

June 22: Port Huron - Blue Water Convention Center, 800 Harker St.

June 24: Warren - MRCC Banquet Center, 23401 Mound Rd.

June 29: Muskegon - VanDyke Mortgage Convention Center, 939 Third St.

July 1: Grand Rapids - DeVos Place, 303 Monroe Ave NW

Related: Michigans redistricting commission prepares to take in-person input on redrawing political maps

(Cant see the map? Click here)

How to weigh in

Michigan residents have three main ways to comment on what theyd like to see in their political districts or submit proposed maps at this stage: Show up to one of the hearings in person, sign up to testify virtually at the hearings or submit their proposals through an online public comment portal that went live last week.

Residents without internet access can also mail comments to the commission at MICRC, PO Box 30318, Lansing MI 48909.

Suann Hammersmith, the commissions executive director, said Monday that residents are welcome to attend or virtually testify at any of the hearings, regardless of where they live. She said the commission will be asking residents to be clear about the community theyre representing and, if the person is discussing a specific community, to draw a proposed map for the commission to view.

A number of websites, including Districtr.org, Representable and Daves Redistricting, offer free options for people to draw their own district maps. The commission is accepting proposed maps created by these and other third-party websites.

For more information, Michiganders are encouraged to check out the commissions website or call 833-968-3729, although formal comments on the redistricting process cannot be taken over the phone.

(Cant see the map? Click here.)

Redistricting criteria

Once the commission takes public comment on the maps and get full results from the 2020 census, they will work on redrawing maps, and are required to follow a specific series of criteria:

Complying with federal requirements, including making each district an equal population size.

Making the districts geographically contiguous.

Keeping communities of interest together.

Not favoring any political party or candidate for office.

Considering county, city and township lines.

Making the districts reasonably compact.

Once the new maps are drawn, they will be in effect starting in the 2022 election cycle and serve as district boundaries until new maps are drawn using updated census data.

Read the full Constitutional amendment that was adopted in 2018 here.

(Cant see the map? Click here)

How Michigan got here

The commission was assembled as a result of a November 2018 ballot proposal, Proposal 2, which passed with support from 61% of voters.

Redistricting was previously handled by the Michigan Legislature and approved by the governor, which, Proposal 2 supporters pointed out, allowed politicians to set their own district lines.

Katie Fahey, founder of Voters Not Politicians, initially posted a call to reform Michigans redistricting system on Facebook. In 2017, Fahey and other early Voters Not Politicians backers began touring the state, getting feedback from Michigan residents at forums and town halls as they set their sights on crafting an amendment to Michigans Constitution.

The language Voters Not Politicians settled upon in Proposal 2 aimed to circumvent politics in the political redistricting process as much as possible.

Elected officials, candidates, lobbyists and political consultants or staffers -- as well as family members of politicians or other insiders -- are barred from participating on the redistricting commission within six years of their politically affiliated position under the constitutional amendment, and commissioners are randomly selected.

Final maps for congressional and state House and Senate lines require majority approval and support from at least two Republicans, two Democrats and two independents on the commission.

Critics of the initiative fought hard to keep the Voters Not Politicians plan off the ballot, and the legal battle over the proposal went all the way to the Michigan Supreme Court.

In a 4-3 ruling, Supreme Court justices David Viviano, Bridget Mary McCormack, Richard Bernstein and Beth Clement concluded the plan put forward by Voters Not Politicians was not a general revision of the Constitution, and did not negatively impact powers assigned by the three branches of government.

Related: Volunteer movement helped carry redistricting proposal to the ballot

Complicating factors

Michigans redistricting commission already had the challenge of being the first body tasked with reapportioning the states political districts independently. But census delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic and slow population growth are already making a hard task harder.

Apportionment figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau last month indicate Michigan will lose a congressional seat in the redistricting process, dropping from 14 to 13 seats overall.

The state has steadily lost seats in the U.S. House over the last half-century, dropping from 19 representatives to 13 representatives. Michigans population grew by 2% since the last count in 2010, but the states rate of growth lagged behind most of the country.

The commission is also facing a truncated timeline on the map-drawing process due to a delay in the release of full U.S. Census data.

Under the constitutional amendment, the commission has until Nov. 1 to draw the maps  but the U.S. Census Bureau, citing pandemic-related delays, announced in February that redistricting data wont be made available to states for months, promising the data by Sept. 30, 2021. Thats after the date commissioners need to have proposed maps available for public comment under the constitutional amendment, which is Sept. 17.

Commissioners are currently petitioning state courts for additional time to draw the maps due to the late census data.

(Cant see the map? Click here.)

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LANSING, MI  Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says the state of Michigan will attempt to seize any profits that Enbridge makes from operating the controversial Line 5 oil pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac if the company doesnt comply with her order to shut the line down this week.

In letter to Enbridge Vice President Vern Yu on Tuesday, May 11, Whitmer said the state will pursue trespass and unjust enrichment claims in court if Enbridge moves oil through the line in violation of her November shutdown order, which goes into effect at midnight on Wednesday.

Please be advised that Enbridges continued operation of the Straits Pipelines after May 12, 2021 is at its own risk, Whitmer wrote. If the state prevails in the underlying litigation, Enbridge will face the prospect of having to disgorge to the state all profits it derives from its wrongful use of the easement lands following that date.

The threat comes on the eve of a looming deadline to shutter the submerged pipeline, which Enbridge says the state doesnt have the authority to require. The company has said repeatedly that it wont stop the flow of fossil fuels though Line 5 until a court or federal regulators make it do so.

When might that happen? Nobody is really sure.

It has been six months since Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ordered the closure of Enbridges dual pipelines running underneath Lake Michigan next to the Mackinac Bridge by announcing the revocation of Enbridges 1953 easement to cross the lakebed. The governor gave the company 180 days to close the pipeline. That deadline expires tomorrow night.

Enbridge has fought back in court and the court of public opinion, aided by high-ranking members of the Canadian government, which has lobbied both Whitmer and the White House to leave the pipeline alone until Enbridge can build a huge tunnel in which to replace it.

Whether that ultimately happens may hinge on a state or federal judge, depending on which venue the states lawsuit against Enbridge lands in the coming days.

In a related case, the Canadian government filed a brief Tuesday in federal court, arguing Michigans shutdown order should be halted while the U.S. and Canada discuss whether closing the pipeline violates a 1977 cross-border pipeline treaty between the two nations.

In the meantime, pipeline opponents are planning several days of activism around the shutdown deadline this week, including ceremonies in Mackinaw City and Lansing where symbolic eviction notices will be delivered to Enbridge offices.

The protest events will feature a heavy tribal presence. Indigenous communities in the region are no friend to Line 5. All 12 federally recognized Native American tribes in Michigan oppose the pipeline, seeing its age and potential to spill as an existential threat to the Great Lakes.

On Monday, the Bay Mills Indian Community executive council in the U.P. banished the pipeline from its territorial waters and called on regulators to help remove it.

This was the first, necessary step in banishing Enbridge from these waters, said Bay Mills chairperson Whitney Gravelle, who said the move applies to the reservation and treaty-ceded waters. Were calling on the state and the United States to enforce this banishment.

The state attorney generals office is already attempting to enforce the shutdown order.

Our action will be through the courts, said Lynsey Mukomel, spokesperson for Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, who filed a lawsuit against Enbridge on Whitmers behalf in November to seek compliance with the easement revocation through a court order.

The two primary regulatory agencies involved in the dispute, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR), which holds the easement thats being revoked, and the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), both declined to comment on the matter Tuesday. The DNR referred comment to Whitmers office.

PHMSA, which falls under the U.S. Department of Transportation said it cant comment on ongoing litigation. Enbridge argues that PHMSA, not the state, has authority over Line 5, and says the agency has confirmed on multiple occasions that the pipelines are fit for service.

We will not stop operating the pipeline unless we are ordered by a court or our regulator, which we view as highly unlikely, said Enbridge spokesperson Ryan Duffy, who said the state has never presented concrete evidence to show the pipeline is not operating safely.

Enbridge and the state began mediation talks in mid-April. The company counter sued Whitmer and DNR Director Dan Eichinger in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids shortly after the easement revocation order and moved Nessels case to federal court as well. The attorney generals office is attempting to move it back to state court in Ingham County.

According to court records, a second mediation session between Enbridge and the state is scheduled Tuesday, May 18.

Enbridge CEO Al Monaco addressed the dispute in a May 7 earnings call, saying weve finally been able to re-engage the state through the court-ordered mediation.

Enbridge would continue to operate the line, Moncao assured investors. Certainly, were in compliance with the easement and the law, he said.

The courts are reviewing the states challenge to the pipeline and thats going to take a while, Monaco said. No decisions, in our view, are imminent.

The 68-year-old, 645-mile pipeline runs from Superior, Wisconsin to Sarnia, Ontario by way of Michigan. It is a key part of Enbridges Lakehead network that carries light crude and natural gas liquids under the Straits of Mackinac. Its existence has caused escalating concern since another Enbridge pipeline caused a massive oil spill in 2010 on the Kalamazoo River.

Enbridge allies have mounted a full-throated defense of the controversial pipeline this year, both in Canada and around the Great Lakes region. In legislative hearings in Lansing, Republicans solicited testimony from energy distributors who say a pipeline closure would raise the price of propane used for residential heating in the U.P. and lower Michigan.

In addition to Canada, Ohio Attorney General David Yost has filed briefs in support of Enbridge in federal court, arguing on behalf of Ohio refineries and the state of Louisiana that closing the submerged oil line would have economic impact beyond Michigan. Yost argues the pipeline is vital to supplying oil refineries near Toledo and closing it would cause layoffs.

Canadian media has been replete with stories recently about concerns how a Line 5 shutdown would impact fuel supplies and jobs in Ontario and Quebec.

I dont believe the line will shut down, Sarnia Mayor Mike Bradley told CBC News on Monday. Bradley and local union leaders say the pipeline is crucial to the Sarnia economy and they are expecting the pipeline will continue to operate following the mediation process.

On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar issued a statement calling pipelines like Line 5 and the Keystone XL project canceled by a President Biden executive order vital to American energy security.

This weekends cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline demonstrates the vital role pipelines play in providing Americans with reliable, affordable energy, Moolenaar said. Pipelines are the safest way to transport energy and its wrong to shut them down.

Because the pipeline crosses both Michigan peninsulas and many waterways, Line 5 opponents see little benefit but substantial risk for the state from its existence and dismiss economic concerns around its closure as overblown.

Whitmer and Nessel both campaigned on closing the pipeline. Whitmer based her decision on a spotty easement compliance history. Enbridge has a history of allowing erosion to create unsupported spans under the dual underwater lines.

More: Line 5 bent, deformed where anchors planned

Mike Shriberg, regional director of the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), a fierce opponent of the pipeline, said operating without an easement from the state would be even more reckless behavior from a company that has demonstrated a history of reckless behavior.

This ups the ante, he said.

The NWF estimates Enbridge makes about $1.5 million per day operating Line 5 -- profits the state just threatened to seize.

Shriberg said that, while closure of the existing dual pipelines wouldnt directly impact construction and permitting for the Line 5 tunnel, it would create market conditions that would severely curtail the possibility such an expensive piece of infrastructure would be built.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) approved key permits for the tunnel in January, but those are being challenged by tribes in state administrative court on the grounds that archeological investigations werent completed. Enbridge also needs similar approvals from the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers.

The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) is also in the middle of a lengthy review on whether Enbridge can relocate its pipeline into the tunnel.

Nonetheless, in the earnings call, Monaco said tunnel design has been finalized and were now bidding out construction.

Shriberg is skeptical.

Its hard to see investors saying they should sink what looks to be a billion dollars into a tunnel on a pipeline that would be obsolete if restarted, Shriberg said.

Related stories:

Enbridge settles with shipper after 2018 anchor strike

Enbridge pledges to defy Whitmer shutdown order

Canadian pressure mounts on Whitmer to back off Line 5

Michigan regulators approve Line 5 tunnel permits

Line 5 closure would hike propane costs, consultant says

Ohio, Louisiana argue against Line 5 shutdown in court
Veteran starting pitcher Jordan Zimmermann, who was once one of the leagues steadiest contributors but struggled to live up to his huge contract with the Detroit Tigers, announced his retirement on Tuesday.

Zimmermann had pitched in two games with the Milwaukee Brewers this season after signing a minor-league contract this winter.

Zimmermann, who turns 35 later this month, battled injuries for most of 2020, the final season of the five-year, $110 million deal he signed with Detroit prior to the 2016 season.

In five seasons with Detroit, Zimmermann went 25-41 with a 5.63 ERA (4.83 FIP) in 99 games (514 innings).

Before joining the Tigers, Zimmerman was an outstanding starting pitcher for the Washington Nationals, posting a 3.14 ERA in 971 innings from 2011-2015.

The native of Auburndale, Wisc., went to college at the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point and became the 11th Wisconsin-born player to suit up for the Brewers when he promoted to the big leagues last month. He struggled in his first outing, then pitched two scoreless innings on May 7, allowing him to retire on a good note.

He finishes his career with a 95-91 record and 4.07 ERA in 1,614 innings. He struck out 1,271 batters. His career strikeout-to-walk ratio is 25th-best all-time and at the time of his retirement he was second among active pitchers in walks per nine innings.
The Los Angeles Police Department has revealed that the late American rapper, Pop Smoke, aged 20, was murdered by a 15-year-old during a home invasion robbery in February 2020.

According to the New York Daily News, LAPD Det. Carlos Camacho revealed that the teenager was one of the five people arrested in connection with the rapper's slaying, which occurred following a home invasion.

Canacho said they stormed Pop Smoke's rented mansion in the Hollywood Hills on Feb. 19, 2020, and tried to take his Cuban link chain, but only got away with the diamond-studded watch, which they later resold for $2,000.

He further revealed that the unnamed 15-year-old defendant admitted to pulling the trigger during a recorded interview.

The teen admitted that he shot the victim three times after they got into a fight.

He said he shot him on the back. He said that when they got inside, the deceased was in the shower naked.

Pop initially started to comply. However the rapper fought back but was rushed by the robbers who pistol-whipped him before the 15-year-old shot him, he said.
Popular Afrobeat star, Davido Adeleke, known in showbiz as Davido, has gifted his daughter, Imade, a car ahead of her birthday celebrations.

Davido purchased a brand new Range Rover for his first fruit who turns six this month.

This is coming barely two days after Davido left Nigeria for the United States over claims the current administration is making life unbearable for him.

Taking to Instagram to share the video of Imade checking out the Range Rover SUV gift, Davido wrote:

Happy early BIRTHDAY BABY @realimadeadeleke daddy loves u !! Enjoy ur MOTO .

Watch the video below:
The tot was sitting in her stroller at the Bowery and Stanton St. when Tyriek Martin allegedly ran up to the child and her father and struck the baby in the face with his suitcase about 6:30 p.m. on Monday, cops said.
Veteran highlife artist Gyedu Blay Ambollay has voiced his opinion on the ongoing nationwide social media campaign the #FixTheCountry.

In an interview with a Kumasi-based radio station Pure FM, the baritone multi-instrumentalist admitted that he was in support of the campaign.

I am in full support of the campaign and I am ready to rally behind the challenge because I realized it was for the benefit of the country, he told Hammer Nti.

He however added that he was happy with some politicians rebutting supporters of the campaign by asking them to fix their habits.

I have observed that the politicians have started tasking Ghanaians to check themselves first but these are the same people are the ones we voted into power,

Pay them with task payers money, they drive flashy cars and yet the ordinary Ghanaian does not enjoy any these privileges so to the best of my opinion they should help fix the country and make the country good for citizen then we can talk about the citizens fixing themselves, he stated.

Gyedu Blay will amongst the many celebrities who have lodged in their support for the ongoing social media campaign.
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Uterus didelphys represents a uterine malformation where the uterus is present as a paired organ when the embryogenetic fusion of the Mullerian ducts fails to occur. As a result, there is a double uterus with two separate cervixes, and possibly a double vagina as well.

Life challenges can be unpredictable however, they serve as an opportunity to grow.

Woman Reproductive Health Advocate Elizabeth Amoa popularly known as Speciallady came out in 2017 to narrate her story as a woman born with a rare congenital abnormality of the womb called uterus didelphys.

Born with 2 wombs, 2 cervixes, and 2 vagina canals. The story makes her the first black African woman to share her plight with headlines in over 100 countries worldwide.

Diagnosed at later stage in her adult life although she exhibited symptoms from the age of 6years old.

This uncertain health journey motivated her to establish her charity called Speciallady Awareness by raising awareness on gynaecological conditions, combating menstrual poverty and gender bias in healthcare.

Prior to Elizabeth's advocacy work, her dream was to become a lawyer therefore she completed her Bachelor of laws (LLB) at London Metropolitan University and Master of laws (LLM) at University of Surrey the UK.

She worked in various organisations like Birmingham City Council, British Army Welfare services, Santander Banking Group, Eurostar, NatWest Bank etc. She decided to give up on her career prospects to become the Voice for women and young girls suffering reproductive health issues.

Speciallady Awareness has successfully donated sanitary products and medical items worth several thousands of pounds since it's institution in 2017. Elizabeth has Featured and appeared on several media platforms, Army and You magazine, JUNO magazine and Boots Health & Beauty magazine in UK, Health magazine in USA and other renowned radio, online and television platforms, Her dream keeps seeing the light of day.

Elizabeth's story covered by Born Different has gain grounds and has been viewed by millions of people globally. Focusing on her advocacy, Speciallady has had an opportunity to share her story and to inform patrons at the British Army Wives network event, Community Centres, Local Churches, London Rotary Club of Hendon and at Charity Conference in the UK.

Back home In Ghana, her office has visited various educational institutions such as 2nd Image International Skills College, Odorgonno secondary school, Kanda Training Institute and Al-Waleed Comprehensive Islamic Basic school and many others to educate the girl child on reproductive health topics.

Her advocacy work gave her the opportunity to be nominated by Ghana Outstanding Women Awards for Outstanding Woman in Health, Outstanding Woman in Social Community and Shero of the Year Awards 2020 and UK Women of the Year Awards 2020 for the Wellness Warrior Award category.

Elizabeth believes her advocacy work will encourage women and young girls to speak up to seek early diagnosis and adequate treatment.

For more information on her charity work visit www.specialladyawareness.com
Prosecutors in DR Congo have asked parliament to lift the immunity of former prime minister Augustin Matata Ponyo so that he can face a probe into embezzlement of public funds, an official said Monday.

He is the latest public figure to come under scrutiny over alleged corruption since President Felix Tshisekedi took office in January 2019.

"The general prosecutor's office has asked the Senate to lift the parliamentary immunity of two senators, Matata Ponyo and Ida Kamaji," a senior prosecutor at the Court of Cassation told AFP.

"There is serious evidence of their involvement in the embezzlement of funds" for a rural development project, the source said.

Matata Ponyo, who was in office from 2012 to 2016, said on Sunday he was ready to face the allegations, which he dismissed as "packed with untruths, packed with lies".

"I am not afraid of anything. I am ready to appear before justice" even if "injustice must prevail over justice," he told a press conference in Kinshasa, shortly after returning from Guinea.

In November, the state spending watchdog, the IGF, reported that $205 million (168 million euros) had been plundered out of $285 million that had been disbursed for a pilot agro-industrial scheme in Bukangalonzo, 250 kilometres (155 miles) southeast of the capital.

IGF chief Jules Alingete said the project had been deliberately torpedoed in order to siphon off funds. Six people allegedly involved in the affair have been identified, including three "covered by immunity."

Matata Ponyo stepped down as prime minister in November 2016 after serving for four years under then president Joseph Kabila, and became a senator.

To take effect, the lifting of his parliamentary immunity must still be approved in a vote in plenary session, but the affair has been front-page news in DR Congo for days.

Tshisekedi took office in January 2019, vowing to make the fight against corruption a priority of his mandate.

His ally and former chief of staff Vital Kamerhe is behind bars, after being sentenced to 20 years in prison last June in another embezzlement case, with more than $50 million at stake.

Several prominent figures from the camp of former president Joseph Kabila have also been implicated in cases of the misappropriation of public funds.
A promise by President Emmanuel Macron to hold a referendum on enshrining climate action in France's constitution is being put to the test in the Senate, a day after thousands of protesters took to the streets to demand more ambitious climate policies.

Doubts were cast as to whether the referendum would happen after a lawmaker for Macron's La Republique en Marche (LReM) party accused the Senate  dominated by right-wing opposition party Les Republicains  of rewriting a referendum proposal adopted by the National Assembly last week.

Under French law, both houses of parliament must agree on the wording of a referendum before it can be put to the people.

In an interview with the Journal du Dimanche, LReM lawmaker Pieyre-Alexandre Anglade said the Senate had emptied the referendum bill of its substance, preventing an agreement between the two chambers.

The news added to the fury of demonstrators who say France will fail to meet its climate targets under the government's wider climate and resilience bill, which is to arrive in the Senate mid-June.

Macron took time out of an EU event in Strasbourg to assure protesters the referendum bill had not been abandoned, and would continue living its parliamentary life, which he said was the only way an agreement could be found.

Ecological transition

France has committed to reducing emissions by 40 percent by 2030, and the climate bill  aimed at rolling out the 146 proposals of the Citizens' Climate Convention  is how the government hopes to fulfil its promises.

Environment Minister Barbara Pompili said the legislation, perhaps the biggest of Macron's five-year term, would affect the daily lives of every person in France.

It includes restrictions on domestic flights, measures to make buildings more energy efficient, carbon scoring for goods such as food and clothing, the creation of an ecocide offence and consumer incentives for greener cars.

However opponents say the bill will have a limited impact, arguing that bans on advertising fossil fuels should have been extended to other polluting products, and that ecocide should have been made a crime rather than an offence.

Alma Dufour, a campaigner at Friends of the Earth, told RFI that France also had a responsibility to put pressure on multinational companies who financed fossil fuels.

"Rich countries have a duty to reduce their emissions  We know that three-quarters of the African population is already affected by climate change, she said.

We're fighting for France, but also for the rest of the world because the climate unites us all.
President Akufo-Addo will be the special guest of honor at the 5th Ghana CEO Summit.

The event, which is the foremost business conference for CEOs, business leaders, entrepreneurs, investors and policy makers, is to be held on 17th and 18th May, 2021 at Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City in Accra.

Over the years, the President of Ghana has been a major participant of the summit.

On occasions where he is unable to personally participate, he designates either the Vice President or a high-ranking cabinet minister to deputize for him.

This year, the President will engage CEOs about the nexus between his digital transformation strategy and post-Covid economic recovery strategy.

A dialogue session with the President will delve into important issues ranging from resetting of the economic development agenda, public sector leadership, business regulatory reforms, social inclusion to digital economy agenda of government.

The summit, which is the initiative of Chief Executives Network Ghana Limited, is being organized in partnership with Deloitte, Ghana Investment Promotion Center and State Interest and Governance Authority.

This year's summit is the 5th edition of the program which began in 2016 and has been held annually except in 2020, where organizers postponed it in compliance with restrictions imposed as part of measures to obviate the spread of Covid-19 infections.

The summit is committed to unlocking Ghana's economic potential by offering concrete, innovative and actionable solutions, championing private sector led growth, leading discussions around innovative public policies and best growth-oriented business practices to help the country move forward, build resilient companies and outstanding CEOs.

Theme, speakers and discussion areas

The highly respected thought leadership platform is focusing on the theme Digital transformation: Powering business and government reset for a post-pandemic economic resilience; a public-private sector dialogue. The widespread disruption of Covid-19 and its effects have presented a window of opportunity to reflect, reimagine, and reset the economy, business models and leadership approach to create a healthier, stronger and more prosperous future.

The responses of nations, businesses and individuals have proven that a holistic digital strategy framework facilitates resilience and agility. The summit will explore the building blocks of a national digital strategy.

Speaking at the recent media launch of the event in Accra, Ernest De-Graft Egyir, Founder and CEO of Ghana CEO Summit observed that, Now is the time for a great reset of Ghana's economy to make government and businesses digitally resilient.

He further noted that The pandemic has exposed the need to improve technology efficiency for the continuity of government and businesses; we are in a watershed moment for the digital transformation of governance and business ecosystems.

It is the consideration of Mr. Egyir that the result of Covid-19 presents a shared opportunity for successful leaders to seize the moment and advance a new path of digital transformation that aligns with the changing role of business and government.

This will position such leaders as powerful enablers of long-term value creation for all their stakeholders.

There will be sessions with ministers, CEOs of public and private sector organizations. The multi-format summit will also present thematic sessions on the ease of doing business, African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), corporate governance, sustainable development goals, healthcare and industry outlook. These sessions will be addressed by top-tier CEOs and experts with unimpeachable experience.

To offer profound, dynamic and relevant value to participants, the summit will leverage CEO masterclasses, expert insights, plenary presentations, CEO business cases as well as strategic projections about post-pandemic leadership and economic recovery.

Value proposition

The summit offers the opportunity for leaders to learn from best practices of fast-growing companies while promoting their organizations. Participants also can benefit from an unrivaled networking platform, identify new business opportunities, adjust strategies to suit current economic and geopolitical outlook, gain exclusive insights and build lasting relationships with dignitaries who are looking to create alliances and business partnerships.

Further, the summit fosters a healthy public-private sector engagement, making it possible for governments to showcase economic and sector-oriented strategies while the private sector is gains clarity on issues of concern directly from policy makers.

The Ghana CEO Summit is a respected thought leadership platform and networking environment that creates opportunities for high impact learning and cutting-edge content for top-level discussions and decision-making.

CEO Excellence Awards

An aspect of the summit is the acknowledgement of the achievements of businesses and leaders through the CEO Excellence Awards. The award celebrates business success, innovation, leadership and contribution to the economy. Categories include Lifetime Business Builder Achievement Award  Hall of Fame, CEO of the Year and CEO of the Decade.

History and impact of the summit

Each of the previous four editions of the summit has been attended by over 500 CEOs and shareholders of major African companies, heads of states, international investors, ministers of state and diplomats and C-level corporate executives. This league of high-level participants spans diverse fields including energy, finance, infrastructure, technology, education, health and governance.

Participants have come to view the conference as a credible result-oriented thought leadership platform. Learnings from the sessions have led to significant enhancement in the adoption of digitization in many fast-growing organizations.

By Sharon Brown-Acquah
Ethiopia said Monday the "great majority" of those killed in a massacre in the war-hit Tigray region were fighters and not civilians, contradicting multiple independent accounts.

Findings presented by law enforcement officials provided the most detailed official version so far of a mass killing in late November that both Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said left hundreds dead -- making it one of the most lethal known incidents of the six-month-old war in Tigray.

In their reports on what happened in the city of Axum, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty blamed Eritrean troops fighting in Tigray and said the dead were mostly civilians.

Amnesty said the Eritreans "went on a rampage and systematically killed hundreds of civilians in cold blood."

But at a press conference Monday, deputy attorney general Fikadu Tsega said the Eritreans killed 93 people during "heavy fighting" against forces loyal to the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the once dominant ruling party that Ethiopia recently designated a terrorist organisation.

"It is established that the great majority of those killed in the said incident, though they were not in uniform, they were members of the fighting force of TPLF who engaged the Eritrean forces" and Ethiopia's military, Fikadu said.

Some 1,500 young residents of Axum received firearms training in the days leading up to the incident, Fikadu said.

The fighting began after TPLF forces "opened attack on the Eritrean soldiers who were settled on the mountainous area of the city," he said.

Fikadu's claim that most of the dead were combatants also appears to contradict a March report from Ethiopia's national human rights body, which said Eritreans killed more than 100 residents of Axum and cited witness testimony that Eritrean troops executed unarmed civilians, often in front of their families.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, winner of the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize, sent troops into Tigray in early November to topple the TPLF after blaming the party for attacks on army camps.

He promised the war would end quickly, but more than six months later fighting continues in much of the region and world leaders are warning of a pending humanitarian catastrophe.

Eritrean troops, who teamed up with the Ethiopian military, have been implicated in massacres as well as widespread rape -- allegations Asmara denies.

Fikadu told Monday's press conference that Ethiopia would be able to investigate and prosecute any crimes committed by Eritreans on Ethiopian soil.
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The President of Association of Customs House Agents Ghana, Mr. Yaw Kyei is calling on government to review port charges and make it flexible.

He observes the current charges affect the operations of importers, client freight forwarders, consumers which results in a decline in clearing of goods at the port.

Mr. Kyei said this in an interview with Jackline Favour Asassey, host of PORT AND MARITIME AGENDA on Ashaiman TV.

I will wish that the government would respond positively to some of these things discussed not giving new way to keep increasing their charges from time to time but then it should be measured, it should be controlled.

Despite the current challenges, he admitted that both the paperless system and the integrated custom management systems (ICUMS) interventions have brought great relief to port users.

Over the years, clearing of goods at the port using the manual system where freight forwarders and clearing agents had to move from one office to the other to prepare documents for clearance of goods at the port affected the effectiveness of the port operations.

So on August 2, 2017, Vice-president, Alhaji Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, emphasized the need for the removal of customs barriers in the country and ensured mandatory joint inspections and a paperless port system replaced it by September 2017.

The core mandate of ACHAG is to train its members to become the very best in freight forwarding and trade facilitation when it comes to port operations.

The association with 75 co-operate members and 20 individuals has been in existence for 6 years.

Mr.Yaw Kyei is therefore changing members to be up and doing, build their business to maximize revenue and to see the government as partners of developments when it comes to sea trade at the port.

He is very optimistic in collaborating with international bodies to advance the course of the association.

A story by Jackline Favour Asassey: Host on Port And Maritime Agenda
The authorities in Central African Republic, who are fighting a major armed rebellion, said Monday they had arrested a Frenchman who had a large weapons cache at his home.

"It was someone who said he was a journalist," a government spokesman told AFP.

"And at his home we found a very large cache of weapons," he added.

Valery Zakharov, the Russian national security advisor to President Faustin Archange Touadera, wrote on Twitter: "A foreign citizen was detained in Bangui with an enormous quantity of arms and ammunition."

An investigation was launched to try to clarify the matter, he added.

Tensions have been high in the Central African Republic since elections in December, although a recent surge in violence is just the latest in a civil war that has lasted since the ouster of president Francois Bozize in 2013.

In March, Bozize assumed the leadership of the rebel alliance aiming to overthrow the government.

Russia has since 2018 openly supported the Touadera regime, which only controls about one-third of one of Africa's poorest countries that has been wracked by partisan and communal strife.

More than 30,000 people have fled the country due to the violence surrounding the elections, the UN says, while tens of thousands more have been internally displaced.
In 2018, Roman-Perez was the attorney for a couple trying to sell their two-family house worth $1.35 million. The buyers sent a 10% down payment  $135,000  which Roman-Perez should have turned over to the sellers when the sale was closed.
Dr. Isabella Sego Moses

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The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has urged mothers and caregivers to use the prescribed medication  Chlorhexidine- in the care of the umbilical cord of their new-born babies.

According to the health service, Chlorhexidine has proven to be more effective in preventing infections among new-borns, which is one of the leading causes of neonatal deaths in the country.

Initially, we were using methylated spirit but it has been changed to Chlorhexidine because it is a better antiseptic to prevent umbilical infection, said Deputy Director, Family Health Division, GHS, Dr. Isabella Sego Moses.

She said the medication which was adopted in 2018 following a World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation to improve neonatal survival has proven effective in helping to reduce infections among the group.

After delivery, the cord is cut and Chlorhexidine is applied and the mother is given some to apply daily until the cord falls and heals, that is the new policy, she added.

She said the country has been able to reduce neonatal mortality from 32 per 1000 live births in 2018 to 25 per 1000 live births in 2020 because of such interventions.

Dr. Sego Moses said despite the progress made, some caregivers and mothers continue to use 'other things' to dress the umbilical cord which harms the child and thus called for adherence to the new policy for umbilical cord care.

She was speaking at the launch of the 2021 Child Health Promotion Week themed,

'Sustaining child health service in the Midst of Covid-19 pandemic which starts from 10th  14th May.

In the past 17 years, the GHS has set aside a week in May to generate demand for routine child health services with focus on topical issues that affects the development and growth of children under five.

This year, the department has outlined activities including orientation of health officers in the regions, engagement of policy makers, opinion leaders, and services delivery in health facilities and outreach points.

Health officers will also organise health communication for mothers and care givers on the need to access preventive interventions to keep children healthy and improve survival and development.

Routine services that will be rendered within this week has also been expanded to include immunization against childhood diseases, Vit A supplement, weighing and height measurement, breastfeeding counselling support, complementary feeding counselling, education on preventive malaria with ITN, education on Covid-19 protocol and birth registration for children under one.

Director General, GHS, Dr. Patrick Kuma-Aboagye said the commemoration of the week has become more pertinent in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic which has made the public stay away from health facilities due to fear of contracting the infection.

He therefore urged the public to support actions that save lives and prevent disabilities by ensuring that children under five years benefit fully from all services offered at the child welfare clinics.

We on our part are ready to provide these life-saving essential services and have put in place various measures to ensure that all Covid-19 protocols are adhered to in our facilities and service delivery points, he said.

Daily Guide
Authorities in the Central African Republic fighting a major armed rebellion said Monday they had arrested a Frenchman with a large cache of weapons at his home.

Tensions have been high in the country since elections in December, although a recent surge in violence is just the latest in a civil war that has lasted since the ouster of president Francois Bozize in 2013.

"It was someone who said he was a journalist," a government spokesman told AFP, referring to the Frenchman. "And at his home we found a very large cache of weapons.

Valery Zakharov, the Russian national security advisor to President Faustin Archange Touadera, wrote on Twitter: "A foreign citizen was detained in Bangui with an enormous quantity of arms and ammunition."

An investigation was launched to try to clarify the matter, he added.

Humanitarian sources said the man had served as a bodyguard.

"He was briefly in the army during his youth," a diplomat said.

Photographs on social media showed the man in handcuffs standing on the steps of a police station in Bangui surrounded by arms and ammunition.

In March, former president Bozize assumed the leadership of the rebel alliance aiming to overthrow the government.

Russia has since 2018 openly supported the government of President Faustin Archange Touadera, which controls only about one-third of one of Africa's poorest countries that has been wracked by partisan and communal strife.

More than 30,000 people have fled the country due to the violence surrounding the elections, the UN says, while tens of thousands more have been internally displaced.

Most of the territory of the perennially unstable former French colony is divided among numerous armed bands.

Under a bilateral defence accord, Russian paramilitaries from the Wagner Group, a shadowy private military company, operate in the CAR. Their official status is to train the country's army.

They were joined last December by hundreds of other Russian paramilitaries, along with Rwandan troops, who played a key role in thwarting a rebel advance on the capital Bangui ahead of presidential elections.
Alan Kyerematen, the Minister of Trade and Industry has commended Mr Ibrahim Mahama, the Founder of Dzata Cement Limited, for investing heavily in the cement industry.

The over 100 million-dollar investment is located on a 10-acre land near the Tema Port.

Mr Kyeremanten made the commendation when he paid a working visit to the plant of Dzata Cement Limited on Monday.

The visit was to enable him to have first-hand information on the cement-producing plant and the progress of work so far.

The technology deployed for producing the cement is from Germany and was developed by Haver and Boecker.

The cement grade produced by the plant is ordinary Portland cement, which is imported for the plant and then bagged.

The plant, which is wholly managed by Ghanaians, can produce an average of 120 bags per minute from the two production lines.

The Minister said the industry had been solely dominated by global foreign companies and that Dzata Cement Limited was the first wholly Ghanaian investment in the cement industry and that alone was remarkable.

He said the government very much appreciated the importance of foreign investment capital but there was no evidence of any country anywhere in the world that had been able to achieve quality growth without supporting their indigenous entrepreneurs.

That is why l think this particular investment should pave the way for investments in industries which otherwise have been dominated only by foreign companies, he added.

Mr Kyeremanten also lauded Mr Mahama for the investment in state-of-the-art technology, which also was important as a developing country.

He said as a safeguard measure to protect the domestic cement industry against import surges of Portland cement, the Export and Import (Restrictions on Importation of Portland Cement) Regulations, 2016 (L.I 2240) was passed.

The regulation requires every commercial importation of Portland cement from outside the ECOWAS region to be covered by permit or license from the Ministry.

Section (4.0) (a-d) of the Second Schedule of LI 2240 provides that an applicant for a permit to import Portland cement for re-bagging must provide evidence of elaborate plans to undertake Cement production in Ghana, including the state of the factory being constructed.

The Minister said the facility was going to create high skills jobs for Ghanaians and contribute to job creation.

He encouraged the management of the Company to as much as possible use local raw materials to create sustainable job opportunities for Ghanaians.

He urged the management to take advantage of opportunities the ECOWAS and AfCFTA markets offered to develop and grow the company while contributing to the Ghanaian economy.

Nana Philip Archer, Managing Director of Dzata Cement Limited, said the working environment was an eco-friendly one though it was a cement production factory.

He said phase I was a two-line re-bagging installed capacity of 1.2 million tonnes per annum using jumbo bags of imported bulk cement.

He said the production of Silos could hold 40,000 metric tonnes of cement.

Phase II will have a plant capacity of 2.4 million tonnes per annum using imported bulk Portland cement, while Phase III will involve actual manufacturing and bagging, using two vertical grinding mills of 3 million tones capacity each.

The Managing Director expressed gratitude to the Minister for the visit, even though they were yet to commence full operations.

The commencement of production by Dzata Cement will make it the 2nd bagging plant and the 12th plant in the industry and provide consumers with the additional choice of cement on the market.

Currently, there are eleven cement plants in production in the industry, excluding Dzata Cement.

They are nine grinding plants, one integrated plant (Savanah Diamonds), and one bagging plant (Dangote).

GNA
French president Emmanuel Macron laid a wreath in Paris on Monday at the annual ceremony to honour victims of the slave trade.

Monday's ceremony took place 20 years after France became the first country in the world to recognize the slave trade as a crime against humanity.

The declaration was part of the text of a law passed in 2001, named after Christiane Taubira, who later became France's first black Justice minister.

The Taubira law also stipulated that greater prominence should be given in the French school curriculum to the study of the slave trade and slavery.

'Pain and blood'

Monday's ceremony took place in the Jardin du Luxembourg, in front of the monument commemorating the abolition of the slave trade, while youngsters from the French overseas island of Guadeloupe sang a song entitled The long combat of pain and blood.

Macron made no speech at the sombre ceremony but at an event last week to mark the 200th anniversary of the death of Napoleon, he described Napoleon's decision in 1802, to re establish slavery in France's colonies, as a betrayal of the spirit of the enlightenment.

Almost four million men and women lived as slaves in the French colonies until the abolition of the slave trade in 1848.

Among other projects likely to be considered is a new statue to Thomas Alexandre Dumas, a former slave who went on to became a French General, and was the father of the writer Alexandre Dumas.

An earlier statue honouring Thomas Alexandre Dumas was melted down by the Nazis during the second world war.

Defaced statue

Meanwhile, Monday also saw the opening of proceedings in Paris to judge the case of an activist who scrawled graffiti on the statue of the influential 17th century French statesman Jean-Baptiste Colbert for his role in organizing the slave trade in France's colonies.

The statue dominates the space in front to the French parliament.

Franco Lollia said of his decision to deface the statue I wanted to tell the French state that if it accepts that Colbert continues to preside over the front of the National Assembly building, then it means that France is still viscerally anti-black.

The prosecution is calling for him to be given a fine of 800E, while his lawyers argue that his action was morally justifiable.
The picture above depicts the sandy principal streets of Battor around the post office. This unfortunate situation is due to the daily transportation of river sand from Battor. If the Battor town itself is like this, then one can imagine the damage to river banks where the sand mining is being done unabatedly.

Battor is of one the 13 traditional areas in Tongu and it is the administrative capital for the North Tongu District. Even before becoming a district capital, Battor has been widely known for its vibrant Catholic Hospital. Some German Catholic Nuns built the Hospital in 1957 pursuant to a request made to the Church by the chief of the Community.

For some years now, there is indiscriminate river sand mining going on in the Volta River at Battor and it is apparently unregulated. Sand extraction machines are used daily at Battor in mining sand from the riverbed. My foreboding is that if this indiscriminate business activity is left unchecked for years, it can pose serious geological and geomorphological challenges not only for the Battor Community but also for other settlements along the River.

Existing Literature and What Is Going On At Battor

Various empirical studies (Pielou, 1966; Byrnes and Hiland, 1995; Ashraf et al., 2011) have established that river sand mining poses serious environmental challenges especially when the rate of extracting sand and other river materials exceeds the rate at which the sand and these materials are generated or replenished naturally.

Physically, the river sand mining at Battor can lead to reduction of the water quality due to turbidity and oil pollution from the sand extraction machines. In addition, the river sand mining can disrupt aquatic life (excessive removal of infauna, epifauna, benthic fishes etc.). It can also affect the channel form of the River thereby altering the riverbed and leading to riverbank collapse and erosion especially downstream. This resultant erosion has the tendency to make the river change course and undercut buildings and even electricity poles in nearby communities. It is empirically established that riverbed degradation can undermine bridge supports, pipelines or other structures and if a floodplain aquifer drains to the stream, groundwater levels can be lowered because of bed degradation (Collins et al., 1990).

This may also happen because the continuous incision in the riverbed may gradually make the communities cave-in. Excessive river sand extraction does not affect the aquatic ecosystem alone. It affects the physical environment beyond the river.

Suffice to say that the ongoing in-stream sand mining at Battor will in future pose both environmental and even socio-economic challenges for Battor and other Tongu communities.

One may assert with certainty that the so-called lucrative river sand mining ongoing at Battor is illegal and it is not done scientifically despite the fact that it is distorting the riverine ecology. Seemingly, the North Tongu District Assembly is collecting some taxes from this geologically dangerous business venture so those engaged in it feel that the local government authority has endorsed the venture as legal. The chiefs and people of Battor should not be oblivious of the fact that the ramifications of the river sand extraction will spare no one once they begin to take effect.

The Government of Ghana itself, the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Battor Traditional Council must not look on unconcerned. Also, it should not be lost on the chiefs and people of Battor that the river sand mining can even affect the cherished Battor Catholic Hospital, which is not too far from the Volta River.

The Battor people should also not forget that until the Akosombo Dam was fully built in 1965, most of the communities in Tongu including Battor suffered annual flooding, with the last flooding in 1963. Have they so soon forgotten about the ravaging effects of the annual flooding once upon a time? Must adults at home leave a pregnant goat to go through labour pains while tethered to a tree?

Presently, the once neat Battor town is now made dirty with heaps of sand particles on the major streets. These particles drop daily from the tipper trucks that come from various places to cut the sand away to Sege, Tema, Accra, Ashaiman and other places. Battor town is no longer beautiful as it used to be in the days that nobody was mining sand from the River.

Another negative externality of the river sand extraction at Battor is that it has largely contributed to the destruction of the Sege-Battor-Mepe road because of the heavy trucks used in transporting the river sand daily from Battor.

The river sand mining at Battor also poses a local political challenge. My checks revealed that the sand extraction occurs in the land of the Knkux Clan but the tipper trucks ply through Soh. In view of the fact that the Soh Clan does not benefit from the river sand mining, the venture poses negative externality to their land, which has become the access route to cutting the sand away with trucks. I also gathered that the people of Soh Clan once blocked the access route to the mining site but the Police intervened.

Recommended Interventions

The Government of Ghana, the VRA, the Environmental Protection Agency, the North Tongu District Assembly and the Battor Traditional Council must take note that in India, Malaysia and other countries engaged in river sand mining, there are policies regulating the venture and there are some scientific approaches used. It is not done indiscriminately and illegally in those places. I, therefore, propose that even if the sand mining cannot be stopped immediately, a regulatory policy should be formulated to ensure that the mining is done in ways that conserve the equilibrium of the River and its natural environment.

Accordingly, I call on the relevant authorities to cause an empirical assessment of the effects of the river sand mining at Battor on the Volta River itself and the communities along the River. Studies have shown that the environmental impacts of in-stream mining may be avoided if the annual bed load is calculated and aggregate extraction is restricted to that value or some portion of it.

Perhaps the District Assembly must equally invite the Architectural Engineering Services Limited (AESL) and the Geological Survey Department to assess buildings and other physical structures close to the Volta River to see if the sand mining is not already affecting such structures. It is always wiser to be proactive rather than be reactive. Kneejerk solutions often lead to despair and preventable loss of precious lives and properties.

The Management of the Battor Catholic Hospital may also want such an assessment carried out on their buildings and other installations to be sure they are safe. I challenge the Management and staff of the Hospital to mount pressure on the authorities because casualties resulting from any disaster caused by the river sand mining may be overwhelming for the Hospital; that is if the Hospital itself has not collapsed as a result.

Conclusion

It is my ardent hope that somehow, someone or the authorities that matter will equally foresee the ramifications of the river sand mining at Battor and share into my forebodings and concerns.

~Asante Sana ~

Author: Philip Afeti Korto

Email: [email protected]
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Keta based Jubilee radio in the Keta Municipality of Volta region has donated some items to the Keta Municipal hospital to help cater for pregnant and nursing mothers.

This was done on Monday, May 10 to mark this year's Mother's Day celebration.

The items worth thousand of Ghana cedis includes detol, meltilated spirit, Cusson baby soap, washing powder, Pads, baby diapers, toilet rolls, soaps, among other valuables.

Mr Michael Pepsin Avorgah, the community drive show host who championed the donation disclosed to ModernGhana News that people in the Keta Municipality and beyond donated some items whilst others sent money to support the program.

According to him, he initiated the program on his show which many have bought the idea to support mothers especially on Mother's Day.

He said well wishers and philanthropists have supported the program through various ways just to make sure the day was a memorable one.

Mr Avorgah mentioned that, the presentation was supposed to be done on Mother's Day but realised staff and other workers might not be at post, hence their resolve to do it on Monday.

Madam Lydia Teikuor Akorta, the in charge nurse at the hospital who received the items on behalf of facility expressed her gratitude to jubilee radio team for their support.

She also appealed to individuals and cooperate organizations to emulate same to support pregnant women.

Madam Akorta also explained that, the items will help solve the problem of pregnant mothers reporting at the wards without the required items for delivery.

She urge parents to be more vigilant on their children especially the female ones to avoid teenage pregnancy that resulted in most girls dropping out of school.

She also advised female children to abstain from premarital sex and focus on their education.

Madam Victoria Dovlo, a beneficiary mother also thanked Mr Avorgah and his team for their kind gesture and pledged to use the items well.

She stated that, the items will help boost their spirit during delivery.

Madam Dovlo also appealed to all especially philanthropists to help the needy mothers to them and their babies safe.

Other Jubilee radio staff present at the occasion were Evans Worlanyo Ameamu, Samuel Dovlo, Selasi Innocent Damien, Prislla Woedem Kuwonu, Shine Nutefe Attipoe as well as other staffs of the hospital.
On the 6th and 7th of May 2021, a mission of the ECOWAS Department of Education Science and Culture, led by acting Commissioner Mamadou Traore, visited Monrovia and had audience with the Liberian authorities as part of advocacy for the return of African cultural property to their countries of origin.

The first audience was granted by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Liberia, Mr. Henri B. Fahnbulleh, and discussions centered on the role of the Foreign Affairs Ministry in the ratification of international texts on cultural heritage, including the 1970 UNESCO Convention and the 1996 UNIDROIT Convention. The minister affirmed his countrys commitment towards the ratification of the texts.

During the second audience with the Minister of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism, Mr Ledgerhood J. Rennie, and the Deputy Minister of Cultural Affairs and Tourism, Mr Lance K. Gbagonyon, discussions centered on the legal framework of the cultural heritage and the steps underway for the ratification of the 1970 UNESCO Convention and the 1995 UNIDROIT Convention.

The Liberian Information Minister and the ECOWAS acting Commissioner for Education Science and Culture agreed to convene a stakeholder workshop to create awareness and encourage ownership of the conventions and the ECOWAS 2019-2023 Action Plan for the Return of Cultural Objects to their Countries of Origin.

They further agreed on the need to develop domestic tourism by setting up a cross-border tour between Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea.

Finally, Commissioner Mamadou Traore was granted audience with the Deputy Minister for Codification at Liberias Ministry of Justice, Mr Nyenati Tuan. The discussion centered on the departments assistance in the restitution of cultural objects, as it relates to the legal aspect. Another matter equally raised was the role of the Ministry of Justice in the ratification of the 1970 UNESCO Convention and 1995 UNIDROIT Convention, which is vital to the return of cultural objects.

Throughout the different meetings, Commissioner Mamadou Traore was accompanied by Mr. Nathaniel B. Walker, Office of the Special Representative of the ECOWAS Commission President in Liberia, Mr. Benedict Roberts, Head of the ECOWAS National Unit in Liberia and Dr Raguidissida Emile Zida, Head of Cultural Division of the ECOWAS Commission Department of Education, Science and Culture.
Sometimes, a person makes a mistake so horrendous, so abhorrent, and so reprehensible, that people are shocked into stillness at the perfidy of the act. It is a fact that once in a while, a secret, vile aspect of humanity comes out of the deep wells of the human person, that is so bad or evil or has such potential, that everybody is forced to catch their breath, and ask, where did this one too come from?

It is like the incident at Kasoa, where two young people decided to slaughter a neighbor, another young person, to use him for rituals to acquire wealth. We should ask immediately and instinctually, how did we get here?

Sometimes, a person who is much older than us, would quietly and uncomfortably break wind. You are only two in the room. You can hear that noisome smell through your nose, but you dare not talk about it. There are things, even if you think them, even if in fact you believe them to be true, that you do not talk about, because it would cause so much havoc and ill will in society. You would know, instinctually, that it is better to hold your silence and to maintain your peace.

In my opinion the decision by Bishop Owusu Bempah, a Christian Religious leader, to break these instinctual, conscious boundaries that we all place on ourselves, and to advocate that his Christian God has told him that a Muslim can never be president, is just such a sentiment. Any proper thinking person should not think of such a thought, and if he were to think it, to know enough to know that he should never put it into words.

For Owusu Bempah to say such a thing may mean that he is suffering from three maladies or a combination of all three. These maladies are;

He does not know that what he said is dangerously and unacceptably wrong, or;

That he simply does not have enough historical and societal knowledge to realize that he has stepped on a very thin edge of socially acceptable conduct, and that he is taking the whole of society along with him; or

He has an unquenchable penchant to court public attention to himself; or

He is suffering from a combination of all three factors above.

I believe sincerely that Bishop Owusu Bempah is suffering from a combination of the three factors above. Otherwise, how on earth would he make the atrocious comment attributed to him, that only a person from a particular religion can become the President of this country?

That is a very politically charged statement, about a very charged religious matter. It is simple truth that many wars have been caused by religion, and politics. It is in recognition of this factor that Ghana decided to become a Republic, where each and every individual, no matter his tribe, religion and politics, can aspire to be the best that he can be, even to be the President of Ghana.

To have said what he said, is a recognition that he does not even know what the primary law of the land says about qualification to become a President.

What does the 1992 Constitution say about qualification to become President?

Article 62 of the 1992 Constitution says about qualification;

A person shall not be qualified for election as the President of Ghana unless;

He is a citizen of Ghana by birth;

He has attained the age of forty years; and

He is a person who is otherwise qualified to be elected a Member of Parliament, except that the disqualifications set out in paragraphs (c), (d), and (e) of clause (2) of Article 94 of this Constitution shall not be removed, in respect of any such person, by a presidential pardon or by the lapse of time as provided for in clause (5) of that article.

For the avoidance of doubt, Article 94. (2) deals with the disqualification of a person to become a member of Parliament, and belonging to a religious denomination is not among the issues that can disqualify a person to become a member of Parliament.

Article 62 (a) states that to become a President, a person must be a citizen of Ghana. Who is a citizen of Ghana?

Article 6. (1) of the 1992 Constitution states;

Every person who, on the coming into force of this Constitution, is a citizen of Ghana by law shall continue to be a citizen of Ghana.

(2) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, a person born in or outside Ghana after the coming into force of this Constitution, shall become a citizen of Ghana at the date of his birth if either of his parents or grandparents is or was a citizen of Ghana.

(3) A child of not more than seven years of age found in Ghana whose parents are not known shall be presumed to be a citizen of Ghana by birth.

(4) A child of not more than sixteen years of age neither of whose parents is a citizen of Ghana who is adopted by a citizen of Ghana shall, by virtue of the adoption, be a citizen of Ghana.

Once again, religion is not mentioned here as a basis for becoming an elected political leader at any level, let alone the President.

It is not that religion is not mentioned in Ghanas 1992 Constitution. It is mentioned indeed.

Article 12. (2) states;

Every person in Ghana, whatever his race, place of origin, political opinion, colour, RELIGION, creed or gender shall be entitled to the fundamental human rights and freedoms of the individual contained in this Chapter but subject to the respect for the rights and freedoms of others and for the public interest.

So, according to Article 12. (2), we are all Ghanaians and entitled to our rights, no matter our race, place of origin, political opinion, colour, RELIGION, creed or gender.

Indeed Article 17. (1) and (2) states;

All persons shall be equal before the law and A person shall not be discriminated against on grounds of gender, race, colour, ethnic origin, RELIGION, creed or social or economic status.

The Oxford Learners Dictionary defines discriminate as the practice of treating someone or a particular group in society less fairly than others.

According to the 2010 Ghana government census (the most recent available), approximately 71 percent of the population is Christian, 18 percent Muslim, 5 percent adheres to indigenous or animistic religious beliefs, and 6 percent belongs to other religious groups or has no religious beliefs.

So, what it means is that when someone goes about saying that his God is telling him that Muslims cannot be President in Ghana, then he is saying that a whopping 18% of the population can never aspire to be President, whilst 71% can. The stuff of nightmares. Dangerous talk indeed.

Secondly, history is replete with news of conflict generated by religious differences, from all across the world, and Africa has had its fair share of such conflicts. So much so, that there has been international conferences held on the phenomenon.

Dr. Ludovic Lado, a Southern Voices Scholar with the Africa Program and Director of the Institute of Human Rights and Dignity at the Center of Research and Action for Peace in Cote dIvoire, speaking at a seminar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, located in Washington, D.C., in 2014, stated, The key impact on interreligious relations is that extremism from one religious group tends to breed extremism from other religious groups. We see this happening in Nigeria, the Central African Republic, and with al-Shabaab in Kenya and Somalia, especially when looking at the crackdowns on Somalis in Kenya. The nature of these conflicts can run along sectarian divides, leaving some groups repressed.

And all these conflicts are as a result of extremist views, like those of Prophet Owusu Bempah.

The third observation is that Owusu Bempah is propelled by delusions of grandeur. He must be heard, and he must be heard making extreme prophesies, like Donald Trump is winning the 2020 elections in the United States, when all the evidence was to the contrary, or which and which politician will die in the coming year.

It is clear that Mr. Owusu Bempah is suffering from a combination of all his ills. My worry, in this write-up, is that he is most likely, in future, to make one outrageous statement too many. I recall when he predicted that a certain revered religious cleric was about to die, and also predicted that a famous political leader was also to meet the same fate. These led to attacks on his church.

With this specific instance, I believe it would be beneficial, if all political and religious leaders would rise up in collective condemnation of the latest proclamation, before it leads to repercuissions.

And while we wait for the moral society in our country to speak, it would be beneficial if Bishop Owusu Bempah would read the two bible quotations below and reflect on them.

Nehemiah 9:6 states of God;

You alone are the Lord.

You have made the heavens,

The heaven of heavens with all their host,

The earth and all that is on it,

The seas and all that is in them.

You give life to all of them

And the heavenly host bows down before You.

And he should also read Colossians 1:16  The New International Version (NIV)

16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.

In conclusion, I say to Owusu Bempah, that we are all Gods children, deserving of his mercies and blessings.
At this crucial time in the history of governance in our dear country, I have had to express my views on the ongoing strife between citizens and the government which has culminated into the hashtag "FixTheCountry".

Per my readings of the situation in terms of its origin and as articulated by conveners of the campaign, the campaign is driven by a call on government to fix: the electricity and water supply challenges (dumsor), the problem of environmental degradation through illegal mining (galamsey), deteriorating condition of road network, perceived increase in corruption, and the rising cost of living animated by the recent increases in taxes. These are weighty concerns that cannot be wished away by any responsible government that serves to alleviate the plights of its people on whose behalf power is exercised.

Initially, counter hashtag "FixYourSelf" was created as a response to the genuine concerns of the citizens by supporters and in some cases, leading figures of our great party, NPP. However, it's soothing that persons who initially led this counter campaign appear to have been whipped in line by higher authorities of government. We have subsequently seen responsible responses from government operatives, an act that's commendable!

It is the responsibility of government to create happiness and solve the problems of the people who voted it into power. In this regard, the people expect reliable electricity supply, potable drinking water, affordable cost of living, effective and efficient motorable road networks, protection of our environment and ecosystem, and other things that make life bearable for every decent human being. While successive governments have done their bits to deliver these essentials, I contend, there's more room for improvement.

Considering the massive natural resources our country is endowed with, it is normal to expect much more from our governments. This then justifies the call for government to fix the country. It's my considered view that, an admission by government that the country needs fixing, would be a great step towards harnessing the collective potentials of citizens to achieve a collective national good. Such a step from government, would offer government an opportunity to draw clear line of responsibility between it and citizens.

Consequently, this would lead to full application of the "shared but differentiated responsibilities" principle. A golden principle that can help drive national growth. What exactly does government want from citizens? Every government needs its citizens to pay their taxes, be law-abiding, and, for democratic governments, they want to see citizens serve as a countervailing voice on government. In this case, the citizens feel they have fulfilled their part of the bargain. Whether that's true or not, it's the duty of government to communicate in very respectful terms to the citizens.

In my opinion, it's wrong for anyone to attempt to politically colour the initiators and supporters of the campaign to get Ghana fixed. This is because all members or supporters of an political party, are first Ghanaians. They feel whatever members of the NPP feel - be it good or bad. If the lights, water, corruption, poor roads, galamsey menace, etc are fixed, we all enjoy. The effects of good or bad policies are colour-blind to any person regardless of political leanings.

Government has over the years taken some bold steps to ameliorate the problems of the citizens, this is the time to communicate them succinctly to the masses. While at it, further communications on current steps ought to be put out in very candid manner as well. Where there are genuine challenges such as the Covid 19 effects, we should let the people know. Painting a rosy picture when things are not good, would generate distrust and mistrust amongst the people which will not bode well for the government's public image.

In conclusion, I, like many Ghanaians see the "FixTheCountry" campaign as a call by citizens of good conscience to put the government on its toes. Heeding the call by the government would be a fine opportunity to galvanise the support of the people to push out country forward. And therefore, I ask the government to take advantage of this, to harness the potentials of citizens while applying the principle of "shared but differentiated responsibilities"!

God bless our homeland Ghana!

10th May 2021

Francis Addai-Nimoh

Former MP, Mampong/ former NPP Presidential Aspirant
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In 1953, an ordained Pastor left his country of origin in present day Burkina Faso with his wife, two children and copies of the Holy Bible translated into his native Moshie language (one of the Mole-Dagbani languages spoken predominantly in Burkina Faso and in some in parts of Ghana, notably Bawku) to win souls for Jesus Christ (Peace Be Upon Him). Armed with a Vision by God, he arrived in Bawku and was taken to the very the first Assemblies of God missionary field branch established in 1937 in Misiga-Bawku after Tamale and Walewale in 1935.

Upon arriving, he realized the location differed from the vision he saw in his dream and set out to find the exact location. He arrived in Natinga, a predominantly Mamprusi- Muslim suburb of Bawku and was received by the family of the Late Naaba Salma Yiremea of blessed memory. He was later hosted by the late Badepeda Kariama Bugri (my grandfather). His hosts made his stay with them very comfortable and led him to the then Bawku Naaba, Naab Saa Wuni Bugri who offered the Pastor parcels of land, which currently houses the Bawku Central Assemblies of God Church, Sunday School and a Library.

Realizing his Vision was becoming true, the man of God never returned to his home country. He was called Pastor Aquilla Tapsoba Yamdogo. He passed away on 14 June 2008, leaving a legacy of a full blown Church with many branches in the Upper East Region. He was the first to set-up a full blown church structure and congregation in Bawku even before the Roman Catholic Church step foot in Bawku town in 1954 after expanding from Binduri.

Growing up as kid, as did my father and other prominent Muslims within Natinga, I fellowshipped at the Assembly of God Church, probably because of the hot tea and bread they provided in big drums during Christian festivities (Not a joke). And so anytime I meet my Assemblies of God brothers and sisters, I tell them I stopped attending the church because the tea service was stopped, and we have a good laugh. Some of them admit that the congregation has actually gone down these days and I tell them to reconsider bringing back the tea service.

To date, some of my extended family members are devout Christians and I served an Uncle, Mr. David Azare (Dr. Zet) whom I owe a lot of my confidence and emotional intelligence to. He is currently a Church Deacon, . In fact, I used to enjoy reading his daily devotional booklet called Daily Bread and assisted him with church activities when I completed Senior High School. I was a young Muslim serving as modern day Personal Assistant to a Church Leader.

Another interesting and controversial aspect of co-existence and religious tolerance comes from my family house, known as Big House (because is a really big house with several extended family members) . There is another big house but ours was notorious for the Pito, the Lotto Sellers and the live music performances by local Musicians like Akona Yarum (A Prolific Kusaasi Music Celebrity). The locally brewed beer, known as Pito is considered Haram in Islam (forbidden to carry, taste, sell or even show where it is brewed or sold for a prospect-Islamically) yet it was brewed and sold in our family house where both Muslims and Christians lived until as recently as 2013 when the business collapsed due to a lack of succession plan following the death of the last Brewer, one of my many grandmothers, called Ndebugri (she is of Kusasi extraction).

My experience has better shaped me as a person tolerant of diverse views and I love to quote and use the Bible a lot in formal and informal settings and people often ask if I was a Christian. My familys example is just one of the many interconnectedness and long-held religious-tolerence and multi-cultural rapport that has existed in Ghana before independence and beyond.

It is therefore saddening to hear some highly placed men of God, with large following, exhibit such ignorance and intolerance regarding the issue of Ramadan fasting by Muslim girls in Wesley Girls High School, contrary to the teachings of Jesus Christ (Peace Be Upon Him) who enjoins us to be all things to all people by adapting our approach to win souls for Christ without compromising the tenets of the Church that is to the slaves a slave, to the weak, a weak person, to the Jews, a Jew an to those under the Law, I became under the law1 Corinthians 9:19-23.

Is it therefore not ironical for Dr. Samuel Ofori Onwona, a Leader of the Methodist Church, where some of my staff and In-Laws attended basic school to issue threats to the President of the Land for not honouring the same Biblical command The Battle Is the Lords he does not want to subject his decision to?

Putting what Dr. Onwona said in context, I must admit that, if indeed the Ghana Education Service did not consult the School Authorities, the Education Ministry erred in its approach by not engaging in adequate consultation, the it is unacceptable. I know of several Christians who are not in agreement with the arguments and position of the authorities of Wesley Girls High School and the Methodist Church. As such, the Reverend should not profess to speak on behalf of all Christians and should understand that, the context of Fasting in Islam is different and no institution can make a determination as to whether one can fast or not except on PROVEN medical grounds. And Islamic fasting doesnt require the school to change instructional hours.

Having followed his great career in International Development in muti-cultural environments like the World Bank and African Development Bank and as Motivational Speaker I consider a mentor, I could not reconcile the position he took and the choice of words he used. I wish to humbly remind my mentor of the following wisdom in the Biblical caution that, anger takes ones protective cover from them. Ephesians 4:26-27: 26 In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27: and do not give the devil a foothold.

I am therefore humbly urging the Christian Council and the Methodist Church to rescind their decision and tread cautiously so as not feed into the whims of religious extremists and radicals who are waiting to distort and take advantage of a seeming disagreement to recruit innocent, uninformed and gullible youth into their fold. Let us reflect and learn from Nigerias experiences with Boko Haram and the Xenophobic attacks in South Africa, and make efforts to be tolerant towards one another and nip religious intolerance and hatred in the bud before the situation gets of out of hand.

Finally, to my Muslim readers, I say it is okay be a minority, for throughout history, minorities that consistently claim their rights eventually get to exercise them and prevent the violation. Ever wondered why every international flight has Vegan food on board? The power of the uncompromising minority!

By fasting, Muslims are exercising their bona fide constitutional and religious rights, not breaking institutional rules and regulation. And it is the duty of every right-thinking citizen to respect these rights. I have avoided using any Quranic verse or Hadith so far, but I am tempted to use at least one Hadith to caution fellow Muslims speaking on this subject Oh you who Believe in Allah and the Last Day, say good speeches or keep mute- Al Bukhari.

Thank you.

Alhaji Awal Ahmed Kariama

The Writer Is a Development Practioner, Frequent Traveler, Entrepreneur and Human Rights Activist based in Northern Ghana.

Email:[email protected]
I was lying in bed and I heard it go off  I couldnt tell if it was gun shots or fireworks, said the neighbor who declined to give her name. I didnt do anything about it. I just went to bed. I thought maybe it was people getting ready to party.
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The rate at which accidents are claiming lives on our highways in Ghana is becoming increasingly alarming. It is not surprising that the most fatal of all accidents on our highways occur during head-on collisions. It is simply because despite how busy our highways are, they are single carriageways and not dualised, causing vehicles that involve in accidents to crash into each other.

Many drivers have no regard for human lives. It is alleged that when some drivers are carrying eggs or have other delicate stuff in their vehicles, they take more caution than when carrying passengers. Records indicate that drivers or passengers suffer serious injuries or fatalities in accidents involving head-on collisions as compared to other accidents.

On February 17th 2016, 61 people were killed and 25 got seriously injured when a Metro Mass Transit bus and a cargo truck collided between Kintampo and Babatokuma on the main Kintampo-Tamale road. An 8-month old girl survived but unfortunately lost her mother. On 22nd March 2019, about 60 people were also killed and 53 passengers injured when two buses collided head-on at Amoma Nkwanta, between Techiman-Kintampo road. One of the buses caught fire, resulting in some passengers burning beyond recognition.

On that same day, another gory accident as a result of a head-on collision involving a Metro Mass Transit bus and a Yutong bus occurred at Ekumfi Dunkwa, between Winneba-Cape Coast highway in the Central Region. Over 30 people died while several others sustained varying degrees of injuries. Oh, what a bloody and sorrowful day it was for mother Ghana!

We woke up to be greeted with news of another accident when an Intercity bus and another bus had a head-on collision as a result of wrongful overtaking. It claimed 34 lives, leaving others in critical condition on 14th January, 2020. It also happened at Dompoase, near Elmina, between the Kasoa-Cape Coast highway, one of the accident prone stretch of roads in the country. It was reported that a 10-year old girl survived but lost both parents, rendering her complete orphan for the rest of her life. Again, 35 people got killed in a head-on collision involving two buses that caught up fire on the 9th of March, 2020 around Kintampo, another area that has gained notoriety for accidents. Out of the 35 persons that died, 27 of the victims were burnt beyond recognition, leaving other survivors in critical condition.

Moreover, two horrible accidents occurred within two days, specifically, 15th and 17th September, 2020. In the first incident, a Burkina Faso bound DAF cargo truck crashed into two vehicles at Kyekyewere, on the NsawamSuhum stretch of the AccraKumasi highway, recording 17 deaths. The second accident occurred at Gomoa Adam, between the KasoaCape Coast highway as usual, which also claimed 7 lives and injured several others. Other accidents have occurred just at the beginning of this year.

They include the 19 people that perished in the Buipe-Tamale crash on 3rd February; the 19 persons that died (16 on the spot and 3 later) at Akyem Asafo on Accra-Kumasi highway on 26th February; and the 13 people that died at Alipe, near Yapei, on the Buipe-Tamale highway on 13th April, 2021. This is to mention but a few. They all occurred as a result of wrongful overtaking that resulted in head-on collisions. It is evidently clear that most accidents on our highways, particularly head-on collisions, have been the most severest and deadliest.

Over the years, many stakeholders, especially the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) have played various roles in sensitising and educating drivers to cut down or avoid accidents on our roads but have not achieved much results with respect to carnage on our roads. Majority of drivers despise road traffic regulations. When travelling on our highways, the over speeding, wrongful overtaking, recklessness or indiscipline exhibited by them are unfathomable. They have become recalcitrant and incorrigible to the extent that even the latest news or being eye-witnesses to horrific accidents do not prompt them to drive responsibly.

What is more frightening and disheartening is that even the most responsible driver and innocent occupants could be killed or are often killed by a reckless and irresponsible one. It leaves one to wonder whether some drivers have more than one lives to live on earth to enable them gamble or experiment with the first. Since some drivers have proven that our safety cannot be trusted in their hands by their manner of driving, the most effective and reliable alternative against head-on collisions is dualisation of our highways.

Our highways seem to have turned into death traps or cemetery junctions (crossroads between life and death). Most travellers when travelling on them often have their hearts jumping into their mouths because one either reaches his or her destination safely by grace, or joins the ancestors abruptly.

Financial cost in respect of dualisation of our highways must not be an excuse because having our highways dualised would save us more costs than we can imagine. It is reported that Ghana loses a whopping $3 billion every year through corruption, a gargantuan amount of money. If corruption is reduced or avoided, it would save the nation several billions of dollars within few years to enable our highways to be dualised. Again, it is on record that Ghana spends $230 million every year treating injuries and traffic fatalities. It means in every ten years, the nation spends $2.3 billion on victims of road traffic crashes alone.

Statistics indicate that an average of over 6 people daily and 2,000 yearly, die on Ghana roads. In 2019 alone, 2,284 lives were lost through road crashes in Ghana, while 2,080 people died in road accidents between January and October last year, confirming the aforementioned statistics. This means about 20,000 persons are killed every ten years on our roads.

The loss of these number of persons necessitates the dualisation of our highways, irrespective of the financial cost to the nation. If within a year (March 2020  Februay 2021) the dreaded coronavirus pandemic killed about 600 people in Ghana as compared to about 2,000 yearly deaths on our roads, it makes it imperative to pay even more attention to dualisation of our highways.

The accidents on our roads have far-reaching consequences. Aside from the loss of precious lives, the anguish, emotional and psychological trauma they unleash on the nation cannot be quantified monetarily. Most of the victims tend to be prominent personalities and others with needed skills in both the formal and informal sectors contributing their quotas to the growth of the economy.

Consequently, valuable human resource or manpower capacity of the nation is adversely affected. Other victims are often breadwinners of their respective families causing the loss of daily bread to their spouses, children and other dependants.

Most dependants of the accident victims get their education truncated, become vulnerable or go wayward and indulge in all forms of social vices that pose threats to the nation. Some accident survivors die later due to the life-threatening injuries they sustain, while others get limb(s) amputated or rendered incapacitated for the rest of their lives.

Irrefutably, our dear nation needs several infrastructural projects for development and nation building but priority must be given to dualisation of our highways to save human lives. This is because what would be the usefulness of an ultra-modern hospital, world class university or state-of-the-art infrastructure after we are all dead, leaving Ghana behind in a desolate state through road accidents, particularly head-on collisions? Should we create a paradise in Ghana without human beings to enjoy it? Dualisation of our highways is, therefore, a prerequisite for enjoying other needed infrastructural projects because we need to be alive to enjoy them.

It is sad that as a nation, we only lament over such horrible occurrences and forget within few days, without ensuring that the requisite solution is found. Nobody knows who the next accident victim would be. It could be a father, mother, sibling, uncle, dear colleague or a loved one. May God forbid though! It is imperative to act now because a stitch in time saves nine. It was quite gratifying when the minister for roads and highways mentioned during his vetting that dualisation of Accra-Kumasi and Accra-Takoradi roads is in the offing. We beseech the minister not to renege but expedite action and include all the other highways in the country. Let us arise with one accord and clamour for #DualisationOfOurHighwaysNow!

The writer is a library staff at the University of Education,

Winneba (UEW) Winneba Campus

E-mail: [email protected]

0548246030
Muslim Caucus in Parliament has taken a swipe at the Christian Council of Ghana (CCG), and the Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference (GCBC), for supporting the decision to prevent Muslim students in Wesley Girls' High School from fasting during Ramadan.

The school was directed by the Ghana Education Service to allow the Muslim students to partake in the fast, but the Methodist Church intervened and said the school would not heed the directive.

The CCG and the GCBC subsequently backed this decision, saying it was in the interest of the students.

A member of the Muslim minority caucus in Parliament, Muntaka Mubarak on Eyewitness News said the groups have shown bad faith by endorsing a decision that in his view promotes hatred and bigotry against Muslims.

It is disappointing that the Christian Council and the Conference of Catholic Bishops will support bigotry and hatred. This is pure hatred, and we believe that our country has passed this stage. We will not tolerate this.

Mr. Muntaka believes discrimination on religious basis will cease if it is widely condemned.

We expect many people with a conscience to speak against this [form of discrimination]. Let us not be silent. We should not allow a few bigots to take over our coexistence.

The Asawase legislator was also hopeful that an ongoing dialogue between key stakeholders involved in the impasse will yield positive results.

We are happy that we met the Minister; we conveyed our concerns, and he keeps assuring us that these issues would be resolved amicably. We will continue to call for calm within the Muslim community.

---citinewsroom
Claudine Kamwanya's twins are barely two but have the ethereal look of the very old.

Wizened features and saucer-like eyes peer from their tiny emaciated faces.

"How can I satisfy their hunger?" Kamwanya, who has two other children and is pregnant with a fifth, asks helplessly. "My husband doesn't work and I sell only water."

Acute malnutrition stalks the diamond-rich but fragile Kasai region in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) -- the world's worst-hit country in terms of food insecurity, according to the UN.

Worried for her infants, Kamwanya has sought help at a hospital in Bonzola near the town of Mbuji-Mayi.

In an adjoining room, Marie-Jose, a girl aged four and a half, is slowly recovering after 12 days of treatment -- a recovery that delights the medical staff.

DR Congo's Kasai region. By William ICKES (AFP)

"She was brought here unconscious with severe dehydration associated with infections," said a nurse.

Between April 14 and May 1, "29 malnourished children were admitted, including six in a very serious state," said Dr. Gregoire Mpoyi, thanking a charity, Action Contre la Faim (ACF, Action Against Hunger), for its support.

Alarm bells

When the DRC makes the headlines internationally, it is typically for violence in its mineral-rich east, where more than 100 armed groups roam.

Less well known is its crisis of hunger, especially in the Kasai, the heart of a vast country that is the size of continental Western Europe.

Some 27.3 million people in the DRC are affected by food insecurity, the United Nations said in early April.

Doctors in the Kasai often treat children who have been reduced to virtual skeletons by malnutrition. By Arsene Mpiana (AFP)

"This situation has made the DRC the country with the most number of people needing urgent food assistance in the world," its Food and Agricultural Organization and the World Food Programme said, sounding the alarm.

In Mbuji-Mayi, about 15 children with skeletal bodies lie under a mosquito net in the pediatric ward of the general hospital, watched over by their impassive mothers.

"Four are in the phase of severe acute malnutrition (the most serious), five are in transition and six are in rehabilitation or are recovering," said Pierre Kasongo, the head of this hospital run by nuns.

"Malnutrition is a scourge that is flourishing in our poverty-stricken community," he said.

In three weeks, his hospital has treated over 60 children. The facility is one of 35 that is supported by ACF.

Mado Kapinga sits by the side of her little son, Ntumba Kabengela, who is slowly on the mend.

"When we came here, he was really suffering and very weak. He is better after three days' treatment," says Kapinga, a mother-of-five and the wife of an artisanal miner.

She dreads going home.

"Here they give us everything: food, water and even soap to wash ourselves. Once back at home, we will have nothing to eat and my son could have a relapse," she says.

The lure of diamonds

The vast Kasai region is still recovering from fighting in 2016-2017 sparked by the death of a local chief, Kamuina Nsapu, by the DRC security forces.

An insurrection by his followers triggered a conflict that claimed 3,400 lives, left 1.5 million people internally displaced and prompted 35,000 others to flee to neighbouring Angola.

The hospital at Tudikolela is supported by the charity Action Against Hunger. By Arsene Mpiana (AFP)

Kasai's economy is in tatters, and few are willing to tend its dour clayey soil to grow crops.

Many more turn to informal mining in the hope of overnight riches, although it hardly works that way.

"People don't work, they don't want to farm. The overwhelming majority dream of making a fortune through diamonds, even though it's obvious -- you don't just bend down and pick up diamonds," says Carine Kupela, a nun who is the hospital's general administrator.

The neighbouring province of Kasai-Central has also been hit by hunger.

Sitting on her mother's lap, Jeannette Kabuma eats porridge distributed by a nurse to about 20 children at a hospital in Kananga, the provincial capital.

Aged one, Jeannette weighs only 5.4 kilograms (11.9 pounds) against the normal average of between seven and 11 for her age.

Caterpillars and peanuts

She is suffering from severe acute malnutrition, according to nurse Maman Denise.

The health centre in Kamayi had treated 74 children between October and March. Only 47 of them were declared cured.

Anto Kalonga, 23, arrives with three children. Two are pot-bellied and have brittle and yellowing hair -- classic signs of malnutrition -- while the third has trouble breathing.

"He doesn't even have the strength to cry," says Kalonga.

In health centres run by the UN children's agency Unicef, mothers are taught how to make porridge with locally available produce such as maize, peanuts, palm oil and caterpillars.

UN-run health centres teach mothers how to make porridge with local produce. By Arsene Mpiana (AFP)

"The moment a project stops, it's back to square one," says Elie Mayiza Bamvangila, a Unicef worker in Kanaga.

"The return of displaced people has become a burden for the community," he adds.

On the outskirts of the city, more than 2,200 displaced families are sheltering in camps.

Since 2019, Vanessa Zawadi from an NGO called Women for Peace and Dignity employs mothers of malnourished children to work on farmland.

Every day, she said, she used to to buy one or two coffins to bury malnourished children.

"The parents wanted me to be like other organisations which hand out food... but I make them aware of the importance of growing food or fish farming."
The Director of Business Operations of Dalex Finance, Mr. Joe Jackson, says Finance Ministers press conference on Sunday, May 9, 2021, failed to address the real concerns of Ghanaians.

According to him, Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta only rehashed the government's undertakings over the period which falls short of ameliorating the economic hardship.

The Finance Minister at a press conference over the weekend listed government's intervention and intended initiatives towards fixing the economy.

This follows ongoing public agitations over the high cost of living and other related challenges.

But speaking on The Point of View on Citi TV, Mr. Joe Jackson said the current anger of the people cannot be addressed by press conferences but by real actions.

According to him, the real demands of the people cannot be downplayed.

Trumpeting your achievements does not fix my pocket and here when I talk about my pocket, Im talking about those public sentiments that are being expressed, and the dissatisfaction in the level of unemployment with the public services, the dumsor, the roads, and the issues to do with education, security, health services, and housing which is making people unhappy and the perception of the increasing levels of corruption.

So telling somebody who says there is corruption, telling him about 1D1F, telling him about Planting for Food and Jobs and the others and however deep-rooted these may be in truth does not solve his or her problem.

Speaking on the same programmme, the Deputy Finance Minister Designate and MP for Ejisu, Dr. John Kumah, said the government has among other things created over two million jobs in its effort to minimize the burden of citizens.

The jobs created by this government is over two million in the last four years, and this was presented to Parliament from the Ministry of Labour by the sector Minister during his vetting, and this covers all programmes of the government including Planting for Food and Jobs, 1D1F and the rest, he noted.

---citinewsroom
Trade Minister Alan Kyeremateng has paid a working visit to the cement plant of Dzata Cement Limited, the first ever wholly Ghanaian owned cement production factory in Ghana. Mr. Kyeremateng who was accompanied by a team from Ministry of Trade and Industry was welcomed to the factory by the Managing Director of Dzata Cement, Mr. Nana Philip Archer and the management of the factory. Mr. Kyeremateng was conducted round the facility in Tema on Monday, May 10, 2021. The visit was to enable him to have first-hand information on the cement producing plant, located on a 10-acre land near the Tema Port.

Addressing the management and staff of Dzata Cement, Mr Kyeremateng applauded them for building an eco-friendly factory. He also appealed to Ghanaians to support the factory because its a success story of Ghanaian entrepreneurship.

Im appealing to Ghanaians to support the factory. Its in line with the vision of President Akufo-Addo in helping indigenous entrepreneurs. Lets support the first ever wholly Ghanaian owned cement factory. Its the success story of Ghanaian entrepreneurship. Mr Kyeremateng said. He was also highly impressed by the fact that the company is led and run by a Ghanaian management team.

The plant has an installed capacity of two million tonnes annually.
Victims of Ghanas May 9, 2001 stadium disaster have paid a courtesy call on President Nana Akufo-Addo.

They visited the President at the Jubilee House on Monday, May 10, 2021.

It would be recalled that on May 9, 2001, some 127 persons lost their lives following a stamped during a Ghana Premier League match between Accra Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko.

During the visit, Mr Akufo-Addo commiserated with the persons who were involved in the incident, and reiterated Governments commitment, through the Ministry of Youth and Sports, to ensure that this disaster does not occur again in our nation.

The victims were led to the Jubilee House by Herbert Mensah, who was Chairman of Asante Kotoko as at the time of the disaster some 20 years ago.
More than two weeks after being granted bail, the ten persons including soldiers and a senior police officer who were re-arrested on Friday, April 23, and put before an Accra High Court for allegedly plotting to overthrow the NPP government are still in custody.

DAILY GUIDE sources said yesterday that the suspects, except ACP Dr. Benjamin Agordzo, have not been able to meet the bail conditions set by the court presided over by the three judges namely: Justices Afia Serwaa Asare-Botwe, Stephen Oppong and Hafisata Amaleboba, who are hearing the case.

Another source close to the suspects claimed the defence lawyers are planning to go back to the court to apply for a review of the bail terms to enable the suspects to extricate the bail bond.

Bail Conditions

The court on Saturday, April 24, granted Dr. Frederick Yao Mac-Palm, who is suspected to be the mastermind; Donya Kafui aka Ezor, a local weapon manufacturer; Bright Allan Debrah Ofosu aka Bright Alan Yeboah or BB, Lance Corporal Ali Solomon, Lance Corporal Sylvester Akapewu, Lance Corporal Seidu Abubakar, WO II Esther Saan Dekuwine aka Mama Gee and Johannes Zikpi, a civilian employee with the Ghana Armed Forces, GH2 million bail with two sureties each to be justified.

The court also granted ACP Dr. Benjamin Agordzo of the Ghana Police Service and Col. Samuel Kojo Gameli of the Ghana Armed Forces, GH1 million bail with two sureties each, one of whom is to be justified.

All the accused persons were also been ordered to report to the Director of National Investigations Bureau (NIB) every Monday and Thursday of the week as well as deposit their passports at the registry of the court.

The two senior security officers are also to deposit their passports at the court's registry as well as report to their Commanders on Mondays and Thursdays.

ACP Agordzo was able to meet the bail conditions just yesterday in the afternoon, and was expected to go home to join his family.

Counsel's Concern

Victor K. Adawudu, counsel for some of the accused persons, had earlier admitted that most of the accused persons could remain in police custody since they were struggling to meet the bail conditions set by the court.

We were a little surprised that our clients were re-arrested after going through all the processes for almost a year to get bail, only to get home and have the security agencies coming to charge them for high treason, based on the same facts, the same evidence.

We will get in touch with the family, and we will start the process but as we speak none of them have been able to execute the process, but I think that as ordinary Ghanaian citizens, it will be difficult for them to execute this bail, he said.

Re-Arrest

The 10 persons were put on trial in 2019 for allegedly planning to destabilise the country and overthrow the NPP government.

The 10, made up of a senior police officer, a senior military officer, four (4) junior ranked military officers and four (4) civilians, including a medical doctor believed to be the mastermind, were initially put before an Accra High Court and charged with treason felony, abetment of treason felony and possession of firearms, ammunitions and explosives without lawful authority.

But they were re-arrested by the NIB following new intelligence into the case and charged with high treason, which is the highest criminal offence in the country.

The Attorney General, Godfred Yeboah Dame, who was personally in court on April 24, to lead the prosecution, had told the high court that his office had already filed processes to discontinue the first trial which had reached the stage where the court was empanelling a jury to enable the prosecution to call its first witness.

The Attorney General told the court that the accused persons had been in custody for less than 24 hours but stressed that if the court was minded to grant them bail, then it ought to set conditions that would compel them to avail themselves for the trial.

New Charges/Plea

Per the new charges, Dr. Mac-Palm, Donya Kafui aka Ezor, Bright Allan Debrah Ofosu aka Bright Alan Yeboah or BB, Lance Corporal Ali Solomon, Lance Corporal Sylvester Akapewu, Lance Corporal Seidu Abubakar, WO II Esther Saan Dekuwine aka Mama Gee and Johannes Zikpi, a civilian employee with the Ghana Armed Forces, are facing two counts of conspiracy to commit high treason and high treason.

ACP Dr. Benjamin Agordzo and Col. Samuel Kojo Gameli on the other hand have been charged with two counts of abetment of high treason each.

The accused persons all pleaded not guilty to the charges of high treason, conspiracy to commit high treason and abetment of high treason.

Fresh Facts

The facts of the case indicate how the accused persons who are members of an NGO called Take Action Ghana (TAG) held several meetings to discuss the recruitment of more soldiers, the acquisition of weapons and bullet proof gears, development of sketch maps of key installations and facilities of the state to be attacked during their planned takeover of government.

The facts state that the accused persons were planning to capture the President and some key individuals in the country and also how to force the President to announce his overthrow once he was captured.

The accused persons were again said to have contemplated in their discussions whether or not to kill the President in the process of overthrowing the government.

Weapons Manufacturing

According to the facts, the accused persons in furtherance of the plot to overthrow government, Dr. Mac-Palm contracted Donya Kafui to manufacture explosives and pistols and Dr. Mac-Palm subsequently converted his X-ray laboratory of his Citadel Hospital at Alajo in Accra into a manufacturing shop where Kafui mounted his tools and machines to manufacture the weapons.

Again, the accused are said to have procured weapons and test-fired the locally manufactured weapons at the military shooting range general area at Teshie, Accra.

The accused persons, according to the prosecution, also discussed the procurement of electronic jamming devices and vehicles that would enable them take over the National Communications Authority (NCA) and jam all radio stations with the exception of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), where they intended to broadcast their successful overthrow of the government from.

The facts further indicated that the military and other security agencies on September 20, 2019, stormed the Citadel Hospital and arrested Dr. Mac-Palm and Donya Kafui, and also retrieved some hidden weapons from a generator set and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) from some car tires on the premises of the hospital.

A thorough search of the premises of the hospital and the houses of the accused persons by security operatives revealed the sketch maps, tools used in the manufacturing of the weapons and the IEDs, locally manufactured pistols, several rounds of ammunitions, three hand smoke grenades, among others, the facts stressed.

DGN online
Israel's armed forces say they have bombed "130 military targets" inside the Gaza Strip, in response to rockets launched from inside the Palestinian enclave. Palestinian sources say there have been at least 24 deaths, including nine children. Israel claims the majority of the victims were members of the ruling Hamas party, or the extremist Islamic Jihad.

An Israeli army spokesman stressed that the Tuesday morning air strikes were "an initial phase" of the response, adding "we are ready for any escalation".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Monday that fighting could continue for some time.

The air raids were in reprisal for a series of rocket attacks launched on Monday afternoon from positions in the east and north of the Gaza Strip.

Condemnation

Hamas had warned of "military action" against Israel unless there was an end to the violence which has seen soldiers of the Jewish state fight Muslims around the Al-Aqsa mosque in east Jerusalem for the past five days.

Those clashes were sparked by a dispute over Israeli settlement-building in the Arab quarter of Sheikh Jarrah.

At least 700 Palestinians have been injured in the Jerusalem violence.

Hundreds of residents of Arab communities across Israel on Monday staged overnight protests against the situation in Jerusalem, one of the largest demonstrations by Palestinian citizens in Israel in recent years.

Israel's tactics in Jerusalem have drawn angry reactions from across the Muslim world.

Saudi Arabia has condemned what it said were attacks by Israeli forces against the sanctity of Al-Aqsa and the safety of its worshippers. The Saudi foreign ministry called Tuesday on the international community to hold Israeli forces responsible for any escalation.

Separately, the 57-nation Organisation of Islamic Cooperation is holding an emergency meeting of its permanent representatives in the Saudi port city of Jeddah to discuss the tensions in Jerusalem.
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The Ghana Education Service (GES) has constituted a committee to investigate the flogging of a student at St. Stephens Senior High Technical School (STEPSS) at Akyem Asiakwa in the Abuakwa South Municipality of the Eastern Region.

The committee was set up on the instructions of both the Regional and Municipal Education Directorates after a leaked video of the Mathematical teacher, Raphel Amable, emerged, administering corporal punishment to a recalcitrant student.

Flogging has been banned in schools by the Ghana Education Service.

The video captured the Maths Teacher lashing a half-naked Form One student in the open.

The student wearing only short is seen in the push-up position being whipped at the buttocks by the teacher, also a Senior Housemaster, in the full glare of other students.

The 25 seconds video captured the teacher administering 15 strokes but according to sources, the lashes were about 25.

The student is alleged to have assaulted another student during a misunderstanding resulting in the hospitalization of that student.

The type of punishment adopted by the Senior Housemaster has however, rekindled the debate on corporal punishment.

Headmaster of the School, Samuel Asante Anarfi, when contacted, confirmed the incident and said that the disciplinary committee of the school-sanctioned punishment for the student seen in a viral video being flogged.

He said a committee left the punishment to the discretion of the Senior Housemaster, adding that the student was found guilty for assaulting and stamping on the chest of a junior student in boarding house resulting in his hospitalization.

Despite the headmaster's explanation, the GES regional directorate is adamant and want the Housemaster probed.

Daily Guide
A vehicle belonging to the husband of the traditional priestess at the centre of the murder of a 10-year-old near Kasoa for ritual purposes was last night set ablaze by irate youth of Amanase near Suhum in the Eastern Region.

Citi News sources say, the youth who accused the man and his accomplices of trying to abduct another kid in the area for money rituals angrily set fire into his Toyota Camry vehicle.

The irate youth who later apprehended the suspects and took them to the chiefs palace allegedly pelted stones at the police team deployed to the place.

Reports indicate that the action by the youth ended up damaging the side window glass of vehicle with registration number GP 2867 belonging to the Kibi Police Divisional Patrol.

Some of the residents who spoke to journalists vowed to take the law into their own hands if the police will not deal with the issues.

citinewsroom
Me and my mom were already waiting for the train. My stepdad was behind us, and they thought he was bothering us because he was in the back and walking slow, Martinez recalled. I said, Thats my stepdad, but they didnt listen. They surrounded him.
A Frenchman has been arrested in the Central African Republic after police discovered a "very large arsenal" of weapons in his home.

A spokesman for the government told the French news agency AFP the man, who claimed to be a journalist, was detained in the capital, Bangui, on Monday.

Humanitarian sources said the man had worked as a bodyguard for several organisations in the CAR, which is fighting a major armed rebellion seeking to overthrow the government.

Valery Zakharov, the Russian national security advisor to President Faustin Archange Touadera, said on Twitter the man had been detained with huge amounts of weapons and ammunition.

Russia has deployed hundreds of paramilitaries from the private security companies to the CAR to support government forces.

Photos shared on social media showed a man with his hands tied, surrounded by police officers on the steps of a police station, with weapons, ammunition and military equipment at his feet.

A diplomatic source told AFP the man had done a short stint in the army during his youth.

Continued unrest

Although Touadera was re-elected in polls held in December, opposition parties supported by former president Francois Bozize have rejected the results.

Rebels groups seized a series of towns in the north and west of the CAR, and reached the outskirts of the capital in January  cutting off food supplies to Bangui.

With the help of Russian and Rwandan forces, CAR troops were able to drive the rebels back and retake many of towns.

More than 276,000 people have been displaced in the CAR since mid-December, with the UN estimating some 1.8 million people are in need of urgent help.
As we all know, water is a scarce resource. It is even predicted that by 2025, half of the worlds population will be living in water-stressed areas, a situation that has a very high potential of erupting extreme poverty across the world.

The Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) (2017/18) indicates that access to basic drinking water in the Northern Region stands at 50%, nonetheless, there is increasing demand by households, agriculture and industry, and the impacts of climate change have also contributed to putting water under extreme threat.

This situation calls for a reflection on what actions we need to take to address these challenges in compliance with the precautionary principle in the National Water Policy (NWP) (2007) that seeks to minimize activities that have the potential to negatively affect the integrity of all water resources

Tamale Water Fund (TWF)

Catholic Relief Services, through its Urban WASH and Resilience Project, is partnering with the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly, Sagnerigu Municipal Assembly, Ghana Water Company Limited, and other key stakeholders, to help address water security and sanitation challenges in Tamale.

According to the Head of programming CRS, Christina Gallagher, Urban Resilience is a priority area in CRE Regional and Country Strategic Plans, seeking to catalyze transformational change at scale, to build a more just, equitable, and prosperous world for all.

As part of this commitment, the proposed establishment of a Water Fund for Tamale aims to facilitate source water protection at the Nawuni sub-catchment of the White Volta River by developing a sustainable development pathway within the basin.

The overall goal is to utilize nature-based solutions (or green infrastructure) to improve both the quality and supply of water and mitigate the impact of natural disasters, as well as create a healthy living environment to protect and enhance biodiversity within the White Volta Basin, she said.

She called on institutions and agencies, and development partners (NGOs, CBOs, FBOs, private sector, etc.) to collaborate to leverage each others resources and strengths to build resilient and dedicated institutions to deliver carefully thought-out interventions, as well as advocate for institutional and policy reforms that are required for effective WASH service delivery.

I hope that the conversations that will follow in todays session will generate ideas for the Water Funds model, stakeholder involvement, and roles in engaging the private sector to contribute to the Tamale Water Fund, she added.

Northern Regional Minister

The Northern Regional Minister, Hon. Shani Alhassan Shaibu in his speech, delivered by the Northern Regional Economic Planning Officer, Alhaji Inusah Abukari, indicated that Tamale Metropolis rely mainly on pipe-borne water for drinking and other domestic uses.

He pointed out that the White Volta River is currently experiencing high levels of siltation mainly due to sand mining activities in and along its banks, increased agricultural practices and gold mining upstream, thus together with climate change variability, are threatening the rivers future capacity for supplying the required volume of water to the Tamale metropolis and its environs.

Nonetheless, he lauded government commitment to undertake the construction and expansion of water abstraction and treatment plants in Yendi and Yapei, as well as the construction of the Pwalugu multi-purpose dam.

Government believes investments to improve water security challenges will help enhance human dignity while reducing expenses and the burden on health systems, and contribute to easing the burden on women who travel long distances to access water, he said.

He assured that the Government of Ghana will continue to work with all stakeholders in the WASH sector to improve the livelihoods of our people.

The minister acknowledged the tremendous contributions by the Catholic Relief Services for its developmental programs and efforts to mitigate water security challenges, especially in the northern parts of Ghana, touting it as a laudable initiative in the right direction.

Call for Collaboration

The minister thanked all development partners and traditional authorities who have contributed in various ways to improving water, sanitation and hygiene situations in Ghana, but also reminded them that a lot more effort is required.

The perennial shortages and rationing of water in Tamale, as in many cities and towns in Ghana, are a wake-up call for us to put our important watersheds and aquifers in order.

Let us ensure effective collaboration among key sector players to ensure improved WASH service delivery, he said.
A deliberate "campaign" to prevent farming is unfolding in Ethiopia's war-hit Tigray, a top regional official said, warning that the result will be "starvation."

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent troops into Tigray in November to topple the region's once dominant ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).

"There is a campaign that has been started to prevent farming. Regrettably, this campaign is being done by some of those tasked with law enforcement," Abebe Gebrehiwot, deputy head of Tigray's interim government, said in an interview with a state-run network that aired Monday night.

The effort includes telling Tigrayan farmers they aren't allowed to farm and blocking seeds from reaching parts of the northern region, said Abebe, an official appointed by the Addis Ababa government who is in charge of economic affairs.

Affected areas include Shire, currently home to tens of thousands of displaced Tigrayans, and Hawzen, which has seen intense fighting in recent days, he said.

Vehicles transporting seeds are being blocked from moving beyond an area known as Kobo, just south of Tigray, he said.

"Efforts to prevent the entry of seeds and efforts to stop farming have no other message than perhaps, 'Let the people of Tigray perish with starvation,'" Abebe said in the interview with Tigray TV.

Abebe did not specify who was behind the "campaign," but his comments pointed to some of the tensions in the region.

Prime Minister Abiy had promised the fighting -- which he said came in response to TPLF attacks on army camps -- would end quickly.

But more than six months later fighting continues and world leaders are warning of a pending humanitarian catastrophe.

In addition to the Ethiopian military, troops from Eritrea and from Ethiopia's Amhara region -- which borders Tigray to the south -- are active in the conflict.

Last month AFP obtained documents from the interim government indicating that Eritrean soldiers were blocking and looting aid in Tigray, an allegation Asmara denied.

'Significant strides'

Abiy's government, for its part, says normalcy is returning while highlighting its efforts to provide food and other aid.

On Saturday his office said "significant strides" had been made towards reconstruction.

And on Tuesday his office said that the latest round of aid had reached 2.7 million people with "food and other essential items."

Ethiopia's Tigray region. By Aude GENET (AFP)

"We welcome the international community's support in efforts to scale up humanitarian assistance and close existing gaps," it said on Twitter.

Last week Mitiku Kassa, head of Ethiopia's national disaster commission, told a press conference that foreign aid groups were intentionally playing up the gravity of the humanitarian situation.

"International agencies are in a rush to collect wealth just like in Syria and Yemen. They believe that unless they shout, aid won't come to Ethiopia," he said.

"There is international competition. It's an industry."
An ex-Deputy Ashanti Regional Minister, Elizabeth Agyemang has endorsed the 21st Clinic for its competence in treating sciatica.

Sciatica refers to pain that radiates along the path of the sciatic nerve, which branches from ones lower back through the hips and buttocks and down each leg.

The experienced politician said she has had a personal experience with the Clinic, hence can vouch for the health facility anytime without hesitation.

She recounted the pain she had to endure for some time until she was introduced to 21st Clinic where shes been treated.

The sickness started in India where I was at the time and I went for treatment there. Upon my return to Ghana, I was admitted to the Police Hospital for three weeks as I could not walk. I was having pains in both legs, which affected my going to work, a whole year before my term ended I could not go to the office due to the pains. I initially thought I was having heart problems, after series of tests including an MRI I was told the pain I was feeling was in my waist and I had to be operated on. Much against the doctors advice, I declined to undergo an operation because I was afraid of the procedure, she revealed in an interview with Nana Poku Tofiakwa on Healing Point, a health program that airs every Saturday on 21st Radio and broadcast through Ejura-based Naagyei FM and about 22 other radio stations across the country.

The former Member of Parliament for Oforikrom said, one day while returning from Accra upon reaching Tech. Junction I heard an announcement by 21st Clinic speaking about some of the ailments they could cure. I then picked the contacts of the clinic and then had a conversation with one Dr. Asare. He and other medical Officers visited me at home and did an assessment on me and begun to give me home care for which I was very happy because I could not move about."

Mrs Agyeman, popularly known as peoples mother noted that at a point in time I felt my leg was dead because I could not feel it, it was numb. They provided me with home care, now I feel no pain and I can now step on my feet. Its been one year now that they started taking care of me, Ive now become an ambassador for 21st Clinic and Ive directed many people to the facility for treatment and they are giving testimonies. When it comes to the treatment of sciatica, I can vouch for 21st Clinic, they are the best. Whoever is sick should go there and back the doctors there with prayers and in no time they would be healed.
The First Court Witness in the mini trial involving 14 alleged killers of Major Maxwell Mahama, says there is no pressure on the Police to produce results in the investigations.

Detective Chief Inspector Samuel Agyakwa, said the Police investigators conducted the investigation concerning the alleged murder of the late Major as a normal investigation.

Detective Chief Inspector Agyakwa, who was the 14th Prosecution Witness in the substantive case, was being cross-examined in a mini trail led by Mr George Bernard Shaw.

The mini trial came about as a result of objections from the Defence Counsel to the tendering of some caution and charge statements taken from the accused persons.

Mr Shaw, the Counsel for the first, second, fourth, eighth, 10th and the 12th, objected initially to the tendering of statements of his clients, saying they were not voluntarily taken from them.

Mr Theophilus Donkor, a Defence Counsel for the 3rd and the 14th accused persons, also objected to the tendering of the statements.

Mr Shaw said there was real pressure on the investigation team to get results by arresting the perpetrators but the witness disagreed.

Asked, whether the witness remembered the then lGP and the Police PR together with the Central Regional Police Commander, all addressed the media through press conferences and briefing when the matter broke out, the witness said, 'l remember the Police PR speaking on the matter but l do not remember the IGP speaking."

The Counsel pointed to the witness that at a press conference, the Police promised Ghanaians to do their best to bring the perpetrators to book and the Detective agreed.

The witness told the Court, he was not aware the media had a big interest in the case but the Counsel told the Court that, the Media had a big interest as well as social media.

Detective Chief Inspector Agyakwa agreed that because the case was trending on social media, it led the Police to retrieve the video and subsequently effecting arrest of many of suspects.

He again agreed with the Counsel that most of them were released because of lack of evidence but there was no pressure on the Police.

The witness disagreed with Mr Shaw that there were no witnesses to the murder of the late Major Mahama, saying there were witnesses.

The Counsel asked the witness whether the identities of the perpetrators were at the heart of the investigations and he answered in the affirmative.

"So that is why you told us of the video from social media helped you in your investigations," Mr Shaw asked, and the witness said it was part of the investigations.

The Counsel told the Court that the Police Officer breached the Police Service Instructions 195 that dealt with identification, of which the witness said he was aware.

He Shaw suggested to the witness as an Officer that he was not supposed to take part in the actual identification exercise but the witness said "the video was watched by a team of investigators, together with the suspects."

Detective Chief Inspector Agyakwa told the Court that he was the lead investigator and the video was in my possession, so they watched it together.

Mr Augustine Gyamfi, Counsel for Akwasi Boah, in a cross examination, asked the witness whether before taking the accused person's statement, he had an earlier statement from him in his custody and he if knew the contents, he answered in the affirmative.

Asked, how many people were in the room when the statement was taken, the witness said he was there with an independent witness together with his Station Officer but the Counsel disagreed.

Mr Gyamfi said there were more than seven uniformed Police Officers, some with guns, but the witness also disagreed.

The witness explained that there was a team of interrogators in the room before he took over.

Fourteen persons are standing trial at an Accra High Court over the killing of Major Mahama, who was an officer of the 5th Infantry Battalion, at Burma Camp.

The late Major was on duty at Denkyira-Obuasi in the Central Region when on May 29, 2017 some residents allegedly mistook him for an armed robber and lynched him.

The mob had ignored his persistent plea that he was an officer of the Ghana Armed Forces.

The accused are William Baah, the Assembly member of Denkyira Obuasi, Bernard Asamoah alias Daddy, Kofi Nyame a.k.a Abortion, Akwasi Boah, Kwame Tuffour, Joseph Appiah Kubi, Michael Anim and Bismarck Donkor.

Others are John Bosie, Akwasi Baah, Charles Kwaning, Emmanuel Badu, Bismarck Abanga and Kwadwo Anima.

The trial was adjourned to May 17, 2021 for continuation.

---GNA
Parliament is expected to reconvene from recess on Tuesday, May 25, 2021 for the commencement of its second meeting.

The announcement was contained in a notice to the Members of Parliament (MPs) dated May 10, 2021, and signed by Clerk to Parliament, Cyril Kwabena Oteng Nsiah.

Pursuant to Standing Order 32(2) of the Parliament of Ghana, I, Cyril Kwabena Oteng Nsiah, Clerk to Parliament, hereby notify Hon. Members that the Second Meeting of the First Session of the Eighth Parliament of the Fourth Republic shall commence on Tuesday, 25th May 2021 at Ten O'Clock in the forenoon at Parliament House, Accra, the statement said.

The House went on recess on Tuesday, March 30, 2021.

During this meeting, the House is expected to vet and approve of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's Deputy Ministerial nominees and the Special Prosecutor nominee, Mr. Kissi Agyebeng.

---citinewsroom
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The case of the 33 fake National Security operatives who were arrested for galamsey activities in the Eastern is getting more intense as the Kaneshie District Court refused jurisdiction to hear and grant them bail.

Drama unfolded when the court turned down an invitation to grant bail to 11 of the suspects who appeared before it.

The prosecutor, ASP Sylvester Asare, was in court to secure a remand order to enable the state to gather evidence and make its case against the suspects.

A case of possession of firearms without lawful excuse is being built against them.

But the defence lawyers drew Her Worship Ama Adomako Kwakye's attention to Section 192 (2) of the Criminal and Offences Act 1960, Act 29 as amended which requires the Attorney General's written consent in such matters before the court can entertain it.

Her Worship Adomako Kwakye on the basis of the provision declined to hear the case.

She said the consequence of the provision was that there was neither a case of bail nor remand properly before the court to be heard, and subsequently released the suspects.

But as is the situation in such cases, and was to be expected, all 11 suspects were immediately re-arrested.

Facts of the case

According to the prosecution, the 33 accused persons presented themselves as operatives of the National Security set up but in fact, are not.

The suspects have been accused of visiting several mining communities in and around the Eastern and Ashanti Regions to undertake illegal mining activities.

They are said to have threatened, demanded and seized unspecified kilos of gold and varying sums of money from certain galamsey operators acting in the name of National Security.

The state submitted that security agencies picked intelligence sometime in January that the accused persons armed with rifles were undertaking illegal mining activities in the name of the National Security and harassing communities around the Eastern Region.

And on May 4, 2021, a team of plain-clothed and uniformed personnel from the National Security Secretariat were dispatched to the Akenteng forest reserve, near Osinease in the Eastern Region where they rescued the accused persons from the clutches of angry youth.

This operation the Prosecution said was supported by officers from the Eastern Regional Police Command.

The accused persons were subsequently transported to Accra for interrogations during which they are said to have admitted that they were not National Security Operatives.

They however claimed ownership of the weapons retrieved.

They are also said to have disclosed that they were in the forest to undertake reconnaissance.

The exhibits, according to the prosecution, included a Tudor short gun, pump-action, two bad short gun, assault rifles and 10 rounds of ammunition as well as a cougar pistol.

The prosecution said exhibits retrieved from the accused persons include a Tudor short gun, pump-action, shotgun, assault rifles and 10 rounds of ammunition as well as a cougar pistol.

The team also retrieved from the accused persons 12 Gotta handsets, three handcuffs, four shovels and an electronic shocker.

---citinewsroom
What happens in early years matter for a child's lifetime. - Source: Wendy Stone/Corbis via Getty Images

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There are, however, two ways to look at this critical period. Firstly, a risky period of vulnerability. The rapidly developing infant brain is highly susceptible to adversity in all its ugly forms, be that neglect, malnutrition, disease, or pollution. But another way to think about early childhood is as a window of opportunity. This is the time of life where positive interventions can deliver the biggest returns. In other words, an opportunity not to be missed. As the research evidence on this grows, so does a consensus that more attention  and money  ought to focus on early childhood.

But many policy makers and researchers slip into lazy, outdated, and irrelevant stereotypes. These include assuming that parents, especially mothers, are the only caregivers, and that all or almost all care-giving happens at home. As a result, the childcare sector is neglected. As African countries rapidly urbanise, this omission is becoming more pressing.

Paid childcare has been largely ignored by academia, government policy makers and donors in and beyond Africa. The World Health Organisation recently published its first ever guideline for early childhood development . Although this document includes a lot of valuable information, it  and the research is it based on  largely focuses on improving parental care.

This overlooks the fact that more and more families seem to be using paid childcare in Africa. One recent study found that nearly half of working parents, and even one in five unemployed parents in a Nairobi slum, regularly used paid childcare. A few studies have shown that the quality of this paid care is often crowded and poor , especially for children growing up in informal urban settlements or slums.

Through paying insufficient attention to non-parental care providers in general, and paid childcare specifically, early childhood development strategies are missing an intervention opportunity in sub-Saharan Africa.

In our paper , one of a set of inter-disciplinary publications looking at the care of children around the world, we explore how and why childcare is often ignored. And how the issue can be brought in from the shadows.

Why childcare is neglected

We looked at the limited literature about the use of paid childcare in low- and middle-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa as part of our planning for a study of the issue in Nairobi .

Based on this review of the literature and a series of conversations with researchers and policy makers, we identified three reasons why too little attention is given to childcare across and beyond Africa. These are: gaps in who is responsible in government; deeper questions about how much childcare is the business of the state at all; and, underlying these, gender biases.

First, responsibility gaps: education ministries have a clear responsibility for thousands of schools, employ many tens of thousands of teachers and manage large budgets. But they are also busy working towards universal primary education, improving learning outcomes, and tackling payroll inefficiencies. At the same time the COVID-19 pandemic is putting pressure on already under-resourced health systems like never before. Neither of these big hitting ministries are likely to rush to take on responsibility for regulating, funding and supporting a highly fragmented and often informal childcare sector.

Secondly, some may ask if childcare is the business of the state at all. Surely this is family business? Again, assumptions about the role of extended families  who may, or may not, play a major role in rapidly urbanising countries  often dominate the discussion. But for many living in an urban slum, even many grandparents, not working is not an option.

Finally, and underlying these issues, there is a deeply gendered aspect to the neglect of childcare policy and financing. Caring for children in many societies was historically, and still is, seen as women's work. Even as more women enter the workforce, they often need to juggle their roles as earner and carer. As is often the case, when the burden falls mostly on women, this issue is not a top priority for policy makers and budget holders.

What to do about it

Firstly, researchers need to document and understand the current situation in order to bring this issue in from the shadows. We need more and better data about where young children are spending their days and who is actually looking after them. We also need to learn more about the providers and quality of childcare. (We're working on this through the Nairobi Early Childcare in Slums study .)

Secondly, we need to understand the economics of childcare provision in slums, so as to build financing models. How big is the market and what does money buy? One study showed that the average adult-to-child ratio was 1 adult for an average of 22 under-five children.

And how is COVID-19 is affecting all of the above? For example, what does good infection control look like in informal childcare, and how are school and workplace closures affecting demand for childcare?

This information is needed to advocate for childcare as a way to support early childhood development and human capital. Promising models for subsidised social franchises like Kidogo and Smartstart need to be tested and  if effective  scaled up.

Encouragingly, the World Bank has published a report which estimates that globally nearly 350 million young children need, but lack, quality childcare. It's about time that policy makers, academics and funding agencies stopped ignoring childcare, dismissing it as too chaotic and complicated, or a purely private issue. Research-informed interventions to improve childcare have the potential to reach some of the most vulnerable children at the most critical time in their lives. There is no time to wait.

Robert Hughes receives funding from Echidna Giving to support research into Childcare in Nairobi. This work is also supported by the British Academy (GCRF), part of the overseas development assistance programme (UK aid). He has also worked or consulted for the UK Department for International Development, WHO, the Children's Investment Fund Foundation and the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. He is a member of the global health charity Medact.

Patricia Kitsao-Wekulo is in part funded by a grant from the British Academy for research into childcare in Nairobi.

Ruth Muendo is in part funded by a grant from the British Academy for research into childcare in Nairobi.

By Robert Hughes, Clinical Research Fellow, Department of Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine And

Patricia Kitsao-Wekulo, Associate Research Scientist, African Population and Health Research Center
Work on an affordable housing project will soon commence at Goaso, the Ahafo Regional capital, as part of the broader plan by the government to ease accommodation challenges facing most Ghanaians, especially the working class.

The project, when completed, will provide about 2,500 units some of which will be rented out while other would be sold out completely to interested Ghanaians.

To this end, the Goaso Traditional Council has released a 30-acre land to the government through the Ministry of Works and Housing to ensure the early execution of this laudable project.

This came to light when the Minister of State at the Ministry of Works and Housing, Madam Freda Prempeh paid separate courtesy calls on the Ahafo Regional Minister, George Yaw Boakye and the Omanhene of Goaso, Nana Kwasi Bosompra, at Goaso last Tuesday May 11, 2021.

Madam Freda Prempeh, who is also the Member of Parliament for Tano North, announced that government was in the process of securing lands across the country to undertake massive affordable housing projects for the ordinary citizens of the country.

She explained that the projects were going to be executed in partnership with the private sector and commended the Goasomanhene for making lands available in his traditional area to facilitate the smooth take-off of the project.

The Minister was hopeful that, when completed, the project would go a long way to ease the acute accommodation challenges facing most Ghanaians.

She gave the assurance that local content, in terms of materials, technology and personnel shall be employed during the construction of the project.

For his part, the Omanhene of Goaso, Nana Kwasi Bosompra expressed his gratitude to the Minister for selecting the area as one of the beneficiaries of the project and assured her of his full support towards the realisation of the project.
Minister of Defense, Dominic Nitiwul, has revealed some 28 excavators used in illegal mining activities popularly known as Galamsey have been destroyed.

According to him, some 218 chanfangs have also been destroyed by personnel of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) working under Operation Halt II.

He made this known in an interaction with the media at the Information Ministry in Accra on Tuesday, May 11, 2021.

According to him, some two pump action guns, 21 new pumping machines were also seized.

He noted that five canons, eight industrial batteries and 18 water drilling machines were destroyed as well.

In all, he disclosed that over a period of six days, the military personnel destroyed a total of 476 chanfangs.

The Ghana Armed Forces commended its second phase of Operation Halt II a few days ago:

The new phase focused on the tributaries of the Pra River.

According to the Minister, the rivers have been greatly destroyed by activities of illegal mining.

It's clear that people are not listening; they don't care, he bemoaned.

The Minister warned that if care was not taken, Ghana could face water crisis over the next five years.

He lamented that the health of children in the illegal mining areas was being impacted adversely.

They (illegal miners) are causing damage to the kidneys of young people in those areas, he said.

DGN online
He was thrown from his bike and landed in the grass on the side of the road. Medics rushed him to Jamaica Hospital, but he could not be saved.
Egypt reached out to Israel to calm tensions in Jerusalem but was met with indifference, its top diplomat told an emergency Arab League meeting Tuesday on the crisis.

Israel and Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas exchanged heavy fire Tuesday, killing at least 26 Palestinians and two Israelis, in an escalation sparked by violent unrest at Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

The international community has called for calm, while Muslim countries have voiced outrage amid the worst flare-up of Israel-Palestinian violence in years.

"In the last few days, Egypt extensively reached out to Israel and other concerned countries urging them to exert all possible efforts to prevent the deterioration of the situation in Jerusalem," said Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.

"But we did not get the necessary response," he told the meeting of the Arab League via videoconference.

While not specifying the other countries Egypt contacted, he condemned "Israeli violations at the walls of Al-Aqsa Mosque which crossed over into Sheikh Jarrah" in east Jerusalem.

In a closing statement, the League's foreign ministers urged the International Criminal Court to "press ahead" with its probe of "war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Israel against the Palestinian people".

They also called for the latest "forced evictions of Palestinians from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah" in east Jerusalem to be included in an investigation by the Hague-based tribunal.

Israel has refused to sign up to the court, set up in 2002 to try the world's worst crimes. The Palestinians have been a state party to the ICC since 2015.

Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit also lambasted Israeli violence directed towards Palestinians in east Jerusalem in the meeting's opening remarks.

"Israel wants to convince the world that what happened in Sheikh Jarrah is a real-estate dispute over some homes, as if we don't have a memory," he said.

Israel occupied the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in the Six-Day War of 1967, and later annexed mostly Arab east Jerusalem. Today they are home to at least five million Palestinians defined by the United Nations as living under Israeli occupation.

He described the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as being "completely beholden to the hardened agenda of settlers and extremist religious parties in Israel".

Netanyahu warned Tuesday that Israel would "intensify the power" of its attacks on Hamas after two Israeli women were killed by rockets.
Unmasked Police officers on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, arrested Caleb Kudah, a broadcast journalist with Citi FM and Citi TV.

According to the police, he was arrested for filming at the premises of the National Security Ministry, a restricted security zone.

About seven heavily armed officers subsequently stormed the premises of Citi FM/Citi TV in an attempt to arrest, Zoe Abu-Baidoo, another broadcast journalist with the respected media house, whom they claimed had received files from Caleb Kudah.

The management of Citi FM/Citi TV intervened and followed the officers together with Zoe to the Ministry of National Security for interrogation.

Citi News Security Correspondent, Anass Seidu, in giving further details on the matter said, Caleb Kudah who had visited someone at the National Security was arrested after filming at the premises of the Ministry. After he was arrested, the operatives detected that he had sent whatever he had filmed to another colleague, Zoe Abu-Baidoo. They moved to Citi FM with heavily armed men to arrest Zoe. When they got here, the management of Citi FM and Citi TV joined the team back to the National Security Ministry with Zoe. After some interrogation, Zoe was allowed to leave. Caleb Kudah was being interrogated at the time we left.

The information we have is that Caleb Kudah will be soon released, he said.

citinewsroom
One person has been confirmed dead after a group of suspected armed robbers engaged in a shoot-out with police at Jacobu in the Ashanti Region.

According to the police, the Jacobu patrol team, in their routine duties on the Anwiankwanta-Obuasi stretch at dawn on Tuesday, saw a group of four unmasked men who emerged from the bush and were attempting to attack some persons in vehicles.

The police say one of the four persons, on seeing the police, shot at them and after the police returned fire, he died in the process, while the three persons escaped.

Meanwhile, three persons were later arrested and detained by the police to assist them with investigations in relation to the matter.

Speaking to Citi News, Jacobu District Police Commander, Superintendent Abdulai Iddrisu, said live ammunition were found in the bag of one of the suspects when they were arrested.

They fired two shots. They had shotguns and knives, and they changed their attire.

The body of the deceased suspect has been deposited at the St. Peters Hospital morgue at Jacobu, while the three other suspects are being questioned by the police.

As we speak, the three suspects are with the police being interrogated for further action. So I can say one is dead, and the three are being investigated, Superintendent Abdulai Iddrisu added.

citinewsroom
Mauritania's former president, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, was on Tuesday put under "house surveillance" by a judge after he was questioned in an inquiry which has seen him charged with corruption.

It was the second time Aziz had gone before a magistrate investigating the case since the charges, including money laundering, were brought in March.

Tuesday's surveillance ruling, seen by AFP, runs for a two-month period, renewable four times.

Aziz ruled the conservative West African state from 2008 to mid-2019, when he was succeeded by his former right-hand man and ex-defence minister, Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani.

Aziiz'z lawyers issued a statement condemning the "iniquitous" ruling.

"This victimisation is quite simply intended to prevent the ex-president benefiting from his political rights guaranteed under the constitution," the statement said.

The ex-president has said he is being persecuted in a bid to keep him out of politics, but has vowed he will not go into exile.

Aziz joined a small opposition party, Ribat National, in April in an attempt to salvage his political career after being expelled from the ruling Union for the Republic (UPR) party, which he had founded

Ribat also put out a statement against the ruling which deepens his difficulties under the El Ghazouani presidency.

One of Aziz's sons-in-law, two former prime ministers, five former ministers and four businessmen are also under investigation.

The 64-year-old former general who came to power in a coup already had to report to police three times a week and to seek approval before leaving the capital.

The charges followed a year-long probe initiated by parliament into the handling of oil revenue, the sale of state property, the winding up of a publicly owned food-supply company and the activities of a Chinese fishing firm.

A state prosecutor involved with the investigation in March said cash and assets worth the equivalent of about 96 million euros ($115 million) had been seized.
While in Dakar on a mission, as part of activities lined up for the forthcoming Ordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government, the ECOWAS Commissions President was received in audience and elevated to the rank of Commander of the National Order of the Lion on Thursday evening, 6 May 2021 by His Excellency Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal.

A mark of honour which His Excellency Jean Claude Kassi Brou was highly delighted to receive. I feel greatly honoured and extremely delighted to receive this distinction which I have just received from His Excellency. Mr President of the RepublicI wish to avail myself of this opportunity to convey my heartfelt gratitude to the President of the Republic for this recognition..  our region, which had been on a strong economic pedestal for some years now, was suddenly hit with the Covid-19 pandemic with its attendant human, health, economic and commercial consequences.

Covid has led not only led to a downward slide in economic activities but also a financial crisis. This meeting with H.E. the President of the Republic of Senegal has provided an opportunity for us to assess the status of decisions made by the Heads of State. Also, you are all aware that the region has been hit by a great turbulence.

This is of course the security situation particularly in the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin which is equally affecting our countries on a three-fold scale - economic, humanitarian and financial. We also have a number of decisions taken by the Heads of State. You would agree with me that this is a good opportunity to present the status of implementation of these decisions to the President of Senegal., stated the ECOWAS Commissions President, on his way out of the meeting.

H.E. Jean Claude Kassi Brou also indicated that his mission in Senegal is in line with preparations for the forthcoming Ordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government on Covid. For the ECOWAS Commissions President, the ongoing vaccination campaign in several countries of the sub-region, is the best solution to ending the crisis.

 We strongly hope and wish that the pace of the vaccination which commenced several months ago in many of our countries through the COVAX Initiative, will be sustained and increased so that our countries will meet the conditions for economic recovery, given that only growth can provide employment, create economic and financial stability as well as pave the way for economic progress in the region..

The delegation of the ECOWAS Commissions President comprised Mr Tei Konzi, Commissioner for Trade, Customs and Free Movement of persons, Mrs Sandra Oulate, Director of Communication and Mr Kadja Eugene Etche, Executive Assistant of the Commissions President.
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As has been noticed by many countrymen, the recent events in Ghana that have the potential to spark off severe religious tensions should be handled with cool heads and matured leadership. Though they may be clothed with educational wrappers laced in religious tenets that may ignite unhealthy emotional outbursts, they offer an opportunity for a dispassionate discourse that could yield triple dividends for our democracy, national unity and deliverance from religious bigotry.

All who claim to know God, love him and are committed to his service, should always keep in mind that all of humanity is a reflection of various perspectives of divinity. In the Bible, it is written that all men are made in the image of God. More so, we are all made of one blood.

Acts Chapter 17: 26-28

And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; 27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: 28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

For this reason, it is dangerous to make public statements that seem to polarise humanity. There are some who may not polarise openly but in the heart of their religion polarisation exists in the form of bigotry, and when they have the chance to become the majority they impose their religious rules and persecute those in the minority.

This is why recent statements that pitch the current Christian majority in Ghana against the current Muslim minority can be dangerous if not redressed immediately and cleverly. God loves Muslims. Christianity does not thrive because it is in the majority; it thrives because it is truth, love and freedom. When representatives of human institutions that help to regulate Christendom seek to underpin the dominance of the Christian faith upon the sheer physical numbers of professed adherents, it may be a grievous mistake.

What business do we have with threatening a political party with our electoral votes because we think their government in power is not supporting institutional Christianity? Why should we put the faith of Christ, if in deed we are in Christ and not religious politics, unto the arena of the unbridled political selfishness that we all know is now ruining humanity and our country, why? Why must we be so presumptuous to think to rally Christians to pitch one political party against the other in future elections? Do people vote for NDC or NPP because their flagbearer professes to be a Christian? Dont we all know that most of our politicians use the religious, ethnic and any other opportunity identity to win our lazy votes? We know politicians are opportunistic. Israel should not support Egypt against Assyria, nor Assyria against Egypt. For both Assyria and Egypt are a far cry from the ways of our God.

As our democracy grows in freedom, justice, unity and development, we should come to a place where the individual has the capacity to freely choose which religion to belong, upon merit and not coercion; A young person, biologically born into a family of Muslims should not be forced to be a Muslim just because his parents are Muslim. Same for Christians and all other religions. We all should understand that faith is personal and even private.

This is an important aspect of democracy and development. we should not use our religious communities as tools against each other. As we seek to understand each other more and more, we must come to the point that religion, politics, education, wealth and many of the things we hurt each other for, are perceived means to an end and not an end in itself. Love is the end we seek.

God still loves humanity, in spite of our selfishness and folly; and He is working in providence and grace to draw all men to faith and eternal bliss. Let us not spoil our chances. Eternity beckons.

Email: [email protected]
I have heard many agitators and some political personalities making the argument that President Akufo-Addo must also FixTheCountry as they believe the economic situation has become harder for Ghanaians, simply because,

when he, Nana Akufo-Addo was the leader of the biggest opposition party in 2009, challenged President Mills to "Fix it" if he claimed the economy he inherited from President Kufour was broken.

I must put it on record that, I personally have no issues whatsoever to see some colleague Ghanaians calling on govt to Fix some presumed broken parts of The Country. Absolutely nothing wrong with that.

However, some concerns I have, which a lot of people have also expressed are that, why is it that some known voices appear to have now found a ground in this call of FixTheCountry, to rather exhibit their real frustration, anger and disappointment for losing the 2020 general glections? This, in my view, doesnt make the FixTheCountry call genuine!

Now let's find out, what are the issues being raised in the call to FixTheCountry agitation? I think, we need to understand the issues raised clearly, interrogate them fairly and analyse them holistically by every open-minded and peace-loving Ghanaian to see Ghana Fixed beyond aid.

Therefore, it is expected that, reasonable arguments & conscientious debates should be made, focusing on the realities and facts, not the current disposition of the purported neutrals, fronting the agitation with their arguments engulfed in hatred and extreme aversion, bearing the remembrance of propaganda and dishonesty.

It is a fact that, Nana Akufo-Addo, once upon a time, justifiably challenge his opponent, President Mills to fix the economy if he claims the economy inherited was a broken one. However, re-echoing the 'Fix It' comment must consider the suitability and the essence.

If readers can recall, in 2009 when Prof Mills assumed the Presidency, he consistently and purposely played some serious unreasonable politics/propaganda with the state of Ghana's economy, by vehemently claiming that he inherited a broken economy from President Kufour. That ardent claim did not sit well in the minds of many economic experts and political pundits, and here's why.

When President Kufour took over the governance of the economy in 2001, the annual GDP growth was 3.7%, as reported by World Bank. Then the team put together by President Kufour consistently grew the size of Ghana's economy to admiration of the world, and handed over an annual GDP growth of 9.1% in 2008, to President Mills (from 3.7% to 9.1% in eight years). How could such a buoyant economy be described as a broken one?

Wherefore, there was no way anyone without malicious intentions could reasonably and justifiably claim to have inherited a broken economy which was growing at a rate of 9.1% annually. That did not make any economic sense!

From this backdrop of a healthy economy being described as broken one, drove Nana Akufo-Addo to ask President Mills to FIX IT, if he insistently claim to have inherited a broken economy. That, was a perfect answer by Nana Akufo-Addo at that time, considering the economic situation been turned into propaganda.

Now, juxtaposing the GDP growth rate of 9.1% in 2008 to the growth rate of 3.4% handed over by President John Mahama in 2016, isn't President Akufo-Addo, who should have been in a better position to complain that he inherited a broken economy in 2017? He didn't lament, he rather set in motion to grow the economy from 3.4% to 6.5% in 2019, before Covid-19 pandemic struck. Splendid performance.

Now, let's fast forward the 2009 economic situation to that of Covid-19 pandemic economic situation in 2020, which has manifestly caused every healthy economy in the world to plummeted, causing Ghana's GDP growth to crash, thus from 6 5% growth down to 1.1% in 2020. Can President Akufo-Addo's administration be blamed for this natural catastrophe?

This is the reality of the situation, a very serious economic situation that no serious country is playing politics or propaganda with theirs, in this tragic global economic meltdown. It will take the genius ones to be able bring the economy back to substantially normal level in shortest possible time.

Now, assuming John Mahama had won 2020 elections, after Covid-19 effect with Ghana's GDP growth of 1.1% in 2020, how would he have described the situation, thus if Prof Mills was able describe a GDP growth rate of 9.1% as a broken economy?

This is a real economic issue which every reasonable Ghanaian should be worried about, not just cacophonic noise to FixTheCountry. This situation, isn't the doing of President Akufo-Addo or Dr Bawumia or Ken Ofori-Atta, but natural catastrophe - Covid-19 pandemic effect. This shall also pass.

Respectfully, I think those who seems to take the liberty to describe this dire-economic situation as "Culture of Silence" should rather make good analysis of the issues, and tell us the alternative solution so that we can all openly interrogate it.

I am highly confident in NPP govt, and I believe the President's comment still resonate very well today that, We know how to bring the economy back to life. What we do not know is how to bring people back to life.

Let's FixTheCountry together!!

Ing. Peter Antwi Boasiako.

London, UK.
The government, in partnership with the World Bank, has handed over twenty thousand (20,000) wheelchairs to the Ghana Federation of Disabilities Organisations as part of ongoing interventions to improve their livelihoods and wellbeing.

The manual and powered wheelchairs, to be distributed by the Ministry of Health through the various District Health Directorates, will enhance personal mobility, a precondition for enjoying human rights and living in dignity. It will equally assist persons with disabilities in becoming more productive members of our communities.

Handing over the wheelchairs at a brief ceremony in Accra on Tuesday, May 11, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, assisted by the Minister of Health, Hon Kwaku Agyeman Manu and Dr. Anthony Seddoh, World Bank Country Lead for Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone, said the donation was further evidence of Governments renewed commitment to building a fair and inclusive society, which ensures that all citizens share in the country's wealth and prosperity, irrespective of their background.

Without a doubt, the past one year has been challenging for many of us because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Problems of social equity, how to defend the weak and most vulnerable in society, how to provide social housing, how to improve equitable access to health care to all citizens in the country regardless of where they live, how to ensure increased access to the education of all Ghanaian children, have always been at the core of our social policy challenges. These challenges have always been there. COVID-19 just amplified the challenges.

As we are all aware, persons with disabilities are always confronted with these challenges, which prevent them from having a decent quality of life and fulfilling their true potential.

The Government of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is not insensitive to these challenges, hence the implementation of several initiatives to ease and to eliminate the obstacles many of you face in your everyday lives.

Some of the initiatives undertaken since 2017 include the presentation in 2020 of Ghs4 million to two thousand (2,000) disabled men and women entrepreneurs under the Presidential Empowerment for Male Entrepreneurs with Disability (PEMED) and the Presidential Empowerment for Women Entrepreneurs with Disability (PEWED) respectively; and the handing over of 10,000 hospital beds to the Minister for Health for distribution across the country.

Through the Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications (GIFEC), Government also provided students living with disability in selected tertiary institutions with assistive technology-enabled devices and training to promote their digital inclusion in 2019, and also provided 240 fit-for-purpose gender and disability-friendly school sanitation facilities to over 231,870 school pupils of low-income communities in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area (GAMA) through the GAMA Sanitation and Water Project.

Government is also exploring opportunities to remove existing barriers in public buildings, educational systems, healthcare, and in the job market to provide opportunities for all. The challenge for us is how our collective actions can minimize some of the circumstances that deny other citizens the benefits of personal mobility, he added.

Citing World Health Organisation reports which indicate that except for infectious diseases such as polio, malaria, and meningitis, the foremost cause of disability is road accidents, Vice President Bawumia expressed worry that such accidents, particularly from motorised accidents, do not only cause death but could also leave occupants and innocent pedestrians disabled.

I, therefore, urge road users to abide by the traffic rules and regulations. A great mind once said, Nothing is of greater importance than the conservation of oneself. Let us remind ourselves that to walk is a right, to drive or to ride is a privilege.
The Central Regional Minister, Hon. Mrs. Justina Marigold Assan last Friday presented some items and an undisclosed sum of money to the Muslim Community in Cape Coast.

The beneficiaries include Cape the Coast Central Mosque, Al-sunnah Mosque, and the Alhamadiyya Mosque both in Cape Coast.

The Central Regional Minister on behalf of His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo, President of the Republic of Ghana, and his Vice President, Alhaji Dr. Muhammadu Bawumia present 20 bags of rice, 20 packs of sugar, and an undisclosed sum of money to the Cape Coast Central Mosque.

The Al-sunnah Mosque and the Abura Alhamadiyya mosque received 10 bags of rice and 10 packs of sugar each from the Regional Minister.

Flanked by the Central Regional Chairman of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr. Robert Kutin Jnr, Regional Secretary, Mr. Richard Takyi Mensah, and his Assistant, Madam Sarah Afful, Regional Nasara Coordinator, Alhaji Buba, Cape Coast Metropolitan Chief Executive, Hon. Ernest Arthur and some Constituency executives from Cape Coast North and South.

Hon. Mrs. Justina Marigold Assan also presented 10 bags of rice, 10 packs of sugar, and cartons of cooking oil to the Central Regional Chief Imam Alhaji Yusif Shaibu Kamatey and Alhaji Mahmoud Dandaa Mazaawugye IV, Sariki Zongo respectively.

Addressing the beneficiaries at separate locations, Chairman Robert Kutin Jnr explained that the presentation to the Muslim Community was part of President Akufo Addo's commitment to supporting them in the Holy Month of fasting.

He appealed to them to remember the President, his Vice, his Ministers, and all government appointees in their prayers.

Hon. Mrs. Justina Marigold Assan in her speech noted that the New Patriotic Party was the only Party committed to supporting members of the Islamic Community adding the commitment was the partnership between President Akufo Addo and Dr. Bawumia.

She gave an assurance of ensuring a total collaboration between her outfit and the Muslim Community to ensure total development in the Region.

"I had a good relationship with Moslems in the Agona West Municipality when I was the Municipal Chief Executive, a situation which compelled them to give me a Moslem name. I, therefore, pledge to continue to work hand in hand with the Muslim community in the region"

Touching on the implementation of a number of programmes and policies of the government, the Regional Minister disclosed that they were aimed at ensuring the total transformation of the region and the country as a whole.
An Executive Member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Tema East, Stephen Ashitey Adjei, aka MOSHAKE, is warning the party that former President John Mahama will be tough sell to floating voters if the party elects him again as Flagbearer for 2024.

In his latest epistle about ongoing developments in the party, Mr. Ashitey Adjei, alias Moshake, warns that floating voters in the country have still not been convinced about the former President and will therefore not vote for him if he is made Flagbearer.

If what we saw in the 2020 election is anything to go by, then we know that the floating voters are the most important constituency to woo. The NPP has its set of diehard supporters who constitute its base, the same as the NDC and these political bases are about 6million apiece.

What we need is somebody who will appeal to the little over 500,000 non-aligned Ghanaians who are prepared to only vote on the basis of issue, policies, and track record. Im sorry this critical constituency has no romance for John Mahama, Moshake wrote.

The warning is coming in the wake of views from within the party that former President John Mahama is the best man to lead the NDC in the 2020 election.

However, amidst this pro-Mahama opinion, there has also been contradistinction from some heavyweights, notably, some cadres and elders of the party including Mr. Dan Abodakpi and Dr. Banjamin Kumbuor who have advised that the party concentrates on healing itself first before considering electing a Presidential Candidate for the 2024 election.

According to Moshake, a myriad of factors continues to militate against the popularity that John Mahama needs among floating voters.

He has not been able to shake off the NPPs successful branding of him as an incompetent man. It is not difficult for anybody who has any political experience to see that if we present John Mahama again, the NPP will simply return to the old mud that they threw at him.

Also, there is the experiences that people had under Mahama that will make them choose the worst from the NPP over him. For instance, how do you expect a GPHA ex-worker whose severance benefits were ignored by President Mahama even after former President Mills had directed that they are paid before he died, to be happy with Mahama and vote for him?

And what about the Nursing and Teacher Trainees whose allowances were withdrawn?

According to Moshake, many people also already think that Mr. Mahama is now lusting for power because as an individual he has served in virtually every single political office, from the Assembly level to the Ministerial and Presidential level. He is a former President now; the question is what is he coming back for? That is the question floating voters will ask, Moshake wrote.
Last years protests and the response by the NYPD was a disaster  all of the beatings and the DOI investigation showed us that we may not need as many police at these situations, he said.
Citi FM journalists, Zoe Abu-Baidoo and Caleb Kudah have both been released from the custody of National Security personanel after their arrests on Tuesday, May 11, 2021.

The two were apprehended by heavily armed National Security officers earlier today after Caleb Kudah was said to have filmed at the premises of the National Security Ministry, a restricted security zone.

According to the officers, Zoe Abu-Baidoo also had to be arrested because their checks on Calebs phone showed he (Celeb) sent the videos to her.

Although Zoe was released from custody after a short while, Caleb Kudah is said to have been interrogated for more than two hours before his release.

Meanwhile, the arrest by National Security officers has been described as rambo style in several media reports.
Member of Parliament (MP) for Ellembelle Constituency in the Western Region, Emmanuel Armah Kofi-Buah has donated items to the Nzema Manle Child and Vulnerable Care at Awiebo on his 55th birthday.

The Ellembelle MP who emerged in Parliament in 2009 was born on May 10, 1966, at Atuabo.

The kind gesture was to give thanks to the Almighty God for giving him long life and prosperity and also to put smiles on the faces of the children to feel part of the society.

The items included toiletries, bags of rice, sachet water among others.

Making the donation on behalf of the MP on Monday, May 10, 2021, the Ellembelle NDC Constituency Chairman, Mr. Alex Mahama said the vulnerable in society must be cared for.

He disclosed that last year, the MP made a similar donation to the World Alive Orphanage Home at Esiama and said the MP would continue to show love to the vulnerable.

He commended the owner of the Orphanage for the great vision to take care of the orphans in the Ellembelle District.

He prayed for continuous divine protection for the owner and the children to live long.

He also took the opportunity to urge other companies and individuals to come to the aid of the orphanage to take care of the children.

Receiving the items on behalf of the owner of the center, Mrs. Comfort Mukey, thanked Hon. Emmanuel Armah Kofi-Buah for the kind gesture.

She seized the opportunity to appeal to NGOs and other individuals and also companies to come to their aid.

On behalf of the MP, she led the children to offer prayers for him and for God to grant him long life.

The Nzema Manle Child and Vulnerable Care at Awiebo in the Ellembelle District started operations some 22 years ago.
The independent presidential candidate in the last general elections, Alfred Kwame Asiedu Walker, has lauded the youths in the country for demanding accountability from the government.

He said, he was very excited and in full support of the "FIX THE COUNTRY" campaign launched on social media by the youths to push the government of the day to do the right thing in fixing the many challenges that are making life unbearable for the citizens.

For about two weeks now, youths across the country have been using social media, especially Twitter and Facebook, to mount pressure on the government to, as a matter of urgency, find a solution to the numerous social-economic challenges that are drowning the country.

They have complained about unemployment, erratic water and electricity supply, poor roads, amount others.

But for a court injunction secured by the police, the youths were poised to hold a massive street protest on May 9, to further drum home their demands.

The campaign has forced the government, through the ministers for information and economic planning, to address the country on efforts being made to address their concerns.

Mr. Asiedu Walker, admonished Ghanaian politicians to stop deceiving the citizens with what he called suger-coated promises.

He said, "the propaganda is enough in this country. The suger-coating of issues must stop. We must be honest with the people".

He observed that, for the citizens to decide to hit the streets, it showed the level of frautration and loss of confidence in the government.

Mr. Walker further questioned the honesty of the government in subsidizing utility bills as a way of alleviating the economic hardship in the country, occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic, only to turn around few months later to push the cost on the citizens.

In suggesting solution to the economic hardship in the country, Mr. Walker reiterated the call he has always made about homegrown solutions.

He maintained that, until leadership stopped depending on donors and used the many natural resources to develop the country, Ghana would hardly make any progress; explaining that, with COVID-19 affecting the whole world, including our donor countries, it would be difficult for those countries to continue giving to us, when they have their citizens to save from the ravages of the pandemic.

"It is for some of these things that I have always called for homegrown solutions. Ghana has so many resources that we can depend on, instead of relying on foreign direct investments and foreign donors to solve our problems; which has never happened". Ghana must solve it's own problem. Certainly, we are capable", he stressed.

He added that, the economic challenges brought about by the pandemic was a wake-up call for the country to start developing its foreign reserves and industries to, not only provide jobs but also give hope to the citizenry.

Mr. Asiedu Walker also condemned the government's current approach to fighting the illegal mining menace.

He said, chasing citizens with guns and burning escalators and other equipment was not the right way to go.

He recommended that such equipment should be seized and given out to the various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies for use.

He further stated that there was a need for government to dialogue with miners and to encouraged them to form cooperatives.

He continued that, since all the citizens wanted was a job to put food on their tables, the government must institute very good policies that would allow citizens to mine legally in ways that would not result in the destruction of the country's forest reserves and water bodies.

Mr. Alfred Kwame Asiedu Walker made the comments in an interview with this reporter when he (Mr. Walker) paid a visit to the family of the late Lieutenant General, Emmanuel Eskine in Accra on Monday, May 10.

Lieutenant General Emmanuel Alexander Erskine was a Ghanaian soldier and politician. He was a Chief of Army Staff of the Ghana Army.

He was also a commander of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

He died on May 7, 2021, at the of age 86.

Mr. Asiedu Walker who is related to the late military man maternally, was there to condole with the family.

He paid glowing tribute to General Erskine for his dedicated service to Ghana and the world as a whole; and charged the youth to emulate such good examples.
Mr. Frank Okpenyen, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Nzema East Municipality of the Western Region, has donated food items to Muslims within his Municipality towards the successful ending of Ramadan.

The food items included twenty-five (25) bags of rice and twenty-five (25) bags of sugar and these items will be distributed to nine Mosques.

Additionally, the MCE donated an undisclosed amount of money to each of the Muslim communities at their Mosques.

The beneficiary Muslim Communities included; Nyamebekyere, Anagye, Kegyina, Yediyesele, Ndatiem, Ayisakro, Ewuku, Bankyim Central at Axim and Axim Police Quarters.

Ramadan is one of the Five Pillars of Islam and during this holy month, Muslims observe fasting from dawn to dusk.

This year's Ramadan started on 12th April, 2021 and will end on 12th May, 2021 and it will be also followed by Eid-ul-Fitr celebration on Thursday, May 13, 2021.

Making the presentation, the Nzema East MCE Frank Okpenyen disclosed that donation was his small contribution in ensuring that the Muslims had a successful fast.

He commended the Muslims in his Municipality for living with Christians and traditionalists in peace.

He therefore, pledged to support Muslim brothers and sisters in the area without any discrimination.

The MCE took the opportunity to call on the Muslims to rally behind the Akufo-Addo-led government to develop Ghana for the benefit of all.

He also expressed gratitude for the continuous support he received from the Muslim community and appealed to them to pray for his re-appointment.

The MCE who is a Christian, urged other Christians to continue to live in peace with all Muslims in this country.

"I am Christian and I don't think we Christians should have problem with our brother Muslims, we are all Ghanaians and human beings so I will appeal with all Christians to live in peace with Muslims in this country", he said.

On usage of Victoria Park for the Eid Ul Fitr celebration, Hon. Frank explained that he had appealed to the contractor to withhold the start of the construction of the Victoria Park Redevelopment Phase II for a week to enable the Muslims gather to celebrate the end of the Ramadan.

The Muslims seized the opportunity to thank the MCE for the kind gesture and prayed for his to live long and also achieve his goal.
MONTANA - Governor Greg Gianforte released a proclamation Monday, making the week of May 9 through the 15 Police Week, and May 15 Peace Officers Memorial Day in Montana.

In regards to the proclamation, Senator Jon Tester released the following statement:

Montanas law enforcement officers put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe, and this year has tested them like no other. But our officers and their families need more than our gratitude, they need their government to defend them by providing the tools and resources to do these challenging jobs effectively and safely. Its our responsibility to ensure were meeting their needs during changing and challenging timeswhether thats making sure cops and first responders can stay on the beat by allowing towns to recoup pandemic revenue losses, or cutting red tape for the families of fallen officers to access earned benefits. They uphold their duty to protect us, and Ill always fight to make sure were doing the same.

Senator Steve Daines released the following statement and tweeted about the week:

Law enforcement officers in Montana and across America put their lives on the line every day to protect our families & communities. This week, and every week, Im thankful for all that they do.
Lansdale, PA (19446)

Today

A mix of clouds and sun. High 81F. Winds E at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies this evening will give way to occasional showers overnight. Low 59F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
There are no words I can say that would offer the families any comfort, Mays said, according to ABC News. I can only say Im sorry for the pain I caused the families and my family. I dont ask for forgiveness because I dont think I could forgive anyone who did what I did.
May 11, 2021

More Hacks, More Baseless Accusations Against Russia

In January police in various countries took down the Emotet bot-network that was at that time the basic platform for some 25% of all cybercrimes.

Based on hearsay Wikipedia and other had falsely attributed Emotet to Russian actors. The real people behind it were actually Ukrainians:

The operating center of Emotet was found in the Ukraine. Today the Ukrainian national police took control of it during a raid (video). The police found dozens of computers, some hundred hard drives, about 50 kilogram of gold bars (current price ~$60,000/kg) and large amounts of money in multiple currencies.

Emotet had nothing to do with Russia.

Now the U.S. is accusing Russia of somehow having part in another cybercrime:

President Joe Biden said Monday that a Russia-based group was behind the ransomware attack that forced the shutdown of the largest oil pipeline in the eastern United States. The FBI identified the group behind the hack of Colonial Pipeline as DarkSide, a shadowy operation that surfaced last year and attempts to lock up corporate computer systems and force companies to pay to unfreeze them. "So far there is no evidence ... from our intelligence people that Russia is involved, although there is evidence that actors, ransomware is in Russia," Biden told reporters. "They have some responsibility to deal with this," he said. Three days after being forced to halt operations, Colonial said Monday it was moving toward a partial reopening of its 5,500 miles (8,850 kilometers) of pipeline  the largest fuel network between Texas and New York.

Biden however is badly informed. There is no evidence that DarkSide has anything to do with Russia. It is, like Emotet, a commercial 'ransomware-as-a-service' criminal entity that wants to make money and does not care about geopolitics.

Yes, a version of the DarkNet software does exclude itself from running on system with specific language settings:

The DarkSide malware is even built to conduct language checks on targets and to shut down if it detects Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Armenian, Georgian, Kazakh, Turkmen, Romanian, and other languages ...

That is a quite long list of east European languages and Russian is only one of it. Why the authors of DarkNet do not want their software to run on machines with those language settings is unknown. But why would a Russian actor protect machines with Ukrainian or Romanian language settings? Both countries are hostile towards Russia. To claim that this somehow points to Russian actors is therefore baseless.

Russia strongly rejected Biden's accusation:

The Kremlin has once again pointed out the importance of cooperation between Moscow and Washington in tackling cyberthreats amid a cyber-attack on Colonial Pipeline, a US company. "Russia has nothing to do with these hacker attacks, nor with the previous hacker attacks," Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Preskov assured reporters on Tuesday. "We categorically reject any accusation against us, and we can only regret that the US is refusing to cooperate with us in any way to counter cyber-threats. We believe that such cooperation - both international and bilateral - could indeed contribute to the common struggle against this scourge [known as] cyber-crime," Peskov said.

The U.S. seems notoriously bad at attributing computer hacks. It claims that the recent SolarWinds attack which intruded several government branches was also done by Russia. But that attack required deep insider knowledge and access to SolarWinds' computers and processes:

The recently discovered deep intrusion into U.S. companies and government networks used a manipulated version of the SolarWinds Orion network management software. The Washington borg immediately attributed the hack to Russia. Then President Trump attributed it to China. But none of those claims were backed up by facts or known evidence. The hack was extremely complex, well managed and resourced, and likely required insider knowledge. To this IT professional it 'felt' neither Russian nor Chinese. It is far more likely, as Whitney Webb finds, that Israel was behind it.

Indeed - the programmers of an Israeli company, recently bought up by SolarWinds, had all the necessary access for such a hack. However the U.S. sanctioned Russia over the SolarWinds hack without providing any evidence of its involvement.

If the U.S. continues to blame Russia without any evidence for each and every hack there may come a time when Russia stops caring and really starts to hack into or destroy important U.S. systems. The U.S. should fear that day.

Posted by b on May 11, 2021 at 17:31 UTC | Permalink

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The Transformation Trail which is an initiative to encourage mental health is now able to be seen at Amherst Beaver Creek Reservation just in 
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Richard Payerchin covers Lorain City Hall, business news and other interesting stories for The Morning Journal. Reach the author at rpayerchin@MorningJournal.com or follow Richard on Twitter: @MJ_JournalRick.
We need to double those numbers of people vaccinated. We are not on pace to do that.

Those were the words from Midland Health President and CEO Russell Meyers on Tuesday during the call of the Midland United Command team.

Meyers provided some of his most direct comments this calendar year about the lack of participation of Midland County residents in the vaccination process.

He said Tuesday just less than 40 percent of Midland Countys eligible residents have received one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. That, he said, falls off the 50-plus percentage around the state. He also said around 32.5 percent in Midland County have received two doses or are fully vaccinated.

So those numbers are much lower than what we had hoped for, Meyers said. We would like to have seen double that in terms of the distribution of the vaccine. So, it's been a pretty disappointing response by people in our community who -- for whatever reason -- are choosing not to be vaccinated while the disease remains present and maybe increasing here locally.

Meyers and Dr. Larry Wilson, chief medical officer for Midland Health, both stated that anyone eligible for the vaccine can make a reservation at the Midland Health Department  no questions asked. There also is plenty of vaccine at locations, like United supermarkets. Last week, Midland Health transferred 1,170 doses to United.

We've delivered -- one way or another -- over 110,000 doses of vaccine, Meyers said. Delivery could be in the form of vaccines administered or transferred to medical entities or pharmacies.

Meyers said there are still efforts to push the administration of vaccine into the African American community and raise their numbers of vaccine acceptance.

He said there are a couple events planned  one for June 6 at the Alexander Temple church and the other for June 19 (a Juneteenth celebration) at Washington Park. Meyers said officials hope to work with a number of churches and other community locations over the next month to six weeks.

Patient increase at Midland Health

Meyers made two points about the number of patients at Midland Memorial Hospital. The first point was that the number of COVID patients is increasing. He said the number on Tuesday was 18, which was not historically high but up from 11 to 13 the last couple weeks and the single digits before that.

So back up to 18 indicates that clearly the disease has not gone, Meyers said. It's still present in the community, just not the great numbers that we saw before.

The second mention of patient numbers had to do with overall patient count. Meyers said the census at MMH was around 214 and that the hospital was clearly close to capacity.

The hospital is very full, Meyers said. and we're a little challenged to find beds for everybody.
Authorities allege the trio has a history of racism and targeted Arbery because he was Black. State prosecutors told a Glynn County court last fall that Travis McMichael, 35, used racist slurs at least twice in online communications with a friend. A state investigator also said Bryan, 51, told him after the killing that the shooter used the N-word as he stood next to Arberys dead body.
LOS ANGELES (AP)  Two California police officers were shot and killed and a third was wounded within 24 hours this week in two separate incidents, authorities said Tuesday.

The deaths occurred during National Police Week, an annual event that honors law enforcement officers who were killed or disabled in the line of duty.

Jimmy Inn, an officer in the Northern California city of Stockton, was fatally shot Tuesday morning while responding to a domestic violence incident, Stockton Police Chief Eric Jones said in a news conference.

In San Luis Obispo, a central California city about 250 miles (402.34 kilometers) south of Stockton, Detective Lucas Luca Benedetti was shot and killed while serving a search warrant Monday evening.

Detective Steve Orozco was injured in the San Luis Obispo shooting, police said. He was released from a hospital and is expected to recover from his wounds.

In Stockton, police dispatchers received a call around 9:45 a.m. Tuesday reporting a domestic disturbance. The caller reported hearing screaming and seeing a woman wearing a ripped shirt and bleeding. She appeared to have been assaulted.

Inn arrived at the home at 10:07 a.m. and was shot almost immediately in front of the home by a male suspect, Jones said.

It was a violent, blatant and very sudden assault on our police officer, the chief said.

A second officer, whose name was not released, arrived and exchanged gunfire with the suspect. The suspect then went into the home and returned moments later holding a young child.

The suspect began to strangle the child, an 8-year-old boy, Jones said. The officer opened fire again as a bystander tackled the suspect.

The suspect's name has not been released. He died at the hospital. It was not immediately clear what relationship he had with the woman and the child.

Inn, 30, is survived by his wife, who is also a Stockton police officer, as well as a 7-month old son, 12-year-old stepdaughter and a 14-year-old stepson.

He was hired by the police department in December 2015, Jones said. Remembered as an optimistic officer who was popular in the department, Inn was assigned to the Field Operations Division.

Inn also served in the department's honor guard, who honor fallen officers in other jurisdictions," Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement expressing condolences to the loved ones and friends of yet another fallen California hero."

KCRA's video from the scene showed a police SUV with what appeared to be bullet holes in its driver-side front window.

In San Luis Obispo, Benedetti was fatally injured in a shootout in an apartment in the Central Coast city, officials said during a news conference. He was a a 12-year law enforcement veteran and a detective in the city's police department.

Jennifer and I extend our heartfelt sympathies to the family, friends and colleagues of Detective Benedetti who made the ultimate sacrifice while in the line of duty," Newsom said in another statement. "His tragic death underscores the dangers that are routinely faced by those who courageously risk their lives to protect communities throughout California, and we will never forget his sacrifice.

Benedetti and five other officers had been at the apartment for an investigation into items stolen in a string of late-night commercial burglaries in the city that's about 200 miles (321.87 kilometers) north of Los Angeles.

Police said gunman Edward Zamora Giron had been lying in wait inside the apartment and fired at the officers before shooting and killing himself. He also had wounds sustained in the shootout. Police initially said that he had been killed by officers' fire.

Officers arrived at the apartment in San Luis Obispo around 5 p.m. to serve the warrant, seeking the stolen property from the commercial burglaries over the past week, said Brian Amoroso, acting chief of the police department.

The officers knocked and announced themselves, Amoroso said, but there was no response from inside the apartment. They forced the door open and found Giron inside.

Giron opened fire, and the officers began retreating and shooting back, Amoroso said. Benedetti and Orozco were struck in the gunfire, as was Giron.

San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson said Giron had a criminal history involving mostly alcohol, drug and property offenses, but nothing violent. Giron did not have any registered firearms, and authorities were not aware of any mental illnesses he may have had, the sheriff said.

Authorities later found the stolen property inside the apartment, Parkinson said.

Benedetti had worked for the San Luis Obispo Police Department since 2012, after serving at the Atascadero Police Department for four years. He was a member of the regional SWAT team. The 37-year-old is survived by his wife, Grace, and two young daughters.

This is a tragedy beyond measure for all of those who serve and care about our community, City Manager Derek Johnson said in a statement. Our deepest condolences go out to the family. We are devastated by this loss.
TOMSK, Russia - As cold cases go, Denis Karagodin's mission was as bleak as the winter in his native Siberia. For nine years, he has been digging into Russian and Soviet archives to find out who killed his great-grandfather Stepan Karagodin in 1938 during the purges and iron-fist rule of Joseph Stalin.

The Karagodin family had long believed that Stepan, a peasant farmer, died of tuberculosis in a Soviet prison camp in 1943, serving time for anti-Soviet activities. Karagodin uncovered the real story bit by bit: Stepan was shot by Stalin's secret police five years earlier on the false charge that he was spying for Japan. He was posthumously exonerated in the 1950s.

But digging up the truth from the past can still bring trouble in today's Russia.

Karagodin, who is working on a doctoral thesis when not researching, is facing two legal cases seeking to shut down karagodin.org, a sprawling online museum recounting his discoveries, full of documents, fascinating historical tangents - and a tab with the heading "murderers."

At the same time, access to sensitive archives - opened in the 1990s by President Boris Yeltsin - had grown more difficult under President Vladimir Putin, a former KGB officer.

In 2014, authorities extended the classification of secrets in the archives of the KGB and the NKVD, another Soviet secret police agency, until 2044, saying that their release would "jeopardize Russian security."

Under Putin, official propaganda has sought to glorify Russia as a victim of foreign aggression that saved the world in World War II, meanwhile playing down the horrors of Soviet massacres and repressions, including the "Great Terror" that Stalin led in the 1930s.

"Fasten your seat belts, dear friends. A case has been filed against me with the police," Karagodin posted on Facebook on March 3. Sergei Mityushov, the son of a member of Stalin's secret police, filed the case saying karagodin.org discredited his father, who died in 1967. Within weeks, another case popped up.

If Karagodin is sanctioned by the courts, it would mark another ominous turn as Russian security chiefs tighten their grip and Putin cracks down on activists, journalists and opponents such as jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

Karagodin's efforts for justice and transparency also offer a template for others to follow - provided they have the energy and time to overcome bureaucratic resistance.

Karagodin said his family, beginning with Stepan's illiterate wife, Anna, has been seeking the truth over generations.

Russia's FSB, successor to the KGB and the NKVD, "tried to block me from getting the documents," Karagodin said. But he added: "We got nearly all of (them)."

Karagodin's research, piece by piece, built a portrait of Stepan as a stubborn man who cherished his freedom, hated the Bolsheviks who took away his rights and wasn't afraid to speak his mind.

"He was a classic peasant who wanted to have his own property and did whatever he could to achieve it," his great-grandson said.

Karagodin's quest began in 2012 when he was clearing out a family cupboard. He found Stepan's posthumous exoneration notice from the 1950s, which offered little detail.

Curious, he filed a request for the death certificate and found that Stepan did not die in prison, but was executed in 1938 by "shooting." Karagodin went to the local FSB headquarters in Tomsk, a city in Siberia about 1,600 miles east of Moscow.

"There's been a murder," he told the FSB major, asking to see the archive. The major, surprised, countered: "Write a request."

Later, Karagodin was given just two hours in the archive under watch. He discovered that his grandfather had been accused of setting up a web of six alleged Japanese spies who Soviet authorities said had planned to blow up factories and other sites. All were executed in January 1938.

"These people were (later) recognized as innocent. Where is the list of those who killed them?" he asked the FSB officer, who told him to write another request.

And so it went, throughout his quest. Karagodin would pull one thread, then another and another.

He sent off innumerable requests to the archives of the FSB, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the prison service, the military and regional prosecutors, regional and municipal archives, and other agencies across a vast slice of Russia, transcribing and uploading hundreds of historical documents.

He crowdsourced funding and help. The "murderers" tab on his website grew longer.

Stepan Karagodin was born 1881 to poor landless peasants in western Russia's Oryol region. He moved to a Cossack village in Kuban, southwest of Moscow, and married a Cossack girl, Anna, but was denied land.

In the early years of the 20th century, he made a three-year journey across Russia with his family, other relatives and most of his village in search of land in the Far East.

Stepan was given land and became village chief and a kulak, or rich peasant farmer. He had 11 children. By the 1917 Russian Revolution, he and his brother Fyodor had 200 acres and extensive farm machinery.

He "had a great craving for culture" and loved to read the newspaper or chat with educated people, his nephew Ivan Mikhailov wrote. Stepan scorned the Bolshevik slogan "Proletarians of the world unite."

"They say the hicks, smugglers, tramps are united, but the end is coming to us, the owners. Boss power, not our peasant power," Mikhailov reported him saying.

The Karagodins fought against the Bolsheviks with the White Russian army and their Japanese allies. Bolsheviks passed through their village in 1920, stole Stepan's horse and cart and a fur coat and killed his nephew Georgy, leaving Stepan raging in "wild hatred for everything that existed," Mikhailov wrote.

He was jailed for three months in 1921, accused of forming an anti-Soviet group, but was freed for a bribe. In 1928, his village booed Bolshevik officials taking their land for new settlers. He called communist education "useless" and rebuffed officials with tax demands.

He was arrested, stripped of all his belongings and exiled for three years to a remote Siberian settlement.

"Life here will be no more. They won't allow it," Stepan wrote in a note to his family. "Everyone, scatter urgently, wherever you can."

After exile, he and his family started anew in Tomsk. He was arrested on fabricated spying charges in December 1937 and shot seven weeks later.

"It was not personal," Karagodin said of the killers. "It was bureaucratic work." Moscow sent orders to purge kulaks and anti-Soviet elements, and local officials fulfilled, or sometimes exceeded, the order.

During his quest for answers, Karagodin traveled to Russia's Far East and stood on the open stretch his grandfather once farmed, feeling a visceral tug into the past.

"When you know how many people were killed, just because they lived and did their jobs, when you know they were tortured and killed for trying to survive, you realize you have to do something about it," he said.

In 2016, Karagodin got hold of the official act on Stepan's execution and six others dated Jan. 31, 1938, bearing three signatures: Sergei Denisov, a local NKVD boss; Nikolai Zyryanov, commandant of Tomsk Prison No. 3; and Yekatarina Noskova, an NKVD inspector. The paper noted the sentence was "fulfilled."

Alexei Mityushov, an NKVD inspector in Novosibirsk who died in 1967, is listed on karagodin.org because he signed an extract stating that the execution took place.

Mityushov's son Sergei declined to be interviewed about why he took legal action to shut down the website, but told Russian media that it "crossed a political line." He said the NKVD's job was to "fight criminals and their relatives," working in "a hard, harsh time."

To him, the NKVD, the KGB and the FSB were always "the elite. They set an example to others."

A separate complaint was filed to police against Karagodin for allegedly violating the privacy of NKVD employees and libel. He did not respond to requests for an interview.

Karagodin believes Stepan's body was dumped in Tomsk's Kashtak neighborhood, a suspected execution site where bones, buttons and clothing fragments turned up in the soil. Local authorities have refused to investigate.

He wants to recover Stepan's bones for a family burial, but his request to the regional FSB to return the body was denied in 2016. Karagodin is planning a podcast to drum up public pressure.

His final, but unlikely, goal: a posthumous murder trial.

"Bringing the case to court would be a way to get revenge," he said, "to deal with your feelings."
Planned Parenthood doesnt want to go where they are not wanted.

Those were the words from a former Planned Parenthood administrator who delivered the keynote speech at A Celebration of Life this past weekend at the Scharbauer Sports Complex.

You need to show they do not have the support of Midland, Texas, Abby Johnson said. Make it known Midland is for the unborn, period.

Johnson, author of the book, Unplanned : The Dramatic True Story of a Former Planned Parenthood Leader's Eye-Opening Journey Across the Life Line, delivered an address that included her experience working at a Planned Parenthood clinic in the Bryan-College Station area. She said Planned Parenthood officials created quotas when it came to abortions provided. She also said it was while she helped with a procedure that she saw a 13-week-old struggle against abortion instruments. She called the experience the biggest crack in her defense of choice.

Johnson told those in attendance about the guilt and the silence that goes with having an abortion and counseling those who go through the abortion procedure. Johnson told those at Grande Communications Stadium that while she has helped more than 600 people leave the abortion industry, she still regrets not speaking up when she had the opportunity to save lives.

I stood there and did nothing, Johnson said, recalling the day in 2009 she assisted with the ultrasound guided abortion procedure. A whole lot of opportunities are being given for people to speak up, and there are a lot of people just standing around.

She said that some in the pro-life community dont want to offend others on social media and through their words while the unborn are offended as they are ripped out of their mothers wombs.

Lord  I pray your people would be more concerned about offending your heart than offending the hearts of each other, Johnson said during a prayer toward the end of her address.

Johnson showed compassion toward who make the decision to have abortions during the Celebration of Life address. In response to those she said have asked, How any woman can have an abortion? she said fear is a powerful motivator. She said people just needed to look at 2020 to see that fear will motivate us to do things we never thought we would do.

Shame, she said, was a greater motivator that could send even those who grew up in the church to make the decision to end a life. She said 68 percent of women who have abortions are church-goers.

We have a problem in our own houses, said Johnson, a Catholic.

She said the shame of having had an abortion herself trickled down to other women.

I was OK with going to hell, because I thought what I was doing was worth it, Johnson said. Work was so worthy that it was worth spending an eternity in hell.  It is a sickness.

A Celebration of Life brought out local leaders, including Mayor Patrick Payton and County Judge Terry Johnson. Payton talked about the unalienable rights that the unborn have and that cold-blooded killing of humanity is always wrong.

Bishop Michael J. Sis, Diocese of San Angelo, reminded those in attendance were there to celebrate the gift of life and to hate the sin while loving the sinner.

Joe Pojman of the Texas Alliance for Life said that action from those in the Texas Legislature have helped the number of abortions in Texas fall from around 77,000 in 2010 to 57,000 in 2017.

Online: www.facebook.com/ChooseLifeMidland/; www.texasrighttolife.com/tag/midland/
DALLAS (AP)  A federal judge dismissed the National Rifle Associations bankruptcy case Tuesday, leaving the powerful gun-rights group to face a New York state lawsuit that accuses it of financial abuses and aims to put it out of business.

The judge was tasked with deciding whether the NRA should be allowed to incorporate in Texas instead of New York, where the state is suing in an effort to disband the group. Though headquartered in Virginia, the NRA was chartered as a nonprofit in New York in 1871 and is incorporated in the state.

Judge Harlin Hale said in a written order that he was dismissing the case because he found the bankruptcy was not filed in good faith.

The Court believes the NRAs purpose in filing bankruptcy is less like a traditional bankruptcy case in which a debtor is faced with financial difficulties or a judgment that it cannot satisfy and more like cases in which courts have found bankruptcy was filed to gain an unfair advantage in litigation or to avoid a regulatory scheme," Hale wrote.

His decision followed 11 days of testimony and arguments. Lawyers for New York and the NRAs former advertising agency grilled the groups embattled top executive, Wayne LaPierre, who acknowledged putting the NRA into Chapter 11 bankruptcy without the knowledge or assent of most of its board and other top officers.

Excluding so many people from the process of deciding to file for bankruptcy, including the vast majority of the board of directors, the chief financial officer, and the general counsel, is nothing less than shocking, the judge added.

Phillip Journey, an NRA board member and Kansas judge who had sought to have an examiner appointed to investigate the groups leadership, was concise about Hale's judgment: 1 word, disappointed, he wrote in a text message.

LaPierre pledged in a statement to continue to fight for gun rights.

Although we are disappointed in some aspects of the decision, there is no change in the overall direction of our Association, its programs, or its Second Amendment advocacy, LaPierre said via the NRA's Twitter account. Today is ultimately about our members  those who stand courageously with the NRA in defense of constitutional freedom. We remain an independent organization that can chart its own course, even as we remain in New York to confront our adversaries.

Lawyers for New York Attorney General Letitia James argued that the case was an attempt by NRA leadership to escape accountability for using the groups coffers as their personal piggybank. But the NRAs attorneys said it was a legitimate effort to avoid a political attack by James, who is a Democrat.

LaPierre testified that he kept the bankruptcy largely secret to prevent leaks from the groups 76-member board, which is divided in its support for him.

Hale dismissed the NRAs case without prejudice, meaning the group can refile it. However, he warned that in doing so the NRAs leaders would risk losing control.

The judge wrote that if the case is refiled, he would immediately take up concerns about disclosure, transparency, secrecy, conflicts of interest between NRA officials and their bankruptcy legal team. He said that the lawyers unusual involvement in the NRAs affairs raised concerns that the group could not fulfill the fiduciary duty and might lead him to appoint a trustee to oversee it.

Hale noted the NRA could still pursue other legal steps to incorporate in Texas, but James said such a move would require her approval  and that seems unlikely.

In a tweet, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said: Texas stands with the @NRA and we look forward to working with the Association on their plans to move to Texas.

The NRA declared bankruptcy in January, five months after James office sued seeking its dissolution following allegations that executives illegally diverted tens of millions of dollars for lavish personal trips, no-show contracts and other questionable expenditures.

James is New York's chief law enforcement officer and has regulatory power over nonprofit organizations incorporated in the state. She sued the NRA last August, saying at the time that the breadth and the depth of the corruption and the illegality at the NRA justified its closure. James took similar action to force the closure of former President Donald Trumps charitable foundation after alleging he used it to advance business and political interests.

During a news conference after the ruling, James said she read transcripts of LaPierre's testimony, which was filled with contradictions. She reiterated that she intends to see the NRA dissolved, which ultimately would be decided by a judge, not the attorney general. The discovery process in her lawsuit is ongoing, James said, and she expects a trial to happen sometime in 2022.

There are individuals and officers who are using the NRA as their personal piggy bank and they need to be held accountable," James said.

Shannon Watts, who founded Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, said in a series of tweets that the bankruptcy dismissal comes at the worst possible time for the NRA: right as background checks are being debated in the Senate.

It will be onerous if not impossible for the NRA to effectively oppose gun safety and lobby lawmakers while simultaneously fighting court battles and mounting debt, said Watts, whose organization is part of the Michael Bloomberg-backed Everytown for Gun Safety.

The NRA's financial standing has been upended by the coronavirus pandemic, but there was consensus during the bankruptcy trial that it remains financially sound

Last year, the group laid off dozens of employees, canceled its national convention and scuttled fundraising. The NRA's bankruptcy filing listed between $100 million and $500 million in assets and the same range in liabilities. In announcing the case, it trumpeted being in its strongest financial condition in years.

Adam Skaggs, chief counsel at the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, said that even a weakened NRA will likely continue to shape America's gun debates.

I think the question is, despite those self-inflicted wounds and despite the fact that theyre in some ways a shadow of their former self, can they continue to exert influence and try and keep the opponents of even the most modest reforms to increase gun safety toeing the line? he said.

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Sisak reported from New York. Associated Press writer Terry Wallace in Dallas contributed reporting.
The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities that The Associated Press has learned spans two dozen states and includes five shelters with more than 1,000 children packed inside.

Confidential data obtained by the AP shows the number of migrant children in government custody more than doubled in the past two months, and this week the federal government was housing around 21,000 kids, from toddlers to teens. A facility at Fort Bliss, a U.S. Army post in El Paso, Texas, had more than 4,500 children as of Monday. Attorneys, advocates and mental health experts say that while some shelters are safe and provide adequate care, others are endangering childrens health and safety.

Its almost like Groundhog Day, said Southern Poverty Law Center attorney Luz Lopez, referring to the 1993 film in which events appear to be continually repeating. Here we are back to a point almost where we started, where the government is using taxpayer money to build large holding facilities ... for children instead of using that money to find ways to more quickly reunite children with their sponsors.

A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesman, Mark Weber, said the agency's staff and contractors are working hard to keep children in their custody safe and healthy.

A few of the current practices are the same as those that President Joe Biden and others criticized under the Trump administration, including not vetting some caregivers with full FBI fingerprint background checks. At the same time, court records show the Biden administration is working to settle several multimillion-dollar lawsuits that claim migrant children were abused in shelters under President Donald Trump.

Part of the governments plan to house thousands of children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border involves about a dozen unlicensed emergency facilities inside military installations, stadiums and convention centers that skirt state regulations and dont require traditional legal oversight.

Inside the facilities, called Emergency Intake Sites, children arent guaranteed access to education, recreational opportunities or legal counsel.

In a recent news release, the administration touted its restoration of a child centered focus for unaccompanied children, and it has been sharing daily totals of the number of children in custody as well as a few photos of the facilities. This reflects a higher level of transparency than the Trump administration. In addition, the amount of time children spend, on average, inside the system has dropped from four months last fall to less than a month this spring, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Nonetheless, the agency has received reports of abuse that resulted in a handful of contract staffers being dismissed from working at the emergency sites this year, according to an official who wasn't authorized to talk about it publicly and insisted on anonymity.

Attorneys say sometimes, even parents cant figure out where their children are.

Jose, a father who fled El Salvador after his village was targeted in a massacre, said he requested asylum in the U.S. four years ago. He had hoped to welcome his wife and 8-year-old daughter to California this year, but the pair were turned around at the border in March and expelled to Mexico. The little girl crossed again by herself and was placed in the government shelter in Brownsville, Texas, on April 6. Jose called a government hotline set up for parents seeking their migrant children repeatedly but said no one would tell him where she was.

I was so upset because I kept calling and calling and no one would tell me any information about where she was, said Jose, who asked to be identified only by his first name out of fear of endangering his immigration case. Finally they told me I had to pay $1,300 to cover her airplane ticket and if I didnt pay, I would have to wait a month more, and I was so anxious.

For nearly three weeks, his daughter was held inside the Brownsville facility before finally being released to him in late April after an advocacy organization intervened to get the government to pay for her airfare, as is required by the agency.

Of particular concern to advocates are mass shelters, with hundreds of beds apiece. These facilities can leave children isolated, less supervised and without basic services. The AP found about half of all migrant children detained in the U.S. are sleeping in shelters with more than 1,000 other children. More than 17,650 are in facilities with 100 or more children. Some shelters and foster programs are small, little more than a house with a handful of kids. A large Houston facility abruptly closed last month after it was revealed that children were being given plastic bags instead of access to restrooms.

HHS has worked as swiftly as possible to increase bed capacity and to ensure potential sponsors can provide a safe home while the child goes through their immigration proceedings, Weber said in a statement.

The system has been very dysfunctional, and its getting worse, said Amy Cohen, a child psychiatrist and executive director of the nonprofit Every. Last. One., which works to help immigrant families fleeing violence in Central America. Although there have been large numbers of children arriving in the U.S. for years, Cohen said shes never seen the situation as bad as it is today.

One reason so many children are now arriving without their parents dates back to a 2020 Trump administration emergency order that essentially closed the U.S.-Mexico border to all migrants, citing public health concerns about spreading COVID-19.

Some of the facilities now holding children are run by contractors already facing lawsuits claiming that children were physically and sexually abused in their shelters under the Trump administration, while others are new companies with little or no experience working with migrant children. Collectively, the emergency facilities can accommodate nearly 18,000 children, according to data the agency provided earlier this month.

Administration officials have said that the increased need has driven them to expand the number of beds available for migrant children and that sheltering children in large facilities, while not preferable, is a better alternative than holding them for long periods at Border Patrol stations.

As for the 8-year-old girl, her father, Jose, said she is adjusting to life in Los Angeles, enjoying playing with her older brother and, bit by bit, opening up.

Soon I hope shell tell me what it was like inside, he said.

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AP researcher Larry Fenn contributed to this report.

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Contact APs global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org or https://www.ap.org/tips/.
MADRID (AP)  Spain approved a pioneering law Tuesday that gives delivery platforms a mid-August deadline to hire workers currently freelancing for them and that requires transparency of artificial intelligence used to manage workforces.

The royal decree passed by the center-left ruling coalition immediately affects some 30,000 couriers. It comes in the wake of a ruling by Spains top court last year and at a time when other countries in Europe and elsewhere are deciding on a labor model for the so-called gig economy, which is often blamed for precarious jobs and low salaries.

That's because, until now, gig and other contractor workers had to pay social security fees from their own pockets if they wanted to receive benefits including unemployment subsidies and a public pension.

App-based food delivery businesses say that the law threatens a 700-million-euro ($851 million) industry in Spain, and some of the couriers took to the streets on Tuesday in different cities because they say that remaining self-employed benefits them.

Francisco Lopez, 37, said he was making 2,400 euros ($2,900) per month working an average of seven hours every seven days of the week, more than he could have made at his previous job at Barcelona.

A lot of us have families and children. By working for more than one company we can adjust our schedule. The rates are currently not the best, but they do offer us an economic cushion, said Lopez, who has managed to send remittances to his relatives in Colombia during the pandemic.

But Labor Minister Yolanda Diaz said Spain was at the vanguard in taking legislation on the relationship between delivery platforms and their workforce.

The world is looking at us, Diaz told reporters following a weekly Cabinet meeting and adding that it reflected the new winds that, across the world, deliver welfare to citizens.

In the United States, Joe Bidens government has rolled back on a rule from his predecessors administration that would have made it easier to classify workers as independent contractors, blocking a change supported by delivery and ride-hailing services. The executive branch of the European Union is also currently consulting with the public on potential rules that could be applied across the bloc.

The Spanish governments decree doesn't need parliamentary approval and is the result of an agreement with the countrys main workers unions and industry associations, although smaller groups representing the interests of the food delivery platforms claim they have been sidelined in the negotiations.

APS, which groups on-demand service providers Deliveroo, Stuart, Glovo and Uber Eats, the main players in the food delivery market, condemned the government's move.

While Spain claims to be a start-up nation, this is the first law in Europe that forces a technological company to disclose its algorithms, said APS in a statement.

During negotiations, the government agreed to initially restrict the need for work contracts to delivery companies operating digital platforms. That leaves out the domestic care and cleaning services industries where the gig work model is also spreading.

The law makes mandatory for all businesses the ground-breaking requirement of having to hand over to the workers legal representatives information about how algorithms and artificial intelligence systems function in assigning jobs and assessing performance, among other aspects.

Workers cannot lose their soul on the keyboard of our laptops or on electronic gadgets, Diaz said.

Uber said that the regulation would hurt the couriers "who use food delivery apps for much-needed flexible earning opportunities and also the restaurant industry in Spain which, amid the coronavirus pandemic, is increasingly relying on delivery to make ends meet.

We want to be a long-term partner to Spain and are exploring different options to adapt our delivery business to the new regulation, the company said in an e-mailed statement.

Some of the associations representing independent couriers wrote to the European Unions Job Commissioner Nicolas Schmit calling for the Spanish law to be paused until the bloc has come up with a standardized framework.

Four of the associations said that a model that requires companies to give them contracts could lead to the loss of 23,000 of some 30,000 existing jobs.

But the general secretary of UGT, one of Spains main workers unions, said the riders protesting against the law were controlled by the platforms and that the law was meant to protect labor rights across the board.

With the law, Pepe Alvarez told public broadcaster TVE, workers are going to win, the social security system is going to win and the country is going to win."

Diaz also dismissed the criticism: Just as workers shouldn't fear advances in technology, companies shouldn't fear labor rights," the minister said when asked at a press briefing following the weekly Cabinet meeting.

Spains Supreme Court ruling last year said that there was a presumed work relationship between a delivery worker and Glovo. The ruling sent ripples across the industry, with the judges concluding that the platform couldnt be deemed just as an intermediary.

Dani Gutierrez, a 29-year-old member of the Ridersxrights association who has failed to receive work from food delivery platforms after striking and protesting against their labor conditions, welcomed the new law but said that it lacked ambition.

It should have gone much further, beyond the riders, because the working class is being pushed to precarious conditions through this type of collaborative economy, with fake freelancers and so on," Gutierrez said.

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AP journalist Renata Brito reported from Barcelona, Spain.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP)  U.S. educators are doing everything they can to track down high school students who stopped showing up to classes and to help them get the credits needed to graduate, amid an anticipated surge in the country's dropout rate during the coronavirus pandemic.

There isn't data available yet on how the pandemic has affected the nation's overall dropout rate  2019 is the last year for which it is available  and many school officials say it's too early to know how many students who stopped logging on for distance learning don't plan to return. But soaring numbers of students who are failing classes or are chronically absent have experts fearing the worst, and schools have been busy tracking down wayward seniors through social media, knocking on their doors, assigning staff to help them make up for lost time and, in some cases, even relaxing graduation requirements.

When students drop out, they typically look for an out, an opportunity to leave. And this has provided that, unfortunately, Sandy Addis, chairman of the National Dropout Prevention Center, said recently, referring to the pandemic. His group believes the dropout rate has spiked this year and will remain high for years.

At one high school in Kansas City, Kansas, staff members have made thousands of calls to the families of at-risk students, said Troy Pitsch, who supervises high school principals in the city.

If we lose a student, it is going to be after kicking and screaming and fighting tooth and nail for them, Pitsch said.

Many districts were forgiving last spring when schools shut down abruptly, freezing grades unless students wanted to improve them. That made this year the first for which schools would feel the full effects of the pandemic on student performance and engagement.

The early signs aren't encouraging. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization warned that the pandemic had put 24 million children worldwide at risk of dropping out of school. And the pandemic's effects could erase gains the U.S. made in reducing its dropout rate, which fell from 9.3% in 2007 to 5.1% in 2019, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Not finishing high school significantly hurts a person's earning potential, with dropouts bringing home an average of $150 less per week than graduates, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

To keep students on track, some local governments and school systems have waived certain testing requirements for graduation or changed grading policies so that missed assignments aren't as damaging. But such leniency carries the risk of watering down academic standards, said Russell Rumberger, a professor emeritus of education at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who has written about dropouts.

If they let you pass with a D and you dont have to do very much to do it, maybe technically you are getting a diploma, but you are not getting the same type of diploma you may have gotten prior to the pandemic, when the standards were higher," he said.

A National Dropout Prevention Center report predicted a doubling or tripling of the number of students who were at risk of falling behind academically and not graduating.

Among them for much of this school year was Jose Solano-Hernandez, a 17-year-old senior at Wyandotte High School in Kansas City, Kansas. In January, when he was at his lowest point following the deaths of one grandparent from COVID-19 and another from cancer in the same week, he estimated that he had missed eight assignments in each of his classes.

I wouldnt make my parents proud, he recalled thinking as he struggled to learn virtually at night while working by day at a mechanic's shop.

Solano-Hernandez has been slowly chipping away at his backlog of work since his school brought back him and other struggling seniors for extra in-person help more than a month before the rest of the student body returned at the end of March. He said the change brought relief" and he's now hopeful he'll graduate.

Mary Stewart, the school's principal, said there was radio silence from hundreds of students in the fall. But the number who weren't accounted for shrank to about 40 by the spring after staff hunted down siblings and scrolled through Facebook searching for clues to their whereabouts.

I went to a house of a young man the day before Thanksgiving and found that he had self-isolated in his room because of a mental health issue, she said. That is very common. Whatever happens in the community and in the world, we are a micro-system of that.

The pandemic also has taken a toll on students at North Grand High School in Chicago.

Principal Emily Feltes said some of her students took on jobs to support their families and others fell ill. Her students returned for part-time in-person instruction in April, but she's worried that dropout numbers will rise.

We have done everything that we think that we can to try to re-engage kids  to try to help them. And I know that my colleagues are all working really hard too," she said. But the reality is that this has been a worldwide and a national trauma."

Persuading reluctant students to return isn't easy. At Orange County Public Schools in the Orlando, Florida, area, substitute teacher Patrice Pullen was assigned in December to oversee a group of 13 seniors who fell behind during virtual learning. She said it became clear on her first day that her most important job would be rebranding the students, who had come to see themselves as failures.

You have kids  and Im not exaggerating  they had zeros. They had not turned in anything since August, since school started, she said. Now, eleven are on track to graduate and the other two are close to being on track.

At Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia, the 185,000-student district saw the percentage of middle school and high school students earning Fs in at least two classes jump by 83% in the fall.

The spring numbers returned to more normal levels as the district made several changes, including dropping the minimum number of assignments per quarter from nine to six and allowing teachers to accept late work on major assignments with minimal penalties, said district spokeswoman Lucy Caldwell. Still, she said, it is hard to say how many students disappeared or what will happen with dropouts.

The pandemic was extraordinarily difficult on families  emotionally, economically, and physically," Caldwell said.
Midland County property taxes may be raised if the Texas House and Senate pass several bills that are currently under consideration, commissioners said Monday.

One item the Commissioners Court discussed Monday was a bill that would allow car dealers to register vehicles in any county. Commissioner Robin Donnelly said if the county loses those vehicle registrations, it will cost about $11.74 per resident that would need to come from other sources.

The commissioners also discussed House Bill 3276 regarding election security, which passed out of committee on Monday. If that bill is approved by state lawmakers, Midland County would be required to install additional surveillance cameras at polling locations and have law enforcement officers present during elections, Donnelly said.

Another item discussed by the court was HB 3315, which would require each county to participate in a youth offender diversion program. That bill would cost the county about 13 cents per resident, Donnelly said.

None of the bills the court discussed would be paid for with state funding, the commissioners said.

I just wanted you all to see what happens down in Austin, Donnelly said. Theyve got some good ideas, but basically, theyre not providing any money.

There are 20 days left in this session of the Texas Legislature for lawmakers to vote on any remaining bills.

Other items the commissioners said theyd be watching as theyre considered on the House and Senate floors are the constitutional carry bill and bail reform bill, which would require more magistrate training for constables and justices of the peace.

Additionally, the Commissioners Court discussed whether county employees would continue to receive a 4 percent raise every other year, or if that would be split into a 2 percent raise each year or no raise at all. The court opted to table that discussion until the next meeting on May 24.
Nurse Felicia Meyers gives a COVID-19 vaccination to patient Fredy Cisneros outside the headquarters of The Hunger Coalition in Bellevue on Monday morning, when the St. Lukes Health System held the first walk-up clinic in the Wood River Valley featuring its new mobile vaccination unit.
The 12-year-old boy managed to escape the dumpster, but Benbolt and an 11-year-old were still inside. That child banged on the garbage truck window and got the drivers attention, but the dumpsters contents, including the two children, had already been poured into the back of the vehicle. The 11-year-old was reportedly uninjured, but Benbolt died at the scene.
School bus driver, 81, picked for hall of fame

Roy Dye Sr., 81, has been driving a school bus in Rutherford County since 1962. He recently was named a Tennessee School Bus Driver Hall of Fame 2021 inductee. Roy Dye Sr., 81, has been driving a school bus in Rutherford County since 1962. He recently was named a Tennessee School Bus Driver Hall of Fame 2021 inductee.

Roy Dye Sr., 81, was 6 years old the first time he stepped up onto Rutherford County bus No. 30. Seventy-five years later, much has changed.

In the 1940s and 1950s, the late Elwin Maddox drove the route with a paddle that sat within arms-reach of the drivers seat. Yet, Dye  whose daddy paddled him enough that he made sure to behave himself on the bus  remembered Maddox as a nice man during the week who attended the same church as the Dye family on Sunday mornings.

Now, Dye has the same route and the same bus number he rode as a student.

Dye has been driving a bus in the county for 59 years. This fall will mark 60 years of school bus driving  the longest stint of any driver in the history of Rutherford County Schools.

Well, I havent had no problems, said Dye, so if you dont have a problem, you better stick with something.

The Tennessee Association of Pupil Transportation has announced that Dye will be inducted into the Tennessee School Bus Driver Hall of Fame.

Dye is the first driver from Rutherford County to be inducted into the hall of fame and the first independent contractor in the states history to be inducted.

The hall of fame was created to recognize and honor Tennessee school bus drivers who have made outstanding contributions to their local school transportation department, according to a release from TAPT. Nominees for the hall of fame must have completed a minimum of 45 years of uninterrupted employment as a daily bus route driver with the school district.

Hes very humble about it and very appreciative of the honor, his wife, Margaret Williams, said, I can say that hes 

I am very thankful, Dye interrupted.

Very thankful they would even consider an old man like me, he then joked, before continuing, Well, I have thoroughly, thoroughly, enjoyed it and we have a good administration that really cared about us and show us they care.

And how much longer does he intend to continue driving.

 Til the good Lord calls me home brother. Til the good Lord calls me home, he said. w

Dye was hired in 1962.

At the time, J.J. McWilliams was the high school principal for Rutherford County, David Youree was the primary school principal and Dye initially drove a route for the old Smyrna Rock School. His route currently includes Blackman Middle and Rockvale High School.

Away from the bus

What separates Dye from so many others in the community  besides his length of service  are the three trips he made to Africa and three buses he donated to local churches and ministries.

He traveled to Africa in the mid-1970s to help with operating a dozer to clear trees and make room for an 80-acre manmade lake that provided a village with its only source of clean water.

His first trip was for two months. He returned twice more for a month each time.

I enjoy doing things for people (who are) far less fortunate than we are, Dye said. All they had was a grass shanty to live in and they didnt have any water supplies.

They needed somebody to get down trees and I was the one the good Lord sent to get them down.  I think that was the reason that the good Lord gave me the ability and the knowledge to run a dozer, that He was preparing me to go over there and do the things that I did for those people.

Dye also grows tomatoes, and on Saturdays, he sells them at the farmers market on The Square in downtown Murfreesboro.

He also passes them out to the transportation staff at the school districts Central Office.

When the first vegetables are in, hell usually take some up there and shares them, said his wife, who described him as a grandfather-figure. Hes thought of pretty good.
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With the 2021 Atlantic Hurricane season right around the corner, Horry County officials are already preparing for possible storms that could impact the Grand Strand this summer and fall.

We are already underway with our planning. We have been since early January, said Randy Webster, director of Horry County Emergency Management.

Webster added that his team has been working with both local and state partners ahead of the upcoming storm season.

While hurricane season is supposed to begin on June 1, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) and NOAA will be releasing forecasts for the upcoming season a few weeks earlier than usual. The NHC will released its forecast on May 15 while NOAA is set to release its forecast five days later.

The trend the last several years, weve had weak systems develop, Steven Pfaff of the National Weather Service in Wilmington said.

For the last three Atlantic Hurricane seasons, the first tropical storm system formed in May, with the earliest system forming last year on May 16, 2020. For the past six years, the first tropical system formed before the official start of the hurricane season.

From 2010 to last year, the first tropical system to form before the official start of hurricane season happened seven times compared to the four times that it happened between 2000 and 2009. It is because of that uncertainty that Pfaff said officials are monitoring these weather patterns all the time.

Weve had hurricanes form in January before, Pfaff said, referring to Hurricane Alex, which formed on January 12, 2016, and became the first hurricane to form in January in over six decades.

Pfaff said that the earlier release of this information helps forecasters get ahead of the possibility of an early system instead of trying to spin up their operations quickly.

The Grand Strand has been no stranger to tropical systems rolling through our area in the past six years. From the super flooding event in 2015 to hurricanes Matthew and Florence in 2016 and 2018, respectively, the area has certainly seen its fair share of hurricane force winds, deluges of rainfall and substantial flooding.

According to research released on April 8 from Colorado State Universitys tropical weather and climate research, the forecast probability of a name storm impacting our area is 55%. The forecast probability of a hurricane impact is 30%. According to the research, there is a 6% probability of a major hurricane (Category 3 or higher) hitting our county this year. While Horry County is fourth in forecast probability of a named storm impacting our area  behind Charleston County (59%), Colleton County (57%), and Jasper County (56%)  the county does lead the way with the highest probability of hurricane impact this season.

Though the probability of our area getting hit by a major hurricane is in the single digits, the threat is still out there. The last time there were no major hurricanes during the Atlantic hurricane season was 2013.

With summer right around the corner, that also means a surge in tourists are expected to visit the Grand Strand over the next five months. Officials have said that this summer will be one of the busiest summers in history. According to a 2021 Tripadvisor study, Myrtle Beach ranks third in most popular tourism destinations this summer. Myrtle Beach trailed only the iconic locations of Cancun, Mexico and Orlando, Florida, even betting out places such as Las Vegas and Miami.

Its that recognition that local officials are taking into consideration when it comes to planning for evacuations should a storm make its way to the area.

How [hurricane season] is going to play into the numbers, were not quite sure with all the visitors that may be here, Webster said. We will keep that in the forefront as we move forward. Its always on our minds as we start looking at potential evacuation issues.

With the COVID-19 pandemic still lingering, Webster said the county is taking those precautions into consideration when it comes to shelters.

We made adjustments last year for [COVID-19] and those same plans are rolling forward into this year as well, Webster said.

Webster noted that with COVID-19 comes the challenge of less capacity due to social distancing protocols. Still, Webster remains confident in his team.

As far as an emergency management standpoint, were in good shape and I think weve addressed all the issues that, at this point, were aware of.

When it comes to the subject of pets, Webster said the only recognized service animals are allowed in shelters. Webster added that Horry County Emergency Management does have a contingency plan in place just in case there are residents who cannot find places to board their pets in the event of an evacuation.

We have very limited capabilities to address that, Webster said. Its just the way it is.

Webster said that if coming to a shelter is your only alternative, he suggests to try to come up with a plan for your pet.

We just dont have the capability here to work with the pet sheltering issue, Webster said.
MOUNT STERLING  Get ready to say hello to some new neighbors.

Developers will break ground Friday on Neylon Farms, a 51-lot subdivision that will be built in two phases off Damon Road between Main and North streets.

In the initial phase, 24 lots will be built along an extended North Street west of Damon Road. The remainder will be built along what will become Neylon Street north of Main Street and west of Damon Road, according to a plat of the property.

MTS Housing LLC said the development is needed to expand housing options in the area.

Single-family houses will be a minimum of 1,300 square feet.

Were excited to offer those who have been traveling to Mount Sterling, those wanting to relocate to Mount Sterling, and also current residents, a tremendous opportunity to build homes in a beautiful new neighborhood, property development manager Larry Yingling said.

Realtor Lance Grady said there is a high demand for affordable houses in the city.

Neylon Farms will help meet that need and create an extraordinary place for families to live, Grady said.

Mount Sterling is among the Illinois cities that have enjoyed a fairly stable population, and saw a 6.8% growth in residents between 2017 and 2018, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. It also has seen growth in the median household income, rising about 8.9% to $51,304 as of 2018.

For the past 10 years, the city has been concentrating on putting into place recommendations of a long-range strategic plan and redevelopment blueprint. It has seen a significant revitalization of its business district and construction of a number of new facilities, including the Brown County Early Learning Center this year.

Housing, especially for first-time buyers, is one of the needs identified in the strategic plan, which was created in partnership with Kiku Obata & Co.

It has been identified that there is a shortage of rental apartments and homes in the $60,000 (to) $80,000 range, which is a deterrent for some seeking to relocate to Mount Sterling, according to the plan.

Builder Seth Yingling said the Neylon Farms development will be one of the most ambitious housing expansions in some time.

Neylon Farms opens a much-needed door of opportunity for future homeowners, he said. The Neylon lots have city utilities, paved roads, and are ready for homes.

Construction is scheduled to begin after the noon groundbreaking, which will be attended by city officials and other dignitaries.
European and Chinese leaders are urging swift ratification of the trade deal they agreed to in December, after tensions over accusations of human rights abuses in China delayed approval of the deal by European Union lawmakers.

The EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI) took seven years of negotiations and was finally agreed to in principle December 30, 2020, following a virtual summit between EU and Chinese leaders. Europe said it was the most ambitious trade deal China had ever undertaken with a third party.

However, EU Commission Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis said last week that efforts to get the deal ratified by lawmakers in the European Parliament had been halted. "We have... for the moment suspended some efforts to raise political awareness on the part of the commission, because it is clear that in the current situation, with the EU sanctions against China and the Chinese counter-sanctions, including against members of the European Parliament, the environment is not conducive to the ratification of the agreement," Dombrovskis told Agence France-Presse on May 4.

The suspension follows tit-for-tat sanctions imposed over China's treatment of the Uyghur population in Xinjiang province. The United States, along with several other Western states, has described the treatment of the Uyghur population as genocide. Washington imposed sanctions on several Beijing officials in March. Officials had also voiced reservations over the China-EU trade deal. The EU followed days later with its own measures, targeting four Chinese officials linked to Beijing's policies in Xinjiang.

China retaliated by sanctioning five lawmakers in the European Parliament -- the very body tasked with approving the trade deal -- said Alicia Garcia-Herrero, a senior fellow at the Bruegel think tank, who spoke to VOA from Hong Kong. "At the end of the day, the ratification happens at the European Parliament. So, in a way, the target of the sanctions was somehow too involved in the decision to ratify," Garcia-Herrero said.

She added that tensions between China and Europe over Xinjiang and the crackdown on the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong mean ratification of the trade deal looks unlikely anytime soon. Beijing denies any persecution of the Uyghur population and has urged Western nations to stop interfering in what it calls the "internal affairs" of Hong Kong.
New London Chief Peter Reichard said Tuesday that Settles was the last person seen on a two-level houses porch around 4 a.m. Six people live in the house but no injuries were reported. Police did not release a motive for the arson or Settles connection to the home, according to the Hartford Courant.
Three Jacksonville men were wrapped in appreciation Monday as they were awarded Quilts of Valor in recognition of their service to country in Vietnam.

John Hembrough, Donald Tegeder and Mike Looker each received a quilt made by Tegeders sister, Evelyn Smith of Melbourne, Florida, through the Quilts of Valor program. The program started in 2003 with founder Catherine Roberts belief that quilts equal healing. The organization since has made and awarded more than 271,000 quilts.

Id seen (mention of Quilts of Valor) in veterans magazines, Hembrough said. All of a sudden, to be honored, its just wonderful to acknowledge the veterans. It would not be a free country without the veterans. Theres honor and a lot of pride in receiving a quilt.

Hembrough, Tegeder and Looker grew up together and were close friends. Hembrough and Tegeder joined the Marines in 1968 and found themselves in Vietnam almost as soon as they had completed boot camp. Looker joined the Army in 1969. While Tegeder and Looker completed their full tour, Hembroughs was cut short by an injury that cost him a leg. When he finally made it out of the hospital and back home, he had a 3-day-old daughter.

I was bound and determined to do what was put before me when I came home, Hembrough said, noting that he returned home July 25 and was back at work with a phone company on Aug. 4.

He also got involved in veterans groups and issues, helping to raise funds for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C., among other activities.

It was his continued involvement in veterans groups that inspired Smith to make the quilts.

Smith grew up in Jacksonville and helped found the Space Coast Quilts of Valor chapter a few years ago, after her husband retired and they moved to Florida. She decided she wanted to make a quilt for Hembrough.

The group I picked, one of them is my brother, Smith said of Tegeder. Johnny (Hembrough) is my adopted brother, and Mike Looker lived down the road from us. My mom wrote to Mike just about every day he was in the military. Hes always been a really close friend, just one of us.

She was inspired to create the first quilt because Johnny is so involved in the military, she said.

Once she finished Hembroughs quilt, she thought, You know, I have a real brother in the Marines, she said. (And) if were going to do that, were going to get one for Mike. He was right there with us. Probably half of my graduating class went to Vietnam. I could probably come up with 50 people in this area to give quilts to.

For Tuesday, though, she stopped with the three who mean the most to her and her family.

Each of the men was presented with his quilt, each with a unique design. Smith and Delaney Shafer, another Tegeder sister, held up each quilt to show the veteran  and the small group of gathered friends and family  before folding it, wrapping it around the veterans shoulders and giving him a hug.

After Looker received his quilt and had it wrapped around his shoulders, he walked over to Ida Mai Tegeder and hugged her, thanking her for her support throughout his time in the Army and beyond. Tegeder and Hembrough chimed in with their own appreciation for Tegeder, who they said wrote to each of them almost daily while they were overseas.

Shafer also teared up as she talked about her mothers dedication to writing to the three men while they were in service.

Smith was clear about the quilts purpose and intent, spelling out, as the Quilts of Valor Foundation does, that its not a charity quilt.

While each quilt has a unique design, it has to be a certain size; it has to be hand- or machine-quilted, not tied; and it is an award, not a gift. Each comes with a patch recognizing the veterans branch of service. Tops are made from many colors and shapes to symbolize community; the inner batting is for comfort, health and peace; and the backing is for strength and the support of community and nation.

Stitches are sewn with love, gratitude and sometimes tears, Smith said.

While Smith sewed the quilts as a member of the Space Coast Quilts of Valor chapter, they were coordinated by Tri-County Quilts of Valor, with Rick Morris handling the application process as the local chapters coordinator.

Im very impressed with the whole program and what they do for the veterans, Hembrough said. Im just thankful that Evelyn made them for all three of us.
Lincoln Land Community College Jennifer Haggerty of Chandlerville is among 72 students nationwide chosen as a Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholar.

Haggerty was chosen because of her achievements and will be given $40,000 a year for three years to complete her bachelors degree. She is a member Phi Theta Kappa honor society and is one of two Lincoln Land Community College students chosen for the 2021 All-Illinois Academic Team.

She was also named a 2020 Coca-Cola Leader of Promise Scholar.

Haggerty returned to college after 17 years in the workforce. She plans to pursue a bachelors degree in nursing and hopes to attend graduate school to become a pediatric nurse practitioner.

We know how much exponentially harder this past year has been on students. Its an honor to award this group of individuals as they have achieved so much both in the classroom and in their daily lives, said Seppy Basili, executive director of the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation.

 Darren Iozia
Jacksonville Police

ARRESTS, CITATIONS

 Sarah R. Parker, 32, homeless, was arrested at 11:23 p.m. Sunday on a charge of criminal trespass to state-supported property after police said she was found at a location in the 300 block of West Beecher Avenue from which she was prohibited.



Pike County

Sheriff

ARRESTS, CITATIONS

 Damon K. Young, 22, of Pittsfield was arrested at 11:14 p.m. Sunday on a violation of an order of protection.

 Amanda J. Johnson, 33, of Nebo was arrested at 2:12 p.m. Friday on charges of possession of methamphetamine and criminal trespass to land and on a warrant accusing her of failing to appear in court on a charge of failing to report or leaving the scene of an accident.

 Justin R. Holman, 30, of Nebo was arrested at 6:51 p.m. May 5 on a charge of driving while license is revoked.

 Jaiyden C. French, 22, of Hannibal, Missouri, was arrested at 10:33 p.m. Wednesday on a charge of possession of adult-use cannabis.

 Michael S. Tunstall, 34, of Hardinsburg, Kentucky, was arrested at 7:34 a.m. Wednesday on a sex offender registration violation.

 Buffy N. Burbridge, 27, of Griggsville was arrested at 2:15 a.m. Wednesday on a charge of possession of a controlled substance.

 James A. Fanning, 49, of Franklin was arrested at 8:33 p.m. May 4 on a petition to revoke or modify bail bond.

 Patricia P. Touchette, 57, of Barry was arrested at 12:27 p.m. May 4 on a petition to revoke or modify bail bond.

 Brayden M. Sink, 20, of Auburn was arrested at 4:03 p.m. May 3 on a charge of consumption of liquor by a minor.

 Jacob L. Motley, 24, of Pleasant Hill was arrested at 8:15 a.m. May 6 on a domestic battery charge.

 Joshua L. Kelly, 31, of Pleasant Hill was arrested at 3:40 p.m. Wednesday on a theft charge.

 Anna M. Sutton, 33, of Quincy was arrested at 12:34 p.m. May 6 on charge of possession of methamphetamine.

 Cory E. Sutton, 38, of Quincy was arrested at 1:09 p.m. May 6 on a charge of possession of methamphetamine and on an Adams County warrant accusing him of failing to appear in court.

Pittsfield Police

ARRESTS, CITATIONS

 Amanda M. Johns, 44, of Griggsville was arrested at 11:46 p.m. Wednesday on a petition of revocation.

 Brenda L. Barger, 53, of Jacksonville was arrested at 1:21 p.m. Sunday on a domestic battery charge.

Compiled by David C.L. Bauer
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  Turkeys top diplomat met with his counterpart in Saudi Arabia Tuesday on his first official trip in years, as the country pushes to repair damaged ties with the kingdom that reached a low point over the 2018 killing in Istanbul of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

We discussed in an open and sincere way what can be done in our bilateral relations, the areas where we have problems, how we can resolve them, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters after his meeting with Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.

We decided to continue our dialogue," he added.

The regional powerhouses, which have long considered themselves champions of the Palestinian cause, also addressed the spiraling violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

It's not enough to condemn (the violence), the (Muslim) community is expecting us to take some steps, Cavusoglu said. These kinds of attacks must stop. We have to protect the rights of the Palestinians.

The two-day visit, the first by a senior Turkish official since the killing of Khashoggi by Saudi agents inside the kingdoms consulate, also signals Saudi Arabia's shifting foreign policy. In the past months, Saudi Arabia has moved to defuse tensions with other Mideast powers  driving efforts to end to an embargo against Qatar and even opening secret talks with archenemy Iran.

The flurry of diplomatic activity comes as President Joe Biden has cooled America's relationship with the kingdom and pushed to restore Iran's tattered 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which former President Donald Trump scrapped three years ago.

The Saudis felt the risk they would find themselves cornered with very few friends at their side," said Cinzia Bianco, a Gulf research fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations. They want to escape that logic and rebuild a regional network that they hope would have Saudi at its heart."

Khashoggi's killing inflamed tensions over the political differences between the regional heavyweights, including Turkeys alleged meddling in regional affairs and sympathy with Islamist movements like the Muslim Brotherhood, which Riyadh considers a terrorist group. Turkey also sided with Qatar when it became isolated in the yearslong Arab rift, which ended in January. Qatar's emir visited Saudi Arabia Monday to meet the Saudi Crown Prince for the first time since the boycott, a powerful sign of the turnaround.

Turkey, for its part, has tried to mend fences with Arab states as it seeks to ease out of international isolation amid a currency crisis and its own tensions with the Biden administration. Last week, a high-level Turkish delegation traveled to Cairo for talks with regional rival Egypt.

In October 2018, Khashoggi entered the consulate in Istanbul for documents that would allow him to marry his Turkish fiancee and never came out. Turkish officials allege that the writer, who was critical of the crown prince and the kingdom, was killed by a team of Saudi agents and dismembered with a bone saw.

Turkey repeatedly called for the extradition of the agents and formally charged 20 Saudi officials in absentia. But in recent months the government has toned down its denunciation of Riyadh's closed-door trial of the suspects, with a Turkish official saying last month that the country would respect" the Saudi court ruling.

As tensions simmered last year, Ajlan al-Ajlan, a prominent Saudi businessman and chairman of the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce, called for a mass boycott of Turkish goods that gained momentum on social media.

Turkish exporters soon complained their products faced unexplained customs delays. Manufacturers accused Saudi authorities of denying their Turkish employees work visas, withholding progress payments to contractors and creating other complications.

The Saudi government denied any official boycott, but grumbles in Turkey gained credence when the Saudi statistics authority reported that 2020 Turkish imports plummeted by over 95% to an all-time low of $13.5 million, down from $271.9 million the year before.

___

Associated Press writer Suzan Frazer in Ankara, Turkey, contributed to this report.
Seemingly frivolous internet stars like James Charles and David Dobrik play a significant role in our culture, especially since adults have better things to do than pay attention to TikTok star drama. Kids crave authenticity in an age of make-believe, and the informal and confessional nature of YouTube, TikTok and Twitter grants a degree of authenticity and attainability to social media celebrities that traditional stars lack.

This unprecedented level of relatability and the popularity of more candid content evidently plays a part in many YouTube success stories. Moreover, their content is completely free to watch any place, any time, for as long as we want. More than any other time in human history, we are surrounded by the cult of the celebrity. That comes with its dangers.

It emerged recently that 21-year-old James Charles, a beauty guru with over 25 million subscribers, sent sexually explicit images and messages to a 16-year-old boy. Charles denied knowledge of the fans age, which brings into question why he thought it was appropriate to exchange messages of such a nature with an unverified and evidently young user. The incident has largely gone ignored by Charles fanbase and the mainstream media, although fans with similar testimonies of his interactions with them have come to light.

Fellow beauty YouTuber (and one-time friend of James Charles) Jeffree Stars list of indiscretions, including accusations of bullying and racism, perhaps rivals the rest of YouTube put together, but evidence of his paying hush money to silence accusations of sexual assault and his attempts to knowingly flirt with underage males reemerged last year. Its been largely disregarded by his loyal fanbase.

Just as concerning is the free pass given to YouTubers who directly promote such behavior in their content. Boston University student Yvonne Tang recently published an opinion piece in which she described how, as a young fan, she enjoyed a video in which Dobrik tricked fellow vlogger Seth Francois into intimately kissing Jason Nash, a man twice his age. Tang had realized as an adult that what she had been amused by as an impressionable teenager was a serious act of abuse.

Dobrik has received unprecedented backlash recently, after a Business Insider investigation (which Dobriks lawyers attempted to bar from publication) revealed new testimonies from those involved in a 2018 video in which Dobrik jokes about his roommate and colleague Dom Zeglaitis participating in sexual acts with two intoxicated women, now accusing Zeglaitis of rape. After weeks of accumulating scandal, Dobrik only published a video after lucrative sponsorships began to withdraw from partnerships with him. Many Dobrik stans took to the internet to praise his apology, despite the cynical timing. No doubt his dedicated fan base will continue to insulate his career once this scandal is forgotten about. But the real question is why the careers of so many of these highly problematic characters continue to thrive alongside consistent and credible accusations of abuse or the direct enabling of sexual and psychological abuse.

The tendency of our society to oversexualize teenagers, evident in plenty of music videos and photo shoots of child stars from the past few decades, and our treatment of them like mini adults, clearly plays a role. While in general a relationship between a teenage girl and an adult male would be frowned upon  both legally and morally  young audiences who often tend to have a precocious view of their own maturity will often dismiss the gravity of situations. The complacent also tend to dismiss male victims more than females, with retorts such as I would have loved it at that age all too often seen in the comments sections of news stories discussing the abuse of young boys. Likewise, such incidents are dismissed by adults who irresponsibly assume teenagers as fully capable of adult relationships, which all biological and psychological evidence suggests to the contrary.

Theres a clear distinction between the overzealous canceling of people for minor indiscretions or for holding respectable opinions that we may just as rightfully disagree with, and refusing to support known abusers. We need to ask ourselves whether we would tolerate certain behaviours from those we dislike, or from real-life friends and family? The answer should be a resounding no. And if so, why are we tolerating it from the people whose careers rely on our attention? It is high time that we acknowledge the potential menace of our uncritical consumption of internet stardom, and ensure our children (or future ones) do so too.

Georgia L. Gilholy is a freelance writer. She wrote this for InsideSources.com.
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Internal emails reveal WHO knew of sex abuse claims in Congo View Photo

BENI, Congo (AP)  When Shekinah was working as a nurses aide in northeastern Congo in January 2019, she said, a World Health Organization doctor offered her a job investigating Ebola cases at double her previous salary  with a catch.

When he asked me to sleep with him, given the financial difficulties of my family . I accepted, said Shekinah, 25, who asked that only her first name be used for fear of repercussions. She added that the doctor, Boubacar Diallo, who often bragged about his connections to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, also offered several of her friends jobs in return for sex.

A WHO staffer and three Ebola experts working in Congo during the outbreak separately told management about general sex abuse concerns around Diallo, The Associated Press has learned. They said they were told not to take the matter further.

WHO has been facing widespread public allegations of systemic abuse of women by unnamed staffers, to which Tedros declared outrage and emergencies director Dr. Michael Ryan said, We have no more information than you have. But an AP investigation has now found that despite its public denial of knowledge, senior WHO management was not only informed of alleged sexual misconduct in 2019 but was asked how to handle it.

The AP has also for the first time tracked down the names of two doctors accused of sexual misconduct, Diallo and Dr. Jean-Paul Ngandu, both of whom were reported to WHO.

Ngandu was accused by a young woman of impregnating her. In a notarized contract obtained by the AP, two WHO staffers, including a manager, signed as witnesses to an agreement for Ngandu to pay the young woman, cover her health costs and buy her land. The deal was made to protect the integrity and reputation of WHO, Ngandu said.

When reached by the AP, both Diallo and Ngandu denied wrongdoing. The investigation was based on interviews with dozens of WHO staffers, Ebola officials in Congo, private emails, legal documents and recordings of internal meetings obtained by the AP.

A senior manager, Dr. Michel Yao, received emailed complaints about both men. Yao didnt fire Ngandu despite the reported misconduct. Yao didnt have the power to terminate Diallo, a Canadian, who was on a different kind of contract, but neither he nor any other WHO managers put Diallo on administrative leave.

The AP was unable to ascertain whether Yao forwarded either complaint to his superiors or the agencys internal investigators, as required by WHO protocol. Yao has since been promoted to be director of Genevas Strategic Health Operations Department.

Eight top officials privately acknowledged that WHO had failed to effectively tackle sexual exploitation during the Ebola outbreak and that the problem was systemic, recordings of internal meetings show. The revelations come at a time when the U.N. health agency is winding down its response to two recent Ebola epidemics in Congo and Guinea, and is already under pressure for its management of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

WHO declined to comment on specific sex abuse allegations, and none of the 12 WHO officials contacted responded to repeated requests for comment. Spokeswoman Marcia Poole noted that Tedros announced an independent investigation of sex abuse in Congo after media reports came out in October. Findings are due at earliest in August, investigators have said.

Once we have these, we will review them carefully and take appropriate additional actions, Poole said. We are aware that more work is needed to achieve our vision of emergency operations that serve the vulnerable while protecting them from all forms of abuse.

WHOs code of conduct for staffers says they are never to engage in acts of sexual exploitation and to avoid any action that could be perceived as an abuse of privileges, reflecting the unequal power dynamic between visiting doctors and economically vulnerable women. But an internal WHO audit last year found some aid workers werent required to complete the agencys training on sex abuse prevention before starting work during Ebola.

All of us may have been suspecting for as long as the Ebola response was taking (place) that something like this would be possible, said Andreas Mlitzke, director of WHOs office of compliance, risk management and ethics, during an internal meeting in November. Mlitzke likened WHO officials in Congo to an invading force and said, Things like this have historically happened in wartime.

Mlitzke said during the meeting that WHO typically takes the passive approach in its investigations, and that it couldnt be expected to uncover wrongdoing among staffers.

What prevents us from doing something proactive is our own psychology, he said.

Ryan, meanwhile, said the sexual harassment incidents were unlikely to be exceptional.

You cant just pin this and say you have one field operation that went badly wrong, he told his colleagues in an internal meeting. It does reflect a culture as well  This is in some sense the tip of an iceberg.

Internal emails from November 2019 show WHO directors were alarmed enough by the abuse complaints that they drafted a strategy to prevent sexual exploitation and appointed two focal points to liaise with colleagues in Congo and elsewhere. Directors also ordered confidential probes into sexual abuse problems more broadly and U.N training on how to prevent sexual harassment, along with the independent investigation announced last year.

But staffers remain concerned that not enough has been done. At a WHO meeting in January to address sex abuse, Dr. Renee Van de Weerdt, chief of emergency management and support, told colleagues that the risk remains high across our operations and that more robust supervision was needed.

Dr. Gaya Gamhewage, head of WHOs learning and capacity development, said at an internal WHO discussion on sex abuse that the impunity with which we have operated is leading to this. She warned, Training is not going to solve this problem.

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Shortly after Ebola was identified in eastern Congo in 2018, WHOs Swiss headquarters gave the outbreak its most serious emergency designation, allowing Geneva to take control from its Africa office. WHO chief Tedros traveled to Congo 14 times during the epidemic to personally oversee the response, and his emergencies chief, Ryan, made at least seven visits.

Over 2018 and 2019, three Ebola experts, including two who worked for WHO at the time, told the AP they raised concerns about sex abuse in general, and Diallo in particular, with senior managers. But they said they were told that controlling the Ebola outbreak was more important, and two said Diallo was considered untouchable because of his relationship with Tedros.

Complaints about Diallo were also raised with emergency operations manager Yao, who was responsible for leading WHOs overall Ebola response in Congo, with hundreds of staff, under Ryans supervision. On Feb. 22, 2019, Yao received an email from the WHO outbreak team leader in North Kivu with the subject line, Private. Chat.

Chief, please lets have a Private chat tomorrow, the staffer emailed, saying he wanted to discuss Diallo, then an outbreak manager in North Kivu. The staffer didnt want to be identified by the AP for fear of losing his job.

We cannot afford to have people tarnishing the sweat and effort of individuals sacrificing themselves thru (sic) inappropriate sexual harassment and bullying, the staffer wrote. I will fill you in (in) private.

Yao responded the next morning: Ok we shall talk. The staffer said that Yao told him the matter would be handled, but he didnt believe his concerns were taken seriously and was very upset. He added that he was sidelined for complaining about Diallo.

Two WHO officials with knowledge of the situation said the agency investigated complaints that Diallo acted unprofessionally, including an alleged sexual assault, and there was insufficient evidence to corroborate the charges. But investigators failed to interview any of the women involved or the whistleblowers who flagged the harassment claims, according to a senior WHO official who didnt want to be identified for fear of losing his job. Diallo continued to work for WHO months after concerns were raised about him.

Diallo was described as a charismatic, outgoing leader with connections to some of WHOs top managers, including Tedros. In a speech in January 2019, Tedros singled out Diallo among the Ebola responders working under heavy gunfire in Beni.

On WHOs website, Diallo, Tedros and Yao are pictured smiling and bumping elbows during Tedros June 2019 trip to Congo. On Diallos Facebook page, he appears in more than a dozen photos with Tedros.

Several months after Tedros visit, Diallo met Anifa, a young Congolese woman working in an Ebola treatment center in Beni. She said Diallo told her: How can a beautiful girl like you work here, testing peoples temperatures and washing their hands? Thats terrible. She said he offered her another job at five times more than her current salary where the conditions were very simple, according to him.

He wanted me to sleep with him, she told the AP, noting that Diallo frequently wore a badge with VIP inscribed in red, attached to his dark blue WHO vest. Anifa declined to share her full name, fearing it could harm her future job prospects. The AP doesnt identify victims of sexual abuse.

I told him I studied hard to be employed by the treatment center, Anifa said. She rejected Diallos offer, saying that if he hires me after sleeping with him  I would be a sex slave, not a WHO employee.

Diallo denied the claims outright.

I have never offered a woman a job in exchange for sex and I have never sexually harassed a woman in my life, he told the AP in an email. He said he was never informed of any complaints about his behavior at WHO or disciplined for misconduct, and his relationship with Tedros was purely professional.

Diallo said his contract for WHO finished at the end of July and he hasnt worked for the agency since.

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The same manager, Yao, was also told of alleged sexual misconduct by the other doctor, Ngandu, in an email obtained by the AP dated April 23, 2019, with the subject line, Urgent need for your guidance. Outbreak manager Mory Keita wrote in French: I hereby inform you that we have a colleague who has impregnated a girl from Beni.

Keita told Yao that a young woman and her aunt had come to the Hotel Okapi in Beni with two armed police officers, looking for senior WHO staff. They said the young woman had been having an affair with Ngandu, and the hospital had confirmed she was now pregnant. Ngandu was avoiding them, the aunt said, so they went to the police to find him.

Keita told Yao that when confronted, Ngandu acknowledged a relationship with the girl but said it was only for two weeks. The womans aunt, however, said her niece first spent the night with him about a month and a half ago, and at the time he gave her $100, a detail that Ngandu could not deny, the email noted.

The two women demanded payment for all medications and hospital treatment during pregnancy and the purchase of land for the child, given that Dr. Jean-Paul will abandon the girl and she will be obliged to raise her child alone.

We have asked Jean-Paul to honor the request from the family of the girl and the aunt and try to find some common ground, Keita said. (Ngandu) suggested that we manage the situation here at our level here in Beni and not inform the hierarchy, but I felt  you should be informed so that you would tell us your directions for how to better manage this problem.

Less than one week later, Ngandu and the young woman signed a notarized contract in which he agreed to pay her $100 a month until her baby was delivered, to provide all necessary health care, and to buy her a plot of land in Beni. Four witnesses signed the document, including two from WHO, Keita and Achile Mboko, a human resources officer. Keita didnt respond to requests for comment, and Mboko acknowledged his signature and presence.

Two handwritten contracts signed by the young woman and Ngandu confirmed he paid $2,800 for land with a house in a Beni neighborhood and transferred ownership rights to her in August 2019.

This was a private matter and did not implicate WHO, Ngandu told the AP. Ngandu said he wasnt the father of the baby and that he agreed to the settlement after WHO colleagues, including Keita, advised me to settle out of court to avoid sullying the reputation of the organization and myself.

Ngandu, who is from Congo, said he wasnt disciplined by WHO and continued to work until his contract ended in June 2019. Ngandu is now based in Namibia and said he is in talks with WHO for potential future employment. The young woman declined to talk to the AP.

Paula Donovan, co-director of the Code Blue Campaign, which is campaigning to end sexual exploitation by U.N. peacekeepers, said WHOs attempt to effectively silence the victim was beyond concerning.

Its a perversion of justice that WHO thinks they could take the law into their own hands and resolve a case without going to the proper authorities, Donovan said. If this is how they treated one case, how are they treating all the others?

In May 2019, Yao was told of yet another unrelated sexual harassment complaint in Bunia, roughly 200 kilometers (125 miles) north of Beni. Two women told the World Bank they were refused jobs at WHO because they declined to sleep with the recruiting officer, in an email seen by an Ebola aid worker. The aid worker, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals, told the AP that the World Bank alerted Yao, but nothing was done.

Throughout the summer, Yao was praised for his leadership of the Ebola response. He was named in a July 17 tweet from Ebba Kalondo, a spokesperson for the African Union, as one of WHOs exceptional men and was pictured alongside colleagues, including Diallo. Kalondo urged her followers: Know their names. Write about them.

Two months later, a young Congolese woman named Reby, then 20, met Diallo when he came into the Vodacom shop where she was working. He gave her $100 for transport costs to meet him at a hotel and asked her how much she made in the telecommunications job, she told the AP.

My God, a beautiful girl like you who gets $60 a month is not enough, he said, according to Reby. If you sleep with me, you are going to be a high-ranking member of the Ebola response in Beni and you are going to receive around $800 a month.

Reby declined to use her full name for fear of retribution. She said she refused Diallos offer, but continued to see him when he came into her shop. From that day on, he always called me the difficult girl, she said.

In a confidential slide presentation in January 2020, WHO officials reported that an internal U.N. review of the Ebola response in Congo had found a need for safe-guarding mechanisms for preventing sexual exploitation. All staff were to complete training on harassment and other issues.

_____

The publication of general sex abuse allegations in Congo in the media last fall set off a flurry of responses from WHO.

Yao said in an internal meeting in September that despite U.N. protocols to prevent sexual abuse, it looks like this system is not working at the grassroots level. He added that a recent U.N. assessment hadnt revealed any problems, so we were surprised about a case happening.

WHO director-general Tedros called the allegations a shocking betrayal in an email to staff and promised serious consequences, including immediate dismissal and referral to local authorities.

At a town hall meeting in November, emergencies chief Ryan said sexual abuse issues had been neglected for years and apologized to his staff.

There are behaviors here that are not acceptable, he said.

WHO staffers, especially women, were unconvinced.

Quite frankly, I think this is not good enough, said Maria Van Kerkhove, WHOs technical lead on COVID-19, at the same meeting. We know in every situation we go in, were at risk.

Staffers also worried that problems persisted in the agencys response to another Ebola outbreak in Congo last year.

We still do not have a robust (sexual abuse prevention) program in place, Geneva-based project officer Jessica Kolmer said during a meeting in November. She said donors told them their new measures, including posting flyers in their offices and establishing a sexual abuse prevention committee, were not sufficient.

Back in Congo, Anifa said she was deeply disturbed that WHO staffers hadnt been disciplined for their treatment of women.

I condemn WHO for not sanctioning Dr. Boubacar Diallo because I know already they have complaints against him, she said. I asked myself, Why did the people who came to help us, to fight Ebola here at home, why do they want to destroy our lives?

Shekinah said she couldnt count how many times she slept with Diallo. She said she knew about a dozen other women in Beni whom he had similarly victimized.

I wanted to quit, she said. But because of my financial problems, I endured it.

Shekinah said she was often paid in cash or mobile credit, with little paperwork. Even after she and Diallo separated, she said, he continued to ask for nude pictures or video calls while she was naked.

Diallo should be punished for his sexual abuse of all those girls in Beni as a lesson to these international organizations that this should not happen again, she said. I would like justice to be done.

____

Maria Cheng reported from London. Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report.

By MARIA CHENG and AL-HADJI KUDRA MALIRO

Associated Press
It was very scary because this is a very family-oriented community, and you see lots of kids and baby strollers, Ramos told KHOU. And people taking their pets, dogs and walking them. So again, the first thing I was thought was to alert the community so everybody would stay home.
The Latest: Israeli aircraft strike another building in Gaza View Photo

JERUSALEM (AP)  The Latest on confrontations between Israelis and Palestinians, sparked by weeks of tensions in contested Jerusalem and as Israel has signaled its widening its military campaign:

JERUSALEM  Israeli aircraft have attacked another building in Gaza City.

The nine-story structure houses residential apartments, medical production companies and a dental clinic.

Israeli aircraft fired five warning rockets from a drone to alert people of the incoming bombing early Wednesday. Shortly afterward, the jets struck the building again after journalists and rescuers gathered around.

There were no immediate word on casualties.

The high-rise was heavily damaged. Smoke and debris reached The Associated Press Gaza office 200 meters (yards) away.

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UNITED NATIONS  The U.N. Security will hold emergency consultations Wednesday on the escalating violence between Palestinians and Israelis.

The U.N. Mideast envoy, Tor Wennesland, is expected to brief the 15 council members virtually at the closed meeting, which is being called at the request of China, Tunisia and Norway.

China holds the council presidency this month and its U.N. mission confirms plans for the second emergency meeting in three days. It is an indication of growing international concern about the conflict and where it might lead.

The U.N.s most powerful body has not yet taken any action.

China, Tunisia and Norway proposed a draft statement at Mondays meeting expressing grave concern at escalating tensions and calling on Israel to cease evictions. The U.S. State Department said the U.S. wants to ensure any council statements dont escalate tensions.

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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  Hamas leader says Israel is responsible for the latest round of fighting in the region because of its actions in Jerusalem.

The fighting broke out on Monday after Israeli police used stun grenades, tear gas and rubber bullets against protesters at the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. On Tuesday, Israel unleashed new airstrikes on Gaza while militants barraged Israel with hundreds of rockets. The exchange killed a number of militants and civilians in Gaza and at least three people in Israel.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in a live speech on Tuesday said that Gaza militants have defended Jerusalem.

He confirmed Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations were trying to broker a cease-fire but said that Hamas told everybody, its the Israeli occupation that set Jerusalem on fire and the flames reached Gaza.

Haniyeh added that Israel is responsible for all these consequences.

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JERUSALEM  The Israeli Foreign Ministry says one of the three women killed in Israel from Gaza rocket attacks was an Indian national working as a caregiver, not an Israeli as had been previously assumed.

The woman was identified as Soumya Santosh.

Israels ambassador to India, Ron Malka, extended his condolences on Twitter for the death of an Indian national on Tuesday. He wrote: Our hearts are crying with her 9 years old son that lost his mother in this cruel Terrorist attack.

Meanwhile, Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai ordered the citys schools remain closed on Wednesday following a late-night barrage of rocket fire on his city. City Hall said there would be no remote learning to allow teachers to remain with their families.

Hamas militants in Gaza said they fired 130 rockets toward Tel Aviv.

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UNITED NATIONS  U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is demanding an immediate halt to the spiraling escalation in Israeli-Palestinian violence. A spokesman says the United Nations is working with all relevant parties to de-escalate the situation urgently.

Guterres is gravely concerned by the upsurge in violence, and is deeply saddened to learn of increasingly large numbers of casualties, including children, from Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, and of Israeli fatalities from rockets launched from Gaza.

Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday that Israeli security forces must exercise maximum restraint and calibrate their use of force. He also added that the indiscriminate launching of rockets and mortars towards Israeli population centers is unacceptable.

He said when asked whether Guterres had been in contact with key players that contacts are continuing to be held at all levels with all interested parties in an effort to de-escalate the situation.

Dujarric was pressed about whether Guterres condemned the Israeli airstrikes in Gaza but refused to use the word condemn, saying only that the U.N. chief stands against the killing of any and all civilians.

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WASHINGTON  The White House says President Joe Biden is being briefed daily on developments in Jerusalem and Gaza, and has directed his team to engage intensively with senior Israeli and Palestinian officials as well as leaders throughout the Middle East.

Press secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that Bidens team is communicating a clear and consistent message in support of de escalation.

That is our primary focus, she said, adding that Biden supports Israels legitimate right to defend itself and its people and at the same time condemns ongoing rocket attacks by Hamas and other terrorist groups including against Jerusalem.

She added that the Biden administration will also continue to support a two state solution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict.

That is the only way to ensure the just and lasting peace that two peoples have struggled to achieve, she added.

Separately, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to Israeli Foreign Minister Ashkenazi on Tuesday to condemn the Hamas rocket attacks and reiterate the important message of de-escalation.

State Department spokesman Ned Price says Washington calls on all sides to exercise restraint.

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CAIRO  Arab foreign ministers have urged the International Criminal Court to proceed with an investigation into Israels possible war crimes and crimes against humanity against the Palestinians, including the planned eviction of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in east Jerusalem.

The minister met virtually on Tuesday to discuss on the latest escalation of violence in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and the Gaza Strip. In a statement after the meeting, they called for the ICC to mobilize resources for such an investigation.

They strongly condemned what they call Israels crimes against Muslim worshippers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the latest court orders to evict families of Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

The ministers urged the U.N. Security Council to take action in order to stop the Israeli aggression and provide international protection to the Palestinian people.

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TEHRAN, Iran  Irans supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has urged all nations to condemn Israels brutal and cruel crime against Palestinians in the wake of the latest Mideast escalation.

Iranian state TV on Tuesday quoted Khamenei as saying that it was a duty of every state to take a stand and condemn this evil, criminal, brutal and cruel action by Israel.

Khamenei also said Palestinian need to be empowered in order to force Israel to accept their rights.

They should make themselves powerful, resist and confront so as to force the other party to withdraw from crime and surrender to whats right and fair, Khamenei said.

Khamenei added: You cannot speak to these criminals except in the language of power.

Iran is considered Israels archenemy and backs anti-Israel militant groups across the region, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.

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JERUSALEM  Israels police chief is beefing up deployments across the country in response to a wave of unrest in Arab communities.

Koby Shabtai issued the order on Tuesday as crowds set a police cruiser, motorcycle and bus on fire during protests in the central city of Lod. Protests were expected in dozens of other Arab communities across the country.

In a statement, police said Shabtai instructed his commanders to intensify police presence on the streets following widespread unrest and protests in dozens of Arab communities across the country Monday night.

The mounting unrest came at a time of heightened tensions following weeks of violence in Jerusalem and heavy fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip in the past day.

Earlier in the day in Lod, Israeli police fired tear gas and stun grenades after mourners started throwing stones at officers during the funeral of an Arab man allegedly killed by a Jewish resident in the area.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Gulf Arab countries are offering harsh criticism of Israel in the wake of the latest Israeli-Palestinian confrontation as violence rises in Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.

Hundreds of Kuwaitis staged a sit-in outside Parliament, chanting No to normalization with Israel and voicing support for the Palestinians. Tuesdays protest, which blocked traffic and drew outspoken activists, officials and lawmakers, comes as Gulf Arab sheikhdoms with new diplomatic ties to Israel increasingly condemn the escalation.

As part of the U.S.-brokered normalization agreements known as the Abraham Accords, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain opened ties with Israel last fall, reversing the decades-long Arab policy of conditioning relations on a resolution of the Mideast conflict and drawing intense backlash from the Palestinians.

The de facto leader of the UAE, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, stressed the importance of putting an end to all aggressions and practices that exacerbate tension and wrath in the sacred city of Jerusalem. He discussed flaring Mideast tensions in meetings Tuesday with the Bahraini crown prince and Jordans prime minister.

Bahrain also renewed its criticism of the rising tensions, with the speaker of parliament affirming the kingdoms support for a two-state solution and denouncing Israels provocations against the people of Jerusalem, including threatened home evictions and attacks in the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Harsh condemnations also have poured in from regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia and the tiny state of Kuwait, which have traditionally considered themselves among the standard-bearers for the Palestinian cause.

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JERUSALEM  Israeli police have fired tear gas and stun grenades after mourners started throwing stones at officers during the funeral of an Arab man allegedly killed by a Jewish resident in central Israel.

The shooting early on Tuesday in Lod came at a time of heightened tensions following weeks of unrest at a contested holy site in Jerusalem and heavy fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. The fighting has spilled over into Israels Arab sector, with protests taking place in dozens of communities across the country.

Thousands of people took part in the funeral in Lod. Police said two officers were injured and a patrol car was set on fire.

Israeli police have arrested three people suspected of involvement in the shooting.

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CAIRO  Egypts top diplomat says he has conveyed messages to Israel and other nations to help de-escalate the outbreak of violence in Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories.

Foreign Minister Sameh Shukry told a virtual meeting of Arab foreign ministers on Tuesday that though Cairo has not received a positive response, it will continue with efforts to calm down the escalation in the holy city. He did not elaborate.

Earlier in the day, an Egyptian intelligence official said Cairo is engaged in intensive talks with Israel and Gaza militants on reaching a cease-fire to end the latest round of fighting.

The Egyptian foreign minister also lashed out at Israel for its what he called violations at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem and Israels planned eviction of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

He called on all Arab nations to unite at this critical moment to prevent any attempts to change the status quo in Jerusalem, and to help Palestinians achieve their independent state with east Jerusalem as its capital.

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COPENHAGEN, Denmark  The head of the Norwegian Refugee Council has urged both Israel and the Palestinians to avoid further escalation and prevent loss of life, saying that civilians, and specifically children, pay the heaviest price after Israel unleashed new deadly airstrikes on Gaza.

The organizations chief, Jan Egeland, said on Tuesday that civilians once again were bearing the brunt of a dramatic escalation in hostilities. He added that children, whether they are Palestinian or Israeli, are left with not only physically scarred but also emotionally damaged.

The Oslo-based group called on all parties to the conflict to stop the provocations and to ensure that civilians are protected. Egeland said in a statement that the latest events also shows that the prolonged conflict and occupation are unsustainable.

Since sundown Monday, 26 Palestinians  including nine children and a woman were killed in Gaza, most by airstrikes, Gaza health officials said. During the same period, Gaza militants fired hundreds of rockets toward Israel, killing two Israeli civilians and wounding 10 others.

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KARACHI, Pakistan  Dozens of Pakistanis have rallied in the southern port city of Karachi to condemn Israels use of force against the Palestinians at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem during the holy month of Ramadan.

The demonstrators, who mostly included members of the civil society, chanted against Israel to express solidarity with the Palestinians. They also burned an Israeli and an American flag to express their anger against the use of force against Palestinian worshippers.

The demonstrators were holding a banner that read as: Israel is an illegitimate state.

The rally on Tuesday came hours after Pakistans Prime Minister Imran Khan in a televised comment denounced Israels use of force against Palestinians. Pakistan is one of the few countries that have no diplomatic relations with Israel.

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TEHRAN, Iran  The foreign minister of Iran has denounced what he calls the aggression of Israeli security forces in the holy city of Jerusalem and expressed Irans solidarity with the Palestinians amid escalating violence.

Mohammad Javad Zarif says in a video message released on Tuesday in Arabic that the attacks on the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, one of the holiest sites in Islam, are the greatest evidence there is of the discriminatory and criminal nature of Israel.

Zarif blamed Israel for fueling insecurity and instability in the region and also proposed a popular referendum in the Palestinian territories as the only just solution to the Palestinian issue so that Palestinians may decide their own fate.

Zarif affirmed that Iran is always on the side of the Palestinians and supportive of their cause and called the Palestinian conflict the pivotal issue of the Islamic world and people.

Iran is considered Israels archenemy and backs anti-Israel militant groups across the region, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.

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MADRID  A few dozen people have gathered outside the Israeli Embassy in the Spanish capital to protest Israels use of force against the Palestinians.

Most of the crowd on Tuesday in Madrid waved Palestinian flags. They shouted Israel, assassin of the Palestinian people and its Palestine, not Israel in Spanish.

Some held up photos of Palestinians being arrested by Israeli forces. All wore face masks as stipulated by Spanish health laws to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

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CAIRO  The head of the Arab League has blamed Israel for the escalation of violence in the Palestinian territories, warning that Israeli policies would blow up the situation in Jerusalem.

Ahmed Aboul Gheit, secretary-general of the 22-member organization, spoke on Tuesday as Arab foreign ministers were meeting to discuss the latest bout of violence between the Palestinians and Israelis.

He decried what he called Israels provocative practices in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and the planned eviction of Palestinian families from Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in east Jerusalem.

What we have witnessed is, clearly and frankly, a provocation by the Israeli occupation, that targeted the holiest Islamic sanctities, at at the most sacred time, he said, referring to the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

He urged the U.N. Security Council to take action.

___

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  A gathering of representatives of Muslim nations has condemned Israel for the outbreak of violence in the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem, one of the holiest sites in Islam.

The emergency meeting of the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation was held on Tuesday in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, to present a unified response from the Muslim world to the soaring tensions between Israel and the Palestinians and the latest violent confrontations in Jerusalem.

In a communique, the meeting denounced Israels continuous violations of the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, barbaric attacks against worshippers and movement restrictions on Palestinians at the compound. It said that it considered the Israeli actions a provocation of the feelings of Muslims around the world and serious violation of international law.

It called on the international community to hold Israel liable for the escalation and to press it to halt attacks that threaten the security and stability of the region. It also reaffirmed the long-standing Arab stance of support for an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital.

___

ANKARA, Turkey  The office of Turkeys president says he is engaged in intense telephone diplomacy in a bid to end Israels use of force against the Palestinians.

Since late Monday, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has spoken to Malaysias king and the leaders of Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan, as he seeks a strong stance by Muslim nations against Israel, according to Erdogans office.

The Turkish president, who has has strongly denounced Israels actions against Palestinians at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound during the fasting month of Ramadan, has also spoken to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas chief, Ismail Haniyeh.

The latest round of fighting comes as Turkey has reportedly been seeking to restore ties with Israel. The two countries withdrew their ambassadors in 2018, after the United States moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, sparking mass protests by Palestinians.

Late on Monday, thousands of protesters marched to Israels embassy in Ankara and the consulate in Istanbul to protest Israel, ignoring Turkeys COVID-19 restrictions.

___

JERUSALEM  The Israeli military says it has assassinated a senior commander of the Islamic Jihad militant group in Gaza on Tuesday,

It said the militant was the head of the Islamic Jihads rocket unit and identified him as Samih al-Mamluk. The military said other senior militants in the organization were also killed in the same strike.

Islamic Jihad confirmed the three killed in an airstrike in an apartment in Gaza City were senior members of its armed wing. The militant group vowed retaliation.

___

ISLAMABAD  Pakistans prime minister has denounced Israels use of force against Palestinians at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound during the fasting month of Ramadan.

Imran Khan said Tuesday that he had asked his foreign minister to contact his Turkish and Saudi counterparts to discuss how to collectively respond.

Earlier, Pakistans foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi at a news conference urged the world community to take notice of Israels use of force against innocent Palestinians worshippers.

Under discussion is whether Pakistan, Saudi and Turkish officials should convene the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, a group of Islamic countries.

Pakistan is one of the few countries that have no diplomatic relations with Israel.

___

JERUSALEM  Israeli media reports that a rocket has struck an empty school in the coastal city of Ashkelon, not far from the Gaza Strip.

Television footage showed thick smoke rising from cars that had caught on fire.

Israels Home Front Command had ordered the closure of schools on Monday in the area surrounding the Gaza Strip, including Ashkelon. The move came during the escalation of tension thats built for weeks over contested Jerusalem..

Since Monday, Gaza militants have fired hundreds of rockets toward Israel.

Israel has fired back. An airstrike has hit a high-rise building in the middle of Gaza City. Local media reported that Tuesdays airstrike killed an unknown number of militants inside.

The strike in the middle class Rimal neighborhood sent terrified residents of the building into the streets. They included screaming women and children, some of whom were barefoot.

Earlier Tuesday, Israel hit a high-rise where it said a Hamas commander was hiding.

___

CAIRO  An Egyptian intelligence official says Egypt is engaged in intensive talks with Israel and Gaza militants on reaching a cease-fire to end the latest round of fighting.

The official said the efforts began in late April as the situation in Jerusalem worsened. He said Israeli actions, including the recent storming of the Al-Aqsa mosque and the planed evictions of Palestinian families from their homes in an east Jerusalem neighborhood, have frustrated the mediators.

The official says the situation is changing rapidly, but officials nonetheless hope to reach a truce before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr later this week. Egypt frequently mediates between Israel and Hamas.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing ongoing diplomatic efforts.

Samy Magdy in Cairo

___

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  An Israeli airstrike has hit another high-rise building in the middle of Gaza City. Local media reported that Tuesdays airstrike killed an unknown number of militants inside.

But the airstrike in the middle-class Rimal neighborhood in Gaza sent terrified residents of the building into the streets. They included screaming women and children, some of whom were barefoot.

Earlier on Tuesday, Israel hit a high-rise where it said a Hamas commander was hiding. Palestinian health officials said a woman and her 19-year-old disabled son were killed. The fate of the Hamas commander was not immediately known.

Since Monday, Gaza militants have also fired hundreds of rockets toward Israel.

The escalation in the conflict was sparked by weeks of tensions in contested Jerusalem.
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP)  Veronica Verdino, an Argentine doctor, helped a therapist insert a tube into the trachea of a COVID-19 patient during another hectic day in a hospital emergency room.

Verdino, 31, has become adept at the delicate procedure during the current outbreak of coronavirus cases that has filled clinics in Buenos Aires and nearby towns with patients.

A little over a year ago, before the pandemic hit Argentina, Verdino did not imagine that she would be performing so many intubations, and helping others with the same procedure, at the Llavallol Dr. Norberto Raul Piacentini Hospital in the town of Lomas de Zamora, outside Buenos Aires.

Now doctors who used to be on duty in general wards have become experts in this and other complex techniques typical of intensive care specialists as they help patients who are seriously ill with COVID-19. Some wards have been converted into intensive care units because the outbreak is straining the health system.

The situation at the hospital where Verdino works is similar in many public and private health facilities in Buenos Aires and nearby towns, with an average of more than 20,000 infections and 400 deaths per day in recent weeks and 100% occupation of ICUs in some centers.

Doctors say they are seeing many younger patients, partly because youths are being infected with coronavirus variants at social gatherings, while older people are protected by vaccines they have received.

Were cutting corners everywhere ... We have all the illnesses other than COVID, plus this (coronavirus) wave that exploded, Verdino told The Associated Press during a recent 24-hour shift.

The husband of the woman who was intubated by Verdino stared dejectedly through the glass from the other side of a door. Nearby, in another room, two patients lay connected to respirators. A few meters away, a man who had just died was placed in a black plastic bag.

A few days later, on another grueling shift, Verdino climbed onto a small bench next to the bed of a man she had tried to intubate, leaned over his chest and performed CPR in a desperate attempt to save his life. Several of her colleagues helped her.

The patient died. Verdina and her colleague, Stephanie Munoz, took time to prepare the mans body and the room before his son viewed him through the window of the door.

Nurses describe a situation known as warm bed, in which a patient who has died is promptly replaced in a room by another seriously ill person.

General ward medics have also learned to master the use of complex drugs that keep patients sedated and to study electrocardiograms and CT scans, as well as to perform laryngoscopes. They do it as oxygen supplies become scarce in hospitals, which have formed networks to assist each other when they can.

I was used to working a lot but this overwhelms you in everything, said nurse Silvia Cardoso, who works with Verdino.

Cardoso said she was shocked by the number of young people who are hospitalized with serious symptoms, something that did not happen previously.

It could be prevented, she lamented, suggesting that some young people had not observed health protocols.

Police in some Argentine towns often break up clandestine parties. In restaurants that serve outdoors, tables full of diners are placed close to each other. Parks are full of people having picnics and playing sports. There are frequent social protests, including for higher wages, in Buenos Aires.

With people exhausted by quarantines and vaccination programs going slowly, politicians argue over issues such as whether to allow students back to class. During a peak of coronavirus cases, students went to school in Buenos Aires but were not allowed to do so in the city suburbs, creating a confusing situation.

Many doctors try to stay out of the political disputes, instead urging people to stick to measures aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19. Argentina has so far reported more than 67,300 confirmed deaths and more than 3.1 million people sickened by the disease.

If people don't collaborate, the point will come where the health system collapses, Verdino said.

___

Associated Press journalist Natacha Pisarenko contributed to this report.
When automobiles first came on the scene, more than a century ago, society was unprepared for this new invention  horseless carriages tearing through towns at frightening speeds of 10 mph or even faster, making noise, giving off smoke, and terrifying the animals.

So, in 1901, the Connecticut General Assembly passed a speed limit law (8 mph in town, 12 mph outside city limits) that also required drivers to slow down or even come to a complete stop to avoid scaring the horses. Eventually there would be posted speed limits, traffic cops, and mandatory driving licenses.

Rules were clearly needed to regulate this new technology, and they came along over time, city by city and state by state.

Today were trying to come to terms with another new technology  solar panel arrays. Unlike early cars, they are silent, give off no fumes and scare no horses. In fact, they mark a big step forward in both environmental protection and energy conservation.

But we dont yet have clear rules, across the board, for when a homeowner can have ground solar panels, where they can be located, how big they can be, and other questions that may come up.

Enter Southington Town Planner Rob Phillips, who has suggested ground-mounted solar panel regulations that are modeled after other area towns and regional planners. Phillips said the town should consider clarifying the process for installing them.

We really don't have a mechanism for this, he said.

And a mechanism is just whats needed. With solar power gaining in popularity, and with the costs of solar installations coming down, its time to bring some order to the process.

So far, most residential installations have consisted of rooftop panels, which have a relatively minor effect on the look of a neighborhood. But Rich Vocke, owner of Evergreen Energy and a solar panel installer, said there aren't clear rules for when a homeowner can have ground solar panels.

Vocke prompted the town to look at adopting rules that would allow the Planning and Zoning Commission to approve installations with a special permit. The PZC has now voted unanimously in favor of the suggested regulations.

Some of the most permissive towns in the state simply have a box to check on building permits for installing ground-mounted solar. Others require approval from a planning agency.

Southingtons new regulations limit solar panels to no more than 12 feet in height. The array can't be larger than 50 percent of the square footage of the property's main building, up to 600 square feet. Arrays can't be in front yards and the commission could require screening to make the panels less visible to neighbors.

Its a start. The regulations could evolve as the community gets used to seeing ground solar arrays in residential areas. The aesthetics of these arrays are bound to cause controversy in many cases, but now, fortunately, there are ground rules that all must follow.
JERUSALEM (AP)  For weeks now, Palestinian protesters and Israeli police have clashed on a daily basis in and around Jerusalem's Old City, home to major religious sites sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims and the emotional epicenter of the Middle East conflict.

Jerusalem has been the scene of violent confrontations between Jews and Arabs for 100 years and remains one of the most bitterly contested cities on earth. The latest clashes began a month ago with an Israeli move to block some Palestinian gatherings at the beginning of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, already a time of heightened religious sensitivities. After those restrictions eased, tensions over a plan to evict dozens of Palestinians from an east Jerusalem neighborhood continued to fuel confrontations.

On Monday, stun grenades echoed across a holy hilltop compound, and hundreds of Palestinians were hurt in clashes between stone-throwing protesters and police firing tear gas and rubber bullets. Police were also injured.

Here's a look at why Jerusalem always seems to be on edge  and what set off the latest round of violence.

CAPITAL OF TWO PEOPLES

Israel views Jerusalem as its unified, eternal capital. It had captured east Jerusalem, which includes the Old City, in the 1967 Mideast war, along with the West Bank and Gaza. Palestinians want those territories for their future state, with east Jerusalem serving as their eventual capital. But Israel annexed the eastern part of the city in a move not recognized internationally.

The fate of east Jerusalem has been one of the thorniest issues in the peace process, which ground to a halt more than a decade ago.

Israelis on Monday were set to mark Jerusalem Day, a national holiday celebrating the annexation. In past years, thousands of Israelis  mainly religious nationalists  have marched through the Old City, including the densely populated Muslim Quarter, in a display considered provocative by many Palestinians.

In recent days, hard-line Israelis have staged other events in east Jerusalem, leading to scattered, violent altercations with Palestinians.

___

THE HOLY HILLTOP

Monday's clashes took place in and around the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City. The mosque is the third-holiest site in Islam and sits on a sprawling plateau that is also home to the iconic golden Dome of the Rock. Muslims refer to the compound as the Noble Sanctuary.

The walled plateau is also the holiest site for Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount, because it was the location of biblical temples. Romans destroyed the Second Temple in 70 A.D., with only the Western Wall remaining. The mosques were built centuries later.

Neighboring Jordan serves as the custodian of the site, which is operated by an Islamic endowment known as the Waqf. The site is open to tourists during certain times but only Muslims are allowed to pray there. The Western Wall is the holiest site where Jews can pray.

In recent years, groups of religious and nationalist Jews escorted by police have been visiting the compound in greater numbers and holding prayers in defiance of rules established after 1967 by Israel, Jordan and Muslim religious authorities. The Palestinians view the frequent visits and attempted prayers by Jews as a provocation, and it often ignites scuffles or more serious violence.

Some Israelis say the site should be open to all worshippers. The Palestinians refuse, fearing that Israel will eventually take over the site or partition it. Israeli officials say they have no intention of changing the status quo.

___

DISCRIMINATORY POLICIES

Jews born in east Jerusalem are Israeli citizens, while Palestinians from east Jerusalem are granted a form of permanent residency that can be revoked if they live outside the city for an extended period. They can apply for citizenship, but it's a long and uncertain process and most choose not to because they don't recognize Israeli control.

Israel has built Jewish settlements in east Jerusalem that are home to some 220,000 people. It has severely limited the growth of Palestinian neighborhoods, leading to overcrowding and the unauthorized construction of thousands of homes that are at risk of demolition.

The Israeli rights group B'Tselem and the New York-based Human Rights Watch cited the discriminatory policies in east Jerusalem in recent reports arguing that Israel is guilty of the crime of apartheid. Israel rejects those allegations, saying Jerusalem residents are treated equally.

___

THREATENED EVICTIONS

The recent nightly clashes began at the start of Ramadan, when Israeli police placed barriers outside the Old Citys Damascus Gate, a popular gathering place after the evening prayers during the holy month when Muslims fast from dawn to dusk. They later removed the barriers, but then protests escalated over the threatened eviction of dozens of Palestinian families from the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

The families have been embroiled in a long legal battle with ideological Jewish settlers who seek to acquire property in crowded Palestinian neighborhoods just outside the Old City. Israel portrays it as a private real-estate dispute, but the families' plight has attracted global attention.

___

WIDER UNREST

Clashes in Jerusalem, and particularly in Al-Aqsa, often reverberate across the region.

The Palestinian militant group Hamas, which rules Gaza, has called for a new intifada, or uprising, like the one triggered by an Israeli politician's visit to Al-Aqsa in 2000. Gaza militants have fired rockets and balloons with incendiary devices attached to them in support of the protesters as an informal cease-fire with Israel has started to fray.

Protests have been held in the occupied West Bank and in Arab communities inside Israel. A series of deadly shootings in the West Bank last week has also heightened tensions.

Jordan and other Arab nations that have friendly ties with Israel have condemned its crackdown on the protests, while Israel's archenemy Iran has encouraged Palestinian attacks. The U.S. and the EU have condemned the violence and expressed concern about the evictions.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Lafayette Square, the park across from the White House, reopened Monday to the public nearly a year after federal authorities fenced off the area at the height of nationwide protests over policing following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

The square, which offers perhaps the best view of the White House to the public, was closed after U.S. Park Police officers last June forcefully dispersed protesters who had gathered near the White House.
RICHLAND, Wash. (AP)  A nuclear power plant in Washington state was shut down over the weekend for a planned 40-day refueling outage, welcoming about 1,400 new temporary jobs to help staff the outage.

The Columbia Generating Station near Richland was disconnected on Saturday so workers can replace about a third of the fuel in the reactors core  260 of 764 fuel assemblies  that has been used for six years, The Tri-City Herald reported.

The temporary workers will assist about 1,000 permanent employees at Energy Northwest, the public utility company that operates the generating station.

The 1,000 workers that make the Tri-Cities their temporary home during the refueling outage often stay at our local hotels, shop the stores and eat at local restaurants, said Karl Dye, president of the Tri-City Development Council. Its a boost to our local economy.

The plant is the third-largest electricity generator in the state and has the capacity to produce 1,207 megawatts of electricity, or enough to power a city the size of Seattle and its metro area. It is usually shut down every other year for refueling and maintenance as snowmelt and runoff maximize hydropower production and mild weather decreases electricity demand, officials said.

Energy Northwest said all employees at the plant will arrive at staggered times, have health screenings and temperature checks to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Face masks and social distancing are being enforced.

Vaccinations are not required but Energy Northwest is working with the state health department to ensure vaccine doses are available to employees who want to be inoculated.

In addition to refueling the plant, workers will install a refurbished low-pressure turbine needed to continue operations at the plant until 2043. Employees will also replace reactor water cleanup heat exchangers and piping; refurbish a condensate pump and motor; replace a service water pump and motor; and clean the circulating water basin and piping.

The plant is expected to supply power again in June.
Kevin J. Keller is the content director for Coastal Bend Publishing and the editor of the Beeville Bee-Picayune. He can be reached by email at sports@mysoutex.com or by phone at 361-343-5223, or you can follow him on Twitter @beepicsports.

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An 8-year-old boy who wore a Black Lives Matter shirt to his elementary school in Oklahoma was forced to turn it inside out by his principal and then punished when he wore it again, his mother said in a series of Facebook posts.
Yves here. I hate to sound like a naysayer, but American needs more than community colleges to reverse the march of rising income inequality. We need much higher income taxes on top brackets, no or a very severely restricted capital gains tax break, and higher estate taxes, as well as stronger protections of worker rights. Even though upskilling sounds all well and good, the reality is that there arent all that many who will benefit from going to community college, much the less attain a middle class income from that level of education. The PMC Let them eat training has repeatedly been shown to be empty, particularly for older workers. And thats before getting to a geographic mis-match: that workers too often wind up in declining areas, but lack the contacts and the walking-around money to get situated in a new location.

And an actual economy-wide increase in the number of technical jobs goes against the neoliberal tide. There are virtually no entry level computer science positions; regular queries on how to get hired in a hostile market from new computer science grads in Slashdot over the last nearly two decades confirms that. Similarly, since before the crisis, entry-level work in the law has also been greatly reduced, with legal research increasing done by algos and staffers in India. How can professionals learn their craft if US companies refuse to bear the cost of their training? The trajectory is towards more hollowing out, not less.

And thats before getting to the ceding of supervisory and plant-manager level skills on the manufacturing front. Those would take quite some time to rebuild, along with industrial-policy type subsidies. But the US is allergic to that sort of thing, except by accident (see our bloated health care and higher education sectors as examples).

That is not to say that the Biden programs wont do some good. But they fall well short of the sort of root and branch changes needed to create more opportunities for middle and lower income workers.

By Tom Conway, the international president of the United Steelworkers Union (USW). Produced by the Independent Media Institute

Nick Kessler lived paycheck to paycheckeking life out of his bald tires, praying to God nothing broke at homeuntil he landed a union position at U.S. Steel in Granite City, Illinois, three years ago.

While that job changed his life, Kessler didnt stop there. He also took advantage of free training, provided under the United Steelworkers (USW) contract with the company, to advance to a highly skilled electricians role that provides even more security for his wife and young son.

President Joe Bidens American Families Plan would make that kind of transformative opportunity available to all, giving millions of workers greater access to family-sustaining jobs while helping the nation rebuild the middle class.

Among many other provisions, Bidens plan would provide access to two years of tuition-free community college and training to every American.

Its essential that Congress now pass legislation that enacts the plan and paves the way for more Americans to obtain associate degrees, commercial drivers licenses or professional certifications in the skilled trades and other crucial fields.

Your education is something nobody can ever take from you, said Kessler, a member of USW Local 1899, noting skills like his enhance his employment prospects no matter where he lives.

The electricians and the plumbers and the carpenters and the welders are the ones that keep everything going, he observed. The demand for the trades is the highest that its been in years.

And the demand will only grow exponentially under the American Jobs Plan, the presidents call to invest nearly $2 trillion in infrastructure, including roads and bridges, locks and dams, schools and airports, manufacturing facilities, the electric grid, new energy systems and communication networks.

These long-overdue infrastructure investments, long championed by the USW, will lift America out of the COVID-19 recession, rebuild the economy and strengthen the country for the next crisis.

The nation will need pipefitters, electricians, carpenters, welders and other skilled workers not only to construct roads and refurbish buildings but also to fill highly technical jobs like Kesslers in steel mills, foundries and other plants that manufacture the materials and equipment for infrastructure projects.

According to Georgetown Universitys Center on Education and the Workforce, [t]he infrastructure plan would create or save 15 million jobs over 10 years. Workers could obtain the skills needed for many of those jobs with six months of training or less.

Providing workers with a pathway for that upskilling will be essential to meeting the nations infrastructure needs. While union members often receive training benefits through their contracts, many Americans currently lack those opportunities.

Before joining the USW at U.S. Steel, for example, Kessler took electricians classes at a community college but found the tuition too expensive to complete the program on his own.

Another steelworker, Erik Boyer, picked up mechanical skills as best he could while working on cars in his backyard.

Now, after accepting a job at Cleveland-Cliffs New Carlisle Works in Indiana and testing into the mechanical program, Boyer will get the combination of classroom instruction and on-the-job training he needs to formalize and complete his education in a year to 14 months.

He knows many more Americans would consider careers in the trades if they knew that the jobs and training were available to them.

That opens things up to a lot of people, Boyer, a member of USW Local 9231, said of Bidens college and training proposal. It does provide answers to a lot of problems.

USW Local 14581 in Elkhorn City, Kentucky, operates an on-the-job training program with decades of success putting workers into family-sustaining highway construction jobs like truck drivers, carpenters, drillers, blasters and grader and roller operators.

Local President Gypsy Cantrell realizes that many more local residents would benefit from the programnow supported by government agencies and contractorsand hopes that funds from the American Families Plan will enable her to expand it.

Among other possibilities, she would like to establish a training center so she can begin offering classroom instruction, install equipment simulators and bring in retired union members to offer their expertise. She said some trainees, like carpenters, could even put their skills to use in community service projects as part of an enhanced curriculum.

The need is there, Cantrell said, noting an expanded program would enable the local to provide skilled workers for new projects generated through Bidens infrastructure push.

Women and workers of color have long fought for equitable opportunities in the nations economy, and the education benefits afforded by the American Families Plan would help to level the playing field.

An expansion of the Local 14581 training program, for example, would boost the unions longstanding efforts to place struggling residents like DeDe Wallace in family-sustaining jobs. Wallaces training as a grader operator enabled her to raise three grandchildren after her husband, Ricky, became disabled and later died.

I dont know what would have happened to them if I hadnt been able to take care of them, Wallace, who retired in 2018, said of her grown and successful grandkids.

Because of his past struggles, Kessler appreciates what he has now all the more.

Hes happy to be able to provide for his family. But hes also proud to wield skills essential to the nations prosperity.

Its a pretty great career, he said.
Neanderthals carb loaded, helping grow their big brains Science

In the emptiness of space, Voyager 1 detects plasma hum Phys.org (dk).

Brood X Cicadas Are Emerging at Last Scientific American

Yves supplies this Note on Mayberry v. KKR (see NC most recently here for background):

A sad day Monday in Frankfort, KY. The lawyers representing the so-called Tier 3 Plaintiffs had found a lot of troubling information about the supposedly independent investigator hired to examine the Kentucky Retirement System claims.whod never managed an independent investigation and only experience with public pension funds was having been a protege of Alan Hevesi during the time when he was looting them. Judge Philip Shepherd didnt take kindly to the motion theyd filed presenting this information. He effectively said he didnt regard the press (even a three month investigation by the New York Times back in the day when it could afford to have actual reporters) as a valid source of information, that anyone who had ever tried to do anything important had gotten negative press, and chided them for making ad hominem attacks.

Inside Pictet, the Secretive Swiss Bank for the Worlds Richest People Bloomberg

Nix Facebooks plan to create Instagram for kids, state attorneys general urge CEO Mark Zuckerberg USA Today

Dont Trust the Antitrust Narrative on Farms LPE Project

The Chip Shortage Keeps Getting Worse. Why Cant We Just Make More? Bloomberg. Wait. Youre telling me the world doesnt change just because we plug new values into our spreadsheets?

#COVID19

China?

Worried by rise in COVID-19 cases, Taiwan bans large scale gatherings Focus Taiwan

Philippines Plans Military Hub, Sea Cameras Amid China Row Bloomberg

Agent Orange: French court rejects claim against Bayer Deutsche Welle

Myanmar

India

Syraqistan

UK/EU

Biden Administration

Biden leading whole of government response to Colonial Pipeline attack The Hill. The nature of the attack is not clear; could it really be that Colonial shut down the pipeline because its billing system was crippled?!

Pipeline Hackers Say Theyre Apolitical, Will Choose Targets More Carefully Next Time Vice (Re Silc).

Health Care

Our Famously Free Press

Guillotine Watch

Jeff Bezoss New Yacht Comes With Its Own Yacht? New York Magazine. The Man needs an escape pod. Sensible.

Survivors Stuck in Limbo as PG&E Fire Victim Trust Pays Out $50 Million in Fees KQED

Class Warfare

The Psychedelic Revolution Is Coming. Psychiatry May Never Be the Same. NYT (Furzy Mouse).

Antidote du jour (via):

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.
We published a post on work at the University of California, San Francisco, to identify existing drugs that looked like they had the potential to treat Covid, as in at a minimum reduce the severity of disease (We Found and Tested 47 Old Drugs That Might Treat the Coronavirus: Results Show Promising Leads and a Whole New Way to Fight COVID-19). But that was before the vaccine effort was far enough along to look like it was likely to bear fruit.

As weve pointed out, the West has gone all in with the vaccine magic bullet approach, when thats not a great public health idea, unless the goal is the low bar of keeping hospitals from collapsing. Its unlikely that any vaccine that combats a respiratory virus will achieve the level of sterilizing immunity.1 The current round of vaccines accordingly produce 90%ish immunity against serious disease and death.for how long? Six months? Eight months? Maybe a year? And thats before the potential for variants to lower the efficacy of vaccines just administered.

So a multi-pronged approach would seem to be desirable if the aim is to have the public feel safe enough to resume something like the old normal. That means keeping up handwashing and masking in many indoor settings, and emphasizing ventilation. It also means using prophylactics and treatments. Yet its hardly news that discussion of using old off patent drugs as treatments is being depicted as crank-dom. As reader Richard Needham said over the weekend:

JAMA, considered the gold standard for clinical research in the US, has just published an article on March 4 by Lopez-Medina et al. claiming that the compound that can not be named is ineffective in C19. As a start, read the comments in JAMA and then those in an open letter signed by 100 physicians pointing our the flaws in this study (https://trialsitenews.com/open-letter-by-u-s-doctors-jama-ivermectin-study-is-fatally-flawed/). As a scientist and reviewer I can state that the paper would be embarrassing for anything other than a paper submitted to a Junior High School Science Fair. Well-designed studies with much more data, including meta-analyses, coming to the opposite conclusion have been accepted after peer review in other journals like Nature and the Lancet, only to have the editors reject them. A practice I have never heard of Yet JAMA is, a journal other professionals would find to be credible. Laymen accept the cachet of the top journals but nobody who publishes in them does. Paper quality varies widely in the top journals even when there are no financial interests at stake but I have had many amusing conversations at meetings about terrible papers published in them. Now add to that that massive money stakes are involved in the veracity of the statement that IVM is safe, cheap, and extraordinarily effective. Vaccines for variants, alternative useless but expensive meds like remdesivir, new oral medications, etc. are potentially worth at least 10s of billions of dollars. JAMA and other journals, WHO, medical schools, and to a lesser extent NIH, have been captured by big Pharma and the interests of Bill and Melinda Gates. Unfortunately writing this I have reproduced the insanity of those that claim that scientists have a cure for cancer but are suppressing it to ensure their incomes. However, simply look at the resistance to supplying vaccine off-patent to the world population to avoid massive death for an example of the same attitude. There are no credible journals but no lack of medical professionals who do not read the literature but depend upon the NIH, WHO, and JAMA rather than forming their own opinions from the data and acting upon them in the clinic. A hopeful sign is that many front-line physicians recognize that their judgement matters and are willing to take on the derision of their colleagues by supplying their patients with IVM. It is called practicing medicine and is an ethical responsibility that can not be avoided.

Four top medical researchers just resigned from Frontiers in Pharmacology in protest over the rejection of two papers that had gotten to the final validation stage of the review process, which is by editors of the publication, and not independent experts. One was on Ivermectin, the other on Celecoxib and high does Famotidine adjuvant therapy. Weve reproduced their resignation letters so you can see their description of how these cases were handled. Note the initial the refusal to splain the basis for rejection of papers that had made it through all the previous review stages, which when the reviewers did not back down, shifted into nonsensical bureaucratic pretexts and insinuations that the guest editors had behaved improperly).

As youll see, Frontiers went scorched earth. Per the missive below:

At this point, based on these many actions, we are unable to assure scientific integrity of the peer review process on the part of the journal for this special topic. Our time and that of the peer reviewers has been donated to the journal, and our reputations used without compensation. We ask to be removed from association with this special topic area, that an apology be issued to ourselves and our respective institutions for the actions of the journal in this matter, and that the special topic (which we had developed with full approval by the journal) be discontinued effective immediately. Having communicated to Frontiers that this would be our collective action if corrections were not made to this extraordinary re-review process, Frontiers has elected to expel each of the guest editors from any ongoing or future role as editors, and to close down and wipe all electronic evidence that the special topic had ever even been approved or had manuscripts submitted under the topic approved. This decision was disclosed in email communications with all corresponding authors of published, approved, or pending manuscripts, but not with the guest editors who had created the topic and solicited and managed review of the manuscripts. The scientific process requires fair, open, and transparent peer review to proceed effectively and efficiently  particularly at this time and for this topic. The actions of Frontiers in this matter clearly violate well established norms and processes for peer review and publication of scientific works and intellectual contributions, and instead have substituted a unilateral, arbitrary, and capricious process. On behalf of our peers, our institutions, and our scientific and medical colleagues we cannot allow this precedent to remain unchallenged. In our opinion, these unfortunate events constitute gross editorial misconduct by Frontiers.

I hope the guest authors can retrieve the articles that were reviewed and published properly from the Wayback Machine, in nothing else, for the benefit of the authors of those paper, and publish a Banned by Frontiers or somesuch site, ideally on a server beyond the reach of the Frontiers intellectual property police.2

Frontiers in Pharmacology likes to think its a serious venue. Its site states:

Frontiers in Pharmacology is the worlds 2nd most-cited open-access journal in its field and ranks in the top Impact Factor and CiteScore percentiles.

Perhaps more important, one of the four signatories is a Serious Expert:

Dr. Robert Malone, MD, MS Scientifically trained at UC Davis, UC San Diego, and at the Salk Institute Molecular Biology and Virology laboratories, Dr. Malone is an internationally recognized scientist (virology, immunology, molecular biology) and is known as the inventor of mRNA vaccination and one of the original inventors of DNA Vaccination. Dr. Malone holds numerous fundamental domestic and foreign patents in the fields of gene delivery, delivery formulations, and vaccines. Dr. Malone has 11,060 citations of his publications, as verified by Google Scholars.

So Malone is just about the last person one could charge as having a prejudice against mRNA vaccines.

As IM Doc summed it up: It is not just Facebook  The censorship is real.

___

1 Although Covid increasingly looks like an endothelial virus.

2 Authors almost always retain a copyright interest (yes, there are plenty of variations, so forgive me for not belaboring details), so the authors could bless any hoisting and republication from the Wayback Machine. The only Frontiers beef would be use of their name and image, but the argument is that the association of that name and image was valid as of the time of publication, and Frontiers have a time machine to retroactively revoke the publication agreements they signed with the various authors.
I began my journalism career in Nashville in 1990, with my current position with Nashville Post having evolved since October 2000 (when I was with the now-defunct The City Paper, a sister publication of the Post starting in 2008).

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(Natural News) A respected health expert in Idaho said, it is an absolute insanity to wear a mask outside during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The virus is fragile. It doesnt live outside. UV light fractionates it, kills it, blows it apart. Ventilation and wind blow it away, said Dr. Ryan Cole, CEO of Cole Diagnostics  one of the largest independent laboratories in the state.

Thats science. There is not one study that has shown any super-spreader event to have occurred outside. They have all been indoors with poor ventilation.

Healthy immune system is best mask of all

Speaking in front of a government body, Cole emphasized the importance of vitamin D during these times. (Related: Vitamin D Guide infographic explains importance of vitamin D for optimal health.)

The best mask of all is a healthy immune system, he said. And a healthy immune system does not occur if you dont have (vitamin) D in normal range. Vitamin D is the key to having a healthy immune system.

According to Cole, established world data shows that normal vitamin D levels decrease COVID symptom severity and risk for hospitalization by up to 90 percent. Normal vitamin D levels also decrease rates of colon, breast and thyroid cancers, as well as depression and suicide rates.

If you are vitamin D deficient, you are susceptible to the common cold, the flu, coronavirus of any sort, bacterial pneumonia, he said.

Cole also called out public health officials for not doing enough to accentuate the importance of vitamin D in the ongoing battle against COVID-19. He noted that 70 percent of the world population and up to 80 percent of Americans are vitamin D deficient.

This should be the public health message from the pulpit of Washington and from the pulpit of every state. If you have healthy immune system, you have a healthy population, he said. We are not emphasizing that. Give the right message.

Lockdowns deprive people of vitamin D

Many have been deprived of vitamin D as more people stay indoors during the pandemic because of government-imposed lockdowns. Normally, people get vitamin D by spending time outside. The skin makes it when exposed to the sun.

In the U.K., the National Health Service (NHS) says people should consider taking 10 micrograms of vitamin D a day if they are spending a lot of time indoors. Scottish and Welsh governments and Northern Irelands Public Health Agency issued similar advice during lockdowns.

Public Health England recommends vitamin D throughout the year for people who are not often outdoors, for people who live in homecare and for people who always wear clothes that cover up most of their skin when outside.

Studies suggest adequate vitamin D levels help to fight common colds and flu. The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) says studies on using vitamin D for treating or preventing chest infections showed insufficient evidence to be worthy of recommendation. But experts think that vitamin D may have some broader health benefits during the pandemic to keep people as nutritionally fit as possible.

Some researchers have also suggested that vitamin D deficiency might be linked with poorer outcomes if someone catches coronavirus.

People need regular time outdoors to get enough vitamin D

Not a lot of foods naturally contain significant amounts of vitamin D, so people need to have regular time outdoors to ensure they get enough of the vitamin. When the suns ultraviolet B (UVB) rays hit a persons skin, processes inside the tissue start making vitamin D for the body to use. But it is important to remember that too much sun exposure can burn the skin and potentially lead to skin cancer.

The sun is the best natural source of vitamin D. Spending even a short time in the sun can provide the body with all of the vitamin D it needs for the day. According to the Vitamin D Council, this could be 15 minutes for a person with light skin and a couple of hours for a person with dark skin. (Related: Every person needs sunlight exposure to create vitamin D, obesity impairs vitamin D absorption.)

Darker-skinned people have more melanin, a compound that protects against skin damage by reducing the amount of UVB light absorbed, so they need more time in sunlight to make the same amount of vitamin D as lighter-skinned people.

Aside from being the key to a healthy immune system, vitamin D is important to have healthy bones, teeth and muscles. Vitamin D helps the body to absorb calcium, which is one of the main building blocks of bone. Lack of vitamin D can lead to a bone deformity illness called rickets in children, and a similar bone weakness condition called osteomalacia in adults. Deficiency affects mental health as well.

Although vitamin D supplements are generally considered safe, taking more than the recommended amount every day can be dangerous in the long run. People with certain medical conditions, such as kidney problems, should talk to a healthcare professional before taking vitamin D supplements.

A 2010 study published in JAMA showed that high doses of vitamin D in older women were associated with more falls and fractures.

Taking a supplement that contains too much vitamin D can be toxic in rare cases. It can lead to hypercalcemia, a condition in which too much calcium builds up in the blood, potentially forming deposits in the arteries or soft tissues. It may also predispose women to painful kidney stones.

Follow VitaminD.news to know more about the benefits of vitamin D.

Sources include:

ModernSurvivalBlog.com

BBC.com

MedicalNewsToday.com
(Natural News) Pastor Artur Pawlowski of Kings Glory Fellowship (KGF) in Calgary was arrested over the weekend for inciting churchgoers to attend in-person worship services in violation of Canadas stay-at-home orders.

Footage shows a suited Pawlowski kneeling down in the middle of what appears to be a busy highway as masked police officers in SWAT gear handcuff him and carry him away to jail.

Pawlowski famously appeared several weeks back in circulating video clips telling gestapo to leave his church building after they tried to shut down a worship service -mid-stream.

Believing that God would protect him for his faithfulness, Pawlowski continued to hold church services in defiance of the stay-at-home order, which prompted police officers to return and terrorize him.

As Pawlowski was headed home from church on Sunday, police appeared to arrested him, dragging him along the roadway in a dramatic scene that has since gone viral.

A heavily-armed SWAT team just took down a Christian pastor heading home from church, tweeted Ezra Levant from Rebel News. Police say hes charged with inciting people to go to church. This is the second pastor jailed this year.

Levant and Rebel News have set up a crowdfunding platform to raise money for Pawlowskis legal defense. You can learn more about how to support the effort at SaveArtur.com.

Canadian police brag about persecuting Pawlowski

Following the arrest, the Calgary Police Department took to Twitter to brag about its persecution of Pawlowski, who as far as we know is still sitting in jail.

Earlier today, police arrested two organizers of a church service who were in violation of a new court order obtained by Alberta Health Services in relation to mandatory compliance of public health orders for gatherings, the department wrote.

This sick display of anti-Christian persecution by Canadian police is foreboding for Americans, who are also well on their way to facing this type of treatment in the coming months.

We already saw this last summer when Chicago Democrats threatened to bulldoze a church for holding services in defiance of the citys stay-at-home orders.

Police are boasting about jailing a Christian pastor for organizing an illegal in-person gathering, including requesting, inciting or inviting others to attend an illegal public gathering, promoting and attending an illegal public gathering, Levant responded in a tweet.

Both Pawlowski and his brother, who also works at the church, were both taken into custody following the confrontation.

What Canadians and many Americans are witnessing is medical fascism on full display. Obey the medical police state or pay seems to be the governments mantra with regard to fighting the Chinese Virus, and most North Americans seem to be okay with it.

The police abuse seen in the video of Pawlowskis arrest is causing some conservatives to question their undying loyalty to and adoration of the police, who are clearly defying the oath they took to serve and protect the people, not medical fascists like Anthony Fauci and Bill Gates.

Weve seen over and over throughout the pandemic, including in the United States, where police bend the knee to tyrannical regulations from political figures that they have no business enforcing, reported Red State.

You can not [sic] trust these people, no matter how valiant they may be most of the time in their duties, to ensure your liberties. Thats another reason the Second Amendment is so absolutely crucial to maintain.

Be sure to check out SaveArtur.com to learn more about how you can help support Pawlowski in his fight against medical fascism.

More related news stories about Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) tyranny and persecution can be found at Pandemic.news.

Sources for this article include:

TheRightScoop.com

NaturalNews.com

RedState.com
(Natural News) Mexico plans to ban genetically modified (GM) corn and glyphosate by January 2024. And agrochemical giants operating in the United States where Mexico gets over a quarter of its corn are not happy about it. Emails revealed companies like Bayer AG, along with U.S. officials, are pressuring Mexico to drop the ban.

In a letter sent Thursday, April 29, to important figures in the Biden administration, a coalition of 80 nonprofit groups in the U.S. wrote that they strongly object to any interference by U.S. government officials in a sovereign states right to enact policies that protect the health and well-being of its citizens.

The letter is referring to Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obradors decree on Dec. 31 to ban GM corn, which has been linked to health concerns, and glyphosate, a potential cancer-causing agent present in herbicides.

The bold policy fulfills a campaign promise by the countrys populist president, whose own agricultural policies have begun to favor small-scale Mexican farmers. Some analysts say the decree also inadvertently helps protect consumers alarmed by the growing prevalence of chronic diseases associated with processed foods.

The letter, published online in English and Spanish, was confirmed to have been addressed to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai. Its lead author is Kristin Schafer, executive director of Pesticide Action Network North America (PANNA), an anti-pesticide group.

In a statement, Schafer said they are calling on Secretary Vilsack and Trade Rep. Tai to respect Mexicos decision to protect both public health and the integrity of Mexican farming.

Schafer said it was unacceptable for U.S. agencies to do the bidding of corporations like Bayer, which are solely concerned with generating profits from pesticides and GM crops.

Notable signatories include Beyond Pesticides, Center for Biological Diversity and Center for Food Safety.

U.S. officials and Bayer join forces to quash glyphosate, GM corn phaseout

The letter highlighted a recent article by The Guardian in which journalist Carey Gillam reported how industry lobbyist CropLife America and biotech company Bayer AG have been working closely with U.S. officials to pressure the Mexican government into dropping its intended ban on glyphosate and GM corn.

Gillams report was based on internal emails from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) and other agencies obtained by the Center for Biological Diversity through a Freedom of Information Act request.

The emails detailed worry and frustration over Mexicos decision to ban glyphosate and GM corn. In one email, the sender made a reference to staff within Lopez Obradors administration as vocal anti-biotechnology activists. Another email said Mexicos health agency was becoming a big-time problem.

In the letter to Vilsack and Tai, Schafer wrote that the emails showed how the agrochemical industry has continuously sought to undermine the Mexican governments decision to protect its peoples health, environment and the integrity of its food and farming systems.

The letter urged the U.S. agencies involved to resist and reject these efforts by the agrochemical industry.

Mexico to ban glyphosate, GM corn

In banning glyphosate, Lopez Obrador cited the growing body of evidence that glyphosate can lead to cancer. It has even racked Bayer thousands of lawsuits from consumers who said the weedkiller Roundup, now owned by Bayer, gave them cancer. Roundup contains glyphosate. (Related: Bayer strikes $2 billion deal over future Roundup cancer claims.)

Since late 2019, the Mexican government has stopped imports of glyphosate, citing the chemicals classification by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a probable carcinogen.

On the other hand, the decree has profound implications for the future of GM corn in Mexico, the birthplace of corn. For starters, it formalizes current restrictions on the cultivation of GM corn, which came about after a citizen lawsuit challenged the government for permitting Monsantos planting of experimental GM corn.

But Mexico phasing out GM corn completely could deal a heavy blow to companies like Bayer, which have been developing GM crops and pesticides for decades.

Learn more about the dangers that GM crops pose to human health at GMO.news.

Sources include:

WakingTimes.com

EcoWatch.com

PANNA.org

CommonDreams.org

PBS.org
(Natural News) Vaccine development efforts by different countries worldwide have reached new heights, with many racing to create COVID-19 jabs for their populations. However, hackers have also set their sights on vaccine development. A number of Western countries remarked that bad actors with ties to foreign government orchestrated the attempts.

Health care cyber-specialist David Nides remarked that the stakes are higher than ever in the race for a cure for the pandemic. In an interview, the specialist from KPMG in Chicago remarked: Theres a race for a vaccine or a treatment, and the prize is huge for whoever comes out on top. Given these circumstances, many countries are now scrambling to create a vaccine  while some others lurk in the shadows and observe.

Nides estimated that cyber-attacks on healthcare and life sciences institutions spiked during the pandemic. He added that cybercrime in the healthcare sector experienced a 300 percent increase since May 2020. This equated to a three-fold spike compared to the same period a year before.

Unscrupulous parties have long eyed healthcare companies and organizations for cyber-attacks due to the valuable health information they contain. Relatively lax security, as evidenced by a large number of access points and devices that can be breached, only exacerbate the problem. One such case involved pharmaceutical firm Merck & Co., which fell to a ransomware attack in 2017. The drug manufacturer confirmed that its systems were impacted by the attack, which originated from Ukraine.

We confirm our companys computer network was compromised today as part of [a] global hack. Other organizations have also been affected. We are investigating the matter and will provide additional information as we learn more, Merck said in a statement.

Russian hackers silently watching vaccine manufacturers from the shadows

Meanwhile, the U.K.s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said that vaccine manufacturers in multiple countries were targeted by the APT29 hacker group. It added that this collective is almost certainly part of Russian state intelligence. Security agencies in the U.S. and Canada seconded the British agencys findings. However, erstwhile NCSC Chief Executive Officer Ciaran Martin said in an NBC Nightly News interview that there is no evidence the hacker group stole data. Instead, APT29 only infiltrated systems.

Martin later condemned the cyber-attack as deplorable. He remarked: Its deplorable, and we call it out in the strongest possible terms. [We] are trying to make sure [that] by publicizing the [cyber attacks] technical details,  people can defend against it. (Related: U.S. officials say Chinese hackers are stealing trade secrets about coronavirus vaccines.)

British universities also working on COVID-19 vaccine research said they took measures to safeguard their data. The University of Oxford said it is working with authorities to ensure [its] COVID-19 research has the best possible cyber security and protection. British drug manufacturer AstraZeneca collaborated with Oxford to manufacture its Wuhan coronavirus vaccine candidate. Imperial College London meanwhile said in a statement: We take appropriate security measures and have benefited from government advice, including from the [NCSC], to provide extra protection around our COVID-19 vaccine work. (Related: Oxford University lab researching coronavirus was just targeted in a cyberattack.)

Canadian Minister of Public Safety Bill Blair commented that the cyber-attack probably did not set back the countrys efforts. However, he reiterated that the infiltration attempt by bad actors serves as a reminder to Canadian scientists and industries of how much is on the line. We remain concerned. Not just the Russians  but other foreign actors as well. There are unfortunately people in this world who dont play by the rules and represent a risk  even a threat  to Canadian interests and to everyones interest, Blair told reporters in Ottawa.

Focal Point Data Risk Executive Vice President of Advisory Services Michael Ebert pointed out Russias inadequate scientific infrastructure. The top official of the Florida-based cybersecurity company said Russia has not invested in infrastructure for vaccine manufacturing compared to other nations. He continued that the hacking only shows Russias desperation for access and guidance on vaccine manufacturing.

On the other hand, the head of Russias sovereign wealth fund quickly slammed accusations of the countrys involvement in hacking attempts. Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) Chief Executive Officer Kirill Dmitriev said during a Times Radio interview: This whole story is an attempt to tarnish the reputation of the Russian [COVID-19] vaccine by some of the people who are scared of its success. The RDIF head surmised that the hacking story may have been propagated because the Russian vaccine could potentially be the first to [go to] the market and  be the most effective.

RDIF is also involved in the development of the vaccine, which eventually came to fruition as the Sputnik V COVID-19 jab. The vaccine candidate developed in partnership with the state-run Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology has received approval in countries such as India and Vietnam.

Visit CyberWar.news to read more about hacking attempts with the goal of stealing information related to COVID-19 vaccines.

Sources include:

Bloomberg.com

BioSpace.com

SputnikVaccine.com
(Natural News) A resident of Farmington Hills, Michigan filed a federal lawsuit after he was arrested based on facial recognition technology. Attorneys representing Robert Williams filed the suit on April 13 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. The 75-page lawsuit seeks an undisclosed amount in damages for the grave harm caused by the misuse of  and reliance upon  facial recognition technology.

The lawsuit says Williamss Fourth Amendment rights were violated. In addition, it said his arrest in January 2020 violated the Michigan Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race. Aside from the city of Detroit, Police Chief James Craig and detective Donald Bussa  both from the Detroit Police Department  were named as defendants.

Williamss 2020 arrest stemmed from an October 2018 theft at a Shinola store, where five watches worth about $4,000 were stolen. The theft was captured on video, and a loss prevention officer reviewed footage from the store. The videos were later sent to law enforcement, who then ran the footage through facial recognition software. The software then returned a hit for the Farmington Hills resident.

According to the lawsuit, Williams was arrested without explanation on his front lawn in plain daylight in front of his wife and children, humiliated, and jailed in a dirty, overcrowded cell for approximately 30 hours where he had to sleep on bare concrete. It added that he endured the ordeal all for no reason other than being someone a computer thought looked like a shoplifter.

Williams himself seconded the harrowing experience he went through. I came home from work and was arrested in my driveway in front of my wife and daughters, who watched in tears, because a computer made an error, he said. The wrongfully arrested man continued: This never should have happened, and I want to make sure that this painful experience never happens to anyone else.

An April 13 press release by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said that Williamss arrest was the first case of wrongful arrest because of facial recognition technology. Back in June 2020, the civil rights nonprofit wrote a letter of complaint to Detroit law enforcement regarding Williamss arrest. The letter penned by ACLU of Michigan Senior Staff Attorney Phil Mayor demanded that the police department make a public apology for the arrest, Williamss police and state records be expunged and that the department immediately cease the use of facial recognition technology.

Critics slam facial recognition technology, warns of its dangers

Williamss case attracted national attention when it became publicized in 2020. It also vindicated critics of the technology, who earlier cited studies that said it returns an inordinate number of false hits against Blacks. In the ACLUs April 13 statement, Mayor said: We know that facial recognition technology threatens everyones privacy by turning everybody into a suspect. (Related: Half of America already in law enforcements facial recognition network.)

The ACLU senior staff attorney continued: Weve repeatedly urged the Detroit Police Department to abandon its use of this dangerous technology, but it insists on using it anyhow. Justice requires that [the department] and its officers be held accountable.

Student attorney Jeremy Shur seconded Mayors remarks. Cities across the country have banned police from using facial recognition technology for a reason. The technology is racially biased, flawed and easily leads to false arrests of innocent people, just like our client, he said. The student attorney who represents Williams is part of the University of Michigan Law Schools Civil Rights Litigation Initiative.

Meanwhile, Detroit law enforcement took to the defense after Williamss lawsuit. According to Craig, the investigation on the 2018 theft commenced while the department still used the technology. The city used the same facial recognition system as the Michigan State Police that time. If this case had happened now, facial recognition use wouldnt have even been authorized, he said.

The Detroit police chief also noted that the investigation kicked off before a more stringent policy limiting the use of facial recognition was put in place. The policys stipulations included bans for seeking warrants on the basis of a facial recognition hit. Craig remarked that the rigorous rules help address the impact of the system falsely flagging African-Americans.

Detroits Corporation Counsel Lawrence Garcia acknowledged in an April 13 statement that the arrest took place before the COVID-19 pandemic happened. In that time since, the [police department] has conducted an internal investigation and has sustained misconduct charges relative to several members of the department, he said.

The head of the citys law department said they will seek to achieve resolution of Williamss claims on terms that are fair to him and the city. Garcia continued that new protocols have been implemented to prevent similar events from occurring.

Visit PrivacyWatch.news to find out more about the dangers of facial recognition technology used by law enforcement.

Sources include:

DetroitNews.com

ACLU.org 1

ACLU.org 2
(Natural News) A new study of airborne plastic particles finds that microplastic pollution is escalating around the world. Tiny remains of plastic are more ubiquitous than science had known, according to researchers from Cornell University and Utah State University who teamed up for the study.

The research findings were published on Monday, April 12, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. The researchers examined airborne microplastics, which have been far less studied than plastic in oceans and rivers.

Researchers said human pollution has led to a global plastic cycle similar to natural processes such as the carbon cycle with plastic moving through the atmosphere, oceans and land. The result is the plastification of the planet, said one scientist.

Lead author Janice Brahney, assistant professor of natural resources at Utah State University, and Natalie Mahowald, an engineering professor at Cornell, have found that plastics cycle through the oceans and roadways. If tiny enough, they can become microplastic aerosols, which ride the jet stream across continents.

Plastic pollution: One of this centurys most pressing environmental problems

The analysis of their study calls plastic pollution one of the most pressing environmental issues of the 21st century. It indicates that the billions of tons of plastic discarded into the oceans and on land are being broken down into tiny pieces that are being thrown back into the air by road traffic and winds. (Related: Will plastic pollution end the world? Experts say its possible.)

We found a lot of legacy plastic pollution everywhere we looked; it travels in the atmosphere and it deposits all over the world, Brahney said. This plastic is not new from this year. Its from what weve already dumped into the environment over several decades.

People are already known to breathe, drink and eat microplastics and other studies suggest levels of pollution will continue to rise rapidly. The researchers said this raises questions on the impact of accumulating plastics in the atmosphere on human health. The inhalation of particles can be irritating to lung tissue and lead to serious diseases.

What were seeing right now is the accumulation of mismanaged plastics just going up. Some people think its going to increase by tenfold per decade, Mahowald said. But maybe we could solve this before it becomes a huge problem, if we manage our plastics better, before they accumulate in the environment and swirl around everywhere.

She said clearing up ocean plastics could help reduce the amount that gets thrown back up into the atmosphere, and that more biodegradable plastics could be part of the solution.

The team collected more than 300 samples of airborne microplastics from 11 sites across the western U.S. from December 2017 to January 2019  the best dataset available globally. Those samples became the basis for atmospheric modeling that estimated the contribution from different sources, the first such study to do so.

Virtually none of the airborne microplastics came directly from plastics discarded in cities and towns. They were the result of road traffic and winds across oceans and farmland. About 84 percent of microscopic shards came from road dust, 11 percent entered the atmosphere from sea spray and the remaining 5 percent came from agricultural soil dust.

We thought population centers would be a much better source, obviously, but it just didnt work out that way, Mahowald said. Resuspension of microplastics makes the most sense with this set of data.

When the researchers expanded their modeling work to a global level, they found that roads are also likely to be the dominant driver of airborne plastics in Europe, South America and Australia while plastic particles blown up from fields may be a much bigger factor in Africa and Asia.

The modeling showed that smaller microplastics can remain in the atmosphere for a week, long enough to be blown across continents. Researchers said the lack of observations in many parts of the world meant there were significant uncertainties in their estimates. Their work particularly shows a lack of data on plastics in the air above the oceans.

Plastification of the landscape and oceans

What humans have been doing for decades now is what I call a plastification of the landscape and oceans, said Prof. Andreas Stohl of the University of Viennas Faculty of Earth Sciences, who was not part of the study.

The study confirms the global-scale nature of microplastic transport in the atmosphere and does a good job in highlighting highly relevant and concerning possibilities, but more measurement data is needed to get a better idea of the sources.

Stohl said people should be concerned about airborne microplastics firstly because people will inhale them and it is very likely that will have some health impacts; and secondly, because the atmosphere is a great distributor.

The atmosphere transports plastic particles to regions where we definitely dont want to have them like agricultural fields, national parks, oceans, the Arctic, even Antarctica. Eventually, we will have extremely high concentrations of plastics everywhere, Stohl said.

To emphasize Stohls first point, microplastic particles were found in the placentas of unborn babies in December last year. The health impact of microplastics in the body is not yet unknown, but researchers said it was a matter of great concern.

Scientists said microplastics could carry chemicals that might cause long-term damage or upset the fetuss developing immune system. The particles were likely consumed or breathed in by the mothers.

Meanwhile, the microplastics discovered in the snow close to the peak of Mount Everest, the worlds highest mountain, and plastic debris revealed at the Mariana Trench, the deepest point on Earth, underlined Stohls second point. (Related: Microplastic pollution found near summit of Mount Everest.)

Follow Pollution.news to find out more about microplastic pollution.

Sources include:

TheGuardian.com 1

News.Cornell.edu

TheGuardian.com 2
Restoring our network to normal operations is a process that requires the diligent remediation of our systems, and this takes time, Colonial said in a statement Monday evening. In response to the cybersecurity attack on our system, we proactively took certain systems offline to contain the threat, which temporarily halted all pipeline operations, and affected some of our IT systems. To restore service, we must work to ensure that each of these systems can be brought back online safely.
(Natural News) A new video showing New York City police officers patrolling with a robot dog has drawn flak from various sectors.

The video shows New York Police Department (NYPD) officers exiting a public housing building in Manhattan on Monday, April 12, with a 70-pound robotic dog outfitted with lights, cameras and artificial intelligence.

The officers had come to the building to apprehend a man who they said had a gun and had been hiding in an apartment with a woman and her baby. But according to the officers on the scene, the robot dog had only stayed in the lobby and did not play an active role in the operation.

The sighting of the robot do was met with outrage. Many bystanders during the operation were audibly voicing their displeasure at the robot.

What the f*** is this is the exact right reaction, said New York Times journalist Kara Swisher in a reply to the original tweet.

Even the person filming the video can be heard saying, I aint never seen nothing like this in my life.

Nah they really got these robot police dogs in NYC. This is wild pic.twitter.com/iG7CTPFevH  THEE DON (@1800SPOILED) April 12, 2021

Use of robot dog draws criticism

The NYPDs decision to deploy the robots was met with widespread criticism and raised privacy concerns earlier this year. Last February, the robot dog was used during an operation in a Bronx home to supposedly ensure that there was no one inside.

Throughout all this, the police have maintained that theyre using the technology to save lives.

The NYPD has been using robots since the 1970s to save lives in hostage situations and hazmat incidents, stated the NYPD in a tweet last February. This model of robot is being tested to evaluate its capabilities against other models in use by our Emergency Service Unit and Bomb Squad.

But despite the reassurances, many remain unconvinced. Many have condemned the robot as a stark example of police power and misplaced priorities in light of the supposed issues that led to the widespread anti-police riots last year. (Related: French Army testing Boston Dynamics robot dog in combat scenarios.)

You cant give me a living wage, you cant raise a minimum wage, you cant give me affordable housing; Im working hard and I cant get paid leave, I cant get affordable child care, said Rep. Jamaal Bowman, a Democrat representing parts of the Bronx and Westchester County, in a tweet. Instead we got money, taxpayer money, going to robot dogs?

During a news conference on Wednesday, April 14, Mayor Bill de Blasio said that, while he had not seen the robot dog, he shared the concern that if in any way its unsettling to people we should rethink the equation.

De Blasio confirmed that he would discuss the matter with NYPD commissioner Dermot F. Shea.

NYC mayoral candidates jumping on outrage against robot dog

The public backlash against the robot dog could play a role in the citys upcoming mayoral election, primaries for which are set to take place in June. A number of Democratic mayoral hopefuls have stated their opposition to its use.

One such Democratic candidate, former MSNBC analyst Maya Wiley, characterized the $74,000 robot as wasteful and a threat to New Yorkers.

Rather than $70m invested into saving residents from dangerous mold & lead paint, N.Y.C. creates another danger for Black & Latino residents?! Wiley said. Not when Im Mayor!

Meanwhile, Scott M. Stringer, another Democratic mayoral candidate and the city comptroller, said that the NYPD shouldnt be focused on creating new and more sophisticated ways to harass the poor and people of color.

As mayor, we will invest in people, not police dogs, he stated.

Other candidates, such as current frontrunner Andrew Yang, have yet to make any statements about the robot dog.

Follow Robotics.news for more on the latest news about robots used by police departments around the world.

Sources include:

Futurism.com

Twitter.com 1

Twitter.com 2

NYTimes.com 1

Twitter.com 3

Twitter.com 4

NYTimes.com 2
(Natural News) Tucker Carlson criticized the vaccine mandate adopted by more than 100 schools that requires students to get vaccinated against coronavirus (COVID-19). The mandates vary from school to school with some saying they will make exemptions for medical, religious or personal reasons.

He argued that such mandates forbid kids from getting an education.

Why are schools doing this and is it a good idea? From a medical standpoint, its hard to understand the reasoning behind this, said Carlson on his show at Fox News Monday night, May 3.

As a group, young people are not at risk of dying from COVID. Maybe more significant, huge numbers of college students have already been infected with the coronavirus. We know that. And therefore, they have natural immunity to it.

Carlson hinted that it may be a part of a larger plan to get everyone vaccinated.

Just because there is no official federal requirement to take the coronavirus vaccine does not mean that you and your family wont be required to take it, he said. With the full backing of the Biden administration, private industry and nonprofits may be forcing you to.

A CNN tally published over the weekend showed more than 100 colleges and universities around the U.S. have announced that they will require students to provide proof of vaccination before returning to campus in the fall. (Related: Columbia, Yale forcing students to get vaccinated for Covid-19.)

Colleges across the country have announced that they will require vaccine passports in the fall. Students who cant show proof of COVID vaccination will not be allowed on campus, Carlson said. You can see where this is going, and at high speed. Soon, virtually all college students in America will be required to take the COVID vaccine. In effect, it is a national mandate.

Many young adults not planning to get vaccinated

A recent Quinnipiac University poll showed 36 percent of U.S. adults under the age of 35 are not planning to get vaccinated. They make up the majority of student population in colleges and universities in the country.

Another recent survey by Stat-Harris Poll found that 21 percent of young adults ages 18 to 24 were not willing to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Another 34 percent said they would wait awhile and see before getting vaccinated.

Carlson clarified that he wasnt saying students shouldnt get vaccinated, but rather they shouldnt be forced to.

Its not a question of the vaccine. You may want the vaccine for yourself and your children, you may not. Its a question of being forced to take it, he said. If we allow ourselves to be forced to take it, what next?

According to Carlson, the university vaccine mandates were driven by Democrats.

They found our pressure point. If you disobey us, we will prevent your children from being educated, he said. That will work, by the way. Because short of arrest and imprisonment, keeping children out of school is the most coercive measurement the authorities could take.

The Fox News pundit pointed to a public service announcement former President Barack Obama posted on TikTok encouraging young people to get the vaccine as an example of Democratic overreach. Obama touted the safety of the countrys COVID-19 vaccines in the 35-second video that first appeared on the Yahoo News TikTok account.

University vaccine mandate may essentially become a national mandate

The list of colleges and universities mandating students to get vaccinated has grown in the span of few weeks since a handful of schools announced the policy.

Rutgers University in New Jersey and Cornell University in upstate New York were among the first universities to announce that COVID-19 vaccination would be a requirement for students who want to study in-person during the fall semester.

Columbia University in New York, Yale University in Connecticut, Brown University in Rhode Island, Northeastern University in Boston, Nova Southeastern University in Florida and Fort Lewis College in Colorado and Duke University in North Carolina also joined the growing list.

Antonio Calcado, chief operating officer at Rutgers, said the universitys leadership team made its decision when President Joe Biden announced that all adults would be eligible for vaccination by the end of May. The public university in New Jersey is one of the largest in the country with roughly 36,000 undergraduates and 16,000 more in graduate students on its campus in New Brunswick.

It doesnt just make us safer. In the end, it makes our entire community safer, Calcado said. Thats why we think requiring is the way to go versus encouraging.

Calcado sees three good reasons to require student vaccinations: One, their population interacts with others often; two, they tend to be mobile; and three, safety precautions may not be students top concern.

Private colleges and universities in New England were also some of the first to announce vaccine mandate. University systems in neighboring states have been less explicit with at least one saying it will wait until COVID-19 vaccines are given permanent approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) before considering whether to make vaccination a requirement for students.

The University of Massachusetts Amherst will require all undergraduate and graduate students who wish to live, learn or conduct research on campus or access campus resources to be fully vaccinated prior to the beginning of the fall semester. The same goes for UMass Lowell, UMass Dartmouth and UMass Boston.

The presidents of the nine state universities in Massachusetts  Bridgewater, Fitchburg, Framingham, Salem, Westfield, Worcester, Massachusetts College of Art & Design, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and the Massachusetts Maritime Academy  also unanimously decided to require vaccination for the fall.

Follow Immunization.news for more news and information related to coronavirus vaccines.

Sources include:

DailyMail.co.uk

News.Yahoo.com

ProvidenceJournal.com 1

ProvidenceJournal.com 2
(Natural News) If you like extremely high taxes, a ridiculously inflated cost of living, horrifying bureaucratic nightmares, rising crime rates, endless homeless encampments and health restrictions that make it nearly impossible to operate a small business successfully, then you are going to absolutely love California. Vast hordes of people have fled the state over the past 12 months, and so that means that there is now plenty of room for more socialists to move in. But before you come, you will want to make sure that you have completely discarded any lingering notions of freedom and liberty because they wont be of any use to you once you arrive in California.

(Article by MichaelSnyder republished from EndOfTheAmericanDream.com)

Over the past few years, California has gotten a bad rap for being an absolutely filthy place, but the truth is that authorities are going to great lengths to try to clean things up.

In fact, they just removed 180 pounds of feces from one homeless encampment alone

This week, Echo Lake Park in Los Angeles California, the location of a former homeless encampment, received a much needed, and long overdue, deep cleaning. The park was closed last month and since then, city officials have been working to clean and revitalize the park and have reportedly removed over 170 tents and other debris, the Los Angeles Times reported. Among the 35 tons or 70,000 pounds of garbage, there were literal piles of poop, amounting to 180 pounds of feces and 564 pounds of urine according data from L.A. Sanitation & Environment workers. This did not include excrement collected from portable or permanent restrooms. Other hazardous waste like needles used for drugs, gasoline, and kerosene amounted to 300 pounds of the total trash collected, the LA Times noted.

Critics of California often focus on the worst parts of the state, and that is very unfortunate.

California is a state known for great natural beauty, and that natural beauty once attracted tourists from all over the globe. Unfortunately, the pandemic has kind of killed tourism and many of the most iconic locations in the state have been marred by the temporary problems that the state is currently experiencing. Venice Beach is just one example

Residents of Venice Beach in Los Angeles say soaring crime rates and the exploding homeless population have made life in the elite beachside community unbearable. A catastrophic increase in homelessness in Los Angeles has seen hundreds of tents line the beachs famous boardwalk. Business owners say they are being forced to close their doors and longterm residents are afraid to leave their homes after dark after being subjected to violent attacks and intimidation.

Many Californians arent leaving their homes that much during daylight hours either because the price of gasoline has gotten so high.

At this point, the average price of a gallon of regular-grade gasoline in the United States has reached $3.02 per gallon.

That is not good, but in many parts of California the average price of a gallon of regular-grade gasoline is now hovering around four dollars a gallon, and in some locations a gallon of premium is almost five dollars a gallon.

But officials in California are assuring us that higher taxes and absurd regulations are only partly to blame for why residents of California have to pay such high prices for gasoline

Some industry observers insist the higher cost of gasoline in California is due to higher taxes and regulations on gas and carbon emissions statewide. State agencies and consumer advocates insist those factors are only partly to blame and that the largest manufacturers charge more in California simply because they can, while big oil companies have held back on ramping up supply, according to the New York Times, after seeing huge cuts to their profits and workforce last year because of the pandemic.

Of course the gasoline prices in California are not even worth comparing to the absurdly high housing prices in the state.

But the good news is that those housing prices have started to moderate a bit as hordes of former residents have stampeded out of the state over the past year.

Some suspect that rising crime rates may have something to do with the mass exodus. After a huge increase last year, the murder rate in Los Angeles County is up almost 200 percent so far in 2021

Murders in Los Angeles County have spiked nearly 200% so far this year compared to the same time in 2020, with at least one official blaming the defund the police movement and progressive law enforcement officials.

At this point, the average price of a gallon of regular-grade gasoline in the United States has reached $3.02 per gallon.

That is not good, but in many parts of California the average price of a gallon of regular-grade gasoline is now hovering around four dollars a gallon, and in some locations a gallon of premium is almost five dollars a gallon.

But officials in California are assuring us that higher taxes and absurd regulations are only partly to blame for why residents of California have to pay such high prices for gasoline

Some industry observers insist the higher cost of gasoline in California is due to higher taxes and regulations on gas and carbon emissions statewide. State agencies and consumer advocates insist those factors are only partly to blame and that the largest manufacturers charge more in California simply because they can, while big oil companies have held back on ramping up supply, according to the New York Times, after seeing huge cuts to their profits and workforce last year because of the pandemic.

Of course the gasoline prices in California are not even worth comparing to the absurdly high housing prices in the state.

But the good news is that those housing prices have started to moderate a bit as hordes of former residents have stampeded out of the state over the past year.

Some suspect that rising crime rates may have something to do with the mass exodus. After a huge increase last year, the murder rate in Los Angeles County is up almost 200 percent so far in 2021

Murders in Los Angeles County have spiked nearly 200% so far this year compared to the same time in 2020, with at least one official blaming the defund the police movement and progressive law enforcement officials.

The path that we are on does not lead anywhere good, and those that actually live in California should understand this better than any of us.

Read more at: EndOfTheAmericanDream.com
(Natural News) In the live experiment currently being conducted on humanity, it doesnt matter whether you are in the vaccinated group or the unvaccinated control group. No one will remain 100 percent unaffected. The new, gene-altering technology being rolled out by pharmaceutical companies will affect everyones life at some point or another due to occupational exposure. Just as second-hand smoke negatively affects the lungs of people who choose not to smoke, so does the new gene-altering vaccination technology shed into the environment, negatively affecting people who do not choose to vaccinate.

Americas Frontline Doctors warn that the spike proteins being manufactured in the cells of the vaccinated will inevitably shed from their body, transmitting to the environment and attaching to the cells of close contacts. Pfizers own study design had a monitoring system to watch for serious adverse events in people who were merely exposed to the vaccinated test subjects. Close contacts who were monitored for 24 hours included anyone who had sexual intercourse with a test subject, anyone who was pregnant or breastfeeding nearby the vaccinated. Close contacts also included anyone exposed to inhalation or skin to skin contact with the vaccinated test subjects.

Everyone is being affected, directly or indirectly, by the experimental vaccine technology

Whether its the new mRNA coronavirus vaccines (by Pfizer, Moderna) or the adenovirus-vectored coronavirus vaccines (by Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca), the gene-altering experiment effectively creates vaccine technology inside the cells of humans, hijacking their natural protein synthesis and replacing it with instructions for spike protein replication. The decision to vaccinate with experimental technology and turn ones cells into spike protein factories ultimately affects other people, including the unvaccinated people, whose bodies must now fend off an influx of foreign spike proteins from their environment.

Once the mRNA program is installed in human cells, the durability of this spike protein replication technology is unknown. As these spike proteins evade immune cells, the potential for transmission of spike proteins through skin, blood, semen, breast milk, sweat, or breath depends upon the responsiveness of the vaccinated individuals immune cells and the durability of the technology as it hijacks natural physiological functions.

Frontline doctors warn of neurological damage, reproductive harms, and transmission of spike proteins

Americas Frontline Doctors have brought forth vast amounts of evidence of vaccine injury in the report titled, Identifying Post-vaccination Complications & Their Causes: an Analysis of Covid-19 Patient Data. The doctors report the experimental mRNA vaccine technology, encased in lipid nano-particles, has the capacity to pass through the blood brain barrier, causing neurological damage. There simply has not been enough time to know what brain problems and how often a brain problem will develop from that, the document warns.

Because the lipid nano-particles have the capability to fuse with brain cells, the potential for delayed neurodegenerative disease exists. This inflammatory penetration has already led to chronic inflammation and thrombosis (clotting) in the neurological system, contributing to tremors, chronic lethargy, stroke, Bells Palsy and ALS-type symptoms. There is also evidence that vaccine-induced spike proteins are up to twenty times more durable binding to brain tissue than spike proteins from the original bio-weapon.

There is also concern that the spike proteins cause inflammation in the reproductive system of women, interfering with important protein synthesis thats needed for healthy menstrual cycles. Moreover, if spike proteins are not neutralized by the immune system, they can escape the body of the vaccinated, shedding and attaching to other people in close contact. This can bring about symptoms of inflammation or infection in unvaccinated adults and children. AFLDS is aware of thousands of reports involving vaginal bleeding, post-menopausal vaginal bleeding, and miscarriages following COVID-19 vaccination as well as anecdotal reports of similar adverse events among those in close contact with the vaccinated.

There have been tens of thousands of vaccine injuries reported in just a few months, dwarfing the number of vaccine injuries for all other vaccines, but the national media and the CDC only bring attention to a handful of blood clotting cases with the Johnson and Johnson vaccine. This represents a criminal dereliction of duty on behalf of the FDA and the CDC. The agencies that were supposed to protect the public have forgone adequate medical research and destroyed informed consent, brushing away thousands of deaths, while thrusting a holocaust onward.

For more on this subject, tune into a podcast by the Health Ranger, titled Vaccinated people are making healthy people sick.

Sources include:

LifeSiteNews.com

NaturalNews.com

AmericasFrontlineDoctors.org

NaturalNews.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) A top White House adviser explained why President Joe Biden continues to wear a face mask despite being fully vaccinated. During a television appearance, senior advisor Anita Dunn said Biden did so out of habit. The president, who completed his COVID-19 vaccination schedule in January, announced that fully vaccinated Americans are no longer required to wear masks outdoors.

Dunn said in her May 2 television interview: I think the president takes  [health] guidelines very seriously. And hes always taken his role as sending a signal to follow the science very seriously. The advisor noted that she herself also wore face masks outdoors despite being fully vaccinated herself. I myself found that I was still wearing my mask outdoors  because it has become such a matter of habit, Dunn remarked.

The adviser added that some extra precautions are taken with Biden due to his position. Nevertheless, she exhorted Americans to abide by CDC guidelines and to get fully vaccinated.

According to recent guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), fully vaccinated people need not wear face masks when outdoors. They are also permitted to exercise, attend small gatherings or have a meal with both vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals  as long as they are in outside settings.

The rule came amid mounting evidence that outdoor COVID-19 transmission only accounted for less than 10 percent of cases, which the public health agency acknowledged. However, the same CDC guidance also recommended that vaccinated people still mask up in crowded places. The close proximity of people in these situations facilitate a higher risk of COVID-19 transmission.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said during an April 27 COVID-19 team briefing: If you are fully vaccinated, things are much safer for you. She continued that there are many situations in which Americans do not need to wear masks if they are fully vaccinated, particularly outdoors.

Bidens insistence on wearing masks only shows that vaccination is not enough against COVID-19

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the previous week that Biden will follow the new CDC guidelines  albeit it will take him some time to adjust. Hell be following public health guidelines  [but it] will take some time [for the president] to adjust and adapt for all of us, she remarked during a White House press briefing. (Related: Biden says Americans will have to wear face masks until 2022.)

The president had been wearing a face mask outdoors in multiple instances, including an April 27 appearance before reporters to talk about the new CDC guidelines. Starting today, if youre fully vaccinated and youre outdoors and not in a big crowd, you no longer need to wear a mask, Biden said in his speech.

He also emphasized the importance of vaccinations, saying that getting the COVID-19 shot meant a return to normal life. Vaccines are about saving your life, but also the lives of the people around you. [They are] also about helping to get us back  to living our normal lives, he said.

Biden also replied to a question regarding what message he was sending by wearing a mask despite being alone and in an outdoor setting. By watching me take it off and not put it back on until I get inside, he said. The president left the podium after making his remarks and stood next to the driveway outside the White House with his mask in hand. He defended his continued masking as a bid to set a good example. (Related: Biden spins his proposed nationwide mask mandate, now calling it guidance.)

Because of this, critics and public health experts have questioned the need for Biden to continue masking up in outdoor settings. Some opponents remarked that Biden wearing a mask in obviously safe environments is pointless. Meanwhile, others have slammed his behavior as potentially undermining faith in Wuhan coronavirus vaccines.

Mediaite reported on April 29 that medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen slammed Bidens continued mask-wearing as a missed opportunity to reduce vaccine hesitancy. The former health commissioner for Baltimore cited the presidents April 28 speech before a joint session of Congress. Lawmakers followed social distancing by seating far apart from each other and wore masks. Even Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) had face coverings on.

The problem wasnt the content of his speech  it was the setting, Wen wrote in an April 29 op-ed. She warned in the same article: Already, a very damaging narrative is taking hold. If the vaccines are so effective, then why so many precautions for the fully vaccinated? Whats the point of getting inoculated if not much changes?

Visit JoeBiden.news to read more stories about the incumbent U.S. president during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sources include:

DailyMail.co.uk

WhiteHouse.gov

Mediaite.com
(Natural News) The U.S. is awash in a surplus of coronavirus vaccines as there has been a sudden in drop in demand for them; most Americans who want the shots have had them. Now an army of Big Biotechs agencies set up to address vaccine hesitancy are turning up their mass marketing to create demand using surveillance, rapid data analysis, media control, and host of behavior control strategies theyve outlined in their playbooks.

(Article by Celeste McGovern republished from LifeSiteNews.com)

Demand plummets

About 40% of the total adult population has been fully vaccinated, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Uptake plummeted 25% after a peak in mid-April, and 56.4% of adults have had at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

But five million people  about eight per cent of those who took a first dose of the shot  failed to show up for their second dose appointments, according to the CDC.

As a result, excess vaccine stock has been piling up across the country. Chairs sat empty at a Philadelphia mass vaccination site where 4,000 unused doses of vaccines were due to expire. A million doses, representing one out of every four sent to Louisiana by the federal government, were sitting on shelves. One Wyoming county asked the state to stop shipping vaccines because it had a surplus of 20,000 shots; North Carolina closed its vaccination clinics for lack of demand.

For the first time ever, weve had appointments at many vaccination sites that have not been filled, said Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer during a news briefing last Thursday.

There [are] a lot of people around here who  I dont think they want to take the vaccine, chuckled Ralph Merrill, an engineer who sits on an Alabama county board.

Vaccine vs. virus fear

Numerous mainstream media fretted about vaccine hesitancy, blaming it on COVID-19 denialism, conspiracy theories, and QAnon followers, Trump supporters, and minority mistrust of the government with its brutal history of racist eugenics. No one mentioned that some people just dont think the vaccine works. The mainstream media simply ignored Yale Professor of Epidemiology Harvey Risch, for example, who revealed that the majority of people now coming down with COVID-19 have been vaccinated against the virus.

Nor did they mention the leading reason for vaccine refusal cited by 45% of those in a March poll conducted by the Delphi Group for Facebook researchers, which is fear of side-effects, however. With reported adverse events at 118,746 total in the U.S. alone, including 3,410 deaths and 1,595 permanent disabilities, it is a legitimate deterrent. So is the abrupt halt of AstraZenecas vaccine for its high rate of blood clots, and the pause of Johnson & Johnsons vaccine.

Many people simply fear the novel vaccine more than the novel virus which, according to the CDC, has an overall 99.4% survival rate for those aged 50-65 who get the infection. The odds go up as people get older but decrease if people are younger. For those under 18, the coronavirus fatality rate estimated by the CDC is 0.00002, which translates into a 99.98% COVID survival rate. In fact, for those under 18, the lifetime odds of being struck by lightning are higher than the odds of dying of the virus.

Nevertheless, President Joe Biden said Tuesday that now that the bulk of the vaccinated are seniors  85% of whom have gotten at least their first vaccine dose  he wants 70% of all Americans to get their first dose by July 4. He specifically pitched the jab to youths and announced his administration would be sending the vaccines to pediatricians to dole out over the coming weeks.

Getting vaccinated not only protects you but reduces risk of giving the virus to somebody else, Biden said, employing a classic line of social marketing script from a global industry of behavior change experts compelling people to take the shot.

Vaccination Demand Observatory

[P]ublic health experts know that the last inch  getting the vaccine from vial to arm  can be the hardest, according to the Vaccination Demand Observatory

Launched last week, the Observatory runs a beta dashboard of data and resources intended for select global public health professionals.

The Observatory was established by a group called the Public Good Projects (PGP) which designs and implements large-scale behavior change programs for the public good, UNICEF  which has received $86.6 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation since 2020  and the Gates-subsidized Yale Institute for Global Health. .

PGP was founded by Joe Smyser, a public health academic who trained at the CDC and has partnered with Google and Facebook. Its board members include executives from Merck pharmaceuticals, Pepsi, Levi-Strauss, the Advertising Council, Sesame Street, Campbells, and TikTok.

PGPs website says that through media monitoring and bots, grassroots social media organizing, or thought leadership, we deploy our considerable resources and connections to communication for change.

Bots  or internet robots, also known as crawlers  can scan content on webpages all over the internet and create automated conversations and comments.

PGP is monitoring coronavirus-related media conversations 24/7 to provide organizations with real-time public health expertise and messaging guidance.

The group has promoted vaccines before. It developed the #StopFlu campaign, recruiting 120 micro social media influencers in the African American and Latinx communities across eight states and giving them prompts to sell their audiences the ideas that flu is a serious problem and that healthy people need flu shots.

PGPs Observatory says it aims to mitigatemistrust on all vaccines. Awash in Brave New World speak, the programs three pillars are social listening analytics, a training program, and a Vaccine Acceptance Interventions Lab (VAIL) to draw upon behavioral and social research and insights from social listening and to develop inoculation messages to vaccinate people against vaccine misinformation. These would be rapid field tested for tone, format and behavior change impact before being implemented.

In 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) created a new public health field called infodemiology  the science of managing infodemics. PGP and UNICEF are leading the Field Infodemiologist Training Program (FITP) based in UNICEF country offices, government offices, and offices of other multilateral partners to train field infodemic managers to conduct public health surveillance for misinformation and provide community support in misinformation outbreaks.

Big Biotechs global network

Among the huge network of organizations and programs involved in the vast mass marketing of vaccine demand  besides the WHO, CDC, UNICEF, PGP, and Yale  key orchestrators include:

Stronger  a new national campaign formed by an ever-growing number of public and private sector partners including PGP, Google and BIO. Whether its vaccine misinformation or climate change denial, were seeing a dangerous strain of anti-science rhetoric growing online, its website says. Our aim is to cut through the noise and normalize the truth.

BIO  Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), the worlds largest biotech advocacy association representing member companies including vaccine manufacturers Pfizer Inc., Moderna Therapeutics Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Janssen Biotech, and GlaxoSmithKline as well as big agriculture companies like Monsanto along with academic institutions and related organizations.

Project RCAID  created by PGP for Rapid Collection Analysis Interpretation and Dissemination  provides real-time media monitoring with daily analyses from public health experts.

Zignal Labs  a media intelligence platform to craft messages and take control of threatening narratives before they emerge.

Family Health International or FHI 360  an organization that uses social psychology, anthropology, behavioral economics, social marketing, and other behavioral sciences to effect behavior change. It has received tens of millions from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to create demand for long-acting contraceptives in poor countries. Its donors also include the CDC, the World Bank, and vaccine-maker Johnson & Johnson. Its now in the business of creating COVID-19 vaccine demand, too.

Playbook rules

In the world of infodemic management, one will inevitably come across the name of Jeff French, Professor at Brighton University and author of Strategic Social Marketing: For Behaviour and Social Change, whose text is referenced in most of the guides to mass marketing vaccines. French published a paper in July 2020 with the pandemic just a few months underway and a vaccine reportedly still unavailable for years to come about Pre-Emptive COVID-19 Vaccination Uptake Promotion Strategy. His tips have evidently inspired much of the standard pandemic vaccine sell:

Effective campaigning against vaccine misinformation should focus on the dangers of the disease and draw on the powerful motivator of fear of loss along with the possibility of gain of positive health

Appeal to emotions since data alone will not be enough.

Do not put adverse events at the center of demand creation efforts but be sure to contextualize them and help audiences understand that most will be rare and of limited duration.

Any media management and engagement strategy that is developed will need to include proactive, rolling media briefings, story generation, editorial feedsand will also need to include 24/7 media monitoring and rebuttal/correction systems.

Authorities should have agreements in place about how and when misleading information and advocates of such information should be removed and flagged as being problematic on social media.

Repeat positive messaging that emphasizes the protective (individual, family, and community) benefits of the vaccine and the loss associated with not being vaccinated (death, poor health, loss of freedom and social solidarity, inability to travel etc.)

Partner with the pharmaceutical industry, other for-profits, and NGOs to promote vaccines.

Seek interventions with key leaders in the anti-vaccination community and seek to turn such informants into advocates for vaccination.

Continue to promote other protective behaviors such as handwashing and physical distancing.

Integrate financial and non-financial incentives along with penalties for non-compliance by imposing restrictions on travel, education, or employment.

Governments will need to deliver and communicate what mix of incentives and penalty interventions will be used to promote demand.

Behavior modification and operant conditioning techniques are a frequent theme of Frenchs writings; a 2014 paper he wrote for the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control on vaccine uptake said behavioural interventions should seek to reward desired behaviours and when appropriate penalise inappropriate behaviour.

A range of playbooks for public health agencies and stakeholders on strategies to make people take the shot follow on Frenchs instructions. The World Health Organization issued a technical advisory on the heels of Frenchs guidelines called Behavioral Considerations for Acceptance and Uptake of COVID-19 Vaccines in October, still two months before a shot was even available. Some of its advice is sounding very familiar now:

 Leverage anticipated regret in communications . For example, by asking people how they would feel if they do not get vaccinated and end up contracting COVID-19 or transmitting it to loved ones.

. For example, by asking people how they would feel if they do not get vaccinated and end up contracting COVID-19 or transmitting it to loved ones.  Emphasize the social benefits . Tell people that vaccination not only benefits the individual but builds herd or population immunity

. Tell people that vaccination not only benefits the individual but builds herd or population immunity  Putting emphasis on the economic benefits , such as being able to stay in the workforce and provide for ones family, might also encourage vaccination

, such as being able to stay in the workforce and provide for ones family, might also encourage vaccination Manage expectations. Since vaccine uptake may be undermined by COVID-19 vaccines being not fully effective, meaning that people will have to continue to engage in preventive behaviour (e.g. maskwearing and physical distancing) even if and after they have been vaccinated.

Since vaccine uptake may be undermined by COVID-19 vaccines being not fully effective, meaning that people will have to continue to engage in preventive behaviour (e.g. maskwearing and physical distancing) even if and after they have been vaccinated. Emphasize danger of disease . If people perceive that they are at low risk of contracting COVID-19, or that the consequences of becoming infected will not be severe, they will be less willing to get vaccinated.

. If people perceive that they are at low risk of contracting COVID-19, or that the consequences of becoming infected will not be severe, they will be less willing to get vaccinated. Downplay dangers of vaccination and adverse events. Some people may try to compare the risk of getting infected with that of taking a new vaccine, and determine that between the two, the risk of COVID-19 is lower. Adverse events are often inevitable when large numbers of people get vaccinated in a short period of time. Neutralize the blow by communicating proactively about uncertainty and risk of vaccine-associated disability and death.

Field Guide

UNICEF and PGPs Vaccine Misinformation Management Field Guide advises vaccine promoters to consider putting vaccination in a gain frame. Show happy, healthy, productive people in graphics, and if you must show the act of vaccination try to avoid needles and tears.

One of its tactics is to badger people to accept vaccination as a social norm. Explain that the majority of people adopt certain behavior and that is what others expect you to do to achieve a common good.

FHI360 published its own quickstart guide on Demand Creation and Advocacy for COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance and Uptake advises governments to establish a demand creation and advocacy task force  something Biden did in March, setting aside $1.5 for a media vaccine advertising blitz.

FHI 360 also advises breaking people into audience segments of easy sells who have high trust in healthcare providers and do not question vaccines to vaccine hesitant who have high concerns about safety and low trust in institutions promoting vaccine. Then, create targeted messages, making talking point reference sheets for cultural and religious leaders.

Carrot and stick

Its easy to find examples of Frenchs operant psychology marketing methods being played out in the real world pandemic theatre.

The mainstream media have evidently taken the point about incentives and penalty interventions on board and herd immunity is the new Holy Grail which all who are not reckless criminals should seek. Were struggling to get to herd immunity, CNNs Michael Smerconish said with the precise tone of fear and alarm that would elicit behavior modification. A full 26% of Americans said they would not take the vaccine, he said, but 44% of Republicans were resisting.

Those folks jeopardize our ability to get to herd immunity faster, Smerconish claimed in disgust. If we dont get vaccinated and periodically boosted we could prolong the pandemic and find ourselves continuing to fight this battle for years. He quoted law professor Shanin Specter, who said, Without a bigger carrot or a bigger stick many Americans will not get vaccinated and we will suffer more death and dislocation.

The concept of herd immunity and how to get there is not settled science. The Great Barrington Declaration, signed by more than 43,000 medical practitioners and 14,000 public health scientists and doctors, proposes that allowing natural immunity to spread while shielding those most vulnerable to COVID infection would be less harmful than blanket lockdowns.

As immunity builds in the population, the risk of infection to allincluding the vulnerablefalls. We know that all populations will eventually reach herd immunityi.e. the point at which the rate of new infections is stableand that this can be assisted by (but is not dependent upon) a vaccine. Our goal should therefore be to minimize mortality and social harm until we reach herd immunity, the declaration says.

Following infodemic guidelines, YouTubes medical misinformation policy expressly forbids any discussion of natural immunity in herd immunity on its platform.

Real world exercise

Emphasizing fear is a strategy employed frequently by experienced public health personnel, too. In those communities where the uptake is less it will take a lot longer for the epidemic to end, Eric Toner, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told Politico in an article about falling vaccine demand, for example. There will be more sickness and more death in those communities.

Former CDC director Tom Frieden employed an offshoot of the social norm tactic along with emphasizing disease danger in a recent tweet which painted unvaccinated people as infected spreaders of supposedly deadly variants.

Research like a recent study from the Cleveland Clinic and Case Western Reserve University which found that new coronavirus variants are actually weaker than the original viral strain from Wuhan are to be ignored or treated as misinformation.

Marketing schemes to recruit faith leaders have had success too, as vaccination drives have even moved inside mosques to convince skeptical Muslims to roll up their sleeves. And Pope Francis has enthusiastically embraced the infodemic behavior change mission and is hosting a global public health vaccine promotion conference this week.

Read more at: LifeSiteNews.com
(Natural News) The chief executive officer of German pharmaceutical company BioNTech believes people need to take a third dose of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine his company created with Pfizer after a year, and annual booster shots every 12 to 18 months after that.

BioNTech CEO Dr. Ugur Sahin said, according to studies, the efficacy of the BioNTech-Pfizer coronavirus vaccine drops from 95 percent to 91 percent six months after the second dose. This is why his company believes people should be given a third dose nine to 12 months after the first vaccine dose.

Accordingly, we need a third shot to get the vaccine protection back up to almost 100 percent again, said Sahin. And then I expect it will probably be necessary to get another booster every year or perhaps every 18 months. (Related: PLAGUE PROFITS: Pfizer executive admits the company wants to profit off vaccines and will soon raise prices.)

BioNTech co-founder and Chief Medical officer Dr. Ozlem Tureci agreed with Sahins assessment. She told CNBC on an April 21 interview that as immunity against the coronavirus decreases over time, a third vaccine dose is necessary to maintain the vaccines effectiveness.

She compared the need to take the coronavirus vaccine annually to the flu vaccine.

It is the nature of immune responses that after they have been induced they spike and stay for a time, said Tureci during the interview. But with time immune responses wane and we see indications for this in the induced, but also in the natural response against SARS-CoV-2.

Sahin and Turecis comments regarding a third dose of the coronavirus vaccine come after Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said a booster dose will likely be necessary for people within 12 months after becoming fully vaccinated.

BioNTech claims vaccine effective against all existing coronavirus strains

BioNTech is confident that its coronavirus vaccine will be able to fight off the many variants of COVID-19.

Sahin said his company has tested its vaccine against more than 30 coronavirus variants. He claimed the vaccine showed a promising response against most of the variants, while the vaccine remained sufficient against the other variants where the response was slightly diminished.

Furthermore, Sahin believes the BioNTech-Pfizer coronavirus vaccine can protect people against the new variant first detected in India, but that the company was still conducting its investigation.

But the Indian variant has mutations that we have previously investigated and against which our vaccine also works, so I am confident there, too, he claimed.

Sahin explained that, the way the BioNTech vaccine works gives it two points of attack against the virus. It supposedly stimulates the production of antibodies while at the same time prompts the bodys T-cells to attack the virus.

The vaccine is quite cleverly constructed, and the bulwark will hold, said the CEO. Im convinced of that. If the bulwark needs to be strengthened again, well do so. Im not worried.

BioNTech and Pfizer are working with their manufacturers to ramp up production of the coronavirus vaccine as worldwide demand for it still far outstrips their supplies.

When we started 2021, our goal was to produce 1.3 billion doses, said Sahin. And now, weve increased that to three billion doses.

The company is in talks to open production facilities all over South America, Asia and Africa. It is also considering issuing special licenses to certain manufacturers to boost the production of the vaccine.

Sahin and Tureci, who are married, founded BioNTech in 2008. They used to focus most of their efforts on cancer research before deciding to pivot to creating a coronavirus vaccine in early 2020. It reached out to Pfizer, which had the resources and the expertise to conduct the large-scale clinical trials necessary to validate a vaccines supposed effectiveness.

Learn more about coronavirus vaccines by reading the latest articles at Vaccines.news.

Sources include:

SHTFPlan.com

TheHill.com

Newsweek.com
(Natural News) There is so much to the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccination agenda that people are not aware of, but that experts like internal medicine physician Dr. Carrie Madej are warning have ominous implications for the future of humanity.

In the following episode of Brighteon Conversations with Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, Dr. Madej talks about how we need to get the word out about the deadly spike protein component and other elements to the vaccines that are being used to tag, track and control the populations of the world like cattle.

It seems like we dont have any checks and balances, Dr. Madej laments about how easy it was for the medical deep state to perpetrate this fraud on the masses.

Its kind of like a coup happened around the world and we werent told about it. So, its kind of a challenge trying to wake everybody up and get them to see how theyre being lied to and the deceit thats going on.

To help get the word out about what she knows, Dr. Madej is participating in a 90-day nationwide event called The Arise Tour that begins on May 15. It will feature a variety of experts who will talk about medical freedom, freedom of speech, constitutional rights and human rights.

You can learn more about The Arise Tour at this link.

Wuhan Flu shots are turning humans into synthetic chimeras owned by Big Pharma

What seems to worry Dr. Madej the most is the synthetic components of Chinese Virus injections that basically turn humans into genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

What Big Pharma is doing by injecting messenger RNA (mRNA) components into peoples bodies is transforming the human genome into something synthetic, rendering recipients as non-human chimeras.

They are putting synthetic genes, synthesized genes, and genomes inside of you, Dr. Madej warns. Is that human anymore? What does that do to us?

She also discusses during the interview how the Supreme Court agrees that it is entirely possible to patent humans and turn them into the property of pharmaceutical companies through these types of injections, which contain exotic nanobots and other futuristic tech.

Patenting humans is possible, she adds. What is wrong with our world right now? No human should be owned like a piece of property or chattel.

As for the spike protein, Dr. Madej explains that these artificial additives program the body to not only react to invaders but also to hurt itself. And once inside the body, they can be used for other purposes such as to control people throughout outside stimuli such as 5G radiation.

The spike protein that they are programming your body to make  it appears that it can be transmitted and that it can hurt your body, Dr. Madej says.

What this synthetic, self-replicating, inorganic, not-alive substance  what is that doing? Once these little particles get inside you, they can be used as biosensors. Could they be transmitting a signal or some kind of impulse to control you?

Dr. Madej goes in-depth into the scientific evidence that exists to support her claims, so be sure to check out the full interview below:

How do we really know whats fully going on when nobodys even analyzed the contents of those vials? Nobody has had an independent research group do that, she further says about the mystery surrounding these injections.

I dont know how were going forward with this Dr. Mengele-style experiment.

Be sure to check out SerendipityGroup.org to learn more about Dr. Madejs work.

You can also keep up with the latest news about the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) at Pandemic.news.

Sources for this article include:

Brighteon.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) The daughter of two-time failed presidential wannabe Hillary Clinton is speaking out against health freedom, urging governments of the world to scrap all human rights and replace them with a medical police state.

During a recent pre-recorded online meeting of the Vatican conference, Chelsea Clinton decried vaccine skeptics and called for a global crackdown on their free speech.

I personally very strongly believe there has to be more intensive and intentional and coordinated global regulation of the content on social media platforms, Clinton proclaimed.

We know that the most popular video across all of Latin America for the last few weeks that now has tens of millions of views is just an anti-vax, anti-science screed that YouTube has just refused to take down.

Clinton, who also believes that there is no such thing as biological sex, is all hot and bothered by the fact that not everyone in the United States believes that all vaccines are safe and effective. She thus wants them all silenced, using force if necessary.

Clinton is also outraged that social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter are failing to remove each and every post that does not praise and worship vaccines as the Second Coming of Christ.

We know that  because I have tried  that appealing to the leadership of these companies to do the right thing has just not worked, and so we need regulation, Clinton suggested.

Chelsea Clinton loves you so much that she wants you injected

Just like her parents, Clinton hates the First Amendment, health freedom, and other tenets of the Constitution that threaten her clans quest for world domination. She also heavily supports abortion.

During the same Vatican conference appearance, Clinton said her familys foundation is doing everything it can to conquer the vaccine hesitant and vaccine refusers who are just saying no to Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) injections.

Clinton says there are two groups of people: the hesitant  meaning they might agree to get injected with enough prodding  and the refusal group, which under no circumstances will agree to undertake experimental gene therapy for the common good.

According to Clinton, the only people in the refusal group are the young and misinformed. How she came to this conclusion was not clarified. Clinton also worries about people with black skin refusing the vaccine because they were maltreated by the health system for generations.

The Clinton Foundation, she further alleged, has been thinking carefully about how we talk about black Americans, indigenous Americans, Latinos who know that members of their community have often been mistreated or even manipulated or exploited by our health care system so that as few of them as possible reject the injections.

We try at the Foundation to really help equip trusted messengers, whether in health care settings or not, Clinton further stated.

Weve done work with a number of different religious communities, including some of our Catholic partners to really help ensure that whoever is able to have the conversation is really able to pre-empt or to answer any questions people may have.

Should vaccine refusers change their minds at some point in the future, Clinton wants them to know that the jab and those willing to plunge them inside arms are ready and waiting to deliver.

Were going to keep reaching out and try to help you get comfortable, Clinton added.

So were just doing everything and anything we can  and were increasingly thinking about how we can engage in this work globally, too, because unfortunately vaccine hesitancy and vaccine refusal are not uniquely American challenges.

Clinton further contended that her ideas about imposing more global regulation on social media content are her own and not those of the Clinton Foundation.

More related news on the medical deep states relentless Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccine push can be found at ChemicalViolence.com.

Sources for this article include:

LifeSiteNews.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) The latest American corporation to go woke is the Walt Disney Corporation, which is now pushing Marxist critical race theory on its employees.

Internal company documents leaked to City-Journal journalist Christopher Rufo reveal that part of Disneys diversity and inclusion training program for employees includes instructions about how to Reimagine Tomorrow with no white people.

White privilege, according to Disney, is a pandemic in our country and must be eradicated through equality. The United States itself, Disney claims, is fundamentally racist and needs to be retooled.

One module called Allyship for Race Consciousness talks about systemic racism and microaggressions, which benefit white people and hurt non-white people. White employees are instructed in this section to examine and work through feelings of guilt, shame, and defensiveness to understand what is beneath them and what needs to be healed.

White employees are also challenged by Disney to get rid of their colorblind ideologies and rhetoric because skin color is everything now. Phrases such as All Lives Matter and I dont see color are apparently harmful and hurtful to non-whites, so they must go.

If a black or brown Disney employee demands special privileges based on skin color, their white counterparts are not to question or debate it because this is the lived experience of people of color.

Even asking a brown or black Disney employee to explain why they are upset about something is off-limits because it is emotionally taxing for a black or brown person to educate you about why they are angry and feel as though everything around them is racist.

Disney says equal treatment must be rejected in favor of equal outcomes

As for equality, Disney rejects the idea of equal treatment. Instead, Disney wants equality of outcome, meaning a lazy black person who does not do his job must be treated the same as a hard-working white person who picks up his slack.

Equality is a noble goal, Disney contends.

Equal treatment and access to opportunities help each of us perform our best within a shared set of parameters. But we really need to be striving for equity, where we focus on the equality of the outcome, not the equality of the experience by taking individual needs and skills into account.

In another section of the documents, Disney urges its employees to participate in the 21-Day Racial Equity and Social Justice Challenge, which is sponsored by Walt Disney Imagineering.

Participants of this challenge are encouraged to fill out a self-assessment survey to determine their level of privilege. Statements such as I have never been raped and I have never had an eating disorder are among the data points used to assess said privilege.

There is also another section called 103 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice that encourages whites to embrace Black Lives Matter regalia and promote the defund the police movement. It also recommends that white people decolonize your bookshelf while providing no further details as to what this entails.

Disney, it turns out, has been heading to hell in a handbasket for quite some time now. Last year we reported that the company is actively influencing children to embrace Satanism, pedophilia, witchcraft, and other demonic activities. Long gone are the days of Dumbo and Lady and the Tramp, in other words.

Mr. Walt Disney must be tossing and turning in his grave over all that has become of his legacy, wrote one commenter at The Epoch Times.

Disney has turned into a horrible, racist, anti-family and anti-American organization, wrote another. I will never spend another dime on ANY Disney product.

More related news about Americas cancerous new woke culture can be found at Collapse.news.

Sources for this article include:

TheEpochTimes.com

NaturalNews.com
But Li countered that Alshawi wasnt invited because she hadnt completed the necessary research, according to outside investigators brought in by Dartmouth. He was also able to prove that he was not on campus during some of the dates identified by Alshawi.
(Natural News) A 48-year-old Ohio doctor unexpectedly died on April 27, 2021. There was no official story on the cause of his death, only a satirical obituary that was written in the first person. The news of his death made waves around the world. Various media outlets from MSN to Fox News praised his self-written obituary and extraordinary life as a doctor. The news of his passing was featured in news outlets ranging from Australia to the United Kingdom. Dr. Thomas Flanigan was a loving husband and father. He was also a middle-aged plastic surgeon who often used satire to communicate his views on medical topics. He was very public about his views on vaccines, and even used Facebook to mock vaccine skeptics.

Doctor marketed for Moderna and mocked vaccine skeptics just weeks before suddenly passing away

On January 6, he got his first dose of Modernas experimental vaccine. He got on Facebook to advertise for Moderna, posing for the camera shot. I did it for the free orange juice. Im pretty sure the needle was like a foot long. The good news is that I didnt feel the microchip going in but I can hear local radio stations now, he stated.

On February 3, Flanigan got back on Facebook to mock vaccine skeptics again. Second dose. The microchip is working just fine. My mind is slowly being taken over by the hive mind. We are just fine. Resistance is futile.

The news agencies praised Flanigans first-person, tongue-in-cheek obituary, but failed to mention his medical backstory, how he received the experimental covid shots just eleven weeks prior. According to all the media reports, the cause of death is not clear. However, no autopsy or investigation was launched into the cause of his sudden, young passing.

Why did the 48-year-old doctor write his own obituary after taking the experimental vaccine protocol in the first place? Someone who dies suddenly usually doesnt have their obituary written out in first person, with great attention to detail.

Did he write it as satire, in yet another attempt to mock vaccine skeptics who warn about death after vaccination?

Did he write the obituary in jest to ease his own fears and further mock anti-vaxxers?

Was he secretly concerned that he might actually pass away after taking the experimental jabs?

Did he sincerely write this detailed obituary in his final hours of life, knowing that he was going to suddenly pass away at the young age of 48?

Was he hiding a medical condition from his family and had already prepared for his own passing?

Was he hiding serious health issues after he got the experimental jabs? After all, how could he talk openly about any adverse events from the vaccines if he was so pridefully adamant about mocking vaccine skeptics?

Media changes their story in an attempt to cover up the cause of doctors death

Even more strange: Why are headlines celebrating his death? His obituary is lauded in the media as hilarious and incredible with no sensitivity toward the circumstances surrounding his sudden and suspicious death. No media outlets mentioned that his most recent social media posts mocked vaccine skeptics and praised Modernas experimental covid shots.

In yet another twist of strange fate, all the media outlets that originally praised Flanigan for his hilarious self-written obituary are now retracting their story and claiming friends wrote the first-person obituary. This mysterious group of friends somehow used the same tongue-in-cheek humor that Dr. Flanigan used in his Facebook posts when he mocked vaccine skeptics. If a group of friends really did come up with this obituary during a time of sudden grief, then they are essentially laughing at their friends death while burying the fact that he got the Moderna shots, virtue-signaled while he got them, and mocked others who didnt.

This cover story shows signs of being yet another wrongful death/ vaccine injury case that is being covered up by the Pharma media.

Sources include:

TheCovidBlog.com

WebArchive.org

SydneyNewsToday.com

MSN.com
(Natural News) Want to know whats driving the border surge? The root cause that Kamala Harris says shes looking for? Ask her buddies at Facebook. Theyre the ones turbocharging the big-dollar human-smuggling operations, through the unchecked freedom to use their platform. Too bad about you, President Trump  youre the bad guy whos deplatformed, not them.

(Article by Monica Showalter republished from AmericanThinker.com)

So charges Rep. Kat Cammack, a Florida Republican, who has laudably made this problem an issue.

Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla., sent a scathing letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Wednesday for trying to silence conservative views on his platform while allowing human smugglers and cartels to openly operate on the social media site.

The Florida freshman, fresh off a visit to the southern border, accused Facebook and other social media companies of perpetuating the border crisis by providing a means for drug cartels and coyotes to post paid advertisements that encourage migrants to cross into the United States illegally.

Facebooks role in the crisis at the border is urgent and must be addressed immediately, Cammack wrote Zuckerberg in a letter first obtained by Fox News.

Shes right. I wrote about what she describes in her letter and materials last April 6 here, and I can see that in her materials, she cites the same Facebook page, Inmigrantes Centroamericanos, that I did, where I went through it post by post.

Facebook makes huge money from this kind of advertising made by human-smuggling rackets, and their role is vital. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is openly proopen borders, so it might just be intentional.

As I cited in my piece, from the research of the Federation for Immigration Reform, Joe Biden put out some radio ads to dissuade migrants from patronizing cartel human-smuggling rackets, but the vast majority of would-be illegals dont get their information from radio; they get it from social media. Thats the root cause that Biden border surge czar Kamala Harris is still looking for.

And its not just human-smugglers, promising 100% safe illegal journeys breaking into America on Facebook and other social media. Its the cartel drug crime operations, too.

Heres a horrifying report from the Alliance to Counter Crime Online, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, which investigates these things:

Seriously. Twitter banned President Trump but still has the actual Sinaloa cartel on its site? Facebook still has a page for Los Zetas with 47,000 members, but it just did its pious tribunal thing to silence President Trump?

Care to be sick? Who needs the dark web when theyve got Twitter and Facebook, covering their backs and letting them operate openly? Cartels and human-smuggling rackets dont need the dark web when theyve got Facebook happy to serve them. And Facebook is protected by the Democrats, dont forget that, because the cartels sure as heck dont.

Cammack is a very young freshman congresswoman who has hit the bulls-eye on a major issue that hasnt gotten any attention. She is from Florida, home of all things good, sanctuary state from Joe Bidens lunacy-America.

Where is the Republican leadership to support her in her bid to shut down these evil merchants of misery?

Its true that the news is just out, but she needs all the muscle of the GOP rallying behind her instead of fighting about Liz Cheney (who should simply be thrown out with hands dusted off) because her issue is big, significant, the actual key to why theres a border surge. Wheres Kamala Harris on this, since we know shes not at the border, looking for all those root causes? Heres a root cause for her: shut these monsters down, and sanction their Facebook enablers, or watch these surges multiply.

Read more at: AmericanThinker.com
(Natural News) Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has signed into law a bill that incorporates the doctrine of equity, cultural competency, and dismantling institutional racism into the training for all K12 educators across the state.

(Article by GQ Pan republished from TheEpochTimes.com)

Under Senate Bill 5044 (pdf)which passed the state legislature in Aprilschool districts in Washington must use one of three professional learning days to specifically train all staff in the topics of cultural competency, diversity, equity, or inclusion.

Those topics were among several listed in the bills text: The legislature plans to continue the important work of dismantling institutional racism in public schools and recognizes the importance of increasing equity, diversity, inclusion, antiracism, and cultural competency training throughout the entire public school system by providing training programs for classified staff, certificated instructional staff, certificated administrative staff, superintendents, and school directors that will be provided in an ongoing manner.

Proponents of the bill, according to a state Senate report (pdf), said it would help educators better support those who are immigrants and students of color and that it would make students feel safe, heard, and understood. But opponents have called it a divisive and dangerous bill based on critical race theory (CRT), through which students would be taught to judge others based on the color of their skin.

Some key concepts in the bill, such as equity, systemic racism, and antiracism, are popular among advocates of CRT, an outgrowth from Marxism that views society through the lens of a race-based power struggle.

Equityin contrast to equal opportunityseeks to create equal outcomes by redistributing resources along lines of perceived economic or racial disparities. In the name of equity, New York City replaced the competitive entry exam for its Gifted and Talented programs with a lottery so that more black and Hispanic students could qualify for such classes.

Meanwhile, the idea of antiracism is that one can only be antiracist by actively identifying and confronting perceived racism all the time, in everything, because in a critical race worldview, its impossible for racism to be absent from any situation. According to Boston Universitys Ibram X. Kendi, as explained in his 2019 book How to Be an Antiracist, an antiracist policy is any measure that produces or sustains racial equity between racial groups. There is no such thing as a non-racist or race-neutral policy, Kendi writes.

The controversy around critical race training gained more attention in 2020, when President Donald Trump placed a ban on training materials based on divisive and harmful sex and race-based ideologies in federal workplaces. President Joe Biden rescinded the order, instead issuing an order stating that his administration would pursue a comprehensive approach to advancing equity for all.

Read more at: TheEpochTimes.com and EducationSystem.news
(Natural News) The tenure of Donald Trump as our president has brought out the absolute worst in our country  among a segment of our population, sure, but also our government.

The hatred of him  the consummate outsider who didnt belong in Washington, D.C., must less the White House  was such that the deep state operatives we always suspected were burrowed into our institutions worked overtime, day and night, to prevent him from ever being elected and then, once he was, to undermine him and eventually get rid of him.

And they finally did: Anyone with a granular-sized collection of brain cells knows beyond any doubt that Trump won the 2020 election, but it was literally stolen from him by operatives within the D.C. political establishment, in conjunction with Big Tech. There is no way Joe Biden, who couldnt draw flies to a BS contest and Kamala Harris, so unpopular she was among the first to drop out of the Democratic primaries, garnered 80-plus million votes.

No way. They barely even campaigned.

In fact, thanks to due diligence from Peter Navarro, Trumps former top trade adviser, a series of reports he and a team of researchers published proves beyond any doubt elections in key battleground states were rigged.

But no one will be charged, much less convicted. For that matter, one federal court after another after another refused to even look at the evidence the Trump campaign laid out, or hear the testimony of witnesses who swore out affidavits under penalty of perjury that they witnessed acts of voter fraud. The U.S. Supreme Court wouldnt even hear a case brought by scores of states against a handful of others that unconstitutionally changed their voting laws ahead of the 2020 election.

No.

But a high school homecoming queen who allegedly rigged votes to steal her victory? Thats a top priority for law enforcers. In fact, so much so, they have decided to charge her as an adult (while letting real criminals out of jail, free of bond, or never charged at all).

The New York Post reports:

A Florida teen bent on winning the homecoming crown didnt waste time with silly speeches and pep rallies  instead conspiring with her vice principal mom to rig the whole thing through old-fashioned hacking, authorities said.

Laura Rose Carroll, 50, and Emily Rose Grover, 17  who have both been arrested for the election fraud  cast nearly 250 bogus votes for the teen by breaching online student accounts and pulling the virtual levers, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

That was then; Emily has since turned 18 so now law enforcers are going to charge her as an adult, The Post reported in a separate story.

And whats more, these two could serve some real time  substantial time  if they are convicted.

Charges against the mom and daughter included unlawful use of a two-way communications device and criminal use of personally identifiable information. Carroll is free on a $6,000 bond and Grover is free on a $2,000 bond. Each faces a maximum of 16 years on the charges, The Post reported.

Sixteen years  for changing high school prom queen votes.

Has our country gone mad? In what time, on what planet, do a couple of idiot cheaters trying to rig a high school election get more time behind bars than Antifa rioters who besiege a federal courthouse and try to burn it down with federal agents inside? Or destroying an entire Target or Nike store during a looting spree?

Or rigging national presidential election while simultaneously tanking what trust in our institutions and systems we had left?

Our country wont survive this kind of nonsensical behavior. Superpowers die when their culture rots away, like ours is.

Sources include:

NYPost.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) A total of 26 countries and counting are reporting a massive uptick in Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) cases, injuries, and deaths now that the vaccines are in widespread use.

The islands of Antigua and Barbuda in the Caribbean, which started jabbing people on Feb. 17, both reported a sharp rise in Chinese Virus deaths  the highest, in fact, since the plandemic was first launched. It took a full two months for case numbers to return back to pre-vaccine levels.

In Brazil, where Wuhan Flu shots started to be administered on Jan. 16, deaths attributed to the novel virus have soared. Four months later and those deaths are still massively higher than they were prior to the release of the jabs.

Paraguay is seeing a similar uptick. Its vaccine program began on Feb. 21 and deaths have continued to rise exponentially. The more vaccines are administered, the more deaths are being reported.

Moving over to Qatar, which started jabbing people on Jan. 28, a corresponding increase in vaccine-induced deaths is being reported. It has been more than three months since the injections began and death numbers have not returned to pre-jab levels.

On and on the list goes with Maldives, Mongolia, Estonia, Gibralter, India, and yes, the United States, all reporting similar data. Wherever Chinese Virus jabs are being administered, there you will find death and disease running rampant.

To learn more, visit ChemicalViolence.com.

Pro-vax cult says correlation does not equal causation

Despite a clear and obvious trend of horror trailing behind the vaccine bus, the pro-jab cult is insisting that none of this proves that the injections were responsible. It is all just a coincidence that right after mass injecting people, disease and death rates are skyrocketing.

Yes, the data is associational, but to dismiss the data SOLELY on these grounds is not how the scientific method works, one person tweeted. That, instead, is cognitive dissonance.

Many frontline ICU physicians are coming forward to report that they, too, are observing a major uptick in disease and death among those who were recently vaccinated for Chinese Germs.

Jabbed folks are now flooding emergency rooms, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is blaming it all on the virus, calling these events breakthrough infections.

This clownish take is something we have come to expect from the CDC, a private corporation, which will never under any circumstances admit that any jab causes injury or harm.

It is the jabs, and not some variant, that is ushering in the third wave of Chinese genocide. And yet the government will continue to blame the virus, along with those who refuse to be jabbed with it.

It is estimated that very soon the number of post-jab deaths will increase dramatically into the tens of thousands. From there, the sky is the limit in terms of the potentially millions of people who end up losing their lives from the Chinese injections.

This third wave of vaccine-induced death will more than likely trickle in at first, and eventually snowball into a real pandemic that will actually be noticeable outside just the television and social media.

These jabs basically rip away your own immune system so even the common cold kills you easier, wrote one of our own commenters about how the mRNA component of the injections turns the injected into walking spike protein factories.

Dr. Tenpenny mentioned a team of doctors in California that did a test of 55 different human organ cells ranging from the brain, heart, liver, kidneys, etc. and monitored what the jab did, wrote another. It attacked 28 out of 55 regular human organ cells that everyone has in their bodies.

Sources for this article include:

Twitter.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) The U.S. government is urging Americans in India to leave the country at the soonest. According to the State Department, American citizens currently in India are encouraged to take advantage of commercial flights headed to the U.S. It made the announcement as the south Asian nation grappled with a second wave of Wuhan coronavirus infections.

On April 28, the State Department issued a level four travel advisory  the highest level in a four-tier system  discouraging Americans from traveling to India due to COVID-19. The advisory also encouraged those who wish to depart India to take advantage of available commercial transportation options. Currently, there are 14 direct flights every day between India and the U.S., with other carriers having transfer flights in Paris and Frankfurt.

A warning posted by the U.S. Embassy in India on its website further bolstered the case for leaving the coronavirus-stricken country. It warned that some Americans have reported being turned away from hospitals in a handful of cities due to overcrowding. Furthermore, the warning also confirmed that Indian medical facilities are reporting shortages of supplies, oxygen and beds.

The warning continued: New cases and deaths from COVID-19 have risen sharply throughout India to record levels. COVID-19 testing infrastructure is reportedly constrained in many locations. It also mentioned that some Indian states have enacted curfews and other restrictions that limit movement and the operation of non-essential businesses.

Earlier, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) included India on a list of destinations that Americans should avoid traveling to. The public health agency released guidance discouraging travel to the Hindu-majority nation. [Even] fully vaccinated travelers may be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19 variants, it warned.

Based on CDC guidelines, anyone flying into the U.S. from another country must present proof of a negative COVID-19 test result no more than 72 hours before travel. Citizens and fully vaccinated individuals are not exempt from this requirement.

All travelers should undergo a quarantine period upon arrival in the U.S.  with 10 days for unvaccinated people. However, this can be cut short if they test negative for the Wuhan coronavirus three to five days after arriving. Meanwhile, CDC guidelines state that vaccinated people should get tested for COVID-19 three to five days after travel and monitor any symptoms.

The U.S. has imposed travel restrictions on India alongside other nations

On May 1, U.S. President Joe Biden imposed new travel restrictions on India. The new restrictions set to take effect on May 4 bars most non-Americans from flying in the U.S. Biden ordered the travel ban due to the surging magnitude and scope of the COVID-19 pandemic in the south Asian country. His move followed that of other countries that ordered similar prohibitions.

Reuters reported on April 27 that Australia suspended direct flights coming from India. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said during a televised presser that The Land Down Unders travel ban will remain until May 15. However, he reiterated that the temporary suspension is needed to allow quarantine facilities to prepare for the influx of new arrivals. Morrison added that the flight ban would serve as a breather for the state of New South Wales and the Northern Territory. Most coronavirus-positive cases in the two areas came from India.

We dont think the answer is to forsake those Australians in India and just shut them off, the prime minister told reporters. He added that the recent wave of infections in India is a humanitarian crisis  gripping the world. Australias flight ban will impact two direct flights from India to Sydney and two repatriating flights set to arrive in Darwin. (Related: Australia slashes flights from India after single-day caseload high of more than 310,000  remember when Trump blocking flights was racist?)

Earlier, Hong Kong authorities said in an April 18 statement that the special administrative region will suspend flights from India, Pakistan and the Philippines. The two-week suspension set to end on May 3 followed the discovery of a mutant Wuhan coronavirus strain in the country, a Straits Times report said. Visitors who have been in the three nations in the past 21 days will not be allowed to board flights headed to Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, India closed off April with a new record of COVID-19 infections. On April 30, the country reported 386,452 new cases  surpassing its earlier highs in the past few days. Reported deaths on that day also numbered at least 3,498. Data from Johns Hopkins University shows that India currently has 20.3 million COVID-19 cases, with 16.6 million recoveries and 222,408 deaths.

Visit Pandemic.news to read more articles about travel bans related to the Wuhan coronavirus.

Sources include:

DailyMail.co.uk

Travel.State.gov

CDC.gov

Reuters.com 1

Reuters.com 2

StraitsTimes.com

CNBC.com

Coronavirus.JHU.edu
(Natural News) After a full year of denial, The Washington Post is now claiming that the lab accident covid-19 origin theory might have some merit after all.

WaPo columnist Josh Rogin wrote an opinion piece saying that, while the origin of the Chinese Virus remains a mystery, several members of Congress are exploring the theory that it might have originated from an accident at a Wuhan lab.

For the first few months of the plandemic, the mainstream media claimed that Chinese Germs started to spread at a Wuhan wet market where people buy bats and other exotic animals to eat as food. Not long after that, the words Wuhan and China completely disappeared from all reporting on the Chinese Virus.

Today, we are no longer allowed to even talk about the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) in relation to Wuhan  which is now completely back to normal, by the way, while the West remains locked down and masked.

Rogin would seem to take issue with the fact that there has thus far been no credible investigation into the true origins of the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19). He even calls out Beijing for spending the past year covering up any evidence.

Chinese authorities undermined the WHO investigation so thoroughly that even WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus admitted that its team did not properly investigate the possibility of a lab accident origin and that more work needed to be done, Rogin writes.

Biden doesnt want any investigation into Chinese origins of Wuhan Flu

Last month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated that we need to get to the bottom of this. Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Avril Haines also testified that the government is investigating all available theories.

The Biden regime, meanwhile, is pushing against a genuine investigation into the origin of the virus, which is tied to Anthony Faucis high-risk gain of function research that was taking place in China at the time.

Several Republican lawmakers are attempting to fill the void that has been left by Hunters dad with their own investigation into the situation.

Understanding the cause of this pandemic  and ensuring that something like it never happens again  is the most important question facing the world today, Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin wrote in a letter to Fauci.

Given the stakes, we cannot afford to settle for a limited, blinkered, or politicized understanding of the origin of this terrible disease.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) where Fauci works has been collaborating with communist China for quite some time in the development of weaponized coronaviruses. This is why Fauci has repeatedly denied the lab accident theory because it implicates him and his cronies.

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, along with two other leading Republicans, wrote a letter to Blinken this past week requesting that he release all documents related to a Trump administration statement that a Wuhan lab was concealing its work from the public.

We hope your statement about getting to the bottom of the origins of this pandemic includes looking at all possible causes, including the possibility of an accidental leak from a laboratory, this letter states.

Peter Daszak, the labs fiercest defender, has been working alongside Fauci to conceal any and all links between the Wuhan lab and the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19).

Repeatedly throughout his op-ed, Rogin calls a proper investigation into the situation long overdue, even though it was WaPo itself that was complicit in trying to impede a proper investigation. We must ask: Why the sudden change of heart?

More of the latest news about the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) can be found at Pandemic.news.

Sources for this article include:

Archive.fo

NaturalNews.com
More than a million people in Madagascar face a year of food scarcity due to the worst drought in 40 years.

"Without rain, they will not be able to return to the fields and feed their families," Julie Reverse, emergency coordinator for Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) in Madagascar, said. And others are not afraid to say that if the situation does not improve and the rain does not fall, they will die."

According to the Famine Early Warning System Network, most poor households are forced to rely on foraging for difficult-to-eat wild foods and leaves, which can be harmful to children and pregnant women. People have been consuming termites and combining clay with tamarind, according to aid organizations.

Famine in the 21 st Century

In the twentieth century, famine killed almost 75 million people, but it had all but vanished in recent decades. It's back again, all of a sudden.

Famines are rare occurrences in which large populations are deprived of food, resulting in mass starvation and death. Since acute malnutrition damages human immune systems, the infectious disease kills more people than famine. This leaves people more vulnerable to deadly diseases like measles, as well as mild ailments like diarrhea. Children under the age of five are particularly vulnerable.

Famine victims may also face other consequences, such as widespread malnutrition, wealth depletion, social support network collapse, distress migration, and destitution.

Famines are caused by a series of events that we can track and forecast. That means we will deter them by taking appropriate public action promptly.

Agricultural productivity and rainfall patterns, food prices and price trends, and disputes are all monitored by early warning systems like FEWSNET. They still keep track of patterns in the food supply, starvation, and mortality, as well as labor migration among at-risk groups.

Related Article: The Fight Against Climate Change May Be Compromised Due to the Global Vaccine Crisis

Madagascar Famine

Children's lives are in jeopardy, especially those under the age of five, whose malnutrition rates have reached "alarming" levels, according to Amer Daoudi, senior director of global WFP operations, speaking via videolink from Madagascar's capital Antananarivo.

He added that the harvest would be about 40% lower than the 5-year average.

Drought

Following five years of drought, exacerbated this year by sandstorms and late rains, malnutrition among children under the age of five nearly doubled to 16% from 9% in the four months leading up to March 2021, he stated.

A rate of 15% is considered an emergency, and some districts estimate that 27 percent of children under the age of five, or one in every four, are suffering from acute malnutrition, which causes wasting, he added.

"I saw disturbing pictures of starving, malnourished children, and not just the children, but mothers, caregivers, and the general population in the villages we visited," Daoudi said.

"They're on the outskirts of famine; these are images I haven't seen in a long time around the world," the veteran aid worker said.

He noted that the WFP is requesting $75 million to meet immediate needs through September.

Also Read: Creating Socially Just Population Policies Advances Global Equity AND Mitigates Climate Change

For more news update about Environmental Action, don't forget to follow Nature World News!
Rolls Royce Defense has announced on May 11, 2021, that the company has been selected to supply its mtu naval generator sets for phase one of the U.S. Navys Constellation (FFG-62) class frigate program, previously known as the FFG(X) program. Rolls-Royce has received a contract for the first shipset to provide four mtu naval generator sets, each rated at 3,000 kWe at 1,800 rpm.

Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link

The mtu naval generator will be a key component of the U.S. Navy's Constellation (FFG-62) Class frigate. (Picture source Rolls-Royce Defense)

The Navy Constellation (FFG-62) Class Frigate is a multi-mission warship designed for operation in littoral and blue water environments to conduct air, anti-submarine, surface and electronic warfare, in addition to information operations. The generator sets are based on the mtu 20V 4000 M53B engine and provide a total power output of 12 MW for propulsion and on-board power supply.

Adam Wood, Director, Government Sales North America at Rolls-Royce business unit Power Systems, said: Were very proud that Fincantieri Marinette Marine has placed its trust in our mtu naval generator sets for this important program. We have a legacy of strong support for our partners in both the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard, and we are honored to be selected for FFG-62. There is no doubt that our systems will perform to the high expectations and unique demands of the U.S. Navy Constellation Class.

The flexible design engineering of the frigates CODLAG propulsion system will allow for energy-efficient diesel power generation for propulsion at normal cruising speeds with extended range, while enhancing anti-submarine capability in its extremely quiet diesel-electric configuration. When completed, the lead ship will be nearly 500 feet in length, accommodating up to 200 Sailors and be capable of sustained speeds of more than 26 knots.

Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM) of Marinette, Wisconsin (USA), was awarded the building contract for the project, which includes the design and construction of the lead ship and the option to build up to 10 ships in total for phase one. A potential planned second phase would include another 10 ships.

Construction on the first ship is expected to begin later this year.
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Federal law prohibits interfering with aircraft crew or physically assaulting or threatening to physically assault aircraft crew or anyone else on an aircraft, the statement said. Passengers are subject to civil penalties for such misconduct, which can threaten the safety of the flight by disrupting or distracting cabin crew from their safety duties. Additionally, federal law provides for criminal fines and imprisonment of passengers who interfere with the performance of a crewmembers duties by assaulting or intimidating that crewmember.
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP)  Two amateur computer coders taken by police from their Beijing homes last year were standing trial Tuesday in a case that illustrates the Chinese government's growing online censorship and heightened sensitivity to any deviation from the official narrative on its COVID-19 response.

Authorities have not said specifically why Chen Mei, 28, and Cai Wei, 27, were arrested, so friends and relatives can only guess. They believe it was because the two men had set up an online archive to store articles deleted by censors and a related forum where users could skirt real-name registration requirements to chat anonymously.

The case is being tried at Wenyuhe People's Court in the northeastern outskirts of Beijing. Chens mother and Cais father were allowed in shortly before the trial was due to begin at 9 a.m. The families were previously told that only one family member could attend.

Started in 2018, the archive kept hundreds of censored articles and the forum saw discussions on sensitive issues including the anti-government protests in Hong Kong and complaints about the ruling Communist Party. But what got them in trouble with authorities appears to be archiving articles showing an alternative to Chinas official narrative about its pandemic response just as the country started facing questions over its handling of the initial outbreak.

In keeping the censored articles and providing a place for them to be discussed, the two run afoul of increasingly strict regulations in an already stifling online environment under President Xi Jinping. Just last year hundreds were prosecuted for online speech.

Chen and Cai are being prosecuted under a catch-all charge of stirring up trouble and picking quarrels.

In January 2020, the two began archiving articles about a mysterious new illness circulating in Wuhan. For Cai, who is from the area and could not go home to see his family for the Lunar New Year holiday, the news was particularly upsetting.

A lot of things happened in China then that made us very upset, and he may have been affected by that, said his girlfriend, Tang Hongbo. She was also detained but released after 23 days when it became clear she didnt know much about the project. Every day we were looking at the internet, and we were all in this tragic mindset.

Xi has made cyberspace governance a priority, and under his direction, the government created its own model to manage the challenges and opportunities of the internet. China eliminated online anonymity by requiring people to register under what is known as the real name system starting in 2016. Social media accounts are linked to a mobile phone number, which is tied to an individuals national ID number.

A Chinese activist, using court and government records and media reports, tallied more than 750 prosecutions for web speech in 2020 in an online database and posted on a Twitter account named SpeechFreedomCN. He said he runs the database anonymously out of fear of retribution.

A friend of Cai, who declined to be named out of fear of retribution, said Cai had grown frustrated with the censorship regime. In response, he and Chen launched the Terminus2049 archive and 2049bbs forum in 2018 as a public platform of free exchange, Cai wrote in a welcome post.

Its not just the real name system  the deletions of posts, the bans, have reached a point thats really shocking domestically, Cai wrote in another 2018 post. When you have to worry about whether you have touched a sensitive keyword in any post you write, how can you really have the brave desire to express yourself?

On the forum, Cai wrote about movies, music and books he liked. Others discussed mores sensitive topics. It was a place to speak without worrying about having posts deleted or getting ones account banned. It didnt require a phone number to register, or even an email address.

Chen was more low-key but similarly chafed against the censorship system.

He wants information to flow. He wants quality information to flow freely, said Chen Kun, his older brother. We have this type of value deep in our bones, the independence of discourse on the internet and the free transmission of information.

Cai and Chen met in 2011 at a summer camp hosted by Liren College, a socially conscious educational program. Both self-taught coders, they first started cooperating on a project to archive all the lectures and information from the summer camps, said a friend of both, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear of retribution. Authorities shut down Liren in 2014.

Terminus2049 primarily housed articles that had been deleted from WeChat and Weibo, popular social media platforms that are subject to regular algorithmic and human censorship. While similar databases existed, most were blocked in China. Terminus2049 was available on Github, a code sharing platform that is not blocked.

The topics the archived articles touched on were broad, but they shared a focus on social issues. One was concerned about the expulsion of migrant workers from Beijing after a fire, while another shared questions about a company that falsified data on rabies vaccines.

It was only after Cai and Chen got arrested in April last year that their families found out from friends and peers what the two had been working on. They suspect that pandemic-related content triggered the arrests, in part because in the weeks before and after their detention, police questioned acquaintances about what the two had done during the outbreak.

They were told that Chen Mei has family members abroad, has provided foreign organizations with information about the pandemic and is basically handing a knife over to the enemy, said Chen Kun, who now lives in France.

Police in Beijing did not respond to a faxed request for comment and court-appointed lawyers did not respond to phone calls.

Citizen journalist Zhang Zhan also fell afoul of the law after reporting from Wuhan in the early days of the outbreak. She received a four-year sentence in December.

The 2049bbs forum, which never had major reach, is now blocked in China. Yet the discussions continue and the records of the forum live on in a site called 2047, set up by a self-described person who walks the same path and some members of the old forum.

Cais father, who hasn't seen his son in more than a year, still cant understand how his son ran afoul of the authorities.

He didnt say anything bad. He didnt try to organize some protests," Cai Jianli said. "How did this become picking quarrels and stirring up trouble?

___

Associated Press video journalist Sam McNeil and news assistant Caroline Chen in Beijing contributed to this story.
New Castle, PA (16103)

Today

Mostly cloudy early. Isolated thunderstorms may develop this afternoon. High 84F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Mostly cloudy with showers and a few thunderstorms. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
New Castle, PA (16103)

Today

Foggy this morning followed by scattered showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon. High 83F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Variable clouds with showers and scattered thunderstorms. Storms more numerous this evening. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Unfortunately this happens far too often now. If not for our community and law enforcement partners, these little girls could have faced the more than 100-degree temperatures with no help,he added.


Norwich minister's global mission role Norwich minister's global mission role

As the UK Development Director for World Outreach, Norwich-based former Baptist pastor, David Adams, oversees and implements any opportunity to share the story of World Outreach. This includes the many ways it is advancing the spread of the Good News of Jesus around the world.

Davids involvement with World Outreach (WO) began in the early 1990s. His introduction to the organisation came when ministering in India.



My contact there was an Indian man who I had met at Bible College in Dallas, Texas in 1978. Gods ways are amazing, said David (pictured above). Since the 90s I have done many mission trips with WOI. I count it a true privilege to be part of a mission with such a big heart for the unreached peoples of the world."



David retired from pastoral work as a UK Baptist minister in Norwich in 2014. He then felt the clear leading of God for his next steps. To help build, in the UK, an understanding of the continuing need to make disciples of all nations. "And why not through WO!" he thought.

Who is World Outreach?

World Outreach is a mission's agency - a ministry organisation that exists to help Christian missionary endeavour. We do this through:

Raising Leaders - We are committed to the ongoing development and discipleship of leaders across the majority world.

Evangelism & Church Planting - We actively share the Gospel and empower people to plant churches.

All Nations Mobilisation - We are passionate to see Christians encouraged, equipped, and mobilised to make disciples among their own people.

Childrens Ministry - We are dedicated to sharing the Good News with the worlds children, then discipling them, and providing loving and supportive care.

Humanitarian Aid - We are committed to combining practical compassion with the hope of Jesus.

World Outreach has been around since 1932 and our workers are in many different locations all over the globe. We are compelled by the love and message of Jesus to go and reach unreached people groups.

What Is An Unreached People Group?

Unreached people groups often live in difficult places, speak difficult languages, and are hard to reach. We use the term unreached people group (UPG) in missions circles to describe an ethno-linguistic people group among which there is no indigenous community of believing Christians with adequate numbers and resources to evangelize this people group without outside assistance. Ref Joshua Project. They are distinguishable by their language, culture, or beliefs. There are 16,000 people groups in the world. Of these, a staggering 6,000 classify as unreached.



There are 3 billion people living in an unreached people group with little or no opportunity to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ. Our goal at World Outreach is not evangelism alone. Through discipleship and leadership training, we want them to disciple their own people and plant their own churches. Then go to reach other peoples with the Gospel.

In The UK


Nick walks 300,000 steps for Christian Aid Week Nick walks 300,000 steps for Christian Aid Week

Rev Nick Garrard is walking 300,000 steps in May to raise money for Christian Aid, and help communities impacted by climate change.

Julian Bryant, Christian Aids Church Engagement Officer for Norfolk, explains: This devastating climate crisis robs people of the water and food they need to live. They tell us that at times it even robs them of their children. Thats why it is so important that we, as the Church and individuals in the UK, make a difference to our global neighbours.



You can sponsor Nick via his Facebook fundraising page here .



Alongside this challenge, Wells next the Sea group has organised a Sunrise to Sunset sponsored walk on Tuesday May 11 along the North Norfolk Coastal Path. You can support them here .



And meanwhile, Norwich Cathedral is holding an innovative quiz trail in the evening of Monday 17 May. Tickets must be booked in advance and are on this link .



Julian continues: Other churches and groups are making and selling cookery books, setting up JustGiving pages, using our e-envelope, running tabletop and plant sales and so much more. Some are simply giving via our website. I am so inspired that even in this year, they realise that their fundraising and campaigning is needed so much more for our brothers and sisters in this crisis.



To see what resources are available for Chrisitan Aid Week, or make an online donation, please go to: www.christianaid.org.uk/appeals/key-appeals/christian-aid-week



Pictured above is Nick Garrard



Eldred Willey, 10/05/2021
Always wanting to punch above its weight, the tiny church of All Saints, Hethel, in South Norfolk, has organised a Celebration of Creation weekend on June 26-27 with everyone welcome.

Always wanting to punch above its weight, the tiny church of All Saints, Hethel, in South Norfolk, has organised a Celebration of Creation weekend on June 26-27 with everyone welcome.

Willy Notcutt  exceptional doctor and Christian Tributes have been paid to Dr William Willy Notcutt, retired senior consultant anaesthetist who was also a committed Christian. Tony Mallion describes his remarkable life. Read more

Norwich Youth for Christ completes gaming marathon Norwich Youth for Christ has raised 2,418 though a sponsored 24 hours of streaming and gaming. Read more

God is Lord of time, and of eternity Philip Young recently presented a paper to the Quaker Universalist Group Conference on 'Life, Time and Eternity from a Christian perspective. He shares a short extract from that paper here. Read more

YMCA opens new 90-place nursery in Norwich YMCA Norfolk has just opened a new 90-place Ofsted-registered nursery called Muddy Puddles near Norwich city centre. Harriet King from YMCA Norfolk describes whats on offer. Read more

Lyns masks raise funds for Cawston Church A Cawston churchwarden has raised thousands of pounds for her parish church by making and selling face masks during the pandemic. Read more

Norfolk founder takes up Tools with a Mission The charity Tools With a Mission is offering an opportunity to churches to hear about its work, and Val Dodsworth is available to speak on its behalf. Read more

St Johns Cathedral takes Corpus Christi to Norwich streets The parish community of St Johns Cathedral took to the open air on Sunday for the Corpus Christi procession. Read more

Julian's pedal power to combat COVID impact On Sunday June 13, Julian Bryant, Christian Aids Church Engagement Officer for Norfolk and member of St Edmunds, Taverham, will be cycling 200 miles around the borders of Norfolk to raise money for people impacted by COVID19 in countries like India. Read more

Norwich Community Gospel Choir is back on song Norwich Community Gospel Choir director, Megan Rawling, describes how the choir has kept going during the various lockdowns and how it plans to emerge even stronger. Read more

Yarmouth centre provides a pathway for the vulnerable The Pathway cafe and support centre offers food, friendship and advice to vulnerable people in Great Yarmouth. Pathway manager Jennifer King reports. Read more

Bertie's spirit shines in pandemic challenges Lock-down, personal loss and suffering have not thwarted the spirits of Norwich girl Bertie Emes-Ellis who simply lives to give. Read more

Norwich church to host praise weekend Kingdom Ambassadors International Church in Norwich are holding a Praise and Worship weekend later this month, and everyone is warmly invited to come along. Read more

Norwich St Johns Cathedral fraudster must pay back 1 A former treasurer of St John the Baptist Catholic Cathedral in Norwich, who is in jail for defrauding the cathedral of 235,000, has been ordered to pay back just 1 because he has no assets. Read more

Come and help at North Norfolk Christian centre The Pleasaunce Holiday Centre in Overstrand is holding a work-party morning on Saturday June 12 and would like as many people as possible to join in to help get the gardens ship-shape. Read more

St Francis church in Heartsease goes for growth St Francis Church in Heartsease is organising a practical Let it Grow event this weekend to celebrate World Environment Day. Read more

Giving young people a vision for world mission The missionary organisation OMF is putting on a training event for Christian youth workers and their friends. Read more

God can use old age to bring new life Anna Heydon encourages to make the most of the new opportunities which God offers us as we approach the more mature years of our lives. Read more
As the enterprise edge expands to include semi-permanent remote workforces, IoT, and a range of applications like AI and M2M, they generate torrents of nonstop data that must be stored indefinitely and be available in near-real-time to users and applications.

Legacy storage architectures are failing to keep up with both data growth and user/application demand. While storage innovation is pushing more workloads into the cloud, many startups have found that the average enterprise is not yet ready for cloud-only storage. Legacy architectures and applications are experiencing extended shelf-lives due to tight IT budgets, and many enterprises still prefer to keep certain workloads on-premises.

As a result, storage startups are finding ways not only to accommodate legacy infrastructures, but also developing storage systems that deliver the latest benefits of cloud-based storage to any deployment model.

The nine startups featured here are developing everything from NVMe disaggregated storage platforms to storage management software for mainframes. Their founding teams earned leadership experience at the likes of Dell EMC, IBM, Juniper, and Pure Storage. Collectively, they have raised more than $750 million in funding, a figure made all the more impressive by the fact that it includes one startup that has not yet disclosed details about its funding.

Year founded: 2015

Funding: $12M

Headquarters: Longmont, Colorado

CEO: Tod Earhart, former director of firmware development for Micron Technologies

What they do: Develop flash storage software for cloud data centers.

Burlywoods flagship FlashOS is storage-controller software. FlashOS analyzes application behavior at the flash-controller level and tunes both SSD performance and features to fit each application. It enables enterprises to deploy whatever underlying storage architecture they wish, including cloud storage, all-flash arrays, and hyperconverged solutions.

Competitors include: Incumbents like Intel, Samsung, and Western Digital, as well as such startups as Apeiron, Qumulo, and Zadara

Customers include: None named.

Why theyre a hot startup to watch: Burlywood is targeting the control plane of storage, developing software that accommodates legacy architectures while paving the way to modern, hyperconverged ones.

The startup has enough early funding to seek out early reference customers, having secured a $10.6M Series A in late 2018. CEO Tod Earhart gained management experience in the industry at Micron and Western Digital.

Year founded: 2016

Funding: $310.9M

Headquarters: Santa Clara, California

CEO: Pradeep Sindhu, former served CEO and Chairman of Juniper Networks

What they do: Fungible develops processors, software, and storage clusters that, together, enable enterprises to build hyperscale-like data centers.

The Fungible DPU family are Systems-on-Chip (SoC) processors designed to overcome what Fungible says are the two biggest challenges in scale-out disaggregated data centers: 1) inefficient execution of data-centric computations within server nodes and 2) inefficient interchange of data among nodes.

Fungibles flagship product, the F1 DPU delivers 800Gbps processing and implements the entire storage, networking, security, and virtualization stack. Fungibles TrueFabric software, a large-scale IP-over-Ethernet fabric protocol, is integrated into the chip. The company says it provides full cross-sectional bandwidth with low average and tail latency, end-to-end QoS, and congestion-free connectivity.

This enables disaggregation and pooling of all data center resources at scale. TrueFabric is interoperable with TCP/IP over Ethernet, ensuring that a data-center spine-leaf network can be built with standard off-the-shelf Ethernet switches.

The Fungible Storage Cluster (FSC) is a storage platform based on the DPU and composed of scale-out NVMe over Fabrics (NVME-oF) storage nodes. A disaggregated storage platform, the FSC implements a separation of storage control planes and data planes. The platform is designed to enable cloud service providers and enterprises get hyperscale performance out of their data centers.

FSCs are the foundation of the Fungible Data Center (FDC). The FDC is an on-premises, turn-key solution comprised of pre-configured racks of disaggregated compute and storage servers powered by the Fungible DPU and managed by Fungibles Data Center Composer (DCC) software.

Competitors include: Dell EMC, Liqid, Nebulon, NetApp, and Pure Storage

Customers include: Los Alamos National Laboratory

Why theyre a hot startup to watch: Fungible has raised a massive amount of funding--$311M--and they target a similarly massive opportunity, the hyperscale data-center market.

In 2020, Fungible acquired the assets of Cloudistics, a cloud-software platform startup. With a strong leadership team that served in senior executive roles at Juniper, Apple, Pure Storage, and Qualcomm, among others, Fungible is in a strong position to compete in the hyperscale cloud-service-provider market and open up the adjacent on-premises enterprise market.

Year founded: 2014

Funding: $54.2M

Headquarters: Kfar Saba, Israel

CEO: Eran Kirzner, who formerly served as VP Software and Solutions, Enterprise Storage Division for PMC-Sierra

What they do: Develop NVMe over TCP software-defined block storage.

The latest version of their storage software, LightOS 2.1, is an NVMe/TCP scale-out, disaggregated storage solution designed to perform like local flash.

When installed on commodity servers in large-scale datacenters, LightOS 2.1 automatically optimizes for I/O intensive compute clusters, such as Kafka, Cassandra, MySQL, MongoDB, and time-series databases. Each storage server in the cluster can support up to 64K namespaces and 16K connections.

LightOS 2.1 also supports containerized environments like Kubernetes that require large-scale clusters with persistent and durable storage for rapid node migration, workload rebalancing, or recovery from failure without copying data over the network.

Competitors include: Ceph, Excelero, Fungible, Pavilion Data, and Pure Storage

Customers include: Finanz Informatik Technologies Services, AMPD, and Equinix Metal

Why theyre a hot startup to watch: Lightbits Labs has all of the right ingredients--solid funding, strong senior team, early customer traction--to compete in a tough NVMe market. The startup has raised more than $54M, and has named customers.

The founding teams pedigree is also a mark in Lightbits favor. CEO and co-founder Eran Kirzner gained VP-level experience at PMC-Sierra and Wintegra. Co-founder and Chairman Avigdor Willenz co-founded Annapurna Labs, which was acquired by Amazon in 2015, and co-founder and Chief Scientist Muli Ben-Yehuda served as chief Scientist for software-defined data-center vendor Stratoscale.

Year founded: 2016

Funding: Undisclosed but said to be working on its second round of funding.

Headquarters: San Francisco, California

CEO: Peter Thompson, previously VP of emerging and developing markets for DataCore Software

What they do: LucidLink develops cloud storage.

LucidLinks Filespaces is a cloud-native file service intended to deliver NAS-like performance from cloud storage that is delivered as a service. Filespaces gives enterprises the ability to run file-based workloads on object storage and Azure Blob.

Designed to address business needs around storing large data sets and accessing them over distance, Filespaces creates a shared global namespace that acts like NAS even though the data is hosted in the cloud. LucidLink says that it is able to do this by reducing the traffic between applications and remote storage, thereby eliminating distance and latency issues. Performance is further optimized by data prefetching based on a proprietary, adaptive algorithm; parallel TCP streams; local write-back caching; and in-line compression.

Rather than relying on synchronization, LucidLink streams data on-demand directly from the cloud as needed by the application. The single source of truth is kept in the cloud. Frequently accessed data is cached locally. Since data streams directly to and from the underlying object store, LucidLink eliminates the need for a gateway. Additionally, LucidLink provides file capabilities like direct read/write access from the cloud, immutable snapshots, user access control, and global file locking.

Competitors include: Panzura and Dropbox

Customers include: Torti Gallas and WebMD

Why theyre a hot startup to watch: Security and performance have been two major sticking points for many enterprises that are considering expanding their consumption of cloud storage. LucidLinks ability to securely stream cloud data at NAS speeds allows them to offer a unique service that cuts into the $20-billion NAS market.

Recent surveys such as one by the University of Southern California have found that knowledge workers will expect flexibility to work remotely, even after the COVID-19 pandemic recedes. Since LucidLink securely streams data between the cloud and any object store, enterprises can deliver a uniform experience to both on-premises and remote teams, even when working with data-intensive applications. Finally, the startup has a marquee named customer in WebMD.

Year founded: 2016

Funding: $13.8M

Headquarters: Tel Aviv, Israel and New York, New York

CEO: Gil Peleg, who previously worked in storage development roles at INFINIDAT and IBM

What they do: Develop cloud storage-management software for mainframes.

According to Model9, most mainframe data is hosted in proprietary storage silos, most often in expensive tapes and virtual-tape libraries. The siloed data is difficult to access, manage, and analyze. In addition, IT professionals with the requisite skills and experience to manage the infrastructure operations are a dying breed.

Model9s software is designed to unlock mainframe data and open up a variety of options for cloud or on-premises object storage, data management, and integration with BI and analytics tools.

With Model9, enterprises are able to run standard mainframe backup, archive, recovery, and space-management operations. All functions are offloaded to zIIPs (IBM z Integrated Information Processors) using any storage system connected over TCP/IP, including object storage, NAS, and SAN.

Competitors include: IBM, Dell EMC, and Broadcom through its acquisition of CA

Customers include: America First Credit Union, Sirius, France Galop, and RELX Group

Why theyre a hot startup to watch: The mainframe market tends to be overlooked by entrepreneurs spinning up storage startups. Model9s focus on transitioning mainframes to the cloud may shake up a slowly evolving market dominated by a handful of incumbents.

Even if the mainframe market isnt as flashy as new niches like NVMe, its still massively important to the worlds computing infrastructure, providing the core computing platform of many of the worlds largest and most critical businesses including banks, insurance carriers, and retail, health and government organizations.

Model9 has raised sufficient funding to compete for a solid foothold in the market, and it has already lined up several named customers in varied verticals.

Year founded: 2014

Funding: $21.8M

Headquarters: Cambridge, New Zealand

CEO: Herb Hunt, former GM at C3 AI

What they do: Develop storage controllers.

Nyriad software enables enterprises and cloud data-center operators to replace RAID controllers with graphics processing units (GPUs) for all Linux storage applications. Thus, GPUs are tasked as both I/O controllers and compute accelerators, a technique that minimizes data movement during the processing of large data sets.

Competitors include: NVIDIA, Qumulo, VAST Data, and Zadara

Customers include: Nyriad has yet to name customers.

Why theyre a hot startup to watch: The software behind Nyriads storage solution was originally developed as part of New Zealands effort to host the large radio-telescope array Square Kilometre Array (SKA). New Zealand lost out to South Africa and Australia, yet key technical innovations of the project live on, including some incorporated in Nyriad.

In late 2019, Nyriad shook up its management team, raised $11M in Series B funding, and brought in serial entrepreneur and investor Guy Haddleton to reshape the business. Nyriad has since launched an early adopter program, with named partners and participants that include HPC Systems, NEC, and Supermicro.

Year founded: 2014

Funding: $58M

Headquarters: San Jose, California

CEO: Gurpreet Singh, previously VP of product management for Pure Storage

What they do: Pavilion Datas storage platform consists of two components: 1) control software, HyperOS and 2) NVMe storage, HyperParallel Flash Array.

Each HyperParallel Flash Array delivers performance of up to 120GB/s read and 90GB/s write. The global namespace capabilities of HyperOS clustered, distributed file system expand storage capabilities across any number of flash arrays.

HyperOS supports block, file, and object protocols to run natively on any combination of controllers, across any number of its HyperParallel Flash Arrays. Each Flash Array supports up to 20 independent controllers, each of which runs its own instance of HyperOS. Unlike traditional arrays, that enable multiprotocol by running one protocol on top of another, HyperOS runs each protocol (iSCSI, NVMe-oF, NFS, S3) natively.
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By Express News Service

PARIS: From France to Greece, Europe's top tourist destinations are gearing up to welcome visitors back this summer after the coronavirus pandemic wrecked last year's season.

The European Commission is working on a "Digital Green Pass" that would provide proof of vaccination and Covid test results, with the aim of making travel easier for people in the European Union and abroad.

The pass may be available from June, but countries are already getting ready for tourists.

Here is a look at the latest situation:

France

France was the world's top tourist destination before the pandemic in 2019 with 90 million visitors.

The government launched a multi-million-euro campaign on Tuesday to woo tourists.

Restrictions are gradually being lifted, with France's famous cafe terraces set to reopen on May 19 along with shops, museums and theatres.

Indoor spaces in restaurants and cafes will be allowed to reopen on June 9 with a near-total return to normal by the end of the month.

But new restrictions could be imposed if cases exceed 400 infections per 100,000 inhabitants.

Greece

Athens last month lifted a seven-day quarantine period for travellers from the European Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, Serbia, the United Arab Emirates and other countries.

It reopened outdoor cafes and restaurants before France, on May 3.

ALSO READ | If you hate travel curbs, see this order from 1900

Now it is hoping to make its idyllic islands Covid-free by giving them priority in the vaccination campaign, giving jabs to their entire adult population earlier than the rest of Greece.

Private beaches reopened Saturday and museums will follow suit on May 14. Outdoor cinemas will do so from May 21 although with reduced capacity and theatres will do the same from May 28.

Cruise ships and passengers will also be welcome at Greek ports, a boon as tourism is worth a 20 percent slice of Greece's GDP, according to the World Trade and Tourism Council (WTTC).

Spain

Spain was the second top tourist destination in the world after France in 2019, with 83.5 million visitors. Visits crumbled by 77 percent last year.

Tourism represents 14.1 percent of Spain's economic activity.

Madrid has been a relative refuge for European tourists as bars, museums, restaurants and theatres have been left open since last June. Visitors only need to show a negative virus test over the previous 72 hours.

As of last Sunday, Spaniards can travel outside their region and the country's curfew has been lifted save for the Balearic Islands and Valencia region pending a judicial green light.

Italy

Italy plans to introduce its own Covid pass later this month ahead of the EU which will allow travel to every region of the country.

The certificate will be given to people who can show they were vaccinated or previously had Covid-19, or tested negative for the coronavirus.

The document will be available to people outside the EU, said Tourism Minister Massimo Garavaglia.

ALSO READ | Coronavirus leaves little Kosovo Europe's only country without printed daily newspapers

"The US and Britain represent 30 percent of foreign arrivals in Italy. They are tourists who spend a lot," he said.

Cruises have resumed in Italian ports while bars and restaurants can serve people outside again.

Italy welcomed 64.5 million foreign visitors in 2019, according to the World Tourism Organization.

Malta

The Mediterranean island of Malta, which received 2.8 million tourists in 2019, is to offer the first 38,000 visitors 200 euros ($243) towards a minimum three-night hotel stay.

The sum must be spent in the country and will be increased by 10 percent for trips to the isle of Gozo.

Malta may demand that visitors be vaccinated or show a negative Covid test before arrival if Covid-19 is not under control in their country of origin.
Omjasvin MD By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The Chennai Corporation has distributed 300 oxygen concentrators to government hospitals in the city for the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

The concentrators were given to the Tamil Nadu government by international companies OLAM International and Temasek on May 10 in the presence of Chief Minister MK Stalin.

The CM handed over the concentrators to the Chennai Corporation and urged it to distribute them to government hospitals.

A total of 50 concentrators have been given to the Covid Care Centre at Stanley GH, 33 to Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, 50 to Kings Institute in Guindy, 80 to Communicable Diseases Hospital in Tondiarpet, 40 to Chennai Trade Centre and 40 to Kodambakkam Meenakshi College Care Centre. 293 of the 300 concentrators have been distributed so far.

Principal Secretary and Chennai Corporation Commissioner Gagandeep Singh Bedi inspected the facilities on Tuesday and spoke to doctors there.

He also visited the Communicable Diseases Hospital in Tondiarpet, where a 114-bed COVID facility has been set up. Following the inspection, Bedi held a meeting with top police officials and bureaucrats on measures that need to be taken for COVID-19 containment.
Sahaya Novinston Lobo By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The first day of the intensified lockdown on Monday went off smoothly as most residents stayed inside barring a few individuals who needed reminders to stay indoors. The Chennai city police have come up with a new helpline number which will answer all the queries regarding the lockdown. City roads which were rumbling with vehicles in the morning fell silent after 12 noon. Very few vehicles hit the roads and police attributed it to essential workers and people in need of medical assistance. Most of the flyovers and bridges were closed and police had set up over 200 checkpoints in the city.

Police personnel questioned every motorist and sought proper documents before letting them go. A senior police officer Express spoke to said that they had instructed the subordinates to book cases only if necessary on the first day and issue warnings.Police personnel, speaking on loudspeakers, were seen advising motorists in Egmore, Virugambakkam and T Nagar. In Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital (KMCH), hundreds of people gathered to purchase Remdesivir and the crowd spilled onto the Poonamallee High Road. Police personnel arrived at the spot and since there were no tokens issued on Monday, the people were sent back. When people crowded at stores and milk shops in the morning, police again had to ask them to stand in queues. Police were constantly monitoring to ensure that people did not gather in shops in large numbers.

DGP circular

Meanwhile on Sunday, the Director General of Police, JK Tripathy, had issued a communication to subordinates instructing them of various Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to be followed for the next 14 days. Police personnel were instructed not to exhibit anger and to avoid getting into arguments with essential workers. While making sure of the free movement of vehicles delivering essential services, shopkeepers should be told to down shutters in a polite manner, read the circular. If a motorist is violating protocols, his vehicle should not be seized but a picture can be taken and he can be booked. Personnel over the age of 50, those with illness and women personnel were not to be deployed for vehicle checks, said the circular.

Covid helpline

City police on Monday started a new helpline that would function until May 24. The help desk will answer the queries from public regarding the lockdown. A press release said that they will answer queries regarding e-registration, assistance for senior citizens and single women staying alone, help for transporting oxygen cylinders or tankers from manufacturers, buying Remdesivir medicine and so on. For assistance, call the following numbers: 94981-81236 / 94981 - 81239.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Tuesday said while the number of daily new infections in the capital has started reducing, one cannot be at ease till the positivity rate drops below five percent.

The number of cases has dipped to around 12,500 from a high of around 28,000.

The positivity rate has also reduced to 19 per cent from a maximum of 36 per cent in April, he told reporters.

"But we cannot be at ease till the positivity rate drops below five percent and the number of new infections is less than 3,000 to 4,000," Jain said.

ALSO READ | Delhi records 12,481 new Covid-19 cases, 347 deaths in 24 hours

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had on Monday expressed hope that the peak of the second wave of the pandemic in Delhi has passed.

However, no concessions can be allowed just yet, he had said.

Jain said on Tuesday the Delhi government has made all the preparations to ramp up vaccination but there are no vaccines available.

AAP leader Atishi had on Monday said the government will be forced to shut down vaccination centres administering Covaxin to people in the 18-44 age group after Tuesday evening due to a lack of jabs.

Jain said the bed occupancy in the capital rose to around 22,000 this time as compared to the previous high of around 9,500.

ALSO READ | Karnataka, Kerala, TN among 16 states showing continued increasing trend in daily Covid cases: Centre

The situation with respect to oxygen supply has improved, but around 20,000 beds are still occupied, he said.

The minister ascribed the dip in the number of testing over the few days to the restricted movement of people due to the lockdown.

Around 80,000 tests are being conducted daily, he said.

Earlier, the average number of tests was around 1 lakh, according to government data.

On Tuesday, Delhi logged 12,481 infections with a positivity rate of 17.7, the lowest since April 14, when it stood at 15.9 percent.

ALSO WATCH:
Shantanu David By

Express News Service

Across Delhi-NCR and beyond, teens and their parents are following the trajectory of Covid cases as anxiously as the rest of us; their case having even more ramifications. As cases continue to peak, international borders remain closed to Indian kids hopeful of studying abroad, and already delayed by 2020. The Morning Standard spoke to Piyush Kumar, Regional Director (South Asia), IDP Education Limited, about kids who are caught in the middle, as well as those planning for the year ahead, on what options they have. IDP is an international education organisation headquartered in Delhi, offering student placement in Australia, New Zealand, the US, UK, Republic of Ireland and Canada. Excerpts:

Given the global impact of COVID-19, what lies ahead for those who had been aspiring to study abroad?

Students dont need to lose heart as only visa approvals have been paused due to safety concerns. Considering the unprecedented state of events, many universities and institutions are allowing students to register and commence their courses online without a visa. Students can also opt to take a part of their course online and continue on-campus when entry is allowed in their respective country. However, students are required to submit proof of their visa application. Also, this is the right time to start the process as the earlier students apply for their admission, the earlier they can apply for a visa. This will ensure early visa approvals, which will enable students to travel to their dream educational destinations as soon as situation normalises, or governments allow entry of international students.

Given that the pandemic is still ongoing, what do you foresee in international higher education trends for 2021?

Universities would like to know how the students used their time during the pandemic. If they have assisted someone or volunteered for the public good, it is good to highlight the same in their application. Plus, many online platforms provide online courses to help students build their profiles. Students can take up various programmes to enhance their profiles. Institutions have given many relaxations to students to help them fulfil their dream of studying abroad. Some universities have waived the standardised tests required for admission. However, they still would closely assess all the other parameters, such as previous academic records, Statement of Purpose, Letters of Recommendations, etc. With such leverage at hand, the number of applicants has surged, and hence the universities also have a tough call to make. I would suggest the students to be very careful and focus on every aspect of their application. It is a good idea to apply early or before the deadline.

How is IDP going to help students in studying overseas both during and post COVID-19?

IDP is closely observing the situation and keeping track of the changes international institutions are introducing in their admission processes to help students make an informed decision and keeps them updated about new policies, including waivers, scholarships, and deadline extensions. For example, most US universities have waived off application fees and even lifted the GRE/GMAT requirements for masters and SAT/ ACT for undergraduate degrees. Some US universities have even decided to give out offers to students without submitting last semesters mark sheets. Similarly, many UK institutions are also offering additional scholarships and bursaries.

We understand that shortlisting an institution and working through the application process can be a strenuous task for students and parents. Our goal, therefore, is to assist and guide them through all the steps from the initial exploratory stage, application submission, to safe arrival on campus.

Our virtual fairs help students to explore their prospects of studying in the UK, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, from the comfort of their homes. They can apply directly to the institutions and get detailed information on scholarships, ranking, visas, etc., by our certified international education specialists over a one-on-one video counselling session. This allows them to interact face-to-face with institution representatives and get answers to their queries.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday suggested that the Centre share the anti-COVID-19 vaccine formula of the two manufacturers with other companies in the country to scale up production.

Kejriwal said there is a shortage of vaccine across the country and an urgent need to ramp up its manufacturing on war footing while developing a national policy to inoculate everyone in the next few months.

He said the Centre should ensure that all the vaccine manufacturing plants in the country start producing COVID doses.

The two COVID vaccine manufacturers can be provided royalty for use of their formula by other companies, he said.

He said scaling up vaccine production is needed to vaccinate everyone before the onset of the next wave of COVID-19.

Over 1.39 lakh people were vaccinated in Delhi on Monday, of which nearly 46 per cent belonged to the 18-44 age group, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said on Tuesday.

"Total 1,39,261 people were vaccinated yesterday in Delhi out of which 64,151 are from 18-45 age group," Sisodia tweeted.

On Monday, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Atishi had said the Delhi government will have to close vaccination centres where Covaxin is being administered to beneficiaries in the 18-44 age group after Tuesday evening if its stocks are not replenished.

Delhi's Covaxin stock for this category would last till Tuesday evening, she said, adding Covishield doses for this age group can last up to four days.

Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed the Centre and Delhi government to treat as a representation a PIL seeking setting up of drive-in vaccination centres in open areas, including stadiums, as has been done in Mumbai.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jasmeet Singh asked the central and Delhi governments to decide the representation in accordance with the law, rules, regulations and policy applicable to facts of the case.

The court said the decision be taken as expeditiously as possible and practicable.

The plea by Delhi-based trader Amandeep Aggarwal had sought setting up of the drive-in vaccination centres, as done in Mumbai, to ensure citizens do not come into contact with each other and social distancing is maintained when people get vaccinated.

The petitioner, represented by senior advocate A S Chandhiok and advocate Rushab Aggarwal, contended that the purpose of imposing a curfew or lockdown would be defeated if people are queuing or crowding at closed spaces like vaccination centres or hospitals to get vaccinated.

The plea had contended that creating vaccination centres in open spaces would reduce the pressure on the medical staff and infrastructure at hospitals which are struggling to cater to the increasing number of COVID-19 patients in the national capital.

"The drive-in vaccination centres will encourage people to get vaccinated at the earliest without compromising themselves by coming in contact with other citizens," the plea had said.
By Express News Service

ALAPPUZHA: 40-year-old Sandeev Raj of Olavaipu in Thaikkattussery panchayat of Cherthala taluk in Alappuzha is not a frontline Covid warrior, but he has been a saviour of many Covid positive people of his place and nearby areas. He has been transporting Covid patients to hospitals and back without any hesitation in his autorickshaw ambulance for the past six months. When ambulance services are not available in remote areas like Olivaipu, autorickshaw drivers like Sandeev are a huge help to people.

According to Sandeev, the absence of an ambulance is a major problem for transporting Covid positive persons. If anybody in the locality develops symptoms of Covid and wants to reach a hospital for testing, the majority of vehicle owners hesitate to carry the person fearing they would get infected. I do not fear the pandemic and I lend a helping hand.

I have separated the drivers cabin of my autorickshaw with a plastic sheet. I use sanitisers and other preventive methods. The majority of the people of our locality are poor fishermen or farmers. They cannot call an ambulance each time they want to go to a hospital because it is expensive. If they go in an autorickshaw, it will cost them less than Rs 100. Hence, I started this service, not for my livelihood, but to save the lives of my people, Sandeev said.

My friends Faizal, Dhanesh Kumar, Sathar, Sarin P Raj and others support my initiative. He is also a welder but started plying the autorickshaw two years ago. Autorickshaw drivers saved me from an accident and it encouraged me to start the service, Sandeev said.

He is also ready to lend other types of help to the families of Covid-infected people including delivering food items at the doorstep. Sandeevs wife Sharanya is a housewife and the couple has two children, Ananya and Abhinandh.
My hope is that your grandkids will call you, and your kids will call you, and your friends will call you, and ask you about your faith. And when they call, tell them how much you love Jesus and why Jesus faith in you meant why you could have faith in me, they said.
Rajesh Kumar Thakur And Anuraag Singh By

Express News Service

PATNA: Dozens of bodies, in various stages of decay, of suspected Covid-19 victims were spotted in the Ganges at Chausa block of Bihars Buxar district on Monday morning, sparking a scare.

While the locals said such sights were frequent ever since officials started dumping bodies into the river after running out of firewood at the crematoriums, authorities claimed they had flowed into the state from upstream Uttar Pradesh, where similar sightings at a border village in Ghazipur district were reported.

However, there was no clear word on the origin of the bodies. After the bodies were retrieved, Buxar DM Aman Samir ordered an inquest.

While the locals claimed that 40-45 bodies were spotted, the DM pegged the number at 30-35.

These bodies are not of the people from Buxar. It has come from upstream Ganges, Samir told media.

Confirming a similar sighting on the UP side of the Ganges, Ghazipur DM M P Singh told TNIE: Buxar officials are coordinating with us. We spotted one body in the river in Ghazipurs Bara village.

However, Singhs claim was contested in Gahmar, a village adjoining Bara, where locals claimed that not one, but several bodies were seen in the river.

They concurred with Chausa villagers that the sudden shortage of firewood owing to a jump in cost was responsible for the disposal of the bodies on the Ganges.

The river separates Bihar from UP, with Bara and Gahmar in Ghazipur on one bank and Chausa on the other.

Locals in Chausa said that spotting carrion birds and stray dogs eating half-burnt, bloated bodies had become common.

Everyday bodies of Covid patients, either half-burnt or wrapped in plastic, are dumped into the river as there is a shortage of firewood, a local said.

However, the authorities refuted the allegations, saying the local crematoriums had abundant stock of firewood and bodies were being cremated as per prescribed guidelines at Chausa ghats.

Buxar SDO KK Upadhayay later told the media that the bodies had flowed into the state from faraway places.

ALSO READ | As death toll crosses two lakh mark, data manipulation lets down India's COVID fight

Meanwhile, health experts like Dr Rajiv Ranjan and Dr Madhusudan from Patna said such unceremonious disposal of bodies of Covid-19 victims may lead to the spread of infection among humans and animals, too.

Meanwhile, the newly elected gram pradhan of Saurabh village in Karanda block of Ghazipur, Sima Jaiswal, wrote to the DM, alleging that 16 deaths, possibly due Covid, have occurred in the village in a month.

In every house of the village, there are people suffering from cough-cold and fever. There have been instances, where people died within 3-4 days of the symptoms emerging.

There are such patients not only in Saurabh, but also in neighbouring Chandipur and Chochakpur villages, too.

Meanwhile, Ghazipur DM said mobile teams for collecting samples and distributing medical kits have been increased from four to 64.

We have identified 400 villages.

Cases surged from 16 to 1,216 in one month

As per official estimates, Buxar has registered a huge uptick in the number of Covid patients during the second wave. The number of positive cases was 16 on March 31 and it jumped to 1,216 on May 8. It registered 26 deaths in the period.

Chausa and Chitravans in the Buxar district have two popular cremations grounds where dead bodies are consigned to flame day and night.

"We were alerted by the local chowkidar that many bodies have been spotted floating from upstream. We have so far recovered 15 of these. None of the deceased happens to be a resident of the district," Chausa BDO Ashok Kumar said over the phone.

He said "many Uttar Pradesh districts are situated right across the river and the bodies may have been dumped in the Ganges for reasons not known to us. We cannot confirm whether the deceased were indeed Covid positive. The bodies have started decomposing. But we are taking all precautions while ensuring that these are disposed of in a decent manner".

Some news channels claimed the number of bodies to be as high as 100, which the BDO dismissed as "highly exaggerated".

As per official figures, Buxar registered a big surge in the number of Covid cases -- from 16 as of March 31 to 1,216 as of May 8 with 26 deaths.

When contacted, Buxar DM Aman Samir confirmed only 30 to 35 unidentified dead bodies were spotted at Chausa.

He denied that bodies in the river were from Buxars villages. Bodies are not of Buxar. It is coming from upstream of Ganga, DM Buxar Aman Samir said.

(With agency inputs)
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Air India on Monday told its employees that it will not be able to hold COVID-19 vaccination camps for them at the Delhi airport on Tuesday and Thursday due to "non-availability" of vaccines.

The airline had last Tuesday said it would vaccinate all its employees against COVID-19 by the end of this month as a pilots' body demanded inoculation of the flying crew on priority basis citing risk to their lives from the deadly infection.

In a communication to employees on Monday, Air India said: "The proposed COVID vaccination camp at GSD Complex, Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) on May 11 and May 13 stands cancelled because government authorities have expressed inability to hold these camps due to non-availability of vaccines."

"Fresh dates will be notified once we get re-confirmation from government authorities," it added.

India has been badly hit by the second wave of the coronavirus infection as hospitals in several states are reeling under shortage of vaccines, oxygen, drugs, equipment and beds.

After recording over four lakh fresh cases for four consecutive days, India witnessed a single-day rise of 3,66,161 COVID-19 cases on Monday, which pushed its tally to 2,26,62,575, according to the health ministry.

The death toll due to the viral disease climbed to 2,46,116 with 3,754 more people succumbing to it, the ministry's data updated at 8 am showed.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Centre has taken multiple initiatives to ramp up the oxygen supply across the country, including the airlifting of empty-tankers to reduce the turnaround time and training 500 drivers, a senior Home Ministry official said on Tuesday.

Piyush Goyal, Additional Secretary, Union Home Ministry also told a press conference here that 5,805 MT of liquid medical oxygen is being imported from abroad considering the future needs of the country.

Of these, 3,440 MT is being imported from the UAE, 1,505 MT from Kuwait, 600 MT from France, 200 MT from Singapore and 60 MT from Bahrain, according to a presentation shared by the officer at the press conference.

"At present, sufficient stocks of oxygen is available in the country," he said.

Goyal said a fast-track system has been put in place to import oxygen from wherever supply is available.

He said the services of Railways and Air Force are being used for transportation of tankers to reduce the turnaround time.

Since Air Force cannot transport filled tankers, airlifting of empty-tankers is being done to manufacturing sites so that travelling time of one side can be saved, Goyal said.

As many as 374 tankers with 7,049 MT capacity have been airlifted within the country, while 81 containers with a combined capacity of 1,407 MT have ben imported through the Indian Air Force, he said.

ALSO WATCH:

Moreover, 1,252 oxygen cylinders, three oxygen generation plants and 835 oxygen concentrators have also been imported, the officer said.

A total of 157 oxygen special trains have moved 637 tankers across the country, Goyal said.

In these, 389 loaded tankers were ferried from production plants to various destinations and 248 empty-tankers were moved to production plants, he said.

The Home Ministry had issued orders under the Disaster Management Act for smooth movement of oxygen-carrying vehicles and it had directed states and Union Territories to provide adequate security to tankers and set up green corridors to ensure their faster movement, the officer said.

"Since COVID has affected all including drivers of these tankers, training of drivers is being done to ensure availability of skilled drivers.

500 such drivers are being trained now and thereafter 2,000 more will be trained," Goyal said.

A virtual control room with senior Central government and states/UTs officers has been set up to share information/problems and immediate solutions on real-time basis are being provided round the clock, he said.

Goyal said the Central government is working in close coordination with governments of states/UTs and other stakeholders to ensure availability of oxygen across the country.
By PTI

MUMBAI: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has been asked to explore the possibility of global procurement of COVID-19 vaccines to ensure efficient inoculation, Maharashtra minister Aaditya Thackeray said on Monday.

In a series of tweets, he said work was also on to ensure those not well-versed with technology or those who are unable to operate the CoWin app get access to vaccines in time.

"Looking at the need for adequate vaccines to ensure that vaccination is swift & efficient, after discussing the issue with CM Uddhav Thackeray ji, as guardian minister of Mumbai, we have asked @mybmc to explore possibilities of global procurement of vaccines," he tweeted.

"Our efforts to increase vaccination centres are constantly on going and the @mybmc shall be having a centre in every municipal ward, along with a drive in vaccination centre across all zones of Mumbai, on my humble request to @mayor_mumbai @KishoriPednekar ji and MC Chahal ji," Thackeray said in another tweet.

The Worli MLA said BMC, on Monday, issued guidelines on housing societies partnering with hospitals for inoculation within society complexes.

The city on Monday recorded a steep drop in new coronavirus cases at 1,794, the lowest single-day count in nearly two months, while 74 patients succumbed to the infection, the city civic body said.

With the addition of 1,794 new coronavirus infections and 74 fresh fatalities, the financial capital's cumulative caseload rose to 6,78,269 and the toll to 13,891, according to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) updated data.

After a gap of 54 days, Mumbai has logged less than 2,000 COVID-19 cases in a day.

Earlier on March 16, the metropolis had witnessed 1,922 new cases.

Also, for the 10th day in a row, Mumbai's daily COVID-19 case count remained below the 4,000-mark though the number of fatalities has fluctuated between 62 and 90 during the period.

ALSO READ | Odisha to float global tender for Covid vaccines

Fewer coronavirus tests over the weekend could have led to a significant drop in the number of new infections.

According to the BMC, 23,061 COVID-19 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours, taking the number of samples examined so far to 57,33,431.

Mumbai reported 609 less new infections, but half a dozen more fatalities as compared to Sunday, when it had reported 2,403 cases and 68 fatalities.

As per the BMC, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Mumbai has gone down to 45,534.

In the last 24 hours, 3,580 patients were discharged from hospitals, pushing the number of recovered cases to 6,16,998, according to the BMC data.

Mumbai's COVID-19 recovery rate has improved to 91 per cent.

As per the BMC, the city's average growth rate of COVID-19 cases for the period May 3 and May 9 was 0.41 per cent, while the case doubling rate was 163 days.

According to the civic body, Mumbai has 87 active containment zones in slums and 'chawls' (old row tenements), while 493 buildings have been sealed after a certain number of their residents tested positive for coronavirus.

The number of sealed buildings has gone down below 500 after a gap of more than a month.

Mumbai had reported the highest-ever 11,163 new COVID-19 cases on April 4, whereas during the second wave the highest single-day fatalities - at 90- were recorded on May 1, 2021.

ALSO READ | Old age home inmates live in uncertainty over Covid vaccine availability

Mumbai has been registering a steady drop in daily cases, earning praise from the Supreme Court for its COVID-19 management.

Meanwhile, the Bombay High Court has permitted Biovet Private Limited, an associate company of Bharat Biotech, to take possession of a fully operational and ready-to-use vaccine manufacturing plant on a 12-hectare plot in Pune to produce Covaxin.

Bharat Biotech produces Covaxin, a vaccine against COVID-19.

A division bench of Justices K K Tated and N R Borkar on May 6 heard an application filed by Karnataka's Biovet Private Limited seeking direction to the Maharashtra government to hand over possession of the manufacturing unit at Manjari Khurd village in Pune.

The unit was being used by Intervet India Pvt Ltd, a multinational and subsidiary of Merck & Co, after land was granted to it in 1973 to manufacture vaccine for Foot and Mouth Disease.

Intervet is exiting business operations in India and entered into an agreement with Biovet to transfer the land and manufacturing unit to the latter.

When Biovet sought the government's approval for the transfer, the deputy conservator of forests (Pune division) pointed out that it was a reserved forest and the initial 1973 grant itself was bad.

Biovet then approached HC in challenge and, in an interim application, also sought direction to the government to grant it licences and permissions to enable the manufacture of vaccine for Foot Mouth Disease as well as Covaxin.

RD Soni, appearing for Biovet, argued that the unit and machinery was lying idle due to delay in handing over possession of the land.

ALSO READ | Jagan wants to explore global options for COVID-19 vaccine

He also told the court the company would not claim any equity in respect to the land in question.

The company also submitted an undertaking stating it would use the unit to manufacture Covaxin.

Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni told the court the Maharashtra government had no objection if the company used the unit for manufacturing lifesaving vaccines, including Covaxin, but it should not claim any right, title and interest in future.

Kumbhakoni further told the court if the company filed applications seeking permissions, the state government shall consider the same expeditiously.

The HC said considering the COVID-19 situation, the concerned authorities are directed to handover peaceful possession of the ready-to-use BSL-3 vaccine manufacturing facility.

"The respondent (state government) is directed to grant appropriate licences/permissions/NOCs to the applicant (Biovet) in a time-bound manner to enable manufacture of the Food and Mouth Disease vaccine, Covaxin and other life saving vaccines," the HC said.
Anuradha Shukla By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: As the chorus for free Covid vaccine doses for states grows louder with even BJP-governed states raising the demand, the finance ministry is looking at whether such a move is fiscally feasible.

According to highly placed sources, apart from Odisha, West Bengal and Kerala, NDA-ruled Madhya Pradesh and Bihar, too, have urged the Prime Ministers Office to tweak the vaccination policy to make the jabs available to states for free.

A senior official in the finance ministry told TNIE that states have questioned the logic behind the Centres forcing them to arrange for vaccines on their own or import them at a higher rate.

Many states have informed the PMO that despite placing orders, the process is slower than expected. Also, there is a lot of pressure for a rethink over the transfer of grant and differential pricing of vaccines. The finance ministry is going to reassess the fiscal viability and will hold a meeting in a day or two after consultation with the health ministry, the PMO and the Niti Aayog, said the senior official cited earlier.

Not just states, even economists are questioning the differential pricing policy which they say creates supply side bottlenecks.

They say India could have used its Rs 35,000 crore vaccine fund created during Budget for FY22 to vaccinate all.

However, the amount of Rs 35,000 crore has been repackaged under the Demand for Grants to states in the Budget.

Meanwhile, the finance ministry has refuted criticism from a section of economists that there is no provision for expenditure on Covid-19 by the Central government.

The amount of Rs 35,000 crore has been shown under the Demand for Grants No. 40, titled Transfers to States, it said.

Rs 35,000 crore vax spend

Provisioning Rs 35,000 crore expenditure for vaccines in the FY22 Budget under the title Transfers to States does not inhibit the Centre from using the funds to buy Covid-19 shots, the finance ministry said
By PTI

NEW DELHI: BJP president J P Nadda on Tuesday accused the Congress of misleading people and creating false panic in the fight against COVID-19, and alleged that the conduct of its leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, during the pandemic will be remembered for "duplicity and pettiness".

Nadda wrote a four-page letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, a day after the Congress Working Committee, the apex body of the opposition party, hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government over the handling of the coronavirus crisis.

The BJP president also accused Congress leaders, including a chief minister, of trying to actively create vaccine hesitancy during the "once-in-a-century" pandemic.

Lauding the work of healthcare personnel, he said, "You must ask yourselves - in times as these, is your party's (Congress) conduct weakening the morale of these COVID-warriors? Deliberately or otherwise, are your actions trying to weaken this fight against COVID-19? Deliberately or otherwise, are your actions trying to weaken this fight against COVID-19?" Under Modi, the fight against the pandemic is driven by unwavering belief in science, support to innovation, trust in COVID warriors and cooperative federalism, he said.

Nadda said he is saddened but not surprised by the conduct of the Congress during these challenging times.

The CWC had said that Modi must "atone for his mistakes" and serve the people instead of carrying on with his "personal agenda" oblivious to the sufferings all around.

The BJP president also hit back over the criticism of his party for holding big poll rallies in April even as COVID cases surged across the nation and also of the ongoing construction of the Central Vista project.

The Congress is doing no favours to itself by opposing lockdowns and then demanding it, he said, accusing it of "ignoring" the Centre's advisories on the second wave of COVID-19.

Congress leaders, he said, held massive election rallies in Kerala causing a spike in the COVID cases and are now "grandstanding" about poll rallies elsewhere.

"Even when the second wave was on the rise, your party leaders were happier being seen in super spreader political events in north India, where there was no regard for masks or social distancing. This is not the era when such information can be erased from public memory," he said.

Hitting back at the Congress over the CWC criticism that the Centre had abdicated its responsibility on the vaccination and left the matter to states, Nadda wondered if there is so much gap between the party and its leaders in power in some states as he noted that its top functionaries in April had called for decentralisation of the inoculation programme.

The Centre has so far distributed 16 crore vaccines to states and 50 per cent of them are being provided even now free of cost, he said, and asked Gandhi if the states where her party is in power will also give free jabs to people as those ruled by the BJP and its allies have done.

The Modi government has engaged with all stakeholders, including chief Ministers, in fighting the pandemic and former prime minister Deve Gowda has also acknowledged that, he said.

The poor have been Modi's priority with the Centre ensuring food and DBT (direct benefit transfer) distribution, he said.

While acknowledging that a few Congress members are doing commendable work in helping people like other several other selfless citizens, Nadda said their hardwork gets eclipsed by the consistent negativity spread by the more senior members of the opposition party.

"One would wish that while India is fighting COVID+19 with utmost courage, the top echelons of the Congress would stop misleading people, creating false panic and even contradicting their stands just based on political considerations," he said.

With the Congress blaming the BJP government for mishandling the crisis, Nadda wrote to Gandhi, "There are other aspects that also need greater thought. For instance, the data from February and March would reveal which states failed to track the rising cases. Why are mortality rates in states such as Punjab so high? These are questions you must ask your own Chief Ministers."

Defending the ongoing Central Vista project, he said there is a "new trend" in the Congress to put all the blame on this.

The need for a new Parliament building was raised during the Congress-led UPA time with the then Speaker Meira Kumar underscoring the need for this, he said, noting that Urban Development Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has addressed queries regarding it.

"Yet, the Congress does not believe in facts. People are also contrasting the Congress' stand on Central Vista with the Chhattisgarh Government going ahead to build a new assembly complex," Nadda added.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: From conducting disinfection drives to serving immunity-boosting 'kadha' in langars, farmers protesting at Tikri and Singhu borders in the national capital against the Centre's three agricultural laws are taking new steps everyday to keep the deadly coronavirus at bay.

Delhi reported 319 more COVID-19 fatalities and 12,651 new cases on Monday, with a positivity rate of 19.10 per cent.

"We disinfected 17-km of the protest site at the Tikri border. And will do it again in the coming days as well. We have been taking all preventive measures to stop the spread of coronavirus, including distributing masks and sanitisers to the protesting farmers," Roop Singh of Bharat Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) said on Tuesday.

Singh claimed that the farmers have not got any support from the government in fighting against coronavirus, and that all measures taken to curb the spread of the virus at the Tikri border have been taken by them only.

Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been camping at three Delhi border points -- Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur -- for almost six months, demanding a repeal of the three agri reform laws enacted by the central government in September last year.

According to farmer leader Abhimanyu Kohar, each and every langar at the Singhu border is being sanitised regularly and to improve the immunity of protesting farmers, 'kadha' is also being served on a daily basis.

"The langars operating round-the-clock are being sanitised regularly. To improve the immunity of farmers, they are being served with 'kadha' as well. Also, there are vaccination camps in the vicinity and whoever wants to get vaccinated is free to get the jab," said Kohar from Samyukta Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of farmers' unions spearheading the stir.

"We, from our end, are neither forcing anyone to not have it or have it, this is their personal choice," he said.

The Centre has been maintaining that the new farm laws will free farmers from middlemen, giving them more options to sell their crops.

The protesting farmers, however, say the laws will pave the way for eliminating the safety cushion of MSP and do away with the 'mandi' (wholesale market) system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates.
Harpreet Bajwa By

Express News Service

CHANDIGARH: Ludhiana businessman Ayush Jain is going to get 4,600 oxygen concentrators from the US which he will be sending to home isolation Covid patients through oxygen banks and donating them to hospitals and Covid care centres in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, UP and Uttarakhand.

Jain, 36, says he will receive the first lot of 262 concentrators by Tuesday. Another 162 will land in the next five days and the rest by May 18.

We are getting 100 of them in association with Punjab Kings XI and the rest through Tri Valley Indian Medical Association and India Community Centre led by President Dr Shubha Jain, Malibu.

Jain belongs to the Girnar family and runs his own education consultancy business.

When I saw so many people dying due to oxygen shortage, I thought why not step in to help save a few lives.

Jain and his father have extended an open offer to the district authorities that they can procure as many temporary beds as theyd like from them.

Initially I bought 100 concentrators for around Rs 60 lakh in association with Punjab Kings XI and Round Table India and initiated a project called Saah. We are now rotating our infrastructure as these machines are given free to home isolation patients.

To augment the supply, he decided to procure more concentrators.

My friends who are doctors in the US said they too wanted to serve the country, so they collected some 4,600 of these concentrators  all free of cost.Appreciating his team in Round Table India, he said hell be donating these machines to hospitals. Once the pandemic is over, he plans to donate these concentrators to old-age homes."
By PTI

AGARTALA: Leader of the Opposition in Tripura Manik Sarkar on Monday alleged that hooligans patronised by the ruling BJP in the state had attacked CPI-M delegates when they visited the house of party supporters at Shantirbazar in South Tripura district.

The police, however, claimed that unidentified youths had thrown stones but none was injured.

Sarkar, also CPI-M Politburo member and former chief minister, said the delegates had gone to the houses of party supporters who were allegedly attacked by BJP goons on Wednesday when they were celebrating the birth anniversary of social thinker Karl Marx before a CPI-M party office.

The delegates were led by Sarkar and the others were the Deputy Leader of opposition, Badal Chowdhury and others.

The BJP hoodlums showed them black flags and chanted slogans 'Go back Sarkar'.

The police allegedly asked the delegates to return in view of the situation.

When the delegates were returning to the main roads , the attackers brickbatted them, he said.

Nirupam Datta, the subdivisional police officer of Shantirbazar said none was injured in the incident and the police had to resort to lathicharge to disperse the attackers and provide protection to the CPI-M delegates.

Sarkar alleged that the state director general of police was informed of the CPI-M leaders' visit in advance but still they were attacked.

"It was a pre-planned attack, which could not have been possible without the indulgence from the state leadership.

The law and order had collapsed in the state and attacks on CPI-M party workers are increasing day by day, he said.

Tripura Education Minister and cabinet spokesperson, Ratan Lal Nath that the attackers were not BJP workers.

They are former CPI-M activists, who were deprived and exploited during the 25 year-long misrule of CPI-M.

They attacked their party leaders in revenge, Nath, who is also a prominent BJP leader told reporters.

The CPI-M is trying to create panic and "fish in troubled water," he added.
By PTI

PANAJI: The Goa government's decision to administer ivermectin to all the people above 18 years as a preventive treatment amid the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted medical experts to question the efficacy of the five-day duration of the drug regimen while Congress questioned whether such recommendation was approved by the Centre or the WHO.

Goa health minister Vishwajit Rane on Monday announced that ivermectin- an orally-administered drug used to treat parasitic infections - will be given to all adults in the state irrespective of their coronavirus status as a preventive treatment.

Rane had said that people will be given ivermectin 12 mg for five days as expert panels from the UK, Italy, Spain and Japan have found a statistically significant reduction in mortality, time to recovery and viral clearance in COVID-19 patients treated with this medicine.

When contacted, Dr Vinayak Buvaji, who heads the Goa chapter of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), told PTI on Tuesday that the treatment should not be given for a short period of five days but should ideally be continued till the pandemic is brought under control.

"The ideal regimen of ivermectin is to administer it on the first, third and seventh day and then continue it once a week till the pandemic is brought under control.

Giving the tablets only for five days will not be impactful," Dr Buvaji said.

He also advised against giving the same quantity of the dose to all the people.

"The people weighing below 60 kg should be given the 12 mg dose of ivermectin while those above 60 kg should be given the 18 mg dose," he said.

Dr Buvaji said the IMA would write to the state Health Department to change the proposed ivermectin dose protocol.

The state government had said the drug will be given to the people through its chain of health centres.

Former IMA president of Goa and BJP's medical cell chief Dr Shekhar Salkar, however, said the focus of the ivermectin programme was to prevent deaths.

When pointed out that ivermectin was banned by the US FDA, Salkar said the tablets do not have any side effect.

"The first principle of medical science is that medicine should not harm. These tablets won't cause any harm, but they will help to save the lives due to the (COVID-19) infection," he said.

Dr Salkar said such a step was required as the case positivity rate in Goa has touched 50 per cent.

"The IMA will support the government for recommending Ivermectin treatment," he said.

Health minister Rane and Director of Health Services Dr Jose D'Sa remained unavailable for comments despite repeated attempts.

Meanwhile, the opposition Congress has asked whether the state government has obtained approval from the Union government for recommending the use of ivermectin to its people.

"#GoaCovidCrisis who prescribed #ivermectin to corrupt Health Minister @Visrane for Prophylaxis Treatment to Goans? Did he obtain approval from @PMOIndia, @MoHFW_INDIA? Is the treatment approved by @WHO? Will @ICMRDELHI respond? @goacm @GovtofGoa must clarify immediately @INCGoa," tweeted Congress Goa unit president Girish Chodankar.
I would have never expected something like this to happen, especially down here because its like, its mostly just like families and stuff, Monica Rochte, 31, told the Tribune. Some care homes down the way. The only time we have an ambulance is because one of the older people at that care home needs care.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: An early trend of decline in daily new COVID-19 cases and deaths has been noted in the country, the government said on Tuesday, indicating that the devastating second wave of the pandemic is on the wane.

According to the government, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Chhattisgarh were among 18 states and union territories showing continued plateauing or decrease in daily new COVID-19 cases.

Addressing a press conference, a senior official, however, said Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Punjab were among 16 states and union territories showing continued increasing trend in daily new COVID-19 cases.

Thirteen states have more than 1 lakh active COVID-19 cases each and 26 states have a positivity rate of over 15 per cent, the government said.

With Telangana deciding to impose #lockdown from May 12, here's the updated list of states that have implemented complete to partial lockdown to curb #COVID19. @gsvasu_TNIE pic.twitter.com/WpY7dV2HXN  The New Indian Express (@NewIndianXpress) May 11, 2021

India has been reeling under a calamitous second wave of the coronavirus infection.

However, the daily numbers of deaths and infections have started to go down.

New cases of coronavirus in India fell to 3.29 lakh after 14 days, taking the infection tally to 2,29,92,517, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday.

A total of 3,29,942 infections were reported in a span of 24 hours, while the death toll climbed to 2,49,992 with 3,876 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed.

After registering a steady rise for two months, the active cases have reduced to 37,15,221, accounting for 16.16 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 82.75 per cent.

ALSO WATCH:
By PTI

JAMMU: Variants of the coronavirus are mutating at a rapid rate due to availability of a large number of hosts and therefore, it becomes necessary for people to get vaccinated and take all precautions, Government Medical College principal Dr Shashi Sudan said on Monday.

The senior doctor also urged people to cooperate with health authorities to prevent the spread of the virus.

"We won't be able to keep up in our fight against COVID-19 without public cooperation," Sudan said.

The COVID-19 pandemic has come as an unprecedented and unforeseen challenge for all, especially the health fraternity.

The prime need is to build trust between the people and the health system, the principal of the Jammu-based institute told reporters here.

On mutation of the coronavirus, Sudan said, "The variants of the deadly virus are mutating at a rapid rate due to availability of a large number of hosts. Only by putting an end to further spread of the infection, we can easily prevent its mutations."

ALSO READ | INTERVIEW | Leaders did not follow policies, failed to keep promises, says Dr Chandrakant Lahariya

People need to go for vaccination and take precautions, which are the only ways to defeat COVID-19, she added.

"With faith in the system, and self discipline, we shall overcome this pandemic," Sudan said and called upon people to get vaccinated.

With the number of COVID-19 patients increasing, the administration is also ramping up facilities, equipment, infrastructure besides increasing the number of frontline workers, she said.

"Our health workers are working round the clock and we are trying our best to serve the public. GMC (Government Medical College) Jammu being the only tertiary care health centre in the region, the challenge before us is huge," Sudan said.

The GMC's principal said the challenge can only be met when people and health personnel work together.

The Jammu Medical College Hospital has increased the number of critical care beds and is treating more than 700 critical COVID-19 patients, while patients with mild and moderate symptoms are being looked after at COVID health centres and COVID Care centres, she said.

Expressing concern over high positivity rate observed while COVID-19 testing, she said the high rate also underlines the greater need for adopting COVID appropriate behaviour.

"It is high time to take up the challenge and adopt COVID appropriate behaviour, which includes wearing face mask in public, frequently washing hands and maintaining social distance," Sudan said.
By PTI

GUWAHATI: Senior IAS officer Samir Kumar Sinha has been appointed the Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, an official order said.

Sinha was the principal secretary in the Health and Family Welfare department.

The 1994 batch IAS officer, known to be a confidante of Sarma was relieved of his duties from the Health and Family Welfare as well as Transformation and Development departments.

Sinha will, however, continue to function as the Principal Secretary of the Finance Department and Additional Principal Resident Commissioner of Assam Bhawan, New Delhi, the order said.

Paban Kumar Borthakur who was Additional Chief Secretary to former chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal has been transferred to the Transformation and Development and Cultural Affairs Departments, an order issued by the Personnel Department on Monday night said.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and 13 other ministers of the NDA took oath on Monday.

The BJP alliance is the first non-Congress government in the state to win the elections for the second consecutive term.
Sudhir Suryawanshi By

Express News Service

MUMBAI: After Mumbai, two metro cities Pune and Nagpur are speedily getting better: Covid cases and mortality have dropped significantly in the last few days, as per the Maharashtra health department data.

On May 9, Nagpur city reported 1,784 positive cases and 34 deaths against 4,787 total positive cases and 41 deaths on May 1.

Pune, on May 9 reported 2,110 positive cases and 17 deaths against 4,268 positive cases and 39 deaths on May 1. Both the Pune and Nagpur civic bodies are ruled by the BJP.

It shows the positive cases are coming down significantly in both these major cities.

However, Pune has still the highest active positive cases at 1,00,316 across Maharashtra, while there are 59,444 positive cases in Nagpur.Mumbai, after reporting 11,000 positive cases per day on April 3 this year, has shown its daily positive cases come down to 2,500-3,500 per day this week.

Mumbai has a total of 51,165 active positive cases while there are 38,352 active cases in Thane.

In Pune, of the 9,26,124 positive cases reported since the outbreak of the pandemic, 8,15,701 patients have recovered while there have been 10,049 total deaths.

In Nagpur, there are 4,64,414 positive cases reported since the beginning of the outbreak, out of which, 3,99300 patients recovered and 5,624 people were reported dead.

In Nagpur, Union minister Nitin Gadkar himself stepped in while in Pune, a Mumbai team has been assisting the city to bring down the positivity rate.

Sources said Nitin Gadkari has been monitoring the oxygen supply, the hospital bed situation and ensuring Remdesivir injections are available.

He recently met Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders of Vidarbha and ensured all possible help from the Centre.

He also warned leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis against venturing out to inaugurate one scheme or the other.

Self-publicity can wait leaders should not violate the Covid protocol, he said.

Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar is also closely monitoring the situation in Pune. Pawar had roped in the health task force and BMC authorities to implement its model in Pune to contain the spread of the virus.

Meanwhile, a survey by online platform LocalCricles found that as many as 84 per cent of the people in Maharashtra want curfew to continue in the state, while most people also suggest home deliveries of all goods to minimise business disruption and for consumer convenience.

Maharashtra had reported 39,544 cases on March 31.

The state had reported 54,022 cases on May 7, 53,605 on May 8 and 48,401 on May 9.

Of the 549 fatalities, 302 had occurred in the past 48 hours.

While 113 deaths had occurred last week, 134 people had died before the last week, the department said.

On the other hand, 61,607 patients were discharged on Monday, taking the count of recoveries so far in Maharashtra to 44,69,425, it said.

Maharashtra is now left with 5,90,818 active cases.

Mumbai saw 1,782 new cases, taking the tally to 6,77,412 while the overall fatality count stood at 13,855, the department said.

The Pune circle, which covers Solapur and Satara districts besides Pune, reported the highest 8,120 cases in the day in the state, followed by 7,151 new infections in the Nashik circle.

The Nagpur circle and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), which covers the city of Mumbai and Thane, recorded 5,012 and 4,883 new cases, respectively.

The MMR has so far recorded 14,51,787 COVID-19 cases and 24,863 deaths.

Ahmednagar district (barring Ahmednagar city) in the Nashik circle reported 3,533 new cases.

Pune district (except areas covered by Pune city) recorded 2,300 new cases.

Maharashtra's case recovery rate now stands at 86.97 per cent, while the fatality rate is 1.49 per cent, the government said.

Currently, 36,70,320 people are in home quarantine and 26,664 are in institutional quarantine in the state.

With 1,92,330 new tests on Monday, the number of samples tested so far in Maharashtra increased to 2,96,31,127, the government said.

Maharashtra's COVID-19 tally is as follows: Positive cases: 51,38,973; new cases 37,236; deaths: 76,398; discharged 44,69,425; active cases: 5,90,818; people tested so far: 2,96,31,127.

Recoveries continue to outnumber fresh cases in Mumbai

Mumbai on Monday recorded a steep drop in new coronavirus cases at 1,794, the lowest single-day count in nearly two months, while 74 patients succumbed to the infection, the city civic body said.

With the addition of 1,794 new coronavirus infections and 74 fresh fatalities, the financial capital's cumulative caseload rose to 6,78,269 and the toll to 13,891, according to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) updated data.

After a gap of 54 days, Mumbai has logged less than 2,000 COVID-19 cases in a day.

Earlier on March 16, the metropolis had witnessed 1,922 new cases.

Also, for the 10th day in a row, Mumbai's daily COVID-19 case count remained below the 4,000-mark though the number of fatalities has fluctuated between 62 and 90 during the period.

Fewer coronavirus tests over the weekend could have led to a significant drop in the number of new infections.

According to the BMC, 23,061 COVID-19 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours, taking the number of samples examined so far to 57,33,431.

Mumbai reported 609 less new infections, but half a dozen more fatalities as compared to Sunday, when it had reported 2,403 cases and 68 fatalities.

As per the BMC, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Mumbai has gone down to 45,534.

In the last 24 hours, 3,580 patients were discharged from hospitals, pushing the number of recovered cases to 6,16,998, according to the BMC data.

Mumbai's COVID-19 recovery rate has improved to 91 per cent.

As per the BMC, the city's average growth rate of COVID-19 cases for the period May 3 and May 9 was 0.41 per cent, while the case doubling rate was 163 days.

According to the civic body, Mumbai has 87 active containment zones in slums and 'chawls' (old row tenements), while 493 buildings have been sealed after a certain number of their residents tested positive for coronavirus.

The number of sealed buildings has gone down below 500 after a gap of more than a month.

Mumbai had reported the highest-ever 11,163 new COVID-19 cases on April 4, whereas during the second wave the highest single-day fatalities - at 90- were recorded on May 1, 2021.

Mumbai has been registering a steady drop in daily cases, earning praise from the Supreme Court for its COVID-19 management.

Free treatment for Mucormycosis patients under Maharashtra scheme

Patients of Mucormycosis, a serious but rare fungal infection now affecting those suffering from coronavirus, will be treated for free under the Maharashtra governments flagship medical insurance scheme, Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Monday.

Mucormycosis patients will be covered under the Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Jan Arogya Yojana since the medicines required to combat the fungal infection are expensive, an official statement quoted Tope as saying.

According to the statement, he said patients will be treated free of cost at 1,000 hospitals covered under the health scheme.

The minister said symptoms of the disease are being seen in those COVID-19 patients who are diabetic and whose diabetes is not under control.

The statement said Tope made the comments while interacting with media persons in Jalna in central Maharashtra.

The medicines of the disease are expensive.

Hence, patients hit by the disease will be treated for free at 1,000 hospitals covered under the Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Jan Arogya Yojana, Tope said.

The minister said there are complaints about the injections used for treating Mucormycosis patients being sold at higher than actual price and added their rates will be capped.

Tope said COVID-19 patients should not panic after contracting Mucormycosis and focus on controlling diabetes.

Symptoms of Mucormycosis include headache, fever, pain under the eyes, nasal or sinus congestion and partial loss of vision.

The minister said the government will undertake a campaign to spread awareness among people about the fungal infection.

(With PTI Inputs)
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Samyukta Kisan Morcha on Monday said it will probe the allegations that some of its leaders were aware of the reported sexual assault of a woman activist at Tikri border protest site, who later died due to COVID-19 at a private hospital in Haryana.

"We have seen reports on television that some farmer leaders at Tikri border were aware about the assault and they did not take any action. We cannot confirm these reports at present, but we assure you that we will probe these allegations and take strict action," farmer leader Yogendra Yadav said at a virtual press conference.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) had on Sunday said that it had zero tolerance towards violence against women amidst reports that the woman activist from West Bengal was sexually assaulted on her way to join the farmers protest and later at Tikri border by some persons posing to be "Kisan Social Army" members.

"She was assaulted by some of these persons on the way to Delhi and after reaching Tikri border. A week later, she developed high fever and was found COVID-19 positive. She was admitted to a private hospital in Bahadurgah. Sadly, on April 30, she passed away due to COVID-19," it had said.

Laying down the timeline of events, Yadav said the farmers outfit came to know about the alleged assault only after the victim's father, who was also present in the press conference, came to meet them on May 2.

"The father reached Delhi on April 29 and met the woman, who was in a critical condition. She told him the details of the assault before passing away on April 30," he said.

Yadav added that on May 3, SKM held a meeting with its Tikri border members and it was decided that the accused would be brought to justice.

However, the decision to file an FIR was left with the victim's father.

"The father filed the FIR on May 8 accusing two men. The Haryana police, however, have listed six names in the FIR, including two who were present as witnesses. We want the police to conduct an impartial investigation, but how will they build a case if they will name the witnesses as accused?" the farmer leader asked.

The SKM has maintained that the Kisan Social Army was never the authorised social media voice of the farmers group and none of its handles have anything to do with the movement.

Responding to a report that farmer leader Gurnam Singh Charuni is related to one of the accused, Yadav said the farmers body cannot confirm it yet.

"We cannot confirm whether the accused is related to Gurnam Singh. But once we know the reality, it will not be taken lightly," he added.

Farmer leader Hannan Mollah said that taking note of safety concerns for women protestors, the SKM has decided to form a committee.

"This incident has raised safety concerns for hundreds of our women protestors. So we have decided to form a committee as per the laws to protect the dignity of women, wherein any women can register such complaints. And the committee will have full support of the SKM and we will make sure the accused will be dealt with," Mollah said.

The Haryana Police had on Sunday formed a special investigation team to probe the case.

Several farmers are protesting against the farm laws at border points of Delhi, including Tikri and Singhu, since November last year.
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: Three local militants of that Lashkar-e-Toiba were killed in an encounter with security forces at Kokernag in south Kashmirs Anantnag district on Tuesday.

A police spokesman said a joint contingent of police, CRPF and army laid siege around Sheikhpora village in Vailoo area of Kokernag in Anantnag district in the early hours after receiving inputs about the presence of militants there.

After plugging off all possible escape routes, troops zeroed-in on a residential house where the militants were hiding. They were given an opportunity to surrender. However, they turned down the offer and fired on troops, he said.

The spokesman said after ensuring all civilians are safe, troops retaliated and all the three holed-up militants were killed in the ensuing encounter.

The deceased militants were identified as Ilyas Ahmad Dar alias Sameer R/o Kokernag, Ubaid Shafi alias Abdullah R/o Srinagar and Aqib Ahmad Lone alias Sahil R/o Kulgam.

An AK-47 rifle, two pistols and incriminating material were recovered from the site of encounter, the police spokesman said.

He said one of the slain militants Ubaid Shafi was part of a militant group that carried out an attack in Nowgam area of Srinagar on April 1 in which a policeman was killed.

The spokesman said the last rites of the slain militants shall be performed after conducting medico-legal formalities and their nearest family members shall be allowed to participate.

After the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, police are not handing over bodies of local militants killed in gunfights with security forces and quietly buries them in graveyards in north and central Kashmir.
By PTI

CHINSURAH: A TMC leader was shot at by indentified miscreants in West Bengal's Hooghly district on Tuesday when he was buying vegetables at a local market, a police officer said.

Aditya Niyogi, former vice chairman of Bansberia Municipalty, was taken to a nearby hospital in a critical condition, but the doctors there referred him to a clinical establishment in Kolkata, he said.

BJP sources claimed the incident was a fallout of factional feud within the ruling party.

Denying the charge, TMC MLA and former minister Tapan Dasgupta said, "Saffron party workers carried out the attack, aided by a group of traitors within the Trinamool who have been exposed after the just-concluded assembly elections".

Several TMC activists hit the streets in Bansberia during the day in protest against the incident.

A police picket has been set up at the site of the incident, the officer said, adding that a probe was underway and miscreants would be nabbed soon.
Saurabh Saxena By

Bhubaneswar emerged upon the political scene of modern India only in 1949, when it took over as the capital of the state of Orissa (now Odisha) from Cuttack. The new capital was developed around the old Bhubaneswar town, and designed by the German architect Otto Konigsberger. The old town of Bhubaneswar showcases an illustrious and unbroken heritage of more than 2,500 years, exhibited by its magnificent monuments and temples.

Religious texts and literature refer to Bhubaneswar as Ekamra, named so because of a sacred mango tree at the site. It is said that when Shiva retired from Varanasi in Treta Yuga, he took abode at Bhubaneswar. Historian Rajendralal Mitra says that nothing was omitted in the way of detail to make Bhubaneswar the exact counterpart of its prototype (Varanasi). Every temple, every sacred pool, every rivulet, every ceremonial, every observance and every legend of Varanasi were reproduced at Bhubaneswar. Brahma Purana tells us that Ekamra Kshetra is dedicated to Lord Krittivasa (Shiva) and equals Varanasi in merit.

Tangible antiquity of the town can be traced back to the 3rd-4th century BCE, to Sisupalgarh. Excavations at the site have revealed a well-planned, fortified and densely populated town. The next episode of importance is found in the famous war between the state of Kalinga and Ashoka Maurya. The Kalinga war can be historically placed around 261 BCE. Two edicts of Ashoka are found in Odisha, one at Dhauli and another at Jaugada. Dhauli hill is about 10 km from Bhubaneswar. A rock-cut elephant of the Maurya period, carved near the edict and shown emerging from the rock, probably represents the advent of Buddhism in Kalinga after Ashokas conquest. A majestic white Shanti Stupa, built on top of the Dhauli hill in 1971-72, keeps Buddhism reverberating in the environs.

King Kharavela was ruling over Kalinga during the 1st century BCE and being a follower of Jainism, he excavated various cave shrines and shelters in the hills of Udayagiri and Khandagiri. Various narrative panels over Rani-gumpha, Manchapuri and Svargapuri-gumpha, and Ganesha-gumpha on the Udayagiri hills are excellent representatives of the elegant and graceful art movement of that period. A long inscription of King Kharavela on the Udayagiri hills provides his curriculum-vitae and the supremacy he enjoyed. While Udayagiri witnessed a decline after the 11th century CE, Khandagiri has kept its status as a Jain pilgrimage centre till today.

With the advent of the Sailodbhava dynasty in the 6th century CE, Hinduism received the much-required impetus from the royal house. Various temples, all dedicated to Shiva, were constructed during that time. This set the foundation for Kalinga temple architecture, the culmination of which we see later in the famous Lingaraja temple. While the earliest Hindu temples in Bhubaneswar are the ones in the Shatrughneswara temple complex, dated around 575 CE, the best specimen of the Sailodbhava period is the Parasuramesvara temple, embellished with exquisite sculptures all around its external walls. The presence of Lakulisa in temple sculptures of this period suggests the influence of this sect over the religious settings.

Dushyanta and Shakuntala episode carved in the Udayagiri caves

The Bhauma-karas succeeded the Sailodbhavas during the 8th century CE. Their early kings being the followers of Buddhism, that religions activities regained the missing royal patronage. But Hindu temple construction activities continued during their rule. A few important monuments of this period are the Mohini, Markandesvara and Sisiresvara temples. The crown jewel of the Bhauma-karas is the Vaital Deul, a very important shrine associated with Tantric and Shakta practices of that period.

The Bhauma-karas were succeeded by the Somavamshis and this begins the golden period of Bhubaneswar with the town getting its due importance on the religious circuit of India. The epitome of their times is the Lingaraja temple, which dominates the town with its 55 metre-high tower. A few other notable ones are the Mukteshvara, Rajarani and Brahmeswara temples. The torana-gateway of the Mukteshvara temple is the most photographed monument in Bhubaneswar.

The 11th century CE finds the Eastern Ganga dynasty succeeding the Somavamshis. While the Eastern Ganga kings are famous for their Puri and Konark Sun Temples, Bhubaneswar too witnessed tremendous growth during this period. The most famous temple of this dynasty is the Ananta-Vasudeva temple. Among other notable ones are the Chitrakarni, Megheswar, Rameshvara, Bhaskareshvara and Bakreshvara temples.

The Eastern Gangas were succeeded by the Gajapatis in the 15th century CE. Very few new temples were erected during their rule, the most notable being the Kapileswar temple. After the fall of the Gajapatis in the mid-16th century CE, Orissa soon became part of the growing Mughal empire in 1576 CE. While Bhubaneswar continues to enjoy its religious position, however the centre of activities soon shifted to Puri; the latter became the epicentre of religious supremacy and tutelary deity of local Hindu rulers.

In its chequered history in the last 2,500 years, Bhubaneswar has embraced and provided a conducive environment for the growth of all religions: Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. Its religious centres are still active and frequented by pilgrims and tourists alike.

Saurabh Saxena

Founder of Puratattva, a documentation of heritage sites

(Puratattva.India@gmail.com)
The second wave is at its peak in urban Indiathe cities and towns. They currently face the fury of the pandemic. Daily new cases will continue to be over three lakhs for at least two more weeks. While all attention of civil administration, health department officials and healthcare providers are riveted on urban India, it is easy to overlook rural India with about 900 crore people (65% of Indias population). Neglecting rural Indias second wave will be a monumental error in terms of lives and livelihoods that will be lost. We hear that in some Northern states, every second or third rural household has at least one death due to Covid-19.

Can vaccination help rural India overcome the havoc of the virus? Urban India, severely affected in the first and second waves, will have high levels of herd immunity. Protection by vaccination will take two doses plus two weeksa minimum of six weeks from start. Considering the supply problems, the low achievement of urban inoculation and hesitancy, vaccine-induced immunity will not protect rural India from the impending massive extension of the second wave in the next few crucial weeks.

This disparity in healthcare services will exacerbate the loss of life in rural India. We need to act very quickly to prevent rapid spread and save lives by creating makeshift healthcare facilities to care for the sick in rural India.

We have a crucial few days before the rural component of the second wave becomes a major medical disasteran opportunity to plan and implement an effective preventive programme to minimise its rural impact.

Right from the beginning of the pandemic in India, our greatest failure has been our inability to properly utilise a simple, readily available, cost-effective preventive toolthe social vaccineto inform and provide specific education through effective communication strategy to all Indians and enable everyone to adopt Covid-appropriate behaviour. This means a complete cessation of all gatherings, meetings and congregations, everyone wearing a fitting face mask, maintaining a physical distance of one metre from others, avoiding physical contact with others, practicing cough etiquette and frequent hand washing. Even now, this is the only tool that we can readily deploy to reduce rural spread and save lives.

This requires mobilising our entire population, initiating a massive publicity blitz by all influential people who hold sway over the publicpoliticians, actors, sportspersons, acclaimed medical professionals and administrators. Every TV channel in every Indian language should carry these messages repeatedly during prime time to drive the message home. Education of the public should be the responsibility of the district administration, gram panchayats, healthcare workers, civil society opinion leaders, teachers, voluntary organisations and philanthropic institutions. Mobile phones, which have a wide reach in rural India, can be utilised to spread messages and short educational video clips about Covid-prevention strategies in regional languages. This step will have a major impact.

A large number of migrant workers who returned to cities and towns after the first wave are migrating back to the villagesseeking rural employmentas judged by the big demand for inclusion in the MNREGA programme. This is a quiet and silent process nowvery different from what happened after the initial lockdown during March-April 2020. This migration is triggering multiple chains of virus transmission in rural India by the highly infectious variants of the second wave. Further urban to rural transmission should be quickly curbed by setting up temporary quarantine shelters and providing food for migrant labourers, where they can stay for two weeks before mingling with the rural folk. This time period can be used to vaccinate this vulnerable group.

If urban India, with its numerous public and private healthcare facilities, faces a huge oxygen deficit, one can imagine the plight of rural India with its meagre infrastructure. Innovative ideas to make oxygen available to rural India would be a priority and a challenge. Large numbers of portable oxygen concentrators, to be deployed at hospitals and even homes when required, should be made available to each district collector. Uninterrupted power supply should be ensured to enable continuous functioning of life-saving medical equipment.

Mass vaccination will have to be deployed to prevent a potential third wave. For this to be achieved we need to be innovative on two fronts: one, overcome vaccine hesitancy and two, improve availability and equitable distribution of the jabs.

The panic associated with the second wave has already made people understand the importance of vaccination. The details of the 16 crore first dose vaccine recipients, 2.5 crore second dose recipients, the 1,05,69,113 proven infections and 78,317 documented deaths (from 14 February 2021 to 6 May 2021) during the second waveall available in a computerised database with the Aadhaar number as the identifiercan be analysed. A comparison of the proportions of new infections, serious disease and deaths in those partially (one dose) or fully (two doses) vaccinated, with the same proportions in unvaccinated individuals, updated on a daily basis, can be conveyed to the general public in easily understandable terms. This will inform the public about the efficacy and safety of both vaccines. This single step will help dispel vaccine hesitancy.

Equitable and efficient vaccination of rural masses demands concerted, decentralised action by gram panchayats; they should actively involve all stakeholdershealthcare workers, civil society opinion leaders, industries, teachers, voluntary and philanthropic organisationsand quickly organise inoculation camps in each village. While governments (state and Central) undertake to supply vaccines for this mammoth task, each village panchayat should ensure the smooth conduct of the inoculation programme without wastage.

Tough days are ahead but if we act quickly and on a war footing, we can still mitigate the impact of a major medical disaster in rural India.

Dr M S Seshadri

Medical Director, Thirumalai Mission Hospital, Ranipet

(mandalam.seshadri@gmail.com, tjacobjohn@yahoo.co.in)

Dr T Jacob John

Former professor of Clinical Virology, CMC, Vellore
By Express News Service

TIRUPATI: The toll increased to 13 in the SVR Ruia Government Hospital oxygen disruption tragedy in Tirupati with the death of two more persons undergoing treatment on Tuesday morning. The condition of three others is reported to be critical.

On Monday night around 8:30 pm, eleven people died following disruption of oxygen supply in Ruia Hospital for a few minutes.

The nodal officer of Ruia hospital Doctor Hari Krishna said the condition of three others is critical and they are on ventilator support. Supply of oxygen in the hospital was restored in the night itself. As there was a decrease in pressure in the supply of oxygen for a few minutes in the ICU wards, the unfortunate incident happened. There are 170 beds in the ICU ward, he said.

An oxygen tanker from Sriperumbudur had arrived on the night itself and the 10 KL oxygen tank in the hospital was refilled. Another O2 tank arrived from Sriperumbudur on Tuesday morning. Meanwhile, the bodies of the victims were handed over to their family members after completing the formalities.

WATCH:

Following directions from Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, the Chittoor district administration is closely monitoring the situation at SVR Ruia Hospital including supply of oxygen.

An expert team from the Naval Dockyard led by Dr Bhansodil arrived at the hospital and inspected the oxygen supply network. The oxygen storage tanker and pipelines connecting to hospital beds were checked. The team also questioned hospital authorities on what happened between 8-8:30 p.m. when the mishap took place. It will submit a detailed report to the central government.

Even as the family members and relatives of the victims of the oxygen supply tragedy in Ruia were expressing their anguish, TDP and CPI activists staged protests holding the hospital administration and state government responsible for the deaths. Police deployed at the hospital in large numbers arrested the protesters and took them away from there.

On the other hand, BJP state spokesperson S Srinivas demanded that the state government announce an ex-gratia of Rs 25 lakh each to the bereaved families.

Tirupati MP M Gurumoorthy, MLA Bhumana Karunakar Reddy and Mayor Sireesha visited the Ruia hospital. Describing it as an unfortunate incident, the MLA said it is time to stand by the families of victims to extend moral support instead of indulging in politics. On behalf of the hospital administration, he assured that every care will be taken to ensure such tragedies do not recur.

ALSO WATCH: Meet the 'Oxygen Man from Mumbai' who is saving many lives
Amid growing pressure on the Hollywood Foreign Press Association from studios, stars and large swaths of the film industry, NBC said Monday that will not air the Golden Globes in 2022, putting in doubt the viability of one of Hollywood's oldest and most-watched award shows.

In a statement, the network said it believes the press association -- which is facing possible boycotts from Netflix, Warner Bros. and many Hollywood actors -- is committed to reform. "However, change of this magnitude takes time and work, and we feel strongly that the HFPA needs time to do it right," the network said. "As such, NBC will not air the 2022 Golden Globes. Assuming the organization executes on its plan, we are hopeful we will be in a position to air the show in January 2023."

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, long a subject of ridicule from even its own telecast hosts, has come under fire following an investigative report in February by the Los Angeles Times that recounted the organization's questionable record on diversity -- including, presently, no Black members among its 87 voting members.

The press association has pledged to thoroughly reform itself, and last week approved a plan to, among other things, diversity its membership. But that hasn't stopped several studios from threatening to pull out of the Globes. Last week, Netflix and Amazon Studios both said they would cut ties with the HFPA if it didn't swiftly enact more drastic reforms.

"We don't believe these proposed new policies -- particularly around the size and speed of membership growth -- will tackle the HFPA's systemic diversity and inclusion challenges, or the lack of clear standards for how your members should operate," Netflix co-chief executive Ted Sarandos wrote in a letter to the group.

In a letter sent Sunday and shared with reporters Monday, WarnerMedia said it would cease holding screenings and other events for the HFPA until it made more substantial changes. "For far too long, demands for perks, special favors and unprofessional requests have been made to our teams and to others across the industry," WarnerMedia executives said in a letter. "We regret that as an industry, we have complained, but largely tolerated this behavior until now."
Further, both Bath & Body Works and Victorias Secret are leaders in their respective markets, and, as separate businesses, each will be ideally positioned to benefit from a sharpened focus on pursuing growth strategies best suited to each companys customer base and strategic objectives, Nash continued in her statement. With this in mind, the Board believes that this path forward will return the highest value to shareholders and that the separation will allow each business to achieve its best opportunities for growth.
Chetana Belagere By

Express News Service

BENGALURU: The B.1.617 variant of the Covid-19, known more commonly as the double mutant strain, was first detected in India in October last year. As the name suggests, the strain involves two variants of the virus.

The E484Q mutation has characteristics of a previously detected variant - the E484K - which was seen in the fast-spreading Brazilian and South African variants, making it highly transmissible.

The L452R mutation, on the other hand, helps the virus evade the bodys immune response. The double mutation strain was subsequently named B.1.617.

The double mutant variant of SARS-CoV-2 virus, first found in October 2020 in Mumbai a few months ago, is not only appearing to overtake other variants across Karnataka but has also been declared a Variant of Concern (VoC) by the World Health Organisation (WHO) .

The double mutant -- also known as B.1.617 -- has been found in 147 samples tested for genome sequencing in Karnataka, experts said.

Dr Vishal Rao, Head and Neck Oncologist at HCG Hospitals and also part of Covid Technical Advisory Committee, said, The B.1.617 is clearly a VoC and it is contributing significantly to the second wave that we are currently witnessing."

"There are more than 8,000 variants yet to be categorised. Experts said that a mutant is categorised as VoC when mutations in Receptor Binding Domain (RBD)  the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 virus  significantly increases the capability to bind with the receptor human cells, which is directly linked to the speed of infections among humans.

Dr Giridhara Babu, Professor, Indian Institute of Public Health, and Advisor, Covid Technical Advisory Committee, said, Evidence from the UK suggests that the B.1.617 strain is more contagious compared to the Wuhan strain. Studies in India by INSACOG are under way to examine infectiousness and virulence of the variants. Although preliminary studies suggest that b o th the vaccines in India are effective against the newer variant, we need to wait for evidence for conclusive inference on these properties of the virus.

Dr V Ravi, retired head of the Department of Virology Lab at NIMHANS and nodal officer, Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genome Sequencing Consortia (INSACOG), said, An earlier study had found that B.1.1.7 (aka the UK variant) was the major lineage imported into Karnataka, followed by B.1.36 which was first reported in Saudi Arabia. Besides, B.1.1.74 and B.1.468 too are major variants circulating in Bengaluru city. But now we are seeing B.1.617 overtaking these other variants. As of now there are no other Variant of Concernss found, but more genome sequencing needs to be done.

Apart from the double mutation (from which it got its referral name as double mutant), the B.1.617, just like other new variants, contains more than a dozen mutations, Dr Ravi explained.

Of the 696 samples tested so far at the NIMHANS lab, we have found 147 samples with the B.1.617 variant, he confirmed.

This resilient variant has been found in at least 21 countries, including the UK, the US and Singapore.

It is because of this resilience that private and government hospitals have been seeing several patients getting reinfected even after two doses of vaccination.

Dr CN Manjunath, Director, Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, and member of Technical Advisory Committee, said, The B.1.617 seems to be a major contributor to not just increase in new infections, but also resisting antibodies generated by vaccination or by natural infection.

Dr John Jacob, a renowned virologist, said that as long as the number of cases is less, mutations will be lesser.

The more the virus is replicating and spreading and transmitting, chances are that more mutations will develop and adapt. Variants which accumulate a lot of mutations may ultimately become resistant to current vaccines we have, he added.

Experts are concerned that there is not much scientific data except a recent study by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)-National Institute of Virology which says that Bharat Biotechs Covaxin has demonstrated potential effectiveness against the Indian variant too.
By Express News Service

SHIVAMOGGA: RDPR Minister KS Eshwarappa said that the government was not printing money to give Rs 10,000 to each family during the lockdown. Reacting to the Opposition leaders demand, Eshwarappa told reporters here on Monday that they should keep their mouths under lockdown for the next 14 days.

When asked about Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiahs demand to extend the lockdown and compensate people from the working class, Eshwarappa said, I would to tell Siddaramaiah, KPCC president D K Shivakumar and former CM H D Kumaraswamy that they should lockdown their mouth for the next 14 days. If you lock your mouth, the lockdown will be a success. Let us criticise each other after that. When people are dying, you are criticising the government every day. Have you appreciated the government for at least one good thing? Nothing. It looks like Opposition parties are there just to criticise.

The minister said he does not know if Siddaramiah, Shivakumar and Kumaraswamy are criticising the government while sitting in AC rooms.

I have no objection to that. Please keep your mouth shut for 14 days and give us some good suggestions. We are ready to do everything if the suggestions help patients. We never expected the pandemic.



Organisations are coming forward for help. Criticising is the right of the Opposition. At the same time you cannot criticise each and every time, he added Eshwarappa said that the state government will release Rs 1 crore to each MLA to help them procure medical equipment and take measures to contain the spread of Covid19 in their constituencies.
By Express News Service

MANGALURU: Naval vessel INS Kolkata, which was carrying oxygen and other equipment, landed at New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT) on Monday. The vessel sailed out from Shuwaikh Port, Kuwait, on May 5 carrying the aid and is among the nine vessels under the Samudra Setu-II operations launched by the Indian Navy. The vessel is carrying 40 MT of oxygen filled in two ISO tanks, 200 oxygen cylinders packed in 10 pallets weighing 10 MT and four 10-litre high flow oxygen concentrators.

A release from NMPT said that the vessel was given the highest priority berthing in the port when it arrived at 2 pm.

The medical oxygen and equipments have been donated by the Government of Kuwait to Indian Red Cross Society to help tide over the Covid-19 crisis in the country. NMPT chairman AV Ramana, Deputy Commissioner, and senior officers of the port, Indian Navy and Coast Guard were present at the site to oversee operations.

Ramana expressed the readiness of the port to help in such situations and said they will contribute in every possible way to help the country fight against the pandemic. The liquid medical oxygen containers will be transported to the destinations decided by the state government. Out of 40 MT of oxygen, Dakshina Kannada will get 20 MT, and Udupi and Uttara Kannada will get 10 MT each.
By Express News Service

Enforced with immediate effect, hospitals flouting the rates liable to pay penalty 10 times the addl charges.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Following strictures from the High Court and several complaints of fleecing from different parts of Kerala, the state government on Monday capped the maximum amount that a private hospital can charge from a Covid patient undergoing treatment at a private hospital.The new rates have been enforced with immediate effect, said the order issued by the principal health secretary. The hospitals flouting the rates shall be liable to pay a penalty which shall be 10 times the additional charges.

A patient staying in a general ward needs to pay only Rs 2,645 per day, as per the order. The rate is inclusive of registration, bed charge, nursing, consultation, oxygen, medicines, lab tests, etc. However, charges for advanced investigations (CT scans), PPE kits, costly medicines such as Remdesivir and Tocilizumab have been excluded.

The rate for availing high dependency unit has been capped at Rs 3,795, ICU at Rs 7,800 and ICU with ventilator at Rs 13,800 in hospitals not accredited by National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH). The patients will have to shell out 10% more in an NABH-accredited hospital.

Announcing the decision, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said there will be a cap on the pricing of consumables including PPE kits. Only two PPE kits can be billed per day for a patient in general ward and only five PPE kits can be billed per day for a patient in ICU, he said.

The billed price of PPE will be the same as the purchase price paid by the hospital. The rates fixed for patients who are beneficiaries of Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi, however, has been increased by 15-20%. Even after the latest order capping the rates, bills from private hospitals are likely to burn a hole in patients' pockets.

The announced rates are still very high for the people though in the time of a health emergency people would pay that to save lives. The MRP mentioned in a PPE kit is often very high. While the medical stores sell it for half the price, the hospitals extract the full rate from each patient even though the staff would be wearing one for attending all the patients in a ward, said consumer rights activist Dijo Kappan.

Private hosps must not insist on advance payment: Govt

The government has also mandated all private hospitals to admit the patients immediately as per the admission protocol, through the order. No advance payment shall be insisted for at the time of admission and emphasis shall be on patient care.Charges for various treatments, consumables, medicines, doctors and nursing should be made known to the public through display boards in hospitals and on its websites.

The new rates will be applicable for patients directly approaching the hospital while the beneficiaries under Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi and government-referred patients will continue to avail free treatment for Covid in all the empanelled private hospitals.Anyone can level a complaint against overcharging by the private hospitals to the appellate authority formed under Kerala Clinical Establishment Act. The authority is headed by C K Padmakaran with Dr V Rajeevan and Dr V G Pradeep Kumar as members.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A cyclonic storm is building up over the Arabian Sea, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Tuesday. A low-pressure area will take shape over the Arabian Sea by Friday and is likely to concentrate into a depression, subsequently churning into a cyclonic storm, according to an IMD bulletin.

The low pressure area is very likely to form over southeast Arabian Sea around Friday morning. It is very likely to move north-northwestwards across southeast Arabian Sea and adjoining Lakshadweep area and intensify gradually. It may intensify into a cyclonic storm over east central Arabian Sea around Sunday and continue to move north-northwestwards, said the bulletin.

As result of the cyclonic system, the state will experience light to moderate rainfall at most places with heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places on Friday and Saturday. As sea conditions over the southeast Arabian Sea and adjoining Lakshadweep-Maldives area and equatorial Indian Ocean are also likely to be rough to very rough on these days, fishermen venturing out in the deep sea are advised to return to the coast before Friday.
By Express News Service

IDUKKI: A woman from Idukki district of Kerala, who was working as a caretaker in Israel died in a mortar shell attack by Hamas on Tuesday. Soumya,30, a native of Kanjiramthanam near Adimali was working as a caretaker at a house at Ashkelon in Israel -- that borders the Gaza strip.

According to sources, two women including Soumya were killed while many were injured in the attack that took place at 5.30 pm.

Soumya's sister in law Sherly Benny, who also works in Israel confirmed the news. "The incident occurred at around 3 pm local time. After hearing about it, I rushed to the house where Soumya worked. The mortar shell landed on the house and the entire building was completely destroyed. Both Soumya and the elderly woman whom she was attending died in the attack, " she said.

Soumya had been working in Israel for the past 7 years and had visited her family last in 2017. "She had contacted us at around 5 pm. Later we got information that she was killed in a mortar attack by Hamas. We have contacted the embassy with the help of Dean Kuriakose MP and arrangements are being made to bring the body home," said Saji, brother of Soumya's husband Santhosh.

Santhosh is a farmer and the couple has a son. Soumya's parents Satheesh and Savitri are ex-ward members of Kanjikuzhy panchayat in Idukki.
Anil S By

Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A century ago, Gouri Sankunni was a known name in Malabar. Wife of Sankunni, who was in the Madras Government Service, she was one of the first Malayali women post graduates. A girl named after her would go on to become an iconic Left leader in Kerala.

KR Gouri Amma, who passed away on Tuesday, was so named by her father after he attended a reception in honour of Gouri Sankunni. On returning home, he told his pregnant wife that he planned to name the child, if it's a girl, after Sankunni's wife. The rest is history.

Long seen as one who would become the first woman Chief Minister of Kerala, Gouri Amma might have undoubtedly been the best Chief Minister the state never had.

Those familiar with her administrative style never fail to reiterate that KR Gouri was one of the finest ministers the state has ever seen. Bureaucrats were fond of her and clearly enjoyed working with her. They found her a good administrator, as she was endowed with great clarity of thought, telling them what she wanted to do and then giving them enough leeway to get it done.

In 1987, she was projected as the next CM, with the entire state reverberating to slogans of Keram thingum Kerala naadu, KR Gouri bharikkatte (Let KR Gouri rule Kerala - the land of coconut trees). But it was not to be. Not only did she not become the CM, she was also later expelled from the party.

Twenty seven years after the CPM expelled her, her query at the time still remains unanswered. "Why was I thrown out of the party?"

Gouri believed that it was EMS Namboodiripad himself who was behind the plot that cost her the Chief Ministership and led to her subsequent expulsion.

ALSO READ | Tributes pour in across party lines for legendary Communist leader KR Gouri who died at 101

Veteran journalist BRP Bhaskar believes that Gouri may well have been right in her assessment."You can't blame her for saying that EMS was responsible for keeping her out. He knew that if she continued in the party, no one could prevent her from becoming the CM. She had a mind of her own and was not someone out to further any personal agenda," he observed.

In 1987, the party had tacitly given one and all the impression that KR Gouri would be their Chief Minister. After the polls, the entire party rank and file wanted her to be the CM, but Left allies were keen on TK Ramakrishnan. But eventually, it was EK Nayanar who got lucky.

To quote Gouri herself: "In my opinion, he (EMS) was a 'Namboodiri' who believed that only the upper class should wield power. Otherwise why would he have invited Nayanar who had till then never been in the picture to suddenly helm the government?"

In fact, she had mentioned more than once that EMS was not very keen on the lower castes coming to the forefront, thereby exposing the hidden claws of caste politics even within the most revolutionary outfits of those times.

Sources who were part of inner-party circles at the time, however, strongly refute such allegations against EMS who they say was being unduly blamed. "In fact, the only statement that EMS made at the state committee meet was that Gouri had never been able to confine herself within the disciplinary confines of any party forum," confided a leader who was part of the CPM state committee that had demoted her to the Alappuzha district committee.

Interestingly, Gouri's demotion in the party came on a historic day. "After coming out of the state committee meet in the evening, the leaders witnessed an unexpected hartal across the state. It was December 6, 1992, the day of the Babri Masjid demolition," the leader remembered. Action against her was taken based on the party probe by MK Krishnan and P Karunakaran who were known loyalists of VS Achuthanandan and EK Nayanar respectively.

Left observers feel that the CPM had miserably failed to effectively use a charismatic leader like her to connect with the masses.

One of the founding Left leaders in Kerala, she was part of the first democratically elected Communist government in the world under EMS. Champion of many a struggle including the Punnapra Vayalar uprising, she was subject to brutal torture in police custody.

Noted political commentator Appukkuttan Vallikkunnu feels that the CPM did not truly appreciate the leader for who she really was.

"A fiesty firebrand leader, she was the most aggressive woman revolutionary leader the state had ever seen, someone who could easily be compared to the likes of Rani of Jhansi. She belonged to that rare breed of revolutionaries who was moulded in the furnace of exceptional personal and political circumstances of her times. Her one cult statement that she often made - "I would have given birth to thousands of 'lathi' babies, if policemen's lathis could impregnate" - gives us a glimpse of her deadly grit and courage," he added.

One of the oldest serving politicians in Kerala politics, she was the CPM's biggest crowd-puller in the state at one point of time.

An iconic Communist who brought in the Land Reforms Act, she left her mark in the legislative field too. The longest-serving woman minister in the state, she was elected to the Legislative Assembly 10 times and was minister for about 15 years as part of six different governments. She was a minister in the communist-led ministries in Kerala in 1957, 1967, 1980, and 1987 and also became a minister in the Congress-led Cabinet from 2001 to 2006.

After being expelled from the CPM in 1994, she floated the Janadhipathya Samrakshana Samithy and later won the polls without the support of any major front in 1996.

Gouri belonged to that era of leaders who had worked at close quarters with Communist legends like P Krishnapillai.

Generations of Malayalis have stood witness to the tumultuous twists and turns in both her political and personal life that spanned over a century. Her every breath was for the cause of Communism. Her ideological battles and struggles had their repercussions in her personal life too. Yet she never flinched from taking a stance or speaking up for herself.

While still a young comrade, she did not think twice before rejecting none other than legendary Communist AK Gopalan who wanted to marry her. This in itself speaks volumes about the woman she was.

In 1957, she married her cabinet colleague and Left leader TV Thomas. The inter-religious marriage - a quite uncommon occurrence those days - was held with the party's blessings. In fact, the party was clearly told about their relation in 1952 itself making every twist and turn in their topsy-turvy marriage a party affair too.

Her marriage and life with Thomas had to bear the brunt of the party's split in 1964 with Gouri opting to branch out with the CPM, while Thomas chose to stay on with the CPI. Both gradually parted ways, though that was not the only reason for their separation. In 1977, when TV breathed his last, Gouri was, however, at his side.

With KR Gouri bidding adieu after over a century of a well-lived life, an era in Kerala politics has drawn to an end. Though she severed ties with the Communist party in 1994, she very much wanted to return to the Left citadel in her final years.

Several attempts were made to bring her back into the Communist fold, but it now remains an unfulfilled dream - both for her and the Communist movement in Kerala.

Poet Balachandran Chullikkad's lines aptly capture the essence of who she was for a generation of Keralites.

"Karayatha Gouri;

Thalaratha Gouri

Kalikondu Ninnal

Aval Bhadrakali

Ithu Kettu konde cherubalyamellam

Pathivayi njangal

bhayamatti vannu"

Indeed, the one who instilled confidence and pride in revolutionary spirits of Kerala for over a century is no more!
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Glowing tributes are pouring in for K R Gouri, one of the revolutionary leaders of the state who passed away this morning. Chief Minister elect Pinarayi Vijayan recalled that Gouri used her life and times for the upliftment of the state, while Governor Arif Mohammed Khan said her exceptional courage and inspiring leadership made her a true symbol of woman empowerment.

ALSO READ: Legendary Communist leader K R Gouri Amma no more

Prominent leaders cutting across political affiliations paid homage to the legendary leader when her mortal remains were brought to the Ayyankali Hall for public homage. She had breathed her last at a private hospital at 7 am and after completing formalities, she was brought to the Ayyankali Hall around 10:45 am. Pinarayi said Gouri was a brave fighter who dedicated her life to ending exploitation and building an egalitarian society. He added that Gouri made seminal contributions in building the Communist movement and as an administrator.

The role played by Gouri to establish the Communist organization is unparalleled. She was the epitome of a brave warrior and a brilliant leader where modern Keralas history is Gouris biography. Only a very few people can live up to 100 years and Gouri lived throughout her life not depending on anyone and at the same time, helping others, said Pinarayi.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan paying tribute to K R Gauri at Ayyankali hall in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday. (Photo | B P Deepu, EPS)

The Governor said Gouri's struggles to ensure social justice and her contribution to land reforms and industrial growth in Kerala will always be gratefully remembered. Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala recalled that through the passing away of Gouri, the state had lost a legendary leader who had been a constant force of strength in the socio political milieu. He said only a few rare leaders had created history and become a part of it like Gouri.

An era has come to an end with the demise of K R Gouri. She walked on to becoming a top popular leader of the state with effortless ease. She proved through her life that being a woman is not a liability, but a strong force. It was her political beliefs that led her to become a top leader in the united Communist movement, then with the CPM and later with the United Democratic Front, said Chennithala.

Union Minister of State for external affairs V Muraleedharan said Gouri was a part of the history of the state. He recalled that she went on to become an undisputed leader who climbed the success ladder through sheer grit and competence. State BJP president K Surendran remembered her as the woman force in Kerala's political milieu.

A plethora of ministers in the previous LDF ministry including Kadakampally Surendran, K K Shailaja and T P Ramakrishnan, state CPI secretary Kanam Rajendran, state Congress president Mullapally Ramachandran and senior Congress leader Oommen Chandy expressed their condolences on the passing away of Gouri.
Express News Service

TIRUCHY/CHENNAI: Many workers in Tiruchy and nearby districts were seen camping near the railway station since Sunday night to board Tuesdays Howrah Express. Most of them from Bihar and West Bengal are, however, planning to return to Tamil Nadu after the lockdown is lifted.

I work as a construction worker in Dindigul. Since the government has announced the lockdown, I decided to return to my hometown. So, I reached Tiruchy on Sunday night in a bus. Though our train is on Tuesday, the suspension of public transportation compelled us to reach early. Since the canteen and other hotels near the railway station are functioning even during the lockdown, we didnt face much issues. Most of us are planning to return after the lockdown, said Sachidananda Singh (45), a migrant worker from Bihar.

Despite the fear of getting infected during the journey, they said that they have no other option. If we stay in Tamil Nadu during the lockdown, we would struggle to make both ends meet as most of us dont have much savings. Therefore, my husband and I decided to go to our home State of West Bengal, said Archana, who is travelling with her three-year-old child.

When asked about the exodus, Tiruchy Collector S Divyadharshini said, The construction and the continuous process industries are allowed to operate. So there wont be a lack of jobs for migrants and they need not take trains. Anyway, I will look into the issue.

Exodus sadly all too familiar

Things are not very different in the industrial hub of Tiruppur as well. Even though export units are exempted from the lockdown, workers employed at these units have started to leave for their hometowns. A large number of labourers have been departing from the railway station even as employers have offered food and salary to them during the lockdown.

Abhishek, a 23-year-old garment unit worker from Bihar, recalled that he returned to his native after two months of desperate struggle during the first wave as his employer refused to pay his salary. I came back to Tiruppur only a few months ago after an agency offered work at another company. But, we were shocked to hear the lockdown announcement. Although my new employer promised to offer food during the lockdown, we have decided to return.

Speaking to Express, Tiruppur Exporters Association Treasurer, P Mohan, said a few work units may have closed although all export and allied units are exempted from the lockdown. Migrants working in these units may have left for their States out for fear, he added.

Meanwhile, two buses carrying migrant labourers to Bihar were detained in Kangeyam on Sunday evening for not having the required permit. Motor Vehicle Inspector G Sathyamoorthy said the workers had paid over Rs 1 lakh to hire each of the buses. Investigation revealed that the bus owner had charged Rs 3,500 per person, promising to drop them in Bihar and other places, he said. One of the buses belongs to a Krishnagiri resident, while another belongs to a person from Andhra Pradesh.

Crowds at Chennai Central

Up in the north, people did not expect much of a rush or chaos as the lockdown announcement had come two days in advance. However, huge crowds had thronged Chennai Central and Egmore railway stations early in the morning in fear as over 2,300 workers had come in to board trains to their natives. To tackle the situation, the city corporation had called for the same team of volunteers who worked on transporting migrant workers last year.

We were a team of 10 independent volunteers and about four NGOs. First, we had to segregate workers on the basis of reserved and unreserved passengers. Some had tickets for a later day, some had one ticket for a group of eight to ten people and some fled the scene immediately after the co-ordination began, said Hari Krishnan, volunteer co-ordinator. However, the gathering was nothing compared to the exodus last year.

Since the circumstance was unforeseen, we called different NGOs and gathered food in small amounts and distributed. Arrangements have been made for tomorrow, said one of the volunteers. However, unlike last year, RT-PCR tests or quarantine rules have not been imposed yet.

(With inputs from Tiruppur)
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday requested the public and private organisations to donate generously to the Chief Ministers Public Relief Fund (CMPRF) in a bid to support government efforts to contain the spread of Covid -19.

In a statement, Stalin said the government was making every effort to overcome unprecedented challenges posed by the pandemic.

The State is in dire need of financial support, said Stalin while requesting the general public to donate generously.

He assured that money will only be spent for increasing oxygen beds at hospitals, uninterrupted supply of life-saving drugs and life-saving gas, improving the infrastructure of hospitals, purchasing vaccines and other medical expenses. Accounts of the CMPRF will be made public, he added.

Ambulances carrying #COVID19 patients make a long queue outside Chennai's Rajiv Gandhi Government Hospital.

Express video | @shibasahu2012.@xpresstn pic.twitter.com/AiotjpRnH3  The New Indian Express (@NewIndianXpress) May 12, 2021

Donations made from within the country would be exempted under Section 80G of the Income Tax Act, contributions from NRIs would be exempted under Section 50 in The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010, added the statement.

ALSO READ | TN government school teachers to donate a day's salary to CM Covid-19 relief fund

Funds can be contributed through debit, credit cards, and internet banking through the link https://ereceipt.tn.gov.in/cmprf/cmprf.html.

For transferring through ECS, the name of the bank is Indian Overseas Bank, Secretariat Branch, Chennai 600009. The savings account number is 117201000000070, IFSC Code is IOBA0001172, MICR code is 600020061, and CMPRF PAN is AAAGC0038F.

For paying money through PhonePe, Google Pay, PayTM, Amazon Pay, and Mobikwik, the UPI VPA ID: tncmprf@iob

Those transferring funds through ECS, are requested to provide the details such as Name, Amount Contributed, Bank and Branch, Date of Deposit, Acknowledgement No., Full Postal Address and e-mail ID.

The NRIs willing to contribute could use the SWIFT Code to donate -- IOBAINBB0001 Indian Overseas Bank, Central Office, Chennai.

Donations through demand draft and cheque should be addressed to Deputy Secretary to Government and Treasurer, Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund, Finance Department, Tamil Nadu Government, Secretariat, Chennai 600009, Tamil Nadu, India. Email: dspaycell.findpt@tn.gov.in

Private institutions can donate funds under Corporate Social Responsibility to the following bank account: Indian Overseas Bank 117201000017908 IFSC Code IOBA0001172, Secretariat Branch, Chennai 600009.
The barrage of rockets and airstrikes was preceded by hours of clashes Monday between Palestinians and Israeli security forces, including dramatic confrontations at Jerusalems Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, a sacred site to both Jews and Muslims. The current violence, like previous rounds, including the last intifada, or uprising, has been fueled by conflicting claims over Jerusalem, which is at the emotional core of the long conflict.
By Express News Service

KRISHNAGIRI: A 28-year-old youth, who supported the panchayat president in assisting a Covid patient in his village, was threatened by the villagers near Anchetti to stop his activity on Sunday.

T Madhegowda (28), a farmer and activist from Anchetti, received a call from panchayat president Baskar on Saturday informing that a 29-year-old man was infected and asked the activist to not let him wander around.

Following which, the former spoke to the infected person and instructed him to isolate at home until being shifted to a hospital. He also asked people closely associated with the person to undergo RT-PCR tests to further prevent the spread.

On Sunday, the infected person was taken to Government Krishnagiri Medical College Hospital. He was living with his wife and a two-year-old child. That night, over 20 villagers thronged in front of my house and abused me that the person was taken to Krishnagiri and persons who took RT-PCR will be vaccinated, as many didnt care about the spread. A few also threatened to burn down my poultry farm and some pelted stones, he said.

Following the issue, he informed the Anchetti police. Subsequently, police personnel conducted an inquiry.

When Express took the issue to the notice of Anchetti panchayat president Baskar, he said he would immediately look into the issue and spoke to a few villagers.

On Monday, the president informed that Madhegowda didnt cause any trouble and just assisted him to prevent the spread but a few had misunderstood him.
By Express News Service

VIRUDHUNAGAR: Virudhunagar Government Headquarters Hospital is brewing into another major potential hotspot in the district as attenders were being allowed to enter the Covid-19 ward with as many as 72 beds.

While nurses and doctors were donning PPE suits, scores of people were roaming inside the ward wearing the normal suits.

When TNIE spoke to a 67-year-old patients attender, Selvam, he said that his mother admitted to the Covid-19 ward, allegedly fell from the bed and no one lifted her back onto the bed.

I had to rush to the hospital to help my mother, he added.

However, the nurses on-duty refute the allegations and state that they wear PPE and ensure that patients are safe.

Another patients attender, seeking anonymity, said that she had to come to deliver food and water for the patient.

We come in the morning and give their things and go to work. If there is someone else available from my house, I leave them here until I return, the flower vendor on the streets said.

The list goes on with street vendors, vegetable or other shopkeepers, office-goers, homemakers and labourers present inside the ward. As there is no separate chair or seating area, they share a corner of the bed of the patient.

According to data from the district administration, the hospital has a total of 230 beds. The general ward is separated into two parts -- one for Covid cases and one for suspected Covid cases. It would be better if authorities isolate both these wards, a health care worker added.

When TNIE spoke to a senior doctor and Dean Thiruvasagamani of the hospital, they stated that despite repeated requests, patients attendees continue to throng the place.

However, they added that they would strictly look into the matter. Members of Tamil Nadu Government Employees Association have petitioned the Collector regarding the violation of rules.
By Associated Press

BANGKOK: Three senior journalists working for a news agency in Myanmar who fled after the military government ordered its operations to stop have been arrested by police in northern Thailand, their editor said Monday.

The three work for DVB, also known as Democratic Voice of Burma, an online and broadcast news agency, its executive director and chief editor, Aye Chan Naing, said in an email. Burma is the former name for Myanmar and is still used by some opponents of military rule.

He said the three, along with two activists, whom he did not identify, were arrested Sunday in Chiang Mai during a random search by police. They were charged with illegal entry into Thailand, he said.

From photos published by local Thai media, it appeared that the journalists may have continued to report from a single-story house in which they seemed to have set up a makeshift video production studio.

Myanmars junta, which seized power in February and ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, has attempted to silence independent news media by withdrawing their licenses and by arresting journalists. About 40 are currently in detention, including at least two who work for DVB.

Most of the detained journalists are being held on a provision in the Penal Code that prohibits comments that cause fear, spread false news, (or) agitates directly or indirectly a criminal offense against a Government employee. Violations are punishable by up to three years in prison.

DVB strongly urges the Thai authorities to not deport them back to Burma, as their life will be in serious danger if they were to return, the statement said. They have been covering the demonstrations in Burma until March 8  the day the military authority revoked DVBs TV license and banned DVB from doing any kind of media work.

Large street protests against military rule were being held in many cities in Myanmar at that time. Government security forces increasingly used deadly force to disperse them, killing at least 750 protesters and bystanders, according to several detailed independent tallies. The junta says says its forces have killed one-third that total and that using lethal force was justified to stop what it calls rioting.

The statement also appealed for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees to intervene to protect the journalists' safety, and for the international community to ask the Thai government not to deport them.
By PTI

SINGAPORE: Singapore will fail if it allows racism and xenophobia to become prevalent, a senior minister warned here on Tuesday in response to an apparent hate crime incident involving a 55-year-old Indian-origin woman who was kicked and subjected to racial slurs for not wearing a mask while taking a brisk walk to work.

Hindocha Nita Vishnubhai, a private tutor, was brisk walking on Friday morning when a man approached her and asked her to pull the mask up from her chin before hurling vulgarities and racial slurs at her.

"My mum responded with a 'God bless you' and the guy kicked her in the chest. My mum landed on her back and hurt herself," the victim's daughter had told a local news channel.

Addressing parliament on the issue, Minister for Law and Home Affairs K Shanmugam said such "racist behaviour" cannot be justified by saying, "the Indians are behaving badly" or blamed on the government policies such as the India-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), a free trade agreement signed in June 2005.

"There have been several canards about CECA, promoted by a whispering campaign," he said, adding that any lawmaker who believed the agreement was a problem could put up a motion to hold a debate.

The alleged assault of the woman, which is currently being investigated by the police, drew condemnation from several ministers, including Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who said it "goes against everything that our multiracial society stands for".

Such behaviour should be condemned, said Shanmugam.

Singapore has been able to manage racism and over time "sought to reduce it", he said.

"Around the world economic pressures have led to populism and the populists have been seeking political profit by exploiting people's fears over jobs and economic insecurity, blaming foreigners, blaming immigrants, for all of their country's problems," the Channel News Asia quoted the minister as saying.

"Singapore is 725 sq km of rock. We have to make a living by being open to the world.

We will fail if we allow racism and xenophobia to become prevalent, and it's contrary to everything that has made us successful and proud to be Singaporean," the minister warned.

While Singapore has avoided the worst of such populist attitudes, there are legitimate concerns about foreigners taking jobs from locals, said Shanmugam, adding that these concerns have been fuelled by unacceptable practices like unfair employment practices that favour hiring foreigners and discriminate against the locals.

"It is a minority who behave like this, but it naturally makes Singaporeans unhappy," he said, adding that the Manpower Ministry has taken steps to deal with such practices.

Shanmugam said certain parties, which he did not identify, were "deliberately stoking the fears, encouraging racism and xenophobia, and dog whistling", asserting that it is "dangerous for Singapore".

"First, it will be the expat Indians. Then, it will come to Singaporean Indians," he said, noting that not all would be able to distinguish between India-born in Singapore and those born overseas.

"The lady who was attacked has been a citizen for 25 years. If we go down this route, eventually all Indians can be a target of hate," he said, warning that this could create an "outgroup" based on race.

"The majority of Singaporeans are decent and not racist, but if we continue to fan the flames of racism, we will get to a more uncomfortable position," he said.

Shanmugam pointed to certain websites deliberately fomented racism, with comments describing Indians as "cockroaches" and "rapists".

"We should be ashamed that in the name of free speech, we allow such comments. This bad behaviour and open expression of racism -- I invite all here to condemn," he said.

He singled out Non-Constituency Parliamentarian Leong Mun Wai, who previously said he was "deeply disappointed" that DBS Bank did not have a "homegrown" chief executive and whose Progress Singapore Party (PSP) had called for agreements such as CECA to be reviewed.

DBS Group CEO is Piyush Gupta of Indian-origin.

"I hope responsible opposition parties will take a stand on this, notwithstanding that many of these sites that promote xenophobia support you," Shanmugam said.

Leong later responded by saying neither he nor the Progress Singapore Party were xenophobic.

"We are just stating the economic effects (that) some of these free trade agreements have had on our economy," he said, adding he intended to take up the challenge from Shanmugam for a debate at "an appropriate time in the future".

Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh said his Workers' Party was in agreement with Shanmugam's statement.

"There is no place for racism in Singapore - no ifs, no buts," he said.
By PTI

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka on Tuesday said it does not foresee the possibility of community transmission of the Indian variant of the COVID-19 despite detection of one case in the island nation last week.

Government spokesman Udaya Gammanpila said there was no chance for a community spread of the B.1.617 variant here as the individual carrying the variant had been found at a quarantine centre.

The individual, who had recently returned from India, was detected on Saturday.

The Minister for COVID health care, Dr Sudarshani Fernandopulle had said that the individual had undergone quarantine for 14 days and had been released from the centre after a further 7 days under watch.

Last week, Sri Jayewardenapura University's immunology and molecular medicine unit had issued a report giving details of the variants found in the country.

They are: B.1.1.7 (UK variant), B.1.428 (Denmark/European/Middle East variant), B.1.411 (Sri Lankan variant), B 1.525 (Nigerian variant) and the B.1.351 (South African variant).

The current surge of cases is said to be from the UK variant, according to health experts.

In its bid to break the current surge, the government last night announced internal travel restrictions between the provinces.

This could be extended to limit travel between the districts, the COVID prevention chief and the Army Commander Gen Shavendra Silva said.

Sri Lanka on Sunday recorded over 2,600 coronavirus cases, the highest-ever single-day count recorded so far in the island nation since the pandemic began last year.

Sri Lanka has recorded nearly 126,000 cases by Sunday.

The total number of deaths due to COVID-19 in the country is 827.
By Associated Press

JERUSALEM: Israeli airstrikes have demolished a 12-story building in Gaza City that housed the offices of top Hamas officials.

Tuesdays airstrikes shook buildings as far as 3 kilometers (2 miles) away. Israeli drones fired a series of warning shots at the roof to give people time to leave the building before it was destroyed by the military.

There were no immediate reports of casualties. But the airstrike marked another escalation in Israels offensive against Hamas.

Hamas earlier threatened to strike the Israeli metropolis of Tel Aviv if Israel continued striking buildings in Gaza. On Monday evening, a Hamas rocket fell on the western outskirts of Jerusalem, lightly damaging a home and causing a brushfire.

Israels police chief is beefing up deployments across the country in response to a wave of unrest in Arab communities.

Koby Shabtai issued the order on Tuesday as crowds set a police cruiser, motorcycle and bus on fire during protests in the central city of Lod. Protests were expected in dozens of other Arab communities across the country.

ALSO READ | Kerala woman working in Israel killed in Hamas mortar shelling

In a statement, police said Shabtai instructed his commanders to intensify police presence on the streets following widespread unrest and protests in dozens of Arab communities across the country Monday night.

The mounting unrest came at a time of heightened tensions following weeks of violence in Jerusalem and heavy fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip in the past day.

Earlier in the day in Lod, Israeli police fired tear gas and stun grenades after mourners started throwing stones at officers during the funeral of an Arab man allegedly killed by a Jewish resident in the area.

Reaction from Gulf nations

Gulf Arab countries are offering harsh criticism of Israel in the wake of the latest Israeli-Palestinian confrontation as violence rises in Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.

Hundreds of Kuwaitis staged a sit-in outside Parliament, chanting No to normalization with Israel and voicing support for the Palestinians. Tuesdays protest, which blocked traffic and drew outspoken activists, officials and lawmakers, comes as Gulf Arab sheikhdoms with new diplomatic ties to Israel increasingly condemn the escalation.

As part of the U.S.-brokered normalization agreements known as the Abraham Accords, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain opened ties with Israel last fall, reversing the decades-long Arab policy of conditioning relations on a resolution of the Mideast conflict and drawing intense backlash from the Palestinians.

ALSO READ | Gaza militants, children among 26 dead as Israel hits Hamas with airstrikes

The de facto leader of the UAE, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, stressed the importance of putting an end to all aggressions and practices that exacerbate tension and wrath in the sacred city of Jerusalem. He discussed flaring Mideast tensions in meetings Tuesday with the Bahraini crown prince and Jordan's prime minister.

Bahrain also renewed its criticism of the rising tensions, with the speaker of parliament affirming the kingdoms support for a two-state solution and denouncing Israels provocations against the people of Jerusalem, including threatened home evictions and attacks in the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Harsh condemnations also have poured in from regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia and the tiny state of Kuwait, which have traditionally considered themselves among the standard-bearers for the Palestinian cause.

ALSO WATCH:
By PTI

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Tuesday that Pakistan would not hold talks with India until New Delhi reverses its decision of scrapping the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

India abrogated the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 on August 5, 2019 and bifurcated it into two Union territories.

"Unless India retreats from the steps taken on August 5", the Pakistani government will not talk to India at all," Khan said while responding to questions from the public during a live broadcast session.

Earlier in the day, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that no talks presently were taking place with India but parleys could be held if New Delhi revisited its policy regarding Kashmir and provided relief to the people of Kashmir.

"Jammu and Kashmir cannot be an internal issue of India as it is on the agenda of the UN and there are several Security Council resolutions on it, he said while addressing a news conference in Islamabad.

India has repeatedly said Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and the country is capable of solving its own problems.

New Delhi has told Islamabad that it desires normal neighbourly relations with it in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.

Indo-Pak relations deteriorated after India announced withdrawing special powers of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcation of the state into two union territories in August 2019.

India has maintained that issue related to Article 370 of the Indian Constitution was entirely an internal matter of the country.

However, lately there has been some improvement when the two countries agreed in February to restore peace on the Line of Control.

It is said that the rival officials have been interacting through the back channel diplomacy to ease tension.

Khan also responded to several questions about domestic issues and defended the performance of his government which came to power in August 2018.
By Associated Press

JERUSALEM: The office of Turkey's president says he is engaged in intense telephone diplomacy in a bid to end Israel's use of force against Palestinians.

Since late Monday, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has spoken to Malaysia's king and the leaders of Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan, as he seeks a strong stance by Muslim nations against Israel, according to Erdogan's office.

The Turkish president, who has has strongly denounced Israel's actions against Palestinians at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound during the fasting month of Ramadan, has also spoken to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas chief, Ismail Haniyeh.

ALSO READ | Tensions escalate as Israeli airstrikes demolish Hamas offices in Gaza Strip

The latest round of fighting comes as Turkey has reportedly been seeking to restore ties with Israel.

The two countries withdrew their ambassadors in 2018, after the United States moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, sparking mass protests by Palestinians.

Late on Monday, thousands of protesters marched to Israel's embassy in Ankara and the consulate in Istanbul to protest Israel, ignoring Turkey's COVID-19 restrictions.

The Israeli military says it has assassinated a senior commander of the Islamic Jihad militant group in Gaza on Tuesday.

It said the militant was the head of the Islamic Jihad's rocket unit and identified him as Samih al-Mamluk.

The military said other senior militants in the organization were also killed in the same strike.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan has also denounced Israel's use of force against Palestinians at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound during the fasting month of Ramadan.

Khan said Tuesday that he had asked his foreign minister to contact his Turkish and Saudi counterparts to discuss how to collectively respond.

Earlier, Pakistan's foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi at a news conference urged the world community to take notice of Israel's use of force against innocent Palestinians worshippers.

Under discussion is whether Pakistan, Saudi and Turkish officials should convene the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, a group of Islamic countries.

Pakistan is one of the few countries that have no diplomatic relations with Israel.

Meanwhile, Israeli media reports that a rocket has struck an empty school in the coastal city of Ashkelon, not far from the Gaza Strip.

Television footage showed thick smoke rising from cars that had caught on fire.

Israel's Home Front Command had ordered the closure of schools on Monday in the area surrounding the Gaza Strip, including Ashkelon.

The move came during the escalation of tension that's built for weeks over contested Jerusalem.
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SAN ANTONIO (AP)  Police have charged a 23-year-old man with capital murder in the fatal shooting of a 6-year-old girl at a San Antonio car club meetup.

Andrew Rey Elizondo, an acquaintance of the child's mother, was arrested Monday afternoon in the Sunday night shooting, Police Chief William McManus said. It was unclear from online jail records if Elizondo had an attorney.,
Trish Haldin / Hearst Connecticut Media

NEW MILFORD  The Town of New Milford announced on Monday some youth employment opportunities in town this summer.

The town will participate in the Connecticut Youth Employment Program in partnership with the Northwest Regional Workforce Investment Board. This program employs qualified youth, ages 14 -21, to work for six weeks during the summer. Participants will work for 20 hours each week for $13 per hour from July 5-Aug.13.
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Monday's vaccination updates: UI finishing school year with fewest cases of pandemic (46,317 tests, 25 positive for week); 7 of 33 hospitalized with COVID at Carle Urbana in ICU; Champaign Co. reports 147th fatality
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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).
We worked to continue the project through COVID because we knew that we would need it post-COVID, and that is exactly what has been accomplished here today, the governor said. As the economy is reopening and crowds are regathering, we have the place for them to come at the new Javits Center.
Chicago Democrat Sen. Mike Simmons testifies before the Senate Education Committee in support of legislation that would prevent schools from prohibiting hairstyles historically associated with race and ethnicity as part of their school code.
Fairport Harbor Village Administrator Amy Cossick speaks during a recent Eastern Lake County Chamber of Commerce meeting. She was one of nine government leaders from eastern Lake County who talked about 2021 highlights in their communities.
Gestures--such as pointing or waving--go hand in hand with a child's first words, and twins lag behind single children in producing and using those gestures, two studies from Georgia State University psychology researchers show.

Twins produce fewer gestures and gesture to fewer objects than other children, said principal researcher Seyda Ozcaliskan, an associate professor in the Department of Psychology. Language use also lags for twins, and language--but not gesture--is also affected by sex, with girls performing better than boys, Ozcaliskan said.

The implications are fascinating. It shows that gesture and speech go hand in hand in early development in twins. When one is lagging behind so does the other." Seyda Ozcaliskan, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Georgia State University

The research found that a lag in gesture can reliably predict a lag in speech. At the same time, lots of gesturing suggests speech is on the way. Parents can help speed their child's acquisition of language by naming the objects they gesture to.

The lag in gesture among twins may be due to lower parental input, Ozcaliskan said, for parents of single children used a greater amount and diversity of gestures than parents of twins. It's likely, Ozcaliskan said, that parents caring for twins engage in shorter conversations with their children, including gesturing less, because their attention is divided and their labor is doubled.

The studies were conducted by Ozcaliskan and her psychology doctoral students Ebru Pinar and Sumeyra Ozturk, along with her collaborator Dr. Nihan Ketrez in Istanbul. The paper Parental Speech and Gesture Input to Girls Versus Boys in Singletons and Twins was published in the Journal of Nonverbal Behavior and Effect of Sex and Dyad Composition on Speech and Gesture Development of Singleton and Twin Children was published in the Journal of Child Language.

The two studies analyzed video data from Turkish families and included three groups of fraternal twins--males, females and mixed sex twins, as well as two groups of single boys and girls, along with their parents.

Ozcaliskan said she had grown curious about gesture because it had not yet been studied among twins, while language acquisition has been thoroughly researched.

"We've known for a long time that children's early vocabulary shows sex differences," said Ozcaliskan, "with boys having smaller vocabularies than girls their age."

Girls age 2-3 also produce longer, more complex sentences than boys. Twins are initially at a disadvantage where language is concerned, using fewer words than their singleton peers and forming complete sentences later than singletons. Boys lag the most, with girl-girl twins developing larger vocabularies and more complex sentences than boy-boy twins of comparable age.

Most of the time, these lags are within the normal range of differences, and nothing to worry about. Almost all children will catch up to each other by around age three and a half.

But what about gesture?

"There was close to nothing in research on gesturing among twins in any language," Ozcaliskan said.

Infants start using pointing around 10 months, a few months before they produce their first words. In other words, they point at a dog a few months before they actually say the word "dog." Gesture helps them convey what they can't yet communicate in speech and paves the way for children's early words.

Though the lag in gesture and language among twins may be mostly due to reduced parental input, Ozcaliskan said twins sometimes develop their own systems of communication, even their own "twin language," which has been shown to delay language acquisition. "Perhaps it also delays the use of gestures," she said.

On most occasions, a lag in gesture may mean a lag in the next linguistic milestone.

"However, in the event that you see the lag in gesture go on for a long time, it may be a marker of a potential developmental or language delay," said Ozcaliskan. On the other hand, if a child doesn't talk much at an early age, but frequently uses gesture, a parent can be reassured that "language is on its way," she said.

The more a parent engages with a child, using gesture and speech, the better the child's acquisition of both. Gesture and speech together form a closely integrated system in a child's development, and a child's first gestures often precede their first attempts at speech.

For parents who are intrigued by these connections, Ozcaliskan suggested naming objects when children point to them, as in: Yes, that's a bottle, do you want your bottle? Naming helps children learn new words earlier. Parents can also make a point of gesturing to objects themselves when naming.

"Gesture is a very powerful tool," Ozcaliskan said. "Pay attention to your child's gestures, and then provide verbal descriptions to help their language development."
A trip to visit family in Kolkata, India, put South Dakota State University assistant professor Saikat Basu in the middle of that country's second wave of COVID-19 infections. However, it also gave the Department of Mechanical Engineering faculty member a unique opportunity to improve delivery of an antiseptic nasal spray that may help reduce the risk of infection.

Basu's research involves modeling the transport of aerosols, including virus-carrying droplets, in the human respiratory tract. "To become infected, you must first inhale the virus, so inhalation patterns are important," Basu explained.

For a National Science Foundation-funded COVID-19 research project, Basu developed a model that uses breathing rates to track which droplets sizes are likely to reach the upper part of the throat behind the nasal passages and above the esophagus and voice box, known as the nasopharynx. Other research studies show viral particles that reach this part of the respiratory tract are most likely to cause infection.

Based on this work, Basu and collaborators from Boston University and Fractal Therapeutics in Cambridge, Massachusetts determined the spray bottle must be held in a near-horizontal position to deliver a virus-fighting povidone-iodine solution into the nasopharynx. Povidone iodine is marketed under the Betadine trademark and has been used as an antimicrobial for more than 20 years.

In the absence of vaccines, there should be other layers of protection and this might be one of them." Saikat Basu, Assistant Professor, South Dakota State University

He noted getting the spray to the nasopharynx is crucial. The ciliated cells that line the nasopharynx have a surface receptor, known as ACE2, which the novel coronavirus uses to enter the cells. From there, the infection spreads into the lungs.

Basu posted an article on LinkedIn with instructions on how to make a 0.5% povidone-iodine solution as well as a video showing how to position the spray bottle.

"This information could save lives," said Basu, which is why he wanted to quickly share his findings. When compared to the standard vertical spray position, Basu's new spray protocol can result in as much as a hundredfold increase in the amount of antiseptic that reaches the desired location.

Basu and his family, who have not yet received their COVID-19 vaccinations, used the povidone-iodine spray during the five weeks they were in India. Basu's parents are fully vaccinated, but his 82-year-old grandmother is not. "She has been too frail to go out and wait in the long lines at the vaccination centers, many of which have acute shortage of vaccines" he said.

In the LinkedIn article, Basu cites "growing experimental evidence that the povidone-iodine solution works against SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19)." A spring 2020 study by United Kingdom researchers recommends that the health care professionals and COVID-19 patients use the solution as a nasal spray and a mouthwash. In Singapore, a small National University Health System study found a 25% reduction in SARS-CoV-2 infection among those using the povidone-iodine nasal spray three times a day.

Although no such studies are being conducted in the United States, those who are reluctant or unable to be vaccinated may want to consider using this prevention technique, Basu said. He recommends using three squirts of spray in each nostril "before you are likely to be exposed and then  just after (any possible exposure) again."

Before India's second wave, "some scientists came up with the idea that India had reached herd immunity," Basu explained. India, which is a world leader in vaccine production, even began exporting vaccine to other countries, including Canada.

Now, Basu estimates it will take until the end of 2022 to achieve widespread vaccination in India. An article in The Economist says that may not be accomplished in Africa until 2024.

"This pandemic is not going away any time soon-;the idea is to have better technologies to reduce virus transmission and help protect uninfected populations," Basu said. Proper use of povidone-iodine spray is one way to do that.
Chemotherapy can induce a painful peripheral neuropathy (CIPN), a chronic condition and common adverse effect for cancer patients undergoing treatment. Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues elsewhere, have used a mouse model to demonstrate the pivotal role of cholesterol in CIPN, and proposed a novel therapeutic approach to reverse it.

The findings are published in the May 10, 2021, online issue of the Journal of Experimental Medicine.

The study was a collaboration between the laboratories of senior study author Yury Miller, MD, PhD, professor of medicine, and Tony Yaksh, PhD, professor of anesthesiology and pharmacology, both at UC San Diego School of Medicine. Miller studies cholesterol metabolism and cardiovascular and neuro inflammation. Yaksh specializes in neuropathic pain.

"It was truly gratifying to work at the intersection of two disciplines and identify the role cholesterol plays in activation of microglia -- immune cells of the spinal cord -- and regulation of chronic pain," said first author Juliana Navia-Pelaez, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in Miller's lab.

"The metabolism of cellular cholesterol was already linked to neurological conditions, such as Alzheimer's disease, but we were first to show its role and underlying mechanisms in chronic pain."

Cholesterol is essential for brain function, both during development and in adult life. It is a major component of cell membranes, a precursor to some hormones and serves as a cellular messenger. However, excess of cholesterol is detrimental to human health; buildup of cholesterol plaques in large arteries often causes heart attacks and stroke.

The UC San Diego team found that changes in cholesterol metabolism contributed to reprogramming of microglia in a way that perpetuated chronic inflammation in the spinal cord. Genetically modified mice lacking cholesterol transporters in microglia were unable to remove excessive amounts of cholesterol, and thus experienced pain -- even without chemotherapeutic intervention.

The outer membrane of these cells, which is normally fluid, became rigid with accumulated cholesterol in the form of floating solid platforms called lipid rafts. The lipid raft environment, said the authors, favors assembly and activation of cellular proteins that mediate inflammatory response, such as Toll-like receptor-4 (TLR4).

We were surprised to find that in CIPN, enlarged lipid rafts and TLR4 assemblies persisted for days and weeks. We even started calling them 'inflammarafts' to stress the importance of these membrane domains in neuroinflammation and pain states." Yury Miller, MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine

To reverse the harmful effects of excessive cholesterol in microglia, researchers used a modified version of the apoA-I binding protein (AIBP), which hastens cholesterol removal and disrupts inflammarafts, but does not damage physiological lipid rafts. A single injection of AIBP in the spinal canal of mice reversed CIPN pain, and the therapeutic effect lasted for several weeks, without adverse effects.

"The long-lasting effect we observed with the delivery of AIBP points to a reprogramming of these immune cells that implies cholesterol plays a fundamental role in gene expression," said Navia-Pelaez. "It might even act as a driver of epigenetic alterations in microglia and ultimately pain behavior."

The authors said the results are part of a promising series of investigations, conducted by UC San Diego and Raft Pharmaceuticals.

"Considerable work remains to be done in terms of safety and kinetics to move this new biologic ahead for clinical trials," said Yaksh, "but the present results are exceedingly promising as they provide a hitherto unappreciated target -- inflammarafts in immune cells -- for drug development in the management of chronic neuropathic pain."
Endometriosis, a disease found in up to 10 per cent of women, has been enigmatic since it was first described. A new theory developed by researchers at Simon Fraser University suggests a previously overlooked hormone -- testosterone -- has a critical role in its development. The research could have direct impacts on diagnosis and treatment of the disease, signaling hope for women with endometriosis worldwide.

The disease is caused by endometrial tissue growing outside of the uterus, usually in the pelvic area, where it contributes to pain, inflammation, and infertility. But why some women get it, and others do not, has remained unclear.

The new research is based on recent findings that women with endometriosis developed, as fetuses in their mother's womb, under conditions of relatively low testosterone, compared to women without endometriosis.

According to the researchers' theory, this low testosterone 'programs' the developing reproductive system of women to exhibit the unique suite of traits that is linked with endometriosis, including early menarche, short menstrual cycles, high pain sensitivity, high inflammation, and altered levels of the hormones that control ovulation and the menstrual cycle.

The researchers found their theory to be supported by a remarkable range of data in the literature, from genetics and development to endocrinology, morphology, life history, and evolutionary biology, thus providing the first comprehensive explanation for the traits associated with endometriosis.

The theory can explain almost all symptoms of endometriosis as downstream effects of low early-life testosterone. The findings are presented in two recent papers published in Evolution, Medicine and Public Health, and Evolutionary Applications.

"Low testosterone in early development is the strongest known correlate of endometriosis, and its effects can explain the majority of endometriosis symptoms," says SFU biological sciences professor Bernard Crespi, a Canada Research Chair and co-author of the work with graduate student Natalie Dinsdale. "What's more, the new theory has direct implications for endometriosis diagnosis and treatment."

Crespi notes that testosterone has apparently been overlooked in studies of endometriosis because it is usually regarded as a 'male' hormone, even though it is known to have key effects in females as well.

"It is very common for researchers to focus on estrogen as a female hormone, and testosterone as a male hormone, but in reality, these are both critically important hormones in all humans," says Ben Trumble, an assistant professor at the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University, who was not associated with these studies. "I applaud the authors for moving beyond this binary hormonal blind spot, and studying the full range of steroids that can impact women's health."

This work establishes endometriosis as a developmental endocrine disorder, with roots in early life. It also clarifies the relationship of endometriosis with polycystic ovary syndrome, a disorder driven by too high, rather than too low, levels of prenatal testosterone. We show that polycystic ovary syndrome is essentially opposite to endometriosis in its causes, correlates, and major symptoms. As such, this work should help to transform our understanding of both disorders." Bernard Crespi, SFU Biological Sciences Professor
There is an illegal trafficking pipeline that has gone unabated in which the gun industry has done nothing to help stem, he said. This bill ... is saying we are no longer going to tolerate you having a business model that allows you to profit off of the death of people here in this state.
A group of UK academics are calling for targets for mental health in order to meet the healthcare challenges of the next decade.

Published today in Journal of Mental Health researchers set out four overarching goals that will speed up implementation of mental health research and give a clear direction for researchers and funders to focus their efforts when it comes to better understanding the treatment of mental health.

The treatment of mental illness currently brings substantial costs to not only the NHS, but also to the individual and wider society, and the need for innovation to promote good mental health has never been greater. In an effort to catalyze this innovation, the researchers have set out four ambitious targets:

1.Halve the number of children and young people experiencing persistent mental health problems 2.Improve our understanding of the links between physical and mental health, and eliminate the mortality gap 3.Increase the number of new and improved treatments, interventions and supports for mental health problems 4.Improve the availability of choices and access to mental health care, treatment and support in hospital and community settings

The number of goals was limited to four in an effort to easily promote cross-sector partnerships, and to track their impacts.

While there is a wealth of research taking place to better understand the treatment of mental illness, we must have a clear idea in our heads where we are heading. Without clear targets and goals for mental health we will be amassing information without any clear trajectory, or worse, no clear understanding of achievements or the expected timescale." Dame Til Wykes, Professor and Study Corresponding Author, Institute for Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London

"The four goals that we have set out are in response to this problem, providing a roadmap forwards for all researchers, funders, and policymakers. We have undoubtedly set ourselves a high bar, but they have been designed to give us all a clear sense of purpose."

The research comes at a particularly pertinent time. At least 1 in 6 adults in the UK are likely to experience mental health difficulties in any given week, and the British Medical Association has recently warned that the mental health consequences of covid will be "considerable". The research has been welcomed by several sector voices, including funders, researchers, and NHS Trusts.

Professor Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer and co-lead of the National Institute for Health Research, said: "Few could disagree that mental health research is crucial in driving innovation in current mental health care and in bringing hope for the future.

Working with clinicians, academics, major mental health research funders, mental health research charities and representatives from service users groups, as well as representatives from Public Health England and NHS England has been key to identifying those areas of most concern and transforming them into four distinct research goals which the mental health community can sign up to."

Professor Elaine Fox of the University of Oxford said that "National high-level goals that focus our research efforts are an important part of ensuring that good will and good intentions are translated into genuine innovations and impact."

Professor Peter Jones of the University of Cambridge said, "It's been a pleasure supporting the development of these important mental health research goals. Involving a wide range of stakeholders, they provide us all with focus, direction and challenge. The goals will galvanize mental health science while holding it to account."

Lea Milligan, CEO of MQ Mental Health Research said "MQ's vision is to create a world where mental illnesses are understood, effectively treated and one day preventable. The research goals that came from an extensive consultation are an opportunity for us bring the mental health research community together in a united and impactful way like never before."

Dr Nev Jones of One Mind, as US-based non-profit organization, said "the paper sets the stage for organizations to "all pull in the same direction". Collaboration has been a cornerstone of One Mind's strategy to accelerate research, and this framework will be helpful moving forward."

Professor Dame Til Wykes said, "The pandemic has and will produce a double whammy - the effects of lockdown and the effects of economic slowdown that exacerbate existing socio-economic inequalities.

"With so many people facing an increased risk, it's vital that we act now to proactively meet the challenges of the next 10 to 20 years head on."

"The spread of COVID-19 has demonstrated that widespread changes can be implemented rapidly when everyone is working to the same goal. If we can emulate our response to the pandemic in the care of mental illness, we would see positive impacts very quickly."

The four goals were produced following a consultation process that was organized by the Department of Health and Social Care and convened by the Chief Medical Officer. The views of service users and service user organizations supported this activity, as well as research support from the National Institute for Health Research's Clinical Research Network.
Twenty dollars a month might not seem like a lot to pay for health insurance. But for people getting by on $15,000 a year, it's enough to make some drop their coverage - especially if they're healthy, a new study of Medicaid expansion participants in Michigan finds.

That could keep them from getting preventive or timely care, and could leave their insurance company with a sicker pool of patients than before, say the researchers from the University of Michigan and University of Illinois Chicago. They have published their findings as a working paper through the National Bureau of Economic Research, ahead of publication in the American Journal of Health Economics.

The study has implications for other states that require low-income people to pay for their Medicaid coverage, or may be considering such a requirement if they expand Medicaid. It also has importance for the plans sold on the national and state Marketplaces to people who buy their coverage directly.

Impact of monthly fees

The new findings come from Michigan's Medicaid expansion program, called the Healthy Michigan Plan, which was one of the first in the nation to require some low-income participants to pay monthly fees and most participants to pay co-pays for services they receive. Nearly 906,000 Michiganders get their health coverage through the program.

Fees, formerly called contributions and similar to the monthly premiums that people with other forms of insurance pay, are only charged to those have a household income above the federal poverty level. The program is open to adults making up to 138% of the federal poverty level, a cap of about $17,700 for a single-person household in 2021.

The analysis was done by a team from the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation, which has conducted a formal evaluation of the program for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Betsy Q. Cliff, Ph.D., now at the University of Illinois Chicago, led the analysis during her doctoral training at the U-M School of Public Health.

While people leave Medicaid for a number of reasons, the study found a 2.3 percentage point jump in disenrollment at the federal poverty level, which the researchers attribute to the imposition of premiums.

Given a baseline disenrollment of about 20% over 6 months of the program, the study finds 12% more participants dropped off the Healthy Michigan Plan after they began owing monthly fees. The amount someone had to pay also mattered: Disenrollment rose by nearly 1 percentage point for every dollar charged monthly. The study used data from the inception of the program in March 2014 and followed participants through September 2016.

Michigan's cost-sharing requirements for people in the Healthy Michigan Plan kick in after a person has been in the program for six months. An individual on the program with an income just above the poverty level - around $12,900 a year in 2021 - might be charged about $20 a month, though this amount can be reduced by engaging in a discussion with their physician about healthy behaviors. The monthly amount goes up as income increases.

Disruptions in Medicaid coverage -- also known as churn -- can lead to worse quality care, higher administrative costs and less chance for the population to receive needed but non-urgent preventive services." Betsy Q. Cliff, Assistant Professor at UIC's School of Public Health

Indeed, previous work by the IHPI team to survey past participants in the Healthy Michigan Plan showed that 81% had access to no other form of insurance before they joined the program, and that 55% went uninsured for the three months after they left it.

Signs of "adverse selection"

When the researchers looked closer at who was leaving the plan, they found that it was mainly people who were relatively healthy: Those who hadn't had any care related to a chronic illness, and that had below-median health spending.

By contrast, the study did not find an increase in disenrollment among those who had gotten care for a chronic condition or had above-median health care spending during the first months after enrollment, before they received a cost-sharing invoice.

In participants who had no care related to a chronic disease in the six months before cost-sharing kicked in, or who had below-median overall spending, facing a premium increased the chance of disenrollment by about 3 percentage points. Every dollar of monthly fees cost raised disenrollment by 0.8 percentage points. But monthly fees didn't change the disenrollment chances of less-healthy enrollees who had chronic disease care or higher-than-median health spending.

When the researchers adjusted for demographic differences, they found that the people who disenrolled had medical spending in the first six months of enrollment that was 40% lower than the spending for those who stayed in.

Being billed for co-pays did not seem to alter the chance that people of any health status would leave the program. In general, co-pays for people receiving certain health care services under the Healthy Michigan Plan are $1 to $8 for a prescription up to $100 for an inpatient hospital stay, depending on income.

Enrollees are not required to leave the program for non-payment of monthly fees or co-pays; people must actively disenroll or fail to complete yearly renewal paperwork.

Implications for other states and plans

In addition to the disruption for individuals and the private plans that cover them, the authors say the findings have implications for how the state and federal governments plan for spending on Medicaid, and how they adjust payments to insurers and providers based on patients' health risk.

States that are considering implementing or continuing cost-sharing requirements under Medicaid expansion should consider this, the authors say.

Cost-sharing is seen as a way to promote personal responsibility and encourage participants to make better decisions about health care and have been used as a way to achieve bipartisan support for Medicaid expansion in Michigan and other states.

But as the study shows, this may limit access to coverage and cause Medicaid to experience adverse selection, that can disrupt the health insurance market.
The investigators used machine learning to predict which patients might get worse and not respond positively to being turned onto their front in intensive care units (ICUs) - a technique known as proning that is commonly used in this setting to improve oxygenation of the lungs.

While the AI model was used on a retrospective cohort of patient data collected during the pandemic's first wave, the study demonstrates the ability of AI methods to predict patient outcomes using routine clinical information used by ICU medics.

The researchers say the approach, where each patient's data were analyzed day-by-day instead of only on admission, could be used to improve guidelines in clinical practice going forward. It could be applied to potential future waves of the pandemic and other diseases treated in similar clinical settings.

This is the first study that examines daily COVID-19 patient data, using AI to understand the clinical response to the rapidly changing needs of patients in ICUs. Led by a team from Imperial College London and Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals for the COVID-ICU Consortium, the research is published today in the journal Intensive Care Medicine.

First author and clinical science lead Dr Brijesh Patel, from Imperial's Department of Surgery & Cancer and senior intensivist at Royal Brompton Hospital, said: "Most studies look at the health of a patient on admission to ICU, and whether they were discharged or sadly died. In ICU there is a huge amount of information which we use at the bedside to manage patients on a day-by-day basis, and our study focuses on how the patients' state changed daily.

"This helped focus our attention on which specific parameters matter the most, and how the importance of each parameter changes over time. This dynamic understanding is vitally important when trying to understand a new life-threatening disease and to know when and in whom each intervention works."

The prone position is used in ICUs to help improve blood oxygenation in people with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome, and has been used extensively during the pandemic. However, proning did not help all COVID-19 patients and, when used in patients who will not benefit, can delay the start of other sequential treatments like using extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a life-support machine that takes over for the heart and lungs to oxygenate blood and pump it round the body. Better analysis of proning implementation and prediction of failed proning could lead to more personalised applications.

ECMO is currently the last resort for many patients, after all other less invasive interventions such as prone position have failed, but it has associated risks. Over 20% of all patients on a mechanical ventilator were referred to and received management advice from one of the five national ECMO centres. Patients appropriately placed early onto ECMO show better outcomes. However, only 4% of referred patients received ECMO, which is due to a number of reasons, but one of which could have been delays in assessment of responsiveness to interventions like prone position. Advanced analytics to enable tracking of disease allows patient care to be streamlined so that the window of opportunity for any intervention is not missed. The data from this national evaluation enabled us not only to examine how our management decisions affected disease course but importantly where we could improve." Dr Brijesh Patel, First Author from Imperial's Department of Surgery & Cancer

The new findings show that the AI model identified factors that determined which patients were likely to get worse and not respond to interventions like proning. The researchers found that during the first wave of the pandemic, patients with blood clots or inflammation in the lungs, lower oxygen levels, lower blood pressure, and lower lactate levels were less likely to benefit from being proned. Overall, proning improved oxygenation in only 44% of patients.

Senior author and data science lead Professor Aldo Faisal, Director of Imperial's Centre in AI for Healthcare at the Departments of Computing and Bioengineering said: "In the ever-changing landscape of the pandemic, clinicians are constantly learning and adapting to patient needs, which themselves change every day. Critically, we have set up a standing digital service evaluation of UK ICUs, getting day-by-day treatment data from ICUs across the nations. Our machine learning tool could help track patient progress in real time and help inform ICU guidelines by filling the gaps of patient care - reflecting back to clinicians to identify best practice quickly and benefit from sharing.

"More than one year on, we're still learning how the course of COVID-19 affects the body, and how this can change day-by-day. Data science and the daily data feeds from ICUs across the country help us learn much faster how best to treat individual patients based on their daily symptoms and needs."

The researchers analysed data from 633 mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients across 20 UK ICUs during the first wave of the COVID-19 outbreak (1 March - 31 August 2020). They examined the importance of factors associated with disease progression, like blood clots and inflammation in the lungs, as well as treatments given and whether the patient ultimately died or was discharged.

They used this data, which was collected daily by legions of medical students, nurses, doctors, audit, research and data staff, to design and train the AI tool which then made predictions on factors that determine outcomes.

Dr Patel added: "Our findings could help inform ICU guidelines and clinicians going forward, and AI could play a pivotal role in how we learn about and adapt to COVID-19 disease progression on a daily basis. Our mantra within the NHS is to innovate and improve patient care and this form of national evaluation helps us to understand our own biases as clinicians. We hope our findings will help and encourage more research to be undertaken that focuses on the daily needs of patients."

The researchers continue to collect patient data and are currently analysing findings from the second wave of the pandemic. They note that in the first wave there were limited drug treatments available, so more COVID-19 patients may have been triaged directly to ICU for breathing support. However, in the second wave, proven treatments such as steroids and tociluzimab, pioneered by other Imperial researchers, were more widely available, so those who progressed to ICU had a different disease profile, as they were patients who were inherently resistant to these initial drug treatments.

Professor Faisal said: "Findings from the first and second wave will differ because approaches to treating patients in ICU evolved with the pandemic. However, our AI tool kit is already set up across UK ICUs to monitor daily patient data and adapt to the changing situation."
Today, EU policymakers, experts, patient representatives and other stakeholders gathered online to discuss the role of hormones in our everyday life, its interlinkage with prevalent non-communicable diseases and the policy measures required to address the many challenges in this rapidly growing area of human health.

The event, organized by the European Society of Endocrinology (ESE), saw the launch of the Society's first-ever White Paper titled "Hormones in European Health Policies: How endocrinologists can contribute towards a healthier Europe".

Discussions covered a wide range of topics including COVID-19 together with 4 key topics described in the White Paper: obesity, cancer, rare diseases and Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs).

In his opening remarks, John F. Ryan, Director for Public Health in DG SANTE said "I am impressed by the links made in the White paper to the Beating Cancer Plan, obesity, Farm to Fork, nutrition, as well as the European Reference Networks. All these issues are very relevant topics that are being looked at in the European Commission's work plan."

COVID-19 has really highlighted the importance of endocrinology and hormones across all policy areas. Almost two thirds of people who were hospitalized for COVID-19 had a metabolic condition." Dr. Andrea Giustina, President and Professor, European Society of Endocrinology, San Raffaele Hospital, Milano

Our White Paper is not the last step. It is a first step towards including endocrinology at the highest level of EU policy." 13 top policy and expert speakers spoke in front of more than 130 participants - a testament to the importance of endocrinology across a wide range of policy areas.

During the event, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) including Sirpa Pietikainen (EPP/FI), Cristian Busoi (EPP/RO) and Jytte Guteland (S&D/SE) reflected on the importance of hormones to COVID-19, obesity and cancer respectively together with expert endocrinologists covering the same topics. DG Environment Head of Unit Sustainable Chemicals Cristina de Avila presented the Commission's plan for EDCs, and a rare disease panel saw interventions among others from rare disease umbrella association EURORDIS and DG SANTE policy officer Jose Valverde, responsible for ERNs and health data.

The panel of expert speakers presented the key asks from the white paper, including the need to treat obesity as a disease across all EU member states, and the need for member states to share health data - critically important for rare diseases.

The speakers also called for a deeper inclusion of endocrinology in the implementation of the EU's Beating Cancer Plan, as well as an urgent phase out of EDCs. Finally, they expressed the need for research funding to better understand the relationship between EDCs, endocrine diseases and the COVID-19 virus.

All speakers agreed there is scope for more in-depth follow-up meetings between experts and policymakers, to work together on devising solutions for these large societal challenges.
When a loved one dies, memories of that person become particularly valuable in connecting the mourners with the deceased. A new Weill Cornell Medicine online application, called Living Memory Home, offers a virtual and personal memorial space that allows mourners to deposit their memories and feelings about their loss and honor their loved one.

Living Memory Home users are able to create a memorial space that they can personalize with photos and messages. They can customize a virtual cabin and choose an appropriate view. The curated set of questions prompt users to write memories and feelings about their loved one.

Users may write as if they are speaking to the person who died, which can help with the grieving process, said Dr. Wan Jou (Lavender) She, a postdoctoral research associate at Weill Cornell Medicine who co-designed Living Memory Home with researchers from the institution's Center for Research on End-of-Life Care. The center is co-directed Dr. Holly Prigerson, the Irving Sherwood Wright Professor in Geriatrics II and professor of sociology in medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine.

It could be stressful to always worry about forgetting the memories, so Living Memory Home serves an important function to allow them to deposit their memories." Dr. Wan Jou, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Weill Cornell Medicine

Living Memory Home was developed in collaboration with Dr. Chee (Jim) Ang from the University of Kent's School of Computing and Dr. Panote Siriaraya from the Kyoto Institute of Technology. Dr. Ang and Dr. Siriaraya played a role in providing insights into human computer interaction, particularly in relation to how users interact with technology in a social-technical context.

People who experience the loss of a loved one through death often report in research studies that their biggest fear is forgetting memories and details of that person. To that end, some people use social media as a forum to honor their loved one. However, the mechanism of receiving likes and comments on these forums often encourage people to act in a socially acceptable way and discourage the sharing of negative thoughts or taboo subjects, according to Dr. She.

While receiving likes or supportive comments on social media may feel gratifying, Dr. She said, mourners may self-edit the content and remove some details of the relationship, making the content superficial and less reflective of the complexity of the loss.

However, grief involves revisiting the experiences and processing the variety of emotions, positive and negative, accompanied with the loss. Being unable to process grief appropriately could lead to prolonged grief disorder, which is when a person gets "stuck" in their grief, Dr. She added. They feel a persistent and pervasive longing for someone six months or more after the person has died, which can lead to a mistrust of others, feeling numb, substance use, suicidal thinking and other challenges.

To support the mourning process, Living Memory Home--which is free and available to the public-- offers a virtual space in which people can memorialize and reminisce about their loved one privately, reflecting on both positive and negative memories and emotions.

To study design opportunities and challenges to facilitate backstage grieving, Dr. She and colleagues recruited 20 adults who had all lost a loved one within the past three years to use the Living Memory Home program for one month, later interviewing them about their experience with the program. The researchers presented their findings at CHI'21: ACM CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing System, hosted May 8-13 in Yokohama, Japan.

"This study helps us understand how people use digital technology for sensitive and personal matters such as grieving, so that we can incorporate human values in technology design." Dr. Ang said.

The center's investigators developed Living Memory Home in response to the popularity of its self-screening Grief Intensity Scale, a free tool that assesses a person's risk of developing prolonged grief disorder. The center's researchers wanted to next create an application that could help people from reaching that state of prolonged grief disorder.
In early 2020, a few months after the Covid-19 pandemic began, scientists were able to sequence the full genome of the virus that causes the infection, SARS-CoV-2. While many of its genes were already known at that point, the full complement of protein-coding genes was unresolved.

Now, after performing an extensive comparative genomics study, MIT researchers have generated what they describe as the most accurate and complete gene annotation of the SARS-CoV-2 genome. In their study, which appears today in Nature Communications, they confirmed several protein-coding genes and found that a few others that had been suggested as genes do not code for any proteins.

"We were able to use this powerful comparative genomics approach for evolutionary signatures to discover the true functional protein-coding content of this enormously important genome," says Manolis Kellis, who is the senior author of the study and a professor of computer science in MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) as well as a member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

The research team also analyzed nearly 2,000 mutations that have arisen in different SARS-CoV-2 isolates since it began infecting humans, allowing them to rate how important those mutations may be in changing the virus' ability to evade the immune system or become more infectious.

Comparative genomics

The SARS-CoV-2 genome consists of nearly 30,000 RNA bases. Scientists have identified several regions known to encode protein-coding genes, based on their similarity to protein-coding genes found in related viruses. A few other regions were suspected to encode proteins, but they had not been definitively classified as protein-coding genes.

To nail down which parts of the SARS-CoV-2 genome actually contain genes, the researchers performed a type of study known as comparative genomics, in which they compare the genomes of similar viruses. The SARS-CoV-2 virus belongs to a subgenus of viruses called Sarbecovirus, most of which infect bats. The researchers performed their analysis on SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV (which caused the 2003 SARS outbreak), and 42 strains of bat sarbecoviruses.

Kellis has previously developed computational techniques for doing this type of analysis, which his team has also used to compare the human genome with genomes of other mammals. The techniques are based on analyzing whether certain DNA or RNA bases are conserved between species, and comparing their patterns of evolution over time.

Using these techniques, the researchers confirmed six protein-coding genes in the SARS-CoV-2 genome in addition to the five that are well established in all coronaviruses. They also determined that the region that encodes a gene called ORF3a also encodes an additional gene, which they name ORF3c. The gene has RNA bases that overlap with ORF3a but occur in a different reading frame. This gene-within-a-gene is rare in large genomes, but common in many viruses, whose genomes are under selective pressure to stay compact. The role for this new gene, as well as several other SARS-CoV-2 genes, is not known yet.

The researchers also showed that five other regions that had been proposed as possible genes do not encode functional proteins, and they also ruled out the possibility that there are any more conserved protein-coding genes yet to be discovered.

We analyzed the entire genome and are very confident that there are no other conserved protein-coding genes. Experimental studies are needed to figure out the functions of the uncharacterized genes, and by determining which ones are real, we allow other researchers to focus their attention on those genes rather than spend their time on something that doesn't even get translated into protein." Irwin Jungreis, lead author of the study and a CSAIL research scientist

The researchers also recognized that many previous papers used not only incorrect gene sets, but sometimes also conflicting gene names. To remedy the situation, they brought together the SARS-CoV-2 community and presented a set of recommendations for naming SARS-CoV-2 genes, in a separate paper published a few weeks ago in Virology.

Fast evolution

In the new study, the researchers also analyzed more than 1,800 mutations that have arisen in SARS-CoV-2 since it was first identified. For each gene, they compared how rapidly that particular gene has evolved in the past with how much it has evolved since the current pandemic began.

They found that in most cases, genes that evolved rapidly for long periods of time before the current pandemic have continued to do so, and those that tended to evolve slowly have maintained that trend. However, the researchers also identified exceptions to these patterns, which may shed light on how the virus has evolved as it has adapted to its new human host, Kellis says.

In one example, the researchers identified a region of the nucleocapsid protein, which surrounds the viral genetic material, that had many more mutations than expected from its historical evolution patterns. This protein region is also classified as a target of human B cells. Therefore, mutations in that region may help the virus evade the human immune system, Kellis says.

"The most accelerated region in the entire genome of SARS-CoV-2 is sitting smack in the middle of this nucleocapsid protein," he says. "We speculate that those variants that don't mutate that region get recognized by the human immune system and eliminated, whereas those variants that randomly accumulate mutations in that region are in fact better able to evade the human immune system and remain in circulation."

The researchers also analyzed mutations that have arisen in variants of concern, such as the B.1.1.7 strain from England, the P.1 strain from Brazil, and the B.1.351 strain from South Africa. Many of the mutations that make those variants more dangerous are found in the spike protein, and help the virus spread faster and avoid the immune system. However, each of those variants carries other mutations as well.

"Each of those variants has more than 20 other mutations, and it's important to know which of those are likely to be doing something and which aren't," Jungreis says. "So, we used our comparative genomics evidence to get a first-pass guess at which of these are likely to be important based on which ones were in conserved positions."

This data could help other scientists focus their attention on the mutations that appear most likely to have significant effects on the virus' infectivity, the researchers say. They have made the annotated gene set and their mutation classifications available in the University of California at Santa Cruz Genome Browser for other researchers who wish to use it.

"We can now go and actually study the evolutionary context of these variants and understand how the current pandemic fits in that larger history," Kellis says. "For strains that have many mutations, we can see which of these mutations are likely to be host-specific adaptations, and which mutations are perhaps nothing to write home about."
Researchers at the University of California San Diego have laid the groundwork for a potential new type of gene therapy using novel CRISPR-based techniques.

Working in fruit flies and human cells, research led by UC San Diego Postdoctoral Scholar Zhiqian Li in Division of Biological Sciences Professor Ethan Bier's laboratory demonstrates that new DNA repair mechanisms could be designed to address the effects of debilitating diseases and damaged cell conditions.

The scientists developed a novel genetic sensor called a "CopyCatcher," which capitalizes on CRISPR-based gene drive technology, to detect instances in which a genetic element is copied precisely from one chromosome to another throughout cells in the body of a fruit fly.

Details are explained in the journal Nature Communications.

Gene-drive technology is being developed to copy and distribute desired traits in reproductive cells of the body (sperm and eggs), which allows these traits to be spread throughout populations--potentially preventing transmission of insect-vectored diseases such as malaria and fortifying agricultural crops. For human health applications, next-generation CopyCatcher systems will measure how often such perfect copying might take place in different cells of the human body.

As this system detects a very high rate of copying in fruit flies, similar success in human cells would allow scientists to make desired precise genome edits throughout the body, and particularly in cells that rely on the function of that gene for normal health.

"These studies provide a clear proof of principle for a new type of gene therapy in which one copy of a mutated gene could be repaired from a partially intact second copy of the gene," said Bier, senior author of the Nature Communications study and science director for the Tata Institute for Genetics and Society-UC San Diego. "The need for such a design occurs in genetic situations with patients with inherited genetic disorders, if their parents were carriers for two different mutations in the same gene."

Bier says the strategy of fixing a mutated gene in its normal context within the genome differs greatly from current gene therapy strategies in which a surrogate copy of a gene is placed at a different site in the genome and acts as a crude "patch."

"This method restores enough gene activity to allow the patient to limp by," said Bier. "In these cases, genes are often activated in cells where they should normally be silent and may not be activated in others where they should be."

If the high efficiency of precise in vivo gene editing detected by CopyCatchers in fruit flies could be achieved in human cells, then a variety of genetic disorders might be treated including blood diseases, diseases affecting vision or hearing and diseases targeting specific organs such as muscular dystrophy, cystic fibrosis (lung and kidney) and congenital heart defects.

This restorative form of gene therapy would represent a major improvement over existing methods in which a functional copy of the gene is typically activated in all cells of the body but in an abnormal pattern." Zhiqian Li, UC San Diego Postdoctoral Scholar

Although the researchers detected highly efficient copying of genetic information in three genes active in different tissues of the fly body (eyes, epidermis and embryonic cells), this ability to copy information from one chromosome to another was less efficient in human cells (4-8% of cells) than in flies (in 30-50% of cells), the researchers found. However, in human cells where specific cuts were made to one chromosome using CRISPR, the researchers rigorously established that the other chromosome could be used to repair the damage resulting in a genetic element being precisely copied into the cut site. Moreover, measures to improve copying in flies also translated to enhanced copying in human cells suggesting that further research may increase the efficiency of human in vivo genetic repair.

CopyCatchers are designed based on the fact that cells have two copies of each chromosome. In its starting location, a CopyCatcher is rendered inactive, preventing it from producing a red fluorescent detector protein. If the CopyCatcher copies itself precisely to the other chromosome, however, then it can free itself from the constraint imposed on the original element thereby leading to cells becoming fluorescent. The fraction of red fluorescing cells tabulated throughout a tissue is a quantitative indicator of the frequency of precise CRISPR editing. Since cells of the body have been thought to be relatively recalcitrant to precise CRISPR editing, it was surprising that CopyCatchers reveal an unexpected potential of cells throughout the body to do so, such as in the eyes and in the epidermis.

In the next series of planned experiments Li and colleagues in the Bier lab will use CopyCatchers and related systems to further optimize the efficiency of corrective editing and develop model systems for human diseases to enhance the efficacy this technology for gene therapy applications.
Announcing a new article publication for Forensic Sciences Research journal. In this review article the author Ricardo Jorge Dinis-Oliveira of the University Institute of Health Sciences (IUCS)-CESPU, Gandra, Portugal continues a three-part investigation of the "Crime of Flores Street" one of the most famous cases of poisoning which occurred in Portugal in the late 19th century.

The case demonstrated the weaknesses of the Portuguese medicolegal system and attests to the importance of toxicological analysis. The first article retold the case which gave birth to forensic toxicology studies in Portugal and informed present day Portuguese medicolegal procedures. The second article analyzed all the relevant and contradictory testimonial evidence of the prosecution and defense witnesses.

In this latest publication the author analyses the forensic evidence, particularly from the autopsy, toxicological, and psychiatric forensic reports. Today, it would be easy to perform irrefutable toxicological analysis, but in those times, the circumstantially produced evidence, together with the toxicological expert reports, allowed the court to produce a damning judgment.

The author suggests, that with current knowledge, it is now possible to add further insights if the burial location of at least one victim could be identified. In late 2020 one of the victims was finally located. Permission for a new autopsy for samples collection was obtained and has been performed more than 130 years after the first major autopsy was executed in Portugal. Future research will include correlation of the identity of the victim by DNA analysis and comparison with relatives and toxicological analyses.
The virostatic agent remdesivir was developed to disrupt an important step in the propagation of RNA viruses, to which SARS-CoV-2 also belongs: the reproduction of the virus's own genetic material. This is present as RNA matrices with which the host cell directly produces virus proteins.

To accelerate the production of its own proteins, however, RNA viruses cause the RNA matrices to be copied. To do so, they use a specific protein of their own (an RNA polymerase), which is blocked by remdesivir. Strictly speaking, remdesivir does not do this itself, but rather a substance that is synthesized from remdesivir in five steps when remdesivir penetrates a cell.

In the second of these five steps, an intermediate is formed from remdesivir, a substance with the somewhat unwieldy name GS-441524 (in scientific terms: a remdesivir metabolite). GS-441524 is a virostatic agent as well.

As the scientists in the group headed by Professor Stefan Knapp from the Institute for Pharmaceutical Chemistry at Goethe University Frankfurt have discovered, GS-441524 targets a SARS-CoV-2 protein called nsP3. nsP3 is a multifunctional protein, whose tasks include suppressing the host cell's defence response.

The host cell is not helpless in the face of a virus attack, but activates inflammatory mechanisms, among other things, to summon the aid of the cell's endogenous immune system. nsP3 helps the viruses suppress the cell's calls for help.

GS-441525 inhibits the activities of an nsP3 domain which is important for the reproduction of viruses, and which communicates with human cellular defence systems." Stefan Knapp, Professor, Institute for Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Goethe University Frankfurt

Our structural analysis shows how this inhibition functions, allowing us to lay an important foundation for the development of new and more potent antiviral drugs - effective not only against SARS-CoV-2. The target structure of GS-441524 is very similar in other coronaviruses, for example SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, as well in a series of alphaviruses, such as the chikungunya virus. For this reason, the development of such medicines could also help prepare for future virus pandemics."
Admit it: Daily commutes - those stops, the starts, all that stress - gets on your last nerve.

Or is that just me?

It might be, according to a new study from the University of Houston's Computational Physiology Lab. UH Professor Ioannis Pavlidis and his team of researchers took a look at why some drivers can stay cool behind the wheel while others keep getting more irked.

"We call the phenomenon 'accelerousal.' Arousal being a psychology term that describes stress. Accelarousal is what we identify as stress provoked by acceleration events, even small ones," said Pavlidis, who designed the research. According to the professor, the reason for it goes deeper than you might think.

It may be partly due to genetic predisposition. It was a very consistent behavior, which means, in all likelihood, this is an innate human characteristic." Ioannis Pavlidis, Professor, Computational Physiology Lab, University of Houston

To reach these conclusions, UH researchers, in collaboration with the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, took a hard look at how individual drivers reacted to common acceleration, speed and steering events on a carefully monitored itinerary. Results appeared in the May 2021 proceedings of ACM CHI, the premier forum on Human-Computer Interaction research.

"Thanks to our work, we now have an understanding of accelerousal, a phobia that was hidden in plain sight," said Tung Huynh, a research assistant with the team.

For the study, 11 volunteer drivers were monitored for signs of instantaneous physiological stress during separate half-hour drives along the same route in the same Toyota Sienna minivan.

Stress measurements were taken via thermal imaging targeting the drivers' levels of perinasal perspiration, which is an autonomic (involuntary) facial response reflecting a fight-or-flight reaction. Simultaneously, a computer in the Toyota Sienna functioned like an airplane's black box, recording the vehicle's acceleration, speed, brake force and steering.

The driving tests were conducted by Texas A&M Transportation Institute researchers under the direction of Dr. Mike Manser, manager of the Institute's Human Factors Program.

When data was crunched at the University of Houston, researchers found about half the participants consistently exhibited peaked stress during periods of commonplace acceleration, such as happens in stop-and-go progress through red lights. The other half showed no notable changes from their baseline measurements.

"This has all the characteristics of long-term stressor, with all the health and other implications that this may entail," Pavlidis said.

Even more revealing is how far apart the two extremes were.

"The differences were significant, with 'accelaroused' participants logging nearly 50% more stress than non-accelaroused ones," Pavlidis said. "Moreover, psychometric measurements taken through a standardized questionnaire given to every volunteer at the end of the drive revealed that acceleroused drivers felt more overloaded." The anxious drivers were more exhausted after their drives, in other words, than the calm drivers were after theirs.

"This was a clear indication that accelerousal was taking a toll on drivers, and that the drivers were not consciously aware of that," Pavlidis said.

This small-scale study, he suggests, points to the need for deeper research. It also highlights the instrumental role technology could play in understanding human response to demands of driving. Such understanding could not only improve safety on our roads but will also safeguard the long-term health of drivers.

"For instance, delivery drivers, which is an expanding class in the current gig economy, are exposed to stop-and-go events all the time. Therefore, delivery drivers who experience accelerousal - and for now, are unaware - could have a way to detect this condition in themselves and account for its long-term stress effects," Pavlidis explained.

These findings will have even more relevance over coming decades, as automotive innovators move toward semi-automated vehicles that could sense and relieve stressed drivers.

During the recent tests, great care was taken to equalize the volunteers' driving experiences. Each drive happened during daylight hours, in clear weather and light traffic over the same 19-kilometer town itinerary (almost 12 miles). Participants were experienced drivers of similar age (18 to 27) and all had normal vision.

Where would you score on the accelerousal scale? Watch out for signs, the professor urges, and ask yourself: Does driving wear you out more than it does your friends and family?

"That could be a telltale sign of accelerousal," Pavlidis cautioned.
When we talk about recovery for all of us, it means everyone has to get around. It means we have to be safe, de Blasio said during a news conference. A recovery for all of us means thinking about our future, and New York City is doing everything we can to break our dependence on fossil fuels.
The future home of Clark Countys government center and River Ridge Development Authority is inside the River Ridge Commerce Centers office park. The building is expected to be finished in 2021.
Jeffersonville, IN (47130)

Today

Cloudy skies this morning followed by thunderstorms during the afternoon. High 82F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to cloudy skies after midnight. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Jeffersonville, IN (47130)

Today

Cloudy this morning with thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 82F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms early, then cloudy skies after midnight. Low 69F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Utterly shameful for Yang to try to show up to an Eid event after sending out a chest-thumping statement of support for a strike killing 9 children, tweeted Ocasio-Cortez, one of the most influential progressives in Congress. But then to try that in Astoria? During Ramadan?! They will let you know.
(Newser)  "They shoot in the head, but they dont know the revolution is in the heart," poet Khet Thi wrote after the military coup in Myanmar. His widow says the junta brought him in for interrogation Saturday and returned his corpse the next daywith the organs removed. The widow, Chaw Su, told the BBC's Burmese-language service that she was also brought in for interrogation by soldiers and police Saturday, but her husband did not return. She said when authorities called Sunday morning and told her to meet her husband at a hospital around 100 miles away, she "thought it was just for a broken arm or something," but instead " he was at the morgue and his internal organs were taken out."

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The 45-year-old resident of the central town of Shwebo is at least the third poet to be killed in the regime's brutal crackdown on coup opponents, reports Reuters. After the Feb. 1 coup, he wrote that he was a poet and a baker, not a fighter, but his attitude appeared to harden after the killings of hundreds of protesters. "My people are being shot and I can only throw back poems," he wrote. "But when you are sure your voice is not enough, then you need to choose a gun carefully. I will shoot." An activist group supporting political prisoners in Myanmar said the poet "died at the hospital after being tortured in the interrogation center." The group said the regime has killed nearly 800 civilians since the coup. (Read more Myanmar stories.)
(Newser)  Facebook is currently working on an "Instagram for kids" that would allow children under 13 to use the platform, but there's already pushback from multiple corners. The latest resistance: a Monday letter from the National Association of Attorneys General, representing bipartisan AGs from 44 US states and territories who aren't keen on the idea. "It appears that Facebook is not responding to a need, but instead creating one, as this platform appeals primarily to children who otherwise do not or would not have an Instagram account," the AGs note in the letter, saying such a juvenile-targeted platform would be "harmful for myriad reasons," per TechCrunch. Among those concerns listed by the AGs: fears of cyberbullying, predators finding a way to contact children, and the fact that using social media may adversely affect kids' physical and mental health, as research suggests. "The attorneys general urge Facebook to abandon its plans to launch this new platform," the letter implores.

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The AGs note that younger kids aren't yet mature enough to handle potential contact from strangers, or being bombarded by ads or other content they shouldn't see, and that Facebook's "checkered record" on looking after kids on its platforms gives them pause. This isn't the first letter Facebook has received on this matter: Last month, Democratic lawmakers wrote to CEO Mark Zuckerberg citing their own "serious concerns" on child privacy in this model, per TechCrunch. Facebook insists it's up to the task of keeping kids safe, with spokesman Andy Stone noting that children are already online and that the company wouldn't present any ads on the kids version of Insta. "We want to improve this situation by delivering experiences that give parents visibility and control over what their kids are doing," Stone says in a statement, per the Washington Post. The company says it has worked on the new plan in consultation with experts in children's mental health, privacy, and safety. (Read more Instagram stories.)
(Newser)  A group of 13 armed speedboats of Iran's Revolutionary Guard made unsafe and unprofessional high-speed maneuvers toward US Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, and a US Coast Guard cutter fired warning shots when two of the Iranian boats came dangerously close, US officials said. It was the second time in two weeks that a US ship opened fire to warn vessels of Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, the AP reports. The encounters come as the United States and Iran are in indirect talks in Vienna aimed at reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which the United States left in 2018. Asked whether it appeared the Revolutionary Guard was trying to pick a fight with the US Navy, Pentagon press secretary John Kirby declined to comment on the Iranians intentions.

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Sadly, harassment by the IRGC Navy is not a new phenomenon. It is something that all of our commanding officers and the crews of our vessels are trained ... for," Kirby told reporters at the Pentagon. This activity is the kind of activity that could lead to somebody getting hurt and could lead to a real miscalculation there in the region, and that doesn't serve anybody's interests." On April 26, an American warship fired warning shots when vessels of Irans Revolutionary Guard came too close to a patrol in the Persian Gulf. That was the first such shooting in nearly four years. In the latest incident, Kirby said 13 Iranian vessels maneuvered at high speed toward six Navy ships that were escorting the guided missile submarine USS Georgia through the Strait on Monday. The sub was sailing on the surface. They were acting very aggressively, Kirby said of the Iranian boats. (More details from the incident here.)
(Newser)  Bob Baffert blames "cancel culture" for the controversy surrounding the Kentucky Derby win of a horse he trained, Medina Spirit, which flunked a drug test after the race. "We live in a different world now," the trainer told Fox News on Monday. "This America is different. It was like a cancel culture kind of a thing so theyre reviewing it," he said of Churchill Downs' decision to invalidate the horse's win if the drug test results are upheld with a second test. Baffert said Medina Spirit will still race Saturday at Preakness Stakes, the next leg of the Triple Crown. ESPN reports that Baffert, however, will not attend, in an effort to minimize distractions. Baffert continues to insist no one on his team drugged Medina Spirit.

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He has some ideas as to how the sample could have been tainted, chief among them the hypothesis that a groom who had been taking cough medicine urinated in the horse's stall, and the horse ate some of the urine-tainted hay, per the Guardian. "These horses dont live in a bubble, he said. Theyre in an open farm. People are touching them. He went from the Derby to after the Derby everybodys out there touching them. I mean theres so many ways these horses can get contaminated and when theyre testing at these really ridiculously low levels..." Even former President Trump had something to say on the matter: "So now even our Kentucky Derby winner, Medina Spirit, is a junky. This is emblematic of what is happening to our Country. The whole world is laughing at us as we go to hell on our Borders, our fake Presidential Election, and everywhere else!" (Read more Kentucky Derby stories.)
(Newser)  A California police officer was killed and another wounded Monday while serving a search warrant before officers shot and killed the gunman, authorities said. Shots were fired shortly before 5:30pm as officers served the warrant at an apartment in the Central Coast city of San Luis Obispo, the AP reports. This is a tragedy beyond measure for all of those who serve and care about our community, City Manager Derek Johnson said in a statement. Our deepest condolences go out to the family. We are devastated by this loss. The wounded officer was hospitalized in stable condition, the city reported. Other details, including the names of the officers and the gunman, weren't immediately released.

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Victoria Torres, 21, told the San Luis Obispo Tribune that she was upstairs in her bedroom when she heard a very loud knocking" at an apartment across from her. She looked out her window and saw a police car, then walked downstairs and looked out another window. She saw a man carrying a big gun" who began shooting from the door of an apartment at officers who were hiding behind their patrol car, Torres said. Torres went back upstairs to hide and call 911. Monica Rochte, 31, told the Tribune that she heard the police banging on an apartment door and saying: Were going to come in. We know youre in there. Rochte said there was yelling and then a bang that she thought might be police knocking down the door, followed by a single shot. Rochte then heard police yell: He has a gun! followed by a series of 15 to 20 shots, she said.

(Read more California stories.)
(Newser)  Jennifer Lopez is rumored to have moved on very quickly from one former fiance to another. The superstar, who announced her split from Alex Rodriguez last month, was spotted riding in a vehicle this week with former love Ben Affleck in Big Sky, Montana, where Affleck has a home, per People. E! reports they vacationed alone together for a week. Both stayed at Big Sky Resort, near Yellowstone National Park, returned to Los Angeles on Sunday on a private jet, then traveled to Lopez's Bel-Air home, per TMZ. The couple formerly known as "Bennifer" were engaged in 2002 but delayed their 2003 wedding days before it was to take place. They officially broke up in 2004 in what Lopez would later say was probably her "first big heartbreak," per E!

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Affleck, 48, split with actress Ana de Armas in January after nearly a year of dating. TMZ reports he began writing loving emails to Lopez in early February while she was working in the Dominican Republic, with her replying that he could "own her heart" with his pen. While some sources say they're just friends, one tells People that there's more going on: "They have a strong connection. It's all been quick and intense, but Jennifer is happy." The pair were also seen together in Los Angeles before the Montana trip. Affleck had previously complimented Lopez's May cover of InStyle's Beauty Issue. "Where are you keeping the fountain of youth?" he joked, per People. "Why do you look the same as you did in 2003 and it kind of looks like I'm in my 40s  at best?" (Read more Jennifer Lopez stories.)
(Newser)  "The whereabouts of the tiger are not yet known." It's not your typical line in a big-city police department update, but it applies in Houston. The strange tiger tale began Sunday night, when residents of a city neighborhood spotted a loose tiger and called police. When officers arrived, a man fled with the animal in an SUV and eluded capture. On Monday night, police said they had arrested 26-year-old Victor Hugo Cuevas, who it turns out is out on bond on a murder charge, reports CNN. They caught him in a home in Fort Bend County, but they still don't know where the tiger is. Cuevas has been charged with evading police in the tiger incident, and he could have his bond revoked in the murder case.

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"The last we know of, the tiger was very safe and unharmed," says his attorney, Michael Elliott, per the Houston Chronicle. He provided no more details but said his client planned to lead police to the animal. It wasn't clear whether Cuevas owned the tigerhis attorney doesn't think sobut police suggested he had been taking care of it, along with two monkeys, in a residential home. Keeping a small monkey is legal in Houston, but keeping a tiger requires a license for exotic animals, per the AP. Violation of that is a misdemeanor offense. The murder charge, meanwhile, dates back to 2017. Authorities say Cuevas shot a man to death outside a restaurant, and attorney Elliott maintains it was a case of self-defense. (Read more tiger stories.)
(Newser)  A 23-year-old Italian woman is doing well after she accidentally received six doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine on Sunday. A health worker at Noa hospital in Tuscany had filled a syringe with an entire vial of the vaccine, which is to be split into six doses. It was only after the shot was administered that "she saw five empty syringes and realized her mistake," a hospital rep tells CNN. The woman who received the "massive dose," described as an intern in the hospital's psychology department, was monitored for 24 hours before her release on Monday. She was said to be in good condition after receiving fluids and Tylenol as a precaution, per the Local. No adverse reaction was reported. Director of infectious diseases Dr. Antonella Vicenti said that was also the case with patients in Israel and Germany who got five times the normal dose, per CBS News.

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Vaccine overdosing has also occurred in the US. Nurses at an Iowa state prison gave a higher than normal dose to 77 inmates just last month, reports the Des Moines Register. The union representing prison employees said nurses had been asked to quickly switch from administering the Moderna vaccine, which comes pre-mixed, to the Pfizer vaccine, which is to be diluted. A Department of Corrections rep said none of the 77 inmates needed hospitalization, though some complained of side effects, including body aches. The case remains under investigation by the Department of Corrections and the University of Iowa Hospitals. The hospital and Italy's medicines regulator are investigating in the Italian case. Doctors say they'll test the woman's blood regularly to gauge her immune response and antibody levels, as the long-term effects are unclear, per CBS. (Read more coronavirus vaccine stories.)
(Newser)  Kevin Strickland has spent two-thirds of his life43 yearsbehind bars for a triple murder. The problem is he wasn't even at the scene, according to prosecutors in Kansas City. "This is a profound error we must correct now," Jackson County prosecutor Jean Peters Baker said Monday, per the Kansas City Star. The county judge, Kansas City's mayor, and the very prosecutors who helped convict Strickland agree he should be exonerated. "If there has ever been a case befitting the phrase 'manifest injustice,' it is this case," Strickland's attorneys with the Midwest Innocence Project write in a petition asking the Missouri Supreme Court to release the 61-year-old. The sole survivor of the 1978 shooting at a home had identified 18-year-old Strickland as one of at least four gunman, despite getting only a fleeting glance, per KCTV. She later recanted, saying detectives had pressured her.

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At trial, prosecutors claimed Strickland carried a shotgun that returned no usable fingerprints. His lawyers now say a fingerprint was found and it doesn't belong to Strickland. Two men who served 10 years in prison for the murders, and a third suspect, have long denied Strickland's involvement. The teen even had an alibi. His first trial in 1979 resulted in a hung jury, with the sole Black juror voting for acquittal, per the Star. Prosecutors then blocked four potential Black jurors from serving on what turned out to be an all-white jury, which convicted Strickland, a Black man, of one count of capital murder and two counts of second-degree murder, according to his lawyers. He received life in prison with no chance of parole for 50 years. "Keeping him incarcerated now on a jury verdict, where the jury heard none of this convincing exculpatory evidence, serves no conceivably just purpose," prosecutors say. (This man spent 44 years in prison for a rape he didn't commit.)
(Newser)  After working through the pandemic, employees of a UK railway company were excited to see an email in their inboxes indicating gratitude from management. Per CNBC, the message from higher-ups at West Midlands Trains indicated to 2,500 staff members they'd soon be receiving a bonus. "We realize that a huge strain was placed upon a large number of our workforce as a result of COVID-19," the email read, per the Transport Salaried Staffs Association, a union representing rail workers. "This has not been easy for any of us and we would like to offer you a one-off payment to say thank you." The email then instructed staff to click on a link to read a message from managing director Julian Edwards. When they clicked on the link, however, employees found it was instead a "cynical and shocking stunt," says TSSA General Secretary Manuel Cortes.

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Instead of info about their bonuses, workers found a message informing them they'd been part of a "phishing simulation test," meant to "entice" staff to click on the link and provide personal information. The message then warned staff against clicking on suspicious-looking links and to remain "vigilant." Cortes, who deems the move a "crass and reprehensible" one that's "almost beyond belief," is now demanding not only an apology, but an actual bonus to be paid to staffers, to "begin to right a wrong which has needlessly caused so much hurt," per the Guardian. West Midlands Trains doesn't seem particularly apologetic. "We take cybersecurity very seriously," a rep says. "The design of the email was just the sort of thing a criminal organization would useand thankfully it was an exercise without the consequences of a real attack." (Read more phishing stories.)
I have known Fernando for many years and I can tell you that both in Albany and City Hall, he has proven himself to be an effective and compassionate advocate for the communities he represents, stated Paterson, who was governor from 2008 to 2010. Fernando will fight to make sure the Bronx gets what it deserves.
(Newser)  As part of the push to administer at least one coronavirus vaccination shot to 70% of US adults by Independence Day, President Biden's administration has a plan to handle the transportation for those needing a ride. Uber and Lyft will handle the round trip for vaccine recipients through July 4, officials announced Tuesday. The offer will begin in the next two weeks, Axios reports. Statements by the White House and Uber called the rides free, but Lyft said it would pay $15 of the cost each way, which the ride-sharing company said should handle most or all of the fare, per CNBC. The plan will eliminate a barrier to being vaccinated, the administration said. So far, more than 46% of the population has had at least one dose and more than 34% is fully vaccinated, Bloomberg's tracker shows.

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Vaccine recipients will start by picking a site, then provide details on Lyft's app or website and receive a code. The code also can be used for Lyft's scooters or bikes. Uber didn't say how its offer will work yet. The government isn't spending anything but will provide the companies with the locations of 80,000 vaccination sites. Demand for the vaccines has been fading, per the Wall Street Journal, with several states declining to take their full allotment. Both companies cited the importance of as many people as possible being vaccinated, saying that's good for their drivers and customers. (Free beer might increase the number of vaccinations, too.)
(Newser)  A shrunken head used as a prop in a 1970s movie was made of real human skin, researchers have discovered. The head, known as a "tsantsa," was attached to a fake shrunken body in John Huston's dark 1979 comedy Wise Blood, People reports. Tsantas, talismans made of skin from the heads of slain enemies by indigenous peoples in Ecuador and Peru, were sold to Westerners as keepsakes last century and fake ones abound, researchers write in Heritage Science, which has photos of the artifact. They say CT scans and numerous other tests confirmed that the one used in Wise Blood was an "authentic tsantsa composed of human tissue." It has now been returned to the Ecuadorian government.

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The Wise Blood tsantsa had been kept at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia. In 1942, it was "procured by a now-deceased Mercer faculty member during travels in Ecuador while serving in the United States military." The university loaned the head to Wise Blood, which was filmed in and around Macon. "Its a relief to have the specimen out of our possession," Mercer biology professor Craig D. Byron, one of the study's authors, tells the Art Newspaper. He says the item "was illegal to trade or sell; it was the skin from a persons head; we had no business holding on to this item." (A tsantsa brought back to the Vatican by a missionary in 1925 has also been returned.)
A New Zealand girl with cystic fibrosis, a disease where the immune system destroys the lungs, was given two years to live if she doesn't get the help she needs.

University student Grace Macdonald,18, moved with her family to New Zealand at the age of three and said she considers it to be her home.

She said while she is lucky because she gets the option to move to the UK to receive the "miracle-drug" Trikafta, funded, she would have to leave her family, education, friends and the life she knows in New Zealand.

Government drug-buyer Pharmac does not fund Trikafta in New Zealand and it costs nearly $500,000 per year.

"A month ago I was told if I don't take any action like having a lung transplant or getting Trikafta, I could potentially die within two years," MacDonald told The Project on Tuesday.

MacDonald said the disease makes it really hard to stay healthy.

"I don't have an appetite to eat but one of my main goals is to gain weight so I can remain healthy."
At the time, Minister of Health Andrew Little told Newshub: "All data typically available in the Director of Mental Health's report remains publicly available."

On April 7, he repeated that in the House under questioning from National's Matt Doocey.

"The information that appeared in previous reports by the Office of the Director of Mental Health and Addiction Services is available in other places, but most importantly is available in the Nationwide Service Framework that has been publicly available for 20 years."

But it turns out that wasn't exactly the case, with Little correcting the record on Tuesday afternoon.

"I advised the House that all information historically published through the Office of the Director of Mental Health and Addiction Services' annual report is publicly available. I did that on the basis of advice from the Ministry of Health that this was the case."

Little said on Friday last week he received advice from the Ministry of Health saying that at the time of his statement "seven discrete pieces of relevant information were not publicly reported through other avenues".

He went on to table a briefing in which Dr Bloomfield, the Director-General of Health, "advises that information provided to me was not correct, and apologised to me for this".

Dr Bloomfield said in the briefing that he didn't believe the ministry intended to mislead but the information "was clearly incorrect".

"I recognise that the information provided to your office led you to make incorrect public statements about the availability of data that was previously included in the ODMHAS annual reports. I apologise for this and any embarrassment resulting from it."

Little said transparency within the health system through the publication of information "is very important to me".

"This includes providing the public with robust, timely, and fit for purpose data about the performance of the mental health and addiction sector."

After the report was released, Mental Health Foundation chief executive Shaun Robinson told The AM Show the missing information reflected "either a cock-up or a conspiracy, and either way it doesn't look good".

Little, who admitted delays to releasing the report were unnecessary, didn't believe there was any malicious intent.

"All the data that's in the report is publicly available. It appears in other publicly produced reports and it appears on that database. The allegation that somebody is trying to conceal something doesn't wash."

Little said the report isn't a statutory requirement, often arrives late and the amount of information it contains has "waxed and waned" in the 15 years it's been published. He said the decision to consolidate the 2018 and 2019 reports was made after COVID-19 hit.
A person subject to an FPO will not be able to use, access, or be around guns. Unless a court order says otherwise, they also will not be able to live in locations where there are firearms or visit locations where there are firearms, or associate with someone who has them.

When FPOs come into force, it will be a crime to breach them.

The penalties will depend on which conditions have been breached. Someone found in possession or control of a gun would face a penalty of up to five years in prison or up to seven years if the firearm was prohibited.

Breaching the FPO by residing in a location where there are firearms, or visiting a prohibited location such as a gun shop, could see the offender face two years behind bars.

It would also be an offence if another person knowingly supplied a gun to someone subject to an FPO. That person could face up to five years in prison or up to seven if the firearm was prohibited.

If someone is subject to an FPO, they will still be able to associate with friends and family with firearms licences, as long as guns have been stored away. But the person under the FPO would not be able to live there.

They would also not be able to visit locations such as gun fairs, firearms dealers or manufacturers, firearms clubs, or shooting ranges.

An FPO would last 10 years and it would not be able to be renewed. However, a subsequent FPO could be applied if they are convicted of another offence and the court considers it appropriate to impose further restrictions.

National MP Simeon Brown had similar FPO legislation that would have targeted gang members. Williams told Newshub Nation the Government wanted to go further and target all criminals, not just gang members.

Alongside this, the Government will change the law to introduce a new power of enabling the seizure of assets of those associated with organised crime.

"Those involved in organised crime, including those who launder their money, would have to demonstrate their assets were obtained legitimately," said Justice Minister Kris Faafoi.

"It is no secret that gun crime is an increasing concern to our communities and we need to take further action to make sure New Zealanders and their families are kept safe," Williams said.

"It is a privilege, not a right, to own or use a gun in this country and we need to take that ability out of the hands of people who pose a threat to our communities."

Since February, police have seized 350 firearms, along with $2.46 million in cash, through Operation Tauwhiro, under which 378 people have been arrested in relation to firearms offences.

Both law changes will be introduced to Parliament before the end of the year, and the public will have the opportunity to comment on them when they are referred to a select committee.

The Government banned military-style semi-automatics and assault rifles in the wake of the March 15, 2019 Christchurch terror attack, and by June 2020 a second tranche of gun law reforms had been passed in Parliament.
The penalties for breaching the orders are up to seven years in prison. It's similar to Bills that both National and ACT have been pushing.

Ex-cop Glen Green says American gang culture has been creating a deceptive illusion in New Zealand.

"There's a problem, it's become cool," he told Newshub.

But it's Kiwi kids being killed.

"People are dying from the youth gang culture," Green says.

"What's happened during COVID, obviously there's been a big opportunity for people to make more money - methamphetamine is being pushed around more, perhaps those who didn't used to deal with drugs see that as a way to make more income."

Cars and other assets that could make gangs more attractive are being targeted by the Government.

Justice Minister Kris Faafoi says there is evidence of gang members increasingly driving around in flashy cars and other assets.

"I think there's evidence of that and that's why we're making some of the changes," he said on Tuesday.

The changes will put the onus on gangs to prove they can legally afford the things they own - and not just Lamborghinis, boats and bikes, but clothes and shoes too - things "young people would find attractive", says Faafoi.

Faafoi confirmed that someone handing over a whole lot of Air Jordan's would raise suspicion.

"That's the kind of thing that we've seen evidence of."

The Government is also introducing FPOs. If slapped with one, a person is basically banned from guns, facing up to seven years jail for breaches.

Police Minister Poto Williams says she hasn't received specific information about what impact FPOs could have on Maori. But a public consultation document from her police force includes specific information on it.

It says Maori are likely to be overrepresented in those who qualify for, and become subject to, FPOs.

It also says restricting visits to places with guns will also likely impact on Maori, particularly rural Maori, given the importance of whanau.

The Police Minister says it's not an issue.

"We're dealing with the most serious offenders in this regard; it's not an issue that you raise."

The Mongrel Mob begs to differ.

"It is no doubt racist," says Waikato Mongrel Mob Kingdom public relations spokesperson Louise Hutchinson.

"We know that there's unconscious bias within the New Zealand police force, we know that they racially profile our people."

For the Maori Party, it's another example of systemic racism.

"It's another extension of them being able to use their power to profile Maori," said co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer.

"If it's targeting gangs, it's targeting Maori," co-leader Rawiri Waititi added.

National leader Judith Collins denied there is systemic racism in police.

"No, absolutely not," she said.

National's similar FPO Bill is before the House this week, and while Labour's covers more offenders - not just gangs - National's gives police powers for convictions dating back a decade. Labour's is only as convicted.

"We have to wait for someone who is a violent offender to go and shoot someone essentially before they get a Firearms Prohibition Order," said Collins.

Neither parties' changes address root causes of deprivation, something no one - including gangs - should profit from.
"What we are discussing... is whether or not in working more closely with iwi organisations and whanau who know these families well and the children well, whether or not we can do a better job at prevention," Ardern said.

Davis highlighted comments made at the Iwi Chairs Forum in Porirua on Friday that when Kawanatanga and Tino rangatiratanga work together in partnership "you'll see great things happening".

Collins suggested the Government was abdicating its responsibilities to protect all children by handing power to an independent Maori Transition Authority.

"Does she believe it is acceptable for the Government to remove itself from the protection of all children, regardless of ethnicity, when a New Zealand child is killed by its own family every five weeks?"

Ardern said it wouldn't change the fact that Oranga Tamariki has statutory obligations. She said everything the Government is doing about the care and wellbeing of children.
"There is no pay freeze; there is in fact scope to discuss cost of living increases," New Zealand Council of Trade Unions (CTU) president Richard Wagstaff told Newshub.

"We feel like we were heard. We feel like this thing has gone back on course. It was going off course."

It sure was. Unions have been coming at the Government from every angle, furious about the pay restraint. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern met them on Tuesday trying to smooth it all over.

"We were very frank and open about the depth of feeling that our members have," New Zealand Public Service Association (PSA) National Secretary Kerry Davies told Newshub.

The Prime Minister described the meetings as "constructive".

The Government previously made blanket rulings - public servants on more than $100,000 wouldn't get any pay rises. Only those earning under $60,000 would be eligible for a bump.

The middle - workers on between $60,000 and $100,000 - would have to prove exceptional circumstances to get an increase.

The Government has now told unions that workers can bargain for more money.

But the Prime Minister stopped short of apologising for the distress caused to workers.

"I absolutely acknowledge that despite it being contained within our pay guidance, we should have put more emphasis on the things that haven't necessarily been out there in the public domain," she said.

The unions were not consulted before the freeze was announced last week and refused to accept it.

Wagstaff said he didn't expect to have such a fight with a Labour Government.

"We didn't expect it."

Ardern denies Labour is shirking its loyalty to workers.

"No, in fact I'd push back very hard on any suggestion of that."

While there's no way the Government will ever admit fault here, there's no denying they caused unnecessary stress to public servants.

In a panic they've had to make changes on the fly, also now agreeing to review the three-year freeze next year.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) has confirmed to Newshub that New Zealand is co-sponsoring the event. Other countries involved include Australia and Canada.

"The event is an important opportunity to raise further awareness of the human rights situation in Xinjiang and how the international community  the UN system, member states and civil society  can work together and advocate for the human rights of the Uyghur and other ethnic and religious minority communities in Xinjiang," an MFAT spokesperson told Newshub.

Human Rights Watch, an organisation that investigates international human rights abuses, is among those behind the event.

It shared with Newshub an invitation to the conference, which is described as a "virtual interactive UN side event to address the human rights situation of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, China".

"Participants will include representatives of UN member states, UN offices and departments, civil society organizations, affected communities, academics, and journalists."

Among those slated to speak are the Permanent Representatives of Germany, the UK and the US to the UN, as well as the executive director of HRW, and Jewher Ilham, a Uighur human rights activist.

There is also a slot scheduled for a "Q and A session and interventions from member States".
More than 159.03 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 3,444,309 have died.

Here's the latest from around the world overnight.

Americas

United States

The White House has announced a series of steps aimed at boosting US COVID-19 vaccination rates, including a partnership with ride-hailing services Uber and Lyft, "to provide free rides to anyone going to a vaccination site to get vaccinated". As of Monday, 46 percent of Americans have received at least one vaccine dose.

The small US manufacturers that rushed to produce face masks over the past year are now stuck with hundreds of millions of unsold face coverings because China is flooding the market with below-cost masks, and most may not survive the end of the pandemic. A box of 50 surgical masks which sold for more than US$50 a year ago can be found for US$5 now.

US regulators authorised Pfizer and BioNTechs COVID-19 vaccine for use in children as young as 12 and said they could begin receiving shots as soon as Thursday.

Colombia

Colombia's three largest cities are bracing for an extended third peak in coronavirus cases and over-stretched intensive care units after nearly two weeks of anti-government protests, local authorities said.

Capital Bogota is confronting a "hospital collapse," Mayor Claudia Lopez said in a press conference on Monday, and will not see infections drop this week as previously predicted.
The Brooklyn clubs were following in the footsteps of numerous other lefty groups in taking back their endorsements of Stringer. Supporters including the Working Families Party and several high-profile lawmakers ditched the comptroller over bombshell allegations he groped and pressured a campaign volunteer to have sex with him years ago.
Parliament's standards watchdog is investigating British Prime Minister Boris Johnson over how he reported his private foreign travel, although Johnson's spokesman said a Caribbean holiday provided by a donor was correctly registered with the authorities.

The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards named Johnson in a newly-published list of ongoing investigations, saying it was looking at whether he had broken the code of conduct for members of parliament.

The inquiry increases scrutiny of Johnson's finances - with electoral authorities separately looking at how the refurbishment of his apartment was funded. The opposition has accused his government of being riddled with sleaze and cronyism.
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Shamokin, PA (17872)

Today

Sun and clouds mixed. High 83F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low 59F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain has voiced its deep concerns about growing tensions in Jerusalem over the past several days, calling on Israeli authorities to act decisively to deescalate them and bring the violence to a halt. The urgent appeal was made by the Cabinet during its weekly remote meeting yesterday.

Chaired by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, the Cabinet stressed the need to preserve the historical identity of Jerusalem to avoid a regional drift towards instability. Yesterday, Palestinian fighters in the Gaza Strip fired rockets toward the Jerusalem area and southern Israel, carrying out a threat to punish Israel for violent confrontations with Palestinians in Jerusalem.

The Gaza health ministry said nine Palestinians were killed in Israeli air strikes in the Palestinian territory after the barrages against Israel. Meanwhile, the Cabinet extended their best wishes to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and HRH Prince Salman, and to the Bahraini citizens on the occasion of Eid Al Fitr.

The Cabinet then extended their sincere condolences to the family and relatives of fallen serviceman Corporal Ammar Ebrahim Essa, who died from injuries sustained in an operation to counter illegal fishing, and wished a speedy recovery to those injured.

In this regard, the Cabinet affirmed that the measures taken by HRH Prince Salman to bring justice to those involved in the accident. The Cabinet also highlighted the extent of cooperation and coordination between the executive and legislative authorities, and their complementary work towards further progress and development for the benefit of the Kingdom and its citizens.

On the occasion of the issuance of the royal order adjourning the third session of the fifth legislative term of the Shura Council and the Council of Representatives, the Cabinet extended gratitude to both for their roles in contributing to furthering national efforts and supporting citizens.

Moving on to highlight the International Day of Nursing, the Cabinet emphasised the importance of following all precautionary measures and getting vaccinated, as both have a vital role in supporting frontline workers, as well as patients.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Judiciary plays an important role in the promotion of justice and preservation of human rights, in a way that contributes to the Kingdoms goals of comprehensive development, led by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.

This was emphasised by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, as he met remotely yesterday the Vice President of the Supreme Judicial Council and President of the Court of Cassation, His Excellency Counselor Abdullah bin Hassan Al Buainain.

HRH Prince Salman also stressed the importance of further strengthening the Kingdoms legal system through complementary cooperation between the executive, legislative and judicial authorities. His Royal Highness praised the efficiency of the Bahraini judiciary, stressing the importance of continuing to support the development of its divisions by investing in the development of its human capital.

The Counselor expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to meet HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, noting HRHs continued support for the Supreme Judicial Council and its commitment to progress initiatives that support the Kingdoms continued development.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Following a series of Cabinet decisions, the government yesterday announced it is sending emergency medical aid and oxygen equipment to Pakistan amid rising COVID-19 cases.

The support extended by Bahrain to Pakistan in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic is within the framework of the strategic partnership between the two nations.

Bahrain expressed its solidarity with Pakistan and its people in tackling the COVID-19 crisis and the support provides a reflection of the strong bilateral relations across all fields, and the continuing commitment to support international efforts to fight the deadly virus.
Bahrain affirms support to the Palestinians cause and legitimate rights of Palestinian

Bahrain affirms support to the Palestinians cause and legitimate rights of Palestinian

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Council of Representatives Speaker Fawzia bint Abdullah Zainal has affirmed the firm position of Bahrain, under the leadership of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, in support of the Palestinian cause and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.

The position is following the principle of the two-state solution and based on the Arab Peace Initiative, and the relevant international legal resolutions, she said.

The Speaker also stressed the Council's rejection and denunciation of the attacks on the worshipers in Al Aqsa Mosque, the provocations against the people of Jerusalem, evicting them from their homes, and trying to impose measures contrary to the decisions of the international community.

This would threaten security and stability in the region and undermine the chances of reviving the just and comprehensive peace process, she said as she received Palestine's Ambassador to Bahrain Taha Abdulqadir.

Zainal pointed out that postponing the Palestinian elections until the participation of the people of Jerusalem, an integral component of the Palestinian people is guaranteed, is the correct decision to strengthen Palestinian national unity.
Garland Joseph Nelson, a man accused of double murder and stealing, was offered a plea deal on the lesser charge but turned it down, according to court documents.

A previously unseen transcript shows Nelson declined to speak with a judge on the advice of his lawyer in the stealing case.

The transcript was provided to News-Press NOW by Nelsons public defender, Patrick Berrigan.

Mr. Sokoloffs offer to us was three years, Berrigan said in the closed-door hearing in the judges chambers. We refused that offer; thats why we are here in trial.

The judge, Michael Wagner, wanted to put Nelson under oath so he could ask him questions about the plea offer and his decision to decline.

The reason we make these records is because when things dont go the defendants way ... they have a motion and they say my attorney stunk, Wagner said during the hearing. It is your decision, not your attorneys. So with that being said, you are refusing to speak with me.

Wagner went on to say that if Nelson did file a motion for ineffective counsel, he would say, Well sir, you wouldnt talk to me, so we maybe couldve cleared those things up.

Nelson faces seven years in prison on the stealing charge. He also faces a separate double-murder trial to be held in June of 2022.

His stealing trial was abruptly delayed last month on its first day when the Caldwell County victims advocate and other members of the public were kept outside of the courtroom during the start of jury selection.

I want the record to reflect that ... in our view ... this isnt a public, open proceeding, Berrigan said, according to the previously unseen transcript. I understand the courts ability to deal with the situation is limited, but it doesnt change the fact that my client has a constitutional right to a public and open trial.

No new date has been set for the stealing trial. Berrigan previously filed a motion to correct a docket entry, which indicates it was the defense who asked for the trial to be delayed, while Berrigan said the judge ordered it.

Nelson is facing capital murder in his other case, and the state is seeking the death penalty for the deaths of Nick and Justin Diemel, two brothers who traveled from Wisconsin to Nelsons farm in Northwest Missouri as part of a cattle deal.
Kids in Missouri are not facing any statewide mandate on COVID-19 vaccines, and the wearing of face coverings will continue to be an entirely local decision.

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, which is overseen by the State Board, met Tuesday to review how these concepts have played out over the last several months and how they can be adjusted for the coming 2021-2022 academic year. The board, chaired by Charlie Shields of St. Joseph, heard from Dr. Tracy Hinds, DESE deputy commissioner. Amid news Monday that the FDA has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech two-dose vaccine for those ages 12 to 15, Shields reflected on how students may end up acquiring it.

So, you might say, just to reiterate, that is not our decision, he said. OK, so there is a process the (Department of) Health and Senior Services has, if they have a committee or a panel or whatever that looks at required vaccinations for attendance at schools, and that will be their decision.

Hinds explained that all COVID-19 vaccines to date are applied under an FDA emergency use authorization. As a general rule, emergency use authorization allows people to voluntarily obtain a given therapy, but they cant be compelled by anyone to do so. The juncture at which school districts would be empowered  as is the case for the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, for example  would only arrive when the emergency use authorization becomes a full FDA approval, Hinds said.

Even then, theyll look at how the COVID vaccine marries with other vaccinations that students are required to have when they enter public school, she added.

The matter of face coverings is more established, but the state board is similarly not inclined to tell educators on the local level what they must do. Even so, with almost all Missouri school districts expected to abandon the practice of mandatory periods of online education this fall, the continued use of face coverings indoors may become more important, not less.

We know the pressures that so many school leaders are facing right now from folks in their community, who are really feeling ... that this is the time to ... Lets just get rid of the masks. Lets go back to normal, Hinds said. We understand the pressure that theyre getting to remove some of those protocols and appreciate them standing strong.

Dr. Margie Vandeven, DESE commissioner, emphasized this point.

Just a reminder, that it is of course local control, still, she said. Were not mandating any of this. These are just our recommendations.
As the cost of insulin increases across the country, officials with the Missouri Pharmacy Association say that distributors are to blame for the rise.

Ron Fitzwater, Chief Executive Officer for the Missouri Pharmacy Association, said prices increases are occurring for many drugs across the state  specifically insulin  due to drug distributors.

I think what we find is its another symptom of the middlemen having placed themselves between manufacturers and patients and they are just wreaking havoc on our health care system,  Fitzwater said.

Fitzwater said states throughout the Midwest  including Missouri  are looking at options to fight these high costs through legislative measures. He said oftentimes priority placing requires rebates, which can drive up prices.

I think addressing the rebate issue federally would help. Were trying to address it in a very narrow piece just to get some language into Missouri law to begin looking at it, but the rebate piece is huge, Fitzwater said.

Locally, Rogers Pharmacy and Northwest Health Services Pharmacy arent seeing as high of prices for insulin due to the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program. The program allows for pricing options to be more affordable for community healthcare systems.

Were kind of an exception to the rule. We are a contracted 340B pharmacy, which means we can offer insulin and other expensive items at a greatly affordable price, Rex Robinson, Rogers Pharmacist said.

Robinson said despite not having as big of an issue with prices at Rogers, he knows there are some definite flaws to the supply chain.

The supply chain is a huge issue. Insulin has gone up like 350% over the last 10 to 15 years, and where that money is going is unsure. The manufacturer claims that theyre not raising it that much. So that would lead to the middlemen, I know it is not coming from the pharmacies, because Im from that end, Robinson said.

Miranda Phillips, Northwest Health Pharmacy director said pricing would be a huge issue for their customers if the 340B was not in place.

If that went away, a good amount of our patients would have a lot of trouble paying for the medications, and unfortunately a lot of them might just go off of it or try to extend it or not get it some months because they cant afford it, Phillips said.
Speaking outside a police precinct in Brownsville, Brooklyn, Donovan said hed trim $500 million total from both the NYPD and Correction Department within two years of taking office. The funds would go toward violence prevention programs and other efforts to keep New Yorkers out of the criminal justice system, he said. The cuts would go up to $3 billion total by the end of 2025.
It is National Nurses Week, a time to honor those that care for others. The previous year has added challenges for many, especially for nurses who have been on the frontline during the pandemic.

When talking with a few nurses at Mosaic Life Care, the common theme was teamwork. While this has always been an important aspect of the job, this year shed new light on it.

The longer hours and the more hours, weve been so shorthanded with staffing out with more ... higher acuity patients, and weve come together really good as a team ... weve stepped up and taken those hours and been working really well together, Rosa Underwood, a registered nurse in the cardiac step-down unit with Mosaic life Care, said.

Nurses also found ways to adapt to caring for their patients, which was not always easy.

The mental health unit was never designed to be a place to accommodate social distancing. Its actually the opposite. We do a lot of work with our patients to improve their social skills, Lauren Robbins, an RN with Mosaic Life Cares mental health unit, said.

Staff and patients learned to utilize technology more, such as video calls when they couldnt accept visitors.

The nurses also expressed their gratitude for the student nurses who showed eagerness during uncertain times.

I was just reminded of, you know, being young and being so excited about the profession. And I just wanted to encourage that in (a nursing student) because nursing was my life. I love it. I wouldnt want to do anything else, Kimberly Gregson, an RN in the observational unit at Mosaic Life Care, said.

Missouri Western nursing students collectively participated in over 1,700 hours of work at the Mosaic Life Care clinic during the spring semester.

Despite nursing students facing new challenges during this past year, most have shown resilience.

When they (nursing students) came back in the spring for their second semester, and were ready to go into the hospital setting, they had never cared for a patient. So they were excited to get to go to the vaccine clinics, talk to people, do patient education, give injections and just start to gain some of that patient interaction experience, Dr. Jacklyn Gentry, nursing department chair with Missouri Western, said.
DANBURY  The students stood on the bleachers in colorful outfits and masks, raising and waving their arms as a recording of themselves singing Queens We are the Champions played.

The moment was something like a bow and curtain call for the 33-student cast of Immaculate High Schools production of the musical We Will Rock You.

The public cannot see the show until its livestreamed next weekend. But this performance on Monday morning of the shows final moments was one of the first times  and the last time  the cast will be together.

Its nice and bittersweet that its the last thing theyre filming, said Kathleen Czel, the shows producer and an English teacher at the Catholic high school.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the school turned its traditional spring musical into a movie musical, where scenes were filmed around the Danbury area and will be pieced together for the final product.

We were determined to make sure the students had an opportunity in the pandemic to show their talents, said Matthew Farina, director of the show.

Farina picked We Will Rock You  a musical that features songs from the British rock band Queen  because it takes place in a dystopian future where Zoom wouldnt be foreign.

Plus, he was drawn to the soundtrack.

Its the music of Queen, he said. Who doesnt love the music of Queen?

Some students said they were initially doubtful the idea would would work, but that they are proud of how the show turned out and glad to act again.

The power of music  its really gotten a lot of people through this tough time, said Abby Giansiracusa, a senior.

Planning started in the summer, with auditions in December and rehearsals beginning in January. Rehearsals were done over Zoom or with 10 or few cast members outside, even in the winter.

Working during the pandemic and putting this production together, Im very proud of the students and us for the creativity it took, said Farina, who has directed Immaculates musical for 13 years and teaches at Redding Elementary School.

Farina enlisted Justin Saluzzi, a junior film production student at Pace University who he knew from Redding Elementary School, to film the show. The two will edit it, with Saluzzi adding special effects.

Farina planned every angle and the blocking beforehand. He scouted filming locations, which included Tarrywile Park across the street from the school, the Second Company Governors Horse Guard property in Newtown and the bleachers on Immaculates campus, where the final filming day was held. Most of the 11 filming days were done on weekends and after school.

Not only did the cast and crew need to follow COVID-19 safety rules, they needed to learn a new way to perform.

Were really putting together a movie, Farina said. Its another art form.

Students said they welcomed this.

I like the challenge of it, not doing it on a stage, said junior Kevin Coonan, who plays Galileo Figaro, the main character. Its definitely been a chaotic year, but weve been enjoying it.

For the most part, students wore masks throughout the show, although actors removed their masks for some individual shots and scenes. In one scene, students wore all white masks, while they wore colorful ones when playing the Bohemian characters.

Students had to learn to be more expressive with their eyes and body.

Youve got to use your fully body because we cant see your mouth, Farina said.

Masks made it hard to see who is speaking, so close-up shots make it clearer to the audience. That meant they needed to film many takes.

Its like a real movie, said Farina, raising his voice in glee. Its so exciting. Were doing a movie musical.

Czel said she participated in several Zoom professional development classes on virtual theater.

The No. 1 thing for musicals is it needs to sound good, she said. The vocals were the No. 1 priority for this.

Thats why the music was recorded separately in a studio in New York, so students lip synced during the scenes. Unless the students were alone in the studio, they sang with their masks on.

I dont think you can really tell, Farina said.

After Monday mornings filming, the students gathered for a prayer circle  something they traditionally do before each show. Farina emphasized the uniqueness of what they had done.

I dont know what next year brings, he told the students. It could be back to good old stage.

The show will be livestreamed at 7 p.m. Friday, May 21 and Saturday, May 22, as well as 2 p.m. Sunday, May 23. Visit Immaculates website to purchase a ticket for livestream access. Parents are putting together concession swag bags, too.

Farina said he hopes the students learned perseverance.

I hope they take away from this that anything is possible, Farina said. Look at this year theyve had, filled with anxiety and loss and theyve created something thats unique.
RIDGEFIELD  One bike, one set of legs, 9,100 miles and five months.

Ridgefield native Ben Grannis is about to embark on quite the cross-country bike trip with one thought in mind, keeping his eyes up.

Grannis is getting ready to bike across the United States in August, not to break a record of any sort, but instead to raise awareness about TextLess Live More  an organization committed to eliminating distracted driving after a young womans life was ended by it.

Merritt Levitan, an 18-year-old from Massachusetts who loved being outdoors, was struck by a distracted driver in July 2013. She suffered a traumatic brain injury that led to her death a day after the incident. Her high school friends founded TextLess Live More in her memory the following fall.

After learning about the organizations mission, the 25-year-old man felt compelled to contribute to the cause.

As a rider, youre constantly thinking about the cars that are passing you. Most cars are pretty respectful... but not everyone is, and it just takes one car who is not paying attention, who passes you pretty close to make you remember how easy it is for something to go wrong, Grannis said.

Its important for me to raise awareness about that and itd be awesome to help grow this mission.

But the cross-country bike ride is just one component of the effort, he is also setting up a donation page to fundraise $10,000 for TextLess Live More, a little more than a dollar a mile.

Grannis mother, Sandy Grannis, said her son had long expressed an interest in riding cross-country, but when TextLess Live More became part of the ride, he was even more excited.

Sandy Grannis said its a long time to be alone on a bike, but that shell symbolically be two meters behind him every step of the way and itll be nice for him to know people are rooting for him.

I have confidence that he will be successful. I think its impressive and I feel like its the right thing to do, she said.

Although Grannis hasnt shaped up much of a plan, his goal is to traverse from Massachusetts to California over five months, seeking refuge at local churches or campgrounds wherever he can in between. It wont be a traditional trek straight across the country, instead making his way through Colorado, north to Montana, west to Seattle and south until he reaches San Diego.

From there, Grannis said he wants to take a month off to celebrate the holidays and then he will jump back his bike to head south from California to Florida between January and March.

Hes launched a website called Eyes Up to document his progress, and despite setting out on this journey alone, Grannis hopes other cyclists will engage with him along the way. For him, this journey can be intimidating, but a personal challenge that hes looking forward to as well.

Eyes up when youre driving, but also in life, he said.

The things that are on our phones are so much less important than whatever we are doing in the place that were in and with the people that were with, he added.

At the end of his course, Grannis wants people to understand you can have a fuller life experience by being conscious of the distractions pulling you away from valuable moments, which is what hell be focusing on as he treads through Colorados rocky mountains on two wheels.

I really enjoy the challenge and the reward of climbing a mountain on a bike, then seeing where you came from and [experiencing] the feeling of going downhill after, he said.

Theres something really powerful about knowing when you work through a hard ride or hill, that theres going to be something great at the end. Thats a great way to keep going.
LANSING, Mich. (AP)  Michigan's biggest local chamber of commerce floated a plan Monday in which $400 million in federal COVID-19 relief money would be spent on incentivizing people to return to the workforce and to get vaccinated, while officials learned the state's overall aid package will be larger than expected.

The Detroit Regional Chamber's proposal would cost the same as a plan pending in the Republican-led state House but would be structured differently. Rather than pay up to 400,000 unemployed workers $1,000 to go back to work instead of collecting benefits, as the House suggests, the state would give $2,000 to as many as 100,000 people.

Employers would get $1,000 for each returning or new employee, to use as a signing bonus or for training. They would receive $100 for each employee who is vaccinated in the future, offsetting the costs of clinics or paid time off to get a shot.

Building on your strong proposal, the chamber believes a bipartisan solution to accelerate employment growth, economic growth, support vaccine efforts, and replenish our (unemployment) fund is possible, Sandy Baruah, president and CEO, wrote in a letter to the chairmen of the House and Senate budget committees.

Industry groups say a return-to-work incentive would help businesses find desperately needed workers who, due to supplemental federal pandemic aid, can get $662 a week in unemployment funding, which is the equivalent of more than $34,000 a year. Others say businesses, including restaurants, need to raise wages.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, has vetoed the GOP-led Legislature's previous attempts to soften future higher taxes on employers by depositing general funds into the unemployment fund.

Also Thursday, the U.S. government said Michigan's state government will get $6.5 billion in coronavirus funding, which is nearly $900 million more than had been anticipated. Billions more will go to local governments and schools.

Because Michigan's unemployment rate is not significantly higher than its pre-pandemic level, the state is eligible to receive just half of its allotment immediately, with the rest being provided one year later. That could change if Michigan waits to request its money after new jobless figures are released.

Municipalities will get half their funding in May and half a year later. Detroit, the state's largest city, will receive nearly $827 million total. Wayne, the biggest county with 1.7 million residents, will get almost $340 million while Keweenaw, the smallest at 2,100 people, will receive $411,000.

Governments can use funds to support the coronavirus public health response, address the pandemic's economic pain, replace lost tax revenue, boost pay for essential workers and upgrade water, sewer and broadband infrastructure.

___

Follow David Eggert at https://twitter.com/DavidEggert00
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

stef m. shuster, Michigan State University

(THE CONVERSATION) Last month, the Arkansas Senate passed legislation prohibiting medical providers from offering gender-affirming hormones or surgeries to trans youth.

If you were to read the bill  titled the Save Adolescents From Experimentation Act  you might think the law was protecting children from physicians like Josef Mengele, the Nazi doctor who experimented on Jewish people.

It is of grave concern to the General Assembly, the text reads, that trans youth are being allowed to be subjects of irreversible and drastic treatments despite the lack of studies showing that the benefits of such extreme interventions outweigh the risks.

This language is at odds with the growing evidence that blocking people from accessing gender-affirming care creates increased risks for social isolation, suicide ideation and depression. Withholding puberty blockers from trans and nonbinary youth has also been found to negatively affect mental health.

However, the hyperbolic language and imagery of brutal experimentation prevents medical providers from honestly confronting the various issues that do exist within the field. The punitive nature of the legislation  in which doctors can lose their licenses  further thwarts these efforts.

As I discuss in my new book, Trans Medicine, little scientific evidence exists to support the use of current trans medical treatments, therapy or decision-making that meets evidence-based standards. Randomized controlled trials have yet to be conducted.

For this reason, providers often have trepidation about working with trans people, even if they recognize it is in the best interests of their patients to do so.

A history of resistance

Pointing out the lack of evidence in this medical field is nothing new.

Providers of trans medicine have dealt with accusations of engaging in unnecessary  even immoral  experimentation and quackery since the mid-20th century. Many of these charges came from other doctors.

For example, in a letter to a colleague, Harry Benjamin, a well-known endocrinologist who worked during the 1950s, wrote, I cant tell you how many of my fellows have called me aside for a heart-to-heart talk on this business of working with transsexuals. They worried about the gossip surrounding me and my office as a result of this type of work.

As Benjamin suggested  and as the historical record reflected  scandal overwhelmed those providers willing to offer hormone therapy for trans people. After all, an individual who requested to change their gender presentation was understood as having a mental illness, best addressed by long-term therapy.

The medical establishment has typically responded to such charges of quackery, even from other doctors by touting their specialized training, credentials and skills to deal with disease and illness.

But for over 70 years, physicians and therapists who work with trans clients, young and old, have nonetheless been haunted by a very basic question: How might someone who is trained to manage illness and disease treat someones gender identity, which is neither an illness nor a disease?

Swimming in doubt

The question seems simple. But it reflects the ambivalence many doctors and therapists have toward trying to apply standard medical or therapeutic models to gender identities.

Take Margaret, a family care physician who had been working for about five years in trans medicine before we met one afternoon to discuss her experiences. (The names used in my research are pseudonyms.)

I dont always know if I am doing the right thing when I work with trans patients, she told me. I havent been trained in this area. So, if I have a patient who has high cholesterol or is a smoker, but wants to start estrogen, what do I do? To not offer estrogen seems harmful because that would help her be able to express her gender that reflects who she is. But what about the health risks? What am I supposed to do? (There is mixed evidence on the relationship between taking hormones and heightened risks for heart attacks or strokes.)

Health care experts are used to feeling like they have a good foundation of knowledge to make informed decisions, so this can be an uneasy space for doctors like Margaret to work in.

Her experiences are not unique. After I spent time searching in the Kinsey Institutes archives, which house correspondence from mid-20th-century providers, interviewing physicians and therapists across the U.S. who work with trans youth and adults, and observing them at health conferences, it became clear to me that the uncertainty Margaret expressed permeates trans medicine.

Alexis, a social worker I interviewed, told me one of the difficulties working with trans people is that each person is unique  There is this person and this person and this person, she explained. Trying to apply a standard model for decision-making onto trans experience is difficult. Trans people have complex ways of understanding their identities. The reason to pursue medical interventions varies from one person to the next.

Not all providers comfortably lean on this flexibility in delivering gender-affirming care or therapy. Speaking before her colleagues at a health care conference, one physician urged them to remember, before starting their patients on hormones, that what you are looking to get at is to make sure their gender identity is clear and there are no red flags.

But there are no medical tests to confirm a trans identity. And red flags arent defined or delineated in any literature or clinical guidelines.

Barriers to understanding

Once doctors have decided to pursue a course of treatment, the science isnt exactly settled. Part of that has to do with the fact that randomized controlled trials have been implausible, given that only 0.6% of the population identifies as trans or nonbinary.

And physicians like Margaret might feel unqualified because most providers encounter only a single diversity day during medical residency programs. This day covers lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender health care  and, in the process, conflates sexuality and gender.

Furthermore, there are few opportunities for providers to gain formal training in trans medicine or therapy. Clinical guidelines  or cookbooks for medical decision-making  for trans medicine offer providers direction about which steps to take to initiate hormone therapy or surgical interventions. But, they rarely discuss how to work with trans and nonbinary people in gender-affirming ways or how to avoid creating roadblocks for trans people to access care.

Still, important advances have been made.

There is a small, but growing, number of studies published on the efficacy of surgical techniques or the effects of hormone therapy. The providers I interviewed acknowledged these studies help them assess how much of a hormone to prescribe. But these data did little to help providers decide when to initiate, continue, or block access to hormones  or how to interact with trans and nonbinary patients in a supportive and inclusive way.

Support  not punishment  needed

The providers I spoke with insisted that theyre trying to do the best they can. But because of the lack of evidence and clinical experience, providers of trans medicine often lean on gut instinct to help them navigate through the murkiness of this medical field.

This can lead to bias seeping into clinical encounters. Providers of trans medicine may not intentionally be prejudiced against certain trans and nonbinary people. But as I point out in my book, when they rely on gut instinct, classism, racism and homophobia can subtly influence their health decisions.

Trans people who identify as women or men, rather than nonbinary, also have an easier time accessing gender-affirming care. The clinical experience of providers has, until recently, emphasized only people transitioning from woman to man or man to woman.

Trans medicine is not exceptional, and how providers work their way through making decisions and offering gender-affirming care reflects how providers operate in most new areas of medicine. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the difficulty that medicine has responding to widespread uncertainty.

[Over 100,000 readers rely on The Conversations newsletter to understand the world. Sign up today.]

There are viable solutions to the concerns raised by legislators. What if, instead of outright banning providers from offering gender-affirming care, more public funding was provided to support longitudinal studies? What if more opportunities were given to providers to gain formal training?

This, in my view, would go a long way in alleviating the unease they experience over of the state of evidence in this medical field.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/doctors-treating-trans-youth-grapple-with-uncertainty-lack-of-training-159186.
Foreign carmakers are seeing their sales of hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles grow here.

The Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association said on Monday they sold some 7,082 hybrid cars and some 1,811 plug-in vehicles last month, up 234.1 percent and 246.3 percent on-year, buoyed by a wave of new releases.

Their accumulated number of cars sold during the first four months of this year stood at 21,361 and 7,098, leading their market shares to rise to 29.2 percent and 9.4 percent. In the meantime, the market share of diesel cars dropped to 16.9 percent from 29.2 percent.

"There seems to be a belief that hybrid cars will continue to remain in the market, as electric cars replace fuel cars," said an industry insider.
Reynoso has established himself as one of the most progressive members of the City Council during his seven years on the body. He voted against last years controversial city budget, saying it didnt go far enough to cut NYPD funding. Reynoso has also come out as a frequent critic of police practices while advocating for environmental causes as chair of the Councils Sanitation Committee.
The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities that The Associated Press has learned spans two dozen states and includes five shelters with more than 1,000 children packed inside.

Confidential data obtained by the AP shows the number of migrant children in government custody more than doubled in the past two months, and this week the federal government was housing around 21,000 kids, from toddlers to teens. A facility at Fort Bliss, a U.S. Army post in El Paso, Texas, had more than 4,500 children as of Monday. Attorneys, advocates and mental health experts say that while some shelters are safe and provide adequate care, others are endangering childrens health and safety.

Its almost like Groundhog Day, said Southern Poverty Law Center attorney Luz Lopez, referring to the 1993 film in which events appear to be continually repeating. Here we are back to a point almost where we started, where the government is using taxpayer money to build large holding facilities ... for children instead of using that money to find ways to more quickly reunite children with their sponsors.

A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesman, Mark Weber, said the department's staff and contractors are working hard to keep children in their custody safe and healthy.

A few of the current practices are the same as those that President Joe Biden and others criticized under the Trump administration, including not vetting some caregivers with full FBI fingerprint background checks. At the same time, court records show the Biden administration is working to settle several multimillion-dollar lawsuits that claim migrant children were abused in shelters under President Donald Trump.

Part of the governments plan to manage thousands of children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border involves about a dozen unlicensed emergency facilities inside military installations, stadiums and convention centers that skirt state regulations and dont require traditional legal oversight.

Inside the facilities, called Emergency Intake Sites, children arent guaranteed access to education, recreational opportunities or legal counsel.

In a recent news release, the administration touted its restoration of a child centered focus for unaccompanied children, and it has been sharing daily totals of the number of children in government custody as well as a few photos of the facilities. This reflects a higher level of transparency than the Trump administration. In addition, the amount of time children spend, on average, inside the system has dropped from four months last fall to less than a month this spring, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Nonetheless, the agency has received reports of abuse that resulted in a handful of contract staffers being dismissed from working at the emergency sites this year, according to an official who wasn't authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Attorneys say sometimes, even parents cant figure out where their children are.

Jose, a father who fled El Salvador after his village was targeted in a massacre, requested asylum in the U.S. four years ago. He had hoped to welcome his wife and 8-year-old daughter to Southern California this year, but the pair were turned around at the border in March and expelled to Mexico. The little girl crossed again by herself and was placed in the government shelter in Brownsville, Texas, on April 6. Jose called a government hotline set up for parents seeking their migrant children repeatedly but said no one would tell him where she was.

I was so upset because I kept calling and calling and no one would tell me any information about where she was, said Jose, who asked to be identified only by his first name out of fear of endangering his immigration case. Finally they told me I had to pay $1,300 to cover her airplane ticket and if I didnt pay, I would have to wait a month more, and I was so anxious.

For nearly three weeks, his daughter was held inside the Brownsville facility before finally being released to him in late April after an advocacy organization intervened to get the government to foot the bill for her airfare, as is required by the agency.

HHS declined to say whether there are any legally enforceable standards for caring for children housed at the emergency sites or how they are being monitored. The Biden administration has allowed very limited access to news media once children are brought into facilities, citing the coronavirus pandemic and privacy restrictions.

HHS has worked as swiftly as possible to increase bed capacity and to ensure potential sponsors can provide a safe home while the child goes through their immigration proceedings, HHS spokesman Weber said in a statement. As soon as wrap around services  on-site primary care, including childhood immunizations and physicals, case management, phone calls to family members, education, recreation etc  become available as a result of additional infrastructure and staff, they are provided as part of the operation.

Weber confirmed a number of specific shelter populations from the data the AP obtained.

Of particular concern to advocates are mass shelters, with hundreds of beds apiece. These facilities can leave children isolated, less supervised and without basic services. The AP found about half of all migrant children detained in the U.S. are sleeping in shelters with more than 1,000 other children. More than 17,650 are in facilities with 100 or more children. Some shelters and foster programs are small, little more than a house with a handful of kids. A large Houston facility abruptly closed last month after it was revealed that children were being given plastic bags instead of access to restrooms.

The system has been very dysfunctional, and its getting worse, said Amy Cohen, a child psychiatrist and executive director of the nonprofit Every. Last. One., which works to help immigrant families fleeing violence in Central America. Although there have been large numbers of children arriving in the U.S. for years, Cohen said shes never seen the situation as bad as it is today.

Cohen described parents receiving calls from people refusing to identify themselves. They are told to be at an airport or bus station in the next two hours to pick up their children, who have been held for more than a month without notice, or they wouldnt be released. Some parents are told to pay a travel agency thousands of dollars to have their child sent to them, she said.

The children are coming out sick, with COVID, infested with lice, and it will not surprise me to see children dying as a consequence, as we saw during the Trump years, Cohen said. The Biden administration is feverishly putting up these pop-up detention facilities, many of which have no experience working with children.

One reason so many children are now arriving without their parents dates back to a 2020 Trump administration emergency order that essentially closed the U.S.-Mexico border to all migrants, citing public health concerns about spreading COVID-19.

That emergency order still applies to adults, but the Biden administration has begun allowing children traveling without their parents to stay and seek asylum if they enter the country. As a result, some parents are sending their kids across the border by themselves.

Most already have a parent or other adult relative or family friend, known as a sponsor, in the U.S. waiting to receive them. But first they are typically detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, or CBP, then turned over to a government shelter.

As much as having children spend days on end at CBP is unacceptable, so, too, is having children spend weeks on end in unlicensed Emergency Intake Sites, said National Center for Youth Law attorney Neha Desai. With every passing day, it is increasingly critical that these children are released to sponsors or transferred to licensed facilities.

Over the course of 2019, the federal government held nearly 70,000 children in a system of contracted shelters, mass detention camps and foster parents. This year those numbers are expected to be even higher.

Some of the facilities holding children these days are run by contractors already facing lawsuits claiming that children were physically and sexually abused in their shelters under the Trump administration, while others are new companies with little or no experience working with migrant children. Collectively, the emergency facilities can accommodate nearly 18,000 children, according to data the agency provided earlier this month.

There are a lot of questions about are there standards and who is ensuring that they are meeting them, and what kind of transparency and accountability will there be, said Jennifer Podkul, a vice president at Kids in Need of Defense, which represents children in immigration court.

The Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project is one of several organizations that filed legal claims against the federal government seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in damages for parents who said their children were harmed while in government custody after being forcibly separated at the border under Trump administration policies. In some lawsuits, families claim children suffered physical and sexual abuse while in government custody, at both foster homes and private shelters.

If those children were able to come in with their parents, they could be released with their parents and not placed in government custody, said Conchita Cruz, co-executive director at the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project. This administration should lift the current policy in order for families to seek asylum together.

Bidens Justice Department is defending the government against these claims, which were filed in 2019 under the Trump administration. But the federal response has been mixed since the change in leadership. Some cases continue to be argued, while others are in settlement discussions.

In a recent filing in one case currently in litigation, federal attorneys agreed with the assertion that these policies indeed inflicted harm.

President Biden has condemned the human tragedy that occurred when our immigration laws were used to intentionally separate children from their parents or legal guardians ... including through the use of the Zero Tolerance Policy during the Trump administration, Justice Department attorneys wrote.

The judge in the case granted a joint request to pause the litigation until June 2 while the parties explore settlement.

We want to make sure there is adequate oversight and transparency for these new structures and make sure that children can get out, said Podkul, whose organization has been holding know your rights training with children in the emergency sites. If kids are there for more than 48 hours, kids need to know what to expect.

As for the 8-year-old girl, her father, Jose, said she is adjusting to life in Los Angeles, enjoying playing with her older brother and, bit by bit, opening up.

She keeps asking me where her mom is, and I keep telling her not to worry, that she is in Mexico and she is OK, he said. Soon I hope shell tell me what it was like inside.

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AP data journalist Larry Fenn contributed to this report.

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Contact APs global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org or https://www.ap.org/tips/.
Seventy-one percent of Connecticut adults have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, Gov. Ned Lamont announced Monday.

The state tops the nation when it comes to the percentage of fully vaccinated adults and is among the top five states in getting at least one shot in arms, the governor's office said.

About half of Connecticut's 16- and 17 year-olds have gotten a shot, putting the vaccine rate for the total population at 57%, the governor said.

The numbers are much higher for those 45 and above (80%) and 65 and older (92%), Lamont said.

What that means is that 45 and above, we're very close to what they call herd immunity," Lamont said. I know that's a moving target. But you add that 80% who have been vaccinated along with those who were previously infected over the last year or have some antibodies, we're in pretty good shape there.

Connecticut did record 17 more COVID-19 related deaths over the weekend, bringing the total to 8,154 during the pandemic. But Lamont said that hospitalizations fell by 29 patients to 280, the lowest total in more than seven months.

He said that if the metrics continue to trend in direction they are now going, Connecticut could be back to normal within a matter of months.

The fall, we'll see if there are variants or anything that make us worry, but right now I think it's a good summer, he said.

In other pandemic related news:

SUMMER EDUCATION

Fairfield University is partnering with the state to train about 500 college-age students to teach in summer education enrichment programs and camps for children across Connecticut.

It's part of the state's plan to combat learning lost by those in kindergarten through high school during the pandemic.

Fairfield President Mark Nemec said the training of the Connecticut College Corps will take place in early June. All undergraduate college students who attend Connecticut colleges and universities are eligible to apply, including those who will be freshmen in the fall.

Fairfield graduate students will monitor their work and serve as mentors to corps members over the summer, he said.

The College Corps members will be paid a $4,500 stipend to work in the programs and camps.

Charlene Russell-Tucker, the state's acting education commissioner said about 240 organizations have applied for grants to the run the camps and summer educational enrichment programs.
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Linda J. Bilmes, Harvard Kennedy School

(THE CONVERSATION) President Joe Biden calls climate change the existential crisis of our time and has taken steps to curb it that match those words. They include returning the U.S. to the Paris Agreement; creating a new climate Cabinet position; introducing a plan to slash fossil fuel subsidies; and announcing ambitious goals to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.

But climate change is not the only global environmental threat that demands attention. Scientists widely agree that loss of wildlife and the natural environment is an equally urgent crisis. Some argue that biodiversity loss threatens to become Earths sixth mass extinction. But unlike efforts to fight climate change  which center on clear, measurable goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions  there is no globally accepted metric for saving biodiversity.

As an expert on budgeting and public finance, I know that governments and private businesses alike pay much more attention to resources when they have a well-defined price tag. I believe that overhauling societys concept of wealth to include natural capital  the value nature provides to humans  is a critical step for slowing and reversing the loss of precious ecosytems.

What is natural capital?

Natural capital can be defined as the worlds stocks of natural assets  soil, air, water, grasslands, forests, wetlands, rocks and minerals  and all of its living things, from mammals and fish to plants and microbes. Conservation experts estimate that these resources contribute more than US$125 trillion to the global economy every year.

Humans depend on natures contributions for survival. For example, forests absorb carbon and filter the water we drink. Wetlands and coral reefs mitigate flooding. Bees and other insects pollinate crops, enabling us to grow food.

But human societies dont formally recognize the economic value of these services. This oversight encourages people to recklessly deplete the natural environment.

A recent review of the economics of biodiversity, commissioned by the U.K. government and led by Cambridge University economist Sir Parth Dasgupta, warns that human prosperity is growing at a devastating cost to nature and estimates that it would take 1.6 Earths to maintain the worlds current living standards. The report calls for the world to treat nature like an asset to be reported in financial statements and national accounts.

The Capitals Coalition, a global consortium of 380 initiatives and businesses, is trying to change the math. The organization seeks to persuade at least half of the worlds businesses, financial institutions and governments to incorporate natural capital into their decision-making by 2030.

Valuing ecosystems

Current accounting methods used by corporations and governments largely ignore what ecosystems and their services contribute to the economy and to human social well-being, jobs and livelihoods. As a consequence, modern societies spend far more on investments that deplete or exploit natural assets than they do to preserve them.

Under the current model, short-term economic gains typically win out against longer-term ecological benefits. For example, failing to maintain forests can spark wildfires. And constructing homes on fragile coastal wetlands can erode soil and reduce fish stocks, destroying local communities.

A recent study by the Paulson Institute, a research institute founded by former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, estimated that global investments that degrade nature exceed conservation efforts by $600 billion to $824 billion per year.

Natural capital accounting would require businesses and governments to calculate how human activity affects nature, much as they assess depreciation of buildings or machinery. Analyzed in this way, nature is a financial asset, and damage to it becomes a liability. This approach creates incentives to conserve natural resources and restore others that have been degraded or depleted.

Global recognition of this issue is growing. In March 2021 the United Nations updated a statistical framework for standardizing ecosystem accounting, which was first published in 2012. These guidelines help countries track changes in ecosystems and their services and provide leaders with a baseline with which to compare their stocks and flows when making policy decisions.

Some 90 countries have adopted this System of Environmental Economic Accounting and produced baseline national capital accounts. They include European Union members, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and more than 40 developing countries. The U.S. is planning to implement this approach but has not done so yet.

Assessing natures value

Placing values on natural assets is really no different from government assessments of the benefits of new roads, bridges and other infrastructure. People intuitively understand that natural resources are precious. And the COVID-19 pandemic has made clear how closely human health is intertwined with the health of the planet.

In response to the biodiversity crisis, President Biden has aligned the U.S. with the global 30x30 campaign, a plan to protect at least 30% of the planets land and oceans by 2030. Multiple scientific studies have shown that achieving this goal would conserve species, store carbon, prevent future pandemics and boost economic growth.

The year 2021 marks the start of the U.N. Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, which aims to prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems worldwide. Today, according to a recent study, less than 3% of the worlds land remains ecologically intact with healthy wildlife populations and undisturbed habitat.

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The U.S has lost decades of potential progress since Congress suspended fledgling efforts by the Bureau of Economic Analysis to develop environmental accounting methods in 1995. Researchers at the U.S. Geological Survey and other federal agencies are now urging the U.S. to adopt national capital accounts using the U.N. framework.

In contrast, the U.K. created public environmental accounts and set up a Natural Capital Committee in 2012, led by its finance ministry, to help corporations develop natural capital accounts. Today, the U.K. maintains these accounts, which capture data on the size, condition, quantity and value of habitats and ecosystem services. President Biden could empower the U.S. Treasury Department to spearhead a similar initiative.

Adopting metrics to measure and track the benefits people receive from wildlife and ecosystems would clarify how human activities affect nature and show how much investment is needed to reverse humanitys current destructive trajectory. Conservation advocates will be much better positioned to protect our planets resources with a strong balance sheet to back it up.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/putting-a-dollar-value-on-nature-will-give-governments-and-businesses-more-reasons-to-protect-it-153968.
FBI agents were at a large Hindu temple in New Jersey on Tuesday as a new lawsuit claimed it was built by workers from marginalized communities in India who were lured to the U.S. and forced to work long hours for just a few dollars per day.

The lawsuit accuses the leaders of the Hindu organization known as Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, or BAPS, of human trafficking and wage law violations.

An FBI spokesperson confirmed that agents were at the temple on court-authorized law enforcement activity, but wouldn't elaborate. One of the attorneys who filed the suit said some workers had been removed from the site Tuesday.

The lawsuit says more than 200 workers  many or all of whom don't speak English  were coerced into signing employment agreements in India. They traveled to New Jersey under R-1 visas, which are meant for those who minister, or work in religious vocations or occupations, according to the lawsuit.

When they arrived, the lawsuit says, their passports were taken away and they were forced to work at the temple from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. with few days off, for about $450 per month a rate that the suit said came out to around $1.20 per hour. Of that, the workers allegedly only received $50 in cash per month, with the rest deposited into their accounts in India.

According to the lawsuit, the exploited workers were Dalits  members of the lowest step of South Asia's caste hierarchy.

An attorney representing several of the workers, Daniel Werner, called it shocking that this happens in our backyard.

It is even more disturbing that it has gone on for years in New Jersey behind the temples walls, Werner, of Decatur, Georgia, said Tuesday outside the gates of the complex. He said some workers were on the site for a year, two years or even longer, and were not allowed to leave unless accompanied by somebody from BAPS.

BAPS CEO Kanu Patel, who is named as a defendant in the lawsuit, told The New York Times, I respectfully disagree with the wage claim.

A spokesperson for the organization, Matthew Frankel, told The Associated Press that BAPS was first made aware of the accusations early Tuesday morning.

We are taking them very seriously and thoroughly reviewing the issues raised, he said.

The ornate temple, known as a mandir, is made of Italian and Indian marble, and sits on 162 acres (65 hectares) in Robbinsville, outside Trenton.

The lawsuit said workers lived in a fenced-in compound where their movements were monitored by cameras and guards. They were told that if they left, police would arrest them because they didn't have their passports, the suit said.

The lawsuit names Patel and several individuals described as having supervised the workers. It seeks unpaid wages and unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.

D.B. Sagar, president of the Washington-based International Commission for Dalit Rights, told The Associated Press that Dalits are an easy target for exploitation because theyre the poorest people in India.

They need something to survive, to protect their family, Sagar  a Dalit himself  said, adding that if the allegations in the lawsuit are true, they amount to modern-day slavery.

BAPS is a global sect of Hinduism founded in the early 20th century and aims to preserve Indian culture and the Hindu ideals of faith, unity, and selfless service, according to its website. The organization says it has built more than 1,100 mandirs  often large complexes that essentially function as community centers.

BAPS is known for community service and philanthropy, taking an active role in the diasporas initiative to help India amid the current COVID-19 surge. But it also is linked to contentious issues in India, publicly supporting and funding the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, built on the site of a mosque demolished by Hindu nationalists.

Indias right-wing prime minister, Narendra Modi, has close ties to the organization and one of its transformative leaders, Pramukh Swami Maharaj, who died in 2016.

The ongoing construction on the mandir in Robbinsville began in 2010, and the site has caught the attention of state and federal authorities in recent years.

Last month, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development issued a stop-work order against a Newark-based construction company whose projects included the BAPS temple in Robbinsville.

An investigation found the company, Cunha Construction, was paying workers in cash off the books and didnt have workers compensation insurance, according to a release. A phone listed for the company rang unanswered Tuesday. Its not named in the lawsuit.

In 2017, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigated after a Pennsylvania teenager was killed in a fall while volunteering at the site.

According to the website for the Robbinsville mandir, its construction is the epitome of volunteerism.

Volunteers of all ages have devoted their time and resources from the beginning: assisting in the construction work, cleaning up around the site, preparing food for all the artisans on a daily basis and helping with other tasks, the website says. A total of 4.7 million man hours were required by craftsman and volunteers to complete the Mandir.

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Associated Press writer Mike Catalini contributed to this report.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP)  The father of a Cambridge, Massachusetts, elementary school student said Monday he was shocked when he pulled two activity booklets from his sons backpack that had been distributed at his school, including one titled: Natural Gas: Your Invisible Friend.

Both were published by the energy utility Eversource and paint a rosy picture of the fossil fuel.

An inside page of one of the booklets declares Natural Gas Is Great," and encourages students to connect speakers like a popcorn plant manager and a bus rider to statements like it's a safe, clean, efficient fuel to use in our plant, and I like the fact that while I commute to work I am using a natural gas vehicle that reduces harmful air pollutants.

Both booklets carry the Eversource logo on their covers and also include natural gas safety tips, like keeping paper towels away from gas stoves.

Gleb Bahmutov, a 41-year-old software engineer, said he was disturbed to learn that the booklets in his nine-year-old son's backpack had been distributed to him and other students attending the Tobin Elementary School.

Bahmutov said he was not only surprised the school was giving out material from a company, but was angered that the booklet painted natural gas in such glowing terms with no mention of the wider impact of fossil fuels on the climate or of the option of renewable forms of energy.

Eversource is not a company that should be publishing activity books, Bahmutov said. It sounds like propaganda and I was born in the Soviet Union, so I dont use that term lightly.

The decision to distribute the booklets from Eversource to elementary school students was a mistake, the citys school superintendent said Monday.

Cambridge schools regularly receives resources from organizations including businesses and has an established practice of reviewing materials before distribution to students and families, according to Cambridge School Superintendent Kenneth Salim.

The distribution of a booklet from Eversource at the Tobin Elementary School was an error and did not go through this review process as expected, Salim said in a written statement. CPS cares deeply about climate change and energy efficiency.

As part of the curriculum, Cambridge public school students learn about climate change and environmental issues in various grades and content areas, Salim said. Cambridge has also invested in energy efficient construction and has energy efficient plans for upcoming new construction, including at the Tobin building, he added.

Eversource is committed to keeping their customers safe and providing natural gas safety information  including developing books to help raise awareness about the importance of natural gas safety at home, company spokesperson William Hinkle said in a statement.

There are different versions of the book based on grade level that date back to 2011, and they undergo periodic updates. We provide them upon request to various schools within our gas service territory in Massachusetts and Connecticut, he said.

We recognize and agree that these materials can be improved, and moving forward, we will work to include climate change information in future educational materials, as well as continue to provide important natural gas safety tips, Hinkle added.

For the past two decades, Cambridge has publicly staked out a position warning of the effects of fossil fuels on the climate. In 2002, the city adopted a climate protection plan with the goal of reducing greenhouse gases.

In 2009, the City Council approved a resolution aimed at increasing the citys responses to the climate crisis.

Teachers nationwide who have tried to educate themselves about climate change have been deluged with online information from a range of outlets, including climate change doubters, lesson plans developed by the oil industry, and other sites with misleading or outdated information.

Eversource serves more than 4.3 million electric, water and gas customers across New England, with more than 1.5 million homes relying on gas for heating, water heating and cooking.
The head of the Vaticans doctrine office is warning U.S. bishops to deliberate carefully and minimize divisions before proceeding with a possible plan to rebuke Roman Catholic politicians such as President Joe Biden for receiving Communion even though they support abortion rights.

The strong words of caution came in a letter from Cardinal Luis Ladaria, prefect of the Vaticans Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, addressed to Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The USCCB will convene for a national meeting June 16, with plans to vote on drafting a document on the Communion issue

There is division among the bishops, with some pressing for Biden and other Catholic public figures to be excluded from Communion over their abortion stance, and other bishops warning that such a move would be politically polarizing.

Ladaria, in his letter, said any new policy requires that dialogue occurs in two stages: first among the bishops themselves, and then between bishops and Catholic pro-choice politicians within their jurisdictions.

Even then, Ladaria advised, the bishops should seek unanimous support within their ranks for any national policy, lest it become a source of discord rather than unity within the episcopate and the larger church in the United States.

Ladaria made several other points that could complicate the plans of bishops pressing for tough action:

 He said any new statement should not be limited to Catholic political leaders but broadened to encompass all churchgoing Catholics in regard to their worthiness to receive Communion.

 He questioned the USCCB policy identifying abortion as the preeminent moral issue, saying it would be misleading if any new document "were to give the impression that abortion and euthanasia alone constitute the only grave matters of Catholic moral and social teaching that demand the fullest accountability on the part of Catholics.

 He said that if the U.S. bishops pursue a new policy, they should confer with bishops conferences in other countries both to learn from one another and to preserve unity in the universal church.

 He said any new policy could not override the authority of individual bishops to make decisions on who can receive Communion in their dioceses. Cardinal Wilton Gregory, the archbishop of Washington, D.C., has made clear that Biden is welcome to receive Communion at churches in the archdiocese.

Among the leaders of the campaign to rebuke Biden is Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, who recently issued a pastoral letter arguing that Catholic politicians who support abortion rights should not receive Communion. A few days later, Bishop Robert McElroy of San Diego published an essay saying such an initiative will bring tremendously destructive consequences.

Ladaria's letter was dated May 7. It was first reported Monday by Catholic News Service and the Jesuit magazine America.

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Associated Press writer Nicole Winfield in Rome contributed to this report.

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Associated Press religion coverage receives support from the Lilly Endowment through The Conversation U.S. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Connecticut health providers are preparing to inoculate 12- to-15 year-olds for COVID-19 this week, immediately after final authorization of the Pfizer vaccine by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, which declared it safe for that age group late Monday.

An FDA committee is expected to give final authorization Wednesday and providers in Connecticut would not delay in administering the inoculations.

Gov. Lamont said Monday that school officials will roll out notifications to parents when the vaccines will be available.

The vaccines are working, Lamont said, adding that 57 percent of the 3.5 million people in the state have been vaccinated. Weve got to still keep our pedal to the metal on this, Lamont said.

Each health care provider administering vaccines to young teens would be responsible for setting its own policy on how to assure parental consent, and on whether parents would need to be present for the inoculations.

Dr. Ohm Deshpande, vice president for population health at Yale New Haven Health, said Monday night that health professionals will be flexible in getting informed decisions from parents.

We will basically navigate how kids show up, he said. Usually, parents accompany kids, but we can do verbal consent on FaceTime or if school groups come in, we can take written permission slips. We want to minimize obstacles.

Charlene Russell-Tucker, acting state education commissioner, said that local school officials working with the state Departrment of Public Health will help sort out the issues of parental permission and she looks forward to the positive peer pressure kids can use to encourage that their classmates seek inoculations.

So were very excited about that, in order to make sure we have the approval necessary, she said.

Were certainly prepared to have families come to us at the vaccine sites, said Leslie Gianelli, spokeswoman for Community Health Center Inc., which adminiters vaccines at mass drive-through sites in Stamford, Danbury, Middletown and East Hartford, at nine clinics and through traveling vans.

Giannelli said CHCs policy is to strongly encourage parents of all youths under 18 to be present for the incuculation, but we dont require it. We understand that in some cases the parent cannot be present. In those cases, the health center will require written permission.

Connecticuts 7-day COVID infection rate remained below 2 percent, Lamont said Monday. The state recorded 17 fatalities over the weekend, for a total of 8,154 in the pandemic. There was a net reduction of 29 patients in hospitals with the illness for a total of 280  the lowest in more than seven months.

The numbers continue to be very good and continue to trend in the right direction, Lamont said.

Connecticut continues to rank among the top states in the country for vaccinating those who are eligible. Lamont made his remarks during his regular, live-streamed coronavirus update from the Capitol, which finished minutes before the FDA announcement.

Seventy-one percent of those 18 and older have been vaccinated. Eighty percent of those 45 and above, and 92 percent of the people 65 and above have gotten the shot.

Among 16- and 17-year-olds, 50 percent have received at least one dose, Lamont said. That maybes a harbinger of good things to come when it comes to the next round, which we anticipate from the FDA.

The 2-doze Pfizer vaccine, developed with BioNTech, a German pharma company, is approved in most countries for youths as young as 16. It has been approved for children as young as 12 in Canada.

The Moderna vaccine, also two doses, is approved for people age 18 and older. The company said it will soon report positive results for youths ages 12 to 17, the Associated Press reported.
DANBURY  A former city resident pleaded guilty Monday to fraud and identity theft offenses in connection with his role in a scheme to use stolen identities to lease and buy vehicles and motorcycles, federal prosecutors said.

Domingo St. Hilaire Rosario, 57, pleaded guilty before Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Hes scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 8.

Starting in late 2017, Rosario, Jamie Pinto and another person conspired to use stolen identities to get vehicles and motorcycles at dealerships in Connecticut, New Jersey and Massachusetts, prosecutors said.

As part of the scheme, Rosario arranged for a car and motorcycle to be bought or leased from a dealership in the name of the victim, and Pinto or another co-conspirator would impersonate the victim to complete the necessary paperwork, prosecutors said. Rosario gave his co-conspirators fraudulent identification documents with the victims information. Officials said Rosario planned to sell or export the vehicles.

Throughout the scheme, prosecutors said, Rosario and his co-conspirators acquired at least 13 vehicles and tried to get at least two others. Some of the vehicles have been recovered by law enforcement and returned to the dealers.

In July 2018, Rosario was pulled over by New Jersey State Police while driving a Chevrolet Silverado that he got through the scheme from a dealership in Vernon, prosecutors said. Rosario then fled to the Dominican Republic, officials said.

On Feb. 28, 2019, a federal grand jury in Hartford returned an indictment charging Rosario. He was extradited from the Dominican Republic in May 2020 and remains in custody.

Prosecutors said Rosario has agreed to pay $220,589.19 in restitution.

Pinto, 44, with a last known address in Manchester, pleaded guilty to conspiracy, fraud and identity theft offenses on March 20, 2019. He remains in custody and is awaiting sentencing.
Lawyers for Tanios and Khater argued they dont deserve to be locked up while they fight the case, noting that other accused Capitol rioters have been released. An attorney for Tanios claimed he had bought the chemical spray to protect himself.
COVID-19 Economy Results in Surge of Inquiries About Unclaimed Assets

VANCOUVER, BC, May 10, 2021 /CNW/ - There is now more than $149 million in unclaimed money from dormant accounts in B.C. available to be claimed by the rightful owners according to the most recent financial statements released by the not-for-profit BC Unclaimed Property Society (BCUPS), which serves as a "lost and found" for forgotten funds in the province. This includes an outstanding $1.9 million estate the legal heirs are unaware of  the largest unclaimed account in the BCUPS's database.

Alena Levitz, Executive Director, BC Unclaimed Property Society (CNW Group/BC Unclaimed Property Society)

BCUPS ( unclaimedpropertybc.ca ) is the administrator of British Columbia's unclaimed property program. The Society's mission is to put unclaimed money from dormant accounts back in the hands of the rightful owners. BCUPS also works with companies and organizations to help get dormant assets off their books.

In 2020, BCUPS returned $1,035,932 from dormant accounts to verified claimants who were unaware they had forgotten assets. The Society received $4,858,925 last year in unclaimed funds from the courts, the Public Guardian and Trustee of British Columbia, credit unions, insurance companies, various levels of government, and companies in liquidation to be reunited with the rightful owners.

"The COVID-19 pandemic upended British Columbians' financial well-being prompting many cash-strapped individuals to look for non-traditional sources of funds such as unclaimed assets," said Alena Levitz, Executive Director of the BC Unclaimed Property Society. "Last year there was a significant increase in the number of people reaching out to BCUPS to inquire whether they had unclaimed funds waiting for them. BCUPS received more than 200,000 website visits in 2020, a 134 percent increase over the previous year. We also received 13,834 general inquiries during the year, a 171 percent increase over 2019."

BCUPS holds unclaimed property as the custodian for rightful owners under the BC Unclaimed Property Act. The Society tracks down owners of dormant accounts and maintains a free online database ( unclaimedpropertybc.ca/searchp/search/ ) where people can search to see if they have any forgotten money waiting for them. If someone finds a dormant account in their name, they can claim the funds by completing a simple verification process that firmly establishes their identity as the rightful owner. There are no costs for BCUPS's services, and no time limit imposed to claim forgotten funds.

Most unclaimed accounts in BCUPS's database amount to between $300 to $500. The single largest unclaimed property payout by BCUPS was a $1.01 million estate made in 2019.

Dormant accounts administered by BCUPS apply only to provincially regulated financial institutions, companies and organizations, which includes inactive credit union accounts, as well as an unpaid wages, outstanding insurance payments, overpayments to debt collectors, proceeds from courts, pension funds, estates and real estate deposits. They do not include dormant bank accounts, which fall under the jurisdiction of the Bank of Canada. Across Canada, three provinces have unclaimed property programs in place (Alberta, British Columbia, and Quebec) covering provincially regulated companies and financial institutions. Unclaimed property legislation was introduced in New Brunswick in November 2019.

Technically, an account is deemed to be dormant in B.C. when a specified period of time has transpired with no activity, from a year to 10 years, depending on the type of account involved. Under B.C. law, credit unions, debt collection agencies, real estate agencies, companies in liquidation, municipal and provincial courts and municipalities, which are classified as mandatory holders, are required to make a "reasonable effort" to identify inactive account holders, before transferring these funds to BCUPS. Other organizations holding trust funds, insurance policies, brokerage accounts and closed pension plans are encouraged to voluntarily transfer their unclaimed property accounts to BCUPS if the rightful owners cannot be located.

BCUPS was established in 2003 by the Province of British Columbia and Vancouver Foundation ( vancouverfoundation.ca ) to administer B.C.'s unclaimed property program. Since its inception, BCUPS has returned more than $18.5 million in forgotten funds to the rightful owners.

One of the unique aspects of BCUPS is its philanthropic business model. British Columbia is the only jurisdiction in North America that has designated a not-for-profit society to administer its unclaimed property program where a portion of inactive funds are allocated each year for charitable purposes. Last year, BCUPS transferred $6.98 million to Vancouver Foundation to address community and social issues. Following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Vancouver Foundation used a portion of these funds as seed capital to help establish the Community Response Fund (CRF) in partnership with Vancity credit union, United Way Lower Mainland, and the City of Vancouver. The CRF provided essential relief to BC charities impacted by COVID-19 that provide health and social services as well as arts, culture, and other community benefits.

SOURCE BC Unclaimed Property Society

For further information: Martin Livingston, Living Communications Inc., 604-657-8234, Email: [email protected]
Online, interactive report highlights how Food Banks Canada has been there for Canadians during the pandemic: delivering almost $150 million in help, including over 34 million pounds of nutritious food and ~$98 million in funding to date, to 4,751 communities in every region of the nation.

TORONTO, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - A new report released today entitled Food Banks Canada COVID-19 Response Fund Impact Report shows how Canadians came together in record numbers to help food banks across Canada continue to be there for Canadians during the first year of the pandemic.

Food Banks Canada's $150M COVID-19 Response Fund was established early in the pandemic to provide centralized messaging and support for operational resources, food and funding to support community-based organizations who help Canadians living with food insecurity.

The new report shows that during the first year of the pandemic, Food Banks Canada delivered almost $150 million in help, including a record 34 million pounds of nutritious food and $97,988,170 in financial support to community organizations in 4,715 communities located in all of Canada's provinces and territories.

Food Banks: There for Canadians

"When the pandemic struck, Canada's food banks were tested like never before, facing an ever-changing series of challenging circumstances," explains Chris Hatch, Food Banks Canada's CEO. "Hundreds of thousands of Canadians, small and large national businesses, private and family foundations and government helped us continue our work to be there for Canadians".

Hatch says one of the most challenging pandemic changes was that many food banks had to switch from "grocery store shopping" formats to hampers, home delivery and drive-thrus to keep staff, volunteers and clients safe.

According to the new report:

7.8 million pounds of food was delivered via 390,000 hampers



22% of organizations introduced drive and walk thru services and pop-ups



67% of food banks and community organizations pivoted to provide home delivery

The Food Banks Canada COVID-19 Response Fund report credits an unprecedented $97.9 million in donations from individuals, businesses, and government grants which helped food banks continue to provide food and cover additional pandemic expenses, including:

PPE (masks, hand sanitizers for food bankers on the frontlines -- and for clients)



Reconfiguring food bank operations to be COVID-compliant; additional warehouse and/or cooler spaces and supporting safe client pick up exchange spaces



Staffing costs to help offset loss of volunteers related to lockdown's



Local food purchases to complement donations and directed support beyond FBC



Increased demand for services  particularly in urban areas and the North

Count on Canada

Hatch says when 65% of the nation's food banks faced severe food shortages, partnerships with Canadian farmers, food companies, private and corporate donors and the Federal Government Surplus Food Rescue Program were essential to help Food Banks Canada continue to provide for the already existing 1.1 million visits to Canadian food banks every month AND for higher numbers of new clients, due to the pandemic.

As part of Food Banks Canada's COVID-19 Response Fund the Federal Government's Surplus Food Rescue Program and private donors helped to provide:

2.9 million pounds of milk, cheese, and yogurt in partnership with the Dairy Farmers of Canada



5 million pounds of frozen meat and eggs were delivered to communities



18.5 million pounds of purpose manufactured, private label goods were produced to provide stability in supply to community food banks and food programs

"We want our neighbours who are experiencing food insecurity to know they can count on Canada, and they can count on us," sums up Hatch. "Communities can count on food banks today in an emergency situation  and they can continue to count on us to advocate for policy changes that will mean that one day food banks will no longer be needed. We are committed to a Canada where no one goes hungry."

About Food Banks Canada

Food Banks Canada provides national leadership to relieve hunger today and prevent hunger tomorrow in collaboration with the food bank network from coast-to-coast-to-coast. For 40 years, food banks have been dedicated to helping Canadians living with food insecurity. Over 3,000 food banks and community agencies come together to serve our most vulnerable neighbours who  last year  made 1.1 million visits to these organizations in one month alone, according to our HungerCount report. Over the past 10 years, as a system we've sourced and shared over 1.4 billion pounds of food and Food Banks Canada shared nearly $168 million in funding to help maximize collective impact and strengthen local capacity  while advocating for reducing the need for food banks. Our vision is clear: create a Canada where no one goes hungry.

Visit http://www.foodbankscanada.ca/ to learn more.



SOURCE Food Banks Canada

For further information: For interview requests or for more information, contact: Dani Lalonde | [email protected]

Related Links

https://www.foodbankscanada.ca/


OTTAWA, ON, May 10, 2021 /CNW/ - The Honourable David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, and the Honourable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, today issued the following statement:

"Five years ago, on May 10, 2016, the Government of Canada changed its position to fully support the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. On this day we endorsed the Declaration without qualification and committed to its full and effective implementation. We acknowledged the enormous effort and struggle from Indigenous leaders, across Canada and the world, to bring the Declaration into fruition and the Government of Canada became an active partner in the collaborative work to advance its implementation. These efforts have resulted in a significant shift in the global will to protect the rights, culture, language, dignity and wellbeing of Indigenous peoples worldwide.

"Since 2016, the Government of Canada has been working closely with Indigenous peoples to put the Declaration in action. We have co-developed legislation on First Nations, Inuit and Metis to affirm the rights of Indigenous peoples to exercise jurisdiction in relation to child and family services to their communities. Working with Indigenous partners, we developed the Indigenous Languages Act, which supports the reclamation, revitalization, maintenance and strengthening of Indigenous languages.

"We've been engaging directly with Indigenous partners at over 150 discussion tables across the country to explore flexible, rights-based agreements that support the renewal of Crown-Indigenous relationships based upon the recognition of rights, respect, cooperation and partnership. We continue to work with Indigenous institutional partners to remove barriers for First Nations that decide to opt-out of land and fiscal management sections of the Indian Act to self-govern their land and financial resources. We are also supporting initiatives to revitalize Indigenous laws and support access to justice. All of these measures contribute to the implementation of the Declaration in Canada.

"On December 3, 2020, we introduced Bill C-15, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. If passed, this Bill would create a lasting framework to advance federal implementation of the Declaration in collaboration with Indigenous peoples. This would help create a roadmap for the Government of Canada and Indigenous peoples to work together to achieve the promise of the Declaration while respecting Aboriginal and treaty rights recognized and affirmed in the Constitution.

"Working in partnership with First Nations, Inuit and Metis to effectively implement the Declaration will advance reconciliation for the benefit of all Canadians. We know there is much more to be done and we look forward to continuing this important work in partnership with Indigenous peoples. Working together to advance reconciliation and to implement the Declaration will help us all build a brighter, more inclusive future and a better Canada for current and future generations."



Associated Links

SOURCE Department of Justice Canada

For further information: media may contact: David Taylor, Director of Communications, Office of the Minister of Justice, 613-992-4621; Media Relations, Department of Justice Canada, 613-957-4207, [email protected]; Ani Dergalstanian, Press Secretary and Communications Advisor, Office of the Honourable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, 819-997-0002; Media Relations, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, 819-934-2302, [email protected]

Related Links

http://www.justice.gc.ca


OTTAWA, ON, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - Members of the media are invited to attend an important virtual infrastructure event with the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities; the Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade and member of Parliament for MarkhamThornhill, the Honourable Caroline Mulroney, Ontario's Minister of Transportation, the Honourable Kinga Surma, Ontario's Associate Minister of Transportation (GTA).

Other representatives in attendance:

John Tory , Mayor of Toronto

, Mayor of Frank Scarpitti , Mayor of Markham and Chair of York Region Rapid Transit Committee

, Mayor of and Chair of York Region Rapid Transit Committee Chairman Wayne Emmerson , CEO for the Regional Municipality of York

Date: Tuesday, May 11, 2021



Time: 1:00 p.m. EDT



Zoom event: To attend the virtual event, members of the media are asked to register by sending an email to [email protected].



Livestream: Members of the public are invited to view the live announcement on the Infrastructure Canada's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/InfrastructureCanadaENG/live

Follow us on Twitter , Facebook and Instagram

Web: Infrastructure Canada

SOURCE Infrastructure Canada

For further information: Chantalle Aubertin, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, 613-941-0660, [email protected]; Natasha Tremblay, Press Secretary, Office of the Ontario Minister of Transportation, [email protected] ; Communications Branch, [email protected], 416-327-1158; Media Relations: Infrastructure Canada, 613-960-9251, Toll free: 1-877-250-7154, Email: [email protected]

Related Links

www.infrastructure.gc.ca


OTTAWA, ON, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - Today, the Honourable Seamus O'Regan Jr., Minister of Natural Resources, released the following statement on the filing of an amicus curiae brief regarding the Line 5 pipeline in United States federal court:

"Energy security, economic prosperity and supporting energy workers are top priorities for the Government of Canada.

"Line 5 is essential to our energy security. The Government of Canada has continuously advocated for and raised the importance of Line 5. We've worked in close collaboration with provinces, industry and labour and have raised Line 5 directly with the U.S. Administration. It has been  and continues to be  a Team Canada approach. Line 5 does not just affect one province or one region  it supports our entire country.

"Today, Canada filed an amicus curiae brief in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan. This brief supports the continued mediation between Enbridge and the State of Michigan, underlines that Line 5 is a critical energy and economic link between Canada and the United States, and conveys Canada's belief that the U.S. federal court is the proper jurisdiction to hear the case between Michigan and Enbridge.

"Line 5 is a vital piece of infrastructure for Canada and the United States and has safely operated at the Straits of Mackinac for 68 years. It remains the safest, most efficient way to transport fuel to refineries and markets and is a reliable source of energy for Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Ontario and Quebec. This pipeline is as important to Canada as it is to the U.S. It heats both Canadian and American homes. It supports both Canadian and American jobs.

"Under the federal court's order, Enbridge and Michigan have entered into a mediation process and are meeting regularly. We remain confident this will lead to a solution. In filing this amicus brief, we worked with the governments of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Quebec. We are continuing to work together to defend Line 5, leaving no stone unturned in defending Canada's energy security and the workers who built this country."

LINK TO AMICUS

SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

For further information: Ian Cameron, Senior Communications Advisor, Office of the Minister of Natural Resources, 613-447-3488, [email protected]; Natural Resources Canada, Media Relations, 343-292-6100, [email protected]

Related Links

www.nrcan.gc.ca


Down the hall from us, House Republicans are plotting the demotion of a Republican member for the crime of repeating the truth: that Joe Biden is the president of the United States and that Donald Trump is lying, Schumer said.
The event trailer can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/fo0ihlqESog.

"GOML is a staple of the fighting game community, and with each passing year it shatters Canadian participation and viewership records." Said Joe Cribari, CEO of EMG. "We are looking forward to working closely with the TGS team to deliver another world class event."

"As we work through our acquisition with EMG, we are excited to work closely with Joe and his team to bring another record-breaking year to the Super Smash scene." Said Spiro Khouri, CEO of TGS. "This event is a big opportunity for us to demonstrate the power of the combined EMG and TGS teams."

GOML Online Tournament Schedule

Super Smash Bros. Melee Singles (NA and EU)  June 19-20

Super Smash Bros. for Ultimate Singles (NA and EU)  June 26-27

$1,000 prize pool for each main event per region.

About TGS Esports Inc.

TGS partners with Fortune 500 brands, schools, and tournament organizers to build out their esports community via tournaments, broadcast production, and events. TGS has commercialized an esports solution that allows brands and gamers to interact on its end to end platform. The combination of TGS esports event expertise and next generation software creates an unparalleled esports experience that allows sponsors and brands to reach their desired gaming demographic.

About EMG

Even Matchup Gaming (EMG) is Canada's premiere fighting game tournament organizer & broadcaster. Founded in 2012, they have executed 300+ local, regional, and national events for the esports community developing one of the strongest grassroots followings in the world.

Summary of Acquisition

TGS will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of EMG ("EMG Shares") for the aggregate purchase price of CAD$1,100,000.00 (the "Purchase Price")(the "Acquisition"); The Purchase Price will be paid via the issuance of up to 5,500,000 common shares of TGS to EMG (the "Consideration Shares") at a deemed price per share of CAD $0.20.

Joseph Cribari will enter into an employment agreement with TGS providing that Mr. Cribari will be employed with a title to be determined for a minimum period of two years from the date of closing of the Acquisition with TGS.

The Consideration Shares will be subject to a contractual lock-up, periods ranging between 24 and 36 months. The LOI contains, and the definitive agreement will provide for, customary representations, warranties and. Completion of the Acquisition remains subject to a number of conditions, including: (i) the negotiation of a definitive agreement, (ii) the completion of satisfactory due diligence, (iii) the approval of the boards of directors of the Company and EMG, (iv) obtaining all required consents, waivers and approvals, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange, and (vi) other customary closing conditions.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements in this release are forward-looking statements, which reflect the expectations of management regarding the Company. Forward-looking statements consist of statements that are not purely historical, including any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future, including with respect to: expectations regarding whether the Acquisition will be consummated including whether the conditions to the consummation to the Acquisition will be satisfied; the timing for completing the Acquisition, if at all, and the conditions to such transaction; expectations

for other economic, business, and/or competitive factors;Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the statements, including risks related to factors beyond the control of the Company. The risks include, but are not limited to, the following:the unknown magnitude and duration of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company; the ability to consummate the Acquisition; the ability to obtain requisite regulatory or shareholder approvals and the satisfaction of other conditions to the consummation of the Acquisition on proposed terms and schedule; the potential impact of the announcement or consummation of the Acquisition on relationships; including with regulatory bodies, employees, suppliers, customers and competitors; changes in general economic, business and political conditions, including changes in the financial markets; changes in applicable laws and regulations both locally and in foreign jurisdictions; compliance with extensive government regulation; the risks and uncertainties associated with foreign markets; the diversion of management time on the Acquisition; the risks associated with operating esports events such as GOML; technological risks associated with operating an esports platform; and other risks that are customary to companies operating businesses such as the business of the Company. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occur or, if they do occur, what benefits the Company will obtain from them.

SOURCE TGS Esports Inc
LAC-MEGANTIC, QC, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - We will never forget the LacMegantic tragedy and the people who lost their lives. Railway safety will always be a priority for the Government of Canada. That is why we are re-affirming our commitment to supporting the people of LacMegantic and the surrounding area, and to advancing the important LacMegantic rail bypass project.

Today, the Minister of Transport, the Honourable Omar Alghabra, and the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport, Soraya Martinez Ferrara, are announcing that the Government of Canada still intends to complete the rail bypass project in 2023.

We achieved a number of milestones in recent months which have allowed us to move the project forward, despite many challenges, including those posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. To relocate railway operations to the Lac-Megantic industrial park, as announced in 2019, we had additional engineering work done. This allowed us to deliver what residents and the mayors of LacMegantic, Nantes and Frontenac wanted.

The Government of Canada and the rail operator, Canadian Pacific Railway, will start preparing plans and specifications in the coming weeks. Negotiations to acquire the lands will soon begin with the impacted property owners. A virtual information session will be held with them in the near future to answer their questions.

The construction phase is expected to begin in spring 2022. We are working with Canadian Pacific Railway to establish a schedule that will allow us to finish the project in 2023.

This reconstruction project will continue to be a priority for the Government of Canada until the project is successfully completed.

Quote

"From the start, our government has been committed to completing this project while maintaining open communication with the people of Lac-Megantic, Frontenac, Nantes and the neighbouring communities. We are working hard to move this project forward within the established time frames. People can count on my support."

Minister of Transport

The Honourable Omar Alghabra

"It is very important for me to know that the rail bypass project is moving forward, and especially to know that the needs of the families and citizens of Lac-Megantic, Frontenac and Nantes will be put forward."

Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport

Soraya Martinez Ferrada

Quick facts

On May 11, 2018 , the Canadian and Quebec governments announced joint funding for the construction of the Lac-Megantic rail bypass. The choice of the final route is based on a number of studies conducted as part of the feasibility study supervised by the City of Lac-Megantic

, the Canadian and governments announced joint funding for the construction of the Lac-Megantic rail bypass. The choice of the final route is based on a number of studies conducted as part of the feasibility study supervised by the City of Lac-Megantic The federal government will provide 60% of the funding, and the Quebec government will provide the other 40%.

government will provide the other 40%. Consultations with Indigenous peoples are going well. Transport Canada is working with the Waban-Aki First Nation and the HuronWendat First Nation, who, during the consultations, expressed their interest in participating in the archaeological studies.

is working with the Waban-Aki First Nation and the HuronWendat First Nation, who, during the consultations, expressed their interest in participating in the archaeological studies. Transport Canada is working with the Ministere des Transports du Quebec and other partners to integrate into the project, the environmental measures specified by the Bureau d'audiences publiques sur l'environnement, and those identified in the project's environmental assessment.

Associated link

Lac-Megantic bypass

SOURCE Transport Canada

For further information: Allison St-Jean, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Omar Alghabra, Minister of Transport, Ottawa, 613-290-8656, [email protected]; Media Relations, Transports Canada, Ottawa, 613-993-0055, [email protected]

Related Links

http://www.tc.gc.ca/


OTTAWA, ON, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - The Canadian Commission for UNESCO, Library and Archives Canada and the NWT Archives are pleased to announce the inscription of two new collections on the Canada Memory of the World Register. These unique and irreplaceable documents highlight the preservation and transmission of Indigenous cultures and knowledge.

Created in 2017, the Canada Memory of the World Register promotes the immense diversity of the country's significant documentary heritage that extends from the initial settling of the land by Indigenous Peoples up to the present time.

The two new inscriptions are:

Gwich'in Tribal Council  Gwich'in Social and Cultural Institute fonds

The Gwich'in Tribal Council  Gwich'in Social and Cultural Institute (GTC-GSCI) fonds held at the NWT Archives consists of the complete research and administrative records created by the GTC-GSCI over 25 years of work. The fonds is an irreplaceable collection of Indigenous knowledge, created expressly for the preservation and promotion of Gwich'in culture, language, history, archaeology, place names, land use, ecology, genealogy, ethnobotany and traditional skills. This collection is significant as it is the most rich, comprehensive, and meticulous documentation of Gwich'in knowledge in the world. The Gwich'in Tribal Council and the NWT Archives work together to honour the intent of the Gwich'in Elders who wished to safeguard, preserve and provide access to this knowledge for future generations.

"The Gwich'in Tribal Council (GTC) Department of Culture and Heritage (formerly GSCI) continues to work to preserve and promote Gwich'in culture. We are incredibly proud of the work they do, and for this prestigious honour. Our culture is at the core of who we are as a people and it must not only be protected, but promoted and celebrated."

- Kristine McLeod, GTC Deputy Grand Chief



"Our Indigenous Cultures, languages and heritage shapes our identity as Northerners and illustrates our unique ways of life. This prestigious designation for the Gwich'in Social and Cultural Institute collection will preserve and promote the Gwich'in culture, language and heritage on a world stage."

- R.J. Simpson, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Government of Northwest Territories

Metis Nation River Lot Settlements Maps

Library and Archives Canada holds plans of Metis river lots as required by the Manitoba Act and the transfer of Rupert's Land and the North Western Territories. These river lot plans, created by Canadian government surveyors beginning in 1870, are important documents in the understanding of the Metis Nation. They are invaluable to the entire Metis Nation because they show where Metis ancestors lived before their homeland was included in Canada . While these river lot plans do not include any Michif, they clearly show where this language originated in Red River and delineate the families that spoke this unique Metis heritage language.

"The history of the Manitoba Metis originating in Red River is the history of the Metis Nation. We are the only Indigenous people to bring a province into Canadian Confederation. On behalf of our Cabinet and Citizens, I'm proud to see our history recognized by the Canadian Commission for UNESCO. These river lots show our original role of strength and leadership in the Red River Settlement and give us a chance to reflect on where our Nation would be today, if we had not been forced off these lands. If we had been allowed to flourish and develop, I know our economic growth would have been impressive."

- David Chartrand LL.D (hon.), O.M., President, Manitoba Metis Federation

"We applaud the addition of the Metis River Lot Settlements Maps to the Canada Memory of the World Register, which is in line with Library and Archives Canada's commitment to truth, reconciliation and inclusion. This recognition will help raise awareness of the vital importance the Metis Nation had in shaping today's Canada while acknowledging the unfairness and discrimination they faced along the way. Learning about our collective past allows us to understand the present so that we can continue to build a better country for everyone."

- Leslie Weir, Librarian and Archivist of Canada

What does it mean to be included in the Memory of the World Register?

UNESCO's Memory of the World program, including the Canadian Memory of the World Register, showcases the most meaningful documents in humanity's heritage and history. Being included in the Canada Memory of the World Register underscores the importance and relevance of preserving documentary heritage. It also highlights the importance of making these unique collections accessible to citizens, students, researchers, and the public.

The Canadian Advisory Committee for Memory of the World is made up of experts who examine the applications and make recommendations to the Canadian Commission for UNESCO regarding collections that should be included in the Register.

"Since its creation four years ago, the Canada Memory of the World Register has welcomed 18 inscriptions, with two more announced today. These inscriptions are a testament to the rich documentary heritage associated with Indigenous languages and cultures, a priority for the Canadian Commission for UNESCO and the program in the context of reconciliation. Listing on the Register provides an unparalleled opportunity to recognize the Gwich'in Tribal Council - Gwich'in Social and Cultural Institute fonds and the Metis Nation River Lot Settlement Maps as a heritage of humanity."

- Chantal Fortier, President, Canadian Advisory Committee for Memory of the World

Visit the Canada Memory of the World Register for a complete list of all 20 inscriptions.

SOURCE Canadian Commission for UNESCO

For further information: For more information on the Memory of the World program: Vanessa Poulin-Gladu, Manager, Public Affairs, Tel: 613-862-1637, [email protected]; For more information on the Metis Nation River Lot Settlements Maps: Library and Archives Canada, Media Relations, Tel: 819-994-4589, [email protected]; Kat Patenaude, Media Relations Advisor, Manitoba Metis Federation, 204-801-7710, [email protected]; For more information on the Gwich'in Tribal Council - Gwich'in Social and Cultural Institute fonds: Sharon Snowshoe, Director, Culture & Heritage, Gwich'in Tribal Council, Tel: 867-952-2593, [email protected]; Public Affairs and Communications, Department of Education, Culture and Employment, Government of the Northwest Territories, [email protected]

Related Links

https://en.ccunesco.ca/


Since its inaugural release in 2019, the Index has evolved based on feedback from youth from coast to coast to coast. It now captures how a city's attributes can help young people fulfill their professional and personal ambitions, including economic factors. New urban work indicators include a city's level of climate education, anti-discrimination scales, and the likeliness of local economy to automate.

Cities were ranked using publicly-available data and had the potential to score up to a possible 956 points. Vancouver (using data from 14 of the largest municipalities which make up Metro Vancouver) was found to be the top-ranked city in the country, scoring 623.66 points. Through the ranking, larger cities were generally rated to be better places to work overall. However, each city saw ratings that reflected unique areas of strength and opportunities for growth. The cities ranked as follows:

1) Vancouver (623.66) 2) Hamilton (541.23) 3) Edmonton (538.96) 4) Victoria (538.38) 5) Montreal (532.22) 6) Calgary (530.47) 7) Ottawa/Gatineau (530.40) 8) Toronto (525.91) 9) Quebec City (503.92) 10) Mississauga (501.05) 11) Halifax (496.42) 12) Kelowna (494.48) 13) Winnipeg (486.21) 14) Kitchener-Waterloo (485.48) 15) Sudbury (481.03) 16) Saskatoon (479.36) 17) Lethbridge (474.13) 18) Brampton (468.84)

19) Laval (466.55) 20) Yellowknife (461.87) 21) Oshawa (460.16) 22) Regina (458.57) 23) Charlottetown (446.22) 24) St. John's (434.91) 25) London (434.16) 26) Moncton (411.74) 27) Fredericton (395.27)

The primary source of data for the Index is the Youthful Cities Pivot Hub. Launched in March 2020, it is the culmination of the Pivot 2020, a COVID-19 youth employment project, funded by the Government of Canada and led by Youthful Cities, Simon Fraser University's Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue, and the Canadian Council for Youth Prosperity. More than 1,200 young people from 27 Canadian cities were employed as urban researchers in the fall of 2020 to collect public data on the included cities  and concurrently conduct surveys and interviews with over 3,000 youth (aged 15-29) to inform the measurement of topics and indicators. In addition, Youthful Cities and RBC's Thought Leadership team partnered to structure the new topics and indicators  resulting in 15,769 total points of data contributing to the 2021 Urban Work Index rankings.

"The ambition of RBC Future Launch is to empower Canadian youth for the jobs of tomorrow," said Mark Beckles, Vice-President, Social Impact & Innovation, RBC. "We are proud to support the Urban Work Index, expanding and continuing our partnership with Youthful Cities. The Index is a helpful tool and we are confident more young people will gain the insights needed to make informed decisions on where they choose to live and work, based on themes they have highlighted as important. These findings also help to validate the community investments RBC is already making and begin to inform us on where more support is needed."

"COVID-19 has made the future of work as a young adult seem even more precarious than usual," said Robert Barnard, Co-Founder of Youthful Cities. "As governments and corporations are getting ready for post-COVID recovery, there is a great opportunity to create a blueprint for more inclusive and accessible work in our great Canadian cities. We hope the 2021 Urban Work Index will inform and inspire that dialogue to start now."

New this year, youth can use an online widget to gain a customized view of which Canadian city could be the best place for them to work. Based on personalized inputs and preferences (mapped against the 11 topics detailed within the Index), the widget will help users 'find their city' by providing a tailored recommendation. Young people can then post the result on social media to share insights and inform their peers.

The Youthful Cities 2021 Urban Work Index is now available to view online.

About RBC

Royal Bank of Canada is a global financial institution with a purpose-driven, principles-led approach to delivering leading performance. Our success comes from the 86,000+ employees who leverage their imaginations and insights to bring our vision, values and strategy to life so we can help our clients thrive and communities prosper. As Canada's biggest bank, and one of the largest in the world based on market capitalization, we have a diversified business model with a focus on innovation and providing exceptional experiences to our 17 million clients in Canada, the U.S. and 34 other countries. Learn more at rbc.com.

We are proud to support a broad range of community initiatives through donations, community investments and employee volunteer activities. See how at rbc.com/community-social-impact.

About Youthful Cities

Since 2012, Youthful Cities has designed programs that build a unique base of urban knowledge while engaging youth (15-29 years) to design and develop innovative solutions to their cities' critical issues. Our urban Indexes ignite an important dialogue about the importance of youth to the future of cities.

SOURCE RBC

For further information: Josh Humeniuk, Corporate Communications, RBC, [email protected], 416-567-5607; Robert Barnard, Youthful Cities, [email protected], 416-953-9956; Cole Crawford, Stellick Marketing Communications, [email protected], 416-953-8577

Related Links

http://www.rbc.com


The centre decided to give out these doses to 21 states and union territories paving the way towards vaccine to increase the overall vaccinations but will also help in slowing down the transmission of infection.

Government instructed the states to reach out to the Pune-based company in order to negotiate contracts to secure the doses of Covishield to be availed for the local demands. The doses of 50 lakh are to be vaccinated to those who are between 18-44 years age. Private hospitals are also allowed to get the doses.

The ministry advised the states to negotiate with the company and initiate the implementation activity as early as it can be. As the vaccines were packed to give out to UK by Serum Institute for which different label was fixed on the vials, which might have to be changed since it is to be supplied in the local market now.

The centre has decided to give out these doses to 21 states and union territories paving the way towards vaccine. While some states have been availed 3,50,000 doses each and the rest got 1,00,000 doses each based on the caseload in the states. More than 25.5 lakh beneficiaries of age group 18-44 are vaccinated so far.

The third phase in India of vaccination drive opened up with people below 45 years, experts said, will not only increase the overall vaccinations but will also help in slowing down the transmission of infection. At least 65 million vaccine doses have been a regulated in the country since the nationwide Covid-19 vaccination began.

Meanwhile, amid the surge in Covid cases, the country recorded active caseload of 400,000 per day active cases in 2 months. Indias statistical record of the cases has reached 22,662,575 according to the data from Union ministry of health and family welfare showed on Monday.

Amid the exponential rise in the fresh positive cases of Covid, 24 hour new recoveries has outnumbered daily new cases. A net decline of 30,016 cases recorded from the total active caseload in the last 24 hour for the first time after two months (61) days. Government is proceeding rapidly in delivering the Global Aid of oxygen concentrators, cylinders, generation plants and more than 3.4L Remedesivir Vials to states and UTs through a Whole of Government approach towards Covid.
Ola Foundation has joined hands with the donation platform GiveIndia. The drive will kickstart this week in Bengaluru as part of its O2forIndia initiative providing people with free oxygen concentrators.

Olas non-profit organization Ola Foundation has joined hands with the donation platform GiveIndia. This collaboration is to provide people with free oxygen concentrators who are in need of it. The drive will kickstart this week in Bengaluru as part of its O2forIndia initiative. The company aims to contribute towards providing relief to the people amid the deadly pandemic crisis.

Ola CEO Bhavish Aggarwal said that the urban mobility company will provide free and easy access to oxygen concentrators to those in need. You can request for concentrators on the Ola app. Once validated, we will deliver it to your doorstep and pick it up back once you no longer need it. Concentrator and transportation are both free, he announced. The project will begin in Bangalore this week and will expand across India in coming weeks.

Bhavish Aggarwal hopes this initiative brings much-needed support during these very difficult times and helps in mitigating the pain and the anxiety among those impacted. Currently, India is severely impacted by the second wave of the deadly COVID-19. In hospitals, there is a shortage of oxygen, beds, ventilators and healthcare is on the brink of collapsing across states.

Read More: As India battles massive surge, black fungal infection spotted in Covid-19 patients; several fears big outbreak

Several organizations across the spectrum are lending a helping hand to source and donate oxygenators, breathing machines, and ventilators. Bengaluru reported 20,897 fresh cases on Sunday and 281 deaths, the highest of all 30 districts in Karnataka. A large number of casualties are taking place due to lung failure. As per the local medical experts, it could also be a sign of a new variant popping up in the region.
From floating orbs and shadow people to possible cryptids and people fainting, the Ansonia Opera House has it all  at least according to a paranormal investigation team.

When I first rolled up there, it was 6:30 p.m. I went outside and I noticed that there were a few energies flying around, said Nick Grossman, lead investigator for Connecticut-based paranormal investigation Ghost Storm. Im clairvoyant so I can see this stuff.

Grossman and his team investigated the historic opera house on April 25 as part of a series of paranormal investigations that will lead up the first-ever paranormal convention in Connecticut, ParaConn.

Built in 1869 and abandoned since 1971, the 900-capacity opera house's alleged haunted history of the building has been debated at length over the years.

I didnt really expect it to be as haunted as it actually was, Grossman said about the opera house after concluding his investigation.

Grossman believes roughly 40 entities inhabit the opera house.

Most places have one or two  three the most, added Charles Rosenay of GHOSTours.com, who assisted Grossman with the investigation. Who knows how many people have died there or how many accidents there have been. Theres bound to be that energy in the walls

And when Nick says haunted, it is not in the connotation of [us] being there and theyre scaring [us] and there to disturb humans, Rosenay added.

Grossman reported seeing the most activity when he turned on some opera music in the venue.

When we turned on the opera music, all the anomalies were zooming around and we saw shadow people walking around, Grossman said. We used the music as a trigger object, and it obviously worked.

The investigation, which was conducted alongside East Coast Paranormal Photography, CT PASTS and Rosenay, was able to uncover numerous paranormal occurrences at the defunct opera house, Grossman said.

Using infrared technology and other ghost hunting equipment such as EVPs and a spirit box, Grossman and his team of investigators were able to report occurrences of phantom lights zooming around the opera house and in some instances, shadow people moving through walls.

At one point, Grossman said a member of the investigation team fainted after being overwhelmed by the energy near the stage.

READ MORE: Haunted Connecticut: A guide to the spookiest, most haunted places in the state

Grossman also reported that he placed a chair in the middle of the venue and once he started playing opera music, he reported seeing an orb fly out from the chair.

Music is a very magical phenomenon because it really alters your feelings [and] emotions. It changes your perception while that song is playing, Grossman said. Music and art are a very psychic phenomenon.

One of the most interesting finds during the investigation, Grossman said, was what he described as the presence of a red orb, which is an anomaly in the field of paranormal research.

When asked about its energy, Grossman weighed that the orb could be demonic in nature but more research would be required to prove that.

To be quite frank and honest, its a rare photo and the only time that Ive ever seen that was at Union Cemetery in Easton, Grossman said. He added that he is also not ruling out the possibility that the red orb at the opera house could somehow be connected to the Easton cemetery.

One of the other most notable discoveries was that of a supposed goat-humanoid creature that was photographed on the balcony.

Courtesy of Ghost Storm

Grossman said that cryptids, such as the possible humanoid creature, come through interdimensional portals and sometimes will only be visible for a few seconds at a time.

Whenever there is a paranormal portal, youre going to get all sorts of entities coming through, Grossman said. The opera house is definitely a large interdimensional portal considering the amount of entities we saw in there.

According to Grossman, the world of the paranormal is our next door neighbor.

Rosenay added that the appearance of this cryptid is similar to that of a hooded creature that the team captured when investigating Dudleytown in northern Connecticut. He also suggested that the appearance of these portals is why people may report seeing a bigfoot or yeti for a second, and then the next second, it disappears.

As for why the opera house is so haunted, Grossman attributed it to the residual energy left behind from these entities.

We try to come up with logical explanations for the evidence that we have, Grossman said. One of our secrets is that just about all of us are a group of psychics and when we go into a personal case at a residential house, the spirits will come right out for us. Were a shiny lure and the spirits are the fish.

Grossman also attributed the energy of the surrounding area as a reason why the area is haunted.

I like to think of the Valley as the Connecticut triangle, Grossman said.

Connecticut is probably one of the most haunted states out there.

Grossman traces the Connecticut triangle between Shelton, and Bethany or Oxford. He believes that approximately one in three neighbors in the area believe that something paranormal is occurring in their house.

Aside from the upcoming ParaConn, Grossman is currently filming a documentary entitled Ghost Expedition Valley, which will contain footage that will be shown at the convention in July.

Additionally, Grossman revealed that he will be doing another paranormal expedition in Ansonia ahead of ParaConn.
Goat yoga isnt new, but it certainly is a beloved activity. Theres just something whimsical about having a tiny goat climb on your back or nibble on your mat while you hone in on your inner peace.

As it turns out, goat yoga isnt the only goat-centric activity that Connecticut offers. In fact, it seems Nutmeggers are so fond of spending quality time with goats that farms offer up programs where folks of all ages can snuggle, stroll and even paint with goats.

Here are some goat-related activities around the state to you get you out of the house this week.

Aussakita Acres Farm

Courtesy of Aussakita Acres Farm's Facebook page

Aussakita Acres Farm in Manchester offers a variety of animal programs to participate in with their Nigerian Dwarf goats. They currently offer goat yoga, baby goat socials and goat gatherings. The farm also conducts tours that feature all of their animals, and they have plans to host goat hikes in mid-June.

Goat Gatherings are for those folks who might not want to do the yoga, but still want to interact with the goats, Tracy Longoria of Aussakita Acres Farm said.

Farm Jibe-iT

Farm Jibe-iT in Redding offers goat hikes for groups of four or private parties around Huntington State Park. Participants will get to stroll for an hour in the company of baby goats who will set the pace for the hike.

Catherine Violet Hubbard Animal Sanctuary

Bill Glass / Contributed photo

In Newtown, the Catherine Violet Hubbard (CVH) Animal Sanctuary holds monthly goat yoga sessions featuring the goats from Bradley Mountain Farm. The sessions are led by Heather Morgado who owns Yogaspace in Bethel.

Harmony Verna, director of marketing and communications at CVH Animal Sanctuary, said We celebrate the human/animal bond, and goat yoga is the perfect way for people to experience the peace and beauty animals bring to all of us.

For folks who arent as interested in yoga, the sanctuary also hosts a program called Backyard Farm Animals, where attendees meet and learn about raising rabbits, goats, sheep, cows, llamas, alpacas, pigs and chickens.

Blue Lotus Yoga

In Monroe, Blue Lotus Yoga offers goat yoga classes as well as farm yoga workshops with Zenko Farms.

Bradley Mountain Farm

Bradley Mountain Farm / Contributed photo

Bradley Mountain Farm in Southington is all about the goats. The farm specializes in making soap from goat milk and offers up a variety of goat related activities in addition to goat yoga, including Fairy Goatmothers, Goat Snuggles, Barnyard Buddies, Goat Strolls, Go-at Painting, Goats N Pajamas, Goat Cuddle Therapy and more. Each activity is so different, theres so many things to do, Terri Battaglia, farm event leader at Bradley Mountain Farm, said.

Battaglia explained that for goat painting, participants arent exactly using a standard brush. You come in and you get a canvas and you get to create the painting with the goat. You get to pick out your own two colors and we just apply the paint on the canvas and put it on the floor and you work with the goat to get them to walk over the canvas.

At the farm visitors can dress the goats up in pajamas and tutus, groom them, walk around with them, and  of course  snuggle with them.

tinamarie.craven@hearstmediact.com
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP)  Forty-two people have died during anti-government protests that began two weeks ago amid discontent fueled by growing poverty and inequality during the pandemic, Colombia's human rights ombudsman said Tuesday.

The government agency added that 168 people had been reported missing during the protests, which were set to continue Wednesday. On May 5, the human rights ombudsman said 24 people had been killed in the protests and 89 were missing.

The new figures from the ombudsman are similar to those recorded by Temblores, a non-governmental group that tracks police violence. Temblores said Tuesday that 40 people had been killed during the protests in incidents related to police violence while one policeman was stabbed to death while trying to stop a riot.

Colombian police have been widely accused of using excessive force to break up demonstrations and riots that started April 28 after the government attempted to increase taxes in what it said was an effort to reduce its deficit and raise funds for health care and social services.

The government withdrew its $6.7 billion tax plan May 2 and the finance minister resigned the following day, but protests have continued across the country. Demonstrators are now pressing demands that include reforming the police, implementing a basic income plan for 10 million people and providing free tuition at public universities.

Colombias economy contracted 7% last year and millions of people were left without work by restrictions related to the pandemic. That increased frustration with the government, which had failed to meet demands made during a previous wave of protests in 2019.

On Monday night, the governments peace commissioner, Miguel Ceballos, said President Ivan Duques administration was willing to sit down with protest leaders to negotiate on some of their demands. Ceballos asked the United Nations and the Roman Catholic Church to mediate the talks.

The protest leaders met with government officials earlier Monday and said that basic conditions for negotiations, such as security guarantees for protesters, had not been met. Protest leaders are expected to respond to the governments new offer later this week.

The protests are being staged as coronavirus infections reach record levels in Colombia, where more than 78,000 people have died from COVID-19, the disease that can be caused by the virus. Over the past week Colombia has averaged more than 15,000 new infections a day. The current rate of infections is five times greater than at the beginning of March.
Our democracy is not in crisis and we arent going to let one party take over our democracy under the false pretense of saving it, McConnell said, arguing that the For the People Act is constructed to help Democrats remain in power.
WASHINGTON  After a recent swing through Oman, Jordan and Qatar, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy said he sees the grassroots of de-escalation emerging in the civil war in Yemen, a deadly crisis for which the Connecticut Democrat has long advocated for a peaceful solution.

On a call with reporters after his return, Murphy, who leads the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee on the Middle East, also said he had great concern about the recent escalation of violence in Israel and he urged President Joe Biden to secure a return of the Iran nuclear deal.

I came back more confident than ever that it is imperative for the United States to get back into the Iran deal, Murphy.

There is no doubt that a restart of the deal is good for the United States and good for the region. Interesting to note that the very vocal opposition to the Iran deal that was present from Gulf nations under the Obama administration has largely disappeared.

President Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Iran deal in 2018, calling it a horrible one-sided deal and reimposing sanctions on the country.

Negotiators for the Biden administration and Iran have recently been discussing terms for a possible new deal in Europe.

Murphy said during his trip and since returning, he has advised the Biden administration that it must get the Iranians back into compliance with the deal.

Murphy departed for the Middle East on April 29 for a multi-day trip of meetings with foreign leaders and Biden administration officials, mostly focused on ending the war and delivering humanitarian relief in Yemen.

Since 2015, an intractable civil war has consumed Yemen with fighting between Iran-backed Houthis, who overthrew the Yemeni government, and a multi-state coalition lead by Saudi Arabian forces and supported by the U.S.

The war has produced the worlds worst humanitarian crisis, with millions of people suffering from malnutrition, a situation that has worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In February, Biden announced the U.S. would end American support for offensive operations in Yemen, including arms sales. The U.S. will continue anti-terrorism activities in the area.

While in the region, Murphy met with the foreign ministers in Oman and Qatar to discuss the role those countries can plan in addressing the situation in Yemen.

We have a ceasefire agreement on the table in Yemen, Murphy said. This to me seems like the time for a ceasefire and political negotiations... the United States is willing to be active and present in those negotiations... we are hopeful that the Omanis will deliver that message to the Houthis.

Then, he traveled to Jordan for a sit down with King Abdullah II of Jordan along with officials from the U.S. Department of State, Defense and National Security Council. Murphy later dined with Abdullah and the queen.

While in Jordan, Murphy also met with the United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen and Bidens Yemen Special Envoy. Murphy has urged the Biden administration to fully fund the UN appeal for humanitarian funds for Yemen.

He visited a United Nations Relief and Works Agency training center that supports Palestinian refugees. Murphy also had lunch with Connecticut National Guard troops stationed in Jordan.

emilie.munson@hearstdc.com; Twitter: @emiliemunson
The military takeover of Myanmar early in the morning of Feb. 1 reversed the country's slow climb toward democracy after five decades of army rule.

But Myanmar's citizens were not shy about demanding their democracy be restored.

They poured into the streets of cities and towns, carrying banners calling for the release of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose party they reelected to office by a landslide last November.

The turnouts were enormous, and the countrys military rulers felt threatened. With a partial understanding of the situation, they tried to block social media platforms, which they knew could be used for organizing protests. But their more technologically adept opponents devised workarounds and activated word-of-mouth networks. The vast marches and demonstrations continued.

Gatherings were declared illegal, curfews imposed, the media muzzled, internet access limited even more. Still the protests went on.

The security forces turned more forceful, but demonstrators remained defiant. Terror and lethal force was unleashed on them, with the predictably tragic results. Hundreds of protesters and bystanders have been killed, including dozens of children.

In the 100 days since its takeover, the military has failed to secure its position and faces battles on more fronts, as armed ethnic minority groups seeking more autonomy join their struggle to that of the democracy activists.

The street protests are fewer and much smaller now. Enraged citizens have taken up active self-defense, countering violence with violence. In the cities, small bombings with homemade devices have become a daily occurrence, while hundreds, perhaps thousands, of activists have fled to join the ethnic guerrillas in the jungles along the borders, seeking safety as well as military training to continue the fight.
SAN DIEGO (AP)  Buoyed by a large budget surplus and swimming in federal pandemic recovery money, California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday proposed $12 billion to get more people experiencing homelessness off the streets and into homes of their own.

Newsoms proposal includes $8.75 billion over two years to create an estimated 46,000 housing units, expanding on a program he launched last year to convert motels and other properties into housing. Nearly half the money would go toward housing in places where people with mental health and other behavioral issues can get services onsite.

Newsom also proposed spending $3.5 billion on rental subsidies, new housing and shelter resources with the aim of ending family homelessness within five years. It would help families with minors avoid losing their homes in the first place or help them get sheltered without spending days, weeks or months on a waitlist.

As governor I actually want to get something done. I dont want to talk about this for a decade, Newsom said in a news conference at a former San Diego Residence Inn that has been converted into housing for 177 previously homeless people.

Whats happening on our streets and sidewalks is unacceptable," he said.

The Democratic governor, who faces a recall election this year, seized on the twin issues of homelessness and housing affordability early on in his first term as governor. The nations most populous state has an estimated 161,000 people experiencing homelessness, more than any other state. Advocates say they can't house people quickly enough with a shortage of units and high rents.

The largest concentration of homelessness is in Los Angeles, where Mayor Eric Garcetti last month vowed to spend nearly $1 billion to move some of the 61,000 homeless people in Los Angeles County off the streets. Rows of tents, cardboard shelters, battered RVs and makeshift plywood structures have now expanded beyond the notorious Skid Row throughout the nations second-most populous city.

During the pandemic, Newsom launched projects Roomkey and Homekey" using federal money to house homeless residents in hotels and helping cities, counties and other local entities buy and convert motels and other properties into housing. Newsom officials said $800 million spent on the Homekey program created 6,000 more housing units, providing shelter for 8,200 people.

One of them is Lindsey Prescott, who made an unplanned appearance at Newsom's news conference after her 18-month-old daughter Mia waved at the governor when he arrived at a converted Residence Inn operated by Father Joe's Villages.

Prescott said she was homeless for five years, struggling with addiction after her mother died, and lost her daughter to foster care. She said she got Mia back in May after she stopped using drugs and was selected to move into the former hotel.

I feel normal, said Prescott, as Mia darted around an interior patio next to a tennis court. Im a mom. I have my daughter. She has her crib next to my bed. I go to the grocery store. I cook.

Prescott expects to stay at the converted hotel for two years, then move to an apartment or house. There is no limit to how long people can stay at Father Joe's, and some may choose to live permanently.

Nan Roman, president and CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, called Newsom's hotel and motel programs gamechangers that took advantage of the pandemic to make real changes. A topsy-turvy real estate market and the federal government throwing money at local governments make it an ideal time to expand housing, she said, but lots of coordination is needed on things such as rental subsidies and ongoing care to make sure people don't end up back on the streets.

Advocates cheered the governors proposal. But they voiced concerns about California's decades-old resistance to building new homes: long-term funding issues, neighborhood opposition and political jockeying.

If we couple it with actually taking steps to close our affordable housing gap, it could be good," said Dr. Margot Kushel, director of the Center for Vulnerable Populations at the University of California, San Francisco. The people who are homeless right now do need a response today, and not five years from now.

Focusing on homelessness could prove politically helpful for Newsom in the recall campaign. Republican challengers, including John Cox and former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, issued statements calling Newsom ineffective.

Later Tuesday, Newsom traveled to a trash-strewn lot adjacent to a homeless encampment on a freeway overpass near downtown Los Angeles, where he announced a $1.5 billion program to clean up garbage and spruce up neighborhoods around the state.

With a bank of TV cameras tracking him, Newsom pulled on a pair of gloves and grabbed a garbage picker, stuffing plastic bags with debris. from an old high-heeled shoe to a discarded sleeping bag and tent.

He vowed that he'll make sure the state has sustained funding for homelessness while he's governor, but he sounded dubious about establishing a dedicated funding stream, saying it could create a financial shackle that might prevent the state from meeting other needs.

Advocates for the homeless expressed concern over the proposed clean-up money, saying they hope its not an excuse for encampment sweeps.

If Newsoms plan wins support from the Legislature, its implementation would depend heavily on the willingness of local governments and communities to go along, which is often a significant barrier.

Every community group that you go to demands that you solve the problem of homelessness, and then in the exact same meeting theyll demand you dont solve it anywhere near them, said San Diego County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher, a fellow Democrat who appeared with Newsom.

The governor's proposal is part of a $100 billion pandemic recovery plan Newsom is rolling out this week, thanks to an astounding $76 billion budget surplus and $27 billion in new funding from the federal governments coronavirus spending bill.

A new state database shows that nearly 250,000 people sought housing services in 2020. Of that number, 117,000 people are still waiting for help while nearly 92,000 people found housing.

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Har reported from San Francisco. Associated Press writers Kathleen Ronayne in Sacramento, California, and Christopher Weber and Michael R. Blood in Los Angeles contributed to this story.
NEW YORK (AP)  A co-founder of Students for Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign was sentenced to 13 months in prison Tuesday for posing as a lawyer to cheat people he found on the internet out of thousands of dollars.

U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni in Manhattan rejected defense efforts to portray John Tyler Lambert as a naive victim of a co-conspirator whose youthful exuberance" made him think he could create a fake persona to learn the law and help others. Lambert pleaded guilty to wire fraud in August 2019.

This crime took a lot of thought, she said. The judge ordered forfeiture of over $46,000 and restitution of more than $21,000 as she expressed disappointment that Lambert so far had not tried to get a job to begin repaying victims.

Caproni said Lambert's work to promote former President Donald Trump on college campuses was a wonderful thing because it kept young people engaged in government, but she said the leadership skills he used to do good in that role were used to do harm when he created a fake Manhattan law firm to lure victims online.

Lambert, 25, of Bristol, Tennessee, was a cold-blooded fraudster who cared not a whit about the victims of his fraud, the judge said.

Prosecutors said Lambert from August 2016 through April 2018 advertised himself on the internet as a prominent New York attorney and graduate of an elite law school who had worked with hundreds of clients, including tech moguls and entrepreneurs, in Europe and the United States.

Lambert, using the alias Eric Pope, lured at least six individuals and corporations into paying him to resolve credit issues, draft a will, resolve a dispute with a former employee and help with corporate and intellectual property law, prosecutors said.

This man is the worst of the worst in my opinion, a victim whose named was redacted wrote in a pre-sentence letter to the judge.

The victim, who drained a 401K account to pay Lambert, was berated by Lambert during a phone call and was told I was irrational for ever questioning such an esteemed attorney from New York, according to the letter.

In truth he had never done one bit of work for me as I clearly became aware, the victim wrote.

Before he was sentenced, Lambert told the judge he had sincere regret and wanted to apologize to victims.

My life will be forever marked by this poor choice, Lambert said. He added that he was spending countless hours in prayer to rid myself of the demons.

Gary Peters, Lambert's lawyer, said after the sentencing that he was disappointed that his client, currently enrolled in college, was going to prison.

He said Lambert is described as a co-founder of Students for Trump even though the group already had several chapters when he began promoting it with television appearances, sometimes on major cable news programs, while he was a student at a conservative school in North Carolina, Campbell University.

After Trump's 2017 inauguration, Lambert became disappointed with some of the new president's early moves and stopped participating with the group.

Peters said Lambert just dropped out.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP)  A sweeping bill that would shield Nebraska businesses and local governments from coronavirus-related lawsuits won initial approval from state lawmakers on Tuesday, despite complaints that senators haven't done enough for workers who were at risk.

Lawmakers advanced the proposal, 39-3, through the first of three required votes. The measure would bar pandemic-related lawsuits against businesses or governments as long as they were following federal public health guidelines.

At least 29 other states have enacted laws addressing the issue, including 12 that are similar to the Nebraska proposal, said state Sen. Tom Briese, of Albion. Kentucky and Arizona passed broad protections for businesses last month.

We need to do everything we can to help our state recover from the impact of the pandemic, and that's what this bill's intended to do, said Briese, the measure's sponsor.

Briese said Nebraska businesses face the threat of needless, unwarranted lawsuits from the pandemic if lawmakers don't pass legal protections. The proposal has strong backing from Nebraska businesses, hospitals, schools, counties and cities. Organizations representing Nebraska trial attorneys and public school teachers opposed it.

Some senators also criticized the bill because they said lawmakers haven't done enough to help on-the-ground workers who faced the pandemic directly, risking their own health because they had a job that needed to be done in-person. Lawmakers this year have rejected paid sick-leave requirements for businesses and additional coronavirus protections for meatpacking workers.

Sen. Megan Hunt, of Omaha, proposed an amendment to the lawsuit bill that would have required businesses with 50 or more employers to allow unpaid sick leave for workers. Hunt said it would give wins to both employers and employees," but the legislative speaker declared the proposal not germane to the main bill, and lawmakers did not vote on it.

Sen. Matt Hansen, of Lincoln, said the state is taking a serious misstep with liability protection for businesses, not directly for the people of Nebraska.

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Follow Grant Schulte on Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrantSchulte
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP)  A man who fatally shot six people at a Colorado birthday party before killing himself was upset after not being invited to the weekend gathering thrown by his girlfriends family, police said Tuesday, calling the shooting an act of domestic violence.

The shooter, 28-year-old Teodoro Macias, had been in a relationship with one of the victims, 28-year-old Sandra Ibarra, for about a year and had a history of controlling and jealous behavior, Colorado Springs police Lt. Joe Frabbiele said at a news conference. Police said there were no reported incidents of domestic violence during the relationship and that the shooter didn't have a criminal history. No protective orders were in place.

At the core of this horrific act is domestic violence, Police Chief Vince Niski said, adding that the gunman had displayed power and control issues in the relationship. About a week before the shooting, there was another family gathering where there was some sort of conflict between the family and Macias, Niski said.

The other victims of the shooting early Sunday were Ibarras extended family. They were identified as Melvin Perez, 30; Mayra Ibarra de Perez, 33; Joana Cruz, 52; Jose Gutierrez, 21; and Jose Ibarra, 26.

Investigators dont know yet how the shooter got the weapon, which Frabbiele described as a Smith & Wesson handgun. He said it was originally purchased by someone else in 2014 at a local gun store but was not reported stolen. The gunman had two 15-round magazines, one of which was empty, and police recovered 17 spent shells at the scene.

The shooting occurred at a home in the Canterbury Mobile Home Park on the east side of Colorados second-largest city. Three children at the party, ages 2, 5 and 11, were not hurt.

Two families were celebrating the birthdays of family members, and 10 people were inside the home when the gunman arrived and shot all six victims in quick succession before turning the gun on himself, Frabbiele said. The children inside were in close proximity to the shots fired, he said.

Police received the first of three 911 calls from inside the home. Another was made by an adult who managed to escape.

Three teenagers had left the party just before the shooting, Frabbiele said. They returned shortly after to discover what happened. Arriving officers found Jose Gutierrez gravely wounded inside; he told the officers the suspect was in the home, Frabbiele said. Gutierrez died later at a hospital.

One of the smaller children and some of the teenagers lost both parents, Frabbiele said.

Police say the families of the victims had requested privacy.

In Colorado, weve had domestic terrorism incidents where lots of people were killed, weve had random acts like going into a King Soopers or a movie theater, but lets not forget about the lethality of domestic violence, Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers said.

Suthers was referring to a March 22 attack on a King Soopers supermarket in Boulder, Colorado, that killed 10 people, including a police officer, and a 2012 shooting at a movie theater in the Denver suburb of Aurora that killed 12 and injured 70.

What we have here is a situation where all these people were together and (we) apparently had the anger directed at the adults and his partner. And the tragic consequences are unfathomable. Weve got children orphaned by this situation, Suthers said.

Gladis Bustos, who lives three homes away, had tearfully identified the homes owner as Joana on Monday. Bustos called her a warmhearted, hardworking person who always took the time to say hello to her neighbors and brag about her children.

Colorado Springs police say eight of 15 homicides this year, including Sunday's victims, were related to domestic violence. Last year, nine of 39 homicides were tied to domestic violence.

The weekend attack follows a series of mass shootings  defined as four or more dead, not including the shooter  to plague the U.S. this year.

Before the Colorado Springs shooting, a database compiled by The Associated Press, USA Today and Northeastern University showed there had been at least 11 mass shootings since Jan. 1, compared with just two public mass shootings in 2020.

After the Boulder shooting, Colorado lawmakers introduced a bill to create a state Office of Gun Violence Prevention to educate residents about gun safety and collect data on Colorado gun violence.

Other bills advancing through the Democratic-led Legislature would tighten background checks, allow municipalities greater freedom to adopt gun control laws that are stricter than state law, and require a person facing a protection order related to domestic violence to report what firearms they possess.

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Associated Press writers James Anderson and Patty Nieberg in Denver contributed to this report.

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This story has been corrected to show that Colorado Springs police Lt. Joe Frabbiele's last name was misspelled and that one of the children at the party, as well as some teenagers, were orphaned, not that all of the children were orphaned.
NEW HAVEN  Patients seeking treatment at the state-funded Connecticut Mental Health Center are met at the facility with measures that include a metal detector, security guards and police officers, according to the state.

The security measures, as well as a proposal to implement an X-ray machine to scan entrants belongings, have been met with pushback from community members concerned about their effects on patients - especially people of color - with a petition and two community leaders issuing a public statement demanding that the facility end use of armed police at the site. The security at the facility is now under review, according to a state spokesperson.

Located on Park Street, the CMHC represents a collaboration between the Yale University Department of Psychiatry and the state Department of Mental Health & Addiction Services. DMHAS spokesman Arthur Mongillo confirmed the nature of the security measures, indicating the police officers at the facility are members of the DMHAS force.

But in a statement first published online on the Yale Daily News, the Rev. Kelcy Steele, pastor of Varick Memorial AME Zion Church in New Haven, and Rhonda Caldwell, a police accountability advocate who runs Hamden Action Now, contend those measures contribute to the stigmatization of patients of color.

Numerous Yale School of Medicine groups also have signed a related petition demanding the CMHC refrain from implementing the X-ray machine policy. The petition also expresses support for the removal of guns and law enforcement officers from clinical settings.

When asked for the departments response to the requests to remove armed police and to describe the reasoning behind the security measures, Mongillo said CMHC security policies were under review.

DMHAS periodically reviews security policies and procedures and makes adjustments as necessary, Mongillo wrote in an email to the New Haven Register. Currently the security policies and procedures at CMHC are under review.

Regarding the X-ray machine policy, Mongillo said, also in an email, that a machine was purchased but that based on community feedback the x-ray mechanism will not be utilized at the entrance to CMHC.

The related policy, obtained by the New Haven Register, was a draft circulated internally to garner feedback, according to Mongillo.

When asked for comment, a Yale spokesperson referred a reporter to the DMHAS statement.

Per the statement from Caldwell and Steele, the CMHC serves individuals who are on Medicaid and Medicare or uninsured, populations they said are overrepresented by Black and Brown communities.

Guards with guns are notably absent at other outpatient clinics, whether for physical or mental health, likely because there is less segregation between the privately and publicly insured, their statement says.

People with mental illness are not studied to be more violent than anyone else, yet the front door primes trainees to stigmatize patients of color and people with mental illness as being dangerous and meriting antiquated health care technology.  This translates into the next generation of well-known health care disparities devastating these same demographics due to racism and bias, their statement says.

Steele is a well-known anti-racism and community activist who appeared at numerous rallies against police brutality last spring and summer. He told a reporter that given the number of high-profile incidents of police brutality against Black individuals, such as the killing of George Floyd, police - especially armed guards and police - are triggers to African Americans.

I dont think (they) should be placed in a facility that is designed to help those that are addicted and that, you know, are already criminalized. Seeing an armed guard  sets off triggers, he said, adding that such measures may deter people from seeking mental health services.

Two CMHC staff members, who asked not to be named due to concerns over their employment, said as far as they knew, the CMHC had not had any major public safety incidents since a stabbing in the 1990s.

When asked for comment on this point, Mongillo wrote, No clients or staff have been injured by a weapon since the implementation of metal detectors at CMHC.

The DMHAS officers at the site are part of a 70-member force that aims to maintain a safe and secure environment of care, in a recovery oriented healthcare agency, according to the state website.

But the statement from Steele and Caldwell questions whether policing outpatient clinics truly enhances safety, suggesting there is no robust national data supporting such measures exists.

The CMHC is primarily an outpatient facility, according to the statement. The facility does also have inpatient services, according to the state website.

Steele said he scheduled meetings with CMHC and the commissioner of the Department of Mental Health & Addiction Services to discuss security at the facility.

meghan.friedmann@hearstmediact.com
McAuliffe was the governor of Virginia from 2014 to 2018. Last year, he announced he would be jumping back into the race for the 2021 gubernatorial election. He is leading by a wide margin among Democratic primary voters, who will go to the polls on June 8.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP)  Sean Parnell, a decorated Army veteran whose regular guest on Fox News programs helped make him a favorite of former President Donald Trump, announced his candidacy Tuesday for the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania's open U.S. Senate seat.

Parnell, who unsuccessfully challenged Democratic U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb in western Pennsylvania last year, has spent weeks saying he was considering a run. On Tuesday, he updated his social media accounts, launched a new Senate campaign site and made his official announcement to a couple hundred people gathered outdoors at a suburban Pittsburgh restaurant.

The campaign for an open U.S. Senate seat in the presidential battleground state could be the nation's most competitive next year. Both the Democratic and Republican fields are getting crowded, with a year to go until next years primary election.

Parnell is an Army combat veteran who served in Afghanistan and went on to write a memoir on the war in Afghanistan and author two action novels.

At the event, Parnell, 39, cast the opposition against President Joe Biden in warlike terms.

Im here to tell you tonight there is another critical fight," Parnell said. "Were going to have to run to the flames. We're going to have to go where the fight is the toughest, and that is the Pennsylvania race in 2022.

Parnell became a staunch ally of Trump during his candidacy last year. He adopted Trumps law-and-order rhetoric, got regular campaign stump shoutouts from Trump and picked a speaking slot at the Republican National Convention.

Trump has not made an endorsement in the race, and Parnell will not face an open field, as it stands now.

Rather, he could face a stiff primary contest against a candidate with personal wealth and connections to longtime GOP donors. But in a party where loyalty to Trump is of prime importance, Parnell may be uniquely positioned.

Parnell quickly secured campaign boosterism from Donald Trump Jr. on Twitter on Tuesday, as GOP rival Jeff Bartos began highlighting Parnell's past criticism of Donald Trump in 2016  when Parnell was campaigning for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, then Trump's rival for the presidential nomination.

In the congressional race, Parnell showed his mettle in fundraising, raising nearly $4 million before he lost narrowly to Lamb in a politically divided district running from Pittsburghs upscale suburbs through former steel towns along the Ohio River to the Ohio border.

Parnell later joined a post-election lawsuit in an attempt to overturn Biden's victory in Pennsylvania's presidential election. That lawsuit  which sought to throw out 2.5 million mail-in ballots, most of which were cast by Democrats  was rejected by the state Supreme Court, and the U.S. Supreme Court later declined to take it up.

The seat is open in 2023 after two-term Republican U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey announced in October that he would not run again.

On the Democratic side, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman has declared his candidacy, as have several others, while Lamb is considering a campaign.

Also running for the Republican nomination is Bartos, the state's unsuccessful candidate for lieutenant governor in 2018.

Bartos, who hails from the other side of the state in suburban Pittsburgh, is a real estate investor and longtime GOP fundraiser who has the personal wealth to write his campaign a big check.

On Tuesday, hours ahead of Parnell's announcement, Bartos' campaign tried to lay claim to the race.

Six county party chairs and six state lawmakers, in a statement, called Bartos our best chance to win the Pennsylvania U.S. Senate seat and urged Parnell to instead run for the House again.

The Bartos campaign also launched an online effort to highlight Parnell's pre-2017 criticism of Trump, saying he sided with liberals and showing where, on Twitter, he wrote in 2016 that Trump needs to release his taxes. Its an avoidable vulnerability.

A handful of lesser-known candidates have declared, including Kathy Barnette, who ran unsuccessfully for a suburban Philadelphia seat in Congress last year.

___

Follow Marc Levy on Twitter at www.twitter.com/timelywriter.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP)  A Russian-speaking ransomware syndicate that stole data from the Washington, D.C., police department says negotiations over payment have broken down, with it rejecting a $100,000 payment, and it will release sensitive information that could put lives at risk if more money is not offered.

The extortion threat comes amid a separate ransomware attack on a major pipeline that's affected part of the U.S.'s fuel supply, highlighting the power of internet-savvy criminal gangs to sow mayhem from a half a world away with impunity.

The Babuk group said on its website late Monday that it would release all the data it stole from the Washington police department if it did not raise the price.

The negotiations reached a dead end, the amount we were offered does not suit us, the group said.

The department did not immediately comment and has not said whether it's negotiated any possible payment.

On Tuesday, the gang released screenshots that appear to be negotiations with the department. They show the gang asked for $4 million and received a counter-offer of $100,000. The authenticity of the screenshots could not be independently confirmed.

If true, it's an example how complex the ransomware problem is when even police find themselves forced to consider making payments to criminal gangs.

Late last month, the group said it had hacked into the network of the citys police department and threatened to leak the identities of confidential informants unless an unspecified ransom was paid. Experts said such a release could endanger the lives of the informants.

A day after the initial threat was posted, the gang tried to spur payment by leaking personal information of some police officers taken from background checks, including details of officers past drug use, finances and  in at least one incident  of past sexual abuse.

Babuk leaked similar background files on Monday with its threat to release more, said Brett Callow, a threat analyst and ransomware expert at the security firm Emsisoft.

This is far worse than any hack of other police departments previously, Callow said, adding that he's never seen a law enforcement agency pay a ransom before.

Ransomware gangs have been leaking sensitive data from victims for well over a year, but experts said theyve not seen such aggressive new tactics used before against police departments. The cybercriminal mafias mostly operate in foreign safe havens out of the reach of Western law enforcement.

The average ransom payments last year were $310,000, up 171% from 2019, according to Palo Alto Networks.

The Biden administration has said that curbing ransomware attacks are a top priority, saying they are a threat to national security.
EVERETT, Wash. (AP)  A judge has sentenced a man in Washington state to more than 30 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to fatally shooting his wife at work two years ago.

Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Jennifer Langbehn sentenced Jeffery Phebus, 61, on Monday after he pleaded guilty to a first-degree murder charge in April, The Daily Herald reported Tuesday.

Prosecutors said Phebus shot and killed his wife Rebecca Phebus, 57, on May 24, 2019, at the Achilles USA Inc. plastics manufacturing plant in Everett. Jeffery Phebus had been fired from the company a month earlier after it said he made a threat against an employee.

Police said Phebus entered his former workplace wearing a company jacket, went to a maintenance building and shot his wife.

His attorneys Christine Olson and Caroline Mann agreed in a plea deal with deputy prosecutor Matthew Pittman in suggesting a sentence at the high end of the 25- to 31-year sentencing range.

The defendant forced Rebecca to live her final months under great fear for her life, and when he finally chose to snatch it from her and her loved ones, it was the result of deliberate planning and action, Pittman said.

Rebecca Phebus should be alive today, spending Mothers Day with everyone who loves her. May should be a happy time, her son Jeff Graves said in a letter read aloud in court Monday.

Police reports said the husband began harassing and threatening his estranged wife in January 2019 when she moved out of their Arlington home. Graves said Jeffrey Phebus also threatened him.

I still have a protection order in place, and he has not once recanted his threat to kill me," Graves said.

The judge asked Phebus if he would like to say anything before she imposed a sentence.

Im sorry, he said.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  The Wisconsin Assembly passed a Republican-sponsored resolution Tuesday calling on Democratic Gov. Tony Evers to send aid and support to help secure the Mexico border and enforce immigration laws.

The resolution comes from a pair of Republican legislative leaders who recently visited the border in south Texas. Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke and President Pro Tempore Tyler August said the issue there is a national humanitarian crisis that demands Wisconsin take action, even though the state is more than 1,300 miles from the border.
It began with a procession through a sea of cheering supporters and a phalanx of American flags. It ended with a standing ovation.

In between the 75th Basic Course for Police graduation of the Niagara County Law Enforcement Academy carried on like none other in recent memory.

Academy grads say they want to 'help people' Kayla Richards knew her interview for a job as a Niagara Falls cop "went pretty well."

Class president and Lewiston Police Recruit Colin King looked out over the socially distanced crowd of friends and family and members of law enforcement agencies from across Niagara County seated in the auditorium of Niagara Falls High School, and smiled broadly.

How was that drive in? he asked, referring to the the dozens of police vehicles, with lights flashing, that lined the driveway into the high school and and the flagging waving crowd that chanted, Back the blue. Thanks for your overwhelming support.

The graduation had been enveloped in controversy when it was announced that it would be relocated from its traditional home on the Niagara University campus to a hotel in the Falls tourist district. Publicly, NU officials said the move was necessitated by a scheduling conflict.

Privately, academy officials had been told the university was concerned that the graduation would attract anti-police protesters. The law enforcement academy is located on NUs Lewiston campus as part of a collaborative program between the institutions.

When the university reversed course and offered to host the graduation, the class of cadets chosen instead to accept an offer to host from the Niagara Falls School District.

It is such an honor for our school district to host this, Schools Superintendent Mark Laurrie said Monday.

The superintendent said hosting the graduation was also a perfect way to continue efforts to establish a junior academy at the high school in the 2021-2022 school year.

What a perfect way to get the momentum going for that, Laurrie said of the new program for 11th- and 12th-graders at the high school. It will be a way for the most diverse school district in Western New York to promote diversity (in law enforcement) all the way around.

As part of its work with NU, the academy instructs cadets who have been hired by law enforcement agencies as well as pre-employment recruits. The 75th class began with 10 pre-employment cadets.

Seven graduated on Monday.

This class has been the focus of intense social discussion and this class has stayed true to its principles, Niagara County Sheriffs Lt. Julie Kratz, one of the academys co-directors, said. The academy is just the start of your training. Never stop training.

King, in his address, spoke of the challenges the academy training presented to the cadets, On his first day, King said, he thought, Maybe I should have gone to trade school for wielding.

But now a Lewiston Police rookie officer, King said his class faced its challenges and united.

Each of us came from life experiences that shaped our reasons for a career in law enforcement, King said. And we knew the biggest was because we want to help people. Im confident these recruits are up to the task. We are the 75th class of the Niagara County Law Enforcement Academy and we humbly thank you for standing with us today.

In addition to King, three other of the pre-employment recruits have also been appointed as police officers as their time in the academy wound down. Emily Richeal was hired as a Lewiston Police officer, while Gwendolyn Schuler will be the newest Niagara County Sheriffs deputy.

And recruit Kayla Richards, learned as she received her graduation certificate, that she has been hired by the Niagara Falls Police Department.

The recruits received special honors for achievements in academics, physical fitness, defensive tactics and leadership. Schuler received the special award in academics, recruit Juan Carlos Paul, a former U.S. Marine, received the special award in physical fitness, and Richards received the Sgt. Jeff Juron Award in Defensive Tactics.

The Jeffrey A. Incardona Memorial Award, selected by the members of the class, went to King. The Joseph E. Steblein Award, selected by the academy co-directors for overall excellence, was given to Schuler.

The graduation keynote speaker, new Niagara County Court Judge Caroline Wojtaszek, reminded the cadets of the words of Sir Robert Peele, the founder of Londons Metropolitan Police Service. At that time, Peele is reported to have said, The police are the public. And the public are the police.

Remember, you are the public, Wojtaszek said. You can change someones life for the better by caring. That is truly what it means to protect and serve.
Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, says gunmen terrorising the country will pay for their actions. There has been a ...

Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, says gunmen terrorising the country will pay for their actions.

There has been a spike in the activities of gunmen across the country who have engaged in kidnapping for ransom and banditry.

Addressing a press conference in Lagos on Tuesday, Mohammed said the countrys security personnel have been subjected to mindless attacks by gunmen to instill fear and create a sense of insecurity.

The minister said contrary to the opinion of some citizens, the federal government is not overwhelmed by the security challenges.

I want to say, unequivocally, that any attack on our security men and women is an attack on the state and a declaration of war against the nation, he said.

It follows, therefore, that this will be countered with overwhelming force. When those whose responsibility it is to protect us are themselves being subjected to mindless attacks, it can only be for one reason only; To instill fear and evoke a sense of pervasive insecurity among the people.

Whether known or unknown gunmen, those engaged in this dastardly act will pay dearly for their actions.





The minister said the federal government is working on a 10-point agenda to tackle the countrys security challenges.

Mohammed listed some of the measures as: That there is an urgent need for political restructuring and not separation.

That the judiciary be decentralised and reformed through constitutional amendment to remove the unitary control of the superior courts.

That governments at all levels should ensure free, qualitative and compulsory primary education for all children of school age.





Mohammed also appealed to the media to play its part in dousing the pervasive tension.

While the government continues with these efforts to restore peace and security continues, I want to appeal to all of us to play

our part in lowering the palpable tension in the polity as a result of the security challenges, he said.

The first step is to tone down the rhetoric. While the media must continue to carry out its primary responsibility to inform, criticise and stimulate debate, it must also realise that it can only carry out this responsibility in an atmosphere of peace and security.
Enugu Catholic Priest, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka has announced a shutdown of the Adoration Ministry for a period of one month. It was gathered ...





Enugu Catholic Priest, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka has announced a shutdown of the Adoration Ministry for a period of one month.

It was gathered that this may not be unconnected to the earlier directive given to him by the Catholic Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Bishop Calistus Onaga.

The ministry sent out a notice early Tuesday morning informing members that Fr. Mbaka was proceeding on a one-month private prayer retreat.

It was, however, silent on whether it was in obedience to the Bishops order.

A message to that effect obtained by newsmen read: Our Spiritual Director, Rev Fr Ejike Mbaka wishes to inform his beloved adorers that he has embarked on a private prayer retreat that will end on 10th June 2021.

Consequently, no ministry activities shall be held in the ministry ground pending his return.

He directs that members of the ministry are to observe this period of his retreat as they used to do during the usual January breaks of the ministry, by praying at their homes, being charitable and fasting according to their ability. Adoration! Holy Spirit is our Power.
The Osun State Government has announced that it is shutting down indefinitely the Inisa Town Central Mosque in Odo-Otin Local Government Cou...





The Osun State Government has announced that it is shutting down indefinitely the Inisa Town Central Mosque in Odo-Otin Local Government Council Area.

The decision to shut down the mosque follows the inability of the Muslim community of the town to peacefully install a new Imam for the mosque.

This decision, which was made known in a public service announcement signed by Prince Abdullah Adeyanju Binuyo, the Deputy Chief of Staff to the Governor and made available to newsmen on Tuesday in Osogbo, also directed that any central congregation at the mosque for Eid prayers has also been banned.

According to the announcement, Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, as part of efforts to ensure security of lives and properties in that axis of the State, directed that the Central Mosque be shut indefinitely to forestall further religious or communal crisis.

Already the Mosque has recorded the death of two Imams in quick succession.

This directive will be in place until a reconciliatory process towards amicable resolution is concluded, it concluded.

The state government also advised members of the public to be guided by this directive as security operatives have been deployed to the town to enforce the closure and ban on Eid prayers.
The Straits Times also reports that there is widespread concern about the safety of these glass bridges, so much so that local governments have been prompted to implement building guidelines that must be adhered to for new glass bridge constructions. Some measures include restrictions on building materials, the location, design and the use for the glass structures. This includes not building bridges in locations that see more seismic activity and poorer weather conditions.
The governors in 17 states of the southern part of Nigeria have demanded the President, Muhammadu Buhari to address Nigerians on the challe...





The governors in 17 states of the southern part of Nigeria have demanded the President, Muhammadu Buhari to address Nigerians on the challenges of insecurity and restore the confidence of the people.

The Forum stated this in a 12-point communique read by its Chairman, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State, at the end of its four hours meeting held in Asaba, the Delta State capital.

The governors affirmed that the people of Southern Nigeria remain committed to the unity of Nigeria on the basis of justice, fairness, equity, oneness, and peaceful co-existence between and among its peoples with a focus on the attainment of shared goals for economic development and prosperity.

He said, Southern Governors expressed very grave concern on the security challenges currently plaguing the nation and strongly urged that Mr. President should address Nigerians on the challenges of insecurity and restore the confidence of our people.

We observed that the incursion of armed herders, criminals, and bandits into the Southern part of the country has presented a severe security challenge such that citizens are not able to live their normal lives including pursuing various productive activities leading to a threat to food supply and general security.

Consequently, the meeting resolved that open grazing of cattle be banned across Southern Nigeria.

Agreed that the progress of the nation requires that urgent and bold steps be taken to restructure the Nigerian Federation leading to the evolution of state police, review of revenue allocation formula in favour of the sub-national governments and creation of other institutions which legitimately advance our commitment to and practice of true federalism.

In view of widespread agitations among our various peoples for greater inclusiveness in existing governance arrangements, the Federal Government should convoke a national dialogue as a matter of urgency.

The forum expressed concern about the continued gridlock on the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway.

The meeting, therefore, recommended the activation and establishment of ports in other states of the federation to create new jobs and promote socio-economic activities in the country.

The Southern Governors also expressed concern on the economic implications of another lockdown on the country and therefore suggested greater coordination and cooperation between Federal and State Governments in evolving strategies for dealing with the pandemic.

Fifteen governors were in attendance at the meeting.

They are Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Dr Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Godwin Obaseki (Edo), Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), Seyi Makinde (Oyo), and Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos).

Others are Douye Diri (Bayelsa), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu), Rotimi Akeredolu (Ondo), David Umahi (Ebonyi), Willie Obiano (Anambra). Imo and Akwa Ibom States were represented by their deputy governors, while Osun and Cross Rivers states were absent at the meeting.
Boko Haram insurgents on Monday attempted to overrun Maiduguri, the Borno state capital in northeast Nigeria. The terrorists, who earlier pr...





Boko Haram insurgents on Monday attempted to overrun Maiduguri, the Borno state capital in northeast Nigeria.

The terrorists, who earlier promised not to strike in this month of Ramadan, were repelled by Nigerian troops, after a gunfire at Jiddari Polo area of Maiduguri, their usual entry point from the Sambisa forest.

It was gathered that gunshots lasted for almost an hour before reinforcement arrived and the militants were repelled.

Residents, who fled their homes are gradually returning under security checks to ensure no terrorist sneaks with the returning residents.

Many who were preparing to go for shopping and others for prayers, were said to have been trapped either at home or in the mosque when the terrorists started shooting Tuesday afternoon.

It was observed that normalcy has now returned to the area.
A man who formerly worked with children at a Jewish summer camp in Medford Township admitted last week that he distributed child sexual assault material in exchange for a 10-year state prison sentence, officials said.

Stephen Gifford, 36, of Medford, pleaded guilty last week to endangering the welfare of a child, the Burlington County Prosecutors Office announced Monday.

An investigation revealed that Gifford shared more than 1,000 images and videos of sexual assault material, according to a statement from the Burlington County Prosecutors Office. Detectives seized multiple electronic devices from his home and after they were examined and the offices high-tech crimes unit found the material, they said.

Gifford was arrested as part of the offices Operation Safe Quarantine, which targeted people who engaged in the online exploitation of children during the coronavirus pandemic, the office said. Charges have been filed against more than 30 people since May 2020 for similar or more serious crimes.

This was the second time Gifford pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of a child as he was charged with possessing and distributing child pornography in January 2016, authorities said. At the time, he worked at a Jewish summer camp called JCC Camps at Medford.

Gifford is...a ropes course instructor and maintenance worker at the JCC Camps at Medford, a 2016 press release stated. He is also employed by Virtua Health System, where his duties include patient transport.

Authorities began investigating Gifford after a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. They found that he uploaded child pornography for others to access on the internet, according to the 2016 release. At his home, police recovered numerous digital storage devices that contained images and videos involving underage girls.

Gifford pleaded guilty in September 2017 to endangering the welfare of a child and he was sentenced that December to a 3-year prison term, the Courier Post reported. It was unclear if Gifford spent the entire three years in prison as he was eligible for parole in August 2018.

He was scheduled to be sentenced for his latest crimes on Aug. 4, the office said.

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Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com.
A 4-year-old New Jersey child died of COVID-19 a year ago.

And while Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday said the number of residents under 18 who have died from the virus in New Jersey has remained low  so far, seven  the state is hoping to move forward soon on plans to vaccinate its younger population.

Federal Food & Drug Administration regulators on Monday expanded use of Pfizers shot to those as young as 12, a move that the governor nodded to earlier in the day, before it was finalized.

We are anticipating that the CDCs advisory committee on immunization practices, as well as the FDA, will be giving the green light (this week) to Pfizers emergency use authorization application to vaccinate adolescents between the ages of 12 to 15, Murphy said during his latest coronavirus press briefing in Trenton this afternoon, a few hours ahead of the FDAs announcement.

Shots could begin as soon as a federal vaccine advisory committee issues recommendations for using the two-dose vaccine in 12- to 15-year-olds, which is expected Wednesday.

Last month, vaccine eligibility in New Jersey opened up to anyone at least 16 years old. The Pfizer vaccine was previously authorized for use on those 16 and up, and Moderna for those 18 and up.

Murphy, who has previously said schools are expected to return fully in-person in the fall, said the FDA approval this week would be a big step.

However, the prospect of vaccinating those younger than 12 in New Jersey remains unclear.

I dont know that weve got any visibility on the vaccination prospect for under 12, Murphy said.

Dr. Edward Lifshitz, director of the state Department of Healths Communicable Disease Service, said vaccine clinical trials for those aged 2 and up are ongoing, but did not clarify any further on immunization plans for kids.

Murphy reported that more than 3.46 million people in New Jersey had been fully vaccinated as of Monday  representing over 50% of the states 6.9 million adults.

The state has said it aims to vaccinate 70% of those eligible  about 4.7 million people  by the end of June.

The more (adults) we get vaccinated the better it is, even for those who are unvaccinated or in this case not eligible, Murphy said.

According to the health departments dashboard, of the states total 880,635 confirmed cases, adolescents 0-4 make up 2.1% (18,166 cases) and those 5-17 make up 10% (87,766 cases). Five of the states deaths in people 18 and younger were adolescents 0-4. In total, there have been seven adolescent deaths of the more than 23,000 reported so far.

Murphy said when teens 12-15 do become eligible, the state will look to set up vaccine clinics in places that are comforting and accessible. That may include schools, pediatrician offices, local pharmacies and existing mega-sites, he said. Bringing vaccines from mega-sites to communities for adults and eligible teens to have easier access is also on the table.

Plans are still in the works for these vaccine centers, thus it is not known if teens 12-15 will be eligible for walk-ins, Murphy said.

(Our) partners at Walgreens have already been working with multiple school districts across the state to vaccinate students ages 16 and over, and they, too, will be ready to transition to vaccinating this younger cohort once the approvals come forward, the governor said. All-in-all, we know that it is only a matter of time until this happens, and we have spent our time preparing so we can get this latest expansion underway with minimal lead time.

The states original goal of vaccinating 70% of the population did not include those 12-15, Murphy said. Therefore, that age group will have a separate objective, which was not disclosed Monday.

This post contains material from The Associated Press.

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Steven Rodas may be reached at srodas@njadvancemedia.com.
New Jersey officials on Tuesday reported another 858 confirmed coronavirus cases and an additional 31 confirmed deaths as daily new cases keep trending downward while vaccinations continue, with at least 3.5 million people now fully vaccinated at sites in the state.

Gov. Phil Murphy provided the update via social media as the state prepares to take its next reopening steps next Wednesday, easing many capacity limits. He also declared during a television interview that the state is turning a corner in the pandemic.

Let there be no doubt about that: We are turning a corner, Murphy said on TMZ Live. Weve paid a heavy price, but were still standing.

In all, more than 50% New Jerseys 6.9 million adults has been vaccinated, including 162,846 residents who have been vaccinated out of state. More than 80,000 out-of-state residents have also been vaccinated here.

The states goal is to have 70% of the states eligible population  about 4.7 million people  vaccinated by the end of June.

More than 4.48 million residents have received at least one dose in New Jersey. There have been more than 7.7 million doses administered overall in the state.

Meanwhile, federal regulators on Monday approved expanding Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine for Americans 12 to 15. Murphy has not yet said how New Jersey would roll this out, but he suggested Tuesday that will help further protect New Jersey.

I think we can piece this together and get to the place where weve achieved that community level of protection, I hope sooner than later, the governor said.

New Jerseys seven-day average for new confirmed positive COVID-19 tests has fallen to 1,030, down 29% from a week ago and 67% from a month ago. Monday marked the 12th consecutive day the state has reported fewer than 2,000 new cases and the third straight day below 1,000 confirmed positive tests.

There were 1,107 COVID-19 patients hospitalized across the state as of Monday night. That marks the first time in 10 days that hospitalizations have risen from the night before, though overall hospitalizations are down 71% since the states second-wave peak of 3,873 patients on Dec. 22.

The states transmission rate increased to 1.07 from 0.94 the day before  the first time in weeks that number has been above 1. Any number under 1 indicates the outbreak is slowing and each new case is leading to less than one additional case.

But the transmission rate has fluctuated widely in recent days. State officials have attributed those swings to a recent revision to total cases to remove more than 10,000 duplicates.

New Jersey, an early coronavirus epicenter, has now reported 881,171 confirmed cases out of more than 13.9 million PCR tests in the more than 14 months since the state reported its first case March 4, 2020.

There have also been 127,436 positive antigen tests during the outbreak. Those cases are considered probable, and health officials have warned that positive antigen tests could overlap with the confirmed PCR tests because they are sometimes given in tandem.

The state of 9.2 million people has reported 25,841 residents have died from complications related to COVID-19  including 23.201 confirmed deaths and 2,640 fatalities considered probable.

New Jersey has the most coronavirus deaths per capita among American states, largely driven by the early days of the pandemic, when the virus spread rapidly through the region.

Murphy has been loosening health restrictions as numbers improve and vaccinations increase. The biggest steps so far happen May 19  next Wednesday  when the state will remove fixed, percentage-based indoor capacity limits on restaurants, stores, personal services, churches, and other businesses, while also removing all outdoor gathering caps. But indoor masking and social distancing rules will remain, with facilities required to keep groups at least 6 feet apart or construct partitions between them. That may prevent full capacity at restaurants and other businesses.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter | Homepage

HOSPITALIZATIONS

There were 1,107 patients hospitalized with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 cases across New Jerseys hospitals as of Monday night  33 more than the previous night, according to state data.

That included 263 in critical or intensive care (13 more than the night before), with 163 on ventilators (four fewer).

There were 84 COVID-19 patients discharged Monday.

By comparison, hospitalizations peaked at more than 8,300 patients during the first wave of the pandemic in April 2020 and more than 3,800 during the second wave in December.

SCHOOL CASES

New Jersey has reported 270 in-school coronavirus outbreaks, which have resulted in 1,198 cases among students, teachers and school staff this academic year, according to state data.

The state defines school outbreaks as cases where contact tracers determined two or more students or school staff caught or transmitted COVID-19 in the classroom or during academic activities at school. Those numbers do not include students or staff believed to have been infected outside school or cases that cant be confirmed as in-school outbreaks.

There are about 1.4 million public school students and teachers across the state, though teaching methods amid the outbreak have varied, with some schools teaching in-person, some using a hybrid format and others remaining all-remote.

Murphy has said New Jerseys schools are expected to return to full in-person classes for the next school year.

AGE BREAKDOWN

Broken down by age, those 30 to 49 years old make up the largest percentage of New Jersey residents who have caught the virus (30.9%), followed by those 50-64 (22.5%), 18-29 (19.9%), 65-79 (10.1%), 5-17 (9.9%), 80 and older (4.4%) and 0-4 (2%).

On average, the virus has been more deadly for older residents, especially those with preexisting conditions. Nearly half the states COVID-19 deaths have been among residents 80 and older (45.9%), followed by those 65-79 (33.6%), 50-64 (16.1%), 30-49 (4%), 18-29 (0.4%), 5-17 (0%) and 0-4 (0%).

At least 8,039 of the states COVID-19 deaths have been among residents and staff members at nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, according to state data.

There are active outbreaks at 197 facilities, resulting in 2,239 active cases among residents and 3,025 among staffers. Those numbers have slowed as vaccinations continue at the facilities.

GLOBAL NUMBERS

As of early Tuesday afternoon, there have been more than 159 million positive COVID-19 tests across the world, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University. More than 3.3 million people have died from coronavirus-related complications.

The U.S. has reported the most cases, at more than 32.7 million, and the most deaths, at more than 582,000.

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Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com.
Supporting the Golden Globes?

For Tom Cruise, thats mission impossible.

The actor returned all three of his Golden Globes Monday in protest of the awards show and Hollywood Foreign Press Association, Deadline reports.

Cruise, who graduated high school in Glen Ridge (class of 80), won the three Globes for Born on the Fourth of July (1989), Jerry Maguire (1996) and Magnolia (1999).

The awards were reportedly sent back to HFPA headquarters. The same day, NBC announced it had canceled the 2022 Golden Globes broadcast over the HFPAs lack of diversity. (The network is supposed to broadcast the ceremony though 2026.)

Celebrities, including the shows own hosts, Amy Poehler and Tina Fey, openly criticized the HFPA at the 2021 Golden Globes in February after news emerged that the organization has no Black members. The exclusion was not news to Black creatives like director Ava DuVernay.

We continue to believe that the HFPA is committed to meaningful reform, NBC said in a statement. However, change of this magnitude takes time and work, and we feel strongly that the HFPA needs time to do it right. As such, NBC will not air the 2022 Golden Globes. Assuming the organization executes on its plan, we are hopeful we will be in a position to air the show in January 2023.

Everything matters. Even this, DuVernay said, reacting to the news on Twitter. The ripple effects echo through our industry, especially for Black artists and artists of color. Kudos to all the activists, artists, publicists and executives who took a stand to make this so.

That time that Tom Cruise sent his @goldenglobes for Jerry Maguire, Magnolia and Born on the Fourth of July in an actual box to the reception desk of HFPA to stand against their sexist, homophobic, racist practices of exclusion, harassment and bias.https://t.co/mjkr2qrOoL  Ava DuVernay (@ava) May 10, 2021

This month the HFPA voted in favor of enacting reforms including a 50% increase in membership within two years and the hiring of a chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer, but the proposed changes havent arrived quickly enough to prevent major studios and streamers from cutting ties.

NBCs decision to cancel the broadcast comes after Netflix, Amazon and WarnerMedia all distanced themselves from the HFPA in recent days.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association is made up of around 90  no Black  journalists who attend movie junkets each year in search of a better life, co-host Fey said at the top of the Globes.

A number of Black actors and Black-led projects were overlooked, Poehler said.

Actor Scarlett Johansson also accused the HFPA of promoting sexist behavior and called on Hollywood to stop endorsing HPFA activities.

As an actor promoting a film, one is expected to participate in awards season by attending press conferences as well as awards shows, she said in a statement published by Variety. In the past, this has often meant facing sexist questions and remarks by certain HFPA members that bordered on sexual harassment. It is the exact reason why I, for many years, refused to participate in their conferences.

The HFPA is an organization that was legitimized by the likes of Harvey Weinstein to amass momentum for Academy recognition and the industry followed suit, Johansson continued. Unless there is necessary fundamental reform within the organization, I believe it is time that we take a step back from the HFPA and focus on the importance and strength of unity within our unions and the industry as a whole.

Actor Mark Ruffalo won the Golden Globe for best actor in a limited Series this year for HBOs I Know This Much Is True.

Now is the time to step up and right the wrongs of the past, he said on Twitter Friday. Honestly, as a recent winner of a Golden Globe, I cannot feel proud or happy about being a recipient of this award.

Ruffalo stood with other actors and Hollywood talents in stressing that the HFPAs timeline for reforms would not cover the 2022 awards season. The actor is among a group who have committed to avoiding HFPA events until change is made.

Thank you, @NBC, for taking the time to do this right, he tweeted Monday.

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Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com and followed at @AmyKup on Twitter.
Two people were killed and a third is hospitalized following a weekend shooting in Paulsboro, authorities said.

The incident occurred shortly before 4:30 p.m. Saturday in the area of West Adams and Delaware streets. Paulsboro police responded to find two men dead of gunshot wounds, the Gloucester County Prosecutors Office announced.

The victims are identified by authorities as Aaron L. Owens, 28, and Cory R. Bunch, 25, both of Camden.

A third man was found in a vehicle a short distance away suffering from gunshot wounds. He was taken to Cooper University Hospital, Camden, where he remains in critical condition, the prosecutors office said.

No arrests have been announced.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact GCPO Detective Brandon Cohen at 856-384-5524 or Paulsboro Police Detective Len Vasta at 856-423-1101.

Information may also be emailed to the prosecutors office at tips@co.gloucester.nj.us.

A motive for the daylight killings was not disclosed.

The shooting occurred about a block from the borough police department.

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Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com.
It was a special school lunch special: Heroes were on the menu.

On Friday, May 7, the Washington Township School District joined the School Nutrition Association in celebrating the eighth annual National School Lunch Hero Day. The staff was recognized for its dedication, hard work, tenacity and ability to adapt to change on a daily basis.

In March of 2020, our normal operation just stopped, Washington Township food service manager Jennifer Mullin said. Everything that we were used to doing changed, and we only had one day to adjust to the new normal. We stopped serving meals for one day only. On March 17, we were serving meals remotely  with lots of help from the operations and transportation staff  out of the high school 9/10 parking lot.

No one ever thought we would not fully open until April 26, 2021. But our staff never wavered; we just did it.

In honor of National School Lunch Hero Day, the Washington Township Education Foundation donated T-shirts emblazoned with Heroes Work Here on the front for the staff to wear on May 7.

The WTEF was honored to present our hardworking food service folks with their National School Lunch Hero Day T-shirts, WTEF president Charlie Doud said. Each and every day, even during a pandemic, they are here for our kids, taking care them all like they would their own children.

Send community news to south@njadvancemedia.com.
Shari Brown has no place to cook dinner.

The hot plates in her hotel room just dont cut it, but thats all she has on hand. A shared microwave on the third floor is the only alternative.

Its been more than a year since the Newark resident had a consistent place to cook for her three kids. When its time to eat, Brown, 36, has few options: Prepared food from the supermarket, help from strangers who bring home-cooked meals, or if she has a few dollars to spare, takeout.

Sometimes shes able to take the kids  Trinity, 10; Tristan, 9; and Tafira, 3 months  to her mothers house and cook. But not often.

Brown has no permanent home, and that hotel room is the best she can do for now.

When youre out there looking for work and nothing is coming, you think, Damn, what did I do to deserve this? she said. I get tired of asking. Tired of trying.

But the sardonic laugh that follows tells you theres no chance shes giving up.

Brown has been living at the Robert Treat Hotel near downtown since late 2019. Shes one of thousands of vulnerable people in Newark either displaced or homeless, unable to find affordable housing in a city with a critical shortage of it.

Mealtime often resembles the rest of Browns life: a daily scramble to secure her most basic needs. Wake up. Find something to eat for the family. Figure out how to pay for her room that night. Look for work or housing assistance. And find something else to eat.

The next day, she does it all over again.

Once youre in this cycle, its hard to get out, Brown said. Any parent thats in my situation, the main thing they need is support.

While millions of dollars have flowed into Newark during the coronavirus pandemic to help people pay for housing, most of the funding has been earmarked to keep residents in the homes they already have  not to help those looking for a place to live. Brown has been caught in that gap, and shes far from the only one, according to the people who know the situation intimately.

So many families are under threat. Thats the next generation that were putting on the streets, said Maria Lopez-Nunez, deputy director at Ironbound Community Corporation, one of the groups aiding people in Newark. Were in a crisis. We need to throw out all the lifejackets. People need a place to live. Families should not be in the street.

Browns family could have been on the streets if it wasnt for the hotel.

Before moving into the Robert Treat, she was renting an apartment on Princeton Street in East Orange. Her landlord sold the building, and the new owners raised the rent, she said. When she couldnt afford the increase, she got evicted.

Essex County  and Newark especially  had a critical shortage of affordable housing well before the pandemic, caused by rising rents, luxury developments and dereliction of public housing. But COVID-19 has cranked up the heat, bringing the affordable housing crisis to a boiling point.

A study released earlier this year by Rutgers Universitys Center on Law, Inequality and Metropolitan Equity found Newark needs at least 16,000 more affordable units to meet the demand. The primary problem is the average Newark renter cannot afford the average Newark rent.

The Rutgers study found that 40,000 Newark households have a combined income below $30,000. The typical Newark renter can afford to pay $763 a month in rent without being significantly burdened, but the median rent in the city is $1,093, the study found.

Less than one-quarter of all two- and three-bedroom units in Newark cost less than $750 per month, Rutgers found.

Newark has had an affordability problem for a long time, which is a statement that will always be true for working class to poor cities, said David Troutt, one of the researchers involved with the Rutgers study. Its not always recognized, but any place where people are living paycheck to paycheck, theyre at high risk of displacement.

Theyre often in over their head should they miss their paycheck. The problem goes back many decades in Newark.

Shari Brown is among the new faces of this old problem.

Shari Brown holds her 3-month-old daughter Tafira while older sister Trinity, 10, left, and brother Tristan, 9, right, watch. They have been living in a hotel for more than a year, unable to find a permanent place to live. Aristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media

Hard to get out

Brown oscillates between optimism and such-is-life pragmatism.

But occasionally, the precarity of her situation weighs on her.

The few times she admitted how demoralizing it is, she shifted the conversation to explain how she wants to start an organization to aid others in a similar position.

I like people. I like to help people, Brown said. Whats important is trying to help people in life.

Browns family arrived in Essex County in the 1970s from Georgetown, Guyana. Shari was among the first in her family born in the United States.

Brown  dressed casually in jeans and a black leather jacket and her hair tied up in a white and blue silk wrap  recalled a free-spirited, yet financially strained childhood in the Oranges. She played clarinet and ran track at Orange High School, but sought more stability after graduation and moved to Florida to go to fashion school.

Brown moved back to New Jersey in 2009, settling in Newark after a few years in Tampa and Miami. She didnt finish fashion school, but still freelances from time to time.

I do sewing on the side, she said. If somebody needs a dress, Ill make them a dress. I really enjoy making dresses.

The money she was making from child care dried up during the pandemic. But she gets by through a combination of welfare, support from a cousin and odd jobs. Brown said she doesnt receive any child support payments.

Since she moved into the hotel theyve called home for a year and a half  a nice, if empty, Best Western-branded establishment across Park Place from the New Jersey Performing Arts Center  shes seen the pandemic devastate her city. Shes also gotten pregnant, contracted COVID-19 and given birth to her second daughter.

Rooms at the hotel go for just over $100 a night online, but Brown gets a special rate since shes on an extended stay. (She declined to disclose exactly how much she pays, not wanting to upset hotel management.) She also takes advantage of the hotels rewards program to collect free nights.

Still, its much more expensive to book a hotel stay for a month than it is to pay rent. But Brown said the hotel offers one massive financial benefit over an apartment: She only has to pay one day at a time. No first-month rent payment up front. No security deposit.

Brown has fallen behind on her hotel room more than once during her stay. The Ironbound Community Corporation helped her settle one large outstanding bill, but her tab is climbing again.

Had I been at a different hotel, Id have been out on the street, Brown said in a basement computer room at the hotel in April.

Keeping an eye on her older children and not having anyone to watch her newborn has hindered the job search. Her last job on the books was working in the bakery at ShopRite in Livingston, but she quit because she didnt have anyone to watch the kids.

The situation only grew worse when Brown contracted COVID-19 while 34 weeks pregnant. Both Brown and Trinity lost their sense of smell and fought body aches while riding out their bouts with the virus.

It was very stressful and overwhelming not to be able to take care of my kids like I would have wanted, she said, adding that shes thankful Tristan never showed symptoms.

Throughout her hotel stay, Brown has been trying to find a more permanent place to live  so far without success.

Low-income housing is not available in Newark, she said. Im stuck. Youre questioning your moves. Youre questioning everything youve ever done.

But Brown, when asked to expand on that, said she doesnt really have any massive regrets. Many people living on the edge of solvency are just one bad break or unexpected bill from disaster. Often, its not a catastrophic life choice that puts them there, Troutt said, but rather one or two missed paychecks.

Ive been through every situation you can think of, Brown said, acknowledging a bit of a wild streak in her early 20s in Florida, when she began exotic dancing to pay the bills. But I never got hooked on drugs. I always kept being a good person.

Newark officials arent blind to these problems, but theyre currently facing two simultaneous housing crises  the affordability crisis and a looming eviction crisis that could make the lack of affordable units even more acute. Both are exacerbated by the unprecedented health catastrophe that is COVID-19.

The city appears to have prioritized keeping people in the homes they already have. Mayor Ras Baraka announced in January that the city would be receiving $8.4 million in rental assistance. Thats on top of millions directed to Newark in 2020 to help residents pay back rent and utility bills.

An eviction moratorium imposed last year by Gov. Phil Murphy has kept tens of thousands of people in their homes, but it could expire in the coming months. Essex County court has more than 14,000 pending evictions, most of which are thought to be for Newark residents.

Baraka has warned of a tsunami of evictions should the moratorium end without further help for tenants.

Either way, its fair to assume that many people will be kicked out their homes this year in Newark, putting them in a similar position as Brown. It will only raise the competition for an already limited number of affordable units.

The city has been exploring various avenues to address the affordability problem. In March, Baraka announced a 16-story, 66-unit affordable housing development on the corner of Halsey Street and Central Avenue. Earlier that month, Newark launched what it claims to be New Jerseys first land bank, which puts blighted and foreclosed properties up for sale to be redeveloped into housing or retail.

On Monday, Newark also launched a guaranteed income pilot program, aimed at providing regular payments to some people in low-income communities. Similar programs have been implemented in cities across the U.S., and New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Yang has called for universal basic income.

Lopez-Nunez said that while these programs are necessary pieces of Newarks plan to address its affordable housing problem, they take too long to be the only solutions.

People need to be housed, she said.

Brown said the support shes received since she moved into the hotel has not come from these city programs.

The help I have received was not from Newark, not from Essex County, she said. The help came from the community  mutual aids, hotel staff, strangers.

She said that experience has made her want to help others, once I get back on my feet.

For now, Brown is looking for work at Amazon, Whole Foods and even back in the bakery at ShopRite, even though she knows how long it will take her to save up first-months rent and a security deposit on the $10.50 an hour she was getting paid.

You still have to find a way out of nowhere, she said.

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Payton Guion may be reached at pguion@njadvancemedia.com.
A former Newark resident went to the Archdiocese of Newark last year with an explosive claim.

In 1976, Newark Archbishop Peter Leo Gerety befriended her family and sexually abused her on multiple times in his bedroom in the church rectory when she was 5 years old, she said.

Do not say anything about this because it will hurt your mother, she recalled Gerety, then the highest ranking church official in New Jersey, saying. This is our secret.

The New Jersey Independent Victim Compensation Program, a board created by the Catholic Church to settle abuse claims out of court, reviewed the womans allegations last year, her attorney said. The panel told the woman it could not find any evidence to independently verify her claims of abuse by the well-known archbishop, who died five years ago.

But the compensation board offered her a settlement  $5,000.

The woman turned down the churchs offer and filed a $50 million lawsuit in March alleging Geretys sexual abuse led to a lifetime of mental health issues. Her suit, filed in Essex County Superior Court, is believed to be the first to claim one of New Jerseys best known and longest-serving Catholic targeted a child for abuse.

The lawsuit was first reported by NorthJersey.com.

Gerety  who died as the worlds oldest Catholic bishop at 104 in 2016  has previously been named in numerous lawsuits for allegedly covering up for or failing to remove priests in the Archdiocese of Newark who sexually abused children during his tenure.

Gerety is not on any of the lists released by Catholic dioceses detailing priests who have previously been credibly accused of sexual abuse of children.

Archdiocese of Newark officials declined to comment on the womans lawsuit, which names the archdiocese, Geretys estate, the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, its school and other church entities.

It would be inappropriate to discuss or comment on matters in litigation, but its important to note that the Archdiocese of Newark remains fully committed to transparency and to our long-standing programs to protect the faithful and will continue to work with victims, their legal representatives and law enforcement authorities in an ongoing effort to resolve allegations and bring closure to victims, said Sean Quinn, a spokesman for the archdiocese.

The case is headed to court partly because the Catholic Church independent compensation boards settlement offer of $5,000 was grotesquely low, said John Baldante, the womans attorney.

They hid under the cloak that they were unable to corroborate definitively the culpability of Bishop Gerety, said Baldante, who has represented about 350 alleged sexual abuse victims in New Jersey. Their default setting is just denial, denial, denial.

The woman, now 49 and living in Pennsylvania, is not named in the lawsuit. She is identified by the pseudonym, Clara Doe.

She first met Gerety, then a newly appointed archbishop, when he befriended her, her mother and older sister when they were parishioners at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Newark, according to an affidavit provided by her attorney that she signed last month.

The archbishop would often bring food to the struggling family at their Broadway Avenue home. He volunteered to look after the 5-year-old when her mother, a seamstress, was at work, she said.

He eventually took the girl back to his bedroom in the rectory, where he touched her sexually and masturbated in front of her on three or four different occasions, she said.

As a child, I misguidedly thought that God had specifically sent Archbishop Gerety to my Mom and family to rescue us and help us get food to eat. I felt I had no option other than to do as Archbishop Gerety instructed, the woman said in her affidavit.

Eventually, she began to resist being alone with the priest and her mother sent the 5 year old to her aunts house instead. The woman said she did not tell anyone about the alleged abuse until she was 13 and confided in her sister, who is still alive and recalls the conversation, Baldante said.

Neither girl told their mother about the alleged abuse.

By the time she was in her 20s, the alleged victim was suicidal and in therapy, she said. She still takes medication for depression and has had lifelong problems with personal relationships.

Gerety was born in Connecticut in 1912. He was the oldest of nine sons, two of whom became Catholic priests.

He served for nearly three decades as a parish priest, mostly in Connecticut, where he worked extensively with immigrants and became known for his social justice and civil rights work.

He was appointed the Archbishop of Newark in 1974, overseeing more than a million Catholics in Essex, Union, Hudson and Bergen counties. He became known as one of the most progressive bishops in the country, encouraging a greater role for women in the church, marching for civil rights in Selma, Ala., and protesting the Vietnam War.

He retired in 1986 and was succeeded as Archbishop of Newark by future Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who would eventually become the first Catholic cardinal to step down because of multiple allegations of sexual misconduct with young men and fellow priests.

Under a new law, New Jersey opened a two-year window in 2019 that allows nearly all sexual abuse victims to file civil lawsuits against institutions, including the Catholic Church, the Boy Scouts and other organizations where they were allegedly abused. The deadline to file civil suits is Nov. 30.

The Archdiocese of Newark and the four other dioceses in New Jersey funded the New Jersey Independent Victim Compensation Program to head off some of the lawsuits. The multi-million dollar program, which has since concluded, allowed alleged victims to file a claim detailing their allegations without going to court or making their names public.

The program offered victims voluntary settlements in exchange for agreeing not to take their cases to court. It is unclear how large the settlements were in New Jersey, but a similar program in New York offered some victims up to $500,000.

Tell us your experiences with allegations of sexual misconduct in New Jersey: Heres how to share your story.

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Kelly Heyboer may be reached at kheyboer@njadvancemedia.com.
This frame grab from video provided by KK Productions shows bodies lying along the river in Ghazipur district in Uttar Pradesh state India, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Scores of dead bodies have been found floating down the Ganges River in eastern India amid a ferocious surge in coronavirus infections in the country, but authorities said Tuesday they haven't been able to determine the cause of death. Health officials working through the night Monday retrieved 71 bodies, officials in Bihar state said. (AP)
A lawsuit filed in federal court Tuesday alleges the builders of a New Jersey Hindu temple  considered to be one the largest in the United States  lured workers from India, worked them nearly 90 hours per week and paid them around $1.20 per hour.

One worker, the lawsuit claims, died from forced labor.

The allegations were made against Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, a Hindu sect known as BAPS, and the leaders who run the Robbinsville temple and its construction. The temple opened in 2014 and is constructed entirely of Italian marble that was sculpted in India and completed on site off Route 130 in Robbinsville.

The temple is known as BAPS Robbinsville.

The development comes a month after New Jersey labor authorities halted work by a contractor at the Robbinsville temple and at a BAPS temple in Edison.

The new lawsuit is a proposed class action complaint, alleging around 200 workers on religious immigration visas endured forced manual labor for the ongoing construction and expansion of the religious property on the 100-acre site.

The FBI was at the Mercer County property Tuesday, a spokeswoman confirmed. The New York Times first reported that investigators are looking into claims of labor and immigration law violations.

The 42-page lawsuit outlines years of alleged abusive and inhumane working conditions the men were put through as construction began on the temple and as BAPS continually expanded the religious property.

A spokesperson for BAPS did not immediately respond to a request for comment, though he has disputed the accusations, according to the New York Times.

We are naturally shaken by this turn of events and are sure that once the full facts come out, we will be able to provide answers and show that these accusations and allegations are without merit, Lenin Joshi, the spokesman told the newspaper.

As construction continued at the temple, also known as a mandir, the lawsuit alleges BAPS intentionally recruited workers from marginalized communities in India to come help with the project using religious visas.

The lawsuit paints a much more grim picture of what life became for the workers.

According to the lawsuit, the men had their passports taken upon arrival in the United States and were forced to live and work in a fenced, guarded compound which they were not allowed to leave. Security guards were stationed outside the compound and cameras monitored the grounds.

The workers would be summoned to start their days at 6:30 a.m. by a siren, according to the lawsuit. They received brief breaks throughout the day, though their shifts ended at 7:30 p.m., the lawsuit says. The men could work up to 40 days in a row without a day off, the lawsuit alleges, and were required to work in the rain or snow.

For this work, according to the lawsuit, the workers were paid approximately 31,000 to 35,000 rupees, around $425. They would receive $50 in cash, while the rest was put into their bank accounts in India.

But that pay could be docked excessively, the lawsuit alleges.

Mukesh Kumar, one of the plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit, was fined 7,500 rupees (around $102 and approximately 26% of his monthly salary) when he was observed without a helmet on. Others were docked significant amounts of their pay for idling, smoking or otherwise not acting in accordance with temple rules.

On top of the long days and minimal pay, the lawsuit alleges the work the men did was very dangerous.

They had to manage stones that weighed several tons, they were exposed to and breathed dust from cut stones and chemical solutions used to soak the stones, and they were frequently exhausted by the long hours with almost no days off, the lawsuit says.

One worker, Moham Lal, allegedly died while he was subjected to forced labor at the temple, according to the lawsuit. After his death, the temple leadership retaliated against other workers who organized to demand that Lals remains to be treated according to his religious rituals and that they improve working conditions.

The workers were under the understanding that if they tried to leave their work and the temple compound, they would suffer physical restraint and serious harm, according to the lawsuit.

A construction vehicle, right, at the gatehouse at BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha (Hindu American Religious Center) at 112 N Main Street in Robbinsville NJ(Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media)

It was a far cry, according to the lawsuit, of what the workers were promised.

One worker, who is identified in the lawsuit as Pappu, said he was recruited in India by Bharat Bhai, a supervisor of workers at the temple, because if he worked at the New Jersey temple he would receive better work and salary than in India.

The workers were led to believe they would be working four to seven hours per day and work 20 to 25 days per month. The workers were allegedly instructed to tell the U.S. Embassy during visa interviews that they were volunteers and would be doing decorative painting or carving working (nikashi) on stones to be used in the New Jersey temple, according to the lawsuit.

Instead, they cut and laid stones, removed garbage, did road work and dipped stones in chemicals, according to the lawsuit.

(BAPS) actions constitute forced labor, trafficking with respect to forced labor, document servitude, conspiracy, and confiscation of immigration documents in the course of and with the intent to engage in fraud in foreign labor contracting, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit alleges BAPS and its New Jersey leadership violated Trafficking Victims Protection Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act and state wage and hour laws. The attorney representing the workers did not immediately return a request for comment.

Of the workers named in the lawsuit, they allege the abusive conditions occurred primarily from 2018 into the fall of 2020.

The lawsuit Tuesday is not the first time allegations of unethical working conditions at the temple have arisen out of its construction.

In April, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (NJDOL) issued a company-wide stop-work order to Cunhas Construction Inc., which has work-sites at the Robbinsville temple and BAPS Temple in Edison.

The state agency said the contractor was paying workers in cash off the books, did not have workers compensation insurance, failed to pay overtime, and for unpaid or late paid wages. It is unclear if those violations are related to the workers who filed the lawsuit Tuesday.

In addition to New Jersey, BAPS has temples in North America in Atlanta, Chicago, Houston and Toronto, according to their website.

Just recently, the Robbinsville temple held a COVID-19 Vaccination Drive in collaboration with Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. It was the first time it had been publicly open in more than a year.

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Joe Atmonavage may be reached at jatmonavage@njadvancemedia.com.

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Two events have drivers concerned about where gas prices are headed: the recent cyberattack that shut down the Colonial Pipeline, which moves gasoline between Gulf Coast refineries and the east coast, and a shortage of drivers qualified to drive tanker trucks.

An expert in global petroleum prices said he is more concerned about the driver shortage than the pipeline, and predicted New Jersey will not see gas shortages because of the pipeline, if people dont engage in panic buying.

The driver shortage is real. Im more worried about that than the pipeline, said Tom Kloza, Oil Price Information Service global petroleum analyst.
Q. I took a COVID hardship withdrawal from my retirement account in 2020. New Jersey did not adapt the same guidelines as the federal government, which allowed the income to be spread over three years. While I understand this, I paid a portion of the money back to my retirement account. Should New Jersey be taxing me on the entire withdrawal or the net amount after the partial repayment? If it is the net amount, I do not have any tax documents from my retirement account aside from the 1099R for the gross withdrawal. What do I need to do?

 Confused

A. Actually, youre incorrect about how New Jersey will be treating COVID withdrawals.

The state recently provided guidance that it will indeed be following the federal rules.

There are several requirements for the withdrawal to be eligible for these advantageous rules, said Joseph Sarnecki, a certified financial planner with U.S. Financial Services in Fairfield.

To qualify, you must have been: Diagnosed with COVID-19; Your spouse or dependent is diagnosed with COVID-19; You experience adverse financial consequences as a result of being quarantined, being furloughed or laid off, or having work hours reduced due to COVID-19; You experience adverse financial consequences as a result of being unable to work due to lack of child care due to COVID-19, or; You experience adverse financial consequences as a result of closing or reducing hours of a business that you own or operate due to COVID-19.

A coronavirus-related distribution (CRD) allowed for a distribution of up to $100,000 from an eligible retirement plan without a 10% penalty, Sarnecki said.

As you noted, the individual has the ability to spread the tax payments over three years, as well as pay back the distribution over three years and receive a refund for any taxes paid by filing an amended return, he said.

Therefore, if the repayment of your CRD qualified as a tax-free rollover for federal tax purposes, New Jersey will now also recognize that as a tax-free rollover, he said, noting you should only pay on the net distribution.

If you took the distribution in 2020 but paid some back in 2021, you will need to provide documentation, confirming the repayment, as it is not shown on your 2020 1099-R, Sarnecki said.

Email your questions to Ask@NJMoneyHelp.com.

Karin Price Mueller writes the Bamboozled column for NJ Advance Media and is the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Follow NJMoneyHelp on Twitter @NJMoneyHelp. Find NJMoneyHelp on Facebook. Sign up for NJMoneyHelp.coms weekly e-newsletter.
UPDATE (Wednesday, May 12): NASA rocket launch from Wallops Flight Facility set for tonight after 5 delays

UPDATE (Tuesday, May 11): The rocket launch was once again postponed Tuesday night, NASA Wallops tweeted. The postponement was due to cloudy skies, the announcement said. Its next earliest launch date will be Wednesday, May 12, at 8:06 p.m., with a 40-minute launch window.

LAUNCH SCRUBBED  Tonight's launch of the KiNET-X sounding rocket has been scrubbed due to cloudy skies in Bermuda and Wallops. The next launch opportunity will be no earlier than May 12, at 8:06 p.m. EDT. Backup days run through May 16.  NASA Wallops (@NASA_Wallops) May 12, 2021

NASA will try for the fourth time Tuesday night to launch a rocket into space from its Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia that could leave a colorful vapor cloud visible along the East Coast.

If the launch of the Black Brant XII sounding rocket finally happens and conditions along the Eastern Seaboard are conducive, the rocket launch could be visible from New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.

The forecast is not great for Tuesday night in New Jersey though, with partly cloudy skies and a stray shower possible, according to AccuWeather.com. Cloud clover will be 37% in Newark, 43% in Trenton, 39% in Atlantic City, 40% in Camden and 31% in Hackettstown.

Mondays rocket launch was postponed due to upper level winds not being within the required limits for a safe launch. It was the third straight day the launch was rescheduled. Tuesday evening, NASA Wallops tweeted the launch was a go.

LAUNCH IS GO  Launch time is now 8:36 p.m. EDT time!



Tune in now and remember there is a 20-30 second delay on the live stream: https://t.co/smUMQQ7FlF pic.twitter.com/1P5rTkaB8L  NASA Wallops (@NASA_Wallops) May 12, 2021

Tuesdays launch is slated for no earlier than 8:05 p.m. with forecasters calling for dry conditions, mainly clear skies at 8 p.m. and surface winds of less than 10 mph in Wallops Island, Virginia. Cloudiness is expected to increase considerably shortly after the sun sets at 8:01 p.m. however.

A rocket launches from NASA's Wallops Island, Virginia, facility in 2013. It is seen here in a long exposure from Cape May, New Jersey.Chris Bakley | NJ Advance Media file photo

NASA rocket launch viewing tips

NASA says the rocket may be visible from far southern New Jersey within 10 seconds of the launch, from most areas of New Jersey, southeastern Pennsylvania and New York City from 10 to 30 seconds after launch, and from far northern New Jersey, most of Pennsylvania and most of New York state from 30 to 60 seconds after the launch.

For most people, the rocket is going to look like a small dot moving quickly through the sky, similar to the International Space Station passing over, but much faster, NASA noted on its Wallops Flight Facility Twitter page.

NASA says two harmless vapor clouds will form north of Bermuda about 9 minutes and 30 seconds after launch as part of the mission and those clouds  likely to be a violet color  may also be briefly visible from the eastern United States.

Chris Bakley, an astronomy expert and astro-photographer from South Jersey, said you wont need a telescope or binoculars to see the rocket or the vapor clouds. But clear skies and a clear view of the southeast horizon are essential.

A pink-colored cloud hovering over the Jersey Shore and other parts of the eastern United States created a buzz on social media Wednesday night, March 3, 2021. This photo was taken by New Jersey astronomy photographer Chris Bakley in North Wildwood.Courtesy of Chris Bakley

How to watch the launch on video

If you dont have a good vantage point to see the rocket launch, you can check it out on this NASA video feed. The feed will start going live about 20 minutes before the scheduled launch time.

The NASA mission is officially known as KiNet-X, and the space agency says it is designed to study how energy and momentum are transported between different regions of space that are magnetically connected.

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Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com.

Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com.
Greg Crance, 56, owner of Delaware River Tubing and widely known as the Famous River Hot Dog Man, died Monday of complications related to COVID.

Delaware River Tubing, Inc. is a tubing, rafting, canoeing and kayaking business located in Alexandria Township that has been offering summer excursions on the river since 2002. Crance began operating a hotdog stand on a platform stationed in the middle of the Delaware River in 1987.
There are many talents that a successful politician needs. But perhaps the most important one is a talent for recognizing when to shut up.

Steve Fulop lacks that talent.

Last month I wrote of the Jersey City mayors ham-handed efforts to keep surfers from parking on the street in front of the McMansion that he built right next to the best surf break in Rhode Island.

Those efforts included two phone calls to remote meetings of the Narragansett Town Council. The calls were short, but the mayor managed to keep his loafers between his lips the entire time.

In one call he insulted the councilman who sponsored the measure  hardly a winning tactic.

I take it as a badge of honor if some liberal politician from New Jersey calls me the worst politician hes ever met, Councilman Patrick Murray responded.

Another of Fulops gaffes was telling the town council he is a resident of Narrangansett  a curious position for someone whos asking Jersey City residents to vote for his re-election in November.

Even worse was his tone, which was that of what he is  an overprivileged alumnus of Goldman Sachs.

Were used to that sort of thing in New Jersey. So I wasnt surprised when I read yesterday that Fulops spokesman has reacted to the latest news report by attacking the media.

The news report was that the council had taken the side of the surfers and permitted the parking. Did the mayor issue a graceful concession statement attesting to his willingness to work this out with the residents who  like his own constituents  like to go to the beach on occasion?

Nope. Instead Fulop had his spokesman blame the media for reporting his foolishness.

Mayor Fulop has no regrets with regards to his public participation on an issue that impacts his family, but he feels that The Jersey Journal and other press outlets should be embarrassed by their conduct in choosing to spend so much time and resources on gossip and nonsense that is totally unrelated to news in Jersey City, said spokesman Phil Swibinski.

Gossip? There is no better place to hear gossip about surf than the local surf shop. I jumped in the car and drove to the Beach House in Bay Head.

Proprietor Eric Beyer went to college at the University of Rhode Island and used to rent at Point Judith. He recalled a far better era when the beach was lined with bungalows instead of blockhouses.

Parking was not an issue back then, Beyer said. But he told me his friends in Rhode Island report that the neighborhood hasnt been the same since the multi-millionaires began constructing castles where those shacks once stood.

He picked up the phone and called a Narragansett local whos his wetsuit wholesaler. Conrad Ferla cut to the heart of the matter.

Imagine you bought a house at Killington Ski Resort and said, I dont want those skiers around, Ferla told me. Didnt he run on a campaign on being inclusive?

Fulop has indeed pushed for inclusiveness - in New Jersey. In Rhode Island, Fulop wants to exclude the surfers he accuses of cutting across his property to get to the beach.

But most of it isnt Fulops property, Ferla said. The reason those surfers walk so near Fulops house is that he built it right up against the 50-foot-wide public-access path to the beach.

You cant come to Rhode Island and tell the locals they cant come by your house, said Ferla.

Well, you can try - but you get really bad press.

Even the Boston Globe took note of Fulops behavior. An article last week noted that the mayor of the second-largest city in New Jersey had gotten involved in a contentious civic dispute 176 miles and three states away.

The Globe reporter went on to cite several instances in which Fulop had tried to use his political standing to court the approval of elected officials.

In one such instance, Fulop tried to butter up the business administrator, I know the job you have as I serve as the mayor of Jersey City 

In another email, he mentioned to a council member that hed met her Congressman-brother on a trip to D.C.

Fulops response through his doubtlessly high-paid political consultant was to say that, These kinds of stories are the exact reason why trust in media has reached such an all-time low.

Ferla offers better advice to Fulop  and for free.

The guy should have just kept his mouth shut.

He should have. But he didnt
New Jerseys congressional delegation is working hard to repeal the $10,000 cap on federal deductions for state and local taxes, a provision in President Trumps 2017 tax bill that landed hardest on wealthy blue states like ours.

But its not going well. President Biden included no provision for relief in his budget plan, and now Sen. Bernie Sanders is pointing to compelling data that shows a full repeal would skew benefits steeply towards the super-rich.

You cant be on the side of the wealthy and powerful if youre going to really fight for working families, Sanders told Axios HBO last week.

Its time for a compromise. Sanders is dead right about the benefits skewing to the rich. The wealthiest 1 percent would capture more than half the benefits of a full repeal. It would grant a huge benefit to people like Gov. Phil Murphy, who paid $209,000 in property taxes on his $10 million mansion on the Navesink River in Middletown. Why should the federal government subsidize that?

But Sanders seems to miss the other half of the story. In a high-cost state like New Jersey, with its brutal property taxes, the SALT cap hits the middle class, too. A full repeal would yield some benefit to roughly 1 in 3 taxpayers in New Jersey, according to a study from the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy.

Its not just the taxes. The cap is driving down home values as well, another blow to the middle-class. According to an analysis by Moodys Analytics, the average home in Essex County lost 11 percent of its value, or about $40,000, thanks to this cap. Of the 30 hardest-hit counties in the country, 16 of them are in New Jersey.

Remember, too, that New Jersey is already paying more than its share of federal taxes. We get 91 cents back for every dollar we send to Washington, a deficit amounting to over $10 billion a year. Talk about rubbing SALT into a wound.

So, Sanders is half right, and so is our delegation in Congress. The challenge is to fashion a compromise that protects the middle class, without providing a windfall for the rich. As it happens, there are two ideas floating around, either one of which would do the job.

One is to raise the cap to allow deductions of up to $20,000, which would relieve the bulk of middle-class taxpayers. Another would exempt households earning less than $250,000 from the cap, and phase it out as incomes rise to $350,000. That would cut the cost of this reform by about 80 percent, leaving more money to cover the cost of Bidens ambitious agenda.

Members of New Jerseys Congressional delegation are keeping their cards close, not wanting to reduce their bargaining power by suggesting they are open to compromise. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-5th, has been the most militant, threatening to vote against the infrastructure bill if the cap is not repealed. No SALT, No Dice is the slogan on his podium when he speaks to this issue.

Thats overboard, given the much greater importance of the infrastructure bill. He and five other members signed a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that used this same threat, but with some nuance, demanding a restoration of SALT deduction relief to our middle-class families.

This is not a black-and-white case. The arguments on both sides are legitimate, which is why God invented compromise. Heres hoping that both progressives like Sanders and our delegation are open to a deal.

More: Tom Moran columns

Tom Moran may be reached at tmoran@starledger.com. Follow him on Twitter @tomamoran. Find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook.
Former President Donald Trump caused Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be demonized so much that it was natural to oppose local detainee housing contracts with local jails as part of the federal agencys victimization.

Yet, hearing from local lawyers and immigration advocacy groups convinced me that the Hudson County Correctional Center in Kearny, which I know well, is a better housing situation  albeit a jail  and also closer to where most of the detainees live than more distant locations operated by ICE itself.

Your on-target May 9 editorial (Killing ICE contracts doesnt help detainees) cuts through the political correctness and advocates for those who are detained, not for the loud voices of opposition.

Bravo for your courageous stand.

Rev. Alexander M. Santora, Hoboken

Dont move detainees, release them

Concerning the Star-Ledger editorial, Killing ICE contracts doesnt help detainees, on May 9:

Id like to point out a couple things that the editorial neglected to mention. While it presents keeping housing contracts with county jails as a kind of humanitarian gesture, it neglects to mention the tens of millions of dollars that the now-ending contracts with Essex County have brought to the county each year. This money is used to keep our parks looking spiffy at the expense of the immigrants locked up in civil detention.

The editorial also offers no solution to the problem. Joe Biden is now the president, and Alejandro Mayorkas is the new chief of ICEs parent organization, the Department of Homeland Security.

If they are serious about eliminating ICEs abuses, they could order ICE to release detainees to their families and communities and get them on the path to citizenship that the president has promised.

Jim Price, Montclair

Orange you glad you followed voting rules?

The vote-by-mail ballots my wife and I received last week for Tuesdays municipal election in South Orange require us each to certify, in order for the ballots to be counted, and subject to penalties for supplying fraudulent information, that the ballot was actually cast by the named voter  not for the municipal election, but for some primary election.

Also, the instructions, in two places, require us to place the sealed envelope containing the ballot inside an outer envelope so that its barcode appears in the window of the outer envelope. It is impossible to do that because the barcode is printed too high on the inner envelope for it to show in the outer envelopes window.

Mistakes like these in creating ballots must surely delight those who would seek to subvert our democratic processes.

Robert A. Adler, South Orange

Liz Cheney is a profile in courage

If another volume of John F. Kennedys Profiles In Courage were to be written today, it would be enormously difficult to find more than one prominent Republican for a chapter this year other than U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming.

Almost all prominent Republicans are cowards, kowtowing to Donald Trump, a person with allegiance only to himself and certainly not to America or even the Republican Party.

Thats a statistic that is almost incredible. And what makes it so bad is many of the so-called leaders of the Republican Party know what Trump is. Its sad. All the Republican Party needs to do to this false prophet is kick the devil out and gather together and stand for what they claim to stand for: honest, patriotic conservatism like that of Cheney.

Trump cant stand up to honest Republicans. Hopefully, those who remain will oust him before the party becomes completely rotten from the inside and there isnt enough healthy center left to fuel a resurgence.

Allen Edelstein, Highland Park

Make the profs get vaccinated, too

The Star-Ledgers May 4 editorial rightly focused on the need to require college students to be vaccinated. Unfortunately and tragically, the editorial left out the need to require faculty and staff to be vaccinated as well. Why?

Should it not be a requirement for them ? We have all seen reports of outrageous behavior of health care workers refusing to be vaccinated, and apparently that is OK . You can be pro-union if you wish, but lets not let our political views fan the public health risks to students and the population at large.

Ken Berkowitz, Somerset

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Gloucester County residents in particular, but also those from Mount Laurel to Linden, usually think about the Colonial Pipeline running through their neighborhoods only when an infrequent leak occurs.

Today, all of New Jersey and the entire East Coast is thinking about the Colonial Pipeline, because its currently delivering zero gallons of gasoline, diesel and aviation fuels due to a ransomware attack that was first reported Friday.

The shutdown idled 15 to 20% of the nations petroleum-product supply that travels by pipeline. But, on the East Coast, Colonial carries close to 40% of all such fuel.

Having a commanding market share makes a nice boast on the companys website, but not having that output makes headaches for everyone else. Predictions of higher gasoline prices and possible shortages along the Eastern Seaboard were big news all weekend, but were allegedly avoidable if fuel was flowing again after two or three days.

This brings several implications about privately-owned, critical infrastructure being so susceptible to hackers, most of which must be addressed at the federal level. Biden administration officials on Monday made it sound like they had the situation in hand by getting the major players together to brainstorm.

Disappointingly, little was said about when the pipeline might return to operation. Officials did their best to avoid answering when asked if Colonial had paid, or should pay, any ransom. They did express frustration about how little influence government has over how much a private company must be prepared to fend off hackers, or what it must spend to upgrade and harden its systems. With such a vital commodity, the ability to shut out government input is crazy. It may need to be addressed with an expansion of emergency legislation.

Save hatred of fossil fuels for a longer-term rant. Petroleum-based motor fuel is essential, not just for the general economy, but for national security. Supply interruption threatens the operation of local military bases and aircraft located there.

Its a point that was made in this space in November, when the 180,000-barrel-a-day PBF Paulsboro Refinery announced it was putting itself into mothballs and laying off 250 employees, nearly all of its staff. Analysts blamed the cut in gasoline use linked to COVID-19.

While the previous editorial was mainly concerned about those becoming jobless, it also noted: A national security case can be made that the Delaware Valley shouldnt surrender nearly all of its remaining oil processing capacity. In recent years, it has shrunk precipitously.

The 335,000 barrel-a-day Philadelphia Energy Solutions refining complex was destroyed by a 2019 explosion and the site will not return to oil refining use. The former Sunoco Eagle Point Refinery in West Deptford Township closed in 2010. Most of it has been demolished, taking away another 150,000 barrels of capacity. In central New Jersey, another 70,000 barrels vanished when a former Hess refinery shut down sin 2013.

These closures were driven by declining demand, but also because refiners could so easily shift where they turned their crude into gasoline. From a national policy perspective, the Colonial Pipeline interruption illustrates the big flaw in that. If the Northeast must rely exclusively on fuel processed in Texas or Louisiana, the means to bring it here must be ultra-secure. Its logistically easy to send finished gasoline between New Jersey and Pennsylvania or New York in tanker trucks. Try bringing it here a truckload at a time from the Gulf Coast, and, Houston, weve got a problem.

Alternatives must be explored. For starters, officials should prevent the PBF refinery (actually in nearby Greenwich Township) from being demolished or disabled permanently, even if that requires small public incentives or tax credits. Its one heck of a safety net to know that 180,000 barrels a day of strategically located refinery capacity can return relatively quickly.

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Youre about to see a whole lot more of Gov. Phil Murphy on TV.

And youre helping foot the bill.

Murphys re-election campaign on Tuesday launched a nearly $5 million media blitz that includes both television and digital ads as he vies for a second term this year.

The ads will run in the New York and Philadelphia network and cable media markets through June 7  just before New Jerseys June 8 primary elections, even though Murphy does not have a primary challenger for the Democratic nomination.

In his first TV ad, Murphy  shown wearing a mask  says new Jersey was tested unlike any other state by the coronavirus pandemic but came together. The Democrat then rolls off some first-term accomplishments, including hiking the states minimum wage.

No other state has our grit and our heart, Murphy says in the 30-second clip. And no other state has our future.

Murphy is running opposed in the Democratic primary after a judge called for two potential adversaries to be tossed off the ballot for failing to get enough voter signatures on their petitions.

But the governor is still participating in New Jerseys matching funds program, which disburses taxpayer money to gubernatorial candidates based on how much they can raise. Murphy, a multimillionaire former Wall Street executive, did not take that route when he won the primary in 2017, spending $22.5 million of his own fortune instead.

By raising more than $3.5 million in the three months after announcing his re-election bid, Murphy qualified for the maximum amount of public money allowed during the primary under the program: $4.6 million. Murphy asked for $4.1 million of that money, said Joseph Donohue, a spokesman for the state Election Law Enforcement Commission. The rest goes back into the state Treasury after the election.

The governor is required to spend the public money he asked for before the primary election, despite not having a primary challenger. By taking matching funds, he is also limited to spending $7.3 million in the primary. This ad blitz makes up more than two-thirds of that.

Murphys campaign has said it will also take part in the matching funds program for the Nov. 2 general election.

Former state Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination to challenge Murphy, has received $3.5 million in public funds and has spent $2 million on cable TV ads since March 17.

Another contender in the Republican primary, businessman Hirsh Singh, is not accepting public funds. Two other candidates, pastor Phil Rizzo and former Franklin Mayor Brian Levine, did not qualify. You must raise at least $490,000 to qualify.

By reaching that threshold, Ciattatrelli and Signh also qualify for the two Republican primary debates  to be held May 25 and 26.

The message of Murphys first ad is an apparent counterpunch to Ciattarelli, who has run his own ads saying New Jersey is broken under the governor and that he can fix it.

Republicans have also repeatedly criticized Murphy for his handling of the pandemic, arguing that thousands of residents have died in nursing homes and the governor has severely hurt businesses by lifting coronavirus lockdown restrictions too slowly.

New Jersey has suffered the most COVID-19 deaths per capita of any American state, largely stemming from when the virus spread rapidly through the region last spring  though numbers have plummeted to their lowest point in six months as vaccination rollout continues.

But the ad notes that during Murphys first term, New Jersey raised the minimum wage, doled out aid to businesses in the wake of COVID-19, boosted school funding, and restore Planned Parenthood funding.

Mollie Binotto, Murphys campaign manager, said the ad blitz highlights the governors leadership in building a stronger and fairer post-pandemic economy that works for everyone.

A Monmouth University poll released last week showed 57% of New Jersey adults approve of Murphys job performance, though slightly less than half  48%  say he deserves a second term, while 43% prefer someone else.

Meanwhile, another Monmouth poll from last week found 66% say Murphy is doing a good job dealing with the outbreak  though thats down from 79% last April.

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Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com.
Tensions have ratcheted up dramatically as Israel attempts to expel Palestinians from their homes in East Jerusalem to make way for Jewish settlers. Both Jews and Muslims consider the section of East Jerusalem to be especially important.
The Trent House Association will present a virtual presentation by chef Walter Staib, host of the PBS series A Taste of History, 2 p.m. Sunday, May 16, via Zoom.

Registration is $15, $10 for Trent House Association members. To sign up, visit bit.ly/3mCAOzL. Registrants will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the event. (Memberships are available at williamtrenthouse.org/membership.html.)

Staib will explore Americas culinary beginnings, describing the foods Colonists in North America and founders of the United States ate and the recipes they prepared.

A third-generation restaurateur with over five decades of culinary experience, Staib is an author, Emmy Award-winning TV host, James Beard-nominated chef and culinary historian. His career began in Europe, receiving formal training in hotels and restaurants.

As founder of Concepts By Staib Ltd., a global restaurant management and hospitality consulting firm, Staib has opened more than 650 restaurants worldwide and was the driving force behind Philadelphias City Tavern for 26 years. He perhaps is best known as host of A Taste of History, which has received 15 Emmy awards.

Send community news to community@njtimes.com
Watertown, NY (13601)

Today

Partly cloudy. High around 80F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A few passing clouds. Low 57F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.
According to published reports, the 95-year-old British monarch wore a day dress instead of the usual robes and crown as she read out the bills the government hopes to pass during the next year. Members of Parliament and the House of Lords were required to wear a mask unless they had an exemption, and everyone took COVID-19 tests beforehand. The Lord Chancellor, Robert Buckland, placed the speech on a table instead of handing it directly to the Queen.
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WASHINGTON  Hit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end of the week as the FBI and administration officials identified the culprits as a gang of criminal hackers.

U.S. officials sought to soothe concerns about price spikes or damage to the economy by stressing that the fuel supply had so far not experienced widespread disruptions, and the company said Monday that it was working toward substantially restoring operational service by the weekend.

Major U.S. pipeline company halts some operations after 'extremely sophisticated' cyberattack WASHINGTON (AP)  A company that operates a major U.S. energy pipeline says it was forced to temporarily halt all pipeline operations followin

The White House said in a statement late Monday that it was monitoring supply shortages in parts of the Southeast and that President Joe Biden had directed federal agencies to bring their resources to bear.

Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a ransomware attack that it said had affected some of its systems.

Nonetheless, the attack underscored the vulnerabilities of the nation's energy sector and other critical industries whose infrastructure is largely privately owned. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data, paralyzing victim networks, and demand large payments to decrypt it.

The Colonial attack was a potent reminder of the real-world implications of the burgeoning threat. Even as the Biden administration works to confront organized hacking campaigns sponsored by foreign governments, it must still contend with difficult-to-prevent attacks from cybercriminals.

We need to invest to safeguard our critical infrastructure, Biden said Monday. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the attack tells you how utterly vulnerable we are to cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure.

The attack came as the administration, still grappling with its response to massive breaches by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations, works on an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity defenses. The Justice Department, meanwhile, has formed a ransomware task force designed for situations just like Colonial Pipeline, and the Energy Department on April 20 announced a 100-day initiative focused on protecting energy infrastructure from cyber threats. Similar actions are planned for other critical industries, such as water and natural gas.

Despite that, the challenge facing the government and the private sector remains immense.

In this case, the FBI publicly assigned blame Monday by saying the criminal syndicate whose ransomware was used in the attack is named DarkSide. The group's members are Russian speakers, and the syndicates malware is coded not to attack networks using Russian-language keyboards. Russia, however, denied any involvement in the attack.

Anne Neuberger, the White House deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, said at a briefing that the group has been on the FBI's radar for months. She said its business model is to demand ransom payments from victims and then split the proceeds with the ransomware developers, relying on what she said was a new and very troubling variant.

She declined to say if Colonial Pipeline had paid any ransom, and the company has not given any indication of that one way or the other. Though the FBI has historically discouraged victims from making payments for fear of promoting additional attacks, she acknowledged the very difficult situation that victims face and said the administration needs to look thoughtfully at this area" of how best to deter ransomware.

"Given the rise in ransomware, that is one area were definitely looking at now to say, What should be the governments approach to ransomware actors and to ransoms overall?

Speaking later in the day at a conference on national security, Neuberger said the administration was committed to leveraging the government's massive buying power to ensure that software makers make their products less vulnerable to hackers.

Security can't be an afterthought, Neuberger said. We don't buy a car and only then decide if we want to pay for seatbelts and airbags.

The U.S. sanctioned the Kremlin last month for a hack of federal government agencies, known as the SolarWinds breach, that officials have linked to a Russian intelligence unit and characterized as an intelligence-gathering operation.

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In this case, though, the hackers are not known to be working at the behest of any foreign government. The group posted a statement on its dark web site describing itself as apolitical. Our goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society, DarkSide said.

Asked Monday whether Russia was involved, Biden said, Im going to be meeting with President (Vladimir) Putin, and so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved, although there is evidence that the actors, ransomware, is in Russia.

They have some responsibility to deal with this, he added.

The Kremlin on Tuesday rejected any suggestion it was involved in the attack.

Russia has nothing to do with these hacking attacks. Russia didnt have anything to do with hacking attacks that had taken place earlier," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said during a conference call with reporters. We categorically dont accept any accusations against us in this regard.

U.S. officials have sought to head off anxieties about the prospect of a lingering economic impact and disruption to the fuel supply, especially given Colonial Pipeline's key role in transporting gasoline, jet fuel, diesel and other petroleum products between Texas and the East Coast.

Colonial is restarting portions of its network. It said Monday that it was evaluating the product inventory in storage tanks at its facilities. Administration officials stressed that Colonial proactively took some of its systems offline to prevent the ransomware from migrating from business computer systems to those that control and operate the pipeline.

In response to the attack, the administration loosened regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an all-hands-on-deck effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.

The time of the outage is now approaching critical levels and if it continues to remain down we do expect an increase in East Coast gasoline and diesel prices, said Debnil Chowdhury, IHS Markit Executive Director. The last time there was an outage of this magnitude was in 2016, he said, when gas prices rose 15 to 20 cents per gallon. The Northeast had significantly more local refining capacity at that time.

The pipeline utilizes both common and custom technology systems, which could complicate efforts to bring the entire network back online, according to analysts at Third Bridge.

Granholm, the Energy secretary, said Cyber attacks on our critical infrastructure  especially energy infrastructure  is not going away."

This is a serious example of what were seeing across the board in many places and it tells you that we need to invest in our systems, our transmission grid for electricity. We need to invest in cyber defense in these energy systems," she told Bloomberg TV.

Hackers shut down a major oil pipeline, which runs through Louisiana. Could it affect gas prices? WASHINGTON  Hit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said Monday it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end

The attack has not affected the supply of gasoline, she said, but if it goes on too long, of course that will change.

Gasoline futures ticked higher Monday. Futures for crude and fuel, prices that traders pay for contracts for delivery in the future, typically begin to rise anyway each year as the driving season approaches. The price you pay at the pump tends to follow.

The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline has jumped 6 cents over the past two weeks, to $3.02 per gallon, which is $1.05 higher than a year ago. The year-ago numbers are skewed somewhat because the nation was going into lockdown due to the pandemic.

The attack on the Colonial Pipeline could exacerbate the upward pressure on prices if it is unresolved for a period of time.

By ERIC TUCKER, CATHY BUSSEWITZ and ALAN SUDERMAN, Associated Press.

Associated Press writers Frank Bajak in Boston and Matthew Daly in Washington contributed to this report.
David Brown could hardly deny a role in a botched 1999 prison escape that left a guard beaten to death inside the Louisiana State Penitentiary.

The blood of Capt. David Knapps had soaked into Browns pants and long johns. It dripped across his shoes and caked around his fingers.

The Angola 5 member admitted hed dragged Knapps, bleeding from a mallet strike to the head, from a prison hallway and into a small bathroom where he was beaten to death at age 41.

But Browns attorneys have long argued that he wasnt around for the killing and wasnt privy to a change in plans  from an escape where nobody got hurt to the murder of a prison guard.

On Monday, the Louisiana Supreme Court debated if a jury would have wavered over Browns guilt on a charge of first-degree murder, or the death sentence he received after a 2011 trial, had they known of a statement withheld by prosecutors that seemed to support his defense.

Browns case reached the states highest court on appeal almost a decade after a jury in West Feliciana Parish found him guilty, then agreed on death in under an hour.

Jefferson Parish prosecutors were getting ready to try another Angola 5 member, Barry Edge, months later when they revealed a statement from another inmate, Richard Domingue, who claimed that Edge confessed that he and inmate Jeffrey Clark had hatched a plan together to kill Knapps.

"He said him and Jeffrey did, were the only ones that were thinking rationally during this highly charged situation. And they made a decision to help their self to kill (Knapps), Domingue said. But they could have let him live.

A jury convicted Edge of first-degree murder, though jurors could not agree on a death sentence, leaving him serving life in prison. Brown's attorney, William Sothern, argued on Monday that prosecutors hid Domingue's statement until it helped them.

Had the jury had this statement, everything in the case would have been viewed in a different light, Sothern said. This is the only piece of evidence in the case where someone says, I did it.

Sothern argued that the scenario was even worse than in Brady v. Maryland, the 1963 case in which the U.S. Supreme Court established that prosecutors must turn over all evidence favorable to a defendant.

Juliet Clark, a prosecutor with the Jefferson Parish District Attorney's Office, which tried Brown, downplayed the importance of Domingues statement, however. She said Edge never admitted killing Knapps directly, and that Brown revealed a murderous intent of his own.

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Nothing that Barry Edge says can diminish the evidence that is literally on David Browns body. He is literally red-handed with Capt. Knapps blood, she said.

The same issue came to the court years ago, after Jerome Winsberg, the ad hoc trial judge, ordered a new penalty phase for Brown. Winsberg found a "reasonable probability" that Brown's sentence would be different had the jury heard Domingue's statement. An appeals court panel reversed that decision in a 2-1 vote. The Louisiana Supreme Court declined to reconsider it in a 4-3 vote, opining that Domingue's statement "provides no additional evidence as to who actually killed Captain Knapp." None of the four justices in that majority are involved this time around.

Chief Justice John Weimer and new Justice Jay McCallum delved into details of Knapp's killing as they questioned the claim that a jury would consider Brown less culpable.

I thought the defendant said in his statement he dragged the captain into the bathroom? Weimer asked.

Indeed he did. And we dont dispute that point, Sothern responded.

And (Knapp) was already bleeding at that time because he had already been attacked in the hallway, Weimer added.

Thats definitely true.

But Justice Piper Griffin questioned why prosecutors, led by roving death-penalty specialist Hugo Holland, didnt reveal Domingues statement until after the trial.

Weimer and other justices also questioned a handwritten immunity deal that legendary former Angola prison warden Burl Cain reached with Brown as a hostage situation unfolded in the prison. Brown, who was serving a life prison sentence for murder at the time, then admitted he held down Knapps while the guard was being hit.

There was no reason for David Brown to believe that he was going to benefit from that, Clark said of the deal with Cain. He knew that Capt. Knapps was dead and they were about to find out.
As educators in St. Charles Parish prepare to offer an African American history course to local high school students for the first time next school year, officials are hoping that lawmakers in Baton Rouge will help incentivize more teenagers to sign up.

Tamika Green, the executive director of equity and student support in St. Charles Parish Public Schools, spoke in support of a bill introduced to the Louisiana House of Representatives last week that aims to give more weight to African American history by making it one of several core curriculum courses under state standards.

Introduced by Rep. Cedric Glover, D-Shreveport, HB 635 would allow African American history courses to be included in social studies classes that a high school student can take to become eligible for the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students, or TOPS, a program of state scholarships for Louisiana residents who attend an in-state public college or university.

Under current state rules, students must take at least four English classes, four math classes, four science classes, four social studies classes, two language arts classes and one art class to qualify. There are some classes that are required under each category.

In the social studies category, students must take a U.S. History class and a civics or government class, but then can choose two of several options for the third category, which includes Western Civilization, European History, World Geography, and World History.

Glover's bill would add African American history to that third category, a law that would reward students in St. Charles and those in other parishes signing up to take similar courses.

"This course will provide all of our students an opportunity to understand African Americans historical, political and cultural impact, in addition to unique challenges and experiences (we) faced in the past and continue to face today," Green testified in Baton Rouge. "This needs to be included as a TOPS course. We currently have many students interested, but we also have many that are not willing."

The bill was filed in concert with Glover's HCR 28, a resolution that asks the Louisiana Board of Regents and the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to consider allowing African American studies to satisfy the state's social studies requirements.

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The resolution notes that there's been a move in recent years to align high school graduation requirements with TOPS core curricula requirements, noting that any revisions to either should be "made in concert."

Glover said the resolution would further the work that Green is already doing. The educator said she has been working closely with the Louisiana Department of Education to help other districts and even other states create similar classes.

"We are seeing this initiative spread," Green said. "We do have states in the country that have already taken initiatives such as this and we do not want to be last in that race."

The legislative agenda comes as high school students across the nation push for more African American studies courses during a reckoning over systemic racism following the death of George Floyd last year. Some have asked for such courses to be mandatory.

Glover's bill and resolution advanced without objection from the Louisiana House Education Committee Wednesday. They're both scheduled to be heard by the full state House on Wednesday.

Glover was careful to underscore that his bill doesn't take anything away from TOPS.

"It does not replace, it does not supplant," Glover said. "It just adds to the list of options we could have at our disposal."
Environmental groups are calling for reduced ship speeds in the prime habitat of a newly discovered, critically endangered whale species that lives only in the Gulf of Mexico.

Slowing vessels to just 10 knots in an area of about 18,000 square miles between Louisiana and Florida will improve the little-understood Rices whales exceedingly slim chances for survival, the Natural Resources Defense Council, Healthy Gulf and four other groups said in a petition filed Wednesday with the federal ocean regulators.

The Rices whale had been thought to be a Gulf-dwelling Brydes whale, a species also teetering on extinction. But in January, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists confirmed its status as a distinct species. Its population is estimated at just a few dozen, making it one of the rarest whale species in the world.

The whale, which can grow to 55 feet and weigh 30 tons, is the only member of the "great whales," a group that includes humpback and blue whales, that lives exclusively in U.S. waters.

Rices whales are rarely seen, but at least two over the past decade have shown evidence of injuries from ship strikes. One was a lactating female that was struck by a freighter and carried into Tampa Bay with the body draped on the ships bow. The other, spotted in the northern Gulf in 2019, had a severely damaged spine consistent with a ship collision, according to the petition.

For every Rices whale found to have been harmed by a ship, the odds are that at least one more suffered a similar but undocumented fate, said Michael Jasny, a marine mammal protection expert with the defense council.

And when were talking about a species with only about 50 animals left, thats an existential threat, he said.

Rices whales face a host of other dangers, including oil spills, deep-penetration seismic blasts to search for oil and gas deposits at the Gulfs bottom and plastic pollution, which claimed the life of a Rices whale in 2019.

A year-round mandatory 10-knot speed limit would have immediate, tangible benefits for the species by reducing the risk of vessel collisions  one of the major impediments to the species recovery, says the petition, filed with the federal oceanic agency. Reduced speeds would also ease the impact of undersea noise on the whales. Industrial noise from shipping and oil exploration can interfere with whale communication and breeding.

The proposed speed limits are modeled after ones that the federal agency enacted for North Atlantic right whales along the East Coast. In 2013, the agency capped speeds at 10 knots at certain times of the year for all vessels 65 feet or longer in three areas.

A recent federal analysis found compliance was quite high, with about 85% vessels keeping speeds at or under 10 knots. Newer voluntary speed zones were much less effective, with only a small percentage of vessels reducing their speeds.

North Atlantic right whales are also endangered, likely numbering fewer than 400.

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If the federal agency supports speed zones for right whales, surely they ought to back similar protections for a whale with an eighth of the right's population, Jasny said.

What theyre doing for the right whale, we should also do for the Gulf of Mexico whale, he said.

The federal agency refers to the species as the Rices whale, named after biologist Dale Rice. Many other scientists and the groups petitioning for the speed reduction refer to it as the Gulf of Mexico whale because it lives exclusively in that body of water.

The Gulf also hosts a lot of ships, and a large share of their traffic passes through the proposed speed zone. Shipping industry representatives for the Gulf region would not comment on the proposal because they hadnt yet reviewed it, but similar restrictions have been opposed by cargo ship companies on the East and West coasts. Slowing in wildlife protection areas can cause costly delays and scheduling complications, industry groups have said.

Recent research indicates 10-knot limits might not be enough to save the whales. Scientists in Canada found that ships complying with the limits still have an 80% chance of killing a whale if one is struck.

The petition also asks the federal agency to require that ships stay more than 1,600 feet from Rices whales and to forbid nighttime vessel traffic within the speed zone. Rices whales tend to sleep at night near or at the waters surface where they can be struck, undetected, by ships.

Christian Wagley, an organizer with Healthy Gulf, said support for protecting the whale has grown since it was declared a Gulf-specific species.

The tremendous amount of interest in the whale already says that the public wants to protect this magnificent animal and the Gulf ecosystem that supports it," he said. "If we can save the species, that brings hope that we can ultimately save the Gulf.

The effect on the shipping industry is worthwhile if it helps save the whale, Jasny said.

This is a remarkable species thats unique to the Gulf and the U.S., [and] we really should do what we can to protect their core habitat, he said.
Following significant swarms of Formosan termites in the New Orleans area, heres some basic information about the pesky critters:

Where do they come from?

They're from mainland China, not Formosa, but were given the inaccurate moniker by a Japanese scientist who discovered them on the island of Formosa, now Taiwan, near the turn of the 20th century.

A Formosan termite soldier This Formosan termite is a soldier in a well-organized army of millions. When they join together, Formosans form a perfect eating machine, wre

How did they get here?

The termites infested packing crate wood used to transport equipment back to the United States near the end of World War II. Some of the crates were buried at Camp Leroy Johnson, across the Industrial Canal from Lakefront Airport on the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline. Infested packing material also ended up at Naval Station Algiers. In the Lake Charles area, wooden landing craft that returned from the Far East after the war also were infested with Formosans. Since then, the insects have expanded their range through their own swarming or by human beings moving infested wood to new locations.

Formosan caste closeup Close-up of Formosan termites. The large white insect at top is a secondary queen. Below, with dark brown pincers, is a soldier. The others a

What are the different forms?

Baby Formosans produced by a nest's queen and king grow into one of several castes:

White colored workers, which gather food and build nests.

Soldiers, with tan bodies and brown heads and pincers, that guard colonies against invading insects, including invasive fire ants.

Alates, the winged, reproductive version we see swarming at sundown.

Munching on roots Formosan termite workers were hard at work Monday, May 9, 2006, in a dead root still in the ground from a pine tree damaged by Katrina. (File 

How are new nests formed?

The reproductive Formosan termites can fly only about 300 yards and use the light of the moon to go as far away as possible from their original nest. Thats why they are attracted to streetlights and lights in homes and other buildings. So turn off your outside lights and close your drapes when they're swarming.

It takes only a single male and female to create a nest. They fly until their wings drop off, find a mate then look for shelter, preferably near or inside a source of cellulose such as a tree or wall with wooden supports and near a source of moisture. The pair become the king and queen and within five years, the queen begins producing caste members for the new nest.

Swarming the night Formosan termites swarm a football field's lights in May 2020. (File photo by David Grunfeld)

When do they swarm?

Formosans swarm beginning in April and ending in June, flying at dusk on days usually following heavy rains when temperatures are near 80 degrees and the wind is below 5 mph. In the U.S., the termites seem to have settled on having a major swarm on or near May 10, often coinciding with suppertime on Mother's Day.

Survival activity Formosan termites forage for food in a display arena during the inaugural Bug Fest Saturday, May 12, 2018, at the City of New Orleans Mosquito

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Why are Formosans so successful?

The Coptotermes formosanus, scientific name, has outproduced and pretty much pushed out of town the native Reticulitermes flavipes subterranean termite. Formosan nests often have as many as 10 million individual insects, while natives rarely have nests larger than 1 million. Native termites must have a direct connection to underground sources of water, while Formosans can survive in nests located above ground, in live oaks and other trees or in walls, as long as there is cellulose (wood) and water.

Hawaiian dye A lone Formosan soldier termite stands out against worker termites after researchers at the University of Hawaii introduced dye-laced food to 

How have Formosans survived insecticides?

The Formosan termites found ways to avoid conventional liquid termiticides, possibly by recognizing their odors. In New Orleans, nests matured in live oaks and other trees for years. Mature nests learned to burrow through treated soil on the outside of homes, sacrificing individual workers and bringing in clean dirt to create tunnels to reach wood in walls, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage annually.

In the late 1980s, entomologists led by researchers at Louisiana State University, the University of Florida and University of Hawaii developed new tactics to attack termite colonies: slower-acting termiticides in both liquid and solid forms. Instead of immediately killing individual insects, workers would carry treated material back to the nest and feed it to the queen, who would eventually die, destroying the entire colony.

Formosan termite-infested tree A tree infested with Formosan termites in the 6600 block of Hastings Street in Metairie was toppled by high winds in early April 2020, damagin

Whats that stuff inside a Formosan termite nest?

Their nests are built out of frass, the scientific name for their poop, molded into a building material. The termites can store water in some rooms made out of frass, use other areas for nurseries and for storage of food. The material protects from other insects and from wind.

What if I think my house is infested?

First, finding termites crawling around after a heavy swarm does not mean your house is infested. In most cases, those insects have crawled through cracks in windows or door frames to get in. Just smash them as you can. Most of them will dry out and die before they can find a way into your walls.

If the termites are actually crawling out of a hole in your wall, that could be trouble. Call a qualified pest control company, preferably one with an entomologist - a bug doctor. They will offer to inspect your home, possibly with newer, heat-sensing equipment that might spot a nest inside your walls. You might want to get more than one inspection estimate to compare prices. Ensure that any agreement you sign includes clear language describing guarantees for retreatment or repair if the treatments do not work.

Even if you don't think your house is infested, this is a good time to do a basic look-see on your own for telltale signs of termite colonies, including dirt columns on foundations leading from the ground to a hole between bricks or into siding.

See The Times-Picayune's 1998 series on Formosan termites, "Home Wreckers".
New Orleans City Councilmember Kristin Gisleson Palmer will be running for the open at-large seat on the council, her campaign announced Tuesday.

Palmer is the first candidate to jump into what could be a crowded race for the spot. Former State Sen. J.P. Morrell and City Councilmember Jared Brossett are also said to be eying a run.

Palmer has served two terms - though not consecutively - representing the district that covers the French Quarter, Marigny, Bywater and the West Bank.

Im running for at-large because I believe that New Orleans needs a council member that will be laser-focused on stopping violent crime, Palmer said in an email announcing her candidacy. As the council member representing most of downtown, Ive seen how crimes in our city go unsolved, and Im going to fight hard for criminal justice reforms. We have to do a better job of keeping all of our families safe.

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Palmer also stressed the work she has done to reduce penalties for marijuana possession in the city, make it easier for those who had been incarcerated to get city jobs, as well as her efforts to put in place an overhaul of the city's short-term rental ordinance in 2018.

+9 Why no major challenger is expected for LaToya Cantrell in New Orleans mayoral race In six months, Mayor LaToya Cantrell will be on the ballot once again, asking voters for a second term in office.

Palmer held her current seat from 2010 to 2014 before deciding not to run for re-election. Four years later, she ran again and defeated her successor, Nadine Ramsey.

The at-large seat was held by Jason Williams, who was recently elected district attorney. Since then, the seat has been filled by interim Councilmember Donna Glapion, who is barred by the city's charter from running for the position.

Candidates will qualify for the seat in July. The primary will be on Oct. 9 and, if no candidate gets more than 50% of the vote, the top two candidates will go on to a run-off in November.
Murkahovsky in November was promoted to his current post after treating Navalny, an activist currently jailed in Moscow, who fell suddenly ill amid a flight on Aug. 20, 2020. At the time, Murkahovsky was chief doctor at Omsk Emergency Hospital No. 1. He denied the opposition leader was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent, suggesting instead in media interviews that Navalny may have lost consciousness due to a metabolic disease resulting in low blood sugar.
Thousands of residents were left in the dark in Jefferson Parish on Tuesday morning as storms continue to roll through southeast Louisiana, bringing flash flood warnings to swaths of the New Orleans metro area.

The Entergy Louisiana outage map showed more than 7,900 without power in Kenner by 9 a.m. Tuesday.

Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng's administration posted an update from Entergy on Twitter, saying the outage was due to high winds and lightning.

"We recently lost a feeder affecting approximately 4,000 customers just east of the airport to a section at the Saints Practice facility," the post read. "Crews are investigating and working to restore power ASAP."

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The Entergy map showed nearly 290 customers with out power in Orleans Parish.

Tuesday morning brought the second day in a row of thunderstorms and potential for heavy rain. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning that was in effect for all of metro New Orleans until 1 p.m. Wednesday.

A new record was set by heavy storms that inundated the New Orleans area Monday, including one overnight that led to street and underpass flooding.

Those storms dropped 4.1 inches of rain at the Louis Armstrong International Airport in Kenner, setting a new record for May 10. It was almost 1.7 inches higher than the previous record for that date, set in 1995, according to the National Weather Service.
People who know incoming LSU President William F. Tate IV respect his intellect and his wealth of knowledge. They enjoy his company. They rely on his wisdom. When Tate speaks, his Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity brothers listen.

He is one of the brothers in our chapter who gets every brothers attention when he speaks, and thats not an easy feat, according to Darryl Bills, a member of an Alpha graduate chapter in St. Louis where Tate was active until he moved to South Carolina. Bills said Tates influence in the chapter was not based on the volume of his voice but his measured response.

Tate assumes Louisianas most prominent university post as higher education leaders navigate an ongoing pandemic and as social justice reforms are sought on campus and off. His character and approach will prove pivotal.

Hes joining us in Louisiana after serving as provost and executive vice president at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. But it wasnt that long ago that Tate was dean and vice provost for graduate education at Washington University in St. Louis. Hes had a big impact in Columbia. He arrived after a national search that led to Tate, who had been a candidate for the USC presidency a short time earlier. USC liked Tate and they wanted him, in some role. He was a faculty and community favorite. People really like him, Columbias mayor told me.

Mark Cooper, chairman of the University of South Carolina faculty senate, was on the search committee that led to Tates appointment as provost. Hes worked with him and describes him as modest and direct, a compassionate leader who is results-oriented. He wants to make a change, he said. He wants to actually do what we say were going to do.

Cooper watched his university handle the COVID-19 pandemic. He said Tate, a sociologist who is also an epidemiologist, brought expertise to the campus, reassuring faculty that the decisions were the right decisions.

Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin said Tates insights were shared beyond the USC campus; the mayor and others relied on him as Columbia dealt with virus issues. His voice was especially important as they grappled with understanding health disparities and inequities.

Like Benjamin, Tate is a member of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, the oldest continuous Black Greek fraternity in the nation. Commonly referenced as The Boule, the group fosters professional and social relationships and works to elevate Black communities. Benjamin said it wasnt unusual to see Tate at Boule chapter meeting and other activities and events in the community. Hes been a thoughtful resource who leaned in to be accessible and available.

Bill Tate is the real deal. Hes thoughtful. He relates well to all people, something Benjamin said will benefit LSU as the institution goes after the best faculty and students.

Expect Tate to be a part of the community. Many of us who are Black Greek members know members who arent active, brothers and sisters who wear the colors but they dont show up. Tate was initiated into the Epsilon Phi of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity in 1980 when he was an undergraduate at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois. Hes been an active Alpha since. Hes been an active part of The Boule, too.

LSU stakeholders should prepare to see Tate push hard on diversity, equity and inclusion with specific action steps and little patience for window-dressing moves. Hell expect such initiatives as properly funded linkages to historically Black universities and programs to creates pipelines for growth for Black graduate students and professors. Tate aims to build sustainable ecosystems to achieve results, and he adds his own energy and time to make it happen. Benjamin, whose city is nearly 50% White, said Tate gets along with everyone. When LSU stakeholders meet Tate, he said, they will find him nice, smart and a friend whose currency is authenticity.

Bills said Tate was the Alpha brother who wanted to lead the younger brothers in the chapter to "bigger roles of leadership in our fraternity, and community.

The Alphas I touched base with talk about Tate as though he believes in the fraternitys motto, First of All, Servants of All, We Shall Transcend All.

Apparently, theyre not the only ones who see him that way.

You got lucky there, Cooper added as we ended our conversation. Were crying here.
Norman, OK (73070)

Today

Cloudy skies this morning will become partly cloudy this afternoon. Hot and humid. High 93F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Mainly clear. Low 73F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph.
Washington, D.C. -- On Monday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced the expansion of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine's emergency use authorization (EUA) to include adolescents aged 12 through 15. The original EUA was issued on December 11, 2020 and only applied to people age 16 and older.

The FDAs expansion of the emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to include adolescents 12 through 15 years of age is a significant step in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, said Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock, M.D. Todays action allows for a younger population to be protected from COVID-19, bringing us closer to returning to a sense of normalcy and to ending the pandemic. Parents and guardians can rest assured that the agency undertook a rigorous and thorough review of all available data, as we have with all of our COVID-19 vaccine emergency use authorizations.

Much like vaccines given to adults, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will be administered to adolescents in two doses, three weeks apart. Children and adolescents usually have a milder COVID-19 disease course than adults, but in rare instances the virus may have severe effects.

The FDA determined that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine met the statutory criteria for its EUA expansion and declared that the benefits of the vaccine in children age 12 or older outweigh the known and potential risks.

Having a vaccine authorized for a younger population is a critical step in continuing to lessen the immense public health burden caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, said Peter Marks, M.D., Ph.D., director of the FDAs Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. With science guiding our evaluation and decision-making process, the FDA can assure the public and medical community that the available data meet our rigorous standards to support the emergency use of this vaccine in the adolescent population 12 years of age and older.

It should be noted that an EUA is not an FDA approval and may be revoked or revised if the FDA deems that circumstances make the vaccine's use less urgent, if it no longer meets the statutory criteria for issuance, or if the benefit is deemed insufficient considering the risks.

Safety data was collected in a study of 2,260 adolescents age 12 through 15 undergoing a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial in the U.S. 1,131 participants received the vaccine and 1,129 received a placebo (a saline injection). The participants were then monitored for at least two months following their second vaccine dose.

Commonly reported side effects included pain at the injection site, tiredness, headache, chills, muscle pain, fever, and joint pain. Symptoms usually lasted between one to three days. As with adults, side effects tended to be worse after the second dose.

The vaccine should not be given to anyone with a known history of severe allergic reactions to its components. Rare severe allergic reactions have been reported in some recipients.

Pfizer Inc. has submitted a plan to the FDA to continue monitoring the safety of the vaccine, which includes longer-term follow-ups with clinical trial participants. All vaccine administration errors, serious adverse events, cases of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome and cases of COVID-19 that result in hospitalization or death are legally required to be reported to the FDA.




Mansfield, Pa.  Mansfield University will repurpose campus space to better serve the university community and reduce annual costs through the demolition of three offline traditional-style dormitories.

Demolition of the older Pinecrest, Laurel, and Maple Halls will begin this summer and continue into the fall, making way for additional greenspace for the university community. When complete, the terrain of the Pinecrest site will provide a natural amphitheater and outdoor venue for performances and events. New parking spaces will also be created on Clinton Street.

The project was originally slated for 2020 but was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On-campus housing will continue to be available to students at Mansfield's four modern, suite-style residence halls.

"We're excited to see our campus continue efforts to support a student-centered university with additional locations for student activities, recreation, and leisure for those who live and learn on and near campus," said Dr. Charles Patterson, President of Mansfield University "Having a central outdoor space for the university community to gather is an important part of campus life and will bring our students, faculty, and staff closer together as Mounties."

The three traditional-style dorms were taken offline in 2013 due to student demand for modern, suite-style residence halls, now commonplace at colleges and universities across the country. Mansfield's suite-style housing is rated #18 for Best College Dorms in America and #2 in Pennsylvania according to student reviews on Niche.com.

"Modern housing is one of the amenities that prospective students and their families come to expect when looking for the full college experience," explained Patterson. "We often hear how impressed students are after touring our residence halls, and it's one of the many reasons they choose Mansfield."

The project also includes the construction of a storage building in the east parking lot to preserve on-campus storage and to prevent the need for grounds staff to cross Rt. 6 to access equipment.

Funding for the project is provided outside of the university's budget through the Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS).

Unneeded beds, dressers, and other furniture stored in the dorms were donated to local non-profit organizations like Seeds of Hope, which works in partnership with the Tioga County Department of Human Services to help families in crisis meet basic needs to maintain and reunify families.

"Pinecrest, Laurel, and Maple will transition away from campus, but the memories created at these beloved buildings will last a lifetime," said Patterson. "Mansfield's campus will continue to be a home for Mounties for generations to come."

More information about the project can be found at mansfield.edu/greenspace.

View Online: http://mansfield.meritpages.com/news/Mansfield-University-to-create-additional-campus-greenspace-in-place-of-offline-dorms/20109
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Harrisburg, Pa.  On his drive to and from the state Capitol, state Rep. Mark Gillen often sees a state troopers vehicle.

They usually dont yell out the window to slow down, said Gillen, a Berks County Republican. If youre going too fast, youre going to get stopped, and youre going to get fined, and it changes behavior.

Thats the argument Gillen is making as he tries to convince fellow lawmakers to give the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs the power to fine licensed addiction treatment facilities for violating state rules.

The $431 million agency is in charge of inspecting more than 800 facilities that provide care to some of the most vulnerable people in Pennsylvania. The state is at the epicenter of the opioid epidemic, ranking among the top states for overdose deaths.

Lawmakers created the agency a decade ago to give substance use the attention they believed it deserved. But a recent Spotlight PA/KHN investigation found the departments oversight focuses more on basic regulations rather than quality of care, and it has limited powers to punish facilities.

Inspectors can issue citations and require providers to submit plans of correction, but they cant fine facilities for violations  a tool some in the industry say could weed out bad actors and prevent ongoing harm.

The department can also issue provisional licenses  a designation indicating a provider failed to meet several state requirements  tell a facility to reduce the number of clients it serves, or attempt to permanently revoke a license. But strong disciplinary action is rarely taken, the investigation found. As of early April, the agency had revoked just one treatment providers license since 2012.

Experts, state officials, clients, and facility employees who spoke to Spotlight PA and KHN raised a number of possible improvements including frequent unannounced inspections to give the department a more accurate view of a treatment facilitys typical practices. The public could also be given easier access to more information about past actions taken against facilities, as well as concrete measures to compare the quality of care across providers.

But based on interviews with lawmakers and a review of current legislative proposals, the legislature appears likeliest to consider giving the department the power to charge licensing fees or fines.

Gillen is currently soliciting support for his proposal and does not have a timeframe for formally introducing it. In the Senate, Judy Schwank (D., Berks) introduced legislation in December that would require the department to charge up to $2,000 for a standard license for treatment facilities, depending on the providers capacity. Her measure wouldnt give the department the power to fine facilities, but a provider would face higher costs if it has received a provisional license.

It would help provide the department with some much-needed resources, Schwank told Spotlight PA. Theyre doing the best that they can, but I certainly wish that there was more oversight.

Schwanks previous efforts to advance similar legislation have gone nowhere, and already theres resistance to her proposal as well as Gillens.

The Rehabilitation and Community Providers Association, a statewide group that represents about 60 organizations that provide licensed treatment and alcohol services, said the proposals would overburden already underfunded facilities.

Jason Snyder, director of the groups drug and alcohol division, said any effort to reform the treatment system needs to take a holistic approach. He said chronic underfunding of Medicaid, a federal and state health insurance program primarily for people with low incomes, hurts providers and leads to low salaries and high turnover in the industry. He said one-off, punitive measures wont improve quality.

As lawmakers and the media seek to punish providers, it is those most in need of a system that will accept them who are ultimately going to be hurt the worst, he said in a statement.

Schwank said shes willing to negotiate on the right amount of money to charge, and Gillen said hes not committed to a specific fine amount.

Schwanks bill gained two new co-sponsors this week: state Sens. Art Haywood (D., Montgomery) and John Yudichak (I., Luzerne). Haywood is the minority chair of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, the panel through which the legislation must pass to reach the full chamber.

I realize that the legislative process in Harrisburg is like a 10,000-meter run. It takes a long time to get to the finish line. Nevertheless, without more authority, DDAP is severely limited, Haywood said in a statement, referring to the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs.

Yudichak supported a similar proposal for licensing fees last legislative session, and he signed on as a co-sponsor again after Spotlight PA reached out to his office this week. A spokesperson said it was an oversight that Yudichak didnt sign onto the measure earlier.

Jennifer Smith, secretary of the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, supports Schwanks bill. She said charging higher fees to providers that have received a provisional license could encourage better behavior or weed out facilities that continually receive violations.

What you find, oftentimes, is the folks that are really in sad shape and doing a lot of violating often are financially in a lot of trouble, as well, Smith told Spotlight PA/KHN in March. And so if were adding to the financial burden, I think youll see those folks going out of business much more quickly.

Still, Smith said relatively few providers have really extensive lists of violations and complaints and most are trying to do good work.

When asked about proposed fees and fines during a news conference last week, Smith told reporters the department should be reimbursed for the work it does to conduct inspections. She said the department would rather work with treatment providers to ensure they are meeting the regulations as the state tries to reduce the number of overdose deaths.

What we need to do with the treatment provider community is really work with them, provide them technical assistance, make sure that theyre able to meet those regulatory requirements so that we have the capacity available, Smith said.

Gene DiGirolamo, a former state lawmaker who sponsored the legislation that created the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, said he thinks licensing fees or fines are unnecessary.

Although there are always ways to improve, the treatment programs are doing Gods work in the most challenging times in the past century, DiGirolamo, now a Bucks County commissioner, said in a written response to questions. The department, the programs, and the staff are doing difficult, difficult work.

Marianne Sinisi lost her 26-year-old son, Shawn, to a drug overdose in 2018. Shes now the coordinator of the Families United for Change Foundation, an organization based in Blair County that tries to reduce stigma around substance use disorder.

She has a low opinion of many treatment programs, but shes skeptical that financial penalties would lead to improvements. She thinks the system already places too much emphasis on paperwork.

If theyd spend less time filling out the papers, maybe theyd have a heck of a lot more time taking care of the actual patient, Sinisi said.

More broadly, lawmakers who serve on key committees say they support taking a closer look at the departments work.

State Sen. Amanda Cappelletti (D., Montgomery), who serves on the committee that would consider Schwanks licensing fee bill, said she thinks the measure could be a springboard for broader conversations about addiction treatment oversight, how inspection visits are conducted, the power the department has to close facilities, and the information it makes public about them.

The Spotlight PA/KHN investigation found the department makes little of what it knows about troubling facilities accessible to the public. The department does not post online the reports it collects about deaths and assaults, which represent some of the most concerning incidents at treatment facilities.

A separate review of recent state inspections by The Morning Call showed providers were not penalized for failing to make timely reports of at least 23 client deaths, as well as other serious incidents.

Weve really got to provide the funding and the resources necessary for DDAP to take control over the facilities, Cappelletti said.

The fate of those efforts is uncertain. The lawmaker who chairs the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, Michele Brooks (R., Mercer), didnt respond to interview requests or written questions.

In the House, Minority Leader Joanna McClinton (D., Philadelphia) said she supports closer monitoring of treatment facilities. Rep. Frank Farry (R., Bucks), chair of the House Human Services Committee, said he wants to meet with department officials and providers in the next few weeks to explore possible improvements and discuss whether the agency needs new power to oversee the industry.

Do they have the tools and theyre not utilizing them? Farry said. Or do we need to get some new tools?

In a statement, department spokesperson Ali Gantz said the agency is working on several initiatives to improve the drug and alcohol treatment system in the state and that people should not be afraid to seek help.

None of the lawmakers contacted by Spotlight PA raised the possibility of folding the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs back into another state agency or agencies, but the idea was supported by Gov. Tom Wolf in 2017.

He argued that a single agency called the Department of Health and Human Services would be better positioned to support and coordinate services for people seeking treatment for substance use disorder.

Thats an idea backed by Elise Schiller, whose youngest daughter, 33-year-old Giana Natali, went to multiple treatment programs in Pennsylvania before dying of an overdose while in treatment in Colorado in 2014, she said.

Since then, Schiller has worked to improve the addiction treatment system in Pennsylvania. She served on a Philadelphia opioid task force and has advocated for creating a supervised injection site in the city.

Separating drug and alcohol programs from other departments, Schiller said, reinforces the idea that addiction is separate from other medical issues: We would not have a separate department for diabetes.

WHILE YOURE HERE... If you learned something from this story, pay it forward and become a member of Spotlight PA so someone else can in the future at spotlightpa.org/donate. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results.




Williamsport, Pa.  Bassist Gabriel Severn, a Loyalsock Township High School sophomore, has been named the 2021 DownBeat High School Honors Jazz Soloist Winner.

Severn has previously received DownBeat awards for performance, improvisation, and composition.

These international awards are considered the most prestigious in jazz education and the educational equivalent to the Grammys. Severn is the only high school student in Pennsylvania to win a 2021 award, and is the first Loyalsock student to win these awards in the history of the district.

DownBeat, the premier magazine for jazz and blues enthusiasts and professionals around the world, recognizes outstanding young artists with their annual Student Music Awards. Hundreds of musicians, music educators, and music industry professionals received their first international recognition with these awards.

Established in 1976, the esteemed international competition is for middle school, high school, and college students to showcase their talent and be recognized for their musical skills. Winners are selected from thousands of entries from around the world, and judging criteria is based on musicianship, creativity, improvisation, technique, sound quality and balance, excitement, and authority.

Severn, who began playing and performing on the electric bass at age seven, has received Jazz Education Network awards in addition to his DownBeat awards.

Related reading: Loyalsock sophomore wins prestigious award in music.

He most recently was recognized by the National Young Arts Foundation as a 2021 Award winner in the Jazz category.

Young Arts identifies the nations most accomplished young artists in the visual, literary, design, and performing arts, and finalists are eligible for nomination in their senior year to become a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts. Award winners receive exclusive creative, financial, and professional development support, as well as opportunities in collaboration with major venues nationwide.

The award winners join a distinguished alumni group including Josh Groban and Terence Blanchard. Severns jazz fusion trio, Teen Town, will release its debut album this summer and tour the Midwest in June.

Teen Town received a 2019 DownBeat award for Outstanding Performance and has been nominated twice for the Best Jazz Artist award by the Central Pennsylvania Music Hall of Fame.

Severn was also honored to be selected as one of five finalists in the Bass Player Magazines 2020 Bassist of the Yearcompetition. He is currently working on his solo music which will be released later this year.

For more information, visit Gabriel Severn's website.
The number of cryptocurrency investors in Korea has surpassed 5 million, and half of them only started parking their money in the market in the first three months of this year. Sixty percent of them are young people in their 20s and 30s, and 70,000 new cryptocurrency accounts are opened every day trading W30 trillion a day, which is twice the volume of the main stock market (US$1=W1,114). Only six percent of cryptocurrency trading involves Bitcoin, the world's biggest, but the rest goes into often obscure new kinds of digital cash, and one-third of those are only traded here in Korea. In other words, the cryptocurrency market in Korea has become the craziest bubble in the world.

The government tried to come up with some restrictions last month as concerns over the bubble mounted, but they amounted to no more than a warning to crack down on illegalities in trading and a threat to close down exchanges that commit them. Fully liberating the cryptocurrency market could fan already rampant speculation, but cracking down excessively could end up costing the government its dwindling support from young voters. But by now even people in their 50s and 60s are jumping into the market, often investing their retirement savings into a long shot at becoming rich overnight. At one exchange, the number of investors over 50 surged 10 times over the last six months. If and when the market crashes, many young and old people could end up broke.

And still the government is dodging its responsibility. The Ministry of Economy and Finance, which oversees currency policy, and the Financial Services Commission, which is in charge of supervising the sale of financial products, are passing the buck, and the market ended up becoming a speculator's dream or nightmare. Now the government just wants to tax profits, classifying them as "other income." This is a blatant double standard. On the one hand it is denying that cryptocurrencies have any value, but on the other hand it is taxing this worthless chimera. How can it expect anyone to abide by regulations? The National Assembly Research Service has now called on the government to set up a control tower overseeing cryptocurrency trading.

France, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the U.S. have all managed to come to grips with the cryptocurrency markets and are strengthening protection for investors. Unlike Korea, where there are around 200 cryptocurrency exchanges since anyone can open one, they require strenuous government authorization to set one up. Hong Kong has set individual limits on cyber money trading depending on people's financial condition, while Japan requires safekeeping of digital assets through custodial services.

Speculation in stocks, real estate and raw materials has become a headache for countries around the world. But a warning from the U.S. Federal Reserve has not been heeded here. The government must slam the brakes on the overheated market. Failure to do so could lead to a crisis that will make the bursting of the dot-com bubble two decades ago look like a picnic.


Detective Constable Helen Larson, of the West Area Child Abuse Unit, said in a statement that Chan is a dangerous and predatory individual who targeted these young victims. He abused his position of trust and power to prey on them when they were most vulnerable.
Rome, GA (30161)

Today

Cloudy early, then thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 82F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms. Low around 70F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavy rainfall possible.
La Fayette, GA (30728)

Today

A few showers early then thundershowers this afternoon. High 79F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Variably cloudy with scattered thunderstorms. Low 68F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Cedartown, GA (30125)

Today

Cloudy early, then thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 79F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Variably cloudy with scattered thunderstorms. Low around 70F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%. Locally heavy rainfall possible.
Rome, GA (30161)

Today

Rain showers early will evolve into a more steady rain for the afternoon. High 82F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall around a quarter of an inch. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms early, then mainly cloudy overnight with thunderstorms likely. Low 71F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavy rainfall possible.
Rome, GA (30161)

Today

Cloudy early, then thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 81F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms early, then mainly cloudy overnight with thunderstorms likely. Low around 70F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Locally heavy rainfall possible.
Corinth, N.Y.: Using your argument (Happyous corpus, editorial, May 6), Happy should be denied a better life at a sanctuary because it is better than what she has been used to since she was captured as a young elephant. She should not be treated better because if she is, we might have to treat other animals better, including pigs. Thats the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. By your logic, no ones life should ever improve because it involves change, and we should never treat animals better because it might prove inconvenient in the long run, especially if we have to be kinder to animals destined for millions of dinner plates. Your argument consists of faulty logic and faulty reasoning served with a grotesque lack of heart. Your opinion gets an L for lame. Carol Roberts
Napoleon, OH (43545)

Today

Mostly cloudy early then periods of showers this afternoon. High around 85F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

A few clouds. Low 64F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph.
The Sony WF-1000XM4 is well on its way and may arrive sooner than expected. The upcoming pair of TWS earbuds will feature a revised design, improved functionality and possibly even a charging case that can be recharged wirelessly.

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The Walkman Blog has revealed more information about the WF-1000XM4, Sony's next premium pair of wireless earbuds. Leaks about the WF-1000XM4 emerged in February, which were then followed last month by Bluetooth SIG and FCC certifications. While the former seemingly revealed the earbud's design, the latter confirmed technical specifications and a revised charging case.

Now, The Walkman Blog has published multiple product renders, including those of the new charging case. Both match previous leaks and confirm that Sony has overhauled the design of both. Details around the charging case remain limited, but its charging output is higher than the WF-1000XM3's. Additionally, a menu in the Xperia 1 III implies that the WF-1000XM4 will support wireless charging, too.
Roseburg, OR (97470)

Today

Partly cloudy this morning, then becoming cloudy during the afternoon. High 71F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Cloudy with occasional light rain late. Low 51F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
Former Sheriff John Buncich argues he isnt the worst in Lake Countys line of corrupt public officials and his defense attorney is appealing the former top cop's 151-month prison term.

Kerry Connor argues, in a legal brief she recently filed before the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago, that Buncich should be given less prison time because he is remorseful and too ill and elderly  at age 75  to commit more crimes.

Government prosecutors have yet to respond to this latest argument.

But Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip Benson, who won Buncichs conviction in a jury trial three years ago, argued at Buncichs resentencing last year the former sheriff is in a better medical condition than before his incarceration.

Buncich served as Lake County sheriff between 1994 and 2002 and again from 2010 to 2017.

Federal authorities began investigating, during his final term in office, whether Buncich was shaking down towing companies who needed his approval to respond to police calls to remove cars from Lake County highways and streets.

A federal grand jury indicted Buncich in late 2016 and the U.S. Attorneys Office took him to trial the following year.
MICHIGAN CITY  An employee of the local Ramada by Wyndham hotel found herself behind bars after alerting a guest that police were there to take him into custody on a drug-related warrant, officials said.

Trinity Hawkins, 43, of Michigan City, faces a felony count of assisting a criminal in the wake of Thursday's police action, officers said.

Members of the LaPorte County Drug Task Force, the Fugitive Apprehension Street Team and the Michigan City Police Department arrived at the hotel in the afternoon looking for Michigan City resident Robert Rosenbourgh, police said.

Rosenbourgh, 33, was wanted on two felony counts of dealing methamphetamine.

Upon learning why police were on site, Hawkins reportedly alerted Rosenbourgh, officers said. Rosenbourgh was taken into custody.

"The search warrant for his room was subsequently executed, wherein narcotics, U.S. currency and paraphernalia associated to the sale/distribution of illicit drugs were located," police said.

In addition to the warrant, Rosenbourgh was charged with two different level felony counts of dealing in methamphetamine.
ST. JOHN  After being caught speeding, a man led chase from St. John into Illinois where he crashed and tried to hide in bushes, police said.

At 11:56 p.m. Monday a Lake County sheriffs officer saw a vehicle traveling more than 60 mph in a 45 mph zone in the area of 93rd Avenue and Wicker Avenue in St. John, police said.

The officer pulled the vehicle over, but the driver sped away as the officer approached the vehicle, police said. A chase ensued with the squad car following the vehicle west onto U.S. 30, with the driver heading west toward Interstate 394 in Illinois.

As the driver went north on I-394 to Interstate 94, he spun out as he tried to exit onto 130th Street, police said.

The driver and a passenger then jumped out of the car and ran across traffic on I-94. The two then jumped into some bushes in an attempt to hide at 130th Street and Doty Avenue in Chicago, police said.

A police dog was brought to the scene to aid in the search.

Authorities found the driver and arrested him, and the passenger is still at large, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Department.
CROWN POINT  A Lake Criminal Court judge sentenced a 23-year-old man to eight years in prison Wednesday for molesting an 8-year-old girl last year in Gary.

Jeremy B. Hudson received the maximum sentence allowed under his plea agreement and must register for life as a sexually violent predator, Judge Salvador Vasquez said.

Hudson was living in Gary with Romitchus L. Bowers, 37, when he forced the girl to perform oral sex on him June 24.

Bowers, the girl's former legal guardian, was charged with choking the girl and threatening to kill her after learning the girl had disclosed to others that Hudson sexually abused her. Bowers' next court date is set for June 9.

The girl's current legal guardian told Vasquez the girl and her sister, who both lived with Bowers and Hudson, were traumatized.

The girl remains so disturbed she was unable to write a victim impact statement, the guardian said.

"This will traumatize her for the rest of her life," the woman said. "She still has nightmares, where she wakes up screaming and crying."

Bowers initially told police Hudson was her brother, but the guardian later discovered Hudson was not related to Bowers at all, she said.
Those statements were not turned over to the defense, in violation of a U.S. Supreme Court decision.

'This case is not over with yet'

One of those videotaped interviews was with a female state's witness, whose testimony at trial "was critical in identifying" Hill and a blue "getaway car." In the videotaped statement, the woman was unable to identify either Hill or the blue car, records state.

Her videotaped statement "could have been used to challenge her testimony and credibility," and the state's failure to disclose the statement to the defense prejudiced Hill, attorneys wrote.

Brown and King also recently learned of previously undisclosed video interviews taken with three other female witnesses, who each identified Hill and a blue bag in their testimony.

"There is exculpatory and/or impeaching evidence as to every one of the said witnesses regarding their ability to identify Hill or the blue bag," the attorneys wrote.

The new DNA evidence stems from testing performed on a towel recovered in 1980 from a blue car allegedly used in Pucalik's homicide, King said.
The Hoosier State once again will require individuals be actively searching for work as a condition of receiving unemployment benefits.

Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb signed an executive order Tuesday directing the Indiana Department of Workforce Development to return to its pre-pandemic policies beginning June 1.

That includes mandating unemployment recipients be available for work and seeking a job, participating in job counseling services when directed, having good cause for any separation from employment, and filing timely claims for benefits.

In addition, Indiana employers who lay off workers after June 1 will have the job losses counted against their individual experience account, and be liable for any corresponding rate adjustments, instead of charging the pooled fund.

At the same time, Holcomb is not joining other Republican governors across the country who are cutting off their citizens from the $300 a week in expanded federal unemployment assistance available through Sept. 6 to out of work Americans searching for a job.

The governor said one reason he's standing apart from his GOP gubernatorial colleagues is because data show Hoosier workers are not sitting on the sidelines.
HAMMOND  Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. wants voters, not governors, electing Lake Countys 16 Superior Court judges.

The mayor is suing in U.S. District Court to overturn the judicial merit selection system that has been picking judges in the county over the past five decades.

Just because its old doesnt make it right or constitutional, the mayor said Monday.

He labels the current nonpartisan appointment of criminal, civil and juvenile court judges as racially discriminatory and a violation of the state constitution and federal voting rights law.

He also is challenging the Republican-dominated Indiana General Assemblys new law that tweaks the judicial merit selection system to give Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb, also a Republican, even more say in picking Lake judges.

It takes a system that already was unconstitutional, and made it more political, he said.

McDermott, a Democrat, said voters should elect judges, just as they did his wife five years ago.

Marissa McDermott successfully ran for Lake Circuit Court judge, defeating the incumbent judge, the late George Paras, in the 2016 Democratic party primary. She is running for reelection in 2022.
There are several more expeditions on the horizon, in which the crew has filmed for future episodes at a winery that used to be an orphanage in Missouri; witch trial sites in Salem, Massachusetts; the Perryville Battlefield State Historical Site in Kentucky; and the haunted town of Rugby, Tennessee.

As a former reporter who has worked for The Lowell Tribune, The Times of Northwest Indiana and the Post Tribune, Zancan said he employs his journalistic skills to do extensive research and interviews to ensure historical precision.

The research process is very thorough to make sure everything is accurate, from inmates names to timelines, Zancan said. We spend hours and hours gathering information. I almost feel like a lawyer or like I am going back to investigative journalism days.

In addition to "History Alive," Zancan is also working on a series called The Home, a comedic look at the lives of those who live and work at nursing homes, as inspired by his own former employment at a Northwest Indiana nursing home. He said though they are filming in Kentucky, the setting for the show is in Indiana.

He said he hopes that "History Alive" and "The Home" can be picked up by a popular streaming service, which is his ultimate goal.
Sunday was the anniversary of the Ocean Hill-Brownsville Teachers Strike of 1968, which is a reminder of the power and importance of consistent and collective parent advocacy. Since then, the Department of Educations system of school governance and the balance of power between centralized mayoral control and local community control has varied. Today, the closest thing that we have to independent community control and parents ability to have a direct impact in our childrens education are the Education Councils. The most effective way to counter adult agendas and ensure that the educational needs of children remain front and center is through the empowerment of parents and communities and full transparency.
Another bill the Senate passed would disallow ballot collection events any earlier than two weeks before an election. They would also have to be located near the local clerk's office and staffed by workers from there.

That change is in response to the Democracy in the Park event held in Madison city parks last year where volunteers collected absentee ballots before the early voting period started two weeks prior to the election.

The bill also would prohibit someone other than a member of the voters immediate family or a legal guardian from returning a completed absentee ballot for another person. Violators would be guilty of a felony.

Trump argued in a lawsuit that no ballots should be counted that were collected at the Democracy in the Park events, or where election officials added missing information. On both of those claims, the Wisconsin Supreme Court said Trump had raised the issues too late and that his claims lacked evidence to back them up.

Three dissenting conservative justices said the laws need to be clarified, leading to the bills up for a Senate vote.
CALEDONIA, Wisconsin  It took nearly a full year on the market, but an 11-acre, five-lot property just north of Six Mile Road  with a fully furnished three-bedroom, three-bathroom house literally hanging over the edge of a fast-eroding bluff overlooking Lake Michigan  sold in late April.

The five-lot property anchored by 7009 Novak Road sold for a little more than $250,000, according to Racine County records, almost $200,000 less than the online listed asking price. But much of the land is little more than rubble and the fully furnished home is at risk of demolition by nature.

It was one of the most challenging sales of RE/MAX Realtor Jo Ann Vetters career.

But, after some creative listings; the seller compromising to cut the price when it became clear the erosion wasnt going to stop; a buyer willing to take a risk coming forward; and photos of the precarious property generating some laughs on social media, a deal was made.

Erosion will continue to be a problem

Feb. 3 Caledonia flyover (copy) Bluff erosion along the Caledonia shoreline can be seen on Feb. 3, 2020, from the cockpit of local certified financial planner Michael Haubric

Its no secret: Lake Michigans coastline along Wisconsin and Michigan is eroding, sometimes dangerously quickly.

In a matter of minutes during a massive storm in January 2020, up and down the coastline along southeast Wisconsin, dozens of feet of land disappeared into Lake Michigan, moving the bluff dangerously close to homes  one house in White River Township, Mich., collapsed because of the storms and a home in Pleasant Prairie was rendered unlivable at about the same time. The shoreline has continued to erode since.

The erosion has been blamed on climate change, the natural course of Mother Nature, constantly changing water levels and myriad other causes. It continues to be a problem, and experts expect the erosion to quicken in the near future.

According to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers records, all five Great Lakes have seen rises in water levels over the past decade above the 100-year average.

Its unlikely that local, state or federal governments to step in and rebuild the bluffs to protect those homes. Such a venture would cost millions in tax dollars across multiple municipalities, and theres no guarantee it would be effective  Mother Natures persistence usually beats mans efforts.

The best solution is to start planning ahead and basically put shoreline property owners on notice, Dick Norton, a professor of urban and regional planning at the University of Michigan, told the Wisconsin Examiner last year. You have built in a place thats naturally giving into the lake. There will come a time that you need to pick up your structure and move it back. Its easy to talk about in theory, but its really hard to do in practice.

That doesnt mean property owners have no chance to sell their shrinking properties, although they may not make as much as they wouldve a couple years ago. Vetter said her clients certainly did not get what they hoped for 7009 Novak Road, for which the listing price was more than $400,000.

It was very, very challenging to establish a price on it, Vetter said.

She remembered one occasion where an Illinois couple called her, saying they were driving up to check out the house, interested in living in a ranch home overlooking Lake Michigan. The Realtor thought to herself: Uh, have they seen the drone photos I took? The peril didnt click for a lot of potential buyers until Vetter made it clear how likely it was the house could end up at the bottom of the lake without some serious work being done.

Other potential buyers figured there would need to be another massive storm like the one in early 2020 to decimate the bluff, but thats not necessarily the case. The soil underneath the house is constantly shifting and could give way, similar to how avalanches on mountains can be set off by a small stimulus that triggers a chain reaction.

According to a page regarding erosion on Ozaukee Countys website: Lake Michigan bluff erosion and stability is a complex process resultant of numerous factors including: the dynamics of Lake Michigan (e.g. wave attack, lake levels, and beach width), soil type (e.g. type, composition, stratification, and moisture), land use, land cover, bluff angle, long shore current and sediment budget and surface and subsurface drainage (e.g. groundwater). Lake Michigan bluff erosion and stability is a concern to many landowners, public land managers and elected officials due to land values, property assets, land uses, economics, Lake Michigan access, ecological value and public health and safety.

Noting how the waves of Lake Michigan will never stop, the instability of the bluff is something you cant predict, Vetter said.

At the Novak Road property, after last years storm, there was a small gate standing a couple feet from the bluff edge. A few weeks later, Vetter said the gate was nowhere to be found, likely consumed by the lake.

No matter what, Vetter said that the buyer would have to deal with the fact that this house is imperiled.

Photos of the house, looking like a disaster about to happen, appeared on TikTok and the Twitter account Zillow Gone Wild. When that attention came in recent weeks, Vetter could only laugh, especially knowing the sale had finalized more than a week before the Twitter post received attention.

2951373aaf2d4b6fd1d3183f9ca29771-uncropped_scaled_within_1536_1152.jpg A home at 7009 Novak Road, Caledonia, is threatened by lakefront erosion, but the property sold late last month.

After months of unsuccessful pitches to people who wanted a lakefront home without the hassle of living on a cliff, Vetter changed tactics. She got the OK from the owners  who had been in Arizona when the 2020 storm hit and have since chosen to not move back to Wisconsin  and added a new listing.

In addition to listings of a lakeside ranch home that needs some safety measures, she started listing the property as vacant land that just so happens to have a house on it.

Thats when her luck changed. Now, instead of getting over-excited offers from wishful thinkers who wanted a lake house but hadnt realized the peril, the people who were calling me on it then were contractors looking for lakefront land, Vetter said. The offers were coming from people who were saying: I can come in and shore that up.

The ultimate buyer, who declined to speak with The Journal Times on the record, fits that demographic. Hes currently seeking an estimate of how much it will cost to protect the bluff and the house on it. Theyve got their work cut out for them, Vetter said.

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Americans are as split as it comes these days. We understand that.

Newspapers, along with other forms of media, are often accused of bias. Those accusations come from every corner of political ideology.

To be clear, bias exists in everyone.

But within the lines of the pages of The Times, the only thing we are beholden to is the truth  no matter how that looks.

We also know we don't have all the answers or the market cornered on good ideas. A good opinion page must rely on its readers and guest columnists, who provide a diverse array of thoughts and positions.

So we ask that you take part in the opinion page through letters to the editor, which can be submitted by email sent to letters@nwi.com. There are some ground rules, including a 200-word limit. We wont publish letters from anyonymous parties. All people forwarding ideas must provide their name, city/town of residence and a phone number where we can contact them to verify the letters are authentic. Your phone numbers will not be published; theyre just for our records.

We believe in transparency, in our reporting and in our commentary. If you think we didn't get something right, let us know. The rules above still apply.
Chinas population is growing at its slowest pace in decades, with a plunge in births and a graying work force presenting the Communist Party with one of its gravest social and economic challenges.

Figures from a census released on Tuesday show that China faces a demographic crisis that could stunt growth in the country, the worlds second-largest economy. China has long relied on an expanding and ambitious work force to run its factories and achieve Beijings dreams of building a global superpower and industrial giant. An aging, slow-growing population  one that could even begin to shrink in the coming years  threatens that dynamic.

Chinas aging-related challenges are similar to those of developed countries like the United States. But its households live on much lower incomes on average than in the United States and elsewhere.

In other words, China is growing old without first having grown rich.

Aging has become a basic national condition of China for a period of time to come, Ning Jizhe, the head of Chinas National Bureau of Statistics, said at a news conference announcing the results of a once-a-decade census.
And look, this was a different city. I dont think people realize what was happening in the inner city. The years where Byrne was assassinated, Fat Cat Nichols, top drug crews. Mothers were having their babies sleep inside dressers. We had routines of how to deal with gun shootings. It was a different city. And what I saw on the ground may have been different than what others witnessed in the city. And my frustration and anger of how we were ignoring the lives of people in this city was a response to that.

And if you want me to also respond to Hiram Monserrate  theres a narrative around Hiram Monserrate that many people miss. I didnt support Hiram Monserrate. I supported a process. We had a process in the Senate that indicated if you were arrested for certain crimes, you were removed from the city. Inside the city Democratic chamber, we knew what the process was. Eric Schneiderman decided that he wanted to alter that process, and that was wrong. And as a Black man that is always on the opposite end of when people circumvent processes, I was not going to sit back and allow that to happen. I voted against the going against a process that was in place. And thats what happened inside that Senate Democratic conference and on the floor.

Alex Kingsbury: Thanks. Ive got a question about new New York and old New York. Last year you gave a speech where you said that newcomers should go back to Iowa, go back to Ohio. New York City belongs to the people that were here and made New York City what it is. I understand things get passionate when youre giving a speech, but Im wondering how long you have to stay in New York or how long you have to live here to be considered a real New Yorker and what it would mean to be mayor of all New Yorkers, both the new and gentrifying ones and the long-term residents?

You added a word to the speech, and it was a clear speech that I used. You said I stated new New Yorkers. No. In the speech I did not say new New Yorkers.

[Go back to Iowa. You go back to Ohio. New York City belongs to the people that was here and made New York City what it is. And I know Im a New Yorker. I protected this city. I have a right to put my voice in how this city should be run, Mr. Adams said, according to a video of the speech.]

There are some amazing people that come to this city from all over the globe. And, you know, my family came from Alabama. So I am not an original New Yorker. What my message was, if you looked at the entire speech, it talked about how we identify crises. It also talked about people who enter a city, no matter what the city is, and instead of incorporating oneself into the city, you want to displace the residents using agencies like the police to call for someone because they tell you to put your dog on the leash, or calling the police because noise is coming from a building on Putnam Avenue that happens to be a 100-year church. Or refusing to go into long-existing restaurants where community residents have been there for a long time. Or attempting to segregate schoolrooms.

So it is about people who come to a city and arrogantly believe that theyre Christopher Columbus and they discovered this city. No, thats not true. This city has been here and operated, and there are countless numbers of New Yorkers and individuals who come to this city and they incorporate themselves. And so those who were offended were those who knew how they treated everyday New Yorkers. So it doesnt matter if youre here a day or for 20 years. Its a mind-set. To me, gentrification is not an ethnicity. Its a mind-set. And theres a large number of people who come to New York from places that there isnt any ethnic or cultural diversity, and they are intimidated, afraid and dont interact. And in many cases theyre actually hostile to fellow New Yorkers.
The mix of optimism and anxiety that New Yorkers feel as the coronavirus is beaten back in the five boroughs highlights the extraordinary challenges facing the city and its next mayor in the coming months and years.

New York isnt dead. But to make it flourish again, those who stuck with the city through the Covid-19 pandemic face significant headwinds to resuscitate businesses and revive economic life, bring teachers and students back to the classroom, restore stricken lives and shuttered communities and quell an alarming spike in violent crime.

Even as the immediate crisis needs to be vanquished, this great city also needs a mayor who will make progress on persistent problems like transportation, housing, education and poverty. The city requires someone who can take charge right away, with fervor and confidence.

All of the candidates in the June 22 Democratic primary are concerned with the welfare of their city and have thoughtful ideas about how to better it. It is Kathryn Garcia who best understands how to get New York back on its feet and has the temperament and the experience to do so. Ms. Garcia has our endorsement in perhaps the most consequential mayoral contest in a generation.
What people also have to appreciate is in order to make that pension fund efficient, I also consolidated the pension funds into one investment meeting. And as a result, we created a very efficient management office of our citys pension fund. Mayors and comptrollers in the past tried to do it. They never managed to do it. And what I strategized was making sure that that pension fund consolidation did not go through Albany, where it was going to die, but rather did the research and figured out we could actually do it in the city. I tell you these stories because the truth is being mayor is also having the skills to look at big ideas, big goals, and get it done. And this office prepared me in a much different way than being borough president or even in the State Assembly.

Mara Gay: Im going to jump in, thanks. So, Scott, youve been in politics all of your adult life. Tell us how youve changed over the years, if at all. I mean, some New Yorkers who have followed your entire career have been kind of surprised about your progressive campaign, since you used to be viewed as a middle-of-the-road Democrat. So did your views change? If so, why dont you tell us about that?

I dont think Ive changed. I mean, I have been in politics all my life. But remember how I started? I started giving out leaflets for my cousin Bella Abzug, not exactly a middle-of-the-road Democrat in her time. Ive been a progressive for so long, they used to call me a liberal. I represented the Upper Left Side before Brooklyn took over the mantle. Look at my history. I went to Albany as the lead progressive rebel in the Legislature. I took on Shelly Silver and ended empty-seat voting and ushered in the rules reform that no one thought was possible. I basically almost got thrown out of the Assembly. I had the most progressive voting record in the Assembly, was the only one who stood up for tenants during that time period. And while I was doing that, I was also able to pass 40 pieces of legislation, especially in the areas of domestic violence, the anti-stalking law and the like.

[Empty-seat voting was a practice that allowed Albany legislators to use what The Times referred to as a cruise-control approach to voting, in which after legislators had signed in for the day, they were counted as having voted yes on all bills unless they explicitly said otherwise. This rule changed in 2005.]

When I became borough president [of Manhattan], we took on developers who were not engaging with communities, but we also did important university expansions through the lens of making sure that we work with communities. That was that moment. And then as comptroller, I continued to do the progressive, effective work that I needed to do.

I think the big intersection here was going out and recognizing that someone who had accumulated a lot of political capital like myself, over a lifetime, would then use that capital to end the I.D.C. reign in Albany. And I did step out and endorse young progressive women of color who took on the entire political establishment, wasnt supposed to win any of these races. And we did. And so I feel that Im being very consistent in my views, obviously. But Ive evolved. If I hadnt evolved over 30 years, then theres something wrong with me. By the way, the times have also changed, some of it in a very powerful way. And Ive tried to meet those challenges. But my heart and my consistency, I feel, is very relevant.

Mara Gay: So many New Yorkers are thinking not just about police reform but also about the rise in violent crime. How do you undertake police reform that not only makes policing fairer to minorities and all New Yorkers but also more effective? And how does defund figure into that?
FRONT PAGE

An article on Monday about Eric Adams described incorrectly a branch of Service Employees International Union. The branch, 32BJ SEIU, represents private sector workers; it is not New York Citys largest municipal union.

A map with an article on May 3 about the unlikelihood of herd immunity understated the willingness of residents to be vaccinated, according to Department of Health and Human Services estimates.

NATIONAL

An article on Saturday about the Biden administrations policy toward Ukraine described incorrectly John F. Teffts ambassadorship. He served as the American ambassador to Russia from 2014 to 2017, not 2009 to 2013.

SPORTS

An article on Monday about the Champions League final misstated the date of the F.A. Cup final. It is May 15, not May 17.
The biggest story last week was Labours humiliating loss of Hartlepool, a classic blue-collar constituency, for the first time since the 1940s. It confirmed the Tories growing strength, post-Brexit, among working-class voters in Labours strongholds in the industrial north and Midlands. As U.K. political analyst Matthew Goodwin has pointed out, Hartlepool is the 55th seat that Conservatives have wrested from Labour in just the last two years. All but four of them were pro-Brexit in 2016.
Of course, the reason it was so expensive only made me want it more. Oudh is an oleoresin, born out of a fungal attack upon the heartwood of a perfectly ordinary slim-limbed tree, native to South and Southeast Asia, known as Aquilaria malaccensis. Undiseased, the tree is a mere evergreen. But once the fungus has struck, gradually transforming the weight of the tree so that it can no longer float in water  the Chinese name for the material is chen hsiang, sinking fragrance, the Japanese jinko, wrote Edwin T. Morris in 1984s Fragrance: The Story of Perfume From Cleopatra to Chanel  the precious ooze, elixir of sickness and decay, appears, turning the woody innards of the tree to liquid gold. The fungus only strikes certain trees, and one must wait up to half a century for the highest quality yield. That is why oudh is so expensive, and why many years would go by before, thanks to the generosity of a family friend, I would acquire a few meager ounces of the precious resin  some oudh of ones own.

To grow up in India in the wake of colonization, as a child of the 1980s, was to learn to balance multiple societies in ones mind, without ever quite achieving resolution or overlap. When you have a double culture, Francis Kurkdjian, 52, a French perfumer with Armenian roots and the creator behind such evocative scents as Jean Paul Gaultiers Le Male (1995), said to me recently, you are more open, because as a child you experience something on the side, which allows you to have another window on the world.

In terms of fragrance, what this meant for me was that I occupied two worlds that remained separate, unassimilable. There was traditional India, the world of the attarwallah, with all its smells: of the moist matting screens of vetiver in old houses in the summer; of cool sandalwood paste, or chandan, in the temple, smeared on ones forehead after a ritual; or of the smoking brass vessel of frankincense, or luban, carried through the house in the evenings to purify the air. What I could not have known, as an oriental boy growing up among oriental smells, was that, from the late 1970s through the mid-1980s, a movement was underway in Western perfumery, in which the scents of my childhood, known in fragrance as the orientals  ambers and aromatic woods, vetiver, patchouli, musk and sandalwood  were being repurposed. Their rise, culminating eventually in the popularization of oudh in our century, spoke of profound societal changes in the West, such as womens liberation, sexual freedom and the global dominance of the United States.

Of these new strong scents that represented the arrival of the independent woman, not unlike my own mother  who was among the first female journalists in India to cover conflicts  none perhaps was as distinctive as one belonging to a particular bottle that sat on her dressing table. It had a strange burnt orange casing, shaped (I now know) like an inro, one of the small Japanese boxes, with tiny compartments containing medicinal herbs, seals, spices and opium, that the samurai wore on their belts. On the curvilinear face of the bottle, like that of a hip flask, was a glass oculus through which a rich, amber-colored liquid was visible. Dull gold letters on the front read Opium Parfum Yves Saint Laurent. I remember its heavy, intoxicating odor, all spice, patchouli and balsam. In its baroque suggestion of luxury, it was of a piece with the gold-bordered silk brocade saris my mother wore out on winter evenings in Delhi.

In 1978, the year after Opium was first released, a Palestinian-American academic named Edward Said published his seminal work, Orientalism, which posited the idea of a newly rapacious West, arising out of colonialism, taking ownership of Eastern culture and history as a means to have authority over it, to speak for it and, as a consequence, to better control it. Indeed, my real argument, Said wrote, is that Orientalism is  and does not simply represent  a considerable dimension of modern political-intellectual culture, and as such has less to do with the Orient than it does with our world. Saids study concerned itself mostly with art, literature and history, but what was true of other aspects of culture was true of perfume, too: The rise of the orientals in the late 1970s, of which Opium was emblematic, marked one of many moments when the West was speaking through the East of things that had more to do with the West than with the East. There is something fascinating to me (though rarely benign) in the idea of another, more powerful culture, expressing itself through yours  cultivating, as Said writes, one of its deepest and most recurring images of the Other. In this way, the rise of the so-called orientals is not merely a story of a particular vogue within perfumery; it is the story of seduction, power, history and legacy. Above all, it is inextricably tied to the birth of modernity in Europe.
Before the pandemic, about half a million people visited the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pa., each year. The visitor center details the events of the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, when passengers and crew members stormed the cockpit of a hijacked jetliner and thwarted terrorists, possibly preventing an attack on the U.S. Capitol.

A wall of phones is central to the exhibit. Pick one up and guests will hear a goodbye message left by one of the 40 passengers and crew members for their families before the plane crashed into a field just east of Pittsburgh at 10:03 a.m, one hour 21 minutes after taking off from Newark Liberty International Airport, killing them all.

Tour guides often explain that these goodbyes were collected from answering machines. Young visitors often have the same question, according to Donna Gibson, the president of Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial: What is an answering machine?

This question serves as a reminder, Ms. Gibson said: Teaching history to the 75 million Americans born after Sept. 11  nearly a quarter of the U.S. population  requires new tactics. With the 20th anniversary of the attack rapidly approaching and the world-altering events of that day receding further into history, her organization announced on Monday the creation of a Flight 93 Heroes Award to try to engage younger generations.
COLORADO SPRINGS  In the early hours of Sunday, the sound of the television inside Gerardo Torress mobile home in Colorado Springs was overwhelmed by gunfire outside.

Then, a womans cry from a gray mobile home across the narrow lane from his: No! No!

As Mr. Torres called 911 and stepped out to investigate, he heard more shooting, then silence. He grimly told the 911 dispatcher that he believed everyone inside was dead.

Police officers arrived minutes later to find that a gunman had killed five people at a birthday party before killing himself. A sixth person was critically injured and died later at a hospital.

The gunman was the boyfriend of one of the women who was killed, the Colorado Springs Police Department said in a statement.
SACRAMENTO  Riding a breathtaking and exquisitely timed $75.7 billion surplus, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday proposed putting $600 in the pockets of two-thirds of California taxpayers in a state rebate that if approved would be the largest in U.S. history.

The proposal, one in a series the governor plans to make this week in his annual budget revision, takes advantage of a remarkable turnaround in the states financial picture that comes not only as California emerges from the coronavirus pandemic, but also as Mr. Newsom works to defuse an expected recall election.

Other plans for the windfall  all requiring legislative approval  include a large expansion in an innovative state program to house homeless people, aid to low-income Californians who are behind on their utility bills and rental payments, expanded child care subsidies, drought and wildfire mitigation and more.

In less than a year, the states financial picture has swung from bust to boom, thanks largely to Californias tax system, which relies heavily on the kind of higher-income workers who were able to work from home and thus keep their jobs during the pandemic.
WASHINGTON  A Justice Department lawyer said in federal court on Monday that, even as the Pentagon is withdrawing all troops from Afghanistan, the United States has the authority to continue to detain a former Afghan militia member at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, because of his past association with members of Al Qaeda.

We remain at war with Al Qaeda, the lawyer, Stephen M. Elliott, said at the start of hearing in U.S. District Court in Washington in a case brought by Asadullah Haroon Gul, an Afghan citizen who has been held by the U.S. military since 2007.

The hearing was the first in a Guantanamo habeas corpus case since the Biden administration took office, and its defense of his detention appeared identical to the positions taken by previous administrations, despite President Bidens order to withdraw all U.S. combat troops from Afghanistan and his stated ambition to close the Guantanamo detention operation.

Mr. Elliott said Al Qaeda is morphing and evolving and that the U.S. war on terrorism continues.
Right now, there is not a supply shortage, she said. We are preparing for multiple possible contingencies. But she said the job of getting the pipeline back online belonged to Colonial.

To many officials who have struggled for years to protect the United States critical infrastructure from cyberattacks, the only surprise about the events of the past few days is that they took so long to happen. When Leon E. Panetta was defense secretary under President Barack Obama, Mr. Panetta warned of a cyber Pearl Harbor that could shut off power and fuel, a phrase often used in an effort to get Congress or corporations to spend more on cyberdefense.

During the Trump administration, the Department of Homeland Security issued warnings about Russian malware in the American power grid, and the United States mounted a not-so-secret effort to put malware in the Russian grid as a warning.

But in the many simulations run by government agencies and electric utilities of what a strike against the American energy sector would look like, the effort was usually envisioned as some kind of terrorist strike  a mix of cyber and physical attacks  or a blitz by Iran, China or Russia in the opening moments of a larger military conflict.

But this case was different: a criminal actor who, in trying to extort money from a company, ended up bringing down the system. One senior Biden administration official called it the ultimate blended threat because it was a criminal act, the kind the United States would normally respond to with arrests or indictments, that resulted in a major threat to the nations energy supply chain.

By threatening to disrupt the ransomware group, Mr. Biden may have been signaling that the administration was moving to take action against these groups beyond merely indicting them. That is what United States Cyber Command did last year, ahead of the presidential election in November, when its military hackers broke into the systems of another ransomware group, called Trickbot, and manipulated its command-and-control computer servers so that it could not lock up new victims with ransomware. The fear at that time was that the ransomware group might sell its skills to governments, including Russia, that sought to freeze up election tabulations.

On Monday, DarkSide argued it was not operating on behalf of a nation-state, perhaps in an effort to distance itself from Russia.
Glenn Youngkin, a wealthy first-time candidate who walked a line between his partys Trump-centric base and appeals to business interests, won the Republican nomination for governor of Virginia on Monday. He heads into a general election in one of only two states choosing their governors in 2021, in the latest running of an off-year race often viewed as a referendum on the party holding the White House.

Late Monday, Mr. Youngkins last remaining rival, Pete Snyder, conceded the race. I send my heartfelt congratulations, Mr. Snyder wrote on Twitter. He + the ticket have my 100% support.

The results were tabulated by Republican officials two days after roughly 30,000 voters cast ranked-choice ballots at 39 locations around the state. Mr. Snyder conceded after more than 12 hours of vote counting, in which five candidates were knocked from contention, one by one, and their supporters next-choice votes were allocated to others still in the running. In the sixth round of counting, Mr. Youngkin passed the required 50 percent threshold.

Virginians have made it clear that they are ready for a political outsider with proven business experience to bring real change in Richmond, he said on Twitter.
The State University of New York and the City University of New York plan to require that all students attending in-person instruction in the fall be fully vaccinated against Covid-19, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of New York said on Monday.

He said the requirement would be contingent on the federal government granting full approval to the vaccines now in use. So far, three vaccines have been given emergency use authorization in the United States, but none have full approval yet.

Pfizer and BioNTech jointly applied for full approval for their vaccine last week, and Moderna has said it plans to apply sometime in May. The approval process can take months.

The New York colleges and universities join a growing list of higher-education institutions that will require students to be vaccinated in the fall. In April, the University of California and California State University announced plans to require all students, faculty and staff on their campuses be vaccinated, once a vaccine receives full approval. That policy will affect more than one million people associated with the sprawling state campuses across California.
A granite-faced townhouse in Bostons Back Bay neighborhood was designed more than 100 years ago by the artist Louis Comfort Tiffany and is seen today as the most comprehensive surviving example of his residential vision.

Its pale facade, with mosaic panels set in limestone and a stained-glass window over copper-clad double doors, is one of only two exteriors known to have been designed by Tiffany and the only one that remains intact.

The interior, featuring an oval staircase and an entrance with white marble wainscoting and mosaic stair risers, is equally striking.

For decades the building, known as the Ayer Mansion, has been owned by nonprofit organizations connected to the Roman Catholic group Opus Dei, and has functioned as part of a cultural center and a residence for women attending nearby colleges. During that time, its doors have periodically been opened to the public for tours, lectures and concerts.
LOS ANGELES  People have come back again and again. They bring family members and friends. It isnt often that a gallery show engenders such strong responses. But this one feels different, because every face in every painting belongs to a person of color. Every piece of art was created by a person of color. And the exhibition was organized by two young people of color curating their first major show.

It had the feeling of a warm family gathering on a day in the park, said Alysia Cortez, describing the first of her three visits to the show, Shattered Glass, at Jeffrey Deitch Gallery in Hollywood. It is magical to see Black and brown people look at the walls and see themselves. I saw a couple show up with their pit bulls, I saw aunties come around to see whats going on, and I saw so many kids.

The exhibition, which runs through May 22, was assembled over the last year, when its curators  Melahn Frierson, who joined Deitch in 2018 and became director of the Los Angeles gallery in 2020, and AJ Girard, an arts educator  wanted to find a way to process all that was happening in the country around racial justice and the pandemic.
Weve taken a lot of steps, not only to make sure that the theater is going to be safe for all of our audience members, but to make sure that our cast and crew have been trained in anti-racism training, also making sure that we, as a brand, are pushing forward social justice, said Krystal Joy Brown, who plays Eliza Schuyler in Hamilton.
Before reading Dedicated, a new book by Pete Davis, I hadnt realized that the acronym YOLO  you only live once  wasnt always a celebration of doing something fleeting and reckless just for the thrill of it. One of its earliest public uses is attributable to the Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart; in the early 1990s, Hart poured his resources into a California property he called the YOLO Ranch, building a recording studio and creating a hub for the music community.

YOLO, it turns out, was conceived as a message of diving into attachment, not freeing yourself from it, Davis writes. Better go deep, because you only live once.

Dedicated is Daviss attempt to make this case  to show that commitment, so often associated with conservatism and traditionalism, can be a radical act. Theres clearly an appetite for Daviss message; the book grew out of a graduation speech he gave for his class at Harvard Law School in 2018, which has been viewed online some 31 million times. Watching it, you see an affable Davis deliver what is essentially the beginning of the book, starting with the highly relatable quandary of getting stuck in what he calls Infinite Browsing Mode: scrolling through the countless possibilities on Netflix without ever settling on anything. Ive come to believe that this is the defining characteristic of my generation, he writes in Dedicated. Keeping our options open.

What follows is a combination of cultural jeremiad, self-help guide and call to action. Davis marches through a parade of extremely sober references that include the American novelist Don DeLillo and the Polish sociologist Zygmunt Bauman, but hes too optimistic to sound like a scold. Part of his argument is that the grinding, painstaking work that commitment entails is necessary to effect any lasting transformation. He concedes that proposing a Counterculture of Commitment is a hard sell in the Culture of Open Options. (I couldnt decide if his shorthand was corny or useful; I came to think it was both.) Commitment requires trust, a sentiment that takes time and effort to build and is in awfully short supply these days.
1

Mrs. Cone showed me around the house. I wanted to stop at every turn and examine the things that were stacked and heaped in places they didnt belong: books teetering on a burner on the stove, a coffee cup on a shoebox in the entrance hall, a copper Buddha on the radiator, a pink blow-up pool raft in the center of the living room. I had just turned fourteen, it was 1975, and my ideas about homes, furniture, and cleanliness ran straight into me like an umbilical cord from my mother. As Mrs. Cone used her bare foot (toenails painted a glittering red) to kick aside a stack of sweaters on the steps, I felt a jolt of wonder. Did people really live like this? I suppose I knew that they did somewhere in the world. But I never expected to find a home like this in our neighborhood, Roland Park, which my mother claimed was the finest neighborhood in Baltimore.

On the second floor all but one of the dark wood doors were open. The bottom half of the single closed door was plastered with IMPEACHMENT: Now More Than Ever bumper stickers and a masking-taped poster of Snoopy dancing, nose in the air. Everything was slightly angled, as if placed there by a drunk on his knees.

This is Izzys room. Mrs. Cone opened the door and I followed her past Snoopy into a space that looked like it had been attacked by a cannon that shot out toys. An Etch A Sketch; Operation game board; Legos; paper doll books; Colorforms box and stickies; Richard Scarry books; and a heap of molded plastic horses: No surface was uncovered. I wondered if Izzy, or her mother, swept an arm across the bed at night, pushing everything to the floor.

[ Return to the review of Mary Jane. ]

Izzy. I smiled. Our neighbor, Mrs. Riley, had told me her name was Isabelle. But I liked Izzy better, the way it fizzed on my tongue. I didnt know anyone named Izzy, or Isabelle. Id never even met Izzy Cone. But through the recommendation of Mrs. Riley, and after a phone call with Mrs. Cone, Id been hired as the summer nanny. I had thought the phone call was going to be an interview, but really Mrs. Cone just told me about Izzy. She doesnt like to play with kids her own age. I dont think shes interested in what other five-year-olds do. Really, she only wants to hang out with me all day, Mrs. Cone had said. Which is usually fine, but Ive got other stuff going on this summer, so . . . Mrs. Cone had paused then and Id wondered if I was supposed to tell her that Id take the job, or was I to wait for her to officially offer it to me?
Midorikawas chosen Spiritualists are a colorful bunch, and her lively writing makes their careers fun to follow. But why bring them together in a book? The author ventures that these six women acquired a voice within a patriarchal society and, as such, belong in our accounts of the journey toward female empowerment. True, every one of those visionaries knew how to draw a crowd. Its true, too, that Spiritualists as a group played a major role in spreading the message about womens rights throughout the 19th century and that merely by standing up and speaking in public they were defying Victorian gender norms. Yet the goal of advancing feminism played little role in prompting the careers of the women described by Midorikawa.

Leah Fox Fish, a single mother deserted by her husband, needed the means to support herself and her daughter, and once a third marriage guaranteed her economic security, she retired. Neither she nor her sisters lent their support to any womens rights organization. Emma Hardinge Britten  who from youth supported her widowed mother  turned to mediumship when her star as an actress faded on Broadway. Womens rights numbered among her many lecture subjects, but Brittens most consistent aim was to seize on any topic that would grab the attention of a paying audience. Its hard to say what causes, if any, Victoria Woodhull took to heart because ghostwriters  especially her very corporeal second husband, Col. James Harvey Blood  wrote her speeches and articles. She latched onto the Spiritualist movement to gather support for her presidential campaign when business reversals and personal scandals threatened to derail her ambitions and remove her from the public eye. Many Spiritualist and feminist leaders condemned her opportunism and ultimately both movements ended their connection with her. As for Georgina Weldon, although she excelled at confounding her male adversaries, her main goal was basking in the limelight, and she vied for it ferociously  even with other women.

Other Spiritualists would have made a much better fit as feminists, but Midorikawas ensemble do belong together in a different book  one that explores the making of popular entertainments in the 19th century and the origins of celebrity. Kate and Maggie, Leah and Emma, Victoria and Georgina: Victorian Kardashians all. They were pioneers in show business strategies, media manipulation and advertising techniques, and their spirits still lurk among the many people intent on making a spectacle of themselves.
Dozens killed in Gaza-Israel violence

Some of the worst fighting between Israelis and Palestinians in years showed no signs of abating on Tuesday. Israel carried out deadly airstrikes in Gaza, and Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that runs the territory, fired heavy barrages of rockets at Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities.

Israel hit a Hamas office tower and a 13-story residential building in the Gaza Strip that collapsed. Shortly after 9 p.m., militants fired a barrage of rockets toward Tel Aviv, calling it retaliation for the airstrike. One rocket fired at Tel Aviv hit an empty bus south of the city, wounding at least three people.

At least 26 Palestinians, including nine children, were killed in about 130 Israeli strikes on Monday and Tuesday, according to health officials in Gaza. Two people in Israel were killed in strikes on the Israeli seaside city of Ashkelon on Tuesday.

Context: The immediate trigger for this weeks violence was likely a police raid on the Aqsa mosque compound, which sits on a site sacred to Christians, Muslims and Jews.
Deadly tensions in Jerusalem

Weeks of clashes in Jerusalem veered into military conflict yesterday after a raid by the Israeli police on Al Aqsa Mosque. Militants in Gaza responded by firing rockets at the city, drawing Israeli airstrikes in return. Palestinian health officials said at least 20 residents of northern Gaza, including nine children, were killed in the airstrikes.

The violence began after the police entered the mosque compound and fired rubber-tipped bullets and stun grenades at stone-throwing Palestinians. More than 330 Palestinians and at least 21 Israeli police officers were injured, according to local officials.

Tensions were already high amid the looming expulsions of Palestinian families from the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem. The Israeli Supreme Court delayed the expulsions on Sunday, in part because of the tensions the case has stirred. Palestinians have been protesting daily since April.

Explainer: The Aqsa Mosque sits on a site sacred to Christians, Muslims and Jews, and it is a chronic flash point in the protracted Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Heres what you need to know.
When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new guidelines last month for mask wearing, it announced that less than 10 percent of Covid-19 transmission was occurring outdoors. Media organizations repeated the statistic, and it quickly became a standard description of the frequency of outdoor transmission.

But the number is almost certainly misleading.

It appears to be based partly on a misclassification of some Covid transmission that actually took place in enclosed spaces (as I explain below). An even bigger issue is the extreme caution of C.D.C. officials, who picked a benchmark  10 percent  so high that nobody could reasonably dispute it.

That benchmark seems to be a huge exaggeration, as Dr. Muge Cevik, a virologist at the University of St. Andrews, said. In truth, the share of transmission that has occurred outdoors seems to be below 1 percent and may be below 0.1 percent, multiple epidemiologists told me. The rare outdoor transmission that has happened almost all seems to have involved crowded places or close conversation.

Saying that less than 10 percent of Covid transmission occurs outdoors is akin to saying that sharks attack fewer than 20,000 swimmers a year. (The actual worldwide number is around 150.) Its both true and deceiving.
Exclusive: L Brands will spin off Victorias Secret

L Brands has decided to spin off Victorias Secret rather than sell it, DealBook is first to report. The company said last year it was considering separating Victorias Secret from the rest of its business, and we previously reported that it was testing private equitys interest. Ultimately, sources say, L Brands has decided to split itself into two independent, publicly listed companies: Victorias Secret and Bath & Body Works. The deal is expected to close in August.

Bids didnt match what Victorias Secret expects to get in a spinoff. DealBook hears that L Brands received several bids north of $3 billion. It turned them down, because it expects to be valued somewhere between $5 billion and $7 billion in a spinoff to L Brands shareholders. Analysts at Citi and JPMorgan recently valued Victorias Secret as a stand-alone company at $5 billion.

The pandemic torpedoed a sale last year for much less. That agreement, announced in February 2020 with the investment firm Sycamore Partners, valued Victorias Secret at $1.1 billion. Apart from a pandemic that was about to upend the retail industry, Victorias Secret was dealing with a series of challenges: a brand that had fallen out of touch, accusations of misogyny and sexual harassment in the workplace and revelations about the ties between Les Wexner, the companys founder and former chairman, and Jeffrey Epstein. (Wexner stepped down as C.E.O. last year and said in March that he and his wife are not running for re-election on the companys board.)
Even with the U.K. being the biggest market, the logistics costs werent big enough to justify new factories, said Alun Roberts, an expert on offshore wind with the British-based consulting firm BVG Associates.

A 2017 report indicated that the country manufactured well below 30 percent of its offshore wind equipment, and Mr. Roberts said the percentage had probably increased slightly since then. The country currently manufactures blades but no nacelles.

All of which leaves the Biden administration with a difficult choice: If it genuinely wants to shift manufacturing to the United States, doing so could require some aggressive prodding. A senior White House official said the administration was exploring ways of requiring that a portion of wind and solar equipment be American-made when federal money was involved.

But some current and former Democratic economic officials are skeptical of the idea, as are clean-energy advocates.

I worry about local content requirements for offshore wind from the federal government right now, said Kathleen Theoharides, the Massachusetts secretary of energy and environmental affairs. I dont think adding anything that could potentially raise the cost of clean energy to the ratepayer is necessarily the right strategy.

Mr. Master said the recent legislation in New York was a victory given the difficulty of enacting stronger domestic content policies at the state level, but acknowledged that it fell short of his unions goals. Both he and Ms. Fahy vowed to keep pressing to bring more offshore wind manufacturing jobs to New York.

I could be the queen of lost causes, but we want to get some energy around this, Ms. Fahy said. We need this here. Im not just saying New York. This is a national conversation.
He said he first became concerned about his companys financial health in December, when a German regulatory agency said a bank that Greensill Capital had acquired needed to reduce its exposure to one customer.

The request was going to be impossible for us to comply with, Mr. Greensill said.

Greensills business model has raised concerns and even accusations of fraud. Its main offering was supply chain finance, in which a middleman advances payments to suppliers and then the money is repaid by the buyer. Its a long-established kind of financing, usually provided by banks, but Greensill added a twist. It packaged the invoices and other receivables by the suppliers into assets that were then sold to investors through funds. The company also provided financing to companies based on future receivables, which were based on transactions that hadnt yet happened.

In Tuesdays hearing, held virtually, Mr. Greensill strongly defended the business model.

Every asset we ever sold was correctly described, he said, adding that all investors would have had complete information about what they were buying.

But he made a small admission to failures he had made. He told lawmakers that one of his companys innovations was taking information directly from company accounts to make fast lending decisions. This absolutely is the future but the way that I did it definitely had flaws, he said without specifying what they were.

In March, as the insurance coverage came to an end, Credit Suisse shut down $10 billion worth of supply chain finance funds it sold that were put together by Greensill. The Swiss bank has returned just under half the amount to investors but is still exposed to billions of dollars in potential losses.

I bear complete responsibility for the collapse of Greensill Capital, Mr. Greensill said, adding that he was desperately saddened that more than 1,000 of his employees had lost their jobs. But he added: Its deeply regrettable we were let down by our leading insurer, whose actions assured Greensills collapse.

The Financial Conduct Authority, Britains chief financial regulator, said in a letter to the committee that it was formally investigating Greensill because some of the allegations about its failure are potentially criminal in nature. The authority is also working with regulators in Germany, Australia and Switzerland, Nikhil Rathi, the regulators chief executive, wrote.
For millions of retirement savers, the pandemic was a gut punch. There was the jarring stock market drop in March 2020, then millions lost their jobs, health insurance and ability to fund their savings.

The pandemic stymied adults who hadnt started saving for retirement, the number of workers taking withdrawals from their 401(k)s last year jumped, and some companies cut their 401(k) matching contributions.



John F. Wasik, a writer for The New York Times, spoke with financial advisers about the seven steps people can take now to catch up on their retirement savings:
Corvallis, OR (97331)

Today

Partly cloudy skies this morning will become overcast during the afternoon. High 68F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Cloudy this evening with showers after midnight. Low 49F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Debi Chirichella, the president of Hearst Magazines, said in an email to staff that Marie Claire U.S. employees were notified of the sale on Monday. We will do everything we can to ensure that the transition to new ownership is a positive one, Ms. Chirichella wrote.

Image The April 2021 edition of Marie Claire.

Faye Galvin, the head of communications at Future, said in an email that the company hoped all existing Marie Claire U.S. employees would accept the offer to work with us.

Ms. Galvin singled out Sally Holmes, the editor in chief of Marie Claire U.S. since September. In terms of Sally in particular, she is absolutely key to driving the business forward and together we will build on her success, she said in an email.

Marie Claire was started in 1937 in France by the writer Marcelle Auclair and the industrialist and media magnate Jean Prouvost, who helped create the current-events magazine Paris Match.

In the mid-1990s, under the editor Bonnie Fuller, the U.S. version distinguished itself from its competitors by emphasizing the practical, providing readers with concrete style and beauty tips, rather than the fantasies of fashion. Its other long-term editors were Joanna Coles and Anne Fulenwider.
Semiconductor companies and big businesses that use chips have formed a coalition to push for tens of billions of dollars in federal funding for semiconductor research and manufacturing in the United States.

The new group, the Semiconductors in America Coalition, announced its formation on Tuesday amid a global semiconductor shortage that has caused disruptions throughout the economy. Its members include chip makers like Intel, Nvidia and Qualcomm and companies that rely on semiconductors, like Amazon Web Services, Apple, AT&T, Google, Microsoft and Verizon.

The coalition is calling on Congress to provide $50 billion for semiconductor research and manufacturing, which President Biden has proposed as part of his $2.3 trillion infrastructure package.

Leaders from a broad range of critical sectors of the U.S. economy, as well as a large and bipartisan group of policymakers in Washington, recognize the essential role of semiconductors in Americas current and future strength, said John Neuffer, the president and chief executive of the Semiconductor Industry Association, a trade group.
Maya D. Wiley, a former counsel to Mayor Bill de Blasio, is slated to unveil her policing plan; the former federal housing secretary, Shaun Donovan, is expected in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn, which has been hit especially hard by gun violence over the last year, to discuss his plans to eliminate the out-of-state gun pipeline; and Kathryn Garcia, the citys former sanitation commissioner, intends to roll out a gun violence prevention proposal.

Were in a very precarious position, said the Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights leader. People are afraid of the cops and the robbers. We have both of them that weve got to deal with. And anyone that cannot come up with a comprehensive plan that threads the needle of both should not be running for mayor.

Mr. Sharpton said he intends to press mayoral candidates on issues of both overpolicing and gun violence at a forum in coming weeks.

More than any other candidate in the race, Mr. Adams offers the clearest test of the potency of a message centered on public safety, which he describes as the prerequisite to prosperity. Mr. Adams, a former police officer who has pushed for reforms within the system and says he has been a victim of police brutality himself, has been vocal for weeks about the rise in gun violence. On Monday, he was talking about those issues again, standing outside a Manhattan subway station where a woman was recently assaulted.

This city is out of control, Mr. Adams said. Thats what has changed in this mayoral race: People are finally hearing me. We dont have to live like this.

He and other Democratic candidates contend that there is no conflict between urging a robust police response to crime, and insisting on changes to regulate police misconduct and violence.

Even before the Times Square shooting, there were mounting signs that public safety was intensifying as a concern in New York: a Spectrum News NY1/Ipsos poll released late last month found that crime or violence was a major concern for New York Democrats, second only to the coronavirus.
This gun violence has been real for countless New Yorkers for years, and as the chief executive, the mayor of the city, we cant wait until crises happen in the center of Manhattan, he said. We have to respond before then.

Kathryn Garcia

Ms. Garcia, a former sanitation commissioner, said she would increase community policing and boost an N.Y.P.D. division focused on identifying people or groups that traffic or sell illegal guns.

We must see the full picture and prioritize efforts to prevent the underlying causes of crime, including access to jobs, housing, education, and by working with violence prevention programs at the community level, she said.

Andrew Yang

Mr. Yang, a former presidential candidate, said he would reinstitute the plainclothes unit and populate it with better-trained officers with clean records. He said New York could not afford to defund the police.

Nothing works in our city without public safety, and for public safety, we need the police, Mr. Yang said. My message to the N.Y.P.D. is this: New York needs you. Your city needs you.

Raymond J. McGuire

Mr. McGuire, a former Citi executive, said the city should increase the number of officers focused on reducing the number of guns available to people. He said courts should keep repeat offenders off the streets.

As gun violence continues to rise in our city at alarming rates, the fix isnt to defund and disarm, leaving the most vulnerable and often forgotten neighborhoods unprotected, he said, nor is the answer going back to Giuliani-era police tactics like some have suggested.
A few days after Frank Lamorte tested positive for the coronavirus, he got an unexpected phone call.

Mr. Lamorte, a painter for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, had a persistent cough and a high fever. He worried about infecting his wife, his stepdaughter and his five-month-old grandson, who live with him in Oak Ridge, N.J., about 40 miles west of Manhattan.

So the call from Barbara Morton, a chaplain with the M.T.A., provided some much needed reassurance.

It was a relief to know that somebody actually cares, said Mr. Lamorte, 50, who returned to work in January after being out for six weeks. And it came from the heart.

Ms. Morton occupies a rare niche  the M.T.A., which runs New Yorks subway, buses and two commuter rails, is one of the few transit agencies in the country to have a chaplaincy program. In a typical year, it helps employees deal with stresses like abusive passengers or deaths on the tracks, as well as more personal problems.
Two New York Police Department officers and a retired officer were charged Tuesday in federal court with running a yearslong bribery scheme that included kickbacks from a tow truck company and the selling of personal information of recent car crash victims to injury lawyers and physical therapists.

The retired officer, Robert Smith, is also accused of smuggling heroin for an unnamed criminal organization after he left the Police Department in March 2020.

According to court documents, Mr. Smith, 44, accepted bribes for years from an unnamed tow truck company and an unnamed conspirator, identified only as Individual No. 1, in exchange for enlisting the persons tow trucks at crash scenes, subverting the departments system for assigning tow trucks.

Mr. Smith went on to recruit two officers, Heather Busch, 34, and Robert Hassett, 36, from the same Queens precinct where he worked in the scheme, according to court records. Together, they received thousands of dollars in cash payments, much of it funneled through a locked mailbox the officers shared, the authorities said.
Thats more or less what happened with the debate over communion for the divorced and remarried: The Germans sought a formal path for remarried Catholics to receive the Eucharist, and Francis delivered an ambiguous text that effectively allowed different Catholic countries and dioceses to choose their own approach.

The expectation from liberal Catholics, and the fear of conservatives, was that this model would begin a kind of decentralization of doctrine, in which the churchs rules varied dramatically across national borders and diocesan lines.

But Francis declined to make that kind of move with married priests. And as with many revolutions, raising liberal expectations and then dashing them created pressure for the German bishops to go further on their own. So for more than a year, with Covid interrupting, the German church has been engaged in a synodal path, basically a series of conferences on church reform, in which most of the major post-sexual-revolution issues are on the table  even as Rome keeps issuing warnings that the Germans are on dangerous ground.

It was the latest of these warnings, a statement from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome ruling out Catholic blessings for same-sex unions, that prompted this weeks clerical version of civil disobedience. And the fact that the mass blessings are happening against the wishes of the German hierarchy is an indicator of the unpredictability of the process now unfolding. Germanys bishops seem to have every institutional reason to avoid pushing Rome too far, to avoid risking a break that deprives them of their position and influence in a global church. But to the extent that there is strong pressure from below to simply enact a more liberal Catholicism as a fait accompli, its possible to imagine the whole process slipping out of the bishops control  something that rather famously happened in German Christianity once before, with five centuries worth of consequences.

Still, there are reasons schism may not come. The last time I wrote about the forces unleashed by the Francis era, I was focused on the dilemmas of conservatives and traditionalists, whose high view of papal authority means that they dont have a clear place to stand if they seem to be on the wrong side of the pope. When they confront a papal decision that seems incompatible with orthodoxy, youre more likely to get a retreat to end-times anxiety and paranoia  the place where, say, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, the sex-abuse whistle-blower turned Trumpist oracle, has ended up  than any kind of large-scale defection or explicit schism.
The Sheikh Jarrah families who have faced eviction are Palestinian refugees who were driven from their homes in Haifa and Jaffa during the 1948 war. Israel prevented refugees from returning to their cities, seized their homes and moved Jewish Israeli families in. In the 1950s, the Jordanian government, which controlled East Jerusalem until 1967, settled 28 refugee families in Sheikh Jarrah in coordination with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.

After the 1967 war, when Israel extended its occupation to the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza, Jewish settlers began making claims on the refugees houses in Sheikh Jarrah. The settlers have been relying on a 1970 Israeli law that allows Jewish people to reclaim properties their families owned in East Jerusalem before 1948.

In 2009, settlers began taking over some of the families homes in Sheikh Jarrah, displacing 53 refugees, including 20 children, under Israeli court order. I met the affected families in 2009. We organized together, brought delegations of Israeli and international solidarity activists to the neighborhood and laid the foundations for a grass-roots movement. I co-produced a documentary on the communitys response to those expulsions.

Last fall, Israeli courts ruled to evict several more Palestinian families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah. Four of those families appealed, and an Israeli Supreme Court hearing was scheduled for their case on Monday.

Led by a new generation of Palestinians, the community in Sheikh Jarrah resumed and heightened its protest movement. Scores of Palestinian youths joined the Sheikh Jarrah families to break the Ramadan fast each night, eating, singing and dancing together, despite being attacked by the settlers with stones and being beaten, Tasered, arrested and doused with a stinking liquid by the police.

On Saturday, thousands of Palestinians were on their way to Jerusalem to spend the final days of Ramadan in Al Aqsa Mosque, as is our tradition. When stopped by the Israeli police from entering the city, they parked their cars and buses on the highway and began walking. Residents from across East Jerusalem  including Sheikh Jarrah  drove to the highway to pick them up.

It gives me hope to see displays of unity and support from all parts of Palestine and abroad. #SaveSheikhJarrah pops up on my Twitter feed every few seconds, in Arabic and English. Activists on the ground have made it clear that these evictions are not a real estate deal between private parties, as the Israeli government tries to portray it, but part of a systemic policy to replace Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem with Jewish Israelis.
That situation was exacerbated by a long-simmering fight over what Halbertal called sacred territory. In brief, right-wing Israeli Jews had gotten a court order to evict six Palestinian families who are living in homes on land that was owned by Jews in East Jerusalem before the city was divided in the 1948 war. Palestinian families are fighting their eviction in court. Indeed, Israels Supreme Court was slated to rule Monday on whether the Palestinians could be expelled but delayed the decision because of the violence.

Palestinians argue that it is unfair that Jews can reclaim land or homes they owned in East Jerusalem before 1948 but Palestinians have no legal means to reclaim land they owned in West Jerusalem or anywhere else in Israel before 1948.

Clashes over these sacred dates and sacred spaces would be incendiary enough, but they were also fueled, as I said, by scenes on TikTok. In April, some Palestinian youths uploaded a short video of themselves assaulting an Orthodox Jew on public transportation, as a way of inspiring copycat attacks. In response, a far-right Jewish group named Lehava led a march through Jerusalem to the Damascus Gate of the Old City, chanting Arabs, get out.

The whole mess makes a Gordian knot look simple to untangle. But what is it all telling us?

The most obvious and important point is that a dangerously naive consensus has emerged in Israel in recent years suggesting that Israel basically has the Palestinian conflict suppressed and those Palestinians living in the West Bank and East Jerusalem are basically resigned to living under permanent Israeli control. This consensus was so powerful that in all four of Israels recent elections, the question of peace with the Palestinians  how to achieve it and what happens if it is ignored  was not on the agenda.

The Abraham Accords engineered by the Trump administration, normalizing relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco  while valuable in helping to stabilize the region  also reinforced the notion that the Palestinian cause is basically yesterdays news. Todays headlines prove the fallacy of that thinking.

By the way, the Biden administration has no interest right now in being forced to react to those headlines. It does not believe the conditions are right for any real progress on the Israeli-Palestinian issue, and the last thing it wants  when its primary focus in the region is trying to revive the nuclear deal with Iran, which is already causing huge tensions with Israel  is to get distracted by having to mediate a cease-fire between Israelis and Palestinians or blunt Iranian attempts to inflame the situation in Jerusalem.

But where do we go from here?

In part that depends on Bibi Netanyahu. Of all the crazy coincidences of this moment, maybe the craziest is that it comes in what could be Bibis final days as Israels prime minister  after more than 12 years in office. Netanyahu has an interest in seeing his rivals fail to form a new coalition to unseat him. He would like Israel to go to a fifth election  giving him a chance to hang on and maybe avoid jail if he is convicted in his current corruption trial. One way Bibi could do that is by inflaming the situation so much that his right-wing rivals have to abandon trying to topple him and declare instead that this is no time for a change in leadership.
There isnt data available yet on how the pandemic has affected the nations overall dropout rate  2019 is the last year for which it is available  and many school officials say its too early to know how many students who stopped logging on for distance learning dont plan to return. But soaring numbers of students who are failing classes or are chronically absent have experts fearing the worst, and schools have been busy tracking down wayward seniors through social media, knocking on their doors, assigning staff to help them make up for lost time and, in some cases, even relaxing graduation requirements.
To the Editor:

Re F.D.A. Approves Pfizers Vaccine for Ages 12 to 15 (front page, May 11):

Now that Covid vaccines will be made available to children 12 and over, New York City and State should consider making the vaccine mandatory for students 12 years and older to return to school in the fall. Students currently need to be vaccinated to prevent the spread of highly communicable diseases like measles, polio, chickenpox, diphtheria, etc.

Parents should be given ample time to comply with any mandate adding Covid to the list.

Furthermore, now that the vaccine is widely available to adults, should not those who are employed by the schools  administrators, teachers, aides, cafeteria workers, security officers, etc.  present proof of vaccination as a condition of employment in September? I have heard politicians say schools are safe and they are making changes to ensure that fact, yet nothing about mandating vaccinations.

Lawrence Abrams

New York

The writer is a retired principal.

Underpaid Workers
You tell me how American democracy will ever be the same again and how these people can be trusted to cede power the next time they win the White House.

And while youre at it, tell me how America can ever again be a credible observer and upholder of democratic elections around the world  so vital to our national security and the hopes and dreams of democrats in all these countries who look to America as a beacon of democracy and the rule of law. The next time we want to question election results in Russia or Iran or Poland or Hungary, what do you suppose their elected autocrats will say?

Theyll say: Listen to you? Your Republican Party turned a blind eye to a guy who told the biggest election lie in the history of the Milky Way Galaxy. And it wasnt even in the service of some urgent, compelling policy. It was just so he could stay in power, salve his ego and deny he lost.

So, thank you, Liz Cheney, for doing something vitally important and clarifying  something that only a conservative Republican like you could do: force the G.O.P. at every level to choose whether to stand with Trump and his Big Lie or with the Constitution and the most important conservative principle of all  reverence for the rule of law.

Because, if Trump and friends are not stopped, one day they will get where they are going: They will lock in minority rule in America. And when that happens, both Democrats and principled Republicans will take to the streets, and you can call it whatever you like, but it is going to feel like a new civil war.

I dont use that term lightly or accidentally. We are all the product of our life experiences, and my first reporting experience was living inside the Lebanese civil war in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

I saw close up what happens when democratically elected politicians think that they can endlessly abuse their institutions, cross redlines, weaken their judiciary and buy reporters and television stations  so that there is no truth, only versions, of every story. And they think that they can do it endlessly  cheat just one more time, break one more rule, buy one more vote  and the system will hold until they can take it over and own it for their own purposes.
Krysta Rodriguez got her first look at New York City through the windows of the motor home that was ferrying her family around the country on an extended road trip. Along the way, there was a stop to take in a show  the 1990 Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof.

And that set me on the path to where I am today, said Ms. Rodriguez, now 36, whose CV includes the musicals Spring Awakening and The Addams Family, as well as a number of television series, among them Smash and Quantico, and Netflix productions like the post-apocalyptic comedy-drama Daybreak and the five-episode bio-drama Halston, which debuts on May 14.

Ewan McGregor stars as the fashion designer whose minimalist cashmere and Ultrasuede womens wear became synonymous with 1970s elegance, and whose hard-partying ways became synonymous with 70s decadence. Krysta with a Y plays Liza with a Z, one of Halstons best friends.

Ms. Rodriguez, who lives in a two-bedroom condominium in Harlem, has designer chops of her own. My mom is a realtor in California, and Im her decorator, she said. When I was growing up, we would buy and renovate houses and sell them, which I didnt love because it always meant that you were moving into the worst house in the neighborhood, and then leaving the best house. It wasnt great for status at school.
LONDON  Just how many friends can one person have?

In a 1993 study, Robin Dunbar, a British anthropologist, theorized that humans could have no more than about 150 meaningful relationships, a measure that became known as Dunbars number.

But researchers at Stockholm University published a paper last week calling that number into question, finding that people could have far more friends if they put in the effort.

We can learn thousands of digits of pi, and if we engage with lots of people, then we will become better at having relationships with lots of people, said Johan Lind, an author of the study and an associate professor at Stockholm University. The paper was published in the journal Biology Letters.

In his original research, Dr. Dunbar studied monkeys and apes and determined that the size of the neocortex, the part of the brain responsible for conscious thought, correlated with the size of the groups they lived among. The neocortex in humans is even larger, so he extrapolated that their ideal group size was, on average, 150.
Two Blue Dots

I woke up to images of mass cremations in your country. I remembered it was your birthday and texted you my wishes and worries. You said you were OK, remarking, What a paradox it is to be connected despite 8,000 miles of distance. We negotiate the separation by chattering through phone static, like ghosts through a wall. Its hard to imagine you sheltering in your Mumbai apartment. Opening my phones map for help, I see us: Two blue dots on one blue planet, gradients of ocean and sky between us. Were both still here, and I am grateful.  Anais La Rocca
With Covid restrictions and jobs that routinely bounce them among New York, San Francisco and Dubai, the couple needed a quick ceremony (and one that enabled Mr. Piehler to get on Ms. Cheemas health insurance). Then well have the bigger party and wedding with the whole shebang sometime next year, Ms. Cheema said.

Sweet Hearts is owned by Ms. Guinta, whose ebullient energy and personal style (from marabou feather-accented heels to an arm tattoo of chips and a margarita) suffuse the chapel. She worked in public relations for the fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto, at an auction house (before trying her hand at event design), and finally, weddings. I so fell in love with it, because its such an honor to take part in peoples special days, she said. I mean, how incredible is that? You get to experience love multiple times a weekend.

She started her wedding design firm, Little Sister Creative, in 2019, but the idea for the chapel came when offering to design a gorgeous blowout for her own friends. Immediately I was like, Lets freaking do this. And they said, Actually, we just want to get married over steaks at St. Anselm, and not do anything big, Ms. Guinta said. The friends had considered City Hall but found it lacking in romance, so she officiated over meat as requested and signed their license at the table. She then began dreaming of a tiny, dedicated space for other low-key couples.

The idea came before the pandemic, but the subsequent event restrictions  and the closure of City Hall to walk-in weddings  underlined the need for an alternative place. Before Covid, I noticed that the wedding industry bubble was about to pop, she said. Because of Pinterest, because of people seeing insane, over-the-top things, I had this feeling like Whats next? Are we going to start chartering private jets, and the private jet is wearing a flower crown? I really felt for those couples that said, and not even on a monetary basis, This just isnt for me.
Beautifying ourselves, and seeking out the best inventions with which to do so, has been a source of comfort for millenniums. In Egypts Karnak village, beginning in the 16th century B.C., temples served as early shops and produced scented oils used for perfuming the living, embalming the dead, softening the skin and hair, covering up bad breath and easing sore muscles. In 17th-century Europe, apothecaries sold raw materials  plant oils, mineral powders  that enabled patrons to whip up their own potions to disguise concerns such as gray hair and wrinkles. And as the definition of beauty has evolved, so, too, has the function of the beauty shop. Today, when we tend to think of beauty in more holistic terms, the places that sell creams, powders and pigments are often more than merely points for picking up curative goods: They can be sanctuaries for gathering, broadening the mind, stimulating the senses and perhaps even stirring the soul. In a year when its been difficult to physically visit shops, their value has never been more apparent. Here, as part of Ts Beauty & Luxury issue, we pay tribute to just some of our favorite beauty institutions  the sort of spots that feel like discoveries  from a centuries-old perfumery in New Delhi to a sustainably minded apothecary in Vienna to a futuristic emporium-cum-gallery in Seoul.

Video Ts Beauty & Luxury Issue A history of modern beauty in four chapters Chapter 1: On the rise of strong oriental fragrances that reflected the political and cultural landscapes of their time, the 1980s. Chapter 2: On 90s-era advances in weaves, wigs and other Black hairstyles that ushered in a new age of self-expression. Chapter 3: On botanical oils, a simple fact of life in much of the world that, here in the West, began to take on an almost religious aura in the 2000s. Chapter 4: On men wearing makeup, a practice with a long history, but one that has really taken off in the last decade.

The Americas
I should mention that Covid is not my familys first rodeo in terms of social distancing and extreme health-related stress. In 2011, our twins were born at just 23 weeks gestation, weighing 1.5 pounds each and requiring ventilators for about six weeks. We spent their first year isolating in Maplewood, N.J., awash in sanitizer, with pulse oximeters hanging from our necks, masking when needed and keeping them  and ourselves  out of circulation until their lungs had recovered from the damage caused by the ventilators before getting exposed to the typical childhood respiratory infections.

The experience taught us a lot about tolerating limitations and making the most of every easy moment that we could, so by July 2020, with daily Covid infection rates low, we were looking for pandemic silver linings. We loaded Flecha, our 5-month old Covid puppy, and ourselves into our van and zigzagged across Spain  from Cadiz at the southernmost tip to Asturias on the northern coast.

One place we didnt plan to go last summer was the United States, by then the world leader in Covid cases and where outbreaks in Sun Belt states like Florida and Texas forever crushed the fantasy that the virus would disappear in warm weather.

My parents, who live in New Jersey, are in their late 80s and my children under 10, so we try to bring them together often, and we kept optimistically booking tickets last year in case the pandemic suddenly abated. But as international restrictions took hold, all of those flights were eventually canceled by the airline.

In the meantime, many friends in Spain had gotten sick, but thankfully most recovered. Then in early August, we lost a wonderfully gregarious friend who, at 52, was somehow gone just nine days after his diagnosis. A couple of similarly startling deaths followed and it was like the music stopped  we reverted almost to lockdown protocols, which was maybe a good thing since autumn brought a new wave of infections that has barely ebbed since.

From the outset my greatest fear was that my husband and I, who both have underlying health issues, would get seriously ill at the same time, with no relatives in Madrid to care for our kids. Thus weve been vigilant  only meeting people outdoors and doing lots of home testing  an area where Spain is way ahead of the United States.

All of this was in the background at dinner one night in early March when we wondered if it was time to cancel our tickets to New York for spring break at the end of that month. The United States was then still registering massive daily infections, but also setting daily records for vaccines administered.
A prosecutor said on Tuesday that the man accused of killing eight people at spas in and around Atlanta had targeted some of the victims because they were of Asian descent, and said she was planning to seek the death penalty against him.

The suspect, Robert Aaron Long, 22, who is white, was formally indicted on murder charges on Tuesday for the killings at three massage businesses in and around Atlanta, which shook the country in March amid a wave of anti-Asian hate crimes.

Fani Willis, the district attorney in Fulton County, which includes Atlanta, said Mr. Long had attacked four women at two massage businesses there because of their race, national origin, sex and gender. All of the victims at the Atlanta spas were Korean-American women. The authorities have said that Mr. Long drove to the Atlanta businesses after killing four people at another spa in a suburb in Cherokee County.

The district attorney in Cherokee County has not indicated that she plans to seek hate crime penalties against Mr. Long; two of the victims at that spa were of Asian descent and two were white.
While attorney fees in other areas of legal practice are often much lower than $1,000 an hour, the world of big-ticket bankruptcy court has developed into a particularly lucrative practice for top law firms. Some lawyers in the recent U.S.A. Gymnastics bankruptcy litigation filed for fees at or above $1,000 an hour.

Legal fees have also exceeded $1,000 an hour in the management of a multibillion-dollar victim trust that was set up after a 2019 settlement to compensate people in California who were impacted by wildfires blamed on Pacific Gas & Electric. In that case, many victims are still awaiting payments, but court filings show that the trustee and several people on his legal support team have been steadily collecting substantial hourly fees.

Lynn LoPucki, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles who monitors big bankruptcy cases, said the legal fees in the Boy Scouts bankruptcy and similar cases appear to be excessive. Mr. LoPucki said that many big bankruptcy cases in recent years have seen escalating fees for lawyers, though he said he had never seen a lawyer bill for $1,725 an hour  as one lawyer has requested from the court in the Boy Scouts case.

He said fees over $1,000 an hour have become almost routine in such cases, which are often handled by the same relatively small group of judges and law firms, since many big-ticket bankruptcies tend to be filed in a select group of federal district courts. With the nature of bankruptcy, the attorneys and their clients are essentially spending other peoples money, Mr. LoPucki said, with costs divided among all the parties with a stake in the outcome, compared to what happens during standard civil litigation, when companies pay their own legal bills.

Businesses that are actually paying their own fees are not paying as high as they are in the bankruptcy cases, Mr. LoPucki said.
A year ago, the county created its COVID-19 Eviction Diversion Program with $13.3 million funded by federal CARES Act money. Demings said the income-based program was intended to help vulnerable tenants in imminent danger of eviction due to COVID-19 and provide the property owner with an alternative to eviction. It paid landlords up to $4,000 in past due rent.
In the battle to stamp out extremism from the ranks of the police, lawmakers from California to Minnesota have proposed solutions they thought were straightforward.

Some laws would empower the police to do more robust background checks of recruits, letting them vet social media to make sure new officers were not members of hate groups. Other laws would make it easier for departments to fire officers with ties to extremists.

But legislators working to get these measures passed in recent months have found themselves confronting a thicket of obstacles and somewhat unexpected opposition, ranging from straight Republican vs. Democrat clashes to profound questions about protecting constitutional rights.

Last month, a police officer in Fresno, Calif., was fired after videos surfaced that showed him supporting the Proud Boys at a protest. Such ideology, behavior and affiliations have no place in law enforcement and will not be tolerated within the ranks of the Fresno Police Department, the police chief said.
PHOENIX  Arizona Republicans passed a law on Tuesday that will sharply limit the distribution of mail ballots through a widely popular early voting list, the latest measure in a conservative push to restrict voting across the country.

The legislation will remove voters from the states Permanent Early Voting List, which automatically sends some people ballots for each election, if they do not cast a ballot at least once every two years.

The vote-by-mail system is widely popular in Arizona, used by Republicans, Democrats and independents. The overwhelming majority of voters in the state cast their ballots by mail, with nearly 90 percent doing so last year amid the coronavirus pandemic, and nearly 75 percent of all voters are on the early voting list. Under the new law, the list will be called the Active Early Voting List.

The State Senate voted along party lines to approve the bill, and Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, surprised many observers by signing the legislation just hours later.
WASHINGTON  The Marine Corps on Tuesday put a Black colonel in charge of one of its key fighting brigades, the latest in a series of steps that positions the Marine, Col. Anthony Henderson, for future elevation to senior leadership positions.

Colonel Henderson, whose previously announced promotion to brigadier general will take effect in July, took command of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade during a ceremony at Camp Lejeune, N.C. If anyone has a doubt about what the group is, he said in accepting his new command, it is intended to be ready. It is not here as a training tool or as an exercise tool. It is a fighting force.

Colonel Hendersons new command signals a commitment to providing him with a frontline opportunity to continue to rise through the ranks. And it comes as the Pentagon  and particularly the Marine Corps  is grappling with issues of race and the low number of African-American Marines in top leadership positions.

As a Black man with combat command experience in a service that has never in its 245-year history had a four-star officer who was not a white man, Colonel Henderson is a rarity in the Corps: an African-American with a chance of making it to the top of the service.
WASHINGTON  The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday defended the agency against accusations that federal scientists were being too slow to update their pandemic-control guidance and overly conservative with their recommendations, especially on outdoor mask wearing.

At a Senate hearing with other top federal health officials on the federal governments pandemic response, Republicans accused the C.D.C.s director, Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, of accommodating special interests in the agencys guidance for schools and of failing to recognize the low risk of outdoor transmission of the coronavirus.

They said that the agency had lost the trust of Americans looking to return to normal life.

Their complaints echoed mounting exasperation  even among some public health experts  with the federal governments pace in relaxing its recommendations as states across the country move to reopen their economies.

Frustrations ranged from the practical  asking children to wear masks at camp  to the fantastic  suggestions that the National Institutes of Health had conspired with the Chinese to supercharge viruses, an accusation that Dr. Anthony S. Fauci called entirely and completely incorrect.
A key Senate committee deadlocked on Tuesday over Democrats sweeping proposed elections overhaul, setting the stage for a showdown on the Senate floor in the coming months that could determine the future of voting rights and campaign rules across the country.

The tie vote by the Senate Rules Committee, with nine Democrats in favor and nine Republicans opposed, does not prevent Democrats from moving forward with the 800-page legislation, known as the For the People Act. Proponents of the bill hailed it as an important step toward adopting far-reaching federal changes to blunt the restrictive new voting laws emerging in Republican-led battlegrounds like Georgia and Florida.

But the action unavoidably thrust a set of thorny questions into Democratss laps about how to proceed with an issue they view as a pressing civil rights fight with sweeping implications for democracy and their party. The bill as written faces near-impossible odds in the Senate, where Republicans are expected to block it using a filibuster and at least one Democrat, Senator Joe Manchin III of West Virginia, remains opposed.

With their control in Washington fleeting and Republicans states racing ahead with their own laws, Democrats must now decide how to reach consensus among themselves on the measure, and whether to attempt to destroy or significantly alter the filibuster to salvage its chances of becoming law.
Glenn Youngkin, a wealthy first-time candidate who walked a line between his partys Trump-centric base and appeals to business interests, won the Republican nomination for governor of Virginia on Monday. He heads into a general election in one of only two states choosing their governors in 2021, in the latest running of an off-year race often viewed as a referendum on the party holding the White House.

Late Monday, Mr. Youngkins last remaining rival, Pete Snyder, conceded the race. I send my heartfelt congratulations, Mr. Snyder wrote on Twitter. He + the ticket have my 100% support.

The results were tabulated by Republican officials two days after roughly 30,000 voters cast ranked-choice ballots at 39 locations around the state. Mr. Snyder conceded after more than 12 hours of vote counting, in which five candidates were knocked from contention, one by one, and their supporters next-choice votes were allocated to others still in the running. In the sixth round of counting, Mr. Youngkin passed the required 50 percent threshold.

The unusual nominating process came after an internal party squabble in which Republicans rejected holding a traditional primary, which would have drawn a larger and more diverse group of voters. Former Republican officials from an era before the party fell hard from power in Virginia criticized the nominating process as likely to increase the G.O.P.s marginalization.
Ms. Cheney is under attack in Wyoming, where conservatives who have sought to exploit her antagonism of Mr. Trump are hoping to unseat her in a primary. And any presidential aspirations she may have nursed appear certain to be delayed  if not dashed  given her decision to take on a figure whom the Republican base reveres.

The drama that unfolded on Tuesday before the vote underscored the iron grip that Mr. Trump still has on the party, as hard-right Republicans began to publicly argue that Ms. Stefanik was not sufficiently conservative nor supportive enough of the former president to lead the conference.

In a memo circulated by Representative Chip Roy of Texas that was reported by Politico, Mr. Roy tore into Ms. Stefanik and accused the Republican leaders who have championed her of rushing to coronate a spokesperson whose voting record embodies much of what led to Republicans drubbing in the 2018 midterm elections.

He also denounced Ms. Cheney for unhelpfully engaging in personal attacks and finger-wagging towards President Trump rather than leading the conference forward. Mr. Roys letter reflected a determination among conservatives  who led the first, unsuccessful effort to oust Ms. Cheney in February  to exert their will on the partys message.

Even outspoken allies of Ms. Cheney earlier this year appeared ready to abandon her. Representative Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, a fellow defense hawk, told The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he planned to vote to oust Ms. Cheney from leadership. In backing Ms. Cheney in February, Mr. Gallagher had warned that we must be a big-tent party or else condemn ourselves to irrelevance.

But on Tuesday, Mr. Gallagher said in a statement: House Democrats under Speaker Pelosi have been ruthless in advancing their radical progressive agenda, and Representative Cheney can no longer unify the House Republican conference in opposition to that agenda.

Instead, Ms. Cheney found a set of unlikely allies rallying to her side: Democratic leaders.

Liz Cheney spoke truth to power, and for that she is being fired, said Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the majority leader.
More than 100 Republicans, including some former elected officials, are preparing to release a letter this week threatening to form a third party if the Republican Party does not make certain changes, according to an organizer of the effort.

The statement is expected to take aim at former President Donald J. Trumps stranglehold on Republicans, which signatories to the document have deemed unconscionable.

When in our democratic republic, forces of conspiracy, division, and despotism arise, it is the patriotic duty of citizens to act collectively in defense of liberty and justice, reads the preamble to the full statement, which is expected to be released on Thursday.

The effort comes as House Republican leaders are expected on Wednesday to oust Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming from their ranks because of her outspoken criticism of Mr. Trumps election lies.
The Biden administration said early Tuesday that it would issue a regulation allowing undocumented students access to some of the $36 billion in emergency stimulus aid flowing to colleges, a split from a Trump-era decision to bar those students  even among the federally protected ones known as Dreamers  from accessing earlier rounds of funding.

The pandemic didnt discriminate on students, Miguel Cardona, the education secretary, told reporters during a phone call on Monday that previewed the administrations plans. We know that the final rule will include all students, and we want to make sure that all students have an opportunity to have access to funds to help get them back on track.

The decision is a 180-degree pivot from attempts made by Trump administration officials to block most immigrant students from accessing aid. Last June, Betsy DeVos, the education secretary for Donald J. Trump, issued an emergency rule that barred international and undocumented students  including tens of thousands of so-called Dreamers protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival program  from accessing an earlier round of more than $6 billion in emergency relief funds. That decision was quickly met by legal challenges.

For months, Biden administration officials considered whether to extend emergency benefits to undocumented students, who are not eligible for other forms of student aid. Under existing welfare laws, undocumented immigrants remain largely ineligible to receive money from federal programs, including funds provided by the $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package that President Biden signed on March 11.
A man who ventured out on a glass-bottom bridge in Chinas northeast was left clinging to the side for dear life after gale-force winds blew away some floor panels, leaving gaping holes in the structure hundreds of feet above the ground, local officials said.

The episode occurred on Saturday at Piyan Mountain in Longjing, China, state media said, citing the city government. It spurred a frantic attempt to rescue the man, whom the authorities did not identify. He inched his way to safety, helped or coaxed  news accounts varied  by a rescue crew. A photo of what state media said was the moment of terror went viral.

The harrowing episode left many people in China deeply rattled, spurring discussions about what could have been a nightmarish ending and raising questions about the safety of many of the countrys glass bridges, walkways and viewing decks.

This is exactly why I dare not step on a bridge like that, one tourist identified as Wadetian wrote on Weibo, the Chinese social media site. I broke out in a cold sweat just looking at it, another user said.
The World Health Organization said Monday that a variant of the coronavirus circulating in India is of global concern. "We classify it as a variant of concern at a global level," Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead on COVID-19, told a briefing. "There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility."

India's daily COVID statistics are down slightly but remain high. The health ministry said Monday there were 366,161 new infections and 3,754 deaths caused by the coronavirus in the previous 24-hour period. Public health experts say they believe the new cases and deaths are undercounted. India has 22.6 million COVID cases so far, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. Only the U.S. has more infections, accounting for 32.7 million of the worlds 158.3 million COVID cases, the center reported.

There is growing concern in India about a fungal infection affecting COVID patients and people who have recovered from the disease. Mucormycosis is caused by mold and can affect a person's facial structure and in some cases cause blindness. COVID patients with diabetes are particularly susceptible to mucormycosis, medical experts said.

Nepal, struggling to combat an outbreak of the pandemic, is running short of oxygen and oxygen tanks. The Himalayan country has asked Mount Everest climbers and guides not to abandon their oxygen cylinders on the mountain and instead bring them back down so that medical facilities can fill them to give to COVID patients.

Kul Bahadur Gurung, a senior official with the Nepal Mountaineering Association, told Reuters, "We appeal to climbers and Sherpas [Himalayan people living around Nepal and Tibet, well known for climbing mountains] to bring back their empty bottles wherever possible as they can be refilled and used for the treatment of the coronavirus patients who are in dire needs." A Nepal health ministry official said the country needs 25,000 oxygen tanks immediately, speaking to Reuters.
Irelands main heritage bodies added their pleas. But the planning authorities accepted the argument of the developers  two Irish businessmen who bought the house in 2017 for 650,000 euros (about $785,000)  that commercial use would preserve its structure from dereliction. Its history will be commemorated in the new hostel, perhaps by a display in the cafe.

This is like selling the family jewels  like giving them away, really, said John McCourt, the president of the International James Joyce Foundation, who led the campaign to preserve the house. The cost of that building was a pittance by Dublin standards. If the government had bought it when it was up for sale, or did a compulsory purchase order now, I think we could easily raise the money privately to have it done up and reopened as a cultural venue.

The ministry for tourism and culture said in a statement that it had considered the houses cultural value when the proposal was before Dublin City Council in 2019 and that it had no further comment. The national planning appeals board would not comment beyond drawing attention to the detailed decision on its website. An agent for the two developers, Fergus McCabe and Brian Stynes, said they had no comment beyond what was stated in their planning application.

For many Dubliners, the decision to redevelop the literary landmark is symptomatic of a wider erasure of the citys street life and townscape by commercial development.
MOSCOW  Gunfire and explosions erupted at a school in central Russia on Tuesday, killing seven students and two school employees, according to witnesses and officials who blamed a teenager for the rare mass shooting in the country.

Within hours, President Vladimir V. Putin said he had ordered a tightening of Russias already restrictive laws on civilian gun ownership, a move that is likely to be implemented in the countrys top-down political system.

The thing is that firearms, which are used as assault rifles and similar weapons in certain countries, are sometimes registered as hunting guns, said the Kremlin spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov. The Russian National Guard will urgently consider the issue.

In a scene of mayhem captured on cellphone videos, students jumped from windows and ran as shots rang out, and the police and ambulances raced to the school in Kazan, a provincial capital about 450 miles east of Moscow.
How do you respond to critics who say that a focus on women and gender equality should not be a priority when were dealing with an economic crisis and a pandemic?

Gomez Alcorta: From Day 1 of his administration, President Fernandez said he was going to start at the bottom, with the most disadvantaged, and there is no doubt that it is always women who are worse off in all societies; especially poor women.

There may be criticism but where do you want to begin? And who do you want to support with your policies? The president has made it very clear that this is especially important not just institutionally, but also  if you look at it in terms of investment  every peso that has gone into the budgets for these areas helps make our societies more fair.

DAlessandro: When the pandemic broke out in Argentina and the lockdown was put into effect, economic activity for men and women fell by 10 percent. When things started to open up, men recovered their jobs much faster than women. Today, based on the data we have for the third quarter of 2020, we see that womens economic activity mirrors their economic activity from 2002  so we went back two decades! We cant pause the agenda right now  on the contrary, we need to boost it and keep going.

In August, the Economy Ministry published a report on the unpaid care economy. It found that unpaid care and domestic work amount to almost 16 percent of G.D.P.  making it the largest sector of Argentinas economy  and that 75 percent of care work is carried out by women. What are your plans to address the gender gap in unpaid domestic work and care?

Gomez Alcorta: The Ministry of Women, Genders and Diversities has created a special office to deal with care policies. In February 2020, we put together an inter-ministerial commission, including 14 ministries and strategic departments, focused specifically on crafting care policies.

Weve also announced the creation of 800 kindergartens, nurseries and day care centers around the country, and we also want to look at leave policies to be shared by parents  so paternity and maternity leaves  to create more equality at the workplace. Before President Fernandezs administration, we didnt have any of these things that we are now looking at.
ASHKELON, Israel  The worst fighting between Israelis and Palestinians in seven years intensified on Tuesday night, as Israeli airstrikes began targeting Hamas offices in Gaza City and militants in Gaza fired rockets at the metropolis of Tel Aviv, the southern city of Ashkelon and Israels main airport.

In Gaza, at least 35 Palestinians, including 10 children, had been killed by Tuesday night, and 203 others were wounded, according to health officials. In Israel, five people were killed in strikes on Tel Aviv, Ashkelon and Lod, and at least 100 were wounded, according to medical officials.

Away from the military conflict, a wave of civil unrest spread across Arab neighborhoods as Palestinian citizens of Israel expressed fury at the killings in Gaza and longstanding complaints of discrimination inside Israel itself.

While the surge in strikes, the worst since 2014, brought fear to millions in Gaza and Israel, they nevertheless bolstered an unlikely pair: Hamas, the Islamist militant group that runs the Gaza Strip, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel.
Curtis Sparrer

There was something poetic about Elon Musk tanking the Dogecoin cryptocurrency on May 8s "Saturday Night Live."

Its pretty clear Musk has realized that his constant Twitter stream of consciousnesspivoting unpredictably between the sincere and visionary pursuit of space exploration and a wink-nudge exuberance around Dogecoin tech snarkis problematic. To say the least. Musk now genuinely seems concerned that the public and investors, unlearned in cryptocurrencies, dont get the Dogecoin joke, or at least the level of unbridled speculation associated with the Doge. TLDR: it isnt worth your life savings. Please stop investing based on billionaire Twitter tongue-in-cheek chat.

During SNLs faux news show segment, "Weekend Update," Musk played Financial Expert Lloyd Ostertag. Thats when Weekend Update anchor Michael Che asked Musk: What are cryptocurrencies?

They're a type of digital money, but instead of being controlled by a central government, they're decentralized using blockchain technology," Musk answered in character. "Lately, prices have been soaring for cryptos like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and especially Dogecoin."

Che followed up with what would become the central question of the segment: So what is Dogecoin?

Musk answered, Well it started as a joke based on an internet meme. Now it's taken off in a very real way."

Che: OK. But what is Dogecoin?

Musk: Well it was created in 2013 and has a circulating supply of 117 billion coins, of which 113 billion have already been mined."

Che deadpanned: "Right. Cool. So what is Dogecoin?"

Yeah, like I said its a digital currency.

Like OK, for instance, this is a dollar, Che said, producing a bill. Its real. So what is Dogecoin?

About as real as that dollar.

Now Colin, Che said, bringing his cohost, Colin Jost, Are you making any sense of this?

Ive been reading a lot about it and I have been trying to diversify my investment portfolio and my question is: What is Dogecoin?

Its the future of currency, Musk answered. Its an unstoppable financial vehicle thats going to take over the world.

I get it, Che said before raising his voice with exasperation. But what is it, man?

Musk gave an uncomfortable smile and even shimmied his shoulders: I keep telling you. Its a cryptocurrency you can trade for conventional money.

Oh, Che exclaimed before pronouncing this with a touch of a dismissive sneer. So, its a hustle.

And then one of the smartest businessmen in America pivoted hard to clean up his Twitter mess, within the forgiving, widely broadcast vehicle of comedy:

Yeah, its a hustle, admitted Musk.

Che, gracious in victory, shouted, Why didnt you say that man?

Hours later CNBC would report: Dogecoin plunges nearly 30% during Elon Musks SNL appearance.

For PR people theres a palpable sense of schadenfreude that comes from this moment. In October 2020 Musk dissolved the PR department of his company, Tesla. Recently in an April 28 article of the trade publication Electrek, Musk reaffirmed that decision, claiming that he: doesnt believe in manipulating public opinion.

Well, good tech PR actually isnt about manipulating the public. Its about making sure the public learns, in a consumable way, the advantages of sincere, constructive technologies that may better our world. Its about reining in Twitter flights of fancy that some take too seriously, wasting their life savings on unsafe bets because it came from their heros offhand comments. Its about messaging consistency that saves you from yourself, when whim sidetracks your meaningful work on space exploration, environmental sustainability, and revitalizing communities like Brownsville, TX.

Tech PR can offer truth-telling shorthand for all executives around the thousands of cryptocurrencies that existwhy some have legitimate functions in building secure blockchains and why some, like Dogecoin, are a function of tech subculture snark. Its the same snarky dark side of tech that has a smile on its face while delivering QAnon to a portion of the population that somehow drinks it up as legitimate. Thats essentially a bad tech joke toonow a force of irrationality and violence in America.

If Musk had allowed himself a less simplistic definition of the PR profession, his "Weekend Update" segment couldve given us a fun glimpse into his moon tourism plans or asteroid colony-building. Or something better than cleanup. But Michael Che and Mr. Scarlett Johansson instead had to help Musk pull the public back from taking technobabble too seriously. They forced him to bottom-line what Dogecoin does in terms middle America understands.

Musks needed admission that Dogecoin is a hustle could have unfortunate longer-term repercussions for would-be investors who dont study the functions of different cryptocurrencies and who felt like they witnessed an emperor has no clothes moment in the cryptocurrency narrative. If the self-professed Dogefather admits that coin is little more than smoke and mirrors, why trust crypto at all?

PR is about giving executives context to the world outside their bubble and helping them bridge what they want to communicate to what the world is capable of understanding. By cutting off that crucial corporate appendage, Musk has created a bit of an echo chamber and damage control scenarios that could have been avoided. Executives who follow in Musks footsteps are likely to face the same type of unrelenting questions, whether they come from "Weekend Update" or the Wall Street Journal.

***

Curtis Sparrer is a principal and co-founder of Bospar PR. Business Insider named him one of the top fifty in tech PR twice.
The theme for National Volunteering Week 2021 (17th  23rd May) is Small Actions, Big Impact. National Volunteering Week celebrates the immense impact of volunteers throughout the county, inspiring others to volunteer along the way. The week will be a showcase of small ways people can make a difference, both to their local community and their own wellbeing.

"This National Volunteering Week, we're asking people to think small! Whether it's an action you can take to support your community like picking up litter or just being there for someone in your community thats not feeling great about the current restrictions, even the smallest acts can have a big impact. The last year has been hard on us all, but there are small things we can do for ourselves, and for each other, that make a big difference," explains Offaly Volunteer Centre Manager, Deirdre Fox.

The programme of events, run by Volunteer Ireland and the network of Volunteer Centres, will take place across the week.

"This is a week-long celebration of volunteering and it's our chance to say thank you to volunteers across the county. Offaly would be a much different place if it weren't for the wonderful volunteers who give their time each year. This has never been more obvious than throughout the pandemic," adds Offaly Volunteer Centre Chairperson and community volunteer Martin Buckley.

"We want to say thank you to each and every volunteer for everything that they do, to inspire others to do the same and to encourage volunteers to join an event and take a moment to step back and recognise the positive impact they have," says Deirdre.

The events calendar is now live on www.volunteer.ie with volunteers and volunteer managers encouraged to sign up to free events across the week. We are also inviting organisations to think about how they can thank their volunteers with lots of ideas to get started on the Volunteer Ireland website.

For more information:

Deirdre Fox

Manager

Offaly Volunteer Centre

083 0154668/9

www.volunteeroffaly.ie
The groom, catering firm and parents of a bridal party have issued a full and frank apology for their part in the staging of an illegal traveller wedding reception in Longford last week.

William Stokes, together with his father Patrick Stokes, both of 1 Willow Park, Strokestown Road, Longford, Stephen Kelly, 49 Railway Meadow, Farneyhoogan, Longford and Peter Vocella, Luigis, Main Street, Longford were all ordered to hand over 3,000 in compensation following a special circuit court sitting in Longford on Monday afternoon.

All four, together with the bride, Shelby Stokes, alongside two other members of the wedding party and marquee owner, Alan Horohoe of Ventura Marquee Hire Ltd, Ballyleague, Lanesboro, Co Roscommon had been ordered to come before circuit court Judge Keenan Johnson after an initial hearing was held last Thursday.

That came less than 24 hours after over 100 revellers attended a wedding reception on the outskirts of the midlands town despite an emergency court injunction being granted to Longford County Council to prevent its staging.

The court was told by counsel for the local authority Niall Flynn, BL, said neither the council or gardai were unable to call on any witnesses to confirm the order had been served on the bride, Mrs Stokes or two other members of the bridal party at the time the wedding was taking place.

It was also revealed Mr Horohoe, as the provider of the marquee, only became aware of the order on May 6 at which stage the 2,000 sq ft tent had already been taken down.

However, Mr Flynn said the court was in a position to proceed with alleged criminal contempt proceedings against the groom, Mr Stokes, his father and father in law as well as fast food takeaway proprietor Mr Vocella.

Paul Gunning, BL, acting for Mr Stokes Snr and Jnr as well as Mr Kelly, said his clients took the matter before the court very, very seriously, adding it was not an environment they wished to find themselves in just a matter of days after such a happy occasion.

He said each of the accused were willing to offer a contribution to charity as well as tender a wholehearted apology to the court.

Mr Kelly was the first to take to his feet, saying the actions he undertook in spite of a court imposed order was something he deeply regretted.

Your Honour, I am more than sorry for any wrongdoing I have done, he said.

To you and your court, to everyone involved and to the people of Longford and Ireland (I am sorry).

His son in law, William Stokes followed suit, adding:  I apologise to you and the people of Longford, while Mr Stokes father remarked: I apologise to you, the court and the people of Longford.

Mr Vocella likewise stood briefly to relay his regret over what had unfolded.

Judge Johnson said the actions displayed by those involved in the hosting of last weeks wedding celebrations was premeditated and one which had run the risk of turning Longford into a Covid-19 blackspot.

Their actions were reprehensible and are neither excusable or justified, he said.

By their actions they have put the planned reopening of society in the Longford region at risk.

He also said the repercussions of holding such an event had done little to further the plight of the wider travelling community.

It could be said that their actions only further increase the isolation of travellers from the rest of society and that is something which is wholly undesirable, he said.

It has certainly damaged the very impressive and important work done by Pavee Point to highlight the plight of travellers and the factors that work against them in achieving their full potential.

He said respect was a two way street, a virtue which had been disregarded in view of the countrys ongoing public health emergency.

Unfortunately by proceeding with the wedding reception in defiance of public health regulations and in defiance of the court order, the parties in contempt have shown a gross lack of respect to all frontline workers who put their lives on the line to treat patients suffering from Covid-19.

Judge Johnson also called into question the motives of both Mr Horohoe and Mr Vocella, both of whom provided the marquee and catering on the day of the wedding.

The actions of the marquee supplier and the caterer are particularly offensive as they enabled this flagrant breach of the public health guidelines to take place, he said.

In particular, their actions were an insult to legitimate businesses who have complied at great cost to themselves with the Covid regulations.

Each of the parties were ordered to return to Longford Circuit Criminal Court on June 1 with 3,000 in compensation, the proceeds of which is expected to be divided between three local charities namely St Christophers Services, St Vincent de Paul and Co Longford Hospice.








TULLAMORE based Turkish journalist, Cagdas Gokbel has presented a copy of his new book, The Golden Age of Capitalist Ideology in the Media' to the Central Library in the town.

Mr Gokbel said he hopes the book, which is in Turkish, contributes to the library's linguistic richness and that it will be read by Turkish people and those with a knowledge of the language in Offaly.

Mr Gokbel, accompanied by his wife Emine, presented the book, while observing Covid restrictions, to Senior Executive Officer, Martina Needham on Monday afternoon last.

The Turkish duo fled their native land to seek asylum in Ireland last year and currently reside in the direct provision centre on High St in Tullamore.

The journalist who lives in Turkey and tries to tell the truth to society cannot think of a good career and life because poverty, death, assassination and the courts will be waiting for him, Mr Gokbel told the Tribune in an extensive interview last year.

He said he hopes his new book will be a good compass for the reader to understand and discuss the concept of ideology.
THOSE tuning in to the 9am mass on the Tullamore parish webcam last Sunday morning May 9, were surprised and delighted to see a familiar face celebrating mass.

Fr Shane Crombie who is currently teaching in Lithuania is home on holidays but will be returning to Lithuania for another year.

He said he was delighted to be back in Tullamore and had beautiful memories of his time here.

Fr Shane was 15 years in Tullamore before being appointed to Navan parish. He spent around a year in Navan before moving to Lithuania.

Fr Joe Gallagher said he was delighted to welcome back Fr Shane as he had contributed so much to the life of the parish during his time here.
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There were 10 new deaths across all eight Central Florida counties, although one less in Orange, four less in Lake and one less in Sumter than were reported on Monday, bringing the regions toll to 6,226. Polk County has the most coronavirus fatalities in the region with 1,337, followed by 1,274 in Orange, 877 in Brevard, 808 in Volusia, 638 in Lake, 513 in Osceola, 501 in Seminole and 278 in Sumter.
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In this April 7, 2021 photo, a senior receives the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at the Aaron E. Henry Community Health Service Center, in Clarksdale, Miss. Medicare will require nursing homes to report COVID-19 vaccination rates for residents and staff, the government said Tuesday, in what officials hope will become an incentive to keep giving shots even as the worst ravages of the pandemic ease in facilities across the land.
Flowers, balloons and a poster with the Spanish word for "justice" is part of a growing makeshift memorial for Keishla Rodriguez whose lifeless body was found in a lagoon Saturday, at the entrance of where she lived in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Thursday, May 6, 2021. A federal judge on Monday ordered Puerto Rican boxer Felix Verdejo held without bail after he was charged with the death of Keishla Rodriguez and with intentionally killing the unborn child she was carrying. (AP Photo/Carlos Giusti) (Carlos Giusti/AP)
Maribyrnong Truck Action Group, which lobbies for the removal of trucks from Melbournes inner-western roads, fears a proposed Inland Rail hub will do little to alleviate road traffic and rising pollution.
SoccerNews.com 29 May 2021

Romping their way to a 5-0 win against Everton on the final weekend, Manchester City wrapped up what has been another famous..
Emergency services say an explosion occurred during a shooting at a school in Kazan. At least one teacher and six children are reported to have died.
The EU, the US and the EU call for the violence to stop after Israel and the Palestinians exchange fire.
Eurasia Review 29 May 2021

By Michael Eisenstadt*



Since the creation of the Islamic Republic in 1979, Iran has distinguished itself (along with..
The escalation of violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories is straining Israel's relations with the Arab world. Countries that have agreed to a normalization of bilateral relations are now under pressure.
Eurasia Review 26 May 2021

Over the last week, police in cities across America have been put on alert to protect Jewish communities in the wake of what is..
The founder of Greensill Capital - the firm which ex-prime minister David Cameron lobbied for - has denied his previous government role allowed him to win contracts for his business.
A US congresswoman has urged President Joe Biden to send more direct support to India which is battling an unprecedented second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
PM Narendra Modi held a telephonic conversation with his Bhutanese counterpart Lotay Tshering on Tuesday as the two leaders noted that the coronavirus crisis has further highlighted the special friendship between the two countries. The Bhutanese prime minister expressed solidarity with the government and the people of India in their efforts against the recent wave of the Covid-19, a statement from the PMO said.
Officers responded to the theft around 6:06 p.m. Mothers Day and rescued the cygnets from Hargers home where his front gate read 4 Da Birds, Monday, an arrest affidavit said. Harger apologized for stealing the birds and said he took them because he feared they would get hurt, the affidavit said.
Eurasia Review 28 May 2021

The Chechens are the inhabitants of the Chechnya Republic. Historically, Chechnya is a part of the Russian Federation located in..
Israel's Ambassador to the U.S. criticized Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., for "stoking tensions" with her comments about Israel's deadly clashes with Hamas.
bizjournals 13 May 2021

Although a judge has blocked the NRA's bankruptcy petition, it says it will continue to explore reorganizing as a nonprofit in..
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tore into President Biden's foreign policy regarding Israel and Iran, saying its stance on the long-standing disputes in the region "emboldens terrorists."
Bloodshed in the Holy Land continued Tuesday after Israel and militant groups in Gaza exchanged rocket fire, with the recent death toll Tuesday up to at least two Israelis and 28 Palestinians, including 10 children.
The University of Michigan student government accused Israel of engaging in "apartheid" and "ethnic cleansing" against Palestinians and encouraged students to boycott the nation as violence between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas continues to escalate.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that President Bidens support for Israels right to defend itself will never waver, but condemned extremism that has inflicted violence on both communities.
Even as Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine has become the first vaccine globally to get approval from US drug regulator for use on children..

IndiaTimes 13 May 2021
Israel and Hamas exchanged heavy fire on Tuesday, with 22 Palestinians killed in Gaza, in a dramatic escalation between the bitter rivals sparked by unrest at Jerusalems flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound. Nine children were among those killed in the blockaded Gaza Strip that is controlled by the Islamist movement and 106 people there were wounded, []
Israel and Hamas exchanged heavy fire on Tuesday, with at least 25 Palestinians killed in Gaza, in a dramatic escalation between the bitter foes sparked by unrest at Jerusalems flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound. Nine children were among those killed in the blockaded Gaza Strip that is controlled by the Islamist movement and 125 people there []
LaunchEd, which allowed students to log into live, online classes, was set up last summer for students whose parents did not want them on campus because of the coronavirus pandemic. Early in the school year, about 70% of OCPS students were using LaunchEd to follow their school day from home, though that percentage has shrunk since then.
Israel and the Islamist movement Hamas in Gaza exchanged heavy fire Tuesday, killing at least 26 Palestinians and two Israelis, in an escalation sparked by violent unrest at Jerusalems flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound. Nine children were among those killed in the blockaded Gaza Strip that is controlled by Hamas and 125 people there were wounded, []
Here are the top stories for Monday, May 10th: Hamas fires rockets into Israel; FBI says hackers responsible for fuel pipeline attack; Biden seeks to reassure Americans on economy; One year later, Lafayette Square reopens.


As the US blames a criminal group over Colonial Pipeline cyberattack, gas shortage is being experience and several stations are shutting their pumps.
The U.S. is expanding use of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine to children as young as 12. Jane Ellen Norman says she's looking forward to a little more freedom in her life and a possible return to summer camp after getting her first dose in Atlanta. (May 11)


The European Council Monday approved conclusions affirming the EU's commitment to give new impetus to its partnership with the Horn of Africa, and establishing a new strategy for the region.



A geo-strategic priority for the EU in Africa, the Horn of Africa region has undergone unprecedented developments over the last years...
Watch VideoHamas claimed responsibility for rocket attacks against Israel Monday. Israel responded with airstrikes across the Gaza Strip that killed at least 13 people, including six children.



According to the Associated Press, seven other people died in an explosion Monday, but it's unclear whether the blast was caused by an...
Palestinian militants launched dozens of rockets from Gaza and Israel unleashed new airstrikes against them early Tuesday, in an escalation triggered by soaring tensions in Jerusalem and days of clashes at an iconic mosque in the holy city.
The Israeli military has insisted it does all it can to avoid civilian deaths after 22 people, including nine children, were killed overnight in the Gaza Strip.
Israel's Defense Forces confirmed that at least seven of the more than 150 missiles fired by the terrorist group Hamas on Monday were aimed at Jerusalem.
Taiwan accused China on Tuesday of "maliciously" blocking its access to the World Health Organization (WHO) and putting politics above...
euronews (in English) 29 May 2021

On Friday protesters hurled stones at Israeli security forces amid clashes in the village of Baita, south of Nablus in the occupied..
Britain is open to talks with the United States and other World Trade Organisation members on the issue of IP waivers for Covid-19 vaccines.
Israel is calling on 5,000 reserve soldiers to help bolster its defenses Tuesday as rockets continue to sail into its territory from Gaza, striking buildings and prompting warning sirens to wail in cities and towns throughout the region.
A 13-storey residential tower in the Gaza Strip was hit by an Israeli air strike on Tuesday night and soon after collapsed, witnesses said, amid a surge in fighting between Israel and Gaza militants.
Eurasia Review 27 May 2021

n the modern history all armed conflicts have been settled in one way or another after some years, but the Palestinian issue has..
OK! Magazine 11 May 2021

'RHOA' star Porsha Williams is engaged to Simon Guobadia only weeks after costar Falynn Gobadia announced that they had split after..
New "Green" Cryptocurrency, Chia, Launches This Week

Published May 10, 2021 by Elana K

A new cryptocurrency, Chia, has launched this week, and its different from the typical cryptocurrencies that have been dominating the market until now.

A new cryptocurrency, Chia, has launched this week, and its different from the typical cryptocurrencies that have been dominating the market until now. Bram Cohen, who invented BitTorrent peer-to-peer file sharing, is also the man behind Chia. Chia works on a different model than other cryptocurrencies and is designed to be more reliable and environmentally friendly.

How Chia Differs from Bitcoin

Bitcoin and most other cryptocurrencies use a system of mining, solving a mathematical puzzle by computer, to create the currency. Solving the puzzle is proof that your computer has done a certain amount of work  and that takes a lot of energy. Bitcoin mining is thought to require more energy than copper mining and use more electricity than some countries.

Chia, on the other hand, runs on a system that doesnt require proof of work, but rather proof of space and time - this means that to mine Chia, users need to show they had x amount of hard drive space at x time. The idea is to reduce the high energy toll that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies take.

But will this model lead to other drawbacks? One of the main criticisms already being levied is that the hard drive storage space requirement has led to soaring hard drive prices in China and shortages in nearby countries. Even before its launch, Chia used more than one exabyte of data storage, the equivalent of approximately 1 million of terabyte hard drives on an average desktop.

Is the need for massive storage better than using massive amounts of energy? Only time will tell. For now, Chia is only being traded on a few crypto exchanges, and given the volatility of the crypto market, it can either become a smashing success or crash and burn. At the very least, it's a fresh idea that will give the crypto industry some food for thought regarding energy use.
Laxman Pai, Opalesque Asia:

French private investment firm Capza has held a final close for its CAPZA 5 Flex Equity Fund on 700m ($849m), exceeding its 500m target. This number doubles the size of the firms' previous fund at 350 million.

According to a press release from the Paris-based small and medium-sized enterprise-focused investment firm, since 2004 CAPZA Flex Equity has been providing flexible financing, combining majority and minority capital, convertible bonds, and mezzanine. The main aim of CAPZA funding is to support SMEs in growth and buy-out projects in France, Spain, Germany, and Italy.

"The success of Fund 5 confirms investors' interest in a flexible and agile investment strategy in resilient sectors. It reflects the renewed confidence of its historical investors (insurers, Funds of Funds, public institutions, pension funds, family offices) as well as the interest of new French and international investors," the release claimed.

"We are confident about the prospects of this new Fund in the current economic environment. Its hybrid model allows us to be agile by investing in equity and/or mezzanine, and in companies in resilient sectors on a European scale," said Maxence Radix of CAPZA.

To date, CAPZA has led almost 80 transitions, combining equity and mezzanine, and with its fifth installment which began in September of 2020, has performed six transactions and is 21% invested. These SME's include Spain's IMF Business Schools, France's Ynov Campu......................

To view our full article Click here
Bradford, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom  22nd April 2021  UK 3D printing filament brand, Filamentive, has today announced the launch of the Eco Responsible 3D Printing Alliance  an initiative to promote sustainable additive manufacturing practices. Whilst at its core 3D printing is fundamentally less wasteful than traditional, subtractive manufacturing methods, the increase in resource extraction and usage  especially plastic  has the potential to detrimentally impact our 
Long Beach, Calif. - Wonder Women Tech (WWT) is set to host a virtual Latinx Summit June 10-11. The conference will focus on empowering women and members of the Latinx community through various events and speakers held within the Wonder Women Tech online community. I am incredibly thrilled to build our first-ever summit focused on highlighting, celebrating, and addressing the needs and accomplishments of our LatinX ecosystem. As part 
Weve been getting many excuses as to why not to return, said Rovetto, who is offering a signing bonus of up to $600 to try to add 15 to 20 employees who agree to stay through the middle of October. Obviously, it was a legitimate one with COVID, but, you know, I think thats getting used less and less now. The vaccines are free, they are out there for anyone.
The oft-injured career of defensive tackle Jordan Whittley has come to an end at Oregon State.

The seventh-year defensive tackle announced on social media that he plans to put his name in the NCAA transfer portal. Whittley is a graduate transfer with one year of eligibility remaining.

~ Sometimes your scars are way to big for the band-aids they give ~ Excited for the next chapter  pic.twitter.com/lA0bMQ9xrs  Jordan Whittley  (@Thatjacka__) May 11, 2021

Whittley signed with Oregon State in 2019 after playing two years at Laney College. Whittley came to the program as an answer to some of its defensive line issues, as he was 6-foot-1 and 330 pounds, with quickness as a former running back.

Whittley showed some potential in 2019, when he wasnt sidelined with injuries. Whittley had 14 tackles, including 3 for losses.

Whittley, who received a medical redshirt year of eligibility, never played again. Whittley had physical and health issues, including what he reported on social media as a tumor near his heart.

Whittleys weight significantly ballooned over the past two years. He didnt practice during the 2020 season. Whittley was often seen at spring practice, but wearing workout clothes as he trained away from the field with the strength and conditioning staff. Prior to last Saturdays spring game, Whittley was among those reported as out because of COVID-19 issues.

--Nick Daschel | ndaschel@oregonian.com | @nickdaschel
Portland is home to Lines for Life, a nonprofit devoted to suicide prevention throughout the Pacific Northwest. It operates a suicide prevention line that is answered 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It can be reached at 800-273-8255 or by texting 273TALK to 839863.

One of the last things that Carson Bride did before taking his own life was look to his phone for help.

The 16-year-old had been receiving anonymous messages on Snapchat for months, according to a federal lawsuit filed Monday in California, through a popular Snapchat app called YOLO. The messages included sexual comments and taunts over specific incidents, like the time hed fainted in biology class at his Portland school.

The messages had to be coming from people he knew, but the apps design made it impossible for him to know who was behind it. If he replied to the taunts, YOLO would automatically make the original message public, revealing his humiliation to the world.

His family found him dead on June 23, 2020. The history on his phone showed that he had been searching for Reveal YOLO Username Online earlier that morning.

Now Kristin Bride, Carsons mother, is leading a lawsuit against Snap, YOLO and LMK, another anonymous messaging app built for Snapchat that the teenager used before his death. Her complaint alleges that the companies violated consumer protection law by failing to live up to their own terms of service and policies, and that anonymous messaging apps facilitate bullying to such a degree that they should be considered dangerous products.

The suit, filed Monday in federal court in the Northern District of California, seeks to form a class on behalf of the approximately 93 million U.S. users of Snapchat  a number that the company claims includes 90% of all Americans between ages 13 and 24  along with the 10 million users of YOLO and 1 million users of LMK. Brides co-plaintiff in the case is the Tyler Clementi Foundation, a nonprofit formed to prevent bullying by the family of Tyler Clementi, who took his own life at age 18 in 2010 after experiencing cyber harassment by a dorm mate at Rutgers University.

Snap, YOLO and LMK did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The lawsuit seeks to have YOLO and LMK immediately banned from Snaps platform, and seeks damages for the alleged harms and misrepresentations.

The high school students who anonymously cyberbullied Carson will live with this tragedy for the rest of their lives, said Kristin Bride in a statement provided by Eisenberg & Baum, the firm representing the plaintiffs. However, it is the executives at Snapchat, Yolo, and LMK irresponsibly putting profits over the mental health of young people who ultimately need to be held accountable.

To date, those attempting to sue social media companies over their users words and actions have met with little success. Most cases against tech companies over content posted by their users are dismissed out of hand thanks to Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, which states that no interactive computer service can be held liable for information posted by a user on that service.

But changes in the legal landscape and a novel legal argument may set this case apart.

In a ruling last week, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals opened the door to the idea that social media companies  and Snap in particular  can be held responsible for building or enabling features that are so clearly dangerous to its users that the product is essentially defective.

That case centered on a Snapchat filter that automatically detected how fast the user was moving and let them add that number to a post on the platform. Plaintiffs in the suit argued that the feature incentivized driving at high speeds, leading to a fatal 2017 car crash in Wisconsin, in which a 17-year-old passenger pulled up Snap moments before the car hit a speed of 123 mph, then ran off the road and crashed into a tree.

The 9th Circuit reversed a lower courts decision to dismiss the case out of hand over Section 230 protections, with Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw writing that this type of claim rests on the premise that manufacturers have a duty to exercise due care in supplying products that do not present unreasonable risk of injury or harm to the public.

In the case filed Monday, Bride and the Tyler Clementi Foundation argue that anonymous messaging features such as YOLO and LMK similarly present unreasonable risk of harm. To bolster this argument, the suit points to multiple generations of anonymous messaging apps targeted at teen users that have risen and collapsed in recent years, each brought down under the weight of abuse and harassment that they enabled, such as Yik Yak, Secret and Sarahah.

The suit cites research linking anonymous harassment and teen suicide to bolster this argument, including a 2007 study that found that students who experience bullying, online or in real life, are nearly twice as likely to attempt suicide. A subsequent study in 2014 found that cyberbullying may be even more dangerous, with online bullying tripling the risk for suicidal ideation.

But the suit also pursues a line of argument that draws from consumer protection law, arguing that Snap, YOLO and LMK failed to live up to their terms of service and other commitments to users.

A recent decision in the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, based in New York City, showed that this consumer protection argument might have legs. In that case, the plaintiff argued that the gay dating app Grindr should be held responsible for harassment he received on the app from an ex-boyfriend, who set up a fake account for the plaintiff and sent a stream of 1,400 strange men to his house looking for sex over the course of 10 months.

The court dismissed the case, citing Section 230 protections, and wrote that it was unclear that Grindr was in violation of its terms of service for a number of reasons. But the judges ruling indicated that a case showing a more clear-cut violation of those terms and agreements could have merit on consumer protection grounds.

A suit filed in early April against Facebook relies on a similar strategy. The civil rights group Muslim Advocates sued the social media giant alleging that it has failed to live up to its promises to users by allowing hate speech against Muslims to proliferate on the platform unchecked.

A prompt shown to first-time YOLO users warns that the app has no tolerance for objectionable content or abusive users, and that users will be banned for inappropriate behavior. Its privacy policy warns users that the company collects user information in order to enforce that zero tolerance policy.

But after discovering the bullying YOLO messages and search history on her sons phone, Bride contacted the company through its website, sending a message about her sons cyberbullying and resulting death. YOLO never responded, according to the suit.

Months later, Bride and her husband, Tom, again tried to contact YOLO through its website and via an email address provided for reporting emergencies, demanding that the company remove the bullying users from its platform. The email carried the subject line Our Sons Suicide  Request for Help. The emergency reporting account replied only with a bounce-back message, saying that the recipient could not be reached due to an invalid address. Two subsequent attempts to contact the company also went unanswered, according to the suit.

LMK, the other third-party app in the suit, made even stronger claims about user safety, writing in its terms of service that it would go to great lengths to protect our community from inappropriate usage, including using artificial intelligence technology and human moderation to police its content.

And Snap, the suit alleges, has failed to live up to its own promises to users by allowing these apps to run on its service.

Snap allows other companies to build apps for its platform with a set of tools called Snap Kit, and makes clear in its guidelines that it actively reviews all third-party apps, noting that encouraging or promoting violence, harassment, bullying, hate speech, threats and/or self-harm is unacceptable, as is having inadequate safeguards in place to prevent this type of behavior.

Those guidelines also state that any app with anonymous user-generated content is subject to a longer review process, and if a third-party app is non-compliant or violates guidelines, Snap reserves the right to remove the app from its platform.

Snap has not removed YOLO or LMK from its platform, even though it knows or has reason to know through numerous reports that YOLO and LMK lack adequate safeguards to prevent teen users from being victimized by harassment, sexually explicit materials, and other harm, according to the suit.

2021 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
An Oregon City police officer suffered a serious eye injury likely from gunfire by the suspect during a chase and shootout Saturday on Oregon 213, according to the police chief.

Investigators believe Officer Chris Brosseau was injured when Gerald Leroy Barnes II fired on police, said Chief Jim Band.

Brosseau, who has worked for the agency for 31/2 years, was placing spike strips to help Clackamas County Sheriffs Office deputies stop Barnes when he was injured.

Band said he reviewed footage from the camera mounted on a Clackamas County deputys car, which shows the glass window of Barnes car shattering as he drives by officer. Brosseau at the time heard multiple shots, Band said.

Band said bullets can fragment when they strike glass and that doctors recovered what appears to be a bullet fragment from Brosseaus eye.

That piece is undergoing forensic analysis at the Oregon State Police crime lab, Band said.

Investigators are making sure without any doubt that its not caused by something else, but its fairly obvious that its from a bullet, he said.

Brosseau, who has worked for the agency for 31/2 years, was placing spike strips to help Clackamas County Sheriffs Office deputies stop Barnes when he was injured.

Band said Brosseau underwent one surgery and is expected to require additional operations. The prognosis for his vision is unclear, he said. The officer is recovering at home.

According to the police account, Barnes fired on police multiple times. Sheriffs deputies returned fire. Brosseau did not fire his gun, Band said.

Barnes received minor injuries and was released from the hospital into police custody.

He is being held at the Clackamas County Jail on allegations of attempted aggravated murder, attempted assault, unlawful use of a weapon and attempt to elude.

The Sheriffs Office has not yet provided details about the reason for the pursuit.

-- Noelle Crombie; ncrombie@oregonian.com; 503-276-7184; @noellecrombie
An unvaccinated Estacada Middle School teacher died Saturday in what appears to be the first publicly reported case of an Oregon teacher succumbing to COVID-19.

Samantha Fox, 46, died one week after she tested positive for the coronavirus. Family members said that Fox, a sixth- and seventh-grade language arts teacher at the middle school, was a beloved member of the community who spent more than 20 years teaching in the school district.

Survivors include her mother, husband and two teenage sons.

You cant go anywhere in Estacada without someone coming up to talk to her, said her ex-husband, Roger Cloud.

More than a year into the pandemic, Foxs death comes as a tragic reminder of the coronaviruss unpredictable toll. Fox was overweight but otherwise had no underlying medical conditions, said her mother, Mary Beck.

She took care of everyone. The entire family loved her dearly, said Beck, crying Tuesday as she described Foxs loving nature. Always a big smile and fun to be with.

Samantha Fox, 46, taught in the Estacada School District more than 20 years before contracting COVID-19. She died May 8.

But even as she grieves, Beck is placing the blame for her daughters death on Foxs hesitation to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Fox was afraid of shots and didnt like going to the doctor, Beck said, and subsequently waited too long to decide whether or not to get vaccinated.

There are 14- and 18-year-old boys without a mother because she wouldnt take the shot, Beck said, referring to Foxs two sons.

Neither the Oregon Department of Education nor the Oregon Health Authority was able to say how many educators, if any, have died from COVID-19. Gov. Kate Brown approved all educators for vaccinations beginning Jan. 25. An active volunteer at North Clackamas School District schools died from COVID-19 in December, according to the Portland Tribune, and a Joseph Charter School bus driver died in September, according to the East Oregonian.

Samantha Fox, 46, died from a COVID-19 infection. She taught Language Arts at Estacada Middle School and had worked in the school district more than 20 years. Fox loved to fish and ride her Harley Davidson. She had no underlying conditions. She was not vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Foxs last day teaching students inside the middle school was April 27, an Estacada School District spokeswoman said. Fox apparently tested positive for the coronavirus May 1, Beck said.

The school district informed families May 4 that 60 students at the middle school had been asked to quarantine due to four non-related cases of people with COVID-19.

District spokeswoman Maggie Kelly said there has been no evidence of spread of the disease at any of the schools, though cases continue to rise. Seventeen students and staff have now tested positive across the district, up eight from May 4. Almost 11% of the districts students are currently in quarantine, Kelly said, though many will have completed their isolation period by the end of the week.

None of the students or staff who tested positive did so after contact with Fox, Kelly said, nor was Fox exposed to sick students before she tested positive.

Samantha Fox, 46, taught language arts at Estacada Middle School. She died May 8 after contracting COVID-19.

By last Friday, Fox had trouble breathing and went to Kaiser Permanente Sunnyside Medical Center. Staff there eventually sent her home, Beck said.

The next morning, Saturday, Fox woke up barely able to breathe, Beck said. An ambulance took her to a hospital, where she died.

Fox loved to fish  smallmouth bass in the Umpqua River and steelhead and trout in the Santiam  and liked to take long motorcycle trips on her Harley Davidson Night Train. Last summer, Beck and Fox both rode motorcycles to Baker City and Florence. Beck and Fox had yet to decide where to take a trip this summer, Beck said.

Cloud, Foxs ex-husband, said they met in college, when she was studying to be a teacher. She had wanted to be a teacher since she was a child, Cloud said, and, as she taught over the years, loved her kids. Cloud and Fox stayed close after their divorce, he said, and shared custody of their children.

Foxs death came as a shock, Cloud said, not only because she was so young and healthy, but also because COVID-19 hadnt really affected anybody close to him before Fox got sick.

Its definitely real now, Cloud said.

Fox was a student-focused teacher, the school district spokeswoman said, and her death is affecting multiple generations of students. Fox had a knack for making learning fun, Kelly said, and managed to maintain her enthusiasm into the third decade of her career teaching in Estacada, about 45 minutes southeast of Portland.

The school district has deployed counselors for any staff or students who need them, Kelly said.

Beck said she wanted to speak publicly about her daughters death because she doesnt want any other family to go through the same experience.

Please, Beck said, if you can get the shot, get it.

-- Fedor Zarkhin

503-294-7674; fzarkhin@oregonian.com
The Oregon Health Authority on Monday reported three COVID-19 deaths and 388 new cases.

Identified cases last week dropped 12% compared to the previous week, marking the second straight week of progress against the pandemic. And Mondays announced cases are the lowest reported on a given day in four weeks.

Nearly 2 million Oregonians have now been partially or fully vaccinated. Slowing demand prompted the operators of three Portland-area mass vaccination clinics to announce Monday theyll close shop in June.

Vaccines: Oregon reported 28,659 newly administered doses, which includes 22,263 Sunday and the remainder from previous days.

Where the new cases are by county: Baker (1), Benton (21), Clackamas (76), Clatsop (4), Columbia (12), Coos (1), Crook (3), Deschutes (56), Douglas (6), Harney (3), Hood River (2), Jackson (8), Jefferson (4), Josephine (7), Lane (24), Linn (23), Marion (45), Multnomah (76), Polk (3), Tillamook (2), Wasco (1), Washington (4) and Yamhill (6).

Who died: Oregons 2,531st death linked to COVID-19 is a 90-year-old Multnomah County woman who tested positive April 25 and died April 27 at Salem Hospital.

The 2,532nd fatality is a 70-year-old Lane County man who tested positive April 18 and died May 6 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center.

Oregons 2,533rd death is a 63-year-old Josephine County man who tested positive March 8 and died May 2 at his residence.

Each person had underlying health conditions or state officials were confirming if the person had underlying conditions.

Hospitalizations: 326 people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 are hospitalized, up eight from Sunday. That includes 78 people in intensive care, up two from Sunday.

Since it began: Oregon has reported 191,774 confirmed or presumed infections and 2,533 deaths, among the lowest per capita numbers in the nation. To date, the state has reported 3,344,102 vaccine doses administered, fully vaccinating 1,467,659 people and partially vaccinating 515,176 people.

To see more data and trends, visit https://projects.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/

-- Brad Schmidt; bschmidt@oregonian.com; 503-294-7628; @_brad_schmidt
The Oregon Health Authority first must give the green light for 12- to 15-year-olds to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, health officials said -- after the federal government receives additional approvals. Officials in Oregon plan to make an announcement when COVID-19 immunizations of this group can begin.

The Oregon Convention Center, Portland International Airport and Hillsboro Stadium are expected to serve as options for the new wave of Oregonians -- ages 12 to 15 -- when they become eligible for Pfizer vaccinations as early as this week.

The Food and Drug Administration gave the nod Monday but the move still needs approval from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The question next goes to the CDCs Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices on Wednesday and then the CDC director.

As the federal vaccine advisory committee meets to issue its recommendations to the CDC, the Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup also will meet to review the data and issue guidance to governors from participating states, which includes Oregon.

Both the vaccine advisory panel and the western review group meet Wednesday, when an announcement is expected. The Associated Press reported shots may begin for the younger age group as early as Thursday if expected recommendations come through.

Parents elated about the news showed up with their children Monday afternoon at the convention center, hoping to get shots, said Debbie Karman, a spokeswoman for Kaiser Permanente, which helps run the site.

Karman said they left without doses for their children because the site wont be able to administer any shots to 12- to 15-year-olds even after the CDC grants approval.

The Oregon Health Authority first must give the green light, Karman said. Health authority officials declined to pin down a date when they think vaccinations of this age group can begin, but it is expected to happen soon after federal approval. Officials in Oregon plan to make an announcement as soon as they give COVID-19 immunizations the OK.

The Food and Drug Administration declared that the Pfizer vaccine is safe and offers strong protection for younger teens based on testing of more than 2,000 U.S. volunteers ages 12 to 15. The agency noted there were no cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated adolescents compared with 16 among kids given dummy shots. More intriguing, researchers found the kids developed higher levels of virus-fighting antibodies than earlier studies measured in young adults.

The younger teens received the same vaccine dosage as adults and had the same side effects, mostly sore arms and flu-like fever, chills or aches that signal a revved-up immune system, especially after the second dose.

Pfizer is not the only company seeking to lower the age limit for its vaccine. Moderna recently said preliminary results from its study in 12- to 17-year-olds show strong protection and no serious side effects. Another U.S. company, Novavax, has a COVID-19 vaccine in late-stage development and just began a study in 12- to 17-year-olds.

Next up is testing whether the vaccine works for even younger children. Both Pfizer and Moderna have begun U.S. studies in children ages 6 months to 11 years. Those studies explore whether babies, preschoolers and elementary-age kids will need different doses than teens and adults.
Three young men are accused of forcing immigrants from China into prostitution, beating them with hammers and robbing them in hotels in Portland, Beaverton and Omaha, Nebraska.

The men face indictments in the two states but authorities said they suspect the three have been involved in identical attacks in other states.

Theyre accused of using zip ties to restrain the women in hotel rooms, then beating them with hammers and stealing the cash they obtained through prostitution, according to federal and state records.

Xinyu Zhou, 21, Yuan Gao, 19, and Arian Esfadiari, 18, face federal indictment in Nebraska and state indictments in Multnomah and Washington counties. Beaverton and Portland police worked with FBI agents on the investigation.

The three men were arrested in Omaha, Nebraska, in December.

Gao and Zhou flew to Kansas City, Missouri, on Dec. 14, rented a car and drove to Nebraska, according to the federal indictment. The two bought zip ties and a hammer at a Home Depot in Omaha and the next day bought a black wig and black wig cap at a Party City store to disguise their appearances, according to the indictment. Esfadiari flew to Nebraska from Dallas and met up with his alleged accomplices, according to the indictment.

The three are accused of setting up a so-called date with one woman in a Hawthorn Suites hotel room in Omaha on Dec. 15, where they threatened her with a hammer and robbed her, the indictment says.

Similar attacks occurred in Portland and Beaverton in November, according to court records.

Beaverton police had responded to a robbery at a hotel near Southwest 158th Avenue on Nov. 25 and found a woman had been assaulted by three men. She was attacked with a hammer and suffered serious injuries, according to Sgt. Kevin McDonald.

It was the third assault last year involving a woman attacked and robbed by three men with a hammer at the same Beaverton hotel, according to Beaverton police.

On Nov. 5, members of a U.S. Marshals Service task force stumbled upon a woman bound to a chair who had been severely assaulted with a hammer in a hotel room in the 9700 block of Northeast Sandy Boulevard in Portland.

The marshals had gone to the hotel to look for a fugitive in an unrelated case. The marshals worked with Portland police to rescue the woman and investigate the assault, according to Portland police.

As police were on the scene, a second victim who had also been bound and beaten was discovered nearby, according to the Police Bureau.

The victims in the Portland attacks were both Chinese nationals who were brought to the United States on fraudulent visas and under misleading terms, according to Portland police. Victim advocates assigned to the Portland Police Bureaus Human Trafficking Unit have been coordinating care and recovery efforts for the victims.

The federal indictment in Nebraska accuses the three of conspiracy to commit interference with interstate commerce by robbery.

Multnomah County obtained an indictment in late December against Gao and Zhou accusing each of two counts of compelling prostitution, 12 counts of robbery, three counts of unlawful use of a weapon, one count of first-degree assault and two counts of second-degree assault.

All three defendants gave statements to FBI agents implicating the others in criminal activity involving multiple robberies, according to federal court records.

Esfadiaris defense lawyer, Jerry M. Hug in Nebraska, has asked a federal judge to suppress the statements. Hug said in court papers that Esfadiari, a native of Iran who turned 18 about four months before his arrest, had asked whether he could have a lawyer when FBI agents continued to question him for about an hour and a half after his arrest.

Hug also asked the court to sever the three defendants cases, arguing that the alleged confessions by the two co-defendants would harm his client.

The three defendants remain in custody in Nebraska, where the federal case is pending.

Police suspect other women were assaulted by the three defendants in the metropolitan Portland area. Anyone with information is asked to call Beaverton Police Detective Chad Opitz, at 503-526-2674. The three defendants are expected to be extradited to Oregon after their case is resolved in Nebraska.

-- Maxine Bernstein

Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212

Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian
After 18 years as the music director for Oregon Symphony, Carlos Kalmar is moving on to a new job as the director of orchestral and conducting programs and principal conductor of Cleveland Institute of Music.

Kalmar, who is succeeded at the Oregon Symphony by David Danzmayr, was a popular director and the 2020-2021 season was supposed to be his big send-off.

In the 2020-21 season, we tell the story of Carlos and the Oregon Symphony, Showalter said in a statement at the time. Over the course of the year, Carlos will bring you music that moves him and us.

Like many things, that season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The symphony instead celebrated Kalmar at a live-streamed event in April.

Carlos will return to Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall next season as Oregon Symphony Conductor Laureate, symphony president and CEO Scott Showalter, in a press release earlier this year.

The students and traditions of the Cleveland Institute of Music are very special, said Kalmar in a press release about his new gig. And the goals I have are straightforward: together, we must represent, contribute to and advance CIMs high standards of artistic excellence with an unwavering musical and personal integrity.

-- Lizzy Acker

503-221-8052, lacker@oregonian.com, @lizzzyacker
The Portland Art Museum started promoting Ansel Adams in Our Time well over a year ago. Organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the exhibition had the makings of being a blockbuster. It would present the work of the most famous American landscape photographer, and the Portland Art Museum was going to be the shows only West Coast venue. In Boston, more than 200,000 people came to see it during its 10-week run in early 2019. And then COVID-19 hit.

The museum moved the shows opening date out twice, from fall 2020 to January 2021 and then to May to accommodate state mandated closures. As the museum reopens, this should be an easy win for it, in spite of ongoing restrictions that will limit the number of people allowed in the galleries. But this show was never simply a retrospective of Adams work or a greatest hits tour. Instead, it bolsters Adams work with that of artists who photographed the American West before him, providing context and making the point that Adams did not emerge sui generis as the iconic photographer hes now recognized as being. The exhibition also includes work by contemporary artists who are pushing and pulling the mediumas Adams did when he startedwhile tackling the same subject matter, only this time with very different viewpoints.

The show already promised to be compelling. But after a year of civil unrest around racial justice and the devastating wildfires that swept across California, Oregon and Washington, many of the images and themes feel even more urgent. If anything, the show is more in our time as it opens now.

The exhibition includes 100 photographs by Adams that are placed in lively conversation with an almost equal number of works  80 in all  by other artists. The introductory gallery sets the tone for this dynamic. It opens with two prints by Adams in his recognizable mature style, the crisp whites and deep, warm greys describing epic landscapes whose sharp details extend to the far back of the pictures, but much of the real estate is given over to work by contemporary artists Mark C. Klett and Byron Wolfe. Their sprawling View from the handrail at Glacier Point overlook, connecting views from Ansel Adams to Carleton Watkins from 2003 knits together an image by the 19th-century photographer Carleton Watkins and one by Adams with their own shots of the well-known site to create a panorama that spans time.

Organized into six sections that trace the evolution of Adams career, the Portland show is nearly identical to the show that opened in Boston. But its curator, Karen Haas, was receptive to including other work that might be important to the community here or that would add to the discussion, said Julia Dolan, the Minor White Curator of Photography who curated the exhibition for the Portland Art Museum. Karen brought in issues of identity with some of the photos, such as Will Wilson, Binh Danh, Abelardo Morrell and Catherine Opie, said Dolan. I wanted to extend that a little further with artists I knew who are working in Portland or in the Southwest who also engage with ideas of personal identity and landscape.

In coordination with Haas, she carved out a pocket in the show that features photographs from the Portland Art Museums collection, several of which were purchased for inclusion in the exhibition. It was a way to add in a number of photos from the permanent collection and also purchase a few works of art to add to our collection and display now, said Dolan.

These include photographs by Jonathan Calm, whose work flanks one of the shows signature Adams images, Self-Portrait, Monument Valley, Utah from 1958. Adams photo shows the white artists looming shadow with his tripod, cast against a rockface that reads as a vast landscape. In Double Vision (Record) from 2018, Calm, who is Black, photographs himself taking a picture of the Pacific Coast. He and his camera are covered by a cloth hood, drawing attention to his exposed bare legs and feet. Its an image thats disturbing in its benignity as it challenges our assumptions about access and interrogates who has historically photographed the American landscape.

One of Adams most famous photographs, Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico, appears in the Southwest section of the show. Light glints off the tiny white crosses of a graveyard in the foreground, echoed by the snow-capped peaks of the mountains behind. The photograph exemplifies Adams ability to manipulate a negative in the darkroom to translate his vision to paper, and its exquisite in person. Moonrise finds its riposte in CJ Heyligers Broken Glass #2 from 2017. Looking as if it had been taken at night or in the late evening  an effect accomplished in how the film is exposed and processed  it captures shimmering trails of glass in the desert as light reflects off it, a beautiful rebuke of the effects of mans incursion into nature.

The show ends with a section on the changing landscape that includes Adams later images of rail lines and jet trails and of Los Angeles freeways. The contemporary works here continue the narrative of development into the present day. Cheap housing drifts into an otherwise open landscape against a mountain backdrop in Victoria Sambunaris work, and Bryan Schutmaat depicts modern-day ghost towns of scattered trailer homes in Nevada.

Among these final images, Laura McPhees large-scale color photographs that were taken in the aftermath of a forest fire in central Idaho may feel especially resonant for Oregonians. In a short video, one of five placed throughout the galleries and available online, McPhee recalls being introduced by a teacher to Adams close-in image of a burned tree with new blades of grass poking up in front of it, also included in the show. Her work, like Adams, finds beauty in the devastation and wonder in natures ability to regenerate.

In the end its just a taste. Its a big taste  its 180 photographsand I hope it moves peoples thoughts in many directions, Dolan said of the exhibition. Theres just so much more than the famous Ansel Adams photograph.

After being in lockdown for more than a year, our attention spans are honed. That is another point in favoring the timing of this exhibition. Its labels are meaty and offer helpful suggestions about where to look closer at an image. Its a lot of label reading to do, Dolan acknowledged.

With the number of people allowed in the gallery still limited, visitors can take a moment to look and read. For those not ready to attend in person, an online version of the exhibition is already posted. It doesnt include all of the Adams images  his estate maintains tight control of his work  but its well done and includes many of the other works in the show, as well as the five artists videos and nearly all of the labels.

***

"Ansel Adams in Our Time" opened at the Portland Art Museum on May 5, 2021, showing the work of American landscape photographer Ansel Adams alongside his contemporaries and modern photographers, examining the complex legacy he left behind. Jamie Hale/The OregonianJamie Hale/The Oregonian

What: Ansel Adams in Our Time, exhibition of photographs of the American West including more than 100 works by Ansel Adams

When: Through Aug. 1

Where: Portland Art Museum, 1219 S.W. Park Ave.

Gallery hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday. Timed-entry tickets are required. Coat/bag check closed; social distancing and face masks are required.

Admission: Children 17 and under free; $17 college students and seniors; $20 adults; portlandartmuseum.org or 503-276-4249

 Briana Miller, For The Oregonian/OregonLive
How have families been getting help with children facing mental and emotional challenges? And what can you do to help the kids in your life whove struggled through this pandemic? That Expert Show host Anna Canzano spoke with Lana Shotwell of Trillium Family Services about how the organization pivoted to tele-health to serve kids and families, and the innovations it discovered along the way. Shotwell is Vice President of Community Programs for Trillium Family Services Portland Metro region and a Licensed Professional Counselor.

Shotwell advises that parents might want to be a little more lenient when it comes to the academic requirements this year. Its important that kids do their schoolwork, but homework shouldnt be more important than making sure their mental health is okay, she said.

WATCH THE INTERVIEW

What are the signs to look for that will tell you it might be time to take your child to talk with someone at Trillium Family Services? If your child makes any comments about harming themselves, go get help right away. If kids are refusing to go back to school, thats another sign something might be going on, said Shotwell.

She explained that every kid will have their tantrum and get upset, but notice how long that lasts. If it is prolonged, that might be another clue your child should talk to a professional.

And what about kids who are reluctant to open up to parents? She said one strategy to try is going for a drive with them. Since youre in a car, they dont have to look at you so sometimes that helps them say things that might be difficult for them. Also, spend time with your kids and really be present. Spending quality time together every day (even if you have a teenager who might hate you) will really help with their mental health.

SEE THE FULL VIDEO

Shotwell has worked in the children and adolescents mental health field for more than twenty years and has overseen Trilliums school based outpatient programs for the past ten years. Lanas passion is promoting the resiliency and strength inherit in Oregons families and pursuing Trillium Family Services mission of Building Brighter Futures with Children and Families.

That Expert Show is a weekly interview show hosted by Canzano in partnership with The Oregonian/OregonLive. It utilizes input from the audience and is streamed live every Monday at 7 p.m. Pacific Time via Facebook, Twitter and the shows website. Its also available as a podcast (Apple or Google Podcasts) and on IGTV.

Trillium Family Services sponsored this content.
Bachman said the van then went across the street, and a group of about 10 people with anti-Jewish signs used a bullhorn to yell antisemitic slurs and handed out flyers to drivers stopped at the traffic light. No visitors were in the center at the time, she said.
The Portland areas most influential business organization is contesting broad swaths of a review by the city auditors office that found it repeatedly violated city lobbying rules last year.

The auditors office declared two weeks ago that the Portland Business Alliance failed to disclose at least 25 times it had contacted city officials in 2020 to request access, funding or action, primarily by email.

But the alliance shot back Monday that 23 of the unreported emails and other interactions with officials did not need to be reported to the city because they didnt meet the citys definition of lobbying.

The auditors office has framed these communications as if they were intentionally withheld from regular city reporting as an attempt to exert undue influence on Portlands legislative process, Portland Business Alliance President Andrew Hoan wrote to City Auditor Mary Hull Caballero in a letter.

It is clear that the majority of the identified communications do not violate existing city code, nor the spirit of the code, said the letter, which included its own summary and review of each violation.

Hull Caballero said she received the letter Monday and would review any additional information provided to see whether the original determination stands or should be modified based on new evidence.

The business association detailed all 23 interactions on which it and the auditor differ about what constitutes lobbying.

The auditors office, for example, determined that an Oct. 12 email Hoan sentTom Rinehart, the citys chief administrative officer, that suggested work crews remove a number of tree stumps along Southwest First Avenue to alleviate any tripping hazards should have been included in its quarterly lobbying report.

City code defines lobbying as any attempt to influence a city officials actions, from voting on city policy to taking administrative action.

The alliance contends the email doesnt meet that test.

This email was sent as a public service alert to the city staff responsible and was administrative in nature with no basis or intent to influence the actions of city officials and as such does not qualify as lobbying, Hoan wrote.

In another instance, according to the alliance, the auditors office found that two undisclosed emails sent to the groups entire board of directors violated the citys lobbying rules. One of the board directors is Kimberly Branam, who also serves as the head of Prosper Portland, the citys economic development agency.

This does not qualify as lobbying because of the nature of Director Branams role and because there was no basis or intent to influence the actions of city officials present in this communication, the alliance claims.

If the auditor is now defining internal communications in the governing structure of nonprofits as lobbying because they include city officials who are serving on these boards, then this needs to be clarified in city code.

The alliance also claimed it was found to have run afoul of city lobbying rules for not reporting an email exchange between Amy Rathfelder, its chief lobbyist, and Gabriel Solmer, the director of the citys water bureau, to set up a meeting requested by Solmer.

Review found communication was logistical in nature, the alliance wrote. Email chain was a response to a City-initiated request for a meeting.

While it can impose up to a $3,000 penalty per lobbying violation, the city auditors office fined the business group $450, marking only the second time the office has issued a fine for lobbying violations.

In 2016, it imposed a $2,000 penalty against Uber for undisclosed lobbying efforts by political consultant Mark Wiener.

Hoan said the alliance would place the $450 fine in an escrow account during its appeal to the auditors office.

The business alliance president also said his organization would accept the auditors recommendation that its staff participate in additional lobbying training  and asked that the training session be open to the press to better understand and learn about best practices that your team recommends for engaging in lobbying.

For the first three months of 2021, the business alliance reported far more meetings, calls and emails with city officials than any other special interest, records show.

During that time period, which included 61 business days, PBA reported 109 contacts with city officials, most commonly Sam Adams, a senior adviser to Mayor Ted Wheeler who has extensive ties with the business community.

The next most active group lobbying the city, Oregon Smart Growth, reported just one-fourth as many contacts with city officials, 26.

Adams, who previously served as Portland mayor, spearheaded the citys lobbying disclosure rules during his time in elected office.

John Maher, publisher of The Oregonian/OregonLive and president of the Oregonian Media Group, is the chair-elect of the Portland Business Alliances board of directors and takes over in July.

-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh; 503-294-7632

Email at skavanaugh@oregonian.com

Follow on Twitter @shanedkavanaugh

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Student loan debt is a heavy burden, and the people most affected by it are Black Americans, especially Black women. Two decades after taking out student loans, the median Black borrower still owes 95% of their debt, whereas the median white borrower has paid off 94% of their debt. Canceling a minimum of $50,000 in debt per borrower would close the racial wealth gap by more than 20% and make an impact on all low-income borrowers, whereas canceling less than that would only worsen the racial wealth gap.

I know college is not for everyone, but I want higher education accessible to everyone who desires it. My son and I both shied away from college due to the prospect of unmanageable debt, and Im only now, in my late 40s, back in school. I ask President Biden to address this result of the severe effects of systemic racism by canceling $50,000 in student debt per borrower. Im grateful to Oregons Rep. Earl Blumenauer, Sen. Jeff Merkley and Sen. Ron Wyden for their support of this important issue. These elected leaders can provide more information about student loan debt, as can the ACLU, which I am not affiliated with.

Maria Llull, Portland
At the south entrance to the Oregon Capitol sits a kiosk. With the building closed to the public, the kiosk has one job: to allow people who walk up to the Legislature to testify virtually before a committee.

The public hasnt exactly jumped at the chance to talk to lawmakers by standing outside of the Capitol and speaking into a camera. According to the Legislative Policy and Research Office, the kiosk has been used just four times since it was installed last year.

But what Oregonians have taken to is the chance to testify from their living rooms. So far this session, with committee hearings held entirely on virtual platforms, people have signed up to address legislative committees more than 14,000 times. Thats already well over the number who sought to testify in person in 2019, with more than six weeks remaining in this years session.

Microsoft Teams is the Legislatures video meeting platform of choice. It has similar functions to Zoom and other video conferencing systems that many Americans have learned how to use over the past 14 months.

Most of the changes to our lives that weve seen during COVID are ones that we would prefer to leave behind, but this is not one of them, said Mary Kyle McCurdy, the Deputy Director of 1000 Friends of Oregon. It really has opened up meetings and hearings and public decision-making to so many Oregonians.

More than 1,200 committee hearings have been conducted using videoconference technology since the beginning of this years session. According to the Legislatures Information Services Department, roughly 98% have been free of technical problems that have resulted in an interruption of the meeting.

Ninety-eight percent is okay, but we want it to get as high as possible, said Dan Rapoza, the customer engagement leader for Information Services. In no way are we minimizing that when this does happen, its not disruptive.

Lawmakers are considering a bill that would require both the legislature and local governments to offer remote testimony as an option, even when the pandemic is in the rearview mirror. House Bill 2560 has already been approved in the House and awaits a vote on the Senate floor. The measure would allow testifying via telephone to count as remote testimony.

While videoconferencing means Oregonians dont have to drive, in some cases, hundreds of miles to speak to lawmakers for three or four minutes, it has also meant a major adjustment for professional lobbyists, whove lost their access to lawmakers in Capitol hallways, offices and its basement cafeteria.

Legislative staff deserve huge kudos for effectively building the plane as they fly it, said long-time lobbyist Dale Penn II, who serves as the technology committee chair for the Capitol Club, which is an organization of professional lobbyists in Oregon. Allowing citizens more access to the public process is a good thing.

Even so, Penn said the current system has its drawbacks.

For instance, while you might think that holding a committee virtually would mean the meetings could run as long as needed, Penn said the opposite seems to be the case.

Ive seen repeatedly where the meeting effectively has to get cut off at a certain time, he said. And so that puts pressure on (committee) chairs. There is some general concern around being able to have everyones voices heard in the process.

In the past, lobbyists and citizens alike could try to chat up a lawmaker in the hallway after a meeting. Thats not the case while the Capitol is closed and meetings are held virtually.

Still, no one is publicly suggesting that once COVID-19 protocols are relaxed, lawmakers continue to use remote hearings exclusively. There are more than a dozen hearing rooms sitting unused at the Capitol, and lawmakers are just as eager as everyone else to see people in-person again. (Floor sessions are held in-person, but without any members of the public in attendance.)

But the horse is out of the barn when it comes to allowing people to have their say from the comfort of their home.

There have been fewer trips over the Cascades in dangerous weather conditions, said Misty Mason Freeman, the director of the Legislative Policy and Research Office. Its given folks the opportunity to testify from a space thats comfortable to them, including being able to testify with kiddos at home.

And while the pandemic has driven most public and private entities to innovate quickly, the idea of allowing remote testimony isnt new in Salem.

In 2017, lawmakers considered a measure that would have required the Legislature to allow testimony via videoconferencing. The idea was approved in the House, but the proposal died in the Legislatures budget committee after fiscal analysts hung a $433,000 price tag on the cost of outfitting hearing rooms with the appropriate technology.

In another sign that few people anticipated how quickly life would change during the pandemic, a legislative analysis of the 2017 resolution suggested that remote testimony would involve identifying and securing remote locations with trained staff where people can go to connect and testify.

Chris Lehman clehman@oregonian.com
An Oregon state representative accused of allowing armed protesters into the locked Capitol in December did not appear in court Tuesday morning during a scheduled arraignment on two charges, including first-degree official misconduct.

An attorney for Rep. Mike Nearman, R-Independence, spoke briefly with a judge at the Marion County Circuit Court Annex in Salem, but did not enter a plea on Nearmans behalf. The attorney, Jason Short of Salem, had notified the court on Monday that Nearman would not be appearing.

The court scheduled a new hearing for June 29, and according to a release agreement, Nearman must appear in person or remotely. He is also not allowed to leave the state without permission from the court.

Under Oregons Constitution, this years legislative session must end by June 27, so the next court date for Nearman would fall at least two days after the conclusion of the session.

Nearman has made few public appearances since the charges were filed on April 30. Hes been absent from House floor sessions since mid-April. He told a Portland radio station last week that hed been diagnosed with COVID-19.

On Dec. 21, 2020, protesters, some of whom were carrying guns and other weapons, stood outside the Oregon Capitol and demanded to be let inside while lawmakers met during a one-day special session. The building has been closed to the public during the pandemic, and all committee hearings and floor sessions are streamed live.

Security camera footage showed Nearman exit the building through a door with protesters visible just outside and leave the door open long enough for them to enter. Some managed to enter an outer vestibule, where they confronted and pepper-sprayed police but were ultimately turned away.

After a months-long investigation, Nearman was charged with official misconduct and criminal trespass, both misdemeanors.

A group of about two dozen supporters gathered outside the courthouse prior to Tuesdays hearing, many holding signs in support of Nearman.

I think Mike did the right thing that day, said Tom Madison of Salem. It was a brave thing to do.

But Peter Starzynski, the executive director of Accountable Northwest, said Nearman should serve time behind bars. Technically, a person convicted of first-degree official misconduct can be sentenced to a year in jail, but jail time for misdemeanors is not the norm.

He literally opened the door for violent rioters to attack the Capitol, said Starzynski, who attended the hearing.

Several Democratic lawmakers, including House Speaker Tina Kotek of Portland, have called on Nearman to resign. Democrats have filed a complaint against Nearman, but the House Conduct Committee, which has an equal number of Democrats and Republicans, has not held any public meetings on the complaint.

Chris Lehman clehman@oregonian.com
Now that its official Oregon will receive a sixth congressional seat in 2022, state lawmakers must decide where it will go.

In a May 6 public hearing, House Special Committee on Redistricting co-chair Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis pointed out that that three of the states five current congressional districts touch Portland and Multnomah County. Four of the states five congresspeople are Democrats, while just 35.3% of registered voters are Democrats and 25.1% are Republicans. Nearly 33% of voters are nonaffiliated.

Davis, a Republican from east of Albany, said it was striking how many residents of the 1st Congressional District objected to northwest Portlands Pearl District being included in the largely rural jurisdiction. It covers virtually all of Washington county, including Tigard, Beaverton and Hillsboro, and takes in most of Northwest Portland before stretching through rural Columbia and Clatsop counties to reach the states northwest coast, from just south of Cannon Beach up to Astoria. Oregons 1st District is currently represented by Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, a Democrat from a Washington County suburb just west of Portlands West Hills.

I just remember hearing that more often than anything else, said Boshart Davis.

Some of the people who testified at a March 20 online public hearing for residents of the district suggested creating a single contiguous coastal district, and more than 70 of the 109 pieces of written testimony raised concerns about the district stretching from (the) coast and Columbia River to (the) Pearl District in Portland.

Proponents of a contiguous coastal district included Rep. Mike Nearman, a Republican from outside Independence whose state House district overlaps the 1st Congressional District, although he does not live in the 1st District. He testified in support of the idea at the March public hearing and noted the coast is currently split among three congressional districts, all of which overlap his state House district. I think  the people of the state of Oregon would be better served if they had a contiguous economic and cultural district that was the coast, he said. Its a tourism and natural resource extraction district there. If that were to happen, that would cause the other districts to fall into place a little better.

Some Democrats on the redistricting committees disagreed. Rep. Wlnsvey Campos, a Democrat from Aloha, questioned whether enough people live along the coast to provide the roughly 706,000 residents that Oregon must aim to include in each new congressional district.

Even if you have a district that spans the entire coast  it sounds like a math problem, like that there arent enough people living just on the coast to create their own congressional district, said Campos. She suggested a coastal legislative district would need to extend inland to encompass enough people.

The Oregonian/OregonLives preliminary analysis of 2015-2019 American Community Survey tract-level population data suggests lawmakers would indeed have to include communities far from the coast on the east side of the Coast Range, although not nearly as far as current coast districts stretch into the center of the state.

At the May 6 redistricting committees meeting to review testimony, Rep. Daniel Bonham, R-The Dalles, pointed out that electoral districts are supposed to keep communities of interest intact to the extent possible so they have effective representation, and he suggested the Oregon coast has economic, social, cultural, geographic ties. I couldnt agree more with these folks that have expressed concerns about the Pearl District and the coast being together, Bonham said. So that would be an area I would look to try to find if we couldnt find a different community that made a little more sense to find that population necessary to get it to equal representation.

About 45,000 of the districts 577,000 registered voters, or fewer than 8%, live in Northwest Portland. Population wide, Washington County, with its 386,000 registered voters, dominates the district. Clatsop County, including Astoria, Seaside and Cannon Beach, has just over 30,000 registered voters.

Rep. Khanh Pham, a Democrat from southeast Portland, noted that the section of northwest Portland in the 1st District includes shipping infrastructure, a similarity to the importance of maritime transport along the Lower Columbia River and Port of Astoria. Theres actually industrial connections that we may want to be recognizing, Pham said.

Oregons constitution does not contain a deadline for the Legislature to complete congressional redistricting, but state law allows any elector to petition the Marion County Circuit Court if lawmakers fail to produce new congressional districts by July 1 or the governor vetoes the plan. Electors can also petition the court if they dislike a plan passed by the Legislature, a route that opponents of redistricting plans have taken in the past.

The Senate and House redistricting committees are scheduled to hold another meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday to continue going over testimony received in earlier public hearings. Members of the public can watch the meeting online.

Correction: This article has been updated to correctly state the deadline for the Legislature to complete a congressional redistricting plan.

-- Hillary Borrud; hborrud@oregonian.com; @hborrud

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  Officials have not yet said who is responsible for the shot that killed a 3-month-old baby when his father died in a shootout with police on a highway last week in Mississippi.

Activists with Black Lives Matter Mississippi are calling for the release of police body camera footage of what happened May 3 near Biloxi. Investigators won't say whether any officers were wearing body cameras at the time.

A group gathered Sunday by Interstate 10, near the site of the shooting, to pay tribute to the life of infant LaMello Parker and two people who were killed earlier May 3. Authorities said Christin Parker, 32, and her nephew Brandon Parker, 26, were killed by La'Mello's father, Eric Derrell Smith, in a domestic dispute, leading to the police chase and standoff in which Smith and the baby were killed.

We want to have a coherent, truthful conversation about what happened and how this could have been avoided. Period, Anastassia Doctor, a Black Lives Matter Mississippi board member and Army veteran, told The Associated Press Monday. If this was a white man with a white child, would they have done the same thing?

Smith, 30, was suspected of killing his ex-girlfriend, Christin, and her nephew at a home in Baker, Louisiana, on May 3. Smith then kidnapped La'Mello and left the scene, according to investigators.

In a Facebook post on May 3, the sheriff's office from East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, alerted the public to be on the lookout for Smith.

Right now, our top priority is locating that child safely, Sheriff Sid Gautreaux said.

Before Smith and La'Mello were killed, Smith led police on a chase across state lines. The pursuit was joined by more than a dozen officers from the Mississippi Highway Patrol, Gulfport Police Department and the Harrison County Sheriffs Department.

A video taken by a bystander shows the final barrage of gunfire after more than a dozen law enforcement vehicles pursued Smiths car. Police told WLOX-TV that both Smith and officers fired weapons.

An autopsy determined that LaMello Parker died of a single gunshot wound. The coroner of Harrison County, Mississippi  Brian Switzer  told The Associated Press last week that Biloxi police investigators would examine the bullet to try to determine the source of the fatal shot.

Switzer said a pathologist will determine whether the fatal shot came from close range or a distance.

Biloxi police are investigating because none of that departments officers were involved. Biloxi Police Major Chris DeBack said Monday that he had no other details to release while the matter is still under investigation  including whether any officers were wearing body cameras at the time of the incident.

As soon as the investigation is completed, all the information will be forwarded to the district attorneys office for further review, DeBack said.

Family and friends of Christin Parker said that Smith had a history of domestic violence, and that she feared for her and her children's lives daily.

She got to a point where she just didnt know what to do," friend Johnnie Williams told WAFB-TV. A lot of people say, Get a restraining order, stuff like that. They know that dont stop them.

Christin Parker leaves four children, including one who was home when the shooting occurred. Her family's wish is that the loss will encourage more conversations about domestic violence, WAFB reported.

Get help now so this situation wont become your situation, Pastor Robert Scott, a family friend, said. "Walmart lost a great worker. The community lost a sweet and loving young lady. The children ... lost a parent that loved them dearly.

Reginald Virgil, who was at the vigil Sunday, questioned why officers from multiple departments couldn't de-escalate the situation without using deadly force.

Knowing that there was an infant in the vehicle, where were their hearts?" he told the AP. "Where is the empathy? Where is the concern for the Black lives that were in that vehicle? A total disregard for Black lives.

Sean Hendrickson, an instructor at Washington States Criminal Justice Training Center, said the situation is a difficult one for officers, who have to make quick decisions for the public's safety.

By law, police are allowed to pursue a suspect and use deadly force if they have reasonable suspicion that person has committed a violent crime and they are an imminent threat to the public.

Theres no amount of training that we can give where youre now balancing your own life, where you're being shot at and then not returning fire because theres an innocent person in the vicinity or even in the vehicle, he told the AP. I know thats not much of an answer, it's just there's is just no amount of training I think that we can do that gives you this answer, like the binary code, to 'go do this. "

___

Willingham is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
PHOENIX (AP)  Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey on Tuesday signed legislation purging infrequent voters from a list of those who automatically get a mail-in ballot each election, ignoring protests from Democrats and prominent business leaders who said the measure would suppress the votes of people of color.

The Republican governor acted hours after a tense debate in the state Senate, during which Republicans tried to silence Democrats who said the bill would perpetuate systemic racism.

The legislation is part of a wave of proposals to reduce voting access that have passed in Republican-controlled states around the country following former President Donald Trump's defeat last year.

Republicans have only a single-vote edge in the Arizona House and Senate, so legislation there has been tougher to pass than in other states like Florida, which just made all voters reapply for a mail ballot every two years rather than dropping those who arent active enough.

The measure signed Tuesday would remove people who dont return their mail-in ballot for two consecutive election cycles from the permanent early voting list, which allows voters to automatically receive a ballot before each election. About 75% of Arizona voters are on the list. Affected voters would get a mailer asking if they want to remain on the list, and they would be removed if they dont respond within 90 says.

Democrats say the legislation will disenfranchise voters who expect to get a ballot that never arrives, with an especially strong impact on people of color.

It makes me think you dont like our voters, or who has the potential to vote, Democratic state Sen. Juan Mendez of the Phoenix suburb of Tempe said to Republicans. Because this whole thing looks like nothing more than a ruse to disenfranchise voters who you dont like.

Republicans say the measure is necessary to limit the number of unvoted ballots in circulation, noting it would only affect voters who have shown disinterest in voting by mail.

We need to leave this chamber ensuring our voters we have election integrity in the state of Arizona, said Sen. Vince Leach, a Republican from Tucson.

Arizona's action comes as Democrats and Republicans sparred in the U.S. Senate over a Democratic proposal that would overhaul federal elections and curtail recent actions by Republican state lawmakers to implement new voting rules nationwide.

Congressional Democrats are pushing a broad package of reforms that includes changes to election, campaign finance, ethics and redistricting laws. But Republicans are universally opposed, calling the proposals a Democratic power grab and federal overreach.

Democrats say recent legislation passed in Florida, Georgia, Iowa and Montana underscore the urgency of their effort, but the path forward remains bleak. To break the impasse in the 50-50 Senate, Democrats will have to be willing to end rules that govern when bills can advance, and there is not widespread agreement to do that.

Repeated reviews have found no problems with the election results in Arizona or elsewhere, but many Trump supporters still believe his loss was the result of fraud. Contractors hired by Senate Republicans are still doing a hand recount of 2.1 million ballots cast in Maricopa County as part of a sprawling review of the vote count in the nations fourth-largest county, which includes metro Phoenix.

Ducey certified Arizonas 2020 election results, drawing derision from Trump, and has generally stood up for the integrity of the vote count in his state. But he said theres room for improvement.

He cast the new legislation as a modest cost-saving improvement to an accessible voting system Arizona built over three decades. Voters affected by the change will remain registered and can rejoin the permanent list, request a one-time mail ballot or vote in person, he said.

Despite all the deceptive and heated rhetoric being used by some partisan activists to lobby against this reform, not a single Arizona voter will lose their right to vote as a result of this new law, Ducey said in a video announcing his decision.

He blasted businesses that have weighed in against GOP voting laws in other states that they see as suppressing the vote, and he urged them to know what youre talking about before you say anything about the law he signed.

Critics of Arizona's law warned of economic backlash, noting the Phoenix area is scheduled to host the 2023 Super Bowl and 2024 NCAA basketball Final Four. Major League Baseball pulled the All Star Game from Atlanta after Georgia Republicans passed a sweeping voting law.

Michael Bidwill, owner of the Arizona Cardinals, was among more than 50 executives who signed a letter urging lawmakers to oppose the bill and others.

In Arizona, the GOPs most far-reaching proposals have died, including measures allowing the Legislature to overturn voters and appoint its own Electoral College delegates.

But more narrowly focused measures have advanced, including a ban on private funding for elections. Ducey also signed a bill that stopped implementation of a settlement between Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs and the Navajo Nation, which would have given time for people who forget to sign their mail ballots to fix the problem after the election.

There's some ambiguity about when the bill that Ducey signed Tuesday would first affect elections. It was widely believed to apply to voters who skipped the 2018 and 2020 elections, but legislative lawyers said courts would most likely say voters can't be purged unless they sit out 2022 and 2024.

An analysis for voting rights groups found that about 140,000 registered voters meet the criteria to receive a mailer and, if they don't respond, to be purged.

One bill that remains in limbo would require an ID number, such as a driver's license number, for a mail ballot to be counted.
TORONTO (AP)  Canadas largest province said Tuesday it will stop giving out first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine due to concerns over its link to rare blood clots.

Ontario's chief medical officer for health, Dr. David Williams, said the decision was made out of an abundance of caution because of increased instances of the rare blood clotting disorder linked to the shot.

AstraZeneca is restricted in some European countries because of a potential link to extremely rare blood clots.

Over the last few days there have been increased reports, Williams said. We are reviewing the data to consider options for the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine for second doses and more broadly.

In Canada, at least 12 cases have been confirmed out of more than 2 million doses given, and three women have died.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ontario Premier Doug Ford both received a AstraZeneca first dose in recent weeks. Williams said people who got the first dose of AstraZeneca absolutely did the right thing.

Dr. Andrew Morris, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Toronto and the medical director of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program at Sinai-University Health Network, does not believe Canada should be using AstraZeneca any longer now that Canada has large supplies of other vaccines.

Its the right thing to do, he said.

Morris said experts dont know yet what to do about people who got only the first dose. Health officials are awaiting results of a clinical trial in the United Kingdom looking at giving a different vaccine for the second dose. That would allow people who got AstraZeneca first to be given Pfizer or Moderna for their second dose.

Alberta is also no longer administrating first doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine but only because of a lack of supply.

Pfizer and Moderna are sending more than enough doses to vaccinate every Canadian with two doses eventually.

Trudeau said almost 50% of eligible adults in Canada have received at least one shot of a coronavirus vaccine. Most of that is Pfizer and Moderna.

Trudeau said by the summer, Canada will have enough vaccines so that every eligible resident will have gotten their first dose and by September it will have enough doses for everyone to be fully vaccinated.

A one-dose summer sets us up for a two-dose fall when well be able to talk about going back to school, back to work, and back to more normality, Trudeau said.

Canada has lagged in vaccinating its population because it lacks the ability to manufacture the vaccines and like many countries has had to rely on the global supply chain for the shots. Trudeaus government bet on seven different vaccines manufactured elsewhere and secured advance purchase agreements  enough to get 10 doses for each Canadian.

But initial supply chain difficulties forced Canada to extend the time between the first shot and the second by up to four months so that everyone can be protected faster with the initial dose. The hope is to get all adults at least one shot by the end of June. About 3% of eligible Canadians are fully vaccinated.

Regulators have approved the Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccines for use in Canada.

But plans to distribute the first 300,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are on hold after Health Canada learned part of them were manufactured at a Maryland facility where U.S. officials uncovered manufacturing violations.

The U.S. has suggested it will share more AstraZeneca doses with Canada after loaning 1.5 million doses but it is not clear when that will happen.

Canada started getting Pfizer vaccines from the United States only this month. Despite Canadas tightly woven commercial ties with the U.S., it has been getting Pfizers vaccines from Belgium until now because U.S. authorities had kept supplies made in the U.S. for domestic use.

The AstraZeneca vaccine, which is cheaper and easier to store than Pfizer or Moderna, is critical to global immunization campaigns. It is a pillar of the U.N.-backed program known as COVAX that aims to get vaccines to some of the worlds poorest countries.

Toronto, Canadas largest city, has been on lockdown for six months. A third wave of infections fueled by coronavirus variants has started to recede.
Though the new Winter Park Library and Events Center has had its share of controversy, its time for everyone to find common cause and make this project a source of pride and unity for our community, Philip Tiedtke said in an email. I hope Florida Charities underwriting the construction of the Event Center Amphitheater will let Enzian offer additional community programming to Central Florida as well.
TOKYO (AP)  Nissan reduced its losses in the January-March quarter as restructuring efforts kicked in, despite damage to sales from the coronavirus pandemic, the Japanese automaker said Tuesday.

Nissan Motor Co.s quarterly losses totaled 81 billion yen ($743 million), a fraction of the 710 billion yen in red ink it racked up last year. Quarterly sales rose to 2.5 trillion yen ($23 billion) from 2.3 trillion yen.

Nissan Chief Executive Makoto Uchida forecast a recovery in this fiscal year, which began April 1. All automakers have suffered because of the pandemic, although some have proved more resilient than others.

Despite very harsh conditions, we are definitely moving in the right direction, he said in an online news conference.

Along with all our global workers passionately tackling our restructuring efforts, we will bring back a glorious Nissan.

Nissan projects its global vehicle sales will climb nearly 9% to 4.4 million vehicles from 4 million vehicles sold in the fiscal year that just ended.

Vehicles sales are expected to rise in North America, Japan and China, the company said.

But Nissan still expects to post a 60 billion yen ($550 million) loss for the fiscal year through March 2022. Thats an improvement over its 449 billion yen ($4.1 billion) loss for the previous year.

The maker of the Leaf electric car and Infiniti luxury models reported an even bigger loss of 671 billion yen in the year before.

There is continued business risk due to semiconductor supply shortages and raw material price hikes in this fiscal year, the company said in a statement.

Uchida said the Rogue crossover was doing well in the U.S. market, while new models were in the works worldwide, including electric vehicles.

The Yokohama-based manufacturer has seen its brand tarnished by a high-profile scandal involving its former Chairman Carlos Ghosn, who was sent in by alliance partner Renault in 1999 to lead Nissan.

Ghosn was arrested in late 2018 on charges of under-reporting his future compensation. He fled to Lebanon while out on bail in late 2019. Ghosn says he is innocent.

Toyota Motor Corp. reports its fiscal results on Wednesday, while Honda Motor Co. reports on Friday.

___

Yuri Kageyama is on Twitter https://twitter.com/yurikageyama
On Monday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the use of the Pfizer vaccine against COVID-19 to youth ages 12-15. The update was welcomed news to Fred Yanoski, Midland County Department of Public Health health officer.

At this point, the school year is winding down and were going to work hard to get that first dose in as soon as possible before kids depart for the summer, Yanoski said.

The Midland County Health Department is working closely with Midland Public Schools to outline a distribution plan. Yanoski explained he doesnt expect much difficulty in acquiring doses of the Pfizer vaccine and estimates that vaccinations of the 12-15 age group can start as early as next week. Yanoski is hoping for a robust turnout for the vaccine and would be happy to modify the distribution plan to accommodate as many people as possible.

This is another step in mitigating the spread of COVID-19, Yanoski said. We absolutely believe the Pfizer vaccine is a safe and effective vaccine and we encourage people to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

Midland County recorded 12 COVID-19 cases and one death on Tuesday, according to the state's daily report.

Tuesday, May 11 COVID-19 numbers:

 Midland County: 12 cases and one death were added. Pandemic total is 6,582 cases, 700 probable, 80 deaths and three probable deaths.

 Bay County: 25 cases and three deaths were added; pandemic total stands at 10,283 cases, 643 probable, 321 deaths and 13 probable deaths.

 Gladwin County: Four cases and one death were added; pandemic total stands at 1,866 cases, 375 probable, 51 deaths and three probable deaths.

 Isabella County: 21 cases and one death were added; pandemic total stands at 5,213 cases, 880 probable, 85 deaths and four probable deaths.

 Saginaw County: 48 cases were added; pandemic total stands at 19,270 cases, 1,292 probable, 562 deaths and 17 probable deaths.

On Tuesday, the state added 1,992 new cases and 99 deaths; the daily death count included 32 deaths that were identified during a vital records review. Overall, Michigan is at 867,341 cases and 18,338 deaths.

Testing

The state report shows as of Tuesday, Midland County has performed 73,736 COVID-19 tests. Gladwin County is listed as having administered 21,244 tests.

Midland Countys seven-day rolling positivity rate on May 7 was listed at 9.9% and Gladwin County was listed at 11.4%. Our 12-county region is listed at 13.8% and Michigan is at 10.4%.

MidMichigan Health statistics

As of Thursday, MidMichigan Medical Center in Midland was listed as having an 83% bed occupancy with 26 COVID-19 patients and eight in the ICU. MidMichigan Medical Center in Gladwin was listed as having an 47% bed occupancy with three COVID-19 patients and none in the ICU.

Regarding PPE supplies, the Midland hospital reported 15-30 days for N95 masks; 15-30 days for surgical masks; 30-plus days for surgical gowns; 15-30 days for exam gloves and 30-plus days for eye protection as of Thursday. The Gladwin hospital reported 30-plus days for all of the above supplies.
Kim and Jon Burgess are proud to see the Sanford Veterans Monument and First Responders Monument almost ready to be rededicated next week at the Sanford trailhead of the Pere Marquette Rail-Trail.

The veterans monument, originally dedicated in July 2018, has been completely rebuilt over the past year after being washed away in the flooding of the Tittabawassee River after the dam failures last May.

The first responders monument is a new addition, inspired by first responders from Midland and Gladwin counties who played a major role in helping evacuate residents ahead of the torrential flooding. Not one life was lost.

The flagpoles in the first responders monument were made from the scarred poles that were dislodged from the original veterans monument by the floodwaters.

The rebuilding and expansion of the monuments came about through the support of the Ryan Burgess Memorial Foundation along with donations from businesses and individuals throughout the area, Kim Burgess said.

The foundation was formed in honor of Kim and Jon Burgess's son, Marine Lance Corporal Ryan Burgess, who was killed in action in Iraq on Dec. 21, 2006, during his second tour of duty in Iraq.

Kim Burgess emphasized that the veterans monument is dedicated to the entire community.

"We built this monument as a monument for our town, not a memorial for our son," she said. "Because we think its important that all of our veterans get recognized.

"And we think all our first responders need to be recognized  every day, of course, but also for what they did during the dam failures. So we built a monument for them," Burgess added.

The public is invited to the dedication of the two monuments at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 19, one year after the failures of the Edenville and Sanford dams.

The veterans monument has seven flagpoles. The United States flag will fly in the center and will be flanked by the flags of the five branches of the military  Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, and Coast Guard  and the POW (Prisoner of War) flag.

The first responders monument has five flagpoles. The Michigan flag will fly in the center, flanked by the four flags of the first responders  fire, police, EMS, and 911.

Also flying on poles between the two monuments will be the Gold Star flag, the Blue Star flag, and the Sanford Strong flag.

A Gold Star family is the immediate family of a fallen service member who died while serving in a time of conflict. A Blue Star family is the immediate family of a service member currently serving during a time of conflict.

A new pavilion has also been constructed between the two monuments.

Kim Burgess said she and her husband have become driven to help and honor veterans since their son's death.

"You can do two things: you can sit around and feel sorry for yourself and wallow in the grief forever, or you can do things and try to give back to your community in his name and do things that keep your mind off of that constant loss," she said. "And I just choose to stay active. It helps me deal with that loss.

"It helps us feel like were connecting with veterans," she continued. "For us, it just became a passion to help veterans."
Livingston, TN (38570)

Today

Cloudy with occasional showers this afternoon. High around 80F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.
It is difficult to believe that McCarthy, Scalise and so many other Republican officeholders really believe Trumps lies or relish how he has turned them into servile lapdogs. But if avarice, ideology or opportunism are their excuses, theyre poorer ones by far than even ignorance or gullibility. Those entrusted with leadership in our democracy are supposed to know from history what happens when leaders lie about fundamental truths.
Palestine, TX (75801)

Today

Cloudy skies this morning will become partly cloudy this afternoon. Hot and humid. High around 90F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A few passing clouds. Low 73F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.
Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - An African regional organisation said about 60 percent of South Sudan people are facing one of the worst food security and nutrition crisis since the country became independent a decade ago
Richard J. Oglesby was a three-time governor of Illinois and successful general during the Civil War, but his legacy is even greater in the pantheon of Abraham Lincoln lore.

Oglesby was born in 1824 in Kentucky and later moved with relatives to Decatur after the death of his parents. As he made his life in Central Illinois, he came to know fellow Kentucky transplant Lincoln as a friend, and they soon became political allies.

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Oglesby was elected to the Illinois Senate in 1860, the same year Lincoln was rising as a candidate for president. Oglesby is credited with coining Abraham Lincoln-The Rail Splitter Candidate at the Illinois State Republican Convention. After Lincoln's election, Oglesby continued to be a strong ally.

Oglesby's experience during the Mexican War led to him volunteer his services to the Union Army during the Civil War in 1861. He eventually was promoted promoted to brigadier general. In 1864, he resigned his commission and ran for governor of Illinois at President Lincoln's request.

On April 14, 1865, Oglesby spent the afternoon with Lincoln and declined Lincolns invitation to accompany him to Fords Theater. Later that evening, Oglesby was called to the presidents side at the Peterson House, where, on April 15, he witnessed the death of his good friend at the hand of an assassin's bullet.

Oglesby served three non-consecutive terms as governor of Illinois until 1884. He also was a U.S. Senator from 1873-79. Oglesby died on April 24, 1899, and is buried in Elkhart.

Today, his fine home in Decatur still sits at 421 W. William St., where he and his wife, Emma, lived from 1876-82. The Governor Richard J. Oglesby Mansion is preserved for the community to learn about the man who gave his life to public service and helped launch Lincoln to the White House.

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President Joe Biden proposes to impose steep new taxes on high earnings and lucrative investments to help pay for expanded child care and other social programs. But if hes serious about requiring wealthy Americans to pay more, he missed one of the most obvious places to start.

That would be by curtailing a gift to business owners granted by the 2017 Republican tax law: a special deduction that gives owners of partnerships and limited-liability companies a way to pay less than others who earn just as much money.

Business owners are allowed to deduct up to 20% of the income they receive from a pass-through business (so-called because the businesses' profits pass through to owners directly and are taxed at the individual level) from their overall taxable income. That means a marginal tax rate as low as 29.6% instead of 37% for the highest earners.

To try to limit abuse, there are income thresholds in place for who can qualify for the full 20% deduction: $163,300 for single filers and $326,600 for married taxpayers filing jointly. But the statute was poorly written and includes several exceptions, which has resulted in a lot of tax avoidance. The attempted workaround techniques even have colorful names, like "crack and pack," where lucrative businesses split up into smaller units to game the system.

Above the income thresholds, lawyers, doctors, investment bankers and some others who qualify as service professionals are limited from taking the full deduction. Taxpayers who aren't involved in what the Internal Revenue Service has defined as service businesses or trades can still take the full deduction, provided they pay a certain amount in employee wages or have invested in capital such as real estate. It's complex, with arbitrary definitions  never a good thing when it comes to tax policy  and too much time and money has been wasted on outfoxing the tax authorities.

Not surprisingly, 66% of the provision's benefits in 2019 were estimated to flow to those above the income guardrails, according to the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation. By 2024, 61% of the benefits will go to the top 1% of households.

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A better approach would be to allow the deduction only for people earning less than $400,000. That approach would fit nicely with Biden's pledge not to raise taxes on anyone in that income category.

Making the pass-through deduction off-limits for wealthy business owners would also help to narrow the gap between the amount of money that is technically owed, but doesnt get paid to the IRS.

Everyone who receives wages or a salary is generally subject to automatic withholding by an employer, which in turn gets reported to the IRS. Income from pass-throughs isn't subject to the same treatment, which means its easier for business owners to get away with underreporting income. The incentive to underreport income is even greater when there's a 20% deduction at stake.

It's odd that Biden, who says he wants to give the IRS more money to end tax dodging by the wealthy, would forget about one of the prime tax-dodging structures, and a deduction that makes for an even sweeter deal.

Bizarrely, Biden's tax plan targets two loopholes that pass-throughs often use to lower their tax bills  writing off excessive business losses and avoiding a Medicare tax  but is silent on the pass-through deduction itself.

Also, remember that the reason the pass-through deduction was included in the 2017 tax law was because lawmakers were under pressure to give business owners a break after slashing the tax rate for corporations. That could be a moot point now that Biden wants to increase the corporate rate.

The president has said he wants to increase the top ordinary income tax rate to 39.6%. A deduction is worth more to people who earn more, so the incentive for business owners to try to reap the benefits from a 20% write-off will only increase if he's successful.

Alexis Leondis is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering personal finance.

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100 years ago

May 11, 1921: Seventy-five visitors from the TB Society are looking over both the community and Fairview Sanatorium in north Normal. They proclaimed that McLean County has the best tuberculosis organization in Illinois. Theyll go on to other institutions from here.

75 years ago

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May 11, 1946: With the end of the coal strike, the ICC lifted most dimout restrictions against businesses. But display lighting will still be prohibited. Right away, six downtown department stores and the Woolen Mil Store resumed their pre-strike hours and are open until 9 p.m. tonight.

50 years ago

May 11, 1971: About 90 Bloomington police and firefighters, along with their families, staged a silent protest as two new councilmen took office. They were protesting the way City Manager Richard Blodgett was handling negotiations for the city with its safety forces.

25 years ago

May 11, 1996: The heavy rains that have been pounding Illinois finally let up today and the storm waters have started receding. The Twin Cities didnt get much of it. But at Villa Grove, about 200 residents were evacuated and a college student is feared drowned near Charleston.

Compiled by Jack Keefe; jkeefe@coldwellhomes.com.
The Colorado River Indian Tribes have loosened rules on face mask requirements. The Tribes introduced an updated policy Monday that says people who have been fully vaccinated are not required to wear face masks while indoors. The Tribes said businesses on tribal land may choose to continue to enforce facemask requirements for all patrons because there's not an effective way to monitor vaccination status for individuals, according to a CRIT statement published on the tribes' social media sites. CRIT's modified order says businesses must verify whether all employees are vaccinated before allowing them to work unmasked. Face masks must still be worn by employees working congregate settings such as nursing homes, hospitals and detention facilities. The order says face masks do not have to be worn outdoors.
The U.S. is willing to share coronavirus vaccines and other humanitarian aid with North Korea to help the regime overcome the pandemic.

CNN reported Monday that Washington believes North Korea will not be ready to engage with the U.S. until the threat of the pandemic has gone.

But there are no current plans to send vaccines to the North as it has "refused to cooperate with COVAX and rejected offers of COVID-19 assistance from [South Korea]," CNN quoted a senior official there as saying.

Officially, North Korea has claimed zero coronavirus infections.

In the meantime, North Korea curtly acknowledged receipt of the Biden administration's recent offer to explain its new policy toward the country, which is seen as a hopeful sign. "The U.S. will be able to explain the new policy in detail through working-level talks, after which the North will have discussions internally, and then sit down with Washington again," a source said.

The U.S.' new North Korea policy will also be top of the agenda at the summit next week between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden.
The bill uses $200 million to allow about 61,000 more students to receive vouchers and expands eligibility so that families of four earning nearly $100,000 could qualify for the income-based scholarships once touted as a way to help children living in poverty. Those scholarships are now worth about 95% of public school per-student costs but under the new law will be worth the full amount, set at 7,795 per pupil in the budget passed by the Legislature.
Earlier today Leonardo DiCaprio revealed the first-look image from his latest movie, Apple Original Films Killers of the Flower Moon. The long-in-the-works adaptation of David Granns novel is being directed by Martin Scorsese and staring DiCaprio and Robert De Niro.

Set in 1920s Oklahoma, Killers of the Flower Moon depicts the serial murder of members of the oil-wealthy Osage Nation, a string of brutal crimes that came to be known as the Reign of Terror. The screenplay was adapted by Eric Roth.

The photo below, from DiCaprios Twitter page, is of DiCaprios Ernest Burkhart and co-star Lily Gladstones Mollie Burkhart. Shes an Osage married to Ernest, who is nephew of a powerful local rancher (De Niro). It first appeared in the local Osage News.

(Click on Image to Greatly Enlarge)

The Oklahoma-based Osage News last week posted photos of Flower Moon production sites in Pawhuska and Fairfax as the film ramped up to begin production. The shots depicted period cars parked behind a replica 20s church and facades going up on vacant lots. For more, read the full Deadline report.

Archive: Apple TV News
Government has detailed five measures as part efforts aimed at rebounding the Ghanaian economy and set it back to its previous growth trajectory before the coronavirus pandemic hit the countrys shores.



This was outlined by the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta at a press briefing in Accra on Sunday May 9, 2021.



According to the Minister, government is working to re-energize key sectors of the Ghanaian economy in a manner that will enhance its general outlook and set it back in motion.



He said; first, I am working with the Minister for Water and Sanitation to immediately ensure potable water to areas with felt need, especially in the most urban areas. Also, I am working with the Ministers of Roads and Highways, Transport and Interior to address congestion along the major highways.



This comes at the back of a social media campaign over the recent state of affairs in the country. Social media users largely questioned recent hikes in fuel prices and the introduction of new taxes bemoaning how these have increased the cost of living in the country.



However, responding to the issue for the first time, Mr. Ofori-Atta acknowledged that while their concerns are genuine, the current state of the economy is occasioned by the global pandemic giving the assurance that government is working to restore the economy back to its pre COVID-19 levels.



One of the ways government is working to restore the economy the Minister noted is through fast-tracking the implementation of the US$200million Jobs and Skills Programme to enhance job creation significantly. This intervention is designed to facilitate new and expanded private sector businesses to employ a lot more people.



This he said is a more sustainable way to rebuild the economy. In addition, he said government is rolling over 8 additional interventions under the GhanaCARES Obataanpa programme particularly in the Health, Agriculture, Tourism, Trade, Digitization, Science and technology, as well as the Housing and Financial sectors stating that by the end of July this year, the country will have a new Development Bank that will provide long-term wholesale financing to the private sector through Commercial banks as a way of bringing the private sector on board



He implored Ghanaians to be supportive of these initiatives and be patient while government works to recover the economy from this setback.

Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Former Deputy Ashanti Regional Minister, Elizabeth Agyemang is effusive with praise for the yeoman's job being performed by 21st Clinic led by Dr Blessed Foster.



She credits God for saving her life through that particular health facility during a near-death moment whiles serving as a government appointee.



The deputy minister reveals she was bed-rodden with severe pain which affected her back, hip, and outer side of the leg.



Her quest for a lifelong solution led her to 21st Clinic  where she was later diagnosed with Proven Sciatica (Sciatica nerves).



According to her, experts from the clinic visited her home for treatments and she is far better and fit than before.



Sciatica: What you need to know



Sciatica is the name given to pain caused by irritation of the sciatic nerve. Anything that irritates this nerve can cause pain, ranging from mild to severe. Sciatica is usually caused by a compressed nerve in the lower spine.



Symptoms of sciatica



The main symptom is shooting pain anywhere along the sciatic nerve; from the lower back, through the buttock, and down the back of either leg.



Other common symptoms of sciatica include:



numbness in the leg along with the nerve tingling sensation (pins and needles) in the feet and toes.



This pain can range in severity and may be aggravated by sitting for long periods.



Where to get treatments for sciatica?



21st Clinic



About 21st Clinic



When it comes to health care, you want a team that is highly qualified, professionals and experts in their field.



Here at 21st Clinic, we have assembled a team of highly trained health professionals, led by the experienced practitioner - Dr Blessed Foster, and we are dedicated to doing what we do best- healing and restoring hope to the hopeless to the sick.



Our international partners in Cuba, Canada and India, give us access to 21st-century technologies and techniques that cant be found locally.



We work on the basis of these unique philosophies







Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Although the government does not support irregular migration, it will ensure that citizens of the country who are facing deportation are handled with respect and dignity.



In line with that, the government, through the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), has begun talks with a number of foreign missions in the country to ensure that the human rights of Ghanaians who are deported from the various countries are respected as enshrined in the fundamental freedoms under the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.



Speaking to the Daily Graphic in an interview on the sidelines of a Mental Health and Psychological Support Capacity Building Training for NADMO staff in Accra yesterday, the Director-General of NADMO, Mr Eric Nana Agyemang-Prempeh, said the government was employing diplomacy and consensus building to ensure that the human rights of Ghanaians were respected even when they infringed upon immigration laws in other countries.



The one-day training was organised by the NADMO in collaboration with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), the German Cooperation Agency and the Ghanaian-German Centre for Jobs, Migration and Reintegration.



UN Charter



The UN Charter on Human Rights says that human rights are universal  to be enjoyed by all people, no matter who they are or where they live.



The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was proclaimed in 1948, and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly, includes civil and political rights, like the right to life, liberty, free speech and privacy.



Amnesty International (AI) has also been critical about the harsh treatment many deportees go through before they reach their home countries.



In its 2020/2021 State of the World Human Rights Report, AI stated: Many countries, including Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, and the USA, forcibly returned people without proper consideration of their refugee and asylum claims.





Refugees, asylum seekers and migrants detained in immigration centres were at high risk of contracting COVID-19 due to poor sanitary conditions and the impossibility of physical distancing.



Poor treatment



According to the NADMO boss,deportees received in Ghana usually complained about the harsh treatment they were subjected to, but added that some of the reports were allegations that were yet to substantiated.



Nevertheless, he described some of the treatments that were meted to deportees as unfair and inhumane.



Some deportees on arrival in Ghana have alleged that they were handcuffed during long hours of flight, sometimes 11-hour flights from the countries they were deported from.



Sometimes, we go to the airport and receive people in handcuffs and we think that is not fair, he stated.



Although the NADMO Director-General would not rule out the possibility that some migrants arrested for deportation could be violent, he insisted that that should not be a basis for their human rights and dignity to be trampled on.



"When you want to arrest some people definitely they will fight back, but when you get the person on the aeroplane, is he going to fight in the aeroplane?



So, how can you handcuff somebody for 11 hours from New York to Accra, that is inhumane, it is unacceptable," he stated.



Two groups



The director-general said returnees that arrived in the country were in both the voluntary and forced categories.



"When we receive the returnees, you know there are two categories, but most of the time the forced returnees are in the majority. They are those people who don't have the necessary documentation and other issues and those countries are forcing them to come back," Mr Prempeh said.



Negotiations



Taking the specific case of the United Kingdom (UK), Mr Agyemang-Prempeh stated that after allegations that Ghanaian deportees from the UK were not being treated fairly at detention centres in London, NADMO met with officials of the British High Commission to resolve the issue.



He said the British High Commission officials denied the allegations but the government was still engaged in dialogue with them.



Mr Agyemang-Prempeh said after gathering all information about the issue, NADMO would collaborate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration on how to resolve the issues.



"There are many ways of tackling issues such as through consensus and compromise and the United Nations has laws and international diplomacy which we use to solve some of the problems. That is why we are taking steps to ensure that the right things are done, he said.



"But for the COVID-19 pandemic, I would have visited the detention centre in London where they keep the people before deportation because we get reports that they are not treating them well, I met with the UK Embassy authorities and they agreed to send some of our staff to visit there, the NADMO chief stated.



Training



Speaking later at the training programme for the NADMO staff, Mr Agyemang-Prempeh expressed the hope that it would equip the 70 officers of the organisation with the vital skills in the administration of initial counselling to forced returned migrants and disaster victims some of whom were unfairly stigmatised by society as failures.



For his part, the Project Manager of IOM, Mr Florian Braendli, said the UN was contributing to Ghana's response to the pandemic and its effects on mental health by sensitising the public to mental health and psychological support, and providing tools to detect and prevent the stigmatisation of irregular migrants.



The Senior National Programme Coordinator of the Ghanaian-German Centre for Jobs (GCC), Migration and Reintegration, Mr David Yaw Mensah Tetteh, said his outfit was committed to assisting returnee migrants and potential migrants with skills to take advantage of economic opportunities in Ghana.



He said since its inauguration in 2017, the GCC, in collaboration with the IOM, had assisted with the re-integration of over 1,000 irregular migrants.









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The United States (US) government is to support Ghana to improve on the countrys agriculture sector under a new initiative dubbed: Mobilising finance for agriculture.



The $26 million project forms part of the US governments global food security strategy which is designed to leverage about $260 million to support the private sector in the agriculture value chain.



Occasion



This came to light after a closed-door meeting between the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, and the US Ambassador to Ghana, Ms Stephanie Sullivan, when she paid a courtesy call on the minister in Accra yesterday.



Briefing the Daily Graphic after the meeting, Dr Akoto said the American government was prepared to support the government achieve its transformation agenda through agriculture, particularly the flagship programme of Planting for Food and Jobs.



He said the US was prepared to support the cultivation of most of the crops covered under the Planting for Food and Jobs programme such as maize, cowpea, soya beans, mango, cashew and shea nut.



The minister described the discussions between him and the ambassador as frank and cordial, saying that he briefed her about the governments vision on agriculture which included raking in about $16 billion of export revenue for the country over the next eight years.



We also discussed how we can be supported to research into developing planting materials for farmers, the minister said, adding that the ambassador referred the ministry to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for further discussions on the issue.



The ambassador also reminded us about the African Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA), and how the country could maximise the opportunities it offers, he said.



Peace Corps



On US Peace Corps operations in Ghana, the minister said the ambassador gave an assurance that Peace Corps personnel would be deployed back to Ghana after they were all recalled last year because of the outbreak of COVID-19.



Most of them would be deployed to the agriculture sector where they would employ the use of technology to increase food production, including the use of drones where necessary.



The ambassador further expressed concern about the galamsey menace in the country to which he expressed the resolve of the President to find a lasting solution to.



On the issue of child labour in cocoa farming areas, the minister said the two of them agreed that there was the need for more dialogue on what constituted child labour.









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The National Communications Director of the Small-Scale Miners Association, Abdul Razak Alhassan says the government is taking the wrong approach in its fight against illegal mining, widely known as Galamsey.



He was against the arrest of some miners and the burning of excavators by state security operatives.



According to Abdul Razak Alhassan, the arrest must rather start from the capital city [Accra] where the moguls in the illegal business operate from.



They are arresting innocent people, the real Galamseyers are in Accra, that is where the arrest should take place, he told NEAT FMs morning show 'Ghana Montie'.



The Small-Scale Miners Association has bemoaned the burning of the seized mining equipment of its members.



As part of recent efforts against illegal mining, 200 military personnel were deployed to flush out illegal miners destroying water bodies in the country.



Briefing the media on the progress of the operation on April 30, 2021, the Minister of Defence, Dominic Nitiwul, disclosed that the troop destroyed a good deal of equipment including nine excavators and 127 changfans.



Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Government, in partnership with the World Bank, has handed over twenty thousand (20,000) wheelchairs to the Ghana Federation of Disabilities Organisations as part of ongoing interventions to improve their livelihoods and wellbeing.



The manual and powered wheelchairs, to be distributed by the Ministry of Health through the various District Health Directorates, will enhance personal mobility, a precondition for enjoying human rights and living in dignity. It will equally assist persons with disabilities in becoming more productive members of our communities.



Handing over the wheelchairs at a brief ceremony in Accra on Tuesday May 11, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, assisted by the Minister of Health, Hon Kwaku Agyeman Manu and Dr Anthony Seddoh, World Bank Country Lead for Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone, said the donation was further evidence of Governments renewed commitment to building a fair and inclusive society, which ensures that all citizens share in the country's wealth and prosperity, irrespective of their background.



Without a doubt, the past one year has been challenging for many of us because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Problems of social equity, how to defend the weak and most vulnerable in society, how to provide social housing, how to improve equitable access to health care to all citizens in the country regardless of where they live, how to ensure increased access to the education of all Ghanaian children, have always been at the core of our social policy challenges. These challenges have always been there. COVID-19 just amplified the challenges.



As we are all aware, persons with disabilities are always confronted with these challenges, which prevent them from having a decent quality of life and fulfilling their true potential.



The Government of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is not insensitive to these challenges, hence the implementation of several initiatives to ease and to eliminate the obstacles many of you face in your everyday lives.



Some of the initiatives undertaken since 2017 include the presentation in 2020 of Ghs4 million to two thousand (2,000) disabled men and women entrepreneurs under the Presidential Empowerment for Male Entrepreneurs with Disability (PEMED) and the Presidential Empowerment for Women Entrepreneurs with Disability (PEWED) respectively; and the handing over of 10,000 hospital beds to the Minister for Health for distribution across the country.



Through the Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications (GIFEC), Government also provided students living with disability in selected tertiary institutions with assistive technology-enabled devices and training to promote their digital inclusion in 2019, and also provided 240 fit-for-purpose gender and disability friendly school sanitation facilities to over 231,870 school pupils of low-income communities in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area (GAMA) through the GAMA Sanitation and Water Project.



Government is also exploring opportunities to remove existing barriers in public buildings, educational systems, healthcare and in the job market to provide opportunities for all. The challenge for us is how our collective actions can minimize some of the circumstances that deny other citizens the benefits of personal mobility, he added.



Citing World Health Organisation reports which indicate that except for infectious diseases such as polio, malaria, and meningitis, the foremost cause of disability is road accidents, Vice President Bawumia expressed worry that such accidents, particularly from motorised accidents, do not only cause death but could also leave occupants and innocent pedestrians disabled.



I therefore urge road users to abide by the traffic rules and regulations. A great mind once said, Nothing is of greater importance than the conservation of oneself. Let us remind ourselves that to walk is a right, to drive or to ride is a privilege.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Young Ghanaians have had it with their politicians.



For more than a week now, many have been using social media to send their government a message, using the hashtag #FixTheCountry.



As the youth, we have to tell these people this way of leading is not OK, says Dennis Nettey from the town of Dansoman, which is near the capital, Accra. He was one of many Ghanaians who joined this online campaign.



Their list of grievances is long: they complain about unemployment, poor roads, power cuts, water shortages, rising living costs....



The Ghanaian government says this is an opportunity to get people talking about problems that affect everyone.



This flame that has been lit will not die as a social media hashtag, Ghanas Minister for Information Kojo Oppong Nkrumah told me.



It will become a rallying cry that gets us all to examine our collective responsibility on what it takes to fix the challenges that are around us.



But can a hashtag really fix a country?

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.

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Oswego, NY (13126)

Today

Partly cloudy. High near 75F. Winds NNE at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Clear to partly cloudy. Low 58F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.
A virologist at the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research (KCCR) is warning of a third wave of Covid-19 in the country if Ghanaians failed to adhere to safety protocols.



Dr Michael Owusu has observed that many have relaxed in observing the safety protocols, especially the wearing of facemasks, a situation he says could prove dire if any of the new Covid-19 variants were imported into the country.



Countries like the United Kingdom and India have been hit by a strong new variant, causing mass hospitalization and deaths.



Dr Owusu has warned that Ghanaians could not continue to be apathetic towards Covid-19 protocols when the B1617 Covid-19 variant, which has the same transmissibility as B117 discovered in the United Kingdom, continue to lurk around.



India is having B1617. That one has the same transmissibility as B117 and because the behaviour of this one and the variant in the UK are very similar, it is highly likely that if it enters any country, it is going to take that country into the third wave, he warned.



He cautioned that Ghana, which has been receiving visitors from all over the world may have the best measures at the airport but a slip of a single case from India may prove too expensive.



He wants the public to be wary of developments in India after that Asian country was hit by a wild Covid-19 strain.



For such a highly populated country, it means whatever they have, once they move and travel out of the country, everywhere they go, they are likely to see that country with this variant we have.



He continued: When people are not behaving well and you even have one person who slips through here at the airport, that person can easily infect many people and that can contribute to a third wave. I mean weve seen the churches that have these mass gatherings.



If you have one person slip into that place, you will not be a prophet to tell that this will lead to the next wave that we are talking about.



According to Dr Owusu, it was time the police and other security agencies tasked to enforce all Covid-19 safety protocols did so, adding Ghana cannot afford to be at the same level as India currently.



We are happy that there is a law in place, but then the implementation and execution and ensuring people are arrested are also other problems.



We have to ensure that people do what is right; one is the education as what we are doing, and two, we have to continue to enforce the law. For those who flout the law, they should be arrested, and those who dont put on their masks should be prosecuted.



We must revisit what we did before and ensure that people do what they are supposed to do so that we dont put the country in a difficulty like India is facing now with so many deaths. We dont want to see that in Ghana.

Source: adomonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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A group of Muslims based in Germany at the weekend donated some assorted items to seven Muslim communities in the Nsawam Adoagyiri Municipality of the Eastern Region to finish up the Ramadan fast.



The group has established a friendship with a number of Muslim communities namely Sabon Zongo, Wangara line, Moshie Zongo, Wala Zongo, Kotokoli lane and Zongo Illiasu, all within the municipality.



The donation which was on the theme; "Eat Less, Feed More" was to help the Muslims especially the less privileged in society who are currently going on with the Ramadan fast to have enough to eat when they break or want to do their fast each day.



Items



The items which included rice, sugar, oil among others were given to individual needy Muslims comprising widows, the aged and persons with disability.



The donation would be extended to cover other Zongo communities in future Ramadan.



Alhaji Iddrisu Salifu who made the donation on behalf of his brother, Alhaji Suliman Wahab, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Tuo Lada Ramadan Food Programme for the Needy, said this year the group served 190 needy persons within the communities.



According to him, the items were to be used for the Ramadan fast, and that the gesture was to show love and kindness to the beneficiaries to enable them to observe the Ramadan fast without any difficulty.



Alhaji Salifu said it was to support the Muslim communities to undertake the fast with ease.



He noted that Ramadan offered a time for spiritual growth for the individual, and it was important that Muslims were able to undertake the fast with some level of comfort.



Gratitude



One of the beneficiaries, Hajia Mariama Mustapha lauded the group for the continued and varied support to the communities, saying the donation came at the right time.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Kaneshie District Court has refused to hear the case of 11 alleged illegal miners (galamseyers) who were said to be mining in the Atewa Forest under the guise of being National Security operatives.



In a ruling today [Monday, May 10, 2021], the court held that the accused persons were charged with possession of fire arms without lawful excuse, but per the law, such a case could only be prosecuted with a written consent from the Attorney-General (A-G).



The Presiding Judge, Ms Ama Adomako Kwakye, held that the prosecution had not provided any such written consent from the A-G, and therefore there was no case before her.



Read also: Security operatives nabbed for illegal mining in Atewa



She therefore decided not to rule on a bail application by lawyers for the accused or a request by the prosecution for the accused persons to be remanded.



As it stands now, there is no case before me to either rule on a bail application or remand the accused persons, she ruled.



The 11 are part of a group of 32 who were arrested while allegedly engaged in illegal mining in the Atewa Forest in Akyem-Akateng in the EasternRegion.

Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Emirates has set up a humanitarian airbridge between Dubai and India to transport urgent medical and relief items, to support India in its fight to control the serious COVID-19 situation in the country.



Emirates will offer cargo capacity free of charge on an "as available" basis on all of its flights to nine cities in India, to help international NGOs deliver relief supplies rapidly to where it is needed.



In the past weeks, Emirates SkyCargo has already been transporting medicines and medical equipment on scheduled and charter cargo flights to India. This latest airbridge initiative takes Emirates' support for India and for the NGO community to the next level.



HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Emirates' Chairman and Chief Executive, said: "India and Emirates are deeply connected, since our first flights to India in 1985. We stand with the Indian people and will do all we can to help India get back on its feet. Emirates has a lot of experience in humanitarian relief efforts, and with 95 weekly flights to 9 destinations in India, we will be offering regular and reliable widebody capacity for relief materials. The International Humanitarian City in Dubai is the largest crisis relief hub in the world and we will work closely with them to facilitate the movement of urgent medical supplies."



The first shipment sent as part of the Emirates India humanitarian airbridge is a consignment of over 12 tons of multi-purpose tents from the World Health Organization (WHO), destined for Delhi, and coordinated by the IHC in Dubai.



Giuseppe Saba, CEO of International Humanitarian City, said: "His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid built the International Humanitarian City (IHC), so Dubai, in coordination with humanitarian agencies, would be able to assist communities and families, most in need  around the world. The creation of the humanitarian airbridge between Dubai and India, facilitated by Emirates SkyCargo, Dubai's International Humanitarian City and UN agencies, to transport urgent medical and relief items, is another example of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid's vision for the IHC, being brought to life. Last year over 1,292 shipments were dispatched from the IHC in Dubai, setting the standard for humanitarian response globally. We appreciate the great efforts by IHC's partner Emirates SkyCargo establishing this humanitarian airbridge between Dubai and India in this time of need".



The freight division of Emirates has a close partnership with IHC, developed over several years of delivering relief materials to communities across the world impacted by natural disasters and other crises. IHC will support Emirates SkyCargo in channelling relief efforts to India through the airbridge.



Following the Port of Beirut blasts in August 2020, Emirates also leveraged its expertise in humanitarian logistics to set up an airbridge to Lebanon to assist with relief efforts.



Emirates has led the aviation and air cargo industry in its efforts to help markets around the world combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The air cargo carrier has helped transport thousands of tonnes of urgently required PPE and other medical supplies across six continents over the last year by rapidly adapting its business model and introducing additional cargo capacity through its modified mini freighters with seats removed from Economy Class on Boeing 777-300ER passenger aircraft along with loading cargo on seats and in overhead bins inside passenger aircraft to transport urgently required materials.



In addition, Emirates SkyCargo has partnered with UNICEF and other entities in Dubai through the Dubai Vaccine Logistics Alliance, to transport COVID-19 vaccines rapidly to developing nations through Dubai. So far, close to 60 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been transported on Emirates' flights, equating to nearly 1 in 20 of all COVID-19 vaccine doses administered around the world.



Through its scheduled cargo flights to close to 140 destinations across six continents, Emirates helps maintain unbroken supply chains for vital commodities such as medical supplies and food.

Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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"The fact that the issues have been talked about doesn't mean they have been solved," Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has told one of the #FixTheCountry Conveners, Oliver Barker-Vormawor.



Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta at a press conference on Sunday, detailed how the government is fixing the economy through numerous interventions.



Oliver Barker-Vormawor reacting to this in an interview on Joy News said Ghanaians need concrete actions to be taken and not speeches.



I dont think people are at the point where they feel or are convinced that this speech alone does it. I think the people want something substantive in action, he indicated.



However, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah in an interview on Peace FM's morning show 'Kokrokoo' programme said Oliver's comment means he doesn't understand the issues raised.



"The speech made by the Finance Minister doesn't mean that the problems have been solved . . . there are a number of things which need to be fixed and it will be taken one at a time. But talking about it doesn't mean they have been solved. The Finance Minister only emphasized what the government is doing," he explained.



Timelines



Reacting to timelines for the project listed by government, he said, "different projects have different timelines" adding "the good thing is that the conversation has been opened up and I urge that it won't turn into a political match where an entrenched position is taken . . . this is an opportunity for progress and development in the country . . . if we are able to do this void of politics, we can achieve a lot".







Source: Rebecca Addo Tetteh/Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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South Sudans President Salva Kiir has dissolved parliament, paving the way for the appointment of Members of Parliament (MPs) from opposing sides in the countrys five-year civil war.



Activists and civil society groups say the move is long overdue.



A peace deal signed three years ago determined that almost a quarter of the MPs would come from the party of Mr Kiirs former foe, Riek Machar.



The majority of the 550 legislators will be from the governing SPLM party.



South Sudans MPs will not be elected but will instead be nominated by different political parties.



Let it not take weeks or months, Edmund Yakani of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organisation  one of the civil society groups that signed the peace deal  told the BBC.



If possible, the president should appoint the new parliament by Monday.



The conflict that erupted in South Sudan in 2013 caused one of Africas worst humanitarian crises, with at least 380,000 people killed and millions forced from their homes.



The BBCs Africa editor Will Ross says politicians in South Sudan are slowly fulfilling the promises they made in the 2018 peace agreement.



A unity government has been in place for over a year, but following numerous outbreaks of inter-ethnic conflict the United Nations (UN) has warned of a risk of a return to large-scale conflict in South Sudan.



Our Africa editor says there are still major challenges ahead for South Sudan including the formation of a new national army  made up of soldiers from the opposing sides in the countrys civil war.



A recent report by the UN has called for the arms embargo to be extended, and for new sanctions against people who hinder the implementation of the peace deal.



Insecurity is still rife across South Sudan and has prevented many farmers  who have been forced to flee their homes  from planting or harvesting crops, causing food shortages nationwide.



There are also warnings from the UNs World Food Programme that more than seven million people in South Sudan will suffer acute food insecurity over the coming months.

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.

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The Bono Regional Chairman of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kwame Baffoe has hit hard at a supposed member of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) who is the crusader of the Fix The Country campaign against the Akufo-Addo government.



According to him, the Fix The Country campaign is championed by one Vormenyo, a former Senior Legal and Policy Advisor for former President Atta Mills and former President John Mahama from 2009 and 2016.



"So, those who are shouting fix the country especially one Vormenyo should have revealed his identity to Ghanaians very well. Why is he hiding his identity from Ghanaians? He is shouting 'fix the country' but I want to ask you whether you are aware that between 2009 and 2016, he worked at the office of the President. He was the senior legal and policy advisor for former President Mills and former President John Mahama, he asserted.



He was of the view that the call for President Akufo-Addo to Fix The Country has a political tone.



Speaking on Okay FMs Ade Akye Abia Morning Show, Abronye DC as affectionately called, said that the conveners of the Fix The Country should be specific with the areas they think should be fixed.



"When we talk of the bad economy, it is not only one thing but rather we are talking about the agriculture sector, trade and industry, the security side, and the road infrastructure. These comprise the economy and so if you say fix the country, which sector under this government led by President Akufo-Addo do you think needs to be fixed?" he quizzed.



He stressed that Vormenyos paymasters are pushing him to shout fix the country, indicating why he has not been able to mention some of the specific things of the economy that were fixed under former President Mills and John Mahama that have been destroyed under President Akufo-Addo.



First of all, those who are saying fix the country when the NDC was in power, the position of Ghana in the agriculture sector in the world was 78th and the sector grew 0.4 per cent for the entire 8 years of the NDC in power. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is not even 8 years in power but the Agriculture sector has grown by 6 per cent and Ghana is not one of the countries in Africa which has hunger issue, he argued.







Source: Daniel Adu Darko/Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The former MP of Kumbungu, Ras Mubarak, is threatening to rally support on social media to boycott local businesses linked to members of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) if a move to organise the #FixTheCountry protest is not allowed.



The police last week secured a court order to prevent the #FixTheCounry campaigners from embarking on a public protest on 9 May. The conveners described the move as an attempt by government to sabotage their campaign.



Speaking to Beatrice Adu on The Big Bulletin, the former NDC MP said government must allow the organisers to demonstrate.



I am sounding a word of caution that, if these things continue, there will be recriminations their businesses would suffer, he said.



Mubarak added: We will make sure we use social media to galvanise Ghanaians to boycott certain businesses so that you dont have these cultures of silence being perpetuated.



Let me sound a word of caution to organisations, businesses, media houses who are hounding out journalists for trying to hold the government to account that there will be recriminations. And one of the tools available to the ordinary Ghanaians is boycott



Mubarak also condemned some government officials for asking Ghanaians to fix themselves in the wake of demand by the youth for government to fix the country.



He said the recent attempt by the Chairman of the NPP, Freddie Blay, to link the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) to the #FixTheCountry protest is an insult to Ghanaians.

Source: asaaseradio.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Although she has produced a good number of quality movies which have won her awards, renowned filmmaker Shirley Frimpong Manso says she has thought of quitting countless times.



According to Shirley, the difficulties she has to go through in producing a movie which sometimes runs into losses discourage her from continuing as a filmmaker.



Had it not been the encouragement I get from the fans, loved ones and the actors, I might probably have quit producing movies a long time ago. It is so stressful putting together a movie, the production that goes into just one movie is sometimes unbearable, she told Graphic Showbiz at the premiere of her latest movie Chasing Lullaby.



The award- winning movie producer advised Ghanaians to start supporting their own just like the Nigerians have been doing.



The Nigerians are very good when it comes to supporting their own but the pull him down in Ghana is just too bad and I wish it stops. We dont like supporting our own and I am not surprised the Nigerians are ahead of us when it comes to production. If Netflix has an office in Nigeria then it should tell you that we are lagging behind, she told Graphic Showbiz.



Chasing Lullaby (A Mothers Day Story) was released on all streaming platforms on Sunday, May 9, which commemorates Mother's Day.



Meanwhile Sparrow has reconstructed its streaming service Sparrow Station to ensure a wider reach of its content.



It is available on iOS, AppleTV, Android, Roku, and Amazon FireTV. Movies are also available to stream at www.sparrowstation.com.



The new face of the subscription-driven platform will include the release of feature films, short films, series, short series, shows and documentary films starting from May.





The streaming service will now feature new content such as Chasing Lullaby, COVID-19 inspired film Us in Between, Adams Apples The Movie and many others.



To still ensure consumers enjoy the best of content, older productions such as Adams Apples Season 1 and 2, V Republic, Shampaign, Potato Potahto, Perfect Picture, Love or Something Like That, Rebecca and many more are also featured on the platform.



Watch "Chasing Lullaby" trailer below:



Source: Graphic Showbiz









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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At Colonial Diner in Lower Paxton Township, diners are out of luck if they want dinner.

While the restaurant is open for breakfast and lunch, the doors lock at 2 p.m. every day. Its certainly not the ideal schedule, said co-owner Amir George, who blames ongoing struggles finding help for the abbreviated hours.

I need two more cooks at least. I need a dishwasher. I need at least three more servers. I need to be open for dinner, but I cant, George said.

He said he has posted help wanted signs at the restaurant and advertised positions on Facebook to no avail.

We tried to open for dinner, but we dont have people to work, he said.

As business ticks back up due to growing vaccination rates and COVID-19 restrictions slowly lifting, restaurants are facing another problem  a manpower shortage. Its prompting many establishments to take extreme measures.

Some restaurants are opening late, closing early or shutting down all together on certain days of the week. A few have closed dining rooms in exchange for online ordering, takeout and curbside pickup only.

Panera in Swatara Township, often an early morning java stop, now opens at 10 a.m. and starting May 17 will return to an 8 a.m. opening. Chipotle in Lower Paxton Township has closed its dining room in lieu of digital orders only, while a nearby Arbys is open only for drive-thru service.

An entire industry, from diners and dive bars to chains and fine dining spots, is reacting to mounting struggles to find help.

What Im hearing from establishments is they have their go-to staff and theyre back. Its hiring new people thats the problem, said Chuck Moran, executive director of the Pennsylvania Licensed Beverage and Tavern Association.

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They have their core employees, he said but are having a hard time filling in the gaps.

About 93% of restaurant operators in Pennsylvania say current staffing levels are lower than what it would normally be in the absence of the pandemic, according to the National Restaurant Association. Of those operators, the association said about 26% think it will take another 7 to 12 months before staffing levels return to normal.

Even the lure of decent pay at $16 or $18 per hour isnt enough to entice people to in-demand kitchen positions such as cooks, Moran said. In the case of one establishment in northeastern Pennsylvania, he said they set up dozens of interviews only for the majority of candidates to not show up.

Its not just restaurants struggling to find help. Many industries are having a hard time finding qualified workers. Aprils federal jobs report was weaker than expected as the unemployment rate increased to 6.1% amid a continuing shortage of workers.

Reasons behind the crisis vary. Many in the industry point to the $300 enhanced unemployment benefits extended through September by President Joe Bidens $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. Although, some like the non-profit One Fair Wage report that many workers say the industrys low wages and dismal working conditions are to blame for the exodus.

Others say some have left the industry for more stable 9-to-5 jobs or are waiting for their second COVID-19 vaccines or kids to return to structured school schedules.

I think with the unemployment compensation policies in place, it makes it too easy for people to just not feel the need to work, said Damon Suglia, co-owner of Ritas Italian Ice in Elizabethtown.

So far, Suglia said hes getting by with his current employees and needs to fill a few more positions, including a day shift. For the time being, Suglia and his wife, Desiree, are working extra hours.

Its part of being in business for yourself, he said. Are we mad about it? No. Would we like a break? Yes.

Suglia, who noted the stand has been busier than past years with long lines every night, said he has had to be cognizant about not overworking employees. Many restaurants have had to ask employees to pull longer shifts to fill in the gaps. Its one of the reasons Suglia is considering closing at 9 p.m. this summer, an hour earlier than past seasons.

Schedules also have been adjusted at Black Forest Brewery in Ephrata, where bar manager Eric Sears said they shortened hours during the week to better accommodate staff, including a chef who commutes from Delaware.

The brewery operates Wednesday through Sunday and closes Monday and Tuesday for brewing. While the commute is not ideal, Sears said the chef was the only qualified candidate and was willing to make the drive.

Just nobody wants to work, Sears said. Weve had people schedule interviews and they dont show up. Weve never seen anything like that.

Giovanni Traino, owner of Angelinas Pizza & Ice Cream in Lower Swatara Township, said theyve received little response from a help wanted request. Before the pandemic Angelinas employed 18 people, but is now operating on a skeleton staff that includes Traino and his wife, Angela, their two children, and a few cooks.

Because of COVID, and everything we are just getting by, Traino said.

He said hes hoping as business bounces back they will be in a better position to hire more employees.

Its unfortunate, especially for these mom and pop stores. We take it one day at a time, he said.

For some owners, a lack of candidates has prompted more than shifting schedules. It has mean shifting employees.

Yak N Yeti owner Tenzin Norbu recently announced the temporarily closure of his Himalayan restaurant at 213 N. Third St. in New Cumberland so he can follow through with plans to open a third restaurant in Lancaster. He also operates a Yak N Yeti in Carlisle, which will remain open.

Right now, Im having a hard time finding staff for Lancaster, Norbu said. What I do now is ask all my staff in New Cumberland if they are willing to go to Lancaster and they agreed.

Not every establishment is dialing back. Moran said many bars and taverns are ramping up hours and staffing as restrictions loosen. Gov. Tom Wolfs administration announced as of 12:01 a.m. May 31 restrictions, with the exception of mask-wearing, will be lifted at businesses, including restaurants, in the state.

We continue to make significant progress in the fight to stop the spread of COVID-19 and as more Pennsylvania adults get vaccinated and guidance from the CDC evolves, we can continue to move forward with our reopening efforts, Department of Health Acting Secretary Alison Beam said in a statement.

However, Moran said some establishment have grown so accustomed to new business practices adopted during the pandemic, theyre keeping them. He said at least one tavern continues to close well before the states mandated 2 a.m. last call which eases pressure on staffing.

For those non-licensed establishments like Boehringers Drive-In in Adamstown, Lancaster County relief is coming in the form of seasonal workers.

Recently, the ice cream stand warned customers on a Facebook post to be patient because they were short-staffed one evening. But it had nothing to do with employee shortages, said Mason Hornberger, a manager.

Fortunately, Hornberger said the labor pool they draw from, teenage workers in the 14 to 15 age bracket who dont qualify for unemployment, are plentiful.

We have the people, they just havent been able to get trained yet, she said.
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - A total of 143 new illegal migrants, including five women, were rescued at sea by a Libyan coastal security boat and brought back to Tripoli, the Libyan Interior Ministry announced in a statement on Tuesday
Pennsylvania State Police are searching for an 18-year-old with an active arrest warrant who they say drove into a trooper while trying to flee an early Tuesday traffic stop in Lancaster County.

David J. Pratt was the passenger of a 2004 Honda Civic that was pulled over at about 2:20 a.m. on Route 462, east of Old Philadelphia Pike in East Lampeter Township, state police said.

State police said Pratt gave them false identification and moved into the drivers seat while troopers talked with the driver outside the car.

Pratt ignored troopers orders to get out of the car and accelerated into one as he sped away, according to state police. The trooper shot at the car but Pratt continued driving west down Route 462 toward Lancaster City, state police said.

The trooper who Pratt drove into was treated and released, state police said. They said the original driver of the Civic was taken into custody but later released.

Pratt was driving a 2004 Honda Civic with the license plate LKM-0953, according to state police.

The state police, Lancaster County detectives and the Lancaster County District Attorneys Office are handling the investigation.

Pratt has an active arrest warrant for robbery and is considered armed and dangerous. Anyone who sees him or the Civic is asked to call the state polices Lancaster station at 717-299-7650.

READ MORE: Police recover 52 stolen cars and arrest 31 people, including kids, in a week

Murder suspect arrested after fleeing with tiger in Houston neighborhood, but animal still missing: police
The curtains are ready to rise on Broadway after being shut down for more than a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The first three shows slated to open Sept. 14 are Hamilton, Wicked and The Lion King.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo had announced on Twitter on May 5, Broadway shows will be ready to open September 14 at 100% capacity. Tickets go on sale starting tomorrow. Broadway is major part of our states identity and economy, and we are thrilled that the curtains will rise again.

After the announcement, Charlotte St. Martin, president of The Broadway League, said, We are thrilled that Governor Cuomo clearly recognizes the impact of Broadways return on the city and states economy and the complexity of restarting an entire industry that has been dormant for over a year.

Nothing beats Broadway. The theatre owners, producers, and other League members will continue to work with the NY State Department of Health and the Governor to coordinate the industrys return and the related health and safety protocols required to do so.

We remain cautiously optimistic about Broadways ability to resume performances this fall and are happy that fans can start buying tickets again.

The Broadway League said performances were initially suspended due to COVID 19 on March 12, 2020. At that time, 31 productions were running, including 8 new shows in previews. Additionally, 8 productions were in rehearsals preparing to open in the spring.

Here are links to Ticketmaster to get tickets:

Hamilton, Richard Rodgers Theatre, resumes Sept. 14, 2021.

The Lion King, Minskoff Theatre, resumes Sept. 14, 2021.

Wicked, George Gershwin Theatre, resumes Sept. 14, 2021.

Six, Brooks Atkinson Theatre, resumes Sept. 17, 2021.

Aladdin, New Amsterdam Theatre, resumes Sept. 28, 2021.

Tina - The Tina Turner Musical, Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, resumes Oct. 8, 2021.

Other shows that have released dates they will resume include:

Chicago, Ambassador Theatre, resumes Sept. 14, 2021

Come From Away, Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, resumes Sept. 17, 2021.

Aint Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations, Imperial Theatre, resumes Oct. 16, 2021.

Jagged Little Pill, Broadhurst Theatre, resumes Oct. 21, 2021.

Mrs. Doubtfire, Stephen Sondheim Theatre, resumes Oct. 21, 2021.

Phantom of the Opera, Majestic Theatre, resumes Oct. 22, 2021.

Company, Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, previews resume Dec. 20, 2021.

Diana, Longacre Theatre, previews resume Dec. 1, 2021.
Count former New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez among those who didnt see the Jennifer Lopez-Ben Affleck reunion coming.

E! News reports A-Rod is shocked that J.Lo has moved on. ... He truly thought they would be able to make it work and reconnect. He has been reaching out to J.Lo trying to meet with her and she has been very short with him.

According to the source, Alex is saddened about J.Los reunion with the Justice League actor, so much so that hes reached out to her to let her know hes upset. As the insider summed it up, Shes not interested in rekindling anything with A-Rod and is done.

TMZ reports Lopez reconnected with Affleck, her ex-fiancee, before she ended her engagement to Rodriguez.

Its been building since February ... when he started flooding her with emails while she was filming in the Dominican Republic. Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Ben and J Lo were in very regular contact by email starting in early February when she flew to the Caribbean to begin filming Shotgun Wedding. Were told the tone of the emails wasnt just friendly ... but more loving and longing for Jen. ... Were told they continued emailing each other, back and forth, for the duration of J Los shoot ... which wrapped in late April.

TMZ also reports there was no physical contact or rendezvous between them during this time, but the emails do add context to how they seemingly got together so quickly.

Just to set the record straight, Rodriguez and Lopez were seen together at Super Bowl LV in Tampa, Fla., which was played on February 7.

In March, the New York Post reported Rodriguez and Lopez had ended their engagement, which dated back to 2019.

Then last month, Rodriguez and Lopez announced their relationship was over in a statement to the Today show.

We have realized we are better as friends and look forward to remaining so. We will continue to work together and support each other on our shared businesses and projects. We wish the best for each other and one anothers children. Out of respect for them, the only other comment we have to say is thank you to everyone who has sent kind words and support.

Two weeks after the official announcement, Lopez was spotted in Los Angeles with the 48-year-old Affleck, to whom she was engaged from 2002 to 2004. At the time, the New York Posts Page Six reported the reunion was just friendly.

But according to E! News, the chemistry between the 51-year-old Lopez and Affleck is unreal. They picked up where they last left off and are enjoying each others company right now.

E! News also reports Lopez and Affleck were seen together earlier this month.

After the stars appeared separately at the VAX LIVE concert in Los Angeles on Sunday, May 2, they jetted off together to the Yellowstone Club in Montana, where they vacationed together for about a week, a source tells E! News. They were alone, says the source. Just the two of them.

Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Chipotle is looking to hire 20,000 people across the country  and is offering an average wage of $15 per hour to attract new employees and retain existing ones.

The company said the wage increase will be rolled out over the next few weeks. Hourly crew members can expect to earn a starting wage between $11-$18 per hour. Hourly employees currently make an average of $13 an hour, Chipotle CFO Jack Hartung said on a recent earnings call.

In a press release Monday, the fast-casual chain said employees have the opportunity to move up to a general manager-level position and earn $100,000 within three years of being hired.

Chipotle is committed to providing industry-leading benefits and accelerated growth opportunities, and we hope to attract even more talent by showcasing the potential income that can be achieved in a few short years, said Marissa Andrada, Chief Diversity, Inclusion and People Officer at Chipotle.

Were looking for people who are authentic, passionate and want to help cultivate a better world through real food and real personal development.

In addition, staffers can earn $200 to $750 in bonuses if they refer new employees. The company said it needs to attract new team members for the summer peak season and to staff the 200 new restaurants it plans to open this year.

Of those 20,000 open positions nationwide, 330 are in the Greater Cleveland area. To apply, Chipotle is hosting a virtual career fair on May 13 from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. discord.com/invite/ChipotleCareerFair.
The hit anime series Demon Slayer (or Kimetsu no Yaiba in its native Japanese) is officially getting its second stage play adaptation in Japan.

The play will debut in August of this year, starting in Tokyo before heading out to Osaka.

Titled Kimetsu no Yaiba: The Stage, the first stage adaptation of the anime premiered in Tokyos Galaxy Theatre in January 2020. SGCafe explains that the shows run was a great success, leading to this now upcoming sequel.

Siliconera reports that the plot of the second Demon Slayer play has yet to be revealed. However, considering that some of the characters listed on the plays roster are Rui and Kyojuro Rengoku, one may only assume that the story has something to do spider demons and the Hashira.

For those who may not be familiar, Demon Slayer follows the story of Tanjiro, a young boy who lives a quiet life with his family up in the mountains; that is, until the day Tanjiro returns home to find his mother and siblings have been attacked by a demon.

While only Tanjiros sister, Nezuko, survives the attack, she has unfortunately been turned into a demon in the process. Together, the two set out on a journey not only to take revenge on the demon that murdered their family, but to find a cure for Nezuko that will return her to her human form.

The first season of Demon Slayer is currently available for streaming on Netflix. The release date of its second season remains pending.

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More than 2 million people signed a petition created by a restaurant owner calling for the government to issue $2,000 monthly stimulus checks for every American.

According to the petition, published via Change.org.

Our country is still deeply struggling. The recovery hasnt reached many Americans  the true unemployment rate for low-wage workers is estimated at over 20% and many people face large debts from last year for things like utilities, rent and child care. These are all reasons that checks need to be targeted to people who are still struggling and that Congress needs to learn from this past year. It took nine months for Congress to send a second stimulus check, and just moments to spend it. Moving forward Congress needs to make recurring checks automatic if certain triggers are met. No more waiting around for our government to send the help we need. Sign to join our movement to get recurring checks to the people.

Stephanie Bonin, who owns a restaurant in Denver with her husband, started the petition. She called the coronavirus pandemic is catastrophic for working families like hers.

My name is Stephanie, and I am one of millions of Americans who fear for my financial future because of this coronavirus crisis, she wrote. With businesses and schools closing across the country to control the spread of this virus, many people have already lost their jobs. Others are being forced to stay home.

Im calling on Congress to support families with a $2,000 payment for adults and a $1,000 payment for kids immediately, and continuing regular checks for the duration of the crisis, she added. Otherwise, laid-off workers, furloughed workers, the self-employed, and workers dealing with reduced hours will struggle to pay their rent or put food on the table.

While over 2 million people have signed the petition, they arent alone in campaigning for monthly stimulus checks for Americans. Back in January, 56 Democrats in the House of Representatives signed a letter published by Politico addressing the economic crisis in America and the need for monthly stimulus payments for Americans.

We are experiencing the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, with millions of Americans either unemployed, forced out of the workforce, or facing a decline in hours and wages. Worsening systemic inequities, such as food insecurity and housing instability, are most severe for Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities, who are suffering higher infection and mortality rates of COVID-19 and higher unemployment levels, compared to white Americans. At the same time, many people of color are encountering reduced or stagnant incomes as frontline workers while not being able to access vital relief programs, such as unemployment insurance.

The letter added asks from President Joe Biden:

 Continue until the economy recovers with equal payments to adults and dependents,  Prioritize those who need it most and will spend it the quickest,  Go to all immigrant workers, refugees, and their families (both ITIN filers and mixedstatus households),  Include older dependents such as disabled and elderly dependents and those over the age of 16 still claimed as dependents,  Add improved administrative outreach and communication at the state and local level to ensure families are aware of payments, and  Ensure the Internal Revenue Service makes automatic payments available to all eligible households with better outreach to individuals left behind in previous rounds, including the underbanked and unbanked through pre-loaded EBT cards and those who had erroneous, delayed, or missing payments through improved casework assistance.

21 more Democrats in Congress later joined the other progressive lawmakers in late March, writing a second letter to put pressure on President Joe Biden to signed monthly stimulus payments into effect.

This crisis is far from over, and families deserve certainty that they can put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads, the letter read, according to Newsweek. Families shouldnt have to worry about whether theyll have enough money to pay for essentials in the months ahead.

The call for monthly stimulus checks come as the President Biden is working on two economic relief proposals. The first upcoming bill is the American Jobs Plan, which is focused on, The American Jobs Plan is an investment in America that will create millions of good jobs, rebuild our countrys infrastructure, and position the United States to out-compete China. The second proposal is the American Families Plan, which may include a fourth round of stimulus checks. The plan will reportedly $500 billion in additional tax credits too.

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WASHINGTON  The Capitol Police force was hobbled by inadequate intelligence gathering ahead of the Jan. 6 siege, the departments watchdog told Congress on Monday, alarming lawmakers who are concerned for their own safety amid rising threats against members of Congress.

Capitol Police Inspector General Michael Bolton testified in the first of three House hearings this week on what went wrong during the Jan. 6 insurrection. Lawmakers are investigating the riots as they contemplate overhauling security, and Bolton has recommended that the Capitol Police create a new stand-alone division that would gather intelligence about threats and protect members similar to the way the U.S. Secret Service protects the president.

Many lawmakers are receiving threats and worry for their safety after the U.S. Capitol was so easily breached on Jan. 6 by supporters of then-President Donald Trump who wanted to overturn the election. The rioters were hunting for lawmakers, calling out House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and then-Vice President Mike Pence by name as they roamed the building and members fled the House and Senate. In a statement Friday, the Capitol Police said that there has been a 107% increase in threats against members of Congress this year compared to 2020 and provided the unique threat environment we currently live in, the Department is confident the number of cases will continue to increase.

A new inspector general report, one of several Bolton is preparing in response to the insurrection, said the department has experienced issues because of the increase in threats over the last five years and recommended the force hire more agents who are dedicated to assessing threats.

Bolton said there were multiple deficiencies that led to a lack of communication and guidance ahead of the siege. He said the departments guidance on counterintelligence was outdated or vague  some so ancient that it referred to Blackberry communication devices, which are now rarely used.

A stand-alone entity, with a defined mission dedicated to countersurveillance activities in support of protecting the Congressional Community, would improve the Departments ability to identify and disrupt individuals or groups intent on engaging in illegal activity directed at the Congressional Community and its legislative process, the report says, according to a summary released by the House Administration Committee ahead of the hearing. Bolton has not released the full report.

Bolton told the panel that the Capitol Police is in the process of opening up two regional offices so it can better protect lawmakers at home. The department confirmed that on Monday, saying they will be opening up offices in San Francisco and Tampa, Florida.

Illinois Rep. Rodney Davis, the top Republican on the committee, said he hopes they open up more offices around the country and prosecute more people who are making the threats. He noted that he has received threats himself  a man was arrested in 2019 for threatening to shoot him.

FILE - In this Jan. 6. 2021, file photo, people storm the Capitol in Washington. A blistering internal report by the U.S. Capitol Police describes a multitude of missteps that left the force unprepared for the Jan. 6 insurrection  riot shields that shattered upon impact, expired weapons that couldnt be used, inadequate training and an intelligence division that had few set standards. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)AP

So I know firsthand that these threats are real, and that the people making these threats intend to act on them, Davis said. I do believe a truly more aggressive enforcement stance, more arrests and more prosecutions of those who make violent threats and intend to carry them out would be a very strong deterrent.

In Fridays statement, the Capitol Police said they have already taken significant steps to improve counterintelligence and agreed that a stand-alone intelligence division would be helpful, but said theyd need more money to achieve it. The statement said the Capitol Police have about 30 agents and analysts doing the same job as more than 100 in the Secret Service, while the Capitol Police had 9,000 cases in 2020 and the Secret Service had 8,000.

The House is also scheduled to hear this week from former acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller, who will testify about his role in approving National Guard troops during the insurrection. The troops did not arrive until several hours after the riots began, a subject that has attracted intense interest in Congress.

Miller is expected to appear Wednesday before the House Oversight Committee alongside former acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen and District of Columbia Police Chief Robert Contee III. All three were part of frantic meetings that day as Capitol Police begged for backup.

Army and Pentagon leaders have repeatedly denied any efforts to delay the Guard response. Miller denied in a Vice News interview in March that the response was unduly slow, saying, It comes back to understanding how the military works. He said this isnt a video game, adding its not Black Ops Call of Duty.

In a statement ahead of the hearing, House Oversight and Reform Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said Congress and the American people still have many unanswered questions about why more wasnt done about threats of violence from right-wing extremists before the attack.

Our hearing will provide the American people the first opportunity to hear from top Trump Administration officials about the catastrophic intelligence and security failures that enabled this unprecedented terrorist attack on our nations Capitol, Maloney said in a statement.

The House Administration Committee will also hear this week from Christopher Failla, the inspector general for the architect of the Capitol, who is one of three officials sitting on a board that oversees the Capitol Police.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro, a Connecticut Democrat and chair of the House Appropriations Committee, said last week that a $2 billion supplemental spending bill that the House is expected to take up soon will have a focus on increased training, intelligence analysis and capabilities for the police force.

___

Mary Clare Jalonick of The Associated Press wrote this story.

Associated Press writer Michael Balsamo contributed to this report.
A New Jersey school district has shifted to remote learning for the next two weeks after 60% of its teachers became ill due to afoodborne illness they contracted at a staff luncheon last week, officials said.

Waterfords 900 or so students wont return to their three buildings until May 24, Superintendent Brenda Harring said in a letter to the school community.

The teachers got sick after attending an event catered by an outside vendor, Harring said. The districts doctor advised Harring to close schools for two weeks so a thorough cleaning and sanitization process will be completed to help stop the spread of any foodborne germs and illnesses.

Many teachers are still recovering, the superintendent said.

The Camden County health department advised the district the suspected unknown pathogens could be highly contagious.

Symptoms of foodborne illnesses include nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, and diarrhea.

Before explaining that a foodborne illness was responsible for the closure, district officials on Monday said an unforeseen non-COVID medical issue that has impacted a significant number of our staff would force an asynchronous day of learning on Tuesday.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com.

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A man who was free on bond for a murder charge has been arrested after evading police who were searching for a tiger roaming through a Texas neighborhood.

However, the tiger seen strolling past several homes is still missing, police said.

Police received a call around 8 p.m. Sunday night after receiving reports of a tiger on the loose in the Houston neighborhood. Police said by the time they arrived, Victor Hugo Cuevas, 26, had already fled with the tiger in a white Jeep Cherokee.

Video taken by neighbors shows an off-duty sheriffs deputy aiming a gun at the tiger while yelling at Cuevas to get the animal back inside. No shots were fired. The sheriffs deputy later said he only pointed the gun at the animal, not a person, to keep the neighborhood safe, according to KHOU.

Houston police Cmdr. Ron Borza said the main concern was finding Cuevas and the tiger because what I dont want him to do is harm that tiger. We have plenty of places we can take that tiger and keep it safe and give it a home for the rest of its life, according to the Associated Press.

Houston police tweeted that they arrested Cuevas Monday night, but the whereabouts of the tiger is still unknown. He is charged with felony evading arrest.

Authorities now also plan to seek to revoke his bond from a murder charge. According to ABC News, Cuevas was charged with the fatal shooting of a man outside a restaurant in 2017 in a neighboring county. Michael W. Elliott, the attorney for Cuevas, claims the shooting was in self-defense.

Elliot also said he doesnt believe Cuevas is the owner of the tiger, according to the report. He said it is unclear if the man wrangling the tiger in the video is Cuevas.

Police said that Cuevas also had two monkeys in his home. Having a monkey under 30 pounds is not illegal in Texas. Tigers are not allowed within Houston city limits unless the handler, such as a zoo, is licensed to have exotic animals.

Details of Cuevas arrest were not immediately available.
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  Law enforcement officials helped capture a loose zebra in middle Tennessee after it escaped from an exotic livestock auction.

According to news outlets, Cookeville Police Department and Putnam County Sherriffs office assisted Triple W employees capture the agitated zebra early Friday morning. Cookeville is about 80 miles east of Nashville.

The zebra ran onto Highway 111, but was not hurt due to the lack of traffic. Multiple methods were used to attempt to regain control of the animal. At one point, two police officers made unsuccessful attempts to deploy stun guns to redirect or capture the animal.

It took nearly three hours to corner and direct the zebra onto a transport trailer.

A nearby elementary school alerted parents in a Facebook post that There is a zebra on the loose in the Prescott area. It escaped a truck, was tased, and is mad. Do not approach. (Yes, really.)

Prescott South Middle School teacher Ashley Danielle Francis told WSMV-TV that she noticed the zebra while driving to work, calling it the craziest thing I ever think Ive ever seen in this town.

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Rome, Italy (PANA) - The UN agriculture chief warned on Monday that severe underfunding of Africas agri-food sector has boosted food insecurity and was hampering the future development of countries across the continent
Three small children screamed and cried for help out a third-story window this weekend, alerting neighbors and Lancaster County authorities to the serious problems occurring inside their home.

Alexis Marie Absher, 24, and Collin Decker, 27, were arrested Saturday after police had to force their way into their Quarryville apartment to rescue the children.

According to the affidavits filed against the pair, when a neighbor saw the children, ages 2, 4 and 5, hanging out of the window around 7:45 p.m., she called the police.

Quarryville Borough police officer Cheryl Thompson wrote that when she arrived at the West 5th Street apartment, she first attempted to get the children to come to her to open their front door from the inside. When they couldnt do it, the fire department helped her break into the apartment.

Once inside, Thompson reported seeing a bedroom door that was closed and locked twice, including with a slide-bolt on the outside of the door. When Thompson got inside the room, she grabbed the smallest child from the window.

The bedroom smelled of urine and feces, Thompson wrote, calling conditions deplorable. It appeared that there was a bunk bed with a trundle underneath that all three children shared.

Police asked the children where their parents were, and the 5-year-old responded in the Jeep, according to court documents.

Children and Youth Services came to take custody of the children while investigators searched for the parents, according to the affidavit.

During the investigation, a fireman found a social media post tagging both Absher and Decker at Buck Motorsports Park, according to the affidavits. Troopers went there to look for the pair and brought them back to the home around 8:45 p.m.

They were then taken into custody, according to the affidavits.

The children were placed in foster care while Absher and Decker were both charged with felony child endangerment, false imprisonment and unlawful restraint of a minor by a parent.

Absher and Decker are being held at Lancaster County Prison, with bail set at $40,000 against each of them, according to online court dockets.

Preliminary hearings are scheduled for May 12.

Read more on PennLive:
Avon Burton was leaving a local store last year when she came across a naked 16-year-old boy being chased by a sex offender.

She heard the boy shouting, Help! Then she saw a gunman standing over the boy in the middle of the street.

We watch a grown man straddle a young kid and load bullets into his body, she said Tuesday, recalling the dreadful memory. It was horrific that day, as a mother.

But Burton kept her wits about her with remarkable courage, and helped point Harrisburg police officers in the right direction where the sex offender was attempting to escape. He was running down an alley way in Allison Hill after the fatal shooting of Kyan King on Aug. 29.

Her assistance was key in quickly arresting the suspect, according to Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo, who presented her with the District Attorneys Award for Outstanding Service by a Citizen during an annual ceremony Tuesday.

Belinda Moore also received the same award for helping the police in their pursuit of Kyans killer.

They were among three civilians and five police officers honored in the event on the first floor lobby of the county Administrative Building at 2 S. Second St. in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Sometimes its easy to step in when its someone you know, Chardo said. It is truly remarkable when we have citizens that step in on behalf of strangers, and it is analagous to the role of a police officer who steps in in aid of someone that they dont know.

Today, we recognize three citizens who did just that, at risk to themsleves, they stepped in and stepped up to help someone they did not know.

There were five different categories for the awards. Heres the list of winners:

The Lieutenant Robert Bo McCallister Memorial Award for Outstanding Service as a Patrol Officer.

- Patrol Officer Brian R. Egli of the Lower Paxton Township Police. He was selected in part for his keen work in a rape case. His job was to guard the door to a house where a rape had reportedly occurred. While at the scene, a man approached him and they began to talk. Officer Elgi made note of the mans appearance and what he was holding in his hands: a McDonalds bag.

As it turned out, the man was later identified as the rapist and the McDonalds bag would serve as future key evidence to help prosecute the case.

The Detective Samuel Thomas Kohr Memorial Award for Outstanding Service as a Detective.

- Detective Ryan S. Gartland of the Swatara Township Police

- Detective Jason Paul of the Harrisburg Bureau of Police

The Detective Willie Holland Memorial Award for Outstanding Career Service as a Police Officer.

- Detective William Bryan Jackson of the Harrisburg Bureau of Police

The Honorable LeRoy S. Zimmerman Award for Outstanding Service by a Prosecutor.

- Deputy District Attorney Katie Adam

The District Attorneys Award for Outstanding Service by a Citizen.

- Avon M. Burton, Belinda Moore, and Jeree Clark.

It really feels great to even get an award and be honored for that day, Burton said. I dont really feel like I need recognition for that day. I am part of my community and I would do it again for my community so it does feel great to be honored and to accept this award for my community.

Jeree Clark, the third citizen honored at the event was chosen for her heroic acts on February 14, 2021. On this day, Clark was running errands for Valentines Day when she noticed a young boy outside in the snow yelling for help. She stopped and found out he accidentally shot his older brother. She stayed and tried to save the older brother and comforted the younger brother.

READ MORE:

Woman who helped boys after accidental shooting acted without hesitation while others just drove on: DA

Harrisburg rally honors teenager killed, calls for law changes
A 36-year-old man died Monday morning in a crash on a Dauphin County section of the Turnpike, authorities said.

Kevin Hostetter, of Myerstown, Lebanon County, was killed just after 9:15 a.m. at mile marker 246.6 in Steelton, according to a Dauphin County news release.

The release said the coroners office pronounced Hostetter dead at the scene.

A Tuesday autopsy confirmed Hostetter died from multiple traumatic injuries, authorities said.

The Zion Lutheran Church in Womelsdorf, Berks County, said on Facebook Hostetter, his wife and three children were members of the congregation. The church has set up a meal train to help his family.

The Turnpike was closed in Dauphin and Cumberland counties following the crash. Pennsylvania State Police are investigating.

READ MORE: Passenger hits state trooper as he speeds away after traffic stop: police

Central Pa. school bus crash sends 1 child to the hospital
A central Pennsylvania man pleaded no contest Tuesday afternoon to charges that he spent years sexually molested three young girls.

Michael Kauffman, 40, of Lititz, entered that plea before Cumberland County Judge Christylee Peck as part of a plea deal that will net him a 5- to 10-year state prison sentence.

Kauffmans plea to felony counts of statutory sexual assault, unlawful contact with a minor, indecent assault and child endangerment came 18 months after state police arrested him.

Michael A. Kauffman

Prosecutor Courtney Hair LaRue said all three victims were younger than 13 and that Kauffman was accused of committing the crimes multiple times at multiple sites in the county between January of 2011 and October 2019.

The plea agreement, which also calls for Kauffman to serve a consecutive 10 years of probation and register with state police as a sex offender for life, was discussed quite extensively with the victims, LaRue said.

The victims are in agreement with this plea, she said, adding that it will spare the victims the trauma of having to testify at a trial.

Several supporters of the victims watched Tuesdays hearing via Zoom.

Defense attorney Allan Sodomsky said that while Kauffman concedes prosecutors could prove the charges against him beyond a reasonable doubt at trial he doesnt admit that he did it.

The plea agreement calls for the dismissal of 15 other charges, including rape of a child, that were lodged against Kauffman. Had he been convicted of all of those counts, he would have faced decades in prison.

Peck is to sentence Kauffman in August after he is evaluated to determine whether he should be labeled a sexually violent predator, the most dangerous and incorrigible type of sex offender.
One child was taken to the hospital after their school bus crashed Tuesday morning in York County, dispatchers said.

County dispatch said a South Eastern School District bus crashed around 8 a.m. on Kilgore Road near Draco Road in Hopewell Township.

One child was taken to the hospital and the rest went to school, where they were reunited with their parents, dispatchers said.

The extent of the childs injuries are not yet clear. It is unclear to which school the bus was headed.

Dispatch said the bus was the only vehicle involved in the crash.

READ MORE: 14-year-old boy arrested in killing of Florida girl, 13, who disappeared Sunday morning

Mom dies, teen daughter hurt after being hit by car Mothers Day morning: N.J. police

6 dogs in horrible conditions dumped at Pa. animal shelter
A convicted killer who already was serving a life prison sentence deserves the second life term he received for stabbing a corrections officer with a home-made shank, a state Superior Court panel ruled Tuesday.

In an opinion by Judge Mary Jane Bowes, the court rejected Quydeem Hawkins claim that prosecutors didnt prove he intended to harm anyone when he sliced open the officers scalp during an August 2018 melee in the dining hall of the state prison at Fayette.

At the time of that battle, Hawkins, 27, was serving a life sentence or a 2013 homicide that resulted from an ambush shooting staged in broad daylight in front of multiple witnesses in Philadelphia.

Quydeem Hawkins

A Fayette County jury convicted him on charges of assault by a life prisoner, aggravated and simple assault, reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct for the prison melee. The second life sentence he received was automatic for those convictions.

According to Bowes, Hawkins was seen swinging a dining tray during the 2018 fight in the dining hall.

Hawkins fought with officers who tried to subdue him and used the shank to cut the head of one of them, the judge wrote. The wound required five stitches.

Bowes noted that Hawkins had made the shank by melting a 6 -inch plastic cup, forming it into a point and wrapping a piece of cloth around the base for a handle.

Investigators said Hawkins also spit on one of the officers.

On appeal, Hawkins claimed he cut the officer accidentally when other officers knocked him over backward.

Bowes countered by citing the conclusion of county Judge Linda R. Cordaro that Hawkins brought the deadly weapon to the dining hall with the intent to cause harm.

While it is plausible that (Hawkins) inadvertently slashed at (the officers) face with the knife-like shank that he brandished during his scuffle with the correctional officers, the jury, as the ultimate arbiter of fact, flatly rejected that proposition, Bowes wrote.
A government advisory board on Wednesday may well issue recommendations to enable 12- to 15-year-olds to begin receiving COVID-19 vaccine. Major vaccine providers in central Pennsylvania said Tuesday they expect to begin accepting appointment requests from parents of 12- to 15-years-olds as soon as that happens.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the Pfizer vaccine for that age range on Monday. The vaccine has so far been available only to people 16 and older. About 750,000 kids could soon be eligible for the vaccine, state officials said.
Its a crowded contest of candidates running for Harrisburg City Council.

When Democrats head to the polls for the May 18 primary, they will have to narrow the selection of 13 candidates down to four.

The candidates are Vishal Bajpai, Lori Ann Beamer-Saulisbury, Roy Christ, Shamaine Daniels, Crystal Davis, Carrie Fowler, Sarah Gethers, Ausha N. Green, Lavet Henderson, Jennie Jenkins-Dallas, Robert Lawson, Jocelyn Rawls and Ralph Rodriguez.

PennLive asked each candidate the same three questions about issues facing the city. Heres what they had to say:

Question 1: Many residents are interested in more affordable housing in the city. What do you believe the biggest issues are with housing in the city and how would you address the issue of affordable, quality housing?

Vishal Bajpai:

Vishal Bajpai.

Bajpai, a law student and activist, said the housing issue in Harrisburg has gotten worse with the coronavirus pandemic.

It becomes clear that our system values profit over human life, he said. At the same time, home values continue to skyrocket and renters are experiencing price increases across the board.

He said meaningful steps can be taken at the local level to improve availability, affordability and quality, and the most important step is the establishment of a community land trust to provide secure housing in perpetuity for Harrisburg residents.

These programs have been successful in cities across the country, he said, but the program would need to be combined with increased protection for tenants, including city-funded representation at eviction hearings and empowering codes enforcement to protect renters from slumlords.

Lori Ann Beamer-Saulisbury:

Lori Ann Beamer-Saulisbury.

Beamer-Saulisbury, a Harrisburg native and minister, said affordable housing needs to be available for low-income residents without fear of denial over their credit scores. Right now, there are many people who do not meet the requirements of affordable housing and are forced to live in poor conditions and deal with bad landlords, she said.

She said city council can solve this issue with a housing plan through redevelopment and assure the needs of the citys residents are met.

Along with training and education in basic life skills, money management and living ones best life, city council can take steps forward in solving the issue, she said.

Roy Christ:

Roy Christ.

Christ, a former school board member and former city director of building and housing, said affordable and quality housing are not always the same thing, but the city needs to work to ensure that both are available.

You can take the greatest house in the world, but if you put it in a neighborhood with quality-of-life issues, is it still quality housing? he said.

Christ said, if elected, he will push for a program that would teach younger people trades related to home building, providing career opportunities and improving the housing stock.

In addition, the city needs to encourage industries to locate in Harrisburg, creating an environment in which people can walk from home to work, increasing affordability, he said.

Shamaine Daniels:

Shamaine Daniels. (Provided photo).

Daniels, an attorney and current member of city council, said many factors have contributed to the housing crisis nationwide, from stagnant wages to a reliance on credit scores that pushed many into slum housing, artificially creating a demand for substandard housing.

As in every other city, a significant contributor to the rise in rents is due to an unregulated short-term rental housing market, she said. In a city like ours that doesnt have too many hotels, units that once were rental units have been carved out for the short-term rental market, which yields much higher profits than rental units typically do.

She added, I think we have to regulate the short-term rentals, and I believe Denvers approach is a sound one, referencing a program that requires hosts to obtain a license to offer a short-term rental in their primary residence.

Crystal Davis:

Crystal Davis

Davis, a nurse and founder of At Home Personal Care, said the two biggest issues surrounding housing are the need for more training on how to qualify for the first-time homebuyers program and the excessive amount of abandoned homes and empty lots in the city.

Understanding that developers need to make a profit, a portion of quality affordable housing should be based on low-median income because everyone deserves a nice place to live, Davis said.

She said she would propose legislation to offer incentives for builders to rebuild new, affordable housing on the empty lots and create initiatives to encourage training for homeownership.

My plan can help to reduce the blight in the city and allow residents to have pride in their own home while building wealth for their families, she said.

Carrie Fowler:

Carrie Fowler.

Fowler, a school board member and volunteer who has partnered with local businesses and organizations to help people in the community, said one of the first things the city council can do is encourage private investors or citizens to renovate blighted properties through grants or tax abatements. Such a program would both increase the number of livable units in the city and help address the affordable housing crisis.

I have spoken to many Realtors in the area, and they tell me investors want to work with the city, she said. They see the opportunities to create affordable housing, but they view the city government as being hostile to investors. We need to welcome investors that want to improve our city while holding the slumlords that destroyed our city accountable.

She said she would also support reallocating money to affordable housing trust funds to develop or rehabilitate affordable housing for low- and moderate-income people and create an inclusionary-zoning ordinance to mandate the production of affordable housing. She also supports other programs such as tax relief and assistance for first-time homebuyers.

Sarah Gethers:

Sarah Gethers.

Gethers, an activist, speaker and an officer with numerous organizations, said one of the main focuses of her campaign is to equip Harrisburgs citizens with the tools they need to succeed, and housing is a big part of that.

I believe one of the biggest issues with housing in Harrisburg is a lack of education, preparation, and access to opportunity when it comes to homeownership and property acquisition, she said. If elected to city council, I am committed to helping equip citizens with the information and tools needed to acquire property.

This would include creating access to resources for all citizens and elevating organizations and programs that focus on financial literacy and homeownership, she said.

Gethers noted the median income in Harrisburg is around $30,000, and affordable, quality housing should be available based on the resources the citys citizens have.

Ausha N. Green:

Ausha Green has announced that she is running for a second term on Harrisburg City Council. (Provided photo).

Green, a youth program manager in workforce development and current member of city council, said the biggest issue the city is facing with housing is ensuring it has truly affordable and accessible housing throughout the city.

We have to base this on our median income in the city, not the median income in the county, Green said. This also means encouraging developers to create affordable and accessible units in new developments throughout the city.

She said these developments need to create mixed-income neighborhoods instead of pockets of poverty.

Green said she would do this by working with the city council to continue to incentivize developers to include a percentage of affordable housing units within their projects. She said the process has started after city council passed a series of affordable housing legislation, but the work must continue. That includes creating guidelines for what is considered to be affordable based on the median income of city residents.

Lavet Henderson:

Lavet Henderson.

Henderson, an advocate and member of the Dauphin County Democratic Committee, said the issues of systemic racism and oppression includes public housing and infrastructure.

If elected, I would work with state and federal officials to bring affordable housing vouchers, equal opportunities for housing, and work with developers who have an interest in helping to rebuild the Black community, she said.

Henderson said she would also work toward converting abandoned properties into housing for the homeless, as well as housing for single mothers and fathers.

Jennie Jenkins-Dallas:

Jennie Jenkins-Dallas. (Provided photo).

Jenkins-Dallas, an entrepreneur and former Harrisburg police officer, said the city needs a new approach to housing and development.

I propose establishing a Harrisburg Affordable Housing Trust, she said. Cities nationwide use Affordable Housing Trusts, and they work.

She also would support a ballot initiative to potentially float a bond issue to invest in affordable housing through this Affordable Housing Trust, giving the entire city a buy-in to solve the problem and work together on a solution.

The funds are available, she said, with the Biden administration announcing Pennsylvania would receive $24.1 million in national Housing Trust Fund dollars this year, representing a 148% increase compared with its 2020 funding amount.

Right now, we have private developers cherry-picking neighborhoods to develop and then writing huge campaign donation checks, she said. All this approach does is make sure the rich get richer while creating socioeconomic divisions within the city. This is wrong and needs to stop.

Robert Lawson:

Robert Lawson. (Provided photo).

Lawson, a real estate professional and entrepreneur, said the biggest issue with housing in the city and what makes it unaffordable for many is that Harrisburg is a market with 70 percent tenants.

Theyre essentially paying a premium over the real cost of their real estate to live in their homes, and those homes are not always up to standards, Lawson said.

His idea is to go after blighted homes by connecting with real-estate investors who can come in and renovate the declining housing stock.

Then, for those newly renovated homes, the city can establish a rent-to-own program for those who cannot qualify for a mortgage right now, giving them a pathway to homeownership.

We should also marry this with an abatement plan similar to what they do for new construction for these renovated houses, Lawson added.

This would allow residents who were tenants to move into something more affordable and to soon own their homes, he added.

Jocelyn Rawls:

Jocelyn Rawls. (Provided photo).

Rawls, a third-grade teacher, said affordable housing means residents are not contributing more than 30 percent of their income to housing, and they should not have to live in deplorable conditions to do so.

Each resident has the right to live in a home that is up to code, she said.

If elected, she said she and city council will fight the slumlord problem and will push for more job opportunities so residents can raise the income needed to buy a house.

The city and residents can also work together to restore blighted homes into affordable housing.

She also noted that when developers come into the city to construct new buildings, setting aside 10 percent of the apartments as affordable is not enough, and she and council members must be sure to stand up for its citizens in these cases, she said.

Ralph Rodriguez:

Ralph Rodriguez.

Rodriguez, a community advocate and founder of All You Can Inc., said he believes the largest issue related to the housing crisis is the lack of equity for individuals who are financially burdened.

Ensuring that developers and property owners are being held accountable for the state of the property that they own is critical, Rodriguez said. I believe that providing information to our residents that will educate and encourage homeownership will be key to changing the landscape of what some view to be blighted neighborhoods.

Providing incentives and tax credits to developers who want to provide affordable housing will go a long way in informing Harrisburg residents about these issues, he said.

Question 2: Policing is an issue nationwide. What efforts would you make to build more trust for the police department within the community, and what would be your plan to reduce crime?

Vishal Bajpai

Bajpai said many residents have good reason to mistrust the police, and he would push for a citizen review board that provides citizen oversight of the police department and has the power to hold officers accountable for their actions in the community.

To reduce crime, there would need to be a re-evaluation of the citys approach to public safety to fight the root of that crime, which is poverty, he said.

Throwing more young people in jail for minor drug possession charges does not make anyone safer, he said. In fact, it weakens our communities and increases recidivism.

If elected, he said he would push for free and low-cost community programs that provide after-school activities, learning opportunities and mentors for kids of all ages.

Lori Ann Beamer-Saulisbury

As a member of city council, Beamer-Saulisbury said she would look for three key factors in police reform reform, re-educate and revitalize.

I am sure there have been various and numerous lawsuits based on law enforcement on both sides from citizens and officers alike, she said. With proper reform, re-education and revitalization, this will cut down on the suits and bring better justice to the department.

Roy Christ

Christ said he does not support calls to eliminate the police department, but he said the city needs to do a much better job of diversity training within the police department.

We should revisit requiring police officers to live in the community if they are policing it, he said, adding that knowing the people they police as their neighbors would make a difference.

Christ said police should be held accountable for their actions and judged by a higher standard.

And education is an important component in reducing crime, he said.

If we give young people opportunities and choice, crime goes down, he said. Success breeds success, and why would you choose failure if success is an option?

Shamaine Daniels

Daniels said to solve this issue, it takes not just a reaction to a problem but a serious commitment and philosophical outlook to foster and keep strong relationships between the police and community leaders.

In Harrisburg, I believe we need to require residence, recruit locally and raise salaries for police officers, and provide mental health support, she said.

Police living in the city facilitates building relationships, and recruiting locally means the city would have to look at its hiring standards.

Over the years, I have met a few men of color from Harrisburg who were able to become police officers for the county, state, and federal government, but had failed to meet our testing standards, Daniels said. We need to remove artificial barriers to hiring our own residents.

She said that current wages are so low that by the time an officer does become familiar with the city, they move on to another job. That leaves the city in a constant state of hiring, training and then losing officers.

She would like to see the city address the mental-health care of its police officers in a more nuanced way, getting around what she said is the professions discouragement of its members to seek support rather than seek the help they need.

Crystal Davis

Davis said police officers should have more of a presence in the city, such as walking on foot patrols and meeting the people they are hired to protect and serve.

Oftentimes, crimes are committed at night, but if the police are out riding around in high-crime neighborhoods, crime could be deterred, she said.

Carrie Fowler

Fowler said the city can defund the police department by 40% to 50% and divert those funds to community programs for restorative justice and mental health services.

We must begin to address the systemic racism that plagues our police departments, she said. We also need to really address having a real, independently elected community oversight board, which has full powers over the police, not like the one that was just passed.

To fight the problem of crime, she said the city must invest in its neighborhoods and provide resources. This includes allocating money to non-profits already doing that work in the city, bringing in more job opportunities and programs for the citys youth.

These are not hard problems, she said. We just need progressive leaders to solve them.

Sarah Gethers

Systemic racism, oppression, and a long history of ineffective policing have made this an issue nationwide, she said, and in order to move forward and rebuild trust, the city must first address that reality.

In addition, trust can be built in our community when we train up an engaged police force of Harrisburg residents who will respond efficiently and will refuse to stand by as citizens are put in danger, she said. I am committed to supporting the development of comprehensive training plans so our police officers wont be seen as dangerous threats or passive bystanders.

Building trust means reimagining the police department entirely, she said.

Gethers added she plans to work to reduce crime by proactively engaging with the citys youth, supporting programs and initiatives that connect with them and providing them with opportunities, protection, and development, stopping crime before it starts.

Ausha N. Green

In order to build trust between residents and the police department, transparency is important, said Green, who currently chairs the citys public safety committee. In order to achieve this, we must get our community involved in the decision-making process, as well as make all available information about our policing practices public.

She said the city has created a citizens advisory committee to give communities an opportunity to have direct input on the policies and practices of the police department. The city also added more civilian positions to the police department to add more available resources to our community.

In an effort to continue to build trust between our community and our police department, we must also work to ensure our recruitment process targets local applicants to increase officers who are from our community, she said. This builds a natural level of trust because our officers will have lifelong relationships with the community because it is their community.

She said the city must also work to put all public reports online to make them more accessible.

Lavet Henderson

The communitys trust in the police department is an issue, Henderson said.

She added the way to build trust is for fewer murders to go unsolved. Officers must also live in the community they serve and look like the people they are protecting, she said.

Right now, Henderson said the most important issue facing the community is gun violence.

I would join state leaders and local officials to combat, prevent, and protect the underserved communities experiencing this problem most by being hands-on and available to the community, Henderson said.

She added she would also coordinate with local non-profits whose mission is aimed at putting an end to violence, and she would work to provide them with more financial resources to do the work that they do.

Jennie Jenkins-Dallas

There seems to be a consensus among candidates citywide that we need to incorporate an element of community policing as part of our public safety plan, Jenkins-Dallas said. Having served as Harrisburgs community policing officer from 2005-16, this is an area I am uniquely qualified to address on day one, if elected.

She said there needs to be a culture change in the citys approach to policing with total commitment from top to bottom. Jenkins-Dallas said she would start by fighting to restore foot patrols through the city.

Simply put, foot patrols work, she said. When officers spend time walking through neighborhoods, it promotes positive relationships, greater understanding, and mutual respect on all sides.

She would also push for an independent review of all police policies and procedures to see where changes can be made to reflect this new culture, find pressure points, address them openly and honestly, and do it the right way.

Then it comes down to training and ensuring officers fully understand the new tools they are being given and what is expected of them.

Transparency and accountability are perhaps the most important aspects of police reform, she said, and that includes making police data and statistics available for free on a straightforward public web portal.

She also noted that somewhere along the way, sending the police became the catch-all for just about every 911 call thats not a fire or medical emergency. She said instead of sending armed police officers into every situation, trained social workers or crisis counselors may be sent instead, in some circumstances.

Robert Lawson

My plan to reduce crime is tied to the housing issue, Lawson said. Because many residents need opportunities and jobs, the easiest way the city can lead an effort to create jobs is to make a massive effort to renovate these homes and get individuals working.

People will learn skills, which gives them hope overall and gives them a career, he said.

Once we start busting poverty, well see a reduction in the crime rate, Lawson added.

As far as police reforms go, he would encourage police officers to move into the city. He would bolster programs to help them with closing costs and down payment assistance and work on forming tax abatement programs for police officers, teachers and people in similar positions to move into the city they serve.

Incentivizing police officers to live in the city will make them a greater part of the community, he said. Theyll get to know their neighbors.

Its hard to hurt a kid you helped raise, Lawson said. You wont pull a trigger out of reflex if you know him.

Beyond that, he supports foot patrols as a way to get officers into the city, knowing the community and reducing the chances for a potential conflict.

Jocelyn Rawls

Trust is earned, its not given, and right now, the community does not trust the police department, especially in the Black and Brown community, Rawls said. In order to build that trust, our city police officers need to get out and get into the community.

She said police officers took an oath to protect and serve, so they need to be walking the streets, talking to residents and engaging with the community.

She said the police need to be in the schools, too, talking to students and showing them that there is a career path to becoming a police officer. That could help with the recruitment and retention program by recruiting from within the community, she said.

And Rawls added that the police need to be a part of the community, show they care, and not just show up when a crime is happening.

We dont need to be policed. We need to be cared about, she said. The police are more reactive than proactive, and that needs to change.

Ralph Rodriguez

While many view policing to be a nationwide issue, I believe that the true issue comes with both who are policing our neighborhoods and the training that is in place for our public safety officers, Rodriguez said. I will continue to work with our public safety officers on community engagement by way of creating programs for our youth that will show the career benefits of working within law enforcement with the focus of hiring and retaining officers from within the Harrisburg community.

Rodriguez pointed out that he has led protests and marched alongside Gov. Tom Wolf, Mayor Eric Papenfuse, and Police Commissioner Thomas Carter and influenced the signing of two police reform bills (HB 1841 and 1910) last year.

Rodriguez proposes a three-part, citywide effort to curb crime. The first part would create a program to work with the citys review board, neighborhood groups and citizens to help identify issues such as blighted properties and illegal dumping and create a more neighborly feel within the city for a safer Harrisburg, he said.

The second part would target the citys youth with programs on gun safety and warning signs, and the third part of his program would address stolen firearm practices through legislation.

Question 3: Besides the issues covered above, what is the issue that is most important to you and how do you plan to address it, if elected?

Vishal Bajpai

Bajpai said one of his top priorities would be making the annual budget a participatory process for the community since it has a direct impact on residents lives.

Proposals should be presented months in advance, he said, giving residents a chance to review how their tax dollars are being spent as well as holding town halls for feedback to ensure city money is being spent responsibly and in the best interest of residents.

Lori Ann Beamer-Saulisbury

No answer.

Roy Christ

He said he would encourage programs that allow young people to participate in training and apprenticeship programs.

He would also want to incentivize quality-of-life issues, like finding partners to improve parks and solve the food-desert issue (an area that has limited access to affordable and nutritious food) present in the city.

Shamaine Daniels

She said city leaders need to be thoughtful about the employers they attract to the city and be attentive to the kind of development they invite.

For example, the mayor invited a religious university to renovate the lower portion of our building in lieu of rent, the university had policies that were hostile to the LGBT community, and council rejected the contract, she said. Since then, the city simply refused to be open about that process and issue an RFP so that anyone could come with the proposal.

She said this resulted in years going by with a building that is falling apart, and now the city is in a situation where it is trying to use state funds to repair the building instead of directing those funds to preserve pools, repair playground or upgrade its parks.

We could have had an improved building by leveraging private partnerships and still secure funds to invest in the space we live in, she said. Changes to our contracting practices could bring us closer to our values as a city.

Crystal Davis

Crime is an important problem to solve, she said.

I would address crime by supporting economic development in deprived neighborhoods as well as support new initiatives for activities for our youth, Davis said.

Carrie Fowler

Fowler said from day one, if elected, she will work to solve issues of safety, police reform, cleaning up the city, holding those who dump trash responsible for it, code enforcement, economic growth and being proactive, not reactive.

Sarah Gethers

Gethers said she is most passionate about making Harrisburg a city where the community feels empowered.

For too long, important concerns have gone ignored, she said. Citizens have spent years complaining about potholes, parking, lack of code enforcement, policing issues, etc. Too often these concerns are unheard, devalued, and left to build up pain and resentment.

She said she is committed to creating a city government that listens to its citizens and empowering them to know they have control over lives, their city and their day-to-day concerns.

Gethers held a literacy seminar at La Cultura on May 5. She began the seminar with a discussion on the future of Harrisburgs business sector and how residents can ensure their place in it. The workshop also featured Saliyma Chapman from 21st Century Realty and Dereck Jackson from NY Life Insurance. Says Gethers of her ambitions to revitalize the city: It is my hope that as a young, progressive, fresh set of eyes I can create change in Harrisburg that isnt about politics or personal gain - its about the people. Together, we can move Harrisburg forward.

Ausha N. Green

One of the biggest issues I would look to tackle is offering more opportunities in our communities for our youth and young adults, Green said. One of the big tasks I am working on is creating an internship program for our youth and young adults that would allow them to intern in every department throughout the city.

She said these internships would not only offer valuable experience, networking opportunities and education, but they would also provide needed finances to the citys youth and expose them to the career opportunities available in the city.

Lavet Henderson

Henderson said she would advocate for changes within the school district to help reduce the likelihood of children being affected by gun violence, directly or indirectly.

She said she would advocate for bringing an equal quality of education to the children of Harrisburg and preventing the school-to-prison pipeline.

Jennie Jenkins-Dallas

One issue Jenkins-Dallas said she hears a lot about is that of potholes.

She said she wants Harrisburg to use the 311 app that allows users to report potholes, graffiti, code violations, and other problems by simply taking a photo and submitting it through the app to the city.

Its a data-driven approach that is easy for people to use, she said.

Robert Lawson

I believe with the goodwill thats been drummed up through the pandemic and a lot of the funding that should be coming down from federal government, and matched with the fact we should be emerging from Act 47, we can take a real swing at the issue of poverty in Harrisburg, Lawson said.

Its an investment in the citys neighborhoods and its citizens. He recommends the creation of a community bank to help expand small businesses and opportunities and to provide financial education for citizens.

If we break the cycle of poverty, we can solve the other issues were looking at, he said.

Jocelyn Rawls

Rawls said the city needs to do a better job of helping the elderly and making services more accessible. She said if elected, she would work with city council to increase the focus on mental health and setting up programs to make sure people get the help they need, and that its accessible without shame or guilt.

This is particularly true of residents who may be re-entering the community from prison.

I think thats imperative in helping us move forward, she said. We need accessibility and more mental health services.

Ralph Rodriguez

He said the lack of activities for youth is often cited when residents are asked about rising crime rates.

Investing in our youth is so important to the future of our city, he said. Parks and Recreation in our city needs additional programming to occupy and cater to our younger demographic.

While still in the midst of a global pandemic, most families are indoors and parents need outlets for their children, like educational and STEM-based programs that encourage artistic development, community involvement, and physical education, he said.

Rodriguez also wants to curb crime rates by exposing the city to a variety of activities through incorporating his background in intervention as a program director and coordinator.
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters.

By Sarah Anne Hughes of Spotlight PA

HARRISBURG  Theres just one week until the May 18 primary election in Pennsylvania.

All voters, regardless of affiliation, will be asked to weigh in on four ballot questions, including two proposed constitutional amendments that could significantly shape Pennsylvanias future response to disasters like the coronavirus pandemic.

Democrats and Republicans, meanwhile, have a number of judicial and municipal races to consider.

Below, Spotlight PA answers some of the most frequently asked questions about voting and what Pennsylvanians will see on their ballot. You can learn more by watching our recent live event on the ballot questions and judicial races with WHYYs Katie Meyer.

Can I vote this May?

If you are a registered voter, the answer is yes  though exactly what you can vote on depends on your affiliation.

Pennsylvania has a closed-primary system, meaning only Democrats and Republicans determine the candidates for office during these spring elections.

But people who dont belong to the two major parties can vote on ballot questions.

There will be four such questions on the May 18 primary ballot: three proposed constitutional amendments and one statewide referendum. (That doesnt include local initiatives, including ones in Allegheny County and Philadelphia.)

Just for good measure, heres that information again, from Pennsylvanias top election official.

Pennsylvanias primaries are usually limited to Democratic and Republican voters, who are choosing their parties nominees, Acting Secretary of State Veronica Degraffenreid said in a statement. But this years primary ballot will include four important ballot questions. That means every registered voter can vote on those ballot questions in this primary, even if they are registered with a third party or no party at all.

Non-affiliated and minor-party voters can also cast a ballot in special elections that are held at the same time as the primary. Thats the case in two state Senate and two state House districts this May. (Unsure which districts you live in? Theres a tool for that.)

Which of the ballot questions are controversial, and why?

Objections to three of the four questions have emerged in recent weeks: two proposed constitutional amendments that would transfer executive power to the legislature in the case of disaster declarations, and another that would enshrine protections based on race and ethnicity in the Pennsylvania Constitution.

Spotlight PA covered the four questions in detail here.

What percentage of ballot questions are usually approved?

Since the 1990s, voters have approved 100% of ballot questions. If you go back to the 1960s  the time of Pennsylvanias last constitutional convention  just two have failed to pass.

Whats behind these successes? In some cases, ballot language, as Spotlight PA previously reported.

Which judicial races will be on the ballot? Which courts are responsible for which rulings? Which courts set cash bail?

Democrats and Republicans will be asked to vote on a number of judicial races, including those for Pennsylvanias three statewide appellate courts: Supreme, Superior, and Commonwealth.

Commonwealth Court handles new civil cases as well as actions brought against state agencies, while Superior Court hears criminal and civil appeals from the county courts.

The state Supreme Court is the ultimate arbiter of legal disputes, and in the past year has handed down highly consequential election and pandemic decisions. The justices in 2018 also threw out the states congressional map, finding it was drawn unfairly to benefit Republicans.

WESA, WITF, and WHYY have a great guide to the parties candidates.

Depending on where they live, Democrats and Republicans may also be asked to vote on candidates for Court of Common Pleas, municipal court, or district magisterial court.

Its Pennsylvanias 512 local magistrates who set cash bail and preside over the kinds of disputes many of us might encounter someday, like a small-claims dispute with a home contractor, a traffic offense, a violation of a local ordinance, or a disagreement with a landlord. (On evictions, they have significant discretion over who should be protected from being forced from their home and who shouldnt.)

District judges must run for reelection every six years, and not every voter will be asked to weigh in during this election cycle. So is your local magistrate on the ballot? Its a basic question that, depending on where you live, can be surprisingly tough to answer.

The first barrier is finding out who your magistrate is. Pennsylvanias central court system maintains a list of all magistrates by county and district (Philadelphia uses a different system and is excluded). Figuring out which district you live in can be a challenge. For example, its easy in Lehigh County, which has a lookup tool, but tougher in Lancaster County, which only publishes a static map.

The best place to look for that information is your county governments website. Then, visit your countys election division for a list of candidates or sample ballot to see if your district judge is up for reelection.

Investigating an incumbent or challengers qualifications is also difficult. They arent evaluated or given a rating by the Pennsylvania Bar Association (it only reviews the qualifications of people running for appellate court seats). And local coverage of these races is spotty, at best.

Thats a significant lack of scrutiny for judges who make $93,338 a year, with the possibility of a pension and lifetime health care. As a Spotlight PA/PennLive investigation found, there are also huge variations in their workloads. In 2019, 10% of district judges had at least 60 days without court appearances, above and beyond holidays, weekends, and training days.

One measure you can consider for incumbents is how many days of the year they did (or didnt) have court proceedings using this tool.

How can I see specifically what is on the ballot for my district?

Some counties allow voters to look up a sample ballot ahead of Election Day. If thats not an option in your area, use the League of Women Voters Vote411 tool for statewide races.

Is it too late to register to vote?

It is (the last day was May 3).

How about to request a mail ballot?

If youre reading this before May 11 at 5 p.m., youre in luck. If not, youll have to vote in person. Find your polling place here.

WHILE YOURE HERE... If you learned something from this story, pay it forward and become a member of Spotlight PA so someone else can in the future at spotlightpa.org/donate. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results.
A 39-year-old woman died and her 14-year-old daughter was seriously injured on Sunday in Bergen County, N.J., when they were hit by a car while crossing a street, authorities said.

The crash occurred about 7:30 a.m. near the intersection of Engle Street and Hillside Avenue in Tenafly, according to borough police Capt. Michael deMoncada.

Police said the 82-year-old driver was headed east on Hillside Avenue, stopped at the stop sign, then tried to turn left onto Engle Street, where she struck the mother and daughter as they crossed the street, deMoncada said.

The mother sustained multiple, serious injuries and CPR was immediately initiated by officers, deMoncada said. The daughter suffered injuries to her lower extremities but was expected to survive, he said.

Both victims were taken to a local hospital, where the mother died. Her name was not released. This was a very sad Mothers Day for all, deMoncada said.

The driver remained at the scene and approached nearby residents and asked them to call for help. She was not immediately charged. However, deMoncada said police expect to ticket the driver for failing to yield to the pedestrians.

Anyone with information about the crash is asked to call police at 201-568-5100.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Cape Town, South Africa (PANA)  The City of Cape Town has given the all-clear for a US$750 million development on its outskirts which will be used as the new African headquarters of retail giant Amazon
Dave Schankweiler, the retired founder and publisher of the Central Pennsylvania Business Journal, has shown he may have the best Rolodex in the Harrisburg mayors race, out-raising all candidates who have filed campaign finance reports so far.

The big wild card? Former Harrisburg city councilman Otto Banks, who has the single-biggest donor in the race, but whose campaign committee had not yet filed a report as of noon, Tuesday.

Schankweiler raised more than $180,000 through the end of last week, according to records filed with the Dauphin County Elections and Voter Registration Office. Incumbent Mayor Eric Papenfuse raised $144,000, and City Council President Wanda Williams trailed with about $34,000.

Banks, who has been running an active campaign full of events, mailers and digital billboards, on Monday cited computer issues as the reason his Committee for Progressive Communities failed to meet the May 7 deadline for filing its report. He said the problems should be corrected this week.

But we do know, from filings in Philadelphia this spring, that Banks committee has received at least $160,000 from Students First PAC, a political committee led by Bala Cynwyd-based billionaire Jeffrey Yass, who actively promotes candidates who believe in tuition vouchers and other types of school choice.

Will the stream of mailers, digital billboards and television ads translate into votes on Election Day?

Thats the bet supporters of the top four primary candidates for mayor have placed over the last few months, as they pumped more than $500,000 so far  an apparent record for a mayors race  in donations or personal loans into their bids for the all-important Democratic Party nomination.

Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center Manager Kevyn Knox is also on the ballot, but has not done any outside fundraising.

Heres a look at the candidates campaign finance filings in order of funds raised  and what they tell us about whos supporting whom in the race.

Dave Schankweiler

Dave Schankweiler, candidate for mayor of the city of Harrisburg, at The Black Is Beautiful Expo at the Crown Plaza in Harrisburg, Pa., Feb. 26, 2021. Mark Pynes | mpynes@pennlive.com

Schankweilers list of contributors reads like a Whos Who of business and industry leaders in south-central Pennsylvania. These are the kinds of people who lead United Way campaigns and hold the corner offices that overlook the Susquehanna, whether its from an office tower in the city or a hilltop perch on the West Shore.

Schankweilers success in raising more than $180,000 to date from more than 400 donors is proof that the fate of the city still matters a great deal to people throughout the region, even if  and this is a hard truth for Schankweilers campaign  most of these contributors can only vote with their dollars.

Thats for two reasons: Most of them do not live in the city, and many are not registered members of the Democratic Party.

Schankweilers single biggest donors, from the earliest days of his campaign, were Martin G. Lane Jr., a regional insurance company executive and friend of former Republican Gov. Tom Corbett whose wife, Sherri Phillips Lane, served as a cabinet secretary in the Corbett Administration; and Robert Ortenzio, a member of the founding family of the Select Medical health care empire.

Lane was in for $25,000; Ortenzio, $20,000, in contributions made last December as Schankweiler was launching his race.

In the months since, Schankweiler has reeled in contributions from a diverse group of business and community leaders, ranging from Hasu Shah, chairman of the Harrisburg-based hotel empire Hersha Hospitality Trust; to radio mogul John Dame; to former colleagues at Harrisburg University, which Schankweiler helped found; to former Dauphin County commissioners Sally Klein and Nick DeFrancesco.

Other top donors include Anson Flake, the founder of the Middletown-based underwater treadmill company HydroWorx ($5,000); Terry Harris, a longtime leader of the Hampden Township-based McKonly & Asbury accounting firm ($4,500); and Harrisburg-born television writer producer Carmen Finestra ($2,000).

These donors and dozens of others have kept Schankweiler on broadcast television with campaign commercials, a strategy that Schankweiler needed to pursue since he is probably one of the candidates who is least known to the people who will be voting next week.

Schankweiler has tried to close the deal this winter and spring by hitting the streets with a near-nightly door-knocking campaign to let the voters of the city meet the man theyve likely, to this point, seen only on TV. While Schankweiler spent the bulk of his career at his Harrisburg-based Journal Multimedia business, he has only lived in the city since 2017.

Hes aware of the critiques that his financial support appears to tell the world who Harrisburgs neighbors want, as opposed to the residents, and he doesnt flinch.

Im proud that 400-plus people have come out in support of me, Schankweiler said.

These are the people who do business in the city, they come to the city to dine, they come here to worship, and they believe in my plan and my agenda as Ive outlined it, Schankweiler said. They think that I am the one who can make the right decisions  with the residents of Harrisburg  to move the city forward.

Schankweilers filing also lists a $50,000 loan from his wife, Donna, which if added to the contributions gets his campaigns resources through the cycle to the $230,000 mark.

Eric Papenfuse

Harrisburg mayoral candidate and incumbent Eric Papenfuse at the Whitaker Center for the mayoral debate on Apr. 17, 2021. Vicki Vellios Briner | Special to PennLiveVicki Vellios Briner | Special to PennLive

Papenfuse, seeking his third term as Harrisburgs mayor, has relied on the same clutch of real estate developers and Center City Midtown business owners that have formed the bulk of his support in the past to remain financially competitive with Schankweiler, with the addition of some significant support from organized labor.

Papenfuse has raised $144,000 through the campaign, with the biggest single donation coming from the Harrisburg Capital Political Action Committee, a PAC started by real estate developer Alex Hartzler several years ago with significant support from longtime Harrisburg contractor William H. Alexander; Richard Abrams, the chairman of Consolidated Scrap; and William Lehr, the former CEO of Capital Blue Cross.

Harrisburg Capital pushed $31,000 into Papenfuses campaign last week.

Top individual donors in the mayors run this year are: Hartzler, the president of WCI Partners ($11,500); John Ortenzio, president of Select Capital Commercial Properties ($7,500); Josh Kesler, owner of the Midtown restaurant Millworks, ($5,500); and Adam Meinstein, a Philadelphia-based real estate investor who owns the old post office site in the 800 block of Market Street ($5,000).

Papenfuse has also received $51,500 in direct contributions from political action committees. After accounting for the Harrisburg Capital PACs gift, most of Papenfuses committee gifts have been from organized labor groups, led by Council 13 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, with $7,000 in contributions.

Whereas Schankweiler has donors from all over the East and West shores, the rest of Papenfuses donor list is more heavily concentrated with people who are active in Harrisburg-based projects now, such as Second Street bar owner Ron Kamionka, real estate developers Brad Jones, Wendell Hoover and Dave Butcher; William and Karie Shearer Craig, co-founders of the city-based digital services firm WEBfx, and City House bed and breakfast owner Erica Bryce.

Papenfuse argues that should mean something to voters.

These are the people who have a pulse on whats happening in the city because theyre actively working in it, the mayor told PennLive. And they support the notion that the city is moving in the right direction and its better off than it was before.

Notably, Papenfuse has also received $2,000 in contributions from Ray and Jen Holman Zaborney, whose lobbying firm Maverick Strategies has been employed by the mayors administration on the citys behalf since 2018. Ray Zaborney also owns Red Maverick Media, a company that typically runs Republican campaigns, though Papenfuse does not use Red Maverick for campaign work.

Wanda Williams

Harrisburg mayoral candidate Wanda Williams at the Whitaker Center for the mayoral debate on Apr. 17, 2021. Vicki Vellios Briner | Special to PennLiveVicki Vellios Briner | Special to PennLive

City Council President Wanda Williams was the last candidate to jump into the mayoral race this winter, and aside from Knoxs Instagram-based candidacy, she has the smallest war chest to show for it.

Through last week, Williams campaign committee had raised $34,000 for the race, the bulk of that the product of Williams long ties to Harrisburgs Democratic Party organization and, in a way, the lack of those connections that the city committee members have with any of the other candidates.

For example, Williams is the only mayoral candidate to show significant contributions from other Democratic candidates campaign war chests, the largest to date being $7,500 from 2020 state Senate candidate George Scott.

Williams made a point in campaign appearances this spring to highlight Papenfuses failure to endorse Scott in the last years state Senate race for the seat that includes Harrisburg.

Papenfuse has said that he never endorsed Scotts Republican opponent, state Sen. John DiSanto; he did publicly question Scotts judgment in employing former city councilman Brad Koplinski as a campaign consultant. Koplinski was a Papenfuse rival who ultimately left the Scott campaign after being arrested in September 2020 on possession of child pornography.

Papenfuse told PennLive Monday he actually sat out the state Senate race last year, declining to vote for either candidate.

Williams, who has also highlighted Banks and Schankweilers years spent as members of the Republican Party  both men switched to the Democratic Party during the Trump Administration  has also netted $5,000 from former state Auditor General and 10th District Congressional candidate Eugene DePasquale; and $3,000 from Harrisburg magisterial district judge candidate Ellis Rick Roy.

Williams report also lists individual contributions of $2,000 from longtime Democratic State Committee member Peggy Grove and $1,000 from City Treasurer Dan Miller, who ran against Papenfuse for mayor in 2013.

As a result of her leaner fundraising, Williams will not be mounting television spots like the better-funded candidates in the race. She said she is relying instead on her roots in the community  both as a native Harrisburger, and as a 16-year member of the city council  to translate into votes.

Im not trying to buy this election, Williams said. Im doing what I need to do on the ground. Im on the ground working, and I have a lot of volunteers... and I have a lot of friends and neighbors who have been coming and asking if they could help me on the ground, go door-to-door, passing literature, so its been a wonderful, wonderful turnout for me.

Otto Banks.

Harrisburg mayoral candidate Otto Banks at the Whitaker Center for the mayoral debate on Apr. 17, 2021. Vicki Vellios Briner | Special to PennLiveVicki Vellios Briner | Special to PennLive

Of the four top fundraisers, Otto Banks campaign committee had failed to file a committee financial report as of Tuesday morning.

Banks did file a candidates report, Dauphin County Director of Elections and Voter Registration Jerry Feaser said, but his Committee for Progressive Communities had not been turned in as of the close of business Monday. The reports were due Friday, and committees are fined $20 for each day they are late.

But as mentioned, above, Banks has received four contributions totaling $160,000 from Students First this spring.

Students First reported separate contributions of $50,000 and $25,000 this winter to the Committee for Progressive Communities. Two more contributions totaling $85,000 were posted April 23 and May 3.

That should come as no shock to those familiar with Banks career.

Since returning to the Harrisburg area after a stint as a senior officials in former President George W. Bushs Department of Housing & Urban Development, Banks has served as executive director of the REACH Foundation, a group that seeks to maximize participation in Pennsylvanias program of providing tax credits to businesses who provide scholarships for students seeking to attend private or parochial schools.

Kevyn Knox

Knox, a manager at the Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center, was unaware of his obligations to file a report since he has not been raising or spending funds on his shoestring effort, Feaser told PennLive. After receiving notice, Knox did file a required candidates form Monday, and paid the required $20 late fee, Feaser said.
The four candidates vying for the open 48th District seat in the Pennsylvania Senate offer some starkly contrasting views on a variety of issues from abortion to minimum wage.

Republican Christopher Gebhard, Democrat Dr. Calvin Clements, Libertarian Tim McMaster and independent Ed Krebs are battling in a special election on May 18.

Since this is a special election to fill the seat vacated by the death of Sen. Dave Arnold, all voters can participate in this election. In other primary contests, voters must be registered Republicans or Democrats to select their partys nominees for the general election in the fall.

While the candidates clash in many areas, the four hopefuls all agree the redistricting process could be better. They all can see how the process of drawing legislative districts could be improved by removing politicians from the exercise.

They point to the shape of the district they seek to represent as proof a change is needed. It stretches from the eastern most boundary of Lebanon County across southern Dauphin County and into northeastern York County. As candidates have pointed out, its impossible to get from one side of the district to the other without leaving the district unless you have a boat.

But on many other issues, its difficult to find that same level of consensus.

The 48th state senatorial district that crosses over three counties in southcentral Pennsylvania is described by candidates vying to represent that area a product of gerrymandering. Screenshot from Pa. Senate website

Term limits

McMaster said he would serve out the unexpired 18-month portion of the term he is now seeking and one more four-year term if the voters would have him. After that, I got to get back to my farm, he said.

Krebs is interested in serving only for the next 18 months.

Clements draws the line at two full four-year terms after this one. Gebhard said four four-year terms after this one would be his limit.

Heartbeat bill

Gebhard stood alone in saying he would support this legislation that would ban abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected. He said he only supports abortions in cases of rape or incest.

Clements and Krebs hold the view that abortion at any stage is between a woman, her doctor, and her faith.

McMaster said personally he abhors abortion, but I would prefer to keep the government out of it as much as possible.

Red flag law

Krebs and Clements support the idea of temporarily removing firearms from someone who poses a danger to themselves or others.

Everybody talks about freedom in our county but you dont have freedom to do harm to other people. I think that is a common sense thing, Krebs said.

Clements said he believes something needs to be done to stop gun violence. A lot of it revolves around the individual. In so many cases, there was a definite clear sign a problem was on the horizon and many people didnt recognize it until it was too late, he said. With this law, if after a period of time, the law says there was nothing there, youre entitled to your privilege of gun ownership again.

McMaster takes the opposite view. What constitutes a danger? I think it opens up for far too much abuse from the system and from government officials. So I definitely oppose red flag laws but I am all for gun owners being absolutely responsible, he said.

Gebhard, who said he is pro-Second Amendment, said he was unfamiliar with this issue.

Election reform

While his campaign website lists his call for repealing Act 77, the election reform law that introduced no-excuse mail-in voting in Pennsylvania, Gebhard said its not because hes opposed to mail-in voting. Rather, he said the Wolf administrations implementation of the law had too many flaws to repair it. He said he thinks a do-over is the way to address the issues that caused voter distrust in the electoral process and he would like it to include a voter identification requirement.

McMaster agrees some tweaks are needed to that law to address security and voter verification issues but overall, he very much supports the increased access to voting that mail-in ballots provide.

Krebs called mail-in ballots a godsend for vulnerable people that wanted to exercise their right to vote and not potentially risk their lives.

Clements agrees mail-in ballots should be here to stay. He favors pushing back the voter registration deadline to 30 days before the election from the current 15 days. He also would like to see the mail-in ballot deadline set at 15 days before Election Day instead of right up until the polls close that day. He also says allowing counties time to process, but not count, mailed ballots a few days before the election is critical to restoring voters confidence.

Minimum wage

On this issue, McMaster and Gebhard are of the same mind in letting the free-market decide what workers should be paid, while Clements and Krebs say workers must be assured of a livable wage.

Krebs said he was unsure what that hourly minimum should be. Clements said he could support starting the minimum wage at $12 per hour and gradually increasing it.

In the future, it should be tied to a COLA (cost-of-living-adjustment) so we dont have to come back and argue about it again in 25 years, Clements said.

Marijuana legalization

On this issue, Krebs, Clements and McMaster stand in unison in supporting the legalization of recreational adult-use marijuana.

Krebs said the allure of tax revenue will be too much for lawmakers to resist. Itll be sold on the fact, do you want your income tax to go up or do you want to tax marijuana, he said.

Im opposed to any victimless crime being a crime, McMaster said.

Clements, while admittedly not a marijuana enthusiast, said, We need to consider that there is a good portion of the population that finds marijuana as something they desire and I think evidence demonstrates chasing it is something weve not been successful at whatsoever.

But Gebhard is not ready to go there yet.

The medical marijuana program is in its infancy and its been growing and its been a wonderful success, he said. I think we should allow that to happen and mature a little bit before we rush into the second decision of following up with full legalization.

Priorities

During interviews with the candidates, they also offered thoughts on other areas of particular interest.

For Krebs, it was finding money or ways to preserve agricultural land to help out farmers. He suggested possibly allowing non-farmable parts of their property to be used for rental units or campgrounds. Land is being gobbled up at an unbelievable rate, he said. Farmers are in desperate straits right now. The dairy industry is almost history.

For Gebhard, it is concerns about a return to normalcy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. He said government needs to find a way to get able-bodied people off the unemployment rolls and back to work to fill the many job openings that are around. Further, he said kids need to be get back in school. He worries that when we look back in 10 years are we going to see a generation of kids that have some sort of scar tissue from this whole pandemic environment.

For Clements, the pension debt looms large on his mind and should be paramount for lawmakers to tackle. His plan? Close the Delaware loophole that allows multi-state corporations to evade Pennsylvanias corporate net income taxes by incorporating a holding company in Delaware and moving profits there. Impose a wellhead tax on natural gas drillers. Legalize and tax marijuana. And freeze the defined benefit pension plan and move all employees into a 401(k) style plan, which some argue is unconstitutional.

As for McMaster, it is offering school choice, which he believes will lead to school districts spending less money and enabling them to lower school property taxes. He said, I think its especially evil that a person can work their whole lives to own a piece of property and have it completely paid off and yet still has to pay rent to the government to live there.

Funding their campaign

Gebhard said he has accepted money from political action committees to help fund his campaign and those contributions came mostly from business-related groups. The other three said they steered clear of that money that can potentially influence votes and instead are paying for their campaigns out of their own pockets and with money from individual donors.

Voting

If you are a registered voter, regardless of party, you have the opportunity to vote for one of these candidates on the May 18 primary ballot provided you live in any of the following municipalities: All Lebanon County municipalities; the Dauphin County municipalities of Conewago, Londonderry, Swatara and Lower Swatara townships and the boroughs of Highspire, Middletown, Paxtang, Royalton and Steelton; and the York County municipalities of Conewago, East Manchester, Newberry and Springettsbury townships and the boroughs of Goldsboro, Lewisberry, Manchester, Mount Wolf, and York Haven.

Jan Murphy may be reached at jmurphy@pennlive.com. Follow her on Twitter at @JanMurphy.
By: PA State Sen. Mike Regan

On Tuesday, May 18, voters will head to the polls for Pennsylvanias primary election, and in addition to local government races, electors will be asked to vote on four separate ballot questions, which have been authorized by the General Assembly. It is important to understand exactly what these ballot questions are asking and what your yes vote means.

Throughout COVID, people have felt powerless and now the legislature is returning power to the people through these ballot questions. Unfortunately, Gov. Tom Wolf and his administration continue to mislead the people of Pennsylvania with false information about two of the questions with regard to future emergency declarations.

Gov. Wolf first issued a COVID emergency declaration in March 2020. Current law provides for an emergency declaration to last up to 90 days and be renewed by the governor indefinitely. He has renewed his declaration four times since last March with absolutely no collaboration with the legislature.

Current law also provides for the General Assembly to end a declaration through the passage of what is called a concurrent resolution, but our state constitution requires all concurrent resolutions to go before the Governor. Not surprisingly, Governor Wolf vetoed our attempt to end his COVID declaration last year.

And that is why two of the four constitutional amendments appearing on the May 18 ballot are so important. One limits an emergency declaration to 21 days unless the General Assembly approves a longer duration. The other clarifies that the governor will not be able to unilaterally veto legislative action that ends the declaration.

The governors actions during COVID have had zero checks and balances. He has single-handedly dismantled that key function of government, which our country was founded on. Our governor, who touts transparency, has refused to discuss his strategies and decisions with the legislature  your representatives in government. I saw this firsthand as Chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee as the governor shut down businesses, closed schools, altered election laws, and paralyzed the commonwealths economy. We cannot allow this unilateral decision-making power, which is not granted anywhere in state law or our constitution, to continue.

And it is important to remember that this is not just an issue in Pennsylvania. More than 30 other states are taking back control from governors  from both sides of the aisle  that cut out the legislature and took it upon themselves to rewrite laws and set policy that negatively impacted the people of their states.

So, do not be fooled by the governors disingenuous claims or his Department of State, which by law, is charged with writing the ballot questions in response to all legislation authorizing constitutional amendments passed by the General Assembly. Unfortunately, instead of giving Pennsylvania voters a clear, concise and fair explanation of these two amendments on the ballot, the Department of State gave us 145 words worth of confusing, partisan propaganda. This is a clear attempt to sabotage these amendments so Gov. Wolf can maintain his dictatorship.

What is important to remember when you go to the polls on May 18th is that your yes vote means returning power to the people by ensuring your elected senators and representatives are part of the decision-making process for emergency declarations by requiring the Governor to work with the legislature.

It is as simple as:

Question 1  YES Vote Means: A majority of state lawmakers, elected by the people, can vote to end emergency declarations and restrictions on citizens.

Question 2  YES Vote Means: Emergency declarations are limited to 21 days unless the General Assembly, elected by the people, approves longer.

To learn more about these and the other two ballot questions, voters can visit: https://issue.pasenategop.com/ballot-question/. And those registered as Independent CAN vote on the ballot questions during the primary.

Senator Mike Regan represents Pennsylvanias 31st Senatorial District covering parts of Cumberland and York Counties.
By Joe Mario Pedersen, Orlando Sentinel (TNS)

ORLANDO, Fla.  A lightning strike blew up part of a Florida highway and sent a chunk of it into the windshield of a moving vehicle.

The strike occurred just before 7:30 a.m. on Monday, according to Walton County Fire Rescue.

First responders responded to a call in reference to a traffic crash involving a truck and road debris on Interstate 10 a few miles before the U.S. Highway 331 exit in Walton County.

A truck's windshield and back window is shattered after lightning struck a highway in Florida, sending a chunk of the roadway into the vehicle. Two people were injured. (Walton County Fire Rescue)TNS

The crew arrived to find a black truck with a massive hole in the windshield and a blown-out back window panel. The lightning strike sent a piece of the roadway flying into the windshield and injured two occupants inside, WCFR said.

Both people were sent to the hospital, but no information on their status was released.

More: Massive waterspout draws the attention of residents as it spins up in N.J.s Barnegat Bay
Young people line up for COVID-19 vaccines at Downsview Arena in Toronto on Monday, May 10, 2021. Ontario has just opened up vaccines for 18+ in high risk areas. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
Brigadier-General Jennie Carignan of the Canadian Armed Forces joins soldiers during a lunch with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Jens Stoltenberg at Canadian Forces Base Petawawa, Ont. on Monday, July 15, 2019. A parliamentary committee will hear this morning from Carigan, who was recently tapped to lead the military's efforts to change its culture.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
Fridays ceremony is now canceled. The Grissom family sent a letter on May 8 addressed to the mayor writing, in part, they believe the judge wouldnt have wanted to place his name above any other past, present or future judges. They also asked the city not name any court building in honor of a person in light of contributions made by other judges and how there are other ways to honor them. Attempts to reach the Grissom family were not successful.
The last thing you expect to see while spending a quiet day fishing is a Bigfoot moving about on the shoreline and throwing rocks. A Kentuc...
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Bloom coworking, a nonprofit coworking space dedicated to bringing more businesses to Portsmouth, will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony with the City of Portsmouth at 11 a.m. on May 12. The celebration, initially scheduled for its November opening on High Street, will include refreshments and socially distanced tours. A gift of appreciation will be given to the first 50 visitors. The event will coincide with the announcement of a Go Virginia grant for the Startup Stability Program and the recognition of Bloom coworking as a Top to Watch honoree in the Hampton Roads Chamber Small Business of the Year awards.
They said they were pleased the Biden administration listened to their calls to give state and local governments flexibility in using the money. It should help the state and its cities and counties recover from the impact of lost revenue, as well as boosting public health efforts and broadband expansion, the senators said.
Satellite-Winner "McDavid97" Hoping for $395K Payday in GGPoker Super MILLION$

May 11, 2021 Matthew Pitt

The 48th edition of the GGPoker Super MILLION$ has reached the final table stage after the 191 starters were whittled to a more manageable final table of nine on May 9. Those nine players return to their seats at 7:00 p.m. BST on May 10 and battle it out until only one of them remains. That solitary figure gets to call themselves the Super MILLION$ champion for this week, in addition to walking away with $394,852 in prize money.

Watch This Star-Studded Final Table Unfold Who will win this week's Super MILLION$? Find out right here Head to GGPoker's YouTube channel

Super MILLION$ Final Table Chip Counts

Place Player Country Chips 1 McDavid97 Canada 3,719,502 2 Daniel Dvoress Canada 3,254,568 3 Mike Watson Canada 3,022,892 4 DaiMing141319 UAE 2,467,314 5 Guillaume Nolet Canada 1,918,648 6 Ami Barer Canada 1,621,964 7 Idris Ambraisse Morocco 1,351,343 8 Preben Stokkan United Kingdom 1,086,480 9 Fabrice Touil Morocco 657,289

Reichtenstein & Mackoff Latest WSOPC Ring Winners at GGPoker

GGPoker was left nursing a $90,000 overlay courtesy of 191 players leaving the $2 million guarantee short. Only the top 20 finishers secured a slice of the $2 million pie, so spare a thought for Matthias Eibinger who finished in 21st place and was the last star to return home empty-handed.

Eibinger's demise was the gain of the surviving 20 players because they locked up at least $25,778. The likes of Dario Sammartino, last week's Super MILLION$ champion Wiktor Malinowski, and former champ Joakim Andersson each bowed out in the first level of payouts. Patrick Leonard's exit in 10th place set the star-studded final table; Leonard banked $48,644.

Super MILLION$ Final Table Payouts

Place Prize 1 $394,852 2 $312,889 3 $247,939 4 $196,472 5 $155,688 6 $123,370 7 $97,761 8 $77,468 9 $61,387

Each of the nine finalists is now guaranteed $61,387 but one of them will pad their bankroll with almost $400,000  $394,852 to be exact. Canada's "McDavid97" is the player leading the charge for that astronomical sum right now thanks to having 3,719,502 chips in their stack.

McDavid97 won their seat for only $525, so is already guaranteed a massive return on that investment. They have their sights firmly set on more than the ninth-place payout and have every chance of walking away as the tournament's champion.

The overnight chip leader will not have matters their own way, however, because there are some legitimate stars in the chasing pack. Daniel Dvoress is one such star, one making what is his seventh Super MILLION$ final table appearance. Dvoress finished third on January 24, 2021, which was his best result so far in this tournament. He will, no doubt, have his eye on the main prize.

Mike Watson is the man occupying third place at the restart, and is another player who will be bitterly disappointed with any finishing position less than first place. Watson has now cashed in 15 of his 47 Super MILLION$ appearances, with six of those cashes occurring at the final table. Like Dvoress, Watson has never finished higher than third.

Fourth place when the cards are back in the air belongs to "DaiMing141319" of the UAE. DaiMing141319 won their seat via a $1,050 satellite and is hoping to parlay that satellite win into a six-figure prize. This is their first cash and, therefore, first final table from four attempts. Will it be their first win? DaiMing141319 has won the $1,050 Super Tuesday and a $2,625 GG Spring Festival High Roller recently so knows their way around a poker table.

Shawn Daniels Wins GGMasters High Roller For $141K

Reaching back-to-back Super MILLION$ final tables is no mean feat, so do not write of Guillaume Nolet's chances of glory despite him sitting back down fifth in chips. Nolet knows what it is like to win this event, having done so in October 2020. Last week's final table ended with a fifth-place finish. Nolet is hopeful history does not repeat itself on May 11.

Ami Barer, like Nolet, reached last week's Super MILLION$ final table but could not get the job done. Barer had to make do with a fourth place finish worth $196,472, and is gunning for revenge this week. Barer may be down in sixth place at the restart, but still has 32.4 big blinds in his stack. He will not be playing to ladder up the payouts, he will go for the outright victory.

Seventh-placed Idris Ambraisse, the Morocco-based Frenchman, has 27 big blinds in his stack despite being in far down the chip counts. Ambraisse came agonisingly close to winning a WSOP bracelet last summer when he finshed second in the $600 NLHE 6-Handed event. He collected $144,999 after losing out heads-up to Jeffrey Dobrin.

Preben Stokkan is a Norwegian based in the United Kingdom, and a superb tournament player. Stokkan has cashed for only the fourth time from 21 appearances, while this is his first Super MILLION$ final table. He is armed with 21.7 big blinds and his one double away from being able to make a real nuisance of himself.

Fabrice Touil is another Morocco-based French grinder who has reached the Super MILLION$ final table. Touil has four previous cashes in this event with two of those in-the-money finishes being at a final table. Both those final table grinds have ended in sixth-place. Sitting down with 13 big blinds is far from ideal, but at least Touil has some relatively easy decision at the start of play because he is essentially moving all-in or folding.
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The next vaccination clinic will be held in Goose Creek on May 29, at the Calvary Church of God and Christ at 302 Jeffs Circle, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.
Perhaps because stemware sellers have helped it along, most wine drinkers are familiar with the idea that each grape varietal demands a specific glass. Its less common to hear about matching oyster knives to oyster types, but material culture scholar and oyster grower Bernie Herman believes the practice ought to gain ground.

You can do the predictable with a ceramicist and come up with an oyster plate, said Herman, a Southern Studies professor at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, speaking of ways to enhance the oyster-eating experience through craft. But I noticed there is this market in handcrafted oyster knives, almost all of which destroy the oyster.

Theyre beautiful to look at, Herman continued. But they are objects which privilege eye over utility.

Instead, Herman would like to see blades shaped to correspond to the shell contours that reflect where an oyster was cultivated. A French-made oyster knife, for instance, is a beautiful object thats relatively useless when a Lowcountry oyster needs shucking.

How do you retain the utility of the tool but create an awareness of the world it maps? Herman said. Theres a big difference between opening an oyster and opening an oyster in such a way that all of its anatomical beauty is visible before you eat it.

Herman was prompted to think about the connection between manmade tools and oysters by Chow Chow, an Asheville, N.C.-based culinary event series. Chow Chow in 2019 launched as a traditional food-and-beverage festival but has since reinvented itself as a season of Southern Appalachian foodways programs emphasizing community and equity.

Between June and September, the nonprofit is offering sessions devoted to cooking with the discarded roots of fruits and flowers; the influence of forced migration on cuisine; regional stoneground flours; racism in the wine industry; and Oysters as Crafted Objects, a moderated discussion between Herman and a Spruce Pine, N.C., metalsmith.

According to Center for Craft curator Marilyn Zapf, who will serve as moderator, Herman and David Clemons will talk about decorative items created for oyster consumption, such as knives.

But theyll also explore the craft that oyster farmers practice when they grow oysters with aesthetics in mind, controlling the bivalves size and shape through seeding and harvesting methods.

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Something I think is so wonderful about craft is craft artists have the skills to make something uniform, even if its handmade, but they also have the ability to make something unique, Zapf said. Its deciding when to flex which muscle.

For many craftspeople, Zapf added, craft also entails paying attention to the environment, such as when wood has its own expression (that) needs to be realized."

Oysters are inseparable from the natural world, Herman said.

An oyster is a liquid animal, he said. It tastes exactly like its last address. When you taste an oyster, you are tasting the full breath of marine ecologies, which include what rivers empty into the sounds or bays or vast wetlands of the Lowcountry.

Contemporary diners expect all that complexity to be packed into a 3-inch-long shell. If an oyster gets much bigger, oyster bars and their customers are likely to reject it as unappealingly large. Since oysters kept growing when the pandemic held down demand for them, Herman has lately been working on a project to smoke oversized oysters grown along the eastern shore of Virginia.

He first had to figure out how to lightly steam the oysters before smoking them. Then he had to devise a technique for extracting them efficiently and intact from their shells.

A mangled oyster does not have a lot of appeal, he said.

Turns out it helps to have the right oyster knife.
Multiple 787 Dreamliner jets made their way into customers' hands in April, the first full month of deliveries for the North Charleston-based program since Boeing Co. ended its monthslong delivery hiatus.

Now deliveries for another jet program, the 737 Max, are paused after electrical issues were discovered that pulled dozens of the jets out of service.

The planemaker ended last month with nine Dreamliner deliveries, the highest monthly total for 787 handoffs in more than a year. In addition to slowing demand caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, production issues with 787s prompted widespread inspections and completely stalled deliveries for about five months.

CEO Dave Calhoun quoted the figure of nine 787 deliveries on the company's April 28 earnings call. He also cautioned during the call that Max deliveries in April would be "very light."

Just four 737 Max jets were delivered last month.

Deliveries of the Max had only recently started up again after federal regulators OK'd the jets to fly again after a 20-month grounding.

That new 737 delivery pause came just days after Boeing resumed Dreamliner deliveries with handoffs of two jets to United Airlines in late March.

United took delivery of another 787 in April. American Airlines, Atlantis Aviation Corp. and All Nippon Airways all also received one 787 last month. Japan Airlines took delivery of two, and Air Lease Corp. received three.

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The CEO of Los Angeles-based Air Lease, John Plueger, raised concerns about the Dreamliner delivery hiatus back in February on a company earnings call. Plueger had said it seemed like issues with the 787 had "mushroomed" and said it was "difficult to see a definitive fix" to the issues.

Boeing resumed Dreamliner deliveries about a month later.

Checks and rework on 787 jets are still underway, in North Charleston and at a widebody factory in Everett, Wash. where, until recently, Boeing was also assembling new Dreamliners. The planemaker consolidated the program in South Carolina earlier this year.

With eight months of deliveries left to log and an average of five additional 787s being built every month, Boeing will have to maintain its April pace for Dreamliner deliveries the rest of this year to meet its goal to unload most of the 787s it has in inventory by the end of 2021.

The 787 delivery pause, along with ongoing production, meant that the aircraft started piling up. In January, about 80 finished 787s were waiting to be delivered, and, on the last earnings call, Boeing finance chief Greg Smith said that number had grown to about 100 jets.

April marked Boeing's third consecutive month with positive net orders. It secured commitments for 25 jets and logged 17 cancellations.

No new orders for Dreamliners were recorded in April, but Boeing did announce early this month that the German airline group Lufthansa agreed to purchase five so-called white tail 787s, or already-built planes that are in need of a buyer.

Those five were tacked onto an earlier order from 2019, bringing Lufthansa's total purchase to 25 Dreamliners.
Charleston officials, in response to a bloody brawl near King Street over the weekend, are increasing the city's police presence, restricting parking and changing the traffic patterns in the central tourism district.

Mayor John Tecklenburg, City Council members and several business owners from downtown Charleston announced the changes at a May 11 news conference. They take effect this week.

The number of officers patrolling King Street during the weekends, Tecklenburg suggested, could "double or triple," depending on what is required to tamp down the recent violence in the area.

The city also plans to cut off northbound traffic on King Street between Spring and Mary streets on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings. The city also has plans to close the parking spaces along the thoroughfare from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m. on Friday and Saturday evenings.

During a meeting Tuesday night, City Council members voted to extend Tecklenburg's ability to call a curfew for another 30 days.

"In light of some things happening around the nation, in our own community, residents and businesses would like a continuation of this option," Councilwoman Marie Delcioppo said.

The incident that prompted the changes occurred on May 9. Charleston Police Chief Luther Reynolds estimated roughly 100 people were involved in what he described as a "melee" that ended with several individuals being stabbed and shot in the street.

One suspect, Zyarie Dazure Orum, 18, of North Charleston, was arrested Tuesday and charged with two counts of attempted murder and possession of a weapon. But Reynolds said the Police Department is still investigating the other shootings and stabbings. Records show she was booked into the Al Cannon Detention Center at 6:06 p.m. May 11.

"We have a very safe city and we are going to do a great deal of adjustment to make sure that we keep it safe," Reynolds said. "We will not tolerate that type of violence."

The promise to increase police patrols downtown came after the city received complaints from neighborhood business owners who warned the unchecked disorder could drive people away from the popular strip.

Since the May 30, 2020, riot along King Street, owners of restaurants and bars which lost revenue and employees to the pandemic have sought to project the message that the area is a safe place to work and relax.

Many businesses in the area were already struggling due to financial losses they sustained during the pandemic in the past year and they are now concerned the stabbings, shootings and disorder could drive away the remaining tourism revenue that is available in the city.

Ahmed Hassan owns two businesses along King Street that are close to where the massive fight broke out on May 9. He watched the violence on his security system and described the brawl as "wild" and "destructive."

The fight eventually sent several people to the hospital with stab wounds. Charleston police officers also reported that they were "overwhelmed by the crowd" as they tried to make arrests and bring the fight to an end.

Hassan, who was not on King Street at the time, ordered his employee to lock the doors and turn out the lights at his College Market convenience store. It was the only thing he could think to do to protect his business, which was damaged last year when a peaceful protest over police brutality turned into destructive rioting.

With the number of coronavirus cases in Charleston ebbing, Hassan had hoped his business prospects would turn around. But he's worried the atmosphere on King Street in recent weeks could scare potential customers away.

Hassan said he is unsure if a broader police presence will be enough, and he wondered whether it would be more productive to shut down the bars and night clubs on King Street earlier than 2 a.m.

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That's exactly what some business owners are already doing.

Two months after celebrating the end of a statewide alcohol curfew, which downtown Charleston bar owners blamed for crushing their business, some of the same restaurateurs have begun voluntarily closing early to protect their employees and guests.

Business owners close to the recent fights said an atmosphere of lawlessness has intensified over the past few weeks, despite their appeals to city officials to address the situation.

Theyre dancing on vehicles and calling it a block party, said Brittany Reed, who manages Deco and Ink near the corner of King and Woolfe streets. Its so intimidating after 12 o'clock. I was so uncomfortable I couldn't walk between the two (nightclubs)."

According to Reed, food-and-beverage employees who have stuck with the industry throughout the pandemic are now afraid to retrieve their cars after work without security escorts.

Its to point where you cannot move on the sidewalk, and these thuggy guys will grab at girls' arms, Reed said. This is a bachelorette city, and they need to make it safe for women."

Mike Shuler, owner of Vintage Lounge, expressed similar concerns in an email to Tecklenburg, Reynolds, City Council members and local hospitality leaders earlier this week.

This situation has snowballed into the nightmare scenario we are faced with now, Shuler wrote in the letter, obtained by The Post and Courier, outlining a powder keg scene in which hundreds of underage people converge upon the 500 block of King Street to tailgate.

Bystanders simply out to enjoy a night on the town in our beautiful city were forced to literally scatter when the agitators took control, he continued, crediting an outnumbered and overwhelmed police force with doing what it could to tackle the most serious incidents.

Shuler was one of the business owners to meet with city officials on Wednesday before Tecklenburg and others held their news conference. The city leaders ultimately accepted some of the recommendations Shuler laid out in his earlier letter.

Craig Nelson, owner of Proof, described the recent outbreaks of violence as "unnerving." Nelson's King Street cocktail bar is just south of the area where crowds gather, but he's walked up that way to see what's happening.

"It's pretty intimidating," he said. "That's a pretty rowdy group."

Nelson said he and his bartenders are taking the perceived threat of violence into account when tourists ask where they should get their next drinks.

Previously, they would have suggested that patrons check out Prohibition, at 547 King St. Now, they're more likely to advise weekend visitors to "maybe not go past Cocktail Club" at 479 King St. when barhopping.

That's not the type of environment city leaders want in the heart of Charleston, one of the biggest tourism destinations in the United States.

The changes the city and the Police Department are rolling out, Tecklenburg said, should make King Street "safer, friendlier and more hospitable."

Gregory Yee contributed to this report.
Dominion Energy has wrapped up one of the last legal disputes remaining from the failure of South Carolina's $9 billion nuclear expansion project.

The Virginia-based power giant has agreed to provide more than $99 million in cash and economic development help to Fairfield County, where the promised V.C. Summer nuclear plant expansion was supposed to generate tens of millions of new tax dollars each year.

The deal, approved by Fairfield County Council on May 10, will pay for a new $45.7 million sewage-treatment plant and nearly $11.7 million toward preparing county-owned sites for major economic development projects. Dominion will hand the county more than $27.1 million in cash.

Dominion and Fairfield County officials described the deal as a win-win. The county will get help with infrastructure projects it needs to spur the local economy. Dominion will have the right to sell electricity to any new businesses and homes that come from the county's growth.

"They're helping to rebuild the county and mitigate some of the damage, so it's an outstanding solution," Fairfield County economic development director Ty Davenport said.

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The agreement comes nearly four years after the project's collapse in July 2017. The expansion of the existing V.C. Summer Nuclear Power Station in Jenkinsville was expected to put South Carolina at the forefront of a national nuclear renaissance and generate $30 million to $50 million new tax dollars per year for Fairfield County.

But the owners, Cayce-based South Carolina Electric and Gas and state-owned Santee Cooper, cut the cord after nearly a decade of construction, chronically missed deadlines and budget overruns. The two utilities wasted a collective $9 billion on the venture, much of which will be footed by their ratepayers in the coming decades.

Dominion purchased a reeling SCE&G in January 2019 and took over the utility's legal liabilities. The company has reached a series of settlements with SCE&G's former ratepayers and investors in an effort to move on from V.C. Summer.

"It is clear that Dominion Energy is committed to becoming a friend to South Carolina and particularly Fairfield County," County Council Chairman Moses Bell wrote in a statement about the deal. "In the end, Dominion Energy's goal was not to defeat us, but to help us in our efforts to improve the quality of life of our citizens."
Welcome back pirates! As you make your return to campus The East Carolinian has created a forum that centers around topics within the community where readers can express their experiences and concerns. With the new guidelines set in place by East Carolina University do you feel as these precautions will keep you safe?

Survey
One of South Carolina's largest publicly traded companies has agreed to be sold to a Canadian rival in a deal that will take it private.

Fort Mill-based Domtar Corp. will be operated as standalone business after the estimated $3 billion all-cash acquisition by Paper Excellence closes later this year.

"As such, Domtar will continue to be led by its management team, and Paper Excellence plans to retain its corporate and production locations," according to a written statement issued May 11.

In a recorded message to workers, the company addressed the uncertainty that often follows a merger announcement. It stressed that "very little will change in the short term.

"There are no facility closures planned. Our offices in Montreal and Fort Mill will remain as they are. There are no layoffs anticipated. The Domtar name, our organizational structure, our management team, our manufacturing assets, our customers, our suppliers  all stay the same. ... We will continue to be a Delaware-registered U.S. corporation, with our own balance sheet, owned by the Paper Excellence family," according to a transcript of the recording filed with stock market regulators.

Domtar stockholders will receive $55.50 a share, a 37 percent increase from May 3, the day before the South Carolina pulp and paper maker confirmed the companies were engaged in merger discussions.

This agreement enables our shareholders to realize certain and immediate cash value at a significant premium for their shares, Domtar CEO John D. Williams said in a written statement. This transaction validates our long-term strategic plan for our leading paper and pulp businesses, and for our continued expansion into packaging.

Domtar has a long history that dates back to the 1840s, and it maintains strong ties to Canada, where it was incorporated in 1929 as Dominion Tar and Chemical. It has kept its U.S. headquarters in the Palmetto State since about 2007, when it acquired a paper business that was based in Fort Mill.

Domtar employs about 6,600 workers and operates 23 manufacturing plants in North America, including a mill in Bennettsville and two paper converting plants in Rock Hill and Marlboro County. With $3.65 billion in revenue last year, it is South Carolina's second-largest public company behind Sonoco Products based on that measurement.

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The acquisition will expand Paper Excellence's footprint beyond its eight Canadian manufacturing locations.

This marks a major step in our global strategy of identifying well-positioned assets and positioning them for growth," said Joe Ragan, chief financial officer.

The British Columbia-based company is "enthusiastic about entering" the U.S. market, he added.

Domtar's paper revenue took a 16 percent hit last year after COVID-19 pandemic shut down offices and schools worldwide.

In response, the company mapped outa $200 million cost-cutting plan that eliminated about 750 jobs. It also announced it will invest up to $350 million to make cardboard packaging  a new product line for Domtar  at a Tennessee mill and it sold off a subsidiary that made absorbent personal-care fabrics to focus on its core paper and pulp business.

The company said its board has unanimously approved the sale to Paper Excellence. Shareholders will vote on it later this year.

Domtar's stock, which trades in the U.S. under the symbol UFS, jumped nearly 17 percent to close at $55.38, just 12 cents shy of the buyout price.
WEST COLUMBIA  An Arkansas-based pharmaceutical company paid Lexington County's Nephron Pharmaceuticals $7.9 million to settle a pair of federal court cases claiming it stole trade secrets when it hired former employees of the South Carolina company.

U.S. Compounding Inc. and its parent company, Adamis Pharmaceuticals, agreed to the sum that ended the three-year legal battle this week.

Adamis did not immediately respond to The Post and Courier's request for comment.

The fight centered around two employees who went to work for U.S. Compounding after leaving Nephron and providing Nephron's confidential customer and pricing information to their new employer, a direct competitor.

One of the women was a sales representative in the Midwest and had worked for Nephron for about 16 years, selling its products to hospitals in that area. The other's sales territory covered New Jersey.

"I had no idea someone working within our organization would do something like this," Nephron CEO Lou Kennedy said.

According to court documents, on her last day of employment with Nephron, the first former employee downloaded data from the company's customer management system onto a hard drive that included contacts for current and prospective customers, customers' order history and purchasing habits, as well as pricing details for those orders.

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This is despite having signed a non-disclosure agreement with Nephron upon her employment with the company.

Nephron found out about the downloads after it was forwarded an email which the former employee had sent in her new role with U.S. Compounding to an existing Nephron customer, stating her new employer could offer the same drugs at a better price, Kennedy said.

Kennedy said her lawyers had to argue that this data fell within the legal definition of trade secrets. Ultimately the settlement amount was based on testimony by an expert witness for Nephron who enumerated the monetary value of the data.

In a recent financial filing with the federal Securities and Exchange Commission, Adamis maintained that Nephron's claims were without merit, but it opted to settle after losing several pretrial motions, citing the legal expenses and uncertainty of ongoing litigation and trial.

The settlement also included a permanent injunction against the companies and employees, forbidding any future use or sharing of the data.

We are pleased with the outcome of this matter, Kennedy said. This represents a win for the good guys  and serves as a reminder that there is a right way and wrong way to do business, that people should conduct themselves with integrity and that there is no substitute for hard work."
GEORGETOWN  In light of the heavy development happening around Georgetown, specifically in the Waccamaw Neck, county planning director Holly Richardson is proposing updates to its tree ordinance to ensure more of the region's beloved forestry is preserved.

One of the main changes to the ordinance is a site inspection requirement before any ground is broken. Richardson said previously, tree site inspections would sometimes occur in tandem with stormwater site inspections, but not because of any written requirement. Making it a requirement to have specific tree site inspections will ensure less foliage is cut down sooner, Richardson said.

Other amendments include adding in a tree fund, which would fund landscaping, public parks and the replanting of trees in the county from fines developers pay for various violations, such as cutting down unapproved trees.

Professor of forestry at Clemson University William Conner said replanting saplings in areas where mature trees were cut down is better than nothing, but not exactly an equitable practice.

Mature trees take in a significant amount of water, and in an area that floods like Georgetown, that intake is vital in preventing flooding, Conner said. Saplings cannot take in the same amount of water, and also not every sapling planted will survive to maturity, Conner said.

"A lot of these young trees, because they are not maintained or taken care of those early years, get to be misshapen, animals damage them or people damage them when they're doing their landscaping, lawn mowers and weed eaters," Conner said.

Richardson also is proposing lowering the size definition of a Grand Tree. If a tree is at least 30 inches wide four feet up from the ground, it is considered a Grand Tree under the existing ordinance and cannot be taken out for subdivisions, multifamily or commercial developments. The proposed ordinance would lower that number to 24 inches.

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Grand Trees in the Waccamaw Neck can be taken out, but only with a variance from the Zoning Board of Appeals, Richardson said. This is because most of the development pressure currently is happening in this area.

A local nonprofit called Keep It Green said it has heavily familiarized itself with both the current and proposed tree ordinances. Over the years, Keep It Green has organized to protest several zoning changes and developments across the county, some of which have been successful, it says.

Vice Chairman, Beverly Sullivan, said she has spoken a lot with Richardson and the planning staff about the proposed amendments to the tree ordinance, and while she is happy positive changes are being made, she's concerned with how they will be enforced.

"(The county) doesn't have the staff to do the enforcement that's required," Sullivan said.

Richardson said while the county and planning department does, in fact, enforce the existing tree ordinance, the new ordinance is being workshopped to do just what people like Sullivan want to see: strengthen enforcement.

"There are some cases where people get out there, cut a tree and don't get a permit, and it's hard for us to know what was removed," Richardson said. "We just have to work within the ordinances that we have, so that's why we were proposing this amendment: to give us a little bit more teeth when it comes to saving existing trees."

The tree ordinance will be up for discussion at the next Georgetown County Planning Commission meeting May 20.
GREENVILLE  In the wake of Gov. Henry McMaster's decision to reject expanded federal unemployment benefits months before they expire, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, state Sen. Karl Allen and a collection of Upstate faith leaders and activists have condemned the move.

Allen, D-Greenville, said during a news conference May 10 that opting out of the funding that bolsters unemployment payments is an attack on South Carolina's most vulnerable as the pandemic continues.

"Why would you turn away unemployment benefits during a jobs crisis?" he said.

The federal funding program, which adds $300 to weekly unemployment checks, will end in the state June 30, according to a statement from McMaster's office. The American Rescue Plan had extended the program until Sept. 6.

South Carolina, Montana and Arkansas are the only three states that have turned down the continued assistance.

In the statement, McMaster said the inflated payments are driving a labor shortage, particularly in the hospitality industry, by paying some South Carolinians more than they would receive if they went back to work.

Unemployment rates surged in South Carolina and beyond last year as the continued spread of the coronavirus took its toll on the global economy. New claims peaked at more than 87,000 in a single week in April 2020, according to data from the state Department of Employment and Workforce. The hospitality industry was hit particularly hard.

Now businesses like restaurants are struggling to fill empty positions.

"What was intended to be short-term financial assistance for the vulnerable and displaced during the height of the pandemic has turned into a dangerous federal entitlement," McMaster's statement said.

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In a memo to the governor, SCDEW Executive Director Dan Ellzey agreed that opting out of the program would alleviate the shortage. South Carolina's requirement that unemployment recipients actively seek work was suspended last year but reinstated last month.

During the May 10 news conference, Jackson said rejecting the funding puts an unfair burden on parents struggling to find and pay for child care as the pandemic continues, as well as people who are still struggling to find work. He said it was unconscionable to turn the money down as the coronavirus remains a serious health crisis.

"We needed relief before the pandemic and even more relief now," he said.

Businesses wouldn't be struggling to find workers if they paid employees a wage they could live on, he said.

Mary Wright, president of Democratic Women of Greenville County, echoed that sentiment during the event, saying that low-income employees have struggled during the pandemic and it has been challenging for women across the state to afford groceries and pay rent.

"This is a time that is desperate for all of us," she said. "So let's try and take care of out community and ask our governor, please reconsider."
South Carolina reported 277 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and four new deaths. The state ranks 42nd nationwide in terms of the number of vaccines administered per 100,000 people.

Here's the latest on the pandemic in South Carolina.

Pfizer COVID-19 shot expanded to US children as young as 12 COVID-19 vaccines finally are headed for more kids as U.S. regulators on Monday expanded use of Pfizer's shot to those as young as 12, sparking a race to protect middle and high school students before they head back to class in the fall.

5:38 p.m.  COVID-19 vaccines finally are headed for more kids as U.S. regulators on Monday expanded use of Pfizer's shot to those as young as 12, sparking a race to protect middle and high school students before they head back to class in the fall. Read more.

US Treasury to start paying out $350B in state and local coronavirus aid The aid is part of Biden's larger $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package that became law in March. Administration officials said payments could begin to go out in the coming days to eligible governments, allowing state, local, territorial and tribal officials to offset the economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Treasury Department on Monday launched its $350 billion program to distribute aid to state and local governments, giving the U.S. economy an added boost as President Joe Biden sought to assure the country that stronger growth is coming. Read more.

1 p.m.  South Carolina's state government will receive $435 million from the latest coronavirus relief package, according to allocations released by the federal government today. Read more.

SC reports 277 new cases of COVID-19, 4 deaths According to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control, the week leading up to May 8 saw about 4,000 COVID-19 cases  the lowest count since June of last year.

12:30 p.m.  The state began the week with low reports of COVID-19 cases and deaths, with 277 confirmed reports of the disease among South Carolinians and four deaths. Read more.

AP-NORC poll: Biden approval buoyed by his pandemic response The survey shows Biden is buoyed in particular by the public's broad backing for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

11:50 a.m.  The survey shows Biden is buoyed in particular by the public's broad backing for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Read more.

+6 Could be Labor Day before Carnival resumes Charleston cruises Carnival Cruise Line has removed all Charleston sailings through August from its website as confusion over coronavirus health protocols continue to vex the industry.

11 a.m.  Carnival Cruise Line has removed all Charleston sailings through August from its website as confusion over coronavirus health protocols continue to vex the industry. Read more.

+3 With vaccine uptake in SC low, public health leaders struggle to confront skepticism Only about 2 percent of the state's adult population is becoming fully vaccinated against COVID-19 each week. At the current rate, it would take months to get 70 percent of people inoculated.

Sunday, 3 p.m.  Its becoming clear that reaching herd immunity through vaccines wont happen any time soon  if at all  as South Carolinas public health leaders are beginning to say it might not be possible to convince everyone they should get a shot.

Only about 2 percent of the states adult population is becoming fully vaccinated against COVID-19 each week. At the current pace, it would take at least another five months to get 70 percent of people inoculated. (Read more)

Roughly one-third of SC residents 15 and older are vaccinated More than a third of South Carolina residents eligible for the coronavirus vaccine are now considered fully vaccinated, according to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.

Sunday, 1 p.m.  More than a third of South Carolina residents eligible for the coronavirus vaccine are now considered fully vaccinated, according to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.

Thirty-four percent of citizens age 15 and older have either two doses of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Read more about where the Palmetto State stands here.
Gasoline suppliers are warning service station operators in South Carolina that fuel shortages are possible after a cyberattack last week on Colonial Pipeline caused the company to shut down its massive fuel-distribution system.

Some service stations in North Myrtle Beach and Greenville were already turning away motorists seeking to refuel their vehicles on May 11. Motorists piled into stations still selling gas, causing long lines that delayed traffic in some areas.

Gov. Henry McMaster said on Twitter his office has been in constant communication with the Office of Regulatory Staff about the pipeline shutdown. That agency is responsible for managing the state's utility industries, including natural gas.

"There is no need to rush to top off your gas tanks or hoard gas  the pipeline is expected to resume operations by the end of the week," McMaster tweeted.

Colonial Pipeline, which delivers roughly 45 percent of fuel consumed on the East Coast, announced May 7 it was halting all pipeline operations after the company was victimized by a ransomware attack.

On May 10, the company said it was working toward "substantially restoring operational service" by the weekend.

Colonial Pipeline did not say what was demanded or who made the demand, but the FBI identified software belonging to the Russian-speaking criminal syndicate DarkSide as being used in the attack. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who seize data and demand a large payment in order to release it.

The attacks have impacted the price of gas and its availability in South Carolina and along the East Coast.

Almost a half-dozen gas stations along a 3-mile stretch of North Pleasantburg Drive, a five-lane urban highway in the city of Greenville, ran out of fuel by lunchtime on May 11. A clerk at a Sunoco station said he'd run out of regular unleaded gas by 7 a.m. and was out of supreme by noon.

Another clerk, this one at a Citgo station in Greenville, said he'd run out of gas about 11 a.m. Motorists pulling up to the station called out to each other asking for tips on where to get gas.

"I'm down to my last quarter-tank," one man said.

In North Myrtle Beach, vehicles idling outside the Circle K at 33rd Avenue South were backed up onto U.S. Highway 17, snarling traffic.

The Walmart Neighborhood Market at The Market Common in Myrtle Beach had an employee directing traffic as lines for its pumps began to grow.

Service station operators contacted in the Charleston area said they had not yet experienced shortages, but suppliers were warning it was a possibility this week.

Mustafa Abukhdeir, owner of Kelly's Quick Stop in North Charleston, said he doubled his order for fuel three days ago after the station's supplier warned him about the impact the cyberattack would have on local fuel availability.

Even when fuel is available, it's more expensive. The average price of regular unleaded gas in South Carolina has risen about 13 cents in the past week, from $2.61 a gallon a week ago to $2.74 on May 11, according to AAA Carolinas.

The manager of a Shell Station on King Street in Charleston she had to raise prices three times in as many days, from $2.80 on May 9 to $2.90 on May 11.

Tiffany Wright, director of public affairs for AAA Carolinas, said the spike in prices was a direct result of the pipeline shutdown. The longer it stays offline, the more potential there is for shortages and higher prices, she said.

Rick Todd, president of the South Carolina Trucking Association, said there was a lot of uncertainty in the trucking industry about fuel availability and supply shortages. Extensive fuel shortages combined with pre-existing supply chain challenges could create problems for the trucking industry, he said.

A spokesman for the school district in Greenville County, the state's largest, said its fleet of more than 300 state- and locally-owned buses should make it through the fuel crisis just fine. The district's two underground tanks also have plenty of diesel to get through the week, the spokesman said.

Attorney General Alan Wilson said in a news release May 11 the Colonial Pipeline's shutdown was causing an abnormal disruption in the market. As a result, the state's fuel gouging statute would be put into effect for 15 days, unless notice of the disruption was rescinded sooner.

Im urging everyone to be careful and be patient, Wilson said. We hope this gas shortage will last just a few days, but we must be wary of individuals looking to unfairly take advantage of the situation through price gouging. According to state law, price gouging constitutes a criminal violation and an unfair trade practice."

Price gouging, or "excessive pricing," is a misdemeanor offense punishable by a $1,000 fine and up to 30 days in jail.

Residents can report price gouging by emailing pricegouging@scag.gov, calling 803-737-3953 or filling out a form on the attorney general office's website at www.scag.gov.

Richard Caines in Myrtle Beach, Adam Benson in Columbia and Anna B. Mitchell in Greenville contributed to this report. Information from the Associated Press also was used.
Passenger numbers in April down by 92% compared to the same month in 2019

Heathrow's boss has criticised the low number of countries on the UKs green travel list and said that the US must be included in the next update.

Chief executive John Holland-Kaye said: "The government's green list is very welcome, but they need to expand it massively in the next few weeks to include other low-risk markets such as the United States and remove the need for fully vaccinated passengers to take two expensive PCR tests.

Holland-Kaye was speaking after another set of grim numbers for the airport, with passenger numbers in April down by 92% compared to the same month in 2019.

The current green list of countries is overcautious, he added, and the next review on 17 May needs to include the US.

Just 12 countries were included with Portugal and Israel the only major tourist destinations on the list while others such as Australia have restrictions on travellers from the UK.

Government should help people plan ahead by publishing a list of countries expected to be on the green list for the summer holidays so that passengers are not faced with high prices for last-minute bookings," Holland-Kaye added.

By the end of June, Heathrow also wants to see people who are fully vaccinated allowed to travel without restriction.

He welcomed automated check-in but said it was the responsibility of Ministers that every desk is staffed at peak times to avoid unacceptable queue times.

Border Force's claims that "long queues in immigration are inevitable" smack of complacency - they are completely avoidable if Ministers ensure that all desks are staffed at peak times."
North Augusta, SC (29841)

Today

Partly cloudy skies this morning will become overcast during the afternoon. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 91F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Considerable cloudiness. Low 73F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.
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.
A week of debate in the Senate didnt produce a good reason for South Carolina to let people carry handguns openly in public. We heard that people want to do this, and that some mistakenly believe the U.S. Constitution gives them a right to do it, but thats not the same as a reason the state should allow it.

But now that the Senate has passed H.3094 by a vote of 28-16, and with Gov. Henry McMaster champing at the bit to sign any sort of open-carry bill into law, its clear that its going to be allowed. The only question at this point is what else is going to be included in the bill.

Unfortunately, the Senate added two bad provisions to the bill. Fortunately, it also added one good provision.

Lets start with the bad: After senators wisely refused to fling the door wide open to everyone who wants to carry a gun, no background check or training required, they voted to eliminate the $50 application fee for the concealed-weapons permit that people still will need to carry weapons in public, concealed or unconcealed. That fee covers, among other things, the cost of the criminal background check and the red tape the department has to go through to deny a permit.

The so-called constitutional-carry crowd said people shouldnt have to pay a fee to do what the Second Amendment allows them to do, which would be a great argument if the Second Amendment actually allowed them to carry guns anywhere they want. But the U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly made it clear that the Constitution doesn't provide unlimited gun rights.

So what this provision actually says is that the Senate thinks its so important for people to carry their guns in public that the vast majority of South Carolinians who do not choose to do that have to subsidize those who do. Just think about that.

Heres another bad addition. Under current law, if someone wants a permit but is unable to comply with the part of the law that requires people to pass an approved training course or meet one of the many exemptions from this requirement, SLED has to provide the training course, at a below-market cost of $50. The Senate amended that to prohibit SLED from charging for the course, which means that reasonable people will now just demand their free SLED course rather than paying someone to provide it. So thats one more way taxpayers will subsidize the proliferation of guns in public places.

On the other hand, the Senate added a provision to the bill that should reduce the chance that bad guys will be able to get a concealed weapons permit  or even purchase a gun.

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Under current law, court officials have at least 30 days to notify SLED of court actions. An amendment offered by a bipartisan group of open-carry supporters and opponents and approved by an overwhelming voice vote cuts that time to five days, plus weekends, and adds indictments and restraining orders that might not otherwise be covered.

Supporters said this would prevent people from receiving a concealed-weapons permit after, say, a restraining order has been issued but before SLED knows about it. And thats important. But more important is that it cuts down the lag time that can allow people to purchase weapons in violation of federal law.

Federal law requires people to pass an FBI criminal background check before purchasing a gun, but stores can sell the weapon if the FBI hasnt denied an application within 72 hours. This nonsensical provision is what we call the Charleston loophole, a term coined after a white supremacist was able to purchase the gun he used to slaughter the nine innocents at Emanuel AME Church  even though he had an arrest that should have disqualified him from being able to buy a gun.

The Senate bill wouldnt close the loophole, and it wouldnt even have speeded up the background check of Dylann Roof: The problem in that case stemmed from a jail officer who entered the wrong arresting agency when the killer was arrested on drug charges, which led to an FBI official calling the wrong police department in search of additional information and delayed the background check past the three days allowed by federal law.

Theres no good reason to let people purchase guns just because the FBI hasnt completed a background check in three days  particularly since nearly all background checks are completed within three days.

And if the Legislature is determined to encourage more people to carry guns in public, and in a more provocative way, it would make sense also to give the FBI a few more days to complete those background checks, to reduce the risk of selling guns to the wrong people.

But while we wait for the FBI to clean up its problems with background checks, and while we wait for Congress or the states to give it more time to conduct those checks, anything we can do to eliminate reporting delays in the criminal justice system will prevent some people from purchasing guns who are barred by law from purchasing them.

The least the House could do is to eliminate those gun-subsidy provisions the Senate tacked onto the open-carry bill, and accept the Senate's requirement that our court officials work a little faster to get current court information into criminal databases so we can keep guns out of the wrong hands.
The S.C. Corrections Department says it intends to release the name of any prisoner who is executed whenever South Carolina gets back into the execution business. That's the good news. The bad news is that it's not releasing the names of any other prisoners who die in state custody unless or until Attorney General Alan Wilson says it may.

The new prison policy came to light earlier this month, when a man who had been sentenced to 421 years in prison in 2006 for kidnapping a 14-year-old girl, repeatedly raping her and holding her hostage inside an explosive-laden underground bunker died in state prison.

It was a notorious crime that inspired a Lifetime TV movie, and his passing is something our government should tell us about automatically. But the news coverage about Vinson Filyaws death was based on anonymous sources, because the Corrections Department said only the coroner could provide the name of the prisoner who was found dead in his cell, and McCormick County Coroner Faye Puckett refused to do so.

There is no justification for the coroners behavior, and voters should let her know that if and when she runs for reelection. But Columbias State newspaper reports that the Corrections Department had instituted a new policy in January against identifying dead inmates, based on concerns that doing so might be illegal.

The first thing that needs to be said is that any law that would restrict what a prison can tell the public about inmate deaths is a law that needs changing. We ought to know pretty much everything that is knowable when someone dies in state custody, partly so we can hold prison officials accountable if they contributed to that death.

The law in question is the federal health privacy law known as HIPAA, which serves a useful purpose but also has put ridiculous amounts of information out of public reach, and has created an industry of litigation over what sort of information it does and doesnt allow governments, businesses and nonprofits to release or request.

The second thing that needs to be said concerns that might be illegal part. Corrections spokeswoman Chrysti Shain tells us that prison medical officials raised concerns in January, based on changes to the ever-changing HIPAA rules and their new realization that the agency was releasing the names of dead prisoners. So the agency asked a HIPAA expert for a legal opinion. When that opinion came back inconclusive, the agency requested what it assumed would be a quick-turnaround opinion from Mr. Wilson's office  and stopped releasing the names of dead prisoners while it awaited that opinion.

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Corrections Director Bryan Stirling said he wants to release the names but felt like he needed to stop until he gets the legal all-clear. The elaborate procedure his agency has devised to get the information to the public seems to confirm his desire: Ms. Shain asks the coroner in the county where an inmate dies to release the name  since coroners arent considered health care providers and a prison spokeswoman  might be.

Usually coroners cooperate, and an agency news release announces the death and quotes the coroner identifying the deceased. In fact, no one seemed to notice the January change until Mr. Filyaw's death this month, because either coroners cooperated or the names of the deceased weren't the newsworthy information  for instance in the case of COVID deaths.

While we respect Mr. Stirlings desire to be careful, we believe he should have maintained the old policy unless the attorney general told him that federal law prohibited that. In fact, all government officials should err on the side of releasing too much information  particularly when it's information about how the government exercises its police powers.

Frankly, an attorney general's opinion should have been the first thing the Corrections Department requested once the question arose. One of the attorney generals most important jobs, after all, is to provide just this sort of legal advice to government agencies.

Mr. Wilsons office says its been busy producing other opinions and that this one is more complicated than it looks but that it hopes to have it finished this week. We wish it could have been produced sooner; perhaps it would have been prioritized if the request had made it clear that Corrections was withholding names until it got an opinion  as it should have.

But whats most important now is to get some clarity on the question. And if the opinion is that releasing the names of deceased inmates does indeed violate the federal privacy law, Mr. Wilson needs to help Corrections devise a way around that problem. If nothing else, the Legislature should require coroners to release the names.
COLUMBIA  Gov. Henry McMaster ordered an immediate end to mask mandates in South Carolina, saying the widespread availability of COVID-19 vaccines means governments should stop dictating when and where people cover their face.

The May 11 order makes null and void any local COVID-19 restrictions tied to his ongoing pandemic emergency declarations, requiring at the very least that city and county governments rewrite their own ordinances to keep them in place.

"With the COVID-19 vaccine readily available and case numbers dropping, I will not allow local governments to use the state of emergency declaration as a reason for implementing or maintaining mask mandates," McMaster said.

"Everybody knows what we need to do to stay safe  including wearing a mask if youre at risk of exposing others  but we must move past the time of governments dictating when and where South Carolinians are required to wear a mask," he continued.

"Maintaining the status quo ignores all of the great progress weve made, the governor added.

The move comes two weeks after McMaster warned local officials he'd do "whatever's necessary" to put an end to government-mandated mask wearing if they didn't act on their own. Since then, several local governments have extended their mandates. At least six counties and dozens of cities still had one in place.

That includes Columbia City Council, which voted 6-1 moments before McMaster issued his order to extend the capital city's mandate through June 5, to match what Richland County Council had already done.

Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin agreed the city's newly minted ordinance is invalid as written. He doesn't expect city leaders to draft a new one for approval. Instead, the focus will shift toward encouraging people to get vaccinated, he said.

Minutes later, Charleston City Council voted unanimously to turn its mask mandate into a recommendation, effective immediately. Its rules were already set to expire in two days.

McMaster's order aims to end mask mandates in schools by directing the state's public health agency to create a form for parents to sign to exempt their child from any face-covering requirements.

"With every adult in our state having the opportunity to receive a vaccine, it goes against all logic to continue to force our children  especially our youngest children  to wear masks against their parents wishes," McMaster said. "Whether a child wears a mask in school is a decision that should be left only to a student's parents."

But his order puts no deadline on that form going out.

It's unclear if that could happen before the school year ends or even be available in time for summer programs.

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The state Department of Education requires masks to be worn when entering a school, in the hallways, when dropping off or picking up students and on school buses. The state agency leaves it to teachers and district administrators whether to require masks worn in the classroom or during outside activities.

Those rules are based on guidance from the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.

"If this in fact means DHEC is adjusting it's public health guidance to school districts, we will, effective immediately, rescind our guidelines," said education agency spokesman Ryan Brown. "We are not public health experts, so we're relying on public health experts."

But that's not happening, said DHEC Director Edward Simmer.

DHEC will comply with McMaster's order to create a waiver form for parents. But even with the governor's order, the agency is not changing its standing recommendation that everyone continue to wear a face mask, he said.

"All students, staff and others in schools should continue to wear masks through the end of the current school year," Simmer said, pointing to federal pandemic guidance.

Unlike other states, South Carolina never had a statewide mask mandate, though McMaster encouraged local governments last year to pass their own ordinances. That encouragement officially ended when he lifted his mandate for face coverings in state buildings March 5, but local ordinances still cited his prior declarations.

As a preemptive move against "vaccine passports," McMaster's order also bars local officials and public agencies from requiring proof of vaccination as a condition of receiving government services or entering public property.

About 35 percent of South Carolinians ages 15 and up have completed their vaccination process, while 44 percent have received at least one shot. The supply of vaccines in the state has exceeded demand for weeks and with many appointments going unfilled, providers have eliminated the need to sign up ahead of time.

Children younger than 16 haven't been eligible to get a shot but should be soon. On May 10, the Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 12 to 15.

Stephen Fastenau contributed from Columbia.
COLUMBIA  With just three days remaining in South Carolina's regular legislative session, lawmakers will be scrambling this week to advance measures to Gov. Henry McMaster's desk  or at least keep them alive for upcoming special sessions.

By state law, the gavel falls at 5 p.m. May 13, ending the session that started 17 weeks earlier.

But much work will carry over into next month's limited special sessions, primarily passing a state budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1.

Legislators can also vote next month on compromises worked out between House members and senators  but only on bills that pass both chambers before this week ends.

House Majority Leader Gary Simrill characterized the final week as a game of "hurry up and wait," as legislators try to wrap up work in their chamber, while waiting to see what happens across the lobby.

"Buckle up," said the Rock Hill Republican. "Its a lot of fast-paced action. There will be a flurry of activity. The question is how much you can work through."

Key questions this week include whether the House will agree to the Senate's version of a bill allowing people with concealed weapon permits to openly carry their handguns. And the Senate will consider agreeing to the House's tweaks to a measure aimed at resuming death penalty executions in South Carolina by making electrocution the default method, with the added option of a firing squad.

A majority vote in each chamber could send both GOP-backed bills to McMaster, who has made clear he'd sign them. Or they could be sent to groups of House members and senators who will try to hash out a compromise between the differing versions.

"It's a gamble," Simrill said about option two, as a compromise may never materialize.

Another bill poised for final passage with support across the political spectrum is aimed at preventing slow drivers from bunching up interstate traffic.

Drivers who lollygag in the left lanes could be fined up to $25 under the agreement tentatively worked out in a joint House-Senate committee. The Senate approved the compromise May 6. A "yes" vote in the House would send to McMaster the bill that also directs the state Department of Transportation to put signs along interstates telling slower drivers to move right.

Unlike in previous years, there's no single, top-priority bill that could come down to last-minute votes in the Senate.

"It will still be chaos," said Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, R-Edgefield. "But the last week this year could be more uneventful than usual because we tried very hard to get done what we wanted to get done before the last week. I intentionally left the last week as a cushion."

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Advocates for a hate crime law in South Carolina want senators to take up a bill enhancing penalties for people convicted of violent crimes if they chose their victims because of their race, religion, gender or sexual orientation. The measure would tack on up to five more years to their prison sentence.

While it advanced May 4 out of the Senate Judiciary Committee, allowing for floor debate this week, the margin was close. And nine GOP senators have officially contested the bill, blocking debate and giving it a near-zero chance of being taken up in the session's waning days.

However, that doesn't doom the legislation completely. It will remain on the Senate calendar for next year.

It is among bills that remain alive for next year at whatever point they are in the process when this week ends. Bills don't officially die, and must be refiled to start the process all over again, until the end of the 2022 session.

"Nothing dies, but it does for the year 2021," Simrill said about bills that don't pass both chambers by week's end.

One thing the House won't be doing this week is sending a new state spending package to the Senate.

"Normally, we'd be scrambling to have a budget back to them" before the regular session ends, Simrill said.

Senators had the benefit of crafting the more-than-$10 billion budget proposal after an update in the state's revenue projections that gave legislators $1.7 billion more to spend. So the House is largely starting over to craft a new plan, two months after it passed what Ways and Means Chairman Murrell Smith called a worst-case-scenario pandemic budget.

Legislators are expected to return for three short sessions next month to finalize a spending package for 2021-22 and take up McMaster's budget vetoes.

Special sessions will also be held this fall, meaning a busier-than-usual off-session. But those will be limited to redrawing legislative voting lines after getting decennial census data and debating how to spend billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 aid.
Two men were placed under arrest after being accused of allegedly attacking several people including children in the Zero Down subdivision area of Yigo using machetes and slingshots.

Marvin Harou, 29, also known as Marak Harman, and Bruno Harou, 31, also known as Bray Muasar, were each charged with criminal mischief as a third-degree felony, two counts of assault as a misdemeanor, disorderly conduct as a petty misdemeanor, and public drunkenness as a violation. Marvin was additionally charged with harassment as a petty misdemeanor.

According to court documents, Guam police responded to a disturbance along Chalan Somnak on Saturday night.

A witness reportedly told police that they were having a fundraiser when the suspects, who appeared to be under the influence of alcohol, got upset for being asked to leave before they chased people at the event with a machete and slingshots.

The pair are also accused of throwing rocks, and two vehicles were damaged in the process, documents state.

While being taken into custody, defendant Marvin Harou was heard by one of the officers telling a victim that he would return and burn down his home, documents state.

No injuries were reported.

The defendants had chased after the children in the area, but the victims ran into the jungle to hide, documents state.
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Samsung has been invited to another U.S. government meeting with global businesses next week on the worldwide shortage of semiconductors.

The virtual meeting will be held on May 20, a day ahead of the first summit between President Moon Jae-in and his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden. The Biden administration is pressing the tech giant to expand its investment in semiconductors in the U.S.

The administration previously held a meeting on the issue on April 12.

The Commerce Department said the meeting aims to foster "an open dialogue around semiconductors and supply chain matters," Bloomberg News said on Monday.

Other key suppliers of chips such as Intel and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, as well as tech giants such as Amazon and Google, are also invited.


's ( ) Sean Smith joins Proactive London's Katie Pilbeam to talk through the authorisation from Italian regulators to sell its Cedroz pesticide in the country.

Cedroz is designed to control free living nematodes, parasitic worms that cause severe damage to crops in fields and greenhouses.

The deal has been steered by their commercial collaborator, in Italy which is the EU's second-largest producer of fruit and vegetables.

Smith says they are now 'very eager' to get authorization for both Cedroz and their other flagship product bio-fungicide Mevalone in the US, which is the largest market.
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Carl Hessler Jr. is a multi-media reporter who writes about crime and justice from the Montgomery County Courthouse for 21st Century Media Newspapers Greater Philadelphia area publications. Follow Carl on Twitter: @MontcoCourtNews
What are your odds of encountering someone with COVID?
The Tower Health logo on a lighted sign at the 5th Ave entrance to the Reading Hospital. At the Reading Hospital, part of Tower Health, in West Reading Thursday night April 15, 2021.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem has signed a candidate pledge to bar action civics (mandatory political protests for course credit) and critical race theory (attacks on whiteness, Eurocentrism, etc.) from South Dakota schools. The pledge is sponsored by 1776 Action, a new group founded by Adam Waldeck, a former aide to former speaker Newt Gingrich and supported by Gingrich and Ben Carson.

Stanley Kurtz sees the pledge and Noems decision to sign it as positive developments in the battle to prevent Americas K-12 students from being indoctrinated in left-wing dogma. Clearly, it is.

Stanley argues, however, that Noem has her work cut out for her if shes to make good on the pledge. Even in a deep-dyed red state such as South Dakota, the threats that Noem has just pledged to battle have made shocking progress, he warns.

What does Noem need to do to fulfill her pledge to block action civics and CRT in South Dakota? First, says Stanley

Noem needs to support legislation that would bar both action civics and CRT from South Dakotas public K12 schools. The model legislation Ive published with the National Association of Scholars would do that, and Texas may soon pass a bill based on that model. Although South Dakotas 2021 legislative session has ended, Governor Noem could conceivably call a special session to pass such a bill. There is a very good reason why such speedy action may be necessary. If the disastrous Civics Secures Democracy Act should pass in Congress before South Dakotas next legislative session convenes, it may be too late to stop both CRT and action civics from taking over the state. Leftist bureaucrats in South Dakotas Department of Education will apply for the massive state grants funded by that proposed law. Once that happens, although Noem could pull the applications back, she would be under tremendous political pressure not to do so. At stake will be big federal grants for a small state with limited resources. Thats why its better to block action civics and CRT now, by state law. Otherwise, President Bidens outrageous new rule governing priority for history and civics grants  turbo-charged by a $6 billion federal appropriation and combined with priority criteria in the law itself  will effectively force action civics, CRT, and the 1619 Project even on red states such as South Dakota.

(Emphasis added)

Accordingly:

Unless the legislature comes back for a special session this year to address the issue, Governor Noem should prevent federal interference by ordering her Department of Education now to refrain from applying for any federal grants in history or civics until after the 2022 South Dakota legislative session.

Theres more that needs to be done. Stanley points out that South Dakota is already well along the road to crafting new statewide K12 Social Studies standards  appalling ones. The current draft of South Dakota Social Studies standards are filled with exercises in leftist action civics, precisely what Governor Noem has pledged to block, he says.

(Is it surprising that in a state as red as South Dakota, the education bureaucracy is filled with leftists? Only if you havent been paying attention.)

To make good on her pledge, therefore, Noem needs to sink the new, leftist South Dakota Social Studies draft standards, filled as they are with action civics and lessons tied to those exercises, and start over. Then, says Stanley, she needs to turn to respected education experts outside the club of leftists who dominate South Dakotas Department of Education to craft new standards.

Its sobering to think about how much hard work lies ahead if Gov. Noem is to follow through on her pledge. However, the governor should be commended for taking an important first step.
Like so many big American cities, New York is experiencing an enormous increase in violent crime. Last year, the citys murder rate rose by 47 percent, to a total of 468 people killed. So far this year, it has risen by 17 percent.

What happened last year that might have caused the spike in murders and other violent crimes? One thing that happened was anti-police activism on a large scale, with a resulting decline in proactive policing. Another thing that happened was the pandemic.

In theory, either of these phenomena (or both) might be responsible for the violent crime wave. However, it seems at least as likely that, with people off the street during a pandemic, the murder rate would drop rather than rise.

On the left, Josh Marshall supports the pandemic explanation. My own sense, he writes without providing evidence, is that [the wave of violence] is overwhelmingly the result of the vast dislocations caused by the pandemic.

Mayor Bill de Blasio concurs. He notes that our entire lives were turned upside down [by a global pandemic], a perfect storm. Murder, though, isnt a necessary byproduct of having ones life turned upside down.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, de Blasios fellow Marxist, subscribes to an economic theory of the murder wave. Do you think this has to do with the fact that there is record unemployment, right now? she asks.

The question is rhetorical, but deserves to be answered. One way to address it is to examine what has happened in other parts of the world where the pandemic has also hit hard, both in health and economic terms, to see whether they too have endured exceptionally high rates of murder and other violent crime. If they havent, then the supposed link between the pandemic and violent crime spree doesnt hold.

Nicole Gelinas undertakes this analysis in a column for the New York Post. She points first to London:

In London, the global city that most closely resembles Gotham, the murder rate plummeted last year. It fell to 126 from 150, down 16 percent.

What about Italy and France? In Italy, hit hard and early by the pandemic, murders fell last year by 14 percent, to 271 from 315. In France, murders were down two percent.

In Japan, the murder level was the lowest it has been since World War II. Heinous crimes, including murder, fell by 10 percent.

What about cartel-ridden Mexico? There, murders fell by slightly less than half a percent last year, to 34,523  the first decline in six years.

But perhaps most of these countries protected their populations with a bigger safety net than that provided by the U.S. Not according to Gelinas:

The United States, with supplemental jobless insurance ranging from $300 to $600 a week for the past 15 months, and with anti-eviction and anti-foreclosure orders in place, acted faster and far more aggressively [than the nations she compares murder rates with] to curtail individual economic pain. In America, the only workers to see steep drops in income with no corresponding government benefits are people who were working here illegally, and thus were ineligible for benefits. But there is no evidence that theyre behind the spike in violent crime. London, too, has hundreds of thousands of off-the-books migrant workers. The broader number of people still without work there in the pandemic, at more than 700,000, is slightly higher than it is in New York City, against roughly the same population. But people just arent stabbing each other because theyre desperate for something to eat.

Thus, it seems clear that the pandemic didnt cause the U.S. crime wave  a view that, as noted, seems counterintuitive, to begin with. The problem, Gelinas concludes, is that we have effectively halted all preventative policing [and] have also effectively stopped all incarceration of suspects and criminals short of murder.

Absent the pandemic, these insane policies might have produced even worse violent crime wave statistics. In any event, they have produced alarming ones.
One trait of the progressive left is that its contempt for the past leads it sooner or later to turn on their own previous heroes. The environmental left has long detested Franklin Roosevelts New Deal for things like the massive dams on the Columbia River and elsewhere, along with other big infrastructure projects. The so-called anti-racist left attacks FDR for perpetuating segregation in housing (with some justice in this case).

And so it is with relish that we note Michael Kazin, a deep-fried leftist historian, turning on John F. Kennedy in the pages of the New York Review of Books. The article is actually a long review of the first part of a new JFK biography by Fredrik Logevall that appears to offer a more objective and critical treatment of JFK than most previous biographies. (The first volume only carries the JFK story up through 1956.)

For those without NYRB access, here are a few of the best bits:

Why, nearly six decades after his murder, do Americans still care so much about and, for the most part, continue to think so highly of John Fitzgerald Kennedy? . . . Most Americans of any age are probably unaware that Kennedy achieved little of lasting significance during his legendary thousand days in office. Aside from a big tax cut, he signed no major domestic policies into law, and his only enduring diplomatic success was a treaty banning atmospheric nuclear tests, which he accurately described as merely a single step on a journey of a thousand miles toward the goal of stopping the race to Armageddon. . . [L]ike Dad, Kennedy treated an unending series of other women as disposable receptacles for his lusta habit that continued for the rest of his life. . . [T]o Eleanor Roosevelt and other keepers of the New Deal flame, it was clear that this rising star would sacrifice liberal principle for the sake of victory. . . Knowing white southerners were uneasy about a Catholic from New England, he sought to reassure them, once again, that he was no firebrand about civil rights. On national TV , he dodged a question about whether the Democratic platform should endorse the Supreme Courts 1954 ruling on school desegregation. . . The president from Camelot may gently descend from the lofty position in popular memory he has occupied for nearly six decades. Aside from a few places like the Kennedy Space Center and that sprawling airport in New York City, his name adorns few institutions of note. He is honored by no holiday, and while admirers and family managed to install a monument to Dwight Eisenhower near the Washington Mall last year, no movement exists to do the same for his successor. During the 2020 campaign, one might have expected Joe Biden to evoke the only other Irish Catholic elected to the White House, but he ran instead as the disciple of the first African-American to get there. Given how the demographic makeup of the Democratic Party has changed over the past six decades, that was a sensible as well as inevitable decision. Perhaps the admiration of Kennedy as the last white liberal icon will give way to a sober evaluation of how the relentless pursuit of global power by politicians like him too often betrayed the promise of their altruistic oratory. Unhappy the land that needs heroes, wrote Bertolt Brecht in 1939, a sly reference, in his play about Galileo, to the leader of his own nation and a warning to citizens of other lands too. Americans who have been divided, often quite bitterly, since Kennedy lost his life would do well to finally take that wisdom to heart.

Alas, I have run out of popcorn.
China is a critical territory both for sales and production for the carmaker

Model 3s are shipped to Europe from the plant

( ) is scaling back plans to expand its plant in Shanghai due to trade tensions between the US and China, according to reports.

The Shanghai gigafactory is one of its main overseas plants, manufacturing Model 3 and Model Y models, but plans to buy land near to the existing site have been shelved, Reuters reported today.

The carmaker was considering using an expanded plant to export cars to the US, said the report, but since 25% tariffs were imposed on products imported from China by President Trump, the electric vehicle group has had second thoughts.

China is a critical territory for both the carmaker's sales and production.

Demand there is booming. China accounted for US$3bn or 30% of revenue in the latest quarter with sales more than tripling over the comparable period in 2020.

According to Reuters, Tesla is also the only foreign carmaker in China not required to form a local joint venture when it set up there.

Currently the plant exports Model 3s to Europe.

The report said that Tesla never formally admitted an interest in acquiring the land plot but at half the size of its current plant, the site would have given the capacity to expand from 500,000 currently by another 200-300,000 cars a year.

In a statement, Tesla said that the Shanghai factory was developing as planned.
Leaked documents show that the Walt Disney Company has asked employees to complete a white privilege checklist and to pivot away from white dominant culture. The documents, published by Christopher Rufo, state (falsely) that the recent killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other Black Americans are part of a long history of systemic racism and transphobia. The documents also cover such topics as white privilege, white fragility, white saviors, microaggressions and antiracism.

The documents suggest that employees reflect on the diversity of their personal and professional networks. Employees should also consider how other dimensions of their identities give (or do not give) you access and advantage. Furthermore, workers are encouraged to work through feelings of guilt, shame, and defensiveness to understand what is beneath them and what needs to be healed.

Employees are discouraged from questioning or debating the lived experiences of their black colleagues or from asking those colleagues to educate them about racism, since such discussions can be emotionally taxing. As if wallowing in unwarranted feelings of guilt and shame isnt.

Disney has passed judgment on America. America has come up short  way short. Were chronic racists and homophobes. We need to deal with our guilt and shame. If our racism prevents us from feeling guilty and ashamed, then we need to be pressured, and probably coerced, into experiencing these sentiments.

Disney seems like a tough grader. Is there any nation that meets its exacting standards?

Why, yes. China does.

Bob Iger, Chairman and former CEO of the Walt Disney Company, has said hes inspired by Chinas vision. In remarks at the National Committee on US-China Relations (NCUSCR) gala in 2011, Iger stated:

Weve also worked hard to establish a number of mutually beneficial relationships with many officials throughout China. Were inspired by their vision and were grateful that they share many of our beliefs, including one about the importance of intellectual property protection. Ive watched China emerge into a global economic force, an inspiring source of great innovation, offering opportunities that we see as virtually unlimited, and the Walt Disney company has certainly been increasing its presence in that vast country.

China is a ruthless dictatorship. It systematically oppresses its Uighur (Muslim) population, more than one million of whom are said to be held in concentration camps.

I very much doubt that any Disney employee has oppressed a minority group member. At worst, a few might have committed a microaggression, whatever that means.

Yet, Disneys chairman is inspired by China and contemptuous of America and his white employees.

Is there a disconnect here? On the surface, yes.

But at a deeper level, maybe it hangs together. For one thing, Disneys critique of America echoes Chinas, as set forth recently in its recent confrontation with our Secretary of State.

More fundamentally, the Red Chinese are masters of reeducating members of the bourgeoisie. During its cultural revolution, China perfected the art of making them feel guilty and ashamed. Now, it is reeducating its Muslims.

In its own way, the Disney Company seems to be following suit.
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Inne ogoszenia, ktore mogy byc w kregu Twoich zainteresowan:
The journey into motherhood is the joy of every woman but in a certain Nigerian village, the death of a pregnant woman brings about prosperity.

These are the dominant themes in The Mystic River, a new series that was exclusively screened at the Terra Culture, Victoria Island, on Sunday.

The 26-episode series shot in the Ijebu-ode area of Ogun State was produced by Rogers Ofime and directed by Uzodinma Okpechi.

The plot, the filmmaker, says, is a reflection of some archaic cultural practices that need to be abolished as well as some that are worthy of emulation. Mr Ofime told PREMIUM TIMES that his project can be described as a story of good and evil.

The series, which lasted for about an hour, stars movie veteran actors like Jide Kosoko, who played the role of the king, Dele Odule, who played the role of Balogun, and Joke Muyiwa. Other actors in the production include Ben Touitou, Tonia Chukwurah, Ayo Ewebiyi, Sogade Oluwabunmi, Debby Eloghosa, Folaremi Agunbiade, and Maryjane Ogu.

Plot

The horror supernatural series follows a story from a remote Nigerian village. Many women in a village start vanishing and all of them have something in common. The ones that vanished from the village apparently were pregnant.

This remains a mystery until a doctor comes by with a child and she comes near to uncovering some of the most

dangerous secrets covering all of these up.

The props, cinematography, and characters show cultural depth, just as the first part of the series is laced with several horror scenes. It is, however, shocking to see that the next victim for the greater good of the village, Bisi, a pregnant woman, stabs herself in the place of refuge after escaping from captivity.

Asked why he chose to shoot a supernatural horror series, the filmmaker said he is deciding to carve a niche for himself when it comes to storytelling.

I want to be able to tell Africa stories, I want to be able to tell stories that have some impact, I want to be able to tell stories that will provoke people to think, to do something, to change something, thats the niche Im trying to carve for myself.

I am not going against tradition, Im not going against culture, I feel like there some things, its a metaphor, there are somethings we dont like in our country today and we can stand up and do something about it like the doctor stood up to fight tradition, we can stand up and do something, we dont have to leave everything to the government. I believe that standing up, saying something, or making a change will go a long way, he explained.

Challenges

Mr Ofime, who is best known for producing several notable Nigerian television soap operas, including the successful Tinsel, said they encountered many challenges while shooting the series.

From having to live in a community with no basic amenities for two months, to navigating unfamiliar terrains. He said getting a good phone network connection required the cast and crew to drive 45 minutes away from the community.

He mentioned that some of his crew members were also bitten by reptiles on different occasions.

Abimbola, one of the guests at the screening, said the series is worth watching as it brings the Nigerian culture to the global space.

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One of the things I love about this movie is the fact that it explores our culture, there are not so many Nigeria movies on foreign platforms that explore the intricacies of some of the things that go on in our communities, our nation, our society, that explore our tradition. This one does, she said.

Also, one of the cast members, Jude Chukwuka, who, interestingly is Igbo but describes himself Yoruba-centric, told this newspaper that he rehearsed his lines for two weeks of rehearsal and was on set for a month.

He applauded the screenwriter and filmmaker for upholding the African and indeed the Nigerian culture in the project. He also urged more Nigerian filmmakers to follow suit and promote the Nigerian culture in their productions.

If you are looking for an American message, you will not find it in an African story. Is our culture, our beliefs not enough lessons? Except you are looking at it from the point of James Bond, for me our culture, telling our story the way we are is enough message.

Create an African environment, Lets tell your story, and let African-ness fly everywhere, thats my point. So, looking for a core message like you would find in Shakespeare, I dont care, lets just bring our African-ness and let people see it.

There is a dearth of African culture and in whatever way we can push it, lets push it. The Mystic River The movie is a must-watch because it is set in African told by Africans in an African setting and unashamedly brought to the global stage.

The The Mystic River will be screened for the first time to the general public starting from May 14 on Netflix.
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The Presidency on Monday confirmed there was an attempt to burgle the residences of the Presidents Chief of Staff, Ibrahim Gambari and Admin Officer, Abubakar Maikano.

In a tweet via his verified handle on Monday, the presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, said the attempts were unsuccessful.

The Chief of Staff, Professor Ibrahim Gambari has confirmed that there was a foolish attempt to burgle his residence at 3:00am this morning but it turned out to be unsuccessful.

Professor Gambari, whose house is on a street next to the Villa has assured that there is nothing to worry about from the incident.

The police, in a related development is searching for a suspected burglar who unsuccessfully attempted to break into the house of Maikano Abdullahi on Thursday, last week. Maikano lives on the same street with the Chief of Staff, close to the Villa, he tweeted.

An online newspaper, Peoples Gazette, had reported that the homes of the two senior officials were robbed on Sunday night.

According to the report, the invaders made away with cash and other valuable items. PREMIUM TIMES has not verified this claim.

The tweets by the presidency only confirmed the burglary attempts.

The Presidential Villa, where the Nigerian president and his family reside, is regarded as one of the most secure places not just in the Federal Capital Territory but in the country.

The robbery attempts in one Nigerias most secure places, arguably, reflects the worsening security situation across the country.

Nigeria has witnessed rising crime rate and violence across the country in recent months. Kidnappings, killings and attacks by armed groups have become rampant in many parts of the country. Victims have included civilians and security operatives.
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The police in Edo State on Monday engaged kidnappers in a gun battle, killing three of them and rescuing seven victims, an official has said.

Kontongs Bello, the Edo police spokesperson, said this in a statement on Monday.

He said the police worked with a local vigilante team to achieve the feat.

He said the security team encountered the suspected kidnappers at the Ahor axis of the Benin-Lagos bypass and engaged them in a fierce gun battle, where three of the suspected kidnappers were killed.

He did not say if the police sustained any casualty in the battle.

Mr Bello said that with the seven rescued victims, and the 13 rescued last Saturday, the total number of victims rescued between Saturday and Monday were now 20.

The latest incident occurs about two weeks after the Edo police engaged a separate set of kidnappers in a shootout during which two kidnap victims were rescued. The police also recovered about N200,000 from the kidnappers during the April 28 incident, an official said.

Edo is one of the Nigerian states where kidnapping for ransom is rampant. Other states include Enugu, Kaduna, Katsina and Akwa Ibom.

On Monday, Mr Bello disclosed that the latest success is a continuation of the forest and bush combing promised by Phillip Ogbadu, the commissioner of police in Edo.

Mr Bello reiterated that the police commissioner had promised to sustain the tempo and would not relent until the state was rid of kidnappers.

He said Mr Ogbadu also sought the collaboration and partnership of stakeholders through information sharing, particularly from those around Ahor community and environs.
Months before her suspension last week, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Usman, repeatedly faced off with her supervisor, the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, over the award of contracts, and Mr Amaechi at least once directed a procurement process be suspended in favour of an incumbent contractor, documents seen by PREMIUM TIMES have shown.

The disagreements drew in the Bureau of Public Procurement, the Attorney General of the Federation and the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Ibrahim Gambari, who reported directives from the president to both parties and sought external advice to resolve the issues.

Ms Usman was suspended from office Thursday amid allegations by the minister that the NPA failed to remit N165 billion to the federation account. She denied wrongdoing and argued that the agency paid the due amount as provided by the Fiscal Responsibility Act. Her disagreements with the minister are believed to have played a role in her suspension.

Presidential spokesperson Garba Shehu announced that Mr Buhari had approved Mr Amaechis recommendation to set up an administrative panel of inquiry to investigate Ms Usmans management of the NPA.

While inaugurating the probe panel Monday, the minister made clear the focus of the investigation is contracts and not remittances to the government.

The committees terms of reference, he said, include examining and investigating the administrative policies and strategies adopted by Ms Usman, and confirming her compliance with relevant laws and rules from 2016 till date.

Examine and investigate issues leading to the termination of other contracts of NPA and confirm compliance with the terms of the respective contracts, court ruling and presidential directives, The News Agency of Nigeria quoted Mr Amaechi as saying.

Examine and investigate compliance with communication channel, as obtained in the public service.

Examine and investigate the procurement of contracts from 2016 to date.

Come up with suggestions and advice that would strengthen the operations of NPA and forestall such occurrences in future.

And any other matter that may be necessary in the course of the assignment.

Addressing those criticising the probe, the minister said: This is in the discharge of our responsibility as a ministry and I dont see why anybody is complaining.

What is wrong in looking at what is happening in NPA? I dont see what is wrong in that. As the Minister of Transportation for four years, I hardly know what is happening and I want to know now.

The president agrees with me that its my responsibility as minister to find out what is going on.

It worries me that people are saying we should not ask questions. Nobody has been indicted.

The NPA Dredging Contract

Details seen by PREMIUM TIMES show that in one of the controversial contracts, the NPA had written the Bureau of Public Procurement, requesting to adopt a selective tender method for the engagement of nine dredging companies for the management of Port Access Channels across Lagos Pilotage, Bonny Pilotage, Warri and Excravos Pilotage Districts.

This newspaper understands that the value of the contract is N65 billion, with the Lagos channel contract valued at N31billion and the Bonny channel valued at N34 billion.

The NPA claimed its resolve to adopt selective tendering was due to the specialised nature of the service. It added that the subsisting contract with the Lagos Port Channel Management Company Joint Venture and the Bonny Channel Company were due to expire in December 2019 and June 2020, respectively. The move was approved by the Bureau of Public Procurement.

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The minister, however, expressed concerns with the process and ordered it be cancelled and that the contractor be given a one-year extension. The minister said his directive was based on an advisory by the Bureau of Public Procurements to MDAs to suspend non-essential contracts as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ms Usman said in her memo that Mr Amaechi had complained about his ministry not being carried along in the process and had raised concerns about budgetary provisions for the contracts.

You may please recall that in the course of the conversation, you also stated that the Federal Ministry of Transportation was not carried along before the advertisements went public contrary to an earlier Ministerial directive and expressed concern over budgetary provisions and the possible impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the procurement exercise, she wrote in her letter to Mr Amaechi May 18, 2020.

Ms Usman argued that the subsisting contractors had been engaged for 15 years and that their contract was due to expire in August 2020. Ms Usman added that a charge made by the minister that the transport ministry was not carried along before the advertisement was made public by the NPA was corrected in a letter dated May 6.

The NPA boss explained further that concerns raised on budgetary constraints were not applicable to channel dredging which is central to the statutory responsibility of the ports and for which appropriate provisions had been made in the 2020 budget.

On COVID-19 concern raised by Mr Amaechi, Ms Usman said that would not affect the tender process because provisions had been made for courier submission and all were being done in line with the procurement law.

She concluded that if not satisfied with the facts presented by the NPA, Mr Amaechi should formally authorise the NPA to cancel the advertisement and extend the subsisting contract by an additional year.

In a letter dated June 2, 2020, the Ministry of Transport directed the NPA to withdraw the advertisement for the expression of interest for the dredging contract. The letter, signed by Pius Oteh, Director of Legal Services, said the ministry came to the conclusion after Mr Amaechis review of the NPAs letter to that effect.

The ministry also directed that the subsisting contracts be extended by one year.

The transport ministry said its decision was made in the overriding public interest and the consequence of limited business environment caused by the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic which could create a non-competitive procurement environment.

The ministry thereafter referenced a circular by the BPP which directed that all non-essential procurement processes that would not affect the activities of government be suspended in the light of the COVID-19 disruption.

The NPA complied with the ministers directive and cancelled the procurement process. But the BPP, whose memo Mr Amaechi had referenced as the basis for his directive, strongly criticised the ministry and the NPA.

BPP Rebukes NPA, Ministry

In a letter dated June 18, 2020, the BPP argued that contrary to reservations raised about COVID-19, there were some activities of government that should not be delayed. Nevertheless, it said, it is the responsibility of the BPP and not the FMT (Federal Ministry of Transportation) to approve the cancellation of a procurement process.

The bureau warned that the NPA cannot unilaterally extend the tenures of engagement of the subsisting contractors without recourse to the public procurement act and directed the NPA to follow due process.

More importantly, the BPP wondered why the Ministry of Transport and the NPA decided to backtrack and cancel the advertisement of a contract it considered central to the operations of the NPA.

Without any prejudice to the Bureaus observation, the NPA, as the procurement entity, has the responsibility to decide whether or not this procurement is essential to their operations, the BPP argued.

Considering that these contracts have subsisted since 2005 i.e for about fifteen (15) years, it may not be in the best interest of Government to keep them any longer than necessary. As a matter of fact, the Bureau is concerned that the government is presently left at the mercy of the subsisting contractors without valid contracts.

The Bureau thereafter directed that rather than cancel the advertisement for tender, it can allow an extension of six months to enable the NPA to carry out an International Bidding Process. It added that if the NPA is thereafter convinced that the cancellation is in the best interest of the public, it can cancel it.

Where the procurement is deemed as an essential service, the BPP advised that the NPA should forward all essential documents to it and make provision for prospective bidders to take advantage of courier services. It added that in line with Covid-19 guidelines, bidders are not expected to be present during the bidding ceremony.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt that based on the BPP letter, the NPA readvertised the contracts and proceeded with the procurement process. It informed the transportation ministry of that decision.

The ministry then indicated an interest in playing a role in the evaluation of the bids submitted by contractors, in what is clearly an unusual situation. The NPA agreed, although the process should have been for the ministry to await submissions by the NPA since it has to grant approval before the bids are forwarded to the BPE and the Federal Executive Council.

The bid evaluation session was held in late April, but the NPA was yet to complete the tender process for onward submission to the ministry when Ms Usman was suspended from office.

Meanwhile, after the NPA resumed the procurement process, Mr Amaechis ministry again wrote to the NPA directing it to suspend the tender process. He said instead, the agency should procure equipment and undertake the dredging itself.

Ms Usman then wrote to the president lamenting that the ministrys directive was another way of frustrating the conclusion the transparent process the Authority is conducting in line with the Public Procurement Act.

She pleaded with the president to okay the continuation of the procurement process and approve NPAs decision not to procure equipment for channel management as it does not have the skill set required to operate and maintain them.

The battle over INTELS contract

Aside from the disagreements over dredging contracts, documents seen by this newspaper also showed that both parties clashed over the contractual relationship between the NPA and Intels, a logistics firm.

PREMIUM TIMES reported the long-running disagreement between the NPA and Intels, leading to the termination of a boat operation contract being handled by the firm due to failure to comply with the Treasury Single Account directive of the Nigerian government in September 2020.

At the height of the crisis, the ministry of transport requested the president to direct the NPA to lift all orders against Intels, which has executed several contracts with the NPA for decades.

In a letter the ministry sent to the NPA, it directed the restoration of all contracts between the NPA and Intels, either suspended or purportedly terminated by the NPA. The letter, dated February 17 2021, refers to its earlier letter conveying a presidential approval to that effect.

The president, through the Chief of Staff, thereafter requested the NPA to provide details of its contractual obligations with the logistic giant.

The NPA in a letter seen by PREMIUM TIMES, dated January 25, 2021, said the boat contract with Intels reached the end of its contractual period in August 2020 after the firm complied with the TSA directive.

It went further to explain that in preparation for the expiration of the contract, NPA initiated a public tender process for the contract. Consequently, Intels and other bidders submitted bids for the tender but the company (Intels) allegedly violated one of the criteria for the tender process and was disqualified.

The NPA said the tender process proceeded and the companies with the highest score were prequalified and the result of the tender process sent to the Ministry of Transport for onward transmission to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for consideration.

However, the NPA said nothing was heard from the ministry about the tender process yet the nation continued to lose revenue due to the failure to complete the tender process.

The NPA also disclosed that having lost out of the tender process, Intels initiated a court action against the NPA citing one of the debts owed one of its sister companies.

The NPA argued that this was wrong as both contracts were not linked to one another. Aside from the boat contract, the NPA listed other contractual agreements it had with the logistics firm.

In addition to the explanation by the NPA, the president also requested the Attorney-General and the BPP to provide legal advice.

In its intervention, the BPP expressed worry over the need to avoid a situation where contractors obtain contracts from government through the courts, rather than through the procurement process. The BPP argued in support of positions canvassed by Ms Usman and the NPA.

The correct procedure is that contracts should be won through a proper procurement process that complies with the provision of the PPA, 2007, the bureau said.

Furthermore, there is need to avoid the kind of monopoly enjoyed by Messrs Intels which has cascaded into the entitlement mentality being demonstrated by the firm.

The BPP warned further that monopoly will result in higher prices and erosion of value for money, advising the president to inform the attorney-general to avoid litigation.
President Muhammadu Buhari has approved new security measures for the South-east and South-south regions.

This was disclosed by the acting Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba, after a security meeting in Abuja presided over by the president.

Mr Baba briefed journalists alongside the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno; and the Chief of Defence Staff, Lucky Irabor.

He, however, refused to disclose the new measures, saying a decision was reached at the meeting not to, henceforth, publicise measures to be deployed to tackle insecurity in the country.

Mr Monguno said the meeting stressed the need to address the security challenges in the country particularly those that have arisen in the last few months.

The meeting comes on the heels of the attacks on security officials and facilities the two zones have witnessed.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how dozens of police officers and other security operatives were killed in the past few weeks in the South-east and South-south regions.

The government blamed an outlawed secessionist group, IPOB, for the attacks though the group denied responsibility for them.

Tackling root cause of insecurity

Speaking on how the government intends to curb the rising trend of insecurity, Mr Monguno said the president was looking at how to tackle drug abuse which he said was one of the major factors.

He said the government was also trying to tackle unemployment by bringing 100 million people out of poverty.

These enablers are discussed in detail and Mr President has already given direction on how to deal with them, specifically issues of drug abuse as propellants for crime.

How to make the criminal justice system much more effective, as well as looking at issues of unemployment, which of course, the federal executive council had given an approval of, through previous memos on how to get 100 million people out of poverty, that was also discussed. Then, again, the lack of an effective crime reporting system, he said.

He also said the president has given direction on how to effectively tackle crime by engaging with the NCC. He did not give more details.

Already, the NCC has been given certain instructions on how to deal with this, but by and by Council has agreed that the level of insecurity in the country, especially in the last one month, is something that has to be addressed with the immediacy that it requires and at the operational level.

On his part, Mr Irabor said far-reaching decisions were taken by the meeting.

He said the council was pleased with most of the activities of the armed forces and is currently looking into all their demands.

These, of course, have to do with manpower development, training and equipment issues, and thankfully, the glow on my face should, of course, give you an indication as to the graciousness of the National Security Council.

In relation to the briefings that weve given in this regard and I believe that going forward, we shall be translating that and it will have some great impact on the security disposition across the country. Thank you, he said.

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On his part, the Acting IGP, Mr Alkali said the council outlined and approved some measures which he said will change the narrative in the South-east and South-south within the quickest possible means to restore law and order and restore peace.
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The governors of the 17 southern states in Nigeria on Tuesday called on the federal government to convoke a national dialogue as a matter of urgency.

They also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to address Nigerians on the challenges of insecurity

The governors also called for the restructuring of Nigeria, saying the progress of the nation requires that urgent and bold steps be taken to restructure the Nigerian Federation leading to the evolution of state police.

The resolutions were among 12 reached by the governors at their meeting in Asaba, the Delta State capital.

Addressing Nigerians

Many Nigerians have criticised the president for not addressing the country despite the myriad of security challenges citizens face daily.

The security challenges include kidnappings, ethnoreligious crises, farmers and herders conflicts, terrorism and banditry. At least one of such criminal acts occurs daily in the country.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how 85 people were killed and 17 kidnapped in violent attacks across Nigeria last week.

However, hardly does the president directly speak after each of these attacks. When they occur, the best he does is to get one of his spokespersons to release a statement condemning the attacks or expressing sympathy with the victims.

Many Nigerians, including members of the presidents party, thus see him as being detached from the citizenry and not showing enough empathy about their situation. This is believed to have influenced the southern governors call for the president to address Nigerians on the security situation.

At least seven of the governors who reached the decision (Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Ekiti, Osun, Imo and Ebonyi) are of the same party as the president, APC, indicating their position was not based on party affiliations.

National Dialogue

By calling on the president to convoke a national dialogue and also demanding the restructuring of Nigeria, the southern governors join a growing list of Nigerians who have made similar calls. Ethnic nationality groups like Afenifere in the South-west and Ohaneze Ndigbo in the South-east had repeatedly made similar calls in the past.

The National Assembly had also called for a national security summit with the House of Representatives already announcing modalities for one.

President Buhari has, however, never shown support for such calls including that calling for the establishment of state police.

The presidents position is believed to have frustrated the move by his party to take a stance on the restructuring of Nigeria, even though it promised to do so when it was in the opposition. A committee set up by the APC on restructuring, headed by Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai, submitted its report. Over two years after the report was submitted, nothing has been done by the party on the subject.

It remains unclear if the resolution of the southern governors, seven of whom are members of the APC, will make the president act on both a national dialogue and restructuring of the country.
The governors of 17 states in Southern Nigeria have resolved to ban open grazing of cattle in their states.

This was part of the 12 resolutions reached by the governors at their Tuesday meeting in Asaba, the Delta State capital.

Open grazing of cattle has often caused conflicts between host communities and migrant herders, leading to several deaths in many states.

Some of the herders have also been accused of committing other criminal acts like armed robbery, kidnappings, and murder.

Following the incessant conflict, the southern governors held a four hours meeting in Asaba on Tuesday.

This newspaper obtained a 12-point communique read by its Chairman, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State, at the end of the meeting where they agreed that open grazing should be banned.

They affirmed that the people of Southern Nigeria remain committed to the unity of Nigeria on the basis of justice, fairness, equity and oneness and peaceful co-existence between and among its peoples with a focus on the attainment of shared goals for economic development and prosperity.

The governors said the incursion of armed herders, criminals, and bandits into the Southern part of the country has presented a severe security challenge such that citizens are not able to live their normal lives.

They, therefore, resolved that open grazing of cattle be banned across Southern Nigeria; noted that development and population growth has put pressure on available land and increased the prospects of conflict between migrating herders and local populations in the South. Given this scenario, it becomes imperative to enforce the ban on open grazing in the South (including cattle movement to the South by foot).

Also, they recommended that the federal government should support states to develop alternative and modern livestock management systems.

Many southern states already banned open grazing

In February, Mr Akeredolu had announced the ban on open grazing in Ondo State. In Ogun, the speaker of the assembly, Olakunle Oluomo, also said plans were underway to legislate on animal husbandry and related activities through the enactment of an all-inclusive law on anti-open grazing in the state. Open grazing has also been banned in Oyo State.

All south-east governors, during the launch of their Ebube Agu security outfit in April, also banned open grazing and urged the security agencies to enforce the ban in the states.

Call for restructuring

Apart from a ban on open grazing, the 17 southern governors also advocated restructuring of the country.

The call came amidst demands by several Nigerians that urgent restructuring would save Nigeria from breaking up.

Speaking on this, the southern governors agreed that the progress of the nation requires that urgent and bold steps be taken to restructure the Nigerian Federation leading to the evolution of state police.

They also expressed concern about the current security challenges in the country and asked President Muhammadu Buhari to address Nigerians on the situation so as to restore the peoples confidence in the government.

Nigeria has been battling with various forms of insecurity for years and many have agitated for state police.

The security challenges in the South-west led to the creation of a paramilitary outfit, Amotekun, by states in the region.

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PREMIUM TIMES, in April, also reported that the governors of the South-east states resolved to maintain a joint security outfit to be called Ebube Agu.

Last week, 85 people were killed and 17 kidnapped in violent attacks across the country.
The feasibility study update has confirmed the projects ultra-low operating costs of US$24.76/kilogram neodymium-praseodymium oxide and will form the basis for securing project finance.

The company is targeting commencement of Front-End Engineering and Design in mid-2021.

( ) (OTCMKTS:ARAFF) (FRA:REB) has completed a feasibility study update for its 100%-owned Nolans Neodymium-Praseodymium (NdPr) Project in the Northern Territory, confirming ultra-low operating costs of US$24.76 per kilogram of NdPr oxide.

It outlines robust financial metrics with NPV of $1.4 billion, IRR of 18.1% and average EBITDA of A$354 million per annum based on a life of mine (LOM) of 38 years.

Recent strength in rare earths prices and increasing interest from financiers and potential offtake partners, along with project changes determined through optimisation work, provided strong rationale for Arafura to review the findings of the Nolans definitive feasibility study (DFS) delivered in February 2019.

Elements of the project that have been refined or optimised since then include:

The process flowsheet (following completion of final stages of pilot program);

Process plant design (deferral of cerium production and minor increase in concentrate processing capacity); and

Mine scheduling (factoring in ore reserve update announced March 2020).

Shovel ready ultra-low-cost project

The stronger new metrics will now form the basis of discussions to finalise funding for Nolans, with Arafura targeting a Final Investment Decision in August 2022.

Arafura managing director Gavin Lockyer said: The feasibility study update confirms Nolans as a shovel-ready world-class NdPr rare earths project with ultra-low operating costs and the capacity to deliver robust financial returns over an initial mine life nearing 40 years and it will provide an important tool with which to progress discussions on financing and offtake towards a successful close.

Following the non-binding letter of support from Export Finance Australia for a A$200 million facility, we are working towards securing binding senior debt terms in line with the target for a Final Investment Decision in the second half of 2022.

Shares have been almost 14% higher intra-day to A$0.205 while Arafura's market cap is approximately A$210.7 million.

Updated cost estimates and financial outcomes for the project.

FEED activities set to commence

Ahead of the FID, Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) activities are expected to begin next quarter.

Lockyer said: The size of the Nolans deposit will provide our customers security of supply for their critical raw materials and our Ore to Oxide at a single site provides provenance that their product is being derived from processes aligned with their ESG priorities.

With the forecast demand growth for NdFeB magnets to support the manufacture of electric vehicles amongst other applications, the rising imperative for nations to shore up sustainable supply chains and the lack of alternative NdPr sources outside of China, Arafura is moving ahead with greater confidence than ever before.

The construction period for the project is 26 months from FID, giving first ore processing in October 2024 and first production towards the end of 2024.
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Troops of the Nigerian military have repelled a Tuesday evening attack on Maiduguri by suspected Boko Haram insurgents.

Heavy shootings were heard at about 6 p.m. when the insurgents attacked the outskirts of Jiddari Polo neighbourhood of Maiduguri, the capital city of Borno State.

The attack was the first since Muslims commenced the Ramadan fast 29 days ago.

Residents living in the neighbourhood were seen fleeing into the city centre as soldiers engaged the attackers.

The shooting ,which involved firing of artilleries, rent the air for about an hour before it subsided.

Soldiers were earlier seen trooping towards the direction of the shooting in convoys followed by a military ambulance.

An officer at the 7 Division, Nigeria army confirmed the attack in a text message sent in response to journalists request, saying troops are already there and responding.

The extent of the damage is yet unknown even as unconfirmed sources said some houses were burnt.

Military helicopters were also seen hovering over the area of the attack.
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The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has arrested no fewer than five suspects for allegedly engaging in fraudulently registration and sale of Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards.

The Director Public Affairs, NCC, Ikechukwu Adinde, in a statement on Thursday in Abuja, said the arrest was part of the commissions routine enforcement activities to rid the industry of criminal elements.

Mr Adinde said the hitch-free operation was carried out by a team from the Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement Department of the commission.

He added that the team jointly carried out the assignment with operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).

The NCC official said the suspects who were arrested in the Wuse area were subsequently handed over to the NSCDC, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Command, Wuse, Abuja, for further investigation.

NCCs Head of Enforcement, Mr Salisu Abdu who led the joint routine enforcement exercise, also said it was meant to sanitise the industry by driving away criminal elements engaging in fraudulent registration of SIM cards.

He said pre-registering a SIM card was an offence punishable under relevant regulations in the telecom sector and constitutes a breach of national security.

It is criminal and fraudulent to pre-register a SIM card in Nigeria and it is an offence punishable under the law.

Though the Federal Government recently lifted the ban on sale of new SIM cards, it should be noted that proper registration of SIM cards and linking them to National Identity Number (NIN) before activation has now become a prerequisite.

The enforcement activities will continue in other locations across the FCT and other states of the country, he said.

Abdu warned those who were engaged in the unlawful registration of SIM cards to desist from the illegal act.

He said the NCC would continue to collaborate with relevant law enforcement agencies in order to rid the industry of individuals, who had resolved to contravene SIM registration regulations.

(NAN)
An anti-corruption organisation, Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA), has given a former justice minister, Mohammed Adoke, two weeks to retract an allegation of forgery levelled against its chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju.

HEDA, in a statement signed by Mr Suraju, threatened to sue Mr Adoke in the United Kingdom should he fail to retract the forgery allegation.

The threat comes on the heel of an earlier similar threat by the UK anti-corruption group, Corner House, which is HEDAs partner in respect of the prosecution of Malabu scandal. The UK group threatened legal action in response to Mr Adokes petition to the police accusing Mr Suraju of forgery.

HEDA in the statement, on Sunday, said Mr Adoke wrongly accused HEDA of forging evidence (in the form of an email, a screenshot of which was reproduced in the article) that had been admitted as evidence by the Milan Court in Italy.

It said the evidence was admitted in the trial of Shell, Eni and other defendants on charges of international corruption relating to the Oil Prospecting License (OPL) 245 transaction of 2011.

It said said the former minister in collaboration with some lawyers had resorted to blackmail in order to subvert the lingering investigations of graft associated with OPL 245.

HEDA accused Adoke and his legal team of exploiting the fragile state and weak political environment to launder a string of campaigns to redeem the image of key actors in the series of financial misdeeds linked to the OPL 245 deal.

It added that they issued a press statement titled, Lawyers: E-mail evidence tendered against Adoke in Italy was forged, wherein they sought to cast HEDA in bad light.

Forgery untrue

The statement read in part, This is a case of a legal team deliberately distorting facts already accepted globally without blemish.

It is unprofessional to describe as forged a document tendered and accepted as a legal document by international law courts just to create a safe passage for suspects.

Mr Suraju said the role of HEDA Resource Centre as one of the parties responsible for the petition that led to the OPL 245-related investigations and prosecution in Nigeria is widely known in Nigeria and across the world.

He added that the accusation that it forged the email in question or any other evidence submitted to the courts in Milan or elsewhere is entirely untrue and highly defamatory.

How email surfaced

HEDA explained that the email came to light after it was disclosed by JP Morgan Chase to Nigeria as a result of proceedings in the High Court in London.

It added that the Nigerian government is currently suing the bank for damages relating to its handling of funds arising from Shell and Enis acquisition in 2011 of the OPL 245 oil field in Nigeria.

In its claim, Nigeria stated that an email had been sent by Adoke on 21 June 2011 to Bayo Osolake, employee at JP Morgan Chase, from the email address agroupproperties@yahoo.com and that copies of the Resolution Agreements for the OPL 245 deal were attached to the email. HEDA noted that the Nigerian authorities further stated in court documents that the email address was associated with the A Group of Nigerian companies controlled by Mr Abubakar Aliyu, a Group Construction, which is part of the network, subsequently received some of the OPL 245 funds which were transferred by JP Morgan to a company named Malabu Oil & Gas.

Having become aware of the email, which was believed to be relevant to the prosecution in Milan of Royal Dutch Shell, Eni Spa and others, our partners, acting in the public interest, informed the Milan Prosecutor of the FRNs statements to the High Court in London. The Milan Prosecutor issued a European Investigation Order (Ref:54772/13) to the UK, seeking the email from JP Morgan. The UK authorities complied with the request and obtained the email, which was subsequently transmitted by the UK authorities to the Milan Prosecutor, HEDA noted.

According to HEDA, the Milan Tribunal subsequently accepted the email as evidence in the trial and the prosecutor presented it to the court on February 3, 2021.

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HEDA said the email was obtained by the Milan prosecutor through a government-to-government request from Italy to the United Kingdom and that the documentation is now part of the public record that the email was obtained from JP Morgan by the UK Serious Fraud Office and transmitted directly to the Milan Prosecutor.

Adokes petition to police

Mr Adoke had sent a petition to the Inspector General of Police office demanding a probe of email evidence presented against him by prosecutors in Malabu trial in Milan, Italy.

In his petition dated February 5, Mr Adoke claimed that an email presented at the Italian court and purported to have originated from him, was forged and presented in court to interfere with the course of justice.

The former minister told the police in the petition that those behind the alleged forgery were unknown to him, but urged the police authorities to expose them.

The former attorney-general also later complained to the police that some people, one of whom he suspected to be Mr Suraju, circulated a fake tape purporting it to be that of an interview he had with an Italian journalist admitting that the Malabu transaction was a scam.

He said he granted no such interview but that a tape was concocted and circulated purporting him to have done so.

Both Shell and Eni along with their managers that were the main defendants in the case, were accused of paying bribes to Nigerian officials in respect of the OPL 245 oil block.

But they were recently acquitted by the Milan court in March.

Police in April interrogated Mr Suraju in Abuja but later released him on bail.
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President Muhammadu Buhari has again summoned security chiefs for a crucial meeting, to address the security challenges in some parts of the country.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the president had on April 30 and May 4 met with the security chiefs and heads of the intelligence community as part of ongoing critical engagements to meant to provide solutions to security challenges in the country.

Those in attendance at Tuesdays meeting include Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha and Chief of Staff to the President, Ibrahim Gambari.

Others are the Minister of Defence, Bashir Magashi and the National Security Adviser to the President, Babagana Monguno, as well as the acting Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba.

The Chief of Defence Staff, Lucky Irabor, Chief of Army Staff; Ibrahim Attahiru, Chief of Naval Staff; Awwal Zubairu, and Chief of Air Staff, Isiaka Amoo, are also in attendance at the crucial meeting.

NAN reports that the Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama is also attending the security meeting for the first time.

(NAN)
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Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will represent Nigeria at the sixth inauguration of President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda.

Laolu Akande, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Office of the Vice President, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday in Abuja.

Mr Osinbajo will be joining several other heads of state and government at the swearing-in ceremony scheduled for May 12, at Kololo Independence Grounds in Kampala, Uganda.

Nigeria and Uganda share historical antecedents and enjoy good diplomatic relationships, including working together as member-states of the Commonwealth, the African Union, and the United Nations among others.

Both countries have signed Bilateral Agreements on Technical Aid Corps, Trade, and on Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation.

The vice president had earlier participated at the resumed National Security Council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He also travelled to Lagos for a tour of the manufacturing facility of SecureID.

SecureID is one of the three smart card manufacturing companies in Africa.

Mr Osinbajo will depart Lagos for Kampala on Tuesday evening and will be accompanied by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Zubairu Dada, and the Special Adviser on Economic Matters to the President, Adeyemi Dipeolu.

He is expected back in the country on Wednesday.

(NAN)
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Nigeria on Monday recorded 49 new cases of the COVID-19 virus, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 165,468.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) disclosed this on its official Twitter handle on Monday.

The public health agency noted that the 49 new cases were reported from three states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

It said FCT topped the list with 27 infections, followed by Lagos, Enugu and Oyo with 11, eight and three cases respectively.

According to the update, no new death was recorded from the virus which has already claimed 2,065 lives in the country.

The number of deaths from the virus has declined recently with only four deaths recorded in the last 26 days.

A breakdown of the data shows that 21 people were discharged on Monday after testing negative for the virus. This brings the total number of discharged persons after treatment to 156,318.

Meanwhile, Nigeria has said the second dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines would soon be administered on eligible men and women who have received their first shots.

The country has, so far, received about 4.1 million doses of the vaccine.
The controversies over the appointment of 9th substantive vice-chancellor at the Lagos State University (LASU), Ojo, may yet be far from being over as the visitation panel appointed by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has recommended jettisoning of the report of the second selection process, PREMIUM TIMES can exclusively report.

The panel, headed by the Pro-Chancellor of the Ekiti State University and former Vice Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Bamitale Omole, on Monday submitted a three-volume report to Mr Sanwo-Olu containing its recommendations on ways towards resolving the lingering crisis over the appointment, among other pertinent issues.

According to reliable sources who are privy to the details of the documents but who do not want to be named, they said the panel has also recommended the engagement of consultants to join a new joint council and senate selection committee to be inaugurated by the universitys governing council.

It is, however, not clear whether the Adebayo Ninalowo-led governing council of the university is recommended for dissolution or not.

But strong indications have emerged that whether recommended for dissolution or not, some members of the council have resolved to resign for the council if the panels recommendation is adopted by the governor.

Earlier, some stakeholders had kicked against the choice of Mr Omole as the chairman of the special visitation panel, citing the succession crisis witnessed during his administration at OAU which led to his unceremonious exit from the university, as a valid reason.

Inside LASUs crisis

After rejecting the first nominations by the universitys governing council earlier in the year due largely to complaints by some applicants and others, Mr Sanwo-Olu ordered a fresh process by the same selection committee of the governing council.

The council had recommended a professor of public health and director of the universitys research and innovation unit, Olumuyiwa Odusanya, a former chairperson of the universitys branch of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), who was later appointed dean of students affairs, Kabir Akinyemi, and a former deputy vice-chancellor, Sena Bakre.

While Mr Odusanya scored 90 per cent to rank first, Ms Bakre came second with 72.5 per cent. Mr Akinyemi, who ranked third on the list, scored 68.8 per cent. The wife of the states commissioner for the environment, Mr Olatunji Bello, Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello was ranked 4th with 68.0 per cent, and was followed by Omotayo Awofolu from the Namibia University of Science and Technology, who scored 66.5 per cent.

Also, following the expiration of the tenure of the universitys 8th substantive vice-chancellor, Olanrewaju Fagbhun, on January 11, the universitys senate also elected the then deputy vice-chancellor in charge of administration, Oyindamola Oke, as acting vice-chancellor.

However, in March, after another round of rigorous selection processes, a fresh recommendation was made to the governor with the best three as Mr Odusanya, who scored 87.94 per cent; a professor of public health at Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto, Mohammed Ibrahim, who scored 80.95 per cent, and a professor of public mental health and incumbent acting provost of the universitys college of medicine, Abiodun Adewuya, with 76.61 per cent, taking first, second and third positions respectively.

The incumbent deputy vice-chancellor in charge of academics, Elias Wahab, was ranked 4th with 76.61 per cent, while Olawunmi Badejo scored 71.99 per cent to be ranked 5th.

Others are Akinyemi in 6th position with 69.01 per cent; Olatunji-Bello ranking 7th with 68.95 per cent, and Sena Bakre with 66.4 per cent, ranking 8th. Awofolu, whose name also appeared on the list could not be graded as he was said to be absent from the interview.

Meanwhile, worried by the flood of petitions and complaints by interested parties, especially against the new list, the governor, on March 30, inaugurated a six-man special visitation panel.

The panel, which is chaired by Mr Omole, has as other members, former vice-chancellor of University of Port Harcourt, Joseph Ajienka; a renowned political scientist, Ayo Olukotun; former Lagos Solicitor-General, Lawal Pedro; former Registrar of University of Ibadan (UI), Olujimi Olukoya, and a director in the states public service, Funmilola Olajide, who functioned as the panels Secretary.

Panel submits report

After about five weeks of interactions and reading through voluminous memoranda submitted to it, the panel on Monday submitted its recommendations to the governor.

According to a statement issued by the governors spokesman, Gboyega Akosile, Mr Omole while presenting the report said; said: Without a scintilla of equivocation in our findings, observations and recommendations are based on the memoranda submitted to us, the face-to-face interactions and interviews that we had with many of the people who held opposing and disparate position on the matter of the appointment of the 9th VC.

Individuals, groups, associations, unions, guild, the academia and traditional rulers who submitted memoranda were given ample opportunities to present their submissions. The documents we are submitting to the Visitor of the university are final products of the careful and punctilious exercise for official consideration.

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He said the governor pledged that the report would be well utilised and its recommendations fully implemented in the appointment of the universitys new vice-chancellor.

He also said: Today, I received reports of the special visitation panel on the Vice Chancellorship of LASU, which looked into the issues surrounding the appointment of the 9th Vice Chancellor, especially the remote causes of the impasse into the selection process and procedures for the appointment.

This effort is geared towards ensuring that there is equality, fairness, transparency, openness and level playground for all in the process of selection and to ensure that the best and the most qualified person that will drive the established vision of the schools founding fathers emerges at the end of the process.

Report

While the details of the report are yet to be made public by the governor, PREMIUM TIMES has gained insight into some of the key recommendations by the panel.

Reliable sources who are privy to the contents of the three-volume report but who do not want to be named since they are not authorised to speak on the matter, have confided in our reporters that key among the issues is the jettisoning of the second lists submitted to the governor so far.

PREMIUM TIMES is yet to authenticate the claim.

The sources also added that the panel has recommended the engagement of consultants to join hands with the selection committee of the governing council during a new selection process to be put in place soon.

The panel has also mischievously indicted the universitys registrar claiming he did not guide the selection committee properly. It is part of the ploy to justify its recommendation for the cancellation of the second process, one of the sources said.

Not yet Uhuru

Meanwhile, the Education Rights Campaign (ERC), a civil society group had earlier kicked against the nomination of Mr Omole as the chairman of the panel.

A statement issued by the group and signed by its deputy national coordinator, Ogunjimi Ayobami, and the national mobilisation officer, Michael Lenin, said Nigerians should not await any positive outcome from the panel.

The statement reads in part; Without any intention to second guess the findings of the Lagos State University (LASU) visitation panel 2021 set up by the Lagos State government to look into the Vice Chancellorship selection crisis rocking the University, the Education Rights Campaign (ERC) feels it incumbent to sound a note of warning that there is the likelihood that the panels objective may be derailed and justice not served due to the anti-worker and anti-student pedigree of the panels Chairman, Prof. Bamitale Omole.

It added that; As he exited the University after the expiration of his tenure, Prof. Bamitale Omole orchestrated an illegal imposition of an acting Vice-Chancellor to succeed him which led to a crisis for months. His imposition of Prof. Salami in contravention of processes and precedents was only stopped by protest and strikes of workers (NASU and SSANU especially) which had the school shut for months. It took a federal government intervention for the crisis to be resolved which led to the appointment of Prof. Elujoba as Acting Vice-Chancellor.
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Outspoken Enugu Catholic Priest, Ejike Mbaka, has announced a one-month shutdown of the Adoration Ministry in Enugu.

The priest made the announcement in a notice sent out on Tuesday morning.

This decision, it was gathered, followed the order given to him by the Catholic Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Calistus Onaga to embark on a one-month retreat.

The statement said Mr Mbaka was proceeding on a one-month private prayer retreat.

The statement read Our Spiritual Director, Rev Fr Ejike Mbaka wishes to inform his beloved adorers that he has embarked on a private prayer retreat that will end on 10th June 2021.

Consequently, no ministry activities shall be held in the ministry ground pending his return.

He directs that members of the ministry are to observe this period of his retreat as they used to do during the usual January breaks of the ministry, by praying at their homes, being charitable and fasting according to their ability. Adoration! Holy Spirit is our Power!

It will be recalled that following the exchange of words between Mr Mbaka and Nigerias Presidency recently, the priest was summoned last Tuesday by the bishop of the Diocese.

Twenty-four hours later, information went viral on social media that the priest was missing.

His parishioners thereafter embarked on a protest to the bishops residence where they allegedly destroyed properties within the premises.

They were also said to have destroyed properties at the Holy Ghost Cathedral before Mr Mbaka later appeared and took them away to New Haven where he addressed them.

Addressing the parishioners, the priest said he was denied access to his phones and ordered to proceed on one-month suspension.

He also alleged that the diocesan leadership wanted to close down the Adoration ministry.

Following the attack, the Bishop, Mr Onaga declared a one-week prayer for reparation over the incident.

But on Sunday, Mr Mbaka apologised to the bishop and other Catholic faithful of the diocese for the destruction of parts of the bishops residence and the Holy Ghost Cathedral.
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The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has called for a full investigation into the alleged arrest of a helicopter supplying arms and food to bandits in some North-west states.

The National Publicity Secretary of ACF, Emmanuel Yawe, made the demand in a statement on Monday.

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported how a former Nigerian Head of State Abdulsalami Abubakar denied a report by some online media platforms linking him to a helicopter said to have been sighted supplying arms and food items to bandits in Niger State.

The retired army general described the reports as false, unfounded and fake news.

However, many residents of Kagara in the Rafi local government area of Mr Abubakars home, Niger State, had claimed sighting a helicopter supplying arms and food items to the armed bandits terrorising the area.

One of the helicopters reportedly crashed in Pangu Gari, a town on the outskirts of Kagara town, in Rafi Local Government Area, many residents said.

Rafi Local Government Area is at the boundary of Niger and the restive Birnin Gwara LGA in Kaduna and is one of the council areas worst hit by armed banditry, forcing many peasants to flee their farming communities in the area.

Reacting to the reports, Mr Yawe said Early in March this year, at the height of the kidnapping of students of the Jangebe Government Girls Secondary School in Zamfara, the Federal Government slammed a ban of flights over the state.

In reaction, our National Chairman, Chief Audu Ogbe, issued a statement calling for the ban to be extended to states such as Borno, Taraba, Benue, Yobe where there were rumours that arms, foodstuffs and other supplies were being dropped for bandits by a mysterious helicopter, the forum said.

Today, there are various accounts that a helicopter that has been used to drop supplies for the criminals has been arrested. The accounts are rather confusing, with the rather scandalous accusation that a former Head of State, General Abubakar Abdulsalami is the owner of the aircraft.

The General has since dismissed the rumour that he owns it.

We have diligently followed these sordid revelations in the media. The Arewa Consultative Forum is convinced that there is a need for an open and transparent investigation on the orders of the President, Commander in Chief, Muhammadu Buhari.

We hope the result of this investigation will clear whatever doubts there are about righting our security challenges.
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Governors of the 17 states in Southern Nigeria are currently meeting in Delta State.

Some of the governors present at the meeting include Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu, Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta and Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti.

The meeting is expected to discuss, among others, the worsening security situation across Nigeria.

See photos from the meeting below.

Enugu governor at the meeting. Some of the governors at the meeting. (PHOTO CREDIT: Enugu State Government) Some of the governors at the meeting. Some of the governors at the meeting. (PHOTO CREDIT: Enugu State Government) Some of the governors at the meeting. Some of the governors at the meeting. (PHOTO CREDIT: Enugu State Government) Some of the governors at the meeting. (PHOTO CREDIT: Enugu State Government) Some of the governors at the meeting. Some of the governors at the meeting. (PHOTO CREDIT: Enugu State Government) Some of the governors at the meeting. Some of the governors at the meeting. (PHOTO CREDIT: Enugu State Government) Some of the governors at the meeting. Some of the governors at the meeting. (PHOTO CREDIT: Enugu State Government)
The company believes the project has the potential to host multiple structural gold targets and the auger drilling will provide a low-cost and highly effective means to test several encouraging areas.

( ) (FRA:U9V) is set to start auger drilling at the 100%-owned Yarbu Gold Project, around 160 kilometres northeast of Southern Cross and about 90 kilometres northwest of TSCs Mt Dimer Project in Western Australia.

The company has appointed Kalgoorlie-based drilling contractor Gyro Australia to undertake the campaign comprising around 660 holes using a low impact Landcruiser-mounted auger drilling rig to test bedrock geochemical signatures.

Drilling will comprise shallow 2-3 metres deep auger soil sample drill holes, depending on penetration depths, across the tenement package.

Maiden exploration campaign

Twenty Seven CEO Simon Philips said: We are looking forward to getting our maiden exploration campaign underway at Yarbu, an area which we believe has the potential to host multiple structural gold targets.

Auger drilling provides us with a low-cost, yet highly effective means to test several encouraging areas within Yarbu that have been detected during the recent reprocessing of geophysical data.

Data from this auger program will be used to generate and prioritise follow-up drill targets.

Yarbu forms a key part of our 22 kilometres strike along the highly prospective Clampton Fault which is known to host significant gold mineralisation and remains largely underexplored by modern techniques.

Our team has worked hard to secure a strong foothold within this highly prospective region within the WA Goldfields and we look forward to advancing our systematic exploration programs over the coming months.

Historical soil geochemistry

TSCs geological staff have been collating and reviewing historical soil geochemistry which shows Yarbu has a complex geological structural history and confirms the presence of favourable structural settings within the tenement package.

Historical geochemical samples mainly comprise auger sampling which was tested only for limited geochemical elements, and at much higher detection limits compared to what is now available at commercial labs.

The company will use a low detection limit assaying technique which produces results on a full suite of elements and this is expected to provide new insights into potentially masked mineralisation at depth.

Two-pronged drilling approach

Drilling is designed on a two-pronged approach - firstly, to identify elemental alteration halos within the tenement, which can be seen from historical geochemical sampling, and secondly to test newly discerned fold structures identified from TSCs reprocessing of the regional geophysics.

The company has designed an 800 metres x 400 metres grid pattern, which will give maximum coverage of the tenements and minimum spacing to identify geochemical alteration halos.

Next steps

Planned activities at Yarbu include the following:

Starting of auger drilling campaign this month;

Compilation of all historical soil data into a single database, which will provide the geological team with unparalleled insight into the geochemical signature of known mineralisation around the Yarbu tenements and coupled with the new geochemical data, will unlock further details; and

Modelling of drilling data and planning for further activities which may include further infill drilling.

Further work programs designed to test other priority targets within TSCs portfolio are being finalised and details will be announced shortly.
A consultant pathologist at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Sunday, Shoyemi, on Tuesday, told the judicial panel of Inquiry in Lagos that a bullet was extracted in the body of a victim of police extrajudicial killing.

Mr Shoyemi, who is also a senior lecturer at the College of Medicine, LASUTH, appeared before the panel following a summons he received in the case of Charles Otoo, who was said to have been shot by the police.

The wife of the deceased, Victoria Otoo, had earlier testified before the panel that her husband was shot on October 21, 2020, by men of the Nigeria Police Force, Ojodu Divisional Headquarters.

Mrs Otoo, who was led in evidence by Adebola Lema, told the panel that the incident happened around 6 p.m. on October 21, a day after the Lekki shooting incident occurred.

Myself and my husband went to the Bus Stop at Akiode, Ojodu Berger, to buy foodstuffs for the family that evening in the neighborhood market, at Ishola Bello Street.

After buying what we wanted to buy, the police started shooting. I ran to one side, he ran to another side but it was not far. The police continued shooting, after some minutes, I saw my husband on the floor, he was shot at the head, Mrs Otoo said.

The deceaseds wife said the officers were led by the Station Officer (SO) of Ojodu Police Division. She alleged that her husband was shot by a female officer, with the name Chinyere.

She told the panel that residents around could not help her husband immediately he was shot because the police were still shooting.

Mrs Otoo said after several gunshots, the police left the area and her husband was rushed to County Hospital, Aguda, with the help of passers-by. He was pronounced dead by one Dosumu Y.A, a doctor.

The doctor said he has lost a lot of blood, the police shoot him in the head, she said.

The deceased was described as a responsible father of three who never had any issues with police officers before they shot him.

Pathologists testimony

Testifying before the panel on Thursday, Mr Shoyemi confirmed that Mr Otoo died from a gunshot injury sustained to the head.

Death was caused by severe injury to the brain following a gunshot. We extracted a bullet in the cause of examining the dead body, the pathologist said, referring to the body of Mr Otoo which he examined.

Mr Shoyemi also presented a bullet extracted from the deceaseds head to the panel, which he said will undergo a ballistic analysis.

The pathologist also presented a post-mortem report of the deceased to the panel.

Doris Okuwobi, a retired judge heading the panel, announced that the panel has sighted the bullet and it would be released for ballistic examination any time it is demanded.

Police witness

The counsel to the Nigerian police, appearing before the panel, Joseph Eboseremen, also brought in a witness to testify in the case.

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Lukeman Sowemimo, the station officer of the Ojodu police station, said he drafted men to the Ojodu area on October 21 because hoodlums were attacking the area, including the police station.

Mr Sowemimo said police officers were drafted to Ojodu to calm the area where hoodlums were disturbing.

The Station Officer denied knowing the female officer, Chinyere, who allegedly shot the victim.

When shown the bullet brought before the panel by the pathologist, Mr Lukeman said the bullet is from pistol.

The difference between pistol and a rifle is that pistol can only kill at a close range while rifle can kill from any distance.

I am not a ballistician, but with the experience as a mobile man, if I see a pistol ammunition, I can differentiate it from an AK 47 ammunition, he said.

Mr Lema, the lawyer to the petitioner, asked the officer whether police officers carry pistols, and he answered in the affirmative.

The officer also said he was at the station with the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) on the day of the incident and did not lead the team to Akiode, Ojodu Berger, as alleged.
The European Union (EU) says it is committed to assisting vulnerable people in countries in the Sahel and Central Africa with a humanitarian aid of 210 million euros in 2021.

The EU made this known in a statement issued on Tuesday in Abuja by Modestus Chukwulaka, the spokesman for the EU Delegation to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

According to the EU, the funding which will be allocated to humanitarian projects in eight beneficiary countries, is a reaffirmation of its solidarity with Africa and the beneficiary countries.

The eight countries to benefit from the aid are Burkina Faso (24.3 million euros), Cameroon (17.5 million euros), the Central African Republic (21.5 million euros), Chad (35.5 million euros) Mali (31.9 million euros), Mauritania (10 million euros), Niger (32.3 million euros) and Nigeria (37 million euros).

The life of many in the Sahel and Central Africa countries continues to be disrupted by conflict, poverty, climatic changes, recurrent food crises, or a combination of all.

It is estimated that there are more than 35 million people in need of humanitarian assistance in the eight priority countries covered by the EUs 2021 Humanitarian Implementation Plan for West and Central Africa.

The major humanitarian needs relate to shelter, emergency food aid, access to health care and clean water, treatment for malnourished children, and protection for the vulnerable, it said.

The statement continued: Against this backdrop, the coronavirus pandemic is posing additional challenges, both concerning the pressure on already fragile health systems and also the effects of the containment measures on vulnerable peoples access to food and livelihoods.

At the same time, humanitarian actors are facing the combined challenges of delivering humanitarian assistance in an increasingly insecure context, where access is further restricted due to the pandemic.

The statement noted that worsening instability and armed conflicts, together with the COVID-19 pandemic and natural hazards, were having a devastating impact in the Sahel and countries in Central Africa.

It quoted the EU Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarcic, as saying, The EU remains committed to help reduce suffering among people in need in the region.

The EUs humanitarian funding in the Sahel and Central African countries is targeted to provide life-saving assistance to the people affected by conflict and to the communities hosting people who had to flee.

While humanitarian aid is there to bring emergency relief, longer-lasting improvements can only be brought about through the political will of national governments and good governance.

It further said the humanitarian aid was to also provide protection to vulnerable people and support the respect of International Humanitarian Law and the humanitarian principles.

The aim of the aid, it said, was to support measures to address food crises and severe acute malnutrition among children under five in the subregion.

The assistance, it said, also aimed to enhance the immediate response in terms of basic services to most vulnerable population, especially concerning healthcare for all or education for children caught up in humanitarian crises.

Intervention

The EU intervention also aimed to strengthen fragile communities preparedness for crises, such as mass displacements of people, or recurrent food or climate-related crises, the statement added.

This assistance is part of the wider EU support provided to the region, including through the Team Europe  contributions to the Coronavirus Global Response.

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It is also part of EUs support to the vaccine distribution effort through the COVAX Facility, and other actions providing longer-term support to strengthen fragile health systems, the statement further said.

It recalled that, as part of the EUs Coronavirus Global Response and its target to make COVID-19 vaccines a global public good, Team Europe had earlier provided 2.2 billion euros to the COVAX Facility.

The COVAX Facility is supporting the delivery of 1.3 billion doses of vaccines to 92 low and middle-income countries by the end of 2021 and has recently decided that up to 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines will be made available for use in humanitarian contexts, it said.

The statement also recalled that in 2020, the EU supported humanitarian interventions in the region with more than 213 million euros.

It added that the European Commission had also provided 100 million euros in humanitarian assistance to support the rollout of vaccination campaigns in countries in Africa with critical humanitarian needs and fragile health systems.

The EU is a leading, long-standing humanitarian donor in the Sahel and Central Africa, one of the worlds poorest and most fragile regions, it said.

19 million persons benefited

More than 19 million people in need benefitted from EU- funded humanitarian operations initiated in 2020 in West and Central Africa.

These included around 6.3 million people who were provided with food security and livelihood support; more than 3 million people assisted on disaster preparedness and risk reduction; around 2.8 million people offered access to health services; and almost 1.8 million people receiving protection support.

In order to support longer-term achievements, the EU is working to build effective synergies between humanitarian, development and peace initiatives, the statement added. (NAN)
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The Nigeria Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) has declared that the Ramadan fast will continue on Wednesday while the Eid-el-Fitr will be on Thursday.

The NSCIA, headed by the Sultan of Sokoto, Saad Abubakar, said this in a statement Tuesday evening.

After there was no positive sighting of a new crescent Tuesday, the Ramadan fasting continues tomorrow, the council said in a tweet.

#BREAKING There was no positive sighting of Shawwal crescent in Nigeria today, 29th Ramadan 1442 AH (Tuesday, 11th May 2021). Hence, tomorrow is 30th Ramadan 1442 AH (Wednesday, 12th May, 2021) is. #EidAlFitr is Thursday! Details shortly.  NSCIA  Islamic Affairs (@NSCIAng) May 11, 2021

The Eid-ul-fitr festival marks the end of Muslim fasting month, Ramadan, the ninth month of the lunar calendar where Muslims abstain from food, drink and sexual pleasure from dawn to dusk.

The Ramadan fast is either twenty-nine or thirty days, depending on when the new crescent is sighted.

By implication, the month will be 30 days this year.

The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA)  under the leadership of its President-General and Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence, Alh. Muhammad Saad Abubakar, CFR, mni  wishes to inform the Nigerian Muslim Ummah that there was no proven report of the sighting of the crescent of Shawwal, 1442 AH on the 29th of Ramadan, 1442 AH, the statement read.

Ramadan fast will therefore continue tomorrow Wednesday, 12th May 2021 as the 30th day of Ramadan. Consequently, Thursday 13th May, 2021 is hereby declared as 1st of Shawwal, 1442 AH and the day of Eid-il-fitr.

The Council prays that Almighty Allah accept our fasting and other virtuous acts in Ramadan and grant us all peaceful and blissful Eid celebrations.
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The 14-inch crude trunk line operated by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) in the Niger Delta region spilled 276 barrels of crude oil in three incidents in April, according to a report.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) learnt on Monday that the 276 barrels of crude is the cumulative volume of spill from a section of the pipeline that transverses Bayelsa and Rivers communities during the period.

Checks at the oil firms spill incident portal indicated that two of the spills were caused by sabotage while one was traced to equipment failure.

According to the Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) reports on the incidents obtained by NAN, the leak which occurred at Ikararama in Bayelsa on April 7, was traceable to equipment failure which caused a leakage of 110 barrels.

The Okordia-Rumekpe crude pipeline is part of the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP) network crisscrossing SPDCs onshore fields which conveys crude to the SPDCs crude export terminal at Bonny in Rivers.

JIV is a statutory exercise to ascertain the cause of any recorded spill incident. The exercise involves oil firms, regulators, host communities and state Ministries of Environment.

The leak incident on April 13 at Ihuowu in Rivers, attributed to sabotage by the JIV report, caused a spill of 157 barrels of crude.

The report further showed that on April 14 at Ukpeliede in Rivers, the same Okordia-Rumekpe trunk line was breached by vandals leaving a leak of nine barrels.

According to the SPDCs spills records, oil spill response activities were ongoing at the spill sites while recovery of spilled crude would be completed in May.

Also, SPDC reported that it had concluded investigation in seven spill incidents from its operations across the Niger Delta with a total spilled volume of 435.01 barrels of crude.

Of the seven leak incidents, six were caused by sabotage while one was traced to equipment failure.

The SPDC spokesperson, Bamidele Odugbesan, declined comments on the integrity of the frequently breached 14-inch Okordia-Rumekpe pipeline.

(NAN)
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The Lagos State Government on Monday issued an eviction notice to squatters and illegal occupants at Iganmu Under Bridge.

Gboyega Akosile, the Chief Press Secretary to the Lagos State governor, disclosed this via his Twitter handle.

According to the official, a three-day quit notice was served on the occupants on Monday and expires on Thursday, with enforcement to follow.

A removal notice was also served on all abandoned trucks in the area.

The action is based on an Executive Order on traffic and sanitation given by the state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Mr Akosile wrote, adding that Shola Jejeloye, the head of the Lagos Taskforce led the operation.

The Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences Unit (Taskforce) today served squatters at Iganmu Under Bridge (Whitesand) a 3  day Removal Notice of all illegal structures, trucks and vehicles in the area.

The Chairman of the Agency, CSP Shola Jejeloye, advised the owners of the illegal structures, abandoned trucks and shanties to immediately remove them as well as vacate the area within the stipulated date given to them by the State Government.

This action follows an announcement by Mr Sanwo-Olu to demolish shanties and eradicate motorcycles and tricycles from Lagos to curb crime in the state.

The governor, during a Security Townhall Meeting at the state secretariat, declared zero tolerance for environmental abuse, illegal and indiscriminate dumping of refuse and defacing the environment.

Mr Akosile said the Quit and Removal Notice became necessary in view of the rising incidences of traffic robberies around Iganmu and environmental nuisance caused by the squatters in the area.

Mr Jejeloye, a Superintendent of Police, who led the operation, appealed to traders, mechanics, and other squatters living under the bridge to vacate the premises before the three-day period elapses.

The Chairman noted that (the) government is worried by the squalid environment and that it is serving as hideouts for criminals, who daily dispossess road users of their valuables every now and then, adding that the present nature of the environment allow criminals to escape police arrest.

Mr Jejeloye said if there would a reduction in traffic robberies around Ijora and Apapa axes, the government needs to remove every bottleneck including shanties that serve as hideouts for criminals.

He also warned owners of abandoned trucks and vehicles, shanties, containers and kiosks under the Iganmu bridge to remove them from the area before Thursday.
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The police in Ogun State say they have rescued a 13-year-old from a kidnappers den and arrested four members of the syndicate for allegedly kidnapping the teenager and demanding a N500, 000 ransom from her father.

The incident happened last week Thursday in the Onipanu area of Ado-Odo Ota local government area.

The Ogun police spokesperson, Abimbola Oyeyemi, said the suspects were arrested following a missing person report filed by the father of the victim.

The 13-year-old victim was also rescued from a room owned by one of the suspects.

A complaint (was) lodged at Onipanu divisional headquarters, by one Adejunwon Odunowo, who reported that, her (his) 13yrs old daughter, Susan Odunowo, was sent on an errand by her mother at about 6:30 p.m. of 6th of May 2021, but didnt return home.

He stated further that, he later received an anonymous phone call, demanding for the sum of #500,000 as ransom, if he ever wants to see his daughter again, the police said.

Mr Oyeyemi said following the report, the DPO of the division, Bamidele Job, detailed his detectives to embark on intelligence and technical based investigation, in order to unravel those behind the devilish act.

On the 8th of May 2021, the detectives successfully traced one of the suspects to Cele area of Ota, where he was arrested. His arrest led to the apprehension of two other members of the gang at a factory in Ota. It was then discovered that the victim was being kept in a room, owned by Adekunle Basit. Detectives swiftly moved in there, and rescued the victim unhurt, the police spokesperson said.

Four members of a kidnap syndicate, including the leader of the gang, were arrested.

The suspects are John Nelson, 21; Adeleke Ayotunde, 29; Adekunle Basit 20 and the leader of the gang, Abey Fagbemi 20.

Mr Oyeyemi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, said the victim of the kidnap has since been reunited with her family.

Speaking on the incident, the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Edward Awolowo, commended the quick response of the police officers to the incident.

The police boss directed an immediate transfer of the suspects to the anti-kidnapping section of the state criminal investigation and intelligence department, for discreet investigation and prosecution.

He also appealed to members of the public, to adhere strictly to various security advice given by the command, in order not to fall victim of kidnap syndicates.
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The Oyo State Government says it will comply with the Supreme Court judgment which ordered the state to pay the salaries and allowances of the sacked chairmen and councillors of local government councils in the state.

This is contained in a statement in Ibadan by Taiwo Adisa, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Seyi Makinde.

The Supreme Court, on May 7, ruled that the dissolution of local governments in Oyo and their replacement with caretaker committees, is illegal.

The judge who delivered the unanimous judgment, Adamu Jauro, ordered that all entitlements owed to the sacked chairpersons from the date of their unlawful sack to the date they were to vacate office, should be paid to them.

The judge also awarded a cost of N20 million and asked the Attorney-General of Oyo State to file an affidavit of compliance latest August 7.

Mr Makinde said the state government will comply with the order of the apex court, once the details of the judgment are made available.

The government has shown its commitment to pay the dissolved chairmen and councillors as far back as February 2020.

The negotiation team, pursuant to the out-of-court order of the Oyo State High Court, offered the council chairmen and councillors the same condition which the Supreme Court just affirmed.

Mr Makinde sacked all the elected council chairmen and councillors shortly after he assumed office in 2019.

The sacked local government chairpersons, led by Ayodeji Abass-Aleshinloye, approached the Oyo State High Court to declare their removal from office as illegal.

The case proceeded to the Court of Appeal which ruled in favour of the governor, which caused the parties to appeal to the apex court.

(NAN)
The family of a 20-year-old journalist, Pelumi Onifade, killed by police officers attached to the Lagos State Task Force are about to be shut out from the Lagos Judicial Panel of Inquiry, a document has shown.

The family of the deceased, who approached the judicial panel on Saturday, was prevented from airing their case against the police following a preliminary objection raised against the case by the counsel to the Lagos state government.

Even though the family is yet to receive the corpse of the deceased seven months after, the state government wants the judicial panel to dismiss the case of the late journalist.

We have personal and specific instruction as regards this matter, Abiodun Owonikoko, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, holding brief for the Lagos state government, told the panel on Saturday.

PREMIUM TIMES has obtained a copy of the preliminary objection raised by the state government on Tuesday.

In the five-page document, the state government argued that the journalist was not killed by officers of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), which was the sole reason the panel was set up, and in addition, the investigation of the Lekki-toll gate incident.

Although the terms of reference of the Judicial Panel clearly reads Restitution for victims of SARS related abuses and Other Matters, the panel has also been entertaining other cases not specific to SARS but relating to the police.

The state governments lawyer, however, said Mr Onifades case does not merit being brought before the panel.

It is crystal clear that the totality of the petitioners petition before this honourable panel bears out irrefutable and without any equivocation that the petition is against the men of the Nigeria Police Force attached to the Lagos State Environmental Task Force and not against the activities of the men of the disbanded SARS, the notice of objection by the government partly reads.

Background

Mr Oniface was killed on October 24 when he went to report alleged looting of the governments facility at Abattoir, Agege area.

The journalist, who was an intern with GboahTV at the time of his death, was a 200-level student of the Department of History, Tai Solarin University of Education, Ogun State.

Drafted to cover the abbatoir incident, Mr Onifade was arrested alongside hoodlums who had exchanged fire with the police.

According to the deceaseds colleague who was also at the scene, Mr Onifade had sustained a gunshot injury by the time he was put in the police van, despite wearing a customised jacket of the station he worked with.

His employer immediately sprang into action and contacted the police. The police authorities assured him they would look into the case.

However, the body of the young journalist was found at the Ikorodu mortuary days later.

The father of the deceased, Mr Onifade, who walked into the witness box at the panel was prevented from testifying on Saturday as the lawyer for the government said a notice had been submitted with respect to the case.

The parents of the deceased journalist told PREMIUM TIMES that the body of Mr Onifade is yet to be released by the state government, several months after the incident happened.

Panel lacks jurisdiction

Two Senior Advocates of Nigeria, Abiodun Owonikoko and Olukayode Enitan, alongside other lawyers, Yetunde Olabode, Joshua Tony, and Jerry Briggs represented the Lagos State government in the matter.

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Mr Owonikoko, who addressed the panel, said an objection has been filed on the matter.

In the Notice of Preliminary Objection obtained by PREMIUM TIMES, the grounds of objection by the Lagos state government are as follows:

That the subject matter of this petition as presently constituted does not fall within the Terms of Reference upon which this Honorable Panel was constituted and as such this Honourable Panel lacks the requisite jurisdiction to entertain this petition

That it is ultra vires the jurisdiction of this Honorable Panel to entertain this Petition as the unfortunate events recounted therein were not alleged to be perpetrated by the disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS)

The unfortunate incident in the Petition allegedly occurred on 25th day of October 2020 long after the SARS had been disbanded and the Amended Instrument establishing the Panel of Enquiry was promulgated.

In the light of the above, we respectfully urge your Lordship and Honourable Members to dismiss this petition and consequently resolve the sole issue formulated for determination in favour of the respondent by holding that the subject matter of the suit as presently constituted does not fall within the Terms of Reference of this Honourable Panel, the objection reads in part.

While reacting, Lekan Egberongbe, the lawyer to the family, said he was taken aback by the objection raised by the counsel to the government, saying it is unfounded.

Mr Egberongbe asked for a short adjournment to respond to the objection given by the lawyer, and the chairperson of the panel adjourned the matter till May 25.
Ndukwe Ekekwe, a 34-year-old man who told the panel he was pushed off a two-storey building by police officers, on Tuesday, openly displayed his dissatisfaction at the meagre sum awarded to him as compensation for the brutality he suffered in the hands of the police.

Doris Okuwobi, the chairperson of the panel, awarded N7.5 million to Mr Ekekwe, a gesture which led to the petitioners mother bursting out in tears and the petitioner himself revolting.

Wetin be N7.5 million? I spent over N30 million, I sold my land. Wetin I wan take N7.5 million do? he shouted at the panel.

His aged mother, who has been attending the proceedings, also started crying, following the panels judgement.

Mr Ekekwe, who has been in a wheelchair since 2018, narrated that he encountered the officers of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) on February 16, 2018, an incident that left him with a damaged spinal cord.

The petitioner told the panel he was earlier detained and brutalised by police officers before the February 16 incident.

He said he was alleged of selling stolen goods at his shop at Alaba international market by officers led Haruna Hamisu, an inspector of police.

The alleged officer, Mr Hamisu, also appeared before the panel and said the petitioner was not pushed from a two-storey building but jumped.

Compensation, reaction

Doris Okuwobi, a retired judge heading the Lagos judicial panel, on Tuesday, awarded N7.5 million to the petitioner.

Giving the panels judgment, Mrs Okuwobi said the petitioner led credible and strong evidence on being brutalised by the police while in their custody.

The police stabbed the petitioner with a knife, hit his head with a gun, and broke his teeth. These pieces of evidence were not debunked by the respondents, Mrs Okuwobi said.

She added the panel found out there was a violation of the petitioners fundamental right and awarded a sum of N7.5 million as compensation for the torture and inhumane treatment meted to him by the respondent while in their custody.

The panel also recommended that an investigation be carried out to fish out the officers who abused and brutalised the petitioner and they should be sanctioned.

The pronouncement of the retired judge was followed by an expression of dissatisfaction by the petitioner and his family members.

Wetin I wan use that money do? I sell my land, my property, all my goods, wetin be that money? Wetin I wan use am do, for treatment abi for what? he responded.

Olukoya Ogungbeje, counsel to the petitioner, whisked the petitioner out of the panel room, where he calmed him and his mother.

Shortly after, the petitioner returned to the panel in a calmer mood to receive his cheque.

My noble lord, I sincerely appreciate the panel for the job well done, Mr Ogungbeje told the panel chair.

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While awarding the cheque, Mrs Okuwobi told the petitioner to accept it in good faith.

To you, it may be small, but you must bear one thing in mind that justice has been done to your case. That is what is utmost to the exercise being carried out. congratulations, she said.

The panel also awarded two other petitioners N3 million each for the brutality they suffered.
The Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry on Tuesday awarded a total amount of N13. 5 million compensations to three victims of police brutality.

Ndukwe Ekekwe, a petitioner, was awarded N7.5 million, while two other petitioners, Andrew Okon and Isaac Adeshina, received N3 million each for the brutality they suffered in the hands of police officers.

Messrs Okon and Adeshina, in a joint petition before the panel, said they were shot at by police officers at Idimi/Egbeda road on November 22, 2011.

In another petition, the panel awarded no compensation to the family of the petitioner, Ikwechi Onwugbufor, a man allegedly killed by the police, saying they could not establish their case.

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported how four victims of police brutality were awarded a total of N16.25 million on March 27.

The panel also awarded N10 million each to three other petitioners for police brutality and extrajudicial killing and another petitioner awarded N7.5 million for being unlawfully remanded in prison for six years.

With the new compensations awarded on Tuesday, a cumulative amount of N57. 25 million has so far been awarded by the panel.

Breakdown

Out of over 100 petitions that have been opened before the panel, judgments have been given in 13 cases.

10 out of the 13 cases received compensations in different sums, while the three petitioners received no compensations because they could not establish their cases.

As of Tuesday, the panel has disbursed N57.25 million out of the N200 million earmarked by the state government as compensation for the victims of police brutality and abuse of power.

Although the panel has 235 petitions before it, 29 percent of the compensation sum has been awarded to 10 petitioners.

Judgments

The family of the late Mr Onwugbufor earlier approached the judicial panel over his unlawful killing.

The sister to the deceased, who said she was 15 years old at the time of the incident, testified before the panel. A brother of the deceased also gave testimony.

Giving the ruling of the panel on the case, Doris Okuwobi, the chair of the panel, said the family did not establish their case and the panel is unable to award compensation.

Meanwhile, in the case of Mr Okon, a commercial bus driver who was shot by the police, and Mr Adesina, his passenger who was also shot, the panel gave N3 million compensation to each of them.

Messrs Okon and Adeshina were shot by a police officer, Nelson Bassey, because they refused to give him a bribe.

Both sustained serious gunshot injuries, while the officer eloped with the next available motorcycle. The police officer was subsequently dismissed and charged to court in 2014 for causing bodily injuries on the petitioners.

Giving a ruling on the petition, Mrs Okuwobi said the panel established that the petitioners were shot without any justification and there was no evidence that they received medical care or support from the Nigerian Police.

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This panel thereby award a sum of N3 million to Andrew Okon as compensation for the injuries sustained from the unlawful shooting by the third respondent. This panel also awards a sum of N3 million to Mr Isaac Adeshina as compensation for injuries sustained from the unlawful shooting by the third respondent.

The panel also recommended adequate training for police personnel.

In the case of Mr Ekekwe, the panel awarded a sum of N7.5 million for the brutality he suffered and the violation of his human rights by officers of the Nigerian Police.
The company also continues to engage with key brokers and strategic partners as it prepares to secure the equity portion of the financing at some stage after the receipt of the mining concession.

Highfield was well-funded with A$15.8 million cash in the bank at the end of the March quarter.

( ) (FRA:23H) has delivered to mining authorities of Madrid, Aragon and Navarra the last report required of the Mining Concession documentation submitted for the Muga Potash Project in Spain.

This was a positive report from the environmental department of Aragon in relation to the project.

Following the submission on May 10, the company has been advised that if no further clarification is required by the authorities, the next step is to send the text of the Mining Concession document to the Central Governments lawyer for its legal review.

This is prior to the Mining Concession award being issued.

Highfield continues with the temporary reduction of 50% of all Highfields management and staffs working time and salaries until the mining concession is granted. A similar reduction has been applied to all consultants.

In line with staff, the directors of the board have also implemented a reduction in their total remuneration by 50%.

Engineering and construction update

The flagship Muga Project is targeting relatively shallow sylvinite beds, across around 60 square kilometres in the provinces of Navarra and Aragon.

Mining is planned to commence at a depth of about 350 metres from surface and is therefore ideal for a relatively low-cost conventional mine.

During the quarter, Highfield prepared a HAZOP (hazard and operability analysis) report which covers the operational risk assessment and performance stress tests of the final designs.

Highfield plans to finalise these analyses while the project is pending the grant of the Mining Concession.

As soon as the concession is granted, the company plans to share the information with its construction partner, Acciona, and progress with the negotiation of the construction agreement and the project implementation.
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Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti on Tuesday granted clemency to 12 inmates of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Ado-Ekiti Custodian Centre.

The Ekiti Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Olawale Fapohunda, said the inmates who were granted clemency by the governor were serving various terms for offences such as stealing and housebreaking.

He said the inmates were considered for clemency after recommendations by the Ekiti Committee on Prerogative of Mercy.

The beneficiaries are considered based on account of good conduct, remorsefulness and period left to serve at the centre, the attorney-general, who was represented by the Director of Public Prosecution, Julius Ajibare, said.

He further advised them to be of good conduct as they rejoined society, avoid conducts inimical to the peace of the society and shun vengeance.

He also urged them to avoid anything that could bring them back to the centre.

The beneficiaries were Akinyemi Faith, Romiluyi Femi, Adebusuyi Deji, Philip Michael, Isa Kadere, Dayo Julius and Abiodun Oluwatosin.

Others were Adubiaro Sunday, Oluwatimileyin Olanikuti, Stephen Jacob, Adewale Ojo and Sunday Oluwasola.

Present at the event were the Director of Administration and Supply, Ministry of Justice, Tunji Folorunso, and the correctional service officials. (NAN)
A service for Simon G. Perry will be held at Heald Funeral Home on Thursday, June 17, 2021, from 4 to 6 p.m. On Friday, June 18, 2021, a Mass service will be held at St Alexander's Church in Morrisonville at 10 a.m. with a funeral procession to Saranac Cemetery. There will be a reception hel
LeanIX helps insurance leader achieve transparency and governance for cloud migration strategy

BONN, Germany, May 4, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Europe -- LeanIX, the platform that enables Corporate and Product IT teams to plan and manage their Continuous Transformation journey, today announced that insurance firm NURNBERGER Versicherung (NURNBERGER) has deployed the LeanIX Microservice Intelligence solution to support its cloud transformation. NURNBERGER has deployed LeanIX Microservice Intelligence with the LeanIX Enterprise Architecture Suite to create transparency over its application and microservice landscape, and to establish governance while transitioning from mainframe to microservices. NURNBERGER operates in the life, private health, property/casualty and auto insurance segments, primarily in Germany and Austria.

"With Microservice Intelligence, we can ensure that we don't make mistakes during our microservices journey  be it regulatory, license-related, and beyond. We need to have a clear understanding of possible security risks that are related to failed version updates or the exchange of library versions. We also need to closely monitor all of these issues, because the variety of technologies in use means that individual deviations are directly multiplied," said Stefan Spangel, cloud architect for NURNBERGER. "With the help of LeanIX Microservice Intelligence we can manage these risks and at the same time establish transparency, create reports, and notify the affected user groups with little effort. Ultimately, this is the basis to implement governance in our cloud environment."

For the full customer success story, visit: https://www.leanix.net/en/customers/success-stories/nuernberger-versicherung-mi

LeanIX Microservice Intelligence automatically creates a microservices catalog that integrates with DevOps toolchains to provide 360-degree transparency of all cloud-native applications, ownership and dependencies. Knowing where microservices are deployed, who is responsible and how they deliver business value enables Product IT teams to control complexity, boost developer productivity and build reliable software. As the basis for Implementing its cloud migration strategy, NURNBERGER uses Microservice Intelligence to automate the documentation and provide the distinction between functional enterprise architecture and technical microservices landscape to improve stakeholder alignment.

"LeanIX has provided us with a connector that allows us to automatically record both our CI/CD pipeline and a Kubernetes cluster and display them in Microservice Intelligence," said Andreas Michler, enterprise architect at NURNBERGER. "We initially focused exclusively on the architecture components that we rebuilt. Everything that runs via the pipeline or is deployed in Kubernetes is also 100% documented in Microservice Intelligence."

"We had an ITIL-compliant CMDB but the data quality was not sufficient to create reliable metrics and gain specific insights," Michler continued. "Thus, we had no useful information on a technical level. Even if we had taken a "traditional" approach and documented microservices by hand, the data quality would have been so poor from the start that this information wouldn't have served us as a trusted database either. Therefore, it was clear to us that we needed automated processes."

"Thanks to the automated documentation, our development teams can efficiently navigate the technical application landscape and ultimately develop stable and secure software," said Patrick Link, enterprise architect for NURNBERGER. "Microservice Intelligence helps us tremendously as it provides a transparent view of our deployments and, thanks to the subscription feature, we receive direct information about new deployments. Another use case we deal with is establishing governance in the cloud world. Without detailed documentation or automation, it is difficult for us to track which microservices are running where and which technologies are being used. Technology risk management is also one of the topics we address in this area."

To learn more about Microservice Intelligence, visit: https://www.leanix.net/en/solutions/microservice-intelligence

About LeanIX

The LeanIX platform promotes continuous transformation and enables Corporate IT and Product IT teams to establish superior governance while efficiently organizing, planning, and managing IT landscapes. From SaaS management and enterprise architecture management to the organisation of multicloud environments and the cataloging of microservices for DevOps teams: LeanIX follows a collaborative and data-driven approach, focusing on speed and control in cloud environments and enabling companies to make sound and fast decisions based on comprehensive data.

More than 400 enterprises including adidas, DHL, Volkswagen and numerous well-known technology companies such as Atlassian, Dropbox and Workday trust in LeanIX. More than 40 certified partners such as Deloitte and PwC rely on the dynamically growing IT company co-founded in 2012 by CEO Andre Christ.

With EA Connect Days, LeanIX has been regularly organizing one of the world's most important industry events in the field of Enterprise Architecture since 2014. The company, headquartered in Bonn, has additional locations in San Francisco, Boston and Denver (USA) as well as in Ljubljana (Slovenia), Munich (Germany), Utrecht (Netherlands) and Hyderabad (India) and employs more than 350 people worldwide.

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SOURCE LeanIX
DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Central Nervous System Drugs Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Impact and Recovery to 2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

This report provides strategists, marketers and senior management with the critical information they need to assess the global central nervous system drugs market as it emerges from the COVID-19 shut down.

The global central nervous system drugs market is expected to grow from $125.28 billion in 2020 to $126.89 billion in 2021 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 1.3%. The growth is mainly due to the companies rearranging their operations and recovering from the COVID-19 impact, which had earlier led to restrictive containment measures involving social distancing, remote working, and the closure of commercial activities that resulted in operational challenges. The market is expected to reach $163.05 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 6%.



Reasons to Purchase

Gain a truly global perspective with the most comprehensive report available on this market covering 50+ geographies.

Understand how the market is experiencing rapid growth due to the coronavirus and how it is likely to stabilize as the impact of the virus abates.

Create regional and country strategies on the basis of local data and analysis.

Identify growth segments for investment.

Outperform competitors using forecast data and the drivers and trends shaping the market.

Understand customers based on the latest market research findings.

Benchmark performance against key competitors.

Utilize the relationships between key data sets for superior strategizing.

Suitable for supporting your internal and external presentations with reliable high quality data and analysis

Where is the largest and fastest growing market for the central nervous system drugs market? How does the market relate to the overall economy, demography and other similar markets? What forces will shape the market going forward? The Central Nervous System Drugs Market global report answers all these questions and many more.



The report covers market characteristics, size and growth, segmentation, regional and country breakdowns, competitive landscape, market shares, trends and strategies for this market. It traces the market's historic and forecast market growth by geography. It places the market within the context of the wider central nervous system drugs market, and compares it with other markets.

The market characteristics section of the report defines and explains the market.

The market size section gives the market size ($b) covering both the historic growth of the market, the influence of the COVID-19 virus and forecasting its growth.

Market segmentations break down market into sub markets.

The regional and country breakdowns section gives an analysis of the market in each geography and the size of the market by geography and compares their historic and forecast growth. It covers the growth trajectory of COVID-19 for all regions, key developed countries and major emerging markets.

Competitive landscape gives a description of the competitive nature of the market, market shares, and a description of the leading companies. Key financial deals which have shaped the market in recent years are identified.

The trends and strategies section analyses the shape of the market as it emerges from the crisis and suggests how companies can grow as the market recovers.

The central nervous system drugs market section of the report gives context. It compares the central nervous system drugs market with other segments of the central nervous system drugs market by size and growth, historic and forecast. It analyses GDP proportion, expenditure per capita, central nervous system drugs indicators comparison.

Major companies in the central nervous system drugs market include Biogen Inc; F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd; Johnson & Johnson; Pfizer Inc and Novartis AG.



The central nervous system (CNS) drugs market consists of sales of central nervous system drugs and related services by entities (organizations, sole traders and partnerships) that manufacture central nervous system drugs that are used in the treatment of diseases affecting the brain or spinal cord. The central nervous system integrates sensory information and instructs the body to respond accordingly. The spinal cord is a channel for signals between the brain and the rest of the body. CNS disorder is a condition in which the brain and spinal cord's ability to function is affected, hence affecting the body. The market for CNS disorder drugs comprises of drugs that work in different ways depending on the type of disease by suppressing or boosting the brain activities. The central nervous system drugs market is segmented into analgesics; anti-parkinson drugs; anesthetics; anti-epileptics; and other CNS drugs.



North America was the largest region in the global central nervous system drugs market, accounting for 48% of the market in 2020. Asia Pacific was the second largest region accounting for 22% of the global central nervous system drugs market. Africa was the smallest region in the global central nervous system drugs market.



Many central nervous system drug manufacturers are collaborating with other manufacturers in the industry to share technical knowledge and improve product quality. These agreements are helping anti-epileptics drugs manufacturers broaden their products and services. For instance, in January 2017, Japan's Takeda Pharmaceuticals collaborated with New York-based biotech company Ovid Therapeutics to develop TAK-935, a drug for the treatment of rare epilepsy disorders in children. Also, Israel based D-Pharm LTD., and china based Jiangsu NHWA Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., are co-developing DP-VPA, an anti-epileptic drug. In October 2016, UCB Pharmaceuticals signed a partnership agreement with Evotec for the research and development of drugs for nervous disorders such as epilepsy, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.



During the historic period, the growth of the central nervous system drugs market was restrained by patent expiration of branded central nervous system drugs. In general, pharmaceutical companies invest a large sum of money in the drug development process and patents. During the patency period, the company holding the patent holds exclusivity for the manufacturing and distribution of drugs. Post expiration of patency, generic versions of the drugs are manufactured by other companies with prices much lower than the original branded drugs. Overall, this negatively impacts the growth of the market in terms of value.



The central nervous system drugs market was mainly driven by rapid growth in emerging markets in the historic period. Emerging markets growth was aided by rising disposable income, stable political environment and increasing foreign investments in these countries. For instance, according to the IMF, China's GDP grew from $11 trillion in 2015 to $13.6 trillion in 2018. Additionally, according to the World Economic Outlook Reports by the IMF, emerging markets and developing economies together registered a growth of 4.0% in 2015 and this increased to 4.5% in 2018. Thus, strong economic growth boosted the demand for central nervous system drugs and this drove the market during the historic period.



Key Topics Covered:



1. Executive Summary



2. Report Structure



3. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Characteristics

3.1. Market Definition

3.2. Key Segmentations



4. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Product Analysis

4.1. Leading Products/ Services

4.2. Key Features and Differentiators

4.3. Development Products



5. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Supply Chain

5.1. Supply Chain

5.2. Distribution

5.3. End Customers



6. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Customer Information

6.1. Customer Preferences

6.2. End Use Market Size and Growth



7. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Trends and Strategies



8. Impact of COVID-19 on Central Nervous System Drugs



9. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Size and Growth

9.1. Market Size

9.2. Historic Market Growth, Value ($ Billion)

9.2.1. Drivers of the Market

9.2.2. Restraints on the Market

9.3. Forecast Market Growth, Value ($ Billion)

9.3.1. Drivers of the Market

9.3.2. Restraints on the Market



10. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Regional Analysis

10.1. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market, 2020, by Region, Value ($ Billion)

10.2. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, Historic and Forecast, by Region

10.3. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market, Growth and Market Share Comparison, by Region



11. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Segmentation

11.1. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market, Segmentation by Type,

11.2. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market, Segmentation by Distribution Channel

11.3. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market, Segmentation by Route of Administration

11.4. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market, Segmentation by Drug Classification

11.5. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market, Segmentation by Mode of Purchase

12. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Metrics

12.1. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Size, Percentage of GDP, 2015-2025, Global

12.2. Per Capita Average Central Nervous System Drugs Market Expenditure, 2015-2025, Global

13. Asia-Pacific Central Nervous System Drugs Market

14. Western Europe Central Nervous System Drugs Market

15. Eastern Europe Central Nervous System Drugs Market

16. North America Central Nervous System Drugs Market

17. South America Central Nervous System Drugs Market

18. Middle East Central Nervous System Drugs Market

19. Africa Central Nervous System Drugs Market

20. Central Nervous System Drugs Market Competitive Landscape

20.1. Competitive Market Overview

20.2. Market Shares

20.3. Company Profiles

20.3.1. Biogen Inc

20.3.1.1. Company Overview

20.3.1.2. Products and Services

20.3.1.3. Strategy

20.3.1.4. Financial Performance

20.3.2. F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd

20.3.2.1. Company Overview

20.3.2.2. Products and Services

20.3.2.3. Strategy

20.3.2.4. Financial Performance

20.3.3. Johnson & Johnson

20.3.3.1. Company Overview

20.3.3.2. Products and Services

20.3.3.3. Strategy

20.3.3.4. Financial Performance

20.3.4. Pfizer Inc

20.3.4.1. Company Overview

20.3.4.2. Products and Services

20.3.4.3. Strategy

20.3.4.4. Financial Performance

20.3.5. Novartis AG

20.3.5.1. Company Overview

20.3.5.2. Products and Services

20.3.5.3. Strategy

20.3.5.4. Financial Performance



21. Key Mergers and Acquisitions in the Central Nervous System Drugs Market



22. Market Background: Pharmaceutical Drugs Market

22.1. Pharmaceutical Drugs Market Characteristics

22.2. Pharmaceutical Drugs Market Historic and Forecast, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F Growth, by Segment, Value ($ Billion), Global

22.3. Global Pharmaceutical Drugs Market, 2020, by Region, Value ($ Billion)

22.4. Global Pharmaceutical Drugs Market, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, Historic and Forecast, by Region

22.5. Global Pharmaceutical Drugs Market, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, Segmentation by Type, Value ($ Billion)



23. Recommendations

23.1. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market in 2025 - Growth Countries

23.2. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market in 2025 - Growth Segments

23.3. Global Central Nervous System Drugs Market in 2025 - Growth Strategies



24. Appendix



25. Copyright and Disclaimer



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/y6b0ve

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GOLD COAST, Australia, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A theory of everything - one that explains everything in existence, has been discovered by George Sourrys.

George, an author who lives on the Gold Coast, Australia, set out to uncover this groundbreaking theory for his novel 'The Synchronicity of Ulysses'. And while his book is a work of fiction, the theory is certainly not.

George Sourrys and his novel 'The Synchronicity of Ulysses'

"It's actually a very simple formula. However, as you delve into it deeper, it explains everything. It explains time, evolution, why there are differences between classical and quantum physics, it reconciles science and religion. It even points to us all having a greater purpose," George explains.

And what is even more incredible is that he has released this theory through a novel. The Synchronicity of Ulysses is a work of visionary fiction, like other well known novels such as 'The Alchemist' by Paulo Coelho. "I wanted to write a book that could help people to learn deep wisdom while also being entertained. I feel that the telling of stories is such a primal part of human history that it makes it one of the strongest methods for imparting knowledge," George said.

"Furthermore, I also wanted the book to help people to live the life of their dreams, so it has a strong undercurrent of personal development principles, all drawn from this overarching theory. After all, if we have a theory of everything, we might as well use it to improve our lives." Certainly, the book's blurb teases that 'The Synchronicity of Ulysses is an exciting adventure that also offers the reader personal enlightenment. Inside its pages is a real theory of everything and mindset principles which will forever change how you see your life and the world.'

If you would like to read more of this theory of everything, The Synchronicity of Ulysses is available in all good bookstores, including Amazon.

The Author can be found on the following links:

Author's website (Including a paper on The Theory of Everything).

Author's Instagram



Author's Facebook

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George Sourrys & His Novel

George Sourrys and his novel 'The Synchronicity of Ulysses'

SOURCE George Sourrys
PHILADELPHIA, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The following Aberdeen Standard Investments U.S. Closed-End Funds announced today that the closed end funds in the chart directly below will pay the distributions indicated on a per share basis on May 28, 2021 to all shareholders of record as of May 21, 2021 (ex-dividend date May 20, 2021). These dates apply to the Funds listed below with the exception of the Aberdeen Australia Equity Fund, Inc. (IAF) which will pay on June 30, 2021 to all shareholders of record as of May 21, 2021 (ex-dividend date May 20, 2021).

Ticker Exchange Fund Amount AGD NYSE Aberdeen Global Dynamic Dividend Fund $ 0.065 AOD NYSE Aberdeen Total Dynamic Dividend Fund $ 0.0575 ASGI NYSE Aberdeen Standard Global Infrastructure Income Fund $ 0.1083 AWP NYSE Aberdeen Global Premier Properties Fund $ 0.04 FAX NYSE American Aberdeen Asia-Pacific Income Fund, Inc. $ 0.0275 FCO NYSE American Aberdeen Global Income Fund, Inc. $ 0.07 IAF NYSE American Aberdeen Australia Equity Income Fund, Inc. $ 0.15

At the end of each calendar year, a Form 1099-DIV will be sent to shareholders, which will state the amount and composition of each Fund's distributions and provide information with respect to their appropriate tax treatment for the prior calendar year. You should not draw any conclusions about any of these Fund's investment performance from the amount of the distributions or from the terms of the Fund's Plan.

MANAGED DISTRIBUTION POLICY FUNDS

ANNOUNCE DISTRIBUTION PAYMENT DETAILS

Aberdeen Standard Global Infrastructure Income Fund ("ASGI")

Aberdeen Asia-Pacific Income Fund, Inc. ("FAX")

Aberdeen Australia Equity Fund, Inc. ("IAF")

The above-noted Aberdeen Standard Investments U.S. Closed-End Funds (the "Funds" or individually the "Fund"), today announced that the Funds will pay the distributions noted in the chart above on May 28, 2021, on a per share basis to all shareholders of record as of May 21, 2021 (ex-dividend date May 20, 2021). These dates apply to the Funds listed below with the exception of the Aberdeen Australia Equity Fund, Inc. (IAF) which will pay on June 30, 2021 to all shareholders of record as of May 21, 2021 (ex-dividend date May 20, 2021).

Each Fund has adopted a distribution policy to provide investors with a stable distribution out of current income, supplemented by realized capital gains and, to the extent necessary, paid-in capital in reliance on an exemptive order granted by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Under applicable U.S. tax rules, the amount and character of distributable income for each Fund's fiscal year can be finally determined only as of the end of the Fund's fiscal year. However, under Section 19 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act") and related rules, the Funds may be required to indicate to shareholders the estimated source of certain distributions to shareholders.

For the Aberdeen Australia Equity Fund, Inc. ("IAF"), this stock distribution will automatically be paid in newly issued shares of the Fund unless otherwise instructed by the shareholder. Shares of common stock will be issued at the lower of the net asset value ("NAV") per share or the market price per share with a floor for the NAV of not less than 95% of the market price. The valuation date for this stock distribution is June 21, 2021. Fractional shares will generally be settled in cash, except for registered shareholders with book entry accounts at Computershare Investor Services who will have whole and fractional shares added to their account.

Shareholders may request to be paid their quarterly distributions in cash instead of shares of common stock by providing advance notice to the bank, brokerage or nominee who holds their shares if the shares are in "street name," or by filling out in advance an election card received from Computershare Investor Services if the shares are in registered form. To receive the quarterly distribution payable in June 2021 in cash instead of shares of common stock, the bank, brokerage or nominee who holds the shares must advise the Depository Trust Company as to the full and fractional shares for which they want the distribution paid in cash by June 18, 2021 and written notification for the election of cash by registered shareholders must be received by Computershare Investor Services prior to June 18, 2021.

The following tables set forth the estimated amounts of the sources of the distributions for purposes of Section 19 of the 1940 Act and the rules adopted thereunder. The tables have been computed based on generally accepted accounting principles. The tables include estimated amounts and percentages for the current distributions to be paid as well as for the cumulative distributions paid relating to fiscal year to date, from the following sources: net investment income; net realized short-term capital gains; net realized long-term capital gains; and return of capital. The estimated compositions of the distributions may vary because the estimated composition may be impacted by future income, expenses and realized gains and losses on securities and currencies.

Each Fund's estimated sources of the current distributions to be paid and for its current fiscal year to date are as follows:

Estimated Amounts of Current Distribution per Share Fund Distribution

Amount Net Investment

Income Net Realized

Short-Term

Gains** Net Realized

Long-Term

Gains Return of

Capital ASGI $0.1083 $0.0292 27% $0.0758 70% $0.0000 0% $0.0033 3% FAX $0.0275 $0.0138 50% $0.0000 0% $0.0000 0% $0.0137 50% IAF $0.1500 $0.0150 10% $0.0030 2% $0.0630 42% $0.0690 46%

Estimated Amounts of Fiscal Year to Date Cumulative Distributions per Share Fund Fiscal Year*

to Date

Distribution

Amount Net Investment

Income Net Realized

Short-Term

Gains** Net Realized

Long-Term

Gains Return of

Capital ASGI $0.8664 $0.2339 27% $0.6065 70% $0.0000 0% $0.0260 3% FAX $0.1925 $0.0963 50% $0.0000 0% $0.0000 0% $0.0962 50% IAF $0.4300 $0.0430 10% $0.0086 2% $0.1806 42% $0.1978 46%

*ASGI has a 9/30 fiscal year end; FAX and IAF have a 10/31 fiscal year end. **includes currency gains

Where the estimated amounts above show a portion of the distribution to be a "Return of Capital," it means that Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its income and capital gains; therefore, a portion of your distribution may be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur for example, when some or all of the money that you invested in a Fund is paid back to you. A return of capital distribution does not necessarily reflect the Fund's investment performance and should not be confused with "yield" or "income."

The amounts and sources of distributions reported in this notice are only estimates and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The final determination of the source of all distributions for the current year will only be made after year-end. The actual amounts and sources of the amounts for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund's investment experience during the remainder of the fiscal year and may be subject to change based on tax regulations. After the end of each calendar year, a Form 1099-DIV will be sent to shareholders for the prior calendar year that will tell you how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes.

The following table provides the Funds' total return performance based on net asset value (NAV) over various time periods compared to the Funds' annualized and cumulative distribution rates.

Fund Performance and Distribution Rate Information Fund Average Annual

Total Return on

NAV for the 5

Year Period

Ending

04/30/2021  Current Fiscal

Period's

Annualized

Distribution Rate

on NAV  Cumulative

Total Return on

NAV  Cumulative

Distribution Rate

on NAV  ASGI 19.16%3 5.68% 22.65% 3.31% FAX 4.80% 7.04% 4.78% 3.52% IAF 10.82% 9.31% 26.90% 4.49%

1 Return data is net of all Fund expenses and fees and assumes the reinvestment of all distributions reinvested at prices obtained under the Fund's dividend reinvestment plan. 2 Based on the Fund's NAV as of April 30, 2021. 3 The Fund launched within the past 5 years; the performance and distribution rate information presented reflects data from inception (July 29, 2020) through April 30, 2021.

Shareholders should not draw any conclusions about a Fund's investment performance from the amount of the Fund's current distributions or from the terms of the distribution policy (the "Distribution Policy").

While NAV performance may be indicative of the Fund's investment performance, it does not measure the value of a shareholder's investment in the Fund. The value of a shareholder's investment in the Fund is determined by the Fund's market price, which is based on the supply and demand for the Fund's shares in the open market.

Pursuant to an exemptive order granted by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Funds may distribute any long-term capital gains more frequently than the limits provided in Section 19(b) under the 1940 Act and Rule 19b-1 thereunder. Therefore, distributions paid by the Funds during the year may include net income, short-term capital gains, long-term capital gains and/or a return of capital. Net income dividends and short-term capital gain dividends, while generally taxable at ordinary income rates, may be eligible, to the extent of qualified dividend income earned by the Funds, to be taxed at a lower rate not to exceed the maximum rate applicable to your long-term capital gains. Distributions made in any calendar year in excess of investment company taxable income and net capital gain are treated as taxable ordinary dividends to the extent of undistributed earnings and profits, and then as a return of capital that reduces the adjusted basis in the shares held. To the extent return of capital distributions exceed the adjusted basis in the shares held, capital gain is recognized with a holding period based on the period the shares have been held at the date such amount is received.

The payment of distributions in accordance with the Distribution Policy may result in a decrease in the Fund's net assets. A decrease in the Fund's net assets may cause an increase in the Fund's annual operating expense ratio and a decrease in the Fund's market price per share to the extent the market price correlates closely to the Fund's net asset value per share. The Distribution Policy may also negatively affect the Fund's investment activities to the extent that the Fund is required to hold larger cash positions than it typically would hold or to the extent that the Fund must liquidate securities that it would not have sold, for the purpose of paying the distribution. Each Fund's Board has the right to amend, suspend or terminate the Distribution Policy at any time. The amendment, suspension or termination of the Distribution Policy may affect the Fund's market price per share. Investors should consult their tax advisor regarding federal, state and local tax considerations that may be applicable in their particular circumstances.

Circular 230 disclosure : To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the U.S. Treasury, we inform you that any U.S. tax advice contained in this communication (including any attachments) is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any transaction or matter addressed herein.

In the United States, Aberdeen Standard Investments is the marketing name for the following affiliated, registered investment advisers: Aberdeen Standard Investments Inc., Aberdeen Asset Managers Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments Australia Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments (Asia) Ltd., Aberdeen Capital Management, LLC, Aberdeen Standard Investments ETFs Advisors LLC and Aberdeen Standard Alternative Funds Limited.

Closed-end funds are traded on the secondary market through one of the stock exchanges. A Fund's investment return and principal value will fluctuate so that an investor's shares may be worth more or less than the original cost. Shares of closed-end funds may trade above (a premium) or below (a discount) the net asset value (NAV) of the fund's portfolio. There is no assurance that a Fund will achieve its investment objective. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

If you wish to receive this information electronically, please contact [email protected]

https://www.aberdeenstandard.com/en-us/cefinvestorcenter/fund-centre/closed-end-funds

SOURCE Aberdeen Standard Investments U.S. Closed-End Funds
's ( ) Gavin Lockyer talks Proactive's Andrew Scott through a just-released updated feasibility study for its 100%-owned Nolans Neodymium-Praseodymium (NdPr) project in the Northern Territory which confirms ultra-low operating costs of US$24.76 per kilogram of NdPr oxide. Lockyer also discusses a non-binding letter of support from the Australian Governments export credit agency, Export Finance Australia (EFA), to help finance the project. The facility will cornerstone a broader banking debt facility that is being progressed with a target mix of foreign Export Credit Agencies (ECAs) and commercial banks.
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The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Ansell Ltd., Church & Dwight Co. Inc., Doc Johnson Enterprises, LELOi AB, Luvu Brands Inc., Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc, Tantus Inc., TENGA Co. Ltd., The Aneros Co., and WOW Tech International GmbH are some of the major market participants. The growing acceptance of sexual wellness products will offer immense growth opportunities. To leverage the current opportunities, market vendors must strengthen their foothold in the fast-growing segments while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Adult Stores Market 2021-2025: Segmentation

Adult Stores Market is segmented as below:

Product

Sex Toys



Condoms



Personal Lubricants



Others

Distribution Channel

Online Retail Stores



Adult And Specialty Stores

Geography

APAC



North America



Europe



South America



MEA

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Adult Stores Market 2021-2025: Vendor Analysis and Scope

To help businesses improve their market position, the adult stores market provides a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the market. Some of these vendors include Ansell Ltd., Church & Dwight Co. Inc., Doc Johnson Enterprises, LELOi AB, Luvu Brands Inc., Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc, Tantus Inc., TENGA Co. Ltd., The Aneros Co., and WOW Tech International GmbH.

The report also covers the following areas:

Adult Stores Market size

Adult Stores Market trends

Adult Stores Market industry analysis

The rising demand for adult store products from the LGBT community is likely to emerge as one of the major trends in the market. However, the side effects of sexual wellness products may threaten the growth of the market.

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Technavio's in-depth research has direct and indirect COVID-19 impacted market research reports.

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Related Reports on Consumer Staples Include:

Global Female Sex Toys Market - Global female sex toys market is segmented by distribution channel (retail outlets and specialty stores and online stores) and geography (APAC, Europe, MEA, North America, and South America).

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Sex Toys Market in Europe - Sex toys market in Europe is segmented by product (adult vibrators, dildos, erection rings, and others) and distribution channel (offline and online).

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Adult Stores Market 2021-2025: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2021-2025

Detailed information on factors that will assist adult stores market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the adult stores market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the adult stores market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of adult stores market vendors

Table of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2020

Market outlook: Forecast for 2020 - 2025

Five Forces Analysis

Five Forces Analysis

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Product

Market segments

Comparison by Product

Sex toys - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Condoms - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Personal lubricants - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Others - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by Product

Market Segmentation by Distribution channel

Market segments

Comparison by Distribution channel

Online retail stores - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Adult and specialty stores - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by Distribution channel

Customer landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

North America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 Europe - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 South America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 MEA - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market drivers

Market challenges

Market trends

Vendor Landscape

Vendor Landscape

Competitive scenario

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

Ansell Ltd.

Church & Dwight Co. Inc.

Doc Johnson Enterprises

LELOi AB

Luvu Brands Inc.

Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc

Tantus Inc.

TENGA Co. Ltd.

The Aneros Co.

WOW Tech International GmbH

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

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Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

Report: www.technavio.com/report/adult-stores-market-industry-analysis

SOURCE Technavio
MADRID, May 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- AI Candelaria (Spain), S.A., a capital stock corporation (sociedad anonima) incorporated under the laws of the Kingdom of Spain (the "Issuer") and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC (the "Purchaser") today announced that, in connection with the previously announced offer by the Purchaser to purchase for cash (the "Tender Offer") certain of the Issuer's outstanding 7.500% Senior Secured Notes due 2028 (the "Notes"), the Purchaser has increased the maximum aggregate principal amount of Notes that may be purchased in the Tender Offer from US$350,000,000 to US$375,000,000 (the "Maximum Tender Amount"). The Tender Offer and the Consent Solicitation are being made on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Offer to Purchase and Consent Solicitation Statement dated April 26, 2021 (as supplemented by the Supplement to the Offer to Purchase and Consent Solicitation Statement dated May 5, 2021 and as amended by this press release, the "Statement"). Capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined herein shall have the meanings ascribed to them in the Statement.

The table below identifies the principal amount of Notes validly tendered and Consents delivered in the Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation as of 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on May 7, 2021 (the "Early Tender/Consent Deadline"):

Notes CUSIP / ISIN Numbers Outstanding Principal Amount Prior to Tender Offer(1) Maximum Tender Amount Aggregate Principal Amount Tendered and related Consents received(2) Balance of Maximum Tender Amount Available until Expiration Time Aggregate Principal Amount of Consents Received (without related Tenders)(2) 7.500% Senior Secured Notes Due 2028 Rule 144A: 001355AA4 / US001355AA49 Regulation S: E0R75QAA6 / USE0R75QAA61 US$750,000,000 US$375,000,000 US$562,198,000 US$0 US$104,925,000

(1) As of April 23, 2021. Upon settlement of the Notes tendered and accepted for purchase on a pro rata basis on the Initial Settlement Date, US$375,100,000 aggregate principal amount of the Notes will remain outstanding. (2) As of the Early Tender/Consent Deadline, as reported by the Information Agent and Tabulation Agent for the Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation.

In addition, the Issuer and the Purchaser announced that the Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation will now expire at 11:59 p.m., New York City time, on May 24, 2021, unless extended or earlier terminated by the Purchaser in its sole discretion (the "Expiration Time"). Except for the amendments described in this press release, all other terms and conditions of the Tender Offer and the Consent Solicitation remain unchanged.

As previously announced, as of Early Tender/Consent Deadline, the Purchaser received Consents representing at least a majority in principal amount of the Notes (excluding any Notes owned by the Issuer or its affiliates). Consequently, the Issuer executed the supplemental indenture to the Indenture (the "Supplemental Indenture") effecting the Proposed Amendments on May 7, 2021. The Supplemental Indenture became effective upon its execution and delivery by the Issuer, the trustee and the collateral agents, but provides that the Proposed Amendments will not become operative until the Issuer has paid the Consent Payment (as defined below) in full.

This press release is qualified in its entirety by the Statement.

Consideration

The consideration for the Notes validly tendered (and not validly withdrawn) pursuant to the Statement (the "Tender Offer Consideration") and accepted for purchase pursuant to the Tender Offer is US$1,105 for each US$1,000 principal amount of the Notes. Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the Statement, the Purchaser is also offering to pay the Early Tender Payment (as defined below) to each holder of Notes (each, a "Holder" and, collectively, the "Holders") who validly tendered (and did not validly withdraw) its Notes and thereby validly delivered (and did not validly revoke), at or prior to the Early Tender/Consent Deadline, its consent to the Proposed Amendments. The Tender Offer Consideration plus the Early Tender Payment, including the Consent Payment (as defined below), is referred to as the "Total Consideration." The "Early Tender Payment" is an amount in cash equal to US$50 for each US$1,000 principal amount of Notes tendered, which includes an amount in cash equal to US$2.50 (the "Consent Payment") for each US$1,000 principal amount of Notes tendered by such Holder and accepted by the Purchaser for purchase in the Tender Offer.

Because the Maximum Tender Amount set forth in the table above has been exceeded, if the Purchaser accepts for purchase the Notes validly tendered on or prior to the Early Tender/Consent Deadline, the Purchaser expects that any Notes validly tendered and accepted for purchase will be subject to proration and does not expect to purchase any Notes tendered after the Early Tender/Consent Deadline.

Holders whose Notes are accepted for purchase pursuant to the Tender Offer will also receive accrued and unpaid interest from the last interest payment date up to, but not including, the date on which such Notes are purchased.

Conditions

The Purchaser may amend, extend or terminate the Tender Offer and the Consent Solicitation in its sole discretion, subject to applicable law.

This Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation are being made in connection with an offering of new notes (the "New Notes") by the Issuer (the "New Notes Offering"). The Tender Offer is subject to and conditioned upon the satisfaction or waiver of certain conditions set forth in the Statement.

The Issuer has consented to the Purchaser making the Tender Offer and the Consent Solicitation. It is intended that the Notes purchased by the Purchaser in the Tender Offer will be exchanged by the Purchaser with the Issuer for New Notes issued in the New Notes Offering. The Issuer may give priority to those investors tendering with Unique Identifier Codes in connection with the allocation of New Notes. However, no assurances can be given that any Holder that tendered Notes will be given an allocation of New Notes at the levels it subscribed for, or at all.

Settlement

Subject to the terms and conditions of the Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation, and to the Purchaser's right to amend, extend, terminate or withdraw the Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation, the Purchaser expects that payment for all Notes validly tendered (and not validly withdrawn) prior to the Early Tender/Consent Deadline and accepted by the Purchaser will be made on a business day the Purchaser selects promptly following both the Early Tender/Consent Deadline and the satisfaction or waiver of the conditions to consummation of the Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation, which is expected to be May 12, 2021 (subject to change without notice).

Other

The Issuer has retained Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, J.P. Morgan Securities LLC and SMBC Nikko Securities America, Inc. to serve as the Dealer Managers and Solicitation Agents for the Tender Offer and the Consent Solicitation. Questions regarding the Tender Offer or the Consent Solicitation may be directed to Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC at (800) 820-1653 (toll-free) or (212) 538-2147 (collect); J.P. Morgan Securities LLC at (866) 834-4087 (toll-free) or (212) 834-4087 (collect); and/or SMBC Nikko Securities America, Inc. at (888) 868-6856 (toll-free) or [email protected].

The Information Agent and Tender Agent for the Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation is D.F. King & Co., Inc. To contact the Information Agent and Tender Agent, banks and brokers may call (212) 269-5550, and others may call (800) 967-5019 (toll-free) or email [email protected].

This press release is for informational purposes only and is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell any securities. In addition, this press release is not a solicitation of Consents to the Proposed Amendments. The Tender Offer and the Consent Solicitation are being made only pursuant to the Statement.

None of the Purchaser, the Issuer, any Dealer Manager and Solicitation Agent, the Information Agent, the Tender Agent, the Tabulation Agent or any trustee, paying agent, transfer agent or collateral agent, makes any recommendation as to whether or not Holders should tender their Notes or provide their Consents.

The Tender Offer does not constitute, and may not be used in connection with, an offer or solicitation by anyone in any jurisdiction in which such offer or solicitation is not permitted by law or in which the person making such offer or solicitation is not qualified to do so or to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation.

In any jurisdiction where the securities, blue sky or other laws require tender offers to be made by a licensed broker or dealer and in which the Dealer Managers and Solicitation Agents, or any affiliates thereof, are so licensed, the Tender Offer will be deemed to have been made by any such Dealer Managers and Solicitation Agents, or such affiliates, on behalf of the Issuer.

The New Notes to be offered pursuant to the New Notes Offering have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains statements that are or may constitute "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements often are preceded by words such as "anticipate," "believe," "will," "could," "expect," "should," "plan," "seek," "intend," "estimate," "potential" and "assumes," among others. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release include statements about the Tender Offer and Consent Solicitation and the New Notes Offering. These expectations may or may not be realized. Some of these expectations may be based upon assumptions or judgments that prove to be incorrect. In addition, the Issuer's business involves numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of the Issuer, which could result in the Issuer's expectations not being realized or otherwise materially affect the Issuer's business, financial condition, results of operation, liquidity and prospects.

SOURCE AI Candelaria (Spain), S.A.
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The analog security camera market is driven by the increasing government security initiatives. In addition, the need to mitigate criminal and terrorist activities is anticipated to boost the growth of the Analog Security Camera Market.

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Major Five Analog Security Camera Companies:

Advanced Technology Video Inc.

Costar Technologies Inc.

Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co. Ltd.

Hanwha Group

Hitron Systems Inc.

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Analog Security Camera Market End-user Outlook (Revenue, USD mn, 2020-2025)

Public - size and forecast 2020-2025

Commercial and industrial - size and forecast 2020-2025

Residential - size and forecast 2020-2025

Analog Security Camera Market Geography Outlook (Revenue, USD mn, 2020-2025)

APAC - size and forecast 2020-2025

North America - size and forecast 2020-2025

- size and forecast 2020-2025 Europe - size and forecast 2020-2025

- size and forecast 2020-2025 MEA - size and forecast 2020-2025

South America - size and forecast 2020-2025

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Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions.

With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

Contacts

Technavio Research

Jesse Maida

Media & Marketing Executive

US: +1 844 364 1100

UK: +44 203 893 3200

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

Report: https://www.technavio.com/report/analog-security-camera-market-industry-analysis

SOURCE Technavio
NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Arlo Hotels, an independent, four-star lifestyle hotel brand, will celebrate the grand opening of its newest property, Arlo Midtown, on May 27, 2021. Located between bustling Times Square and up-and-coming Hudson Yards on 38th Street at Ninth Avenue, Arlo Midtown is a new and evolved hotel destination for urban explorers in search of a comfortable retreat from which they can discover New York City. Featuring 489 guest rooms and suites, Arlo Midtown debuts with thoughtfully designed accommodations, contemporary public spaces and a vibrant atmosphere that evokes a strong sense of place and community.

"We believe Arlo Midtown is the first newly built hotel to open in Manhattan in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic," said Oleg Pavlov, CEO of Quadrum Global and founder of Arlo Hotels. "We hope this opening represents a milestone not only for the Arlo portfolio, but for New York City and the return of tourism. With Arlo Midtown we are upgrading all the elements of an experience that our guests have come to value  efficient and well-designed rooms, fun and welcoming common areas as well as our trademark level of service and unforgettable social events. We are also expanding our offering with state-of-the art wellness and fitness options as well as even more vibrant food and beverage scene. We are confident that travelers  whether visiting for the first time or returning after a long time away  will welcome and appreciate 'Arlo 2.0.'"

Arlo Hotels will celebrate the grand opening of its newest property, Arlo Midtown, on May 27, 2021. Tweet this

Said Maggie Houston, General Manager of Arlo Midtown: "Arlo Midtown is the ultimate destination for travelers seeking an authentic and cultural experience in the heart of New York City. It is an honor to introduce a refreshing take on the boutique hotel experience alongside an exceptional team of individuals dedicated to providing a safe and comfortable experience. With the very best of the city at our doorstep, we look forward to helping guests discover the unique and unforgettable experiences this wonderful city has to offer."

The 26-story new build, developed by Marvel Designs with interiors from the globally recognized design studio Meyer Davis, welcomes guests into a warm and inviting lobby that marries natural and modern elements, boasting sleek marble countertops, intricate lighting fixtures, custom glazed tiling, detailed leatherwork, and rich wood floors. Beyond the lobby lies a myriad of dining venues that will offer amazing fare and communal spaces that encourage connectivity, with subtle design details that draw inspiration from the nearby Garment District  a neighborhood known for its rich history of makers.

Across the upper 25 floors, spacious guest rooms and suites are an evolution of its sister properties' micro room format. Spanning six room types for all travelers, each accommodation is comfortable with a modern design and calming color palette of blue and grey. Sophisticated walnut furnishings add warmth and texture to the aesthetic, and window benches in most rooms invite guests to take in the surrounding city. The guest rooms are also equipped with thoughtful and tech-friendly features, including bedside wireless charging stations, Bluetooth radios, 55" LED TVs and complimentary WiFi. Guest bathrooms offer guests sleek fixtures, including glass-enclosed showers and softly backlit bathroom mirrors, alongside luxe amenities from the Blind Barber and more.

The effortlessly minimalist design extends across the hotel's numerous on-property dining areas, creating a dynamic and welcoming atmosphere. Nearly Ninth, from hospitality leader Gerber Group, the team behind Mr. Purple, The Campbell and The Crown, among other destination-worthy bars and restaurants, will offer guests five dining spaces  lobby bar, lounge, coffee shop, dining room with attached courtyard, and rooftop  fit for any occasion. Nearly Ninth is an all-day destination for fresh, Italian-inspired fare, coffee and crafted cocktails in a warm, modern setting. During the day, Nearly Ninth is the perfect respite from the hustle and bustle of the neighborhood; grab a light bite and catch up with friends (or emails). By night, the lights dim, and the spaces transition to an energized, buzzing bar scene where conversation flows as easily as the expertly calibrated playlist. Hotel guests and local professionals alike will be inspired to return.

"New York is back and thriving, and we are excited to partner with Arlo Hotels to bring Nearly Ninth to this newly vibrant neighborhood and beautiful hotel," said Gerber Group CEO Scott Gerber. "With our thoughtfully developed F&B concepts and attentive service, we're confident that Nearly Ninth will be a compelling destination for both travelers and locals alike."

"Nearly Ninth offers a myriad of choices throughout the day, from a morning coffee in the lounge, to lunch in the courtyard, or sunset cocktails on the rooftop," said Gerber Group Managing Partner Vincent Mauriello. "You can decompress, get work done, or party with friends. This summer, the choices are truly limitless."

Arlo Midtown also boasts a variety of flexible meeting and event spaces, with seven venues that offer a total of 7,334 square feet of meeting space across three floors. Whether seeking a venue that can accommodate executive meetings, small conferences, team gatherings or collaborative co-working, Arlo Midtown's Studio Rooms, Breakout Rooms and dining spaces are equipped with the latest technology and audio/visual capabilities needed to host a unique and inspiring affair.

The hotel's leisure facilities also include a state-of-the-art fitness facility, outfitted with traditional weights and cardio equipment, in addition to Peloton bikes, an Interactive Fitness Mirror, a yoga studio and more. To help keep guests healthy and balanced, the hotel will open with Arlo's new Well + Fit program in place. Arlo Well + Fit is a wellness and fitness program that launched brand-wide on May 1, 2021. Featuring various fitness studios and brand partners from the local communities, Well + Fit brings socially distant fitness to Arlo's rooftops for guests and neighbors alike, with in-room on-demand workout experiences to launch soon.

As the newest hotel in one of the world's most energetic cities, Arlo Midtown places a heavy emphasis on art, music and wellness. Arlo Midtown will be the forefront of safe and socially distant activations, such as Arlo's Paint 'N' Swig events, art gallery experiences, live music with Sofar Sounds and more.

In celebration of Arlo Midtown's grand opening, the hotel is offering a limited-time special introductory rate.

For more information, please visit www.arlohotels.com/arlo-midtown.

About Arlo Hotels

Arlo is the essential home base for urban explorersa launchpad for local experiences; a place to rest up and recharge between adventures. Refined but approachable design elevates everyday occasions. Thoughtful spaces invite visitors to express their creativity. For work, play, or any purpose, Arlo provides guests the foundation and inspiration to reach their goals, their way. With hotels throughout New York City and expanding to other cities across the country, plan your next city stay at arlohotels.com.

About Quadrum Global

Quadrum Global is an international cross-sector real estate investor and developer. Since 2009, Quadrum has invested in excess of $1 billion in equity capital in US real estate with hospitality as one of the core focus areas. This includes the development of new hotels and the repositioning of underperforming assets. Over the years Quadrum has partnered with valued brands and local partners, as well as created its own in-house brand, Arlo Hotels (www.arlohotels.com).

For further information, please visit www.quadrumglobal.com.

About Gerber Group

Hospitality industry leader, Gerber Group, is the owner-operator of 7 innovative cocktail bars and restaurants in New York, Washington D.C., and Atlanta. Each venue celebrates the importance of genuine hospitality and positive customer experiences. In 1991, Gerber Group established its strong ability to provide a unique nightlife experience with the opening of its first property, The Whiskey at the Paramount Hotel. Today, Gerber Group continues to re-define the hospitality industry with creative dining concepts and bars featuring renowned beverage programs accompanied by exceptional culinary talents.

SOURCE Arlo Hotels
CHICAGO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- BCS Financial, a leading insurance provider serving the needs of Blue organizations and commercial markets across America, is promoting the importance of employee mental health as part of Mental Health Awareness month. BCS encourages employers to check in on employees consistently, offer coverage that pertains to mental health such as therapy and mental health days, and assist employees with the financial burdens associated with the mental support they may seek in a time of need. Currently, not all employers offer health benefits that include financial support for mental health crises. This is a major shortcoming, as mental and financial health is equally as important as physical health.

"The number of mental health diagnoses and challenges have been increasing in this country, even before the pandemic," says Chris Bailey, Senior Vice President, Sales and Market Development. "With these rising numbers, it is important that employers and employees review their benefit plans and identify opportunities to address this issue."

BCS Financial believes that both small companies and large corporations should offer employees mental health benefits as part of taking care of their employees. BCS's EssentialCare Group Critical Illness is a great add-on to any employee health benefits plan. EssentialCare Group Critical Illness provides coverage for up to 35 physical critical illnesses, up to eight childhood conditions, and offers a robust set of benefits that provide financial assistance for caregiver and support services that fit today's consumer lifestyle. It also includes an optional, first-of-its-kind rider that pays a lump-sum benefit in the event of a serious mental illness.

"People often think about the medical side of a mental health crisis, but there are financial implications as well," says James Drew, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Product, and Strategic Ventures. "BCS is proud to be the first to bring a unique mental health coverage to the market, deeming a serious mental illness as 'critical' and offering important financial protection during a time of need."

With healthcare costs on the rise, employees are now beginning to prioritize quality health benefits when seeking job opportunities. As the world emerges from the pandemic with many jobs having been converted into permanent remote positions, it's extremely important for leaders in business to check in on their employees. By being supportive, understanding workloads, and offering an "open door" policy, employers can provide their employees with the opportunity to be honest about their work environments, especially during times when they are feeling stressed and overwhelmed.

To learn more about BCS Financial and its mental health initiatives, please visit https://bcsf.com.

About BCS Financial Corporation

BCS Financial Corporation has more than 70 years of experience delivering a wide range of insurance and financial solutions for Blue Cross and Blue Shield organizations nationwide. Through its subsidiaries, BCS Insurance Company and 4 Ever Life Insurance Company, BCS is licensed in all 50 states and is rated A- (Excellent) by AM Best. BCS Financial is headquartered in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois.

Learn more at bcsf.com.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Tiffany Kayar

[email protected]

SOURCE BCS Financial
WASHINGTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra announced today an "update" regarding the enforcement and interpretation of Obamacare Section 1557, indicating that it will now interpret discrimination "on the basis of sex" to include "sexual orientation" and "gender identity." The Obama administration first adopted a similar definition in 2016, six years after the Affordable Care Act was signed into law, but it was blocked by federal courts. In 2020, the Trump administration restored the original, plain, historical meaning of "sex" in the law. Now, under President Biden, the Department of Health and Human Services has reverted back to putting science and patient care aside in pursuit of the Left's agenda.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins commented:

"Sex is not subjective; it is an objective biological reality. Now, the Biden administration wants to punish medical professionals for recognizing this fact. Gender transition procedures are not fully embraced within the medical community because of their severe, negative, psychological, and physical impacts. The Biden rule fails to recognize the many unintended consequences to patients  particularly those identifying as transgender. For example, men and women often get different doses of medications and even different ones altogether. If doctors don't know the biology of their patient, the results can be tragic.

"The Biden administration, at the instigation of Secretary Xavier Becerra, has returned to a nonsensical definition of 'sex discrimination.' While this decision will advance America's cultural psychosis, it will potentially put the physical well-being of individuals at grave risk.

"Family Research Council will continue working to keep Obamacare from being used as a vehicle to advance transgender or abortion politics," concluded Perkins.

SOURCE Family Research Council

Related Links

http://www.frc.org


LOS ANGELES, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Brentwood Home, maker of California-inspired sleep products, is celebrating Memorial Day with one of its biggest sales of the year, including limited-time savings on top-rated mattresses and the Crystal Cove Yoga Collection.

Customers can save $200 on Brentwood's #1 rated, best-selling Oceano Luxury Hybrid mattress using the code REDPOPPY on BrentwoodHome.com. Using the code WEHONOR, shoppers can also save $100 on the Cedar Natural Luxe and dual-sided Crystal Cove Mattress. To save $50 on the affordable 11" inch Cypress Mattress, the code CYPRESS50 is available to all shoppers. Using the code CYPRESS75 customers can also save $75 on the 13" Cypress. Additionally, Brentwood's innovative Hybrid Latex Mattress is $100 off  no code required.

All service workers, including veterans, military members, first-responders, doctors, nurses, and teachers, can save $250 on the Oceano, Cedar, and Crystal Cove (offer cannot be stacked with the sale).

Brentwood Home is also offering 15% off their best-selling Crystal Cove Yoga Collection with the code CHAIRPOSE and 15% off their orthopedic supporting pet beds with the code FIDO. All offers are valid through June 7, 2021 and cannot be combined with other offers.

Brentwood Home designs and handcrafts their mattresses in Southern California. They include free shipping, a one-year trial period, and a 25-year limited warranty. For every mattress sold on their website, Brentwood Home will make a donation to the National Forest Foundation. Their goal is to plant 10,000 trees  part of an ambitious effort to help stem the impact of climate change and help replant America's forests. Brentwood Home is also a carbon negative company. They partner with Climate Neutral to measure, reduce, and offset their emissions across every scope of the business.

Since 1987, Brentwood Home has handcrafted the finest luxury mattresses, pillows, and bedding  thoughtfully made with nontoxic materials and natural elements  in their Los Angeles factory. As designers, makers, and artisans, they thrive on articulating the details that others ignore. Yet it is their "California ethos" that truly defines Brentwood Home, compelling them to craft beautiful sleep products that also promote healthy lifestyles and greater wellbeing.

If you would like more information, please contact Jessica Hann at [email protected].

SOURCE Brentwood Home
MIAMI, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Carnival Cruise Line today notified its guests and travel advisor partners of cancellations for additional sailings as it works toward plans for a possible July restart in the U.S. on select ships.

Carnival hopes to begin operating sailings on three ships from Florida and Texas, including Carnival Vista and Carnival Breeze from Galveston, and Carnival Horizon from Miami. Further, if Carnival can find a solution to allow cruise ships to visit Alaska, Carnival Miracle will assume some of Carnival Freedom's departures from Seattle. Given that there is still some uncertainty in our ability to operate these cruises, guests booked on those sailings who wish to make alternate summer vacation plans may cancel without penalty by May 31, 2021 and receive a full refund.

The company is cancelling sailings on all other ships through July 30, 2021. Guests whose cruises are cancelled are eligible for a future cruise credit (FCC) and onboard credit (OBC) or a full refund.

"We continue to have constructive discussions with the CDC but still have many questions that remain unanswered. We are working diligently to resume sailing in the U.S. and meet the CDC guidelines," said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. "We sincerely appreciate the continued patience and understanding of our guests and travel advisor partners and will share additional information as quickly as we can."

Separately, late last week Carnival notified its guests that Carnival Splendor's pause out of Sydney was extended another month, as it cancelled sailings from Aug. 19 to Sept. 17, 2021.

SOURCE Carnival Cruise Line

Related Links

http://www.carnivalcorp.com


Download Free Sample Pages

Key Highlights Offered in the Report:

Information on how to identify strategic and tactical negotiation levels that will help achieve the best prices.

Gain information on relevant pricing levels, detailed explanation of the pros and cons of prevalent pricing models.

Methods to help engage with the right suppliers and discover KPI's to evaluate incumbent suppliers.

Request a Free Sample Report for More Information

Insights into buyer strategies and tactical negotiation levers:

Several strategic and tactical negotiation levers are explained in the report to help buyers achieve the best prices for Cold Chain market. The report also aids buyers with relevant Cold Chain pricing levels, pros, and cons of prevalent pricing models such as volume-based pricing, spot pricing, and cost-plus pricing and category management strategies and best practices to fulfill their category objectives.

Insights on buyer strategies and tactical negotiation levers

Key Drivers and Trends Fueling Market Growth:

The pressure from substitutes and a moderate level of threat from new entrants have resulted in the low bargaining power of suppliers.

Price forecasts are beneficial in purchase planning, especially when supplemented by the constant monitoring of price influencing factors.

Identify favorable opportunities in Promotional Products TCO (total cost of ownership).

Expected changes in price forecast and factors driving the current and future price changes.

Identify pricing models that offer the most rewarding opportunities.

Some of the top cold chain suppliers listed in this report:

This cold chain procurement intelligence report has enlisted the top suppliers and their cost structures, SLA terms, best selection criteria, and negotiation strategies.

Americold Realty Trust

Lineage Logistics

Emergent Cold LLC

AGRO Merchants Group

Nichirei Corp.

Kloosterboer

Related Report on Logistics, Warehousing and Transportation Include:

To access the definite purchasing guide on the cold chain that answers all your key questions on price trends and analysis:

Am I paying/getting the right prices? Is my Cold Chain TCO (total cost of ownership) favorable?

How is the price forecast expected to change? What is driving the current and future price changes?

Which pricing models offer the most rewarding opportunities?

To get instant access to over 1000 market-ready procurement intelligence reports without any additional costs or commitment,

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Table of Content

Executive Summary

Market Insights

Category Pricing Insights

Cost-saving Opportunities

Best Practices

Category Ecosystem

Category Management Strategy

Category Management Enablers

Suppliers Selection

Suppliers under Coverage

US Market Insights

Category scope

Appendix

About SpendEdge:

SpendEdge shares your passion for driving sourcing and procurement excellence. We are the preferred procurement market intelligence partner for 120+ Fortune 500 firms and other leading companies across numerous industries. Our strength lies in delivering robust, real-time procurement market intelligence reports and solutions.

To know more: https://www.spendedge.com/request-for-demo

Contacts:

SpendEdge

Anirban Choudhury

Marketing Manager

Ph No: +1 (872) 206-9340

https://www.spendedge.com/contact-us

SOURCE SpendEdge

Related Links

https://www.spendedge.com/contact-us


DETROIT, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Last year, Creative Producer and HBCU graduate Michael Varner announced an idea to create a black male comic book character with super intelligence and abundant sex appeal, a black American version of the British James Bond. One year later, that comic, titled Division 6, has come to life in a collaboration with Executive Producer Theodore Young and was recently released on an app called Webtoon. Division 6 is free to read here and features a bold headline  "The Black James Bond has Arrived."

Division 6 Division 6: The Black James Bond Has Arrived

The idea for the character came from Varner's observation that there was "no similar character for black men to admire or emulate, or for the public at large to see  no sexy, suave, well put together, intelligent black man that wears suits or tuxedos daily," as he puts it.

Varner's imagination lead him to think up a sexy, well dressed, highly intelligent black character that is a secret spy - Seth Banks. The character is an accomplished college professor by day and international super spy by night. The comic's title comes from the plot idea of a rogue sixth division of the CIA (in actuality the CIA only has only five divisions). But Varner's comic isn't just about positive black male image, he also wants to help inform the broader public of what he feels are the dangers of central banking and currency manipulation. To do that, the plot incorporates macroeconomics and centers around Banks' efforts to uncover a financial plot to siphon money out of Eastern European Belarus, embroiling its President in scandal in the process.

Instead of creating this comic in traditional American format with wide, horizontal panels, Michael chose to tell the story in "webtoon" style that is more easily readable on cell phones due to artwork drawn vertically. The format originated in South Korea and is gaining popularity in the United States. Varner joins a growing list of black American producers making their way into webtoon style comics. In 2017, rapper Common developed Caster on the same Webtoons platform, a story about rare antiques dealer who gets mixed up in the world of international espionage.

Readers can check out Division 6 for free here and donate to its continued production through Varner's Patreon page.

Contact: Michael Varner

Phone: 703-597-6609

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Varner Comics
The latest results are flagged for inclusion in the next update to the 3.2 million-ounce Abujar resource, due at the end of the current quarter.

( ) has received bonanza grade gold results from infill drilling at AbujarGludehi (AG) deposit, part of its 3.02-million-ounce Abujar Gold Project in Cote dIvoire, West Africa, which is on track to be West Africas next gold mine.

The company has hit a projectbest gold intercept at AG South of 5 metres at 109.06 g/t gold from 99 metres including 1-metre at 532.05 g/t.

Results are from 46 diamond holes for 7,499 metres, which is part of a 58-hole, 8,666.5 metres program.

Strong results

Other strong results include:

4 metres at 26.05 g/t from 63 metres including 1-metre at 50.75 g/t;

12 metres at 3.31 g/t from 93 metres including 2 metres at 17.31 g/t;

3 metres at 8.43 g/t from 159 metres including 1-metre at 24.06 g/t; and

3 metres at 6.13 g/t from 37 metres including 1-metre at 17.73 g/t.

The company plans to drill additional holes along strike at AG South, as well as further stepback drilling to test the depth limits of this large highgrade gold system.

Shares have been as much as 12.7% higher to A$0.327 while the company's market cap is approximately A$132.3 million.

Infill drilling exceeds expectations

The company has extended its infill diamond drilling program cutoff to May 24, 2021, with these latest results flagged for inclusion in the next Abujar mineral resource update, due at the end of the current quarter.

Tietto managing director Dr Caigen Wang said: Our infill drilling program at AG South has again exceeded our expectations with multiple ultrahighgrade gold hits, including a project best intercept of just over 1-metre at 0.53 kg/t gold in the holes reported today.

Infill drilling has defined a continuous zone of shallow ultrahighgrade gold (over 100 gold gram metres) striking over 200 metres between sections 4B-6B at AG South.

All these new results will be fed into the upcoming resource model update.

Tietto expects recent drilling will underpin a material upgrade to Abujar ore reserves of 15.7 million tonnes at 1.7 g/t gold for 860,000 ounces (maiden open pit).

This is within AG's mining inventory of 22.9 million tonnes at 1.5 g/t gold for 1.12 million ounces and openpittable inferred resources identified at APG (8.1 million tonnes at 0.8 g/t gold for 0.2 million ounces).

Drilling to drive resource growth

The companys fleet of six diamond rigs is drilling around 11,000 metres a month to drive Abujars rapid resource growth at a low discovery cost per ounce.

Dr Wang said: These high impact holes have potential to add material shallow highgrade ounces early in the mine schedule, which we expect to be positive for our open pit optimisation.

Once the infill program is completed, we intend to use our diamond drill rigs to test the multitude of exploration targets around our proposed mill at Abujar to drive future resource growth.

On the development front, our recent initiatives and work program demonstrate our progress towards delivery of our fully funded Abujar DFS in Q3 2021 and more broadly, positioning Abujar as West Africas next gold mine.

The June quarter work program will include front end engineering and design (FEED), and commencement of site and camp construction.

Fast-tracking Abujar development

The company is targeting 100,000 metres of diamond drilling in 2021 using its six companyowned DD rigs drilling at US$35/metre.

As well as drill testing focusing on 8.5 kilometres of fertile Abujar main shear along strike from the existing AG and APG deposits, the company will drill high priority regional targets.

The company is also on track to release a definitive feasibility study (DFS) for Abujar in Q3 of 2021 and recently announced it had secured a SAG mill for the project and awarded Engineering Design of the Abujar Gold Mine Processing Plant to Primero Group.

The company is currently negotiating the Abujar Mining Convention with the Ivorian Government, being the final regulatory step for the company to achieve, with all mining and environmental approval already secured.

Tiettos recently appointed COO Matt Wilcox is focused on value enhancement areas identified by the PFS, and is finalising plans for the commencement of longlead activities to ensure an expedited route to commencement of production.
SACRAMENTO, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- CREtelligent.com today announced the addition of two new environmental screening tools to its suite of commercial real estate solutions. Adding to its highly popular EnviroPreScreen (EPS), an aerial map and risk rating report generated in under 30 seconds, the new tools provide additional insight into environmental points of interest found on or around a property.

Commercial Real Estate Due Diligence. Simplified. Due Diligence, Differently.

The new EPS Advanced includes the aerial map and risk rating, but also provides an easy to interpret regulatory database report for all moderate and elevated environmental issues identified. The EPS Pro Insight includes the risk rating, maps and database report but also provides a review and recommendations from a CREtelligent Environmental Professional to set the next course of action. The EPS Suite of screening tools are a cost-effective way to get property insights early in a real estate transaction and set next step actions, whether you are a lender, corporation, broker or investor.

"We understand that some projects are fairly straight forward. There may be no risky past NAICS codes, or maybe the property is in a very rural location," said Anthony Romano, CEO of CREtelligent. "However, some require a deeper form of upfront screening to set the next best course of action. We listened to our clients, and that's why we are introducing these two additional solutions," said Romano.

Romano said the EnviroPreScreen Suite addresses a longstanding pain point in the commercial real estate industry -- when a deal is disrupted or delayed because an environmental issue comes up after a loan is well into underwriting, or a site has made the shortlist of acquisitions. "Understanding property conditions early on to set expectations and next steps helps to keep transactions on schedule, and all stakeholders happy," said Romano.

The EPS Advanced report, generated in under 10 minutes, dives deeper by providing additional regulatory data on identified environmental points of interest. Installation and removal dates, spill/release dates, and statuses such as No Further Action, or under remediation are passed on in this report when such information is made available by the regulatory agencies that contribute to the database.

EPS Pro Insight, available in less than one business day, includes all the information included in the Advanced report, but also includes a thorough review and recommendations from a qualified Environmental Professional (EP). The EP renders an opinion of the best course of due diligence based on their interpretation of the Advance report.

The EPS Suite is available on CREtelligent's Radius platform, the "one-stop" CRE due diligence application that offers environmental pre-screening to Phase I & IIs, valuation, property condition assessments, flood verification reports and other insights and expertise for lenders and corporate entities.

About CREtelligent.com. Commercial Real Estate. Simplified.

CREtelligent opened its doors more than five-years-ago as eScreenLogic, a Commercial Real Estate (CRE) environmental due diligence firm focused on desktop, RSRA, Phase I, and Phase II site assessments and reporting for commercial lenders, insurance companies, and brokers. The company has grown quickly and market demand for a "one-stop" CRE due diligence platform that offers more than environmental expertise for lenders and corporate entities has become clear. As a result, we've expanded to offer not only our full-service Environmental reporting but Valuation, Flood, Full Portfolio Assets Risk Monitoring and a number of other "Platform-as-a-Service" offerings too.

We are building the tools that you need to face the new markets we all find ourselves in today. This unique innovation-based approach enables our clients to make fast, accurate, and intelligent commercial real estate transaction decisions faster and simpler than ever before.

Media Contact:

Jim Bonfield, CMO

CREtelligent.com

916.332.7801 ext. 705

[email protected]

SOURCE CREtelligent
SHIHEZI, China, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE: DQ) ("Daqo New Energy", the "Company" or "we"), a leading manufacturer of high-purity polysilicon for the global solar PV industry, today hosted a field trip to its polysilicon facility in Shihezi City, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region for institutional investors and solar industry analysts.

Solar industry analysts from Credit Suisse, CICC, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, JP Morgan and seven institutional investors joined the in-person tour of the Company's state-of-the-art facilities. Journalists from various media including Bloomberg, Financial Times and China's Global Times were also present. The Company has scheduled a similar field trip for another group of 35 solar industry investors and analysts from domestic Chinese institutions on May 12.

Visitors joining today's field trip were able to witness all major process in the Company's highly technical polysilicon manufacturing complex. Daqo's management team was on site to answer questions and provide technical explanations.

"We have always been transparent and welcoming to visitors to our Xinjiang facilities," commented Mr. Longgen Zhang, Chief Executive Officer of Daqo. "As stated repeatedly, we do not condone the use of forced labor under any circumstances. Furthermore, our visitors were able to see that our chemical process, which is highly automated, digitalized, technology-intensive, is not conducive to employing unskilled labor. Our visitors today were able to take away direct impressions of our facility as well as the quality of its management and workforce."

The event is now available for viewing for investors who could not travel due to Covid-19 restrictions here: https://m.inmuu.com/v1/live/news/1026538

About Daqo New Energy Corp

Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE: DQ) ("Daqo" or the "Company") is a leading manufacturer of high-purity polysilicon for the global solar PV industry. Founded in 2007, the Company is one of the world's lowest cost producers of high-purity polysilicon. It has a total annual capacity of 70,000 metric tons of high-purity polysilicon, with another 35,000 metric tons polysilicon capacity under construction expected to reach full capacity by the end of first quarter of 2022.

For more information, please visit www.dqsolar.com

SOURCE Daqo New Energy Corp.

Related Links

http://www.dqsolar.com/


New York is the city that nurtured the Yurman family's dreamsit is where David, Sybil, and Evan grew up and built their company. As NYC's largest poverty fighting philanthropy, Robin Hood's missionto elevate New Yorkers in need out of poverty and clear a pathway to mobilityis one that aligns with David Yurman's brand values and is close to the founders' hearts. Through the David Yurman x Robin Hood Foundation Unity Fund, the shared mission is to bring hope while rebuilding a (new) New York by giving a helping hand to local communities in their greatest time of need.

"We are pleased to partner with the Robin HoodNew York City's largest organization dedicated to alleviating poverty," says co-founder and CEO David Yurman. "By launching the Unity Fund, we hope to make a significant impact within the city that inspires us. Giving back to our neighbors and communities is what makes us human."

David Yurman will contribute to the cause by donating 20% of the purchase price of select products, or other amounts during designated times, throughout the year. Beginning today, David Yurman will donate 20% of proceeds of the purchase price from the new Empire Collection launching in partnership with the Empire State Building and celebrating its 90th anniversarythrough June 20, 2021 to the Unity Fund. The collection is available exclusively at David Yurman retail stores, and on DavidYurman.com.

"We continue to be inspired by the generosity of David Yurman and the love they exhibit for the people of New York City. As we all work to rebuild a new New York, one stronger, better, and more inclusive, we are delighted that corporate partners like David Yurman are there with us leading the charge," said Wes Moore, CEO of Robin Hood.

The Unity Fund is launched alongside David Yurman's ongoing brand campaign, "My New York" which celebrates the city as constant source of inspiration and creativity for the Yurman family. The city's creative pulseits people, diversity, cultural institutions, neighborhoods, landmarksis what gives New York its everlasting spirit, and continues to inspire us. The campaign pays tribute to city as it recovers from the hardship and challenges caused by the pandemic.

ABOUT DAVID YURMAN:

David Yurman is a celebrated American jewelry company founded in New York by David Yurman, a sculptor, and his wife, Sybil, a painter and ceramicist. When the artists began collaborating, their goal was simply to make beautiful objects to wear. Today, with their son, Evan, they create timeless, yet contemporary collections for women and men defined by inspiration, innovation, consummate craftsmanship and cabletheir artistic signature. David Yurman collections are available at 49 retail stores throughout the United States, Canada, Hong Kong and France and at over 300 locations worldwide, through their exclusive authorized fine jewelry and timepiece network of retailers.

ABOUT ROBIN HOOD FOUNDATION

Founded in 1988, Robin Hood finds, fuels, and creates the most impactful and scalable solutions lifting families out of poverty in New York City, with models that can work across the country. In 2020, Robin Hood invested nearly $200 million to provide COVID relief, legal services, housing, meals, workforce development training, education programs, and more to families in poverty in New York City. Robin Hood tracks every program with rigorous metrics, and since Robin Hood's Board of Directors covers all overhead, 100 percent of every donation goes directly to the poverty fight. Learn more at www.robinhood.org.

CONTACT

Adrienne Houdmont

David Yurman

[email protected]



SOURCE David Yurman
LONDON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/-- The staff and management of Dominica's highly anticipated Tranquillity Beach resort have recently donated an HP computer and a year's subscription to a local library. The move hopes to contribute to the continued enhancement of the library with the computer utilised to help youth with homework and improving computer skills. It also reiterates the community ethos that the island is committed to, demonstrating the importance of collective effort.

Operating under the Hilton Curio collection, Tranquility Beach is an upcoming luxury eco-resort, scheduled to open towards the end of 2022, comprising two- and three-bedroom villas and condo suites. Once completed, the property will feature a range of amenities, including a spa, meeting and event spaces, a restaurant, a state-of-the-art gym and access to two secluded beaches. Like much of the resorts on the island, Tranquillity Beach aims to be environmentally sensitive while also contributing to the nation's economy by creating up to 300 permanent jobs.

In recent years, Dominica has become a top travel destination for eco-conscious travellers. With an ethos rooted in sustainability and resiliency, the island champions practices that reflect the same values, most importantly, this means constructing the resort to prioritise the natural environment.

Ian Edwards, the proprietor of Tranquility Beach, highlighted this in an interview with Newsweek: "Dominica distinguishes itself as a spectacular eco-tourism destination, one full of adventure and discovery. This is key to reviving the hospitality industry, because in Dominica, you can remain safe whilst also living new and exciting experiences."

"Adventure tourism stimulates many entrepreneurial and grassroots cottage industries in areas relating to accommodation, food and beverage services, excursions and tours, agriculture, and more, creating employment and bringing in foreign exchange," he noted.

The resort will operate under Dominica's Citizenship by Investment Programme, allowing wealthy investors to purchase shares in exchange for citizenship. The Programme, established in 1993, has been vital to diversifying the island's economy through foreign direct investment. Funds generated under the initiative are channelled back into the nation's socio-economic development, supporting areas like healthcare, education and Dominica's quest to become the world's first climate-resilient nation.

For investors who choose to become citizens under Dominica's programme, a wealth of benefits are unlocked, including increased travel freedom to over 140 countries and territories, alternative business prospects and the ability to pass citizenship down for generations to come. Lastly, they can rest assured that they are part of a greater community committed to both people and land.

Contact Details:

+44 (0)782-402-9952

[email protected]

www.csglobalpartners.com

SOURCE CS Global Partners

Related Links

http://www.csglobalpartners.com


FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Dynamic Computer Corporation (Dynamic) announced today that the company will operate under the trade name Dynamic Technology SolutionsSM, effective immediately. The company has also changed its domain address to www.DynamicTech.Solutions from www.dccit.com.

Farida Ali is CEO and President of Dynamic Technology Solutions. She has more than 25 years of experience building and transforming Dynamic to be uniquely positioned as an expert technology solution provider in highly regulated industries.Farida oversees Dynamic's delivery of customized digital hardware and software solutions to ensure clients have the exact digital components needed-precisely when and where they need them.

Announcing the brand transition, Dynamic's CEO and President, Farida Ali, said that, "Forty years ago, when the company began in a small retail location selling Apple computers to individuals, the Dynamic Computer Corporation name made sense. But we've been providing a broad range of complex technology services to large enterprise businesses for many years; so we were long overdue for a company name that more accurately reflects the nature of our business."

Dynamic is recognized as the leader in sourcing, testing, configuring and End-of-Life transitions for electronic technology within highly regulated industries, including Medical Device and Aerospace & Defense manufacturing companies. The company delivers asset and lifecycle management services as an integrated solution that is compliant, consistent and controlled.

Commenting on the launch of its refreshed logo and website to support Dynamic's re-branding, Ms. Ali noted, "Admittedly, the nature of our business is complex, and it's not easy to explain in a single-sentence elevator pitch. We've done our best on the new website to simplify the explanation of what we do, why we do it, and how companies seeking reliable, integrated user-ready technology solutions can benefit from working with us."

About Dynamic Technology SolutionsSM

Established in 1979, Dynamic develops and manages solutions that address technology component requirements  most often involving complex specifications  connected to or embedded in products, platforms, and applications. Dynamic has a track record of providing high-value, quality-focused services across the entire product value chain. Dynamic is ISO 9001 and ISO 13485 certified. As a benchmarked member of the Diverse Manufacturing Supply Chain Alliance (DMSCA), Dynamic has a strong commitment to diversity, and on maintaining high On-Time, In-Full (OTIF) and Right First Time (RFT) scores. Visit www.DynamicTech.Solutions

Media Contact:

Gordon G. Andrew Highlander

Consulting Inc. (609) 987-0200

[email protected]

SOURCE Dynamic Computer Corporation
The report on the electrical equipment market in India provides a holistic update, market size and forecast, trends, growth drivers, and challenges, as well as vendor analysis.

The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current global market scenario, the latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. The market is driven by the increase in the number of residential and commercial building projects, rise in power generation from renewable energy sources, and increase in investments in the power sector.

The electrical equipment market in India analysis includes Product Analysis and Geographic outlook. This study identifies the growth in cross-border electricity trading, the emergence of smart grids, and rapid growth in infrastructure as the prime reasons driving the electrical equipment market growth in India during the next few years.

This report presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources by an analysis of key parameters

The electrical equipment market in India covers the following areas:

Electrical Equipment Market In India Sizing

Electrical Equipment Market In India Forecast

Electrical Equipment Market In India Analysis

Companies Mentioned

ABB Ltd.

Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd.

CG Power and Industrial Solutions Ltd.

EMCO Ltd.

Fuji Electric Co. Ltd.

Larsen and Toubro Ltd.

Schneider Electric SE

Siemens AG

TD Power Systems Pvt. Ltd.

Toshiba Corp.

Key Topics Covered:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2020

Market outlook: Forecast for 2020 - 2025

Five Forces Analysis

Five forces summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Product

Market segments

Comparison by Product

Cables - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Switchgears - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Boilers - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Transformers - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Transmission lines - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Others - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by Product

Market Segmentation by Application

Market segments

Comparison by Application

Transmission and distribution - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Generation - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by Application

Customer landscape

Market drivers

Market challenges

Market trends

Vendor Landscape

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

ABB Ltd.

Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd.

CG Power and Industrial Solutions Ltd.

EMCO Ltd.

Fuji Electric Co. Ltd.

Larsen and Toubro Ltd.

Schneider Electric SE

Siemens AG

TD Power Systems Pvt. Ltd.

Toshiba Corp.

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

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Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

Report: https://www.technavio.com/report/electrical-equipment-market-in-india-industry-analysis

SOURCE Technavio
READING, Mass., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Eliassen Group, LLC, a strategic consulting and talent solutions firm, has agreed to acquire The Evanston Group, LLC, a national life sciences consulting firm headquartered in Chicago.

Eliassen Group is a leading national strategic consulting and talent solutions firm focused on life sciences consulting, Agile consulting, cloud services, risk management, and business optimization, in addition to their IT talent solutions practice. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Reading, Massachusetts, Eliassen Group is positioned for continued long-term success with a commitment to positively impacting the lives of their employees, clients, consultants, and the communities in which they operate.

EG Life Sciences is a company of Eliassen Group that delivers consulting solutions in the quality, regulatory & compliance, validation, engineering, project management, and biometrics disciplines. EG Life Sciences' clients are supported through several customizable and scalable engagement models, and the acquisition of The Evanston Group expands these specialty areas.

Kay Anderson founded The Evanston Group in 1999 with her husband, Michael, and over the past 20 years they have grown the company into a premier life sciences consulting firm with a vast network of specialty talent and an expansive client roster. The Evanston Group provides multi-faceted support for industry-leading life sciences clients across nine key specialty areas, including clinical, research & development, quality assurance & control, regulatory, medical affairs, M&A/divestitures/integrations, digital transformation, supply chain/manufacturing, and project management.

"This acquisition is part of a transformational growth strategy for Evanston, allowing us to expand our relationships with our clients," said Michael Romero, The Evanston Group CEO. "Eliassen Group, and especially their company EG Life Sciences, delivers flexible and scalable solutions to the life sciences industry, and we're excited to join a team whose service offerings so perfectly complement our own, enabling us to offer our clients holistic support."

"Our strategic partnership with The Evanston Group allows Eliassen Group, and specifically EG Life Sciences, to further expand our presence in the life sciences space," explained Dave MacKeen, CEO of Eliassen Group. "The Evanston Group is a people-first organization that not only supports their clients' missions, but partners with them to achieve greater innovation. We are thrilled to welcome the Evanston team to the Eliassen Group community."

"Combining forces with The Evanston Group offers EG Life Sciences an opportunity to support our clients from a clinical perspective and beyond," said Josh Nazarian, President of Eliassen Group. "Absolutely," agreed Greg Coir, Executive Vice President of EG Life Sciences. "Not only does this strategic partnership expand our core capabilities, but it unites Eliassen Group and EG Life Sciences with an organization that shares a similar passion for their work. The heart of our purpose is to positively impact lives -- and the Evanston team strives to achieve that goal every day, just as we do."

About The Evanston Group

The Evanston Group is a life sciences consulting firm providing specialty talent to the industry's largest global biotech leaders. With 4,000 engagements since their founding in 1999, they find amazing people to help do amazing things when clients need high-caliber expertise.

Evanston's consultants command deep knowledge in all sectors of the life sciences industry by handling projects from concept to completion, leaving behind the tools for long-term success that continually advance the landscape of modern medicine.

About Eliassen Group

Eliassen Group provides strategic consulting and talent solutions to drive our clients' innovation and business results. Our purpose is to positively impact the lives of our employees, clients, consultants, and the communities in which we operate. Leveraging over 30 years of success, our expertise in talent solutions, life sciences consulting, Agile consulting, cloud services, risk management, business optimization, and managed services enables us to partner with our clients to execute their business strategy and scale effectively. Headquartered in Reading, Massachusetts, and with offices from coast to coast, Eliassen Group offers local community presence and deep networks, as well as national reach.

About EG Life Sciences

EG Life Sciences, a company of Eliassen Group, delivers scalable solutions to medical device, pharmaceutical, biometrics, and diagnostics organizations, including the resources they need to meet the unique challenges of FDA regulations and submissions. When partnering with EG Life Sciences, our clients are connected with elevated subject matter experts who hit the ground running, working to produce high-level results that are strategically delivered on time and within budget. We have a genuine dedication to the people we serve and understand that peak performance saves lives.

Media Contact

Sandra G. Callahan

VP of Marketing

Eliassen Group & EG Life Sciences

781 205 8148

SOURCE Eliassen Group
TSX.V: EU

OTCQB:ENCUF

www.encoreenergycorp.com

VANCOUVER, BC, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - enCore Energy Corp. (TSXV: EU) (OTCQB: ENCUF) (the "Company") is pleased to announce the company will be hosting a corporate presentation at the Uranium, Fuelling the Path Towards Electrification Virtual Conference. William M. Sheriff, Executive Chairman, & Paul Goranson, CEO will be presenting on Thursday, May 13th, 2021 at 1 PM EST. The session, to be followed by a Q & A session, will be moderated by David Talbot, Managing Director, Head of Equity Research, Red Cloud Securities.

Registration is free and open to all shareholders and interested parties. For more information and/or to register for the presentation please visit: https://www.redcloudfs.com/uraniumconference2021/. We look forward to seeing you there.

enCore Energy also announced the launch of its new website at www.encoreenergycorp.com.

About enCore Energy Corp.

enCore Energy Corp. is a U.S. domestic uranium developer focused on becoming a leading in-situ recovery (ISR) uranium producer. The Company is led by a team of industry experts with extensive knowledge and experience in the development and operations of in situ recovery uranium operations. enCore Energy's opportunities are created from the Company's transformational acquisition of its two South Texas production facilities, the changing global uranium supply/demand outlook and opportunities for industry consolidation. These short-term opportunities are augmented by our strong long term commitment to working with local indigenous communities in New Mexico where the company holds significant uranium resources.

www.encoreenergycorp.com

SOURCE enCore Energy Corp.
LOS ANGELES, May 11 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ENDEAVOUR, a leading Department of Defense Trusted Capital Provider of Accounts Receivable Funding for National Security and Space government contractors, has formed a strategic partnership with MassChallenge, the highly-regarded non-profit, zero-equity accelerator network dedicated to supporting innovation and entrepreneurship through collaboration and development.

Beginning with MassChallenge's Air Force Lab, Space Commercialization and Safety and Security programs, the new partnership enables Endeavour to provide past, present, and future MassChallenge alumni access to a custom Accounts Receivable Funding facility deemed "Escape Velocity". Designed for innovative early-stage and growing technology companies, Escape Velocity was developed to further support the Department of Defense, Intelligence Community, and the burgeoning commercial space industry.

"MassChallenge's connectivity, particularly within the US Air Force's AFWERX program, will help Endeavour expand our footprint as we look to capitalize on the growing demand for our working capital management tools," said Endeavour Co-founder James Parker.

"MassChallenge has accelerated 2,900 startups, that have generated $3.6B in revenue and raised $8.6B in funding. Most importantly, their alumni have generated over 186,000 jobs, all while tackling the biggest challenges of our time. This partnership is another step in our roadmap to growing our leadership position in the market and ensuring that our industry-best solutions are in the hands of all those who are working in the service of National Security," added Endeavour Co-founder Chris Lay.

About Endeavour



Endeavour is a financial services platform supporting US Federal Government contractors. As an official Department of Defense Trusted Capital Provider, Endeavour offers cash funding for unpaid invoices up to $10,000,000. The company can help companies improve their working capital position to help finance growth strategies and manage operating expenses.

Additionally, Endeavour contributes 50% of net profits to Mission Oriented charitable causes. Learn more about ENDEAVOUR at www.endeavourar.com.

About MassChallenge

MassChallenge is the global network for innovators. Headquartered in the United States with seven locations worldwide, MassChallenge equips bold entrepreneurs to disrupt the status quo and to create meaningful change. Since launching in 2009, more than 2,900 MassChallenge alumni have raised more than $8.6B in funding, generated more than $3.6B in revenue, and created more than 186,000 total jobs. Learn more about MassChallenge at masschallenge.org.

SOURCE Endeavour

Related Links

https://www.endeavourcap.com


HOUSTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ENGIE North America announced today that its Houston headquarters is under contract for renewable energy from one of its own Texas wind projects. Beginning in May 2021 and running through 2028, the 25-story tower at 1360 Post Oak Blvd. within the Four Oaks Place portfolio will offset 100% of its electricity consumption with the purchase of energy and Renewable Energy Credits from ENGIE North America's Live Oak wind project in Texas.

Four Oaks Place is a five-building, 2.3 million square-foot portfolio located in Uptown Houston. ENGIE North America occupies six floors at 1360 Post Oak Blvd. The portfolio is managed by Transwestern Real Estate Services (TRS) and is a joint venture of Nuveen Real Estate and Allianz.

ENGIE North America recently entered a retail energy supply agreement for approximately 5,747 MWh annually from the Live Oak wind project. The renewable energy in this agreement represents the environmental benefits of reducing CO 2 emissions by more than 32,000 metric tons over the span of the contract.

Through accelerated growth of its renewable's footprint, ENGIE North America has more than 3 GW of renewable energy capacity. That is enough clean energy to power all the households in Dallas and Houston combined, with more than 10 GW of additional renewable energy projects currently underway in North America.

"ENGIE is a leader in the transition toward a carbon neutral world and our role is to show that focusing on the planet and people creates long-term value," said ENGIE North America Interim Chief Executive Officer Bill Collins. "We partner with customers to help them integrate energy solutions that are cleaner, more efficient, and reliable. It makes sense for us to power our own headquarters with renewable energy coming from our own projects right here from Texas."

Nuveen Real Estate, one of the largest real estate investment managers globally, has publicly committed to making the global property portfolio it manages, worth $133 billion, operationally net zero carbon by 2040. The ambitious target exceeds the commitment that the World Green Business Council states is necessary to meet the Paris Accord, by a decade.

"We work with a broad range of institutional clients and blue-chip occupiers and share their sustainability aspirations, said Abigail Dean, Global Head of Strategic Insights at Nuveen Real Estate. "Our pathway provides a route-map to net zero carbon through real estate, touching upon numerous other industries at the same time, and aiming to achieve carbon savings of up to 50-80% for a traditional real estate asset."

Acting as an advisor on the agreement is Amerex Energy Services, the retail consulting division of Amerex Brokers LLC, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of BGC Partners, Inc.

ENGIE North America is the developer, owner, and operator of the Live Oak wind project. Live Oak (which is owned in partnership with an affiliate of John Laing Group plc) is a 200 MW project that is located near San Angelo, Texas. ENGIE North America added nearly 2GW of renewable energy in the US in 2020, a major contribution to ENGIE's global goal of 9GW from 2019-2021. Globally, ENGIE commissioned 3GW of new renewable capacity in 2020, bringing total renewable capacity portfolio to 31GW.

About Nuveen

Nuveen Real Estate is one of the largest real estate investment managers in the world with $132 billion1 of assets under management. Managing a suite of real estate funds and mandates, across both public and private investments, and spanning both debt and equity across diverse geographies and investment styles, we provide access to every aspect of real estate investing. With over 85 years of real estate investing experience and more than 600+2 employees located across over 25 cities throughout the United States, Europe and Asia Pacific, the platform offers unparalleled geographic reach, which is married with deep sector expertise.

About ENGIE North America

ENGIE North America Inc. offers a range of capabilities in the United States and Canada to help customers decarbonize, decentralize and digitalize their operations. These include comprehensive services to help customers run their facilities more efficiently and optimize energy and other resource use and expense; clean power generation; energy storage; and retail energy supply that includes renewable, demand response, and on-bill financing options. Nearly 100% of the company's power generation portfolio is low carbon or renewable. Globally, ENGIE S.A. is a global reference in low-carbon energy and services, that relies on their key businesses (gas, renewable energy, services) to offer competitive solutions to customers. With 170,000 employees, customers, partners and stakeholders, the group is committed to accelerate the transition towards a carbon-neutral world, through reduced energy consumption and more environmentally-friendly solutions.

Media Contact:

ENGIE North America: Sandrine Deparis, [email protected], (202) 855 3705

SOURCE ENGIE North America

Related Links

engie-na.com


With copper prices touching records highs, the company believes it is a great time to add to its portfolio with advanced and early-stage copper projects with gold and base metals as well.

Analysts believe copper prices will continue to strengthen due to increased global demand.

Comet Resources Limited ( ) has finalised due diligence and completed the acquisition of a portfolio of highly prospective copper assets from Bath Resources Pty Ltd in Australias Northern Territory, with added gold-zinc-silver-lead.

Assets included in the acquisition are Oonagalabi Copper-Zinc Project, Paradise Well Copper-Gold Prospect and Silver Valley Copper-Gold-Silver-Lead Prospect.

The total combined area of these assets is more than 840 kilometres.

At Oonagalabi the best intersections from historical drilling include 36.6 metres at 1.0% copper and 1.7% zinc from 1.5 metres, 5 metres at 1.26% copper and 1.22% zinc from 70 metres, 6 metres at 0.9% copper from 102 metres and 14 metres at 0.7% copper from 148 metres.

Rock chip samples from Paradise Well returned up to 8.9% copper and 2.2 g/t gold while Silver Valley rock chip samples returned 554 g/t silver, 20% lead, 11.9% copper and 2 g/t gold.

Great time to add portfolio

Comet Resources managing director Mathew O Kane said: With copper prices recently touching records highs, its a great time for us to add this portfolio of both advanced and early-stage copper, gold and base metals targets to our existing copper exposure.

Being located in Australia, a Tier 1 mining jurisdiction, they complement our existing copper and base metals project at Barraba in NSW and provide us with further exposure to the copper upside.

Industry analysts believe copper prices will continue to strengthen as a result of increased global infrastructure spending and the transition to clean energy.

We look forward to getting onto the ground in the Northern Territory shortly to review the projects and make plans for the commencement of field exploration activities.

Surge in copper prices

Copper prices have been increasing due to an increase in demand as a result of global efforts to reduce fuel emissions and from the generation of renewable electricity, combined with the recent lack of development of major new projects and lack of new supply.

Copper is not only an important part of the batteries used in battery electric vehicles (BEV) but is also used extensively in the electric motors that drive the wheels of BEVs.

As per the UBS estimates, a BEV will require on average 95 kilograms of copper while traditional internal combustion engine vehicles need only 25 kilograms.

Copper is also used intensively in the generation of electricity from renewables, such as solar and wind and government spending initiatives, such as the recently approved US COVID-19 relief bill of US$1.9 trillion, will also generate demand pressure for copper.

Oonagalabi Project

The Oonagalabi Project exploration licence and exploration licence application contains around 1.7 kilometres of outcropping copper, zinc and lead mineralisation, hosted in anthophyllite-cordierite and forsterite marble sitting within the Strangways Metamorphic Complex.

The mineralised Oonagalabi formation represents a very similar geological setting as other known copper deposits in the region, including s ( ) Jervois Copper Project, which is host to a 20.97 million tonnes JORC resource.

According to the company, there is the opportunity through methodical exploration, utilising stratigraphic/structural mapping, combined with ground geophysics, to target primary mineralisation of potential higher metal tenor.

Paradise Well

The Paradise Well Copper-Gold Prospect exploration licence application sits around 10 kilometres south of the Oonagalabi exploration licence and covers around 250 square kilometres.

Two prospects have been identified on the tenement through historical rock chip sampling programs which returned copper grades of up to 8.88% copper (Manny Prospect) and copper/gold rock chips of 6.24% copper and 2.15 g/t gold (New Paradise Well Prospect).

Numerous outcropping copper oxide locations are known across the tenement from previous work but have never been tested with modern exploration.

Silver Valley

The Silver Valley Copper-Gold-Silver-Lead exploration licence application is about 300 kilometres north of the Oonagalabi Project exploration licence.

Four outcropping lead/silver-bearing quartz veins, which have been worked by historical pits and shafts, are present within the tenement.

Key prospects in the licence include the Chablo Prospect, which is prospective for lead, silver, copper and gold.

Terms of acquisition

The agreement allows for the acquisition of 100% of the portfolio of tenements from Bath, which is not a related party of the company nor are they a shareholder in the company.

The key terms of the acquisition are:
ATLANTA, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Complex income situations on mortgage applications can create incremental work for mortgage bankers and brokers as they look to review and approve homebuyers for mortgage financing. Equifax Workforce Solutions recently announced that lenders can now request "All Employers Within 36 months" to pull the prior 36 months of income and employment data available on The Work Number database to help create a more informed, expanded view of a consumer's potential ability to pay.

"The recent economic upheaval has meant that some lenders are seeing a rise in applications from borrowers with more complex income profiles which can slow down the approval and underwriting process," said Joel Rickman, Senior Vice President of Verification Services at Equifax Workforce Solutions. "Most mortgage applications that come in with complex income will require two years of tax returns, but pulling three years of income and employment from The Work Number can show lenders data from a similar timeframe that helps give them better context for considering ability to pay."

According to Fannie Mae underwriting guidelines, the "stable and reliable flow of income is a key consideration in mortgage loan underwriting." Among many different income scenarios, commission-based individuals, those who have had employment disruptions or those who are applying with real-estate income or assets often require a deeper look into debt-to-income (DTI) and income stability. With a 36-month view, lenders can review income that may sit outside of calendar/tax years to more quickly identify income trends that may suggest income or earnings potential that indicate better continuity and ability to pay.

Since pioneering automated verifications 25 years ago, The Work Number service has gained the trust of more than 1 million employer contributors, thousands of lenders and Government-sponsored enterprises (for GSE validation programs). Verifications through The Work Number allow credentialed lenders with permissible purpose to quickly and securely tap into the largest commercial source of consolidated employment information with more than 115 million active records. With the use of an All Employers Within 36 months verification from The Work Number, credentialed mortgage lenders can quickly receive the necessary data to more efficiently interpret applications with complex income.

ABOUT EQUIFAX INC.

At Equifax (NYSE: EFX), we believe knowledge drives progress. As a global data, analytics, and technology company, we play an essential role in the global economy by helping financial institutions, companies, employers, and government agencies make critical decisions with greater confidence. Our unique blend of differentiated data, analytics, and cloud technology drives insights to power decisions to move people forward. Headquartered in Atlanta and supported by more than 11,000 employees worldwide, Equifax operates or has investments in 24 countries in North America, Central and South America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific region. For more information, visit Equifax.com

For more information

[email protected]

SOURCE Equifax Inc.

Related Links

http://www.equifax.com


NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Euclid Transactional, LLC ("Euclid Transactional"), a leading managing general agent focused on transactional insurance underwriting, today announced nine senior promotions on its North American underwriting team. The promotions recognize underwriters that have supported Euclid Transactional's culture and record growth, and highlight the depth and quality of talent available to the firm's clients.

Euclid Transactional has seen record deal volume over the last year in the Americas and recently expanded its tax and middle market practices. The firm now employs over 68 people, up from 45 at the start of 2020, across its five global offices.

"We are on pace globally to issue nearly 1,000 policies this year, and have continued to increase the number of clients we support as use of transactional insurance sees record growth. We are fortunate to have these experienced senior leaders to help our team consistently deliver industry-leading service," said Jay Rittberg, Managing Principal of Euclid Transactional.

The nine senior-level promotions announced today include:

Manuel Giner from Managing Director to Senior Managing Director

from Managing Director to Senior Managing Director Shawn O'Neill from Managing Director to Senior Managing Director

from Managing Director to Senior Managing Director Justin Pierce Berutich from Senior Vice President to Managing Director

from Senior Vice President to Managing Director Jake Filak from Senior Vice President to Managing Director

from Senior Vice President to Managing Director Jon Friedman from Senior Vice President to Managing Director

from Senior Vice President to Managing Director Mike MacRory from Senior Vice President to Managing Director

from Senior Vice President to Managing Director Tim Grosso from Vice President to Senior Vice President

from Vice President to Senior Vice President Will Hooper from Vice President to Senior Vice President

from Vice President to Senior Vice President Chloe Steadman from Vice President to Senior Vice President

"In addition to providing best-in-class service for our clients, we remain committed to creating an inclusive culture, promoting from within and developing the careers of our employees," Rittberg added. "As we continue to grow, we could not be more excited to have so many talented professionals supporting our business."

Since its founding in 2016, Euclid Transactional has underwritten more than 2,700 policies and insured deals with a combined value of over $2 trillion.

About Euclid Transactional

Euclid Transactional, LLC is a managing general agency specializing in the underwriting of representations & warranties, tax liability, contingent liability and other transactional insurance coverages. Operated by one of the industry's largest teams of experienced underwriters and claims executives, Euclid Transactional provides the size and security of a large insurer with the customer service of a boutique. The firm has offices in New York, London, Chicago, Frankfurt and Toronto, and offers full-service underwriting for deals across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Euclid Transactional is a subsidiary of Euclid Insurance Services, a program administrator that provides its subsidiaries with advisory, accounting, information technology and human resource services. Euclid Transactional's insurance capacity is provided by premier insurers, all of which are rated AM Best A (Excellent) or better.

Media Contact:

Davis MacMillan

RF|Binder

[email protected]

212-994-7509

SOURCE Euclid Transactional, LLC
SIGNAL HILL, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In one of the most complex retail transactions during COVID-19, Scott DeYoung and Jeff Conover of Faris Lee Investments completed the sale of Signal Hill Gateway in Long Beach to four different buyers for a total of $28.3 million, which is a 5.27% cap with a 5% vacancy factor. All sales closed within 75 days from beginning to end. The high-performing, triple-net urban infill community center was re-parcelized to achieve optimum pricing for the seller, Signal Hill Petroleum, which ultimately received 99.3% of Signal Hill Gateway's list price despite the pandemic.

Signal Hill Petroleum will retain ownership of a one-acre parcel within the shopping center that contains active oil wells and drill sites. The first-in-class oil operator will also stay on as Signal Hill Gateway's common area maintenance manager to ensure a smooth transition to the new buyers. Faris Lee helped the buyers and seller reach a common area maintenance (CAM) sharing agreement and amended the center's covenants, conditions, and restrictions (CC&R) to create efficiency for multiple landowners in this fully occupied, 100% national credit tenant shopping center.

Craig Barto, CEO & President of Signal Hill Petroleum, said, "Scott DeYoung and his team at Faris Lee did an excellent job creating and implementing a shopping center break up strategy for the sale of our large shopping center in Signal Hill. Scott navigated us through this complex sale which involved a multi-year break-up of the Center, which made the sale of this large property even more profitable. Faris Lee worked exceptionally well with our Team at Signal Hill Petroleum in all facets of this complex transaction. This was an all-hands-on-deck effort to close all four transactions within 75 days from the first closing to last."

Scott DeYoung, managing director of Faris Lee, who represented Signal Hill Petroleum, along with Jeff Conover, explained, "Active oil wells are not common for shopping center sales in Southern California, but in Signal Hill it is quite common. The Los Angeles Basin is one of the most prolific oilfields in the world, and the developer has found a unique way to make oil production and vibrant retail development successfully co-exist. This breakup strategy and re-parcelization helped the seller achieve the pricing it was looking for even through the COVID-19 pandemic, while the CAM management role will provide an additional revenue stream for the Seller."

The Execution

Though these weren't your run-of-the-mill transactions, Faris Lee was able to successfully navigate obstacles associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, current retail environment, and oil wells and easements by remaining focused on Signal Hill Gateway's intrinsic real estate value and national credit tenant mix. "With Scott's guidance and Signal Hill Petroleum's high-quality management, we were able to complete four separate transactions with four separate buyers and maintain management of the Shopping Center. I have personally known Scott for over 25 years and know him to be extremely hard working and have the highest degree of honesty and integrity. I look forward to working with him and his team on future real estate opportunities!" Barto said. All four closing were with 1031 exchange buyers that were all located in Southern California.

"This center sits on an irreplaceable Southern California urban infill location off the 405 freeway and Atlantic Blvd. with strong demographics," DeYoung said. "By utilizing Faris Lee's national marketing platforms and educating the buyers and their representatives on the oil easements, we were able to overcome many of the challenges that helped the seller obtain the favorable pricing and terms that Signal Hill Petroleum was able to achieve." About 79% rent of the current tenants had recently executed options to extend at Signal Hill Gateway, which is a testament to the strength of the tenants and the trade area. Signal Hill Gateway is anchored by Home Depot and also features an In-N-Out, which were not included in these sales as both tenants own their own real estate.

Located at Atlantic Blvd and the 405 Freeway in Signal Hill, CA which is an incorporated City adjacent to Long Beach, the shopping center was divided into four product categories prior to listing. These included the big box parcels, a QSR & daily needs strip, a sit-down restaurant and a drive-thru fast food restaurant.

Details of each transaction follow.

Big Box Parcel (Ross, Petco and Dollar Tree)

This three-tenant box parcel generated multiple offers and closed at 99.2% of the listing price. This ultimately led to a 6.05% cap rate for the seller and future upside for the buyer as two of the three tenants pay below-market rent. The Buyer completed their 1031 exchange and closed with a conduit lender.

QSR & Daily Needs Strip (Starbucks drive-thru, Chipotle, T-Mobile, Bank of America ATM)

This parcel generated multiple offers and sold for a 4.87% cap rate, which was 99.5% of its list price. The escrow was less than 30 days, and the Buyer was able to execute with financing on time for their 1031 exchange. Despite an active oil well and pipeline easements under this parcel, the seller was able to achieve a close-to-list price sale with short-term leases that ranged from three to five years.

Sit-Down Restaurant (Applebee's)

The sale achieved a 5.10% cap rate, representing one of the lowest cap rate sales in the country for a casual dining concept during COVID-19. This single-tenant, absolute triple-net ground lease is operated by an entity of Flynn Restaurant Group, the largest Applebee's franchisee in the U.S. It generated strong offer activity despite the indoor dining closures in California.

Drive-Thru Fast Food Restaurant (Jack in the Box)

The Jack in the Box parcel generated multiple offers and closed at a 4.38% cap rate. This Jack in the Box was a corporately operated and leased location with approximately less than 10 years remaining of initial term on the lease.

Press Contact: Ingrid Vallon - 949-221-1836

Related Files

Property Image 2.png



SOURCE Faris Lee Investments
"For people who enjoy Licor 43, and for those who appreciate the taste of high-quality cream liqueurs, we're very excited to introduce Licor 43 Horchata here in the U.S.," says Bill Corbett, CEO of Zamora Company USA, the U.S. division of Madrid-based Zamora Company, the brand owner of Licor 43. "Over the past year, we've seen substantial growth for Licor 43 in the market, and this line extension will undoubtedly help increase that broad popularity and success of the brand."

According to recent Nielsen figures, Licor 43 posted value growth of almost +29% in the U.S., compared to +25% growth in the overall cordial category. In 2020, Licor 43 was up +25.4%, and the company expects the brand to increase by +25% again this year, as Licor 43 approaches the 100,000-case milestone in the U.S.

Licor 43 Horchata is a light and creamy fusion of Licor 43 Original and traditional horchata (the drink from Valencia, Spain, that's typically made by blending tiger nut, sugar, cinnamon, and citrus). At 16% alcohol by volume, the new Licor 43 Horchata is crafted from a 100% vegetable base, so it's dairy free, gluten free, nut free, and completely vegan (tiger nuts are roots, not actually nuts, but have a sweet nut-like taste). With an aroma of spice, citrus, and roasted nuts, and a delicately sweet and refreshing taste, Licor 43 Horchata is delicious in cocktails or perfect chilled and poured over ice.

"Licor 43 Horchata provides a much-needed dairy free and vegan option among cream liqueurs, a growing category that has experienced considerable recent consumer interest," adds Corbett.

About Licor 43:

Legend says that 2,000 years ago in the Mediterranean city of Cartagena, Spain, a delicious elixir that the Romans called "Liquor Mirabilis" was made. Inspired by this elixir, since 1946, the Zamora family has been making Licor 43, a delicious liqueur with a characteristic golden tone. Licor 43 is produced exclusively in Cartagena, created from a secret age-old family recipe of 43 natural ingredients. Licor 43 is the star of the popular "Original Carajillo" cocktail, made from Licor 43 and espresso, poured over ice. For more information, please visit www.licor43.com.

About Zamora Company USA:

The U.S. division of Spain's Zamora Company, the passionate and experienced team at Dallas, Texas-based Zamora Company USA manages sales, distribution, execution, and marketing for Licor 43, Double Cross Vodka, Yellow Rose Whiskey, Martin Miller's Gin, Lolea Sangria, Don Papa Rum, Villa Massa Limoncello, plus Spanish wines Ramon Bilbao, Cruz De Alba, and Mar de Frades.

SOURCE Zamora Company USA
FARGO, N.D., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Best friends simply make everything better. Why not treat them to better checking? For one day only  Thursday, May 13  earn $50* simply by opening a new personal or business Gate City Bank checking account or referring a friend to open an account. (Referrals are unlimited!)

Opening an Account is Easy!

Step 1: Stop by any of Gate City Bank's convenient locations, give them a call or open a personal checking account online on May 13 .

Stop by any of Gate City Bank's convenient locations, give them a call or open a personal checking account online on . Step 2: When prompted and if applicable, include the name of the person who referred you.

When prompted and if applicable, include the name of the person who referred you. Step 3: Earn $50!*

Enjoy the FREEs with a Gate City Bank Checking Account, Including:

FREE ATMs Worldwide: Unlimited automatic ATM fee refunds.

(Gate City Bank has saved customers $43 million in ATM fees.)

Unlimited automatic ATM fee refunds. (Gate City Bank has saved customers in ATM fees.) FREE 2 Mobile Deposit: Use the Bank's mobile app to deposit checks hassle-free.

Use the Bank's mobile app to deposit checks hassle-free. FREE 3 Debit Card Rewards: Earn points on every purchase.

Earn points on every purchase. FREE2 Online and Mobile Banking: Easily manage money on the go.

Don't miss out on $50* from Gate City Bank on May 13! Visit GateCity.Bank/5050 to learn more.

About Gate City Bank

A $2.8 billion mutual bank founded in 1923, Gate City Bank is the region's leading financial institution, as well as the #1 mortgage lender in North Dakota. The Bank employs more than 735 team members at 43 locations in 22 communities across North Dakota and central Minnesota. The Bank believes in creating a better way of life for customers, communities and team members, and it has contributed $30.6 million in philanthropic giving and 250,000 hours of team volunteerism since 2003. Additionally, Gate City Bank has been named one of the "50 Best Places to Work" seven years in a row by Prairie Business magazine.

*Offer valid on May 13, 2021. Not valid with any other offers. $50 will be deposited into the new customer's account by July 13, 2021, and the referrer will receive $50 in their current Gate City Bank checking account by July 13, 2021. Account must be open and maintain a positive balance to receive the credit. New customer must be a first-time Gate City Bank personal or business checking customer and will receive a 1099-INT form for the $50 deposited to the new account. $50 minimum deposit to open, and $50 bonus does not count toward minimum deposit. Referrer will be sent a 1099-MISC form if they receive $600 or more in referral bonuses in a calendar year.



2Internet service and mobile carrier provider fees may apply.

3Recipient must be enrolled in uChoose Rewards to earn points.

Dain Sullivan, Senior Content Strategist

[email protected]

701-551-8208



SOURCE Gate City Bank

Related Links

gatecity.bank


DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Global Integrated Facility Management Market, By Type (Hard Service and Soft Service), By Service (Building and Property Management, Cleaning and Hygiene, Security and Staffing, and Others), By Solution, By End-User, By Region, Competition, Forecast & Opportunities, 2026" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The Global Integrated Facility Management Market is projected to grow from USD84.65 billion in 2020 to USD114.86 billion by 2026. Rise in the demand for standardization and simplification of facilities in industries and residential buildings due to the need for good working environment and reduced energy output costs, are expected to positively influence the Global Integrated Facility Management Market in the coming years.



The Global Integrated Facility Management Market can be segmented into type, Services, IT (Information Technology) support, solution, end-user and region. On the basis of type, the market can be segmented as hard service and soft service, where hard service segment held a market share of around 55% in 2020 due to rise in investments in energy and project management to achieve long-term efficiency. Moreover, new office buildings in emerging economies are stated to drive the market in the forecast period.



Based on service, the market is segmented into building and property management, cleaning and hygiene, security and staffing, IT support and others. Among these, the market share of building and property management segment was around 26% in 2020. The integrated facility management in building and property management sector are the services that include construction management, marketing, building engineering, accounting and financial services to the owners and investors in offices, industrial and retail properties. The increasing development of sustainable infrastructure and growing presence of many enterprises to adopt changing organizational structure and work management are the key drivers for the Global Integrated Facility Management Market.



The largest contributor to the Global Integrated Facility Management Market was North America with around 44% value share in 2020. United States was the largest contributing country in the region with around 83% share in 2020, followed by Canada and Mexico. Moreover, the demand for outsourced facility management services is increasing in the developing countries due to rising awareness and improving economies.



The leading players in the Global Integrated Facility Management Market are JLL Inc (Jones Lang LaSalle IP, Inc), ISS A/S (International Service System), CBRE Group Inc, Cushman & Wakefield plc, Sodexo Inc., Compass Inc., Aramark Corporation, Coor Service Management Holding AB, Mitie Group PLC, MacLellan Integrated Services, Inc. The market players are ceaselessly presenting services with real-time response, connectivity and 24/7 availability, to build customer base.



Years considered for this report:

Historical Years: 2016-2019

Base Year: 2020

Estimated Year: 2021

Forecast Period: 2022-2026

Objective of the Study:

The primary objective of the study is to understand and gain insights about the Global Integrated Facility Management Market by value and its segmental analysis by type, by service, by IT support, by solution, by end-user, by region and by company.

To analyze historical growth in market size of the Global Integrated Facility Management Market from 2016 to 2020.

To estimate and forecast the market size of the Global Integrated Facility Management Market from 2021 to 2026 and growth rate until 2026.

To categorize and forecast the Global Integrated Facility Management Market by type - hard service and soft service.

To categorize and forecast the Global Integrated Facility Management Market by service - building and property management, cleaning and hygiene, security and staffing, IT support and others.

To categorize and forecast the Global Integrated Facility Management Market By Solution - asset & space management, project management & real estate portfolio management & lease administration, energy & environment sustainability management, maintenance management and others

To categorize and forecast the Global Integrated Facility Management Market by End-User (BFSI, Utilities, Aerospace & Defense, Telecommunication, Manufacturing, Supply Chain & Logistics, Real Estate & Infrastructure, Healthcare, Retail and Others).

To categorize and forecast the Global Integrated Facility Management Market by region such as North America , Asia-Pacific , Europe , Middle East & Africa and South America .

, , , & and . To identify major drivers & challenges for the Global Integrated Facility Management Market.

To identify major trends in the Global Integrated Facility Management Market.

To profile major companies operating in the Global Integrated Facility Management Market.

Key Topics Covered:



1. Product Overview



2. Research Methodology



3. Impact of COVID-19 on Global Integrated Facility Management Market



4. Executive Summary



5. Voice of Customer

5.1. Factors Affecting the purchase decision of Integrated Management Facility Services

5.2. Customer Experience

5.3. Brand Awareness

5.4. Brand Satisfaction

5.5. Customer Satisfaction



6. Global Integrated Facility Management Market Outlook

6.1. Market Size & Forecast

6.1.1. By Value

6.2. Market Share & Forecast

6.2.1. By Type (Hard Service and Soft Service)

6.2.2. By Service (Building and Property Management, Cleaning and Hygiene, Security and Staffing, IT Support and Others)

6.2.2.1. By IT Support (On-Premises and Cloud)

6.2.3. By Solution (Asset & Space Management, Project Management & Real Estate Portfolio Management & Lease Administration, Energy & Environment Sustainability Management, Maintenance Management and Others)

6.2.4. By End-User (BFSI, Utilities, Aerospace & Defense, Telecommunication, Manufacturing, Supply Chain & Logistics, Real Estate & Infrastructure, Healthcare, Retail and Others)

6.2.5. By Region (North America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East & Africa and South America)

6.2.6. By Company (2020)

6.3. Market Map

6.3.1. By Type

6.3.2. By Service

6.3.3. By IT Support

6.3.4. By Solution

6.3.5. By End-User

6.3.6. By Region

7. North America Integrated Facility Management Market Outlook

7.1. Market Size & Forecast

7.2. Market Share & Forecast

7.3. Market Map

7.4. North America Integrated Facility Management Market Country Analysis

8. Asia-Pacific Integrated Facility Management Market Outlook

8.1. Market Size & Forecast

8.2. Market Share & Forecast

8.3. Market Map

8.4. Asia-Pacific Integrated Facility Management Market Country Analysis

9. Europe Integrated Facility Management Market Outlook

9.1. Market Size & Forecast

9.2. Market Share & Forecast

9.3. Market Map

9.4. Europe Integrated Facility Management Market Country Analysis

10. Middle East & Africa Integrated Facility Management Market Outlook

10.1. Market Size & Forecast

10.2. Market Share & Forecast

10.3. Market Map

10.4. Middle East & Africa Integrated Facility Management Market Country Analysis

11. South America Integrated Facility Management Market Outlook

11.1. Market Size & Forecast

11.2. Market Share & Forecast

11.3. Market Map

11.4. South America Integrated Facility Management Market Country Analysis

12. Market Dynamics

12.1. Drivers

12.2. Challenges



13. Market Trends & Developments



14. Competitive Landscape

14.1. Company Profiles

14.1.1. JLL Inc (Jones Lang LaSalle IP, Inc)

14.1.2. ISS A/S (International Service System)

14.1.3. CBRE Group, Inc

14.1.4. Cushman & Wakefield plc

14.1.5. Sodexo Inc.

14.1.6. Compass Inc.

14.1.7. Aramark Corporation

14.1.8. Coor Service Management Holding AB

14.1.9. Mitie Group PLC

14.1.10. MacLellan Integrated Services, Inc



15. Strategic Recommendations



16. About Us & Disclaimer

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/mfoswf



Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



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



U.S. Fax: 646-607-1904

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

SOURCE Research and Markets

Related Links

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DALLAS, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Goodnight Midstream ("Goodnight" or the "Company"), a leading oilfield water midstream company, today announced that it has been selected by ConocoPhillips as the winner of its "doing business better" Global Supplier Recognition Award (the "Award") for the second time since 2018. Goodnight was one of just two companies highlighted for service to ConocoPhillips' Lower 48 operations.

Goodnight Midstream provides efficient, safe, and reliable produced water disposal services to oil and gas operators across the Williston Basin, the Permian Basin and the Eagle Ford Shale. Goodnight and ConocoPhillips have been working together since 2014 and this award once again recognizes Goodnight's operational achievements and customer-focused approach. The Award recognizes Goodnight's collaboration, operational expertise and flexible service offerings that delivered exceptional value to ConocoPhillips in 2020.

Patrick Walker, Co-Founder and CEO of Goodnight, said, "At Goodnight, we strive to be a best-in-class partner to our customers, providing top quality service and midstream-produced water solutions while adhering to high standards for environmental stewardship and employee safety. We are pleased that our values and resulting performance have been recognized through this Award."

The ConocoPhillips global business units generated nominations internally, with winners carefully selected by a cross-functional committee of senior managers.

About Goodnight Midstream, LLC

Goodnight Midstream builds, owns and operates oilfield wastewater infrastructure. The Company owns and operates an extensive network of water gathering pipelines and saltwater disposal wells focused on gathering and disposing of produced saltwater for its customers. Goodnight's midstream approach minimizes environmental impact and improves health and safety while lowering lease operating expense and improving reliability for its customers. The Company is supported by a team of highly experienced engineers, geologists and operating professionals. Goodnight Midstream holds significant positions in the Permian Basin, the Bakken Formation and the Eagle Ford Shale. For more information, please visit www.goodnightmidstream.com.

Media Contact:

Jonathan Keehner / Julie Oakes

Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher

212-355-4449

SOURCE Goodnight Midstream, LLC

Related Links

http://www.goodnightmidstream.com


With the goal of producing products that are good for you, fair for farmers and good for the planet, GoodSam brings high-quality ingredients found in Colombia to the US market, maintaining strong, direct trade relationships with the supply chain, manufacturers and indigenous communities of which they are grown. The farmers and GoodSam team prioritize the planet by practicing regenerative agriculture, a farming practice that reverses the effects of climate change by rebuilding soil organic matter and restoring soil biodiversity.

"One of the key tenants of regenerative agriculture is crop diversity, many of our farmers in Colombia not only grow cocoa but also nuts, fruits, honey, avocado, citrus and coffee. Launching a coffee line from the same small, family-owned farms that grow our cacao is a natural next step for GoodSam Foods," said Heather K. Terry, CEO and Co-Founder of GoodSam Foods.

Working with two separate communities in Colombia, GoodSam has launched the below coffee varieties:

Orlando's Single Farm Origin : Named for Orlando , the Colombian farmer that grows coffee alongside his family in the foothills of the Central Andes, this juicy coffee has notes of peach, honey and caramel. Made of a mix of Castillo, Caturro and Tipico beans, this unique single farm origin blend will be sold in small quantities at $19.99 / bag and is a USDA Organic certified coffee at 85 points. Orlando's nephew, Jairo, works with GoodSam directly to source goods for the products while working on the farm and finishing his studies on specialty coffee and English to become an international coffee expert.

: Named for , the Colombian farmer that grows coffee alongside his family in the foothills of the Central Andes, this juicy coffee has notes of peach, honey and caramel. Made of a mix of Castillo, Caturro and Tipico beans, this unique single farm origin blend will be sold in small quantities at / bag and is a USDA Organic certified coffee at 85 points. nephew, Jairo, works with GoodSam directly to source goods for the products while working on the farm and finishing his studies on specialty coffee and English to become an international coffee expert. GoodSam Everyday Coffee: Isolated from the Andes, this balanced blend made for everyday enjoyment is grown in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in Northern Colombia , the highest coastal mountain range in the tropics. Grown by the indigenous tribe, Arhuaco, who deeply care for their sacred grounds, this blend features fruity notes of apple/pear and honey. In addition to coffee, GoodSam sources organic cacao and honey from the tribe and supports projects that protect the native vegetation of the region. Further, the tribe's business with GoodSam directly funds basic local education through increased productivity and profitability, to ensure that local farmers and their families stay together long-term. Priced a $19.99 each 2lb bag sold will help fund these efforts.

"We are honored to be working with dedicated farmers in Colombia," says Sam Stroot, COO and Co-Founder of GoodSam Foods. "As the warming world threatens the future of coffee, we stand by our farmers to help maintain steady yields and qualities of both coffee and cacao. We hope that with our support, farming practices and fair wages, their communities, and our entire planet, will thrive for generations to come."

GoodSam Foods first introduced a line of chocolate products, also sourced in Colombia, including a chocolate bar in three flavors - Dark Chocolate, Dark Chocolate & Sea Salt Nibs and Dark Chocolate & Mint, Dark Chocolate Baking Chips and a selection of candy coated items including Dark Chocolate Candy Coated Almonds, Dark Chocolate Candy Coated Cashews and Dark Chocolate Candy Coated Peanuts. GoodSam looks to launch two new chocolate bar flavors and Macadamia Nuts later this year.

To learn more about GoodSam Foods and shop product, visit www.goodsamfoods.com or follow on Instagram at @GoodSamFoods.

About GoodSam Foods

Founded in 2019 by social mission entrepreneur, Sam Stroot, and natural products industry veteran, Heather K. Terry, GoodSam P.B.C. is a chocolate brand on a mission. GoodSam believes in food that's good for you, good for farmers and good for the planet. Maintaining deep relationships with supply chain, manufacturers and indigenous communities is at the heart of everything GoodSam does, and the brand works with farms to maintain the quality of soil through regenerative practices to ensure farms thrive for generations to come. GoodSam believes that when you open a bag, you shouldn't have to wonder if the company you are spending your money with is doing the right thing. GoodSam is backed by BeyondBrands and CEO Eric Schnell, known for innovative, conscious food and beverage brands including Cool Beans, Steaz Tea, Good Catch and more.

Media Contacts:

Zapwater Communications

Kody Kanter // Lauren Kelly

[email protected]

[email protected]

SOURCE GoodSam Foods
FELTON, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The global Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Market size is expected to reach USD 15.77 billion by 2028, registering a CAGR of 6.0% over the forecast period, according to a new report by Million Insights.

What are Key Factors Driving the Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Market Growth?

The rising consumption of marijuana to cure neurological and mental disorders is driving the market growth globally. It is the best anti-depressants available in the market. Since the legalization of marijuana, the healthcare industry prescribes small dosages of cannabis to treat various mental disorders. In addition, the rising demand for compact and effective vaporizers is boosting the market growth.

The conduction vaporizers segment is expected to registe3r the fastest CAGR of 6.2% from 2021 to 2028. Cannabis vaping is considered the modern trend in cannabis production, thereby increasing the demand for conduction vaporizers. It is regarded as nontoxic, which gives an advantage over marijuana smoking. In addition, the use of conduction vaporizers provides a stronger effect than conventional smoking.

North America dominated the global market with a revenue share of more than 56% in 2020. The rising demand for the legalization of recreational marijuana has led to market growth in this region. Canada has already legalized their recreational use, which will boost the market growth. In 2018, Canada legalized the usage of cannabis for recreational purposes. It is the second country to legalize marijuana. Due to its legalization, nearby 330,000 Canadians are listed to take cannabis from licensed manufacturers.

Please click here to get the sample pdf and find more details on "Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Market" Report 2028.

Various market players are focusing on increasing the supply and production of cannabis devices for various medical purposes. For example, medicinal vape pens are key innovations in the global market. It helps cure a common cold. The healthcare providers mostly recommend medicinal marijuana vaporizers to patients to reduce the health risk. With medicinal vaporizers, patients can minimize the intake of respiratory irritants, toxins, and carcinogens.

Key Questions Answered In The Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Market Report:

Why Growth Rate of Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Market in Asia Pacific is the Fastest?

Asia Pacific is expected to register the fastest growth of 6.7% CAGR from 2021 to 2028 owing to the growing awareness about the benefits of using cannabis for medical purposes.

What Makes the Convection Vaporizer Segment to Register the Second Fastest CAGR by 2028?

The convection vaporizer segment is expected to register the second fastest CAGR over the forecast period owing to the low price, portable size, and instant heating capability of these devices.

Which Region Dominated the Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Market Share in 2020?

North America dominated the global market with a share of more than 56% in 2020 due to product legalization in countries, such as the U.S. and Canada.

Why the Offline Distribution Channel of the Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Holds the Largest Market Share in 2020?

The offline distribution channel held the largest market share in 2020 and accounted for more than 50% of the total revenue due to the easy availability of the product through these distribution channels.

Browse 85 page research report with TOC on "Global Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Market" at: https://www.millioninsights.com/industry-reports/global-handheld-marijuana-vaporizer-market

Million Insights has segmented the global handheld marijuana vaporizer market on the basis of product, charger type, temperature control, distribution channel, and region:

Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

Convection



Conduction

Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Charger Type Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

USB



Micro USB

Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Temperature Control Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

Fixed



Variable

Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Distribution Channel Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

Offline



Online

Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

North America



U.S.



Europe



Germany





U.K.





France



Asia Pacific



China





Japan



Central & South America



Brazil





Middle East & Africa



South Africa

List of Key Players of Handheld Marijuana Vaporizer Market

Storz & Bickel GmbH & Co.



Arizer



Ghost Herbal Concepts Ltd.



Davinci



PAX Labs, Inc.



FireFly



Crafty



Planet of the Vapes



Boundless CF/CFX



MyNextVape

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Million Insights, is a distributor of market research reports, published by premium publishers only. We have a comprehensive marketplace that will enable you to compare data points before you make a purchase. Enabling informed buying is our motto and we strive hard to ensure that our clients get to browse through multiple samples, prior to an investment. Service flexibility & the fastest response time are two pillars, on which our business model is founded. Our market research report store includes in-depth reports, from across various industry verticals, such as healthcare, technology, chemicals, food & beverages, consumer goods, material science & automotive.

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LONDON and NEW YORK , May 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Huma Therapeutics Limited today announces the completion of its latest funding round with financing of approximately $130 million. The investment will scale Huma's modular platform which can power digital 'hospitals at home' nationally, and support the pharmaceutical and research industries to run the largest ever decentralized clinical trials. Huma's platform combines predictive algorithms, digital biomarkers and real-world data to advance proactive care and research.

Leaps by Bayer and Hitachi Ventures led the Series C funding round, which also saw new strategic and financial investors become shareholders. Samsung Next, Sony Innovation Fund by IGV*, Unilever Ventures and HAT Technology & Innovation Fund by HAT, as well as individuals Nikesh Arora (former president of SoftBank) and Michael Diekmann (Chairman of Allianz) are also new shareholders.

A further commitment of $70 million that can be exercised at a later date has also been agreed as part of the Series C funding round and takes the total financing raised to more than $200 million. Goldman Sachs International acted as lead placement agent to Huma. HSBC Bank plc and Nomura acted as joint placement agents, with the latter also becoming a shareholder.

The new investment will be used to expand Huma's digital platform in the US, Asia and the Middle East, with Huma having recently been named Europe's fastest growing healthcare company by the Financial Times1. Huma has established a reputation as a trusted health technology and innovation partner to four national governments (England's NHS, Wales, Germany and UAE). Its digital 'hospital at home' was co-created with clinicians and has been independently shown2,3 to almost double clinical capacity, reduce hospital readmissions by over a third and has patient adherence levels of over 90%. The service is supporting governments' pandemic responses on a not-for-profit basis and is now used for a range of patients including those going through knee- and hip-replacement surgery e.g. with Smith+Nephew4.

Huma advanced its work in the US in 2021 with an experienced leadership team that has fostered new partnerships with clinical research organisations, health care providers, payers, research organisations, and technology companies.

Huma works with leading life science companies including AstraZeneca, Bayer and Janssen and academic institutions such as Stanford Medicine, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the University of Cambridge5,6. Huma's research at the intersection of predictive care and machine learning has been peer-reviewed and published across a range of scientific and medical journals7,8,9,10,11.

Huma is bringing in new talent to every aspect of the organisation from bench to boardroom to scale plans for global expansion. Dr Claudia Suessmuth Dyckerhoff joined Huma's Board of Directors in April, bringing a wealth of global experience in life sciences and healthcare. In the past year, the Huma leadership team has matured with the recruitment of specialists across technology and AI, legal, healthcare, life sciences and corporate affairs12.

Dan Vahdat, Founder and CEO of Huma, said, "This is a pivotal moment in Huma's development. We have exceptional partners and strategic investors who will support us in our mission to help people worldwide live longer and fuller lives. We're already demonstrating how 'hospital at home' can transform healthcare, and how decentralized clinical trials can advance research in ways that weren't imaginable even one year ago. Now we want to accelerate the pace of change and continue to innovate for better care and research worldwide.''

Alan Milburn, former UK Health Secretary and Chairman of Huma's Board, said, "This is a significant moment in Huma's history and I will work to build enduring, trusted relationships with our new partners. We are living through unprecedented times and the importance of health and well-being is underlined as never before. Together with our partners we can use our expertise, technology, and innovation to change the face of healthcare and research and impact people's health everywhere."

Dr Claudia Suessmuth Dyckerhoff, Huma Board Director, said: "The pandemic has exposed weaknesses across health systems around the world but through collaboration, innovation, and compassionate leadership Huma can support faster and safer care for patients through digital technologies and rapid access to treatments by accelerating clinical research."

Huma's ambition to improve people's health across the world will be accelerated with its new global partnerships. Juergen Eckhardt, Head of Leaps by Bayer, comments, "Aligned with the vision of Leaps by Bayer, Huma's expertise and technology will help drive a global paradigm shift towards prevention and care and may boost research efforts using data and digital technology. We invest into the most disruptive technologies of our time that have the potential to change the world for the better. As an early investor into Huma we know how perfectly the company fits into that frame as one of the leading digital innovators in healthcare and lifesciences."

Keiji Kojima, Executive Vice President of Hitachi's Smart Life division, added, "Huma has built a comprehensive remote patient monitoring platform and established a strong track-record and we are excited to be working with Huma to bring its world-leading health technology to new markets in Asia. We believe that together we can advance new digital health products to power better care and research for all."

Jonathan Machado, Senior Investment Director of Samsung Next, said, "Huma is advancing the necessary transition of medicine from reactive to proactive, and we are thrilled to be a part of their journey. The company's evidence-based approach, validated by leading scientific publications, together with their impressive record of rapid, large-scale delivery is unparalleled. We are excited to explore how the Huma platform and its digital biomarkers portfolio could work with the Samsung ecosystem for lasting impact in proactive care across hospitals, life sciences and population health initiatives."

Gen Tsuchikawa, CEO and Chief Investment Manager for Sony Innovation Fund (SIF) and Chief Investment Officer for Innovation Growth Ventures (IGV), said, "We believe Huma's digital 'hospital at home' platform and data driven approach is redefining healthcare across the globe. We're excited to support Huma as they continue to accelerate their work in theUS, Europe, Middle East and Asia."

Ignazio Castiglioni, CEO of HAT, said, "Huma's pioneering technology can be a complete game-changer for the health industry. HAT, with its fourth PE fund, is thrilled to partner with Huma and their world-class people by supporting the company in the next phase of this exciting journey."

About Huma

Huma is a global health technology company that helps people live longer, fuller lives. Our modular platform supports digital 'hospitals at home' across different disease areas. In life sciences we power some of the world's largest decentralized clinical trials and studies. Our platform combines predictive algorithms, digital biomarkers and real-world data to advance proactive, predictive care and research.

Our 'hospitals at home' help care for patients across the England NHS, Wales, Germany, and the UAE  evidence shows they can double clinical capacity, reduce readmission rates by a third, and reduce costs whilst providing safe, high-quality care. We offer Covid-19 digital services, not-for-profit, to national governments to help fight against the pandemic and have shipped over a million devices that complement our 'hospitals at home' to help power them. www.huma.com

Additional resources:

*Innovation Growth Ventures Co., Ltd. (IGV) is managed by Sony Innovation Fund and Daiwa Capital Holdings.

 HSBC Bank plc ("HSBC"), which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority, is acting as financial adviser to Huma Therapeutics and no one else in connection with the matters described in this Announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Huma Therapeutics for providing the protections afforded to clients of HSBC, or for providing advice in connection with the matters referred to herein. Neither HSBC nor any of its group undertakings or affiliates owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of HSBC in connection with this Announcement or any matter referred to herein.

SOURCE Huma
Recent results from Conserrat project underpin the potential for high-grade mineralisation elsewhere within the Veta Blanca-Emilia vein corridor that extends for over 2.5 kilometres strike and remains poorly tested by drilling.

Emilia is an early-stage prospect around five kilometres north of the more advanced Mia.

Ltds ( ) assay results from its 2021 drilling campaign at the flagship Conserrat gold and silver project in Argentinas Santa Cruz province has returned high-grade silver.

Scout drilling within the Emilia prospect defined a new zone of shallow high-grade silver mineralisation with lesser gold.

Best results include 9.5 metres at 375 g/t silver and 0.4 g/t gold from 49 metres including 2 metres at 630 g/t silver and 0.5 g/t gold from 49 metres.

The mineralisation is within a new structure untested by previous drilling, which is 5 kilometres north of the Mia prospect.

Potential along corridor

Results also highlight the potential for further high-grade mineralisation along the Veta Blanca-Emilia vein corridor that has a measured strike of 2.5 kilometres.

Conserrat is host to new greenfield gold and silver discovery and epithermal vein field centred around 25 kilometres along trend from s Cerro Vanguardia mine that has current reserves of 8.9 million ounces of gold and 137 million ounces of silver.

Mineralisation is open in all directions and will be immediately followed up with further drilling

The company expects results to further confirm that Conserrat is a new epithermal vein district within a world-class gold and silver mining province.

Potential for high-grade mineralisation

E2 Metals managing director Todd Williams said: The recent results from Emilia are significant not only because it is a new discovery for the project, but it also underpins the potential for high-grade mineralisation elsewhere within the Veta Blanca-Emilia vein corridor that extends for over 2.5 kilometres strike and remains poorly tested by drilling.

Importantly, mineralisation is hosted within a blind structure that is adjacent to the main topographic ridge under shallow colluvium cover, confirming what we already suspected  the best-mineralised veins at Conserrat may not be the most obvious ones.

Emilia drilling

Five holes for 697 metres were completed at the Emilia prospect to test a prominent bend where the orientation of the Emilia trend changes from west-northwest to northwest.

Recent sampling within the structure returned rock chip values of up to 16.4 g/t gold and 981 g/t silver.

Three holes were drilled on one fence central to the peak rock chip gold and silver anomalies.

The southernmost hole intercepted shallow high-grade silver mineralisation, including 9.5 metres at 375 g/t silver and 0.4 g/t gold from 49 metres, including 2 metres at 630 g/t silver and 0.5 g/t gold from 49 metres.

This is the first evidence of high-grade mineralisation within the Veta Blanca-Emilia trend where scout drilling is ongoing.
CLEVELAND, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc. (NYSE:HY) announced today that it will host its 2021 Investor Day event for institutional investors and equity analysts virtually on Tuesday, May 25th. The meeting, hosted by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Alfred M. Rankin, Jr., and President, Rajiv K. Prasad, will feature presentations by members of Hyster-Yale Materials Handling's senior management team, and will provide information on the Company's strategic roadmap to deliver long-term shareholder value, including capital allocation strategy and expectations for future financial performance.

The presentation will begin at 10:00 am Eastern Time, to be immediately followed by a live question and answer session, with the presenters, utilizing the chat functionality within the broadcasting system. To access and register for this event, please click on the following link: https://event.on24.com/wcc/r/3109209/A88E0A92EC49289B6CF538DFE3CBFE62.

The webcast of the virtual event and an audio archive of the presentation will be available via the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at https://www.hyster-yale.com/investors. Participants should allow approximately 10 to 15 minutes prior to the presentation's start time to visit the site and download any streaming media software needed to listen to the Internet webcast. A replay of the webcast will also be available on the Company's website following the presentation.

About Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc.

Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc., headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, offers a broad array of solutions to meet the specific materials handling needs of customers' applications. The Company's wholly owned operating subsidiary, Hyster-Yale Group, Inc., designs, engineers, manufactures, sells and services a comprehensive line of lift trucks and aftermarket parts marketed globally primarily under the Hyster and Yale brand names. Subsidiaries of Hyster-Yale include Nuvera Fuel Cells, LLC, an alternative-power technology company focused on fuel cell stacks and engines, and Bolzoni S.p.A., a leading worldwide producer of attachments, forks and lift tables marketed under the Bolzoni, Auramo and Meyer brand names. Hyster-Yale also has significant joint ventures in Japan (Sumitomo NACCO) and in China (Hyster-Yale Maximal). For more information about Hyster-Yale and its subsidiaries, visit the Company's website at www.hyster-yale.com.

***

SOURCE Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.hyster-yale.com


The reason: House Bill 3437 would require privately owned petroleum refineries, petrochemical facilities, and ethanol plants in Illinois to pay state government-mandated wages on construction work done on their facilities. Under the guise of "safety", and keeping jobs in Illinois, the bill is simply a ruse that will result in all construction and maintenance work to be performed exclusively by members of certain trade unions. HB3437 would require a certain percentage of professional "journeyman" working at the facilities, safety training, and reporting of minority participation in apprenticeship programs.

"This bill ignores economic equity and strips minorities of opportunities to work in construction," says Michael Uremovich, owner and president of Manhattan Mechanical Services, an Illinois-based merit shop contractor.

"HB 3437 is not about safety" he continues, "but rather the hypocrisy behind this bill is exposed as 100% unionized facilities are exempt under the legislation. That means that union contractors are not required to meet the journeyman, safety training or apprenticeship reporting requirements. In fact, one of the more recent instances of a safety failure was at a 100% unionized refinery."

He adds, "It's also not about assuring use of Illinois jobs. First, the refineries, manufacturing facilities and ethanol plants impacted by HB 3437 will see their costs increase which will result in fewer jobs in Illinois. Plus, contractors like myself will be forced to abandon support of construction career pipelines like the Community Builders Program. My company has partnered with a number of minority community organizations such as Project Hood to provide access to the construction industry for black and brown workers."

In opposing the bill, Manhattan Mechanical joins numerous reputable organizations, including: Associated Builders and Contractors (A.B.C.), the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, West Side N.A.A.C.P., Project H.O.O.D., Chicago Urban League, and other groups from communities of color.

Join Manhattan Mechanical Services, and the Construction Fairness Alliance in opposing HB 3437 here .

In the name of safety, the bill adversely impacts merit shop contractors, who have worked relentlessly to diversify the construction industry. Established merit shops take training and safety seriously, Uremovich notes, implementing strict employee safety standards and apprenticeship training programs.

Below are four examples of the positive impact merit shop contractors have had on diversity and safety in construction:

Partnerships with organizations that provide training to minorities for job opportunities.

Manhattan Mechanical Services works closely with A.B.C. and Project H.O.O.D. to create career opportunities for young people living in underserved neighborhoods of Chicago.

Like other merit shops, Manhattan Mechanical supports A.B.C.'s Community Builders Program and other workforce-development initiatives that empower individuals facing serious barriers. Manhattan Mechanical hires from each Community Builders Program cohort every four to six months. This program has trained more than 180 students from 10 underserved communities in Illinois.

Graduates from these programs earn an average wage of $16.50 per hour while also having opportunities for upward mobility. "If HB3437 passes," says Uremovich, "it will harm workforce development programs that are doing exactly what members of the General Assembly have been asking the unions to do for more than 40 years."

A 2020 Union Members Report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (B.L.S.) indicates that unions represent only 13.9% percent of employed Black or African American individuals.

"The B.L.S. refuses to provide specific union demographic information by city or state, because minority numbers are so low," says Uremovich.

Opening of new facilities creating job opportunities in construction

Manhattan Mechanical Services recently opened new facility in East Chicago , bringing 80 new, good-paying jobs to the community.

"We are committed to building a trained and certified workforce of craft professionals by offering accredited training programs through NCCER," Uremovich remarked during the East Chicago grand opening in November 2020.

Entry-level pay is $16 per hour at Manhattan Mechanical. But once an apprenticeship ends, a worker will be in a position to earn a six-figure annual wage.

Apprenticeship programs and career development

Manhattan Mechanical Services administers specialized knowledge and skills necessary for craftspeople working in the construction, maintenance, and pipeline industries. The company has trained approximately 160 men and women recruits since 2011, 25% of whom were minorities.

Manhattan Mechanical provides the journey-level assessments and performance verifications free of charge to employees and offers journey-level assessment testing to the public.

Impeccable safety record

Manhattan Mechanical Services has an impeccable safety record and consistently exceeds OSHA standards. The company recently celebrated its second consecutive year with zero OSHA-recordable injuries at a large University Park, IL chemical plant. This particular maintenance contract holds an impressive safety record as well  seven consecutive years injury-free.

"Petrochemical refineries are among some of the safest job sites, compared with private commercial projects, and state or federal construction projects," says Uremovich.

"Illinois has the safest record in the petrochemical industry of any state in the nation," noted Alicia Martin, President of the Associated Builders and Contractors of Illinois, in a recent chapter news release.

"But this bill is not actually about safety or the needs of actual people in our communities," she continued. "The over 350 opposition slips filed against this issue during a recent committee hearing is evidence that this legislation has many problems."

CLICK HERE TO SEND A DIRECT MESSAGE TO STATE SENATOR MICHAEL E. HASTINGS [D-FRANKFORT] AND GOVERNOR J.B. PRITZKER TO VOTE "NO" TO HB3437

About Manhattan Mechanical Services

Merit Shop Proud.

Manhattan Mechanical Services is the premier merit shop mechanical services contractor in the Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana Area. Safety and integrity are the common threads binding our employees, our customers, and our community together. We are committed to a progressive career path for employees, complete with certifiable skills training. Manhattan Mechanical Services is a unique services provider that supports our customers in multiple areas: industrial maintenance services, process piping, structural steel, equipment installation, scaffolding and insulation. We specialize in providing turnkey projects to our customers.

Visit: meritshopworks.com

SOURCE Manhattan Mechanical Services
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones S.A. (NYSE: IRS; BYMA: IRSA), the leading real estate company in Argentina, announces today its results for the third quarter of the Fiscal Year 2021 ended March 31, 2021.

HIGHLIGHTS

The net result for nine-month period of fiscal year 2021 recorded a loss of ARS 14,712 million compared to a ARS 5,975 million loss in the same period of 2020.





compared to a loss in the same period of 2020. The result from continuing operations recorded a loss of ARS 6,670 million mainly due to negative results from changes in the fair value of the investment properties. The result of discontinued operations recorded a loss of ARS 8,042 million because of the deconsolidation of the investment in Israel since September 30, 2020 .





mainly due to negative results from changes in the fair value of the investment properties. The result of discontinued operations recorded a loss of because of the deconsolidation of the investment in since . Adjusted EBITDA reached ARS 11,604 million in the nine-month period of fiscal year 2021, increasing 57.8% compared to the same period of 2020, mainly explained by the Sales and Developments segment, due to the sales made by IRSA Commercial Properties. Adjusted EBITDA of the rental segments was reduced by 62,5% in the period, reaching ARS 3,116 million .





in the nine-month period of fiscal year 2021, increasing 57.8% compared to the same period of 2020, mainly explained by the Sales and Developments segment, due to the sales made by IRSA Commercial Properties. Adjusted EBITDA of the rental segments was reduced by 62,5% in the period, reaching . Regarding the rental portfolio, tenants' sales in shopping malls grew 0.4% in real terms in the third quarter of fiscal year 2021 compared to 2020. Excluding the second fortnight of March, which had the shopping centers partially or totally closed in 2020, the variation reverts to a drop of 20.5%. Occupancy in shopping centers reached 89.5%, while A + and A offices reached 81.2%. The hotels have been operating since December 2020 with low occupancy levels.





with low occupancy levels. Subsequently, the national government ordered, among other restrictive measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the closure of shopping malls in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area from April 16 to May 21 inclusive. Therefore, to date, 44% of the portfolio remains operational.





Metropolitan Area from inclusive. Therefore, to date, 44% of the portfolio remains operational. In financial matters, during the quarter we issued Notes in the local market, through Series X, XI and XII, for a total amount of USD 65.5 million and, as a subsequent event, we made a capital increase of 80 million shares for the sum of USD 28.8 million .

Financial Highlights

(In millions of Argentine Pesos)

9M FY 2021

Income Statement 03/31/2021 03/31/2020 Revenues 9,177 17,367 Consolidated Gross Profit 4,718 10,692 Net result from changes in the fair value of investment properties (6,856) 3,295 Consolidated (Loss) / Profit from Operations (5,418) 10,544 Result for the Period (14,712) (5,975)





Attributable to:



IRSA's Shareholders (11,487) (13,647) Non-Controlling interest (3,225) 7,672





EPS (Basic) (19.98) (23.73) EPS (Diluted) (19.98) (23.73)





Balance Sheet 03/31/2021 06/30/2020 Current Assets 18,392 278,487 Non-Current Assets 193,492 570,573 Total Assets 211,884 849,060 Current Liabilities 29,881 194,105 Non-Current Liabilities 91,575 488,913 Total Liabilities 121,456 683,018 Non-Controlling Interest 22,507 88,707 Shareholders' Equity 90,428 166,042

IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones S.A. (NYSE: IRS, BYMA: IRSA), the Argentina's largest, most well-diversified real estate company, with investments in the US, cordially invites you to participate in its IIIQ FY 2021 Results Conference Call on Thursday, May 13, 2021, at 01:00 PM US Eastern Time / 02:00 PM BA Time.

To access the Webinar:

https://irsacorp.zoom.us/j/87316392990?pwd=MmdzdDlmTm93VktkOVNTcnpHam1pdz09

Webinar ID: 873 1639 2990

Password: 449036

In addition, you can participate communicating to this numbers:

Argentina: +54 112 040 0447 or +54 115 983 6950 or +54 341 512 2188 or +54 343 414 5986

Israel: +972 3 978 6688 or +972 55 330 1762

Brazil: +55 11 4700 9668 or +55 21 3958 7888 or +55 11 4632 2236 or +55 11 4632 2237 or +55 11 4680 6788

United States of America: +1 312 626 6799 or +1 346 248 7799 or +1 646 558 8656 or +1 669 900 9128 or +1 253 215 8782 or +1 301 715 8592

Chile: +56 232 938 848 or +56 41 256 0288 or +56 22 573 9304 or +56 22 573 9305 or +56 23 210 9066

Investor Relations Department:

+ 5411 4323-7449

[email protected]

https://www.irsa.com.ar/home-inversores.php?lng=en

Follow us on Twitter @irsair

SOURCE IRSA Inversiones y Representaciones S.A.

Related Links

http://www.irsa.com.ar


CHICAGO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Katten announced today that it will be honored with Immigration Equality's Rising Star Award for providing exceptional representation to several LGBTQ+ asylum seekers over the course of the past several years.

"I have worked on pro bono matters with Katten attorneys for many years and know first-hand the great skill they have in doing this work and the passion with which they pursue it," said Jonathan Baum, senior counsel at Katten and the firm's director of pro bono services. "Our firm and our profession are lucky to have so many attorneys like those being honored here who are so deeply committed to volunteering their time and skills for the benefit of others."

Among the attorneys who helped Katten draw its latest pro bono distinction are associates Craig Convissar, Matthew Jennings and Natalie Youkel. They secured asylum for a gay man from El Salvador last March and are currently working on the case of a lesbian client from Azerbaijan, who is seeking refuge in the United States. Also included among those attorneys who helped the firm draw pro bono praise is associate Thomas Artaki, who currently represents a transgender client who fled to the United States in search of asylum after suffering severe persecution in her native Jamaica.

Immigration Equality representatives called this work "life-saving," particularly as pro bono legal representation became difficult for them to obtain during the pandemic. For its work on these cases, Katten will be honored with the Rising Star Award at the 2021 Safe Haven Awards Virtual Gala on May 20.

Last month, Katten was recognized as an American Bar Association (ABA) 2020 Pro Bono Leader for helping seniors, veterans and other income-eligible individuals better understand the legal aspects of a range of issues, from unemployment and disability to housing and homelessness through the ABA Free Legal Answers Pro Bono program. Katten attorneys fielded more than 100 questions at no cost.

During the virtual ceremony for Katten's annual Pro Bono Service Awards last year, Baum joined Katten Chairman Roger Furey and guest speaker Judge Ann Claire Williams, a retired judge of the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, to spotlight the volunteerism of 14 firm attorneys.

Immigration Equality is the nation's leading LGBTQ and HIV-positive immigrant rights organization. Through direct legal services, policy advocacy, and impact litigation, the group advocates for immigrants and families facing discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, or HIV status.

Katten is a full-service law firm with nearly 650 attorneys in locations across the United States and in London and Shanghai. Clients seeking sophisticated, high-value legal services turn to Katten for counsel locally, nationally and internationally. The firm's core areas of practice include corporate, financial markets and funds, insolvency and restructuring, intellectual property, litigation, real estate, structured finance and securitization, transactional tax planning, private credit and private wealth. Katten represents public and private companies in numerous industries, as well as a number of government and nonprofit organizations and individuals. For more information, visit katten.com .

SOURCE Katten
JAKARTA, Indonesia, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- KinerjaPay Corp (OTCPK: KPAY) a Payment Gateway and Ecommerce Company based in Indonesia with recent changes in its subsidiary Company, P.T. KinerjaPay Indonesia, to include mineral and commodity trading such as coal and other general commodities, today announced its completion of first shipment of Steam Coal to China. Subsequently the Company is also announcing its next shipment schedule within the month, for another cargo load of 45,000 MT.

The first shipment of steam coal from East Kalimantan to China has been completed with total load of 53,400 MT based on the Certificate of Weight being produced by the shipping agent. The Company has submitted the export documents to the Bank as per last week Friday for processing. The Company should receive payment within 4 business days.

The Company has estimated that the shipment of the first 53,400 MT steam coal to produce a minimum profit of US$170,000 after deduction of all payables to supplier, transhipment company, surveyor, documentations and export taxes. Based on the final sum of LC claim, which is rounded at US$1,602,000, the Company registered an estimated gross profit of 10.6%.

Subsequently, the Company is now progressing on the next shipment of 45,000 MT steam coal with Coal Grade NAR 3,800 kcal/kg (ARB) with specifications of Ash Content at 5% ADB Rate, Moisture max 38%, and Sulphur 0.3% ADB Rate. The mother vessel MV. YANGTZE QUANTUM  VOY 2101 has dropped anchor at Muara Berau East Kalimantan with estimated commended loading schedule on May 15th 2021.

Mr. Edwin Ng, CEO of KinerjaPay Corp said "Despite the recent inclement weather we delivered our first shipment of coal. The demand for Indonesian coal in China is rising rapidly. We have signed on several other orders. We continue to expect revenues well in excess of $100 million and profits of over $12 million over the next twelve months now that the shipments have started. The cash flow from the coal commodities trading business will be very significant this year. We believe that this is a long run sustainable business that identifies KinerjaPay Corp. as a leading investment vehicle on Indonesian economic growth."

About KinerjaPay

KinerjaPay enables consumers to "Pay, Play and Buy" through its secure web portal and mobile applications. Based in Indonesia, the Company provides an easy and convenient payment solution while shopping online at its marketplace platform. With its current omni-channel platform, users can perform various payment services such as credit card bill payment, utility, phone bill, healthcare insurance and direct transfer to anyone at their convenience. KinerjaPay is also planning to launch other eCommerce verticals such as travel market, delivery services, and online gaming in the near future. The Company's services are available through its mobile applications and on its website at www.kinerjapay.com.

Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements, about KPAY's expectations, beliefs or intentions regarding, among other things, its product development efforts, business, financial condition, results of operations, strategies or prospects. In addition, from time to time, KPAY or its representatives have made or may make forward-looking statements, orally or in writing.

Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "believe," "expect," "intend," "plan," "may," "should" or "anticipate" or their negatives or other variations of these words or other comparable words or by the fact that these statements do not relate strictly to historical or current matters. These forward-looking statements may be included in, but are not limited to, various filings made by KPAY with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, press releases or oral statements made by or with the approval of one of KPAY's authorized executive officers. Forward-looking statements relate to anticipated or expected events, activities, trends or results as of the date they are made. Because forward looking statements relate to matters that have not yet occurred, these statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause KPAY's actual results to differ materially from any future results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Many factors could cause KPAY 's actual activities or results to differ materially from the activities and results anticipated in such forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the factors summarized in KPAY 's filings with the SEC. In addition, KPAY operates in an industry sector where securities values are highly volatile and may be influenced by economic and other factors beyond its control. KPAY does not undertake any obligation to publicly update these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Please see the risk factors associated with an investment in our securities which are included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K as filed with the SEC on April 20, 2018 and most recently in our Registration Statement on Form S-1/A filed with the SEC on December 21, 2018, pursuant to which we are offering 300,000 Shares of 11% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Preferred Stock at $25.00 Per Share.

For more information, please visit our website http://www.kinerjapay.co . There you will find access to all of our past press releases and SEC filings regarding the activities discussed in this release.

Media Contact:

KinerjaPay Corp.

Email: [email protected]

+62-21-2918-1336

SOURCE KinerjaPay Corp.

Related Links

http://www.kinerjapay.co


Every year, LUNG FORCE celebrates Turquoise Takeover by turning landmarks and buildings across our nation turquoise - LUNG FORCE's signature color - to increase education and provide hope for those living with lung cancer. Everyone is encouraged to get involved, from May 9 through May 15, by wearing turquoise and showing their spirit by posting a selfie on their social media channels, as a symbol of hope for those living with lung disease.

Lending her support this year is Laura Dern, actress and Advisor to the American Lung Association Board of Directors. Dern will kick off the 2021 Nationwide LUNG FORCE Walk and Run/Walk season and is hosting a team of her own to help raise funds for lifesaving lung cancer education, advocacy and research. Laura Dern has been a partner and friend to the American Lung Association since 2015 through our LUNG FORCE initiative. In 2020, she joined us to raise awareness about lung health through our COVID-19 Action Initiative and has continued her commitment to our mission as an Advisor to our national board of directors.

"During this most challenging time for lung cancer patients, it's especially important that they feel a sense of hope and know that they can find the support they need," said American Lung Association President and CEO Harold Wimmer. "That's why the Lung Association is taking action to support these lung cancer patients and caregivers with resources like our Lung HelpLine, online support community and one-on-one mentorship program, while continuing to raise awareness and the funds needed to defeat the disease."

LUNG FORCE is also hosting a free Lung Cancer Patient Virtual Meetup for patients and caregivers on May 11. Those interested can register at Lung.org/patient-meetup.

While lung cancer remains the #1 cause of cancer deaths in the U.S., the survival rate has increased by a dramatic 13% over the past 5 years and awareness of this deadly disease has steadily increased. This encouraging trend will be further aided by improved early detection of the disease through lung cancer screening. The Lung Association's "Saved By the Scan" initiative has helped more than 600,000 people find out if they are eligible for early screening. Additionally, advancements in research have resulted in more than 30 new lung cancer treatments approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) since 2016.

"Despite encouraging improvements in the overall lung cancer survival rate, people of color who are diagnosed with lung cancer face worse outcomes compared to white Americans. They are also less likely to be diagnosed early, less likely to receive surgical treatment, and more likely to not receive any treatment. The Lung Association is committed to addressing these disparities so that everyone can benefit from recent advancements in lung cancer early diagnosis and treatments," said Wimmer.

Those who want to help raise funds and defeat lung cancer can visit LUNGFORCE.org to learn how to get involved.

For media interested in scheduling an interview with a lung cancer expert, contact Allison MacMunn at 312-801-7628 or [email protected].

About the American Lung Association

The American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through education, advocacy and research. The work of the American Lung Association is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer; to champion clean air for all; to improve the quality of life for those with lung disease and their families; and to create a tobacco-free future. For more information about the American Lung Association, a holder of the coveted 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and a Gold-Level GuideStar Member, or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) or visit: Lung.org.

About LUNG FORCE

LUNG FORCE is a national movement led by the American Lung Association to unite our nation in our efforts to defeat lung cancer, the #1 cancer killer of women and men. LUNG FORCE has three priorities: 1) Make lung cancer a cause that people care about  and act on; 2) Educate and empower patients and healthcare providers and 3) Raise critical funds for groundbreaking lung cancer research. The American Lung Association's LUNG FORCE is nationally presented by CVS Health. Find out more at LUNGFORCE.org.

American Lung Association  55 W. Wacker Drive, Suite 1150  Chicago, IL 60601

1331 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Ste. 1425 North  Washington, D.C. 20004

1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) Lung.org

SOURCE American Lung Association

Related Links

www.lung.org


NASHVILLE, Tenn., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 5, the Tennessee General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring May 21, 2021 as International Tennessee Whiskey Day. Historically, the date signifies the state's repeal of the ban on manufacturing alcoholic beverages in Tennessee on May 21, 1937.

"This General Assembly wishes to celebrate and acknowledge the many contributions of our state's renowned distilling industry, its people, and products that help fuel Tennessee's economy, and our culture and status as the world's only producer of Tennessee whiskey," stated Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R  Crossville) in his resolution (HJR0477).

Tennessee has a long, rich history with whiskey-making. Early farm-based distilleries in Tennessee date back to the late 18th century, when settlers traveling west found that the area's fertile land, water, and climate were ideal for making good whiskey. Tennessee is even home to the nation's oldest registered distillery and several other distilleries that date back to the 1800s.

Today, Tennessee whiskey is a thriving industry that draws hundreds of thousands of tourists from around the world, generates millions of dollars in tax revenue, and even serves as a popular subject matter for many of the state's famed musicians and songwriters.

"The Tennessee Distillers Guild is proud to be an integral part of carrying on the rich tradition of Tennessee whiskey, said Sara Beth Urban, executive director of the Tennessee Distillers Guild. "We are thrilled to see the recognition of the positive impact that Tennessee whiskey has had on this state, and we look forward to celebrating International Tennessee Whiskey Day each year."

Officially, "Tennessee whiskey" must be made from fermented mash of at least fifty-one percent corn, aged in new oak barrels, charcoal mellowed, and produced in Tennessee.

"When consumers see 'Tennessee whiskey' on the label, they know it is a premium product that is made with quality ingredients, the utmost care, craftsmanship, and character and to a world-class standard," said Sexton. "We honor and commend all of Tennessee's distilleries, their workers, and the generations of families who have gone before them."

Media Contact:

629-888-2951

[email protected]

SOURCE Tennessee Whiskey Trail
PORTLAND, Ore., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research published a report, titled, "Medical Thawing System Market by Sample Type (Blood, Embryo, Ovum, and Semen) and End User (Blood Banks, Hospitals, Tissue Banks, Pharmaceutical & Biotech Companies, and Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 20202027." According to the report, the global medical thawing system market size garnered $165.82 million in 2019, and is projected to garner $279.17 million by 2027, registering a CAGR of 11.6% from 2020 to 2027.

Download Sample Report at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/10924

Prime determinants of growth

Rise in incidents of chronic disease, technical advancement that have eased thawing, increase in awareness and government initiative towards the plasma donation drive the growth of the global medical thawing system market. On the other hand, surge in launches and agreement of medical thawing and increase in number of embryo donors further fuel the growth. However, high cost of the automation restrains the market growth. Contrarily, growing need for new medicinal inventions to push adoption of thawing systems creates new opportunities in the next few years.

Covid-19 Scenario

Healthcare providers were instructed to focus on offering emergency healthcare to patients infected with coronavirus. The industry therefore, suspended certain activities.

In addition, thawing played an important part in drug discovery and research & development during COVID-19 drugs/vaccine preparations.

The blood segment to maintain its leadership status during the forecast period

By sample type, the blood segment accounted for the highest market share, contributing to more than half of the global medical thawing system market in 2019, and is estimated to maintain its leadership status during the forecast period. This is due to increasing demand for blood and blood products and rising incidence of hemorrhage related events. However, the embryo segment is expected to manifest the highest CAGR of 12.4% from 2020 to 2027, owing to increase in pregnancy rate and live birth rate due to embryo donation. Furthermore, the increasing adoption of in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment for infertility boosts the demand for advanced thawing systems.

Enquiry for Short-term and Long-term Impacts of COVID-19 at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/purchase-enquiry/10924

The blood bank segment to maintain its dominance during the forecast period

Based on end user, the blood bank segment contributed to the largest market share in 2019, accounting for more than one-third of the global medical thawing system market, and is projected to maintain its dominance in terms of revenue during the forecast period. This is due to increase in dominance because of vast utilization of thawing systems in these transfusion centers and blood banks. Moreover, the tissue banks segment is projected to register the fastest CAGR of 13.1% from 2020 to 2027. Tissues banks are considered institutions that recover and store human cadaver tissues for medical studies and education. This drives the growth of the segment.

North America to maintain its lead position by 2027

By region, North America held the highest market share in 2019, accounting for nearly two-fifths of the global medical thawing system market, and is estimated to maintain its lead position by 2027. This is due to high rate of adoption, increase in awareness programs about blood donation and plasma donation. However, the Asia-Pacific region is projected to maintain the highest CAGR of 13.7% during the forecast period. Asia-Pacific have a large patient pool with a high incidence of chronic diseases. Which increases the demand for thawing systems.

Leading Market Players

Barkey GmbH & Co. KG

Boekel Scientific

BioLife Solutions Inc

Cardinal Health, Inc.

General Electric Company

Helmer Scientific

Sartorius AG

Sarstedt AG & Co. KG

Terumo Corporation

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.

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SOURCE Allied Market Research
MACAU, China, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Pursuit of Heavens is an interdimensional exploration of humanity's first question: Why? Join Tommy for his first day of Sunday school where he dares to ask why? The question that is both encouraged and forbidden. Unlike most stubborn children who continually ask this question, Tommy actually gets an answer.

Follow Tommy on his descent through the planes of reality. Reality strips down piece by piece until we are left with nothing, the canvas for all creation.

Pursuit of Heavens Animation Poster Poem

Moti has released this poem with Pursuit of Heavens:

Eaten by time and bounded by space,

You can read from the lines on my face.

Was told of a place that awaited us all.

The world was a circle, and now it's a ball.

And before all of that it was only a dot,

Raw material from which existence was wrought.

At its core, Moti is a storytelling company looking to express the human experience through any medium they can, be that music, animated short films, poetry, or 5D experiences. Moti's goal is to inspire humanity as a whole to discover and inhabit their own inner utopia.

For more MotiOriginals and other Moti content, be sure to check out their website www.moti.media.

Media Contact

Chan Pang Yang

852-6243-7473

[email protected]

SOURCE Moti Media Limited
TAMPA, Fla., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A new venture capital firm, TampaBay.Ventures, has launched its first $20 million seed fund in order to support the growing tech scene in the Tampa Bay region. While the region has a track record of producing world-class tech startups (i.e. Wikipedia, ConnectWise, KnowBe4, etc.), there is currently a lack of sufficient seed funding in the area to support the region's next breakout startups. TampaBay.Ventures aims to change that by funding local innovative, tech-enabled companies at the earliest stages of development. The fund, founded by Marcus Adolfsson, Andreas Calabrese, Tom Frederick, and Wesley Barnett, is focused on investing in 20 companies over the next five years.

"Tampa Bay is one of the fastest-growing economic centers in the U.S. and already home to multi-billion-dollar companies rooted in markets such as cybersecurity, e-commerce, health care, edtech, fintech, and hardware," said Marcus Adolfsson, General Partner of TampaBay.Ventures. "The number of technology companies expected to grow out of this region in the next few years is significant, and our goal is to be a big part of that success."

Through investments in startup accelerators and university entrepreneur programs, Tampa's startup ecosystem has grown steadily over the years. However, the early-stage capital market within the region remains nascent. A lack of professional seed capital is inhibiting many promising tech founders from growing fast enough to compete, sometimes resulting in relocation to other cities or disbanding their startup completely.

"We have been trying to solve the tech funding gap problem in Tampa Bay for years. While there are a number of promising early-stage tech companies in the area, a countless number of startups with high potential have struggled or dissolved due to the early-stage capital problem," said Allen Clary, co-founder of the Tampa Bay Wave and Adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurship at USF. "TampaBay.Ventures will make a huge impact, not only with the funds they need to grow but also with the critical support and experienced guidance they need to succeed and win."

Initially, the fund will scout for high-growth tech-enabled companies that have developed an initial product and are ready to scale. The companies must be based in the greater Tampa Bay region. Andreas Calabrese stated: "By only focusing our efforts on founders and companies based in the Tampa Bay region, we are able to double down on our mission of growing the regional tech scene. Rather than superficially triage thousands of pitches per year, we can focus on hundreds of equally promising local opportunities across a wide range of sectors."

The team behind TampaBay.Ventures has extensive experience as successful founders and investors. Andreas Calabrese joins the firm from a highly successful European seed fund. Marcus Adolfsson is a local entrepreneur who led his previous tech company to a nine-figure exit. Tom Frederick is a fellow business-builder entrepreneur with multiple exits. Wesley Barnett represents a family office in Central Florida with a clear focus on investing within the local community.

For more information on TampaBay.Ventures visit our website at https://tampabay.ventures

About TampaBay.Ventures

TampaBay.Ventures is a venture capital firm founded in 2021 by successfully exited entrepreneurs and experienced investors with the goal of helping create an internationally recognized startup ecosystem in the Tampa Bay region. The firm's first seed fund of $20 million will be invested in 20 Tampa Bay Region companies over the next five years.

Press Contact: [email protected] (727) 238-5265

SOURCE TampaBay.Ventures
The US and World Trade Organization have already expressed support for the initiative

A group of over 400 experts have called the UK to back a proposal first put forward by India and South Africa for a temporary waiver on COVID-19 vaccine patents.

Intellectual property protections ensure that the developers of vaccines are financially rewarded; removing them would help with boosting supply to poorer countries.

The open letter to Boris Johnson was organised by Global Justice Now, StopAIDS, and Just Treatment, Sky News reported.

"Action is profoundly urgent. New waves of COVID-19 are rising across the globe while epidemiologists warn that new mutations risk leaving current vaccines ineffective, it read.

"Together with sharing vaccine technologies and know-how through the COVID-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP), this waiver would allow more producers to get more vaccines made, and help save countless lives and livelihoods. We must learn the painful lessons from a history of unequal access in dealing with diseases such as HIV/AIDS.

"We urge you to now provide the leadership to ensure an end to this global crisis. Defending intellectual property at all costs will not only lead to even more unnecessary loss of lives but is an unprecedented act of collective self-harm.

Last week, the US and World Trade Organization (WTO) expressed support for the initiative.

Inc. ( ) and Moderna Inc ( ), which were initially knocked down by the news, rose 1% to US$39.78 and 2% to US$166.90 on Monday in premarket trading.
CENTENNIAL, Colo., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- NioCorp Developments Ltd. ("NioCorp" or the "Company") (TSX:NB) (OTCQX:NIOBF) is pleased to announce that it has closed its previously announced non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") of units (the "Units") of the Company. A total up-sized offering of 4,334,157 Units were issued at a price per Unit of C$1.43, for total gross proceeds to the Company of approximately C$6.2 million.

The pricing of the Units was set at a premium to the five-day Volume Weighted Average Price ("VWAP") of NioCorp common shares just prior to the launch of the offering.

Each Unit consists of one common share of NioCorp (a "Common Share") and one common share purchase warrant (a "Warrant"). Each Warrant will entitle the holder to acquire one Common Share at a price of C$1.63 until May 10, 2023.

Proceeds of the private placement will be used for continued advancement of the Company's Elk Creek Superalloy Materials Project, including ongoing detailed engineering efforts, conducting technical assessments of potentially adding rare earth products to the planned product offering, and for working capital and general corporate purposes.

Participants in the private placement included Lind Global Asset Management III, LLC, an investment entity managed by The Lind Partners, a New York-based institutional fund manager, which invested approximately C$1 million in the private placement.

The Company paid cash commissions of C$111,484.23 and 77,961 broker warrants to a broker outside of the United States. The cash commission and broker warrants were each equivalent to three (3) percent of the Units raised by the broker. Each Broker Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at a price of at a price of C$1.63 until May 10, 2023.

All of the securities sold pursuant to the offering are subject to a four-month hold period, which will expire on September 11, 2021.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of any of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful, including any of the securities in the United States of America. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "1933 Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for account or benefit of, U.S. Persons (as defined in Regulation S under the 1933 Act) unless registered under the 1933 Act and applicable state securities laws, or an exemption from such registration requirements is available.

For More Information:

Contact Jim Sims, VP of External Affairs, NioCorp Developments Ltd., 720-639-4650,

[email protected]

@NioCorp $NB.TO $NIOBF $BR3 #Niobium #Scandium #ElkCreek

About NioCorp

NioCorp is developing a superalloy materials project in Southeast Nebraska with an aim to produce Niobium, Scandium, and Titanium. Niobium is used to produce superalloys as well as High Strength, Low Alloy ("HSLA") steel, which is a lighter, stronger steel used in automotive, structural, and pipeline applications. Scandium is a superalloy material that can be combined with Aluminum to make alloys with increased strength and improved corrosion resistance. Scandium also is a critical component of advanced solid oxide fuel cells. Titanium is used in various superalloys and is a key component of pigments used in paper, paint and plastics and is also used for aerospace applications, armor and medical implants.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Neither TSX nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this document. Certain statements contained in this document may constitute forward-looking statements, including but not limited to statements related to the anticipated use of proceeds from the private placement. Such forward-looking statements are based upon NioCorp's reasonable expectations and business plan at the date hereof, which are subject to change depending on economic, political and competitive circumstances and contingencies. Readers are cautioned that such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause a change in such assumptions and the actual outcomes and estimates to be materially different from those estimated or anticipated future results, achievements or position expressed or implied by those forward-looking statements. Risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause NioCorp's plans or prospects to change include risks related to NioCorp's ability to operate as a going concern; risks related to NioCorp's requirement of significant additional capital; changes in demand for and price of commodities (such as fuel and electricity) and currencies; changes or disruptions in the securities markets; legislative, political or economic developments; the need to obtain permits and comply with laws and regulations and other regulatory requirements; the possibility that actual results of work may differ from projections/expectations or may not realize the perceived potential of NioCorp's projects; risks of accidents, equipment breakdowns and labor disputes or other unanticipated difficulties or interruptions; the possibility of cost overruns or unanticipated expenses in development programs; operating or technical difficulties in connection with exploration, mining or development activities; the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development, including the risks of diminishing quantities of grades of reserves and resources; the risks involved in the exploration, development and mining business, and the risks set forth in the Company's filings with the SEC at www.sec.gov. NioCorp disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE NioCorp Developments Ltd.

Related Links

http://www.niocorp.com


LAS VEGAS, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Army reserve soldier Alexandra Jaffett grew up an "allergy kid" and knows firsthand the isolation that comes with sitting alone at the lunch table and missing out on Halloween candy. Now that her three young sons have also been diagnosed with severe food allergies, she wants them to have a better quality of life.

Together with her husband, Carlos  an Active Guard Reserve soldier at Fort Belvoir in Virginia  Alexandra is on a mission to give 4-year-old Gabriel and 2-year-old twins Christian and Joshua the "food freedom" she's never had.

Virginia-based military family Carlos and Alexandra Jaffett are on a mission to cure their three young sons from life-threatening food allergies, with treatment more than 2,000 miles from home at the Southern California Food Allergy Institute. The national nonprofit Miracle Flights is providing free round-trip plane tickets to help the family of five travel to every appointment, until all three boys reach "food freedom."

Through an online food allergy family group, the Jaffetts heard about the Tolerance Induction Program at the Southern California Food Allergy Institute, which offers a treatment that can send their sons' food allergies into complete remission. The only problem? The expense of five round-trip, cross-country plane tickets for the family to reach the medical facility every nine weeks.

Fortunately, the same online food allergy group offered a solution: Miracle Flights. The national nonprofit provides free commercial flights to families who need help reaching medical treatment not available in their local communities. Plane tickets are provided at no cost to both children and up to two parents or caregivers, as many times as necessary.

"When I first heard about the Miracle Flights program, I thought, there's no way they're going to fly my entire family to and from appointments each time! The service they provide is mind-blowing," says Alexandra. "To be able to freely fly out there and have Miracle Flights take care of the flights is a huge weight off our shoulders."

The Jaffetts recently returned from their second visit to Southern California and anticipate another flight in the coming weeks, as the boys continue their journey to "food freedom."

Nearly 6 million children in the U.S. suffer from food allergies like the Jaffett brothers, according to the CDC. That's approximately 1 in 13 children, or two per classroom. Each year, the second week of May is recognized as Food Allergy Awareness Week to call attention to the challenges food allergy families face and highlight resources available to them, such as Miracle Flights.

For more information about how Miracle Flights can help your family  or to help a family like the Jaffetts continue reaching the medical care they need  visit miracleflights.org.

About Miracle Flights

Miracle Flights is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides free air transportation to children and adults who need help reaching specialty medical care only available far from home. The organization, founded in 1985, has provided 136,704 flights and typically books more than 600 flights per month on commercial airlines across the United States. To request a flight, learn more or donate, call 800-359-1711 or visit miracleflights.org. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram.

Press Contact: Erika Koff: (702) 261-0494 or [email protected]

SOURCE Miracle Flights
CORALVILLE, Iowa, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- VIDA Diagnostics, Inc. ("VIDA"), the leader in lung and respiratory intelligence, today announced a new strategic partnership with Peoria, Illinois-OSF HealthCare that will make VIDA Insights available to care teams across the organization. VIDA and its comprehensive, lung intelligence solutions continue to gain traction among integrated delivery network (IDN) health care providers across the country.

The agreement provides OSF HealthCare, an integrated Catholic health system with 14 hospitals, access to VIDA's suite of lung health intelligence solutions. With these solutions, radiologists and pulmonary clinicians across the network are empowered to optimize the process of diagnosing chronic lung disease, enabling them to deliver more precise, personalized treatments. OSF has earned a reputation for investing in best-in-class innovations and intelligence to advance patient care.

"We are proud to be elevating our lung services across the OSF network with VIDA Insights," said Kevin Fahey, MD, cardiothoracic radiologist, OSF HealthCare. "The breadth and complexity of lung diseases demand innovation for both diagnostic and therapeutic workflows. VIDA's enterprise-wide lung intelligence solution will empower our teams to deliver more precise, personalized care to our respiratory patients."

VIDA Insights' comprehensive suite of AI-powered, lung intelligence solutions aid in the management of all major lung diseases, including asthma, emphysema, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), interstitial lung disease (ILD), lung cancer, and COVID-19. VIDA solutions integrate seamlessly into existing clinical workflows, providing clarity at the point of care and delivering greater precision in the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of lung and respiratory diseases.

"OSF HealthCare has a longstanding culture of innovation with a focus on raising the standard of care," said Susan Wood, PhD, CEO, VIDA. "We are proud to partner with OSF to improve quality, cost, and outcomes for patients with respiratory disease in communities it serves."

With ever increasing lung and respiratory conditions that are difficult to diagnose and costly to treat, VIDA's mission to modernize lung and respiratory care using intelligence is more important than ever. The company is committed to a rapid product release schedule that will increasingly empower physicians with the intelligence they need to reshape the future of lung and respiratory health.

In the past year, VIDA received 510(k) clearance from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for enhancements to its automated deep learning-based lung and lobe segmentation algorithms. The company also announced four major product releases, including a Texture Analysis module. This solution empowers providers with a sophisticated classification of lung tissue patterns associated with different forms and/or progressions of fibrotic diseases such as interstitial lung abnormalities and COVID-19.

"Clinical partnerships with health systems such as OSF, with our ability to deliver on an aggressive product roadmap, are further proof of our ability to scale to meet the needs of health care systems and the communities they serve as we work to modernize lung and respiratory care for current and future generations," said Wood.

VIDA has been recognized as a leader in AI for health care by Forbes, Frost & Sullivan, and others. In addition, VIDA CEO Susan Wood was named one of the "Top 50 Healthcare Technology CEOs of 2020" by The Healthcare Technology Report.

About VIDA

VIDA modernizes lung and respiratory care, empowering healthcare organizations and physicians to improve patient outcomes, streamline care coordination and drive efficiencies through a comprehensive approach, proven quality, and clinical leadership. Through quantitative data intelligence and impactful visualizations, VIDA helps physicians manage patients with or at risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), interstitial lung disease (ILD), lung cancer, and now, COVID-19. Learn more at vidalung.ai.

About OSF HealthCare is an integrated health system owned and operated by The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis, headquartered in Peoria, Illinois. OSF HealthCare employs more than 23,600 Mission Partners in 147 locations, including 14 hospitals  ten acute care, four critical access  with 2,097 licensed beds, and two colleges of nursing throughout Illinois and Michigan. The OSF HealthCare physician network employs more than 1,500 primary care, specialist and advanced practice providers. OSF HealthCare, through OSF Home Care Services, operates an extensive network of home health and hospice services. It also owns Pointcore, Inc., comprised of health care-related businesses; OSF HealthCare Foundation, the philanthropic arm for the organization; and OSF Ventures, which provides investment capital for promising health care innovation startups. More at https://www.osfhealthcare.org.

SOURCE VIDA Diagnostics, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.vidadiagnostics.com


The Expo played host to over 130 related activities, including the Global Consumption Innovation & Duty Free and Travel Retail Conference, 93 new product debuts, 12 supplier-purchaser matchmaking activities, and 23 marketing events. There were 83 new product debuts from international brands, and 10 regional premium product promotions, with a total of 550 new product announcements.

The Guest Country of Honor at the first CICPE was Switzerland, and a total of 21 countries including the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, and France sent nearly 50 diplomatic envoys to take part in the Expo. Corporate purchasers and other professional attendees numbered over 30,000, and a total of over 160 news media organizations sent nearly 1,000 reporters to cover this historic event.

As China's first national-level premium consumer products expo, the first China International Consumer Products Expo has created a global premium product exhibition business platform, bringing together leading brands from around the world and creating global business opportunities for Chinese and international premium consumer products. During the Expo period, participating companies welcomed a large number of buyers and professional attendees from around the world, reaching a large number of new cooperative agreements.

In addition, according to early numbers, over 80% of participating companies plan to attend again next year, including L'Oreal, Shiseido, Tapestry, De Beers, Chow Tai Fook, Chow Sang Sang, KPMG, Ernst & Young, the Irish Chamber of Commerce, and other companies and organizations. The plan to create a global premium consumer product center was also promoted at the Expo, and will be closely followed by a wide range of domestic and international corporations.

SOURCE Hainan International Media Center (HIMC)
SILVER SPRING, Md., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Government of Pakistan has targeted and banned the website of America's largest men's Muslim youth organization, escalating its decades-long persecution of members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community who believe that His Holiness Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was the long-awaited messiah who came to revive Islam's true teachings.

On March 30, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association (AMYA) received notice from Pakistan's "Web Analysis Division" stating that AMYA's website violated Pakistani law. This ban took effect on April 9, after which mkausa.org was blocked from access in Pakistan. Late last year, Pakistan also threatened criminal enforcement against the operators of the official website of AMYA's affiliate, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, and has since banned Ahmadi websites in the U.K., Canada and Australia.

"Unfortunately, Pakistan continues to persecute a community who are the antithesis of extremism," said Madeel Abdullah, President of AMYA USA. "For decades, our Muslim youth have upheld Prophet Muhammad's honor through logging hundreds of thousands of hours organizing blood drives, volunteering in disaster relief efforts, cleaning roads, and feeding the needy - images and videos which are on our website. It is heartbreaking that Pakistani youth can no longer look at our examples in America and use them to better their own communities."

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is a dynamic, reformist and fast-growing international movement within Islam. Founded in 1889, the Community spans 213 countries with tens of millions of members. Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, established in 1920, is the oldest American-Muslim organization.

Since the 1970s, the Pakistani government has created laws to ban Ahmadi Muslims from practicing their faith. These unjust laws continue to embolden extremists in Pakistan to persecute Ahmadi Muslims and other religious minorities such that the US State Department has labeled Pakistan as "a safe haven for certain regionally focused terrorist groups."

This systemic persecution of Ahmadi Muslims has led to mass murder , grave desecration , expulsion of school children for their faith, and a complete lockdown of all religious practice. Pakistan has faced repeated condemnation from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom ( USCIRF ) stating , "Religious freedom conditions across Pakistan continue to trend negatively."

While Pakistan may block our website, AMYA will continue moving forward to uphold Islam's honor. AMYA intends to challenge this order and will exercise all available legal options through its U.S. counsel.

About AMYA:

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association (AMYA) is a nationwide youth group that works with young Muslim men and boys around the country. AMYA serves as the young men and boys auxiliary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. Officially established in the United States in 1939, AMYA is one of the earliest Muslim Youth organizations in the United States.

AMYA is a dynamic and vibrant association serving not only the needs of its members but of its local communities and nation. The association is comprised of more than 5,000 men and boys aged 7 to 40, spread across 70 local chapters. Previous members of AMYA include Grammy Award winning artists and Pulitzer Prize winning journalists. AMYA is headquartered in Silver Spring, MD.

Media Contact:

Salaam Bhatti

717.608.3837

[email protected]

SOURCE Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association USA
WHITTIER, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- PIH Health Downey Hospital, PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital, and PIH Health Whittier Hospital have been recognized as a Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award recipient. This distinction places PIH Health among the top 5% of all short-term acute care hospitals reporting patient safety data as evaluated by Healthgrades, the leading marketplace connecting patients and providers.

"Patient safety is always our top priority," says James R. West, PIH Health president and chief executive officer. "Working together to face the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic brought about this last year has bolstered our commitment to our patients and communities, and we have focused even more attention on safety within all of our facilities. We are honored to be recognized for our commitment to our patients' safety and well-being and attribute this award to the unwavering dedication of all our employees, medical staff, and volunteers."

From 2017 through 2019, there were 190,273 potentially preventable patient safety events among Medicare patients in U.S. hospitals.* And, if all hospitals, as a group, performed similarly to hospitals performing better than expected on each of 13 Patient Safety Indicators (PSIs) evaluated by Healthgrades, on average, 106,052 patient safety events could have been avoided.*

During this time frame, four patient safety indicators accounted for 72% of all patient safety events (collapsed lung, hip fracture due to an in-hospital fall, pressure or bed sores, and catheter-related bloodstream infections). Healthgrades found that patients treated in hospitals receiving the Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award were, on average*:

50.3% less likely to experience a collapsed lung due to a procedure or surgery in or around the chest, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals*

60.3% less likely to experience an in-hospital fall resulting in hip fracture, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals*

66.5% less likely to experience pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital, than patients treated at non-recipient hospitals*

65.4% less likely to experience catheter-related bloodstream infections acquired in the hospital, than patients treated at non- recipient hospitals*

"The importance of hospital quality is now at the forefront of consumers' minds, especially as we continue to navigate COVID-19. We congratulate the recipients of the Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award for their ongoing commitment to upholding the highest quality standards for their patients and communities," said Brad Bowman MD, Healthgrades chief medical officer.

PIH Health participates in safety best practices across all of our hospitals and outpatient medical offices. Employees are regularly engaged in important discussions about the safety initiatives already in place in PIH Health facilities, and, together with leadership, continuously work to see where enhancements can be made to improve upon patient safety.

During the study period (2017 through 2019), Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award recipient hospitals demonstrated excellent performance in patient safety within the Medicare population, as measured by objective outcomesrisk-adjusted patient safety indicator (PSI) ratesfor 13 PSIs defined by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). A 14th PSI is included in the evaluation - Foreign Objects Left in Body During a Surgery or Procedure  which is a "never" event and does not have an expected rate.

View Healthgrades hospital quality methodologies.

*Statistics are calculated from Healthgrades Patient Safety Ratings and Excellence Award methodology which is based primarily on AHRQ technical specifications (Version 2020.0.1) to MedPAR data for years 2017 through 2019 and represent three-year estimates for Medicare patients only.

About PIH Health

PIH Health is a nonprofit, regional healthcare network that serves approximately 3.7 million residents in the Los Angeles County, Orange County and San Gabriel Valley region. The fully integrated network is comprised of PIH Health Downey Hospital, PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital, PIH Health Whittier Hospital, 35 outpatient medical office buildings, a multispecialty medical (physician) group, home healthcare services and hospice care, as well as heart, cancer, digestive health, orthopedics, women's health, urgent care and emergency services. The organization is recognized by Watson Health as one of the nation's Top Hospitals, and College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) as one of the nation's top hospital systems for best practices, cutting-edge advancements, quality of care and healthcare technology. PIH Health is also certified as a Great Place to Work. For more information, visit PIHHealth.org or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.

SOURCE PIH Health

Related Links

http://www.pihhealth.org


NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Q BioMed Inc. (OTCQB: QBIO ), announced today that it has signed a securities purchase agreement ("Transaction") with Aedesius Holdings Ltd (AedesiusOne), a privately owned United Kingdom based healthcare and technology aggregator. AedesiusOne is run by Geoffrey Fatzinger, our Global Head of Regulatory Affairs. The agreement gives AedesiusOne the opportunity to buy approximately 43% of the outstanding QBIO shares for an aggregate of $30,000,000. The Transaction is structured as an initial investment of $5,000,000 with an additional $15,000,000 by September 30, 2021 with 50% warrant coverage allowing an additional $10,000,000 investment within 120 days. The Unit Price is set at $1.25 per share, a 31% premium to yesterday's closing price. The investor is expected to ultimately take a seat on the Board.

The post-money Company valuation after the initial closings will be approximately $58M using the purchase price of $1.25, a market cap valuation and net equity level required for listing on a national exchange. Assuming exercise of the warrants and using the same valuation, our market cap will be approximately $70 million.

The company plans on using the initial proceeds to advance its business plan on several fronts. Our top priority is to deploy a contract sales force for Strontium89 in commercial and federal settings immediately. We will also focus on advancing our rare disease portfolio in non-verbal autism and liver cancer, and leveraging the now almost $10,000,000 in committed non-dilutive German and Canadian government funding for the Mannin platform of vascular therapeutics for Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome for COVID-19 patients, Glaucoma and Kidney diseases. After the second closing, we expect to use some of the proceeds to extinguish all remaining debt and redeem some or all of the remaining convertible preferred shares.

Denis Corin, Q BioMed CEO said, "Obviously this is a very impactful investment for Q BioMed. Not only does it come from an insider, but it is the largest single investment we have ever had. It allows us to move forward with our pre-covid commercial roll-out plans for Strontium89 on a worldwide basis. This funding also gives us the ability to advance our therapeutic development and pipeline opportunities and reduce the financing risk that typically overhangs small cap biotech companies with 18 months of cash before taking into account the income that we expect from our Strontium89 revenues. Further, we will be in a position to extinguish all remaining debt and convert all outstanding preferred shares, thereby increasing our shareholder equity and positioning the company for an uplisting. Strategically, we also expect to review our pipeline, specifically with regards to adding one or more late-stage assets through acquisition or licensing."

Geoff Fatzinger, Founder & Chairman of AedesiusOne said, "I have tremendous respect for Denis and the QBioMed team, and we all believe in making a difference in the world of healthcare in a disruptive way. I found us to be aligned in our goals, in business, and in our views on life generally. AedesiusOne is aggregating several healthcare businesses under its umbrella. AedesiusOne was founded to be a platform to launch positive and needed disruption in many markets, with healthcare and medicine being one of the cornerstones. Having spent the last 30 years in this space and playing a part in the development and commercialization of hundreds of drugs and devices worldwide, I believe investing in and working with Q BioMed long-term is a great way to help accelerate the development of key therapies that are much needed and neglected in the pharma and medical technology space, while investing in an extremely under-valued asset."

About AedesiusOne (formerly Aedesius Holdings Ltd)

AedesiusOne is a newly founded, global, privately owned multifaceted company. This trailblazing new entity is aggregating several healthcare businesses under its umbrella, providing a platform to launch much-needed, positive disruption across many markets, noticeably in healthcare and medicine. With an unwavering moral compass setting itself apart from the current plethora of private equity and venture capitalists, AedesiusOne believes in responsible investing, and champions like-minded businesses looking to make a real change in neglected areas.

Visit aedesiusone.com

Email: [email protected]

About Q BioMed Inc.

Q BioMed Inc is a biotech acceleration and commercial stage company. Q BioMed is focused on licensing and acquiring undervalued biomedical assets in the healthcare sector. Q BioMed is dedicated to providing these target assets the strategic resources, developmental support, and expansion capital needed to ensure they meet their developmental potential, enabling them to provide products to patients in need.

Please visit http://www.QBioMed.com and sign up for regular updates.

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such statements include, but are not limited to, any statements relating to our growth strategy and product development programs and any other statements that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could negatively affect our business, operating results, financial condition and stock price. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated are: risks related to our growth strategy; risks relating to the results of research and development activities; our ability to obtain, perform under and maintain financing and strategic agreements and relationships; uncertainties relating to preclinical and clinical testing; our dependence on third-party suppliers; our ability to attract, integrate, and retain key personnel; the early stage of products under development; our need for substantial additional funds; government regulation; patent and intellectual property matters; competition; as well as other risks described in our SEC filings. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in our expectations or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based, except as required by law.

Q BioMed Media Contact:

Denis Corin

CEO

Investor Relations:

Keith Pinder

+1(404) 995-6671

[email protected]

SOURCE Q BioMed Inc.

Related Links

https://www.qbiomed.com/


NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The only foundation in the country established exclusively to support community health centers announced its final gifts as it prepares to sunset, 15 years after it began. The RCHN Community Health Foundation (RCHN CHF) was established following the sale of CenterCare Health Plan and reorganization of a New York City-based community health center network, providing the opportunity for substantial investment in community health centers and related initiatives nationally.

The Foundation's Board of Directors determined that a planned sunset would provide the best opportunity to fulfill its promise of supporting and nurturing the health center program. "I am so proud of the exceptional accomplishments of the RCHN Community Health Foundation and the investment we have made in the community health center movement," said RCHN CHF Board Chair M. Monica Sweeney, MD, MPH, FACP. "These final grants reflect our deep commitment to having a meaningful and sustained impact on community health."

Complemented by several smaller grant awards, major gifts will be made to three organizations whose work is closely aligned with the Foundation's mission.

Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy at GWU - $7 million

The RCHN CHF awarded $7 million to the Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health (Milken Institute SPH), the nation's leading academic program on community health centers and the communities and populations they serve. Established in 2004 and named after Drs. H. Jack Geiger and Count Gibson, pioneers in health and human rights and founders of the community health center movement in the U.S., the Geiger Gibson Program is recognized for its timely reports on health equity and community health that inform health policy decision-making. RCHN CHF has underwritten a large part of the Geiger Gibson Program's work since 2007 when it helped to create the signature Geiger Gibson / RCHN Community Health Foundation Research Collaborative, which has produced scores of policy analyses, data briefs, and infographics on policy topics addressing health centers and health care needs in underserved communities.

"We are incredibly grateful to the RCHN Community Health Foundation for this gift that will give us the opportunity to not only maintain, but strengthen, what has become a premier resource for community health center policy, scholarship, and training," Thomas J. LeBlanc, the President of the George Washington University, said. The RCHN CHF gift will build on and expand the existing scope of work, providing support for the Geiger Gibson Program's Health Policy Fellows program for health center staff, awards and recognition programs for Emerging Leaders and Distinguished Visitors, and cutting-edge scholarship on health equity and law. The gift will also support expansion of the community health and equity focus within the Department's Master of Health Administration programs and collaboration with The National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership.

National Association of Community Health Centers, Inc. (NACHC) - $5 million

An award of $5 million will be made to the National Association of Community Health Centers, Inc. (NACHC), the leading advocacy organization for community health centers and health care access for marginalized and medically underserved people. NACHC will use the RCHN CHF funds to establish a Center for Community Health Innovation (CCHI) to identify, support, and replicate ground-breaking approaches to practice innovation, workforce development and collaborative arrangements in the delivery of community-based health care. The goal of the CCHI is to prepare community health centers for sustainable operational and clinical success, building on their unique, 50-plus year history and commitment to equity and access.

"The Biden administration's $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan stimulus package details the need for care in marginalized, medically underserved communities, and the essential role of community health centers in providing that care," NACHC President and CEO Tom Van Coverden commented. "At a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare alarming health inequities, the RCHN Community Health Foundation's gift will help us to address those needs and develop innovative models for the future."

Community Health Care Association of New York State (CHCANYS) - $ 1 million

A champion of community-centered primary care in New York State for 50 years, the Community Health Care Association of New York State (CHCANYS) provides training and technical assistance to support excellence in primary care delivery at more than 70 federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) operating 800 health center locations statewide. RCHN CHF's gift of $1 million will support the creation of a Community Health Center Workforce Institute to meet the current and emerging needs of New York's community health centers. The workforce institute will deliver services, tools, technical assistance, and programs to address high-priority workforce issues.

"Recruiting and retaining high quality primary care providers has always been difficult, and the pandemic has made it even harder," explained CHCANYS President and CEO Rose Duhan. "The CHCANYS Workforce Institute is intended to help the state's community health centers attract and retain the clinical and non-clinical personnel who are the backbone of their services and operations. Our work will build on RCHN CHF's commitment to developing models and tools that advance health centers in New York State and around the country."

The RCHN CHF expects to end its operations in 2021. "The Foundation has had a robust voice through our policy research, grant-making and investment in on-the-ground initiatives aimed at improving health and health care," Feygele Jacobs, RCHN CHF's President and CEO, said. "We've had the remarkable privilege to do this work, and these major gifts build on and accelerate our investment at a crucial time for community health and will underscore our legacy."

Media Contact: Susan Lamontagne at [email protected], 917-568-0969

SOURCE RCHN Community Health Foundation
Ultimate to Accelerate Rritual's National Strategy and Rollout

VANCOUVER, BC, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Rritual Superfoods Inc. ("Rritual" or the "Company") (CSE: RSF) (FSE: 0RW) is excited to announce it has reached an agreement with Ultimate Sales Canada, a national brand management firm specializing in sales and marketing for leading natural health brands, to accelerate the Company's strategy and product rollout in Canada.

"Ultimate's founders have extensive expertise and relationships throughout the natural product industry in Canada, all of which will be put to great use in Rritual's Canadian rollout," said Rritual's VP Canadian Sales, Mr. Scott Naccarrato. "Our discussions to date indicate strong interest from Canadian retailers in the Rritual product line as they look to satisfy growing consumer demand for superfoods using mushrooms and adaptogens, and Ultimate will be a key partner in helping us to get to market in the near term."

Rritual's leadership recognizes the unique requirements to grow the brand and consumer awareness in Canada, and the Company is empowering its Canadian team to build a comprehensive network of retailers at the local, regional and national levels, ranging from grassroots health and wellness to drugstore, grocery chain and major consumer club programs.

According to John Gibbins, Vice President of Ultimate Sales Canada, "We are very excited to be partners with the Rritual Team in establishing Rritual as a category leader within the superfoods category in Canada. In my more than 40 years of experience in launching health related products to retail, I have not witnessed such a compelling product launch. Expanding market, superior products and packaging, innovative marketing and great people. A sure recipe for success."

Rritual product offerings are all USDA-certified organic and are a caffeine-free option that can be mixed with other beverages or enjoyed by itself. Rritual's proprietary Immune-Synergy Six Mushroom Blend is the only functional health product on the market that contains a daily prebiotic blend which nourishes a healthy gut microbiome and facilitates balanced digestive function.

About Ultimate

Ultimate Sales Canada is a leading sales agency that specializes in launching and growing retail brands in the Natural Product arena across Canada. Ultimate Sales founders, Debra Pearce and John Gibbins, with many years of experience provide expertise in the associated channels, Grocery, Drug, Mass and Natural. The sales team is experienced and knowledgeable in selling natural health products.

About Rritual

Rritual is a functional superfood company that creates plant-based elixirs, which support immunity, focus and relaxation. The company is poised to dominate a segment where demand and sales are growing exponentially. Under the executive leadership with over 100 years of CPG pedigree, Rritual is launching in North America in Q2 2021 as the company positions itself as a leader in the functional health and wellness industry. Rritual's superfood elixirs can be found online at www.rritual.com.

Follow Rritual on Twitter , LinkedIn , Facebook , and Instagram .

Functional Foods Market

According to Grandview Research*, it is estimated that the global functional food market is projected to reach $275 billion by 2025, growing at 7.9% each year with consumers putting more emphasis on health and wellness.



*https://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/global-functional-foods-market



Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements") that relate to Rritual's current expectations and views of future events. Any statements that express, or involve discussions as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, through the use of words or phrases such as "will likely result", "are expected to", "expects", "will continue", "is anticipated", "anticipates", "believes", "estimated", "intends", "plans", "forecast", "projection", "strategy", "objective" and "outlook") are not historical facts and may be forward-looking statements and may involve estimates, assumptions and uncertainties which could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in such forward-looking statements. No assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements included in this news release should not be unduly relied upon. These statements speak only as of the date of this news release. In particular and without limitation, this news release contains forward-looking statements relating to the Company's plans to leverage third party manufacturing and logistics, the Company's broader retail distribution plans and the Company's other plans, focus and objectives.

Forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Rritual's control, which could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the impact and progression of the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors set forth under "Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors" in the final long form prospectus of the Company dated February 26, 2021 and available under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Rritual undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for Rritual to predict all of them or assess the impact of each such factor or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. Any forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

SOURCE Rritual Superfoods Inc.
EATONTOWN, N.J., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- CDS, the leading provider of multi-vendor services (MVS) for data centers worldwide, today announced that CRN , a brand of The Channel Company , has named Sandi Rygwalski Fryer, its Vice President of OEM & Channel Sales, to the highly respected Women of the Channel list for 2021. The annual list acknowledges the unique strengths, vision, and achievements of women from all over the IT channel, including vendors, distributors and solution providers.

Mike Kuehn, Chief Revenue Officer at CDS, said, "Sandi has been integral in building out our channel program. Since starting in September 2020, Sandi and her team have been managing and growing both the OEM partners Multi-Vendor Services (MVS) channel business and the MVS channel businesses within CDS. Thanks to her experience in various channel sales leadership and management roles at IT, software and cloud companies, she has given us valuable insight in building out our new global channel program, CDS Commit, which helps solution providers bring the most advanced, comprehensive and complementary infrastructure services to their enterprise customers."

Blaine Addon, CEO of The Channel Company, said, "CRN's 2021 Women of the Channel list acknowledges accomplished, influential women whose dedication, hard work, and leadership accelerate channel growth. We are proud to honor them for their many accomplishments and look forward to their continued contributions to the IT channel."

The women honored on this year's list pushed forward with comprehensive business plans, marketing initiatives and other innovative ideas to support their partners and customers, helping them through the uncertainty brought on by the global COVID-19 pandemic. CRN celebrates these exceptional women for their leadership, dedication and channel advocacy.

The 2021 Women of the Channel list will be featured in CRN Magazine on May 10th and online at www.CRN.com/WOTC .

About CDS

CDS is the leading provider of multi-vendor services (MVS) for data centers worldwide. Its Raytrix MVS software platform offers a range of mission-critical data center hardware maintenance and support for high-end storage, server and network equipment. CDS offers post-warranty support services through OEMs and channel partners, servicing a diversified customer base throughout the Americas, EMEA, Asia Pacific, and Japan. The company's maintenance and support services are designed to extend the useful life of its clients' IT infrastructure, further increasing return on investment for these systems. CDS employs highly skilled, industry-certified engineers and dedicated account managers globally. Partnering with the leading data center infrastructure providers to deliver MVS on a global basis, CDS is assisting more than 700 customers in 45 countries to unlock spend in the data center across enterprise IT infrastructure with diverse maintenance needs and cost containment requirements.

About The Channel Company

The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers, and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequalled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. www.thechannelcompany.com

Follow The Channel Company: Twitter , LinkedIn , and Facebook .

 2021. CRN is a registered trademark of The Channel Company, LLC. All rights reserved.

Media Contact:

Carissa Ryan, CTP for CDS

[email protected]

The Channel Company Contact:

Jennifer Hogan

The Channel Company

[email protected]

SOURCE Conover Tuttle Pace/CDS

Related Links

https://esportstechnologies.com/


Other sales channels for KNeoWorld are opening up across the US beyond New York, as in-class teaching and learning resume.

KneoWorld is an education program for use at school, remotely or both and empowers students through character-centered narratives and gameplay.

( ) (OTCMKTS:KNEOF) is set to benefit from the third and largest US$3 million Connect ALL Kids education initiative into New York City public schools to help students who have fallen behind in their education during the pandemic as schools have been closed.

A total of US$5 million has now been committed by New York City Councillors to the program, which also includes Dell Technologies and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

KneoWorld will receive US$780,000 (about A$994,000) from this third and now largest Connect ALL Kids deployment.

The company said other sales channels for KneoWorld were opening up across the US beyond New York, as in-class teaching and learning resume.

"Strong precedent for future sales"

KneoMedia chief executive officer James Kellett said: We are very pleased that New York City Councillors have committed to this third Connect ALL Kids deployment.

It clearly shows the traction we are getting with students, teachers and parents and more importantly, it confirms without doubt, that we have now established a dependable sales channel for our technology into this huge education market and it sets a strong precedent for future sales.

With 2.6 million students across New York State, KNM is presented with a major market opportunity to scale up operations and provide urgent education technology to those that require it most.

With growing support from Dell and the NAACP, and growing demand from teachers and students, we believe that the roll-out is just getting started as the demand for equal technology access continues to grow.

We look forward to providing shareholders with updates on operations and more sales in the very near future.

Third deployment

The third deployment is reflective of New York Citys growing commitment to the program, given their desire to assist students.

With in-person teaching resuming, funding and the roll-out of previously stalled education programs are now ramping up significantly.

Given KneoWorld's approved supplier status with the New York City Council and the Department of Education (New York DOE), and Connect ALL Kids is an established program with the DOE, receipt of funds will be seamless.

This third deployment coincides with the new school year in New York in August 2021, with funds to be received concurrently.

Under the deployment, 5,000 Dell Chromebooks, pre-loaded with the KneoWorld technology, will be provided to a number of New York City public schools and will take the total device numbers to 8,400 in more than 70 schools.

Connect ALL Kids still in very early stages

Whilst this third deployment is pleasing, KneoMedia reminds shareholders that the Connect ALL Kids roll-out is still in its very early stages.

The immediate focus for KneoWorld, Dell Technologies and the NAACP is to more comprehensively penetrate more of New York Citys 1,720 public schools and achieve a presence outside of New York City.

Direct-to-school sales of the SaaS-based KneoWorld software is also advancing and this represents a second sales channel in the US, alongside Connect ALL Kids.

KneoWorld portal

KneoMedia is a SaaS publishing company that delivers world-class education and assessment products to global markets to both special and general education classrooms via its KneoWorld portal.

KneoWorld is an education program for use at school, remotely or both.

It is an easy Assign & Go program that engages and empowers students through character-centred narratives and gameplay.

This unique format of standards-aligned lessons blends language with math instruction and social-emotional learning while embedded analytics measure academic growth.
SEEGENE BACKS GERMANY IN ITS EFFORT TO RETURN TO NORMALCY

IN ITS EFFORT TO RETURN TO NORMALCY GERMAN SUBSIDIARY TO SUPPLY COVID-19 DIAGNOSTIC TESTS ENOUGH TO TEST 734,000 PUPILS

SEOUL, South Korea, May 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Seegene Inc. (KQ 096530), a leading molecular diagnostics firm said its German subsidiary, Seegene Germany GmbH is taking part in the government's Back-to-School program called the "Lolli-Test," a starting point in returning our daily lives back to normalcy. Under the program, Seegene Germany GmbH will be supplying COVID-19 diagnostic tests to laboratories, in business with the federal government, worth up to 19.3 million Euros.

The deal states that Seegene Germany GmbH contribute COVID-19 diagnostic tests to laboratories weekly for nine weeks starting May until before the start of the summer break. The diagnostic tests will then be sent to some 400 laboratories in the North Rhine-Westphalia region to test over 734,000 pupils at 3,764 elementary and special schools.

Three of Seegene's COVID-19 diagnostic, the 'AllplexTM SARS-CoV-2 Master Assay1' 'AllplexTM SARS-CoV-2/FluA/FluB/RSV Assay2' and 'AllplexTM SARS-CoV-2 Assay3' will be used for the program.

The 'Allplex SARS-CoV-2 Master Assay' can detect a total of 10 targets including four coronavirus genes (E gene, RdRP gene, N gene and S gene) as well as five defined virus variants. Those variants include B.1.1.7, B.1.351, P.1, and B1.1.207. With UK variant still being reported as the most dominant of COVID-19 variant, it is largely anticipated that the variant diagnostic test will be mainly used for the program.

The 'Allplex SARS-CoV-2 Master Assay,' can also be used in conjunction with 'Allplex RV Essential Assay' a one-step assay for screening a total of 17 target causative viruses for respiratory infections. It's an ideal way of screening coronavirus genes as the pandemic continues to rage after being coupled with a number of contagious variants. The variant diagnostic test has acquired CE-IVD mark in March and was first exported to European countries and Chile last month.

Other diagnostic tests, the 'Allplex SARS-CoV-2/FluA/FluB/RSV Assay' is a real-time PCR assay that can simultaneously detect and differentiate eight target genes, including Flu A, Flu B, RSV A/B and three different target genes of COVID-19 (S gene, RdRP gene and N gene). The multiplex assay can be used to differentiate individuals with common flu and COVID-19, both of which show identical symptoms fever and cough.

Seegene's 'AllplexTM SARS-CoV-2 Assay' can detect a total of five targets including four coronavirus genes (E gene, RdRP gene, N gene and S gene) and an exogenous control (entire process control in a single reaction tube, allowing accurate results and maximize throughput for high volume testing. Such diagnostic test is critical in precisely detecting the existence of coronavirus, especially as new variants continue to emerge worldwide.

Ho Yi, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer of Seegene said through the program, it hopes to fully back German government's push to return to normalcy starting with schools. He added that Germany's project become a model for other economies around the world and Seegene will help governments get back to pre-COVID-19 life.

SOURCE Seegene
Sun West Ranch offers a simplified lifestyle, where buyers can settle in and savor making a lower environmental impact on nature while serving as stewards of the spectacular natural beauty that surrounds them. Tweet this

"It's different here, more low-key. We get the ranch experience without all the chores," said Don Alstead, year-round resident at Sun West Ranch, a shared-ranch community located in the Madison Valley in southwestern Montana, 45 minutes from Yellowstone.

Homesteading at the Ranch comes with country-style amenities. Here you can cast for prized trout along three miles of the Madison River or try your luck at one of four private spring-fed trout ponds. Hike or saddle up and explore miles of back-country trails or ski cross-country in the winter. All this, plus a private entry and an experienced ranch team that takes care of upkeep and maintains roads year-round.

Homeowners share an equestrian center, minimizing the need to sub-divide the land for individual barns. Unlike the private residential "club lifestyle" found at the Yellowstone Club and other luxury housing opportunities at Moonlight Basin in Big Sky, the Ranch encourages self-sufficiency and avoids over-commercialization.

Shared-ranches offer a range of amenities. Ranches may focus on big game hunting others may be designed with those interested in owning land in a shared agricultural setting, where they take on shared responsibility for operations.

Sun West Ranch appeals to people with a more down-to-earth concern about conservation and the preservation of the land and wildlife.

The just-released final phase of eighteen home sites complete Sun West Ranch, for a total of fifty-five homesteads. With prices starting in the low $200,000's for lots three to eleven acres in size plus monthly association fees you can hang your hat at the Ranch as opposed to purchasing a ranch that could cost in excess over several million dollars, not including on-going maintenance fees.

Susan Reese, owner of a successful property investment company in Dallas, swore she would never buy a second home. Why buy when you can rent a house whenever you want to get away? And why deal with the upkeep  especially of acres and acres of land? She holds up her Sun West Ranch house key and says, "This is all I need, they do everything else."

Go to sunwestranch.com for further information.

SOURCE Sun West Ranch

Related Links

https://sunwestranch.com/


NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Sonic Automotive, Inc. ("Sonic" or the "Company") (NYSE: SAH). Such investors are advised to contact Robert S. Willoughby at [email protected] or 888-476-6529, ext. 7980.

The investigation concerns whether Sonic and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.

[Click here for information about joining the class action]

On October 7, 2020, news sources reported that the Company's Chief Executive Officer ("CEO"), David Bruton Smith, had been arrested and charged with felony assault by strangulation and misdemeanor charges of false imprisonment, assault on a female, and interfering with emergency communication. Shortly thereafter, the Company's Board of Directors issued a statement affirming that the Company "remains steadfast in its support of [its] CEO."

Then, on March 1, 2021, news sources reported that Smith had been indicted by a Mecklenburg County, North Carolina grand jury on all four charges related to the October 2020 arrest.

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.

CONTACT:

Robert S. Willoughby

Pomerantz LLP

[email protected]

888-476-6529 ext. 7980

SOURCE Pomerantz LLP

Related Links

www.pomerantzlaw.com


"Leopard expands our leading position in the Gulf of Mexico and is an exciting addition to our core portfolio, especially given its proximity to existing infrastructure and other discoveries in the Perdido Corridor," said Paul Goodfellow, Shell's Deepwater Executive Vice President. "With our US Gulf of Mexico production among the lowest GHG intensity in the world, Shell remains confident about the GoM and this latest discovery will help us deliver on our strategy to focus on valuable, high margin barrels as we sustain material Upstream cash flows into the 2030s."

Leopard is an opportunity to increase production in the Perdido Corridor, where Shell's Great White, Silvertip and Tobago fields are already producing. Meanwhile, the Whale discovery, also in the Perdido Corridor, is progressing toward a final investment decision in 2021.

Leopard is located in OCS block Alaminos Canyon (AC) 691, approximately 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of the Whale discovery, 20 miles (32 km) south of the recently appraised Blacktip discovery and 33 miles (53 km) from the Perdido host.

Notes to Editors:

The Leopard Discovery is ~245 miles (394 km) SSE of Houston .

. Leopard is operated by Shell (50%) and co-owned by Chevron U.S.A. Inc. (50%).

Inc. (50%). Shell began production in the Perdido Corridor at the Perdido Spar in 2010.

Shell is a leading operator in US Gulf of Mexico, with eight DW production hubs and a network of subsea infrastructure.

Shell is the largest deep-water leaseholder in the US Gulf of Mexico, with access to some of the most prolific acreage in the basin.

The reference to our US Gulf of Mexico production being among the lowest GHG intensity in the world is a comparison among other IOGP oil and gas producing members.

Royal Dutch Shell plc

Royal Dutch Shell plc is incorporated in England and Wales, has its headquarters in The Hague and is listed on the London, Amsterdam, and New York stock exchanges. Shell companies have operations in more than 70 countries and territories with businesses including oil and gas exploration and production; production and marketing of liquefied natural gas and gas to liquids; manufacturing, marketing and shipping of oil products and chemicals and renewable energy projects. For further information, visit www.shell.com.

Cautionary note

The companies in which Royal Dutch Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this [media release] "Shell", "Shell group" and "Royal Dutch Shell" are sometimes used for convenience where references are made to Royal Dutch Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words "we", "us" and "our" are also used to refer to Royal Dutch Shell plc and subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These terms are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular entity or entities. ''Subsidiaries'', "Shell subsidiaries" and "Shell companies" as used in this [media release] refer to entities over which Royal Dutch Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. Entities and unincorporated arrangements over which Shell has joint control are generally referred to as "joint ventures" and "joint operations", respectively. Entities over which Shell has significant influence but neither control nor joint control are referred to as "associates". The term "Shell interest" is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in an entity or unincorporated joint arrangement, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

This [media release] contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Royal Dutch Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management's current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Royal Dutch Shell to market risks and statements expressing management's expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as "aim", "ambition', ''anticipate'', ''believe'', ''could'', ''estimate'', ''expect'', ''goals'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''objectives'', ''outlook'', ''plan'', ''probably'', ''project'', ''risks'', "schedule", ''seek'', ''should'', ''target'', ''will'' and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Royal Dutch Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this [media release], including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell's products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, fiscal and regulatory developments including regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; and (m) changes in trading conditions. No assurance is provided that future dividend payments will match or exceed previous dividend payments. All forward-looking statements contained in [media release] are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional risk factors that may affect future results are contained in Royal Dutch Shell's 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2017 (available at www.shell.com/investor and www.sec.gov ). These risk factors also expressly qualify all forward looking statements contained in this [media release] and should be considered by the reader. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this [media release] [May 11, 2021]. Neither Royal Dutch Shell plc nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this [media release].

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this [media release] that United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC. U.S. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website www.sec.gov.

SOURCE Shell Offshore Inc.

Related Links

https://www.shell.com


CHICAGO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. [NYSE: TDS] and United States Cellular Corporation [NYSE: USM] announce the following webcasts:

UScellular's Annual Meeting of Shareholders is May 18, 2021, at 8:30 a.m. Central time.

TDS' Annual Meeting of Shareholders is May 20, 2021, at 9:00 a.m. Central time.

To listen to the meetings, please visit the Events & Presentations pages of investors.tdsinc.com or investors.uscellular.com. The meetings will be webcast both live and on-demand. It is recommended that you register at least 15 minutes before the beginning of each meeting to register, download and install any necessary multimedia streaming software.

About TDS

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (TDS), a Fortune 1000 company, provides wireless; broadband, video and voice; and hosted and managed services to approximately 6 million connections nationwide through its businesses, UScellular, TDS Telecom, and OneNeck IT Solutions. Founded in 1969 and headquartered in Chicago, TDS employed approximately 9,100 associates as of March 31, 2021.

About U.S. Cellular

United States Cellular Corporation provides a comprehensive range of wireless products and services, excellent customer support, and a high-quality network to customers with 5.0 million connections in 21 states. The Chicago-based company employed approximately 5,200 associates as of March 31, 2021. At the end of the first quarter of 2021, Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. owned 82 percent of UScellular. For more information about UScellular, visit uscellular.com.

SOURCE Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. and United States Cellular Corporation
Well-known industry hosts The RV Geeks, Mortons on the Move, and The RVers Family share stories from the road and how-to demonstrations designed to entertain while educating  a unique combination in today's television world of sensationalism.

"We're most definitely not a 'reality' show in the commonly understood sense, with false drama and staged conflict," clarifies Anthony Nalli, the show's creator, producer, and host, "Instead, 'The RVers' is, in fact, real TV  where actual RVers much loved and respected by their fans share their insights and adventures with viewers."

RVing in all its forms has undergone explosive growth in the past year with manufacturers working frantically to keep up with increased demand, RV dealers with near-empty lots, and RV rental inquiries increasing by over 700%.

"Seasons 3 comes at a time when COVID-19 has changed the needs of families, couples, and individuals" continues Nalli. "People are considering new travel and recreation options. But it's not only retirees. Even those with the newly found freedom made available from working remotely are looking for ways to increase their enjoyment of life. RVing has proven to be the golden tickets for all of them!"

Season three features segments on such diverse topics as family RVing, towing, cooking in an RV, US National Parks and even RVing in New Zealand. A new twist this season introduces short stories and helpful tips called, "Now What?" designed to help problem-solve unique challenges RVers may face.

Season three of The RVers premieres on The Discovery Channel on Saturday, May 15th at 8AM EST/PST. For further information, please contact Anthony Nalli at [email protected]

Produced by the same award-winning team that created The Aviators, the most-watched aviation show in history, The RVers can be seen on The Discovery Channel, PBS and Fun Roads TV in the US. The show can also be streamed on Amazon Prime, Apple TV/iTunes, Google Play, Sony PlayStation and Microsoft Xbox.

SOURCE Dark Dog Entertainment Corporation
CHICAGO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Title Logics Corporation announced today the formation of Title Bell Property Research Division and expansion of its database to cover the State of New Jersey.

Title Bell has completed its development of the latest and most advanced system to detect and monitor changes in title ownership, mortgage filings, taxes, assessments, judgments, and liens on homes and businesses. This state-of-the-art and one-of-a-kind system can generate a complete title search and analysis on a property most times within 24 hours.

According to the FBI, title thefts and fraudulent mortgages are the fastest growing white collar crimes in America. The Better Business Bureau also recently published its Scam Alert: Home Title Fraud: "Scammers will pick a house, sometimes a second home, rental or vacant house. Gathering personal information from the internet or elsewhere, they take over your identity and assume the role of property owner or claim to represent you. They file the necessary paperwork to transfer ownership of your property to themselves using forged signatures and fraudulent identification. They then sell the home or borrow against the equity. You might not even know this has happened until a lender starts to send letters of foreclosure on your home due to failure to make payments."

Steve Kanya, CMO of Title Logics Corporation, explains: "Some of the ways thieves commit these crimes are that they take titles or place mortgages on your properties without your knowledge. I have seen them all: They take out loans using your home as collateral. They forge a fake deed on your property. They change your property ownership from you to them. They sell your home without your knowledge. So don't be a victim of cyber theft. Get the protection now or you should monitor the recordings on all of your properties regularly."

While property owners are not liable for these fraudulent activities, they can cause major headaches and cost you time or money for legal expenses.

Title Bell's Detecting and Monitoring System (DMS) was created to help protect properties and make life easier for homeowners without the worries of someone scamming their properties. It will alert homeowners of any changes or filings of any deeds or mortgages.

Kanya added to assure Title Bell subscribers: "We are so sure of our services that if you are not happy with our services, you pay nothing. And if there are fraudulent recordings on your properties, unlike other service providers, we will assist you to remove them, all included in our Home Protection Package."

For more information, please visit https://www.titlebell.com.

Sources:

https://www.bbb.org/article/news-releases/22679-bbb-alert-home-title-fraud

https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/news/stories/2008/march/housestealing_032508

Related Images

image1.png

SOURCE Title Logics Corporation
NOIDA, India, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A comprehensive overview of the Truck Platooning Market is recently added by UnivDatos Market Insights to its humongous database. The truck Platooning market report has been aggregated by collecting informative data of various dynamics such as market drivers, restraints, and opportunities. This innovative report makes use of several analyses to get a closer outlook on the truck platooning market. The truck platooning market report offers a detailed analysis of the latest industry developments and trending factors in the market that are influencing the market growth. Furthermore, this statistical market research repository examines and estimates the truck platooning market at the global and regional levels. Global Truck Platooning market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 45% from 2021-2027 to exceed US$ 500 million by 2027.

Market Overview

Road freight transportation accounts for approximately 60% of all surface freight transportation, making it critical to society and the economy. In the coming years, demand for road freight transportation is expected to rise. Truck platooning has a lot of potentials to make road transport more efficient, cleaner, and safer in the future. Truck platooning technology can reduce fuel consumption and emissions of harmful gases by allowing trucks to operate closer together, lowering air drag between them. It is estimated that platooning improved fuel economy at all speeds, the best overall miles per gallon was achieved at 55 mph. The leading truck saved up to 5.3% of its diesel, while the trailing truck saved up to 9.7%. Further, truck platooning has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions by around 10%

Request Sample Copy of this Report @ https://univdatos.com/report/truck-platooning-market-current-analysis-and-forecast-2021-2027

COVID-19 Impact

The COVID-19 pandemic adversely impacted the growth of the global truck platooning market owing to the disruption and economic hardship in the automobile industry. A major impact was witnessed on the discrete manufacturing and logistics service providers due to disruption in the vital element of value chains. According to the study "Estimated impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic on the global logistics industry's growth of gross value added in 2020, by scenario" - the global logistics industry shrinks by 6.1% in 2020. The shrinkage in discrete manufacturing and Logistics service providers caused the slowdown in the adoption of truck platooning systems around the globe resulted in lower adoption of the truck platooning device.

Ask for Price & Discounts @ https://univdatos.com/report/truck-platooning-market-current-analysis-and-forecast-2021-2027

Truck Platooning Market report is studied thoroughly with several aspects that would help stakeholders in making their decisions more curated.

By Platooning Type, the market is primarily bifurcated into

Driver-Assistive Truck Platooning (DATP)

Autonomous Truck Platooning

The Driver-Assistive Truck Platooning (DATP) segment is dominating the truck platooning market-based on platooning type and more than XX% market share in 2020. However, the Autonomous Truck Platooning segment would witness the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.

By Services, the market is primarily segmented into

Telematics-Based Services

Platooning-Based Services

Amongst Services, the Telematics-Based Services segment accounted for the largest share and is expected to maintain the same trend of dominance in the forecast period. However, the Platooning-Based Services segment would witness the highest CAGR during the forecast period.

By Systems, the market is primarily segmented into

Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC)

Blind Spot Warning (BSW)

Global Positioning System (GPS)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Lane Keep Assist (LKA)

Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB)

Human Machine Interface (HMI)

Others

In 2020, the Image segment dominated the global truck platooning market with more than XX% of the market share and it is anticipated by 2027 and would witness significant growth in the forecast period.

By Sensor Type, the market is primarily segmented into

Image

Radar

LiDAR

In 2020, the Image segment dominated the global truck platooning market with more than XX% of the market share and it is anticipated by 2027 and would witness remarkable growth in the forecast period.

By Communication Technology, the market is primarily segmented into

Vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I)

Vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V)

In 2020, the Vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) segment dominated the global truck platooning market with more than XX% of the market share and it is anticipated by 2027 and would witness considerable growth in the forecast period.

Truck Platooning Market Geographical Segmentation Includes:

North America

Europe

Asia-Pacific

Rest of the World

Based on the estimation, the North America region dominated the truck platooning market with almost 50% revenue share in 2020. At the same time, the Europe region is expected to grow with the highest CAGR over the forecast period owing to the expected regulatory approvals for Phase 1 Truck Platooning and for further Phase's coupled with the launch of new innovative offerings by the players.

Ask for Report Customization @ https://univdatos.com/report/truck-platooning-market-current-analysis-and-forecast-2021-2027

The major players targeting the market includes

Peloton Technology

Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC

AB Volvo

Continental AG

Daimler AG

BorgWarner Inc.

Wabco

DAF Trucks

Scania AB

Aptiv

Competitive Landscape

The degree of competition among prominent global companies has been elaborated by analyzing several leading key players operating worldwide. The specialist team of research analysts sheds light on various traits such as global market competition, market share, most recent industry advancements, innovative product launches, partnerships, mergers, or acquisitions by leading companies in the Truck Platooning market. The leading players have been analyzed by using research methodologies for getting insight views on global competition.

Key questions resolved through this analytical market research report include:

What are the latest trends, new patterns, and technological advancements in the Truck Platooning market?

Which factors are influencing the Truck Platooning market over the forecast period?

What are the global challenges, threats, and risks in the Truck Platooning market?

Which factors are propelling and restraining the Truck Platooning market?

What are the demanding global regions of the Truck Platooning market?

What will be the global market size in the upcoming years?

What are the crucial market acquisition strategies and policies applied by global companies?

We understand the requirement of different businesses, regions, and countries, we offer customized reports as per your requirements of business nature and geography. Please let us know If you have any custom needs.

For more informative information, please visit us @ https://univdatos.com/report/truck-platooning-market-current-analysis-and-forecast-2021-2027

About UnivDatos Market Insights

UnivDatos Market Insights (UMI) is a passionate market research firm and a subsidiary of Universal Data Solutions. We believe in delivering insights through Market Intelligence Reports, Customized Business Research, and Primary Research. Our research studies are spread across topics across the world, we cover markets in over 100 countries using smart research techniques and agile methodologies. We offer in-depth studies, detailed analysis, and customized reports that help shape winning business strategies for our clients.

Contact

UnivDatos Market Insights

Pawnendra Pawan

Client Development Lead

Ph: +91-7838604911

Email: [email protected]

Website: https://univdatos.com/

SOURCE UnivDatos Market Insights
SAN DIEGO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Shareholder rights law firm Johnson Fistel, LLP has launched an investigation into whether the board members of Domtar Corporation (NYSE: UFS) breached their fiduciary duties in connection with the proposed sale of the Company to Paper Excellence.

On May 11, 2021, Domtar announced that it had entered into a definitive merger agreement with Paper Excellence. Under the terms of the definitive merger agreement, Paper Excellence will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Domtar common stock for $55.50 per share in cash.

The investigation concerns whether the Domtar board failed to satisfy its duties to the Company shareholders, including whether the board adequately pursued alternatives to the acquisition and whether the board obtained the best price possible for Domtar shares of common stock. Nationally recognized Johnson Fistel is investigating whether the proposed deal represents adequate consideration, especially given analysts' projections for future revenue growth.

If you are a shareholder of Domtar and believe the proposed buyout price is too low or you're interested in learning more about the investigation, please contact lead analyst Jim Baker ( [email protected] ) at 619-814-4471. If emailing, please include a phone number.

Additionally, you can [Click here to join this action]. There is no cost or obligation to you.

About Johnson Fistel, LLP:

Johnson Fistel, LLP is a nationally recognized shareholder rights law firm with offices in California, New York, and Georgia. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in shareholder derivative and securities class action lawsuits. For more information about the firm and its attorneys, please visit https://www.johnsonfistel.com. Attorney advertising. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.

Contact:

Johnson Fistel, LLP

Jim Baker, 619-814-4471

[email protected]

[Click here to join this action]

SOURCE Johnson Fistel, LLP

Related Links

http://www.johnsonfistel.com


In this newly created role, Parham will oversee UMG's global e-commerce strategy and business development across the company's iconic labels, music publishing company, operating units and territories. Parham's appointment is effective June 2 and she will be based in Santa Monica, California, where she will report to UMG Chairman and CEO Sir Lucian Grainge.

In making the announcement, Grainge said, "We are very pleased to have Richelle join our stellar leadership team, where she will play a key role in advancing our global strategy. Richelle's proven leadership and expertise in consumer marketing, audience growth, business development and direct-to-consumer initiatives will be a valuable resource for our artists and drive our vision of a holistic fan-centric program that complements our partner platforms."

"It's an honor to join UMG," said Parham. "As one of the world's most innovative and strategic companies in any industry, UMG possesses an incredibly talented leadership team, a global footprint, iconic labels and publishing company, as well as other music businesses. Together these elements form an unparalleled opportunity for a consumer-demand-driven e-commerce business that goes far beyond traditional distribution channels to create important revenue streams, while forging meaningful and impactful bonds between artists and fans."

Parham has a track record of leading high-performing business and marketing teams over a 25-year career in global strategy and marketing at companies including eBay and Visa.

She joins UMG from the firm WestRiver Group, where she served as Managing Director, leading investments in the consumer experience economy. Before WestRiver, she served as General Partner of Camden Partners, a private equity firm focused on investing in growth-stage global consumer companies.

Previously, Parham served as Chief Marketing Officer of eBay, where she leveraged her background in consumer and digital marketing to develop strategies and execute all marketing activities to reach more than 180 million active eBay users. She was responsible, globally, for eBay's brand strategy and brand marketing, Internet marketing and CRM. She was also responsible for all areas of eBay North American marketing, including customer product marketing, loyalty and relationship marketing, seller marketing and social.

Prior to eBay, Parham served as head of Global Marketing Innovation and Initiatives, and head of Global Marketing Services, at Visa Inc. Her experience also includes 13 years at Digitas, a leading global marketing agency, where she held senior leadership roles, including Senior Vice President and General Manager of the agency's Chicago office.

Parham is highly recognized for her work, including: Black Enterprise's "Power in the Boardroom"; Fast Company's "Most Creative People in Business 1000"; Forbes' "50 Most Influential CMOs in the World"; and Savoy Magazine's "Most Influential Women in Corporate America," among many more.

Additionally, she received the Women of Influence award by the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal, while being inducted into the World Association for Cooperative Education Co-op Hall of Fame. A strong advocate of empowering female leaders through STEAM programs, Parham served on the advisory board of Girls Who Code. She has also served on the board of directors of publicly traded companies including Best Buy since 2018, e.l.f. Beauty since 2018, LabCorp since 2016 and Scripps Network Interactive from 2012 to 2018. Parham holds double Bachelor of Science degrees in Business Administration and Design Arts from Drexel University, where she joined the Board of Trustees in 2014.

About Universal Music Group

Universal Music Group (UMG) is the world leader in music-based entertainment, with a broad array of businesses engaged in recorded music, music publishing, merchandising and audiovisual content in more than 60 countries. Featuring the most comprehensive catalog of recordings and songs across every musical genre, UMG identifies and develops artists and produces and distributes the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful music in the world. Committed to artistry, innovation and entrepreneurship, UMG fosters the development of services, platforms and business models in order to broaden artistic and commercial opportunities for our artists and create new experiences for fans. Universal Music Group is a Vivendi company.

SOURCE Universal Music Group
For the first quarter of 2021, the online video game platform reported bookings of US$652.3mln, up 161% year-on-year, while revenues jumped 140% to US$387mln

( ) has reported a surge in revenues and bookings as it delivered its first set of quarterly results since listing on the New York Stock Exchange in March.

On Monday, the online video game platform reported bookings of US$652.3mln in the first three months of 2021, up 161% year-on-year, while revenues jumped 140% to US$387mln.

However, the group also delivered a net loss of US$134.2mln, wider than the US$74.4mln loss reported a year ago.

Roblox also highlighted strong user growth during the year, with hours engaged up 98% year-on-year at 9.7bn with growth of 104% in markets outside of the US and Canada.

A fundamental part of being human is connecting with others, and were inspired by the way in which the Roblox community creates and shares experiences to play, work and even learn together. The opportunity of what were building at Roblox is massive, and we will continue to make long-term investments as we build a human co-experience platform that enables shared experiences among billions of users," Roblox chief executive David Baszucki said in a statement.

Our first quarter 2021 results enabled us to continue investing aggressively in the key areas that we believe will drive long term growth and value, specifically hiring talented engineering and product professionals and growing the earnings for our developer community. We believe we must continue to innovate and so remain focused on building great technology to make progress on our key growth vectors, primarily international expansion and expanding the age demographic of our users, added chief financial officer Michael Guthrie.
"We have made significant progress on many fronts during 2021 on all four of the Company's key pillars: Nu.Q, Nu.Q Vet, Nu.Q NETs and Nu.Q Capture," commented Cameron Reynolds, President and Chief Executive Officer of Volition. "We have also significantly strengthened our balance sheet, our intellectual property portfolio, and our executive team to drive commercial focus."

https://youtu.be/un7YtAecF7o

An interview with Cameron Reynolds, President and Chief Executive Officer and Terig Hughes, Chief Financial Officer.

Mr. Reynolds continued, "Silver One, our manufacturing facility and service lab, is proving to have been an excellent addition to Volition's commercialization efforts and is now producing finished product and components at commercial scale for our anticipated product launches. I am delighted that the Nu.Q Vet beta launch has not only provided revenue but also invaluable real-world learnings allowing us to move ahead soon with our expected national U.S. and international launches. We are also seeing a high level of interest in both the licensing and distribution of our products and are actively negotiating multiple agreements."

Company Highlights



Financial

Cash and cash equivalents as of March 31, 2021 totaled approximately $33.1 million compared with $19.4 million as of December 31, 2020 .

totaled approximately compared with as of . During the first quarter of 2021, added an aggregate of approximately $20.3 million in cash mostly through an underwritten public offering of our common stock that closed in February, as well as through periodic sales of common stock under Volition's at-the-market equity distribution program.

in cash mostly through an underwritten public offering of our common stock that closed in February, as well as through periodic sales of common stock under Volition's at-the-market equity distribution program. Secured a further $4 million in non-dilutive funding consisting of a cash grant of $1.3 million and loans totalling $2.7 million from the Walloon Regional Government and associated agencies.

in non-dilutive funding consisting of a cash grant of and loans totalling from the Walloon Regional Government and associated agencies. Continued to manage expenditures carefully with a cash burn rate of approximately $2 million per month.



Personnel

As Volition transitions from a research and development company to a commercial company, it strengthened the leadership team with the appointment of a new Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Terig Hughes, as well as the appointment of Mr. Gael Forterre as Chief Commercial Officer. In addition, Volition promoted Dr. Gaetan Michel to Chief Operating Officer and Dr. Mark Eccleston to Chief Technology Officer.

to Chief Operating Officer and Dr. to Chief Technology Officer. Volition announced the appointment of two Independent Directors to its main Board  Kim Nguyen , an HR executive with global expertise at Google, and Richard Brudnick , a pharmaceutical business executive with extensive commercial know-how.

, an HR executive with global expertise at Google, and , a pharmaceutical business executive with extensive commercial know-how. As of May 1 , Dr. Tom Butera , a seasoned veterinary executive with an extensive commercial track record, joined the team as Chief Executive Officer of Volition's Veterinary subsidiary to drive its product launches.

Intellectual Property



28 patent families covering both human and animal use of Volition's Nucleosomics platform.

64 granted patents (ten in the U.S., 14 in Europe and 42 rest of world).

and 42 rest of world). 93 patents pending.

Continued focus on filings during the first quarter and expect portfolio to grow in the quarters and years ahead.

Publications

Volition's list of publications and abstracts is growing.

Year to date data for Nu.Q has been presented at two international conferences and Volition has collaborated on three clinical paper publications.

These publications are another very important step forward for the Company.

Nu.Q Vet Cancer Screening Test Beta Launch



Beta launch of the Nu.Q Vet Cancer Screening Test in late November 2020 in Texas . This beta launch is facilitating real-world learnings to help shape the marketing mix before Volition's planned launch nationally across the U.S. expected in the next few months.

in . This beta launch is facilitating real-world learnings to help shape the marketing mix before Volition's planned launch nationally across the U.S. expected in the next few months. Volition has received strong indications of interest in the whole Nu.Q Vet platform, from a range of small and very large companies, and it is progressing potential licensing discussions with several well-known major players in the veterinary space around the world.

In addition to the Texas beta launch, Volition is finalizing beta launch planning in both Asia and Europe .

Nu.Q Capture

The clinical paper published in Nature's Scientific Reports in March highlighted for the first time that histone H2A1R3 citrulline is, in plasma, upregulated in colorectal cancer patients and so could be a biomarker Volition targets for future Nu.Q immunoassay development.

It showed that the use of Nu.Q Capture may open up the possibility of using mass spectrometry not only for biomarker discovery but also as a high throughput platform for screening and/or diagnostics.

Volition aims for Nu.Q Capture to be an important enabling technology in the liquid biopsy space and expects to launch its first product with this technology in 2022.

Clinical  NETosis including COVID-19

Volition believes that the versatility of the Nu.Q platform and the range of applications for which these assays can be leveraged may help increase diagnostic power and monitor disease progression and potentially treatment response across a broad range of diseases that involve the over production of NETs, such as COVID-19, pneumonia, influenza and sepsis.

From a sepsis product development perspective, to date Volition has completed animal studies in the monitoring of disease progress and treatment efficacy which have demonstrated the effective use of Nu.Q NETs.

Human studies in the monitoring of disease progress and treatment efficacy in sepsis are now underway at a leading UK hospital.

From a COVID-19 product development perspective, Volition has conducted studies of serial testing of COVID-19 patients at leading UK hospitals to determine the predictive value of its test, with further data due to be presented at upcoming conferences and potentially additional studies and collaborations as well.

Clinical  Cancer

As previously reported, due to the pandemic collection for the U.S. EDRN study for colorectal cancer has been paused, and collection for the blood cancer studies in the U.S. have been delayed with an updated timeline expected in the near future.

In Asia , Volition has reached its target patient cohorts for both colorectal cancer studies and the lung cancer study, all collected in conjunction with the National Taiwan University, notwithstanding the pandemic. Volition expects to run the assays and finalize the analysis over the coming months with data due to be reported at future conferences.

, Volition has reached its target patient cohorts for both colorectal cancer studies and the lung cancer study, all collected in conjunction with the National Taiwan University, notwithstanding the pandemic. Volition expects to run the assays and finalize the analysis over the coming months with data due to be reported at future conferences. Volition has installed a Service Lab in Silver One, which will undertake sample processing for external parties such as pharmaceutical companies, biotech companies and academic researchers. This service, branded as Nu.Q Discover, has already generated interest, and Volition expects to see initial revenue from this during 2021.

Volition is producing recombinant nucleosomes in-house and at large-scale, building a library for sale through Nu.Q Discover and also for internal R&D use.

Volition is still in active discussions on its first potential licensing deal with a large healthcare company.

Upcoming Milestones

Volition expects to achieve the following milestones during 2021 and beyond, pandemic permitting:

National launch of the Nu.Q Vet Cancer Screening Test in the U.S.

Beta launches of the Nu.Q Vet Cancer Screening Test in Asia and Europe .

and . Continue to focus on driving revenue in the coming quarters in four key areas:

- Nu.Q Vet products,

- Disease monitoring tests (e.g. Nu.Q NETs for COVID-19, sepsis),

- Nu.Q Discover, and

- Licensing of its technology for others to commercialize in both humans and animals.

Continue to progress the research program for the use of Nu.Q in NETosis, in monitoring disease progression of COVID-19, sepsis and potentially other diseases and as a possible companion diagnostic for a treatment for sepsis.

Continue to advance its previously announced large-scale blood, lung and colorectal cancer trials in Europe , Asia and the U.S.

, and the U.S. Publish several abstracts and peer-reviewed scientific papers with clinical results showing the robustness and utility of its Nu.Q platform.

Advance the development of Nu.Q Capture.

Continue to file patents to expand and extend its intellectual property portfolio.

VolitionRx Limited First Quarter 2021 Financial Results and Business Update

Date: Wednesday, May 12, 2021

Time: 8:00 a.m. U.S. Eastern time

U.S. & Canada Dial-in: 1-877-407-9716 (toll free)

U.K. Dial-in: 0 800 756 3429 (toll free)

Toll/International: 1-201-493-6779

Conference ID: 13719633

Cameron Reynolds, President and Chief Executive Officer of Volition, will host the call along with Terig Hughes, Chief Financial Officer and Scott Powell, Executive Vice President, Investor Relations.

A live audio webcast of the conference call will also be available on the investor relations page of Volition's corporate website at http://ir.volition.com.

In addition, a telephone replay of the call will be available until May 26, 2021. The replay dial-in numbers are 1-844-512-2921 (toll-free) in the U.S. and Canada and 1-412-317-6671 (toll) internationally. Please use replay pin number 13719633.

About Volition

Volition is a multi-national epigenetics company developing simple, easy to use, cost effective blood tests to help diagnose a range of cancers and other diseases. Early diagnosis has the potential to not only prolong the life of patients, but also to improve their quality of life. The tests are based on the science of NucleosomicsTM, which is the practice of identifying and measuring nucleosomes in the bloodstream or other bodily fluid - an indication that disease is present. Volition is primarily focused on human diagnostics but also has a subsidiary focused on animal diagnostics.

Volition's research and development activities are centered in Belgium, with a small laboratory in California and additional offices in Texas, London and Singapore, as the company focuses on bringing its diagnostic products to market.

For more information about Volition, visit Volition's website volition.com or connect with us via:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/volitionrx

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/volitionrx

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VolitionRx/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/VolitionRx

The contents found at Volition's website address, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube are not incorporated by reference into this document and should not be considered part of this document. The addresses for Volition's website, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube are included in this document as inactive textual references only.

Media / Investor Contacts

Safe Harbor Statement

Statements in this press release may be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that concern matters that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or projected in the forward-looking statements. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "aims," "targets," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "optimizing," "potential," "goal," "suggests," "could," "would," "should," "may," "will" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements relate to the timing, completion and delivery of data from clinical studies, the effectiveness of Volition's blood-based diagnostic and prognostic tests, Volition's ability to develop and successfully commercialize such test platforms for early detection of cancer and other diseases as well as serving as a diagnostic or prognostic tool for COVID-19, and the timing of product launches and publications. Volition's actual results may differ materially from those indicated in these forward-looking statements due to numerous risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, results of studies testing the efficacy of its tests. For instance, if Volition fails to develop and commercialize diagnostic or prognostic products, it may be unable to execute its plan of operations. Other risks and uncertainties include Volition's failure to obtain necessary regulatory clearances or approvals to distribute and market future products; a failure by the marketplace to accept the products in Volition's development pipeline or any other diagnostic or prognostic products Volition might develop; Volition's failure to secure adequate intellectual property protection; Volition will face fierce competition and Volition's intended products may become obsolete due to the highly competitive nature of the diagnostics market and its rapid technological change; downturns in domestic and foreign economies; and other risks identified in Volition's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as well as other documents that Volition files with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about Volition's business based, in part, on assumptions made by management. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this release, and, except as required by law, Volition does not undertake an obligation to update its forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances.

Nucleosomics and Nu.Q and their respective logos are trademarks and/or service marks of VolitionRx Limited and its subsidiaries. All other trademarks, service marks and trade names referred to in this press release are the property of their respective owners. Additionally, unless otherwise specified, all references to "$" refer to the legal currency of the United States of America.

SOURCE VolitionRx Limited

Related Links

http://ir.volition.com


BALTIMORE, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In September 2019, Jessica Moore and Van Carroll Jr signed a lease on a second-floor apartment on East Pratt Street in Baltimore, Maryland. Soon, Jessica Moore experienced itchy swollen skin lesions. In December 2019 while receiving treatment at St. Agnes Hospital, she was told to look for bed bugs. Two days later she found them. The apartment manager sprayed the apartment, then hired a pest control company, but the infestation persisted. Moore and Carroll Jr moved out and filed a lawsuit in the Baltimore Circuit Court against the landlord S&J Holding, LLC and the apartment manager.

In February 2021, the case settled for $135,000. "Landlords in Maryland are required to provide infestation free apartments, including free of bed bugs, at the beginning of the lease" said Daniel Whitney, Jr. of Whitney, LLP, attorney for Moore and Carroll Jr. "Before the lease was signed, the landlord self-treated with heat and chemicals, and our clients alleged that the history of self-treatment and infestation in the apartment and adjacent units was not disclosed to them prior to the lease being signed."

Bed bugs are a common occurrence in rental properties, and are notorious for being difficult to treat unless addressed by licensed pest control company.

Bed bugs, though tiny at approximately 3/16th of inch, are a big problem in Baltimore. According to Orkin's 2021 Bed Bug City List, Baltimore is the second most infested city after Chicago. Ben Hottel, an Orkin entomologist noted that "their nature of hiding in difficult-to-find cracks and crevices once introduced into a room can make them hard to control."

"Many consumers do not know they have legal remedies to protect them from bed bugs and can recover significant compensation in bed bug claims" said Daniel Whitney, Jr. "Tenants do not have to endure unsafe, unhealthy environments putting themselves and their loved ones at risk."

The law firm of Whitney, LLP has recovered approximately $14,000,000 in verdicts and settlement for victims of bed bugs, primarily involving infestations in hotels, apartments and vacation rentals in Maryland.

Daniel W. Whitney, Jr.

Whitney, LLP

Suite 750

409 Washington Avenue

Towson, Maryland 21204

(410) 583-8010

Fax: (800) 893-1239

[email protected]

SOURCE Whitney, LLP
Escoffier culinary students ranged in age from 19-86 and came together for the virtual ceremony for graduates earning their Culinary Associates, Pastry Associates, Culinary Diploma or Pastry Diploma. Of the 2,009 culinary students, 321 graduated from the Boulder (136) and Austin (185) campus residential programs and 1,688 graduated from the distance-learning online programs offered through Escoffier's Boulder Campus.

"This was truly a year like no other and I'm so proud of this group of graduates. They embody resilience and tenacity and have pushed themselves beyond the classroom and kitchen to get to this important day," said Tracy Lorenz, Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts president and CEO. "We are honored to have Elle Simone Scott share her inspirational career change and personal story with this next generation of culinary professionals. I am excited to see how they will contribute to the culinary industry."

Currently serving as resident food stylist and the first female African American host of the wildly popular PBS cooking show, "America's Test Kitchen" and founder of culinary networking group, SheChef, Scott inspired graduates with her personal career-changing journey. Scott shared a special "recipe for resiliency" with students and how she followed her passion for food, travel and family. She also encouraged students to never stop learning beyond graduation day.

"Dream big, believe in yourself and don't be afraid to try, and learn from mistakes and failures," said Scott. "Never stop learning and stay in the know; whether you're practicing techniques, observing mentors, learning from peers or using other resources and networking, keep going," she added.

In addition to Scott's address, Auguste Escoffier's great grandson, Michel Escoffier, and fellow Escoffier chef instructors, staff, and student speakers also spoke to graduates. Michel Escoffier congratulated students on their hard work and accomplishments. Escoffier chef instructors and student speakers imparted advice to be humble, work hard, follow their passion and tap into their network of peers and resources along the way.

To enhance graduates' virtual experience, they received a specially designed graduation celebration kit, which included an Escoffier medallion, lapel pin, chef toque, programs, and special recognition cords for honor students.

All Escoffier culinary graduates are eligible to enroll in Escoffier's active alumni group : a free, exclusive life-long platform available to graduates to network, share advice, stories, and employment opportunities. For more information, https://escoffieralumniassociation.com/ .

About Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts

Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts is a leading accredited provider of online and campus-based culinary training and education and a U.S. accredited institution offering 100% online culinary degrees and diplomas with industry externships. Ranked in the top 10 culinary schools in the United States by USA Today and number one in the world by Chef's Pencil, the school's professional programs offer the proven combination of a classic and contemporary approach to modern industry skills training as well as a sustainability-centered and business-focused curriculum. Professional programs in Culinary Arts and Pastry Arts are available online and on ground through Escoffier's Boulder, Colorado campus and on ground through its Austin, Texas campus. Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts in Boulder, Colorado is nationally accredited by the Accrediting Council for Continuing Education and Training (ACCET). Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts in Austin, Texas is nationally accredited by the Council on Occupational Education (COE). Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts is a Great Place to Work-Certified institution and its Boulder campus is designated as a Military Friendly School.

For more information on the graduation ceremony,

visit https://www.escoffier.edu/events/graduation/

CONTACT: Patti Thomas

312.919.0898

SOURCE Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts
DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Genito-Urinary Drugs Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Impact and Recovery to 2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

This report provides strategists, marketers and senior management with the critical information they need to assess the global genito-urinary drugs market as it emerges from the COVID-19 shut down.

Reasons to Purchase

Gain a truly global perspective with the most comprehensive report available on this market covering 50+ geographies.

Understand how the market is being affected by the coronavirus and how it is likely to emerge and grow as the impact of the virus abates.

Create regional and country strategies on the basis of local data and analysis.

Identify growth segments for investment.

Outperform competitors using forecast data and the drivers and trends shaping the market.

Understand customers based on the latest market research findings.

Benchmark performance against key competitors.

Utilize the relationships between key data sets for superior strategizing.

Suitable for supporting your internal and external presentations with reliable high quality data and analysis

Where is the largest and fastest growing market for the genito-urinary drugs? How does the market relate to the overall economy, demography and other similar markets? What forces will shape the market going forward? The Genito-Urinary Drugs market global report answers all these questions and many more.



The report covers market characteristics, size and growth, segmentation, regional and country breakdowns, competitive landscape, market shares, trends and strategies for this market. It traces the market's historic and forecast market growth by geography. It places the market within the context of the wider genito-urinary drugs market, and compares it with other markets.

The market characteristics section of the report defines and explains the market.

The market size section gives the market size ($b) covering both the historic growth of the market, the impact of the COVID-19 virus and forecasting its recovery.

Market segmentations break down market into sub markets.

The regional and country breakdowns section gives an analysis of the market in each geography and the size of the market by geography and compares their historic and forecast growth. It covers the impact and recovery trajectory of COVID-19 for all regions, key developed countries and major emerging markets.

Competitive landscape gives a description of the competitive nature of the market, market shares, and a description of the leading companies. Key financial deals which have shaped the market in recent years are identified.

The trends and strategies section analyses the shape of the market as it emerges from the crisis and suggests how companies can grow as the market recovers.

The genito-urinary drugs market section of the report gives context. It compares the genito-urinary drugs market with other segments of the pharmaceutical drugs market by size and growth, historic and forecast. It analyses GDP proportion, expenditure per capita, genito-urinary drugs indicators comparison.

Major companies in the genito-urinary drugs market include Daiichi Sankyo Company; Pfizer Inc; Bayer AG; Astellas Pharma Inc and Allergan Plc.



The global genito-urinary drugs market is expected to grow from $49.24 billion in 2020 to $53.78 billion in 2021 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.2%. The growth is mainly due to the companies rearranging their operations and recovering from the COVID-19 impact, which had earlier led to restrictive containment measures involving social distancing, remote working, and the closure of commercial activities that resulted in operational challenges. The market is expected to reach $63.95 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 4%.



The genito-urinary drugs market consists of sales of genito-urinary drugs and related services by entities (organizations, sole traders and partnerships) that produce genito-urinary drugs to treat genito- urinary diseases such as urinary tract infections, male reproductive diseases, voiding diseases, female reproductive diseases, glomerular disorders, urinary calculi, cystic kidney disease, Reno vascular diseases, benign prostate diseases, and other related diseases. This industry includes establishments that produce infertility drugs, hormonal contraceptives, erectile dysfunction drugs and hormonal replacement drugs to treat infertility, infections and prevent pregnancy. It also consists of establishments which produce drugs for benign prostatic hypertrophy, drugs for urinary incontinence and overactive bladder, diuretics to treat urinary calculi, glomerular disorders and other urinary disorders. The genito-urinary drugs market is segmented into hormonal contraceptives; drugs for benign prostatic hypertrophy; drugs for infertility; drugs for erectile dysfunction; drugs for urinary incontinence and overactive bladder; drugs for infections and others; drugs for hormonal replacement therapy; and diuretics.



North America was the largest region in the global genito-urinary drugs market, accounting for 55% of the market in 2020. Asia Pacific was the second largest region accounting for 21% of the global genito-urinary drugs market. Africa was the smallest region in the global genito-urinary drugs market.



Pharmaceutical companies are investing in development of new class drugs for treating overactive bladders (OAB). Earlier anti-muscarinic agents have been used for the treatment of OAB. Going forward, the market is expected to be driven by a new class of drug known as beta-3 adrenergic agonists that has been increasingly used to treat OAB. Beta-3 adrenergic agonists are drugs which cause the bladder muscles to relax without causing side effects such as dry mouth. For instance, in 2018, European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the Food and drug Administration (FDA) approved a beta-3 adrenergic drug called Mirabegron.



Regulatory agencies and federal governments adopted stringent regulations and took a tough stance on drug pricing by pharmaceutical companies during the historic period. Pharmaceutical companies faced criticism from politicians, patients and physicians over high pricing of some medicines and drugs. Moreover, companies had to sell drugs and medicines at subsidized rates to government hospitals, doctors and clinics, further effecting companies' revenues. This led to drug manufacturing companies operating on a reduced profit margin, which negatively impacted the attractiveness of the genito-urinary drugs industry in the historic period.



The aging population profile of most countries contributed to the growth of the gastrointestinal drugs market. The increase in patient pool due to rising geriatric population globally, contributed significantly to the growth of the market during the historic period. According to the Population Reference Bureau, the share of population over the age of 65 in the global population increased from 8% in 2015 to 9% in 2019. The global population aged 65 years or over was 703 million in 2019. This rise in the geriatric population increased the demand for medical care and drove the healthcare expenditure. This has led to increased demand for pharmaceuticals products, significantly impacting market growth during this period.



Key Topics Covered:



1. Executive Summary



2. Report Structure



3. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Characteristics

3.1. Market Definition

3.2. Key Segmentations



4. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Product Analysis

4.1. Leading Products/ Services

4.2. Key Features and Differentiators

4.3. Development Products



5. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Supply Chain

5.1. Supply Chain

5.2. Distribution

5.3. End Customers



6. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Customer Information

6.1. Customer Preferences

6.2. End Use Market Size and Growth



7. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Trends and Strategies



8. Impact of COVID-19 on Genito-Urinary Drugs



9. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Size and Growth

9.1. Market Size

9.2. Historic Market Growth, Value ($ Billion)

9.2.1. Drivers of the Market

9.2.2. Restraints on the Market

9.3. Forecast Market Growth, Value ($ Billion)

9.3.1. Drivers of the Market

9.3.2. Restraints on the Market



10. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Regional Analysis

10.1. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market, 2020, by Region, Value ($ Billion)

10.2. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, Historic and Forecast, by Region

10.3. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market, Growth and Market Share Comparison, by Region



11. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Segmentation

11.1. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market, Segmentation by Type

11.2. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market, Segmentation by Distribution Channel

11.3. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market, Segmentation by Route of Administration

11.4. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market, Segmentation by Drug Classification

11.5. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market, Segmentation by Mode of Purchase

12. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Metrics

12.1. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Size, Percentage of GDP, 2015-2025, Global

12.2. Per Capita Average Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Expenditure, 2015-2025, Global

13. Asia-Pacific Genito-Urinary Drugs Market

14. Western Europe Genito-Urinary Drugs Market

15. Eastern Europe Genito-Urinary Drugs Market

16. North America Genito-Urinary Drugs Market

17. South America Genito-Urinary Drugs Market

18. Middle East Genito-Urinary Drugs Market

19. Africa Genito-Urinary Drugs Market

20. Genito-Urinary Drugs Market Competitive Landscape

20.1. Competitive Market Overview

20.2. Market Shares

20.3. Company Profiles

20.3.1. Daiichi Sankyo Company

20.3.1.1. Company Overview

20.3.1.2. Products and Services

20.3.1.3. Strategy

20.3.1.4. Financial Performance

20.3.2. Pfizer Inc

20.3.2.1. Company Overview

20.3.2.2. Products and Services

20.3.2.3. Strategy

20.3.2.4. Financial Performance

20.3.3. Bayer AG

20.3.3.1. Company Overview

20.3.3.2. Products and Services

20.3.3.3. Strategy

20.3.3.4. Financial Performance

20.3.4. Astellas Pharma Inc

20.3.4.1. Company Overview

20.3.4.2. Products and Services

20.3.4.3. Strategy

20.3.4.4. Financial Performance

20.3.5. Allergan Plc

20.3.5.1. Company Overview

20.3.5.2. Products and Services

20.3.5.3. Strategy

20.3.5.4. Financial Performance



21. Key Mergers and Acquisitions in the Genito-Urinary Drugs Market



22. Market Background: Pharmaceutical Drugs Market

22.1. Pharmaceutical Drugs Market Characteristics

22.2. Pharmaceutical Drugs Market Historic and Forecast, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F Growth, by Segment, Value ($ Billion), Global

22.3. Global Pharmaceutical Drugs Market, 2020, by Region, Value ($ Billion)

22.4. Global Pharmaceutical Drugs Market, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, Historic and Forecast, by Region

22.5. Global Pharmaceutical Drugs Market, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, Segmentation by Type, Value ($ Billion)



23. Recommendations

23.1. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market in 2025 - Growth Countries

23.2. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market in 2025 - Growth Segments

23.3. Global Genito-Urinary Drugs Market in 2025 - Growth Strategies



24. Appendix



25. Copyright and Disclaimer



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/el6utt

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470

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U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

SOURCE Research and Markets

Related Links

http://www.researchandmarkets.com


PHOENIX, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Advisor Group, the nation's largest network of independent wealth management firms, today announced the successful recruitment to its network of Tor and Tyler Saile, a father-and-son hybrid wealth management practice with offices in Scottsdale, Ariz., and Barrington, Ill., that oversees $150 million in total client assets.

Both financial professionals have joined Advisor Group through its subsidiary and network member firm Triad Advisors for brokerage services. They have also affiliated with Triad Hybrid Solutions, one of Triad's two corporate registered investment advisors (RIAs), to support their advisory / fee-based operations. The announcement reinforces Triad's longstanding position as the leading destination for independent hybrid practices.

Advisor Group also includes FSC Securities, Royal Alliance Associates, SagePoint Financial, Securities America, and Woodbury Financial Services.

Jeff Rosenthal, President and CEO of Triad Advisors, said, "We are thrilled to welcome Tor and Tyler Saile to the Triad and Advisor Group family. Tor is a financial professional with a long and distinguished track record of providing exceptional client service, and Tyler brings great enthusiasm, talent, and energy to their mission of helping clients achieve their financial goals. We look forward to working with both of them to further elevate their growth trajectory. Triad is at the forefront of helping financial professionals succeed by enabling them to thrive in the business models of their choice. As the wealth management industry increasingly moves toward fee-based advisory services, we stand ready to support financial professionals in attaining their business goals."

Tor Saile has more than 20 years' experience in the wealth management industry, joining the independent channel in 2010, while Tyler Saile joined the practice in 2017. They specialize in investment management, retirement planning, estate planning, education planning and insurance consulting. Both financial professionals will continue to do business as Ironwood Family Wealth Advisors.

Greg Cornick, Advisor Group's President, Advice & Wealth Management, said, "The entire Advisor Group network of firms welcomes Tor and Tyler Saile, and we congratulate Jeff Rosenthal and his team for bringing aboard two exceptional financial professionals. Triad's continued recruiting momentum, along with that of our other firms, highlights the strong value proposition Advisor Group and its subsidiaries offer as the ideal destination for growth-minded independent financial professionals who seek maximum flexibility, choice and support across the full spectrum of business models. Going forward, we will continue to make the strategic investments necessary to put our professionals in the best position to serve their clients. As always, we're in their corner, now and for years to come."

About Triad Advisors

Triad Advisors is part of Advisor Group, one of the nation's largest networks of independent financial professionals. Headquartered in Atlanta, Triad is a national broker-dealer as well as a multi-custodial registered investment adviser firm that was an early pioneer and continued leader in the hybrid registered investment adviser marketplace. The company has more than 600 financial providers on its platform and provides a comprehensive set of products, trading and technology systems, as well as customized wealth management strategies. For more information, please visit www.triad-advisors.com.

About Advisor Group

Advisor Group, Inc. is the nation's largest network of independent wealth management firms, serving approximately 10,100 financial professionals and overseeing over $475 billion in client assets. The firm is mission-driven to support the strategic role that advisors can play in the lives of their clients. Cultivating a spirit of entrepreneurship and independence, Advisor Group champions the enduring value of financial professionals and is committed to being in their corner every step of the way. For more information visit https://www.advisorgroup.com.

Securities and investment advisory services are offered through the firms: FSC Securities Corporation, Royal Alliance Associates, Inc., SagePoint Financial, Inc., Triad Advisors, LLC, and Woodbury Financial Services, Inc., broker-dealers, registered investment advisers, and members of FINRA and SIPC. Securities are offered through Securities America, Inc., a broker-dealer and member of FINRA and SIPC. Advisory services are offered through Arbor Point Advisors, LLC, Ladenburg Thalmann Asset Management, Inc., Securities America Advisors, Inc., and Triad Hybrid Solutions, LLC, registered investment advisers. Advisory programs offered by FSC Securities Corporation, Royal Alliance Associates, Inc., SagePoint Financial, Inc., and Woodbury Financial Services, Inc., are sponsored by VISION2020 Wealth Management Corp., an affiliated registered investment adviser. Advisor Group, Inc. is an affiliate of these firms. 20 E. Thomas Rd., Ste. 2000, Phoenix, AZ, 85012. 866.481.0379.

Media Inquiries

Joseph Kuo / Chris Clemens

Haven Tower Group

424 317 4851 or 424 317 4854

[email protected] or [email protected]

SOURCE Advisor Group

Related Links

https://www.advisorgroup.com


AMSTERDAM, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ADYEN (AMS: ADYEN), the payments platform of choice for many of the world's leading companies, today announced the launch of Planet, the company's latest addition to its Impact product suite1. Planet allows Adyen's merchants to offer their shoppers the opportunity to offset the carbon footprint of their purchases at the end of the checkout process. This optional feature, which can be implemented at no additional cost to the merchant, directly supports climate action projects (e.g. reforestation or renewable energy). Planet is easy to integrate for merchants and causes no additional friction in the payment process, as the option to balance out the carbon footprint occurs after checkout.

In order to ensure the data quality of emissions per purchase calculated, Adyen partnered with South Pole to build its own greenhouse gas emissions2 calculator. For the selection of climate action projects, the South Pole partnership will continue to play an important role - providing over a decade's worth of experience in delivering positive environmental impact.

One of the first merchants to activate Planet is Kazidomi, an online supermarket chain with a health-based mission.

"We choose to partner with businesses that maintain a forward-thinking approach to sustainability, as we are a frontrunner in sustainable consumerism. Innovating over shared beliefs, like we did when integrating Planet, is illustrative of how we like to work," said Olivier Vangest, Head of Technology of Kazidomi. "We are excited to have added Planet to the frictionless payment experience we were already offering our shoppers via Adyen's single platform."

"Taking responsibility for our environmental footprint is part of our license to operate in today's society. To go further than that we built Planet, a feature that leverages our technology to help our merchants support environmental sustainability projects," said Ingo Uytdehaage, CFO of Adyen. "By joining forces with our merchants, we can generate positive environmental impact at scale."

About Adyen

Adyen (AMS: ADYEN) is the payments platform of choice for many of the world's leading companies, providing a modern end-to-end infrastructure connecting directly to Visa, Mastercard, and consumers' globally preferred payment methods. Adyen delivers frictionless payments across online, mobile, and in-store channels. With offices across the world, Adyen serves customers including Facebook, Uber, Spotify, Casper, Bonobos and L'Oreal. New products and features are announced via press releases and product updates on the company's website.

Learn more about social responsibility at Adyen here.

About Kazidomi

Kazidomi is more than an e-shop for healthy and natural products, it is a company that wants to make a difference by accelerating the transition to more sustainable consumption patterns in an innovative way. Kazidomi's promise? An enlightened selection of products that are good for your health and the planet at a fair price thanks to its membership system. Kazidomi members benefit from exclusive discounts on more than 3500 references carefully selected in partnership with their committee of health experts. In this catalog, Kazidomi strives to find 100% clean and innovative products adapted to the values and consumption habits of everyone. Certified B-Corp, since 2019, the label with the highest social, environmental, transparency and governance requirements, Kazidomi has confirmed that it is possible to use 'business as a force for good' and does not intend to stop there. 'This is the reason why Kazidomi decided to offer its customers to offset their orders carbon footprint in partnership with Adyen.'

Learn more about social responsibility at Kazidomi here.

About South Pole

South Pole recognizes that private sector climate action is essential to address climate change. To leverage this potential, South Pole focuses on working with large companies to reduce their environmental footprint while making concrete impacts on removing CO2 from the atmosphere through direct development of climate action projects. Founded in 2006, South Pole today has about 500 staff in 18 offices globally, and has developed about 1,000 projects responsible for removing, reducing or avoiding over 100 million tonnes of CO2e to date. South Pole has worked with over 1,000 companies and organizations on their climate journeys.

1 www.adyen.com/social-responsibility/impact

2 The product feature measures greenhouse gas emissions in tonnes of Carbon Dioxide Equivalents (tCO2e)  covering the six greenhouse gases defined in the Kyoto Protocol by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. These six gases are carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perufluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6).

SOURCE Adyen

Related Links

https://www.adyen.com


PERTH, Australia, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --Alloy Steel International, Inc. (OTC: AYSI) advises that its 2021 Financial year Second Quarter Report for the six months ended March 31, 2021 is now available on www.otcmarkets.com website by searching for AYSI then choosing "Filings and Disclosure."

About Alloy Steel

Alloy Steel manufactures and distributes Arcoplate, a technically superior and market leading 'alloy overlay' wear plate, servicing the global marketplace from its modern manufacturing facilities in Perth, Australia. Arcoplate is used throughout the mining and materials processing industries, from opportunistic one-off specialty applications in small companies to large relationship based repeat business applications with leading international companies.

Arcoplate provides users with superior wear protection due to its premium alloy mix, its high ratio of carbide rich alloy and its unique manner of manufacture. The product's technical superiority combined with its unbeatable 'whole-of-life' cost has resulted in Arcoplate's wide acceptance in the mining and mineral processing industries to reduce wear in a host of fixed plant and mobile equipment applications.

In mining and materials processing industries, where premature equipment wear is the primary cause of downtime, to undertake repairs or refurbishment, Arcoplate can provide users with significant profit improvement. Arcoplate can substantially lower equipment downtime, resulting in higher production, whilst also lowering the overall cost of wear protection.

Furthermore, in applications where material 'hang-up' or 'carry-back' are also a significant cause of lost production, such as sticky materials that do not discharge freely from truck trays, buckets and chutes, Arcoplate's unique characteristic of polishing to a very low friction factor has the potential to virtually eliminate these problems, whilst simultaneously providing enhanced equipment wear life.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

Thushara Sam Dahanayake

Company Secretary

+61-8-9248 3188

SOURCE Alloy Steel International, Inc.

Related Links

http://alloysteel.net


PHILADELPHIA, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- American Bible Society today released the first two chapters of their 11th annual State of the Bible report, which highlights cultural trends in the U.S. regarding spirituality and Scripture engagement. Today's release shows that millions more Americans turned to the Bible in the past year than in previous years; one in four U.S. adults report a more frequent Bible reading habit than did last year. The first two chapters are currently available to download at StateoftheBible.org .

"Over the past year, Americans have faced a once-in-a-century pandemicalong with significant political and social unrest," said John Farquhar Plake, PhD and director of ministry intelligence for American Bible Society. "However, our research shows that in the midst of incredible pressure, Americans are finding hope and resilience in the Bible. This marks the fourth straight year in a trend of Americans moving toward the Bible, with COVID-19 encouraging many of us to look to faith for answers. There's an astounding opportunity right now for the Church to answer our nation's pervasive trauma and pain with the hope and healing of God's Word."

The findings come from a survey conducted in January 2021, in which data were gathered from 3,354 online interviews with American adults in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, with an additional 91 responses from Gen Z youth. For this year's report, American Bible Society will release nine chapters throughout the year. The first chapter, The Bible in America, examines Scripture engagement and key trends around the Bible since the last study in 2020. The second chapter, The New Normal, looks at how the COVID-19 pandemic has changed people's relationships with the Bible and examines the role of the church in helping people read and apply Scripture to their lives.

Key findings analyzed in Chapter 1: The Bible in America

Over half of U.S. adults believe that America would be worse off without the Bible, which is a 5-percent increase since last year, and one in three American adults (33%) believe America would be the same with or without the Bible (page 3). Seven in ten Americans also claim a view that regards Scripture as the Word of God, with half of Americans deeming the Bible to be without error (page 7).

Over 181 million Americans opened a Bible in the past year, which is up significantly from 2020, when 169 million adults used the Bible at least occasionally. One in six U.S. adults (16%) read the Bible most days during the week, up from 12 percent in 2020 (page 9). Nearly two in three Americans (63%) say their Bible usage is the same as last year, while one in ten (9%) say it has decreased. However, one in four U.S. adults report a more frequent Bible reading habit (page 10).

While virtual interactions and device-dependency increased in nearly every aspect of daily life during the pandemic, six in ten Americans still indicate they prefer print or paper Bibles (page 13). Those who are Scripture Engaged* (27%) are about twice as likely to prefer reading the Bible on their smartphones or tablets as those who are Bible Disengaged* (page 14).

Ninety-five million Americans now are "test-driving the Bible," looking for hope and wisdom. For the fourth straight year, there have been declines in the overall number of Bible Disengaged* individuals and corresponding growth in the Movable Middle* segment.

Key findings analyzed in Chapter 2: The New Normal

Among parents with dependent children at home prior to June 2020 , mothers saw a sharp decline in their Scripture engagement, falling from a score of 78 to 73 on average. Since then, mothers with children at home have recovered their summer losses and now average 78 on the Scripture engagement scale.

, mothers saw a sharp decline in their Scripture engagement, falling from a score of 78 to 73 on average. Since then, mothers with children at home have recovered their summer losses and now average 78 on the Scripture engagement scale. Congregants who attend churches with both in-person and online service options expressed more positive opinions of their church experience than congregants at churches with only one service option, suggesting that adding online services is a valuable option for churches. Those who attend both types of services are most likely to strongly agree (44%) that their services increased their desire to read the Bible (page 45). Roughly half of respondents--regardless of whether they attend in person, online, or both--strongly agree that church services increased their sense of connection to God (page 47).

While dealing with the stress of COVID-19, Americans found comfort in relationships (53%), activities (52%), substances (46%), and spirituality (44%). The data also revealed that women are more likely to engage with specific sources of comfort, particularly relational and spiritual sources. The Bible ranks seventh overall at 23% (page 51).

Black Americans, regardless of their age, select "prayer and/or meditation" as their top comfort and "reading the Bible" as one of their top three comforts, unlike any other group--reflecting the longstanding tradition of Scripture engagement in the Black church. White Americans choose prayer and/or meditation as one of their top three comforts (pages 53-54).

Between June and December 2021, American Bible Society will release seven new chapters in the State of the Bible story, including reports on how Americans turn to the Bible in times of stress; the connection between holistic health and the Bible; how Gen Z understands the Bible and faith; and the relationship between the Bible, money, and generosity.

To download the first two chapters of the State of the Bible 2021 ebook, visit StateoftheBible.org .

*For descriptions on how Scripture engagement was measured and reported, please see page 30 of the ebook available for download at StateoftheBible.org.

About American Bible Society

Since 1816, American Bible Society has been making the Bible available to every person in a language and format each can understand and afford, so all people may experience its life-changing message. One of the nation's first and most enduring ministries, American Bible Society today advocates for all people to apply the Bible's teachings to their lives in a way that transforms their relationship with God and others. For free Bible resources or to join the Bible cause, visit AmericanBible.org.

SOURCE American Bible Society
BELLEVUE, Wash. and CALABASAS, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Puget Sound commercial and residential real estate developer Oakpointe Communities (Oakpointe) and American Homes 4 Rent (AH4R /NYSE: AMH) announced today that AH4R is opening a single-family rental home community in the Ten Trails master planned community in Black Diamond, Washington.

"Our vision for Ten Trails has always been to create a community where residents want to live, explore and relax in southeast King County, and offering single-family rental homes is a big part of making that a reality," said Brian Ross, CEO of Oakpointe. "These new homes will allow more families to experience the great quality of life that Ten Trails can offer."

The new AH4R community is the company's 70th new rental home community nationally and the seventh in the Seattle market.

American Homes 4 Rent's 61 single-family rental homes within the Ten Trails community are located at the intersection of Pine Avenue SE and Willow Road SE, which is one of the neighborhood's primary streets. The three- and four-bedroom homes range in size from approximately 1,400 to 1,800 square feet and feature high-end finishes, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, luxury vinyl plank flooring, open-concept floor plans, central heating, two-car garages and the added benefits of lawn care and pet-friendly fenced yards.

"We are proud to partner with Oakpointe as we bring an innovative new community to Ten Trails and expand our presence in the greater Seattle area," said Zack Johnson, Executive Vice President of Acquisitions & Development for AH4R. "AH4R continues to attract the attention of real estate development companies that recognize the benefits of incorporating a single-family rental home community in their master planned community."

The offering from American Homes 4 Rent is the first single-family homes for rent at Ten Trails.

Construction on the fast-growing community of Ten Trails began in 2017, and the community is now welcoming new families all the time. The master planned community features a variety of home styles, parks, trails, a future retail center and more. It will eventually offer 4,800 residences and more than 1.2 million square feet of commercial office and retail space  all commuting distance from downtown Seattle.

Visit ah4rc.com/tentrails or call (206) 686-3177 to learn more about floorplans, pricing and availability of homes from American Homes 4 Rent.

About Oakpointe Communities

Oakpointe Communities is one of the Pacific Northwest's premier land and commercial development companies. Together with a team of the areas most respected homebuilding professionals, it has built many of the best places to live in the Puget Sound region. Oakpointe's expertise, combined with innovative home design, allows it to create communities that bring neighbors together. Learn more about Oakpointe Communities by visiting www.oakpointe.com.

About American Homes 4 Rent

American Homes 4 Rent (NYSE: AMH) is a leader in the single-family home rental industry and "American Homes 4 Rent" is fast becoming a nationally recognized brand for rental homes, known for high-quality, good value and tenant satisfaction. We are an internally managed Maryland real estate investment trust, or REIT, focused on acquiring, developing, renovating, leasing, and operating attractive, single-family homes as rental properties. As of March 31, 2021, we owned 53,984 single-family properties in selected submarkets in 22 states.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Aaron Blank/Nikki Arnone, Fearey for Oakpointe

(206) 343-1543, [email protected]

Megan Grabos for American Homes 4 Rent

(805) 413-5088, [email protected]

SOURCE American Homes 4 Rent

Related Links

https://www.americanhomes4rent.com


SAN ANTONIO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Anago Cleaning Systems, an industry-leading commercial cleaning franchise with over 1,700 Regional and Unit Franchises throughout the U.S. and Canada, announced its newest franchise owners in San Antonio. Husband and wife team Erik and Emily Buttlar will lead this new territory in Texas for the popular commercial cleaning franchise, adding more entrepreneurial opportunities for the Lone Star State.

When discussing what Anago offered versus other commercial cleaning franchise companies, Erik and Emily said, "Anago offered unlimited growth potential. Pair that with the fact we get to work together close to home, a sprawling five-county territory, and the ability to help people start their own business as well as help the community made Anago the only choice for us."

San Antonio is a rapidly growing city and is the 4th among Texas metropolitan areas and 38th in America. The city has a diverse economy featuring military, financial services, health care, and tourism sectors. Downtown San Antonio has various hospitals, research centers, clinics, and prominent educational institutes. Eventually, the city is forecasted to offer a business opportunity in every field, many of which will require commercial cleaning and janitorial services. Commercial cleaning was listed as a frontline, essential operation during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and is expected to remain a key business operational necessity to keep brick and mortar businesses clean and sanitized.

"We are thrilled to welcome Emily and Erik Buttlar to the Anago family," said Adam Povlitz, CEO & President of Anago Cleaning Systems. "San Antonio is a key market in Texas, and the Buttlars' unique business experience and entrepreneurial passion fit the Anago model of success perfectly. We look forward to the launch of Anago of San Antonio's Master Franchise operations and look forward to many years of growth and success."

When discussing what Anago offered versus other commercial cleaning franchise companies, Erik and Emily said, "Anago offered unlimited growth potential. Pair that with the fact we get to work together close to home, a sprawling five-county territory, and the ability to help people start their own business as well as help the community made Anago the only choice for us."

"San Antonio is poised for substantial growth and is one of the nation's fastest-growing cities," added Emily. "After COVID-19, business owners are looking for ways to not only keep but make their employees and customers feel safe. Vaccination has brought our city a long way on the journey to "back to normal" status. Anago, with our standard cleaning protocols and our ability to disinfect all surfaces with EPA grade disinfectant, will help bring the city the rest of the way."

The husband-and-wife team has years of combined experience. Erik worked for a major retailer for the last 30 years, the last ten being at the executive level focusing on loss prevention and safety. He held many different positions in the company, starting as a supervisor and working his way up to a vice president. For the last 17 years, Emily was a stay-at-home mom and very involved in her children's activities and volunteering at school. Before that, she was an executive administrator and meeting planner.

"Anago unit franchise opportunities are extremely affordable, and the Anago model is designed to help franchisees every step of the way toward business growth and development," said Erik. "Anago of San Antonio is in the position to provide avenues for franchisees to find additional specialty training should they choose to extend their business into a niche market where specific cleaning certifications are required."

When not creating entrepreneurial opportunities for the Anago Master Franchise, Emily and Erik enjoy spending time with their three children and raising miniature Herefords on their small Texas farm.

Anago Cleaning Systems is a pioneer of the franchise system for both master and unit franchises, allowing successful mid-career professionals to operate their exclusive regional franchises while allowing small businesses to invest in their success. Both levels focus on running their business while Anago Cleaning Systems provides assistance, guidance, and critical tools to grow.

The Anago of San Antonio office is located off I-10 in San Antonio, just two exits away from the RIM Shopping Center in the Grey Oaks business complex. The address is 23705 IH-10, Suite 300, San Antonio, TX 78257, and can be reached by calling 210-664-0222. To explore regional franchise opportunities with Anago, contact Judy Walker, Senior Vice President of Marketing, at 800-213-5857 or [email protected] or visit http://www.AnagoMasters.com.

About Anago Cleaning Systems

Anago Cleaning Systems is an international commercial cleaning franchise brand. Utilizing the Master Franchise System, Anago supports over 45 Master Franchisees and over 1,700 Unit Franchisees. Founded in 1989, Anago has set the worldwide standard in business support and structure for local and regional companies to provide unparalleled cleaning services to businesses of all kinds. Anago was ranked #33 overall by Entrepreneur magazine in its latest Franchise 500 ranking. In 2021, Anago's South Florida international headquarters earned the coveted GBAC STAR accreditation for implementing strict protocols for biorisk situations. For further information, visit its website at AnagoMasters.com.

Press Contact: Perry Athanason/TopFireMedia/[email protected]/917-319-2126.

SOURCE Anago Cleaning Systems

Related Links

http://www.AnagoMasters.com


The Tesla boss has set up a poll on the microblogging site to gauge interest in the idea, mere months after the electric car firm announced it would allow customers to purchase its vehicles using Bitcoin

Dogecoin could soon be joining Bitcoin among the cryptos that can be used to buy a Tesla after the companys billionaire boss and serial crypto market mover Elon Musk posted a Twitter poll to gauge interest in the concept.

Do you want Tesla to accept Doge?  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 11, 2021

As of lunchtime on Tuesday, two hours after the poll went live, users appeared to be receptive to the idea, with around 77% of the 1.69mln voters responding in the affirmative.

While the reliability of a Twitter poll is understandably questionable, the idea of the electric car maker accepting the meme-inspired cryptocurrency would be a huge boon for its validation as a genuine store of value, despite being founded as something of a joke back in 2014.

The concept of Dogecoin serving as more than a speculative investment also arose on Monday after Canadian firm Geometric Energy Corp (GEC) said it will use the crypto to pay for the DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon, which is scheduled to launch a 40-kilogram satellite as part of a lunar payload mission aboard SpaceXs Falcon 9 rocket in the first quarter of next year.

Such a move could also help pull Dogecoin out of its recent slump, with the crypto reaching an all-time high on Saturday morning before declining sharply over the weekend.

The cause of the downturn may also lie with Musk himself after the billionaire branded referred to Dogecoin as a hustle in an appearance on US sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live.

The price of Dogecoin was down 0.6% in the last 24 hours at US$0.5 in lunchtime trading on Tuesday, although it is still up around 9,900% so far this year.
ROCHESTER, Mich., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Under the leadership of President Mark Angott, the Angott Search Group (ASG) has recently celebrated its 40th anniversary in the recruitment industry. Over those four decades the firm has grown to become a powerhouse in the banking and financial services arena, while also serving the automotive, legal, and energy sectors. The firm has placed over 4,000 candidates into full-time roles over the years and generated over $75mm in revenues.

"This is a major milestone for us," says Angott. "Our client base has been very loyal over the past 40 years, which means that we've done a good job of bringing top talent to them and positively impacting their companies. I believe that our core values of honesty, integrity, and professionalism have led to our success in this industry. We are committed to always acting in the best interests of our clients and candidates."

When Angott started with the firm in 1981, the recruitment industry looked very different, relying on dial-up phones and fax machines to match up clients and candidates. "We have been able to adapt quickly and effectively to changes in the recruitment landscape," says Angott, who took over the practice in 1990. "An ever-evolving digital environment requires recruiters to develop a new set of skills, and rather than resist these advancements, we recognize that digital tools are now the primary vehicle for talent engagement and acquisition. ASG has made a point to equip our associates with the most advanced technological resources available to facilitate achieving better and quicker results for our clients."

Even in the current market, the talent pool of skilled professionals remains slim, according to Angott. "Not everyone is looking for a job," he says. "Our experience suggests that, for any given position, only ten percent of the relevant, experienced talent is actively looking to make a move. That means that 90 percent of the candidates who might be right for the position are not engaged in job searches  and the best candidates are typically among them."

Kelly Potes, CEO of Choice One Bank, finds this to be true: "We have had a long relationship and great success with Angott Search Group. They have been able to source talent for us that we would not have gotten on our own. They are our 'go to' search company for our executive and production staff needs."

The recruiters at ASG also recognize the importance of helping their clients communicate their employer brand. "Today's professional workforce expects better career development opportunities, increased flexibility, and overall workplace satisfaction. We present our clients and their opportunities in a way that attracts the best possible candidates and promotes longevity," says Angott.

"Angott Search Group has successfully recruited key members of our team within senior leadership, commercial lending, wealth management, and retail banking," says H. Douglas Chaffin, Retired President of Monroe Bank and Trust. "Most importantly, the retention of those recruited by ASG has been very strong, as they take the time to ensure there's an appropriate match from a skills perspective as well as culturally."

As proof that ASG practices what it preaches, they have been selected as one of Metro Detroit's 101 Best & Brightest Companies to Work For each of the last ten years; recognition based on factors such as work/life balance, training opportunities, and corporate culture. Angott's effective leadership is reflected in the tenure of his team  many of whom have worked for ASG for between ten and twenty years  in a space that typically sees significant turnover. And it's not just his own people who stay  his client base boasts 70 percent repeat business.

"We are very grateful for the loyalty of our clients," says Angott. "And I personally am especially grateful to my team for making our success possible even in the toughest of times."

About Angott Search Group

Angott Search Group ( www.asgteam.com ) is a nationally recognized, full-service executive search firm with forty years of experience building solid corporate partnerships by matching their clients' culture, goals and expectations with exceptional people. When you partner with ASG, you benefit from nearly 200 years of combined recruiting experience while leveraging our strong network that they have built for four decades years. As a tenured team of consultants, their focus is to provide insightful hiring and recruitment solutions for employers looking to attract top talent to strengthen their organizations.

SOURCE Angott Search Group

Related Links

http://www.asgteam.com


LOS ANGELES, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Appia Bio, Inc., an early stage biotechnology company developing engineered allogeneic cell therapies from hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) for cancer patients, today announced its launch from stealth backed by $52 million Series A financing led by 8VC. Other investors included Two Sigma Ventures, among others, and participation from seed investors Sherpa Healthcare Partners and Freeflow Ventures.

Appia Bio is focused on discovering and developing off-the-shelf allogeneic cell therapies across a broad array of cancer indications, utilizing a scalable technology platform with the goal to increase access for patients. With its ACUA technology platform, Appia Bio leverages the biology of lymphocyte development with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) and T-cell receptor (TCR) gene engineering to generate CAR-engineered invariant natural killer T (CAR-iNKT) cells from HSCs. The ACUA platform originated from groundbreaking research in the laboratory of Lili Yang, PhD, associate professor at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and her collaborations with the Company's other scientific founders.

Proceeds from the financing will support the advancement of Appia Bio's pipeline of allogeneic CAR-iNKT cell therapy candidates into the clinic. As part of the Series A financing, Francisco Gimenez, PhD, partner, and David Moskowitz, PhD, principal, at 8VC, join the Company's board of directors, and David Baltimore, PhD, of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) was elected chairman of the Board.

"There is tremendous potential to be explored in allogeneic cell therapies. The Board and I look forward to working with this stellar team to create transformative cell therapies that will help patients and the physicians who treat them," said Dr. Baltimore.

"We are grateful to our new and existing investors for their commitment to bring off-the-shelf allogeneic cell therapies to more patients," said JJ Kang, PhD, co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Appia Bio. "This financing will position us to rapidly build out our CAR-iNKT pipeline and establish the clinical potential of our ACUA platform. We are excited to work with an outstanding Scientific Advisory Board that brings together world-class expertise and experience across the many fields necessary to develop cell therapies."

Appia Bio announced the establishment of a Scientific Advisory Board with leaders in immunology, immuno-oncology, and cell therapy engineering. These experts join Appia Bio's scientific founders in advising the Company's research and development.

Mitchell Kronenberg , PhD, president and CSO, La Jolla Institute for Immunology

, PhD, president and CSO, La Jolla Institute for Immunology Antoni Ribas , MD, PhD, professor of medicine, UCLA , and director of the Tumor Immunology Program at the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center

, MD, PhD, professor of medicine, , and director of the Tumor Immunology Program at the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center Margo Roberts , PhD, former CSO, Kite Pharma and Lyell Immunopharma

"We are thrilled to partner with Appia Bio as it typifies the innovative, founder-driven start-ups we love to empower," said Dr. Gimenez. "Appia unifies compelling biology of iNKT cells with the power of CARs. This is only possible because of their fundamental innovations in manufacturing and engineering these cells."

The Company was founded in 2020 in Los Angeles, California, by a team of experts and industry leaders with a proven track record of cell therapy development and company building.

David Baltimore , PhD, Nobel Laureate, president emeritus and distinguished professor of biology, Caltech

, PhD, Nobel Laureate, president emeritus and distinguished professor of biology, Caltech JJ Kang, PhD, CEO, Appia Bio; former partner, The Column Group

Edmund Kim , PhD, chief operating officer of Appia Bio; former vice president of corporate development, Kite Pharma

, PhD, chief operating officer of Appia Bio; former vice president of corporate development, Kite Pharma Pin Wang, PhD, professor of chemical engineering and materials science and biomedical engineering, University of Southern California ( USC )

( ) Jeff Wiezorek , MD, chief medical officer, Appia Bio; former head of cell therapy development, Kite Pharma

, MD, chief medical officer, Appia Bio; former head of cell therapy development, Kite Pharma Lili Yang , PhD, associate professor of microbiology, immunology, and molecular genetics, UCLA

About Appia Bio

Appia Bio is an early stage biotechnology company based in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 2020, Appia Bio is focused on discovering and developing engineered allogeneic cell therapies across a broad array of indications with a scalable technology platform that increases access for patients. With its ACUA (Appia Cells Utilized for Allogeneic) technology platform, Appia Bio leverages the biology of lymphocyte development with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) and T-cell receptor (TCR) gene engineering to generate CAR-engineered invariant natural killer T (CAR-iNKT) cell subtypes from hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). For more information, please visit www.appiabio.com.

SOURCE Appia Bio

Related Links

http://www.appiabio.com


BOSTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Apptopia Inc., the leader in real-time competitive intelligence, today announced the close of a $20 million financing round led by ABS Capital Partners with participation from existing investors, including Blossom Street Ventures. The company has been profitable for the past year while growing revenue 50% year-over-year for the past three years in a row. This new strategic partnership is anchored in scaling the company and growing its addressable market through investing in ethically sourced data outside of mobile apps. The goal of the new data sets is to provide brands with a 360-degree view of consumer engagement on their competition.

Founded in 2011, Apptopia enables brands to analyze critical signals on their competitors across mobile apps and connected devices. While mobile app data has consistently proven to be a strong signal for digital on a whole, the growth in connected devices in our daily lives is undeniable. Apptopia is now in a prime position to provide visibility into consumer behavior across "apps" on any device in the household. We believe deeply that this will unlock insights that answer larger and more impactful questions within our customers' organizations.

In reaching this stage and in alignment with this new direction for the company, Apptopia co-founder and CEO Eliran Sapir is transitioning to chairman of the board, and co-founder and COO Jonathan Kay will take his place as CEO.

"We have seen a burgeoning need for access to a comprehensive, best-in-class competitive intelligence solution across the entire business organization," said Eliran Sapir, co-founder and chairman of Apptopia. "Apptopia is uniquely suited to provide this intelligence and is changing the way businesses understand and engage with customers. The additional capital will enable us to accelerate our current momentum, empowering businesses across the world with the data they need to outsmart their competition in today's digital-first economy."

Transparency and sustainability as it pertains to Apptopia's data collection and estimation are of the utmost importance to the company and its employees. No personal identifiable information has ever been used or collected and the plan is to keep it that way. The company takes pride in this and will continue to invest in technology in order to build its business the right way, keeping its clients unexposed to unnecessary risk.

"As digital continues to be a large part of brand strategy and people's lives, measurement is becoming even more crucial," said Jonathan Kay, co-founder and CEO of Apptopia. "Over the past few years, we've seen the importance in the questions we help brands answer increase dramatically. Seeing where the industry is headed, we have a unique opportunity to become the data intelligence platform with the largest breadth and visibility across all connected devices. ABS Capital's experience, network, and leadership is crucial in achieving this goal."

Apptopia recently launched the first mobile intelligence app in the Bloomberg App Portal on the Bloomberg Terminal, enabling traders, investors, portfolio managers, and chief investment officers to easily access and analyze mobile app data directly within the Bloomberg Terminal.

"We see the financial services sector as a significant growth opportunity for Apptopia as indicated by the early success of its partnership with Bloomberg," said Mike Avon, a managing partner at ABS Capital. "ABS Capital, having successfully invested in a number of SaaS companies over the years, recognizes Apptopia's strong growth as a key indicator of future success." As part of the transaction, Mike Avon and Paul Mariani from ABS Capital are joining Apptopia's Board of Directors.

The company is honored to be named in Forbes' 2021 list of America's Best Startup Employers. Apptopia has also been named to Financial Times' Americas' fastest-growing companies list two years in a row. A portion of the funding will be used to continue to hire top talent as the company scales. Current Apptopia customers consist of hundreds of leading corporations and financial institutions, including Google, Visa, Coca-Cola, Target, Zoom, NBC, Unity Technologies, Microsoft, Adobe, Glu, Andreesen Horowitz and Facebook.

About Apptopia

Apptopia is the leader in real-time competitive intelligence. Brands and financial firms use our platform to generate insights across mobile apps and connected devices. Powered by machine learning technology, we collect and analyze billions of complex data points to surface critical business signals. Leading brands including Visa, Target, and Microsoft rely on Apptopia to better understand consumer behavior and intent across app-based devices to gain a competitive advantage. Financial analysts access our data analytics via the Bloomberg Terminal to generate revenue estimates, monitor consumer engagement across devices, and gain insight into competitive positioning.

Visit apptopia.com or follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter to see our insights.

About ABS Capital Partners

For over 30 years, ABS Capital has been investing in later-stage growth companies, helping CEOs capitalize on new opportunities and navigate unforeseen obstacles  while never losing sight of the ultimate goal of achieving lasting excellence. Our partners have decades of experience as C-level executives, investment bankers, and investors in the industries in which we invest: business and tech-enabled services and health care. This combination of experience and expertise means we have a laser-focus on the specific needs growth companies face as they look to get to the next level. By helping to transform over 130 companies through their most important stage of development, ABS continues to help unleash the potential for lasting growth. ABS Capital Partners. Here, we grow. For more information, visit www.abscapital.com .

Media Contact:

Adam Blacker

617-963-0965

[email protected]

SOURCE Apptopia

Related Links

http://www.apptopia.com


Throughout the past year, many young adults have been forced to miss significant life events or milestones like graduation, starting a new job or moving out due to the COVID-19 pandemic. New research indicates that these abrupt pandemic-related changes have taken their toll on the mental health of young adults. According to a recent CDC survey, younger U.S. adults reported worse mental health outcomes and increased substance abuse during the pandemic. 1 Additionally, recent Ad Council research indicates that compared to older adults, young people report feeling more negative emotions during COVID-19, including isolation and depression. 2

To encourage young people to check in with one another, the Seize the Awkward Instagram will release an original, four-part video series featuring Dr. Doreen Marshall of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and Dr. Wenimo Okoya of The Jed Foundation (JED). Created in partnership with production company Undefined Creative, the video series launches this week with its first video. Throughout the series, Drs. Marshall and Okoya will offer tips to help 16-24-year-olds spot the signs of a friend who may be struggling, ways to reach out and start a conversation and tools to follow up.

"As the country continues to reopen, many young adults are going through a new phase of transition," said Heidi Arthur, chief campaign development officer at the Ad Council. "Seize the Awkward is poised to continue to provide resources that empower young adults to check in on each other's mental health as they navigate these changes during this unique and challenging time."

Young adulthood is a critical time when many people experience mental health issues as well as significant stress from life transitions such as gaining more independence and responsibility when moving from home and beginning college or a career. Suicide is also the second leading cause of death among young adults and for every youth suicide it is estimated that 100-200 others attempt suicide.3

"Research shows us that young people are experiencing increased distress during the pandemic and they are willing to have conversations about mental health but they don't always know what to say. That is why we have taken steps to create relatable resources to help them navigate these sometimes awkward conversations. During Mental Health Awareness Month, we will be sharing new tools to have conversations about and take care of our own mental health. These actions have the potential to save lives," said Dr. Christine Moutier, the chief medical officer at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

Additionally, several popular TikTok and Instagram creators including, Bryce Xavier, Dani Donovan, GegetheJing, Joyce Wert, Liya Hizkias and Shahem, musical group lovelytheband and musicians Alaina Castillo, Daya, Elle Winter, Jensen McRae and Kat Cunning will create original content supporting the Seize the Awkward campaign for sharing across their channels throughout the month of May. Cumulatively, the group maintains an online audience of over 7.8 million people.

"As we continue to address the emotional toll of a global pandemic, the resources and tools we're providing through Seize the Awkward are essential," said John MacPhee, executive director and CEO at The Jed Foundation (JED). "We believe that checking in on one another's mental health can be life saving and we're proud to be a part of this campaign that continues to reach millions of young people."

Throughout the month of May, the following digital, social and media partners will also provide significant exposure and customized content for Seize the Awkward on their platforms:

GIPHY: In partnership with the campaign, the Ad Council commissioned GIPHY artists Grovertoons, Megan Motown and Trap Bob to create new conversation starter GIFs and Stickers for the current campaign collection that young adults can send to a friend showing comfort and support. GIPHY will support all the assets developed across their platform.

In partnership with the campaign, the Ad Council commissioned GIPHY artists Grovertoons, Megan Motown and Trap Bob to create new conversation starter GIFs and Stickers for the current campaign collection that young adults can send to a friend showing comfort and support. GIPHY will support all the assets developed across their platform. Holler: In a reprisal of its previous partnership with Seize the Awkward for World Emoji Day in 2020, the tech company will create new Goldie and Mo GIF stickers young people can use to support one another across chat messaging apps and keyboards, iMessage and more.

In a reprisal of its previous partnership with for World Emoji Day in 2020, the tech company will create new Goldie and Mo GIF stickers young people can use to support one another across chat messaging apps and keyboards, iMessage and more. Instagram: Beginning May 3 through the duration of the month, Instagram is providing the campaign with significant donated media support.

Beginning through the duration of the month, Instagram is providing the campaign with significant donated media support. Loop: On May 20 , Mental Health Action Day, join us on Loop, the app that brings people together to support each other, for a special Seize the Awkward conversation about the challenges of reaching out and checking in with a friend around their mental health. The "loop" will be hosted by Dr. Ali Mattu of The Jed Foundation (JED), and everyone is free to join or just listen in.

On , Mental Health Action Day, join us on Loop, the app that brings people together to support each other, for a special conversation about the challenges of reaching out and checking in with a friend around their mental health. The "loop" will be hosted by Dr. of The Jed Foundation (JED), and everyone is free to join or just listen in. Snap, Inc: In honor of the month, Snap is providing Seize the Awkward donated media support across Snap Ads and Story ads, which will run from April 5 through May 30 . Snap will also provide a Seize the Awkward branded national lens and filter. This will be the first time the campaign has a custom lens. The lens will be live on May 19 and the filter will be live on May 20 in conjunction with Mental Health Action Day.

In honor of the month, Snap is providing donated media support across Snap Ads and Story ads, which will run from . Snap will also provide a branded national lens and filter. This will be the first time the campaign has a custom lens. The lens will be live on and the filter will be live on in conjunction with Mental Health Action Day. TikTok: The leading destination for short-form mobile video, is providing donated support to the campaign throughout May.

Since its launch in January 2018, Seize the Awkward has garnered 45.1M million video views and over 1.8M sessions on SeizeTheAwkward.org, where visitors can explore resources and tools to help them start a conversation with a friend around mental health. In late August, the website relaunched with deeper resources to aid young people, including guidance on navigating specific topics like grieving the loss of a loved one, when talking to a friend about their mental health. The campaign also received the 2020 Shorty Award for Best Use of a Spokesperson for its partnership with musician Billie Eilish. To learn more about the campaign, visit SeizeTheAwkward.org and @SeizeTheAwkward on Instagram. To get immediate, free support 24/7, call 1-800-273-8255 or text "SEIZE" to 741741.

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP)

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is dedicated to saving lives and bringing hope to those affected by suicide. AFSP creates a culture that's smart about mental health through education and community programs, develops suicide prevention through research and advocacy, and provides support for those affected by suicide. Led by CEO Robert Gebbia and headquartered in New York, and with a public policy office in Washington, D.C., AFSP has local chapters in all 50 states with programs and events nationwide. Learn more about AFSP in its latest Annual Report, and join the conversation on suicide prevention by following AFSP on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

The Jed Foundation (JED)

JED is a nonprofit that exists to protect emotional health and prevent suicide for our nation's teens and young adults. We're partnering with high schools and colleges to strengthen their mental health, substance misuse and suicide prevention programs and systems. We're equipping teens and young adults with the skills and knowledge to help themselves and each other. We're encouraging community awareness, understanding and action for young adult mental health. Learn more at jedfoundation.org.

Check out our programs including: JED Campus (jedcampus.org), Set to Go (settogo.org), ULifeline (ulifeline.org), Half of Us (halfofus.com) and Love is Louder (loveislouder.com).

Connect with JED: Email | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | LinkedIn

The Ad Council

The Ad Council has a long history of creating life-saving public service communications in times of national crisis, starting in the organization's earliest days during World War II to September 11th and natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Sandy and, most recently, leading the industry's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Its deep relationships with media outlets, the creative community, issue experts and government leaders make the organization uniquely poised to quickly distribute life-saving impactful information to millions of Americans.

The Ad Council is where creativity and causes converge. The non-profit organization brings together the most creative minds in advertising, media, technology and marketing to address many of the nation's most important causes. The Ad Council has created many of the most iconic campaigns in advertising history. Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk. Smokey Bear. Love Has No Labels.

The Ad Council's innovative social good campaigns raise awareness, inspire action and save lives. To learn more, visit AdCouncil.org, follow the Ad Council's communities on Facebook and Twitter, and view the creative on YouTube.

1 CDC: Mental Health, Substance Use and Suicidal Ideation During the COVID-19 Pandemic  United States, June 24-30, 2020. Available at: cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6932a1.htm

2 Ad Council: Coping with COVID-19, What Americans Need, Feel and Fear About the Coronavirus Pandemic. 2020. Available at: http://covidresearch.adcouncilkit.org/findings_week2/

3 CDC; ACHA NCHA

SOURCE The Ad Council

Related Links

https://www.adcouncil.org/


PALO ALTO, Calif., and LONDON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Babylon today announced that its recent strategic partnerships and acquisitions -- combined with significant organic growth -- have made it the leading provider in digital-first value-based care in the United States, delivering quality end-to-end healthcare to nearly 100,000 Americans in some of the country's largest health plans. To support this growth Babylon also announced new U.S. offices in Palo Alto, Calif., to support its U.S. expansion.

"Over the last several months, we've made significant strides in our mission to put accessible, affordable and high quality healthcare in the hands of every person on Earth," said Babylon CEO Dr. Ali Parsa. "Nowhere is that happening faster than in the United States. Innovations in digital-first care are driving the entire industry forward, and Babylon offers a unique combination of technology and medical expertise to put people in charge of their own health and help keep them healthy."

Babylon combines an artificial intelligence powered platform with best-in-class, virtual clinical operations to give patients 24-hour access to information, health monitoring, and clinical professionals -- all from any mobile or internet-connected device. The result is Babylon 360, a re-engineering of healthcare with an aim of providing better outcomes at a lower cost and an orientation toward proactive, preventative care.

Offering both value-based care and traditional virtual health services, Babylon has performed approximately 2 million digital clinical consultations globally since launching in the United States in 2020, with U.S. business alone driving nearly 70 percent of the company's revenue and serving millions of Americans through a variety of 24/7/365 clinical services and the Babylon 360 digital platform.

In April, Babylon announced it had acquired Meritage Medical Network to complement strategic partnerships with Centene and FirstChoice Medical Group, among others. Nearly 100,000 Americans are now directly managed by Babylon through their Babylon 360 platform, and join millions more Medicaid, Medicare and commercial plan participants across the country that benefit from Babylon's portfolio of services. All told, Babylon covers approximately 24 million people around the globe.

To continue its U.S. growth trajectory and more directly access the wealth of medical and technological horsepower in Silicon Valley, Babylon is turning to Palo Alto to host its newest U.S. office, Parsa said.

"The Bay Area offers an unparalleled combination of medical expertise and technical innovation," he said. "We expect to tap those critical resources to more quickly advance the things we offer to our members, providers and the broader healthcare industry both in the United States and around the world."

Over the next 12 months Babylon expects to significantly build its U.S. presence in order to support its already-established 50 state clinical network, as well as further build on its leadership position and early momentum in digital-first value-based care. In addition to its new Palo Alto location, Babylon has offices in Austin, Texas, Denver, New York and Seattle.

About Babylon

Babylon is the leading global, digital-first, value-based care company whose mission is to make high-quality healthcare accessible and affordable for everyone on Earth.

We are re-engineering healthcare, shifting the main focus from sick to preventative care so that patients experience better health and reduced costs. This is achieved by leveraging a highly scalable, digital-first platform combined with high quality, virtual clinical operations to provide all-in-one, personalized healthcare. We endeavor to keep patients at the peak of health and get them back on their feet as quickly as possible, all from their devices, with the aim to promote longer and healthier lives. When sick, Babylon provides assistance to navigate the health system, connecting patients digitally to the right clinician 24/7, at no additional cost.

Founded in 2013, we have since delivered millions of clinical consultations and AI interactions, with ~2m clinical consultations and ~3.9m AI interactions in 2020 alone. We work with governments, health providers and insurers across the globe, and support healthcare facilities from small local practices to large hospitals. For more information, please visit www.babylonhealth.com/us .

About Babylon 360

Babylon is creating a better model of healthcare for everyone. Unlike traditional healthcare providers, Babylon 360 (B360) is digital-first care that's always there -- in sickness and good health. We combine cutting-edge AI-powered technology with human medical expertise to help members stay out of the hospital and in control of their health. Using a combination of our doctors' expertise and data, B360 gives members insights and information about their wellbeing, and allows users to set personalized health goals. B360 then provides patients with actions to help them achieve those goals. To help manage progress, B360 allows members to monitor their health and rewards them for making healthy choices to stay motivated and celebrate their progress. And if there's a problem, B360 gives access to a dedicated Personal Care Team, so patients can get the right care, medication and treatment needed. A dedicated Personal Care Team delivers a clear clinical care plan for treatment and recovery, and then once a patient is back on their feet, the Care Team goes back to helping to monitor their health.

SOURCE Babylon
ATLANTA, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A coalition of Black business owners and community leaders held a press conference today to demand that corporate leaders, particularly Atlanta-based companies take the time to understand the diversity of opinions within the Black community before taking sides on political matters.

The group called out the misleading rhetoric of far-left activist Stacey Abrams regarding the Georgia Election Integrity Act, reminding corporate America that the failed gubernatorial candidate does not speak for the interests or the opinions of all Black people.

"Stacey Abrams doesn't speak for the Black community; she speaks for the White liberals who bankroll her political ambitions," said Raynard Jackson, founder and chairman of the Black Americans for a Better Future Education Fund, which co-hosted the event with the Georgia Black Republican Council. "Stacey Abrams doesn't actually care about making it easier for Black people to vote; she only cares about making it easier for Democrats to vote."

The press conference participants said Abrams has deliberately misled people about numerous provisions of the Election Integrity Act  such as voter ID requirements, electioneering restrictions, and early voting rules  to fit her preconceived talking point that the law is "Jim Crow in a suit and tie." That rhetoric, they said, provoked a knee-jerk reaction by the CEOs of companies such as Delta and Coke, which wrongly assumed that Abrams was speaking on behalf of all Black people.

"Black people aren't stupid, but Stacey Abrams treats us like we are when she suggests that we aren't even capable of obtaining a photo ID," said Dr. Lisa Babbage of the Georgia Black Republican Council. "Frankly, it's insulting that corporate leaders were so willing to go along with her narrative of Black helplessness, and it's patronizing that they thought they were advancing the interest of Black voters by opposing this common-sense effort to ensure free and fair elections for all Georgians."

Speakers at the press conference also pointed out that the rhetoric by Stacey Abrams and President Joe Biden directly influenced the MLB's decision to move the 2021 All-Star Game out of Atlanta. The business owners, all of whom lost critical revenues at a time when they are trying to recover from the COVID-19 lockdowns, urged Atlanta residents and visitors to make a deliberate point to patronize locally owned small businesses, which are projected to lose out on at least $100 million in revenue due to the MLB's decision.

SOURCE Black Americans for a Better Future Education Fund
Blueprint and its attorneys were not surprised on Friday when Murphy's administration turned over a limited number of documents that were so heavily redacted, they could not be read. In an unexpected twist today, Division of Investment Director Corey Amon resigned. He is a named defendant in the case, leads the investment operation and was intimately involved in the delaying of Blueprint's information requests. It had also been brought to the New Jersey Teachers Union's (NJEA) attention by Blueprint's attorneys that Amon approved a $120 million investment in a fund partially owned by former Trump Education Secretary Betsy Devos. The letter was penned by well-respected litigator, Michael Bowe, partner of Brown Rudnick and Blueprint's legal counsel. The letter states, "We believe that this is yet another example of the administration saying one thing for election purposes but conducting the people's business in ways completely inconsistent with those public election pledges."

When seeking the NJEA endorsement Murphy said the following:

"We will need, more than ever before, a governor who has a steel backbone, who is prepared to stand up and say, "No, Secretary DeVos" or "No, President Trump, you will not do that in the great state of New Jersey." The state pension fund staff did not disclose the fund's ownership by DeVos which could be found in public records on the internet.

Blueprint is aiming to get unredacted documents by taking Murphy back to court. "The Division of Law, Treasury and Investments should come forward with the requested documents. We hope that Amon's departure signifies that Murphy, and his AG will allow truth and justice to prevail," said Blueprint CEO Jacob Walthour.

Walthour remains adamant that the State of New Jersey Division of Investment allegedly stole proprietary information and trade secrets and gave the information to Larry Fink's BlackRock Alternative Advisors. In a 100-page complaint filed in federal court last year, Blueprint alleges that the defendants have openly retaliated against his firm as they promised they would if he pursued litigation to resolve the matter. "We decided to pursue our case in court because we want truth and justice and we believe in holding people accountable for their promises," said Walthour.

The lawsuit alleges that Helmy and another Murphy aid delivered threatening messages to Walthour prior to the commencement of litigation. In one instance, a Murphy aid summoned Walthour to a New Jersey diner and explained that "Phil is going to win re-election and then people like you will be in the doghouse for like 6 years," explained the aid. Helmy sent a direct message through a politically connected, Democratic party lawyer that if Blueprint didn't cease its agitation the state would terminate the company's services. Amon attempted to take matters into his own hands and contacted Blueprint's client relationships prompting the issuance of a "cease a desist letter" against him by Blueprint's attorneys.

Governor Murphy was quoted as saying, "justice delayed is justice denied" in a recent public address. However, Blueprint alleges that the state's attorneys have consistently tried to prevent the release of public information in the matter of Blueprint.

The NAACP, National Urban League, New Jersey National Action Network and Chair of the New Jersey Legislative Black Caucus have called on Murphy to investigate the matter. "Its time to stop delaying justice," said Walthour.

SOURCE Blueprint Capital Advisors

Related Links

https://www.blueprintllc.com


"In the United States alone, approximately 48 million people suffer from some degree of hearing loss that interferes with their life. But the cost and complexity of treatment have become major barriers to getting help," said Brian Maguire, category director of Bose Hear. "The Bose Hear app lets owners set up and customize their SoundControl Hearing Aids from home  in less than an hour  to reconnect with the moments that matter. That's an amazing advancement the industry has been missing and nothing short of a breakthrough."

Optimized to Hear Better and Hear More

The Bose SoundControl Hearing Aids were developed by Bose scientists, audiologists, and engineers, combining over 30 years of research in mobile audio, mobile sound management, and advanced data science. It was optimized, conceptualized, developed, and tested solely to improve hearing and does not stream music or calls. With its proprietary technology, speech that once sounded mumbled  especially consonant sounds  is clearer; children's voices and softer voices are better heard and understood; and following and joining conversations is easier, even in noisy environments.

Revolutionary Bose CustomTune Technology and the Bose Hear App

Bose CustomTune technology is an advancement so significant it redefines hearing aids entirely. It's integrated in the Bose Hear app so users can personalize their settings in about 30 minutes  a seismic shift from the process required for conventional hearing aids. And it's deceptively simple, offering hundreds of options for fine-tuning from just two simple controls: World Volume can be turned up to amplify quiet sounds more than loud ones so listening is more comfortable, while Treble/Bass can adjust tone to accentuate or diminish certain vocal frequencies. Using Treble, what's heard is crisper and brighter; using Bass modifies richness and depth.

To help with communication or specific surroundings  whether outside or inside  there's also a Focus feature. Users can choose the Front setting to zone in on conversations  ideal in a busy environment. Or they can select the Everywhere setting to hear sounds all around  ideal for walks, working around the house, or a day at the park. Presets for activities and places can be named and stored in Modes, providing effortless access to preferences for a favorite restaurant, dinner at home with the family, or watching a movie together.

Choosing eartips is equally straightforward. SoundControl Hearing Aids come with three sizes, both open and closed dome. Finding the right fit and design is done with the app's step-by-step guide and plain-language tutorials.

Complimentary Video Appointments

The Bose Hear app also offers dedicated support. Customers can schedule one-on-one video appointments with Bose Hear Product Experts to get personalized help and guidance  at no cost.

Product Details  Discreet Design, Natural Audio, Batteries, Buttons, and More

Bose SoundControl Hearing Aids feature a behind-the-ear, receiver-in-canal design and deliver natural, lifelike audio. Each weighs 3 grams and contains two microphones, one tiny speaker, and a standard 312 zinc-air battery. Eight batteries are included in total, and one lasts up to four days when used 14 hours daily. They can be replaced wherever hearing aid batteries are sold and easily changed via a durable door on the exterior. There's also a World Volume button integrated on the housing for convenient, quick control. For added protection, SoundControl Hearing Aids are water-resistant to survive light exposure to rain or water and come with a small case for storage and transport.

Compatibility, Eligibility, and Bose.com

SoundControl Hearing Aids are compatible with iOS and Android devices, use low-energy Bluetooth, and are eligible for FSA and HSA reimbursement. Visitors to Bose.com can find additional information and details starting today.

Clinical Study

In a clinical study with researchers at Northwestern University, Bose CustomTune technology yielded results that were as good if not better than those achieved by traditional prescription-fitting methods used by audiologists. The study's participants were split into two groups with similar levels of hearing loss. One group used Bose CustomTune technology to self-tune a device, the other had the same device fit and tuned by an audiologist. Participants using Bose CustomTune technology reported being more satisfied with their sound quality than those whose devices were tuned by a hearing health professional.

About Bose Corporation

Bose Corporation was founded in 1964 by Dr. Amar G. Bose, then a professor of electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Today, the company is driven by its founding principles, investing in long-term research to develop new technologies with real customer benefits. Bose innovations have spanned decades and industries, creating and transforming categories in audio and beyond. Bose products for the home, in the car, on the go, and in public spaces have become iconic, changing the way people listen to music.

Bose Corporation is privately held. The company's spirit of invention, passion for excellence, and commitment to extraordinary experiences can be found around the world  everywhere Bose does business.

K211008

SOURCE Bose Corporation
ESSEN, Germany, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Brenntag (ISIN DE000A1DAHH0), the global market leader in chemicals and ingredients distribution, reports very strong results in the first quarter 2021 by prudently navigating through fast changing market conditions. The two global divisions Brenntag Essentials and Brenntag Specialties, had a successful start and both contributed strong results.

In Q1 2021, Brenntag generated sales of 3,132.5 million EUR. Operating gross profit rose by 7.4% to 764.5 million EUR. Operating EBITDA grew even more and reached 300.3 million EUR, a year-on-year increase of 20.7%. Earnings per share totaled 0.63 EUR compared to 0.74 EUR a year ago. The reduction is driven by a non-recurring, extraordinary increase in provisions related to a tax audit concerning past handling of alcohol taxes.

Since go-live on January 1, 2021, the company is steered in the new organizational set-up with two global divisions: Brenntag Essentials and Brenntag Specialties.

The Brenntag Essentials division which markets a broad portfolio of process chemicals across a wide range of industries contributed to the Group performance with outstanding results in the first quarter 2021. The division reached an operating gross profit of 472.5 million EUR (+7.1%) and reports a very strong operating EBITDA of 194.1 million EUR, 29.2% above prior-year period.

The Brenntag Specialties division builds on the company's position as the largest specialty chemicals distributor worldwide, focusing on six selected customer industries: Nutrition, Pharma, Personal Care / HI&I (Home, Industrial & Institutional), Material Science (Coatings & Constructions, Polymers, Rubber), Water Treatment and Lubricants. With an operating gross profit of 284.3 million EUR (+7.1%) and reported operating EBITDA of 119.8 million EUR (+9.2%), the division showed very positive results in the first quarter 2021.

Since go-live of its new operating model with the global divisions of Brenntag Essentials and Brenntag Specialties on January 1, 2021, the company has made good progress with the implementation of Project Brenntag. The comprehensive transformation program has the objective to expand Brenntag's position as global market leader and position the company for sustainable organic earnings growth. The first quarter consisted of the substantial work on the step-by-step implementation of the program's initiatives.

Against the background of the current environment and the results of the first quarter, Brenntag confirms its operating EBITDA guidance to be in the range of 1.08 to 1.18 bn EUR for the full year. The company expects both divisions to contribute to the growth of operating EBITDA.

Find all figures and details for the Q1 2021 results on Brenntag's website: www.brenntag.com/corporate/en/media/

Press contact:

Verena Blaschke

Brenntag SE

Global Communications

Telephone: +49 (201) 6496-1213

E-Mail: [email protected]

SOURCE Brenntag SE

Related Links

http://www.brenntag.com


Expands #1 leadership position

BOULDER, Colo., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - (TSX: CWEB) (OTCQX: CWBHF), Charlotte's Web Holdings, Inc. ("Charlotte's Web" or the "Company") the market share leader in full spectrum cannabidiol (CBD) hemp extract wellness products, today reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021. All amounts are expressed in United States' dollars, unless otherwise noted. Certain metrics, including those expressed on an adjusted basis, are non-IFRS measures.

Q1-2021 Financial Highlights

Consolidated revenue increased 9.1% to $23.4 million vs. $21.5 million in Q1-2020

vs. in Q1-2020 DTC eCommerce sales increased 14.5% year-over-year and contributed 68.9% of Q1 revenue

B2B net revenue decreased 1.4% year-over-year. Excluding non-retail B2B hemp drying services, comparable B2B retail sales increased 11.0% and expanded market share

Gross profit of $13.7 million , or 58.4% of consolidated revenue

, or 58.4% of consolidated revenue Operating expenses were 2.9% higher year-over-year and 15.2% lower from Q3-2020 in line with the cost reduction plan implemented Q4-2020

Adjusted EBITDA loss of $4.7 million vs. loss of $5.7 million in Q1-2020

vs. loss of in Q1-2020 $35.0 million cash (plus $10.8 million pending IRS tax receivable) and $95.6 million working capital on March 31, 2021

cash (plus pending IRS tax receivable) and working capital on $10 million unused line of credit with JPMorgan extendable to $20 million

Business Highlights

Expanded its number one market share position across major retail channels including total food/drug/mass retail ("F/D/M") and US natural specialty retail

Completed clinical study reaffirming the liver health safety of Charlotte's Web hemp derived CBD extracts and shared quantitative data study's results with the U.S. FDA

Secured future optionality to enter the US cannabis wellness category through a purchase option agreement to acquire Stanley Brothers cannabis business pending US federal legalization of cannabis

Three proprietary hemp cultivars approved for cultivation in Canada in 2021

in 2021 Secured three U.S. Patents for proprietary hemp cultivars bringing total patents to five

Successfully enforced its Charlotte's Web trademark

CW Labs announced a scientific collaboration researching hemp CBD efficacy with Harvard Medical School's Dr. Staci Gruber , Ph.D.

Dr. , Ph.D. Invested $1.6 million capex to substantially complete phase III expansion of new 137,000 sq. ft. facility with extraction infrastructure and R&D expansion

capex to substantially complete phase III expansion of new 137,000 sq. ft. facility with extraction infrastructure and R&D expansion Launched Charlotte's Web first THC-free broad spectrum extract tinctures and topicals

Supported federal and state legislative actions to help develop comprehensive regulatory framework with Federal Bill H.R. 841 and proposed regulations in CA and NY

"Despite reduced retail activity due to the pandemic, our directly comparable B2B retail sales showed year-over-year growth. Our B2B retail sales and velocities further strengthened in March and April as US vaccination programs support reopening of the economy, and our DTC sales continued to grow demonstrating long-term secular strength for our products in the e-commerce channel," said Deanie Elsner, CEO of Charlotte's Web. "We continued to expand our leading market position with quarterly market share gains across all of our channels. Internationally we have made our first moves into Israel and Canada with initial product sales planned for early 2022. We are pleased with our progress and believe that Charlotte's Web is well positioned to drive continued growth in the US and new growth in key international markets as we expand outside of the US."

Q1-2021 Financial Review

The following table sets forth selected financial information for the periods indicated.





Three months ended March 31, U.S. $ millions, except per share data

2021

2020









Revenue

$ 23.4

$ 21.5 Gross profit before biological assets adjustment



13.6



15.0 Net impact, fair value of biological assets







(0.1) Gross profit



13.7



15.1 Operating expenses



24.0



23.3













Operating loss



(10.3)



(8.3) Change in fair value of warrants and other expense (income), net



3.2



(3.1) Net loss and comprehensive loss



(13.9)



(11.5) Loss per share - basic

$ (0.10)

$ (0.11) Loss per share - diluted

$ (0.10)

$ (0.11) Adjusted EBITDA

$ (4.7)

$ (5.7)























Assets:

March 31, 2021

December 31, 2020 Cash and cash equivalents

$ 35.0

$ 52.8 Total assets

$ 295.6

$ 310.9 Liabilities:











Long-term liabilities

$ 27.8

$ 27.7 Total liabilities

$ 53.3

$ 56.7

The following information sets forth selected quarterly revenue information for the Company's recent fiscal quarters.

U.S. $ millions Q1 Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Q4 Q3 Q2

2021 2020 2020 2020 2020 2019 2019 2019 Revenue $ 23.4 $ 26.9 $ 25.2 $ 21.7 $ 21.5 $ 22.8 $ 25.0 $ 25.0

Consolidated net revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2021 increased 9.1% year-over-year to $23.4 million. DTC ecommerce net sales increased 14.5% reflecting increased marketing, targeted promotions as well as incremental demand for the Company's new topical and THC-free ingestible products. Year-over-year new consumer acquisitions increased 51% and conversion rates increased 27%. DTC accounted for 68.9% of total revenue in the first quarter of 2021 versus 65.6% for the same period in 2020.

Consolidated B2B revenue was consistent with the same period in 2020, however prior year B2B revenue included hemp drying services revenue which was not repeated in Q1-2021. In addition, during Q1-2021 the Company accepted product returns from a retail partner due to reduced shelf life as a result of extended time on shelves with the pandemic reducing retail traffic. Excluding these items, comparable net B2B retail sales increased 11.0% year-over-year. Higher volumes are primarily the result of the Company's expanding retail footprint and a successful competitive pricing realignment implemented in the second quarter of 2020, which together have somewhat offset COVID-19 related headwinds.

Higher retail volumes have been producing incremental quarterly gains in retail market share and Charlotte's Web holds the number one market share position across major retail channels including total US food/drug/mass retail, total US natural specialty retail, and ecommerce.







Three months ended

Year-over-year





March 31,









2021



2020

% Increase

(Decrease)



















Revenue - U.S. $ millions

$ 23.4

$ 21.5

9.1 %

















Direct-to-consumer ("DTC")

$ 16.1

$ 14.1

14.5 % Business-to-business ("B2B")

$ 7.3

$ 7.4

(1.4) %

Gross profit of $13.7 million was 58.4% of revenue compared to $15.1 million, or 70.3% of revenue last year. Lower gross profit primarily reflects product mix and a competitive pricing realignment implemented across the Company's product portfolio beginning in Q2-2020. The Company's leading gummy product line carries lower gross margins and contributed a larger portion of total revenue in Q1-2021. The Company anticipates gross profit improvements through pending production cost reductions in 2021.

Operating expenses were $24.0 million, a 2.9% year-over-year increase from $23.3 million. In response to lower B2B retail sales during the pandemic, in Q4-2020 management took actions to better align operating expenses through an expense optimization program targeting reductions of more than 10% of the Q3-2020 consolidated expense run rate. Q1-2021 operating expenses were 15.2% lower compared to Q3-2020, ahead of plan, and were achieved despite the additional expenses in Q1-2021 from the CW Labs R&D division and the acquisition of Abacus Health, which were not present for the full quarter in Q1-2020.

Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was negative $4.7 million, or (19.9)% of consolidated revenue, compared to negative EBITDA of $5.7 million, or (26.5)% of revenue, for the first quarter of 2020.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

The Company used $7.7 million of cash in operations during the first quarter of 2021 compared to $14.9 million of cash used in operations during the first quarter of 2020. During the quarter the Company paid total consideration of $8.0 million cash for an Option Purchase Agreement with Stanley Brothers USA Holdings, Inc. providing the optionality to acquire or own warrants Stanley Brothers USA upon federal legalization of cannabis in the United States. The Company's cash and working capital at March 31, 2021 were $35.0 million and $95.6 million, respectively, compared to $52.8 million and $113.6 million at December 31, 2020.



Three months ended











March 31









U.S. $ millions 2021

2020

$ Change

% Change Cash beginning of period $ 52.8

$ 68.6

$ (15.8)

(23.0) % Cash flows from (used in):













Operating activities (7.7)

(14.9)

7.2

(48.3) % Investing activities (9.1)

(1.6)

(7.5)

468.8 % Financing activities (1.0)

0.9

(1.9)

(211.1) % Cash, end of period $ 35.0

$ 53.0

$ (18.0)

(34.0) %

Consolidated Financial Statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis

The Company's unaudited financial statements and accompanying notes for the periods ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 and related management's discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations ("MD&A") are available under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at https://investors.charlottesweb.com.

Conference Call

Management will host a conference call to discuss the Company's first quarter 2021 results at 8:30a.m. ET on May 11, 2021. To participate in the call, please dial 1-647-427-7450 or 1-888-231-8191 approximately 10 minutes before the conference call and provide conference ID 5365736. A recording of the call will be available through May 18, 2021. To listen to the rebroadcast please dial 1-416-849-0833 and provide the same conference ID.

A webcast of the call can be accessed through the investor relations section of the Charlotte's Web website.

About Charlotte's Web Holdings, Inc.

Charlotte's Web Holdings, Inc., a Certified B Corporation headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, is the market leader in the production and distribution of innovative hemp-derived cannabidiol ("CBD") wellness products under a family of brands which includes Charlotte's Web, CBD Medic, CBD Clinic, and Harmony Hemp. The Company's premium quality products start with proprietary hemp genetics that are 100-percent American farm grown and manufactured into whole-plant hemp extracts containing a full spectrum of naturally occurring phytocannabinoids including CBD, CBC, CBG, terpenes, flavonoids and other beneficial hemp compounds. Charlotte's Web product categories include CBD oil tinctures (liquid products), CBD gummies (sleep, stress, inflammation recovery), CBD capsules, CBD topical creams and lotions, as well as CBD pet products for dogs. Charlotte's Web products are distributed to more than 14,000 retail, over 8,000 health care practitioners, and online through the Company's website at www.CharlottesWeb.com. Through its vertically integrated business model, Charlotte's Web strives to improve customers' lives and meet their demands for stringent product quality, efficacy and consistency.

Charlotte's Web was founded by the Stanley Brothers with a mission to unleash the healing powers of botanicals through compassion and science, benefiting the planet and all who live upon it. Charlotte's Web is a socially and environmentally conscious company and is committed to using business as a force for good and a catalyst for innovation. The Company weighs sound business decisions with consideration for how its efforts affect employees, customers, the environment, and diverse communities. The rate the Company pays for agricultural products reflects a fair and sustainable rate driving higher quality yield, encouraging regenerative farming practices, and supporting U.S. farming communities. Management believes that its socially oriented and environmentally responsible actions have a positive impact on its customers, suppliers, employees and stakeholders. Charlotte's Web donates a portion of its pre-tax earnings to charitable organizations.

Shares of Charlotte's Web trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the symbol "CWEB" and are quoted in U.S. Dollars in the United States on the OTCQX under the symbol "CWBHF." As of May 10, 2021, Charlotte's Web had 109,378,169 Common Shares outstanding and 76,264.43 Proportional Voting Shares convertible at 400:1 into Common Shares, for an effective equivalent of 139,883,938 Common Shares outstanding.

Non-IFRS Measures Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("Adjusted EBITDA") is not a recognized performance measure under International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"). Adjusted EBITDA does not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers.  The term EBITDA consists of net loss and excludes interest ("financing costs"), taxes, depreciation and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA also excludes share-based compensation, impairment of assets, transaction costs, legal settlement costs, restructuring charges, and adjustments for fair value of biological assets, warrant liabilities, and stock appreciation rights. Adjusted EBITDA is included as a supplemental disclosure because Management believes that such measurement provides a more meaningful assessment of the Company's operations on a continuing basis by eliminating certain non-cash charges and charges or gains that are infrequent. The most directly comparable measure to Adjusted EBITDA calculated in accordance with IFRS is net loss. See "Adjusted EBITDA" in the MD&A for a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net loss.





Three months ended



March 31, U.S. $ millions

2021

2020 Net loss and comprehensive loss

$ (13.9)

$ (11.5) Depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of intangibles



3.4



1.8 Financing costs



0.3



0.2 Interest income







(0.1) Income tax benefit







6.3 EBITDA

$ (10.2)

$ (3.3) Mark-to-market fair value of warrants and stock appreciation rights



3.4



(3.0) Net impact, fair value of biological assets







(0.1) Share-based compensation



1.6



0.3 Impairment of assets



0.3



 Transaction costs



0.1



0.4 Restructuring charges



0.1



 Adjusted EBITDA1

$ (4.7)

$ (5.7)





1 Adjusted EBITDA presented in prior periods has been reclassified to conform with the current period presentation to include interest income as a reduction of EBITDA and restructuring charges as an addition to Adjusted EBITDA.

Forward-Looking Information

In the interest of providing the shareholders and potential investors of Charlotte's Web Holdings, Inc. with information about the Company, certain information provided constitutes forward-looking statements or information (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as "may", "will", "should", "could", "anticipate", "expect", "project", "estimate", "forecast", "plan", "intend", "target", "believe" and similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook. Although these forward-looking statements are based on assumptions the Company considers to be reasonable based on the information available on the date such statements are made, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and readers are cautioned against placing undue reliance on forward-looking statements. By their nature, these statements involve a variety of assumptions, known and unknown risks and uncertainties, and other factors which may cause actual results, levels of activity, and achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on certain assumptions and analysis by management of the Company ("Management") in light of its experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future development and other factors that it believes are appropriate.

Specifically, this press release contains forward-looking statements relating to, but not limited to: potential capacity expansion for production, extraction, R&D and distribution; international expansion activities and strategy; capacity expansion and transition to a CPG operating company capable of supporting mass retail channel growth; the impact of certain activities on the Company's business and financial condition; suggested regulatory developments; possible equity and debt financing; the Company's anticipated trajectory, long-term growth expectations and shareholder value creation; and product expansion, including into cannabis wellness where federally permissible.

The material factors and assumptions used to develop the forward-looking statements herein include, but are not limited to, the following: (i) the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic; (ii) the regulatory climate in which the Company operates; (iii) the continued sales success of the Company's products; (iv) the continued success of sales and marketing activities; (v) the Company's ability to complete the conversion or buildout of its facilities on time and on budget; (vi) there will be no significant delays in the development and commercialization of the Company's products; (vii) the Company will continue to maintain sufficient and effective production and research and development capabilities to compete on the attributes and cost of its products; (viii) the Company's ability to deal with adverse growing conditions (due to pests, disease, fungus, climate or other factors) in a timely and cost-effective manner; (ix) there will be no significant reduction in the availability of qualified and cost-effective human resources; * new products will continue to be added to the Company's portfolio; (xi) demand for the Company's products will grow in the foreseeable future; (xii) there will be no significant barriers to the acceptance of the Company's products in the market; (xiii) the Company will be able to maintain compliance with applicable contractual and regulatory obligations and requirements; (xiv) there will be adequate liquidity available to the Company to carry out its operations; and (xv) products do not develop that would render the Company's current and future product offerings undesirable and the Company is otherwise able to minimize the impact of competition and keep pace with changing consumer preferences; and (xvi) the Company will be able to successfully manage and integrate acquisitions and take advantage of synergies from acquisitions.

The Company's forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties pertaining to, among other things, the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic to the Company's operations, supply chain, distribution chain, and to the broader market for the Company's products, revenue fluctuations, nature of government regulations (both domestic and foreign), economic conditions, loss of key customers, retention and availability of executive talent, competing products, common share price volatility, loss of proprietary information, product acceptance, internet and system infrastructure functionality, information technology security, cash available to fund operations, crop risk, availability of capital, international and political considerations, the successful integration of acquired businesses, and including but not limited to those risks and uncertainties discussed under the heading "Risks and Uncertainties" in MD&A, the AIF, and the Company's other filings with securities regulators. The impact of any one risk, uncertainty, or factor on a particular forward-looking statement is not determinable with certainty as these are interdependent, and the Company's future course of action depends on Management's assessment of all information available at the relevant time. Except to the extent required by law, the Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. All subsequent forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, attributable to the Company or persons acting on the Company's behalf, are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements.

CHARLOTTE'S WEB HOLDINGS, INC. UNAUDITED INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL POSITION (In thousands of United States dollars)



March 31, 2021 December 31, 2020 ASSETS









Current assets:



Cash and cash equivalents $ 35,048 $ 52,803 Trade and other receivables, net 5,686 6,274 Note receivable 1,500 1,753 Note receivable - related party 1,012 1,004 Inventories 61,974 61,936 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 5,037 7,390 Income taxes receivable 10,776 11,440

121,033 142,600 Non-current assets:



Property and equipment, net 61,787 60,269 Intangible assets, net 24,588 25,376 Goodwill 77,454 77,454 SBH Purchase Option 8,000  Deferred tax assets 3 4 Other long-term assets 2,712 5,178

$ 295,577 $ 310,881





LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY









Current liabilities:



Accounts payable $ 6,180 $ 4,891 Accrued liabilities 7,885 11,519 Deferred revenue 509 615 Current cultivation liabilities 8,520 9,304 Current notes payable 373 629 Current lease obligations 1,999 2,015

25,466 28,973 Non-current liabilities:



Long-term cultivation liabilities  2,513 Long-term notes payable 58 144 Long-term lease obligations 19,971 20,567 Warrant liabilities 7,625 4,304 Other long-term liabilities 186 151

53,306 56,652 Shareholders' equity:



Share capital 280,183 279,308 Contributed surplus 20,942 19,849 Accumulated deficit (58,854) (44,928)

242,271 254,229







$ 295,577 $ 310,881

CHARLOTTE'S WEB HOLDINGS, INC. UNAUDITED INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF LOSS AND OTHER COMPREHENSIVE LOSS (In thousands of United States dollars, except per share amounts)



Three months ended March 31,

2021 2020





Revenue $ 23,407 $ 21,463 Cost of sales 9,770 6,466 Gross profit before (gain) loss on fair value of biological assets 13,637 14,997 Realized fair value (gain) included in inventory sold (206) (82)





Unrealized fair value loss on growth of biological assets 165  Gross profit 13,678 15,079





Expenses:



General and administrative 14,968 16,031 Sales and marketing 7,720 6,532 Research and development 1,308 766 Operating expenses 23,996 23,329 Operating loss (10,318) (8,250) Financing costs 348 170 Interest income (19) (129)





Change in fair value of warrants and other expense (income), net 3,245 (3,079) Loss before taxes (13,892) (5,212) Income tax expense 34 6,287 Net loss and comprehensive loss $ (13,926) $ (11,499)





Weighted average number of common shares - basic 139,697,474 107,436,794 Weighted average number of common shares - diluted 139,697,474 107,436,794





Loss per share - basic $ (0.10) $ (0.11) Loss per share - diluted $ (0.10) $ (0.11)

CHARLOTTE'S WEB HOLDINGS, INC. UNAUDITED INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY (In thousands of United States dollars)



Three months ended March 31, 2020 Share capital Contributed

surplus Accumulated

deficit Total Balance - December 31, 2019 $ 123,927 $ 27,513 $ 2,258 $ 153,698 Exercise of common stock options 1,860 (491)  1,369 Accumulated effect of income tax from stock options  (16,087)  (16,087) Share-based compensation expense  266  266 Net loss and comprehensive loss   (11,499) (11,499) Balance - March 31, 2020 $ 125,787 $ 11,201 $ (9,241) $ 127,747









Three months ended March 31, 2021 Share capital Contributed

surplus Accumulated

deficit Total Balance - December 31, 2020 $ 279,308 $ 19,849 $ (44,928) $ 254,229 Exercise of common stock options 61 (31)  30 Exercise of common stock warrants 485 (45)  440 Withholding of common stock upon vesting of restricted share awards 329 (441)  (112) Share-based compensation expense  1,610  1,610 Net loss and comprehensive loss   (13,926) (13,926) Balance - March 31, 2021 $ 280,183 $ 20,942 $ (58,854) $ 242,271

CHARLOTTE'S WEB HOLDINGS, INC. UNAUDITED INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (In thousands of United States dollars)

Three months ended March 31,

2021 2020





Cash flows from operating activities:



Net loss $ (13,926) $ (11,499) Items not involving cash:



Depreciation 2,533 1,654 Amortization 889 150 Change in fair value of biological assets (41) (82) Change in fair value of warrant liabilities 3,321 (2,968) Expected credit losses (23) 105 Inventory provision, net 333 (5) Share-based compensation 1,610 266 Loss on disposal of assets 76  Deferred income taxes 1 14,331





Changes in working capital:



Trade and other receivables, net 611 (3,113) Inventories (261) (349) Prepaid expenses and other current assets 2,173 (479) Accounts payable 1,289 (3,437) Accrued liabilities (3,906) (364) Income taxes 664 (8,046) Cultivation liabilities (3,320) (1,142) Other operating assets and liabilities, net 242 114

(7,735) (14,864) Cash flows from investing activities:



Purchases of property and equipment (1,659) (1,270) Purchases of intangible assets (64) (254) Proceeds from sale of assets 8 1 Collections on note receivable 266  Investment in SBH Purchase Option (8,000)  Other investing activities 384 (31)

(9,065) (1,554) Cash flows from financing activities:



Proceeds from common stock option exercises 30 1,369 Proceeds from common stock warrant exercises 440  Withholding of common stock upon vesting of restricted share awards (112)  Payments on notes payable (342) (2) Payments on lease obligations (971) (466)

(955) 901











(Decrease) increase in cash (17,755) (15,517) Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of year 52,803 68,553 Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $ 35,048 $ 53,036





Supplemental disclosures of cash flows from operating activities:



Cash paid for interest $ (36) $ (5) Cash paid for interest on lease obligations (312) (165) Cash received from interest 19 129 Cash received (paid) for taxes 662 (2) Non-cash purchases of property and equipment (235) (1,341) Non-cash purchases of intangible assets (37) 

SOURCE Charlotte's Web Holdings, Inc.

Related Links

https://www.charlottesweb.com/


Medical cannabis consumers now will have easy access to its 45 SKUs across all five Heritage brands

With this initial order, CannMart will carry the widest variety of Heritage brands available in one place throughout Canada

Heritage Cannabis Holdings Corp ( ) ( ) (FRA:2UE) announced that its products are available for purchase on the CannMart online platform.

CannMart, a subsidiary of ( ) ( ) (FRA:M5BQ), is a Health Canada-licensed desktop and mobile portal that gives cannabis consumers with medical authorization, the flexibility to buy products quickly with convenient delivery options.

Heritage CEO Clint Sharples said medical cannabis consumers now will have easy access to its 45 SKUs across all five Heritage brands, including RAD which recently achieved No. 1 in category sales in a number of provinces. The other brands are Purefarma, Pura Vida, Premium 5, and feelgood.

Our goal at Heritage is to offer high-quality, reasonably priced products that align with our customers needs, Sharples said in a statement. With this initial order, CannMart will carry the widest variety of Heritage brands available in one place throughout Canada, including more selection than any one province.

Heritage said its products have been gaining recognition across Canada as leaders in the extract and extract derivatives categories, with some in-demand products selling out very quickly after becoming available for purchase.

Heritage is a vertically integrated cannabis provider that currently has two Health Canada-approved licensed producers, through its subsidiaries Voyage Cannabis Corp and CannaCure Corp.

The Toronto-based company recently acquired Canadian recreational and medical cannabis company Premium 5 Ltd, which Heritage expects will make it a leader in the extract and extract derivatives market, as Premium 5 is a premium provider of Cannabis 2.0 hydrocarbon and solventless concentrates in Canada.

Contact the author: patrick@proactiveinvestors.com

Follow him on Twitter @PatrickMGraham
THUNDER BAY, ON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Clean Air Metals Inc. ("Clean Air Metals" or the "Company") (TSXV: AIR) (OTCQB: CLRMF) (FRA: CKU) is pleased to announce completion of a C$1.5 million installment payment to Panoramic Resources Limited (PAN: ASX) of Australia.

The Company acquired a 100% interest in the Current Lake Pt-Pd-Rh-Cu-Ni magma conduit deposit from Panoramic Resources for C$9 million, with a $4.5 million down payment under a security interest on May 14, 2020 as previously reported. The transaction included the sale of a 100% interest in Canadian subsidiary Panoramic PGMs (Canada) Ltd. directly to Clean Air Metals under the option with Benton Resources Inc. (BEX: TSXV). Panoramic PGMs (Canada) Ltd., now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Clean Air Metals, in turn owns 100% of the Current Lake deposit. Two equal payments totaling C$3 million remain for May, 2022 and May, 2023. The security obligation may be retired in advance by payment in full at any time without penalty.

In keeping with its commitment to environmental sustainability as it continues with a previously announced 45,000m diamond drilling campaign, the Company has also commenced environmental baseline field data gathering in support of a future environmental impact assessment and permitting of the Thunder Bay North Project. The Company's service providers DST, a Division of Englobe Corp. and NorthWinds Environmental are mandated to systematically gather and report on baseline data for hydrology (surface waters), hydrogeology (subsurface water table), noise, water quality, aquatic biology, wildlife biology, weather patterns and potential for metals leaching and acid rock drainage (ARD).

In addition, Woodlands Heritage Northwest will also complete and report on Stage 1 and Stage 2 archaeology studies in the area of the Escape Lake, Current Lake and Steepledge Lake Basins. All work, particularly the archaeology program, is being completed in cooperation with and under the supervision of the Participating First Nation communities, a collaboration announced January 11, 2021.

Metallurgical beneficiation and optimization studies of drill-derived bulk sample deposit material is ongoing at Blue Coast Research of British Columbia, Canada, as previously announced. The potential of the Thunder Bay North Project magma conduit deposit system is well illustrated by publication of the ramp access, high grade selective underground mine model-constrained mineral resource, reported on January 20, 2021.

The Current Lake Deposit has an Indicated mineral resource of 1,328,789 oz PdEq at an average grade of 3.44 g/t PdEq in 11,999,177 tonnes. The Escape Lake Deposit in turn has an overall Indicated mineral resource of 505,369 ounces PdEq at 3.67g/t PdEq in 4,286,220 tonnes and is geologically open along trend (pursuant to the January 20, 2021 NI 43-101 Technical Report and Mineral Resource Estimate for the Thunder Bay North Project, Thunder Bay, Ontario, prepared by Nordmin Engineering Ltd. and QP Glen Kuntz, P.Geo, as posted to SEDAR on March 4, 2021).

Clean Air Metals' CEO Abraham Drost, P.Geo. stated that "as the commitment to long term environmental baseline data collection demonstrates, the Company is committed to operating by the highest standards of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. Clean Air Metals is a leader among its peers in the junior mining exploration and development space. This starts from the ground up with staff field health and safety protocols. The Company's comprehensive COVID avoidance policy has been in place since February, 2020 with zero incidence of infection among staff and service providers. Field staff and management have completed Indigenous cultural sensitivity training and review of the PDAC e3 Plus exploration best practices guidelines.

From a Social factor perspective, Clean Air Metals has achieved excellent progress in accommodation with its proximate, directly affected First Nation Partners through the Memorandum of Agreement reported January 11, 2020, establishing a project partnership going forward. The Company is focused on maximizing related indigenous and gender equity employment opportunities both on staff and through third party service providers.

The Company's Environmental and Social factor performance are borne of a strong policy and Governance factor mandate that is driven by the Company's Board of Directors. The Company has published various Corporate Governance policies to its website at https://www.cleanairmetals.ca/corporate/corporate-governance/ including the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, Sustainability Policy, Ethical Workplace and Reporting Policy and Procedure and the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Policy."

About Clean Air Metals Inc.

Clean Air Metals' flagship asset is the Thunder Bay North Project, a platinum, palladium, copper, nickel project located near the City of Thunder Bay, Ontario and the Lac des Iles Mine owned by Impala Platinum Holdings. The Clean Air Metals project hosts the Current Lake Deposit and magma conduit and the Company is actively exploring the Escape Lake Deposit, a twin conduit structure to the Current Lake Deposit. Executive Chairman Jim Gallagher, P.Eng. and CEO Abraham Drost, P.Geo. lead an experienced team of geologists and engineers who are using the Norilsk magma conduit stratigraphic and mineral deposit model to guide ongoing exploration and development studies. As the former CEO of North American Palladium Ltd. which owned the Lac des Iles Mine prior to the sale to Impala Platinum in December, 2019, Jim Gallagher and team are credited with the mine turnaround and creation of significant value for shareholders.

Qualified Person

Mr. Allan MacTavish, P.Geo. a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 and VP-Project Manager of the Company, has reviewed and approved all technical information in this press release.

Social License

Clean Air Metals Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary Panoramic PGMs (Canada) Ltd. acknowledge that the Thunder Bay North Project is on the traditional territories of the Fort William First Nation, Red Rock Indian Band and Biinjitiwabik Zaaging Anishinabek. The parties together are the Cooperating Participants in a Memorandum of Agreement dated January 9, 2021 and the issue of Warrants, reported January 28, 2021.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

"Abraham Drost"

Abraham Drost, Chief Executive Officer of Clean Air Metals Inc.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections.

SOURCE Clean Air Metals Inc.

Related Links

https://www.cleanairmetals.ca/


SpendEdge's reports now include an in-depth complimentary analysis of the COVID-19 impact on procurement and the latest market data to help your company overcome sourcing challenges. Our Media Training Market procurement intelligence report offers actionable procurement intelligence insights, sourcing strategies, and action plans to mitigate risks arising out of the current pandemic situation. The insights offered by our reports will help procurement professionals streamline supply chain operations and gain insights into the best procurement practices to mitigate losses.

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Insights into the Market Price Trends

Suppliers in this market have moderate bargaining power owing to moderate pressure from substitutes and a moderate level of threat from new entrants.

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Some of the top Media Training Market suppliers enlisted in this report

This Media Training Market procurement intelligence report has enlisted the top suppliers and their cost structures, SLA terms, best selection criteria, and negotiation strategies.

Daniel J. Edelman Holdings Inc.

Weber Shandwick Inc.

Fleishman-Hillard Inc.

Ketchum Inc.

BCW Global

MSLGROUP

Hill+Knowlton Strategies

The Ogilvy Group

BlueFocus Communication Group

Havas Group

Get access to regular sourcing and procurement insights to our digital procurement platform- Contact Us .

Table of Content

Executive Summary

Market Insights

Category Pricing Insights

Cost-saving Opportunities

Best Practices



Category Ecosystem



Category Management Strategy



Category Management Enablers



Suppliers Selection



Suppliers under Coverage



US Market Insights



Category scope



Appendix

About SpendEdge:

SpendEdge shares your passion for driving sourcing and procurement excellence. We are the preferred procurement market intelligence partner for 120+ Fortune 500 firms and other leading companies across numerous industries. Our strength lies in delivering robust, real-time procurement market intelligence reports and solutions. To know more https://www.spendedge.com/request-for-demo

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Anirban Choudhury

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UK: +44 148 459 9299

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SOURCE SpendEdge

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Read the 120-page research report with TOC and LOE on "Natural Rubber Market  Procurement Intelligence Report, Pricing Outlook in Geographies that include APAC, North America, South America, and MEA, and insights into best practices to optimize procurement spend."

SpendEdge's reports now include an in-depth complimentary analysis of the COVID-19 impact on procurement and the latest market data to help your company overcome sourcing challenges. Our Natural Rubber Market procurement intelligence report offers actionable procurement intelligence insights, sourcing strategies, and action plans to mitigate risks arising out of the current pandemic situation. The insights offered by our reports will help procurement professionals streamline supply chain operations and gain insights into the best procurement practices to mitigate losses.

Information on Latest Trends and Supply Chain Market Information Download Our FREE Sample Report

Insights into the Market Price Trends

Suppliers in this market have moderate bargaining power owing to moderate pressure from substitutes and a moderate level of threat from new entrants.

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Insights to help buyers identify and shortlist the most suitable suppliers for their Natural Rubber Market requirements. This procurement report answers the following questions:

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This Natural Rubber Market procurement intelligence report has enlisted the top suppliers and their cost structures, SLA terms, best selection criteria, and negotiation strategies.

Pro Star Rubber Co. Ltd.

PT. Bakrie Sumatera Plantations Tbk

Rubfila International Ltd.

Sri Trang Agro-Industry Public Co. Ltd.

Sinochem Group Co. Ltd.

Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd.

Thai Hua Rubber Public Co. Ltd.

Von Bundit Co. Ltd.

Southland Holding Co.

Vip Rubber and Plastic Co.

Get access to regular sourcing and procurement insights to our digital procurement platform- Contact Us .

Table of Content

Executive Summary

Market Insights

Category Pricing Insights

Cost-saving Opportunities

Best Practices

Category Ecosystem

Category Management Strategy

Category Management Enablers

Suppliers Selection

Suppliers under Coverage

US Market Insights

Category scope

Appendix

About SpendEdge:

SpendEdge shares your passion for driving sourcing and procurement excellence. We are the preferred procurement market intelligence partner for 120+ Fortune 500 firms and other leading companies across numerous industries. Our strength lies in delivering robust, real-time procurement market intelligence reports and solutions. To know more https://www.spendedge.com/request-for-demo

Contacts

SpendEdge

Anirban Choudhury

Marketing Manager

US: +1 630 984 7340

UK: +44 148 459 9299

https://www.spendedge.com/contact-us

SOURCE SpendEdge
DES MOINES, Iowa, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Cybint , a global cyber education training company, partners with Grand View University , a cyber education leader in Iowa, to offer the Cybint Cybersecurity Bootcamp in an effort to bring cybersecurity skills and jobs to the region.

The state of Iowa has over 3,400 unfilled jobs in cybersecuritymost of which don't require certification. Many of these positions are in Des Moines. The city, which is a hub for multiple industries, including finance, insurance, government, manufacturing, trade, and service, offers a higher concentration of cybersecurity jobs. Filling these roles call for community partnerships with local schools, nonprofits and governmental organizations. Such partnerships play a significant role in preparing students to be dynamic, culturally responsive leaders. The focus of these relationships quickly centers on creating accelerated hands-on skill as a first step in building a resilient and cyber-able workforce. Grand View University's partnership with Cybint is unique to this region, and results in the production of highly sought-after graduates in this emerging, professional field.

The Cybint Bootcamp is structured from the ground up to arm workers with cyber skills. Graduates will have the training needed to ensure they can protect themselves and their organizations from emerging cyber threats upon completing the Cybint Bootcamp. Through its collaboration with Grand View University, the Cybint Bootcamp will help the Des Moines, Iowa region's workforce gain the knowledge needed to land entry-level positions in cybersecurity, as well as upskill incumbent employees beginning Fall 2021.

Grand View University is renowned for its programs in analytics, computer science, management, and more than 40 other majors, pre-professional programs, and five masters degrees. With approximately 2,000 students, an average class size of 16, and a student-to-faculty ratio of 14 to 1, students of Grand View University receive specialized training to propel them to success.

"We're thrilled to play such a prominent role in the future of the cybersecurity industry in a thriving city such as Des Moines," says Roy Zur, Founder and CEO of Cybint. "We signed numerous higher education partnership deals in the first quarter of 2021. This partnership with Grand View University marks the beginning of great things to come as we begin a new quarter."

"We chose to partner with Cybint because they are in alignment with our goals," says Patty Williams, Vice-Provost, Graduate and Professional Studies of Grand View University. "Time is of the essence when it comes to filling the cyber gap, and it is an honor to be able to offer our students an added edge to land a position in this lucrative field."

For more information about Cybint's programs in Grand View University, please visit: https://www.grandview.edu/academics/other-programs/cybersecurity?preview=true

About Cybint

Cybint is a global cyber education company with a commitment to reskilling the workforce and upskilling the industry in cybersecurity. With innovative and leading-edge education and training solutions, Cybint tackles cybersecurity's two greatest threats: the talent shortage and the skills gap. The Cybint team is comprised of military cyber experts, industry professionals, and educators united under the vision of creating a safer digital world through education, training, and collaboration. For more information, visit www.cybintsolutions.com

About Grand View University

Founded more than 100 years ago in 1896, Grand View offers a high-quality education to a diverse student body in a career-oriented, liberal arts-grounded curriculum in Des Moines, Iowa, a metropolitan area of more than half a million people. Grand View offers bachelor's and master's degrees and welcomes traditional students and adult learners representing a wide range of religious and cultural backgrounds. Learning is an interactive process at Grand Viewstudents engage in lively discussions, work on real-world projects, and participate in career-related work experiences. Grand View welcomes and supports students from all walks of life, geographies, religions and ethnicities.

SOURCE Cybint

Related Links

http://www.cybintsolutions.com


Dodge & Cox Launches the Dodge & Cox Emerging Markets Stock Fund Tweet this

The Dodge & Cox Emerging Markets Stock Fund utilizes the firm's team-based approach to selecting undervalued companies, with a focus on fundamental research, individual security selection, and low expenses. The Fund invests selectively across a large, all-cap universe of emerging and frontier markets companies that we believe have a favorable outlook for long-term earnings and cash flow growth. Many of these companies are not included in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index.

Dana Emery, Chief Executive Officer and President of Dodge & Cox, also commented, "The Dodge & Cox Emerging Markets Stock Fund is a natural extension of our capabilities. We believe our global industry analysts' understanding of companies and sectors, coupled with our analysis of macroeconomic, currency, and other factors, enables us to identify attractive long-term return opportunities for our clients in every corner of the world."

The Dodge & Cox Global Emerging Markets Stock Fund is open to the public for investment as of today. Additional information can be found on the Dodge & Cox Funds' website at www.dodgeandcox.com.

Founded in 1930, Dodge & Cox manages over $341 billion for individual and institutional investors in mutual funds, UCITS, and private accounts as of March 31, 2021. For more information about Dodge & Cox, please visit our website: www.dodgeandcox.com.

Before investing in any Dodge & Cox Fund, you should carefully consider the Fund's investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses. This and other important information is contained in a Fund's prospectus and summary prospectus. Please read the prospectus and summary prospectus carefully before investing. Investments are not FDIC-insured, nor are they deposits of or guaranteed by any bank or other entity. To obtain a Fund's prospectus and summary prospectus visit dodgeandcox.com or call 800-621-3979.

Media Contact:

Scot Hoffman

Dodge & Cox

555 California Street, 40th Floor

San Francisco, CA 94401

+1 415.273.7641

[email protected]

SOURCE Dodge & Cox

Related Links

http://www.dodgeandcox.com


MONTREAL, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Dollarama Inc. (TSX: DOL) ("Dollarama" or the "Corporation") will hold its annual general meeting of shareholders (the "Meeting") on Wednesday, June 9, 2021 at 9:00 a.m. (ET). The Meeting will be conducted online only, via live audio webcast.

The Corporation elected to conduct the Meeting virtually once again this year due to the restrictions imposed in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. All shareholders of record as of the close of business on April 15, 2021, regardless of geographic location, will be able to listen to the live audio webcast and submit questions. However, only registered shareholders and duly appointed proxyholders (including non-registered shareholders who have duly appointed themselves as proxyholder) will be able to vote at the Meeting during the live audio webcast.

For additional information on how to attend the Meeting online and on the procedure to appoint a proxyholder, cast votes and submit questions, shareholders are invited to consult the 2021 Management Proxy Circular and other proxy-related materials, available on SEDAR under the Corporation's profile at www.sedar.com and at www.envisionreports.com/Dollarama2021. Regardless of whether shareholders can attend the Meeting via the live audio webcast, they are strongly encouraged to vote by proxy in advance of the Meeting.

Dollarama will also release its financial results for the first quarter of Fiscal 2022, covering the period from February 1, 2021 to May 2, 2021, on the same day at 7:00 a.m. (ET). Management will hold a conference call after the Meeting to discuss the results. Financial analysts are invited to ask questions by using the dial-in number provided below. Other interested parties may participate in the call on a listen-only basis via live audio webcast which will be available on Dollarama's website.

Annual General Meeting Details Wednesday, June 9, 2021 at 9:00 a.m. (ET) Webcast link: www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/DOLR2021 Webcast replay will be available until June 8, 2022 in the "Investor Relations - Events - Archives" section of Dollarama's website.



First Quarter Call Details Wednesday, June 9, 2021 at 11:00 a.m. (ET) Webcast link: https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/fsxb6m6q Dial-in number (for financial analysts only): 514-392-1478 or 1-866-223-7781 Participants will need to provide the operator with the Service Confirmation Number: 4319994 Webcast replay will be available until June 8, 2022 in the "Investor Relations - Events - Archives" section of Dollarama's website.





About Dollarama

Dollarama is a recognized Canadian value retailer offering a broad assortment of consumable products, general merchandise and seasonal items both in-store and online. Our 1,356 locations across Canada provide customers with compelling value in convenient locations, including metropolitan areas, mid-sized cities and small towns. Select products are also available, by the full case only, through our online store at www.dollarama.com. Our quality merchandise is sold at select, fixed price points up to $4.00.

Dollarama also owns a 50.1% interest in Dollarcity, a growing Latin American value retailer. Dollarcity offers a broad assortment of consumable products, general merchandise and seasonal items at select, fixed price points up to US$3.00 (or the equivalent in local currency) in El Salvador and Guatemala and up to the equivalent of US$4.00 in local currency in Colombia through its 264 conveniently-located stores.

SOURCE Dollarama Inc.

Related Links

www.dollarama.com


Drink One for Dane began after Dutch Bros co-founder, Dane Boersma, was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). While Dane passed away in 2009, his fight to end ALS continues through his family and the Dutch Bros' annual giveback, Drink One for Dane. The Boersma family and Dutch Bros started Drink One for Dane as a way to increase awareness of the disease, raise support for those affected, and to support research to find treatments and cures for ALS.

"For the last 15 years, our customers have astounded us with their support for Drink One for Dane," said Travis Boersma, co-founder of Dutch Bros. "This day is a testament to Dane's spirit and positive attitude that lives on through Dutch Bros every day. We're honored to partner with the Muscular Dystrophy Association and support its vital mission of finding a cause and cure for ALS."

This year, Dutch Bros is hoping to raise $1.6 million, which would bring the grand total donated to MDA over the last 15 years to $10 million. In addition to raising money at the stand, customers can donate directly to the campaign at www.dutchbros.com . As a thank you, customers who swing by on May 14 can snag a limited edition Drink One for Dane sticker (while supplies last).

MDA is the world's leader in funding research, care and advocacy in the search to cure muscular dystrophy, ALS and related neuromuscular diseases. Research continues into understanding the root cause of the disease and finding a cure.

"We consider our partners at Dutch Bros more like family, because they have felt the pain of losing a loved one to ALS and know the mission we are on as deeply as we do. Drink One for Dane has been one of the most successful ALS fundraisers year-on-year. We are excited to again join Dutch Bros for another successful event this year. The millions of dollars Dutch Bros has raised and continues to raise provides essential support for the patient care, education and continuing critical research around finding a cure and cause for ALS. We won't stop until we cure this devastating disease. Together, with Dutch Bros, we are on the path to doing that," said Donald S. Wood, PhD, president and CEO of MDA.

Much of the money raised since 2007 has gone to support MDA's ALS-designated multidisciplinary care centers for patients, as well as to fund research for a cure.

To find a Dutch Bros location near you, visit www.dutchbros.com/locations .

About Dutch Bros

Dutch Bros Coffee is a drive-thru coffee company dedicated to making a massive difference one cup at a time. Headquartered in Grants Pass, Oregon, where it was founded in 1992 by Dane and Travis Boersma, it's now sharing the "Dutch Luv" with more than 450 locations in 11 states. Dutch Bros serves specialty coffee, smoothies, freezes, teas, a private-label Dutch Bros Blue Rebel energy drink and nitrogen-infused cold brew coffee. Its rich, proprietary coffee blend is handcrafted from start to finish.

In addition to its mission of speed, quality and service, Dutch Bros is committed to giving back to the communities it serves. Through its Dutch Bros Foundation and local franchisees, the company donates several million dollars to causes across the country each year.

To learn more about Dutch Bros, visit www.dutchbros.com, follow Dutch Bros Coffee on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, & TikTok, and download the Dutch Bros app to earn points and score rewards!

About the Muscular Dystrophy Association

For 70 years, the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) has been committed to transforming the lives of people living with muscular dystrophy, ALS, and related neuromuscular diseases. We do this through innovations in science and innovations in care . As the largest source of funding for neuromuscular disease research outside of the federal government, MDA has committed more than $1 billion since our inception to accelerate the discovery of therapies and cures. Research we have supported is directly linked to life-changing therapies across multiple neuromuscular diseases. MDA's MOVR is the first and only data hub that aggregates clinical, genetic, and patient-reported data for multiple neuromuscular diseases to improve health outcomes and accelerate drug development. MDA supports the largest network of multidisciplinary clinics providing best-in-class care at more than 150 of the nation's top medical institutions. Our Resource Center serves the community with one-on-one specialized support, and we offer educational conferences, events, and materials for families and healthcare providers. MDA Advocacy supports equal access for our community, and each year thousands of children and young adults learn vital life skills and gain independence at summer camp and through recreational programs, at no cost to families. During the COVID-19 pandemic, MDA continues to produce virtual events and programming to support our community when in-person events and activities are not possible. MDA's COVID-19 guidelines and virtual events are posted at mda.org/COVID19 . For more information, visit mda.org .

SOURCE Dutch Bros Coffee

Related Links

https://dutchbros.com/


Pamela Wolf, J. D., senior employment legal analyst at Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S. , can speak more on this topic and what many employers and employees can expect to see in the near future. A graphic breaking down the issue further can be found here .

WHAT: Employment-at-will refers to the employment relationship in nearly every state whereby an employer may dismiss an employee "at will," rather than only if cause is demonstrated. There are some restrictions on employment-at-will, such as laws banning employment discrimination and retaliation, protecting whistleblowers, and common law and court-created exceptionssuch as when a dismissal "violates public policy."

WHY: In recent news, several stories have surfaced of employees being fired from their jobs after refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine. Employees contemplating lawsuits against their employers may not realize that their employers do in fact have the right to fire them in many of these cases.

WHO: Pam Wolf, J.D., senior employment law analyst at Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S. is available to offer analysis on:

- What employment-at-will means;

- To whom employment-at-will applies;

- Legal justification for employers making the vaccination mandatory for their employees;

- Who is exempt from taking the vaccine, and more.

Media Contact: For members of the press who wish to arrange an interview with Pam Wolf about employment-at-will or related topics, please contact us at [email protected].

About Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S.

Wolters Kluwer (WKL) is a global leader in professional information, software solutions, and services for the healthcare; tax and accounting; governance, risk and compliance; and legal and regulatory sectors. We help our customers make critical decisions every day by providing expert solutions that combine deep domain knowledge with technology and services.

Wolters Kluwer reported 2020 annual revenues of 4.6 billion. The group serves customers in over 180 countries, maintains operations in over 40 countries, and employs approximately 19,200 people worldwide. The company is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands.

Wolters Kluwer shares are listed on Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices. Wolters Kluwer has a sponsored Level 1 American Depositary Receipt (ADR) program. The ADRs are traded on the over-the-counter market in the U.S. (WTKWY).

For more information about Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S., visit www.WoltersKluwerLR.com, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

SOURCE Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S.

Related Links

http://lrus.wolterskluwer.com


Download Free Sample Pages

Key Highlights Offered in the Report:

Information on how to identify strategic and tactical negotiation levels that will help achieve the best prices.

Gain information on relevant pricing levels, detailed explanation of the pros and cons of prevalent pricing models.

Methods to help engage with the right suppliers and discover KPI's to evaluate incumbent suppliers.

Request a Free Sample Report for More Information

Insights into buyer strategies and tactical negotiation levers:

Several strategic and tactical negotiation levers are explained in the report to help buyers achieve the best prices for EPC and EPCM Services market. The report also aids buyers with relevant EPC and EPCM Services pricing levels, pros, and cons of prevalent pricing models such as volume-based pricing, spot pricing, and cost-plus pricing and category management strategies and best practices to fulfill their category objectives.

Insights on buyer strategies and tactical negotiation levers

Key Drivers and Trends Fueling Market Growth:

The pressure from substitutes and a moderate level of threat from new entrants have resulted in the low bargaining power of suppliers.

Price forecasts are beneficial in purchase planning, especially when supplemented by the constant monitoring of price influencing factors. During the forecast period, the market expects a change of 3.00%-7.00%.

Identify favorable opportunities in Promotional Products TCO (total cost of ownership).

Expected changes in price forecast and factors driving the current and future price changes.

Identify pricing models that offer the most rewarding opportunities.

Some of the top EPC and EPCM Services suppliers listed in this report:

This EPC and EPCM Services procurement intelligence report has enlisted the top suppliers and their cost structures, SLA terms, best selection criteria, and negotiation strategies.Vinci SA

ACS Group

Bechtel Corp.

Bouygues Group

Fluor Corp.

Skanska AB

TechnipFMC Plc

China Communications Construction Company Ltd.

Saipem Group

Petrofac Ltd.

Related Report on Managed Services Include:

To access the definite purchasing guide on the EPC and EPCM Services that answers all your key questions on price trends and analysis:

Am I paying/getting the right prices? Is my EPC and EPCM Services TCO (total cost of ownership) favorable?

How is the price forecast expected to change? What is driving the current and future price changes?

Which pricing models offer the most rewarding opportunities?

Table of Content

Executive Summary

Market Insights

Category Pricing Insights

Cost-saving Opportunities

Best Practices

Category Ecosystem

Category Management Strategy

Category Management Enablers

Suppliers Selection

Suppliers under Coverage

US Market Insights

Category scope

Appendix

About SpendEdge:

SpendEdge shares your passion for driving sourcing and procurement excellence. We are the preferred procurement market intelligence partner for 120+ Fortune 500 firms and other leading companies across numerous industries. Our strength lies in delivering robust, real-time procurement market intelligence reports and solutions.

To know more https://www.spendedge.com/request-for-demo

Contacts:

SpendEdge

Anirban Choudhury

Marketing Manager

Ph No: +1 (872) 206-9340

https://www.spendedge.com/contact-us

SOURCE SpendEdge
Remake Learning Days is a family-friendly festival of innovative experiences where youth make, code, play, design, and tinker alongside the adults in their lives. At events held virtually and in-person at schools, libraries, museums, tech centers, outdoor play spaces, and other sites of learning, families turned out this April and May to do such things as explore space virtually and digitally fabricate new art pieces. Embracing new ways of learning that large majorities of parents now say they want to see in their schools, families played and learned together at such events as:

Suds and Science in San Diego

Make a Robotic Hand from Recycled Materials in Kansas City

Origami, Games, and Art in Chattanooga

First hosted in Pittsburgh in 2016, Remake Learning Days has spread to other places across the country, attracting nearly 200,000 families to experience hands-on learning that connects the arts, sciences, and technology. This year, 17 locations hosted Remake Learning Days, including Chicago, rural eastern Kentucky, and Washington, D.C.

In many ways, Remake Learning Days was inspired by western Pennsylvania native and national icon Fred Rogers. Half a century ago, this beloved neighbor gave America the blueprints for what's needed in education right now -- in our homes, schools, and neighborhoods. In his "Neighborhood," Fred Rogers combined the technology of his day and the latest ideas about child development with the timeless values of childhoodcreativity and play, love and belongingto nurture generations of young people. It's this "Fred Method" that Remake Learning Days encourages.

Fittingly, Remake Learning Days will celebrate Mister Rogers as this year's national festival of innovative learning concludes. On May 20, families everywhere are invited to join a virtual event with some of Mister Rogers' real-life colleagues who helped to create his magical Neighborhood: http://bit.ly/MisterRogersNeighborhood. And on May 23  known also as "143 Day"  acclaimed cookie activist Jasmine Cho will share with families a special cookie recipe inspired by the lessons of Fred Rogers as presented in the new book "When You Wonder, You're Learning" by Gregg Behr and Ryan Rydzewski: http://bit.ly/Celebrate143Day.

Remake Learning Days Across America is led by Remake Learning, a network that ignites engaging, relevant, and equitable learning practices in support of young people navigating rapid social and technological change. National partners include PBS Kids, Digital Promise, Common Sense Media, Learning Heroes and Noggin. Remake Learning Days is generously supported by The Grable Foundation, The Hewlett Foundation, Schmidt Futures, Carnegie Corporation of New York, and The Ford Foundation. For more information, visit remakelearningdays.org or follow @RemakeDays and #RemakeDays on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram.

Find a complete list of events here. For high resolution images, please click here.

Contact

Yu-Ling Cheng

[email protected]

SOURCE Remake Learning

Related Links

http://remakelearningdays.org


( ) CEO Joseph Ladin tells Proactive the Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based jewelry reseller recently revealed it has achieved $3 million in sales since the beginning of 2021.

Ladin says the group, which sells its jewelry on eBay, has seen a boost in sales which he attributes to its Thursday night auction events it hosts on the e-commerce website, as well as increased spending from customers receiving stimulus checks.
OKLAHOMA CITY, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Feed the Children, a leading international anti-hunger organization, is deepening its partnership with Americold, the global provider of choice for temperature-controlled infrastructure and supply chain solutions, to identify more ways to benefit nonprofits across the country by utilizing Americold's services, expertise and associates to help thousands of American families suffering from poverty and food insecurity.

Americold's generosity has played a significant part in how Feed the Children fights childhood hunger and poverty today, going above and beyond just the need for food. Over the course of their multi-year partnership, Americold has donated $750,000 in critical funds to support the nonprofit's efforts, provided complimentary transportation for refrigerated food donations, and donated temperature-controlled storage space for donated products. Through these efforts, they helped feed an estimated 125,000 individuals across America.

Feed the Children works around the clock to provide food and essentials, support for educators, and disaster response to families when they need it most. Through joint campaigns that activate its employees, Americold supports many of these Feed the Children initiatives at the local community level, often benefitting the organizations' community partners across the country.

In 2019, Feed the Children's education initiatives were supported by Americold associates through an event to pack backpacks filled with school supplies and personal care items to donate to local Title I schools. In 2020, furthering the importance of providing nutritious food for children and much-needed personal care items, both organizations implemented a School Pantry Program for at-risk students of Bloomingdale Elementary School, Bloomingdale, Ga. Later this year, the two organizations aim to provide the same educational support for children by hosting an "Adopt-A-S'Cool" school supply drive to help school-aged children in local communities where Americold associates live and work for the upcoming school year.

In addition, Feed the Children continues to collaborate with Americold throughout the year to provide energy conservation walks for Feed the Children community partners. An Americold energy expert walks the nonprofit's space, inspects the facility and equipment, and reviews energy usage reports. Americold's energy team provides educational training and discusses simple action items to reduce overall energy consumption and identifies low-cost opportunities for improvement. The savings realized by this initiative recently allowed a community partner in Florida to provide an additional 167,000 meals to those in need.

"We're proud of our partnership with Feed the Children, and the opportunity to leverage strengths within our business to support their efforts to help families and children in need," said Fred Boehler, president and CEO of Americold. "Many of the ways in which we're able to support them are unique to our role in the food supply chain, and we gladly share our expertise and resources to help get food to families faster. I'm especially proud of all that our associates are doing to support their local communities by providing much needed materials, like school supplies and sporting equipment, to Feed the Children community partners."

It is estimated 1 in 4 children are food insecure due to the economic affects of the pandemic. That's why Feed the Children works with public and private partners to ensure everyone, everywhere, has access to the safe, healthy and nutritious food they need. With Americold's support, Feed the Children is able to provide its vast network of community partners with the funds and resources needed for their communities.

"The pandemic has put a strain on our resources and the resources of our community partners," said Travis Arnold, president and CEO of Feed the Children. "However, through our partnership with Americold, we can continue our important work, helping to provide critically-needed resources and filling empty plates for hungry girls and boys, moms and dads. We are truly humbled by Americold and their staff's generosity and support of our mission."

Visit feedthechildren.org for more information about supporting the nonprofit's mission to provide hope and resources for those without life's essentials.

About Feed the Children

At Feed the Children, we feed hungry kids. We envision a world where no child goes to bed hungry. In the U.S. and internationally, we are dedicated to helping families and communities achieve stable lives and to reducing the need for help tomorrow, while providing food and resources to help them today. We distribute product donations from corporate donors to local community partners, we provide support for teachers and students, and we mobilize resources quickly to aid recovery efforts when natural disasters strike. Internationally, we manage child-focused community development programs in 9 countries. We welcome partnerships because we know our work would not be possible without collaborative relationships.

Visit feedthechildren.org for more information.

About Americold

Americold is the world's largest publicly-traded REIT focused on the ownership, operation, acquisitions and development of temperature-controlled warehouses. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, Americold owns and operates 238 temperature-controlled warehouses, with over 1.4 billion cubic feet of storage, in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and South America. Americold's facilities are an integral component of the supply chain connecting food producers, processors, distributors and retailers to consumers.

Visit www.americold.com for more information.

SOURCE Feed the Children
NAPLES, Fla., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Moving real estate investments to Florida can save investors in high tax states like California, New Jersey and New York a substantial amount in state taxes. Florida nnn properties are in great demand as investors from high tax states with high tax rates have grown weary of paying expensive prices. They recognize investing in Florida as a profitable alternative to remaining in high tax states where tax rates have become a burden.

Income Realty Advisors Inc. specializes in Florida NNN Properties For Sale

Florida nnn properties are considerably appealing and investors are migrating to Florida in record numbers to buy Florida income properties. Properties with national credit tenants and long-term leases with little or no management required are ideal for out of state investors. Well known tenants like 7-Eleven, Walgreens, CVS, Chipotle, McDonald's, Chick Fil-A, Starbucks, Pollo Tropical, and Chase Bank are popular among investors.

Patrick Moorton, a Florida commercial real estate expert and President of Income Realty Advisors is offering advice on why location must be a factor of smart long-term strategy for high earners and those with income property. "Taxes are among the biggest expenses retirees face, especially those who depend on earned income," said Moorton. "Reinvesting in a tax-friendly state, like Florida, is a long-term wealth-building and wealth-keeping strategy that all investors in income producing real estate must consider seriously."

About Income Realty Advisors Inc.:

Florida based commercial real estate Brokerage Company Income Realty Advisors Inc. operates the Floridannn.com net lease investment platform. The firm specializes in buying and selling single tenant net lease properties with national credit tenants to 1031 exchange buyers and investors. Clients include: Real Estate Developers of Publix, Whole Foods, CVS, 7-Eleven, TD Bank, Chase Bank, Real Estate Investment Trusts and High Net worth Individuals.

Contact:

Patrick J Moorton

President

Income Realty Advisors Inc.

(239)-272-1640

[email protected]

https://floridannn.com

Licensed Florida Brokers CQ1043000

SOURCE Florida NNN

Related Links

https://floridannn.com


SAN DIEGO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Shareholder rights law firm Johnson Fistel, LLP has launched an investigation into whether the board members of Ferro Corporation (NYSE: FOE) breached their fiduciary duties in connection with the proposed sale of the Company to Prince International Corporation ("Prince").

On May 11, 2021, Ferro announced that it had entered into a definitive merger agreement with Prince. Under the terms of the definitive merger agreement, Prince will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Ferro common stock for $22 per share in cash.

The investigation concerns whether the Ferro board failed to satisfy its duties to the Company shareholders, including whether the board adequately pursued alternatives to the acquisition and whether the board obtained the best price possible for Ferro shares of common stock. Nationally recognized Johnson Fistel is investigating whether the proposed deal represents adequate consideration, especially given analysts' projections for future revenue growth.

If you are a shareholder of Ferro and believe the proposed buyout price is too low or you're interested in learning more about the investigation, please contact lead analyst Jim Baker ( [email protected] ) at 619-814-4471. If emailing, please include a phone number.

Additionally, you can [Click here to join this action]. There is no cost or obligation to you.

About Johnson Fistel, LLP:

Johnson Fistel, LLP is a nationally recognized shareholder rights law firm with offices in California, New York, and Georgia. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in shareholder derivative and securities class action lawsuits. For more information about the firm and its attorneys, please visit https://www.johnsonfistel.com. Attorney advertising. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.

Contact:

Johnson Fistel, LLP

Jim Baker, 619-814-4471

[email protected]

[Click here to join this action]

SOURCE Johnson Fistel, LLP

Related Links

http://www.johnsonfistel.com


FRANKFURT, Germany, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- FRA/gk-rap  In the first three months of 2021, the financial performance of the Fraport Group continued to be severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. With passenger traffic still down at Frankfurt Airport and across the Group's airports worldwide, Group revenue declined by more than 40 percent year-on-year in the January-to-March reporting period. Fraport posted a negative Group result (net profit) of minus 77.5 million.

Fraport AG's executive board chairman, Dr. Stefan Schulte, said: "The aviation industry still did not see any noticeable recovery during the first quarter of 2021. This was not unexpected considering the global pandemic situation. Nevertheless, we are confident that we are now reemerging from the bottom of the trough. Vaccination campaigns in Germany and many other countries are gaining momentum. Moreover, a number of Covid-19 testing options are now available. People still have a strong desire to travel and explore the world. Therefore, we are expecting passenger numbers to increase noticeably during the summer months  particularly on European routes at first, but also for intercontinental destinations over the long run. At the same time, we have leveraged the crisis to substantially reduce costs and realign our company to become leaner and more agile for the future."

Passenger traffic declines noticeably

During the first three months of 2021, the Group's Frankfurt Airport home base saw passenger traffic drop by 77.6 percent year-on-year to just under 2.5 million travelers. Compared to the first quarter of the 2019 pre-pandemic year, this represents an even stronger decline of 83.2 percent. In contrast, FRA's cargo throughput in the first quarter grew by 21.6 percent year-on-year to 565,497 metric tons (up 7.3 percent compared to Q1/2019). At Fraport's Group airports worldwide, traffic also dropped overall in the first quarter, with year-on-year declines ranging from about 50 percent to 90 percent at some airports. Supported by strong domestic traffic, only two gateways performed better: St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport in Russia (down 18.3 percent) and Xi'an Airport in China (up 40.7 percent).

Balanced EBITDA achieved  Group result remains in negative territory

Reflecting the overall traffic development, Group revenue decreased by 41.8 percent in the first quarter of 2021 to 385.0 million. Adjusting for revenue from construction relating to capacitive capital expenditure at Fraport's subsidiaries worldwide (based on IFRIC 12), Group revenue was down 41.9 percent to 344.7 million. An agreement reached in the reporting period between Fraport and the German Federal Police on the remuneration of aviation security services  provided by Fraport in the past  generated additional revenue of 57.8 million, which positively impacted EBITDA by the same amount.

Across its Group companies in Frankfurt, Fraport reduced operating expenses by around 28 percent  primarily achieved via strict cost management, the implementation of short-time work (under Germany's Kurzarbeit program), and ongoing staff reductions through socially-responsible measures. At Fraport's fully-consolidated Group companies worldwide, operating expenses could even be reduced by about 35 percent. Because of these cost-saving measures and the one-off effect resulting from the agreement with the German Federal Police, Fraport achieved a positive Group EBITDA or operating result of 40.2 million (down 68.9 percent year-on-year) in the first quarter (Q1) of 2021. Excluding the one-off effect from the agreement with the German Federal Police, Fraport still achieved an almost balanced Group EBITDA, as a result of the implemented cost-saving measures. Group EBIT fell markedly from 12.3 million in Q1/2020 to minus 70.2 million in Q1/2021. Group EBIT shrank to minus 116.0 million in the reporting period (from minus 47.6 million in Q1/2020). The Group result or net profit decreased noticeably from minus 35.7 million in Q1/2020 to minus 77.5 million in the first quarter of 2021.

Voluntary redundancy program almost completed

Fraport has launched various measures at all levels to counter the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, including an extensive cost-reduction program. By eliminating expenses not essential for operations, Fraport is saving costs of between 100 million and 150 million yearly. Simultaneously, Fraport scaled down or canceled a number of investments, particularly at its Frankfurt home base  thus reducing related capital expenditure by about 1 billion over the medium and long-term.

Fraport has also started to adjust its overall business organization and administration to make the company leaner and more agile. The company will be able to reduce personnel costs in Frankfurt by up to 250 million yearly compared to 2019, by cutting about 4,000 jobs in a socially responsible manner. This goal has already been nearly achieved. As of April 1, 2021, Fraport reduced its staff in Frankfurt (compared to December 31, 2019) by some 3,900 employees  who left the company taking advantage of severance packages and other measures; or via regular staff attrition.

Fraport will continue to operate a short-time working scheme with the aim of temporarily reducing personnel costs. In the first quarter of 2021, about 80 percent of employees at the Fraport AG parent company and other major Group companies in Frankfurt continued to work on a short-time basis. This involves an average reduction in working time of about 50 percent measured in terms of available hours.

Fraport's liquidity reserves further increased

Fraport raised about 1.9 billion overall in additional financing during the first quarter of 2021. Financing measures included the placement of a corporate bond, issued in two tranches with a total volume of 1.15 billion. Backed by these measures, Fraport's liquid funds and secured credit lines amount to some 4.4 billion (as of March 31, 2021). Therefore, the company is well positioned to meet the ongoing crisis and make the necessary investments for the future.

Outlook

After conclusion of the first quarter, the Fraport executive board is maintaining its outlook for the entire 2021 business year. Passenger traffic at Frankfurt Airport is forecast to range from under 20 million to 25 million. Group revenue is expected to reach approximately 2 billion in 2021. The company is forecasting Group EBITDA in the range of about 300 million to 450 million. Group EBIT is expected to be slightly negative, while the Group result (net profit) will also remain in negative territory. However, both of these key performance indicators will improve markedly compared to 2020.

Print-quality photos of Fraport AG and Frankfurt Airport are available for free downloading via the photo library on the Fraport Web site. For TV news and information broadcasting purposes only, we also offer free footage material for downloading. If you wish to meet a member of our Media Relations team when at Frankfurt Airport, please do not hesitate to contact us. Our contact details are available here.

Fraport AG

Torben Beckmann

Telephone: +49 69 690-70553

Corporate Communications

E-mail: [email protected]

60547 Frankfurt, Germany

www.fraport.com

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SOURCE Fraport AG

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DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "PCR and Realtime PCR testing Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Implications and Growth to 2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global PCR and realtime PCR testing market is expected to decline from $22.53 billion in 2020 to $9.98 billion in 2021 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of -55.7%.

The change in growth trend is mainly due to the companies stabilizing their output after catering to the demand that grew exponentially during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The market is expected to reach $13.82 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 8.5%.

The RT-PCR test is necessary for qualitative detection of nucleic acid from SARS-CoV-2 in upper and lower respiratory specimens that is collected from individuals suspected of COVID-19.



The need for early detection of chronic diseases is expected to drive the market. With the onset of chronic diseases, there has been a priority to detect the cause of the disease to decrease its onset on people, for the drug discovery and to start the appropriate treatment at the appropriate time, which enables faster cure and also save maximum lives and decreases its after-effects. The RT-PCR test is the standard test for the recent COVID-19 (corona virus) pandemic. It is used for its high sensitivity, which enables it to detect early infection. Therefore, the need for early detection is propelling the PCR and real time PCR testing market.



Development of alternative technologies is expected to hinder the growth of PCR and real time PCR testing market. New technologies such as CRISPR, which is a rapid test is expected to be launched soon. In February 2020, Sherlock Biosciences Inc. and Mammoth Biosciences are trying to launch improved diagnostics with CRISPR-based technologies that would increase and accelerate the detection of the corona virus to treat the patients better and also to control the further spread of the virus. Development of alternative tests is expected to hinder the PCR and Real Time PCR Testing market.



Early detection plays a key role in treating COVID-19 patients. The real time RT-PCR technique is a highly sensitive and specific testing method that can deliver a reliable diagnosis in as fast as three hours, unlike the other laboratory tests that take an average of 6 to 8 hours. Real time RT-PCR is significantly faster and has a lower potential for contamination or errors as the entire process is within a closed tube. Therefore, currently it is considered to be the most accurate method available for detection of the coronavirus. This has created huge demand for PCR testing kits.



The companies in the PCR and RT PCR Testing market are coming up with new test kits and systems for the diagnosis of diseases. In January 2020, Roche got CE Mark approved for adenovirus test for the transplant patients. It is designed to be used along with other infectious diseases tests which can be used in their 6800 and 8800 cobas systems. Most companies are coming with the Real time RT-PCR test for corona virus, contributing to the growth of the PCR and Real time PCR Testing market.



Key Topics Covered:



1. Executive Summary



2. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market Characteristics



3. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market Trends And Strategies



4. Impact Of COVID-19 On Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing



5. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market Size And Growth

5.1. Global Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Historic Market, 2015-2020, $ Billion

5.1.1. Drivers Of The Market

5.1.2. Restraints On The Market

5.2. Global Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Forecast Market, 2020-2025F, 2030F, $ Billion



6. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market Segmentation

6.1. Global Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market, Segmentation By Product, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, $ Billion

Consumables And Reagents

Instruments

Software And Services

6.2. Global Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market, Segmentation By Application, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, $ Billion

Clinical Diagnostics

Life Science Research

Industrial Applications

Others

6.3. Global Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market, Segmentation By Technology, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, $ Billion

Quantitative PCR

Digital PCR

6.4. Global Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market, Segmentation By End-Use, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, $ Billion

Academic And Research Institutes

Pharmaceutical And Biotechnology

Clinical Diagnostics Labs And Hospitals

Others

7. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market Regional And Country Analysis

7.1. Global Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market, Split By Region, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, $ Billion

7.2. Global Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) And Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Testing Market, Split By Country, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, $ Billion



Companies Mentioned

Abbott Laboratories

Agilent Technologies Inc.

Biomerieux Sa

Bio-Rad Laboratories

F.Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd (Roche Diagnostics)

Qiagen N.V.

Genmark Diagnostics

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.

General Electric Company (Ge Healthcare)

Danaher

Becton Dickinson And Company

Luminex Corporation

Meridian Bioscience

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/epeu86

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



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



U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907

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DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Trastuzumab Biosimilars Global Market Report 2020-30: COVID-19 Growth and Change" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

Major players in the trastuzumab biosimilar market are Amgen Inc., Pfizer Inc, Samsung Bioepis, Merck & Co., Biocon Limited, Mylan Inc., BioXpress Therapeutics, Celltrion, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. and EirGenix, Inc.



The global trastuzumab biosimilars market is expected to decline from $1.27 billion in 2019 to $1.25 billion in 2020 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of -1.50%.

The decline is mainly due to the COVID-19 outbreak that has led to restrictive containment measures involving social distancing, remote working, and the closure of industries and other commercial activities resulting in operational challenges. The entire supply chain has been disrupted, impacting the market negatively. The market is then expected to recover and reach $3.12 billion in 2023 at a CAGR of 35.50%.



The trastuzumab biosimilar market covered in this report is segmented by product into ogivri; herzuma; ontruzant; trazimera; others. It is also segmented by indication into adjuvant breast cancer; metastatic breast cancer; metastatic gastric cancer; others and by distribution channel into hospital pharmacy; online pharmacy.



In April 2019, Sandoz, a generic pharmaceutical company and a subsidiary of Novartis signed an agreement with EirGenix, Taiwan-based contract development and manufacturer, to market a proposed trastuzumab biosimilar for an undisclosed amount. The agreement gives rights to Sandoz to commercialize the trastuzumab biosimilar developed by EirGenix, available globally, excluding China and Taiwan.

The terms included in the agreement are that the trastuzumab will be developed and manufactured by EirGenix while Sandoz will maintain the rights to the commercialization of the drug upon approval. This agreement is expected to keep in house resources of Sandoz focused on bringing robust internal pipeline products and expanding the existing portfolio of four oncology biosimilars.



The side effects of trastuzumab biosimilar are expected to limit the growth of the trastuzumab biosimilar market. The side effects of Herceptin (chemical name: Trastuzumab) include diarrhea, nausea, fever, heart problems, infection, cough, and rashes. Moreover, breast cancer studies reflect that the exposure of trastuzumab (Herceptin) therapy increased the rate of asymptomatic cardiac dysfunction in the two-year trastuzumab treatment from 4.6% to 8.1%.

The rate of at least one patient experienced Grade-3 or higher, for treatment with trastuzumab is at 20.4% for two years, compared to 16.1% for one year of treatment. The side effects of trastuzumab have a negative impact on the trastuzumab biosimilar market.



Major players are continuously focusing on launching new products in the untapped regions, which is shaping the market for trastuzumab biosimilars. The companies operating in the trastuzumab biosimilars market are undergoing various strategic initiatives such as new product development, partnerships, geographical and product portfolio expansion to maintain their competitive position in the market and better serve the needs of the customers.

For instance, in December 2019, Biocon and Mylan launched Ogivri (trastuzumab-dkst), Trastuzumab Biosimilar in the USA. Mylan plans to offer Ogivri in 150 mg and 420mg strengths, increase access for the treatment of HER2-positive breast and gastric cancer. In February 2020, Pfizer launched trastuzumab biosimilar to Herceptin, Trazimera in the USA. Trazimera is available for the treatment of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) metastatic gastric and breast cancer.

Furthermore, in April 2020, Merck announced the launch of a Biosimilar of Herceptin (trastuzumab)- ONTRUZANT(trastuzumab-dttb). ONTRUZANT is available in the USA for approximately $1,325 and $3,709 for the 150 mg single-dose and 420 mg multiple-dose vial, respectively.



The rising prevalence of breast and gastric cancer contributed to the growth of the trastuzumab biosimilar market. Trastuzumab biosimilar is used in the treatment of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) overexpressing breast cancer and metastatic gastric cancer.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2018, the new breast cancer cases registered were around 2.09 million, and stomach (gastric) cancer cases were around 1.03 million. According to Cancer India, breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in India and accounts for 14% of the cancers in women.

Therefore, the rising prevalence of breast and gastric cancer increases the demand for trastuzumab biosimilar that helps save money when compared to expensive medicines, thereby driving the market.



Key Topics Covered:



1. Executive Summary



2. Trastuzumab Biosimilars Market Characteristics



3. Trastuzumab Biosimilars Market Size And Growth

3.1. Global Trastuzumab Biosimilars Historic Market, 2015 - 2019, $ Billion

3.2. Global Trastuzumab Biosimilars Forecast Market, 2019 - 2023F, 2025F, 2030F, $ Billion



4. Trastuzumab Biosimilars Market Segmentation

4.1. Global Trastuzumab Biosimilars Market, Segmentation By Product, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2019, 2023F, 2025F, 2030F, $ Billion

Ogivri

Herzuma

Ontruzant

Trazimera

Others

4.2. Global Trastuzumab Biosimilars Market, Segmentation By Indication, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2019, 2023F, 2025F, 2030F, $ Billion

Adjuvant Breast Cancer

Metastatic Breast Cancer

Metastatic Gastric Cancer

Others

4.3. Global Trastuzumab Biosimilars Market, Segmentation By Distribution Channel, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2019, 2023F, 2025F, 2030F, $ Billion

Hospital Pharmacy

Online Pharmacy

5. Trastuzumab Biosimilars Market Regional And Country Analysis

5.1. Global Trastuzumab Biosimilars Market, Split By Region, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2019, 2023F, 2025F, 2030F, $ Billion

5.2. Global Trastuzumab Biosimilars Market, Split By Country, Historic and Forecast, 2015-2019, 2023F, 2025F, 2030F, $ Billion



Companies Mentioned

Amgen Inc.

Pfizer Inc

Samsung Bioepis

Merck & Co.

Biocon Limited

Mylan Inc.

BioXpress Therapeutics

Celltrion

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

EirGenix, Inc

ALTEOGEN Inc.

Apotex (Apobiologix)

AryoGen Pharmed

BIOCAD

Prestige BioPharma (PBP)

PlantForm

Outlook Therapeutics (Oncobiologics)

Shanghai CP Guojian Pharmaceutical

Shanghai Henlius Biotech

Stada Arzneimittel

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/8c1ane

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



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



U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

SOURCE Research and Markets

Related Links

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View our Exclusive report on Market scenarios, Estimates, the impact of lockdown, and Customer Behaviour. Download FREE Sample Report!

The report on the commercial drones market provides a holistic update, market size and forecast, trends, growth drivers, and challenges, as well as vendor analysis.

The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current global market scenario and the overall market environment. The market is driven by the rise in applications of drones, the rise in funding for UAV manufacturers, and the increase in legal acceptance of drone operations for commercial applications.

The commercial drones market analysis includes Product, End-user, and Geographic Landscape. This study identifies the rising developments and launches of commercial drones, a growing number of acquisitions and partnerships, and surging technological advances in commercial drones as the prime reasons driving the commercial drones market growth during the next few years.

This report presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources by an analysis of key parameters.

The commercial drones market covers the following areas:

Commercial Drones Market Sizing

Commercial Drones Market Forecast

Commercial Drones Market Analysis

Companies Mentioned

3D Robotics Inc.

AeroVironment Inc.

Autel Robotics

FLIR Systems Inc.

Intel Corp.

Parrot Drones SAS

Remote Monitored Systems plc

SZ DJI Technology Co. Ltd.

Trimble Inc.

Yuneec International Co. Ltd.

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Tethered Drones Market by End-user and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2020-2024: The tethered drones market size will likely grow by USD 193.67 million during 2020-2024, according to Technavio. Download PDF Sample

Drone Data Link System Market by End-user and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2020-2024: The drone data link system market size has the potential to grow by USD 3.07 billion during 2020-2024, according to Technavio. Download PDF Sample





Key Topics Covered:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Recovery phase

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2020

Market outlook: Forecast for 2020 - 2025

Five Forces Analysis

Five forces summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Product

Market segments

Comparison by Product

Software and services - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Hardware - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by Product

Market Segmentation by End-user

Market segments

Comparison by End-user

Infrastructure - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Agriculture - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Public safety - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Energy - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Others - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by End-user

Customer landscape

Customer landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

North America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 Europe - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 APAC - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

South America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 MEA - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market drivers

Market challenges

Market trends

Vendor Landscape

Overview

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

3D Robotics Inc.

AeroVironment Inc.

Autel Robotics

FLIR Systems Inc.

Intel Corp.

Parrot Drones SAS

Remote Monitored Systems plc

SZ DJI Technology Co. Ltd.

Trimble Inc.

Yuneec International Co. Ltd.

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Technavio's in-depth research has direct and indirect COVID-19 impacted market research reports.

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Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

Contact

Technavio Research

Jesse Maida

Media & Marketing Executive

US: +1 844 364 1100

UK: +44 203 893 3200

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

Report: https://www.technavio.com/report/commercial-drones-market-industry-analysis

SOURCE Technavio
View our Exclusive report on Market scenarios, Estimates, the impact of lockdown, and Customer Behaviour. Download FREE Sample Report!

The report on the multi-functional printer market provides a holistic update, market size and forecast, trends, growth drivers, and challenges, as well as vendor analysis.

The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current global market scenario and the overall market environment. The market is driven by increasing demand for MFPs from the healthcare sector and MFPs gaining popularity among price-sensitive end-users.

The multi-functional printer market analysis includes Technology and Geography. This study identifies the evolving documentation needs of businesses as one of the prime reasons driving the multi-functional printer market growth during the next few years.

This report presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources by an analysis of key parameters.

The multi-functional printer market covers the following areas:

Multi-functional Printer Market Sizing

Multi-functional Printer Market Forecast

Multi-functional Printer Market Analysis

Companies Mentioned

Canon Inc.

Eastman Kodak Co.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP

KYOCERA Corp.

Panasonic Corp.

Ricoh Co. Ltd.

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

Seiko Epson Corp.

Sharp Corp.

Xerox Corp.

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Printers Market by Type, Technology, and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2021-2025: The printers market has the potential to grow by USD 6.01 billion during 2021-2025, according to Technavio. Download PDF Sample

Production Printer Market by Technology, Application, and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2021-2025: The production printer market size has the potential to grow by USD 690.03 million during 2021-2025, according to Technavio. Download PDF Sample

Key Topics Covered:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2020

Market outlook: Forecast for 2020 - 2025

Impact of COVID-19

Five Forces Analysis

Five Forces Analysis

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Technology

Market segments

Comparison by Technology

Inkjet - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Laser - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by Technology

Customer landscape

Customer landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Europe - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 North America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 MEA - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

South America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market drivers

Market challenges

Market trends

Vendor Landscape

Vendor landscape

Vendor overview

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

Canon Inc.

Eastman Kodak Co.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP

KYOCERA Corp.

Panasonic Corp.

Ricoh Co. Ltd.

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

Seiko Epson Corp.

Sharp Corp.

Xerox Corp.

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Technavio's in-depth research has direct and indirect COVID-19 impacted market research reports.

Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports.

Technavio's SUBSCRIPTION platform

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.



Contact

Technavio Research

Jesse Maida

Media & Marketing Executive

US: +1 844 364 1100

UK: +44 203 893 3200

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

Report: https://www.technavio.com/report/multi-functional-printer-market-industry-analysis

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COLUMBIA, Md., May 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- GP Strategies Corporation (NYSE: GPX), a global provider of workforce transformation solutions has reached an agreement with Toshiba America Energy Systems Corporation ("TAES"), an affiliate of Kawasaki, Japan-based Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation ("Toshiba ESS"), for them to acquire its EtaPRO business.

(PRNewsfoto/GP Strategies Corporation)

TAES will acquire the rights to the EtaPRO name and brand as well as the entirety of GP Strategies' interests in the EtaPRO software platform pursuant to an asset purchase agreement. The purchase includes the EtaPRO trademarks and intellectual property rights, all customer contracts related to EtaPRO, and all of its related services such as maintenance and remote monitoring. Upon closing, TAES will integrate EtaPRO employees into its operations and will continue operating existing EtaPRO office locations.

As a long-time partner of GP Strategies, Toshiba ESS has been deploying EtaPRO technology to many of its power generation customers. Toshiba ESS understands the value of EtaPRO technology and is eager to incorporate EtaPRO into its global cyber-physical systems and digital transformation strategy. "EtaPRO is a perfect complement to our product portfolio and we're thrilled to welcome them to our team," said Takao Konishi, Director and Senior Vice President at Toshiba ESS. "By bringing Toshiba ESS and EtaPRO together, we'll significantly expand our suite of power generation services and digital solutions to our clients worldwide."

"Joining with Toshiba will enable the EtaPRO business to innovate faster and more globally," said Richard DesJardins, GP Strategies Senior Vice President and EtaPRO business leader. "This improves the scalability and functionality of the EtaPRO platform across both traditional and renewable power generating technologies."

"This transaction reaffirms GP Strategies' commitment to strategic deals that position all involved parties for future success," said GP Strategies' CEO Adam Stedham. "I am confident this deal will be very positive and generate significant value for EtaPRO employees and clients, Toshiba and GP Strategies."

Toshiba Group is currently in Phase 2 of its strategic "Toshiba Next Plan," which emphasizes strong growth through infrastructure services. This acquisition will enable TAES and Toshiba ESS to provide one-stop solutions with greater service efficiency to its customers through the integration of digital technologies from the EtaPRO platform. This new offering will enhance Toshiba's current servicing and maintenance solutions for turbines and equipment for power generation.

Closing of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including a review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), and is anticipated to occur by the third quarter of 2021.

This news release contains forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the capabilities and expertise the acquisition brings and the timing of completion of the acquisition. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause TAES' and GP Strategies' results to differ materially from management's current expectations. Forward-looking statements are based upon the beliefs and assumptions of TAES' management and GP Strategies' management and on currently available information. Neither TAES nor GP Strategies undertakes any responsibility to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements.

About Toshiba America Energy Systems Corporation

Toshiba America Energy Systems Corporation (TAES), headquartered in West Allis, Wisconsin, with a large manufacturing and service shop, provides turbine/generator equipment and services for the energy industry in the Americas, including thermal, hydro and nuclear power plants. Part of the Energy Systems & Solutions Company within Toshiba Corporation, TAES is proud to provide high-quality, reliable and cost-effective products and services that address current and future power generation needs. For more information please visit http://www.toshiba.com/taes.

About Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation

Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation is a leading supplier of integrated energy solutions. With its long experience and expertise in wide range of power generating and transmitting systems and energy management technology, the company delivers innovative, reliable and efficient energy solutions across the globe. Split off from Toshiba Corporation (TOKYO: 6502) in October 2017.

https://www.toshiba-energy.com/en/index.htm

About GP Strategies

GP Strategies Corporation (NYSE: GPX) is a global workforce transformation provider of organizational and technical performance solutions. GP Strategies' solutions improve the effectiveness of organizations by delivering innovative and superior training, consulting, and business improvement services customized to meet the specific needs of its clients. Clients include Fortune 500 companies, automotive, financial services, technology, aerospace and defense industries, and other commercial and government customers. Additional information can be found at gpstrategies.com.

About EtaPRO

EtaPRO is a real-time digital platform for improving the efficiency and reliability of power generating assets through empirical and physics-based digital twin technology combined with traditional vibration frequency analysis for detecting and diagnosing equipment deterioration or operating abnormalities in their earliest stages. EtaPRO is adapted to customer-specific requirements and is used by the global power industry on nearly 700 GW of generation in 40 countries, including thermal, geothermal, hydro, wind, and solar generating technologies.

 2021 GP Strategies Corporation. All rights reserved.

GP Strategies and GP Strategies with logo design are registered trademarks of GP Strategies Corporation.

SOURCE GP Strategies Corporation

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PORTLAND, Ore., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading premium children's wear brand Hanna Andersson has named Portland native Kelly Olmstead as its new Chief Marketing Officer. Olmstead joins CEO Sally Pofcher at the forefront of an impressive, predominantly female executive team committed to outfitting the adventure of childhood. By embracing the Scandinavian principles of intentional design, sustainability, and childhood independence, Hanna Andersson creates high-quality, organic cotton products with happy designs that are authentically different from others in the children's space.

Olmstead is a brand executive with more than 20 years of expertise in the sporting goods industry, spending the larger part of her career at adidas. Skilled in marketing strategy and execution, brand communications, digital, retail, and eCommerce marketing, and more, she is an inspirational and proven leader of large teams. Most recently, Olmstead held the position of VP of Brand Activation at adidas, overseeing all consumer-facing marketing efforts in the US. She served on the global Extended Leadership group over the last 5 years, contributing to unprecedented growth for the adidas brand through focus on digital acceleration and building brand desire, especially in North America.

Olmstead is passionate about equality in the workplace, and as a working mom herself, looks to uplift and inspire the next generation of women and girls to achieve their goals and dreams. As a college hall of fame athlete, she takes great pride in the work she championed while at adidas to support females in sport through the She Breaks Barriers campaign. Olmstead's compelling storytelling and consumer connection abilities transcend the sporting goods industry; these superpowers will be paramount in her role at Hanna Andersson.

"I am so excited to join the talented team at Hanna Andersson and help take the brand to the next level. Hanna Andersson is a brand that stands for sustainability and inclusion, incredibly important values that mean so much to me and to today's parents. In my role as CMO, I'm eager to continue finding new and compelling ways to share these values, and the brand's rich heritage, with a larger audience of families who are demanding more from brands they support," said Olmstead. "The last year has changed so many things about consumer expectations  one of them being the way that consumers can experience and shop brands digitally. Hanna Andersson has done an incredible job shifting focus to a 100% digital model, and I'm looking forward to partnering with the team to continue to improve storytelling across the digital ecosystem."

Hanna Andersson is enthusiastic about Olmstead's dedication to expressing the brand's values through a digital-first model that will connect with a new generation of parents and families. Hanna Andersson has made a clear investment in the future of the brand by continuing to invest in strong leaders like Kelly Olmstead.

ABOUT HANNA ANDERSSON:

Hanna Andersson was founded in 1983 and is a leading premium children's apparel and lifestyle brand committed to outfitting the adventure of childhood. Hanna Andersson is known for its iconic, globally recognized products with happy designs, Hanna-me-down quality, and construction details that eliminate the rub. The company's products are designed for children ages newborn to 12 years, with a complementary assortment of family apparel. Hanna Andersson reaches its customers through a seamless omnichannel platform encompassing e-commerce, catalog and brick-and-mortar retail stores. Known as the original maker of Family Matching Pajamas, Hanna Andersson has built a cult following and is a favorite amongst celebrities including Gabrielle Union, Kate Hudson, Kristen Bell, Taylor Swift, and Thomas Rhett. ( www.hannaandersson.com )

CONTACT:

Mateja Heinrich

Full Picture

Account Executive

[email protected]

SOURCE Hanna Andersson
"Our posture's gonna be that we're posted outside of DC, awaiting the president's orders. We hope he will give us the orders. We want him to declare an insurrection, and to call us up as the militia."

Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, in November, looking ahead to Jan. 6
WELLESLEY, Mass. and WORCESTER, Mass., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Harvard Pilgrim Health Care today announced a new collaboration aimed at improving maternal health and well-being across New England. Through a collaboration with Ariadne Labs and UMass Memorial Health, TeamBirth, a clinically proven care process innovation pioneered by Ariadne Labs will initially launch at UMass Memorial HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital in Leominster and UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester this May. Lessons from this collaboration will be used to establish TeamBirth as a standard of care that benefits people giving birth across New England.

Harvard Pilgrim HealthCare, Adriadne Labs, UMass Memorial Health

Americans today are 50 percent more likely to die during childbirth than prior generations, showing a continuously rising maternal mortality rate over decades, despite advances in health care. Data also shows that the risk is higher for Black and American Indian/Alaska Native women . Developed by the Delivery Decisions Initiative at Ariadne Labs, TeamBirth aims to improve both safety and dignity in childbirth by structuring the essential information that should be communicated during every labor assessment. During its pilot program, Ariadne Labs reported that 79 percent of TeamBirth patients believed their preferences made a difference in the care they received and 94 percent reported their clinical team talked with them in a way they could understand.

"Through our collaboration with Ariadne Labs and UMass Memorial HealthAlliance, our goal is to improve birth outcomes, decrease cesarean section procedures, and improve the patient experience for expectant mothers and their families," said Michael Sherman, MD, Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer at the combined organization of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Tufts Health Plan. "We look forward to working together on this innovative program that puts the patient at the center of the clinical care team."

Two primary elements comprise the TeamBirth initiative  efforts to improve communication between the mother, the family, and the clinical care team, which includes a live birth plan, storyboarding and birth plan "huddles" between the clinical team throughout labor; and a pair of decision-making tools aimed at reducing cesarean sections.

"The project flips the standard script of how to improve safety in healthcare. Rather than treating people's experience as a secondary goal, we're demonstrating how attending to the lived experience of people giving birth is a primary way to make outcomes equitable. I'm grateful to Harvard Pilgrim for their visionary investment and UMass for their dedicated partnership to establish a new standard of care," said Dr. Neel Shah, Director of the Delivery Decisions Initiative at Ariadne Labs and Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School.

"As a community hospital I think we are already very patient centered but any way that we can improve our patients' birth experience and our team's communication is a welcome improvement," said Dr. Daniel Terk of HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital. "I am very much looking forward to TeamBirth in Leominster and hoping to see a benefit for all of our patients, and their growing families. "

"This initiative will enhance and strengthen our care delivery processes, and improve the patient experience, for our expectant mothers, other birthing persons, and their families," said Dr. Tiffany Moore Simas, Chair and Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Medical Center. "Our academic medical center embraces an environment of continuous improvement - that commitment is why we are partnering with Harvard Pilgrim and Ariadne Labs. Our care teams are excited about this opportunity."

UMass Memorial Health facilities include a tertiary care referral center for high risk pregnancies, a level 3 neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and comprehensive obstetric and gynecologic care. This includes specialty services in gyn oncology, urogynecology, reproductive endocrinology and infertility. A new in vitro fertilization (IVF) center is scheduled to open later this year.

Harvard Pilgrim and Ariadne Labs will launch TeamBirth during two closed events: Tuesday, May 17 at 2:30 p.m., at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Knowles Hall; and Wednesday, May 18 at 9:00 a.m. at UMass Memorial HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital in Leominster. Media interested in attending the events should contact Anthony Berry, Sr. Director, Media and Public Relations at UMass Memorial Health: [email protected].

About Harvard Pilgrim

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care along with its subsidiaries provide health benefit plans, programs and services to more than 3 million members and customers, including its subsidiaries that serve national self-insured and population health customers, in New England and beyond. A leading not-for-profit health services company, we guide our members  and the communities we serve  to better health. In partnership with our expansive network of doctors and hospitals, we're improving health outcomes and lowering costs through clinical quality and innovative care management. Our commitment to the communities we serve is driven by the passion of the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation. Through its work, low- and moderate-income families are gaining greater access to fresh, affordable food  a cornerstone to better health and well-being.

About Ariadne Labs

Ariadne Labs is a joint center for health systems innovation at Brigham & Women's Hospital and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. With a mission to save lives and reduce suffering, our vision is that health systems equitably deliver the best possible care for every patient, everywhere, every time. We use human centered design, health systems implementation science, public health expertise, and frontline clinical care experience to design, test and spread scalable systems-level solutions to some of health care's biggest problems. From developing checklists and conversation guides to fostering international collaborations and establishing global standards of measurement, our work has been accessed in more than 165 countries, touching hundreds of millions of lives. Visit ariadnelabs.org to learn more and covid19.ariadnelabs.org to learn about our response to COVID-19.

About UMass Memorial Health

UMass Memorial Health is the largest not-for-profit health care system in Central Massachusetts with more than 14,000 employees and 1,700 physicians, many of whom are members of UMass Memorial Medical Group. We are the clinical partner of the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Our comprehensive system includes UMass Memorial Health  HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital, UMass Memorial Health  Marlborough Hospital, UMass Memorial Medical Center and UMass Memorial Health  Community Healthlink. Together, we impact every aspect of life in the region by making health and wellness services available to everyone, advocating for social equality and providing economic stability and opportunity. There are many ways to heal. We pursue them all. Relentlessly. Visit www.ummhealth.org.

SOURCE Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
The ability to hear impacts every aspect of our lives. Those who struggle with hearing clearly often retreat from social activities such as dining out and large family gatherings or events, leaving them feeling isolated. Although these individuals may not have clinically diagnosed hearing loss, they still struggle to understand speech when there is competing noise.

In addition, face masks to limit COVID-19 exposure muffle sound, making hearing even more difficult. For those who rely on lip-reading to help with their hearing struggles, this presents even greater challenges to having meaningful connections with others. All of this, experts say, can have a real impact on someone's quality of life as well as their emotional and mental health as they try to hear and be part of conversations.

"People with hearing loss often find themselves not wanting to frequent the places or situations that can lead to frustration and embarrassment due to communication challenges," said Dr. Tim Trine, Noopl CEO. "It's not surprising that medical studies have demonstrated a significantly higher prevalence of clinical depression for people with hearing loss."

There is also a reluctance to wear hearing aids due to the unfortunate negative connotations that go along with hearing loss and hearing aids. And the cost doesn't help either; hearing aids are expensive (thousands of dollars) and not often covered by insurance.

Noopl 1.0

For those who struggle in loud environments or simply want to reduce background noise to hear more clearly, Noopl is life-enriching. Avoiding the stigma of hearing aids, Noopl is an iPhone accessory that pairs with the stylish AirPods Pro, creating an alternative for hearing enhancement that is also far less expensive than hearing aids.

Noopl uses three microphones to focus on desired voices while reducing background noise, improving one's ability to hear more clearly. The real magic comes with AirPods Pro. Noopl takes advantage of the spatial audio feature enabled by iOS 14 for AirPods Pro to track head movement and automatically focus on the voice of the person where the user is looking.

"Socializing is a crucial part of the human experience," said Trine. "Noopl allows people to participate in situations and environments that they may have previously retreated from due to the frustrations of not being able to hear and participate in conversations. This has a tremendous impact on their overall wellbeing, mental and emotional health."

The innovative technology was created and driven by audiology and medical tech experts, including CEO Dr. Tim Trine, who is a recognized leader in the audiology and hearing sciences industry. Forbes said "Noopl: The iPhone Accessory That Could Super-Charge Your Hearing" and Newsweek named it one of its Best of CES 2021.

Noopl 1.0 costs $199.00 and is available at www.Noopl.com . Currently the device is compatible with iPhone 7 and newer and requires AirPods Pro for the auto-steering feature. It also works with all MFi compatible hearing aids. The company plans to release a version for Android next winter.

Watch: Noopl video

About Noopl

Noopl is a Sacramento-based startup focused on breakthrough innovation and technology integration in the consumer audio space. Founded by Steven Verdooner and Kevin Snow, Noopl's patented technology and initial consumer product, which leverages best-in-class multi-microphone beamforming technology, is the first MFi smartphone accessory designed to improve a user's ability to filter out background noise and hear conversations more clearly in noisy situations. The first-generation device plugs into the lightning port of an iPhone and combines advanced aspects of smartphone technology, digital MEMS microphones, low-latency audio signal processing, head tracking, and Noopl's deep expertise in audiology. The company's device augments the entire listening experience and allows users to never miss a moment. Visit www.Noopl.com.

SOURCE Noopl

Related Links

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HELSINKI, Finland, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Helsinki Biennial will take place for the first time from 12 June to 26 September 2021 on Vallisaari island, located in the Helsinki Archipelago. Uniting the maritime island with the city of Helsinki, the inaugural edition of the biennial, titled The Same Sea, will also extend to the mainland, with artworks and events invigorating the Finnish capital.

An extensive programme of real-life contemporary art exhibitions, workshops, events, and educational activities will be available to in-person audiences as permitted by COVID-19 restrictions, as well as a vast array of digital initiatives accessible for remote audiences, including a new collaboration with Facebook Open Arts. Despite the challenges posed over the last year, all announced artists and artist groups** will exhibit their artworks as originally envisioned.

Maija Tanninen-Mattila, director of Helsinki Biennial, explains:

"I believe that in these challenging times, people long for art and cultural experiences more than ever before. As we enter a new reality, it is integral to rethink existing patterns of behaviour and create safe experiences for engaging with art. Helsinki Biennial launches with a future-orientated vision, advocating ecological ethics and celebrating the synthesis of art and nature. The bridge we are building between the Finnish and international art worlds reflects our interest in interdependence, connectedness and mutual understanding across vastly different geographies and cultures. I hope that the biennial will bring all visitors hope, light, and joy."

Jan Vapaavuori, Mayor of Helsinki, says:

"Access to outstanding art and creativity is crucial for how citizens engage with the pressing issues that we face today. Helsinki Biennial's messages of environmental consciousness, sustainable practice and global interconnectedness reflect the city of Helsinki's own values and ambitions. This world-class new initiative further enhances Helsinki's position as a leading creative hub, adding tremendous value not just for its own residents but also for its position on the international stage."

Helsinki Biennial Programme

Helsinki Biennial 2021 presents over 40 artists and artist groups from Finland and across the globe, including 75% new commissions and site-specific works sensitively positioned across its remarkable setting in the Baltic Sea. Approximately one third of the artworks on Vallisaari are located outdoors along marked trails, amidst the natural greenery and diverse flora of the island, and others inside former gunpowder cellars and old residential buildings.

Responding to, whilst safeguarding, Vallisaari's natural environment, the exhibition The Same Sea reflects upon the ever-pressing notion of interdependence. Curated by Pirkko Siitari and Taru Tappola, head curators of Helsinki Art Museum (HAM), new commissions embrace diverse themes like nature, borders, identities, human traces, time and empathy. A number of artists have taken inspiration from subjects relating to the daily lives of Vallisaari's former residents and the island's natural landscape and military history, as well as wider topics around the local and global consequences of human activity and alternative visions of the future.

Some biennial artworks are located on mainland Helsinki, including Janet Echelman's aerial sculpture1.78 which will be suspended above the city's central Senate Square during August; and Helsinki Art Museum, responsible for organising the biennial, will host an installation and series of events by Rirkrit Tiravanija and Antto Melasniemi in collaboration with Finnish furniture company Artek.

Also at Helsinki Art Museum is an exhibition of works by Katharina Grosse. In her first solo show in Finland, Chill Seeping From The Walls Gets Between Us, HAM will display two new installations by Grosse that transform the exhibition spaces into massive, all-encompassing spatial works of art. Grosse has also produced a new site-specific work on Vallisaari Island for Helsinki Biennial.

The Helsinki Biennial Inspired collateral programme presents other cultural and artistic events across Helsinki, created in collaboration with the city's services, communities, and residents, and reflecting the themes and motifs of the biennial. For instance, Helsinki's cultural hub and theatre venue Kanneltalo will present the Climate Confessional, an interactive, sculptural installation from Finnish design studio Paja&Bureau, which allows users to consider the climate crisis.

Other islands in the Helsinki Archipelago offer inspiration and locations for collateral exhibitions; the neighbouring fortress island of Suomenlinna, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, plays host to two group exhibitions So long, thanks again for the fish and Island of Empathy.

Throughout its run, the Helsinki Biennial will be brought to life with a programme of artist-led performances, workshops, and talks. BIOS Research Unit will set up the Vallisaari Research Station within the island's former fire-fighting depot, hosting seminars and lectures from visiting scientists. Meanwhile artists Dafna Maimon and Andrew Kerton will offer a sensory workshop exploring the digestive system.

Helsinki Biennial Digital Initiatives

Considering accessibility, inclusivity, environmental responsibility and potential COVID-19 restrictions, Helsinki Biennial has created an exhaustive online and virtual offering which will bring the biennial to audiences remotely.

Digital artworks which feature in the Helsinki Biennial can be encountered on the biennial website, including those by BIOS, Gustafsson&Haapoja, and Niskanen & Salo. Selected biennial events will also be livestreamed on social media, and recordings of performance pieces will be made available online, such as those by WAUHAUS, Samir Bhowmik, Meiju Niskala, and Hanna Tuulikki.

Remote audiences can also join live tours with local biennial guides, who will create meaningful, insightful experiences for those unable to travel to Helsinki. In addition, extensive video interviews with exhibited artists will also be available digitally.

Two new interactive VR experiences have been created to transport audiences to Vallisaari island and embrace the biennial's unique location. Produced by award winning Helsinki-based VR studio Zoan, viewers can immerse themselves in Vallisaari's natural surrounds, discover historical buildings and journey through its changing seasons. The VR experiences will be available on the Virtual Helsinki platform, accessible with devices like HTC VIVE, VIVE Cosmos, VIVE Pro, Oculus Rift and Oculus Quest. The experiences will also be available for download from Oculus Store in June.

Through a partnership with Facebook Open Arts, Helsinki Biennial will present new digital artwork, the production of a new podcast series and a live-streamed talk to investigate digital solutions in art, responsibility and locality. More details on Helsinki Biennial's partnership with Facebook Open Arts will be announced soon.

**The Helsinki Biennial 2021 participants include:

Pawe Althamer*, PL Jussi Kivi*, FI ATTAKWAD* Alicja Kwade*, PL/DE Pasi Autio*, FI Hayoun Kwon, KR/FR Samir Bhowmik*, IN/FI Laura Kononen*, FI BIOS Research Unit*, FI Tuomas A. Laitinen*, FI Baran Caginli*, TR/FI Teemu Lehmusruusu*, FI Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller, CA Dafna Maimon*, FI/DE Kyungwoo Chun*, KR Antti Majava*, FI Janet Echelman, US Inga Meldere* LV/FI EGS*, FI Jaakko Niemela*, FI Katharina Grosse*, DE Meiju Niskala*, FI Gustafsson&Haapoja*, FI Niskanen & Salo*, FI/US Hanna Tuulikki*, UK Sari Palosaari*, FI Honkasalo-Niemi-Virtanen*, FI Outi Pieski, Birit and Katja Haarla*, FI/BE IC-98, FI Mario Rizzi, IT/DE Uwa Iduozee, FI/US Rirkrit Tiravanija & Antto Melasniemi*, AR & FI Wanuri Kahiu, KE WAUHAUS, FI Marja Kanervo*, FI Christine and Margaret Wertheim*, AU/US Topi Kautonen, FI Maaria Wirkkala*, FI Tadashi Kawamata*, JP/FR Zodiak presents: Joni Karkkainen & Jukka Tarvainen*, FI Khvay Samnang, KH

*An asterisk denotes a new commission.



For more information on the artworks and artists participating in Helsinki Biennial 2021: The Same Sea, click here.

Keep updated on Instagram, Facebook ( @helsinkibiennia l) and Twitter ( @HELbiennial ) #HelsinkiBiennial

The main partners of Helsinki Biennial 2021 include Metsahallitus and Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation, and it is also supported by Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation, Svenska Kulturfonden, and Pro Artibus Foundation. The main corporate partner of Helsinki Biennial 2021 is Clear Channel. Other partners include Helen and Artek. Korkeasaari Zoo and the Helsinki Festival are Helsinki Biennial's event partners.

Notes to Editors

International PR

Milly Carter Hepplewhite

[email protected]

+44 20 8969 3959

Helsinki Biennial

Helsinki Biennial is an international contemporary art event which takes place on Vallisaari island. Informed by Vallisaari  a former military island fusing wild nature and urban heritage  sustainable and responsible values lie at the core of Helsinki Biennial. Free to the public, each edition will primarily comprise of major new, site-specific commissions by leading international artists. Helsinki Biennial embodies the city's ambitious, cultural vision, committed to developing Helsinki's art scene both on a grassroots and institutional level. A major initiative of the City of Helsinki and Helsinki Art Museum (HAM), the biennial is directed by HAM's director Maija Tanninen-Mattila and the inaugural edition, 'The Same Sea', is curated by HAM's head curators Pirkko Siitari and Taru Tappola. The biennial is further supported by an international advisory committee made up of curators and academics including Kari Conte, Director of Programs and Exhibitions at the International Studio and Curatorial Programme (ISCP), New York; Lena From, Head of Special Projects at the Public Art Agency Sweden; and Joasia Krysa, Professor of Exhibition Research at Liverpool John Moores University and Liverpool Biennial.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/helsinki-marketing/r/the-inaugural-helsinki-biennial-will-open-on-12-june-2021-with-an-extensive-programme-of-art--events,c3344890

The following files are available for download:

https://news.cision.com/helsinki-marketing/i/samir-bhowmik-lost-islands,c2911853 Samir Bhowmik Lost Islands

SOURCE Helsinki Marketing
Along with being featured in Thrive magazine, three finalists will each receive a mini touch-screen tablet with a case and wireless earphones. The grand prize winner receives a $500 gift card plus a professional photo shoot with his or her ag mentor. In addition, the winner has the opportunity to pay it forward by designating a $1,000 donation from Syngenta to a local charity or civic organization in their name.

"The roots of agriculture run deep from generation to generation," says Pam Caraway, communications lead at Syngenta. "Everyone has a unique story that deserves to be told  a story of resilience, of mentorship, of diversity, of family bonds. The #RootedinAg Contest gives us a chance to shine a light on these stories that are woven into the fabric of the industry we all love."

The contest is open now. Here's how to enter:

Go to syngentathrive.com/contest to review eligibility and fill out the brief #RootedinAg entry form.



to review eligibility and fill out the brief #RootedinAg entry form. Write a paragraph or two (about 200 words) that describes the person who most inspired you and submit a photograph that supports the written entry.

The deadline for entering is June 30, 2021. A panel of judges then chooses the three finalists. The finalists' entries are posted on the Thrive website and visitors vote for their favorite. These votes, along with the judges' scores, determine the grand prize winner. Online voting ends Sept. 15, 2021. Syngenta announces the grand prizewinner in October.

For more information about the 2021 #RootedinAg Contest, visit www.SyngentaThrive.com/contest. Join the conversation online  connect with Syngenta at Syngenta-us.com/social.

No Purchase Necessary. Void Where Prohibited by Law. Only one Gift Card per person. Must be 18 years of age (or the age of majority in their state of residence) or older and resident of the continental United States to be eligible. Employees of Syngenta, its affiliates and agents are not eligible to win.

About Syngenta

Syngenta is one of the world's leading agriculture companies comprising Syngenta Crop Protection and Syngenta Seeds. Our ambition is to help safely feed the world while taking care of the planet. We aim to improve the sustainability, quality and safety of agriculture with world class science and innovative crop solutions. Our technologies enable millions of farmers around the world to make better use of limited agricultural resources. Syngenta Crop Protection and Syngenta Seeds are part of Syngenta Group. In more than 100 countries we are working to transform how crops are grown. Through partnerships, collaboration and The Good Growth Plan we are committed to accelerating innovation for farmers and nature, striving for regenerative agriculture, helping people stay safe and healthy and partnering for impact. To learn more visit www.syngenta.com and www.goodgrowthplan.com. Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Syngenta, www.twitter.com/SyngentaUS and on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/syngenta.

Web Resources:

#RootedinAg Contest

Know More, Grow More

Syngenta Newsroom

Syngenta U.S.

Thrive

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This document may contain forward-looking statements, which can be identified by terminology such as 'expect', 'would', 'will', 'potential', 'plans', 'prospects', 'estimated', 'aiming', 'on track' and similar expressions. Such statements may be subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from these statements. For Syngenta, such risks and uncertainties include risks relating to legal proceedings, regulatory approvals, new product development, increasing competition, customer credit risk, general economic and market conditions, compliance and remediation, intellectual property rights, implementation of organizational changes, impairment of intangible assets, consumer perceptions of genetically modified crops and organisms or crop protection chemicals, climatic variations, fluctuations in exchange rates and/or commodity prices, single source supply arrangements, political uncertainty, natural disasters, and breaches of data security or other disruptions of information technology. Syngenta assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changed assumptions or other factors.

Manufacturers of prizes are not affiliated with Sponsor and are not sponsors of this Contest. Reference herein to any trademark, proprietary product, organization or company name is intended for explicit description only and does not constitute or imply endorsement.

2021 Syngenta, 410 S Swing Rd, Greensboro, NC 27409. Thrive and the Syngenta logo are registered trademarks of a Syngenta Group Company. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE Syngenta

Related Links

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JERSEY CITY, N.J., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Hoots Wings, best-in-class wing concept, announced the signing of a six-unit deal for locations across the east coast. This is the second franchise agreement for hoots wings since the launch of its franchise opportunity in Q4 2020. This agreement will add to the exponential growth that hoots wings has planned nationwide, having recently announced its development plans for the state of Texas.

Owned and operated by HOA Brands, parent company to hoots wings and Hooters, the fast-casual wing concept has plans to bring 50 locations to key markets across New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island in the next five years. This new franchise agreement sets the brand up to expect six locations in those states - in Providence, RI, King of Prussia, PA, Newark, NJ, Hoboken, NJ, Atlantic City, NJ and Jersey City, NJ - by 2023. The first location is slated to open late September and will be located at 525 Washington Blvd., Jersey City, NJ.

Behind this multi-unit agreement is Phillip Moran, 40-year restaurant industry veteran, with 37 years spent with Hooters and HOA Brands combined. Moran has owned and operated Hooters restaurants on the east coast for 21 years, and is eager to break ground for hoots wings in New Jersey. He was the first franchise partner for the Hooters franchise in 1990, starting out with four franchise locations and growing to 30 restaurants before he moved efforts to the east coast.

"Hooters put wings on the map  it has a 35-plus year history of the best wings on the planet," said Moran. "With Hooters backing and a fast, easily prepared and delivered best-selling product as its base, hoots wings is set up for success  this deal is a natural progression for me to help accelerate hoots' growth efforts on the east coast."

"Phillip is an industry veteran who understands not only the brand but also the excitement that surrounds hoots wings," said Sal Melilli, CEO of HOA Brands. "He knows the value of hoots' diverse menu and is ready to bring it to east coast communities where he has spent over 20 years growing Hooters' presence. Northern New Jersey has a large population of loyal Hooters customers and wing enthusiasts, and we're excited to bring hoots wings to this community."

When entrepreneurs make the move to join the hoots wings franchise family, they sign on to bring the most diverse wing menu to their community, including breaded bone-in, naked bone-in, boneless, and  for those looking for a healthy alternative  smoked and roasted wings. Hoots Wings also sets itself apart from other fast casual franchise opportunities with its simple and effective operations. A hoots wings kitchen only requires two simple cooking platforms to produce the menu, and the POS system seamlessly integrates with all major third-party delivery platforms.

Hoots Wings is actively seeking qualified franchisees with an entrepreneurial spirit and prior restaurant experience, or experience in a relevant industry. Franchisees with strong ties to the community is a bonus. Franchisees who join the hoots wings brand will enjoy the benefits of hands-on training through the opening process, marketing support, site selection and construction assistance, access to a vast, existing supply chain, and a top-tier POS system. As a thank you for their service to the United States, military veterans receive a 10 percent discount off the franchise fee.

For more information on the hoots wings franchise opportunity, visit https://hootsfranchise.com/.

ABOUT HOOTS WINGS:

Hoots Wings, is a best-in-class, fast casual restaurant known for its diverse wing menu, offering breaded bone-in, naked bone-in, boneless, smoked and roasted wings with more than a dozen sauce and rub options. Additionally, guests can enjoy mouthwatering buffalo shrimp, signature customized chicken sandwiches and waffle fries. Hoots Wings is backed by longtime franchisor HOA Brands, and there are currently seven locations throughout Illinois, Georgia and Florida. With signed development commitments for over 70 locations, hoots wings is on track to open up to 17 more units in 2021. Hoots Wings is looking for qualified franchise leads to bring the scalable, best-in-class wing concept to scores of markets throughout the US. For more information on how you can own your own hoots wings, please visit https://hootsfranchise.com/.

SOURCE Hoots Wings

Related Links

www.hootswings.com


BENGALURU, India, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Infosys (NYSE: INFY), the global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting, today announced that it has been selected by Britvic, one of the leading branded soft drinks businesses in Europe, as a strategic end-to-end partner to help them deliver their strategic transformation roadmap and operations, across Applications, Cloud Infrastructure, Service Management and End User Computing.

As Britvic's strategic partner, Infosys will provide end-to-end IT services and deliver a technology-driven approach to fulfill Britvic's business goals and strategic digital transformation roadmap. Infosys will also simplify and streamline its cloud infrastructure and operations leveraging Infosys Cobalt while improving service delivery through analytics, automation and process maturity.

Ambeshwar Nath, Senior Vice President, Infosys, said, "Through robust investments, we have developed capabilities to provide best in class digital services and deliver end-to-end solutions to customers in the consumer goods industry. We are collaborating with Britvic on building new digital capabilities, driving continuous innovation and leveraging our cognitive-first approach to simplify operations further accelerating Britvic's digital transformation journey."

Talking about the collaboration, Neal Johnson, IT Director Operations & Infrastructure at Britvic, said, "Britvic's aim is to be the most dynamic, creative and admired soft drinks company in the world which means IT needs to transform the way service and operations are delivered - with Infosys we have a strategic partner to take our operations to the next level by leveraging automation and digitalisation, thereby offering a seamless digital experience for our enterprise users. This partnership will also help us innovate faster, be more agile and to transform quickly by leveraging Infosys's thought leadership as a market leader in IT services for Consumer Goods companies."

About Infosys

Infosys is a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting. We enable clients in 46 countries to navigate their digital transformation. With nearly four decades of experience in managing the systems and workings of global enterprises, we expertly steer our clients through their digital journey. We do it by enabling the enterprise with an AI-powered core that helps prioritize the execution of change. We also empower the business with agile digital at scale to deliver unprecedented levels of performance and customer delight. Our always-on learning agenda drives their continuous improvement through building and transferring digital skills, expertise, and ideas from our innovation ecosystem.

Visit www.infosys.com to see how Infosys (NYSE: INFY) can help your enterprise navigate your next.

Safe Harbor

Certain statements in this release concerning our future growth prospects, financial expectations and plans for navigating the COVID-19 impact on our employees, clients and stakeholders are forward-looking statements intended to qualify for the 'safe harbor' under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties relating to these statements include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties regarding COVID-19 and the effects of government and other measures seeking to contain its spread, risks related to an economic downturn or recession in India, the United States and other countries around the world, changes in political, business, and economic conditions, fluctuations in earnings, fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, our ability to manage growth, intense competition in IT services including those factors which may affect our cost advantage, wage increases in India, our ability to attract and retain highly skilled professionals, time and cost overruns on fixed-price, fixed-time frame contracts, client concentration, restrictions on immigration, industry segment concentration, our ability to manage our international operations, reduced demand for technology in our key focus areas, disruptions in telecommunication networks or system failures, our ability to successfully complete and integrate potential acquisitions, liability for damages on our service contracts, the success of the companies in which Infosys has made strategic investments, withdrawal or expiration of governmental fiscal incentives, political instability and regional conflicts, legal restrictions on raising capital or acquiring companies outside India, unauthorized use of our intellectual property and general economic conditions affecting our industry and the outcome of pending litigation and government investigation. Additional risks that could affect our future operating results are more fully described in our United States Securities and Exchange Commission filings including our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020. These filings are available at www.sec.gov. Infosys may, from time to time, make additional written and oral forward-looking statements, including statements contained in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and our reports to shareholders. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements that may be made from time to time by or on behalf of the Company unless it is required by law.

SOURCE Infosys
DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Gastrointestinal Drugs Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Implications and Growth to 2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

This report covers this critical market and the impact on it from the COVID-19 virus. It provides strategists, marketers and senior management with the critical information they need to assess the increasing demand for gastrointestinal drugs. Vitamins and Minerals play a crucial role in the treatment of patients with COVID-19 as they are used as immunity boosters.

The global gastrointestinal drugs market is expected to grow from $46.68 billion in 2020 to $48.74 billion in 2021 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.4%. The change in growth trend is mainly due to the companies stabilizing their output after catering to the demand that grew exponentially during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The market is expected to reach $62.19 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 6%.

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Gain a truly global perspective with the most comprehensive report available on this market covering 50+ geographies.

Understand how the market is experiencing rapid growth due to the coronavirus and how it is likely to stabilize as the impact of the virus abates.

Create regional and country strategies on the basis of local data and analysis.

Identify growth segments for investment.

Outperform competitors using forecast data and the drivers and trends shaping the market.

Understand customers based on the latest market research findings.

Benchmark performance against key competitors.

Utilize the relationships between key data sets for superior strategizing.

Suitable for supporting your internal and external presentations with reliable high quality data and analysis

Where is the largest and fastest growing market for the gastrointestinal drugs market? How does the market relate to the overall economy, demography and other similar markets? What forces will shape the market going forward? The Gastrointestinal Drugs Market global report answers all these questions and many more.



The report covers market characteristics, size and growth, segmentation, regional and country breakdowns, competitive landscape, market shares, trends and strategies for this market. It traces the market's historic and forecast market growth by geography. It places the market within the context of the wider gastrointestinal drugs market, and compares it with other markets.

The market characteristics section of the report defines and explains the market.

The market size section gives the market size ($b) covering both the historic growth of the market, the influence of the COVID-19 virus and forecasting its growth.

Market segmentations break down market into sub markets.

The regional and country breakdowns section gives an analysis of the market in each geography and the size of the market by geography and compares their historic and forecast growth. It covers the growth trajectory of COVID-19 for all regions, key developed countries and major emerging markets.

Competitive landscape gives a description of the competitive nature of the market, market shares, and a description of the leading companies. Key financial deals which have shaped the market in recent years are identified.

The trends and strategies section analyses the shape of the market as it emerges from the crisis and suggests how companies can grow as the market recovers.

The gastrointestinal drugs market section of the report gives context. It compares the gastrointestinal drugs market with other segments of the gastrointestinal drugs market by size and growth, historic and forecast. It analyses GDP proportion, expenditure per capita, gastrointestinal drugs indicators comparison.

Major companies in the gastrointestinal drugs market include Takeda Pharmaceticals; Allergan Plc; Novo Nordisk A/S; AstraZeneca Plc and Johnson & Johnson.



The gastrointestinal drugs market consists of sales of gastrointestinal drugs by entities (organizations, sole traders and partnerships) that produce gastrointestinal drugs to treat gastrointestinal diseases such as ulcerative colitis, diverticular disease, perianal infections, anal fissures, hemorrhoids, constipation, and irritable bowel syndrome. The key gastrointestinal diseases drug categories include Anti-peptic agents (antacids, antagonists, Proton Pump Inhibitors, Sucralfate, and Misoprostol), antiemetics, adsorbents, anticholinergics, opiates, intestinal flora modifiers, emollient/surfactants, hyperosmotic, saline, and simulant/irritant. The gastrointestinal drugs market is segmented into antacids; antiulcerants; vitamin and minerals; antiobesity; antiemetics and antinauseants; and antidiarrhoeals.



North America was the largest region in the global gastrointestinal drugs market, accounting for 48% of the market in 2020. Asia Pacific was the second largest region accounting for 24% of the global gastrointestinal drugs market. Africa was the smallest region in the global gastrointestinal drugs market.



Major companies in the gastrointestinal drug industry are investing in making oral capsules of macromolecular drugs for gastrointestinal diseases for making the drug more effective. Macromolecular drugs, such as peptides, proteins, and antibodies, form a new class of drugs which can treat diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, such as inflammatory bowel disease. These macromolecular drugs are usually injected and only a fraction of the administered dose reaches the disease sites in the gastrointestinal tract. Thus, major companies such as Eli Lilly have been increasingly investing in making oral capsules for macromolecular drugs. In December 2017, the company invested $5 million to enter into a collaboration with Entrega to study the oral delivery of complex molecules, such as peptides to combat gastrointestinal diseases.



During the historic period, the growth of the gastrointestinal drugs market was restrained by patent expiration of branded gastrointestinal drugs. In general, pharmaceutical companies invest a large sum of money in the drug development process and patents. During the patency period, the company holding the patent holds exclusivity for the manufacturing and distribution of drugs. Post expiration of patency, generic versions of the drugs are manufactured by other companies with prices much lower than the original branded drugs. Overall, this negatively impacts the growth of the market in terms of value.



The aging population profile of most countries contributed to the growth of the gastrointestinal drugs market. The increase in patient pool due to rising geriatric population globally, contributed significantly to the growth of the market during the historic period. According to the Population Reference Bureau, the share of population over the age of 65 in the global population increased from 8% in 2015 to 9% in 2019. The global population aged 65 years or over was 703 million in 2019. This rise in the geriatric population increased the demand for medical care and drove the healthcare expenditure. This has led to increased demand for pharmaceuticals products, significantly impacting market growth during this period.



Key Topics Covered:



1. Executive Summary



2. Report Structure



3. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Characteristics

3.1. Market Definition

3.2. Key Segmentations



4. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Product Analysis

4.1. Leading Products/ Services

4.2. Key Features and Differentiators

4.3. Development Products



5. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Supply Chain

5.1. Supply Chain

5.2. Distribution

5.3. End Customers



6. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Customer Information

6.1. Customer Preferences

6.2. End Use Market Size and Growth



7. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Trends and Strategies



8. Impact of COVID-19 on Gastrointestinal Drugs



9. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Size and Growth

9.1. Market Size

9.2. Historic Market Growth, Value ($ Billion)

9.2.1. Drivers of the Market

9.2.2. Restraints on the Market

9.3. Forecast Market Growth, Value ($ Billion)

9.3.1. Drivers of the Market

9.3.2. Restraints on the Market



10. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Regional Analysis

10.1. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market, 2020, by Region, Value ($ Billion)

10.2. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, Historic and Forecast, by Region

10.3. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market, Growth and Market Share Comparison, by Region



11. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Segmentation

11.1. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market, Segmentation by Type

11.2. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market, Segmentation by Distribution Channel

11.3. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market, Segmentation by Route of Administration

11.4. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market, Segmentation by Drug Classification, Historic and Forecast

11.5. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market, Segmentation by Mode of Purchase, Historic and Forecast

12. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Metrics

12.1. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Size, Percentage of GDP, 2015-2025, Global

12.2. Per Capita Average Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Expenditure, 2015-2025, Global

13. Asia-Pacific Gastrointestinal Drugs Market

14. Western Europe Gastrointestinal Drugs Market

15. Eastern Europe Gastrointestinal Drugs Market

16. North America Gastrointestinal Drugs Market

17. South America Gastrointestinal Drugs Market

18. Middle East Gastrointestinal Drugs Market

19. Africa Gastrointestinal Drugs Market

20. Gastrointestinal Drugs Market Competitive Landscape

20.1. Competitive Market Overview

20.2. Market Shares

20.3. Company Profiles

20.3.1. Takeda Pharmaceticals

20.3.1.1. Company Overview

20.3.1.2. Products and Services

20.3.1.3. Strategy

20.3.1.4. Financial Performance

20.3.2. Allergan Plc

20.3.2.1. Company Overview

20.3.2.2. Products and Services

20.3.2.3. Strategy

20.3.2.4. Financial Performance

20.3.3. Novo Nordisk A/S

20.3.3.1. Company Overview

20.3.3.2. Products and Services

20.3.3.3. Strategy

20.3.3.4. Financial Performance

20.3.4. AstraZeneca Plc

20.3.4.1. Company Overview

20.3.4.2. Products and Services

20.3.4.3. Strategy

20.3.4.4. Financial Performance

20.3.5. Johnson & Johnson

20.3.5.1. Company Overview

20.3.5.2. Products and Services

20.3.5.3. Strategy

20.3.5.4. Financial Performance



21. Key Mergers and Acquisitions in the Gastrointestinal Drugs Market



22. Market Background: Pharmaceutical Drugs Market

22.1. Pharmaceutical Drugs Market Characteristics

22.2. Pharmaceutical Drugs Market Historic and Forecast, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F Growth, by Segment, Value ($ Billion), Global

22.3. Global Pharmaceutical Drugs Market, 2020, by Region, Value ($ Billion)

22.4. Global Pharmaceutical Drugs Market, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, Historic and Forecast, by Region

22.5. Global Pharmaceutical Drugs Market, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F, Segmentation by Type, Value ($ Billion)



23. Recommendations

23.1. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market in 2025 - Growth Countries

23.2. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market in 2025 - Growth Segments

23.3. Global Gastrointestinal Drugs Market in 2025 - Growth Strategies



24. Appendix



25. Copyright and Disclaimer

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/514jgn

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SAN FRANCISCO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ethos, the InsurTech leader that is transforming the life insurance space, today announced it has raised a $200M Series D investment round, boosting its valuation to $2B in just a few years since launch. Revenue and users have each grown by more than 500 percent year-over-year, and the company expects to issue $20 billion of life insurance coverage this year, surpassing all competitors as it achieves its mission to provide life insurance for everyone.

The Series D round was led by General Catalyst. Past investors Sequoia Capital; Accel; GV (formerly Google Ventures); and Jay-Z's Roc Nation also participated, alongside Glade Brook Capital Partners. Ethos is also backed by the investment vehicles of stars Will Smith and Robert Downey Jr. Funding raised to date totals $300M.

"We are on a mission to protect the next million families and will use this money to continue improving the best insurance customer experience ever created," said Peter Colis, Ethos CEO and Co-Founder. "This funding will help us enrich our technology and data platform, and help us launch new products to enable everyone an opportunity to protect their families."

Ethos is the InsurTech leader in underwriting, administering and distributing life insurance. The company uses innovative machine learning and data science technologies to upend the traditional life insurance model. Its technology advantage breaks down barriers that have long inhibited customers from purchasing life insurance, including underwriting with no medical exams, blood tests or complex paperwork. This enables Ethos to approve many people who would otherwise be denied coverage or punitively treated regardless of financial status, health status or age.

"We're very excited to invest in the vision and team at Ethos," said Kyle Doherty, partner at General Catalyst. "Traditional life insurance remains largely unchanged over the years. It's an area that's ripe for innovation, and Ethos' successful execution demonstrates they are clearly ahead of all others in leading this digital transformation."

Strong Growth Establishes Ethos Out Front of Industry

Ethos' growth is accelerating since its previous investment round in 2019. In addition to its revenue and user growth, the company is nearing $100M in annualized gross profit and increasing EBITDA in the next year. Ethos has surpassed its competitors in both annualized revenue and gross profit and is the market leader in the InsurTech life insurance space.

"The US life insurance industry is one of the largest markets in the world, but it has been slow to move online," said Nate Niparko, Partner at Accel. "Ethos offers a completely modern experience that finally brings the life insurance market online, and the company is growing very quickly as a result."

"Ethos has fundamentally changed the life insurance industry by providing a tech-enabled, vertically-integrated solution," said Roelof Botha, Partner at Sequoia and Ethos board member. "We've been inspired by Ethos' mission since we first partnered with Peter and Lingke at the seed, and we are thrilled to continue working with them and the team to make life insurance more accessible."

About Ethos

Ethos is a new kind of life insurance provider that makes getting coverage easy and accessible for millions of families. Ethos uses deep technology and data science to eliminate traditional barriers to life insurance and bring the industry into the modern age. The company built its technology from the ground up with a focus on creating a seamless customer experience; a mobile-first, online application process that takes minutes instead of weeks, and offering coverage without a medical exam for over 99% of applicants and a few health questions. The result is a life insurance company that puts people first. The company is headquartered in San Francisco with offices in Austin and Singapore. To learn more, visit www.ethoslife.com.

About General Catalyst

General Catalyst is a venture capital firm that invests in powerful, positive change that endures  for our entrepreneurs, our investors, our people, and society. We support founders with a long-term view who challenge the status quo, partnering with them from seed to growth stage and beyond to build companies that withstand the test of time. With offices in San Francisco, Palo Alto, New York City, and Boston, the firm has helped support the growth of businesses such as: Airbnb, Deliveroo, Guild, Gusto, Hubspot, Illumio, Lemonade, Livongo, Oscar, Snap, Stripe, and Warby Parker. For more: www.generalcatalyst.com .

SOURCE Ethos

Related Links

https://www.ethoslife.com/


BRANFORD, Conn., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- IsoPlexis, the leader in functional single-cell proteomics, today announced the appointment of Siddhartha Kadia to its Board of Directors. Dr. Kadia joins IsoPlexis' Board of Directors with over 20 years of experience in evolving a combination of technology, life science and healthcare industries.

Dr. Siddhartha Kadia previously served as the President of the Life Sciences division at Life Technologies, where he managed $2B P&L which consisted of some of the most recognized brands in the industry. Additionally, Dr. Kadia served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of EAG Laboratories, a global leader for scientific testing and materials analysis across industries from aerospace and agriculture to medical devices and pharmaceuticals. He has been involved in numerous mergers, acquisitions and integrations as a business leader in life sciences and TIC industries.

"Dr. Kadia is a significant addition to our Board of Directors," said Sean Mackay, CEO and Co-Founder of IsoPlexis. "As we expand globally, his industry and academic networks and international experience in key global markets will be invaluable to our growing company."

Dr. Siddhartha Kadia has a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University along with a consulting background from McKinsey. He serves on the Board of Overseers for Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, and on the Commercial advisory board of NSF center for Cell Manufacturing Technologies (CMaT). He also brings significant corporate governance experience with his current service as a director on several public and private company boards such as NuVasive, ALS Limited, Applied Technical Services (ATS) and BioSkryb Genomics. He previously served on the boards of Volcano corporation, Newport Corporation, Horizon Discovery Group.

"I am excited to join IsoPlexis as a member of the Board of Directors," said Dr. Siddhartha Kadia. "I'm extremely passionate about technology that will help transform the life science industry towards more advanced medicines and improve outcomes for patients. I look forward to helping IsoPlexis deliver on its long-term strategies."

ABOUT ISOPLEXIS:

IsoPlexis is a life science technology company building solutions to accelerate the development of curative medicines and personalized therapeutics. Our award-winning single-cell proteomics systems reveal unique biological activity in small subsets of cells, allowing researchers to connect more directly to in vivo biology and develop more precise and personalized therapies. Our integrated systems, named top innovation or design by the Scientist Magazine, Fierce, BIG Innovation, Red Dot & multiple others, are used globally to advance the field of single-cell biology into new 'omic possibilities, as our customers generate solutions to overcome the challenges of complex diseases and therapeutics. Our products have been adopted by researchers around the world, including the top 15 global pharmaceutical companies and by 45% of comprehensive cancer centers in the U.S.. Visit http://www.isoplexis.com to learn more.

MEDIA CONTACT:



Jon Chen

VP of Marketing

IsoPlexis

[email protected]

SOURCE IsoPlexis

Related Links

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OMAHA, Neb., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Jet Linx , the only locally-focused, global private aviation company providing aircraft management, joint ownership and jet card membership services through its 19 private terminal locations nationwide, today announced the debut of its 20th location, Jet Linx Miami. Located at Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport, Jet Linx Miami will open in early Fall 2021 as the Company's first location to serve the Florida marketplace. The announcement was made by Jamie Walker, President & CEO of Jet Linx.

"Over the past 22 years, we have served numerous destinations across the state of Florida and are thrilled to introduce our first dedicated private terminal in Miami to support aircraft owners, jet card members and joint owners in South Florida," said Mr. Walker. "Jet Linx Miami will not only deliver our unique private jet service to the Miami area, but it will provide the Jet Linx exclusive Forbes Five-Star experience for our clients flying in from our 19 other locations across the United States. This is a significant milestone for the Company as we continue to expand our network of private terminal locations to better serve our clients. We look forward to providing our clients with the finest and most personalized private jet experience in South Florida with the opening of our Miami private terminal."

Jet Linx Miami will open in early Fall 2021 as the Company's first location to serve the Florida marketplace. Tweet this

The Jet Linx Miami private terminal will provide locally-based aircraft owners, jet card member and joint owners with a team of Forbes Travel Guide (FTG) Five-Star-trained and certified Flight Concierges who personally cater to every aspect of each client's private jet travel; from scheduling their flights, hotels, and ground transportation, to personally welcoming and attending to them when arriving or departing. The private terminal will have several intimate seating and lounge areas, as well as a conference room, executive lounge and a fully stocked cafe and bar area. In partnership with Fontainebleau Aviation, the private terminal is now under construction and upon its completion in September 2021, Jet Linx Miami will feature a modern and minimalistic design, with sophisticated accents and locally inspired design elements throughout.

Despite the challenges, difficulties and hardships caused by the pandemic, Jet Linx has significantly enhanced its product and service offerings, developed new markets and expanded its network of private terminal locations as well as made strategic growth and infrastructural acquisitions to fuel its growth in the South Florida marketplace and nationwide. In 2020, Jet Linx expanded its national network of private terminals, launching Jet Linx Minneapolis, the Company's 19th location, in addition to investing in a new private terminal in San Antonio. Looking ahead, Jet Linx plans to open a number of a new private terminal locations, including the West Coast, by 2022.

For more information on Jet Linx Miami, please visit www.jetlinx.com .

About Jet Linx Aviation

Jet Linx Aviation is a locally-focused private jet company founded in Omaha, NE in 1999 as a more personalized approach to national private jet companies. Jet Linx offers three different ways to experience private aviation  a guaranteed jet card, joint ownership, and private jet management program  providing its clients with an all-encompassing, local solution to all of their private jet travel needs. Jet Linx is an IS-BAO Stage 3, ARGUS Platinum and Wyvern Wingman safety rated operator, an accomplishment earned by less than one percent of all aircraft operators in the world. In 2019, Jet Linx became the only Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star trained and accredited private aviation company in the world. In addition to establishing the independent global rating system's preeminent and unparalleled service standards for the in-flight experience, Jet Linx also collaborated with Forbes Travel Guide to develop their own customized, proprietary Jet Linx standards of service excellence. Jet Linx is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska and has base locations in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Ft. Worth, Houston, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, Nashville, New York, Omaha, San Antonio, Scottsdale, St Louis, Tulsa and Washington D.C. For additional information, please visit the Jet Linx website ( www.jetlinx.com ).

SOURCE Jet Linx
CHAPEL HILL, N.C., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The John Adams Institute has submitted a proposed constitutional amendment to every member of the United States Senate and House of Representatives.

The proposal, which would become the 28th Amendment if ratified, would roll back America's social aspect ratio to 10,000:1.

In 1776, America's top household net worth likely approached 1,000x the national median. America's top household now exceeds 1,500,000x the median. According to Tim Ferguson, founder of the John Adams Institute, "This 1,500,000:1 social aspect ratio not only renders the republican model of government unsustainable, as we've witnessed with the recent political violence in our nation's capital, it is a flagrant violation of America's egalitarian founding principles."

As John Adams wrote in 1765, "Property monopolized or in the Possession of a few is a Curse to Mankind. We should preserve not an Absolute Equality  this is unnecessary, but preserve all from extreme Poverty, and all others from extravagant Riches." Similarly, Thomas Jefferson wrote in 1786: "An equal division of property is impracticable. But the consequences of this enormous inequality producing so much misery to the bulk of mankind, legislators cannot invent too many devices for sub-dividing property."

The proposed amendment heeds the Founding Fathers' warnings by rolling back America's social aspect ratio from 1,500,000:1 to 10,000:1. "This is all about avoiding George Washington's nightmare vision of political faction in his Farewell Address," said Ferguson. "But rather than rely upon usual interventionist measures such as heavy progressive taxation, regulation, and subsidies, this measure adopts a simple but elegant approach."

To enforce the 10,000:1 social aspect ratio, the amendment would establish a "republic-saving ration" set at 10,000x the national median household net worth (approximately $1.2 billion/650 households). Going forward, the outcomes of the top households would be anchored to the median, rising and falling lockstep with the median. Existing household fortunes would be grandfathered.

This approach assumes the market is incentivized to productively raise the median when top households gain or lose in mathematical proportion to the median. Furthermore, this market-generated distributive force creates no new business regulations, corporate taxes, or household taxes for any household beneath the $1.2 billion republic-saving ration. Ferguson said: "This doctrine, named Rationism, is a middle-class market-oriented theory of political economy to restore an independent middle class and productive upward mobility, while nullifying the growing popular demand for socialism."

In addition, enforcement of the republic-saving ration should generate substantial direct and downstream tax revenues for state and federal governments, which could exceed $5 trillion in all.

To incentivize Congress to initiate ratification, the proposed amendment allocates 50% of its direct revenues to Social Security, and the remainder in equal shares to each State. If Congress doesn't cooperate, then all direct revenues would be allocated in equal shares to the States, who could sidestep Congress via constitutional convention.

To defend the proposed amendment, the John Adams Institute, based in North Carolina, has published a series of 40 essays entitled the Rationist. Written under the pseudonym Gracchus (reformer of the Roman Republic), the Rationist was inspired by the Federalist, the series of 85 essays written under the name Publius (a founder of the Roman Republic) by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay to promote ratification of the original Constitution.

Putting these efforts in historical context, Ferguson noted: "The Constitution has so far only guaranteed the form of a republic. It must now be empowered to preserve the substance of a republic."

Every member of Congress has been mailed a copy of Rationist No. 1. The entire series is available to the public free of charge at www.rationist.org.

SOURCE John Adams Institute
"STEM fields play an increasingly important role in developing innovative solutions to a wide range of pressing challenges, yet STEM PhD programs don't reflect the broad diversity of our country. So creating more equitable opportunities for more students is critical to our country's future in so many ways," said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies and 108th mayor of New York City. "By supporting JHU's world-class STEM program, and by partnering with historically Black and minority-serving schools that have a strong record of educating students who go on to get STEM PhDs, we will help increase diversity in industries that will pioneer advances we have not yet even imagined, and shape the lives of generations to come."

Studies have shown that STEM PhD programs do not reflect the broad diversity of talent and perspectives that other fields of study have cultivated, nor have they effectively recruited scholars matriculating from diverse undergraduate institutions. National Science Foundation data show that in 2019, there were more than 30 fields of science  including multiple disciplines in biology, chemistry, physics, math, and engineering  in which fewer than five PhDs were awarded to Black or Latinx students in the United States. While Black Americans comprise 13 percent of the U.S. population and Latinx people 18 percent, in 2019 they received just three and seven percent, respectively, of new engineering, math, physical sciences and computer science PhDs, according to the NSF. The deficits in STEM diversity extend beyond Black and Latinx students; the percentage of science or engineering PhDs awarded to Native American, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander students has been stagnant at about a third of their share of the population for a decade.

"Scientific discovery that continually advances human flourishing and creates a healthier, safer world must be fueled by the expertise and insights of people of differing perspectives and ideas. Yet, decades of data and our own experience show the persistent truth that PhD programs, particularly in the STEM fields, do not reflect the full spectrum of available talent," said Ronald J. Daniels, president of Johns Hopkins University. "We cannot hope to produce the best science nor ensure that our faculties are truly representative until we increase the diversity of our PhD programs. Through the Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative, Johns Hopkins now has the opportunity and imperative to invest ambitiously, think ambitiously, and act ambitiously to begin correcting the longstanding inequity in PhD education."

Although Johns Hopkins has increased the diversity of its undergraduate student body in recent years, historically under-represented minorities make up 11 percent of students in Johns Hopkins' STEM PhD programs, a slightly higher rate than the average of 9 percent its private research university peers report to the Department of Education's Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System but still far from representative of the overall population. Through the Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative, the university will dramatically scale up its efforts to diversify its STEM PhD programs and graduate more diverse PhD recipients to help bring sorely needed new voices and backgrounds to STEM industries and workforces.

The PhD students recruited through this program will be known as the Vivien Thomas Scholars, in recognition of one of Johns Hopkins' most celebrated figures. Thomas was a Black surgical laboratory supervisor who is best known for his work to develop a cardiac surgery technique to treat "blue baby syndrome" (Blalock-Taussig shunt) at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in the 1940s  a life-saving advance for which he did not receive credit for decades. Thomas, who grew up in the Jim Crow South, enrolled as a premedical student at Tennessee Agricultural and Industrial College, an HBCU in Nashville, but was forced to drop out due to the Great Depression and was never able to enroll in medical school. Despite his lack of an advanced degree, Thomas spent his career as a pioneering research and surgical assistant. In 1976 Thomas was awarded an honorary doctorate by Johns Hopkins University and named instructor of surgery in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

The initiative will provide permanent funding to add a sustained cohort of approximately 100 new slots for diverse PhD students in JHU's more than 30 STEM programs, representing disciplines ranging from neuroscience to physics to engineering. The initiative will engage in active outreach to applicants matriculating from HBCU and MSI institutions  encompassing more than 450 four-year colleges and universities nationwide. More than a third of Black STEM PhD holders earned their undergraduate degrees at HBCUs, reflecting those institutions' generations of leadership in supporting the talent of outstanding and diverse scholars. This gift will support up to six years of stipend, health insurance and travel funding, along with significant mentorship, research and professional development opportunities. Up to six years of tuition for each PhD student will be supported by the PhD programs, departments, or schools. Initial pathway programs will begin this summer, with the first cohort of Vivien Thomas Scholars entering Johns Hopkins PhD programs in the fall of 2022.

More than $15 million in funding will be dedicated to strengthening pathways for talented undergraduates to pursue STEM PhDs at Johns Hopkins and elsewhere. Those efforts will begin with direct funding of programs at an initial cohort of partner HBCUs and MSIs with an exceptional record of accomplishment in graduating students who advance to STEM PhD careers. Each Inaugural Partner will receive flexible funding, to be used at the institution's strategic direction to continue to attract and prepare their undergraduate students for STEM graduate training and STEM careers. Inaugural partners will be critical in advising the Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative as a whole, engaging additional MSIs, and identifying the optimal programming for scholars participating in the initiative.

The Inaugural Partner institutions are Howard University; Morehouse College; Morgan State University; Prairie View A&M; Spelman College; and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

"Spelman is eager to develop the partnership with Johns Hopkins, one of the world's great research universities," said Mary Schmidt Campbell, PhD, president of Spelman College. "The goals of the Vivien Thomas Scholars initiative align completely with our own and that is to continue to increase the number of underrepresented minorities who earn PhDs in STEM fields. With Spelman graduating more black women who obtain doctorates in STEM than any other college or university in the country, per the National Science Foundation, we believe that our faculty have a great deal to contribute in terms of recognizing the assets that our students bring and, with effective pedagogical strategies, building effectively on their strengths."

"I commend Mayor Bloomberg and President Daniels for making this commitment to diversity in STEM graduate education," said Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. "We know that transformational philanthropy can produce more STEM researchers from underrepresented groups. The Meyerhoff Scholars Program, established with a visionary gift from Baltimore philanthropist Robert Meyerhoff in 1988, has resulted in UMBC becoming the top U.S. producer of African American graduates going on to earn MD/PhD degrees, including STEM professionals and researchers around the country."

The funding will also support the establishment of new and expanded undergraduate summer and post-baccalaureate experiences for talented, diverse undergraduates to build connections with Johns Hopkins faculty and students, and provide exposure to the university's research and scholarship, building on the success of existing pathways programs at Hopkins. All summer pathways programming will be fully funded, including housing and stipends for participants.

"Over the past decade, and through the enduring support of Mike Bloomberg's philanthropy, Johns Hopkins has been intentional about building one of the most diverse and academically talented undergraduate student bodies in the country," Daniels said. "We must take a similarly expansive approach to moving the needle in PhD education. We need such diverse leadership in all spheres of endeavor, and especially in our universities where bold ideas take shape and are brought to bear on the world's great challenges. We are truly grateful for Mike Bloomberg's vision and commitment in pushing us to new heights."

Mike Bloomberg has long focused on increasing equitable access and opportunity across higher education and last year launched the Greenwood Initiative at Bloomberg Philanthropies, an effort to accelerate the pace of Black wealth accumulation in the United States and address decades of systemic underinvestment in Black communities. The Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative is the third investment made by Bloomberg Philanthropies' Greenwood Initiative since its launch in September 2020. The first investment was a $100 million partnership with the nation's four historically Black medical schools to help ease the debt burden of approximately 800 Black medical students . The second investment was more than $6 million to those four schools to increase their mobile unit COVID-19 vaccination efforts and help ensure equitable access to vaccines within Black communities disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.

Mr. Bloomberg, a Johns Hopkins alumnus, changed the lives of countless current and future undergraduates at Johns Hopkins University with his historic $1.8 billion gift for undergraduate financial aid in 2018. In the short time since the gift was implemented, Johns Hopkins has seen marked increases in the diversity and excellence of its undergraduate programs. With 32.5 percent self-identifying as a member of a racial or ethnic group that is historically underrepresented at the institution, Hopkins' most recent entering class is the most diverse in the university's history and also among the most highly talented in the nation in terms of grade point averages and standardized test scores.

"Capturing diverse talent in STEM is critical to maximizing the creativity, excellence, and innovation necessary to create the best science and to apply that science to improve the human condition for all. We believe there is a wealth of untapped talent out there, and that through sustained outreach and support, we can encourage more students from diverse backgrounds to seek PhDs in these fields and become the next generation of transformational leaders in STEM," said Dr. Damani Arnold Piggott, Assistant Dean for Graduate Biomedical Education and Graduate Student Diversity at Johns Hopkins University, who has been tapped to lead the institution's new effort as the inaugural Associate Vice Provost for Graduate Diversity and Partnerships. "We are going to be privileged to have this cohort of scholars spend time with us on their journeys, and to be able to contribute in some small way to the amazing things they are going to do for the betterment of our society."

About Bloomberg Philanthropies:

Bloomberg Philanthropies invests in 810 cities and 170 countries around the world to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on five key areas for creating lasting change: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation, and Public Health. Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg's giving, including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a pro bono consultancy that works in cities around the world. In 2020, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $1.6 billion. For more information, please visit bloomberg.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, and TikTok.

About Johns Hopkins University:

Johns Hopkins is America's first research university. For more than 140 years Johns Hopkins has been a world leader in both teaching and research, with nine academic divisions  the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, the Whiting School of Engineering, the Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Carey Business School, the Peabody Institute, the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, and the schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Education  plus the Applied Physics Laboratory, a nonacademic division that supports national security and pursues space science.

SOURCE Johns Hopkins University
KANAZAWA, Japan, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Researchers at Kanazawa University report in Chemical Communications how solvents influence the strength of donoracceptor interactions. They found that silicone solvents, providing low compatibility, intensify donoracceptor interactions between aromatic molecules compared to hydrocarbon solvents.

Aromatic donoracceptor (DA) interactions are a type of non-covalent bond between a donor (electron-rich) and an acceptor (electron-deficient) aromatic molecules. Aromatic molecules feature one or more rings with 'delocalized' electrons. The aromatic DA interactions are widely used for building supramolecular structures, which are assembly of molecules formed by non-covalent bonds like building blocks. The supramolecular structures have smart properties such as external stimuli-responsiveness and self-repairing. The stability and smart properties of supramolecular architectures formed by D-A interactions depend on characteristics of the DA interactions in various circumstances. Shogo Amemori and colleagues from Kanazawa University have now investigated the solvent effects on a strength of DA interactions. Their findings provide important insights into the origin of aromatic DA interactions and new molecular design of supramolecular architectures.

The researchers worked with organic compounds known as pyromellitic diimide (PMDI) and pyrene (Py) derivatives as acceptors and donors, respectively. The strength of the DA interaction between the PMDI and Py derivatives was evaluated by the association constant of the DA interaction, in which a higher association constant means stronger DA interactions.

Amemori and colleagues used solvents with a variety of polarity for the evaluation of solvent effect on the D-A interaction. Polarity is related to the separation of charge (into positive and negative components) within a molecule; in low-polarity molecules, the charge separation is small. As most previous studies focused on low-polarity solvents belonging to the class of aliphatic molecules, the scientists explored another class of compounds, the so-called poly(dimethylsiloxanes) (PDMS) or oligo(dimethylsiloxane) (ODMS). These molecules consist of backbone of silicon-oxygen bonds fully covered organic groups, and, as solvents, generally lead to low-polarity.

The main finding of the researchers is that the siloxanes lead to higher association constants of the DA interactions between PMDI and Py derivatives compared to that of hexane as aliphatic solvents. As to the origin of this effect, the scientists point to the 'incompatibility' between the aromatic molecules (PMDI and Py) and the siloxane molecules.

Amemori and colleagues point out that further investigation using various donor and acceptor molecules is necessary. Nevertheless, the result that DA interactions are stronger in PDMS and ODMS solvents than in aliphatic solvents, possibly due to the generally poor solubility  quoting the scientists  "may help elucidate the origin of aromatic DA interactions in low-polarity solvents."

Background

Siloxanes

Siloxane refers to the functional group characterized by the siliconoxygensilicon (SiOSi) bonds. Siloxane-based compounds are human-made and, due to their hydrophobicity, high flexibility and low thermal conductivity, have many industrial and commercial applications. Siloxanes are the basis for silicones, materials used as e.g. adhesives, lubricants and sealants. A prominent member of the silicone family is poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS); it is the most widely used silicon-based organic polymer. Shogo Amemori and colleagues from Kanazawa University used PDMS and shorter versions of it called oligo(dimethylsiloxane) (ODMS) as low-polarity solvents for aromatic donor and acceptor molecules that were let to interact with each other. They found that because of the incompatibility between the aromatic molecules and the siloxanes, the interactions were stronger than with other low- polarity solvents, non-siloxane-based solvents, such as hexane.

Reference

Shogo Amemori, Kyoka Kikuchi and Motohiro Mizuno. Poly(dimethylsiloxane) and oligo(dimethylsiloxane) solvent effects on aromatic donoracceptor interactions, Chem. Commun. 57, 11411144 (2021).

DOI: 10.1039/D0CC06638A

URL: https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2021/cc/d0cc06638a

Links to figure

https://www.kanazawa-u.ac.jp/latest-research/92071

https://www.kanazawa-u.ac.jp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/210421_Figure1.jpg

Figure caption: Absorption spectra and photographs of mixtures containing Py and PMDI in PDMS, ODMS(hexamethyldisiloxane), n-hexane and chloroform (Concentration of Py and PMDI are 11 mM and 2 mM, respectively) . Darker color of solutions and a higher absorbance represent a higher association constant.

Contact details

Mr Tomoya Sato

Kanazawa University, Frontier Science and Social Co-creation Initiative

Kakuma, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, 920-1192, JAPAN

EMAIL: [email protected]

Telephone: 81-762-645-076

About Kanazawa University

http://www.kanazawa-u.ac.jp/e/

As the leading comprehensive university on the Sea of Japan coast, Kanazawa University has contributed greatly to higher education and academic research in Japan since it was founded in 1949. The University has three colleges and 17 schools offering courses in subjects that include medicine, computer engineering, and humanities.

The University is located on the coast of the Sea of Japan in Kanazawa  a city rich in history and culture. The city of Kanazawa has a highly respected intellectual profile since the time of the fiefdom (1598-1867). Kanazawa University is divided into two main campuses: Kakuma and Takaramachi for its approximately 10,200 students including 600 from overseas.

SOURCE Kanazawa University
NASHVILLE, Tenn., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Nashvox experiential recording studio expanded their leadership team on April 2, 2021 to include Krishen Sauble Iyer as minority owner and advisor. Iyer brings years of experience as a serial entrepreneur and business consultant to Nashvox. He and the existing Nashvox team will steer the studio through COVID precautions and plans for future growth.

The Nashville establishment was founded by Teresa Smith and specifically caters to groups and parties, allowing more people to experience the thrill of recording music that has historically only been available to professionals. The recording location on 4th Avenue offers a music catalog of more than 19,000 songs from top artists like Luke Bryan and Lenny Kravitz, and allows visitors to record original music. Each session is accompanied by a qualified sound engineer to guide the process.

Iyer feels confident in the studio's vision of making recording more accessible to the masses: "Whether you're part of a bridal party or a kid's birthday party, you're welcome! We want everyone of all ages to feel what it's like to record a track in an authentic Nashville studio."

To find out more or book your session at Nashvox, visit www.nashvox.com .

About Nashvox

Nashvox is an experimental recording studio in Nashville, Tennessee that gives locals and tourists alike the space to record their favorite songs with a professional sound engineer. Visitors receive their mixed track the same day and walk away with the behind the scenes experience of industry experts.

Contact:

Mandy Simone

559-213-3372

[email protected]

SOURCE Nashvox

Related Links

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Adam Caller  founder of Tutors International, former teacher and educational consultant  has a different view to the general teacher consensus. He believes that a shift in perspective is needed:

"I think it's important to acknowledge that typically teachers get more time off than any other public sector professionals in the UK. They get a lot of holidays every year  more than the likes of doctors and firefighters. They may have to do afterschool marking but teachers still get their weekends and holidays. Of course, this last year has been slightly different because we have had a pandemic. It has meant that those teacher privileges have been minimised and teachers have had to work very hard to teach in new ways to help students catch up. But look at nurses and doctors; it is what everyone has had to do in their job  step up."

"The pandemic was a crisis that no one asked for. We just have to deal with it. When everyone plays their part, putting in that bit of extra work whilst it's happening, the sooner we'll see a return to normality. Everyone who can step up should step up, and that includes teachers. It might sound controversial, but I think they just have to deal with a disproportionate workload for a short while. Nurses and food distribution networks are also under immense pressure. I'm saying this fully prepared for some backlash from the teaching profession, but I believe the children are the priority here, and that teachers should consider that normally they're in rather a comfortable position."

Teaching Through Summer for Autumn Exams

The idea that the summer holiday is inviolable is a fallacy. Not only is it customary around the world to offer summer programmes for students, but for this summer in particular, extra support will need to be offered across all school ages. Schools are being encouraged to bid for a share of 200 million in government funding to design summer schools for students who have experienced the most disruption, with incoming Year 7 students being the focus (Education Journal, No. 449, May 2021, p. 10). Mr Caller also acknowledges that the phenomenon of teachers working through summer is not a great anomaly. Tutors International is very familiar with first-class teachers applying for tutoring jobs over the summer. Mr Caller explains:

"I understand that the summer holidays would usually be time off, but they don't have to be. At Tutors International, we regularly have teachers work throughout the summer on short-term placements. Private education services have always operated right through summer. If teachers and tutors have to work through summer to help students prepare for autumn exams, then this is not an entirely new notion."

Reassessing Perspective

Mr Caller encourages teachers to adopt a shift in outlook:

"The challenges with teaching from home have felt heightened because they're unfamiliar, and working in isolation must have been difficult. Saying that, as this last year has proved, we can adapt and innovate more than we knew. It might be unfamiliar territory, but it is important to consider aspects that have been better for teachers too. There's no commute. There's no classroom set up or tidy up. There's no in-person management of thirty teenagers or children. I'm not saying that because it's different it is easier, but I think teachers have different stresses as opposed to more stresses."

"In light of the autumn exam news, ultimately, if it needs doing, it needs doing. The children and their futures are the priorities in this. That just means teachers might have to push through in the short term. As Alfred Lord Tennyson said, 'theirs not to reason why, theirs but to do and die'. This kind of committed perseverance in the short-term will see us all out of this soon."

Private Tuition for Exams

Now that children and young adults may be studying through the holidays, private tuition could be the key to bridging the gap between the end of the summer term and the autumn exams. Private tutors and school teachers should work together.

Tutors International's elite tailored private tuition incurs fees suited to a high net-worth clientele, but there are homeschooling and private tutoring solutions at all price points. The benefits of tutoring are unmatched, giving students one-to-one help where they need it the most. That said, it does not have to be one-to-one tuition  it can be private tuition for a small group. Adam Caller offers a solution to those concerned about the expenses associated with private tuition for exam preparations:

"If a group of parents were seeking a private tutor, but didn't have the means to pay for one-to-one private tuition, a tutor could be hired to help a small group of children in one session. We are seeing the emerging popularity of the micro school. This means the cost of one tutor's hourly rate can be split between multiple parents and reduce the cost per family to little more than the price of a pint."

If you are looking to support a student through elite, world-class private tuition for exam preparations, you should make an enquiry with Tutors International now. Their in-depth global recruitment process takes time, and any families considering private tuition over the summer should get in touch as soon as possible.

About Tutors International

Tutors International provides an unparalleled tutoring service that matches the right private home tutor with the right child, in order for the student to fully reach their personal potential and academic excellence. Providing an international private tuition service for children of all ages at different points in their educational journeys, Tutors International is founded on a commitment to finding the perfect tutor to realise the specific goals and aspirations of each student. Tutors are available for residential full-time positions, after-school assistance, tuition for exams and homeschooling.

Founded in 1999 by Adam Caller, Tutors International is a private company based in Oxford, a city renowned for academic excellence. Our select clientele receives a personally tailored service, with discretion and confidentiality guaranteed.

Contact Details

Web: www.tutors-international.com

Email:[email protected]

Phone: +44 (0) 1865 435 135

Tutors International

Clarendon House

52 Cornmarket Street

Oxford

OX1 3HJ

UK

SOURCE Tutors International
JERSEY CITY, N.J., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Leap Holdings, Inc., a Jersey City, NJ-based provider of innovative occupancy and risk management solutions for the multifamily and single-family rental markets, today announced a strategic investment by Accelerant Holdings. In addition to a direct equity investment, Accelerant will provide liquidity financing and insurance capacity for all of Leap's product offerings.

Launched in 2018, Leap has grown significantly by helping residents qualify for the housing they want across the country. With this investment, Leap will expand its product offering to address 100% of the resident population by lowering move-in costs, providing credit enhancement to tenants with blemished credit, and removing the friction from the legacy leasing process.

Accelerant Holdings and its subsidiaries, which include the technology-driven insurance exchange Accelerant Insurance, specialize in serving a carefully selected and managed network of Member managing general underwriters and program administrators across both non-admitted and admitted market segments. Accelerant takes a partner-first approach supporting Members in using its data platform to better understand risk, benefit from insights, and handle operational and regulatory complexity.

This strategic partnership comes as Leap is expanding its product offering in order to help landlords who have suffered significant losses during the pandemic. Over the past 12 months, Leap has grown its client base from 100,000 homes to more than 750,000 homes, resulting in tens of millions of dollars of incremental revenue to landlords while providing access to renters with liquidity and credit limitations.

"Leap is so excited to be working with the team at Accelerant. Everything they do is in support of Leap's expansion of products and markets, and their commitment to our growth is felt every day", stated Rory O'Connell, Founder and CEO of Leap. "In our first month working with Accelerant, we were able to triple sales  demonstrating just how apt the Accelerant name and approach is."

"Leap is exactly the type of Member that Accelerant was created to serve," said Jeff Radke, CEO of Accelerant. "Like Accelerant, they are delivering value to their customers by combining a great team with great technology. We are delighted to offer long-term, stable capacity to Leap to meet their customers' needs for years to come."

"In building a new insurance market, innovative product development and speed to market are critical factors for success. Accelerant is built to support its member agencies and has thrown the full weight of the organization behind achieving Leap's expansion goals," added Rory O'Connell.

About Leap Holdings

Leap Holdings, Inc. is a provider of innovative occupancy and risk management solutions for the multifamily and single-family rental markets. It is Leap's mission to improve the financial performance of landlords while making renting more accessible. Its products serve to make apartment and single-family leases more affordable, providing insurance alternatives to security deposits and guarantors. These unique products mitigate the need for landlords to take security deposits, thereby streamlining the leasing process, reducing move-in costs for renters, and driving occupancy rates higher. Leap currently serves clients who own and operate over 700,000 homes across 48 states. For more information, visit Leapeasy.com

About Accelerant Holdings

Accelerant Holdings and its subsidiaries specialize in serving a carefully selected and managed network of Member managing general underwriters and program administrators in the UK, Europe and United States. Accelerant is increasing value across the ecosystem by delivering technology-enabled and data-driven transparency and risk exchange. Led by a proven management team, Accelerant has built and controls an attractive insurance portfolio that today serves small and medium-sized enterprises. Accelerant Insurance has been awarded an AM Best A- (Excellent) rating, giving Members and their customers confidence that they will have support when they need it most. For more information, please visit accelins.com.

Media Inquires:

James Zhong

PR Manager

[email protected]

+1-973-306-4487

SOURCE Leap

Related Links

www.leapeasy.com


As part of the Memorial Day Sale, which lasts from May 12 to June 1, Mattress Firm is offering king mattresses for the price of a queen and queen mattresses for the price of a twin. Shoppers can also receive a FREE adjustable base with any mattress purchase of $699 or more.

According to a recent survey, 30% of Americans shared that they plan on upgrading their mattress in 2021, and the Mattress Firm Memorial Day Sale is the perfect time for customers to upsize their beds while downsizing their spending. This year, shoppers will not want to miss out on Mattress Firm's Hot Buy offers with up to 50% off select mattresses from top-rated brands.

Shop in-store or online during the best Mattress Firm Memorial Day Sale ever (May 12  June 1) and receive:

Up to $500* in savings on America's top-rated mattress brands:

in savings on America's top-rated mattress brands: Upgrade to a king mattress for the price of a queen*.



Upgrade to a queen mattress for the price of a twin.

Take home a FREE adjustable base when you spend $699+ on a queen mattress or $999+ on a king.**

when you spend $699+ on a queen mattress or $999+ on a king.** Score a hot buy offer on America's favorite brands, with additional offers online:***

50% off Serta Perfect Sleeper Charlotte (Queen, now $399.00 , was $799.99 ) online only

(Queen, now , was )

50% off Beautyrest BR800 Medium (Queen, now $349.99 , was $699.99 ) online only

, was )

50% off Serta Perfect Sleeper Elkins Firm (Queen, now $349.99 , was $699.99 ) online only

, was )

30% off Sleepy's Relax (Queen, now $559.99 , was $799.99 )

, was )

20% off Sealy Memory Foam 8", 10" and 12" online only

Plus, 0% APR for 5 years.****

Shoppers can get guidance from Mattress Firm's Sleep Experts anytime and anywhere by visiting a store or participating in an online chat. For more help finding their dream bed, shoppers can quickly match with their perfect mattress by using the MattressMatcher on mattressfirm.com.

Rest assured, Mattress Firm makes it easy to shop safely and confidently. Learn more about the Company's enhanced safety measures in-store and during delivery. For more information on the best Mattress Firm Memorial Day Sale ever, or to find your nearest Mattress Firm store, visit mattressfirm.com/sale.

*King for Queen, Queen for Twin: Offer valid 4/28/21  6/1/21. Get select king-sized mattresses for the price of a queen-sized mattress. Or get select queen-sized mattresses for the price of a twin-sized mattress. Savings applied to our low price. Savings vary by mattress and model (max savings up to $500). Product selection may vary by store. Offer not valid on previous purchases, floor models, clearance items, final markdown, Purple, iComfort, Tempur-Pedic, Stearns & Foster, Sealy Hybrid, Beautyrest Black, Nectar, Tuft & Needle or Lull; other exclusions may apply. Limited quantities available; offer valid while supplies last. See store for complete details.

**Free Adjustable Base: Offer valid 4/28/21  6/1/21. Receive a free Head Up 50 adjustable base (up to a $499.99 value) with select mattress purchases (free queen adjustable base with minimum $699 purchase or free king adjustable base with minimum $999 purchase). Free adjustable base offer valid on same-size mattress purchased. Split king or split California king base purchases consist of 2 bases. For split king or split California king purchases, consumer will receive one free adjustable base with promotion, with second base at regular price. Free adjustable base offer valid to complete mattress set, has no cash value and cannot be used as credit. Offer not valid on previous purchases, floor models, clearance items, final markdown, Purple, iComfort, Tempur-Pedic, Stearns & Foster, Sealy Hybrid, Beautyrest Black Nectar, Tuft & Needle or Lull; other exclusions may apply. Adjustable bases not eligible for returns: price of adjustable base (up to $499.99) will be deducted from refund if mattress is returned. Adjustable base may be pictured with furniture; bed frame and headboard not included with offer. Limited quantities available; offer valid while supplies last at participating locations. See store for complete details

***Up to 50% off Hot Buys: Offer valid 4/28/21  6/1/21. Save 50% on Sealy Maplewood, save 30% on Sleepy's Memory Foam Doze, save 25% on Sleepy's sleep accessories. One Hot Buy item each per household. Offer valid only on models indicated and while supplies last at participating locations only. Some Hot Buys only available online. Visit a store, call (877) 316-1269 or chat online for complete details.

****Financing: 0% APR: 5 years* with a minimum purchase of $2049, 4 years* with a minimum purchase of $1999, 3 years* with a minimum purchase of $1099. 60, 48, or 36 equal monthly payments required. *Offer valid 04/28/21  06/08/21. Qualifying purchase amount must be on one receipt. No interest will be charged, and equal monthly payments are required on promo purchase until it is paid in full. These payments equal the total promo purchase amount divided by the number of months in the promo period and rounded up to the next whole dollar. These payments may be higher than the payments that would be required if this purchase was a non-promo purchase. Any monthly payments shown in connection with this promotional offer exclude taxes and delivery and should allow you to pay off the promotional purchase within the promo period if (1) you make your payments by the due date each month and (2) this is the only balance on your account during the promo period. If you have other balances on your account, this monthly payment will be added to the minimum payment applicable to those balances. Regular account terms apply to non-promo purchases. Down payment equal to sales tax and delivery may be required at point of purchase. For new accounts: Purchase APR is 29.99%. Minimum interest charge is $2. Existing cardholders: See your credit card agreement terms. Subject to credit approval.

About Mattress Firm

For the past 90 years, Mattress Firm has made it easy to get a great night's sleep by providing our customers an expertly curated collection of quality mattresses from the best brands. Today, with more than 2,500 neighborhood stores, we strive to be America's most trusted authority on sleep by placing our customer at the center of everything we do. Our Sleep Experts help more than 3 million people a year find the right solution for their sleep needs. Our selection of mattresses and bedding accessories include leading brands such as Beautyrest, Nectar, Sealy, Serta, Simmons, Sleepy's Stearns & Foster, Tempur-Pedic, Tuft & Needle, tulo, and Purple. We also offer customers Sleep.com as a go-to resource for learning how to sleep better and feel better. Committed to serving our communities, the Mattress Firm Foster Kids program, in partnership with the Ticket to Dream Foundation, joined forces with local foster care non-profit partners to help children in foster care get better sleep so they can shape a better future. For more information, visit http://www.mattressfirm.com.

SOURCE Mattress Firm

Related Links

http://www.mattressfirm.com


The initiative will begin later this month with the debut of COVID-19 vaccine information from trusted third parties on McDonald's billboard in Times Square. Starting in July, McDonald's hot McCafe cups and McDelivery seal stickers will lead customers to vaccines.gov , where they can learn more about how they can protect themselves and the people they love from COVID-19, as well as where to find vaccine appointments near them. The new packaging and ads feature art from the nationa l We Can Do This campaign, setting the campaign's slogan against a map of the United States.

McDonald's is committed to making helpful information accessible to our customers, who are encouraged to share the campaign using #WeCanDoThis to inspire others to learn more about what they can do to help end the pandemic.

"We all want to protect ourselves and our loved ones and be together with our communities again. McDonald's is excited to be doing our part for the people we serve, providing them with simple information that can help keep them safe," Genna Gent, McDonald's USA Vice President for Global Public Policy and Government Relations, said. "This is a team effort  it takes all of us. We're proud to enter this partnership to provide trusted, independently verified information about COVID-19 vaccines to our customers in the nearly 14,000 communities we serve."

"Getting vaccinated is easy. More than 150 million people have already gotten at least one dose of vaccine, and millions more are getting vaccinated every day," said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. "Thanks to McDonalds, people will now be able to get trusted information about vaccines when they grab a cup of coffee or order a meal. Ending this pandemic requires all of us working together to do our part, including encouraging our friends and family to get vaccinated. This effort will help more people make informed decisions about their health and learn about steps they can take to protect themselves and their communities."

Returning to normal will require extraordinary partnerships between businesses, governments and community and health organizations.

This partnership builds on McDonald's continued efforts to provide for the safety of customers and restaurant crew throughout this pandemic. McDonald's remains committed to being as safe as possible for crew and customers and has enhanced more than 50 safety processes at restaurants over the last year. In addition, McDonald's announced in January that managers and crew at corporate-owned U.S. restaurants and U.S. corporate employees would receive up to four hours of paid time to receive the vaccine. Earlier this month, McDonald's hosted a vaccination clinic at our Chicago headquarters for local crew, franchisees, corporate employees and contractors.

About McDonald's

McDonald's is the world's leading global foodservice retailer with over 39,000 locations in over 100 countries, including nearly 14,000 restaurants in the United States. Approximately 93% of McDonald's restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent local business owners.

About the We Can Do This campaign

The HHS COVID-19 public education campaign is a national initiative to increase public confidence in and uptake of COVID-19 vaccines while reinforcing basic prevention measures such as mask wearing and social distancing. Through a nationwide network of trusted messengers and consistent, fact-based public health messaging, the campaign helps the public make informed decisions about their health and COVID-19, including steps to protect themselves and their communities.

Morgan O'Marra

708-683-7109

morgan.o'[email protected]

SOURCE McDonald's
GUANGZHOU, China, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- MINISO Group Holding Limited (NYSE: MNSO) ("MINISO" or the "Company"), a fast-growing global value retailer offering a variety of design-led lifestyle products, today announced that it plans to release its March quarter 2021 financial results before the U.S. market opens on Wednesday, May 19, 2021.

The Company's management will hold an earnings conference call at 8:00 A.M. Eastern Time on Wednesday, May 19, 2021 (8:00 P.M. Beijing Time on the same day) to discuss the financial results. Listeners may access the call by dialing the following numbers:

International: 1-412-317-6061 United States Toll Free: 1-888-317-6003 Mainland China Toll Free: 4001-206-115 Hong Kong, China Toll Free: 800-963-976 Access Code: 9902383

The replay will be accessible through May 26, 2021 by dialing the following numbers:

International: 1-412-317-0088 United States Toll Free: 1-877-344-7529 Replay Access Code: 10156477

A live and archived webcast of the conference call will also be available at the Company's investor relations website at http://ir.miniso.com/.

About MINISO Group Holding Limited

MINISO is a fast-growing global value retailer offering a variety of design-led lifestyle products. The Company serves consumers primarily through its large network of MINISO stores, and promotes a relaxing, treasure-hunting and engaging shopping experience full of delightful surprises that appeals to all demographics. Aesthetically pleasing design, quality and affordability are at the core of every product in MINISO's wide product portfolio, and the Company continually and frequently rolls out products with these qualities. Since the opening of its first store in China in 2013, the Company has built its flagship brand "MINISO" as a globally recognized retail brand and established a massive store network worldwide. For more information, please visit http://ir.miniso.com/.

Investor Relations Contact

Mengru Wang

MINISO Group Holding Limited

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +86 (20) 36228788 Ext.8039

Robin Yang

ICR, Inc.

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +1 (212) 537-4056

SOURCE MINISO Group Holding Limited

Related Links

http://ir.miniso.com/


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MINNEAPOLIS and LOUISVILLE, Ky., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Minnesota Board of Pharmacy has partnered with Appriss Health, a leader in cloud-based care coordination software and analytics solutions focused on behavioral health and substance use disorders, to deliver seamless access to Minnesota Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) data within the electronic health record (EHR) and pharmacy management systems (PMS) of prescribers and pharmacists across the state.

The Minnesota Board of Pharmacy, through grants received from the federal government and other state agencies, is providing a state-wide license to enable one-click access to the state's PMP database using Appriss Health's PMP Gateway solution for a minimum of two years. There are approximately 34,000 prescribers and 1,042 pharmacies serving Minnesota's 5.66 million residents. The Board of Pharmacy launched the initiative using grants to help providers comply with a statutory requirement to check PMP data before prescribing opiates (certain conditions and exceptions apply).

"Access to prescription monitoring program data from within the clinical workflow enhances clinical decision making and also patient safety," said Dr. Cody Wiberg, PharmD, Executive Director of the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy. "By utilizing the services of Appriss Health to make integration of one-click access available across the state, we are supporting statewide strategies such as the Minnesota Opioid Prescribing Improvement Plan and other efforts of Minnesota agencies, with the goal of curbing opioid abuse and the effects it has on the citizens of Minnesota."

According to preliminary data released by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), 2020 drug overdose deaths increased 31% more during the first half of 2020 as compared to the first half of 2019.

"We are proud to partner with Minnesota's Board of Pharmacy to arm providers across the state with clinical decision support tools that can truly make an impact on patient care and the opioid crisis," said Rob Cohen, president of Appriss Health.

Launched in 2014, Appriss Health's PMP Gateway, integrates one-click access to PMP data across the nation via PMP InterConnect directly into authorized prescribers' and pharmacists' electronic workflows. Today, Gateway supports 43 out of 54 PMPs and delivers PMP information to 1 out of 3 U.S. prescribers, adding 110 new facility integrations, on average, every day.

About Appriss Health

Appriss Health is a leading SaaS platform for behavioral health care coordination and is a recognized leader in providing software and data analytics solutions to identify and mitigate substance use disorders. Appriss Health's cloud-based software connects nearly one million healthcare professionals across 500 clinical software systems including over 140 electronic health records. The platform enables nearly 1 million healthcare professionals to make better clinical decisions for more than 1 billion patient encounters every year. Health plans, health systems, emergency departments, pharmacies, and federal and state governments rely on Appriss Health's technology, applications, and data analytics to positively impact patient outcomes and manage the rising financial and social costs of behavioral health issues.

For more information, please visit www.apprisshealth.com and follow Appriss Health on Twitter and LinkedIn.

About Minnesota Board of Pharmacy

The Minnesota Board of Pharmacy is the state agency that has regulated the profession of pharmacy since 1885. It also regulates the manufacture and distribution of drugs and medical gases. The Board administers the Minnesota Prescription Monitoring Program. It exists to promote, preserve, and protect public health, safety, and welfare by fostering the safe distribution of pharmaceuticals and the provision of quality pharmaceutical care to the citizens of Minnesota. For more information about the Board of Pharmacy, please visit: https://mn.gov/boards/pharmacy/

Media Contact

Kim Warth

Amendola Communications (for Appriss Health)

(303) 918-9205

[email protected]

SOURCE Appriss Health

Related Links

http://www.apprisshealth.com


PORTLAND, Ore., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research published a report, titled, "More Electric Aircraft Market by Aircraft System (Propulsion System and Airframe System), Application (Power Generation, Power Distribution, Power Conversion, and Energy Storage), and Aircraft Type (Fixed-wing and Rotary-wing), and End User (Civil and Military): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 20202027." According to the report, the global more electric aircraft industry generated $1.80 billion in 2019, and is expected to reach $4.61 billion by 2027, witnessing a CAGR of 15.5% from 2020 to 2027.

Download Report (306 Pages PDF with Insights, Charts, Tables, Figures) at https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/6593

Prime determinants of growth

Rise in demand for high-performance fuel-efficient and less polluting aircraft and demand for aircraft with low operational and maintenance costs drive the growth of the global more electric aircraft market. However, high capital requirements and reliability of aircraft electrical systems hinder the market growth. On the other hand, advancements in battery solutions and electronic components and development of alternative power sources create new opportunities in the coming years.

Covid-19 Scenario

The governments enforced lockdown in many countries, which led to stoppage of manufacturing facilities and shortage of raw materials. So, the manufacturing activities of more electric aircraft were partially or completely shut down.

The governments enforced lockdown in many countries, which led to stoppage of manufacturing facilities and shortage of raw materials. So, the manufacturing activities of more electric aircraft were partially or completely shut down. The air traffic reduced due to ban on international travel and import and export activities. This led to reduced demand for more electric aircraft.

The air traffic reduced due to ban on international travel and import and export activities. This led to reduced demand for more electric aircraft. In addition, there were delays in new initiatives regarding development of innovative more electric aircraft solutions.

Request for Customization of this report at https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-for-customization/6593

The propulsion systems segment to maintain its leadership status during the forecast period

Based on aircraft system, the propulsion systems segment contributed to the highest market share in 2019, holding nearly three-fifths of the global more electric aircraft market, and is projected to maintain its leadership status during the forecast period. This is due to increase in demand for low fuel emission aircraft. However, the airframe systems segment is projected to register the fastest CAGR of 16.8% from 2020 to 2027, owing to the trend of modification and modernization of the airframe system to enhance the performance of the aircraft.

The power distribution segment to maintain its lead position during the forecast period

Based on application, the power distribution segment accounted for the highest share in 2019, contributing to nearly half of the global more electric aircraft market, and will maintain its lead position during the forecast period. Moreover, this segment is estimated to manifest the highest CAGR of 16.3% from 2020 to 2027. This is attributed to rise in the adoption of more electric aircraft technology that led to movement toward electrical components from the conventional mechanical systems to lower down heavy wiring and raise the optimization of the aircraft performance. The research also analyzes the segments including power generation, power conversion, and energy storage.

Interested to Procure The Data? Inquire here at https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/purchase-enquiry/6593

Europe, followed by North America, to maintain its dominance in terms of revenue by 2027

Based on region, Europe, followed by North America, held the highest share in terms of revenue in 2019, accounting for more than two-fifths of the global more electric aircraft market, and will maintain its dominance in terms of revenue by 2027. This is attributed to aligning of the workforce by many European countries to design and create more electric aircraft technologies for the European aviation industry. However, Asia-Pacific is expected to manifest the highest CAGR of 17.2% during the forecast period, owing to rapidly growing air traffic in the region.

Leading market players

AMETEK, Inc.

AMETEK, Inc. BAE Systems PLC

BAE Systems PLC Bombardier Inc.

Bombardier Inc. Elbit Systems Ltd.

Elbit Systems Ltd. GE Aviation

GE Aviation Honeywell International Inc.

Honeywell International Inc. Raytheon Technologies Corporation

Raytheon Technologies Corporation Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC

Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC Safran

Safran Thales Group

Schedule a FREE Consultation Call with Our Analysts/Industry Experts to Find Solution for Your Business at https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/connect-to-analyst/6593

Similar Reports We Have on Electric Vehicles Industry:

Electric Aircraft Market by Component (Battery, Electric Motor, and Others), Technology (Hybrid and All Electric), Product (Cascade, Pivot Door, and Bucket), Manufacturing Process (Hand Layup, ATL/AFP, and Resin Infusion), System (Power Electronics, Thermal Management, Safety System & Advanced Component, and Energy Storage Devices), and Aircraft Type (Ultralight Aircraft, Light Jets, and Regional Jets): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2019-2030.

Hydrogen Aircraft Market by Passenger Capacity (Less than 100, 100-200, and More than 200), Range (Short Haul, Medium Haul, and Long Haul), and Application (Passenger Aircraft and Cargo Aircraft): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 20302040.

Ultralight Aircraft Market by Material (Aluminum, Composites, and Others), Aircraft Type (Fixed Wing, Flex Wing, and Rotary Wing), Engine Type (Fuel Engine and Electric Engine), and Application (Recreation, Commercial, and Defense): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 20192030.

Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Market by Size (Very Small UAS, Small UAS, Mini UAS, and Large UAS), Range (Close Range, Short Range, and High Range), Energy Source (Traditional Airplane Fuel, Battery Cells, and Fuel Cells), Type (Fixed Wing and Rotary Wing), and End User (Civil, Military, and Commercial): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2020-2027.

Autonomous Aircraft Market by Component (Radars &Transponders, Propulsion Systems, Cameras, Sensors, Actuation System, Air Data Inertial Reference Units, Flight Management Computers, Software and Others), Technology (Fully Autonomous and Increasingly Autonomous), End Use (Passenger Air Vehicle, Personal Air Vehicle, Combat & Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR), Air Medical Services, Cargo & Delivery Aircraft and Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 20202027.

Helicopters Market by Type (Military and Civil & Commercial), Application (Military and Civil & Commercial), and Component & System (Airframe and Engine): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2020-2027.

About Us

Allied Market Research (AMR) is a full-service market research and business-consulting wing of Allied Analytics LLP based in Portland, Oregon. Allied Market Research provides global enterprises as well as medium and small businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports" and "Business Intelligence Solutions." AMR has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients to make strategic business decisions and achieve sustainable growth in their respective market domain.

Pawan Kumar, the CEO of Allied Market Research, is leading the organization toward providing high-quality data and insights. We are in professional corporate relations with various companies and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry.

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SOURCE Allied Market Research
WASHINGTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- With the support of 43 chemical manufacturers and related industry stakeholders, the founding partners of the Future of STEM Scholars Initiative (FOSSI) today announced the program surpassed its 2021 goal to fund scholarships for 150 students majoring in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The program will support 151 scholars in its inaugural year, at an investment of $7.2 million dollars. Multi-year commitments from sponsoring organizations have raised an additional $4 million in support of future scholars.

Launched last year by the American Chemistry Council (ACC), the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), The Chemours Company and the HBCU Week Foundation, FOSSI is the chemical industry's collaborative equity, diversity and inclusion initiative aimed at creating pathways for more underrepresented groups to enter and succeed in the chemical industry. FOSSI provides scholarship recipients $10,000 per year for four years, as well as opportunities for internships, mentoring and leadership training.

"I am proud to stand with the more than 40 ACC members and affiliates who have eagerly responded to our ambitious goal to raise $7.2 million in support of FOSSI in its inaugural year," stated ACC President & CEO Chris Jahn. "ACC and our members are committed to leading our industry in enhancing diversity in our facilities, our communities and nationwide."

ACC Board of Director's Chairman, Chemours President and CEO, and founding chair of FOSSI, Mark Vergnano, stated, "As lead sponsor of FOSSI, Chemours is thrilled to bring our Corporate Responsibility Commitment to action. It is with the support of organizations like these that we can have a meaningful impact on the future workforce of the chemical industry."

Nearly 1,700 high school students across the nation applied for FOSSI scholarships, and the 151 scholarship recipients represent 26 states, with students planning to attend 23 HBCUs.

Ashley Christopher, Founder and CEO of the HBCU Week Foundation, noted, "The incredible interest we saw from these applicants illustrates the need this scholarship fills within our black and brown communities. The excitement from recipients and their families as we've notified each student has been overwhelming, and we are looking forward to building and growing the program to reach even more scholars in the future."

In welcoming the new FOSSI scholars, June Wispelwey, Executive Director and CEO of AIChE, commented, "AIChE's commitment to FOSSI exemplifies its IDEAL vision of driving Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Anti-Racism, and Learning, which is embodied in our Foundation's All for Good: Engineering for Inclusion priority. Our leadership is ensuring that the success of both the FOSSI initiative and our FOSSI scholars will have profound impacts on the STEM professions. We are thrilled to be taking this active role in nurturing, inspiring, and building the future workforce."

To learn more about FOSSI, visit aiche.org/fossi.

About the American Chemistry Council

The American Chemistry Council (ACC) represents the leading companies engaged in the business of chemistry. ACC members apply the science of chemistry to make innovative products and services that make people's lives better, healthier and safer. ACC is committed to improved environmental, health and safety performance through Responsible Care; common sense advocacy designed to address major public policy issues; and health and environmental research and product testing. The business of chemistry is a $565 billion enterprise and a key element of the nation's economy. It is among the largest exporters in the nation, accounting for ten percent of all U.S. goods exports. Chemistry companies are among the largest investors in research and development. Safety and security have always been primary concerns of ACC members, and they have intensified their efforts, working closely with government agencies to improve security and to defend against any threat to the nation's critical infrastructure. Learn more about ACC member company commitments to sustainability, diversity, equity and inclusion here.

About the American Institute of Chemical Engineers

The American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) is a professional society of more than 60,000 chemical engineers in 110 countries. Its members work in corporations, universities, and government using their knowledge of chemical processes to develop safe and useful products for the benefit of society. Through its varied programs, AIChE continues to be a focal point for information exchange on the frontiers of chemical engineering research in such areas as energy, sustainability, biological and environmental engineering, nanotechnology, and chemical plant safety and security. More information about AIChE is available at www.aiche.org. Detail about the AIChE Foundation's Doing a World of Good campaign and other programs is available at www.aiche.org/giving/. More about AIChE's IDEAL statement can be found here: https://www.aiche.org/IDEAL.

About The Chemours Company

The Chemours Company (NYSE: CC) is a global leader in Titanium Technologies, Thermal & Specialized Solutions, Advanced Performance Materials, and Chemical Solutions providing its customers with solutions in a wide range of industries with market-defining products, application expertise and chemistry-based innovations. We deliver customized solutions with a wide range of industrial and specialty chemicals products for markets, including coatings, plastics, refrigeration, and air conditioning, transportation, semiconductor and consumer electronics, general industrial, mining and oil and gas. Our flagship products include prominent brands such as Ti-Pure, Opteon, Freon, Teflon, Viton, Nafion, and Krytox. In 2019, Chemours was named to Newsweek's list of America's Most Responsible Companies. The company has approximately 6,500 employees and 30 manufacturing sites serving approximately 3,300 customers in approximately 120 countries. Chemours is headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware and is listed on the NYSE under the symbol CC.

About the HBCU Week Foundation

The mission of the HBCU Week Foundation is to encourage high-school aged youth to enroll into HBCU's, provide scholarship dollars for matriculation and sustain a pipeline for employment from undergraduate school to corporate America. The most impactful event during HBCU Week is the HBCU College Fair. HBCU Week Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

SOURCE American Chemistry Council

Related Links

www.americanchemistry.com


WASHINGTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Bank of America has announced National Disability Institute (NDI) as a recipient of its Neighborhood Builders award in recognition of the organization's work dedicated to the financial health and well-being of people with disabilities and their families. NDI was selected as one of four recipients of Bank of America's prestigious Neighborhood Builders grant for 2021. The Neighborhood Builders program provides high-impact nonprofits with a unique combination of leadership development, $200,000 in flexible funding, a network of peer organizations across the U.S. and the opportunity to access capital. It has been recognized as the nation's largest philanthropic investment in nonprofit leadership development.

"NDI is deeply honored to receive this award from Bank of America," said Thomas Foley, Executive Director, National Disability Institute. "We thank Bank of America for recognizing NDI's commitment to equity and financial inclusion for all people with disabilities. The Neighborhood Builders award will allow us to expand our Equity Initiative, with a focus on Black, Indigenous and Latinx disability communities, that includes training and technical assistance, convenings, research and pilot programs."

"Bank of America was NDI's very first funder and this remarkable partnership has continued for the last 16 years," said Michael Morris, Founder of the organization. "Bank of America has shared with us a common vision for building a better financial future for people with disabilities and their families. This unwavering support has been a key factor in NDI becoming the recognized leader in advancing financial health and economic security for the disability community."

"We recognize that nonprofits are critical to advancing solutions to some of the complex challenges we face as a community," said Kerry Sullivan, President, Bank of America Charitable Foundation. "In addition to connecting our longtime partner, NDI, to funding and leadership development as a national Neighborhood Builder, we will also highlight NDI's important work around inclusion  enabling individuals with disabilities to participate fully in our economy."

The most financially vulnerable population in America is the group of individuals that live at the intersection of disability, race and ethnicity. The NDI report, FINANCIAL INEQUALITY: Disability, Race and Poverty in America, points out that race is linked to both poverty and disability. Black Americans have lower incomes and poorer health outcomes than white Americans. Lower employment rates may be the result of factors including racial discrimination, level of education and/or the economic characteristics of a community.

For more than 16 years, the Neighborhood Builders program has partnered with more than 1,300 nonprofits across the country to create greater impact in local communities and better prepare for the future. The program provides the tools and resources necessary to develop stronger strategic plans, chart a succession plan, navigate through tough economic times and enhance funding opportunities. Since 2004 through Neighborhood Builders, Bank of America has invested more than $260 million in 50 communities for local programming and leadership development for nearly 2,600 nonprofit leaders.

About National Disability Institute

National Disability Institute (NDI) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to building a better financial future for people with disabilities and their families. The first national organization committed exclusively to championing economic empowerment, financial education, asset development and financial stability for all persons with disabilities, NDI affects change through public education, policy development, training, technical assistance and innovative initiatives. To learn more, visit www.nationaldisabilityinstitute.org. Engage with NDI on Facebook: @NationalDisability or follow NDI on Twitter: @NatDisability.

Contact:

Kathleen Brannigan

National Disability Institute

917-647-4430

[email protected]

SOURCE National Disability Institute

Related Links

https://www.nationaldisabilityinstitute.org/


WASHINGTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, every hospital and ASC across the country received a letter signed by four influential national employer groupsthe Health Transformation Alliance, ERISA Industry Committee, National Alliance of Health Care Purchaser Coalitions, and the Business Group on Healthrequesting their participation in the annual Leapfrog Hospital Survey and Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey.

The organizations represent in total over 12,000 employers with more than 55 million lives. Their collective voice as purchasers sends a strong signal to the health care market of their expectation for high quality, safe care.

"As organizations that speak out for America's employers, who invest significantly in the health and well-being of employees, we feel that participation in Leapfrog Surveys is vital to achieving real progress towards a safer, higher-quality, more transparent health care system for all," said Ellen Kelsay, President and CEO of Business Group on Health.

"Our members look forward to consulting results from the Leapfrog Hospital and ASC Surveys to help employees make important decisions about their health care and to inform benefit designs and contracting," said Lee Lewis, Chief Strategy Officer and GM Medical of Health Transformation Alliance. "Leapfrog gives us critical data on quality and safety employers cannot get anywhere else."

The Leapfrog Hospital Survey and the Leapfrog ASC Survey are employer-driven initiatives to collect important information on quality and safety not available from other sources. The Surveys ask hospitals and ASCs about their performance on measures of key importance to employers, like rates of C-sections, never events, pediatrics, practices to prevent medication errors and safety of common surgical procedures. Leapfrog, an independent, employer-driven nonprofit, works with national experts to ensure the use of nationally standardized, evidence-based measures of health care performance and extensively verifies the data submitted before making it publicly available on its website.

Results from the 2021 Surveys will be publicly available this summer; current Survey results can be found at www.ratings.leapfroggroup.org. Free tools for employers, including Leapfrog's innovative Lives and Dollars Lost Calculator, are available at www.leapfroggroup.org/employers.

View the letter sent to hospitals here and the letter sent to ASCs here.

About The Leapfrog Group

Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American health care. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade , Leapfrog's other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents and infections.

SOURCE The Leapfrog Group

Related Links

http://leapfroggroup.org


NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- As the financial services industry confronts the new realities of a post-pandemic era, many firms are beginning to shift toward mutualization models for their technology and operations, according to a new whitepaper released today by global Fintech leader Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR). Mutualization is a model where participants more quickly gain access to new technologies, scalability, and resiliency while saving time, money, and risk; by sharing in the benefits of an industry solution provided by a reliable, trusted, and independent third party.

The latest industry whitepaper from Broadridge highlights the benefits of this new model for Fintech service delivery in the context of a post-pandemic world. As more financial services organizations digitize their operations and contend with rising cost pressures, mutualization enables Fintech firms to improve efficiency, accelerate time-to-market and reduce transformation risk  all while freeing up management attention and other critical resources that can be devoted to other core needs.

"Implementation of a mutualized model allows firms to increase operational productivity, resiliency and efficiency that are the hallmarks of a modern, modular approach to service delivery," said Michael Tae, Chief Transformation Officer at Broadridge. "We developed this report after many conversations with clients who shared their interest in mutualization but felt uncertain about where to begin updating their technology functions. This whitepaper serves as both a useful guide to those interested in expansion and an informational tool to firms that are just beginning their technology journey."

The new whitepaper serves as a roadmap for financial services firms hoping to establish a mutualized service delivery model. Highlights from the paper include:

The four forces driving mutualization: margin and cost pressures, regulatory change, digitization and infrastructure shocks

The long-term benefits of mutualization: cost savings, regulatory compliance, operational productivity, and resiliency and innovation at scale

The elements needed to establish a new model of mutualized service delivery

The key questions every financial services executive should ask as they embark on the path towards mutualized service delivery

To learn more about the momentum mutualization is gaining across the financial services landscape, download the whitepaper from Broadridge: Modernizing Through Mutualization: A New Model for Fintech Service Delivery in a Post-Pandemic World.

About Broadridge

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE: BR), a global Fintech leader with over $4.5 billion in revenues, provides the critical infrastructure that powers investing, corporate governance, and communications to enable better financial lives. We deliver technology-driven solutions to banks, broker-dealers, asset and wealth managers and public companies. Broadridge's infrastructure serves as a global communications hub enabling corporate governance by linking thousands of public companies and mutual funds to tens of millions of individual and institutional investors around the world. In addition, Broadridge's technology and operations platforms underpin the daily trading of on average more than U.S. $10 trillion of equities, fixed income and other securities globally. A certified Great Place to Work, Broadridge is a part of the S&P 500 Index, employing over 12,000 associates in 17 countries. For more information about us and what we can do for you, please visit www.broadridge.com.

Broadridge Investors:

W. Edings Thibault

Investor Relations

(516) 472-5129

Media:

Gregg Rosenberg

Corporate Communications

[email protected]

(929) 288-0774

SOURCE Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.broadridge.com


VANCOUVER, BC, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - New Found Gold Corp. ("New Found" or the "Company") (TSXV: NFG) (OTC: NFGFF) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Douglas Hurst as a Director of the Company effective immediately.

Mr. Hurst was part of the founding group of Newmarket Gold, which, following discovery of the high-grade Swan Zone at the company's Fosterville mine, was sold to Kirkland Lake Gold in 2016 for approximately $1 billion .

mine, was sold to in 2016 for approximately . Mr. Hurst is a serially successful mining entrepreneur and executive. He founded International Royalty Corporation, which was sold to Royal Gold for approximately $700 million in 2010. He also serves as the Chairman of Northern Vertex Mining and as a director of Calibre Mining and Newcore Gold.

Collin Kettell, Chairman of New Found, stated: "On behalf of the Board of Directors I am delighted to welcome Doug to the New Found team. As a founder and executive of Newmarket Gold, Doug is intimately familiar with how the high-grade Swan Zone discovery progressed, ultimately leading to the acquisition of Newmarket by Kirkland Lake Gold. New Found believes that the geological setting and style of high grade epizonal gold mineralization at our Queensway project in Newfoundland has strong similarities to the high-grade discoveries at Fosterville, and we look forward to Doug's insights and advice. Doug's extensive experience spans all aspects of the resource space from exploration through to production as well as the royalty business. I look forward to working with Doug as we advance our exciting discoveries at Queensway."

Doug Hurst, Director of New Found, stated: "I am humbled and honoured to be a part of this story moving forward. Queensway is shaping up to be a wonderful gold discovery, and it certainly has very similar geological characteristics to the high-grade discoveries at Fosterville."

Biography:

Mr. Hurst holds a Bachelor of Science in geology from McMaster University (1986) and has over 30 years of experience in the mining industry as a geologist, consultant, mining analyst, and senior executive. He was a mining analyst with McDermid St. Lawrence, Sprott Securities and a contract analyst to Pacific International Securities and Octagon Capital up until 1995. From 1995 to 2003 Mr. Hurst operated D.S. Hurst Inc. a company offering corporate, evaluation and financing consulting services to the mining industry. He was a founder and executive of International Royalty Corporation from 2003 to 2006, and a director until 2010 when the company was purchased by Royal Gold for approximately $700 million. Mr. Hurst was also part of the founding group of Newmarket Gold, which was sold to Kirkland Lake Gold in 2016 for approximately $1 billion. Mr. Hurst currently serves as the Chairman of Northern Vertex Mining and as a director of both Calibre Mining and Newcore Gold.

Resignation:

New Found also announces the resignation of Mr. John Anderson as a Director of the Company, effectively immediately. "I would also like to very much thank John Anderson for a very significant contribution to the Company as we built it from the private stage through becoming a public company and making significant discoveries on our Queensway project," stated Collin Kettell, Chairman of New Found. "John is currently very active on multiple business initiatives in the mining industry, and we understand his decision to resign from New Found board to pursue these other interests. We wish him great success in his future endeavours."

About New Found Gold Corp.

New Found holds a 100% interest in the Queensway Project, located 15km west of Gander, Newfoundland, and just 18km from Gander International Airport. The project is intersected by the Trans-Canada Highway and has logging roads crosscutting the project, high voltage electric power lines running through the project area, and easy access to a highly skilled workforce. The Company is currently undertaking a 200,000m drill program at Queensway. Seven rigs are currently in operation at Queensway with the drill count planned to increase to ten rigs by the end of May 2021. With a current working capital balance of approximately $74 million, New Found is well funded for this program.

Please see the Company's website at www.newfoundgold.ca and the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.

Contact

To contact the Company, please visit the Company's website, www.newfoundgold.ca and make your request through our investor inquiry form. Our management has a pledge to be in touch with any investor inquiries within 24 hours.

New Found Gold Corp.

Per: "Craig Roberts"

Craig Roberts, P.Eng., Chief Executive Officer

Email: [email protected]

Phone: (604) 562 9664

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statement Cautions

This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation, relating to further the exploration and drilling on the Company's Queensway gold project in Newfoundland. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts; they are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "projects," "aims," "potential," "goal," "objective," "prospective," and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will," "would," "may," "can," "could" or "should" occur, or are those statements, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions that forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made, and they involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Except to the extent required by applicable securities laws and the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include risks associated possible accidents and other risks associated with mineral exploration operations, the risk that the Company will encounter unanticipated geological factors, the possibility that the Company may not be able to secure permitting and other governmental clearances necessary to carry out the Company's exploration plans, the risk that the Company will not be able to raise sufficient funds to carry out its business plans, and the risk of political uncertainties and regulatory or legal changes that might interfere with the Company's business and prospects. The reader is urged to refer to the Company's reports, publicly available through the Canadian Securities Administrators' System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR) at www.sedar.com for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects.

SOURCE New Found Gold Corp.

Related Links

https://newfoundgold.ca/


PORTLAND, Maine, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Joseph "Joe" Powers has been named the new managing director of Maine Venture Fund (MVF), a state-sponsored venture capital fund. The decision comes after a nationwide search prompted by the decision of the organization's first Managing Director John Burns, CFA, to semi-retire after 20 years at the organization's helm.

Powers joined Maine Venture Fund in 2019, most recently serving as principal, where he oversees deal structuring and relationships with multiple portfolio companies. Prior to MVF, he worked for a number of startup technology companies, including Tesla, Zoox, and Clean Marine Energy. Powers was raised in rural Vermont and is an alumnus of Middlebury College (BA) and the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth (MBA). In his spare time, he mentors entrepreneurs at SCORE Maine and the Maine Center for Entrepreneurs.

"I'm deeply appreciative of John's mentorship and the collaboration from MVF partners over the past two years," said Powers. "I'm motivated by future opportunities across the state and regionally and am focused on building on MVF's strong foundation to broaden our impact, especially within underserved communities."

Under Burns' leadership as founding managing director, the fund found its footing as a venture capital firm, supported over 80 Maine companies, and helped create thousands of jobs across the state.

"I am excited about supporting Joe," said Burns. "He is the right leader to take MVF to the next level with even greater impact on economic development in Maine by supporting our state's dynamic growth companies."

About Maine Venture Fund

Maine Venture Fund invests in dynamic businesses that have the potential for significant growth and impact in Maine. The Fund has invested over $20 million in Maine companies since 1997, after its creation by an act of the Maine Legislature in 1995 as a revolving "evergreen" fund. For more information, visit maineventurefund.com.

For more information contact:

John Murray, Chair of the Board of Directors

Maine Venture Fund

[email protected]

207-924-3800

SOURCE Maine Venture Fund
MADISON, Wis., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Two new studies expand upon previous research showing the Future Forward literacy program yields enduring scholastic improvement for kindergarten through third-grade students. Future Forward successfully pairs one-on-one tutoring with family engagement to support literacy development of struggling readers.

STUDY #1: " What is the Sustained Impact of Future Forward on Reading Achievement, Attendance, and Special Education Placement Five Years after Participation? " (Where Are They Now?)

Future Forward Literacy

Future Forward was awarded a federal grant to develop and test its impact in seven Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) primarily serving low-income Black and Latinx students. Results of a randomized control trial evaluation found positive and statistically significant impacts on foundational literacy , reading achievement , and school attendance .

Researchers followed study participants five years past the end of the study, finding participants continued to demonstrate greater reading achievement. Additionally, students were less likely to be placed into special education . Considering added cost with providing specialized services to ten additional students, Future Forward could save MPS over one million dollars .

"Although the results of this study are positive, it is important to frame Future Forward in the context of a national school system that is failing students of color," said evaluator Curtis Jones, Ph.D., Director of the Office of Socially Responsible Evaluation in Education and Co-Director of the Wisconsin Educator Effectiveness Research Partnership at the University of Wisconsin. "So while the impact of Future Forward is real, it must be a part of larger efforts in educational resource redistribution to earnestly provide what is owed to students and families."

Click here for complete (#1) study.

STUDY #2: " Testing Impact & Scalability of the Future Forward Literacy Program " (Impact prior to Covid)

An Education Innovation and Research Mid-Phase grant from the U.S. Department of Education expanded Future Forward to 14 schools in seven school districts across three states. A randomized control trial study of the program was designed to examine effectiveness of scale-up and impact on reading achievement, social-emotional learning (SEL), and school attendance. Schools were shut down because of Covid, which limited the study to testing impact on school attendance .

Attendance was 1.3 percentage points higher than students who received "business-as-usual" (BAU) literacy instruction. Further, impact was greater with Black students, male students, and students with a history of low school attendance. Students at the intersection of these groups (Black male students with low school attendance) were particularly affected, improving their school attendance by greater than 4 times as much as their peers.

Click here for complete (#2) study.

PERSPECTIVE

"Together, these two studies add to an increasingly strong empirical foundation that validates Future Forward and supports its systems approach to helping students learn to read," said Dr. Jones. "Future Forward has a sustained impact on reading achievement and prevents students from being referred to special education. Future Forward also improves school attendance of students at greatest risk of being absent from school. Based on these findings, and previous research, Future Forward is well-positioned to support efforts of schools and families getting students back on-track after Covid."

ABOUT FUTURE FORWARD

Future Forward is funded by the Education Innovation and Research (EIR) Program, designed to generate and validate solutions to persistent educational challenges and to support the expansion of effective solutions to serve substantially larger numbers of students. The EIR Program provides funding to create, develop, implement, or replicate, entrepreneurial, evidence-based, field-initiated innovations to improve student achievement and attainment for high-need students and rigorously evaluate such innovations.

Visit FutureForwardLiteracy.org or contact Kate Bauer-Jones .

Related Images

image1.png

SOURCE Future Forward Literacy
Noah Text highlights critical word patterns within texts, enabling struggling readers, developing readers, those with dyslexia, and English language learners to read with increased fluency, accuracy, and stamina while building skills and confidence. Noah Text allows readers to see sound-parts within words, providing a way for them to decode and enunciate words that are otherwise difficult to access. The resulting improvements in reading accuracy and fluency free up cognitive resources that readers can devote to comprehending the meaning of the text.

"We are really excited that we've found a way to give educators and parents access to Noah Text at no cost," said Sarah K. Blodgett, Noah Text's Founder and CEO. "With StrongReader Builder, anyone who knows how to cut and paste or upload a document can now make text passages and longer documents available to the struggling readers in their lives."

Individuals and schools can sign up for a FREE account at app.noahtext.com. The company's mission is to make Noah Text available in ALL print and digital media to give everyone the ability to excel in reading. Publishers, platform services, and ed tech companies are invited to contact Ms. Blodgett at [email protected] to discuss how they can incorporate Noah Text into their products.

About Noah Text

Noah Text was designed to address the fact that the English language has one of the most irregular, complex writing systems in the world, leading to much higher rates of dyslexia and struggle. Noah Text is a patent-pending methodology that simulates predictable writing systems by guiding readers toward the most critical patterns in English. Noah Text has received ongoing recognition from literacy specialists and education professionals since its release in 2016. In 2017, Noah Text was selected as an Innovation Showcase Panelist by the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), Education Business Forum.



This press release was issued through 24-7PressRelease.com. For further information, visit http://www.24-7pressrelease.com.

SOURCE Noah Text
According to the report, the neighboring state with the largest number of solar schools is Virginia. Since 2017, Virginia schools rapidly jumped an awe-inspiring 12 spots  from 20 th place to 8 th place nationwide. The number of schools in Virginia that installed solar power on campus grew from 29 to 89 in two years and the capacity installed expanded 10-fold, from 1.9 megawatts to more than 20 megawatts.

"Solar on schools in Virginia really took off when Power Purchase Agreements were allowed in the territory of the state's biggest electric utility," said Ryan McAllister, CEO of Secure Futures Solar, which pioneered solar power with no upfront cost for schools in Virginia. "PPAs are not allowed anywhere in North Carolina yet, but the North Carolina leasing program started in 2017 does allow a service agreement that offers some of the same benefits, including solar on campus at no upfront cost."

In the past, financing arrangements that allowed schools in Virginia to get solar with no upfront cost were illegal in North Carolina. But a 2017 law authorized solar equipment leasing in North Carolina, removing the primary barrier for schools and many others to acquiring a solar energy system.

"Schools don't have to pay upfront costs for arrays," explains Tish Tablan of Generation180, who co-authored the Brighter Future report. "School boards and administrators don't have to figure how to squeeze that out of a tight budget."

To introduce K-12 schools in North Carolina, both public and independent, to the new option to go solar without upfront cost in the Tar Heel State, Secure Futures is holding a webinar on Thursday, May 20 featuring school officials from Virginia talking about their experience with on-campus solar power under a similar program:

Dr. Eric Bond , superintendent of Augusta County Public Schools, will discuss benefits for education, especially through our hands-on STEM curriculum taught jointly with the Science Museum of Virginia, Throwing Solar Shade  . He'll also talk about how solar power is set to save his schools $495,000 over 20 years.

will discuss benefits for education, especially through our hands-on STEM curriculum taught jointly with the Science Museum of Virginia, . He'll also talk about how solar power is set to save his schools over 20 years. Facilities Specialist Doug Arnold at Orange County Public Schools will talk about money savings, how to work with a school board to approve a project and how roof restoration was rolled into their solar agreement.

Schools that go solar can put energy savings towards other priorities, from raising salaries for teachers to providing students with laptops. Extra money can be especially helpful in the Covid-19 pandemic for public schools hit by declining tax revenues or independent schools with student enrollment down.

"Helping schools make the switch to solar can uplift our communities, drive our stalled economy and insulate our schools from the effects of climate change," says Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association. "It's rare to find a solution that can solve many challenges at once."

Secure Futures is among a handful of providers authorized by the North Carolina Utilities Commission to offer distributed solar power through the state's solar equipment leasing program. Secure Futures' proprietary financing, a Solar Self-Generation Agreement, offers an additional advantage to schools. Unlike a traditional solar equipment lease, the SGA allows Secure Futures to pass along savings from the federal Solar Investment Tax Credit to tax-exempt customers including both public and independent schools. The solar ITC was recently extended by Congress through 2022 at a rate of 26 percent.

Event Details:

Webinar for North Carolina K-12 Schools

Going Solar at No Upfront Cost

Thursday, May 20, 2021 at 1:30 pm Eastern

Open to school superintendents, principals, faculty, staff, students and parents

Free of charge. Register in advance at https://securefutures.solar/north-carolina/.

About Secure Futures, LLC

As a market and policy leader, Secure Futures builds, owns, manages and funds affordable Resilient Solar Solutions for hospitals, schools and businesses. The company combines state-ofthe-art solar technology with an innovative business model to make commercial scale solar readily affordable in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast, helping customers to realize the economic, environmental, and community benefits of solar energy. In 2017, Secure Futures became a Certified B Corporation. Find the company online at www.securefutures.solar.

Contact:

Erik Curren, Secure Futures Solar

[email protected]

540-466-6128



SOURCE Secure Futures LLC

Related Links

http://www.securefutures.us


Mr. Ramirez started with Farmer Brothers as the Director of Coffee and has held many notable positions throughout the organization. Most recently, as the Vice President of Coffee Strategy and Sustainability for Farmer Brothers, he was responsible for green coffee management, customer and vendor partnerships, and company sustainability initiatives. Mr. Ramirez has been very active in the coffee community, serving on several boards including World Coffee Research.

Ruben Inofuentes, Farmer Brothers' Chief Supply Chain Officer, said, "We are grateful for the many years of service, the opportunities Jose has brought to Farmer Brothers, and the deep connections he developed with many of our strategic partners. We are excited about the ability to continue to work with him at NuZee to help scale their innovative products in the United States by utilizing our manufacturing and distribution capabilities."

Masa Higashida, President and CEO of NuZee, said, "I am very excited to have Jose Ramirez join our organization and believe that his deep knowledge in the specialty coffee space coupled with his vast network of coffee roasters, brands, and other industry related relationships will help catapult NuZee's growth over the coming quarters."

In November 2020, NuZee and Farmer Brothers announced a strategic partnership under which Farmer Brothers provides access to manufacturing capacity as NuZee continues to roll out innovative coffee and tea products in the United States.

About Farmer Brothers

Founded in 1912, Farmer Bros. Co. is a national coffee roaster, wholesaler, and distributor of coffee, tea, and culinary products. The company's product lines include organic, Direct Trade, and sustainably produced coffee. With a robust line of coffee, hot and iced teas, cappuccino mixes, spices, and baking/biscuit mixes, the company delivers extensive beverage planning services and culinary products to its U.S. based customers. The company serves a wide variety of customers, from small independent restaurants and foodservice operators to large institutional buyers like restaurant, department and convenience store chains, hotels, casinos, healthcare facilities, and gourmet coffee houses, as well as grocery chains with private brand coffee and consumer branded coffee and tea products, and foodservice distributors.

About NuZee and Coffee Blenders

NuZee, Inc. (d/b/a Coffee Blenders) is a specialty coffee company and a leading U.S. single-serve pour-over coffee pouch producer and co-packer. We own sophisticated packing equipment developed in Asia for single serve pour over production. We co-pack single-serve pour-over coffee products for customers in the U.S. market and also co-pack for the South Korean market.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. NuZee cautions you that such statements are simply predictions and actual events or results may differ materially. These statements reflect NuZee's current expectations, and NuZee does not undertake to update or revise these forward looking statements, even if experience or future changes make it clear that any projected results expressed or implied in this or other NuZee statements will not be realized. Further, these statements involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond NuZee's control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, include: NuZee's plans to obtain funding for its operations, including funding necessary to develop, manufacture and commercialize its products; the impact to NuZee's business from the COVID-19 global crisis; general market acceptance of and demand for NuZee's products; and NuZee's commercialization, marketing and manufacturing capabilities and strategy; for a description of additional factors that may cause NuZee's actual results, performance or expectations to differ from any forward-looking statements, please review the information set forth in the "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" sections of the NuZee's public reports and NuZee's other filings made with the SEC.

SOURCE NuZee, Inc.
VICTORIA, Seychelles, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- OKEx (www.okex.com), a world-leading cryptocurrency spot and derivatives exchange, is pleased to announce the listing of SHIB, the first native crypto asset of the Shiba Inu network. Deposits of SHIB opened over the weekend, and the token can now be traded against USDT on the OKEx spot and perpetual swap markets. Withdrawals opened at 10:00 am UTC on May 10.

SHIB, also known as a "meme coin," has emerged as a top 30 cryptocurrency by market capitalization, according to CoinMarketCap. Dubbed the "Dogecoin killer," SHIB is an ERC-20 token that started as an experiment to create a spontaneous decentralized community. With the goal to ensure a fair distribution of tokens, the founders put away 50% of the total SHIB supply in Uniswap, while the rest were burned in honor of Vitalik Buterin, one of the co-founders of Ethereum. SHIB is the first cryptocurrency token to be listed and incentivized on ShibaSwap  the Shiba Inu project's own decentralized exchange.

"We are pleased to welcome Shiba Inu to the OKEx platform. I appreciate their experimental spirit, which is exactly what the blockchain and crypto space needs. As an exchange, we are delighted to be able to offer a diverse portfolio of cryptocurrencies, including memetic tokens, to allow a comprehensive investment experience for our valued customers. The Shiba Inu community has been gaining strong momentum from the weekend deposits, and we look forward to witnessing its robust development. We are happy to be the first major exchange to offer SHIB to open the crypto gateway to these enthusiasts," said OKEx CEO Jay Hao.

END

About OKEx

OKEx is a world-leading cryptocurrency spot and derivatives exchange that offers some of the most diverse and sophisticated products, solutions and trading tools on the market. Trusted by millions of users globally, we believe that cryptocurrency will reshape our money and society, enabling all people to live with dignity and freedom. With our extensive range of crypto products and services, and our unwavering commitment to innovation, our mission is to promote and advance cryptocurrency globally  and empower every individual on earth.

Follow OKEx

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OKEx

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/okexofficial/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/okex/

Medium: https://medium.com/@OKEx

Telegram group (English): https://t.me/OKExOfficial_English

Telegram group (Russian): https://t.me/okexofficial_ru

Disclaimer: This material should not be taken as the basis for making investment decisions, nor be construed as a recommendation to engage in investment transactions. Trading digital assets involve significant risk and can result in the loss of your invested capital. You should ensure that you fully understand the risk involved and take into consideration your level of experience, investment objectives and seek independent financial advice if necessary.

SOURCE OKEx
Pacsun announced a leadership transition whereby Alfred Chang, Pacsun President, and Michael (Mike) Relich, Interim CEO of PSEB Group, will be elevated to Co-Chief Executive Officers, and Brieane (Brie) Olson, Pacsun's Chief Brand Officer, will be promoted to President, all of whom have been critical to the brand's remarkable growth over the past several years.

Pacsun was recently ranked as the #3 apparel brand among teens, in The Piper Sandler "Taking Stock with Teens" Spring 2021 report, a product of the company's relentless focus on the brand's strategy, strong social media presence, and partnerships. The retailer also saw rising to the ranks of the #1 women's brand and moved up from #5 from last year, taking the top spot over well-known competitors like Adidas and Hollister.

Much of this current success can be attributed to the team of Olson and Chang, who both joined the company in 2006, learning how to motivate one another through common goals and vision. Chang has served as President of Pacsun since 2018 and has over 20 years of experience in the retail industry, including serving in multiple senior positions, including Gap and Old Navy. His vision for the brand to embrace diversity and inclusion as core brand values and to continue to reach new young audiences through digital, have established Pacsun's clear brand positioning in the marketplace and transformed Pacsun into one of the leading brands for teens and the leader in bringing exciting trends and talent collaborations to its community, while also being responsible for the brands digital first strategy across all touch points.

Chang has applied his theories of youth obsessed marketing, engaging emerging talent and brand relationships to deliver the fashion merchandise that consumers are craving, to spearheading an impressive rise for the youth retailer, including signature achievements in brand merchandising and signing relevant talent partners including Kanye West, Virgil Abloh, Jerry Lorenzo - a corner stone offering for the brand - and many more.

Mr. Relich, who has more than 30 years of retail operations and system experience, has served as Interim CEO of PSEB Group, which owns Pacsun and Eddie Bauer, since August 2020 and previously served as PSEB's Chief Operating Officer. Critical in introducing new systems and establishing a leadership team to operationally meet the needs of Pacsun's digital growth, Relich continues to expand Pacsun's capabilities at the distribution center and fulfillment from stores.

Ms. Olson has over 20 years of experience in the retail industry, starting her career in New York handling merchandising and design for the Accessories and Footwear at J Crew. She then made her way to Northern Italy where she managed the Global product Lines for both Gianfranco Ferre' and Valentino under the Marzotto Group, and then became a partner and GMM for luxury accessory and apparel business Hollywould, before heading back to the states where she oversaw merchandising for Abercrombie & Fitch prior to her tenure at Pacsun. She was named Chief Brand Officer of Pacsun in July 2020, and previously served in multiple senior positions since joining the company.

During her tenure, Olson spearheaded innovative collaborations, including working closely with Kayne West on his first clothing launch for Donda in 2013, and the signing of Kendall + Kylie clothing partnership exclusive to Pacsun when the girls were 12 and 15. Olson also created a number of new categories for Pacsun, including Activewear, Kids and Gender-Free, along with efforts in the gender-free space including Pacsun's recent partnership with the Fashion Scholarship Fund to create a Gender-Free capsule collection. She was the driving force behind investing in digital growth for the group, leading a holistic influencer, store, and employee driven unique content TikTok amplification strategy, which led the brand to grow to over 820k followers, with the goal of 1M this year, and introducing shoppable ads for Instagram.

The brand credits such initiatives as its PacCares social impact program, which includes partnerships with Lady Gaga's Born this Way Foundation, and Girl Up as well as weekly Instagram Live series called PacTalks to address issues of concern for Gen Z, which was kicked off last October by Yara Shahidi and youth activist Naomi Wadler, the Holiday 2020's Better Together campaign cast by Instagram featuring customers and employees, and an all new concept under their Independent Brands Initiative called Circulate Market - a collection from six black-owned brands, curated by current and long-standing Pacsun brand partner Circulate, and its owner Corey Populus, to name a few.

The company represents leading brands including Vans, Jerry Lorenzo's Fear of God Essentials, Champion, John Galt, Kendall + Kylie Jenner, Adidas, and much more, as well as its own labels.

Pacsun generated over $700 million in sales in 2020, representing growth over 2019, despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Digital sales more than doubled in 2020, now representing 50% of the brand's sales. 2021 year-to-date sales are up 105% versus the same period last year and are up 48% as compared to the same period in 2019. Digital sales in 2021 have increased 65% versus the same period last year and are up more than 170% as compared to the same period in 2019.

As Co-CEOs, Mr. Chang and Mr. Relich will have distinct oversight of key business functions. Mr. Chang will be responsible for setting and driving Pacsun's brand strategy, including design, merchandising, marketing, retail, and e-commerce. Mr. Relich will oversee operations, including sourcing/supply chain, distribution, planning & allocation, IT, finance, legal, and human resources. Both will serve on the Pacsun Board of Directors. As President, Ms. Olson will continue to have oversight of merchandising/design for both Men's and Women's, as well as brand marketing and creative.

ABOUT PACSUN

Pacsun is a leading specialty retailer offering a cross-section of emerging brands and trending fashion through the lens of youth culture. Throughout the contemporary, streetwear and active lifestyle markets, Pacsun partners with the best brands to offer curated collections, rare and exclusive products, and creative collaborations on every level. Founded in 1980, Newport, CA. Curated in Los Angeles. Follow @pacsun on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok.

SOURCE PacSun
STOCKTON, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- PARRIS Law Firm has filed a lawsuit alleging that a San Joaquin County assisted living facility, Rose Place Memory Care, ignored and neglected resident Evelyn Alyne Scott, the mother of San Bruno City Manager Jovan Grogan. The neglect was so severe that the once vibrant mother was restricted to her bed, developed wholly preventable stage IV bedsore, and eventually passed away due to the neglect.

The lawsuit alleges that during Evelyn's four-month residency at Rose Place Memory Care, Evelyn suffered at least four falls, suffered multiple facial lacerations, bone fractures, tested positive for COVID-19, developed a stage IV bedsore, and required immediate surgery.

"When Evelyn checked into Rose Place, she suffered from dementia but was otherwise healthy and able to walk," said PARRIS attorney Jason P. Fowler. Within only four months, she left on a gurney with a stage IV bedsore. After a life spent raising a beautiful family, one of whom rose to be a prominent City Manager, Rose Place ignored and abandoned her at a time when she needed the most help."

"Upon meeting Ms. Scott's family, I was struck by the horrible irony that, while her son was leading the City of San Bruno's response to COVID-19, he was unaware that his mother had contracted the virus and was being neglected by those entrusted with her care," said Fowler.

According to the lawsuit, Evelyn was left dehydrated, malnourished, and sitting in her own feces for extended periods. In addition to their willful negligence and elder abuse, the lawsuit alleges that Rose Place Memory Care fraudulently concealed the severity of Evelyn's health from her family in an attempt to profit from her residency. According to the complaint, by attempting to move her to hospice, before telling the family of her stage IV bedsore, Rose Place could continue to receive payment for Evelyn's residency while controlling the lack of information being provided to her family.

"Evelyn had a stage IV bedsore, one of the worst that I have ever seen, yet Rose Place never told the family about it, never documented it, and claimed to not know about it. Claimed to not know about it despite having a duty to change and bathe Ms. Scott," Fowler added.

Throughout this tragic scenario, Evelyn's children were forbidden from visiting her due to the pandemic. "Rose Place attempted to cover up their neglect by stating that our mother's dementia had progressed rapidly and recommended that we immediately authorize hospice services at their facility. Only after demanding that our mother be transported to the hospital did we learn that she was COVID-19 positive and had developed a fatal bedsore due to a lack of proper care," said PARRIS client Jovan Grogan. "We hope that no one has to ever experience the level of abandonment and mistreatment that our mother went through. She suffered an excruciating yet preventable death at the hands of Rose Place Memory Care." Grogan added.

Jovan filed suit against Rose Place Memory Care and their associated entities with his siblings Regina Grogan and Donald Scott. The case is Regina Grogan et al. v. Care Living Centers, LLC, San Joaquin Superior Court, Case No. STK-CV-UPI-2021-0001689.

A copy of the complaint can be found here.

About PARRIS Law Firm

The PARRIS Law Firm is recognized as one of America's top personal injury, employment, and environmental law firms. With a proven track record of fighting for justice on behalf of families and individuals, the firm boasts numerous seven and eight-figure verdicts and settlements. To learn more about the firm, please go to: www.parris.com

Contact

Dante Hickles 661.949.2595

[email protected]

SOURCE PARRIS Law Firm
Co-CIOs Streeter and Band are partners at the firm and were previously the Asset Class Heads of Private Equity and Public Equities, respectively. The firm will announce their successors shortly. Streeter and Band will join Chairman Stan Miranda, Head of Global Macro and Tactical Asset Allocation Kamran Moghadam, and Chief Executive Officer Arjun Raghavan in the Office of the CIO, which oversees the firm's overall investment strategy and policies.

Streeter and Band will work closely with Pan to ensure a smooth and successful transition. Pan had previously informed the Board of Directors that he will step down in August to pursue an entrepreneurial endeavor.

"Our Office of the CIO remains the key unit for investment strategy and oversight at Partners Capital and its evolution is critical in serving our growing global client base," said Raghavan. "After a rigorous evaluation process of assessing both internal and select external candidates, our Partner group and Board members concluded that Suzanne and Alex's combined experience and skillsets were ideally suited to the future demands of the CIO role. We firmly believe that together, they provide outstanding investment judgement, deep asset class knowledge and the team leadership necessary to continue driving strong levels of performance for our clients."

Streeter joined Partners Capital in 2015. She most recently served as Head of Private Equity and Real Estate, leading the global research team responsible for manager selection and relationship management. In her role as asset class head, she significantly deepened the firm's private markets capabilities, including a push into co-investments, venture capital and emerging managers. She joined Partners Capital from Babson Capital Management, the investment management arm of MassMutual, where she led Private Equity investments in North America, Europe and Latin America. Previously, she spent five years on the Private Equity team at the Yale Investments Office and 10 years in investment banking at Morgan Stanley and Berkshire Capital, where she covered financial institutions and asset managers. Streeter holds a BA from Holy Cross and an MBA from the Yale School of Management.

Band joined Partners Capital in 2013 and most recently served as Head of Public Equities where he covered long-only and long-short strategies and manager relationships. He has been responsible for several innovations in the public equities program, including a push into sector specialists across themes such as life sciences, expanding the firm's public markets co-investment strategies and turning around performance on the long-hold equities strategy. Prior to joining Partners Capital, he was a Vice President at Bain Capital in the global Private Equity group, overseeing investment due diligence, deal execution and portfolio management. Previously, Band was a Senior Associate Consultant at Bain & Company. He holds a BA in Biochemical Sciences from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

"Since joining Partners Capital over six years ago, I have been consistently impressed with the deep bench of top-tier talent and the firm's meticulous approach to investing," said Streeter. "It is an honor to co-lead the Office of the CIO with Alex, a partner who epitomizes the ethos of the firm with his intellectual rigor and unmatched global investment expertise."

"I am thrilled to join Suzanne, a partner who I have the utmost respect and admiration for given her deep knowledge and experience within global private markets," said Band. "We are excited to work together as Co-CIOs to continue to enhance our investment program and drive superior levels of performance for our clients."

About Partners Capital

Founded in 2001, Partners Capital is a wholly independent Outsourced Investment Office (OCIO) primarily serving sophisticated institutions and senior investment professionals in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. With offices in Boston, New York, London, Singapore, Hong Kong, San Francisco and Paris, the firm is one of the few truly global OCIOs, employing 230 people worldwide and covering all major asset classes. The firm oversees assets in excess of $40 billion.1 Additional information on Partners Capital may be found at http://www.partners-cap.com

Contact

Prosek on behalf of Partners Capital

[email protected]

1 As at May 2021

SOURCE Partners Capital

Related Links

https://partners-cap.com


"Congratulations to this year's class of extraordinary rising industry executives on this well-earned recognition," said Mike Hennessy Jr., president and CEO of MJH Life Sciences, the parent company to Pharmaceutical Executive . "2021 marks the 12 th year of our awards program, and we are extremely honored to celebrate these winners for all of their hard work, dedication and outstanding contributions to advancing the pharmaceutical field moving forward."

"Congratulations to this year's class of extraordinary rising industry executives on this well-earned recognition."

The 2021 Emerging Pharma Leaders are as follows:

Karen Akinsanya , Ph.D., executive vice president, chief biomedical scientist, head of discovery R&D, Schrodinger

executive vice president, chief biomedical scientist, head of discovery R&D, Schrodinger Sally Allain , Msc., MBA, head of Johnson & Johnson Innovation, LLC  JLABS @ Washington, DC

head of Johnson & Johnson Innovation, LLC  JLABS @ Daniel Getts , Ph.D., MBA, chief executive officer and cofounder, Myeloid Therapeutics

chief executive officer and cofounder, Myeloid Therapeutics Simba Gill , Ph.D., president and chief executive officer, Evelo Biosciences

president and chief executive officer, Evelo Biosciences Michael Henderson , M.D., chief business officer, BridgeBio Pharma

chief business officer, BridgeBio Pharma John Hoekman , cofounder and chief scientific officer, Impel NeuroPharma

, cofounder and chief scientific officer, Impel NeuroPharma Donna Hodge , director, new product and business development, inherited retinal diseases, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

, director, new product and business development, inherited retinal diseases, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Lukasz Jarzyna , head of global value, access and pricing, Alexion Pharmaceuticals

, head of global value, access and pricing, Alexion Pharmaceuticals William "BJ" Jones Jr., MBA, chief commercial officer, migraine and common diseases, Biohaven Pharmaceuticals

chief commercial officer, migraine and common diseases, Biohaven Pharmaceuticals Kirsten Kester , vice president of business development, Obsidian Therapeutics

, vice president of business development, Obsidian Therapeutics Carsten Linnemann , Ph.D., president, chief executive officer, and co-founder, Neogene Therapeutics

president, chief executive officer, and co-founder, Neogene Therapeutics Carla Pearson , MBA, vice president and global commercial lead, cabotegravir, ViiV Healthcare (GSK)

, vice president and global commercial lead, cabotegravir, ViiV Healthcare (GSK) Teisha Robinson , MBA, director of strategic accounts (DSA), emerging accounts, Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems Inc.

Since 2008, Pharmaceutical Executive has recognized a class of biopharma professionals to receive the title Emerging Pharma Leader. The final selections were judged in a blinded process by three members of the Pharmaceutical Executive Editorial Advisory Board and a former Emerging Pharma Leader representative. Judging criteria were based on the nominee's current role, career progression, education and extracurricular activities to enhance leadership, and specific case examples.

For more information on the class of 2021 inductees, click here.

About Pharmaceutical Executive

Pharmaceutical Executive is a multimedia platform that offers news, opinions, analysis, features and executive profiles. The magazine and its website serve as a forum for industry leaders to exchange opinions, experiences and insights about innovative business and marketing ideas, strategies and tactics. Pharmaceutical Executive is a brand of MJH Life Sciences, the largest privately held, independent, full-service medical media company in North America, dedicated to delivering trusted health care news across multiple channels.

Pharmaceutical Executive Media Contact

Alexandra Ventura

609-716-7777

[email protected]

SOURCE Pharmaceutical Executive

Related Links

https://www.pharmexec.com


OAKLAND, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Poets&Quants, the leading news source for graduate business education, has released its 7th annual "Best & Brightest MBAs" feature, which honors 100 of the most accomplished full-time MBAs from the Class of 2021.



"When you think of Best & Brightest, they are the leaders and innovators," writes Jeff Schmitt, Poets&Quants' senior writer, who launched the series in 2015, "Their instinct is to serve and solve. That's what was needed amid the pandemic. There was a lot of uncertainty and disappointment for MBA students. The Best & Brightest stepped up. They worked with faculty and administrators to give their peers the best possible experience. It would've been easy for MBAs to splinter off into their own worlds. The Best & Brightest were the ones who never left a classmate behind."



This year's class includes Joshua Young Yang, a Stanford MBA and Johns Hopkins Ph.D. candidate who has already raised $5 million dollars for his biotech startup. At Accenture, Shoshana Seidenfeld was part of a four-person team that raised $650 million dollars for President Obama's Partnership for Refugees initiative. Before joining the University of Chicago, Theodore Lim worked as a project manager in real estate. His credits include overseeing building projects on Microsoft's Redmond campus, such as designing treehouse conference rooms and the largest pedestrian bridge in the Puget Sound region.



On campus, the Class of 2021 was equally impressive. At Georgetown, Leena Jube developed a course on innovation with one of her professors. At MIT, Riana Shah and Olga Timirgalieva co-founded the First-Generation, Low-Income (FLI) Club to address the needs of students sometimes overlooked in business school. Justin Speller even authored a case study, one that will be the subject of Indiana University's next MBA diversity case competition.



To compile this year's Best & Brightest MBAs, Poets&Quants reached out to 73 top graduate business schools to nominate their best candidates for the honor. Responses were judged by P&Q editorial according to three criteria: extracurricular activities, academic and professional achievements, and overall insightfulness. Ultimately, P&Q received 239 nominations from 68 programs, including nearly every MBA program ranked among the world's best. The 2021 list includes representatives from the most prestigious programs, including Stanford, Wharton, MIT, INSEAD, Northwestern, and the University of Chicago. By gender, Best & Brightest women outnumber men by a 60-to-40 margin, with 38 students hailing from outside the United States. This year, Deloitte hired the largest number of Best & Brightest MBAs with seven, followed by McKinsey with six.



As part of this feature, each MBA receives an in-depth profile, which covers items like their proudest achievement and favorite classmate. It also includes a testimonial from an administrator or faculty member. Over the coming months, Best & Brightest will also spotlight the best student responses related to their favorite faculty members, biggest school myths, and most interesting school traditions.



The "Best & Brightest MBAs" is the second of a four-part series recognizing the world's top business students. In April, Poets&Quants For Undergrads unveiled its Best & Brightest Business Majors for 2021. This summer, Poets&Quants will recognize its "Best & Brightest Executive MBAs" and "Best & Brightest Online MBAs." In the fall, P&Q will continue its series on the top incoming full-time MBA students at over 40 top business schools.



To read about the "100 Best & Brightest MBAs: Class of 2021", CLICK HERE.



About Poets&Quants:

Poets&Quants is the leading resource for complete coverage of graduate business education. We feature multiple tools and authoritative content, including: consolidated B-school rankings, news and in-depth features, videos, podcasts, two searchable directories and events, empowering our community with information needed to make decisions along their journey from pre- to post-MBA.



This press release was issued through 24-7PressRelease.com. For further information, visit http://www.24-7pressrelease.com.

SOURCE Poets&Quants

Related Links

https://poetsandquants.com/2021/05/09/100-best-brightest-mbas-class-of-2021/


TORONTO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Purepoint Uranium Group Inc. (TSXV: PTU) ("Purepoint" or the "Company") today provided an update of this winter's exploration program at the Hook Lake Project, a joint venture between Cameco Corporation (39.5%), Orano Canada Inc. (39.5%) and Purepoint (21%) in the Patterson Uranium District, Saskatchewan Canada. The Hook Lake Project lies on the southwestern edge of Saskatchewan's Athabasca Basin and is adjacent to and on trend with recent high-grade uranium discoveries including Fission Uranium's Triple R deposit and NexGen's Arrow deposit.

The winter 2021 exploration program included follow-up drilling north of encouraging hole HK19-105, an area referred to as the Sabre Target. Three holes were completed and one lost during the program for a total of 2,556 metres drilled. Favourable geology was drilled by the two northern holes, HK21-117A and 118, that both encountered wide intervals of strong to intense silicification proximal to graphitic shear zones. Assays for the most northerly hole drilled, hole HK21-118, returned 134 ppm U over 0.7 metres from the contact of silicified granodiorite and a graphitic shear. Hole HK21-117A was drilled south of HK21-118 and intersected weak radioactivity from within the graphitic shear zone while HK21-116, collared 400 metres north of HK19-105, failed to intersect significant alteration or radioactivity.

"Although we only completed 3 drill holes during the 2021 winter program, the EM conductors targeted by the two most northerly holes are explained by favourable graphitic shearing that was associated with strong silicification." said Scott Frostad, Purepoint's Vice President of Exploration. "While the strong alteration seen in hole HK19-105 was not present in our follow-up hole HK21-116, the current results show that the Sabre area remains prospective along strike north of HK21-118."

Highlights:

Three diamond holes were completed and one hole was lost for a total of 2,556 metres of drilling.





Drill holes HK21-117A and 118, drilled in the vicinity of previous hole HK20-115, encountered wide intervals of strong to intense silicification beginning at the unconformity and the targeted electromagnetic (EM) conductors for both holes were explained by graphitic shear zones.





HK21-118 intersected 134 ppm U over 0.7 metres at the contact between strongly silicified granodiorite and a graphitic shear; a favourable setting for basement-hosted uranium mineralization.





Hole HK21-116, the follow-up hole to HK19-115, intersected a 1-metre-wide band of unaltered graphitic diorite gneiss that explained the EM conductor. No anomalous alteration or radioactivity was encountered.





The Sabre Target Area remains prospective near hole HK19-105, and north of HK21-118 towards historic hole HK-02 that encountered extensive graphitic shearing associated with anomalous radioactivity. These Sabre area drill targets will be prioritized with targets previously identified along the Carter Corridor and the "U" Conductor.





All assays have now been received and final interpretation of the geochemical results are pending.

Sabre Target Area ("W" Conductor - North):

Drill Hole HK21-116 tested a ground EM anomaly located 400 metres north of favourable hole HK19-105. Below the unconformity, granodiorite gneiss was strongly hematite altered then strong to weakly chlorite altered due to paleoweathering. Unaltered diorite gneiss, hosting minor mafic and carbonatite dykes, was then encountered to the completion depth of 653 metres. A one-metre-wide interval of graphitic diorite gneiss explained the EM conductor and no significant radiation was encountered in the hole.

Drill Hole HK21-117A was designed to test a ground EM anomaly located 800 metres south of previous hole HK20-115. An initial hole at this location, HK21-117, was lost within flowing sand at a depth of 419 metres. Below the unconformity at 486 metres, strongly hematite altered porphyroblastic schist was initially encountered then intense to strongly silicified granodiorite gneiss was drilled to a depth of 626 metres. The granodiorite gneiss was then weakly chlorite altered to 645 metres followed by a wide graphitic shear zone hosted within diorite gneiss to 683 metres that returned the highest concentration of uranium for the hole at 16 ppm U over 0.3 metres. Unaltered diorite gneiss and granodiorite gneiss was then encountered to the hole completion depth of 747 metres.

Drill Hole HK21-118 tested a second EM anomaly that was located on the same survey line as hole HK20-115. Immediately above the unconformity at 485 metres, the hole encountered 70 metres of basement rock fragments (silicified granodiorite gneiss) within loose sand. Below the unconformity, strongly hematite altered diorite gneiss, granodiorite gneiss and porphyroblastic schist was drilled for 48 metres followed by 72 metres of intense to strongly silicified granodiorite gneiss to a depth of 605 metres. Five metres of weakly sheared and chloritized mafic dyke material hosting 10 to 15% graphite was then intersected and returned 134 ppm U over 0.7 metres from the upper contact. Weakly graphitic porphyroblastic schist and diorite gneiss was drilled to a depth of 700 metres followed by unaltered diorite gneiss to the completion depth of 737 metres. The wide zone of silicification encountered by HK21-118 and the associated graphitic shear zone has been correlated to similar geology in hole HK21-117A.

Hook Lake JV Project

The Hook Lake JV Project is owned jointly by Cameco Corp. (39.5%), Orano Canada Inc. (39.5%) and Purepoint Uranium Group Inc. (21%) as operator and consists of nine claims totaling 28,598 hectares situated in the southwestern Athabasca Basin. The Hook Lake JV Project is considered one of the highest quality uranium exploration projects in the Athabasca Basin due to its location along the prospective Patterson Lake trend and the relatively shallow depth to the unconformity.

Current exploration is targeting the Patterson Lake Corridor that hosts Fission's Triple R Deposit (indicated mineral resource 87,760,000 lbs U3O8 at an average grade of 1.82% U3O8  www.fissionuranium.com), NexGen Energy's Arrow Deposit (indicated mineral resource 256,600,000 lbs U3O8 at an average grade of 4.03%  www.nexgenenergy.ca) and the Spitfire discovery by the Hook Lake JV. The foregoing mineral resource disclosure is information about the properties adjacent to the Company's property and does not imply that the Company will obtain similar information from its own property.

About Purepoint

Purepoint Uranium Group Inc. (TSXV: PUC) actively operates an exploration pipeline of 12 advanced projects in Canada's Athabasca Basin, the world's richest uranium region. Purepoint's flagship project is the Hook Lake Project, a joint venture with two of the largest uranium suppliers in the world, Cameco Corporation and Orano Canada Inc. The Hook Lake JV Project is on trend with recent high-grade uranium discoveries including Fission Uranium's Triple R Deposit and NexGen's Arrow Deposit and encompasses its own Spitfire discovery (53.3% U3O8 over 1.3m including 10m interval of 10.3% U3O8). Together with its flagship project, the Company's projects stretch across approximately 185,000 hectares of claims throughout the Athabasca Basin. These claims host over 20 distinct and well-defined drill target areas with advanced geophysical surveys completed, and in some cases, have had first pass drilling performed.

Scott Frostad BSc, MASc, PGeo, Purepoint's Vice President, Exploration, is the Qualified Person responsible for technical content of this release.

Neither the Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this Press release.

Disclosure regarding forward-looking statements

This press release contains projections and forward-looking information that involve various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information can include without limitation statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance of the Company. These risks and uncertainties could cause actual results and the Company's plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking information are based on estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice.

SOURCE Purepoint Uranium Group Inc.

Related Links

http://www.purepoint.ca


NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- As 2021 National Hurricane Preparedness Week kicks off (May 9-15), insurance leader QBE North America released its Predict, Prepare and Protect Hurricane Tips for businesses. Beginning June 1, experts predict a more active season than usual. A recent report by the Colorado State University Tropical Meteorology Project calls for 17 named storms, eight hurricanes and four major hurricanes (115-plus-mph winds), making it a great time to think ahead.

QBE recommends having a disaster response plan in place to help ensure employee and customer safety, minimize property damage, and get business back up and running should a hurricane occur. Businesses should anticipate possible delays in recovery due to economic implications of the pandemic and the challenged construction market.

"Even if you have a tried-and-true plan in place, now is the time to look at it with a fresh mindset," said Paul Isaac, Senior Vice President and Loss Control Leader at QBE North America. "Businesses have undergone significant challenges and changes in the last year that may not be adequately addressed in their disaster response plans, and the risks from pandemic are still present. Our team works closely with claims to help businesses prevent claims from happening and ensure thatwhen they dowe are right there with you."

Some tips to consider when preparing for hurricane season:

Employers should be sure to have an up-to-date formal business continuity plan in place, which should be shared with key staff well in advance of a hurricane.

Gather contacts that are crucial to business operations, such as employees, banks, lawyers, accountants, suppliers, etc. Save this information in an alternate, accessible off-site location.

Have a plan in place if there is a loss in power. Make sure generators are on hand and employees know how to use them safely. Companies should be prepared for longer than usual power outages.

COVID-19 safety is still an issue, especially with the potential for additional on-site workers such as outside responders, contractors, and vendors in the event of storm damage. Businesses should have formalized procedures for protecting all workers during both response and restoration periods.

Have an up-to-date inventory of what is in your offices and facilities. All products and assets should be documented. Also save a record of current financials and keep in mind physical records can easily get destroyed, so have a backup elsewhere.

Make sure employees know how to turn off water, gas, and other utilities when necessary, and conduct proper facilities training so multiple people can be called on in a crisis, if needed, especially those in close proximity to the business.

Stock up on essential items ahead of time and if possible, use a storage facility for storing materials like chainsaws, fuel for generators, plywood, pumps, and other key machinery, as well as survival needs like PPE, disinfectants, water, food items, batteries, first aid kits, and medications.

QBE Risk Solutions offers a variety of tools and tips to help their insureds plan for disasters. Additionally, there are several useful resources to assist with hurricane preparedness planning, including The Ready Business Hurricane Toolkit from FEMA.

Businesses should check in with their broker or insurer to discuss any changes to their operations and property, including any employee workplace changes and new or updated equipment. QBE also suggests discussing your current insurance valuations to make sure everything is updated going into the hurricane season.

QBE North America's Risk Solutions teams are experts in risk and delivering loss prevention and loss protection services. Their focused commitment to service and technical acumen helps customers identify, evaluate, and reduce their potential for losses and business risk. By getting to know their customers, their business operations, priorities, and concerns, they can help deliver the best possible outcomes.

About QBE

QBE North America is global insurance leader focused on helping customers solve unique risks, so they can focus on what matters most. Part of QBE Insurance Group Limited, QBE North America reported Gross Written Premiums in 2020 of $4.775 billion. QBE Insurance Group's 2020 results can be found at www.qbe.com.

Headquartered in Sydney, Australia, QBE operates out of 27 countries around the globe, with a presence in every key insurance market. The North America division, headquartered in New York, conducts business through its property and casualty insurance subsidiaries. The actual terms and coverage for all lines of business are subject to the language of the policies as issued. QBE insurance companies are rated "A" (Excellent) by A.M. Best and "A+" by Standard & Poor's. Additional information can be found at www.qbe.com/us or follow QBE North America on LinkedIn and Twitter.

QBE makes no warranty, representation, or guarantee regarding the information herein or the suitability of these suggestions or information for any particular purpose. QBE hereby disclaims any and all liability concerning the information contained herein and the suggestions herein made. Moreover, it cannot be assumed that every acceptable risk transfer procedure is contained herein or that unusual or abnormal circumstances may not warrant or require further or additional risk transfer policies and/or procedures. The use of any of the information or suggestions described herein does not amend, modify, or supplement any insurance policy. Consult the actual policy or your agent for details about your coverage. QBE and the links logo are registered service marks of QBE Insurance Group Limited.  2021 QBE Holdings, Inc.

SOURCE QBE North America
DENVER, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Reaves Utility Income Fund is pleased to announce the initiation of a breakpoint in fees. The advisory and administrative fee on gross assets greater than $2.5 billion will be 0.765%, down from the current rate of 0.84%. The reduction is in line with the Fund's goal of providing a monthly distribution and competitive long-term total returns while being amongst the lowest cost funds in its peer group.

Tim Porter, Chief Investment Officer of Reaves Asset Management and co-Portfolio Manager of the Reaves Utility Income Fund, remarked, "Successfully investing the Fund's assets has allowed us to increase the distribution 11 times while never having a return of capital on an annual basis. The breakpoint is another way to reward the owners of the Fund."

Brad Swenson, Head of Registered Fund Services at SS&C ALPS and President of the Reaves Utility Income Fund, added, "We are happy to initiate a fee breakpoint. We are committed to providing best-in-class service at competitive rates. As it grows, these actions will help ensure

that the Reaves Utility Income Fund remains amongst the highest quality choices in the closed-end fund market."

The Reaves Utility Income Fund

The investment objective of the Fund is to provide a high level of income and total return consisting primarily of tax-advantaged distributions and capital appreciation. There were approximately $2.3 billion of total assets under management and 57.6 million common shares outstanding as of April 6, 2021.

An investor should consider investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. To obtain an annual report or semi-annual report which contains this and other information visit www.utilityincomefund.com or call 1-800-644-5571. Read them carefully before investing.

ALPS Portfolio Solutions Distributor, Inc., FINRA Member Firm.

SOURCE Reaves Utility Income Fund

Related Links

https://www.utilityincomefund.com


OKLAHOMA CITY, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Riley Exploration Permian, Inc. (NYSE American: REPX) ("Riley Permian" or the "Company"), today reported financial and operational results for the fiscal second quarter ended March 31, 2021.

HIGHLIGHTS

Closed reverse merger transaction with Tengasco on February 26, 2021

Increased total equivalent sales volumes to 8.3 MBoe per day for the second quarter 2021, an increase of 11% over the same period in 2020, despite significant reductions in capital expenditures and production outages due to two severe storms

Generated Cash Flow from Operations of $38.1 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021

for the six months ended Reported a Net Loss of $48.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2021 , with Adjusted Net Income of $8.6 million for the same period

for the three months ended , with Adjusted Net Income of for the same period Incurred capital expenditures of $17.1 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021 , which corresponds to 43% of EBITDAX 1 , representing a significant decrease of 49% compared to the same period for 2020

for the six months ended , which corresponds to 43% of EBITDAX , representing a significant decrease of 49% compared to the same period for 2020 Generated Free Cash Flow 1 of $20.6 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021

of for the six months ended Paid cash common dividends of $3.8 million during the three months ended March 31, 2021 ; announced latest dividend of $0.28 per share with a record date of April 16, 2021 , which was paid May 7, 2021 , for a total of $5.0 million

during the three months ended ; announced latest dividend of per share with a record date of , which was paid , for a total of Exited the second quarter with $10.1 million in cash and $97.5 million drawn on the credit facility

in cash and drawn on the credit facility Decreased flaring by 35% quarter-over-quarter

Production, cash flow, capital investing and leverage trends all performing in line with previously released guidance and the Company's capital allocation framework

Began operations on enhanced oil recovery ("EOR") project, which will utilize a combination of water and C02 injection, including the goal of using anthropogenic CO2 ("ACO2")

Bobby Riley, Chief Executive Officer of Riley Permian, stated, "We're excited to have closed our reverse merger transaction and welcome the positive reception by markets thus far. Riley Permian performed strongly during our fiscal second quarter of 2021, during which we overcame the extreme operating challenges presented by Winter Storm Uri, and we continued to create value for our shareholders.

"Halfway through our fiscal year, which ends on September 30, 2021, we remain firmly adhered to our capital allocation framework, including reinvesting less than 70% of EBITDAX1 in capital expenditures, as evidenced by our year-to-date allocation of only 43% of EBITDAX1. Combined with our robust operating performance, this capital discipline allowed us to generate over $38 million of Cash Flow from Operations and $20 million of Free Cash Flow1 during our fiscal year-to-date."

"Further, we were pleased to raise the dividend to $0.28 per share, which was paid on May 7th. The payment of a regular quarterly dividend has long been a priority for Riley Permian, dating back to its predecessor entity as a private company. Going forward, one of Riley Permian's core priorities is to continue to pay  and grow  a regular quarterly dividend, consistent with our shareholder-focused business model."

"Finally, we have formally begun operations on our EOR pilot after several years of extensive technical studies internally and with world-class partners. Our core asset in Yoakum County, TX, is an ideal candidate for EOR for both geologic and geographic reasons, and is directly adjacent to several of the largest and most successful EOR projects in the U.S. We forecast benefits of increased recoveries and further flattening of decline curves, leading to steadier cash flows, which fits our shareholder-focused business model. Riley aims to use anthropogenic sources of CO2 (ACO2), in accord with international calls for reducing emissions and CO2, and which fits our goal of producing low-carbon barrels."

OPERATIONS UPDATE

Second-quarter oil production averaged 6.0 MBbls per day and equivalent production averaged 8.3 MBoe per day, in line with our budgeted guidance previously disclosed. Sales of natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs) increased by 30% and 39%, respectively, compared to the quarter ended December 31, 2020 on account of increased processing capacity coming online in early February. Company management estimates that severe weather, including Winter Storm Uri and an additional powerful windstorm, effectively reduced production by approximately 3 percent.

During the fiscal second quarter of 2021, Riley Permian commenced a 7 gross (7 net) well drilling and completion ("D&C") program and invested $9.1 million in D&C capital expenditures, which resulted in the drilling of 5 gross (4.5 net) wells and the completion of 2 gross (1.5 net) wells.

The Company's drilling times (spud to reaching total depth) have continued to improve, with the results for wells drilled to date during this fiscal year averaging 5 days for a 1-mile lateral, and 6.5 days for a 1.5-mile lateral.

FINANCIALS UPDATE

Cash Flow from Operations for the fiscal year-to-date 2021 was $38.1 million, which funded all capital expenditures, leading to Free Cash Flow2 of $20.6 million for the same period.

The Company reported a Net Loss of $48.5 million for the second quarter of 2021, including $11.2 million of Operating Income. The Company calculates Adjusted Net Income2 of $8.6 million, adjusted to exclude certain items, including the loss from discontinued operations, unrealized losses from derivative mark-to-market values, non-recurring transaction costs and a deferred tax expense related to the change in tax status.

During its fiscal second quarter of 2021 Riley Permian generated $21.0 million in EBITDAX2 and $23.2 million in Adjusted EBITDAX2, adjusted to exclude transaction and restructuring costs.

For the fiscal second quarter 2021 average unhedged realized prices were $56.71 per barrel of oil, $7.51 per Mcf of natural gas and $13.16 per barrel of natural gas liquids, resulting in a total equivalent unhedged price of $49.12 per Boe.

Riley Permian's cash operating costs for the fiscal second quarter of 2021 were $14.60 per Boe, including lease operating expense ("LOE") of $9.07 per Boe (including a non-recurring expense of approximately $1.34 per Boe related to a downhole failure on a salt-water disposal well), cash G&A expenses (after offset from our contract services  related parties revenue) of $2.93 per Boe, and production taxes of $2.60 per Boe.

The Company continued to maintain a strong balance sheet, exiting the second quarter with $10.1 million in cash and $97.5 million drawn on its revolving credit facility.

EOR PILOT AND CCUS INVESTIGATION

Riley Permian has begun operations on its EOR pilot program, which will start with a 960-acre unit in Yoakum County, TX, applying water and C02 through vertical injection wells adjacent to horizontal producing wells. The Company began drilling the first vertical injection well beginning in May 2021 with approximately $1.5MM of associated capital estimated to be incurred during fiscal 2021.

In preparation for the pilot program, Riley Permian spent several years collecting extensive cores, logs and 3-D seismic data over the Platang Field, which the Company calls its Champions asset, to evaluate resource potential, including with the assistance of world-class advisors such as Baker Hughes, William M. Cobb and Associates, and others. From analysis of this data, Riley Permian management believes that in addition to significant recovery from primary production, EOR methods, particularly waterflooding (secondary recovery) and CO2 injection (tertiary recovery), which have been highly successful in the adjacent Wasson Field San Andres formation, will further increase recoveries in the Champions area. The Company's Champion assets possess similar reservoir rock properties to Wasson and average oil saturations are quite favorable for both waterflooding and CO2 injection. Further, the most concentrated area of CO2 infrastructure in the U.S. is directly adjacent to Riley Permian's Champions asset, including the CO2 pipeline hub at Denver City, TX.

Historically, EOR operations were most often applied to older, legacy oil fields past peak production and development stage. However, Riley Permian management believes the Champions asset is an excellent candidate for EOR methods  even as a more undeveloped asset  as we recognize the efficiencies gained by early application of waterflooding and CO2 injection. Beginning such applications early, concurrently with primary depletion and while the reservoir still has substantial pressure, can lead to more efficient oil displacement, operating synergies and higher ultimate recoveries. The historical sequencing of primary production, followed by traditional waterflooding, and subsequently by CO2 injection, can lead to an extremely long life cycle, whereas implementing these processes concurrently allows for an acceleration of the full value capture of the field in a notably shorter time frame.

Finally, Riley Permian aims to use anthropogenic sources of CO2 (ACO2) and is currently investigating multiple potential sources of ACO2 with leading industry players. The capture and use of ACO2 is part of a process known as Carbon, Capture, Utilization and Sequestration (CCUS), in which Riley Permian may participate as an offtake partner only or as an operating and financial partner. The Company's EOR pilot, which we forecast to ultimately consist of 5 horizontal producers and up to 48 vertical injection wells, could ultimately consume approximately 80 MMcf per day of CO2, or 1.5 million metric tons of CO2 annually.

2021 OUTLOOK AND GUIDANCE

Based on current market conditions, the Company expects fiscal 2021 capital expenditures to total approximately $54 million to $56 million, which we believe will be consistent with our capital allocation framework of reinvesting approximately 65-70% of EBITDAX3, and which we believe will be funded entirely by Cash Flow from Operations.

The Company forecasts full-year fiscal 2021 oil production to average 6.3 MBbls per day to 6.5 MBbls per day, with total equivalent production to average 8.3 MBoe per day to 8.7 MBoe per day, representing year-over-year growth of approximately 17% to 23%.

The Company forecasts third fiscal quarter of 2021 cash operating costs to include LOE of approximately $6.50 to $7.50 per Boe; cash G&A expenses (after offset from our contract services  related parties revenue) of approximately $2.80 to $3.30 per Boe, and production taxes of approximately $2.20 to $2.50 per Boe.

CONFERENCE CALL

Riley Permian management will host a conference call for investors and analysts on Wednesday, May 12, 2021 at 9:00 a.m. CT to discuss the Company's results. Interested parties are invited to participate by calling:

U.S./Canada Toll Free, 844-965-3268

International, +1 639-491-2298

Conference ID number 3883784

An updated company presentation, which will include certain items to be discussed on the call, will be posted prior to the call on the Company's website ( www.rileypermian.com ).

A replay of the call will be available until May 26, 2021 by calling:

U.S./Canada Toll Free, 800-585-8367

International, +1 416-621-4642

Conference ID number 3883784

About Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.

Riley Permian is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on steadily growing its reserves, production and cash flow per share through the acquisition, exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the Permian Basin. For more information please visit www.rileypermian.com .

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE "SAFE HARBOR" PROVISIONS OF THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws. All statements, other than historical facts, that address activities that the Company assumes, plans, expects, believes, intends or anticipates (and other similar expressions) will, should or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements are based on management's current beliefs, based on currently available information, as to the outcome and timing of future events, including the current adverse industry and macroeconomic conditions, commodity price volatility, production levels, the impact of the recent presidential and congressional elections on energy and environmental policies and regulations, any other potential regulatory actions (including those that may impose production limits in the Permian Basin), the impact and duration of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, acquisitions and sales of assets, future dividends, production, drilling and capital expenditure plans, need for financing, competitive position, growth potential, severe weather conditions (including the impact of the recent severe winter storms on production volumes), impact of impairment charges and effects of hedging arrangements. These forward-looking statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the results to differ materially from those expected by the management of the Company.

These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, including, but not limited to, the risk that the Company may reduce, suspend or totally eliminate dividend payments in the future, whether variable or fixed, due to insufficient liquidity or other factors, potential adverse reactions or changes to the business or operations of the Company resulting from the recently completed merger, including the Company's future financial condition, results of operations, strategy and plans; changes in capital markets and the ability of the Company to finance operations in the manner expected; the risk that the Company's EOR and CCUS projects may not perform as expected or produce the anticipated benefits; the risks of oil and gas activities; and the fact that operating costs and business disruption may be greater than expected following the consummation of the merger.

Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described above can be found in Riley Permian's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 and in its subsequently filed Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as well as in the Registration Statement on Form S-4 filed by the Company with the SEC and declared effective by the SEC on February 2, 2021, each of which is on file with the SEC and available from the Company's website at www.rileypermian.com under the "Investor" tab, and in other documents the Company files with the SEC.

The forward-looking statements in this press release are made as of the date hereof and are based on information available at that time. The Company does not undertake, and expressly disclaims, any duty to update or revise our forward-looking statements based on new information, future events or otherwise.

Source: Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.

_________________ 1 Non-GAAP financial measure, which is defined and referenced below. 2 Non-GAAP financial measure, which is defined and referenced below. 3 Non-GAAP financial measure, which is defined and referenced below.

Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.







Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets ($ in thousands)

March 31,

2021

September 30,

2020









Assets







Current Assets:







Cash and cash equivalents

$ 10,062



$ 1,660

Accounts receivable

13,605



10,128

Accounts receivable  related parties

177



55

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

2,919



1,752

Current derivative assets

352



18,819

Current assets - discontinued operations

103





Total Current Assets

27,218



32,414











Non-Current Assets:







Oil and natural gas properties, net (successful efforts)

319,815



310,726

Other property and equipment, net

2,080



1,801

Non-current derivative assets

564



3,102

Other non-current assets, net

2,442



2,949

Noncurrent assets - discontinued operations

5,066





Total Non-Current Assets

329,967



318,578











Total Assets

$ 357,185



$ 350,992











Liabilities, Series A Preferred Units, and Members'/Shareholders' Equity







Current Liabilities:







Accounts payable

$ 6,335



$ 4,739

Income taxes payable

1,113





Accrued liabilities

17,346



8,746

Revenue payable

7,685



4,432

Advances from joint interest owners

274



254

Current derivative liabilities

14,310





Other current liabilities

469



392

Current liabilities - discontinued operations

95





Total Current Liabilities

47,627



18,563











Non-Current Liabilities:







Non-current derivative liabilities

6,076





Asset retirement obligations

2,270



2,268

Revolving credit facility

97,500



101,000

Deferred tax liabilities

12,441



1,834

Other non-current liabilities

108



418

Noncurrent liabilities - discontinued operations

1,607





Total Non-Current Liabilities

120,002



105,520











Total Liabilities

167,629



124,083











Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.







Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets - (Continued) ($ in thousands)

March 31,

2021

September 30,

2020









Series A Preferred Units





60,292











Commitments and Contingencies

















Members' Equity





166,617











Shareholders' Equity:







Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value, 25,000,000 shares designated; 0 shares issued and outstanding







Common stock, $0.001 par value, authorized 240,000,000 shares; 17,825,179 and 0 shares issued and outstanding, respectively

18





Additional paid-in capital

218,974





Accumulated deficit

(29,436)





Total Shareholders' Equity

189,556















Total Liabilities, Series A Preferred Units, and Members'/Shareholders' Equity

$ 357,185



$ 350,992



Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.











Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations ($ in thousands, except per unit amounts) Three Months Ended March 31,

Six Months Ended March 31,



2021

2020

2021

2020

















Revenues:















Oil and natural gas sales, net

36,659



24,356



$ 59,073



$ 52,855

Contract services  related parties

600



1,050



1,200



2,100

Total Revenues

37,259



25,406



60,273



54,955



















Costs and Expenses:















Lease operating expenses

6,773



6,028



11,569



11,757

Production taxes

1,937



1,156



2,998



2,515

Exploration costs

5,473



1,747



5,897



2,474

Depletion, depreciation, amortization and accretion

6,251



5,357



12,241



10,992

General and administrative:















Administrative costs

2,696



3,514



5,141



6,733

Unit-based compensation expense

276



206



689



359

Stock-based compensation expense

409







409





Cost of contract services - related parties

91



138



239



306

Transaction costs

2,164



28



3,213



27

Total Costs and Expenses

26,070



18,174



42,396



35,163



















Income From Operations

11,189



7,232



17,877



19,792



















Other Income (Expense):















Interest expense

(1,165)



(1,418)



(2,400)



(2,784)

Gain (loss) on derivatives

(24,903)



69,239



(38,812)



51,204

Total Other Income (Expense)

(26,068)



67,821



(41,212)



48,420



















Net Income (Loss) From Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes

(14,879)



75,053



(23,335)



68,212



















Income tax expense

(15,068)







(14,553)





Net Income (Loss) From Continuing Operations

(29,947)



75,053



(37,888)



68,212



















Discontinued Operations:















Loss from discontinued operations

(18,631)







(18,631)





Income tax expense on discontinued operations

25







25





Loss on discontinued operations

(18,606)







(18,606)























Net Income (Loss)

(48,553)



75,053



(56,494)



68,212



















Dividends on preferred units

(574)



(877)



(1,491)



(1,741)

Net Income (Loss) Attributable to Common Shareholders/Unitholders

$ (49,127)



$ 74,176



$ (57,985)



$ 66,471



















Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.















Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations - (Continued) ($ in thousands, except per unit amounts)

Three Months Ended March 31,

Six Months Ended March 31,



2021

2020

2021

2020

















Net Income (Loss) per Share/Unit from Continuing Operations:















Basic

$ (2.12)



$ 5.95



$ (2.94)



$ 5.34

Diluted

$ (2.12)



$ 4.55



$ (2.94)



$ 4.15



















Net Income (Loss) per Share/Unit from Discontinued Operations:















Basic

$ (1.29)



$ 



$ (1.39)



$ 

Diluted

$ (1.29)



$ 



$ (1.39)



$ 



















Net Income (Loss) per Share/Unit:















Basic

$ (3.41)



$ 5.95



$ (4.33)



$ 5.34

Diluted

$ (3.41)



$ 4.55



$ (4.33)



$ 4.16



















Weighted Average Common Share/Units Outstanding:















Basic

14,384



12,457



13,416



12,446

Diluted

14,384



16,486



13,416



16,435



Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.







Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows ($ in thousands)

Six Months Ended March 31,



2021

2020





Cash Flows from Operating Activities:







Net income (loss)

$ (56,494)



$ 68,212











Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating activities:







Net loss from discontinued operations

18,606





Oil and gas lease abandonments

5,827



547

Depletion, depreciation, amortization and accretion

12,241



10,992

Loss on derivatives

38,812



(51,204)

Settlements on derivative contracts

2,579



5,492

Amortization of debt issuance costs

316



318

Unit-based compensation expense

689



359

Stock-based compensation expense

409





Deferred income tax expense

13,790















Changes in operating assets and liabilities:







Accounts receivable

(3,477)



1,528

Accounts receivable  related parties

(122)



(1,247)

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

(433)



1,133

Other non-current assets

1



35

Accounts payable and accrued liabilities

1,366



(2,617)

Income taxes payable

763





Revenue payable

3,253



951

Advances from joint interest owners

20



1,091

Advances from related parties





662

Net Cash Provided By Operating Activities - Continuing Operations

38,146



36,252











Cash Flows From Investing Activities:







Additions to oil and natural gas properties

(17,133)



(33,712)

Acquisition of oil and natural gas properties

(171)



(3,976)

Additions to other property and equipment

(380)



(53)

Tengasco acquired cash

859





Net Cash Used In Investing Activities - Continuing Operations

(16,825)



(37,741)











Cash Flows From Financing Activities:







Debt issuance costs

(129)



(267)

Proceeds from revolving credit facility

5,500



14,000

Repayment under revolving credit facility

(9,000)



(2,000)

Payment of common unit dividends

(7,841)



(10,347)

Payment of preferred unit dividends

(1,491)





Purchase of common units under long-term incentive plan

(191)



(318)

Net Cash Provided by (Used In) Financing Activities - Continuing Operations

(13,152)



1,068











Net Increase (Decrease) in Cash and Cash Equivalents from Continuing Operations

8,169



(421)











Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.







Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows  (Continued) ($ in thousands)

Six Months Ended March 31,



2021

2020









Cash Flows from Discontinued Operations:







Operating activities

238





Financing activities

(5)





Net Increase in Cash and Cash Equivalents from Discontinued Operations

233















Net Increase (Decrease) in Cash and Cash Equivalents

8,402



(421)











Cash and Cash Equivalents, Beginning of Period

1,660



9,240

Cash and Cash Equivalents, End of Period

$ 10,062



$ 8,819











Supplemental Disclosure of Cash Flow Information

















Cash Paid For:







Interest

$ 1,856



$ 2,396



The non-GAAP financial measures of EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX, Adjusted Net Income, Free Cash Flow, as defined and presented below, are intended to provide readers with meaningful information that supplements our financial statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("GAAP"). Further, these non-GAAP measures should only be considered in conjunction with financial statements and disclosures prepared in accordance with GAAP and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for GAAP measures, such as net income or loss, operating income or loss or any other GAAP measure of financial position or results of operations. EBITDAX, Adjusted EBITDAX and Adjusted Net Income are presented herein and reconciled from the GAAP measure of net (loss) income because of their wide acceptance by the investment community as a financial indicator, and Free Cash Flow is presented herein and reconciled from the GAAP measure of Cash Flow from Operations because of is wide acceptance by the investment community as a financial indicator.

1. Adjusted Net Income

We define "Adjusted Net Income" as Net Loss plus, when applicable, unrealized loss (gain) on derivative contracts; impairment expense; (gain) on sale of oil and gas properties; transaction costs; the loss of discontinued operations; income tax expense related to a change in tax status; and the associated changes in estimated income tax.

Our Adjusted Net Income measure provides additional information that may be used to further understand our operations. Adjusted Net Income is one of several metrics that we use as a supplemental financial measurement in the evaluation of our business and should not be considered as an alternative to, or more meaningful than, net (loss) income as an indicator of operating performance. Certain items excluded from Adjusted Net Income are significant components in understanding and assessing a company's financial performance, such as a company's cost of capital and tax structure, as well as the historic cost of depreciable and depletable assets. Adjusted Net Income, as used by us, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies. We believe that Adjusted Net Income is a widely followed measure of operating performance and is one of many metrics used by our management team and by other users of our consolidated financial statements. For example, Adjusted Net Income can be used to assess our operating performance and return on capital in comparison to other independent exploration and production companies without regard to financial or capital structure and to assess the financial performance of our assets and our company without regard to capital structure or historical cost basis.

The following table provides a reconciliation of Net Loss to Adjusted Net Income for the periods indicated:

Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.







Net Loss Reconciliation ($ in thousands)

Three Months Ended March 31, 2021



Amounts

Amounts per

Share









Net Loss

$ (48,553)



$ (3.38)

Loss on discontinued operations

18,606



1.29

Unrealized loss on derivatives

22,309



1.55

Restructuring costs







Transaction costs

2,164



0.15

Income tax expense adjusted for the above adjustments

458



0.03

Income tax expense for change in tax status

13,631



0.95

Adjusted Net Income

$ 8,615



$ 0.60











Weighted average common shares outstanding:







Basic





14,384

Diluted





14,384



2. EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX

The non-GAAP financial measure of EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX (as defined below), as calculated by us below, is intended to provide readers with meaningful information that supplements our financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP. Further, these non-GAAP measures should only be considered in conjunction with financial statements and disclosures prepared in accordance with GAAP and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for GAAP measures, such as net income or loss, operating income or loss or any other GAAP measure of financial position or results of operations. EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX are presented herein and reconciled from the GAAP measure of net (loss) income because of its wide acceptance by the investment community as a financial indicator.

Riley Permian defines "EBITDAX" as net income (loss) adjusted for certain cash and non-cash items, including depletion, depreciation, amortization and accretion, or DD&A, impairment expense, provision for the carrying value of assets, loss on discontinued operations, exploration expenses, unrealized loss (gain) commodity derivative contracts, premiums paid for derivatives that settled during the period, unit-based and stock-based compensation expense, amortization of debt discount and debt issuance costs included in interest expense, interest expense and income taxes.

Riley Permian defines "Adjusted EBITDAX" as EBITDAX less transaction costs and restructuring costs, which may be cash.

We believe EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX is useful because it allows us to more effectively evaluate our operating performance and compare the results of our operations from period to period without regard to our financing methods or capital structure. We exclude the items listed above from net income (loss) in arriving at EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX because these amounts can vary substantially from company to company within Riley Permian's industry depending upon accounting methods and book values of assets, capital structures and the method by which the assets were acquired. Certain items excluded from EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX are significant components in understanding and assessing a company's financial performance, such as a company's cost of capital, hedging strategy and tax structure, as well as the historic costs of depreciable assets, none of which are components of EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX.

The following table provides a reconciliation from the GAAP measure of Net Income (Loss) to EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX.

Riley Exploration Permian, Inc. Adjusted EBITDAX ($ in thousands) Three Months Ended March 31,

Six Months Ended March 31,



2021

2020

2021

2020

















Reconciliation of Net Income (Loss) to EBITDAX and Adjusted EBITDAX:















Net Income (Loss)

$ (48,553)



$ 75,053



$ (56,494)



$ 68,212

Loss on discontinued operations

18,606



18,606

 Exploration expense

5,473

1,747

5,897

2,474 Depletion, depreciation, amortization and accretion

6,251

5,357

12,241

10,992 Interest expense

1,165

1,418

2,400

2,784 Unrealized (gain)/loss on derivatives

22,309

(64,303)

41,391

(45,712) Unit-based compensation expense

276

206

689

359 Stock-based compensation expense

409



409

 Income tax expense

15,068



14,553

 EBITDAX

21,004

19,478

39,692

39,109 Transaction costs

2,164

28

3,213

27 Restructuring costs



392



392 Adjusted EBITDAX

$ 23,168



$ 19,898



$ 42,905



$ 39,528



3. Free Cash Flow

Free Cash Flow is a measure that we use as an indicator of our ability to fund our development activities. We define Free Cash Flow as Cash Flow from Operations, less cash capital expenditures, incurred or committed.

Management believes that Free Cash Flow, which measures our ability to generate additional cash from our business operations, is an important financial measure for use in evaluating the Company's financial performance. Free Cash Flow should be considered in addition to, rather than as a substitute for, consolidated net income as a measure of our performance and net cash provided by operating activities as a measure of our liquidity.

The following table provides a reconciliation of Cash Flow from Operations to Free Cash Flow for the periods indicated:

Riley Exploration Permian, Inc. Free Cash Flow ($ in thousands) Three Months Ended

Six Months Ended

March 31, 2021

December 31, 2020

March 31, 2021











Cash Flow from Operations (CFFO) $ 22,261



$ 15,885



$ 38,146

Additions to Oil & Natural Gas Properties (Capex) (9,052)



(8,081)



(17,133)

Additions to Other Properties and Equipment (Capex) (62)



(318)



(380)

Free Cash Flow $ 13,147



$ 7,486



$ 20,633



SOURCE Riley Exploration Permian, Inc.
DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Roads to 5G Communications: Technologies, Applications and Markets Assessment" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The goal of this report is to address several current technologies (as well as their markets, applications, and other characteristics) that, according to the ITU classifications, are transitioning to the 5G communications era.

Though based on the industry insiders statistics, in 2019 market share of 4G networks was not more than 7%-12% on the global scale, the industry is already (2018-2020) supporting commercial 5G introduction in several market regions and applications.

This new radio access generation will be built on the existing infrastructure, which will be modernized and expanded with new technologies.

The 5G wireless communication system will be a converged system with multiple radio access technologies integrated together. It will be able to support a wide range of applications and services to comprehensively satisfy the requirements of the information society by the year 2020 and beyond. From the technology perspective, 5G will be the continuous enhancement and evolution of the present radio access technologies, and also the development of novel radio access technologies to meet the increasing demand for the future. 5G can be characterized as data, connectivity and user experience.

There are two main views on 5G that exist today, which are frequently mixed together to form the basis of the 5G definition:

View 1 - The hyper-connected vision: In this view, 5G is seen as a blend of existing technologies (2G, 3G, 4G, Wi-Fi, and others) that can deliver greater coverage and availability, higher network density in terms of cells and devices, and the ability to provide the connectivity that enables machine-to-machine (M2M) services and the Internet of Things (IoT).

View 2 - Next-generation radio access technology: This perspective outlines 5G in 'generational' terms, setting specific targets that new radio interfaces must meet in terms of data rates (faster than 1Gbps downlink) and latency (less than 1ms delay).

The first view is connected with a gradual transition of 3G/4G (and other) technologies to the 5G era with appropriate enhancements and extensions. Some of such technologies are the subject of this report analysis.

In particular, the following technologies, their markets, industries, and applications are addressed in connection with their transition to 5G (they are being bundled under the title of 5G despite the fact that they are already being brought to market by vendors and deployed by operators):

CR/SDR - Cognitive Radio/Software Defined Radio

Though the concept of CR/SDR is well known and the industry supports these techniques for a number of years, the 5G era will bring new requirements to network characteristics that can be easy to fulfill with CR/SDR.

The 5G "Network of Networks" needs further development of the CR/SDR concept responding to particulars of 5G and using the existing base of smart radios.

Small Cells

It is expected that small cells will prevail in the 5G infrastructure due to advanced features that satisfy 5G requirements.

mmWave Radio

mmWave Radio will play an important role in the 5G RANs, allowing us to explore the vast amount of free spectrum.

MIMO

Complex smart antenna systems such as MMIMO expected to be used extensively.

Visible Light Communication

VLC open several important applications, which were difficult to utilize in other spectrum windows.

The report also addresses general requirements to 5G networking and surveys current 5G standardization activities. It also contains the author's survey of recently approved patents related to VLC and MIMO technologies.



The report is intended for a wide audience of technical and managerial staff involved in the development of advanced wireless communications.



Companies Mentioned

Aeronix

AirHop Communications

AirNet Communications

Airspan

Alpha Networks

Argela

Beecube (NI Company)

Blu Wireless

Blue Danube

Broadcom (acquired by Avago in 2015)

Carlson Wireless

Casio

Cavium

Cisco

CommScope

Contela

CRT

DataSoft

Ericsson

Etherstack

Firefly

Fraunhofer

Fujitsu

Gilat

Green Hills

Huawei

Intel

ip.access

Juni

L3Harris

LightBee

LVX

Nakagawa Laboratories

NEC

NI

Nokia

Nutaq

Oledcomm

Outstanding Technology

Pure VLC-PureLi-Fi

Qualcomm

Radisys

Rockwell Collins

Samsung

SELEX ES (A Leonardo Company)

Spider Cloud

Supreme Architecture

Tektelic

Thales

TI

Wind River

Xilinx

ZTE

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/7g80kz

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

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HENDERSON, Nev., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Roseman University of Health Sciences today announced the launch of its College of Graduate Studies, offering Master of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences (MSPS) and Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences (MBS) degrees at the University's Henderson, Nevada and South Jordan, Utah campuses. Applications to both programs are now being accepted for enrollment in September.

Established by Roseman University's Board of Trustees in November 2020 as the University's fifth college, the College of Graduate Studies' mission is to provide students with an individualized, interdisciplinary, and collaborative learning experience to foster curiosity and innovation that prepares them for an expanding range of career opportunities.

Roseman's new master's programs were created to address the needs of rapidly growing bioscience industries across the Intermountain West. Utah has seen the fastest growth in biopharmaceutical and medical device employment in the country with more than 1,000 life sciences companies, $10 billion in annual sales and employing nearly 35,000 employees, and a projected increase of nearly 1,000 positions in the coming years. Nevada's growth in the biotech sector has also been robust, with more than 900 bioscience companies attracting nearly $90 million in venture capital. Training qualified scientists to meet this growing demand is critical for continued economic development and diversification in the region.

Roseman's Vice President for Research and Dean of the College of Graduate Studies Jeffery Talbot, PhD says, the College of Graduate Studies and its initial program offerings were born through collaboration. "The College of Graduate Studies was created in collaboration with community industry partners in both the biomedical and nutraceutical industries in Nevada and Utah to offer students benefits that include access to faculty members from within the industry as well as opportunities for internships, mentoring, and networking," added Talbot.

Talbot noted that demand is high for graduates of research-focused master's programs as confirmed by industry partners. Joseph F. Nowoslawski, MD, CEO of JSK Therapeutics in Sandy, Utah contributed to the development of the College's programs. He said, "This is a great solution to helping build the biotech infrastructure in the region and an excellent tool for professionals who want a career in helping research startups blossom and create new breakthroughs. With this background, graduates will be in great demand in the biotech sector. I highly recommend this training."

John Laub, President of the Nevada Biotechnology & Health Science Consortium, echoed the growth of these industries. He said, "Covid helped raised the profile of biotechnology and the difference that it can make. More biotech companies have gone public in the last few years than ever before. The future is in medical sciences."

The College of Graduate Studies' Master of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences (MSPS) program is the first-of-its-kind program in Utah and Nevada that offers internships, mentoring, and networking through Roseman's industry partners, and is designed to prepare entry-level pharmaceutical scientists for work within the biotech, nutraceutical, and pharmaceutical industries. The MSPS program also prepares graduates for doctoral studies and teaching within higher education.

Program Director Casey Sayre, PharmD, PhD, said "The MSPS program will take two years to complete, and offers coursework in regulatory affairs and organizational behavior in addition to the pharmaceutical sciences. Roseman's state-of-the-art facilities provide the backdrop for prime opportunities for research."

The Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences (MBS) program is a 10-month program designed to develop formal skills required in the analysis of biomedical literature and ethical questions that impact the healthcare and research professions.

The MBS program also serves as a stepping stone for students seeking advanced degrees in health sciences and research. "The MBS program builds students' knowledge in biomedical sciences to strengthen their academic credentials before applying to medical, dental, or other health sciences schools," said Program Director Kamran Awan, BDS, PhD. "Or, to build a foundation for earning a PhD and a career in research."

Graduates of the MBS program will be offered a guaranteed interview with Roseman's competitive Doctor of Dental Medicine and Doctor of Pharmacy programs.

Both College of Graduate Studies programs are offered in a "hyflex" modality that allows students to continue working while they complete coursework. This model, both hybrid and flexible, offers synchronous and online instruction with face-to-face learning at either Roseman's Henderson, Nevada or South Jordan, Utah campuses. Students decide which instruction model best suits their individual needs.

"Roseman's Six-Point Mastery Learning Model combined with the 'hyflex' modality and hands-on training provided, makes the MBS and MSPS programs distinctive," said Talbot. "Innovation and personalized learning will be hallmarks of our programs, suited to both the continuing student or working professional. Applied focus on regulatory affairs, organizational behavior and leadership, advanced principles in biomedical sciences, public health, data science and machine learning will provide graduates with a diverse knowledge base, intellectual maturity, and the skills to thrive in the biosciences industry regardless of what they do next."

According to Talbot, the programs offer additional value. " Students will be working alongside the accomplished scientists employed by Roseman's industry partners, such as doTERRA, LFB-USA, JSK Therapeutics, Charles River Labs, and ProCaps Laboratories."

Vance Farrow, healthcare industry specialist from the Nevada Governor's Office of Economic Development underscored the value of Roseman's industry partnerships. He added, "From what we have all witnessed over the past year, the need for graduates from Roseman's master of science programs will only increase as industry research and development continues to reach further into the biomedical and pharmaceutical sciences to solve our world's critical health problems. Partnering with leading industry stakeholders is a brilliant way to prepare our students, while exposing them to potential employers and rewarding careers to further diversify our state's economy."

Information about the College of Graduate Studies and its master's degree programs can be found online at www.roseman.edu/graduate-studies.

About Roseman University of Health Sciences

Founded in Henderson, Nevada in 1999, Roseman University of Health Sciences is a non-profit, private institution of higher learning training the next generation of undergraduate and graduate level health care professionals that serve, collaborate and set new standards in their communities and within their professions. With campuses in Henderson and Summerlin (Las Vegas), Nevada and South Jordan, Utah, the University is comprised of the College of Dental Medicine, offering an Advanced Education in Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics/MBA residency and Doctor of Dental Medicine program; College of Pharmacy, offering a Doctor of Pharmacy and Professional Continuing Education; College of Nursing, offering a Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing and Master of Science in Nursing/Family Nurse Practitioner; College of Graduate Studies offering a Master of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences and Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences; and an MBA program. Roseman University of Health Sciences will also offer a Doctor of Medicine through its College of Medicine, once it becomes accredited. More than 6,500 Roseman graduates are caring for patients, conducting research, and engaged in public health and policy in Nevada, Utah and across the country. Roseman University is regionally accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. www.roseman.edu

SOURCE Roseman University of Health Sciences
LAKEWOOD, Ohio, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Roundstone, a health insurance provider specializing in self-funded medical group captive solutions for small and mid-sized companies, announced today that its 7th annual Medical Captive Forum (MCF 2021) will be held virtually Wednesday, May 19 from 10:30am to 6:00pm EDT.

MCF 2021 will offer vibrant programming, impactful discussion, and opportunities to reflect and connect on the state of healthcare and health insurance today. The live event will be part interactive, designed to help attendees succeed with a self-funded health insurance plan.

The virtual forum's robust program of events includes something for everyone:

Navigating the Self-Funding Journey: Roundstone welcomes two clients, United Food Bank and F.H. Furr, along with their advisors, The Mahoney Group and Capital Group Benefits , to hear key learnings on the self-funding journey.

Roundstone welcomes two clients, and along with their advisors, and , to hear key learnings on the self-funding journey. Overcoming the Obstacles to Controlling Costs of Healthcare: This keynote panel discussion with Dave Chase (Health Rosetta) and Dr. Eric Bricker (AHealthcareZ) will offer perspectives and actionable ideas on overcoming barriers to controlling costs.

This keynote panel discussion with and will offer perspectives and actionable ideas on overcoming barriers to controlling costs. Exactly What To Say: Best-selling author Phil M. Jones will deliver the closing keynote. He'll wrap up and answer the question  So What Now? This session is the perfect catalyst to create positive change.

Best-selling author will deliver the closing keynote. He'll wrap up and answer the question  So What Now? This session is the perfect catalyst to create positive change. Breakout Sessions: Employer and Advisor tracks allow attendees to explore in-depth topics, including: how to take advantage of self-funding, managing catastrophic diagnoses and high-costs drugs, and employee communications for better utilization of plans.

Employer and Advisor tracks allow attendees to explore in-depth topics, including: how to take advantage of self-funding, managing catastrophic diagnoses and high-costs drugs, and employee communications for better utilization of plans. Roundtables: Attendees will hold discussions with their peers, moderated by Roundstone experts and practitioners. Topics include: controlling costs with plan design, data transparency, and innovative ideas for employee engagement.

Attendees will hold discussions with their peers, moderated by Roundstone experts and practitioners. Topics include: controlling costs with plan design, data transparency, and innovative ideas for employee engagement. Sponsors: Roundstone thanks its sponsors for their support: American National, Nationwide, Ascella Health, GemCore, Interlink, Auxiant, BRMS, Bywater, and Deerwalk, a Cedar Gate company.

"While we cannot be together in Cleveland this year, we look forward to welcoming our customers, employers, advisors, providers, and valued partners to this reimagined virtual event," said Michael Schroeder, President of Roundstone. "We've put together a fantastic line-up of speakers and built in opportunities for fun along the way. We're excited to be on the forefront of positive change for the health insurance industry and this event helps move us in the right direction  affordable healthcare for all, with greater choice and transparency."

To see the agenda and register for the MCF, visit https://roundstoneinsurance.com/2021-medical-captive-forum/.

About Roundstone Insurance

Roundstone is an innovative insurance organization founded in 2003 with a vision of helping small and mid-sized businesses access affordable employee health insurance  our customers pay only for the healthcare they use while keeping the savings. Our unique self-funded group captive solution delivers high quality care, reduces claims volatility, controls costs, and returns savings right back to employers a win-win all around. Hundreds of businesses rely on Roundstone as their trusted health insurance provider, saving them an average of 20 percent annually over the past decade. Roundstone is headquartered in Lakewood, Ohio with representatives throughout the United States. For more information on Roundstone, visit www.roundstoneinsurance.com

Media Contact:

Terri White

Director of Marketing

440.617.0333 x380

[email protected]

SOURCE Roundstone
Strong focus on precision medicine marrying AI/ML with biology

ZURICH, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The 21 organizations participating at BIO Digital's Swiss Pavilion demonstrate the enduring strength and rich diversity of the country's life science ecosystem. 2021 marks the 15th consecutive year that there has been a pavilion at BIO. Switzerland Global Enterprise along with their partners Presence Switzerland, Innosuisse, Switzerland Innovation, Swiss Business Hub USA and Swiss Biotech Association will be represented at the 'virtual booth' in addition to eight Innosuisse startups exemplifying an exciting new generation focused on delivering the promise of personalized medicine.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, global companies have continued to expand their operations in Switzerland, while the startup scene has remained vibrant. Switzerland has ranked top in the Global Innovation Index for each of the past 10 years, life science exports have grown by a factor of 4.5 since 2000, and now account for 44% of total Swiss exports. From 2019 to 2020, capital investments in Swiss biotech companies almost tripled, reaching US$ 3.7bn, and R&D investments increased by 10% to US$ 2.3bn.

The flourishing startup ecosystem is based around spinoffs from world class Swiss universities, and also supported by US biotech companies which have chosen Switzerland as a base for European operations. Swiss startups at BIO Digital include:

Deep Breath Intelligence , which is using artificial intelligence to uncover the full potential of molecular breath analysis for precision medicine applications

, which is using artificial intelligence to uncover the full potential of molecular breath analysis for precision medicine applications Diaxxo , which has developed a simple and precise Point-of-Care PCR test to help doctors identify and treat diseases faster

, which has developed a simple and precise Point-of-Care PCR test to help doctors identify and treat diseases faster Saverna Therapeutics , which is using the latest artificial intelligence tools and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance to reduce the time and cost of drug discovery

, which is using the latest artificial intelligence tools and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance to reduce the time and cost of drug discovery MUVON Therapeutics , leveraging autologous cells for personalized skeletal muscle regeneration

, leveraging autologous cells for personalized skeletal muscle regeneration Synendos Therapeutics, developing molecules to modulate endocannabinoid system Neuropsychiatric disorders

For US companies interested in tapping into the ecosystem, Swiss Business Hub USA is a good place to start. Caroline Blaser, Head of the Swiss Business Hub USA, explains, "We support US companies interested in considering Switzerland as a business location, as well as supporting Swiss companies with their US market strategy. For any company wishing to expand into Switzerland or from Switzerland to the US, streamlining the process is key and we can help every step of the way."

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1507636/SGE_International_Logo.jpg

For further information, please contact:

Caroline Blaser

[email protected]

Tel: Tel: +1-917-289-9907

SOURCE SGE International
MILWAUKEE, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ademi LLP is investigating Ferro (NYSE: FOE) for possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law in its transaction with Prince International.

Click here to learn how to join the action: https://www.ademilaw.com/case/ferro-corporation or call Guri Ademi toll-free at 866-264-3995. There is no cost or obligation to you.

Ademi LLP alleges Ferro's financial outlook is excellent and yet Ferro shareholders will receive only $22.00 per share in cash. The merger agreement unreasonably limits competing bids for Ferro by prohibiting solicitation of further bids, and imposing a termination penalty if Ferro accepts a superior bid. Ferro insiders will receive millions of dollars as part of change of control arrangements. We are investigating the conduct of Ferro's board of directors, and whether they are (i) fulfilling their fiduciary duties to all shareholders, and (ii) obtaining a fair and reasonable price for Ferro.

If you own Ferro common stock and wish to obtain additional information, please contact Guri Ademi either at [email protected] or toll-free: 866-264-3995, or https://www.ademilaw.com/case/ferro-corporation.

We specialize in shareholder litigation involving buyouts, mergers, and individual shareholder rights throughout the country. For more information, please feel free to call us. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

Contacts

Ademi LLP

Guri Ademi

Toll Free: (866) 264-3995

Fax: (414) 482-8001



SOURCE Ademi LLP
NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- WeissLaw LLP is investigating possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law by the board of directors of Ferro Corporation ("Ferro" or the "Company") (NYSE: FOE) in connection with the proposed acquisition of the Company by Prince International Corporation, a portfolio company of American Securities, LLC. Under the terms of the merger agreement, the Company's shareholders will receive only $22.00 per share in cash for each share of Ferro common stock that they hold. The all-cash transaction is valued at approximately $2.1 billion.

If you own Ferro shares and wish to discuss this investigation or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, visit our website:

https://www.weisslawllp.com/FOE/

Or please contact:

Joshua Rubin, Esq.

WeissLaw LLP

1500 Broadway, 16th Floor

New York, NY 10036

(212) 682-3025

(888) 593-4771

[email protected]

WeissLaw LLP is investigating whether (i) Ferro's board of directors acted in the best interests of Company shareholders in agreeing to the proposed transaction, (ii) the $22.00 per-share merger consideration adequately compensates Ferro's shareholders, and (iii) all information regarding the sales process and valuation of the transaction will be fully and fairly disclosed.

WeissLaw LLP has litigated hundreds of stockholder class and derivative actions for violations of corporate and fiduciary duties. We have recovered over a billion dollars for defrauded clients and obtained important corporate governance relief in many of these cases. If you have information or would like legal advice concerning possible corporate wrongdoing (including insider trading, waste of corporate assets, accounting fraud, or materially misleading information), consumer fraud (including false advertising, defective products, or other deceptive business practices), or anti-trust violations, please email us at [email protected]

SOURCE WeissLaw LLP

Related Links

http://weisslawllp.com


MIAMI, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Former PayPal CEO and serial fintech entrepreneur Bill Harris has moved to Miami to launch Nirvana Technology (Nirvana), a global digital bank. Based in Wynwood, the fresh company is now hiring high-tech talent across engineering, product, marketing, and operations.

Harris was also CEO of Intuit, founding CEO of Personal Capital, and founder of seven other successful financial technology and cybersecurity startups. Over 30 years, he helped build multiple "unicorns", while also serving on the boards of RSA Security, Yodlee, GoDaddy, Success Factors, and Care.com.

"We're bringing the fire of Silicon Valley  innovation, ambition and mission  to the new Silicon Beach," said Harris. "We'll employ fifty people by yearend and two hundred by the following year. Recruiting an exceptional team is the fuel for hyper-growth."

Nirvana aims to simplify the finances of American households, delivering convenience, honesty, and fair pricing. The mission is to help families progress up the credit and savings ladder while attaining a money-life balance.

Nirvana's founding leadership team includes other fintech luminaries including:

Raghu Battula , with 20+ years of technology leadership at renowned San Francisco tech companies, was formerly senior engineering leader at Sony PlayStation as well as holding leadership roles at Ripple, Apple, PayPal and Intuit.



with 20+ years of technology leadership at renowned tech companies, was formerly senior engineering leader at Sony PlayStation as well as holding leadership roles at Ripple, Apple, PayPal and Intuit. Brenda Rideout, with 30+ years of global banking, was on the first team at ING Direct  a pioneering global fintech, the first female CEO of a Canadian Bank, Tangerine, and served on advisory boards including Oracle, HP, and Dell.



with 30+ years of global banking, was on the first team at ING Direct  a pioneering global fintech, the first female CEO of a Canadian Bank, Tangerine, and served on advisory boards including Oracle, HP, and Dell. Dipanjan Bhattacharjee , with 20+ years of banking and fintech experience globally, was a founding executive at Marcus by Goldman Sachs, and previously held leadership roles in risk and analytics at Discover and GE Capital.



with 20+ years of banking and fintech experience globally, was a founding executive at Marcus by Goldman Sachs, and previously held leadership roles in risk and analytics at Discover and GE Capital. Jimmie Fulton , with 20+ years of software development experience, was software architect at Sony PlayStation and built global high-scale application architectures at Ripple, Boku, and Gensler.

"We're fully funded and hiring a diverse and talented team," said Harris. "If you want to make a difference in people's lives, please join us."

For a list of open positions, visit nirvana.tech/careers or contact Jennie Ellis of Bandwidth at [email protected]. For more information, visit nirvana.tech and follow Nirvana Technology on LinkedIn.

About Nirvana Technology

Nirvana Technology is building a digital financial service for individuals, families, and small businesses. Based in Miami, Nirvana was founded by some of the most experienced executives in fintech.

SOURCE Nirvana Technology

Related Links

http://nirvana.tech


RESTON, Va. and OHSWEKEN, Ontario, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ellucian , the leading higher education technology solutions provider, today announced that Six Nations Polytechnic, a unique postsecondary organization with a commitment to Indigenous Knowledge, has selected Ellucian to modernize its technology operations.

Six Nations will use Colleague SaaS, a comprehensive, cloud-based ERP to deliver the best possible services to their students, create operational efficiencies, and advance long-term planning. A new Ellucian customer, Six Nations joins the more than 1,100 institutions worldwide that have chosen Ellucian as their higher education cloud solutions partner.

"Six Nations' digital transformation supports our strategic vision to achieve international distinction for excellence in Indigenous education, Indigenous language revitalization and continuance of Indigenous knowledge," said Rebecca Jamieson, President/CEO, Six Nations Polytechnic. "Ellucian Colleague will integrate systems and data to modernize the user experience and facilitate reporting to meet essential regulatory requirements. Colleague's SaaS environment will streamline processes without the need of additional on-premises IT infrastructure, freeing up our internal resources to provide greater support to students and faculty."

"Moving to the cloud with Ellucian will empower the university with the features and flexibility to meet their commitment to student success and the unique needs of their students, faculty and staff," said Laura Ipsen, President and CEO, Ellucian. "With Colleague ERP at the core, Six Nations becomes an open, SaaS-enabled ecosystem, poised to accelerate their strategic growth initiatives and support their powerful mission to further Indigenous Knowledge."

For more information on Ellucian Cloud ERP solutions, visit: https://www.ellucian.com/solutions/transition-cloud

About Ellucian

Ellucian is the market leader charting the digital future of higher education with a portfolio of cloud-ready technology solutions and services. From student recruitment to workforce analytics; from fundraising opportunities to alumni engagement; Ellucian's comprehensive suite of data-rich tools gives Indigenous Institutes, colleges and universities the information they need to lead with confidence.

Working with a community of more than 2,700 customers in over 50 countries, Ellucian keeps innovating as higher education keeps evolving. Drawing on its comprehensive higher education business acumen and suite of services, Ellucian guides its customers through manageable, sustainable digital transformationso that every type of institution and student can thrive in today's fast-changing landscape. To find out what's next in higher education solutions and services, visit Ellucian at www.ellucian.com.

About Six Nations Polytechnic

Six Nations Polytechnic is a unique postsecondary organization, recognized by community, government, and institutions of higher learning, as a Centre of Excellence for Indigenous Knowledge located in Canada's most populous First Nation. Rooted in Ga'nigohi:yo:/Kanikoriio (Respect and the Good Mind) values, there is no other place where you can invest your time to acquire skills that lead to employment as well as learn about the history, culture and philosophy of Indigenous peoples of the region.

Media Contact

Lindsay Stanley

[email protected]

Nathan Jamieson, Director  Information Services

Six Nations Polytechnic

[email protected]

SOURCE Ellucian
NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Bernstein Liebhard, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of the deadline to file a lead plaintiff motion in a securities class action lawsuit that has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the securities of Skillz Inc. ("Skillz" or the "Company") (NYSE: SKLZ) from December 20, 2020 through April 19, 2021 (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

If you purchased Skillz securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Skillz Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Joseph R. Seidman, Jr. toll free at (877) 779-1414 or [email protected]

The complaint alleges that, during the Class Period, defendants disseminated false and misleading statements and omissions that materially misrepresented Skillz's purported financial condition and prospects. These materially misleading statements and omissions included representations relating to certain of Skillz's business operations, performance metrics and ultimate valuation, including, among other things, Skillz's ability to attract new end-users, future profitability, the shrinking popularity of its hosted games that accounted for 88% of its revenue, and the Company's valuation.

On March 8, 2021, Wolfpack Research released a report titled, "SKLZ: IT takes Little Skill to see this SPACtacular Disaster Coming" (the "Wolfpack Report"). The Wolfpack Report alleges that the growth speculations that Skillz and its insiders had touted were "entirely unrealistic" given the fact that Skillz's top three games, representing 88% of Skillz's revenue, reported a decline in downloads since the third quarter of 2020.

On this news, the price of Skillz stock plummeted 10.9% to close at $24.45, down $3 from the previous day.

Then, on April 19, 2021, Eagle Eye Research posted an anonymous report on Twitter in which it claimed that, through the use of providing users with incentive Bonus Payments, "the company likely recognizes substantial non-cash revenue and [] cash revenues may be less than  of GAAP revenue."

On this news, SKLZ shares declined 6.61%, or $1 to close at $14.11 on April 19, 2021. Shares further declined the next day to an all-time low of $12.55.

If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than July 7, 2021. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.

If you purchased Skillz securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit https://www.bernlieb.com/cases/skillzinc-sklz-shareholder-class-action-lawsuit-fraud-stock-397/apply/ or contact Joseph R. Seidman, Jr. toll free at (877) 779-1414 or [email protected]

Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List" thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for ten consecutive years.

ATTORNEY ADVERTISING.  2021 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. The lawyer responsible for this advertisement in the State of Connecticut is Michael S. Bigin. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.

Contact Information

Joseph R. Seidman, Jr.

Bernstein Liebhard LLP

https://www.bernlieb.com

(877) 779-1414

[email protected]

SOURCE Bernstein Liebhard LLP

Related Links

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DULLES, Va., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- SkyePoint Decisions is delighted to announce that the Moxie Award committee has included SkyePoint in their 2021 Award season as a finalist in the GovCon category. SkyePoint Decisions, Inc. (SkyePoint Decisions), a leader in Cybersecurity Solutions, Engineering, Information Technology Operations, and Applications Integration that specializes in serving Federal Government missions, extends its congratulations to all nominees and finalists. The Moxie Award honors companies, nonprofits, and associations for their boldness in business, placing them among an elite group of leading organizations.

"SkyePoint Decisions is pleased to have been named a finalist in the 2021 Moxie Award," said Bo Kimbrough, Founder and CEO. "I want to congratulate our team for enabling us to be recognized among the boldest and most innovative organizations in the DC metro community." The Moxie Award winners will be announced at an October 13 ceremony and dinner at The Ritz-Carlton in Tysons Corner, VA.

SkyePoint provides innovative enterprise-wide and targeted solutions for the complex challenges faced by our federal government clients. Our focus is on enabling our client's ability to deliver their mission  anytime, anywhere, securely. We combine technical expertise, mission awareness, and an empowered workforce to produce meaningful results. SkyePoint Decisions is an established ISO 9001:2015 and ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certified business with operations across the U.S. For more information, visit the SkyePoint Decisions website at www.skyepoint.com.

Contact: Jeri Harden

703-234-7880

[email protected]

SOURCE SkyePoint Decisions, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.skyepoint.com


CARLSBAD, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Source Intelligence , a leading SaaS company providing compliance data on supply chains for over 50 global regulations, announces their publication of " Complying With Global REACH Regulations: A Complete Guide " which is available for download on their website. In it, Matt Thorn, President and Co-Founder of Source Intelligence, details how businesses can understand the complexities and variations between the different global REACH regulations as well as expert tips to make compliance easier.

"While REACH is an important and accepted regulation, it can also be a challenging process to adhere to. This is mainly due to its many steps and extensive data aggregation requirements," said Matt Thorn. "Luckily, there are solutions that make collecting, analyzing, and reporting REACH data easier. We're leveraging our more than a decade of experience to provide the tips and tools you need to be successful with REACH compliance."

The white paper details:

Why does the REACH regulation exist

The different versions of the REACH regulation around the world

The steps of the REACH compliance process

Expert tips for REACH product compliance

The different responsibilities throughout the supply chain

The European Union was one of the first, but many other countries have adopted their own versions of REACH that businesses must comply with. Each has its own set of intricacies and challenges. Source Intelligence's unique approach to tackling these challenges comes from years of experience and continuous innovation. This includes a single platform for companies to upload a list of their suppliers, request REACH documentation, combine data, and produce reports. The platform quickly analyzes your supply chain to pinpoint any concerns, gaps, and potential reporting issues. It speeds up reporting and removes the costly requirements of having an in-house specialist.

Visit www.sourceintelligence.com to download a complimentary copy of "Complying With Global REACH Regulations."

About Source Intelligence: Source Intelligence is the leading provider of Conflict Minerals Compliance Solutions and has been automating supply chain compliance for over a decade. Source Intelligence uses AI and machine learning technology to gather and validate supply chain data for over 300,000 companies for due diligence, regulatory compliance, risk management, and ESG initiatives. To learn more, visit www.sourceintelligence.com .



Media contact: Charlotte Andrade, [email protected], (442) 245-2844



SOURCE Source Intelligence

Related Links

http://www.sourceintelligence.com


Aside from fresher taste and premium quality, the survey revealed that 66% of coffee drinkers prioritize a company's commitment to social responsibilityincluding the environment and Fair-Trade practiceswhen selecting a coffee brand. That statistic jumped to 76% among respondents ages 18 to 29.

"It is clear that the pandemic has impacted how and where Americans are enjoying their java," said Chris Mattina, Founder and President, Rainmaker Food Solutions. "Besides sparking a new trend of making coffee from the comfort of their own home, the results underscore a shift in consumer values and importance of enjoying coffee that prioritizes taste, freshness and commitment to corporate good."

Other notable findings include:

Coffee Spending: The study found most people (53%) spend the most amount of money on coffee at the supermarket followed by at coffee shops (33%).

The study found most people (53%) spend the most amount of money on coffee at the supermarket followed by at coffee shops (33%). Coffee Loyalists: 77% do not consider themselves creatures of habit and enjoy trying new coffee brands when purchasing from a grocery store.

77% do not consider themselves creatures of habit and enjoy trying new coffee brands when purchasing from a grocery store. Coffee Quality: Consumers noted their top reasons for choosing a new coffee brand as fresher taste (79%) and premium quality (75%). When asked about coffee preference, 81% report they are more likely to purchase ground coffee than whole beans.

"This study affirms the need for a better, fresher, more sustainable coffee experience, which Tchibo has been perfecting for the past 70 years," added Mattina.

Tchibo, a heritage European brand, launched in the US in fall 2020 and is available online nationwide, as well as in select Midwest retailers.

To learn more about Tchibo, visit Tchibo.com; follow on Instagram and Facebook.

METHODOLOGY

The survey for Tchibo was conducted using Survey Monkey and asked 1,159 coffee drinkers various questions about their consumption habits. The national sample looked at adults 18 years and older who live in geographical areas that span the U.S.

About Tchibo

Founded in 1949, Tchibo has been delighting coffee connoisseurs for over 70 years, becoming the #1 coffeehouse in Europe. Now available in the U.S. and carried throughout Europe, Tchibo is the roasted coffee market leader in several European countries. In addition to coffee products, Tchibo operates a wide range of non-food businesses in Europe with a large retail arm operating in more than 900 shops, 24,300 outposts at third-party retail outlets, and online stores. Tchibo has 11,450 employees worldwide, and generated revenues of over $3.6 billion in 2019.

The Tchibo difference is grounded in the concept of ROST FRISCH, redefining what it means to be fresh. From growing and harvesting to roasting and packaging, every step in the Tchibo process is 'fresher by design' and dedicated to creating exquisitely fresh coffee for consumers to enjoy at home. Tchibo recognizes that it is imperative to have a healthy planet to achieve the freshest and most sustainable coffee. With global headquarters in Hamburg, the family-owned business has been recognized with multiple awards for its sustainable, fair-trade practices, including the award for Corporate Ethics and the Environmental Logistics Award and the European Union's CSR Award. In 2016 Tchibo was awarded Germany's most sustainable major enterprise. Learn more at Tchibo.com; follow us on Instagram and Facebook.

Contact:

Damira Bowles

[email protected]

SOURCE Tchibo
To create the all-new e-SUBARU Global Platform, Subaru engineers worked to bring together the brand's all-wheel drive capability, superior driving dynamics and world leading passive safety in a versatile, dedicated EV platform. The result is a technologically advanced full-electric SUV that is also a truly capable and durable Subaru SUV. The Solterra joins Subaru's award-winning line-up of SUVs, including the Outback, Forester, Crosstrek and Crosstrek Plug-in Hybrid. The Solterra will go on sale in 2022.

About Subaru of America, Inc.

Subaru of America, Inc. (SOA) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Subaru Corporation of Japan. Headquartered at a zero-landfill office in Camden, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of more than 630 retailers across the United States. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill plants and Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. is the only U.S. automobile manufacturing plant to be designated a backyard wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. SOA is guided by the Subaru Love Promise, which is the company's vision to show love and respect to everyone, and to support its communities and customers nationwide. Over the past 20 years, SOA has donated more than $200 million to causes the Subaru family cares about, and its employees have logged more than 63,000 volunteer hours. As a company, Subaru believes it is important to do its part in making a positive impact in the world because it is the right thing to do. For additional information visit media.subaru.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Todd Hill

Manager, Product Public Relations

856.488.3234

[email protected]



Jessica Tullman

Product Communications

310.352.4400

[email protected]



Charles Ballard

Product and Technology Communications

856.488.8759

[email protected]

SOURCE Subaru of America, Inc.
BETHESDA, Md., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Treasury and finance professionals earned an average 2.9% base salary increase in 2020, a 0.8% decrease from the 3.7% gain in 2019, according to the 2021 Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) Compensation Survey. The base pay increase of 2.9% is the lowest salary increase reported in the past seven years, according to the new report.

The 2021 AFP Compensation Survey reveals base-salary raises for executive-tier positions at 2.6%, which is 0.7% less than reported a year ago, while there was a 0.5% decrease in salaries for staff-tier positions. At the management-tier level, the average 3.1% increase in base salaries during the calendar year 2020 is 1.2% less than the base salary increase reported in last year's survey.

Comprehensive 2021 AFP Compensation Survey results are available at http://www.afponline.org/CompReport/; 2,268 financial professionals responded to the survey, providing salary information for nearly 5,000 incumbents. Any press inquiries, please contact Melissa Rawak at [email protected].

Bonuses

In 2020, 69% of organizations awarded bonuses to their employees  a slightly lower percentage than the 72% that granted bonuses in 2019. Of the three job tiers, executive-tier financial professionals received the largest average bonuses at 32% of base salary. The average bonus for management-tier professionals was 17% of base salary and the average bonus for staff-tier was 9% of base salary. However, the share of bonus pay for all three tiers was lower than in past years.

Education and Professional Certifications

Data from the 2021 AFP Compensation Survey continue to reflect the importance of education and professional certification in financial professionals' careers. In 2020, financial professionals with an MBA earned an average base salary that was nearly $15,000 higher than that of their counterparts who held only a bachelor's degree or high school diploma or associate degree.

Incumbents in some positions who hold professional certifications tend to have higher salaries than those in similar jobs who do not. Survey data show that vice presidents of finance who hold a Certified Treasury Professional (CTP) designation earned on average 20% more in 2020 than their colleagues without the certification. In addition, job titles with at least five incumbents holding the Certified Corporate FP&A Professional (FPAC) certification earned on average 3% more than their peers without the certification.

Impact of the Coronavirus Pandemic on Compensation

As organizations faced steep challenges due to the pandemic, business leaders implemented various strategies to curtail costs and minimize impact of the crisis on their bottom lines. These measures are evident in the decrease in base salary raises and bonuses observed in this year's survey findings.

One approach was to restrict hiring any new employees; 41% of organizations mandated a hiring freeze.

Other methods included reduction in workforce  this occurred at 45% of organizations.

Nearly half the respondents reported that their employers either eliminated salary/performance raises or these were impacted to some extent.

Bonuses/incentive compensation were impacted at 44% of companies.

"It's not surprising that the pandemic may have played a role in the decrease in salary raises, bonuses and more," said Jim Kaitz, president and CEO of AFP. "However, this year's report also underscores the importance of treasury and finance professionals focusing on upskilling by earning relevant professional certifications and/or advanced degrees."

About AFP

Headquartered outside of Washington, D.C. and located regionally in Singapore, the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) is the professional society committed to advancing the success of treasury and finance members and their organizations. AFP established and administers the Certified Treasury Professional and Certified Corporate FP&A Professional credentials, which set standards of excellence in treasury and finance.

SOURCE Association for Financial Professionals (AFP)
NASHVILLE, Tenn., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 3, Tennessee distillers were honored by the Tennessee House of Representatives for their efforts in producing hand sanitizer to support essential workers throughout the state during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rep. Michael G. Curcio (R  Dickson), who sponsored the resolution (HR0097), applauded Tennessee distillers for stepping into unfamiliar roles to help fellow Tennesseans in need and putting people over profits.

"Tennessee distillers had to suspend their tours during COVID-19, and they took it upon themselves to put the needs of others above their own and began producing hand sanitizer instead of whiskey," said Curcio in his address to fellow legislators on the House floor on May 3.

Over the course of the pandemic, 23 Tennessee Distillers Guild distilleries pivoted their production from distilled spirits to sanitizing products. In total, the group produced nearly 4.5 million gallons of hand sanitizer and sanitizing surface cleaning products and donated thousands of gallons to first responders, nursing homes, hospitals, nonprofit organizations, and other essential businesses throughout the state.

"While 2020 was a rough year for everyone, Tennessee distilleries were fortunate enough to see their businesses survive, and in some cases thrive, during that time, which put us in a unique position to not only take care of our own businesses, but to also take care of our communities," said Alex Castle, master distiller at Old Dominick Distillery and president of the Tennessee Distillers Guild. "It was inspiring to see so many of our distilleries step up and step out of their comfort zones to help produce something that none of us even knew how to make until March of last year."

The Tennessee Distillers Guild worked with state government entities, including the state's COVID-19 Unified Command and Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA), to ensure the needs of critical service personnel, such as local and regional hospitals, were met.

"Tennessee distilleries didn't hesitate to help out during the COVID-19 crisis. Big and small distilleries alike jumped into action to keep essential workers safe," said Sara Beth Urban, executive director of the Tennessee Distillers Guild. "Altogether Tennessee distilleries produced enough hand sanitizer to supply all 330 million Americans with a 50mL bottle of hand sanitizer. That's pretty incredible."

Media Contact:

629-888-2951

[email protected]

SOURCE Tennessee Distillers Guild
The flavors are just as unique as the names and should wow the taste buds, with the ultimate combination of sweet, sour, and spicy deliciousness. Perfect for the outdoor activities Texans love this time of year  tubing the river, hiking, trips to the beach/lake or just hanging with friends or family. There's a fiesta in every 12-pack.

The party starts with the packaging. The bright, bold seltzer flavors are matched with festive packaging and can designs meant to bring a Texas Fiesta to life. Designed by Canales and Co., the cans each tell a story of fun, culture and spirit.

Shotgun Seltzer continues to drive innovation in the spiked seltzer category. The company was the FIRST brewery to release Ranch Water, Texas Tea, and now a "Texican" inspired 12-pack. ShotGun is focused on providing innovative adult beverages with high-quality ingredients. Consumers can experience craft quality from the very first refreshing sip.

"Our Fiesta is su Fiesta," that's what Lori and Brad Foster had in mind when creating the unique Texican flavors introduced in this one-of-a-kind variety pack. "The flavors are a tribute to our Texas community and heritage  everything we're made up of," stated co-founder Lori Foster. "Our blended culture created from the mix of people and tastes from Texas and Mexico is such an important part of who we are as a state. We are excited for the Fiesta pack to highlight a piece of that."

The Fiesta 12-pack will be rolling out to major retailers just in time for Memorial Day. SALUD!

About ShotGun Spiked Seltzer (shotgunseltzer.com)

Founded in Austin in 2019 by beverage veterans Brad and Lori Foster, ShotGun is the first independently owned and operated, craft Texas seltzer brand using only quality ingredients. Its assortment of flavors is inspired by genuine craft cocktails with a Texas twist.

For more information:

Lori Foster

513-544-8523

[email protected]

SOURCE Shotgun Seltzer LLC

Related Links

https://shotgunseltzer.com/


LITTLE ROCK, Ark., May 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The legendary Capital Hotel in downtown Little Rock will reopen on May 17, 2021. Owned by the Harriet and Warren Stephens' family and managed by Concord Hospitality, the hotel has been a cornerstone of Little Rock history since its opening in 1876.

"We are fortunate to have so many returning employees to welcome back our guests," said Ashley Ewing, Director of Sales. "As a hotel featuring 145 years of character complemented by the comfort and efficiency of a modern luxury hotel, we look forward to showing new and returning guests all that downtown Little Rock has to offer following a year of unprecedented events."

The 94-room luxury hotel will open along with the Capital Bar & Grill, serving breakfast, lunch & dinner to guests and local patrons.

Terry Bechtold of Concord Hospitality will serve as the General Manager of the hotel. Bechtold brings years of experience leading award-wining luxury hotels including St. Regis, One & Only Ocean Club, Little Palm Island and Turnberry Isle Resort, Club & Spa.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Concord Hospitality has established the PureStay Pledge that incorporates the best industry practices and protocols for cleanliness, sanitization and operations of its hotels and restaurants.

"The health and safety of our guests and associates has always been a top priority at Concord Hospitality," said Mark Laport, President and CEO of Concord Hospitality. "Our long-standing reputation for having the highest standards in hotel hygiene and cleanliness and our commitment to upholding these standards is unwavering as we strive to continue exceeding industry procedures and be a leader in the hospitality space through the implementation of PureStay by Concord."

Located at the corner of West Markham Street and South Louisiana Street, the Capital Hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has hosted guests and dignitaries since 1876. The entire team of the Capital Hotel looks forward to welcoming guests back to the "front porch of Little Rock."

For more information or to make a reservation, please visit: www.capitalhotel.com or call 501-374-7474.

About Concord Hospitality Enterprises Company

As an award-winning hotel development and management company, Concord Hospitality Enterprises company has spent the last three decades successfully growing the company's portfolio, which includes premium-branded properties across the United States and Canada. Its modern lifestyle holdings embody the next generation of boutique hotels, distinctive restaurants, stylish bar concepts and award-winning rooftops. Each venue has a story to tell. Concord's commitment to sourcing local, authentic products ensures that each property is infused with the vibe and energy of its geographical location. The company believes that its people are its greatest strength. With the brightest talent, the most innovative processes and a commitment to giving back to the communities where associates live and work, Concord Hospitality is committed to being a great place to work for all. Learn more at concordhotels.com.

SOURCE Concord Hospitality

Related Links

www.concordhotels.com


"To know her is to love her. Kristina is everything you want in a spokesperson. More important, she is everything you want in a friend," said John Hernandez, senior brand manager for the Natural Choice  brand. "Kristina can cook, but what really sets her apart is not what she does but who she is. She's that person who is unapologetically herself, and in so being, she liberates all of us to be ourselves."

Together, the Natural Choice brand team and Kuzmic are offering a series of Lunch Whisperer endorsed recipes, mealtime strategies and solutions that help lunch makers reduce the chaos and anxiety surrounding the midday meal. The stress around the lunchtime meal was only intensified during the pandemic with both children and adults home for lunchtime instead of at school and work. Today with schools and offices reopening while many of their cafeterias remain closed, the need for easy, portable and safe lunches continues.

"I hear from my followers all the time that mealtime is one of their top stressors. I am excited to collaborate with the Natural Choice brand team to give people creative ideas for making lunch prep easy so they can focus on what's really important - connecting with the ones they love," said Kuzmic. "Lunch can feel like a stressful interruption to your day, but it doesn't have to be. It's possible to make easy, delicious and nutritious meals that make lunch something you look forward to."

With no preservatives, no artificial ingredients (minimally processed, no artificial ingredients) and no added nitrates/nitrates (except for those naturally occurring in cultured celery and sea salt), Natural Choice products make lunch easy and delicious. They are an ideal choice for those who need a quick lunchtime solution but want to feel good about what they feed their families.

The Natural Choice brand offers premium deli-style lunch meats in a variety of flavors such as oven roasted turkey, honey deli ham and uncured hard salami. A new line of hardwood smoked lunch meats are made the way barbecue experts make them with premium, natural ingredients slow smoked over wood chips for more than four hours. Flavors include pecanwood ham with brown sugar, applewood turkey with garlic and herbs, pecanwood ham with sweet black pepper, and applewood ham.

When there's no time to cook, Natural Choice wraps  including pepperoni pizza, ham and cheddar, and bacon club  are the perfect meal on the run. For a satiating snack, Natural Choice stacks are a go-to, in lovable combos like uncured pepperoni and cheddar, and honey ham and cheddar; and Natural Choice snacks featuring ham, chicken or turkey, paired with cheddar cheese and a dark-chocolate confection offer consumers another convenient option.

For more information about The Lunch Whisperer or to discover delicious recipes and other mealtime inspiration visit www.TheLunchWhisperer.com or www.NaturalChoice.com.

ABOUT HORMEL FOODS  Inspired People. Inspired Food.

Hormel Foods Corporation, based in Austin, Minn., is a global branded food company with over $9 billion in annual revenue across more than 80 countries worldwide. Its brands include SKIPPY, SPAM, Hormel Natural Choice, Applegate, Justin's, Wholly, Hormel Black Label, Columbus and more than 30 other beloved brands. The company is a member of the S&P 500 Index and the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats, was named on the "Global 2000 World's Best Employers" list by Forbes magazine for three straight years, is one of Fortune magazine's most admired companies, has appeared on Corporate Responsibility Magazine's "The 100 Best Corporate Citizens" list for the 12th year in a row, and has received numerous other awards and accolades for its corporate responsibility and community service efforts. The company lives by its purpose statement  Inspired People. Inspired Food.  to bring some of the world's most trusted and iconic brands to tables across the globe. For more information, visit www.hormelfoods.com and http://csr.hormelfoods.com/.

Contact: Media

507-434-6352

[email protected]

SOURCE Hormel Foods Corporation
Russias Prosecutor Generals Office takes fatal Kazan school attack under special scrutiny

 RAPSI, Natalia Vaneyeva

18:09 11/05/2021

MOSCOW, May 11 (RAPSI)  The Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation has taken special effort to control the investigation of the deadly school attack in Kazan, the capital of Russias Republic of Tatarstan, carried out by the regional prosecutors office, the bodys press service informs RAPSI.

The prosecutor's office of the Republic of Tatarstan has opened a probe into the attack. The supervisory authority is to examine the issues related to ensuring the safety of students and staff of educational organizations of the city, including the organization of protection and observance of the access regime, the Prosecutor Generals Office statement reads.

Prosecutors will also to assess the actions undertaken by the school administration in this emergency, as well as examine the fact of issuing a firearms certificate to the 19-year-old attacker, as well as other aspects of observance of the federal laws in the Republic, the body said in the statement.

In Tatarstan, May 12 declared Day of Mourning.

According to investigators, an armed man broke into an education institution and started shooting. Several people including minors were killed and several persons injured as a result of the assault.

The attacker, who was arrested on the scene and identified, acted alone, the statement reads.
WASHINGTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- LATER TODAY, The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, will join partner civil rights organizations at a protest led by American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) in front of the State Department in Washington, D.C., to call on the Biden administration to condemn and oppose the Israeli government's campaign to expel Palestinian families from Jerusalem's Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

Protest participants will also demand an end to violent attacks on Palestinian worshippers and protesters at, and even in, the Al-Aqsa mosque.

SEE RALLY POSTER: https://www.cair.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/SaveSheikhJarrah.png

WHAT: 'Stop Jerusalem Expulsions' #SaveSheikhJarrah Protest Outside State Department in D.C.

WHEN: Tuesday, May 11, 4 p.m. ET

WHERE: Intersection of 22nd St. and C St., NW, Washington, D.C.

CONTACT: CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, [email protected]

Yesterday, CAIR called on all Americans to contact their U.S. Senators and the Biden Administration to push those demands.

ACTION ALERT: Urge Your Senators to Condemn Both Israel's Attacks on Masjid Al-Aqsa and Effort to Expel Palestinian Families from Sheikh Jarrah

https://www.cair.com/press_releases/action-alert-urge-your-senators-to-condemn-both-israels-attacks-on-masjid-al-aqsa-and-effort-to-expel-palestinian-families-from-sheikh-jarrah/

CLICK HERE: Urge Your Senators, Biden Administration to Condemn Israel's Campaign to Evict Palestinians in Jerusalem's Sheikh Jarrah

https://action.cair.com/a/urge-your-senators-condemn-israelis-campaign-evict-palestinians-sheikh-jarrah

Over the weekend, CAIR called on media outlets and journalists in the United States and worldwide to stop referring to Israeli attacks on Palestinians protesting ethnic cleansing and racial and religious apartheid "clashes."

SEE: CAIR to Media Outlets: Stop Calling Israeli Attacks on Palestinians Protesting Ethnic Cleansing and Apartheid 'Clashes'  #SaveSheikhJarrah

Last month, CAIR called on Congress to support "Defending the Human Rights of Palestinian Children and Families Living Under Israeli Military Occupation Act," H.R. 2590, following the release of a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report accusing the Israeli government of committing crimes of apartheid and persecution against Palestinians.

SEE: CAIR Calls on U.S. Government to 'Defund Israeli Apartheid' After Human Rights Watch Report Outlines 'Systematic Oppression of Palestinians'

SEE: Human Rights Watch: Abusive Israeli Policies Constitute Crimes of Apartheid, Persecution

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.

La mision de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprension del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.

Become a Fan of CAIR on Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/CAIRNational

Subscribe to CAIR's Email List

https://action.cair.com/a/newsletters

Subscribe to CAIR's Twitter Feed

http://twitter.com/cairnational

Subscribe to CAIR's YouTube Channel

http://www.youtube.com/cairtv

Follow CAIR on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/cair_national/

Donate to CAIR

https://action.cair.com/a/donate

Do you like reading CAIR press releases and taking part in our action alerts? You can help contribute to CAIR's work of defending civil rights and empowering American Muslims across the country by making a one-time contribution or becoming a monthly donor. Supporters like you make CAIR's advocacy work possible and defeating Islamophobia an achievable goal. Click here to donate to CAIR.

CONTACT: CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, [email protected]

SOURCE Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)

Related Links

http://www.cair.com


CLEVELAND, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- TransDigm Group Incorporated (NYSE: TDG), a leading global designer, producer and supplier of highly engineered aircraft components, today reported results for the second quarter ended April 3, 2021, which were significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Second quarter highlights include:

Net sales of $1,194 million , down 17.3% from $1,443 million in the prior year's quarter;

, down 17.3% from in the prior year's quarter; Income from continuing operations of $105 million ;

; Earnings per share from continuing operations of $1.79 ;

; EBITDA As Defined margin of 43.5%, representing sequential improvement;

EBITDA As Defined of $519 million ;

; Adjusted earnings per share of $2.58 ; and

; and Positive operating cash flow generation of $98 million .

Fiscal 2021 financial guidance remains suspended at this time.

Quarter-to-Date Results

Net sales for the quarter declined 17.3%, or $249 million, to $1,194 million from $1,443 million in the comparable quarter a year ago. Acquisition sales growth over the comparable quarter a year ago was $43 million, primarily attributable to Cobham Aero Connectivity.

Income from continuing operations for the quarter was $105 million, a decrease of 67.5% compared to $323 million in the comparable quarter a year ago. The decrease in income from continuing operations primarily reflects the decline in net sales described above, along with higher one-time refinancing costs, interest expense, COVID-19 restructuring costs and effective tax rate, partially offset by a gain recorded on the settlement of an insurance claim.

Adjusted net income for the quarter decreased 48.3% to $151 million, or $2.58 per share, from $292 million, or $5.10 per share, in the comparable quarter a year ago.

EBITDA for the quarter decreased 29.8% to $464 million from $661 million for the comparable quarter a year ago. EBITDA As Defined for the period decreased 23.1% to $519 million compared with $675 million in the comparable quarter a year ago. EBITDA As Defined as a percentage of net sales for the quarter was 43.5%.

"The commercial aerospace industry has continued to show signs of recovery in recent months with the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine and increasing air traffic, especially in certain domestic markets. We also saw another quarter of strong sequential improvement in our commercial bookings. These trends are encouraging and although the pace of the recovery is uncertain, we remain ready to meet the demand as it returns," stated Kevin Stein, TransDigm Group's President and Chief Executive Officer. "Additionally, I am very pleased that we continue to sequentially expand our EBITDA As Defined margin as a result of careful management of our cost structure and focus on our operating strategy in this challenging commercial environment."

During the quarter, TransDigm completed the acquisition of Cobham Aero Connectivity ("CAC") for an enterprise value of $965 million, with the majority of the acquisition first closing on January 5, 2021, and the remainder (a Finland-based facility) completing on February 12, 2021. CAC is a leading provider of highly engineered antennas and radios for the aerospace end market.

On March 1, 2021, TransDigm announced the sale of its ScioTeq and TREALITY Simulation Visual Systems businesses to OpenGate Capital for approximately $200 million. ScioTeq and TREALITY were acquired by TransDigm in March 2019 as part of the Esterline Technologies acquisition. The sale is expected to be completed during the third quarter of fiscal 2021.

Financing Activity Subsequent to the Quarter

On April 21, 2021, TransDigm successfully completed a private offering of $750 million of 4.875% senior subordinated notes due 2029. TransDigm expects to use the net proceeds from the offering, plus cash on hand, to redeem all of its $750 million of outstanding 6.50% senior subordinated notes due 2025.

Year-to-Date Results

Net sales for the twenty-six week period ended April 3, 2021 declined 20.9%, or $607 million, to $2,301 million from $2,908 million in the comparable period a year ago. Acquisition sales growth over the comparable period a year ago was $43 million, primarily attributable to Cobham Aero Connectivity.

Income from continuing operations for the twenty-six week period ended April 3, 2021 was $155 million, a decrease of 72.1% compared to $556 million in the comparable period a year ago. The decrease in income from continuing operations primarily reflects the decline in net sales described above, along with higher COVID-19 restructuring costs, interest expense and non-cash stock compensation expense, partially offset by a gain recorded on the settlement of an insurance claim.

GAAP earnings per share were reduced in fiscal 2021 and 2020 by $1.24 per share and $3.22 per share, respectively, as a result of dividend equivalent payments made during each year. As a reminder, GAAP earnings per share are reduced when TransDigm makes dividend equivalent payments pursuant to the Company's stock option plans. These dividend equivalent payments are made during the Company's first fiscal quarter each year and also upon payment of any special dividends.

Adjusted net income for the twenty-six week period ended April 3, 2021 decreased 53.7% to $266 million, or $4.55 per share, from $575 million, or $10.03 per share, in the comparable period a year ago.

EBITDA for the twenty-six week period ended April 3, 2021 decreased 33.8% to $842 million from $1,271 million for the comparable period a year ago. EBITDA As Defined for the period decreased 26.8% to $993 million compared with $1,356 million in the comparable quarter a year ago. EBITDA As Defined as a percentage of net sales for the current period was 43.2%.

Please see the attached tables for a reconciliation of income from continuing operations to EBITDA, EBITDA As Defined, and adjusted net income; a reconciliation of net cash provided by operating activities to EBITDA and EBITDA As Defined, and a reconciliation of earnings per share to adjusted earnings per share for the periods discussed in this press release.

Fiscal 2021 Outlook

Given the considerable uncertainty around the extent and duration of business disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and how that will continue to impact operations, the Company will not provide fiscal year 2021 guidance at this time.

Earnings Conference Call

TransDigm Group will host a conference call for investors and security analysts on May 11, 2021, beginning at 11:00 a.m., Eastern Time. To join the call, dial (833) 397-0943 and enter the passcode 5094886. International callers should dial (720) 405-3217 and use the same passcode. A live audio webcast can be accessed online at http://www.transdigm.com. A slide presentation will also be available for reference during the conference call; go to the investor relations page of our website and click on "Presentations."

The call will be archived on the website and available for replay at approximately 2:00 p.m., Eastern Time. A telephone replay will be available for one week by dialing (855) 859-2056 and entering the passcode 5094886. International callers should dial (404) 537-3406 and use the same passcode.

About TransDigm Group

TransDigm Group, through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, is a leading global designer, producer and supplier of highly engineered aircraft components for use on nearly all commercial and military aircraft in service today. Major product offerings, substantially all of which are ultimately provided to end-users in the aerospace industry, include mechanical/electro-mechanical actuators and controls, ignition systems and engine technology, specialized pumps and valves, power conditioning devices, specialized AC/DC electric motors and generators, batteries and chargers, engineered latching and locking devices, engineered rods, engineered connectors and elastomer sealing solutions, databus and power controls, cockpit security components and systems, specialized and advanced cockpit displays, engineered audio, radio and antenna systems, specialized lavatory components, seat belts and safety restraints, engineered and customized interior surfaces and related components, advanced sensor products, switches and relay panels, thermal protection and insulation, lighting and control technology, parachutes, high performance hoists, winches and lifting devices, and cargo loading, handling and delivery systems.

Non-GAAP Supplemental Information

EBITDA, EBITDA As Defined, EBITDA As Defined Margin, adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share are non-GAAP financial measures presented in this press release as supplemental disclosures to net income and reported results. TransDigm Group defines EBITDA as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization and defines EBITDA As Defined as EBITDA plus certain non-operating items recorded as corporate expenses, including non-cash compensation charges incurred in connection with TransDigm Group's stock incentive plans, restructuring costs related to TransDigm Group's cost reduction measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, foreign currency gains and losses, acquisition-integration costs, acquisition transaction-related expenses, and refinancing costs. TransDigm Group defines adjusted net income as net income plus purchase accounting backlog amortization expense, effects from the sale on businesses, non-cash compensation charges incurred in connection with TransDigm Group's stock incentive plans, restructuring costs related to TransDigm Group's cost reduction measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, foreign currency gains and losses, acquisition-integration costs, acquisition transaction-related expenses, and refinancing costs. EBITDA As Defined Margin represents EBITDA As Defined as a percentage of net sales. TransDigm Group defines adjusted diluted earnings per share as adjusted net income divided by the total shares for basic and diluted earnings per share. For more information regarding the computation of EBITDA, EBITDA As Defined and adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share, please see the attached financial tables.

TransDigm Group presents these non-GAAP financial measures because it believes that they are useful indicators of its operating performance. TransDigm Group believes that EBITDA is useful to investors because it is frequently used by securities analysts, investors and other interested parties to measure operating performance among companies with different capital structures, effective tax rates and tax attributes, capitalized asset values and employee compensation structures, all of which can vary substantially from company to company. In addition, analysts, rating agencies and others use EBITDA to evaluate a company's ability to incur and service debt. EBITDA As Defined is used to measure TransDigm Inc.'s compliance with the financial covenant contained in its credit facility. TransDigm Group's management also uses EBITDA As Defined to review and assess its operating performance, to prepare its annual budget and financial projections and to review and evaluate its management team in connection with employee incentive programs. Moreover, TransDigm Group's management uses EBITDA As Defined to evaluate acquisitions and as a liquidity measure. In addition, TransDigm Group's management uses adjusted net income as a measure of comparable operating performance between time periods and among companies as it is reflective of changes in pricing decisions, cost controls and other factors that affect operating performance.

None of EBITDA, EBITDA As Defined, EBITDA As Defined Margin, adjusted net income or adjusted earnings per share is a measurement of financial performance under U.S. GAAP and such financial measures should not be considered as an alternative to net income, operating income, earnings per share, cash flows from operating activities or other measures of performance determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP. In addition, TransDigm Group's calculation of these non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to the calculation of similarly titled measures reported by other companies.

Although we use EBITDA and EBITDA As Defined as measures to assess the performance of our business and for the other purposes set forth above, the use of these non-GAAP financial measures as analytical tools has limitations, and you should not consider any of them in isolation, or as a substitute for analysis of our results of operations as reported in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Some of these limitations are:

neither EBITDA nor EBITDA As Defined reflects the significant interest expense, or the cash requirements, necessary to service interest payments on our indebtedness;



although depreciation and amortization are non-cash charges, the assets being depreciated and amortized will often have to be replaced in the future, and neither EBITDA nor EBITDA As Defined reflects any cash requirements for such replacements;



the omission of the substantial amortization expense associated with our intangible assets further limits the usefulness of EBITDA and EBITDA As Defined;



neither EBITDA nor EBITDA As Defined includes the payment of taxes, which is a necessary element of our operations; and



EBITDA As Defined excludes the cash expense we have incurred to integrate acquired businesses into our operations, which is a necessary element of certain of our acquisitions.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release that are not historical facts, including statements under the heading "Fiscal 2021 Outlook," are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "believe," "may," "will," "should," "expect," "intend," "plan," "predict," "anticipate," "estimate," or "continue" and other words and terms of similar meaning may identify forward-looking statements.

All forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause TransDigm Group's actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements made by, or on behalf of, TransDigm Group. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to: the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has on the TransDigm Group's business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity; the sensitivity of TransDigm Group's business to the number of flight hours that its customers' planes spend aloft and its customers' profitability, both of which are affected by general economic conditions; future geopolitical or other worldwide events; cyber-security threats and natural disasters; TransDigm Group's reliance on certain customers; the U.S. defense budget and risks associated with being a government supplier including government audits and investigations; failure to maintain government or industry approvals; failure to complete or successfully integrate acquisitions; TransDigm Group's indebtedness; potential environmental liabilities; liabilities arising in connection with litigation; increases in raw material costs, taxes and labor costs that cannot be recovered in product pricing; risks and costs associated with TransDigm Group's international sales and operations; and other factors. Further information regarding the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from projected results can be found in TransDigm Group's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2020 and other reports that TransDigm Group or its subsidiaries have filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, TransDigm Group undertakes no obligation to revise or update the forward-looking statements contained in this press release.





TRANSDIGM GROUP INCORPORATED



CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME



FOR THE THIRTEEN AND TWENTY-SIX WEEK PERIODS ENDED

Table 1 APRIL 03, 2021 AND MARCH 28, 2020

(Amounts in millions, except per share amounts)



(Unaudited)



















Thirteen Week Periods Ended

Twenty-Six Week Periods Ended



April 3, 2021

March 28, 2020

April 3, 2021

March 28, 2020 NET SALES

$ 1,194



$ 1,443



$ 2,301



$ 2,908

COST OF SALES

602



625



1,169



1,288

GROSS PROFIT

592



818



1,132



1,620

SELLING AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES

162



180



358



381

AMORTIZATION OF INTANGIBLE ASSETS

36



46



65



86

INCOME FROM OPERATIONS

394



592



709



1,153

INTEREST EXPENSENET

268



252



535



501

REFINANCING COSTS

24



3



24



26

OTHER INCOME

(28)







(33)



(3)

INCOME FROM CONTINUING OPERATIONS BEFORE INCOME TAXES

130



337



183



629

INCOME TAX PROVISION

25



14



28



73

INCOME FROM CONTINUING OPERATIONS

105



323



155



556

(LOSS) INCOME FROM DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS, NET OF TAX





(4)







68

NET INCOME

105



319



155



624

LESS: NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS

(1)







(1)



(1)

NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO TD GROUP

$ 104



$ 319



$ 154



$ 623

NET INCOME APPLICABLE TO TD GROUP COMMON STOCKHOLDERS

$ 104



$ 319



$ 81



$ 438

Earnings per share attributable to TD Group common stockholders:















Earnings per share from continuing operationsbasic and diluted

$ 1.79



$ 5.63



$ 1.40



$ 6.45

(Loss) Earnings per share from discontinued operationsbasic and diluted





(0.07)







1.18

Earnings per share

$ 1.79



$ 5.56



$ 1.40



$ 7.63

Cash dividends paid per common share

$ 



$ 



$ 



$ 32.50

Weighted-average shares outstanding:















Basic and diluted

58.4



57.4



58.4



57.4



TRANSDIGM GROUP INCORPORATED



SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION - RECONCILIATION OF EBITDA,



EBITDA AS DEFINED TO INCOME FROM CONTINUING OPERATIONS



FOR THE THIRTEEN AND TWENTY-SIX WEEK PERIODS ENDED

Table 2 APRIL 03, 2021 AND MARCH 28, 2020

(Amounts in millions, except per share amounts)



(Unaudited)



















Thirteen Week Periods Ended

Twenty-Six Week Periods Ended



April 3, 2021

March 28, 2020

April 3, 2021

March 28, 2020 Income from continuing operations

$ 105



$ 323



$ 155



$ 556

Adjustments:















Depreciation and amortization expense

66



72



124



141

Interest expense, net

268



252



535



501

Income tax provision

25



14



28



73

EBITDA

464



661



842



1,271

Adjustments:















Acquisition-related expenses and adjustments (1)

16



9



19



16

Non-cash stock compensation expense (2)

21



11



70



37

Refinancing costs (3)

24



3



24



26

COVID-19 pandemic restructuring costs (4)

18



1



39



1

Other, net (5)

(24)



(10)



(1)



5

Gross Adjustments to EBITDA

55



14



151



85

EBITDA As Defined

$ 519



$ 675



$ 993



$ 1,356

EBITDA As Defined, Margin (6)

43.5 %

46.8 %

43.2 %

46.6 %





(1) Represents accounting adjustments to inventory associated with acquisitions of businesses and product lines that were charged to cost of sales when the inventory was sold; costs incurred to integrate acquired businesses and product lines into TD Group's operations, facility relocation costs and other acquisition-related costs; transaction-related costs comprising deal fees; legal, financial and tax due diligence expenses; and valuation costs that are required to be expensed as incurred.



(2) Represents the compensation expense recognized by TD Group under our stock incentive plans.



(3) Represents costs expensed related to debt financing activities, including new issuances, extinguishments, refinancings and amendments to existing agreements.



(4) Represents restructuring costs related to the Company's cost reduction measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic ($17 million and $36 million for the thirteen and twenty-six week periods ended April 3, 2021, respectively, and $1 million for the thirteen and twenty-six week periods ended March 28, 2020). These were costs related to the Company's actions to reduce its workforce and consolidate certain facilities to align with customer demand. This also includes $1 million and $3 million for the thirteen and twenty-six week periods ended April 3, 2021, respectively, of incremental costs related to the pandemic that are not expected to recur once the pandemic has subsided and are clearly separable from normal operations (e.g., additional cleaning and disinfecting of facilities by contractors above and beyond normal requirements, personal protective equipment, etc.).



(5) Primarily represents the gain on insurance proceeds from the Leach International Europe fire, foreign currency transaction gain or loss, payroll withholding taxes related to special dividend and dividend equivalent payments and stock option exercises, non-service related pension costs, deferred compensation, gain or loss on sale of fixed assets and gain or loss on sale of businesses.



(6) The EBITDA As Defined margin represents the amount of EBITDA As Defined as a percentage of sales.

TRANSDIGM GROUP INCORPORATED







SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION - RECONCILIATION OF







REPORTED EARNINGS PER SHARE TO







ADJUSTED EARNINGS PER SHARE







FOR THE THIRTEEN AND TWENTY-SIX WEEK PERIODS ENDED

Table 3 APRIL 03, 2021 AND MARCH 28, 2020

(Amounts in millions, except per share amounts)







(Unaudited)



















Thirteen Week Periods Ended

Twenty-Six Week Periods Ended



April 3, 2021

March 28, 2020

April 3, 2021

March 28, 2020 Reported Earnings Per Share















Income from continuing operations

$ 105



$ 323



$ 155



$ 556

Less: Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests

(1)







(1)



(1)

Net income from continuing operations attributable to TD Group

104



323



154



555

Less: Special dividends declared or paid on participating securities, including dividend equivalent payments









(73)



(185)

(Loss) income from discontinued operations, net of tax





(4)







68

Net income applicable to TD Group common stockholders - basic and diluted

$ 104



$ 319



$ 81



$ 438

Weighted-average shares outstanding under the two-class method















Weighted-average common shares outstanding

54.8



53.8



54.7



53.7

Vested options deemed participating securities

3.6



3.6



3.7



3.7

Total shares for basic and diluted earnings per share

58.4



57.4



58.4



57.4

Earnings per share from continuing operationsbasic and diluted

$ 1.79



$ 5.63



$ 1.40



$ 6.45

(Loss) Earnings per share from discontinued operationsbasic and diluted





(0.07)







1.18

Earnings per share

$ 1.79



$ 5.56



$ 1.40



$ 7.63

Adjusted Earnings Per Share







Income from continuing operations

$ 105



$ 323



$ 155



$ 556

Gross adjustments to EBITDA

55



14



151



85

Purchase accounting backlog amortization

4



16



4



28

Tax adjustment (1)

(13)



(61)



(44)



(94)

Adjusted net income

$ 151



$ 292



$ 266



$ 575

Adjusted diluted earnings per share under the two-class method

$ 2.58



$ 5.10



$ 4.55



$ 10.03

Diluted Earnings Per Share to Adjusted Earnings Per Share







Diluted earnings per share from continuing operations

$ 1.79



$ 5.63



$ 1.40



$ 6.45

Adjustments to diluted earnings per share:















Inclusion of the dividend and dividend equivalent payments









1.24



3.22

Acquisition-related expenses and adjustments

0.26



0.35



0.31



0.59

Non-cash stock compensation expense

0.29



0.16



0.94



0.50

Refinancing costs

0.32



0.05



0.32



0.35

Change in income tax provision due to excess tax benefits on stock compensation

(0.02)



(0.95)



(0.19)



(1.19)

COVID-19 pandemic restructuring costs

0.24



0.01



0.52



0.01

Other, net

(0.30)



(0.15)



0.01



0.10

Adjusted earnings per share

$ 2.58



$ 5.10



$ 4.55



$ 10.03





































(1) For the thirteen and twenty-six week periods ended April 3, 2021 and March 28, 2020, the Tax adjustment represents the tax effect of the adjustments at the applicable effective tax rate, as well as the impact on the effective tax rate when excluding the excess tax benefits on stock option exercises. Stock compensation expense is excluded from adjusted net income and therefore we have excluded the impact that the excess tax benefits on stock option exercises have on the effective tax rate for determining adjusted net income.

TRANSDIGM GROUP INCORPORATED



SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION - RECONCILIATION OF NET CASH



PROVIDED BY OPERATING ACTIVITIES TO EBITDA,



EBITDA AS DEFINED



FOR THE TWENTY-SIX WEEK PERIODS ENDED

Table 4 APRIL 03, 2021 AND MARCH 28, 2020

(Amounts in millions)



(Unaudited)











Twenty-Six Week Periods Ended



April 3, 2021

March 28, 2020 Net cash provided by operating activities

$ 372



$ 594











Adjustments:







Changes in assets and liabilities, net of effects from acquisitions of businesses

(9)



148

Interest expense, net (1)

518



485

Income tax provision - current

28



82

Loss contract amortization

27



25

Non-cash stock compensation expense (2)

(70)



(37)

Refinancing costs (3)

(24)



(26)

EBITDA

842



1,271

Adjustments:







Acquisition-related expenses and adjustments (4)

19



16

Non-cash stock compensation expense (2)

70



37

Refinancing costs (3)

24



26

COVID-19 pandemic restructuring costs (5)

39



1

Other, net (6)

(1)



5

EBITDA As Defined

$ 993



$ 1,356





(1) Represents interest expense excluding the amortization of debt issue costs and premium and discount on debt.

(2) Represents the compensation expense recognized by TD Group under our stock incentive plans.

(3) Represents costs expensed related to debt financing activities, including new issuances, extinguishments, refinancings and amendments to existing agreements.

(4) Represents accounting adjustments to inventory associated with acquisitions of businesses and product lines that were charged to cost of sales when inventory was sold; costs incurred to integrate acquired businesses and product lines into TD Group's operations, facility relocation costs and other acquisition-related costs; transaction-related costs comprising deal fees; legal, financial and tax due diligence expenses and valuation costs that are required to be expensed as incurred.

(5) Represents restructuring costs related to the Company's cost reduction measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic ($36 million and $1 million for the twenty-six week periods ended April 3, 2021 and March 28, 2020, respectively). These were costs related to the Company's actions to reduce its workforce and consolidate certain facilities to align with customer demand. This also includes $3 million for the twenty-six week period ended April 3, 2021 of incremental costs related to the pandemic that are not expected to recur once the pandemic has subsided and are clearly separable from normal operations (e.g., additional cleaning and disinfecting of facilities by contractors above and beyond normal requirements, personal protective equipment, etc.).

(6) Primarily represents the gain on insurance proceeds from the Leach International Europe fire, foreign currency transaction gain or loss, payroll withholding taxes related to special dividend and dividend equivalent payments and stock option exercises, non-service related pension costs, deferred compensation, gain or loss on sale of fixed assets and gain or loss on sale of businesses.

TRANSDIGM GROUP INCORPORATED



SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION - BALANCE SHEET DATA

Table 5 (Amounts in millions)





(Unaudited)











April 3, 2021

September 30, 2020 Cash and cash equivalents

$ 4,072



$ 4,717

Trade accounts receivable - net

682



720

Inventories - net

1,240



1,283

Current portion of long-term debt

276



276

Short-term borrowings-trade receivable securitization facility

350



349

Accounts payable

214



218

Accrued current liabilities

740



773

Long-term debt

19,402



19,384

Total TD Group stockholders' deficit

(3,528)



(3,972)



SOURCE TransDigm Group Inc.
The newest addition to Trolli's decades-spanning portfolio consists of its first "buildable" gummies, with each bag containing seven alien-themed shapes inspired by alien heads, space rings and alien bodies, in six fan-favorite flavors: strawberry, blue raspberry, mango, watermelon, lemonade and pineapple. The new Trolli Sour Gummi Creations Martian Mix can be devoured in up to 216 unique and customizable combinations.

"Over the years, Trolli has shined its neon light in the darkness and consistently delivered delicious products for gummi-lovers of all preferences to enjoy, from our classic Sour Brite Crawlers to last year's launch of Sour Crunchy Crawlers," said Dave Foldes, Director of Marketing for Trolli. "We can't wait for fans to get their hands on our new Sour Gummi Creations Martian Mix, letting their imaginations run wild with over 200 flavor combinations before beaming the alien creations up to their final destinations: mouths and stomachs across the country."

MySpace Invasion

The innovation celebration doesn't stop in the candy aisle. Starting today, Trolli fans can visit MySpace to explore 216 Trolli alien profiles  each featuring one of the unique buildable flavor combinations  and search for various space-themed clues on the social site for a chance to score prizes such as:

$5,000 for a trip to visit Roswell, NM , the mothership of reported UFO activity (1 winner)

for a trip to visit , the mothership of reported UFO activity (1 winner) Lifetime supply of Trolli (1 winner)

Two bags Gummi Creations Martian Mix (500 winners)

Many Trolli fans are digital natives with a strong affinity for the late-90s and early-2000s, with MySpace being one of the first platforms on which they were able to digitally express themselves back in the day.

Given that, and Trolli's personification of its aliens as well-meaning but a little out-of-touch with what the humans of earth find popular in 2021 (they're not from here, after all), the "it" social media destination of yesteryear seemed the perfect site for their landing on this planet.

"Imagine our surprise when we landed at MySpace expecting to be right in the middle of earthlings' favorite online destination, looked around and didn't see anyone else hanging out," said a Martian Mix alien. "Oh, well  I'm sure they'll show up any minute. In the meantime, we'll just hang out and wait to carry out our mission to be eaten!"

Trolli Gummi Creations Sweepstakes

To celebrate the brand's first ever physical-to-digital consumer experience, Trolli Sour Gummi Creations Martian Mix is giving away 10 new Xbox Series S systems. Fans can enter to win one of the gaming systems by purchasing select packages of Trolli Sour Gummi Creations Martian Mix and scanning the on-pack QR code to visit TrolliGummiCreations.com, where they can then upload photos of their 216 fun and quirky alien creations using the gummies in their Trolli packs. For each photo uploaded, fans will receive one (1) entry into the promotion.

Trolli Sour Gummi Creations Martian Mix are available now at mass, grocery, drug and convenience stores nationwide, as well as online through e-commerce partners. To find out where to purchase a pack near you, visit Trolli's product locator and follow Trolli on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

About Trolli

Ferrara's Trolli has been at the helm of the beloved gummi worm candy craze for decades, having invented the now famous gummi worms more than 30 years ago. Trolli is a flagship brand of the Ferrara portfolio, growing 15.5% and over two times the category led by breakthrough innovations, including their classic Sour Brite Crawlers, Sour Brite Crawlers Very Berry, Sour Crunchy Crawlers, Sour Brite Octopus, Squiggles, Peachie O's, Sour Brite Eggs, Sour Brite All-Star Mix, and more.

In Spring 2019, Trolli Sour Crunchy Crawlers won the highest-level honor  the "Best in Show Most Innovative Product Award"  at the National Confectioners Association's (NCA) 2019 Sweets & Snacks Expo. The award was based on a tasting panel of 20 judges comprised of leading retailers, wholesalers, trade media, trend spotters and food industry experts who evaluated more than 300 products before the show. Each product is evaluated based on innovation, taste, packaging and ability to sell.

About Ferrara

Ferrara, a company related to The Ferrero Group, is an emerging powerhouse in the North American confections and sweet snacking categories. A passionate team of nearly 6,000 employees works together to share delight in every bite through leading brands that have shaped the industry for more than 100 years. Our diverse portfolio of nearly 35 brands includes SweeTARTS, Trolli, Brach's, Black Forest and NERDS, along with iconic favorites like Lemonhead, Red Hots and Now and Later. Ferrara also manages the Keebler and Famous Amos businesses for The Ferrero Group. Headquartered in Chicago, Ferrara has an operational network of 20 locations in North America that includes manufacturing, distribution and R&D facilities. Learn more at www.ferrarausa.com.

Media Contacts

Courtney Pischke, Ferrara

[email protected]

Josh Darden, Golin

[email protected]

SOURCE Ferrara

Related Links

http://www.ferrarausa.com


OVERLAND PARK, Kan., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Twin Valley Management, a fourth-generation family-owned company and parent to Twin Valley Telephone, Twin Valley Communications, SKT and ISG Technology, has announced the appointment of two new board members: Lisa Spadafora Thompson, partner at Axiom Consulting Partners, and Jay Brodsky, Chief Digital Officer for American Geophysical Union. On the heels of Twin Valley's latest acquisition of SKT, the strategic appointment of Thompson and Brodsky adds outside technology and business strategy expertise to help guide the company's next phase of growth.

Lisa Spadafora Thompson, partner at Axiom Consulting Partners, and Jay Brodsky, Chief Digital Officer for American Geophysical Union, have joined the Twin Valley Management board.

"For more than 70 years, a guiding principle for our company and leaders has been to seek outside counsel and expertise to better serve our communities and maximize our potential," said Ben Foster, President and CEO. "I'm honored to continue that foundational trait for our family with the addition of two board members who are both well-aligned and qualified to help us realize our strategic vision."

Over the last decade, the organization has been transformed and scaled from $8 million to over $120 million, now the largest family-owned broadband and managed IT company in Kansas. The composition of the board is evaluated regularly to ensure it includes the appropriate skills, knowledge and perspective necessary to achieve the company's goals.

"As we prepare for the next phase of growth, we recognize having the right guidance and experience serving our team is of continued importance," Foster said. "Lisa and Jay's unique experience between technology, strategy and operational excellence will play a key role in helping our shareholders, the executive team and all team members leverage our portfolio of investments to realize our transformation goals and achieve our growth expectations."

About Lisa Spadafora Thompson

Lisa Thompson is a partner with Axiom Consulting Partners, a premier growth, business transformation and AI/data science firm. Thompson was the founder and CEO of Sturbridge Growth Partners, which merged with Axiom in 2021. She was a partner with Deloitte Consulting in their strategy & operations practice. She has served as senior partner, managing director and board member with Monitor Group (acquired by Deloitte) and Strategic Pricing Group (acquired by Monitor). Over more than two decades, she has helped companies from Fortune 100 to mid-sized businesses and startups grow through identification and implementation of best practices across marketing, sales, pricing and business strategy.

In addition to her previous corporate and nonprofit board experience, Thompson currently serves on the board for fourth-generation family and employee owned Consigli Construction, one of the largest 100 engineering firms in the U.S. with locations throughout the upper east coast.

Thompson has an MBA from Babson College and a BA from Regis College. She enjoys serving on nonprofit boards, doing volunteer work, reading, traveling and connecting people in her network. She lives in the Boston area with her husband and their children.

About Jay Brodsky

Jay Brodsky is Chief Digital Officer for American Geophysical Union (AGU), an international not-for-profit scientific organization supporting a community of Earth and space scientists dedicated to discovery and solutions to societal challenges. Brodsky has served as CIO and CTO for over two decades in technology and media companies and has served on multiple boards. In all of these roles, he has focused on driving business improvement and innovation through digital means while managing cybersecurity risk. He currently sits on the Ithaca College Cybersecurity Board and serves as a Cybersecurity Oversight Board Member for the Private Directors Association, helping to shape programs that teach cybersecurity best practices and solutions.

Brodsky has an MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, an MPS in Cybersecurity Strategy and Information Management from The George Washington University, and a BAS from the University of Pennsylvania. He lives in the Washington, D.C., area with his wife and their three children.

About Twin Valley

Twin Valley is a fourth-generation family business that has over 70 years of experience providing cutting-edge technology and connectivity throughout the central U.S. Together with ISG Technology and SKT, Twin Valley helps customers unlock possibilities to realize their full potential by providing a unique combination of broadband, managed IT services, technology consulting, professional services, and cloud/data center solutions for both residential and business. Learn more at twinvalley.net, isgtech.com and SKTC.net.

FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES:

Megan Harper

620.584.8341

[email protected]

Related Images

lisa-thompson-jay-brodsky.jpg

Lisa Thompson & Jay Brodsky

Lisa Spadafora Thompson, partner at Axiom Consulting Partners, and Jay Brodsky, Chief Digital Officer for American Geophysical Union, have joined the Twin Valley Management board.

SOURCE Twin Valley Management
SEATTLE and TACOMA, Wash., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Virginia Mason Franciscan Health hospitals are ranked among the top in the nation for patient experience and patient safety by Healthgrades, the leading online service that connects patients and providers.

Healthgrades announced today that:

Virginia Mason Franciscan Health Hospitals Rated Among Top Performers in Nation for Patient Safety and Patient Experience by Healthgrades

Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle achieved the Healthgrades 2021 Outstanding Patient Experience Award. This distinction places the medical center among the top 15 percent of hospitals nationwide for patient experience for the ninth consecutive year. Also, Virginia Mason is the only hospital in the Seattle region to receive the Outstanding Patient Experience Award for nine straight years (2013-2021). The Seattle region is the Seattle - Tacoma - Bellevue core based statistical area defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.





achieved the Healthgrades 2021 Outstanding Patient Experience Award. This distinction places the medical center among the top 15 percent of hospitals nationwide for patient experience for the ninth consecutive year. Also, is the only hospital in the region to receive the Outstanding Patient Experience Award for nine straight years (2013-2021). The region is the - - core based statistical area defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma , St. Francis Hospital in Federal Way and St. Anthony Hospital in Gig Harbor earned the Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Excellence Award. This distinction places the three hospitals among the top 10 percent of all short-term acute care facilities reporting patient safety data evaluated by Healthgrades. St. Francis Hospital has received the Patient Safety Excellence Award for two consecutive years (2020-2021) and St. Anthony Hospital has received the Patient Safety Excellence Award for three consecutive years (2019-2021).

"The recognition of our hospitals by Healthgrades is further evidence of our team's dedication to raising the standard of care we provide to our communities," said Ketul J. Patel, CEO, Virginia Mason Franciscan Health. "Delivering high-quality, safe care is a hallmark of our health system."

"I am very proud of the extraordinary effort by all of our team members to deliver on our commitment to quality, safety and patient care excellence for every patient every day, especially during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic," said Gary S. Kaplan, MD, CEO, Virginia Mason Franciscan Health.

For its analysis of patient experience, Healthgrades evaluated 3,297 hospitals that submitted at least 100 patient experience surveys to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, covering admissions from January 2019 to December 2019.

For its analysis of patient safety, Healthgrades determined that the Patient Safety Excellence Award recipient hospitals demonstrated superior performance in patient safety within the Medicare population, as measured by objective outcomes  risk-adjusted patient safety indicator (PSI) rates  for 13 PSIs defined by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality during the study period (2017 through 2019). View Healthgrades hospital quality methodologies.

"Hospitals that have received both the Healthgrades 2021 Patient Safety Award and Healthgrades 2021 Outstanding Patient Experience Award are not only providing exceptional patient care, but doing so year after year," said Brad Bowman, MD, chief medical officer, Healthgrades. "Given the changing healthcare landscape amidst COVID-19, it's more important now than ever for patients to pay attention to hospital quality when researching where to seek care. We congratulate these organizations for their commitment to hospital quality."

About Virginia Mason Franciscan Health

Virginia Mason Franciscan Health is an integrated health system serving the Puget Sound region of Washington state, offering access to some of the country's most prestigious experts and hospitals that are internationally known for superior quality. With a team of 18,000 team members, including nearly 5,000 employed physicians and affiliated providers, we unite the brightest health care minds in the region to provide world-class clinical excellence at 11 hospitals and nearly 300 sites of care throughout the Puget Sound area. We are proud to be the home of Bailey-Boushay House, the first skilled-nursing and outpatient chronic care management program in the United States designed specifically to meet the needs of people with HIV/AIDS, and Benaroya Research Institute, which is internationally recognized for autoimmune disease research. We embrace our community's uniquely vibrant, active culture by providing holistic, personalized and patient-centered care. We are committed to caring for the most vulnerable in our communities, including the poor and underserved, providing more than $300 million in community benefit  free, subsidized, and reduced cost health care and programs.

Virginia Mason Franciscan Health was formed in 2021 by bringing together two leading health systems in Washington state. Our family of hospitals includes Virginia Mason Hospital, Seattle; St. Anthony Hospital, Gig Harbor; St. Clare Hospital, Lakewood; St. Elizabeth Hospital, Enumclaw; St. Francis Hospital, Federal Way; St. Joseph Medical Center, Tacoma; St. Michael Medical Center, Silverdale and Bremerton; St. Anne Hospital, Burien; Rehabilitation Hospital, Tacoma; and Wellfound Behavioral Health Hospital, Tacoma. Learn more at www.vmfh.org.

SOURCE Virginia Mason Franciscan Health
"Vinayak is a true product, revenue and technology expert with an outstanding track record at Amazon and Airbnb, arguably the most successful global marketplaces," said Dichter. "He is an incredible asset as we continue to build our app and marketplace capabilities. His ability to optimize multiple processes in order to grow our marketplace ecosystem supports our overall mission to democratize private aviation so more people than ever can experience private flying."

"I am thrilled to be joining Wheels Up during this pivotal time for the Company," said Hegde. "Wheels Up is a pioneer in the private aviation industry in so many ways and I am looking forward to accelerating the marketplace growth and expanded adoption. The team has developed a strong foundation and together we will realize the vision of its potential."

Hegde has been recognized as one of the early innovators to combine data, product, engineering, marketing and revenue management to help companies scale their consumer internet offerings. He joins Wheels Up with more than two decades of experience leading global teams in the technology and digital sector. Most recently, he served as President and COO of Blink Health, an online health service company that facilitates a means for consumers to obtain cost-effective prescription medications. Previously, Hegde was CMO of Airbnb for the company's Global Homes business and the Head of Growth for all of Airbnb where he was responsible for the growth and marketing of their worldwide business, which grew to $4.8 billion in revenue and over $38 billion in bookings during his tenure. His experience also includes senior positions at Groupon including being the Global CMO and owning Marketing and Revenue Management where he launched Groupon's brand campaigns and growth strategy, which grew to service over 50 million customers worldwide with over 160 million Groupon app downloads. While at Amazon for over a decade, Hegde was General Manager owning Amazon's CRM and Email, Amazon Goldbox and Deals, Amazon Smile and the Amazon Affiliates program, and also led product and engineering for Amazon's traffic and marketing organization. Hegde graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering degree from the National Institute of Technology, Karnataka, India.

About Wheels Up

Wheels Up, the leading brand in private aviation, is the only company in the industry to offer a total private aviation solution that includes world-class safety, service, and flexibility through on-demand flights, membership programs, corporate solutions, aircraft management, whole aircraft sales, and commercial travel benefits through a strategic partnership with Delta Air Lines. Wheels Up, which was founded and is led by renowned entrepreneur Kenny Dichter, is uniquely positioned to offer its Customers and Members access to over 1,500 safety-vetted and verified aircraft.

Through the Wheels Up App anyone can search, book, and fly. Wheels Up Connect, Core, and Business memberships provide enhancements such as flight sharing, empty-leg Hot Flights, Shuttle Flights, Shared Flights, signature Wheels Down events, and exclusive member benefits from preeminent lifestyle brands. The Company's ongoing Wheels Up Cares program aligns with philanthropic organizations and initiatives that affect and matter to the Company and its Customers, Members, stakeholders, families, and friends. The Wheels Up Cares fleet is comprised of five custom painted Beechcraft King Air 350i aircraft; each plane serves as a flying symbol for a specific cause.

Wheels Up Media Contact:

JONESWORKS

[email protected]

SOURCE Wheels Up
SANTA CLARA, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Whiterabbit, an AI technology company focused on early breast cancer detection, today announced the appointment of Alexander Sardina, MD as its new CEO and the recent FDA clearance of its first medical software product, WRDensity. Whiterabbit delivers on the three factors critical to eradicating late-stage breast cancer  ensuring timely screening through improved compliance, expediting result turnaround times, and providing radiologists with AI-supported tools that enhance clinical outcomes.

Whiterabbit's mission is to improve lives through earlier, more accurate cancer detection. By initially focusing on AI-driven compliance, Whiterabbit is enhancing the likelihood of cancers being detected earlier which means markedly improved treatment outcomes. Additionally, its focus on AI-supported clinical software will allow radiologists to more accurately interpret screening mammograms thereby reducing unnecessary callbacks and lessening patient anxiety.

Whiterabbit developed products tailored to the mammography space through partnerships with some of the leading radiology providers in the country. This collaboration resulted in AI software that has been trained with decades-worth of breast cancer screening data. This technology was also vetted in numerous radiology lab incubators to ensure timely and proven results.

"Compliance, or getting every woman in the door for her annual mammogram, is vital for early breast cancer detection," said Howard Berger, M.D., President, and CEO of RadNet, the largest provider of outpatient imaging services in the United States. "Whiterabbit's AI-enabled ACT product meets women where they are by customizing and automating the process of scheduling yearly appointments. The product has allowed RadNet to screen more patients and drive compliance higher than ever before. I believe it's helping to save lives."

New CEO Joins Seasoned Executive Team

Whiterabbit's executive team includes leading engineers, scientists, technologists, and world-class clinicians dedicated to advancing the process of breast cancer detection. The company was co-founded in 2017 by veteran entrepreneur Rakesh Mathur and chief technology officer Jason Su, an engineer and scientist who was an early innovator at the intersection of medical imaging and deep learning to push the limits of early disease detection.

Since then, the company has grown to 82 employees, serves several of the largest mammography providers in the country, and has compiled a robust data set from its partnership with The Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology at Washington University School of Medicine.

Dr. Sardina has two decades of experience in the healthcare industry and deep expertise in both mammography and cross-sectional imaging. As chief executive officer of Whiterabbit, he will focus on accelerating the company's growth in new markets and expanding its product offerings. Before Whiterabbit, Dr. Sardina served as the chief medical officer (CMO) for Solis Mammography, one of the largest mammography providers in the country. He also served as the CEO and CMO of Covia Health, a Houston-based 3D mobile mammography provider. Dr. Sardina conducted most of his training in Houston at the Texas Medical Center while attending Baylor College of Medicine and The University of Texas Health Science Center/ MD Anderson Cancer Center. He also obtained a radiology fellowship from The Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Dr. Sardina added, "Increasing the rate of compliance for annual screenings is one of the most important levers for catching cancer early and reducing the rate of late-stage diagnosis. I have spent my career improving the practice of early breast cancer detection. I'm excited to continue this work as CEO of Whiterabbit, a pioneer in the application of AI tech for cancer screening."

AI Technology Powers Earlier Breast Cancer Detection

Whiterabbit harnesses the power of data and artificial intelligence to improve the breast cancer screening process for radiologists and patients. The company offers a growing range of products designed to increase the number of patients screened as well as decision support tools for radiologists. Whiterabbit's products include:

ACT is a software and AI-powered service that makes it easier for patients to schedule and stay current with their screenings. ACT sends timely reminders and educates women about breast health to make more informed decisions. Already implemented in over 400 clinics in the U.S., ACT has driven at least 20-50% year-over-year growth in screening volume compared to a previous average of about 1% or less growth per year.

is a software and AI-powered service that makes it easier for patients to schedule and stay current with their screenings. ACT sends timely reminders and educates women about breast health to make more informed decisions. Already implemented in over 400 clinics in the U.S., ACT has driven at least 20-50% year-over-year growth in screening volume compared to a previous average of about 1% or less growth per year. WRDensity provides objective data to help radiologists more quickly identify the level of breast density, which is an important risk factor for developing breast cancer and requires greater attention by a radiologist because it is more difficult to assess. This product received FDA clearance in October 2020 .

provides objective data to help radiologists more quickly identify the level of breast density, which is an important risk factor for developing breast cancer and requires greater attention by a radiologist because it is more difficult to assess. This product received FDA clearance in . WRRisk assigns a risk rating to a patient to drive a digital personalized screening plan for more consistent follow-up recommendations and more accurate diagnosis. This approach helps to catch cancers in the women that are at the greatest risk.

Whiterabbit has raised more than $49MM in funding to date, including $21.1MM in a Series A round in October 2019. Its investors include WRVI Capital and Aceso Technology Partners.

About Whiterabbit

Whiterabbit is a technology company with a mission to improve lives through earlier, more accurate cancer detection using AI. A growing number of radiologists and healthcare providers are using Whiterabbit's technology to improve patients' experience with breast cancer screening. Whiterabbit is headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., and has operations in the U.S. and India. For more about Whiterabbit, visit https://whiterabbit.ai/ .

SOURCE Whiterabbit.ai, Inc.

Related Links

https://whiterabbit.ai/


BUFFALO, N.Y., May 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- William Mattar law offices is pleased to announce that it has won a 2021 Golden Gavel Award for its "How Cool" 30-second television commercial. The annual Golden Gavel Awards, hosted by The National Trial Lawyers, recognize the top law firm advertisements of the year. Attorney William Mattar accepted the award during this year's National Trial Lawyers Summit held in Miami, Florida.

William Mattar with 2021 Golden Gavel Award

"This is a wonderful honor for our firm. We are thrilled to accept a Golden Gavel Award for the best 30-second TV commercial," said William Mattar. "I had a fun time working on the commercial, and the positive response from the community has been overwhelming."

In October 2020, Mr. Mattar worked with Lerner Advertising to produce a series of new television commercials, including the firm's "How Cool" commercial. It is the second year in a row William Mattar received a nomination for a Golden Gavel Award, which recognizes the best marketing work in the legal field. Watch William Mattar's award-winning 30-second How Cool television commercial here: https://www.williammattar.com/blog/firm-news/william-mattar-wins-2021-golden-gavel-award-for-how-cool-television-commercial/

William Mattar established William Mattar, P.C. in 1990. His practice is focused on helping those seriously injured in motor vehicle crashes and is synonymous with the tagline, "Hurt in a Car - Call William Mattar, 444-4444."

About William Mattar, P.C.

William Mattar law offices represents individuals who have been injured in motor vehicle crashes throughout New York State. The law firm is passionate about positive legal outcomes for its clients. William Mattar law offices is also dedicated to making a difference the community and takes part in numerous fundraising activities and campaigns every year. To learn more, please visit www.WilliamMattar.com.

Contact:

Marlene Potter

Marketing Manager

[email protected]

(716) 444-4444

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William Mattar with 2021 Golden Gavel Award

William Mattar with 2021 Golden Gavel Award

SOURCE William Mattar, P.C.
RUEIL-MALMAISON, France, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Infor, the industry cloud company, today announced that Z Nautic Group  formerly known as Zodiac and whose boat brand has become synonymous with inflatable boats around the world  is deploying Infor CloudSuite Equipment, a multi-tenant cloud ERP system specifically designed for equipment manufacturers, dealers and rental companies. The project follows the group's demerger and the relocation of its French production unit to Tunisia, events that caused it to lose control of its IT tool in terms of distribution, equipment management and tracking of boats by serial number.

Learn more about Infor CloudSuite Equipment: https://www.infor.com/products/cloudsuite-equipment

Founded 125 years ago, Z Nautic has undergone several changes in recent years that have reshaped the company and its organisation. Today, with 600 employees, the group has 1,600 dealer partners (and a few distributors) throughout the world and is exclusively dedicated to the production and distribution of boats in the leisure and professional markets.

Z Nautic was already equipped with an older version of Infor M3, which it had not upgraded due to internal events and changes. In 2019, the company decided to transform its IT solution and entrusted Ernst & Young with an audit and market consultation. Following a call for tenders involving various vendors, Z Nautic chose Infor and its partner Hetic 3 at the end of 2020, opting for a cloud migration process rather than replacing its solution.

Anthony Chapeltegui, Z Nautic's IT manager, says: "There were three main reasons for this choice. The first was Infor's ability to offer us standard business functionalities that were perfectly adapted to our equipment sales (including rental), spare parts management, procurement and stock management issues. The second is our desire to switch to a SaaS mode configuration for security, scalability, simplicity and reliability. The last is the integration of embedded analytical modules to be able, in the long term, to give our users control over the production of tables and reports, particularly by geographical area and by product."

Christophe Pino, Hetic 3's sales manager, comments: "The relationship of trust we have had with Z Nautic for many years, as well as the cloud option offered by Infor, were key factors in their decision to migrate. This option offered real advantages in flexibility and scalability on demand, while respecting the customer's needs and financial capacities."

The solution, deployed in a multi-tenant cloud environment, will allow Z Nautic to eliminate time-consuming maintenance and upgrade processes for its IT team.

Today, while the pandemic crisis has accelerated the development of the equipment manufacturer's activities and filled its order book, 130 users will be working with the new Infor CloudSuite Equipment solution by the end of 2021. For the time being, all the functions that will use the new system (finance, production, sales, marketing, quality, product management, purchasing and supply) have participated in a series of remote training workshops organised by Hetic 3 and have validated the choice of the tool.

Chapeltegui concludes: "We were impressed by the user-friendly interface offered by Infor. It has won over our teams, taking them from the stone age to the digital age, with customised settings and displays to meet individual needs. Combined with strong process automation and workflow capabilities, we expect rapid performance gains once the solution is deployed and ultimately benefit from better knowledge of our dealers through improved data centralisation, as well as our time and budget."

The deployment of a customer and partner configurator is also expected to eventually offer greater fluidity and efficiency in terms of customisation and choice of options, but also management of associated parts, when building a boat.

About Z Nautic

With its unrivalled experience, Zodiac Nautic, the originator of major innovations in the field of inflatable boats, is today at the forefront of products and services in total harmony with the times. With 125 years of experience and as the inventor of the inflatable boat, Zodiac Nautic offers products of exceptional resistance and reliability thanks to materials and manufacturing processes that are always at the cutting edge of technology. Zodiac Nautic is present in more than 50 countries around the world and has more than 1,600 authorised dealers. Our mission: To enable everyone to experience unforgettable adventures on the water. Visit https://www.zodiac-nautic.com/en-us/

About Hetic 3

A subsidiary of the HELIOS Group, Hetic 3 is the result of more than 15 years of combined skills and experience. A recognised player in the integration of ERP solutions, Hetic 3's ambition is to position itself as a major partner of Infor for the distribution and implementation of the M3 solution. Hetic 3's activities are based on three main areas: distribution, integration and third-party application maintenance. Hetic 3 has nearly 70 consultants working in 4 agencies in France and serving more than 100 customers in the food, retail, industrial and fashion sectors. Its functional knowledge of the business, combined with its expertise in Infor M3 ERP, provides real added value and a guarantee for its clients' projects. Hetic 3 also offers a preconfigured M3 solution for the wine and spirits industry. https://www.hetic3.fr/

About Infor

Infor is a global leader in business cloud software specialized by industry. Providing mission-critical enterprise applications to 67,000 customers in more than 175 countries, Infor software is designed to deliver more value and less risk, with more sustainable operational advantages. We empower our 17,000 employees to leverage their deep industry expertise and use data-driven insights to create, learn and adapt quickly to solve emerging business and industry challenges. Infor is committed to providing our customers with modern tools to transform their business and accelerate their own path to innovation. To learn more, please visit www.infor.com.

Media contact

Richard Moore

Infor PR, EMEA

+447976111243

[email protected]

SOURCE Infor

Related Links

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The new year has started well, with quarterly sales up 54%

( ) said it will meet market expectations for the current financial year after swinging to a profit during the pandemic.

In the three months to end-April, sales climbed 54%, with online up 42% and store sales up 75% despite closures.

Assuming no further lockdowns, the AIM-listed group said it is well-placed to deliver profitable growth in revenues, albeit at a lower rate than the prior year as trading conditions and sales mix begin to normalise.

The fishing tackle and equipment retailer is also focused internationally on five key growth territories, Germany, France, Netherlands, Belgium and Austria.

In the year to 31 January, revenue jumped 27% to 67mln, with online sales up 40% to 35mln and retail stores up 15% to 32mln. International sales accounted for 12.4% of total online sales.

The firm swung to a 2.6mln profit before tax from a 1.5mln loss the year before, with gross margin rising to 34.2% from 31.2% previously.

Net cash at period-end was 15mln. No dividends were proposed but the board said they will keep the policy under review.

We made great strides with our strategic and operational objectives, growing revenues both in the UK and key European territories, driving operational excellence across the business and delivering sustainable margin-accretive, profitable growth as part of our laser-focus on pricing and inventory management, said chief executive Andy Torrance in a release.

As the health and wellbeing benefits of angling become more widely recognised and its popularity grows around the world, we are ideally positioned to fulfil our ambition of becoming Europe's first choice omnichannel fishing tackle destination for all anglers, regardless of their experience or ability.

In a separate announcement, Angling Direct announced that Martyn Page, currently executive chairman, intends to seek re-appointment as non-executive chairman at this years annual general meeting.

Page, who co-founded the company in 1997, is also a major shareholder.

Meanwhile non-executive director Darren Bailey, who has been at the firm for over two decades including as a chief executive, plans to step down from the board.

Shares rose 1% to 85.75p on Tuesday at the opening bell.
Russian Civic Chamber member backs President Putins decision on turnover of weapons

 RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov

15:56 11/05/2021

MOSCOW, May 11 (RAPSI)  Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision on the need to urgently adjust the procedure governing the turnover of weapons with respect to civilians needs to be supported, according to First Deputy Secretary of the Civic Chamber Vyacheslav Bocharov.

Commenting on the initiative of the head of state, he first expressed his condolences to relatives of victims of the tragedy in Kazan, where a fatal school shooting resulted in the deaths of 10 people, including minors.

It is to be noted that all necessary assistance is provided; soon additional resources on the Emergency Ministry, among them relevant experts are to arrive on the scene, Bocharov said. It is needed to assess the reasons that led to the tragedy, obviously, it is also necessary to analyze how the criminal obtained the weapon, he stressed.

In this regard, the Bocharov insists that the decision of the president about the need to urgently work out the necessary adjustments of the procedure for the turnover of weapons among civilians should be supported.

Unfortunately, the First Deputy Secretary observed, over the years attention to the problem of terrorism and extremism dwindled and the problem became to be seen with indifference, whereas the work on developing awareness in this regard was carried out superficially. Bocharov urged everyone to be more vigilant.
Metal Tiger's PLC ( ) Michael McNeilly and Martin Holland ( ) present their plans to Proactive London as drilling begins on the Kalahari Metals Ltd's Kitlanya East copper and silver project in Botswana.

Metal Tiger holds a 50.01% interest in Kalahari Metals with Australian listed Cobre Ltd holding the remainder.

The drilling programme will target structurally controlled trap-sites identified in airborne electromagnetic and detailed magnetic geophysics, soil sampling and stratigraphic drilling.

These targets share commonalities to the Sandfire Resources ( ) T3 and A4 deposits located immediately north of the project boundary.
Chilalo Graphite Project is a fully permitted, world-class graphite asset in Tanzania, with expenditure to date exceeding A$21 million.

The proposed initial public offering of Evolution aims to raise a minimum of $13 million, with the potential to accept over-subscriptions.

( ) (FRA:GR2) plans to unlock the value of its advanced Chilalo Graphite Project in Tanzania by spinning it out into a newly incorporated, wholly-owned subsidiary Evolution Energy Minerals Limited, which proposes to undertake an IPO to facilitate listing on the ASX.

Evolution Energy, with an intended ASX code of EV1, intends to raise a minimum of $13 million via an initial public offering (IPO) with the ability to accept over-subscriptions.

The proposed transaction aims to gain value for Marvel from the 100%-owned Chilalo Graphite Project  a fully permitted, world-class graphite asset.

Unlocking Chilalos value potential

Marvel managing director Phil Hoskins said: There is no doubting the quality of the fully permitted and construction-ready Chilalo Graphite Project.

Since the re-brand to Marvel and the focus on our Mali gold projects, there has been no value attributed to Chilalo despite Chilalos peer comparisons trading at many multiples of Marvels entire market capitalisation.

The IPO of Evolution is the opportunity for Marvel to remove the historical debt encumbrance and unlock Chilalos value potential.

Under a priority offer, Marvel shareholders will be collectively entitled to subscribe for up to $2 million of Evolution shares.

Shareholder approval is required, with a prospectus setting out the details of the IPO expected to be available in June 2021 and a general meeting scheduled on June 11, 2021.

Structure after the IPO.

Repayment of loan notes

In 2020, Marvel restructured its loan note financing arrangements with Castlelake, which were entered into in connection with the advancement of Chilalo.

Under those financing arrangements, the lender is currently owed around $9.5 million secured against Chilalo and repayable on October 29, 2022.

Of the minimum $13 million IPO raising (before costs) by Evolution:

$6.5 million will be applied towards repayment of the loan note debt, resulting in the balance of the loan note debt being reduced to $3 million, with the balance to be converted to Evolution shares; and

$6.5 million (less costs) will be available to Evolution for the advancement of the Chilalo Project and for working capital purposes.

Should the minimum subscription be achieved, it is anticipated that any proceeds from over-subscriptions from the IPO will be applied, as a priority, to further pay down the loan note debt in cash.

Proposed transaction  indicative timetable.

Evolution internal restructure

Marvel has incorporated Evolution and Evolution Energy Holdings Pty Ltd as Australian companies for the purpose of undertaking an internal restructure, following which Evolution will hold all of Marvels interests in the Chilalo Project.

To give effect to the internal restructure and to facilitate the proposed transaction, Marvel and Evolution intend to enter into a share exchange agreement, as a result of which:

Ngwena Tanzania Limited (the holder of the Chilalo Project) will become an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Evolution; and

Evolution will issue to Marvel a to-be-determined number of Evolution shares (the number of Evolution shares will be determined by reference to the valuation attributed to the Chilalo Project in the lead-up to the IPO, but is expected to be a number that results in Marvel holding between 28% and 43% of Evolutions issued capital at the time of IPO).

On the IPO of Evolution, the Evolution shares held by Marvel will be subject to ASX escrow.

The company has not yet appointed a lead manager and underwriter to the IPO, however, expects to do so in the coming weeks.

Proposed Evolution board

Under the share exchange agreement, the company will have the right to appoint one director to the board of Evolution, for so long as Marvel holds 10% or more of all Evolution shares or for one year post-ASX listing of Evolution, whichever is the longer period.

In order to maximise the prospects for success, Evolution proposes to assemble a board with extensive capability and experience in the graphite industry and the development of graphite projects.

The appointment of the following individuals is subject to completion of the proposed transaction:

Executive chairman Trevor Benson  Previously ( ) (FRA:N6D) executive chairman and has more than 30 years experience within investment banking and stockbroking, specialising in the resources sector;

Executive director Michael Bourguignon - Previously the project manager for the construction of s ( ) (OTCMKTS:SYAAF) (FRA:3S7) Balama graphite project in Mozambique, and for s ( ) (JSE:GLN) (OTCMKTS:GLCNF) (FRA:8GC) 3.6 million tonnes per annum copper concentrate facility at the Mopani Copper Mine in Zambia; and

Non-executive director Phil Hoskins  Currently Marvels managing director overseeing the development of Chilalo since its first drill hole in 2014 and has more than 15 years of broad finance and commercial experience across resources exploration, project development and production.

Hoskins said: Evolution has attracted three directors with significant graphite development, construction and marketing expertise, and will be well placed to add value for its shareholders through Chilalos development. 

In addition, Marvel and Evolution are in discussions with institutional investors regarding the potential for cornerstone participation in the IPO.

If these discussions are successfully concluded, it may result in one or more investors securing a substantial shareholding in Evolution, and it is likely that any such cornerstone investor may have the right to appoint a director.

Marvels market capitalisation (including the Mali gold projects and Chilalo) relative to the peer group of dedicated graphite companies.

Advancing Mali gold strategy

In July 2020, Marvel repositioned itself with a focus on gold exploration in Mali and since then has established a maiden mineral resource of 910,000 ounces gold, grading 1.2 g/t in accordance with JORC 2012 at its Tabakorole Gold Project and - through strategic acquisitions - has increased its landholding in Mali around the Tabakorole mineral resource.

Hoskins said: Completion of the proposed transaction will allow Marvel to focus on its exciting Mali gold exploration.

In the nine months since acquisition, we have increased Tabakoroles resource by 54%, increased the grade of the resource by 20%, de-risked the metallurgy and grown the landholding by 300%.

Resource expansion drilling is continuing as Tabakorole continues to emerge as a significant west African gold deposit.

Completion of the proposed transaction will not only provide for repayment of the loan note debt but also presents the best possible opportunity for the development of the Chilalo Project and for Marvel shareholders to realise the value of Chilalo, while allowing the company to dedicate its efforts to advancing the Mali gold strategy.
Chicago, May 11 : The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday authorised the emergency use of Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine in adolescents aged 12-15 for the prevention of Covid-19 vaccine caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

The FDA has determined that Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 Vaccine has met the statutory criteria to amend the emergency use authorization (EUA), and that the known and potential benefits of this vaccine in individuals 12 years of age and older outweigh the known and potential risks, FDA said in a news released posted on its website on Monday, Xinhua reported.

According to the available safety data uploaded by FDA, 2,260 participants aged 12 through 15 years old enrolled in an ongoing randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial in the US. Of these, 1,131 adolescent participants received the vaccine and 1,129 received a saline placebo. More than half of the participants were followed for safety for at least two months following the second dose.

The most commonly reported side effects in the adolescent clinical trial participants, which typically lasted 1-3 days, were pain at the injection site, tiredness, headache, chills, muscle pain, fever and joint pain. With the exception of pain at the injection site, more adolescents reported these side effects after the second dose than after the first dose. The side effects in adolescents were consistent with those reported in clinical trial participants 16 years of age and older.

FDA further noted that while some individuals experience side effects following any vaccination, not every individual's experience will be the same and some people may not experience side effects.

The Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 Vaccine should not be given to anyone with a known history of a severe allergic reaction, including anaphylaxis to any component of the vaccine, FDA stressed.

The EUA amendment for the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 Vaccine was issued to Pfizer Inc. The issuance of an EUA is not an FDA approval (licensure) of a vaccine. The EUA will be effective until the declaration that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of the emergency use of drugs and biologics for prevention and treatment of Covid-19 is terminated, and may be revised or revoked if it is determined the EUA no longer meets the statutory criteria for issuance or to protect public health or safety, the news release said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Jerusalem, May 11 : Tensions simmering in Jerusalem in recent days have taken deadly turn as militants in the Gaza Strip and Israel exchanged attacks, with at least 20 people killed, according to officials.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said nine children were among the 20 killed and more than 65 people were injured. It was initially unclear in what circumstances the people died, DPA news agency reported.

The Israeli army wrote on Twitter that it had targeted and killed three Hamas activists in an airstrike.

Israel was conducting airstrikes on the coastal enclave in response to a barrage of rockets fired towards southern Israel as well as Bet Shemesh, near Jerusalem, and Jerusalem itself.

The last time a rocket alert sounded in the city was in summer 2014, said an army spokesman.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said more than 150 rockets were fired by militant Palestinian groups from the Gaza Strip towards Israel on Monday. Dozens were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome defence system.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Israel would "respond with great force".

"This evening, on Jerusalem Day, the terrorist organisations in Gaza have crossed a red line and attacked us with missiles in the outskirts of Jerusalem," he said.

Violent clashes between Israeli security forces and protesters in the area around what is known as the Temple Mount to Jews and the Noble Sanctuary to Muslims in Jerusalem have broken out in recent days.

Palestinian rescue workers on Monday said that more than 300 people were injured, while Israeli police say two dozen officers were hurt.

The Islamist Hamas movement had issued an ultimatum telling Israel to withdraw settlers and police from the holy site and from the neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah in Jerusalem by Monday night. Shortly after it ended, reports of mass rocket attacks began.

A Hamas spokesman said the rockets were a "message" to Israel and a "response to its crimes and aggressions against the holy city." The Islamic Jihad group in Gaza has also claimed responsibility.

An Israeli army spokesman said several Palestinian organisations had been involved in the attacks, but Hamas is the one to be blamed. He added that it was Israel's intention to deal Hamas a heavy blow.

The situation in the West Bank and in the Arab-dominated eastern part of Jerusalem has been tense since the beginning of the fasting month of Ramadan, which is set to end later this week.
Washington, May 11 : US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has urged all sides to de-escalate in Israeli-Palestinian clashes while recognising Israel's right to self-defence in the face of rocket attacks.

"We're very focused on the situation in Israel, West Bank, Gaza, very deeply concerned about the rocket attacks... that need to stop and need to stop immediately," Blinken said on Monday before his meeting with visiting Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, Xinhua news agency reported.

He also expressed concerns about "the violence and provocative actions in and around the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount." Blinken welcomed Israel's decision to reroute an annual nationalist flag parade and postpone a decision on the eviction of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in East Jerusalem.

"It's imperative that all sides take steps to de-escalate and calm the situation," he stressed.

The top US diplomat also voiced deep concerns about rocket attacks against Israel, saying Israel has a right to defend its people and its territory from these attacks.

Safadi in his remarks highlighted that Jerusalem is a "red line" and maintaining peace and stability in Jerusalem is the key.

"Our focus right now is ensuring that the escalation stops... we do believe that all immediate provocative measures against either the peoples of Sheikh Jarrah or in terms of violations into al-Haram must stop, status quo needs to be preserved, and the rights of the Palestinians need to be respected," he added.

After hundreds of Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli police in East Jerusalem on Monday morning, Hamas launched a rocket attack at Jerusalem in the afternoon, which drew a heavy Israeli response.

The tension between Israelis and Palestinians has been flaring up over the past few days amid the escalating violence in East Jerusalem between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli forces.

The clashes were sparked by the Israeli restrictions on Palestinian Muslims in East Jerusalem during the holy month of Ramadan and a plan to evict some Palestinian families from a neighbourhood in East Jerusalem.

Israel seized the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip in the 1967 Middle East war. It annexed East Jerusalem shortly after the war, claiming it as part of the Israeli capital.
Los Angeles, May 11 : Hollywood actor and comedian Chris Rock says he used his time during the Covid-19 induced lockdown to have lots of therapy to tackle issues from his past, as success does not erase trauma.

Asked if his experiences of childhood racism still have an impact, he said: "Yeah, it's weird. I've been doing therapy. That's what I did during Covid -- lots of therapy. Success does not erase trauma. It just doesn't. So, I definitely had to go back through therapy and really go through my childhood." Rock says has "forgiven" anyone who has done wrong in the past and doesn't see the benefit of calling people out now for things they did decades ago, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

"The key thing is, I forgive everybody that was involved. I don't want to criticise the culture of whatever, but what happened to me happened 30 years ago. I could out everybody that called me a n***** and everybody that hit me, and put their faces on Instagram, and say their names and all that stuff, right?" Rock told Telegraph magazine.

He added: "And they would never work again. Their lives would be absolutely destroyed. So I'm gonna pray that they learnt their lesson. I got kids going to college -- wouldn't that suck if some kid couldn't go to college because their dad called me a n***** in 1979? So I'm not gonna do that. I'm gonna take the very high road."Rock has two daughters, Lola, 19, and Zahra, 16, with former wife Malaak Compton-Rock.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Kuala Lumpur, May 11 : Malaysia will extend its movement control order (MCO) across the country till June to curb the recent Covid-19 resurgence, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said.

The restrictions will take effect from Wednesday to June 7, Xinhua news agency quoted Muhyiddin as saying in a statement on Monday.

He added that the measures were necessary due to the surge in fresh cases nationwide, especially in the wake of new variants and poor public discipline in following standard operating procedures (SOP).

"The government has decided to take measures that are tighter and stricter to stop the spread of Covid-19 in the community and to stop the surge in cases. Malaysia is currently facing a third Covid-19 wave that could trigger a national crisis.

"The existence of new variants with higher infectivity rates, the stress on the public health system and the poor adherence to SOPs among segments of the community means the government will have to take more drastic action to stop the country from sliding into an even worse health disaster," he added.

According to the Prime Minister, data had shown that public activities, especially crowding in confined spaces had caused the number of cases to shoot up.

Among the restrictions that will be in place are a total ban on inter-state and inter-district travel except for emergencies, work or vaccination while all forms of social events including celebrations, weddings, and holidays are prohibited.

Educational institutes will remained closed, and dine-in at restaurants will not be allowed while only three people will be allowed in vehicles, including the driver.

Celebrations for the upcoming Eid al-Fitr will also be curbed.

However, all economic sectors will be allowed to operate given SOPs are observed.

Since last week, the Malaysian government has announced the implementation of A two-week MCO in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur and a number of areas across the country where a resurgence was reported.

The Health Ministry reported 3,807 new infections on Monday, bringing the national total to 444,484.

Ministry Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah said in a press statement that five of the new cases are imported and with 3,802 being local transmissions.

Another 17 people died due to the virus, taking the death toll to 1,700.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Washington, May 11 : The Pentagon said that a US Coast Guard ship fired warning shots during a close encounter with vessels belonging to the Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) in the Strait of Hormuz.

Addressing a briefing on Monday, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said that six US Navy vessels escorting the USS Georgia, a guided missile submarine, encountered 13 IRGCN fast attack boats while transiting through the Strait of Hormuz earlier in the day, reports Xinhua news agency.

He said the Iranian boats approached the US formation at high speed, closing in as close as 150 yards (about 137 metres).

The US Coast Guard Cutter Maui fired about 30 warning shots from a machine gun before the Iranian boats left, Kirby added.

This was the second such encounter in two weeks.

In April, a US Navy patrol ship fired warning shots as IRGCN vessels approached to an "unnecessarily close range" in international waters of the northern Persian Gulf.

The incident came days after the US Navy seized an illicit shipment of weapons, including thousands of small arms and dozens of anti-tank guided missiles, from a stateless dhow in the North Arabian Sea.

An anonymous official told US media that the Navy's initial investigation indicated the vessel came from Iran.

The incident also came amid indirect talks between the US and Iran in Vienna to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
Thiruvananthapuram, May 11 : Often referred to as the 'Iron Lady in Kerala politics, legendary Communist K.R. Gowri passed away at a private hospital here on Tuesday, said family sources.

Gowri was 102-year-old and was admitted to a hospital here for the treatment of her age-related ailments.

She was a member of the world's first democratically elected Communist government cabinet led by Communist legend E.M.S. Nampoothiripad in 1957. Starting from the first Kerala Legislative Assembly till 1977, when she lost the elections, only to win it back at the next elections and then till 2006 was a legislator.

One of the achievements of her's was, she piloted the revolutionary Land Reform Bill of the first Communist government.

In her long career she was a State Minister for 16 years in six cabinets of both the Communists and the Congress.

In 1994, she was booted out of the CPI-M and she formed her own party- JSS and was with the Congress led UDF, until 2006, after which her party suffered splits and went into oblivion.

Born at Pattanakadu near Alappuzha, Gowri completed her graduation from Maharaja's College, Ernakulam and later received a Law degree from Government Law College at Ernakulam.

Gowri's chequered political career began with her election to the Travancore-Cochin Legislative Assembly in 1952 and 1954.

In 1957 she was elected to the Kerala Legislative Assembly and became the Revenue Minister in the first Communist ministry.

In the very same year she married T.V. Thomas, a prominent politician and also a minister in EMS' government.

After the split of Communist party in 1964, she joined the newly formed Communist Party of India (Marxist), while her husband, stood with the Communist Party of India, thereby paving the way of their separation .

Incidentally on June 20 in 2019 in a rare gesture, the Kerala Assembly decided to give a holiday to its session, in order for the members to take part in the centenary birthday celebrations of Gowri, to be held the next day.

Soon after Question Hour, Assembly speaker , P. Sreeramakrishnan invited the attention of the House and read out a statement pointing out that Gowri's centenary birthday celebrations is there at Alappuzha.

Soon Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan while congratulating the legendary Communist said that since the celebrations are being held at Alappuzha and many members will be attending, hence in the fitness of things, it would be better, if tomorrow's session can be postponed.

When Leader of opposition Ramesh Chennithala also heaped praises on Gowri and agreed to Vijayan's suggestion, the House was in unison to the demand and Sreeramakrishnan announced that there will be no sitting, the next day.

Condolences have started pouring in with all stating that she was the one who will always be remembered in the annals of Kerala and India's history of being a lady who through her iron will and determination came up and was at the top of the political scenario for almost eight decades.

With the Covid protocols in place, the Kerala government is planning on how to give her a memorable farewell.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Brussles, May 11 : The contract between the European Union (EU) and vaccine manufacturer AstraZeneca is valid until all the delivery of the the required Covid-19 doses, a spokesperson of the bloc announced here.

"The contract remains in force until the last doses are delivered," Xinhua news agency quoted Stefan de Keersmaecker, the European Commission's spokesperson for health, as saying citing a clause of the contract.

The Commission took AstraZeneca to court last month over its failure to respect the commitment to deliver Covid-19 vaccine doses to EU member states.

In total, AstraZeneca is supposed to deliver 300 million doses of its Covid-19 vaccine to the EU.

So far, the company has only delivered 30 million doses in the first quarter of 2021, rather than the 100 million doses originally promised for that period, according to the spokesperson.

AstraZeneca has promised to provide 70 million for the second quarter of 2021.

European Commission chief spokesperson Eric Mamer clarified that the current contract with AstraZeneca covers the 2020-2021 period.

The Commission negotiated with several vaccine manufacturers in Europe, investing in their production capacity in exchange for a promised number of vaccine doses.

Unfortunately, AstraZeneca was not able to honour the terms of its contract and fell behind schedule, said the Commission.

Reiterating that the Covid-19 vaccine from the company was "very important" for the EU's inoculation strategy, the bloc said that it doesn't wish to end the current contract, but wants to see the promised doses delivered.

"We are not saying that we want to terminate the contract... We just want to make sure that we can get to a situation where the company delivers the doses that have been set in the contract," said Mamer.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Chennai, May 11 : With Kamal Haasan (KH) proprietary company owned by actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan not cooperating, credit rating agency Crisil changed the firm's rating to CRISIL B+ /Stable/Issuer Not Cooperating.

Recently Crisil in a statement announced the migration of the proprietary business KH to CRISIL B+/Stable (Issuer Not Cooperating).

According to Crisil, it has been consistently following up with Kamal Haasan for obtaining information through letters and emails dated April 14, 2021 and April 19, 2021 among others, apart from telephonic communication. However, the issuer has remained non-cooperative.

"The investors, lenders and all other market participants should exercise due caution with reference to the rating assigned/reviewed with the suffix 'ISSUER NOT COOPERATING' as the rating is arrived at without any management interaction and is based on best available or limited or dated information on the company," Crisil said.

"Such non co-operation by a rated entity may be a result of deterioration in its credit risk profile. These ratings with 'ISSUER NOT COOPERATING' suffix lack a forward looking component," the rating agency added.

According to Crisil, KH is a proprietorship firm with interests in directing, acting, and producing mainly involved in Tamil film industry.

In January 2020 Crisil had rated KH as CRISIL B+/Stable for a total bank loan facility of Rs 25 crore.

"The rating reflects high degree of geographic concentration in revenue profile and exposure to risks inherent to the film industry. These weaknesses are partially mitigated by established presence and proprietor's extensive industry experience," Crisil then said.

As per the election nomination papers filed by Kamal Haasan while contesting in the Tamil Nadu Assembly polls in April, his total loan outstanding was about Rs 49.50 crore (housing/mortgage/insurance and other loans from Canara Bank about Rs 33.16 crore, loans from individuals/entities about Rs 15.33 crore and other liabilities about Rs 1.01 crore).

Kamal Haasan has floated a political party Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM). The party contested in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and 2021 Tamil Nadu Assembly polls and drew blank in both.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
May 11 : Ishaan Khatter shared a video on his Instagram profile and impressed his half-brother, Shahid Kapoor, and his Khaali Peeli co-star Ananya Panday. In the video, which appears to be a throwback one, the actor can be seen climbing a big rock with a safety harness wrapped around his waist. His friends can be heard cheering for him when he reached the top of the rock.

Sharing the video, Ishaan wrote, "We will climb every mountain that comes our way." An impressed Shahid took to the comments section and wrote, "Too too too good." Ananya also dropped a spider, a monkey, and a mushroom emoji on the comments section. The actors fans also praised him for his skills as one of them wrote, "damn gooood along with several fire emojis. Another Instagram user wrote, "Let's climb it together." Yet another fan wrote, "Waaaaooo So proud of you! Keep moisturising your hands and wear the sunscreen."

Ishaan Khatter and Ananya Panday are rumoured to be dating each other. The rumoured couple grabbed attention on social media when they were spotted at a lunch date together on Valentines Day this year. The actors also went together for a short vacay to the Maldives to ring in the New Year 2021.

Meanwhile, on the work front, Ishaan was last seen in Khaali Peeli opposite Ananya Pandey. Helmed by Maqbool Khan, the film skipped the big screen and was released on ZeePlex directly. The actor has completed shooting Phone Bhoot, where he will share screen space with Katrina Kaif and Siddhant Chaturvedi. Directed by Gurmeet Singh, and written by Ravi Shankaran and Jasvinder Singh Bath, the horror comedy was scheduled for a 2021 release. But since all shootings are halted now and owning to the current COVID-19 pandemic, the release of the film may be postponed to 2022.
Chennai, May 11 : Cutting down the penalty recommended by its Adjudicative Officer by Rs 70 lakh, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has penalised SBI General Insurance Company Ltd Rs 30 lakh for repeatedly violating Insurance Act and the regulations.

The charge against SBI General Insurance Company was that it had repeatedly failed to comply with Section 32D of the Insurance Act and the IRDAI (Obligation of Insurer in respect of Motor Third Party Insurance Business) Regulations, 2015 that mandates underwriting of minimum motor third party insurance business.

The SBI General Insurance violated Section 32D during 2018-19, 2016-17 and 2017-18.

According to IRDAI, the insurer should have underwritten motor third party insurance business of Rs 638.34 crore but did only Rs.316.36 crore resulting in a shortfall of Rs.321.98 crore.

Similarly, during 2016-17 and 2017-18 the shortfall was Rs 146.11 crore and Rs 104.60 crore respectively.

The Adjudicative Officer had recommended a penalty of Rs 1 crore.

Deciding to cut down the penalty by Rs.70 lakh, the IRDAI Chairman Subhash C Khuntia in his order said taking into account the repetitive nature violation and the submissions of the insurer that they have fulfilled and marginally exceeded their obligations for financial years 2019-20 and 2020-21 a penalty of Rs 30 lakh is imposed on SBI General Insurance.
May 11 : Several Bollywood celebs are doing their bit in contributing towards COVID relief as the country is fighting the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. Huma Qureshi has also joined hands with an NGO, Save the Children, a global child rights organisation, and has pledged to help the organisation to work towards relief work in Delhi.

Huma has contributed to Save the Children to build a temporary hospital facility in Delhi that will have 100 beds for COVID patients along with an oxygen plant. The project also aims to provide medical kits to COVID patients who are quarantined at home. They will get a consultation with a doctor and psycho-social therapist to ensure that they are fully recovered.

Huma took to Twitter and shared a video urging people to donate for the cause. "Just like you all, I am pained and horrified by this deadly second wave and now is the time for us to support each other. I have partnered with Save The Children, a global child rights organisation," the actor said in the video.

Ive joined hands with @stc_india help Delhi fight the pandemic.

We are working to build a temporary hospital facility in Delhi, that will have a 100 beds along with an oxygen plant. Please support us  #BreathofLife https://t.co/5RuMP0u0NG pic.twitter.com/bgRuOgfGKq  Huma S Qureshi (@humasqureshi) May 10, 2021

The actress further said, As you all know our medical system is so overburdened and Delhi, our capital, is in dire need of help. These last few weeks, I along with Save The Children have been working on something very specific - a breath of life. We plan to set up a 100 bed COVID facility in the city. This emergency medical facility will have experienced medical professionals, medication and its own oxygen plant. For patients at home, we will give COVID care kits and teleconsultation and much more. Me and my family have donated but I will need your help. Every contribution saved a life and no donation is too small. So please, I urge you to help us to help each other. Urging her fans to donate to the initiative, Huma wrote, "Take the pledge with me, help breath life back into Delhi."

Meanwhile, on the work front, Huma Qureshi shot the film Bell Bottom in Scotland amidst the pandemic last year. The film stars Akshay Kumar and Vaani Kapoor in the lead roles. The actress will soon make her Hollywood debut with the upcoming Zack Snyder's thriller Army of the Dead.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
May 11 : Amidst Bollywoods efforts to do its best to contribute to the COVID relief work, Amitabh Bachchan reacted to people who accuse the Hindi film industry for not doing enough as India is battling the second wave of COVID-19 which has devastated the country. Taking to his blog, the megastar listed out his contributions while he responded to the distasteful comments of the netizens on social media.

The superstar wrote that it is embarrassing to reveal the donations made by him and his family. Yes I do charity, but have ever believed it to be done, than spoken of.. it is embarrassing, is too great a self consciousness..., the Peku star wrote in his blog.

The pressure though .. the every day abuse and the filth of distasteful comment has never been of attention to me or to the family .. we have seen it from time immemorial .. happens .. some are ridden with the wisdom that it shall happen .. so all the efforts continued in the quiet .. no divulge to the information agencies .. no talk of it either .. only the receiver knew and that was the end, he added.

Fed up of the distasteful comments that Bollywood celebs are not helping the country during the current tough times, Big B listed out all the contributions he did towards COVID relief.

The super star pointed out that he had provided food for over 400,000 daily wage earners in the country for a month last year. He also fed lunch and dinner to about 5000 people in Mumbai each day for a month. Big B also provided masks and PPE kits to front line warriors, police, hospitals, etc in the thousands. He also donated to the Sikh Committee to help the migrants to travel back home in inter state buses. The actor also provided chappals to the migrants who were walking back home, some without any shoes or chappals. He had also provided travel facility to the migrants by booking 30 buses to drop them in UP and Bihar. They were also given food and water during the journey.

Amitabh Bachchan had also booked an entire train from Mumbai to UP to carry 2800 migrant passengers free of cost at his expense. When UP blocked the train from entering the state, the super star immediately chartered three Indigo Airline planes and flew all the migrants to their destinations in UP, Bihar, Rajasthan and J&K.

Senior Bachchan also donated an entire diagnostic centre, opened at Bangla Sahib Gurudwara in Delhi by the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee. The diagnostic centre was opened in the memory of his nana, naani and his mother. Bachchan also helped set up a 450 bed care centre at Rakabganj Sahib Gurudwara in Delhi. He has also donated oxygen concentrators to Delhi and Mumbai. These concentrators will come from overseas places like Poland, the US and other places.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Islamabad, May 11 : Pakistan has barred its citizens under 40 years of age and those with a history of severe allergic reaction to any component of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine from taking the jab, the Health Ministry said.

According to the interim guidelines issued by the Ministry on Sunday about administering the AstraZeneca vaccine, people who developed blood clotting issues after receiving the first dose of the vaccine should not take the second dose, reports Xinhua news agency.

Those with active gastrointestinal bleeding or seizure, or a history of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and thrombosis are also stopped from opting to get the AstraZeneca vaccine administered, the guidelines said.

The decision follows reports in some countries of rare blood clotting and low platelets events in people, especially those below 50 years, after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine, local media reported.

Pakistan received its first shipment of the AstraZeneca vaccines on May 8 under the COVAX Facility, a World Health Organization-led initiative aimed at ensuring equal access to Covid-19 vaccines by various countries, according to the reports.

Pakistan is currently facing a third wave the pandemic, and to bring the situation under control, the government is taking stringent measures including locking down almost the whole country during the ongoing Eid al-Fitr holidays, and accelerating the vaccination process.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Chennai, May 11 : AIADMK coordinator and former Deputy Chief minister O. Panneerselvam (OPS) who was pipped by former Chief minister, Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) for the post of Leader of Opposition, has rejected the party offer of the post of Deputy leader in the Tamil Nadu assembly.

At the meeting held at the AIADMK headquarters on Monday, 61 of the 66 MLA's threw their weight behind EPS, forcing Panneerselvam to accept the ground reality. A senior leader of the party who is also a legislator, while speaking to IANS said, "OPS had tried to push the name of former Speaker P. Dhanapal for the post of opposition leader but in vain and he left the party headquarters in a huff".

This rift, which was there in the AIADMK ever since Jayalalithaa passed away and Sasikala was arrested in corruption charges, was settled amicably by the intervention of the central leadership of the BJP with even Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home minister Amit Shah involving directly in talks with the two leaders.

However, with the party out of power and the Thevar community, one of the major support base of the AIADMK in South Tamil Nadu, dividing their votes between AIADMK and AMMK of TTV Dhinakaran, the AIADMK had to bite the dust in South Tamil Nadu.

The rejection of the post of Deputy leader by Panneerselvam is a clear indication that he will not lie low in the party and there are possibilities of a rift.

Political observers feel there could be a realignment of forces with the powerful Thevar community backing their own leader, Panneerselvam. The possibilities of Sasikala and Dhinakaran extending support to Panneerselvam is also not ruled out.

P. Sivakumar, journalist and political observer while speaking to IANS said, "AIADMK is losing its Thevar base in South Tamil Nadu and it was mainly due to the split of votes to AMMK of Dhinakaran. While Dhinakaran lost in Kovilpatti, the split has helped DMK garner victories in these traditional AIADMK bastions. This will trigger the rift and OPS rejecting the post of Deputy leader is an indication that the future is not rosy for the AIADMK and EPS. If caste turns into a factor, then EPS, a Gounder will face stiff opposition from the Thevar community and it has to be seen whether Sasikala and Dhinakaran will support OPS in this fight." If the AIADMK was in power, these minor rifts could have been given a go by but with the party out of power and even the selection of opposition leader turning into a bitter experience, days ahead will be tough for EPS.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Kuwait City, May 11 : Kuwait will lift the partial Covid-19 curfew starting from the first day of Eid al-Fitr festival, but some activities would remain restricted, the government announced.

At a press conference on Monday, the Kuwaiti government spokesman Tareq Al-Mezrem said the government decided to close all commercial activities from 8 p.m. until 5 a.m. starting the from first day of Eid al-Fitr, except for pharmacies, food marketing outlets, restaurants, and maintenance services, Xinhua news agency.

Restaurants and cafes will be allowed to receive orders but only for takeaways at their doorstep, the spokesman added.

In addition, the government decided to reopen cinemas and theatres for people who have received a Covid-19 vaccine, and to continue the ban on entry of non-Kuwaiti travellers except for those approved by authorities, Al-Mezrem said.

Earlier in the day, Kuwait Directorate General for Civil Aviation announced indefinite suspension of direct commercial flights from Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, except for cargo flights.

Kuwait has so far reported 286,046 confirmed coronavirus cases and 1,652 deaths.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 11 : Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Tuesday countered the BJP raising the issue of Central Vista project.

In a series of tweets, he said: "BJP spokesperson charges Delhi government with spending crores of rupees on advertisements without using the money for improving health infrastructure. Criticism justified." "BJP government spending a small amount of Rs 20,000 crore for the Central Vista including a modest new house for the PM. Criticism unjustified," he said in another tweet.

Mounting an attack on the government on Covid management, in another tweet, Chidambaram said, "The three governing principles of pandemic management -- 1. Deny shortages of anything. If there are multiple media reports of shortages, deny more vigorously. 2. Test less people, report less new infections. 3. Bury numbers reported from cremation and burial grounds, report less Covid related deaths, report lower TFR." Congress has been at forefront of criticising the Central Vista project in Lutyens Zone and has alleged that the BJP has lost its priorities and Congress is of view that same money should be spent for vaccination process and Covid management

The Congress working committee in its resolution on Monday had said that it expresses its revulsion at the shocking expenditure priorities of the Modi government. At a time when the nation's resources should be devoted to ensuring expansion of vaccination coverage and supply of essential medicines and oxygen, the Modi government is indulging in waste of money by continuing with the personal vanity project of the Prime Minister in the national capital. This is the height of callousness and insensitivity as also an insult to the people of the country."

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Gaza, May 11 : The Islamic Hamas movemnet has claimed responsibility for firing over 45 rockets from Gaza into Israel.

"Hamas military wing al-Qassam Brigades struck occupied Jerusalem with a barrage of rockets," Xinhua news agency quoted a spokesman of al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas, as saying on Monday night.

"Firing the rockets was a response to the occupier's crimes and aggression against the holy city and harassing our people at Al-Aqsa Mosque and the neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah," the spokesman added.

Eyewitnesses said they saw dozens of rockets were launched and white smokes rising into the sky.

They also heard the sound of explosions after Israel's Iron Dome missile defence system intercepted some of the rockets.

Meanwhile, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Jonathan Conricus said that the rockets mostly landed in open areas on the border with Gaza.

"This is a very severe assault on Israel by Hamas that will not go unanswered," Conricus said in a video briefing.

"We have made preparations for various scenarios, including high intensity ones," he said.

"We asses that Hamas will get the message and will understand they are the ones facing severe consequences from us." An Israeli man was lightly hurt by shrapnel from anti-tank missile near the Gaza border, according to the Israeli military.

Meanwhile, al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), claimed responsibility for attacking an Israeli army jeep near the borders between the northern Gaza Strip and Israel.

The PIJ said in a statement that it launched more than 30 rockets from Gaza into southern Israel, adding the attacks are "a response to the crimes against Al-Aqsa Mosque and against our people in East Jerusalem".

Earlier in the day, Israeli police clashed with Palestinians in Jerusalem. Palestinian protesters say Israel has been invading the holy site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and evicting Palestinians from homes in Jerusalem in order to make room for Jewish settlers.

Hundreds of Palestinians and dozens of Israeli troops have been injured in the recent clashes.

Tensions have been been flaring up over the past few days amid the escalating violence in East Jerusalem between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli forces.
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Srinagar, May 11 : One terrorist was killed in an ongoing encounter between terrorists and security forces in South Kashmir's Anantnag district on Tuesday, officials said.

The firefight at Vailoo in Kokernag took place after a joint team of the police and the army cordoned off the area and launched a search operation on the basis of specific information about presence of militants.

As the security forces zeroed in on the spot where terrorists were hiding they came under a heavy volume of fire that triggered the encounter.

"One terrorist killed in Anantnag encounter. Operation is going on," police said.
Mumbai, May 11 : Actor Jackie Shroff has been working in Bollywood for around four decades. The actor, who will soon be seen in the Salman Khan-starrer "Radhe", is more than happy with the kind of roles he is getting now as he says makers are willing to experiment while casting him.

"I love it. They are all experimenting with me. Someone is doing OK Computer, Phone Bhoot, Hello Charlie, Criminal Justice, Sooryavanshi... I am just flowing with the tide," he told IANS.

"Then, I am lucky to work in a film like Radhe. It is a lot of fun," he added.

"I am just keeping my health, my disciples, keeping the respect for people. Trying to spread good knowledge as much as I can about plants," said the veteran artiste.

"Radhe", Jackie's latest outing is a Prabhu Deva-directed action drama that co-stars Disha Patani and Randeep Hooda with the film's talismanic hero Salman. The film will release on May 13 on the occasion of Eid in India, on the pay-per-view platform Zeeplex.

-- Syndicated from IANS
Patna, May 11 : Patna police on Tuesday arrested former MP and Jan Adhikar Party (JAP) president Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav for flouting lockdown rules.

A DSP rank officer along with large number of police force reached at his official residence Mandiri on Tuesday morning and arrested him. Initially, he was taken into house arrest but later he was taken to police station at Gandhi Maidan.

An official of Patna police confirmed his arrest.

"We have arrested him on the charge of violating lockdown in Patna. He has visited several hospitals during the lockdown which attributes to violation of rules under Epidemic Diseases Act," an officer of Gandhi Maidan police station said.

Besides this, Saran police also registered an FIR against Pappu Yadav for damaging the government properties on the day he raided at Amnaur office of Rajiv Pratap Rudy and accused him of 'hoarding' 39 ambulances inside his office campus. Yadav claims that the land belongs to Rajiv Pratap Rudy.

Sources, however, have said that the state government is acting in a vengeful manner against JAP chief for exposing Rudy who kept 39 ambulances in his office campus.

Pappu Yadav had said that these ambulances would have been used in a better way at the time of the pandemic.

"The people of Bihar are struggling for ambulances. They are forced to pay Rs 7,000 to Rs 25,000 for taking patients and dead bodies. Many patients and dead bodies have been transported in carts and bicycles in several districts of Bihar. On the other hand Rudy kept 39 ambulances in his office premises. The ambulances were purchased through MP fund in 2019," Yadav had said.

Reacting to it, Rajiv Pratap Rudy claimed that the ambulances were stationed in absence of drivers.
Kathmandu, May 11 : Hours after Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli lost a vote of confidence, President Bidhya Devi Bhandari has called on political parties to form a coalition government within Thursday.

Since no political party commands a majority in the House as per the Article 76 (2) of the Constitution, the President on Monday evening urged the political parties to form the government.

After the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) withdrew its support, as per the constitutional provision Oli had proposed to seek the vote of confidence.

Out of 232 lawmakers present in the House on Monday, 93 votes were cast in favour of Oli, while 124 votes were cast against him.

As many as 15 lawmakers stayed neutral.

Oli needed 136 votes to win the vote of confidence in the 271-House of Representative.

"President Bidya Devi Bhandari has called the parties represented in the House of Representatives to present their claim for the purpose of appointing a member of the House of Representatives commanding majority in Parliament as Prime Minister as per Article 76(2) by 9 p.m., Thursday," a statement from her office said.

With the call from the President Office, now it is up to the opposition parties to form the coalition government .

Three opposition parties, Nepali Congress, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) and Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) have to initiate the process of government formation if they do not divide.

JSP Chairman Maantha Thakur, who stayed neutral in the voting process, declined to join the new government, making it difficult for the opposition parties to form the new government.

Thakur, a Madhesi leader, on Monday night issued a statement and declined to join the new coalition government, adding that he supported Oli.

Another Madhesi leader, Upendra Yadav, who is also a chairman of the JSP, has voted against Oli and agreed to join the coalition government.

So without the party's full 32 votes, chances of forming an alternative government will be nil and Oli will be re-elected as Prime Minister as a capacity of the largest party in the House.

As soon as Oli failed the trust motion, which he tabled earlier in the day, the Nepali Congress, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) and a faction of the JSP led by Yadav issued a joint statement calling on President Bhandari to invoke Article 76 (2) of the Constitution to pave the way for the formation of a new government.
Baghdad, May 11 : Iraqi health authorities have said that the country's laboratories don't have the ability to identify the double mutant coronavirus variant detected in India until a new testing lab is erected.

Riyadh Abdul-Amir, head of the Public Health Department, told the official Iraqi News Agency on Monday that the Indian variant cannot be identified until the building of the new genetic testing laboratory for viruses is completed in two months, reports Xinhua news agency.

"We still do not know whether the vaccines are effective, but taking vaccines is still the best option for citizens," Abdul-Amir noted.

Meanwhile, a statement by the Ministry of Health reported 4,902 new Covid-19 cases, raising the total nationwide tally to 1,117,627.

It also reported 29 new fatalities, raising the death toll to 15,800, while the total recoveries climbed to 1,011,606.

A total of 9,707,527 tests have been carried out across the country since the outbreak of the disease in February 2020.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Srinagar, May 11 : Two more terrorists have been killed in an ongoing encounter at Vailoo, Kokernag in South Kashmir's Anantnag district on Tuesday, taking the toll of terrorists killed in the encounter to three, officials said.

Earlier, one terrorist was killed in the encounter. The search operation is in progress in the area.

The firefight between terrorists and security forces started after a joint team of the police and the army cordoned off the area and launched a search operation on the basis of specific information about the presence of terrorists.

As the security forces zeroed in on the spot where terrorists were hiding they came under a heavy volume of fire that triggered the encounter.

"Two more terrorists killed in Anantnag encounter. Total three terrorists were killed. Search is going on," police said.
New Delhi, May 11 : "Presence on social media also commands a certain responsibility", says fashion influencer Masoom Minawala Mehta There is such a cloud around the term "influencers"; in today's digital world an influencer is a person who has a sizeable following on social media and the leverage to influence the consumption habits of others. Many of them are just ordinary people who have the "smarts" to understand how to use the power of social media. Within fashion, these influencers often wield more power than many fashion editors. Though many of them have never worked in the industry and some of them do not even know the difference between a bishop and a butterfly sleeve, if it wasn't for google. The way they turn weddings and birthdays into branded celebrations, (aka "creative collaborations") has raised many an eyebrow. But this is not the time for such judgments.

Love them or hate them, they are now part of the media world, with brands paying them the big bucks for endorsements, and with women turning to them for style advice. While they certainly don't influence me, the last couple of weeks have made me look at influencing in a new light. As the crisis in India took a catastrophic U-turn none of us expected, many influencers changed their approach to content. They used their platforms to put out relevant information and stopped all brand activities before any of the fashion publications or fashion brands did, putting this crisis at the centre of their content.

One of the most followed fashion influencers in India is Masoom Minawala Mehta. Masoom started life as a blogger, Miss Style Fiesta, she now lives in Belgium and is one of the more experienced digital content creators. She has been on the covers of magazines and has a voice that many global Indians listen to. While she was perhaps not a "first mover" influencer to respond to the current crisis in India she has been effective, which is what counts. From encouraging her followers to be Instagram warriors, to talking about how to stay calm in a crisis; she even started her own crowdsourcing drive.

Now the thirty something fashion influencer has raised over Rs 50 lakh for the Hemkunt Foundation (an NGO based on the Sikh principle of 'Welfare for All'), whose work at this time has been exemplary. Among their on-ground activities is opening an oxygen centre in Gurgaon, that is open 24 hours and can assist up to 500 patients at one time for oxygen. Says the young influencer, "presence on social media also commands a certain responsibility". She had hoped to raise about Rs 20 lakh when she started her campaign just over a week ago, but the response has made Masoom want to set her bar even higher. "No one would be happier if we can touch one crore rupees. We have seen a great deal of support coming in not only from India but from across the world." Of course, every penny, paisa and cent matters right now, and her story is just one example of how this crisis has shown the resilience and the community spirit of India. Even with the current loss that many have suffered, all Indians, no matter where we live, lost someone that was near and dear to us. (Masoom herself lost her Nani this weekend to Covid-19). And sometimes the best way for us to cope, with the grief, anger or whatever emotion you are feeling is to do something. It could be lending a shoulder to someone; it could be using your social platform to amplify medical requests or it could be just staying home and keeping your family safe. We all have some influence, and how you exert it matters.

If you can and have the means to donate--- please do so--just make sure it is the right platform, where the money is going toward is what is needed in these times. And it does not matter whether it is a family member, friend, a celebrity or a social media personality who helps you verify this information, because at the end of the day we are in this together.

The writer Sujata Assomull is an IANSlife columnist. Assomull is the author "100 Iconic Bollywood Costumes" and was the Founding Editor In Chief of Harper's Bazaar, India.

(IANSlife Features can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in)
Baghdad, May 11 : US experts and advisers for F-16 fighter jets withdrew from Iraq's Balad Air Base after a series of rocket attacks targeted the air base in Salahudin province, sources said.

"Up to 72 experts flew before noon by a military aircraft from Balad Air Base and headed to Erbil, the capital of the Iraqi semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan," an army source told Xinhua news agency on Monday night.

A Salahudin provincial security source also confirmed to Xinhua that the US team of experts withdrew from Balad Air Base, some 80 km north of Baghdad, and headed to Erbil.

Balad, which houses Iraqi F-16 jet fighters, is the largest military air base in Iraq.

Previously, the US troops also withdrew more than a year ago after the airbase came under a series of rocket attacks by unidentified militias.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi said at a media briefing that "the absurd rockets do not target the Americans, because Balad Air Base contains Iraqi aircraft and Iraqi forces, and what is happening embarrasses Iraq".

The Iraqi military bases housing US troops across Iraq and the American embassy in the Green Zone have been frequently targeted by mortar and rocket attacks.
New Delhi, May 11 : BJP President Jagat Prakash Nadda in a letter to Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi lashed out at her party and said that in the fight against the pandemic the conduct of topmost Congress leaders, including their former President Rahul Gandhi will be remembered for its "duplicity and pettiness".

He also urged that the top echelons of the Congress would stop misleading people, creating false panic and even contradicting their stands just based on political considerations.

In a four page letter, Nadda wrote, "In this fight against the pandemic, the conduct of the topmost Congress leaders including former Congress President Rahul Gandhi will be remembered for duplicity and pettiness." "Your party, under your leadership, is doing no favours to itself by opposing lockdowns and then demanding for the same, ignoring the Centre's advisories on the second wave of Covid and then saying they did not get any information, holding massive election rallies in Kerala causing a spike in Covid cases while grandstanding about election rallies elsewhere, supporting protests but speaking about following Covid guidelines," Nadda said.

Image Source: IANS News

The BJP chief pointed that even when the second wave was on the rise, Congress party leaders were happier being seen in super spreader political events in North India, where there was no regard for masks or social distancing. This is not the era when such information can be erased from public memory.

Lashing out at Rahul, Nadda said conduct of Rahul and other top leaders will be remembered for duplicity and pettiness. Nadda told Sonia that Congress is not doing any favours to itself by demanding lockdowns and then opposing the same, holding massive rallies in Kerala and grandstanding about rallies elsehwhere.

Nadda added that some states failed to track the rising cases. "Why are mortality rates so high in Punjab? These are questions you must ask your own Chief Ministers," Nadda said pointing fingers at Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.

He mentioned that there are other aspects that also need greater thought for instance, the data from February and March would reveal which states failed to track the rising cases.

Pointing to the Union Government criticism for the Central Vista project by Congress, Nadda wrote, "Now, there is a new trend in the Congress party to put all the blame on the Central Vista project. I would like to remind you that the need for a new Parliament was raised as early as the UPA times." He wrote that former Lok Sabha Speaker, Meira Kumar had underscored the need for a new Parliament building. "The Union Urban Development Minister has addressed a large number of other queries regarding the project. Yet, the Congress does not believe in facts. People are also contrasting the Congress' stand on Central Vista with the Chhattisgarh Government going ahead to build a new assembly complex," he wrote.

He further wrote, "I could go on about such follies but as said, our focus is solely on the pandemic and not on politics. My letter to you is not only as the President of another political party. I have also had the honour of serving of as India's Health Minister. I have seen at close quarters the sacrifices our medical staff make so that others are healthy. They risk their lives so that fellow Indians can unite with their families. " "You must ask yourselves - in times as these, is your party's conduct weakening the morale of these Covid-warriors? Deliberately or otherwise, are your actions trying to weaken this fight against Covid-19?," he wrote.

Nadda said that the Congress tried to mock the efforts during development of the vaccine, then ridiculed it and created doubts in the minds of the people. "In a country with no recent history of vaccine hesitancy, Your party has the dubious record of actively trying to create, that too, in the middle of a once in a century pandemic," Nadda said to Sonia Gandhi.

Nadda assured that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India's fight against Covid is driven by unwavering belief in principles of science, support to innovation, trust in our Covid warriors and cooperative federalism.

Nadda said under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India's fight against Covid is driven by unwavering belief in principles of science, support to innovation, trust in our Covid warriors and cooperative federalism.

"I assure you that the Government of India will continue being proactive so that we defeat the virus and get ahead with economic as well as social empowerment," Nadda told Sonia Gandhi.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- Syndicated from IANS
Shimla, May 11 : With Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur continuing to motivate the panchayat heads to play a crucial role to trace and quarantine all those who returned from other states, authorities of the remote Kaza subdivision have gone one step ahead to ensure the community protection from the pandemic.

It has framed its own Covid-19 health protocols that include mandatory rapid test for all those who are coming to the area, even from within the state, as there is a shortage of health infrastructure.

Most of the visitors, comprising a large of construction workers, are now voluntarily prefer quarantine for minimum 14 days to contain the spread of the virus, a government official, who is daily monitoring the arrival of people, told IANS.

The picturesque Spiti Valley in Kaza subdivision, a cold desert dotted by tiny hamlet spread over the Himalayan peaks, adjoining Tibet, takes you to a land of Buddhism and virgin nature.

Currently, the footfall of the tourists is almost negligible. The arrival is mainly of the construction workers from Bihar and Jharkhand and Himalayan nation Nepal.

As per the local health bulletin, a total of 651 tested positive till date and 611 of them recovered. The active cases are 37. Three deaths have been reported.

Kaza subdivision was the first in Himachal Pradesh last year to sanitise the entire block to prevent the spread of the pandemic.

"A special testing post was set up at the entry point in Hurling on Monday where every visitor is tested for Covid-19. Those who tested positive are either advised home isolation or sent to government quarantine centres," Additional District Magistrate Gyan Sagar Negi told IANS over phone from Kaza.

He said 13 people were tested on the first day at the special testing post and all of them tested negative.

Block Medical Officer Tenzin Norbu said seven people recovered from the virus on Monday, while two new cases reported in Kaza, some 320 km from the state capital.

Amid the surge in the coronavirus cases, the state last month made it mandatory that the visitors entering the state must produce Covid negative report of 72 hours.

Also they will have to remain under home isolation for 14 days and give information regarding their arrival to the local authorities as well as elected representatives of Panchayati Raj institutions and urban local bodies.

The hill state is currently under curfew till May 16 with a daily relaxation of three hours.

Additional District Magistrate Negi said the double testing -- one at the state's entry point and another while entering the subdivision -- ensures tracing of each and every visitor, comprising government employees and locals who are returning to their native places.

He said people above the age of 65 and below 10 years are not allowed to participate in a marriage.

Kaza subdivision in Lahaul-Spiti district reported 46 positive cases in the past two weeks.

Last year local women dared state Cabinet minister Ram Lal Markanda, a local legislator too, to go back as he was violating the 'local' health protocol of mandatory quarantine for all those who were coming to Kaza.

Sensing trouble, the minister preferred to leave the place and headed straight to the state capital.

Notably, Kaza is a Schedule V area and the constitution empowers the local communities for self-governance.

The locals -- largely Buddhist residing at an altitude between 3,000 metre and 4,000 metre -- cultivate the green peas, potatoes, barley and wheat on soil that is dry and lacks organic matter.

These traditional cash crops are grown in summer and cultivated in August-September.

The farming is based on snow-fed 'kul' irrigation system -- channels to carry water from glacier to the fields.

The picturesque Spiti Valley, the paradise that straddles both India and Tibet, comprising over two dozen small, scattered villages, remains cut off owing to heavy snow accumulation for at least six months in the year.

It reopens once snow starts thawing after mid-April.

(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Geneva, May 11 : Global cooperation, instead of competition and confrontation, is the only choice to end the Covid-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said while addressing the disparity in access to vaccines worldwide.

"The shocking global disparity in access to vaccines remains one of the biggest risks to ending the pandemic," Tedros said at a press briefing here on Monday.

According to the WHO's data, high- and upper-middle income countries, with 53 percent of the world's population, have received 83 per cent of the world's vaccines, while low- and lower-middle income countries, with 47 per cent of the world's population, have received just 17 per cent of the jabs, Xinhua news agency reported.

Tedros expressed his belief that cooperation is the "only choice" to end this pandemic.

"We cannot defeat this pandemic through competition, we can't. If you compete for resources, or if you compete for geopolitical advantages, then the virus gets advantage," the Director-General said, stressing a "very basic principle of identifying the virus as a common enemy".

Despite declines in numbers of new Covid-19 cases in most regions including the Americas and Europe, the two worst-affected regions, the world has been witnessing an "unacceptably high plateau", with more than 5.4 million cases and almost 90,000 deaths reported last week, Tedros said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Srinagar, May 11 : Kashmir cyber police said on Tuesday that it has successfully recovered Rs 13 lakh which were collected in multiple cyber frauds by scamsters.

A police spokesman said that in one incident, one complainant was duped of Rs 2 lakh through UPI scam.

"The complainant had dialed a fake Air Asia Airlines Call Centre number that he found on Google search. He wanted to seek a refund for the cancellation of his ticket. As he was struggling to find a customer care number, he googled it and dialed a number from the search results.

"He immediately received back call and was told that the refund amount could be transferred immediately via Google Pay and he would have to download a mobile application called Team Viewer Quick Support on his cell phone.

"The Victim followed the steps dictated to him by the fraudster and downloaded the app (Team Viewer Quick Support) on his cell phone. The fraudster also directed him to open his banking app.

"The fraudster took control of his cell phone through Team Viewer Quick Support app and withdrew an amount of Rs 2 lakh from his bank account.

"The Victim after realizing that he had been trapped in a cyber fraud immediately contacted Cyber Police Station, Kashmir Zone, Srinagar and narrated the whole story.

"Cyber Police Kashmir acted swiftly and with strenuous efforts were able to save Rs. 2 lakhs of the victim.

"These scams happen when the victim opens online banking app or UPI app on his phone to do a transaction, without knowing that someone is watching through Team Viewer Quick Support.

"It is a legitimate app which is a remote desktop software tool, which provides a third party access.

"In OTP frauds multiple complaints were received regarding Vishing (OTP) scams wherein the complainants got fraud phone calls from fraudsters claiming to be officers from the Bank.

"These fraudsters convinced the complainants and informed them that their debit cards (ATM card) have been blocked and are due for renewal. In order to renew the ATM cards the complainants were asked to share the card details along with 06 digits OTP received on their cell phones.

"The victims having no knowledge about these scams shared their card details along with OTP due to which an amount of Rs 11 Lakhs were deducted from their bank accounts.

"The complainants contacted the Cyber Police Kashmir immediately and with strenuous efforts Cyber Police Kashmir was able to block an amount of Rs 11 Lakh and refunded back into the complainant's accounts.

"Amidst Covid-19 pandemic when the public is dependent on cyber platforms, the vulnerability of getting trapped into cyber scams/frauds gets increased. The public should refrain from downloading any remote taking apps like Team viewer quick support, Anydesk App etc or dialing fake helpline or customer care numbers found on Google search engine.

"If you or your family member gets Corona positive, you may receive a fraud call from cyber criminal that Covid-19 help will be provided, moreover fraudsters may also ask for an advance payment and promise to provide an oxygen cylinder via home delivery, vaccines etc. don't fall prey to these fraudsters", the spokesman said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Moscow, May 11 : At least nine people, including children, were killed and 10 others injured on Tuesday after two individuals opened fire at a school in the Russian city of Kazan, authorities said, adding that one of the suspects was arrested.

The source confirmed to the TASS News Agency that the victims comprised eight children and a teacher and among the 10 injured, four were rushed to a local hospital.

According to a TASS source in the law enforcement agencies, the shooting took place at the school No. 175 in Kazan located in the Tatarstan Region.

One of the attackers, a teenager aged 17, has been detained, while the perpetrator is still in the building, the source added.

Evacuation of the building is underway, while some students jumped out of windows, the TASS news report added.

An eyewitness told the news agency the attackers had carried out an explosion and then went on a shooting spree.
Hyderabad, May 11 : The Telangana High Court on Tuesday pulled up state authorities for stopping ambulances carrying Covid-19 patients from Andhra Pradesh to Hyderabad.

The court took serious note of reports that Covid patients coming to Hyderabad for treatment were stopped at inter-state border and were turned away.

A division bench of Chief Justice Hima Kohli and Justice B. Vijaysen Reddy questioned the authorities as to how can they stop ambulances when there are no restrictions on inter-state movement.

"Is this humanity," the court asked. It wanted to know who gave the order to stop ambulances.

The court on Tuesday took up hearing of petitions relating to Covid situation in Telangana. Police commissioners of Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Rachakonda and commissioner of Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) appeared before the court.

The court voiced its unhappiness over ineffective implementation of night curfew. The bench wondered if the state government plans to take further measures for Covid control after Ramzan.

It wanted to know why the gatherings at religious places were not being controlled.

The court expressed disappointment over the drop in number of Covid tests. It observed that while the court is directing for ramping up testing, the authorities are further cutting down on the numbers. It remarked that flouting court order is unfortunate and warned that officials may have to face contempt of court proceedings.

Advocate General Prasad informed the court that the state cabinet is meeting Tuesday afternoon to take decision on Covid control measures. The bench asked him to convey its concern to the cabinet.

The court asked the government to submit a report with details of all proposed Covid control measures. It adjourned the hearing till the cabinet meeting.

The cabinet meeting to be presided over by Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao will discuss that the surge in the Covid cases and take a decision on the imposition of lockdown in the State.

"There are reports that suggest that despite certain states imposing the lockdown there is no decrease in the number of cases. Against this backdrop, different opinions are emerging on the lockdown. Some sections are arguing in favour of the imposition of lockdown. Under these circumstances, the State cabinet would discuss the pros and cons and also the adverse impact the lockdown may have on the ongoing procurement of the Paddy and it will take a decision," said Chief Minister's Office on Monday.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 11 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bhutanese counterpart Lotay Tshering on Tuesday discussed Covid-19 pandemic's impact on both the countries and their efforts against the recent wave of the virus.

Both the leaders discussed the issued in a telephonic conversation earlier in the day.

The Bhutan Prime Minister expressed solidarity with the Indian government and the people here in their efforts against the Covid-19 or coronavirus disease which so far has infected 2,29,92,517 people with 37,15,221 active cases and 2,49,992 deaths.

PM Modi conveyed his sincere thanks to the people and government of Bhutan for their good wishes and support.

Modi also appreciated the leadership of the Bhutanese Prime Minister in managing Bhutan's fight against the pandemic and extended his best wishes to Tshering for the continuing efforts.

The leaders noted that the present crisis situation has served to further highlight the special friendship between India and Bhutan, anchored in mutual understanding and respect, shared cultural heritage, and strong people-to-people links.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Seoul, May 11 : Park Ji-won, South Korea's intelligence agency chief, left for Tokyo on Tuesday to meet his Japanese and US counterparts.

Park Ji-won, director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), will reportedly hold a trilateral meeting in Tokyo with US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and Hiroaki Takizawa, director of Japan's cabinet intelligence, reports Xinhua news agency.

It is being reported that the officials will discuss situations in Northeast Asia and the new US policy towards North Korea.

The administration of US President Joe Biden recently announced that it had completed the review of its North Korean policy.

Separately, Park will meet Toshihiro Nikai, secretary general of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party.

In November last year, Park visited Japan to meet Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and deliver South Korean President Moon Jae-in's intention to improve the bilateral relations.

The Seoul-Tokyo ties have been frosty for the past years over historical issues, such as the forced labour and the sex slavery during the 1910-45 Japanese colonization of the Korean Peninsula.
Panaji, May 11 : The Bombay High Court bench in Goa on Tuesday slammed the district administration for modifying its order on making Covid negative certificates mandatory for persons entering the state.

The HC order comes a day after the state's two District Magistrates issued an order making it mandatory for tourists only to carry Covid negative certificates, even as the HC last week had directed them to make Covid negative certificates to everyone entering the state.

A statement issued by the South Goa Advocates Association, one of the primary petitioners, said that the Advocate General of Goa Devidas Pangam had assured the Court that the administrative orders would be modified and would be "consistent with the orders of the HC".

"In respect to the supply and availability of oxygen, the High court has directed the Dean of Goa Medical College, Director of Health Services and Goa Association of Resident Doctors to file an affidavit on the issue of supply and Aavailability of oxygen at Goa Medical College, North Goa District Hospital, South Goa District Hospital and Employees' State Insurance hospital," the statement said.

The Goa government has also been directed to file an affidavit on other aspects of Covid management including availability of "ambulances, hearse vans, increase in number of beds, ICU beds, ventilator," the statement said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 11 : The government has proposed to slash import duties on steel items further bringing it to zero or near zero levels to provide relief to MSMEs, which have been hit hard by the high cost of raw materials amidst the raging pandemic.

Top government sources said that a decision had been taken to review duties on steel products and reduce it or withdraw it completely on few items to help the user industry hit hard by rising price of the metal in the domestic market.

Also, lower import duties would help maintain supply lines that have been affected with several domestic steel companies reducing steel production to divert medical grade oxygen for Covid-19 relief measures.

In budget 2021-22, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had revoked the anti-dumping duty (ADD) and countervailing duty (CVD) on certain steel products while reducing customs duty uniformly to 7.5 per cent on semis, flat, and long products of non-alloy, alloy, and stainless steels from 10-12.5 per cent levels earlier. She also brought down import duty to nil on steel scrap to support user industries hit hard by sharp rise in steel prices.

These duties may now be withdrawn or slashed further.

"Steel prices continue to remain firm and have also risen further in recent months. It is making operation of several user industries difficult specially in a market disrupted by the pandemic. Cut in import duty will help tame steel prices as the global prices of steel in certain markets are still lower than domestic prices. The measure will also help supply lines of steel if there is any shortage in domestic steel production due to use of another input oxygen by steel makers for Covid relief," said the official source quoted earlier.

It is expected that duty cuts in steel will be announced shortly by the DGFT after getting formal nod from the finance ministry. A call has to be taken whether to bring down duty levels largely at 7.5 per cent to 2.5 per cent or withdraw it completely for the time being.

Domestic hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices rallied to a multi-year high of Rs 56,000 per tonne in February from Rs 39,200 per tonne in March 2020 as demand improved amid iron-ore supply constraints and high global prices. This has further improved to over Rs 58,000 in April, a jump of over 50 per cent in last 13 months.

With demand for steel remaining firm and China cutting export incentives to steel makers to support domestic needs, Indian steel prices are expected to move up further. The cut in duty is expected to tame prices in the domestic market while providing competition to domestic steelmakers from traders who secure cheaper metal from abroad.

Steel producers asking anonymity said that the move to cut import duty would be detrimental to the interest of domestic steelmakers as it could flood the market with cheap and substandard steel being dumped into the country. They said that the steel market is giving indications that domestic steel sector may turn profitable after a long interval. But duty cuts could change the cycle again.

In the current scenario of a moderation in demand in India due to the second wave of Covid-19 and consequent business lockdowns, Indian steel mills would be able to offload large steel volumes to export markets and still remain highly profitable, according to a recent report from ICRA.

But a cut in duty would squeeze margins and bring a lot of export destined products back into the domestic market.

(Subhash Narayan can be contacted at subhash.n@ians.in)

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Jerusalem, May 11 : Israel launched new airstrikes against the Gaza Strip, and the Islamic Hamas movement, which controls the coastal enclave, unleashed fresh rocket attacks against the Jewish state overnight and on Tuesday, in one of the worst escalations between the two sides in recent years.

At least 24 people, including nine children, have been killed in the Gaza Strip since late Monday in this latest round of violence, Xinhua news agency quoted the Hamas-run Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip said in a statement.

The violence was triggered by spiraling tensions in East Jerusalem over flashpoint holy site the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

According to Israel's emergency health services, at least six civilians were injured by rocket fire in the southern city of Ashkelon.

The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said the shelling of Ashkelon was retaliation for the Israeli army attacking a residential building in the western part of the Gaza Strip.

Israel has fired around 130 rockets at targets in the Gaza Strip so far, and an estimated 15 members of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad group have been killed, an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson said.

The IDF tweeted that groups in Gaza had been firing rockets "non-stop" for 10 hours.

The sharp escalation began at 6 p.m. on Monday after Hamas set an ultimatum for Israel to withdraw its forces from the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, where hundreds of Palestinians were injured in clashes earlier that day.

Following the deadline, Hamas fired some 200 rockets towards Israel, dozens of which were intercepted by Israel's anti-rocket Iron Dome system, the military said.

Meanwhile, Israeli war jets, attack helicopters and aircraft struck 130 targets belonging to Hamas, and targeted several other sites overnight, such as weapons manufacturing facilities; a military intelligence building; and two offensive tunnels, it said.

The military added that schools have been shut in communities located within 40 km of the Gaza Strip.

The Al-Aqsa Mosque compound also witnessed fresh clashes between Israeli police and Palestinians overnight.

Furthermore, Arab protesters burned tires and threw stones and fireworks at police forces in northern Israel, and at least 46 people were arrested, according to the Israeli police.

In Lod, a city southeast of Tel Aviv, a 25-year-old Arab man was shot and killed during the riots, and a 34-year-old was later arrested, police said on Tuesday.

The suspect is a Jewish resident of the city, according to media reports.

The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians has escalated in recent days.

At the weekend, hundreds were injured in serious clashes at the Jerusalem holy site, known as the Temple Mount to Jews and the Noble Sanctuary to Muslims.
Kathmandu, May 11 : An expedition team consisting of Bahraini Prince Sheikh Mohammed Hamad Mohammed Al Khalifa successfully scaled the world's tallest peak, Mt. Everest on Tuesday, according to officials.

"We have been notified that an expedition team consisting of a Bahrain royal family member has reached the top of Mt. Everest from 5.30 a.m. to 6.40 a.m. on Tuesday," Mira Acharya, director at Nepal's Department of Tourism, said in a statement.

The Seven Summit Treks, which organised the expedition, also confirmed the news on its social media account.

Mingma Sherpa, chairperson of the Seven Summit Treks, told Xinhua news agency that 12 members of the 16-strong team of the Bahrain Royal Guard reached the top of the world's tallest mountain.

"Four could not climb the mountain due to illness," he said, without giving details.

Sherpa denied, however, that any of the four climbers were infected with coronavirus, as reports were rife about climbers sickened with the virus at the base camp of the world's tallest peak.

The Seven Summit Treks also noted that nearly four dozens of other climbers scaled Mt. Everest on Tuesday morning as well.

Before the Bahraini expedition team attempted Everest, the group climbed Mt. Manaslu (8,163m) and Mt. Lobuche (6,619m) in Nepal last October.
Los Angeles, May 11 : One policeman was killed and another was injured in a shooting incident in California's San Luis Obispo city, authorities have confirmed.

The suspected shooter was killed by police on the scene on Monday, reports Xinhua news agency.

The two officers from the City of San Luis Obispo Police Department were shot while serving a search warrant, according to the city government's website.

A witness said that she heard the police banging on a door and yelling, and then a huge bang, likely a door being knocked down, followed by a single shot, according to local newspaper San Luis Obispo Tribune.

She said at that point she could hear police yelling, "he has a gun!" before 15 to 20 more sporadic shots rang out.

Another neighbour saw a man carrying a "big gun" shot at officers from the door of an apartment and some policemen hiding behind their car, according to the newspaper.

The police officer who was injured was sent to the hospital and is in stable condition.
Jaipur, May 11 : The fact that Covid-19, besides killing humans, is killing humanity and human sentiments too was proven in Sikar district when the mortal remains of a woman, who died of Covid, lay outside her house for five hours awaiting her final rites but none of her family members or village people came out.

The husband, all helpless stood alone and kept pleading with one and all to help him in performing her last rites but there was no response.

Finally, the news reached Dhod town's tehsilar Rajni Yadav via village sarpanch, and she came at the site, carried the body on her shoulder along with her team and performed the last rites after wearing PPE kits.

Speaking to the media, Rajni said, "I was informed by sarpanch that there are some issues in performing the last rites of a Covid-19 patient. I also came to know that her body has to be taken to her village first and the ambulance is not available.

"We started making efforts from our side to get the ambulance from the medical department but all proved futile." "We then hired a pickup vehicle and took the body to her village. Her husband and two small kids aged 12-13 year old, were waiting.

"We tried contacting her other family members to come out but no one stepped out. They refused coming out from their houses and hence I wore the PPE kit and performed last rites along with kids," said Rajni.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Chennai, May 11 : Indian states like Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Tamil Nadu are getting lower share of vaccine than their need as against Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra which are getting more, said integrated securities company Emkay Global Financial Services.

In a report Emkay Global said as per its study, states like Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Delhi have much lower current share than they need, whereas Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra are receiving relatively more.

According to Emkay Global, it arrived at this conclusion by estimating the optimal state share by creating a weighted distribution measure based on parameters like population, its density, urban-rural ratio, active cases, death load and others.

Ideally, the vaccine distribution should be done as per the states' population sharea"implying each state's vaccination drive gets aligned to the national average timeline, Emkay Global said.

According to former Union Health Minister and a Member of Parliament Anbumani Ramadoss Tamil Nadu with a population of 7.62 crore got an allotment of 72 lakh vaccine while Gujarat with a population of 6.94 crore population got 1.39 crore vaccine, Karnataka with a population of 6.66 crore got 1.06 crore vaccines.

On the other hand, Rajasthan with a population of 7.88 crore just about 26 lakh people over Tamil Nadu got 1.42 crore vaccine, Ramadoss said.

According to Emkay Global, preferring economically important states/districts may not be socially cost-optimal as human life has to be treated equally.

"However, targeting low-hanging fruits could still give optimal results, say focusing on urban areas with higher cases and population density (implying higher risk of contagion), which also incidentally have better infra for vaccination administration," said Emkay Global.

According to its report, Emkay Global estimate the total cost of vaccination in a no wastage scenario will be about 0.6 - 0.7 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), of which states would bear 0.25 per cent of GDP and private sector about 0.4 per cent of GDP and the centre bears the least cost.

"This assumes (1) states and the private sector share the vaccination burden of 60 per cent and 40 per cent population of 18-44 and sub-18 age group respectively, and (2) the Centre covers 70 per cent of the 45+ population in each state and the rest will be taken up by the private sector," Emkay Global said.

For states, the fiscal burden of vaccination would vary as per their population and its distribution toward the sub-45 age group.
San Francisco, May 11 : A coalition of 44 US attorneys general signed a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg urging Facebook not to launch "Instagram for Kids", citing mental health and privacy concerns.

The "Instagram for Kids" app will allow children under the age of 13 to begin using the popular photo-sharing app. However, the attorneys general urge Facebook to abandon its plans to launch this new platform.

The letter lists reasons and cites research to show that Facebook should not go forth with its plans to develop and market a kid-friendly version of the Instagram app, reports GSMArena.

Among the reasons listed in the letter are -- Facebook's poor history of protecting childrena's privacy and data on the platform, research showing that social media can be harmful to children on physical and psychological levels, children do not have a fully-developed understanding of privacy and can easily be targeted by anonymous predators.

In the release published by the coalition head Attorney General Maura Healey, she cited Zuckerberg's dismissal of the idea that social media is harmful to children.

The release points out there is much strong evidence and research that contradicts Zuckerberg's denial.

Currently, children under 13 are not allowed to have an Instagram account unless it is explicitly written in the profileaAs description that the account is being managed by a parent or guardian.
Mumbai, May 11 : Amitabh Bachchan on Tuesday took to social media to encourage Covid warriors at a time when India is fighting the deadly second wave of the virus. In a video he tweeted, Big B recites a Hindi poem penned by his father, the late poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan.

The poem encourages a person to never give up during a battle, to fight with all their strength and to never bow down or stop midway.

After reciting the poem, Bachchan says in the video: "These words, written by my father Dr Harivansh Rai Bachchan, are a clarion call that reminds us to never give up. They were written at a time the country faced a different crisis and challenge, but even today, they resonate. I believe these words celebrate the spirit of the Covid warriors, our frontline workers, who, as we all know, are sacrificing so much for all of us. It is time we support them and bolster the fight against Covid. This is our fight. We can all contribute in whatever way we can. We must all come together for India." His message comes at a time when the nation is battling the second wave of the pandemic with increasing number of positive cases each day and several states experiencing lockdown.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Moscow, May 11 : At least 11 people were killed and 32 others injured on Tuesday in a shooting incident at a school in the Russian city of Kazan, authorities said, adding that a suspect has been arrested.

The incident took place at the school No. 175 in Kazan located in the country's Tatarstan Region.

A source in the emergencies confirmed to the TASS News Agency that the victims comprised 10 children and a teacher.

Two children fell to their death after jumping out of a window on the third floor, according to the news agency.

The sources said that the first signal from a panic button at the school came in at 9.25 a.m. (local time), after the shooting had started five minutes earlier.

There were 714 children and about 70 employees at the school, including 52 teachers, present at the time of the incident.

It was not clear if there were more shooters but the 17-year-old attacker who was arrested had shot eighth grade students and a teacher.

The TASS News Agency said he told the the police that he had placed a bomb at his home.

Law enforcement agencies are working at the scene, and security measures have been strengthened at all educational institutions in Kazan.

An eyewitness told the news agency that the attacker had carried out an explosion and then went on a shooting spree.

The school, founded in 2006, has 1,049 students and 57 teachers.

Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov described the shooting as a "tragedy", the BBC reported.

Responding to the attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would review Russia's gun control laws.

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
New Delhi, May 11: Pakistani Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa is in Kabul to discuss the Afghan peace process with all stakeholders.

He arrived unannounced at a time of heightened uncertainty in a region where violence has surged amid US intent to pull out all troops from Afghanistan. According to sources, Bajwa is going to meet Afghan president Ashraf Ghani and other Afghan leaders in Kabul.

The sources said that Pakistani security officials have approached the Afghan Taliban leadership in Doha and made it clear to them that their refusal to participate in the Istanbul Conference was a big blow to the Afghan Peace Process, and if they do not show some flexibility, they will have to face the consequences.

It is believed that few senior Taliban leaders of the negotiating team are already in Pakistan to seek "guidance" from their leadership who are in Pakistan.

'Where are stalemate in talks, they (Taliban) say that we are going to consult our elders. In reality their elders are the ISI and Pakistani army," said the first vice president of Afghanistan Amrullah Saleh.

Afghan President Ghani, after the US decision to withdraw its troops, had said, "the withdrawal has forced them to make a choice. Taliban and their patrons in Pakistan, will they become credible stakeholders, or will they foster more chaos and violence? If the Taliban choose the latter path, the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF) will fight them. And if the Taliban still refuse to negotiate, they will be choosing the peace of the grave." He further said, "The negotiations would confront difficult issues, such as whether and how the Taliban would end their relationship with Pakistan, which provides them with support for logistics, finances, and recruitment." Bajwa's visit has come at the time when Afghanistan is in mourning. The death toll in multiple blasts outside a girls' school in Kabul on Saturday afternoon rose to 63, relatives of victims and sources said, adding that more than 150 others were wounded in the incident. President Ghani has declared Tuesday a national day of mourning for the victims of the Kabul and Logar bombings, which killed scores of students.

Though no group has claimed responsibility for Saturday's attack on school in Kabul and Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid denied the insurgent group's involvement and condemned the incident. But the Afghan president Ghani has blamed the Taliban for the attack. Ghani said that "these groups" - sometimes under the Taliban name and sometimes under the Daesh name show up with such cruel attacks making it plain they want to prevent the education of Afghan children and weaken the people's trust.

Meanwhile, after two days of the incident, on Monday, the Taliban has declared a three-day ceasefire across Afghanistan to mark this week's Eid al-Fitr holiday.

The ceasefire announcement comes as the United States continues to pull out its last 2,500 troops 20 years after it invaded the country and removed the Taliban from power. US-led efforts to bring peace seem to have faltered as talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government have hardly progressed.

The Afghan government said in a press release that "temporary ceasefires" are not a permanent solution to the country's problems." Abdullah Abdullah, the chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation, called on Taliban to resume talks, announce "a permanent ceasefire, end the war and bloodshed, and find a political solution that is just, dignified and acceptable for all parties." Pakistan denounced the terrorist act and extended sympathies to the Afghan government and the aggrieved families.

(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative/
Mumbai, May 11 : Equity-linked mutual fund schemes saw a net inflows of over Rs 3,437 crore in April.

As per the data furnished by the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) on Tuesday, the net inflows stood at Rs 3,437.37 crore.

In March, the equity-linked mutual fund schemes' net inflows stood at Rs 9,115.12 crore.

Whereas, in February, the equity-linked mutual fund schemes' net outflow stood at Rs 4,534.36 crore.

Similarly, there was an outflow in January of Rs 9,253.22 crore and of Rs 10,147.12 crore in December 2020.

The net outflow had stood at Rs 12,917.36 crore in November 2020, Rs 2,724.95 crore in October 2020 and Rs 734.40 crore in September 2020.
New Delhi, May 11: Recent findings in a report in an Australian daily has yet again reinforced the call that international investigators must dig deeper to rule out whether Covid-19 is a made-in-China bioweapon.

The controversy about Covid-19 origins has resurfaced after the Weekend Australian newspaper revealed that Chinese scientists were thinking about bioweapons, visualising a Word War-3 scenario.

The daily cited a Chinese government document which discussed the weaponisation of SARS coronavirus. Titled the Unnatural Origin of SARS and New Species of Man-Made Viruses as Genetic Bioweapons, the 2015 paper was authored by Chinese scientists, Chinese public health officials and members of the People's Liberation Army (PLA).

Released five years ahead the COVID-19 outbreak, it nails Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) coronaviruses as a "new era of genetic weapons" that can be "artificially manipulated into an emerging human Adisease virus, then weaponised and unleashed in a way never seen before".

Covid-19 is part of the SARS family of Coronaviruses. Specifically, the COVID-19 pandemic has been caused by SARS-Co V-2 --a coronavirus that emerged in December 2019. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses, many of whom target the respiratory system of humans, causing diseases ranging from common cold to the deadly SARS.

The Chinese paper is discussed in an upcoming book titled What really happened in Wuhan by The Australian investigative writer, Sharri Markson.

Robert Potter, a cyber security specialist who analyses leaked Chinese government documents confirmed, when asked by the The Australian to do so, that the leaked document was genuine. "We reached a high confidence conclusion that it was genuine ... It's not fake but it's up to someone else to interpret how serious it is," website news.com.au. quoted Potter as saying.

Peter Jennings, the executive director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), also told news.com.au that the document is as close to a "smoking gun" as we've got.

"I think this is significant because it clearly shows that Chinese scientists were thinking about military application for different strains of the coronavirus and thinking about how it could be deployed," Jennings observed.

"It begins to firm up the possibility that what we have here is the accidental release of a pathogen for military use," he added.

Jennings also said that the document may explain why China has been so reluctant for an outside investigation into the origins of Covid-19.

"If this was a case of transmission from a wet market it would be in China's interest to co-operate ... we've had the opposite of that." The British tabloid The Sun points out that the document lists some of China's top public health figures among the 18 authors - including the former deputy director of China's Bureau of Epidemic Prevention, Li Feng. Ten of the authors are scientists and weapons experts affiliated with the Air Force Medical AUniversity in Xi'an. The institute was placed under the command of the PLA in 2017 by Chinese president Xi Jinping.

The editor-in-chief of the paper, Xu Dezhong, reported to the top leadership of the Chinese Military Commission and Ministry of Health during the SARS epidemic of 2003.

Xu was also a professor and doctoral supervisor in the Air Force Medical University's Military Epidemiology ADepartment.

In its investigations, the WHO has not reached a definite conclusion about the origins of the Covid-19 virus. In March WHO reported on their Wuhan visit and called for further investigations into the origins of COVID-19.

"As far as WHO is concerned, all hypotheses remain on the table ... We have not yet found the source of the virus, and we must continue to follow the science and leave no stone unturned as we do," said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Australian representative Dominic Dwyer, who went to Wuhan in January as part of the WHO investigations into the origins of Covid-19, however, pointed out that there were several grey zones that were yet to be cleared by the probe.

He was quoted as saying in February that the Wuhan wet market, which had been blamed as the source of the virus in the beginning, may not have been the original source of the outbreak.

"The market in Wuhan, in the end, was more of an amplifying event rather than necessarily a true ground zero. So, we need to look elsewhere for the viral origins," Dwyer observed, as cited by news.com.au.

The Sun report said that he Chinese language military document, refers to "major advances in the delivery of biological agents".

"For example, the new-found ability to freeze-dry micro-organisms has made it possible to store biological agents and aerosolise them during attacks." Human Rights campaigner Luke de Pulford, the co-ordinator of the Inter-Parliamentary AAlliance on China, asserts that the Chinese Communist Party needs to urgently answer serious questions. "If this piece of work is representative of the scientific thinking of those who have advised the top leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, then there are very serious questions which need urgent Aanswers," The Sun quoted him as saying.

(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative/

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-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Dublin, May 11 : A footage is doing the rounds on social media of a group of youths pushing a woman onto train tracks in the Irish capital city Dublin, triggering widespread calls for bringing the perpetrators to justice, according to a media report.

In the report, The Irish Times said that incident took place at the Howth Junction last month.

The woman luckily survived after being pushed by a teenager onto the railway line as she ran to catch a train.

In the video, she can be seen falling underneath the waiting locomotive and onto the tracks below.

Once she falls beneath the train, on-lookers rush over before a rail-worker, eventually pullsingthe woman up and back onto the platform.

The teenagers can be seen casually making an escape, The Irish Times reported.

The video went viral on social media and it was also shared by Jennifer Cassidy, an Irish lecturer at the University of Oxford, who termed the incident as "absolutely disgusting, illegal behaviour".

"This is no world where I want my beautiful young nieces and any other child to grow up in. RT as much as possible as faces can be seen," she tweeted.

Cassidy's tweet was retweeted more than 13,000 times.

While the police have confirmed that an investigation has been launched, no arrests were made yet.

The perpetrators have not been identified.
Chandigarh, May 11 : Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday flagged off two tankers from the Chandigarh International Airport that were later airlifted by an Indian Air Force (IAF) cargo plane for bringing medical oxygen supply to Haryana.

These tankers have been sent to Bhubaneshwar and will carry about 45 tonnes of oxygen.

The Chief Minister said that the tankers would ensure uninterrupted oxygen supply for Covid-19 patients. He said that the tankers would return the next day with liquid oxygen supply from the Tata Steel plant in Odisha.

The Chief Minister said that the supply of oxygen is coming from many places like Rourkela, Jamnagar and Angul by train or is being airlifed. So far the aircraft has made 19 rounds and 436 metric tonnes of medical oxygen has been supplied through 36 tankers.

He said that the oxygen supply is being ensured to the patients in all districts without any hindrance and in this way an extraordinary initiative has been taken by the government to save the human life.

The Chief Minister said that the IAF is doing commendable work during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Chief Minister also held detailed discussions with IAF officers and encouraged them for doing commendable work in this hour of crisis.

The Chief Minister said that 500-bed hospitals are being set up each in Panipat and Hisar towns. Army's cooperation is also being taken in this work, he said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Chennai, May 11 : The Greater Chennai Corporation reeling under the spike in Covid-19 cases over the past few days is planning to rope in 2,000 more volunteers to the existing 2,000 who are monitoring the number of cases, discharge from hospitals and their primary contacts.

Over the past 14 days Chennai city has 82,140 new Covid cases and more than 70 per cent of them are in home isolation. These patients are waiting for the visits of healthcare staff and sanitary workers.

In addition to these cases, 5,000 patients who have tested positive before April 26 are still in home isolation. International organisations like the World Health Organisation (WHO) and Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have already recommended 14 day home isolation after a person tests positive for Covid infection.

Patients with mild infection or moderate infection are in home isolation all the 14 days and those with moderate and heavy infection continue to be in home isolation even after being discharged from hospitals.

With such a huge volume of patients to be monitored, the Greater Chennai Corporation is struggling to do surveillance and patient management. This is mainly due to the fact that the number of focus volunteers is only 2,000 and the number of fever surveillance workers is 12,000. This will lead to only 10 focus volunteers per ward and the fever surveillance workers about 60 per ward which is grossly inadequate.

A health official with Chennai corporation while speaking to IANS said, "During the same time in 2020 when the number of active cases was less than half of what we have now, the corporation had 15 focus volunteers per ward and hence we have to enhance the number of focus volunteers." The newly appointed Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner, Gagan Singh Bedi who conducted an inspection of the ward offices checked the attendance registers of focus volunteers and fever surveillance workers. While speaking to media persons he said, "The number of Volunteers can be increased as the number of cases remains high".

Corporation officials said that other than facing shortage of volunteers, several sanitary inspectors and health officials with the corporation have tested positive and hence there is a total shortage of persons to monitor the cases.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Hyderabad, May 11 : The Telangana State Innovation Cell (TSIC) has entered into an agreement with the Kautilya School of Public Policy (KSPP), and Gitam deemed University, to enable a conducive administrative and regulatory environment for social innovation to flourish in the state.

Under the agreement, both the partners will combine their resources to create a robust, world-class 'Social Innovation' (SI) ecosystem in the state. The MoU was signed by Ravi Narayan, chief innovation officer, Government of Telangana, Prof. D Gunasekaran Registrar of GITAM, and Sridhar Pabbisetty, Founding Director of the KSPP.

The MoU focuses on research areas pertinent to social innovations to facilitate state-of-the-art understanding of SI business models and decision making. They will also identify and explore mutually beneficial opportunities through annual and bi-yearly work plans for engagement through on-ground pilot projects to generate a solid evidence base for aiding the creation, rollout, and diffusion of the SIs.

Sridhar Pabbisetty, Founding Director, Kautilya School of Public Policy, said "With the student-learning dynamics evolving at a constant pace, providing students with a hands-on experience will encourage practical thinking and analytical knowledge. We are elated to join hands with an expert organisation where transitions from traditional learning to the first-hand experience will be inculcated."
Bengaluru, May 11 : A day after several instances of crude policing methods were reported on social media sites, Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday directed the police to exercise restraint while enforcing Covid lockdown measures across the state.

After launching a Covid Care Centre at the Veterinary College campus in Hebbal here, he told reporters that people should also be cautious and follow Covid norms.

"This is not the time for anyone to violate Covid lockdown guidelines. Be it police or people. Both must have some rationality in their approach. Instances of excesses are reported from both sides, both need to relook into their approach," he said.

Karnataka had drawn severe criticism after it revised its guidelines banning use of private vehicles such as bikes/scooters to go for purchase of groceries, milk or vegetables in the neighbourhood. Due to these guidelines, police carried out 'mild' baton charges while people engaged in lengthy arguments with police, asking them how they can carry their essential items back home. The arguments had frequently led to a fracas and people took to social media to condemn "high-handed" police action.

Bommai said: "The police has reduced enforcing the restriction from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. such as seizing vehicles.

"There are several ways to deal with people (violators) such as seizing vehicles and imposing fine (after 10 a.m.) which should be done as per rule while baton charge could be a last and minimal resort." The minister added that without people's support, no action or law can be implemented fully and in order to contain the spread of deadly virus, the government "definitely needs people's support".

"I have given directions to the police not to use force but we need people's cooperation for at least 14 days to make lockdown successful," he stressed.

Answering a question, the home minister asserted that as of now, baton-charge violators has been stopped.

Meanwhile, Karnataka Girector General of Police, Praveen Sood posted a 2.15 minute video clip titled "A police man's 'Man ki baat?!?!'", which seeks to depict under how much duress are on-field policemen as they work round the clock to implement guidelines.

This video shows a police constable, who goes out of his house for duty, where he has to deal with several violators and lengthy arguments, undertake baton-charge and even appeal to people with folded hands.

The video also briefly highlights work stress as well as emotional stress he undergoes day-to-day basis, since the pandemic broke out.

After returning home, he fears cuddling his children or even speaking with his wife, and after taking his meals, he sleeps on the floor, while his entire family is another room, where his children innocently ask their mother, 'When will our father kiss us or lift us with joy?' To this, the mother responds, "Your father will do all of that only if we all succeed in containing the virus".

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 11 : For the first time in 61 days, recoveries outnumbered new Covid cases in the last 24 hours, providing some relief to the country which is reeling under the raging second wave of the pandemic for some time now.

In the last 24 hours, India reported 3,29,942 fresh cases, while as many as 3,56,082 people recovered from the disease during the same time period.

India's cumulative recoveries stood at 1,90,27,304 on Tuesday, with a national recovery rate is 82.75 per cent.

Ten states account for 72.28 per cent of the new recoveries, with Maharashtra leading the chart with 61,607 recoveries, followed by 32,188 in Karnataka, 31,209 in Kerala, 29,709 in Uttar Pradesh, 20,904 in Tamil Nadu, 18,675 in West Bengal, 16,192 in Haryana, 16,167 in Andhra Pradesh, 15,800 in Bihar, and 14,931 in Gujarat.

Ten states also reported 69.88 per cent of the new cases in the last 24 hours. Karnataka reported the highest daily of new cases at 39,305, followed by Maharashtra (37,236), Tamil Nadu (28,978), Kerala (27,487), Uttar Pradesh (21,277), West Bengal (19,445), Rajasthan (16,487), Andhra Pradesh (14,986), Haryana (12,718), and Delhi (12,651).

Meanwhile, for the first time in 61 days, there was a net decline of 30,016 cases in the total active caseload in the last 24 hours.

India's total active caseload has dipped to 37,15,221, comprising 16.16 per cent of the country's total positive cases.

As per the latest Union Health Ministry data, 13 states cumulatively account for 82.68 per cent of India's active cases.

Maharashtra leads the chart with 5,93,150 active cases, followed by Karnataka (5,71,026), Kerala (4,20,076), Uttar Pradesh (2,25,271), Rajasthan (2,03,017), Andhra Pradesh (1,89,367), Tamil Nadu (1,52,389), Gujarat (1,36,158), West Bengal (1,26,663), Chhattisgarh (1,25,104), Haryana (1,13,232), Madhya Pradesh (1,11,223), and Bihar (1,05,104).

India's overall Covid tally on Tuesday stood at 2,29,92,517, while 2,49,992 persons have succumbed to the virus so far.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
New Delhi, May 11 : The Congress on Tuesday accused the BJP of being "arrogant", soon after BJP President J.P. Nadda shot off a letter to interim party chief Sonia Gandhi, and said that raising issues and making suggestions to the government on the pandemic is the duty of the opposition parties.

In his letter to interim Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Nadda lashed out at her party saying that in the fight against the pandemic, the conduct of topmost Congress leaders, including its former chief Rahul Gandhi, will be remembered for its "duplicity and pettiness".

Addressing a press conference here, Congress General Secretary Ajay Maken said the situation in the country is pathetic as dead bodies were seen floating in the Ganga river in Bihar's Buxar district on Monday.

"The government is unable to provide treatment, vaccines and even honorable last rites to the deceased," Maken said, as he asked the government shed the arrogance and help the people.

The party said the BJP should follow 'Rajdharma' as the Congress is only doing its duty and the government should accept its mistake in handling the pandemic and start free vaccination for all. The Congress also reiterated its demand for an all-party meeting on the Covid situation.

Rejecting the saffron party's charge of doing politics at the time of crisis, Maken said that it is the BJP which wants to make it political as the letters written by the Congress leaders were addressed to the Prime Minister, and not the BJP President.

"It's not a case of BJP vs Congress, it's the people who are suffering. The opposition is only showing the way to the government, but the government is trying to give it a political colour," Maken said.

Attacking Nadda, Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill said in a tweet, "Instead of writing accusatory letter to the Congress, Nadda should write an apology letter on behalf of the BJP for pushing the nation into hell fire of Covid-19 second wave." In his letter to Sonia Gandhi, Nadda also said that the top leaders of the Congress should stop misleading the people by creating false panic and by contradicting their stands based on just political considerations.

In the four-page letter, Nadda said, "In this fight against the pandemic, the conduct of the topmost Congress leaders, including former Congress President Rahul Gandhi, will be remembered for duplicity and pettiness." "Your party, under your leadership, is doing no favours to itself by opposing lockdowns and then demanding for the same, ignoring the Centre's advisories on the second wave of Covid and then saying they did not get any information, holding massive election rallies in Kerala causing a spike in Covid cases while grandstanding about election rallies elsewhere, supporting protests but speaking about following Covid guidelines," Nadda said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Chennai, May 11 : Tamil Nadu's ruling DMK is likely to nominate Radhapuram MLA M. Appavu as the Assembly Speaker.

The party has already nominated K. Pitchandi, who has been named pro-tem Speaker to swear in the new legislators, as the Deputy Speaker.

Talking to IANS, a senior DMK leader said: "Appavu is a leader with vast experience and is a four-term MLA. The party will announce his name soon as our Speaker candidate for the 16th Tamil Nadu Assembly." Appavu won from the Radhapuram constituency in Tirunelveli district, defeating sitting AIADMK MLA, S. Inbadurai by a margin of 5,925 votes. In the 2016 elections, Inbadurai had defeated Appavu by a margin of 49 votes and the election case filed by Appavu is still pending in the Supreme Court.

He had won the seat for the first time in 1996 as a Tamil Maanila Congress-M candidate in alliance with the DMK, and in 2001, as an Independent as he had left the TMC- M following its decision to align with the AIADMK.

In 2006, he won from the same constituency on a DMK ticket, while in 2011, he did not contest.
New Delhi, May 11 : The BJP claimed on Tuesday that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi did not increase the number of ICU beds, nor did it purchase new ventilators in the last one year.

Addressing a press conference, BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi said, "The Delhi government has not increased its ICU bed capacity. Also, it did not buy any new ventilator in the last one year. Only the ventilators sent through the PM-CARES fund are being used in the city. Oxygen cylinders are being found at AAP leaders' houses." Talking about the assistance being provided by the Union government to the national capital, the Lok Sabha MP from New Delhi said, "Oxygen, hospitals, special beds -- everything is being provided by the Central government and the DRDO. Even the medical staff is being provided by ITBP and other defence organisations." "So what is the AAP government's job? Why are they opposing the oxygen audit in Delhi," Lekhi asked.

She claimed that while the Arvind Kejriwal-led government did nothing to procure Covid vaccine to vaccinate people above the age of 18 years, it closed 60 centres which were functional at different municipal schools.

She pointed out that despite promising to improve the health infrastructure in the city in its manifesto in 2015, the AAP government has done nothing to strengthen the same.

"They promised to increase 30,000 hospital beds in the city but added just 354 beds, and that too under pressure from the Centre. Under the AAP government, the number of dispensaries in Delhi has come down from 265 to 230," Lekhi claimed.
Chennai, May 11 : The Greater Chennai Corporation has handed over 300 oxygen concentrators to the government hospitals in the city for the treatment of Covid-19 patients.

A total of 50 concentrators were handed over to the Covid care centre at the Stanley Medical College, 33 to the Rajiv Gandhi Government Hospital, 50 to the Kings Institute Guindy, 80 to the Communicable Diseases Hospital in Tondiarpet, 40 to the Chennai Trade Centre and 40 to the Kodambakkam Meenakshi Care Centre. As many as 293 of the total 300 oxygen concentrators received have been distributed till now.

The oxygen concentrators were donated to the Tamil Nadu government by companies like OLAM International and Temasek in the presence of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin. The Chief Minister had in turn called upon the Corporation to distribute the oxygen concentrators to the various hospitals in the city involved in the treatment of Covid patients.

An 114-bed Covid care facility is being set up at the Tondiarpet Communicable Diseases Hospital. Newly appointed Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner Gagan Singh Bedi has visited the facility and held a meeting with the top officials from the hospital, police and the revenue department.

Chennai is witnessing a spike in Covid cases and the Corporation has already taken a decision to appoint 2,000 focus volunteers in addition to the present 2,000.

The state government has also requested the Centre for 20,000 vials of Remdisivir amid reports of huge queues in front of the hospitals selling the drug.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Panaji, May 11 : The Opposition in Goa on Tuesday has questioned Health Minister Vishwajit Rane over the approval of the anti-parasite drug ivermectin for preventive treatment of Covid, after World Health Organization chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan tweeted against using the drug without clinical trials.

"#GoaCovidCrisis Who prescribed #Ivermectin to corrupt Health Minister @visranefor Prophylaxis Treatment to Goans? Did he obtain approval from @PMOIndia, @MoHFW_INDIA? Is the treatment approved by @WHO? Will @ICMRDELHI respond? @goacm @GovtofGoa must clarify immediately @INCGoa," state Congress president Girish Chodankar tweeted on Tuesday.

"A intensely scary #COVIDSecondWave made scarier by imposing unproven treatments on unsuspecting #Goans. Who's running this show? Where's this heading? Who's profiting from this? #WHO #Ivermectin #COVIDEmergencyGoa," former Dy. CM and Goa Forward Party MLA Vijai Sardesai also tweeted.

Earlier on Tuesday, Swaminathan in a tweet had said: "Safety and efficacy are important when using any drug for a new indication. @WHO recommends against the use of ivermectin for #COVID19 except within clinical trials".

The Goa government on Monday had amended its Covid treatment protocol, recommending that all persons above the age of 18 should take five tablets of ivermectin, to prevent the viral load, which more of then than not causes excessive trauma and even death in Covid-19 positive patients.

According to Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane, the drug would be made available at all government health centres to all residents above the age of 18. He also said that the use of ivermectin helped to control the high viral fever which follows a Covid-19 infection in symptomatic patients.

Globally, ivermectin is used to treat parasite infections.

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Edison, NJ -- (SBWIRE) -- 05/11/2021 -- Stay up-to-date and exploit latest trends of Business Consulting Services Market with latest edition released by AMA.

Business Consulting Services Market Comprehensive Study is an expert and top to bottom investigation on the momentum condition of the worldwide Business Consulting Services industry with an attention on the Global market. The report gives key insights available status of the Business Consulting Services producers and is an important wellspring of direction and course for organizations and people keen on the business. By and large, the report gives an inside and out understanding of 2020-2025 worldwide Business Consulting Services Market covering extremely significant parameters.



Key Players in This Report Include,

Accenture (Ireland) ,Bain & Company (United States),Boston Consulting Group (United States),Booz Allen Hamilton (United States),Deloitte (United States),Ernst & Young (United States),KPMG (Canada),McKinsey & Company (United States)



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Brief Summary of Business Consulting Services:

Business consulting means providing solutions/services to the clients (other business firms/organizations/companies) to the problems they face in areas such as strategic planning, business expansion, investment, process optimization, and merger/acquisition, etc. These services are based on assumptions and probability. The explosion of information over the internet has made it easy for consultants to get information quickly and process it. However, developing analytical skills and their application is key to this industry. The market leaders of this industry are PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC), Deloitte, Ernst & Young and KPMG. Services provided by these firms are expensive and cannot be availed by medium and small scale businesses. Mid-sized companies cannot afford services of trusted top tier consultants hence they settle with new emerging players or freelancers Hence business consulting services market is expected to grow potentially in long-standing.



Market Trends:

- Rapidly Evolving Global Scenario

- Adoption of Various New Technologies by Business Heads Leading to Requirement of Expertise



Market Drivers:

- Providing Management and Strategy Services to the Company

- Increasing Quality and Efficiency of Production Process

- Growing Economy, And High Focus on Industrialization



Market Opportunities:

- Increasing Interest of Midsize Firms and Organizations to Beat the Competition

- Entry of Small Consultancy Firms Providing Solutions at Reasonable Rates.



The Global Business Consulting Services Market segments and Market Data Break Down are illuminated below:

by Type (Strategy Business consulting service, Management Business consulting service, Operations Business consulting service, Financial Advisory Business consulting service, Human Resource Business consulting service, IT Business consulting service, Others), Application (Business Organizations, New Market Entrants, Others), Organization Size (>USD 1 Billion, 500 Million to 1 Billion, <500 Million), Incorporation Type (Public, Private)



This research report represents a 360-degree overview of the competitive landscape of the Global Business Consulting Services Market. Furthermore, it offers massive data relating to recent trends, technological, advancements, tools, and methodologies. The research report analyzes the Global Business Consulting Services Market in a detailed and concise manner for better insights into the businesses.



Regions Covered in the Business Consulting Services Market:

- The Middle East and Africa (South Africa, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Israel, Egypt, etc.)

- North America (United States, Mexico & Canada)

- South America (Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, etc.)

- Europe (Turkey, Spain, Turkey, Netherlands Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Russia UK, Italy, France, etc.)

- Asia-Pacific (Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam, China, Malaysia, Japan, Philippines, Korea, Thailand, India, Indonesia, and Australia).



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The research study has taken the help of graphical presentation techniques such as infographics, charts, tables, and pictures. It provides guidelines for both established players and new entrants in the Global Business Consulting Services Market.



The detailed elaboration of the Global Business Consulting Services Market has been provided by applying industry analysis techniques such as SWOT and Porter's five-technique. Collectively, this research report offers a reliable evaluation of the global market to present the overall framework of businesses.



Attractions of the Business Consulting Services Market Report:

- The report provides granular level information about the market size, regional market share, historic market (2014-2018) and forecast (2019-2025)

- The report covers in-detail insights about the competitor's overview, company share analysis, key market developments, and their key strategies

- The report outlines drivers, restraints, unmet needs, and trends that are currently affecting the market

- The report tracks recent innovations, key developments and start-up's details that are actively working in the market

- The report provides plethora of information about market entry strategies, regulatory framework and reimbursement scenario



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Key Points Covered in the Table of Content:

Chapter 1 to explain Introduction, market review, market risk and opportunities, market driving force, product scope of Business Consulting Services Market;

Chapter 2 to inspect the leading manufacturers (Cost Structure, Raw Material) with sales Analysis, revenue Analysis, and price Analysis of Business Consulting Services Market;

Chapter 3 to show the focused circumstance among the best producers, with deals, income, and Business Consulting Services market share 2020;

Chapter 4 to display the regional analysis of Global Business Consulting Services Market with revenue and sales of an industry, from 2020 to 2022;

Chapter 5, 6, 7 to analyze the key countries (United States, China, Europe, Japan, Korea & Taiwan), with sales, revenue and market share in key regions;

Chapter 8 and 9 to exhibit International and Regional Marketing Type Analysis, Supply Chain Analysis, Trade Type Analysis;

Chapter 10 and 11 to analyze the market by product type and application/end users (industry sales, share, and growth rate) from 2020 to 2026

Chapter 12 to show Business Consulting Services Market forecast by regions, forecast by type and forecast by application with revenue and sales, from 2020 to 2025;

Chapter 13, 14 & 15 to specify Research Findings and Conclusion, Appendix, methodology and data source of Business Consulting Services market buyers, merchants, dealers, sales channel.



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Business Consulting Services Market research provides answers to the following key questions:

? What is the expected growth rate of the Business Consulting Services Market?

? What will be the Business Consulting Services Market size for the forecast period, 2020  2026?

? What are the main driving forces responsible for changing the Business Consulting Services Market trajectory?

? Who are the big suppliers that dominate the Business Consulting Services Market across different regions? Which are their wins to stay ahead in the competition?

? What are the Business Consulting Services Market trends business owners can rely upon in the coming years?

? What are the threats and challenges expected to restrict the progress of the Business Consulting Services Market across different countries?



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New Delhi, May 11 : Automobile manufacturer Hyundai Motor India's philanthropic arm - Hyundai Motor India Foundation - on Tuesday announced its CSR project 'Back-to-life'.

Accordingly, the project is aimed at ensuring the uninterrupted delivery of lifesaving 'Medicare Oxygen' equipment to most affected Covid -19 states : New Delhi, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Haryana and Telangana.

"The entire project has been accelerated from procurement to delivery, thereby meeting the critical need of the hour and supporting affected patients to quickly transition from despair to normalcy," the company said in a statement.

Under the 'Hyundai Cares 3.0 Covid-19' relief initiative, HMIF has expedited purchase and supply of critical medical equipment to ensure a speedy turnaround in providing assistance to government hospitals with lifesaving "Medicare Oxygen equipment like Oxygen Concentrators, High Flow Oxygen (HFO) Plants, High Flow Nasal Oxygen (HFNO) Machines and BiPap Ventilator Machines".

"The ongoing crisis affects each and every one of us. As a community, as a nation and as humanity, we are all in it together. Since the start of the second wave, our thoughts and prayers have been with the affected families and our actions are echoing these emotions," said S.S. Kim, MD and CEO of Hyundai Motor India.

"To ensure we help societies and communities tide over this crisis, we are doing everything in our capacity to provide immediate relief. Lifesaving Medicare Oxygen equipment are currently in absolute demand while their suppliers as well as supply chains are seemingly stretched thin." "Despite this challenge, we relentlessly strived to ensure the procurement and immediate delivery of these precious life-saving medical equipment to highly affected states and cities in India." According to the statement, under the programme, 700 Oxygen Concentrators, 10 High Flow Oxygen (HFO) Plants, 200

High Flow Nasal Oxygen (HFNO) machines and 225 BiPap Ventilator Machines will be delivered to most affected Covid-19 states.

"In this war against the pandemic, Hyundai will support government identified hospitals for installing the Oxygen Generation Plants. This will aid critical patients immediately and also assist the hospitals in becoming self-sufficient for oxygen in the long run." "Additionally, Hyundai will also donate medical consumable for staff in various hospitals."

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
New Delhi, May 11 : India is home to a maximum number of widows and transgenders and we as Indians fondly call them mothers.

This Mother's Day, India Gate & Tisca's Table by Tisca Chopra came forward to support Michelin Star Chef Vikas Khanna's initiative #FeedIndia with the launch of campaign #IndiaForMothers to benefit Mothers by ensuring maximum number receive rice supply.

They aim to benefit a minimum of 5,000 such families across various parts of the country, majorly in Varanasi, Vrindavan, Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. NGO's Vibha and Global Funds for widows are helping to implement this project on-ground and help reach out to maximum mothers in need.

India Gate also released a small nostalgic video, showing the strong women in different roles of life and wishing them all Happy Mother's Day during these tough times.

"These are the times when we all need to stand united and fight against this second wave which is stronger. We at Tisca's table are proud to be a part of the #IndiaForMothers campaign to feed and support our Mothers. I am happy to collaborate with India Gate and Vikas Khanna for this initiative," shared actress Tisca Chopra.

"This all started with the #FeedIndia initiative last year during the pandemic to support my fellow citizens with rations and other necessities. We were able to touch more than 30 million lives. This year with the second wave, the crisis is bigger. #IndiaForMothers helps us not just reach many mothers, but also encourages the society overall not to neglect them. I extend my gratitude to Tisca for joining forces and India Gate for its continuous support," said chef Vikas Khanna.

Ayush Gupta, Business Head, India Gate, said, "At India Gate, we deeply associate ourselves with the old Indian values of sharing and caring for society. #IndiaForMothers is our special initiative this Mother's Day to show our support and celebrate all the strong women in our lives who we address as 'Maa', be it our 'Maasi' or 'Nani Maa' or 'Badi Maa'.

These are the women who have shaped our lives and it's time for us to hold their hands in this difficult time and protect them. #IndiaForMothers is our hand folded tribute to all the mothers in need and with Tisca and Vikas joining hands for this, we aim to not just help but sensitise many people towards mothers." Transgender activist Laxmi Narayan Tripathi said, "I am honoured to associate with India Gate's initiative #IndiaForMothers to reach out to the Transgender community and feed them in these difficult times. I want to thank Tisca Chopra, India Gate and Vikas Khanna for remembering us in this difficult times and doing their bit for the community." It all started with the #FeedIndia initiative by Vikas Khanna in April last year.

Last year, through the #FeedIndia initiative, Barkat became the largest food drive in the world - serving 2 million meals in a day in Delhi-NCR.

#FeedIndia served more than 30 million people including vulnerable communities including the differently-abled, transgenders, Victims of sex trafficking, HIV positive people with support from many brands including India Gate. #IndiaForMothers is an initiative by India Gate & Tisca's Table by Tisca Chopra to support #FeedIndia to feed our mothers.
St Kitts & Nevis, May 11 : Nicholas Pooran, Shimron Hetmyer and Brandon King will be back in action for Guyana Amazon Warriors in the 2021 Caribbean Premier League after the franchise announced on Tuesday that it had retained 11 players from the last edition.

The 2021 Caribbean Premier League (CPL) gets underway in St Kitts & Nevis on August 28.

The Warriors, who had reached semi-finals of the 2020 CPL, have also included South African leg-spinner Imran Tahir and Afghanistan fast bowler Naveen ul Haq.

The squad also features upcoming Guyanese players Kevin Sinclair and Ashmead Nedd, both of whom impressed in 2020 in their maiden CPL.

The Amazon Warriors, who still have six spots left to complete their squad, will make an announcement in the coming weeks.

A statement from the Amazon Warriors management said: ''The management of the Guyana Amazon Warriors franchise is pleased to retain the core group of players, which comprised our squad over the last two years.

"It is the hope of the franchise that with the majority of players being together over the last two tournaments, the team unity, camaraderie and support for one another in working towards a common goal and purpose will bring the desired result of winning the tournament this year."
Seoul, May 11 : Samsung Electronics lost its top spot in four major smartphone markets in Southeast Asia in the first quarter of the year, a report showed on Tuesday, as it faced intensified competition with Chinese brands in the region.

The South Korean tech giant logged a 19 percent market share in Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam in the January-March period, down from 22 percent a year earlier and slipped to the runner-up spot, according to the latest report from market researcher Counterpoint Research.

Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp., simply known as Oppo, claimed the top position from Samsung in the first quarter with a share of 22 percent, up from 21 percent a year earlier.

Its Chinese compatriots took the No. 3-5 spots, with Vivo coming in third with a market share of 16 percent, followed by Xiaomi with 13 percent and realme with 11 percent. Apple Inc. ranked sixth with 6 percent.

Counterpoint Research said Samsung saw a 20 percent on-year increase in smartphone sales in the four countries, but its market share declined as Chinese makers expanded their presence, reports Yonhap news agency.

The combined smartphone market of the four Southeast Asian nations grew 34 percent on-year to 27 million units, Counterpoint Research data showed, with online sales expanding 72 percent from a year ago to represent 16 percent of the total sales.

Indonesia, the largest market among the four, saw a 41 percent on-year increase, while the Philippines became the second-biggest market after edging Vietnam with 50 percent on-year growth.
Bengaluru, May 11 : Finally after several people complained about a bed shortage in hospitals, Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Tuesday directed hospital authorities to take steps to vacate all those patients who are staying in hospitals beyond 20-days.

These directions came after his visit to the Bengaluru West division Covid war room in Malleshwaram here, Yediyurappa said that he had come to know from war room data that about 835 patients were occupying beds beyond 20 days in the West division of Bengaluru.

According to him, the west division war room data shows that 9,242 patients were admitted in various hospitals so far and of these 6,500 patients are admitted since 10 days, whereas 503 patients are being treated anywhere between beyond 10 to 20 days and 332 patients are getting treatment in hospitals beyond 21 to 30 days.

"What is the need for these 332 patients to remain in the hospital for 30 days? Similarly what is the need for those 503 patients in the hospital for beyond 20 days?," he questioned.

He said that the doctors and hospitals must take steps to vacate at least those who are staying beyond 15 to 20 days and make way for new patients Answering a question, Yediyurappa said that doctors must inform these patients to vacate beds.

"Beyond 10-days anybody stays should be discharged as after this duration one needs medication support and home care and such patients do not need hospital care at all," he explained.

Yediyurappa said those 503 patients who have been staying in the hospital beyond 21 days and 30 days are in the hospital despite doctors advising their discharge.

"These patients must make way for others. They should be told that the treatment was over and they should go home paving the way for admission of serious ones," he said without explaining much.

He added that the Covid war room has generated information about those patients who can avail treatment at home but were staying put in the hospital depriving serious patients from getting treatment.

Terming the Covid War Room management in Karnataka was one of the best in the country, the CM said data generated in war rooms in Karnataka are accurate and giving every detail on a real-time basis about the number of people admitted, for how long they are there and the availability of beds in the hospitals for Covid patients.

"We are operating this war room in a systematic manner, which probably cannot be seen anywhere in the country," he said.

The Chief Minister's visit to the Covid War Room came after his own partymen including BJP's Bengaluru South MP L. S. Tejasvi Surya alleged that the 'cash for bed scam' was a reality in Bengaluru in private hospitals where a few War Room staff colluded with the hospitals and civic officials to block the government quota of beds.

Those beds were 'sold' to the needy for a hefty bribe somewhere between Rs 50,000 to over Rs one lakh, he had alleged.

Acting on this expose by ruling party members, the Bengaluru Central Crime Branch police has arrested seven persons including doctors in this connection and the police has also interrogated nearly two dozen persons working in hospitals and Covid war rooms.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 11: China has recorded a total population of 1.41 billion with a growth rate in the decade up to 2020 falling to the lowest level since the 1950s.

The statistics of the once-a-decade census released on Tuesday show that China has narrowly missed its target set in 2016 to increase its population to about 1.42 billion by 2020. The government has been worried that a declining population may depress economic growth. Besides, an increasingly belligerent China with ambitions of being a superpower is finding it difficult to get suitable recruits for its defence forces.

China had switched from its harsh one-child policy, rolled out in 1980 to curtail its population explosion at the time, to a two-child limit in 2016 aimed at increasing its population but the results have fallen short of expectations.

This is likely to build pressure on the Xi Jinping government to offer more incentives for families to have more children. There are also fears sparked by a news report that the population may have declined in 2020 compared to 2019.

The controversy has arisen after a Financial Times report in April said people in the know about the 2020 census said it was expected to show the population, which rose above 1.4 billion in 2019, declined for the first time since the ruling Communist Party took power in 1949.

However, the Chinese government machinery had swung into damage-control mode after the report. "According to our understanding, in 2020, China's population continued to grow," the country's National Bureau of Statistics had said on its website.

The comment itself is considered a significant development as the Chinese government does not normally react to such media reports.

Vital stats The 2020 statistics of China's once-a-decade census, released on Tuesday, showed the population of mainland China increased 5.38% to 1.41 billion.

The preceding 2010 census had recorded a rise of 5.84% to 1.34 billion. This was a dramatic decline after the double-digit percentage growth registered in all of China's previous six official population surveys which started in 1953.

In recent months, China's state media has been increasingly bleak on the outlook, saying the population may start to shrink in the next few years. The United Nations predicts the number of people living in mainland China will peak in 2030 before declining.

The 2020 number was actually slightly higher than the 1.4005 billion in 2019 estimated in a smaller official survey released in February last year.

However, experts point out that the bright spot in the census data was an unexpected increase in the proportion of young people as 17.95% of the population was 14 or younger in 2020, compared with 16.6% in 2010.

Declining birth rate From 2016 to 2019, the annual birth rate mostly declined with the exception of 2016. China has not disclosed the birth rate for 2020.

"A sharp decline in the number of births is a sure thing, and all kinds of evidence support this claim," a Reuters report quoted Huang Wenzheng, a Beijing-based demography expert as saying. "It doesn't take published census data to determine that China is facing a massive drop in births," Huang said. Even if China's population didn't decline in 2020, the expert said, "it will in 2021 or 2022, or very soon." Young urban couples value their independence and careers more than raising a family despite parental pressure to have children. The sharp increase in the cost of living in China's big cities has also discouraged couples from having children.

(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative/
New Delhi, May 11: China, on Monday warned Bangladesh of grave consequences if the latter joined any initiatives under the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or QUAD "Bilateral relations with Bangladesh would be substantially damaged if it joins hand with [Quad] initiatives," Radio Free Asia quoted Chinese Ambassador in Bangladesh Li Jiming as saying.

Last month, Chinese Defence Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe who called on Bangladesh President Mohammad Abdul Hamid had insisted that the two countries should join hands to form a military alliance in South Asia.

Bangladesh's importance in the emerging Indo Pacific geopolitical contours has been increasing in the last few months. Indications are that the QUAD members-US, Japan and Australia besides India-are keen at a QUAD plus group to maintain balance in the Indo-Pacific region.

All eyes on Hasina Analysts said that while China is putting pressure on Bangladesh, "Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is pragmatic and will do what is best suited for her country." China is a significant partner of Bangladesh but so are India and the US. "Hasina is known for her political acumen, she has deftly balanced her relations with India and China both," an analyst, on condition of anonymity said.

The analyst said that if eventually Dhaka joins any initiative under the QUAD, Hasina will ensure that the right message goes to Beijing which would essentially underline that the collaboration is not military based but is purely developmental in nature.

It is also a fact that the Chinese, who have been under the scanner for their treatment towards the Uighur Muslims, are not much welcomed in the country though Beijing has been trying to woo Dhaka for long. "China is driven by its own interests and Dhaka is aware of that fact. Dhaka's foreign policies are not dictated by other countries," a Bangladesh based researcher said.

Besides, Dhaka, considered to be the tailor of the world-it is the second largest apparel exporter-- exports over 70 per cent of its garments to Europe and the US. "Given this scenario, Dhaka cannot afford to lose the US or openly tilt towards China, which Pakistan has done," another analyst said.

Currently, Bangladesh benefits from the most favourable regime available under the Generalized Scheme of Preferences (GSP) which essentially means that Dhaka enjoys duty free quota and free access to the EU for exports of all products, except arms and ammunition.

While "China has been losing its market share mainly due to higher cost of production and shortage of skilled workforce" in the country, Bangladesh has been the major beneficiary.

"Following such shift, Bangladesh's export of garment items is on the rise as the global apparel retail giants are also increasing the volume of work orders for quality garment at competitive prices, the Daily Star in a report said earlier.

(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative/
New Delhi, May 11: The May 7 article in The Australian newspaper revealing that bioweapons were on the radar of Chinese academics and military scientists since 2015 has triggered a legitimate demand for sanctioning Chinas science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) researchers.

The daily brought into global spotlight the existence of a Chinese military paper that discusses the potential of bioweapons based on SARS coronaviruses. Covid-19 is also a mutant of SARS coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2. The findings by the Australian have reopened the debate about the origins of Covid-19, driving holes in the theory that a wet market in Wuhan, a stone's throw from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, was the ground zero from where Covid-19 radiated across the globe. Reuters is reporting that the virus has already killed nearly 6.9 million people across the world-- more than double the number officially recorded, according to an estimate by the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME).

The Chinese military paper titled Unnatural Origin of SARS and New Species of Man-Made Viruses as Genetic Bioweapons, points out that World War III, if it materialises, will be decided by new age biological weapons. They argue that the future of warfare is biological weapons, signalling that it was therefore necessary for China to develop these weapons of mass destruction. They predict that a "new era of genetic weapons" that can be "artificially manipulated into an emerging human Adisease virus, then weaponised and unleashed in a way never seen before," is on the horizon.

The authenticity of the 263-page Chinese military paper, authored by 18 top experts, including those drawn from the People's Liberation Army (PLA), has been established by digital forensics specialist Robert Potter. The US Department of Science got hold of the document May 2020, whose details will be published in an upcoming book, to be released in September, titled What Really Happened in Wuhan, authored by Sharri Markson.

The Chinese paper asserts that the new means of delivering bioweapons have been developed. "For example, the new-found ability to freeze-dry micro-organisms has made it possible to store biological agents and aeresolise them during attacks." The document points out that impact of a bioweapon attack will be overwhelming. It says that a sudden flood of patients into hospitals during a biological weapons attack "could cause the enemy's medical system to collapse".

It further examines the ideal conditions for delivering a bioweapon attack. "Bioweapon attacks are best conducted during dawn, dusk, night or cloudy weather because intense sunlight can damage the pathogens," according to the document. "Biological agents should be released during dry weather. Rain or snow can cause the aerosol particles to precipitate. A stable wind direction is desirable so that the aerosol can float into the target area." An opinion article in Epoch Times authored by Ander Corr, Publisher of the Journal of Political Risk spotlights that turn to bioweapons would be a logical extension of China's track record.

"The document is consistent with significant prior evidence of offensive Chinese biowarfare research that can access technologies such as gene-editing and viral "gain-of-function" (GOF) processes. Chinese military researchers have also shown an interest in bioweapon genetic targeting," says the article.

The writeup goes on to explain that gene-editing, such as CRISPR technology, could target "specific ethnicity". facilitate such targeting. "GOF produces new viruses that are more transmissible and lethal than their progenitors, for example, use of an avian influenza virus to evolve, in the lab, a virus that can infect humans. If China can put these technologies together, and has the will to do so, it could design a killer virus that only infects a particular race that China considers to be an enemy." For years, China has been suspected of developing bioweapons. In June last year, the U.S. Department of State (DoS) expressed concern that China was violating the Biological [and Toxin] Weapons Convention (BWC or BTWC) of 1984 by researching dual-use technologies. That suspicion of engaging in dual use technology can be traced to 2005, when DoS alleged that "China maintains some elements of an offensive [biological weapons] capability in violation of its BTWC obligations." The DoS has consistently echoed this theme in subsequent years.

In arguing for sanctioning China's STEM researchers, analysts point out that the Beijing can benefit from western research, and use it for developing bioweapons.

"Chinese military researchers have closely examined American initiatives and international advancements, which have seemed to inform and inspire the direction of developments underway in China today," says Elsa Kania at the Center for a New American Security, and consultant Wilson VornDick, as quoted in the Epoch Times article. "So too, at a time when Chinese universities and enterprises are pursuing investment and expanding global research collaborations in such fields, it is important that their foreign partners remain cognizant of the interests and involvements of their counterparts. For instance, although biomedical research involves numerous promising applications in medicine and therapeutics, there are also reasons for concern about some of the ethical and security externalities of these research engagements." (This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative/

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Babhanjot/ May 11 : In a disturbing turn of events, Pipra Bara Khan, a small village in Babhanjot block in Gonda district in Uttar Pradesh, has witnessed 17 deaths in the last 20 days.

It is suspected that the deaths were caused by Covid-19, even as the villagers are unwilling to get themselves tested.

Block Development Officer Pradeep Chaudhary, who visited the village after hearing the news, told IANS over phone, "I have visited the village and a medical team will be going there again on Wednesday. Most of the persons who died were elderly people." He also said that it is a matter of concern that so many people have died in the same village. The medical team has started testing the people in the village, but many of them are unwilling to get themselves tested, he said.

Chaudhary also said that he has seen a few people in the village with Covid symptoms, as he put the death toll at 17.

The village is more than 160 km from state capital Lucknow and lack of health facility is believed to be the primary reason behind the latest tragedy.

The BDO said that if Covid cases are confirmed in the village, the standard operating procedures will be followed.

However, ex-village head Mohammed Sarwar said the situation is pathetic in the village hamlet of Badka Deeha, as 19 people have died since April 20, including two in a span of three days in the family of one Abdul Mannan.

Sarwar said that soon after the death of Mannan, his son also passed away after only a few days' of illness, while his mother is also reportedly unwell.

The locals said that many people are ill in the village but they are afraid of getting themselves tested despite having Covid-like symptoms. The list sent by the villagers claim that 19 people have died, while the condition of eight others is stated to be serious.

As per reports, the district on Monday reported 109 positive cases of which 78 cases were reported from different villages. The district presently has 1,533 active cases. The nodal officer for Covid management in the district put the death rate at 1.3 per cent.

While the locals are complaining that lack of testing and ignorance of people are the reasons behind the recent deaths, the BDO has maintained that the administration is making all the efforts to help the people in these testing times.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Panaji, May 11 : Lack of expert drivers manning trucks ferrying oxygen has led to the oxygen shortage crisis in Goa's top hospital, Goa Medical College, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Tuesday, even as Health Minister Vishwajit Rane claimed that 26 persons died within four hours due to shortage of oxygen at the apex health facility.

Rane, who has been at loggerheads with Sawant over control of the state's Covid management apparatus, has now urged the Bombay High Court to probe the oxygen shortage issue at the Goa Medical College and take over the Covid management system at the health facility.

Earlier on Tuesday, Rane said that 26 patients admitted to a Covid ward at the hospital, had died between 2 am and 6 am on Tuesday morning.

"I request the High Court to check if there is mismanagement or shortage and bring out a white paper using experts... High Court should take over Covid management of GMC," Rane said, adding that the key issue was not mismanagement, but shortage of oxygen which led to the deaths. "We need 1,200 (jumbo) cylinders, but yesterday we got only 400," Rane also said.

Sawant on Tuesday morning visited the Covid ward, which witnessed the more than two dozen fatalities, insisted that it was not oxygen shortage which led to the deaths. The cause of deaths Sawant claimed was because oxygen tanks could not reach the patients in time.

Sawant also met patients and relatives of admitted patients at the Covid ward, who complained about regular drop in oxygen supply through nights.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday evening, after a meeting with GMC officials, Sawant said that lack of expert drivers had led to irregular oxygen flow to the health facility.

"Once oxygen cylinders arrive here, they does not reach (the wards). This was a priority issue," Sawant said.

"Four expert drivers and tractors (to ferry oxygen cylinders) will be brought tomorrow, after that the pressure will not drop," the CM said.

Sawant also said that 200 additional oxygen cylinders would be provided to the 400 already being supplied to GMC everyday and said that a 20 ton liquid oxygen tank would also be made available within "eight to ten days" to tide over the crisis.

The Chief Minister also said that the hospital's main oxygen provider, Scoop Industries private limited, should take responsibility for not being able to tackle the supply crisis at the top government health facility and warned that the government would not hesitate taking over the oxygen manufacturing unit, using pandemic related laws.

"Scoop (industries) should take responsibility. It is a 10-year contract (to supply oxygen). He cannot pass the buck to the government. The government has supported (Scoop) in every possible way. We can take over anything... If (Scoop) creates a problem. I will not tolerate it," Sawant said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Edison, NJ -- (SBWIRE) -- 05/11/2021 -- A new business intelligence report released by HTF MI with title "2021-2030 Report on Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Market by Player, Region, Type, Application and Sales Channel" is designed covering micro level of analysis by manufacturers and key business segments. The Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Market survey analysis offers energetic visions to conclude and study market size, market hopes, and competitive surroundings. The research is derived through primary and secondary statistics sources and it comprises both qualitative and quantitative detailing. Some of the key players profiled in the study are Dufry, Lagardere Travel Retail, Lotte Duty Free, LVMH, Aer Rianta International (ARI), China Duty Free Group, Dubai Duty Free, Duty Free Americas, Gebr. Heinemann, King Power International Group, The Shilla Duty Free, JR Group, DFS Group, Bahrain Duty Free, Baltona Duty Free, Le Bridge Duty Free & RegStaer.



What's keeping Dufry, Lagardere Travel Retail, Lotte Duty Free, LVMH, Aer Rianta International (ARI), China Duty Free Group, Dubai Duty Free, Duty Free Americas, Gebr. Heinemann, King Power International Group, The Shilla Duty Free, JR Group, DFS Group, Bahrain Duty Free, Baltona Duty Free, Le Bridge Duty Free & RegStaer Ahead in the Market? Benchmark yourself with the strategic moves and findings recently released by HTF MI



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Market Overview of Global Duty Free & Travel Retail

If you are involved in the Global Duty Free & Travel Retail industry or aim to be, then this study will provide you inclusive point of view. It's vital you keep your market knowledge up to date segmented by Applications [Airports, Onboard Aircraft, Seaports, Train Stations & Others], Product Types [, Cosmetics & Personal Care Products, Alcohol, Wine and Spirits, Tobacco & Cigarettes, Fashion & Luxury Goods & Confectionery & Food Stuff] and major players. If you have a different set of players/manufacturers according to geography or needs regional or country segmented reports we can provide customization according to your requirement.



This study mainly helps understand which market segments or Region or Country they should focus in coming years to channelize their efforts and investments to maximize growth and profitability. The report presents the market competitive landscape and a consistent in depth analysis of the major vendor/key players in the market along with impact of economic slowdown.



Furthermore, the years considered for the study are as follows:

Historical year  2015-2020

Base year  2020

Forecast period**  2021 to 2026 [** unless otherwise stated]



**Moreover, it will also include the opportunities available in micro markets for stakeholders to invest, detailed analysis of competitive landscape and product services of key players.



Enquire for customization in Report @: https://www.htfmarketreport.com/enquiry-before-buy/3274031-2021-2030-report-on-global-duty-free-travel-retail-market



The titled segments and sub-section of the market are illuminated below:

The Study Explore the Product Types of Duty Free & Travel Retail Market: , Cosmetics & Personal Care Products, Alcohol, Wine and Spirits, Tobacco & Cigarettes, Fashion & Luxury Goods & Confectionery & Food Stuff



Key Applications/end-users of Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Market: Airports, Onboard Aircraft, Seaports, Train Stations & Others



Top Players in the Market are: Dufry, Lagardere Travel Retail, Lotte Duty Free, LVMH, Aer Rianta International (ARI), China Duty Free Group, Dubai Duty Free, Duty Free Americas, Gebr. Heinemann, King Power International Group, The Shilla Duty Free, JR Group, DFS Group, Bahrain Duty Free, Baltona Duty Free, Le Bridge Duty Free & RegStaer



Region Included are: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific etc



Important Features that are under offering & key highlights of the report:

 Detailed overview of Duty Free & Travel Retail market

 Changing market dynamics of the industry

 In-depth market segmentation by Type, Application etc

 Historical, current and projected market size in terms of volume and value

 Recent industry trends and developments

 Competitive landscape of Duty Free & Travel Retail market

 Strategies of key players and product offerings

 Potential and niche segments/regions exhibiting promising growth

 A neutral perspective towards Duty Free & Travel Retail market performance

 Market players information to sustain and enhance their footprint



Read Detailed Index of full Research Study at @ https://www.htfmarketreport.com/reports/3274031-2021-2030-report-on-global-duty-free-travel-retail-market



Major Highlights of TOC:

Chapter One: Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Market Industry Overview

1.1 Duty Free & Travel Retail Industry

1.1.1 Overview

1.1.2 Products of Major Companies

1.2 Duty Free & Travel Retail Market Segment

1.2.1 Industry Chain

1.2.2 Consumer Distribution

1.3 Price & Cost Overview



Chapter Two: Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Market Demand

2.1 Segment Overview

2.1.1 APPLICATION 1

2.1.2 APPLICATION 2

2.1.3 Other

2.2 Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Market Size by Demand

2.3 Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Market Forecast by Demand



Chapter Three: Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Market by Type

3.1 By Type

3.1.1 TYPE 1

3.1.2 TYPE 2

3.2 Duty Free & Travel Retail Market Size by Type

3.3 Duty Free & Travel Retail Market Forecast by Type



Chapter Four: Major Region of Duty Free & Travel Retail Market

4.1 Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Sales

4.2 Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Revenue & market share



Chapter Five: Major Companies List



Chapter Six: Conclusion



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Key questions answered

- How Global Duty Free & Travel Retail Market Growth & Size is Changing with Years to Come?

- Who are the Leading key players and what are their Key Business plans in the Global Duty Free & Travel Retail market?

- What are the key concerns of the five forces analysis of the Global Duty Free & Travel Retail market?

- What are different prospects and threats faced by the dealers in the Global Duty Free & Travel Retail market?

- What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors?



Thanks for reading this article; you can also get individual chapter wise section or region wise report version like North America, Europe or Asia.



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Hyderabad, May 11 : Bharat Biotech has been directly supplying its Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin to 18 states since May 1, the company said on Tuesday.

"Unflinching in our efforts, we will continue the steady supply of our vaccine," the Hyderabad-based vaccine maker tweeted.

The states are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

The company, however, has not come out with details of the supplies like the number of doses supplied to the states.

The company earlier said it started the supplies based on the allocations received by the Government of India.

"Requests have been received from other states, & will be processed for distribution based on availability of stocks 24x7," Bharat Biotech co-founder and Joint Managing Director Suchitra Ella had tweeted earlier.

Bharat Biotech had on April 24 announced pricing for Covaxin. It fixed the price of Covaxin at Rs.600 per dose for state governments.

However, it later slashed the price to Rs.400. This came after Serum Institute of India (SII) cut the price of Covishield to Rs.300 from Rs.400 earlier.

The two vaccine makers slashed the prices after the central government reportedly made a request to them amid the row over different pricing for the central and state governments.

For private hospitals, Bharat Biotech fixed the price at Rs.1,200 per dose. This is twice the cost fixed for Covishield.

For exports, Bharat Biotech has priced India's first indigenous Covid vaccine at $15-$20 (Rs 1,125-1,500).

Ever since the launch of Covid vaccination programme in India, Bharat Biotech and SII have been supplying their vaccines to the Centre at Rs.150 per dose.

While Bharat Biotech is likely to continue the supplies to the Centre at the same price, SII is seeking to revise this to Rs.400.

Both Bharat Biotech and SII have announced that they are reserving 50 per cent of their production capacities for supplies to the central government.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
First oxygen express to Karnataka chugs into Bengaluru. Karnataka launches Oxy Bus service for Covid patients outside hospitals Image Source: IANS News

First oxygen express to Karnataka chugs into Bengaluru. Karnataka launches Oxy Bus service for Covid patients outside hospitals Image Source: IANS News

Bengaluru, May 11 : Taking a leaf out of Chennai NGO Oxygen on Wheels's playbook, Karnataka on Tuesday launched its own version - OxyBus service - to aid Covid patients during emergencies.

After the Covid second wave hit the state in mid-March and intensified in April, the health care infrastructure is facing a daunting task of saving patients during the golden hour. Hospitals across the state are crumbling due to shortage of life saving equipment such as ventilators and oxygen concentrators.

Chief Minister B. S. Yediyurappa in his Tweet said that each makeshift OxyBus supports up to eight patients.

Last week, Chennai-based Jain International Trade Organisation (JITO) launched the relief project 'Oxygen on Wheels' in association with the Greater Chennai Corporation to address the Oxygen deficit faced by hospitals across the city.

Karnataka Health department officials said that through this Critical Golden hour initiative, the government is hoping to save as many lives as it can and also to minimize the casualty that could arise as a result of non-availability of beds.

"We plan to launch 20 such units near state run medical facilities such as hospitals and Triage centres in Bengaluru in its first phase while many more units will be set up across the state shortly," Yediyurappa said.

Earlier, the CM visited the 'Arogya Soudha' and BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) war room in Malleshwaram to review the functioning of the bed allocation system and citizen helpline.

"We are ensuring transparency and efficiency in the system for timely availability of beds to Covid patients," he claimed.

Answering the question, the CM also said that there was no shortage of anti-Covid vaccines for any age group including 18 to 44 years, which is the state government's initiative. "I only appeal to youngsters not to crown in front of vaccination centres unless they are registered and they have received the scheduled appointment date for their vaccine by the government," he explained.

The CM asserted that there will be no shortage of vaccine whatsoever.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Puducherry, May 11 : The number of BJP legislators in the Puducherry Assembly has gone up to nine after the Union Home Ministry nominated 3 party leaders as legislators to the House.

The BJP had six elected legislators while one Independent MLA had already extended his support to the saffron party. With the latest addition, BJP now has a total strength of 10 in the legislative Assembly, which is equivalent to that of its ally AINRC.

It is to be noted that the BJP did not allot any of its three nominated posts to its ally AINRC.

The nominated MLAs are K. Venkatesan, a former DMK MLA who had resigned and joined the BJP; V.P. Ramalingam, the brother of former Speaker V.P. Sivakozhunthu, who joined the BJP on the eve of the Assembly elections; and advocate R.B. Ashok Babu, the party's city unit president and a practicing lawyer.

The strength of the NDA has now increased to 20 in the 33-member House with the DMK having six MLAs, the Congress two besides five Independents.

There are possibilities that the five Independent MLAs might join the saffron camp, which will make it easier for the BJP to bargain for the post of Chief Minister with AINRC leader N. Rangasamy.

Mahe-based journalist and social worker K. Asokan told IANS, "There are possibilities of BJP poaching the remaining five Independent MLAs and increasing its floor strength. This means the BJP is ahead of its partner AINRC, but it will be suicidal for the party if it tries to oust Rangasamy from the CM's post as in that case the latter might go with the DMK and the Congress to save his government. Puducherry will witness interesting political developments in the days to come."
Mumbai, May 11 : Krrip Kapur Suri is all set to unleash a new act of villainy on the small screen. It is an area, he says, is his forte.

Krrip will essay Guru Bhai, a menacing don on the Hindi fantasy drama series "Hero: Gayab Mode On". Guru Bhai and his dreaded gang will wreak havoc on the city, and the show's protagonist Veer, played by Abhishek Nigam, will have a tough time averting the nefarious plan.

"Essaying the role of a villain is one of my fortes. I am glad to be associated with this show. It gives me the opportunity to don a new avatar, Guru Bhai. Shooting for these scenes was intense but also something I enjoyed doing at the same time. It will be interesting to watch when Guru Bhai and Veer come face to face," says Krrip, about the popular Sony SAB show.
New Delhi, May 11 : A Delhi court on Tuesday declined to grant interim protection from coercive action to businessman Navneet Kalra in connection with a case with the seizure of oxygen concentrators from his restaurants.

Kalra had moved the Saket court seeking anticipatory bail in the matter. Special Judge, Saket Courts, Sumit Dass ordered that Kalra's anticipatory bail application be listed before the District and Sessions Judge on Wednesday at 10 a.m.

Public Prosecutor Atul Shrivastava submitted that the matter should be heard by the court which is dealing with the matter, which is being probed by the Crime Branch.

He also contended before the court that it should decide on the jurisdiction to hear the bail application of Kalra. Initially, the case was lodged at the Lodhi Colony police station, but later transferred to the Crime Branch. Kalra's advocate Vineet Malhotra contended before the court that when his client filed the anticipatory bail, the roster was of this court.

On Monday, a Delhi court had refused to grant any stay on coercive action against Kalra in connection with hoarding of oxygen concentrators, which were seized by the Delhi Police from his restaurant "Khan Chacha". The Crime Branch had launched a manhunt against him.

A special judge had directed the investigating officer to file the reply on Kalra's application by Tuesday. Kalra moved the court seeking interim relief of no coercive action by Delhi Police and also denied the allegations of hoarding of oxygen concentrators.

The Delhi Police had registered a case under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and also the Essential Commodities Act for recovery of over 500 oxygen concentrators from some restaurants in the national capital last week.

During the course of the hearing, the public prosecutor had opposed the pre-arrest bail application. The counsel for the accused submitted before the court that his client is being "hounded".
Bengaluru, May 11 : The first Oxygen Express to Karnataka with six cryogenic containers chugged into the city's Whitefield railway station, an official said on Tuesday.

"The Oxygen Express came from Tatanagar in Jharkhand's Jamshedpur," a Western Railway Zone official said.

The railways created a signal-free green corridor for a non-stop run of the 1,833 km route from Tatanagar to Bengaluru, which was covered in nearly 30 hours.

"With 20 MT of liquid medical oxygen in each container, 120 MT of the gas were transported from Jharkhand to Karnataka," said the official.

The state government sought the railways' help in ferrying the liquid medical oxygen from Tatanagar for supplying hospitals across the state.

"A ramp was built at the satellite goods terminal for unloading the oxygen containers safely," said the official.

The Indian Railways have been operating Oxygen Express trains across the country over the last three weeks to speedily deliver the gas in various states for meeting the growing demand to treat Covid patients amid the pandemic's second wave.

"Till date, the railways ran 75 Oxygen Express trains to deliver 4,700 MT to Delhi, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh," added the official.
Hyderabad, May 11 : There will be no Eid prayers in Telangana mosques as the state government has ordered closure of all places of worship during the 10-day lockdown beginning Wednesday.

A Government Order issued on Tuesday night following the Cabinet decision makes it clear that religious gatherings/congregations shall not be permitted.

The restrictions were imposed on the eve of Eid-ul-Fitr, the festival marking the culmination of Ramzan.

Eid is to be celebrated on Thursday or Friday, depending on the sighting of the new crescent.

Daily five time Namaz and special prayers (Taraveeh) were being regularly offered in mosques in Hyderabad and the rest of Telangana since the beginning of Ramzan. The management committees of the mosques were ensuring adherence to Covid guidelines like wearing of masks and social distancing.

After the imposition of night curfew on May 23, the mosques had advanced the timing of night prayers (Isha) and Taraveeh to complete worship by 9 p.m.

All the mosques had cancelled late night prayers (Tahajjud) in view of the night curfew.

Political and religious leaders had already appealed to people to offer Eid prayers in local mosques instead of Eidgahs to prevent large congregations. However, the lockdown was imposed just when the fasting month was coming to an end.

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) had also called upon Muslims to avoid big gatherings on occasion of Eid prayers and ensure wearing of mask and social distancing among two worshippers.

Leading Islamic seminary Jamia Nizamia had also issued a 'fatwa' that Eid prayers can be offered in any clean open space, function halls and schools by following all Covid related guidelines.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Dhaka, May 11 : Militant outfit Hefazat-e-Islam, which was behind the recent unrest in Bangladesh, has a sub-group called "Manhazi", whose members include some "who had trained in Afghanistan", a senior police officer said on Tuesday.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police's Joint Commissioner, Mahbub Alam also told IANS that banned terror group Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami (HuJI) was also showing signs of activity.

According to officials, since the early 1980s, many people went from Bangladesh to Afghanistan to join the Al Qaeda fighting against the Soviet Army. There is no accurate count of how many, mostly madarsa teachers and students, had gone theere, but the rise of militancy in Bangladesh in the 1990s was spurred on by these fighters returning home.

A branch of Pakistani militant organisation HuJI, was established in Bangladesh in 1992, and Osama bin Laden had allegedly aided its formation.Announcing the formation then, Bangladesh's Taliban-supporting leaders including Mufti Izharul Islam Chowdhury had said HuJI had been operating as an organisation for "several years before".

Mufti Izhar, who had very close links with Bin Laden and Taliban chief Mullah Omar, had travelled to Afghanistan on several occasions and met them, describing his trips to meetings in different publications, which were circulated within the Huji network.

He was the founder of Jamiyatul Ulum al Islamia Madrasa, also known as Lalkhan Bazar Madrasa, and allegedly a "breeding ground of the militants" since early 1990s with the ultimate goal of setting up a Taliban state in Bangladesh, police said.

For four decades now, Islamist militant leaders are influencing the youth towards terrorist training.

Bangladeshi security agencies recently learned of a Messenger chat group that served as a network for distribution of extremist ideology and planning of militant acts, CTTC chief DIG M. Asaduzzaman told the media.

At least 10 militants were on chat group titled "Science Project" had planned a "large-scale incident" in Bangladesh before they would abscond to Afghanistan, DIG Asaduzzaman said on Tuesday.

"Most of the militant groups in Bangladesh claim their affiliation to Al Qaeda. Ansar Al Islam claims to be the sub-continental wing of Al Qaeda. They move to Afghanistan illegally, without passports and visas," Asaduzzaman said.

Three young men from Bangladesh have recently abandoned their home to take up the banner of Islamist terrorism in Afghanistan, according to officials of Counterterrorism and Transnational Crime Unit (CTTC).

They include Abdur Razzak from Comilla and Shibbir Ahmed from Sylhet.

Razzak studied at a madrasa in Sylhet and worked as a driver, and his brother, Salman Khan, reported him missing to Sylhet police March 25. Rabiul has also reportedly left home of Noakhali to travel to Afghanistan, but the police have yet to confirm this.

Sajeeb Ikhtiar, 20, who was among four members of the Science Project group arrested on Saturday, had confessed that his friend Razzak had been eager to take him to Afghanistan before Eid.

During police questioning, the four confessed their accomplices had gone to Afghanistan "via Chattogram" and that an individual named Abdullah from Sylhet had contacted them and told them to get their passports ready. Additional details about 'Abdullah' were not shared.

HuJI was the first organisation to conduct militant activity in Bangladesh. It carried out its first bomb attack on a cultural festival of five-decade old organisation Udichi in Jashore on March 6, 1999, killing 10 and injuring over 100. From 1999 to 2005, it orchestrated 13 bomb and grenade attacks across the country, killing at least 103 and injuring over 700.

The most violent of these incidents was the grenade attack on a public rally joined by the then Leader of Opposition Sheikh Hasina in 2004, leaving 22 people dead. The top leaders of HuJI were arrested in 2009 when the Awami League came to power.

Police officials say that the militants of that time would often travel to Afghanistan because those who trained there were highly respected by their peers.

In the past decade, many also started to go to Syria with the rise of the Islamic State and some of them also died there.

HuJI has started showing inklings of activity once again. "They harbour extremist views. Basically, it was them who instigated the violence in Chattogram," said Alam.

The DMP counterterror unit says it arrested three members of HuJI on March 4. They were identified as HuJI Operation Branch chief Md Mainul Islam aka Mahin aka Mithu aka Hassan, the organisation's 'sheikh' Sohan Shad aka Bara Abdullah and Murad Hossain Kabir. The counterterror unit says that Mainul was giving children 'jihadi' training at a madrasa in Dhaka.
New Delhi, May 11 : The BJP on Tuesday slammed Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra for making 'misleading statements on the cost of the Central Vista project in the national capital and advised her to concentrate on stopping the political violence unleashed against saffron party workers in West Bengal.

Earlier, Moitra had tweeted, "Dozens of bodies dumped in rivers in UP/Bihar - independent India never seen such a sight. Rs 20,000cr Central Vista money can buy 13,300 electric crematorium furnaces." Reacting to Moitra's tweet, BJP's national spokesperson R.P. Singh said, "Mahua Moitra must stop misleading people by giving incorrect figures of Central Vista project, it is Rs 1,000 crore not Rs 20,000 crore. The project will generate employment and accelerate economic activities." Singh also advised Moitra against politicising the unfortunate issue (of bodies found in river), for which a probe has already been ordered.

"The state government has already ordered a probe and will act according to its findings. It is not right to politicise the issue," Singh said.

He also advised that Moitra should try to stop political violence against BJP workers in West Bengal.

"Moitra and her party Trinamool Congress must stop migration of people who are leaving West Bengal to save their lives. Thousands of people migrated from West Bengal to Assam to save their lives after attacks by Trinamool workers. She must concentrate on saving the lives of people in West Bengal," Singh said.

On Monday, around 45 decomposed bodies were found on the banks of river Ganga in Bihar's Buxar district. On Tuesday, around two-dozen bodies were found on the banks of Ganga in the adjoining Ghazipur district of Uttar Pradesh.
Guwahati, May 11 : The Assam government headed by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday initiated the process to provide one lakh jobs to the unemployed youth of the state and to evolve strategies to waive the loans given by the micro-finance institutions to the rural people.

Chaired by Sarma, the first Cabinet meeting in the second term of the BJP-led government was held on Tuesday, during which several decisions were taken, including providing one lakh government jobs and waiving micro-finance loans.

After the meeting, Health Minister Keshab Mahanta said that a committee headed by Finance Minister Ajanta Neog has been constituted to prepare a roadmap for providing one lakh government jobs to the youth of the state.

The committee would prepare a report which would be submitted to the government at the earliest.

Other members of the committee include the Chief Secretary, the Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, and the Principal Secretary, Health, Education and Home.

During the meeting, another committee headed by Guwahati Development and Urban Development Minister Ashok Singhal was constituted to assess the financial involvement arising out of waiver of loans given by the micro-finance institutions to thousands of people, mostly in the rural areas.

Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister and the Principal Secretary for Finance, Planning and Rural Development would be the members of this committee.

Industries and Commerce Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary said that the Cabinet has also decided to increase Assam government's stake in the Numaligarh Refinery (NRL) from the existing 12.35 per cent to 26 per cent.

He said that the total financial involvement to increase the government's stake would stand at Rs 2,187 crore.

"The Cabinet directed the Finance Department to release the remaining Rs 1,687 crore financial involvements thus arising from this enhancement as the government has already paid Rs 500 crore for enhancing its stake," the minister said.

Set up in eastern Assam's Duliajan, the NRL was commissioned as per the provisions of the 1985 Assam Accord, signed after six years of Assam agitation launched to eject "illegal immigrants" from the state.
RTHK: Covid crisis to keep Modi from G7 summit

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not travel to Britain for the Group of Seven (G7) summit next month because of the coronavirus situation in the country, the foreign ministry said late on Tuesday.

"While appreciating the invitation to the Prime Minister by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to attend the G7 Summit as a Special Invitee, given the prevailing Covid situation, it has been decided that the Prime Minister will not attend the G7 Summit in person," the ministry said in a statement.

Modi has been criticised for allowing huge gatherings at a religious festival and holding large election rallies during the past two months even as cases surged.

India's seven-day average of daily infections hit a record 390,995 on Tuesday, with 3,876 deaths, according to the health ministry.

Official Covid-19 deaths, which experts say are almost certainly under-reported, stand at just under a quarter of a million.

US President Joe Biden is expected to join other leaders at a G7 summit chaired by Britain's Johnson in Cornwall, southwestern England, on June 11-13. (Reuters)

This story has been published on: 2021-05-11. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
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Patna, May 11 : Outrage spread across Bihar after Patna police arrested four-time MP and Jan Adhikar Party (JAP) President Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav on Tuesday for allegedly violating lockdown norms, with leaders of ruling parties joining the opposition in slamming the move.

Former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, whose Hindustani Awam Morcha is part of the ruling NDA, said: "A public representative is working round the clock to help poor people of Bihar. Despite that, the state government arrested him. Cases of lockdown breach against him should be investigated judicially first before action, otherwise public outrage is inevitable." Mukesh Sahani, President of Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP), which is also a NDA constituent, also expressed anger against the state government.

"The state government should encourage public representatives, and social activists to help people in the phase of pandemic. The arrest of Pappu Yadav who is helping people of Bihar is attributed to insensitivity," he said.

Rashtriya Janata Dal Vice President Shyam Rajak also reacted sharply to Pappu Yadav's arrest.

"Pappu Yadav is a leader who helps each and every person in Bihar. He has distributed life-saving medicines, ventilators, oxygen cylinders to corona patients. His arrest is extremely unfortunate. Nitish Kumar claims to be a socialist leader and doing politics in the name of Jai Prakash Narayan and Karpoori Thakur. If those leaders were alive, they would feel ashamed of Nitish Kumar. He has become dictator of Bihar. His image of 'Sushashan Babu' is just eyewash," he said.

In a tweet after his arrest, Pappu Yadav said: "If saving lives of common people in the phase of pandemic is crime then I admit that I am a criminal. Hang me or send me to jail PM Sahab, CM Sahab but I will not take a step back. I will not stop here. I will continue saving the lives of people and I will also expose unscrupulous leaders in future." Pappu Yadav's wife and former MP Ranjeeta Ranjan said: "The life of my husband is in danger. He recently underwent operation a month ago. Still, he is continuously working in the favour of poor people of the state. I have strong apprehension that the state government arrested him under deep conspiracy in a bid to kill him in jail. His rapid antigen test was negative recently... the state government will make him corona positive and kill him." Earlier in the day, the members of JAP protested on the streets of Patna against the Nitish Kumar government, burning the Chief Minister's effigy and terming him a "dictator".

A police officer from Madhepura had come to Patna and took Pappu Yadav back with him in connection with an FIR of lockdown violation was also lodged in the Udakisunganj police station there, apart from Patna. Another FIR was registered against Pappu Yadav in Saran for damaging government property on the day he raided at the office of BJP MP Rajiv Pratap Rudy and unearthed 39 ambulances kept in the premises.
Bengaluru, May 11 : Given the sudden spike in the demand for Remdesivir antiviral injections amid the raging second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, Karnataka on Tuesday directed two global pharma majors -- Jubilant Pharma and Cipla -- to supply the remaining committed quantity of the drug within 24 hours after receiving the notice.

The state revenue department issued a show cause notice to both the pharma majors for failing to supply the committed quantities of Remdesivir within the stipulated time frame.

In the notice issued separately to the two companies, Principal Secretary N. Manjunatha Prasad demanded an explanation from the pharma majors to be furnished within 24 hours of receiving the notice.

According to the notice, on May 1, the Union government had issued orders to Jubilant Pharma and Cipla to supply 32,000 and 30,000 vials of Remdesivir, respectively, to Karnataka by May 9. But till May 8, Karnataka had received only 17,601 vials from Jubilant and 10,840 vials from Cipla.

"Reduced supplies by the companies (Cipla and Jubilant) have resulted in severe impact on the treatment of Covid patients who are in dire need of Remdesivir injections. The non-supply of committed quantities of the drug has constrained the ability of the state government to provide safe treatment to the people, thereby endangering their lives. Thus, Karnataka is invoking the provisions of Disaster Management Act and other IPC sections to direct the companies to restore their committed supplies for the state," the notice read.

The notice added that the state government has also instructed these companies to submit a detailed plan of supplying day-to-day committed quantities assigned by the Union government.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
United Nation, May 12 : UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday voiced grave concern over the serious escalations in the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel, including the latest escalation in Gaza, which added to the heightened tensions and violence in occupied East Jerusalem, said his spokesman.

Guterres is deeply saddened to learn of increasingly large numbers of casualties, including children, from Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, and of Israeli fatalities from rockets launched from Gaza, said Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman, in a statement, Xinhua news agency reported.

The secretary-general's thoughts are with the families of the victims, said the statement.

Israeli security forces must exercise maximum restraint and calibrate their use of force. The indiscriminate launching of rockets and mortars toward Israeli population centres is unacceptable. This spiralling escalation must cease immediately, it said.

The United Nations is working with all relevant parties to de-escalate the situation urgently, said the statement.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Bengaluru, May 12 : Amid the unprecedented second wave of Covid-19 and rge sudden spike cases, Karnataka on Tuesday warned to initiate legal action against all those hospitals that have failed to hand over beds to the government till date.

Karnataka revenue minister, R. Ashoka and Home Minister, Basavaraj Bommai held an virtual meeting with officials concerned here to address Bengaluru's shortage of beds and decided to initiate legal action against errant hospitals here.

The revenue minister said that all hospitals within the Bengaluru Civic Body limits including those with 20-30 beds capacity and over 100 beds, must be inspected and seize 50 per cent of these beds must be seized immediately.

He added that all private hospitals in the city must be inspected immediately to make sure more beds are available for Covid patients.

Ashoka also instructed the officials to conduct a reality check on the availability of beds by a team led by officials and police officers at private hospitals and medical colleges.

According to the inspection and the regulations, the beds must be seized. In case the beds are not provided, the authorities must take legal action under the Disaster Management Act, he said.

Home Minister, Bommai Basavaraj Bommai said that this inspection must be a joint operation in order to seize all the beds in private hospitals in the city.

"Legal action must be taken against hospitals that are providing false information and not reserving the beds for Covid patients," he noted.

He also suggested that the number of step-down hospitals should also be increased in collaboration with private hospitals.

"At present step down hospitals have 960 beds, and there is a need to increase it to at least 5,000 beds in the days to come," he said.

Revenue department principal secretary N. Manjunath Prasad said that already nine teams comprising IAS and IPS officers have been deployed to keep check on bed allocation in private hospitals. "Nodal officers and police officers are appointed to 50 major hospitals in the city. Apthamithra staff from Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust have also been appointed. These officers need to work in tandem to make sure private hospitals are reserving 50 per cent and private medical college hospitals are reserving 75 per cent for Covid patients is realised," he explained.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 12 : At least 44 people, including 26 professors have died at the Aligarh Muslim University after getting infected with the lethal novel coronavirus, within just 20 days, officials said, adding the new variant is suspected to have caused the deaths.

Tariq Mansoor, Vice Chancellor of the AMU, has urged the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to investigate the samples taken from the varsity. His brother had also died of Covid-19.

Among the 26 professors who have lost their lives to Covid-19 include 16 working and 10 retired faculty members.

Officials said that samples have been collected from the university after the VC's request. The samples have been sent to the CSIR Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology in Delhi for examination.

The AMU has written a letter to ICMR, asking for a genome study of the Covid samples as soon as possible. From this study, it can be found out whether a new variant of Covid-19 has spread in the university.

Prof. Mohammad Ali Khan, 60, of the Department of Post Harvest Engineering, Prof. Kazi Mohammad Jamshed, 55, of the Department of Political Science, Sajid Ali Khan, 63, professor of the Department of Psychology, Mohammed Irfan, 62, Chairman of the Museum Department, among others are among the deceased

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Moscow, May 12 : The Russian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday called on Palestinians and Israelis to exercise restraint and refrain from steps that could further escalate the conflict in East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.

"Moscow perceives this dangerous development of events with deep concern. We strongly condemn attacks on civilians, regardless of their nationality or religion," the ministry said in a statement, Xinhua news agency reported.

The ministry deems it important to observe the status quo in relation to the holy places in Jerusalem.

It said Russia, in cooperation with regional and international partners, will consistently seek a comprehensive and sustainable settlement with the coexistence of the two states, Palestine and Israel.
AdventHealth Sebring is the only hospital in Highlands County to provide third-year medical students from various national and international colleges, the opportunity to get real-world learning experience in various clinical settings. Eight medical students from Antigua, Curacao, Grenada, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, and Bradenton, FL, have been admitted to the family residency program at AdventHealth Sebring. The residents will embark on a three-year robust clinical curriculum that will support their growth as future doctors.

It is our goal to train and keep the next generation of doctors to help us meet the growing health care needs of our community, said Dr. Bindu Raju, Chief Medical Officer of AdventHealth Sebring. The ability to partner with colleges throughout the region and beyond allows us to work together and build a program that provides third-year medical students the experience and all the necessary tools to help us continue to provide the highest quality of care to our rural neighbors.

Research shows it can be difficult to recruit family medicine physicians to live and work in rural areas such as Highlands and Hardee counties, and the struggle to hire and keep physicians in these communities can mean some patients choose to go without care since it is not conveniently located close to home. AdventHealth is working to close the gap.

Im honored to be part of recruiting and training family physicians who will serve and practice in the Heartland community, said Dr. Kevin Sherin, Program Director for AdventHealth Sebrings residency program." We are excited to be the first in AdventHealth West Florida Division to get this opportunity to transform local health care through a residency program.

The residents will rotate through several hospital departments under the supervision of board-certified AdventHealth physicians in the AdventHealth Sebring emergency room, operating rooms, and AdventHealth Medical Group physician practices. Studies show medical residents trained in rural areas are more likely to practice in rural areas and will practice close to where they train.

AdventHealth West Florida Division intends to further expand the residency program to other hospitals throughout the health system. The goal is to train future generations of physicians and provide leading-edge care to patients in the communities we serve.

About AdventHealth Heartland Region

AdventHealth Heartland Region is a not-for-profit, faith-based 222-bed health care system composed of three hospitals in Sebring, Lake Placid and Wauchula, with a staff of more than 1,800 employees and 225 board-certified physicians caring for the Highlands and Hardee County communities. A member of AdventHealth West Florida Division. For more information, visit AdventHealthSebring.com.

About AdventHealth West Florida Division

The West Florida Division of AdventHealth has some of the nations brightest medical minds making lifesaving breakthroughs with surgical pioneers, scientists and researchers using leading edge technology and innovation to deliver our brand of whole-person care. Our network of care includes AdventHealth Carrollwood, Ad-ventHealth Connerton, AdventHealth Dade City, AdventHealth Lake Placid, AdventHealth North Pinellas, Ad-ventHealth Ocala, AdventHealth Sebring, AdventHealth Tampa, AdventHealth Wauchula, AdventHealth Wes-ley Chapel and AdventHealth Zephyrhills, as well as three freestanding offsite Emergency Rooms including Ad-ventHealth Central Pasco ER, AdventHealth Palm Harbor ER and AdventHealth TimberRidge ER. We are more than hospitals, as we have a robust system of care including specialty acute care, over 200 primary care and specialty employed physicians, Express Care at Walgreens clinics, urgent care centers, wound care, physical therapy and home health care. AdventHealth is a faith-based not-for-profit health care system with a mission of Extending the Healing Ministry of Christ. AdventHealth has hundreds of care sites and nearly 50 hospitals across the United States. For more information about AdventHealth, visit AdventHealth.com, or Face-book.com/AdventHealth..
Our exceptional sales and marketing teams made 2020 a landmark year for Aki. Adding these two esteemed professionals further boosts our ability to impress and serve our customers, said Aki Technologies CEO Scott Swanson.

Aki Technologies, the leader in moment marketing, today announced that it has hired Nicole R. Ferrera to a newly created Head of Product Marketing position and Angela DiLemme to join as RVP of Sales for the Eastern region. Nicole has been at the forefront of digital technology her whole career and is expected to be instrumental in helping to steer the product roadmap for Akis inherently privacy-compliant probabilistic moments methodology. Angelas years of sales leadership, acumen and consultative customer-centric approach will benefit Aki's clients as she collaborates with them to find innovative solutions to todays biggest marketing challenges.

Aki Technologies helps brands and retailers enhance their digital advertising by identifying consumers in pivotal moments using personalized advertising. Aki is bolstering its capabilities with the additional hires who bring decades of expertise that will push Aki Technologies to provide next-level advertising for brand, agency, and retail clients.

Our Sales and Marketing teams did exceptional work to make 2020 a landmark year for Aki. Adding these two executives further diversifies our sales and marketing expertise and provides new leadership for the era of advertising personalization, said Aki Technologies CEO Scott Swanson. Nicole and Angela are stars in their respective fields and are sure to lead the Aki team to new heights.

Nicole R. Ferrera will develop and direct Akis marketing innovations. She was most recently Director of Ad Solutions, Innovation & Partnerships at ViacomCBS, where she developed technology solutions for branded programming such as conversational AI, interactive holograms, and AR environments. At OMD, Nicole stewarded the PepsiCo North American digital relationship, pioneering the partnership's learning agenda & quarterly business review process. She also created the first-ever brand-owned influencer network for Mountain Dew. As VP of Digital Investment at Initiative, she positioned the agency ahead of industry standards by employing ad verification as a buying procedure prior to widespread industry standardization. In doing so, she brought increased digital budget allocations across all business lines.

Angela DiLemme will help evolve Akis multiscreen strategies for clients, enabling them to connect with consumers with the increased efficacy of personalization. Before joining Aki, Ms. DiLemme was a consultant with Ion Media, where she built a new business development team focused on driving rates, fair share and overall profitability for the organization. She also spent 24 years at Neptune Retail Solutions (formerly News America Marketing) where she led sales, human resources, and operations initiatives focused on process improvement and revenue growth. During her career, she spearheaded a $2 million software acquisition, managed publisher relationships valued at $90 million, and drove a custom publishing business from $0 to more than $200 million over 10 years.

These hires come at a time when marketers are struggling with how to navigate a future cookieless advertising landscape and effectively target and measure the effectiveness of their campaigns. Aki Technologies' moments and personalized advertising technology offer a privacy-first contextual solution that uniquely positions the company to solve this challenge now and in the future for brands.

Aki Technologies facilitates innovative campaigns: https://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/filippo-berio-lifted-awareness-by-targeting-shopping-list-moments/ delivering ads to moms cooking at home during the pandemic, driving a 6% sales lift and a nearly 34% brand lift, and helping Biofreeze reach customers during key workout moments. Aki is also powering the recently announced Family Dollar retail media network Chesapeake Media Group. The company increased its revenue 25% year over year, increasing sales 70% from Q4 2019 to Q4 2020. Aki now counts 125 employees with plans to hire more across its offices in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit, and Bentonville as it pursues new business initiatives.

About Aki Technologies

Aki Technologies empowers brands and retailers to reach people by targeting pivotal moments in the consumer journey with personalized advertising. With four personalization patents, Aki's award-winning technology dynamically tailors ads in the moment based on region, weather, buying preferences, and other historical and present factors. This ensures a more relevant ad experience that drives stronger campaign results. To learn how Aki's personalized mobile, CTV, desktop and DOOH campaigns can help you reach your marketing goals, visit http://www.a.ki.
We will go to great lengths to ensure that all our customers are completely satisfied and thoroughly informed.

An expert in central vacuums, All About Central Vacuums has been providing central vacuums to Atlanta for over 20 years, either during new home construction or for commercial properties and businesses. In efforts to help those who may already have a central vacuum and are financially facing hard times, the company has announced it can service all makes and models of central vacuums throughout Metro Atlanta and Georgia.

We understand that central vacuums are not your normal vacuum cleaner, and it can be very expensive to purchase a new one, states the company president. Thats why we offer repair and maintenance services to both homeowners and businesses who have central vacuums in Atlanta.

Whether a central vacuum system has a clog, has lost its suction, or is facing another issue, the company has the knowledge and experience to fix it. The company can work on a variety of central vacuums, whether purchased directly through them or not, and it prides itself on its excellent customer service and quick repair times.

If you are paying more than $75 per visit for a maintenance visit, then you are paying too much! Your central vacuum system only needs to be cleaned every four months or three times per year. The company currently offers an annual maintenance plan of a $98 one-time fee per year. We hope that through our affordable prices we are able to provide some relief to those affected by the pandemic and the economic outcome.

About All About Central Vacuums

All About Central Vacuums (formerly known as York Central Vacuum) is locally owned and operated in Covington, Georgia. As a full service company, it has been installing, servicing, and repairing central vacuums in Atlanta and the surrounding areas for over 20 years. With its experience, the company is an expert in central vacuums. We will go to great lengths to ensure that all our customers are completely satisfied and thoroughly informed. And if we cant fix it, you dont pay! exclaims the company CEO.

The company encourages those with questions about their central vacuums to stop by their office.

All About Central Vacuums

44 Milton Ave, Suite 10A, Alpharetta, GA 30009

(470) 441-5223


The Best Way to Learn and Teach God's Word: a fascinating training tool. The Best Way to Learn and Teach God's Word is the creation of published author, David Hawkins, a successful former professor in both pharmacy and medical schools who has contributed to hundreds of professional scientific publications.

Dr. Hawkins shares, An effective method for learning Gods Word is to use a systematic strategy that involves seven consecutive steps. A good way to remember the order in which these seven steps should be taken is by referring to the acrostic PRIME AT. When you PRIME AT Gods Word, you are preparing to better understand and use Gods Word. The seven steps outlined in the acrostic are: Pray; Read, Interpret, Meditate, Explore, Apply, and Teach. You should:

1. Pray that the Holy Spirit will guide your learning of Gods Word,

2. Readdifferent versions of the Bible,

3. Interpretscripture in your own words,

4. Meditateon the meaning and purpose of the scripture,

5. Explorecommentaries, study guides, and other biblical references,

6. ApplyGods Word to your life,

7. Teachothers what you have learned.

An effective way to teach Gods Word is to engage people in active learning. This is best done by designing a pedagogical method that addresses the following questions:

1. What do you want people to be able to do when they have finished the lesson?

2. What will they need to know in order to do what should be done?

3. How can you facilitate their learning?

4. How do you assess learning?

Establishing a set of learning outcomes is required to answer the first question. To answer the second question, one must identify the body of knowledge that must be acquired to accomplish the learning outcomes. This requires identifying a set of learning objectives that must be achieved. The best way to facilitate learning is to provide guided learning materials that address both learning outcomes and learning objectives and ask probing questions. And finally, some type of quiz or test needs to be developed in order to properly assess learning.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, David Hawkins new book is an exciting opportunity for learning how to best teach biblical lessons.

With a diverse history in outcome-based research, Dr. Hawkins offers readers a straightforward approach to not only teaching others but also assisting themselves in developing a deeper faith and understanding of the Bible.

View a synopsis of The Best Way to Learn and Teach God's Word on YouTube.

Consumers can purchase The Best Way to Learn and Teach God's Word at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about The Best Way to Learn and Teach God's Word, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
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Blue Run 13.5-Year-Old Single Barrel Bourbon A Bourbon treasure hunt is about to commence as Blue Run Spirits unveils its Spring release, which recently won Best in Class and a Double Gold Medal at the prestigious San Francisco World Spirits Competition

A Bourbon treasure hunt is about to commence as Blue Run Spirits unveils its Spring release, which recently won Best in Class and a Double Gold Medal at the prestigious San Francisco World Spirits Competition. Blue Run 13.5-Year-Old Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon launches today as ten separate limited-edition bottlings from ten different barrels, each hand numbered to denote the proof, barrel number and bottling date, enticing whiskey sleuths to find the entire collection and whiskey enthusiasts around the country to discover their favorite flavor profile. Each bottle comes in a custom, handmade black lacquered wooden box, adding to the collectability.

The unveiling of Blue Run 13.5-Year-Old Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon comes on the heels of Blue Runs inaugural release in October of 2020. Blue Run 13-Year-Old Bourbon received exceptional reviews and sold out quickly. With Jim Rutledge as the companys Liquid Advisor, this new batch of Blue Run will delight Bourbon drinkers around the country. Rutledge is a 50+ year whiskey industry veteran and a managing partner of J.W. Rutledge Distillery.

Each of the ten barrels comes from the same mash bill, same yeast, same still and same warehouse, but how the liquid reacted to the wood and its position in the warehouse can delicately change the characteristics of the whiskey. Blue Run 13.5-Year-Old Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon has the brands characteristic smooth and mellow flavor; a long, sweet and dry finish; little to no burn on the back end  even at cask strength  and a long tail.

Between 104 to 150 bottles will be available from each barrel, with the proofs varying from 124 to 132. The secret to which barrel the Bourbon came from can be found on the hand-numbered label, which gives a hint at that whiskeys particular characteristics and flavor profile:

Barrel #1: Mellow sweet corn and brown sugar apple butter that develops into mellow oak tannins

Barrel #2: Deep chocolate and honey-drenched smore

Barrel #3: Gorgeous creme brulee with a burst of dark brown sugar and streaks of ginger

Barrel #4: Creamy toffee with bites of cocoa and black pepper

Barrel #5: Sultry black cherry and oak with clove honey

Barrel #6: Decadent dark chocolate with a marshmallow frame and clove cascade

Barrel #7: Layers of char smoke and rich vanilla wood sugar

Barrel #8: Roasted pecan and nutty campfire smoke

Barrel #9: Spice forward with bold black pepper and baking spices and an herbaceous wrap

Barrel #10: Oak tannin and dark raisin combination with a whip of smoke on the finish

Though each barrel has its own subtle flavor differences, consumers can expect the liquid in each bottle to have a deep glow, streaked with bronze highlights; an alluring aroma of molasses and brown sugar with a toasted, nutty frame that reveals itself around baking spices and cocoa; and a long, sweet and dry finish wrapped in dark cherry highlights.

This limited-edition, high-proof release offers a uniquely customized experience based upon each whiskey fans palate, pairings and passions, said Mike Montgomery, CEO of Blue Run Spirits. While a bottle of Blue Run Bourbon will definitely stand out on your bar, its the flavor we are most proud of and glad to see experts like the judges at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition agree.

Blue Run 13.5-Year-Old Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon will be found in May initially in Kentucky, California, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Washington, DC, as well as online. But heres the twist: No state will receive bottles from all ten barrels. Each will get up to nine, encouraging collectors to reach out to friends to help amass the entire collection. The product will also be available through Seelbachs.com, with bottles from a different barrel made available every few weeks (but again, with only nine available). Seelbachs will also offer a very limited number of ten-bottle complete sets.

Blue Runs latest release will stand out on store shelves due to the modern design by Devon McKinney, the creative mind behind some of the worlds most-sought-after sneakers. The brands signature butterfly medallion, a nod to the Commonwealth of Kentucky butterfly the Viceroy, will be matte black on the Blue Run 13.5-Year-Old Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon bottle. This new offering will come housed in a striking, handmade black lacquered display box made of sustainable birch and imprinted with gold leaf.

Blue Run Bourbon will be available at $229.99 SRP. The companys next release, a 14-Year-Old Small Batch Bourbon that also won Best in Class and a Double Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, will be launched this summer, followed by a Gold Medal-winning Rye Whiskey in late summer.

Blue Run Spirits distribution partners include Republic National Distributing Company (RNDC) in Kentucky; Breakthru Beverage Group in Illinois and Colorado; Savannah Distributing Company in Georgia; Advintage Distributing in South Carolina and Tennessee; Prestige-Ledroit Distributing Co. in Washington D.C., Maryland and Delaware; American Spirits Exchange in California; and Evergreen Beverage Canada in Canada.

Find Blue Run Spirits online at http://www.bluerunspirits.com, and on social media: Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

EDITOR NOTE: Hi-res bottle images can be found HERE.

ABOUT BLUE RUN SPIRITS

Blue Run Spirits is a new kind of spirits company, creating a unique luxury proposition by tapping into the deep heritage and craft that makes a truly great whiskey, then elevating it through a modern design and marketing lens to reach a younger, broader and more diverse whiskey drinker. The companys founders include a Nike designer, the first director-level employee at Facebook, a hospitality executive, a political advisor, and a philanthropist  all huge whiskey fans and individuals who acutely understand how to build demand and buzz for a contemporary consumer product. They are backed by a team of advisors including Nike marketing experts; the Campari communications veteran behind the US launch of Espolon Tequila and the Aperol Spritz; a former vice president of innovation from Brown-Forman; a former spirits distributor; and others with deep industry experience. The Blue Run name is a nod to one of our founders upbringing in Georgetown, KY, where Bourbon began in the Bluegrass State.
Law Offices of Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP If you would like to know more about the Clean Harbors Environmental Services, Inc. lawsuit, call (800) 568-8020 to speak to an experienced California employment attorney today.

The Sacramento employment law attorneys at Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP, filed a class action lawsuit against Clean Harbors Environmental Services, Inc., alleging the company violated the California Labor Code. The lawsuit against Clean Harbors Environmental Services, Inc. is currently pending in the Sacramento County Superior Court, Case No. 34-2021-00292526. To read a copy of the Complaint, please click here.

According to the lawsuit filed, Clean Harbors Environmental Services, Inc. allegedly (a) failed to pay minimum wages, (b) failed to pay overtime wages, (c) failed to provide legally required meal and rest periods, (d) failed to provide accurate itemized wage statements, (e) failed to reimburse employees for required business expenses, and (f) failed to provide wages when due, all in violation of the applicable Labor Code sections listed in Labor Code Sections  201, 202, 203, 226, 226.7, 510, 512, 1194, 1197, 1197.1, 2802, and the applicable Wage Order(s), and thereby gives rise to civil penalties as a result of such alleged conduct.

The complaint further alleges Clean Harbors Environmental Services, Inc. committed acts of unfair competition in violation of the California Unfair Competition Law, Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code  17200, et seq. (the UCL), by engaging in a company-wide policy and procedure which failed to accurately calculate and record the correct overtime rate for the overtime worked. As a result of DEFENDANTs alleged disregard of the obligation to meet this burden, DEFENDANT allegedly failed to properly calculate and/or pay all required compensation for work performed by the members of the CALIFORNIA CLASS and violated the California Labor Code.

If you would like to know more about the Clean Harbors Environmental Services, Inc. lawsuit, call (800) 568-8020 to speak to an experienced California employment attorney today.

Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP is a labor law firm with law offices located in San Diego County, Riverside County, Los Angeles County, Sacramento County, Santa Clara County, Orange County and San Francisco County. The firm has a statewide practice of representing employees on a contingency basis for violations involving unpaid wages, overtime pay, discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination and other types of illegal workplace conduct.

***THIS IS AN ATTORNEY ADVERTISEMENT***
Accomplished Boston attorney and private equity executive, Daniela Messina, has founded Portside Capital Solutions to provide strategic counsel to private equity funds, single and multi-family offices, emerging funds, independent sponsors and corporate clients.

Messina is an accomplished attorney and executive with a varied background in private equity and family offices, government, politics, investor relations, business development and corporate and crisis communications. She combines her wide-ranging experiences across many industries with a professional network of national leaders in the public and private sector to produce effective results for clients to help them achieve their goals.

Portside Capital Solutions brings together my decades of experience and expertise with highly personalized and targeted counsel to help clients source deals, raise capital and provide value to dealmakers across various industries. Im committed to recognizing meaningful synergies and connecting dealmaking stakeholders with a purpose, said Messina.

Daniela currently serves as a board member of the Association for Corporate Growth, Boston Chapter. ACG is the premier M&A dealmaking community with a global network of middle market professionals. Daniela is active in the ACG Boston Family Office Committee and Co-Chair of the Womens Connection Committee. She also serves on the Corporate Board Committee of The Boston Club, one of the largest organizations for women executive and professional leaders committed to elevating women into leadership positions.

For nearly a decade, Daniela served as Director of Business Development for Nixon Peabodys private equity and family office practice where she led several significant initiatives including the strategic rebranding and oversight of the firms deal sourcing referral program. In addition, she developed and launched the firms national family office initiative where she established strategic partnerships, facilitated deal sourcing introductions for family offices, among other value-add offerings. Daniela also launched a Women in Private Equity effort in Boston and New York City and continues to help make progress with helping advance efforts of women and minorities in the private equity and family offices industry. In addition, she also led the business development and investor relations efforts at a private credit and structured equity fund.

Daniela began her career in investor relations for a high-tech PR agency and a global provider of analytical instruments and services. Daniela has done impactful and transformational work in both the private and public sector. She served as Deputy General Counsel for the Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation (OCABR) where she worked closely with OCABR agencies including the Division of Banks, Division of Insurance, Division of Professional Licensure, Division of Standards and the Department of Telecommunications and Cable.

In addition, Daniela was appointed by Massachusetts Governors Mitt Romney and Deval Patrick to the Salem State University Board of Trustees. She also served as a member of the Massachusetts Regional Competitiveness Council for the Northeast Region. In addition to her corporate, legal, and political experience, she held leadership roles and has been active with the Womens Bar Association of Massachusetts, Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce including their Womens Network Advisory Board and Executive Leadership Institute and Bentley University Executive Club.

Daniela is passionate about closing the opportunity gap for women in the workplace to help them advance and thrive. She is dedicated to the success of women-owned businesses and volunteered for numerous non-profits including mentoring women and minority law students through Suffolk University Law Schools Alumni Mentoring Program and pro bono legal services through the Massachusetts Womens Bar Foundation, Family Law Project. Daniela has been recognized for her community service and outstanding leadership efforts including Small Business Nominee for the North of Boston Businesswomen of the Year Award and the Massachusetts Womens Political Caucus prestigious Wonder Woman Award.

Daniela graduated from Bentley University and received her Juris Doctorate from Suffolk University Law School. She is a member of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Bar. In addition, she is currently enrolled in a Masters in Finance program at Bentley University.

In order to provide securities-related services, principals of Portside Capital Solutions are licensed with M&A Securities Group, Inc., a registered broker-dealer. M&A Securities Group and Portside Capital Solutions are not affiliated entities.

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The best way to avoid increasing any costs and date conflicts is to start planning today.

With many couples who had planned to wed in 2020 now celebrating in 2021 or later, wedding dresses in San Francisco are going to be in high demand. Founder Samira Araghi recommends that people start shopping now for weddings as far out as next year. "Our gowns are made to order and take a minimum of three to five months to be made, with an additional six to eight weeks for alterations," she stated. "With increased demand, production times may be delayed. It's best to start shopping at least 7 to 9 months before your wedding for a unique made-to-order gown."

The busiest months for weddings include June, September, and October. In addition to seeing delays at bridal shops in San Francisco, venues and vendors will also be seeing significantly increased demand. Prime dates will already be booked for this year, so Araghi advises brides to be flexible whenever possible. The best way to avoid increasing any costs and date conflicts is to start planning today. 

WildBride is an unconventional bridal boutique offering bespoke wedding dresses in San Francisco for the free-spirited bride. New visitors will find a serene, luxurious space filled with an exclusive selection of fine wedding gowns, jewelry, and accessories. The location also serves as a year-round venue for special events, where brides can mingle with wedding industry experts and learn more about the wedding planning process.

Shopping appointments are required and can be scheduled online. To learn more about planning a wedding during the post-pandemic wedding boom, contact WildBride by phone or schedule a consultation through their website.

WildBride

654 Fillmore St. San Francisco, CA 94117

(415) 796-3886

https://g.page/WildBride


The consequences can be severe and we still see people continue with the street racing. We highly encourage drivers to take caution and avoid any sort of competitive, open racing such as drag racing.

Central Florida Bonding announces their latest blog that presents information on street racing, what it consists of, penalties involved, and how street racing can potentially lead to tragedy.

Hadi Khouri, owner of Central Florida Bonding, states, During the height of the COVID19 pandemic, more and more people were using the highway as a raceway. Unfortunately, street racing is still taking place and oftentimes leads to tragic consequences.

Their online blog, which can be accessed at https://cfborlando.com/street-racing-penalties/, addresses the following:



The four categories of street racing and what they consist of

Penalties for street racing

Discussion of consequences if caught street racing

Central Florida Bonding wants consumers to be aware that street racing is illegal. They encourage drivers to disengage in street racing or drag racing as it is sometimes called. The potential for loss of life far outweighs the possible thrill of competition. Khouri adds, The consequences can be severe and we still see people continue with the street racing. We highly encourage drivers to take caution and avoid any sort of competitive, open racing such as drag racing.

This Orlando based bail bond agency bails clients out of jail for numerous charges 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. They offer bail bonds for reckless driving, drug trafficking, assault, battery, domestic violence, DUI, child neglect, driving with a suspended license, and more. To start the bail bond process, defendants are encouraged to call 407-841-3646. All of the bail bond agents at Central Florida Bonding are experienced, knowledgeable and ready to assist with paperwork, explain the bail bond process, and answer questions about the criminal justice system.

Khouri states, We have been serving Central Florida since 1979. We know that being arrested can be an unsettling experience. Oftentimes, our clients are confused about the process especially if its their first arrest. We are here to help guide them through the process as quickly and efficiently as possible. Our team strives to provide all of our clients with top notch customer experience, respect, and friendliness. Please give us a call at 407-841-3646 so that we can help you too.

Central Florida Bonding serves all of Central Florida including Orange, Seminole, Lake, Volusia, Osceola, and Brevard counties. Clients across Central Florida have relied on the experience and expertise of Central Florida Bonding during their time of need. This bail bond agency is licensed to post bonds across the state of Florida and across the United States with affiliated agencies.

Central Florida Bonding is located at 2911 39th Street, Suite 300 (in the Cox Plaza), in Orlando, Florida. To learn more about Central Florida Bonding, please visit online at https://cfborlando.com/. To start the bail bond process, call 407-841-3646.
Charm Peel Plate EB Microbial Tests The AOAC-OMA final action, along with the International Organization for Standardization focused MicroVal certification, is a global recognition of suitability for use for microbiological testing. This is a culmination of years of development in the Peel Plate ISO-9001 Quality System.

Charm Sciences, Inc. is pleased to report that the Charm Peel Plate EB Microbial Test received AOAC Official Method of Analysis status in fall of 2020. The final action notice was published in November 2020 https://academic.oup.com/jaoac/article/103/6/1588/5858969.

Peel Plate tests are aseptic ready-to-use microbial tests that self-wick upon sample addition and produce colored colonies after incubation. The food industry uses Peel Plate tests to monitor sanitation and quality of raw materials, production processes, and final products.

The Peel Plate EB Microbial Test was evaluated with multiple dairy products, stainless surface sponges, and poultry carcass rinse in one of the first harmonized MicroVal and AOAC-OMA joint test validations, said Bob Salter, Vice President of Regulatory and Industry Affairs. Enterobacteriaceae contaminated infant formula containing probiotics prepared by Q- Laboratories was shared collaboratively among 12 laboratories in 5 countries. Results in duplicate pairs, or their singlet results, demonstrated equivalence with ISO method 21528 at both 24 and 48 hour incubation. The method greatly simplifies and reduces costs in testing for Enterobacteriaceae, a class of Gram negative bacteria including E. coli and Salmonella pathogens associated with unsanitary conditions.

The AOAC-OMA final action, along with the International Organization for Standardization focused MicroVal certification, is a global recognition of suitability for use for microbiological testing. This is a culmination of years of development in the Peel Plate ISO-9001 Quality System, said Salter. Peel Plate tests are available for aerobic count, coliform, E.coli / coliform, Staphylococcus Aureus, yeast and mold, yeast, and Enterobacteriaceae.

About Charm Sciences, Inc. Established in 1978 in Greater Boston, Charm Sciences helps protect consumers, manufacturers, and global brands from a variety of issues through the development of food safety, water quality, and environmental diagnostic tests and equipment. Selling directly and through its network of distributors, Charms products serve the dairy, feed and grain, food and beverage, water, healthcare, environmental, and industrial markets in more than 100 countries around the globe. https://www.charm.com
City of Sulphur Springs Joins the Texas Purchasing Group by BidNet Direct Registered vendors can access bids, related documents, addendum and award information.

The City of Sulphur Springs announced it has joined the Texas Purchasing Group and will be publishing and distributing upcoming bid opportunities on the system. BidNets Texas Purchasing Group connects over 40 participating agencies from across Texas. The purchasing group provides a transparent bid process through which the bid is available to all vendors at the same time. The City of Sulphur Springs invites all potential vendors to register online with the Texas Purchasing Group to access its upcoming solicitations by visiting https://www.bidnetdirect.com/texas.

The City of Sulphur Springs joined the purchasing group in April. The City of Sulphur Springs will utilize the system to streamline the purchasing process including bid management, bid distribution and vendor relations. The Texas Purchasing Group is a single, online location for managing sourcing information and activities and provides to over 40 local government agencies the tools needed to have a transparent bid process while minimizing costs and saving time.

The Texas Purchasing Group expands an agencys vendor pool and enhances vendor competition without increasing distribution costs. In addition to the existing vendors on the Texas Purchasing Group, all vendors looking to do business with The City of Sulphur Springs can register online: http://www.bidnetdirect.com/texas. The City of Sulphur Springs invites all interested bidders to register today.

Registered vendors can access open bids, related documents and files, additional addendum and award information from all participating agencies. In addition, the Texas Purchasing Group offers a value-added service to notify vendors of new bids targeted to their industry, all addenda and advance notification of expiring term contracts.

With one click, the City of Sulphur Springs can now see how many vendors match a specific opportunity, how many have downloaded documents, responded and more. The City of Sulphur Springs also has its own, branded page on the public side of the Texas Purchasing Group in which vendors can view all closed bids and any awarded information.

We now will have information at our fingertips for each bid opportunity and award. The information is fully tracked and auditable and the vendors can access documents and addenda online and we can see that the vendor has indeed seen the addendum. It is exciting to build on to the transparent office we strive to be by becoming a part of the Texas Purchasing Group, stated Lesa Smith, Finance Director of the City of Sulphur Springs.

Vendors may register on the Texas Purchasing Group: https://www.bidnetdirect.com/texas. BidNets vendor support team is available to answer any questions regarding the registration process or the bid system at 800-835-4603 option 2.

Other local Texas government agencies looking to switch from a manual bid process, please contact the Texas Purchasing Group for a demonstration of the no-cost sourcing solution.

About the City of Sulphur Springs:

The City of Sulphur Springs is at the center of Hopkins County, roughly halfway between Dallas and Texarkana. Sulphur Springs derives its modern name from the fact that when the area was first settled, springs of sulphur water were abundant. Sulphur Springs growth is evident with the revitalization of the town square into a vibrant area now known as Celebration Plaza, construction of new residential properties and communities, major expansion of existing manufacturing plants and construction of new manufacturing facilities.

About BidNet Direct:

BidNet Direct, a mediagrif product, is a sourcing solution of regional purchasing groups available at no cost to local government agencies throughout the country. BidNet Direct runs regional purchasing groups, including the Texas Purchasing Group, across all 50 states that are used by over 1,600 local governments. To learn more and have your government agency gain better transparency and efficiency in purchasing, please visit https://www.bidnetdirect.com/buyers
Claytons SigmaFire SF50 Steam Generator 50BHP The [new Clayton] Steam Generator could keep up with the job we needed, no problem. The operation costs are fantastic. The burn usage  propane and everything  have been nominal And we run it hard, six to seven days a week. Ross Taylor, Seaside Farm

About tomato wastage, oft occurring for many growers, Seaside Farms (http://www.seasidefarm.com) Mac Sanders on Saint Helena Island, South Carolina, stated, We found a way to preserve a significant portion of our crop; we hate to waste a beautiful, ripe tomato. Now we turn it into profit. Clayton Industries steam generator (http://www.claytonindustries.com) gave us the ability to process up to fifteen 400-gallon batches of flavorful tomatoes per day during peak season. Great fruit we otherwise would have thrown away, we now use for a line of new products.

Fruit waste has been an annual challenge for each of the five generations of this family of growers.

More than 20 million pounds of tomatoes are harvested over a five-to-six week period each year and sold to restaurateurs and local grocers mostly along the East Coast. Before now, the family paid contractors to dispose of the two million pounds of tomatoes that wouldnt last the trip to market.

Then during harvest a few years ago, Sanders nephew Ross Taylor came up with a solution  they would create the perfect Bloody Mary mix.

Recipe in hand, Ross recruited Uncle Mac to help design the process, facility and equipment needed for production.

Ross specified the right kettle for the job  an Italian-made FMT-brand processing mixer- cooker for tomatoes that could be used to heat 400 gallons in 20 minutes. Macs due diligence for the right steam boiler led them to Pack Expo in Chicago. After speaking with several competitors, the Seaside Farm team zeroed in on Will Brozowski, Sales Engineer for Clayton Industries.

Due to the scale of the Seaside operation, it took just six months from meeting at the trade show to completed installation. Will said, We monitored the installation process throughout to make sure everything was done properly.

The swift process helped the family get the new venture up and running by the following harvest, processing up to fifteen 400-gallon batches per day during peak season. The SigmaFire SF50 Steam Generator could keep up with the job we needed, no problem, said Ross. The operation costs are fantastic. The burn usage  propane and everything  have been nominal to the degree that were not sure how many times we get the tank filled. And we run it hard, six to seven days a week.

The family launched its new Bloody Mary mix and a variety of other custom products under the Seaside Grown label. Another venture, Frogmore Bottling Company, now offers third party private label product manufacture. The equipment will soon pay for itself, said Mac.

ABOUT SEASIDE FARM: In 1901, Gus Sanders situated the East Coasts first commercial tomato farm on a pretty little peninsula across the sound from Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Gus discovered that tomatoes grow best in soil by the waters edge, snuggled in sand and surrounded by water. 115 years later, around 20-million pounds are being distributed from that same Chisolm Field farm by the seaside, and the premium, fresh tomatoes are still the familys first priority. Five generations of tomato growers and the warm sea have been the perfect blend for cultivating a heritage of quality for over a century. For more information visit http://www.seasidefarm.com.

ABOUT CLAYTON INDUSTRIES: Clayton Industries is a leading global manufacturer of industrial steam boilers and industrial process steam generation products. The process steam boilers include fired boilers and unfired waste heat boilers. Claytons unique controlled circulation counter-flow design offers many operational advantages and benefits over other industrial steam boilers. Its control systems are built with the latest technology. Clayton also provides customers with reliable and highly efficient, compact steam-generating systems, mobile steam generators, and steam. The companys design principles make it a favorite choice in todays high-efficiency energy markets. Clayton Industries was established on October 20, 1930, and is headquartered in City of Industry, California, USA. It serves diverse worldwide markets from its industrial steam boiler manufacturing facilities in the United States, Belgium, and Mexico. Direct Sales and Service support centers are also located worldwide. For more information, visit http://www.ClaytonIndustries.com.

OTHER MEDIA INFORMATION

Mac and Ross came to our booth [at Pack Expo in Chicago) with a clear idea of what they needed: an extremely safe, small footprint, high-efficiency steam boiler capable of generating the necessary on-demand heat to keep their kettle operating at peak capacity, said Will Brozowski, Sales Engineer for Clayton Industries. After the convention, Mac sent Will a spec sheet for the FMT equipment and the floor plan for the optimized building. He continued: Those tomatoes would be already ripe, at their most flavorful, and there would be a lot of volume. The Seaside Farm challenge was to bottle that flavor before it was lost, in the space they had, and to do it cost-effectively.

Theyd have to work with a high volume of ripened fruit in real time during harvest  six to eight hours per day, from the last week of May through the first week of July. With little available land on the island, and to keep start-up costs low, they would have to build a space-efficient facility to suit the purpose.

Claytons Will Brozowski specified the SigmaFire SF50 Steam Generator 50BHP. The units compact size and low weight would be ideal for the Seaside Farm building and mesh well with the FMT food processing equipment. It is capable of full steam pressure with a five-minute cold start for use on demand, generates the highest steam quality of any competitive design to prevent contamination, with a fuel efficiency that would help keep operating costs low for this fledgling business concern.

They dont have to leave it running overnight, and its extremely safe  guaranteed not to have a steam explosion, said Will.

Seaside Farm had to choose the right steam generator. There was no room to fail.

Though every Clayton customer brings a unique challenge, most deal with much greater volumes and processing complexity than Seasides. Compared with most of Claytons customers, our start-up operation was small. But Will and the rest of his team gave us all the timely attention to detail we hoped they would, said Mac Sanders, a patriarch of the Seaside Farm family.

As a start-up effort, Seaside didnt have room for a do-over.

Every customer is different, said Will, but they all have to solve a business problem that matters to their success. They did their homework on us  it was our turn to help them find a great solution.

Will pointed out, The Clayton family is happy to join the Seaside family in creating business solutions that will help secure the futures of both families.
TES enables institutional leaders to use comprehensive data and powerful workflows to make uniform and timely transfer equivalency decisions  ensuring that all students are treated fairly and allowing them to begin new coursework as soon as possible, said Troy Holaday, president of CollegeSource.

CollegeSource, the higher education industrys most trusted provider of transfer and degree achievement solutions, today announced key enhancements to its comprehensive TES transfer evaluation and articulation system. Driven by industry demand, CollegeSource has introduced advanced course equivalency creation capabilities for incoming transfer courses, actionable transfer evaluation analytics and a new customer service helpdesk platform that includes in-app contextual help.

Used by more than 1,500 higher education campuses, including Lone Star College System (TX) and Minnesota State Colleges and University System, TES streamlines the transfer credit evaluation process for collegiate administrators, facilitates faculty decision-making, and enables institutions to establish an unlimited number of validated course equivalencies for rapid and streamlined transfer credit decisions.

The academic journeys of higher education students are more fluid today than ever. Students utilize multiple institutions and credit sources, choosing the ones that best meet their needs at any given moment, with the end goal of combining them to earn a degree or certificate. The complex process of evaluating transfer from multiple sources can be cumbersome and inconsistent if handled manually, said Troy Holaday, president of CollegeSource. TES enables institutional leaders to use comprehensive data and powerful workflows to make uniform and timely transfer equivalency decisions  ensuring that all students are treated fairly and allowing students to begin coursework at their new institution as quickly as possible.

The latest TES features automatically search each transfer course for keyword alignment with potential equivalent courses across an institutions multiple catalog editions. These new features accelerate transfer credit decisions and empower institutions to help students determine optimal degree paths based on credits awarded. Additionally, new analytics inform institutions regarding their evaluation response times and identify workflow bottlenecks for improvement, based on the decision-making practices of faculty and other transfer stakeholders.

TES takes the guesswork out of transfer credit decisions by empowering higher education professionals to quickly research and locate course descriptions, route and track all transfer evaluation tasks to faculty and administration, and manage and communicate course equivalencies. Utilizing the largest higher education course catalog database in the industry with nearly 130,500,000 courses compiled and maintained by CollegeSource, the solution employs powerful algorithms to generate lists of likely equivalencies between institutions. Additionally the company has proactively met the federal governments information and communications technology (ICT) Revised 508 accessibility standards with its Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT).

For more information on CollegeSource, please visit https://www.collegesource.com.

About CollegeSource

CollegeSource is the higher education industrys trusted provider of transfer and degree achievement solutions. For nearly 50 years, CollegeSource has led market-changing transformation by inventing and investing in technology solutions that aid the staff and students of higher education in their quest to plan and complete academic careers. As the archiver of the nations extensive higher education course catalogs, CollegeSources degree audit, academic planning, and transfer credit evaluation solutions are depended on by more than 2,000 institutions and millions of individuals worldwide. Founded and led by higher education and technology veterans, CollegeSource is a privately-held company based in San Diego with offices in Cincinnati, Ohio. For more information, please visit collegesource.com.
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Conscious Items adds lapis lazuli to their extensive collection of beautiful gems. Lapis lazuli is also used to aid in helping with hearing loss and blockages in the nasal passage, as well as improving circulation, reducing vertigo, and helping you sleep.

The spiritual experts at Conscious Items have once again broadened their horizons in the world of spiritual stones, now adding Lapis Lazuli to their eclectic catalogue. These bright blue crystals have been a sought-after stone since the beginning of time, often symbolizing royalty with their glowing radiance. This stone is now one of several featured on the spiritual boutiques chakra cure bracelet, which is currently available for sale.

Dating back to Ancient Egypt, history has seen lapis lazuli meaning things like honor, power, and vision. In Latin, lapis means stone and lazuli is derived from the Persian word for blue, lazuward. The ancient Persians related the stones blue hue and gold flecks to be symbolic of the night sky and found that it granted sight as the stars give vision at night. These radiant blue stones also decorated the sarcophagus of King Tut as it was seen to aid the dead in reaching the next world both safely and quickly. In addition there are many known instances of the material being used to dye the clothing of royalty to set themselves apart, and reinforce their class. Buddhists made use of lapis lazuli to help grant inner peace, while the medieval Europeans found it aided them in counteracting evil spirits. Biblically, lapis lazuli is known on the breastplate of the High Priest as the fifth stone, granting the priest clearer vision of the holy world. It known only stimulates thought processes, but also grants a comforting aura to the wearer, strengthening their bonds of friendship.

Conscious Items is thrilled to have this stone exist alongside their other healing minerals, and have already found it to be immensely useful alongside existing products. Lapis lazuli is also used to aid in helping with hearing loss and blockages in the nasal passage, as well as improving circulation, reducing vertigo, and helping you sleep. Its benefits also include aiding heal bug bites, reducing the appearance of bug bites, lessening eye infections, and providing relief to women who suffer from menstrual cramps. Psychologically, lapis is known to help release repressed anger alongside other emotions, as well as helping ease social anxiety by allowing you to be honest with peers. It is noted that the zodiac sign for this stone is closest to Sagittarius, meaning its benefits are strongest on wanderers born between November 21st and December 21st.

Lapis lazuli is now available as a part of the Chakra Cure bracelet, which also features Aquamarine, Amazonite, Tigers Eye, Garnet, and Moonstone. The lapis plays an important role in activating both the Third Eye and the Throat chakra, both of which bolster your ability to communicate and perceive the world. This well-rounded bracelet offers aid to those in need, helping them overcome personal struggles brought onto them by external factors and enable them to be their best self, with the power of healing gemstones.

For more information, visit https://consciousitems.com/.


Cybereason, the leader in future-ready attack protection, today announced our placement as a Visionary in the 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms. Cybereason believes our position in the report is an affirmation of the value the cloud-native Cybereason Defense Platform delivers through superior endpoint protection (EPP) and extended detection and response (XDR) functionality.

We believe our recognition as a visionary is a direct result of the Cybereason Malop. The Malop provides multi-stage visualizations of all aspects of an attack across every impacted device and user in real-time. Other solutions rely on less advanced data models and complex UIs that require significant time and skill to hunt for threats or investigate events, and they require the crafting of complicated queries to ferret out the critical details of an attack, said Lior Div, Cybereason CEO and co-founder.

Furthermore, Cybereason has a unique ability to provide a future ready, multi-layered detection and prevention approach based on the most subtle Indicators of Behavior (IOBs) to end cyberattacks at the earliest stages, before they can become a major breach event.

The Cybereason Defense Platform can be deployed as an on-premises or hybrid solution to protect Windows, Mac, Linux and mobile devices, as well as providing coverage for cloud workloads and containers through agentless protection for Kubernetes nodes.

Learn more about why Gartner named Cybereason a Visionary in our blog post here

You can download a complimentary copy of the Gartner EPP Magic Quadrant here.

Cybereason is dedicated to teaming with defenders to end cyber attacks from endpoints to the enterprise to everywhere. Talk to a Cybereason Defender to learn more about our innovative solutions, or schedule a demo today to learn how your organization can benefit from an operation-centric approach to security.

About Cybereason

Cybereason is the champion for todays cyber defenders providing future-ready attack protection that unifies security from the endpoint, to the enterprise, to everywhere the battle moves. The Cybereason Defense Platform combines the industrys top-rated detection and response (EDR and XDR), next-gen anti-virus (NGAV), and proactive threat hunting to deliver context-rich analysis of every element of a Malop (malicious operation). The result: defenders can end cyber attacks from endpoints to everywhere. Cybereason is a privately held, international company headquartered in Boston with customers in more than 30 countries.

Learn more: https://www.cybereason.com/

Follow us: Blog | Twitter | Facebook

Media Contacts:

Bill Keeler

Senior Director, Global Public Relations

Cybereason

bill.keeler@cybereason.com

(929) 259-3261

Gartner, Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms, Paul Webber, Peter Firstbrook, Rob Smith, Mark Harris, Prateek Bhajanka, 5 May 2021

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartners research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally, and is used herein with permission.

All rights reserved.
College graduates in the Bangor area may be eligible for a $1,000 Toyota College Graduate Rebate toward select Toyota models at Downeast Toyota.

Spring represents a fresh start for many Maine residents - especially college graduates. As college graduations approach, many college graduates are excited about starting a new career and a new chapter of their lives. Recent and future college graduates interested in a brand-new Toyota car, truck or crossover this spring may be eligible for the T oyota College Graduate Rebate at Downeast Toyota that provides up to a $1,000 rebate on select brand-new Toyota models.

To be eligible for the Toyota College Graduate Rebate, graduates must be approved by Toyota Financial Services for the lease or finance of a brand-new Toyota vehicle. Graduates must provide proof of graduation within the past two calendar years or within the next six months from a two-year college, four-year college, or two-year trade school. Toyota College Graduate Rebate participants must also provide proof of current or future employment to receive the rebate.

College graduates eligible for the rebate may receive up to $1,000 toward select new Toyota Corolla, Toyota Corolla Hatchback, Toyota Corolla Hybrid, Toyota C-HR, Toyota Prius Prime, Toyota RAV4 and Toyota RAV4 Hybrid models. The rest of the Toyota lineup is available with a $500 rebate with Toyota College Graduate Program eligibility. Potential customers can find a Toyota car, truck or crossover to fit their lifestyle with a quick visit to the Downeast Toyota online inventory. Toyota Certified Used Vehicles are not eligible for the Toyota College Graduate Rebate.

To learn more about the Toyota College Graduate Rebate at Downeast Toyota, interested individuals can visit the dealership online at http://www.downeasttoyota.com. Those individuals who prefer a more personal interaction can contact the dealership sales team directly by calling 207-989-6400 or by visiting the dealership showroom at 652 Wilson St. Brewer, ME 04412.
Dunmore Aerospace According to the Vice President of Dunmores aerospace division, Art Mallett Jr., It is an exciting time to work with companies that are pushing the frontiers of space exploration and commercialization. Our new team members will play an integral role in supporting these ambitious space programs.

Dunmore, a Steel Partners company, announced today the expansion of the Dunmore Aerospace team. New members of the aerospace division include business development team members and customer support staff. With the increased demands of the aerospace industry, Dunmore is committed to supporting current and future aerospace customers.

Dunmore Aerospace is a leading manufacturer of thermal management materials for the space industry. For over 35 years, Dunmore Aerospace has supplied thermal management materials for the most critical private and government space missions. Dunmore products can be found across our solar system and beyond on various spacecraft ranging from satellites, constellations, rovers, and launch vehicles. With the expansion of the public and private space sector, Dunmore Aerospace recognized it was critical to expand the aerospace team.

The new team members include Frank Hamilton - North America business development, Keith Lutz - international business development, and Dave Williamson - technical support. Providing technical expertise and quickly responding to time sensitive projects has always been a priority for Dunmores aerospace team. With the additional team members, Dunmore will continue to improve in this area. The new members of the aerospace division look forward to working closely with the engineers leading us into future space missions.

According to the Vice President of Dunmores aerospace division, Art Mallett Jr., It is an exciting time to work with companies that are pushing the frontiers of space exploration and commercialization. Our new team members will play an integral role in supporting these ambitious space programs.

About DUNMORE

Dunmore is a global manufacturer of engineered coated and laminated films and foils with manufacturing facilities in the U.S and Germany. Dunmore produces coated film, metallized film and laminated film substrates for the aircraft, spacecraft, photovoltaic, graphic arts, packaging, insulation, and electronics industries. Dunmore is a Steel Partners company, and is ISO 9001:2015 and OSHA VPP Star certified. For complete information on Dunmores products, services and industries served, please visit https://www.dunmore.com/.
The offerings in reconstructive cosmetic repair at Buckingham Center for Facial Plastic Surgery are growing thanks to Dr. Erin Smith.

The offerings in reconstructive cosmetic repair at Buckingham Center for Facial Plastic Surgery are growing thanks to Dr. Erin Smith. This skilled surgeon has received her board certification as an otolaryngologist. The qualifications required to become a board-certified surgeon are well worth celebrating.

To become approved by the American Board of Medical Specialties, or ABMS, the surgeon must complete four years of college, four years of medical school, and five years of residency in the field. Additionally, once certification has been achieved, the honored physician must maintain a continuous program of professional growth and development to keep their board certification.

A board-certified plastic surgeon with otolaryngology expertise can provide therapies including otoplasty, or reshaping of the ear cartilage, facial implants to repair bone loss from cancer or congenital abnormalities, and rhinoplasty/septoplasty, or the repair of the inside and outside of the nose for best look and function.

Thanks to the hard work of Dr. Smith, Buckingham can now offer repair of conditions including

 birthmarks and other skin surface repair

 cleft lip and palate, as well as other congenital deformities of the face

 protruding or unbalanced ears

 uneven or unbalanced smile, whether due to structural imbalance, scarring, or paralysis

Dr. Erin Smith is a native of Mississippi and received her undergraduate from the University of Mississippi, pairing biochemistry and psychology. Her Masters of Science was earned at Tulane in New Orleans. In gaining her certification, Dr. Smith has studied surgeries of the Head and Neck at the University of Mississippi and the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in Beverly Hills. During her time in California, she built skills in reconstructing and repairing rhinoplasty or nose repair, facial paralysis repair, and skin cancer repair and reconstruction.

As with all the professionals providing both surgical and non-surgical cosmetic treatments at the Buckingham Center, Dr. Smith holds a goal of helping patients to be confident by looking like the best version of themselves. Her passion for cosmetic repair is tied to building confidence and symmetry in the face; this includes reducing factors that may detract from the bright eyes or friendly smile of a patient as well as repairing paralysis such as Bell's Palsy that lead to an unbalanced appearance.

In addition to the remarkable surgical skills offered by Dr. Smith and others at Buckingham Center, this facility offers a wide variety of non-surgical therapies. For patients interested in cosmetic therapy outside of surgery, options include skin tightening and firming techniques, Botox procedures, and laser therapies. For those who struggle with hair loss, Buckingham offers hair restoration treatments.

Dr. Smith is happily married and has three daughters. They all enjoy the outdoors, live music, water sports, and travel. They also love to try new cuisines together. She has served on medical missions in Bolivia and volunteered at clinics in many communities where she has made her home.

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No matter your cosmetic concerns, being confident in the skill and care of your surgeon is critical to your future happiness, both in the procedure and in your appearance. Contact Buckingham Center for a conversation about your cosmetic concerns and goals. You deserve to be comfortable and confident in your treatment choice.
Michael Jos, VP of Partners & Channels, EstesGroup Michael will greatly assist us as we help customers move from their aging on-premise architectures and into the cloud.

EstesGroup, an ERP managed hosting and services provider, announced today the appointment of Michael Jos to the new post of Vice President of Partners and Channels. Michael brings impressive credentials and exciting plans to EstesGroup. This year marks two achievements in his career: his 28th year working in the software industry and his first year working with EstesGroup directly. Expect to hear many big announcements this year and beyond.

A Quick Background Focus

Michael Jos has worked 28 years in the world of ERP and has a great vision to help EstesGroup grow globally. In his decades of experience, he has worn every hat imaginable: programmer, solutions architect, customer support, implementation specialist and project manager. Michael eventually found his calling in solution sales, where his numbers vaulted him into a leadership position. He spent the last decade working in a number of consulting/sales leadership roles and was looking for his next challenge.

I saw a fantastic opportunity at EstesGroup  one where I could make an impact quickly. The number of new opportunities will grow rapidly. Credit for that, he says, belongs to the established processes and oversight that his team provides.

EstesGroup continues to expand its ECHO (EstesCloud Managed Hosting) offering across a variety of ERP platforms. The partner model is extremely important in managed services, says Brad Feakes, SVP of Professional Services. Building strong relationships is paramount, not only to our customer base, but also as we expand our partner network and combine our managed service offerings with the strengths of our companion firms.

Thinking Big About the Future of EstesGroup

In his new role, Michael will oversee all worldwide Partners/Channels Operations, with North American headquarters currently in Colorado. On a daily basis, he will be involved with marketing, sales, support, deployment and everything in between. Hes also leading a new initiative that will emphasize customer success as one of EstesGroups core values.

Bruce Grant, President and CEO of EstesGroup, expressed his excitement at Michaels arrival. Michael is well known in the ERP community, and his career spans both services and software sales. I am very excited about Michaels enthusiasm for our company and our offerings, and the respect he enjoys in the industry. He will make a difference at EstesGroup.

Michael comes at a time when the need for managed hosting of ERP applications continues to grow, as companies seek to maximize the capabilities of their enterprise systems while leveraging the benefits of cloud-based technology. Managed hosting is the ability to administer the clients applications, including complex ERP applications and their related third-party integrations, says Grant. Michael will greatly assist us as we help customers move from their aging on-premise architectures into the cloud.

The Estes Group Inc. (EstesGroup) was founded in 2004 in Estes Park, Colorado, and is now headquartered in Loveland, Colorado. ERP and IT team members and their clients are located throughout the United States. EstesGroup partners with clients across the manufacturing, distribution and professional services industries to help organizations improve business process, streamline operations, reduce overhead, and optimize enterprise resource planning and technology frameworks. Services include assistance with ERP implementation and administration, and managed hosting of complex business applications. With a full suite of cloud-based services, EstesGroup helps with the construction and maintenance of private and hybrid cloud architectures and provides world-class managed IT and ERP services.

For more information, please visit the EstesGroup website at https://www.estesgrp.com or call 888.300.2340.

Connect with Michael Jos at https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeljos/
FirstService Residential is excited to work with Adept Urban and the 388 Owners Association to help continually provide exceptional service, enhance their reputation and drive value for residents, said Matthew Ross, business development director at FirstService Residential.

FirstService Residential, North Americas leading association management company, was awarded the management contract for 388 Owners Association in Pasadena, California. FirstService Residential began managing the 9-story luxury high-rise in Pasadena on May 1, 2021.

388 Owners Association completed its first phase in 2019 by Adept Urban, a full-service construction, architecture and development company, with a 9-story tower and 57 mixed-use units. The second phase will add 48 units to the high-rise, resulting in a full build-out of 105 units. The 9-story tower features ribbon windows that allow each unit to be flooded with natural light and provide expansive views of the San Gabriel Mountains to the north and Downtown Los Angeles to the west. The high-rise is located within walking distance to shopping centers and restaurants in Old Town Pasadena and the Playhouse Districts.

FirstService Residential is excited to work with Adept Urban and the 388 Owners Association to help continually provide exceptional service, enhance their reputation and drive value for residents, said Matthew Ross, business development director at FirstService Residential. 388 is an award-winning luxury tower featuring the best views in Pasadena, and we couldnt be more honored to have them as a part of our FirstService Residential family.

388 Owners Association offers residents an amenity deck equipped with multiple outdoor dining and entertaining areas, outdoor kitchen and barbecues, pool deck with spa and cabana, a fitness center and a firepit. Other amenities include electric car charging stations, designated covered parking spots, secure bike storage and Wi-Fi in all common areas.

About FirstService Residential

FirstService Residential is North Americas property management leader, partnering with 8,500 communities across the U.S. and Canada, including low-, mid- and high-rise condominiums and cooperatives; single-family communities; master-planned, lifestyle and active adult communities; and mixed-use and rental properties. HOAs, community associations, condos and strata corporations rely on their extensive experience, resources and local expertise to maximize property values and enhance their residents lifestyles. Dedicated to making a difference, every day, FirstService Residential goes above and beyond to deliver exceptional service. FirstService Residential is a subsidiary of FirstService Corporation (FSV), a North American leader in the property services sector.

For more information, visit http://www.fsresidential.com/california.
Cole City: a gripping story of adversity and lifelong struggles against despair. Cole City is the creation of published author Garry Hundley, an avid student of history who holds two degrees in engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Hundley shares, Cole City was an unforgiving and evil place where the refuse of Southern society was locked away, out of sight, by the wealthy and powerful.

In the 1890s, convicts leased from the state of Georgia to the coal company were forced to dig coal by hand in the remote mountains of North Georgia. These former slaves and poor whites, who had been jailed mostly on trumped-up charges, provided the manual labor that drove profits for the owners of Cole Citys mining operations. Most convicts did not survive the ordeal.

Book 1 tells the story of Tobias Oliver, a young man who was convicted of murdering a man in a robbery gone wrong and sentenced to hard labor at Cole City.

In Book 2, Oliver, who survived his ordeal in the mines, wages a lifelong battle against the evil he first encountered there only to recognize the futility of his effort when on his deathbed, he saw that his infant grandson had been earmarked by evil.

Book 3 tells the story of Olivers grandson, who recounts his evil deeds from his youth in the 1960s until his death almost a hundred years after his grandfathers story began.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Garry Hundleys new book is a work of masterful storytelling. The author takes elements of historical fact and weaves therein a fictitious tale, thereby producing a finely written novel that readers will find difficult to put down.

View a synopsis of Cole City on YouTube.

Consumers can purchase Cole City at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about Cole City, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
Gary's Wine & Marketplace

Garys Wine & Marketplace (http://www.garyswine.com), a leading, regional alcohol beverage and gourmet food retailer, announced today that it has hired Mariko Hachiya as General Manager for its St. Helena, California location. Hachiya will be overseeing the entirety of the marketplace, leading the team with a vision to become the premier food and wine destination in Napa and to continue to make Garys a valuable member of the community. She brings a wealth of experience following a 20 year career in hospitality, with a focus on food and winemost recently as the National Beverage Director for Hillstone Restaurants.

Gary Fisch, CEO and Owner of Garys Wine & Marketplace, has prioritized educating his staff since the opening of his first store in 1987. Training has included extensive tasting sessions, traveling extensively to the wine-producing regions that supply his inventory establishing relationships with winemakers/producers, and highlighting the wines Fisch and his company have discovered that are unheralded by wine critics and reviewers. Garys Wine & Marketplace has grown from one neighborhood wine shop in New Jersey to five brick-and-mortar stores over the past 30+ years  and an e-commerce business that ships to customers from coast to coast.

With travel trending toward normal, its now more important than ever to bolster our staff with educated, talented wine professionals, says Gary Fisch. Mariko joins the team with an impeccable resume that I believe will help us in creating a one-of-a-kind shopping experience for our guests.

As GM, Hachiya will leverage her hospitality experience to strengthen guest services, further educate staff and solidify Garys Wine & Marketplaces staff as the must-shop retailer in the Napa Valley region.

Garys has the biggest selection of both international and local wines of any retailer in the Valley, and an amazingly knowledgeable team to help introduce people to new wines theyve never tried, says General Manager Mariko Hachiya. The gourmet market also is different from anything else around. I want the service that guests receive to be what truly sets us apart from any other business in the valley.

About Garys Wine & Marketplace

Garys Wine & Marketplace began as a small wine shop in Madison, New Jersey in 1987 and has grown to be one of the largest fine wine businesses in the New York metropolitan area, with four stores in Northern New Jersey and a fifth store in Napa Valley, California. Garys team of wine experts makes it the preferred white glove partner for major corporations for customizable events, including virtual tastings, and corporate gifting. Commitment to friendly, attentive service by its expert wine team and a myriad of wine and food events for the public sets Garys apart from other wine stores.
Greenfire is a young but well-established company and as we look to our second decade of operation, we are excited to continue our diversification in capabilities and geographic reach, while enhancing our existing areas of excellence.

Greenfire Management Services, LLC (GMS), a leading Milwaukee construction management firm, announced today the transition of its leadership to Jeb Meier. Meier most recently served as Greenfires chief operating officer and replaces Kip Ritchie, who served as president since 2014. Ritchie recently accepted the role of chief operating officer with Potawatomi Business Development Corporation (PBDC), Greenfires parent company.

Meier has played a key role in Greenfires leadership team since joining the company in 2012. As chief operating officer, he worked closely with the team to determine the companys strategic planning, visioning, operations and business development. He also served as Greenfires vice president of pre-construction and was actively involved in nearly all of the companys projects to date, including the historic redevelopment of the Wgema Campus where Greenfire is headquartered.

I am honored to have the opportunity to lead this incredible team of construction professionals and look forward to work well achieve together, said Meier. Greenfire is a young but well-established company and as we look to our second decade of operation, we are excited to continue our diversification in capabilities and geographic reach, while enhancing our existing areas of excellence.

A LEED accredited professional, a registered professional engineer, and a certified professional estimator, Meier also serves on the Near West Side Commercial Corridor Working Team, Waukesha Countys Business Alliance Construction Executive Council, and the Wauwatosa Village Business Improvement District. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering with a Construction Engineering Management Emphasis from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

We are incredibly happy to have Jeb take the leadership role at Greenfire, said Kip Ritchie, Chief Operating Officer at PBDC. He has contributed to Greenfires success and growth over the years in many ways. Jeb is a natural, strategic thinker with an acute attention to detail but most importantly, the team admires his leadership style and his emphasis on teamwork. I cant think of a better person to lead the next chapter of our company!

This will be a natural transition for Jeb as hes been a foundational part of the company for much if its history, said Randy Mueller, PBDCs Chief Executive Officer. When he joined Greenfire, he established a pre-construction department that differentiated Greenfire from its competitors, won new and repeat business, and contributed greatly to the companys growth. We are very pleased he will lead Greenfire moving forward.

ABOUT GREENFIRE MANAGEMENT SERVICES, LLC: Since it was formed in 2010 as a subsidiary of the Potawatomi Business Development Corporation (PBDC), Greenfire Management Services has grown into a leading construction management firm with offices in Milwaukee and Wausau. Greenfires portfolio includes major construction projects for some of the Midwest and Wisconsins most successful property developers, as well as the Forest County Potawatomi Tribe. Greenfire is a wholly owned company of the PBDC and is a State certified, Native American owned company. For more information visit our website at greenfire.com.

ABOUT THE POTAWATOMI BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION: The Potawatomi Business Development Corporation is owned and operated by the Forest County Potawatomi Community of Wisconsin. The Corporation seeks to diversify the Tribes business interests beyond gaming in an effort to secure the future of the Tribe for the next seven generations and beyond. In addition to Greenfire Management Services, other business holdings include Data Holdings, Native Roots Hemp, Wgema Leasing, and several Federal contracting operations. For more information on the Potawatomi Business Development Corporation, visit http://www.potawatomibdc.com.
South Bend Tribune Report

South Bend Tribune

St. Joseph County police are investigating after a 2-year-old suffered an accidental gunshot wound.

Around 10:15 a.m. Monday, officers were called to the Emerald Pointe Apartments on Generations Drive near Douglas Road in South Bend for reports that a child accidentally shot themselves.

According to a county police spokesman, officers believe the child was shot in the hand.

The child's injuries are not believed to be life-threatening and they were taken to the hospital. St. Joseph County detectives continue to investigate the incident.
Integrated Digital Strategies (IDS), a nationally recognized digital marketing firm specializing in campaigns for established and emerging franchise brands, is pleased to announce its partnership with Honor Yoga, an emerging health and wellness brand with three robust business models and a strong commitment to its franchisees  or yogipreneurs, as they are affectionately referred to by brand leaders.

We came to IDS because of their reputation, says Maria Turco, Chief Yogini and founder of Honor Yoga. They put as much care, thought, and work into the marketing strategies of an emerging brand as they do an established one, and were feeling that love.

Now in its tenth year, IDS employs a two-pronged approach to its success: keeping clients happy and ensuring they see a healthy ROI, and Honor Yoga can expect to benefit from that philosophy.

Says senior writer Liz Frame, part of the IDS content team and Honor Yoga's primary content developer, "We don't start creating anything for our clients until we know them inside and out. That means listening to them, helping them define their goals, and respecting their pain points  all of it. We worked hard to build Honor Yoga a beautiful new website, full of engaging SEO-rich content, and we did that by listening.

In addition to a new website that highlights the brands values and mission, its three business models meant for new, existing, and virtual studio owners, and its strong franchisee support, Honor Yoga can count on monthly informative blogs, captivating social posts across multiple platforms, and paid advertising that will put them in front of their best customers. All of it is neatly delivered every month by their dedicated senior account manager, Vern Nicholson, who has an affinity for the health and wellness industry and who uses his expertise to help fine-tune IDS's ongoing strategies for the brand.

Maria and the rest of the Honor Yoga family are dedicated to the growth and success of their brand and franchisees, and Im very excited to be part of that, says Vern.

Its been a robust year for IDS. The agency has enjoyed tremendous success during a time when many businesses are still struggling to overcome the effects of the pandemic. The company initially experienced a downturn at the start of 2020 but quickly pivoted, signing multiple new contracts with brands from a spectrum of industries, including fast food, high tech, senior care, and more.

"We didn't let the pandemic define us," remembers Steve Galligan, co-founder and CEO of IDS. "I'd be lying if I said we weren't a little shell-shocked at the start. But we refused to see the glass as half-empty. We knew our clients would still be depending on us, and this has certainly been the case as our economy recovers. The franchise sphere is busier than ever!"

IDS looks forward to meeting the needs of a growing roster of franchise clients as it continues to grow its reputation for excellence in all things digital marketing.

For more information about IDS and its suite of services, reach out to Steve Galligan: (steve@idigitalstrategies.com, 978-828-0084)
Jessica Yard Vice President of Revenue Cycle

Healthfuse, the industry leader in managing and sourcing revenue cycle vendors for hospitals and health systems, welcomes Jessica Yard aboard the companys leadership team as Vice President of Revenue Cycle. Jessica will serve as a revenue cycle subject matter expert responsible for implementing, executing and managing strategic initiatives, and working directly to support Healthfuses clients.

Having worked in every area of revenue cycle, Jessica is joining the Healthfuse team with the provider perspective, says Nick Fricano, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Healthfuse. "With our VMO platform and execution solutions positioned to deliver $1 billion in value to our hospital partners in 2021, adding Jessica to the team further strengthens our trajectory. Her leadership experience will allow us to continue to innovate and grow. We are thrilled to have her join our team.

Healthfuse is a clear leader in revenue cycle vendor management, says Jessica. I know what its like for providers to try to manage vendors on their own, and because of that experience, I appreciate the innovative solutions Healthfuse offers. They get a tremendous amount of work done and are always transparent with both vendors and hospital partners. I look forward to being a part of the team and continuing the great work they are already accomplishing.

Jessica is an experienced revenue cycle leader with a demonstrated history of working in the hospital and health care industry. She comes to Healthfuse from Hospital Sisters Health System where she served for 10 Years. Jessica held various leadership roles including revenue cycle analyst, project manager, support analyst and most recently as interim patient access director of the Illinois Division while also working as system director of revenue cycle. Jessica graduated from Benedictine University with a bachelors degree in Business Administration, Management and Organizational Behavior. In 2019 she received a masters degree in Business Administration from LSU Shreveport.

About Healthfuse

Healthfuse drives revenue cycle vendor performance by building, operating, and optimizing hospital vendor management offices. Working with 160+ hospitals and health systems, creating $650M in bottom-line improvement to date, the Healthfuse VMO platform provides a customizable suite of vendor management applications backed by a dedicated execution team to accelerate cost savings and collections improvement. Healthfuse ensures hospitals and their revenue cycle vendors operate in full transparency, delivering accountability, efficiency, and bottom-line results. Healthfuse is a New Capital Partners portfolio company. Find us here: https://healthfuse.com Follow us here: LinkedIn, Twitter.
Indigo-Clean uses a safe wavelength of visible light to kill SARS-CoV-2 without harming room occupants Now, instead of using more expensive, hazardous, and complicated technologies to kill viruses and bacteria, facility managers can simply install disinfection lighting and know that it is automatic andmore importantlycompletely safe.

Today, Kenall announced that its award-winning Indigo-Clean technology is proven effective in killing both SARS-CoV-2 and Influenza-A in recently conducted independent lab testing1. Previous research proves that Indigo-Clean also kills harmful bacteria, such as Staph, including MRSA2, making it an effective and important tool for preventing the spread of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs)3.

Concurrently, Kenall has expanded the available technology series; now offering three types of disinfection lighting for various applications.

1. Indigo-Clean EX series kills 99% of SARS-CoV-2 and is also effective against C. diff

2. New Dual-Mode Indigo-Clean technology series provides blended white and indigo-only modes, which kills 94% of SARS-CoV-2 and Influenza-A with 12/12 hour operation

3. Single-mode Indigo-Clean technology series provides pleasant, ambient illumination and continuous disinfection while the light is on

Indigo-Clean uses safe 405nm visible light, rather than UV light, to continuously disinfect the air and surfaces, killing harmful viruses and bacteria. Unlike UV, Indigo-Clean does not harm people or degrade materials, making it well-suited for areas such as hospitals, medical centers, quick care facilities, schools, prisons, jails, public restrooms, and more.

Dr. Cliff Yahnke, Director of Clinical Affairs for Indigo-Clean, said, Indigo-Clean disinfection is in high demand and more critical than ever before. Confirming its ability to kill SARS-CoV-2 during this pandemic is a game changer: it opens new possibilities from small congregate settings to locations that must, by necessity, host large groups of people. Now, instead of using more expensive, hazardous, and complicated technologies to kill viruses and bacteria, facility managers can simply install disinfection lighting and know that it is automatic andmore importantlycompletely safe. He added, The new dual mode option also helps address possible concerns about energy codes. Because this is such a powerful technological tool, we believe this will help people in a variety of businesses and professions very quickly get back to normal activities.

Indigo-Clean visible light disinfection technology is installed in numerous healthcare, educational and other facilities throughout North America. For more information about the technology and available products in the full Indigo-Clean family, visit kenall.com.

1https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.03.14.435337

2 Antimicrobial Activity of a Continuous Visible Light Disinfection System by Rutala, et. al, ID Week 2016

310.1016/j.ajic.2018.12.002

About Indigo-Clean and Kenall

Indigo-Clean is a registered trademark of Kenall Manufacturing Co., a Legrand company. Kenall was founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1963 and has built a reputation for durable lighting solutions of superior quality and exceptional value. Today, the company creates unique solutions for the healthcare, cleanroom/containment, food processing, transportation, education, parking and correctional lighting markets. Kenall luminaires are designed in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and comply with the Buy American Act (manufactured in the United States with more than 50% of the component cost of US origin). For additional information, visit http://www.kenall.com.
Intelligent.com, a trusted resource for online degree rankings and higher education planning, has announced the top online programs for 2021. The comprehensive research guide is based on an assessment of 1,280 accredited colleges and universities in the nation. Each program is evaluated based on curriculum quality, graduation rate, reputation, and post-graduate employment. The methodology also uses an algorithm which collects and analyzes multiple rankings into one score to easily compare each school.

Students who pursue any one of these programs can expect to gain employment much quicker in comparison to candidates without a degree. In addition to accessibility and cost, the steady job growth in this market is one of the many reasons Intelligent.com researched and ranked the Top Online Masters In Forensic Psychology Degree Programs.

Intelligent.com analyzed 131 schools, on a scale of 0 to 100, with only 16 making it to the final list for Online Masters In Forensic Psychology Degree Programs. To access the complete ranking, please visit: https://www.intelligent.com/best-online-masters-in-forensic-psychology-degree-programs/

2021 Online Masters In Forensic Psychology Degree Programs featured on Intelligent.com (in alphabetical order):

Arizona State University

California Baptist University

Capella University

George Washington University

Grand Canyon University

Liberty University

Northcentral University

Nova Southeastern University

Saint Leo University

Southern New Hampshire University

The Chicago School of Professional Psychology

University of California, Irvine

University of Central Florida

University of Denver

University of North Dakota

Walden University

About Intelligent.com

Intelligent.com provides unbiased research to help students make informed decisions about higher education programs. The website offers curated guides which include the best degree programs as well as information about financial aid, internships and even study strategies. With comprehensive, user-friendly guides and hundreds of program rankings, Intelligent.com is a trusted source among students and prospective students. To learn more, please visit https://www.intelligent.com/.
Intelligent.com, a trusted resource for online degree rankings and higher education planning, has announced the top online programs for 2021. The comprehensive research guide is based on an assessment of 1,280 accredited colleges and universities in the nation. Each program is evaluated based on curriculum quality, graduation rate, reputation, and post-graduate employment. The methodology also uses an algorithm which collects and analyzes multiple rankings into one score to easily compare each school.

Students who pursue any one of these programs can expect to gain employment much quicker in comparison to candidates without a degree. In addition to accessibility and cost, the steady job growth in this market is one of the many reasons Intelligent.com researched and ranked the Top Online Masters in Forensic Science Degree Programs.

Intelligent.com analyzed 145 schools, on a scale of 0 to 100, with only 14 making it to the final list for Online Masters in Forensic Science Degree Programs. To access the complete ranking, please visit: https://www.intelligent.com/best-online-masters-in-forensic-science-degree-programs/

2021 Online Masters in Forensic Science Degree Programs featured on Intelligent.com (in alphabetical order):

Arizona State University

Ashford University

Carlow University

Champlain College

Florida International University

La Salle University

National University

Nova Southeastern University

Oklahoma State University

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine

Saint Leo University

Stevenson University

University of Central Florida

University of Florida

About Intelligent.com

Intelligent.com provides unbiased research to help students make informed decisions about higher education programs. The website offers curated guides which include the best degree programs as well as information about financial aid, internships and even study strategies. With comprehensive, user-friendly guides and hundreds of program rankings, Intelligent.com is a trusted source among students and prospective students. To learn more, please visit https://www.intelligent.com/.
Intelligent.com, a trusted resource for online degree rankings and higher education planning, has announced the top online programs for 2021. The comprehensive research guide is based on an assessment of 1,280 accredited colleges and universities in the nation. Each program is evaluated based on curriculum quality, graduation rate, reputation, and post-graduate employment. The methodology also uses an algorithm which collects and analyzes multiple rankings into one score to easily compare each school.

Students who pursue any one of these programs can expect to gain employment much quicker in comparison to candidates without a degree. In addition to accessibility and cost, the steady job growth in this market is one of the many reasons Intelligent.com researched and ranked the Top Online Masters in Graphic Design Degree Programs.

Intelligent.com analyzed 171 schools, on a scale of 0 to 100, with only 8 making it to the final list for Online Masters in Graphic Design Degree Programs. To access the complete ranking, please visit: https://www.intelligent.com/best-online-masters-in-graphic-design-degree-programs/

2021 Online Masters in Graphic Design Degree Programs featured on Intelligent.com (in alphabetical order):

Academy of Art University

Arizona State University

Liberty University

Maryland Institute College of Art

Minneapolis College of Art and Design

Quinnipiac University

Savannah College of Art and Design

Vermont College of Fine Arts

About Intelligent.com

Intelligent.com provides unbiased research to help students make informed decisions about higher education programs. The website offers curated guides which include the best degree programs as well as information about financial aid, internships and even study strategies. With comprehensive, user-friendly guides and hundreds of program rankings, Intelligent.com is a trusted source among students and prospective students. To learn more, please visit https://www.intelligent.com/.
Intelligent.com, a trusted resource for online degree rankings and higher education planning, has announced the top online programs for 2021. The comprehensive research guide is based on an assessment of 1,280 accredited colleges and universities in the nation. Each program is evaluated based on curriculum quality, graduation rate, reputation, and post-graduate employment. The methodology also uses an algorithm which collects and analyzes multiple rankings into one score to easily compare each school.

Students who pursue any one of these programs can expect to gain employment much quicker in comparison to candidates without a degree. In addition to accessibility and cost, the steady job growth in this market is one of the many reasons Intelligent.com researched and ranked the Top Online Masters In History Degree Programs.

Intelligent.com analyzed 193 schools, on a scale of 0 to 100, with only 27 making it to the final list for Online Masters In History Degree Programs. To access the complete ranking, please visit: https://www.intelligent.com/best-online-masters-in-history-degree-programs/

2021 Online Masters In History Degree Programs featured on Intelligent.com (in alphabetical order):

American Public University

Arizona State University

Eastern Illinois University

Emporia State University

Fort Hays State University

Grand Canyon University

Harvard University

Indiana State University

Jackson State University

Liberty University

Louisiana Tech University

Missouri State University

Norwich University

Pittsburg State University

Sam Houston State University

Slippery Rock University

Southern New Hampshire University

Southwestern Assemblies of God University

Troy University

University of Louisiana at Monroe

University of Massachusetts Boston

University of Memphis

University of Nebraska at Kearney

University of North Alabama

University of North Carolina Wilmington

Wayland Baptist University

Western Kentucky University

About Intelligent.com

Intelligent.com provides unbiased research to help students make informed decisions about higher education programs. The website offers curated guides which include the best degree programs as well as information about financial aid, internships and even study strategies. With comprehensive, user-friendly guides and hundreds of program rankings, Intelligent.com is a trusted source among students and prospective students. To learn more, please visit https://www.intelligent.com/.
Intelligent.com, a trusted resource for online degree rankings and higher education planning, has announced the top online programs for 2021. The comprehensive research guide is based on an assessment of 1,280 accredited colleges and universities in the nation. Each program is evaluated based on curriculum quality, graduation rate, reputation, and post-graduate employment. The methodology also uses an algorithm which collects and analyzes multiple rankings into one score to easily compare each school.

Students who pursue any one of these programs can expect to gain employment much quicker in comparison to candidates without a degree. In addition to accessibility and cost, the steady job growth in this market is one of the many reasons Intelligent.com researched and ranked the Top Online Masters in Hospitality Management Degree Programs.

Intelligent.com analyzed 137 schools, on a scale of 0 to 100, with only 10 making it to the final list for Online Masters in Hospitality Management Degree Programs. To access the complete ranking, please visit: https://www.intelligent.com/best-online-masters-in-hospitality-management-degree-programs/

2021 Online Masters in Hospitality Management Degree Programs featured on Intelligent.com (in alphabetical order):

Florida Atlantic University

Florida International University

Johnson & Wales University

Purdue University

Roosevelt University

University of Central Florida

University of Houston

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

University of New Orleans

University of North Texas

About Intelligent.com

Intelligent.com provides unbiased research to help students make informed decisions about higher education programs. The website offers curated guides which include the best degree programs as well as information about financial aid, internships and even study strategies. With comprehensive, user-friendly guides and hundreds of program rankings, Intelligent.com is a trusted source among students and prospective students. To learn more, please visit https://www.intelligent.com/.
Bamboo Learning Voice-Based Learning Activities for Children Using the new Bamboo Learning Alexa skill with a fun Panda, and uplifting and fun sound effects, my daughter now has a learning tool that she cant wait to come back to every day.

Bamboo Learning, Inc. today introduced the Bamboo Learning Alexa skill, the first comprehensive childrens learning program on Alexa, offering millions of free introductory and grade-level activities in listening & reading comprehension, language arts, and math based on the standard K5 curriculum. Featuring a human-narrated Panda as a guide and incorporating entertaining sound effects to keep kids engaged, Bamboo Learning offers children and families a simple alternative to more complicated computer- and tablet-based learning programs. Up to six children per family can use Bamboo Learning independently, and parents can sign up to receive email progress updates for each child. Kids can just say, Alexa, open Bamboo Learning to get started.

When children start Bamboo Learning each day, the human-narrated Panda character greets them and guides them to choose voice-based learning experiences in listening & reading comprehension, language arts, and math. The Panda praises kids when they answer correctly, and supportively nudges kids to try again if they answer incorrectly. To keep kids engaged, Bamboo Learning includes professional, custom-designed sound effects accompanying both correct and incorrect answers; children earn tokens (with accompanying sound effects) when they complete rounds of questions or achieve learning milestones or daily learning streaks.

With the new Bamboo Learning Alexa skill, kids in grades K5 can enjoy an incredibly fun learning experience for listening & reading comprehension, language arts, and math, said Ian Freed, Co-Founder & CEO, Bamboo Learning. Bamboo Learning now includes a Panda guide voiced by a professional actor, custom-designed sound effects, the ability to earn tokens, and millions of free activities to help kids catch up on unfinished learning over the past 15 months.

FOLLOWS STANDARD K5 CURRICULUM

Bamboo Learnings activities in listening & reading comprehension, language arts, and math are designed around the standard K5 curriculum and aligned with the Common Core and other state standards. For each grade, there are several learning modules within language arts (Phonics, Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary) and math (Number Sense, Operations, and Measurement/Time/Money), as well as grade-leveled listening comprehension exercises based on 20 free books that include classic fairy tales and other well-known childrens stories. Examples of activities include:

Listening & Reading Comprehension



True or False: The second billy-goat Gruff was going up to the hillside to make himself fat. Is this true or false? (Three Billy-Goats Gruff, Kindergarten)

Actions, Behaviors, Feelings: How did the elves feel when they saw the clothes made for them? (The Elves and the Shoemaker, Grade 1)

Explode Your Vocabulary: Is the definition of the word DISTINGUISH  (A) to break open, or (B) to tell apart? (The Emperors New Clothes, Grade 3)

Language Arts



Phonics: Which word rhymes with BOUNCE  ANNOUNCE or BEHIND? (Grade 2)

Spelling: In the word CAT, is the last letter T? (Grade 1)

Grammar: This movie is exciting. Which word is an adjective? (Grade 3)

Vocabulary: If you add the letters -ER at the end of the word PAINT, what word do you get? (Grade 2)

Math



Numbers: What number goes between 6 and 8? (Kindergarten)

Operations: 4 penguins are watching a sunset. 3 zebras joined them. How many animals are watching the sunset? (Grade 1)

Measurement/Time/Money: How many days are in March and April combined? (Grade 4)

Bamboo Learning worked with literacy experts and teachers to carefully design voice-enabled activities for children in grades K5 based on the standard elementary school curriculum; our goal is to help children gain academic confidence in reading, language arts, and math, said Irina Fine, Co-Founder and Head of Content, Bamboo Learning. Children are used to receiving verbal instruction and guidance in the classroom, and for the first time ever, they have access to a comprehensive voice-based learning tool covering areas as diverse as comprehension, phonics, spelling, vocabulary, number sense, and calendar math.

KIDS CAN USE INDEPENDENTLY; UP TO SIX KIDS PER FAMILY; PARENTS CAN REVIEW PROGRESS

Bamboo Learning is easy-to-use. There are no passwords required, and no daily setup. Kids just say Alexa, open Bamboo Learning and they pick up where they left off during their last session. Families find that children can use Bamboo Learning applications independently, without requiring adults to sit next to their kids during the activities. Up to six kids per family can use Bamboo Learning, and each child is assigned a unique animal avatar (cat, elephant, frog, monkey, pony, tiger), eliminating the need for children and families to set up cumbersome usernames and passwords.

Parents have the option to sign up for a Bamboo Learning account to receive weekly email highlighting progress for each child, including:



Each childs grade level for each subject and activity (e.g., Phonics, Spelling, Number Sense)

% of activities completed in each subject and learning module

Number of questions answered for each subject

% of questions answered correctly for each subject

Parents can sign up for an account at http://www.bamboolearning.com/grove.

My daughter likes school and has always excelled, but focus has been challenging over the past year, and weve had to help her with many of the online platforms that school provides, said Michelle K., mother of 2 from Brooklyn, NY. Using the new Bamboo Learning Alexa skill with a fun Panda, and uplifting and fun sound effects, my daughter now has a learning tool that she cant wait to come back to every day. Whats more, we dont have to sit with her while she is using it, and we can see the results via email on our own time.

BAMBOO LEARNING PLUS FOR ACCESS TO FULL LEARNING PROGRAM

Bamboo Learning also announced Bamboo Learning Plus, a subscription to Bamboo Learnings full program of beginner, grade-level, and advanced activities, including over 60,000 language arts exercises and over 100 million math problems. Bamboo Learning Plus includes access to 50 fiction and nonfiction books, with more books coming throughout 2021. Books offer listening comprehension exercises at different grade levels. A complete list of books for Bamboo Learning Plus is available at http://www.bamboolearning.com. Bamboo Learning Plus is only $3.99/month per family, for up to six users, providing incredible value to help kids learn throughout their elementary school years. Families can sign up for Bamboo Learning Plus by saying subscribe within the Bamboo Learning Alexa skill.

BAMBOO LEARNING AVAILABLE ON ALL ALEXA-ENABLED DEVICES

Bamboo Learning activities are available on all Alexa-enabled devices, including Echo Dot, Echo, Echo Plus, Echo Show, Fire TV, and Fire tablets. Bamboo Learning running on Alexa devices with screens, including Echo Show, Fire TV, and Fire tablets, incorporates illustrations for listening comprehension exercises and images for math problems.

To try the Bamboo Learning Alexa skill, just say Alexa, open Bamboo Learning. To learn more, visit http://www.bamboolearning.com

About Bamboo Learning

Based in Seattle, Bamboo Learning is the award-winning leader in voice-powered education with a mission to bring engaging, high-quality learning experiences to customers worldwide. Bamboo Learning develops applications based on K5 standard curriculum that enable children to have fun learning and practicing different academic and afterschool subjects while listening, viewing images, and using their voice. Bamboo Learning applications, including Bamboo Learning, Bamboo Math, Bamboo English, Bamboo Books, Highlights Storybooks from Bamboo, Bamboo Luminaries, and Bamboo Music, offer a range of challenging and engaging exercises to help customers master different levels of subjects. Parents can sign up to get email updates and online reports for their childrens progress.

In less than two years, Bamboo Learning has won 5 industry awards, and has been a finalist or otherwise honored for 11 industry awards. Awards and honors include:



Bamboo Learning  Project Voice Education Developer of the Year  2020 & 2021

Bamboo Math  Voice Summit Awards Best Multi-modal Experience  2019

Bamboo English (2021), Bamboo Luminaries (2020), Highlights Storybooks from Bamboo (2020)  Webby Award Honorees  2020 & 2021

Co-Founder & CEO Ian Freed  Voicebot Top Design & Product Pros in Voice  2020

Bamboo Learnings co-founders are Ian Freed, CEO, and Irina Fine, COO and Head of Content. Ian Freed is a thirty-year veteran of the technology industry, including twelve years as an executive at Amazon, having served as vice president of Amazon devices, where he led both the Amazon Echo & Alexa and the Amazon Kindle businesses, and served as technical advisor to Amazon founder and CEO, Jeff Bezos. Irina Fine is a thirty-year veteran of curriculum development and teaching, having worked in public and private sectors of education in New York, Washington DC, London, and Moscow.

Connect with Bamboo Learning, and learn more at: http://www.bamboolearning.com, Instagram: @learnwithbamboo, Facebook: facebook.com/BambooLearning, Twitter: @learnwithbamboo, YouTube: bamboolearning.com/youtube

# # #

Press Inquiries:

Ian Freed for Bamboo Learning

info@bamboolearning.com

+1 218-4BAMBOO
"With their extensive network and market knowledge, the Trilogy team will help us drive further customer collaboration and establish new partnerships in battery pack design and manufacturing. Bob Zielke - Sr. Director of Business Development for Inventus Power

Inventus Power, a global leader in the design and manufacture of advanced battery systems for commercial, industrial, medical and military markets, today announced it entered into an agreement with Trilogy, a leading manufacturers representative firm in the electronics industry, serving the automotive, IoT, consumer, medical, industrial and military markets.

According to the agreement, Trilogy will provide Inventus Power with technical sales and marketing support across the Midwest region of the United States. Trilogy serves the Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania and Kentucky markets with offices located in each area.

Trilogy has over 30 years experience establishing strategic relationships with leading OEMs. Our technology partners benefit from our long-standing relationships as we are able to gain insight into our customers product roadmaps and recommend the best technical solution based on their application requirements, said Terry Bishop, President at Trilogy. We are excited to work with Inventus Power and provide our customers with an experienced and trusted source for their advanced battery and power solution needs.

Trilogy understands the evolving technology and design requirements of its OEMs partners, said Bob Zielke, Senior Director of Business Development for Inventus Power. "With their extensive network and market knowledge, the Trilogy team will help us drive further customer collaboration and establish new partnerships in battery pack design and manufacturing.

About Inventus Power:

Inventus Power, founded in 1960, is the leading provider of advanced battery systems for global OEMs. The company specializes in the design and manufacture of battery packs, chargers, and power supplies across a broad range of portable, motive & stationary applications.

With multi-country locations across four continents and manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Mexico, Brazil, China, & Malaysia, the company is strategically positioned to support the needs of global brands.

From design & engineering to performance testing & mass production, Inventus Power provides accelerated end-to-end solutions. Its broad market/application expertise, technology agnostic approach, global footprint, and vertical integration enable the delivery of safe, reliable & innovative power solutions at an exceptional speed to market.

For more information about Inventus Power, please visit http://www.inventuspower.com.

About Trilogy:

Trilogy was established in 1990 as a manufacturers representative firm which has evolved into one of the largest most respected sales, service, and consulting organizations in the electronics industry. Headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan with offices in Cleveland/Ohio, Indianapolis/IN, and Pittsburgh/PA. Trilogy has a long-term track record of success in the Automotive, IoT, Consumer, Medical, Industrial and Military markets. Our market knowledge, professional staff and exceptional customer service are all reasons why leading technology manufacturers partner with Trilogy. They have added Inventus Power to their premier list of technology partners that include Sharp, Vishay, Western Digital, U-blox, Marvell, Fujitsu, and Allegro.

For more information about Trilogy, please visit http://www.trilogyinc.com or call us at (248) 643-4344.
South Bend Tribune report

South Bend Tribune

A South Bend baby was killed Monday in a crash on U.S. 31 and two other people were seriously injured.

Police responded to a three-car crash just before 4 p.m. on U.S. 31 at Miami County Road 100 North. According to Indiana State Police, two vehicles were stopped or slowing down for a red light at Miami County Road when a semi did not stop and hit one of the vehicles, pushing it into the second vehicle.

Leo Wallace, 6 months, was killed in the crash. Cecilia Wallace, 2, was flown to Riley's Hospital for Children in Indianapolis. She sustained life-threatening injuries. Sarah Wallace, 32, was transported to a Fort Wayne hospital with serious injuries.

The driver of the semi and second car were not injured.

Cecilia and Leo Wallace are Sarah Wallace's children. They were both secured with child safety seats, according to police, but the crash impact was too severe to prevent their injuries.

The crash remains under investigation.
If you would like to know more about the Salinas Lincoln Mercury, Inc. lawsuit, please contact Attorney Jackland K. Hom today by calling (619) 255-9047.

The Northern California labor law attorneys, at Zakay Law Group, APLC and JCL Law Firm, APC, filed a complaint alleging that Salinas Lincoln Mercury, Inc. committed multiple violations of the California Labor Code. The Salinas Lincoln Mercury, Inc. lawsuit, Case No. 21CV001535, is currently pending in the Monterey County Superior Court of the State of California. A copy of the Complaint can be read here.

The lawsuit alleges Salinas Lincoln Mercury, Inc. violated the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), which gives rise to civil penalties as a result of Salinas Lincoln Mercury, Inc.'s conduct. PAGA allows aggrieved employees to file a lawsuit to recover civil penalties on behalf of themselves, other employees, and the State of California for Labor Code violations. An "aggrieved employee" is defined as "any person who was employed by the alleged violator and against whom one or more of the alleged violations was committed." Cal. Lab. Code section 2699(c). PAGA allows aggrieved employees to become deputized as private attorneys general to enforce the Labor Code.

The complaint alleges Salinas Lincoln Mercury, Inc.'s meal period policies and practices were unlawful because Aggrieved Employees were far too over-booked and overworked to take timely off-duty thirty (30) minute meal periods. As a result of their rigorous work schedules, Aggrieved Employees allegedly were often not fully relieved of duty for their meal periods. Additionally, the complaint alleges Salinas Lincoln Mercury, Inc.'s rest periods policies and practices were unlawful because commission-based and/or piece-rate based Aggrieved Employees were not separately compensated for their non-productive time, including rest periods.

If you would like to know more about the Salinas Lincoln Mercury, Inc. lawsuit, please contact Attorney Jackland K. Hom today by calling (619) 255-9047.

Zakay Law Group, APLC and JCL Law Firm, APC are labor and employment law firms with offices located in California that dedicate their practices to fighting for employees who have been wronged by their employers due to unfair employment practices. Contact one of their attorneys today if you need help with workplace issues regarding wage and hour, wrongful termination, retaliation, discrimination, and harassment.

-THIS IS AN ATTORNEY ADVERTISEMENT-
As your one-stop shop for lawn service in Bonita Springs, L & G Lawn Care has the equipment and expertise needed to perform regular maintenance to your lawn year-round

With COVID-19 affecting people around the globe, many businesses felt the impact of a decrease in customers brought on by mandatory stay at home orders. Many establishments ended up closing their doors for good, as they simply could not recover from the economic ripples of this global crisis. Luckily, L & G Lawn Care of SWFL was not one of those people.

As a source of lawn care in Bonita Springs FL, L & G Lawn Care saw an increase of customers during a time when many people had not much else to do but work on their homes. With stay at home orders firmly in place, residents were looking for ways to fill their time. The most obvious solution was to put in work on their home, and many people accepted this challenge wholeheartedly. 2020 saw an increase in home improvement projects and lawn care maintenance, and L & G Lawn Care was able to step up to the plate and provide premier lawn care services for Bonita Springs FL and surrounding cities.

While the threat of COVID-19 is starting to become a thing of the past, and many businesses are just now starting to reopen their doors, L & G Lawn Care has not had to take a break. This company has instead been thriving during the pandemic, taking on new clients and providing premier lawn care services to Lee County and surrounding areas.

About L & G Lawn Care

Providing lawn care services in Bonita Springs FL, L & G Lawn Care is a top-rated landscaping company made up of a team of experienced lawn care professionals. With each new project, L & G Lawn Care strives to transform their clients yards into a scene that could easily be featured on a home magazine. L & G Lawn Care services Lee County and surrounding areas with premier landscape design carried out by industry experts who are friendly and honest with their work.

As your one-stop shop for lawn service in Bonita Springs, L & G Lawn Care has the equipment and expertise needed to perform regular maintenance to your lawn year-round, says owner Andres Francisco.

If you are in the city of Bonita Springs, feel free to stop by L & G Lawn Cares office: https://g.page/old-town-pavers-llc

L & G Lawn Care of SWFL

10210 Pennsylvania Ave. Suite B

Bonita Springs, FL 34135

239-961-6230


Leisa Erickson Florida's real estate market continues to accelerate and I'm excited about the opportunities for both buyers and sellers to capitalize on this rising tide.

Leisa Erickson of Engel and Volkers St. Pete is delighted to accept an invitation to the exclusive Haute Residence Network as its representative in the Tampa Bay Area, Florida luxury real estate market.

As a previous sales and marketing executive working with and for many Fortune 1000 companies, Leisa Erickson brings her 20 years of executive sales and marketing experience forward in projects related to buying, selling, and investing in real estate in Florida as well as in Indiana. Leisa is known to work in authenticity, breaking the status quo, and offering clients a well-rounded perspective - both from a fiduciary as well as market expert perspective with clients. Leisa Erickson describes her commitment as simple yet robust in ensuring her clients get the highest level of bespoke, white-glove service and property presentation as well as resourcing for any move they wish to make. She advocates for her clients, their money, and their investments. Leisa leads a team at Engel & Volkers that was recently awarded the Chairmans Circle award. Chairman's Circle Engel & Volkers Elite Club Advisors earned greater than $1,000,000 in closed GCI, or a minimum of 60 closed sides, for the calendar year 2020. They were also recognized as the #10 Top Team out of all E & V Americas sales teams. She specializes in luxury waterfront properties as well as residential redevelopment opportunities throughout Florida. Leisa is committed to making sure that buyers get into the homes of their dreams, and that sellers gain unparalleled profits.

Visit Leisa Ericksons Haute Residence profile: https://www.hauteresidence.com/member/leisa-erickson/

Visit Leisa Erickson's website: https://leisaericksongroup.evrealestate.com/Leisa-Erickson-Group

ABOUT HAUTE RESIDENCE

Designed as a partnership-driven luxury real estate portal, Haute Residence connects its affluent readers with top real estate professionals, while offering the latest in real estate news, showcasing the worlds most extraordinary residences on the market and sharing expert advice from its knowledgeable and experienced real estate partners. The invitation-only luxury real estate network, which partners with just one agent in every market, unites a distinguished collective of leading real estate agents and brokers and highlights the most extravagant properties in leading markets around the globe for affluent buyers, sellers, and real estate enthusiasts. HauteResidence.com has grown to be the number one news source for million-dollar listings, high-end residential developments, celebrity real estate, and more.

Access all of this information and more by visiting http://www.hauteresidence.com
How Willie the Kitten Found His Purr: a wholesome and enjoyable tale featuring a small cat thats a little different from his family. How Willie the Kitten Found His Purr is the creation of published author Lisa Griffin Moore, a former teacher who now serves as a secretary at her local church and writes in her spare time.

Moore shares, Willie the kitten has a problem. He discovers one day that he isnt like his mom, brother, and sistershe couldnt purr. And he really wants to be able to purr.

Willie sets off on an adventure to find his purr, and along the way he meets three new friends that will hopefully guide him to finding an answer to his question.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Lisa Griffin Moores new book is an entertaining read that teaches one about the value of never giving up on their hope and dreams and working hard toward their goals.

The book features colorful illustrations by Olivia Jones.

View a synopsis of How Willie the Kitten Found His Purr on YouTube.

Consumers can purchase How Willie the Kitten Found His Purr at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about How Willie the Kitten Found His Purr, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
I am so humbled by this national recognition and to lead such an incredible team. LCS and Rent Manager would not be the powerhouses that they are today without our employees tenacity, innovation, and desire to create best-in-class solutions for our customers," said Hegemann.

London Computer Systems (LCS), developer of Rent Manager property management software and other business-critical technologies, is pleased to announce that two members of the LCS executive team have been honored with coveted Stevie Awards from the American Business Awards.

LCS President & CEO, Dave Hegemann, received a Gold Stevie Award for Entrepreneur of the Year. Additionally, LCS Chief Operating Officer (COO), Brittany Christerson, was honored as the Gold Maverick of the Year for Business Products Industries.

Fostering a company culture that paves the way for professional growth; open communication; and a work-hard, play-hard atmosphere has always been important to Hegemann and Christerson. As LCS shifted to remote work in 2020, they both ensured that the organizations carefully honed and crafted culture remained intact. Nearly overnight, they worked with the LCS executive team to develop procedures and protocols that allowed the companys 380 employees to work safely from home during the surging pandemic. They supported the development of 12 virtual company events and transformed the monthly All-Hands company meeting into an engaging virtual experience.

While COVID-19 presented challenges that resulted in downsizing at other companies, LCS continued to add jobseven after adapting to remote workspaces in March. LCS also saw continued growth in 2020 under Hegemann and Christersons leadership in many facets of the business, including supporting more than 30,000 Rent Manager users and seeing a 17.8% growth in the LCS workforce. All of this was accomplished while sustaining the companys 20-year uninterrupted streak of double-digit annual revenue growth.

I am so humbled by this national recognition and to lead such an incredible team. LCS and Rent Manager would not be the powerhouses that they are today without our employees tenacity, innovation, and desire to create best-in-class solutions for our customers. Im very grateful for their effort, said Hegemann.

The American Business Awards are the United States premier business awards program. All organizations operating in the U.S. are eligible to submit nominationspublic and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small.

More than 3,800 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted this year for consideration in a wide range of categories.

Nicknamed The Stevies after the Greek word for crowned, the awards will be virtually presented to winners during a live event on Wednesday, June 30, 2021.

Details about the American Business Awards and the full list of 2021 winners are available at https://stevieawards.com/ABA.

About LCS

Incorporated in 1987 and headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, London Computer Systems (LCS) is a developer of business-critical software used in all 50 states and several markets throughout the world. LCS products include Rent Manager property management software, rmVoIP telephone systems, and enterprise-level hosting solutions via its Sentry Data Center.

LCS also provides complete network design, implementation, and support services, and custom website development through its IT Services and Web Design Services divisions. With more than 30,000 users, LCS combines best technologies with best practices to create unique, affordable, customer-focused products and services.

For more information about LCS, please call 800-669-0871 or visit LCS.com.

About The Stevie Awards

Stevie Awards are conferred in eight programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, the Middle East Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Great Employers, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 70 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com.


Momenta has built a reputation as an exceptional partner to industrial startups. I am excited and honored to join the Momenta team and their portfolio of startups on this journey.

Momenta, the leading Digital Industry Venture Capital firm, is pleased to announce the appointment of Harinderpal (Hans) Hanspal as Venture Partner. Mr. Hanspal will help source investments, as well as support value-creation efforts across Momentas 50+ Digital Industry investments.

Mr. Hanspal is a technology industry veteran and entrepreneur driving digital business and product transformations in technology, industrial, telecom and media companies. His technology and business operations experience spans over two decades of turning scrappy startup and corporate innovation ideas into growth-oriented and profitable businesses based on transactional and recurring revenue models.

Mr. Hanspal co-founded Nurego to help Industrial IoT platforms transform their legacy quote-to-cash systems to support subscription, pay-per-use, and pay-per-outcome revenue models for their IoT and software-enabled products and services. He sold the company to GE and went on to lead GE Digitals Platform Monetization and Customer Development strategy. Earlier in his career, Hans held global sales, product management, corporate strategy, and customer success leadership positions at several enterprise software and hardware companies, including Pivotal Software, VMware, and EMC Corporation. In his spare time, Hans leads Seattles 4200+ member IoT Hub Meetup group.

According to Mr. Hanspal, Digital Industry startups require deep industry knowledge, patience, and capital as they look to transform century-old sectors and industries. Through its industry knowledge, ecosystem and investments, Momenta has built a reputation as an exceptional partner to industrial startups. I am excited and honored to join the Momenta team and their portfolio of startups on this journey.

Ken Forster, Executive Director of Momenta, added: "We are pleased to have Mr. Hanspal join our Ventures team. Since our founding almost a decade ago, weve built our team around deep industry operators, those who have lived at the intersection of digital technologies and deep industry. Mr. Hanspal brings both perspectives with a successful record of entrepreneurship in the Digital Industry."

About Momenta:

Momenta is the leading Digital Industry venture capital firm accelerating digital innovators across energy, manufacturing, smart spaces and supply chain. Led by deep industry operators across its venture capital, strategic advisory and executive search practices, Momenta has made over 50 investments, with notable exits to SAP, PTC and Husqvarna Group. For more information, visit http://www.momenta.one, join the @MomentaPartners conversation or contact info@momenta.one.


Stuart R. Morris, Esq., CPA, B.C.S. welcomes Kate Duffey and Duffey Law Firm clients to Morris Law Group. The Morris Law Group team is ready and available to assist you with your estate planning, probate, and trust and estate administration matters.

Morris Law Group, a premier estate planning and wealth preservation law firm headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla. with three other offices located in South Florida, announced it has agreed to assist the clients of the Duffey Law Firm in Boca Raton, Fla., after the unexpected passing last year of its principal and managing partner, Brian K. Duffey.

The Duffey Law Firm family selected Morris Law Group to work with its clients on current and ongoing matters because of the firms similar practice areas and same dedication and commitment to excellence. Stuart R. Morris, Esq., CPA, B.C.S., founding partner of Morris Law Group, and Brian Duffey had been friends and colleagues for many years. The Morris Law Group team stepped in after Brian passed away to assist Duffey Law Firm clients. Morris Law Group operates in the same practice areas as the Duffey Law Firm, and also subscribes to the same principles of exceeding clients expectations at every turn.

Morris Law Group has a long history of providing cutting-edge legal strategies with superior client-focused service. Morris Law Groups team of attorneys and paralegals are highly experienced in all practice areas related to wealth preservation, including:



According to Mr. Morris, I personally want to welcome all Duffey Law Firm clients and let you know the Morris Law Group team is ready and available to assist you with your estate planning, probate, and trust and estate administration matters. Its a great honor to be entrusted by the Duffey Law Firm family to serve and care for your legal needs.

We consider it a privilege to advise and assist you, and we're here for you when you need us, said Mr. Morris. We also want to welcome Kate Duffey, Brian Duffeys daughter and former administrator, to the Morris Law Group team. Ms. Duffey is now working as Morris Law Groups Administrative/HR Manager, and will be on hand to ensure a smooth transition and continue to be a part of all Duffey Law Firm client matters.

The firms experienced, personable and accessible team is available to meet clients at their convenience  either in person at one of the firms four offices in South Florida, over the phone or by video conference. Morris Law Group treats clients the way they want to be treated  like family. For more information about or to schedule a consultation, please visit http://www.Law-Morris.com or call (561) 750-3850.

About Morris Law Group, Wealth Preservation Attorneys

Morris Law Group, a premier estate planning and wealth preservation law firm with four conveniently located offices in South Florida, provides personalized, discreet services to help protect their clients wealth now and in the future. The Morris Law Group team of knowledgeable and qualified attorneys and legal professionals has more than 150 years of combined experience in managing complex estate planning, tax planning, trust and estate administration, and business structuring and succession planning for clients. An AV Preeminent-rated law firm by Martindale-Hubbell, Morris Law Group is adept at translating these strategies into easy-to-understand, jargon-free language, so clients can make informed decisions about their Wealth Preservation Solutions. Consultations with Morris Law Group attorneys are available in English, Spanish and Portuguese, either in person, over the phone or by video conference. Se habla Espanol. Falamos Portugues. Contact Morris Law Group, visit https://www.law-morris.com/, email Info@Law-Morris.com or call (561) 750-3850 for more information.

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Over 90% of drugs that show promise in animal testing trials do not work in humans. This begs the question, how many potentially effective treatments for humans did not advance to humans because they did not work in animal trials?

The National Anti-Vivisection Society (NAVS), along with a coalition of fellow animal advocacy organizations, primate sanctuaries, scientific organizations, ethicists and scientists, is urging the Biden administration not to move forward with a proposal to dramatically increase the number of nonhuman primates available for biomedical research in the United States.

In a letter to President Joseph Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, NAVS and its coalition members are asking the government to reject calls by some in the scientific community to create a stockpile of nonhuman primates. NAVS is calling the plan, which was revealed publicly in a February New York Times report, a shortsighted and opportunistic recommendation that omits ethical and moral considerations.

I am appalled by the extraordinary suggestion that the U.S. should create a national stockpile of monkeys, as if they were cordwood, fuel or mere lab equipment, as opposed to living, feeling, sentient beings, notes NAVS Executive Director Kenneth Kandaras. The ethical ramifications of such an attitude are simply unconscionable.

In their letter, NAVS asserts that nonhuman primates deserve a life free from suffering, pain, and confinement, all of which inevitably await them if they are stockpiled for research.

NAVS further notes the extraordinary failure rate of animal models to translate into positive human health outcomes.

Over 90% of drugs that show promise in animal testing trials do not work in humans, they explain. This begs the question, how many potentially effective treatments for humans did not advance to humans because they did not work in animal trials?

Rather than continuing to accelerate funding for animal studies that distract from, and slow down, the exciting progress in the development and use of innovative human-based models, NAVS is asking that the Biden administration instead prioritize funding for forward-thinking alternatives that will better model human biology and provide better treatments for human disease.

The complete text of the letter can be found on the NAVS website at https://navs.org/stockpile.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL ANTI-VIVISECTION SOCIETY

Founded in 1929, the National Anti-Vivisection Society (NAVS) works to increase public awareness about animal testing and experimentation, to promote positive solutions that advance science, to support the development of alternatives to the use of animals, and to effect changes that will help end the unnecessary suffering of laboratory animals. Learn more at http://www.navs.org.
At Olansky, we see what kind of damage a lifetime of unprotected sun exposure can do to someones skin, Dr. Ganz says. Preventative efforts such as this are invaluable and provide an extra level of safety for these children.

Olansky Dermatology & Aesthetics, in partnership with the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) and the Georgia Society of Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery, recently donated a sunshade structure to Mary Lin Elementary School in Candler Park. Designed to help students avoid skin damage and possible dermatological illnesses, the structure serves as an example of Olansky Dermatology & Aesthetics commitment to community-minded efforts.

In front of the school, we have a wide walkway, says Alice Brookner, co-president of Mary Lin Elementary Schools PTA. Each day dozens of Mary Lin parents and students gather there for dismissal. There was no shade in this area. In the late spring and summer, the Atlanta sun is especially intense.

After learning the schools PTA was interested in a sunshade structure for the front walkway, Dr. Jodi Ganz of Olansky Dermatology & Aesthetics helped spearhead fundraising efforts through the AADs Take a Hike Skin Cancer program. These sponsored walks use donations to provide grants for the construction of community sunshade structures.

With an additional monetary donation from Olansky Dermatology & Aesthetics, as well as assistance from the AAD and the Georgia Society of Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery, Mary Lin Elementary School was able to meet the budgetary needs required to build the structure, which measures 54-feet wide and 14.5-feet tall.

At Olansky, we see what kind of damage a lifetime of unprotected sun exposure can do to someones skin, Dr. Ganz says. Preventative efforts such as this are invaluable and provide an extra level of safety for these children.

Although planning and construction began before the pandemic, the sunshade structure became even more valuable once students began returning to Mary Lin Elementary for in-person learning in January. In addition to being used during arrival and dismissal, the structure provides much-needed space for the students to have recess, lunch, and outdoor lessons.

The sunshade structure is an incredible gift after such a difficult year, Brookner says. Were incredibly grateful to Olansky Dermatology & Aesthetics, the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), and the Georgia Society of Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery for helping make it a reality for our students, faculty, and parents.

To make an appointment with Olansky Dermatology & Aesthetics, call 404-355-5484 or visit OlanskyDermatology.com.

Olansky Dermatology & Aesthetics is your dermatology solution. Our ability to provide full-service dermatology to patients of all ages is a distinct benefit to choosing our 40-year-old practice. We offer medical, surgical, cosmetic, and aesthetic services to our patients, and even same day appointments when possible. This makes us not only a convenient solution for your family, but a comprehensive one as well. With services ranging from our in-house Mohs surgery for skin cancer, advanced laser therapy for psoriasis or our aesthetic services for skin rejuvenation, Olansky Dermatology & Aesthetics can handle all of your skin concerns. For more details, visit our website at OlanskyDermatology.com or call 404-591-4314.

Interviews are available upon request.


We are committed to leading the Gig Economy and work at home industry, including our approach to security and compliance.

Omni Interactions (Omni), the premier digital engagement platform for the Gig Economy, announced the successful completion of its annual Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance audit and its certification as a Level 1 Service Provider. Further, after completing rigorous evaluations and auditing processes the company has also finalized its annual SOC 2 Type II attestation with zero exceptions.

We are committed to leading the Gig Economy and work at home industry, including our approach to security and compliance, said Chris Carrington, CEO of Omni Interactions. We want our clients, their customers and each one of our thousands of Gig Brand Ambassadors to know we are dedicated to complying with and exceeding the requirements established in the PCI and SOC 2 Type II standards. Omni continues to revolutionize our systems and operating practices to address evolving threats and changes to these standards.

The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), the global gold standard of security certifications endorsed by American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB, MasterCard Worldwide and Visa Inc., was established by the payment card industry to help control and minimize credit card fraud while reducing the likelihood that sensitive account information is compromised. The standard has over 100 rigorous and rigid requirements that must be met, maintained, and validated annually by an external Qualified Security Assessor.

SOC 2 engagements are based on the AICPAs Trust Services Criteria. SOC 2 service auditor reports focus on an organizations non-financial reporting controls as they relate to security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy of a system. SOC 2 Type II evaluates a companys policies and procedures over a specified time period in order to ensure continued compliance and reliability.

As a trusted partner to our financial services, retail, healthcare and government clients, safeguarding payment transaction information as well as personal health information is our top priority, said Rob Duncan, Founder and Chairman of Omni Interactions. Ensuring compliance with the PCI and SOC 2 Type II standards and keeping our certifications up-to-date reflects our commitment to security and compliance for the protection of both credit card, healthcare and other client information.

Omni is reimagining the work from home model, driving the burgeoning Gig Economy and shifting workforce management practices. By connecting communities of Gig workers with the nations leading brands, Omni delivers consistent, reliable customer experience solutions. Omni reunites the former leadership team of Alpine Access, the pioneer of cloud-based virtual customer experience solutions, as managing partners.

About Omni Interactions

Founded in 2016, Omni Interactions (Omni) is an employee-owned company that is the leading digital engagement platform for the Gig Economy. Omnis unique business model leverages the Gig Economy, remote work and a 100% cloud-based technology platform to revolutionize how its clients engage with their customers. Omni supports clients customers through voice, chat, text, email and social media, delivering higher quality outcomes, rapid ramps and increased flexibility at lower total costs.

For more information visit omniinteractions.com

News Release

Media Contact:

David Parkhurst

CRO & Managing Partner

Omni Interactions, Inc.

(720) 232-6487

David@oiteam.com
South Bend Tribune report

South Bend Tribune

ELKHART  Three more teachers at Concord High School have been placed on administrative leave amid an investigation into "inappropriate comments of a sexual nature."

Last week, a male teacher was placed on leave and the school said it had begun the process of terminating his employment after the comments were reported.

The Department of Child Services, in addition to school administration, began their own investigations. The Tribune is not naming the teacher because, as of Tuesday morning, he had not been charged with a crime.

Now, three more teachers are on leave in connection to the investigation, the school district announced Tuesday. Monday night, the Concord Community Schools Police Department obtained court-issued search warrants for the three teachers, which required them to turn over their personal phones to police.

Because it is an ongoing investigation, the school district would not release more information.
We make it our mission to enhance your driveways, walkways, patios, and pool decks to look and function their best.

COVID-19 brought about many changes for both business owners and the general population. With stay at home orders in place, the world saw a new normal emerging where remote work gained popularity and social distancing was expected at mass gatherings. With the outside world in chaos, many people found refuge in the comfort of their own home. As more and more people found themselves with an influx of time on their hands, many homeowners got to work on a long-forgotten to-do list regarding their abode. Home improvement projects skyrocketed, and with them came an increased need for professional contracting companies.

As a paver in Bonita Springs FL, Old Town Pavers enjoyed a tidal wave of new customers as more and more people sought to carry out much-needed maintenance, repair, and upgrades to their homes. Old Town Pavers helped with this process by providing premier paving services to residents in Bonita Springs FL and beyond. The companys industry expertise and flexible hours allowed them to continue to assist the community despite the on-going pandemic.

Old Town Pavers practiced social distancing and other such COVID-19 related statutes during this time. As vaccines became available to the public and businesses re-opened their doors, Old Town Pavers continued to serve its new customers brought on by the pandemic.

About Old Town Pavers

As a locally owned and operated pavers company in Bonita Springs, FL, Old Town Pavers has been serving Lee County for years. The company prides itself in offering paving solutions that are affordable, attractive, and have a longevity that can be enjoyed for decades. Old Town Pavers works closely with their clients budgets to provide a paving job that is more than just satisfactory.

We make it our mission to enhance your driveways, walkways, patios, and pool decks to look and function their best, says Andres Francisco, owner of Old Town Pavers. We work closely with our customers to ensure 100 percent satisfaction when we lay the last paving stone. If you want to upgrade your homes exterior, youve come to the right place.

If you are in the city of Bonita Springs, feel free to stop by Old Town Pavers office: https://g.page/old-town-pavers-llc

Old Town Pavers

10210 Pennsylvania Ave. Suite A

Bonita Springs, FL 34135

239-233-0012


Perry Homes Model Home Kitchen Our Tradition of Excellence in homebuilding begins with our outstanding team of employees  Perry Homes greatest assets. We wouldnt be able to offer beautiful, quality homes without our loyal team of talented individuals who strive for excellence every single day.

Perry Homes, one of the largest and most trusted homebuilders in Texas, is proud to announce the launch of its newest brand campaign to highlight the builders corporate tagline  A Tradition of Excellence. This tagline reflects Perry Homes commitment to excellence in all areas of business, offering homebuyers exceptional customer service, superior design, higher quality, innovation, an industry-leading warranty, and a legacy of giving back. To date, Perry Homes has built more than 55,000 new homes in the most sought-after communities across Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio, all while securing a phenomenal 95% customer satisfaction rating.

Dedicated to creating timeless home designs as well as modern offerings, Perry Homes employs an in-house team of talented professionals who continually evaluate the market for current and upcoming design trends, allowing the builder to seamlessly evolve with the wants and needs of todays homebuyers. With more than 350 new home designs, customers will find a robust selection of quality standard features and design options in every Perry home that radiate elegance and sophistication, including soaring ceilings, gorgeous walls of windows, open concepts, and flexible spaces to fit any lifestyle. Perry Homes also offers its customers innovative smart home technology through the builders Smart Comes Standard package, included in every home at no additional cost.

Our Tradition of Excellence in homebuilding begins with our outstanding team of employees  Perry Homes greatest assets. We wouldnt be able to offer beautiful, quality homes without our loyal team of talented individuals who strive for excellence every single day, said Todd Chachere, Perry Homes President and Chief Operations Officer. At Perry Homes, we are committed to providing an unparalleled customer experience before, during, and after the purchase of every new home. And nothing speaks louder than our 95% satisfaction rating, which reflects our continued dedication to superior craftsmanship and exceptional customer service.

Perry Homes integrates quality assurance measures into its building process, including the use of independent inspectors and engineers, to ensure every Perry home is built to exceed even the highest quality expectations. Perry Homes also takes extra measures to build green, energy efficient homes using materials that are durable, sustainable and/or made from recycled items. Perry Homes is so confident in its workmanship and quality of materials that every home is backed by an industry leading, 2-year workmanship limited warranty. Every Perry home also carries a full 10-year structural limited warranty.

In addition to Perry Homes continued commitment to excellence in homebuilding, the company is also passionate about giving back to the community. That belief is solidified through the Perry Homes Foundation, established in 2017 by CEO Kathy Britton to honor her father Bob Perrys legacy of good corporate responsibility. The Foundations core mission is to support initiatives that benefit those who are disadvantaged or less fortunate, to create educational opportunities for deserving students who need financial assistance, and to enhance the beauty and sustainability of local parks and communities.

The Perry Homes Foundation and the initiatives we stand behind really hold a special place in my heart, said Britton. Our Tradition of Excellence is not only rooted in our fundamentals of homebuilding, but also in our commitment to giving back. This truly is the most important work our company could do  bettering the world around us. As a homebuilder, service is at our core. It is our top priority and drives continuous enhancements  not only in the construction of our homes, but also in the way we serve our neighbors. We invest in and around the communities in which we build to help offer a higher quality of life for all, but especially to benefit the underserved families and neighborhoods needing more dedicated support.

The Perry Homes Foundation recently announced its newest partnership with the City of Houston as a major sponsor for the citys multi-year 50/50 Park Partners initiative, pledging $1 million to improve Houstons neighborhood parks. The Foundation pledged an additional $1 million to the Bayou Greenways 2020 project, an initiative transforming underutilized land along Houstons major waterways into linear parks. The Perry Homes Foundation also supports numerous other philanthropic groups through collaborative programs, scholarships, fundraising efforts, and donations. To date, the Foundation has contributed over $4 million to charitable causes in the Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio areas and beyond.

Learn more about our Tradition of Excellence by visiting http://www.perryhomes.com/traditionofexcellence.

MEDIA CONTACT

Jessica Ballard

Marketing Communications Manager

MediaRelations@PerryHomes.com

About Perry Homes

Perry Homes, one of the largest and most trusted builders in Texas, has established a Tradition of Excellence in homebuilding over the past 54 years. Family-owned and operated since the companys inception in 1967, Perry Homes is committed to building quality, superior homes while providing first-class customer service before, during and after the construction of every Perry home. The homebuilder has earned a phenomenal reputation by evolving with the wants and needs of its 55,000+ customers, all while securing a 95% satisfaction rating. With more than 350 new home designs, buyers will find a robust selection of quality standard features and design options in every Perry home that radiate elegance and sophistication, including soaring ceilings, gorgeous walls of windows, open concepts, and flexible spaces to fit any lifestyle. Perry Homes offers a variety of timeless and modern architectural concepts in over 80 of the most sought-after communities throughout Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. For more information, please visit http://www.perryhomes.com.
I look forward to working with our leadership team and subsidiaries, contributing to their future success, and to supporting the strategic growth of PBDC for the Tribe.

The Potawatomi Business Development Corporation (PBDC), announced today the promotion of Kip Ritchie as the companys chief operating officer. Ritchie is a member of the Forest County Potawatomi Community and previously served as president of Greenfire Management Services, a PBDC subsidiary company. Under his leadership, Greenfire saw tremendous growth and received dozens of awards including Fastest Growing Company, Diversity in Business, Top Construction Company, Newsmaker of the Year, Largest Minority-Owned Company, and a Wisconsin MARKETPLACE Governors Award, among others.

I am very excited about joining the PBDC as chief operating officer as it gives me the chance to stay connected with Greenfire, while also serving the Forest County Potawatomi Community in a larger capacity, said Ritchie. PBDCs investments have grown exponentially in recent years, establishing an incredible presence in both commercial and federal operations. I look forward to working with our leadership team and subsidiaries, contributing to their future success, and to supporting the strategic growth of PBDC for the Tribe.

In his role as COO, Ritchie is responsible for operations, marketing and business development for the PBDC and its affiliate companies which include Greenfire, Data Holdings, Native Roots Hemp, Wgema Leasing, PBDC Travel Centers and PBDC Real Estate Development Operations.

The PBDC was established in 2002 as the economic development and income diversification business of the Forest County Potawatomi Community (FCPC). Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, subsidiary companies and investments provide financial diversification for shareholders and investment partners. Resources generated by PBDC and its holdings help diversify the tribal economy that supports Forest County Potawatomis tribal government and helps improve the lives of tribal members.

An active member of the greater Milwaukee business community, Ritchie sits on several local and regional board of directors and is engaged in a variety of community and philanthropic organizations including Metro Milwaukee Association of Commerce, Wisconsin Womens Business Initiative Corporation, and Froedtert & the Medical College Foundation.

He is also committed to advancing the success of entrepreneurs and business ventures throughout Indian Country, dedicating time to Native American ventures and organizations across the country including Gun Lake Investments, NUMU, Inc., New Mexico Community Capital, National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development and the Forest County Potawatomi Community Foundation.

We are thrilled to welcome Kip to the leadership team of PBDC, said Randy Mueller, Chief Executive Officer, PBDC. During his time with Greenfire, our companys holdings expanded nearly tenfold, and we expect to see further growth in the coming years. Kip proved to be a strong and successful leader at Greenfire, he is deeply engrained in the business community locally and throughout Indian Country, and he will play an important role in our strategic planning and development in the coming years.

# # #

ABOUT THE POTAWATOMI BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION: The Potawatomi Business Development Corporation is owned and operated by the Forest County Potawatomi Community of Wisconsin. The Corporation seeks to diversify the Tribes business interests beyond gaming in an effort to secure the future of the Tribe for the next seven generations and beyond. In addition to Greenfire Management Services, other business holdings include Data Holdings, Native Roots Hemp, Wgema Leasing, and several Federal contracting operations. For more information on the Potawatomi Business Development Corporation, visit http://www.potawatomibdc.com.
Ideal candidates are those in their 30s, 40s or 50s, with minimal sagging skin, who want to get in front of the aging process. It also can help someone who had a prior facelift and requires additional lifting, but it is not for someone with excessively sagging skin. says Dr. John M. Anastasatos

At Los Angeles Plastic Surgery, Dr. Anastasatos is widely known as one of the top professionals in his field, earning global recognition for his beautiful surgical results. Patients who notice an aging jawline with a loss of sharpness, cheeks flattening, laugh lines becoming longer and deeper and the corner of the mouth having a downward sad appearance, may benefit from a facelift. However, many of these patients exhibiting these signs of aging are afraid of the long recovery and the classic scars in front and behind the ears with typical facelift procedures. Dr. Anastasatos percutaneous facelift is a minimally invasive, innovative and natural-looking facelift that can be completed in less than an hour.

The tool used for the facelift resembles a knitting hook and was uniquely designed by Dr. Anastasatos mentor and renowned plastic surgeon, Dr. Louis Vasconez. The special curved instrument follows the natural curvature of the cranium, which allows for a minimally invasive technique, resulting in no scarring on the face or behind the ears. The procedure can be completed while the patient is awake under local anesthesia, depending on the patients needs and desires. Since the procedure can be performed under local anesthesia, this avoids the additional downtime and risks associated with general anesthesia. Additionally, when the patient is awake and alert, the surgeon can control the level of optimal lift. Because of the percutaneous lifts minimally invasive technique, there is also minimal downtime and swelling.

Ideal candidates are males or females in their 40s or 50s, with minimal sagging skin, who want to get in front of the aging process. It also can help someone who had a prior facelift and requires additional lifting, but it is not for someone with excessively sagging skin, says Dr. John M. Anastasatos

More about Dr. John M. Anastasatos:

Dr. Anastasatos offers a full menu of services to improve ones appearance from head to toe, with gold-standard facelifts, advanced breast augmentations, body lift procedures and non-surgical treatments. Dr. John Anastasatos trained at Brown University Medical School, Columbia University-Presbyterian Medical Center and The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). Dr. Anastasatos is also a former assistant professor of plastic surgery at UAB. He is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and is an active member of the American Society of Plastic Surgery and the American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons. He serves as an expert reviewer for the Medical Board of California and has been recognized by the United States Congress for his work in plastic surgery and charity.

To schedule a consultation with Dr. John Anastasatos or for more information about practice locations in Beverly Hills and Bakersfield, CA, or Athens, Greece, please call (310) 888-4048, or visit his website at http://www.LosAngelesPlasticSurgery.com.
Psilera Bioscience (Psilera), a Florida-based biotechnology company specializing in the clinical development of psychedelics and analogues is pleased to announce the latest additions to its roster of talent. All bring unique insight to strengthen company leadership with research and clinical management experience and adding value to Psileras drug pipeline.

Psilera has hired Jeanine Yacoub, MS in the Synthetic and Medicinal Chemistry role. Jeanine has been part of Psilera since we first began research at USF, and were thrilled to bring her on full-time to continue developing synthetic methodologies towards new psychedelic analogues, said Dr. Jackie von Salm, Co-Founder & CSO of Psilera Bioscience.

Jeanine earned her Masters degree under the tutelage of Dr. James Leahy in synthetic organic chemistry from the University of South Florida. In addition to her medicinal chemistry skill set, she brings quality control experience from the pharmaceutical industry. Her background in drug discovery and motivation to develop new mental health therapeutics align with Psileras patient-focused mission.

Additional Psilera team members and advisors include:

Scott Rairigh, MS joins the board of directors, bringing significant pharmaceutical experience with prior roles at Johnson & Johnson, Roche, Celgene, and Bristol-Myers Squib. His career spans 25 years with executive leadership in healthcare, diagnostics, and personalized medicine.

Christopher Nicholas, PhD, Assistant Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has been named to Psileras Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). With a background in clinical psychology and neuroscience, he brings his clinical research expertise with psilocybin and role as a site co-PI and therapist for MAPS Phase III clinical trial for PTSD. Dr. Nicholas will help Psilera with clinical trial design and oversight while providing expertise in neuroimaging and cognitive disorders.

Danielle Gulick, PhD will perform animal studies as part of the SAB looking for hallucinogenic activity and reduction in alcohol consumption using Psileras new psychedelic analogues. She is an Assistant Professor at the Neuroscience Institute of USF and specializes in addiction, the role of circadian rhythm disruption, and Alzheimer's disease.

Bryce Allen, PhD joins Psileras SAB with a prior role as Head of Integrated Data Sciences at Silicon Therapeutics. Dr. Allen brings cutting-edge technological experience in the growing field of computational chemistry and data-led drug discovery. He will help Psilera refine its BRAIN (Bio-Receptor Activity Intelligence Network) database to identify prior art and potential innovations that can be integrated into Psileras next-generation drug pipeline.

Bill Baker, PhD joins the SAB as one of the pioneers of marine natural products research and drug discovery. He is a Professor of Chemistry at USF with decades of experience in early-stage drug discovery from microbial sources and synthetic optimization of natural compounds.

Clifford Morris, PhD, ABAAHP, joins the Clinical Advisory Board (CAB) with experience in clinical research and elucidating neurodegenerative diseases. He currently heads a clinical research and development lab, innovating novel integrative medicine test methods and acts as a principal investigator for clinical studies.

Harris L. Friedman, PhD joins the Medical Advisory Board (MAB). Dr. Friedman is a Visiting Scholar at Harvard University and a retired Research Professor in Counseling Psychology at the University of Florida. Dr. Friedman is actively involved in psychedelic clinical research and has published over 200 professional papers and over a dozen books.

Dr. Kirk ODonnell, MD joins the MAB as a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and advisor to many top biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. His background in general medicine and neurological disorders will aid clinical strategy and execution.

We are excited about 2021 being a breakout year for Psilera as we unearth preclinical data on our novel compounds, delivery systems, and transition into the clinic, said Dr. Chris Witowski, Co-Founder and CEO of Psilera. We continue to strengthen our drug pipeline and next-generation computational screening [BRAIN] to optimize psychedelic medicines and these distinguished appointments will help us achieve these goals.

More information on the Psileras founders, board members, and team can be found here.

About Psilera Bioscience - Psilera Bioscience is a leading psychedelic-based biotechnology company with leadership from the pharmaceutical and science-driven cannabis industries to innovate new therapies for mental health. By leveraging strengths in research and a patient-focused approach, Psilera is building a proprietary drug pipeline consisting of novel compounds, formulations and a next-generation computational database. Based in Tampa, FL and working under DEA approval, Psilera will repurpose psychoactive natural products as building blocks for breakthrough medicines for mood, cognitive, and addiction disorders.


We look forward to continued leadership in the private lending industry and growing with our clients, brokers and correspondent lending partners in 2021 and beyond

RCN Capital, a leading nationwide private lender specializing in providing financing for real estate investors, announced that it has funded over 10,000 loans since its inception in 2010, affirming the company as an influential lender in the space.

This is the second funding milestone RCN Capital has reached in 2021. RCN, which offers financing for short-term fix & flip projects, long-term rentals, & ground-up construction, surpassed $2 billion in originations since its founding in February, no small feat in the private lending industry.

This is an incredible milestone that would not have been possible without RCN Capitals hard-working employees, said Jeffrey Tesch, RCN Capitals CEO. A tremendous thank-you to all of our current, former, and soon to be RCN Capital family members.

2021 is off to a monumental start for RCN Capital as the company is currently on track to exceed $1.1 billion in originations for the year. The company was also already recognized this year for its explosive growth after ranking number 180 on the 2021 Inc. 5000 Regionals: NYC Metro list which ranks the fastest-growing private companies in the New York City Metro Region.

We look forward to continued leadership in the private lending industry and growing with our clients, brokers and correspondent lending partners in 2021 and beyond, Tesch added.

About RCN Capital

RCN Capital is a South Windsor, CT based national, direct, private lender. Established in 2010, RCN provides commercial loans for the purchase or refinance of non-owner occupied residential and commercial properties. The company specializes in new construction financing, short-term fix & flip and bridge financing and long-term rental financing for real estate investors. For more information on RCN Capital and RCNs loan programs, visit http://www.RCNCapital.com.

Contact:

Erica LaCentra

RCN Capital

860.432.4782

elacentra@rcncapital.com
We are confident Ms. Bautista will bring valuable insight, care, and compassion to her new role.

The Relapsing Polychondritis Foundation (RP Foundation) announced that RP advocate Isabel Bautista has been selected to join the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Patient Perspectives Program Review Committee.

The Patient Perspectives Program invites patients impacted by rheumatic diseases such as RP, along with patient sponsor organizations such as a nonprofit patient group, to submit stories that share their journeys and experiences with thousands of rheumatology healthcare providers worldwide. Selected submissions are presented at the ACR annual meeting and published online and in Arthritis & Rheumatology, an official journal of the ACR.

Ms. Bautista previously presented a Patient Perspective poster titled Patients With Relapsing Polychondritis (RP) and an Advocate Manufactured Custom Cloth Masks to Combat COVID-19: This Mask Project Provided a Sense of Purpose, Created Unity, Increased Awareness of RP, Facilitated Research, and Generated Hope at ACR Convergence 2020. One of only four patients selected to present a poster to attendees, she detailed the story of her team of RP patients who made and distributed free masks and ear savers for fellow RP patients across the globe during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are confident Ms. Bautista will bring valuable insight, care, and compassion to her new role, said David Bammert, Director and President of the RP Foundation. The RP Foundation applauds her continued commitment and dedication to helping patients with RP and autoimmune diseases.

More information about the ACR Convergence 2021 Patient Perspective Poster Program can be found here.

For more information about relapsing polychondritis, the RP Foundation, and the Race for RP, please visit https://www.polychondritis.org and https://raceforrp.org. For all general and media inquiries, please contact David Bammert at (906) 869-3962 or dbammert@polychondritis.org.

About the Relapsing Polychondritis Foundation Inc.

The Relapsing Polychondritis Foundation Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization which strives to raise awareness and educate the public, as well as represent its patients to the global medical community and support medical research toward a cure. For more information about the RP Foundation, please visit the foundations website.

About Race for RP

Race for RP is a non-profit organization that supports research, awareness programs, and care, for those affected by relapsing polychondritis and related diseases. RP is a painful, debilitating, and sometimes fatal autoimmune disease in which the immune system misfires, turning on the patients cartilage. For more information about Race for RP, please visit the organizations website.
Georgia Unlimited Roofing & Building is family-owned and we take pride in our warm, professional demeanor, problem solving and timely communication.

Commonly known for providing quality roofers to Covington, GA, Georgia Unlimited Roofing and Building is extending its service offerings to a variety of services to meet the current market demands. The company is currently building new residential homes, constructing new commercial buildings, and completing kitchen, bath, and other home renovations.

Many people are spending more time at home and are ready to complete those projects theyve always wanted to do, but never had the time. Thats where we come into play and help make these dreams a reality, says company owner Michael Zimmermann.

Georgia Unlimited Roofing & Building can also install a variety of roofs including: gable roofs, gambrel roofs, hip roofs, flat roofs and mansard roofs. Additionally it provides multiple roofing services including installation, replacement, maintenance, and repair.

The company is currently offering free roof inspections and can provide roofing insurance claims. We understand that during these uncertain times, the last thing you need is a leaky roof. We hope our free roof inspections provide some relief to those who need it, states company owner Cam Wade.

Georgia Unlimited Roofing & Building is family-owned and we take pride in our warm, professional demeanor, problem solving and timely communication. We offer a wide variety of manufacturers, colors and styles to choose from, and look forward to earning your trust.

About Georgia Unlimited Roofing & Building

As one of the leading roof repair and roof inspection companies in Covington, GA, Georgia Unlimited Roofing & Building is based out of Newton County and serves all of Metro Atlanta. The company strives to offer excellent customer service and above all, quality finished products. In addition to providing roofers to Covington, GA, the company also has contractors that specialize in additions, renovation projects, commercial projects, and new construction custom homes.

The company believes in honesty and integrity and great communication with customers. During a construction project or roof repair service, customers in Covington can also request painting, pressure washing, siding and gutters, decks and porches, insulation, concrete and framing. Founded in 2011, the company has over 30 years of combined experience and numerous successful projects under its belt.

The roofing company in Covington, GA encourages those who are interested to call or stop by its office to learn more about its services.

Georgia Unlimited Roofing & Building

1119 Church St, Suite D, Covington, GA 30014

678-632-1922


Dr. Evanega has been described as a pioneer, international leader, and icon of young science communication professionals.

The Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST) announced that the 2021 Borlaug CAST Communication Award goes to Sarah Evanega, research professor in the Department of Global Development with a joint appointment in the School of Integrative Plant Science in the College of Agriculture at Cornell University. Evanega is an adjunct faculty member at the Boyce Thompson Institute. Dr. Evanega also serves as the founding director of the Cornell Alliance for Sciencea global communications effort that promotes evidence-informed decision-making across a range of science issues. She has been described as a pioneer, international leader, and icon of young science communication professionals.

Evanega received her Ph.D. in Plant Biology from Cornell University in 2009. She now teaches courses on agricultural biotechnology at the graduate and undergraduate level and is part of an interdisciplinary team that developed a massive open online course (MOOC) on the science and politics of GMOs on Cornells EdX platform. She was instrumental in launching the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences initiative, AWARE (Advancing Women in Agriculture through Research and Education), which promotes women in agriculture.

Evanega is being recognized for her leadership envisioning the innovative global communications platform that she leads. The Alliance for Science is a global initiative with an international network of science allies. The Alliance has trained 800 people in 50 countries with innovative, progressive tools for communicating effectively about agricultural science. Since its founding in 2014 the Alliance has become a credible source for information on biotechnology, as well as the misinformation that accompanies that topic and other science issues, such as vaccines, COVID-19 and climate change. Evanegas efforts have been especially significant in creating a global platform that allows others to speak up in support of access to agricultural technologies.

As part of her work with the Alliance, Evanega has launched an imaginative outreach tool, the Modified food truck, which will travel across the country to deliver compelling, science-based information about genetically modified foods as well as edible samples. The Modsquad team, a group of science communicators, will engage with people about science and its role in combatting climate change and food insecurityin other words, solving some of the biggest problems facing humanity now and into the future.

Since 2014, Evanega has raised millions of dollars in grants, including sizable ones to support the Cornell Alliance for Science. She has also received a multitude of awards and honors for her research and communication skills. Evanega has been active in initiatives to support and advance women in science and she is involved with the following professional organizations: American Society of Agronomy, Association for Women in Science, Council for Agricultural Science and Technology, American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Society of Plant Biologists. With her ability to communicate on a variety of issues facing science, agriculture, and technology, she is a worthy recipient of the 2021 Borlaug CAST Communication Award.

An award presentation will occur during World Food Prize Symposium week in October 2021. The Farm Journal Foundation is the 2021 sponsor of this award. The Borlaug CAST Communication Award honors the legacies of Nobel Prize winner Dr. Norman Borlaug and Dr. Charles A. Black, the first president of CAST.
We are therefore once again offering Dads, Grads and anyone with data to protect the opportunity to do so absolutely free of charge for 90 days. This is the ideal gift to give to a dad or grad, said JG Heithcock, GM of Retrospect, a StorCentric Company

Includes New Cloud Storage Provider Certifications, Platform Updates for Apple macOS, and Performance Enhancements

For those that are anticipating upcoming graduations and Fathers Day with excitement and pride -- and perhaps at a loss for the ideal gift -- Retrospect, a StorCentric company, today announced its 2nd annual Dads & Grads Promotion. For a limited time, Retrospect is offering a free, no strings attached, 90-day subscription license for every Retrospect Backup product.

Retrospects trusted data protection suite ensures thousands of businesses around the world can recover quickly from accidents, hardware failure, theft and disaster. With its complete coverage of Windows, Mac, and Linux computers, as well as VMware and Hyper-V virtualization platforms, Retrospect provides holistic protection for any business, with cloud storage support for offsite locations on Amazon S3, Google Cloud Storage, and many other services.

The news is filled with horror stories about the increasing level of aggressiveness and sophistication of cyber-attacks, and the fact that todays work, learn and shop from home paradigm has opened yet another door and opportunity for the worlds bad actors, said JG Heithcock, GM of Retrospect, a StorCentric Company. Ransomware attacks alone mushroomed by 150% in 2020, with the average extortion amount doubling, according to a report from Group-IB.

Of course, this is a time of year that is traditionally filled with optimism. It is a time to look back with appreciation for all that has been accomplished and forward to a future filled with possibilitya sentiment especially important given all that transpired over the past year, continued Heithcock. We are therefore once again offering Dads, Grads and anyone with data to protect the opportunity to do so absolutely free of charge for 90 days. This is the ideal gift to give to a dad or grad, or even to yourself, whether you are focused on protecting years of personal photos and video memories or important business documents.

Please visit: https://www.retrospect.com/dads_and_grads to learn more. Click on one of the buttons on the page or use the coupon code 'DADGRAD' on Retrospects online store to receive a free 90-day subscription license. No credit card is required, and you can cancel at any time and still restore your backups. You can also contact the Retrospect sales team by email at na.sales@retrospect.com or by phone at 1-888-376-1078, to request your free 90-day subscription license.

Tweet this: @RetrospectInc Dads & Grads Promotion Launches  Offering #Free 90-Day Subscription License for Every Retrospect #Backup Product https://www.retrospect.com/dads_and_grads @StorCentric #DataProtection #Security #Ransomware #Promotion

About Retrospect

Retrospect is dedicated to providing reliable backup and recovery tools for professionals and small-to-midsize businesses with Retrospect Backup and Retrospect Virtual, covering physical servers and endpoints, virtual environments, and business applications. With three decades of field-tested expertise and millions of users worldwide, Retrospect meets the needs of organizations that require the highest level of recoverability. Retrospect is a proud member of the StorCentric family of brands. For additional information, please visit: https://www.retrospect.com/.

About StorCentric

StorCentric provides world-class and award-winning data management solutions for Enterprise and SMB customers. Between its Drobo, Nexsan, Retrospect, Vexata and Violin Systems divisions, the company has shipped over 1M data management solutions and has won over 100 awards for technology innovation and service excellence. StorCentric innovation is centered around customers and their specific data requirements, and delivers quality solutions with unprecedented flexibility, data protection, and expandability. For further information, please visit: http://www.storcentric.com.

2021 StorCentric. StorCentric, Nexsan, Drobo, Vexata, and Violin Systems are registered trademarks of StorCentric. The Channel Company, LLC. CRN is a registered trademark of The Channel Company, LLC. All rights reserved.
Homestead, FL (33030)

Today

Sunshine and a few clouds. High around 90F. Winds ESE at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Low near 75F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph.
Cultivate a Career in Cannabusiness with Sullivan University "Although Kentucky may be slow to adapt to these changes, many states around us and across the country have moved ahead. We are offering these classes online so that they are accessible to everyone." - Glenn Sullivan, Sullivan University System Chancellor and Chief Executive Officer

Sullivan University has received approval from the United States Department of Education to offer an online cannabis business certificate program that students can complete in just nine months.

Classes begin June 28th, at the start of the summer quarter, and will provide a Cannabusiness Studies program graduate with a working knowledge of the business side of the industry, augmented with an understanding of the legal, medical and supply chain issues related to cannabis, as well as what is needed to be a productive entry-level employee or entrepreneur in this industry. Agricultural classes are not part of the program.

"We have decided to offer this education in recognition of the changes happening across the country," said Sullivan University System Chancellor and Chief Executive Officer Glenn Sullivan. "Although Kentucky may be slow to adapt to these changes, many states around us and across the country have moved ahead. We are offering these classes online so that they are accessible to everyone."

Sullivan is launching the program less than a year after offering an Introduction to Cannabis Studies online course.

"Our Advisory Board members recommended that we offer courses on the history and sociology of cannabis, the legal and medical issues, and the retail side of the business," Chancellor/CEO Sullivan said.

The short-term, 24-quarter credit hour Cannabusiness Studies program is designed to prepare students for positions within the cannabusiness industry. As the industry expands and the demand for employees grows, employees should understand basic business operations to include retailing, manufacturing, sales, supervision, and supply chain management, as well as social, legal, psychological and economics issues surrounding the industry.

Courses in the program are:



Cannabusiness. Provides a practical review of many fields of basic business operations which include retailing, wholesaling, manufacturing and customer service as it relates to cannabusiness.

Introduction to Cannabis Studies. The course is designed to provide students with an introduction to the social, legal, psychological, and economic impact of cannabis use, and to familiarize students with the cannabis and hemp industry, to include hemp, CBD, and other derivatives of cannabis plants.

Principles of Sales Management in Cannabusiness. This course is an analysis of the sales functions in modern business including techniques necessary for the successful selling of both tangibles and intangibles. Emphasis is also given to communication skills necessary for the successful salesperson and the sales presentation as it relates to cannabusiness.

Basic Supervision. This course teaches the interrelationship of office functions, service, facilities, office communications, problem-solving and successful human relations in office administration, with emphasis on first-line supervisory duties.

Foundations of Logistics and Supply Chain Management. This course familiarizes the student with issues related to supply chain management, purchasing, logistics and transportation. The course also examines the fundamental history of supply chain management and how it affects domestic and international commerce as well as well normal department functions and interfaces within the company. Students also examine problems and opportunities associated with various logistics channels and the decisions required to solve these problems.

Drugs, Behavior and Legal Issues. This course will provide an overview of the relationship between substance abuse, behavior, and criminal offending. The student will be exposed to the historical and contemporary criminal justice system responses to illegal substances, how drug use influences behavior and potential legal issues related to cannabis.

Current or potential students can learn more about the course by visiting sullivan.edu/programs/cannabusiness-studies-certificate or calling 502-456-6505.

About Sullivan University:

Sullivan University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award Associate, Bachelors, Masters, and Doctoral degrees. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097, call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Sullivan University or visit them online at http://www.sacscoc.org.

The University offers numerous certificates, diplomas, and degrees in career-oriented programs, ranging from business, pharmacy, human resources, I.T. and cyber security, supply-chain management, culinary and baking and pastry arts, hospitality studies, conflict management, nursing, allied health sciences, HVAC-R, Sullivan University has campuses in Louisville and Lexington, an extension in Fort Knox on the U.S. Army Post, and a Learning Center in Louisa. Sullivan University also has many programs available partially or wholly online. For more information, visit http://www.sullivan.edu.
Telinta Hosted Softswitch & Billing By integrating with a leader like TransNexus, Telinta provides our mutual customers with the tools they need to make important decisions about robocall mitigation.

Telinta, a global leader in hosted switching and billing for VoIP service providers, and TransNexus, a leader in developing innovative software for telecommunications networks, jointly announced today a solution to help VoIP service providers comply with STIR/SHAKEN call authentication and robocall mitigation regulations.

TransNexus has made groundbreaking innovations in robocall mitigation with its ClearIP software platform. Telinta has integrated ClearIP into its cloud-based softswitch. Together the two leaders can help VoIP service providers meet their STIR/SHAKEN and robocall mitigation requirements, helping customers to avoid having their traffic blocked.

TransNexus offers services for Telinta customers based both inside and outside the U.S. When a U.S.-based Telinta customer signs up with TransNexus, Telinta will send a request to TransNexus to create a digital signature and Telinta will include that signature on subsequent calls as they are routed through Telintas platform.

For Telinta customers based outside the U.S., TransNexus can provide robocall mitigation service so the customer can file the required certification with the FCC.

FCC requirements:

 Use STIR/SHAKEN, or, if eligible, a Robocall Mitigation Program, on every call they originate with U.S. NANP calling numbers.

 File a Robocall Mitigation Certification with the FCC in the new Robocall Mitigation Database.

 Block calls with U.S. NANP calling numbers from upstream providers that dont have a certification on file in the new Robocall Mitigation Database.

 Cooperate fully and quickly with robocall traceback requests.

 All voice service providers must file their certification by June 30, 2021, regardless of whether they will be using STIR/SHAKEN, robocall mitigation, or both.

 If a provider does not have a certification on file, then other service providers will be required to block their calls.

 Solutions from Telinta and TransNexus help service providers fulfill these requirements easily and on time.

By integrating with a leader like TransNexus, Telinta provides our mutual customers with the tools they need to make important decisions about robocall mitigation, said Alex Ferdman, Telintas CEO. Telinta has built an impressive ecosystem of industry-leading partners to help VoIP service providers around the world to prosper.

VoIP service providers need solutions for call authentication and robocall mitigation requirements, said Jim Dalton, TransNexus CEO. Telinta and TransNexus together make compliance quick and easy, while providing robust, powerful solutions to provide effective relief from unlawful robocalls.

Telintas TeliCore(tm) platform is a cloud-based Class 4 and Class 5 softswitch platform, integrating world-class switching, billing and customer management.

The TransNexus ClearIP hosted software platform provides a comprehensive portfolio of services to manage and protect telecommunications networks.

About Telinta

Founded in 2002, Telinta, Inc. offers secure and reliable cloud-based Switching and Billing solutions for VoIP service providers around the globe. Telintas full portfolio of white label solutions is highly customizable for ITSPs and their resellers. Telintas carrier-grade solutions include Hosted PBX, SIP Trunking, Business and Residential VoIP, Audio-Conferencing, Mobile, Wholesale VoIP, and other VoIP services. Please visit us at https://telinta.com for more information.

About TransNexus

TransNexus is a leader in developing innovative software to manage and protect telecommunications networks. The company has over 20 years experience in providing telecom software solutions including toll fraud prevention, robocall mitigation and prevention, TDoS prevention, analytics, routing, billing support, STIR/SHAKEN and SHAKEN certificate services. For more information, visit https://transnexus.com.
When the privileged are faced with Equality, it feels like oppression

The goals of the COINTELPRO program were to prevent the growth of Black organizations (especially among youth organizations), to prevent Black organizations from gaining respectability, to prevent Black organizations ability to arm themselves, to prevent a coalition of Black organizations, and to prevent the rise of a MESSIAH who could unify and electrify Black organizations. From 1956 to 1971 the Counterintelligence Program used covert and illegal projects to surveil, infiltrate, and discredit Black organizations.

Nine years after COINTELPRO laid the groundwork that effectually emasculated black empowerment, Marilyn James was born into a family that had broken the color barrier in law enforcement within the state of Massachusetts. Marilyns grandfather, great uncles, mother, and her father all served as law enforcement officials in Massachusetts.

Fast forward to January 8, 2015, Marilyn Mosby became the 25th States Attorney General for Baltimore City, and the youngest chief prosecutor in a major American city. She was elected on a platform of not just being tough on crime, but also smart on crime. Her promise was to effectuate wellness in the black community through a just, efficient, and fair criminal justice system. Her motivation to champion fair law enforcement practices was impacted by the trauma of her cousin, who was an honor roll student, being gunned down in a case of mistaken identity. The COINTELPRO tactics that lead to the death of all of our alpha leaders in the 60s and created the poverty and distress in black communities that led to her cousins death, shaped Mrs. Mosbys approach to creating an efficient and just penal system.

Her declaration that the States Attorney Office office has ended the War on Drugs in Baltimore was only whispered in the media, but it will serve as a lighthouse for the new 1%, those 45 black women elected prosecutors that have banded to empower black communities by shaping just penal policies despite the inherent danger they face from effectuating black wellness. The end to the War on Drugs is the most significant event in black folks collective struggle since Richard Nixon declared the War on Drugs in 1971. "I respectfully submit that the Baltimore City States Attorney has done more for black people than all the black civil rights, community, and political leaders combined since this war has been waged on our community," states Equality Equation founder Pless Jones Jr.

Marilyn Mosby has defended her family, her office, and has withstood the first onslaught of a smear campaign. Unbowed, she is now applying pressure with Americas first offensive posture against systemic racism, by a States Attorney Office, by filling a complaint to the FCC on Baltimores Fox45, and exposing their role in propping up structural racism. Fox45s notoriety is for effectuating negative imagery of black folks, engaging in voter misinformation, and giving the community Judas a platform.

When the privileged are faced with Equality, it feels like oppression. Clearly Mrs. Mosby expected the counter punches by Baltimores boogeymen, and as swiftly as Tank Davis would, the States attorney dodged the counter, and with the FCC filing, landed a powerful left hook to the rib cage. Round 1 goes to Mosby, 10-9.
During uncertain and scary times like this, it is great to have a close family relationship like we do at thebigword. Our staff all over the world are supporting us where they can through pledges and fundraising and we are so thankful.

India is now the second nation in the world to pass the 20 million COVID-19 case milestone, with health ministry data also showing over 200,000 registered COVID-19 deaths since the pandemic began.

With an office located in Pune, what is happening in India is close to thebigwords heart and they are taking measures to ensure that their staff members can remain safe during this difficult time.

thebigword will work with the Local Authorities, Insurance Companies and HealthCare Providers to make the vaccine available to staff and their immediate families. If there is a charge for the vaccine, thebigword will pay for it. They have also introduced a policy that allows their employees across the world to safely work from home.

Fundraising as part of thebigwords CSR programme is also happening to help support those less fortunate with a virtual walk from the head office located in Leeds to their office in Pune. The virtual walk consists of 7,413km and employees have already walked just over 7,000km in less than 2 months.

The charities chosen for the virtual walk is the Dharamveer Shambhuraje Pratisthan orphanage which relies on volunteers and donations to operate as well as the Care of Police Survivors (COPS) charity located in the UK.

The Dharamveer Shambhuraje Pratisthan orphanage is located close to thebigwords office in Pune and is home to 135 children aged between 5 and 16. To donate to the cause, please visit the dedicated JustGiving page for thebigwords virtual walk.

Nilesh Dorik, India Country Manager at thebigword Group said: During uncertain and scary times like this, it is great to have a close family relationship like we do at thebigword

Our staff all over the world are supporting us where they can through pledges and fundraising and we are so thankful.

"Whilst our lives in other offices in the world are slowly getting back to normal, we are conscious that our Indian employees are worried about their and the health of their own families, which is why we have pledged to pay for our staff and their immediate family to have vaccines when it is possible. said Michele Gould, Director of CSR at thebigword Group.

We are so proud to be also able to fundraise and support those less fortunate at The Dharamveer Shambhuraje Pratishthan orphanage which is close to our office in Pune. Supporting those children who reply on donations is all the more important during this time.
Look for the Acumatica Certified Application Badge! [These products] masterfully utilize the Acumatica platform to meet customers growing business demands. - Christian Lindberg, Vice President of Partner Solutions at Acumatica.

Crestwood Associates is proud to announce the first slate of add-on products (Lockbox Processing, 360 Sales View, and Collections Management) have been recognized as Acumatica-Certified Applications (ACAs) for 2021 R1. This is Crestwoods sixth total ACA for the Acumatica 2019, 2020, and 2021 builds.

Collections Management is a powerful AR add-on, allowing users to fully automate collection activity natively in Acumatica. Lockbox Processing is another automation tool: seamlessly eliminating the manual processes involved with importing lockbox payments. 360 Sales View is a tool for sales teams; all the information about a customer is viewable on a single screen, making it easy to access any information about a customer.

The ACA title highlights outstanding development partners whose applications have met the highest standards set for Acumatica integration and functionality. To become an Acumatica-Certified Application, Crestwood has demonstrated commitment to quality by passing the Acumatica software test and aligning to future Acumatica roadmap releases.

Customers who want to stay competitive need flexible, responsive technology to execute their long-term business strategies, said Christian Lindberg, Vice President of Partner Solutions at Acumatica. Our ACA label is built to help customers find applications capable of delivering that. [These products] masterfully utilize the Acumatica platform to meet customers growing business demands.

About Crestwood Associates, LLC

Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Schaumburg, Illinois, Crestwood Associates is a premier Cloud Service Provider (CSP), Gold-Certified Microsoft Dynamics Partner, 10-time Presidents Club Award Winner, and 2017 Inner Circle recipient. In addition, Crestwood was honored to be chosen as Acumatica's US Partner of the Year in 2016 and 2017, and a member of Acumaticas Presidents Club for 2018 and 2019, Manufacturing Partner of the Year in 2019, with numerous Acumatica MVP awards spread amongst our team. Crestwood delivers a variety of business solutions, including: Acumatica Cloud ERP, Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft Dynamics SL, Microsoft Dynamics CRM (now called Dynamics 365 for Sales), Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, and Greentree applications. From accounting and financial reporting, to CRM, manufacturing, distribution, payroll and human resources, Crestwood Associates provides the tools and services that help businesses perform above and beyond the competition. The Crestwood team is comprised of over 45 certified professionals who provide in-depth industry experience and functional expertise.

About Acumatica

Acumatica Cloud ERP provides the best business management solution for transforming your company to thrive in the new digital economy. Built on a future-proof platform with open architecture for rapid integrations, scalability, and ease of use, Acumatica delivers unparalleled value to small and midmarket organizations. Connected Business. Delivered. For more information, visit http://www.acumatica.com.
USOSM President & CEO Richard Hall praises OMS Foundation for significant impact on OMS professionals and their patients. The foundation has done so much for oral and maxillofacial surgeons and their patients, and we want to recognize that and help them continue their mission.

U.S. Oral Surgery Management (USOSM)  a specialty management services company that exclusively serves premier oral and maxillofacial surgeons  is proud to announce its support of the OMS Foundations OMSFIRE program with a five-year commitment of support for the foundations annual fund.

The OMS Foundation is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit that strives to improve the quality and safety of patient care by fueling innovation in oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMS) research, training and education. OMSFIRE provides consistent support for the foundations mission and programs, funding clinical and basic research, education programs, scholarships and more.

The OMS Foundation was created with one goal in mind: to advance oral and maxillofacial patient care by providing oral and maxillofacial surgeons with training, education, research and general support, said Richard Hall, USOSM president and CEO. The foundation has done so much for oral and maxillofacial surgeons and their patients, and we want to recognize that and help them continue their mission.

Since 1959 the OMS Foundation has facilitated the discovery of new knowledge in the OMS field by supporting research; and it has provided platforms for the specialtys most respected experts to educate their colleagues. The foundation also works with the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS) to support a variety of education opportunities for OMS residents and provides financial assistance to promising, early-career academics. In 2018 the OMS Foundation launched the Global Initiative for Volunteerism and Education (GIVE), offering travel stipends to residents traveling internationally with OMS teams to deliver humanitarian healthcare to communities in need.

USOSMs most recent gift supports the specialtys immediate and long-term needs for education and research grants. One of our top priorities is ensuring patient safety under anesthesia. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons have a very safe track record; but even something well done can be improved. USOSM understands that. They share our vision for the future, and I commend them for partnering with us to realize it, said Bill Passolt, chair of the OMS Foundation Board. Rick Hall and the USOSM team are always easy to work with. Theyre real listeners and we appreciate the relationship we have with them.

Headquartered in Irving, Texas, USOSM has partner practices in Texas, Colorado, Georgia, Tennessee, Minnesota, Alabama, Oklahoma, Louisiana, South Carolina, Mississippi and Florida. A shared services organization, USOSM collaborates with premier oral and maxillofacial surgeons to offer a partnership solution for continued and accelerated practice success. USOSM provides operational, marketing and administrative support services, reinvests resources, and applies best practices to improve clinical and financial performance and produce steadier, more profitable growth for all.
The university recognized the increasing need for health professionals in the region and the growing interest in health professions among students, said President Devorah Lieberman.

Plans are now underway to organize a College of Health and Community Well-Being as the fifth college of the University of La Verne. President Devorah Lieberman noted that the new college is the transformational focus of the universitys 2025 Strategic Vision approved by the Board of Trustees in November 2020.

The university recognized the increasing need for health professionals in the region and the growing interest in health professions among students, said President Lieberman. By leveraging our current health programs and enhancing our efforts to provide health profession education, our graduates will be able to return to their home communities and be prepared for professions that are in high demand.

The universitys existing health-related programs will move into the new college, and proposed allied health programs will begin as early as 2022. A bachelor of science in nursing program is expected to be an early priority. Additional programs at the bachelors and masters level may involve partnerships with community colleges and health-focused organizations.

La Verne Extended Learning will also play a key role as the university increases its capacity to provide specialized training in areas of community need. It currently offers certificate programs in medical coding and medical billing and a credential in telehealth. Additional certificate programs are now in development for learners looking to upskill for a first job as well as mid-career professionals seeking upward mobility.

A distinction of the new college will be an emphasis not only on health programs but also on community well-being. The guiding vision is to make a significant contribution to the intellectual, social, and economic vitality of the region. It will train diverse and highly competent healthcare professionals across disciplines who can address health inequities and social determinants of health and community well-being. And it will help students find not only a career path, but a sense of belonging and purpose as well.

Its an exciting time to be moving forward, said Brian Clocksin, interim vice provost for strategic health initiatives and development, who is helping to lead the effort. Students at the University of La Verne are from this region. They represent the demographics of the region, and they are interested in going back to the region. We have a chance to train the next generation of a diverse health and well-being workforce.

A search will begin this fall for a visionary founding dean of the new college.

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About the University of La Verne

Founded in 1891, the University of La Verne is a private, nonprofit, comprehensive institution founded on four core values: lifelong learning, ethical reasoning, civic and community engagement, and diversity and inclusivity. The university serves nearly 7,000 students on the La Verne central campus and across regional campuses and online.
I am thrilled with the opportunity to serve the veterans here at VA Maryland Health Care System, said Dr. Stephnie Huston. I am passionate about palliative care and strive to make sure veterans wishes for their health care are not only identified but followed.

The VA Maryland Health Care System has named Dr. Stephanie B. Huston the new director of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. In this position, Huston oversees Hospice and Palliative Care teams and Palliative Care consultations at the Community Living Centers located at the Loch Raven and Perry Point VA Medical Centers. Palliative Cares interdisciplinary teams consist of nurses, social workers, chaplains, health psychologists and pharmacists. Huston leads the interdisciplinary teams, who also partner with hospice agencies throughout Maryland to support veterans and their families needing end-of-life care. Palliative care can improve the quality of life of those suffering from serious illness, while hospice care offers comfort by alleviating pain for those needing end of life care.

Were excited that Dr. Huston brings her passion for Hospice and Palliative Care to the VA Maryland Health Care System, said Jonathan R. Eckman, P.E., director of the VA Maryland Health Care System. Her experience and dedication to comforting the terminally ill and to ensuring that veterans are receiving end-of-life care consistent with their wishes is vitally important.

Before Huston joined the VA Maryland Health Care System in 2012 as a staff physician in the Hospice and Palliative Care specialty program, she served as a hospitalist in the Oncology Service at the University of Maryland Medical Center.

I am thrilled with the opportunity to serve the veterans here at VA Maryland Health Care System, said Huston. I am passionate about palliative care and strive to make sure veterans wishes for their health care are not only identified but followed.

Huston earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Haverford College in 2001, and her Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Virginia School of Medicine in 2007, before completing a residency program at the University of Maryland Medical Center in 2010 and a Fellowship in Hospice and Palliative Medicine in 2012 at George Washington University in Washington, DC.

Huston lives in Ellicott City, Maryland.

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The VA Maryland Health Care System (VAMHCS) provides a broad spectrum of medical, surgical, rehabilitative, mental health and outpatient care to veterans at three medical centers and five outpatient clinics located throughout the state. More than 52,000 veterans from various generations receive care from VAMHCS annually. Nationally recognized for its state-of-the-art technology and quality patient care, VAMHCS is proud of its reputation as a leader in veterans health care, research and education. It costs nothing for veterans to enroll for health care with the VA Maryland Health Care System and it could be one of the more important things a veteran can do. To enroll for VA health care, interested veterans can call 877-222-8387 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., or they can visit http://www.va.gov and clinic on Apply now for VA health care.
What may be a surprise is that those in this age group who give report that the vast majority of their donations go to "church, religious organizations."

Young people learn philanthropy in religious settings, finds an analysis in the new empty tomb book, The State of Church Giving through 2018.

The new book also finds downward trends in church membership and giving in the U.S.

That poses the question: If young people learn to practice philanthropy in church, and churches are in downward trends, will philanthropy continue to thrive in the U.S.?

First, the empty tomb findings.

For the past 15 editions in the State of Church Giving series, empty tomb has analyzed U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) charitable giving data.

Four categories are considered in the CE analysis: 1) charities and other organizations; 2) church, religious organizations; 3) educational institutions; and 4) gifts to non-consumer-unit members of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.

It may not be a surprise that the Under-25 set gives a small portion of income to charity.

What may be a surprise is that those in this age group who give report that the vast majority of their donations go to "church, religious organizations." In 2018, that number was 71%. The average for this Under-25 data set over the years of 2004 through 2018 was 80%. However, although still the largest category in 2018, the portion of income given to "church, religious organizations" by the Under-25 set declined as part of their total giving, from 93% in 2004 to 71% in 2018, a decline of 16% from the 2004 base of portion of Total Giving to church, religious organizations.

Whither philanthropy?

It is of interest to note that, in 2018, Americans self-reported that "church, religious organizations" received the highest portion of their donations in every age group, every income level, and every region of the U.S., according to the empty tomb analysis. This trend was observed in most other years as well. This data suggests a relationship between philanthropy and religion.

Meanwhile, Pew surveys conducted in 2018 and 2019 found that less than half of Millennials (born 1981-1996) identified as Christian, with 40% identifying as "Unaffiliated."

Further, Ryan Burge, associate professor at Eastern Illinois University, analyzed data from the National Opinion Research Center of the University of Chicago. He found a change in the previous pattern of youth leaving the church and starting to attend again later. For those born in 1970-1974, there was no increase in church attendance when they reached 36 to 45. Increased attendance was reported among those born in 1975-1979, but numbers for those born in 1980-1984 actually posted a decline in church attendance when reaching 36-45.

In a development that may be related to the decrease in practice of religion, a 2019 report from the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy found that since 2010, the number of households donating to charity declined, from 61.11% in 2010 to 53.09% in 2016, a decrease of 20 million households.

Without a vision 

Thom Rainer, founder of Church Answers and former president and CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention LifeWay Christian Resources, suggests that young people give to vision rather than institutions: "If a compelling vision is not clear, or if there are many competing visions and emphases, these younger adults may shift their giving elsewhere."

Having studied these trends for three decades, empty tomb also developed Mission Match. This project combines congregational initiative and a focused vision. Congregations decide to be part of the solution that ends, in Jesus' name, 1.2 million under-five child deaths from treatable causes. The congregation chooses the delivery channel and project to support in one of 40 countries. Then the congregation applies for matching funds from Mission Match.

At this point, empty tomb is looking for 10 leader congregations to apply for matching funds.

In addition, empty tomb is also looking for one or more venture philanthropists to help roll out Mission Match on a major scale. The goal is to mobilize enough churches to stop these 1.2 million annual child deaths by the year 2025.

A side effect of churches loving these little neighbors in Jesus' name may be increased interest on the part of young people in what the church is doing.

More information about Mission Match is available at missionmatch.org.

The State of Church Giving through 2018: What If Jesus Comes Back in 2025? (30th edition, Dec. 2020), is available at Wipf and Stock Publishers.

# # #

Reference Resources:

Members of the working press: A PDF excerpt presenting the empty tomb BLS CE analysis is available on request by contacting empty tomb by email or at (217) 356-9519.

Pew Research report on Millennial Religious Identification: "In U.S., Decline of Christianity Continues at Rapid Pace"; Pew Research Center, Religion and Public Life; 10/17/2019; p. 2, 7 of 10/17/2020 4:08 PM printout.

Ryan Burge research on Millennials' pattern of religious affiliation: Ryan Burge, Assistant Professor, Eastern Illinois University, can be reached at (217) 581-5162. The information in this release is from: Ryan Burge; Guest Column: Young People Will Come Back to Church, Right?; Barna; 10/21/2019; p. 3, 4-5.

Lilly Family School of Philanthropy report on household charitable giving: Chelsea Jacquelin Clark, et al.; Changes to the Giving Landscape; Vanguard Charitable; 2019; p. 6.

Thom Rainer, president and CEO of churchanswers.com, (615) 669-8201. Article cited: Thom Rainer; 5 Reasons Your churchs Giving May Have Dropped Significantly This Year; Christian Post; 11/13/2019; 11/13/2019; p. 3 of 11/13/2019 8:17 AM printout.
Holly West at Feiwel and Friends has acquired Princess of Souls by Alexandra Christo (City of Spells). The standalone YA fantasy romance tells the story of a young witch who is bound to steal souls for an immortal King, until she discovers her fate is tied to a boy who's trying to bring down her kingdom. The book, which is set in the same universe as To Kill a Kingdom, is planned for fall 2022; Emmanuelle Morgen at Stonesong negotiated the deal for North American rights.



Liesa Abrams at Labyrinth Road has bought Sincerely, Medusa by Olivia Cole. Pitched for fans of Laurie Halse Anderson and Elizabeth Acevedo, this YA novel-in-verse follows 16-year-old Alicia Rivers, who is struggling to cope with her sexual abuse by a beloved teacher. Now Alicia must find a way to heal when she meets a new girl who reignites her desire and she finds mysterious letters in her locker that hint there are others who understand what she's going through and that maybe it's time to tell the truth, on her own terms. Publication is set for spring 2023; Patrice Caldwell at New Leaf Literary & Media did the deal for world English rights.



Jenny Bak at Viking has won, at auction, North American rights to When You Wish Upon a Lantern by Gloria Chao (Rent a Boyfriend). In this YA romance, a teen girl tries to save her family's wishing lantern shop in Chicago's Chinatown by secretly making wishes come true for customers, but when she teams up with the boy from the mooncake bakery next door, sparks fly and she realizes she has a secret wish of her own. Publication is scheduled for fall 2022; Kathleen Rushall at Andrea Brown Literary brokered the deal.



Ashley Hearn at Peachtree Teen has acquired The Ghosts of Rose Hill by YA debut author R.M. Romero (The Dollmaker of Krakow). The magical realism verse novel follows Latina violinist, Ilana, whose parents send her to her aunt's house in Prague to witness the humble life of an artist. There she meets the ghost of a boy in an abandoned Jewish cemetery and, as she restores his grave, is tempted by the dark magic that binds him to the city. Publication is slated for summer 2022; Rena Rossner at the Deborah Harris Agency handled the deal for world rights.



Kieran Viola at Hyperion has bought We Weren't Looking to Be Found by Stephanie Kuehn, a contemporary YA novel that touches on themes of acceptance, recovery, and resilience. The story follows the experiences of two girls from disparate backgrounds who form an unlikely friendship when they are set up as roommates at a mental health facility, where they discover they're not as different as they seem, and just might help each other heal. Publication is planned for summer 2022; Michael Bourret at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret negotiated the deal for world rights.



Jill Davis at HarperCollins has acquired YA novel Then Everything Happens at Once by Lambda Literary Award-winning author M-E Girard (Girl Man's Up), a story about Baylee, an inexperienced girl pulled between an infatuation with a boy and a sweet courtship with a girl. The story explores lust, pleasure, love, internalized fat shaming, and selfishness. Publication is scheduled for fall 2022; Linda Epstein at Emerald City Literary brokered the deal for North American rights.



Deanna McFadden at Wattpad has bought world rights to Belle Morte by Bella Higgin, first in a series of paranormal romances novels, which puts a dark twist on literary classic The Count of Monte Cristo. In it, Renie Mayfield volunteers as a blood donor for the Vampire House where her sister disappeared, and she finds herself drawn to the smoldering vampire Edmond Dantes. It's set for winter 2022, with subsequent books to follow; the author represented herself for the four-book deal.



Tracy Mack at Scholastic/Graphix has acquired at auction The Tryout and its sequel, The Squad, by two-time Newbery Honoree Christina Soontornvat (l.), illustrated by Joanna Cacao, a middle grade graphic novel memoir about being the only Asian American kid in her small Texas town to try out for the cheerleading squad. Publication is slated for 2022; Stephanie Fretwell-Hill at Red Fox Literary represented the author, and Tara Gilbert at Jennifer De Chiara Literary represented the illustrator in the deal for world English and North American Spanish rights.



Alison Romig at Delacorte has bought Becoming Brigitta by Kalena Miller, a contemporary middle grade novel about strained friendships, the positive power of theater, and the realities of being a pre-teen with OCD. Publication is scheduled for spring 2023; Stacey Kondla at the Rights Factory negotiated the deal for world English rights.



Cassandra Pelham Fulton at Scholastic/Graphix has acquired, at auction, a debut middle-grade graphic novel by Danny Lore (l.) and Seth Smith. Kicks is a contemporary quest story with themes of family, friendship, and queer romance that features a pair of Black siblings and their best friend, who must travel and battle their way through the five boroughs of NYC to recover items stolen from their family's magical tailor shop. Publication is planned for 2024; Susan Graham at Einstein Literary represented the creators in the deal for world rights.



Mari Kesselring at Jolly Fish Press has bought Jordie & Joey Fell from the Sky, a middle grade contemporary novel by debut author Judi Lauren. Twin brothers Jordie and Joey have been in the foster care system since they were found abandoned in a crop circle as babies. Believing they crash-landed there from a UFO, Jordie convinces Joey to follow him to the one place that might have answers about their origins, the center of extraterrestrial life: Area 51. Publication is set for spring 2022; Heather Cashman at Storm Literary brokered the deal for world rights.



Allison Cohen at Running Press Kids has acquired You're the First: A Kid's Guide to the First Amendment by former civil rights attorney, Montessori educator, and founder of the Little Lawyers Allison Matulli (aka Professor Ally) (l.) with literary agent and former attorney Clelia Gore writing as Clelia Castro-Malaspina. The book takes an inclusive approach to exploring how the First Amendment impacts and influences children's daily lives, featuring many cases where plaintiffs were children. Publication is slated for fall 2022; Lilly Ghahremani at Full Circle Literary sold North American English rights.



Kate Meltzer at Roaring Brook has bought at auction Hedgehogs Don't Wear Underwear by Marissa Valdez, a debut picture book about a tighty-whitey-wearing hedgehog named Jacques who's afraid to go public with his secret love of underwear. Publication is scheduled for fall 2022, with a second untitled picture book to follow in fall 2023; Kelly Sonnack at Andrea Brown Literary did the deal for world rights.



Cat Onder at HMH has acquired Belong by poet Mary Rand Hess (l.) (co-author with Kwame Alexander of Solo and Swing), with artwork from Nina Mata (illustrator of I Promise by LeBron James), an affirming picture book that celebrates difference, the environment, and the ways all children can play a part in shaping our world. Publication is planned for spring 2023; Deborah Warren of East West Literary represented the author, and Christy Ewers at the CAT Agency represented the illustrator.



Neal Porter at Holiday House/Neal Porter Books has bought world rights to Banana Dream by Hasan Namir (The Name I Call Myself), illustrated by Zainab Faidhi. The picture book is inspired by Namir's own childhood enduring sanctions in Iraq, and explores a child's coming to terms with his unusual name against a story of scarcity and want. Publication is slated for summer 2023; Hilary McMahon at Westwood Creative Artists represented the author, and the illustrator represented herself.



Andrea Spooner at Little, Brown has acquired world rights to Do Mommies Ever Sleep? by Kim Howard (l.), illustrated by Karen Obuhanych. In this rhyming picture book told from a baby's point of view, the precocious little one speculates the many reasons why Mommy always seems exhausted but never actually sleepswhile overlooking the most obvious reason of all. Publication is set for winter 2024; Jennifer Weltz at Jean V. Naggar Literary represented the author, and Anne Moore Armstrong at the Bright Agency represented the artist.



Sonali Fry at Rodale Kids has bought world rights to The New Kid Welcome, written by Suzanne Slade (l.) and illustrated by Nicole Miles. This flip-it picture book demonstrates that there's more than one way to think about someone who might seem "different." Publication is scheduled for summer 2022; Karen Grencik at Red Fox Literary represented the author, and Chad W. Beckerman at the CAT Agency represented the illustrator.



Adria Haley at HarperCollins Christian Publishing has acquired world rights to Opal Lee & What It Means to Be Free by Alice Faye Duncan (l.) (Memphis, Martin, and the Mountaintop), illustrated by Keturah A. Bobo. The picture book tells the true story of activist Opal Lee and her vision of Juneteenth as a holiday for everyone. Publication is planned for January 2022; Tricia Lawrence at Erin Murphy Literary represented the author, and the illustrator was unagented.



Martha Mihalick of Greenwillow has signed, at auction, A Kaleidoscope of Hope: A Book of Butterflies by Miranda Paul (l.) illustrated by Hari Panischer (c.) and Deepti Nair, a look at the butterfly life cycle that encourages kids to be community scientists who nurture these creatures and understand their role in the ecosystem. Publication is set for summer 2023; Erin Murphy at Erin Murphy Literary represented the author, and Kirsten Hall of Catbird Productions represented the illustrators in the deal for world English rights.



Adonia Ripple and Katie Coit of Yosemite Conservancy have bought world rights to To Find Treasure in the Mountains by debut author Francine Rockey (l.), illustrated by Kendra Binney, a picture book in which children find that all steps into the wilderness lead to treasure of the lasting kind. Publication is slated for spring 2022; the author represented herself, and Kim Fleming of Lilla Rogers Studio represented the illustrator.



Sarah McCabe at S&S/McElderry has acquired, in an exclusive submission, Bonesmith and its sequel, the next YA fantasy series by Nicki Pau Preto (Crown of Feathers). Pitched as Gideon the Ninth meets The Cruel Prince, the story follows a failed ghost-fighting warrior who must journey into the haunted wasteland of the Breach to rescue a kidnapped prince, but to do so, she is forced to team up with the very person responsible for the kidnapping. Publication is set for summer 2023; Penny Moore at Aevitas Creative Management brokered the two-book deal for North American rights.



Alexandra Sehulster at Wednesday Books has bought Jasmine Zumideh Needs a Win, a debut novel by Susan Azim Boyer. Set during the Iran hostage crisis and described as a cross between Darius the Great Is Not Okay and Election with a Mindy Kaling-esque tone, the YA novel centers on a young Iranian American heroine poised to run for senior year class president, just as an international incident sets in motion a chain of life-changing events. Publication is slated for fall 2022; Laura Bradford at Bradford Literary did the deal for world rights.



Lily Kessinger at HMH has acquired Belittled Women by Amanda Sellet (By the Book). In this contemporary YA, teenage Jo, who reluctantly plays her namesake to her sisters' Meg and Amy in the familys Little Women living history museum, rebels against living in the 1800s. When everything goes wrong, she has to concede that maybe Alcott had a point about familyand about the cute boy next door. Publication is planned for fall 2022; Bridget Smith at JABberwocky Literary sold world English rights.



Andrew Karre at Dutton has bought Enter the Body, a YA novel in verse and script by Morris Award finalist Joy McCullough. Beneath an unseen stage, Shakespeares tragic heroines grapple with their own stories and challenge each other to take them back from the Bard. Publication is scheduled for fall 2022; Jim McCarthy at Dystel, Goderich, & Bourret negotiated the deal for world English rights.



Ashley Hearn at Peachtree Teen has acquired Hell Followed with Us by debut author Andrew Joseph White. In this YA post-apocalyptic horror novel, trans boy Benji escapes from the cult that unleashed Armageddon and teams up with an LGBTQ+ youth center fighting for survival, but not before the cult injected Benji with a bioweapon designed to mutate him into a monster and eliminate the last of humanity. Publication is set for summer 2022; Zabe Ellor at the Jennifer De Chiara Agency brokered the deal for world rights.



Deanna McFadden has bought world rights to Disarming Dakota by debut author Sumeya E. Alington, a "good girl/bad boy" YA romance with a twist. When new girl in town Sylvia meets dreamy but uninterested Dakota, she's determined to make him fall for her, finding a way into his heart by uncovering his secrets. But when Sylvia's dark past comes back to haunt her, will love prevail or tear them apart? Publication is slated for spring 2022; the author represented herself.



Rotem Moscovich at Knopf has acquired, in a 12-way auction, world rights to We Are Big Time by Hena Khan (l.), illustrated by Safiya Zerrougui. This middle grade graphic novelinspired by a true storyfollows Aliya, who joins an all-girl, hijab-wearing basketball team, and explores her Muslim American identity while learning, alongside her teammates, how to work together as a team. Publication is scheduled for fall 2023; Matthew Elblonk at DeFiore and Company represented the author, and Paloma Hernando at Einstein Literary represented the illustrator.



Joanna Cardenas at Kokila has bought, in an exclusive submission, reprint rights for They Call Me Guero, the award-winning middle grade novel in verse by David Bowles, as well as They Call Her Fregona, a companion novel in verse that follows the budding relationship between narrator Guero and his girlfriend Joanna Padilla. They Call Me Guero is set for August 2021, and They Call Her Fregona is planned for fall 2022; Taylor Martindale Kean and Stefanie Sanchez Von Borstel handled the deal for world rights.



Whitney Leopard at Random House Graphic has acquired world rights to contemporary middle grade graphic novel Buckle Up by Lawrence Lindell. The story follows Lonnie as he deals with his parents' divorce and has tough conversations with his father who drives him to and from school. Publication is slated for 2024; the creator represented himself.



Courtney Fahy at Yellow Jacket has bought Pauli Murray: The Life of a Pioneering Feminist and Civil Rights Activist, a middle grade biography in verse about the queer civil rights and women's rights activist who conceptualized the arguments that would win Brown v. Board of Education and in 1964, the arguments that won women equality in the workplace, written by her niece Rosita Stevens-Holsey (l.) and Terry Catasus Jennings. Publication is set for spring 2022; Natalie Lakosil at Bradford Literary negotiated the deal for world English rights.



Kieran Viola at Disney-Hyperion has acquired The Sugar Rush Racers In by Shari Simpson, in her chapter book debut. In this reimagining of the characters from Wreck-It Ralph, the Sugar Rush Racers game glitches at the local arcade and a girl ends up with five of the rambunctious racers stuck inside her tablet, where they set about offering her friendship tips, gaming cheats, and not-always-helpful advice about navigating her new scout troop. Publication is planned for spring 2023; Mandy Hubbard at Emerald City Literary Agency brokered the two-book deal.



Tamar Mays at HarperCollins has bought world rights to Gigi and Ojiji by Melissa Iwai, first in an I Can Read series about a Japanese American girl, Gigi, and her Japanese grandpa, Ojiji, and the adventures they have learning about each other's culture and language. Publication is scheduled for summer 2022; Christy Ewers at the CAT Agency represented the author-illustrator.



Neal Porter at Holiday House/Neal Porter Books has acquired two picture books written and illustrated by Julie Downing (Hello Moon!). Night in the City celebrates nighttime in the busy city and all the people going to work doing different jobs when many are asleep and dreaming in their beds; and Hello Sun! follows forest animals from dawn to dusk as they wake, play, and nap until the moonrise when they curl up and fall asleep. The books are set for spring 2023 and summer 2023 respectively; Rosemary Stimola at Stimola Literary Studio did the deal for world rights.



Samantha Gentry at Little, Brown has bought Spicy Spicy Hot, a picture book by Lenny Wen in her debut as author-illustrator. In the picture book, a girl is determined to embrace the spice of sambal in order to connect with her grandmother and heritage. Publication is slated for spring 2023; Christy Ewers at the CAT Agency negotiated the deal for world rights.



Jess Harold at Scholastic/Orchard has acquired, at auction, Lets Go, Larry! by Alison Hawkins, a spirited picture book about a bear with a case of inertia, relatable for anyone hesitant to leave a good time. Publication is scheduled for spring 2023; Hannah Mann at Writers House brokered the deal for world rights.



Karen Li at Groundwood Books has bought the picture book Boobies by Nancy Vo, author-illustrator of The Outlaw and The Ranger, a lighthearted journey into the world of boobiesthe blue-footed avian sort and the more familiar kind. Publication is planned for fall 2022; Jackie Kaiser at Westwood Creative Artists handled the deal for world rights.



Danielle Peterson at HarperCollins has acquired world rights to Cocoas Cranky Valentines Day. A grumpy dog makes a surprising discovery about friendship as he tries to outwit the ornery kitten who has stolen his only Valentine card. Beth Hughes will illustrate; publication is scheduled for spring 2022. Robbin Brosterman at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator.



Rotem Moscovich at Knopf has acquired, at auction, world rights for The Last Stand by Antwan Eady (l.), illustrated by brothers Jerome (c.) and Jarrett Pumphrey (r.). Inspired by the author's childhood in South Carolina's Lowcountry, this picture book is an intergenerational story about community, family, and hope, set in the context of rural Black life. Publication is planned for spring 2024; Steven Malk at Writers House negotiated the two-book deal for the author, and Hannah Mann at Writers House represented the illustrators.

Feather Flores at Chronicle has bought world rights to A Treasure of Measures by Mike Downs, a nonfiction picture book that introduces readers to units of measurement, while also encouraging them to be silly, use their imaginations, and immerse themselves in the wonder of the world around them. Joy Hwang Ruiz will illustrate; publication is scheduled for fall 2023. Tracy Marchini at BookEnds Literary represented the author, and Molly O'Neill at Root Literary represented the illustrator.



Eileen Robinson at Reycraft has bought world rights to picture book My Hands Tell a Story by Kelly Starling Lyons (l.), illustrated by Tonya Engel. In this intergenerational story, a girl baking bread with her grandmother becomes transported by the tales her grandmother's hands tell. Publication is set for spring 2022; Caryn Wiseman at Andrea Brown Literary represented the author, and Morgan Gaynin Kids represented the illustrator.


ARISS contact is scheduled with students at College Descartes, Antony, France

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts.

ARISS is the group that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses on the International Space Station (ISS).

This will be a Multipoint Telebridge ARISS Contact via Amateur Radio between the ISS and students from College Descartes. Students will take turns asking their questions of ISS Astronaut Thomas Pesquet, amateur radio call sign KG5FYG. French is the language that will be used for this contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the ARISS radio telebridge station.

ARISS team member David Payne, using call sign NA7V in Portland, Oregon will serve as the relay amateur radio station. Each student asking a question on the ARISS radio will be conferenced in from home or social-distanced at school.

The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for May 11, 2021 at 12:54 pm CEST (Antony, France) (10:54 UTC, 6:54 am EDT, 5:54 am CDT, 4:54 am MDT, 3:54 am PDT).

The College Descartes is a public general school (700 students aged 10 to 15 years) located in Antony, a southern suburb of Paris, France. College Descartes Physics curriculum includes studies in astronomythe solar system, space probes, the organization of matter in the universe, and observation of the sky to study the relativity of movements. The school encourages students to augment their science/physics and mathematics curricula by becoming active in the schools astronomy, nature, and space clubs. Students participating in these clubs conduct experiments to understand the history of space conquest and communication. Student class activities also include learning Morse code, electronic module-building, and computer coding. The school has partnered with the members of Radio Club de Clamart who will support the school during the ARISS contact activities.

About ARISS:

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the ISS National Lab-Space Station Explorers, and NASAs Space Communications and Navigation program. The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics topics. ARISS does this by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students. Before and during these radio contacts, students, educators, parents, and communities take part in hands-on learning activities tied to space, space technologies, and amateur radio.

For more information, see www.ariss.org
Although 15-time Emmy Award-winner and Pura Belpre Honoree Sonia Manzano (The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano; Becoming Maria) retired from her celebrated role as Maria on Sesame Street back in 2015, her role as a childrens book author is still going strong. I have always enjoyed taking complex issues and breaking them down for younger people to understand, she told PW. That was certainly a tenet of Sesame Street. Last October, Manzano signed a four-book deal with Scholastic to publish two middle-grade novels and two picture books starting in 2022. First up is the historical novel Coming Up Cuban, due out next April, which marks Manzanos return to writing middle-grade fiction. PW has the exclusive cover reveal, as well as some behind-the-scenes insight on the books development from Manzano and her editor, v-p and executive editor Andrea Pinkney.

Set in 1959, Coming Up Cuban follows the lives of four children, Ana, Miguel, Zulema, and Juan, who each represent different intersections of race and class in Cubaand thus, a unique set of experiencesduring Fidel Castros rise to power. When asked if she had always planned on writing the novel from the perspectives of multiple children, Manzano revealed that she developed those voices later on in the writing process. There were many versions of the story, told from many perspectives, Manzano said. I even wrote one version from the point of view of a dog! I can tell you that trying to write about the Bay of Pigs event from a dogs point of view wasnt easy.

Finding the right perspectives to serve as the vehicle for the narrative proved key, and according to Pinkney, As soon as [Sonia] presented the stories of Ana, Miguel, Zulema, and Juan, everyone on our team was taken with these characters plights and dreams. When asked to elaborate on what sets Coming Up Cuban apart from other middle-grade titles, Pinkney said, Coming Up Cuban illuminates the singular storytelling gifts Sonia has brought to children throughout the world, for half a century. In this book, she brilliantly weaves the stories of four children enduring an unsettling period in human history, each growing through their respective and overlapping experiences. These come together to create one story of hope. The lives and plights of these children reach deep into the souls of every reader, and will resonate for decades to come.

While Pinkney noted that Coming Up Cuban was born out of many conversations, stemming from Sonias desire to present history, heritage, and heart in a novel for young readers, the inspiration for the novel initially sprang from research Manzano did for another project. I delved into Cuban history while trying to round out a simple picture book idea, that took place in Cuba, Manzano said. Reading about the Revolution was so intriguing, it made me put my picture book idea aside. It was one particular area of Cuban Revolution history, however, that ultimately served as the basis for the novels premise and point of view characters. I was stunned by the fact that more than 14,000 unaccompanied Cuban minors were sent to the U.S. under a program dubbed Operation Pedro Pan. Then I read testimonials of families forced to abandon lives and property. My next obvious question was, what became of youngsters who stayed behind? What happened to their lives as the Castro regime took hold? Chasing the answer to those questions allowed Manzano to create the characters that form the heart of her novel and present a range of struggles young Cubans would have experienced at the time.

As Coming Up Cuban needed to bring to life a specific time period, Manzanos research process while crafting the novel involved total immersion in related source material. I read every book, saw every movie, documentary, and news show about that time, Manzano said. And, of course, I chatted with Cuban friends and consulted Cuban scholars. When Scholastic asked for her requests regarding the novels cover, Manzano again turned to her research. I dug up photos I had copied at the Cuban Heritage Collection at the University of Miami Libraries and shared them with Andrea, she said. In the event that Coming Up Cuban depicted its four main characters on the cover, Manzano wanted their individuality to show. I realized how important it was to me that the reader know these four characters were of different races and social classes, she said. Ana and Miguel are white, but she is middle-class and he is wealthy. Zulema, from the rural peasant class, is a combination of Caribbean races; and Juan is urban poor and Afro-Cubano. If they were to be depicted it was important that they have the diversity of racial features I had imagined.

Of the books cover artist, Manzano said, I was delighted when artist Nicole Medina was chosen. The process of creating a book cover is stirring in that you present a swirl of words, images and emotions to the artist, in the hopes that they see things as you doyet you hope they create an image you never could have imagined. Book cover artists always surprise me, when they show me what I meant. When I see the book cover that makes me feel as if I were meeting a best friend for the first timeI know its right.

As for Manzanos hopes for Coming Up Cuban once it reaches readers, she discussed the books potential to bring about connection upon its deal announcement last year. Social upheavals affect everyone. I wanted to write a novel that examined the impact the 1959 Cuban Revolution had on four children. Through these four separate life stories, I hope our readers see how interconnected we all are, regardless of any tumultuous times we might be living in. In speaking to PW, she added, Though Im Puerto Rican and not Cuban, I felt great empathy for the young people who managed to rise past Castros shadow. I hope readers feel the same kind of connection.

Coming Up Cuban by Sonia Manzano. Scholastic Press, $18.99 Apr. 2022 ISBN 978-1-338-06515-2
Publishers Weekly's new virtual book publishing trade show, the U.S. Book Show, will feature Oprah Winfrey as its opening keynote speaker, and actor Keanu Reeves will speak on a panel about his new graphic novel. The news was announced this week in the New York Times.

Winfrey will give her keynote speech on May 25 at 10:45 a.m. ET, discussing her newest book, What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience and Healing (Flatiron), which is cowritten with Bruce D. Perry, a child psychiatrist and neuroscientist. Winfrey will also discuss her love for books and authors and offer her appreciation and encouragement for all those who support them. Reeves, creator and cowriter of BRZRKR, Vol. 1 (Boom! Studios), will join cowriter Matt Kindt and illustrator Ron Garney for a panel discussion moderated by PW senior news editor Calvin Reid. The panel will be held on May 25 at 3:00 p.m. ET.

The duo are only the latest celebrity speakers to join the Book Show's slate of leaders and literary luminaries, including Elizabeth Warren, senior senator from Massachusetts and 2020 presidential candidate; Ijeoma Oluo, author of the bestselling So You Want to Talk About Race and Mediocre; Top Chef executive producer and host and Taste the Nation producer Padma Lakshmi; Anthony Doerr, Pulitzer Prizewinning author of All the Light We Cannot See; musician and actor Stevie Van Zandt; and Brian Selznick, Caldecott Medalwinning creator of The Invention of Hugo Cabret, which was adapted into the Academy Awardwinning film Hugo.

The inaugural U.S. Book Show will be live-streamed May 25-27 and be available on demand through August 31. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Boys & Girls Clubs of America in support of its literacy programming.
Ten Speed Press and the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford University, better known as the d.school," are collaborating on a 12-book series focusing on creativity and design.

The first title in the series, Creative Acts for Curious People by Sarah Stein Greenberg, the executive director of the d. school, will be published this fall. The book will offer 80 exercises to help readers explore their creativity. Stein Greenbergs book will be followed by ten single-topic creativity and design guides that will be published starting in spring 2022. The collection will conclude in fall 2023 with a title written by d.school creative director Scott Doorley.

As we emerge from a world-changing pandemic and grapple with increasingly complex issues and systems, our collective need for individual creativity skills to light our paths forward has never been greater, Julie Bennett, executive director of Ten Speed Press, said in a statement. Were incredibly excited to work with the renowned d.school to create a compendium of ideas, wisdom, guidance, and exercises that will bring the vast and unique power of its methods and tools to audiencesand challengeseverywhere.

Stein Greenberg added: Weve seen the d.schools classes and approaches reframe obstacles as opportunities and unlock creative thinking. Our goal is to spread and democratize the institutional insight and intelligence weve gleaned from nearly two decades of experience and from some of the worlds most innovative thinkers, and weve found in Ten Speed the perfect partner to make our rich offerings accessible to all.
Audrey Ruple, a veterinary epidemiologist and assistant professor of One Health Epidemiology in Purdue Universitys College of Health and Human Sciences, with Bitzer, a Great Dane. (Purdue University photo/Rebecca McElhoe)

Professors search for dogs healthier living, longevity drives Dog Aging Project

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.  Audrey Ruple loves Great Danes so much that, while in the middle of Texas on a family vacation in 2012, she made the decision to get another one.

We were lucky that we had a vehicle large enough to hold an extra passenger, says Ruple, recalling how Bitzer, a purebred Great Dane that eventually grew to 140 pounds, came to live with her family.

Despite the rocky trip back to Colorado, he became rather mellow and the go-to animal for cuddles and chuckles.

He was the best dog. He was my heart dog, Ruple says.

Bitzer recently died after living a large life. He was almost 8  years old.

He was old for a Great Dane, but much too young for a dog to die, says Ruple, who is an assistant professor of public health and a veterinary epidemiologist. She researches dog longevity through the Dog Aging Project.

Being a licensed veterinarian who knows the ins and outs of animal health doesnt make the loss easier.

The old thought of how the larger the dog, the shorter the life span rings true in this case. We are still not sure why that is, Ruple says. Dogs break the rule of every other mammal species. Most mammal species, its the bigger you are, the longer you live. Thats why were doing this research with the Dog Aging Project.

Bitzer had one serious medical issue: osteosarcoma.

Ruple has worked with numerous scientists, researchers and veterinary oncologists on studying osteosarcoma in dogs, as they are the perfect translational model for osteosarcoma in humans.

Dogs and humans develop the same type of osteosarcoma. It is the same at the molecular level, Ruple says. If we look at an osteosarcoma from a dog, we cant tell the difference between that and an osteosarcoma from a human.

Osteosarcoma is the most common bone tumor in dogs but is considered a rare disease in humans. According to the American Cancer Society, there are about 1,000 new human cases diagnosed every year, and half of them are children, teenagers or young adults.

Ruple says osteosarcoma is difficult to study in humans as researchers cant develop randomized control trials because they dont have enough people to enroll.

Tyler Trent, a Purdue graduate and superfan who died Jan. 1, 2019, had osteosarcoma. Trent donated his cancer cells to further cancer research.

The group that osteosarcoma hits most are rapidly growing teenagers. In dog populations, we find osteosarcoma in large breed dogs, which are rapidly growing mammals, says Ruple, who is an affiliate faculty member of the Purdue University Center for Cancer Research. We think there is something in the growth rate that triggers the cancer to form. It makes sense that humans and dogs have similar cancers because we share a huge amount of genetic sequence, and cancers arise from our own cells.

Because of that shared genetic sequence, cancer treatments that are developed and successful in dogs are frequently adapted for use in humans.

The importance of collaboration and community science

When Ruple began her veterinary epidemiological studies, she knew she wanted to explore translational and preventive medicine, cancer outcomes and infection control in dogs and humans. She studied zoonotic diseases  which are illnesses that can be spread between humans and animals.

My goal has been to look at health and disease of humans and animals, and ask, How do we stop diseases from occurring? she says.

She was contacted by Daniel Promislow and Dr. Kate Creevy of the Dog Aging Project, seeking her involvement in the design for the longitudinal study, which eventually was funded by the National Institutes of Health. The project explores biological and environmental determinants of aging in dogs.

The Dog Aging Project and the epidemiological work I do is about being able to keep people and animals living healthier lives for longer periods of time. That, to me, is really compelling. A lot of diseases we see in dogs are the same ones that happen in our children, Ruple says. Sickness for children has long-term impacts. If they have cancer  even if they are cured or treated to remission  those chemotherapeutic agents and surgeries we use to treat them have lifelong impact. They live a life that may be a little less than perfect.

Currently, the Dog Aging Project has nearly 30,000 dogs  727 from Indiana  whose owners have completed full enrollment, including completing the questionnaire and uploading complete veterinary medical records.

The top five locations for Indiana-registered participants are Indianapolis (Marion County), Lafayette (Tippecanoe County), Bloomington (Monroe County), Muncie (Delaware County) and Fort Wayne (Allen County). The top five breeds registered from Indiana are golden retriever, Labrador retriever, German shepherd, dachshund and beagle.

Organizers are hoping to get additional dog breeds to make the study more whole:

Large breed dogs weighing 70-100 pounds, especially breeds other than Labradors, golden retrievers and German shepherds (the most common breeds in the U.S.).

Giant-breed dogs weighing more than 100 pounds, such as Great Danes, wolfhounds, mastiffs.

Hound dogs, spaniels, pointers, terriers, bulldogs and pit bulls (purebred and mixed breed).

Working dogs, such as herding, K-9, service, agility and mushing dogs.

Organizers also are looking for dogs from rural areas, small towns and large cities. Many people are adopting animals from shelters or getting a puppy during the COVID-19 pandemic, and puppy participants are especially beneficial to the project as researchers could follow the dogs through their entire lives.

Ruple says it is important for a diversity of dog owners to participate in health so researchers and scientists can study health outcomes of underrepresented minority populations.

To participate in the Dog Aging Project, owners nominate a dog (one per household) at DogAgingProject.org. After this, they are invited to set up a personal research portal where they answer scientific surveys about their dog and upload veterinary records.

What we can learn from dogs is really important, Ruple says. They truly are our best friends.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to todays toughest challenges. Ranked the No. 5 Most Innovative University in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at https://purdue.edu/.

Writer: Matthew Oates, 765-496-2571, oatesw@purdue.edu, @mo_oates

Sources: Audrey Ruple, 765-496-0414, aruple@purdue.edu, @audreyruple

Amber Keyser, Dog Aging Project

Journalists visiting campus : Journalists should follow Protect Purdue protocols and the following guidelines:

Campus is open, but the number of people in spaces may be limited. We will be as accommodating as possible, but you may be asked to step out or report from another location.

To enable access, particularly to campus buildings, we recommend you contact the Purdue News Service media contact listed on the release to let them know the nature of the visit and where you will be visiting. A News Service representative can facilitate safe access and may escort you on campus.

Correctly wear face masks inside any campus building, and correctly wear face masks outdoors when social distancing of at least six feet is not possible.

Recent releases:

Researchers seek a helping paw for dog aging study

Calling all dogs and dog owners: Your input is needed
Tobey Maguire has sold a plot of land for $10.75 million.

The 45-year-old actor has made a slight profit on the one-acre lot in the Brentwood area of Los Angeles, with the site one of the only empty properties in the neighbourhood, and the sale was the second highest for land in the city this year, just behind the $11.5 million someone else paid for an site in Brentwood Park.

According to the Los Angeles Times newspaper, Tobey originally paid $10 million for the site in 2008.

The 'Great Gatsby' actor reportedly first tried to sell the land in 2018 for a huge $14.25 million but dropped the asking price to $11 million last summer.

The site previously held a Monterey Colonial-style abode, with former owners including screen legend Greta Garbo.

It was recently claimed Tobey and fellow former Spider-Man Andrew Garfield will be joining current webslinger Tom Holland in the next film about the superhero, 'Spider-Man: No Way Home'.

Although the news hasn't been officially confirmed, last month Roger Pera - who dubbed Tobey's lines into Spanish when he starred in Sam Raimi's 'Spider-Man' trilogy - confirmed he'd been in talks with Sony and something was in the works.

Though he initially thought the deal was fake, he's now pretty sure something "is going to happen" and that they "are going to work on it."

However, last week, Andrew insisted he hasn't been approached about the film.

He said: "I feel like I'm in a game of Werewolf and I'm just saying, 'I'm not the werewolf, I am not the werewolf. I promise you guys, I'm not the werewolf!'

"Listen, what people are talking about is a really cool idea. And again, I haven't received a phone call, but, you know..."

And Andrew admitted speculation he'll be playing Peter Parker once again is "weird" because it's not something he's thought of until now.

Asked if he'd be interested in a return, he said: "It's weird.

"It's not something I've really thought about because I closed the book on it for myself and I haven't had to think about it.

"So it's not something that I've really considered. So, yeah, that's my honest answer."
New York City, NY (11385)

Today

Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. High 82F. Winds ESE at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Low around 60F. Winds E at 10 to 15 mph.
The home of Burton and Linda Pugach from 1974 until their deaths, at 98-01 67 Ave. in Rego Park, built in 1959, as it appears today.
Rapp News and Foothills Forum are continuously covering the impact of COVID-19 on our community. Sign up to have the C-19 Daily Update delivered to your inbox every morning.

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Longtime columnist Glenn Ebersole is a registered professional engineer and a Strategic Business Development/Marketing Executive and Leader in the AEC industry and related fields. He can be reached at jgepsu21@gmail.com or 717-575-8572.
Business development

New Ben Franklin CEO plans to 'hunt' startups for Reading, Berks
IRTS AGM rejects new licence level proposal IRTS News reports that at the AGM, held April 24, a proposal to introduce a new licence level in Eire was defeated



The news report for May 9 reads:



Each year at the Irish Radio Transmitters Society Annual General Meeting trophies are presented to amateurs who achieve a very high standard in home construction. This year the Folan Shield was presented to Tom Nevin EI4HCB and the Kevin Freeney Trophy was presented to Darwin Penamora EI4KX.



There was only one motion before the 2021 AGM and this came from the Galway Radio Experimenters Club who asked that IRTS, in representing Ireland, support the inclusion of a new Licence Level in Ireland as part of a 3 year plan. Following a well-researched and well-presented case by the GREC representatives, the motion was defeated by the narrowest of margins.



Next years Annual General Meeting will be hosted by the South Eastern Radio Group, date and venue to be announced.



Source IRTS News

https://www.irts.ie/cgi/thisweek.cgi



Eire only has one class of licence permitting up to 1 kW output. The HAREC equivalent exam comprises 60 questions, substantially fewer than the proposed RSGB Direct-to-Full exam in the UK. Further information at

https://www.irts.ie/cgi/st.cgi?study



Although the company that runs the RSGB online exams, TestReach Ltd is based in Dublin, no online exams are available in the country. All exams are in-person held infrequently at a limited number of testing centres.



TestReach Ltd amateur radio exams

https://www.testreach.com/customer-story-radio-society-great-britain.html
Coronavirus

Most Berks COVID shots were second doses

Nearly all of Berks' new COVID vaccinations were second shots, latest report says
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For President Biden and his allies, climate changenow called a climate crisishas grown from being a widely accepted, incredibly important public policy challenge into a mantra in support of a fundamental transformation of our economy from top to bottom. They talk often of a coordinated climate agenda that includes deploying the full capacity of federal agencies in partnership with state and local governments. Much of this agenda will be fought out in the halls of Congress, international settings, and the ballot box. But that hasnt stopped an alliance of local officials, trial lawyers and activists from running to court, in hopes of convincing individual judges to impose their preferred climate policies.

Fortunately, last month a federal appeals court in New York shot a dagger through one part of this courtroom strategy, tossing out a suit by New York City against five international oil companies that sought to recover, as the Court put it, damages caused by those companies admittedly legal commercial conduct in producing and selling fossil fuels around the world.

The loss was resounding. New York City had tried to sidestep federal law, including the Clean Air Act and other federal environmental regulations, by relying on state-law nuisance and trespass claims. But the court unanimously dispatched that attempt. The court emphasized that New York Citys sweeping legal theory would intrude into a public policy dispute and upend the careful balance that has been struck between the prevention of global warming, a project that necessarily requires national standards and global participation, on the one hand, and energy production, economic growth, foreign policy, and national security, on the other. A similar case in California has been rejected as well, though the fight is far from over.

The New York case is noteworthy not just because judges appointed by both Republican and Democratic presidents stood firm against New York Citys untethered overreach, but also because the city was represented by trial lawyers from Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, a Seattle-based firm whose founder, Steve Berman, has been labeled a Titan of the Plaintiffs Bar.

The New York City case perfectly illustrates how the nations trial lawyers have joined forces with the far left to try and circumvent voters and obtain radical policy outcomes through the courts. In the words of the court, New York City was trying to, effectively impose strict liability for the damages caused by fossil fuel emissions no matter where in the world those emissions were released (or who released them). In this and other similar municipal cases the goal is plain: rely on wacky public nuisance and trespass theories to cripple the nations energy companies, impose radical climate policy that would never win at the ballot box, and line the pockets of trial lawyers along the way.

And the central role of the trial lawyers in these ideological efforts cannot be overstated. This is the height of lawyer-driven litigation. The New York suit is the product of a nationwide road show by Hagens Berman, with the firm selling cities like New York and Baltimore and other local governments on this planned attack. Each enlisted Hagens Berman to file a complaint, with a guarantee that the firm would get a cut of as much as 24% of any judgement or settlement.

This role for the trial lawyers reflects a major escalation that needs more attention. It has long been known that trial lawyers give millions to liberal political allies. Morgan & Morgan, famous for its ubiquitous billboards, was responsible for over $4 million in the past two election cycles. Motley Rice out of South Carolina was responsible for over $2.5 million. And Hagens Berman gave almost half-a-million in federal election money, which represents about $4,000 per lawyer. What the New York case highlights is how trial lawyers go well beyond political giving in their effort to support liberal causes. Whether it is Hagens Berman trying to bankrupt the nations energy companies or Cohen Milstein sending settlement money away from consumers and into the hands of the ACLU, these firms have truly become an arm of the political left, managing to spend immense sums of time and money using questionable legal theories to press for liberal policy victories in the courts.

Trial lawyers are of course allowed to pick political sides. But it is crucial that we all stop looking the other way when they play their shadowy games and instead start treating them as the self-interested special interest partisans that they are.

The recent ruling in New York is an important one and a sign that the courts are seeing these cases for what they are. However, the battle will go on, as local officials and trial lawyers will continue trying to use the courts to score giant pay days and set the nations policy agenda through judicial edicts, without having to deal with our democratic process. Here is hoping that the losses keep piling up and the activists and their trial lawyer allies get the message that this is exactly the wrong way to approach such a huge public policy question.

O.H. Skinner is the Executive Director of Alliance For Consumers, and the most recent Arizona Solicitor General.
Media outlets around the world recently reported on leaked audio comments in which Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif admitted that Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps controls all of Irans foreign policy decisions. Although President Joe Biden was careful to mention neither Zarif nor Iran in his speech before Congress last month, Zarifs embarrassingly candid revelations have direct implications for Bidens entire Iran policy: namely, it underscores that reducing economic sanctions in order to moderate the Iranian regime cannot work.

For decades, U.S. policy toward Iran has produced disappointing results, largely because American administrations have underestimated the entrenched ideology of Irans theocratic dictatorship and mistakenly assumed the regime can be tamed by conciliatory diplomacy. Western efforts to placate Tehran have failed consistently since the revolutionaries took power in 1979, yet recent reports indicate President Biden is in the process of repeating this failure.

Just as the Obama administration did with its disastrous 2015 Iran nuclear deal, the Biden administration is now seeking to lift economic sanctions against Iran in exchange for temporary commitments from Tehran to curb its nuclear program. A senior State Department official recently revealed that the Biden administration is reviewing all U.S. terrorism and human rights sanctions on Iran since 2017 to assess whether those sanctions were legitimately imposed, and that some sanctions will need to be lifted to ensure Tehran is benefiting from the nuclear deal. Like Obama, Biden hopes that relaxing economic pressure can convince the regime to put aside its nuclear ambitions, focus on Irans economy and people, stop bankrolling terrorist proxies, and become a normal member of the international community.

This misguided approach is partly driven by entreaties from European capitals that are physically remote from the Iranian security threat but want access for European companies to do business in Iran. Obama and Biden have privileged Europes trade interests over the urgent concerns of our Middle Eastern allies, who are directly proximate to the security threat posed by the Iranian regime.

This naive Obama-Biden belief that conciliation can change not only the behavior, but also the very nature, of the Iranian regime is based on the false assumption that U.S. policy drives the Iranian regimes attitudes and behaviors. In actuality, since 1979 the regime has based its decision making on an expansionist revolutionary ideology that is fundamentally hostile to the United States, Israel, Irans Arab neighbors, the West, and our allies around the worldsomething Zarif himself noted in his leaked comments.

For years, the Iranian regimes malign actions have continued to mount, all while it simultaneously stokes naive Western hopes that it will respond to conciliation. The regime does so only as a tactic to outlast what it sees as temporary pain. When Tehran has moderated its behavior, it has only done so in response to intense political, economic, and military pressure. Rather than abandon such an approach, the United States should work with likeminded partners in three crucial areas:

First, until the regime ends its hostility and its support for terrorists and proxy forces, the United States and its partners must improve defenses against Iranian military and terrorist capabilities.

Second, disrupting and ultimately blocking Tehrans path to a nuclear weapon must remain a top priority, but not by using the flawed Obama-era nuclear deal. Lets be clear: A weak nuclear agreement could provide cover for a clandestine program while the regime uses sanctions relief to accumulate the resources to fully realize its nuclear goal.

Third, the United States and its allies should impose heavy financial costs on the Iranian regime to limit the resources available to Tehran to wage proxy wars across the Middle East and beyond.

This pressure approach can achieve results. Although Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his Revolutionary Guards are ascendant inside Iran, they are economically feeble, dependent on oil exports and vulnerable to multinational pressure. During our time in the Trump administration, we both were directly involved in persuading U.S. allies to join in enforcing sanctions designed to deny Khamenei the cash he requires to fund proxy wars. Convincing Japan to cease importing Iranian oil, for example, was a hard-won achievement that took months of tough negotiations, but created real leverage, as did similar efforts with other oil importers.

Maintaining this leverage, however, requires constant tending, which the Biden administration swiftly abandoned. China is one example. Noting Bidens intent to relax sanctions on Tehran, China has increased imports of Iranian oil to nearly 1 million barrels per day, a threefold increase from last year. This vast evasion of sanctions undercuts U.S. diplomacy by enabling Khamenei to ignore Western pressure.

President Biden should reverse course before it is too late. He should preserve sanctions against Tehran and should acknowledge the reality borne out by decades of painful history: that maximum pressure, not conciliation, holds the best chance to force the Iranian regime to choose either behaving like a normal nation or facing economic ruin.

Bill Hagerty was U.S. ambassador to Japan from 2017 to 2019. He was elected senator from Tennessee in 2020.
Good morning, its Tuesday, May 11, 2021. On this date in 1858, Minnesota was admitted to the Union as the 32nd state. With the possible exception of Massachusetts, the Land of 10,000 Lakes was the most anti-slavery state in America.

In those days Minnesota was also known as Star of the North, which it lived up to as soon as the Civil War began. The state's governor, Alexander Ramsey, was in Washington when Fort Sumter was bombarded in April 1861 and was among the first to answer President Lincolns call for 75,000 federal troops. Ramsey promised 10,000 from Minnesota alone, but the state actually produced 22,000 volunteers that first year.

The First Minnesota Infantry Regiment fought bravely from Manassas to Antietam and is credited with holding the Union position on Cemetery Ridge during the crucial second day of the Battle of Gettysburg. Crossing 200 yards of open field against a larger rebel force, the First Minnesota suffered 170 dead or wounded out of a force of some 300 men before staggering back to their lines. But that line held.

Many members of the First Minnesota, such as Charles C. Parker, served for the entire war. As late as the 1920s, President Calvin Coolidge referred to the volunteers in the regiment as the Unions saviors.

Its survivors held reunions until 1932, and its last remaining members, Edwin Season and James Wright, lived until 1936, two years before Franklin Roosevelt celebrated the 75th anniversary of Gettysburg in a ceremony intended as a day of unity. As the summer of 2020 proved, we are still struggling in this country with the healing part, even in the great state of Minnesota. And with that, Id point you to RCPs front page, which presents our poll averages, videos, breaking news stories, and aggregated opinion pieces spanning the political spectrum. We also offer original material from our own reporters, columnists, and contributors:

* * *

New Day, Same Message: Biden Again Downplays Jobs Report. Phil Wegmann has the story.

Sohrab Ahmari Is Wrong to Praise China. Jason Garshfield finds fault with conservatives who maintain that China can teach the United States how to run an orderly and morally upright society.

Biden Must Reverse Course on Iran. Sen. Bill Hagerty and H.R. McMaster warn that the new administration is ignoring evidence that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard is calling the shots in Iran, making an enforceable nuclear deal all but impossible.

Yes, Care Is Infrastructure. At RealClearPolicy, Tracy Levy and Elizabeth Palley argue that, like bridges and roads, robust care networks are critical in connecting people to economic opportunities.

Republicans Should Embrace the SECURE Act. At RealClearWorld, J.P. Carroll explains that the bill would give clarity and peace of mind to immigrants with temporary protected status, whose lives in the United States are now in limbo.

Electric Vehicles and Paying for Our Highways. In RealClearEnergy, Geoffrey Pohanka points out that EVs dont contribute to the Highway Trust Fund, which receives monies from the federal tax on gasoline and diesel.

Guilt by Association at Syracuse. At RealClearEducation, John Hirschauer reports on a lawsuit filed by members of a now-dissolved fraternity who accuse the school of censuring them for engaging in constitutionally protected speech.

Four Incredible Dinosaur Graveyards. RealClearScience editor Ross Pomeroy highlights locations -- including two in North America -- where a concentration of fossils have been found.

* * *

Carl M. Cannon

Washington Bureau chief, RealClearPolitics

@CarlCannon (Twitter)

ccannon@realclearpolitics.com
Traverse City, MI (49684)

Today

Mainly sunny to start, then a few afternoon clouds. A stray afternoon thunderstorm is possible. High 87F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A few passing clouds. Low around 65F. Winds light and variable.
QSO Today- Larry Tyree N6TR

Larry Tyree, or 'Tree', as he is known in amateur radio circles, loves to operate contests, work DX on 160 meters, from his 28 hilltop acres in the Oregon forest, near Portland.

Tree is a serious CW operator, where good antenna design, focus, skill, and patience bring the amateur radio rewards.

Tree tells his ham radio story in this QSO Today.

Listen to the podcast


COVID-19 update: Seeing yellow? It may or may not happen
I am no expert on foreign policy or military strategy, and I cant see Afghanistan from my apartment window, but its absolutely clear to me that we arent making friends and influencing people.

Amanda Abbott, a University of Georgia alum, wrote this in an article for The Red & Black in 2010, 11 years ago. Students were writing for this same publication, advocating for the end of the same war, when I was 12.

The war on terrorism began before I was in kindergarten. If I hadnt taken a semester off from college, I would have my degree before it ends.

Its the longest war Americas ever seen, so when President Joe Biden says well be out of Afghanistan by September 2021, dont blame me for not believing him.

We have service members in Afghanistan who were not yet born on 9/11, the president pointed out at the joint session of Congress on April 28.

The president effectively extended the prior May 1 deadline for troop removal set by former President Donald Trump, though Bidens plan, unlike Trumps, calls for a full removal of all personnel.

In the early years, the war dominated the news cycle with mass intrigue. Back when the wound of Sept. 11 was hauntingly fresh, people thought we might still "win" the ensuing conflict.

Today, cable news organizations mention the multi-generational boondoggle in passing when theyre not more focused on domestic policy and the culture war that has raged arguably longer than the United States military occupations.

CNN reported in April that leaving too early could be a blow to womens rights in the region. I want to be sensitive to that, but with repeated reports of sexual assault within the U.S. militarys ranks, I would hesitate to call us the arbiter of womens rights.

Our failures both to secure the humanitarian cause and to defeat the Taliban, who may have only gotten stronger over time, are not fully understood by many Americans. I want to be objective here: if and when the U.S. leaves, the Taliban has a serious chance to overtake the country. While victories came in the early years in education and building a friendly government, it did not take long for positive gains to stall, and questions of motives and timelines to amplify.

The medias dwindling coverage of foreign affairs surely correlates with peoples lack of knowledge, but folks are smart. They can infer that were wasting time, money, resources and endangering lives.

When I asked my mutual Instagram followers about why were in Afghanistan, most sent me replies with cynicism, and not just a tinge of it. Some combination of the ills of capitalism, destabilizing other nations [for] money, oil and general economic influence represent Generation Zs vision of the war they cannot recall starting, nor fathom ending.

An April report from the Costs of War Project found that, at the bare minimum, 900 billion dollars have been spent on the Afghanistan War, resulting in over 200,000 total deaths. Despite announcing withdrawal, Joe Biden also requested a 715 billion dollar budget for the Pentagon. The budget is a slight reduction to what Trump was projected to request (as slight as 7 billion dollars can be) had he been reelected, but it still begs the question: Why so much if were truly exiting Afghanistan?

Im far from the first to say it, but 715 billion dollars can do a lot. Ending world hunger by 2030, just as an example, is estimated to cost up to 330 billion dollars by one German study. We spend more than double that every year on the military.

One final point that has dashed my hopes about an end to war is the increasing proliferation of private military contractors. According to one journalist in Afghanistan (most of whom protect their identities in one of the deadliest places on earth for journalists), after the Iraqi parliament prohibited Americas troops to linger, CIA-backed contractors and personnel remained. They fear the same will happen in Afghanistan, and our military presence will still be felt, just obscured.

For now, we have Sept. 11, 2021 to look forward to, but I dont know a life before this war. I wont celebrate even a day early  Ill believe it when I see it.
Athens, GA (30605)

Today

Variable clouds with showers at times, and perhaps a rumble or two of thunder, especially this morning. High 82F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall may reach one inch..

Tonight

Variable clouds with scattered thunderstorms. Low near 70F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Williamston, NC (27892)

Today

Cloudy early, then thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 82F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%.
Brussels, 10 May 2021 (SPS) - The member of the National Secretariat of the Polisario Front, for Europe and the European Union Oubi Bouchraya, said on Sunday that the Moroccan Foreign Minister's allegations on Iranian military support to the Polisario Front are groundless.



"The international communitys rejection of the illegal declaration by former US President Donald Trump concerning the unilateral consideration of Morocco's sovereignty over occupied Western Sahara has caused a form of hysteria in Rabat led the authorities of the kingdom and the media, to have bizarre reactions," said Oubbi in a press statement.



Morocco is about to trigger bilateral crises with neighboring countries, in particular with several European countries and staging of lies and baseless accusations.



According to media reports, the Moroccan foreign minister said, in a televised interview with the President of AIPAC - USA, last Thursday, that the "Polisario Front would receive arms from Iran as well as military training for its cadres."



These allegations have already been made by the last May 1, 2018.



"For most of the capitals in the world and international observers, these allegations are just jokes that do not impress anyone," pointed out Oubbi.



However, added the Saharawi diplomat, "the Polisario Front once again categorically denies these allegations and challenging the Moroccan foreign to give evidence that would confirm his allegations." (SPS)



062/090/700
Greenville, NC (27833)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms this morning, then mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High 82F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%.
Main Data of the Seventh National Population Census

News Release

Mr. Ning Jizhe, Deputy Head of the Leading Group of the State Council for the Seventh National Population Census, Commissioner of the National Bureau of Statistics of China

May 11, 2021

Under the strong leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, according to the coordinated decisions and arrangements made by the Leading Group of the State Council for the Seventh National Population Census, with the meticulous organization and cooperative advancement of all regions and relevant government departments, concerted efforts and dedications of all the census staff as well as the joint and active participation of hundreds of millions of census respondents, the Seventh National Population Census has completed the field enumeration and the aggregation of the main data successfully. Today, a press conference is held to brief you a basic introduction and main data of the Census.

I. Basic Introduction

In accordance with the Statistics Law of the People's Republic of China and the Regulations on National Population Census, China carried out its Seventh National Population Census (hereinafter referred to as the Census) with 00:00 hours of November 1, 2020 as the reference time, aiming to offer a comprehensive understanding of the number, structure, distribution and other aspects of Chinas population so as to provide accurate statistical information support for the improvement of China's population development strategy and policy, the formulation of economic and social development plans and the advancement of high quality economic development.

The CPC Central Committee and the State Council attached great importance to the Census. General Secretary Xi Jinping participated in the on-site registration of the census and delivered an important speech. The State Council established the Leading Group for the Census and held many plenary sessions and teleconferences to make relevant census arrangements. All member agencies of the Leading Group and local governments at all levels meticulously organized and implemented the census in concerted efforts, with 679 thousand census agencies set up at provincial, municipal, county, township and village levels across China and more than seven million census staff recruited. Census agencies at all levels and all census staff made active efforts to overcome the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and successfully completed the field enumeration of all households and residents.

In the Census, data can be reported directly in real time by fully adopting digital data collection, respondents were enabled to fill in and submit questionnaires by scanning the QR code themselves for the first time, and the application of administrative records and big data from electricity meters and mobile phones was strengthened. As a result, the quality and efficiency of the census were improved. The Census intensified publicity by inviting Zhong Nanshan and Yao Ming as publicity ambassadors and its slogan Population Census, Everyone Counts resonated powerfully with people. The Census was conducted in accordance with the law and all the requirements in the census program were carefully implemented. With a strict quality control system, the Census established and improved the census data tracing and accountability mechanism. The post enumeration survey conducted in 32 thousand households of 141 counties randomly selected from 31 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) showed that the census process was rigorous and standard and the census results were reliable with an undercount rate of 0.05 percent.

II. Main Data of the Census

1. National Population. The national population [1] was 1,411.78 million persons, increased by 72.06 million persons compared with the population of 1,339.72 million persons in 2010 (data of the Sixth National Population Census), up by 5.38 percent. The average annual growth rate was 0.53 percent, down by 0.04 percentage point compared with the average annual growth rate of 0.57 percent from 2000 to 2010. The data showed that the population of China maintained a mild growth momentum in the past decade.

2. Population by Household Types. In the country, there were 494.16 million family households with 1,292.81 million persons and 28.53 million collective households with 118.97 million persons. The average size of a family household was 2.62 persons, or 0.48 person less than the 3.10 persons in 2010. The family households continued to downsize because of increasing population mobility and the fact that young people after marriage lived separately from parents with improved housing conditions.

3. Population by Regions. The population in the eastern region accounted for 39.93 percent of the total, that in the central areas accounted for 25.83 percent, that in the western region accounted for 27.12 percent and that in the northeast China accounted for 6.98 percent. Compared with data in 2010, the proportion of the population in the eastern region increased by 2.15 percentage points, that in the central areas decreased by 0.79 percentage point, that in the western region increased by 0.22 percentage point, and that in the northeast China decreased by 1.20 percentage points. The population further congregated in economically developed regions and city clusters.

4. Sex Composition. Of the national population, 723.34 million persons or 51.24 percent were males while 688.44 million persons or 48.76 percent were females. The sex ratio (female=100, male to female) was 105.07, basically the same level with a slight decline compared with that in 2010. The sex ratio at birth was 111.3, down by 6.8 compared with that in 2010. The sex composition of China continued to improve.

5. Age Composition. There were 253.38 million persons in the age group of 0 to 14, accounting for 17.95 percent; 894.38 million persons in the age group of 15 to 59, accounting for 63.35 percent; and 264.02 million persons in the age group of 60 and over, accounting for 18.70 percent (specifically, there were 190.64 million persons in the age group of 65 and over, accounting for 13.50 percent). Compared with 2010, the shares of people in the age groups of 0 to 14, 15 to 59, and 60 and above were up by 1.35 percentage points, down by 6.79 percentage points, and up by 5.44 percentage points respectively. The share of children rose again, proving that the adjustment of Chinas fertility policy has achieved positive results. Meanwhile, the further aging of the population imposed continued pressure on the long-term balanced development of the population in the coming period.

6. Educational Attainment. There were 218.36 million persons with university education. Compared with 2010, the number of people with university education went up from 8,930 persons to 15,467 persons per 100,000 persons, the average years of schooling for people aged 15 and above increased from 9.08 years to 9.91 years, and the illiteracy rate dropped from 4.08 percent to 2.67 percent. The continued improvement of the educational attainment demonstrated the achievements in promoting higher education, eradicating illiteracy among young and middle-aged adults and raising the population quality through hard efforts over the past ten years.

7. Urban and Rural Population. There were 901.99 million persons living in urban areas, accounting for 63.89 percent; 509.79 million persons living in rural areas, accounting for 36.11 percent. Compared with 2010, the urban population increased by 236.42 million and the rural population decreased by 164.36 million. The share of urban population went up by 14.21 percentage points. With the in-depth development of Chinas new industrialization, informatization and agricultural modernization, and the implementation of the policy to help people who have relocated from rural to urban areas to gain permanent urban residency, Chinas new urbanization has been advanced steadily and the urbanization construction has scored historical achievements over the past ten years.

8. Floating Population. The number of population who lived in places other than their household registration areas reached 492.76 million. Specifically, the population who lived in places other than their household registration but still in the same city totaled 116.94 million and the floating population numbered 375.82 million. Of the floating population, the population moving to other provinces reached 124.84 million. Compared with 2010, the population who lived in places other than their household registration areas went up by 88.52 percent, the population who lived in places other than their household registration but still in the same city up by 192.66 percent, and the floating population up by 69.73 percent. Chinas continued economic and social development has facilitated the population migration and mobility, the trends of which have become increasingly evident, and the size of floating population has further grown.

9. Population of Ethnic Groups. The population of the Han ethnic group was 1,286.31 million, accounting for 91.11 percent; that of the ethnic minorities was 125.47 million, accounting for 8.89 percent. Compared with 2010, the population of the Han ethnic group grew by 4.93 percent, while that of the ethnic minorities increased by 10.26 percent, and the share of the ethnic minorities increased by 0.40 percentage points. The steady increase of the population of the ethnic groups fully reflected the comprehensive development and progress of all ethnic groups under the leadership of the Communist Party of China.

The population issue has always been an issue of overall, long-term and strategic importance in China. The Seventh National Population Census has offered a good understanding of the size, structure and distribution of China's population, mapped accurately the trends of the demographic changes, and provided abundant and valuable information. We are working hard to compile, analyze and develop the census data, and will follow up with more ways to publish and share the census results. We will collaborate with relevant departments to strengthen the forward-looking and strategic study on population development. All these efforts will make full use of the census and provide strong statistical information support to advance high-quality development, formulate targeted strategies and policies on population, and facilitate the long-term balanced population development.

On behalf of the Office of the Leading Group of the State Council for the Seventh National Population Census and the National Bureau of Statistics of China, I would like to take this opportunity to express sincere gratitude to the census agencies at all levels and census staff who fought on the front lines. Over seven million census staff worked hard and rose to challenges with a strong sense of responsibility and initiative despite the impact of the COVID-19. They have completed the field enumeration on time and covered all houses, households, respondents and items in each enumeration area. It is because of their work that the results of the Seventh National Population Census can stand the test of history and people. I would also like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all sectors of society and respondents who participated in and supported the census with a spirit of cooperation. Thanks to the 1.4 billion people who performed their census duties and provided authentic information with the ownership spirit of Population Census, Everyone Counts, the strong cornerstone of the Seventh National Population Census of such a scale was formed. I would also like to extend our sincere gratitude to all friends from the news media involved in census promotion. Your all-round publicity inspired and encouraged the census staff with their confidence and motivation boosted, helped the respondents to know, understand and thus render support and cooperation to the population census. Without your dedication and diligence, the Seventh National Population Census would not have been so successful. Thank you again!

Note:

[1] The national population refers to the population of the 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government and servicemen of the Chinese mainland, excluding residents of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan and foreigners living in the 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government.

(In case of any difference between English translation and the original Chinese text, the Chinese edition shall prevail.)
John Koopmann, a Lake Host at Spofford Lake, in Spofford, N.H., talks with Michael Collier, from Walpole, N.H., about places the boat has been before the boat goes into the water on Tuesday, June 8, 2021.
General Assignment Reporter

Chris Mays is a general assignment reporter for the Brattleboro Reformer. He has been with New England Newspapers Inc. since 2012.
A copy of the Brattleboro Reformer stating that public schools are closed in Vermont rests outside of the Bellows Falls Middle School on Monday, March 16, 2020.
Beckley, WV (25801)

Today

Cloudy this morning followed by isolated thunderstorms this afternoon. High near 75F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Showers this evening then scattered thunderstorms developing overnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
NEW MILFORD  Armed with ice cream and music, the town is preparing to vaccinate up to 1,000 pre-teens at its local clinic Saturday, according to Health Director Lisa Morrissey.

With Mondays news that the Pfizer vaccine has been approved for use in 12 to 15 year olds, the clinic is gearing up for a big weekend.

I think that things are moving along rather nicely, Morrissey said Tuesday.

Having reached out to local officials and school administrations in surrounding areas ahead of the vaccines official FDA approval, Morrissey said they have Saturday appointments scheduled for kids throughout the area. Appointments for the yougsters will be available at the John Pettibone Community Center during after school hours on Tuesday and Wednesday of next week.

As of Tuesday, at least 11 different towns are partnering with New Milford, Morrissey said.

After a generous gift in March of two expensive, ultra-cold Pfizer freezers one from an anonymous donor and a portable unit from the state  the New Milford clinic is set to become a major hub for school-age childrens vaccinations.

Pfizer is the only vaccine currently approved for use in people under 18, and Morrisseys clinic is one of the few in the area that is able to provide it. As such, the town is expecting families from Southbury, Kent, Newtown, Washington, Brookfield and more, Morrissey said.

New Milford has volunteered to order and store Pfizer in its freezers for other districts, to be picked up on the day of the local clinic. Pomperaug and New Fairfield health districts are using this option, Morrissey said.

Outside of New Milfords local clinic, Charlotte Hungerford Hospital, Nuvance Health and Community Health Center-run clinics, and the Danbury Fair mall mass vaccination site are among the other sites that have offered Pfizer.

The Connecticut Institute For Communities, Inc., which has been vaccinating in Danbury, said they plan to add Pfizer to its rotation next week.

Among the pharmacy sites, CVS and Walgreens offer Pfizer in Connecticut, based on scheduling options online. Big Y is administering Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines to residents 18 and older, according to its website. While other pharmacies like Rite Aid have offered Pfizer, the federal vaccine locator website suggests many area locations are out of stock.

Morrissey said its important to offer parents flexibility with scheduling. Theyve allowed those located in and out of town to book appointments directly through the New Milford Health Department or through block scheduling arranged by their own town.

Its not a one-shot deal with us, so families do have their options, she said.

With the news that younger children can now be vaccinated, local officials have started fielding some questions from anxious parents.

Morrissey said she hears mostly from parents worried about their 12- and 13-year-olds, and less about the 14 to 15 age group. Some parents have voiced concerns that the vaccines might cause infertility and cancer  misinformation which Morrissey works through with them.

We talk through that, and we talk through the research, she said.

Two of the health directors older sons and her nephew have already been vaccinated, and her 14-year-old son will be getting vaccinated at the first clinic this weekend.

Morrissey was in the car Tuesday morning, having just dropped off her youngest child, when she spoke about parents hesitancy and her own insistence that all her children be vaccinated once theyre eligible.

The very first day that my five-year-old is eligible for that vaccine, he will there in line, she said.

Robert Rubbo, director of health at the Torrington Area Health District, said that district doesnt have the capability to receive the Pfizer vaccine because that requires the ultra-cold storage. However, in partnership with Charlotte Hungerford Hospital, which is part of Hartford Healthcare, the district plans to set up clinics for 12- to 15-year-olds. The district plans to send this information to the local school districts, to be shared with parents of students who want to be vaccinated, he said.

Rubbo said the district is trying to get as many students vaccinated as soon as possible.

He said he is scheduled to meet with the state of Connecticut later in the week and that the hospital may set up more than one clinic.

We need a little bit of time to get all the logistics in place, he said.
HARTFORD  Marriage licenses would no longer require information on the race of people under legislation unanimously approved Tuesday by the House of Representatives.

The bill, which passed 146-0 after a brief debate, next heads to the state Senate.

I dont believe that ones race should be recorded with respect to a marriage license, said Rep. Steve Stafstrom, D-Bridgeport, co-chairman of the Judiciary Committee.

Rep. Craig Fishbein, R-Wallingford, ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, said that in recent years he became aware of the section on marriage licenses for racial designations. I find that this requirement that someone declare their race in order to marry is offensive, he said. Two loving people get together and want to join themselves in a legal ceremony, they should not be barred because they fail to disclose their race. If anything, it prevents people who love each other from doing that.

It would also codify outdated racially restrictive covenants on property deeds that for decades have been overruled by legal precedent, but remain offensive and are historic reminders of efforts to keep Blacks out of white neighborhoods.

The bill would allow property owners to go to their local city and town halls and record on the land records the removal of the wording from deeds. It would also allow condominium associations to remove restrictive covenants from their association bylaws.

I was appalled that certain things appear in our land records, such overt racial statements, Fishbein said. To preclude the transfer of land based on someones skin color or ancestry, this is a good step forward.

State Rep. Anthony Nolan, D-New London, said hes grateful that lawmakers are finally getting around to deleting remnants of systematic racism that persists in the state. These are the things that we need to rid our community of, he said.

In other action scheduled for a long evening, the House scheduled action to extend Gov. Ned Lamonts emergency authority until July 20. It is currently set to end on May 20, the day after the states restaurants and other businesses will be allowed to fully open.

During the late afternoon, the House debated a proposed amendment to the state Constitution to allowed no-excuse mail-in ballots for elections. Prior to provisions adopted last year and extended this year, allowing absentee ballots by all voters, the Constitution limited mail-in voters only to those being absent from the state on Election day; are sicks; claim physical disability, or religious restrictions.

Republican opposition, however, was mostly unified against the measure, which would require 75-percent approval in the House and Senate this year to get the issue on the statewide ballot for voters in 2022. Otherwise, simple majorities would force the issue to be voted upon in the General Assembly elected in 2022, delaying the possibility of the question coming before voters in 2024.

Republicans led by Rep. Gale Mastrofrancesco, R-Wolcott, offered amendments that would require voters to present photo IDs to vote; and require verified signatures for all absentee ballots. Its apathy that we need to fight, said Rep. David Labriola, R-Oxford.

Democrats, who have a 97-54 majority in the House, rejected the amendments in 93-53 and 95-53 votes, respectively. Republicans around the country have introduced similar bills in the wake of the loss of President Donald Trump in the 2020 election.

Its sad for the voters of the state of Connecticut, Mastrofrancesco said after the second amendment failed. Were doing this to protect their vote.

Were getting the impression that people are cheating, said Rep. David Rutigliano, R-Trumbull, who got an absentee ballot application at his home last year for someone who formerly lived there and who appears to have never voted there.

Rep. Geraldo Reyes, D-Waterbury, chairman of the legislative Black and Puerto Rican Caucus, said the state needs to make it easier for people to cast ballots. There was record turnout for the 2020 election in the state, when no-excuse absentee ballots were used because of the pandemic. Constitutions were made to be amended, he said.

Shortly after 6 oclock, Rep. Jason Perillo, R-Shelton, introduced an amendment that would change the way contested elections would be settled, shifting the authority to the Judicial Branch from the legislature. It was based on a 2018 election for a seat representing Stratford, where 76 voters in a dual district, received the wrong ballot and an evenly divided legislative committee deadlocked over Democratic Rep. Phil Young, who was reelected in 2020. Republicans complained that majority Democratic leaders stonewalled a request for another special election in 2019.

Perillos amendment was rejected 95-53, as was a subsequent proposal to create a bipartisan commission to draft future election laws.

After more than four hours of debate, the resolution passed 104-44 and next heads to the Senate, where it is expected to pass. Nine Republicans joined Democrats, including Rep. Laura Devlin of Fairfield, Rep. Terrie Wood of Darien, Rep. Tom ODea of New Canaan and Rep. Joseph Zullo of East Haven.

But because the 75 percent wasnt reached, it would have to come before the next legislature, for eventual inclusion on the 2024 statewide ballot.

House Majority Leader Jason Rojas, D-East Hartford, said the bill would allow state voters to join 34 other states that have mail-in voting. Its a companion piece to an early voting amendment to the Constitution that recently passed the House and is pending in the Senate.

Rojas said the pandemic has underscored the advantages of mail-in balloting.

I think they deserve the choice, Rojas said, stressing that fraud is rare among state voters. We should take comfort in knowing that what were doing today is moving the state in a positive direction. Its empowering our citizens to vote for themselves.

kdixon@ctpost.com Twitter: @KenDixonCT
CORNWALL  For historic character reeanctor Kevin Titus its a matter of making sure people do not forget the rich history of the famous people who once called Connecticut home.

To that end Titus most recently honored a local Civil War veteran who is buried at the Old Cornwall Hollow Cemetery.

Hes always been someone whos very important to me  hes such a famous general, Titus said, of Major General John Sedgewick. We have famous generals and officers from other towns around Connecticut too, and a lot of people dont know about them. Whats happening to our history? People are forgetting about them.

Titus honored Sedgewick with a flag laying ceremony, gun salute and prayers at the cemetery.

While we were there, people were just pulling over and coming up to the grave, or sitting in their cars and watching, Titus said. It was great to see people stopping and listening.

Titus invited the Rev. Alex Gorecki from Christ Castle Church in North Canaan, and fellow reeanctor Michael Esposito, a resident of Massachusetts, to participate in the ceremony.

Titus noted, when you do something like we did Sunday, people notice. They come over to watch, and its great. They learn about history.

Gorecki said he had never prayed over the grave of a Civil War soldier before.

I read from the Book of Common Prayer, he said. I blessed the graves and the people who were buried there. I loved being there.

I have a couple degrees in history, and I was really glad that Kevin invited me, he said.

Sedgewick, of the Union Army, was born in 1813 and died May 9, 1864 in action in the battlefield at Spotsylvania Courthouse Virginia. His home was just down the road in Cornwall, Titus said. Titus, represented a member of the 4th Dismounted Calvary Unit, and Esposito, represented the 1st U.S. Infantry, and also honored an unknown Confederate soldier who is buried near Sedgewick.

Sedgewick was born at end of the War of 1812, and just 32 years later, he would fight in a war with Mexico, Titus said. In just 16 more years, he would answer the call to war once again, the American Civil War.

After being wounded in 1862, Sedgewick returned to Connecticut and built a house on Hautboy Hill Road, but was called to service again in 1863, and given command of the 6th Army Corps of the Potomac. Titus said Sedgewick was close friends with President Abraham Lincoln.

He was so well loved by all his men that they called him Uncle John, Titus said. On May 9, 1864 at 2 p.m., he noticed that his men were hiding, taking cover from wild bullets. He was annoyed that they were worried, and said, They could not hit the side of an elephant at this range.

A moment later, Titus said, Sedgewick was hit in the left eye by a sharpshooter, and fell dead from his horse.

When Lincoln heard of the loss, he exclaimed My God. I have lost my right arm! Titus said. Sedgewick was the highest ranking officer to die from either side in the Civil War. After his funeral in Washington, DC, Sedgewick was buried in Cornwall in May 1864.

Titus, a resident of Huntsville in Falls Village, is a historian, actor and radio broadcaster who has appeared in television and movies on memorable people, and said he has played roles such as George Reeves, known for his role as Superman in the 1950s; President Warren G. Harding, British General Benedict Arnold, pilots Charles Lindberg and Emilio Carranza.

His favorite portrayals, however, are veterans from the United States long war history. I like to bring up more about our local history and our heritage, Titus said. There are many Civil War veterans buried around here.

Titus has represented historical figures and events for more than 40 years, and travels the country to portray them. This summer, he plans visits to West Virginia, New Jersey and Connecticut. His company is DEOA Historical Productions, and he belongs to a number of associations that support his work  the North and South Reenactors, Army of the Potomac, Army of North Virginia, and others that promote American history education. We have Facebook pages, and we invite each other to our programs, Titus said. We go all over the country.

The Titus family has connections to the Civil War, he said, and acting out a character began when he was a child and spent time with his uncle, actor Bill Shipley, who was in Car 54 on TV. It just happened; I recreated a Civil War drummer boy when I was 14 or 15, and I just started doing it more and more, Titus siad. Ive portrayed every character you can think of.
PARIS (AP)  Dead or Alive. The chilling words were scrawled on photos of three police officers in their uniforms posted last month on a wall in a Grenoble suburb, in southwest France.

To French police, feeling endangered and disrespected, this is just one more sign of an upsurge in violence targeting them and making it harder to keep France safe.

A police officer was shot to death last week on a routine check at a street corner frequented by drug dealers in the historic district of Avignon, a southern tourist mecca. The murder in broad daylight struck a chord among the French, with thousands of people joining police to pay homage Sunday to the 36-year-old officer, Eric Masson, at Avignon police headquarters.

At a solemn national tribute Tuesday to the fallen officer, Prime Minister Jean Castex vowed France would not shirk in its fight against dealers, a national priority that has put officers like Masson in harm's way.

On orders from President Emmanuel Macron, Masson was posthumously named Chevalier, or knight, of the Legion of Honor, France's highest award.

It was the second national homage to a police official in less than two weeks, after the fatal stabbing April 23 of an official inside the entrance of her station in the Paris suburb of Rambouillet by a man authorities say was an Islamic radical.

Violence against police has doubled in 20 years, said Thierry Clair, deputy chief of the police union UNSA, adding that verbal insults or spitting arent uncommon.

Experts, however, note that more French police were killed in past decades than today, but that police tactics have hardened in recent years, leading to a deficit in confidence amid claims of systemic racism within the police, racial profiling and videos showing apparent abuse and sometimes deadly violence.

Still, French law enforcers have been repeatedly targeted in recent months, and some say that anti-police violence has exploded among delinquents, often drug dealers flush with weapons. The two main suspect in Masson's killings both had records linked to drugs.

And this has struck a political chord.

It's a reality that there is violence in our society and its swelling, and that each day the role of our police is made more difficult by this violence, the president said over the weekend.

Security is a perennial issue in elections and with regional elections next month and next year's presidential election, the topic has special traction. The centrist Macron, who is expected to try for a second term, recently made going after drug dealers a priority.

Last month, he blasted drug trafficking as the economic matrix of violence in an interview with the conservative-leaning newspaper Le Figaro. To eradicate them by all means has become the mother of battles."

While U.S. legislators are working on a sweeping effort to rein in police powers in the wake of George Floyds death in Minnesota last year, France's government has instead been increasing police powers.

Britain is following a similar path with a bill to give police more powers to control increasingly disruptive protests. Police chiefs say an outdated law leaves them without sufficient means to cope. The wide-ranging bill has itself triggered protests, including some violent clashes with police amid critics fears the measure would significantly curb freedom of speech and assembly.

In France, police regularly fall prey to night ambushes, in Paris suburbs known for crime and drugs, or in the north, including Tourcoing, where Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin served as mayor. This week, violence erupted in the Mediterranean town of Frejus. In a classic scenario, youth throw fireworks and projectiles at police, and even firetrucks arriving to extinguish a garbage can fire, the bait to draw in police.

Yet, Sebastian Roche, a sociologist and expert on police, says that police are less at risk of being killed today than they were three decades ago. He said that 30 officers were killed on average per year in the 1980s, compared to about 10 in recent years, figures that don't include gendarmes, a military corps with jobs like police.

Another specialist, Laurent Mucchielli, dismissed claims of a major uptick in violence as a political message, fed by the media. Anti-police posters and family snapshots of officers discovered in housing projects are exceptional, Mucchielli said.

Both experts agreed that the yellow vest protests that started in 2018 were bad for the image of police, who used brutal tactics to control sometimes anarchic marches by the protesters seeking economic and social justice.

Roche digs further back. Over the past 20 years, France progressively, in stages, engaged police in aggressive policies, notably cordoning off suburban housing projects. These techniques diminished confidence in the police.

Today, the people who have the most confidence in the police in France are people who never see them intervene, Roche said after analyzing 10 years worth of data by the national statistics agency.

The more people see them intervene, the less confidence they have in them," he said. Roche stressed that people dont reject the police. They reject certain tactics.

Police unions have found new leverage in the loss of their colleagues to press longstanding demands, including better protection for forces and backup from what police say is a lax judicial system that fails to translate arrests into convictions and firm punishment.

Macron has promised 10,000 more officers in the streets by the end of his term and increased the police budget. At a Monday night meeting with unions, the prime minister laid out a series of measures to ensure courts get tough on anyone dishonoring the uniform and a guarantee of 30 years in prison for the killing of a police officer, the same punishment as for terrorists.

More worrisome perhaps for police than danger is what Clair, the union official, said is a growing lack of respect.

Its above all this notion of respect, Clair said. When you feel the uniform youre wearing doesnt get the respect of the person in front of you and youre constantly considered badly by a part of the population, you say theres a problem.

___

Sylvia Hui contributed to this report from London.

___

This story has been corrected to show that the name of the town is Tourcoing, not Turcoing.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  North Carolina House members on Monday approved a plan to curb the governor's ability to mandate COVID-19 vaccines through executive action  a power Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper has shown no desire to exercise.

The measure put forward by Rep. Keith Kidwell, R-Beaufort, would also bar state public health authorities and licensing agencies from requiring North Carolinians to get vaccinated in order to obtain a license.

It's perhaps the most mild of a string of anti-vaccination proposals brought forward by Republican state lawmakers. The measure passed 75-38 with support from 10 Democrats and all GOP members present and now heads to the Senate.

Cooper has strongly encouraged residents to get vaccinated but has been reluctant to mandate it or turn it into a hot-button political issue. He and his health secretary, Dr. Mandy Cohen, have instead promoted a message of a quicker return to summer activities once more people get vaccinated. They have also vowed to ease pandemic restrictions, such as the indoor mask mandate, once two-thirds of adults in the state have gotten at least one COVID-19 dose.

The Democratic governor has long said he supports giving people an online version of a document certifying they were vaccinated but has shown little interest in a statewide policy requiring people to prove they received a COVID-19 vaccine in order to access government services.

Some GOP lawmakers wish Kidwell's proposal would have gone further.

North Carolina lawmakers last week advanced a bill last week to prohibit state and local governments from firing or retaliating against employees who decide not to get a COVID-19 vaccine.

During debate of Kidwell's proposal on Monday, Rep. Larry Pittman, R-Cabarrus, referenced a proposal he's put forward that has received much resistance. His plan, House Bill 558, would prevent schools and child care facilities from requiring proof of a students COVID-19 vaccination, or any other vaccinations. Scores of demonstrators who like his bill came to the Legislative Building last week to seek its passage.

The plan appears unlikely to advance ahead of a Thursday deadline in order to be considered this legislative session, though there are other ways his ideas could be rolled into future legislation.

Pittman unsuccessfully tried to introduce an amendment that would reward businesses that decide not to mandate vaccinations for their employees or customers with immunity from civil liability.

___

Follow Anderson on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BryanRAnderson.

___

Anderson is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
STAMFORD  State prosecutors will proceed with its case against a Stamford man accused of orchestrating a long-running dog-running scheme after they decided to waive a warrant that would have seen him extradited.

Deputy Assistant Margaret Moscati said during a hearing on Monday that the state had decided not to extradite Nygel Joseph, 23, to New Jersey, where he faces unrelated charges.

Joseph will remain in Connecticut to face racketeering, first-degree larceny, conspiracy to commit first-degree larceny, nine counts of conspiracy to illegally use a payment card, illegal trafficking in personal identifying info, animal cruelty and importing a dog without a health certificate charges, state prosecutors announced on Monday.

Joseph is one of four people  Devon Sherman, 25; Ebony Ayala, 23; and Paul Joseph, 23  accused of using stolen identities to purchase puppies from around the country and sell them out of a Glenbrook home.

As a part of an investigation into the dog-running operation, Stamford Animal Control seized 22 dogs from the accused.

Investigators were first alerted to the alleged dog-running scheme on Feb. 19 when an employee at Cornell University Veterinary Specialists in Stamford reported that a group of individuals had been bringing multiple dogs in and were using stolen credit cards to pay for the nearly $25,000 that they racked up in medical bills, investigators Michael Stempien and Vanessa Lynn wrote in Shermans arrest warrant affidavit.

The warrant states the suspects brought nine puppies to the vet in varying states of malnutrition and illness between October 2020 and March 2021.

In one trip, vets needed to remove the right eye from a 7-month-old shiba inu because of trauma, according to warrant. In another trip, they brought an 8-week-old French bulldog needed to be euthanized because it arrived comatose and severely emaciated, the warrant said.

During the ensuing investigation, police discovered a dead young looking, black female toy poodle in the garbage of the suspects Glenbrook home, according to the warrant. A later diagnostic exam revealed the dog had died of bronchopneumonia, the warrant said.

Based on this evidence, police executed a search warrant on the Belltown Road home in March. It was during this raid that police first arrested Nygel Joseph on a lone second-degree forgery charge, as well as a citation for operating a pet store without a license.

His alleged accomplices  Sherman, Ayala and Paul Joseph  were arrested in April on racketeering charges and more.

Earlier this month, Nygel Joseph was arrested on new charges as police discovered new information on the alleged operation.

On Monday, Nygel Joseph entered not guilty pleas to all charges.

His next court date is scheduled for July 6.
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POTTSVILLE  A Philadelphia rapist will spend more time behind bars after a Schuylkill County judge sentenced him Monday for assaulting a state prison guard in August 2019.

Craig Gardner, 41, must serve eight to 24 months in a state correctional institution, Judge Jacqueline L. Russell ruled. Russell also sentenced Gardner to pay costs and $50 to the Criminal Justice Enhancement Account, undergo an anger management program and submit a DNA sample to law enforcement authorities.

Russell made the sentence consecutive to the one of 10 to 20 years that Gardner already is serving for rape and related crimes in a case from Philadelphia.

Gardner pleaded guilty to simple assault. Prosecutors withdrew a charge of harassment.

Im accepting responsibility for what I did, Gardner said.

State police at Frackville charged Gardner with assaulting Corrections Officer Aaron Weller on Aug. 23, 2019, at SCI/Frackville. Gardner punched Weller in the left side of his face with his right fist, police said.

He has been apologetic, Adam R. Weaver, Lehighton, Gardners lawyer, said while asking for less than the maximum sentence of 12 to 24 months in state prison for his client.

First Assistant District Attorney Michael J. Stine asked for that maximum, pointing to the crime as well as Gardners record, which Russell noted stretched back to 1997.

This is a rather serious matter, Stine said. There appear to be ... five distinct felony offenses (in Gardners record).

Russell was firm in her insistence that the sentence be consecutive to the one Gardner is serving.

In a nonjury trial, Philadelphia Judge Donna Woelpper found Gardner guilty on July 8, 2015, of rape, sexual assault, indecent assault, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and false imprisonment. She found him not guilty of aggravated assault, unlawful restraint and indecent exposure.

On Nov. 25, 2015, Woelpper sentenced Gardner to serve 10 to 20 years in a state correctional institution, pay costs and a $50 CJEA payment and submit a DNA sample to law enforcement authorities.

She also imposed lifetime Megans Law sanctions on Gardner. Those sanctions will become effective once he leaves prison.

Philadelphia police charged Gardner with committing the rape on Sept. 29, 2013, in the city.

Gardner already is an inmate at SCI/Fayette, and Russell conducted Mondays hearing by videoconference.
Police arrest man for physical harassment

WILLIAMSTOWN  A Pine Grove man was arrested by state police at Lykens and then charged with harassment after an incident on East Market Street in the Dauphin County community between 4:30 and 5 p.m. Thursday.

Police said Trent Wenner, 18, and a 19-year-old Minersville woman became involved in a verbal argument during which the woman walked away.

Police said Wenner walked up to the woman from behind and struck her on the back of the head. Her face then struck an apartment building, which caused her to suffer a red mark on her nose and the left side of her face.

Wiconisco man cited for careless drivingWICONISCO  State police at Lykens investigated a crash that happened on Pottsville Street in Wiconisco Township, Dauphin County, approximately 12:05 a.m. Friday.

Police said Brandon Sweigard, 25, of Wiconisco, was driving a 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee west when he drove into the back of a legally parked 2018 Chevrolet Colorado and fled the area.

As a result of the crash, police said Sweigard was cited for careless driving.

2 men charged with harassment

PINE GROVE  Two Pine Grove men were arrested by state police at Schuylkill Haven and charged with harassment after an incident at 17 Airport Road in Pine Grove Township around 11 a.m. Sunday.

Police said neighbors David Leffler, 60, and Austin Donton, 25, were having property line issues and exchanged harassing words or texts to each other.

Both men will have to answer before Magisterial District Judge David J. Rossi, Tremont.

Woman charged with retail theft

POTTSVILLE  A Minersville woman was arrested by state police at Schuylkill Haven and charged with retail theft after an incident at Weis Market in Norwegian Township between April 24 and 26.

Police said Alyssa Essler, 30, stole 10 items with a total value of $110.08.
VALLEY VIEW  The Hegins Township supervisors selected a Fayetteville firm, the lowest of four bidders, to conduct bituminous seal coating on roadways.

Russell Standards bid of $96,026.36 was accepted at Wednesdays meeting, but approval was contingent upon solicitor Donald Karpowichs review and that the bid meets the approval of John Davis, a PennDOT municipal services representative.

Roads that are potential candidates for improvement include parts of Dell Road, Broad Street, Hemlock Drive, Locust Street, Gap School Road and Maple Street.

The three other bidders were Asphalt Maintenance Solutions, of Center Valley, $105,721.80; Midland Asphalt Materials Inc., of Bloomsburg, $123,694.16; and Suit-Kote, of Hallstead, $130,359.90.

In a matter involving Clean Air Generation LLC, or CAG, the energy company planning the $300 million Anthracite Ridge wind farm project, the supervisors approved a resolution that would appoint the township zoning hearing board as the special hearing master.

The board would adjudicate CAGs compliance with the townships clean energy safety ordinance.

Karpowich will forward information, including public hearing information, to Linus Fenicle, of Reager & Adler PC, of Camp Hill, to represent the zoning hearing board. The boards solicitor, Paul Datte, has a conflict of interest, Karpowich said. As of Wednesday, no date for the hearing had been announced.

CAGs proposed project could place 83 wind turbines total, with 40 possibly on mountaintops in Hegins Township, and the remaining possibly in Porter, Tremont and Frailey townships.

In other business, the supervisors approved:

 Police Chief Beau Yarmushs April report showing 132 calls to service; five offense/incident reports; two non-traffic citations; one reportable and two non-reportable accidents; and 22 traffic citations and 19 warnings.

 Treasurer Gary Hornbergers April report showing income, $144,745.81; expenses, $110,295.06; general fund balance, $835,879.02; and Pennsylvania Local Government Investment Trust fund balance, $244,571.46.

 Road Foreman Craig Colemans report on street signs. Coleman was asked to gather cost estimates for replacing about 45 signs. He said the prices depend on the size of the signs, but estimated the cost at $2,500 to $3,000. At a previous meeting, Supervisor Bruce Klouser had mentioned that some signs were missing or needed to be replaced. Coleman said he found two that needed to be put up. Instead of replacing all the signs at once, the supervisors agreed for Coleman to continue replacing them as needed.

 Engineer Joel Schmoyers report from Lehigh Engineering on the Forest Drive Bridge project. Planning, Zoning and Code Enforcement Officer Ed Wenger read Schmoyers report in his absence. Lehigh plans to provide a response for review before submission to PennDOT. Forest Drive Bridge Project Manager Cristie Barry sent markups of the type, size and location preliminary design to be reviewed by McCormick Taylor, a civil engineering firm.

 Wengers report. A zoning enforcement notice along with a notice of violation was issued for operation of a junk yard without a zoning permit at 1161 W. Main St. Additional notices were issued for 6 Laurel Lane for weeds and rubbish; 1032 W. Main, for rubbish and accessory structure; and 26 Barnes Road and 562 Broad Street, both for rubbish. Supervisors said that several of the properties had been cleaned up.

Several events are scheduled. They include:

The Tri-Valley Student Council will host a homecoming parade on Saturday. The planned route is from Hegins Park, down Main Street to the high school. The drive-thru parade, with no closures, will assemble at the park at 4 p.m. The supervisors approved.

The Cracker Jacks fireworks club will hold an event at the Valley View Park on Saturday.

The Hot Potato 5K and Tater Tot Trot has been moved from Hegins to Hubley Township. Organizers reported that after hearing back from PennDOT, the department will not accept the amended language that was provided to Hegins Township at the last supervisors meeting and will not approve the closure of a state road.

Instead, Mountainside Community Center on West Mountain Road in Sacramento is the new venue for the June 12 race. Representatives of The Tri-Valley Youth Activities Fund, which benefits from the race, thanked the supervisors for the continued support of the event over the years.

The next food pantry is 8 to 10 a.m. May 19 at the municipal building, 421 S. Gap St., in Valley View. The next supervisors meeting is 7 p.m. June 2.
The man who will lead the state House Judiciary Committees probe into the conduct of Schuylkill County Commissioner George F. Halcovage Jr. said Monday the authorizing resolution contains the standards for the investigation.

The resolution would simply authorize an investigation, said Franklin County state Rep. Rob W. Kauffman, R-89.

The three state representatives who represent Schuylkill County, Tim Twardzik, R-123, Butler Township, Jerry Knowles, R-124, Rush Township, and Joe Kerwin, R-125, Lykens, introduced House Resolution 99 on Friday. If passed, it would empower the committee to investigate the conduct of Halcovage, who has been accused by several women of sexually harassing and/or assaulting them in the courthouse.

Under the terms of the resolution, the Subcommittee on Courts, which is chaired by another Franklin County Republican, state Rep. Paul Schemel, R-90, would take testimony, review all relevant documents and materials, interview witnesses and prepare and file pleadings in the case.

There are no other details, except those contained in the resolution, Kauffman said.

Knowles is one of 15 GOP members of the committee. Three others, Barry J. Jozwiak, R-5, Andrew Lewis, R-105, and David R. Millard, R-109, are from the neighboring counties of Berks, Dauphin and Columbia, respectively. Ten Democrats, all of whom are from the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh areas, sit on the panel.

Under the terms of the resolution, the subcommittee can make recommendations to the committee concerning the investigation. Expenses would be paid by the chief clerk of the House upon a written request from the Speaker of the House, Lancaster County state Rep. Bryan Cutler, R-100.

No timetable has been set for passage of the resolution or the holding of hearings.
As India is facing an unprecedented coronavirus second-wave, the Indian Air Force IL-76 on Tuesday airlifted oxygen containers from Jakarta. Transfer of personnel of Indonesia's defense forces on completion of Service courses in India was also undertaken. As far as global support is concerned, continuous airlifting is being done by the IAF of medical supplies from France, Singapore, Amsterdam, and from within India. Around 534 sorties have been airlifted by the IAF so far.

Within India, an IAF C-17 airlifted four oxygen tankers from Nagpur to Bhubaneswar, four from Vijaywada to Bhubaneswar, two from Lucknow to Ranchi, two from Bhopal to Ranchi, and two from Yelahanka to Bhubaneswar. They will also be transporting four oxygen tankers from Chandigarh to Ranchi, two from Agra to Jamnagar, three from Hindan to Bhubaneswar, four from Gwalior, Bhopal, and Chennai to Ranchi and Jamnagar, and six from Hyderabad to Bhubaneswar.

As far as COVID vaccines are concerned, the Health Ministry informed on Tuesday that over 18 crore vaccine doses provided to States/UTs free of cost by the Government of India, so far. More than 90 lakh doses still available with States/UTs to be administered and over 7 Lakh doses, in addition, will be received by States/UTs in the next three days.

COVID Cases In India

India reported 3,29,942 new COVID-19 cases, 3,56,082 discharges, and 3,876 deaths in the last 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry.

Total cases: 2,29,92,517

Total discharges: 1,90,27,304

Death toll: 2,49,992

Active cases: 37,15,221

Total vaccination: 17,27,10,066

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 1,90,27,304, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.09 percent, the data stated.

India's COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5, and 50 lakh on September 16. It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20, and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19. India crossed the grim milestone of 2 crores on May 4.
New Delhi, May 10 (PTI) Israel has delivered to India third consignment of life-saving medical equipment, including over 1,300 oxygen concentrators, as part of assistance to help the country fight a severe wave of coronavirus pandemic.

The supplies were brought to Delhi in a special flight on Sunday evening.

"A third consignment of life-saving medical equipment from Israel, including over 1,300 oxygen concentrators and 400 respirators, was airlifted to India and arrived in New Delhi last night," the Israeli Embassy said.

It said Israel has sent a total of 60 tonnes of medical supplies so far.

"The State of Israel is happy to stand solidly side by side with India as a true friend and a strategic partner in this hour of need. In the last few days, we have successfully airlifted three different consignments of life-saving medical supplies to India," Israeli envoy Ron Malka said.

"This includes 60 tonnes of advanced medical equipment and several oxygen concentrators. More consignments carrying further medical aid will arrive for the people of India in coming days," he added.

The envoy said the friendship between the two countries has been strong and collaboration during the COVID-19 crisis will only make it stronger.

As India battles a devastating second wave of coronavirus pandemic, countries around the world have sent medical supplies, including oxygen-related equipment, to help it tide over the situation.

The leading countries that have supplied assistance to India included the US, Russia, France, Germany, Australia, Ireland, Belgium, Romania, Luxembourg, Singapore, Portugal, Sweden, New Zealand, Kuwait and Mauritius. PTI MPB AAR AAR

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Congress leader Salman Nizami took trolling India to a new low on Monday by having a hearty and childish guffaw at an unsavoury twitter exchange that entailed abuse being aimed at the country.

Nizami, whom the Congress' National Herald newspaper describes as a senior leader, appeared to be unable to help himself from reveling in an insult to India amid his own campaign to push support for Palestine, what with Israel coming to India's aid against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Salman Nizami mocks India's sanitation plight

#IndiaStandsWithPalestine is a hashtag and conversation that Nizami was trying to 'trend' against #IndiaStandsWithIsrael which was also atop the Twitter charts at the time. During this, the screenshot of a person who claimed 'India and Israel problems are same' was shared, and received an unkind response. The reply read 'Sorry but we have toilets'.

Toilets and their construction in India is no laughing matter, with decades of apathy regarding sanitation causing the lack of facilities to impact a significant population in the country, and being detrimental to public health. The Modi government has since its inception taking up the construction of toilets on a war footing, with mixed results. It has also tried in various ways to incentivise their construction and use - particularly as a symbol for women's empowerment - an intent that one would hope would be laudable irrespective of politics of the day.

In fact, it was to achieve universal sanitation coverage that the Prime Minister had launched the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. As per the website, "Under the mission, all villages, Gram Panchayats, Districts, States and Union Territories in India declared themselves "open-defecation free" (ODF) by 2 October 2019, the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, by constructing over 100 million toilets in rural India". The claim being contentious is acknowledged in the very next paragraph which notes sustaining ODF behaviour as the goal of Phase 2.

However, rather than regard the problem with the seriousness it deserves, Salman Nizami could seemingly only come up with 'Hahaha Ghazab bezzati hai yaar! (Hahaha what an amazing insult!)'

Netizens did not take it well, some replying in kind, and others emphasising that the politician had erred in his frivolity.

Instead of being ashamed that a PM had to take initiative in the year 2014 after being elected to create awareness program of Swachchata and building toilets. Else if Congress had been ruling the Nation, then people would still had sat on railway tracks and in open fields. A 1/2  Reshmee Dey (@deyr74) May 10, 2021

This is character of congress people inherited from people who started party..that is why India they are in 2 digit in democracy..  Shailendra P Singh (@RujjanSingh) May 10, 2021

Aapki hi party ney 70 saal toilets nhi lagayeee ... Modi ji toh laga hi rahein hein  Harry Manchanda  (@HarmanManchanda) May 10, 2021
Germany on Monday received 55,000 doses of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine from Denmark, which is currently not using the vaccine from the Swedish-British manufacturer.

The vaccines were driven across the border into Germany by police escort and received by Schleswig-Holstein State Governor, Daniel Guenther.

Denmark has been very cautious with all coronavirus vaccines, and suspended the rollout of the AstraZeneca jab on March 11th because of a rare type of blood clot seen in an extremely small number of recipients.

"It's a day of great joy for us in Schleswig-Holstein that the 55,000 doses AstraZeneca are provided for us by the Danish state government," Guenther told reporters.

Germany has recommended the AstraZeneca shot mainly for over 60s, but amid a push to get as many people inoculated as possible, the government decided to allow doctors offices to vaccinate any adults with it - putting aside a priority system under which the oldest and most vulnerable have been vaccinated first.

More than 10 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson are also expected in June or July.

Germany has now given nearly one-third of the population at least one vaccine shot.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Egypt will produce 60 million doses of the Chinese Sinovac vaccine starting next month. The country is currently battling the third wave of COVID-19 and despite multiple efforts, the Egyptian administration has failed to procure vaccine shots including that from AstraZeneca Plc. Now, with the domestic production of the vaccine, Egypt hopes to expand the mass vaccination drive.

Earlier, the countrys health ministry had said that they aim to produce 80 million doses of Chinese vaccine and 40 million doses of Russias Sputnik vaccine. However, on May 10, Mohammed Abdel Fattah, head of the central administration for preventive Affairs at Egypts Ministry of Health said that they would produce 60 million doses of the vaccine manufactured by Sinovac Biotech Ltd. Additionally, he also confirmed that Egypt would be receiving jabs of at least three vaccines- AstraZeneca, Sputnik and Sincvac in the near future.

Meanwhile, the caseload of coronavirus is no an upwards trajectory. According to the latest tally, the country has registered 238,560 cases and 13,972 fatalities till now. Amidst the pandemic, Fattah called upon Egyptian residents to take the vaccines at the earliest, noting that demand to become vaccinated has increased, especially after the outbreak of the Indian variant.

Egypt sends aid to India

Egypt delivered 300 oxygen cylinders, 50 oxygen concentrators, 20 ventilators, 8000 vials of Remdesivir and other medical equipment to India via 3 aircraft on Monday, May 10. MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi appreciated support from Egypt during these unprecedented times.

While sharing a picture on Twitter, Bagchi wrote, "Fast expanding relations. 3 aircrafts loaded with medical equipment arrive from Egypt. Total shipment includes 300 oxygen cylinders, 50 oxygen concentrators, 20 ventilators, 8000 vials of Remdesivir & other medical equipment. Deeply appreciate this support from our friend." According to the reports, the supplies shipped to India in cooperation with the Egyptian armed forces. India Embassy in Egypt has conveyed gratitude to the government and citizens of Egypt for their generous support. It wrote on Twitter, "Greatly appreciate Egypt's gesture of generous support. #IndiaEgypt."

Image: AP
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed Nagorno-Karabakh with Azerbaijan's president Ilham Aliyev during talks in Baku on Monday. During his visit to Azerbaijan's capital, Lavrov said military aspects of the conflict in the disputed region between Armenia and Azerbaijan have been resolved.

Speaking about the topic, Aliyev said that he wanted to build "future relations in the South Caucasus region that will be based on stability and foreseeability." Azerbaijan regained control of much of Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenian-held surrounding territories in last year's six-week war in which more than 6,000 people died.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Members of Black Men Build's St. Louis division joined former Missouri state representative Bruce Franks Jr. (center) for a photo at their Dr. Martin Luther King and Goodfellow street sweep on May 1, 2021.
Kathmandu, May 11 (PTI) Nepal's devastating COVID-19 outbreak showed no signs of abating on Tuesday as the country recorded its highest single-day coronavirus related deaths with 225 fatalities and 9,483 new cases in the last 24 hours.

Now, the total number of deaths stands at 4,084 and infections at 413,111, the Ministry of Health and Population said.

In the last 24 hours, 5,225 COVID-19 patients have recovered, 20,596 polymerase chain reaction tests and 720 antigen tests have been conducted, the ministry said.

There are 97,008 active coronavirus cases in the Himalayan nation.

Of the new cases, 3,927 were reported from the Kathmandu Valley, where prohibitory orders have been extended till May 27. The restriction orders were first enforced on April 29 and were due to expire on May 12.

A deadly second wave of the pandemic is sweeping across Nepal, with about 8,000 new cases being reported daily for the past several days, which is quite high for a country of approximately 30 million people.

In an opinion piece published in The Guardian newspaper on Monday, Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli, who lost a confidence vote in Nepal's House of Representatives earlier in the week, appealed to the UK and other developed nations to urgently provide his country with essential medical items, life-saving drugs and vaccines to combat the pandemic.

Meanwhile, China donated 400 oxygen cylinders, 160 oxygen concentrators, and 10 ventilators to Nepal on Tuesday.

A wide-body Nepal Airlines aircraft flew in the medical supplies, officials said, adding that the 400 oxygen cylinders are part of the 20,000 cylinders that China has promised to donate to the country.

General Manager of Nepal Airlines Dim Prakash Paudel told journalists an aircraft has been kept on standby to fly in the remaining health equipment which China has pledged.

Late last month, China had promised Nepal medical equipment and supplies equivalent to 5 million yuan (USD 780,000). The announcement was made by Chinese Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi at a virtual meeting of Foreign Ministers attended by Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. PTI SBP IND AKJ IND

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Police Chief James Craig on Monday plans to announce his retirement as head of the city's police department and possibly discuss his future plans, which could include a run for political office.

Craig, who was scheduled to speak at a news conference, has had the longest tenure of any recent Detroit police chief. The Detroit native was hired in 2013 by an emergency manager after the state assumed control of the financially broken city .

Craig, who is Black, immediately set out in to restore residents confidence in the department, which had a history of civil rights abuses by officers against the citys mostly Black population.

Detroit had about a dozen police chiefs since the early 1990s and five in the previous five years before Craig was hired. Several were forced out amid allegations of wrongdoing.

Before taking the Detroit job, Craig was Cincinnatis chief starting in 2011 after being hired in 2009 to lead the Portland, Maine, police department. Craig served 28 years in Los Angeles after starting his police career as an officer in Detroit in 1977.

Craig, 64, has railed against the numbers of illegal guns on Detroit streets while being an outspoken proponent of the Second Amendment. Following a number of justifiable shootings or those done in self-defense, Craig said in 2014 that Detroit residents had the right to arm themselves as a form of protection.

Detroiters are fed up, he said at the time. Theyre fed up with violence. Im not encouraging violence, and in fact, Im about the business of identifying those violent perpetrators that carry illegal guns.

He also has pushed back against rhetoric calling for cities to defund police departments following last Mays death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Detroit was an exception to the violent protests around the U.S. a year ago after Floyds death, but the city was sued by activists who said officers used excessive force to keep protesters in line.

Craigs retirement is good for the people, good for the city, said Kenneth Reed, spokesman for the Detroit Coalition Against Police Brutality, which often has been critical of the department and how officers have treated city residents.

He came in early on and he encouraged people to arm themselves, Reed said. He did not have a crime-fighting plan and never had.

In 2018, Detroit had 261 homicides  the fewest in decades. That year there were about 750 nonfatal shootings in the city of more than 672,000. But last year, the city topped 300 homicides. Non-fatal shootings also were up.

Republicans hope Craig decides to challenge Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, in 2022.

Chief Craig would bring a whole new level of leadership that is exciting, said Meshawn Maddock, co-chair of the Michigan Republican Party.

To date, five Republicans have formed gubernatorial campaign committees. All are lesser-known candidates without major government or political experience.

Others considering whether to run include businessman and Iraq War veteran John James, the GOP nominee for U.S. Senate in 2020 and 2018, and businesswoman Lena Epstein, who ran for a suburban Detroit congressional seat in 2018.

Whitmer, who is expected to seek reelection, had $3.5 million in her campaign account as of Dec. 31.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
A 4-year-old girl who was shot in the leg in Times Square barely cried on the way to the hospital, the police officer who carried the child to safety said.

"This little girl is the strongest person I have ever seen," NYPD Officer Alyssa Vogel told ABC News on Monday. "For somebody who has just been shot, she was just standing there, you know, obviously scared, but she wasn't crying or anything. She only yelled when we were tightening the tourniquet because that's very painful."

The 4-year-old Brooklyn girl was one of three people hit by stray bullets when someone opened fire during a dispute in Times Square at about 5 p.m. Saturday. Wendy Magrinat, 23, from Rhode Island, was shot in the leg, and a 43-year-old woman from New Jersey was shot in the foot. All are expected to recover.

Police released a video of a person of interest in the shooting, but no arrests had been made as of Monday.

New York Police Department officials posted a video of Vogel sprinting toward an ambulance with the wounded girl. "I think my motherly instincts just went to, you know, 'I need to help her,'" the officer also told ABC News.

Vogel, the mother of a 6-month-old boy, said she wants to share the praise she's received from colleagues and the community.

"Every officer on scene is a hero for that day, too, because there were multiple victims," she said.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Iran's Revolutionary Guards Navy (IRGCN) said Tuesday that it has warned the United States Navy over its 'unprofessional behaviour after the US Coast Guard ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz came in close proximity with the Iranian vessels and fired approximately 30 warning shots. US Navy guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey (CG 61), and seven patrol coastal ships, including USS Thunderbolt (PC 12), USS Hurricane (PC 3) and the Coast Guard patrol boats USCGC Wrangell (WPB 1332) encountered Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) fast in-shore attack craft (FIAC). Iran's Revolutionary Guards Navy (IRG) in a release said that it warned the US naval forces to maintain the legal maritime distance and not put up risky and unprofessional behaviour, after which they continued on their way.

A view from USS Thunderbolt (PC 12) as IRGCN FIAC & helicopters conduct unsafe & unprofessional maneuvers in close proximity to U.S. forces during a Strait of Hormuz transit May 10.



U.S. naval vessels were exercising transit passage in accordance with international law. pic.twitter.com/o1FUPrP4vj  U.S. 5th Fleet (@US5thFleet) May 11, 2021

Defending the need of firing the warning, and explaining the tense encounter that occurred in the strategic maritime chokepoint between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, US Navy in a press release said that it was exercising transit passage in the artery in accordance with customary international laws. It said that a group of Iranian IRG vessels conducted "unsafe and unprofessional manoeuvres" near the US naval vessels that were escorting a guided-missile submarine, the USS Georgia, as it was transiting on the surface.

IRGCN vessels maneuvered in an unsafe and unprofessional manner and failed to exercise due regard for the safety of US forces. Their actions were not in accordance with the internationally recognized COLREGS' rules of the road or internationally recognized maritime customsUS Navy.

[Credit: US Navy]

Full clips showing IRGCN unsafe & unprofessional maneuvers in close proximity to our ships, including guided-missile submarine USS Georgia transiting on the surface in the Strait of Hormuz. pic.twitter.com/CyHhvEhavo  U.S. 5th Fleet (@US5thFleet) May 11, 2021

IRGCN 'swarmed' US Navy within 150 yards

A group of 13 IRGCN fast attack boats, swarmed around the US Naval vessels at high speed as they came as close as within 150 yards, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told a presser. US Naval commands fifth fleet said in a statement that the US Coast Guard Cutter Maui fired approximately 30 shots, bridge-to-bridge verbal warnings, five acoustic device warnings, and five short blasts of the ships horn, the internationally recognized danger signal outlined in the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs) for IRGCNs FIAC to break the contact. There was a looming threat to the safety of US vessels and military personnel, it stressed. After IRGCN vessels closed within 300 yards [range that put the military ships and their crews in immediate danger], Maui exercised the deescalation measures.

A view from USS Squall as 2x IRGCN FIAC quickly approach USCGC Maui during a transit in the Strait of Hormuz May 10.



During the interaction, IRGCN vessels came within 150 yds of Maui at high speed, an unnecessarily close range that put the ships & their crews in danger. pic.twitter.com/h6edFGal4E  U.S. 5th Fleet (@US5thFleet) May 10, 2021
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There are t-shirts too, but I am more drawn to the Roy Lichtenstein printed bags at Uniqlo. Not least because of the price.

After all, who doesnt need a bag in the 21st century? In an age when the plastic bag has all been all but consigned to history and paper alternatives are pretty flimsy at best.

We all need reusable bags in some form or other and if we are going down that route, you might as well get one thats appealing to the eye. Not that you just need a bag for a quick shop at the supermarket. These are good enough to carry round whatever the reason.

Did I mention they were very much on the affordable side too? Well, they are. Which pretty much seals the deal for me.

Two sizes and four designs for each to choose from, each featuring an unmistakable piece of art from Roy Lichtenstein. if anyone is in doubt, a couple with his name plastered across the front too. But if you have any vague interest in pop art, youll know who is responsible for any of these bag designs.

All have been produced in association with the Estate of Roy Lichtenstein and all are 100 per cent cotton in terms of construction. Oh yes, all are the same price too. All the bags retail for just 5.90 each, which means you can probably afford to splash out on multiple designs if you are a fan.

Note that these kind of products tend to sell through fast, so dont hang about if you want to pick one up.

Find out more at the Uniqlo website

As I said at the start, there is also a t-shirt range for both men and women if you want to wear the designs too. Five designs in total, with the one above being just one of them. Check out all the t-shirts here.
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We'd just ask you to understand that those ads help us pay the bills  and our reporters. Please, consider white-listing the Standard Journal in your ad-blocker or, even better, purchase a subscription so that you can help support quality local journalism.
Prison officials say Pin Kimseng died of pneumonia, but his body showed signs of physical assault including injuries to his head and a broken neck.

Pin Kimseng, who died in Cambodian police custody on May 3, 2021, is shown in an undated photo.

Cambodias National Committee Against Torture is promising to investigate the death in custody of a young detainee whose body was returned to his family bearing signs of physical assault, including injuries to his head and a broken neck, family members say.

Pin Kimseng, a 21-year-old resident of Beantey Meanchey provinces Poipet city, was found dead on May 3 after prison officials sent him for medical treatment at a referral hospital in Battambang. He had been held in custody since February in connection with a case of theft.

Hospital head Kak Seila wrote on Pin Kimsengs death certificate that he had died of pneumonia, but the victims mother, Met Soksan, said her son was in good health when he was detained and had never had pneumonia in the past.

Speaking to RFA on Tuesday, Met Soksan said she was recently contacted by an official named Top Samphy from the National Committee Against Torture, a department of Cambodias Ministry of the Interior, who questioned her about her sons death.

I told him that my son had been tortured to death in prison, Met Soksan said. When I saw his body, his head was swollen, blood was flowing from his ears, and his neck appeared to be broken, she added.

If Pin Kimseng had really died of pneumonia, prison authorities should have informed her when he first fell ill, Met Soksan said. Instead, they just called me to collect the body after he had already passed away.

What had my son done wrong that they should have tortured him to death? she asked.

Following their interview, Top Samphy told her that he would expedite an investigation into the case, she said.

Attempts by RFA to reach Top Samphy for comment on Tuesday were unsuccessful.

Drug use charged

Prison Department spokesperson Nuth Savna denied that prison officials had tortured Pin Kimseng as his mother claimed, insisting that the detainee had died of pneumonia.

I reject the accusation of torture, Nuth Savna told RFA, adding, His symptoms showed clearly that he had pneumonia and that he had also been using drugs."

"I checked about this with an expert, who told me that when [Pin Kimseng] stopped using drugs, there were serious side effects to his health," he said.

A video taken of Pin Kimsengs body after his death, and obtained by RFA, shows visible bruising on his neck and blood flowing from both ears, staining his face.

Questions raised

The circumstances of Pin Kimsengs death raise many questions that authorities must now look into, said Ying MenglyBattambang provincial coordinator for the rights group Adhocwelcoming the National Committee Against Tortures promise of an investigation.

If a crime is found to have been committed, the Committee must report the facts to the Minister of the Interior for prosecution, he said.

I would request the Committee to be more active, accurate, and independent [in their reporting] so that we can rely on them and people will have confidence in their findings, Ying Mengly said, noting that at least three other unresolved cases of deaths in custody have recently been reported, with family members alleging torture by police.

Am Sam Ath, deputy director for human rights for the Cambodian rights group Licadho, said that prisoners fates should be decided only by the law.

The law on prison management says that if anyone dies in prison, there must be an investigation into the reasons for that death, and indications of torture must always be questioned, he said.

Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Richard Finney.
The South Asian country wont gain anything by participating in four-nation strategic alliance, Chinese ambassador says.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina (left) and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands as she arrives for a meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, July 5, 2019.

Ties between Bangladesh and China could be substantially damaged if the South Asian country joins any initiative launched by the Quad alliance, Beijings envoy to Dhaka told reporters on Monday.

Bangladesh will gain nothing by participating in efforts by the Quad, Chinese Ambassador Li Jiming said, as member countries of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue woo Dhaka to be part of their Indo-Pacific efforts.

Bilateral relations with Bangladesh would be substantially damaged if it joins hand with [Quad] initiatives, Li said in response to reporters questions about the group comprising the United States, Japan, Australia and India.

It is not wise to ponder over joining [initiatives] with such a small group or club. [The Quad] is a narrow-purposed geopolitical clique, and Bangladesh should not join it, since it will not derive any benefit from it, he added.

Lis comments partially corroborate what Chinese state media reported about Defense Minister Wei Fenghes talks with Bangladesh President Abdul Hamid on April 27.

According to the Xinhua news agency, Wei told Hamid that Beijing and Dhaka must make joint efforts against powers outside the region setting up a military alliance in South Asia.

Wei raised the issue of the Quad during his talks with Hamid, Bangladesh Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen told BenarNews. A Bangladesh official who attended the Wei-Hamid meeting, but who was not authorized to speak to the media, said Hamid did not talk about the Quad.

Defense Minister Wei seemed displeased at the formation of the Quad. The honorable president listened patiently, but he did not utter a single word about the Quad, the official told BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.

Beijings warning came after the Quad, at a virtual meeting in March, agreed to deliver 1 billion COVID-19 vaccines to Indo-Pacific nations by 2022, a move that analysts said was a perfect counterpoint to Chinas so-called vaccine diplomacy.

Analysts also said it was a big step in countering Chinas One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative, Beijings geopolitical program to build a modern-day Silk Road through a network of ports, railways, roads and trade routes to connect China to markets in Southeast Asia, South Asia and beyond.

Bangladesh is among countries that China is targeting under OBOR. In 2016, Beijing and Dhaka signed a memorandum under which China agreed to lend Bangladesh U.S. $25 billion tied to 27 Chinese-backed infrastructure projects.

And now, with the halt in COVID-19 supplies to Bangladesh from India, Dhaka is looking to Beijing to fill the vaccine gap. On Monday, Ambassador Li said Chinas gift of 500,000 doses of Sinopharms coronavirus vaccine would reach Bangladesh on Wednesday.

The vaccine aid arrives just in time, Xinhua quoted Li as saying.

[I]t is the latest outcome of China-Bangladesh anti-pandemic cooperation, which again shows that our two peoples are in the same boat, and we will stand with each other till the end of this battle, he said.

Indo-Japanese efforts in Bangladesh

Meanwhile, India and Japan are working separately and together to finance infrastructure projects in Bangladesh, research organization Observer Research Foundation (ORF) noted in a brief in April.

Increasingly, India is finding its space in Japans foreign policy frameworks such as  the Quadrilateral Initiative.  Japans Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) and Indias Act East Policy are complementary frameworks that create scope for the two countries to deepen their collaboration in the region, the New Delhi-based ORF said.

The two countries have thus begun to collaborate in third countries: for instance, in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. In recent years, the bilateral partnership between India and Japan has expanded and they are pooling efforts in third countries in the context of their shared outlook towards the Indo-Pacific.

New Delhi and Tokyo are already collaborating on two projects in Bangladesh  the Ramgarh-Baraiyarhat Highway and the Jamuna Railway Bridge, ORF said.

India and Japan are key middle powers in the Indo-Pacific, so infrastructure linkages in the region are significant vis-a-vis China, the research organization said.

While the partnership is not overtly a step to supplement the many potential measures to counterbalance perceived apprehensions with regard to Chinas growing footprint, it offers scope for smaller nations in the region to reduce their reliance on China and look to engage with other countries, ORF said.

For Ambassador Li, the Quad is decidedly anti-China.

China always maintains that the U.S.-led Quad is a minor anti-China initiative  a military alliance aimed against Chinas resurgence and its relationship with neighboring countries, Li said.

It is a small club of four, and we all know what it is for  for China  and that is why Japan has joined hands with the U.S.

In April, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the Quad was not aimed at one country. But after the groups leaders met in March, he acknowledged that they did discuss the challenge posed by China, according to news reports.

As for Bangladesh, it hopes to reap benefits from both China and Quad nations, even as it walks a tightrope.

We do not see any problem in joining any alliance in the world for peace and development. But we are not [interested] in a military alliance. According to our foreign policy, friendship with all is not enmity with anyone, a senior foreign ministry official, who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters, told BenarNews.

One analyst said Bangladesh needed to tread carefully.

As an independent country, Bangladesh has the right to decide whether to join or not. But a friendly state like China cannot be ignored. So when China raises an objection, Bangladesh has to proceed cautiously, Ehsanul Haque, a professor of international relations at Dhaka University, told BenarNews.

Reported by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.
Jailed Chinese rights lawyer Yu Wensheng, who was held incommunicado for three years and sentenced to jail for "incitement to subvert state power," was allowed a visit from relatives at the weekend, his wife said.



Yu's young son was allowed to visit his father in Nanjing Prison on , along with his mother Xu Yan, Xu told RFA.



The couple's son spoke with Yu by phone from behind a glass partition during the half-hour visit, Xu said.



"Yu Wensheng had a very good chat with our son," she said. "Both them were laughing a lot, and there was no sense of strangeness."



"Yu Wensheng gave him a lot of guidance and advice about various things that were going on in his life, and he took it readily," Xu said.



"Our son told his father that he missed him, and Yu was happy to hear that," she said. "Yu told him that he had wanted to spend more time with him ... and apologized for not being there longer than three years."



The reunion was the first face-to-face meeting in more than three years, with the authorities blaming the coronavirus pandemic for the repeated cancelation of family visits.



'Stressful and emotionally damaging'

But Xu said having her son speak to his father in a prison visiting room via a telephone was also not enough, and that the authorities had turned down her request for an informal visit.



"There are legal and practical precedents for [more humane] family visits," Xu said. "For example, getting to see the person face-to-face, sometimes maybe eat together."



"[We could] sit face-to-face in their dormitory, sitting on the bed and chat to them," she said.



"That part of the visit was actually pretty stressful, and emotionally damaging," Xu said. "I was hoping to protect our son, a minor, as much as possible."



"It's a shame that Nanjing Prison didn't agree to it."



Xu said Yu is currently in a section of the prison with no air-conditioning, sparking concerns for his well-being in the summer heat in Nanjing, one of China's notorious "furnace" cities.



Meanwhile, authorities in the southwestern region of Guangxi arranged a video call between detained rights lawyer Qin Yongpei and his elderly mother, coinciding with the U.S. celebration of Mother's Day, Qin's wife told RFA.



"Since [Qin was detained] last year, she has been staying up late at night, even sitting up until dawn," Deng Xiaoyun said after the visit.



She said Qin's mother had started refusing food in protest at not being allowed to contact her son.



"She stopped eating or drinking and went on a hunger strike," Deng said. "She fainted [on ] ... and stopped breathing."



"Luckily they were able to revive her," she said.



Trouble maintaining composure

"[The court] made an arrangement that was actually humane ... and she has come back to life and is eating and drinking again, which is amazing," Deng said, adding that the video call had finally been approved after multiple requests.



"Throughout the call, the old lady was very happy, full of energy and didn't cry," Deng said. "She kept saying 'I thought I would never see you again'."



"I saw Qin Yongpei was having trouble maintaining his composure, but he managed not to cry, and consoled his mother," she said.



"He told her 'I'm going to get out of here; you just have to wait for me'," Deng said.



Deng said she wasn't optimistic about Qin's chances of release, however.



"I am a very pessimistic person .. but he always sees life as being full of hope; that's just the way he is," she said.



Family members have long suspected that Yu Wensheng was tortured and ill-treated while in custody, as he only has limited use of his right hand, and is unable to write, brush his teeth or harvest crops as part of prison labor.



He was recently sent to hospital for medical attention to his hand.



Earlier this year, Yu was named as a finalist for the Martin Ennals Award honoring human rights defenders.



The Martin Ennals Foundation called him "one of the best-known and most intrepid human rights activists" in China, acknowledging that Yu has been subjected to arbitrary detention, a secret trial, and the removal of his license to practice law.



Qin Yongpei was detained in early November by the Nanning municipal police department during a raid on his Baijuying legal consultancy company.



His wife Deng has previously said that Qin had spoken out many times about misconduct and injustices perpetrated by police and local judicial officials, and had likely angered many within the local law enforcement community.



Reported by Gao Feng for RFA's Mandarin and Cantonese Services. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Chen Mei and Cai Wei pleaded guilty to public order charges in a move family members said was forced.

Two Chinese activists who kept an online repository of banned articles on the coronavirus pandemic stood trial in Beijing on Tuesday, while a journalist was attacked by unidentified thugs in Hong Kong.

Chen Mei and Cai Wei stood trial at the Chaoyang District People's Court in Beijing, on charges of "picking quarrels and stirring up trouble," a charge frequently used to target peaceful critics of the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

According to Chen Mei's brother, Chen Kun, their mother and Cai Wei's father were allowed to attend the trial, which lasted around 100 minutes.

The pair were accused in the indictment of posting around 600 articles to their Terminus2049 page on Github, creating a repository of censored and deleted articles about the early weeks of the pandemic in China, according to the indictment against them.

The articles and social media posts included a eulogy for late whistleblowing Wuhan doctor Li Wenliang, and an interview with former Wuhan Central Hospital ER director Ai Fen.

Both Chen and Cai pleaded guilty, and the trial ended, with sentencing to be announced at a later date.

Both were held under "residential surveillance at a designated location (RSDL)," despite the fact that neither was accused of a crime involving national security.

They were allocated "defense" attorneys by the government, while a rights attorney hired by Chen's family was prevented from acting for his client.

Chen's mother Wei Xiuwen said the insistence on official lawyers was illegal. "Basically the entire case was handled by the prosecution working with official lawyers," she said.

"They are persecuting Chen Mei and handling the case illegally," Wei said, vowing to appeal. "Chen Mei is not guilty, and I will not accept any length of [prison] sentence, not even one day."

Forced confessions

Chen's brother Chen Kun told RFA after the trial that the pair had likely "confessed" under duress.

"They forced them to plead guilty, they assigned [officially approved] lawyers to them, and they stopped the outside world from gaining access to the courtroom," Chen Kun said.

He said the pair were almost certain to be convicted, and that he was concerned about their sentence.

"The maximum sentence for picking quarrels and stirring up trouble is five years," Chen Kun said.

Cai's father Cai Jianli said he had written to the prosecutor to protest the handling of the case.

"They just say you have committed a crime, and they give you no chance to defend yourself, or to fight it," he said.

Hong Kong barrister and rights activist Chow Hang-tung said the international community should pay attention to Cai and Chen's case.

"China has dealt with these enthusiastic young people with extreme harshness," Chow told RFA. "Their idea of controlling the pandemic was to shut down any information about it."

Reporter attacked with bat

Meanwhile, unidentified thugs in Hong Kong beat up a journalist for the Epoch Times newspaper, which has close ties to the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement.

An unidentified man attacked reporter Sarah Liang with a softball bat outside her apartment building. Liang suffered bruises to both legs and was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

Liang had earlier reported being followed by an unknown man on April 26, as well as a man harassing her at her home on April 24.

She told RFA on Tuesday that a "thin, vicious-looking man with short hair" had set about her with the bat.

"I didn't know him," she said. "He hit me with the bat, and didn't say anything the whole time."

"I think it was meant to send a message to all Hong Kong media and frontline reporters," Liang said. "They want to silence us."

"They are now openly beating people up in broad daylight, and I think it is a kind of war against the people of Hong Kong," she said.

The attack came after a printing press used by the paper was smashed up by people with sledgehammers on April 12.

"The actions against the Epoch Times are part of a campaign of intimidation, violent attacks, illegal arrests, and stigmatization by CCP officials and in CCP-controlled media directed against the free press in Hong Kong," the editorial said.

"The CCP seeks to intimidate journalists and citizens, making honest reporting more difficult to do in Hong Kong, and to force the free press to abandon working there," it said.



Reported by Lu Xi, Xue Xiaoshan and Gigi Lee for RFA's Mandarin and Cantonese Services. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Farmers laugh after being told to fight a compost battle in their toilets.

This handout photo taken on September 19, 2019 and released on October 24 by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) shows farmer Ri Jong Gi, 50, working in a rice field in North Korea's South Hamgyong province.

North Korea regularly demands a lot from its citizens, from free labor at building sites to food donations for troops. But the latest order to farmers has them wetting themselves with scornful laughter: Each farmer must donate two liters of their urine daily to make fertilizer, sources in the country told RFA.

North Korea normally imports huge amounts of fertilizer from its largest trading partner China, but the northeast Asian neighbors closed their border and suspended all trade at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in January 2020.

As the country prepares to enter the crucial planting season, those in charge of the agricultural sector have had to come up with innovative strategies to produce compost to ensure that they can meet this years grain production goals.

These days, farms in North Hamgyong province have been ordered to produce compost so that the farms will have a supply of fertilizers, a source from the agricultural industry from the northeastern border province told RFAs Korean Service May 5.

The provincial rural management commission ordered the farms to produce the compost from humus, and then instructed the farmers to donate their urine to be mixed into the compost, the source said.

Farms in North Hamgyong had been complaining about fertilizer shortages ahead of the busy planting season, but the authorities left the solution to the problem to the farm workers themselves, according to the source.

In some of the cooperative farms, the workers are forced to bring two liters of urine per person per day to mix into the compost pile until the production goal is achieved, the source said. Two liters is about four-tenths of a gallon.

They have to keep track of their donated urine in a record book, so if they do not donate enough, they will be criticized by their work group, added the source.

The Farm Management Committee is urging the farmers to produce the compost to carry out the plans laid out during the Eighth Party Congress in January, calling it a compost battle, the source said, referring to the rare meeting of the ruling Korean Workers Party, during which leader Kim Jong Un leaned hard into the countrys founding Juche self-reliance ideology.

But as much as authorities try to frame the project as a revolutionary struggle, the farmers think the situation is ridiculous.

Some farm workers say that they live in a reality where they cannot help but laugh because they are criticized for not offering enough urine, the source said.

Another source, from the northern province of Ryanggang, confirmed to RFA on May 6 that farmers there also faced urine quotas.

At the Eighth Party Congress in January, the Highest Dignity emphasized that the core goal for the agricultural sector was to achieve food self-sufficiency, the second source said, using an honorific term to refer to Kim Jong Un.

So the farms are engaged in a battle to produce compost to be used instead of scarce supplies of chemical fertilizers, the second source said.

The source confirmed that the farmers were directed to mix their own urine and feces with humus to make the compost.

Each farm is to set aside two liters of urine per farm worker per day, and farm workers must keep record of their donations in a ledger, the second source said.

One of the new tasks of the Cabinet Project Report that was announced through the Rodong Sinmun in March was to strengthen national support in rural areas. Farmers are expressing their resentment at the authorities for forcing them to produce more body waste during the farming season, said the second source.

Forcing citizens to contribute their waste to the farming sector has become increasingly common in recent years.

RFA reported in Oct. 2019 that after authorities ordered each able-bodied citizen to collect an unreasonable 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of feces for the year, they began stealing from each others outhouses and fighting to control public toilets. The more well-off citizens were able to contribute money instead.

While doing almost nothing for the farmers, the authorities are framing it as if they are supporting rural areas, saying the agricultural sector is the pillar of socialist economic construction according to the second source.

Missing the sowing season would be ruinous for the farming sector, so farmers here in Ryanggang did their best to make the compost with their own feces and urine mixed with humus. As a result, they met their production goals at the end of last month, the second source said.

But the situation is very difficult for the hardworking farmers according to the second source.

The authorities are ordering that the farmers achieve grain production goals, and the farmers have suffered all kinds of troubles this year, as they have had to endure all kinds of weird requirements like reporting to work with collected urine every day.

U.N Special Rapporteur on North Korean Human Rights Tomas Ojea Quintana warned in a report in March that the closure of the Sino-Korean border and restrictions on the movement of people could bring on a serious food crisis.

Deaths by starvation have been reported, as has an increase in the number of children and elderly people who have resorted to begging as families are unable to support them, said the report.

A lack of artificial fertilizer contributed to the 1994-1998 North Korean famine. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, North Koreas access to cheap fuel imports suddenly evaporated.

Domestic fertilizer production came to an abrupt stop and crop yields nosedived, resulting in mass starvation of millions, as much as 10 percent of the population by some estimates.

Reported by Jeong Yon Park for RFAs Korean Service. Translated by Leejin Jun. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
North Korea is ordering local leaders of the countrys main youth organization to change reviewers of self-criticism meetings to force young people to snitch on each other more honestly, sources in the country told RFA.

The new policy requiring people from outside ones youth group evaluate mandatory self-criticism sessions is designed to break up cozy relations that have formed within units in which people rehearse their lines and cover for each other, the sources said.

Every North Korean citizen must perform saenghwal chonghwa, or self-criticism, where they must confess their own state loyalty shortcomings, then publicly report any disloyal tendencies in their peers. Experts say the state uses these sessions to turn citizens against each other in order to control them more effectively.

For adults, self-criticism is done during mandatory meetings of their local neighborhood watch unit, while youth start from the age of 13, when they begin attending meetings of the Socialist Patriotic Youth League.

The league, formerly known as the Kimilsungist-Kimjongilist Youth League, is modeled after the Soviet Komsomol. In late April, the league held a nationwide congress in Pyongyang, where it received its new name, and new directives from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on how to conduct the sessions.

As soon as the 10th Congress of the Socialist Patriotic Youth League was over, they started inspections of the weekly self-criticism sessions for the youth here in Ryanggang province, a resident of the northern border province told RFAs Korean Service last week.

During the inspections, low-level chairpersons that lead Youth League organizations in each factory observe the sessions in different factories, to review and report on them, said the source.

Across the country, many citizens have come to take the weekly sessions for granted, and they collude with each other beforehand on how they will criticize each other, so they can avoid raising any red flags by being too harsh. Leaders of the sessions may also form friendships with attendees and allow them to simply go through the motions week after week.

The new policy on youth confessions aims to put a stop to this.

The low-level chairperson dispatched to each Youth League organization should attend the self-criticism session and report on how honestly the young people criticize themselves in regard to antisocialist and nonsocialist thought, and how intensively they criticize other young people on the same subject, said the source.

Another source, a resident of the northwestern border province of North Pyongan, told RFA that at a collective farm in Ryongchon county, chairpersons who returned from the 10th congress began inspecting the self-criticism session notes of youth league members.

Since this review project lasts until the end of this month, all young people are pretty much forced to be honest in their criticism of their own and each others antisocialist and nonsocialist tendencies, said the second source.

They are conducting the review by sending youth league chairpersons to a different farm than their own. The purpose is to cross-inspect other cells of the youth league so that self-criticism is more genuine, because until now sessions have been more or less a formality, the second source said.

The second source said the first cross-inspection of the sessions would take place on Saturday May 8, and that the people wondered how they might be different.

The chairpersons are insisting that young people who have called people in foreign countries, especially in South Korea, or those that listened to foreign broadcasting in secret should self-criticize and earn the partys forgiveness, said the second source.

They are also trying to make the youth criticize each other more sharply so they can find out who has been imitating South Korean speaking styles, dyeing their hair brown, and wearing clothing with English letters, the second source said, citing the signs of outside influence Pyongyang tries to suppress.

The second source said that the youth find the new policy to be invasive.

They are very critical of the authorities, who have nothing better to do than observe their self-criticism sessions and brand them enemies of socialism all while expecting them to work hard during the busier farming seasons.

RFA reported last year that authorities were cracking down on young people for texting each other using slang terms they learned by watching or listening to South Korean media illegally, or for using South Korean spellings.

At emergency meetings of the youth league in May 2020, authorities confiscated members mobile phones and threatened harsh punishments if they found any illegal media or texts.

Reported by Hyemin Son for RFAs Korean Service. Translated by Leejin Jun. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Arzugul Kadeer is one of 38 of the activists relatives who have been detained by authorities.

Uyghur democracy leader Rebiya Kadeer (L) speaks during a demonstration flanked by Free Tibet activists and Hong Kong protesters in Osaka on against a controversial extradition bill in Hong Kong, during the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, June 28, 2019.it.

Arzugul Kadeer, the younger sister of veteran Uyghur rights advocate Rebiya Kadeer, is confirmed to have died one week after her release from an internment camp, according to official sources in northwest Chinas Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR).

Rebiya Kadeer recently spoke out about how her relatives back in the XUAR have been targeted for detention, in part due to her advocacy efforts abroad, after Chinese authorities in March forced her granddaughter Aydidar Kahar and her younger brother Mamatjan Kadeer to speak onscreen at a press conference, claiming that all members of the family are free and living happily.

The press conference was the latest bid by Beijing to control the narrative about the situation in the XUAR, where authorities are believed to have held up to 1.8 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities as part of a campaign of mass extralegal incarceration since early 2017.

Amid increasing scrutiny of Chinas policies in the XUAR, the U.S. government in January designated abuses in the region part of a campaign of genocidea label that was similarly applied by the parliaments of Canada, The Netherlands, and the U.K. China has dismissed the allegations and sought to undermine claims by former detainees by coercing their relatives to call them liars on camera.

Rebiya Kadeer, 74, a prominent businesswoman in northwestern Chinas Xinjiang region, was released from a Chinese prison in March 2005 on medical parole after being jailed for six years for sending politically sensitive newspaper clippings abroad, and went into exile in the U.S. She served 11 years as leader of the exile World Uyghur Congress (WUC), and heads the International Uyghur Human Rights and Democracy Foundation.

According to Rebiya Kadeer, a total of 38 of her family members have been in some form of detention in the region. She said that among those detained were her sisters Arzugul Kadeer and Halcham Kadeer, as well as five others who were released only after their health was in critical conditionincluding her brother Memet Kadeer and her son Ablikim Abdurehim.

Rebiya Kadeer said that her relationship with Arzugul had been cut off since mid-2014, but in late 2017 she received information that her sister had died in a camp. Rebiya noted that she and Arzugul had continued speaking on the phone through 2014 despite threats from the police, leading police to repeatedly call her in for questioning and even conduct a raid of her home.

RFAs Uyghur Service called authorities in Arzugul Kadeers home county of Kuchar (in Chinese, Kuche), in the XUARs Aksu (Akesu) prefecture, several times in 2017 to confirm the claim but was unable to do so after personnel refused to provide any information about the case.

However, a source claiming familiarity with the situation in Kuchar, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear of reprisal, told RFA that Arzugul Kadeer, who was retired from the Kuchar County Bureau of Food and Beverages, had been detained for a month by police in the aftermath of deadly unrest in the XUAR capital Urumqi.

Some 200 people died and 1,700 were injured in the three-day rampage of violence that began on July 5, 2009 in Urumqi between ethnic minority Uyghurs and Han Chinese, according to Chinas official figures, although Uyghur rights groups say the numbers are much higher.

At the time, authorities claimed Rebiya Kadeer had instigated the unrest from abroad. It remains unclear under what circumstances Arzugul Kadeer was detained and under what terms she was released.

Rebiya Kadeer's sister, Arzugul Kadeer, one of 38 of the Uyghur activist's relatives who have been detained by authorities, in an undated photo. Credit: Rebiya Kadeer

Subsequent detentions

The source said Arzugul Kadeer was detained for a second time in June 2014, the same period in which China claimed there was a wave of religious extremism in the XUAR and began a crackdown on Uyghur society, known as the New Strike Hard Campaign, that included large-scale detentions and high-profile trials.

She was reportedly released in mid-2015 after serving a one-year term in prison following this second detention and subsequent arrest. The charges that landed her in jail and the conditions and terms of her release also remain unknown at this time.

RFAs source said Arzugul Kadeer had been detained by representatives of the neighborhood committee in Saqsaq in coordination with Kuchars Dongmehelle Township Police Station, however, relevant officials in Saqsaq could not confirm the information.

A representative of the Kuchar county police station revealed that she had once received a report stating that Arzugul Kadeer was missing and asking for information on her whereabouts, but then declined to comment further.

According to RFAs source, Arzugul was detained a third and final time in 2017 at the age of 69. The source said that she was unable to withstand the interrogations and torture she received while in detention, and that her health rapidly declined, resulting in her loss of physical strength and inability to move.

The source also claimed that after she failed to comply with certain arrangements inside the camp, police turned her over to the neighborhood committee of Saqsaq in a state of poor health. Committee workers took her to the Kuchar County Hospital, and one week later the authorities turned her body over to her children.

A police officer in Kuchar city confirmed that Arzugul died in hospital three or four years ago. She claimed that the party-state cared for her on account of her old age and that she had left educationa euphemism for the campearly, despite her many mistakes, but also noted that the treatment she received in the hospital was ultimately ineffective due to serious health problems.

She died in the hospital, the officer said. Apparently she was ill, she added, noting that Arzugul had died approximately one week after leaving the camp. She was unable to provide any details on the cause of death.

Targeting family members

Abdurashid Niyaz, an independent researcher in Turkey, told RFA that cracking down on dissidents and their family members is a particularly cruel and inhumane act, and suggested that such methods are a sign not of strength, but rather of weakness.

Although its very clear that these detained and surveilled prisoners have absolutely no relationship to the political activities their relatives are engaging in, the Chinese communists are adopting and using such cruel methods in an attempt to preserve their rule and to achieve stability, even if for just a period, he said.

But humanity will not forgive this, and cannot accept it, because punishing peoples relatives is a method that is contradictory to human nature.

Nonetheless, he said, Uyghur rights activists are aware of the risks facing themselves and their loved ones and are often mentally prepared to pay such a price for their activism.

Throughout history we have seen the price [of this work] in front of our very eyes and are still continuing to work for our political struggle, he said.

I believe that if it becomes necessary to pay the price of our own lives for the freedom and independence of our homeland, no Uyghur would think twice.

Reported by Shohret Hoshur for RFAs Uyghur Service. Translated by the Uyghur Service. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
Vietnam says the past two weeks were the worst so far, while Cambodias capital will review quarantine restrictions.

Laos announced its first COVID-19 fatality, a Vietnamese woman who hid her infection from authorities, while local transmission increased pace in Vietnam and Cambodias capital Phnom Penh planned to reduce restrictive quarantine measures.

Laos Department of Healthcare and Rehabilitation announced Sunday that a 53-year-old Vietnamese woman who resided in Laos was the first death in Laos since the beginning of the pandemic in early 2020.

She was in a high-risk group but went to hospital late. She tried to avoid treatment. In fact, she was hiding and not asking for treatment, said Bouathep Phoumin, deputy director general of the department at a press conference.

Vietnamese state media identified the woman by her initials L.T.T., saying she was from Vietnams Thai Nguyen province in the north. She had gone to Laos in early 2020 to work in a karaoke club in the Lao capital Vientiane.

L.T.T. had tested positive for COVID-19 and was hospitalized April 30. She had two underlying conditions, diabetes and hepatitis B, which are believed to have caused complications in her treatment.

Vietnams Ministry of Health had contacted Xaysetthathirath Hospital in Vientiane where L.T.T. was in critical condition on May 8 to offer advice, but she died at 1 a.m. May 9.

Laos confirmed 25 new cases of COVID 19 Monday, bringing its total since the beginning of the pandemic to 1,327 according to statistics from the health ministry.

Of the new cases, 15 were detected in Bokeo Province in the northwest, the site of a Chinese special economic zone with a reputation for less stringent border controls, which has been on lockdown for the past few days.

Bokeo has confirmed the second most cases in the country with 284 cases, behind Vientiane with 730 cases.

More than 200 cases came from Tongpheung District. Were testing more people aggressively, a member of Bokeos Taskforce Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control told RFAs Lao Service Monday.

The committee member said that most of the positive cases work in the Golden Triangle SEZ, a popular casino and resort area that caters to Chinese tourists.

The SEZ is itself under lockdown with nobody allowed in or out.

We set up barriers between the SEZ and Tonpheung District banning people from sneaking into the district from the SEZ. Whoever violates this rule will be prosecuted, an official of the district told RFA.

An SEZ worker who lives in a dormitory there told RFA she was unable to leave her room.

I cannot go anywhere else. I work in my room. Someone delivers food to me here, she said.

Rapid spread in Vietnam

Health authorities in Vietnam said that the coronavirus has over the past two weeks spread faster than at any time since the beginning of the pandemic.

State media reported that the health ministry published an emergency mid-day news bulletin Monday saying the country had detected 32 more new infections that morning, 31 of which were local transmissions in Bac Ninh and Vinh Phuc provinces and in the cities of Da Nang and Hanoi.

Authorities said Monday at a meeting of the National Steering Committee on COVID-19 Prevention and Control that transmissions stemming from these four areas resulted in 458 total cases in 26 different cities and provinces over the past two weeks.

Vietnam had been among the most successful countries in tackling COVID-19, reporting no deaths among its 95 million people through late July 2020a record that was attributed to effective contact tracing, strict quarantines, and early testing.

But in January, a new outbreak was detected and since then Vietnam has been reporting cases more frequently than last year.

Through Monday Vietnam has confirmed 3,412 cases of the virus and 35 deaths according to World Health Organization (WHO) statistics.

Cambodia prison outbreak

In Cambodia, 34 prisoners in Sihanoukville's Preah Sihanouk provincial prison tested positive for COVID-19 on

Srey Phon appealed her inmate sister, Mey Sophan, who has a dependent child, to be released on bail.

I am worried about her. And I am also worried about her very small child, who needs to be taken care of, so she should be allowed bail," Srey Phon told RFA.

Srey Siet, wife of a political prisoner from the banned opposition party, called on authorities to release her husband.

Su Yean, a former official of the Cambodia National Rescue Party in Tbong Khmum province, is at risk because he has existing ailments, she said.

I'm worried about my husband because he has a physical illness and I request his release," she told RFA. "I have a very hard time every day," she added.

Speaking to RFA on Monday, the spokesman for the General Department of Prisons, Nuth Savana, said prison authorities are asking the courts to release some prisoners jailed for minor crimes or who are close to the end of their sentences.

"We request to the courts and they also consider whether to release some prisoners on bail or early. It is the jurisdiction of the court, so the proposal is being considered, but it is under the jurisdiction of the courts.

Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said HRW and other groups had long called on Cambodia to introduce physical distancing measures, improve hygiene and reduce prison overcrowding among ther steps "to safeguard the rights of people in detention to adequate health care and protection against Covid-19."

"Sadly, our calls fell on deaf ears as the Cambodian government ignored those urgent calls and acted in a negligent way. Its sad that there had to be a health and human rights disaster like we are seeing now before the Cambodian government woke up and started to respond to Covid-19 in the countrys dangerously overcrowded prisons," he said in a statement.

Cambodias capital Phnom Penh announced that it would reduce the scope of areas under lockdown in so-called red zones, a move that civil society organizations applauded and came as the citys caseload has begun to drop.

Vorn Pov, the president of the Independent Democracy of Informal Economy Association (IDEA), told RFA that the reduced plan would benefit informal workers and poor people but called on the government to do more.

The state must govern and collaborate with civil society organizations to prevent further outbreaks, because the past outbreaks were due to authorities negligence.

Cambodia is weathering an outbreak that started Feb. 20 and caused authorities to divide Phnom Penh into isolated red zones in order to stop the spread of the virus. Human rights groups said the strict enforcement of the zones had led to food insecurity and abuses at the hands of the enforcers.

New data on the virus situation revealed on Saturday indicated that the citys caseload had begun to drop significantly. The citys governor, Khuong Sreng, told journalists on May 9 during his visit to one of the red zones that the easing of restrictions was still in the planning stages.

"I am evaluating the situation with technicians and I am looking at the red zones. Yesterday in Phnom Penh, there were only a little more than 200 cases, this is one success that we can attribute to our strict policy at the commune and village levels and then from each village to the individual house, he said.

Prior to May 8, it was believed that Phnom Penh had more than 500 cases, mostly among poor people living in red zones.

Sun Samai, a resident of Phnom Penhs Por Sen Chey district, told RFA that authorities re-designated her area from red to yellow, allowing residents to go out and buy food. But many have no money after not earning any income for the past month.

This will allow us to go out and buy something to eat, or we can go find snails and morning glory in the rice fields, she said.

Through Monday, Cambodia confirmed 19,743 cases of the virus and 126 deaths, according to local figures.

Reported by RFAs Lao, Vietnamese and Khmer Services. Translated by Max Avary, Anna Vu and Sok Ry Sum. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
The move comes amid a further government tightening of controls over news and information sharing online.

Vietnamese authorities have temporarily closed one of the countrys social media platforms, fining the business over $4,000 and revoking its license for eight months in a move further tightening government control over the sharing of information online, state media sources say.

VNbrands.vn, belonging to the Vietnam Digital Brands Joint Stock Company, was fined 105 million Vietnamese dollars (U.S. $4,100) on May 7 by Vietnams Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information for what authorities said was an inadequate disclosure of service conditions and agreements on its homepage.

VNbrands operating license was also suspended for eight months, media sources said, adding that the company had further provided insufficient or inaccurate information related to its license and owners name.

Over the past few years, Vietnam has tightened its controls over the sharing of information on social media, with many users fined or even prosecuted and jailed on charges of publishing fake or unverified informationespecially concerning the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and Vietnams recent ruling Party Congress, which elected the countrys new leadership group.

In 2020, Vietnams Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information and Hanois and Ho Chi Minh Citys Departments of Information and Communications levied administrative fines of over VND 700 million in over 37 cases of violations, official sources said.

With Vietnams media following Communist Party orders, the only sources of independently-reported information are bloggers and independent journalists, who are being subjected to ever-harsher forms of persecution, the press freedoms watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) says in its 2021 Press Freedoms Index.

Measures taken against them now include fines, jailings, and assaults by plainclothes police, RSF said in its report, which placed Vietnam at 175 out of 180 countries surveyed worldwide, a ranking unchanged from last years.

In northeastern Vietnams Bac Giang province meanwhile, authorities summoned a young user of the TikTok video-sharing service, fining him VND 3.7 million (less than U.S. $200) for wrapping himself in the Vietnamese national flag as a stunt to attract viewers, state media sources reported on May 5.

Identified by media sources as H.V.K., the resident of Bac Giangs Luc Ngan district told district police he had joined TikTok in June 2020 and had already gained over 100,000 followers and 1.4 million likes on his account.

He had used the flag as a prop in filming a video, he said, and had taken the video down after receiving a torrent of criticism online.

Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Translated by Anna Vu. Written in English by Richard Finney
Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) forces on May 11 killed seven militants and dismantled their cell in the country's northwest near the border with Turkey, Irans state-run IRNA news agency reported.

Two members of the IRGC were also reportedly killed in the shoot-out.

IRNA reported that the group of terrorists had entered Iran illegally from Turkey.

The clash took place around noon in the city of Salmas in Iran's West Azerbaijan Province, according to the report. The city is located about 650 kilometers northwest of the capital Tehran.

There was no independent confirmation of the clash.

The area has seen occasional fighting between Iranian forces and Kurdish separatists as well as militants linked to the extremist Islamic State group.

In November 2020, unidentified gunmen killed three and wounded two Iranian border guards in the province.

Based on reporting by AP and IRNA
The Columbine comparisons began as soon as word and video footage of the deadly attack on School No. 175 in Kazan emerged. But if school shootings were described less than a decade ago as a rarity in Russia, this time Russian headlines lamented another attack that echoed the infamous 1999 tragedy at a U.S. high school.

The May 11 attack in the Tatar capital -- in which at least nine people were killed and 21 wounded -- has been blamed on a disgruntled former student of the school equipped with a legally registered gun.

The bloodshed led to a clamor from Russian officials talking about ways to try to avoid such shootings in the future, including calls by President Vladimir Putin to impose controls on the types of weapons available to ordinary citizens.

It has also placed renewed focus on the growing list of shootings and other attacks on schools carried out by young people in Russia in recent years, and added to scrutiny of the governments struggles to prevent what for years was seen mainly as a U.S. phenomenon.

In 2014, at Moscow's School No. 263, a 15-year-old carrying two rifles shot and killed a teacher and a police officer and took 29 classmates hostage before he gave himself up. Putin at the time called the incident "tragic," and the city's mayor ordered a comprehensive review of security measures at schools in the Russian capital.

In January 2018, 11 children and a teacher were injured in the Urals city of Perm when two 16-year-olds entered a classroom and slashed them with knives. Most of those injured, some seriously, were aged 10-12. One suspect was alleged to have posted a video of perpetrators of U.S. school attacks, including the two teens who carried out the Columbine massacre, on his VKontakte page.

Just days later, in a village outside the southern Siberian city of Ulan-Ude, a ninth-grader reportedly wearing a T-shirt resembling one worn in the Columbine attack injured four seventh-graders and a teacher with an ax and used a Molotov cocktail to set his former school ablaze.

And in October of the same year in Russian-occupied Crimea, 21 people were killed in a shooting and explosion at a university in the city of Kerch.

Russian state media were banned from making the connection to Columbine following the attack carried out by a shooter wearing clothing similar to that worn by the two teen perpetrators of Columbine, who fatally shot 12 fellow students and a teacher before killing themselves. As with the shooting at the Colorado high school shooting, the attack in Crimea was dubbed a "massacre."

Attempts At Prevention

Like other governments, Putin's has struggled to find ways to avert such attacks. Following the 2014 attack in Moscow, he suggested that a more well-rounded education might help prevent student-on-school violence.

"A new generation of spectators with good artistic taste should be brought up -- capable of understanding and appreciating theatrical, dramatic, and musical arts," Putin told theater workers in Pskov shortly afterward. "Had we been doing this properly, maybe there would have been no tragedies similar to today's tragedy in Moscow."

That school shooting was described by the media at the time as "incredibly rare" in Russia. Afterward, news that a guard was unable to prevent the armed pupil from entering the school led Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin to order officials to conduct "a complete review of how our school security system is working, and to take additional steps."

Plenty of steps have been taken since to try to make schools safer around the country, adding to security measures implemented in the decade following the Beslan school siege, in which more than 330 people -- most of them children -- were killed in North Ossetia after militants took more than 1,000 hostages on the first day of school in 2004.

"We have security screens. We monitor the entrance to the school -- the rest of the school is surrounded by a perimeter fence -- and it has an automatic gate, so that you can see who is coming into the school," an official at a central Moscow school told RFE/RL three years after the siege. "We have a video-phone system on the gate. And in this way we can monitor who visits the school. These measures were brought in after Beslan."

In recent years, Russia has invested heavily in school security, including in an initiative to install "Orwell 2k" facial-recognition systems in more than 43,000 Russian schools as part of Putin's $25.4 million national digitalization project. The technology is intended to ensure safety by monitoring students' movements and identifying outsiders on school premises.

When the attack began on May 11, Kazan's School No. 175 had security measures in place for its some 1,000 students in grades one to 11 -- including an "action plan for the prevention of terrorism and extremism" last updated for the 2018-19 school year.

The plan advises students to "get to know each other better," and stresses the importance of sport, tolerance, and minimizing conflict. The school's website also provides links to the "municipal program for the prevention of terrorism and extremism in Kazan for 2016-2020."

But there were also conflicting reports about the presence of security guards at the school. Representatives of the Russian National Guard revealed on May 11 that there were no guards on the premises -- only a panic button to alert the National Guard.

There were also claims that private security guards stopped working at the school three years ago due to problems with payment. However, the Telegram channel In Kazan quoted Galina Ukhvanova, a deputy director at School No. 175, as saying that the security firm had been paid in full, and that the school had a guard on its staff.

Idel.Realities, of RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service, reported that the school said that a 62-year-old guard was on duty, and was hospitalized after the attack.

It is unclear how security precautions -- or the lack thereof -- may have affected the outcome of the attack on May 11.

Heavily armed police and emergency vehicles reportedly responded quickly, and video showed students streaming out of the school and, in some cases, jumping to their death from windows in the multistory school in an effort to escape.

Other videos showed students scrambling down fire-truck ladders to evacuate the school, while others show the wounded being treated outside the school.

Local Suspect

Grainy security-camera video posted to Telegram claimed to show the shooting suspect, whom Russia's Investigative Committee said it had identified as "a local resident born in 2001," walking along a street on his way to the school while brandishing a long gun. The regional interior minister said the attack was carried out by a 19-year-old shooter, who was apprehended, and media reports identified the suspect as Ilnaz Galyaviyev.

As investigators opened a mass murder case, Putin reportedly instructed the head of the Russian National Guard, Viktor Zolotov, "to hammer out new regulations on the types of weapons that are designated for civilian use, and which weapons may be in the possession of citizens, including the types of small arms the gunman used in this shooting."

Some applauded Putin on social media, pointing to the availability of firearms in the United States and the steady stream of school shootings that have taken place there in the last two decades.

Others suggested his steps may be misdirected.

Pavel Lokshin, a Moscow correspondent for the German newspaper Welt, tweeted: "I guess its safe to say that school shootings in Russia arent driven by the availability of firearms which is already pretty low. Besides, Putin did exactly the same thing after the Kerch shooting. Didnt prevent Kazan."

Some Russian educators say that security measures aside, the state has taken steps that could be detrimental to efforts to curb school violence, such as cutting the number of psychologists in schools.

And while the May 11 attack raised questions about whether any warning signs had been overlooked, government critics say the state sometimes takes a heavy-handed approach in its efforts to avert school violence.



In 2020, the homes of several students in Siberia were raided following accusations they had taken part in a social-media chat room dedicated to the Columbine massacre.



Authorities claimed the teens had discussed a plot to attack a local school, and nine of them -- including a 14-year-old girl -- were forced to undergo involuntary examinations as a result.
The clear shell of the new Georgian parliament building in the city of Kutaisi was supposed to represent the transparency of democracy. But a decade after breaking ground on the ultramodern structure, its glass panels are opaque with dust and its grounds becoming a wasteland after parliament packed up and left in late 2018.

The dome was one of several hypermodern structures unveiled across Georgia during the rule of Mikheil Saakashvili (2004-07, 2008-13). The former president told RFE/RL on May 6 that the current state of the building is miserable, its really sad.

Saakashvili says he spearheaded the project primarily for military-strategic reasons: Especially after the [2008 war with Russia]," he says, "the decision to move parliament to Kutaisi was in case Tbilisi comes under attack, we needed a place for the Georgian government to be and for Georgian power to be. "So we basically made a reserve place for us in case of partial occupation of the country -- and this threat is still there, he said.

The project got off to a deeply inauspicious start when a towering Soviet-era war memorial behind a sword-wielding horseman was destroyed with explosives to make room for the parliament building.

Flying chunks of concrete from the blast killed a local woman and her 8-year-old daughter.

The building was designed by a Spanish architectural firm and signed off by Saakashvili at a reported cost of $100 million.

When asked about the design, which reportedly suffered from overheating each summer due to its greenhouse-like composition, Saakashvili told RFE/RL: Look, I believe in glass buildings. I believe in transparency. I believe in public control.

Saakashvili says another reason Kutaisi was chosen for the parliament building was because the public should have easy access to [parliament]. And geographically [Kutaisi] is the center of Georgia, so if you just put it in Tbilisi, thats just one part of Georgia, and a big part of Georgia feels kind of sidelined.

Shortly after the glassy dome was opened for official duties in 2012, Saakashvilis party lost parliamentary elections to Georgian Dream, a political coalition founded by Bidzina Ivanishvili, the countrys wealthiest man. The new ruling party then began returning the work of parliament to the capital, Tbilisi.

Members of the ruling Georgian Dream coalition cited the impracticality and cost of splitting the work of government between Tbilisi -- where other branches of government operate -- and Kutaisi. The cities are separated by a 230-kilometer drive that includes a winding and dangerous mountain road.

Saakashvili argues that returning parliament to Tbilisi will, in the long-term, have "very negative repercussions" for Georgia. Locals say the economic buzz of having parliamentarians and their staffers in Kutaisi would have continued in the revitalization of the city, which has struggled to find relevance in Georgias modern economy.

The entire world developed towards the sea, Saakashvili says, and Georgia is one of the very few countries in the world where the seaside is strongly underdeveloped. Kutaisi is closer to the sea, so we wanted to tie it to the development of the entire seaside region, including [the breakaway Georgian region of] Abkhazia.

All parliamentary work ceased in Kutaisi in late 2018 and the building was later put up for sale, though it failed to find a buyer. As of May 2021, the structure was under the control of the Economy Ministry and no longer for sale. A communications officer for the ministry acknowledged but did not respond to questions about the current status of the building.

When RFE/RL visited the site in May, there were six cars in the parking lot and a policeman stationed at the entrance who did not allow entry to the building.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) is accusing a U.S. Coast Guard vessel of "provocation" after Washington said the ship fired warning shots against approaching Iranian military boats in the Persian Gulf.

The IRGC said on May 11 its boats had encountered the U.S. ships the previous day, and accused them of "unprofessional behavior, such as flying helicopters, firing flares, and aimless and provocative shooting."

According to the Pentagon, the U.S. Coast Guard ship Maui fired about 30 warning shots after 13 fast boats from the IRGC's navy came close to it and other U.S. vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

Spokesman John Kirby said the warning shots were fired after the fast boats came as close as 150 meters from six U.S. military vessels that were escorting the guided-missile submarine Georgia.

The Iranian boats had been acting "very aggressively," Kirby said.

It was the second time over the past month that U.S. military vessels had to fire warning shots because of what they said was unsafe behavior by Iranian vessels in the region, after a relative lull in such interactions over the past year.

The latest incident came as world powers and Iran seek to speed up efforts to bring Washington and Tehran back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal.

Four rounds of indirect talks between U.S. and Iranian officials in Vienna on reviving the agreement have yet to make major progress.

Based on reporting by AFP, Reuters, and RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is urging the Iranian parliament to reject a bill that it says would "help further erode Iran's increasingly vulnerable press freedom" ahead of next month's presidential election.

In a statement on May 10, the Paris-based media-freedom watchdog says the proposed law would ban U.S. and British journalists from entering Iran and would ban the Iranian media from reporting anything published by the U.S. and British media.

Violations of the proposed law would be punishable by five to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to 360 million rials ($16,340).

"This proposed law is ridiculous as well as lacking any legitimacy," said Reza Moini, the head of RSF's Iran-Afghanistan desk.

"The media it targets are an integral part of the world in which we live and of which the Islamic republic is part, regardless of what it says," he added.

"Furthermore, the Persian-language sections of certain international media are the main sources of freely and independently reported news and information for Iranians."

The proposed law, submitted by 41 parliament members on April 18, says the two prohibitions are justified because the U.S. and British media and their journalists are responsible for "many actions against national interests and against the Islamic republic," according to RSF.

The group notes that the international media coverage of the June presidential poll "is unlikely to please the regime because it is clear that the electoral process is just a smokescreen for the future president's designation" by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iran is ranked 174th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2021 World Press Freedom Index.

Upon arrival in Iran, foreign journalists are currently placed under "close surveillance" by the authorities and "their journalism is subjected to a form of censorship in which, if they fail to toe the official line, they can end up having to leave," RSF says.

Meanwhile, "Iranian journalists -- and sometimes their family members as well -- have for years been subjected to harassment, arrest, and long prisons sentences."
Airport trying to land funds, Southland waiting on FEMA before repairs can be made
His name was Alireza Fazeli Monfared and he was only 20 years old.



Fazeli Monfared was homosexual and due to the difficulties he faced because of his sexual orientation, was about to flee his native Iran for Turkey.



But he was reportedly killed by his family members before he could leave the southwestern province of Khuzestan after they accused him of dishonoring the family.



Fazeli Monfared's killing has put the plight of Iran's LGBT community in the spotlight amid concerns that this will not be the last suspected case of so-called honor killings of homosexuals in the Islamic republic.



"There's no guarantee that this won't happen again until our society becomes educated and informed," Arsham Parsi, a Toronto-based, Iranian gay-rights activist and head of the International Railroad for Queer Refugees, told RFE/RL.



Killed For Being Gay



Fazeli Monfared was reportedly killed on May 4 by his half-brother and cousins who, according to some reports, beheaded him and dumped his body under a tree near the provincial capital of Ahvaz. They reportedly called his mother to tell her where to find him.



The Iranian Lesbian and Transgender Network 6rang said in a May 7 statement that Fazeli Monfared's half-brother learned about his sexual orientation after seeing his military service exemption card. In Iran, homosexuals are allowed to skip military duty due to "mental disorders."

Even before he was killed, Fazeli Monfared had complained to friends about threats from his relatives due to his sexual orientation.



In an audio recording obtained by the BBC, Fazeli Monfared said that his family had threatened to kill him and that he was planning to flee Iran to seek asylum in Norway or Sweden.



Fazeli Monfared's partner, activist Aghil Abyat, told RFE/RL that he was due to travel to Turkey on May 8 to join him.



"He had told me that he had been threatened by his half-brother," he said.



'Lively' And 'Very Happy' Man



Abyat described Fazeli Monfared as a "lively" and "very happy" young man who liked to travel, listen to music, and post videos on TikTok. His Instagram posts also suggest an interest in fashion.



Parsi, who had in recent weeks interacted with Fazeli Monfared on Clubhouse, said the young man had complained about family pressure and intolerance in society.



"He didn't clearly say that he had been threatened with murder because if he had done so I would have contacted him privately since we take these issues very seriously, but he spoke about his family not accepting him and the pressure families put on homosexuals," Parsi told RFE/RL.
Iran has opened registration for potential candidates in next month's presidential election amid continued high tensions with the West and uncertainty over Tehran's tattered nuclear deal with world powers.

The registration process kicked off on May 11 and will last five days, after which entrants will be screened for their qualifications by the Guardians Council, a hard-line constitutional watchdog that has in the past disqualified many moderate would-be candidates.

The council is to announce a final list of candidates by May 27, triggering a 20-day campaign season ahead of the June 18 vote.

President Hassan Rohani, a relative moderate whose government is taking part in talks to revive the 2015 nuclear agreement, cannot seek reelection after having served two consecutive four-year terms.

Turnout could be hit by rising discontent over steep rises in consumer prices and high unemployment as the Iranian economy has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic and U.S. economic sanctions reimposed after Washington in 2018 pulled out of the nuclear accord, which lifted international sanctions on Iran in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program.

Iran responded to the U.S. moves by stepping up its violations of the accord by enriching uranium to a greater purity, stockpiling more than allowed, and introducing more advanced centrifuges.

Several rounds of talks with world powers in Vienna on reviving the nuclear accord have yet to make major progress.

Iranian hard-liners took control of parliament last year in polls that saw 42.5 percent turnout, the lowest turnout since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that brought a clerical regime to power.

Based on reporting by AP and Reuters
QAPSHAGHAI, Kazakhstan -- A court in Kazakhstan has again rejected an early-release request for ailing activist Kenzhebek Abishev, who has been recognized by domestic human rights organizations as a political prisoner.

Abishev's lawyer, Gulnar Zhuaspaeva, told RFE/RL that the court ruled on May 11 that Abishev cannot be granted early release, again rejecting his argument for time off due to good behavior and concerns over his health.

Last week, the chairwoman of the Aman-Saulyq Human Rights Foundation, Bakhyt Tumenova, said that Abishev's condition was worrisome, as he suffers from multiple medical conditions and should be released as soon as possible.

In mid-April, Abishev was rushed from prison to the hospital in Qapshaghai as his condition word due to a hunger strike that he started to protest the cancellation of his release in February on parole and prison conditions.

Physicians then diagnosed Abishev with coronary heart disease. It is not clear at the moment if Abishev is still on his hunger strike.

On February 1, the Qapshaghai court ruled that Abishev could be released on February 16, more than three years early, for good behavior while in prison, a procedure allowed by Kazakh law.

However, the Almaty regional prosecutor's office appealed the ruling at the very last moment, arguing that the 53-year-old activist's good behavior in custody was not enough to secure his early release, since he still had more than three years to serve.

The court then scrapped the move, leaving Abishev in prison.

Abishev was sentenced to seven years in prison in December 2018 after he and two other activists were found guilty of planning a "holy war" because they were spreading the ideas of the banned Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan (DVK) movement. His prison term was later cut by eight months.

Abishev pleaded not guilty, calling the case against him politically motivated.

The DVK was founded by Mukhtar Ablyazov, an outspoken critic of the Kazakh government who has been living in France for several years.

Ablyazov has been organizing unsanctioned anti-government rallies in Kazakhstan via the Internet in recent years.
Russia has announced the expulsion of the Romanian Embassy's deputy military attache in response to Bucharest's decision to expel a Russian diplomat.

Romania's ambassador to Russia, Cristian Istrate, was summoned on May 11 to the Russian Foreign Ministry in Moscow where he "was given a note from the ministry declaring Captain G. Iliescu, aide to the military attache at the Romanian Embassy, persona non grata," the ministry said in a statement.

Iliescu has 72 hours to leave Russia, the statement said, adding that the decision was made "in response to the unfounded declaration of an aide to the military attache at the Russian Embassy in Bucharest persona non grata on April 26."

Romania late last month expelled the deputy military attache at the Russian Embassy in Bucharest for activities incompatible with his diplomatic status. It gave no further reason for the order.

Several other former Soviet bloc countries in Central and Eastern Europe, all of them members of the European Union and NATO, have expelled Russian diplomats last month, triggering reciprocal measures by Moscow.

The series of tit-for-tat expulsions began last month when the Czech Republic expelled scores of Russian diplomats over the accusations that Russian spies were involved in a deadly ammunition depot explosion in 2014, prompting a tit-for-tat response from Moscow.

Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia -- all former Soviet republics -- followed in Prague's steps, expelling Russian diplomats in solidarity with the Czechs. Slovakia and Bulgaria also followed suit.

With reporting by digi24.ro, hotnrews.ro, Reuters, and TASS
MOSCOW -- A court in Moscow has handed parole-like sentences to three young pro-democracy activists for splashing paint on a booth at the entrance to the Prosecutor-General's Office last year to protest against a crackdown on activists.

The court on May 11 found the trio guilty of vandalism and sentenced both Igor Basharimov and Ivan Vorobyovsky to 21 months of "freedom limitation," while Olga Misik was sentenced to two years of "freedom limitation."

Basharimov and Vorobyovsky were also banned from leaving their homes between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., while Misik was banned from leaving her home between 10 p.m and 6 a.m. The defendants were also ordered not to change their permanent addresses during the terms of their sentences.

The three activists admitted they splashed paint on the booth, but insisted the action cannot be defined as vandalism as the booth was not damaged.

The activists launched the protest during the high-profile extremism case against members of the New Greatness youth group. Many in Russia consider the New Greatness case to be trumped-up by Russian's Federal Security Service (FSB).

Prosecutors had asked the court to sentence the three activists to two years and nine months of freedom limitation.

In her final statement during testimony at the trial last month, Misik said that democracy will win in Russia sooner or later.

"I cannot promise that we will win tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, in one or 10 years. But one day, we will win, because love and youth always win," she said.

Misik became well-known after she read the Russian Constitution to riot police during protest rallies in Moscow in 2019. She was 17 at the time.

Misik told Current Time on May 10 that the case was filed against her and the other two activists "because in our country, it is forbidden to protest against the authorities."

The case "is punishment for your thoughts," Olga Misik said.

Her mother told Current Time that she understood the possible repercussions her daughter could face when she started her pro-democracy activism at the age of 16, but could not stop her.

"She chose this path and it is necessary to support her," Guzel Misik said.
A Moscow court has found three young pro-democracy activists guilty of vandalism for splashing paint on a booth at the entrance to the Prosecutor-General's Office last year to protest against a crackdown on other activists. The court handed down parole-like sentences to the trio on May 11. Both Igor Basharimov and Ivan Vorobyovsky were given 21 months of "freedom limitation," while Olga Misik was sentenced to two years. Misik became well-known after reading excerpts of the Russian Constitution to riot policemen in Moscow in 2019. She was 17 at the time.
The U.S. ambassador for disarmament says preparations for a possible meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden are under way.

The two presidents "have agreed to explore strategic stability discussions on a range of arms-control and emerging security issues," Robert Wood told a United Nations conference on May 11.

"They are in the process of preparing for these discussions."

Speaking during a visit to Baku, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov backed up Wood's comments, saying that Moscow had proposed discussing arms control and security matters if the bilateral summit were to take place.

He also said that Moscow was still waiting for answers from Washington on details for any proposed meeting.

Biden has said he hoped to meet with his Russian counterpart during a planned trip to Europe in June.

The U.S. president in April offered to meet in a third country to discuss rising tensions over issues including military threats to Ukraine, cyberattacks allegedly by Russian hackers, and Russia's treatment of jailed opposition activist Aleksei Navalny.

Biden has repeatedly stated that while he will be tough on Russia over any hostile policies, he is also seeking to cooperate where the two sides have mutual interests. This includes issues such as nuclear proliferation, climate change, the Iran nuclear deal, North Korea, and fostering peace and stability in Afghanistan.

In February, Russia and the United States formally extended the New START nuclear arms-control treaty for another five years, just days before it was set to expire.

New START, the last remaining arms-control pact between Washington and Moscow, limits the number of deployed strategic nuclear warheads at 1,550, deployed strategic delivery systems at 700, and provides for a verification regime.

With reporting by Reuters
Kyiv says it does not expect that next month's NATO summit will produce a Membership Action Plan (MAP) for Ukraine because some members of the military alliance worry that such a move would provoke Russia.

"Regarding the obstacles, unfortunately, there are still several countries among the allies who are guided by the logic of not provoking Russia and believe that sitting and doing nothing is the best way to keep Russia calm," Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told the Ukraine 24 channel on May 11.

Ukraine joining the alliance, which Moscow has fiercely opposed, "is historically inevitable," Kuleba said. "It will happen. I am absolutely convinced of that."

The MAP is a program of "advice, assistance, and practical support tailored to the individual needs of countries wishing to join" NATO, according to the alliance's website.

Participation in the MAP "does not prejudge any decision by the Alliance on future membership," it adds.

Kuleba's comments come after Russia earlier this year deployed more than 100,000 troops near the border with Ukraine and in occupied Crimea -- the biggest mobilization since Moscow seized the Ukrainian peninsula in March 2014 and war broke out in eastern Ukraine.

The buildup prompted alarm in Western capitals over Moscow's intentions amid an uptick in fighting between Ukrainian government forces and Kremlin-backed separatists in the country's east. The conflict has killed more than 13,000 people since April 2014.

Russia says its troops have returned to their permanent bases after participating in massive drills, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on May 11 that Russia had not withdrawn military hardware.

Zelenskiy told Ukraine 24 he believed Russia won't resort to a "powerful escalation" because it could lead to "a world war."

During a visit to Kyiv last week, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken "strongly" reaffirmed Washington's "commitment to Ukraine's sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence," and called on Russia to cease its "reckless and aggressive actions" against its neighbor.

With reporting by Reuters, UNIAN, and RFE/RLs Ukrainian Service
KYIV -- Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) has searched the Kyiv home of Kremlin-friendly tycoon and politician Viktor Medvedchuk, who along with another pro-Russian lawmaker is under suspicion of treason.

SBU officials told RFE/RL that the search was conducted on May 11, adding that detailed information on the case will be made public later.

Ukrainian Prosecutor-General Iryna Venedyktova said the same day that she had signed notices of suspicion to be handed to two lawmakers, whom she identified as M. and K, as suspects for alleged high treason and the illegal exploitation of natural resources in Ukraine's Russian-annexed Crimea.

Local media identified M. as Medvedchuk and K. as another pro-Russian lawmaker Taras Kozak.

Medvedchuk's political party said the treason investigation and house search were acts of "revenge and reprisals" by the government.

"Such actions by the authorities are an open and cynical political reprisal against the opposition politician," the pro-Russian Opposition Platform - For Life party added in a statement on its website.

Medvedchuk is the head of the political council of Opposition Platform - For Life, which is the largest opposition group in Ukraine's parliament. He is one of the partys 44 deputies in the 450-seat legislature.

In February, Ukraines National Security Council announced sanctions against Medvedchuk, his wife Oksana Marchenko, and several other individuals and entities.

The sanctions froze the couples assets for three years and prevented them from doing business in the country.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's government in February also sanctioned three television stations believed to be owned by Medvedchuk. The move came shortly after talks between the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

Medvedchuk has a deep personal relationship with Putin, who is the godfather of Medvedchuks daughter.

He was sanctioned by the United States in 2014 for undermining democracy in Ukraine.

The sanctions were tied to an investigation into exports of coal to Russia from a separatist-held region in eastern Ukraine.

Fighting between Ukrainian government forces and the Russian-backed separatists who control parts of Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk regions has killed more than 13,000 people since April 2014.

Russia annexed Crimea in March 2014 and instigated separatist clashes in Ukraines east after anti-government protests toppled Ukraine's Russian-friendly former president, Viktor Yanukovych, in February 2014.
International media-freedom watchdogs are urging an Uzbek court to overturn the conviction of a blogger who was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison on "trumped-up" extortion and slander charges.

A court in the southern Surxondaryo region handed down the sentence against Otabek Sattoriy on May 10 in a case denounced by rights defenders as retaliation by the authorities for his critical reporting.

The 40-year-old Sattoriy has insisted that the case against him was "based on lies."

Sattoriy's lawyer said he intended to appeal the conviction.

The authorities should "immediately release Otabek Sattoriy, not contest his appeal, and allow all journalists to work freely and without fear of reprisal," according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Sattoriy's conviction "is a clear attempt to frighten the press away from covering sensitive issues" ahead of a presidential election in October, Gulnoza Said, CPJ's Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, said in a statement.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said the "fabricated" accusations against the blogger "testify to a desire to quell local corruption scandals and intimidate critical voices."

The Paris-based group noted that since his arrest in late January, Sattoriy had been ordered to pay a fine of 9.8 million soms ($931) for "slander" and "insult" in a separate case.

The Prosecutor-General's Office has rejected criticism by human rights organizations, saying that Sattoriy's arrest was lawful.

The blogger is known to be a harsh critic of the regional governor, Tora Bobolov. In one post on his Halq Fikiri (People's Opinion) video blog, Sattoriy openly accused the local government of launching fabricated criminal cases against bloggers and vowed to continue to raise the issue of corruption among officials despite the "crackdown."

RSF said criminal proceedings were also brought against two journalists from the independent Effect.uz website in early April after they approached the judge to attend the blogger's trial. Elyor Tojiboev and Aqbar Nurumbetov were charged with "resisting a representative of the authorities" and "interfering with the investigation."

Another blogger, Behruz Nematov, was kidnapped in broad daylight on April 2 by unknown individuals who kept him for four hours and beat him with a baton, demanding that he stop covering the trial.

Uzbekistan is ranked 157th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2020 World Press Freedom Index.
When Benzecry first arrived in Israel as an immigrant, he moved to Maagan Michael kibbutz, where he studied Hebrew at an ulpan, the government-subsidized Hebrew language school for new immigrants. Because he was already 22, he was not required to enlist in the military, but he chose to anyway. He joined Garin Tzabar, the program that supports soldiers-to-be who do not have a family in Israel.
Uzbekistan's Supreme Court has sentenced 17 people to prison terms of between four and 10 years for corruption and misconduct over a deadly dam burst last year.

The Supreme Court said that the verdicts and sentences of the defendants, including energy officials, top officials of the state railways company, and leaders of construction companies that were involved into the construction of the dam, were pronounced on May 10.

The defendants were found guilty of embezzlement, forgery, violating safety rules, negligence, and abuse of office.

The dam at the Sardoba Reservoir in the eastern Uzbek region of Sirdaryo burst early on May 1, 2020, resulting in the deaths of six people and forcing at least 70,000 out of their homes.

Over 600 homes in neighboring Kazakhstan were also flooded in the accident.

The Sardoba Reservoir was completed in 2017 after seven years of construction work.

Kazakh officials said after the dam burst that flooding caused crop damage worth more than $400,000 -- mostly to cotton, which is grown in the southern Turkistan region.
ONTARIO  Three registered nurses at Avita Health System are being honored with The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses.

The award is part of The DAISY Foundation's mission to recognize nurses for the extraordinary, compassionate care they provide patients and families every day.

The 2021 DAISY Award recipients are Alexandria Brown of Galion Hospital, Bobbi Feichtner of Bucyrus Hospital, and Brett Dannemiller of Ontario Hospital. These three registered nurses (RN) go above and beyond to make a meaningful difference in the lives of many people.

Alexandria Brown, RN works in the Obstetrics Unit at Galion Hospital. She was nominated by a patient for her compassion and expertise during a labor and delivery.

Said the nominator: Alex was constantly observing, listened to not only my concerns, but answered any question I may have had. I suffered from a lot of anxiety during my pregnancy and labor due to a previous miscarriage and losing my mom in September.

"Alex made every single fear I had go away just by the way she would listen and react. Alex has to be the most caring and compassionate nurse I have ever come in contact with, and I pray she is recognized for that.

Bobbi Feichtner, RN serves patients in the Intensive Care Unit at Bucyrus Hospital. She was nominated by a nurse manager for going above and beyond to provide comfort at the end of a patients life.

The patients family had made the difficult decision to cease treatment for their loved one and were not going to be able to be by their bedside due to COVID-19.

Bobbi did not want this patient to pass alone and sat quietly by this patients side providing support during this time and did not leave their side until they passed, explained the nominator. Moments like this goes to show what a great nurse she is that she wanted to provide not only this patient comfort during this time but that the family knew that their loved one did not pass alone.

Brett Dannemiller, RN works in the Intensive Care Unit at Ontario Hospital. He was nominated by a retired nurse for his kindness and expertise.

According to the nominator: I was intubated and it was a difficult experience, but the care I received was fantastic in the ICU. I am a retired nurse and worked as a director of nursing. I would hire any of the nurses that took care of me, because they were all wonderful, but Brett stood out.

"He was special. He is a young nurse, but he was extremely gentle and wise beyond his years. There are some people who are blessed by God to be where they are supposed to be. That is Brett!

The DAISY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization, established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, by members of his family. Patrick died at the age of 33 in late 1999 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), a little known but common auto-immune disease. (DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System).

The care Patrick and his family received from nurses while he was ill inspired this unique means of thanking nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of patients and their families.

Nurses may be nominated by patients, families, and colleagues by filling out a form online at avitahealth.org or at one of the three Avita hospital locations. The award recipients are anonymously chosen by a committee of Avita employees and community members. There is specific criteria and scoring for each nomination.

Awards are presented twice annually at celebrations attended by the honorees colleagues, patients, and visitors.

At the award ceremonies, Ms. Brown, Ms. Feichtner, and Mr. Dannemiller each received a certificate commending them for extraordinary nursing. Each honoree was pinned with a special DAISY Award Pin and presented with a beautiful and meaningful sculpture called A Healers Touch, which is hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe.

2020 was the Year of Nurse. That is truly an understatement, explained Kathy Durflinger, Chief Nursing Officer at Avita Health System. There are no words that can describe how much we appreciate our nurses.

"They went above and beyond during a very stressful and scary time to a make a difference in the lives of our patients and families. All of our nurses stepped up and took on additional responsibilities to ensure our patients were cared for with professionalism and compassion. We are excited to celebrate Alex, Bobbi, and Brett and blessed to have a team of amazing nurses at Avita!
MANSFIELD -- The Richland County Development Group on Tuesday submitted the lone bid to provide economic development services for the county.

County commissioners opened the bid during a brief executive session with Rachel Troyer, the county's central services coordinator.

In January, commissioners appropriated $100,000 for the effort in 2021 and sought proposals for the work.

Troyer will review the proposal and return to a future commissioners' meeting with a recommendation. The contract would likely be one year with up to five one-year renewals.

Commissioners could accept the RCDG bid, reject it or negotiate with the economic development entity.

"Whether it's one bid or 10, we review them all," Commissioner Tony Vero said.

In seeking the proposals, commissioners said it would be the county's first formal economic development effort.

Calling it in an investment in business attraction, retention and expansion, commissioners said the funding demonstrates the county's commitment to economic growth.

"It's fun and cute for elected officials to say, 'Oh, we need to bring more jobs into the area.' I think this is a way of saying we are serious," Vero said in January. "I think by and large most (county) residents would be pleased with such an expenditure."

RCDG became a part of Richland Area Chamber of Commerce & Economic Development in 2017.

The county will use half of its $200,000 rebate received in February from the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation to fund the work.

Also on Tuesday, commissioners approved a revised enterprise zone for Major Metals. The tax abatement for the company will now be 60 percent over 10 years, revised from 50 percent over 15 years.

The abatement was initially approved by commissioners on April 20. Major Metals Co. plans another 48,000 square-foot expansion at its 844 Kochheiser Road facility, adding 16 new jobs and an additional $800,000 in payroll over the next three years.

The company currently employs 90 workers, according to Jotika Shetty, executive director of the Richland County Regional Planning Commission.
MANSFIELD  Richland Public Health has announced a partnership with Maddox Memorial Temple Church of God in Christ for drive-thru COVID-19 vaccinations on May 20 from Noon to 4 p.m.

The vaccine is at no cost for anyone 18 and older and no proof of insurance is needed.

The church is located at 1148 Walker Lake Road in Mansfield. The location will be using the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The vaccinations will be coordinated through the Ohio Department of Health. Registrations are required through gettheshot.coronavirus.ohio.gov or by calling 1-833-427-5634.

When you register through gettheshot you will be asked for a zip code but you can get right to the location by typing Maddox in that box, said Amy Schmidt, Director of Nursing at Richland Public Health. But anyone needing help to get registered can contact First Call 2-1-1 for assistance.

In addition, Richland County Transit (RCT) has FREE door-to-door vaccine shuttle service for Richland County residents. Wheelchair accessible vehicles are available upon request. To schedule a ride, call Chris Terry at RCT 419-522-4504 x101 at least 24-48 hours in advance.

Richland Public Health will have a first dose Moderna Clinic this Friday, May 14. Register by calling 1-614-881-1882. Walk-ins are also welcome between 9 to 11:30 a.m. and 1 to 3 p.m. The clinic is in the back lower conference room (lower lot) at 555 Lexington Ave., Mansfield.
(Correction: An earlier version of this story said "Cleveland school district" in the headline and may have led to readers mistaking it for the Cleveland Metropolitan School District or Cleveland Public Schools. This case involved the Cleveland Heights  University Heights City School District, a separate entity.)

CLEVELAND -- Ohio Auditor Keith Fabers office on Tuesday issued a $34,675 finding for recovery against a Cleveland-area school district for improperly using public money to fund a poll for an upcoming levy.

The finding came as Faber released the 2020 financial audit of the Cleveland Heights  University Heights City School District, according to an emailed press release from the auditor's office.

The law is clear about using public funds on campaign activities like polling, Faber said.

School districts must be extremely careful in using electioneering techniques paid for by taxpayers. In this case where the polling was clearly directed at 'levy voters' and sought information regarding the upcoming levy, it was illegal and the district should know better," Faber said.

In October of 2019, prior to accepting the resolution to place a levy on the upcoming ballot, the school district entered into a consulting agreement with R Strategy Group (RSG) for the purpose of identifying a polling firm, negotiating a contract for polling services, drafting a public opinion poll directed at likely voters, and aiding in the analysis of data and research.

The District agreed to pay RSG $6,000 for these services and to reimburse $28,675 to RSG for polling services conducted by Lake Research (Lake), totaling $34,675.

The payment was authorized by Treasurer A. Scott Gainer. Supt. Elizabeth Kirby approved the content of the polling questions.

Several of the questions asked specifically about the districts proposed tax levy, including if the person being surveyed would vote in favor or against the levy, the specific reason for voting in favor or against the levy, asking about statements people were making about the levy and their opinion on the statements, and asking if there was a convincing reason to vote in favor of a levy.

Further discussion and finalization of the polling questions, as well as the actual polling, occurred subsequently to the Boards resolution requesting certification from the county auditor on Nov. 5, 2019.

Lake also submitted a report to district employees/staff regarding the results of the survey, which was titled, Findings Based on a Survey of 500 Likely March 2020 Primary Voters.

Five of the six bullet points on the Strategic Summary section of the report contained references to voters and their opinions. An additional section of the report was devoted to Dynamics of Support and Opposition to the Levy.

By utilizing RSG for services relating to the support of a levy campaign, the district made payments in violation of the Ohio Revised Code, Faber said.

A finding for recovery was issued against R Strategy Group, Kirby, Gainer and his bonding company, Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America, jointly and severally, in the amount of $34,675, in favor of Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School Districts General Fund.

(Correction: An earlier version of this story said "Cleveland school district" in the headline and may have led to readers mistaking it for the Cleveland Metropolitan School District or Cleveland Public Schools. This case involved the Cleveland Heights  University Heights City School District, a separate entity.)
EDITOR'S NOTE: This editorial by U.S. Senator Rob Portman originally appeared in The Sandusky Register. It can be viewed here.

Spring is a time of new beginnings, so it is a fitting time to hold up those who have started new lives of meaning and purpose after being convicted of a crime and serving their time.

Helping formerly incarcerated individuals overcome their past mistakes and reenter society as productive citizens makes sense for everyone: those formerly incarcerated and their families, neighbors who will live in safer communities, law enforcement and the taxpayer.

As a country, we have come a long way on this issue over the past decade or so. More than 10 years ago, I co-authored bipartisan legislation called the Second Chance Act, which helps people get back on their feet through supporting state and local reentry programs.

A few years ago, I joined my colleague, Democrat Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont to renew and strengthen the Second Chance Act as part of the First Step Act, including adding nonprofit organizations as eligible grant recipients and requiring rigorous audits to ensure that federal dollars are spent wisely.

Since 2009, more than 800 Second Chance Act grant awards have been made, and last year we secured $100 million in funding  a record. I have seen the results of the Second Chance Act firsthand at reentry programs across Ohio, including great northwest Ohio nonprofits like Goodwill Industries in Toledo.

Recently, we had a great dialogue with the Toledo Chamber of Commerce and Ron and Cathy Tijerina from the RIDGE Project about how the program has helped them support Second Chance families in Northwest Ohio.

Looking ahead, there is still more work for us to do to reduce recidivism rates and allow all Americans to overcome their past mistakes.

Right now, I am working to pass bipartisan legislation called the Reentry Employment Opportunities Act to do just that. Along with my colleague, Democrat Senator Gary Peters of Michigan, I introduced this legislation to make permanent the Labor Departments Reentry Employment Opportunities grant program, which currently exists as a pilot program authorized under Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.

The REO program supports national, regional, and local skills training organizations that provide outstanding opportunities for returning citizens to get skills that will help them find both good-paying jobs and the stability and purpose that comes from a career.

The REO program has been successful, but right now it does not have a dedicated funding stream to support its important mission. I believe its critical we make the REO program permanent so that more folks reentering society after time in the justice system can get the helping hand they need to enter the workforce and break the cycle of recidivism.

I will continue to work in Washington to get this important legislation passed.

Im proud to be a partner in Washington for Ohioans and all Americans looking to get a Second Chance, turn their lives around, and achieve their God-given potential.
Richmond, KY (40475)

Today

Cloudy early, then off and on rain showers for the afternoon. High 82F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Mostly cloudy skies early with scattered thunderstorms developing late. Low 69F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%.
Today

Cloudy early, then thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 82F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%.

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms. Low around 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.

Tomorrow

Scattered thunderstorms. High near 85F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
According to Kedem Auction House, the letters existence was entirely unknown to scholars who study the history of the Holy Land and U.S. diplomacy in Palestine. The anonymous collector who spotted the letter and realized its importance usually focuses on the history of the Israeli postal service. That person bought the item from another collector who had been holding it as an artifact of relevance for U.S maritime and postal history.
Editor

I have been editor of the Rockdale Citizen since 1996 and editor of the Newton Citizen since it began publication in 2004. I am also currently executive editor of the Clayton News Daily, Henry Daily Herald and Jackson Progress-Argus.
Natasha Hampton, who was an assistant city manager in Rocky Mount, is going to become the next city manager in College Park, Md.
Rocky Mount, NC (27804)

Today

Cloudy early, then thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 81F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%.
Rocky Mount, NC (27804)

Today

Cloudy skies this morning followed by thunderstorms during the afternoon. High near 80F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%.
New Delhi: Petrol and diesel prices on Tuesday were hiked for the sixth time this month, propelling prices to cross the Rs 100-a-litre-mark in places from Nanded in Maharashtra to Rewa in Madhya Pradesh to Jaisalmer in Rajasthan.

Petrol price was hiked by 27 paise a litre and diesel by 30 paise per litre, according to a price notification by state-owned fuel retailers.

Petrol and Diesel

The increase took petrol and diesel prices to their highest-ever level across the country. In Delhi, petrol now comes for Rs 91.80 per litre and diesel is priced at Rs 82.36.

This was the sixth increase in prices since May 4, when the state-owned oil firms ended an 18-day hiatus in rate revision they observed during assembly elections in states like West Bengal.

The price increase led to petrol rates crossing the Rs 100-mark in more places of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Petrol and Diesel

Fuel prices differ from state to state depending on the incidence of local taxes such as VAT and freight charges. Rajasthan levies the highest value-added tax (VAT) on petrol in the country, followed by Madhya Pradesh.

Sri Ganganagar district of Rajasthan had the costliest petrol and diesel in the country at Rs 102.70 per litre and Rs 95.06 a litre respectively. Also in Rajasthan, petrol crossed the Rs 100-mark in Jaisalmer (Rs 100.71) and Bikaner (Rs 100.70) while it neared that mark in Barmer (Rs 99.82).

In six increases, petrol price has risen by Rs 1.41 per litre and diesel by Rs 1.63.
New Delhi: BJP president J P Nadda on Tuesday accused the Congress of "misleading" people and creating "false panic" in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, and alleged that the conduct of its leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, will be remembered for "duplicity and pettiness".

Nadda wrote a four-page letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, a day after the Congress Working Committee hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government over the handling of the coronavirus crisis.

JP Nadda

The BJP president also accused Congress leaders, including a chief minister, of trying to actively create vaccine hesitancy during the once-in-a-century pandemic.

Under Modi, the fight against the pandemic is driven by unwavering belief in science, support to innovation, trust in Covid warriors and cooperative federalism, he said.

Sonia Gandhi

Nadda said he is saddened but not surprised by the conduct of the Congress during these challenging times.

The CWC had said that Modi must "atone for his mistakes" and serve the people instead of carrying on with his "personal agenda" oblivious to the sufferings all around.
Spokoiny noted one important development that came out of Pew 2013: 56% of respondents said that working for justice and equality is essential to what being Jewish means to them. That led to investment in groups like Repair the World that offer opportunities for social-justice work in a Jewish framework. The persistence of the Holocaust as something important to the identity of Jews also surprised some observers, as did a less weighty finding that having a good sense of humor (42%) is essential to respondents Jewish identity.
New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a criminal case under the anti-money laundering law against former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh, official sources said on Tuesday.

They said the case registered under sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has been filed after studying a recent CBI FIR that was filed against Deshmukh.

Anil Deshmukh

The central probe agency may now summon Deshmukh for questioning apart from others, they said.

The ED case comes about after the CBI first carried out a preliminary enquiry, followed by filing a regular case, on the orders of the Bombay High Court that asked it to look into the allegations of bribery made against Deshmukh by former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh.
New York: An Indian-origin man has been charged with killing and sexually assaulting his 65-year-old mother at their home in New York on the eve of Mother's Day, according to media reports.

Pushkar Sharma, 28, allegedly carried out the deadly attack on Soraj Sharma at their home in Jamaica in Bellerose Manor on Saturday morning. The suspect is accused of grabbing his mother from behind, choking and punching her until she fell to the floor, prosecutors said.

Case registered

Once down, the son allegedly continued the attack, strangling and punching his mother before sexually assaulting her. The victim lost consciousness and then died, the New York Post quoted the officials as saying.

The suspect told police he woke up the morning before Mothers Day "with an uncontrollable urge to hurt someone, according to a criminal complaint.

Sharma told police, he continued choking her (mother) until he was pretty sure she was dead, the criminal complaint alleges.

Covered in blood, Sharma gathered his wallet and keys and walked to the 105th Precinct, where he confessed to the unimaginable violence, as per the reports.

Murder

Soraj Sharmas daughter found her mother unconscious in the basement, cops said, adding medics rushed her to Long Island Jewish Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

What should have been a celebration of Mothers Day became a brutal, tragic nightmare for a Queens family, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said on Sunday.

Sharma was arraigned on Sunday on murder and sexual abuse charges. He was ordered held without bail, and his next appearance is on May 24, the report said.
Roanoke Rapids, NC (27870)

Today

Cloudy early, then off and on rain showers for the afternoon. High 79F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall may reach one inch..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%.
In this Sunday, April 12 2020 photo, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone celebrates Easter Mass, which was live streamed, at St. Mary's Cathedral in San Francisco. Cordileone hopes his fellow bishops, at their upcoming national meeting in June, will agree to send a strong message of disapproval to Catholic politicians who advocate for abortion rights. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Solomon is alleged to have known at least 1,000 women in the Biblical sense, as wives and concubines, if we believe the book of Kings. His favorite wife was the Egyptian Pharaohs daughter, and he also took wives among the Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite and Hittite nations. Rather than being chastised for these foreign relations, Solomon was honored by having the great Temple in Jerusalem built during his reign. David also escaped criticism for his many foreign wives, and instead was rebuked by the prophet Nathan for his marriage to a Jewish wife, Bathsheba, because David had her husband killed in the front lines of battle so he could marry her.
PEABODY  Plans to build a 55-megawatt natural gas-powered plant in the city are officially on hold.

At a special meeting on Monday, Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Companys board of directors voted to authorize a minimum 30-day pause on the plans, the organization said in a statement.

In the meantime, MMWEC, which will own and operate the power plant, plans to address environmental and health concerns and to consider other energy options.

Peabody peaker plant A plan to build a 60-megawatt gas- and oil-powered plant  which would provide capacity energy during peak usage times,  in Peabody next to t

The project, referred to as Project 2015A in official documents, has been in the works since 2015 and was previously approved to be built at Peabody Municipal Light Plants Waters River substation, behind the Pulaski Street industrial park. But it's come under criticism from residents, local and state officials, and community groups, who say they weren't aware of the plan until just recently.

According to MMWEC, pausing the project is an unusual step.

MMWEC is a proven leader in carbon-free technology, and we are proud that our members power portfolios have some of the highest percentages of renewable energy and the lowest carbon emissions in the Commonwealth, said Ron DeCurzio, CEO of MMWEC, in the statement. In fact, most of the Project 2015A participating municipal light plants have already exceeded the Baker Administrations 2030 carbon reduction targets. We plan to continue that leadership in the next phase of energy development. Can we find a way to develop a needed capacity resource that isnt fossil fuel-fired but still reliable in times of need? It is worth taking another look at whether advancements in technology make a different approach possible today.

DeCurzio previously explained that the Peabody plant was intended to provide capacity  as opposed to energy  to Peabody and 13 other communities that plan to purchase electricity from the plant.

Energy, he previously said, is the actual amount of electricity which customers use throughout the year, while capacity is the ability to generate additional energy when demand is high. ISO New England, the organization that operates the regional electric grid, requires that municipal light departments like PMLP not only be able to provide the energy used by the community, but also an additional 40% to 50% in case of system stress caused by extreme weather or the failure of an energy resource.

Renewable energy resources like wind and solar, MMWEC Director of Communications and External Affairs Kate Roy previously said, are not reliable sources of capacity.

Those (renewables) are really good for energy, but they dont provide capacity, and we have to fulfill both of those requirements, she previously said. That is why we cant just replace it with a whole bunch more wind or a whole bunch more solar.

Now, MMWEC said it is considering available options to fulfill its participants required capacity obligations under ISO New England rules, according to their statement.

DeCurzio noted in the statement that technology has changed a lot in the years since the project was first proposed, making the need for reassessment necessary.

We are thankful for the significant input we have received from interested stakeholders, including the elected and appointed leaders of the Commonwealth and from municipal officials, DeCurzio said in the statement. We share the zeal expressed by many members of the public for embracing new technologies. Driving toward the best carbon-free technology, while making sure it meets reliability and affordability standards for our communities  that is in our DNA.

Over the next 30 days, MMWEC will meet with and seek input from stakeholders, including regulators, other state officials, the participating communities and the larger community to consider alternatives and assess their feasibility, according to the statement. Afterward, the board will regroup to discuss the findings, the statement said.

Staff writer Erin Nolan can be reached at 978-338-2534, by email at enolan@salemnews.com or on Twitter at @erin_nolan_.
Mike Smith, secretary of the Agency of Human Services, speaks to the media during Tuesdays press conference updating the public on the states response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A car show doubling as a fundraiser for Southern Lee High Schools Academy of Engineering is set for Saturday.

The Academy of Engineering is an hands-on education program aimed at preparing students for future careers in engineering. The curriculum is project-based and covers industry-specific skills such as manufacturing, construction and robotics, among others. Students also have a chance to participate in job shadowing and internships to build their professional portfolio.

The academys students havent much opportunity to learn in-person this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. After a year of virtual education, the high schools first-ever car show will give them a chance to reconnect with friends and teachers in a COVID-19-safe environment, said Academy of Engineering Director Martin Bryant.

Ive noticed how popular car shows have been during COVID because its something people can get out and do, Bryant said. Its COVID-friendly because its outdoors, you can be socially distanced. It seemed like the perfect situation. (We have) a great big parking lot and it doesnt cost us anything.

Bryant, who is a bit of a gearhead himself, said his students seem excited about show. It will have two divisions, one for adults and one for high-schoolers, so people of all ages can compete.

Some of the kids are definitely excited about bringing their own vehicles, Bryant said. Were also gonna a Club Choice award, so the kids in the club are really excited about coming out and judging the cars.

Bryant said he also hopes the show gets students interested in car-related careers. There are a host of people behind car design and engineering, he said. Not just mechanics, but electrical engineers, machiners and technicians.

Theres a lot of stuff engineered on a car, so it fits with our dynamic, Bryant said. When the kids get to see how people fix up some of these (cars) with $5,000 paint jobs and motorized components and lights here and there, it kind of piques their interest in how to do that. Hopefully they will be intrigued enough to educate themselves on how to get that stuff done.

Proceeds from the car show will go to the Academy of Engineering. This year, some of the money raised will go toward parting gifts for seniors in the academy, as well as an outdoor senior banquet, COVID-19 regulations permitting, Bryant said.

The money will also help supplement some of the costs for our classroom, Bryant said.

We have a lot of expensive tools. We have this new laser machine now, were buying supplies for it. Were trying to get to where we can a little bit more self-sufficient.

Perkins (federal career and technical education) funding and different funding from county and state levels seem like theyre always on the decrease. Maybe we can keep our educational revenue at a high level to keep our education at a high level.

The car show is 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday in the student parking lot of Southern Lee High School, 2301 Tramway Road, Sanford. There will be food trucks, a 50/50 raffle and door prizes.

Admission is $5 for people to cruise in and $10 to compete in the show. Prizes include best paint, best interior and best motor.
Sanford, NC (27330)

Today

Cloudy skies this morning followed by scattered showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon. High 84F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely this evening. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low 69F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.
SANFORD POLICE DEPARTMENT

Joshua Caleb Lee, 25, of 411 Birch St., Sanford, was arrested at 2:11 a.m. Sunday in the 100 block of Quartermaster Drive on misdemeanor charges of driving while impaired, possession of marijuana, possession of marijuana drug paraphernalia, carrying a concealed weapon away from home and resisting arrest.

Four residents of the Carthage Colonies neighborhood off Fire Tower Road reported that a driver hit their mailboxes and left the scene. Three of the incidents occurred in the 600 block of Brittain Court between 2-2:39 a.m. while the fourth was reported at 2:48 a.m. in the 700 block of Golden Horseshoe Lane.

A report of shots fired into a home in the 400 block of Maple Avenue was filed about midnight Sunday. Five people were inside the residence at the time, but no injuries were reported. A vehicle parked in the front yard was damaged.

Francisca Garcia Montiel, 50, of 1008 Frank Wicker Road, Sanford, was arrested at 11:23 p.m. Saturday at N.C. 87 South and Commerce Drive on misdemeanor charges of driving while impaired, transporting an open container of alcohol after consuming alcohol, driving while license revoked and failing to maintain lane control.

Damage to a vehicle reported at 7:12 p.m. Sunday in the 200 block of Saddlebrook Drive.

Damage to vehicle reported at 5:57 p.m. Saturday at Sanford Rent All Inc., 526 Wicker St.

Jahid Ny-Shaun Thompson, 28, of 506 Goldston Blvd., Sanford, was cited at 5:35 p.m. Saturday in the 400 block of Hickory Avenue on misdemeanor charges of simple possession of a controlled substance and possessing marijuana drug paraphernalia.

Theft of a Taurus G2S handgun reported at 5:33 p.m. Saturday in the 1000 block of Burns Drive.

Christy Yoseline Cervantes, 28, of 307 Christine Lane, Cameron, was cited at 4:55 p.m. Saturday at her residence on misdemeanor charges of possessing drug paraphernalia and no operators license.

Ahmond McLean, 21, of 317 W. Main St., Sanford, was arrested at 1:45 p.m. Saturday in the 1100 block of Carthage Street on misdemeanor charges of simple assault injury to personal property.

Johnathon Carlton Locklear, 26, of 1811 Harts Mobile Home Park, Sanford, was arrested at 5:12 p.m. Friday in the 1400 block of South Horner Boulevard on a misdemeanor charge of failing to appear in court.

A residential break-in and theft of electronics was reported 3:28 p.m. Friday on Bayberry Lane, Sanford.

The theft of $2,000 was reported at 2:39 p.m. Friday at Best Choice Express, 3210 Lee Ave.

Didier Josue Carias, 28, of 121 Hollow Tree Court, Cameron, was cited at 7:52 a.m. Friday in the 1100 block of Carthage Street on a misdemeanor charge of damage to real property.

LEE COUNTY SHERIFFS OFFICE

Bradley Jason Scott, 38, of Capfield Drive, Bear Creek, was arrested Sunday on a charges of violating a domestic violence protective order and breaking and entering with intent to terrorize.

Jerry Bryant Fore Jr., 49, of 1222 Sheriff Watson Road, Sanford, was arrested Saturday on charges of assault with a deadly weapon and possession of firearm by a felon.

Eddie Michael Bird, 40, of 6831 Old Jefferson Davis Highway, Sanford, was arrested Friday on a Cumberland County charge of failing to appear in court.

Joshua Lee Vadas, 25, of 261 Ireland Drive, Lumber Bridge, was arrested Friday on a Robeson County charge of failing to appear in court.

Wil Fredin Guzman, 36, of 155 Kathleen Terrace, Sanford, was arrested Friday on charges of attempted larceny and larceny from a construction site.

Marcos Fajardo Orellana, 38, of Silver Springs, Maryland, was arrested Friday on a charge of larceny from a construction site.
Calvin Sims told the Sun Sentinel Tuesday that he gave the victim, his fishing buddy, a ride to the store. Sims said he saw him arguing with someone, but drove off before the gunfire erupted.
Joan Ferris Berkowitz, 68, of Pembroke Pines, was exiting the plaza onto Pines Boulevard in a 2004 Mercury Monterey as the teen was riding east on the sidewalk, according to the police report. The teen was hit as he tried to cross the road that exits the shopping plaza, the report stated.
Investigators are asking anyone with information about this case to contact the Pembroke Pines Police Department at 954-431-2200, or by email tips@ppines.com, or contact Broward Crime Stoppers, anonymously, at 954-493-8477 or online at browardcrimestoppers.org.
The girl was thought to be inside the house along with several other kids, but she wandered into the backyard and slipped into the pool, according to a police report.
Some board members werent ready to name a replacement right away. Theyve decided to invite people now working in the district to apply to be interim superintendent, That person is expected to be named by June 15. The School Board wants someone who wont seek the job permanently.
WASHINGTON  Uber Eats, Postmates and DoorDash said they will no longer waive delivery fees for customers who order from Black-owned restaurants in Arizona, to settle charges by the state that the deals violated the Arizona Civil Rights Act.
As families plan for safe vacations to Hawaii, its important to note Maui has implemented a new second test requirement for all trans-Pacific travelers participating in the states Safe Travels program.

This second test requirement came into effect on May 4, subjecting travelers to an additional rapid COVID test upon arrival at Mauis Kahului Airport. These secondary tests are provided at no cost to travelers.

All trans-Pacific travelers, regardless of vaccination status, are still required to enroll in the Safe Travels program and provide a pre-departure negative test from a trusted testing partner in order to bypass Hawaiis mandatory 10-day quarantine. However, Maui County will provide an exception to the post-arrival test for fully vaccinated trans-Pacific travelers able to provide proof of vaccination.

Maui considers fully vaccinated passengers as those who have received both doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, with at least 14 days of time lapsed since the final dose. Arriving guests may present their original CDC vaccination card or certification of vaccination from the CDCs Vaccination Administration System.

Cavan Images/Getty Images/Cavan Images RF

Unvaccinated arriving guests will receive a rapid test upon arrival, with results expected within 15 to 20 minutes. Children under the age of 5 are not required to take the new post-arrival test.

If a post-arrival rapid antigen test returns with a positive result, guests must complete a confirmatory PCR test at the airport. If negative results persist, guests must then complete a full 10-day quarantine at their own expense.

Guests already within the state with plans to visit Maui from another county in Hawaii must still complete the same Safe Travels pre-travel requirements.

Prior to making travel plans, it is advised to review both the latest travel requirements on the Hawaii Tourism Authority website and new testing requirements detailed on the County of Maui website.
TSA continues to see a rise in air passenger traffic as leisure travel rebounds to near pre-pandemic levels. This past Sunday, TSA screened more than 1.7 million passengers. While the same date last year saw barely over 200,000 passengers, pre-pandemic numbers on the same date in 2019 saw 2.4 million passengers screened.

As passengers return to the skies, airlines seek new ways to expedite the travel experience while offering attractive deals for quick getaways. This weeks airline news reveals a new security screening pilot program at Sea-Tac Airport, increased Oregon routing with newcomer Avelo Airlines, and a Delta mileage redemption fare sale for flights to Alaska.

Keep reading to discover the latest airline news for the Pacific Northwest and beyond.

Sea-Tac Airport tests new virtual checkpoint queuing

Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) is testing out a new pilot program to make airport security checkpoints more efficient for passengers. SEA Spot Saver provides a digital reservation time for TSA general screening checkpoints and is intended for travelers without a trusted traveler program like TSA PreCheck or CLEAR.

SEA Spot Saver is a free, reservation-based system meant to reduce wait times and crowding to better maintain physical distancing. The pilot program allows passengers to experience contact-free, expedited screening.

We can use technology to make the travel experience more streamlined and intuitive, said Port of Seattle Commissioner Sam Cho.

The pilot program will operate daily from 4 a.m. to noon now through August 31. Alaska Airlines passengers will use TSA Checkpoint 5 while passengers with Delta and others will use TSA Checkpoint 2.

Our vision for the future of travel is aimed at creating a more seamless, less stressful experience for all, said Helda Durham, Deltas director of airport customer service and operations at Sea-Tac Airport. The SEA Spot Saver pilot does just that for Seattle customers, which is why we are excited to support our great partners at Port of Seattle and the TSA in their efforts.

Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for Avelo Air

Avelo Airlines broadens Oregon routing

Avelo Airlines, Americas first new mainline air carrier in nearly 15 years, recently debuted at Pasco Tri-Cities (PSC) airport with introductory one-way fares starting as low as $19 to Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR).

As Avelo enters the market, it is now also offering nonstop routes to Burbank from three small Oregon airports: Eugene (EUG), Redmond-Bend (RDM) and Medford-Rogue Valley (MFR).

The low-cost carrier offers flexibility in customer experiences with optional fees for priority boarding and pre-reserved window or aisle seating. Guests may opt between a $10 first checked bag or $35 for overhead stowed carry-ons.

Avelo is a different and better kind of airline, built from scratch to offer an affordable, convenient and caring travel experience, said Avelo Founder, Chairman and CEO Andrew Levy.

NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Delta SkyMiles deal: roundtrip Alaska fares starting at 5,000 miles

Delta has released a series of enticing SkyMiles redemption deals for roundtrip Alaska fares to and from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Promotional pricing ends on May 17, 2021.

Roundtrip fares start as low as 5,000 miles for roundtrip travel, plus taxes and fees of approximately $12 roundtrip. Alaska destinations include Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, Ketchikan and Sitka. Promotional fares to Anchorage are for travel dates between August 7 and August 14, while the other Alaska destination travel dates are for travel dates between May 31 and June 13.
The Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission (SEEC) voted unanimously Monday to approve Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant's settlement for illegally using city resources to promote a ballot initiative.

The Socialist councilmember, who is currently facing recall, announced a settlement agreement last week, acknowledging she spent $1,759 in city resources to promote a "Tax Amazon" ballot proposition campaign through advertisements, posters, phone banking and mass text messages.

With the SEEC approval of the settlement, Sawant will now have to pay a $3,515.74 penalty, double what she spent to promote the ballot initiative, back to the city within 30 days.

The recall effort attempted to delay the SEEC proceedings and increase the fine, arguing in a letter sent to the commission by attorney John McKay that adequate notice had not been given for public comment and that the fine did not "adequately account for the Councilmember's use of city resources, nor account for the Councilmember's lack of remorse or acceptance of responsibility for her actions."

McKay pointed to language on the Kshama Solidarity effort's website as proof of the second claim.

"Kshama did not break the law or use City resources to promote a ballot initiative," the website said. "The charges attack Kshama for participating in a community meeting that discussed a possible ballot initiative  this is like a 'thought crime,' being accused simply for discussing a grassroots initiative before one even exists."

In a statement released Monday, Sawant emphasized that she did not "willfully disregard any ethics rules," maintaining that she was not aware that using city resources before a ballot proposition was filed was against city law.

"I am no lawyer, and cannot speak definitively about the ethics code. But the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission (SEEC) has ruled on this matter and I am in no position to dispute their code," Sawant wrote. "I can clearly say, however, as the settlement agreement itself does, that my understanding of the rules regarding ballot initiatives was that I was allowed to use the resources of my office prior to an initiative being filed."

GENNA MARTIN, SEATTLEPI.COM

Her statement also explained why she is settling with SEEC instead of fighting the matter, saying she would "far rather prioritize the fight to win rent control and workers' rights" in regards to new legislation she introduced last week.

The settlement comes amid a contentious recall effort against Sawant, which the Washington Supreme Court ruled could move forward, and appears to bolster one of the recall campaign's claims of malfeasance: one of the allegations found factually and legally sufficient by the court included using city resources to promote a Tax Amazon ballot initiative.

"This is the very reason we brought the recall effort against Sawant," said Henry Bridger II, the manager and chair for the Recall Sawant Campaign, in a statement. "Shes been lying to the public all this time. Blatantly lied to our faces in public and consistently repeated by her followers."

Other charges in the recall include opening City Hall to Black Lives Matter protesters in June 2020 and leading a protest to Mayor Jenny Durkan's private residence.

Since the Supreme Court ruling in April, the recall effort has started gathering signatures via mailers to District 3 voters to allow "everyone to safely sign and return their petition by mail," according to the campaign. In order to make the ballot, petitioners will now need to collect approximately 10,700 signatures from District 3 voters.

Both the recall effort and solidarity campaign have continued to raise massive funds for their side of the cause: the latest filings from SEEC show the Kshama Solidarity Campaign has raised $501,873 while the recall has raised $480,064.
A few lucky Washington whale watchers got a Mother's Day treat over the weekend: a coveted "grand slam" with sightings of four different species in a single day.

The Pacific Whale Watchers Association reported that two professional whale watching companies had grand slams on Sunday, spotting a minke and a gray whale in Rosario Strait, a humpback mom and calf near Waldron Island and several Biggs killer whales.

"It doesn't happen often, but we had a Grand Slam whale watch today! said Captain Matt Stolmeier of Outer Island Excursions. "A gray whale, minke whale, several matrilines of Bigg's killer whales, and we wrapped it up with a perfect Mother's Day treat, a mom and calf humpback pair."

Gray whales are annual visitors in these waters: from March to June, approximately 18,000 gray whales migrate north from their breeding grounds in Baja California up to the Bering Sea with several groups turning off into the Salish Sea to rest and eat.

Those who hang around, usually known as the "Sounders," usually begin their trip again by summer.

Brooke-McKinley/Outer Island Expeditions/PWWA

Bigg's killer whales were also spotted on the excursions. These killer whales are known for eating marine mammals, differing from the southern resident orca pods who feed on salmon.

Over 200 Bigg's whales are typically documented in the Salish Sea each year, according to the PWWA.

Brooke-McKinley/Outer Island Expeditions/PWWA

The outing also involved a sighting of a new humpback calf and its mother. Humpback whales are just now beginning to return to the Salish Sea from their winter migrations.

"This is my 15th season working on a whale watching boat and yesterday was only my 8th Grand Slam ever and we were elated to have BCX1210 Slate and her new calf on Mother's Day," said Naturalist & photographer Brooke McKinley. "It was a glorious day, sunshine, flat calm waters and whales everywhere!"

Brooke-McKinley/Outer Island Expeditions/PWWA

Minke whales might be the hardest, most elusive species to see as they are smaller and faster than other resident species. They also spend less time on the surface, meaning whale watchers must be quick when looking for exhalations or other clues.

The species is also solitary, making sighting even more difficult. The National Marine Fisheries Services estimated that 1,000 minke whales live in coastal areas off of California, Oregon and Washington.

Brooke-McKinley/Outer Island Expeditions/PWWA

Last month, a few rare 'celebrity' whales were also spotted in the Salish Sea: Chainsaw and Tl'uk.

Chainsaw, a male transient killer whale, is known among whale watchers for two distinctive notches on his dorsal fin, giving it the appearance of a large saw blade. Tluk, whose name means "moon" in the language of the indigenous Coast Salish people, is notable for its white coloring, likely due to leucism or a partial loss of pigmentation.

Along with gray whales, transient orcas, humpbacks and minke whales are most likely to be seen in Washington during the spring. Southern resident orcas are least likely to be seen during these months, according to Orca Network.
The amount of fuel that assisted living facilities must maintain on-site varies with the sizes of the facilities. Assisted living facilities with 16 or fewer beds are required to have 48 hours of fuel on-site, and larger ALFs are required to have 72 hours of fuel. But the rules also make clear that the generator and fuel requirements must be in accordance with the statewide building code and local zoning.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP)  Serene, stark and seemingly in the middle of nowhere in Pennsylvania, the National Park Service memorial to the people who died on United Airlines Flight 93 is hard to find on a map  as the Sept, 11, 2001, terrorist attack itself slips deeper into the nation's collective memory.

And even schools that do teach about the day may only bring it up only on the anniversary, rather than as a point in a long arc of history and a turning point that left the U.S. irrevocably changed, 20 years later.

Families of Flight 93's 40 passengers and crew members are trying something new to change that: an annual award for heroism. Nominations open Monday through the nonprofit group, Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial.

The award aims to reward selfless acts of heroism, but also to educate the public on what happened when those aboard the hijacked plane, bound for San Francisco, discovered that jets had been flown into the World Trade Center towers in New York and the Pentagon outside Washington.

The passengers and crew of Flight 93 then tried to wrest control of the aircraft, which crashed into a field, leaving no survivors  a sacrifice then-President George W. Bush called one of the most courageous acts in U.S. history, believed to have stopped a catastrophic crash into the White House or the Capitol.

The hope is to use the award to connect teachers to the Friends' organization's considerable teaching materials and historical records from the day, and bring it to classrooms, said Donna Gibson, a banking executive who, as president of the Friends organization, has given countless tours of the site tucked amid the wildflowers in Pennsylvania's Laurel Highlands.

By the time the 20th anniversary rolls around in four months, 75 million Americans will have been born in those two decades, the organization estimates.

That's nearly a quarter of the country, and it shows.

One of the questions I get when people visit is, Was this a national park when the plane crashed here? Gibson said.

A Boy Scout troop touring the site were puzzled when they heard about the messages that passengers left on answering machines from the plane's air phones. What's an answering machine? they asked.

Another time, a group visiting the area for an ATV park were at a nearby restaurant asking the staff how they could fill their next day there, unaware the memorial was so close by, Gibson recalled.

Flight 93 inspired a major motion picture, a Neil Young song and stack of books. But the worrisome thought for family members is the story of Flight 93  and, along with it, the wider story of 9/11  is being forgotten, including the decades of geopolitics that came before the attack and the dramatic change it created in American life.

It's not taught thoroughly in schools.

Jeremy Stoddard, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education, has studied since 2003 how 9/11 and its aftermath are taught in middle and high schools around the country.

There hasnt been a lot of good data on that, its very anecdotal, Stoddard said.

There was an initial burst of materials for teachers that Stoddard and his colleagues found to be inconsistent and lacking detail in how 9/11 was explained. Little of the material addressed controversies or gave students assignments to help them explore the subjects, they found.

In 2017, Stoddard and two colleagues found that one-third of states  16  had education standards that included no mention of the attacks, or any content related to terrorism or the war on terror. That could be because those states give broad guidance to teachers that do not include specifics dates, events or people.

But even for states that do mention the subject, standards are generally a guide for teachers and not a requirement, leaving teachers with substantial autonomy on how and what to teach.

In a 2019 survey of teachers and how they teach the subject, Stoddard heard many say they were seeing an increase in students repeating conspiracy theories about Sept. 11 in class.

Even educators who teach it are sometimes uncertain where to place the material, or in which course. The subject often gets tacked onto the end of U.S. history courses that go in chronological order.

Stoddard encourages teachers to use primary sources: letters, documents, photographs, television news recordings and audio recordings of first-person accounts.

Stoddard also encourages teachers to move beyond the anniversary, and teach the roots in history  going back to the redrawing of the borders of Middle East countries after World War 1 and the Soviet war in Afghanistan in the 1980s  and its lasting effect on American life, including foreign policy and domestic security.

These kids dont recognize how much ... all the things that occurred as a result that have impacted their lives," Stoddard said.

The families of Flight 93 victims also worry that the Flight 93 story is overshadowed by the stories of the planes that crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Those memorials in New York and Washington  major urban centers, as opposed to a rural field  might pull in millions of visitors a year.

The Flight 93 memorial attracted 411,000 visitors in 2019, according to National Park Service figures. But it is also a click away online, with resources for teaching about Flight 93 and Sept. 11.

The award is for things that were done in 2020, but how that ties back to 9/11 and Flight 93 and the resources that we have, said Emily Schenkel, a Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, resident whose godmother was an attendant on Flight 93. So this is keeping that awareness and making these connections for younger people who either werent alive or dont have a recollection of 9/11.

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Follow Marc Levy on Twitter at www.twitter.com/timelywriter.
ATLANTA (AP)  After announcing last week that he plans to require people receiving unemployment benefits to resume searching for work, Georgia's labor commissioner now says he's considering cutting federal benefits to workers in an effort to push them back into the workforce.

Kersha Cartwright, a spokesperson for elected Republican Mark Butler, said Butler and Gov. Brian Kemp met on Monday and discussed possibilities such as cutting the $300-a-week federal supplement to unemployed workers or cutting off special federal benefits to people not usually eligible for state unemployment.

I think the governor's office and the commissioner are agreed that a major reduction in some programs, if not all programs, is needed," Cartwright told The Associated Press. Everything's on the table for discussion.

Mallory Blount, a spokesperson for Kemp, said "to expect final decisions on timing and other specifics in the coming days.

For our states economic momentum to continue, the commissioner of labor must do more to match employers with job seekers and make policy decisions that encourage more Georgians to return to the workforce, Kemp wrote in a statement vetoing a bill lawmakers passed earlier this year that would have cut Butlers authority.

Butler has the legal authority to reject the benefits, but is consulting with Kemp. Butler could also decrease the amount of money someone can earn and still qualify for benefits. Butler set that amount at $300 a week when the pandemic began, meaning people who are working reduced hours can still qualify for the $300-a-week federal boost.

Butler said last week that he would reinstate work search requirements in the next few months, but didnt say when. He promised he would give advance notice.

Alabama and Mississippi on Monday became the latest states to announce they would withdraw from the $300-a-week federal assistance, joining South Carolina, Arkansas and Montana.

The Georgia Chamber of Commerce and a number of other business groups on Monday called for suspending the benefits, saying that getting unemployed men and women connected to employers and back to work is the first step to solving a labor shortage.

Because they cannot find labor, businesses are starting to turn down orders, raise prices, and some are even considering closing permanently, the business groups wrote. "Many restaurants are only offering drive-through, pick-up service, not because of COVID, but because they cannot find enough workers to support full-scale operations.

Senate Bill 156, which would have created a chief labor officer, became the only bill from the 2021 legislative session that Kemp vetoed. The chief labor officer would have been appointed by the speaker of the House and confirmed by a Senate committee, with the duty to provide responses to audits and questions from legislative leaders.

Kemp wrote that he understood the frustration of lawmakers, who have been besieged by constituents complaining of unresolved unemployment claims. But Kemp said the new office would be an unconstitutional intrusion of the legislature into the executive branch.

Rather than creating a new chief labor officer position that reports directly to the legislature, I believe we should work with the labor commissioner to identify the challenges his agency," Kemp wrote.

About 25,000 Georgians filed new unemployment claims in the week ended May 1, and about 140,000 people are receiving traditional unemployment benefits from the state program. Another 127,000 Georgians were getting special federal assistance available to people who were self-employed, independent contractors, gig workers, or employees of churches and nonprofits. Some states are also quitting that program, which was created to help people ineligible for traditional unemployment benefits.

Despite those numbers, Georgias workforce is only 44,000 below the record of 5.2 million that it hit in March 2020. Employer payrolls are 4%, or 180,000, below the all-time high of 4.67 million.

Defenders of extra benefits say the labor market is still disrupted by COVID-19, particularly because mothers may be staying home with children.

Georgia had a 4.5% unemployment rate in March, below the 6% national average.

The Georgia business groups acknowledged there may not be enough workers to meet employers' needs. Besides cutting benefits and requiring people to look for work, they called for rapid retraining of jobless workers, and using federal funds to help provide childcare. The business groups also called for long-term fixes such as more visas for foreign workers, helping college students find work and a review of the state's educational system focusing on updated skills.

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Follow Jeff Amy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jeffamy.
CHAMBLEE, Ga. (AP)  Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said he is suspending state taxes on motor fuels through Saturday to offset increasing prices after a computer hack led a key pipeline that carries fuel to much of Georgia to shut down.

The Republican said Tuesday that he wanted to provide price relief from increasing fuel prices because of the Colonial Pipeline outage.

It will probably help level the price at the pump off for a little while, Kemp told reporters at DeKalb-Peachtree Airport in Chamblee.

Georgia collects a gasoline tax of 28.7 cents a gallon and a diesel tax of 32.2 cents a gallon. The tax is collected by distributors and paid to the state.

However, Kemp is urging people not to hoard gasoline, saying he expected quick relief from the supply crunch.

You dont need to go out and fill up every 5-gallon can you've got, Kemp said. "Get what you need, let everybody else get what they need to get to work, you know, do the things you need to do. But we are seeing some shortages around the state, so we just dont want to have a run on the pumps."

Scattered gas stations in metro Atlanta and north Georgia ran out of fuel Monday and Tuesday, while others including a Savannah-area chain started limiting purchases. The pipeline also carries jet fuel, and planes at the busy suburban airport where Kemp spoke Tuesday were being fueled and taking off.

Kemp's order waives weight limits on tanker trucks that carry fuel to stations, saying he wanted to maximize deliveries by truck. Federal officials Monday waived driving time limits with the same goal.

Later Tuesday, the governor and Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black said they were seeking permission from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for stations to keep selling winter-blend gasoline instead of the more expensive summer-blend that Atlanta-area stations sell to combat smog.

The governor also warned against price gouging.

While not all price increases qualify as gouging, we do want to make clear that anyone taking advantage of this disruption, and making a quick buck off the backs of Georgians will not be tolerated, Kemp said.

Gas prices in Georgia were averaging $2.87 a gallon Tuesday, according to AAA. That's an 11-cent jump since Monday and a 16-cent jump since last week.

Anthony Haynes, a Savannah maintenance worker, told the Savannah Morning News on Monday that higher prices will hurt him financially.

Well try to limit our driving if its going up any more than that, Haynes said, but we kind of have no choice.

Privately held Colonial Pipeline, which is based in the Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta, delivers about 45% of the fuel used along the Eastern Seaboard. The pipeline supplies not only Atlanta and north Georgia, but has a spur that runs south through Macon and Albany to Bainbridge.

The pipeline shut down Friday after a ransomware attack by gang of criminal hackers that calls itself DarkSide.

___

Follow Jeff Amy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jeffamy.
Ted S. Warren/Associated Press

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP)  Landlords will be required to provide a valid reason for ending certain leases with tenants, under a measure signed into law Monday by Washington Gov. Jay Inslee.

Previously, landlords were allowed to end month-to-month leases with 20 days notice, without providing a reason. Under the measure that passed the Legislature last month, landlords can now end leases for reasons like failure to pay rent, unlawful activity and nuisance issues, as well as cases in which a landlord intends to sell or move into a rental.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  Wisconsin will receive $700 million less than initially expected in federal coronavirus relief money and it will arrive in two payments a year apart, news that Gov. Tony Evers and U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin said Tuesday was problematic.

The state was informed Monday of the split in payments, and the total it would receive. Evers and Baldwin asked U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday to reconsider breaking the funding into two.

This will significantly reduce the funding that will be available for Wisconsins current pandemic response operations and to continue to meet immediate needs and restore economic well-being, Baldwin and Evers wrote.

Evers has emphasized wanting to spend the money quickly to help those most hurt by the pandemic. He has cited that desire for speed in vetoing Republican-authored bills that dictated how the money would be spent. The governor has sole authority in deciding how to spend the money.

Republicans who control the Legislature have called on Evers to meet with them to discuss how the money should be spent. Rep. Mark Born, co-chairman of the Legislature's budget committee, renewed that call on Tuesday.

Regardless of the exact amount, theres still a lot of federal money coming into this state," he said. Right now, thats all within the governors decision making and we hope he will include us in that soon.

Evers has announced generally how he wants to spend the money, while holding off on details pending federal guidance. The U.S. Treasury Department sent guidelines Monday about how the money can be spent and the application process for states to begin receiving the money.

The Congressional Research Office initially estimated that Wisconsin would receive $3.2 billion, but the Treasury Department now says the state will receive $2.5 billion.

Evers had said he wanted to spend $2.5 billion on economic relief for families, tourism, workers and small-business owners, as well as $500 million on the continued pandemic response and $200 million on infrastructure, including broadband.

Evers has not said how the states reduced payment will affect his spending plans.

Wisconsin will get its money in two payments because the states unemployment rate of 3.8% in March was not more than 2 points higher than it was in February 2020, when it stood at 3.5%. Thirty states were getting their money in two batches, while 20 others had worsened unemployment rates that allowed them to get it all at once.

Evers and Baldwin wrote that the split in funding does not necessarily reflect the urgency or the level of need that many businesses, families, workers, and community organizations have right now. ... A delay of up to a year in being able to access these funds in Wisconsin risks slowing our economic relief and the successful recovery progress weve made to date.

States have wide latitude to use the federal money to make up for revenue losses during the coronavirus pandemic. Among other things, they also can put the money toward public health and mental health care; aid to small businesses, the unemployed or households; water, sewer and high-speed internet infrastructure; or extra pay for a broad range of essential workers, including teachers, janitors, truck drivers and those in health care, food and public safety jobs.

Federal guidelines prohibit the money from being used to pay off debt, cut taxes or set aside in a reserve fund.
The Colonial Pipeline, the biggest fuel pipeline in the U.S., delivering about 45% of what is consumed on the East Coast, was hit on Friday with a cyberattack by hackers who lock up computer systems and demand a ransom to release them. The attack raised concerns, once again, about the vulnerability of the nations critical infrastructure.
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Over the past year, self-assembled and untraceable ghost guns have increasingly turned up in the aftermath of Bay Area robberies, gang shootings and homicides  sought out by criminals who can buy them without a background check and have them legally shipped to almost anywhere in the U.S.

Newly proposed legislation seeks to remove San Francisco from that equation, though, making the city the first in the state to completely ban the possession and sale of ghost gun kits and parts.

Were really hoping that this legislation leads people to see that it is possible to ban the sale of these ghost guns, which are a huge threat to public safety, said District Two Supervisor Catherine Stefani, who authored the legislation.

Police in San Francisco, Oakland and other large cities have recorded a spike in ghost gun seizures over the past few years, a trend that appears to be accelerating. Ghost guns accounted for 22% of all firearms Oakland police confiscated by March of this year, compared to just 7% in 2019. In San Francisco, police seized 164 ghost guns last year  a 2,600% increase from the six they confiscated in 2015.

In 2020, 44% of the recovered guns used in San Francisco homicides were ghost guns, compared to 6% in 2019, said San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott, who supports the bill.

I think any additional leverage and tools we can get is going to be helpful, he said.

Stefanis ordinance would amend the citys police code to prohibit anyone other than a licensed manufacturer from buying, selling, transferring or owning certain unfinished firearm parts that havent been imprinted with a serial number.

To remain on the right side of the law, those who buy and put together ghost guns currently have 10 days to register with the U.S. Department of Justice to get a serial number. This subjects the owner to the same background check as any other gun, but unsurprisingly theres been little compliance, Stefani said in an interview with The Chronicle.

Thats why its important that the legislation focus on the point of sale, Stefani said. Not only would it ban San Franciscans from owning the weapons, the ordinance makes it illegal for those out of state to sell or ship disassembled, unserialized parts and kits to San Francisco addresses.

The bill has obvious limitations. Just like buyers can cross state lines to skirt Californias strict gun laws, they could also ship their ghost gun parts to another address in a neighboring city.

What were hoping is that by being the first in California to do this at a local level, that other cities will then follow, and the state will follow, and then hopefully well be able to enact something like this on a federal level, Stefani said.

Mia Tretta, a student at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita (Los Angeles County) who survived a gunshot wound after a classmate opened fire in November 2019, spoke Tuesday morning at a virtual press conference in support of banning the weapons.

Mia, 16, recalled the harrowing moments when she and her best friend, Dominic Blackwell, were gunned down while hanging out before class last year. Dominic and another student were killed in the shooting while Mia and two others were injured.

The shooter, who took his own life, used a ghost gun, Mia said.

Im only 16, and I dont have the power to change laws like these, Mia said. However, many of you do have the voice and the power to change this.

Offenders caught violating the ordinance could face a $1,000 fine or six months in jail, the bill states.

Theres a potential for a civil lawsuit as well, said Tanya Schardt, legal counsel for the Brady gun control advocacy group, which supports the legislation.

While Schardt said any gun laws created by cities or states have to contend with the laws governing surrounding jurisdictions, creating legislation around ghost guns is still an important precedent to set.

Until the state takes the really strong action that it needs to and until the federal government takes the really strong action it needs to, localities can at least take the steps that they can, Schardt said. I think its really important.

Megan Cassidy is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @meganrcassidy
City College of San Francisco faculty members have agreed to pay cuts averaging 9% next year to save hundreds of instructors from being laid off and their classes from being eliminated.

The one-year contract, ratified by 82% of faculty members voting, will preserve most of the roughly 600 classes that the college had planned to eliminate next academic year as a result of laying off instructors. The prospect of such a loss prompted months of protests by students and faculty in person and online.

However, the one-year fix does little to resolve City Colleges long-standing structural financial problems. For now, it saves all 156 full-time faculty members and up to 440 part-time instructors who had expected to lose their jobs in the fall. How many part-timers might still be let go has not been disclosed.

City College said the new contract will save $22.6 million next year through salary and benefit reductions and attrition. The cuts also allow the college to set aside a 5% cash reserve, a state-required cushion that the school had dipped beneath, causing concern among fiscal watchdogs.

Im relieved, said Malaika Finkelstein, president of the American Federation of Teachers Local 2121, which represents the college faculty, and an instructor in the Disabled Students Programs and Services Department. This agreement means I can tell my students that they will have classes in the fall.

Instructors agreed to cuts ranging from 4% to 11%, exempting the first $30,000 of their salary.

City College officials declined to comment on the contract before the schools Board of Trustees approved it. The board was expected to do so Monday night.

On Friday, Vice Chancellor Tom Boegel told The Chronicle that City College was facing a $35 million deficit. College administrators had planned to close much of the gap through layoffs.

Cuts of this magnitude would have robbed over 30,000 students every semester of educational opportunities, the union said in a statement after the vote. It said the cuts would have gutted programs including English as a second language, registered nursing, computer networking and construction. Other fields of study  including Cantonese, womens and gender studies, Philippine studies and fashion  would have been eliminated altogether, the union said.

COVID Resources Coronavirus Map Tracking COVID-19 cases across the Bay Area and California.

Such cuts could be on the table again in a year if the college cant fix basic financial problems, including an impending state change to its funding formula that will penalize the college if it doesnt become more of a springboard for students looking to get into a four-year university.

Union officials and trustees say they are trying to persuade city officials to provide long-term funding for City College, as they do for the San Francisco Unified School District.

Much of City Colleges financial woes are due to the schools loss of 39% of its enrollment over the last decade  from 90,000 to 55,000 full- and part-time students.

Recent assessments by auditors and the states Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team have blamed college leaders for failing to cut expenditures in line with that loss.

Nanette Asimov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: nasimov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @NanetteAsimov
When the teachers union over the weekend announced the exciting news that San Franciscos high school seniors will get a chance to go back to classrooms starting Friday, it left out details about the plan, including that students might be back for one to three days.

In addition, the class of 2021 wont get any in-person instruction while theyre at one of two school sites. Instead, they have in-person supervision.

In what some are calling a blatant money grab, the deal between the district and teachers union will bring seniors back for at least one day before the end of the school year, so the citys public schools could qualify for $12 million in state reopening funds.

District officials were still working out details of the plan Tuesday, but said most seniors opting to return would be back at least three days over the next three weeks.

If students return for just one day or even two, or if some sites reopen after Friday, the districts plan would not meet state requirements to get the extra cash, state officials said.

Im absolutely shocked, said Assemblyman Phil Ting, who sponsored the legislation. The point was to reopen and to stay open.

The last-minute plan for seniors was yet another disappointment for San Francisco families, health officials, political leaders and mental health experts who have argued for the reopening of district schools for months, only to face multiple delays, even as many private school students have been back since the fall.

The teachers union, which acknowledged the academic and emotional harm to many students from remote learning, argued it wasnt safe to return until educators were vaccinated and even then resisted a fuller reopening.

Despite teachers getting priority for vaccinations, the union agreed only to allow a small group of vulnerable middle and high school students to return even as other districts  such as Berkeley and Oakland  brought a larger share of older students back.

While the teachers union announced Sunday that it had reached an agreement with the district to allow seniors to return to schools, it didnt release specifics. The Chronicle obtained a copy of the deal Monday.

Each cohort of students would have two teachers or staff supervising them on campus. Activities might include end of high school conversations, or college and career exploration, said district officials, who were still working out the cohort size.

District staff updated the school board on additional details Tuesday evening. Nearly 600 seniors have said they wanted to return to classrooms, although it was unclear whether they would be able to go back to their own school or another site in the district.

During the meeting, many public speakers criticized the plan.

I appreciate making an attempt to get the money. Those funds are needed, said Gregory Arenius, during public comment. That said, this plan is disgusting. Everybody involved should be ashamed of themselves.

This is the least that can possibly be done.

Lowell High School senior Natalia Potente said she has no intention of returning for a day or two and doesnt know of anyone who plans to do so.

Personally, I think its kind of insulting that theyre trying to make up for a loss of over a year with a few days, she said. It probably wouldnt even be at my own school with my teachers.

Teachers union officials did not immediately return requests for comment about the uproar over the plan.

District officials said they believed the plan would qualify for $12 million in state reopening grants, which by state law required districts to reopen for in-person instruction for elementary school students as well as students in at least one middle or high school grade by May 15.

Yet by Tuesday, as more details became available, it appeared that some students might not return regularly for the rest of the school. The state law requires the district to offer continuous in-person learning until the end of the school year  even if that means once a week.

In addition, it wasnt clear if all sites for seniors would reopen by Friday, which would be necessary to get the funding, state officials said.

It definitely doesnt meet the spirit of the law, Ting said. Kids were supposed to come back in person. Kids were supposed to come back to learn.

The goal of the legislation was to get all the kids back. But specifically, the law requires opening school for an entire middle or high school grade before May 15, and keeping that grade open all the way to June 2, Ting said.

He said San Francisco Unifieds senior reopening plan is why he is pushing for a full reopening in the fall with no flexibility for districts.

Some districts will do the maximum and some districts will do the bare minimum, he said.

Some parents criticized the plan, saying it was basically a ploy to get money rather than an effort to address the needs of students.

COVID Resources Coronavirus Map Tracking COVID-19 cases across the Bay Area and California.

What message does this give our kids about what they are worth and how adults take care of our vulnerable populations, including kids? Does this show them that they matter, or just that the money matters? one San Francisco school reopening advocacy group, Decreasing the Distance, asked in a statement. One senior told us she wants to return, but not like this. Her reaction: Its too little too late. Schools over.

San Francisco reopened elementary schools in early April and by the end of the month added sites for middle and high school students with high needs, including English learners, those in public housing, foster youth, disabled students and those who have struggled in distance learning.

About 19,000 of the districts 52,000 students have returned to school sites.

There was no effort until recent weeks to bring back another secondary grade, given that the district had already set a reopening plan prior to the state announcing requirements for the grant funding, said district spokeswoman Gentle Blythe.

But with $12 million on the line, district officials and the union scrambled to find a way to get the cash.

The deal with the teachers union includes a provision that the United Educators of San Francisco strongly urges SFUSD to use the funds for improving ventilation systems in school buildings, prioritizing sites in the historically marginalized Southeast portion of San Francisco, with some of the worst regional air quality, the highest cancer rates, and the most devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in San Francisco.

More specifics were expected to be announced during Tuesdays school board meeting.

Meanwhile, the district released data on cases in schools on Monday.

Twenty cases of COVID-19 were found among the 20,000 staffers and students who went back to elementary school campuses over the last three weeks. All the cases reported were related to community transmission in unvaccinated people.

In other words, zero cases were related to in-school transmission at SFUSD, the city Department of Public Health said in a statement Monday. There were no cases among vaccinated teachers and staff in the school district.

Natalia, the Lowell senior, said she would have loved to have gone back to classes months ago, when private school peers did. But now, with less than three weeks left of her last year of high school, she said, At this point, Im just ready to move on.

Jill Tucker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jilltucker
Siska Silitonga, San Franciscos most prominent Indonesian chef through her pop-up ChiliCali and jarred sambals, is finally opening her own full-on restaurant this summer.

Called Warung Siska, the fast-casual restaurant will take over the short-lived Nam Vietnamese Brasserie space in Redwood City in July. Nams Anne Le Ziblatt will be a partner along with Ervan Lim, an owner of Live Fire Pizza in Napa and formerly the director of operations for M.Y. China.

It will function as a permanent home for many of the dishes that have created so many ChiliCali fans over the past six years, such as Balinese roast pork and Dungeness crab in a spicy Sumatran Padang sauce. Warung refers to a small restaurant in Indonesian.

Itll be Siskas food: Indonesian food but my take on the food, said Silitonga, who is from North Sumatra. I want to do something slightly different, just to showcase Indonesian food beyond fried rice and braised beef.

Her Bali-style pork is a prime example  she thinks Warung Siska might be the only Indonesian restaurant in the U.S. to serve it. The roasting process is similar to Filipino lechon, yielding a shatteringly crispy skin, but she bastes it with coconut oil and palm sugar to get the meat sweet and juicy. The sauce features galangal, sand ginger, turmeric and  because she cant find a good local source for lemon basil  rau ram, which is Vietnamese coriander. (Despite Indonesia being a majority Muslim country, Silitonga cooks pork because her family is Christian.)

She plans to use local ingredients instead of importing items or searching the frozen aisle, and to work with top-notch vendors like sustainable seafood purveyor Water2Table. When Dungeness crab isnt in season, for example, shell swap it out for local halibut.

She is also working on sate lilit, a Bali-style minced meat satay, but highlighting seasonal fish instead. The fish cakes will be seasoned with makrut lime leaves, grated coconut and lemongrass, then wrapped around lemongrass sticks and grilled.

The aroma is going to be crazy, especially with the fresh fish just caught the day before, she said.

With no need for renovations at the Nam space, Silitonga is now setting her focus on hiring  a challenge during the industrys well-documented staffing shortage. But shes excited to find people passionate about showcasing Indonesian food at a time when  finally  things seem to be falling into place.

Celeste Noche/Special to The Chronicle 2019

In 2018, Silitonga launched San Franciscos first Indonesian food truck, ChiliCali, as part of an incubator program with Off the Grid. She spent two years serving Google employees and getting ready to debut her truck to the public  but it never happened. The program ended, then the pandemic hit. She was devastated and thought about leaving California. Developers and landlords started contacting her about opening a restaurant, but the opportunities never felt right.

That changed when she started talking to Le Ziblatt, who wanted to reopen Nam Vietnamese Brasserie  which sat temporarily closed for much of the pandemic  but in a new way. Le Ziblatt lived in Indonesia as a Vietnamese refugee for one year as a kid and reached out to Lim, who is also Indonesian and was a fan of ChiliCali.

I was really drawn to wanting to help solve this problem of why Indonesian cuisine is so underrepresented, Le Ziblatt said. Quite frankly, I wouldnt be here and where I am today if it werent for the kindness of the Indonesian people. My parents told me stories of local people in Jakarta sneaking food to them late at night because they didnt have enough to eat in the refugee camp.

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Silitongas experience in trying to introduce Indonesian food to more Bay Area residents  and to showcase its beauty and sophistication  rang true to Le Ziblatt, who faced similar challenges when she opened Tamarine, a modern Vietnamese restaurant in Palo Alto, in 2002.

It felt very familiar: this struggle of helping people to understand a culture through its cuisine and how it can be so misunderstood, Le Ziblatt said. Silitonga and Lim are very proud of who they are and where they came from. We have that in common, which is another thing that binds us together.

Chronicle staff writer Elena Kadvany contributed reporting.

Warung Siska. Opening July. 917 Main St., Redwood City. chilicali.com

Janelle Bitker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: janelle.bitker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @janellebitker
A class-action lawsuit brewing in Colorado could make it harder for Bay Area restaurants  and restaurants across the country  to sue delivery giant Grubhub over trademark issues, such as listing a restaurant without permission.

A law firm representing Sebastopol restaurant the Farmers Wife is trying to intervene, arguing that the Colorado cases proposed settlement would be disastrous for restaurants that dont want to be associated with Chicago-based delivery platform Grubhub. If the settlement gets approved, it also raises questions about Californias new law preventing delivery apps from listing restaurants without permission; that law is enforceable only through lawsuits.

Restaurants have long been frustrated with delivery companies listing their businesses despite never signing any contracts. Owners say the practice creates confusion at work, damages their reputations and forces them to lose customers, who place orders that may never arrive. On the legal side, lawyers say the improper use of menus and logos constitutes trademark infringement.

This is all pretty confusing, so lets break down what we know:

What is this Colorado lawsuit even about?

Freshcraft, a restaurant in Denver, filed a class-action lawsuit against Grubhub last summer, alleging that the delivery platform listed restaurants as closed when, in fact, they were open. But the scope of the case changed earlier this year, expanding the class to an estimated 150,000 restaurants that are on Grubhub without actually signing any contracts with the delivery company.

Why does that matter to us here in California?

The change immediately concerned Steven Tindall, the lawyer representing the Farmers Wife. Thats because the Farmers Wife filed a class-action lawsuit against Grubhub last year, arguing that the delivery app listing restaurants names, logos and menus without permission constitutes trademark infringement. The Colorado case and Tindalls case suddenly represented the same class (again, an estimated 150,000 restaurants nationwide). And the Colorado case reached a proposed settlement, potentially impacting the Farmers Wife. So Tindall filed a motion to intervene  basically, showing he wanted to get involved for his client before it was too late.

Well, what does the settlement say?

The settlement proposes that Grubhub create a page on its website that allows business owners to claim their restaurant pages and request updates, such as to the menu or listed hours. Owners could also use the page to ask to be removed from Grubhub and Seamless, another delivery app owned by Grubhub. To make the process more clear, the company would create a Frequently Asked Questions page geared toward restaurant owners. Grubhub also agreed to alter the HTML of its pages. Previously, the websites back end would suggest to search engines like Google that it offered delivery for restaurants even if it didnt have a contract with the delivery company; now it proposes removing that language.

Why is Tindall concerned, then?

Normally, a proposed settlement for a class-action lawsuit goes out to all members of the class, so members can opt out if they dont want to be part of it. But this settlement wouldnt allow any restaurants to opt out. In Tindalls view, this would prevent a restaurant like the Farmers Wife from pursuing claims like trademark infringement in court in the future. He argues that the web form Grubhub is offering to create still puts the burden on restaurants  it doesnt prevent Grubhub from listing restaurants without permission in the first place.

Theyll be allowed to keep doing exactly what theyre doing, which is using restaurants names and trademarked menus, putting on menus that may or may not be right, and the restaurants will have no recourse, Tindall said.

So if this settlement gets approved, restaurants wont be able to sue Grubhub over listing them without permission?

This is where it gets complicated. The Farmers Wife sued Grubhub for injunctive relief, meaning the Farmers Wife wants the court to order Grubhub to stop using trademarked restaurant logos and such without agreements in place.

But if this Colorado settlement goes through, the Farmers Wife and other restaurants wouldnt be able to sue Grubhub for injunctive relief, according to Tindall and Carolyn Toto, another lawyer who reviewed the settlement for The Chronicle. In other words, they wouldnt be able to sue Grubhub to get the company to stop listing their businesses.

That said, individual restaurants can still sue Grubhub for damages  also known as money.

A Colorado judge still has to agree that the settlement is fair in order to approve it. The court also still needs to rule on whether Tindall can intervene and be part of the process.

The combination of not letting restaurants opt out of the settlement and not allowing restaurants to sue for injunctive relief in the future makes Toto, whose firm Pillsbury represented In-N-Out against DoorDash over trademark violation in 2015, believe the court may not approve the settlement as written.

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Its left to be seen how the court reads it. The court might very well say, This isnt sufficient, she said.

For its part, Grubhub is feeling confident that the settlement will happen. We believe the proposed settlement addresses the concerns raised, including making it easier for restaurants to claim their menu or be removed from our platform if they wish to do so, a spokesperson said in a statement. We look forward to the judges approval of this settlement.

What about the Farmers Wifes lawsuit?

The Farmers Wifes case is on pause due to the potential Colorado settlement.

Where does that leave Californias law? If this settlement gets approved, can business owners sue Grubhub if they find their restaurants listed without permission?

Representatives from the California Restaurant Association and Assembly Member Lorena Gonzalezs office, who co-authored the new California law, said they werent sure whether the settlement would take precedent. They also didnt comment on whether there could be other ways to enforce the law.

In other words, if Grubhub hypothetically refused to take a Bay Area restaurants listing down, its unclear whether that restaurant could sue the company in order to get Grubhub to change course. But Toto said she doesnt see anything in the proposed settlement that would prevent the restaurant from at least suing for cash.

This story was updated to reflect that In-N-Out sued DoorDash in 2015.

Janelle Bitker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: janelle.bitker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @janellebitker
Mister Jius just might be the best new training ground for California cuisine The S.F. restaurants alumni are setting the Bay Area on fire with passion projects from chile crisp to focaccia to hand-pulled noodles

Mister Jius just might be the best new training ground for California cuisine The S.F. restaurants alumni are setting the Bay Area on fire with passion projects from chile crisp to focaccia to hand-pulled noodles

When you read a lot of restaurant news, like I do every day, you develop the ability to speed-read the listings.

For instance, if a new restaurant is being led by someone who used to work at Chez Panisse, you can reasonably assume that that person will be bringing a little bit of that old magic to the new place. Its a reflection of Chez Panisse as a training ground for culinary philosophies; chefs who worked at the Berkeley restaurant went on to open a plethora of farm-to-table restaurants and bakeries, like Greens, Stars and Acme Bread Co. Similarly, esteemed North Beach tasting-menu restaurant Coi once employed chefs like Sarah and Evan Rich of the Michelin-starred Rich Table, while Yountville destination the French Laundrys disciples include the chef-owners behind fine dining giants Benu and Chicagos Alinea.

Recently, I noticed another restaurant thats turned into a compelling progenitor: Mister Jius, the Chinese American restaurant that opened in San Francisco in 2016. Its alumni  and some current staff  have been behind some of the more thrilling projects to emerge in the last year, including Lao Wai Noodles, Vietnamese pop-up Claws of Mantis and lasagna purveyor Marinuccis Pasta Shop.

Besides the founders common workplace, the independent projects share a few family traits. Like many good graduates of Bay Area fine dining, they all embrace technical, from-scratch cooking and seasonal-ingredient sourcing. Theyre also about something more personal: These founders are fearlessly embracing flavors that are largely underappreciated or undervalued in our food scene  often from cuisines that they grew up eating.

One pop-up celebrates the plate lunches of Hawaii, stacking them high with mac salad, grilled chicken and lemongrass-scented rice. Another layers sheets of tender lasagna noodles with locally grown, seasonal produce, like fava beans and asparagus. Theyre doing work thats rather similar to what made Mister Jius, which combines contemporary farm-to-table cooking with the canon of Chinese culinary history, such a groundbreaking restaurant in the first place.

Thats not to say that these individuals owe all of their success to the one workplace they share. Its really a mixture of the personal passions and qualities that drew them there in the first place, as well as the training they received once on board.

But diners should pay attention to where each new generation of restaurants comes from, if only to gain a better sense of why our food scene looks and tastes the way it does. A single restaurant can have an exponential effect on a region, advancing trends and pushing new ideas into mainstream consciousness.

For instance, alumni of a restaurant managed through abusive tactics could just as easily repeat that dynamic in their own kitchens. On the other hand, a restaurant can teach young chefs how to deconstruct established culinary paradigms, like the Eurocentrism of farm-to-table cuisine, and to reform kitchen management styles that run on worker exploitation.

In the case of Mister Jius alumni, theres ample reason to feel optimistic about the future of food in the Bay Area.

At Mister Jius, everyone has some kind of passion project in their pocket, said William Do, who started working there in 2016. Line cooks and chefs have experimented with ferments, dehydration and infused oils, many of which ended up on the menu in some form or another. An early version of Dos Lanzhou-style chile crisp oil made it on, as did dehydrated tapioca chips by sous-chef Sean Walsh.

Chef and owner Brandon Jew was incredibly supportive of the endeavors and offered kitchen space for staff like Do to pursue independent projects, Do said. In the summer of 2019, the restaurant launched Grand Opening, a side business with then-pastry chef Melissa Chou, and staff were encouraged to test out their passion projects there: hand-pulled noodles, tacos, Hawaiian plate lunches, grilled octopus skewers, whatever they wanted.

The collaborative atmosphere existed there before the pandemic but was amplified when the restaurant had to cut back hours. Staff with more time on their hands got cooking.

Armin Chan said his popular focaccia pop-up Weirdough grew partly due to his work at Mister Jius, where he works the wok station. He was first exposed to pop-ups through his peers, like Do and Eric Ehler, another former co-worker who has gone on to host a pizza pop-up and consult with projects like Lazy Susan. Along the way, Chan has made a habit of bringing focaccia to work to solicit feedback from his co-workers. Jew recounted that once, during a service when Chan wasnt working, a loaf of focaccia seemingly appeared out of thin air.

I dont hesitate at having them try stuff, even if its not good, Chan said. Sometimes I know its not where I want it to be yet, so when I present it to people, they tell me, This is what it needs. Its an essential process to do that with people.

Theres built-in precedent for this kind of idea exchange at Mister Jius: Its not unusual for cooks to give each other feedback on food thats not being served in the restaurant. Jew gives the restaurants staff weekly homework  sometimes a show-and-tell assignment to share their favorite food, technique or ingredient, sometimes a recipe inspired by cookbooks the cooks have been studying. Other times, the assignment is just to stretch together or show off new dance moves theyve learned.

Jew tries to do special projects that might appeal to each person on staff so that everybody gets a chance to present something, Chan said. Its a far cry from the anxiety-ridden, top-down management style that Chan has heard about his peers experiencing. Actually, he said, Jew is really cognizant of that dynamic and wants to make the restaurant more of an open environment for people to express themselves.

I think having reasons why you do something is so important, Jew said. He encourages cooks to suggest changes to his recipes, something that might seem completely foreign to people who believe that the chefs genius should hold supremacy in a restaurant kitchen. I dont want them to be robots, I dont want them to not have opinions. I want to have these discussions at a table with them.

That culture of sharing and vulnerability might have something to do with how mutually supportive these chefs are of each others projects. We just became fearless  not afraid of expressing ourselves creatively, said Do.

Once the pandemic hit and more people started doing pop-ups, the community of restaurant workers all started swapping notes and advice on things like setting up pre-order forms, scheduling deliveries and figuring out how much to charge. And they also show up at each others events. Were all friends, we all root for each other, we all want each other to succeed, said Kevin Tang, co-founder of Claws of Mantis.

The food these alumni are putting out reflect the technical prowess that fans of Mister Jius have come to expect. Christina Marinuccis fresh pastas, sauces and trays of luxurious lasagna at her pop-up and farmers market stall in the Outer Sunset take at least three days to make.

But many were also inspired by the mission of Mister Jius: working out the Chinese American experience through food and applying farm-to-table principles to barbecue pork buns and egg tarts.

Danny Louie, who was part of Mister Jius opening team, started his bartending career unsure of what he wanted to do. He found his way by incorporating flavors like bittermelon into drinks, informed by a childhood spent lingering at his uncles shop on Chinatowns bustling Stockton Street. Now, he uses similar techniques in the pop-up Gamsaan Cocktail Co., which he runs with fellow Mister Jius alum William Cao. There, milk punch is garnished with boba, and smoky mezcal is mixed with spicy chile crisp oil, chrysanthemum and cashew. For Kelly Teramoto and Sean Walsh, the co-founders of the Hawaiian pop-up 2x4, the new-wave approach means using California ingredients in classic island plate lunches.

The founders of the Claws of Mantis pop-up, who specialize in seasonal and themed menus of Vietnamese food, similarly see their work as a way to recast their relationships with Vietnamese cuisine and culture. Im rediscovering the food I grew up eating, said Tang.

Perhaps the most meaningful commonality of these projects is their founders desire to create workplace cultures informed by mutual respect and generosity. For Marinucci, the latter is built into her business model, which earmarks a portion of profits toward different charities focused on mental health, human rights and the environment.

Tang and Dan Kanzler, another co-founder of Claws of Mantis, came up in kitchens where chefs ruled through fear and hope to use their own kitchen to break the cycle of abuse. I used to think it was like that all the time, Kanzler said. As I got older, I realized you dont have to yell at someone for them to listen to you. Walsh, a current sous-chef at Mister Jius who advocates for a kinder managerial style, put it succinctly: You can still put out great food without being a dictator.

While he searches for a permanent home for Lao Wai Noodles, Do is thinking about how he wants to organize his kitchen. Hes totally against the French brigade system, the common management style in fine dining kitchens. Do says the militarized division of labor has enabled rampant sexual misconduct, abuse and racism in the restaurant world. Hes also thinking about how to price his noodles so that his future employees can be paid more than fairly and be able to both live in San Francisco and put some money into savings.

When Jew and I spoke, he was quick to say that he wasnt perfect. When he was just starting out as the opening chef for Bar Agricole in 2010, he thought leadership and getting good results out of his staff meant replicating the more aggressive behaviors hed experienced as a cook. He gradually realized that there were much better ways to encourage people to stay.

He seemed embarrassed by the notion of this story. I feel shy about taking any credit, he said. These are ideas that these guys had for a while, and I think they were just able to refine them one more step here. I just got lucky about where they were at in their processes.

His hesitation is understandable. Theres an important distinction between acknowledging a restaurant model that works and putting a single chef on a pedestal. Too often in the past, the lionization of chefs has turned dark.

But Jew is right that these young chefs shouldnt be defined by their relationships to him. Their projects are a combination of the chefs latent passions and the kitchens that gave them space to thrive. Its important to consider as the industry tries to figure out what comes next.

When stories come out about alleged bad actors in any industry, as they have about chefs like Mario Batali, or Quynh Les and Angela Dimayugas, formerly of Mission Chinese, its easy to say that we just need to get rid of those individuals. Its much harder  and more of an existential quandary  to grapple with the systems that enabled them to get so far and hurt so many.

More Information 2x4. www.instagram.com/2x4_bbox/ Claws of Mantis. www.instagram.com/clawsofmantis/ Gamsaan Cocktail Company. www.instagram.com/gamsaancocktailco/ Lao Wai Noodles. www.instagram.com/laowainoodles/ Marinuccis Pasta Shop. 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays at the Outer Sunset Farmers Market & Mercantile. www.instagram.com/marinuccis_sf/ Weirdough Focaccia. www.instagram.com/weirdough_focaccia/

Whats interesting about Mister Jius is not necessarily Jew himself. Its how effective an education-focused mentorship program is at developing talent: without yelling, humiliation or other commonplace kitchen abuses.

This generation of restaurant workers is making the future of Bay Area food seem brighter. And it will only become even more so as they begin to pass along what theyve learned to their own proteges.

While all of the projects are pop-ups for now, a handful are actively looking for permanent homes. Bar man Louie is hoping to open Gamsaan in Chinatown, and the Claws of Mantis team has ceased its takeout business to start cooking eight-course dinners out of a commissary kitchen.

The throughline is clear to Do, who is still a regular at most of his former co-workers events and pop-ups. With a lot of cooks from Mister Jius who do lead pop-ups, theyre cooking food that is relatively humble  not super fine dining, he said. In the end, it all goes back to what feels good to them: what represents their identity; what they draw strength from.

Soleil Ho is The San Francisco Chronicles restaurant critic. Email: soleil@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hooleil
Cheap California wine is not as popular as it once was, as a recent round of layoffs at a Sonoma County winery shows.

E. & J. Gallo, the countrys largest wine corporation, let go 32 workers at Clos du Bois Winery in Geyserville, leaving only 5 on staff, former employee Kevin McDonald told the Santa Rosa Press Democrat. Gallo spokesperson Lon Gallagher confirmed the layoffs, adding that the Geyserville facility would no longer be used to produce wine, with Clos du Bois production moving to other Gallo-owned facilities in Sonoma County.

Its not a total surprise that Gallo is reducing staff. Gallo acquired Clos du Bois earlier this year as part of a $810 million mega-deal with Constellation Brands, the countrys third-largest wine company. The deal transferred 30 wine brands, mostly in the $11 and under category; it was unlikely that Gallo would invest in every one of them.

But since Clos du Bois is a representative example of the brands included in the Gallo-Constellation transaction, the layoffs raise the question of whether Gallo will soon make similar moves with other low-priced wines that it has suddenly acquired, reducing staff and moving wine production from individual wineries to bigger, more streamlined facilities. This type of activity from a business-savvy player like Gallo might reveal that wines like Clos du Bois, which had an important role in the California wine industrys past, are not going to be critical to its future.

Sub-$11 wine has seen slowing growth in recent years, as wine consumers consistently opt for pricier wines. The reason that Constellation wanted to get rid of these 30 cheap brands is because it sees greater potential success in its wines that sell for $20 and up, such as Meiomi, the Prisoner and Robert Mondavi.

Buster Dean / Houston Chronicle 2004

Yet that sluggish cheap-wine category still holds appeal for Gallo, as Ive written before, simply because its a large enough company that it has an interest in controlling wine sales at every point on the price spectrum. It doesnt matter if sub-$11 wines arent offering the best growth opportunity. For Gallo  which produced 78 million cases of wine in 2019, according to the Gomberg Frederickson Report, about 50% more than the next-largest player  its still necessary to compete in that segment.

Gallo may just want to put Clos du Bois on autopilot. The brand isnt going away, Gallagher said, but it sounds like Gallo wants to invest very little in it. We will maintain some operations at Clos du Bois moving forward, but the current staffing levels are not needed for future production, he wrote in an email. McDonald told the Press Democrat he expects the Geyserville winery to be used for storage.

Though the layoffs are new, McDonald suggested that Clos du Bois has been a skeleton operation for some time. No grapes were delivered to the winery last harvest, meaning there is no 2020 vintage to speak of. (In that sense, Clos du Bois isnt alone: Many California wineries declined to make wine last year because the grapes had been affected by wildfire smoke.) One possibility, I believe, is that the brand will become a vehicle for bulk wine, its bottles a receptacle for rejected juice from other brands within the Gallo universe.

The story of Clos du Bois is similar to that of other California wineries that have been purchased by bigger corporations, including other brands that Gallo acquired such as Ravenswood, Mark West and Franciscan.

After its founding in the mid-1970s, Clos du Bois developed a solid reputation for dependable, affordable, well-made wines, but its reputation has gradually deteriorated  possibly due to the fact that its changed hands multiple times.

Deanne Fitzmaurice / The Chronicle 2006

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Gallo also said last January that it did not plan to reopen the Clos du Bois tasting room, which seems to have closed at the beginning of the pandemic. Similarly, Gallo said it wouldnt continue to operate the tasting rooms for two of the other brands it got, Hogue and Wild Horse. Constellation had already abandoned the Franciscan and Ravenswood tasting rooms in recent years, turning the formers St. Helena location into a home for its highly successful Prisoner label and selling the latters Sonoma property to Angelina Mondavi, who is now using it for her Harrow Cellars and Sojourn Cellars.

Given how similar Clos du Bois is to the other newly minted members of the Gallo portfolio, it cant possibly be the only one left in a state of uncertainty. A brand like Ravenswood has gone largely neglected for years at this point; Wine Spectators Tim Fish, writing before the Gallo-Constellation deal had been finalized, said it was unclear whether they were still making any Ravenswood wine as of 2019.

Gallo paid $810 million earlier this year for the biggest names in cheap California wine. But cheap California wine isnt the moneymaker it used to be.

As the biggest wine company in America, Gallo is a bellwether for the industry at large. If investing people and dollars into a brand like Clos du Bois isnt worth it to Gallos bottom line, that should probably be taken as a troubling sign for the many other California wine brands like it.

Esther Mobley is The San Francisco Chronicles wine critic. Email: emobley@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Esther_mobley
After a fire tore through a Victorian on Shotwell Street in the Mission, the building  which used to house six seniors in a residential care home  sat empty for six years.

Small residential care facilities like the one at 628 Shotwell St. are disappearing at an alarming rate in San Francisco, putting vulnerable seniors and adults with disabilities, mental illness or addiction at risk of homelessness with little access to needed treatment services.

In San Francisco, the number of assisted living facilities for seniors and adults with disabilities dropped 38% since 2012, with beds dropping 17%, according to city reports. Hardest hit were the smallest facilities serving low-income residents. At least 100 people were waiting to get a spot in a facility, according to the most recent count.

Advocates say the shortage means more people are sent out of county, which is hard for families, or end up on the streets.

If we are serious about ending homelessness for seniors and people with disabilities, we need residential care facilities, Supervisor Rafael Mandelman said.

Advocates have sounded the alarm for years as high costs and low reimbursement rates shutter these homes. Officials are trying to solidify laws to make it harder to eliminate existing facilities and easier to create new ones as a stopgap while tackling the bigger issues of costs and a shortage of operators.

In October 2019, Mandelman sponsored temporary regulations that required a building owner to apply for special approval from the Planning Commission to demolish or convert an existing residential care facility to another use. Mandelman introduced an ordinance Tuesday to make the rules permanent and add measures that would put pressure on applicants to check if any entity is interested in running the building as a residential care facility.

Mandelman also wants to expand the area where no special approval is needed to create or grow a facility.

Advocates believe the regulations have helped block the vacant Shotwell Street site from being converted to a new use.

In December 2019, the owner applied to convert the building into housing, according to city documents. The case is still stuck in the Planning Commission. On April 23, the owners lawyer sent a letter to community groups emphasizing the intent to develop but first offering to sell the property so it could be reopened as a residential care facility.

The property owners are not in the Residential Care Facility business and lack the expertise, licenses, and resources to operate such a facility. It is also not a financially viable use in this location, the letter read.

The letter gave the groups 25 days to come up with around $2 million. Sara Shortt, director of public policy with Community Housing Partnership, said she and other advocates are creating a plan for a non-profit developer to buy it. The current owner declined to comment.

The economics are often unworkable: For small facilities, the break-even rate per bed is at least $2,000 a month, but thats more than double the state-set rate for Supplemental Security Income recipients in assisted living. The city subsidized 15% of assisted living beds in 2019 for about $11.2 million per year. Subsidies are still not enough for some to sustain operations, said Pat McGinnis, executive director of California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform.

Nonprofit Richmond Area Multi-Services runs a 33-bed facility for people with mental illness and medical needs funded by the Department of Public Health on Broderick Street. Christina Shea, deputy chief and director of clinical services, said they are financially struggling as costs keep rising.

The city expressed interest in December in buying the facility, but the owner wasnt ready to sell yet, a city report said, and the lease was extended. The owner could not be reached for comment.

Advocates believe the new regulations helped protect the property.

San Francisco doesnt have nearly enough residential care facilities to house people who are struggling with severe mental health issues, said Sal Rosselli, president of the National Union of Healthcare Workers, which represents mental health therapists at the Broderick Street facility. This pilot program is already helping the city preserve these essential facilities and improve conditions by changing the dynamic of power between the city and the property owners.

As deadline approaches for community groups to make an offer on the Shotwell Street site, Shortt said they are not married to it being a residential care facility, but would like it to provide some form of housing or treatment.

Well look at the economics of it for sure, but we think its well worth getting people off the streets who might end up in emergency rooms and cost the city more, she said. We knew that it was a very precious opportunity to potentially preserve.

Mallory Moench is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mallory.moench@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @mallorymoench
Good morning, Bay Area. Its Tuesday, May 11, and graduating S.F. high school students could return to the classroom  for as little as one day. Heres what you need to know to start your day.

California has far more money than it expected  and a month to decide how to spend it.

State finance officials project that California will have a $38 billion discretionary surplus in the upcoming fiscal year, more than twice what the Department of Finance estimated in January, reflecting an economy that has recovered far more quickly than expected from the pandemic-induced recession, particularly for the wealthiest Californians.

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday proposed using a portion that $38 billion to expand $600 stimulus payments to middle-income residents, with an additional $500 for families with children.

It was the first of several budget proposals the governor is expected to roll out over the next week. Other wish list items now on the list: rent relief from the beginning of the pandemic onward, as well as money for unpaid utility bills.

But time is of the essence: The Legislature must pass a balanced budget by June 15 or forgo its pay. Read more about what to expect from reporter Alexei Koseff.

 Would you qualify for potential California stimulus expansion?

 California is aiming for 100% COVID rent relief. Will it actually happen?

 State expands drought emergency to 41 of Californias 58 counties, including four more in Bay Area.

 The Bay Areas housing production plummeted in 2020. Heres a look at the trend by county.

Coronavirus updates

Amy Osborne/Special to The Chronicle 2019

When the teachers union over the weekend announced the exciting news that San Franciscos high school seniors will get a chance to go back to classrooms starting Friday, it left out details about the plan, including that students might only be back for just one day.

The deal between the district and teachers union will bring seniors back for at least one day before the end of the school year, so the citys public schools can qualify for $12 million in state reopening funds. Jill Tucker reports on how parents and students reacted.

 Children ages 12 to 15 approved for COVID vaccinations by the FDA; approval by the CDC could come next.

 S.F. schools report handful of coronavirus cases among students and staff since reopening, none among vaccinated people.

 Giants will reach 85% vaccination threshold Thursday, loosening teams COVID-19 protocols.

Around the Bay

Yalonda M. James / The Chronicle

 Dos Rios: As California enters what could be a record-breaking drought, a just-completed nine-year floodplain restoration project in a former dairy in San Joaquin Valley offers an ambitious solution. More: How water is used in California and how thats changing.

 Some stuff I can never replace: Oakland homeless encampments have seen a spike in blazes. Firefighters are worried.

 SALT deduction: Bernie Sanders slams restoring tax deduction that benefited California as giveaway to wealthy and powerful.

 Obituary: Art Gensler, architect who built a tiny S.F. shop into the largest design firm in the world, dies at 85.

 Open Forum: Having kids is becoming a white privilege in California.

Chronicle Food

Stephen Lam / The Chronicle

Even though the Outer Sunset Farmers Market & Mercantile opened last summer during a difficult time for San Francisco, its now one of the citys liveliest farmers markets. Eating and shopping at the bustling, two-block market has become an essential Sunday activity for the neighborhood.

The markets food vendors in particular have become a draw. People line up for the rich, sweet turkey mole tacos at Molcaxitl Kitchen, or Thai chicken skewers at Vanida Thai Kitchens stand. Nearby, Dontaye Bell at Gumbo Social ladles chicken-sausage gumbo into containers; hell probably then recommend the luscious banana pudding at the neighboring Yes Pudding stand for dessert.

Read more from reporter Elena Kadvancy about how the Outer Sunset market has nurtured community and connection during a time when both were in short supply.

More from Chronicle Food:

 Will Grubhubs latest legal move make it harder for restaurants to sue the delivery giant?

 Harmonic Brewing premieres new taproom near Chase Center with a sprawling waterfront patio.

 What Gallos layoffs at Clos du Bois winery reveal about the future of Californias cheapest wines.

Bay Briefing is written by Taylor Kate Brown, Anna Buchmann and Kellie Hwang and sent to readers email inboxes on weekday mornings. Sign up for the newsletter here, and contact the writers at taylor.brown@sfchronicle.com, anna.buchmann@sfchronicle.com and kellie.hwang@sfchronicle.com.
In his first news conference since he took office last month, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the creation of a Racial Justice Bureau to help combat hate crimes in the state.

A pandemic-timed rise in crimes and racist incidents against members of the Asian and Pacific Islander communities partially fueled the creation of the bureau, Bonta said over Zoom on Tuesday, but he added that the new unit would do everything ... to better serve the needs of all Californians.

Throughout Californias history, too many of us have felt the sting of hate and discrimination, said Bonta, a Filipino American son of labor activists. The fact is: No part of California is immune to hate. 

The Racial Justice Bureau will fall under the California Department of Justices Civil Rights Enforcement Section and be composed of six new attorneys and a supervising deputy attorney general. According to a release from Bontas office, the bureau will launch and assist investigations into police bias and campus discrimination, as well as conduct more outreach regarding hate crime prevention and reporting.

Bonta said the bureau will also investigate hate crimes and hate groups, including white supremacist organizations, when appropriate.

The nonprofit research organization Stop AAPI Hate counted more than 6,600 hate-based incidents nationally against Asian Americans from March 2020 to March 2021. Verbal harassment, physical assault and online abuse were some of the ways in which bigotry and xenophobia manifested during the pandemic. More than 40% of those incidents were recorded in California.

The Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism at California State University San Bernardino, found that more anti-Asian hate crimes are being reported to police in major cities this year. In San Francisco, 12 anti-Asian hate crimes were reported to law enforcement through the first three months of 2021, the center recently reported, already more than the nine such incidents that were reported all of last year.

We are in the middle  nationwide, statewide  of a racial justice reckoning, Bonta said. It is very important that we all see the longtime, very detrimental and debilitating effects of racism in all its forms, in all the places it exists.

Aside from the bureau, Bonta said his office also plans to coordinate with the mayors of Californias 13 largest cities, where more than a quarter of the states population resides.

The coalition comprises the mayors of Anaheim, Bakersfield, Fresno, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland, Riverside, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Ana and Stockton. A first step will be a virtual planning meeting at the end of this month to discuss regional information sharing and existing resources, the Attorney Generals Office said in a release.

It will take all of us standing up for our wonderfully diverse community members to make California a welcome home for all, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo said in a statement.

Shwanika Narayan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: shwanika.narayan@sfchronicle.com; Twitter: @shwanika Instagram: @shwanika
Thousands of Bay Area renters who have fallen behind on payments during the pandemic could soon see that debt reduced, thanks to $2.6 billion in new rent relief funding announced Monday by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

But thats only if they and their landlords can navigate a confusing patchwork of state and local programs that advocates say are already leading to people falling through the cracks.

With rent relief once again wrapped up in the states contentious annual budget process, they expect more clashes over income limits for debt forgiveness, whether to pay the money to landlords or tenants, and how to address closely related issues like eviction protections and forgiveness for other kinds of pandemic-induced debt.

The details will really matter, said Jennifer Martinez, chief strategy officer for social justice advocacy group PICO California. Frankly, theres just not enough time to get the money out into peoples hands who really need it unless we extend the eviction moratorium.

On Monday, with less than two months to go until the states current eviction moratorium expires on June 30, Newsom said California will double its pandemic rent relief budget, to $5.2 billion, after a $2.6 billion funding infusion from the federal government. He said the state aims to pay off back rent since April 2020 in full and provide 100% support to renters who are still struggling during a press conference detailing an unexpected $38 billion state budget surplus.

But how exactly that all might work  and who could be eligible for 100% rent relief  will likely depend on another tense round of negotiations in Sacramento and at city halls around the Bay Area. Both tenant and landlord advocacy groups voiced support for the additional funding on Monday, though those representing the latter were more enthusiastic.

This is certainly welcome news, said Tom Bannon, CEO of the California Apartment Association, in a statement. Many of our members have provided housing for more than a year without compensation.

As it stands, some 112,000 renters in the nine-county Bay Area owe a total of nearly $623 million in back rent, according to an analysis of census survey data by the National Equity Atlas maintained by the University of Southern California and the research firm PolicyLink.

California first imposed a statewide eviction moratorium last spring, after surging unemployment and strict pandemic lockdowns upended the finances of millions of residents. In January, state lawmakers extended the moratorium into this summer and created a new Emergency Rental Assistance Program.

Under the current state program, landlords may apply on behalf of tenants impacted by the pandemic who make up to 80% of their countys median income, which in many corners of the Bay Area can pencil out to $75,000 or more. If accepted, the state pays off 80% of the tenants debt. Renters whose landlords opt not to participate can apply on their own for 25% rent forgiveness, though they still owe the rest.

Several Bay Area cities, including San Francisco, Oakland and Fremont, have also opted to run their own rent relief programs during the pandemic that prioritize renters with lower incomes. Across California, roughly three-quarters of the 880,000 households that owe back rent are nonwhite or earn less than $50,000 per year, according to the National Equity Atlas.

Now, one big question is whether lawmakers will seize the moment with new rent relief funding to make broader changes to the assistance program. Assembly Member David Chiu, a Democrat from San Francisco, urged his colleagues to do more.

Covering 100% of back rent would be a game changer for so many families in our state, Chiu said in a statement. He also called for extending the states eviction moratorium and ensuring that all tenants receive the same level of rent relief.

Martinez of PICO California says another crucial change would be allowing tenants themselves to apply for full rent relief. She was also encouraged by Newsoms announcement Monday that he would seek an additional $2 billion to forgive outstanding utility bills.

Longer term, she hopes more certainty will allow renters to forge a path out of the pandemic after a year of job loss, mounting debt and plummeting credit scores.

This piecemeal approach, Martinez said, is wreaking havoc on families.

Lauren Hepler is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: lauren.hepler@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LAHepler
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday proposed using a portion of Californias surprise $38 billion budget surplus to expand $600 stimulus payments to middle-income residents, with an additional $500 for families with children.

The payments would come on top of a $3.7 billion program that Newsom and legislators agreed to in February that provided $600 checks primarily to lower-income Californians as part of a $9.6 billion coronavirus aid program.

The expansion proposed Monday was enabled by a budget surplus more than twice what state finance officials estimated in January. That reflects an economy that has bounced back from pandemic recession far more quickly than expected  especially benefiting Californias wealthiest residents.

Newsom said the expansion of the stimulus program would provide payments to two-thirds of Californians and amount to the largest state tax rebate in U.S. history.

Here are questions and answers about the proposed new stimulus payments.

What would the new proposal do?

Newsom on Monday proposed spending $8.1 billion to send $600 checks to middle-income households, as well as $500 more to families with children. That would bring the states stimulus program total to $11.9 billion, which the governors office said would ultimately reach two-thirds of Californians.

Who would qualify?

California households with up to $75,000 in adjusted gross income that did not already receive a payment earlier this year would qualify for the new $600 direct payment. Families with children and undocumented families, who have been left out of the federal stimulus bills, would receive an additional $500.

When would it take effect?

The proposal is part of Newsoms revised budget plan, which he must offer this week. That will kick off a month of negotiations with state lawmakers, who are required to pass a balanced budget by June 15. The state could not start issuing payments before that; officials on Monday gave no specific target date.

How is this different from existing stimulus payments?

This spring, as part of the Golden State Stimulus program for low-income Californians and those facing hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic, California set aside $3.7 billion to give direct $600 payments to millions of households. Those payments started going out in April.

Who currently can receive stimulus payments?

The groups who qualify for $600 payments under the Golden State Stimulus include:

 Low-income residents making less than $30,000.

 Undocumented taypayers who earned $75,000 or less and did not qualify for a federal stimulus payment in the spring.

Those eligible must also:

 Be a California Earned Income Tax Credit (CalEITC) recipient or file with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN).

 File their 2020 tax return by Oct. 15, 2021

 Have lived in California for more than half of 2020

 Not be eligible to be claimed as a dependent

ITIN taxpayers who also qualify for the California EITC can receive a total of $1,200.

What do I need to do to receive a payment?

According to the Franchise Tax Board, most Californians who qualify dont need to do anything to receive payments under the current program. The tax agency issues stimulus payments twice a month after eligible 2020 tax returns are processed.

Click here to learn more about the program.

Jessica Flores is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jessica.flores@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jesssmflores
On a recent Monday morning, Ron Trathen was outside his motor home parked on San Franciscos Bayshore Boulevard, cleaning up after his three dogs when it happened again.

Two of his vehicles were towed.

Both cars had expired registration for more than a year. Trathen had bought one of them just days ago and fixed it up for his partner to use for work. The other car had no license plate and was inoperable, but its interior was kept in good condition so it could be used by others with no shelter as a place to stay dry and warm, Trathen said.

Now, Trathen and his partner share his vehicle for work. Recovering the car he got her within the first 24 hours would have cost about $550, Trathen said  half the price of its original purchase.

Its an inconvenience, and its a real financial blow, said Trathen, whos lived in parked motor homes for 10 years.

In San Francisco, more of these so-called poverty tows are likely this month, advocates said, as the city resumes enforcement of violations that had been paused during the pandemic.

Starting May 17, the city will resume towing vehicles that remain parked in the same spot for 72 hours. Vehicles that have registration expired more than six months or that have more than five delinquent citations will be towed beginning June 21.

Those three towing violations accounted for only 18% of the citys 44,714 vehicle tows in fiscal 2019, but are more likely to affect homeless or low-income residents, advocates said.

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency recommended changes in enforcement to its board of directors intended to reduce harm to homeless and low-income residents. The proposals, which the board was expected to consider in June, include extending warning periods for relocating parked vehicles to five days instead of three, adding warning notices to cars at risk of being towed for delinquent citations and offering a one-time waiver of outstanding fees for people who are homeless.

The proposals would add to efforts the agency implemented before the pandemic, which included crediting community service hours to pay off fees and allowing low-income residents to pay off debt in installments rather than one lump sum.

But homelessness advocates who pleaded with the SFMTA board to make these pandemic towing moratoriums permanent said the proposals would not go far enough to shield vulnerable residents from the downward financial spiral many unhoused or poor San Franciscans of color face when their vehicles get towed.

Poverty tows cost the city money and needlessly disrupt the lives of homeless or impoverished residents, advocates contend.

Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle 2018

The transportation agencys staff said permanently eliminating towing for delinquent citations, expired registration and 72-hour parking would give people no incentive to register their vehicles, reduce compliance of parking regulations and limit the citys ability to tow vehicles that have actually been abandoned.

The recommendations, the agencys staff said, were meant to strike a balance between lessening harm for homeless and low-income residents while ensuring people comply with the citys parking regulations. SFMTA Director of Transportation Jeffrey Tumlin said enforcement is a necessary tool of the agencys responsibility to ensure a reasonable quality of life for residents and business owners, particularly in Districts 10 and 11, where we see the overwhelming majority of complaints about abandoned vehicles on the street.

While the city will begin enforcing tows for these three violations again, several board directors expressed concern about moving forward. Though they did not take a formal vote on the issue, Director Amanda Eaken said had that been the case, it would have likely failed.

Im trying to figure out how ... we deal with people who actually are scofflaws breaking the law (and) poverty is not an issue of concern, but separately deal with people in situations of poverty, Gwyneth Borden, president of the SFMTA Board of Directors, told staff during a recent meeting.

I dont think it makes sense for us to do poverty tows from an economic standpoint, not even talking about the moral one, Borden said.

In response to questions from the board, staff said the agency had limited data to determine which residents are most affected by the tows. Shawn McCormick, Munis parking enforcement director, said it was difficult for parking control officers to distinguish with certainty whether a vehicle with potential towing violations is abandoned or belongs to someone who relies on it for shelter and wouldnt be able to afford to pay the towing fees.

The SFMTA Board of Directors plans to revisit the issue in three months with potential solutions as the city resumes enforcement.

Were disappointed by that, said Carolyn Goossen, policy director for the San Francisco Public Defenders Office. The office has represented clients whove been affected by poverty tows.

We would have loved to see them just continue to keep the moratorium that has happened during the pandemic, Goossen said. We know that people are still suffering the impacts of the pandemic, especially unhoused folks who are forced to live in their cars.

Trathen said a large toolbox behind his motor home was taken and destroyed when police and public works employees came to Bayshore Boulevard for cleaning enforcement. He said the toolbox had $2,500 worth of tools he depended on for the construction and mechanic work he does for a living.

They killed me, Trathen said, adding that hes had more than 15 vehicles towed by the city while living in motor homes for a decade.

Theres nothing they can do now that surprises me, he said. Its kind of like you get numb to it all.

Ricardo Cano is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: ricardo.cano@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ByRicardoCano
The Sierra Nevada snowpack, a crucial water source for Californias cities and farms, has already dwindled to next to nothing this year, adding to the states worsening drought situation.

The latest data from the state Department of Water Resources on Tuesday showed Californias snowpack was just 6% of normal for May 11, and 4% of the normal average for April 1. That date is typically when Californias snowpack is the deepest and has the highest snow water equivalent  the depth of water that would result if the snow melted upon falling,

The data represented a worrisome decline from 15% of normal recorded just a week earlier on May 4, and an even more alarming drop from 59% of normal on April 1.

Snowpack in the Northern Sierra region was 7% of normal for May 11, while the Central Sierra region was 8% and the Southern Sierra region was just 5% of normal.

California Cooperative Snow Surveys

We are done with snowmelt runoff for the year, said Jeffrey Mount, a senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of Californias Water Policy Center. There is essentially no chance that things will improve. What we have in our reservoirs now will be augmented by flows out of the mountains, but it is a trickle compared to normal and wet years.

Mount explained that when the temperature is warm and the sky is clear, thick snowpacks act like an insulating blanket, so they melt at a slower pace. Thin snowpacks can melt proportionately faster.

Adding to the problem this year, much of the moisture is being sucked into the dry soil and into the atmosphere instead of turning into runoff that feeds the states reservoirs.

We got unlucky with a very warm, very sunny spring that pretty much wiped out the snowpack rapidly, Mount said. This warmth also increased the rate of sublimation, that is, the amount of snow that basically evaporates into the atmosphere without ever making it into runoff.

On Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a drought emergency in 39 of Californias 58 counties after urging from elected officials in both parties. Last month his declaration included just Sonoma and Mendocino counties. In the Bay Area, Alameda, Contra Costa, Napa and Solano counties are now included in the proclamation.

Mount compared the current situation to the terrible snowpacks in 2014 and 2015, which contributed to severe drought conditions in those years.

Public Policy Institute of California

During the drought period from 2012 to 2016, conditions were much worse in Southern California than Northern California from 2012-14. But now things have reversed, and Northern California is suffering the brunt of the most recent drought, according to the PPIC.

The snowpack provides as much as a third of Californias agricultural and residential water supply. Most of the Bay Area gets its water from Sierra Nevada snowmelt stored in the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park, as well as the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Russian and Mokelumne river systems.

Mount said the states most important reservoirs, which are north of Sacramento, are alarmingly low this year and the effects will reverberate around the state. He said south of Sacramento, things are bad, but not dire.

Those conditions add to wildfire risk, and the state is already seeing unusual wildfire activity for this time of year. Cal Fire has reported more than 1,800 fires burning nearly 9,400 acres so far in 2021, more than twice the five-year average. A red flag warning was issued last weekend through Tuesday for parts of the Bay Area, with two fires sparking over the weekend in Contra Costa County.

Mount said the potential is there for a repeat of last years record-breaking wildfire season, depending on the weather this summer and fall.

We could get lucky, but given our luck so far, I surely wouldn't count on it, he said. Plan for a very bad fire season.

This will also have a significant impact on Central Valley farmers, who on top of the stresses of the drought were told last week by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation they will not receive any of their expected federal agricultural water allocation this year  which already was only 5% of what is normally expected.

Kellie Hwang is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kellie.hwang@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kelliehwang
MODESTO  As California enters what could be a record-breaking drought, a just-completed nine-year floodplain restoration project at the confluence of the San Joaquin and Tuolumne rivers offers an ambitious attempt at one mitigation solution.

At a 1,600-acre former dairy ranch called Dos Rios, the conservation organization River Partners removed berms that farmers had originally constructed to protect their alfalfa and wheat crops from the river. It turned fields into seasonal pools where endangered baby salmon and migratory birds can rest, and water can trickle down to refill aquifers. Last month, it planted the last of more than 350,000 native grasses, shrubs and trees  acres of towering willows, flowering elderberry and creeping wild rye chosen to thrive in flood or drought.

Were trying to give the river space to do what it wants to do, said Julie Rentner, president of River Partners, which purchased the property for $21.8 million in 2012 and plans to turn it over to the federal government within five years.

The projects goal was to re-establish a natural floodplain with myriad water-saving and flood diversion benefits and to create habitat for threatened and endangered species like the least Bells vireo, fall-run chinook salmon and riparian brush rabbit. And while it is River Partners biggest project among a total of 16,500 acres of restored floodplains in California, it still represents only a fraction of the 500,000 to 1 million acres of irrigated farmland experts say will need to be retired in San Joaquin Valley to comply with the states Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, which requires that local governments create plans to make their aquifers sustainable by 2040.

In the scheme of things, were working at lightning speed, Rentner said.

Paul Kuroda/Special to The Chronicle

While planting and landscaping work at Dos Rios finished a year ahead of schedule, the organization did suffer setbacks, mostly in getting funding and permits.

To deliver 1,600 acres in 10 years isnt fast enough, she said.

The project cost more than $36 million in state, federal and private funding, but Rentner and supporters say projects like these have a good return on investment. Whereas the levee and aqueduct systems first introduced more than a century ago were good at flood control and helped turn the San Joaquin Valley into the worlds most productive farming region, they also removed vast floodplains where grizzly bears, salmon and millions of migratory birds thrived.

Restored riparian areas like Dos Rios, where the floodplain was widened both to control flooding and restore groundwater, have the added benefits of improving water quality, creating new wildlife habitat and sequestering carbon in newly planted vegetation. And even as the state becomes parched in summer, climate scientists expect it to experience 25% more frequent rain-producing atmospheric rivers in winter, and restored floodplains can help mitigate flooding.

During droughts, when farms are allotted less water from irrigation districts, they often must resort to pumping groundwater. In the drought of 2012-16, that led to aquifers in the San Joaquin Valley falling to dangerously low levels. Widened floodplains, on the other hand, help replenish aquifers because they slow down the flow of water, allowing it more time to drain into groundwater basins.

Weve put ourselves in a precarious position if we want to maintain high levels of agriculture and maintain ecosystems, said Joshua Viers, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at UC Merced, who wasnt involved in the Dos Rios project but has worked with River Partners on other projects. If we just move the levees back, we can provide room for the river to support these dynamic processes.

With headwaters in the Sierra Nevada, the San Joaquin River spills into the Central Valley around Fresno, where much of it is diverted into irrigation systems for agriculture or distribution systems for cities. As it flows northwest, it passes Dos Rios at the Tuolumne River, one of its tributaries, before it eventually empties out into San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean.

Planted in phases, the ranchs forests are at different levels of growth, from quarter-inch sprouts of mugwort, a flowering herb, to willows that have shot up to 40 feet. A 3-year-old forest at first appears to be a wild tumble of waist-high grasses and 10-foot Fremonts cottonwoods with quivering leaves. But a closer look reveals that the plants are lined up in straight rows, just like the farm crops they replaced, because using modern farming techniques and equipment helps planting go more quickly.

Its a pretty unique thing to use modern agricultural practices to re-wild, said Alex Karolyi, communications director at River Partners.

Yalonda M. James/The Chronicle

Biologists chose the mix of plants to try to introduce the right combination of flood- and drought-tolerance, because those conditions can change from year to year and season to season. Each plant in the grid is labeled so that if a tree thrives or dies, or maybe hosts the nest of a threatened Swainsons hawk, biologists can track how the mix of nearby plants and other factors, such as water flow or salinity in the soil, worked together.

Weve created a system where you have to artificially introduce diversity, Rentner said.

COVID Resources Coronavirus Map Tracking COVID-19 cases across the Bay Area and California.

Until they are established, the younger forests are watered with the ranchs existing irrigation system, which pumps water out of the rivers. The goal is to stop irrigation of the most recent plants by 2024, at which point the ranch will use 7,000 acre-feet less water per year compared with the previous dairy ranch  enough to supply 18,000 average-size households.

A graded floodplain is large enough for hundreds of thousands of baby salmon to rest on their migration from their river birthplace to the Pacific Ocean  something they once did when the valley flooded each spring before the modern aqueduct system was built. It gives them time to fatten up before racing toward the ocean and a better chance of survival.

The restoration also involved building several bunny mounds, 10-foot-tall raised hills where the endangered brush rabbit, which have returned to the area after restoration, can find refuge during floods. Previous experience taught the organization to plant enough herbs for the rabbits to eat until flooding subsides  and to create hiding spots on the mounds so they dont become prey to predators.

Those predators are a sign of a healthy ecosystem and are easy to spot at the ranch. A coyote ambles by in broad daylight. Black and tan juvenile Swainsons hawks practice hunting over an open grassy field.

River Partners will next work to restore the 500-acre Hidden Valley Dairy next to Dos Rios, which it has purchased. When it turns over both properties to the federal government, the organization hopes they will become part of the 90,000-acre San Luis National Wildlife Refuge, located across the river.

This level of re-wilding doesnt need to be done to all the irrigated farmland the San Joaquin Valley needs to retire to meet state groundwater sustainability goals, said Viers, of UC Merced. But it can help the state deal with what he calls climate whiplash  increasingly close occurrences of flood and drought.

There is no silver bullet in solving California water issues, but there may be silver buckshot, he said. These types of approaches are things we should be doing more of.

Tara Duggan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tduggan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @taraduggan
Our direction is relatively simple: Have a normal school year. ... These kids do not need to be wearing these masks, DeSantis said in response to a reporters question in Jacksonville. We need to be able to let them be kids.
PHILADELPHIA (AP)  As the Philadelphia Flyers put shots on goal, they're pushing shots into arms.

The Flyers and Penn Medicine were scheduled to team up to offer COVID-19 vaccine to fans attending Monday nights regular season finale against the New Jersey Devils. Anyone who gets the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine will get a voucher for two free tickets to a Flyers game next season.

The city said health providers will be on hand to administer the shots in the main concourse of the Wells Fargo Center.

Pennsylvania and other states are contending with dwindling demand for vaccine. Places around the country have been offering incentives to get people to roll up their sleeves, from free beer and doughnuts to $100 savings bonds.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  Mississippi legislators are not in session now, so it could be months before they start deciding how to spend $1.8 billion in the latest round of pandemic relief from the federal government.

Mississippi will receive part of the money this year and the rest next year.

The U.S. Treasury Department on Monday released details about how much money state and local governments are receiving under the American Rescue Plan signed into law by President Joe Biden, and how the money may be spent.

I think it's going to take some time to fully inspect and understand what's included, Mississippi Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Briggs Hopson told The Associated Press on Monday.

The Treasury Department said state and local governments may use the federal money for public health, including efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. They may use it to address economic problems that the pandemic has caused for workers, households, small businesses, industries and government. They also may use some of the money to replace tax revenue that was lost because of the pandemic and to provide extra pay for essential workers.

Other acceptable uses are for improvements to water and sewer systems and expansion of broadband access, the Treasury Department said.

States are not allowed to use the money to cut taxes, shore up pension funds or rainy day funds, make payments on long-term debt or pay off legal settlements, under the Treasury rules.

Some states can receive their full share of federal relief money this year and others will receive it in two payments a year apart. The 20 states receiving the full share this year have unemployment rates at least 2 percentage points higher now than in February 2020. Mississippi is among the 30 states with an unemployment rate that has not climbed to that level, so it will receive its money over two years.

Mississippi legislators' next regular session begins in January. Republican Gov. Tate Reeves could call them into special session, if he wants, to decide how to spend the federal money.

Hopson, a Republican from Vicksburg, said Monday that he does not know whether the governor will call a special session.

Payments to cities and counties will be split into two batches  some this year and some next year.

In addition to the $1.8 billion that is going to Mississippi state government, Mississippi is receiving $268 million that will be split among cities and towns with fewer than 50,000 residents. During their 2021 session, legislators created a state fund where this money will be sent. The state will distribute the money to those communities.

The federal government on Monday also released information about money going to larger Mississippi cities. Jackson will receive $42.1 million; Gulfport, $19.5 million; Hattiesburg, $12.9 million; Biloxi, $11.1 million; Southaven, $7.6 million; Pascagoula, $5.2 million; and Moss Point, $2.7 million.

Counties are receiving money based on population. Mississippis largest county, Hinds, is receiving $45 million. The only Mississippi counties receiving less than $1 million are both sparsely populated. Issaquena will receive $257,754 and Sharkey, $839,304.

____

Follow Emily Wagster Pettus on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EWagsterPettus.
GOWER, Mo. (AP)  A Gower man has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of his 5-month-old son.

Dillon Livingston also is charged with child abuse or neglect of a child in the February death. He has pleaded not guilty and is being held without bond in Clinton County. A motion hearing is scheduled for Friday.
GILLETTE, Wyo. (AP)  A retired U.S. Army colonel from California says he will challenge Liz Cheney in next year's Republican U.S. House primary in Wyoming.

Denton Knapp, of Trabuco Canyon, California, said he plans to move back to Gillette, where he graduated from high school in 1983, the Gillette News Record reported Monday.

Five Republicans as of Monday had filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission stating their intent to run against Cheney in 2022.

The list didn't include Knapp yet but has been growing amid Republican discontent with Cheney for continuing to dispute former President Donald Trump's unsubstantiated claim that vote fraud cost him re-election.

Cheney was among 10 Republican representatives who voted to impeach Trump over the deadly insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6. She has called her impeachment vote an act of conscience in defense of democracy and the Constitution.

Cheney faces a likely House GOP vote this week to remove her as conference chair, the chamber's third-ranking Republican leadership post.

Whats missing right now is trust in our elected officials, Knapp said. Wyomingites expected Cheney to vote a certain way and she didnt. As a result, shes going through consequences.

A West Point graduate, Knapp served in the Army from 1987-2017, with service in countries including Iraq, Afghanistan, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Most recently he has led the Tierney Center for Veteran Services at Goodwill of Orange County, according to his resume online.

Other Republicans running against Cheney include Cheyenne attorney and businessman Darin Smith, who announced his campaign Friday; state Sen. Anthony Bouchard, of Cheyenne; and state Rep. Chuck Gray, of Casper.

The race already is shaping up as one of the toughest of Cheney's career. Cheney decisively won a nine-way GOP primary in 2016 and won Wyoming's lone House seat by wide margins in 2016, 2018 and 2020.
MUSCATINE, Iowa (AP)  A second man has been sentenced for trying to drive a vehicle into the public safety building in Muscatine, Iowa, in August.

KWQC-TV reports that 22-year-old Marc Anthony Castillo and his 25-year-old brother, Gilberto Daniel Castillo III, both pleaded guilty in March to several charges. Marc Castillo was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison. His brother was sentenced last month to 12 years in prison.
As a retired educator, I have watched with growing dismay the uneven reopening of Bay Area public schools. San Francisco Unified School District is one of the last to bring students back to classroom learning.

Has anyone realized that families with financial means have or will move their children to open private schools? The long-term implications include a growing segregated school system that will endure for years.

Kathleen Larsen, Sonoma

Fix S.F.s permitting

Regarding Big drop in Bay Area home-building (May 10): Although the article presented some valid reasons for a drop in new housing in San Francisco, the article seemed to gloss over another major reason, which is the citys permitting process. The permitting system in this city is broken. It is slow, flawed and one of the reasons the cost of living is so high.

This is for many reasons; one is the historic building process in the city, whereas soon as a building is older than 50 years old, it is considered a historic resource and cant be touched. I understand the idea behind that, saving the history of this city, but it doesnt need to be every house. We can evolve, that is the beauty of architecture.

We want to see new and modern houses, as well as apartments that can accommodate more people. As a San Francisco resident, I want to see this problem confronted, I want to see change. I dont want to see this city become more expensive and stuck in the past as the world around us changes.

Ethan Moore, San Francisco

No sense to defacing art

The recent defacing of fnnchs honey bears mural reminded me of the following quote from Whoopi Goldberg, Art and life are subjective. Not everybodys gonna dig what I dig, but I reserve the right to dig it. Likewise, everyones got the right not to dig it, but no one has the right to deface other peoples art.

For crying out loud, were talking about bear-shaped bottles of honey, not statues of Confederate generals or monuments to early explorers who exploited the Native peoples of America. Where does it stop?

Does someone have the right to walk through the Louvre Museum in Paris with a can of spray paint and deface Renaissance paintings because they were financed by wealthy Italian noblemen?

Brian Wallace, San Francisco

Shooting response ready

Regarding Gunman fatally shoots 6, then kills self (May 10): In the wake of the most recent uniquely American single-shooter mass casualty event in Colorado Springs, I wanted to provide a public service to the millions of Second Amendment supporters, to spare them the trouble of reminding us what the most logical and humane response is to those grieving for loved ones.

So, in no particular order, (1) We send out our thoughts and prayers, (2) We remind them that out of respect for the dead, it is too soon to talk about sensible gun control, (3) We warn that it is dangerous and slippery slope from banning assault weapons and Teflon-coated cop killer bullets to a Nazi-like fascist state where law-abiding citizens, hunters and sportsmen will be denied their right to own firearms, and (4) We finally confirm that the Colorado Springs birthday party shooter was a member of which well-regulated militia? That should take care of everyone until the next massacre.

Barry Goldman-Hall, San Jose

Teach how to see truth

Regarding Battles multiply over learning pace for math (Front Page, May 10): Rather than dilute math curriculum, students and society would be better served if a fourth R was added to the three Rs, namely, Reasoning. Starting as early as feasible, students should be taught how to assess the likely truth or falsity of information conveyed to them from social media sources, traditional media, advertising, salespeople and especially politicians. The rise of Trumpism, typified by the Joseph Goebbels theory of conning the populace with the big lie told often enough, is symptomatic of the failure of our educational system.
A 17-year-old boy on a field trip with his Sonoma County high school class leaped from the Golden Gate Bridge on Thursday, but survived and was able to swim to shore with a surfer who went out to rescue him, authorities said.

The boy is a junior at Windsor High School whom officials did not identify because of his age. Some students said he might have leaped to impress his classmates, but for now the California Highway Patrol is investigating the matter as an attempted suicide, said CHP Officer Chris Rardin.

The boy jumped at 11:15 a.m. from the east sidewalk near the south tower, the CHP said. He was taken to San Francisco General Hospital, where he was expected to survive.

Some witnesses said he broke his tailbone and damaged his lungs in the fall, but a Windsor Unified School District press release said he suffered no severe injuries beyond bruising and tenderness. Hospital officials said they cannot release specific information.

Frederic Lecouturier, 55, said he was surfing under the bridge when he saw the boy drop into the waves.

"I thought, 'Well, he's going to die,' and then it was a miracle when he popped up alive," said Lecouturier, of San Rafael. "I paddled out there, and he told me he jumped 'for kicks.'

"That's when I lost it and told him what he did was wrong, that life is precious, and he should not take risks like that. I mean, he's a kid, he's got his whole life ahead of him."

Lecouturier said the boy was about 5 feet tall, "built like a wrestler" and had a brown ponytail. "There was a stiff wind coming out of the south, and I think that broke his fall and helped save him," he said.

Surviving the drop was remarkable considering the spot the student leaped from is more than 200 feet off the water - and 99 percent of the estimated 1,500-plus people who have jumped from the bridge since it opened in 1937 died from the fall.

Seven people have jumped to their deaths from the bridge this year, officials estimate. Last year, the count was 32.

Golden Gate Bridge District spokeswoman Mary Currie said the number of people attempting suicide off the span has grown from about 20 a year in the early 2000s to about 30 annually in the past few years.

The district has plans to install safety nets on the bridge, but the final design is not complete and the installation is a couple of years away at best, Currie said.

Rumors tore through the student body and the common thread was that it appeared the boy jumped of his own accord and that onlookers were upset by the experience. The boy recently transferred from another school, many said.

"He did it to try to look cool," said one classmate, who did not want to be identified. "He said he'd jumped off bridges before." Another student who said he was on the scene tweeted that students tried to stop the boy before he leaped.

Rardin said the boy jumped as he was walking on the bridge with about 45 other students on a school field trip.

"I've heard a bunch of things about how this happened, but we haven't come to a conclusion yet," he said. "I do know he's very lucky to be alive."
The burrito fast-food chain Chipotle announced Monday that it is raising wages for workers - a move that comes as the company makes a big hiring push amid a national debate about worker availability and pay in Washington.

The company said that a wage increase of about $2 an hour per employee means that salaries for its crew will average $15 an hour by the end of June, although entry-level wages at the company will be $11 an hour.

The company also said it plans to hire 20,000 new workers and open 200 new locations this year.

The company joins the ranks of many others offering incentives and higher pay to lure workers back into the workforce after the pandemic year, including Costco, Target and Walmart, among others.

Many businesses, particularly those offering lower-wage, hourly positions, like restaurants, have complained that they are having trouble finding workers - even amid high levels of unemployment - which has raised concerns that a worker shortage could hamper the economic recovery.

Job growth in April came in well-below expectations, with only 266,000 jobs added as the country seeks to regain the more than 8 million more jobs it had in February 2020. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said that the wage increases found in the survey reflected the increased demand for labor.

Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol told CNBC on Monday that the current labor market was among the tightest he'd ever seen in his career, saying the company was hoping to highlight the appeal of the brand and the employee growth potential. Workers are also being offered a $200 referral bonus for employees and a $750 referral bonus for managers.

"We are sharing with people that it's not just a job right now, but it's actually a job that can lead to a meaningful career," Niccol told the outlet. "I'm glad that we're a company that's got the growth, and frankly the strength, to increase wages and start talking more about how the job leads to your future growth with our company."

In Washington, lawmakers have seized on the matter for political purposes, with Republicans complaining that the labor supply issues are the direct result of overgenerous stimulus measures passed by Democrats earlier this year.

But labor economists, worker advocates and some business groups say the issue is far more complicated, with many workers forced to juggle child-care with many schools yet to fully reopen, lingering questions about workplace safety for vaccine-avoiders and others with complicated health considerations, and many workers having moved on or rethinking career plans.

The debate has also resurfaced the larger national discussion about living wages for poorly paid workers.

President Joe Biden pushed to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 an hour - $15,080 a year, before taxes - to $15 an hour, after a more than ten year gap raising the minimum wage, but the idea was shelved due to procedural rules in the Senate. Many of the companies complaining about worker shortages pay below this threshold, usually at levels below what advocates consider "a living wage" - the amount it takes to live and raise a family in many areas of the country.

Some economists say businesses hiring for lower-wage positions also face increased competition from companies like Target and Amazon which have voluntarily increased starting pay to $15 an hour, amid plans to expand.

"Chipotle is committed to providing industry-leading benefits and accelerated growth opportunities, and we hope to attract even more talent by showcasing the potential income that can be achieved in a few short years," Marissa Andrada, a company executive said in a statement Monday. "We're looking for people who are authentic, passionate and want to help cultivate a better world through real food and real personal development."

Chipotle faces pressure on other fronts, too, as the company's labor practices have come under legal scrutiny in recent years.

In March 2020, the earliest days of the pandemic, workers in at least four stores in New York walked out over complaints about being forced to work sick, according to the labor union that has been working to organize them, the Service Employees International Union.

Officials there also sued the company last week for $150 million, alleging about two years worth of violations under the city's 2017 Fair Workweek Law, which added restrictions for companies for things like changing employee schedules without sufficient notice, and working consecutive overnight-reopening shifts. Chipotle called the lawsuit "dramatic overreach" and said it plans to contest the suit.

In Massachusetts last year, the company was ordered to pay $1.4 million in fines over claims that it racked up more than 13,000 child labor law violations.

CFO Jack Hartung told investors this year that raising the salary average to $15 an hour would cause menu prices to spike at least 2% to 3%. The company told The Washington Post that it would make only a "modest price increase" to its menu now to offset the labor costs and reevaluate the issue in the fall.
In late April, Devil's Teeth Baking Company owner Hilary Passman placed an "Open the Great Highway" sign in the front window of her Outer Sunset bakery. At first, no one mentioned it  but this weekend, Twitter users took notice.

That's when the messages started pouring in.

"We got an email from someone who said, 'you have the best breakfast sandwiches in town, you've given thousands of dollars to my kid's school, and I will never shop at your place again,'" said Passman.

"The part that's most upsetting to me is the complete lack of civil discussion. I think it's shocking. I've been accused of helping children get hit by cars, which is crazy."

Devils Teeth has received a few negative Yelp reviews, as well as comments and messages on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (The betrayal! Such tasty treats supporting bad policy, wrote one person on Twitter), but some have expressed their support for Passmans position instead.

I started patronizing Devil's Teeth BECAUSE of the sign, and I will continue to do so, commented another person on Twitter. It took a lot of courage for them to post that sign and I have nothing but admiration for them because of it. (Plus, they have really good ginger cookies. I highly recommend them!).

Ever since the Upper Great Highway closed to cars during San Francisco's first shelter-in-place order in March 2020, Sunset District neighbors have argued passionately over the highway's fate. Many have grown fond of its transformation into a pedestrian and bicycle promenade and want to keep it car-free; others want it reopened to cars as soon as possible.

Passman, who lives in the Sunset, is in favor of reopening the Great Highway to cars.

"I believe it is less safe in the neighborhood now," she said. "I see people driving around the bollards that are put up, I see motorcycles speeding through. People are not stopping at stop signs. I think pushing all the cars onto the Lower Great Highway makes it a lot less safe, including for kids ... I see a bunch of bicyclists going on the Great Highway at stunning speeds, right near where kids are playing. I believe there are other places for kids to play  my kids play on the beach or in the park all the time."

Passman also added that the highway closure has created major traffic congestion.

"Getting from one Devil's Teeth to the other on the outer avenues is maybe 30 to 40 minutes on a weekend," she said; Devil's Teeth also has an Outer Richmond location at 3619 Balboa St.

In April, the SFMTA installed stop signs, speed cushions and a speed table in the area to help address these concerns. Currently, the agency is collecting data on the effectiveness of these traffic-calming measures, and plans to share their findings with the public later this summer.

Passman also says she doesn't think pedestrians and bicyclists are actually using the road enough to make it worth it, in her experience of walking by the area "six times a day." But according to CTA data, 4,000 pedestrians and cyclists have used the roadway every weekday for much of the last year, and as many as 6,000 have used it on weekends.

While many share Passman's point of view, 53 percent of San Francisco residents are in favor of keeping the Great Highway closed to vehicle traffic post-pandemic, according to a recent survey by the San Francisco County Transportation Authority.

Having the highway open for people to use just really transformed how the neighborhood felt, how it just was such a sense of community, said Heidi Moseson, a Great Highway Park Initiative representative who lives on the Lower Great Highway.  My kids learned to bike there, but it's really become so much more than that. I think it's about mobility and access and equity. I used to drive my kids to school, now I bike them. I used to drive to the grocery store, now I bike because it feels safe and beautiful.

While Moseson admits that there has been some overflow traffic in the neighborhood streets as a result of the Great Highway closure, she says she has not noticed a big impact at peak commute times.

I think, yeah, we need to do more to address the traffic concerns, but I think in the middle of a climate crisis, a mental health crisis, a public health crisis, the solution is not reopening a four-lane highway along the ocean in a space that has become so prized to so many people, she said. Let's keep working together to keep doing traffic-calming measures, and figure out a way to stop prioritizing cars as the sole form of transit and acknowledge that there are lots of other forms of transit: public transit ... walking, running, biking, scooting, wheeling.

Emotions run high in discussions of the Great Highways future  so high that some are declaring on Twitter they will take their breakfast sandwich business elsewhere after learning of the Devils Teeth owners stance on the issue.

Weve been going there for 5+ years every Friday for Devils Teeth Friday Ride, commented one customer. It was always the perfect way to start the day. Were just going to have to find some new spot.

But Passman says she wasn't expecting this level of online backlash for posting her sign in the window.

"I don't even feel that strongly about it," she said. "I think it should be open, but if it's not open, I'm still happy to be living in the Sunset ... I think the thing that's so upsetting for me is that I put a sign up in the window, and the backlash has been vitriolic and not connected to the main issue."

Moseson suspects there are more complicated factors at play behind why the Great Highway debate has gotten so heated.

I think it feels personal for people, she said. Weve all had, and in many ways are still in, a very relentless, hard year. We thought a lot about what it means to be safe and healthy personally for our families, and I think  [there are] just very different perspectives on what safety and health looks like.
The Gardiner Scholarship was created to provide educational opportunities for students with a high level of needs. Gardiner families do not want this change. A short-term grandfather clause included in the bill does not protect future students and is a financial red flag for future issues. As is, the scholarship provides amazing resources for families because they need different types of aid to help their children be successful. When we provide the same resources to students who do not need them, the program begins to seem frivolous. When that happens, some people will jump to say we need to cut what the scholarship provides. The opportunities currently provided by the Gardiner Scholarship are not sustainable if HB 7045 is signed into law.
BANGKOK (AP)  After Myanmars military seized power by ousting the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, it couldnt even make the trains run on time. State railway workers were among the earliest organized opponents of the February takeover, and they went on strike.

Health workers who founded the civil disobedience movement against military rule stopped staffing government medical facilities. Many civil servants were no-shows at work, along with employees of government and private banks. Universities became hotbeds of resistance, and in recent weeks, primary and secondary education has begun to collapse as teachers, students and parents boycott state schools.

One hundred days after their takeover, Myanmars ruling generals maintain just the pretense of control. The illusion is sustained mainly by its partially successful efforts to shut down independent media and to keep the streets clear of large demonstrations by employing lethal force. More than 750 protesters and bystanders have been killed by security forces, according to detailed independent tallies, and there have been numerous arrests and human rights violations.

The junta might like people to think that things are going back to normal because they are not killing as many people as they were before and there werent as many people on the streets as before, but ... the feeling we are getting from talking to people on the ground is that definitely the resistance has not yet subsided, said Thin Lei Win, a journalist now based in Rome who helped found the Myanmar Now online news service in 2015.

She says the main change is that dissent is no longer as visible as in the early days of the protests  before security forces began using live ammunition  when marches and rallies in major cities and towns could easily draw tens of thousands of people.

At the same time, said David Mathieson, an independent analyst who has been working on Myanmar issues for over 20 years, Because of the very violent pacification of those protests, a lot of people are willing to become more violent."

We are already starting to see signs of that. And with the right training, the right leadership and the right resources, what Myanmar could experience is an incredibly nasty destructive, internal armed conflict in multiple locations in urban areas.

The junta also faces a growing military challenge in the always restive border regions where ethnic minority groups exercise political power and maintain guerrilla armies. Two of the more battle-hardened groups, the Kachin in the north and the Karen in the east, have declared their support for the protest movement and stepped up their fighting, despite the government military, known as the Tatmadaw, hitting back with greater firepower, including airstrikes.

Even a month ago, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet was describing the situation as grim, saying Myanmars economy, education and health infrastructure have been brought to the brink of collapse, leaving millions of Myanmar people without livelihood, basic services and, increasingly, food security.

It was not surprising that The Economist magazine, in an April cover story, labeled Myanmar Asias next failed state and opined it was heading in the direction of Afghanistan.

The U.N.s Bachelet made a different comparison.

There are clear echoes of Syria in 2011, she said. There too, we saw peaceful protests met with unnecessary and clearly disproportionate force. The States brutal, persistent repression of its own people led to some individuals taking up arms, followed by a downward and rapidly expanding spiral of violence all across the country.

A hundred days after its takeover, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday renewed his call on Myanmars military to respect the will of the people and act in the greater interest of peace and stability in the country, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

Guterres also encouraged the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which includes Myanmar, to swiftly implement its commitments including a demand to immediately end violence and start a dialogue mediated by a special ASEAN envoy. And he urged the international community to support regional efforts to bring an end to the repression by the military, Dujarric said.

Bill Richardson, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations with long experience working with Myanmar, said, The most immediate step is for the government and the opposition to start a dialogue to end the violence and bloodshed. There has to be a negotiation on humanitarian access to keep the economy and ... health care system from collapsing.

Junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing has so far shunned all suggestions of talks from the United Nations as well as ASEAN.

He attended a specially called ASEAN summit meeting in Indonesia in April where leaders adopted a five-point consensus". But within days of returning, Hlaings junta brushed aside the initiative. He said Myanmar would give careful consideration to constructive suggestions made by ASEAN Leaders when the situation returns to stability in the country since priorities at the moment were to maintain law and order and to restore community peace and tranquility."

Myanmars resistance movement, meanwhile, has organized widely and swiftly underground.

Within days of the junta takeover, elected parliamentarians who were denied their seats convened their own self-styled Parliament. Its members have formed a shadow National Unity Government with guidelines for an interim constitution, and last week, a Peoples Defense Force as a precursor to a Federal Union Army. Many cities, towns and even neighborhoods had already formed local defense groups which in theory will now become part of the Peoples Defense Force.

Aside from being morale boosters, these actions serve a strategic purpose by endorsing a federal style of government, which has been sought for decades by the countrys ethnic minorities to give them autonomous powers in the border areas where they predominate.

Promoting federalism, in which the center shares power with the regions, aligns the interests of the anti-military pro-democracy movement with the goals of the ethnic minorities. In theory, this could add a real military component to a movement whose armaments are generally no deadlier than Molotov cocktails and air rifles  though homemade bombs have been added to its arsenals in recent weeks.

In practice, at least for the time being, the guerrilla armies of the Kachin in the north and the Karen in the east will fight as they always have, to protect their own territory. They can give military training to the thousands of activists that are claimed to have fled the cities to their zones, but are still overmatched by the governments forces. But on their home ground they hold an advantage against what their populations consider an occupying army. That may be enough.

The only thing that the military is really threatened by is when all of these disparate voices and communities around the country actually start working against it, not as a unified monolith, but all working against the militarys interests, said the analyst, Mathieson. And I think thats the best that we can hope for moving forward, that the people recognize that all efforts have to go against the military. And if that means fighting up in the hills and doing peaceful protests and other forms of striking back against the military in the towns and the cities, then so be it.

Its hard to gauge if the army has a breaking point.

Mathieson said he's seen no signs the junta was willing to negotiate or concede anything. The Tatmadaw is remarkably resilient. And they recognize that this is an almost existential threat to their survival."

___

Associated Press journalist Jerry Harmer contributed to this report.
BANGKOK (AP)  Two jailed leaders of a student-led pro-democracy movement that attracted both support and controversy last year when it called for reform of Thailands monarchy were released Tuesday after repeated requests for bail.

The Criminal Court freed Parit Penguin Chiwarak and singer Chaiamorn Kaewwiboonpan, who are are both charged with lese majeste, defaming the monarchy. Parit had been hospitalized after starting a hunger strike in jail.

They were freed after their lawyers requested bail 10 times and eight times, respectively.

The lese majeste law carries a penalty of up to 15 years in prison per count.

Both men are linked to the pro-democracy movement that sprang up last year and held street demonstrations with three core demands: the resignation of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and his government, amendment of the constitution to make it more democratic, and reform of the monarchy to make it more accountable.

The last demand is the most radical and controversial because the monarchy has rarely faced any public scrutiny and is considered by many to be an untouchable pillar of Thai identity.

The court prohibited the two from engaging in any activities that defame the monarchy and leaving the country without permission. They must also wear electronic monitoring bracelets.

Parit was charged in connection with a Bangkok protest last year. He was detained on Feb. 9 and started a hunger strike on March 15 to demand the right to be granted bail.

His lawyers said his health suffered a sharp decline, and last week he was temporarily moved out of jail to a hospital. He left the jail Tuesday night in an ambulance.

He still faces other counts of lese majeste for which he could be returned to jail..

Chaiamorn was arrested for burning a portrait of Thailands king in front of Bangkoks Klong Plem Central Prison, and had been detained since March 3.

At least three other protest leaders held on lese majeste charges have been freed in the past month.

The Corrections Department said last week that two others, Arnon Nampha and Chukiat Sangwong, had been taken to the prisons hospital after testing positive for COVID-19.
After back-to-back work trips, Stephanie Gerding came home on a Saturday completely exhausted. She had a headache and neck pain, but she thought a good night's sleep was all she needed to bounce back.

In the middle of the night, she woke to use the bathroom.

"As soon as I got up, the world was tilted," said the Seattle-based small business owner and mother of one. "I knew something terrible was happening. I looked at my husband, and I told him to call 911."

Stephanie managed to get herself dressed, then collapsed into bed. Soon, firefighters arrived and rushed her to the nearby stroke hospital. Her husband, Patrick, and 10-year-old daughter, Madeline, joined her in the ER.

An MRI revealed Stephanie had two strokes due to a tear in her vertebral artery. That had stopped the oxygen supply to her brain.

For days, nurses woke Stephanie every 45 minutes for blood draws, various tests and to administer medications. She couldn't walk and could barely open her eyes. She wasn't sure she had the strength to recover.

Then, Patrick placed a school photo of Madeline beside her bed. Madeline had chosen her own outfit for the picture, complete with a bright turquoise scarf she proudly fastened around her neck.

"Just seeing her, I thought, 'I need to keep going,'" Stephanie said.

Patrick called it "an important driver" for her caregivers, too.

Desperate for uninterrupted sleep, Stephanie left the hospital after 10 days to recover at home. Her sister, Nicole, a nurse from Tennessee, came to help.

Stephanie and Patrick made a spreadsheet of her physical therapy exercises to keep her on track. Although she could barely use a walker at first, she set challenging goals for her recovery: Kayaking, then, once she did that, snowshoeing.

"I thought of things to do that could bring some joy to all of us," she said.

The February after her September stroke, Stephanie told Madeline she didn't think she'd be able to host her annual Valentine's Day party for their friends.

"She said, 'Seeing your friends makes you smile, smiling makes you happy, and happiness makes you heal,'" Stephanie said. So, Stephanie and her daughter donned matching sweatshirts decorated with hearts and threw the party. It was a huge success.

Stephanie also poured herself into work.

Two weeks after coming home from the hospital, she was back at work grading assignments for an online class she taught.

"I did a little at a time because I was exhausted," Stephanie said, adding that she had double vision and could only use one hand. "But that repetitive motion really helped me get the use of my hand back."

She also was determined to keep a commitment to make a presentation at a conference in March.

"I decided I was going to do it, and I did it," Stephanie said. "One person said it was the best workshop they'd ever taken."

The hardest part, she said, was coping with the initial pain and weakness and relearning how to walk. In the hospital, she didn't realize how long recovery would take. It took two years before she felt close to her pre-stroke self.

"But even now, I still have a lot of invisible problems," she said, explaining that she's dizzy when she walks and can't feel temperature on the right side of her body.

Her perseverance amazes Patrick.

"Whether it was fighting for that first step, or being back at work a few weeks in, or pushing to improve three-plus years later, she always moves forward," he said.

A year to the day after her stroke, Stephanie sat down to write a poem she titled "Closer to a Better Tomorrow" and posted it for friends and family on social media. Part of it read: A walker, a wheelchair, a cane. / Repetitions, isolation, staying home. / Wanting to give up. Yet, Hope. / Trying anything. Everything. / Using my spark to rise in fire. Inching closer to a better tomorrow.

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HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP)  A veteran state trooper indicted on sexual misconduct and assault charges has been placed on leave, authorities said.

Trooper William J. Fox, 47, of Meridianville was indicted by Madison County grand jurors and surrendered to Huntsville police on Monday.
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SMITHFIELD, N.C. (AP)  Amazon is planning a $100 million distribution and fulfillment center, Johnston County officials announced Monday.

According to the officials, Amazon will build a 620,000-square-foot warehouse in Smithfield by 2022 that will create 500 jobs paying at least $15 an hour, The News & Observer of Raleigh reported.

By welcoming Amazon here, we have embarked on a new era of growth with an immediate impact on job creation and a ripple effect on every aspect of our local economy, Smithfield Mayor Andy Moore said when the project was announced at a public hearing in Johnston County.

Direct and ancillary job growth will bring an estimated $97 million in annual revenue to the town and county, according to an economic analysis by N.C. State University economist Michael Walden that was presented by county officials. The projected date for the full creation of 500 jobs is 2024.

Last week, Amazon announced a new delivery station facility was to be located in Fayetteville and bring hundreds of jobs. Delivery stations are also set to open in the next year in Raleigh and Garner, according to the newspaper.

Amazon will receive a local incentive package funded through taxes incrementally paid to the town and county that wont be a cost to taxpayers. By 2024, Amazon will be the towns largest taxpayer, officials said. No state incentives will be given to Amazon as part of the agreement.

Mondays announcement comes after Fortune 500 company Berry Global announced in April that it would make a $70 million investment by expanding its facility in Benson, creating 63 new jobs for Johnson County.

Also in April, Apple announced it would invest $1 billion in North Carolina and its first East Coast campus in the Research Triangle Park, a move expected to bring at least 3,000 new jobs to the state in machine learning, artificial intelligence, software engineering and other fields. The workers will have an average annual salary of about $185,000.
CANBERRA, Australia (AP)  The Australian government released a big-spending economic plan for the next fiscal year on Tuesday that includes hefty investments in defense and national security as relations with China worsen.

The government plans to spend 270 billion Australian dollars ($212 billion) over the next decade on upgrading defense capabilities to promote an open and peaceful Indo-Pacific, Treasury Department documents say.

This includes AU$747 million ($585 million) to upgrade four military training areas in the Northern Territory where U.S. Marines have a temporary base.

The government announced in March that it would begin building its own guided missiles in close collaboration with the United States. The AU$1 billion ($784 million) project would produce the first Australian-manufactured missiles since the 1960s.

The government also plans to spend AU$1.3 billion ($1.02 billion) over a decade to enhance the ability of the Australian Security Intelligence Organization, the nations main spy agency, to address national security threats.

We . . . need to be prepared for a world that is less stable and more contested, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg told Parliament as he outlined his economic blueprint for the fiscal year starting on July 1.

The government has also proposed an additional AU$17.7 billion ($13.9 billion) spending on elder care over five years and a AU$15.2 billion ($11.9 billion) investment in infrastructure over 10 years.

Australia would loan Indonesia AU$1.5 billion ($1.2 billion) to manage coronavirus-related financial pressures, loan Papua New Guinea AU$558 million ($437 million) to support its pandemic response and give India AU$37 million ($29 million) in medical supplies. The spending measures need Parliaments endorsement.

The pandemic last year derailed the political calendar that sets the budget as an annual event in May. The 2020-21 budget was delayed until October. It forecast a deficit of AU$214 billion ($168 billion) in the current fiscal year.

That deficit is now forecast to be AU$161 billion ($126 billion). The government expects the deficit will continue to decline in each of the next four years.

Net debt is forecast to peak at AU$980.6 billion ($768.4 billion), or 40.9% of GDP, in June 2025.

With Prime Minister Scott Morrison due to call an election within 10 months, his conservative coalition has said paying down debt will not be a priority in the next fiscal year.

The government has said it would not focus on reducing debt until the unemployment rate was below 5%. The jobless rate was 5.6% in March and is forecast to fall to 5% for 2021-22 and to 4.75% in the following year.

Australias economic growth would jump from 1.25% in the current fiscal year to 4.25% in 2021-22, according to Treasury forecasts.

As relations with China have deteriorated, Beijing has blocked Australian exports including beef, wine, coal, lobsters, wood and barley. But Australias most lucrative export, iron ore, still has eager buyers among Chinese steel manufacturers.

Iron ore prices surged last week as steel mills, fearing further trade restrictions, rushed to lock in supplies after China suspended activities related to the China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue. It hit a new record price of $228 a metric ton ($251 a U.S. ton) on Tuesday.

Tuesdays budget assumes that the price for iron ore will fall to $55 a metric ton ($60.50 a U.S. ton) by the end of the March next year.

Frydenberg described Treasurys ore price forecast as conservative.

If the price remained above $150, it would add more than AU$12 billion ($9.4 billion) to government coffers, he said.

Today were giving a very big thanks to Western Australia and the iron ore industry because we are seeing record prices, Fydenberg said, referring to the state where iron ore is mined.

Chinas trade restrictions had had limited impacts on Australias economic recovery from the pandemic because many exports were re-directed to other markets, the Treasury documents said.

The budget forecasts assume that international travel will remain at low levels until mid-2022 and that COVID-19 vaccines will be widely available in Australia by the end of 2021.

Australia has been relatively successful in containing the spread of the coronavirus but slow to roll out vaccinations.

Inoculations began in February with plans to have 4 million doses of Pfizer and AstraZeneca administered in a population of 26 million by the end of March. By Monday, only 2.66 million doses had been injected.

Morrison is expected to wait until many more people are inoculated before he calls the election, seeking a fourth three-year term for his government.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The two players in the most important relationship in Washington finally are ready for a face-to-face meeting.

President Joe Bidens sit-down on Wednesday with Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and other congressional leaders comes as the White House accelerates its efforts to reach a bipartisan infrastructure agreement  or at least aims to show its trying. But McConnell is plainly stating in advance that hes not interested in the plan as proposed.

The president's meeting with McConnell, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy is the first formal gathering of the big four congressional leaders since the president took office  a late start after a tumultuous new year. But the timing is crucial for White Houses outreach on Bidens two-pronged $4 trillion American jobs and families plans.

At the center are Biden and McConnell, two stalwarts of the Senate who have traded expressions of friendship but whose ability to find political common ground seems limited. In a Washington controlled by Democrats by the slimmest of margins, it's unclear if they actually need each other to accomplish their political goals.

Republicans have balked at the size of Biden's proposals  a sweeping plan that moves beyond roads and bridges to dramatically expand the social safety net  and at the presidents plan to pay for it with tax increases on the wealthy and corporations.

But in recent days, Biden has deliberately and publicly opened the door further to compromise, explicitly saying that he was willing to negotiate the size of the overall package and the size of the tax hike. That echoes what White House staffers have been telling their Capitol Hill counterparts in the last week, according to administration officials.

But it takes two to compromise. McConnell will arrive at the White House on Wednesday cleareyed about what Biden wants, according to a Republican familiar with his thinking who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the internal deliberations, and about whether the president truly needs his help to pass the legislation.

Just days before the meeting, the Republican leader said his goal was simply, and essentially, to halt the Democratic presidents agenda.

McConnell said 100% of my focus is stopping the Biden administration, a comment that evoked his vow early in the Obama presidency to make the Democrat a one-term president.

I like him personally, McConnell said of Biden later, softening his tone somewhat. I want to do business with the president. But he needs to be a moderate. He said he was going to be a moderate during the campaign. I havent seen that yet.

Biden has long showcased his relationships with Republicans and made his ability to work across the aisle central to his governing ethos. But a growing number of Democrats believe it is wasted energy to try to work with a party that, in their view, too often turns obstructionist.

Biden chuckled ruefully when told of McConnells remarks.

Look, he said that in our last administration, Barack, that he was going to stop everything  and I was able to get a lot done with him, Biden said.

Bidens most notable deal-making success with McConnell came in the Obama-era fiscal showdowns during the rise of the tea party. As vice president, Biden was a trusted emissary to Capitol Hill for Obama, who had a chilly relationship with the Republican leader.

The feeling was mutual for McConnell, who during the 2012 fiscal cliff crisis cut out White House negotiators to deal directly with Biden.

Is there anyone over there who knows how to make a deal? the Republican wrote in his memoir, recalling a voicemail he left for the then-vice president.

Rohit Kumar, a former deputy chief of staff for McConnell, said that a lot of trust had been established but noted that deals would be harder in the current, more polarized climate.

"Its not that they cant find the political middle  its that their parties circles have gotten further apart, Kumar said in a recent interview.

White House aides were not surprised by McConnells declaration of defiance but believe that some common ground still is possible. Public polling suggests that the infrastructure plan, much like the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief law enacted in March, is popular with voters. But the COVID-19 bill did not receive a single GOP vote.

Steve Ricchetti, a senior White House adviser, said Wednesday's meeting is meant to focus this conversation to where the priorities are and the space to find common ground. From there, he said, it will become clearer in coming weeks "when there will be a real accelerated and pretty comprehensive dialogue on all of the elements.

Biden and McConnell have so far had a relationship of necessity: What's unclear now is whether the president will need the senator's GOP votes. McConnell will carry a message that makes clear Republicans are unwilling to change the 2017 tax law, which they view as their signature domestic policy achievement, to pay for the investments, according to the Republican familiar with his thinking.

Biden and McConnell have had a few brief encounters, including at the presidents joint address to Congress two weeks ago, and at least two phone calls, aides said.

Aides said Biden would urge the Republicans to find some areas of agreement. He plans to stress to them that democracy itself is on trial and that the nation needs to prove that it can take care of its own as it grapples with the pandemics twin health and economic challenges.

The way the president is thinking about it is that you could spend the entire meeting talking about areas of disagreement, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday. Or you could spend it seeking opportunity for common ground, and he is going to choose the latter.

The president has hosted a trio of key Democratic senators at the White House already this week, including moderates Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, both of whom the White House needs to keep on board for the massive spending bill. And on Thursday, Biden will meet with six Republican senators, including Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, the ranking GOP member on the Environment and Public Works Committee, to hear their plans for a smaller and more narrowly defined infrastructure bill.

Aides said to expect Biden to host more Republicans in the weeks ahead of a soft Memorial Day deadline the White House set for gauging how feasible a bipartisan bill may be. Missing no opportunity, Biden buttonholed Louisiana senators John Kennedy and Bill Cassidy on an airport tarmac during a visit to their home state last week

I made the point -- not exactly in these words -- that everybody is for infrastructure, nobody is happy with crappy, Kennedy recalled of the conversation. Theres a way to do this deal  if the president will limit it to infrastructure and then lets have a frank discussion about how to pay for it.

Bidens response? He listened, Kennedy said.

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Associated Press writer Josh Boak contributed to this report.
So the district had an idea: Sell rights-of-way along its canals within the Agricultural Reserve Area to a developer. Though no one can build on those slivers of property, the developer would get rights for preserving that land and then be allowed to build homes elsewhere that would otherwise be more than the Agricultural Reserve plan allows.
DOVER, Del. (AP)  A proposal to require anyone in Delaware wanting to buy a handgun to first be fingerprinted, undergo training and obtain permission from the state cleared a Democrat-led House committee on a party line vote Tuesday.

The Judiciary Committee voted to release the measure, which cleared the Senate with no GOP support last month, with the acknowledgment that it should be amended to address concerns raised during Tuesdays four-hour, virtual public hearing.

House Majority Whip John Mitchell, who made the motion to release the bill, had earlier expressed concerns about the additional costs it would impose on handgun buyers. Mitchell, an Elsmere Democrat and retired police officer, also said the bill should exempt retired law enforcement officers from the training requirement for more than obvious reasons.

Mitchells motion to release the bill came after committee chairman Rep. Sean Lynn, D-Dover, refused to consider a motion to table the bill that had been made by Republican Rep. Jeffrey Spiegelman of Clayton and seconded.

Although you were first to verbally speak, you werent the first virtual hand to be raised, Lynn told Spiegelman, an observation that Spiegelman politely disputed.

Earlier in the hearing, Spiegelman, a vocal opponent of the measure, suggested that the bill impermissibly preempts federal law by exempting anyone with a permit to carry a concealed weapon from undergoing the federal background check that is required for anyone wanting to a buy a firearm from a licensed gun dealer.

An attorney for House Democrats did not dispute Spiegelmans reading of the bill.

There may be an intent that that is different, but that is what it says, said attorney Natalie Woloshin.

Supporters of the bill argue that it will help reduce the number of gun homicides and suicides in Delaware and make it more difficult for people to make illegal straw purchases of handguns on behalf of those prohibited by law from possessing them.

Democratic Attorney General Kathleen Jennings, an advocate for stricter gun laws, told committee members that she believes the bill will be transformative in terms of violence in this state.

Jennings said permit to purchase laws, which are in place in only nine others states and the District of Columbia, have been proven to dramatically reduce gun deaths.

Jennings, like many other supporters of the bill, have pointed to a study indicating that Connecticuts firearm homicide rate was 40% lower in 2005 than it was in 1995, when that state enacted one of the nations first permit bills.

Critics argue that the results of Connecticut study have been contradicted by other researchers. They also note that Maryland and Illinois, two other states with permit-to-purchase laws, are home to two of the most deadly cites in the country for gun violence, Baltimore and Chicago. According to state government data, Marylands murder rate per 100,000 people fell by 6.9% in 2014, the year after that state enacted a permit bill. But the murder rate spiked by 51.6% the following year and remains significantly higher than it was in 2013.

This is gun control. This is not gun safety, said bill opponent Kayla Wagner.

Under the bill, a person wanting to buy a handgun would have to complete an approved training course, then submit a permit application. State officials would have 30 days to fingerprint applicants, confirm that they are legally permitted to own a handgun and issue a qualified purchaser card that would be valid for 180 days. Anyone denied a card would have 30 days to request a court hearing.

The bill allows state officials, if supported by probable cause, to deny a card to any person who poses a danger of causing physical injury to self or others by owning, purchasing, or possessing firearms. It does not explain how that determination would be made or who would make it.

The measure also requires state officials to keep demographic data on permit applicants, including race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, gender, age, disability and English language proficiency. Officials also would be required to maintain a database that would be open for inspection by any judge, justice of the peace or law enforcement officer for purposes of investigation or prosecution.

The bill is one of two gun control measures by Democrats that passed the Senate with no Republican votes and now await floor votes in the Democrat-led House. The other measure outlaws the possession and sale of any magazine capable of holding more than 17 rounds.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  Punishment for rioting would become more severe in legislation approved on Monday by the state House in a measure that emerged following mayhem in several North Carolina cities last summer and at the U.S. Capitol in January.

Nearly half of the chamber's Democrats joined all Republicans present in voting 88-25 for the measure, which was championed by House Speaker Tim Moore.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  North Carolina's Senate approved a bill Tuesday that would require doctors to provide the same duty of care for a child who is born alive after an attempted abortion that they would for any other newborn.

Those who fail to make such effort to safeguard a child born after an abortion attempt could face civil penalties and be charged with a misdemeanor, which includes a fine of up to $250,000.

Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper rejected a similar measure in 2019, citing unnecessary interference between doctors and their patients." Republicans overturned his veto in one chamber, but did not have the votes to do so in the other. The latest proposal likely would face a similar Cooper veto.

Sen. Joyce Krawiec, a Forsyth County Republican and a sponsor of the born-alive bill, said her proposal does not aim to limit a woman's decision about whether to go through with her pregnancy.

This has nothing to do with abortion access," Krawiec said. This has everything to do with a living human being breathing outside its mothers body  a citizen of this state and of the United States.

But Sen. Natalie Murdock, D-Durham, believes Senate Bill 405 is a solution in search of a problem and will have a damaging impact on families.

This bill does not protect babies," Murdock said. "It makes it harder for doctors to provide the safe and legal medical care that they are trained to provide. It does not address an actual problem that exists in this state.

While Krawiec acknowledged she could not quantify the scope of the problem of children born after an attempted abortion, Sen. Todd Johnson, R-Union, was adamant it does happen in many states, including North Carolina.

Abortion rights groups, including Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, oppose the measure, as they consider it an attack on a woman's right to terminate her pregnancy.

The American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina warned that if the bill becomes law, doctors would be forced to make futile efforts to keep alive infants with no chance of survival.

Medical professionals are trained to make appropriate decisions about what actions they should take in certain scenarios, Liz Barber, an ACLU of North Carolina policy analyst, said in a news release. It is unimaginable that lawmakers would interject themselves into those final moments in a way that disregards a familys wishes and a doctors training during such a difficult time.

Anti-abortion activists say the bill deserves more widespread support.

Everyone should be able to agree that the circumstance surrounding a child at birth should not determine their right to life," Tami Fitzgerald, executive director of the conservative North Carolina Values Coalition, said in a release. The vote this afternoon by the North Carolina Senate guarantees compassion and perinatal medical services to any infant born alive as a result of an abortion.

The bill passed by a vote of 28-21 and now heads to the House. If given final approval, the measure would head to Cooper's desk.

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Follow Anderson on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BryanRAnderson.

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Anderson is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
LONDON (AP)  A coroner in Northern Ireland ruled Tuesday that 10 civilians killed during military operations in west Belfast half a century ago were innocent victims, clearing them of suggestions that they were shot for attacking British soldiers.

Family members, who had requested a new inquest to clear the names of their loved ones, applauded as High Court Justice Siobhan Keegan delivered her findings. The killings occurred in August 1971 as the British Army confronted protesters in the Ballymurphy area of Belfast during the early days of the sectarian conflict that became known as The Troubles.

Though she acknowledged that the times were chaotic, Keegan ruled that none of the victims had been engaged in paramilitary activity at the time they were shot. They included a mother of eight, a Catholic priest and a World War II veteran.

The victims were entirely innocent of wrongdoing on the day in question, Keegan said as she delivered the verdict.

The shootings occurred from Aug. 9 to Aug. 11, 1971, amid protests over the governments decision to implement a new policy allowing suspected militants to be interned without trial. As soldiers moved into Ballymurphy to arrest suspected members of the Irish Republican Army, they clashed with protesters.

Keegans ruling was a harsh indictment of military conduct during the protests, finding that the victims werent acting in a threatening manner, the state had failed to justify the shootings and that investigations had been inadequate.

A series of one-day inquests held in 1972 returned open verdicts for each of the deaths. These verdicts, which were used in cases where a coroners court didnt consider the circumstances of a death, allowed suggestions to persist that the victims were somehow responsible for their deaths.

The new inquest was ordered in 2011, following a campaign by the victims families. It ultimately heard more than 100 days of testimony during hearings that stretched from November 2018 to March 2020.

While Keegan ruled that nine of the 10 deaths were caused by British soldiers, she said there wasn't enough evidence to determine who fired the fatal shots in one case. The findings were based on the civil standard of proof, known as the balance of probabilities, not the higher criminal standard.

The first of the incidents was among the most chilling.

Father Hugh Mullan, 38, was hit by at least two high velocity bullets as he tried to help a shooting victim while waving a white handkerchief as a sign of peace, according to the verdict. Francis Quinn, 19, who accompanied Mullan, was also killed in the same incident.

The use of force was disproportionate and soldiers violated the rules of engagement in force at the time, Keegan found.

He was unarmed, not acting in any way as a threat, attending to a wounded man in the field and waving a white object as a sign of his peaceful intentions, Keegan said of Mullan.

The verdict comes as former soldiers press the U.K. government to ensure they arent prosecuted for conduct decades ago when they were sent to enforce the peace in Northern Ireland. More than 3,000 people died during decades of violence between mostly Catholic supporters of unification with the Republic of Ireland and mostly Protestant backers of continued ties with the United Kingdom.

John Teggart, whose father, Danny, was one of the victims, read out the names of the 10 dead at a press conference in Corpus Christi Youth Club in Belfast, pausing to say the word innocent after every name.

The families are outraged at the prospect that the soldiers could be granted amnesty for their actions, he said.

I want to speak directly to the people of Britain at this moment," he said. Can you imagine what would happen if the British soldiers murdered 10 unarmed civilians on the streets of London, Liverpool or Birmingham? What would you expect, an investigation? Would you expect justice? Or would you be happy for them to get an amnesty?

A UK government spokesperson said the findings had been long awaited by the bereaved families of the deceased, military personnel and their relatives."

We recognize how difficult the process has been for all of those affected by the events of August 1971 and the inquest," the spokesperson said. "We will now take the time to review the report and carefully consider the conclusions drawn.
AVOCA, Wis. (AP)  The Wisconsin Department of Justice said Tuesday its Division of Criminal Investigation is leading a homicide investigation in Iowa County.

State officials said a suspect is in custody for the death of a female in the village of Avoca. Authorities did not disclose the name of the victim or circumstances surrounding her death.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  An array of groups and elected officials from both major parties put their weight behind criminal justice reforms in North Carolina on Tuesday at a Legislative Building news conference. But some details aren't yet finalized.

Speakers emphasized four bills  three that passed the House last week and one omnibus measure that's expected to clear the Senate as soon as Wednesday. One question will be whether House members will accept additional items contained in the Senate bill or insist on narrower changes. This year's legislative session likely won't wrap up work until early summer.

But for Tuesday, legislators, sheriffs, local prosecutors and law enforcement groups focused on praising the efforts to advance changes they say will target bad officers while providing mental health support to all of sworn law enforcement. The effort comes during a time of national focus on racial inequity and police shootings of Black residents, including the choking death of George Floyd in May 2020 in Minneapolis.

The vast majority of law enforcement officers in this nation are outstanding individuals. They work hard. They protect us. They do what is right," said Ernie Lee, the district attorney for four eastern counties, but we also have to improve accountability."

One House bill approved unanimously would mandate a duty for law enforcement officers to intervene when they believe a colleague is using excessive force, and report what they saw to a superior within 72 hours. Another would require an officer to tell standards commissions when the officer receives a letter from a prosecutor telling the officer they have been untruthful or have committed misconduct and shouldn't testify in criminal cases.

And a third bill would require officer trainees to receive psychological screening examinations. Continuing education also will include an emphasis on mental health.

These provisions will not only improve the lives of our law enforcement officers, but I believe that they will improve the communities that these officers daily patrol and protect and preserve, said Rep. Kristin Baker, a Cabarrus County Republican and chief sponsor of the mental health bill.

The Senate measure contains House provisions and many more changes, including increased penalties for rioting and the creation of new databases to discourage misbehaving law enforcement officers from remaining on the job.

New amendments to the Senate measure on Monday address access by family members to police body camera footage of people who die while interacting with police and raise penalties for suspects whose resistance during an arrest leads to an officer's injuries.

A wide array of groups across the political spectrum has backed the Senate measure. But a representative of the North Carolina chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union told Senate committee members earlier Tuesday the proposed felonies for resisting arrest goes too far and could splinter the coalition that backed the broader measure.

The resisting arrest change is a poison pill that doesnt line up with the rest of the bill, Daniel Bowes, the state chapters director of policy and advocacy, told the Senate Rules Committee. Sen. Paul Newton, a Cabarrus County Republican and amendment sponsor, said the tougher penalties are designed to protect law enforcement from serious injury and deter suspects from fleeing what is otherwise a lawful arrest.

The body camera changes  made in light of last month's shooting death of Andrew Brown Jr. in Elizabeth City  would allow family members of a person killed by law enforcement to watch unedited officer body camera footage within five business days of their request.

Sen. Danny Britt, a Robeson County Republican shepherding the Senate measure, said the amendment was an agreement reached between members of the Legislative Black Caucus and groups representing district attorneys and sheriffs. On Tuesday, Britt and GOP Rep. John Szoka of Cumberland County didn't make any commitments about the future of the bodycam language.

The bill also contains some recommendations from a task force commissioned last year by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper on racial equity and criminal justice. But the more dramatic changes  including reforms to bail and the death penalty and a greater emphasis on addressing any racial bias in the ranks  were left out.
TAMPA, Fla.  A Dunkin employee faces a manslaughter charge after punching a customer who then fell, hit his head and later died, police say.

The single punch that led to the arrest of 27-year-old Corey Pujols was thrown May 4 at the Dunkin store in the Marathon gas station at 410 S 50th St., just south of the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway, according to an arrest report.

Police and fire rescue crews were called to the store about 1:30 p.m. and found a 77-year-old man unconscious and bleeding from the head. Paramedics took the man to Tampa General Hospital, where he was placed in intensive care.

The mans name is not included in the arrest report. The Tampa Police Department does not release the names of crime victims due to the departments interpretation of Marsys Law, a voter-approved amendment to the state Constitution that was meant to protect crime victims but that deprives the public of information long available under Floridas public records law.

Pujols told police that the man was a regular customer, was extremely rude that day and called Pujols a racial slur, according to the report. Pujols, who is Black, said he asked the man to repeat what he said, and he uttered the same slur. Pujols said he punched the man once in the face, causing him to fall, the report said. The slur is not included in the report.

The stores surveillance system captured video of the punch. The video shows the customer didnt touch Pujols, and that the man appeared to hit the back of his head on the concrete floor after Pujols punched him, according to the report.

Police initially arrested Pujols on a charge of battery on a person older than 65. Jail records in that arrest list him as the Dunkin stores manager. He was released the next day after posting $2,000 bail.

The customer died at Tampa General on Friday. An autopsy showed he had a skull fracture and brain contusions as a result of blunt trauma to the head. A doctor at the Hillsborough Medical Examiners Office told police the death would be ruled a homicide.

Police obtained a warrant for Pujols arrest on a charge of aggravated manslaughter of a person older than 65, a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Jail records show he was arrested on Friday at his apartment on West Hillsborough Avenue. He was being held Tuesday without bail. Records show the court has appointed Pujols a public defender.

An email to the Dunkin media relations office was not immediately returned Tuesday.

Formerly known as Dunkin Donuts, the company changed its name in 2018, dropping Donuts from its moniker.

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NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania (AP)  Mauritania's authorities placed former President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz under house arrest Tuesday as they investigate allegations of corruption, embezzlement and money laundering made against the West African country's last leader.

Aziz served as president from 2008 to 2019, handing over power to Mohamed Ould Cheikh Ghazouani in what became Mauritania's first peaceful transfer of power since independence from France in 1960.

The 65-year-old former head of state will only be able to leave his Nouakchott home to pray or seek medical care. All requests must be approved by judges.

The former president is unjustly being placed under house arrest, even though the judicial supervision to which he has been subject since his indictment last March has not been violated by our client," lawyer Mohameden Ichidou said.

Aziz has refused to cooperate with the investigation, citing immunity as a former president and calling the prosecution illegal.

The former president had backed the 2019 candidacy of Ghazouani, his former defense minister and one-time friend. However, the two had a subsequent falling out over the control of their ruling Union for the Republic (UPR) party.

The dispute triggered a parliamentary inquiry in the former president, and a parliamentary commission found that Aziz was responsible for misappropriations during his time in power.

Mauritania, a moderate Islamic republic, has suffered five coups since independence in 1960 and was led by military rulers for much of that time.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP)  Florida detectives have cleared Palm Beach County prosecutors and sheriff's officials of criminal wrongdoing in connection with their handling of wealthy and prominent sex offender Jeffrey Epstein more than a decade ago, reports released Monday show.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said in its reports that it found no evidence that Epstein received any special treatment due to bribery or influence by any member of the Palm Beach County sheriff's or state attorney offices between 2005, when the investigation launched, and 2009, when he was released from jail.

Both the state attorney's office and sheriff had been criticized by Epstein's victims and their advocates for the plea and sentencing deal he received and for his participation in a work-release program that allowed him to travel to his office most days for up to 16 hours, where he possibly engaged in the sexual abuse of underage girls.

Gov. Ron DeSantis had ordered the investigation in August 2019, just days before Epstein killed himself at a federal jail in New York City.

State investigators concluded that both agencies followed the laws and rules that were then in place in their handling of Epstein. When he died, he had recently been charged federally with sex trafficking dating back almost 20 years and was facing life in prison. He was known for his wealth and his connections, including former presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump and Prince Andrew of Great Britain. None of them have been charged in connection with his crimes.

In three separate reports that were completed in March, Florida investigators wrote they found no evidence that any sheriff's deputy, former State Attorney Barry Krischer or any of his prosecutors was coerced, bribed or engaged in any criminal activity in the performance of their duties.

Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, who assumed office in 2005, issued a statement Monday saying he had asked for the investigation and welcomed its findings. He declined further comment, saying an internal investigation into possible violations of agency regulations is ongoing.

Krischer, who served from 1993 to 2007, did not respond to a phone call and email seeking comment Monday. He had previously defended his handling of the investigation.

Florida's treatment of Epstein came under scrutiny in 2018 following a series of Miami Herald articles. They detailed the disagreements that surfaced beginning in 2005 among law enforcement officials after teenage girls and young women told Palm Beach police investigators that Epstein had sexually assaulted them. They had agreed to give him massages while semi- or fully nude in exchange for money, but said he would then molest them without their consent.

The Palm Beach police thought they had a strong case to bring sexual assault charges against Epstein, but Krischer and his prosecutors disagreed, saying Epstein's attorneys would have avenues to attack the victims' credibility and a conviction was unlikely. A grand jury heard the case, but no indictment was issued.

Palm Beach police, meanwhile, took their evidence to federal prosecutors who threatened to bring charges until an agreement was reached in June 2008. Epstein pleaded guilty to state charges of procuring a person under 18 for prostitution and felony solicitation of prostitution. He was sentenced to 18 months in the Palm Beach County jail system followed by 12 months of house arrest. He was required to register as a sex offender.

While in Palm Beach sheriffs custody, Epstein was allowed to stay in an isolated cell at the countys minimum security stockade, where he roamed freely and watched television. State investigators said isolating him was a prudent decision, saying it was made to protect Epstein from other inmates and to prevent him from using his wealth to become king of the dorms.

Epstein was also soon allowed into the county's work-release program. During that time, he was taken to his office, where he claimed to be running his financial consulting business and his foundation. By the time of his release, he was spending six days a week and 18 hours a day at his office. He was required to wear an ankle monitor and hire two deputies to oversee his whereabouts from the lobby, but they were not in his office with him.

A woman who was then 17 and another woman, who was then an adult, have said they were trafficked to Epstein's office to have paid sex with with him. The women declined to meet with Florida investigators, but their attorney texted an investigator that there was no wrongdoing by deputies, the reports said.
What if, weeks or months from now, Tamaracs gang of four finds its hand-picked law firm cant solve this mystery and stronger measures are needed? Will they seek a search warrant from a judge to seize employees personal phone records? Or find which employees had access to the portal and surreptitiously tail them to see where they go after work? Or secretly open their mail? Maybe track down their neighbors and interrogate them, too? Its unlikely, but this is the path that a majority of the Tamarac City Commission has recklessly started to travel.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP)  Florida's school voucher program will be significantly expanded after Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill Tuesday that increases eligibility to attend private schools at public expense.

The bill is projected to allow more than 60,000 previously ineligible students to seek vouchers. The cost to the state will be an estimated $200 million.

DeSantis held a bill-signing ceremony at a Miami-Dade County Catholic school surrounded by students in uniforms. He said the expansion will give parents more choices on where to send their children to school.

Obviously, wealthy parents have the world as their oyster. They can make whatever decisions they want, DeSantis said. But when you talk about low-income families, working families  they may not have the luxury of being able to get their kid in the school of their choice without our assistance.

The law takes effect July 1 and combines three existing voucher programs, two that provide vouchers for students with disabilities and a third that assists low-income families, into one program.

It also raises the income threshold to be eligible for vouchers from 260% of the federal poverty level to 375%, or from $68,900 for a family of four to $99,375.

It also expands how the money can be spent beyond tuition, such as transportation, instructional materials, fees for national standard achievement tests and private tutoring.

The current law only allows students enrolled in public school to apply for vouchers. The new law will allow children who have been home-schooled to also apply.

The bill was passed on partisan vote, though a few Democrats sided with Republicans. Democrats argued that voucher programs take money away from public schools and gives it to private schools who are not held to accountability standards.

Senate Democrats send out a news release criticizing the signing.

Governor DeSantis is taking Floridians hard-earned tax dollars and diverting them out of public schools into private schools without transparency or accountability to taxpayers, the release said.
ATLANTA (AP)  Regents who oversee Georgias 26 public universities and colleges are restarting the search for a chancellor, saying they are still trying to find a permanent replacement for outgoing leader Steve Wrigley before he retires June 30.

Regents voted Tuesday after a nearly three-hour-long executive session to hire a new search firm after the previous search firm quit. The resolution by regent Neal Pruitt Jr. said the firm will consider current applicants and recruit new ones. If no permanent replacement is chosen by June 30, regents voted to appoint an interim leader for the 340,000-student system.

Regents had paused the search last month, and then got a letter from the agency that accredits all the schools on April 26 asking whether there has been undue political pressure to appoint former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue as the systems leader. Then, Parker Executive Search, which had been helping the regents find candidates, resigned citing misinformation.

Its unclear if regents have a search firm in mind, or how many new candidates any new firm might be able to recruit before a June 30 deadline. University leadership searches typically take months when outside candidates are being considered. Usually, a search is only restarted and new candidates sought when regents cant agree on any of the candidates in the original pool.

Sachin Shailendra, the chair of the board, walked away from an Associated Press reporter who was trying to ask him about the search. Regent Neal Pruitt Jr., who made the motion, referred comment to Shailendra.

Last week, speaking to faculty leaders, Wrigley said regents have run into a few bumps in the road in the chancellors search, but expressed confidence that theyll get it figured out, said Matthew Boedy, a University of North Georgia professor and head of the state chapter of the American Association of University Professors who participated in the call.

Hiring a chancellor is always a political act. The systems leader is both an administrator and a politician who deals with the governor, lawmakers and regents. But accreditation rules prohibit undue outside influence on the board, trying to make sure that trustees truly run a college, and not some outside group.

Perdue was a two-term governor and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture under President Donald Trump. A group called Students Against Sonny launched last month, promoting a petition urging regents to reject him and holding a pair of anti-Perdue rallies.

Critics say Perdue had a bad record as governor of reducing student access to higher education. Perdues efforts to help Trump fight his 2020 electoral loss to Democratic President Joe Biden also prompted questions.

Tuesdays vote came as the board saluted Wrigley, who has been chancellor since 2017, in the last regularly scheduled board meeting before his June 30 retirement date. In a speech, Wrigley urged regents to remain focused on student success. One of his major pushes as chancellor as been to encourage more students to complete their degrees.

I will offer this unsolicited advice to you: that in the coming years, you regularly ask of each other, How are students doing? Are they starting? And are they finishing? And are they learning what they need to? Wrigley said.

A lack of a chancellor could also delay selections of new presidents for six schools that now or will soon have vacancies  Georgia State University, Georgia College and State University, Kennesaw State University, Clayton State University, Savannah State University and Georgia Highlands College. Regents voted Tuesday to reappoint all current school leaders for another year, voting that interim leaders would remain in place until the board appoints permanent successors.

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Follow Jeff Amy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jeffamy.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Republicans in the U.S. Senate mounted an aggressive case Tuesday against Democrats' sweeping election and voter-access legislation, pushing to roll back proposals for automatic registration, 24-hour ballot drop boxes and other changes in an increasingly charged national debate.

The legislation, a top priority of Democrats in the aftermath of the divisive 2020 election, would bring about the largest overhaul of U.S. voting in a generation, touching nearly every aspect of the electoral process. It would remove hurdles to voting erected in the name of election security and curtail the influence of big money in politics.

At the end of a long, contentious day, the Rules Committee deadlocked 9-9 over advancing the bill to the full Senate in its current form. That leaves it to Democratic leader Chuck Schumer to try to invoke a special process to force the legislation ahead.

Though it is federal legislation, Republicans are fighting a national campaign against it rooted in state battles to restrict new ways of voting that have unfolded during the pandemic. Just Tuesday, the Arizona Legislature sent the governor a bill that would make it easier to purge infrequent voters from a list of those who automatically get mail-in ballots, the latest battleground state to push through changes likely to take months or years to finally settle in court.

GOP Senate leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is so determined to stop the legislation that he made a rare appearance at Tuesday's Rules Committee session in Washington. McConnell and other Republicans on the panel argued for a wave of amendments against key sections of the bill, which Democrats turned aside in an hours-long voting session.

McConnell declared, Our democracy is not in crisis" and said he wasnt about to cede control of elections to new laws under the false pretense of saving it.

With Democrats holding the White House and narrow control of Congress, they see the legislation as crucial  perhaps their best chance to counter efforts by state-level Republicans who have seized on former President Donald Trumps false claims about the 2020 election to push ballot restrictions.

Yet even as they tout the measure, Democrats find themselves playing defense, unable to push their legislative response to President Joe Bidens desk. While the elections overhaul has passed the House, theres no clear path forward in the Senate, which is split 50-50. Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona have both said they oppose making changes to the Senates filibuster rules, which would be needed to maneuver the bill past unified Republican opposition.

Trumps election claims, which have only increased in the six months since his defeat, were rejected by Republican as well as Democratic election officials in state after state, by U.S. cybersecurity officials and by courts up to the U.S. Supreme Court. And his attorney general said there was no evidence of fraud that could change the election outcome.

President Trump told a big lie, one of the biggest ever told. We all know that. Every single person in this room knows that, Sen. Schumer, the Democratic majority leader, said at the hearing. "And its taking root, this big lie is taking root in our country, not just in the minds of his voters but in the laws of the land.

The laws emerging around the country are about one thing and one thing alone: making it harder for Americans to vote," he said.

The Democrats' measure would not stop every bill being passed in Republican states across the country. But it would make it difficult, if not impossible, for states to press ahead with many of the new rules.

That's because the legislation would create nationwide rules for early voting and no-excuse absentee voting, standardizing the process. Currently, six states dont offer early, in-person voting and a third of states still require an excuse  such as illness or planning to be away from home on Election Day  to vote by mail, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Republicans walked a narrow line during much of the discussion on Tuesday, criticizing congressional Democrats for seeking to change voting rules while at the same time offering robust support for GOP state lawmakers who are doing the same.

The GOP senators cited high voter turnout in last years presidential election during the pandemic as proof that the system worked without the Democrats' changes and voters were not disenfranchised. But they offered little justification for GOP efforts at the state level to impose new limits on voting, particularly mail voting.

Republicans also attacked provisions that would create a new public financing system for political campaigns and strengthen the enforcement capabilities of the federal agency tasked with policing elections, as well as dozens of other proposals that would dictate how states conduct their elections.

This bill doesnt protect voting rights, it steals voting rights from the American people, said Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.

While Republicans argue the new state rules are needed to secure the vote, critics warn the states are seeking to reduce voter access, particularly for Black voters, who are a crucial part of the Democratic Party base. That could usher in a new Jim Crow era for the 21st century, they warn.

These bills moving in state capitals across America are not empty threats, they are real efforts to stop people from voting, said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat and chairwoman of the Senate Rules Committee.

Yet moderate members of the Democratic caucus  not just Republicans  pose a sizable obstacle to the bill becoming law.

Manchin has called for any elections overhaul to be done on a bipartisan basis, despite Republican insistence that no changes are necessary. Other Democrats want to pare back the bill to core voting protections to try to put Republicans on the spot.

Democrats have been making their own changes to draw more support.

In the latest version of the legislation, states would have more time and flexibility to put new federal rules in place. Some election officials had complained of unrealistic timelines, increased costs and onerous requirements.

States would have more time to launch same-day voter registration at polling places and to comply with new voting system requirements. They would also be able to apply for an extension if they were unable to meet the deadline for automatic voter registration. Officials have said these are complex processes that require equipment changes or upgrades that will take time.

Democrats are also dropping a requirement that local election offices provide self-sealing envelopes with mail ballots and cover the costs of return postage. They plan to require the U.S. Postal Service to carry mail ballots and ballot request forms free of charge, with the federal government picking up the tab.

But Republicans argue the changes would do little to limit what they view as unwarranted federal intrusions into local elections.

Giving states more time to implement bad policy doesnt make the policy less bad, said Sen Roy Blunt of Missouri, the ranking minority member on the committee. I think the federal government taking over elections is the wrong thing to do."

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Cassidy reported from Atlanta.
HONOLULU (AP)  Hawaii's vaccine passport program for inter-island travel has begun.

The program launch allows people who received their vaccine shots in the state of Hawaii to skip testing and quarantine rules for travel between the islands, Hawaii News Now reported Tuesday.

Officials have easy access to state vaccination records that can be quickly verified, so only those who have been fully vaccinated at clinics in the islands can participate. The governor says he hopes to open the program to out-of-state visitors and trans-Pacific travelers later this year.

We dont have a firm timeline on trans-Pacific. The challenge is about verification  about vaccination done in other states, Gov. David Ige said. Weve been working with a couple of other private sector partners about working to get access to the state vaccination records, and we believe that that would help them to get vaccination records in other states as well.

People participating in the program must be more than two weeks out from their final COVID-19 vaccine shot.

Health officials report about 40% of Hawaiis population is fully vaccinated.

Anyone flying into the state still has to produce a negative COVID-19 test to bypass a 10-day quarantine rule.

Travelers participating in the vaccine passport program can upload their information to the state's Safe Travels website, the same platform currently being used to verify COVID-19 test results for all travelers. They can also bring their vaccination card to the airport if they have trouble or don't have access to the website.

Anyone caught with a fake vaccination card is subject to hefty fines, jail time or both.

The program launch comes as some residents say the state should loosen other coronavirus restrictions, but Ige is being cautious.

The number of cases that we see continues to be higher than we would like, and every case now is the opportunity for the virus to mutate and change, said Ige.

Epidemiologist Dr. DeWolfe Miller, who has worked with the state on its coronavirus response, agrees.

If you dont go to that last little extra bit to wipe it out and stamp it out, that little brush fire can blow out of control in a second, Miller told Hawaii News Now.
HONG KONG (AP)  Hong Kong officials dropped a plan to mandate foreign domestic workers be vaccinated against the coronavirus, after hearing international criticism the move would be discriminatory.

Most of Hong Kongs approximately 370,000 domestic workers come from Indonesia and the Philippines, both severely impacted by the pandemic.

Hong Kong officials initially proposed the mandate after a foreign domestic worker tested positive for a coronavirus variant in April, with an unknown source of infection. Another worker arriving from the Philippines had also tested positive for a variant.

Those findings prompted the city to order domestic workers to be tested for the virus at the end of April.

The plan for mandatory vaccinations was dropped after officials assessed public health needs and the potential legal issues, Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said at a regular news briefing Tuesday.

The Philippines Secretary of Foreign Affairs Teodoro Locsin Jr. previously slammed the Hong Kong government for its mandatory vaccination plan for foreign domestic workers, saying that it smacks of discrimination.

On Tuesday, Lam also announced a second round of mandatory tests for domestic workers as a precaution, which will begin on Saturday and last until the end of the May.

She urged employers to allow the workers to take the test on a workday instead of on their day off.

Hong Kong has so far reported 11,812 infections of the coronavirus, with 210 deaths.

Indonesia has reported more than 1.7 million people infected and 47,000 deaths, while the Philippines has confirmed 1.1 million infections and 18,500 deaths from COVID-19.
PHOENIX (AP)  Arizona voters in 2022 will get to decide whether young people brought illegally to the United States as children should qualify for in-state tuition at community colleges and state universities, after the Legislature approved a ballot referral on Monday.

The Arizona House approved the ballot referral on a contentious 33-27 vote Monday, with four Republicans joining the chamber's 29 minority Democrats to approve the referral. The Senate passed the measure in March with three Republican members joining the 14 Democrats.

The change is needed because a 2006 voter-approved law, Proposition 300, blocks any public benefits for people who are not legal residents or citizens. Residents enrolled in the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program were given in-state tuition until a 2018 state Supreme Court ruling said they do not qualify for cheaper tuition offered to legal residents.

Many of the chamber's Republicans objected to a parliamentary maneuver a Republican backer used to bring it up for a vote, including GOP House Speaker Rusty Bowers. Bowers had blocked the bill from a vote because it lacked the support of a majority of the 31 House Republicans, but said he supported the overall policy and had been working to gather backing from his party for it.

I cannot support the way that this was done and I vote no," Bowers said.

But the measure already gathered more than the 31 needed votes, and last week Republican Rep. Michelle Udall forced a vote that led to Monday's action. She cited the state's booming economy, the need for more educated workers and the plight of young people blocked from that education for her decision.

We need more college educated teachers, health care workers, lawyers, engineers and a host of other occupations, Udall said. The youth this bill seeks to help shouldnt be blamed or judged based on others' actions. They were brought here as minors, as children.

To qualify, students must have lived in Arizona for at least two years and graduate from a state high school. Some Republicans said that's too short a time, but Udall said they will have to meet the state's rigorous high school graduation requirements, including passing a civics exam that is the same as used to become a citizen.

Some Republicans completely opposed the measure, SCR1044, saying it went against the will of voters who passed Proposition 300 with 71% of the vote.

I believe this policy that we are embarking on here is misguided, unfortunate, unneeded and is actually detrimental to the welfare of my county, said Rep. John Fillmore, an Apache Junction Republican. Americans should not have to pay for non-American citizens, illegals, giving them favored status for their trespass and invasion into America.

Democratic Rep. Cesar Chavez, who was brought illegally to the country from Mexico at the age of 3, used the opportunity to thank his parents for bringing him to America. He said other immigrants deserve the same opportunities he has had.

We have a responsibility to vote on something to make this state a better place to live and this county an even greater country on this planet, said Chavez, who represents part of west Phoenix.

Currently, Arizona and five other states bar in-state college tuition for people who can't show they are legally residing in the in the county, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. More than 21 other states specifically allow in-state tuition, either through legislation action or state university policy.

If voters approve the measure, it would provide a work-around to a 2018 state Supreme Court decision that said students enrolled in the so-called DACA program dont have legal status. That decision forced thousands of community college and university students to either pay higher tuition or drop out of college.
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP)  Despite a massive vaccination campaign, New York nursing homes are still reporting hundreds of infections a week as some residents and staff have skipped getting the shots.

Nursing facilities in the state reported 782 infections among staff and residents in the 14 days ending April 25, the most in the nation.

Only 55% of staff at New York's nursing homes are fully vaccinated, nearly five months since the vaccination campaign launched, according to an Associated Press analysis of data provided by the state Department of Health. Rates among patients are better: 79% of residents are fully vaccinated.

But some areas lag behind. Only 40% of the staff and 63 percent of residents at nursing homes in Brooklyn are fully vaccinated.

A few facilities stand out for lack of progress.

At the Sea Crest Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Brooklyns Coney Island, only 25 percent of residents and 28 percent of the staff have been fully vaccinated, according to state data  among the worst rates in New York.

Patients there continue to die of the virus. Ten died from COVID-19 during the four weeks ending April 25, according to federal data.

As of Sunday, 30 residents had active COVID-19 infections at the home, according to the nursing home's website.

Another Brooklyn nursing home, the Schulman and Schachne Institute for Nursing and Rehabilitation, has fully vaccinated only 31% of its staff.

The Chateau at Brooklyn Rehab and Nursing Center had vaccinated only 32% of its staff and 59% of residents, according to state statistics. Spokeswoman Ashley Romano said the nursing home is trying to boost vaccination rates by giving employees, patients and families the latest guidance on infection control and prevention, vaccination statistics, scientific research, and clinical updates from recent trials in the New York metro area and beyond.

Representatives for the Sea Crest Nursing and Rehabilitation Center didnt return calls and emails requesting comment. A representative for the Schulman and Schachne Institute declined comment.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said the state cant require vaccinations for health care workers, or anyone else, until COVID-19 vaccines get full federal approval. Right now they are only approved on an emergency basis.

While vaccinations, which began in December, haven't snuffed out the virus completely at nursing homes, it has undoubtedly helped.

Statewide, nursing homes reported 18 residents with COVID-19 died in the seven days ending April 25, down from the more than 400 who died in the week ending Jan. 17.

Even with fatalities down, the continuing presence of infections in homes has made it difficult for some to resume having outside visitors, even for places doing well with vaccinations.

In the Bronx, the Hebrew Home at Riverdale, which has vaccinated 86 percent of residents and 80 percent of staff, is now allowing outdoor visits. But under state rules, it can't let patients see loved ones indoors if anyone in the facility has tested positive for the virus in the past 14 days, according to David Pomeranz, chief operating officer of the nursing homes parent organization.

Some nursing homes still dont allow hugs, or only allow infrequent, 15-minute visits, said Karla Abraham-Conley, of Utica, who got involved in a social media campaign to expand visitation after she couldn't visit her mother before she died in October.

The Legislature recently passed a law that would require nursing homes to allow residents to have visits from certain people, including relatives, designated as caregivers. It will become law if the governor doesn't veto it or sign it within a few weeks.

State health regulators will then write rules detailing the length and frequency of caregiver visits, and how many visitors a resident can have at once.

Abraham-Conley said she hopes the law will allow more people to see loved ones, but said Congress should pass a stronger law to boost visitation rights nationwide.

Nursing homes "have been placed in the impossible position of trying to comply with inconsistent requirements, LeadingAge New York President and CEO James Clyne said in a March 24 letter to Cuomo.

New York has reported more deaths of nursing home residents with COVID-19 than any state  nearly 13,900.
SEATTLE (AP)  Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Monday approved a measure aimed at preventing tens of thousands of people a year from having their drivers licenses suspended for failure to pay fines.

An estimated 46,000 people have their licenses suspended annually because they fail to pay court-imposed fines for noncriminal moving violations as minor as neglecting to use a turn signal. And, once their license is suspended, they can be subject to criminal prosecution if they're caught driving again.

Activists say that punishes people for being poor, disproportionately affects minority and young drivers, and makes it harder for them to get to work, to take care of sick family members or to get children to school.

Late last month, a Thurston County Superior Court Judge ruled that it was unconstitutional for the Department of Licensing to suspend the licenses of indigent drivers for failing to pay fines without first assessing their ability to do so.

For years, Washingtonians have lost a critical lifeline to jobs merely for being too poor to pay minor traffic fines and fees, Carl Filler, an analyst with the Justice Action Network, a nonprofit aimed at making the justice system fairer, said in a written statement Monday. "This has pushed families further into debt and negatively impacted their ability to pay the original fines and fees.

The bill signed by Inslee eliminates failure to pay fines as a reason for license suspension, though drivers could face suspension if they miss court hearings about their financial circumstances. It also allows more than 100,000 drivers with currently suspended licenses to get them back by paying a $75 fee.

After the measure takes effect in January 2023, traffic tickets will include an option allowing people to check a box saying they admit the infraction but can't afford to pay the fine. Courts will be allowed to waive the fine or put the offender on a payment plan. Outstanding fines and fees could still be sent to collection agencies.

The measure passed the Legislature with bipartisan support.

It was originally supported by a wide array of advocacy groups, but many  including the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington  pulled their support after determining that amendments adopted in the Legislature watered down the bill too much.

The ACLU urged Inslee to veto most of the bill  all but the part that allowed the reinstatement of licenses currently suspended for failure to pay. The organization argued that continuing to allow suspensions for failure to appear at court hearings was a proxy for debt-based suspensions.

The ACLU, which brought the Thurston County lawsuit last October, also took issue with language in the bill that triggers quicker license suspension for repeat moving violations. Under the new law, licenses will be suspended for 60 days if someone commits moving violations on three occasions in a one-year period or four in a two-year period  down from six in a one-year-period or seven over two years. That change could result in more than 20,000 additional license suspensions a year, according to Department of Licensing data.

The bill's sponsor, Democratic Sen. Jesse Salomon, of Shoreline, conceded he didn't like some of the changes but described the measure as a huge win and an improvement over the existing system. He argued that more strictly linking the suspension of licenses to moving violations would promote public safety.
Delia Gallardo, 86, has few memories of her father, Celedonio. Before she turned five, just after the Spanish Civil War, he left for France because he was told that he would earn a lot of money; he was a poor coalman who worked in Rincon de la Victoria, she recalled in Canillas de Albaida, his place of birth. Gallardo was one of the more than 140 people from Malaga who died in the Nazi concentration camps.

Officially, they told us in the documentation that he died of a heart attack, but who knows? They probably shot him when he tried to escape that hell, said one of his three granddaughters, 47-year-old Delia.

Celedonios descendants gathered on Friday 7 May for the unveiling of a statue, created upon request of the council by local artist Rafael Bravo, in memory of his countryman and of all war victims.

Mass grave in Austria

Celedonio was 36 when he died. His remains lie in a communal grave in Bretstein, a village in Austria that functioned as a subcamp close to Mauthausen.

Preserve his memory and shudder at the horrors that human beings are capable of inflicting on their fellow man. Plant the seed of a better future in the hearts of your children, reads the placard located below the bust of Celedonio, an image that does not look exactly like him, but represents the horror, said the sculptor.

Celedonios granddaughters explained that it was not until scarcely a decade ago that they learnt of the whereabouts of their grandfather, thanks to a call from the researcher Sandra Checa.

It was a surprise, and at the same time, a form of solace and relief, because throughout our whole lives we had grown up with our mother telling us that her father had died in the Second World War, but we knew nothing more, said Delia, who added that she would like to travel to Austria to visit the resting place of her grandfather.

"Living in peace"

Patricia Navarro, the Junta de Andalucia's delegate in Malaga, attended the event and highlighted that the role of the ceremony and the statue must be "to make sure that coming generations learn not to go down the same road. The line that separates barbarity and horror from harmony is very fine, said Navarro, who defended the importance of the democratic values of harmony and living together in peace.

For his part, the mayor of Canillas de Albaida, Jorge Martin (PP), said the aim of placing the statue at the viewpoint by the chapel of Santa Ana was not to forget our history, so that we do not repeat it.
BENI, Congo (AP)  When Shekinah was working as a nurses aide in northeastern Congo in January 2019, she said, a World Health Organization doctor offered her a job investigating Ebola cases at double her previous salary  with a catch.

When he asked me to sleep with him, given the financial difficulties of my family . I accepted, said Shekinah, 25, who asked that only her first name be used for fear of repercussions. She added that the doctor, Boubacar Diallo, who often bragged about his connections to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, also offered several of her friends jobs in return for sex.

A WHO staffer and three Ebola experts working in Congo during the outbreak separately told management about general sex abuse concerns around Diallo, The Associated Press has learned. They said they were told not to take the matter further.

WHO has been facing widespread public allegations of systemic abuse of women by unnamed staffers, to which Tedros declared outrage and emergencies director Dr. Michael Ryan said, We have no more information than you have. But an AP investigation has now found that despite its public denial of knowledge, senior WHO management was not only informed of alleged sexual misconduct in 2019 but was asked how to handle it.

The AP has also for the first time tracked down the names of two doctors accused of sexual misconduct, Diallo and Dr. Jean-Paul Ngandu, both of whom were reported to WHO.

Ngandu was accused by a young woman of impregnating her. In a notarized contract obtained by the AP, two WHO staffers, including a manager, signed as witnesses to an agreement for Ngandu to pay the young woman, cover her health costs and buy her land. The deal was made to protect the integrity and reputation of WHO, Ngandu said.

When reached by the AP, both Diallo and Ngandu denied wrongdoing. The investigation was based on interviews with dozens of WHO staffers, Ebola officials in Congo, private emails, legal documents and recordings of internal meetings obtained by the AP.

A senior manager, Dr. Michel Yao, received emailed complaints about both men. Yao didn't fire Ngandu despite the reported misconduct. Yao didn't have the power to terminate Diallo, a Canadian, who was on a different kind of contract, but neither he nor any other WHO managers put Diallo on administrative leave.

The AP was unable to ascertain whether Yao forwarded either complaint to his superiors or the agencys internal investigators, as required by WHO protocol. Yao has since been promoted to be director of Genevas Strategic Health Operations Department.

Eight top officials privately acknowledged that WHO had failed to effectively tackle sexual exploitation during the Ebola outbreak and that the problem was systemic, recordings of internal meetings show. The revelations come at a time when the U.N. health agency is winding down its response to two recent Ebola epidemics in Congo and Guinea, and is already under pressure for its management of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

WHO declined to comment on specific sex abuse allegations, and none of the 12 WHO officials contacted responded to repeated requests for comment. Spokeswoman Marcia Poole noted that Tedros announced an independent investigation of sex abuse in Congo after media reports came out in October. Findings are due at earliest in August, investigators have said.

Once we have these, we will review them carefully and take appropriate additional actions, Poole said. We are aware that more work is needed to achieve our vision of emergency operations that serve the vulnerable while protecting them from all forms of abuse.

WHOs code of conduct for staffers says they are never to engage in acts of sexual exploitation and to avoid any action that could be perceived as an abuse of privileges, reflecting the unequal power dynamic between visiting doctors and economically vulnerable women. But an internal WHO audit last year found some aid workers weren't required to complete the agencys training on sex abuse prevention before starting work during Ebola.

All of us may have been suspecting for as long as the Ebola response was taking (place) that something like this would be possible, said Andreas Mlitzke, director of WHOs office of compliance, risk management and ethics, during an internal meeting in November. Mlitzke likened WHO officials in Congo to an invading force and said, Things like this have historically happened in wartime.

Mlitzke said during the meeting that WHO typically takes the passive approach in its investigations, and that it couldn't be expected to uncover wrongdoing among staffers.

What prevents us from doing something proactive is our own psychology, he said.

Ryan, meanwhile, said the sexual harassment incidents were unlikely to be exceptional.

You cant just pin this and say you have one field operation that went badly wrong, he told his colleagues in an internal meeting. It does reflect a culture as well  This is in some sense the tip of an iceberg.

Internal emails from November 2019 show WHO directors were alarmed enough by the abuse complaints that they drafted a strategy to prevent sexual exploitation and appointed two focal points to liaise with colleagues in Congo and elsewhere. Directors also ordered confidential probes into sexual abuse problems more broadly and U.N training on how to prevent sexual harassment, along with the independent investigation announced last year.

But staffers remain concerned that not enough has been done. At a WHO meeting in January to address sex abuse, Dr. Renee Van de Weerdt, chief of emergency management and support, told colleagues that the risk remains high across our operations and that more robust supervision was needed.

Dr. Gaya Gamhewage, head of WHOs learning and capacity development, said at an internal WHO discussion on sex abuse that the impunity with which we have operated is leading to this. She warned, Training is not going to solve this problem.

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Shortly after Ebola was identified in eastern Congo in 2018, WHOs Swiss headquarters gave the outbreak its most serious emergency designation, allowing Geneva to take control from its Africa office. WHO chief Tedros traveled to Congo 14 times during the epidemic to personally oversee the response, and his emergencies chief, Ryan, made at least seven visits.

Over 2018 and 2019, three Ebola experts, including two who worked for WHO at the time, told the AP they raised concerns about sex abuse in general, and Diallo in particular, with senior managers. But they said they were told that controlling the Ebola outbreak was more important, and two said Diallo was considered untouchable because of his relationship with Tedros.

Complaints about Diallo were also raised with emergency operations manager Yao, who was responsible for leading WHOs overall Ebola response in Congo, with hundreds of staff, under Ryans supervision. On Feb. 22, 2019, Yao received an email from the WHO outbreak team leader in North Kivu with the subject line, Private. Chat.

Chief, please lets have a Private chat tomorrow, the staffer emailed, saying he wanted to discuss Diallo, then an outbreak manager in North Kivu. The staffer didn't want to be identified by the AP for fear of losing his job.

We cannot afford to have people tarnishing the sweat and effort of individuals sacrificing themselves thru (sic) inappropriate sexual harassment and bullying, the staffer wrote. I will fill you in (in) private.

Yao responded the next morning: Ok we shall talk. The staffer said that Yao told him the matter would be handled, but he didnt believe his concerns were taken seriously and was very upset. He added that he was sidelined for complaining about Diallo.

Two WHO officials with knowledge of the situation said the agency investigated complaints that Diallo acted unprofessionally, including an alleged sexual assault, and there was insufficient evidence to corroborate the charges. But investigators failed to interview any of the women involved or the whistleblowers who flagged the harassment claims, according to a senior WHO official who didn't want to be identified for fear of losing his job. Diallo continued to work for WHO months after concerns were raised about him.

Diallo was described as a charismatic, outgoing leader with connections to some of WHOs top managers, including Tedros. In a speech in January 2019, Tedros singled out Diallo among the Ebola responders working under heavy gunfire in Beni.

On WHOs website, Diallo, Tedros and Yao are pictured smiling and bumping elbows during Tedros June 2019 trip to Congo. On Diallos Facebook page, he appears in more than a dozen photos with Tedros.

Several months after Tedros visit, Diallo met Anifa, a young Congolese woman working in an Ebola treatment center in Beni. She said Diallo told her: How can a beautiful girl like you work here, testing peoples temperatures and washing their hands? Thats terrible. She said he offered her another job at five times more than her current salary where the conditions were very simple, according to him.

He wanted me to sleep with him, she told the AP, noting that Diallo frequently wore a badge with VIP inscribed in red, attached to his dark blue WHO vest. Anifa declined to share her full name, fearing it could harm her future job prospects. The AP doesn't identify victims of sexual abuse.

I told him I studied hard to be employed by the treatment center, Anifa said. She rejected Diallos offer, saying that if he hires me after sleeping with him ... I would be a sex slave, not a WHO employee.

Diallo denied the claims outright.

I have never offered a woman a job in exchange for sex and I have never sexually harassed a woman in my life, he told the AP in an email. He said he was never informed of any complaints about his behavior at WHO or disciplined for misconduct, and his relationship with Tedros was purely professional.

Diallo said his contract for WHO finished at the end of July and he hasn't worked for the agency since.

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The same manager, Yao, was also told of alleged sexual misconduct by the other doctor, Ngandu, in an email obtained by the AP dated April 23, 2019, with the subject line, Urgent need for your guidance. Outbreak manager Mory Keita wrote in French: I hereby inform you that we have a colleague who has impregnated a girl from Beni.

Keita told Yao that a young woman and her aunt had come to the Hotel Okapi in Beni with two armed police officers, looking for senior WHO staff. They said the young woman had been having an affair with Ngandu, and the hospital had confirmed she was now pregnant. Ngandu was avoiding them, the aunt said, so they went to the police to find him.

Keita told Yao that when confronted, Ngandu acknowledged a relationship with the girl but said it was only for two weeks. The womans aunt, however, said her niece first spent the night with him about a month and a half ago, and at the time he gave her $100, a detail that Ngandu could not deny, the email noted.

The two women demanded payment for all medications and hospital treatment during pregnancy and the purchase of land for the child, given that Dr. Jean-Paul will abandon the girl and she will be obliged to raise her child alone.

We have asked Jean-Paul to honor the request from the family of the girl and the aunt and try to find some common ground, Keita said. (Ngandu) suggested that we manage the situation here at our level here in Beni and not inform the hierarchy, but I felt ... you should be informed so that you would tell us your directions for how to better manage this problem.

Less than one week later, Ngandu and the young woman signed a notarized contract in which he agreed to pay her $100 a month until her baby was delivered, to provide all necessary health care, and to buy her a plot of land in Beni. Four witnesses signed the document, including two from WHO, Keita and Achile Mboko, a human resources officer. Keita didn't respond to requests for comment, and Mboko acknowledged his signature and presence.

Two handwritten contracts signed by the young woman and Ngandu confirmed he paid $2,800 for land with a house in a Beni neighborhood and transferred ownership rights to her in August 2019.

This was a private matter and did not implicate WHO, Ngandu told the AP. Ngandu said he wasn't the father of the baby and that he agreed to the settlement after WHO colleagues, including Keita, advised me to settle out of court to avoid sullying the reputation of the organization and myself.

Ngandu, who is from Congo, said he wasn't disciplined by WHO and continued to work until his contract ended in June 2019. Ngandu is now based in Namibia and said he is in talks with WHO for potential future employment. The young woman declined to talk to the AP.

Paula Donovan, co-director of the Code Blue Campaign, which is campaigning to end sexual exploitation by U.N. peacekeepers, said WHOs attempt to effectively silence the victim was beyond concerning.

Its a perversion of justice that WHO thinks they could take the law into their own hands and resolve a case without going to the proper authorities, Donovan said. If this is how they treated one case, how are they treating all the others?

In May 2019, Yao was told of yet another unrelated sexual harassment complaint in Bunia, roughly 200 kilometers (125 miles) north of Beni. Two women told the World Bank they were refused jobs at WHO because they declined to sleep with the recruiting officer, in an email seen by an Ebola aid worker. The aid worker, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals, told the AP that the World Bank alerted Yao, but nothing was done.

Throughout the summer, Yao was praised for his leadership of the Ebola response. He was named in a July 17 tweet from Ebba Kalondo, a spokesperson for the African Union, as one of WHOs exceptional men and was pictured alongside colleagues, including Diallo. Kalondo urged her followers: Know their names. Write about them.

Two months later, a young Congolese woman named Reby, then 20, met Diallo when he came into the Vodacom shop where she was working. He gave her $100 for transport costs to meet him at a hotel and asked her how much she made in the telecommunications job, she told the AP.

My God, a beautiful girl like you who gets $60 a month is not enough, he said, according to Reby. If you sleep with me, you are going to be a high-ranking member of the Ebola response in Beni and you are going to receive around $800 a month.

Reby declined to use her full name for fear of retribution. She said she refused Diallos offer, but continued to see him when he came into her shop. From that day on, he always called me the difficult girl, she said.

In a confidential slide presentation in January 2020, WHO officials reported that an internal U.N. review of the Ebola response in Congo had found a need for safe-guarding mechanisms for preventing sexual exploitation. All staff were to complete training on harassment and other issues.

_____

The publication of general sex abuse allegations in Congo in the media last fall set off a flurry of responses from WHO.

Yao said in an internal meeting in September that despite U.N. protocols to prevent sexual abuse, it looks like this system is not working at the grassroots level. He added that a recent U.N. assessment hadn't revealed any problems, so we were surprised about a case happening.

WHO director-general Tedros called the allegations a shocking betrayal in an email to staff and promised serious consequences, including immediate dismissal and referral to local authorities.

At a town hall meeting in November, emergencies chief Ryan said sexual abuse issues had been neglected for years and apologized to his staff.

There are behaviors here that are not acceptable, he said.

WHO staffers, especially women, were unconvinced.

Quite frankly, I think this is not good enough, said Maria Van Kerkhove, WHOs technical lead on COVID-19, at the same meeting. We know in every situation we go in, were at risk.

Staffers also worried that problems persisted in the agencys response to another Ebola outbreak in Congo last year.

We still do not have a robust (sexual abuse prevention) program in place, Geneva-based project officer Jessica Kolmer said during a meeting in November. She said donors told them their new measures, including posting flyers in their offices and establishing a sexual abuse prevention committee, were not sufficient.

Back in Congo, Anifa said she was deeply disturbed that WHO staffers hadn't been disciplined for their treatment of women.

I condemn WHO for not sanctioning Dr. Boubacar Diallo because I know already they have complaints against him, she said. I asked myself, Why did the people who came to help us, to fight Ebola here at home, why do they want to destroy our lives?

Shekinah said she couldnt count how many times she slept with Diallo. She said she knew about a dozen other women in Beni whom he had similarly victimized.

I wanted to quit, she said. But because of my financial problems, I endured it.

Shekinah said she was often paid in cash or mobile credit, with little paperwork. Even after she and Diallo separated, she said, he continued to ask for nude pictures or video calls while she was naked.

Diallo should be punished for his sexual abuse of all those girls in Beni as a lesson to these international organizations that this should not happen again, she said. I would like justice to be done.

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Maria Cheng reported from London. Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report.
MINEOLA, N.Y. (AP)  An investigator whose work helped lead to the exoneration of a man convicted of killing his parents was indicted Monday on charges including attempted grand larceny, with authorities saying he tried to extort his former client over a three-year period.

Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas' office said Jay Salpeter, 69, of Glen Cove, New York, sent numerous emails and voicemails to Martin Tankleff between 2018 and 2021, threatening him and trying to get money he thought he was owed.
KNOXVILLE, Iowa (AP)  An Iowa woman who stabbed her estranged husband's girlfriend to death was found guilty Tuesday of first-degree murder.

A Marion County jury deliberated for less than an hour before convicting Michelle Boat in the May 18, 2020, death of 46-year-old Tracy Mondabough, who was stabbed as she sat in her truck in Pella, The Ottumwa Courier reported.

Boat acknowledged on Monday that she killed Mondabough, of Ottumwa. Her lawyer, Trevor Anderson, argued during the trial that the killing wasn't premediated and that jurors should convict Boat of the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter.

Andersen said Boat snapped after the sudden breakup of her 20-year marriage and amid the uncertainty of the coronavirus pandemic, which left her jobless and with only $6 at the time of the killing. Boat reacted when she saw her husband, Nicholas Boat, kiss Mondabough that day, he said.

I dont want you to sympathize with Mrs. Boat, Andersen said. I dont want you to give her mercy. She doesnt deserve it. She killed someone seat-belted in her truck, with no weapon  killed her and left her for dead, drove off. That is not asking for sympathy when I ask you to consider why.

Jared Harmon, an assistant Marion County prosecutor, said during closing arguments that evidence showed Boat had planned the killing, including warning texts she had sent Mondabough. She also gathered everything she needed, such as the knife, gloves and binoculars, while waiting for an opportunity to kill the victim, he said.

Michelle Boat didnt act because of some sudden, irresistible provocation," Harmon said. "She was the provocation.

The first-degree murder conviction carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
TEHRAN, Iran (AP)  Irans powerful Revolutionary Guard on Tuesday rejected the U.S. Navy's claim that fast-approaching Iranian speedboats in the Strait of Hormuz sparked a tense encounter in the already sensitive region.

The Guards website, sepahnews.com, published a statement Tuesday saying Americans were guilty of using false narratives and unprofessional behavior and should more strictly abide by international regulations. Specifically, the statement said the Guard's navy warned the U.S. vessels to stop their provocative and aimless shooting.

A day earlier, the U.S. said the Revolutionary Guard sent 13 armed speedboats too close to U.S. Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday. The Americans said a Coast Guard cutter fired warning shots when two of the Iranian boats came dangerously close.

The exchange comes as the United States and Iran engage in indirect talks in Vienna aimed at reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which the United States left in 2018.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby declined to comment when asked about the Iranians intentions.

Sadly, harassment by the IRGC Navy is not a new phenomenon. It is something that all of our commanding officers and the crews of our vessels are trained to for, Kirby told reporters at the Pentagon. This activity is the kind of activity that could lead to somebody getting hurt and could lead to a real miscalculation there in the region, and that doesnt serve anybodys interests.

It was the second time in two weeks that a U.S. ship opened fire to warn vessels of Irans paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.

On April 26, an American warship fired warning shots when vessels of Irans Revolutionary Guard came too close to a patrol in the Persian Gulf. That was the first such shooting in nearly four years. The Navy released black-and-white footage of that encounter in international waters of the northern reaches of the Persian Gulf near Kuwait, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

In the latest incident, Kirby said 13 Iranian vessels maneuvered at high speed toward six Navy ships that were escorting the guided missile submarine USS Georgia through the Strait on Monday. The sub was sailing on the surface.

The six Navy escort ships included the guided missile cruiser USS Monterey. A day earlier, the Monterey had intercepted an arms shipment aboard a dhow in the Arabian Sea apparently headed for Yemen, whose Houthi rebels are supported by Iran.

They were acting very aggressively, Kirby said of the Iranian boats.

At one point, two of the Iranian boats broke away from the others and positioned themselves on the other side of the U.S. ship formation. The two then sped toward some of the U.S. ships. In an attempt to de-escalate the situation, U.S. crews issued multiple warnings to both groups of Iranian boats, including repeated bridge-to-bridge verbal warnings, said Navy Cmdr. Rebecca Rebarich, a Navy 5th Fleet spokesperson.

After the two Iranian boats failed to respond to the multiple warnings and closed to within 300 yards, the Coast Guard cutter Maui fired a volley of warning shots from its .50-caliber machine gun. It fired another volley when the Iranian boats got within 150 yards.

The two Iranian boats then altered course and increased their distance from the U.S. forces, Rebarich said.

Iran regularly rejects the U.S. Navy's claims with regard to similar incidents.
ROME (AP)  Turkish fishing boats north of Cyprus launched stones and smoke bombs at two Italian fishing vessels in the Mediterranean on Tuesday, according to the Italian navy, which dispatched a helicopter to the scene.

In a written statement, the Navy described the mid-morning incident as an interaction involving an unspecified number of Turkish fishing boats. It said the Turkish vessels carried out close maneuvers toward the Italian vessels, making contact with and slightly damaging one of them.
TOKYO (AP)  Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn told prosecutors during questioning on financial misconduct charges before he fled Japan that his compensation was never decided upon, according to records presented in Tokyo District Court on Tuesday.

Ghosn said the plans were just a reference, said a defense attorney for Greg Kelly, a former Nissan executive on trial in connection with alleged underreporting of Ghosns pay by about a billion yen ($10 million) per year.

Daisuke Fujiwara, a lawyer for Kelly, read more than 200 pages documenting Ghosns interrogations in a Tokyo jail in November and December 2018.

Kelly, who is an American and a lawyer, says he is innocent and he was only trying to find legal ways to compensate Ghosn.

The defense is trying to show a panel of three judges that Kelly had little to do with the complex attempts by Ghosn to calculate his future pay.

Ghosn, who led Nissan for about two decades, fled to Lebanon while out on bail in late 2019. He is unlikely to stand trial since Lebanon has no extradition treaty with Japan.

The prosecutors records show Ghosn denied the payments were delayed, asserting they were all conditional.

In one segment, Ghosn highlighted that by pointing out that if a plane he was on were to crash, his wife wouldnt get any of of the money.

Kellys name appeared in only one part of Ghosns statements, in a proposal for post-retirement consultancy fees and a non-compete deal that would be paid in return for Ghosn agreeing to not work for a rival.

Both would have been pay for services after retirement and did not have to be disclosed in Nissan Motor Co.s annual securities reports, which are the focus of the trial.

Ghosn, who has French, Brazilian and Lebanese citizenship, was sent by Renault in 1999 to salvage Nissan, which makes the Leaf electric car and Infiniti luxury models, from the brink of bankruptcy.

Nissan officials have testified they sought Ghosn's arrest out of concern Renault, which owns 44% of Nissan, would gain stronger domination of the company.

Kelly is due to testify later this week, his first opportunity to give his side of the story in court. Earlier in the trial he only spoke to enter his plea. A verdict is not expected for months. No other Nissan officials have been charged, apart from Ghosn. Nissan was charged as a corporate entity but is not contesting the charges.

If convicted, Kelly could face up to 15 years in prison. However, University of Tokyo professor Wataru Tanaka, an expert on company law, testified during the trial as a witness for the defense that neglecting to include facts in a securities report, rather than making false statements, should be penalized by a fine, not jail time.

Kellys chief defense lawyer, Yoichi Kitamura, has told The Associated Press that he is confident about winning a verdict of innocence. If given a suspended sentence, Kelly could return home to the U.S., he said.

Two Americans, Michael Taylor and his son Peter Taylor, have been extradited from the U.S. on charges of helping Ghosn escape to Lebanon. Their trial is set to start in Tokyo next month.

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Yuri Kageyama is on Twitter https://twitter.com/yurikageyama
TOKYO (AP)  Japanese ground troops joined American and French counterparts in their first three-way exercise on Japanese land, as they seek to strengthen military ties amid growing Chinese assertiveness in the region.

The ARC21 exercise started Tuesday at the Ground Self-Defense Forces Ainoura base in Nagasaki prefecture. Japan is seeking to expand its military ties beyond its alliance with the United States to include like-minded countries such as France, Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi told reporters.

He said France, the only European nation with a permanent military presence in the Indo-Pacific region, is a like-minded country that shares with Japan the vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific. He said Japan welcomes Frances participation in the region and hopes to expand the partnership further.

About 100 Japanese troops, including rapid amphibious deployment units, or Japanese marines, joined by 60 troops each from the French army and U.S. Marine Corps, are to conduct urban warfare drills followed by amphibious operation exercises under a scenario of defending a remote island from an enemy invasion.

On Tuesday, the troops started three days of operations at Camp Ainoura in Nagasaki. Later in the week, they will fly to Kirishima training ground for an urban warfare drill at a facility designed to simulate a remote island. Australian troops will also join part of the exercises held in the East China Sea.

The exercise comes as Japan seeks to bolster its military capability amid a deepening territorial row with China in regional seas. Japan is increasingly concerned about Chinese activity in and around Japanese-claimed waters surrounding the Japanese-controlled Senkaku islands, which Beijing also claims and calls Diaoyu.

France, which has territories in the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific, has strategic interests in the Indo-Pacific region.

Britain, which recently adopted a policy of deeper engagement in the region, is sending aircraft carrier Queen Elizabeth and its strike group, which are due to arrive in the region later this year. Germany is also set to deploy a frigate to the region.

Kishi said growing interest in the Indo-Pacific region among European nations and their increased presence contribute to the peace and stability in the region. He said the free and open Indo-Pacific concept does not target any specific nation, such as China.

China has criticized the free and open Indo-Pacific vision as an exclusionist bloc based on a Cold War-era mindset.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP)  The public will be able to watch the trial of the man charged with killing University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts  but not in person.

Citing COVID-19 protocols, Judge Joel Yates said in an order dated Monday that members of the public and news media will not be allowed inside the courtroom when the trial of Cristhian Bahena Rivera starts next week. But he acknowledged intense public interest in the case and said news outlets can operate remote-controlled video cameras to broadcast the proceedings live on the internet or television.

Rivera is expected to stand trial beginning Monday in Davenport for first-degree murder in the death of Tibbetts, 20, who disappeared in July 2018 while out for a run in her hometown of Brooklyn, Iowa. Prosecutors say Rivera, 26, followed Tibbetts in a vehicle, killed her during a struggle and dumped her body in a cornfield.

The weekslong search for Tibbetts attracted intense coverage on Fox News and other outlets. Then-President Donald Trump and other Republicans cited the case before the 2018 midterm elections to argue for stricter immigration laws after learning that Rivera allegedly moved to the U.S. illegally from Mexico when he was a teenager. That came over the objections of Tibbetts' relatives, who said her death should not be used to promote a political agenda that she would have opposed as racist.

Rivera, who worked on a local dairy farm under an alias, has pleaded not guilty. He faces life in prison if convicted.

Under the Iowa Supreme Court's COVID-19 rules, those inside courtrooms are supposed to be at least six feet apart from others and wear face coverings. Yates said in his ruling that the limited size of the Scott County courtroom did not leave space for members of the public or news media to attend, with the exception of one pool photographer.

Court TV and the Law and Crime Network have informed court officials of their intent to broadcast a livestream, and local outlets might follow suit. The court is also expected to make the proceedings available for journalists covering the trial remotely on a Zoom feed.

One exception is jury selection, which will take place at the River Center in Davenport to allow extra space for social distancing. Members of the public and media will be allowed to attend but jury selection cannot be broadcast or covered live under Iowa courtroom media rules. Laptops, cell phones and cameras will not be allowed.

Jury selection is expected to last two days, while the trial could go for 10 more.

Media will also not be allowed inside two remote viewing rooms set up inside the courthouse for family members, and will instead be expected to work from a staging area in the parking lot. Reporters are barred from conducting any interviews inside the courthouse under Yates' order and cannot contact him or his staff directly.
The Junta de Andalucia is to allocate a 4.1-million-euro loan to investors who plan to build an olive oil mill and museum, designed by Philippe Starck, in Ronda.

This project includes a mill, in the shape of a cube, "dedicated to the 100 per cent organic production of olive oil, its culture and gastronomy" that will have "the most avant-garde technology" and that "will be used for cultural, educational purposes and research, explained the LA Organic Experience company.

The regional government's contribution will come mainly from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), announce the Minister of Finance, Juan Bravo, when he visited the town.

This is the second phase of the LA Organic Experience facilities, which are located on a 25-hectare estate, a few kilometres from the town that is famous for its gorge and bridge.

The first phase, which is already complete, offers an oleotourism route in which you can see six Starck sculptures, in addition to holding olive oil tastings and offering hotel accommodation.

The LA Organic Experience company and investors have been promoting the initiative for several years. Starck is the firm's creative director and co-founder.

Bravo explained that the total investment is 11 million euros and that the objective of the Urban Development Fund is "to facilitate investments in Andalucia."

The Ronda project is the fourth endorsed by the Junta through this type of credit. Others include the restoration of the old Hotel Byblos in Mijas and the construction of what will be the largest student residence in Spain in Seville.

"It is very important for Ronda," said Bravo, adding that it is a project that favours sustainable development.

Investors "will have to develop the plan before December 2023" but the minister pointed out that some contracts have already been signed with private sector collaboration.

The mayor of Ronda, Maria de la Paz Fernandez, stressed that it is a pioneering project that already has a building permit. "We hope that it is completed in the mid term, but they can start whenever they want," she said.
ATLANTA (AP)  Gov. Brian Kemp on Monday signed a 2022 Georgia state budget that restores some money to K-12 education, increases some mental health funding, and pays nursing home operators more.

However, the Republican governor is telling agencies not to increase salaries for some state troopers and game wardens by creating new ranks, saying it would create inequity with other law enforcement personnel.

The plan spends $27.3 billion in state money and $22.5 billion in federal and other money in the year starting July 1, for total spending of nearly $50 billion.

Lawmakers put back a fraction of the $2.2 billion they cut last year when they feared a big drop in tax revenue because of the coronavirus pandemic. Billions of incoming federal aid will boost spending in some areas, with Kemp deciding how to spend $4.6 billion more.

A majority of cuts made last year to K-12 education would be restored, and some money would be added for mental health. But many other cuts in state money made last year would stay, with state spending still below what lawmakers had originally planned for this year.

K-12 school systems would still be $382 million short of full funding, but lawmakers said that school systems are getting $6.9 billion in federal money.

Lawmakers set aside $977,000 for the Department of Public Safety and $120,000 for the Department of Natural Resources to create new ranks for long-serving state troopers and game wardens, allowing officers who have reached the top of their pay scales to get a raise. The money is intended to keep officers from jumping to other agencies that pay better. Kemp, though, instructed agencies not to follow language he considered nonbinding.

Retention for all public safety employees is a priority of the legislature and my administration," the governor wrote. "However, the creation of new job classes may cause unintended disparities between agencies.

Kemp instead told the agencies to spend the money to increase employee retention within the existing pay structure. It wasn't immediately clear what that would mean.

Bank examiners, food inspectors and some Department of Driver Services employees will still get pay raises under the budget.

Kemp rejected a plan to use borrowed bond money to study the feasibility of alternative fuel school buses, saying it wasn't an appropriate use of bond funds and saying the state could only use the money to buy alternative fuel school buses.

Finally, he rejected a plan to funnel $307 million in federal transit aid to Atlanta-area transit agencies, saying the state will have to wait on federal guidelines before determining how it can spend the money.

The budget includes some key Kemp initiatives, including plans to spend $40 million on a rural innovation fund and $10 million to extend high-speed internet in rural areas.

The plan puts back $58.9 million in cuts that were made last year in the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, Georgia's main mental health agency, restoring funding for addiction treatment and creating a new behavioral crisis unit for those with developmental disabilities. It also increases payments for some mental health providers.

But Kemp told the department to disregard lawmakers instructions to spend $300,000 on facility upkeep, instead telling the agency to maintain, repair and dispose of facilities that are now vacant because the departments patient census has fallen.

The state will increase payment rates to nursing homes by $90 million, saying nursing providers have been hit hard by the pandemic and need financial relief.

The budget will spend nearly $1 million more on domestic violence and sexual assault centers, with lawmakers saying those operations are facing a funding crunch.

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Follow Jeff Amy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jeffamy.
ROME (AP)  The main suspect in the Vaticans corruption investigation into a London real estate venture was taken into custody Tuesday in London after he appeared for his first extradition hearing, his lawyers said.

The British judge determined businessman Gianluigi Torzi was a flight risk and ordered him detained. A statement from Torzis lawyers said they would argue he is not a flight risk at a new audience expected in the next 48 hours.
A 37-year-old local man has been ordered to federal prison for conspiring to import more than 50 kilograms of marijuana, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.

Francisco De Luna pleaded guilty Aug. 3, 2020.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo ordered him to serve a 70-month sentence to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the defense argued for a lesser sentence due to De Lunas poor health condition.

Marmolejo explained that his health problems were no excuse, noting they were apparently not serious enough to prevent him from continuing criminal conduct. In handing down the sentence, she considered his previous convictions of drug distribution and being a felon illegally in possession of firearm.

On Feb. 12, 2020, co-conspirator Antonio de Jesus Cadena-Rodriguez applied for entry into the United States at the Lincoln-Juarez port of entry in Laredo. A K-9 alerted to contraband in the silver Dodge Grand Caravan he was driving where authorities ultimately found 57.38 kilograms of marijuana.

Cadena-Rodriguez admitted to being a part of a smuggling operation, noting he was supposed to take the vehicle to a pre-arranged location. Law enforcement continued the investigation by delivering the marijuana as expected. A white Kia Rio soon arrived with De Luna riding as passenger. Another passenger entered Cadena-Rodriguezs vehicle and attempted to start it.

Authorities took everyone into custody. De Luna admitted he smuggled marijuana and was at the location to pick up the load for further distribution.

Law enforcement also conducted a search of De Lunas bedroom where they found a scale, marijuana, plastic wrap and an AR-15 style rifle with high-capacity magazines. The drugs had an estimated street value of $27,830.

De Luna was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Mexican national Cadena-Rodriguez, 36, had also pleaded guilty and previously received his sentence for his role in the scheme.

Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Harrison prosecuted the case.
LANSING, Mich. (AP)  Republicans who control Michigan's Senate on Tuesday began approving a $66.4 billion budget that would spend 5% more than in the current year, thanks to an influx of federal funding, but about $728 million less than what was proposed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Democrats voted against seven of nine bills, showing a legislative deal with the Democratic governor remained weeks or months away. The Legislature is required to pass 2021-22 spending bills by July 1, though the fiscal year will not start until Oct. 1.

The GOP-led House also began passing budget legislation Tuesday, including $9.5 billion in supplemental federal COVID-19 relief aid.

We continue to stay focused on our families, on our small businesses and at the same time understanding that we do have a pandemic that we're still coming out of, said Sen. Jim Stamas, a Midland Republican who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee. The Senate, he said, is in a good spot to go into discussions with the House and/or the governor.

One area of difference among the three sides is the funding of two new tuition-free programs for adults age 25 and older and frontline pandemic workers to attend community college. Whitmer wants $186 million to keep intact or expand Michigan Reconnect and Futures for Frontliners.

The Senate supported $30 million for the Reconnect program, which was authorized with bipartisan support in 2020. Sen. Ken Horn, a Saginaw Republican, said it would be unprecedented to provide two additional years of funding instead of one. We are still vetting the success of the program, he said.

The House GOP's plan would not continue Reconnect funding even though the program was only launched in February.

Sen. Dayna Polehanki, a Livonia Democrat, said Reconnect has already proven wildly successful" after more than 62,000 applicants were approved.

These Michiganders must have certainty that the program is there to back the program beyond one year, she said.

Senators voted Tuesday to add a provision to the Department of State budget that would attempt to prohibit Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson from proceeding with a plan to make permanent an appointment-only system for branch visits that took effect during the pandemic. They unanimously supported an amendment seeking to require the Unemployment Insurance Agency to open for visits from claimants who have trouble getting benefits.

Sen. Curtis Hertel Jr., an East Lansing Democrat, called for bipartisan negotiations to commence.

None of this process is over until we all get into a room, find a way to work together and come to an agreement, he said.

Despite clashing along party lines over many bills, Republicans and Democrats found more consensus on K-12 and college funding  though the House and Senate plans differ.

Whitmer proposed an increase in base per-student aid of $164, or 2%, for most school districts. The House backed a $100, or 1.2%, boost while the Senate supported a $250, or 3%, increase.

Legislators are expected to approve additional budget measures this week. State economists will revise revenue projections on May 21  a key step in the annual budget process.

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Follow David Eggert at https://twitter.com/DavidEggert00
GRENADA, Miss. (AP)  A lumber company in north Mississippi is expanding its operations by adding a sawmill.

Hankins Lumber is investing more than $12 million into the sawmill that will be called Hankins Timbers. The expansion will add 43 jobs at an average salary of about $51,000, according to a news release Tuesday from Gov. Tate Reeves.

Mississippi Development Authority is providing aid for equipment installation. Delta Regional Authority and Grenada County also assisted with the project.

Hankins Lumber has been in business nearly 50 years in Grenada County and already employs 140 people. It produces Southern Yellow Pine lumber products.

Hankins Timbers will use first and second pine thinning rather than mature logs. The facility will produce about 40 million board feet per year.
BROKTON, Mass. (AP)  Her husband's extramarital affair and mental health issues led a Massachusetts woman to fatally stab her husband in January, prosecutors said in court Tuesday.

Christine Ricci, 46, was held without bail after pleading not guilty at her Plymouth Superior Court arraignment to murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, The Patriot Ledger reported.
SINGAPORE (AP)  Shares in Meituan, Chinas largest food delivery platform, have tumbled after its CEO posted and then deleted  an ancient poem in a move widely seen as possible criticism of the Chinese government.

Authorities are investigating the company over allegations of anti-monopolistic behavior, part of a wider crackdown on technology companies.

Meituans stock price lost 5.3% on Tuesday and plunged as much as 9.8% on Monday after its CEO Wang Xing posted the classical Tang dynasty poem, which criticized Emperor Qin Shi Huang for silencing his critics by burning books.

Wang's post was seen as a veiled comparison of the ruthless ancient emperor and Chinas current authoritarian government. Investors worried over how Chinese authorities might react have been selling their holdings of Meituans stock.

Wang posted the classical poem, The Book Burning Pit by Tang dynasty poet Zhang Jie to the social media platform Fanfou, according to Chinese media reports. He later deleted the post, saying it was meant to refer to fierce competition in the e-commerce industry, where the most dangerous competitors are often unexpected.

The Qin emperor is revered as the founder of a modern, unified China but considered a brutal and ruthless ruler who killed scholars who dared to defy him.

Under President Xi Jinping, China has imposed ever tighter controls in an already repressive political landscape and on the Chinese media. The ruling Communist Party has scant tolerance for public dissent.

The internet sector has come under intense scrutiny in recent months as Beijing expressed concern over the growing influence of companies like e-commerce giant Alibaba and others.

Regulators ordered Alibaba to pay a record $2.8 billion fine for abusing its market position and quashed plans for a massive initial public offering by its affiliate Ant Group.

Other technology companies including gaming giant Tencent and search engine giant Baidu were fined for failing to disclose investments and acquisitions. Regulators also have summoned companies to warn them against anti-competitive behavior.

Alibaba troubles surfaced after its founder Jack Ma publicly accused financial regulators of being behind-the-times at a conference in November.

Alibabas stock price has fallen nearly 17% since regulators announced in late December that they were investigating the company.
BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP)  Three Georgia men pleaded not guilty to federal hate crime charges Tuesday in the slaying of Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old Black man who was chased and shot after being spotted running in the white defendants' neighborhood.

Travis McMichael and his father, Greg McMichael, as well as a neighbor, William Roddie Bryan, entered their pleas before a U.S. magistrate judge.

Justice Department prosecutors said they plan to share the bulk of their evidence with defense attorneys within a week, and the rest in the next month, a sign they're moving swiftly even with state murder charges still pending against the same defendants. A Georgia judge has set a trial in the state's case for October and will hear pretrial motions later this week.

We know justice is closer, Marcus Arbery Sr., the slain mans father, told reporters outside the federal courthouse in Brunswick, about 70 miles (112 miles) south of Savannah. He said the Justice Department's decision to prosecute his son's death as a hate crime had been a big relief.

The McMichaels armed themselves and pursued Arbery in a pickup truck after he ran past their home on Feb. 23, 2020. Bryan joined the chase and took cellphone video of Travis McMichael shooting Arbery three times at close range with a shotgun.

On April 28, the Justice Department charged both McMichaels and Bryan, who are all white, with violating Arbery's civil rights as well as attempted kidnapping for using their trucks and guns to try to detain him. The McMichaels were also charged with using firearms in the commission of a crime.

The federal indictment says all three men illegally used force to injure, intimidate and interfere with the young Black man because of Arbery's race and color. If convicted of interfering with Arbery's rights, they could face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Wearing white masks and orange jail uniforms, all three defendants confirmed their pleas to U.S. Magistrate Judge Benjamin Cheesbro.

It was the first time members of Arbery's family sat in the same courtroom as the defendants, who during prior court hearings appeared by video conference from jail because of coronavirus precautions.

There was a moment where I wanted to break down, but I remained strong, said Thea Brooks, one of Arbery's aunts. "Its hard being in a room with people that you know have taken your loved one from you.

Defense attorneys for the McMichaels and Bryan have insisted they committed no crimes. Lawyers for the McMichaels have said they chased Arbery because they suspected he was a burglar who had been recorded on video inside a nearby home under construction. They say Travis McMichael was fearing for his life when he shot Arbery as they grappled over a shotgun.

Prosecutors say Arbery was merely out jogging and there's no evidence Arbery stole anything from the home.

All three defendants have been jailed without bond since their arrests on state murder charges a year ago. They initially remained free for more than two months after Arbery was killed, but were swiftly charged after Bryan's cellphone video became public and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation took over the case from local police.

The state murder case was set to move forward Wednesday and Thursday, with Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley hearing 12 pretrial motions in Brunswick.

Walmsley must decide whether the trial jury should be allowed to hear unflattering evidence of Arbery's prior run-ins with law enforcement as well as racist text messages and social media posts made or shared by the men who chased and killed him.

Defense attorneys for the McMichaels want the jury to know about 10 incidents from Arbery's past, including that he was on probation at the time he was killed. Court records show Arbery had pleaded guilty to charges that he carried a gun onto a high school campus in 2013, a year after he graduated, as well as a shoplifting charge for stealing a TV from a Walmart store in 2017.

Prosecutors say Arbery's past is irrelevant considering none of the defendants knew him prior to the fatal chase.

The only purpose for placing the 'other acts' of Mr. Arbery before a jury is to smear the character of Mr. Arbery and suggest that his murder was deserved, prosecutors wrote in a court filing.

Prosecutors have asked the judge to allow jurors to see text messages and social media posts that they contend show a lack of racial goodwill by all three defendants. They include a text message exchange from 2019 in which Travis McMichael twice uses a racist slur for Black people.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP)  A former nursing assistant who killed seven elderly veterans with fatal injections of insulin at a West Virginia hospital was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday by a federal judge who called her "the monster that no one sees coming.

Reta Mays has a history of mental health issues, and offered no explanation Tuesday for why she killed the men. But U.S. District Judge Thomas Kleeh told her you knew what you were doing before sentencing her to seven consecutive life terms, a punishment that means she'll likely die in prison.

Mays, 46, pleaded guilty last year in federal court to seven counts of second-degree murder for intentionally injecting the men with unprescribed insulin at the Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center in Clarksburg.

While the deaths accumulated during her overnight shifts at the hospital in 2017 and 2018, Mays conducted internet searches on female serial killers and watched the Netflix series Nurses Who Kill, Kleeh said. He also said she repeatedly denied her involvement, telling investigators three times that she had no knowledge of the crimes.

Several times your counsels made the point that you shouldnt be considered a monster, Kleeh told Mays. Respectfully, I disagree with that. You are the worst kind. Youre the monster that no one sees coming.

Mays cried and apologized in addressing the court briefly before learning her sentence.

I know that theres no words that I can say that would alter the families pain and comfort, she said. I dont ask for forgiveness because I dont think I could forgive anyone for doing what I did.

Hospital officials reported the deaths to the VA inspector general and fired Mays after evidence pointed to her.

An interview with Mays after her guilty plea was included in a lengthy report released after Tuesday's sentencing by the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General detailing deficiencies at the hospital.

In it, she said she administered insulin to patients she believed were suffering so they that could pass gently. She said she also had great stress and chaos in her personal and professional life, and that her actions gave her a sense of control.

But Assistant U.S. Attorney Jarod Douglas called her actions predatory and planned, not reactionary.

These men were not in need of mercy by the defendant, Douglas said. In the end it wasnt the defendants call to make.

Mays attorney, Jay McCamic, described her long history of depression, anxiety, mental health and other medical issues, including a trip to the emergency room when a patient knocked her unconscious with a punch to the face in May 2016.

Many, many people ask why, why did Reta do this? McCamic said. Most people want to have a nice, linear story applied to the conspiracy, a unified motive of why someone would set upon the idea of taking the life of others and go forth with that idea. Unfortunately, why is not a question that can be answered here. Reta doesn't know why. Her family doesn't know why.

Mays, of Reynoldsville, had served in the Army National Guard in a noncombat position in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Her duties at the hospital included measuring patients vital signs and blood glucose levels. VA nursing assistants are not qualified or authorized to administer medication, including insulin, prosecutors said. The hospitals nursing assistants also were not required to have a certificate or license as a condition of continuing employment.

Then-U.S. Attorney Bill Powell said there were about 20 suspicious deaths at the medical center during the time Mays worked there, but charges were only brought in cases where the government thought it had sufficient evidence.

The second-degree murder charges involved the deaths of Army veterans Robert Lee Kozul Sr., 89, Archie D. Edgell, 84, Felix Kirk McDermott, 82, and William Holloway, 96; Navy veteran Robert Edge Sr., 82; Air Force veteran George Nelson Shaw Sr., 81; and Army and Air Force veteran Raymond Golden, 88.

She also was sentenced to an additional 20 years for assault with intent to commit murder involving the death of Navy veteran Russell R. Posey Sr., 92.

Separately, the federal government has agreed to the settlement of numerous lawsuits filed by veterans families alleging a widespread system of failures at the hospital.

The VA is responsible for 9 million military veterans. The agencys former director was fired in 2018 in the wake of a bruising ethics scandal and a mounting rebellion within the agency. Robert Wilkie took over as Veterans Affairs secretary in July 2018.
The coronavirus vaccination campaign in Spain continues to build up speed as the number of doses available has increased significantly.

Now the strategy is focused on vaccinating the 50 to 60 age group, which is estimated to be around 250,000 people in Malaga province  some 15 per cent of the population.

The Junta de Andalucia has already started the process for people aged between 57 and 59 and, this week, it will be opened to the 55 and 56 year olds.

The goal is still to reach herd immunity in the summer.

Sources consulted by SUR have confirmed that people between the ages of 50 and 55 will be summoned between the end of this month and the beginning of June. Between June and July, those over 45 years of age will be vaccinated and at the end of summer it will be the turn of people between 40 and 45 years of age and, gradually, those under 40.

The Junta de Andalucia has ruled out vaccination by profession (with a few exceptions, such as dockworkers to prevent the spread of new variants of the virus that can be brought in by sea), or medical history.

After vaccinating the elderly, highly dependent, immunosuppressed and some risk groups, such as health workers, teachers and security forces, the Ministry of Health considers that, once these groups are protected, it is much faster to cite by age than by pathologies or professions.

Last week the regional government presented its plan to vaccinate a million people each week, although not that many doses have yet arrived. So far, the maximum number of vaccines delivered to Andalucia by central government is almost 600,000 doses.

The SAS public health service has reminded people in the age groups for which the campaign has been opened (for example the 57, 58 and 59 year olds) can make an appointment to be vaccinated, although they recommend doing it through the Salud Responde and ClicSalud + apps and reserve the health centre telephone for the usual consultations.
CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP)  Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak and state lawmakers are preparing to distribute $2.7 billion in pandemic relief after the U.S. Treasury Department released guidelines about President Joe Bidens $1.9 trillion federal coronavirus relief package.

Sisolak, a Democrat, said that he had been working with legislative leaders for weeks to plan how to allocate the funds and hoped to direct the pandemic aid to be spent to stimulate a strong recovery with long lasting impacts.

"This will be one of the largest infusions of federal dollars into Nevada in history," he said in a statement on Monday.

Nevada will receive $2.7 billion in direct aid, which it is permitted to use on public health, to backfill some revenue shortfalls and for relief programs for businesses and at-risk populations. In addition to the direct aid, the state expects to receive billions more in funds specifically designated for local governments, schools and other infrastructure.

The governor told reporters last week that he saw the funds as an opportunity to invest in Nevadas future rather than merely short-term stimulus. He said he and legislative leaders agreed in principle that the funds should be used  first and foremost  to backfill revenue loss, replenish the states rainy day fund and update decades-old infrastructure like the unemployment system, which has been pushed to its limits by an unprecedented amount of claims filed throughout the pandemic.

Along with better-than-anticipated tax revenue projections, the funding will allow lawmakers to avoid making the painful cuts many anticipated in February at the start of the legislative session.

It could also provoke heated debates among interest groups and lobbyists vying for a share of the funds to bankroll projects and programs that the state historically did not have the ability to finance.

State and local governments will have broader flexibility in how to spend the relief dollars than they did in prior packages. Questions about allocation are likely to revive battles over spending  for example, whether to direct funds to one-time expenses or health-related programs with costs that will outlast the pandemic.

The $2.7 billion is more than half of Nevada's annual general fund spending and will be delivered to states with high unemployment rates like Nevada in one payment. Lawmakers are expected to divvy it up in a yet-to-be-announced special legislative session to be held after their regular session concludes at the end of the month. Sisolak has not said whether he intends to call a special session.

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This version corrects that states like Nevada where the pandemic caused unemployment to increase will receive relief funds in one payment, not two. States where unemployment has not increased by more than 2% since the start of the pandemic.

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Metz is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP)  New Mexico has joined several other states that have reinstated the work search requirement for people who receive unemployment payments.

Starting this week, state labor officials said claimants must verify that they have made at least two work search contacts per week to continue receiving the jobless payments. They must provide information on when they contacted employers about prospective jobs, what type of work it was and other details.

The requirement had been waived during the pandemic as unemployment rates surged due to businesses closures and cutbacks to meet the state's public health restrictions. The change came as all but two New Mexico counties are now operating in the categories with the least COVID-19 restrictions.

Help wanted and hiring now signs are posted outside gas stations and at grocery stories and fast-food drive thru windows around New Mexico as business owners scramble to find workers.

Nationwide, U.S. employers posted a record number of available jobs in March, illustrating the desperation of businesses seeking to find new workers amid an expanding economy.

Michael ODonnell, the University of New Mexico's Bureau of Business and Economic Research acting director, told the KOAT television station that the idea behind reinstating the work search requirement is to give people an incentive to look for work.

Given that there are reportedly tons of jobs available, more than perhaps people had expected, it make sense to revert back, he said.

New Mexico's unemployment rate stands at 8%, one of the highest in the country, and officials are hoping the change will help.

Meanwhile, New Mexico's vaccination rates are ticking up.

The latest data from the state Health Department show about 48% of residents over the age of 16 are fully vaccinated.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and others hope the state can reach the goal of 60% next month, but parts of southeastern New Mexico and some rural counties in central New Mexico are lagging as not everyone wants to get vaccinated.

State officials on Tuesday announced that businesses, nonprofits, religious congregations, community centers and other organizations can request on-site vaccination events through a new page on the Health Department's website.

Health Secretary Dr. Tracie Collins said the department is committed to making vaccines available to New Mexicans where they live and work.

By offering organizations the opportunity to request on-site vaccination events, well make getting a shot even easier, she said.
ATLANTA (AP)  After his firing by the Atlanta police department was reversed last week, the officer who fatally shot Rayshard Brooks is asking a judge to change the conditions of his bond as criminal charges against him remain pending.

Garrett Rolfe faces charges including murder in the June 2020 shooting of the 27-year-old Black man. When she set a $500,000 bond for Rolfe last year, a judge imposed a number of conditions, including wearing an ankle monitor, complying with a curfew, not possessing any guns and having no contact with Atlanta police officers.

Rolfe's lawyers, who have maintained that he acted correctly in the confrontation with Brooks, argued in a motion filed in Fulton County Superior Court on Friday that those conditions should be lifted. A Georgia Bureau of Investigation examination of the case shows that some statements about the shooting made by then-Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard during a news conference and reiterated to the court by assistant district attorneys were not true, Rolfe's lawyers wrote.

Now that the independent investigation by the GBI has been completed and Paul Howard is no longer around to misinform the public and this Court about the facts of this case, it is time for this Court to re-examine the conditions of bond imposed on Officer Rolfe, the motion says.

Howard did not immediately respond Tuesday to a voicemail message left at his law office.

Rolfes bond conditions prevent him from working for the Atlanta Police Department, his lawyers wrote.

The officer was fired a day after he shot Brooks, but the Atlanta Civil Service Board last week reversed his firing, saying the city failed to follow its own procedures for disciplinary actions. Rolfe will remain on administrative leave until his criminal charges are resolved, police have said.

Howard announced charges against Rolfe and the officer involved less than a week after the shooting and before the GBI investigation was complete. The agency does not make its investigation reports public while a case is still pending, but Rolfe's defense attorneys wrote in their motion that they had reviewed the GBI's report on Brooks' death.

Howard quoted Rolfe as saying, I got him. But no witness interviewed by the GBI said that, defense attorneys wrote, adding that they have an expert who's prepared to testify that the statement was made by a bystander.

Howard and an assistant district attorney also said Rolfe kicked Brooks as he lay on the ground. A GBI review of videos concluded that it appeared Rolfe was stepping over Brooks, defense attorneys wrote.

Prosecutors repeatedly said Rolfe failed to provide proper medical attention to Brooks, but several witnesses interviewed by the GBI said Rolfe did provide medical aid to Brooks.

Howard said the Taser Brooks had taken from an officer had already been fired twice and was no longer a threat when Rolfe shot him. But Howard didn't mention that Brooks pulled the trigger three more times, showing his intent to harm Rolfe, defense attorneys wrote.

Howard said Brooks was slightly impaired the night of his death, but the GBI report says he had a blood alcohol level of .102 and that his blood tested positive for several drugs, including cocaine, Rolfes defense attorneys wrote.

Brooks' widow, Tomika Miller, said during Rolfe's bond hearing that her husband wasnt perfect, but he didnt deserve to die.

Police responded last June 12 to complaints that Brooks had fallen asleep in his car in the drive-thru lane of a Wendys restaurant. Police body camera video shows the 27-year-old man struggling with two white officers after they told him hed had too much to drink to be driving and tried to arrest him. Brooks grabbed a Taser from one of the officers and fled, firing it at Rolfe as he ran. An autopsy found that Brooks was shot twice in the back.

Rolfe hasnt been indicted and the criminal case against him is currently stalled.

Howard's successor, Fani Willis, who took office in January, is seeking to recuse herself from this case and another, citing actions by Howard. She said Howard likely violated prosecutorial ethics in his lengthy news conferences and use of the cases in his campaign. She also noted that the state attorney general had asked the GBI to investigate whether Howard improperly issued grand jury subpoenas in the Rolfe case.

A judge is currently deciding whether Willis' office should be recused from the Rolfe case.
BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP)  When the coronavirus pandemic shut down the Levis Jewish Community Center last year, 98-year-old Trudy Berlin sprang into action to keep her weekly womens group active.

For Berlin, who began hosting The Ladies Room at the JCCs Sandler Center in 2000, the show needed to go on. So with a little help from Stephanie Owitz, the Boca Raton, Florida, centers director of arts, culture and learning, the show went virtual.

When the pandemic hit, of course, she was very disappointed we were shutting down the JCC, Owitz said. Then, the center decided to make some classes, including Berlins, available on Zoom.

At first she was very intimidated by that idea. Shes 98 years old and not that comfortable with the technology, but I assured her I would help her get started, Owitz said.

Since March, Berlin has grown a steady Tuesday morning audience of about 50 women, mostly age 70 and up, from the United States and Canada. They discuss everything from grief to politics.

Im happiest when I can be talking to a group, and I believe in groups very very much, Berlin said.

At first, Berlin did the show from her Boca Raton apartment. Now that the center has reopened, she does her virtual class from the JCC, sitting at a table with newspapers and notes spread out in front of her.

The participants find Berlin inspiring, even dubbing her the Jewish Oprah.

She challenges us, she makes us think, said Marilyn Snider, 79, of Toronto. Her energy is absolutely unbelievable. She brings out thoughts that you never thought you would ever express.

The virtual group has been especially important to Snider, who usually spends winters with her husband in Boca Raton. For seven years she attended the in-person group. So when the pandemic hit, and she stayed home in Canada, she thought shed miss out on her weekly womens group.

That was a horrible thing when we thought, `Oh my God, what are we going to do now? Snider said. I cant imaging having gone through this past year not having the existence of Zoom, to be able to do the things that we are doing. Its been my sanity, personally.

Berlin is a strong advocate for older women.

As you grow older, I think that the world can become very difficult for old people and they give up, she said.

Berlin said in her younger days she used to get love notes.

Now I get gratitude notes saying thank you, and each has its place, she said. I think if communities could learn to do this, and if government could learn to do this, just to listen and then respond. Thats the important thing

Each week Berlin comes up with a theme for the show, and then the conversation moves in whatever direction the woman care to take it.

I always feel when I sit here that Im on a spaceship, Berlin said at the beginning of a recent show. Were set to go. And were all flying off together.

On this day, she holds up a book she recently read, pages marked with colorful sticky notes. Her topic: Had someone told you that the pandemic would last more than a year, would you have prepared differently?

Owitz calls on Brenda Soloman to answer that question. Ive learned to live more in the moment, Solomon tells the group. And its been very, very, very beneficial to me.

Said Owitz: She prepares. She spends all week preparing for it.

They plan to continue with the virtual class through the summer, and in the fall theyll see how everyone feels about resuming an in-person class, Owitz said. However, theyll still record the class and offer it virtually because so many people who dont live in Boca Raton have joined.

Its a whole new world out there, and Im having fun and a good time, Berlin said.

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One Good Thing is a series that highlights individuals whose actions provide glimmers of joy in hard times  stories of people who find a way to make a difference, no matter how small. Read the collection of stories at https://apnews.com/hub/one-good-thing
SACRAMENTO, Calif.  The campaign to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom has failed to gain momentum in recent months as significantly more California voters favor keeping him in office, and only anemic support has surfaced for reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner while other Republican candidates hoping to take the governor's place have little backing, according to a new UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll that was co-sponsored by the L.A. Times.

The survey's results were especially bleak for retired Olympic gold medalist Jenner, as just 6% of Californians who took part in the survey said they would vote to have her replace Newsom  a vast majority of Democrats, Republicans and unaffiliated or independent voters said they would not be inclined to support her candidacy.

Democratic voters polled also overwhelmingly favored having a prominent Democratic replacement candidate on the recall ballot in case Newsom is ousted from office, putting them at odds with efforts by their state party and Newsom's campaign to prevent that from happening.

Slightly over half of California registered voters, 52%, approve of the job Newsom has been doing as governor, a small increase from January but still far below the findings in September when 64% gave him high marks, according to the poll.

That's one of Newsom's potential soft spots that the recall campaign's organizers will probably try to exploit, along with strong voter dissatisfaction over how the governor has handled the homelessness crisis, housing affordability and crime in California, said Mark DiCamillo, director of the poll.

"Most of his decline appears to have been about the pandemic and now that we're emerging out of that, voters are giving the governor generally better marks on the pandemic. He still doesn't have great job performance numbers," DiCamillo said. "If the focus then shifts away from the pandemic to the other issues facing the state, he's gonna have some work cut out for himself."

The poll found that leading the Republicans in the race were former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and Rancho Santa Fe businessman John Cox, who lost handily to Newsom in the 2018 governor's race, although each had backing from just 22% of those polled. Former Northern California Rep. Doug Ose registered 14% support.

Of Jenner's low support, DiCamillo said that despite the media attention, "there doesn't seem to be a significant constituency for her candidacy."

"Even among Republicans, only 13% say they'd be inclined to vote for her," DiCamillo said. "It's a very poor showing."

Jenner's leap into the race has ginned up plenty of national media attention and comparisons to the last major celebrity candidate, Arnold Schwarzenegger, quickly followed. Schwarzenegger, with his broad appeal across party lines, easily won enough votes to take Democratic Gov. Gray Davis' place as governor after he was recalled in 2003.

But compared to Jenner, Schwarzenegger had a lot more support even before he officially jumped into the race. Among California registered voters, 31% said they were inclined to vote for Schwarzenegger compared with 62% who were not, according to a Field Poll conducted three months before the recall election.

Still, the effort to recall Newsom remains in the beginning stages, providing ample time for political fortunes to rise and fall. It's only been two weeks since Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber announced that recall proponents had gathered enough signatures to force a special election by year's end, most probably in October or November. The cost of the special election could run as high as $400 million.

And as governor of the most populous state in the union, Newsom possesses ample power and opportunities to court California's electorate before the recall makes its way to the ballot. Aided by the state's economic recovery and a $75.7-billion budget surplus, Newsom on Monday proposed sending $600 state stimulus checks to millions of Californians along with a $5-billion rental assistance plan.

"That's the largest year-over-year tax rebate that's ever been provided in any state in American history," Newsom said Monday.

Critics quickly labeled it Newsom's "recall refund."

According to the poll, just 36% of registered voters in the state said they would vote to recall Newsom, the same percentage of support found in a survey by the same pollster in late January. In comparison, 49% of voters oppose removing the governor from office, a slight improvement over the 45% who opposed doing so in January.

Dan Newman, one of the governor's political consultants, said the poll results show that Californians are proud of what Newsom has accomplished since he took office in January 2019 and cast the recall effort as political subterfuge orchestrated by dissatisfied Republicans.

"Voters strongly support moving forward with Gov. Newsom instead of being dragged backwards to Trumpism with the Republican recall," Newman said.

Still, 15% of voters remain undecided. According to the poll, only about a third of Democrats and independent voters have a high interest in the recall compared with the 75% of Republicans in California who do.

That may be a reflection of Republicans being excited about ousting a Democratic governor  it is only the second recall of a sitting California governor to reach the ballot. That could lead to a Republican advantage in voter turnout, though that may change once Newsom and the state Democratic Party mount what is expected to be an aggressive effort to rally their own supporters.

"Newsom benefits from the improving situation with the pandemic, but there are still some warning signs  the low interest of Democratic voters and the substantial number of undecided voters," Berkeley IGS co-director Eric Schickler said. "But the governor is now in better shape and is helped by the absence of a compelling GOP alternative."

Newsom's handing of the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be a major driver of his increased support among voters  45% of those surveyed believed the governor has done an excellent or good job, compared with 35% who said his response has been poor or very poor. That flipped since January, when 31% said he was doing an excellent or good job, and 43% gave him poor marks.

The governor's oversight of vaccine distribution saw a similar turnaround. In January, 22% voters thought he was doing a good or excellent job on that issue. In the latest survey, support for Newsom jumped to 54%.

At the beginning of the year, the governor's plan to distribute vaccines across a state of nearly 40 million people sputtered out of the gate. California's vaccine plan initially prioritized all essential workers and those 65 and older. But just weeks into the plan's rollout, the Newsom administration changed course and adopted a chronological age-based system for residents younger than 65.

As of May 9, close to 32.5 million vaccine doses have been administered statewide with 14.2 million Californians fully vaccinated.

The latest effort to recall Newsom is one of six launched since he took office in 2019 and the only one to gather just under 1.5 million petition signatures from registered voters necessary to qualify for the ballot. The effort was spearheaded by supporters of former President Trump with assistance from far-right fringe groups and has since been embraced by mainstream California Republicans and received financial support from the national Republican Party.

The recall petition listed a number of long-standing Republican grievances against Newsom and the state's Democratic leadership including homelessness, which remains a major political vulnerability for Newsom. Of those surveyed, 57% said the governor has done a poor or very poor job addressing the crisis.

Newsom also was dinged on housing affordability, with 53% of voters saying he's done a poor job on that issue. Criticism of Newsom's effort to handle crime and criminal justice also is growing  42% of those surveyed said he's doing a poor job, up from 35% in September.

"This governor is radioactive," said Orrin Heatlie, the official proponent of the recall effort. "The true damage that he's done to the state won't be known for decades."

Heatlie pointed to the recent announcement that California may give 76,000 inmates, including some violent offenders, an opportunity for early release.

Recall organizers also believe voters will continue to be frustrated over the billions of dollars the state paid out to fraudulent unemployment claims during the pandemic, along with Newsom's attendance months ago at a lobbyist's birthday party at the French Laundry restaurant in Napa Valley after asking Californians to refrain from similar gatherings.

Newsom enjoys solid support in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay area, home to about half of California's electorate. Voters there oppose the recall by roughly a 2-1 margin. However, his prospects are far less rosy in the Inland Empire and Central Valley, where support for ousting Newsom crept up slightly since January. Roughly 45% of voters in those areas support removing the governor from office and 39% oppose it.

DiCamillo said that, according to the Berkeley poll, Newsom appeared to be in a much stronger position politically than Davis was 18 years ago, when he became the only California governor to be recalled from office. During the 2003 recall campaign, a Field Poll found that 67% of California voters had an unfavorable opinion of Davis. In the new Berkeley poll, 43% of voters had an unfavorable opinion of Newsom. DiCamillo conducted statewide opinion surveys for the Field Poll before joining Berkeley IGS.

The Berkeley IGS poll, administered online in English and Spanish, surveyed 10,289 California registered voters from April 29 to May 5. The estimated sampling error is plus or minus 2 percentage points.
SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP)  The Orange County District Attorneys Office announced Tuesday the creation of a special unit to prosecute hate crimes.

The unit is staffed by three prosecutors and two investigators, and is supervised by the district attorneys head of special prosecutions.

Hate will not be tolerated here, District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in a statement.

The unit will prosecute crimes based on bias against a victims race, color, religion, national origin, actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or gender.

The units work will include training law enforcement on how to effectively investigate hate crimes so they can be successfully prosecuted.
Fewer renters than expected are applying for pandemic assistance in Pennsylvania, alarming state officials who urged tenants who are behind on rent to submit their applications now in light of a judge's recent decision striking down a national eviction moratorium.

The ruling has been put on hold while the Biden administration appeals. But the uncertainty around the moratorium prompted the Department of Human Services, which runs the state's rental assistance program, to plead with renters to take advantage of the program.

I'm extremely concerned that people are not moving quickly to pursue this assistance because the moratorium was expected to be in place, Meg Snead, the acting DHS secretary, said Tuesday. And I'm extremely concerned about what may occur, and circumstances people will be in, if the ruling stands.

Snead said the program is meant to help Pennsylvania avoid a wave of evictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Pennsylvania's 67 counties received about $847 million in federal relief to help tenants pay rent and utilities. The state's rent relief program launched in March.

Early indications are that it has been slow to get off the ground. Only about 8,000 applications for rental assistance have been submitted through a state portal, representing two-thirds of Pennsylvania counties. The average benefit has been about $4,000 per applicant.

More complete numbers are expected next week.

We do not want to leave funds unspent when we know there is likely an incredible need across Pennsylvania, Snead said.

Pennsylvania had similar problems last year, spending just $54 million on rental assistance out of $150 million allocated in an earlier relief package. The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Authority returned the rest, some of which went to the state corrections department.

A primary roadblock to landlords' willingness to participate in last year's program  a $750 cap on monthly payments  does not apply this year.

In other coronavirus-related developments in Pennsylvania on Tuesday:

GATHERING LIMITS RELAXED

Pennsylvania is allowing more people at indoor and outdoor events.

Beginning Monday, occupancy limits will be increased to 50% of capacity for indoor events, up from 25%, and to 75% for outdoor events, up from 50%.

As more Pennsylvania adults get vaccinated and guidance from the CDC evolves, we can continue to move forward with the commonwealths reopening efforts, Gov. Tom Wolf said in a statement Tuesday.

The state has previously announced that nearly all COVID restrictions will go away on Memorial Day, including capacity limits on bars, restaurants and other businesses, as well as indoor and outdoor event gathering limits. The state's mask mandate will remain until 75% of adults are fully vaccinated. Statewide, about 45.6% of people aged 18 and older have been fully vaccinated as of Tuesday, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In Philadelphia, meanwhile, city officials announced pandemic restrictions will be eased beginning later this month, and will go away almost entirely on June 11.

Starting May 21, retail stores and offices will no longer have to operate at reduced capacity, and the city is lifting its rule that bars and restaurants can only serve alcohol with food. Capacity limits on gyms, exercise classes and theaters will be eased, as well as limits on outdoor and indoor catered events.

The city plans to lift all restrictions under its Safer at Home initiative on June 11, though its masking requirement will remain for the foreseeable future.

The health commissioner, Dr. Thomas Farley, said hes keeping the mask mandate in place to make sure the dip in cases and the positivity rate is not just a seasonal phenomenon.

Its not a big deal. Its a light thing. Were not asking people to carry a piano, said Mayor Jim Kenney, adding he planned to wear his mask through the winter.

The Philadelphia Eagles said they were excited to welcome fans back to Lincoln Financial Field.

As we look ahead to a full stadium, we encourage our community to get vaccinated, team President Don Smolenski said in a statement.

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VAX FOR YOUNGER TEENS

Younger teens in the Philadelphia suburbs lined up to get vaccinated Tuesday after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration expanded the use of the two-dose vaccine to 12- to 15-year-olds.

About 750,000 Pennsylvania children are eligible for Pfizers COVID-19 shot after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration expanded the use of the two-dose vaccine to 12- to 15-year-olds, according to state health officials.

The Montgomery County Office of Public Health began administering the shots to kids in that age group on Tuesday, even though the state Health Department asserted that providers need to wait until a federal vaccine advisory committee signs off, which is expected to happen Wednesday.

Under all relevant legal authority, once the FDA gives approval, a prescriber is permitted to prescribe the vaccine, said Montgomery County spokesperson Kelly Cofrancisco. Since the vaccine committee does not have any role in determining whether we begin administering the Pfizer vaccine to those 12 and up starting today, we chose to move ahead.

About 300 people between the ages of 12 and 15 signed up to get the shot, not including walk-ups, according to Cofrancisco,

The state Health Department later softened its language, saying it was exercising an abundance of caution in recommending that vaccine providers wait until the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices gives the go-ahead.

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Associated Press reporter Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia contributed to this story.
MADISON, Miss. (AP)  Health care professionals on Tuesday became the first people to sign petitions to put Medicaid expansion on the November 2022 ballot in Mississippi.

Organizers of Initiative 76 have a year to gather more than 106,000 signatures. But to reach the ballot in 2022, they must finish gathering signatures before the Legislature meets early next year.

Medicaid is a health insurance program for the needy, aged, blind and disabled. It is paid by federal and state money. Mississippi has about 3 million residents, and Medicaid already covers more than 763,500 people. That is 25% of the population.

Supporters of Initiative 76 estimate that expansion would add about 200,000 more people, primarily those working low-wage jobs that do not provide private health insurance coverage.

Mississippi is one of 12 states that have not approved expanding Medicaid coverage to the working poor, which is an option under the Affordable Care Act that was signed into law in 2010 by then-President Barack Obama.

Republican Gov. Tate Reeves and his Republican predecessor, Phil Bryant, have said they believe Mississippi cannot afford to put more people on the program, even with the federal government paying for most of the tab.

Dr. John Gaudet is a Hattiesburg pediatrician who is sponsoring the initiative. He said Medicaid expansion could help people like his niece, who was diagnosed with a digestive tract disease when she was a child and still has health challenges as an adult. Gaudet said she is a dispatcher for an ambulance company but cannot work enough hours to keep insurance coverage through her employer. He said she is considering applying for disability benefits, but expanding Medicaid would allow her to continue working without worrying about big medical bills.

Although she regularly saves lives, we may lose her skills to her need for coverage, Gaudet said during a news conference Tuesday.

Amory resident Jonathan Smith, 35, said he hopes he would become eligible for Medicaid coverage if the program is expanded. Smith said he was working as a forklift operator about four years ago when he began having seizures. Doctors found he had cancer of the nervous system. Smith said that about the time he had a brain tumor removed, his employer switched insurance plans in early 2018 and he was left without coverage. He said he has been unable to work because seizures have continued, and he remains uninsured. He said family members have helped him pay some bills.

There's no way that I could pay for these thousands upon thousands of dollars worth of bills, said Smith, the father children who are 1, 5, 7 and 8 years old.

Tim Moore, president and CEO of the Mississippi Hospital Association, said Mississippi has been turning down billions of federal dollars that could keep hospitals and clinics open. He said half of the rural hospitals in the state are in financial jeopardy.

If you believe in small towns, you believe in Medicaid expansion, Moore said.

Because Mississippi is one of the poorest states in the nation, it receives the most generous portions of federal funding for Medicaid. The federal government currently pays 84.5% of Medicaid expenses in Mississippi. The next-largest federal share goes to West Virginia, at nearly 81%.

Under expansion, the federal government would pay a higher share of the cost.

If supporters of Initiative 76 gather enough signatures, legislators will have a chance to put an alternate proposal dealing with the same subject on the same ballot. That could confuse some voters who would have to choose between competing ideas over whether to expand Medicaid to people who work in jobs that provide modest pay but do not provide private health insurance.

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Follow Emily Wagster Pettus on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EWagsterPettus.
MARYLAND CITY, Md. (AP)  A Maryland man who had been trying to reconcile with his ex-girlfriend fatally shot the couple the woman lived with and wounded a young child before taking his own life, police said Tuesday.

Anne Arundel County police said in a news release that Shawn Maurice Price, 57, of Welcome went to a Maryland City home Monday night, entered the home and called for his ex-girlfriend. That's when police said Price fatally shot Ryan Lee Sr., 31, and his wife Ivania Lee, 31. Price also shot and critically wounded the young child. Price then took his own life, police said.
Last Saturday, the first night without a state of alarm or curfew in Spain, saw thousands of young people drinking and dancing in the streets of the main capitals of the country celebrating 'freedom'.

But these celebrations, in the midst of the pandemic, have outraged many health workers, who fear a rebound in the number of coronavirus patients in hospital.

One in particular is Daniel Savoini, a nurse in an intensive care unit of a Madrid hospital. From a window on the ward, he recorded massive 'botellon' drinking party that took place near the hospital.

His video, posted on Twitter, has now gone viral and shows dozens of young people jumping and screaming shortly before midnight and not maintaining a safe social distance.

Daniels post read, "Madrid. Night shift in a Covid ICU. These are my views right now. This is the freedom these madmen want.

The nurse did face some criticism to his post but responded, "Anti-vaccine and Covid deniers: you are crazy."
TAMPA, Fla. (AP)  Police said a Dunkin store employee fatally punched a 77-year-old customer in Florida after the employee said the man repeatedly used a racial slur against him.

The victim, a man who police did not name, was punched May 4 and died Friday. That led to a manslaughter charge against 27-year-old Corey Pujols, who worked at the store.
CLEVELAND (AP)  A man accused of wounding a Cleveland police officer last July pleaded guilty Tuesday to a related federal weapons charge, prosecutors said.

Darryl Borden, 43, of Cleveland, pleaded guilty to being a felony in possession of a firearm, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Cleveland. He faces trial next month on charges of attempted murder and felonious assault of a police officer in state court.

Borden's federal public defender, Jeffrey Lazarus, declined comment.

Authorities allege that Borden ambushed two Cleveland police officers responding to a call about a man with a gun, firing multiple rounds from a bathroom when officers opened a door while searching for him.

Officer Jennifer Kilnapp was shot in the arm and back. Another officer returned fire as they retreated from the home. Borden was not hit.

A SWAT team responded and arrested Borden a short time later.

Kilnapp has not yet returned to duty, Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association President Jeff Follmer said.

Borden's sentencing on the federal charge is scheduled for Sept. 14.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  Republicans who control the Wisconsin Assembly on Tuesday postponed voting on overriding vetoes by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers of bills that would prevent health officials from mandating the COVID-19 vaccine and prohibit the closing of churches during the pandemic.

Evers vetoed both bills last month, saying they limited his ability to respond to the pandemic. There are no statewide vaccination mandates in place, or statewide orders limiting capacity in churches or requiring them to be closed.
Rhode Island expects to start offering Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine to children ages 12 to 15 later this week now that the Food and Drug Administration has authorized its use for that age group, state officials said Tuesday.

The announcement came during a news conference at Rhode Island Hospital to celebrate the fact that more than 1 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine have been administered in the state.

The state's first coronavirus vaccine was given at the hospital on Dec. 14.

I dont think anyone would have ever thought on December 14 that we would have one million shots in the arms on May 11, Gov. Daniel McKee said.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Preventions vaccine advisory panel will meet Wednesday to review data and determine whether the vaccine is safe for the 12 to 15 age group.

However, eligible children, with parental consent, starting Tuesday could sign up for a shot at the state's current vaccination sites, and there are also plans to bring vaccination clinics to schools, officials said.

We are so excited that we can expand to this younger age," said Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott, director of the state Department of Health.

Because children could not get vaccinated, and because we are seeing these more contagious variants of COVID-19, we have seen an increase in our proportion of cases in children," she said. So the timing right now is perfect.

Dr. Sabina Holland, a pediatric infectious diseases specialist at Hasbro Childrens Hospital, has seen firsthand how the coronavirus has affected both the physical and mental health of children and urged parents to get their eligible children vaccinated.

"Thankfully, we have a COVID-19 vaccine that has been rigorously studied in a clinical trial and has been found to be extremely safe for children 12 to 15," she said.

She cautioned that children may experience post-vaccination fever, muscle pain, and fatigue.

These are normal, she said.

Just because the state has administered 1 million vaccines, that is not a reason to let up, McKee said.

With 68% of the state's eligible population having received at least one dose, Rhode Island is within reach of President Joe Bidens goal of getting 70% of the nation's population at least partially vaccinated by July 4, the Democratic governor said.

Mr. President, we have accepted your challenge and I hope we have made you proud here in the Ocean State, McKee said. Were going to achieve 70% in just a few days and thats a sign of really good things to come.

People who have not been vaccinated should not rely on herd immunity to protect them, Alexander-Scott said.

The reality is that over the last year COVID-19 has changed, it has evolved, the original virus has been replaced with newer versions that we are referring to as variants," she said. If you get COVID-19 right now there are chances that you may have a more serious disease than you would have earlier in the pandemic."

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HEALTH DEPARTMENT DATA

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Rhode Island has surpassed 150,000, according to state Department of Health data released Tuesday.

The state reported about 150 new confirmed cases of the disease, for a total of nearly 151,000 known cases since the start of the pandemic.

Of the new cases, 134 were people who tested positive for the first time on Monday and 15 were people who tested positive for the first time on previous days.

The state also reported four new virus-related deaths for a total of 2,694 fatalities.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Rhode Island has now fallen over the past two weeks, from about 285 on April 25 to about 183 on Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP)  A Kansas priest who is being considered for sainthood will be laid to rest in Wichita in September, his family and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wichita announced Tuesday.

The remains of the Rev. Emil Kapaun, who died in a prisoner of war camp during the Korean War, will be flown from Hawaii to Wichita on Sept. 25. The body will be taken to his hometown of Pilsen before being returned to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Wichita on Sept. 27, the diocese said.
ROSS TOWNSHIP, Ohio (AP)  A police detective serving a search warrant at a southwestern Ohio home as part of a child pornography case shot and wounded a man who pointed a gun at officers, authorities said.

The shooting occurred around 12:30 p.m. Monday at a Ross Township home, according to the Butler County sheriffs office. A spokesman said that as officers entered the home, they were confronted by Alex Hoskins, 26, who was holding a handgun.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP)  The state House approved Tuesday a proposal that would add South Carolina to a list of states calling for a convention to propose amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

The proposal passed 66-42. It would have South Carolina limit its call for the convention to a few items  spending checks on the federal government, limiting the federal governments jurisdiction and power, and setting term limits for Congress.

A group of a few dozen enthusiastic supporters waved signs at cars as they entered the Statehouse garage and then settled into the second floor lobby for several hours of debate Tuesday.

Rep. Bill Taylor, who has pushed for the proposal for years, told members they have the power to change Washington, D.C., by voting for the resolution.

They will never, ever, ever limit their own power, the Aiken Republican said of the federal government. Its human nature.

The resolution is now sent to the Senate. With two days left in the session there isn't enough time for senators to take it up, but it will be waiting for them when they return in 2022.

About 15 states have passed similar resolutions, and the Constitution requires two-thirds of states, or 34, to call for the convention. Supporters have pointed out whatever amendments are suggested by the convention would have to be passed by three-fourths of the states  38 legislatures or special conventions.

About 15 states have passed similar resolutions, and the Constitution requires two-thirds of states, or 34, to call for the convention before it could occur. Supporters have pointed out whatever amendments are suggested by the convention would have to be passed by three-fourths of the states  38 legislatures or special conventions.

Calling the convention is only the first step, said Rep. Weston Newton, a Republican from Bluffton.

The only convention called in nearly 250 years of the nation so far  the one that wrote the current Constitution from scratch  was initially proposed just to make changes to the original government charter of the U.S., the Articles of Confederation.

Supporters of the proposal barely pushed aside an amendment that would have had the resolution last for just two years. They said it would have killed the proposal because backers could never get to 34 states in that short of a time. Instead, the resolution was limited to 10 years.

Democrats and several Republicans opposed the constitutional convention proposal.

Democrats said there was no way to protect amendments that provided the rights to free speech, the prohibition of slavery and the guarantee of full citizenship and rights to anyone born in the country.

"You cannot limit the scope of a constitutional convention. Everything is on the table," said Rep. Cezar McKnight, a Democrat from Kingstree.

Some Republicans said the convention could alter the country in ways that the founding fathers would oppose, like revoking the Second Amendment assuring the right to bear arms or protections for practicing religion.

Dont fool yourself into thinking if we have a constitutional convention if will just be about a couple of conservative amendments," said Rep. John McCravy, a Republican from Greenwood. "Oh no  it cant be limited.

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Follow Jeffrey Collins on Twitter at https://twitter.com/JSCollinsAP.
RENO, Nev. (AP)  A Sparks police officer who is accusing the city of violating his free speech rights is seeking $1 million in damages after he was suspended for four days for making comments on his private social media account that the city says constituted threats to Black Lives Matters activists and others.

The City Council voted Monday to hire independent counsel to defend Sparks against the federal lawsuit filed last month by George Forbush, a bomb squad technician who has served 19 years on the force.

It alleges the city violated his First Amendment rights when it punished him because of his particular viewpoint of his political opinions as expressed on his personal social media.

The four Twitter posts cited last summer included his comments about tossing gasoline toward protesters seen in a video trying to burn a fire-resistant American flag and his plan to build a couple AR pistols just for BLM, Antifa or active shooters who cross my path and cant maintain social distancing.

The citys disciplinary investigation, which launched after an anonymous complaint, confirmed all Forbushs posts were made on his own time, as a private citizen and that nowhere in the posts or on his Twitter feed did he identify himself as a Sparks police officer, the lawsuit said.

A public employer may not discipline or retaliate against its employees for the content of their political speech as private citizens on matters of public concern, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Reno.

Officer Forbush did not relinquish his right to think, care, and speak about politics and current events when he accepted a job as a police officer, it said.

A former deputy sheriff in rural Humboldt County, Forbush is highly trained in bomb disposal and also supervises Sparks police vehicle fleet and surplus military equipment.

After reviewing more than 700 of his Twitter posts, the city suspended Forbush over four of the posts, including one that criticized an officer convicted of planting evidence.

He said it would be ironic if someone planted drugs by cramming them into a body cavity so they could be found during an intake search when he goes to prison for what he did.

City officials and police didnt respond to requests for comment.

The lawsuit asks the court to order the city to purge Forbush's personnel file of all disciplinary actions based on the unconstitutional punishment of protected speech and "implement a policy governing officers personal social media use that is consistent with the Constitution.

The city does not have a clear, consistent, and Constitutional policy regarding officers personal social media use, the lawsuit said. The current climate of uncertainty, and arbitrary enforcement targeting political viewpoints, chills the exercise of the constitutional rights of speech and political participation of all city personnel.

The city policy says, Employees and elected officials should not post discriminatory remarks, harassing statements, and threats of violence or any language that can be viewed as malicious, obscene, threatening or intimidating toward fellow employees, citizens, or vendors.

The lawsuit said it makes no distinction between speech that could reasonably be expected to disrupt the departments operations, and speech that would not.

Forbushs case is a warning broadcast to all city employees that they had better not say anything, anywhere, in any forum, even in their personal social media discussions of matters of public concern," it said.
PALU, Indonesia (AP)  Five suspected militants killed four people in an Indonesian village on Tuesday, beheading one of them, officials said.

The attackers also burned a motorcycle that belonged to one of the victims in Kalemago village in Central Sulawesi province's Poso district, they said.
The health authorities had warned that the end of Spain's state of alarm could create a false sense of security in some parts of the population - and that appears to be true.

Although the vaccination rate has been speeded up, the virus is by no means finished. Only since last Friday there have been 103 deaths from Covid-19 in the country, a figure much lower than those recorded during the previous waves, but still considerable.

The images of mass celebrations in the streets last weekend, marking the end of the night curfew, have once again put the debate on individual responsibility on the table.

The Spanish government's director of the Centre for the Coordination of Health Alerts and Emergencies, Fernando Simon, has not ruled out a fifth wave resulting from last weekend's behaviour, although he trusts that if there is an increase in infection rates it will be localised and not general.

Simon said he was very "disappointed" by the weekend celebrations: "Until two days ago I would have said that we could expect the downward trend of the last 10 to 12 days to continue. It is important to prevent a new wave, but right now I don't know, neither I nor anyone in Spain can know how many people are going to be admitted to the intensive care units as a result, he said.

But is Spain close to the desired zero deaths from Covid-19?

The deadliness of the disease has been clearly reduced by the impact of vaccines, but the target of zero deaths is still some time away.

Simon considers that it could be achieved in the medium term, between now and summer, if vaccination plans are maintained and there is no disproportionate increase in infections.

"We cannot know when we will reach zero deaths, but it is true that in a few weeks we will see a very small number of fatalities if we continue with the current vaccination schedule," explained Simon.

Going from there to zero deaths... this could happen between then and the end of the summer if things go well. We can see it, but it is difficult to assess.

For now, until that target is met, Simon advocates maintaining protection measures against the virus, such as using a face mask, at least until there is sufficient vaccination coverage.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  Tennessee's flag was unfurled from atop North Carolina's old Capitol on Tuesday for a movie being filmed this week at the Greek Revival-style building.

The production of the Evolution of Nate Gibson began shooting Monday at the building on Union Square in downtown Raleigh and will continue until Wednesday, Department of Cultural and Natural Resources spokeswoman Michele Walker said.
Californias battle against coronavirus has progressed so rapidly in the last few months that many experts are optimistic the state has experienced the worst of the pandemic and that another disastrous wave is unlikely as vaccinations increase and case rates keep plunging.

If those forecasts hold fast, California will enter the summer in a better place than many thought. State officials hope to have the economy largely reopened by June 15. And while coronavirus variants caused concerns earlier this year, officials and experts say they have generally been less aggressive than feared and vaccines seem to be offering protection against the various variants.

I am optimistic, said Dr. Robert Kim-Farley, medical epidemiologist and infectious diseases expert at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. I think that we are going in the right direction  we will never have a surge like we had during the viral tsunami of the post-holiday season, just because now we have so many people vaccinated, and so many people have got natural immunity from having had the disease.

Kim-Farley and others have said its always possible the virus could come back in some areas where people refuse to take the vaccine. But vaccination rates in California are rising fast.

We may see some increases from time to time, especially if the virus gets into pockets of unimmunized people. But were not going to see these major threats that occurred to us previously, Kim-Farley said.

On Monday, officials said Los Angeles County could reach herd immunity from the coronavirus by mid- to late July. Herd immunity, sometimes referred to as community immunity, occurs when enough people have been inoculated or have obtained natural immunity to protect the larger population against the virus.

With about 400,000 shots administered weekly, the county has about 2 million first doses to go before 80% of all residents 16 and older will have received at least one shot, Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said in a news briefing.

Ferrer noted that the estimated population that needs to be vaccinated in L.A. County for herd immunity is a guess, but we do assume its probably somewhere around 80%.

California is progressing to a situation where theres markedly diminished transmission of disease because there is a decreasing number of people vulnerable to the coronavirus, either because of vaccination or prior infection with disease, Kim-Farley said.

While its true that its unlikely California will get to the point where there will be zero new daily cases and the virus is eliminated, I do feel very confident that we are turning the corner, getting to that light at the end of the tunnel thats been promised, of markedly reducing the number of cases that allows us then to be able to start dialing back on all these restrictions because of the fact that community rates of transmission are becoming very, very low, Kim-Farley said.

Generally speaking, different regions of California may move faster in increasing immunity than others.

Dr. George Rutherford, an epidemiologist at the University of California, San Francisco, believes the Bay Area will see some form of herd immunity first  perhaps by mid-June or early July  followed by urban and suburban Southern California and agricultural California at some point after that.

But thats all contingent on vaccine rates remaining steady and not declining more steeply than they have recently.

In addition, scientists are increasingly confident that vaccines available in the U.S. to a certain extent are protective from severe disease across all variants, said Dr. Catherine Blish, a Stanford University professor of medicine and infectious diseases. And that is really very good news.

Last week, Los Angeles and San Francisco counties were among the latest California counties to enter the least restrictive yellow tier, allowing businesses to open to the maximum extent possible under the statewide color-coded framework for pandemic regulations.

Both counties have among the lowest average daily new coronavirus cases of Californias 58 counties.

L.A. and San Francisco counties show how different paths exist for getting past the pandemic. While San Francisco, with a population of fewer than 900,000 people, did see increased cases in the autumn and winter surge, its hospitals were never slammed like those in L.A. County. San Francisco has recorded 538 COVID-19 deaths over the course of the pandemic, for a death rate of 62 deaths per 100,000 residents.

San Francisco also has one of the highest rates of vaccination in California, with 66% of its residents having received at least one dose.

Los Angeles County, meanwhile, trod a far more deadly path to reaching low new daily coronavirus case rates  a death rate nearly quadruple that of San Franciscos. L.A. County has recorded more than 24,000 deaths from COVID-19, for a rate of 238 deaths per 100,000 residents, one of the highest rates in the state.

Thats why youre seeing these crashing rates [of the coronavirus in L.A. County]  because theres so much naturally acquired infection, Rutherford said.

In L.A. County, home to 10.1 million residents, about 49% of residents have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. But the L.A. County Department of Health Services estimates that perhaps 62% of county residents have immunity to the virus, either because theyve been vaccinated or because theyve survived the illness.

Some infectious disease experts suspect L.A. County was hit harder than San Francisco for a number of reasons, including higher levels of poverty and crowded housing, but also because of more skepticism of mask mandates and business restrictions. Polls have shown that Bay Area residents have been more supportive of pandemic-related restrictions than Southern California residents.

California still needs to maintain a decent pace of vaccinations to keep COVID-19 infections at bay. High rates of vaccine hesitancy, even if limited to pockets of communities, can still result in flareups of the disease. For instance, the introduction of a really transmissible variant, such as the one first identified in the United Kingdom (B.1.1.7), can spread like wildfire through an unvaccinated community, Blish said.

We really need to keep vaccinating. ... Id really like to see us pushing up to 80% of population, given the incredible transmissibility of B.1.1.7, Blish said.

Earlier this year, the emergence of COVID-19 variants raised concerns. But studies have offered reassurance that existing vaccines work well against the two most dominant strains in California  the one first identified in the United Kingdom (B.1.1.7) and the homegrown variant identified in California (B.1.427/B.1.429).

Everything weve seen with the variants should provide marked reassurance, as far as the protection that is afforded by vaccines  particularly the vaccines that we have in the United States, said Dr. Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Jolla.



(Los Angeles Times staff writer Hayley Smith contributed to this report.)
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP)  The judge handling the case of a man accused of killing four people at a Mandan property management business denied a request by more defense attorneys to quit the case, but gave them more time to prepare by pushing trial back to August.

Chad Isaak, 46, of Washburn, is accused of killing RJR Maintenance and Management co-owner Robert Fakler, 52; and employees Adam Fuehrer, 42; and William Cobb, 50, and Lois Cobb, 45, on April 1, 2019. Police have not established a motive for the killings.

Isaak has pleaded not guilty and was scheduled for a three-week trial beginning June 7. The trial is now scheduled to begin Aug. 2.

South Central District Judge David Reich last week granted Robert Quicks request to withdraw as lead defense attorney after Isaak filed a disciplinary complaint against Quick.

The Bismarck Tribune reported Tuesday that attorneys with the Vogel Law Firm who had been hired by Quick to serve as secondary counsel  Bruce Quick, Mark Friese, Luke Heck and Drew Hushka  had also asked to withdraw from the case.

In an affidavit Monday, the attorneys said the Vogel firm hadn't been retained by Isaak and has no financial resources for trial expenses such as subpoenaing witnesses, retaining experts, and paying room and board for attorneys.

Heck said the firm hasn't been involved in significant trial preparation, Heck said, adding that the Vogel attorneys expected Quick would question witnesses during the trial. They further said they are material witnesses in the disciplinary action Isaak filed against Quick.

In denying the request Tuesday, Reich wrote that the attorneys should have expected they might take over Isaaks representation because they entered their appearance in the case as co-counsel. Any financial arrangements in the case are between attorneys and Isaak and not for this Court to resolve, Reich wrote. And the attorneys did not show how their status as witnesses in the disciplinary action might be a conflict of interest that necessitated withdrawal, the judge said.
ANKARA, Turkey (AP)  A rocket attack on a Turkish military supply convoy in Syrias northwestern Idlib province has killed one soldier and wounded four others, Turkeys Defense Ministry said Tuesday.

Turkish forces retaliated to the attack by firing on targets they identified in the region, the Defense Ministry said in a statement. It did not elaborate or say who was responsible for the attack late Monday.
UNITED NATIONS (AP)  The head of a U.N. team investigating atrocities in Iraq announced Monday it has found clear and compelling evidence that Islamic State extremists committed genocide against the Yazidi minority in 2014 and said the militant group successfully developed chemical weapons and used mustard gas.

Karim Khan told the Security Council the team also concluded war crimes were committed by the Islamic State group against predominantly Shiite unarmed cadets and personnel from the Tikrit Air Academy who were captured, tortured and subjected to mass execution in June 2014. He said an Islamic State video released in July 2015 showing the killings constitutes a direct and public incitement to commit genocide against Shia Muslims.

The Security Council voted unanimously in September 2017 to ask the U.N. to establish an investigative team to help Iraq preserve evidence and promote accountability for what may amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide committed by Islamic State extremists, both in Iraq and the Levant, which includes Syria.

In his sixth report to the council, Khan said the U.N. Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes committed by the Islamic State group, also known as Daesh, ISIL and ISIS, rapidly expanded the amount of evidence it has in the last six months.

He said significant developments in collecting forensic evidence from mass grave sites, digital data extracted from hard drives that belonged to the IS group, digitization of case files, and use of advanced technological tools to process and search databases has allowed the team to establish clear timelines of activities of key ISIL members.

Khan called it a landmark moment that the team, known as UNITAD, had established convincing evidence that Islamic State extremists committed genocide against the Yazidi as a religious group" with the intent to destroy the Yazidi physically and biologically.

This was manifest in the IS ultimatum applied to all Yazidis to convert or die and led to thousands killed, either executed en masse, shot as they fled, or dying from exposure on Mount Sinjar as they tried to escape, Khan said. Thousands more were enslaved, with women and children abducted from their families and subjected to the most brutal abuses, including serial rape and other forms of unendurable sexual violence that for many lasted years, often leading to death.

Khan added that crimes against the Yazidis continue, with thousands of women and children separated from their families or missing and some still with their their IS captors or those to whom they were sold.

In 2016, the U.N.-mandated Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria said the Islamic State group was committing genocide against Yazidis, and several non-governmental organizations have echoed that conclusion.

But Khan said what UNITAD has done in terms of the Yazidis is more important because the team was mandated to look at a variety of evidence that could stand up in court where the burden of proof is on the prosecution -- and to not just draw brush strokes from a survey of victims.

He said information from electronic devices that belonged to IS extremists also led UNITAD to open a new investigation into the development and successful deployment of chemical and biological weapons by ISIL in Iraq.

Evidence collected by UNITAD details how the militant group used laboratories at Mosul University as the epicenter of its chemical weapons program, drawing on the expertise of scientists and medical professionals from Iraq and abroad, Khan said.

Initially, he said, IS weaponized chlorine from water treatment plants captured by its fighters in 2014, and subsequently developed toxic lethal compounds including thallium and nicotine that were tested on live prisoners, leading to death.

IS then developed a system to produce mustard gas, also called sulfur mustard, that was deployed in March 2016 through the firing of 40 rockets at the Turkmen Shia town of Taza Khurmatu, Khan said.

Khan, who will become chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court on June 15, said this investigation is rapidly progressing, with initial results anticipated to be completed within five months. By the end of the year, he said, the team also anticipates initial results addressing crimes against minority Christians, Kakai, Shabak, Shia Turkmen and Sunni communities in Iraq, as well as the massacre of predominantly Shia inmates at Badush prison.

Khan said the next step is to use the information and evidence collected by UNITAD to meet the expectations of survivors and put it before national courts to prosecute those responsible for these horrific crimes.

He expressed hope that Iraqi legislators will adopt a legal basis to prosecute IS members for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. He welcomed legislation presented to Parliament in the Kurdistan region last week to establish a court with jurisdiction over international crimes committed by IS.

We must make sure that we dont become this archive, this library, Khan said of the team's evidence.

He said every member of the international community should feel this sense of urgency" for justice as if their own mother, father or child had lost their life or was not accounted for.

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad, a Yazidi forced into sexual slavery by IS fighters who killed her mother and six brothers, urged the Security Council to refer the genocide against her people to the International Criminal Court or establish a court to prosecute those responsible for the atrocities.

I ask you to start a new chapter -- legal accountability for ISIS crimes would dramatically impact every action of my communitys recovery, she said. It is time for the international community to do, more than listen. It is time to act. If world leaders have the political will to act on this evidence, then justice is truly within reach.
LOS ANGELES (AP)  A Southern California man with ties to the white supremacy movement is the subject of a domestic terrorism investigation, federal authorities wrote in court documents.

The probe came to light in documents filed Friday in a separate case charging Brian Thibodeau with possession of an unregistered gun silencer. The 20-year-old has pleaded not guilty in federal court in San Diego in that case and is free on bond.

The FBI told special agents from the Department of Homeland Security who were investigating the silencer that Thibodeau was facing an domestic terrorism investigation involving so-called racially motivated violent extremists, the court documents say.

The FBI said their investigation involves white supremacy and domestic terrorism movements, the court documents say, as well as online planning for possible violent attacks in the U.S.

Though there's a domestic terrorism investigation, no specific domestic terrorism law exists in the federal criminal code. That means the government must rely on other laws, such as hate crimes and weapons offenses, in politically motivated cases.

A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney's office in San Diego declined to comment on Thibodeau's case Monday. His attorney and an FBI spokesperson did not return requests for comment.

Agents executing a search warrant at Thibodeaus home in Imperial, California, in March discovered the silencer, two firearms, a kit for making an AR-type rifle and metal pipes that authorities believe might be used to make pipe bombs. They also found six cellphones, three desktop computers, a laptop and an iPad.

In addition, officials uncovered two notebooks filled with racist and Nazi phrases and drawings, as well as various racist and antisemitic documents and propaganda items, a novelty grenade and a copy of The Turner Diaries, an antisemitic novel that is popular with extremists. The search warrant also turned up a T-shirt featuring a neo-Nazi symbol, a German helmet and a black Nazi-style jacket with skull and crossbones on the collar.

The Homeland Security investigation began on March 19, documents say, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials found the silencer at the Los Angeles International Mail Facility. It was addressed to Thibodeau.

An undercover agent delivered the silencer to Thibodeau on March 26. Federal authorities searched his home  about 15 miles (24 kilometers) north of the U.S.-Mexico border  and interviewed Thibodeau about his purchase.

He told the Homeland Security agents he had ordered the part online for $25 and it had been marketed as a fuel filter. He said he was going to use it to clean his rifle, the court documents say.

Thibodeau told the agents that the FBI had come to his home a few months earlier and tried to speak with him but he refused, according to the documents. He said he believed it was related to something he had posted online but he wasn't sure. The agents later contacted the FBI, which told them of the domestic terrorism investigation.

When the agents told Thibodeau that he would face a state felony citation for the silencer, he suddenly raised his voice. He called the agents federal pigs" and said it was a waste of time, the documents say. He later apologized.

Federal authorities on Friday applied for a warrant to search Thibodeau's computers, iPad and cellphones.

If he is convicted of the federal silencer charge, Thibodeau would have to forfeit a Glock handgun, an AR-15 style rifle, nearly 500 rounds of various ammunition and several magazines.

He is scheduled to appear in court May 27 in an online hearing.
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CARACAS, Venezuela (AP)  The opposition leader recognized by the U.S. and dozens of other countries as Venezuela's legitimate leader on Tuesday proposed negotiations with the government on resolving the country's crisis and a possible gradual lifting of sanctions.

In offering to work with President Nicolas Maduro's administration toward a National Salvation Agreement, Juan Guaido said it is necessary to seek realistic and viable solutions to Venezuelas social, economic and political crisis.

His announcement through a video on Twitter follows a series of measures recently adopted by Maduros government aimed at improving relations with the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden.

Guaido said any agreement must be reached through negotiations involving the opposition, pro-government forces and the international community.

He described as essential the commitment of the international community to achieve this recovery of Venezuela and offer incentives to the regime, including the progressive lifting of sanctions imposed by the United States and other countries.

Maduro, without mentioning Guaidos proposal or referring to him by name, asked his followers not to get distracted by what the opposition leader or his other adversaries say.

In life you have to let things flow ... and what will be, will be, Maduro said during an event hours after Guaido released his proposal. Maduro added that we were not going to surrender to North American imperialism and we resisted on the entire front line where we had to resist.

The pitch from the opposition leader echoes previous proposals that did not materialize, but it comes at a time when Maduro appears open to making concessions to the U.S. government in exchange for the lifting of the crippling sanctions imposed by the Trump administration. Those restrictions have made it difficult for Venezuela to develop, sell or transport its oil  key to the economy  and they also froze personal assets held abroad by key government officials.

Maduros recent moves showing a willingness to engage with the Biden administration and international community have also diminished the profile of Guaido, who had consistently rejected negotiating with Maduros socialist government.

Last week, Venezuelas National Assembly named two opposition stalwarts, including a formerly jailed activist, as election officials, marking the first time since 2005 that the opposition will have seats on the five-person National Electoral Council. The breakthrough agreement was hatched during weeks of behind-the-scenes negotiations between representatives of the Maduro government and moderate opponents.

In April, Maduro agreed to allow the United Nations World Food Program to establish operations in the country aimed at providing school lunches. U.S. officials had been demanding that Venezuela allow such aid, which it had long resisted. He followed that agreement with the partial release of six employees of Houston-based Citgo who were jailed more than three years ago on corruption charges that U.S. officials consider unfair.

On the campaign trail, Biden called former President Donald Trumps policy of pushing for regime change in Venezuela an abject failure that has served only to strengthen the socialist leader.

Senior officials at several federal agencies have been weighing U.S. options, including whether to ease the oil sanctions and whether to support an attempt at dialogue between Maduro and his opponents, according to two people familiar with the plans. The people insisted on anonymity to discuss classified diplomatic matters.

The U.S. and about 60 other countries have recognized Guaido as Venezuelas legitimate president, arguing that Maduros re-election in 2018 was fraudulent. As acting president of the previous National Assembly, Guaido declared himself interim president in 2019.
Now that the Food and Drug Administration has cleared the first coronavirus vaccine for emergency use in children as young as 12, families are sure to have questions about the Pfizer-BioNTech shot and when it will become available. Here are some answers.

- - -

Is this vaccine the same one that has been given to millions of people 16 and older?

Yes. It is the same vaccine, at the same strength, and requires two doses.

- - -

How well did the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine work in adolescents?

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was originally authorized for people 16 and older.

In a trial of nearly 2,300 adolescents between 12 and 15 years old, half received the two-shot regimen that was shown effective and safe in adults and half received a placebo. Researchers took blood samples after vaccination and measured antibody levels triggered by the shots. They found stronger immune responses in the teens than in young adults who had already been shown to be protected in the original trial. This is a common way of investigating whether a vaccine is effective in groups of people not included in the original trial, called "immune bridging." There were 16 cases of covid-19 - the illness caused by the virus - in the trial, all of them among adolescents who received a placebo. That offered direct evidence that the shots provided strong protection against illness.

- - -

What were the side effects?

The most common side effects were similar to those seen in adults, including pain at the injection site, fatigue, headache, chills, muscle aches and fevers. The side effects tended to be somewhat more common in adolescents. For example, 63% of participants 16 and older reported fatigue, and 78% of those 12 to 15 years old did. About 14% of people 16 and over reported fevers, but 24% of younger adolescents did. Side effects were most common after the second dose. The vaccine has also caused very rare anaphylaxis reactions.

- - -

What about longer-term side effects?

Most vaccine side effects occur within two months of receiving the shots. That is why the FDA concentrated on this data when considering whether the vaccines were safe. The children in the trial will continue to be monitored for two years. However, very rare side effects are often not picked up within clinical trials. Longer-term monitoring of the safety of the vaccine will continue to track adverse events, severe cases of covid-19 that cause hospitalization or death, and cases of a serious and rare inflammatory syndrome.

- - -

When will the Pfizer vaccine be available to this age group?

Expert advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are scheduled to meet Wednesday to recommend how the vaccine should be used among 12- to 15-year-olds. If the panel of experts, known as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, recommends the vaccine for use and CDC Director Rochelle Walensky approves the recommendation - both actions are widely expected - the inoculation can be given anywhere authorized to administer the shots.

- - -

Will the vaccine be required for school entry?

It will be up to state governments to decide which vaccines are required for school entry in their jurisdictions. Dorit Reiss, a law professor focused on vaccine policy at the University of California Hastings College of Law, said a coronavirus shot would not be mandatory in schools without the vaccine receiving full regulatory approval.

- - -

Can the coronavirus vaccine be given along with other immunizations?

There is no data on how the vaccines interact with other immunizations. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), administration of the coronavirus vaccine with other childhood or adolescent inoculations - such as vaccines targeting human papillomavirus, known as HPV, or meningococcal disease - has not yet been studied extensively. There are few vaccines that pose a problem when administered with other shots. The AAP does not have a formal position on administering routine vaccines at the same time a coronavirus shot is given.

- - -

Are other companies testing their vaccines in this age group?

Moderna announced in May that an initial analysis of its teen trial found that its vaccine was 96% effective among participants who received at least one dose. Moderna is in discussions with regulators about the data.

- - -

What about coronavirus vaccines for younger children?

Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna are testing their vaccines in children as young as infants. Trials in younger children are expected to take longer because researchers must step down gradually in age groups.

First, researchers must establish a safe and effective dose, which may be lower than the dose in adults or teens. They will do this by testing different doses, first in older children, for example 5- to 11-year-olds, before moving down to 2- to 4-year-olds and children as young as 6 months. Then, they will test whether the vaccines are safe or effective, by measuring whether they trigger equivalent immune responses in children's blood. Pfizer expects to have data on children as young as 2 years old by September or October, with data from younger children expected by the end of the year.

- - -

How will regulators scrutinize the vaccines for younger children?

The FDA said it will convene a meeting of its outside vaccine experts June 10 to discuss the data needed to authorize pediatric vaccines, focusing on children younger than 12. "We recognize that the next critical step is having vaccines available for use throughout the pediatric population," Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.

"As we get down to younger children age 11 and below, different doses of the vaccine will need to be used," he said in a news briefing Monday. "There are also different risk-benefit considerations because we know that younger children have been susceptible to this interesting multi-inflammatory syndrome with covid-19, and we have to make sure we're not going to see anything untoward in the youngest children."
LANSING, Mich. (AP)  Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer threatened Tuesday to go after Enbridge's profits from a Great Lakes oil pipeline if the company defies her order to shut it down.

The Democratic governor issued the warning in a letter to the Canadian energy transport company on the eve of a state-imposed deadline to halt operation of Line 5, which moves oil through northern Wisconsin and Michigan to refineries in Ontario. Enbridge repeated its intention to defy Whitmer's demand.

A nearly 4-mile-long (6.4-kilometer-long) section of Line 5 divides into two pipes that cross the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac, which connects Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.

Whitmer, backed by environmentalists and native tribes, says the segment is vulnerable to a catastrophic spill in the cold, swirling channel. She revoked an easement last November that Michigan had granted in 1953 for the pipes to occupy the lake bottom and ordered them closed by May 12.

Enbridge insists the segment is in good condition and says its loss would cause economic damage in both countries, a position shared by the Canadian government, which filed a legal brief Tuesday in support of the company.

In her letter to Vern Yu, Enbridge's executive vice president for liquids pipelines, Whitmer said continued operation of the line after Wednesday constitutes an intentional trespass" and that the company would do so at its own risk.

If the state prevails in the underlying litigation, Enbridge will face the prospect of having to disgorge to the state all profits it derives from its wrongful use of the easement lands following that date, Whitmer said.

Enbridge argues that the state has no authority to order the shutdown because the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration oversees interstate pipelines.

We will not stop operating the pipeline unless we are ordered by a court or our regulator, which we view as highly unlikely, spokesman Ryan Duffy said. "Line 5 is operating safely, reliably and is in compliance with the law.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed a lawsuit last fall in support of Whitmer's order, while Enbridge countersued in federal court and wants the matter decided there. A federal judge is considering which court should have jurisdiction.

Nessels office said it will continue seeking a shutdown order.

We are reviewing other remedies that may be available to the state if Enbridge continues to operate the pipelines after the deadline, spokeswoman Lynsey Mukomel said.

Although U.S. District Judge Janet Neff has ordered mediation, the latest developments suggested the two sides remained deeply entrenched.

Canada's brief, filed in federal court, urged further efforts to reach a settlement.

Line 5 is essential to our energy security, said Seamus O'Regan Jr., minister of natural resources. It heats both Canadian and American homes. It supports both Canadian and American jobs.

Advocacy groups stepped up the pressure.

In Lansing, labor organizers spread 1,200 hard hats across the grounds of the Michigan Capitol, saying they represented jobs that would be lost without the pipeline. Among them were members of a union representing workers at a refinery in Toledo, Ohio.

If Line 5 were to shut down, we dont have alternatives to get our crude oil to the refinery because of where we are and the infrastructure that we have, said Justin Donley, president of Local 912. "So our refinery would likely shut down.

The Consumer Energy Alliance, a business coalition, said a shutdown would imperil 33,000 jobs and cause at least $20.8 billion in economic losses in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Pennsylvania. Environmentalists said a spill in the straits would be far more costly.

The decrepit, deteriorating and dangerous Line 5 pipeline is an ecological and public health tragedy waiting to happen in the worlds largest freshwater lakes, said Collin OMara, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation.

The Bay Mills Indian Community, which has treaty-recognized fishing rights in the Straits of Mackinac, approved a resolution Monday that banishes the underwater pipelines from its territory.

Enbridges continued harm to our treaty rights, our environment, our history, our citizens, and our culture, is a prime example of how banishment should be used, said Whitney Gravelle, president of the tribe's Executive Council. Banishment is a permanent and final action that is used to protect all that we hold dear.

Enbridge is seeking state and federal permits to drill a $500 million tunnel beneath the straits to house a new pipeline, which supporters say would remove any threat of a leak. Opponents say the project carries its own environmental risks.

___

Flesher reported from Traverse City, Michigan. AP correspondent Rob Gillies contributed from Toronto. Nichols is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  The Republican speaker of the Wisconsin Assembly last month rejected an immunocompromised Democratic lawmaker's request to be allowed to work virtually because the speaker erroneously insisted that COVID-19 can't be transmitted through the air.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and the Legislatures human resources director, Amanda Jorgenson, have each rejected requests from Democratic state Rep. Jodi Emerson to be allowed to participate in floor sessions and committee hearings from her office instead of in person, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Tuesday.

The Eau Claire lawmaker and her doctor made the request to reduce Emersons risk of contracting the virus because of a medication she takes to suppress her immune system to manage an autoimmune disease that she was diagnosed with years ago, the newspaper reported.

Jorgenson, who is in a nonpartisan staff position, rejected Emerson's request on April 4, saying, As you are aware, COVID-19 is not an airborne transmitted disease. Therefore, protection for you is based on limiting particulate exposure.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says on its website that COVID-19 can spread through airborne transmission.

I dont know what research they are reading. But COVID-19 can clearly be transmitted via airborne spread, said Patrick Remington, a former epidemiologist for the CDC and director of the Preventive Medicine Residency Program at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

It might not be the predominant mode of transmission, but it is clearly able to be transmitted via small particles through the air," Remington said.

After the Journal Sentinel reached out to Jorgenson and Vos seeking the research they used to make the statement, Emerson received a new letter April 23 from Jorgenson acknowledging that COVID-19 can be transmitted through the air.

Vos said in a statement that Emerson has been offered a number of accommodations and has yet to respond to the Legislative Human Resources Office on the matter.

Emerson, who is now fully vaccinated, has retained an attorney who wrote to Vos and said the denial violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. Vos said in 2019 that he didn't think that law applied to the Legislature, which has broad authority to set its own rules.

Vos previously refused to change Assembly rules that require representatives to show up at committee meetings in person in response to a request he denied from Democratic state Rep. Jimmy Anderson, who is paralyzed and uses a wheelchair.

Anderson recently renewed his request to be able to participate in Assembly business remotely.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  The Wisconsin Assembly passed a resolution Tuesday calling for a convention of the states to consider making changes to the U.S. Constitution, an effort backed by Republicans and opposed by Democrats.

The full Legislature in 2017 passed a resolution that allowed for calling a convention to consider a balanced budget amendment. The latest proposal, which passed 58-36 and now goes to the Senate, is more expansive.
MIAMI (AP)  Officials at Zoo Miami have been welcoming critically endangered baby Orinoco crocodiles over the past week.

The mother laid 45 eggs on Feb. 5 at the South Florida park, and they began hatching last week, the zoo announced on Facebook.

To prevent any loss due to predation or extreme weather, zoo staff collected the eggs several days after they were laid and placed them into incubators.

The hatching period is spread out over nearly two weeks because the eggs have been incubated at different temperatures, officials said. The sex of all crocodilians is determined by the temperature that the eggs are incubated at, with cooler temperatures producing females and warmer temperatures producing males.

Officials hope to return the endangered reptiles to the wild eventually. Orinoco crocodiles are found in isolated pockets of the Orinoco River basin in Venezuela and the Meta River basin in Colombia. Historical records show males can grow up to 20 feet (6 meters) in length.
BERKELEY (BCN)

The investigation continues into reports of gunfire on Thursday and Friday mornings in Berkeley, police said in a press release issued Monday afternoon.

The first incident was reported at 10:04 a.m. Thursday, when officers responded reports of gunfire on Durant Avenue, just east of Milvia Street.

When officers arrived, witnesses told them two suspects had approached another man who then ran away, and that one of the suspects fired at the man and missed. The suspects then fled the scene.

Police responded Friday to the second incident on a 1:32 a.m. report of gunfire in the 1800 block of 63rd Street. When officers arrived, they learned a theft from a nearby residence in Oakland, and that the suspects fled in a vehicle followed by the resident in pursuit in his vehicle.

When the suspects reached the area of Adeline Street and Alcatraz Avenue, they shot at the man pursuing them. The man stopped and the suspects were last seen driving fast southbound on Adeline Street in a green sedan.

Police urge people with any information about these incidents to please contact the Berkeley Police Department's Homicide Unit at (510) 981-5741.

Copyright  2021 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service covering the greater Bay Area.

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By Keith Burbank

Bay City News

MILL VALLEY (BCN)

Bay Area and world-renowned architect Art Gensler, whose firm designed the Chase Center and the Moscone Convention Center West, among other landmarks in San Francisco, died Monday, his firm announced.

He was 85. Gensler died peacefully at his home in Mill Valley.

"I like doing things that people use," Gensler said in a video in memory of his life and the firm Gensler, which survives him.

"Design to me is really a big picture attitude," he said. "How it's going to interact with your surroundings and with the people who are going to use it."

Gensler started the firm in San Francisco in 1965, with his wife Drue and James Follett, in one room with one draftsman and $200.

Now the firm is the biggest in the world, designing about the size of San Francisco every year.

"It's a very big collective of the world's best designers," said firm spokeswoman Kim Beals, and everyone contributes.

Gensler called the firm "one great family."

Gensler was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1935, and earned a bachelor's degree in architecture from Cornell University in 1958.

He met his wife Drucilla Cortell during their time in school. They married in 1957 and moved from New York to San Francisco in 1962.

Gensler started the firm by focusing on space planning and interiors, which at the time fell under the radar of most architects.

The result was interior design as a new category of practice in architecture. Also, early in his career, Gensler saw the need for a new discipline in architecture called tenant development, which is designing and building interior spaces for office tenants.

His firm developed what's become the profession's "framework for interior architectural projects," the firm said.

Gensler stepped down in 2010 as chairman of the firm and spent years giving back.

He served as a trustee for the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the California College of the Arts. He gave $10 million to Cornell University.

Gensler was a fellow of the American Institute of Architects and the International Interior Design Association. In 2016, he received a Design Futures Council Lifetime Achievement Award and was the recipient of the Cornell Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

For all the awards, Gensler said the work and the firm, was not about him.

"It never was," he said in the video. "It about who we call a constellation of stars."

"It's takes everyone to do a project," he said.

The firm is well-known for the Shanghai Tower in Shanghai, China, the world's second tallest building.

Gensler's wife died before him. They were married nearly 60 years and leave four sons and their families, including 10 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Planning for a service was underway, a firm spokesperson said.

Copyright  2021 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service covering the greater Bay Area.

Copyright  2021 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
The March 15, 1962, night shift started like any other aboard the Standard Oil super tanker Lenzen.

The ship and its crew were cutting through the waters between Guam and the Philippines. It was calm on the seas and in the skies. Above, scattered clouds floated pale across the inky blackness. About 1:30 a.m., the night watchman spotted what looked like a vapor trail high above him. When he spoke later to investigators, he said it appeared to be moving in an east-west direction. He tracked it until it passed behind a cloud. Then, something exploded.

Night turned to day as a flash lit up the deck. Crew members recalled seeing a white nucleus surrounded by a reddish-orange periphery and two large, flaming objects falling to Earth. The captain, now wide awake, hurriedly used the stars to estimate where the burning wreckage may have landed. The vessel, in hot pursuit, steamed into the night.

It wasnt until the next day the crew learned what theyd witnessed: the last probable sighting of a plane taking 93 Army Rangers to a mission so secret, its a mystery to this day.

---

There are two primary questions around Flying Tiger Line Flight 739. The first is what happened to it. The second is why it was there in the first place.

First, a bit of historical context. In the early 1960s, the U.S. was vociferously denying any serious involvement in Vietnam, while simultaneously putting its sticky, anti-Communist fingers all over the region. In 1960, South Vietnamese President Ngo inh Diem survived a failed coup that he was convinced was backed by the CIA. His suspicions werent misplaced; a few years later, he was killed in another overthrow attempt, backed by President John F. Kennedy (who, reportedly, was tormented by the assassination as he believed Diem would only be exiled).

Along with interfering at the top, the U.S. was putting a lot of troops on the ground. By 1962, they were orchestrating combat missions and deploying Agent Orange. But as the U.S. military was keeping up a charade of not actually being involved, they signed a contract with the civilian cargo airline Flying Tiger Line. Instead of military aircraft ferrying over troops, they traveled on Flying Tigers chartered planes, helmed by civilian pilots and served by civilian flight attendants. Call it a bit of plausible deniability.

John Dominis/The LIFE Picture Collection via Getty Images

Many of these Flying Tiger planes departed from Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield. And it was there that 96 passengers and 11 crew members boarded a Flying Tiger Line Lockheed Super Constellation on March 14, 1962. Among them were Master Sgt. Robert R. Glassman of San Jose, Pvt. Robert Henderson of San Francisco and flight engineer Clayton E. McClellan of San Mateo.

Ninety-three of the passengers were Army Rangers, and three were South Vietnamese soldiers. The identities of the Vietnamese soldiers are still not known. The Rangers we do know. They were from all over the nation, not one particular unit, which has led historians to speculate they were hand-picked for a special mission. Early media reports claimed the men were jungle troops, which is probably what you envisioned when imagining Rangers sent to Vietnam. But according to the 1963 Civil Aeronautics Board crash report  and the recollections of surviving family  the men were specialists in something else.

The CAB report called them mainly highly trained electronics and communications specialists. One mans mother believed he was sent to Vietnam to make a training film, a suspicion that was bolstered by a letter from his commanding officer at the Film Library Division. Electronics experts with the Rangers also assisted in a crucial espionage tactic: wiretapping. So its possible the men were headed into a simmering conflict that the CIA wanted to control, via propaganda or spying or both.

Whatever the mission, the Rangers knew it was dangerous. A number of family members remembered that their loved ones acted especially fatalistic in the lead-up to the flight. A few asked that their wives and children be taken care of. Some said flat out they didnt think they would return.

The day my dad volunteered to go, he went to my mom and said, Mommy, I think I signed my death warrant, Jane Wendell East, whose father, Sgt. 1st Class John Wendell, was on the plane, said in a statement to SFGATE. I don't know what the military said in the briefing of this mission, but I have learned that several others said the same thing.

He said, I wont be back from this, echoed Spc. Roger Olivers daughter, Kristina Hoge, in a 2003 interview with Stars and Stripes. My grandfather told him, Youll be fine. I think it haunted my grandfather.

Although their words now read like premonitions, its unlikely the men believed the flight itself would be deadly; they probably feared what awaited them in Vietnam. The flight was just the first, long step on the way there.

---

Flying Tiger Line Flight 739 was scheduled to make four refueling stops between the Bay Area and Saigon: Honolulu, Wake Island, Guam and the Philippines. The first leg took the usual 12 hours. Upon landing in Hawaii, there was a small kerfuffle with the flight attendants. The head flight attendant complained that the plane wasnt up to regulation for crew rest areas. After a 30-minute delay, another mattress was added for the crew and the plane took off.

At Wake Island, the most momentous coincidence in the lives of eight women took place. The four original flight attendants got off and were replaced by four new crew members: Christel Diana Reiter from San Mateo, Barbara Jean Wamsley from Santa Barbara and Patricia Wassum and Hildegarde Muller, both based in California. The plane set off again.

In Guam, the plane was refueled and given a routine maintenance check. It was reported that the aircraft was left unattended in a dimly lighted area for a period of time while at Guam, the incident report remarked.

The crew and passengers boarded once more and, as the hour approached midnight, set off for the Philippines. The flight was expected to take six hours, but the plane had enough fuel for nine. After takeoff, the crew made several routine radio transmissions, including asking to change their cruising altitude from 10,000 to 18,000 feet. This request was approved.

A few hours later, the tower in Guam realized they hadnt heard from the flight in much too long. They began attempting contact. Each call-out was met by silence. The crews in Guam escalated the crisis, and the Air Force scrambled planes to search the route. Ten hours after takeoff, an hour past when the plane would have run out of fuel, it was assumed they had crashed.

The chances of finding any survivors now are about one in infinity, Air Force Maj. Gen. Theodore R. Milton told the press, likely to the horror of hopeful family and friends.

The search was one of the largest in aviation history. More than 1,300 people and 48 aircraft combed 144,000 square miles. Aside from a large piece of driftwood and some tubing with no link to the plane, searchers found nothing. The plane had vanished forever.

---

In the official incident report published a year later, the Civil Aeronautics Board had few answers. The plane was airworthy, the crew was qualified, weather wasnt a factor, and protocol, other than the mattress incident, appeared to have been followed by the book. Whatever happened occurred in an instant since the plane never sent a distress signal.

A summation of all relevant factors tends to indicate that the aircraft was destroyed in flight, the report ruled. However, due to the lack of any substantiating evidence the Board is unable to state with any degree of certainty the exact fate of N 6921C.

In that absence of certainty, theories have proliferated for decades. Many believe the flight was sabotaged, perhaps in Guam where the plane was left unattended on the tarmac. At the time of its disappearance, Flying Tiger Line Executive Vice President Frank B. Lynott told the media that if the plane did indeed blow up mid-air, it would validate the companys suspicion it was tampered with.

So far as blowing completely apart, theres nothing that powerful aboard, he said. The fuel tanks just dont go off like that.

Modern Flying Tiger Line historians have pointed instead to friendly fire, suggesting the plane may have been accidentally shot down (which would help explain the militarys extreme caginess about the situation and perhaps the moving vapor trail seen before the explosion). And then theres just plain old mechanical failure. According to Bureau of Transportation statistics, there were 429 fatal accidents involving U.S. planes in 1960. Flying Tiger Line was ramping up operations in Vietnam, too, and its believed maintenance standards dropped as a result of increased demand.

About the only scenario thats been ruled out is a hijacking  it would take quite the force to subdue an entire plane full of Army Rangers.

Because the plane was chartered from a civilian company, the U.S. government and military continue to deny any knowledge of the planes fate. Over the years, records requests to the Army, Air Force, Defense Department, National Archives, State Department and CIA have yielded nothing. A historian at Travis Air Force Base told Stars and Stripes in 2003 he was upset to find no documentation in their archives about the flight.

Bettmann Archive/Getty Images

This iron wall of silence has tormented the victims families, who still live every day without answers. Theyve been repeatedly denied requests to add their loved ones names to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., as the government considers the deaths to be outside of the combat zone.

A small bit of solace comes on May 15, when the families are set to gather in Columbia Falls, Maine, to unveil the first memorial to the lost flight. The land was donated by Morrill Worcester, founder of Wreaths Across America, a nonprofit that helps fund and organize wreath-laying on veterans graves around the world. For many, it will be the first time theyve ever met other surviving family members.

Among them will be Jennifer Kirk, the niece of Spc. Donald Sargent. The day he left for Travis Air Force Base, "he just kept coming up (to his sister-in-law), saying, 'I just need one more hug before I go. I just need one more hug,'" Kirk recalled to CNN. "Then he'd go downstairs to go to the vehicle that was picking him up and he'd come back upstairs. 'I just need one more hug.'

"So he knew something, but he didn't say."
Travel destinations for California residents were limited in the past year amid the global pandemic, and for months, vacations within the state seemed to be the only option. But with the Golden State recording some of the lowest rates of COVID-19 in the country, and summer upon us, residents may start to consider destinations farther afield.

Maybe you've found yourself eyeing Airbnb rentals in Hawaii or looking at resorts in Mexico.

But how far is it safe to go? And is it safe to travel to locations where cases are surging?

The answer to that questions varies greatly, depending on whether you're vaccinated.

Experts agree that if you're unvaccinated, going to a destination where cases are rampant presents risk. Especially if you're elderly or have preexisting health conditions.

"Going around with a bunch of unvaccinated teenagers is asking for trouble," said Dr. George Rutherford, head of the division of infectious diseases and global epidemiology at UCSF.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises unvaccinated travelers visiting domestic destinations take extra precautions, including getting tested both before and after a trip. The CDC recommends delaying international travel until you can get fully vaccinated. (See the CDC's complete travel guidelines.)

If you've completed a vaccine series, expert advice differs, with some advising more caution than others. Dr. Monica Gandhi, a professor of medicine at UCSF, says you can make plans, even if you're planning to visit a domestic or international destination where the case rate is higher than in California, such as the family beach house in Oregon. (Oregon's seven-day case rate is 120 new cases per 100,000 people, compared to the Golden State with 31 new cases per 100,000 people, according to the CDC.)

"It is safe for vaccinated people to travel even to places where cases are higher because they are protected against the virus," Gandhi said.

She explained that your chances of getting COVID-19 are extremely low if you're immune. The latest CDC data tracking breakthrough infections says that out of more than 95 million Americans who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, there have been 9,245 breakthrough cases (0.01%), and of those, 6,720 were symptomatic and 835 were hospitalized.

"Not a single breakthrough infection to date has been reported to have transmitted to another," Gandhi noted.

Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious diseases expert at UCSF, advised more caution and said he would probably forgo international travel this summer unless it's essential, such as visiting a sick family member, as many countries are experiencing surges or have very low vaccination rates.

"Risks are much higher for unvaccinated individuals, with the highest level of COVID burden in the world right now and with variants that are more easily transmissible and cause severe disease," Chin-Hong wrote in an email. "Vaccinated folks should still take precautions when traveling in general."

He added that while domestic destinations are still safer than international destinations, at this point, "context matters," and he advised travelers to choose outdoor activities whenever possible.

The U.S. State Department lists travel advisories on its website for countries around the globe, and the federal government advises against traveling to dozens of countries due to the pandemic, from Austria to Costa Rica. But ultimately you can decide whether to travel to an international destination, while keeping in mind these are dynamic times amid COVID.

"Be flexible," Chin-Hong said. "Things are changing very quickly all the time and be ready to change plans closer to the planned date of travel. Travelers should look at the COVID numbers in destinations like the weather."

While the CDC site offers COVID updates for individual states and counties, you can look at the World Health Organization website for the pandemic status in countries around the world.

Rutherford cautioned that many destinations have restrictions in place and these may hinder the ease of your vacation. Before you start to think about traveling to any international destination, you should also consult the country's requirements.

"I think you have to understand what the government restrictions are," he said. "Britain, for example, still has a two-week quarantine." (Note: Britain also allows travelers to take a coronavirus test on day two and day eight of quarantining.)

What's more, Rutherford said each situation should be considered on a case-by-case basis.

He said age is one factor to take into consideration, especially with unvaccinated travelers.

"It depends on where youre going and how old you are," he said of visiting international destinations that may have higher case rates. "If youre 5 years old (an age when you can't get vaccinated), its not the end of the world," he said. "If youre 90 years old and unvaccinated, theres no way Id do that."

He said you also have to look at the background levels of disease and what you'll be doing.

"If youre going to be fly-fishing in Siberia with no one around for 400 miles, thats one thing," he said. "But if youre going to the West End of London to see shows, that's another thing. It all has to be customized."

Ultimately, Rutherford said the safest option is to stay in California, where the vaccine rollout is well underway.

"Theres lots of things to do this summer in California," Rutherford said. "Thats where you should be looking first."
Sharon, PA (16146)

Today

Mostly cloudy skies this morning followed by thunderstorms during the afternoon. High 83F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to mostly cloudy skies after midnight. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday announced more than $66 million in grants to 151 communities nationwide to assess and clean up contaminated or abandoned "brownfields''  industrial and commercial properties that contain a hazardous substance, pollutant or contaminant. An estimated 450,000 brownfields, including abandoned industrial facilities, waste disposal sites and former gas stations, plague cities, towns and rural areas throughout the country.

This is a significant opportunity for environmental justice communities and rural communities that for far too long have been living with blighted pieces of property. And now they can see on the horizon investment opportunities that will come to fruition," EPA Administrator Michael Regan said Tuesday in an interview.

About half the communities targeted for the latest EPA grants are receiving money from the program for the first time, and more than 85% are located in small communities, Regan said.

The grants really tie into what weve been saying all along, which is environmental protection and economic prosperity are not mutually exclusive, but they go hand in hand,'' Regan said.

President Joe Biden rightfully sees this as a significant opportunity, which is why the American Jobs Plan calls for an additional $5 billion investment in brownfields and Superfund sites,'' Regan said, referring to Biden's $2.3 trillion infrastructure proposal.

The plan also calls for major investments in pipes and other infrastructure for drinking water, wastewater and storm water.

We are really tying that back to this notion that environmental justice and equity will be center stage at EPA and this administration,'' Regan said. These resources will be going to the communities that need them the most.''

On other topics, Regan said the administration is working on a plan to replace a clean water rule imposed by the Trump administration, as well as a replacement for former President Barack Obamas plan to address carbon pollution from coal-fired power plants.

Regan said he wants to learn from both of the previous administrations before issuing his own rules on clean power and clean water. The water rule  sometimes referred to as waters of the United States or WOTUS  addresses federal jurisdiction over streams and wetlands and has been a point of contention for decades.

I dont believe we have to choose between good water quality ... and overly burdening our small farmers,'' Regan said. And so were going to give some careful thought to how we move forward. And we want to do it in a way where were not swinging like a pendulum back and forth every three to four years. We owe it to our stakeholders to provide them with certainty.''

Regan also said federal standards for automobile tailpipe emissions could be released as soon as this summer. The EPA and Transportation Department said last month they are moving to restore Californias ability to set its own tailpipe pollution standards.

On another controversy, Regan said EPA has received tremendous interest from scientists and other experts seeking to serve on two advisory boards he gutted soon after talking office.

Regan has said his March reset of the Science Advisory Board and Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee was needed because Trump administration appointees were overly friendly to business. He pledged his actions would return EPA to its practice of relying on advice from a balanced group of experts.

We have received a tremendous amount of interest from people all over the country who want to serve, who are highly qualified (with) diverse backgrounds, diverse cultural experiences,'' Regan said Tuesday. And so were going through that process.''

At least four experts who were fired from the advisory boards have reapplied for their positions, which include small stipends, EPA said

On brownfields, targeted projects include $800,000 to Lincoln, Nebraska, to assess and clean 11 sites, including a former Natures Variety cold storage facility, a former grain elevator and International Harvester Building. Similar grants also will go to Rochester, N.Y.; New Bedford, Mass.; and the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon.

Since its creation in 1995, EPAs Brownfields Program has provided nearly $1.76 billion in grants to assess and clean up contaminated properties and return them to productive reuse. The program has helped create more than 175,000 jobs in cleanup, construction and redevelopment.

The grants announced Tuesday include $42.2 million for 107 grants to cover brownfield inventories, assessments and community outreach; $15.5 million for 36 grants to help pay for cleanup at brownfield sites; and $8.8 million for 11 multi-purpose grants that will provide funding to conduct a range of eligible assessment and cleanup activities at one or more brownfield sites.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A group of 13 armed speedboats of Iran's Revolutionary Guard made unsafe and unprofessional high-speed maneuvers toward U.S. Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, and a U.S. Coast Guard cutter fired warning shots when two of the Iranian boats came dangerously close, U.S. officials said.

It was the second time in two weeks that a U.S. ship opened fire to warn vessels of Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard. The encounters come as the United States and Iran are in indirect talks in Vienna aimed at reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which the United States left in 2018.

Asked whether it appeared the Revolutionary Guard are trying to pick a fight with the U.S. Navy, Pentagon press secretary John Kirby declined to comment on the Iranians intentions.

Sadly, harassment by the IRGC Navy is not a new phenomenon. It is something that all of our commanding officers and the crews of our vessels are trained to for," Kirby told reporters at the Pentagon. This activity is the kind of activity that could lead to somebody getting hurt and could lead to a real miscalculation there in the region, and that doesn't serve anybody's interests."

On April 26, an American warship fired warning shots when vessels of Irans Revolutionary Guard came too close to a patrol in the Persian Gulf. That was the first such shooting in nearly four years. The Navy released black-and-white footage of that encounter in international waters of the northern reaches of the Persian Gulf near Kuwait, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

In the latest incident, Kirby said 13 Iranian vessels maneuvered at high speed toward six Navy ships that were escorting the guided missile submarine USS Georgia through the Strait on Monday. The sub was sailing on the surface. The six Navy escort ships included the guided missile cruiser USS Monterey. A day earlier, the Monterey had intercepted an arms shipment aboard a dhow in the Arabian Sea apparently headed for Yemen, whose Houthi rebels are supported by Iran.

They were acting very aggressively, Kirby said of the Iranian boats.

At one point, two of the Iranian boats broke away from the others and positioned themselves on the other side of the U.S. ship formation. The two then sped toward some of the U.S. ships. In an attempt to de-escalate the situation, U.S. crews issued multiple warnings to both groups of Iranian boats, including repeated bridge-to-bridge verbal warnings, said Navy Cmdr. Rebecca Rebarich, a Navy 5th Fleet spokesperson.

After the two Iranian boats failed to respond to the multiple warnings and closed to within 300 yards, the Coast Guard cutter Maui fired a volley of warning shots from its .50-caliber machine gun. It fired another volley when the Iranian boats got within 150 yards.

The two Iranian boats then altered course and increased their distance from the U.S. forces, Rebarich said.
To the Editor:

This week we celebrate and applaud the men and women of our police department who have sworn to "protect and serve" our community. Celebrating these exceptional people should, however, never be just a once-a-year event. Like so many who provide us 24/7/365 services, their presence is sometimes not noted, appreciated or recognized in real time. They work many times behind the scenes to assure events and just our daily activities in life are safe.

They do not make the laws but are charged with enforcing them. And a society that does not accept and appreciate the police, sheriff or troopers and constables will come apart at the seams. Those areas where police presence and intervention is most needed we see lawlessness that impacts all its residents when they are denounced and defunded.

Each day, they are charged with school security, street signs, line painting, supervising large events, traffic control, protecting contractors who work where we walk and drive, advising citizens of scams along with their general presence patrolling our streets which makes them irreplaceable. And not to mention they are usually the first person on the scene of an accident or incident, saving lives.

Each of them trains, practices and actually "run towards danger" in an emergency. They need and deserve our support. They are special people who have chosen to be our guardians. We have an obligation to not only respect and appreciate their direction and requests but to advise and teach our youngsters of how important they are to us as a society. Respect for law and order begins at home and is vital to a safer and structured society. We pray they always return home safely every workday.

Anthony F. Simonetti

Alderman, 1st Ward
By Brad Durick Get ready for some catfish shock. The forecast is everything we dont want: nice stable comfortable weather shifting right to nasty hot. Water temperatures will be rising very fast into the 70s and shocking the fish for a few days and then I suspect the spawn will be close behind. In the...
"Unflinching in our efforts, we will continue the steady supply of our vaccine," the Hyderabad-based vaccine maker tweeted.

Hyderabad: Bharat Biotech has been directly supplying its Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin to 18 states since May 1, the company said on Tuesday.

The company, however, has not come out with details of the supplies like the number of doses supplied to the states.

The company earlier said it started the supplies based on the allocations received by the Government of India.

"Requests have been received from other states, & will be processed for distribution based on availability of stocks 24x7," Bharat Biotech co-founder and Joint Managing Director Suchitra Ella had tweeted earlier.

Bharat Biotech had on April 24 announced pricing for Covaxin. It fixed the price of Covaxin at Rs.600 per dose for state governments.

However, it later slashed the price to Rs.400. This came after Serum Institute of India (SII) cut the price of Covishield to Rs.300 from Rs.400 earlier.

The two vaccine makers slashed the prices after the central government reportedly made a request to them amid the row over different pricing for the central and state governments.

For private hospitals, Bharat Biotech fixed the price at Rs.1,200 per dose. This is twice the cost fixed for Covishield.

For exports, Bharat Biotech has priced India's first indigenous Covid vaccine at $15-$20 (Rs 1,125-1,500).

Ever since the launch of Covid vaccination programme in India, Bharat Biotech and SII have been supplying their vaccines to the Centre at Rs.150 per dose.

While Bharat Biotech is likely to continue the supplies to the Centre at the same price, SII is seeking to revise this to Rs.400.

Both Bharat Biotech and SII have announced that they are reserving 50 per cent of their production capacities for supplies to the central government.
In recent times, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) promotes Jose J Kattoor as its new Executive Director (ED), states the central bank, in a statement.



Before being promoted as Executive Director, Jose would heading Bengaluru Regional Office of the Reserve Bank as Regional Director for Karnataka. He would also monitor after Human Resource Management Department, Corporate Strategy and Budget Department, and Rajbhasha Department.



Jose Kattoor has, more than a period of three decades, worked in communication, human resource management, financial inclusion, supervision, currency management, and other areas in the Reserve Bank.



Jose is a post-graduate qualification from the Institute of Rural Management, and Bachelor of Law from Gujarat University, and an Advanced Management Program (AMP) from Wharton School of Business, Pennsylvania. Alongside, he has also earned professional qualifications, including Certified Associate of Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (CAIIB).
if the people of Biafra want Republic of Biafra, it will be a reality during my administration. ----Donald Trump Donald Trump I wi...
Japanese two-wheeler maker Yamaha on Monday announced suspension of operations at its two India plants - at Kancheepuram in Tamil Nadu and Surajpur in Uttar Pradesh -- between May 15 and May 31 due to Covid-19 spread.

In a statement, the company said after a comprehensive review of the Covid-19 pandemic situation in the country, it was decided to suspend manufacturing operations at its two plants in India.

"The step has been taken to support the government in its fight against Covid-19 and break the chain of Covid-19 transmission.

In the current scenario, the health and safety of its employees is the top priority for the company," India Yamaha Motor said.

The employees working at the corporate office and area offices shall work from home to preserve business continuity while providing the best possible support to customers and business partners.

The two plants with an installed capacity of 1.75 million units per annum employ about 9,000 workers (permanent and casual). The production for domestic and export market is about 9-10 lakh per annum.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Coronavirus (COVID-19) hospitalizations saw a slight uptick on Monday as three new deaths were recorded in the borough alongside an additional 67 cases.

There were 53 total COVID-19 patients being treated within Staten Islands two hospital systems Monday, which represents a rise of four compared to Sundays total.

That figure includes 35 patients at Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH) and 15 patients at Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC), representatives from both facilities told the Advance/SILive.com.

Hospitalization levels have remained relatively stable in recent weeks, and Staten Island hospitals have recently seen significantly less COVID-19 patients compared to earlier this year.

COVID-19 hospitalizations peaked over three-and-a-half months ago on Jan. 18 at 302 patients and remained in the triple digits until late April.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***

Meanwhile, the city Health Departments Monday afternoon data indicates that Staten Islands suspected COVID-19 death toll has now reached 1,800, an increase of three since yesterday.

That total includes 1,590 borough residents with confirmed COVID-19 cases, which rose by two since one day ago.

Additionally, 210 fatalities were in the probable category. One death was added to this designation Monday.

A death is classified as probable if the decedent was a city resident who had no known positive laboratory test for the coronavirus, but the death certificate lists COVID-19 or an equivalent as a cause of death.

According to city Health Department data, the vast majority of confirmed coronavirus deaths in the five boroughs occurred in individuals with underlying medical issues.

Those conditions can include lung disease, asthma, heart disease, a weakened immune system, obesity, diabetes, kidney disease, liver disease and cancer.

People wait outside Port Richmond High School ahead of their scheduled coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine appointments Monday, Jan. 18, 2021. (Staten Island Advance/Paul Liotta)

Staten Island saw an increase of 67 new coronavirus cases on Monday, city Health Department data showed, bringing the boroughs total to 61,609.

Citywide, 773,959 total confirmed cases have been reported since the onset of the pandemic, according to the data. Throughout the five boroughs, 32,864 deaths have been logged, including 27,770 people with confirmed cases of the disease and another 5,094 listed as probable.

With respect to testing, Staten Island has maintained the highest rate of infection across the city.

Thus far, 12,938 of every 100,000 Staten Islanders have received positive results for the coronavirus, according to 2018 Census data projections and the Health Departments Monday afternoon tally.

The Bronx has the next-highest per capita infection rate. There, 10,444 of every 100,000 residents have tested positive and 149,574 total cases have been recorded.

Queens, the second-most populous borough, has tallied 226,451 total cases and has an infection rate of 9,937 per 100,000 people.

In Brooklyn, 8,852 of every 100,000 residents have tested positive for the virus and 228,626 total cases have been logged.

Manhattan has the lowest rate of infection in New York City, with 6,610 residents per 100,000 testing positive. The borough has recored 107,654 total cases.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Cops raided an apartment in Huguenot, where they allege they found a loaded gun and ammunition stored in a TV stand and illegal drugs including oxycodone, crack cocaine and Ecstasy stashed in a mud room.

Leonardo Cavicchio, 54, was arrested in the raid that occurred after he allegedly sold oxycodone pills to an undercover officer on five separate afternoons in January, March and April, according to the criminal complaint.

Police armed with search warrants searched Cavicchios black Mercedes-Benz and his first-floor apartment on the 800 block of Edgegrove Avenue on May 5 around 4:30 p.m.

Inside the drawer of a television stand in the den, police found a loaded North American Arms .22-caliber revolver with five bullets in its cylinder and a box containing an additional 50 rounds of .22-caliber ammunition, the complaint alleges.

Police also recovered two boxes of .22-caliber bullets, including 97 bullets in one package and 45 bullets in the other, inside the drawer of a nightstand, according to the complaint.

On top of a counter in the mud room, police allege they found a medicine bottle containing 36 pills of oxycodone, a tin cylinder holding three blue pills of Ecstasy, a glass tube containing 44 multi-colored pills of Ecstasy, a plastic zipper bag with rocklike crack cocaine, and a scale with cocaine residue.

Inside the sedan, which had a temporary license plate from New Jersey, officers recovered a cell phone, a drivers license, cash and five pills of the sedative Xanax, according to the complaint.

The raid was based on a Narcotics Borough Staten Island investigation.

Cavicchio has been charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance, criminal possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell, criminal possession of a weapon, criminal possession of a controlled substance, criminal possession of a firearm and criminal use of drug paraphernalia.

Bond has been set at $150,000/$100,000 for the suspect, who is due back in Criminal Court on Wednesday, according to public records.

An attorney for the defendant declined to comment.

ARREST IN 2007 STANDOFF

In July 2007, Cavicchio, who was then 40, was accused of opening fire after getting into an argument with a neighbor outside his Edgegrove Avenue home.

That alleged incident started when a younger neighbor and another man parked in front of Cavicchios house and got into an argument with him. He allegedly slashed a tire on their car, police sources said at the time, then retreated to his home.

A group assembled and confronted Cavicchio when he came back out, police said. He allegedly had a loaded gun. Witnesses said they heard several gunshots, although nobody was hit, and the group scattered and Cavicchio returned to his home, according to Advance/SILive.com archives.

Advance records indicate that Cavicchio was initially charged with attempted murder. However, he pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon and was sentenced in February 2009.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Police circulated photos of a man sought for questioning in connection with a bank robbery and another attempted bank heist at two locations on Hylan Boulevard in Grasmere.

The NYPD has identified as a robbery pattern two incidents that happened within minutes of each other around 2:30 p.m. on Monday, according to a statement from the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

In the first incident, an unidentified man entered the New York Community Bank at 1100 Hylan Blvd., where he handed the bank teller a note stating that he had a gun and demanded money, according to the police statement.

The teller refused and the individual fled the location empty handed.

The second incident occurred when an unidentified man entered the Northfield Bank at 1158 Hylan. He gave the bank teller a note stating that he had a gun and demanded money, according to the police statement.

The teller complied and the individual fled the location with $3,200, police said.

No arrests have been made in the pattern and the investigation continues on Tuesday, according to a police spokeswoman.

The NYPD released surveillance images of the man sought for questioning, taken from cameras at both banks.

Police described him as standing about 510 tall and weighing about 150 pounds. He was seen wearing a red sweatshirt, blue surgical mask and a white hat.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the NYPDs Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-8477 (TIPS) or for Spanish, 1-888-577-4782 (PISTA). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.

Police released this surveillance image of a man sought for questioning in connection with a bank robbery and attempted heist on Hylan Boulevard in Grasmere on Monday, May 10, 2021. The grainy image of the man at the teller window is from Northfield Bank at 1158 Hylan, police said. (Courtesy of NYPD)

An NYPD vehicle is parked outside the Northfield Bank branch at 1158 Hylan Blvd. in Grasmere on Monday, May 10, 2021. (Staten Island Advance/Joseph Ostapiuk)

The NYPD's Emergency Service Unit is parked outside the Northfield Bank branch at 1258 Hylan Blvd. in Grasmere on Monday, May 10, 2021. (Staten Island Advance/Joseph Ostapiuk)
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  The NYPD asked via social media for tips in an incident where shots were fired in New Brighton on Saturday.

Police responded to a Shot Spotter activation in the vicinity of Prospect Avenue and Lafayette Avenue at about 8:10 p.m. Officers conducted a canvass and recovered ballistic evidence, according to a statement from the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

No injuries were reported as a result of this incident.

No arrests have been made and the investigation continues, according to the police statement.

Police are seeking help from the public to identify the occupants of a vehicle sought for questioning in the incident. A light-colored sedan with a sunroof is shown in surveillance images posted on the 120th Precinct Twitter feed.

People with information are urged to contact the 120 Precinct Detective Squad at 718-981-2714 or the NYPDs Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-8477 (TIPS) or for Spanish, 1-888-577-4782 (PISTA). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  The NYPD is asking for the publics help identifying a man sought for questioning in connection with a reported stabbing on Friday on Bay Street in Stapleton.

A 36-year-old man reported to police that an unidentified individual used a metal object to stab him on the right side of his abdomen on Friday at about 1:20 p.m. inside 568 Bay Street. The victim suffered a puncture wound and was removed in stable condition to Richmond University Medical Center in West Brighton, according to a spokeswoman for the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

No arrests have been made and active investigation continues, the police spokeswoman said.

Police are seeking tips to locate a person seen driving a silver Dodge Charger. Photos of the car and a man sought for questioning in connection with the assault were posted on the 120th Precinct Twitter feed.

People with information are urged to contact the 120th Precinct Detective Squad at 718-981-2714 or the NYPDs Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-8477 (TIPS) or for Spanish, 1-888-577-4782 (PISTA). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Shortly after a man attempted to rob a Richmond County Savings Bank in Grasmere, a second bank location just feet away was targeted, police said.

The first incident occurred at the Richmond County Savings Bank at 1100 Hylan Boulevard just after 2:30 p.m.

An unidentified man passed a note to the teller that threatened of a firearm while demanding cash in 20 and 10 dollar bills, according to police.

The teller at that location did not comply, police said, and told the man to leave the location.

Just minutes later, at the Northfield Bank branch located at 1158 Hylan Boulevard, a man entered the location and passed the teller a note demanding money that also declared he had a gun, according to police.

The teller complied, police said, and the man left the location on foot with approximately $3,200.

The NYPD's Emergency Service Unit is parked outside the Northfield Bank branch at 1258 Hylan Blvd. in Grasmere on Monday, May 10, 2021. (Staten Island Advance/Joseph Ostapiuk)

The NYPDs Emergency Service Unit and multiple patrol cars were summoned to the scene shortly afterwards. The bank and the drive-thru were both closed after the police response.

It was not immediately clear if a firearm was displayed.

Earlier, preliminary information indicated that the man who robbed the Northfield bank was wearing a red sweater. Police said the individual seen attempting to rob the Richmond County Savings Bank was also wearing a red sweater. It was not immediately clear if they were the same individual.

The NYPD investigation is ongoing, and no arrests have been made.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  A retired NYPD officer and two current cops in the department were charged in federal court Tuesday with running a kickback scheme that netted the trio cash payments while also selling personal information of crash victims to injury lawyers and physical therapists.

Robert Smith, 44, the retired officer from Long Island, also faces charges stemming from a scheme in which he allegedly trafficked heroin for an unnamed drug organization.

In 2016, Smith and Officer Robert Hassett, 36, allegedly directed vehicles damaged in crashes to an unnamed licensed tow trucking and automobile repair business, court records indicate, instead of using the departments tow truck program that randomizes licensed companies to pick up and remove vehicles from a scene.

The pair received thousands in cash bribe payments from the unnamed business, authorities said, before they stopped their participation in the scheme in 2017.

Two years later, Smith resumed the scheme and received at least $4,000 in cash bribe payments before recruiting Officer Heather Busch, 34, to continue the venture before he retired in March of 2020, authorities said.

Hassett and Busch, both Long Island residents, are members of the NYPDs 105th Precinct in Queens. The NYPD said both officers have been suspended without pay.

As alleged, the defendants shamelessly violated their oaths of office and the public trust by trading their badges for cash payments, said Acting United States Attorney Mark Lesko. This office will vigorously pursue corrupt public servants like these defendants, who exploited their positions as police officers for personal gain.

Beginning in January, 2020, Smith and Hassett allegedly began sending the personal information of recent crash victims from NYPD databases to personal injury attorneys and physicians so they could solicit the victims as customers.

Smith and Hassett allegedly received more than $7,000 in cash payments for the personal information of more than 100 victims, authorities said. Most of the cash payments were distributed using a shared cash mailbox, prosecutors said.

Behavior like the type alleged today is a disgrace, said FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William Sweeney. It erodes public trust in law enforcement and tarnishes the reputations of the many thousands of officers who honorably serve our communities on a daily basis.

The FBI and NYPD stand together on this  our shared oath is to uphold the law and protect the public, Sweeney continued. Nobody is above the law, and we will not tolerate illegal behavior, especially among the ranks of sworn law enforcement officers.

Smith allegedly began to seek opportunities to transport illegal narcotics in the months leading to his NYPD retirement and met with two individuals to discuss interest in a scheme in June 2020. He allegedly told the individuals that he could carry a firearm and his retired NYPD identification when transporting the narcotics.

Smith met with an individual in Brooklyn the following month, court records indicate, and accepted a bag containing what he understood to be a kilogram of heroin. Authorities allege he received $1,200 in cash for the transport.

There is zero tolerance in the NYPD for corruption of any kind, said NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea. Wherever it is alleged, our NYPD investigators, with our partners in the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Attorneys Office in the Eastern District of New York, work tirelessly to ensure it is punished to the fullest extent of the law.

Smith reportedly plead not guilty to all charges Tuesday.

Buschs lawyer declined to comment. Smith and Hassetts lawyers did not immediately respond to a request to comment.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Lori Gjenashaj, a Staten Island woman shot by NYPD officers in 2018 after she allegedly brandished a starter pistol during a wild rampage, filed a lawsuit against two members of the department that is now slated to go to trial in early October.

The litigation, filed in the Southern District of New York, alleges NYPD Lt. Matthew Harrison and Police Officer Giancarlo Maratea used excessive force when they pulled her over on Grymes Hill on March 25, 2018.

Responding NYPD officers fired five shots at Gjenashaj and she was struck twice, her court filings say. Earlier police accounts said she was hit once in the shoulder. The NYPD alleged she produced a gun which turned out to be a replica loaded with blanks during the incident.

The lawsuit also alleges Gjenashaj was handcuffed, subdued and forcibly held face down bleeding in the street where she complained of pain from pressure on her back being exacerbated by a NYPD officers foot on her back.

She complained of difficulty breathing after the shooting and while she was being restrained, her filings allege.

The scene of a police-involved shooting on Highland Avenue at Howard Avenue in Grymes Hill on Sunday March 25, 2018. (Staten Island Advance/ Jan Somma-Hammel)Staff-Shot

THE SPREE

One day prior to that stop, authorities alleged Gjenashaj choked a 39-year-old woman at a school play at the Academy of St. Dorothy in Grasmere, serving as the starting point to a two-day spree that garnered her multiple criminal charges.

Gjenashaj was taken into custody at the 122nd Precinct stationhouse in New Dorp at about 11:20 p.m. on that night. She was charged with criminal obstruction of breathing and issued a desk appearance ticket, according to a police spokesman.

On the afternoon after the choking incident, Gjenashaj allegedly went to her mother-in-laws home on Nugent Avenue in Midland Beach and became embroiled in a dispute.

Gjenashaj then left the scene in a black SUV.

From there, Gjenashaj went to a home on Sunnyside Terrace of another family at her kids school, where she allegedly broke in using a brick around 12:45 p.m., sources told the Advance/SILive.com.

At the time of the break-in, the only person home was a 13-year-old boy, law enforcement sources said. Gjenashaj allegedly pulled the starter pistol on the teenager, sources said.

Shortly after, officers stopped her vehicle in the vicinity of Highland Avenue and Howard Avenue. Two officers discharged five rounds after police allege she refused to drop the weapon.

Lori Gjenashaj is shown in this file photo. (Pearl Gabel for the New York Daily News)

She was taken in stable condition to Richmond University Medical Center in West Brighton.

Her lawsuit contends that she remained there for a week before spending another 25 days at Elmhurst General Hospital in Queens.

Criminal charges lobbied against her are still being prosecuted, and she is next due in Criminal Court in St. George in mid-June.

EXCESSIVE FORCE COMPLAINT

Gjenashajs lawsuit was initially filed on May 8, 2019 and included multiple members of the department; however, Harrison and Maratea are currently the only individuals listed as defendants. Her husband voluntarily dismissed charges against NYPD officers in early 2020.

The lawsuit alleges that Gjenashaj was approached and surrounded by heavily armed police officers after she came to a complete stop and exited her vehicle with her hands up and posed no threat whatsoever to either Lieutenant Harrison or Officer Maratea.

The starter pistol, according to the lawsuit, was under the passenger front seat of the vehicle Gjenashaj was driving.

Police previously said that Gjenashaj brandished the starter pistol and refused orders to drop it.

The suit contends that the cops also knew that she was an emotionally disturbed person (EDP), adding that the officers allegedly failed to follow NYPD EDP policy. Her husband notified officers of Gjenashajs mental conditions on multiple occasions, according to the lawsuit.

Gjenashajs case also alleges Maratea deliberately left his body-worn camera at the precinct as to avoid securing video footage of the shooting.

Harrison and Maratea were both hailed for their courage and restraint during the arrest during a subsequent NYPD ceremony, and received Police Officer of the Year awards for their roles in the incident.

Jury selection in the case is tentatively set to begin on Oct. 12, court documents indicate.

The citys Law Department did not respond for a request for comment. The NYPD said both officers are active on duty.

Gjenashajs lawyer in the civil case, Joseph Stone, declined to comment.

Our client, Lori Gjenashaj, has no criminal record and, given her current debilitating health ailments, any prison term could amount to a death sentence, said Marion Elizabeth Campbell of the Legal Aid Society, the attorney representing her in the criminal case. There is still time for Staten Island District Attorney McMahon to show some compassion for Ms. Gjenashaj, whose charges stem directly from a mental health episode triggered by her dependency on pain killers  a crisis with which so many Staten Island families can relate. We hope and urge the D.A. to do the right thing in the interest of justice.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  New York City wont mandate coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines in public schools for the 2021-2022 school year, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday.

During his press conference, de Blasio was asked by reporters if the city would mandate the vaccine for students and staff for next school year. New York State announced Monday it would require college students in State University of New York (SUNY) and City University of New York (CUNY) schools get inoculated for the fall semester.

No across the board, de Blasio said, about whether the city would require vaccinations for students and staff in public schools. We are seeing extraordinary success right now in our schools, and this is before weve been able to vaccinate our kids...But no, the schools have been incredibly safe because of all the safety measures, that gold standard of health and safety measures we put together. Im really excited about the fall, I think were going to be in much, much better shape than were in now in terms of the overall COVID situation.

He added he looks forward to welcoming back every single student to public schools next school year, with health and safety measures in place. The goal for the 2021-2022 school year, de Blasio has repeatedly said, is five-day-a-week education in-person.

And there will likely be many students and staff vaccinated by then, de Blasio said during the press conference.

The decision to not mandate the shot comes after discussions with the citys health team.

We just dont think its the right way to go at this moment, de Blasio explained. Well always be led by the data and science but right now, were seeing extraordinary success and we expect that success to be sustained. And theres lots of  four months to get lots and lots of people vaccinated. I think were on the right track. If anything changes, we will certainly be open to making adjustments.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***

The city Department of Education (DOE) said last week that there is currently no mandate in place for students to get the COVID vaccine. However, the agency is encouraging all eligible students and staff to get vaccinated at one of the many sites across the city.

The DOE said it will continue to be guided by applicable local, state and federal laws.

With the exception of the flu vaccine for pre-K students, all student vaccination requirements are mandated by the state. The city mandates the flu vaccine for pre-K students.

We are thrilled that so many staff in our school communities have received a vaccine in one of the numerous sites across the city and the data shows that New York City schools are the gold-standard in health and safety, said Katie OHanlon, DOE spokesperson. We encourage all eligible students, staff and families to join the millions of New Yorkers who have been vaccinated and help lead our citys comeback.

And Catholic schools also arent currently mandating the vaccine for staff or students.

Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of New York currently do not mandate COVID vaccinations for staff or students, said TJ McCormack, a spokesman for the Archdioceses school system.

Three coronavirus vaccines  Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson  were approved for emergency use authorization (EUA) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)  which facilitates the availability and use of medical countermeasures, including vaccines, during public health emergencies, like the COVID-19 pandemic.

This means the vaccines have not received formal approval for use by the FDA.

Pfizer, previously approved for people 16 years old and over, received emergency use authorization on Monday for kids 12 to 15 years old. If the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)s health committee approves the vaccine, inoculation could begin as early as this week for this age group. And clinical trials are continuing on kids as young as 6 months old.

The other two emergency authorized vaccines available in the United States, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, are approved for people 18 and older.

SOME COLLEGES TO REQUIRE VACCINE

CUNY AND SUNY schools will require students to get vaccinated for in-person classes in the fall semester, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Monday. The SUNY and CUNY boards will require proof of vaccination for all students attending in-person classes, and Cuomo encouraged all private universities and colleges to adopt the same guidelines.

St. Johns University, which has a campus on Staten Island, told its students last month it would mandate the vaccine for students going to class in-person.

...St. Johns will require all students to be vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus, and, to provide proof of vaccination before returning to campus for the fall semester, the Rev. Brian J. Shanley, president of St. Johns University, said in an email to students last month.

Wagner College told the Advance/SILive.com last month that it hasnt made plans to mandate the vaccine for students for the 2021-2022 school year.

If a college or university requires students get inoculated, federal law requires colleges and schools to provide accommodations for those with medical exemptions, and most are also offering religious exemptions for the COVID vaccine.

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The New York Mets open a two-game series Tuesday with the Baltimore Orioles at Citi Field. A familiar face will be on the mound Wednesday for the series finale.

Former Mets ace Matt Harvey is lined up to start Wednesday for the Orioles. Harvey is in the midst of a career renaissance with Baltimore, sporting a 3-2 record and 3.60 ERA in seven starts this season.

Harvey signed a minor-league deal with the Orioles in February after playing in 2020 for the Kansas City Royals, going 0-3 with an 11.57 ERA in seven games.

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To purchase Mets fan gear, visit: Fanatics

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Harvey was an All-Star with the Mets in 2013 and finished fourth that year in National League Cy Young Award voting. He won a career-best 13 games in 2015, helping the Mets reach the World Series (which they lost to the Royals).

Injuries then derailed the 32-year-old Harveys career, with the Mets eventually trading him to the Cincinnati Reds in 2018.

The Mets (16-13) bring a five-game winning streak into their series against Harvey and the Orioles, giving them a one-game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East.

The Orioles (16-19) are in last place in the American League East, 5.5 games behind the first-place Boston Red Sox.

Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  City officials said Tuesday that the Department of Transportation (DOT) is doing everything it can to restore legally required full service on the Staten Island Ferry, but didnt offer a date before July 1.

DOT Commissioner Hank Gutman blamed the delay on having to make new hires from a limited talent pool that meets the needs of maritime regulations, and the departments additional focus on not delaying the rollout of the new Ollis-class ferries.

Around-the-clock service every half hour, which is required by a 2013 law passed by then-Councilman James Oddo (R-Mid-Island), has not been place since the early days of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The complication here is that filling these positions requires us to find people whose skill sets meet the various regulatory requirements, including the Coast Guard, he said. Its not a buyers market when it comes to people who can fill those skilled positions, so were working at it as fast as we can and its certainly our objective to do it as quickly as we can find the people.

Gutman didnt say specifically when the DOT first identified its need to hire, or when it began that process. He did say the department started urgently trying to hire to fill the needs ever since that became possible and the recovery began.

He and Mayor Bill de Blasio reiterated the mayors July 1 goal for a full reopening of the city, as when they would like to see ferry service return by. The mayor said there would be more information in the next few days.

Obviously, the Staten Island Ferry is crucial to Staten Island. Were looking at it right now as we plan on recovery, so were looking at the approach to schedule, hiring, et cetera, de Blasio said. My goal, of course is July 1 to see a full reopening of New York City, so were working towards that as we speak.

Its been over a year since the Staten Island Ferry provided full overnight service, and DOT has made it difficult to get concrete information on the subject.

Regular service was restored during daytime hours in June, as the city began to slowly reopen and more people returned to work, but overnight service, from midnight to 6 a.m., has remained on an hourly basis.

Oddo, who now serves as the Islands borough president, said Tuesday that if there really is an appropriate sense of urgency, full service would return before July 1.

The bottom line is we want the level of ferry service mandated by my Local Law as soon possible, he said. The Mayor and DOT need to do whatever it takes to get that done. This service isnt a luxury. We have been fighting that misconception for decades. So if there is a shared level of urgency this service will return sooner than July 1.

New York Citys subway system is slated to resume 24-hour service on Monday, May 17, after more than a year of overnight closures that started in late April of last year to allow for increased cleaning amid the pandemic.

Two days later, on May 19, the state will lift a majority of its ongoing coronavirus restrictions in New York City, including occupancy limits on things like retail, food services and gyms.

Last week, Gutman shared similar information with City Councilman Steve Matteo (R-Mid-Island) on the need to hire more staff before resuming full service.

We plan to have an update in the coming weeks, Gutman wrote. We are in the process of hiring additional ferry staff with proper qualifications to resolve personnel issues coming out of the pandemic.

Matteo, who shared the letter on Twitter, characterized the news as a positive step.

As our city continues its reopening, Staten Island Ferry service must be duly restored, he said. Its encouraging that DOT recognizes this and is taking steps to make it a reality.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Ranti Ogunleye has a famous last name, but has also built a name for himself through his lifetime of work on the North Shore.

His brother, Adewale, made his name on the gridiron playing as a defensive end for the Miami Dolphins, Chicago Bears, and Houston Texans. Ranti, on the other hand, made his name in the community through his activism and work as an educator.

In the crowded campaign to replace City Councilwoman Debi Rose (D-North Shore), Ogunleye is one of nine remaining Democratic candidates running in the June primaries.

Hes garnered a wide array of support, coming third in private funds raised behind Amoy Barnes and Kamillah Hanks, as of Wednesday, according to the city Campaign Finance Board.

Hes been the only candidate endorsed by the CUNY Professional Staff Congress, NYC KidsPAC, the Nigerian Socialite Club, the Muslim Democratic Club NYC, the District Council of Carpenters, the grassroots law project and the New York Immigration Coalition Action.

Hes been endorsed as a second-choice candidate by the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators behind Barnes, and by Assemblyman Charles Fall (D-North Shore) behind Hanks.

Given the crowded fields in this years City Council races, the Advance/SILive.com opted to send questionnaires to each of the candidates in this years Mid-Island and North Shore City Council races.

Here are Ogunleyes unedited responses:

What will you do to ensure your district fully recovers from the pandemic?

A full recovery in our district must prioritize the needs of community members first. Top down solutions have not served the needs of all Staten Island residents, and we lacked the public health infrastructure to support the populations that were most in need. To ensure a full recovery, I will prioritize the following actions:



Healthcare: Expanding access to public health centers in the district and building pressure for a public hospital in the 49th district is a top priority for me. Ive been told that there is no political will to get this done for the residents of this district who have been calling out for healthcare. I dont care that there isnt political will to get this done, its a priority and I will engage community members, activists, city leadership and Health +Hospitals to make this a reality. Every elected official in our borough should be engaged in this fight, and I will work to bring everyone to the table who is serious about changing the status quo.

Education: I want to expand broadband access to students in our district. There is no reason any student or family should have issues logging into school or other educational resources. Additionally, I will fight to expand the Community School Model in our schools and fund non-traditional afterschool programs like the ones that helped me grow.

Transportation: Enough is enough. The time for lip service is over - we need equitable transportation in Staten Island now! If elected, improving transportation options and decreasing commuter times will be my priority. I will fight to ensure that projects long overdue, like the North Shore BRT are completed. In the short term, we need increased ferry service times, every 15 minutes during rush hour. I will work with the city and MTA to increase bus service to areas with the lowest accessibility, and commit to a long term transportation plan that will revitalize our district.

What is your top priority outside pandemic recovery?

My top priority outside of the pandemic is ensuring that the 49th district, and Staten Island, finally receives equitable transportation. We need an all hands on deck approach - starting with the completion of projects that have been stalled for far too long.

The North Shore Bus Rapid Transit project (BRT), expanding fast ferry access, improving ADA accessibility, and pushing the city to commit to a long term infrastructure plan that includes a thorough bike share program are all priorities.

Enough is enough, the needs of our community members must be prioritized. This requires a long term investment in infrastructure in our district and I will work with community members, advocacy groups and my colleagues to make this a reality.

Ranti Ogunleye of the New York Urban League speaks to the crowd gathered at the steps Borough Hall during the "Walk of Remembrance in Honor of Youth Lost to Senseless Violence" Sunday July 13, 2008. (Bill Lyons/Staten Island Advance)Staten Island Advance

What do you see as the future of policing in New York City? What is your position on the City Councils reform package announced Jan. 29?

Our criminal legal system has subjected working people and people of color to over-policing and a racist war on drugs for generations. The incarceration rate of North Shore neighborhoods is almost twice the Staten Island and we treat poverty, addiction, and mental illness like theyre criminal offenses.

I support the City Councils reform package announced in January and I think but I think the push for reforms must continue including removing officers first-responder status for mental health emergencies.

What efforts started by Councilwoman Rose would you like to continue and what would you like to do differently?

I am also a huge supporter of her work with Participatory Budgeting. As an educator who believes in the power of youth leadership, Councilmember Rose has brought in the community intentionally, and our schools, parks, and families have benefited. I also think that Councilmember Rose has been successful in bringing additional schools to the district, and I would like to continue that effort.



On the other hand, I think there were priorities for the district that were missed, including development projects like Empire Outlets, designed to spur tourism and economic development, now being used as a vaccination site in the only borough without a public hospital.

We could have prioritized better in this area. Projects like the N.Y. Wheel and the North Shore BRT project still have not moved forward, yet construction of a BJs on protective wetlands in Graniteville is breaking ground with overwhelming council support, despite evidence that it would hurt the environmental sustainability of the area. Its time we truly focus on bringing the community to the table on these decisions in a more transparent way.

How has your prior work experience prepared you for this position?

I am not a traditional candidate. My lifes work has been in helping people elevate their voices and reach their goals. I was transformed by my experiences traveling to Croatia at 17 to learn about sustainability. For over two decades, Ive worked with the youth and families in this district and across the city. From my work as an educator with Global Kids and Adjunct Professor at CSI, to Director of the SI Urban League and the JCC Gerard Carter, Ive poured my heart and soul into caring for my community.

Ranti Ogunleye, during his work with thei New York Urban League, gives a workshop at the first annual Staten Island Black College Fair & College Lietacy Clinic at McKee HS on Saturday, Jan. 29. 2011. (Staten Island Advance/Hilton Flores)Staten Island Advance

When Covid 19 hit our communities, I became an essential worker, helping to secure and manage testing and vaccines for Stapleton residents, and when the death of George Floyd pushed youth in Staten Island to action, I was there to march and organize with them - the Young Leaders of Staten Island were formed right in my backyard. In this transformational moment for Staten Island, the community must be prioritized - their voices, needs, and ideas for solutions must be valued. Ive never been a pop up activist, and Ive never turned my back on my community. When I am elected, we will re-imagine leadership in our communities.

Do you support any of the current mayoral candidates? If so, which one and why?

Ive been watching this Mayors race very closely, and I have thought deeply about who to support. Ive connected with Shaun Donovan and Diane Morales and I think they are both qualified candidates who could improve issues in our city. Like many voters, Rank Choice Voting has created a different scenario for me, where I can consider more candidates. I look forward to unveiling my choices for Mayor in the coming weeks.

How would you like to see transit improved on the North Shore?

Equitable transportation is a priority for me. Staten Island residents suffer from one the longest commutes in the nation, and because of it, we remain a borough dependent on cars at a time when toll costs are out of control. My priorities for improving transportation include pressuring the city to complete long-stalled projects like the North Shore BRT and an expansion of Fast Ferry options.



A lack of care on the part of the city has left us without a thorough bike share program, while only 23% of Island train stations meet ADA standards. I will work with community members, advocates, and my colleagues in the council to improve transportation for residents of this borough - we pay our fair share and we deserve real access to these options.

How will you hope to ensure responsible development on the North Shore with a focus on addressing the areas infrastructure needs?

Infrastructure is key to almost every issue we face in our district. From transportation to healthcare, the gaps are enormous, and community members have been filling them for years. Its time the city steps up and proves it can be accountable to all community members - it starts with strengthening community input on the development decisions that will affect them like the ULURP process. It will also take standing up to the interests of big developers and big corporations.

Providing the community with access to its waterfront and green spaces is a priority, and should be seen as a way to economic recovery in our district. Basic things like sidewalks and safer roadways will be a priority. Staten Island residents pay higher property taxes than the rest of the city, and yet we lack basic roadway infrastructure. When I am elected, I will work to ensure that our district finally receives its fair share.

Do you hope to reinvigorate some of the more tourist-focused development? If so, how would you hope to do that?

It starts with investing in waterfront development in our district not only as access points, but as real tourist destinations. I support the creation of a Waterfront Park on par with Brooklyn Bridge Park and other examples around the city.

Part of Brooklyn Bridge Park is shown Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2017. (Tom Wrobleski/ Staten Island Advance)Staten Island Advance

Additionally, we must invest in our arts and cultural spaces along the North Shore. I am proposing that we commit to an arts expansion initiative across the North Shore to infuse our struggling industry and fuel a thorough economic recovery.

What is your position on a public hospital for Staten Island?

It should be evident why a comprehensive public hospital in our borough is needed and we can no longer have a short sighted view of this issue. This is a crisis for Staten Island residents and during a pandemic, when communities in Staten Island were among the hardest hit, we lacked the public health infrastructure to care for community members that needed it most.

All we seem to hear from leadership and from others seeking office is that Health + Hospitals will not approve this based on population and demographics. I was on the front lines securing testing and resources for residents in Stapleton, which held one of the citys highest infection rates. To date, Staten Island makes up at least 25% of Covid deaths in the city, despite being its least populated borough.

The toll that Covid-19 took on our borough, alone, should allow for provisions to be made for a public hospital, and I will work with my colleagues, city and state leadership, and Health + Hospitals to bring a public hospital to Staten Island.

Every day community members, non profit organizations, business owners, and concerned neighbors continue to fill critical healthcare gaps because we lack a public health infrastructure in Staten Island. We are currently unprepared for the next pandemic and we can no longer settle for leadership that does not move urgently on this issue.

I will advocate with my colleagues, city leaders, and Health + Hospitals to approve and construct a new public hospital in our borough. I will also advocate for additional funding for the existing hospitals, who should be receiving more funds due to the lack of a public hospital.

What is your position on the 44 Victory homeless shelter?

Though the proposed 44 Victory shelter could help address much. We must address this issue from the lens of equity, and though the construction of this shelter could help get our homeless community members off the streets, I also think that it is a band aid on a larger problem.

Photo shows construction underway on Monday, Dec. 28, 2020 for a planned homeless shelter in Tompkinsville. (Staten Island Advance/Paul Liotta)

Will it immediately address a need for short-term housing for residents in needs, yes - but what is the long-term plan for housing? This issue will need to be addressed in a more comprehensive way and I will commit to working on a long term transitional housing plan in our district.

Where would you like to see funds directed and what steps would you like to see the city take to address drug addiction on the Island?

We treat addiction, poverty, and mental health illness like criminal offenses. Staten Island suffers from one of the highest opioid addiction rates in the country, and yet we are ill-equipped to deal with addiction outside of punitive measures.

When we think about drug addiction treatment, we must prioritize rehabilitation over punishment and I will work to see funds directed towards increasing mental health centers in our district. Additionally, we must expand providers and build stronger wrap around services to keep these supports effective.
Count former New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez among those who didnt see the Jennifer Lopez-Ben Affleck reunion coming.

E! News reports A-Rod is shocked that J.Lo has moved on. ... He truly thought they would be able to make it work and reconnect. He has been reaching out to J.Lo trying to meet with her and she has been very short with him.

According to the source, Alex is saddened about J.Los reunion with the Justice League actor, so much so that hes reached out to her to let her know hes upset. As the insider summed it up, Shes not interested in rekindling anything with A-Rod and is done.

TMZ reports Lopez reconnected with Affleck, her ex-fiancee, BEFORE she ended her engagement to Rodriguez.

Its been building since February ... when he started flooding her with emails while she was filming in the Dominican Republic. Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Ben and J Lo were in very regular contact by email starting in early February when she flew to the Caribbean to begin filming Shotgun Wedding. Were told the tone of the emails wasnt just friendly ... but more loving and longing for Jen. ... Were told they continued emailing each other, back and forth, for the duration of J Los shoot ... which wrapped in late April.

TMZ also reports there was no physical contact or rendezvous between them during this time, but the emails do add context to how they seemingly got together so quickly.

********

For Yankee tickets visit: VividSeats, Ticketmaster and StubHub

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Just to set the record straight, Rodriguez and Lopez were seen together at Super Bowl LV in Tampa, Fla., which was played on February 7.

In March, the New York Post reported Rodriguez and Lopez had ended their engagement, which dated back to 2019.

Then last month, Rodriguez and Lopez announced their relationship was over in a statement to the Today show.

We have realized we are better as friends and look forward to remaining so. We will continue to work together and support each other on our shared businesses and projects. We wish the best for each other and one anothers children. Out of respect for them, the only other comment we have to say is thank you to everyone who has sent kind words and support.

Two weeks after the official announcement, Lopez was spotted in Los Angeles with the 48-year-old Affleck, with whom she was engaged from 2002 to 2004. At the time, the New York Posts Page Six reported the reunion was just friendly.

But according to E! News, the chemistry between the 51-year-old Lopez and Affleck is unreal. They picked up where they last left off and are enjoying each others company right now.

E! News also reports Lopez and Affleck were seen together earlier this month.

After the stars appeared separately at the VAX LIVE concert in Los Angeles on Sunday, May 2, they jetted off together to the Yellowstone Club in Montana, where they vacationed together for about a week, a source tells E! News. They were alone, says the source. Just the two of them.

TMZ has details of the getaway:

Ben and Jen were at the Big Sky Resort in Montana, super close to Yellowstone National Park. They were staying at the same resort and were driving around together ... They also flew out of Montana together Sunday from Bozeman, Montana to L.A. When they arrived in L.A. at the Signature Terminal at LAX, they took an SUV together and drove to her house in Bel-Air. ... A source in Montana who spotted them tell TMZ they seemed very much like a couple.

Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com.
By Mohsin Abdullah



To say the people are angry is an understatement.

Most people, that is. There are other words which can be used naturally, like incensed, furious, enraged, offended, impassioned, irate, resentful. The list goes on. But let's stick to "angry" to keep it simple, so to speak.

People are angry at the government's handling of the COVID-19 crisis or pandemic, if you like.

We don't need a detailed survey to tell us that. Just take a look at the social media platforms. That's where most of the anger is being poured out.

Surely the government knows this. But if they are not too worried, they better have a rethink and take a relook.

The people who are angry include the Malays, the working class Malay at that.

It's not that the opinion rather anger of the non-Malays do not matter. It's just that the Malay working class (together with those in the rural areas) are the very same people the government is banking on for support.

And so far a substantial number of them have been very accommodating and tolerant towards the Perikatan Nasional government, never mind the back door used to come to power.

Many of them see the Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin administration as a Malay-Muslim one. After all, the administration is overwhelmingly Malay. That made many a Malay happy, I would say. And the government itself is happy to be called Malay-Muslim government.

Now things are turning sour. No, it's not because the Malays are angry for not being able to balik kampung for Hari Raya due to the nationwide MCO announced by Muhyiddin.

Well, not per se anyway. Of course, they are made out to be a group of people who are sulking just because they cannot celebrate Hari Raya the way they are used to for generations.

OK, perhaps some are indeed sulking because of that.

But, the fact is, most of them are angry at the flip flops and U-turns of the government which have led to the MCO.

I don't think I need to spell out what the flip flops and U-turns are, as many, if not all of us, know it all too well. And the flip flops, U-turns and contradictions are continuing to a ridiculous level.

Like I said earlier, the social media platform is where people (Malays and non-Malays) are spilling out their wrath. Take a look and we can find remarks like "businesses and the public are suffering from the flip flops, inconsistencies and last-minute announcements rather than the MCO itself," said one netizen.

"If everything was planned properly, announced and executed, we won't be in this situation," said another.

And yet another netizen commented, "Malaysia could have been guided through the pandemic if there was adequate leadership."

And these remarks were made by Malays, or people with Malay names!

I agree with Bandar Kuching MP Kelvin Yii when he said it is not the restrictions that are hurting the people (read all Malaysians) and economy the most, but the uncertainty.

And I must put in this tweet by old friend Jahabar Sadiq who runs The Malaysian Insight:

"Defense Minister announces 2 new EMCO areas, widens an MCO area, ends 6 EMCO areas.

"Less than an hour later the PM announces nationwide MCO from May 12 to June 7.

Weren't they in the same meeting? What's going on?"

That tells the story. Now we see hashtag #KerajaanGagal is trending again!

And the Malays are also angry because of what they see as double standards in dishing out punishments to SOP violators.

They see VIPS, artists and celebrities getting off lightly, if at all, while the common Malays are hit hard.

And they are also not happy that the same group of people and this time including Ustaz or religious preachers free to travel interstate and attend events, not to mention minister flying to the Middle East on so-called official duties but perform the Umrah at the same time.

All this when they are instructed to stay at home!

As I was about to write this, a friend sent me a video clip of two Malay ladies ranting in anger and grief over their predicament.

Both are what you might call the average Mak Cik Kiah, working hard doing small businesses to earn income for their families.

They are among the many who sell food for buka puasa at Ramadan bazaars.

In this case, the ladies alleged they were told by the authorities they could continue operating for a couple more days. Then all of a sudden they were asked to pack off after they had set up their businesses for the day.

To be clear, this was before Muhyiddin's nationwide MCO announcement on Monday May 10.

Amidst their fury there were tears. They have spent a lot of money to carry out their businesses only to end like this.

True, Ramadan bazaars have always been viewed negatively with regards to COVID-19. However, small traders need to survive, and it is the government which has allowed them to operate.

The government wanted to help them earn their living. No doubt. But surely it should have the capability and ability to foresee the risk or potential danger before allowing the bazaars to open in the first place. Irrespective of SOPS and what not. Not that the government had not been warned.

Now the traders are being blamed. So too the people who have flocked to the bazaars.

But didn't the government say the bazaars were to generate the economy? How can that be done if people do not go to bazaars?

Then there was another video in which the voice of the person shooting it was heard saying that people should vote the government out come GE15.

Need I say he was a Malay?

In fact, such calls can be heard and seen also on social media platforms. And I read of at least one made by a Malay gentleman who prayed that Allah would end the pandemic and for GE15 to be held as soon as possible.

I don't know whom that gentleman will vote for In GE15. But one thing for sure, I know whom he won't be voting for.

(Mohsin Abdullah is a veteran journalist and now a freelancer who writes about this, that and everything else.)
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Monday 05 September, 2016 Reliable information reaching Biafra writers desk has it that the life of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indi...
London: Australian businessman Lex Greensill has issued a grovelling apology after being hauled before the British parliament but has blamed the collapse of his business on insurers.

Mr Greensill, who has refused to answer media questions about the collapse of Greensill Capital in March and has been holed up in his mansion in Englands north, made his first public comments on the matter during his appearance to the Commons Treasury committee in the early hours of Wednesday morning AEST.

Lex Greensill appears before the UK parliaments treasury committee from his home in Cheshire on Wednesday (AEST). Credit:Bloomberg

He faced a hostile grilling by MPs who accused him of being a fraudster, operating a Ponzi scheme and gaslighting taxpayers.

His appearance came as Britains regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, confirmed to MPs that it is investigating Greensill Capital, following a number of potentially criminal claims made in the media about Greensills collapse.
Imagine youre a junior ecologist about to embark on a career of research, or a politician about to dole out a wad of conservation cash, would you favour a charismatic species or one that is dull but more worthy of urgent help?

The answer, according to a new study, is that beauty is more likely to determine which beasts or botany wins favour with scientists.

A Julians Hibbertia in full flower. Pretty plants are more likely to attractive attention of researchers Credit:Wolter Peeters

International researchers with some extra time on their hands because of COVID-19 restrictions on their lab and fieldwork decided to examine the scientific interest in the south-west Alps in Europe.

The area has absolutely stunning wildflowers but also a large array of non-stunning varieties, said Kingsley Dixon, a botanist at Curtin University and one of the authors of the paper published in the Nature Plants journal on Tuesday.
This family was the first of Lottes two lives. Her father was an accountant with a fantastic memory for figures and dates, a gift passed on to Lotte, which enabled her to retell her time during the Holocaust in great detail, in time and place, facts and figures. At 11.30pm, on Sunday, March 22, 1942, Lottes life changed forever. She and her sisters were ordered by the Hlinka Guards  members of Slovakias state police, active collaborators with the Nazis  to leave their home and were torn away from their parents in a terrifying night of fear and hopelessness. This heartbreaking scene remained in Lottes memory forever, the pain indescribable. The three sisters were deported and would never see their parents and younger siblings again. On March 27, 1942, the sisters arrived at Auschwitz. Stripped, shaven, dressed in filthy Russian uniforms, Lilly, Erika and Lotte became prisoners 2063, 2064 and 2065. Transferred to Birkenau in August 1942, Lilly and Erika were both stricken with typhus and died the following month. Unbeknown to Lotte, the remainder of her family were brought to Auschwitz in June 1942 and murdered shortly after arrival.

Lotte survived Auschwitz-Birkenau through what she described as a series of miracles and luck. She was evacuated on January 18, 1945, and following transport to several camps, was liberated from the transit camp Theresienstadt by the Red Army on May 9, 1945. Lotte Weiss at the Jewish Museum in Sydney to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz, 2015. Credit:Fairfax That day her second life began. Returning to Bratislava, Lotte connected with an uncle and aunt who had evaded deportation by living on forged papers. Two brothers, Leo and Alfred (Ali) Weiss came into her life  both survivors of concentration camps. Lotte fell in love with and married Ali. Enduring mishaps, stolen passports and outrageous bribes paid, they were able to make their way to Australia and then New Zealand. They were the happiest couple in the world on August 25, 1951, when Johnny was born. As Lotte looked at her newborn, the face of her brother Karl appeared. On May 25, 1953, Lotte and Ali welcomed a brother for Johnny, Gary, feeling the same happiness, joy and gratitude to God for the beautiful gift of life.

In February 1979, Lotte was approached by New Zealand National Radio to tell her story. This was the first time she spoke publicly about surviving the Holocaust. It would not be the last. Television, radio, print media in New Zealand and elsewhere sought her out. The more she spoke, the more people wanted to hear. On June 27, 1982, after many years of ill health, her beloved Ali died. The love of her life, the father of her two sons, the husband she stood beside, left her. Thea Weiss and her mother-in-law Lotte Weiss in 2018. Credit:James Brickwood In March 1986, Lotte followed Johnny and Gary to Sydney and she immediately became involved as a guide with the Sydney Jewish Museum  a role she played for 25 years  talking for those so cruelly silenced. The Australian media soon discovered this amazing woman called Lotte Weiss who could hypnotise and educate an audience about the Holocaust, whose energy and vibrancy radiated a love of life and gratitude for everything and everyone she met.

Lottes prisoner photos taken at Auschwitz are on permanent display at Yad Vashem Museum in Jerusalem. Lotte was determined to ensure that her story would be documented so future generations would be aware of the lessons of the Holocaust. Having written My Two Lives at the age of 80 while her memory was still strong, she was delighted when her grandson Benjy had the book translated into German and supported by the president of Austria. Her daughter-in-law Thea, inspired by her book, paid tribute to Lotte through a series of art exhibitions at which she was joined by Lotte in telling the story to hundreds of visitors. A film on both Thea and Lotte, Creative Responses to the Holocaust, has been screened at film festivals around the world. Thank you, Lotte, for sharing your remarkable life, for the unconditional love you showered on your family, that despite all your suffering and great loss, you remained a person filled with hope and a belief the majority of people are good and decent, for keeping alive the stories of the horrors of the Holocaust, that we may never forget. Lotte is survived by her sons Johnny and Gary, six grandchildren, and eight great grandchildren.
The Australian government wants more students to acquire skills in foreign languages, particularly Mandarin. Yet, Australias Foreign Relations Act  the law Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne relied on to cancel Victorias memorandum of understanding with the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) on the Belt and Road Initiative  is about to make that a lot harder.

The act allows the Foreign Affairs Minister to invalidate foreign arrangements on the grounds they are inconsistent with Australias foreign policy. The minister is given free rein to decide what that is. As well as state governments, the law also applies to universities. It applies retrospectively and there is no appeal or review process.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne will decide the future of the Confucius Institutes at Australian universities. Credit:Rhett Wyman

Universities are currently approaching the end of an expensive and time-consuming six-month long reporting process, during which they had to determine if any of their arrangements with foreign institutions are with bodies that do not have institutional autonomy and register them with the Foreign Arrangements Scheme.

Already the fate of the 13 Confucius Institutes, which provide language and cultural education in Australia, has attracted attention, with speculation they could be shut down within months.
Sydneysiders have had their say on the federal governments 2021 budget as the Treasurer Josh Frydenberg splashed cash on aged care and families.

Lena Lowe, 67, from Queens Park, thinks government has long ignored the plight of retirees and pensioners.

Lena Lowe, 67, thinks the government has forgotten pensioners. Credit:Janie Barrett

One of her major concerns leading up to the budget was the under investment in aged care, having first become involved in the system when her mother entered a nursing home.

We were very lucky we could put her into a beautiful place, she said.
Four nurses have been found guilty of professional misconduct after a vulnerable Indigenous man, who took his own life in a mental health ward, was recorded in observations as sleeping because the nurses did not enter the room to check on him.

The man, given the pseudonym Patient A, took his life in a Sydney hospital some time during the night of May 26, 2017, after he voluntarily admitted himself because he had spoken to his GP about suicidal ideation. The 49-year-old, who lived in his car, had already tried to take his life multiple times that year.

After several days at the hospital, he was detained as an involuntary patient in the Acute Mental Health Unit when he said he had nothing left and would not be here in a week. On May 26, he was noted to be in a state of severe agitation.

The man was placed on level three observations, which required night shift nursing staff to observe him every 30 minutes, for risk of suicide and aggression. He was found dead in his room at 7.30am on May 27.

An inquest could not determine his exact time of death, a coroner finding he died some time between 11pm and 5.30am. This meant his body remained undiscovered for up to eight hours.
A Japanese backpacker who alleges she was assaulted after accepting massages from a NSW horse breeder while doing volunteer work on his farm told him she loved what he was doing and even offered him a happy ending, the accused man has told a Sydney court.

Gregory Richard Douglas, 68, is on trial in the NSW District Court accused of a string of sexual and indecent assaults against six young women, five of whom were foreign backpackers, who worked for food and board on his Southern Tablelands horse stud between 2014 and 2019.

Greg Douglas is accused of a string of assaults against six women volunteering on his Peelwood horse stud. Credit:Facebook

All six women, aged between 18 and 27 at the time of their stays on the farm, allege they were assaulted by Mr Douglas during massages he offered and, in some cases, pressured them to accept.

Mr Douglas, who operated the leased farm from 2014 to 2019, admitted to several massages and some sexual activity with the complainants but denied any of it was non-consensual or criminal. He has pleaded not guilty to four counts of indecent assault, five counts of sexual intercourse without consent, and six counts of sexual touching without consent.
The extended family of a Roads and Maritime Services worker was handed rigged government contracts for years in return for tens of thousands of dollars in parties, a luxury car and international flights, a commission has heard.

The Independent Commission Against Corruption is investigating what is believed to be a decade-long scheme by public servants Alexandre Dubois and Craig Steyn, who are accused of awarding more than $41 million in dodgy contracts to friends, family and acquaintances.

RMS employee Craig Steyn, pictured with wife Aleesha. Credit:ICAC

It is alleged the pair garnered close to $7 million in kickbacks from their actions, including luxury cars, school fees and international flights.

Mr Steyns first cousin Sandra Alexander appeared before the corruption inquiry on Tuesday revealing that she and her husband paid thousands in kickbacks to Mr Steyn in return for almost 10 years of government contracts.
Firefighters and paramedics were called to the work site about 9am on Tuesday. Credit:NSW Ambulance

A worker has been rescued after having a medical episode while he was suspended between 30 and 40 metres up a communications tower on Sydneys upper north shore.

Fire and Rescue NSW and NSW Ambulance crews were called about 9am on Tuesday to reports a man was suffering from a medical episode at a work site on Quarter Sessions Road, Westleigh.

A Fire and Rescue spokesman said the worker was trapped about 40 metres up the tower.

Firefighters, including rope rescue crews, worked with paramedics to rescue the man with a cherry picker-style truck.
Those arriving in Queensland who have been to Victoria exposure sites will be forced to quarantine after a Melbourne man in his 30s tested positive.

The infected man underwent 14 days in quarantine in a South Australian hotel prior to testing positive after returning to Australia from India on April 19.

Incoming passengers will be forced to self isolate or quarantine after exposure sites have been added.

Queensland Health said anyone who was at an exposure site and were already in Queensland or about to return before 1am on Thursday, they were required to call 134 COVID and immediately quarantine for 14 days since attending avenue.

Anyone arriving in Queensland after 1am Thursday 13 May who has been to a Victoria exposure site during the risk period identified is required to undertake mandatory hotel quarantine for 14 days. This is in accordance with the Interstate Exposure Venues Direction, the statement said.
Long-term Seven Brisbane newsreader Frank Warrick has died at 76, leading to tributes from former colleagues and from the floor of the Queensland Parliament.

He was surrounded by family when he died in the early hours of Tuesday, following a five-year battle with dementia.

Queensland newsreader Frank Warrick has died. Credit:Seven News, Internet

Warrick joined Channel Seven Queensland in 1976, in a 40-year career in television. He retired in 2001.

His long-term on-air partner, Kay McGrath, described him as a consummate professional wholl be much missed.
Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley has demanded the federal government agree to the states plan for cabin-style quarantine to avoid further outbreaks. I dont think I have enough toes and fingers to count the number of times that weve seen the virus leak out of hotel quarantine right across the country, he said. The man in his 30s tested positive for coronavirus a week after he had returned to his home in Wollert in Melbournes north from Adelaide, where he had been quarantining in a CBD hotel after departing India via the Maldives and Singapore. The mans three household contacts all tested negative, Mr Foley said. Genomic testing is still under way to confirm the source of his infection, but chief health officers on both side of the border suspect he caught it while staying at the South Australia quarantine facility.

I think it is absolutely the case he picked it up in quarantine in South Australia, said Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton. Workers in protective gear prepare to deep clean a Woolworths at Epping Plaza on Tuesday after it was listed as a tier 1 COVID-19 exposure site. Credit:Penny Stephens The man arrived in Victoria after serving his quarantine on May 4, developed symptoms on May 8 and got tested on May 10, returning a positive result on Tuesday morning. Professor Sutton said health authorities did not believe he was infectious on his flight to Melbourne from Adelaide on May 4. Loading

He said it was a good early sign that the mans close contact had not yet tested positive with COVID. On face value the flight is unlikely to be something to chase up, Professor Sutton said. We think the onset of symptoms was the 8th, so infectious 48 hours prior to that. However, he warned that with the evolution of the virus and variants of concern emerging overseas, health authorities must be open to all possibilities. Victorias COVID-19 response commander, Jeroen Weimar, said health authorities believe there are a number of people who were at the CBD restaurant on Friday but did not use the QR code system to check in, who may need to isolate and get tested. Mr Weimar said restrictions would be considered if evidence emerged of further cases in the community, such as at the mans workplace, which he identified as the TIC Group.

A chorus of public health experts and groups have been calling for alternatives to hotel quarantine to be established nationally, arguing the facilities are ill-equipped to control transmission. Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton addresses the media about a new coronavirus case in Victoria on Tuesday. Credit:Penny Stephens Speaking before the federal budget was unveiled on Tuesday evening, Mr Foley called on the Morrison government to fund the state governments plan for a 500-bed quarantine facility in Mickleham, 29 kilometres north of the CBD. There is example after example of the leakage out of hotel quarantine that continues and this would appear to be another example. Mr Foley said the government had made a considered proposal for a purpose-built quarantine site in Mickleham, and although the state was asking for Commonwealth funding, Victoria was prepared to run the facility.

There have been at least 11 outbreaks from hotel quarantine in Australia since December, a number of them thought to have occurred when virus particles have escaped the rooms of infected guests. University of South Australia epidemiologist Professor Adrian Esterman said this new case of coronavirus showed quarantining returned travellers in hotels was not working. We have been saying for months and months they have got to sort this out, the former World Health Organisation adviser said. They [the federal government] are just dragging their feet. There are constant leaks, yet nothing is happening. They can build a mining camp in weeks so there is no reason they couldnt build a new hotel quarantine system in four or five months.

South Australia has been considered by experts to have one of the better hotel quarantine systems. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video However, Professor Esterman said he was only aware of ventilation audits being undertaken at Toms Court, a medical hotel in South Australia where returned travellers who test positive to the virus are housed. He said it was unclear whether the same standard of air quality audits checks conducted at Toms Court were completed at the Playford Hotel, where the Victorian man quarantined. Loading

South Australias Chief Public Health Officer Nicola Spurrier earlier confirmed the Victorian man could have been exposed to coronavirus in quarantine, as another guest who had been staying adjacent to him at the Playford Hotel tested positive to COVID-19 on the day the Victorian man was released. I think its very evident now that the virus can be, transferred through smaller droplets  and that these droplets may hang around in the air for a period of time. The other possibility is that the man was exposed to coronavirus before he arrived back in Australia and had an extremely long incubation period, something that Professor Spurrier said was not out of the question. Associate Professor Paul Griffin, director of infectious diseases at Mater Health in Queensland, said it was far more probable the man was exposed to COVID during his final days in quarantine, rather it being a case of a long incubation period. Fourteen days is really at the upper limit of the incubation period and while it is possible the incubation period can go for longer that would be really quite unusual, he said.

The infectious diseases physician backed calls for a purpose built quarantine facility, warning Australias hotel quarantine system was being tested more and more. The difficulty is there is no perfect system, he said. There is no system that would completely alleviate the risk. South Australia conducts coronavirus tests for hotel quarantine guests on days one, five, nine and 13 of peoples stays, and on all of those occasions, the Victorian man tested negative.

Australian Medical Association vice president Chris Moy, who lives in South Australia, said the state had been quicker to accept and act on the risk of aerosol spread of COVID-19 than most parts of Australia, following Adelaides Parafield cluster last year. That outbreak infected 33 people and plunged South Australia into lockdown. The issues with hotel quarantine are becoming very worrying in recent times, Dr Moy said. Hotels were never really designed for this and so youre starting to see the cracks developing in the walls. We really need to start looking at options for quarantine for the longer term, and then we really need to focus on vaccinating as many people in Australia as fast as possible. Several states have introduced new rules for travellers arriving from Victoria since the new case was detected.
Cassie Turner had little idea what to do after she gave birth to her first child.

She comes from a broken background with little parental guidance growing up, so becoming a mother was at times a bewildering experience.

The early childhood support program in Benalla has proven life-changing for Cassie Turner and her four-year-old daughter Airlie. Credit:Justin McManus

I wasnt given the foundation of anything, the Benalla mother-of-four said. There was no parental connection. I lacked the basics of a strong family group.

But Ms Turner found support and direction in Benallas Parents Early Education Partnership (PEEP), which provides regular sessions on childhood developmental stages and parenting skills ranging from discipline strategies to healthy sleeping routines.
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Watch our economics experts Ross Gittins, Jessica Irvine and Shane Wright, in conversation with National Editor Tory Maguire as they examine the 2021 federal budget and what it means for Australians and the national economy.

This virtual live event took place on Wednesday, May 19. Thanks to the readers who participated in the discussion by leaving our panel a question.

You can now view the event on demand below.
The oil and gas industry says the federal government is risking jobs and the economy by waging a levy on the industry to cover the estimated $250 million cost of decommissioning an offshore production vessel that fell into public ownership.

The federal government was forced to take ownership of the Northern Endeavour production vessel, permanently moored 550 kilometres offshore from Darwin in the Timor Sea.

Resources Minister Keith Pitt will impose a levy on the oil and gas industry to recover the cost of decommissioning an offshore oil and gas rig. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer

The vessels owner, Northern Oil and Gas Australia, was barred from production in 2019 by safety regulators and entered liquidation.

Decommissioning the Northern Endeavour has been estimated to cost $250 million and Resources Minister Keith Pitt said in December last year taxpayers should not foot the bill.
Victoria has missed out on federal funding for two signature passenger rail projects but will benefit from billions of dollars more in GST revenue, with the payments expected to exceed pre-pandemic levels.

As Australias economy roars back to life, Tuesdays budget has delivered a cash windfall. The states GST entitlement is expected to be $6.4 billion higher in 2021-2022 than estimated in last years budget.

The Andrews governments planned Suburban Rail Loop. Credit:

Over the four years from 2020-21 to 2023-24, the estimated amount of GST to be paid to the states was revised up by $26 billion since last years budget in October.

Victoria is forecast to receive 24 per cent of the GST carve-up in the 2021-22 financial year before dropping slightly over the forward estimates. The extra figure amounts to just over $6 billion over four years.
Two medical technology companies are the first businesses to sign on to the NSW governments post-pandemic payroll tax relief program, committing to create 280 jobs over the next four years.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced the $250 million program in November last year to lure domestic and international businesses to move their headquarters to NSW and create at least 30 new jobs.

Baxter Healthcare and biotechnology company Speedx will both expand their business operations in NSW, with Speedx planning to relocate its global headquarters and manufacturing plant from the US to Sydney.

Minister for Jobs Stuart Ayres, Speedx chief executive Colin Denver and Baxter Healthcare general manager Steven Flynn. Credit:Nick Moir

Speedx specialises in molecular diagnostics and Baxter Healthcare manufactures intravenous medical fluids.
First published in The Sydney Morning Herald on May 13, 1971



Cambodia again for Kate Webb

Captured reporter likes the country

Kate Webb, the Sydney journalist held captive for 23 days by the Vietcong, will go back to Cambodia.

Kate Webb faces the microphones at Kingsford Smith Airport yesterday. May 12, 1971. Credit:Staff photo

Miss Webb, 28, chief of the United Press International bureau in Phnom Penh, returned to Sydney yesterday.

Dressed in cream jeans, white shirt, white socks and desert boots, she had two war souvenirs  a traditional Cambodian leather thong tied high on her right arm and an Army-issue, jungle-green carry-all.
Blackshear, GA (31516)

Today

Sunshine and clouds mixed. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 94F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy. Low 71F. Winds light and variable.
Moscow: At least seven students and two school employees have been killed and many others wounded after a gunman opened fire in a school in the south-western Russian city of Kazan, according to the regions governor.

Children could be seen leaping from the third floor of the four-storey School Number 175 as gunshots rang out, in a video filmed by an onlooker that was circulated by state news agency RIA Novosti.

FSB and special rapid response unit officers with a service dog at School Number 175, where a gunman opened fire. Credit:Yegor Aleyev/TASS via Getty Images

Rustam Minnikhanov, governor of the Tatarstan republic which has Kazan as its capital, said on Tuesday that four boys and three girls in the eighth grade died in the shooting. One teacher and an employee of the school whose job he did not specify had also died, and more than 20 people were wounded. The wounded ranged in age from seven to 62.

RIA reported earlier that a total of 11 people had been killed in the shooting, citing local emergency officials. There was no way to immediately reconcile the differing death tolls.
Jerusalem: A day of upheaval at the holy sites of this contested city quickly widened into a night of warlike violence on Tuesday as hundreds of rockets from the Gaza Strip resulted in the deaths of at least two Israelis and retaliatory air strikes killed at least 22 Gazans.

Clashes also broke out in the West Bank between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers, as well as between Jewish residents, Israeli police and Arab citizens in Arab-Israeli towns and mixed Jewish-Arab towns, leading to hundreds of arrests and at least one Palestinian fatality.

Smoke rises after an Israeli air strike in Gaza on Tuesday. Credit:AP

The armed exchanges, the worst eruption of violence between Israel and Palestinians in recent years, continued into a second day as security officials braced for fighting to escalate even further. Schools in several parts of Israel were closed.

Air-raid sirens sounded every few minutes in towns where many Israelis had already passed the night in bomb shelters. On Tuesday afternoon, more than 200 rockets struck southern Israel within the span of an hour, including in the Israeli coastal city of Ashkelon, just north of Gaza, according to media reports. At least four members of a family were reported injured when one rocket hit an eight-storey apartment building.
Gaza City: Israel unleashed new air strikes on Gaza on Tuesday, hitting the high-rise home of a Hamas field commander and two border tunnels dug by militants, as Hamas and other armed groups fired dozens of rockets toward Israel.

Since sundown on Monday (Tuesday AEDT) when the cross-border fighting erupted, 24 Palestinians - including nine children - were killed in Gaza, most by air strikes, Gaza health officials said. The Israeli military said 15 of the dead were militants. During the same period, Gaza militants fired more than 200 rockets toward Israel, injuring 26 Israeli civilians.

A man carries his child to safety as Israel launches air strikes over the Gaza Strip. Credit:Getty

This was preceded by hours of clashes on Monday between Palestinians and Israeli security forces, mainly in Jerusalem but also across the West Bank. More than 700 Palestinians were hurt, including nearly 500 who were treated at hospitals.

The current violence, like previous rounds, was fuelled by conflicting claims over Jerusalem, home to major holy sites of Islam, Judaism and Christianity. The rival national and religious narratives of Israelis and Palestinians are rooted in the city, making it the emotional core of their long conflict.
The incoming rocket fire was so relentless that Israels Iron Dome rocket-defence system seemed to be overwhelmed. There appeared no imminent end to the violence. UN Middle East peace envoy Tor Wennesland tweeted: Stop the fire immediately. Were escalating towards a full scale war. Leaders on all sides have to take the responsibility of de-escalation. The cost of war in Gaza is devastating & is being paid by ordinary people. UN is working w/ all sides to restore calm. Stop the violence now, he wrote.

Into the early hours of Wednesday morning, Gazans reported their homes shaking and the sky lighting up with Israeli attacks, outgoing rockets fired by Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and Israeli air defence missiles intercepting them. Israelis ran for shelters or flattened themselves on pavements in communities more than 70 km up the coast amid sounds of explosions as interceptor missiles streaked into the sky. Israel said hundreds of rockets had been fired by Palestinian militant groups. In Tel Aviv, air raid sirens were heard around the city. For Israel, the militants targeting of Tel Aviv, its commercial capital, posed a new challenge in the confrontation with the Islamist Hamas group, regarded as a terrorist organisation by Israel and the United States. The violence followed weeks of tension in Jerusalem during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, with clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian protesters in and around Al-Aqsa Mosque, on the compound revered by Jews as Temple Mount and by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary.

These escalated in recent days ahead of a  now postponed - court hearing in a case that could end with Palestinian families evicted from East Jerusalem homes claimed by Jewish settlers. For Israel, the militants targeting of Tel Aviv, its commercial capital, posed a new challenge in the confrontation with the Islamist Hamas group, regarded as a terrorist organisation by Israel and the United States. Jewish nationalist demonstrators looking at a barrage of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip toward central Israel, in the Israeli town of Ramla. Credit:AP The violence followed weeks of tension in Jerusalem during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, with clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian protesters in and around Al-Aqsa Mosque, on the compound revered by Jews as Temple Mount and by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary. Hamas  seeking the opportunity to marginalise Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and to present itself as the guardians of Palestinians in Jerusalem  said it was up to Israel to make the first move.

The militant groups leader, Ismail Haniyeh, said in a televised speech that Israel had ignited fire in Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa and the flames extended to Gaza, therefore, it is responsible for the consequences. Haniyeh said that Qatar, Egypt and the United Nations had been in contact urging calm but that Hamass message to Israel was: If they want to escalate, the resistance is ready, if they want to stop, the resistance is ready. If they want to escalate, the resistance is ready, if they want to stop, the resistance is ready. Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas leader The White House said on Tuesday that Israel has a legitimate right to defend itself from rocket attacks but applied pressure on Israel over the treatment of Palestinians, saying Jerusalem must be a place of co-existence. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki opened her daily news briefing with a statement about the situation, saying that President Joe Bidens primary focus was on de-escalation.

She said the United States condemned rocket attacks by Hamas and other groups, including attacks on Jerusalem, and that Bidens support for Israels security, for its legitimate right to defend itself and its people, is fundamental and will never waver. Jerusalem, a city of such importance to people of faith around the world, must be a place of co-existence, Psaki said. US officials in recent weeks have spoken candidly with Israeli officials about how evictions of Palestinian families and demolition of their homes work against our common interests in achieving a solution to the conflict, Psaki said. Biden has sought to rebalance US policy toward Israel and the Palestinians after his predecessor, Donald Trump, sided with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on all fronts.

A senior administration official said Biden and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas recently completed an exchange of letters that began when Abbas sent Biden a letter congratulating him on winning the 2020 election. Biden sent a response recently. We wont share details of the letter. This is part of this administrations ongoing outreach with the Palestinian leadership on a range of issues of mutual interest, including ongoing efforts to de-escalate violence and restore calm, the official said. A house is heavily damaged after it was hit by a missile fired from the Gaza Strip. Credit:AP Psaki said the United States wants a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a goal that Trump did not aggressively pursue, saying it was the only way to ensure a just and lasting peace between them. We believe Palestinians and Israelis deserve equal measures of freedom, security, dignity and prosperity, she said.

Loading The United States was delaying UN Security Council efforts to issue a public statement on escalating tensions because it could be harmful to behind-the-scenes efforts to end the violence, according to diplomats and a source familiar with the US strategy. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source said Washington is actively engaged in diplomacy behind the scenes with all parties to achieve a ceasefire and was concerned that a council statement might be counterproductive at the moment. Israel said it had sent 80 jets to bomb Gaza, and dispatched infantry and armour to reinforce the tanks already gathered on the border, evoking memories of the last Israeli ground incursion into Gaza to stop rocket attacks, in 2014. More than 2100 Gazans were killed in the seven-week war that followed, according to the Gaza health ministry, along with 73 Israelis, and thousands of homes in Gaza were razed.

Video footage on Tuesday showed three plumes of thick, black smoke rising from the Gaza block as it toppled over. Electricity in the surrounding area went out. Residents of the block and the surrounding area had been warned to evacuate the area around an hour before the air strike, according to witnesses, and there were no reports of casualties two hours after it collapsed. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Credit:AP People in other blocks reported that they received warnings from Israel to evacuate ahead of a possible attack.

In Tel Aviv, air raid sirens and explosions were heard around the city. Pedestrians ran for shelter, and diners streamed out of restaurants while others flattened themselves on pavements as the sirens sounded. The Israel Airports Authority said it had halted take-offs at Tel Aviv airport to allow defence of the nations skies, but later resumed them. Video broadcast on Israeli Channel 12 television showed interceptor missiles rising above the runways. The International Committee of the Red Cross urged all sides to step back, and reminded them of the requirement in international law to try to avoid civilian casualties.

The recent rockets in Israel and air strikes in Gaza represent a dangerous escalation of the tensions and violence witnessed over the past days in Jerusalem, including its Old City, Fabrizio Carboni, ICRC regional director for the Middle East, said in a statement. Israels Magen David Adom ambulance service said a 50-year-old woman was killed when a rocket hit a building in the Tel Aviv suburb of Rishon Lezion, and that two women had been killed in rocket strikes on the southern city of Ashkelon. But the Israeli military said many of the rockets fired from Gaza had fallen short and wounded Palestinians, and that Israels Iron Dome air defences had intercepted the bulk of those that made it across the border. Violence has also ticked up in the occupied West Bank. Israeli troops shot dead a Palestinian and injured another on Tuesday after they shot towards Israeli troops near the Palestinian city of Nablus, Israeli and Palestinian officials said.
PHILIPSBURG:---

The late Hubert Benjamin Hughes passed away on Friday, May 7, surrounded by his family. His political career began in 1976, where he was first elected to the House of Assembly and served as Chief Minister of Anguilla on three occasions. Hughes was a great friend of the St. Maarten people.

On behalf of the Council of Ministers, I extend my deepest condolences to the government, the people of Anguilla, the friends and family of the former Chief Minister of Anguilla, Mr. Hubert Hughes. Anguilla and the rest of the Caribbean have lost a dedicated public servant whose legacy will be cherished throughout the region for generations to come," stated Prime Minister Jacobs.
Somerset, KY (42501)

Today

A few showers early with scattered thunderstorms arriving for the afternoon. High near 80F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Variably cloudy with scattered thunderstorms. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
The number of cyber-attacks on companies, governments, and individuals has been consistently rising in recent years, with global ransomware attacks increasing significantly in 2020, up 485% in compared to 2019.

Tackling cybersecurity and protecting key critical infrastructure is key to national security, and the quick pivot to remote working during the COVID pandemic has seen even the most prepared organisations face new security challenges, with cybercriminals quick to take advantage.

This is highlighted by research that reveals CEOs are more concerned than ever about cybersecurity vulnerabilities, up to 91% from 80% last year. Alarmingly, nearly 80% of senior IT and IT security leaders believe their organisations lack sufficient protection against cyber-attacks, despite the fact that they have increased investment in security over the past 12 months.

Mitigate cyber threats

Highlighting the growing need for cybersecurity readiness and the complex environment security professionals are now operating in, the newly launched International Cyber Expo will open its doors at Olympia, London from 28-29 September  providing invaluable opportunities for face-to-face networking and a chance to discover the latest thinking and solutions designed to mitigate cyber threats.

Co-located with the International Security Expo, two industry events under one roof will provide attendees with the perfect platform to identify the very latest technology and services to protect the digital and physical future.

Attendees

Aimed at Government officials, cyber policymakers, export leaders, and CISOs from around the world, the event will help improve the security and resilience of national infrastructures and business continuity with representatives from the Communications, Energy, Utilities, Finance, Government, Health, and Transport sectors all in attendance.

Game-changing products

Attendees will meet more than 50 exhibitors as they demonstrate their products and innovative solutions

With game-changing products and services on display, attendees will meet more than 50 exhibitors, including Tripwire, Jacobs, Dencrypt, 3M, and Ascentor, as they demonstrate their expertise in Network Protection, Industrial Systems, Endpoint Security, Managed Services, Apps, Mobile Security, Identity & Access Management, Cloud Security, Threat Intelligence, Disaster Recovery and more.

Product demonstrations will be staged in the Product Innovation Theatre, where leading brands launching products and services will showcase their innovative solutions.

Live cyberattack demonstration

Live demonstrations will also take place in the Live Cyber Attack Demonstrator, in association with CrisisCast. Bringing realistic, informed, crisis management and disaster incidents to life, CrisisCast will partner with leading International Cyber Expo exhibitors to deliver a highly immersive, real-time cyber-attack on an eminent retail chain.

Incorporating hi-tech stage and film techniques, visitors to the exhibit will be able to see and understand the psychology and motivating factors behind the attack from two perspectives at once  the attackers and the entitys boardroom.

Protection from malware attacks

Elsewhere on the show floor, Cyber Griffin will present its award-winning Decisions and Disruptions tabletop exercise designed to explore the decisions that people make in real-life scenarios to protect their businesses from modern-day threats.

Fully immersive teams will put to the test as they respond to both hacking and malware attacks, in addition to physical security threats.

Professional training

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) certified training will offer participants a chance to see first-hand how cybersecurity can affect an organisation's turnover, reputation, and regulatory fines while highlighting how cyber and physical security impact each other.

Global Cyber Summit

The Global Cyber Summit will showcase current and future threats will be put under the spotlight

Offering exclusive insights into the most pertinent industry trends, the event will also host the Global Cyber Summit where current and future threats will be put under the spotlight.

Running over two days, the programme will see a range of globally renowned experts share their knowledge and expertise on a range of topics from serious organised cybercrime, state-sponsored hacking, ransomware attacks, protecting critical national infrastructure, and more. All sessions are CPD-certified and a full programme for the two-day high-level summit will be announced in the coming months.

Backed by professionals

Ensuring the event has a laser-like focus on the issues facing us now and in the future, an impressive panel of 27 renowned industry experts have joined the International Cyber Expo Cyber Advisory Council and will share their experiences and knowledge with the show organisers.

Chaired by Professor Ciaran Martin, former CEO of the National Cyber Security Centre and professor at Oxford University, the panel also includes Richard Benham, Global Expert in Data Management, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Cyber Security, Foreign and Commonwealth Office; Paul Chichester, Director of Operations, National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC); Lisa Ventura, CEO & Founder, UK Cyber Security Association (UKCSA); and Henry Pearson, Cyber Security Ambassador, and UK Defence and Security Exports, Department for International Trade (DIT), UKDSE.

Engaging in cybersecurity solutions

Professor Ciaran Martin, the former CEO of National Cyber Security Centre, commented, In this year of all years, keeping the cybersecurity community together is more important than ever. Continued engagement across the industry and between industry and Government, and with friends and partners across the world, is what will keep us safer as we grow ever more dependent on technology and the events industry is vital to this.

I am delighted and honoured to be asked to chair the Cyber Advisory Council and look forward to supporting, adding value, sharing knowledge, and shaping the future of these essential cyber events.

The event will provide insights and solutions to improve the security and resilience of business and critical infrastructures

Cybersecurity awareness

International Cyber Expo, Event Director Rachael Shattock said, With growing investment and awareness of cyber capabilities, never has there been a more important time to understand the convergence of the physical and cybersecurity sectors, and the solutions required to help security professionals protect our nation and secure our networks.

With unparalleled insights from our Cyber Advisory Council, our event will provide exclusive insights and the latest solutions to improve the security and resilience of business and critical infrastructures.
The Enterprise Chamber of Commerce Christmas Parade Committee has announced that the 2021 Enterprise Christmas Parade will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 30, with a rain date of Dec. 2 at 6:30 p.m.
Just so the public is aware, Councilwoman Sonya Rich told those attending the Enterprise City Council meeting May 4. What we approve, or not approve, is the street closure.

What Rich, who served as city council president at the May 4 meeting in the absence of Council President Turner Townsend, wanted to specifically clarify, she said, is that the chamber of commerceand not the city councilis the decision maker on what day the annual Christmas Parade is held.
Becky Gerritson outlines how a bill becomes a law in Alabama at the Republican Women of Coffee County meeting April 21.
Weather Alert

...HEAT CONTINUES TODAY WITH HEAT INDICES OF 95 TO 100 DEGREES... The heat wave will continue today. Temperatures will be in the 90s again, but humidity values will be a bit higher than the last few days with heat indices of 95 to 100 degrees. Drink plenty of fluids. Stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. People and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances.
Medford, NJ (08055)

Today

Sunshine and clouds mixed. High 81F. Winds E at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies this evening will give way to occasional showers overnight. Low 61F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
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TIRANA, Albania (AP)  Albanias prime minister expressed his determination Monday to remove the president from his post, claiming he has embarrassed the country.

Prime Minister Edi Rama said President Ilir Meta should be discharged. Ramas Socialist Party has accused Meta of violating the constitution by taking political sides in an election last month.
STRATHAM, N.H. (AP)  A fire destroyed a barn at a New Hampshire farm that has been the backdrop for political events for Republican presidents and candidates through the years.

The fire burned down the largest barn at the Scamman Farm in Stratham. The fire broke out a little after 10:30 p.m. Monday. Fire crews from numerous towns responded. The cause of the fire is under investigation, the Stratham Fire Department said.
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP)  New Mexico's state government will receive $1.75 billion in pandemic relief from the federal government under the economic recovery plan from the Biden administration and Congress, the U.S. Treasury Department announced on Monday.

New Mexico is eligible to receive its entire state allotment of flexible federal aid immediately, because its unemployment rate has risen above federal thresholds during the pandemic.

The Treasury Department provided new detailed guidance on how states and local governments can spend the relief, under the $1.9 trillion pandemic relief law signed by President Joe Biden earlier this year. The law contains $350 billion of flexible aid for state and local governments, plus billions of dollars more for particular programs such as housing assistance.

Unlike past coronavirus aid, states have broad leeway to use the money to plug budget holes, address the economic impacts of the pandemic and invest in certain infrastructure.

Specifically, the guidance on Monday allows states to replenish unemployment trust funds to pre-pandemic levels. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and the Democrat-led Legislature both have signaled an interest in using a large portion of relief funds to rebuild the states unemployment fund, a move that would stave off future tax increases on businesses.

The Unemployment Insurance fund remains a top priority, as does supplementing lost revenue for state agencies, in addition to focusing on behavioral health, broadband, and the recovery of economic drivers like the tourism and hospitality industry, Lujan Grisham spokeswoman Nora Meyers Sackett said Monday. The state is committed to distributing funds equitably and ensuring that the hardest hit communities receive the support they need.

State Sen. George Munoz of Gallup, a lead budget negotiator in the Legislature, said the conversation about the relief spending should focus on restoring economic stability and state income before the money runs out  a challenge when a single coronavirus infection still can suspend classroom attendance and prompt quarantines.

Use it wisely, use it correctly and make sure state revenues come back before you expend it all. ... That's my advice," he said.

At the same time, Lujan Grisham and the legislative leaders are engaged in a standoff over which branch of government has spending authority over new relief from the American Rescue Plan Act.

Lujan Grisham in April vetoed the Legislatures proposal for about $1.1 billion in federal relief spending, including a suggested $600 million for the states unemployment fund and $100 million toward college scholarship programs.

The Democratic governor said in her veto message that the Legislature lacks the authority to tell her how to use the money. Leading legislators continue to assert their authority over federal money flows though the state general fund.
Children ages 12 to 15 will start getting vaccinated this week, and though experts say preventing transmission of the coronavirus is one of the main reasons to inoculate children, serious COVID-19 infections have occurred among this age group.

The exact number of children infected and hospitalized with COVID-19 is unknown since data is collected for broader age groups, but doctors at Connecticut hospitals said pediatric cases have occurred throughout the pandemic.

We've had over 30 children in that age group admitted to the hospital since the beginning of the pandemic, said Tom Murray, associate medical director for infection prevention for Yale New Haven Children's Hospital. Unfortunately, about a dozen of those have been admitted to the intensive care unit. And a handful of those have actually required a breathing tube.

On Tuesday, Connecticut officials announced 409 new COVID-19 infections with 2.77 percent of the total tests performed in the previous 24 hours coming back positive.

Nine fewer patients were hospitalized patients, bringing the statewide total to 271. Two more people in Connecticut died with COVID-19, increasing the total to 8,156 fatalities since the start of the pandemic.

Statewide coronavirus infection data does not specifically track children ages 12 to 15, who will now be able to get the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine after federal approval this week. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also does not track data specific to this group.

Of the 343,954 total COVID-19 cases identified in Connecticut, nearly 41,000 are among patients between the ages of 10 and 19 years old. There have been three deaths associated with the disease in that age group.

A spokesperson for the state Department of Health said Connecticut infection data on children ages 12 to 15 was not available.

Hospital officials statewide say the number of children that age in need of medical treatment due to COVID infections have not been as high as among older residents. However, they say the vaccine will provide some much-needed protection.

Yes, we certainly have seen kids in this age group hospitalized with COVID, said Jody Terranova, assistant professor of pediatrics at UConn and director of the Burgdorf Health Center Pediatric Clinic in Hartford. While children in general are at lower risk from COVID, they are not at no risk. Just like we see in adults, children with underlying conditions such as obesity and asthma are at higher risk and otherwise healthy kids have also become severely ill and can have long-term effects from the illness.

Vaccinating this age group will not only protect them at an individual level but also help prevent spread in the community, she said.

Doctors associated with Nuvance Health, which runs Danbury, New Milford, Norwalk and Sharon hospitals among other facilities in Connecticut and New York, have cared for children within that age group who have COVID-19  the severity of illness ranging from asymptomatic and mild to symptomatic, with fever, cough, gastrointestinal illness, headache or loss of taste and/or smell, Nuvance spokesperson Sarah Colomello said.

Vaccinating children ages 12 to 15 is a tremendous opportunity to help return life to something approaching normalcy, said Dr. Frank Illuzzi, medical director for specialty services in the Fairfield Region at St. Vincents Medical Center in Bridgeport.

Children in this age bracket want to get back to school. They want their lives back, Illuzzi said. For that to happen, he said, vaccination is essential.

Though children in this group are infected with COVID-19 less frequently and not as severely as adults, Illuzzi said they do get ill.

While its uncommon, I dont think its fair to say its rare that kids get very sick, Illuzzi said. Weve definitely seen 12- to 15-year-olds get sick.

Murray said younger patients tend to display different symptoms than their parents and grandparents.

The older the child is, the closer it gets to the adult presentation, he said. In general, in kids, they can have more GI symptoms, more nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and then as you get into the even younger kids, you get a higher proportion that are asymptomatic or have very, very mild symptoms.

There is also a concern over multisystem inflammatory syndrome, known as MIS-C, which Colomello said is a hyper-inflammatory response with rare but serious symptoms such as respiratory distress, heart problems, low blood pressure and shock.

According to the CDC, there have been as many as 49 cases of MIS-C identified in Connecticut since the start of the pandemic.

Even in the last few weeks, we've had several cases admitted to the hospital with that syndrome, Murray said. It's a post-COVID complication, it typically occurs around three to six weeks after COVID. It can involve the heart and a variety of other organ systems, the belly, the kidneys. We have continued to see cases of that throughout the pandemic.

Whether the vaccine will prevent or ameliorate the symptoms from MIS-C remains unknown.

We hope that that's true, but we're really not going to know until the vaccine is administered to a large number of children, because it's a very rare complication, Murray said. The studies with kids so far were about 2,000 kids, 1,000 of whom received a vaccine. That is just not nearly enough kids to see if it will have an impact on the MIS-C, but certainly, we're hoping that it does.

There is also the issue of transmission. Children ages 12 to 15 do get sick from a coronavirus infection, though not at the same rates as adults, and they are very good at transmitting disease, experts said.

When they do get sick, they are transmitting the disease, Illuzzi said. They are reservoirs for it.

Children that age tend to spread disease very well, Murray said. Their bodies are almost as developed as an adult body.

Some of it has to do with your ability to send your infected droplets into the air. When a 15-year-old coughs, it can be an adult cough, he said. When a 3-year-old coughs, it tends not to be as forceful.

As for whether or not children ages 12 to 15 will get vaccinated, Howard Forman, a professor of radiology and biomedical imaging at Yale School of Public Health, said on Twitter that signs are positive.

Roughly one-third of all 16- and 17-year-olds have received at least one shot, despite a late start in access, he tweeted. This bodes well for expanding access to 12 to 15-year-olds.

Staff writer Amanda Cuda contributed to this story.
STAMFORD  A second man was charged with murder Tuesday in the 2018 shooting death of a 16-year-old boy.

John Gotti Montero-Delossantos, 21, of Stamford, was arrested on charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder Tuesday afternoon in connection with the fatal shooting of Marcus Hall.

Hall was shot multiple times on the night of Sept. 20, 2018, in the area of 62 Pequot Lane, police said. The killing of the Westhill High School student and aspiring skateboarder left the West Side community shaken to its core.

Last week, police arrested Isaias Delacruz on charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder and carrying a pistol without a permit in connection with the 2018 slaying.

Investigator Louis Burdi said in the warrant for Delacruzs arrest that police used surveillance footage, witness testimony and anonymous tips to help build the case against the two men accused.

Multiple witness accounts place Delacruz and Montero-Delossantos in the area of the Southwood Square Complex, also known as the Village, on the night Hall was killed, Burdi said in the warrant.

Security camera footage in the area of the complex helped police identify a small white sedan with a distinctive dark-colored gas cap door and dark-colored rims as a vehicle of interest, Burdi said.

Officers tracked down the vehicles owner, who confirmed picking up Delacruz and Montero-Delossantos on the night of the shooting and taking them to the Southwood Square Complex, the warrant said.

The witness told police that the two then disappeared for about 20 minutes, then returned and asked her to drive in the opposite direction, the warrant said. The witness said she had no knowledge of the shooting, the warrant said.

This witness account was corroborated by at least three other individuals and video surveillance from the area, the warrant said.

One witness told police that Montero-Delossantos had even pulled out the gun allegedly used in the murder during a hangout and bragged that it had been used in the killing of Hall, the warrant said.

Montero-Delossantos is in the custody of the Connecticut Department of Corrections and is currently serving a prison sentence on an unrelated drug conviction.
In the next several days, there will be a couple of opportunities to become engaged in the future of Pier 42. Back in November of 2011, the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. set aside $16 million for the future development of the pier as a park. Coming up on Sunday, the Parks Department and State Sen. Daniel Squadron (who helped secure the government funding) will lead community members on a tour of the pier, which includes an abandoned shed and a parking lot.

In addition to the tour, there will be an opportunity to discuss interim uses for the area. Several organizations, including Hester Street Collaborative,would like to stage cultural and community oriented programs on the pier, as a way of reclaiming a space that has been underutilized for so many years. The visioning for the park and its construction will be a very long process, and a lot more money will be necessary to make the project a reality. Sundays tour begins at noon at Pier 36 (Montgomery Street).

Then on Thursday October 4, Community Board 3 Parks Committee will meet to discuss the Pier 42 plan. That session will take place at the Hamilton Fish Recreation Center, 128 Pitt Street, at 6:30 p.m. The Parks Department has hired a consultant to work with the community on the project, and to assess the condition of the pier. The rehabilitation of East River Park (just above Pier 36) took more than a decade because (among other reasons) that section of the waterfront was on the verge of collapsing. City officials believe Pier 36 is in better condition but they wont no for certain until the consultant conducts a thorough examination.
Milton, PA (17847)

Today

Sunshine and clouds mixed. High near 85F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies this evening. Increasing clouds with periods of showers late. Low 61F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
Kathryn Jean Lopez is senior fellow at the National Review Institute, editor-at-large of National Review magazine and author of the new book A Year With the Mystics: Visionary Wisdom for Daily Living. She is also chair of Cardinal Dolans pro-life commission in New York. She can be contacted at klopez@nationalreview.com.
A new mayoral administration, of course, means the winds of change are blowing through City Hall. During his inauguration yesterday, Mayor de Blasio promised to put an end to economic and social inequalities that threaten to unravel the city we love. But in at least one city agency with a major Lower East Side project on its plate, the new mayor has decided to stay the course.

As the clock ticked down on 2013, de Blasio chose to reappoint Kyle Kimball, a Bloomberg holdover, as president of the NYC Economic Development Corp. (EDC). The EDC is the lead agency overseeing Essex Crossing, the large mixed-use project coming to the Seward Park redevelopment site on Delancey Street.

The Observers Politicker blog called the decision an eyebrow raising choice given the fact that de Blasio framed his liberal candidacy in opposition to Mayor Michael Bloombergs economic vision. According to the story, de Blasio responded somewhat testily when asked about the KImball appointment:

Ive set forth an exceedingly clear, aggressive, progressive agenda. Its there: black and white. Its the exact same one I put forward in the primary and the general electionit aint changing, he stated. Mr. de Blasio, arguing he would only appoint people in line with his own values, earlier hailed Mr. Kimballthe second Goldman Sachs alum to join his teamas someone who would spearhead job growth in the emerging tech sector, the outer boroughs and spur far-reaching developments like the Kingsbridge Armory in the Bronx. I needed someone who understood how to get the work done, who had the values and an ability to put those values into action, Mr. de Blasio said of Mr. Kimball. Hes been doing it with great distinction.

According to the Epoch Times, Kimball singled out the Lower East Side project as the type of initiative he would seek to foster during his tenure:

Kimball said he would work to implement development projects authored by the community, what he called contextual development. He cited the Seward Park Mixed-Use Development Project as one initiated by the local community where the EDC got involved to help implement a community designed project.

In September, the city awarded a contract to three development firms for the Seward Park site. Groundbreaking is expected in the spring of next year.
Hazleton, PA (18201)

Today

A mix of clouds and sun. High around 80F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. Low around 55F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph.
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St. Petersburg, FL (33711)

Today

Isolated thunderstorms during the morning hours, then skies turning partly cloudy during the afternoon. High 87F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Mainly clear skies. Low 77F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph.
Tuesday, 11 May 2021 19:17:41 (GMT+3) | Sao Paulo

Several Chilean associations filed an appeal over a court decision allowing a Chilean $2.5 billion iron ore project to be evaluated at an environmental regulator, SteelOrbis has learned.

The associations, including an NFO and a fishermen union, appealed to cancel the decision of Chiles environmental court in Antofagasta, which unanimously voted to allow the Chilean Environment Commission in the Coquimbo region to re-evaluate the Andes Iron-owned Dominga iron ore project.

The regional assessment commission is expected to re-evaluate the Andes Irons impact study for its $2.5 billion iron ore project. The project, known as Dominga, has suffered a number of setbacks and is pending court approval.

The $2.5 billion project aims to produce up to 12 million mt of iron ore per year. As previously reported by SteelOrbis, Andes Iron expected to commence construction works in the site this year. Due to a number of setbacks, Andes Iron admitted it would give up a port it expected to develop near the proposed Dominga mine, so it could move on the iron ore project.

Local environmental regulator SEA was the first to reject the project in March 2017. Then, a Coquimbos environment commission had also banned it. In August 2017, a minister council kept the project ban. Since then, Andes Iron had been appealing the case.
Monday, 10 May 2021 15:08:00 (GMT+3) | Istanbul

In March this year, Turkey's total hot rolled coil (HRC) exports increased by 272.7 percent to 219,709 metric tons compared to February and were up 51.1 percent year on year, according to the data provided by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK). These exports had a value of $146.39 million, up 279.1 percent month on month, while increasing by 104.0 percent compared to the same month of 2020.

In the January-March period of this year, Turkey's HRC exports amounted to 387,512 mt, down 38.0 percent, while the value of these exports decreased by 14.8 percent to $244 million, both compared to the same period of 2020.

In the first three months of this year, Italy ranked first among Turkey's HRC export destinations, with its HRC imports from Turkey amounting to 129,485 mt, down 54.67 percent, followed by Spain which received 78,780 mt of HRC from Turkey in the given period.

Turkey's top HRC export destinations in January-March are as follows:

Country Amount (mt) January-March 2021 January-March 2020 Y-o-y change (%) March 2021 March 2020 Y-o-y change (%) Italy 129,485 285,654 -54.67 104,223 66,317 57.16 Spain 78,780 100,671 -21.75 55,015 28,221 94.94 Tunisia 30,232 7,330 312.44 3,769 4,529 -16.78 South Africa 20,114 - - - - - Pakistan 18,068 - - - - - Bulgaria 17,890 17,836 0.30 6,135 1,892 224.26 Algeria 17,739 8,269 114.52 - - - Portugal 14,233 25,060 -43.20 14,233 5,149 176.42 USA 14,173 8,174 73.39 14,173 - - Greece 9,796 21,063 -53.49 - 7,869 -

Turkey's main HRC export destinations in January-March are as follows:
Israel's ambassador to Romania, David Saranga, believes that amid the rising anti-globalization trends, the role of multicultural societies must be strengthened, report agerpres.

"Despite the past, with both good and terrible times, this bridge between people has shaped a strong relationship between Israel and Germany. Now that anti-globalization and anti-immigration currents are on the rise, we need to strengthen the role of diverse and multicultural societies. History has shown us the abyss and horror humanity can fall into. Instead of perpetuating hatred, we need to build friendship bridges between generations, religions, cultures and communities," David Saranga said on Tuesday at the inaugural session of the project '1700 Years of Jewish History and Culture in Germany (321-2021)'.

"The story of the German Jews is a special one, with ancient roots that must be taken further, a story dating back to the fourth century, as it appears in a decree issued by the Roman emperor Constantine, which allowed Jews to hold public office, a story marked by coexistence, prosperity, but also by humiliation and destruction, which has shaped the German culture and society," said the ambassador."Both German and Jewish identities were assimilated, a manifestation that sometimes led to divergent attitudes and intellectual movements, ranging from radical assimilation to Zionism. A German presence was projected on the outside, while the Jewish lifestyle was maintained in their homes. Not every time their integration process has been fully accepted by German society. Over the centuries there have been numerous attempts to destroy the Jewish community," the diplomat went on to say.He noted that despite the "brutality of history", Germany is now "home to one of the most vibrant Jewish communities" in Europe.David Saranga said that the new generations continue to share a sense of belonging to German society and culture, as many young Israelis visit Berlin and other cities out of the need to reconnect with the place where their ancestors lived.In the opinion of the diplomat, every German city has a rich Jewish heritage, which allows a special connection between the two peoples.
Several associations in the show industry request the involvement of President Klaus Iohannis, through an open letter, for the speeding up of the granting of state aid and the elaboration of a coherent plan for reopening, report agerpres.

"No support scheme was implemented for cultural operators, although there has been talk for a long time of such schemes. The last variant of schemes disappeared from public discourse on March 18, 2021, when the Culture Ministry's website published an article, optimistic in character, that promised a final debate and the introduction of the scheme in the PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan). Since then no news, no public communication. There is no coherent plan for the reopening of cultural events and activities, plan that would be based on predictability, although the cultural sector demands it and is working actively on it for several months. We do not know what Romania's plans are to ensure the saving, protection and relaunch of the cultural and creative sectors," the document mentions.

"Although 14 months have passed since the beginning of the pandemic and, although, with great delay, at the end of last year support schemes worth 100 million euro were announced for the cultural sector, these schemes are not functional even today, and their budgetary source was never confirmed. We were explained repeatedly that there are no resources in the state budget to finance support schemes. Meanwhile, the Culture Ministry managed to allot a record sum (nearly 11 million euro) for the organization of the "George Enescu" Festival. This gesture, absolutely salutary to reconfirm the importance and value of the Enescu Festival, becomes, however, in the current context also a symbol of inequitable, preferential treatment, proving lack of understanding on the part of the state regarding the real mechanisms and needs for the functioning of culture," the letter shows."Mr. President, to work in Romania in the cultural sector has always been difficult, but this becomes all the more humiliating and all the more harder as time passes, the pandemic persists and the sector is still ignored until mockery. Nobody claimed from the authorities any preferential treatment or measures that would compromise the fight against the pandemic. It is not the pandemic itself, but the way that we have been and are treated by the Romanian state that has brought us all to the end of our wits. We feel discriminated and wronged, and each passing day that goes by without the authorities intervening in the support of the sector wipes away the effort of thousands and thousands of people who, despite the conditions that they conduct their activity in, have done important performances in the domain," the letter also shows."Thus, we appeal again to you, Mr. President, to take a public position regarding the situation the cultural sector is in and to intervene with the competent authorities in view of speeding up the two measures that the cultural sector desperately needs: state aid and a coherent plan for reopening," the representatives of the cultural sector also write.The letter is signed by AROC - the Romanian Association of Concert and Cultural Events Organizers, together with the MUZE Association - the Association for Theater, Film, Music and Dance, ALIS - the Association of Workers in the Show Industry, PaCTE - the Events Equipment Companies Owners' Association and dozens of other entities representing the cultural sector.
The courier company Cargus has opened a standardized and modern warehouse in southeastern Buzau, following an investment of 500,000 Euro, according to a press release on Tuesday.

"We want to extend in an efficient and agile way, and the warehouse in Buzau is another step towards that direction. Its main advantage is the fact that it does not offer a bigger storage space, but modern logistics instruments through which couriers can quickly load and unload vehicles. As such, our clients' packages are processed much more efficiently. Thus, even the couriers have to gain from this investment, optimizing routes and being more productive each day, as well as our clients from the area, through a high shipping standard," Diana Gheorghe said, the chief operating officer for Cargus.

The warehouse in Buzau has an operational surface of 1,385 square meters, to which 280 square meters add for offices. Due to the ramps and drive-in type gates, the warehouse has a cross-docking model which allows the processing of a large array of weights and volumes and allows for a much quicker loading and unloading of vehicles.

The structure also includes a Ship & Go point, the Cargus concept created as an integrated option for home delivery for clients. In the new format, the incorporated Ship & Go point in the warehouse offers clients a unified image for the services done by Cargus, from pick-up to delivery.

Recently, Cargus also announced a 2.25 million Euro investment for equipping couriers with Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) devices, which will facilitate the activity and will reduce shipping times.

Cargus expanded throughout its 30 year activity, having currently over 5,000 employees and collaborators, who offer courier services to individuals as well as to legal entities through a national network of 56 Ship & Go centers, where clients can pick-up or deposit packages to be delivered, 5 national sorting centers, 51 operational centers and a team of over 2,450 couriers who carry out over 40 million deliveries per year.

At the start of 2019, Cargus was taken over by the Mid Europa Partners investment fund, one of the largest active investors in Romania. Cargus registered last year a growth of 20% of sales volume and made investments worth 12 million Euro, reports agerpres.
Clearfield, PA (16830)

Today

Partly cloudy skies this morning will give way to occasional showers during the afternoon. High 82F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Overcast with showers at times. Low 62F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
National Defence Minister Nicolae Ciuca welcomed on Monday, at the National Defence Ministry (MApN) headquarters, his Polish counterpart Mariusz Blaszczak, one of the topics discussed aiming at developing cooperation in the field in bilateral format, in regional context, as well as within the North Atlantic Alliance and the European Union.

The Polish Minister of Defence is in Romania in the context of participating in the B9 Summit, taking place in Bucharest.

"The two officials appreciated the importance of this year for our countries, 2021 marking the centenary of the conclusion of the Romania - Poland Defensive Security Alliance. In this context, the Defence Ministers discussed the joint steps taken to highlight the importance of the Strategic Partnership, including bilateral activities in the field of military history, conferences and round tables dedicated to the military relations between Romania and Poland in the interwar period as well as other cultural and scientific events," reads a release of the National Defence Ministry sent to AGERPRES.During the talks, Ministers Ciuca and Blaszczak addressed topics of common interest on the NATO and EU agenda, in the context of the two organisations' reflections on the future of the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO 2030), in preparation for the NATO Summit in June, as well as drawing up the Strategic Compass, at the level of the European Union.The two officials agreed on the usefulness of ensuring a complementary approach to the two processes and, in an extended context, of strengthening the level of cooperation between the two organisations, on issues of common interest."Romania and Poland are linked not only by a long and lasting friendship, our countries are permanently connected by efforts to consolidate the security of NATO's eastern flank and to strengthen the position of deterrence and defence. In today's meeting we highlighted the importance of continuing involvement in our joint projects, namely the coherent approach of the advanced allied presence in the region and the consolidation of the mutual contribution to the multinational structures hosted by the two allied states. Only together we can face the challenges!," said Minister Nicolae Ciuca.On the sidelines of the bilateral talks, the two ministers also participated in the inauguration of the exhibition dedicated to the Centenary of the Romania-Poland Alliance (1921-2021) at the Ministry of Defence, and the Polish Minister of Defence awarded decorations to representatives of the Ministry of National Defence.
Deputy Prime Minister Dan Barna said on Monday in connection with a possible run for President of Romania in 2024 that if the incumbent Government is successful, he will be in a position where this option "will be on the table, otherwise, the chances will be "quite small."

"Let's take things in a natural logic. At the moment, I am a deputy prime minister of the Romanian government and my goal is for this vaccination campaign to be successful and for this government to get Romania out of the pandemic and to put it on a path to growth and economic stability. Depending on the performance of the government, we will also talk about future candidacies, if any. In the short term, this year, we have an incoming convention of the USR PLUS Congress [Save Romania Union - Freedom, Unity and Solidarity Party ] where I want to continue," Barna told Digi24 private broadcaster when asked if he intends to run for president.

He said that if the government is not successful, the chances of having a credible candidacy will be "quite small.""Pragmatically, if this government is successful, I will be in a position where the option will be on the table. If this government and the governance I am part of and my performance are not successful, I say that the chances of having a credible candidacy will be quite low. And then, that's why I say: I don't want to talk about 2024 at this moment, because not only me, we - Romania, the government, the coalition - have two more years ahead in which some important things need to happen for the country, afterwards we will also talk about bids for the presidency of Romania," added Barna.He also said that he wants to continue as part of the USR PLUS project.
The bear shot in Ojdula - Covasna County, in a suspected case of trophy-hunting, was harvested 22 days after the issuance of the derogation order, and the hunt was preceded by three weeks of monitoring during which the animal was followed entering yards or coming close to the locality, Minister of Environment, Waters and Forests Barna Tanczos told a press conference today, report agerpres.

"The investigation teams have completed probing in the case of the Ojdula bear hunt. The main conclusions of the three enquiry reports by the National Environmental Guard, the National Environmental Protection Agency and the Forest Guard are as follows: the hunting association applied for the harvesting of several animals, in three files, two of which were rejected (...) One of the important findings of the probing teams refers to the period the monitoring is carried out after the shooting approval has been issued until the harvest time. This period is currently of 60 days and we have decided that for all subsequent orders, from now on, it shall be shortened to 15 days. Another decision for the case of harvesting troublemaking animals is to allow nobody else to do the shooting but the specialized technical staff. We thus eliminate any possibility to detour the action from its initial purpose. The bear was harvested on March 13, 22 days after the issuance of the derogation order, by an Austrian national. (...) According to the documents verified by the Forest Guard, he had a hunting license, a gun license and from this point of view the law was respected," said Tanczos.

The Minister added that up until now, no monitoring reports have been found with any institution under the authority of the Environment Ministry or the former custodians regarding the existence of the bear known as Arthur."Until this information was published in the media, the Ministry had no information about the existence of Arthur the Bear, however certainty exists regarding the harvested specimen. DNA samples were requested from the shot bear that will be sent to the 'Marin Dracea' National Institute for Forestry Development and Research. In order to have a reference to compare these DNA samples to, we will request information from those organizations that had the possibility or did bear monitoring. This way we could remove all doubts about Arthur's existence. We will also request photos or any other document to compare them with the picture in the animal extraction file. I would very much like this trophy to reach the Posada Hunting Museum. The trophy is in the country. According to the law, these trophies cannot leave Romanian territory, so that the Ojdula bear trophy is still available to the hunting association. As to allegations that this male bear would be the biggest in Romania, scoring 593 points, as far as I know, the bear hit by a car near Sovata [in 2019] was worth 620 points," the Minister said.Asked if he knows how Prince Emanuel von und zu Liechtenstein came to hunt in Ojdula, the Environment Minister replied that he must "certainly have a connection with the hunting association in question, because otherwise he couldn't have been present at the extraction of that bear".Romanian environmental NGO Agent Green and Austrian NGO VGT condemned in a press release last week the killing this March, by Prince Emanuel von und zu Liechtenstein, of the brown bear they called Arthur, in an act of trophy hunting.Environmental activists claim that in fact the prince did not kill the troublemaking female bear that was supposed to be extracted, but a male that lived deep in the wild and had never come near human settlements.The National Anticorruption Directorate announced on Tuesday that it has opened a criminal case investigating in rem acts of abuse of office in the case of the recent killing of Arthur the Bear.Romania's bear shooting case has also come to the attention of the authorities in Brussels, with European Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevicius stating on Monday - as cited by politico.eu - that he is looking into reports from several NGOs about the Liechtenstein prince shooting a 17-year old bear in Romania.Prince Emanuel von und zu Liechtenstein, a part-time doctor who lives in a castle in Austria, issued a statement on Friday denying that he had shot Arthur, but rather had downed a different "problem animal" that had been cleared to be killed by Romanian authorities and was 250 meters from inhabited houses. The prince also said he offered his full support to the investigation, adding there had been "false reports and agitation" since the news broke, Austrian media report.According to Agent Green, the brown bear is a species strictly protected under EU law and the Berne Convention, and waivers to shoot an animal are issued only in exceptional cases, after a thorough assessment of the specific situation, and the lethal method is only a last resort, when alternatives (including relocation) have all failed and the problem bear is endangering human lives and households.
Germany's ambassador to Romania, Cord Meier-Klodt, declared on Tuesday that the project titled "1,700 years of history and Jewish culture in Germany (321-2021)" proposes to send a message of multiculturalism and understanding among peoples, report agerpres.

He said during the inaugural session of the project named "1,700 years of history and Jewish culture in Germany (321-2021)" that this anniversary is celebrated in Romania as well, from at least three reasons.

Jewish life unites us. We have a very long common tradition of Jewish culture in our countries. (...) Because 1,700 years of Jewish life represents a strong symbol of culture and civilization's victory upon barbarism and death. (...) The Holocaust, the pogroms and deportations of Jewish citizens during the Nazi period have not only stolen the lives of millions of Jewish people, but have also mostly destroyed the Jewish culture in our countries. Still, we see today that Jewish life is again present, it is diverse and full of color, which, after the horrors of the past, it seems to me that in Germany in particular is a little miracle. Here, too, in Romania, the Jewish culture is alive and active, for example, at the Jewish State Theater in Bucharest (...). We wish to send through this project a message of multiculturalism and understanding among peoples, Cord Meier-Klodt explained.According to him,with the 12 nationally recognized minorities, Romania was along the centuries a sort of early European community.A part of the German minority is on the current territory of Romania for over 800 years and the Jewish culture has been a part of this diversity for a very long time, the diplomat said.The Federal Government's charge d'affaires for Jewish life in Germany and for combating anti-Semitism, Felix Klein, declared that stereotypes regarding the Jewish people and anti-Semitism are omnipresent. According to him, the accomplishments of the Jewish people throughout time in areas such as philosophy, science, economy, art and culture have been shaping lives in Europe until now.The cultural and educational project titled "1,700 years of history and Jewish culture in Germany (321-2021)" implies four webinar sessions and is organized by the German embassy in Bucharest, along with Romania's embassy in Berlin, the Israeli Embassy in Romania and the Magna cum Laude Reut Foundation.
President Klaus Iohannis and his Polish counterpart, Andrzej Duda, have attended, on Tuesday, in the southeastern Smardan Range in Galati County, the Justice Sword 21 multinational military exercise.

"Today, in exercise, were forces from Romania and forces from Poland. The Polish soldiers are those who came to take part in the Multinational Brigade. It's extremely important that such exercises take place to verify and to increase the degree of interoperability, meaning they work together well, know each other, learn to connect with one another and to be capable of executing combat missions together. When we're speaking of combat missions, I must be very clear here, we are preparing for defense combat missions. It is for us, on the Eastern Flank of NATO, extremely important to have well trained forces, well trained for defense. We are preparing for defense on the Eastern Flank," said President Iohannis.

He stated that he was impressed by the military exercise.

"I am impressed, the exercise functioned very well and I congratulate all," said Iohannis.

President Andrzej Duda expressed his hope that such exercises will be organized in Poland as well.

Today in the Smardan Range we watched practical exercises which will prove how our soldiers can work together and I emphasize together, because in this exercise both Romanian and Polish soldiers participated, Polish soldiers from the Allied mission that's deployed here in Romania. (...) I am very glad that there is this opportunity for joint exercises, for joint demonstrations. It's very important for our soldiers and for the Romanian soldiers that they can see each other and they can work together with their colleagues. It is, also, an opportunity to see the military equipment the two countries have, to see that we are very well prepared, we are in modernization and we are glad for this process of modernization. I spoke with Mr. President also yesterday about these ongoing activities. We see thus that we are becoming more compatible with our allies, even the US. I am very glad that we can do these exercises together, said Andrzej Duda.

The two presidents participated in the Day of Distinguished Visitors on the occasion of the Justice Sword 21 military exercise taking place in the Galati Range and where Poland brought the forces and military equipment deployed to our country as part of the Adapted Presence on the Allied Eastern Flank, in the structures of the NATO Multinational Brigade from southern Craiova, reports agerpres.
The plenum of the Parliament was informed, on Tuesday, through a letter, by President Klaus Iohannis regarding the conclusion of the participation of the Romanian Army in the NATO Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan and the redeployment to Romania, starting May 1, 2021, of the Romanian contingent in Afghanistan, at the end of the mission, according to the calendar agreed upon with the strategic partners and allies, report agerpres.

"The Resolute Support Mission (RSM) in Afghanistan was launched on January 1, 2015, as a continuation of the International Security Force Assistance (ISAF) mission, having as the main objective the training and advising of Afghan security forces. Romania participated for the first time with forces and equipment in the Afghan Operations Theater in the ISAF mission starting with 2002. Our country proved ever since that it is a credible partner, which respects its obligations assumed at the international level. The peace agreement in Doha, signed on February 29, 2020, between the US government and the Taliban movement, opened the way to the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan and, implicitly, the conclusion of the mission," shows the letter signed by the head of state.
Prime Minister Florin Citu said that on his visit to Brussels these days he wants to make sure that the resources that Romania will receive under its National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), 29.2 billion euros, will go to the sectors with the highest economic productivity.

"Now we need to speed up economic growth, and that is why I am going to Brussels to make sure that the resources that Romania will receive, the 29.2 billion euros, will go to those sectors with the highest economic productivity. We have priorities that we own in this government and three sources of funding - PNRR, the national budget, European funds - and when I think of these projects, I think of all three sources of funding, not just one particular source. Today we are talking about PNRR, to make sure that we will have an approved PNRR with our priorities introduced there," Citu said on Tuesday at the end of a visit to Satu Mare County.

He said that included in PNRR will be all those projects that comply with the criteria related to the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.

"The most important criterion is to be able to be completed for real, not on paper, in 2026, and I will be very careful. (...) What cannot be financed under PNRR goes to European funds or the national budget. The development of Romania's infrastructure is a priority and I am not the only one who says that, because all the politicians have said so before me," said Citu, reports agerpres.
Romania needs infrastructure, and the relevant projects will be completed on schedule, Prime Minister Florin Citu said on Tuesday in Satu Mare, adding that he would discuss the issue on a visit to Brussels this week.

"I have really wanted to see this project; last year I had discussions with the minister about funding, he convinced me, we managed to allocate resources and today we see the results. And I now understand the importance of this bridge to this area, to the county of Satu Mare. The problem I see and will fix under the incumbent government is that we start infrastructure projects and then it takes quite a lot. As far as I understand, the first intention for this project came in 2007, but in 2015 it was being prepared and only now can we see that it is nearing completion. What I can guarantee you is that this will not be the case from now on," Citu said on Tuesday on a tour of the construction site of the Satu Mare ringroad.

He added that the government has learned from what has been done badly in the last 30 years, both with European funds and with national funds.

"And all these infrastructure projects that we are starting now - and you have already seen the Sibiu-Pitesti and A7 [motorways] and there are more and we continue here - they will be done exactly on schedule, as planned from the very beginning. In this case, it is clear that the bridge will be completed by the end of the year, it is a done deal, as the financial resources are available, we just have to continue. But it is not just about this facility, it is about infrastructure facilities in Romania that have been delayed for years. We will change the legislation and we will have the resources so that from now on we will start and have a deadline for completion; we will stick to deadlines. Romania needs infrastructure and you know very well that it is one of the objectives for which I go to Brussels today," Citu said, reports agerpres.
Romania's objective needs to be local integration, as much as possible, of military equipment production, in the context of trans-Atlantic commitments, said, on Tuesday, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Ludovic Orban, after a meeting with a delegation of the Israel Aerospace Industries company.

"I had a meeting today with the representatives of the largest company held by the Israeli State in the field of Defence, Israel Aerospace Industries. We discussed about the possibilities of cooperation and partnership in this field with the local industry. Romania's objective needs to be the local integration, as much as possible, of the production of military equipment, in the context of trans-Atlantic commitments," Orban wrote on Facebook.

The meeting took place at the Parliament Palace, reports agerpres.
Bucharest's Vacaresti National Park turns 5, interval in which, through daily monitoring, there were identified 331 plant species and 336 animal species, according to the Vacaresti National Park Association, report agerpres.

"The Vacaresti National Park turns 5 today. On May 11, 2016, the Romanian Government approved through a Government Decision to establish the first natural park, located in the Romanian urban environment. An ambitious and visionary project which was born from the stubbornness of nature lovers and which transformed a failure from Romania's 80's into the largest green space in the Capital," the association shows in a Facebook post.

According to the same source, in the last five years, through daily monitoring, there were identified 331 plants and 335 animal species, and the park's biodiversity is on the rise."In the last 5 years we guided through the park over 4,500 adults and children, whilst dozens of thousands of people visit the park yearly. The pandemic increased the public's interest towards nature, thus the number of visitors has grown significantly in the last year. In the park there are over 4,600 trees, only within the perimetral pier. Most are willow, walnut, elm and mirabelle trees. The park offers a multitude of benefits to the community, starting with filtering and absorbing polluting particles, halting carbon and oxygen production, to up to cultural and economic benefits. Vacaresti is the largest compact green space in Bucharest, one of the main "lungs" of the Capital. These types of wetlands thus help us to alleviate the effects of climate change, which are more and more obvious in the last years," the post shows.
Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 1:14 am

Among the usual commotion of dogs running, playing, sniffing, and doing their business with their owners nearby at Lucky Dog Park in Brush Prairie on May 8, several volunteers and members of the parks chief operators were busy either picking up the results of said business, clearing brush along fencing, or using tools for park maintenance.

Others manned tables with information about DOGPAW, which founded and runs the parks, as they signed parkgoers up to become members and provided information about what impact the parks have on Clark County as a whole.

The event was one of DOGPAWs monthly beautification events, which apart from picking up poop, also serves to get parkgoers acquainted with who maintains the free resource for those looking to let their dogs run free.

DOGPAW operates four off-leash parks across Clark County, with Lucky in Brush Prairie and Kane Dog Park in Hockinson located in North County. All of the parks are named in honor of local police K9s.

In 2021 the group approved a new contract with Clark County to help maintain the parks.

Running through 2025, the contract states the county will take on some of the responsibilities the organization used to handle itself, including mowing and maintenance of the paths, DOGPAW President Sally Jenkins said.

DOGPAW pays for dog waste disposal, which includes the bags found around the parks for patrons to use, and also regulates behavior at the parks by establishing rules and posting them on-site.

DOGPAW saw some challenges in maintaining its operations in recent years. Conversations with the county presented the scenario where DOGPAW would fold, and discussions centered around whether or not the fixtures of the community could be maintained by public resources, Jenkins said.

They kind of said that they just do not have the means to do it without us. These parks are busy all year round, Jenkins said, adding the parks still saw activity when COVID-19 restrictions shuttered most other places for county residents to go.

She mentioned DOGPAW had a contract that needed a renewal for another potential park to the west of the Humane Society for Southwest Washington, something that fit in with the groups push to expand its offerings in the county.

We want to be a good resource for dog owners that want to come out and let their dogs run, Jenkins said.

Also present on Saturday was Clark County Public Works Clean Water Outreach Specialist Eric Lambert, who promoted Canines for Clean Water, an effort by public works to educate and support proper disposal of dog waste.

Lambert said a number of streams in Clark County dont meet standards for fecal coliform bacteria. He said scientists working for the county determined through DNA testing that dog waste was constantly found across the Salmon Creek watershed.

Lambert referenced the Canines for Clean Water pledge, which he said was closing in on 4,000 signatures.

Its important for us to be able to do this type of outreach and help people understand the importance of picking up (dog waste) not just for common courtesy and respect, but also for stream health. Its important to pick up everywhere  when youre on your walk, (or) when youre at home, Lambert said, explaining waste mixes with water like rainwater and can make its way to storm drains, which heads untreated to local streams.

You might not be living next to a stream, but a yard thats filled with dog waste during the rainy season  it could end up in your local stream, in a ditch, which ends up polluting larger bodies of water, Lambert said.

DOGPAW Park Operations Director Marty Rutkovitz had his dogs Priscilla, a Maltese, and Lillibean, a Norfolk Terrier-Dachshund mix show up for part of the day Saturday. He said other than picking up poop, the work that day involved cleaning out and organizing the maintenance shed, searching for and filling holes, and digging a trench line to aid with water runoff.

Rutkovitz and his wife, Paula, moved to Clark County from St. Louis in the Fall of 2019, though he didnt stumble upon Lucky Dog Park until earlier this year. After meeting DOGPAW board members during a similar park cleanup at Ike Dog Park in Minnehaha, he briefly became park manager for Kane Dog Park in Hockinson before assuming his current role.

Prior to retiring, Rutkovitz had a work background in construction and facilities. He joked about announcing his new position on social media, noting it was a get to take your dog to work job.

I love it  getting outdoors, exercising, but the main thing is us meeting new people, making friends, and supporting a nonprofit, Rutkovitz said.
The chairman of the National Committee for the Coordination of Activities on Vaccination Against SARS-CoV-2, Valeriu Gheorghita, announced on Tuesday that 372 family medicine offices in 38 counties and Bucharest are involved in the immunisation process.

"Today, May 11, approximately 738 family doctors received doses of vaccine against COVID-19 and are providing vaccination in 372 offices at this time, in 38 counties, plus the city of Bucharest. Practically, only in Botosani, Ilfov and Vrancea vaccination has not yet begun. A total of 30,330 vaccine doses have been received in family medicine offices, of which 26,340 are Johnson & Johnson vaccines, and 5,695 doses have been administered; 2,760 doses are from AstraZeneca and 733 doses have been administered; 1,230 doses are from Moderna and 321 doses have been used," Valeriu Gheorghita told a news conference at Victoria Palace.
Promoting federalism, in which the center shares power with the regions, aligns the interests of the anti-military pro-democracy movement with the goals of the ethnic minorities. In theory, this could add a real military component to a movement whose armaments are generally no deadlier than Molotov cocktails and air rifles  though homemade bombs have been added to its arsenals in recent weeks.

In practice, at least for the time being, the guerrilla armies of the Kachin in the north and the Karen in the east will fight as they always have, to protect their own territory. They can give military training to the thousands of activists that are claimed to have fled the cities to their zones, but are still overmatched by the governments forces. But on their home ground they hold an advantage against what their populations consider an occupying army. That may be enough.
Wyner said hes selling masks from his new production lines, but substantially less than we would like.

Adam Albrecht, senior quality control manager at Indiana Face Mask, another small producer, said when the firm first started producing the higher-filtration N95 masks last year, People came out of the woodwork, saying: We can sell this, we can sell this. But it seems no matter how much we adjust prices down, the Chinese stay just below.

Some of the small mask makers are confident they will survive.

Dan Izhaky, who together with a partner has invested $4 million in a new mask factory outside Los Angeles, said the challenge is greater for makers of surgical masks, the ubiquitous safety masks that are relatively easy to make. Izhakys company makes more complex N95 masks and he said he has continued to expand. But we also believe the Biden administration is going to take a number of steps down the road to really help us be sustainable, he said.

The mask trade group  which doesnt include industry giants such as 3M Co. and Honeywell International Inc.  urged the Biden administration to take immediate action to support the industry.
Its not just at the federal level where this anomaly is playing out. Take a look at the Missouri Legislature, where Republicans refuse to fund Medicaid expansion despite losing an election placing it in the state constitution. This has become a habit in Missouri. When Republicans lose on ethics, minimum wage, labor rules, puppy mills, they seek to undo the will of the voters who won.

Then theres the ongoing debate over the effort to close the Medium Security Institution in St. Louis, the second of the citys two jails, known colloquially as the workhouse. Mayor Tishaura O. Jones ran on the platform of closing the workhouse. She won the election. In one of her first actions as mayor, she did exactly what she said she was going to do, and, now, it seems, her critics want to debate the issue.
It was flowing down the street, Skouby said. A 36-inch main, it releases a good amount of water.

Main breaks are somewhat random, Skouby said, and he wont know what caused the break until crews dig it up.

As of Tuesday afternoon, repairs on the main were ongoing. Skouby estimated the pipes wouldnt be completely fixed for about a day, and street repairs may take even longer. The force of the water buckled part of Lucas Avenue and pushed up soil there.

Well be working around the clock until we get the water main break fixed, he said.

Because of a drop in water pressure, the city cautioned some residents in a large swath of downtown and beyond to boil water before consuming it. The boil advisory is for a 3-square-mile area roughly bounded by Palm Street, Interstate 70, Chouteau Avenue and Jefferson Avenue.

Skoubys office will analyze water samples to decide when its safe to lift the boil advisory. He said it might be a day before that happens.

Ameren Missouri shut off power to several buildings because of safety concerns with water touching electrical equipment. Company spokesman Jeff Trammel said the citys water division would let the utility know when it was OK to restore power.
If the governor is inclined to veto the entire bill  I think thats a decision for him to make, Roberts said.

Other Republican House members agreed the bill shouldnt move forward without the legislative power issue attached.

It really is a non-starter for me as well, said Rep. Justin Hill, R-Lake Saint Louis.

Williams also said the provision should be kept in the bill because of the bipartisan nature of the House vote. It moved out of the House on a 138-11 vote on May 5.

This is about us coming together and working toward a comprehensive package of issues that are important to us, Williams said.

Senate Minority Leader John Rizzo, D-Independence, said he was not a big fan of the General Assembly provision, but urged members of the committee to find a resolution in order to preserve other parts of the bill.

Parson and the House have locked horns over the chambers use of a special oversight committee to investigate issues ranging from the states medical marijuana program to the Department of Social Services.
Other counties were allowed to join in, and the St. Louis County program now covers more than 80% of the state, Rehder has said.

Rehders proposal would replace the St. Louis County program and add more requirements for sharing data.

What I call the high-profile drugs ... you walk into his pharmacy, you give him the script, hes going to wait 24 hours before he fills that script, Rone said. So he can check to see if theyve been to Hayti, Caruthersville, Kennett, trying to get the same script filled.

Rehder said a broad coalition of support helped lift the legislation to Parsons desk.

This is a bipartisan piece of legislation, Rehder said. The fact that you have the medical professionals dealing with this every day and wanting this tool, the fact that you have so many of our counties already in this program, I think those were the two things that really helped, and the fact that everyone knows someone whose struggling (with addiction).

St. Louis County Executive Sam Page, who filed similar legislation as a member of the Legislature 15 years ago, cheered the PDMPs passage on Tuesday.
JEFFERSON CITY  Missouri will get nearly $2.7 billion of flexible federal aid under a coronavirus relief law, but it isnt in any rush to spend it.

Under guidelines released Monday by the U.S. Treasury Department, states can start applying immediately for at least half of their share of funding under the law signed earlier this year by President Joe Biden. States could start receiving money this month.

Whereas some states developed spending plans in anticipation of the federal aid, Missouri lawmakers didnt include the new flexible funds in the 2022 budget they passed Friday. Legislative budget leaders said they were waiting on further guidance on how it could be used.

A spokeswoman for Gov. Mike Parson said Monday that the administration will review that guidance and take its time developing a plan to present to lawmakers when they convene next year.

We want to be thoughtful about how to use this funding to improve the lives of Missouri citizens for the long term, Parson spokeswoman Kelli Jones said.
Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 12:41 am

Woodland High School juniors Casey Logan and Bella Mattison were selected by The Museum of Flights Western Aerospace Scholars (WAS) program to attend a summer phase where student teams from across the Pacific Northwest work together to plan a mission to Mars.

The teams work alongside professional engineers, scientists and educators from Boeing, NASA and other aerospace organizations, according to a news release.

The Museum of Flight in Seattle offers the WAS program as an online distance-learning course and combines a summer experience designed for high school students interested in pursuing science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) career paths.

According to the release, during its first phase, 300 students from Idaho, Oregon and Washington take part in an online college curriculum created by the University of Washington. Its focused on NASAs space exploration programs and each student earns five college credits upon completing the course.

The second phase of the program takes place over the summer when four teams of students are selected to travel to Seattle, as long as the coronavirus pandemic permits it. The students would tour the Boeing factory floor, visit the particle accelerator at the University of Washington and work to develop a mission to Mars. Students select from NASA equipment to design space vehicles, rovers, habitats and solve complex problems astronauts may encounter during space travel.

According to the release, Logan and Mattison started participating in WAS as a part of the sophomore program where students receive a few units of material from the online course as a jumpstart.

Each week, we received an essay prompt  involving the trip to Mars and related subjects, Logan said in the release. We had to calculate how much oxygen a team would need, how a team would grow food and also solved other issues that an astronaut team might face during the trip.

Mattison took part in the summer program during her sophomore year, which was held completely online due to the pandemic.

We received materials in the mail to work on projects with our team through Zoom, she said. I really enjoyed the summer program, although it was incredibly intense with entire days spent on Zoom.

Logan developed a love for science and math at a young age thanks to her father, an engineer.

My dad worked at the Jet Propulsion Lab for NASA in California and encouraged me to take science and math classes throughout school, she said. During my freshman year, I took Ms. Talvities astronomy course and it is still my favorite class.

Mattisons interest in space and aeronautics stemmed from Star Wars. She credits her teachers throughout her academic career for encouraging her to take advanced math and science courses at Clark College.

I took biology my freshman year and enjoyed it so much that I wanted to work ahead, taking college biology classes at Clark where I realized I already understood many of the concepts before the professor presented them, she said. When you have good teachers like those Ive had at Woodland, everything becomes more enjoyable and easier to understand.

Over 1,790 students have completed the WAS program since 2006, stated the release.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP)  Missouri is closer than ever to joining every other state in having a statewide prescription drug database, after the House on Tuesday sent a bill that would create one to Gov. Mike Parson for consideration.

The GOP-led House voted 91-64 in favor of the bill, which would enable a statewide database that provides physicians and pharmacists with a patient's prescription history so they can intervene with medical help for those who might be struggling with addiction.

Parson has said he supports prescription drug monitoring.

Missouri is the only state without a database to track prescriptions, although St. Louis County created one after state lawmakers failed to act. At a minimum, an estimated 85% of Missourians are already covered by the monitoring program run by St. Louis County and joined by numerous other counties across the state, according to the St. Louis County website.

Republican backer Rep. Travis Smith on Tuesday pointed out that means state lawmakers have no control over what is the default monitoring program for most of the state.

This allows us to drive the narratives, he said of the bill.
In early 2021 two Saudi Arabian firms began assembling Turkish Karayel armed UAVs under license. Some components are produced in Saudi Arabia but most come from Turkey. The current plans are to build 40 Karayel in Saudi Arabia between 2021 and 2025. These will be called Haboob UAVs. This is not mass production, but Saudi Arabia is seeking to build local industries employing Saudi citizens in order to get away from near total dependence on oil income and the use of foreign workers form most non-government jobs. There are several UAV development projects going on in Saudi Arabia for Saudi designed UAVs to be built in Saudi Arabia. The Haboob license is apparently part of that.

The Turks have already sold the Saudis an undisclosed number of Turkish built Karayels. The Turkish military tried out and purchased the Karayel in 2016 and has since used it in combat over Syria and eastern Turkey. At least one Saudi Karayel was shot down in Yemen by rebels operating along the Saudi border. This UAV may have been flying lower to obtain more detailed video of what was below and came within range of rebel anti-aircraft missiles. Or it may have had equipment problems. Whatever the case the Saudis had at least one of them, which is now lost.

Karayel is a half-ton UAV with a max endurance of 20 hours and a controlled flight range of 200 kilometers. Preprogrammed flights can go much farther. Karayel can fly high enough (6,500 meters/20,000 feet) to avoid most anti-aircraft weapons. Karayel is well designed, with multiple redundancies and automatic (software controlled) landing and takeoff. Max payload is 190 kg, which means for shorter (a few hours) missions it can carry four Turkish made 22.5 kg (50 pound) Mam-L laser-guided missiles (similar to Hellfire) or two 50 kg GPS guided bombs. For longer (up to 20 hour) surveillance missions Karayel carries only about 55 kg of sensors (day/night vidcams or even a lightweight radar).
Since the 1990s the United States has moved most of its fleet to the Pacific. This was to deal with the growing Chinese naval threat, as well as continuing problems with North Korea and Iran. From 1945 to 2016 the U.S. Seventh Fleet, based in Japan, controlled American naval operations in the West Pacific. In 2016 the Third Fleet took charge of western portions of the Central and South Pacific while Seventh Fleet the deals with North Korea, northern China and Russia. One things that brought the Third Fleet back was the need to carry out more FONOPS (freedom of navigation operations) in the South China Sea.

The expansion of Third Fleet operating areas was no surprise. In 2012 the U.S. announced that it would have 60 percent of its 270 warships in the Pacific by the end of the decade. Actually, this is just a continuation of a process that began when the Cold War ended in 1991. There have been other major changes. In 2006 the U.S. Navy eliminated the Atlantic Fleet, after a century of existence. First established in 1906, the Atlantic Fleet was the first, world class, high seas, naval force from the Americas. At the time there was fear that Germany's ambitious warship building program might someday endanger the United States. The Atlantic Fleet did go to war with the Germans in 1917, and again in 1941. After 1945, the Atlantic Fleet remained a mighty force, in preparation for a potential battle with the growing naval power of the Soviet Union. But when the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, their fleet wasted away within a decade. At that point the American Atlantic Fleet no longer had a major opponent. China, North Korea, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Iran provided plenty of work for the Pacific Fleet, which normally supplied ships for Middle East and South Asian emergencies. The Pacific Fleet now has most of the warships and responsibilities for whatever problems emerge from East Asia and the Middle East. will still stand ready to deal with potential problems in Asia.

The Russian Disease

While Russia is again preparing for war with NATO and especially the United States, their Cold War fleet is not only gone but they find themselves unable to replace many of the larger warships they built during the Cold War. For that matter, neither can the United States. For both America and Russia, it takes longer, costs more and quality is a major problem.

Even before the Cold War ended the U.S. Navy was losing its ability to design and build new and affordable ships of any type. This was not seen as a major problem during the Cold War because the Americans still had an enormous edge over Russia. To the surprise of many, the mighty Soviet fleet lost most of its capabilities in the early 1990s, after the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991. That meant the U.S. went from naval superiority to supremacy. It didnt last. By the late 1990s the creation of a modern Chinese fleet was underway.

China knew what they were doing. They had already invested heavily in commercial ship building, where they soon became the primary supplier of adequate, low-cost tankers and freighters. The more complex stuff was provided by Japan South Korea and European firms and China is slowly invading that market. China understood that if you were a major producer of commercial shipping, you had an edge in producing warships.

United States lost sight of this and tolerated the loss of the American ship building business to Europe in the 1960s and Pacific nations (Japan, South Korea and China) in the late 20th century. The U.S. no longer had a lot of civilian ship yards that could also provide maintenance facilities for warships or, with some additional investment, build warships. The navy procurement bureaucracy lost its ability to impose cost and construction standards on the small number of shipyards capable of building large warships. For China it was just the opposite and thats why China has more warships than the United States. China also has problems with personnel, but these are different than what the U.S. Navy suffers from. China has no tradition of a fleet that sends many ships long distances on a regular basis in peacetime. As a result, few Chinese want to join, or stay in, the navy.

The other potential problems, like ship design and crew quality, China had already noted. Rather than try to develop new ship designs, the Chinese literally copied what had worked in the West, especially the United States. However, China was surprised by the difficulty finding enough qualified Chinese to operate all these new ships. China understood that the way you obtain competent crews and commanders is to send your new ships to sea a lot. That worked but many Chinese were not willing to spend all that time at sea when there were similar jobs in the air force and army that paid the same and did not require so much that time at sea.

China has demonstrated their ability to keep improving their manufacturing skills and, just as there commercial shipping designs became more capable and complex, so are their warships. Navies with experienced crews encounter Chinese warships more frequently and the consensus is that the Chinese are getting better and more quickly that expected. Western navies faced a similar situation with Japan before World War II. The Japanese has built Western type ships, after buying some from European builders. Japan trained its crews hard, more so than Western observers realized or would admit. The Japanese naval victories early in the war were a surprise to everyone but the Japanese. The situation with China today is different in several respects. Before World War II the United States was the largest commercial ship builder in the world and had a GDP nearly ten times larger than Japan. Japanese senior admirals understood that this meant Japan had to win the naval war decisively within a year, because after that the greater shipbuilding capability of the United States would, as it actually did, produce a fleet many times what Japan had. Japan could not replace major warship losses. Within two years it was obvious to Japanese naval leaders that they had lost their war.

China is now building warships apparently matching U.S. warship tech in terms of weapons and sensors. China does this in part because they can do it faster and cheaper. That is a side effect of China becoming the largest shipbuilder in the world. This is a status the United States held during World War II and surrendered as European nations and Japan revived their ship building industries. In the last few decades South Korea and China have become the major ship builders. It is no mystery that nations capable of building the most commercial ships can also produce lots of warships and do it quickly and inexpensively.

Thats why it costs so much more and takes longer for American shipyards to build warships. Worse, the decline in American commercial shipbuilding means there is a chronic shortage of skilled shipyard workers and managers for military ship construction. The U.S. currently ranks 19th in terms of ship building and most of that is smaller, coastal shipping plus specialty items like oil rigs. The U.S. has far fewer facilities for repairing its many large warships and a growing backlog in warship maintenance because of that.

China, South Korea and Japan all have more robust warship construction and repair capabilities than the United States. It works both ways. America had maintained its primacy as a builder of commercial aircraft since World War II and made possible maintaining primacy in warplane design and construction. Same with the automotive industry, which creates many essential new technologies needed for military vehicles.

Now the Americans are on the wrong end of those World War II and Cold War trends. So were the Russians during the Cold War, where the United States always had a GDP at least twice that of the USSR and was more experienced in designing and building superior warships. China noted all that, and strove to avoid the errors and enhance what worked. China is on its way to having the largest GDP in the world, and it already has the largest fleet.

May 10, 2021: In the south, neighboring Myanmar (Burma), formerly part of the British colonial holdings in South Asia, has a new military government. The Burmese generals are seeking to maintain its close ties with China and Russia while it struggles to establish control of the country ten weeks after a February 1st coup. The Chinese ambassador there has warned the Burmese generals that their country is drifting towards civil war. China will continue to use their veto powers in the UN to block UN actions against the Burmese military and continue to do business with Burma. The ambassador warned that may not be enough because the Burmese army has not been able to suppress the popular uprising that appeared right after the takeover. China advises that it there is civil war, Chinese support will be limited. Even before the coup Burmese generals maintained their connections with China and that was the main reason China has sold $1.4 billion worth of military equipment to Burma since 2010. Russia sold $800 million worth. Together China and Russia accounted for over 90 percent Burmese spending on imports of military gear. In 2011 the Burmese generals were forces to end nearly half a century of military government and allow elections.

The 2021 coup soon encountered an economic crisis and popular opposition that is moving towards civil war. Anti-government demonstrations continue despite troops and police being ordered to open fire. Some of the demonstrators are shooting back. So far over a thousand demonstrators have been killed by the security forces and ten times that number wounded or arrested. The Burmese military is comfortable with a cozy relationship with China and Russia but most Burmese are not. This has led to Chinese businesses being attacked and some have been set on fire. The alliance of separatist northern tribes, which reached a peace agree with the elected government in 2016 but refused to recognize or cooperate with the military government. Many of those tribal militias have taken advantage of the situation, which has many army units in the north sent south to deal with the protests. The tribal rebels now control several border crossings, having chased away the border guards and troops that normally maintain control of those crossing points.

Burmese military leaders were surprised at the extent and duration of mass protests since February. By popular agreement the economy has been shut down by the protestors and the generals have to worry about the morale and loyalty of their troops because of the months of popular protests and being ordered to open fire on fellow Burmese. The many foreign companies that manufacture in Burma have been evacuating their employees and that means getting those closed facilities operational again will take time.

The military still has income because during their decades of rule (from 1962 to 2010) they came to control many businesses and some of those were joint ventures with China. A lot of Chinese firms pay the Burmese military directly for joint ventures. This provides the military with at least a billion dollars a year, assuming they can protect Chinese operations from protestor anger. The Chinese operations in Burma now face international sanctions. Burmese army officers made a lot of money allowing China to do business in the tribal north, often at the expense of local civilians, most of them tribal people. After the return of democracy in 2011, China no longer had as much freedom in the north. Russia is of little help economically but is one of the few nations supporting the military government. China and Russia are offering advice but the major problem is the weakening morale and resolve of the troops and police. China has a border with Myanmar but so far there is no talk of Chinese military intervention, even some heavily armed peacekeepers.

May 9, 2021: China was supposed to release the results of the national census conducted during the last two months of 2020. The results were supposed to be released by April 2021 but that did not happen. Then news leaked that the results of the census, held every ten years, indicated that the population decline had accelerated and for the first time since the 1940s, population had declined. This was not unexpected, nor was the subsequent government assertion that the leaks were false. Tweaking official data to meet government expectations has been a major problem in China, at all levels. The population decline was expected, but sometime in the late 2020s, not in 2020. The government has still not released the official data, which usually means the creating of a credible doctored report is taking longer than expected. Past doctored data scandals have been a major embarrassment.

For the last few years other nations in Asia have already been taking Chinese manufacturing jobs because China has a growing labor shortage because of the smaller generations of Chinese produced after the one child per family program was instituted in the 1980s. The government eased up that policy in 2016 but it was too late. Many more affluent (than 30 years ago) Chinese women do not want to have more than one or two (or any) children. This is a common problem with affluence and has already hit Japan and South Korea. Make a lot of enemies on the way up and you can expect others to hurt you rather help you when you are on the way down and that is what China faces now.

May 7, 2021: China joined the United States and Western Europe in refusing to contribute to the nearly half trillion-dollar cost of rebuilding the Syrian economy. Not as long as the Iran-backed Assad government is still running things. China claims it agrees that the Assads are an obstacle, its not because the Assads are ruthless dictators. China is more concerned about how long it will take to reunite and pacify Syria. China also believes several thousand Chinese Uighur Islamic terrorists are trapped in northwest Syria where the most of the remaining Islamic terrorists are cornered and no one can agree on how to deal with this. While China recently signed a 25-year economic cooperation with Iran, that deal is contingent on Iran keeping its own restive population under control and being able to defy Western anti-smuggling efforts. Iran is as much risk as China will deal with in the Middle East.

May 6, 2021: In the Arabian Sea (northwestern Indian Ocean between India and Arabia) an American destroyer halted and searched a dhow suspected of smuggling. The boarding party found the cargo was twelve tons of weapons. This included over three thousand Chinese assault rifles, machine-guns and sniper rifles. Most of the weapons were older Chinese models, still sold by Chinese manufacturers to price-conscious customers. Some Russian ATGMs (anti-tank guided missiles) and hundreds of RPG rockets were also included. Questioning of the crew and checking intel information indicated the dhow (a coastal cargo ship long popular in the region) came from Iran and was apparently headed for Yemen.

Iran is a major practitioner of plausible deniability and usually smuggles cheap foreign-made weapons to destinations where Iran wants to deny it is violating UN sanctions against weapons imports. Despite growing proof of Iranian arms exports to the Shia rebels, Iran denies it. China collaborates by producing a lot of cheap weapons mainly for sale to anyone who can pay. Bulk sales go to middlemen like Iran, who then distributes weapons to groups they deny they are arming. While not a big business for Chinese arms firms, it is profitable enough to keep production going. For legitimate customers China exports that latest, and more expensive, stuff. Iran produces its own assault rifles and other infantry weapons.

May 4, 2021: Chinese officials criticized the Philippines because yesterday the Filipino foreign minister used an expletive on social media while calling for China to get out of offshore waters belonging to the Philippines. Chinas we are offended response was not unexpected by the Philippines of any of the other nations who have offshore waters claimed and often occupied by Chinese naval forces or bases built on artificial islands. The Philippines was particularly about what was happening to their Scarborough Shoal. Over the past year China has become a lot more aggressive, vocally and militarily, in asserting its ownership of Scarborough Shoal. Currently China has warships guarding all the disputed areas in the South China Sea and Scarborough Shoal is a recent addition to the areas under armed guard. Since 2012 China has periodically posted warships (coastguard or navy) to enforce their claims and now that process is complete. It happened gradually. In 2017 China built an environmental monitoring station on Scarborough Shoal, which is 220 kilometers from one of the main Filipino islands (Palawan) and 650 kilometers from Chinese territory (Hainan Island) and according to international law (and a recent international court decision) is Filipino. The Chinese say they have prior claim to most of the South China Sea and basically dares the rest of the world to try and stop them. This makes sense to most Chinese because the Chinese have long called China Zhongguo, which is usually translated into English as middle kingdom. But a more literal and accurate translation is everything under the heavens. Until the 21st century this mainly meant adjacent land areas. But now China points out that everything means the South China Sea as well.

In the last few days, the online (Information War) aspect of the South China Sea conflict has become particularly heated. China is usually the aggressor online and in news media. This time the remarks of senior Filipino officials demonstrate that the Philippines government is nearly unanimous in believing the Chinese assurance and promises cannot be trusted. While the Philippines admits it cannot stand up to China in a war, they can use Chinese tactics and disrupt Chinese military and civilian operations in the South China Sea. Other nations suffering from the Chinese efforts to take control of the entire South China Sea are similarly fed up and going Chinese on the Chinese. Filipinos are also angry at other forms of Chinese deception and outright lies. For example, China promised large economic investments in the Philippines and more Filipinos being allowed to work in China. Both of these gifts never came through. The promised foreign worker angle backfired big time as the government allowed more Chinese to enter Philippines and many were not the expected tourists or legal entrepreneurs, but gangsters who have become a growing problem. The most recent backfire was Chinese developed covid19 vaccine that were provided to the Philippines. This backfired when it was discovered that China was charging the Philippines three or more times per dose as other customers in east Asia and Africa were paying. Moreover, the Chinese vaccine turned out to be much less effective than Western vaccines also available to the Philippines. Worse, all these negotiations and delays in Chinese deliveries have meant that the Philippines will be the last nation in the region to receive enough vaccine to suppress the covid19 threat.

The Philippines appears to get most of the unwanted Chinese attention in the South China Sea because the Philippines has the most to lose. In terms of land area, the 7,600 islands that comprise the Philippines amount to only 300,000 square kilometers (120,000 square miles) of land area. Compare this to China, with 9.6 million square kilometers of land. According to international law, the Philippines controls (via its EEZ or Exclusive Economic Zone) water areas covering 2.26 million square kilometers. By the same standards the Chinese EEZ waters comprises 877,000 square kilometers. The Philippines is also the weakest (in military terms) nation China is seizing territory from and their mutual defense treaty with the United States is not always adequate to deal with the Chinese tactics. Moreover, the American foreign policy can change radically every four years because of presidential elections. The current U.S. president is seen as less steadfast in dealing with China. So far that has not been the case, but the new American government has only been in power since January 2021 and, so far, pledges to continue supporting resistance to Chinese South China Sea claims.

May 3, 2021: China complained that its two aircraft carrier task forces (formed around the carriers Liaoning and Shandong) have been disrupted by an American destroyer shadowing both task forces for three weeks and was continuing to do so. The two task forces have each, in turn, spent several weeks at sea, deliberately visiting the maritime areas where China now claims possession, including the South China Sea.

May 2, 2021: China has become more aggressive towards Taiwan this year, mainly because pro-independence voters are increasing in Taiwan and pro-China voters are in sharp decline. Hong Kongs failed efforts to hang on to what few liberties it had, made an impression on Taiwan, and Chinese majority Singapore. China demonstrated it will not compromise when it comes to reclaiming lost territories occupied by Chinese who consider themselves independent of the new Chinese empire. The Chinese intimidation is coming on all fronts, economic, diplomatic and military.

Taiwan complains that Chinese aircraft have, for over a year been increasingly entering the Taiwanese ADIZ (air defense identification zone) without warning and forcing Taiwan to send up fighters to doublecheck. That sort of thing has increased sharply in 2021. China violated the Taiwan ADIZ 84 times so far this year. The situation was so serious in 2020 that the cost of sending up interceptors consumed ten percent of the 2020 military budget. The Chinese defense budget is eight times larger than Taiwans and they can afford to carry out this attrition campaign. The Chinese are also testing new tactics. In late April the Taiwanese detected a four-engine Chinese maritime patrol aircraft flying about 30 meters (100 feet) above the water in an effort to see if that would get them past Taiwanese sensors. It didnt, but it took the Taiwanese longer to confirm the sighting.

May 1, 2021: China has some very large investments planned for Afghanistan. China increased its economic aid after 2014 and pledged billions for the development of a copper mining complex. This was derailed at the end of 2020 when Afghanistan arrested ten Chinese citizens and accused them of being MSS (Ministry of State Security) agents seeking to establish and maintain links with Islamic terror groups in Afghanistan. China denied that and demanded an apology and repatriation of the ten Chinese. The Afghans refused and soon revealed their evidence. Chinese agents were already working with the Haqqani Network to find Turkish (Uighur) Chinese in Afghanistan and report their presence to the Afghan police, who had been cooperating to extradite any Uighurs illegally in Afghanistan back to China. Most of these Uighurs were refugees but some had joined Islamic terrorist groups like al Qaeda, which often operates alongside the Taliban. The MSS team had been operating in Afghanistan since 2014, or even earlier. In addition to finding Uighurs, the MSS was also monitoring the capabilities of Islamic terror groups in Afghanistan.

After the Soviet Union disappeared in 1991, China refused to replace Russia as the Sugar Daddy for North Korea, Cuba and individual terror groups everywhere. China will deal with corrupt governments, but only if its profitable for China. Thats the main reason the Chinese will not deal with Islamic terrorists. The Chinese have no illusions about Islamic terrorists being ignorant, delusional religious zealots. China will not do business in a country that has not got its Islamic terrorism problems under control. Pakistan qualifies, and that was because for the last seven years Pakistan has been making war on most Islamic terrorists within its borders. This dependence on China for weapons and massive invents means Pakistan is less able to support the Taliban as they did in the 1990s, when they literally created the Taliban and provided military necessities like weapons, ammo and advisors during the subsequent civil war.

The current Afghan government is much stronger than it was in the 1990s and the current government sides with the majority of Afghans who oppose the Taliban and the drug gangs. China also refuses to tolerate illegal drug production. This makes the drug gangs nervous, because they have been a major supplier (of cash) to the Taliban since the 1990s. That has to worry the Taliban, or at least the more rational ones, because the drug gangs are run by Pushtuns, as is the Taliban and Pushtuns, as a group, follow family or clan interests before anything else. The drug gangs will offer to switch sides before they will back another Taliban attempt to conquer the entire country. With the drug gangs their goal is making money, for the Taliban it is religious fanaticism.

China is tempted by the trillions of dollars worth of natural resources in Afghanistan, but so far has found that the Afghans are too corrupt and unreliable to do business with. Another negative about Afghanistan is that it is a major source of heroin and other drugs that China will not tolerate. The few nations that have let a local narcotics operation get too big risks turning into a narco-state and that never turns out well for the nation in question. China continues to remind Afghanistan that China will always stand ready to do business with nations that can provide law and order in return.

When you agree to Chinese terms, anything is possible. For example, China and Iran recently signed a 25-year military-economic cooperation deal that will make Iran as dependent on China as Pakistan already is. Iran has an alternative to China in India, which Iran maintains good diplomatic and economic relations with. China and India are locked in a bitter and increasingly violent border dispute. In this case geography and history matter as Iran and India have been trading and interacting for thousands of years while China was a distant mystery on the other side of the worlds highest mountains. One of the India-Iran historical interactions was joint control of Afghanistan when the ancient Silk Road caravan route between China and the rest of Eurasia was a valuable economic link between strangers.

China has leverage, but not control, over Pakistan and Iran. If China opposes another Taliban attempt to take control of the entire country, chances of Taliban success decline to miniscule levels. Pakistan and Iran understand that and crack down effectively on any such Islamic terrorists. Afghanistan has not demonstrated similar capabilities yet and will get no Chinese investments until they do.

April 23, 2021: China has complained to North Korea about North Korean border guards firing on Chinese near the border who are suspected to smuggling. This is often Chinese seen in shallow river waters close to the North Korean side carrying goods apparently meant for a North Korean to come and get. At other times the border guards are opening fire on Chinese in boats on the rivers that define most of the Chinese/Korean border.

In late 2020 North Korean border guards border guards were issued more ammo and ordered to shoot on sight anyone seen crossing the border and ignoring orders to halt. That was later changed to shoot on sight. This new policy did not apply to the entire border, just those areas where the most smuggling was taking place. By early 2021 over a dozen smugglers or defectors had been shot and killed or wounded. Some of the casualties turned out to be local civilians out colleting firewood or edible plants. Now the border guards are expected to fire on anyone near the border, which is difficult to determine when the border runs down the middles of river. Firing bullets so close to the border, especially at night or bad weathers means a lot of those bullets are still moving fast enough when they reach the Chinese side to wound or kill. In the past troops were issued blank rounds to be used for warning shots and if live ammo was used the troops were supposed to fire warning shots in to the water or ground near the smugglers.

The government can ignore complaints from North Koreans but Chinese displeasure is another matter. For example, North Korea has banned public criticism of China or Chinese, especially the several thousand Chinese who legally live in North Korea, usually to tend to trade with China. Many of these Chinese did not or could not leave when North Korea shut the Chinese border over a year ago. Many North Koreans consider China part of their problems, as in support of the current North Korean government and as the source of covid19, and other epidemic diseases that reach North Korea via China.

April 18, 2021: China has told North Korea that it can no longer afford to jail North Korea caught in China illegally and because there is no more space in local jails for this. Since late 2020 North Korea, in a desperate effort to halt smuggling across its Chinese and Russian borders, made arrangements with China and Russia to allow North Korean secret police capture teams in to hunt down Korean smugglers and the brokers they work for. The North Korean agents turned over anyone they caught to local police, to be held until the covid19 crisis was over and these prisoners could be transferred to North Korea for further interrogation and punishment.

It is not known what North Korea has offered in return for this cooperation. North Korea has used these tactics several times previously in China. Russia accounts for less than five percent of the smuggling but North Korean leaders have become obsessed with curbing smuggling and information leaks. Many incoming smugglers were executed if they were thought to have the virus. North Korea sought to keep this quiet but the information broker network based in China found out. The information brokers have long operated a profitable business by reporting chatter, or verified details of what is going in in North Korea.

April 17, 2021: China sent 300 tons of grain to North Korea via railroad. The first such shipment in over a year. North Korea shut its borders in early 2020 to keep covid19 out. That meant even traffic from China and Russia was halted. Even smugglers found it much more difficult to get in and out of North Korea. The covid19 threat to North Korea was very real because North Korea had virtually no nationwide health system to handle any outbreak. Only the national capital and a few provincial capitals had much modern health care at all and this was for senior officials and wealthy members of the new free market sector of the economy. All that is only a few percent of the population and even with that if you were seriously ill you needed to go to China or Russia.
Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 12:59 am

Nine Ridgefield High School students were recognized for excellence in theatre at the annual Washington State Thespian Excellence Awards. Members of the Ridgefield Thespian Troupe No. 8635 won awards in multiple categories, according to a news release.

Two students qualified to compete at the international level and for the first time, one RHS student was elected to the state student board.

Like many other recent competitions, the event was held virtually this year due to the pandemic, but the new format didnt stop Spudders from excelling. Two students received scores of superior to earn gold medals in their categories: Senior Kaitlyn St. John in the solo musical theatre category and senior Peter Schafer in the monologue category.

By winning their categories statewide, both students qualified for the International Thespian Excellence Awards in June, also known colloquially as the Thespys.

Seven Ridgefield High School students also achieved scores of excellent to earn silver medals at the 2021 awards. They include sophomores BriAnna Robbins, Ella Ross, and Summer Sedgley; juniors Avari Harrison and Sophia Miller; and seniors Cameron McGravey and Peter Schafer.

I am so proud of these students, Kaitlyn Etter, the theatre and dance instructor at RHS said in the release. They all richly deserve recognition for their creative talents, but also for their perseverance and focus during a difficult and challenging time.

Along with the awards, Ridgefield High School sophomore Summer Sedgley was selected to serve as a state officer for the Washington State Thespians organization for the 2020-21 school year. State Thespian Officers, or STOs, serve as the student voice for Washington Thespians, which is the state level chapter of the Educational Theatre Association. Sedgley is one of only four students statewide elected as an STO, according to the release.

Sedgley completed a lengthy application and interview process to become the first student from Ridgefield to serve as a State Thespian Officer. In the coming year, Sedgley and other student board members will assist with developing and running state festivals, writing the newsletter, and managing social media for Washington State Thespians, as well as participating in outreach across the state.

One of the main goals of RHS Theatre and Thespian Troupe No. 8635 has always been to create leadership opportunities for our students and to build leadership skills, Etter said. Summers election to this state-level office is a testament to our programs growth and the growth of our students. This is a great opportunity for Summer and she is an excellent choice for this position.
Altria Group, Inc. (Altria) (NYSE: MO) is pleased to announce that, on May 10, 2021, Altrias Board of Directors (Board) elected Kathryn B. McQuade to serve as the independent Chair of the Board effective upon the conclusion of Altrias 2021 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, which is being held on Thursday, May 20, 2021.

I am thrilled with Kathryns selection to be Altrias next independent Board Chair, said Billy Gifford, Altrias Chief Executive Officer. I believe that her significant expertise, including in finance, business strategy and working within regulated industries, will help advance our focus on Moving Beyond Smoking.

Ms. McQuade, who joined the Board in 2012, will be the first woman to serve as Altrias Chair of the Board and will oversee a Board on which more than 72% of its members are women or racially or ethnically diverse.

I am honored to take on the role of independent Board Chair for Altria, said Ms. McQuade. I look forward to continuing to work with the Board and Altrias dedicated leadership team in pursuit of its Vision.

Ms. McQuade served as Senior Advisor of Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (Canadian Pacific), a transcontinental railway in Canada and the United States, from November 2012 to May 2013, after previously serving as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Canadian Pacific from September 2008 until her retirement in November 2012. Ms. McQuade joined Canadian Pacific in June 2007 as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Prior to joining Canadian Pacific, Ms. McQuade served as Executive Vice President-Planning and Chief Information Officer at Norfolk Southern Corporation where she spent 27 years in key information technology, strategic planning and finance leadership positions. Ms. McQuade serves as Chair of the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Social Responsibility Committee and is a member of the Audit, Compensation and Talent Development and Executive Committees.

As previously announced, Altrias former independent Board Chairman, Thomas F. Farrell II, passed away in April 2021. He had planned to retire following completion of his current term and was not standing for re-election to the Board at the 2021 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
News summary:

Enterprises require high-bandwidth connectivity with comprehensive security

Upgraded ADVA FSP 150 multi-layer demarcation solution with precise timing and MACsec encryption enables CSPs to offer more value

Technology also ready for post-quantum cryptographic protection

MUNICH--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- ADVA (FSE: ADV) today launched its FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH), addressing urgent enterprise demand for high-bandwidth connectivity with robust security. The new member of the ADVA FSP 150 programmable demarcation and edge compute portfolio supports 10Gbit/s MEF 3.0 Carrier Ethernet and IP services, provides precise synchronization capabilities and now features hardware-based encryption. With its comprehensive MACsec security, the ADVA FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) enables business data to pass safely and seamlessly across untrusted public networks and empowers communication service providers (CSPs) to offer fully encrypted bandwidth services. Whats more, like ADVAs FSP 3000 transport solution, the ADVA FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) is ready to run post-quantum cryptographic (PQC) algorithms.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005059/en/

ADVAs new FSP 150 will prove key for businesses seeking ultimate security for high-capacity Carrier Ethernet services (Photo: Business Wire)

Our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) provides a simple and affordable route to high-capacity Carrier Ethernet connectivity with the highest levels of data protection. Unique in our industry, this compact and cost-efficient device combines demarcation, edge compute, synchronization and encryption, said James Buchanan, GM, Edge Cloud, ADVA. No other single solution offers all the features of our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH). Straight out of the box, it delivers data encryption compliant with the strictest standards in the industry, including FIPS 140-3. Our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) has multi-layer demarcation capabilities as well as precise synchronization delivery. Whats more, its edge computing capabilities and open SDN control make it a key component for industrial IoT applications.

The ADVA FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) combines 10Gbit/s MEF 3.0 Carrier Ethernet and IP service demarcation and aggregation with a rich set of programmability, synchronization and security features. For the first time, CSPs and businesses can deploy a compact and power-efficient solution with next-generation synchronization delivery, NFV-hosting capabilities and robust data protection. The FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) features precise clock technology based on Synchronous Ethernet and hardware processing of IEEE 1588 timestamps. Its fully open architecture supports ADVAs Ensemble Connector and other virtual network function infrastructure. And, based on an enhanced version of MACsec able to encrypt across multiple domains and service provider networks, it provides end-to-end security across MEF Layer 2 cloud networks.

Our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) supports a smooth and simple transition from 1Gbit/s to 10Gbit/s services while meeting the very highest security requirements. Now theres a simple and affordable way to achieve the safe and assured connectivity that businesses need for peace of mind and compliance with stringent regulations. The solutions also enables CSPs to roll out tailored encryption-as-a-service offerings, commented Eli Angel, VP, product line management, ADVA. Our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) shares the same security framework as our optical products. Its cryptographic techniques, including dynamic key exchange and hardware tamper protection, ensure the safety of the most sensitive data. And, like our FSP 3000, its ready to support quantum-safe key exchange via a simple software upgrade.

Watch this video for more information on the new FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH): https://youtu.be/efdEFASaue8.

Further details are also available in these slides: https://adva.li/fsp-150-xg118pro-csh-slides.

About ADVA

ADVA is a company founded on innovation and focused on helping our customers succeed. Our technology forms the building blocks of a shared digital future and empowers networks across the globe. Were continually developing breakthrough hardware and software that leads the networking industry and creates new business opportunities. Its these open connectivity solutions that enable our customers to deliver the cloud and mobile services that are vital to todays society and for imagining new tomorrows. Together, were building a truly connected and sustainable future. For more information on how we can help you, please visit us at www.adva.com.

Published by:

ADVA Optical Networking SE, Munich, Germany

www.adva.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005059/en/

For press:

Gareth Spence

t +44 1904 699 358

public-relations@adva.com

For investors:

Stephan Rettenberger

t +49 89 890 665 854

investor-relations@adva.com

Source: ADVA Optical Networking SE
Curve launches new crowdfunding round to enable its 2m+ customers to be part of the super apps exciting growth journey

Potential investors can now pre-register to receive early access to the campaign ahead of its public launch

New crowdfund follows Curves successful 72.5m Series C fundraise

Funds will be used to support product innovation and Curves expansion into the US and deeper into Europe

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Curve, the fast-growing financial super app, today announces its launching a new crowdfunding round to enable its growing customer base to invest, as it fuels its expansion into the US and further into Europe. The campaign is set to go live sometime in May.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005170/en/

Curve Launches New Crowdfund to Bring Customers Closer to its Growth Journey (Graphic: Business Wire)

Having secured 72.5 million from a leading group of international investors as part of its successful Series C round, Curve is now extending the opportunity to its customers and wider community to take part in the next stage of its ambitious growth strategy.

Since its record-breaking crowdfund in 2019, which raised 4 million within 42 minutes, Curves valuation has tripled. In the last year alone, Curve hired over 100 new staff, doubled its customer base to over two million, and saw the volume of transactions it processes increase by over 1 billion to 2.6 billion, despite the backdrop of a global pandemic.

The proceeds of the crowdfunding and Series C round will be used to turbocharge growth by investing in product innovation and international expansion. Curves 2021 roadmap includes the rollout of its new Curve Credit offering, the launch of its award-winning platform to customers in the US, and broadening its reach across Europe. To deliver this, Curve plans to grow its workforce by around 60%, adding at least 200 employees over the course of 2021.

The crowdfund will be conducted via Crowdcube. The campaign will enable those that missed out on the opportunity to invest in Curve in 2019 to follow in the footsteps of some of the most respected global institutional investors in tech, including IDC Ventures, Fuel Venture Capital and Vulcan Capital (the investment arm of the estate of Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Paul G. Allen).

For further information on how to invest, and to pre-register interest and to receive updates on when the crowdfund will be live, visit https://www.curve.com/crowdfunding2021.

Shachar Bialick, Founder and CEO of Curve, said: 2020 was a transformational year for Curve, and I believe 2021 will be bigger yet, as we fulfil our mission to build a financial super app. With increasing fragmentation in financial services, and growing demand from consumers for a simpler way to control and manage their finances, the scene is set for Curve to seize a global opportunity. We are investing in our people and the business to make that happen.

Since we place our customers at the heart of everything we do, we wanted to offer another chance for them to be involved in our success, enabling them to be part of our journey. We know many new customers missed out on our 2019 crowdfunding, and weve fielded constant requests to open a new round. So I am ecstatic to announce the launch of this crowdfunding campaign, and look forward to redefining the future of personal finance together with our customers and shareholders.

ENDS

About Curve

Curve is an all in one financial super app. Its mission is to be a one-stop shop for all the financial needs of a consumer; a single point of access to a wide range of financial products and services, bundling together all your money into one smart card and an even smarter app. Unlike other services available in the market today, Curve allows customers to connect and supercharge their legacy banks to the 21st century, without leaving their bank or signing up to a new bank. Curve is live in 31 markets across the UK and European Economic Area (EEA).

Curve provides a host of benefits to its customers:

Combines a customers Mastercard and Visa debit and credit cards in one card.

Enables customers cards to fit into Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, FitBit Pay and many more, even if their banks do not support this integration.

Curve provides 1% cash back on selected retailers for the first 3 months, or for longer when on one of Curves paid subscriptions.

With Curves patented Go-Back-In-Time  feature, Curve customers may be able to swap their spend to a different account, up to 90 days after the purchase was made.

feature, Curve customers may be able to swap their spend to a different account, up to 90 days after the purchase was made. Increased security and privacy - Curve simplifies customers lives by providing them with only one pin to remember; keeping other sensitive card numbers safe by using Curve when spending online; providing real time spending notifications and the ability to lock the Curve card directly from the app.

Peace of mind - Curves premium Metal offering provides mobile phone insurance and travel insurance to ensure customers can focus on living their lives, rather than worrying about losing their phone or bags when they travel.

Curve supports Mastercard and Visa networks. The Curve Card and e-money, related to cards issued in the UK, is issued by Curve OS Limited, authorised in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority to issue electronic money (firm reference number 900926). The Curve Card and e-money, related to cards issued in the EEA, is issued by Curve Europe UAB, authorised in Lithuania by the Bank of Lithuania (electronic money institution license No. 73 issued on 22 of October, 2020).

For more information go to www.curve.com, like our Facebook page and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter @imaginecurve and Instagram @imaginecurve.

About the crowdfund

This announcement is not an offer of securities for sale or subscription in any jurisdiction, and should not be relied upon in connection with any offer. Any investment decision should be based solely on the basis of the terms of the investment, which will be made available to eligible potential investors in due course.

Not for release, publication or distribution, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, in or into the USA, Canada, and Japan or any other state or jurisdiction in which such release, publication or distribution would be unlawful.

Investing involves risk and should be done only as part of a diversified portfolio. Investing equity in start-ups and early stage businesses involves risks, including illiquidity, lack of dividends, loss of investment and dilution. Crowdcube is targeted exclusively at investors who are sufficiently sophisticated to understand these risks and make their own investment decisions. Approved as a financial promotion by Crowdcube Capital Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (No. 650205).

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005170/en/

Charley Bray

Email: charley.bray@imaginecurve.com

Source: Curve
ALPHARETTA, Ga.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Cyble, an AI-powered, Y Combinator-backed, cyber intelligence company that empowers organizations with darkweb/cybercrime monitoring and mitigation services, today announced the addition of eminent technology and sustainability evangelist Vijay Sethi to its Advisory Board. Vijay has rich experience in advising and mentoring corporates and startups in various facets of management, digital transformation, and sustainability.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005525/en/

Digital Transformation and Sustainability Evangelist Vijay Sethi Joins the Advisory Board of Cyble (Photo: Business Wire)

A key member of our Advisory Board, Vijays insights will help steer our strategic development initiatives. His appointment is in line with Cybles commitment to achieving our goals by ensuring sustained growth, maintaining operational excellence, establishing a culture of innovation, and raising the standards for corporate governance. As Cyble continues to deliver advanced threat intelligence to its end-clients, I look forward to working with Vijay as Cyble continues to grow and span across uncharted territories, says Manish Chachada, COO and Co-founder of Cyble.

An industry veteran with over 30 years of experience, Vijay Sethi has served as the CIO, CHRO, and Head CSR at Hero MotoCorp. Prior to that, he worked with Ranbaxy and Tata Consultancy Services. A huge proponent of digital technologies like the Cloud, Mobility, Artificial Intelligence, RPA, AR, VR, and cybersecurity and risk management, he has experience in digital transformation roadmap and project development ventures, large-scale IT projects, community development programs, and talent development and employee engagement campaigns.

Commenting on joining forces with Cyble, Vijay says, I strongly endorse the growing need to make the digital world safer and help share cybersecurity insights and threat intelligence with consumers. The team at Cyble, their technological offerings, and the companys commitment to keeping customers and users safe are impressive. Im very pleased to be joining Cyble as an Advisor and look forward to working with its talented and dynamic teams.

Rated among Indias Best IT leaders, over the years, Vijay has won several prestigious recognitions, including CIO of the year many times, CIO Hall of Fame, Super League CIO, Champion CIO, Global CIO, Global CIO Hall of fame, Digital Icon of India, Indias Best IT manager, Indias Most Innovative CSR Leader, and many others. He also serves as the Chairman of SAP India User Group (INDUS). Earlier, he also served as the Chairman of the IT Committee of Society of the Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) and the Chairman of CSR Committee of SIAM. Over the years, Vijay has also been a member of various Committees of CII and FICCI.

Beenu Arora, CEO and Founder of Cyble, says, I am delighted to welcome Vijay into the board. He truly needs no introduction in the cybersecurity fraternity, and his problem-solving skills and passion for building efficient solutions make him best suited to take Cyble to the next level. His appointment has been a significant step in our effort to nurture our world-class business leadership team. Vijays actionable counsel will prove beneficial in shaping Cybles strategic business decisions.

About Cyble:

Cyble is a global threat intelligence SaaS provider that helps enterprises protect themselves from cybercrimes and exposure in the Darkweb. Its prime focus is to provide organizations with real-time visibility to their digital risk footprint. Backed by Y Combinator as part of the 2021 winter cohort, Cyble has also been recognized by Forbes as one of the top 20 Best Cybersecurity Start-ups To Watch In 2020. Headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia, and with offices in Australia, Singapore, and India, Cyble has a global presence. To learn more about Cyble, visit www.cyble.io.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005525/en/

Medha Roy Chowdhury

EMAIL: Enquiries@Cyble.io

MOBILE: +1 678 379 3241

Source: Cyble
Private credit manager, spearheaded by industry veterans, will provide credit solutions for family- and entrepreneur-owned enterprises

NEW YORK & DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Family Legacy Capital Management, LLC (FLC), a private investment manager for leading family offices, today announced the launch of FLC Credit Partners, a private credit fund manager. Headquartered in New York, the investment team is led by experienced industry executives Peter Eschmann, Matthew Hart and Jay Rogers, who have collectively completed over 250 transactions and deployed more than $15 billion of capital at their prior firms.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210510005689/en/

Inspired by what many businesses experienced during the COVID-19 crisis, FLC Credit Partners provides financing solutions to capital-constrained, lower middle market companies in North America. In particular, it addresses the capital needs of family- and entrepreneur-owned businesses, through creative private credit solutions from a financial partner who is aligned with and understands the dynamics inherent in these types of companies given its own investor base of leading family offices.

FLC Credit Partners makes both primary and secondary opportunistic private credit investments, with an emphasis on secured loans, but also selected mezzanine and structured equity solutions. The group targets $10 million to $100 million transactions to fund re-financings, leveraged buyouts, add-on acquisitions, recapitalizations, growth/working capital, rescue capital, DIP loans and exit finance.

With our limited partner base comprised entirely of leading families who are willing to share their Intellectual, Relational and Financial Capital, we are more closely aligned to family- and entrepreneur-owned businesses, said Hendrik Jordaan, Chairman and Co-Founder of FLC. It provides us with a unique ability to better serve these potentially stressed, complex or misunderstood business, often in out-of-favor industries. We are incredibly excited for Peter, Matt and Jay to join the Family Legacy Capital platform and know that their deep expertise positions us well to deliver desired outcomes to our investors.

Mr. Eschmann, Partner and Managing Director, brings over 25 years of private credit experience including 16 years at Cerberus Capital Management, and earlier at Deutsche Bank, Chase Manhattan and Bankers Trust.

Mr. Hart, Partner and Managing Director, has over 20 years of private credit and restructuring experience, including as Head of Private & Transitional Finance at Jefferies and earlier at Lazard, Merrill Lynch, Intrepid Financial Partners and Eos Partners.

Mr. Rogers, Partner and Managing Director, has over 20 years of private credit experience including seven years at Cerberus Capital Management, and as Chief Credit Officer at Catalyst Capital, and at GE Capital.

Also joining the team as Vice President is Mr. Brian Mullin. Mr. Mullin has over 10 years of experience in capital raising and investor relations for investment funds, including at Neuberger Berman and Campbell & Company.

FLC is affiliated with the private investment manager for One Thousand & One Voices (1K1V), a private equity fund whose family-only limited partners invest their Intellectual, Relational and Financial Capital in sub-Saharan Africa. 1K1Vs portfolio companies have exported over $60 million of product from Africa to over 30 countries, and have created thousands of jobs, resulting in economic support to tens of thousands of people. Similar to FLC Credit Partners, 1K1Vs limited partners are comprised solely of leading family offices.

About Family Legacy Capital

Family Legacy Capital Management, LLC (Family Legacy Capital) manages, directly or indirectly, private investment funds whose limited partners are comprised of leading family offices. The firm is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. For more information, please visit www.familylegacycapital.com.

About FLC Credit Partners

Family Legacy Capital Credit Management, LLC, operating under the brand FLC Credit Partners, is the private credit fund manager of Family Legacy Capital. The investment team is based in New York, New York. For more information, please visit www.flccredit.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210510005689/en/

Media:

Mickey Mandelbaum or Amanda Powers

Prosek Partners

mmandelbaum@prosek.com

apowers@prosek.com

(212) 279-3115

(646) 818-9021

Source: Family Legacy Capital
Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has announced its intent to acquire Linkbynet, a leading French cloud services provider specializing in cloud optimization and managed services, cloud transformation and cloud security. Financial terms of the transaction are not being disclosed.

Founded in 2000, Linkbynet is a cloud-native solutions provider based in Saint-Denis, France, with additional offices in Belgium, Canada, China, France, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Singapore and Vietnam. The addition of the companys team of more than 900 highly skilled professionals, who hold 400 certifications from major cloud providers such as Alibaba, Amazon, Google and Microsoft, would further enhance the global capabilities of Accenture Cloud First.

Acquiring Linkbynet would be another strategic step in strengthening our Accenture Cloud First capabilities, said Karthik Narain, global lead, Accenture Cloud First. Linkbynets talented team would bring deep cloud and engineering specialization, managed services, sophisticated technology tools and cybersecurity intelligence.

Backed by a $3 billion investment over three years, Accenture Cloud First is a multi-service group of 70,000 cloud professionals offering an unmatched depth and breadth of cloud expertise, industry cloud solutions, ecosystem partner capabilities and assets to help clients realize greater value from cloud at speed and scale.

Olivier Girard, market unit lead for Accenture France & Benelux, said, Entire industries have been challenged to not only reinvent their customer experience, but also their core offerings, while imagining new business models for the future. With advisory and digital transformation experience across cloud implementation, security, management and optimization, the Linkbynet team brings critical skills that would help Accenture clients adopt emerging technologies and scale them across their enterprise for strategic agility in a challenging business environment.

Patrick and Stephane Aisenberg, co-founders of Linkbynet said, We are proud to be one of the first French cloud-native players and a pioneer in the synergistic models between technological transformation (cloud adoption), security and cloud managed services. The combination of Accentures and Linkbynets unique working culture, values, and technical expertise would enable us to better support our customers digital projects across multiple sectors while providing their organizations with the same exceptional levels of service and resilience theyve come to expect. We are excited about the opportunity to join Accenture in helping companies reimagine their business and rebuild differently for the benefit of all  from their customers and people to society at large.

Over the past 24 months, Accenture has made a number of strategic investments to expand and enhance its cloud services capabilities. These include in France the acquisition of Gekko in June 2020 and Cirruseo in June 2019 and more recently in Europe the acquisition of Edenhouse (UK), Infinity (UK) and Cygni (Sweden).

Accenture invested nearly $1.5 billion globally on 34 acquisitions in its 2020 fiscal year to acquire critical skills and capabilities in strategic, high-growth areas of the market.

The acquisition requires prior consultation with the relevant works councils and approvals from the relevant authorities and would be subject to customary closing conditions.
Temecula, CA, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Global Warming Solutions, Inc., (OTC MARKETS: GWSO), a worldwide developer of technologies that help mitigate Global Warming and its effects on the planet announces LOI for the exclusive worldwide licensing rights to a revolutionary technology in the wind turbine industry. This patented turbine technology represents a new generation of wind turbine machines that increases the efficiency of electrical power production triggered by natural wind, at heretofore unprecedented low wind speeds. Wind power is an extremely popular and renewable source of power that is also sustainable. It has a much smaller impact on the environment compared to the burning of fossil fuels. When these patented turbine machines get exposed to oncoming wind, they generate lift force at extremely low wind speeds. It utilizes changes in temperature and density to generate equivocal force throughout. There is no disruption of airflow which avoids turbulence and allows a series of turbines to power each other, in a somewhat perpetual motion machine. The wind is one the most abundant forms of power on earth but yet not the most utilized. I spent 20 years researching how to produce nearly free energy from wind anywhere. I have developed a brand-new revolutionary wing energy generation turbine. I am pleased that GWSO had chosen my patented wind turbine to help the world with very inexpensive wind energy generation, said the inventor, Mr. Yuri Abramov, Ph.D.

This wind energy invention stands apart due to its unique ability to generate energy literally anywhere with only slight wind required. The system generates an artificial tornado that can power multiple turbines and generate energy endlessly. It has numerous advantages over any current technology such as it is site agnostic and will work anywhere. It needs minimal wind velocity to operate. It requires exceptionally low maintenance and is also easy to maintain. Even untrained personnel can install and operate the machines. It can scale to a 1+MegaWatt/H power plant on the ground or be placed on rooftops. Its energy cost is also revolutionary in that it is below 1 cent/kWh.

The scientist and inventor, Dr. Abramov, is a world-renowned Physicist, Mathematician, Algorithm Developer, and Engineer in the field of Applied Physics. He developed a system for the application of statistical multiplexing algorithms for video encoding, modeling and the design of digital signal processing, software development and modeling for wind energy use, and clean water apparatuses. Yuri has developed over 20 inventions that are registered as patents including Signal Processing Method Utilizing the SAW Velocity Dispersion Effect for Weighting by Shaping the Electrode Fingers of a SAW Interdigital Transducer and Apparatus, signal processing utilizing SAW wave guides, image processing methods for digital quantization and others. Yuri has contributed to nearly 40 scientific publications with various articles on analysis, methods and applications of SAW filters design, algorithms for video encoding and others. Most notably for GWSO, some of these patents encompass wind energy generation. Yuri holds a degree as Master of Science in Theoretical Physics from the Institute of Chemical Physics, Russian Federation. In 1993 he worked as a developer for TECHNION, Israel Institute of Technology in Israel. In 2005 he was a lead developer for Telematics-Wireless Ltd. Prior to joining the Company Yuri founded his company Soliton-SAW Ltd in 1999. He has worked for over three decades as the lead developer, engineer, and inventor for the company. His company, Soliton-SAW Ltd., has provided consulting and implementation, algorithms and software development, modeling, and systems design services, for the past 14 years.

The main advantages of wind generated energy are: 1) it is renewable and sustainable, 2) it is environmentally friendly, 3) utilizing wind energy reduces our consumption of fossil fuels, 4) wind energy is free, 5) it is equally beneficial for both industrial and domestic installation, and 6) low maintenance. The disadvantages are: 1) reliability of wind atmospherically, 2) visual pollution and noise, 3) amount of space required, 3) peoples safety if the turbines are blown off their bases in storms, and 4) the threat to wildlife. However, due to the small size of this technology, its ability to work in incredibly low wind environments, and miniature scalability, most of the common disadvantages associated with wind generation technology are dramatically mitigated, leaving nearly on the advantages. (source: google sites)

According to an article published in Science Daily on April 27th, The now-familiar sight of traditional propeller wind turbines could be replaced in the future with wind farms containing more compact and efficient vertical turbines. New research from Oxford Brookes University has found that the vertical turbine design is far more efficient than traditional turbines in large-scale wind farms, and when set in pairs the vertical turbines increase each other's performance by up to 15%...A research team from the School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics (ECM) at Oxford Brookes led by Professor Iakovos Tzanakis conducted an in-depth study using more than 11,500 hours of computer simulation to show that wind farms can perform more efficiently by substituting the traditional propeller-type Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines (HAWTs), for compact Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWTs)The research demonstrates for the first time at a realistic scale, the potential of large scale VAWTs to outcompete current HAWT wind farm turbines.

The Global Wind Energy Market size was valued at over USD 125 billion in 2020 is forecasted to reach USD 167.15 Billion by 2027, with a CAGR of 7.1% (Source: Emergen Research). Its annual installation is anticipated to exceed 120 GW by 2027 (Source: Global Market Insights). Rising investments toward the expansion of renewable energy capacity coupled with efforts to minimize carbon footprint will boost the market demand for wind energy technology for the foreseeable future.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration published an article on March 3rd indicating that, The United States installed more wind turbine capacity in 2020 than in any other year.

As explained in TechXplore, quoting Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory, Experts predictions for future wind energy costs drop significantly...Technology and commercial advancements are expected to continue to drive down the cost of wind energy, according to a survey led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) of the world's foremost wind power experts. Experts anticipate cost reductions of 17%-35% by 2035 and 37%-49% by 2050, driven by bigger and more efficient turbines, lower capital and operating costs, and other advancements. The findings are described in an article in the journal Nature Energy

President Biden signed an Executive Order in January aiming to maximize offshore wind potential and has identified wind power as a key component of the nation's renewed efforts to combat climate change. The White House then announced on March 29 that, it convened leaders from across the Administration to announce a set of bold actions that will catalyze offshore wind energy, strengthen the domestic supply chain, and create good-paying, union jobs. Then on April 29, President Biden announced a  plan to reach net zero carbon dioxide emissions in the generating sector (which) includes the installation of 30,000 megawatts of new offshore wind capacity by 2030.

Demand for Efficient Wind Turbine Energy in Corporate America has reached an all-time high. For example, as per the article by Leticia Miranda of NBC News on April 19th, Amazon is now the largest corporate buyer of renewable energy in Europe, after establishing new wind and solar energy projects in Sweden, the retail giant announced Monday. The company became the worlds largest buyer of renewable energy last yearThe company now has 206 renewable energy projects worldwide that can generate 8.5 GW of electricity to power its corporate offices, fulfillment centers, Whole Foods Market stores, and Amazon Web Services, the company said in a statementMany parts of our business are already operating on renewable energy, and we expect to power all of Amazon with renewable energy by 2025," said Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO, in a statement. With these nine new wind and solar projects, we have announced 206 renewable wind and solar projects worldwide, and we are now the largest corporate buyer of renewable energy in Europe and globally," he said.

Michael Pollastro, President of GWSO said, Upon successful acquisition of this technology, we will continue to develop it very rapidly. We are already in the process of securing the necessary capital for its maturation and commercialization. Moreover, we have already received inquiries and are in the beginning stages of meetings and negotiations with several of the largest companies in the world, who have expressed interest in the technology and its eventual rollout. It could be a complete game-changer in the world of renewable and clean energy.

To learn more about Global Warming Solutions, Inc. Visit: http://www.gwsogroup.com

Forward-Looking Statements This press release may include predictions, estimates or other information that might be considered forward-looking within the meaning of applicable securities laws. While these forward-looking statements represent the Companys current judgments, they are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect the opinions of the Companys management only as of the date of this release. Please keep in mind that the Company is not obligating itself to revise or publicly release the results of any revision to these forward-looking statements in light of new information or future events. When used herein, words such as: potential, expect, look forward, believe, dedicated, building, or variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in any forward-looking statements made by the Company herein are often discussed in filings the Company makes with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at www.sec.gov and on the Companys website at http://www.gwsogroup.com

Michael Pollastro

mpollastro@gwsogroup.com President, Chairman of the Board Global Warming Solutions, Inc.

Source: Global Warming Solutions, Inc.
ROTTERDAM, The Netherlands (11 May 2021)  IMCD N.V. (IMCD or Company), a leading distributor of speciality chemicals and ingredients, today published the convocation and agenda for its Annual General Meeting of shareholders (AGM), which will be held on Tuesday 22 June 2021 at 10:30 CET in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

The convocation, agenda, and further documentation for the AGM are available in the Investors section of IMCDs website.

In view of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, precautionary measures apply to limit exposure for IMCDs employees, shareholders, and other stakeholders. IMCD encourages shareholders to exercise their online proxy voting rights in advance of the meeting, instead of attending the meeting in person. There will be no social gathering surrounding the AGM and depending on the circumstances at the time, the number of board members participating may be limited. Shareholders are advised to regularly check the Investors section of IMCDs website for any updates.

A full overview of IMCDs financial calendar is available in the Investors' section of IMCDs website.

Attached, please find the press release in pdf format.

This press release contains information that qualifies as inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation.

Attachment
HOUSTON, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE: TRGP) ("Targa" or the "Company") announced today that representatives from the Company will participate in virtual investor meetings at the following conferences:

Citi Global Energy & Utilities Virtual Conference on Wednesday, May 12, 2021; and

EIC Investor Conference on Wednesday, May 19 and Thursday, May 20, 2021.

A copy of the slides used for the conference meetings will be available in the Investors section of the Company's website at www.targaresources.com, or by going to https://www.targaresources.com/investors/events.

About Targa Resources Corp.

Targa Resources Corp. is a leading provider of midstream services and is one of the largest independent midstream infrastructure companies in North America. The Company owns, operates, acquires and develops a diversified portfolio of complementary midstream infrastructure assets. The Company is primarily engaged in the business of: gathering, compressing, treating, processing, transporting and purchasing and selling natural gas; transporting, storing, fractionating, treating and purchasing and selling NGLs and NGL products, including services to LPG exporters; and gathering, storing, terminaling and purchasing and selling crude oil.

For more information, please visit the Companys website at www.targaresources.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this release that address activities, events or developments that the Company expects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements rely on a number of assumptions concerning future events and are subject to a number of uncertainties, factors and risks, many of which are outside the Companys control, which could cause results to differ materially from those expected by management of the Company. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, weather, political, economic and market conditions, including a decline in the price and market demand for natural gas, natural gas liquids and crude oil, the impact of pandemics such as COVID-19, actions by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC oil producing countries, the timing and success of business development efforts, and other uncertainties. These and other applicable uncertainties, factors and risks are described more fully in the Companys filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, and any subsequently filed Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. The Company does not undertake an obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Contact the Company's investor relations department by email atInvestorRelations@targaresources.com or by phone at (713) 584-1133.

Sanjay LadVice President, Finance & Investor Relations

Jennifer KnealeChief Financial Officer

Source: Targa Resources Corp.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - LevelJump Healthcare Corp. (TSXV: JUMP) (OTCQB: JMPHF) (FSE: 75J) ("LevelJump" or the "Company"), a Canadian leader in B2B telehealth solutions, is pleased to announce that it has qualified to trade on the OTCQB Venture Market.

The common shares of Leveljump will commence trading at the open on May 12th under the symbol "JMPHF." U.S. investors can find current financial disclosure and Real-Time Level 2 quotes for the company on www.otcmarkets.com.

The OTCQB Venture Market provides value and convenience to U.S. investors, brokers and institutions seeking to trade JMPHF. The OTCQB Venture Market is for entrepreneurial and development stage U.S. and international companies. To be eligible, companies must be current in their reporting and undergo an annual verification and management certification process. Trading on the OTCQB Market is intended to offer companies efficient, cost-effective access to the U.S. capital markets. For companies listed on a qualified international exchange, streamlined market standards enable them to utilize their home market reporting to make their information available in the U.S.

Information relating to the Company, including copies of the Company's financial statements, are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

"We are extremely proud to announce the commencement of trading on the OTCQB Venture Market," said Mitch Geisler, CEO and Chairman of Leveljump. "We are excited to share our vision for Leveljump with a wider pool of retail and institutional shareholders throughout the United States."

"We are pleased to welcome Leveljump Healthcare Corp. to the OTCQB Venture Market," said Jason Paltrowitz, EVP of Corporate Services at OTC Markets Group. "Trading on the TSX Venture Exchange in Canada and on the OTCQB Market in the U.S. will enable Leveljump to more efficiently build global investor awareness. We look forward to supporting the company and its shareholders."

Leveljump is also pleased to advise that B. Riley FBR, Inc. acted as its OTCQB sponsor. B. Riley FBR, is a full-service investment bank and subsidiary of B. Riley Financial, Inc. B. Riley FBR, based in Los Angeles with offices across the United States, provides corporate finance, research, sales and trading services.

About LevelJump Healthcare

LevelJump Healthcare Corp., (TSXV: JUMP) is building a national medical diagnostic imaging company and brand, primarily by providing teleradiology (remote radiology) services to its client hospitals and imaging centers. Additionally, JUMP plans to expand through the acquisition of independent healthcare facilities focused on diagnostic imaging as well as acquiring new disruptive imaging technologies.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF

LEVELJUMP HEALTHCARE CORP.

Mitchell Geisler, Chief Executive Officer

info@leveljumphealthcare.com

(833) 840-2020

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws relating to the Company's business plans and the outlook of the Company's industry. Although the Company believes, in light of the experience of its officers and directors, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors that have been considered appropriate, that the expectations reflected in this forward-looking information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on them because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Actual results and developments may differ materially from those contemplated by these statements. The statements in this press release are made as of the date of this release and the Company assumes no responsibility to update them or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances other than as required by applicable securities laws. The Company undertakes no obligation to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made by third-parties in respect of the Company, Canadian Teleradiology Services, Inc., their securities, or their respective financial or operating results (as applicable).

Neither the Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83643
Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 12:56 am

Clark County Public Health is offering more opportunities to get vaccinated against COVID-19, according to a news release. Vaccines will be available at an upcoming weekend event and evening hours will be added at the Tower Mall vaccination site.

The Tower Mall Vaccination site will now operates until 7:30 p.m. on Tuesdays. The site administers the Pfizer vaccine and everyone 16 and older is eligible. The site offers appointments, which are added weekly, and provides vaccinations to those without appointments. Priority will be given to those with appointments.

The site is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays and 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesdays. The site is closed from noon to 1 p.m. each day and from 5 to 5:30 p.m. on Tuesdays. The site at 5403 E. Mill Plain Blvd., offers drive-thru and walk-up vaccination options and is accessible by C-Tran bus route 37.

Those vaccinated at Tower Mall are automatically scheduled for a second dose at the site three weeks later. Consent forms are available online at clark.wa.gov/public-health/covid-19-vaccine.

Clark County Public Health will also host vaccination events in the Fruit Valley area of Vancouver, according to a news release.

On Saturday, May 15, public health will have appointments for more than 400 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at Fruit Valley Community Learning Center, 3410 NW Fruit Valley Road, Vancouver. Appointments are available 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and can be scheduled online or by calling public health at (888) 225-4625.

Public health will be at the Fruit Valley school to administer second doses of Pfizer to people who received their first dose at the site on April 24. No first doses of Pfizer vaccine will be available.

COVID-19 vaccines are free. ID and health insurance are not required.

All three vaccines are safe and prevent COVID-19 infection, including asymptomatic infection, Alan Melnick, Clark County health officer and public health director said in a news release. The more people who get vaccinated, the better protected our community is against COVID-19.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 10, 2021) - VanadiumCorp Resource Inc. (TSXV: VRB) (OTC Pink: VRBFF) (FSE: NWN) (the "Company", "VanadiumCorp") is pleased to announce it has commenced joint hydrometallurgical testing with Strategic Resources Inc. (TSXV: SR) ("Strategic") using VanadiumCorp's patented and proprietary green recovery process named the VanadiumCorp Electrochem Process Technology ("VEPT") on titanomagnetite concentrate from Strategic's wholly-owned Mustavaara Project in Finland. The ongoing prototype testing campaign is performed by Electrochem Technologies & Materials inc. ("Electrochem") at its facilities in Boucherville, Qubec, Canada. It will test whether the clean energy technology from VanadiumCorp is viable on Mustavaara's material and could provide an alternative and more environmentally friendly way to extract vanadium and iron, versus the conventional smelting methods evaluated in the Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Project (see Strategic's news release dated May 4, 2021). Vanadium end products produced by the VEPT process favour the rapidly emerging Vanadium Redox Flow Battery industry in contrast to the current flowsheet, which produces ferrovanadium used in the steel industry. In addition, the process offers the potential for commercial-grade titanium production as a third revenue stream for the Project.

Scott Hicks, CEO and Director of Strategic Resources, commented: "Our Mustavaara project could substantially benefit from the addition of a third revenue stream and potentially a lower capital, less carbon intensive way of extracting vanadium and iron. Our team believes in redox flow batteries and would be excited to gear our project towards the growing market."

Adriaan Bakker, VanadiumCorp's CEO, commented: "VanadiumCorp is excited to be working with Strategic, who has identified the potential of our patented green process technology. As the Mustavaara Project encompasses a formerly producing vanadium-iron- mine, it represents a potential paradigm shift toward green metallurgical recovery methods. Located in Finland, sustainable recovery of vanadium and other critical metals at Mustavaara would represent an exciting development in the region and the EU."

About VEPT

VEPT is a patented and proprietary chemical process technology wholly owned by VanadiumCorp. Dr. Francois Cardarelli, from Electrochem Technologies & Materials Inc., invented VEPT in 2017 to address challenges in the metallurgical recovery of vanadium from a variety of feedstocks. The VEPT process was co-developed by Electrochem and VanadiumCorp over the past four years as a higher-yielding alternative to conventional methods that rely upon carbon- and energy-intensive pyrometallurgy. The VEPT process directly recovers source materials for the Vanadium Redox Flow Battery industry, such as vanadium pentoxide and vanadyl sulphate both precursors for producing vanadium electrolyte. Yields include a high-purity titanium by-product. VEPT is patent-protected in the USA and patent-pending in the key global jurisdictions of Canada, the EU, South Africa, Australia, and India. Testing of the VEPT process on a wide range of vanadiferous feedstocks is currently progressing at the bench scale.

About VanadiumCorp

VanadiumCorp Resource Inc. is an integrated green technology company with wholly owned vanadium-titanium-iron mineral deposits in Quebec, Canada. VanadiumCorp is focused on commercializing technologies to process mineral concentrates and produce vanadium electrolytes sustainably for Vanadium Redox Flow Battery "VRFB" systems. VRFBs are a 100% green technology from mine to battery when hydrometallurgical processes produce the vanadium feedstock. VRFB technologies improve renewable energy efficiencies by storing temporary energy surpluses and feeding them back into the electrical grid as required.

On behalf of the board of VanadiumCorp:

Adriaan Bakker

President and Chief Executive Officer

For more information:

Adriaan Bakker,

President and CEO, VanadiumCorp Resource Inc. (TSXV: VRB) (OTC Pink: VRBFF) (FSE: NWN)

By phone: 604-385-4489

By email: info@vanadiumcorp.com

Website: www.vanadiumcorp.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements and information herein, including all statements that are not historical facts, contain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking statements or information include but are not limited to statements or information with respect to future testing on Mustavaara's material and whether it could provide an alternative and more environmentally friendly way to extract vanadium and iron versus the conventional smelting methods contemplated in the preliminary economic study. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements or information can be identified by the use of words such as "will" or "projected" or variations of those words or statements that certain actions, events or results "will", "could", "are proposed to", "are planned to", "are expected to" or "are anticipated to" be taken, occur or be achieved.

With respect to forward-looking statements and information contained herein, the Company has made numerous assumptions including among other things, assumptions about general business and economic conditions, the prices of vanadium and pig iron, and anticipated costs and expenditures. The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive.

Although management of the Company believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements or information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that a forward-looking statement or information herein will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements and information by their nature are based on assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. These factors include, but are not limited to: risks associated with the business of the Company; business and economic conditions in the mining industry generally; the supply and demand for labour and other project inputs; changes in commodity prices; changes in interest and currency exchange rates; risks relating to inaccurate geological and engineering assumptions (including with respect to the tonnage, grade and recoverability of reserves and resources); risks relating to unanticipated operational difficulties (including failure of equipment or processes to operate in accordance with specifications or expectations, cost escalation, unavailability of materials and equipment, government action or delays in the receipt of government approvals, industrial disturbances or other job action, and unanticipated events related to health, safety and environmental matters); risks relating to adverse weather conditions; political risk and social unrest; changes in general economic conditions or conditions in the financial markets; and other risk factors as detailed from time to time in the Company's continuous disclosure documents filed with Canadian securities administrators. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83489
PHILADELPHIA, May 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of Trustees (the "Board") of Aberdeen Income Credit Strategies Fund (NYSE: ACP) (the "Fund"), a closed-end fund, has approved the terms of the issuance of transferable rights ("Rights") to the holders of the Fund's common shares (the "Common Shareholders") of beneficial interest ("Common Shares") as of the record date, entitling the holders of those Rights to subscribe for Common Shares (the "Offer"). The Board, based on the recommendations and presentations of Aberdeen Asset Managers Limited, the Fund's investment adviser (the "Adviser"), and others, has determined that it is in the best interests of the Fund and the Common Shareholders to conduct the Offer and seek to increase the assets of the Fund available for investment. The Offer seeks to provide an opportunity to existing Common Shareholders to purchase Common Shares at a discount to market price (subject to a sales load).

The Fund will distribute to Common Shareholders of record as of the record date ("Record Date Shareholders"), which is currently anticipated to be May 20, 2021 (the "Record Date"), one right ("Right") for each Common Share held on the Record Date. Record Date Shareholders will be entitled to purchase one new Common Share for every three Rights held (1 for 3); however, any Common Shareholder who owns fewer than three Common Shares as of the Record Date will be entitled to subscribe for one Common Share. Fractional Common Shares will not be issued.

The proposed subscription period is currently anticipated to commence on the Record Date and expire on June 16, 2021, unless extended by the Fund (the "Expiration Date"). The Rights are transferable and are expected to be admitted for trading on the New York Stock Exchange (the "NYSE") under the symbol "ACP RT" during the course of the Offer. Rights may be exercised at any time during the subscription period.

The subscription price per Common Share (the "Subscription Price") will be determined on the Expiration Date, and will be based upon a formula equal to 92.5% of the average of the last reported sales price of a Common Share of the Fund on the NYSE on the Expiration Date and each of the four (4) immediately preceding trading days (the "Formula Price"). If, however, the Formula Price is less than 87% of the Fund's net asset value per Common Share at the close of trading on the NYSE on the Expiration Date, the Subscription Price will be 87% of the Fund's net asset value per Common Share at the close of trading on the NYSE on that day. The estimated Subscription Price has not yet been determined by the Fund.

Record Date Shareholders who exercise all of their primary subscription Rights will be eligible for an over-subscription privilege entitling Record Date Shareholders to subscribe, subject to certain limitations and allotment, for any additional Common Shares not purchased pursuant to the primary subscription.

The Fund also announced today that it will pay a distribution of US $0.10 per share on May 27, 2021 to all shareholders of record as of May 21, 2021 (ex-dividend date May 20, 2021). Please note that this monthly distribution will not be payable with respect to the shares that will be issued pursuant to the rights offering.

The Fund also expects to declare a regular monthly distribution to Common Shareholders payable on or about June 30, 2021 with a record date on or about June 4, 2021, which will also not be payable with respect to Common Shares that are issued pursuant to the Offer after such record date.

The Offer will be made pursuant to the Fund's currently effective shelf registration statement on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and only by means of a prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus. A final prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus will be filed with the SEC, but has not been filed as of the date of this release. The Fund expects to mail subscription certificates evidencing the Rights and a copy of the prospectus for the Offer to Record Date Shareholders within the United States shortly following the Record Date. To exercise their Rights, Common Shareholders who hold their Common Shares through a broker, custodian or trust company, should contact such entity to forward their instructions to either exercise or sell their Rights on their behalf. Common Shareholders who do not hold Common Shares through a broker, custodian or trust company, should forward their instructions to either exercise or sell their Rights by completing the subscription certificate and delivering it to the subscription agent for the Offer, together with their payment, at one of the locations indicated on the subscription certificate or in the prospectus.

* * *

The Fund is a diversified, closed-end management investment company. The Fund's primary investment objective is to seek a high level of current income with a secondary objective of capital appreciation. Depending on current market conditions and the Fund's outlook over time, the Fund seeks to achieve its investment objectives by opportunistically investing primarily in loan and debt instruments (and loan-related or debt-related instruments, including repurchase and reverse repurchase agreements and derivative instruments) of issuers that operate in a variety of industries and geographic regions. The Fund invests all or a substantial portion of its assets in below investment grade securities which are often referred to as high yield or "junk" securities. Shares of closed-end funds frequently trade at a discount to net asset value. The price of the Fund's Common Shares is determined by a number of factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Fund.

The Fund is managed and advised by Aberdeen Asset Managers Limited. The Fund's shares trade on the NYSE under the symbol "ACP".

In the United States, Aberdeen Standard Investments is the marketing name for the following affiliated, registered investment advisers: Aberdeen Standard Investments Inc., Aberdeen Asset Managers Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments Australia Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments (Asia) Ltd., Aberdeen Capital Management, LLC, Aberdeen Standard Investments ETFs Advisors LLC and Aberdeen Standard Alternative Funds Limited.

Investors should consider the Fund's investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objectives. For further information regarding the Fund's Offer, or to obtain a prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus, when available, please visit the website maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov or contact the Fund's Information Agent:

Georgeson Inc.1290 Avenue of the Americas, 9th FloorNew York, NY 101041-800-561-2871

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or constitute a solicitation of an offer to buy. Investors should read the prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus, when available, and consider the investment objective, risks, fees and expenses of the Fund carefully before investing. This press release is not an offer to sell these securities and is not soliciting offers to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.

If you wish to receive this information electronically, please contact Investor.Relations@aberdeenstandard.com

aberdeenacp.com

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aberdeen-income-credit-strategies-fund-announces-rights-offering-and-monthly-distribution-301287978.html

SOURCE Aberdeen Income Credit Strategies Fund
DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- FlowForma, the leading provider of Process Automation tools for Microsoft Office 365, today announced its participation at London Build Online 2021, the UK's largest virtual event for digital construction, hosted by Digital Construction Online.

As the Coronavirus pandemic continues to accelerate the need for process automation across all industries, the Construction sector has seen a steady increase in demand for the digitization of manual paper-based processes, to aid remote workers and remove bottlenecks causing delays on important infrastructure projects.

Throughout this five-day event, the depths of the global digital construction market will be explored, with exclusive insights on future trends, key drivers, and the global response to digital transformation the key topics for discussion.

On day three, FlowForma's Product Strategist, Paul Stone, will be participating in a panel discussion on May 19 at 3:30 pm BST / 10:30 am EDT, alongside a leading global international infrastructure group and FlowForma customer, along with global construction influencer, Andrew Gamblin, Digital Manager at Willmott Dixon, where the panel will share real world insights into how construction organizations are finding new digital fixes for day-to-day construction processes.

Attendees of this session will also hear first-hand from our panellists about the importance of digitization and how best to support a distributed workforce by digitizing manual processes. Additionally, FlowForma's customer will reveal their top tips to overcome common processes challenges, such as poor visibility, BIM compliance (ISO 19650) and project overruns. A short demonstration of the award winning, 100% no code, FlowForma Process Automation tool will give attendees a further understanding of how quickly and seamlessly these processes can be digitized.

Additionally, FlowForma will exclusively reveal its new Construction Process Accelerators, consisting of popular construction process templates, ready for customers to adapt and deploy with speed. These fully customizable and accessible process accelerators include: Field Change Request, Concrete Pre-Pour Check Sheet, Labour Requisition, Materials Requisition and more.

Paul Stone, Product Strategist, FlowForma commented: "We are delighted to participate at London Build Online 2021, in what promises to be an interesting event discussing all things digital process automation in the Construction sector. It is an industry which traditionally has had a heavy reliance on paper but is now quickly embracing digital solutions to automate processes at scale site-wide, to eradicate paper delays on distributed sites, engage external users, and drive project efficiency and rapid ROI."

Supporting Resources:

To find out how the FlowForma Process Automation tool works visit: www.flowforma.com/how-it-works

Learn how FlowForma Process Automation accelerates process digitization in construction: www.flowforma.com/construction-infographic

T o download a free 14-day trial of FlowForma Process Automation visit: www.flowforma.com/start-your-flowforma-trial

To learn more about FlowForma Process Automation, book a demo with one of our experts: www.flowforma.com/book-a-demo

To find out how FlowForma Process Automation compares against its peers visit:www.g2crowd.com/products/flowforma-process-automation/reviews

About FlowForma

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For further information or a 14-day free trial, visit www.flowforma.com

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SOURCE FlowForma
WASHINGTON, May 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- After nearly five years in space, NASA's Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft is on its way back to Earth with an abundance of rocks and dust from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu.

On Monday, May 10, at 4:23 p.m. EDT the spacecraft fired its main engines full throttle for seven minutes  its most significant maneuver since it arrived at Bennu in 2018. This burn thrust the spacecraft away from the asteroid at 600 miles per hour (nearly 1,000 kilometers per hour), setting it on a 2.5-year cruise towards Earth.

After releasing the sample capsule, OSIRIS-REx will have completed its primary mission. It will fire its engines to fly by Earth safely, putting it on a trajectory to circle the sun inside of Venus' orbit.

After orbiting the Sun twice, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is due to reach Earth Sept. 24, 2023. Upon return, the capsule containing pieces of Bennu will separate from the rest of the spacecraft and enter Earth's atmosphere. The capsule will parachute to the Utah Test and Training Range in Utah's West Desert, where scientists will be waiting to retrieve it.

"OSIRIS-REx's many accomplishments demonstrated the daring and innovate way in which exploration unfolds in real time," said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for science at NASA Headquarters. "The team rose to the challenge, and now we have a primordial piece of our solar system headed back to Earth where many generations of researchers can unlock its secrets."

To realize the mission's multi-year plan, a dozen navigation engineers made calculations and wrote computer code to instruct the spacecraft when and how to push itself away from Bennu. After departing from Bennu, getting the sample to Earth safely is the team's next critical goal. This includes planning future maneuvers to keep the spacecraft on course throughout its journey.

"Our whole mindset has been, 'Where are we in space relative to Bennu?'" said Mike Moreau, OSIRIS-REx deputy project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. "Now our mindset has shifted to 'Where is the spacecraft in relation to Earth?'"

The navigation cameras that helped orient the spacecraft in relation to Bennu were turned off April 9, after snapping their last images of the asteroid. With Bennu in the rearview mirror, engineers are using NASA's Deep Space Network of global spacecraft communications facilities to steer the OSIRIS-REx by sending it radio signals. By measuring the frequency of the waves returned from the spacecraft transponder, engineers can tell how fast OSIRIS-REx is moving. Engineers measure how long it takes for radio signals to get from the spacecraft back to Earth in order to determine its location.

Exceeding Mission Expectations

The May 10 departure date was precisely timed based on the alignment of Bennu with Earth. The goal of the return maneuver is to get the spacecraft within about 6,000 miles (approximately 10,000 kilometers) of Earth in September 2023. Although OSIRIS-REx still has plenty of fuel remaining, the team is trying to preserve as much as possible for a potential extended mission to another asteroid after returning the sample capsule to Earth. The team will investigate the feasibility of such a mission this summer.

The spacecraft's course will be determined mainly by the Sun's gravity, but engineers will need to occasionally make small course adjustments via engine burns.

"We need to do regular corrections to bring the trajectory increasingly closer to Earth's atmosphere for the sample release, and to account for small errors that might have accumulated since the last burn," said Peter Antreasian, OSIRIS-REx navigation lead at KinetX Aerospace, which is based in Simi Valley, California.

The team will perform course adjustments a few weeks prior to Earth re-entry in order to precisely target the location and angle for the sample capsule's release into Earth's atmosphere. Coming in too low could cause the capsule to bounce out of the atmosphere like a pebble skipping off a lake; too high and the capsule could burn up due to friction and heat from the atmosphere. If OSIRIS-REx fails to release the capsule, the team has a backup plan to divert it away from Earth and try again in 2025.

"There's a lot of emotion within the team about departure," Moreau said. "I think everyone has a great sense of accomplishment, because we faced all these daunting tasks and were able to accomplish all the objectives thrown at us. But there's also some nostalgia and disappointment that this part of the mission is coming to an end."

OSIRIS-REx exceeded many expectations. Most recently, in the midst of a global pandemic, the team flawlessly executed the most mission's critical operation, collecting more than 2 ounces (60 grams) of soil from Bennu's surface.

Leading up to sample collection, a number of surprises kept the team on its toes. For example, a week after the spacecraft entered its first orbit around Bennu, on Dec. 31, 2018, the team realized that the asteroid was releasing small pieces of rock into space.

"We had to scramble to verify that the small particles being ejected from the surface did not present a hazard to the spacecraft," Moreau said.

Upon arrival at the asteroid, team members also were astonished to find that Bennu is littered with boulders.

"We really had this idea that we were arriving on an asteroid with open real estate," said Heather Enos, OSIRIS-REx deputy principal investigator, based at the University of Arizona, Tucson. "The reality was a big shocker."

To overcome the extreme and unexpected ruggedness of Bennu's surface, engineers had to quickly develop a more accurate navigation technique to target smaller-than-expected sites for sample collection.

The OSIRIS-REx mission was instrumental in both confirming and refuting several scientific findings. Among those confirmed was a technique that used observations from Earth to predict that the minerals on the asteroid would be carbon-rich and show signs of ancient water. One finding that proved unsuccessful was that Bennu would have a smooth surface, which scientists predicted by measuring how much heat radiated off its surface.

Scientists will use the information gleaned from Bennu to refine theoretical models and improve future predictions.

"This mission emphasizes why we have to do science and exploration in multiple ways  both from Earth and from up-close in space  because assumptions and models are just that," Enos said.

Goddard provides overall mission management, systems engineering, and the safety and mission assurance for OSIRIS-REx. Dante Lauretta of the University of Arizona, Tucson, is the principal investigator. The university leads the science team and the mission's science observation planning and data processing. Lockheed Martin Space in Littleton, Colorado, built the spacecraft and provides flight operations. Goddard and KinetX Aerospace are responsible for navigating the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. OSIRIS-REx is the third mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program, managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the agency's Science Mission Directorate Washington.

For more information about OSIRIS-REx, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/osiris-rex

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SOURCE NASA
TICKERS: NRG; NRGOF

Source: Streetwise Reports (5/11/21)

Newrange Gold's recent and next steps at its North Birch project are outlined in a Noble Capital Markets report.



In an April 27 research note, Noble Capital Markets analyst Mark Reichman provided an update on Newrange Gold Corp.'s (NRG:TSX.V; NRGOF:OTCQB) exploration work at its North Birch project in Ontario.

"With the completion of the [induced polarization] (IP) survey and proceeds realized from the sale of flow-through units, the company is poised to accelerate progress at its North Birch property," Reichman wrote.

Newrange completed an IP survey over 73.7 line kilometers of the 3,850-hectare property, the analyst noted. It covered most of the eastern portion of the project, including 7 kilometers of strike length along the main target horizon.

"The survey revealed several well-defined anomalies to target for the summer drilling program," Reichman added.

The mining firm, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, plans more work at North Birch to be done this summer. In late May, it intends to establish a camp and bring in a field crew. Mapping and sampling will be done over most of the property. In late June through early July, the company will commence approximately 2,500 meters of diamond drilling.

To fund efforts at North Birch, Reichman indicated, Newrange will use the proceeds from a recently closed nonbrokered private placement. From the sale of 6,250,000 flow-through units, the company raised CA$1 million.

The mineral explorer also generated CA$705,400 from a different nonbrokered private placement. The monies came from the closed first tranche, in which 5,878,332 non-flow-through units were sold. The second and last tranche was expected to yield CA$1,294,600. [Editor's Note: The second tranche closed on April 28 and yielded $1,351,991.] The company intends to use these funds to advance its Pamlico project in Nevada.

Noble Capital has an Outperform rating and a US$0.20 per share target price on Newrange Gold, the stock of which is currently trading at about US$0.14 per share.

[NLINSERT]

Disclosure:

1) Doresa Banning compiled this article for Streetwise Reports LLC and provides services to Streetwise Reports as an independent contractor. She or members of her household own securities of the following companies mentioned in the article: None. She or members of her household are paid by the following companies mentioned in this article: None.

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5) From time to time, Streetwise Reports LLC and its directors, officers, employees or members of their families, as well as persons interviewed for articles and interviews on the site, may have a long or short position in securities mentioned. Directors, officers, employees or members of their immediate families are prohibited from making purchases and/or sales of those securities in the open market or otherwise from the time of the decision to publish an article until three business days after the publication of the article. The foregoing prohibition does not apply to articles that in substance only restate previously published company releases. As of the date of this article, officers and/or employees of Streetwise Reports LLC (including members of their household) own securities of Newrange Gold, a company mentioned in this article.

Disclosures for Noble Capital Markets, Newrange Gold Corp, April 27, 2021

Company Specific Disclosures

The following disclosures relate to relationships between Noble and the company (the "Company") covered by the Noble Research Division and referred to in this research report.

The Company in this report is a participant in the Company Sponsored Research Program ("CSRP"); Noble receives compensation from the Company for such participation. No part of the CSRP compensation was, is, or will be directly or indirectly related to any specific recommendations or views expressed by the analyst in this research report.

The Company has attended Noble investor conference(s) in the last 12 months. Noble has arranged non-deal roadshow(s) with investors in the last 12 months.

Noble intends to seek compensation for investment banking services and non-investment banking services (securities and non-securities related) within the next 3 months.

Noble is not a market maker in the Company.

ANALYST CREDENTIALS, PROFESSIONAL DESIGNATIONS, AND EXPERIENCE

Senior Equity Analyst focusing on Basic Materials & Mining. 20 years of experience in equity research. BA in Business Administration from Westminster College. MBA with a Finance concentration from the University of Missouri. MA in International Affairs from Washington University in St. Louis. Named WSJ 'Best on the Street' Analyst and Forbes/StarMine's "Best Brokerage Analyst." FINRA licenses 7, 24, 63, 87.

RESEARCH ANALYST CERTIFICATION

Independence Of View:

All views expressed in this report accurately reflect my personal views about the subject securities or issuers.

Receipt of Compensation:

No part of my compensation was, is, or will be directly or indirectly related to any specific recommendations or views expressed in the public appearance and/or research report.

Ownership and Material Conflicts of Interest:

Neither I nor anybody in my household has a financial interest in the securities of the subject company or any other company mentioned in this report.
Mathew Z. Rosiere, 37, of Fond du Lac, unexpectedly passed away on Friday, June 4, 2021. He was born on May 18, 1984, in Pawnee, OK, the son of Michael Z. Rosiere and Sandra K. Kennedy. While he was in high school, he was active in football and wrestling. Mathew loved hard rock music, played
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.
Te Aranui Youth Trust and Blue Light Western Bay are the first recipients of the Workplace Giving programme.

The KPMG Tauranga office has been running a Workplace Giving programme with Acorn since last year.

Te Aranui Youth Trust and Blue Light Western Bay have been selected as they align with KPMGs corporate citizenship focus of lifelong learning for youth.

Blue Light works in partnership with the police to deliver an extensive range of youth programmes and activities, including the annual Kids Gone Fishin days, Take a Kid Flying, PCT competition, Blue Light bangers and the popular Youth Driver Navigation programme.

They also provide opportunities for local students to attend the national life skills camps run by Blue Light and the Defence Force.

Programmes and events delivered to the youth are designed to help them to reach their potential and build positive relationships between police, young people, their whanau and community.

Te Aranui Youth Trust run programmes to inspire and challenge vulnerable youth to make safe and positive life choices.

Blue Light.

The youth are referred through the Police Youth Development Team, Ministry of Education and local schools.

Personally I have had a long association with Acorn, serving as a Trustee from 2011 to 2019, with four years as chair, says KPMG Taurangas Office Managing Partner, Glenn Keaney.

I understand first-hand how much good Acorn is contributing to the community, so when the opportunity arose to be an early adopter of Acorns Workplace Giving programme, we signed up.

The benefit is that over time we can help make a real difference to our community and the youth involved in these initiatives, which, in the longer term, supports our purpose of fuelling New Zealands prosperity.

The programme also helps us create a culture of philanthropy and adds to the team spirit in our Tauranga office. We hope that as the programme continues, more of our team will see the value it brings and join in.

Acorn Foundation general manager Lori Luke says Acorn is so pleased to provide support to the KPMG Tauranga team to pass their Workplace Giving funds directly to their chosen charitable organisations.

Employee contributions are taken out of their fortnightly pay, with the 33 per cent tax credit applied at the time, says Lori.

An employee who donates $10 per paycheque will get the benefit of nearly $15 per pay period due to KPMGs company matching programme, while it only costs that employee $6.66 after the tax credit. Collective giving in this manner means that the benefit to the community adds up quickly.

Although Acorn has long been known as the organisation to which generous locals leave endowments to the Western Bay of Plenty, we now have many other ways to support our community, including Giving Circles, Workplace Giving, Corporate Giving and regular gifts to one of the more than 40 different Community Group Funds.

The Acorn team enjoys working with thoughtful businesses like KPMG to support causes of importance to them.

For more information on how you might support the community you love, go to www.acornfoundation.org.nz
The Independent Police Conduct Authority has found the use of a police dog to bite a 14-year-old following a pursuit was not justified in the circumstances.

On October 8, 2019, the young person was staying at his friend's house in Cambridge.

His friend decided to take his mother's Volkswagen without her knowledge, says a statement from the IPCA.

At around 1.38am two officers, who had just attended a possible vehicle break-in, saw the young person driving the Volkswagen and thought he may have been involved.

They also thought he may have been driving a stolen car as he did not match the registered owner's description, says the IPCA.

They signalled the driver to stop and, when he did not, initiated a pursuit.

The pursuit lasted for 18 minutes, reached speeds of approximately 150km/h in a 100km/h zone, and travelled about 30 kilometres.

The pursuit ended when the young person drove down a dead-end driveway in a rural area south of Hamilton.

He and his friend, who was in the front passenger seat, fled on foot into surrounding farmland, says the IPCAs report.

Four other young people, who were in the back seat, were apprehended almost immediately.

The pursuing officer and a dog handler chased the driver and passenger through some paddocks before the driver was apprehended by a police dog and bitten.

He sustained a serious dog bite to his left calf.

He was given medical assistance at the scene and at the station before being taken to Waikato Hospital for treatment.

The Authority also found the initial decision to signal the Volkswagen to stop was justified. Due to the interpretation of police policy at the time, the initiation of the pursuit was also justified.

However, insufficient consideration was given to abandoning the pursuit once the risks increased due to speed, the young person's manner of driving and the number of occupants in the vehicle.

Police were justified in arresting the young person, and the Authority did not accept his allegation that he was punched, sworn at, and laughed at during his arrest.

The use of a police dog to bite the young person was not justified or necessary in the circumstances, says authority chair Judge Colin Doherty.

While there was no issue with police using the dog to track him, the offending that he had possibly been involved in was not at a level that warranted a police dog being deployed to bite him.

Police have acknowledged the IPCA report and have conducted a full review into this incident, including a review of both the use of a police dog and the pursuit.

Police have a range of tactical options available to them, including the use of dogs, says Waikato District Commander Superintendent Bruce Bird.

In this instance, staff were arresting an offender who had been involved in unlawfully taking a vehicle, fleeing from police and reckless driving.

These are fast-moving and dynamic situations that require an ongoing risk assessment by the officers involved.

In this case, police accept that the IPCA has found the use of a police dog was not appropriate in the circumstances.
Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 1:03 am

All counties in Washington state received a two-week reprieve from potential rollbacks in the states COVID-19 reopening plan as Gov. Jay Inslee announced the most up-to-date data showing reason for a pause given a potential plateau of disease activity.

During a May 4 press conference the governor made the announcement on the day that ostensibly counties would see if they met metrics to remain at their current phases in the states Healthy Washington plan.

Inslee said the decision to pause phase changes was based on data state officials were able to analyze in the past few days. Although epidemiologists in the state have noticed a fourth wave of COVID-19 activity in the past few weeks, the most recent data suggested the activity may be plateauing, he said.

Public Health - Seattle & King County Director Jeff Duchin said other parts of the country experiencing a fourth wave also appear to be reaching a plateau of activity.

A two-week pause recognizes new information about our local disease trends, and provides time to see more reliably which direction were heading in, and whether were turning a corner on a fourth wave, which we very well may be, Duchin said.

Had rollbacks occurred, Clark County would have barely avoided moving back to Phase 2 based on data from Clark County Public Health that day. In their weekly case rate update, the county had moved to 250 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 population in the past 14 days, up from 198.1 per 100,000 population the prior week. The countys current rate crossed over the 200 per 100,000 population threshold for moving back to Phase 2, though the countys recent rate of COVID-19 hospitalizations was 3.8 per 100,000 population in the past seven days. Thats fewer than the five COVID-19 per 100,000 population threshold. Counties have to not meet both metrics to move back a phase.

All but four counties in Washington are in Phase 3 of the reopening plan. Cowlitz, Pierce, and Whitman counties were the first to be rolled back on April 12, while Ferry Countys health department voluntarily rolled the county back last week following a superspreader event that saw the countys infection rate skyrocket.

Hats off to those leaders in Ferry County, Inslee said, adding the decision would have a statewide impact in stopping virus activity associated with the event.

Although residents and businesses were anticipating to see rollbacks from the governor on May 4, Inslee said the surprise announcement had to come when it did without advance notice. He noted the usual procedure would allow several days for residents of shifting counties to prepare, as prior to the pause any rollbacks would have went into effect May 8.

Inslee said the pause doesnt change anything else about the reopening plan. He stressed that for the state to avoid rollbacks two weeks from now, vaccinations would need to ramp up, though he noted more than 54 percent of eligible state residents have received their first dose and 38 percent are fully vaccinated.

The COVID-19 death rate has gone down dramatically since vaccinations began, the governor said, which he credited to prioritizing the most vulnerable populations in the first phases of administering the shots. He said if vaccinations continue at a high-enough level there is a possibility of much more normal activities in our state this summer.

This is dependent on our continuing to increase the vaccination rates, Inslee said, noting concern the rate was trending downward.

Duchin said Washington was among states with the lowest COVID-19 case and death rates in the U.S., mirroring Inslees statements that the vaccine was key to the states further success.

Theres no playbook for the endgame of this pandemic, Duchin said, but Im sure all of us want to avoid a prolonged game of whack-a-mole with imposing and easing restrictions. Vaccination is the cure for mitigation measure whack-a-mole.

Inslee said he was fully aware of the difficulties faced by Washingtonians subject to changes brought on by the phased reopening.

But you have to make a decision. Are you going to save lives and accept some of those difficulties, or not? Inslee said. Weve made a decision to save lives.

The governor said the state was active in cracking down on those who arent following mandates for operations. Inslee said there have been more than 100,000 complaints filed regarding non-adherence to restrictions, thousands of inspections, and some $7.3 million in fines handed down since the pandemic came to Washington.

Acknowledging Ferry Countys decision to roll back without a mandate from the state, Inslee pushed back on potentially making it so counties themselves have the authority on what restrictions should be in place. He said the statewide process provided a greater moral force behind the decisions, which he said made it easier to find compliance.

While were pausing today, it doesnt mean we are going to pause our efforts, Inslee said. I believe Washington is going to remain committed.

Inslee said the state would need to have a high-enough percentage of its population vaccinated before any significant change would come from the states approach on COVID-19.

We clearly do not have that (percentage) today, Inslee said.
The owner of a US lab that tested sunscreen products sold in New Zealand has pleaded guilty to falsifying results.

Consumer NZ is urging manufacturers relying on reports from the company to urgently retest their products.

New York-based AMA Laboratories owner Gabriel Letizia Jr admits defrauding customers and causing sunscreens to be marketed on the basis of false reports.

Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy says test reports from the US company had been used by manufacturers to justify the SPF claims for sunscreens sold to New Zealand consumers.

"For many years, manufacturers sent us test reports from AMA Labs when our tests found their sunscreens weren't up to standard. Manufacturers continued to rely on AMA Labs' results despite our tests showing products failed to meet their label claims," he says.

"With all the attention on this issue, it isn't reasonable for a manufacturer to maintain that an AMA Lab report is good evidence its product provides the protection claimed on the label. Consumers have been deceived."

With high melanoma rates in New Zealand, Kiwis were entitled to expect better, Duffy says.

Sunscreen tests were expensive and AMA was perhaps trying to save money, he says.

"What AMA labs were doing and what the owner has now plead guilty to doing is using far fewer humans in the testing process than what was required, which meant that the test results couldn't be averaged out as accurately as they should be and therefore couldn't be relied on."

In Consumer NZ's latest test, products that relied on results from AMA Labs include Ecosol Water Shield Sunscreen SPF50+, Natural Instinct Invisible Natural Sunscreen SPF30 and Sukin Suncare Sheer Touch Facial Sunscreen Untinted SPF30.

Duffy says any manufacturer that had relied on reports from AMA Labs should urgently retest its products.

He says people could find reliable products on Consumer NZ's website.

"We use labs that are not AMA and often we will use two labs and cross reference the results before we publish. So yes, there are sunscreens on the market that pass and that information is available for free on consumer.org.nz so consumers can look it up there."

In a statement last week, the US Attorney's Office in the southern district of New York said Letizia had "schemed for decades to defraud customers".

From 1987 to April 2017, Letizia and senior staff defrauded customers of more than $NZ63 million ($US46m).

Letizia is now facing up to seven years in prison. Four former AMA employees have previously pleaded guilty in relation to the fraud.

Last month, Consumer NZ lodged a complaint with the Commerce Commission asking it to investigate sunscreens that failed to meet SPF claims.

Consumer NZ is calling for a mandatory standard that requires companies to regularly test their sunscreens at accredited labs.



- RNZ
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Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 1:05 am

Growth in Ridgefield continues as more commercial and public safety spaces come to the city. The trend was highlighted in a virtual State of the City address led by Mayor Don Stose.

On April 30 the video  a change of pace from the usual in-person event hosted by cities and Clark County in the past  went over a number of ongoing or planned developments underway in Ridgefield this year.

The Ridgefield Police Department hired two officers in 2020, an officer this year, and are looking to add a fourth to the departments ranks, chief John Brooks said. RPD also recently received a police car through a donation from the Cowlitz Indian Tribe. The department is planning to move into a larger station in a new development under construction at the corner of Mill Street and Main Avenue once its completed.

Clark-Cowlitz Fire & Rescue Chief John Nohr spoke from the site of the departments new Ridgefield fire station at the corner at South Hillhurst and South Royle roads. He said the station is currently in the planning process for a roughly 14,000-square-foot structure with living quarters and four apparatus bays, adding that building permits could be approved in the next year.

The fire department also saw an expansion in personnel and equipment with six new hires, which include three new positions that started at the end of April, Nohr said. The department has acquired a new brush unit for rural fires, a new fire engine was delivered in February, and two more are on the way. He noted CCF&R also received a fourth engine from a grant through the Cowlitz Indian Tribe.

Introducing the education aspect of Ridgefields progress, Councilor Jennifer Lindsay said her daughter was one of the first students to walk into View Ridge Middle School for the first school year of the new building which was completed in 2018.

The tradition of placing value on education is one of the many things that make the Ridgefield community so special, and one of the many reasons I love calling Ridgefield my home, Lindsay said.

For K-12 education, Ridgefield School District Superintendent Nathan McCann highlighted Wisdom Ridge Academy, an alternative learning experience school for all grade levels that will begin in the fall. McCann said the option will benefit families in the district who found remote learning works for them after virtual learning was mandated because of COVID-19.

Higher education is also coming to Ridgefield, as Clark College President Karin Edwards announced the approval of $52 million by the Washington State Legislature to begin construction on the first phase of Clark College at Boschma Farms on the citys east side. The first building on the campus is a 70,000-square-foot structure which will serve as an advanced manufacturing center for the college.

In infrastructure development, councilor Ron Onslow said more roundabouts are coming to the city, with two planned on Pioneer Street and one on Royle Road, intersecting with Wells Road. Port of Ridgefield Commissioner Scott Hughes brought up the under-construction Ridgefield rail overpass, a project that was 20 years in the making that will allow access to the citys waterfront without at-grade crossings with the railroad.

Hughes also said the port is hoping to have its fiber optics backbone project completed by the end of the year, which will allow for gigabit-speed internet in the area once a provider moves in.

Ridgefield continues to see commercial development this year.

Scott Higgins, a broker for Fuller Group, touched on development at Pioneer Village at the corner of Pioneer Street and Royle Road, which already has a Starbucks, and a Papa Murphys coming soon. He said a pet store, four restaurants, a gym, hair and nail salon, and medical practices are also slated for the new development.

We really wanted this center to feel homey, to feel like you were in a park-like setting, a village setting, Higgins said about the development.

Dean Maldonado, principal broker for FDM Development, touched on the nearby Discovery Ridge phased project which already includes Rosauers. He said Phase 2 is moving forward with another 10,000-square-foot building in the fall. A mixed-use development with commercial space and attached housing is already planned for Phase 4.

Maldonado added that apart from housing Ridefields police, the 15,000-square-foot building on Mill and Main will have office suites on half of the second floor alongside the police station, while the developer is in talks with some groups about taking the 5,000-square-foot top floor.

Downtown Ridgefield will see the return of public events in 2021. Ridgefield Main Street Executive Director Marykay Lamoureaux said the organization is planning events beginning with a Ridgefield Raptors tailgate in June featuring shuttle service to downtown, Main Street Day in July in connection with the opening of the new Ridgefield Community Library, and the citys annual Oktoberfest celebration.

Ridgefield Raptors General Manager Gus Farah said the West Coast League team will play a 2021 season, though there will be occupancy restrictions. The team will also use a mobile application to order concessions from seats and is looking at a touchless ticket system.

The new Ridgefield library will quadruple the old facilitys space to 8,000 feet, branch manager Sean McGill said. The new space, set for a grand opening on July 9, will feature a lounge, increased book space, more computers, a larger childrens area and community room for after-hours meetings.

McGill said there will also be a study room adjacent to the teen area which he said is a solution to a request from frequent teen users of the old facility for somewhere to go after school where they can be louder than what is expected in a typical library setting

The new library in Ridgefield is going to be the best in all of Southwest Washington, Stose said.

He added the city has plans for a full-service YMCA facility including a swimming pool, the only one open to the public in North County.

Ridgefield is at the top of its game, Stose said.
Salina, N.Y. -- The Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency on Tuesday approved $2.4 million in tax exemptions for a project that will turn the old Will & Baumer candle factory into apartments.

The agency voted unanimously to give Pascarella Development $1.1 million in property tax discounts over 10 years, and exemptions consisting of $1.2 million in sales taxes on construction materials and $116,587 in state mortgage recording tax.

The family-owned development company plans to build 200 to 250 apartments, plus commercial and warehouse space, in the factorys buildings, which have been vacant since the candle company moved to Lewisburg, Tennessee, in 2009.

Will & Baumer was founded in 1855 by Anton Will, a carpenter who moved to Syracuse from Germany. The company opened the Salina factory at 100 Buckley Road, near Old Liverpool Road and overlooking nearby Onondaga Lake, around 1910.

When the company closed the factory 12 years ago, it was the oldest manufacturer in Onondaga County, but employment was down to 25 people.

The site is known for a smokestack that is painted to look like a giant candle. Vittorio Pascarella, vice president of the family-owned development company, said he hopes to save the smokestack as part of the sites redevelopment.

24 Will & Baumer candle factory to become apartment complex

Rick Moriarty covers business news and consumer issues. Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact him anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148
Nascentia Health announced the recipients of the spring 2021 Presidents Award and Heart of Home Care awards. These awards are given to employees who go above and beyond in their dedication to Nascentias foundational pillars and values.

Andrea Lazarek-LaQuay, Nascentias chief clinical officer, received the Presidents Award. She leads Nascentias clinical team of nurses and other practitioners and truly stepped up to lead the firms response to the Covid pandemic over the past year. She managed the firms partnership with Onondaga County to staff Covid testing centers for more than a year, and also spearheaded the countys first at-home vaccination program. As a registered nurse, she stepped onto the front lines with her team to deliver critical Covid-related services to Central New York. She lives in Clay.

>> Send us your companys news about People in Motion

The following employees were honored with Heart of Home Care Awards.

Gayle Sojda , a home health aide, has been with Nascentia for three years. She is known for her excellent work with dementia patients, and is a 24-hour aide for an individual who needs significant care. She is a resident of Whitesboro.

Ellie Greenfield , a registered nurse, has spent the last year balancing her duties as an in-home skilled nurse with staffing Covid testing clinics and, more recently, giving vaccines to Nascentias homebound clients. She has been with the firm for nearly four years. She lives in Auburn.

Maria Herold , a registered nurse, has been at Nascentia for more than three years. She stepped up to staff the testing clinic at the F-Shed at the Regional Market for much of 2020 and is now traveling to remote areas to administer Covid vaccines. At the same time, she continues to manage her home care patients who rely on her. She is a resident of Marietta.

Nicole Christmas, a registered nurse, worked for months with Nascentias Covid testing team and now is part of our the vaccination program. She also continues to provide critical in-home nursing care for patients. She lives in Cicero.

Nascentia Health is a Syracuse-based healthcare company with 130 years of experience providing in-home skilled nursing and home health aide services in Central New York. Nascentia also offers several insurance products, including Medicare Advantage plans and a managed long-term care plan. For the past year, Nascentia partnered with Onondaga County to staff Covid testing sites and recently began the countys first home vaccine program for Covid. The firm is headquartered on West Genesee St. in Syracuse and employs more than 500 staff across New York state.

If youd like to submit an item about People in Motion at your organization, send a press release including photo, to business@syracuse.com with Company News in the subject field. See all recent Company News items.
Albany, N.Y.  Covid-19 vaccinations for 12- to 15-year-olds in New York could start later this week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said today.

Regulators approved the use of the Pfizer Covid vaccine for that age group Monday. A federal vaccine advisory committee will meet Wednesday to consider the matter and an announcement is expected after that, according to The Associated Press.

New Yorks own vaccine advisory group will then meet and make a state-level recommendation, Cuomo said in a statement. The shots could start in New York as soon as Thursday.

This is an encouraging step in the ongoing battle against this global pandemic, Cuomo said. The Covid-19 vaccine is our best weapon to defeat the virus, and were taking all the appropriate precautions to ensure the safety and effectiveness of our vaccine program.

Cuomos statement did not include any details on where shots will be available for the new age group or whether appointments will be needed. New Yorks mass vaccination sites have been taking walk-ins with no appointments required since late April.

Demand for shots has declined in New York and the rest of the nation in recent weeks.

Cuomo announced new efforts yesterday to boost vaccinations, including requiring vaccines for all State University of New York students in the fall.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

All SUNY schools to require Covid vaccines for in-person students in fall, Cuomo says

How remote learning will probably be different at CNY schools in the fall

Free beer! Doughnuts! Appetizers! Onondaga County offers incentives for Covid vaccines

Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com

Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-282-8598
Syracuse, N.Y. -- Four people were hospitalized and another three were treated after chemicals were found present in the air at a Green National property, according to the Syracuse Fire Department.

Firefighters and police responded to the Chestnut Crossing Apartments, located at 947 James Street, just after 12:30 p.m. for a reported strong chemical odor in the building, according to a fire department news release.

Those who were inside evacuated from the building and some developed chest pains and struggled to breathe, the release said.

The fire department said they do not know conditions the four people hospitalized.

The chemicals in the air were common solvents, according to the fire department.

One man refused to leave the building and wouldnt allow firefighters to check his apartment, the release said. Syracuse police had to negotiate with the man for three hours before he allowed firefighters to check his apartment, according to the fire department.

Firefighters are unsure where the chemical smell came from.

The investigation closed James Street, between Lodi and Highland streets for nearly four hours.

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Chris Libonati via the Signal app for encrypted messaging at 585-290-0718, by phone at the same number, by email or on Twitter.
Update Friday: Man who shot himself after a nearly 12-hour standoff in Oswego County park dies

Original report

Mexico, N.Y.  A nearly 12-hour standoff between a man and police that caused some Oswego County schools to go into lockdown ended Tuesday when the man shot himself, state police said.

The man is in critical condition at Upstate University Hospital, said Trooper Jack Keller, a New York State police spokesman. The man was initially taken to Oswego Hospital, he said.

Police were called to Mexico Community Park in the village of Mexico around 5:15 a.m. Tuesday to speak with the man, who was believed suicidal and possibly armed, according to Oswego County 911 dispatchers.

The man was in his car in the park threatening to kill himself, Keller said.

The Mexico Academy and Central School District was put on lockout, Dr. Donna Runner, superintendent of the district, announced on the districts website.

The main campus of the Center for Instruction, Technology & Innovation, formerly known as Oswego County BOCES, was put on lockout as a precautionary measure, according to an alert posted on CiTis website.

CiTi, at 179 County Route 64, is about 2 miles west of the park.

A man was taken to Upstate University Hospital with self-inflicted gunshot wounds after a nearly 12-hour standoff with police Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (Courtesy of New York State police)

This is a breaking news story. More information will be shared when it is available.

Staff writer James McClendon covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? Reach him at 914-204-2815 or jmcclendon@syracuse.com.
Noah Goldberg, New York Daily News (TNS)

A New Jersey attorney was arrested Monday for stealing $240,000 from a woman who was trying to sell her dead sisters property in Brooklyn, prosecutors said.

Antoni Moszczynski, 67, repped the woman in the sale of her Leonard St. property in Greenpoint for $2.395 million in December 2019, but when she received more than $230,000 from the buyer as a down payment, Moszczynski put it into his escrow account, prosecutors said.

The attorney then transferred $210,000 to his own bank account and spent all the cash within three months, according to the Brooklyn District Attorneys Office.

The woman got a new attorney to help her close out the sale of the property, which was finalized in June 2020.

Moszczynski never gave the woman the money from the down payment, according to the DAs Office. He was charged with second-degree grand larceny and released without bail. He is due back in court on June 29.

He did not respond to calls from the victim or her new lawyer, prosecutors said.
By Brendan J. Lyons | Times Union, Albany

Albany, N.Y.  The husband of state Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heasties chief of staff was sentenced Thursday to 76 months in prison and ordered to pay $136,000 to the Internal Revenue Service for his earlier guilty plea to cocaine trafficking and tax evasion charges.

Orlando Dennis, 32, who was born in Jamaica and moved to the United States in 2008, had been described by federal prosecutors as a $25,000-a-year bakery delivery driver who had been living a lavish lifestyle from drug trafficking.

Jevonni Brooks-Dennis, Heasties chief of staff, who married Dennis in 2017, wrote a letter to the federal judge in her husbands case seeking leniency and describing him as a loving husband, father, brother, and a friend to many.

In our relationship he has always gone above and beyond to make sure both myself and our children are happy and taken care of, her letter continued. It always warms my heart to see the loving relationship he shares with our daughter and the joy he takes in being a dad.

Dennis also received letters of support, describing him as caring and hardworking, from co-workers, supervisors and a former high school principal.

The U.S. attorneys office offered a contrasting view of Dennis, describing him as the leader of a drug trafficking group who lied about the source of his income and threatened violence against someone he believed responsible for losing a bag of cocaine at an airport.

They said prior to his arrest, Dennis had for years been making hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash profits that are unexplained by any legitimate business, suggesting that this was not his first narcotics offense. They asked the judge to sentence him to between 87 and 108 months in prison.

Brooks-Dennis, who federal prosecutors said had apparently benefited from her husbands illicitly gained wealth, was not accused of wrongdoing. Still, her government salary was not enough to support their opulent lifestyle that included large expenditures on designer clothing and accessories, prosecutors said in court filings. Assembly payroll records indicated that around the time of her husbands arrest, Brooks-Dennis was paid about $75,000 in a six-month period  from September 2019 to March.

Between 2015 and 2019, Dennis had made more than 630 cash deposits totaling more than $600,000 into his bank accounts. Those deposits were made as he had an annual take-home pay of less than $10,000 after money was withheld for child-support obligations from a prior marriage, according to court records.

The banking records showed hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash deposits and withdrawals by both Dennis and his wife, prosecutors said, that the government described as unexplained wealth.

For instance, from June 2018 through December 2019, the defendant spent more than $12,000 at Christian Louboutin, more than $1,500 at Gucci, more than $1,300 at Burberry, and more than $1,000 each at Louis Vuitton, Moschino, and Prada, the U.S. attorneys office wrote in a pre-trial motion filed last year, before Dennis would plead guilty. The defendants wifes records for 2018 to 2020 include four transactions totaling nearly $7,000 at Christian Louboutin and nearly $9,000 in hair extensions in a single year.

Prosecutors also outlined what they said was a calculated and coordinated effort by Dennis to carefully structure deposits, including many that were made by his wife. During a two-day period in May 2019, for instance, Dennis and his wife made a series of deposits ranging from $300 to $4,000 that added up to more than $15,000 in cash in their respective bank accounts.

Dennis was arrested on federal drug charges in January 2020 at John F. Kennedy International Airport for his alleged role in trafficking $100,000 worth of cocaine from Jamaica seven months earlier. He was arrested after flying in from the Caribbean island, where hed been for about a month.

The case against Dennis took shape in June 2019 when U.S. Customs agents discovered a large amount of cocaine in a bag that was left unclaimed on a baggage carousel at John F. Kennedy International Airport. The bag had been flown there on a flight from Jamaica, where Dennis had been that month.

Brooks-Dennis remains employed as Heasties chief of staff.
A newly installed Underground Railroad statue has been stolen in Western New York.

Jamestown police said Monday that a copper statue titled Underground Railroad Tabluea was taken from Dow Park after it was installed by Jamestown Parks Department employees on Thursday. WIVB reports the statue honors the anonymous fugitives who touched Jamestown in the pursuit of freedom along the Underground Railroad.

According to WKBW, the statue weighs 500 to 600 pounds and is worth more than $2,000.

Officers said the statue was discovered missing on Monday morning by parks department employee, and was taken sometime between Thursday and Monday.

Police are searching for a suspect and checking security camera videos in the area. Theyve also asked anyone with information to call 716-483-7537 or 716-483-8477.
Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 1:06 am

Battle Ground resident Lee Cutbirth added some love and long lost family members to his life this year.

Born in Torrance, Calif. in October of 1957, Cutbirth spent the first few years of his life thinking he had no biological brothers and sisters. Until he was adopted by Norm Cutbirth at the age of nine, Cutbirth and his cousin, Michael Heiller lived with a few different family members in southern California.

Mike and I lived with my (biological) mother and (biological) father for just a short time, Cutbirth said. Mike was still a baby when we were given to my grandparents.

Now 63, Cutbirth lives in Battle Ground with his wife, Allison. In 2007, Cutbirth was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a rare hereditary disease that causes the eyes and vision to degenerate, resulting in vision loss and impairment. Cutbirth has been legally blind since 2016. He retired after nearly 40 years in the food industry.

Due to his condition, Cutbirth learned he was eligible for a study at the Oregon Health and Science University, barring one unique exception.

Part of the requirement for the study is that you have to have DNA available for both sides of the family, Cutbirth said. I didnt have that.

At the urging of his wife, Cutbirth looked into DNA testing companies. After reading the privacy statements of several, he decided to give 23andMe a shot.

I also wanted to see if I could find any relatives on my fathers side, he said. Good news is, I found my relatives. Bad news is, the family story of my biological father is rather awful.

After sending in his DNA sample, Cutbirth was contacted through the 23andMe website by Joan Singleton, a first cousin he had never met.

Finding out about new family members wasnt a completely new experience for Cutbirth. When he was in his 30s, he and Heiller learned they werent cousins. Rather, the duo shared a biological mother and likely the same biological father, John Edward (Jack) Lawless.

My biological father wasnt a peach, Cutbirth said. He was a womanizer.

Singleton is the daughter of Jack Lawless brother, Walter, and reached out to Cutbirth in an attempt to connect with her newly found cousin. In an email from Singleton, Cutbirth learned he had a few family members he had never known about, including his half-sister, Geraldine Gerry Piper.

Everything was a bit overwhelming at first, Cutbirth said about finding his long lost family members. Its really nice to find family and its a hell of a story. Out of everything I learned, the positive is Gerry, who had a much rougher life than I had.

According to Cutbirth, Piper was born at the same hospital as him in Torrance, Calif., just a few months later in January of 1958.

Adopted at birth, his half-sister Piper has been on a quest her whole life to find her biological family. According to Cutbirth, once California changed some laws regarding adoption records in the early 2000s, Piper was able to obtain a copy of her birth certificate.

They didnt even give her a name, Cutbirth said about Pipers biological mother and father.

In March, Singleton connected Cutbirth and Piper over email and the duo immediately hit it off.

Gerry and I have really only known each other for two months and the connection was amazing, Cutbirth said. There really is something to be said about biology.  The connection was instantaneous.

Cutbirth said he and his new-found half-sister spend a few hours each week talking to each other over the phone. Despite only knowing each other for a few months, Cutbirth said the two have a lot in common. They have very similar tastes in food, enjoy the outdoors and have a knack for adrenaline.

She has it on her bucket list to do tandem skydiving. When she comes over here were going over to Depoe Bay in a Zodiac, he said.

Piper said learning about her long lost brother was surprising and exciting. It felt like she had fulfilled a life-long dream, she said.

I basically spent 59 years of my life not knowing any biological family at all except for my only daughter, she said. I immediately told (Cutbirth) to reach out anytime. He called me later that day and it was a dream come true.

Piper expressed resentment over adoption laws mandating sealed records in the country and believes that adoptees should be entitled to their birthright when they become of legal age. While she felt some of her childhood and experiences with Cutbirth were denied due to sealed record laws, Piper said shes grateful for DNA technology, which will allow her to meet her half-brother.

I am beyond grateful that he did 23andMe and we were able to connect that way and find each other, she said. Its sad to think of the adventures we couldve been on but that doesnt mean we still cant have some.

Piper echoed Cutbirths expression about hitting it off immediately. She has plans to fly into Portland International Airport on Wednesday, May 12 for a week of fun-filled events with Lee and Allison Cutbirth. They plan to go whale watching at Depoe Bay, ziplining at Skamania Lodge and will visit Multnomah Falls. Cutbirth expressed joy about finally meeting Piper in-person and said he cherishes the relationship. He wants to travel to Florida someday to see Pipers neck of the woods.

It is emotionally indescribable, Piper said about connecting with Cutbirth. Its exciting that we get to share these experiences together as siblings for the very first time.  My excitement is beyond words.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  Israel unleashed new airstrikes on Gaza early Tuesday, hitting the high-rise home of a Hamas field commander and two border tunnels dug by militants, as Hamas and other armed groups fired dozens of rockets toward Israel. The escalation in the conflict was sparked by weeks of tensions in contested Jerusalem.

Since sundown Monday when the cross-border attacks began, 24 Palestinians  including nine children  were killed in Gaza, most by airstrikes, Gaza health officials said. The Israeli military said 15 of the dead were militants. During the same period, Gaza militants fired more than 250 rockets toward Israel, injuring six Israeli civilians in a direct hit on an apartment building.

In a further sign of rising tensions, Israel signaled it is widening its military campaign. The military said it is sending troop reinforcements to the Gaza border and the defense minister ordered the mobilization of 5,000 reserve soldiers.

In the past, cross-border fighting between Israel and Hamas, the group that rules Gaza, would typically end after a few days, often helped by behind-the-scenes mediation by Qatar, Egypt and others. It was not clear if such a resolution would come this time.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that fighting could continue for some time. Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, an Israeli military spokesman, told reporters Tuesday that the military was in the early stages of strikes against Gaza targets that it had planned well in advance.

The overnight rockets and airstrikes were preceded by hours of clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces, including dramatic confrontations at Jerusalems Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, a sacred site to both Jews and Muslims. In fighting in the contested city and across the West Bank, more than 700 Palestinians were hurt, including nearly 500 who were treated at hospitals.

In a sign of widening unrest, hundreds of residents of Arab communities across Israel staged overnight demonstrations  denouncing the recent actions of Israeli security forces against Palestinians  in one of the largest protests by Palestinian citizens in Israel in recent years.

The escalation comes at a time of political limbo in Israel.

Netanyahu has been acting as a caretaker prime minister since an inconclusive parliamentary election in March. He tried and failed to form a coalition government with his hard-line and ultra-Orthodox allies, and the task was handed to his political rivals last week. One of those rivals is Israels defense minister who is overseeing the Gaza campaign. It is not clear if and to what extent the toxic political atmosphere is spilling over into military decision-making, though the rival camps have unanimously expressed support for striking Hamas hard.

Israeli media have reported that the new round of violence is slowing efforts by Netanyahus rivals to form a ruling coalition among parties with a broad range of ideologies, but a shared goal of toppling Netanyahu. The support of an Arab-backed party with Islamist roots is key for the anti-Netanyahu blocs efforts. The partys leader, Mansour Abbas, has essentially said hell work with whatever political camp offers the most improvements in Arab communities, but the current tensions might deter him from joining a coalition, at least for now.

The current round of violence in Jerusalem coincided with the start of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan in mid-April. Critics say heavy-handed police measures helped stoke nightly unrest, including a decision to temporarily seal off a popular gathering spot where Palestinian residents would meet after evening prayers. Another flashpoint was the Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where dozens of Palestinians are under treat of eviction by Jewish settlers.

Over the weekend, confrontations erupted at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, which is the third holiest site of Islam and the holiest site in Judaism.

For four successive days, Israel police fired tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets at Palestinians in the compound who hurled stones and chairs. Hundreds of Palestinians were hurt, requiring treatment at hospitals. Two dozen officers were also injured. At times, police fired stun grenades into the carpeted mosque.

On Monday evening, Hamas began firing rockets from Gaza, setting off air raid sirens as far as Jerusalem, after giving Israel a deadline to withdraw Israeli security forces from the compound. From there on, the escalation was rapid.

Conricus, the army spokesman, said Gaza militants fired more than 250 rockets at Israel, with about one-third falling short and landing in Gaza.

The army said that a rocket landed a direct hit on a seven-story apartment block in the coastal Israeli city of Ashkelon. Photos and videos from the scene showed a large hole in the side of the building. Israeli paramedic service Magen David Adom said it treated six people injured in the rocket strike. Two were hospitalized in moderate condition.

Conricus said the military hit 130 targets in Gaza, including the high-rise home of a Hamas field commander and two tunnels militants were digging under the border with Israel. In all, Israel killed 15 militants, Conricus said. He said Israels new system of concrete barriers and electronic sensors, intended to thwart tunnel digging, has proven effective.

He did not address Gaza Health Ministry reports that nine children were among 24 Palestinians killed overnight.

In Gaza, most of the deaths were attributed to airstrikes. However, seven of the deaths were members of a single family, including three children, who died in an explosion in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun and it was not clear if the blast was caused by an Israeli airstrike or errant rocket.

More than 100 Gazans were wounded in the airstrikes, the Health Ministry said.

In one, an Israeli missile hit the upper floors of an apartment building in the Shati refugee camp on the edge of Gaza City early Tuesday, killing two men and a woman inside, according to health officials.

Israel had struck scores of Gaza homes in its 2014 war with Hamas, arguing it was aiming at militants, but also killing many civilians. The practice drew broad international condemnation at the time.

Israels tactics in Jerusalem have drawn angry reactions from the Muslim world.

Regional power house Saudi Arabia said in a statement that it condemns in the strongest terms what it said were attacks by Israeli forces against the sanctity of Al-Aqsa and the safety of its worshippers. The Saudi Foreign Ministry called Tuesday on the international community to hold Israeli forces responsible for any escalation.

Separately, the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation is holding an emergency meeting of its permanent representatives in Jiddah to discuss the tensions.
A bipartisan group of 44 attorneys general, including New York AG Letitia James, has written to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg urging him to drop company plans for a version of Instagram for children under the age of 13, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced Monday.

Im calling on @Facebook to abandon its plans to create a version of @Instagram for children under the age of 13. This is a dangerous idea that can be detrimental to children and put them directly in harms way, James wrote on Twitter.

The attorneys general in the letter said they are concerned about social medias effects on the physical and emotional well-being of children, the potential for increased cyberbullying, possible vulnerability to online predators, and what they called Facebooks checkered record in protecting children on its platforms.

It appears that Facebook is not responding to a need, but instead creating one, as this platform appeals primarily to children who otherwise do not or would not have an Instagram account, said the letter, signed by the attorneys general of 40 states, the District of Columbia and three U.S. territories.

Children under 13 are technically not allowed to use the Instagram app in its current form due to federal privacy regulations. But Facebook in March confirmed a report by Buzzfeed News, saying it is exploring a parent-controlled experience on Instagram.

Its shameful that Facebook is ignoring the very real threat that social media poses to the safety and well-being of young children in an attempt to profit off of a vulnerable segment of our population, Healey said in a statement.

Facebook in a statement Monday said it is exploring Instagram for kids to give parents more control over what children who are already online are exposed to, will make every effort to protect children, and will not show advertising on the platform.

We are developing these experiences in consultation with experts in child development, child safety and mental health, and privacy advocates, the company said. We also look forward to working with legislators and regulators, including the nations attorneys general.

Facebook also pointed out that it is a founding sponsor of the Digital Wellness Lab at Boston Childrens Hospital, launched in March to study the effects of digital technology on kids brains, bodies, and behaviors.

The effort of the attorneys general is backed by Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood.

Facebook faces a critical choice: will they plow ahead with their ill-conceived plan to ensnare young children, or will they listen to the growing chorus of parents, experts, advocates, lawmakers and regulators who are telling them that an Instagram kids site will undermine young childrens healthy development and right to privacy? Executive Director Josh Golin said in a statement.

Facebook faced similar criticism in 2017 when it launched the Messenger Kids app, touted as a way for children to chat with family members and friends approved by parents.
TAHLEQUAH [mdash] Louis Allen Bohanon, age 61, passed away peacefully on Monday, May 31, 2021, at his home in Gideon, Oklahoma with his family by his side. He was born October 15, 1959, in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, to Louis Cain Bohanon and Beulah Mae Ryals. He was raised by his stepfather, Leon 
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Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 12:47 am

A tax on capital gains received Gov. Jay Inslees signature, much to the ire of Republican state lawmakers who feel the tax isnt necessary or an effective way to fund programs that ostensibly it was put forth to support.

Senate Bill 5096 imposes a 7 percent tax on assets such as stocks, bonds, and business interests over $250,000 in a year, though assets like real estate, livestock, timber, and others, are exempt.

The revenues from the tax will fund the Working Families Tax Credit and the Fair Start for Kids Act, which is intended to benefit early childhood education and child care in the state.

During the bills signing in Tukwila on May 4, Inslee said the bill taxed extraordinary profits that will impact a very small number of Washingtonians. He said the benefits from the tax would help boost the states economy.

If you want to have consumers in your society, you need somebody with two dollars in their pocket, and were putting money in the pockets of people who are going to be consumers, who are going to go out and buy good products made in the state of Washington, Inslee said.

The governor said the passage of the bill fulfilled a promise to the state made when the Working Families Tax Credit passed in 2008, though it had yet to be funded. He noted a capital gains tax was first proposed in 2011 by the Washington State Budget & Policy Center and by the governor himself in 2014.

Locally, the tax has not been popular with North County lawmakers, many of whom had expressed their concerns over the course of the session.

During remarks on the House floor April 24, Rep. Ed Orcutt, R-Kalama, said there were a lot of unintended consequences associated with the bill, mentioning that farmers could be paying the tax, and not (all) rich people, he remarked.

Orcutt also pointed out married couples would have the same deduction as a single person, effectively cutting in half the $250,000 deduction.

Because its unfair, I believe its unconstitutional, Orcutt said.

He added he felt the tax was unstable, pointing to the reliance of programs funded through the tax had revenue which could drop significantly during an economic downturn.

Orcutt added the tax was unpopular among Washington citizens.

We know the people have voted on this more than 10 times, and opposed it every single time, Orcutt said.

A common rebuke of the bill is it would impose an income tax on Washingtonians, not an excise tax, as Inslee called it during the bill signing.

The truth is, this is a new tax on one type of personal income, Sen. Lynda Wilson, R-Vancouver, said in a statement following the bills signing.

Both she and Orcutt said because of state revenues, there wasnt a need for another tax.

Wilson referenced the bill already has legal challenges given the argument it is an income tax.

If the governor was being forthright, he would have explained that this bill is a partisan effort to get the current state Supreme Court to reverse decades of precedent and clear the path for a full-blown income tax  a tax our state has never had, doesnt need and doesnt want. Its nothing to celebrate, Wilson said in the statement.

Wilson said the Legislatures Democrats should have followed the example of their Republican colleagues on providing tax relief for Washington families with available revenue.

Instead, those families will end up paying even more because the Democrats approved an energy tax and the high-cost fuel standard. Theres nothing progressive about that, Wilson said.

Although state government is experiencing record revenue, many people in Washington are still struggling from the governors restrictions, Rep. Paul Harris, R-Vancouver, wrote in a legislative update he sent out the day prior to the signing. This is a bad policy and our operating budget is counting on this revenue for important things like early education and child care.

Rep. Larry Hoff, R-Vancouver, said that the tax will eliminate one of Washingtons biggest competitive advantages. In an April 23 update, the lawmaker cited Pew Research Center data showing continued revenue growth in the state that was the largest two-year gain in the nation.

That alone should be reason enough to reject new taxes this session, Hoff wrote.
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Re: The Runaway Chinese Rocket The third such incident of sinking out of orbit, if we consider the 77 ton US Skylab debris of July 1979, followed by two such incidents involving Chinese rockets in 2020 and 2021.



The Skylab made an uncontrolled entry and crashlanded with its debris on the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Western Australia. No loss of human lives was reported, though the publicity the unpredictable Skylab fall got through the media ( there was no social media then), sent shivers down the spine of all humans on earth, aware of the eventuality.



During May 2020, a rocket similar as the one of April-May 2021 (Long March 5B), with an experimental crew capsule with the hope to launch future manned missions, reached a height of about 7,500 kms before making an uncontrolled entry to the earth. It passed over New York City on 11.05.2020, hovered over the Atlantic Ocean and finally its debris was found in Cote d'Ivoire, in Africa.



The latest was the Long March 5B, a 20 ton rocket, launched as recently as on 29.04.2021, which was also not designed to de-orbit in a controlled way.



The wasted space debris of such failed or end of life space missions has always been a matter of concern and such uncontrolled de-orbits puts the life and property of innocents at risk. Moreover, if its of a Chinese origin, the news-blackout creates lots of uncertainities and leads to speculations in the media and in the minds of the people. Last edited by anjan_c2007 : 11th May 2021 at 13:40 .
Arts & Culture Editor

My name is Austin Dunlow and I am the Arts & Entertainment Editor at Technician. I'm in the Graduating Class of 2021 with a major in Political Science. I have been at Technician since February of 2019.
Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 1:02 am

The Clark County Fair Board Executive Committee made the decision to postpone the Clark County Fair until summer 2022, according to a news release.

The release said the decision was based on several determining factors including the recent trend of increasing infection rates and the continuing safety concerns for volunteers, staff and community partners.

The fair will return to the Clark County Fairgrounds August 5-14, 2022.

We strive to provide a venue where people can come together and enjoy the fair in all the aspects they associate with the fair, which historically results in large crowds in relatively small spaces such as our midways, the grandstands, carnival area and food court, Fair Manager and Chief Executive Officer John Morrision said in the release. Based on the current Washington State guidelines for events and fairs, we would be challenged to monitor and maintain distance and the health and safety of our guests and volunteers.

Director of Health for Clark County Alan Melnick agreed with Morrisions statement.

We understand that the fair is a unique experience and draws large crowds together in an environment largely incompatible with the physical distancing measures in effect, he said. Given the guidance from Governor Inslee regarding COVID-19, and the present continued increase in infection rates so close to the opening of the fair, Clark County Public Health recommends that the 2021 fair not be held.

Morrison noted he and the Clark County Fair Board remained hopeful about the availability of the vaccine allowing the fair to go on.

However, as of May 7, we cannot for certain know if we may end up in a more or less restrictive situation for the fair, this unknown variable requires that we be prudent and postpone, as disappointing as that is for me and my staff, he said.

This years fair was originally scheduled for Aug. 6-15.

According to the release, the Clark County Event Center has begun to plan several smaller family-oriented events for the upcoming summer months.

More information can be found online at clarkcoevent center.com.
To discourage bike theft and to promote secure locking procedures of bicycles, Campus Police has instituted the Bait Bike program. Bait bikes are equipped with GPS units that help police catch people trying to steal bicycles around campus. Photo by Camilah Jennings
Posted Tuesday, May 11, 2021 12:40 am

Different information and opinions have been swirling throughout the internet regarding the safety of getting the COVID-19 vaccine. One side of the political spectrum supports it, while the other has its doubts. As someone who works as a nurse assistant with the elderly population, it has been recommended that I get the vaccine. My stance on the coronavirus is that while there are no doubt cases where it has been deadly, the treatment has come a long way and the danger of it tends to be overhyped. This does not mean that I think masks and sanitary actions are unnecessary. I always make sure to follow standard precautions at work, but two of my grandfathers, both who have weak lungs, and one who has MS and a weak immune system, survived COVID-19. Because of this I was not initially interested in getting the vaccine, but because I work with an at-risk population, I felt I should. Originally I had relatively little worry regarding the safety of the vaccine, other than it was new and developed fast, but I became even more unsure of whether I should due to the concerns circulating regarding reproductive-related side effects in younger women. This led me to do some research of the known facts, regardless of ones political opinion. Some of what I found is that the CDC relates that they have limited knowledge of the safety of the vaccine on pregnant women (Information about COVID-19 Vaccines for People who Are Pregnant or Breastfeeding.) They also acknowledge that there is an increased risk of a serious condition known as thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome, or TTS, in women under 50 specifically with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine (CDC Recommends Use of Johnson & Johnsons Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine Resume.) Lastly, there have been reports of women experiencing changes in their menstrual cycle after receiving the vaccine. According to expert Dr. Amelia Sutton, Novant Health obstetrician and gynecologist, this could be due to the bodys immune response (WBTV) and currently there is not further accessible research regarding this issue. After reading this information, and seeing the statistics show the vaccine is effective and the risks are rare, I believe that in most cases one should get the vaccine. I do think that myself, and other young females, should not take the Johnson & Johnson vaccine due to its dangerous risks, and receive either the Pfizer or the Moderna vaccines instead. Because this is one of the only options for the U.S. to go back to normal, and the vaccines for the most part have been safe and effective, they are OK to receive. I do know, though, that one shoe does not fit all and one should always research and consider their personal health and situation thoroughly before receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.
Sundar Pichai has brought Alphabet Inc.'s Google to new heights this 2021, and it reflected with the company's recent Q1 Earnings Report for the year that showed how much it achieved in the first 4 months. This had led Google to many ventures and possibilities throughout the entirety of 2021, including its adaptation to a hybrid work set up within the company.

The use of technology has been massive during this pandemic as people were restricted from social events, making Google one of the pandemic's centers.

Instead of going out for work and reporting on-site, people were made to work and use online tools for this venture, and Google's suite of office tools is one of the most used. Other elements like YouTube and Google's search engine were also ones to thank for the outstanding performance in 2021's first quarter, making the company one of the most profitable.

Read Also: Google Play Store to Release New Privacy Labels for Apps Following Apple's App Tracking Transparency

Sundar Pichai and Google's Q1 2021 Earnings

According to CNBC's report during the last week of April, Google has released a report of the company's performance during the 1st quarter and it has been a job well done for everyone under the internet company. The report showed how much Google has grown during the start of the year, especially with search trends peaking.

The search trends have shown a rise in "Travel Destinations" for this year, especially as people anticipate the end of the pandemic, amidst the wide distribution and growing number of fully vaccinated US citizens. With this, people searching for vacation ideas via Google has picked up and provided a boost in the company's stats.

Sundar Pichai revealed to investors that Google has grown to $55.31 billion in revenue from the expected $51.7 billion only, and it was a massive achievement for the company. Pichai also attributes this success to YouTube, which has been one of the prominent online streaming platforms, and has extensively grown its ads and TikTok-like feature called "Shorts."

Hybrid Work Setup, as Envisioned by Pichai

In the recent series of tweets and a blog post by the Alphabet CEO, "The future of work is flexibility," and that pertains to Google's pledge to look at a hybrid work setup even after the pandemic. The pandemic has taught people that remote work can thrive, and Google has observed this growth to be a massive improvement and opportunity for the company.

...spending time in another city for part of the year, or even moving there permanently. Googles future workplace will have room for all of these possibilities. Were moving to a hybrid work week with most Googlers in the office approximately 3 days a week.  Sundar Pichai (@sundarpichai) May 6, 2021

Initially, it was conceived by Google CFO Ruth Porat and was then picked up and confirmed by Pichai, now saying that it would give people the opportunity to experience a balanced work and personal life. This balance does not sacrifice one over the other, as people would be able to work at home and enjoy the comforts and presence of one's family.

Im optimistic these changes will help us do our best work and have fun doing it, with about 60% of Googlers working together in the office a few days a week, 20% working in new office locations & 20% working from home. Heres the note I sent to Googlers. https://t.co/X6V6OEahK5  Sundar Pichai (@sundarpichai) May 6, 2021

Related Article: Google Wants a World Without Passwords: Will Enroll All Users to Two-Factor Authentication By Default

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Written by Isaiah Alonzo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
It's hard to buy a PlayStation 5. We all know this already, and every single tech site out there probably sounds like a broken record by now. But apparently, this reality isn't going to end soon, at least according to Sony themselves.

Sony says that issues regarding PS5 will continue until 2022, as reported by tech watchdog TechRadar. The claim apparently comes from a handful of analysts who requested to remain anonymous. According to these people, Sony is struggling mightily to keep up with astronomical levels of demand, mainly due to the current global semiconductor shortage.

Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki was allegedly as saying he thinks that demand for the PlayStation 5 isn't slowing in 2021, even if Sony does manage to acquire more supplies and keep producing systems at their current capacity.

So, for those who have been keen on watching PS5 restock updates might still be out of luck well into 2022.

Read also: Sony PlayStation 5 Sales Reach 7.8 Million: What Exactly Is Driving This Success?

Is Sony Even Doing Anything?

The short answer is, yes, they are. But they really can't do anything about the component shortages these days.

Much of the world's semiconductors are being produced in one country: Taiwan. Barring the likes of Intel who does their own production in-house, almost every single electronics manufacturer get their chips from Taiwanese fabs. Sony is one of those, having designed the PS5 to be equipped with two AMD chips (CPU and GPU) which are made by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (TSMC).

But the problem is that Taiwan is experiencing extreme drought, which the Wall Street Journal reports as the island's worst in over 50 years. And for those who aren't aware, manufacturing CPUs and graphics cards require a steady source of clean water. So, there you have it: no water, no chips.

Aside from this, Sony is also looking to alternative measures, like redesigning the PS5 to make it cheaper to produce. Rumors say that the company plans to equip their consoles with more affordable, semi-custom processors to reduce overall production cost without sacrificing performance. But until this news is confirmed by official sources, it basically means nothing.

A Return to Normalcy is Still Far Away

With everything that's been happening in the tech space, gamers are left with but one choice: wait. Taiwan's drought doesn't seem like it's going away anytime soon. It's gotten so bad, in fact, that the island's main water source for its semiconductor fabs is down to a critical level: only 7% full, as reported on Yahoo.

Until that drought is averted, stocks aren't going to be replenished. People won't be able to easily buy PlayStation 5 consoles until mid-2022, according to ComicBook.com. The same thing goes for the Xbox Series X and S. PS5 restock trackers will remain blank or unmoving, which is quite unfortunate. There are so many amazing games on the PlayStation 5 that people are going to miss because they just couldn't buy a system. Sony isn't really the main one at fault here, and it would help a lot if many more could see that.

Related: PS5 Bags Fastest-Selling Console Title In US; PS5 Restock Tracker: Where To Find New Stocks

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Written by RJ Pierce

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Sabrent is soon debuting one of the largest capacities for a Solid State Drive which resembles the size of graphics card only, with its RocketQ Battleship that has 64 terabytes of space on its drives. This is one of the largest sizes in SSD, along with the smallest in physical size, making it one of the most awaited solid-state drives in the market.

The only problem it has now is its release, which has not yet seen the light of day and will be "available soon," as said by the company. However, this SSD is speculated not to be a long wait anymore, especially as the device is almost ready for distribution amongst the public, and is only awaiting Sabrent for this venture and announcement.

Sabrent's RocketQ Battleship is not an ordinary SSD, particularly as it aims to bring one of the world's largest solid-state drives with 64 terabytes of storage capacity. Initially, it was conceived that SSDs cannot go where the traditional hard drives came from, and that is providing massive storage capacities for the different requirements of a computer build.

Read Also: ACER SSD and RAM Could Come Soon as Company Plans to Team Up With Chinese Chipmaker Biwin

Sabrent RocketQ Battleship 64TB SSD

The massive capacity SSD is one of the most talked-about developments in solid-state drive history, particularly because it is one of the largest capacity drives that only have a size smaller than a smartphone. Yes, that is right, the RocketQ Battleship packs 64TB in size or 6,400 gigabytes but is only the size of an average computer graphics card.

According to High Tech Point's website, there is already a product landing page for the RocketQ Battleship, meaning that the device is nearing its release for public sale. While the impossible is near the hands of the public, this would prove initial jabs against SSDs, especially those which have underestimated their power and performance.

In the HighPoint SSD7540 PCIe 4.0 controllers, there would be a total of eight, 8-terabyte PCIe 3.0 SSDs from Sabrent which totals to combined storage of 64TB. PCIe 3.0 has a read speed of 3,300 mb/s and a write speed of 2,900 mb/s. While this is not near the performance of a PCIe 4.0, it is still a fast SSD that features massive storage and a small physical size to take up on a PC build.

Are There Any Other SSDs of this Size and Capacity

The Sabrent RocketQ Battleship offers up unprecedented storage capacity at 64TB ! it also capable of super-fast Gen4... Posted by Sabrent on Saturday, January 9, 2021

There are other SSDs that have a higher terabyte capacity and sizes, but those are nothing compared to the small, compact, and space-saving dimensions of the RocketQ Battleship. Generic graphics cards have the size of 107MMx175.36MMx4CM (height, length, width for 2 slot-GPUs), which is compact, and Sabrent's RocketQ does not fall far.

Currently, Sabrent has not released any pricing on the SSD, but speculations suggest that it would be more than $11,000, due to the High Point controller costs $1,000 already, and each of the Rocket Q 8TB SSDs cost $1,300 each.

Related Article: Samsung 870 Evo SSD Vs 860 SSD: Price and Speed Comparison

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Written by Isaiah Alonzo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Screenshot From Commons.Wikipedia.org) Jeep Cherokee 2021 Model Leaking Transmission Hoses | 18,800 Recalls Made

The Jeep Cherokee 2020 has received a lot of praise for being a very adequate vehicle. Jeep, in general, is one of the top brands for well, jeeps! The modern Jeep models usually do a really good job when it comes to the outdoors but a certain year model of the Cherokee could have a huge issue.

2021 Jeep Cherokee Recall Models

Owners of a whopping 18,800 2021 Jeep Cherokee models are now expecting a recall notice coming from Jeep themselves over serious concerns that there could be a leaking transmission line that could potentially cause a fire.

This news was according to the announcement that was just recently made by the official National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that released an announcement addressing the major issue with the 2021 Jeep Cherokee. This recall is over a huge issue that could potentially be very dangerous.

Transmission Oil Cooler Issue

The recall specifically applies to a certain transmission oil cooler hose that was found to be "improperly cured." This could then potentially greatly increase the probability of the fluid leaking. The leaking fluid could then come in contact with the vehicle's really hot exhaust system then cause a fire.

Luckily, the needed fix for this particular issue is said to be as simple as just replacing a hose and easily refilling the whole transmission up. Like all particular recalls, the work will then be performed absolutely free of charge by the customer's own Jeep dealer once they start to get the notification.

Jeep Cherokee 2021 Recall Date

The notifications for the Jeep Cherokee 2021 recall will reportedly start around June 23. The 2021 Jeep Cherokee recall reportedly won't matter for those that own the 2020 Jeep Cherokee since only the 2021 models were reportedly affected by the serious but simple-to-fix leaking transmission hose issue.

For those that reportedly own the 2021 Jeep Cherokee and are reportedly concerned that the recall could potentially affect their vehicle and waitin for the official notification might be too far, there is a way to directly contact Jeep. According to the story by CNet, for those that either want to speed up the process or basically just have a couple of questions regarding the 2021 Jeep Cherokee recall, they can simply contact Chrysler customer service number at 1-800-853-1403 and the reference recall Y18.

Read Also: New Tesla Crash in Fontana Sees 1 Dead, 2 Injured as EV Slams Person Helping Truck Driver: '40% Safer' Allegedly Flawed?

Are Recalls Dangerous?

Although recalls aren't that common with most models, they do happen every once in a while. Sometimes, they actually happen when everything is too late and there have reportedly been major accidents regarding the model. Although this is not that common, it does happen a fraction of the time.

The good thing about the 2021 Jeep Cherokee recall is that it is happening just shortly after the release of the 2021 model. Basically, it is a good thing that the issue was caught before other major accidents could happen in the future.

Related Article: Tesla Bull Says Elon Musk Will Announce a Tesla Delivery Van In About 12-18 Months

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Written by Urian B.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
SITEKI  About 100 pupils of Sihlangwini High School locked the schools gate in protest over inadequate teachers.

They wanted the Head teacher, Khosi Sibandze, to address the issue. The school is located under Sithobela Inkhundla. After locking their schools gate at around 7am, half the number of the pupils then stormed the primary school to mobilise more pupils who were in class to be part of the protest action. In sensing danger, the primary schools Head teacher Gugu Mbhamali called the police to maintain order. Sithobela Police Station dispatched officers who dispersed the rioting pupils. It was established that just a few minutes after the arrival of the police, a Quantum with Lubombo Regional Education Office (REO) inspectors had been mobbed by the pupils who were singing around it and the situation was saved by the arrival of the cops. According to a pupil in Form V, they met last week as pupils in a caucus where they planned and organised the protest.

Attention

The pupil said the organised protest was aimed at drawing the attention of the Ministry of Education and Training regarding the shortage of teachers at the school as they were missing out on lessons yet they were expected to sit for their external examinations in November. The school has an enrolment of about 300 pupils. Government reopened schools on March 29 and according to the pupil, they have not been having lessons due to the shortage of teachers as only five were present at the school. During the protest, three teachers were also locked out and remained outside the school gate until the intervention of the Lubombo REO inspectors.

According to the pupil, they had convened a meeting at around 7am at the schools gate and waited for others before starting the planned protest. They sang songs while displaying placards which had messages relating to their plight. Some of the messages read, Help Help Help and No Teachers, No Learning. The inspectors suspended lessons and informed the pupils that they would be notified through radio announcements about the resumption of classes once government had resolved the matter. The dramatic situation lasted for close to three hours as the pupils were dispersed at around 10am.

In our assessment, it was a peaceful protest and we just wanted to draw the attention of government to intervene in our situation because we are missing out on lessons yet we will be writing our external examinations in November. Our parents raised the issue with the schools administration and they were promised that it would be resolved. On a daily basis, we come here to sit for the whole day, said the pupil. A parent said they had tried to reason with the schools administration to address the issue but nothing was done until the pupils resorted to rioting.


NASA's OSIRIS-REx is now returning to Earth after successfully gathering planetary rocks and dust samples from the asteroid Bennu. After nearly five years in space, the incoming spacecraft will be welcomed by the scientists at the headquarters.

NASA's OSIRIS-REx Heads Back to Earth

In 2018, NASA's OSIRIS-REx has touched down the near-Earth asteroid Bennu. After several years of staying in the planetary body, the spacecraft is now on its way for a homecoming together with a 60-gram asteroid sample, CNET reported on Monday, May 10.

Of course, it would take some time before it reunites with the team, and NASA is expecting that by September 24, 2023, the spacecraft is now on the planet after 2.5 years of travel.

Read Also: NASA's Osiris Rex Will Attempt a TAG Landing on Asteroid 101955 'Bennu' on Tuesday! How to Watch Live?

OSIRIS-REx's journey will not be easy. It needs to orbit around the Sun two times. On its way to the planet, the capsule which contains Bennu samples will be separated from the remaining spacecraft body.

Moreover, they will be safely parachuted to the Utah Test and Training Range located in the West Desert. From there, the scientists will wait so they could gather the asteroid samples.

According to NASA's associate administrator for science, Thomas Zurbuchen, the accomplishments done by the OSIRIS-REx paved the way for innovative exploration in real-time.

He added that the team behind the mission have exceeded their expectations after a series of challenges. This will also open an opportunity for the researchers to unveil the other mysteries in our solar system.

On Apr.9, the OSIRIS-REx's navigation cameras were turned off after the spacecraft captured the final photos of Bennu.

Meanwhile, NASA engineers sent radio signals and measured the waves' frequency coming from the transponder. It will tell them the speed rate of the spacecraft while it moves.

OSIRIS-Rex Mission Exceeds Scientists' Expectations

In a press release by NASA on Tuesday, May 11, the spacecraft's path to the planet will be up to the gravity of the Sun. For its trajectory, NASA engineers created several adjustments through engine burns.

According to OSIRIS-Rex navigation lead, Peter Antreasian, the team should conduct "regular corrections" so that they could inch the trajectory closer to the planet's atmosphere once the sample has been released.

Before the spacecraft's re-entry, the team should precisely set the angle and location of the capsule to the Earth. If the release is too low, the capsule could bounce out of the atmosphere, the same thing that happens with a "skipping pebble" in a lake.

On the other hand, if the launch is too high, the friction could mess the capsule up. In case of a failed capsule launch, it will likely touch down on the planet by 2025 as part of the team's alternative plan.

When the team recalled the time when OSIRIS-REx had landed on the asteroid, the experts were surprised after knowing that Bennu had been teeming with boulders.

The team quickly devised a new method to navigate Bennu's craggy surface so that they could start the sample collection in some of its areas.

The mission has brought out many findings such that the carbon-rich minerals in Bennu could be a potential source of "ancient water."

However, the prediction of the team about Bennu's smooth surface was wrong even though they prepared an assessment by measuring the amount of heat on the surface.

Somehow, several future predictions will be established as part of creating theoretical models for the studies.

Related Article: NASA's OSIRIS-Rex Mission: Bennu Asteroid Seems to Have Cavities, Might Be Close to Its Death

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Written by Joseph Henry

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
What seemed to be dreadful news for Apple and its supplier Quanta is an answer to Macbook repair shops' problems.

In April, Apple -- as it showcased its latest products in a Spring-loaded event -- was being targeted by a ransomware group for leaked schematics of the Macbook.

Apple Ransomware Attack

The ransomware group REvil claimed to have infiltrated the system of Quanta, the supplier and key manufacturer of Macbooks. The group even dubbed it as "the largest attack ever," Bloomberg reported.

REvil, in turn, is asking for $50 million from the Apple supplier, or it will leak the stolen blueprints of the MacBook.

Read Also: Cyber Attack Shuts Down Largest Fuel Pipeline, US Declares State of Emergency -- Are Fuel Prices Rising?

After the failed demand, REvil turned to Apple and released the documents on the dark web. The group claimed that it will release more product documents, including personal information from employees.

The leak included the wiring diagrams of the Macbook and layouts of the logic board. The stolen documents are dated March 2021, which could be hints of an unreleased Apple product.

A Big Favor for Repair Shops

However, the attack seemed to be a big favor for MacBook repair shops today. The said blueprint is helping them recover seemingly forever lost data.

Independent repair experts are searching the dark web to purchase the leaked PDF. The document paints a clearer picture of how MacBook parts are assembled.

The ransomware-group-leaked information was supposed to give an advantage to Apple's rivals. It turns out the benefit goes to the repair shops.

Furthermore, Louis Rossmann, owner of the Rossmann Repair Group, told Motherboard that he is willing to pay the Cupertino company a whopping $1000 a year to get the information he obtained from the hack. The business owner, however, clarified that he is not in favor of ransomware hacking.

According to Rossmann, the said leak information helps him obtain customer's lost data and offer additional repair services.

On another note, an expert told Motherboard that the said leak isn't as dangerous as REVil claimed.

Gay Gordon-Byrne, executive director of the Repair Association, also told Motherboard that a schematic could not build a phone or a laptop. It only informs how a part connects to another. Moreover, it gives a better idea of how each piece functions.

It is noteworthy that the information freely passed on by repair experts is illegal. Apple has copyrights to its product designs. Thus, the said blueprints are illegally revealing the trade secrets of Apple.

However, some repair experts, as Motherboard reported, believe that the said information "shouldn't be secret, to begin with."

Indie repair experts also said that the REvil merely wanted to help Apple product users to be able to fix their gadgets.

Related Article: Biggest iPhone Hack Ever: 'Fortnite' Trial Exposes Emails Detailing the 'XCodeGhost' Malware

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Written by Teejay Boris

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Apple is coping up with another class-action suit in London, the UK after the claimants said that the tech giant has been overcharging about 20 million customers in the country for many years in their in-app purchases from the App Store.

In a press release on Tuesday, May 11, the complainants stated that the Cupertino company's standard fee of 30% is considered to be "unlawful" and "excessive." The lawsuit was submitted on Monday, May 10 at the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London.

UK Claimants Call Apple as 'Abusive' in its App Store

According to the recently-written article of Bloomberg, the case's lead claimant, Rachael Kent said that Apple is "abusing" its market superiority on its platform.

Kent, who also teaches at King's College London, has been informing the customers on the proper ways to interact with the digital market.

In conjunction with the ongoing trial of the tech giant against Epic Games, the "Fortnite" developer accused Apple of monopolizing the market which was unfair to the part of its consumers and developers.

Now going back to the UK's class-action lawsuit, the claimants said that the Cupertino titan was "meritless." In comparison to Epic's allegations, the British's legal suit only emphasized the harm that Apple did to its customers alone.

Read Also: Microsoft Criticizes Apple for Not Allowing XCloud Service to Roll Out on App Store

Apple Encounters Backlash Over its 'Self-Serving Policies

In January, Apple decreased its 30% App Store fee to 15% so that developers could benefit by generating up to $1 million yearly revenue from their applications.

Yet, the company has been on the hot seat after some developers and global regulators called its policies to be "self-serving" and "unjust" to them.

Just last month, the European Commission informed Apple over its "abusive" and "dominant" position on the Apple Music app following a complaint by Spotify on the tech giant's "gatekeeping" techniques that put its rival to an unfavorable competition.

"We believe this lawsuit is meritless and welcome the opportunity to discuss with the court our unwavering commitment to consumers and the many benefits the App Store has delivered to the U.K.'s innovation economy," Apple wrote in an email.

Furthermore, the Cupertino giant insisted that its commission charge in the App Store is in the "mainstream" implemented by some markets.

It added that the developers pay nothing to the company because 84% of the App Store apps are free. It also comes with a 15% commission rate that they could collect.

Apple's lawsuit pointed out its unjust payment system through disallowing healthy competition among its rivals while it earns a huge amount of profit coming from its power grabs.

For those residents in the United Kingdom who have previously bought apps in the App Store, or made in-app purchases or subscriptions since October 2015, they will be granted compensation.

In addition to the charges, the claimants assumed that the tech giant could pay out a 1.5 million-pound excess in this lawsuit.

Related Article: Brazil Issues $2M Fine to Apple for Not Including Chargers, Tech Giant Faces Lawsuit in Quebec

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Written by Joseph Henry

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The production of Apple's iPhone 12 in Foxconn's factory in India slowed down as hundreds of its workers are battling the COVID-19 virus, two sources told Reuters.

Foxconn in India is behind the production of iPhones for the country -- which is the second-largest market of smartphones in the world.

Read Also: Ransomware Attack Helps Macbook Repair Shops Recover Lost Data -- How?

India's Worsening Outbreak

India is currently experiencing a second wave of COVID-19. New variants accelerated the deadly outbreak in the country, World Health Organization top officials said.

The said facility is at Tamil Nidu, which was badly hit by the Indian COVID-19 wave. Currently, the state is under a tight total lockdown. Furthermore, there is no public transport available, and all businesses are shut to contain the surge of the virus.

Foxconn is Helping Their Employees

Specifically, 100 employees of the factory were infected by the virus, Reuters reported. Other workers are barred from entering the premises, despite testing negative from COVID-19. Sources said that this situation is about to last until the end of May.

The infection and lockdown are abruptly slowing down production in Foxconn. A source told Reuters that the capacity of the factory is down to a whopping 50%.

The sources, however, could not give out numbers of the overall capacity of the said facility.

Foxconn confirmed to Reuters that a small number of their colleagues in the Indian facility contracted the COVID-19 virus. The company adds, in assurance, that it is providing the latter utmost support and medical aid.

According to Reuters, Foxconn is not the only manufacturer struggling to grapple with the effects of the pandemic in India. Particularly, Nokia and OPPO have also suspended production after workers tested positive for COVID-19 in the past.

iPhone 12 and COVID-19

In March 2021, Nikkei Asia reported that Foxconn relocated about 10 percent of the iPhone 12 production from China to India. It was the first time that the flagship phone was assembled outside of the East Asian country.

In other delays, the iPhone 12's supposed availability in March 2020 has, instead, been moved to April. During the early month of the pandemic in 2020, Apple pushed back in the delivery of the iPhone 12 due to the coronavirus.

Moreover, as Apple is preparing for the high demand for iPhones in December, the 5G enabled smartphone faces a supply problem. The constraint in power management risked the delay of 80 million units.

It was a significant bottleneck to the Cupertino company as the 5G technology demanded a consistent supply of power.

Related Also: Apple iPhone, iPad, iMac, iPod: Here's What The 'i' Means

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Written by Teejay Boris

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
"Resident Evil Village" is the latest horror game in Capcom's popular "Resident Evil" series. It was able to attract many horror game fans, thanks to its new features and content that offer a new kind of horror title experience.

Now, you can enjoy it even more since there's a new mod that can make it less scary. This new mod allows you to replace your knife with a fly swatter. Imagine using it against the swarms of killer flies.

Thanks to some PC modders' creativity and inventiveness, players can now slap Lady Dimitrescu's daughters with a bug slapper.

Lady Dimitrescu: Well Well Ethan Winters

Ethan Winters: heyheyheyyy c'maahn I'm a little guy, I'm just a little guyy, noo, it's also my birthday, I'm a little birthday boyy pic.twitter.com/e58DVODCyT  James Malloy (@AndTheMeltdowns) May 6, 2021

It even allows you to choose from three different colors, specifically red, yellow, and white. If you want to use it, here's a quick guide on how to install the latest "Resident Evil Village" fly swatter mod.

Installing the New 'Resident Evil Village' Fly Swatter Mod

According to Game Revolution's latest report, players can install the new "Resident Evil Village" fly swatter mod easily, thanks to the help of NexusMods, a popular game mod publisher.

On the other hand, FluffyQuack's excellent mod manager allows you to use it on the latest "Resident Evil Village" or "Resident Village 8."

Also Read: 'Resident Evil Village' is Different From Other Versions: Here's an Advanced Game Review

Users EvilLord and CrazyPotato are the ones who developed the new mod.

If you want to have it right away, all you need to do is visit the official page of NexusMods. You can search it on Google or just click this link.

Once you are there, you can now install the latest update of the new "Resident Evil Village" fly swatter mod. If you are worried that it will be complicated to install, you don't have to since there is only one file available.

It is with great pleasure... that I can confirm that I provided the performance capture and voice for Daniela Dimitrescu and Elena in Resident Evil Village.  #ResidentEvilVillage Have fun surviving my lovelies... I just might have to take a bite  pic.twitter.com/2lhkeaMUFv  Nicole Tompkins (@NikiLeeTompkins) May 7, 2021

After installing the file, you need to extract and run the new game mod. Once you are done with that, you can now choose an option for "Resident Evil Village" and transfer the zipped fly swatter mod file to your PC's manager window.

When you are done, it will pop up as an option. Once it appears, you can click the Launch Game option, and the knife will automatically be replaced with a bug slapper or a fly swatter.

How Popular is 'Resident Evil Village'?

Games Radar reported that the new "Resident Evil Village" is considered the fastest-selling game in the popular horror game series.

In just four days, Capcom's new title was able to sell more than three million copies.

The new record was able to surpass the previous selling record of "Resident Evil 2 Remake" and "Resident Evil 3 Remake." It is now on par with the previous "Resident Evil 6," which also has the same selling record in just four days.

If you want to see more details, all you need to do is click this link.

For more news updates about "Resident Evil Village" and other popular horror titles, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.

Related Article: 'Resident Evil Village': Best Downloadable Mods For You-Baby Chris Redfield, Lady X Dimetrescu, and MORE

This article is owned by TechTimes

Written by: Griffin Davis

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Pixabay/PhotoMIX-Company) Microsoft 365 data breach

Using Microsoft 365, the software giant's cloud-based communications and collaboration platform, could be a security liability for numerous organizations.

Microsoft 365 Security Breach

A report from Egress called Outbound Email: Microsoft 365's Security Blind Spot that was based on a poll of 500 IT experts and 3,000 remote-workers in the United Kingdom and the United States, claims businesses who use Microsoft 365 suffer more email data breaches, and have to deal with more difficult consequences in the aftermath.

However, the report highlighted that if the pandemic did not happen, things would have been different, according to TechRadar.

More than two-thirds, or 67% of IT experts said that the increase in email data breaches happened because of home working, compared to just below a third or 32% among those whose organizations do not use Microsoft's cloud-based collaboration and communication platform.

Also Read: WordPress Data Breach Affects 100,000 Exposed Websites After Using Responsive Menu Plugin

Furthermore, around 93%, or almost all businesses who use the service reported negative impacts following an email data breach, fewer than those who do not use it, which is around 84%.

More than one in six of those using Microsoft 365, or 15%, have suffered more than 500 data breaches in 2020, compared to just 4% than those who do not use it at all.

Humans are Responsible

As the report indicates, the issue does not seem to be in the platform itself, but in the way that people use it.

More than a quarter of IT experts, or 26% of them, said that a severe data loss incident came from an employee sharing data through email by mistake. But then again, the figure decreases among businesses that do not use Microsoft 365, that is around 14%.

The worst part is that IT experts are not very optimistic about the future, not believing things would change for the better, any time soon.

More than three-quarters, or 76%, believe that remote and hybrid working will make it more difficult to prevent email data loss from Microsoft 365 in the future.

Among those not using the service, or around 40%, share the same outlook, according to Business Wire.

Egress' Chief Technology Officer Darren Cooper said that Microsoft 365 has seen phenomenal adoption during the COVID-19 pandemic, and has brought cost and efficiency benefits to numerous organizations, but its security limitations are clear to see.

Cooper added that they can't ignore the risk of email data loss from Microsoft 365 and the shortcomings of static DLP solutions to mitigate the outbound email security risks that organizations face today.

According to Cooper, email data breaches are the top security concern for all of the businesses, and remote working has only exacerbated the risk.

Cooper concluded that organizations need to take proactive steps to secure their data using intelligent solutions that can understand a user's behavior, and the context in which they are sharing data to prevent data loss even before it happens.

As of November 2020, the Microsoft 365 platform is used by more than a million companies worldwide, with more than 650,000 companies in the United States alone.

This number may grow despite the easing of restrictions caused by the pandemic as companies concluded it is more beneficial to let half of its workers stay at home.

Related Article: Nitro PDF Data Breach: 77 Million Sensitive Infos Including Names, Passwords, IP Addresses, and More Leaked Online

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Sophie Webster

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Pixabay/Firmbee) Microsoft Edge browser coupons

Microsoft Edge for Android will soon get a new feature that will automatically apply available coupons on e-commerce websites to help users save some money. The feature is live on the latest Microsoft Edge Canary release for Android.

Microsoft Edge Coupon Feature

Microsoft introduced price comparisons in Edge last week as part of its Collections feature, but this new coupon experience goes further. It is a part of a massive push by Microsoft to position Edge as the browser for online shopping, but the comparisons and coupons only work for the US users as of now.

In the latest Microsoft Edge Canary release for Android, users should spot a new experimental flag on edge://flags called "Shopping site Coupons."

Once enabled, this flag will add a new "Coupons" toggle in the Microsoft Edge settings. Users can turn it on to enable the new Coupons feature, which will automatically recommend coupons whenever users visit a supported retailer's website.

Also Read: Microsoft Edge's Password Monitor Will Warn You of Password Leaks--Kids' Safety Now its Focus

Reddit user u/Leopeva64-2 recently shared a couple of screenshots highlighting the new Coupons feature. The address bar on Microsoft Edge for Android will show a new coupon icon whenever the browser finds coupons for the current website.

Tapping on the coupon icon will bring up a "Shopping in Microsoft Edge" pop-up that lists all the available coupons.

Users can either copy and paste the codes listed in the window at checkout, or users can let Microsoft Edge automatically try them out to determine which one offers the most savings.

The coupons features in Microsoft Edge Canary for Android is not an entirely new one. Microsoft rolled it out to Microsoft Edge for desktop back in November 2020, and it is now finally making its way to the Android app.

Users can try it out by downloading the latest Microsoft Edge Canary release for Android on Google Play Store, according to XDA Developers.

From Online Shopping to Student Use

If you are not interested in online shopping, Microsoft Edge is also getting some productivity improvements that are very useful for students, according to The Verge.

The internet giant is adding in the ability to annotate and to add text notes to PDFs, which is a highly requested feature.

According to Microsoft's statement, inking is making a return to Microsoft Edge one of the top requested features. As part of the new screenshot tool, users will now be able to digitally ink and annotate screenshots.

Microsoft is also adding the ability to capture a full webpage in a screenshot, and will be launched within this year, Neowin reported.

Most existing screenshot tools simply screenshot what users see without the ability to capture an entire webpage or scroll as users grab the screen.

The new Edge screenshot tool will automatically scroll down a webpage so you can capture everything in a single image.

Word and Outlook will also handle copied URLs from Edge a lot more elegantly soon. Microsoft will shorten the long links into friendly URLs when users copy links from the address bar in Edge, and paste them into Word or Outlook.

That is useful if users do not want to use bit.ly or another link shortening service, and users will also be able to switch back to the longer URL in the Word or Outlook context menus.

Related Article: Microsoft Edge vs. Google Chrome: Best Web Browser for Windows, Is It Time For a Change?

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Sophie Webster

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
LOBAMBA  We are not happy.

The above was expressed by Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Commissioner Daniel Dlamini, who revealed that staff morale was at an all-time low at the institution because most of their operations were out of their control. Dlamini revealed this yesterday when the ACC appeared before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to respond to a few audit queries. The ACC boss made the statements after PAC Chairperson Matsanjeni North PM Phila Buthelezi expressed concern that although the ACC had functions to play, the results were just not there. You are not working, right now as the PAC we are here working on the small fish yet the ACC, which is supposed to investigate the big fish is not delivering, said MP Buthelezi. He said it was painful that although the ACC carried out investigations, they could not effect any arrests or that none of their cases were going to court to be heard.

You should be bringing investor confidence, but there will be none if your organisation is dormant, said Buthelezi. In response, Dlamini admitted that the working environment was not a nice one. He however, stated that he was not the competent person to address these issues. He revealed that the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Pholile Shakantu, had facilitated some meetings to try and address the issues of constitutional alignment between the ACC and the Human Rights Commission, which seemed to be playing similar roles. He said the minister had also compiled a consultative report which he hoped would set in motion the merger of the two institutions if that would be the case. Dlamini said it was concerning that some of the matters that they had investigated were still not being heard in court and said the director of public prosecutions (DPP) had even written to the courts asking that the matters be heard.

He said as an employee of the ACC, he would sometimes ask himself how he got into that position and even get tempted to think that they (other officers as well) wished they were working elsewhere. Dlamini said they had also launched an appeal at the High Court following a judgment made by the chief justice, which had ensured that some of the matters were not brought before the courts or arrests effected. He said it was like they were dummies (sitithipha) and that was the reason why they were not happy.
MBABANE  Its a political blunder!

This was the reaction of the Trade Union Congress of Swaziland (TUCOSWA) following news that Eswatini has been providing security to recently-announced Zulu King Misuzulu KaZwelithini. The unions Secretary General, Mduduzi Gina, stated that the move by the country to provide security detail to King Misuzulu automatically concluded that South Africa was failing to provide enough security under the prevailing circumstances.

Gina said such blunder could cost King Misuzulu and the country in the near future. He said KwaZulu-Natal was within the Republic of South Africa territory and anyone seen to be in a state of a security risk within that country was the responsibility of the State to provide him or her with security.

Situation

He said what the country had done could result in a situation where South Africa would have challenges in providing the Zulu King with security if there were no agreements between the governments of the two countries (South Africa and Eswatini). The secretary general stated that the issues of blood relations could not be escalated to a level whereby the duties of the South African State would be seen being doubted by the Kingdom of Eswatini. We give ourselves comfort that we are hopeful that there is some kind of an agreement that was entered into between Eswatini and SA. Gina said royal households of KwaZulu-Natal and Eswatini could not communicate between themselves because the latter did not have jurisdiction of security in South Africa. He said the royalty in KwaZulu was not head of State or institution that was involved in political power, hence could not discuss or allege to have agreed on security matters.

Security matters are political. We understand though that King Misuzulu has been in the country, which is his second home but when it comes to the issues of security, SA should have taken over, he explained.

Meanwhile, the Swaziland Solidarity Network (SSN) was quoted by the African News Agency (ANA) condemning the alleged wastage of emaSwati taxpayers money by virtue of providing security to King Misuzulu, who is son to King Goodwill Zwelithini and Queen Mantfombi Dlamini, who both recently passed away. Queen Mantfombi was the daughter of King Sobhuza II and by extension, a sister to His Majesty King Mswati III. SSN Spokesperson Lucky Lukhele told the SA news agency that the Zulu kingdom had sufficient funds to cater for its security provisions without feeding off the taxpayers of Eswatini.
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Madisonville, KY (42431)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms during the morning becoming more widespread this afternoon. High 82F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms during the evening. Partly cloudy skies after midnight. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%.
The effects of a foreign criminal syndicate's hack of the Colonial Pipeline that delivers fuel from Houston to New York are starting to be seen in slower gas deliveries to convenience store pumps, to fuel terminals that serve delivery trucks  and in panic buying that could make things worse.

"We have many stations that are experiencing periodic, rolling gasoline outages; customers may see a bag on the pump," said Natalie Isaacks, executive director of the Baton Rouge-based Louisiana Oil Marketers and Convenience Store Association.

The association represents 3,400 fuel stations, and some members  particularly in central and northeastern Louisiana  are reporting "extensive panic buying from consumers right now," she said Tuesday.

"If there's one thing I could say  there's not an actual shortage of fuel," Isaacks said. "We have it. I could compare it to the toilet paper shortage in the early days of the pandemic. There wasn't one, but people created it."

At Riche's Y-Not Stop in Broussard, the panic buying started Tuesday evening and into Wednesday to the point where the store ran out of regular unleaded gasoline, owner Kim Riche said. But a fuel truck was already on its way to the store and was there within an hour.

Customers came to the store with cans to fill up with gasoline thinking theres a shortage, she said.

Panic buying does cause the shortage, Riche said. We definitely are not encouraging people to panic buy. Theres plenty of fuel out there in general. It may take a little while longer to get to our station. I think people are very misinformed about whats going on.

Hackers shut down a major oil pipeline, which runs through Louisiana. Could it affect gas prices? WASHINGTON  Hit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said Monday it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end

To help, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Sunday waived until June 8 regulations governing the consecutive hours that commercial truckers can drive and the number of breaks they must take.

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Louisiana is one of 18 states where commercial truck drivers have the waiver when they are "supporting emergency relief efforts transporting gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other refined petroleum products into the affected states," the emergency declaration says.

The Louisiana Oil Marketers and Convenience Store Association indicated trucks are having to wait two or three times longer to get fuel from terminals, which is causing delays in deliveries to retail outlets. The association is "working extremely hard" to get fuel to stores, it said.

"If you need gas to go to work, go get it," Isaacks said. "If you need gas for your lawn mower, get it. Just stay in your normal routine, that will help," she said. "But if people hoard it, we can't get our trucks out fast enough to the convenience stores."

The other states are Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvannia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia, as well as the District of Columbia.

At a Circle K on College Drive Tuesday, Baton Rouge resident Thomas Levy was filling up a white SUV. It was his mom's car.

"My mother lives around the corner from me and called and said, 'You need to get some gas,'" Levy recounted.

"She was watching the news and got concerned about it."

Staff Writer Adam Daigle contributed to this report.
In the two years leading up to her 2011 disappearance, Brusly High School teacher Sylviane Finck Lozada told authorities her husband physically abused her three times, several former deputies testified Tuesday.

Each time she told East Baton Rouge Parish sheriff's deputies she did not want to press charges against Oscar Lozada, who is now charged with second-degree murder in her death. On two of those occasions she asked deputies to only speak with her husband.

On the third and final occasion  Dec. 31, 2010, six months before her disappearance  the woman told a deputy at Our Lady of the Lake's Baton Rouge emergency room that she did not want him to contact her husband at all.

"She was very adamant about that," former East Baton Rouge sheriff's deputy Derek Schilling testified inside state District Judge Tiffany Foxworth's 19th Judicial District courtroom. "She was afraid he would become angry and take their baby to Venezuela."

Prosecutors say Oscar Lozada, 45, killed and dismembered his wife in July 2011, then fled to his home country of Venezuela with the couple's daughter.

+3 Grisly details emerge in case of slain Brusly teacher; confession can be used against husband A state judge ruled Monday that statements Oscar Lozada gave to sheriffs detectives about the 2011 death of his wife, a Brusly High School te

Venezuela has no extradition agreement with the United States. However, Lozada was arrested in late 2018 in Mexico and brought back to Baton Rouge.

On Tuesday, after a hearing, Foxworth gave prosecutor Dana Cummings permission to bring up the three alleged domestic abuse incidents at Lozada's trial, which is now set for Nov. 29.

Cummings had argued that the incidents are more probative than prejudicial to the defense, showing intent and motive. Lozada's attorney, Stephen Sterling, countered that none of the incidents resulted in an arrest and said they would prejudice his client in front of a jury.

Sterling argued that Sylviane Lozada used the Sheriff's Office to mediate her troubled marriage, but Cummings said the woman "was just looking for help."

+4 Prosecutor: Baton Rouge man accused of dismembering wife displayed 'pattern of violence' When Oscar Lozada stands trial in the 2011 killing and dismembering of his wife, Brusly High School teacher Sylviane Finck Lozada, prosecutors

Former sheriff's deputy Dan Sutton and former reserve deputy Robert Bewick testified that they interviewed Oscar Lozada at OLOL on July 21, 2009, after his wife told a nurse that he had struck her in the back during an argument at their Baton Rouge home.

"When she turned away from him, he hit her in the back with the heel of his hand," Sutton recalled Sylviane Lozada telling him at the hospital.

"He said it was the first time that it happened," Bewick said Oscar Lozada told him. "He indicated it would not happen again. Mr. Lozada did appear to show remorse for it. He teared up and said it wouldn't happen again."

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But less than two months later, on Sept. 7, 2009, Schilling testified he was dispatched to the Lozada home on a report of Oscar Lozada hitting his wife in the chest with his elbow while they argued in bed.

Oscar Lozada told the deputy the physical contact was unintentional, and that it occurred when he was yanking the bed cover. Schilling said Sylviane Lozada wouldn't say whether the incident was intentional or not.

Schilling also testified about being called to the OLOL emergency room by medical staff on New Year's Eve 2010 concerning an alleged domestic abuse battery involving the Lozadas.

"She was very upset," the former deputy said. "Told me she had been in an argument. Her husband pushed her down. Her back hit a cabinet."

After Sylviane Lozada refused to press charges and specifically urged Schilling not to contact her husband, Schilling said he had her sign a Sheriff's Office drop-charge form.

Sylviane Lozada was 51 when she disappeared. Her body has never been found. Her blood was discovered on the ceiling and walls of the garage at the family's Spring Lake Drive home in Baton Rouge.

Oscar Lozada confessed in 2018 to killing and dismembering his wife, officials have said. He later tried to have the confession thrown out, but the state Supreme Court ruled that it can be used at his trial.

Lozada, who faces a mandatory sentence to life in prison if convicted of second-degree murder, rejected an offer last year to plead guilty to manslaughter and obstruction of justice in exchange for a 50-year prison term.

+3 Husband of slain Brusly teacher rejects plea deal; second-degree murder trial set July 13 A Baton Rouge man accused in the 2011 killing and dismembering of his wife, Brusly High School foreign language teacher Sylviane Finck Lozada,

Lozada bought buckets and concrete around the time of his wife's disappearance, court filings indicate. He twice accompanied detectives in October 2018 to several locations off Interstate 10 in an unsuccessful attempt to recover her remains.

The Sheriff's Office searched waterways along I-10 between Baton Rouge and New Orleans but did not report finding anything.

Cummings has stated in court documents that Sylviane Lozadas body was dismembered and disposed of in buckets.

The couples daughter lives with her mother's family in Belgium, her mother's home country.
A well-known local Elvis impersonator was shot to death at his Denham Springs house over the weekend, and detectives believe his stepson pulled the trigger before fleeing to New Orleans.

Jason Baglio died on the scene from multiple gunshot wounds. The shooting was reported about 3:30 a.m. Saturday, and a witness identified the suspected shooter and an accomplice soon thereafter, officials said.

That witness account allowed authorities to quickly start their search, which led to two arrests. The motive is not yet known.

Trace Pigott, 28, remains jailed in Orleans Parish, where he was booked on second-degree murder several hours after the shooting. His father, Tommy Ray Pigott, was also arrested in New Orleans and booked on principal to second-degree murder. Officials said the elder Pigott was present for the deadly shooting and then fled the scene with his son.

+4 Well-known Elvis impersonator killed in Denham Springs shooting; suspect arrested A man was arrested in connection with a deadly shooting that happened in Denham Springs early Saturday, the Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office said.

Details about the circumstances of the homicide remain scarce. The Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office, which is handling the case, has not released any information about a potential motive.

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The agency will be able to provide more details after detectives can interview the suspects, spokeswoman Lori Steele said Tuesday. Tommy Ray Pigott was extradited to Livingston early Tuesday, but officials weren't sure when Trace Pigott would leave the Orleans Parish jail.

Steele confirmed that Trace Pigott is Baglio's stepson. Hundreds of people have posted on social media in the days since the shooting, expressing condolences to the Baglio family.

Second suspect in Denham Springs shooting death of Elvis impersonator arrested in New Orleans The father of the suspect in the fatal shooting of an Elvis Presley impersonator has been arrested in New Orleans, the Livingston Parish Sheri

Baglio left behind two daughters and a host of other relatives. He also left behind a loyal fan base after his long career as an Elvis impersonator, performing both locally and in other states under the stage name Jayson Alfano.

He was a familiar face on the Elvis circuit, wrapping up his last performance just hours before his death. Baglio had posted Friday morning on his Elvis tribute Facebook account informing fans about his upcoming show that evening in Smithdale, Mississippi. He was pronounced dead less than 24 hours later.

In addition to his Elvis tribute work, Baglio had recently become head chef for the Livingston Council on Aging, which opened a new kitchen at its Denham Springs Center. He grew up in Independence and lived there for many years.
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Mezzan Holding KSC, one of the largest manufacturers and distributors of food, beverage, FMCG and pharmaceutical products in the Gulf, grew its Q1 2021 net profit to parent company shareholders by 6.8% compared to Q1 2020, as a result of improved operating results.

The company recorded KD73.4 million in revenue, driven by its food manufacturing and distribution, fast-moving consumer goods and healthcare as well as Mezzans industrial segment.

Earnings before interest, tax, and depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) grew by 1% due to the reduction in selling, general & administrative expense (SG&A).

The Q1 revenue of KD73.4 million ($244.03 million) was down 1.4% compared to the corresponding period last year. The operating profit was KD6.4 million, up 0.9% and EBITDA was KD8.7 million, up 1.0%.

Commenting on the results, Mezzan Holding Executive Vice Chairman Mohammad Jassim Al Wazzan, said: I am proud to announce that Mezzan has started 2021 strong, with an increase of 6.8% in net profit to parent company shareholders during our first quarter compared to the same period last year. Despite the challenges that we continue to encounter as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, Mezzan managed to increase profitability, generating an operating profit of KD6.4 million, an increase of 0.9% compared to the first quarter of 2020. These results are a proof to Mezzans robust, defensive business model.

Mezzan Holding CEO, Garrett Walsh, commented: We are pleased to announce consistently strong quarterly profits since the beginning of Covid-19 pandemic, while maintaining a steady financial position, stable asset quality metrics and strong capitalisation.

Total Revenue from the Food Business Line reached KD44.6 million, a decrease of 3.6% compared with the same period in 2020. The Food Business Line accounted for 60.8% of the group revenue.

The Business Line comprises Manufacturing and Distribution (generating 46.0% of Group Revenue), Catering (generating 10.0% of Group Revenue) and Services (generating 4.8% of Group Revenue).

The Manufacturing and Distribution Q1 2021 revenue increased by 2.0%, Catering Q1 2021 revenue decreased by 15.6% and ServicesQ1 2021 revenue decreased by 21.1%.

The Non-Food Business Line accounted for 39.2% of Group Revenue. The Business Lines comprises FMCG and Pharmaceuticals business division (generating 37.3% of Group Revenue) and Industrials (generating 1.9% of Group Revenue).

FMCG and Pharmaceuticals Q1 2021 revenue increased by 1.5% boosted by strong performance of KSPICO and pharmaceutical segment. Industrials Q1 2021 revenue increased by 19.1%.

REGIONAL BUSINESS

In Kuwait Q1 2021 revenue grew by 0.6% due to strong performance in FMCG and healthcare segment, as well as strong performance in Mezzans industrial segment.

In the UAE, Q1 2021 revenue increased by 3.6% due to the increase in distribution activities.

In Qatar, Q1 2021 revenue decreased by 18.1% due to the decline of catering business line.

In KSA, Q1 2021 revenue increased by 15.6% as Mezzan continues to launch new products.

In Afghanistan, Q1 2021 revenue decreased by 57.3% due to the departure of US troops from the country.

In Jordan, Q1 2021 revenue increased by 16.5% due to improving Mezzans logistics operations.

-- TradeArabia News Service
The Black caucus is withholding support for far-reaching tax measures sought by the legislative leadership to protest House Speaker Clay Schexnayders inaction on whether to keep state Rep. Ray Garofalo as chairman of the Education Committee.

The first short-term casualty came on Monday with House Bill 275, which would carry out a complicated tax swap. The bill represents a part of an ambitious effort by Republican legislators to overhaul the states tax code in the legislative session that ends June 10. State Rep. Neil Riser, R-Columbia, chose to have the House skip over his measure rather than face a certain defeat.

The Black lawmakers are pushing to remove Garofalo who, after being warned privately not to do so, presented a racially-charged bill on April 27 before the Education Committee that would ban K-12 schools and universities from offering courses that included divisive concepts, such as that the state and country are racist or sexist. Lawmakers on the committee did not approve Garofalos measure, House Bill 564.

State Rep. Ted James, D-Baton Rouge, the chair of the Legislative Black Caucus, said he has met too many times over the past week to discuss concerns about Garofalo  and racially-insensitive comments by other White members  with Schexnayder, R-Gonzales, and House Speaker Pro Tem Tanner Magee, R-Houma, to no avail.

Black lawmakers want ouster of education chair after viral comment on 'the good' of slavery Black state lawmakers are calling on Louisiana House Speaker Clay Schexnayder to remove the Republican chair of the House Education Committee 

Now the caucus is leveraging its influence on tax votes, which require at least 70 votes, a two-thirds majority, to win passage.

All 70-vote bills are where our caucus can show our concern and displeasure, James said in an interview.

He said members of the Black Caucus are also trying to win support for their own tax bills that would help the poor.

The position of the Black Caucus has put Schexnayder in a tight spot. He is a conservative who has supported efforts to reopen the economy quicker than Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, has favored. But he was elected speaker last year by a bipartisan coalition over a more conservative Republican in a chamber with a Republican majority. The entire Democratic caucus voted to deliver Schexnayder the Speakers gavel.

As part of his balancing act, Schexnayder must also contend with about 20 far-right Republicans in the 105-member House who vote against all tax measures. So Schexnayder needs the 27 Black members to pass a package of bills that would eliminate a popular tax break that allows individuals to deduct their federal tax payment on their state income tax return. In exchange, they would get lower income tax rates. Groups from across the political spectrum have supported the plan, which tax experts have recommended for years.

State Rep. Stuart Bishop, R-Lafayette, who is handling part of the tax package, declined to discuss the political fight other than to say, We look forward to moving it.

Senator drops controversial bid to move Louisiana's congressional elections to closed primaries A state senator has dropped a bid to change Louisianas unique jungle primary system for congressional races in favor of closed party primarie

Garofalo, R-Chalmette, who is White, offered HB564 before his committee two weeks ago after at least two Black lobbyists told him the night before that doing so would probably inflame racial tensions.

Nonetheless, Garofalo held a five-hour committee hearing on his bill. During it, he further infuriated Black members when, during one exchange, he said, You can talk about everything dealing with slavery. The good. The bad. The ugly.

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Rep. Stephanie Hilferty, R-New Orleans, replied that there is no good to slavery, though.

"You are right, responded Garofalo. I didn't mean to imply that and don't believe that."

Garofalo's comments went viral after the Louisiana Democratic Party tweeted a clip of the exchange, drawing incredulous comments from several celebrities.

Garofalo compounded the problem, from the perspective of Black members, when he told the House chamber on Wednesday that his comments had been taken out of context, but he did not take them back and said he was addressing the chamber at Schexnayders request.

The general consensus is that the majority of Democrats and Republicans think that what Ray said (in committee) was misspeaking but his apology did not solve the problem, said Magee and added, Were all open to ways to do this.

Garofalo didnt respond to a text on Monday.

Black members of the Education Committee walked out of a hearing last week because they thought Garofalo was being disrespectful to state Rep. Tammy Phelps, D-Shreveport, who is Black.

State Rep. Gary Carter, D-Algiers, has been staying away from the committee since Garofalo brought HB564.

Its hard for me to attend with him as chair given the importance of the subject, Carter said.

+4 Louisiana Senate unanimously agrees to ban discrimination on hairstyles, hair texture The Louisiana Senate unanimously voted to make it illegal for employers to discriminate against someone because of their hairstyle, a measure 

Black members also were upset when state Sen. Troy Carter, D-Algiers, presented Senate Bill 61 before the House Committee on Labor last week and faced questions from White lawmakers that they thought were disrespectful. SB61 would ban employers from discriminating against employees with natural hair styles worn by Blacks.

With all the problems were having with COVID and re-opening the economy, we have to work together as a team, said state Rep. Ed Larvadain, D-Alexandria.

Riser said he hoped to piece together a coalition to pass the tax swap legislation next Monday.
Letter: New Orleans, beware: Road crew may be headed to your neighborhood next
Letters: Use some fed money to take tolls off our Belle Chasse bridge
House Education Committee Chairman Ray Garofalo, R-Chalmette, is the sponsor of a bill that would put curbs on how colleges and universities teach controversial topics like white guilt and racism.
Dhaka, May 9 (UNI) Relief materials have been distributed among journalists in the capital amid Covid-19 crisis.

Partex group, the countrys major business establishment, stood beside the journalists who have been badly affected due to the pandemic.

MA Hashem Trust, a concern of Partex Group, today (Monday) distributed food stuff also among cultural workers, members of third gender and poor people.
Small to medium investors have snapped up an array of high-yielding assets such as fast-food and bank premises in a busy auction that generated a combined $32 million for vendors.

Auctioneers were busy at Burgess Rawsons third flagship portfolio auction of the year, securing a strong clearance rate of 91 per cent of commercial property.

The biggest NSW sale was the LJ Hooker Atlas site in Neutral Bay on Sydneys lower north shore, with a private investor paying $4.28 million on a 5.69 per cent yield.

157 Harris Street, Pyrmont is being offered for sale as investors snap up high-yielding assets

Burgess Rawson sales director Michael Gilbert said propertys premium tenant, the prime Neutral Bay location and the impressive fit-out saw enquiries flood in before the auction.
No sooner do your bright-eyed children trot out into the world than the risks crowd in. Self-propelled metal vehicles! Alluring trees high off the ground! Allergies, grazed knees, bikes and bullies! So its no wonder that the parental protective impulse is a powerful one. Protect at all costs. Mitigate risk. Shepherd the children to adulthood.

Our collective impulses have real world consequences. Two-thirds of kids are now driven to school, rather than riding their bikes or walking. Why? Safety is the number one reason parents cite.

Kids love risks, but the parental protective impulse is a powerful one. Credit:PETER BRAIG

Or take playgrounds, which have been progressively made safer and safer. New playgrounds are often built without monkey bars, despite their popularity with kids. The trend stems from a misplaced fear of high-profile lawsuits from the 1980s onwards centring on injuries from playgrounds. The response was to make everything safe. Make the ground padded. Bring equipment lower. Tear out dangerous equipment.

Thats good, right? Less risk means less injuries. Not so fast. Making everything too safe and easy for children leads to cottonwool kids, unprepared for lifes inevitable knocks.
When we last caught up with former basketball star Andrew Bogut it was over the case of the mystery phallus graffiti scrawled on the house he plans to demolish to make way for his $4.7 million forever family home in Beaumaris. That stand-off with Bayside Council is headed for VCAT.

Now we learn the 2.13-metre former US NBA star is digging his heels in over a disagreement with his former manager, Bruce Kaider, which could send his old friend bankrupt over a disputed $28,000.

Once the pair were so entwined in business deals that their partnership was deemed a Jerry Maguire-style bromance.

But things fell apart and Bogut, said to be worth $100 million, and Kaider headed for the Supreme Court in 2018 as a result of the fallout over a series of investments. Bogut had bought into Kaiders sports management company, which had stars including basketballer Lauren Jackson, former Western Bulldogs captain Brad Johnson and North Melbourne star Shaun Higgins on its books.

Under a deal reached in 2018, Kaider, his wife, Anna Kaider, ABK Management and One Management Group & Consulting agreed to pay Bogut $180,000 in a series of transactions after the star exited the company.
How fitting that in the same week the Morrison government holds its nose to table a lavish, woman-friendly budget were treated to a fresh instalment in the exquisite revenge of Christine Holgate.

Most days, the musical chairs played by Australias bloated and entitled execs is of zero interest to me, hanging on by the teeth in the gig economy. But hearing the former Australia Post chief has landed a job at a multibillion-dollar freight and parcel rival brought on a surge of right on, sister!

Christine Holgate has been named new CEO of Global Express. Credit:James Brickwood

For the details of her new employer, Global Express, read the business pages. Stick with me for a tipping of the metaphorical hat  a threadbare thing on sale at a Darwin chemist five years ago  to an unlikely, sometimes clueless, feminist hero.

Note, for instance, her f--- you delivered in meticulously bland corporate-speak. The position at Global Express is a new chapter ... about looking forward and rebuilding, she told the ABC, with the caveat: Theres a few things we need to do about the past.
The department said it was working with interstate authorities to determine the source of the infection. How did he contract the virus? South Australias chief public health officer Nicola Spurrier said health authorities had two potential theories: that the man caught the virus during his 14-day stint at the Playford Hotel in South Australia; or that he was exposed to the virus before arriving in Australia and it had a very, very long incubation period. Professor Spurrier told reporters it was more likely the man had been infected with the virus via tiny droplets during the final days of his stay at the hotel.

The man was in a room adjacent to another traveller who tested positive at the hotel. That person was moved to the Toms Court medi-hotel on May 4. Professor Spurrier said the Victorian man would have been infectious from around May 6, two days before he developed symptoms. South Australian health officials have combed through hours of CCTV footage and found that there were no breaches in infection control, lending weight to the theory the virus may have spread via tiny droplets in the air. Professor Spurrier said ventilation at the hotel had been meticulously examined before returned travellers were housed there and that the air quality in the rooms and passageways was excellent.



But I think people have really started to understand that this is a particularly nasty and sneaky virus, which is easily transmitted from one person to another through droplets, she said. Loading South Australia has five quarantine hotels and one dedicated COVID-19 hotel for people that test positive for coronavirus. There were 19 confirmed cases of coronavirus in South Australia as of Monday, all acquired overseas. A number of experts have previously declared the South Australian quarantine system to be one of the safest, however, when recently questioned about whether they had conducted ventilation audits at all the quarantine hotels, SA Health only provided detailed information about work done at the COVID-19 hotel, Toms Court Hotel in the Adelaide CBD. There is no shared air between rooms and additional airflow requirements were installed in the hotel to ensure that corridor spaces met infection control and ventilation requirements, an SA Health spokesperson said last month.

Will there be new restrictions? Victorias Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said he wasnt foreshadowing any restrictions, but reminded people to wear masks on public transport and check in using QR codes. He said people had dropped their guard and a sense of complacency was creeping in. Victorias COVID-19 response commander Jeroen Weimar said health authorities believed some people who had visited tier one exposure site Curry Vault on Friday night had not used the QR check-in system.

Mr Weimar told ABC radio the man who had tested positive said there had been up to 40 people in the restaurant when he visited, but the QR register didnt show that many customers. He said new restrictions would be considered if there was evidence of community spread. Will I still be able to travel interstate? Several states have introduced new rules for travellers arriving from Victoria since the new case was detected. Anyone arriving in NSW from Melbourne will have to complete a declaration form confirming they have not attended any venues of concern linked to a new COVID-19 case. The new rule comes into effect from 6am on Wednesday and applies to anyone who has been in greater Melbourne in the previous 14 days.

Those arriving in Queensland will be forced to quarantine if theyve attended one of the Victorian exposure sites. While Western Australia is requiring any arrival from Victoria who visited exposure sites at the specified times to get tested immediately for COVID-19 and quarantine for 14 days from the date of exposure. Get tested If you have any symptoms of COVID-19  such as fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, chills or sweats, change in sense of smell or taste  get a test immediately. To see where to get tested, visit coronavirus.vic.gov.au/where-get-tested-covid-19 With Sumeyya Ilanbey and David Estcourt
Storms that could bring isolated rainfall of up to 70 millimetres have been forecast for parts of south-east Queensland over the coming days, after the region was battered by a fast-moving system overnight.

On Tuesday the Bureau of Meteorology predicted storms would sweep through large parts of the Queensland coast from the south-east to Townsville.

BOM meteorologist Peter Markworth said there was a chance of severe thunderstorms, with the worst expected on Wednesday.

He said isolated totals could be as high as 60 to 70 millimetres.
A woman suffered critical head injuries when she was hit by a car on Monday night in Brisbane.

Police said a grey Mazda 3 was being driven southbound along Ipswich Road at Woolloongabba about 1.30am when a woman reportedly walked onto the road and was struck by the car.

The woman remains in Princess Alexandra Hospital. Credit:Getty

The 29-year-old suffered critical head injuries and was taken to Princess Alexandra Hospital.

A 67-year-old man driving the car was not physically injured.
Victorian universities slashed jobs last year in anticipation of a long-term decline in international student revenue, with insecure workers bearing the brunt of the job cuts.

The first analysis of audited reports, by University of Melbourne higher education experts, reveals the full picture of job losses last year across the states higher education sector as the effects of the pandemic hit home.

More than 7500 people lost their jobs at Victorian public universities in 2020, or 14 per cent of total staff, with La Trobe, RMIT and Victoria universities cutting jobs in excess of lost revenue.

And the experts warn more job cuts will come, as universities endure their second year of coronavirus border closures.
Victorias Education Department faces being fined up to $3 million after pleading guilty to breaching safety laws over the death of a seven-year-old boy whose wheelchair fell from a school ramp.

Jovan Talwar suffered a fatal head injury when his wheelchair tipped off a ramp at Warringa Park School in Hoppers Crossing on November 26, 2018. He died four days later.

Warringa Park School in Hoppers Crossing.

Victorias workplace regulator, WorkSafe, charged the Department of Education and Training with workplace safety offences more than a year after Jovans death, arguing the ramp was either poorly constructed or had not been maintained. On Tuesday, the department pleaded guilty to two charges of failing to ensure people other than employees were not exposed to risk. One other charge was withdrawn.

Lucy Guthrie, from the departments legal division, appeared before the court to plead guilty on the departments behalf.
A sailor who jumped from an international oil tanker and was found clinging to a buoy five kilometres from shore in Port Phillip Bay has been placed in hotel quarantine, as authorities prepare to inspect the ship.

The 31-year-old Georgian national was rescued by water police about 8pm on Sunday after they were told by harbour control that he was holding onto a navigational marker.

Aerial footage of the buoy in Port Phillip Bay where the sailor was found. Credit:Nine News

He was pulled from the water and taken to Williamstown where he was medically assessed.

Officers from the Australian Border Force and Department of Health accompanied him to hospital and he was expected to be transferred to hotel quarantine on Tuesday.
MUMBAI, India, May 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) (NYSE: PM) is pleased to announce that Jacek Olczak was appointed CEO following the company's 2021 Annual Shareholders Meeting on May 5.



Mr. Olczak - most recently the company's Chief Operating Officer-was also elected to the Board of Directors.



Andre Calantzopoulos, who served as PMI's Chief Executive Officer from 2013 until May 5, 2021, was appointed Executive Chairman of the Board prior to the meeting.



The appointments follow the announcement of PMI's leadership transition in December 2020.



In accepting the appointment, Mr. Olczak committed to accelerating PMI's smoke-free transformation, announced in 2016. The company is focused on developing, scientifically substantiating, and responsibly commercializing smoke-free products that are less harmful than smoking, with the aim of replacing cigarettes as soon as possible.



Mr. Olczak said: "I am humbled and excited to lead PMI as we accelerate our transformation into a smoke-free company. PMI is an industry leader in scientific innovation, and our ambition is that more than half of our net revenues will come from smoke-free products in 2025. Our evolving portfolio will drive our long-term future. We will lean into our scientific research and expertise, using our collective skills and imagination to innovate beyond our existing portfolio and explore new areas of business development."



Mr. Olczak, 56, began his career with PMI in 1993. He started in finance and general management positions across Europe, including as Managing Director of PMI's markets in Poland and Germany and as President of the European Union Region, before being appointed Chief Financial Officer in 2012. He held that position until 2018, when he became PMI's Chief Operating Officer. He holds a master's degree in economics from the University of Lodz, Poland.



Mr. Olczak has been a vital driver of PMI's smoke-free transformation, which moved into its commercialization phase with the launch of IQOS in Nagoya, Japan, in 2014. Under his oversight as COO, PMI increased the portion of its net revenues derived from smoke-free products to 28 percent in the first quarter of 2021. Further, under Mr. Olczak's leadership as COO, the company grew the geographical coverage of PMI's smoke-free products from zero to 66 markets in key cities or nationwide as of March 31, 2021. And he led PMI's commercial transformation, successfully developing it from a primarily business-to-business company to an increasingly business-to-consumer company.



Mr. Calantzopoulos said: "Jacek is ideally placed to deliver PMI's smoke-free vision in his new role as CEO. His passion for the company and our employees underpins his drive for results, as does his deep knowledge of our products, systems, values, and investors. I believe he is the ideal leader to ensure our business's continued growth and deliver shareholder value. I look forward to continuing to work with him in my new capacity as Executive Chairman of the Board."



Philip Morris International: Delivering a Smoke-Free Future



Philip Morris International (PMI) is leading a transformation in the tobacco industry to create a smoke-free future and ultimately replace cigarettes with smoke-free products to the benefit of adults who would otherwise continue to smoke, society, the company and its shareholders. PMI is a leading international tobacco company engaged in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes, as well as smoke-free products, associated electronic devices and accessories, and other nicotine-containing products in markets outside the U.S. In addition, PMI ships versions of its IQOS Platform 1 device and consumables to Altria Group, Inc. for sale under license in the U.S., where these products have received marketing authorizations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) pathway; the FDA has also authorized the marketing of a version of IQOS and its consumables as a Modified Risk Tobacco Product (MRTP), finding that an exposure modification order for these products is appropriate to promote the public health. PMI is building a future on a new category of smoke-free products that, while not risk-free, are a much better choice than continuing to smoke. Through multidisciplinary capabilities in product development, state-of-the-art facilities and scientific substantiation, PMI aims to ensure that its smoke-free products meet adult consumer preferences and rigorous regulatory requirements. PMI's smoke-free product portfolio includes heat-not-burn and nicotine-containing vapor products. As of March 31, 2021, PMI's smoke-free products are available for sale in 66 markets in key cities or nationwide, and PMI estimates that approximately 14.0 million adults around the world have already switched to IQOS and stopped smoking. For more information, please visit www.pmi.com and www.pmiscience.com.



Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements



This press release contains projections of future results and other forward-looking statements. Achievement of future results is subject to risks, uncertainties and inaccurate assumptions. In the event that risks or uncertainties materialize, or underlying assumptions prove inaccurate, actual results could vary materially from those contained in such forward-looking statements. Pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, PMI is identifying important factors that, individually or in the aggregate, could cause actual results and outcomes to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements made by PMI.



PMIs business risks include: excise tax increases and discriminatory tax structures; increasing marketing and regulatory restrictions that could reduce our competitiveness, eliminate our ability to communicate with adult consumers, or ban certain of our products; health concerns relating to the use of tobacco and other nicotine-containing products and exposure to environmental tobacco smoke; litigation related to tobacco use and intellectual property; intense competition; the effects of global and individual country economic, regulatory and political developments, natural disasters and conflicts; changes in adult smoker behavior; lost revenues as a result of counterfeiting, contraband and cross-border purchases; governmental investigations; unfavorable currency exchange rates and currency devaluations, and limitations on the ability to repatriate funds; adverse changes in applicable corporate tax laws; adverse changes in the cost, availability, and quality of tobacco and other agricultural products and raw materials, as well as components and materials for our electronic devices; and the integrity of its information systems and effectiveness of its data privacy policies. PMI's future profitability may also be adversely affected should it be unsuccessful in its attempts to produce and commercialize reduced-risk products or if regulation or taxation do not differentiate between such products and cigarettes; if it is unable to successfully introduce new products, promote brand equity, enter new markets or improve its margins through increased prices and productivity gains; if it is unable to expand its brand portfolio internally or through acquisitions and the development of strategic business relationships; or if it is unable to attract and retain the best global talent. Future results are also subject to the lower predictability of our reduced-risk product category's performance.



The COVID-19 pandemic has created significant societal and economic disruption, and resulted in closures of stores, factories and offices, and restrictions on manufacturing, distribution and travel, all of which will adversely impact our business, results of operations, cash flows and financial position during the continuation of the pandemic. Our business continuity plans and other safeguards may not be effective to mitigate the impact of the pandemic. Currently, significant risks include our diminished ability to convert adult smokers to our RRPs, significant volume declines in our duty-free business and certain other key markets, disruptions or delays in our manufacturing and supply chain, increased currency volatility, and delays in certain cost saving, transformation and restructuring initiatives. Our business could also be adversely impacted if key personnel or a significant number of employees or business partners become unavailable due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The significant adverse impact of COVID-19 on the economic or political conditions in markets in which we operate could result in changes to the preferences of our adult consumers and lower demand for our products, particularly for our mid-price or premium-price brands. Continuation of the pandemic could disrupt our access to the credit markets or increase our borrowing costs. Governments may temporarily be unable to focus on the development of science-based regulatory frameworks for the development and commercialization of RRPs or on the enforcement or implementation of regulations that are significant to our business. In addition, messaging about the potential negative impacts of the use of our products on COVID-19 risks may lead to increasingly restrictive regulatory measures on the sale and use of our products, negatively impact demand for our products, the willingness of adult consumers to switch to our RRPs and our efforts to advocate for the development of science-based regulatory frameworks for the development and commercialization of RRPs.



The impact of these risks also depends on factors beyond our knowledge or control, including the duration and severity of the pandemic, its recurrence in our key markets, actions taken to contain its spread and to mitigate its public health effects, and the ultimate economic consequences thereof.



PMI is further subject to other risks detailed from time to time in its publicly filed documents, including the Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2021. PMI cautions that the foregoing list of important factors is not a complete discussion of all potential risks and uncertainties. PMI does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement that it may make from time to time, except in the normal course of its public disclosure obligations.



(Disclaimer--Features may vary depending on the regions; subject to change without notice.)
Acting Premier James Merlino has questioned whether the federal governments $3 billion Victorian infrastructure announcement is real, as Victoria crosses its fingers for Commonwealth cash for vaccines and a quarantine hub in Tuesdays federal budget.

The Commonwealth announced on Monday an intention to help build a freight terminal designed to remove thousands of trucks from Melbournes roads. Mr Merlino said the announcement was not fully-fledged because it was not budgeted for it in the Commonwealth budgets forward estimates - the four-year funding period that locks in spending.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg will hand down the budget on Tuesday. Credit:

Its not real unless the funding is in the forward estimates. Were looking for real funding from the federal government, he said.

State Labor this week attacked the federal government for what it claims is $7 billion worth of federal infrastructure announcements that never materialised. The Commonwealth argues it can only spend on promised projects when state governments deliver on the roads, bridges and railways that the federal government wants to help fund.
Australian companies will be given assistance to withstand Chinas wave of trade strikes by efforts to diversify markets as part of the first significant funding injection to Australias diplomatic network in years.

The Department of Foreign Affairs will also gain over 100 more full-time positions  including diplomats, policy officers and consular staff  to respond to the fallout of COVID-19 and the growing threats of economic coercion, disinformation and foreign interference throughout the region, under the $198 million funding boost.

Chinas trade strikes against beef and barley have hurt Australian producers. Credit:Bloomberg

The nations domestic spy agency, ASIO, also received an extra $1.3 billion over the next decade to combat the escalating threat of right-wing extremism and the continuing challenges posed by foreign interference and espionage.

The additional funding for the Department of Foreign Affairs means it will be able to employ about 23 extra staff in 20 overseas missions to help Australian exporters and other countries deal with the trade disruptions caused by COVID-19 and Chinas trade strikes.
Australia will welcome 174,000 fewer migrants than it expected just six months ago and the nations borders are likely to remain shut until the second half of next year.

The federal budget reveals the government expects a net 96,600 Australians to leave the country this financial year followed by an exodus of another 77,400 in 2021-22.

This is substantially higher than the net 93,200 who the government anticipated leaving over the same two years in the October federal budget.

This is due to the government pushing back by a year its expectations for permanent migrants and international students to begin gradually returning from mid-2022, with small pilot programs for students expected to commence later this year. In the 2020 budget the government was hopeful of reopening the border from the middle of this year.
Employers will be given an extra $1.5 billion to hire 100,000 apprentices and trainees in the next year as the government extends one of its most successful job creation programs for the second time.

The scheme has been a key plank of the Morrison governments plan to avoid a youth unemployment crisis induced by the pandemic and was extended in March this year to create another 70,000 places.

A hiring program for apprentices and trainees is being extended a second time. Credit:

Employment Minister Stuart Robert said the program had been highly successful since it was first announced in the October budget and would help women break into non-traditional trades, with training support for 5000 places.

This additional $1.5 billion investment will support the employment of newly commencing apprentices and trainees, assisting school leavers and job seekers during the peak hiring period for key industries, Mr Robert said.
The tourism sector says it has been treated like a second-class citizen in the federal budget, warning that operators will go under before the government ever reopens the border to international visitors.

The governments budget predicts the border will reopen mid next year but is based on the assumption that the vaccine rollout will be completed by the end of this year.

The budget papers assume that inbound and outbound international travel will remain low through to mid-2022. Credit:Getty Images

The government had previously declined to set out when the border would open or state a goal for when the population would be vaccinated.

The budget papers assume that inbound and outbound international travel will remain low through to mid-2022, after which a gradual recovery in international tourism is assumed to occur.
More than 100 rescue flights will be sent around the world over the next year to collect about 17,000 stranded Australians  around half the people registered as wanting to come home.

The federal government has also set aside millions of dollars to manufacture mRNA vaccines such as Pfizer and Moderna and other biotechnology solutions as part of a push to respond to the pandemic and future crises without being beholden to other countries.

The Morrison government is in negotiations with pharmaceutical companies to be able to make mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in Australia. Credit:

The government has budgeted for about 120 repatriation flights over the next 12 months. Each will carry about 148 people, allowing for the return of about 17,760 Australians. About 34,500 citizens have notified the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade they are keen to return to Australia.

The government has helped repatriate 45,400 Australians since the start of the pandemic, including 18,800 on 127 government-sponsored flights. The additional flights will fall under a $119.9 million boost to DFATs consular program, which will include an allocation for 46 additional consular staff.
Tax breaks are on offer to home-grown medical and biotechnology companies to spur investment in innovation and help drive the economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Income earned from Australian-developed and registered patents will be taxed at a concessional rate of 17 per cent from July next year, almost half the 30 per cent corporate tax rate.

Income from Australian medical and biotech patents will be taxed at 17 per cent. Credit:Erin Jonasson

Australia has led the world with innovations like Wi-Fi, the bionic ear and a vaccine for cervical cancer. We want to see more innovation commercialised in Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said.

The so-called patent box tax breaks, similar to those offered by more than 20 countries including Britain and France, are expected to cost $100 million a year. The government is considering expanding the scheme to clean-energy technologies, which could include large-scale batteries, hydrogen or renewables.
New mufflers will be installed on Brisbanes KittyCat ferries by the end of June following concerns about the fleets noise.

KittyCat motors were originally designed to run on the Sydney Harbour and are too large and powerful for the Brisbane River.

Mufflers will be placed on the motors of the citys smaller ferries after tests showed the motors are too powerful and too noisy. Credit:Lucy Stone

Brisbane City Council has run tests on one of the noisy KittyCats, named the Eleanor, which have shown its motor is far too noisy.

The KittyCats were introduced in January 2021 to replace the eight wooden hull ferries, which were removed because of safety concerns.
They will see death  and lots of it  in almost every single imaginable way.

Melissa McMahon, who served for 20 years as a sworn police officer before becoming a politician, spoke candidly in the Queensland Parliament on Tuesday about the traumatic and horrific scenes general duties officers see day-in-day-out.

Melissa McMahon (left) gave an impassioned speech on the floor of Parliament. Credit:Matt Dennien

Very few are prepared for what they will see on the road, the Labor member for Macalister said.

They will see the results of, and bear witness to, extreme violence.
Tehran: Iran has opened registration for potential candidates in the countrys June presidential election, kicking off the race as uncertainty looms over Tehrans tattered nuclear deal with world powers.

President Hassan Rouhani cant run again due to term limits, yet with the poll just a month away no immediate favourite has emerged among the many rumoured candidates. There also appears to be little interest in the vote by a public crushed by sanctions and the coronavirus pandemic.

Nevertheless, many view the countrys hardliners as ascendant  even as the US under President Joe Biden tries to find a way to re-enter the nuclear pact.

Former commander of the Revolutionary Guard Mohsen Rezaei, second left, is considered a serious contender in Irans forthcoming presidential elections. Seen here saluting Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, in 2019. Credit:AP

Whoever wins the June 18 vote will take over from Rouhani, a relative moderate within the Islamic Republic whose two four-year terms began with Iran reaching the nuclear deal. His time in office now draws to a close with the accord unravelled after the US unilaterally withdrew from it under former president Donald Trump in 2018.
Sheridan Mother-Daughter Duo to Graduate Together at UW

Maria Montano, left, and her daughter, Ada Montano Mushati, both from Sheridan, will graduate together at UW Saturday, May 15. Montano will receive her bachelors degree in social science, and Mushati will receive a masters degree in social work. Mushati also earned two undergraduate degrees from UW. (UW Photo)

Maria Montano has been waiting to graduate with a college degree since the day her father told her that there was no point for her, as a woman, to pursue an education. That was 37 years ago.

Her lifelong drive and passion to be an educated woman have extra meaning: The immigrant from Mexico will receive her bachelors degree in social science, along with her eldest daughter, Ada Montano Mushati, Saturday, May 15, at the University of Wyomings commencement ceremonies. Mushati, who earned two bachelors degrees in psychology (2013) and sociology, with a minor in Latinx studies (2019), will receive her masters in social work this weekend. All of her degrees are from UW.

Mushati says she is prouder of her mothers accomplishments than her own, even though she has now received two undergraduate and graduate-level degrees.

My mother was a stay-at-home mom throughout my and my sister Heidis years in school. She wanted to focus on raising me and my sister before doing things for herself, Mushati says. My mother had to grow up very quickly, and she dropped out of high school when she was 15. She was married young and had me young, so she put many of her dreams on hold so that my dad and her two daughters could fulfill theirs. Now, it is her turn, and we are so excited to be there to cheer her on when she walks across that stage.

Putting family first is steeped heavily in Mexican culture.

Born in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, Montano, 52, moved to the United States at age 9. However, when she married Mario at 17, she went back to Mexico and lived there for a couple of years because her husband was a teacher in their home country. Since 1999, Mario has been a Spanish teacher in Sheridan County School District 2.

When we got married, we made a deal that, one day, he would become a teacher in the United States and, after that, I would get my own education since I had dropped out of school when I was 15, Montano says.

Mushati, 33, says her mom was a stay-at-home mother for 20 years and started her educational journey by receiving her GED in 1991.

Unselfishly, she waited until my father received his degree, and my sister and I left for college to then focus on herself and accomplish the things that she has always wanted, Mushati says.

With Mushati already at UW working on her own career path, Montano earned an associate of applied science degree in early childhood education (2012) and associate of arts degree (2014), both from Sheridan College. Montano completed her Sheridan College degrees in person and finished all of her UW coursework online, while maintaining a full-time job as a Spanish instructor and librarian at Sheridans Holy Name Catholic School.

She earned one of her associate degrees at Sheridan College with Heidi, who later earned an undergraduate degree from UW. Heidi received a masters degree from the University of Southern California.

I was blessed with a husband and two daughters who motivated me even more and encouraged me to go to school, Montano says.

Mushati hopes to be a school social worker but does not want to stop there. She is passionate about education and the doors that it opens for people, which is why she wants to assist in education policy improvements, making it more accessible for those who want it.

Those are the lessons she learned from her mother -- putting others first. She also remembers growing up and her mother telling her that she could do anything that she wanted to do with her life, and that she should never give up on those dreams. But, more important, her mother said that she would go back to school and earn a college degree, which always was her moms goal.

My mother not only told me this -- she showed me. It is such an honor to graduate with my mother, especially knowing the struggles that she went through to get to where she is today. So, to see her actually accomplish it really makes me emotional, because I know how hard she worked to get here, Mushati says. It has been years of waiting, then remembering how to be a student again. She had to learn how to use a computer, type and how to take notes in class. She started from the very beginning but never let anything discourage her. She is truly amazing.

What makes Montano prouder -- even more than her own accomplishment -- is having two daughters earn masters degrees and to graduate at the same time as both -- this time with Mushati.

I do not have the words to express my honor to see my oldest achieve her goals and be able to share this accomplishment together this weekend, she says. The deal that my husband and I made when we got married has officially been sealed. It took a little longer than I had thought, but we did it.
A writer of history, Brad Dison earned his masters degree in the subject from Louisiana Tech University. He has written four history books and has been published in newspapers and scholarly journals. Keep up with the column through the Facebook group Remember This? by Brad Dison. For more real stories about real people with a twist, listen to Brad Disons podcast Remember This? at http://www.BradDison.com. Disons book Remember this? is available for preorder on that site.
Up for debate:

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In this Friday, Oct. 25, 2019, photo, a rainbow shines over Lake Okeechobee near South Bay, Fla. A 143-mile-long dike surrounds the lake, restricting the natural flow of water into the Everglades ecosystem.
Support teams work around the SpaceX Crew Dragon Resilience spacecraft shortly after it landed with NASA astronauts Mike Hopkins, Shannon Walker, and Victor Glover, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi aboard in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Panama City, Florida, Sunday, May 2, 2021. NASA's SpaceX Crew-1 mission was the first crew rotation flight of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket with astronauts to the International Space Station as part of the agency's Commercial Crew Program.
n this Oct. 21, 2020, file photo, Purdue Pharma headquarters stands in Stamford, Conn. Purdue Pharma, which helped revolutionize the prescription painkiller business with its drug OxyContin, is proposing a path to emerge from bankruptcy that calls for it to be transformed into a public trust funneling profits into the fight against the nation's intractable opioid crisis.
UW Study Reveals Environmental Characteristics for Three Genetic Groups of Wyoming Mule Deer

This mule deer was spotted in Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest. Melanie LaCava, a UW Ph.D. candidate in the Program in Ecology, was lead author of a paper about Wyoming mule deer that was published in the May 11 issue of Ecography. Despite the fact that Wyoming mule deer are a highly mobile species found throughout the state, UW researchers discovered that mule deer in the state represent three different genetic groups. (Melanie LaCava Photo)

Despite the fact that Wyoming mule deer are a highly mobile species found throughout the state, University of Wyoming researchers discovered that mule deer in the state represent three different genetic groups.

We identified features of the environment, such as elevation, habitat types and highways, that promote or inhibit the movement of mule deer genes across the state, says Melanie LaCava, a UW Ph.D. candidate in the Program in Ecology and Department of Veterinary Sciences. The environmental variables we found to be important were different at the scale of the entire state compared to each of the three genetic groups, which demonstrates the importance of studying wildlife in geographic areas of different sizes and comparing areas with different habitats.

The study provides information useful to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department; federal land and resource agencies, including the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; nongovernmental organizations; and private landowners, says Holly Ernest, a UW professor of wildlife genomics and disease ecology, and the Wyoming Excellence Chair in Disease Ecology in the Department of Veterinary Sciences and the Program in Ecology.

Knowing that mule deer in Wyoming represent three different genetic groups can inform management decisions, such as how to maintain habitat connectivity for mule deer across the state, Ernest says.

Ernest was senior and corresponding author of a paper, titled Functional Connectivity in a Continuously Distributed, Migratory Species as Revealed by Landscape Genomics, that was published today (May 11) in Ecography. The journal publishes exciting, novel and important articles that significantly advance understanding of ecological or biodiversity patterns in space or time.

LaCava, from San Diego, Calif., was the papers lead author. Other researchers who contributed include Roderick Gagne, an assistant professor of wildlife disease ecology at the University of Pennsylvania; Kyle Gustafson, an assistant professor of biology at Arkansas State University; Sara Oyler-McCance, a research geneticist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Fort Collins, Colo.; Kevin Monteith, an associate professor in UWs Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources; Hall Sawyer, a research biologist with Western EcoSystems Technology Inc. in Laramie; Matt Kauffman, unit leader with the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit; and Daniel Thiele, wildlife management coordinator with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department in Sheridan.

Mule deer populations have declined or fluctuated considerably over the past several decades because of a multitude of factors, including extreme weather, habitat loss and degradation, and predation.

Melanie LaCava, a UW Ph.D. candidate in the Program in Ecology and Department of Veterinary Sciences, prepares a sample for DNA extraction in the lab. (Melanie LaCava Photo)

Maintaining functional connectivity is critical for the long-term conservation of wildlife populations including mule deer. Functional connectivity describes the influence of the environment on the movement of individuals. Landscape genomics provide an opportunity to assess long-term functional connectivity by relating environmental variables to spatial patterns of genomic variation resulting from generations of movement, dispersal and mating behaviors.

The study highlights environmental variables that promote and inhibit mule deer gene flow, providing crucial information for land-use planning and conservation efforts. The work also expands understanding of genetic aspects of functional connectivity for mule deer.

The 10 environmental variables in the landscape genomic analysis were topographic features, such as elevation, slope and topographic roughness; land cover, such as proportion sagebrush, proportion forest and proportion grassland; rivers; and highways, interstate highways, and oil and gas wells.

The study spanned the state of Wyoming and examined lymph node samples from harvested mule deer from the fall hunting seasons from 2014-16. The study used samples, provided by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, from 406 mule deer across multiple habitats in Wyoming.

Mule deer samples were grouped geographically, representing western, northern and southern regions of Wyoming. Modeling revealed that low elevations, grasslands and traditional habitats promote gene flow, suggesting that winter range habitat is important for genetic connectivity. Most mule deer breed on winter range, which is typically low elevation and relatively open habitat, such as sagebrush and grassland.

The study also found that high proportions of forest promote gene flow, which could suggest that summer range habitat is important for genetic connectivity, as forested areas are more common in mule deer summer range. The western group had more mule deer that migrate than the rest of the state.

Our data indicates that there is the most interbreeding in the central part of Wyoming. The three genetic groups of mule deer we identified represent the western, northern and southern regions of Wyoming but, at the center of the state, all three groups mix together, LaCava says. Mule deer in western and southern Wyoming are slightly more related to each other than they are to mule deer in northern Wyoming. It could be that the shift in habitat to the Great Plains, where mule deer are less likely to seasonally migrate than more mountainous areas in the west and south, accounts for greater differences.

This mule deer doe was spotted outside of Laramie. (Bruce Hoar Photo)

Highways were identified as a significant inhibitor to mule deer gene flow in the northern group. Most wildlife-vehicle collisions in Wyoming and across the western United States involve mule deer. GPS tracking studies show that highways and energy development significantly affect the behavior of both mule deer and pronghorn, Ernest says.

So, it is interesting that we detected a negative genetic impact on mule deer, but we did not previously detect an impact of highways on pronghorn genetics, Ernest says. One possible explanation for the differences between mule deer and pronghorn is that, if a sufficient number of individuals can cross barriers in their habitats, survive and reproduce, then the genetics may not show major differences for animals living on either side of the barrier.

Human-constructed features like these are considered recent additions to the landscape when youre thinking about long-term evolutionary history. So, detecting genetic evidence that highways and wells inhibit mule deer genetic movement is concerning, LaCava adds. In a previous study, we found no evidence of genetic differences on either side of a highway barrier for another Wyoming ungulate -- pronghorn.

Movement studies also show that mule deer consistently avoid energy infrastructure, especially in open sagebrush-grasslands habitat. The density of oil and gas wells was highest in the northern group by a large margin, according to the study.

Future research and management can consider how these three genetic groups differ in terms of other biological data, such as seasonal migration behavior or patterns of disease spread, LaCava says.

By identifying which features of the environment are good or bad for mule deer genetic movement, managers can consider which habitat types are important to protect or which types of barriers could use modification, such as highway underpasses or overpasses, to benefit mule deer, she says. Managers can combine our genetic results with other information, such as seasonal migration data or disease spread, to make conservation decisions using multiple lines of evidence to most efficiently use limited funding and resources for wildlife management.
Regional Editor

Derek Draplin is a regional editor at The Center Square. He previously worked as an opinion producer at Forbes, and as a reporter at Michigan Capitol Confidential and The Detroit News. Hes also an editor at The Daily Caller.
A customer pumps gas at Costco, as others wait in line, on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, in Charlotte, N.C. Gasoline futures are ticking higher following a cyberextortion attempt on the Colonial Pipeline, a vital U.S. pipeline that carries fuel from the Gulf Coast to the Northeast.
Economic foundation president: New Mexico being 'left in the dust' by other states
Staff Reporter

Nyamekye Daniel has been a journalist for five years. She was the managing editor for the South Florida Media Network and a staff writer for The Miami Times. Daniel's work has also appeared in the Sun-Sentinel, Miami Herald and The New York Times.
Staff Reporter

Tim Gruver is a politics and public policy reporter. He is a University of Washington alum and the recipient of the 2017 Pioneer News Award for Reporting. His work has appeared in Politico, the Kitsap Daily News, and the Northwest Asian Weekly.
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ONEONTA - Mrs. Uhlig passed away on November 18, 2019. A memorial service will be held for Carol H. Uhlig at 12:30 p.m., Monday, June 14, in the Bookhout Funeral Home 357 Main Street, Oneonta, with Rev. Stephen D. Fournier, officiating. Friends may call at the Bookhout Funeral Home from 11 a
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McDonalds have just launched a brand new Brown Sugar Boba McFlurry and we feel ROBBED.

Launching at locations throughout Malaysia, the Brown Sugar Boba McFlurry comes with caramelized brown sugar swirls and chewy pearl toppings for those of us who never recovered from the Bubble-Tea craze.

The realization that this menu item may, once again, be something that New Zealand misses out on has been disappointing and upsetting  because it looks DELICIOUS.

We just want to know why Malaysia seems to be getting all of the limited-edition sweet treats!? Back in March they released Ice-Blended Milo drinks, which we are still (very patiently) waiting for.
Workers examine ballots cast in Maricopa County in the 2020 election during an audit at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Ariz., on May 6, 2021. (Matt York/AP Photo)

13 Percent of Maricopa County Ballots Counted in Audit So Far: Official

About 13 percent of the nearly 2.1 million ballots cast in Maricopa County, Arizona in the 2020 election have been counted in an ongoing election audit, an official said Monday.

About 275,000 ballots have been reviewed so far by workers hired by companies tapped by the Arizona Senate, former Republican Secretary of State Ken Bennett told reporters at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

The audit started on April 23. Workers take off Sundays. That means workers have processed about 20,000 ballots a day.

The firms, led by Florida-based Cyber Ninjas, are also inspecting machines used in the 2020 election.

Arizonas Senate ordered the audit over election integrity concerns.

Democrat Joe Biden narrowly won Arizona over Republican Donald Trump. Many GOP voters and officials have alleged fraud occurred in Arizona and elsewhere. Republican Arizona Senate President Karen Fann has said she thinks the audit will uncover irregularities.

The Senate has leased the Coliseum in Phoenix until May 14. A slew of high school graduations are scheduled for the venue then, which will force the audit to pause. There are plans in place if the audit is not completed by the time the graduations start, Bennett, the Senates liaison for the audit, previously told The Epoch Times.

All of the ballots in that event will be moved to a different place onsite. The site, as with the audit itself, will be webcast 24 hours a day.

Maricopa County ballots cast in the 2020 general election are examined and recounted by contractors working for Florida-based company, Cyber Ninjas, at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Ariz., on May 6, 2021. (Matt York/AP Photo)

The Coliseum is on the State Fairgrounds. The State Fair is preparing paperwork for the resumption of the audit at the Coliseum later this month, according to Bennett. A spokeswoman said that nothing has been signed as of yet but there is a plan for everything to be moved out of the Coliseum at the end of the week to a secure location on the grounds.

Senate-hired firms have been trying to hire more workers but only 19 tables on Monday were staffed, far below the 46 tables Bennett has said would be ideal.

Background checks for potential hires are slowing things down, he told reporters.

Hopefully within a few days or when we come back after the graduations, well be fully stocked at the tables and ready to go, he said.

Bennett also said that he received a threatening email and referred it to the Phoenix Police Department. Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, has also said shes received threats, prompting Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, to order protection for her.
2.4 Million US College Students Face Vaccine Mandate, Immune or Not

More than 180 college and university campuses across the United States are requiring more than 2.4 million students to produce proof of vaccination against the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus to attend in-person classes this fall, regardless of whether the students have acquired immunity to the virus.

The number of schools with a mandate is likely to grow by then, especially if the Food and Drug Administration grants full approval for one or more vaccines in the coming months. None of the schools currently accept acquired immunity as an exemption from the vaccination mandate, even amid evidence that prior infection results in broad and lasting protection from the virus, according to an Epoch Times review of more than 130 university vaccine mandate notices and immunization requirement pages.

Only a handful of the four dozen schools contacted for this article offered direct responses for why infection-conferred immunity isnt being considered as an exemption. The vast majority responded by referencing their immunization exemption rules, which dont address acquired immunity. When pressed for an answer, several schools said they couldnt offer more information, while others said they are still finalizing their policies.

The few that responded pointed to guidance by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which advises people to still be vaccinated because experts do not yet know how long you are protected from getting sick again after recovering from COVID-19.

COVID-19 is the disease caused by the CCP virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

BSU will not be offering exemption based on prior infection, Dr. Christoper Frazer, executive director of the Wellness Center at Bridgewater State University in Massachusetts, told The Epoch Times.

For students who have already had COVID-19, we are still requiring that they be vaccinated and recommend they talk to a doctor about when it is best to do so, Daniel Telles, assistant director of media relations at the University of San Diego, told The Epoch Times in an email. Even if members of our university community have already recovered from COVID-19, it is possiblealthough rarethat they could again be infected with the virus that causes COVID-19.

As the CDC suggests, data from clinical trials indicate that COVID-19 vaccines can be given safely to people with evidence of a prior SARS-CoV-2 infection. Therefore, Wesleyan University will require all students, even those who have tested positive for COVID-19, or who have had positive COVID-19 antibodies, to be vaccinated in order to enroll in fall semester classes, Olivia Drake, the campus news editor for Wesleyan University, told The Epoch Times in an email.

According to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health, 95 percent of the people with prior COVID-19 infections had durable immunity to the CCP virus lasting up to eight months.

Preliminary data on vaccines suggest they offer a similar level of protection and durability. Pfizer and Moderna are already developing booster shots because the efficacy of their vaccines drops over time. Pfizer says efficacy diminishes to 91 percent from 95 percent in six months. The efficacy of the Moderna vaccine drops to 90 percent after six months, according to the company. Both vaccine makers foresee that an annual revaccination may be necessary.

Two Columbia University students who spoke to The Epoch Times on campus in New York took no issue with the school not providing an exemption for immune students. Both used similar reasoning to the CDC, saying that too much is still unknown about the virus.

I think because there is so much that we dont know there, it makes sense that thats not enough for them, said Courtney Treglia, a postgraduate student who plans to teach an in-person course in the fall.

Courtney Treglia, a postgraduate student at Teachers College at Columbia University in New York City on May 10, 2021. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

I think thats a good thing to Columbia because we just dont know all of the science behind it and at some point, the antibodies do go away, so its a good thing, generally, said a male student, who asked to remain anonymous.

Some schools, including California State University, University of Northern Colorado, and the Southwestern Community College District, are still finalizing their vaccination policies and say they havent yet made a decision on how to treat students who request an exemption based on acquired immunity. Despite the discussions, the vaccine mandates on their websites dont advise students that such exemptions are being considered and could become available.

Fort Lewis College, one of the few schools that spoke on the record about their approach to students with infection-conferred immunity, referenced guidance by the CDC, which states that reinfection is rare in the 90 days after the initial CCP virus infection but cautions that the risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 far outweighs any benefits of natural immunity.

The statement notably conflates the risk from COVID-19 facing non-immune people with the protection from acquired immunity. The apparent intent of the statement is to warn people who may be considering becoming infected and acquiring immunity as an alternative to getting a vaccine.

The CDC didnt immediately respond to a request by The Epoch Times for clarification.

Just like scientists dont know how severe the COVID-19 illness will be for each person, scientists dont know how long natural immunity lasts for each person. We are following CDC guidelines which state that regardless of whether individuals have been sick with and recovered from COVID-19, vaccination is recommended, Lauren Savage, a media relations strategist at Fort Lewis, told The Epoch Times.

For FLC students, the benefits of the vaccine include protection from severe illness and death, as well as the opportunity to get back to a normal college experience.

In addition to lasting protection, acquired immunity to the CCP virus is effective against its variants, according to an NIH-funded study led by Dr. Anthony Fauci and published in late March. The immune system cells in people with acquired immunity could recognize virtually all mutations in the variants studied and should offer protection against emerging variants.

Another NIH-funded study, which hasnt yet been peer-reviewed, found that COVID-19 patients had broad-based immune memory response eight months after being infected.

Naturally acquired immunity is superior to anything this vaccine could deliver. So, any students who have been through infection and COVID-19 should be exempt from vaccination, H.C. Tenenbaum, professor of laboratory medicine and pathobiology at the University of Toronto, told The Epoch Times.

Theres a vast array of evidence in the scientific literature that shows definitively that if youve had COVID and recovered, the vast, vast majority of people have a durable immunity that its very unlikely that youll be reinfected and youll be protected from reinfection, Jay Battacharya, a professor of medicine at Stanford University, said during a roundtable discussion with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in March.

Even if you do get reinfected at some later time, its very likely to be less severe than the first time. So, yeah, its just like the other coronaviruses; if you get infected, you get immunity and it lasts a while. Not forever, but it lasts a while.

During the same roundtable, Sunetra Gupta, an infectious disease epidemiologist and a professor of theoretical epidemiology at the Department of Zoology at the University of Oxford, noted the curious way in which some public health experts cling to the notion that its unknown whether there would be durable acquired immunity after an infection from the CCP virus.

What do the scientists do under those circumstances? They look around to other viruses, and we had four others circulating, we still do, coronaviruses, to which we knew from the studies that had already been done, that you do get immunity in a very similar manner, Gupta said. You make antibodies  and that those do protect you, particularly from severe disease and death, forever. They dont protect against reinfection, but they protect you against severe disease and death.

Regardless of how long acquired immunity is shown to last, the NIH-funded studies suggest that students with acquired immunity who prefer to wait and see when it comes to getting vaccinated have the level of immune protection needed to do so.

One in four young adults ages 18 to 29 wants to wait and see before taking the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation. The data suggests that as many as 600,000 students could be forced to make a vaccination choice before this fall against their current preference and, if they have immunity, with no proven benefit to themselves or those around them.

To date, the risk of adverse negative effects from vaccines remains extremely low. The CDCs Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) has logged 4,178 deaths following a COVID-19 vaccination, although a review of the cases hasnt established a causal relationship with vaccines. There have been 15 cases of severe blood clots which are believed to have been caused by the Johnson and Johnson vaccine.
(R) Officer Jimmy Inn who was shot and killed in the line of duty while on a domestic dispute call on La Cresta Way in Stockton, Calif., on May 11, 2021. (Stockton Police Department via AP) (L) This undated photo shows San Luis Obispo Police Det. Luca Benedetti, who was shot and killed while serving a search warrant, on May 10, 2021, in a shootout in the Central Coast city, officials said afternoon, May 11, 2021. (San Luis Obispo Police Department via AP)

2 California Police Officers Fatally Shot Within 24 Hours

LOS ANGELESTwo California police officers were shot and killed within 24 hours this week in separate incidents, authorities said Tuesday.

An officer in the Northern California city of Stockton was fatally shot Tuesday morning, police said in a Twitter post. A male suspect was also shot and killed in the incident. Neither have been identified.

Authorities did not immediately release further information. But they planned a news conference for later Tuesday.

In San Luis Obispo, a central California city about 250 miles south of Stockton, Detective Luca Benedetti was shot and killed while serving a search warrant Monday evening.

Benedetti, a 12-year law enforcement veteran and a detective in San Luis Obispo, was fatally injured in a shootout in an apartment in the Central Coast city, officials said during a news conference. Benedetti and five other officers had been at the apartment for an investigation into items stolen in a string of late-night commercial burglaries in the city thats about 200 miles north of Los Angeles.

Detective Steve Orozco was injured in the shooting, police said. He was released from a hospital and is expected to recover from his wounds.

San Luis Obispo Police Det. Luca Benedetti (L) and Det. Steve Orozco (R). (San Luis Obispo Police Department via AP)

Police said gunman Edward Zamora Giron had been lying in wait inside the apartment and fired at the officers before shooting and killing himself. He also had wounds sustained in the shootout. Police initially said that he had been killed by officers fire.

Officers arrived at the apartment in San Luis Obispo around 5 p.m. to serve the warrant, seeking the stolen property from the commercial burglaries over the past week, said Brian Amoroso, acting chief of the police department.

The officers knocked and announced themselves, Amoroso said, but there was no response from inside the apartment. They forced the door open and found Giron inside.

Giron opened fire, and the officers began retreating and shooting back, Amoroso said. Benedetti and Orozco were struck in the gunfire, as was Giron.

San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson said Giron had a criminal history involving mostly alcohol, drug and property offenses, but nothing violent. Giron did not have any registered firearms, and authorities were not aware of any mental illnesses he may have had, the sheriff said.

Authorities later found the stolen property inside the apartment, Parkinson said.

Officers take aim at an apartment across Camilla Court in San Luis Obispo, Calif., on May 10, 2021. (David Middlecamp/The Tribune (of San Luis Obispo) via AP)

Benedetti had worked for the San Luis Obispo Police Department since 2012, after serving at the Atascadero Police Department for four years. He was a member of the regional SWAT team. The 37-year-old is survived by his wife and two young children.

This is a tragedy beyond measure for all of those who serve and care about our community, City Manager Derek Johnson said in a statement. Our deepest condolences go out to the family. We are devastated by this loss.

Victoria Torres, 21, told the San Luis Obispo Tribune that she was upstairs in her bedroom when she heard a very loud knocking at an apartment across from her.

I dont know if it was the police or what, she said. I always hear noises here, so I didnt think anything of it until I heard the gunshots.

She looked out her window and saw a police car then walked downstairs and looked out another window.

Torres said she saw a man carrying a big gun who began shooting from the door of an apartment at officers who were hiding behind their patrol car.

Torres went back upstairs to hide and call 911.

Monica Rochte, 31, told the Tribune that she heard police banging on an apartment door and saying: Were going to come in. We know youre in there. 

Rochte said there was yelling and then a bang that she thought might be police knocking down the door, followed by a single shot.

Rochte then heard police yell: He has a gun! followed by a series of 15 to 20 shots, she said.

By Stefanie Dazio And John Antczak
In this essay, I want to tell readers about two of the last centurys big and fascinating business failures. But first, some related insights.

In her 2008 commencement address at Harvard University, Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling famously asserted, It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at allin which case, you fail by default.

So many well-known businesspeople failed before they succeeded or failed at something after they succeeded. Learning from failure is a cardinal rule of entrepreneurship. The difference between a bad entrepreneur and a good one is not failure, but rather, allowing failure to sink you or to teach you. The motivational speaker Dennis Waitley said: Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. Failure is delay, not defeat. It is a temporary detour, not a dead end. Failure is something we can avoid only by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing.

Risk is unavoidable in an ever-changing and uncertain world. You cannot avoid failure by trying to avoid risk. You will simply fail in the effort and reduce your chances for success.

The entrepreneur assembles factors of production in the present and hopes that his decisions will be validated by the future market conditions he anticipates. But not even the smartest human being knows everything about the tomorrow that has not happened yet. Risk of failure is inherent in any investment in an uncertain future.

Like his father before him, candy maker Milton Hershey flopped multiple times before he prospered. So did cartoonist, filmmaker, and theme park pioneer Walt Disney. Being good entrepreneurs, they didnt give up. They learned and they persevered.

Reasons for failure include poor planning or poor implementation of a plan, undercapitalization, managing people badly, lousy marketing, innovating too slowly, underestimating the competition, being overwhelmed by the unforeseen, or simply failing to learn from previous failures.

You can fail because you didnt think big enough. You can fail because you thought too big. And you can fail for any number of reasons and sizes in between.

This excerpt from Theodore Roosevelts April 1910 Man in the Arena speech in Paris provides me with the perfect segue to the rest of this essay:

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

The two business flops I want readers to know about featured two North American entrepreneurs operating decades apart but in the same South American countryBrazil. The first was Henry Ford, the second was Daniel K. Ludwig. To borrow again from Roosevelt, they dared greatly.

Inventor and industrialist Henry Ford (18631947) sitting at his desk in his office in Highland Park, Mich. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Fords name was known everywhere a century ago and likely still is today. When the last Model T rolled off his assembly line in Michigan in 1927 (making way for its successor, the Model A), he had sold 15 million of them for an average of a few hundred dollars apiece. By enriching so many people with the first mass-produced, affordable automobile, Ford became rich himself. But solving problems was always more interesting to him than making money. Dealing with a British rubber monopoly was the problem that gave him a big idea.

Knowing that Brazils Amazon region was packed with rubber trees that produced the latex he needed to make automobile tires, Ford set his sights on building his own rubber operation there. He negotiated with the Brazilian government, and in 1927, he finalized an agreement by which he secured 2.5 million acres along the Tapajos River, a hundred miles south of where it flowed into the Amazon at the city of Santarem. In exchange, he would have to give the government a 9 percent share of the profits. The centerpiece of the project would be a new town, which the auto magnate christened Fordlandia.

Talk about thinking big! The man from Dearborn envisioned not only a massive rubber-producing operation 4,000 miles from home, but also a utopian village where his Midwest American values would transform a foreign society. It was a Herculean challenge in every waylogistically, environmentally, culturally, and economically.

It took a small fortune and only six years before Fordlandia collapsed. The Brazilian workers disliked American food and cared even less for Fords ban on alcohol (even in their own homes). Bugs and diseases did not approve of the rubber trees Fords managers planted. Fordlandia closed and Ford moved operations upriver but within a decade, those shut down, too. The invention of synthetic rubber in the 1940s made natural rubber obsolete.

Fords grandson Henry II sold everything back to the Brazilian government in 1945 for a loss, in todays dollars, of nearly $300 million.

Daniel K. Ludwig (18971992), also a Michiganian, never gained the notoriety of Henry Ford but that was fine with him. He deliberately shunned the limelight his entire life. His Brazil project in the 1960s and 70s, though, was just as spectacular as Fords.

Entrepreneur Daniel K. Ludwig (18971992). (Public domain)

Ludwigs first entrepreneurial venture took the form of transporting lumber and molasses on freighters plying the Great Lakes. He was just 19 when he started the company. Over the next half century, he built one of the worlds largest fortunes by mastering the businesses of shipping (he practically invented the supertanker), hotels, insurance, orange groves, oil refining, and cattle ranching.

At the age of 70, long after he could have retired to a life of luxury, Ludwig came up with his big Brazil idea. He bought 4 million acres not far from the ruins of Fordlandia and planned to build a pulp paper mill. But first, he would create a model community called Monte Dourado and develop local agriculture to feed the inhabitants he hoped would work in the mill.

A tall order grew much taller when Ludwig decided that rather than construct the mill from scratch on site, it was more feasible to build it in Japan and ship it across the ocean to Brazil. Thats right. He built an entire paper mill in Japan and towed it in two giant pieces all the way to Brazil, and then hundreds of miles up the Amazon.

Perhaps it tells you how unentrepreneurial I am that the thought of such a venture would never have occurred to me, at any age. But I am grateful that there are people in the world who are obviously more courageous and more visionary than me.

Once the plant was assembled in 1979, it began producing 750 tons of cellulose every single day. Nonetheless, the project as a whole yielded losses that forced Ludwig to sell it all to Brazilian investors in 1981. He devoted the remaining decade of his life to financing cancer research, donating hundreds of millions of dollars for that purpose.

What are we to make of gargantuan gambles like Fordlandia and Monte Dourado? The small-minded will be quick to criticize, to be sure. They are probably the same people who dismiss the dreams of present-day entrepreneurs to explore the deepest ocean floor or to colonize Mars. From me, however, you wont hear anything but an encouraging word when someone thinks big (especially if he does it with his own money).

I am sure that neither Ford nor Ludwig ever tried to fail. It is not a difficult task if you think about it. I am also sure that neither man enjoyed it when it happened. But I am also certain that they did not fear it. Ford himself once said, Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.

Do not be afraid of failure. Be prepared to learn from it. Do not fail to take a risk because you are afraid the dream might not succeed. If fear of failure were all it took for humans to fail to act, wouldnt we still be living in caves? When great men like Ford and Ludwig take big chances, it inspires others to take chances too, big and small.

I do not sneer at failures like the two I have written about here. I marvel at them and wish that I had half the courage to try such remarkable ventures. It is indicative of a spirit without which humanitys existence would be dull and stagnant.

It is no compliment to be among those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

For Additional Information, See:

Milton Hershey Showed that Persistence is the Key to Success by Lawrence W. Reed

Failure Made Disney Great by Lawrence W. Reed

Fordlandia: The Rise and Fall of Henry Fords Forgotten Jungle City by Greg Grandin

Fordlandia: Henry Fords Forgotten Rubber Empire Deep in the Heart of the Amazon by Morgan Dunn

The Invisible Billionaire: Daniel Ludwig by Jerry Shields

Daniel Ludwig, Billionaire Businessman, Dies at 95 by Eric Pace

Lawrence W. Reed is FEEs President Emeritus, Humphreys Family Senior Fellow, and Ron Manners Global Ambassador for Liberty, having served for nearly 11 years as FEEs president (2008-2019). He is the author of the 2020 book, Was Jesus a Socialist? as well as Real Heroes: Incredible True Stories of Courage, Character, and Conviction and Excuse Me, Professor: Challenging the Myths of Progressivism. Follow on LinkedIn and Twitter and Like his public figure page on Facebook. His website is LawrenceWReed.com.

This article was originally published on FEE.org
2 Texas Sheriffs Deputies Killed in Shootout Following Standoff With Suspect

Officials in Texas said that two sheriffs deputies were killed during a shootout with a suspect following a complaint about a dog.

Concho County deputies responded to a call about a dog after 8 p.m. on Monday in Eden, Texas, according to the Texas Rangers.

The suspect, identified as 28-year-old Jeffrey Nicholas, led the deputies on a foot chase before he barricaded himself in a building.

The deputies and Nicholas were then involved in a standoff that led to a shootout, which left the two deputies fatally wounded, the Texas Rangers told KSAN-TV. Another unidentified person was injured in the incident, officials said.

The names of the deputies were not disclosed by the Texas Rangers.

Nicholas was charged with two counts of capital murder of a peace officer, according to court records posted online. Hes currently being held on a $4 million bond.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a statement Tuesday after the deputies were confirmed to have been killed.

Our hearts are broken over the senseless murder of two Concho County Sheriffs Deputies who were gunned down in the line of duty. This terrible loss is a solemn reminder of the risks our brave law enforcement officers face while protecting our communities, Abbott wrote on the governors website.

He added: The State of Texas is prepared to provide any assistance needed to support the Concho County community and bring the perpetrator of this heinous crime to justice. Cecilia and I ask our fellow Texans to join us in prayer for the families, friends, and colleagues of these brave Sheriffs deputies.
A group of illegal immigrants wait for Border Patrol after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in La Joya, Texas, on April 10, 2021. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

20 Republican Governors Call on Biden to Take Action on Border Crisis

Twenty Republican governors on Tuesday called on President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to take action to deal with the crisis along the U.S.-Mexico border, as throngs of people from Mexico and Central America continue to try and illegally cross into the country.

Contrary to statements from your Administration, the border is neither closed nor secure, the governors said in a letter (pdf), adding that the crisis is now spilling over the border states into all of our states.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection in April said that there were 172,000 encounters between Border Patrol agents and illegal immigrants in March, including nearly 19,000 unaccompanied children.

The 20 governors said that state and federal authorities are overwhelmed by what they described as a self-created crisis that exploits families, undermines public safety, and threatens our national security. It concluded by saying: We urge you to take action to end the humanitarian crisis and secure our southern border immediately.

Separately, they contended that the Biden administration has provided almost zero transparency into their operations, adding that we have neither the resources nor the obligation to solve the federal governments problem and foot the bill for the consequences of this Administrations misguided actions.

The letter contrasts with statements recently made by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who touted progress along the border. In statements to the media, Mayorkas said that unaccompanied children are spending less time in Border Patrol facilities.

And on May 7, Mayorkas again blamed the previous administration for the surge in illegal immigrants and children being housed in federal facilities.

When our administration began we inherited a system that had been torn down and dismantled and I said at the time in late March that we have a plan to address the challenge of the unaccompanied children, he said.

Mayorkas claims along with recent photos of a relatively empty Border Patrol facility in Donna, Texas, however, were criticized by Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), who described the pictures as misleading.

All theyre doing is theyre moving kids from one tent to the other tent and saying, Oh, theyre not in the Border Patrol [custody], but theyre right next door, Cuellar told Border Report several days ago. Theyre just next door in HHS [custody], he said, referring to the Department of Health and Human Services, which also operates facilities that house unaccompanied children.

Homeland Security announced earlier this month that there were just 677 children in Border Patrol custody as of May 1, an 88 percent drop from March 28 when there were more than 5,700 children in custody.

The Epoch Times has contacted the White House for comment.
Federal treasurer Josh Frydenberg prior to his budget address at the National Press Club on October 07, 2020 in Canberra, Australia. (Sam Mooy/Getty Images)

Aged Care and Mental Health Priorities for Federal Government in Budget

Australias mental health and aged care systems will receive record funding in the federal budget, with billions to be spent on the ailing sectors.

Experts have warned the packages may only begin to gain ground back after years of funding shortfalls.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg will hand down his third budget on 11 May, with significant spending expected across government services.

The spending will sit alongside funding for major infrastructure projects, skills training, and the COVID-19 health response.

Tonights budget will see record commitments on essential services, disability support, mental health, aged care, and womens safety, Frydenberg told reporters in Canberra.

And tonights budget will lay out the Morrison governments economic plan to secure Australias recovery.

An extra $500 million is expected to be pumped into the mental health sector each year, most of which will be delivered through commonwealth-run primary health networks.

The funding will be aimed at delivering services to regional and disadvantaged areas with significant mental health needs and areas that faced most adversary by fires, floods, COVID-19 restrictions, and high rates of youth unemployment.

National Mental Health Commission Chief Executive Christine Morgan, who serves as a suicide prevention advisor to Prime Minister Scott Morrison, said that early intervention, service integration, and access were key.

We need to be able to intervene a lot earlier in illness, in episode and in life, she told ABC radio.

Leading psychiatrist Patrick McGorry said the federal government was spending $3.6 billion annually on an issue that affected five million Australians every year.

No governments anywhere in the world have understood the scale of the issue.

The budget is also expected to contain up to $18 billion in additional funding for aged care over the following four years.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said it would be a fundamental line in the sand after a royal commission report called for radical changes across the entire system.

Key targets of the package include building a better-paid workforce and boosting training, with more money set aside to help train the unemployed.

Frydenberg is expected to announce a $1 billion extension to the JobTrainer program, which offers free or low-fee courses for young and unemployed people.

The budget could also dictate younger Australians take up the training programs or risk losing income support through programs such as Youth Allowance.

The government is also preparing to cancel a dud hiring credits scheme for young people, which supported just 1100 of the 450,000 jobs it intended to create.

The treasurer will spend another $500 million in attempts to capture international businesses and talent.

The task will be difficult as the international border remains closed, but the government remains determined to attract the best and brightest to drive economic recovery.

The package includes plans to encourage employee share schemes and simplify tax residency rules in attracting workers and businesses to Australia.

Low-income earners, of which many are women, will receive compulsory superannuation for the first time in their lives.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese criticised the government for lacking a plan to address record low wages growth, unemployment, and underemployment.

Albanese said the coalition was pushing the nations debt towards $1 trillion and lacked economic vision.

The government will also unveil major funding for a womens health and financial security package, including domestic violence funding doubling to $680 million and $354 million over four years for health.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi greets U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris (foreground) as she arrives on the podium to attend President Joe Biden as he addresses a joint session of Congress in the House chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on April 28, 2021. (Jonathan Ernst-Pool/Getty Images)

Archbishop Cordileone: I Had Conversations With Pro-Abortion Pelosi About Holy Communion

San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone has had conversations with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi about abstaining from receiving Holy Communion at mass as a pro-abortion Catholic, the archbishop told the Daily Caller News Foundation (DCNF) in an interview.

Cordileone discussed his new document in which he warned pro-abortion Catholics against receiving communion, as well as the implications of high profile Catholics publicly supporting abortion during an interview with the Daily Caller News Foundations Mary Margaret Olohan.

Absolutely not, Cordileone said regarding whether high profile Catholics can support abortion in good conscience.

The archbishop said that it grieves him that the question even needs to be asked, noting that it should be known by everyone that Catholics dont support anything that advocates for an injustice or deprivation of a basic human right, such as the right to life.

Olohan asked Cordileone whether the archbishop would give communion to President Joe Biden or Pelosi if either pro-abortion politician were to show up in his communion line at mass. Cordileone noted that in Before I Formed You In The Womb, I Knew You, he discussed the need for conversations to take place between pastors or bishops and the individual in question so they can understand the error of their ways.

These conversations help the individual understand church teaching, Cordileone said, avoiding such a situation where someone like Pelosi must be publicly denied communion.

The archbishop previously wrote that the sad truth is that these private conversations often make no change, thus leaving it easy for the individual to continue participating fully in the life of the Church and causing scandal to other Catholics.

Because we are dealing with public figures and public examples of cooperation in moral evil, this correction can also take the public form of exclusion from the reception of Holy Communion, Cordileone wrote. When other avenues are exhausted, the only recourse a pastor has left is the public medicine of temporary exclusion from the Lords Table. This is a bitter medicine, but the gravity of the evil of abortion can sometimes warrant it.

I have had such conversations with Speaker Pelosi, she knows that I stand by Church teaching, and I know shes respectful enough not to do anything so provocative, the archbishop said.

In the case of President Biden or any other prominent Catholic, I think what I would do is if I knew that they were coming into the area here and planned to attend mass, I would try to have those conversations as well ahead of time, he added.

Pelosi has previously discussed whether the church gives her any difficulties about receiving communion despite her pro-abortion stances, describing herself as a regular communicant.

I think some of it is regional, she said in a 2018 interview. It depends on the bishop in a certain region. Fortunately, for me it has notCommunion has not been withheld and Im a regular communicant so that would be a severe blow to me if that were the case.

Addressing concerns from clergy who say that Biden should not be denied communion, Cordileone noted that Biden presents the problem of scandal since he is one of the most powerful world leaders and is a pro-abortion Catholic.

Unless there is some kind of a public backtrack, or retraction better yet, theyre still advocating for something that is evil, the archbishop said of high profile pro-abortion Catholics.

If we dont say anything, if we dont speak out, then we are also culpable, Cordileone told the DCNF. I tremble at the responsibility that God has given me. In my letter I try to lay out clearly the church teaching so there can be no disagreement about church teaching, I try and make it as clear and concise as possible. When it comes to pastoral application of church teaching, thats where pastoral discretion is needed, different judgements might be made by different bishops in different situations. But in the case of someone so prominent as the president of the United States, again this is a scandal, and its causing confusion in the minds of our Catholics.

Pelosi did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the DCNF.

By Mary Margaret Olohan

From The Daily Caller News Foundation

Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey talks to reporters after meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington on April 3, 2019. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Arizona Governor Signs Law Designating Gun Stores as Essential Firms

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) has signed into law legislation that designates gun stores as essential businesses allowed to remain open during an emergencya move that will further protect gun stores, manufacturers, and trade associations from lawsuits.

The new law, Senate Bill 1382, introduced by Republican Sen. Wendy Rogers, applies to any store selling guns or ammunition, or their components, and mirrors federal law that was passed on a bipartisan basis.

Duceys office said in a release that the measure will protect the Second Amendment rights of Arizonans by safeguarding against frivolous lawsuits that have no connection to unlawful use of firearms.

With efforts currently underway in Washington to erode Second Amendment rights, Arizona is taking action to protect those rights, Ducey said in a statement. In Arizona, were safeguarding manufacturers, sellers, and trade associations.

Bad actors need to be held accountable, and we will work to make sure they are, the Republican governor added. But were not going to allow lawsuit after lawsuit to slowly tear down the Constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens in our state.

The bill bans the state and its entities from suing a member of the firearms industry for lawful design, marketing, distribution, and sale of firearms and ammunition to the public. It also prohibits a manufacturer or seller of a firearm or ammunition or related trade association from being sued for damages resulting from the criminal misuse of the firearm or ammunition.

Rep. Rogers previously said of the measure that the right to keep and bear arms must be protected, especially during emergencies.

Democratic Sen. Martin Quezada argued the Legislature has much bigger priorities during the pandemic, such as ensuring people get access to unemployment insurance and dont lose their homes.

Arizona isand will remaina strong 2nd Amendment state, said Judi White of Tucson, a gun rights champion who has long been active in the National Rifle Association. We cant let flippant lawsuits hinder operations of firearm or ammunition manufacturers, sellers, and trade associations that are following the law. Senate Bill 1382 makes sure of that.

White added, Thank you, Governor Ducey, for signing legislation that protects citizens Constitutional rights.

The new law comes as President Joe Biden and Democrats in Congress in recent weeks have issued a series of gun-control proposals, while the House of Representatives passed two gun background check laws.

In his first address to a joint session of Congress on the eve of his 100th day in office, Biden also called for background checks and a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Shiyu, or Lion Islet, which is part of Kinmen county, one of Taiwan's offshore islands, is seen in front of China's Xiamen, on Lieyu island, Kinmen county, Taiwan on Aug. 20, 2018. (Tyrone Siu/Reuters)

Beijing Revises Its Maritime Traffic Safety Law to Pave the Way for Expansion

The Chinese regime, on April 29, passed a revised draft of the Maritime Traffic Safety Law that will be formally implemented on Sept. 1. According to a China issues expert, the move provides a legal basis for Chinas maritime expansion and may bring more instability to the Indo-Pacific region.

The revised draft of the Maritime Traffic Safety Law is the same as the Maritime Police Law passed earlier this year, and the previously revised Marine Environmental Protection Law. All mention of coastal waters have been changed to maritime jurisdiction. A report reviewing the results of the bill states that the term coastal waters is not precise, and the scope of this law is not limited to coastal.

Several clauses stand out in the revised draft.

Article 53 stipulates that the transport department of the Chinese Communist Partys (CCPs) State Council may, together with other relevant departments, take necessary measures to prevent and stop the non-innocent passage of foreign ships in the territorial sea.

Article 54 stipulates that certain ships, such as submersibles, nuclear-powered ships, super-large tankers, and ships carrying radioactive materials, shall hold relevant certificates when passing through Chinas territorial waters, take special precautionary measures in compliance with the CCPs provisions, and accept the instructions and supervision of maritime administrative agencies.

Article 92 stipulates that if a foreign ship poses a safety threat to Chinas internal waters and territorial waters, the maritime administrative agency has the right to order it to leave. If a foreign ship violates the CCPs laws and administrative regulations on maritime traffic safety or the prevention and control of ship pollution, the maritime administrative agency may exercise the right of hot pursuit in accordance with the law. The right of hot pursuit means pursuing a vessel into the high seas and getting it back for trial.

Li Yanming, a U.S. based political commentator and China issues expert, told The Epoch Times: The term maritime jurisdiction has a broader scope than coastal waters, and the wording is stronger. The CCP revised the Maritime Traffic Safety Law to provide a legal basis for its maritime expansion. This move will expand the gray conflict zone and bring more instability to the Indo-Pacific region.

Li further explained, saying, The law will empower the CCPs coast guard to enforce laws in areas where it is not able to exercise jurisdiction under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

In fact, the Maritime Police Law that the Chinese regime began to implement on Feb. 1 has already brought instability to surrounding countries. The law stipulates that the CCPs coast guard ships can use force against ships that engage in illegal activity in and over waters under Chinas jurisdiction.

According to Japanese media reports, after the implementation of the Maritime Police Law, a Chinese maritime police ship entered the waters of the Senkaku Islands, known as Diaoyudao Islands in Chinese, on Feb. 6 and 7. On Feb. 15, two Chinese coast guard ships chased Japanese fishing boats in the Senkaku waters. On Feb. 16 and 20, a Chinese Coastal Police ship, which was suspected of being armed, sailed into the waters. After these events, Chinese Coast Guard ships continued to enter the disputed waters.
Delivery riders for Meituan, one of China's biggest food delivery firms, prepare to deliver lunch packages after picking them up from a restaurant in Beijing on April 27, 2021. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images)

Beijing Stages Wave of Propaganda Highlighting Young Delivery Driver

Prior to May 1Labor Daya public holiday in China, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) staged a wave of propaganda to highlight a young delivery driver, Gao Zhixiao, on its media networks. At the same time, a pro-democracy rights group calling for the release of Chen Guojiang, a grassroots spokesperson for Chinas delivery drivers, suddenly closed.

On April 27, Beijing TV Station began to roll out a series of documentaries to showcase how CCP officials take citizens interests seriously by role-playing in different sectors without revealing their true identities. The first episode presents the story of a Beijing official, who followed Gao as an apprentice. The show has been widely circulated by the CCP-controlled media outlets, whose purpose is to praise CCP leadership.

Gaos unusual rise suggests that the CCP has well-orchestrated a campaign to avert attention from the detained head of Delivery Knights Union, Chen Guojiang, a grassroots spokesperson for Chinas delivery drivers, said a source who would only disclosed his surname as Zhang to The Epoch Times.

Gao entered the spotlight after his portrait appeared on a special TIME report showcasing COVID-19-hit modern life on March 19, 2020. Since then, he has been treated as a hero in China who risked his health, and shuttled emergency supplies to customers amid the pandemic, and was invited to multiple official events hosted by Chinese authorities, according to Zhang.

On June 19, 2020, China Media Group reported that Gao attended the 37th bi-weekly open discussion session held by the CCPs top political advisory body and had an in-person talk with its chief, Wang Yang.

On Jan. 6, 2021, Xinhua News Agency said Gao delivered 25 speeches as a member of Beijings delegation promoting Chinas anti-pandemic achievements in Beijing schools and other places.

Gaos idea of building a community for delivery drivers has been substantially promoted on CCP-controlled media outlets, according to the source.

According to Gao, his community, which he calls Riders Home would become an offline service and rest location where fellow drivers can recharge their motorcycles or cellphones.

Currently, he has created at least seven WeChat messaging groups that include more than 3,000 members.

He is obviously imitating Chen Guojiangs Delivery Knights Union, Zhang noted.

Chen, founder of the union, has been held in custody on a charge of picking quarrels and provoking troublea catch-all allegation commonly used by CCP police to snare both petty offenders and rights activists.

Whereas Chen was incarcerated for organizing his union, Gao has remained safe, Zhang said. Rather, the latter has turned into an influencer on the CCPs TV stations and magazines. So its plain to see that the CCP is backing the star delivery driver to dilute the impact of Chen and his followers and weaken their vigilance.

A left-leaning student who requested anonymity told The Epoch Times that Gao had once smeared Chen in one of his chat groups, claiming Chens arrest was due to falsifying certificates.

Police never mentioned that, the student said. As a delivery driver himself, doesnt Gao know the fact that Chen was jailed for speaking out for the community? How can such a guy stand up for this group?

Rights Group Closes Under Pressure

Employee No. 51, a left-wing rights group that led events calling for Chens release, declared its closure in a WeChat statement on May 1.

The number 51 is a pun; the Chinese pronunciation wu yao sounds like I want, as a rights activist may do to raise a claim.

Its statement read, They [the CCP authorities] are planning to kill two birds with one stone, defeat us and Delivery Knights Union by citing our support to Chen as an excuse. It said it chose to come to a halt for the time being so that it could move forward better in the future.

Some of its members believed the groups official account could survive the CCPs crackdown if it continues to operate on overseas sites like Telegram.

However, the administrator noted that sites like Telegram are banned in China and cannot be accessed, making it pointless.

Zhang suspects that Employee No. 51 faced pressure from CCP authorities, which likely caused its closure.

A mainland China commentator who requested anonymity told The Epoch Times that the CCP regime was driving a wedge in the community of drivers and breaking it up.

Chen Guojiangs arrest triggered anger among a large portion of them and work stopped in multiple cities, he said. Chinese authorities are trying to use a carrot-and-stick tactic.

However, the commentator predicted that the strategy wouldnt workor even worse, it might backfire.

Its natural to have an organizer like Chen when drivers wish to unite as a whole for their interests. You can never erase such a thing by force, he said.

If Gaos Riders Home doesnt speak up for its members, they would be spurred to confront the CCP; if the regime grants certain autonomy to the group, it might be afraid the home would turn into another unstable factor, and turn on the CCP, the commentator speculated.

Zhang believes its clear that the CCP has no intention of bettering delivery drivers jobs. Otherwise, Chen wouldnt have been jailed. Nor would Employee No. 51 have been forced to close.

Theyre just desperately covering up the issue, Zhang added.

Labor Organizer and His Delivery Knights Union

As of June 2020, public data shows Chen had created 11 chat groups, with more than 14,000 followers and a good reputation for helping defend their rights and solve disputes during his spare time.

He was born into a poor rural family in Bijie, a prefecture in southeastern Chinas Guizhou province, according to Washington-based NPR. At 14, he left his hometown to job hunt in Chinas big cities, like many young men from his village.

In 2009, he began to work as a delivery driver.

In around July 2019, he created his first WeChat group for delivery drivers.

In October the same year, he called on delivery drivers to go on strike against unreasonable treatment and was given a 26-day detention.

In December, he founded Delivery Riders Union.

On Feb. 18, 2021, Chen reported online that e-commerce giant ele.me was suspected of fraud in its rewards for drivers during the Chinese New Year holidays.

On Feb. 25, he was taken away by Beijing police officers for unknown reasons.

On March 17, Chens family received a notice of criminal detention, which said that he had been detained on suspicion of picking quarrels and provoking trouble.

According to NPR, the labor organizer faces five years in prison.

Zhang Yong contributed to this report.
Beijings Solar Panel Plan Plunges Chinese Farmers Into Heavy Debt

News Analysis

Chinas overcapacity in solar power has been used by Chinese leader Xi Jinping in his poverty alleviation campaignan ambitious project to get farmers to install solar panels. This project, which theoretically helps lift farmers out of poverty, has in many cases been proven to increase the debt burden of rural and remote areas.

Lifting Chinas remote and impoverished regions out of poverty has been a key strategic goal promoted by Xi over the past few years. And the goal was set to be accomplished before the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) this year.

At the end of 2020, the CCP claimed that all 832 poor counties in China have been removed from the poverty list and the goal of poverty eradication was achieved.

Chinese workers check solar photovoltaic modules on a hillside in a village in Chuzhou, in eastern Chinas Anhui Province on April 13, 2017. Solar panels, which convert sunlight into electricity, are a key player in the fast-growing renewable energy sector, which also includes water- and wind-generated electricity. Unlike energy from fossil fuels such as oil, coal and gas, the generation of electricity by so-called photovoltaic (PV) panels does not release planet-harming carbon dioxide. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Pushing farmers to install solar panels in remote areas has been described as Chinas pioneering precision poverty alleviation program, according to a report published by Chinese news portal National Business Daily (NBD) in October last year.

Solar power, also called photovoltaics (PV, in short), generates 18 billion yuan (about $2.78 billion) in annual revenue, while benefiting 4.15 million poor households, according to Zhang Jianhua, director of Chinese National Energy Administration.

A total of 26.36 million kilowatts [kW] of photovoltaic power stations have been built nationwide, benefiting nearly 60,000 poor villages and 4.15 million poor households, generating an annual income of about 18 billion yuan from power generation, Zhang said at a press conference on Oct. 19, 2020.

However, the actual situation is far different.

In Xihu village of Xuyi county, Jiangsu Province, the PV poverty alleviation project was implemented five years ago, and the revenue generated was so little that it was not enough to repay the loan last year. The village has accumulated a debt of more than 2 million yuan (about $309,000), according to state-run media Xinhua.

PV Poverty Alleviation Project Is a Scam

The CCPs media outlets call the photovoltaic poverty alleviation project the sunshine income policy, claiming that once the solar panels are installed, farmers can just sit back while generating income from the solar panels, which will not affect the growth of crops.

The theory is that a farmer installs a 5kW PV system on the roof of his house and in his field, which can generate 7,300 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity a year. With a subsidy of 0.42 yuan (about $0.065) per kWh from the government and a special subsidy of 0.98 yuan (about $0.15) maximum per kWh in rural areas, a farmer can make 10,220 yuan (about $1,579) a year, according to Chinese online media KK News. The investment will be earned back within five to seven years on average.

The installation of photovoltaic power plants is like lying in the sun and making money with ease and comfort, according to a press release from Singfosolar, a PV company in Dongguan, Guangdong Province. Singfosolar stated that PV power plants typically have a yield of up to 8 percent higher than most savings and wealth management products, and can provide stable cash flow for up to 25 years.

A social media group called Weiheng agricultural little bee claimed that the PV poverty alleviation project is a scam.

According to an article posted by the group, titled, Exposing the Rural Photovoltaic Solar Energy Scam, farmers would need to invest approximately 40,000 yuan (about $6,221) for a 5kW PV system. Coincidentally, there is a project of poverty alleviation that provides loans of under 100,000 yuan [about $15,546] to farmers exclusively, with no interest charged for [up to] three years.

Other factors affecting a farmers solar energy yield include decreasing the price for power generated from the solar system, cancellation of state subsidies in three years, and lack of proper maintenance of the system which can significantly reduce power generating capacity. The article said that the lifespan of the system is much shorter than 25 years as advertised. It claimed that after about 5 years, the equipment ages and the efficiency of power generation is greatly reduced.

In fact, this is a tactic that photovoltaic enterprises use to digest their excess capacity. As our government has long supported domestic PV enterprises, they have developed rapidly. These photovoltaic enterprises, with government subsidies and support, experienced extremely fast growth, causing a serious overcapacity, the article said. They take advantage of farmers who have little understanding of the high-tech industry, and fool them to invest in solar panels to help PV manufacturers solve the problem of overcapacity.

Banks have completed their lending business, PV enterprises have recorded massive growth, and local poverty alleviation reports look impressive  only farmers are burdened with debts, the article said.

The Theoretical Calculation Is Far From Reality

A Chinese worker walks in the solar modules of a newly installed 100MW photovoltaic on-grid power project on July 21, 2010 in Dunhuang of Chinas northwest Gansu Province, on July 21, 2010. (Feng Li/Getty Images)

According to a Xinhua report published in October last year, some poor villages accepted the PV poverty alleviation project and took out large loans from banks to finance the project. However, due to various reasons such as quality problems and lack of maintenance, some of the solar power systems yielded far less income than expected from the beginning, while many others broke down in just a few years, with no one to fix the problems, and income decreased year by year.

This situation occurred in Xihu village in Jiangsu Province since it participated in the project in 2016. The PV project, which originally promised an annual income of 390,000 yuan (about $60,000), yielded an annual income of less than 100,000 yuan (about $15,000) after four years, which was not enough to repay the bank interest, according to Xinhua.

The contract between the PV company and the village promised to generate about 330,000 kWh of electricity annually. In reality, the average annual power generated for the first two years was only 200,000 kWh or 60 percent of the projected capacity. By the fourth year, the power generated in a year was less than 100,000 kWh, less than 30 percent of the projected capacity, according to sources quoted by the report.

The local officials were quoted by Xinhua as saying that Xihu village had a total annual income of a few tens of thousands of yuan before the PV project was launched. In order to be removed from the CCPs poverty list, Xihu had to meet an annual income of 180,000 yuan (about $27,800) by the end of 2020. The local authorities had relied on the PV project to lift the whole village out of poverty. But what turned out, in the end, was the village mired in debt for over 2 million yuan ($309,000).

The PV projects have also been promoted to individual farmers in recent years and many farmers have suffered serious losses, according to an article by KK News.

Many Countries Forced to Take Anti-dumping Measures Against China

Over the past decade or so, the CCP has used state subsidies and preferential lending policies to foster the development of Chinas solar industry.

According to Chinese news portal Sina, as of 2017, Chinese-made solar panels have accounted for 71 percent of the global market share. With prices 30 to 50 percent cheaper than Japanese solar panels, the Chinese products have squeezed Japans market share to 2 percent, while Japan used to be the largest provider of PV products.

Europe has also been squeezed out of the solar industry by the Chinese regimes expansion of low-priced PV products. Several large European PV manufacturers, including Solon AG and Conergy, had a hard time competing with Chinese companies and some went bankrupt.

The low price competition, or dumping, and expansion of the Chinese PV industry have triggered anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations in many countries and regions.

In December 2012, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced anti-dumping and countervailing duty measures against Chinese crystalline silicon photovoltaic products (CSPV), with Chinese CSPV batteries and modules added to the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy list two years later. In August 2018, Washington announced a 10 percent tariff on CSPV components and batteries from China, which was increased to 25 percent in June 2019, and an additional 25 percent ad valorem tax on various parts used in the production of components.

The European Union first imposed anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures on Chinese PV modules, wafers, and batteries in 2013, and the measures ceased in September 2018. The EU again announced provisional anti-dumping tariffs of 11.8 percent on Chinese PV companies.

The Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT) ruled in July 2015 that dumping and subsidizing has taken place after investigating Chinese companies importing solar PV products into Canada, and that threats of injury are present. The CITT announced 5-year anti-dumping tariffs for Chinese PV companies that went into effect on July 4, 2015.

In April 2017, Turkey determined that the dumping of Chinese photovoltaic components and solar panels was damaging its domestic industry and decided to impose anti-dumping fees on Chinese PV manufacturers for a period of five years, with 16 companies paying a rate of $20/m2 (per square meter) and other exporters paying a rate of $25/m2.

The Indian government has imposed a 25 percent safeguard duty (SGD) on solar components and batteries imported from China since July 2018.

The Australian government also launched anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations into Chinese PV products between 2014 and 2016.
A sign for the Department of Justice is seen ahead of a news conference with Michael Sherwin, acting US attorney for the District of Columbia, and Steven D'Antuono, head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Washington field office, at the US Department of Justice in Washington on Jan. 12, 2021. (Sarah Silbiger/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Biden Admins Latest Hire Deleted Tweets Pushing TrumpRussia Collusion Allegations

The Biden administrations latest hire to the Department of Justices (DOJ) National Security Division, Susan Hennessey, deleted tens of thousands of tweets, including some that alleged former President Donald Trump and his campaign colluded with Russia in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Hennessey, a CNN legal analyst and notable critic of the Trump administration, announced news of her employment in a Twitter statement on Monday.

Im very honored to be joining the extraordinary team at the Department of Justice in the National Security Division, Hennessey wrote. Thank you for all the kind words.

A graduate of Harvard Law School and the University of California, Los Angeles, Hennessey previously held a position as a senior fellow in National Security Law at the Brookings Institution, and worked as an attorney in the Office of General Counsel of the National Security Agency, according to Lawfare.

She is expected to serve as senior counsel for the DOJs national security wing, according to Politico.

Since mid-November 2020, after the U.S. presidential election, Hennessey has deleted tens of thousands of tweets from her personal Twitter account, including a total of 1,867 removed in the past 30 days according to Social Blade.

One such deleted tweet pushing allegations that the 2016 Trump campaign colluded with the Kremlin from June 29, 2017, said: This is actually a very big deal. Its the first concrete allegation of Trump team collusion.

That tweet was in response to an article from the Wall Street Journal on the matter.

The Crossfire Hurricane investigation was taken over in May 2017 by then-special counsel and former FBI Director Robert Mueller. By April 2019, he concluded that there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 campaign, and found no evidence of a criminal conspiracy.

So far, one FBI official, Kevin Clinesmith, has been indicted in a probe by U.S. Attorney John Durham into the counterintelligence investigation. Clinesmith, a former lawyer for the law enforcement agency, was charged with altering an email that was used in the surveillance of former Trump aide Carter Page. He was sentenced in February to one year of probation, a $100 fine, and 400 hours of community service.

According to Fox News, last year, Hennessey also asked her followers on the social media platform what concrete step they would take to ensure that Trump was not reelected in the November election.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Monday voiced opposition to her hiring on Twitter, saying: The Biden presidency is the presidency of Russiagate Blue Checkmarks.

The Washington Examiners Byron York meanwhile described Hennessey as one of the most irresponsible Trump-Russia conspiracy theorists.

The Biden admin is hiring legitimate, bonafide conspiracy theorists at the Department of Justice, added Kaelan Dorr, Vice President of Comms and Director of Center for Media Accountability at the nonprofit research and education organization America First Policy Institute.

Meanwhile, J.D. Tucille, contributing editor at monthly magazine Reason noted that Hennessey is very much a fan of the surveillance state, citing an excerpt of a report she authored for the Brookings Institution in 2016, which suggested that the government should embrace mass hacking as an paradigm shift necessary for investigations to respond to going dark.

The DOJ didnt immediately respond to a request for comment.
President Joe Biden delivers remarks as Vice President Kamala Harris stands by in the East Room at the White House in Washington on May 10, 2021. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

Biden: Americans Who Turn Down Suitable Jobs Will Lose Unemployment Benefits

President Joe Biden on Monday said that Americans receiving expanded federal unemployment benefits that were implemented during last years pandemic relief efforts must accept suitable job offers or risk losing their financial assistance.

If youre receiving unemployment benefits and youre offered a suitable job, you cant refuse that job and just keep getting unemployment benefits, Biden said.

Our economic plan is working. I never saidand no serious analyst ever suggestedthat climbing out of the deep, deep hole our economy is in would be simple, easy, immediate, or perfectly studied, the president added. Some months will exceed expectations, others will fall short.

Bidens remarks follow last months U.S. jobs growth report which was far lower than what the market had predicted. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. economy added 266,000 jobs last month versus an estimate of 1 million. The unemployment rate rose to 6.1 percent from 6 percent in March.

Responding to pleas from businesses to encourage Americans to return to work, Republican leaders from the states of Arkansas, Montana, and South Carolina have said that they will be slashing the extended weekly unemployment benefits under the Biden administrations new $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, and other states, including Florida, are expected to follow suit.

The financial assistance is due to expire in September, and Republicans argue that these benefits have discouraged people from returning to the workforce and have become a drag on the recovery.

We absolutely can put more people to work, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters during a press conference Wednesday, announcing that Floridians receiving the $300 weekly extra payments will soon have to provide proof that theyre actively looking for a job.

Florid Gov. Ron DeSantis is seen during a meeting at the governors office in Tallahassee, Fla., on April 1, 2021. (The Epoch Times)

Normally when youre getting unemployment, the whole idea is thats temporary, and you need to be looking for work to be able to get off unemployment, DeSantis continued. It was a disaster, so we suspended those job search requirements. I think its pretty clear now, we have an abundance of job openings.

He added: The demand is there. Businesses want to hire more people, and I think we can go in that direction very soon.

GOP Texas lawmaker Kevin Brady, meanwhile, accused the White House of being in denial that many businesses are struggling to hire more people.

Separately, businesses and organizations, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, one of the largest business lobbying groups, have called on the Biden administration to end the unemployment benefits.

Its clear that paying people not to work is dampening what should be a stronger jobs market, the group said.

The president noted Monday that the administration did not see much evidence that the unemployment benefits had caused Americans to reject job offers.

Americans want to work, he said, adding that the administration could not turn our backs on those left jobless by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic.

Twenty-two million people lost their jobs in this pandemic, through no fault of their own, Biden said, adding, For many of those folks, unemployment benefits are a lifeline.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in an interview with CBS on Sunday that the expanded jobless benefits have been a lifeline of survival for the unemployed during the pandemic.

Democrats have said that companies arent offering high-enough wages or subsidized childcare programs, while some say that last months jobs report suggests that Congress needs to pass Bidens infrastructure bills.

Emel Akan contributed to this report.
Big Tech Is the Handmaiden of Government OverreachInterview With Craig Parshall

Constitutional rights in America are under assault, but instead of going after individual constitutional rights, some U.S. officials are pushing to partner with, or are encouraging, big businesses to institute different systems that may infringe upon our rights. But does this approach violate the Constitution? And what can be done about it? To learn more about this, we sat down for an interview with Craig Parshall, a constitutional lawyer and special counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice.

Were being heavily censored by Big Tech. Our solution? Create our own independent platform free of censorship.

Join us today on EpochTV. Weve got a country to save: http://epochtv.com/Crossroads
A nurse fills a syringe from a vial containing AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine during vaccination day for health workers at health center Posto Central in Marica, Brazil on April 27, 2021. (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

Brazilian States Suspend AstraZenecas COVID-19 Vaccine for Pregnant Women After Death

Several Brazilian states on Tuesday halted the use of AstraZenecas COVID-19 vaccine for pregnant women after a woman who had received the vaccine died, according to a report.

ANVISA, the countries National Health Surveillance Agency, recommended the immediate suspension of the vaccine for pregnant women in a statement issued late on Monday, without providing many details.

The health regulator cited that the recommendation was the result of constant monitoring of adverse events related to COVID vaccines in use in the country.

Brazils Sao Paulo has temporarily paused the use of the vaccine for pregnant women with previous medical conditions and Rio de Janeiro suspended it for all pregnant women, Reuters reported.

Both states cited ANVISAs recommendation as a contributing factor to its decision to suspending the use of AstraZenecas COVID-19 vaccine.

The pregnant womans death was reported in Rio de Janeiro and happened after getting inoculated against COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, said Alexandre Chieppe, the states secretary of health.

Rio de Janeiro Secretary of Health Alexandre Chieppe gestures during a press conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Feb. 2, 2016. (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

It is unclear if the woman had any underlying diseases or how much time passed between her death and the inoculation. The case has been placed under investigation by the health ministry, Brazilian news agency Folha de S. Paulo reported.

In a statement obtained by Reuters, AstraZeneca said clinical trials didnt include pregnant women and women breastfeeding. Studies in animals did not produce direct or indirect evidence of harm regarding pregnancy or fetal development, it added.

AstraZeneca is one of two shots more widely available in Brazil. The shot is produced and distributed in the country via a partnership with public health institute Fiocruz.

The United States has a stockpile of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, though regulators have not yet approved it for public use.

The Biden administration said on April 26 it will start sharing its stockpile of AstraZenecas COVID-19 vaccine with other countries.

The United States plans to share all the doses it has, provided they pass safety reviews. As many as 60 million doses will be sent to other countries in the coming months.

From NTD News
California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a press conference about the newly reopened Highway 1 at Rat Creek near Big Sur, Calif., on April 23, 2021. (Nic Coury/AP Photo)

California Gov. Newsom, Facing Recall, Announces New Stimulus Checks

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, in the face of a recall effort against him, announced Monday that the state is projected to have a $75.7 billion surplus and wants to use it to provide stimulus checks to about two-thirds of its residents.

His budget proposal, if passed by the California legislature, would send $600 tax rebate checks to households making up to $75,000 as well as an additional $500 to families with children, according to a news release. The plan would also give $500 to illegal immigrant families.

Californias recovery is well under way, but we cant be satisfied with simply going back to the way things were, Newsom said in a statement (pdf).

The plan will triple the states investmentfor a total of nearly $12 billionin the Golden State Stimulus by expanding the stimulus to middle-class families, the statement continued to say, adding that two out of three Californians will benefit. The cost of the new checks will cost about $8.1 billion, said H.D. Palmer, a spokesman for the state Department of Finance, to media outlets on Monday.

Officials said that the $75.7 billion surplus is largely due to tax revenues from wealthy residents in California. According to Forbes magazine, California had the highest estimated debt of any state, or about $363 billion.

Newsoms office said in a statement that the state would also offer the largest renter assistance package of any state in America, with billions of dollars to help low-income Californians pay back 100 percent of their back-rent, their rent for the months to come and overdue water and utility bills.

The plan comes amid a push to recall Newsom in an election that will likely be held later this year. Recall proponents have said that the Democrat governor has imposed unfair lockdown orders that triggered a significant loss of employment.

Gavin Newsom is making one-time payments to Californians to avoid being recalledand only because the law requires him to, John Cox, one of several Republicans running against Newsom, wrote on Twitter. But, Californians cant be bought.

A law passed in the 1970s requires California to give back some of the money to taxpayers if the surplus hits a certain limit. Officials said that the state is $16 billion over that threshold.

Kevin Faulconer, the former mayor of San Diego, plans to roll out a tax cut proposal later this week.

One-time payments for just one year isnt enough, not nearly enough, Faulconer said. We need permanent, lasting tax relief for middle-class families.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
California Governor Expands Drought Emergency Declaration to 41 Counties

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday extended a drought emergency declaration to most of California amid what he called acute water supply shortages in northern and central parts of the state.

The drought declaration now includes a total of 41 of Californias 58 counties, which will cover some 30 percent of approximately 40 million California residents. An earlier emergency declaration had covered two counties north of San Francisco on the Russian RiverMendocino and Sonoma.

Its self-evident to many folks that the hots are getting a lot hotter in this state, the dries are getting a lot drier, Newsom, a Democrat, said at a press conference on Monday. We have to recognize that we are living in a world that we were not designed to live in. We have a conveyance system, a water system, that was designed for a world that no longer exists.

Newsom directed the states water board to consider changing some rules for reservoir releases and take other conservation measures, to keep more water upstream. He did not issue any mandatory drought conservation measures, but he did urge residents to limit their use of water.

Californias natural resources secretary, Wade Crowfoot, said that mandatory orders may be an option if the coming winter looks to be a dry one, reported the Sacramento Bee.

Just three weeks ago, we were going to flex up based upon need. Wed look at the issue of hydrology, wed look at the issue of snow melt, wed look at the issues of preparedness and we do so in real time, Newsom said. Accordingly, we make that commitment in an interim process as we move forward into the second year of a drought, to keep an open mind and to be mindful of the dynamics and the changing conditions as it relates to hydrology, snow melt, storage, conveyancing, and the like in this state.

The state has in the past few weeks lost more runoff than anticipatedequivalent to what Newsom said was akin to one million households receiving water for a year. He said part of why the issue is worse is because the snow melt was so acute that it seeped into the ground instead of flowing into reservoirs or rivers.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, most of California and the American west is going through an extreme or exceptional drought.

The declaration comes after the governor had proposed a $5.1 billion package to cover a number of immediate and long-term drought-assistance measures.

Newsom is facing a recall election over his handling of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic.
Chinese entrepreneur Sun Dawu is in a feed warehouse at his Dawu Group in Hebei Province, China, on Sept. 24, 2019. (Noel Celis/AFP via Getty Images)

Chinese Judicial System Leaves Scant Time for Defense Lawyers to Assist Outspoken Entrepreneur

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is blocking lawyers from representing an outspoken tycoon and his colleagues by accelerating the proceedings of their cases with record speed.

Sun Dawu, founder of the Hebei Dawu Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Group, was arrested in the early morning of Nov. 11, 2020, together with more than 30 others including his family and executives. Currently, the entrepreneur faces eight charges, including illegal fundraising, provoking quarrels and trouble, illegal mining, obstructing public service, and other charges.

Cases Move from Procuratorate to Court in Just 10 Days

Public data shows that Sun and his colleagues cases were submitted to the local procuratorate on April 26. Just 10 days later, on May 6, they were moved to the local court, with half of them moved around Chinese Labor Day, a legal holiday that occurs on May 1.

Given that the first five days of May are legal holidays in China, it is unclear whether Chinese judicial authorities processed the cases before May 1 or worked through the holidays.

In such a short turnaround time, lawyers would not reasonably be able to complete necessary preparation for the defense of their clients including reading documents, meeting clients, and submitting legal defenses to the charges.

The relevant cases involve 21 defendants, nine charges, and 348 dossiers and authentication documents. Some defense attorneys might not even have time to submit their letters of authentication.

Source: Authorities Wish to Finish Cases as Soon as Possible

On May 7, a source told the Chinese-language Epoch Times that legal authorities are circumventing the law in order to expedite the proceedings.

Theyre trying to finish the cases as soon as possible since July 1 is coming, said the source.

July 1 will mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of the CCP and court officials deem this as a time of political sensitivity to avoid, continued the source.

He also said it would be impossible for lawyers to defend their clients if they dont read all of the dossiers.

Rural Tycoon and His Dawu Group

Established in 1985, Dawu Group has grown into one of Chinas 500 largest private enterprises, with more than 9,000 employees, $311 million in fixed assets, and an annual output valued at more than $466 million, according to public data.

As a responsible leader, Sun also built a school and a hospital to benefit his employees and the local community. He was regarded as the conscience of Chinese entrepreneurs.

Hu Ping, editor-in-chief of Beijing Springa monthly Chinese magazine dedicated to human rightsrecently praised Sun for being an outstanding private entrepreneur with a strong sense of citizenship, in an interview with VOA (Voice of America). He said Suns Dawu Group is a good example of autonomous governing.

Additionally, Sun, himself is well-known for his candid character and independent political views, which reportedly angers the CCP and has resulted in various punishments.

In April 2003, CCP police accused the group of seriously damaging the image of state organs because of three liberal-minded articles posted on its site. The company was fined $2,331 and given a 6-month suspension.

On Nov. 2, 2003, Sun was sentenced to 3 years in prison with 4 years of probation based on a controversial charge of illegal fundraising.

In 2015, Sun spoke favorably of the role of Chinese rights lawyers in contemporary China, which is believed to have caused the current barrage of charges upon Sun and his group.

Currently, the local authorities have sent 29 working groups to take over Suns group, including the school and the hospital under it.
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Paramilitary guards walk in Tiananmen Square outside the Great Hall of the People during a press conference of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) on March 2, 2013. (Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)

CCP Threatens Elderly Parents of Lawyer Who Defends Rights of People of Faith

A Chinese lawyer says his family has been threatened and intimidated by Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials because he provides legal representation to persecuted Falun Gong adherents in China.

Lawyer Lu Tingge made known the intimidation tactics via Twitter on May 6, after he visited his parents, both in their 70s, during the May (Labour Day) holidays.

According to Lu, the officials refused to identify themselves or where they workonly revealing they were upper level officialswhen they visited the lawyers elderly parents to tell them their family would be in trouble if Lu continued to defend Falun Gong adherents in court.

The men were led into the house by Village Party Secretary Wang Xishuang, Lu said.

Two days later, at noon on April 26, Wang sent another official once again to their home, telling Lus parents that his efforts to defend Falun Gong adherents amounted to going against the Chinese regime and would not end well. Lu, the official allegedly said, was putting at risk vital matters, such as his family members eligibility to go to school or seek employment, by taking up Falun Gong cases.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient spiritual practice from the Buddhist tradition consisting of slow-moving meditation exercises and moral teachings that incorporate the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance. Official estimates in the 1990s put the number of adherents between 70 million to 100 million in China at the end of the decade.

Threatened by the practices immense popularity, the CCP launched a systematic campaign to eradicate Falun Gong in July 1999. For the last 22 years, millions have been detained in prisons, labor camps, and so-called reeducation facilitieswith hundreds of thousands reporting that they experienced torture while incarcerated, according to the Falun Dafa Information Center.

Lu told The Epoch Times that it was illegal and unethical for the authorities to harass and intimidate his parents, but said they deliberately did that to cause fear and disputes within his family.

The other thing is that they are obviously aware that what they did was illegal, so they didnt dare to do it openly, Lu said. They came to my house without identifying themselves, and what they did was not only against the law but also shameful.

Regarding the threats from the local authorities, Lu said, Ive been acting on behalf of my clients fully legally. They cant stop me like that.

Lu, a lawyer based in Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei Province, has experienced retaliation a number of times for the large number of Falun Gong adherents he has represented over the yearsso has his family.

In 2017, Lu was beaten into a coma by the police while representing Falun Gong adherents in Huili county, Sichuan Province. His office computer and cell phone were also seized. He sought justice through judicial means for years to no avail. The harassment began after Lu filed a report against officials from the Judicial Bureau for illegally interfering with his right to practice law, and for harassment of his parents.

Two years later, in 2019, authorities disappeared Lu for several days after he launched a petition to improve the legislative system just days before the start of the two annual plenary sessions of Beijings rubber-stamp legislature, the National Peoples Congress, and the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). The petition was titled Suggestion for Constitutional Amendments.

Last year, Lu refused to be coerced by the police to withdraw from representing 12 Hongkongers detained by the Chinese authorities for allegedly trying to escape to Taiwan to claim political asylum.

The authorities have allegedly illegally subpoenaed and detained Lu several times for his online posting. In response, Lu filed a lawsuit against the heads of Shijiazhuang Judicial Bureau and Hebei Provincial Department of Justice.

Lu said that he will continue using litigation and other legal means to defend his rights. I must be ready to stand up for my rights, otherwise, they would arrest and detain me at will, he said.
A truck drives out of the city on Interstate 55 in Chicago on Jan. 25, 2018. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Chicago Taxpayers Face Heaviest Burden Among 10 Most Populous US Cities: Report

Windy City taxpayers face a much higher unfunded tax burden than those living in any of the nations other most populous cities, including New York, according to new calculations by Truth in Accounting (TIA).

The City of Chicago is in significantly worse financial shape than it might first appear, and its taxpayers face the highest taxpayer burden in the country, the Chicago-based nonprofit said in a report titled Taxpayers on the Hook, which was made public May 11.

The new TIA report updates one released earlier this year that had found Chicago ranked second to New York City among the nations 10 most populated cities for the unfunded tax burden it imposes on local taxpayers. The new report offers a more comprehensive calculation of what the unfunded obligations actually are for each taxpayer in each of the 10 cities by including data for official subsidiaries.

These underlying governments are essentially subsidiaries of the city and the majority of their debt falls on all city taxpayers. This report analyzes these entities to give taxpayers a better understanding of their municipalities financial health and their Taxpayer Burden, the report explained.

The data presents a comprehensive picture of each of the cities financial situation immediately prior to the onset of the CCP virus pandemic in March 2020.

Our Financial State of the Cities report released earlier this year found that Chicago ranked No. 74 out of the 75 most populous U.S. cities with a taxpayer burden of $41,100, which is each taxpayers share of municipal debt. Only New York City fared worse with a taxpayer burden of $68,200, TIA said in its latest analysis.

However, when you combine the debt of these underlying government entities, the county, the city, and the state, Chicagos taxpayer burden skyrockets to $126,600, while New York Citys taxpayer burden rises to $85,400, the TIA report said.

The breakdown of Chicago taxpayers burden includes:

$52,000 for the State of Illinois

$41,100 for the City of Chicago.

$19,500 for the Chicago Public Schools.

$8,500 for Cook County.

$4,000 for the Chicago Transit Authority.

$1,700 for the Chicago Park District.

$900 for the Chicago Housing Authority.

$600 for the Metro Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.

$100 for the Chicago Community College District.

These figures cover all that would be needed to pay off state, city, county, and underlying governments unfunded debt for taxpayers residing within the boundaries of the City of Chicago.

Chicago has been especially hard hit in recent years by a spiraling crime rate and repeated strikes by public school teachers unions.

Chicago Police Department CompStat data shows a 56 percent increase in murders for the most recently available week of April 26May 2, compared to the same period in 2020, as well as a 44 percent increase in criminal sexual assaults, a 37 percent increase in robberies, and an 82 percent increase in thefts. The overall increase for the period is 29 percent.

An agreement between the city and Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) officials in February ended months of intense negotiations that at multiple points appeared to be ending in stalemate as students remained at home in virtual classes due to the pandemic.

The agreement came after city officials agreed to spend an additional $100 million on pandemic-related safety measures, including thousands of classroom air filters. The citys public schools have more than 340,000 students enrolled.

The eight cities of the top 10 most populous with lower taxpayer burdens than Chicago and New York include:

Phoenix $10,400

San Antonio $19,200

Houston $24,400

Dallas $26,000

San Diego $34,100

San Jose $41,800

Philadelphia $45,300

Los Angeles $47,600

The $52,000 debt line for Illinois facing Chicago taxpayers reflects the fact that the states financial condition ranks as the 49th worst in the nation, trailing only New Jersey in the 50th place and just ahead of Connecticut in 48th place.

Illinoiss elected officials have made repeated financial decisions that left the state with a debt burden of $226 billion. That burden equates to $52,000 for every state taxpayer, TIA said earlier this year in its state calculations report.

Illinoiss financial problems stem mostly from unfunded retirement obligations that have accumulated over the years. Of the $292.1 billion in retirement benefits promised, the state did not fund $144.2 billion in pension and $56.1 billion in retiree health care benefits, TIA said.

Congressional correspondent Mark Tapscott may be contacted at mark.tapscott@epochtimes.nyc
Chinese Rocket Hits Earth at 17,000 MPH(May 10)

A 20-ton rocket returns to Earth, traveling 17,000 miles per hour in its approach. No one was hurt. But Chinas reckless handling of the rockets return is drawing backlash.

Vaccine quotas have turned into political performance tools in some Chinese cities. Communities in Shanghai are urging people to get vaccinated, even promising money and coupons as compensation. But some are questioning their motives.

The World Health Organization approves Chinas Sinopharm vaccine, though some raise doubts that the vaccine is really safe.

Three Christian preachers are detained in China. Their arrests come as Beijing ramps up its crackdown on religious leaders.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more first-hand news from China.

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Workers install solar panels at the construction site in Huai an, China, on June 11, 2018. (VCG via Getty Images)

China Props Up Domestic Clean Energy Industry in Bid to Capture World Market: Expert

The Chinese regime is financially supporting domestic clean energy industries in a bid to dominate the global market, forcing the world to become dependent on the regime as the appetite grows for alternatives to fossil fuels, according to an expert.

China is the worlds largest manufacturer of wind turbines and solar panels. It produces more than 70 percent of the materials and parts for solar panels around the globe.

But Chinas dominance in solar power was achieved through an abundance of state support, according to Li Linyi, a U.S.-based China affairs commentator.

This is essentially a form of asymmetric competitioncompeting with the private sector through state subsidies and administrative intervention, he said.

The Chinese Communist Party first props up a large industry by subsidies, then squeezes out almost all competitors worldwide, making the whole world dependent on the supply chain controlled by the Chinese Communist Party.

China has carried out incentive subsidy policies for distributed solar photovoltaic (PV) projects, supporting a 7080 percent share of the initial investment and allowing qualified households to use or sell the generated power. In 2017, China accounted for nearly 54 percent of the installed solar capacity worldwide, with subsidy costs reaching 100 billion yuan ($15.6 billion), state media reported.

When the regime eventually monopolizes the global market, it then raises prices or uses that power to coerce countries to extract political concessions, Li said.

After China flooded the global market with cheap solar panels in the 2010s, the Obama administration slapped anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on the imported goods in 2012 and 2014. But that action came too late to save the U.S. solar power industry, which was devastated by the regimes unfair trade policies.

China is a leader  in stealing foreign clean technologies, pressuring these companies to transfer it [to China] when they dont want to do it, and massively subsidizing less innovative clean technology companies in China, Robert Atkinson, president of the Washington-based think tank ITIF, said during a virtual discussion on April 19.

Human Rights Abuses

The regimes forced labor practices in the far western region of Xinjiang have also cast a shadow on its solar panel industry. Nearly half the worlds polysilicon supply, the key raw material used to produce solar panels, is produced in the region.

Earlier this year, reports emerged that linked Chinese solar companies to forced labor. Bloomberg reported in April that Chinese solar companies such as Daqo New Energy in Xinjiang have worked with the Chinese regime to take in Xinjiangs ethnic Muslim minorities, raising concerns these programs formed part of Beijings forced labor campaign in the region.

In Xinjiang, the Chinese regime has detained more than 1 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in a network of internment camps, where they are subjected to torture, political indoctrination, and forced labor.

In March, Republican U.S. senators, concerned by the forced labor reports, introduced a proposal that would block federal funds from being used to buy solar panels manufactured or assembled in China.

Reports show that many solar companies rely on materials and labor from Communist Chinas Xinjiang province, which is known for forced labor and horrific abuse of the Uyghurs, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) said in a statement at the time.

No taxpayer dollars should be used to prop up the Communist Party of China, which is committing a genocide against the Uyghurs under General Secretary Xis direction.
People visit Fuzimiao, also called Confucian Temple, in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, on May 4, 2021. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Chinese Media and Authorities Change Tone Over CCP Virus Around Holiday Season

Official data shows that the number of new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in mainland China hit a low level amid a public holiday earlier this month, regardless of the resurgent tourists flooding the territory. One China expert suspects officials manipulated the data to lead public opinion.

May 1, known as May Day or Chinese Labour Day, marks the first day of a five-day holiday. According to state-run media Xinhua, a total of 230 million domestic tourists traveled during the breaka higher number than the pre-pandemic tourism data.

Meanwhile, domestic confirmed infections data released by authorities cheered the Chinese people up during the national holidayonly five new confirmed infections were recorded on May 5, all of which were imported cases.

Chinas Ministry of Culture and Tourism reported on the same day that no reported cases of CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus had spread through the system; Xinhua also reported that China has ruled out medium and high-risk areas nationwide.

Zhong Yuan, a U.S.-based China current affairs commentator, doubted the reports reflected the truth and authorities should be aware of the consequences of the holiday mass gathering.

On May 9, China State Council released the speech Premier Li Keqiang gave at the fourth work conference on clean governance on April 26, in which he stressed: seek truth from facts, release information openly and transparently.

Although the conference was held five days before May Day, Lis full speech, including his comments on the pandemic, was not published until two weeks later.

[It] seemingly revealed a harbinger of the spread of the epidemic, Zhong wrote in a Chinese-language Epoch Times column article, The Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) media is trying to exaggerate the epidemic in neighboring countries, so it should be ready to again blame nations outside the country for the epidemic, which would not be concealed in mainland China.

On May 8, state media posted messages made by the regimes top health authority three days ago, titled Risk of Importation of Mutated Strains Cannot Be Ignored, stating that the current epidemic prevention and control situation is still serious and complicated.

Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of China also suggested a 14-day self-isolation after returning from a trip. Wu Zunyou, a chief epidemiologist at the Chinese CDC, warned the public of asymptomatic infection.

Zhong said that the changed tone would lay the groundwork for a post-holiday wave of cases.

The official data on new cases returned after the holiday ended.

On May 11, the Chinese National Health Commission released 14 new confirmed cases and 25 asymptomatic cases nationwide of CCP virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, all of which it claims to have come from abroad.

New cases of infections include 4 in Shanghai municipality and Sichuan Province, 2 in Fujian Province, and 1 each in Hunan, Guangdong, Chongqing, and Shaanxi provinces.
People wearing face masks as a preventive measure against COVID-19 wait at a red light to cross a street during rush hour in Beijing on Oct. 14, 2020. (Nicolas Asfouri/AFP via Getty Images)

Chinese Military Scientists Discussed Man-Made Coronavirus Attack Years Before COVID-19 Pandemic

Chinese military scientists in 2015 detailed a plot to unleash a bioengineered SARS coronavirus to cause mass terror and advance the communist regimes global political ambitions.

These newly uncovered revelations come amid intensifying scrutiny over the possibility that the COVID-19 pandemic originated from a laboratory leak in Wuhan, an institute that has collaborated with the Chinese military.

The Chinese military scientists theories were detailed in a 2015 book, first reported recently by News Corps The Australian. The scientists advocated for the weaponization of pathogens, including SARS coronaviruses, to cause terror and gain political and strategic advantage over an enemy state.

The SARS epidemic from 2002 to 2003 infected 2,769 and killed 425 people outside of mainland China, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO). Experts say the numbers inside China are likely much higher than officially reported.

The 261-page book titled The Unnatural Origin of SARS and Genetic Weapons Based on Man-Made Viruses, was published in February 2015 by the Military Medical Science Press, a publishing house owned by the Chinese military, the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA).

The development of bioweapons has entered into an unprecedented new stage in history, the authors wrote.

The authors went on to implore Chinese experts to understand and pay attention to contemporary genetic weapons for any possible future wars, including in the advent of a third world war.

The contemporary genetic weapons the authors wrote about refers to using experimental biotechnology and animal testing to modify the genes of pathogens, which could be tailored to target the specific genetic traits of enemy populations.

Deploying such bioweapons would be more advantageous than using conventional warfare and military actions, the authors argued, because military moves can be traced back to the state and result in international condemnation.

Genetic weapons, on the other hand, can be concealed [in deployment] and it is hard finding evidence against them, the authors wrote.

Even in the face of academic, virological, or animal evidence, [one can] deny, prevent [someone from raising the issue], suppress [possible accusations], leaving international organizations and righteous people helpless.

Xu Dezhong, one of the two editors-in-chief of the book, was an analyst for Chinas national SARS prevention and treatment team at that time. His duties also included reporting to Chinas top military command, the Chinese Military Commission, according to Baike, a Wikipedia-like platform run by Chinese search engine Baidu.

Xu was also a professor in the department of military epidemiology at Chinas Air Force Medical University. The school, formerly known as the Fourth Military Medical University, is located in Xian, the capital of central Chinas Shaanxi Province. Ten other scientists from this military university were listed among the books 18 authors.

The other editor-in-chief was Li Feng, who was deputy chief of the bureau of epidemic prevention at the PLAs Logistics Department. It is unclear if Li still holds this position.

The book discussed at great length the potential fallout of a bioweapon attack and the optimum conditions to release such a weapon.

Any attack is likely to overwhelm the local health sector around ground zero, the book said. The medical sector would be under enormous burden because of the sheer number of patients, it said. In addition, the need to put patients under quarantine, as well as prolonged medical treatment, would further strain medical resources.

A stable flow of wind in one direction is important, the authors said, to carry the airborne pathogens of the bioweapon to the targeted area. Since these pathogens can be weakened under strong sunlight, it is better to release them at dawn, dusk, night, or cloudy day, they added.

Further, the authors noted that rainfall and snow are not optimal conditions because this type of weather would lower the effective concentration of the airborne pathogens.

Pandemic Origins

The books disclosure comes more than a year after the outbreak of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus, in Wuhan, China. The CCPs mishandling of the initial outbreak meant the disease spread globally, when it could have been contained, going on to claim more than 3 million lives worldwide.

As the world struggles to find the origins of the pandemic, a growing number of voices are suggesting that the virus leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), and have demanded the CCP open up the institute for investigation. Beijing has denied these allegations but has not opened the labs records to independent scrutiny.

David Asher, former lead COVID-19 investigator at the U.S. State Department, said in March that the virus could be the result of a bioweapon research accident at the WIV.

In January, the State Department released its findings into the WIV, Chinas only P4 lab (the highest biosafety level), concluding the institute has engaged in classified research, including laboratory animal experiments, on behalf of the Chinese military since at least 2017.

The department said it had reason to believe that several researchers inside the WIV became sick in autumn 2019, before the first identified case of the outbreak, with symptoms consistent with both COVID-19 and common seasonal illnesses.

The WIV was also found to have taken part in a state-funded project from 2012 to 2018, studying animal pathogens in wild animals. The project was conducted by a joint team of military and civilian scientists.

However, a March report by a team of Chinese and foreign scientists assembled by the World Health Organization dismissed the lab leak theory as extremely unlikely. The report was heavily criticized, with 14 countries, including the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, expressing concerns about the findings, while calling for a transparent and independent analysis and evaluation into the pandemic origins.

A Warning

Anders Corr, principal at the New York-based political consultancy firm Corr Analytics, in a recent op-ed for The Epoch Times, said the Chinese military scientists textbook should serve as a warning of the potential for a surprise bio-attack from China.

Lets not wait for a surprise bio-attack. Shut down Chinas bioweapons programs now, by defensively decoupling from, and thereby minimizing, the countrys STEM infrastructure, Corr wrote. STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

He added: Add maximum economic and political pressure, to nudge China toward much-needed democratization. Only when the country democratizes should we allow it back into the international system.
The Jieleixi No.13 village mosque with slogans Love the [Chinese Communist] Party, Love China, in Yangisar, south of Kashgar, in China's western Xinjiang region on June 4, 2019. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images)

Chinese Regime Lashes Out at UN Xinjiang Human Rights Event

The Chinese regimes foreign ministry spokeswoman reacted angrily to a report that Beijing had urged UN member members not to attend a UN event spotlighting rights abuses in the far western Xinjiang region.

According to a Reuters report of May 8, the Chinese regime asked member states to boycott the virtual event planned by Germany, the United States, Britain, and other countries, due to be held on Wednesday.

In a note by Chinas UN mission dated May 6, the Chinese regime said: It is a politically motivated event  we request your mission NOT to participate in this anti-China event, according to the report. The Chinese Communist Party also charged the organizers with wanting to create division and turbulence and disrupt Chinas development.

The ambassadors of the United States, Germany, and the UK will address the event, along with the Human Rights Watch executive director, Ken Roth, and Amnesty International secretary-general, Agnes Callamard.

The aim of the event, as stated in the invitation, is to discuss how the UN system, member states, and civil society can support and advocate for the human rights of members of ethnic Turkic communities in Xinjiang.

The regimes foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying at a regular press briefing on Monday stepped up criticism of the event, and lashed out at its organizers, including the United States, for abusing the resources and platform of the UN.

This is a shameful travesty of the UN, she said.

More than one million Uyghurs and other ethnic Muslim minorities are being held in internment camps in Xinjiang, in what the United States has designated a genocide. Inside these facilities, researchers say detainees have been subject to political indoctrination, torture, mass rape, and forced labor.

The Chinese regime denies these abuses, and describes the camps as vocational training centers to combat extremism.

Recently, foreign ministers from the UK, Germany, and other members of the G7 group of countries meeting in London unequivocally condemned human rights violations and abuses in Xinjiang and in Tibet, especially the targeting of Uyghurs, members of other ethnic and religious minority groups, and the existence of a large-scale network of political re-education camps, and reports of forced labor systems and forced sterilization.

In January, Washington banned the import of cotton and tomato products from Xinjiang over allegations of forced labor.

Reuters contributed to this report.
A Colorado Springs police officer goes to help a person who was in a different mobile home to be able to get to her car from behind the crime tape in Colorado Springs, Colo., on May 9, 2021. (Jerilee Bennett/The Colorado Springs Gazette via AP)

Colorado Springs Mass Shooter Identified, Opened Fire Because He Wasnt Invited to Birthday Party: Police

Authorities in Colorado Springs, Colorado, said the suspect who opened fire at a weekend birthday party, killing six, was angry because he wasnt invited.

At the core of this horrendous act is domestic violence, Chief Vince Niski said, reported the Denver Post. The suspect  displayed power and control issues. When he wasnt invited to a family gathering, the suspect responded by opening fire.

He was identified as 28-year-old Teodoro Macias by Colorado Springs police Lt. Joe Frabelle, who also told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Macias had been in a relationship with one of the victims for about a year and had a history of jealous and controlling behavior.

Macias had no reported domestic violence incidents. He also didnt have a criminal history, Frabelle said.

Identities of the victims were released on Monday by family members: Melvin Perez, 30; Joana Cruz, 54; Jose Gutierrez, 21; Mayra Perez, 32; Sandra Ibarra; and Jose Ibarra, 26. The family, friends, and children were celebrating inside a mobile home at the Canterbury Manufactured Home Community, according to The Gazette.

My mom had always liked celebrating them together, said Nuvia Marquez, who was at the party with her husband, Freddy Marquez, according to the paper.

Macias is believed to have taken his own life after the shooting, authorities said.

Authorities had yet to release the names of the victims and gunman and to disclose a possible motive. The El Paso County Coroners Office was still identifying the victims. No children were hurt, and all were placed with family and friends.

Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers previously described the attack as a senseless act of violence.

Today we find ourselves mourning the loss of lives and praying solemnly for those who were injured and those who lost family members, Suthers said in a statement. We think, too, of the emergency personnel who responded to a horrific scene and we keep them in our prayers today.

After a recent mass shooting in Boulder, Colorado Democrats introduced a bill to create a state Office of Gun Violence Prevention to provide information about gun safety and collect data on shootings in the state. Other bills advancing through the Democrat-led Legislature would tighten background checks, allow municipalities greater freedom to adopt their own gun control laws that are stricter than state law, and require a person facing a protection order related to alleged domestic violence to report what firearms they possess.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A delivery station in China's Sichuan province was recently caught delivering 156 boxes of pets, including cats and dogs, as ordinary express. The picture shows a live pet sale page on Taobao, a platform owned by Alibaba, China's largest e-commerce company. (Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

Courier Companies in China Deliver Live Animals in Sealed Boxes

The case of live pet blind boxes in Chinas Sichuan province recently sparked public concern in the country, with even the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) official media reporting on it. The matter involves not only the legal issue of delivering animals via a postal service, but also the just-implemented Animal Epidemic Prevention Law related to the CCP virus.

Shipping live animals bought online using regular express delivery is illegal but common in China. The practice has received little attention from the CCPs official media in the past.

The incident in Sichuan that caught public attention happened on March 3. People found dozens of pet blind boxes waiting to be delivered at an express station in downtown Chengdu, Sichuan province, and they could hear the meowing of cats and the barking of dogs from inside the boxes.

Local animal rescue volunteers rushed to the spot upon hearing the news. They stopped the truck and cut open the sealed bags outside the plastic boxes so the animals inside could breathe. There were a total of 156 in this batch of pet blind boxes.

According to a woman who participated in the rescue, the carrier was a fully enclosed van, and the cats and dogs inside the boxes could have suffocated during delivery.

The so-called blind box originally refers to sellers randomly selecting a toy for online shoppers, so that consumers only know what toy it is after buying the product and opening the box.

The practice is used to arouse consumers curiosity and promote sales.

Later, products in blind boxes expanded to food, cosmetics, books, stationery, and more recently, live animals. In addition to cats, dogs, rabbits, parrots, and ducks, there are also snakes, scorpions, spiders, and lizards.

The CCPs official media also acknowledged that even though e-commerce platforms and delivery companies knew that a special courier service should be used to transport live animals, in recent years it has become the norm in China to transport live animals by ordinary express delivery.

At the end of September 2020, a large number of live animals without receivers were found at an express delivery site in Luohe city, Henan province, due to problems with the miscommunication between the seller and the buyer. Some of the animals had already died, while more than 1,000 rabbits, 99 guinea pigs, and 200 cats and dogs were still alive.

On Chinas e-commerce platforms such as Taobao and JD.com, a search for live animals brings up dozens of animals for sale, some as cheap as $2 to $3.

Shipping live animals through special channels can cost as much as $31, so many people are reluctant to do it that way.

State media have acknowledged that the postal codes rules on the mailing of live animals are vague and inherently flawed, and that the Animal Epidemic Prevention Law, which came into effect earlier this month, is not easy to enforce.

According to the new law, the transportation of animals and animal products must have quarantine certificates before being consigned. Delivering blind boxes by ordinary express is a way to bypass these regulations.

Liu Junhai, a law professor at Renmin University of China, said the public was concerned with the matter not only because delivery companies were illegally transporting live animals, but also because they did so without following strict quarantine procedures.
Pyre of 45-year-old Sher Pal Singh, a gazette officer with India's National Information Center catches fire at the Sarai Kale Khan crematorium on May 4, 2021. Singh, a ftehr of two daughters and one son passed away at the hospital one week after testing positive. (Venus Upadhayaya/Epoch Times)

Court Upholds Australian Government Ban on Travelers From India

The controversial India travel ban, criminalising Australians return home from the COVID-stricken nation, has stood up to its first legal challenge.

But it may face a constitutional challenge in the coming days.

Lawyers for a Melbourne man stuck in India had argued Health Minister Greg Hunts order was invalid.

Their reasons included that the minister hadnt properly satisfied himself of the relevant preconditions, such as whether it was no more restrictive or intrusive than is required in the circumstances.

But Federal Court Justice Tom Thawley on Monday dismissed the first two parts of the four-pronged challenge.

The Biosecurity Act allowed the minister to make an order to prevent or control entry or exit of a particular human disease from Australia.

The most obvious method of achieving either result is to prevent entry or departure from Australia, he said.

The order, made on April 30, which has been applicable since May 3, marked the first time the Biosecurity Act had been used to prevent Australian citizens and permanent residents from entering Australia.

The challenge was brought by Melbourne man Gary Newman, who is stuck in Bangalore/Bengaluru after flying there to see friends in early March 2020.

Aged 73, he was in a particularly vulnerable health demographic and wanted to return home as soon as possible, his lawyer said.

Mr Newman had argued the ministers order, due to expire later this week, impinged upon a fundamental common law right of citizens to re-enter their country of citizenship.

The Biosecurity Act was intended to impinge on common law rights, Justice Thawley said.

On April 27, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a ban on direct flights from India.

Hunt then made an April 30 order after advice from the solicitor-general and Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly.

The order forbids Australian citizens and permanent residents from landing in Australia from any country if theyd been in India in the fortnight before their departure.

Anyone attempting to defy the rules is threatened with fines of up to $66,600 or five years in prison, or both.

That second ban on travel via third countries was introduced too quickly and without analysis of the first bans effect, Mr Newmans lawyers argued.

(The ban is) the most restrictive and intrusive method that could have been adopted, Christopher Ward SC said.

But Professor Kelly had referred to the first ban in his ministerial advice and how flights through transit hubs continue to provide an avenue for individuals who have recently been in India to enter Australia, the judge said.

It is tolerably clear from the chief medical officers letter that further relief would come to the Australian quarantine system by taking the measure, Justice Thawley said.

Mondays decision leaves two undetermined parts of Mr Newmans bid to have the travel ban ruled invalid.

The first argues it was not within the scope of what parliament intended when passing the act.

The last alternative argument hopes to convince the court the travel ban and the ministers powers behind it are invalid by impermissibly burdening the implied freedom of citizens to enter Australia under the constitution or that the ban and powers exceed section 51 powers.

Indias health ministry on Monday reported 366,161 new infections and 3754 deaths, off a little from recent peaks. Indias tally of infections stands at 22.66 million, with 246,116 deaths.
Tribute to Albert Jones To Be Held Thursday

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - A special tribute will be held Thursday afternoon in Paducah for former Paducah Mayor Albert Jones.Jones died on Feb. 10 at the age of 91. In addition to serving as mayor from 1996 to 2000, he was an FBI agent, McCracken County commonwealth attorney, U.S. attorney, and Kentucky state representative. He was also a Korean War veteran.Paducah attorney Mark Bryant, who is Jones' nephew, told the Greg Dunker Show he and others who want to celebrate Jones' life have organized a memorial event Thursday at noon in Albert Jones Park, located at 23rd Street and Joe Bryan Drive."Albert died on February 10 of this year, and when that happened we had COVID, and nobody could get together. So we just talked about it and decided it was time to do something for Albert, because he'd done something for so many people over the years," Bryant said.Speakers at the event will include Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, Paducah Mayor George Bray, McCracken County Judge-Executive Craig Clymer, former Kentucky State Senator Dorsey Ridley, former Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Bill Cunningham, and Chief Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shephard.The event will also feature musical performances by the 101st Airborne Screaming Eagle Band and the Paducah Tilghman High School Choir. One of the songs being performed will be "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition", which Bryant says was one of Jones' favorites.Bryant said he's hoping for a large turnout, with hundreds of people expected to attend the event. The event will also be streamed live on the Bryant Law Center's Facebook page."Albert never met a stranger," Bryant said. He's the only person I know of in Paducah that you could call him just by his first name, and everybody knew who you were talking about."On the Net:
Residents undergo COVID-19 testing in the basement of a residential compound as part of a mass testing program following new cases of the virus emerging in Shijiazhuang, in northern China's Hebei Province on Jan. 12, 2021. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)

COVID Reinfections Reported in Various Places in China, Authorities Shift the Blame: Leaked Documents

Chinese authorities continue to underreport COVID-19 cases in the mainland, according to recent government documents obtained by The Epoch Times from a trusted source. Evidence suggests that there may be many reinfection cases that the Chinese regime has concealed as they shift the responsibility to local authorities.

Since the beginning of the year, a few reinfection cases have been reported by local authorities and the media in various places in the mainland.

On May 1, Henan provincial authorities reported one patient who recovered from COVID-19 but tested positive after being discharged from the hospital on April 3, according to Chinese news portal Sina.

A similar case was reported in Shanxi Province on April 27a COVID patient was reinfected after being hospitalized, according to Chinese media reports.

A car is banned from leaving Angangxi district as the province declares an emergency state, in Qiqihar, in Heilongjiang Province, China, on Jan. 12, 2021. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)

On April 24, authorities in Wangkui county of Heilongjiang Province reported one reinfection case. But on the same day, The Epoch Times learned from an insider in Suihua city, which has jurisdiction over Wangkui, that the county saw dozens of reinfection cases. Furthermore, the anonymous source said that Huiqi village (in Wangkui) was sealed off, while Wangkui was placed under partial lockdown.

There are patients who recovered from COVID but tested positive again in Huiqi village of Wangkui county, and the village has been locked down. According to internal sources, there are more than 30 reinfection cases, the insider revealed.

Wangkui was one of the epicenters of the COVID-19 outbreak in China at the beginning of this year.

In January, Chinese media reported two reinfection casesone in the capital city Beijing and the other in Shanxi Province.

However, a series of documents issued by municipal governments in Hebei Province suggests that reinfection cases are being underreported.

Leaked Documents

The publication obtained a classified document titled, Notice on Strengthening the Nucleic Acid Testing for Recovered and Discharged COVID-19 Patients, issued by Chinas State Councils Joint Epidemic Prevention and Control Team on Feb. 26. The document is marked Non Disclosure to the Public. It revealed that reinfection cases appeared in many parts of the mainland, but it did not give specific numbers. The State Council blamed local authorities for this phenomenon, stating that the nucleic acid testing did not meet the standards and the standards for discharging patients from hospitals were not implemented accurately.

Screenshot of Notice on Strengthening the Nucleic Acid Testing for Recovered and Discharged COVID-19 Patients issued by the Chinese regimes State Councils Joint Epidemic Prevention and Control Team on Feb. 26. (Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

As a preventive measure, the State Council proposed to do more nucleic acid testing on discharged patients across the country. The document did not mention other measures.

However, the publication obtained other documents from local governments that counter the State Councils statements in the aforementioned document.

One document called Report on the Positive Nucleic Acid Test Results of the Recovered and Discharged COVID-19 Patients Jia and Han, was issued by the Shijiazhuang Municipal Health Commission in Hebei Province on Feb. 19. The cases were not reported by the authorities and the media in the mainland.

The two patients, ages 14 and 33, both reside in Gaocheng district of Shijiazhuang city, which was one of the COVID hotspots in China in the beginning of the year. Jia and Han tested positive for the virus in mid-February after being discharged from the hospital. The report claimed that both patients were admitted to the provincial Hebei Chest Hospital for isolation and treatment. Before they were discharged, their nucleic acid tests were negative, and their chest CT examinations were normal.

Another document issued by the Shijiazhuang City Health Commission on Feb.24, titled, Experts Assessment Report on the Recovered and Discharged Patients Jia and Han Who Tested Positive, stated that nine medical experts in Hebei Province and Shijiazhuang municipality reviewed their cases and concluded that both patients met the requirements for being discharged from the hospital, as set by the National Health Commission.

Screenshot of Experts Assessment Report on the Recovered and Discharged Patients Jia and Han Who Tested Positive issued by Shijiazhuang City Health Commission on Feb.24, 2021. (Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

The document also stated that the medical staff followed rigorous procedures before they discharged Jia and Han, and the decisions were approved by multiple supervisors. Both patients stayed in the hospital for 36 days.

U.S.-based Chinese current affairs commentator Li Linyi spoke with The Epoch Times and shared his views on the discrepancies between the information from local authorities and the report from the State Council. He said the local authorities in Hebei Province claimed that they fully complied with the hospital discharge standards set by the National Health Commission, but in the end, some patients who recovered from COVID were reinfected, which probably means that the standards set by the central authorities are flawed, Li said. The State Council has shifted the responsibility to the local authorities, requiring them to improve the nucleic acid testing of discharged patients. In fact, no one wants to take the responsibility for it, and they are blaming each other, Li said.

Li added that there are still many questions about the CCP virus and modern science doesnt have all the answers yet.

Gu Qinger and Hu Yuanzhen contributed to this report.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a White House Coronavirus Task Force press briefing in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington on Nov. 19, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Dr. Anthony Fauci Has No Doubt About COVID-19 Death Undercounting

But on the pandemics cause the Biden adviser remains evasive

Commentary

I think theres no doubt that we are and have been undercounting the number of COVID-19 deaths, Dr. Anthony Fauci told reporters on May 9. On the other hand, when it comes to the origin of the pandemic, Fauci harbors plenty of doubts and uncertainties.

What is your opinion on how COVID became so well adapted to humans? Margaret Brennan of CBS News asked Fauci, on March 28. You know, Margaret, thats an argument that goes back and forth, said Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) since 1984. A very plausible explanation for this is that this virus jumped from an animal host, a bat to maybe an intermediate host and then to a human.

The other theory is that the virus accidentally escaped from a lab. As Fauci concluded, I think the most likely one that in nature, in the wild, it adapted itself. No word from the NIAID boss about dangerous gain of function research.

According to the Office of Science Policy of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), gain of function research can enhance the pathogenicity or transmissibility of potential pandemic pathogens (PPPs) and that can raise biosafety and biosecurity concerns. In 2012, Fauci cited the risks of such research, wondering, what if that scientist becomes infected with the virus, which leads to an outbreak and ultimately triggers a pandemic?

The NIH banned gain of function research in 2014 but revived it in 2017 with no objection from Fauci. His NIAID also funded the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) in Communist China, where gain of function research could be conducted in secret, with no accountability, and which received shipments of deadly pathogens from a lab in Canada.

Faucis August 2020 Emerging Pandemic Diseases: How We Got to COVID-19 paper, co-authored with adviser Dr. David Morens, does not probe the dangers of gain of function research and its possible role in the pandemic. The paper does call for strengthening the United Nations and its agencies, particularly the World Health Organization. That is not a scientific statement, and neither was the claim the virus somehow adapted itself to humans.

Fauci earned a medical degree in 1966 but his bio shows no advanced degrees in molecular biology or biochemistry. Strictly speaking, the chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden is not a virologist. The late Kary Mullis, who won a Nobel prize for the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), believed Fauci should not even be a government bureaucrat. Mullis, who earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry from UC Berkeley, contended that Fauci doesnt understand electron microscopy and he doesnt understand medicine. He should not be in a position like hes in.

Mullis contributed a foreword to Inventing the AIDS Virus by UC Berkeley molecular biology professor Peter Duesberg, whose media appearances Fauci blocked. As Michael Fumento showed in The Myth of Heterosexual AIDS, Fauci was wrong that AIDS would ravage the nation. Even so, Fauci duly continued at the helm of NIAID.

In early 2020, Fauci recommended the destructive lockdowns that crushed the powerful Trump economy and infringed on Americans constitutional rights. Fauci shied away from hard scientific data and instead leaned on computer models, a trend that continues in 2021.

Sometimes the models are right on line. Sometimes theyre a bit off, said Fauci when he proclaimed no doubt that COVID-19 deaths had been undercounted. Fauci provided no data on co-morbidities, and he has declined to comment on needless deaths caused by politicians forcing elderly patients into nursing homes.

With a University of Washington analysis estimating 900,000 COVID-19 deaths, Fauci showed little, if any, lamentation for the massive loss of life. For Bidens top medical adviser, that is not a new development.

As Raymond S. Greenberg explains at Historynet.com, the mid-1960s were the days of a compulsory draft of American physicians, to serve in military hospitals in Vietnam. Instead of attending wounded American soldiers, Fauci took one of the few alternatives, the clinical associate program at the National Institutes of Health.

Those doctors became known as yellow berets, the opposite numbers of the special forces Green Beret troops in Vietnam. As Fauci told Greenberg, the yellow beret tag was very much derogatory, because those who declined to serve in military hospitals had a cushy job at the NIH. Fifty-three years later Faucis job is as cushy as it gets.

With a salary of $417,608, more than the president of the United States, Fauci is Americas highest paid bureaucrat. Faucis NIAID now boasts a budget of more than $6 billion, an increase of 3.1 percent from the previous fiscal year. In effect, Dr. Anthony Fauci is a powerful politician who never has to face the voters. If embattled Americans perceive that as white coat supremacy, then it would be hard to blame them.

Lloyd Billingsley is the author of Yes I Con: United Fakes of America, Barack em Up: A Literary Investigation, Hollywood Party, and other books. His articles have appeared in many publications, including Frontpage Magazine, City Journal, The Wall Street Journal, and American Greatness. Billingsley serves as a policy fellow with the Independent Institute.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm briefs reporters at the White House in Washington on May 11, 2021. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Energy Secretary: Supply Crunch, Not Gasoline Shortage

The United States is not dealing with a gasoline shortage, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said Tuesday, as hundreds of stations reported running out of gas.

This is why we know that we have gasoline, we just have to get it to the right places. Thats why I want to encourage people people: its not that we have a gasoline shortage, its that we have this supply crunch, she told reporters at the White House in Washington.

Things will be back to normal soon, and we are asking people not to hoard, she added.

The so-called crunch is primarily in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, and Virginia. Those states typically draw about 70 percent of their gas supply from the Colonial Pipeline that was taken offline in response to a cyberattack.

Data from GasBuddy, which tracks gas availability and prices, showed that 7.6 percent of gas stations in Virginia and 7.5 gas stations in North Carolina were out of gas as of 1 p.m. Central Time.

Nearly 3 percent of stations in Florida and South Carolina also reported running out of fuel.

The Biden administration is canvassing rail operators to see if they can move fuel from ports inland, with offers to help with steps to increase capacity if needed. A shortage of fuel truck drivers has driven the increase in gas prices and the shortages, experts told The Epoch Times. But its not clear yet if any railcars will be able to transport gas.

The Department of Transportation is helping Colonial get its pipeline up and running and has been in touch with various state and local officials, along with labor, safety, and industry groups.

Empty gasoline pumps are put out of service at a BP gas station in Smyrna, Ga., on May 11, 2021. (Elijah Nouvelage/AFP via Getty Images)

Governors offices have conveyed to federal officials their concern about reports of gas stations running out of fuel, Granholm said.

Colonial resumed operations for a major part of the pipeline late Monday and is working on restoring other portions, with the expectation of resuming most operations by the end of the week.

I want to be clear that these states who are impacted, even with the the turning on of the pipeline system, they still may feel a supply crunch as Colonial fully resumes so, but the American people can feel assured that this administration is working with the company to get it resumed as soon as possible, Granholm said.

President Joe Biden doesnt want people on the East Coast and the southeast to worry; he wants them to have an understanding of the fact that the government is all over this, White House press secretary Jen Psaki added.

The energy crunch is expected to drive prices, already near a national average last seen in 2014, even higher this week. The average price per gallon on Tuesday was $2.95, according to AAA.
Finding Courage is a documentary that explores the harsh persecution of one family by the Chinese Communist Party.

Extraordinary: Documentary Reveals Secret Footage of Chinese Labor Camp

Yifei Wang loves breathing the air of freedom in the United States, but her heart is still in China, where her sister was beaten to death in a labour camp, despite committing no crime.

So Yifei, a former journalist for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and her family members in China embarked on a daring attempt to seek justice for her sisters murder, even if it meant having to secretly film the labour camps director while demanding to see her sisters hidden body.

Her story is recounted in the award-winning documentary Finding Courage, which made its Sydney debut at the Sydney Mechanics School of Art last Friday.

The 80-minute film reveals the journey of a Chinese family, who overcome their tragic past to find the courage to stand up for their faithwhich, in this movie, is the ancient Buddhist-rooted practice, Falun Gongwhile enduring the communist regimes heavy crackdown.

The main plot is woven with the story of Yifeis brother, Leo, who was detained and tortured for 12 years in a Chinese prison. Leo has not fully recovered from the trauma even after escaping to America, but on his journey rekindles his inner strength and his resolve to tell the world about his experiences.

Finding Courage also reveals rare footage of a meeting with the director of the labour camp where Yifeis sister was killed. The documentary also features exclusive interviews with former Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials, some of whom participated in the persecution and refer to themselves as Chinas walking dead.

The movie is extraordinary, said Sophie York, a lecturer at the University of Notre Dame, Sydney. Ive been slightly traumatised watching it  Its so well researched and so tenderly put together.

Sophie York at the movie screening on May 7, 2021. (Li Rui/The Epoch Times)

York said the film helps her better grasp the barbarism taking place in China today, praising the interviews with former CCP officials for enhancing the movies authenticity.

It [the persecution] is so evil that it requires people to actually be motivated. They need to feel fortified and galvanised rather than just overwhelmed by the enormity of this horror, she said, Its just horror.

The 22-year crackdown on Falun Gong, whos adherents follow the tenets of Truth-Compassion-Tolerance, is the longest-running persecution campaign by the Chinese government against its own people.

Viewing its growing popularity as a threat to the regimes atheist ideology, the party ordered its eradication in 1999, using different tactics of torture and brainwashing to force the practitioners to renounce their faith.

North Korean audience Kathy Kim said she enjoyed the films human spirit.

Although Falun Gong followers are mostly mainland Chinese, I think what they represent is about keeping human spirit strong and fighting inhumanity, Kim said, adding that she can relate to the practitioners sufferings due to her background.

A former candidate for the federal seat of Parramatta in 2019, Charles Camenzuli, said the movie is timely as the worlds focus now is on China and its aggressive global expansion.

I think its going to make people think again about the communist infiltration into all levels of life, into politics, from council to federal, into the movie theatres where it controls the production of movies, he said.

I feel very sorry for that family, but I realise that they are actually one of the lucky ones. They actually got out.

Charles Camenzuli at the movie screening on May 7, 2021. (Li Rui/The Epoch Times)

Produced and distributed by New York-based Swoop Films, Finding Courage is the first feature-length film for Australian director, Kay Rubacek.

Rubacek said she felt indebted to the family to tell their story in the form of a feature documentary after Yifeis family secretly filmed their visit to the labour camp and relayed the footage out of China to her.

The access we gained to this story, due to the bravery of this family of survivors, astounds me to this day, she said.

It was their resilience that provided me the courage, as a first-time director, to traverse the difficult journey across cultural, linguistic, and political divides to interweave all the elements of this story into a single film about one familys search for freedom and justice.

The production team travelled to five countries and took a total of six years to finish the film, with two and a half years dedicated just to editing the film.

Finding Courage is the winner of at least 7 film festivals and has been an Official Selection of 20 film festivals.

The trailer for the documentary is available at https://findingcourage.vhx.tv/
Facts Matter (May 10): Arizona Senate Tells Maricopa Officials to Turn Over Routers or Face Subpoenas

Farmers in the Midwest are suing the Biden administration, saying that they werent allowed to participate in a federal loan program due to the fact that they are white.

In Oklahoma, the governor has signed a new law that prohibits the teaching of critical race theory in all of Oklahomas public schools. However, in Washington State, theyve taken a different approach. The Washington governor signed into law a bill that requires mandatory critical race training in all public schools.

As the audit continues in Arizona, Maricopa County officials are facing a possible subpoena for not turning over routers and machine passwords.

Facts Matter is an Epoch Times show available on YouTube.

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Former Liberal MP Warns of Ideological Bias in Federal Green Economy

A former Liberal MP said the federal governments environmental program is built on an ideological bias that is trying to dismantle Canadas economy, a House committee heard last week.

Dan McTeague, a former Liberal MP and president of the Canadians for Affordable Energy, told the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology on May 6 that the federal governments green economy recovery plan is piling more debt on Canadians, aggravating the economy downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Governments are using, unfortunately, the excuse of COVID to spend even more, causing massive debt in our country, McTeague said. Any economic hit from the pandemic is, of course, to be expected. What is not expected is the piling on more debt and wasteful spending under the guise of a response, when in fact, spending, aimed at redesigning the economy, in the image of the governments ideological bias.

McTeague identified four major carbon taxes set out in various federal programs that he says will endanger Canadians livelihoods and the countrys competitiveness. First is the federal carbon tax, now set to be raised to $170 per tonne by 2030, which will cost Canadian families thousands of dollars in additional annual spending. Second is the federal clean fuel standards, which amounts to a second carbon tax that will also drive up the energy price for consumers.

According to McTeague, the changes made to the National Building Codes, aimed at addressing climate change, will function as a third carbon tax, as the updates will likely make already expensive housing even more unaffordable.

What if you cant have an affordable furnace in your home? What if youre required to meet a new building standard that dramatically raises the cost of basic energy services? This is what is, in fact, coming to us, McTeague said.

The National Research Council (NRC) updates Canadas construction codes every five years. The NRC will be setting new energy-efficiency requirements nationwide in the next National Building Code and the National Energy Code for Buildings, which can be expected in coming years.

Finally, McTeague noted that federal subsidies targeting green energy sectors such as electric bus and biofuel companies are also taking away huge numbers of taxpayers hard-earned dollars.

These and other government actions are massive expenditures, that will not expedite recovery, McTeague said. Some government spending will provide temporary boost, but that will have the net effect of enriching a handful of those who have placed themselves strategically close to the government, and, of course, decision-makers.

Fresh nuts, bolts, and fittings are ready to be added to the east leg of the pipeline near St. Ignace as Enbridge prepares to test the east and west sides of the Line 5 pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac in Mackinaw City, Mich., on June 8, 2017. (Dale G Young/The Canadian Press/AP Photo)

Shutting Down Line 5

In an article published on May 7, McTeague warned of the dire outcomes of the closure of Enbridges Line 5 pipeline, which Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, proposed to shut down on May 12.

According to McTeague, Line 5 channels roughly 540,000 barrels of oil and other fossil fuel each day from the U.S. state of Wisconsin to the refineries in Sarnia, Ontario. That fuel is used to power the planes in Torontos Pearson Airport, provide gasoline at stations across central Canada, and heat up homes for Canadians in Ontario and Quebec.

If Line 5 is shut down, roughly 4,900 jobs in Sarnia may be lost, he said.

Our energy system is one of the most robust in the world. I think there is no debate on that. We are blessed with extraordinary fuels, technologies, and human knowhow. But were now under the spell of those who say it needs to change, McTeague told the industry committee.
People pump gas at a Costco gasoline station in Atlanta, Ga., on May 11, 2021. (Elijah Nouvelage/AFP via Getty Images)

Gas Prices Expected to Keep Rising in Wake of Colonial Pipeline Attack

Gas prices, already close to $3 a gallon after a cyberattack on Colonial Pipeline, are expected to keep rising through the week, especially in the eastern United States.

Were expecting to see price increases to continue through the week, and in particular in the southeast region and in the northeast, because we are seeing directly impacted areas along the terminals of the pipeline that remain out, Devin Gladden with the American Automobile Association (AAA) told The Epoch Times.

And so as we see imports, deliveries from trucks, fill that gap, that may mean that higher costs will be associated with those deliveries and that is certainly causing prices to increase at the pump for consumers, he added.

Prices rose six to seven cents on average per gallon in the southeast on Monday, according to AAA data. The average price nationwide as of Tuesday was $2.95 per gallon, with prices ranging from a low of $2.64 in southern states to a high of $4.10 per gallon in some western states and Illinois.

Gas prices were already rising before a group called DarkSide stole data from Colonial and locked its computers with ransomware, a method in which attackers hold crucial information from companies until theyre paid.

As a result, Colonial took certain systems offline, temporarily halting all pipeline operations.

The company operates a pipeline that spans more than 5,500 miles from Texas to New Jersey.

Colonial ships 100 million gallons of fuel per day, supplying stations up and down the East Coast, Robert Dauffenbach, senior associate dean of economic development and impact at the University of Oklahomas Price College of Business, told The Epoch Times.

Thats sort of an indication of how important that operation is to supply gasoline along the Eastern Coast, he said.

Traffic on I-95 passes oil storage tanks owned by the Colonial Pipeline Company in Linden, N.J., in a file photograph. (Mark Lennihan/AP Photo)

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the price of an unleaded regular gallon of gas rose from a longtime low of $1.87 in April 2020when much of the country was locked down due to the COVID-19 pandemicto $2.79 in March.

Rising fuel prices before the attack stemmed in part from a shortage of gas tanker drivers as other industries attracted people who may otherwise drive the trucks. The country has also seen higher demand in recent months, as well as a higher cost for oil.

Crippling Colonial, combined with the truck driver shortage, has led to stations in at least half a dozen states running out of gas, with long lines seen at stations across the East.

Supply remains adequate but distribution is not keeping up with the complexities of the transformed arena, experts said.

Gas stations in the impacted areas may see delayed deliveries and some pumps may not have gas until they are able to be refueled by tankers, Gladden said.

Federal and state authorities are stepping in to try to respond to the situation.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, signed an executive order suspending the gas tax in the state, while also increasing weight limits for trucks transporting fuel and prohibiting price gouging. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency, temporarily suspending some regulations for truck drivers.

On the federal level, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan issued an emergency fuel waiver, allowing stations to disregard vapor pressure requirements in several states, including Maryland and Pennsylvania. The Department of Transportation started surveying vessels qualified to carry petroleum products within the Gulf, canvassing rail operators to bring some on board to help transport fuel from ports, helping Colonial bring its line up and running on a manual basis, and previously issued an hours-of-service exemption to some 17 states.

Some of those actions may result in higher prices, particularly in the northeast of the country, according to Gladden.

Dauffenbach said he was not detecting price jumps yet, even with the stations running out in states like Virginia and Georgia.

So far, it hasnt reached epidemic proportions, he said.

Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm briefs reporters at the White House in Washington on May 11, 2021. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told reporters in Washington that one of Colonials major lines resumed operations on a manual basis and that the company is working on getting spurs, or smaller lines, up and running. The company expects to restore most operations by the end of the week, she added.

If not, Americans can expect a rise in prices, Dauffenbach said.

It will take a few days to ramp up operations. This pipeline has never been shut down before. It travels great distances. There is fuel in the pipe and then there is fuel, the offtake from the refineries, that have to be added, Granholm said at the White House briefing.

Demand spiked on Monday, hitting about 31 percent higher than an average day in February 2020, according to GasBuddy numbers.

Experts urged people not to hoard, as that process can itself lead to a jump in cost.

There is no need to panic buy, that will only cause the situation to be worse and the prices to go up higher, Gladden said.
Hillary Clinton Calls for Government Censorship of Social Media

Commentary

With Hillary Clinton, I didnt really expect a resurrection, but I knew that, if it happened, it would be a strange one. Sure enough, Hillarys back, and this time she makes a bizarre case for why digital moguls should not only censor more; they should also be forced to censor more by the U.S. government. Her point is that democracy itself requires this, a surpassingly odd claim for a former candidate of the party that calls itself democratic to make.

Lets turn to the video clip that Hillary Clinton recently released. The key sentences in an accompanying tweet are that democracies cant thrive when citizens cant agree on whats true.

Tech companies, she contends, have made algorithm-driven conspiracy rabbit holes a feature of our information ecosystem. Hence, there needs to be a reckoning and government itself must mandate censorship when its not being generated voluntarily by the digital companies.

To my way of thinking, this is an attack on free speech and on democracy. Its nothing less than a formula for tyranny. We can see this by looking more closely at Hillarys argument. Like most arguments, it turns on the truth of its basic premise. This premise is that democracy somehow requires its participants to agree on whats true. Hillary defines this to mean general unanimity on three things: facts, evidence, and truth.

Yet we have had a two-party system in this country virtually from its beginnings, and the two major parties have never in fact agreed on these things, not merely in times of great crisis, but even in calmer, more ordinary times. Hamilton and Jefferson, for example, disagreed on whether the Constitution gives the federal government the power to create a national bank. Hamilton said it does; Jefferson said no.

Both appealed to the Constitution. Jefferson said there was no specific authority in the document to create a bank. Hamilton insisted that nevertheless there was implied authority, since the Constitution proclaimed the goals or ends of government, and then gave Congress the power to do things necessary and proper to those ends. Thus, we have here, and on the part of two of the leading founders no less, basic disagreement on what the Constitution in fact permits.

Fast forward now to the LincolnDouglas debates in the middle of the 19th century. Lincoln accused his Democratic opponent Stephen Douglas of being pro-slavery. Douglas denied it, insisting he merely wanted to leave the slavery question up to each state and territory to decide for itself. Lincoln claimed that this attempt to evade the basic moral question was in fact the most pro-slavery position imaginable, because it concealed the wrong of slavery by hiding it behind a seemingly neutral procedure. Again, Lincoln and Douglas disagreed on the facts, on the evidence each side produced in support of its position, and on the truth itself.

More recently, toward the latter part of the 20th century, President Ronald Reagan proposed a missile defense program that leading Democrats said would never work. It was technically impossible. Reagan insisted that it would work. Democrats produced leading scientistsNobel laureate Hans Bethe, the Union of Concerned Scientiststo say it couldnt be done. Reagan produced his own luminariesEdward Teller, inventor of the hydrogen bomb, top scientists at Los Alamos and Livermore national laboratorieswho said the exact opposite. A basic dispute over facts!

This dispute over facts became a broader dispute over evidence and truth. Democrats went on to say that no missile defense could stop every incoming Soviet warhead. Reagan said that wasnt necessary, since deterrence could be achieved merely by blunting the force of a Soviet first strike against American land-based missiles and military targets. Bottom line: The initial dispute over technical possibilities became a broader dispute over what the real objective was, and what was necessary to get there.

Finally, lets consider the events of Jan. 6. While the Democrats insisted that they witnessed an insurrection, a terrorist attack, and an attempted coup, they never bothered to define these terms and match them up against what we actually saw, what actually happened. As many conservatives and Republicans have subsequently asked, is it possible to have an unarmed insurrection? The last insurrection against the U.S. government was in 1861, the attack on Fort Sumter. Can Jan. 6 reasonably be compared to that?

The other terms seem equally preposterous. Coups are forcible attempts to overthrow a government and seize power, as with the Pinochet coup in Chile. Yet on Jan. 6 no one even stuck around the Capitol for more than an hour or so. What kind of coup attempt is that? Finally, is it possible to have a terrorist attack without anyone being killed? The only person intentionally killed on Jan. 6 was Ashli Babbitt, a Trump supporter, shot by a Capitol Hill police officer. What resemblance is there between Jan. 6 and genuine terrorist actions like the Oklahoma City bombing and 9/11? The answer is clearly none.

The basic point here is that truth is elusive. It doesnt come delivered on a silver platter. It emerges as a consequence of ongoing, spirited debate. Even the basic terms of the debate are often disputed. Facts are in dispute, evidence is in dispute, and truth is seldom agreed upon, if ever. This has been known at least since the time of Socrates, who said that ignorance is mans natural condition and knowing how little we know is the first step toward wisdom.

Hillarys clear motivation is to make herself, and her party, and the digital moguls that are allied with her side, proprietors of the truth. They get to say what facts are really facts, minimizing all facts inconvenient to their narrative. They get to decide what counts as evidence, dismissing evidence that strengthens the case of the other side. They become custodians of truth itself, and arrogate to themselves the right to silence the other side in the name of protecting truth from error.

In the name of protecting democracy, Hillary is attacking democracy, because democracy requires free and open debate so that citizens can see the diverse courses of action available to them, and hear the competing cases for going one way instead of another way. Only then can they make wise decisions upon adjudicating the merits of the facts, evidence, and arguments presented to them. We can either have the robust give-and-take of genuine democracy, or we can let Hillary and her ilk decide everything for us, and rule tyrannically over us.

Dinesh DSouza is an author, filmmaker, and daily host of the Dinesh DSouza podcast.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Pastor Artur Pawlowski moments after he drove police on a COVID-19 check out of his church in Calgary, Canada, on April 3, 2021. (Screenshot YouTube via The Epoch Times)

I Woke Up in Hong Kong: Canadian Pastor Artur Pawlowski Speaks After Release

Canadian pastor Artur Pawlowski, who was arrested Saturday for allegedly violating public health orders by holding church services during the pandemic, said he felt like he was living in Hong Kong after he was released from jail on Monday night.

I just woke up in Hong Kong a few days ago, Pawlowski said in an interview with Newsmax hours after his release. I mean, I thought I emigrated to our beloved Canada, but I am in Hong Kong, full force.

Hong Kong people have been fighting for freedom in the past few years but have been brutally crushed by the CCP (China Communist Party)-backed local government, and many activists were recently arrested.

Its insanityarresting pastor[s], shutting down churches. Craziness, Pawlowski added.

Pawlowski and his brother were arrested Saturday on a highway by a SWAT team. He and his brother both were released Monday night.

Earlier today, police arrested two organizers of a church service who were in violation of a new court order obtained by Alberta Health Services (AHS) in relation to mandatory compliance of public health orders for gatherings, said the Calgary Police Service in a statement on Saturday.

Pawlowski drew headlines several weeks ago after he kicked police officers out of his church and compared them to the Nazi Gestapo paramilitary forces.

Pastor Artur Pawlowski drives police and public health officials on a COVID-19 check out of the Fortress (Cave) of Adullam Church in Calgary, Canada, on Saturday, April 3, 2021. (Screenshot Youtube via The Epoch Times)

I have become, with my brother, a political prisoner. We were taken to custody, thrown on the police van like a piece of meat, and we were denied access to the lawyer for 24 hours, Pawlowski continued.

Its horrible. Its a repetition of history, Pawlowski said. I grew up behind the Iron Curtain. Ive seen the police abuse of power, people being arrestedyou could be arrested at five in the morning, the doors could be broken for no reason. Just listening to a European radio, [would] warrant them to torture you, arrest you, and throw you in jail for five years.

Pawlowski emigrated from Poland to Canada in the 1990s. He and his brother have held gatherings and have denied officials entry into their church located in Dover, Calgary. He has also been fined repeatedly for violating public health orders by holding church services.

I escaped communism. I escaped Poland because I wanted to come to a country that is free, Pawlowski added. And here we are again, repeating the same mistakes, the same history. And I have to stand up and fight for my rightsnot for doing evil, for just opening [the] church for the people that freely want to come and worship their God.

Alberta announced new mandatory health restrictions on May 4 to help stop the spread of COVID-19 and protect the health system.

These measures include new restrictions prohibiting all indoor gatherings, public or private; outdoor gatherings have a limit of five people maximum, or 10 people maximum for areas with lower cases; for places of worships, 15 in-person attendees are the maximum or 15 percent of fire code occupancy for areas with lower cases.

The city of Calgary announced that the enforcement of public health orders would continue to be a priority.

Jack Phillips contributed to this report.
Indiana Court Tosses Lawsuit of Gay Teacher Fired by Catholic High School

An Indiana court has dismissed a lawsuit brought against the Archdiocese of Indianapolis by a Catholic high school teacher who was fired over his same-sex marriage.

The lawsuit was filed by Joshua Payne-Elliott, who had worked as a world language and social studies teacher at Cathedral High School in Indianapolis for 13 years. In 2019, the archdiocese threatened to strip the Catholic status of Cathedral and Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School, where Payne-Elliotts same-sex partner worked, if the couple remained on their staff.

Cathedral promptly fired Payne-Elliott, but Brebeuf refused and, as a result, split with the archdiocese. Payne-Elliott sued after his dismissal, alleging the archdiocese interfered with his employment contract.

The trial court initially ruled that the lawsuit could proceed, but the Indiana Supreme Court sent it back for reconsideration. Lance Hamner, the new trial court judge assigned to the case, on May 7 issued a one-page order of dismissal, which did not include any explanation other than lack of jurisdiction for the claims.

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a legal group representing the archdiocese, applauded the decision, saying in a press release that the ruling ensured students and families receive an authentic Catholic education.

If the First Amendment means anything, it means the government cant punish the Catholic Church for asking Catholic educators to support Catholic teaching, said Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket. This has always been a very simple case, because the Supreme Court has repeatedly affirmed the freedom of religious schools to choose teachers who support their religious faith.

Meanwhile, Payne-Elliotts attorney, Kathleen DeLaney, complained about the courts lack of explanation, saying that the decision itself offers no reason, no rationale, no basis.

What happened here is the Archdiocese of Indianapolis instructed Cathedral High School to terminate the employment of highly-respected and long-serving teacher because of who he is and who he loves, DeLaney told The Indianapolis Star. Cathedral caved to that pressure and terminated him. Thats what the case is about.

The case gained national attention, including that of Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill and the Department of Justice under the Trump administration. Both filed an amicus brief in favor of the archdiocese, urging the court to throw out the case to avoid judicial interference with religious freedom guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.

The suit should have been dismissed immediately under the First Amendments longstanding protections for church autonomy, Hill said in his brief.

U.S. Attorney Josh Minkler for the Southern District of Indiana agreed with Hill, saying in in a 2019 press release that there is no more fundamental constitutional principle on the proper relationship between church and state than that the government must leave religious decisions to religious organizations.

In March, the Roman Catholic Churchs doctrinal office issued a formal response to a question about whether Catholic clergy have the authority to bless same-sex unions. The answer, which was published in seven languages for the 1.3 billion believers around the world, is that such relationships are not part of Gods plan and should not be blessed.
White Convicted of Federal Sex Crime in IL

By West Kentucky Star Staff

BENTON - A Paducah man was convicted of a federal sex crime in Illinois.The trial of Kenneth D. White was held last week at the federal courthouse in Benton. He faced a charge of travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual contact. The trial concluded on Wednesday when the jury returned with a guilty verdict. Sentencing is set for July 15.White was arrested in Metropolis last June after FBI agents said he drove across the state line, believing he was meeting a man who would let him have sex with the man's 10-year-old daughter. White had been communicating with the man by email and text messages, some of which were explicit, but the man was actually an undercover agent.At the time of his arrest, White was the owner of two Paducah restaurants, Ken's Place and Gold Rush Cafe. Ken's place didn't reopen after his arrest, but Gold Rush Cafe was sold in July.
Glenn Youngkin, the then-COO of the Carlyle Group, participates in an event in Washington on May 15, 2017. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Investor Glenn Youngkin Wins Republican Nomination in Virginia Gubernatorial Race

First-time candidate Glenn Youngkin was nominated on Monday by Republicans in Virginias gubernatorial race.

Youngkin, 54, defeated businessman Pete Snyder and six other candidates.

I am prepared to lead, excited to serve, and profoundly humbled by the trust the people have placed in me. Virginians have made it clear that they are ready for a political outsider with proven business experience to bring real change in Richmond, Youngkin said in a statement.

Republican delegates cast their votes at polling locations on May 8 and it took several days to tabulate the results.

Youngkin has touted his outsider status. He has said his real-world business experience will help him lead Virginia if hes chosen by voters in November.

Among the policy stances hes forwarded are opposition to critical race theory in schools and challenging Big Tech companies that censor conservatives.

Glenn ran a fantastic and flawless campaign, and I look forward to throwing my full support and the full force of the Republican Party of Virginia behind him in the coming months, Rich Anderson, chairman of the Virginia GOP, said in a statement.

Snyder said Youngkin deserved the win after running a tremendous race.

At least one Republican who lost has suggested a third-party run.

State Sen. Amanda Chase, a Republican, indicated over the weekend she will run as an independent in November. She said the Republican convention, where the votes were cast, was run by never Trumpers, or Republicans who oppose former President Donald Trump.

Anderson on Monday called for Republicans to unite behind Youngkin.

Democrats wasted no time in attacking Youngkin.

Terry McAuliffe, who is attempting to reenter the governors mansion after serving from 2014 to 2018, called him a Trump loyalist wholl stop at nothing to advance the GOPs extreme agenda.

Tellers begin counting ballots for Virginias Republican gubernatorial nominee race inside a ballroom at the Marriott Hotel in Richmond, Va., on May 10, 2021. (Bob Brown/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP)

Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe speaks in Norfolk, Va., on March 1, 2020. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Susan Swecker, chairwoman of the Virginia Democratic Party, claimed that Republicans nominated a far-right extremist who has demonstrated total allegiance to Donald Trump.

But Republicans countered the messaging by promoting Youngkin as a chance to right what they describe as a damaged state.

His successful career in business brings an outsiders perspective to a state that has been damaged by years of Democrat control. Youngkins focus on getting kids back in schools, rebuilding Virginias economy, and fighting for our Constitutional rights make him a formidable candidate, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, chairman of the Republican Governors Association, said in a statement.

Trump endorsed Youngkin on Tuesday, calling him pro-Business, pro-Second Amendment, pro-Veterans, pro-America.

He knows how to make Virginias economy rip-roaring, and he has my Complete and Total Endorsement! Trump said in a statement.

Virginia governors cannot hold office for two consecutive terms. The current governor is Ralph Northam, a Democrat. Before McAuliffe, Republican Bob McDonnell was governor. The state in recent decades has seen both Republicans and Democrats at the helm after a lengthy period of time1874 to 1970of unbroken Democrat control.

Virginia went for Republican presidential candidates for many years beginning in 1952 but flipped to Democrats for four straight races starting with Barack Obama in 2008. Trump lost in the state by about 200,000 votes to Democrat candidate Hillary Clinton in 2016 and by about 450,000 votes to Democrat candidate Joe Biden in 2020.
An Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) fast in-shore attack craft (FIAC), a type of speedboat armed with machine guns, speeds near U.S. naval vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, on May 10, 2021. (U.S. Navy via AP)

Iran Rejects US Claim That Speedboats Sparked Encounter

TEHRAN, IranIrans powerful Revolutionary Guard on Tuesday rejected the U.S. Navys claim that fast-approaching Iranian speedboats in the Strait of Hormuz sparked a tense encounter in the already sensitive region.

The Guards website, sepahnews.com, published a statement Tuesday saying Americans were guilty of using false narratives and unprofessional behavior and should more strictly abide by international regulations. Specifically, the statement said the Guards navy warned the U.S. vessels to stop their provocative and aimless shooting.

A day earlier, the U.S. said the Revolutionary Guard sent 13 armed speedboats too close to U.S. Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday. The Americans said a Coast Guard cutter fired warning shots when two of the Iranian boats came dangerously close.

The exchange comes as the United States and Iran engage in indirect talks in Vienna aimed at reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which the United States left in 2018.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby declined to comment when asked about the Iranians intentions.

Sadly, harassment by the IRGC Navy is not a new phenomenon. It is something that all of our commanding officers and the crews of our vessels are trained to for, Kirby told reporters at the Pentagon. This activity is the kind of activity that could lead to somebody getting hurt and could lead to a real miscalculation there in the region, and that doesnt serve anybodys interests.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby speaks during a briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, on May 5, 2021. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Photo)

It was the second time in two weeks that a U.S. ship opened fire to warn vessels of Irans paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.

On April 26, an American warship fired warning shots when vessels of Irans Revolutionary Guard came too close to a patrol in the Persian Gulf. That was the first such shooting in nearly four years. The Navy released black-and-white footage of that encounter in international waters of the northern reaches of the Persian Gulf near Kuwait, Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia.

In the latest incident, Kirby said 13 Iranian vessels maneuvered at high speed toward six Navy ships that were escorting the guided missile submarine USS Georgia through the Strait on Monday. The sub was sailing on the surface.

The six Navy escort ships included the guided missile cruiser USS Monterey. A day earlier, the Monterey had intercepted an arms shipment aboard a dhow in the Arabian Sea apparently headed for Yemen, whose Houthi rebels are supported by Iran.

They were acting very aggressively, Kirby said of the Iranian boats.

At one point, two of the Iranian boats broke away from the others and positioned themselves on the other side of the U.S. ship formation. The two then sped toward some of the U.S. ships. In an attempt to deescalate the situation, U.S. crews issued multiple warnings to both groups of Iranian boats, including repeated bridge-to-bridge verbal warnings, said Navy Cmdr. Rebecca Rebarich, a Navy 5th Fleet spokesperson.

After the two Iranian boats failed to respond to the multiple warnings and closed to within 300 yards, the Coast Guard cutter Maui fired a volley of warning shots from its .50-caliber machine gun. It fired another volley when the Iranian boats got within 150 yards.

The two Iranian boats then altered course and increased their distance from the U.S. forces, Rebarich said.

Iran regularly rejects the U.S. Navys claims with regard to similar incidents.
Rockets are launched by Palestinian militants into in Gaza, Israel, on May 10, 2021. (Mohammed Salem/Reuters)

Israel Kills High-Level Hamas Commander During Airstrike: IDF

The Israeli Defense Forces confirmed it killed a high-level Hamas commander during an airstrike against the designated terrorist group.

We just killed the commander of the Hamas anti-tank missile unit, Iyad Fathi Faik Sharir. He was in charge of carrying out anti-tank missile attacks on Israel. Our aircraft are currently striking additional terror targets in Gaza, the Israel Defense Force (IDF) wrote on Twitter Tuesday as it launched attacks in Gaza.

Israel said that it would continue to launch attacks against Hamas after the group fired hundreds of rockets into Jerusalem, the capital, and other parts of the country.

Some 130 Palestinian targets were struck by the IDF on Monday and Tuesday, according to another statement.

We just killed the commander of the Hamas anti-tank missile unit, Iyad Fathi Faik Sharir. He was in charge of carrying out anti-tank missile attacks on Israel. Our aircraft are currently striking additional terror targets in Gaza.  Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) May 11, 2021

Overnight, in response to continuous rocket fire from the Gaza Strip at Israeli territory, the IDF struck over 130 terror targets belonging to terror organizations in the Gaza Strip, the IDF said. In the first and second stages of the strikes, IDF fighter jets, attack helicopters and aircraft struck weapons manufacturing sites belonging to the Hamas terror organization.

Reports, including one from the Times of Israel, said that some 200 mortars and rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel on Monday and Tuesday. A number of those projectiles were intercepted by Israels Iron Dome missile defense system.

So far, reports have indicated that 30 Palestinians and three Israelis have died.

Flames and smoke rise during air strikes amid a flare-up of violence, in the southern Gaza Strip, on May 11, 2021. (Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/TPX Images of the Day/Reuters)

A 13-story residential Gaza block collapsed amid the airstrikes. Late into the night, Gazans reported their homes shaking and the sky lighting up with near-constant Israeli strikes.

Israelis ran for shelters in communities more than 45 miles up the coast amid sounds of explosions as Israeli interceptor missiles streaked into the sky. Israel said hundreds of rockets had been fired by Palestinian terrorist groups.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that terror groups would pay a very heavy price for the rockets, which reached the outskirts of Jerusalem on Monday during a holiday in Israel commemorating its capture of East Jerusalem in a 1967 war.

We are at the height of a weighty campaign, Netanyahu said in televised remarks alongside his defense minister and military chief.

Reuters contributed to this report.
Job Openings Soar to Record High as Businesses Struggle to Find Workers

American employers posted a record number of available jobs in March, highlighting the hiring woes of businesses, with some blaming the pandemic-related federal unemployment boost for sidelining workers.

Job openings rose nearly 8 percent month-over-month to 8.1 million in March, the highest number in the history of the series, which dates back to December 2000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said in a release Tuesday (pdf).

At the same time, a jobs report released last week showed that Americas private employers in April added a paltry 266,000 jobsa proxy for new hiresdespite sky-high availability of jobs and an unemployment rate of 6.1 percent, mostly because businesses seem unable to find the workers they need.

Mark Fox, a New York City restaurant owner, told the Epoch Times that even though business is now finally starting to pick up, hiring troubles have slowed down the momentum.

We have difficulty hiring hourly workers, bartenders, servers, bar-backs, busboys, runners, overnight cleaning staff, Fox said.

We are probably 60 employees short, he said. I have one restaurant in Greenwich Village that I havent reopened yet because they dont have the manpower.

Following the release of last weeks disappointing jobs report, President Joe Biden sought to fend off claims that the enhanced unemployment boost was creating a disincentive for people to take jobs and so driving the sharp slowdown in April hiring.

Biden was asked at a press conference on May 7 whether the federal $300 weekly jobless benefit top-upabove and beyond what states providehad any effect on diminishing a return to work.

No, nothing measurable, Biden said.

At a White House briefing on Monday, Biden said his administration would work with states on renewing requirements that workers cannot turn down a suitable job they are offered and continue to collect federal jobless benefits.

Were going to make it clear that anyone who is collecting unemployment who is offered a suitable job must take the job or lose their unemployment benefits, Biden said, adding that there would be a few COVID-19-related exceptions to the guidance.

The Labor Department is expected to send a letter to states to reaffirm that individuals receiving UI may not continue to receive benefits if they turn down a suitable job due to a general, non-specific concern about COVID-19, the White House said in a release.

The White House noted exemptions from the policy for workers who are unable to take a job due to child care responsibilities or the worksite is not complying with federal or state health guidelines.

Republican governors in a number of statesincluding Alabama, Arkansas, Montana, and South Carolinaare responding to business hiring woes by ending the federal unemployment boost ahead of its scheduled termination date in September.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, too, has called for an early end to the $300 jobless supplement.

The disappointing jobs report makes it clear that paying people not to work is dampening what should be a stronger jobs market, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Chief Policy Officer Neil Bradley said in a statement on May 7. One step policymakers should take now is ending the $300 weekly supplemental unemployment benefit. Based on the Chambers analysis, the $300 benefit results in approximately one in four recipients taking home more in unemployment than they earned working.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, speaking at a press conference on May 7, dismissed claims that the weekly jobless top-up was discouraging people from taking jobs.

I really dont think the major factor is the extra unemployment, she said, arguing that the jobs data tends to be volatile and the broader trend is positive, pointing out that, on average, the economy has added around half a million jobs monthly in the past three months.

Theres no question that were hearing from businesses that they are having difficulty hiring workers, Yellen acknowledged, although she said that the hard-hit leisure and hospitality sector showed strong job gains in April.

We saw a promising growth of 331,000 jobs in leisure and hospitality, which includes the restaurants and bars that have been so badly battered by this pandemic, she said.

The economy is still around 8 million jobs below pre-COVID levels.

Bowen Xiao contributed to this report.
John Velazquez riding Medina Spirit leads Florent Geroux on Mandaloun and Flavien Prat riding Hot Rod Charlie to win the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., on May 1, 2021. (Jeff Roberson/AP Photo)

Kentucky Derby Winner Medina Spirit Treated With Ointment That Had Betamethasone: Bob Baffert

The winner of the Kentucky Derby, Medina Spirit, was treated with an ointment that included betamethasone, said its trainer, Bob Baffert.

Medina Spirit, a thoroughbred race horse, failed a post-derby drug test for the anti-inflammatory steroid betamethasone, putting the horses race into question.

Baffert, in a statement released by his lawyer, said the horse was treated with an ointment.

Following the Santa Anita Derby, Medina Spirit developed dermatitis on his hind end. I had him checked out by my veterinarian who recommended the use of an anti-fungal ointment called Otomax. The veterinary recommendation was to apply this ointment daily to give the horse relief, help heal the dermatitis and prevent it from spreading, the statement released Tuesday reads.

Betamethasone is allowed in horse racing, but Medina Spirits test detected 21 picograms per milliliter, which is more than double the allowed limit for a drug test.

While we do not know definitively that this was the source of the alleged 21 picograms found in Medina Spirits post-race blood sample, and our investigation is continuing, I have been told by equine pharmacology experts that this could explain the test results. As such, I wanted to be forthright about this fact as soon as I learned of this information, Bafferts statement also said.

Medina Spirit is a deserved champion and I will continue to fight for him, Baffert continued to say. His lawyer told ESPN that the plan is for the horse to race during the Preakness on Saturday.

Baffert has since been banned from entering any of his horses at the Kentucky Derby, an annual race at the Churchill Downs track in Louisville.

Earlier, the trainer said that the horse wasnt treated with betamethasone.

They know everything we give them and we have to write it down, we turn it in. So they know every medication this horse has gotten and betamethasone is not one of them, Baffert said this week in an interview with CNN. Thats the troubling part of it. He wasnt administered that drug.

According to reports, a second blood test sample will now be administered, but that will not be available for at least four to eight weeks. If the blood sample comes back positive, Medina Spirit will lose the Kentucky Derby prize, and second-place Mandaloun will be named the winner.

Meanwhile, the $1.86 million first-place prize will be handed over to Mandaloun.

Former President Donald Trump weighed in on the scandal this week, saying that it is emblematic of whats happening to our country.

So now even our Kentucky Derby winner, Medina Spirit, is a junky  The whole world is laughing at us as we go to hell, he added.
An adorable leopard cub pounces on and plays with its very fed up looking mum in the Masai Mara in Kenya (Leighton Lum / Caters News)

Leopards Escape in a Large Chinese City, Zoo Silent for Over 2 Weeks

Recently, three leopards escaped from a safari park in Hangzhou, a city of over 10 million. The park kept the incident quiet for more than two weeks, worried about affecting business during Chinas May holiday week (May 1- May 6), and thus, endangering public safety.

After sightings of leopards wandering the city were reported and it became the most searched topic on Chinese social media, local authorities eventually sent out search teams. Soon, netizens and media criticized their treatment of the cats as animal cruelty.

On May 10, at a press conference held by Hongzhou city government, Hangzhou Wildlife World executives admitted that three leopards escaped on April 19 when two zoo staff failed to follow safety regulations while cleaning cages. The parks upper management decided to not inform the public but would search for them privately.

At the press conference, the deputy mayor of Hangzhou confirmed the incident and accused the park of concealing what happened.

Details about what happened next were given at the press conference. On the evening of April 21, one of the leopards was captured. That night, Zhang Mouquan, the parks general manager, met with other upper management and again decided to continue to conceal the animals escape, to prohibit employees from reporting it to the outside world, and to continue to quietly search for the other two leopards.

According to Chinese media, as early as May 1, a tea farmer ran into a leopard and took photos of it in Zhuantang Street in Hangzhou city. On May 6, a local resident reported to the Zhuantang police station that he had seen a leopard. On the evening of May 7, another resident reported to the police that a leopard was seen at a high-end villa complex in Fuyang District of Hangzhou.

Security footage showing the leopard walking inside the residential area was posted online.

The series of leopard sightings in the largest city in Zhejiang Province subsequently attracted the attention of netizens across the country. Officials eventually got involved when it became the most searched item on Chinese social media Weibo.

When authorities and media asked the park what was going on, a park spokesperson denied that any animals had escaped, until May 8 when the park announced a temporary closure.

After the second Leopard was spotted on May 7, Hangzhou Wildlife World under pressure finally reported the situation to the local authorities. As the escaped animals were attracting increasing attention nation wide, the local government sent a large number of personnel, hunting dogs, and drones to search for the leopards.

The search videos posted online and on Chinese media have caused concerns and criticism from netizens, both domestic and abroad, citing animal cruelty due to the methods that the search team used.

On May 8, a popular video posted on Weibo showed a leopard being pulled to the ground by four search dogs in the woods. It was no longer able to struggle yet the search and rescue personnel can be heard saying to the dogs, keep biting it to death.

Initially, the Chinese media reported that the second leopard has been found and killed by search and rescue dogs. Later, the news was updated, stating, the second leopard has been found and successfully sedated and rescued. Its accompanied by a video of a leopard in a cage.

However, netizens pointed out that the leopards back paw looks broken and part is missing. On May 9, local governments propaganda department denied that the cat was harmed and claimed the second captured leopard was healthy.

Meanwhile, media reports also show that the search team used 90 live chickens as bait to lure the leopards out in the woods.

As of May 10, the third leopard is still at large.

On the same day, according to Chinese media, five members of the parks upper management, including the legal representative and the general manager, were arrested and the incident continues to be investigated.
An American flag flies near the West Front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Jan. 9, 2021. (Al Drago/Getty Images)

Minnesota Black School Choice Movement Explicitly Rejects Narrative That America Is Racist

A school choice movement aimed at serving Minnesotas black community has vowed to tackle the notion that the United States is a racist nation, saying such narratives are structured to undermine the lives of black Americans.

The newly founded organization, TakeCharge Minnesota, describes itself on its website as seeking to inspire and educate the black community and other minority groups in the Twin Cities to take charge of their own lives, the lives of the families and communities, as citizens fully granted to them in the Constitution.

We acknowledge that racist people exist in the country, but explicitly reject the notion that the United States of America is a racist country, the organization states. We also denounce the idea that the country is guilty of systemic racism, white privilege and abhor the concept of identity politics and the promotion of victimhood in minority communities.

According to the website, the organization is headed by Kendall Qualls, a health care executive and Army veteran. He was also a Republican contender for Minnesotas 3rd Congressional District, which remains occupied by incumbent Democrat Rep. Dean Phillips following the 2020 election.

People who helped me in life were black and white, rich and poor, male and female, gay and straight, Qualls said in March in an interview with the Minnesota Reformer. Americans help each other when they see someone trying to better their lot in life, and most Americans dont put a filter on it based on skin color.

To me, its insulting to hear that black people cant get ahead because of systemic racism, he told the outlet.

TakeCharge Minnesota also lists five core doctrines it wants to promote, including the one that says restoring the two-parent black family should be a priority both locally and nationally, a belief in opposition to that of the Black Lives Matter organization, which calls for an end to the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure.

The nuclear family is the bedrock of any society and it has been decimated and ignored in the Black community for five decades, TakeCharge Minnesota declares, adding that raising children in a marriage is the best way to reduce poverty, combat inequality, and develop socially productive children.

School choice programs have gained popularity in recent years among the nations black families, plenty of which have been benefited from the expansion of high-quality public school alternatives, especially those in low-income neighborhoods. An October 2020 survey by conservative think tank Manhattan Institute found that between 51 and 62 percent of all respondents supported state funding of charter schools. This support was higher for black respondents in all states and ranged from 58 to 67 percent.
A trucker waits at the Canada Customs booth in Sarnia, Ontario, on March 16, 2020. (Geoff Robins/AFP via Getty Images)

Montana Offers Free COVID-19 Vaccines to Canadian Truck Drivers

Some Canadian commercial truck drivers hauling along routes in the United States are now eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines in Montana at no cost to themselves, according to officials.

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a deal (pdf) on May 7 with the Premier of Alberta, Jason Kenney, under which Alberta commercial truck drivers who are regulated to transport goods into the United States will be offered the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine while in Montana.

The pandemic has had devastating consequences, including a severe impact on our economies, Gianforte said in a statement. By working together and taking this critical action, we keep our trade channels open between Montana and Alberta.

Under the deal, Montana will offer COVID-19 jabs to Alberta truckers entering and exiting the state between May 10 and May 23. Both the duration and scope of the program have the potential to be expanded, according to a Memorandum of Understanding that underpins the deal.

Were doing everything we can to get a vaccine into Albertans arms as fast as possible, including by forging this innovative agreement with Montana, Kenney said in a statement.

The vaccines are being offered at a mobile inoculation site at a rest stop near Conrad, Montana, about 60 miles south of the U.S.-Canada border, along Interstate 15. The service is free of charge and theres no requirement to book ahead.

Around 2,000 commercial drivers from Alberta are eligible to receive a shot under the program, which also extends to Montana and other U.S.-based truckers. Montana will bear the cost of staffing the vaccine site, as well as supply and administration expenses, according to the agreement.

Alberta depends on trade with our American neighbours and this program will ensure our goods get to market while stopping the spike of COVID-19, Kenney said in the statement.

Montana authorities will provide proof of vaccination to the drivers once theyve received the jab, according to the agreement.

Truckers have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic to keep our goods moving and shelves stocked, said Ric McIver, Albertas minister of transportation.

This agreement with our American neighbours will help us protect Alberta truckers who cross the border while vaccinating as many Albertans as quickly as we can, McIver added.

Around 800 commercial truck drivers cross the Alberta-Montana border each day, on average.
The Capitol during the coronavirus outbreak in Washington on March 16, 2020. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

More Hill Republicans Voted Against Wasteful Spending in 2020, but Supported Earmarks

Congressional Republicans voted much more strongly against wasteful federal spending in the months leading up to the 2020 election than they did in 2019, according to data compiled by Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW).

Many of the same Republicans in the House, however, voted earlier this year to support a Democratic proposal to restore earmarks, the individual provisions in much larger bills that direct tax dollars to projects in an individual congressmans state or district, often inserted by congressional leaders in return for the members support of the overall measure.

For 2020, 16 senators and 80 representatives earn the coveted title of Taxpayer Super-Hero by achieving the highest possible score of 100 percent. In 2019, two senators and 27 representatives received a perfect score, CAGW said in a May 10 statement.

For 2020, there are 33 Taxpayer Heroes in the Senate and 105 in the House of Representatives. In 2019, there were 14 Taxpayers Heroes in the Senate and 135 in the House.

At the other end of the spectrum in 2020, nine senators and 176 representatives have a score of zero. In 2019, 38 senators and 34 representatives had a score of zero.

The CAGW ratings were based on 35 House votes and 11 Senate votes during the second session of the 116th Congress in 2020. Members receiving the highest ranking voted 100 percent of the time in agreement with CAGWs position.

Those receiving the next highest ranking supported the non-profits anti-wasteful spending position at least 90 percent of the time.

Republicans controlled the Senate in 2020 52-48, while Democrats controlled the House, 232-196.

All of the highest rated senators and representatives in 2020 were Republicans, while all of the zero-rated members were Democrats.

The Taxpayer Super Heroes for 2020 in the Senate included senators John Barrasso of Wyoming, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Mike Braun of Indiana, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Michael Enzi of Wyoming, Deb Fischer of Nebraska, James Inhofe of Oklahoma, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, James Lankford of Oklahoma, David Perdue of Georgia, Ben Sasse of Nebraska, Tim Scott of South Carolina, Rick Scott of Florida, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, and Todd Young of Indiana.

The lowest ranked Republicans included Sen. Susan Collins of Maine with a 50, and Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado and Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, each with a 67.

The highest ranked Senate Democrat was Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia with a 31.

Democrats with a zero ranking included senators Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Kamala Harris of California, Edward Markey of Massachusetts, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Brian Schatz of Hawaii, Chuck Schumer of New York, and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island.

Senate Republicans scored an average ranking of 90 percent, compared to Senate Democrats at 9 percent. In the House, Democrats scored an average ranking of 2 percent, while Republicans were at 90 percent.

The highest scoring House Democrat was Rep. Ben McAdams of Utah with a ranking of 31 percent. A total of 80 House Republicans received 100 percent ranking, while 176, or 76 percent, of the House Democrats compiled a zero ranking.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania was the lowest ranking House Republican with a score of 15 percent.

The Senate votes on which the rankings are based included five on relief measures related to the CCP Virus that is also known as the novel coronavirus.

The House votes included five requiring reductions in total federal spending on specific government programs. All five of those proposed reductions were defeated.

Tom Schatz, CAGW President, told The Epoch Times Tuesday that the differences between 2019 and 2020 scores is due in part to the higher number of votes in the latter than the former year.

The 90 percent Senate Republican average in 2020 is closer to the usual Republican number, compared to the 64 percent average in 2019, Schatz said.

The Senate Democratic average of 9 percent is a higher than the usual Democratic average because there are only 10 votes. Since one of those votes was passage of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), more Democrats than usual got at least one vote correct, which both raised their average and cut the number of zeros from 38 to nine, Schatz continued.

If there had been as many votes in the Senate as in the House, one correct vote would have led to a rating of three rather than 10. Based on the votes so far in both the House and Senate, CAGW expects to have a larger number of votes to rate in 2021, he said.

Schatz also noted that House Republican support for earmarks, which were banned in 2011 as a result of the Tea Party Revolution in the 2010 elections, weakens the GOPs claim to be the party for limiting federal spending.

After House Republicans agreed to the Democrats proposal to restore earmarks and began asking for them soon thereafter, one of the reputational advantages Republicans had as the more fiscally conservative party was reduced, Schatz said.

They will still argue that President Joe Bidens spending bills are too big and the tax increases are unnecessary, but the more they participate in earmarks, the less credibility they have to make these arguments, he continued.

But earmarks can be used to entice them to vote for spending levels in all three bills that would still be more than they would ordinarily support, and they could also be used in exchange for support of smaller tax increases.

As CAGW has said about earmarks since the first Congressional Pig Book was issued in 1991, earmarks are a form of legalized bribery, and this time that process could be more costly to taxpayers than ever.
Aged care is said to receive a record commitment in funding. (Sam Mooy/Getty Images)

Morrison Government to Make the Most Significant Investment in Aged Care in Australian History

Australias latest federal budget is expected to announce the most significant investment in aged care in Australian history, almost doubling initial predictions, in response to a damning royal commission into the sector.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg declined to confirm whether the aged care package could be almost $18 billion over four years, merely noting it will be worth more than $10 billion over previous speculations.

It intends to upgrade home care and residential care, quality, safety, as well as skills and training initiatives for the workforce.

It is a very significant commitment designed to deal with what the royal commission has found to strengthen our system and ensure that older Australians can retire, can live with dignity, respect, and with safety, Frydenberg told the Nine Network.

Health and Aged Care Minister Greg Hunt also refused to release further details until the budget was revealed.

This will be the most significant investment in aged care in Australian history and its on our watch and our time and our responsibilities, was all Hunt told reporters in Melbourne.

However, the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) is concerned it still wont be adequate for the sector that has been neglected area for many years.

RACP spokesperson and President of the Australian and New Zealand Society for Geriatric Medicine, Dr. John Maddison said it is not enough to create systematic change even if the latest figure proves to be true, as we dont have enough resources to spend that money.

Is $10 billion over four years really going to be enough to resource the kind of system overhaul that would achieve integrated long-term healthcare support for older Australians? Maddison said.

The Royal Commission itself estimated that successive government cuts had already left a shortfall of almost $10 billion annually.

Australias peak national professional pharmacy organisation Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA)s latest statistics identified 98 percent of people living in aged care facilities have at least one medicine-related problem.

This can no longer be tolerated, National President Chris Freeman said.

He said the budget should fund pharmacists because they can prevent aged care resident deaths.

There is no denying that the current system is failing, and pharmacists are part of the solution. By embedding pharmacists in these facilities, we can safeguard residents from the harms medicines are causing and maximise their effectiveness in improving quality of life.

The Royal Commission was called for by Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

It identified the key priorities as investing more in quality, safety, availability in the workforce, and places in aged care.
Driver, Passenger Injured in Caldwell Crash

By West Kentucky Star Staff

CALDWELL COUNTY - Two people were injured in a weekend crash in Caldwell County.The Caldwell County Sheriff's Office said the accident happened Saturday night on US 62.Deputies said a vehicle driven by 41-year-old James Tanner of Eddyville went into a ditch and landed on its side.Tanner and his passenger were transported by ambulance to Caldwell County Medical Center for treatment of their injuries. Deputies did not release the passenger's name.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during a news conference in New York, on May 10, 2021. (Mary Altaffer/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

New York to Require University Students to Show Vaccination Proof

Students attending universities in New York wont be able to continue classes unless they get vaccinated against COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP virus.

The announcement was made by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo during a press briefing on Monday. The governor explained State University of New York (SUNY) and City University of New York (CUNY) will require CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus vaccination proof for students returning this fall.

So, today, no excuses. SUNY and CUNY boards will require vaccinations for all in-person students coming back to school in the fall, the Democratic governor said. Youre a young person. You go to a SUNY school, State University of New York, City University of New York, you must have a vaccine to come back in September.

The requirement will only be mandated in public universities, though Cuomo also encouraged private schools to follow suit.

I also encourage private schools to do the same thing, he said. Lets make a global statement. You cannot go back to school in person in September unless you have a vaccine.

The requirement will affect more than 435,000 full-time students and comes as Cuomo and other officials are offering a slew of incentives aimed at New Yorkers to get inoculated as they see the demand for vaccines declining.

Besides the university vaccination mandate, Cuomo also said subway riders will get free seven-day passes to the system for getting the vaccine at station sites that will dispense Johnson & Johnson, which will be starting on Wednesday.

You are walking into the subway station anyway. You are walking past the vaccination site. Its a one-shot vaccination. Stop, take a few minutes, get the vaccine, he said.

New York joins several institutions throughout the nation that are requiring students to show vaccination proof before returning to class, while other government officials have decided to ban such documents in their state.

Florida and Texas became the largest states in the nation that approved a bill banning so-called vaccine passports, credentials that could take the form of an app, or a physical document that indicates whether someone has been inoculated against the CCP virus.

Other states who prohibited the use of such documents include Wyoming, Montana, and Arizona, saying residents vaccination choices are private matters. Legislatures in Indiana and Iowa have recently passed bills seeking to block them. Similar measures are being proposed in Michigan, Tennessee, New Jersey, and New Hampshire.

Several other countries outside the United States, including Israel and Iceland, have mandated vaccine passports for certain activities.

Reuters contributed to this report.

From NTD News
No Sign Biden Administration Border Moves Are Working: Rep. Pfluger

There is no indication yet that any of President Joe Bidens actions relating to the border are working, Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas) told The Epoch Times.

I dont see anything yet, he said this week.

Under Biden, the number of illegal immigrants crossing into the United States from Mexico has skyrocketed. Over 177,000 illegal aliens were apprehended by Border Patrol agents in April, and another 42,620 evaded the authorities.

Thats up from about 110,000 immigrants being taken into custody in April 2019, and 17,106 being apprehended in April 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Biden administration has blamed the Trump administration for the surge, while critics and some experts pin the jump in crossings on the president reversing or altering a number of key Trump-era policies, such as the Remain in Mexico program. White House officials have claimed their policy changes need time to work.

One of the symptoms of the border crisis, Pfluger said, is the flights of illegal immigrants from 10 border airports to various interior states.

Approximately 7,200 migrants were assisted with document verification by the Transportation Security Agency (TSA) at the airports between Feb. 19 and April 22, enabling them to bypass standard identification requirements and board flights without confirmation of a negative COVID-19 test, a spokesman for the congressman said in an email. The data was provided to the House Committee on Homeland Security. Pfluger is a member of the committee.

I think you have to look at the reason that theyre being flown in and its because we have a crisis on the southern border, Pfluger told The Epoch Times.

Were on pace for up to 2 million illegal immigrants entering the country [this year]. And instead of actually addressing the problem, whats happening right now is were actually just adding more resources to process [them]. So its being done faster and faster now, where we should be addressing the problem. Were just getting them into the country faster; flying them is just one of the symptoms of this.

A spokesman for Democrats on the committee, the TSA, the Department of Homeland Security, and the White House did not respond to requests for comment. A Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson declined to comment.

President Joe Biden delivers remarks as Vice President Kamala Harris stands by in the East Room at the White House in Washington on May 10, 2021. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

Officials under previous administrations, including the Trump administration, flew immigrants from the border to the interior, but not in such large numbers.

Pfluger, a military veteran who entered office in January shortly before Biden did, is among the Republicans calling for the president and Vice President Kamala Harris to visit the border to see what is happening firsthand.

Their refusal to go signals theyre intent on other policies and issues as more important, he said.

A commander visits his troops, he added.

Biden told reporters in March that he would visit the border at some point. His travel as president thus far has primarily focused on promoting various plans and packages, such as a COVID-19 relief package that Democrats in Congress passed, and an infrastructure proposal that has been widely panned by Republicans.

Biden on March 24 tapped Harris to lead efforts to stem the border surge, but officials later described her role as addressing the root cause of illegal immigration by speaking with and visiting countries from which immigrants come, such as Guatemala and El Salvador.

Harris laughed when asked in March if she would visit the border. A short time later, she said she will go with Biden in the future.
Traffic on I-95 passes oil storage tanks owned by the Colonial Pipeline Company in Linden, N.J., on Sept. 8, 2008. (Mark Lennihan/AP Photo)

North Carolina Declares State of Emergency Over Fuel Supplies After Colonial Pipeline Attack

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency on Monday to help ensure adequate fuel supplies following the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack and subsequent shutdown.

Cooper issued an executive order (pdf) which temporarily suspends some motor vehicle regulations for truck drivers hauling in support of emergency relief efforts related to the shortages of gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, and other refined petroleum products.

Todays emergency declaration will help North Carolina prepare for any potential motor vehicle fuel supply interruptions across the state and ensure motorists are able to have access to fuel, Cooper said in a statement.

The executive order notes that uninterrupted supply of refined petroleum productsincluding diesel and gasolineis essential for the health, safety, and economic well-being of North Carolinians, and any delivery interruption threatens the public welfare.

The executive action directs officials to waive certain size and weight restrictions and penalties on truck drivers involved in fuel supply relief efforts.

All maximum hours of service for drivers prescribed by the North Carolina Department of Public Safety (DPS) have been suspended, as have certain registration and filing requirements.

The order also authorizes the secretary of the North Carolina DPS to seek assistance from federal agencies to counteract the emergency and reimburse response-related costs.

Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45 percent of the fuel consumed on the East Coast and is a primary fuel pipeline for North Carolina, halted operations last week after revealing it had been targeted by hackers.

Colonial Pipeline learned it was the victim of a cybersecurity attack. We have since determined that this incident involves ransomware. In response, we proactively took certain systems offline to contain the threat, which has temporarily halted all pipeline operations and affected some of our IT systems, the company said in a May 8 statement.

Company officials have said they hope to have services mostly restored by the end of the week.

The FBI and administration officials have blamed a criminal syndicate named DarkSide for the attack.

Anne Neuberger, the White House deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, said at a briefing that DarkSide has been on the FBIs radar for months, adding that the syndicates business model is to demand ransom payments from victims and then split the proceeds with the developers of the ransomware.

DarkSide members are Russian speakers, and malware used by the group is coded not to attack networks that use Russian-language keyboards. Russia has denied any involvement in the attack.

President Joe Biden said Monday that, so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved, although there is evidence that the actors, ransomware, is in Russia.

The syndicate posted a statement on its dark web site describing itself as apolitical. Our goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society, DarkSide said.

The attack has sparked temporary gas shortages, with stations in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia running out of fuel after customers rushed to fill vehicles.
People are seen queuing to enter a mass COVID-19 vaccination hub on May 10, 2021 in Sydney, Australia. (Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

NSW Residents Aged 40-49 Able to Register for Pfizer Vaccine

New South Wales has opened a mass vaccination hub at Sydney Olympic Park after announcing that one million NSW residents aged 40 to 49 would now be eligible to receive the Pfizer vaccine from Monday.

The hub will be open six days per week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and those aged between 40 to 49 who are interested can register for vaccination through NSW Health and be contacted when a booking is available. However, no specific date was given for when the rollout of vaccines for this age group will start.

We cant tell you exactly when youll be getting the jab, but well be able to give you enough notice to get yourself here in the coming weeks, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said, noting that the vaccination needs to be given to emergency workers and aged care workers first.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian speaks to the media during a press conference at a mass COVID-19 vaccination hub on May 10, 2021, in Sydney, Australia. (Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

The mass vaccination centre will be able to administer up to 30,000 vaccines per week once it is up and running, that means around 5000 vaccinations per day, Berejiklian said.

The premier also noted that the centre and the 100 plus NSW Health clinics and hubs across the state now meant that NSW Health could administer up to 60,000 vaccines each week.

From Wednesday, May 12, people aged 50 and over will also be able to receive their AstraZeneca (AZ) jabs at the hub, if failing to obtain the vaccination from their GP.

People are seen queuing to enter a mass COVID-19 vaccination hub on May 10, 2021, in Sydney, Australia. (Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Opening a vaccination centre of this scale at Sydney Olympic Park is a massive and unprecedented undertaking, and one Im very proud of as Health Minister, Health Minister Brad Hazzard said.

Still No Confirmed Link in Sydney COVID-19 Case

Meanwhile, NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said health officials still have not identified how the initial case, which triggered the latest restrictions in the state, was exposed to COVID-19.

Whats clear is that this gentleman, because we have tested everyone in close proximity to this gentleman in terms of our upstream testing, the contact with the infectious person must have been very fleeting, he told The Sydney Morning Herald.

Chant urged all NSW residents who can be vaccinated to do so.

Vaccination is very effective at reducing your risk of serious illness and death from COVID-19 and will also reduce the chance you will pass on the infection to your loved ones, he said.
Officials move a body at the site of a fatal shooting outside a U.S. Customs and Immigration Service building in Orlando, Fla., on May 10, 2021. (Joe Skipper/Reuters)

One Dead in Shooting at US Immigration Office in Orlando, Suspect in Custody

Police in Orlando, Florida said on Monday one person was in custody after a shooting outside a U.S. Customs and Immigration Service building that left one person dead.

Lieutenant Diego Toruno of the Orlando Police Department said a man and a woman were walking towards the building on Monday morning when a vehicle approached them and opened fire.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene while the woman was able to escape, Toruno told a press conference.

The suspect was taken into custody after being chased by police. Toruno did not identify the man and said investigators were looking into the relationship between the three people.

Officials move a body at the site of a fatal shooting outside a U.S. Customs and Immigration Service building in Orlando, Fla., on May 10, 2021. (Joe Skipper/Reuters)
Orange County Is Hitting Yellow-Tier Metrics

Orange County, California, has begun to close in on entering the states least-restrictive COVID-19 stage after reporting three consecutive days of yellow-tier metrics.

According to metrics released May 9, the countys daily case rate per 100,000 people was down to two, qualifying it for yellow-tier status.

The other two metrics required to make yellow tieroverall positivity rate and health equity quartile rateimproved from 1.4 percent to 1.3 percent and 1.9 percent to 1.4 percent, respectively.

Both of these rates had qualified for the yellow tier for weeks, but the case rate stuck in orange tier status was what kept the county from advancing to the least restrictive tier.

If Orange County maintains two weeks of yellow tier metrics beginning May 11, its likely the county will advance to the yellow tier on May 25, Orange County Supervisor Lisa Bartlett told The Epoch Times.

Bartlett said shes excited for the advancement because it will bring the region closer to having a thriving economy again.

Its one step further along to getting back to that sense of normalcy, where we can reopen our local economy, people can have thriving businesses again, people can get back to their day-to-day lives and go to the businesses that they havent been able to go to for significant periods of time now, like the bars, for instance, that have been pretty much closed except for outdoors, she said.

All of Californias 58 counties will move to the green tier on June 15, when the state is expected to almost fully reopen. The exact restrictions that will be lifted havent yet been released by the governors office.

Bartlett said the green tier will be great for tourism, which is common in Orange County.

Just getting to yellow tier in and of itself is great for tourism, but of course we want to fully reopen our local economy, she said. So hopefully by June 15, when we have the state reopening and were out of the tier system, well be able to open to a greater extent. I dont know if itll be 100 percent in all categories, but hopefully opened up to a much greater extent than even the yellow tier.

Based upon our current COVID numbers and our metrics, I believe that Orange County has the worst of the COVID pandemic behind us, but it all depends on what new variants are coming forth and whether or not the current vaccines are applicable to all of the variants.
A company that operates a major U.S. energy pipeline says it was forced to temporarily halt all pipeline operations following a cybersecurity attack. (Colonial Pipeline via AP)

Pipeline Officials Hope Most Service Will Be Back by Weekend

WASHINGTONHit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end of the week as the FBI and administration officials identified the culprits as a gang of criminal hackers.

U.S. officials sought to soothe concerns about price spikes or damage to the economy by stressing that the fuel supply had so far not experienced widespread disruptions, and the company said Monday that it was working toward substantially restoring operational service by the weekend.

The White House said in a statement late Monday that it was monitoring supply shortages in parts of the Southeast and that President Joe Biden had directed federal agencies to bring their resources to bear.

Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45 percent of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a ransomware attack that it said had affected some of its systems.

Nonetheless, the attack underscored the vulnerabilities of the nations energy sector and other critical industries whose infrastructure is largely privately owned. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data, paralyzing victim networks, and demand large payments to decrypt it.

The Colonial attack was a potent reminder of the real-world implications of the burgeoning threat. Even as the Biden administration works to confront organized hacking campaigns sponsored by foreign governments, it must still contend with difficult-to-prevent attacks from cybercriminals.

We need to invest to safeguard our critical infrastructure, Biden said Monday. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the attack tells you how utterly vulnerable we are to cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure.

The attack came as the administration, still grappling with its response to massive breaches by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations, works on an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity defenses. The Justice Department, meanwhile, has formed a ransomware task force designed for situations just like Colonial Pipeline, and the Energy Department on April 20 announced a 100-day initiative focused on protecting energy infrastructure from cyber threats. Similar actions are planned for other critical industries, such as water and natural gas.

Despite that, the challenge facing the government and the private sector remains immense.

Vehicles are seen near Colonial Pipeline in Helena, Ala., on Sept. 20, 2016. (Brynn Anderson, File/AP Photo)

In this case, the FBI publicly assigned blame Monday by saying the criminal syndicate whose ransomware was used in the attack is named DarkSide. The groups members are Russian speakers, and the syndicates malware is coded not to attack networks using Russian-language keyboards. Russia, however, denied any involvement in the attack.

Anne Neuberger, the White House deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, said at a briefing that the group has been on the FBIs radar for months. She said its business model is to demand ransom payments from victims and then split the proceeds with the ransomware developers, relying on what she said was a new and very troubling variant.

She declined to say if Colonial Pipeline had paid any ransom, and the company has not given any indication of that one way or the other. Though the FBI has historically discouraged victims from making payments for fear of promoting additional attacks, she acknowledged the very difficult situation that victims face and said the administration needs to look thoughtfully at this area of how best to deter ransomware.

Given the rise in ransomware, that is one area were definitely looking at now to say, What should be the governments approach to ransomware actors and to ransoms overall?

Speaking later in the day at a conference on national security, Neuberger said the administration was committed to leveraging the governments massive buying power to ensure that software makers make their products less vulnerable to hackers.

Security cant be an afterthought, Neuberger said. We dont buy a car and only then decide if we want to pay for seatbelts and airbags.

The United States sanctioned the Kremlin last month for a hack of federal government agencies, known as the SolarWinds breach, that officials have linked to a Russian intelligence unit and characterized as an intelligence-gathering operation.

In this case, though, the hackers are not known to be working at the behest of any foreign government. The group posted a statement on its dark website describing itself as apolitical. Our goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society, DarkSide said.

Asked Monday whether Russia was involved, Biden said, Im going to be meeting with President (Vladimir) Putin, and so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved, although there is evidence that the actors, ransomware, is in Russia.

They have some responsibility to deal with this, he added.

The Kremlin on Tuesday rejected any suggestion it was involved in the attack.

Russia has nothing to do with these hacking attacks. Russia didnt have anything to do with hacking attacks that had taken place earlier, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said during a conference call with reporters. We categorically dont accept any accusations against us in this regard.

U.S. officials have sought to head off anxieties about the prospect of a lingering economic impact and disruption to the fuel supply, especially given Colonial Pipelines key role in transporting gasoline, jet fuel, diesel, and other petroleum products between Texas and the East Coast.

Colonial is restarting portions of its network. It said Monday that it was evaluating the product inventory in storage tanks at its facilities. Administration officials stressed that Colonial proactively took some of its systems offline to prevent the ransomware from migrating from business computer systems to those that control and operate the pipeline.

A warning sign is posted along the path of the Colonial Pipeline in Garnet Valley, Pa. on Monday, May 10, 2021. (Matt Rourke/AP Photo)

In response to the attack, the administration loosened regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an all-hands-on-deck effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.

The time of the outage is now approaching critical levels and if it continues to remain down we do expect an increase in East Coast gasoline and diesel prices, said Debnil Chowdhury, IHS Markit Executive Director. The last time there was an outage of this magnitude was in 2016, he said, when gas prices rose 15 to 20 cents per gallon. The Northeast had significantly more local refining capacity at that time.

The pipeline utilizes both common and custom technology systems, which could complicate efforts to bring the entire network back online, according to analysts at Third Bridge.

Granholm, the Energy secretary, said Cyber attacks on our critical infrastructureespecially energy infrastructureis not going away.

This is a serious example of what were seeing across the board in many places and it tells you that we need to invest in our systems, our transmission grid for electricity. We need to invest in cyber defense in these energy systems, she told Bloomberg TV.

The attack has not affected the supply of gasoline, she said, but if it goes on too long, of course that will change.

Gasoline futures ticked higher Monday. Futures for crude and fuel, prices that traders pay for contracts for delivery in the future, typically begin to rise anyway each year as the driving season approaches. The price you pay at the pump tends to follow.

The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline has jumped 6 cents over the past two weeks, to $3.02 per gallon, which is $1.05 higher than a year ago. The year-ago numbers are skewed somewhat because the nation was going into lockdown due to the pandemic.

The attack on the Colonial Pipeline could exacerbate the upward pressure on prices if it is unresolved for a period of time.

By Eric Tucker, Cathy Bussewitz, and Alan Suderman
Rockim Prowell, 30, in surveillance footage wearing a mask (L) and in a booking photo (C) and the mask (R). (Los Angeles Police Department)

Police Arrest Los Angeles Residential Burglary Suspect Who Wore Mask

Police said they arrested a suspect who may be linked to more than 30 masked burglaries in Southern California, alleging that he wore a mask and a wig.

Rockim Prowell, 30, was arrested on burglary, grand theft, vandalism, and other charges.

According to a news release from the Beverly Hills Police Department, officers carried out a traffic stop of a vehicle Prowell was driving.

When they investigated him, they found a face mask and other items in his car that connected him to two burglaries of residences in Beverly Hills on July 20, 2020, and April 20.

The license plates attached to the vehicle were also determined to be stolen, police also wrote.

The police department told local media that Prowell was later found to be connected to more than 30 burglaries around Los Angeles after searching his Inglewood home, connecting him to the other crimes.

According to photos posted by police, it appears to show Prowell, who is black, wearing a mask to make himself appear white.

It was odd this burglars mouth was always open when seen on surveillance video, the Los Angeles Police Department wrote in a now-deleted tweet, according to CBS Los Angeles. When he was caught breaking into another home we discovered why.

Anyone with additional information about the burglaries can call the Beverly Hills Police Department at 310-285-2125, while people who want to remain anonymous can text BEVHILLSPD followed by the tip information to 888777, or call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.

Its not clear if Prowell has a lawyer.
Scientists Discover That Egyptian Mummy Thought to Be Male Priest Was Actually Pregnant Woman in Her 20s

A team of researchers in Warsaw, Poland, carrying out an examination on an ancient Egyptian mummy, initially believed to be a male priest, were amazed when the mummy was revealed to be a woman who was pregnant before her death.

The discovery, made by researchers of the Warsaw Mummy Project, is the first of its kind. The mummy dates back to the 1st century B.C. and is the first case of a pregnant embalmed body known in the world today.

Researchers in Warsaw, Poland, discovered that a mummy, once thought to be a male priest, is actually that of a pregnant woman believed to be in her 20s. (Courtesy of B. Bajerski/Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie via Warsaw Mummy Project)

The mummy removed from her sarcophagus. (Courtesy of B. Bajerski/Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie via Warsaw Mummy Project)

Presented here is the only known example of a mummified pregnant woman and the first radiological images of such a fetus, wrote the researchers in the the Journal of Archaeological Science, announcing the find.

The mummy is said to have been found in royal tombs in Thebes in Upper Egypt. Further examination revealed that the woman came from the elite of the Theban community. She was carefully mummified and wrapped in fabric.

Radiological scans done by the researchers confirmed that the woman died in her 20s together with her fetus, who was between 26 and 30 weeks old at that time. However, it remains unknown who the woman was.

The mummy of a pregnant woman and her sarcophagus. (Courtesy of B. Bajerski/Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie via Warsaw Mummy Project)

The fetus was found partly in the lower areas of the lesser and greater pelvises, mummified together with his mother.

The body of the woman, who died about 2,000 years ago, had been wrapped in fabric with a rich set of amulets kept on her person. Researchers suggest that the amulets represent the four sons of Horus, which indicate that she was someone of prominence in Thebes.

Scanned images of the mummy and sarcophagus. (Courtesy of National Museum in Warsaw and Warsaw Mummy Project)

Researchers used a CT scanner to examine the female mummy. (Courtesy of Aleksander Leydo/Warsaw Mummy Project)

More scanned images of the mummy show her bones and remaining tissue. (Courtesy of Warsaw Mummy Project)

This is the most important and most significant finding so far, a total surprise, Wojciech Ejsmond, a member from the research team, told the Associated Press.

The project researchers named the woman the Mysterious Lady of the National Museum in Warsaw due to the conflicting accounts of her origin.

The mummified remains are said to have been first donated to the University of Warsaw in 1826. Inscriptions on the coffin and sarcophagus had led prior archaeologists to believe that the mummy was a male priest named Hor-Djehuti.

A CT scan shows the mummys abdominal area. (Courtesy of Marzena Ozarek-Szilke/Warsaw Mummy Project)

A CT scan of the mummys pelvic region. (Courtesy of Marcin Jaworski/Warsaw Mummy Project)

The perfect wrapping of the mummy represents a good example of ancient Egyptian embalming skills, suggesting that she had a high social standing.

This mummy provides new possibilities for pregnancy studies in ancient times, which can be compared with and related to current cases, wrote the researchers.

Furthermore, this specimen sheds a light on an unresearched aspect of the ancient Egyptian burial customs and interpretations of pregnancy in the context of ancient Egyptian religion.

Dr. Marzena Ozarek-Szilke, a member of the research team, told the Polish state news agency that the team hopes next to study small amounts of tissue to establish the cause of the womans death.

A scan showing the mummys skull and teeth. (Courtesy of Marcin Jaworski/Warsaw Mummy Project)

A scan showing the amulets wrapped on the womans person. (Courtesy of Warsaw Mummy Project)

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Sarah Liang, a reporter for the Hong Kong edition of The Epoch Times, speaks to local media outside of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Hong Kong on May 11, 2021. (Song Pi-lung/The Epoch Times)

State Department, Lawmakers Condemn Assault on Epoch Times Reporter in Hong Kong

The State Department criticized the violent assault on a reporter with the Hong Kong Epoch Times as unacceptable and urged a thorough investigation.

The United States condemns the recent attack committed against an Epoch Times journalist, a State Department spokesperson told The Epoch Times on May 11. Attacks against journalists are unacceptable and cannot be tolerated. We urge the authorities to complete a full investigation of this incident as well as the recent attack on the Epoch Times Hong Kong printing facilities.

On Tuesday morning, an unidentified man attacked reporter Sarah Liang in Hong Kong with an aluminum softball bat outside her residential building.

Without speaking a word, the man hit her more than 10 times on her legs and feet, causing her to fall to the ground. He soon fled in a black Mercedes-Benz, leaving her with multiple bruises on her legs. Liang was transported to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in an ambulance, where police arrived hours later to take notes. She was still at the hospital as of 6:30 p.m. local time.

A witness surnamed Li, who had watched Liangs programs, said the assailant was around 40 years of age with glasses.

I feel this is declaring a war on all Hongkongers. Gangsters are now ruling Hong Kong, Liang later said.

A statement from the Hong Kong Epoch Times called on the general public in Hong Kong to continue to support The Epoch Times, and vowed to continue to provide truthful coverage and safeguard Hong Kong.

Sarah Liang, a reporter for the Hong Kong edition of The Epoch Times, speaks to local media outside of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Hong Kong on May 11, 2021. (Song Pi-lung/The Epoch Times)

Targeted Attacks

The incident marked the latest in a series of attacks on the local outlet that has become one of the few remaining independent voices in the city.

This attack is likely yet another egregious example of the Chinese Communist Party using violence to silence their critics and those seeking to hold them accountable for human rights abuses and oppression in Hong Kong, said Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) in an email to The Epoch Times.

However, despite having their printing press destroyed and their journalists targeted, the Epoch Times has never backed down from speaking the truth about the horrors of the CCP and we applaud them for their bravery, he said.

The Congressman was referencing the break-in of the local Epoch Times printing press that had taken place just a month earlier.

On April 12, four intruders, with two of them wielding sledgehammers, smashed computers and printing equipment inside the printing shop, forcing the facility to temporarily shut down. This was the fifth attack on the printing shop since its founding in 2004, with masked men trying to burn it down in November 2019.

Sarah Liang, a reporter for the Hong Kong edition of The Epoch Times, shows her bruised legs outside of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Hong Kong on May 11, 2021. (Song Pi-lung/The Epoch Times)

Liang herself had frequently spotted suspicious vehicles near her residence. On Saturday, a man who donned a black cap and covered himself in full black ran toward Liang while she was waiting for the bus in the neighborhood. She observed a black bar fall out of his pocket. The man picked it up and left shortly after.

She also found a middle-aged man was following her on April 26 when she stepped out of a local train station. Liang purposefully circled the neighborhood to throw him off, but the man walked into the store where she had arranged an interview, seemingly knowing where she was heading. He sprinted away after Liang confronted him.

The man, wearing black dark clothing, run to Sarah Liang and a black bat fell out from his jacket when she was waiting for a bus in Hong Kong on May 8, 2021. (Sarah Liang/The Epoch Times)

Unconscionable Assaults

Multiple other U.S. lawmakers and journalist associations also spoke out over the violent attack.

The brutal beating of Sarah Liang is part of an escalating series of repugnant, violent attacks on the Epoch Times by Chinese Communist Party thugs, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, told The Epoch Times. Anyone who cares about press freedom and basic human rights should denounce these unconscionable assaults by the CCPs brown shirts.

Rep. Michelle Steel (R-Calif.) likened the incident to a direct attack on democracy.

If its true that the Chinese Communist Party has been behind these attacks, they must be held accountable, she told The Epoch Times.

Rep. Russ Fulcher (R-Idaho) noted the short time span between the attack on Liang and the previous assault targeting the outlet.

It is disturbing to see how far Chinese-backed attacks will go to try to silence one of the last independent outlets in Hong Kong, he said in an emailed statement. I admire the remarkable courage of these reporters to share the truth, and I am praying for the safety of Sarah and her colleagues at the Epoch Times.

CPJs Asia program coordinator Steven Butler, in a statement, said that Hong Kong police cannot allow the brazen and lawless attack on Epoch Times journalist Sarah Liang to go unresolved.

Authorities must waste no time bringing the perpetrators to justice, and must ensure safety for all journalists working in Hong Kong, he said.

PEN America, a nonprofit organization in New York that advocates for free expression, similarly called for a full, transparent, and impartial investigation.

There is no more dangerous tactic of silencing the free press than of physically assaulting a journalist, a spokesperson told The Epoch Times.
One Arrested, Two Cited on Murray Drug Charges

By West Kentucky Star Staff

MURRAY - Three people face drug charges after arrests in Calloway County on Monday.Calloway County deputies responded to Brooklyn Drive to investigate possible drug activity. Thirty-year-old Theodore "Frank" Kelly of Murray was arrested and charged with possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, trafficking in methamphetamine, trafficking in marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.Two others, 22-year-old Alvin Rowe of Murray and 31-year-old Amber Amaro of Aurora, were cited for possession of marijuana.
Taiwan Denounces Chinas Shameless Lies About WHO Access

TAIPEITaiwans foreign minister criticised what he called Chinas shameless lies on Tuesday in an escalating dispute about Beijing blocking the island from the World Health Organization (WHO), saying China clearly did not care about Taiwans people.

The United States and the Group of Seven nations (G7) have called for Chinese-claimed but democratically ruled Taiwan to attend the WHOs decision-making body, the World Health Assembly, which meets from May 24.

Taiwan is excluded from most global organizations such as the WHO because of the objections of China, which considers the island one of its provinces and not a separate country.

Chinas foreign ministry said on Monday that appropriate arrangements have been made for Taiwans participation in global health matters and that nobody cared more for Taiwans people than the Chinese government.

Shameless lies! Just goes to show the CCP cant tell the truth, Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said on Twitter, referring to Chinas ruling Communist Party.

Chinas Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying attends a news conference in Beijing, China, on Oct. 9, 2020. (Thomas Suen/File/Reuters)

After what Beijing has done to Xinjiang, Tibet & Hong Kong, no sane person would believe it could take care of Taiwans health needs or otherwise, Wu said. Thank God we arent under Chinas control! Please help us keep it at a distance.

Wu said Chinas Communist Party could not claim to speak for Taiwan as it has never ruled it and that only the islands democratically elected government can represent its people.

In Beijing, Hua Chunying, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman, said the blame lay with Taiwans ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) for refusing to accept the island is part of China.

The DPP authorities know this well. Taiwan compatriots are our flesh and blood. The Chinese central government takes all necessary measures to ensure the health and well-being of the Taiwan compatriots, she added.

While the WHO cooperates with Taiwans technical experts on COVID-19, it is up to member states whether to invite Taiwan to observe the WHO meeting, said Steve Solomon, the WHOs principal legal officer.

China can easily corral enough countries to support blocking Taiwan from the World Health Assembly, according to diplomats.

By Ben Blanchard
A reporter watches the Maricopa County ballots cast in the 2020 general election being examined and recounted by contractors working for Florida-based company, Cyber Ninjas, who was hired by the Arizona Senate at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Ariz., on April 29, 2021. (Rob Schumacher/The Arizona Republic via AP/Pool)

The American Oligarchy Is Being Exposed

Commentary

Although Donald Trump has made few public appearances since leaving the White House on Jan. 20, he has made his presence felt in other ways.

One of the biggest impacts that Trump has had on the country both as president and as a private citizen has been awakening millions of Americans to the very real danger of a media and political elite class that has been subverting Constitutional and legal processes in the states to increase their own power and control.

This is especially true of Americas election systems.

For the past six months, more Americans than ever have been made aware of the existence of this powerful network of incredibly rich and privileged people that we could call an oligarchy, as James OKeefe does in his recent music video.

An oligarchy is defined by Britannica as being government by the few, especially despotic power exercised by a small and privileged group for corrupt or selfish purposes. Oligarchies in which members of the ruling group are wealthy or exercise their power through their wealth are known as plutocracies.

This present oligarchy has recently been forced from behind the curtains and into the open as it began clumsily and incompetently seeking to control the national dialogue on a variety of subjects, even as the role it played in the 2020 elections was uncovered. The more it fought to censor what Americans could say, the more the oligarchy exposed itself.

In this column, Im going to cover three specific attempts by this oligarchy to control the national dialogue preceding, during, and following the 2020 election.

Attempt 1: The Hunter Biden Laptop

The first attempt at blatant and open censorship of what the public could talk about and see involved the Hunter Biden laptop scandal. The New York Post published an explosive report about the contents of the younger Bidens allegedly abandoned laptop, which led to the revelation that the FBI was investigating.

As a counter to those facts, a narrative based on no evidence was quickly launched and relentlessly pushed in the mainstream media that the laptop scandal was a Russian disinformation operation.

Candidate Joe Biden himself spent the remainder of the campaign dismissing questions about the laptop by calling it Russian disinformation.

Now the Russian disinformation narrative has been exposed as not only being a lie but also a coordinated media coverupcreated to get Biden past the election without having to answer hard questions.

Attempt 2: The Election Discussion

The second attempt sought to prevent any national discussion of election irregularities by engaging in a truly massive campaign of censorship. Twitter alone seems to have permanently banned millions of its users for supposedly spreading election disinformation.

Facebook and YouTube have also regularly censored content regarding the controversial election. Ive been warned more than once during a regular Sunday night livestream I participate in on YouTube to watch what I say regarding the 2020 election, to keep the video service from taking the video offline.

Attempt 3: The Insurrection Narrative

The third attempt was when the oligarchy tried to launch a false narrative about a supposed armed insurrection at the Capitol building in Washington on Jan. 6.

Just about everything that was claimed to have happened that day has turned out to be a lie. This insurrection narrative was begun to provide justification for an absurd second impeachment of a president who had already left office.

As I stated in a previous column, there has never been such a thing as an unarmed insurrection in American history.

Yet another narrative that was quickly launched despite no evidence was the claim that Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick died because of injuries suffered during the Capitol breach. In fact, Sicknick died of a stroke unrelated to anything that happened on Jan. 6.

Yet, for weeks, the mainstream press regaled the American public with lurid stories that claimed Sicknick was struck in the head by a fire extinguisher wielded by a Trump supporter. In a video showing the alleged incident, the red object thrown by the rioter appears to bounce off an officers helmet. There was never any confirmation that the officer struck was Sicknick. But that didnt matter. The media had their narrative, and they ran with it enthusiastically for weeks.

And when the truth emerged about the real cause of Sicknicks death, the press quietly moved on. There were no real public recriminations or any apologies over this journalistic malpractice.

The modern American news media creates narratives to drive political outcomes, nothing more. This is just another clear example of it.

Freedom Versus Control Has Never Been More Clear

Nobody elected Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, Jack Dorsey of Twitter, Sundar Pichai of Google, or any other social media technocrat to police the nations dialogue about politicsor anything else. They are self-appointed gatekeepers, nothing more than that.

Nobody elected Marc Elias or the horde of lawyers working for Perkins Coie to run around in certain states before the 2020 election to litigate extensive changes to election laws that bypassed state legislatures in a most unconstitutional fashion. Rich and privileged people paid them to do that.

Theres a big difference between a national dialogue thats organic and rises up from the people of these United States, and Marxist/progressive political narratives that are being forced onto the public from the top down by those who control much of the nations electronic discourse.

When you refuse to let organic national conversations rise and insist on controlling with an iron fist what people can talk about publicly while you attempt to force-feed them your own handpicked political narratives, youve gone far beyond being a mere censor.

Youve become Big Brother.

The Stakes Couldnt Be Higher

The shadow cabal used a Time magazine article to try to recast themselves as selfless public servants on a noble quest to fortify the 2020 presidential election against Donald Trump, which turned out to be far more revealing than they perhaps intended.

The main claim of the article ended up being that they had to rig the election against Trump to save the election.

If these oligarchs have their way, the outcome of every future election will be predetermined by their army of lawyers and their creation of a clearly unconstitutional election week. How long before Americans must endure an election month, where it takes weeks to get to the right outcome the powerful have already decided on?

I already see a huge backlash building against this oligarchy. It will take some time for Americans to get the audits done, get the court victories, and build their own alternatives to bypass these arrogant digital gatekeepers. But now that the oligarchy has been forced out into the open, American patriots can begin working together to counter its power over this country.

Brian Cates is a writer based in South Texas and author of Nobody Asked For My Opinion  But Here It Is Anyway! He can be reached on Telegram at t.me/drawandstrikechannel.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
President Donald Trump speaks at an event in the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington on March 22, 2018. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

The Undeniable Irregularity That May Have Cost Trump the Election

Commentary

The liberal media loudly proclaim that reports of 2020 presidential election irregularities are lies. But about one particular irregularity, the media are mum.

Perhaps theyre silent because they know that this irregularity is undeniable and may, indeed, have flipped the election. Its the elephant in the room they pretend not to see.

The elephant in this instance was the casting of mail-in ballots over a period of weeksdirectly violating a federal statute specifically authorized by the Constitution. This changed the result in at least one swing state.

Heres the background:

The Constitution (Article II, Section 1, Clause 2) assigns to the legislature of each state the task of deciding how the state chooses or appoints its presidential electors. (The Constitution uses both verbs.) Every state legislature has delegated the choice or appointment to the voters.

However, the Constitution also limits state legislative authority through its Same Day Clause or Presidential Vote Clause (Article II, Section 1, Clause 4). It provides as follows:

The Congress may determine the Time of chusing [sic] the Electors, and the Day on which they shall give their Votes; which Day shall be the same throughout the United States.

The same day clause thereby grants Congress two powers over presidential elections:

1. Congress may fix a single day on which all presidential electors in all states vote for president and vice president.

2. Congress may set a Timenecessarily uniformin which Electors are chosen. In other words, Congress may fix the day or days on which we go to the polls.

Congress has exercised both of these powers. The law prescribing when we go to the polls is U.S. Code, Title 3, Section 1. Heres what it says:

The electors of President and Vice President shall be appointed, in each State, on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November, in every fourth year succeeding every election of a President and Vice President.

In 2020, the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November was Nov. 3.

Congress has adopted only one exception to its single-day voting rule: If for some reason, a state has failed to make a choice of presidential electors on Election Day, then the states legislature may decide the issue after Election Day. (U.S. Code, Title 3, Section 2.) But that is the only exception.

An old legal rule, commonly ascribed to the English jurist Francis Bacon, says that exceptions strengthen the general rule when applied to cases outside the exceptions. For example, if your spouse sends you to the grocery store to buy any vegetables you want except carrots, then (unless there is a family custom to the contrary) you can assume carrots are the only exception. You can buy any other vegetables you wish.

In other words, these federal statutes tell us: There is oneand only oneexception to the rule that you must appoint presidential electors on Election Day. In narrow cases, you may choose them later. But you may never choose them earlier!

In 2020, many statesoften under pressure from Democratic Party activists and lawyersviolated federal law by allowing voters to cast ballots over periods spanning weeks. Moreover, those periods varied from state to state. True, the ballots generally were not counted nor results announced until on or after Election Day. But a state chooses or appoints presidential electors by balloting, not by counting or making announcements.

All this is pretty clear. In fact, its so clear that there havent been many court cases on the subject. The few violations of the same-day rule traditionally have been small: States have allowed absent armed service members and shut-ins to vote early by mail. No one wants to stop brave soldiers or disabled grandmothers from voting, so no one has sued to prevent it. If no one sues, theres no case for the court to decide.

(Incidentally, there are ways of accommodating legitimate absentees without violating federal law.)

Probably the most important court decision on the subject is Maddox v. Board of State Canvassers. This case arose during World War II, when millions of Americans were abroad fighting the Axis powers. The Montana Legislature had passed a law allowing them to cast their ballots either before or after Election Day.

No one challenged the provision for early absentee ballots, but several people sued to block late voting.

The state Supreme Court unanimously voided the law and stopped late voting. The court relied on the same day clause and the federal statute. The justices observed that extended voting could produce fraud and uncertainty. One justice stressed that he was emphatically opposed to any recognition of the right to cast a ballot on any other day than the one fixed by statute.

The Constitutions Framers would have agreed with this decision. They designed the presidential election system to forestall what Alexander Hamilton called cabal, intrigue, and corruption. They knew that stretching an election over a long period of time was an invitation to trouble. For example:

Long voting periods heighten the risk that ballots cast at different times will be treated in different ways. This appears to have occurred in some states in 2020.

Long voting periods make it easier for people to cast ballots in two or more places. This also happened in 2020.

Long voting periods allow political operatives to use early results (now garnered by opinion polling) to stampede later voters. In 2020, some liberal media may have been guilty of this by emphasizing Bidens lead among early mail-ins.

Long voting periods virtually assure that people voting at different times will have different levels of knowledge. For example, information suggesting that Joe Biden knew of his sons alleged misconduct emerged before some people had cast their ballots, but after others already had done so.

Long voting periods give candidates and parties additional opportunities to confuse issues: They can target demographic groups that tend to vote early with one set of messages and then, after they have cast their ballots, woo later voters with inconsistent messages.

Did the widespread violation of federal law flip the election from Trump to Biden? We dont know yet. But we can say with reasonable certainty that in one swing state, the answer is yes.

Biden allegedly won Pennsylvanias 20 electoral votes by a margin of only 80,555. But more than 2 million of Bidens ballots came from mail-ins, among whom Biden outpolled Trump 31.

Now, assume that all those ballots were legitimate. If those who voted by mail had been required to go to the polls instead, experience shows that a significant number wouldnt have bothered. Trump would have carried Pennsylvaniaand perhaps other swing states as well.

Robert G. Natelson is a former constitutional law professor, a longtime political activist, a former gubernatorial candidate, and senior fellow in constitutional jurisprudence at the Independence Institute in Denver. He is the author of The Original Constitution: What It Actually Said and Meant (3rd ed, 2014).

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Things Fall Apart With No End in Sight

Commentary

Joe Biden, the phantom president, gave a speech recently that the world immediately little noted nor long remembered.

For the doddering, barely ambulatory, linguistically challenged Biden, his first address to Congress was intended as a substitute State of the Union speech, but like everything else he does, it fell as flat as he nearly did when scrambling up the steps of Air Force One back in March.

So let me help our poor president out: The state of the union is terrible, and getting worse. Examples abound:

 Russian hackers apparently just took out one of the most important pipelines on the East Coast, and its taken the administration more than a day to respond to this direct assault on our national security. But whats the rush? The anti-American progressive left hates the oil industry anyway and is busy plotting an oil-and-carbon-free future for Grass Hut America, so overall, its a net plus!

 The American birthrate has now fallen for six years in a row, to a record-low 1.64 babies per woman. Some blame this on the dreaded COVID-19, but it would make more sense for births to rise, given that couples have had more than a year of snuggle time while riding out the pandemic and collecting government checks.

A more likely reason is the non-stop barrage of propaganda from the anti-human left, whose refrain has long been how can you bring a child into this world?a world, by the way, theyve been doing their best to ruin for more than half a century with abortion, divorce, and latterly, child sex-change operations.

 Speaking of COVID-19caused by the CCP virus, which most independent authorities now agree could have been hatched in a lab in Wuhanthe practically state-run media is now openly fretting that vaccination rates are leveling off as Americans begin to ask themselves whether they want to voluntarily take part in the biggest real-time laboratory experiment in history.

And now, the FDA has authorized the Pfizer vaccine for use on children aged 12 to 15a group that is essentially immune to COVID-19 anyway. Meanwhile, Washingtonin collaboration, National-Socialist-style, with its media, tech, and corporate lackeyswill soon turn to vaccine passports, brothers under the skin with the old Soviet system of internal passports.

The Food and Drug Administration on Monday authorized use of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds in the United States, a crucial step in the nations steady recovery from the pandemic and a boon to tens of millions of American families eager for a return to normalcy, cheered The New York Times, the American equivalent of the USSRs mouthpiece/newspaper Pravda.

 Around the country, especially in Democratic-dominated states, homeless encampments have sprouted like kudzu. The famed Venice Beach in Los Angeles now resembles the anarchic opening Dawn of Man scene from Stanley Kubricks film 2001: A Space Odyssey, with vagrants, derelicts, and hobos viciously attacking and beating residents and each other.

Meanwhile, across town in Angelino Heights, work crews just removed more than 35 tons of human biological and hazardous waste from Echo Park Lake and its surrounding park, which is similarly bristling with brand-new tents and, no doubt, cell phones.

 Meanwhile, anti-racism mania has now turned its sights on technology and discovered techno-racisman unwitting and unintended discrimination against people of color that is, according to CNN, baked into some of the technology we encounter every day. The reference is to the difficulty some facial-recognition systems encounter in distinguishing between and among black faces.

Even when tech developers and users do not intend for tech to discriminate, it often does so anyway, says one critic. Technology is not neutral or objective.

 On the foreign-policy front, Russia is about to gobble up whichever bits of Ukraine it still desires; the communist Chinese just had a chunk of space debris crash-land in the Indian Ocean; and the manifestly unqualified Vice President Kamala Harris has thus far managed to foul up the one job she has: addressing the entirely Biden-made crisis at the U.S.Mexico border.

Coming Apart

In short, things are coming apart, and theres no help in sight.

In 1920, just after World War I had come to an end, the Irish poet William Butler Yeats published what is likely his most famous poem, The Second Coming. To a shell-shocked populace stunned by four years of brutal slaughter, the world had indeed spun out of control:

Turning and turning in the widening gyre

The falcon cannot hear the falconer;

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;

Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,

The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere

The ceremony of innocence is drowned;

The best lack all conviction, while the worst

Are full of passionate intensity.

That could well describe our world today. The worstthe international, cultural-Marxist leftare indeed full of passionate intensity: an intensity fixated on destroying the old order by any means necessary, as their favorite saying goes.

In the half-century Ive been interacting with them, they have pulled down the pillars of the American nation-state, wielding our own laws, customs, and Constitution against us.

Mere anarchy, indeed.

But anarchy is what theyre after, and always have been. One by one, theyve eroded or even abolished constitutional protections such as freedom of speech, religion, and assembly found in the First Amendment.

Theyre publicly gunning for the Second Amendment now and, over the course of the post-FDR period, have rendered the Ninth and 10th amendments (which were intended to establish expressed powers/limited government) as nullities.

Now, in a capital still ringed by barbed wire, a confused old man sits at a desk signing executive orders designed to overturn any vestiges of his predecessorwhose aim, you may recall, was to Make America Great Again. The economy boomed, the nation became energy self-sufficient, race relations had at least stabilized, the Middle East was moving toward stasis, and both the Russians and the Chinese were under no illusions about our international intentions.

And then came the election and huge blunder of Jan. 6, and it all vanished. Well, as they say, elections have consequences.

Surely, the Second Coming is at hand, writes Yeats in the second stanza of his great poem. But be careful what you wish for: And what rough beast, its hour come round at last / Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

If you thought Bidens first 100 days were bad, you aint seen nothing yet.

Michael Walsh is the editor of The-Pipeline.org and the author of The Devils Pleasure Palace and The Fiery Angel, both published by Encounter Books. His latest book, Last Stands, a cultural study of military history from the Greeks to the Korean War, was recently published.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Tim Scott Is Not the First to Say America Is Not a Racist Country | Larry Elder

After responding to President Joe Bidens address to Congress by saying, America is not a racist country, Senator Tim Scott has been the latest victim of the Left. The Democrats have convinced black people they are plagued by systemic racism for votes. In this episode, Larry proves why systemic racism is a con and how the purveyors of the false narrative are making a living off the black communitys troubles.

Larry Elder with Epoch Times show available on YouTube, Rumble, Youmaker, and The Epoch Times website. It also airs on cable on NTD America. Find out where you can watch us on TV.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his fiancee Carrie Symonds leave Methodist Central Hall in Westminster, London, after voting on May 6, 2021. (Rob Pinney/Getty Images)

UK Plans to Require Voter ID to Ensure Election Integrity

The UK government plans to introduce requirements for voters to show photographic ID when casting ballots, in order to ensure the integrity of elections.

The Electoral Integrity Bill, which requires voters to show identification before being issued with a ballot paper in a polling station, is part of the Conservative governments legislative agenda set out in the Queens Speech on Tuesday.

We think showing identification to vote is a reasonable approach to combat the inexcusable potential for voter fraud, Prime Minister Boris Johnsons official spokesman said.

Everyone wants to maintain the integrity of our democracy and this would bring us in line with not only Northern Ireland but countries such as Canada, many European countries including France, the Netherlands, Swedenall require a form of identification to vote, the spokesman said.

The main opposition Labour party accused the government of trying to make it harder for people to vote.

Shadow Justice Secretary David Lammy said on Twitter that the government is prioritising voter suppression and disenfranchising millions through Voter ID.

Lisa Nandy, Labours shadow foreign secretary, told Sky News that the government should defend the UKs democracy by taking action against Russian interference.

Asked if Labour would support plans to require voter IDs, she said: We have got to defend our democracy robustly but I just think its really bizarre coming from this government that they have made it so much more difficult for people in this country to vote over recent years, but they have taken absolutely no action to defend our democracy from attacks overseas.

The Electoral Integrity Bill has also come under attack from U.S. civil rights groups.

According to The Guardian, The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), and Common Cause said the requirement for voter ID amount to Republican-style voter suppression and are likely to erode faith in the democratic process.

Voters casting their vote in polling stations in Great Britain currently do not need to present any form of identification before receiving a ballot paper, but identification has been a requirement in Northern Ireland, also part of the UK, for nearly 40 years.

Voter ID requirements were introduced in Northern Ireland after the 1983 General Elections following concerns about the extent of voter fraud in the British province. Since 2003 photographic ID has been required.

According to a briefing paper for the House of Commons, There has been no evidence that the ID requirements in Northern Ireland have affected turnout.

Since 2014 the Electoral Commission has recommended that photo ID should be required in the rest of the UK.

The Commission recommends that any system of voter ID introduced in Great Britain should mirror that in Northern Ireland, where voters without access to approved photo ID can apply for a free photographic electoral ID card from their local council.

PA contributed to this report.
The USS Monterey military vessel is seen docked in the Black Sea harbor of Constanta, 250 km (155 miles) east of Bucharest, on June 7, 2011. (Bogdan Cristel/Reuters)

US Military Ship Fires 30 Warning Shots After Encounter With Iranian Vessels

WASHINGTONA U.S. Coast Guard ship fired about 30 warning shots after 13 vessels from Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) came close to it and other American Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, the Pentagon said on Monday.

This is the second time within the last month that U.S. military vessels have had to fire warning shots because of what they said was unsafe behavior by Iranian vessels in the region, after a relative lull in such interactions over the past year.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said the warning shots were fired after the Iranian fast boats came as close as 150 yards (450 feet) of six U.S. military vessels, including the USS Monterey, that were escorting the guided-missile submarine Georgia.

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Maui fired the warning shots from a .50-caliber machine gun before the Iranian vessels left, Kirby said.

Its significant and they were acting very aggressively, he said, adding that the number of Iranian vessels was more than in the recent past.

In April, a U.S. military ship fired warning shots after three vessels from IRGCN came close to it and another American patrol boat in the Gulf.

The latest incident comes as world powers and Iran seek to speed up efforts to bring Washington and Tehran back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear accord.

U.S. officials returned to Vienna last week for a fourth round of indirect talks with Iran on how to resume compliance with the deal, which former U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned in 2018.

By Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart
A student walks between classes at Wyandotte High School in Kansas City, Kan., on the first day of in-person learning, on March 30, 2021. (Charlie Riedel/AP Photo)

US Schools Fight to Keep Students Amid Fear of Dropout Surge

KANSAS CITY, Kan.U.S. educators are doing everything they can to track down high school students who stopped showing up to classes and to help them get the credits needed to graduate, amid an anticipated surge in the countrys dropout rate during the coronavirus pandemic.

There isnt data available yet on how the pandemic has affected the nations overall dropout rate2019 is the last year for which it is availableand many school officials say its too early to know how many students who stopped logging on for distance learning dont plan to return. But soaring numbers of students who are failing classes or are chronically absent have experts fearing the worst, and schools have been busy tracking down wayward seniors through social media, knocking on their doors, assigning staff to help them make up for lost time and, in some cases, even relaxing graduation requirements.

When students drop out, they typically look for an out, an opportunity to leave. And this has provided that, unfortunately, Sandy Addis, chairman of the National Dropout Prevention Center, said recently, referring to the pandemic. His group believes the dropout rate has spiked this year and will remain high for years.

At one high school in Kansas City, Kansas, staff members have made thousands of calls to the families of at-risk students, said Troy Pitsch, who supervises high school principals in the city.

If we lose a student, it is going to be after kicking and screaming and fighting tooth and nail for them, Pitsch said.

Many districts were forgiving last spring when schools shut down abruptly, freezing grades unless students wanted to improve them. That made this year the first for which schools would feel the full effects of the pandemic on student performance and engagement.

Kellie Goodall teaches an online eighth grade English class from her empty classroom at Walter Johnson Junior High School on the first day of distance learning for the Clark County School District amid the spread of the COVID-19 in Las Vegas, Nev., on Aug. 24, 2020. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

The early signs arent encouraging. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization warned that the pandemic had put 24 million children worldwide at risk of dropping out of school. And the pandemics effects could erase gains the United States made in reducing its dropout rate, which fell from 9.3 percent in 2007 to 5.1 percent in 2019, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Not finishing high school significantly hurts a persons earning potential, with dropouts bringing home an average of $150 less per week than graduates, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

To keep students on track, some local governments and school systems have waived certain testing requirements for graduation or changed grading policies so that missed assignments arent as damaging. But such leniency carries the risk of watering down academic standards, said Russell Rumberger, a professor emeritus of education at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who has written about dropouts.

If they let you pass with a D and you dont have to do very much to do it, maybe technically you are getting a diploma, but you are not getting the same type of diploma you may have gotten prior to the pandemic, when the standards were higher, he said.

A National Dropout Prevention Center report predicted a doubling or tripling of the number of students who were at risk of falling behind academically and not graduating.

Among them for much of this school year was Jose Solano-Hernandez, a 17-year-old senior at Wyandotte High School in Kansas City, Kansas. In January, when he was at his lowest point following the deaths of one grandparent from COVID-19 and another from cancer in the same week, he estimated that he had missed eight assignments in each of his classes.

I wouldnt make my parents proud, he recalled thinking as he struggled to learn virtually at night while working by day at a mechanics shop.

Solano-Hernandez has been slowly chipping away at his backlog of work since his school brought back him and other struggling seniors for extra in-person help more than a month before the rest of the student body returned at the end of March. He said the change brought relief and hes now hopeful hell graduate.

Mary Stewart, the schools principal, said there was radio silence from hundreds of students in the fall. But the number who werent accounted for shrank to about 40 by the spring after staff hunted down siblings and scrolled through Facebook searching for clues to their whereabouts.

In-person learning at St. Anthony Catholic High School in Long Beach, Calif., on March 24, 2021. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)

I went to a house of a young man the day before Thanksgiving and found that he had self-isolated in his room because of a mental health issue, she said. That is very common. Whatever happens in the community and in the world, we are a micro-system of that.

The pandemic also has taken a toll on students at North Grand High School in Chicago.

Principal Emily Feltes said some of her students took on jobs to support their families and others fell ill. Her students returned for part-time in-person instruction in April, but shes worried that dropout numbers will rise.

We have done everything that we think that we can to try to re-engage kidsto try to help them. And I know that my colleagues are all working really hard too, she said. But the reality is that this has been a worldwide and a national trauma.

Persuading reluctant students to return isnt easy. At Orange County Public Schools in the Orlando, Florida, area, substitute teacher Patrice Pullen was assigned in December to oversee a group of 13 seniors who fell behind during virtual learning. She said it became clear on her first day that her most important job would be rebranding the students, who had come to see themselves as failures.

You have kidsand Im not exaggeratingthey had zeros. They had not turned in anything since August, since school started, she said. Now, 11 are on track to graduate and the other two are close to being on track.

At Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia, the 185,000-student district saw the percentage of middle school and high school students earning Fs in at least two classes jump by 83 percent in the fall.

The spring numbers returned to more normal levels as the district made several changes, including dropping the minimum number of assignments per quarter from nine to six and allowing teachers to accept late work on major assignments with minimal penalties, said district spokeswoman Lucy Caldwell. Still, she said, it is hard to say how many students disappeared or what will happen with dropouts.

The pandemic was extraordinarily difficult on familiesemotionally, economically, and physically, Caldwell said.

By Heather Hollingsworth
Vets to Get Exemptions Into Australia Amid Shortage of Skilled Migrants

Foreign veterinarians will be fast-tracked into Australia amid a shortage of vets that the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened.

Australian Immigration Minister Alex Hawke confirmed on Saturday that vets would be added to the Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List, which will allow them to enter Australia.

At least 800 more veterinarians are needed nationwide to fill the gap caused by the puppy boom during the pandemic, according to Warwick Vale, the Australian Veterinary Association president.

While Dr Vale welcomed the new policy change, he said there are deeper problems that had long been existing in the veterinary industry, such as low pay, overstress, and the depressing nature of the job itself.

When you couple that with a very acute shortage in the workforce, you end up with a huge problem, Vale told The Sydney Morning Herald.

Its been a long-standing problem in-country and regional areas, but since the COVID pressure, it has really come to the cities in a big way. Weve got vets that are leaving the workforce in droves, he said.

Margaret Riley, the Head of Veterinary Science at James Cook University, said compassion fatigue is the main reason why vets leave the industry.

You see these things day in day out, and it does take its toll on you, Dr Riley told ABC, adding that there is a lot of emotional blackmail from people who expect the vets to do their work for free.

Unfortunately, clinics are businesses. As a business owner myself, I understand how slim the profit margins are, she said.

PIC BY @karkkicorgi / MERCURY PRESS (PICTURED Karkki, Nekku & Niisku-Neiti)

The Federal Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment said it has already met with the Australian Veterinary Association to seek ways to support vets to work in regional areas.

The Government continues to monitor the impact of COVID-19 on the Australian labour market and assess Australias skills needs as they evolve, a department spokesperson told ABC.

The Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List is based on expert advice from the National Skills Commission and consultation with Commonwealth departments.

The list currently has 18 occupations that fill critical skills needs to support Australias economic recovery from COVID-19, including chief executives, mechanical engineers, software engineers, social workers, GPs, psychiatrists, midwives, and several types of nurses.

According to the Australian Governments website, the list is temporary, and priority occupations may change as Australia recovers from the pandemic.
Victorias Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton speaks to the media in Melbourne, Australia on April 27, 2020. (Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

Victoria Records New Case of COVID-19

Victorian health authorities are confident a Melbourne man picked up COVID-19 during his two weeks in South Australian hotel quarantine.

The man in his 30s returned to his home in Wollert, in Melbournes north, on Tuesday last week and developed symptoms on Saturday.

He has since returned a positive result after testing on Monday, with a re-test on Tuesday confirming his infection is active.

The case has sparked a full public health response as the two states work to discover the source of infection.

This case is an important reminder that we are still in the grip of a global pandemic, Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley told reporters.

Victorias Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton thinks the man did not acquire his infection after returning to Victoria.

Its absolutely the case that hes picked it up in quarantine in South Australia, he said.

Contact tracers have now finished their initial interview with the infected man and all three of his household contacts returned negative test results.

Its an early encouraging sign, Professor Sutton said.

Four tier one exposure sites have been identified including an Altona North office, a CBD Indian restaurant and bar, Woolworths in Epping and a spices and groceries shop. Anyone who visited the sites at specific times must be tested and isolate for 14 days.

Also on Tuesday, staff at Australias largest pathology lab software provider had to evacuate their Melbourne office due to the case.

Citadel Health on Collins Street shut down after discovering a staff member was a close contact of the Melbourne case.

More than a dozen staff members evacuated, but the colleague has tested negative.

SA health authorities say they do not believe the case represents a risk of community infection in their state.

I dont think he was infectious here in SA given the timing of his symptoms, the states Chief Health Officer Professor Nicola Spurrier told the media in Adelaide.

Prof Spurrier believes it unlikely the man was infectious while in quarantine in South Australia or on the flight back to Melbourne and predicts his infectious period would have begun last Thursday.

But she conceded it was probable that transmission had occurred in hotel quarantine.

Authorities are examining whether the man caught the virus before he entered SA and simply had an unusually long incubation period, or whether he caught it from a person with the virus in the room next door at the Playford Hotel.

The positive Melbourne case returned from overseas on April 19, flying from India via the Maldives and Singapore before Australias flight ban came into effect.

He recorded negative tests on day one, five nine and 13 in hotel quarantine but was staying in a room adjacent to a fellow returned traveller who tested positive on day nine of their two-week stay.

Staff reviewed CCTV and did not find any infection control breaches, but are now re-checking the footage.

There are currently new guests staying on the floor where the positive cases were.

Prof. Sutton said it is likely the case will be classified as an interstate-acquired infection, continuing Victorias 73-day streak without a local case.

Meanwhile, Victoria Police officers are in isolation after rescuing a man believed to have jumped from an oil tanker in Melbourne.

The 31-year-old Georgian national was rescued in Port Phillip Bay on Sunday night, about five kilometres from where the international tanker had docked.

The police air wing found the man clinging to a navigational marker, and the water police officers who rescued the man have gone into isolation as a precaution
Kristi St. Laurent, who ran for a House seat in the 2020 election, poses in front of Town Hall in Windham, N.H., on May 7, 2021. (Michael Casey/AP Photo)

Windham, New Hampshire 2020 Election Audit Starts

A 2020 election audit in a small New Hampshire town started on Tuesday.

A three-person team in Windham, which has a population of roughly 15,000, will examine ballot counting machines and their memory cards, and the hand tabulation of ballots, that were used and cast in the general election on Nov. 3, 2020, in the towns Rockingham County district 7 House of Representatives race, in addition to votes in the district in the gubernatorial and U.S. Senate races.

A hand recount ended with state House candidates in the district hundreds of votes apart from the original tally. Kristi St. Laurent, a Democrat candidate, for instance, received 4,456, according to the initial results. After the recount, she had 4,357.

Windham Town Counsel Bernard Campbell told New Hampshire Attorney General Gordon MacDonald last year that the magnitude of error was shocking to local Town Officials.

St. Laurent requested (pdf) an audit, saying that the machines may have been programmed improperly or that a significant number of ballots were double counted.

Officials eventually agreed to the request and New Hampshires legislature passed a bill authorizing the audit. It was signed by Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican.

The bill granted the town of Windham the ability to designate one person on the audit team while another person was chosen by the offices of New Hampshires secretary of state and attorney general and a third was selected jointly by the two people who were already picked.

Windham picked Mark Lindham of Verified Voting, a nonprofit that has a history of working with left-of-center groups like the Brennan Center for Justice, according to Influence Watch. Lindham recently joined a letter to Arizona Senate President Karen Fann, a Republican, protesting against an expansive forensic audit of the 2020 election in Arizonas largest county.

State officials chose Harri Hursti, best known for hacking into a voting system in Leon County. Hursti is a Verified Voting advisory board member.

Lindham and Hursti named Philip Stark as the third auditor. Stark is an associate dean of the Division of Mathematical and Physical Sciences at the University of California, Berkeley.

In this screenshot from live video, a 2020 election audit starts in Windham, N.H., on May 11, 2021. (New Hampshire Department of Justice via The Epoch Times)

Speaking to reporters as the audit started at the Edward Cross Training Center, Lindham said the pattern of discrepancies between the election results and the updated results after the hand recount seems unusual if not unprecedented.

But Hursti indicated that in most cases where there are differences, human error is the cause.

The numbers will never match. The question is, Is the discrepancy meaningful? And usually not, he said.

The AccuVote machines intellectual property are owned by Dominion Voting Systems. Dominion did not respond to a request for comment.

Stark told a news outlet last month that he supports running elections in a way that ensures any result involving reliance on machines can be double checked so that if the computers malfunction, if they were programmed incorrectly, we can still cap and correct the outcomes before they become official.

St. Laurent, the Democrat candidate, wrote on Twitter last month that the audit is in no way connected to the national narrative about possible and confirmed election fraud.

Nothing is proven yetits why we need the audit, she said.

The audit is being live streamed here. It is expected to wrap up by the end of the month. Twenty New Hampshire voters will be observing the audit. Ten were chosen by the secretary of states office after voting in the 2020 election, participating in the recount as observers, and/or participating in the subsequent Ballot Law Commission appeal hearing.

The other 10 observers will be chosen daily by random drawing at 4 p.m. for attendance at the audit the following day.

Anyone who wants to apply to attendance can email elections@sos.nh.gov and put Windham Election Audit in the subject line. They were advised to their name, address, email, and phone inside the email.
Two men charged in the assault of Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who died after defending the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, must remain behind bars while they await trial, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Hogan denied pretrial release for George Tanios and Julian Khater, calling them threats to the community. The judge said the assault with chemical spray on Sicknick and two other officers contributed to the mob's ability to breach police line that had been guarding the Capitol.

These two gentlemen are law-abiding, respected individuals of their community and it makes it very difficult for the court to make this conclusion, Hogan said. But the government's evidence and videos of the attack leaves little doubt" about what transpired, Hogan said.

Tanios, of Morgantown, West Virginia, and Khater, of State College, Pennsylvania, havent been charged in Sicknicks death.

The Washington medical examiners office last month found that Sicknick suffered a stroke and died from natural causes. The determination is likely to significantly inhibit the ability of federal prosecutors to bring homicide charges.

Lawyers for Tanios and Khater argued they don't deserve to be locked up while they fight the case, noting that some other similarly situated defendants have been released.

An attorney for Tanios  who operated a greasy spoon called Sandwich U in Morgantown, home of West Virginia University said there was no advance planning and that her client had bought the chemical sprays only for self protection in the event of violence against Trump supporters.

"His only plans were to attend this rally," said Tanios' attorney, Beth Gross. "The intent wasnt to go to a riot, the intent was to go to a rally to support their president."

Sicknick and other officers were standing guard behind metal bicycle racks as the mob descended on the Capitol.

Give me that bear shit, Khater said before he reached into Tanios backpack, according to court papers. Tanios told Khater not yet because it was still early, but Khater responded they just f---ing sprayed me. Khater was then seen holding a can of chemical spray, prosecutors say.

Khater walked through the crowd toward the bike rack barrier. Rioters began pulling on one of the racks, and Khater was seen with his arm in the air and the canister in his hand while standing just 5-to-8 feet from the officers, authorities said.

A prosecutor said during a recent hearing that it was likely Mace  not bear spray  that was sprayed at the officers.

Investigators initially believed Sicknick was hit in the head with a fire extinguisher, based on statements collected early in the investigation. And they later thought the 42-year-old Sicknick may have ingested a chemical substance that contributed to his death.
BEIJING (AP)  Two amateur computer coders pleaded guilty Tuesday to stirring up trouble and picking quarrels" in a case that highlighted a growing Chinese government crackdown on online activity.

Chen Mei, 28, and Cai Wei, 27, created an online archive that stored articles that had been censored from the Chinese internet, and an accompanying forum that allowed people to discuss them anonymously.

In court, prosecutors zeroed in on 2049bbs, the forum accompanying the archive. They said Cai was responsible for building a website that had insulted the government, and Chen had paid for it, Chens mother, Wei Xiuwen, told reporters outside the court.

Family and friends believe what got them in trouble was archiving articles showing an alternative to Chinas official narrative about its coronavirus response just as the country started facing questions over its handling of the initial outbreak.

The case was tried at Wenyuhe Peoples Court in the northeastern outskirts of Beijing. The court said sentencing would come at a later date.

The charge stirring up trouble and picking quarrels" is a catch-all charge often used for politically sensitive cases.

Chens mother, who traveled from northwestern Shaanxi province to attend the hearing, said her son wore a full-body medical protective suit and had his hands cuffed and feet shackled. She could tell which one was her son, as he is shorter than Cai, but was unable to make eye contact. The only time her son spoke was to plead guilty, she said.

The two men have been held for more than a year since authorities detained them without warning in April 2020, along with Cai's girlfriend Tang Hongbo. Family and friends only knew something was wrong when they realized they hadn't had any contact with any of them three in days. Tang was later released after it became clear she did not know about the others' work online.

Their parents had not seen them for more than a year, as both lived in Beijing for work. Throughout the process, the families pressed for the two to have access to their own lawyers, but the court appointed lawyers for them instead.

If I can shoulder the consequences for him, I would, said Cai's father, Cai Jianli, from Guangdong province in southern China.

The parents were not able to speak with their children. Cai Jianli said the court-appointed lawyers told them to keep quiet in court.

Cai and Chen created the archive in 2018, keeping hundreds of censored articles. The forum saw discussions on sensitive issues that could not be freely discussed on the Chinese internet including the anti-government protests in Hong Kong and complaints about the ruling Communist Party. Forum users also discussed the pandemic after cases were first detected in Wuhan in late 2019.

Terminus2049, the archive itself, primarily housed articles that had been deleted from Wechat and Weibo, popular social media platforms that are subject to regular algorithmic and human censorship. While similar databases existed, most were blocked in China. Terminus2049 was available on Github, a code sharing platform that is not blocked.

The forum and archive never had major reach, but the case has attracted the attention of a few.

One supporter waited outside the court Tuesday to give two bouquets of chamomile flowers to the parents. The 25-year old, who declined to be named out of fear of repercussions, said she thought the two men had done a service for society during the pandemic by showing there was more than one official story.

___

Wu reported from Taipei, Taiwan. Associated Press news assistant Caroline Chen contributed to this story.
A Lansing man was charged last week with the early February of a 33-year-oid woman and using Isabella County to dispose of her body, which was
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Part of Slickback Road to Close Today

By West Kentucky Star Staff

MARSHALL COUNTY - The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans to close the south end of Slickback Road in southern Marshall County today.Slickback Road will be closed just north of the Brewers Highway intersection to allow for a cross drain to be replaced.The road is expected to close at 9 a.m. and will remain closed until 3 p.m. on Thursday.
A woman contacted Lincoln Park police the day after she believes someone got away with a slew of personal items from her vehicle while she was inside a gym.
It wasnt just that he was fired, but when he was fired.

Former Ecorse Director of Public Safety Joseph Thomas Jr. was out of town attending a relatives funeral, among other things, when word reached him that the Ecorse City Council voted to terminate him, according to his attorney, Leonard Mungo.

The decision was made at the May 4 meeting after a motion was made by Councilwoman Kimberly Alexander. The council voted 5-2 to oust Thomas.

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Alexander, Mayor Lamar Tidwell and council members Montel Love, Roger Parker and LaTonya Lamb supported firing Thomas.

Mayor Pro Tem Darcel Brown and Councilman DeVonte Sherard voted against the move.

Thomas was advised by his attorney not to speak to the media for comment on the councils actions or any city matters brought to his attention since he took over the job.

When reached via telephone for this article, Tidwell said, No comment.

Attempts to reach other council members were unsuccessful.

The firing came months after Thomas and two former city officials filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the city claiming harassment, humiliating public comments, increased work, threats of termination and more at the hands of Tidwell and several council members. Joining Thomas in the suit are Richard Marsh, the citys former city administrator; and Mark Ragsdale, former director of public works.

The whistleblowers

The lawsuit seeks $1.5 million in damages for each, citing emotional and mental distress, humiliation, embarrassment and injury to professional reputation.

It focuses on numerous investigations of alleged criminal activity pertaining, in part, to how stolen vehicles have been obtained and processed in the city.

It cites retaliation allegations on behalf of Thomas, Ragsdale and Marsh, and charges defamation against Tidwell.

Mungo said the motive to get rid of Thomas can be summed up in that one word  retaliation.

Thomas launched a probe into Tidwell and police Cpl. Kevin Barkman and their alleged handling of stolen vehicles.

The push has been on to get Thomas to quit since February, according to his complaint.

The lawsuit alleges that Marsh found out about alleged fraudulent activities involving improperly processed stolen vehicles and directed Thomas to initiate an investigation into Tidwell.

Thomas findings, according to the lawsuit, revealed that an Ecorse officer facilitated a fraudulent transfer of a vehicle to Tidwell.

Marsh, the lawsuit said, later directed Ragsdale to investigate actions within the Department of Public Works pertaining to suspected fraudulent billing practices.

His probe reported findings of a possible billing scheme involving certain city officials and those findings were reported to federal, state and county officials.

The three men reportedly locked horns with the mayor and council when they refused to detail what specific information was reported to authorities.

Stolen trucks

At the center of the controversy are two stolen vehicles allegedly obtained and processed illegally by Ecorse police.

One vehicle is a 2006 Chevrolet Trailblazer and the other is a 2014 F-150.

It is alleged that the Trailblazer was unlawfully sold to Tidwel for $500.

The F-150 was initially reported as stolen out of Chesterfield Township.

It landed in Ecorse and allegedly was processed through the city as an abandoned vehicle and converted into an Ecorse city vehicle.

It is part of a joint state and federal investigation.

City attorney's statement

Although City Attorney Ed Plato did not respond to a call to his office for comment, he did provide a statement batting down some of the whistleblower claims and explained why, from the citys perspective, Thomas was removed.

The statement, in part said the following:

Former Ecorse Public Safety Director, Joseph Thomas, had been illegally hired by former City Administrator, Richard Marsh. Last October, Mr. Marsh had improperly terminated the employment of then Public Safety Director, Mike Moore, who had held that position since 2013. Marsh then hired Joseph Thomas after conducting interviews behind closed doors in clear violation of the Open Meetings Act. The Open Meetings Act, MCL 15.268(f), requires that 'all interviews by a public body for employment or appointment to a public office shall be held in an open meeting pursuant to this act. Therefore, the process of hiring Joseph Thomas was in violation of Michigan law.

Plato said Thomas was advised back in January that his hiring by Marsh, just before the last election, was invalid and in violation of Michigan law. The statement does not explain why the action is taking place now rather than at that time.

Plato also said that the newly elected council has the right to select and appoint who they want to the position.

As for Joseph Thomass alleged finding of corruption within the city, there was no such finding, Platos statement said. Mr. Thomas is referring to an investigation by the Attorney Generals office over two and a half years ago which found no wrongdoing on the part of anyone within the city. That investigation was begun and ended long before Mr. Thomas was even employed by the City of Ecorse.

Nevertheless, the lawsuit said the mayor and several council members retaliated against all three men for their roles in investigating suspected wrongdoing.

Unlawful request

The lawsuit said the mayor and council were displeased when Thomas and Ragsdale were asked to disclose what information was given to law enforcement agencies from their probe and they refused.

Mungo said that was an unlawful request.

They allegedly were given a blank resignation and separation agreement papers, and then threatened and pressured to sign it, the lawsuit said.

Neither signed the papers.

The council voted at the meeting to replace Thomas with Deputy Chief Narda Bruno, who Plato said was promised the job over a year before Thomas arrived.

She comes with her own challenges with the city.

Bruno filed a discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the city.

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Plato said the new council wanted Bruno in the position.

It was the improper actions of Mr. Marsh hiring Mr. Thomas as public safety director that resulted in Deputy Chief Bruno suing Mr. Marsh and the city of Ecorse, and it was the improper actions of Mr. Marsh that were the reason the city of Ecorse had to pay $300,000 in a settlement to Deputy Chief Bruno," he said in his statement.

Mungo said Thomas, who has a reputation for rooting out corruption, was just doing his job.

+4 Girls 911 call in alleged Brownstown assault turns out to be case for 911Ready bag A 911 emergency call came to the Brownstown Township Police Department from a 12-year-old girl saying her father assaulted her by choking her.

Alleged argument over children ends with father shot multiple times; mom charged with murder An alleged argument between an estranged couple who share two children turned deadly inside a River Rouge house.

Flat Rock High School student named semifinalist in esteemed Presidential Scholars Program Ryan Konarska, a graduating senior at Flat Rock Community High School, has been named a member of a very select group of students, considered 

+2 Alleged drunken driver slams into Grosse Ile police car; shields officer from getting hit Have you ever wondered why police officers park slightly in the traffic lane during a traffic stop?
Ryan Konarska, a graduating senior at Flat Rock Community High School, has been named a member of a very select group of students, considered to be among the best in the country.

Konarska has been selected as one of 625 semifinalists in the 2021 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. The semifinalists were selected from nearly 6,500 candidates expected to graduate from U.S. high schools this year.

Earlier this year, the program announced that Konarska was one of three Downriver students selected as candidates in the program. Those local students were chosen from among nearly 3.6 million students from across the country expected to graduate this year.

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The latest announcement that Konarska has been named a semifinalist advances him to the next phase of the selection process.

Inclusion in the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program, now in its 57th year, is one of the highest honors bestowed upon graduating high school seniors.

Scholars are selected on the basis of superior academic and artistic achievements, leadership qualities, strong character and involvement in community and school activities.

Konarska is the son of Ken and Lori Konarska. He scored 1580 out of 1600 on the SAT. The National Merit Commended Scholar has a 4.3125 cumulative GPA, with 10 Advanced Placement courses. He will attend Princeton University this fall and plans to study political science.

Im incredibly honored to have advanced to the next round of this prestigious competition to recognize the nations brightest high school seniors, Konarska said. Im incredibly proud for my community as well, as working class Downriver is not a typical place for Presidential Scholar semifinalists to come from. One of my essays I wrote for my application, which was used in determining who would become a semifinalist, was about how much I loved Downriver and the strong, tight-knit community we all enjoy.

The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was established in 1964 by executive order of the president to recognize some of our nations most distinguished graduating seniors for their accomplishments.

It was expanded in 1979 to recognize students demonstrating exceptional scholarship and talent in the visual, creative and performing arts. In 2015, the program was expanded once again to recognize students who demonstrate ability and accomplishment in career and technical fields.

Annually, up to 161 U.S. Presidential Scholars are chosen from among that years senior class, representing excellence in education and the promise of greatness in Americas youth.

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Each year, scholars are presented with a Presidential Scholars Medallion.

A distinguished panel of educators reviewed submissions and selected 625 semifinalists. The Commission on Presidential Scholars, a group of up to 32 eminent citizens appointed by the president of the United States, will select the finalists, and the U.S. Department of Education will announce the Scholars in mid-May.

The Presidential Scholars Class of 2021 will be recognized for their outstanding achievements this summer.

+4 Three Downriver students named candidates in prestigious U.S. Presidential Scholars Program Three of Downrivers brightest students have been named as candidates in the 2021 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program.

+2 Group provides funding for female college students to participate in leadership conference Female college students are getting an opportunity to hone their leadership skills, thanks to a Downriver group offering several sponsorships 
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Revolution smokes and glows slowly before it catches fire. Boko Haram and Fulani herdsmen were before #ENDSARS, Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday Igboho. Impunity fuels the country's end.

Nigerians have the right to vote any mediocre government out as they did Ebele Jonathan and they will not hesitate to break the country into its Regional areas since Nigeria expired in 2014. Nigerians lose when they only support the Government leaders from their part of the country, no matter how corrupt. Even worse, they never stop blaming others for rejecting the worst of all evils based on their selfish unreasonable interest. It is time to reject evil representations, blame and form your own country. Only one Region had ever so survived.

Buhari has lost control, before Nigerians give up their nations and become refugees all over the world, each Region must build itself from within. Boko Haram and Fulani are turning Chad, Niger, Central African Republic, Nigeria among other countries into turfs disguised as religious fanaticism similar to what we saw ISIS did in Iraq and Syria before Lebanon. Nigeria with the largest population may be their biggest prize but the spread will reverberate throughout Africa.

It is hard to put genie back into the bottle as Boko Haram exploded. They refuse to learn. Buhari , despite all expectations, could not defeat Boko Haram sponsored by his colleagues, not the previous government as he once indicated when out of power. If he could not contain Boko Haram, Fulani herdsmen; Igbo and Yoruba militia are not his business. The country is broken, the Army and Police must turn against the Privileged class where they can extort more money than they do from the Poor and working class on the streets.

Africa is still sorted out mostly for exploits. Criminals look for fertile ground to breed. Despite the abject poverty in Nigeria, the Western Region remains first choice of destination within the Country. We already had Sudan, Somali and Ethiopia in crisis, they will be rated as mild compared to what is on its way in Nigeria. Arabia meaning share, scatter or break in Hausa: has always been the goal of the Fulani with their captured Hausa slaves. In lieu of that, they want a complete grip on Nigeria and are not ready to let go of areas they can feed on.

Unfortunately, the same is true for criminals looking for rich land to prey upon. Western Nigeria was not built as fast as it is being destroyed today by both traitors and invaders. Most of the Africans and Diaspora Blacks cannot understand how the Country has dragged down the progressive areas within it. When they unleash, on one another in the North, they run to the West for solace: from deposed Emir Sanusi, Fulani businessmen, herdsmen to Talikawa.

Compared the immediate rapid response of Nigeria Security made up of Army, Police and Airforce when the interests of the Fulani warlords or their cows are threatened. Cow owners got immediate response when bandits attempted to cross the Kaduna-Zaria expressway. The security personnel comprising troops of the Army and Air Force, as well as police operatives, were contacted and the Federal troops came to the rescue. But when other ethnic groups call the President during emergencies, they hardly show up.

Only a dying man knows the pinch of death. While poor Nigerians are helplessly displaced from the only land they have ever known by kidnappers, bandits and Fulani herdsmen, those privileged are also crying that they have been kidnapped. As if the Poor real harrowing experience is not bad enough; members of families, religious and even Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeder Association Chairman Wakili Damina faked kidnapping. So was Reverend Father Ejike Mbaka. Only to find out both were inside jobs on brief recalls by their fraternity.

The irony was, it started from the same Privileged class that were trying to control and retain Political Power. So Adamu Ciroma and others warned that if Ebele Jonathan won Presidency, they would make the Country ungovernable. Those that rode on the back of the tiger would be consumed by it. They forgot or ignored the fact that Jonathan was widely elected with votes from North to South; until he messed up big time and singularly helped elect Buhari.

The saddest part of revolutions are the lives of innocent people that are lost, their businesses devastated and other irreplaceable loss in an instant after years of building. Revolution often turned into Jungle Justice. No matter where the Privileged and Opportunists hide or live all over the world, the stubborn and unrelenting class that are resisting Change can no longer escape. There is no place in the universe that you will not find relatives of those you oppressed and dispossessed.

It takes centuries to build civilization but about a day to bomb it into the Stone Age. Indeed, accomplishments have been destroyed not only by the acts of men but by Nature. But the problems with Africa is that, a well developed and civilized people have been destroyed not by Natural Disaster but by greed, inhumanity of man against man and intransigence on the part of the Privileged Class that hung on to Power from the days of their youth to their old age. They have refused to give the Youths the same opportunity they had in their youth.

The Commonwealth has turned into common-parasites that is justified with impunity. Enough blames and recriminations from one part of Nigeria to another. Living and depending on one another has created laziness where beggars all over the country become spies and informers that turn to soldiers overnight. If the reasons for lack of progress in your area is the action of those that are not intelligent or smart enough to support the whole country, stay home and create Eldorado there.

While intelligent and well informed people are arresting desertification in the Arab world with windfall from the Oil Embargo, Fulani assigned themselves Oil Blocks because they are too lazy to work or plant grass in the desert like the Arabian countries to arrest desertification. They would rather go South to find green pastures with impunity. Actually, Nigerian leaders would rather import grass from Niger, north of its border.

Live Free Or Die!
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Let us start by paraphrasing one of Shakespeare's seminal works, Hamlet (Act 3, Scene 1). To impeach or not to impeach Nigeria's President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (Rtd), that is the question: to defenestrate Nigeria's most prestigious office of the one man through whom our differences have become more pronounced, and our shot at peace and prosperity more off the mark  or to remain fatalistic in character and docile in disposition and, in consequence, be subjected to more dehumanizing existential experiences? To those whose critical lenses are not faulty and to whom objective reality is not elusive, the answer to this question is a cinch.

Nigeria has seen enough demystification of the man who, only six years ago, was touted as a fount of endless solutions to Nigeria's hydra-headed sociological problems  a "reformed democrat" for whom heaps of paeans would have been written and recited  except he has now proved himself unworthy of accolades, and we (the majority of Nigerians at least) now know better. Even Femi Adeshina, the infamous defender of the indefensible, is fast becoming a "wailer" (in his own sense of the word), caterwauling about an imminent vote of no confidence in his master by the political class, many of whom have only arrived late to the lamentation, considering the people gave their verdict before 2019.

Leadership can either be benediction or anathema, both for the leader and the led. For Buhari, he has had enough opportunities to prove himself and do right by Nigerians. Thrice, despite the millstone of legitimacy which has always dogged his love for power, Buhari has had the chance to correct the ills of Nigeria at the highest level, and each time, he has stamped himself in the annals of history as a generational failure. Not only did he fail those who witnessed his regime in 1984, but he has also failed the under-35 age group who, as a result of their domination of the country's population and voters' register, enthusiastically campaigned and voted for him in 2015. The same group witnessed his willful subversion of Nigeria's electoral process through the militarization and rigging of the elections in 2019, effectively making his dictatorial constitution a concrete reality for those who were either not born or too young in 1984.

Rather than being a unifying figure in a fragile state like Nigeria, he has consistently embraced his inherent tribesman identity, furthering disunity in the country. As Military Head of State between 1984 to 1985, nearly all the senior positions in his Supreme Military Council (SMC) were served a la carte to Northern Muslims; today, his political appointments continue to foment social discontent across Southern Nigeria. His paternalistic and dirigisme economic policies are more sterile today than they were in the 1980s, leaving several million unemployed and nearly seventy per cent of the population impoverished. The country's fiscal umpire is merely a cash cow today, and debt profile is at a record high.

But the country's dismal economic condition is one thing, the right to life is another. Available statistics on Nigerian Security Tracker shows that; roughly 500 violent deaths of Nigerians are recorded every three weeks since the beginning of 2021, which is cumulatively just a notch higher than the number of civilians killed in the first quarter of 2020. More than 800 Nigerians have been kidnapped so far in 2021, some of them killed, raped, sodomized, dehumanized, and the others still in captivity because they cannot afford the demanded ransom. The fear to move around Nigeria freely no longer derives from the constant harassment and extortion by security forces only, but also the brutality of armed bandits, terror groups, and other non-state actors. Speak of double jeopardy!

In spite of all this, one would not get as far as seven if determined to number how many times the President of Nigeria has addressed the country directly, empathizing with those who have suffered losses and identifying with the country's state of despair; offering hope to the hopeless and speaking with the courage of a compassionate and clear-headed leader. Even in the most peaceful and well-run countries, it is customary for leaders to appear before their people and address them directly on issues of national concern. Buhari lacks the capacity for empathy. His failure as a leader is symptomatic of both the lack of capacity for humanization and the capacity for problem-solving.

On the one hand, Buhari's lack of capacity for humanization explains his insouciant disposition to the avertable upsurge in the dehumanization of Nigerians by state and non-state actors. One might expect that a military dictator who jailed political opponents for 200 years in 1984 would be the exact elixir an endangered state like Nigeria needs, but nothing else seems furthest from the truth. Buhari is just another oppressor who considers Nigerians as "inanimate" objects or "things" who are less than his fat cows in Daura. People like Buhari are mere Lilliputians who thrive only against the weak and shrink just as fast against the strong. Just as strong steels are forged in furnaces, true leaders emerge in times of crisis. Buhari is neither made of steel nor capable to lead.

As the chief military superintendent of the puritanical War Against Indiscipline (WAI) campaign in 1984, there ought to be no scruples about Buhari's capacity to humanize the concrete social conditions of Nigerians; that capacity is simply nonexistent. By importing a tribalist dictator from our best-buried past into the twenty-first century, we cemented the dehumanization of human life in Nigeria, which is now so entrenched that the valuation of each life lost is no different from the statistical import of a missing commodity in a trader's store.

Today, it doesn't matter how mighty or small; all Nigerians are not safe. With about 100 kilometres (or less) between its current encampment and the metropolis, Boko Haram is closing in on the Federal Capital Territory. Even those who assumed they were safer than the others are now awakening to a new concrete consciousness. If the last six years are indicative of anything, it is the fact that Buhari is simply not the answer  his capacity for humanization is weak, his interest in humanization is absent, and as long his cheeks continue to grow bigger in his Aso Rock haven, he could not be bothered whether it is one or one thousand lives lost to banditry, ethnoreligious violence or terrorism in a month.

Since the beginning of the Fourth Republic, no president has been as bellicose as Buhari in "defending" the indissolubility of Nigeria's fragile unity. Conversely, no other president in the same period has assailed that unity more than Buhari himself, in that nothing divides more than a symbol of division. It, therefore, follows that Nigeria's unity, though born of occidental interests, can only be reasonably and peacefully "defended" with Buhari out of the picture. The last six years have already proven to Nigeria and the world who Buhari is not. For Nigeria to heal, Buhari must go. But we must also establish that Buhari's defenestration must not come by way of a coup; Nigeria has seen enough of that. We must also emphasize that coups do not engender transformative governance; they only ossify the bane called dictators and entrench dehumanization.

The Nigerian constitution, flawed as it is, provides reasonable grounds for Buhari's impeachment. Chapter II Section 14 (2)(a) establishes the fundamental, objective reality that "sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria", and Buhari derives his legitimacy, through the constitution, from that sovereignty. In the same Chapter, however, Section 14 (2)(b) delineates the precondition upon which the government is deserving of being considered legitimate: "the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government"; in these two things, Buhari has failed woefully; hence, he is on the one hand, undeserving of the people's legitimacy as a result of his failure, and on the other hand, his continued stay in power will prove too costly for Nigeria.

The National Assembly has the primary responsibility of implementing the impeachment provisions established in section 143 of the constitution. Buhari has committed many crimes, but if the National Assembly is unsure where to start, let's mention some cursorily: one is the crime of corruption which has eaten very deep into the structures of his administration -- his regime is so corrupt that no type of corruption -- be it bribery, looting or extortion is lacking; two is the crime of gross misconduct which, more precisely would be crimes against humanity -- whether it is the express and tacit approval of, or insouciance towards human rights violations, killing of peaceful protesters (from Shiites in Kaduna and Abuja to EndSARS protesters in different parts of the country, so much so that several activists are now in exile); three is the crime of tyranny in a democratic country -- Nigeria's democracy, today, subjected to numerous strains of dictatorship, which is the hallmark of Buhari's regime, with adverse effects on civil liberties, the civic space, press freedom, etc.

The fourth is the crime of dereliction of duty which characterizes his general response to the widespread insecurity ravaging the Nigerian state. Anyone who is not blinded by sycophancy or entrapped in the bubble of dereliction will agree that Buhari's handling of Nigeria's insecurity crisis since day one has been suspicious. The soldiers who lament publicly after several unsuccessful internal complaints about lack of better welfare, intel or weapons are either court-martialed, demoted or sent down a rabbit hole to vanish without a trace.

The fifth imbricates into the last because it is simply the crime of abetting terrorism. Buhari has openly donned himself in the grimy thobe robe of terrorism by choosing to shield a gradualist terrorist, Nigeria's Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Ali Isa Pantami, under his immunity-adorned presidential wings. Nothing could be more implicatory than the commander-in-chief supposedly leading a country in the fight against terrorism, shielding a person who publicly, repeatedly declared his affinity for terrorism and religious extremism. The duty of the National Assembly here is simple and straightforward: impeach Buhari. And if they fail to begin an impeachment proceeding, Nigerians must, as a civic duty, harry their representatives in both houses until they commence the impeaching of the president.

In the absence of this much-needed action by the National Assembly, the burden of defending Nigerians will rest squarely on the shoulders of Nigerians, and one way to do this is through civil disobedience. The Nigerian State, for instance, has no right to receive taxes or levies from Nigerians if Buhari clenches to power desperately, especially to the detriment of human lives and properties, as is currently the case. Nigerian workers have every right to down tools in protest against the Buhari regime. The labour union and other workers' union will need to emerge from their necrophilic state, too. Religious leaders will also have to do more than straddle their rostrums and lament; they will have to prod their congregation in the direction of collective action.

Impeaching Buhari will not be an easy task, but there is no other way to save Nigerians and save the country from imminent ruin.

Adebayo Raphael is a Writer and Human Rights Activist. He can be reached on [email protected] .
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If there is any Igboman whose mindset is deeply rooted in what can in this context be called Igbo Aku Luo Uno Philosophy, he is unarguably Chief Uche Nworah, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Anambra Broadcasting Service (ABS), Awka.

While millions of Ndigbo in Diaspora take time off on annual basis, particularly during the yuletide, to join their age  grade, Ezeudo as his admirers are wont to call him has always been abreast with the age  grade system. For the sake of clarity, the age-grade system Is an association of people of equal or about the same age, operating within a given territory or area with the aim of individual, collective and societal transformation/development. However, the organization, structure and activities of age grade practices in most Igbo communities differ.

According to Nworah in one of his write-ups, being a writer as well as an author of The Long Harmattan Season; a satirical Commentaries who Amazon described as Nigeria's Award Winning Internet Columnist, The age-grade system helps in cultural propagation, maintenance of law and order, and community development. Some age  grades take on solely certain development projects in their communities.

To those that are not familiar with the socialite and grassrooter, seeing him interacting with his 'Umunna', Ndi Ummunna'm otherwise known as 'Umuokpuora' in his Umuakwu village, Enugwu-Ukwu would be taken aback. The reason for the foregoing cannot be farfetched as it would be difficult to reconcile his elitist or rather intellectual disposition with his traditional and cultural understandings.

His socializations with those at the grassroots, more often than not, are usually highlighted with drinks, Nkwuenu, beer etc while Kola nuts are broken by the elders, and accompanied by prayers and stories of successes. Ezeudo surely knows when to leverage the unity that binds him and his people. The reason for his cultural and traditional disposition cannot be pooh-poohed as his sense of community service and love of his people is by each passing day literarily replenished.

Being at home with Igbo culture and tradition, he is unarguably a lover of masquerade displays, house warming ceremonies, Ofala and Igu Aro festivals by traditional rulers, Chieftaincy, Nze, Iyom, Ozo title taking and other ceremonies. When it comes to appeal funds that are linked to community projects, and extending hand of assistance to the less privileged, Chief Nworah is no doubt a down-to-earth supporter.

At this juncture, it is not unexpected for this piece to be misconstrued as not few readers may have been interpreting it from pyrogenic perspective. Nay! It is far from being a pyrogenic write up. Rather, the piece is aimed at recognizing him for consistently been committed to the preservation of Igbo culture and tradition. Culture, as widely known, is the identity of the people. On the other hand, it is not an exaggeration to say that if Nigeria literarily has Chief Uche Nworah in virtually all the communities across the country that the lamentations that have been trailing the rapid erosion of cultural and traditional values in Nigeria could not have been possible. Also, describing him as a custodian of Igbo culture and tradition may be difficult to comprehend to those that are not familiar with him. However, exploration of the google space about his comments on Igbo culture and tradition are convincing enough to believe that he is worthy of being praised at such.

The expediency of this piece cannot be cheapened as even the governments, at all tiers, have not relent in putting in place policies, programmes and institutions that are geared toward the preservation of culture. For instance, The Nigerian Government in September, 1988, launched the National Cultural Policy. This policy document defined culture as  the totality of the way of life evolved by a people in their attempt to meet the challenges in their environment which gives order and meaning to their social, political, economic, aesthetic and religious norms and modes of organization, thus distinguishing the people from their neighbor. As a further step, the Federal Government in June 1999, created the Federal Ministry of Culture and Tourism by mid-2006, the ministry was renamed Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, with the mandate to promote the nations rich cultural heritage, through the identification, development and marketing, of the diverse cultural and tourism potentials. However In November 2015, Ministry of Culture and Tourism was later merged with ministry of information, which is now known as Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism.

Without any iota of exaggeration, culture is the lifeblood of a vibrant society, expressed in the many ways we tell our stories, celebrate, remember the past, entertain ourselves, and imagine the future. Our creative expression helps define who we are, and helps us see the world through the eyes of others. Nigerians participate in culture in many ways, as audiences, professionals, amateurs, volunteers, and donors or investors.

In fact, the benefits of culture for individuals can spill over to society as a whole, even as culture helps build social capital; the glue that holds communities together. By bringing people together, cultural activities such as festivals, fairs, or classes create social solidarity and cohesion, fostering social inclusion, community empowerment, and capacity-building, and enhancing confidence, civic pride, and tolerance.

The concept of culture has many definitions and interpretations. In social settings, it is often used broadly to represent entire ways of life. Included in such ways of life are rules, values, and expected behaviors. At its most basic level, culture can be seen as the shared products of a society. These products have a common meaning that accumulates over time and also reflect shared attachments among community members.

Culture can be seen as consisting of ideas, rules, and material dimensions. Ideas include such things as the values, knowledge, and experience held by a culture. Values are shared ideas and beliefs about what is morally right or wrong, or what is culturally desirable. Such values are abstract concepts and are often based in religion or culture in that they reflect ideals and visions of what society should be. Such values often shape expected behavior and rules. These rules are accepted ways of doing things and represent guidelines for how people should conduct themselves and how they should act towards others.
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All over the media we can say in the last seven days Nigeria has treated the police unfairly as well as other law enforcement men and women. Why the recent police deaths are particularly a problem is the dramatic rate, its unique nature, strangeness, and the unfortunate messages these acts send to the country.

All these are happening suddenly as Nigeria look like tumbling into the darkness due to its most crucial issueslawlessness, impunity, nepotism, joblessness, hopelessness, corruption, insecurity, and kidnapping.

It was just in October of 2020, Tuesday 20th to be exact that peaceful and unarmed protesters engaged in anti-police brutality demonstrations. Nigerians and the world were stunned after police and soldiers opened fire on unarmed protesters against police brutality.

Our President, Muhammadu Buhari, two days later in one of his rare, televised address to the nation on Thursday evening, hardly and vaguely made references to the youths killed and severely injured in the countrys most powerful police brutality protests ever.

I see that as a grave emotional blunder on the part of the Presidents advisers especially as it sends the message that Nigeria does not care about its peoples human rights.

And six months later at a time when the nation is dangerously been driven by mass insecurity, our Police officers and other law enforcement agents are now constant targets for violence. Guess what, unlike most nations, these law enforcement deaths did not spark any sort of national outcry. Unusually, they have mostly been shot, ambushed, and slain by unidentified gunmen an unusual occurrence worldwide.

Oddly, while death of police globally is primarily being linked to traffic stops and responses to domestic violence calls, in Nigeria police are being attacked and slaughtered in different police stations and at stationary security checkpoints.

At the same time, attackers burn police stations, set patrol cars on fire, take away police assault rifles, film, and mock dying police, beheads and burn police bodies and even free persons held in custody in cells with many of them held beyond allowed time.

In America, official reports so far this year, shows that roughly 45 or so police officers have been shot with 11 killed. Let us compare. At the time of this writing and in the last 100 hours, media reports and police statements show that no fewer than 18 police officers have lost their lives and more than 40 policemen have been killed in the last two weeks across Nigeria. It could far be more given our poor data reporting in terms of actual police deaths and severe injuries.

The world and Nigerians are not specifically wondering what could be contributing to an anti-police atmosphere that puts officers in daily danger because for far too long the Nigeria police especially have engaged in brutal suppression of its citizens  mostly in the hands of the reportedly gone notorious Special Anti-Robbery Squad, known as SARS, that have been accused of extortion, rape, kidnapping, harassment, torture, and extrajudicial killings.

Police officers have been known to target physical features of citizens such as dreadlocked or brightly colored hair, holding an iPhone as well those with laptops and tattoos. Police officers are known to shoot live ammunitions to disperse a crowd, in celebration party, bribe attack, and in some cases innocent Nigerians got killed or permanently injured. What is all that about?

Very often, due to ineffective government and poor police accountability institutions and mechanisms justice is hardly done in many cases, and the end to the violence from both sides continues.

Our police officers cannot all be bad. Many police unfortunately will remain easy target for slaying by surprise and ambushed as they find themselves in stations, checkpoints and surroundings that lack appropriate and adequate communication gadgets, adequate electrical power supply lines, operational patrol vehicles/boats, and adequate weapons and firearms. Many lack the wearing of special personal protective equipment such as body armor coverage like tactical gear like flak jackets, ballistic shields. So, they become targets for killings.

One reality is obvious, no matter what anyone thinks about the law enforcement institutions in Nigeria, our law enforcement officers who were killed in the line of duty, all have some type of families. When they die their families will be notified. It must be done with sensitivity and compassionately especially given the horrible and violent way many are dying. No phone call to family members, the notification officer(s) visiting the homes should be accompanied by a cleric, psychologist, physician, or close friend. There must be active system of disability benefits for police officers severely injured, and death benefits for those killed in the line of duty that will be immediately available to surviving families.

If Nigeria is to work towards becoming a healthy democratic society, police adherence to human rights must improve, policecommunity relations must improve, law enforcement technology, electricity and water, information and communication must improve as well as police efficiency in Nigeria. As I continue to argue, this will not come through a centralized Nigeria police force but with the creation of State Policing.

Prof. John Egbeazien Oshodi, an American based Police/Prison Scientist and Forensic/Clinical/Legal Psychologist. A government Consultant on matters of forensic-clinical adult/child psychological services in the USA; Chief Educator and Clinician at the Transatlantic Enrichment and Refresher Institute, an Online Lifelong Center for Personal, Professional and Career Development. The Founder of the Dr. John Egbeazien Oshodi Foundation, Center for Psychological Health and Behavioral Change in African settings especially. In 2011, he introduced the State-of-the-Art Forensic Psychology into Nigeria through N.U.C and the Nasarawa State University where he served in the Department of Psychology as an Associate Professor. The Development Professor and International Liaison Consultant at the African University of Benin, and a Virtual Faculty at the ISCOM University, Benin of Republic. Author of over 36 academic publications/creations, at least 200 public opinion writeups on African issues, and various books.

Prof. Oshodi was born in Uromi, Edo State, Nigeria to parents with almost 40 years of police/corrections service, respectively. Periodically visits home for scholastic and humanitarian works. [email protected]
Two Michigan students have been chosen to be a part of an elite group of high school graduates.
Take a few minutes to catch up on some of your local news:
Speed is believed to have been a factor in a single-vehicle crash on Northwestern Highway that killed a 58-year-old Southfield man Monday night.

The Southfield Police Department identified the victim as Michael Laviolette, the driver of a black GMC Terrain that struck a utility pole and then a tree before the vehicle came to rest at Northwestern and J.L. Hudson Drive. A passer-by contacted authorities at around 11:15 p.m. to report the crash, police said.

Laviolette, unresponsive when officers arrived, was removed from the vehicle by Southfield Fire Department personnel and it was determined that he was dead, police said.

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An investigation showed the vehicle was traveling northbound on the Lodge Freeway and exited at Northland Drive where it went over the median and struck the pole and tree. Police said its unclear if factors other than speed were involved.

Anyone with information on the crash is asked to contact Det. Scott Dickey, Southfield Police traffic investigator, at 248-796-5408 .

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Pontiac man stabbed multiple times, granddaughter in custody A 75-year-old Pontiac man is hospitalized in critical condition after his granddaughter allegedly attacked him in his sleep, stabbing him mult

Farmington Hills welcomes new assistant city manager Birminghams former city manager is the new assistant city manager for Farmington Hills, as of May 3.

Police: Fatal shooting deemed self-defense The fatal shooting of a Taylor man in Southfield this past February has reportedly been deemed self-defense, resulting in no one being charged

+3 Judge reinstates charge against Oakland County woman accused of tossing newborn in trash A Wayne County circuit judge has reinstated an assault with intent to murder charge against a Highland Township woman who allegedly threw her 
Traffic Stop Leads to Mayfield Woman's Arrest

By West Kentucky Star Staff

A traffic stop Friday afternoon in Mayfield led to the arrest of a woman wanted on several warrants.

Mayfield Police observed 48-year-old Regina Hayden of Mayfield as a passenger in a vehicle. Officers had been looking for Hayden on multiple outstanding warrants.

A traffic stop was conducted, and Hayden was taken into custody.



Hayden was transported to the Ballard County Jail for three indictment warrants out of Graves County, two bail jumping warrants out of Graves County and five failure to appear warrants out of Graves County.

MAYFIELD -
Birminghams former city manager is the new assistant city manager for Farmington Hills, as of May 3.

Joseph A. Valentine is a 24-year veteran of municipal operations management and has a proven track record of effectively addressing community needs and concerns, as stated in a news release from the City of Farmington Hills.

Valentines professional history also includes serving as Birminghams assistant city manager and human resources director.

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I look forward to making a positive impact on the City of Farmington Hills, Valentine stated in the news release. I welcome the opportunity to meet with local business leaders and members of the community so that I can build upon the existing successful programs in the city.

As Farmington Hills assistant city manager, Valentine fills the position previously held by Gary Mekjian who became city manager in March following the retirement of Dave Boyer.

Valentine was selected through a recruitment process managed by the Farmington Hills Human Resources Department. He holds a masters degree in public administration and a bachelors degree in public affairs, both from Wayne State University. He also has certifications from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and is a former reserve officer for the Birmingham Police Department.

Valentine is a member of several professional organizations including the International City/County Management Association, Michigan Municipal Executives and the Michigan Municipal League. Also, he has served on the Board of Directors of the Michigan Public Employers Labor Relations Association and the Southeast Oakland County Resource Recovery Authority.

Valentine lives in Birmingham with his wife, Sarah, a nursing manager at Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital, and their three children.

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+3 Former Red Wing enters plea to amended drunk driving charge Former Detroit Red Wings forward Todd Bertuzzi has pleaded guilty to operating while intoxicated, a charge reduced from operating with a blood

Police: Fatal shooting deemed self-defense The fatal shooting of a Taylor man in Southfield this past February has reportedly been deemed self-defense, resulting in no one being charged

Pontiac man stabbed multiple times, granddaughter in custody A 75-year-old Pontiac man is hospitalized in critical condition after his granddaughter allegedly attacked him in his sleep, stabbing him mult
An Orion Township man charged with killing his mother and assaulting his uncle has made a plea deal with the Oakland County Prosecutors Office, opting out of trial.

Garrett Lee Roberts, 31, entered a plea of no contest before Oakland County Circuit Judge Shalina Kumar on Tuesday to reduced charges in the Oct. 20, 2019 murder of his mother, Delora Roberts, 59, and for stabbing his uncle who reportedly intervened when he saw Garrett Roberts attacking her.

Garrett Roberts had been charged with first-degree premeditated murder for the death, which was dismissed in exchange for second-degree murder in the plea deal. The charge for stabbing his uncle, initially assault with intent to commit murder, was also dismissed in exchange for assault with intent to commit great bodily harm.

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The plea deal calls for a minimum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum of life. A charge of being a habitual offender was dismissed along with the two other initial charges.

Assistant prosecutor Rob Novy told the court that the victims family members are on board with the deal.

Defense attorney Mitchell Ribitwer said the reasoning behind the no contest plea is civil liability and lack of memory" on his client's part. A no contest plea offers some protection against lawsuits but is treated as an admission of guilt at sentencing.

The murder and assault took place at Delora Roberts home in the 4500 block of Rohr Road. Oakland County Sheriff's deputies called there for help found Garrett Roberts walking along Rohr Road crying, and said he had a self-inflicted stab wound.

Mental health evaluations following his arrest  at the states Center for Forensic Psychiatry and from an independent provider  found no evidence for a mental illness defense.

Garrett Roberts criminal history includes convictions for marijuana possession, misdemeanor attempt to resist/obstruct, misdemeanor indecent exposure, breaking and entering, and misdemeanor malicious destruction of property.

Delora Roberts was an active member of Marimont Community Church in Pontiac. She was the mother of three, including one son who predeceased her.

Garrett Roberts is scheduled to be sentenced on June 8.

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Crash on Northwestern Highway kills Southfield man Speed is believed to have been a factor in a single-vehicle crash on Northwestern Highway that killed a 58-year-old Southfield man Monday night.

Pontiac man stabbed multiple times, granddaughter in custody A 75-year-old Pontiac man is hospitalized in critical condition after his granddaughter allegedly attacked him in his sleep, stabbing him mult

+3 Former Red Wing enters plea to amended drunk driving charge Former Detroit Red Wings forward Todd Bertuzzi has pleaded guilty to operating while intoxicated, a charge reduced from operating with a blood
New school COVID outbreaks declined slightly in Oakland County last week.

Of the 176 new COVID cases at Michigan schools reported for the week of May 1-7, 34 cases occurred in 15 outbreaks at 12 schools in Oakland County.

The previous week when there were 59 cases in 20 outbreaks at 18 schools in the county and the state had 195 cases.

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An outbreak, as defined by the state, is two or more cases that have shared exposure on school grounds and are from different households.

West Middle School in Rochester Hills had 9 cases in three outbreaks, all among students. Stoney Creek High School in Rochester Hills had two outbreaks among four students.

Other schools with new outbreaks last week: Oakside Scholars Academy in Waterford (2 cases), Ortonville Brandon High School (2 cases), Madison Heights Elementary (2 cases, food staff), Oxfords Lakeville Elementary (2 cases), Clarkstons Sashabaw Middle School (2 cases), Novis Hickory Woods Elementary (2 cases), Dublin Elementary in White Lake (3 cases), Oak Parks Beth Jacob High School (2 cases), Hazel Park High School (2 cases) and Walled Lake Elementary (2 cases). All cases were among students except at Madison Heights Elementary.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services releases the school outbreak data each Monday.

Ongoing outbreaks were reported with 76 cases (up from 42 a week ago) at 26 schools in Oakland County.

Schools with ongoing outbreaks: Edmonson Elementary in Madison Heights, Rochester Adams, Southfield Christian, Mary Ellen Guest Elementary in Walled Lake, Oakley Park Elementary in Commerce, Troys Costello Elementary, Birmingham Seaholm, Clarkstons Sashabaw Middle School, Clarkston Junior High, Oak Parks Norup International, Waterfords Mason Middle School, Troy High, Troy Athens, Oxford High, Waterfords Riverside Elementary, Waterfords Oakside Scholars Academy, Lake Orions Webber Elementary, Lake Orion High School, Clarkstons North Sashabaw Elementary, Rochester Hills University Hills Elementary, Oxfords Daniel Axford Elementary, Clifford Smart Middle School in Commerce and Harlan Elementary in Bloomfield Hills,

Ongoing outbreaks are those that had already been identified in previous weeks but have had at least one new associated case reported to the local health department in the last 28 days.

Case counts for school-related outbreaks include those associated with before- and after-school programs (including school-sponsored sports). When applicable, outbreak reporting also includes cases originating from on-campus and off-campus student housing.

In other outbreak news, in region 2N which includes Oakland, Macomb and St. Clair counties, last week there were 52 new outbreaks (down from 55 last week) including 4 new outbreaks at long-term care facilities; 5 in manufacturing and construction; 2 in healthcare; 22 in before/after school programs; 0 at office settings; 10 in retail among employees; and zero in bars and restaurants.
Oakland County, its communities, and K-12 schools are slated to receive around $656 million in federal American Rescue Plan funding to help with their COVID-19 pandemic response efforts.

The U.S. Department of Treasury released its final guidance on Monday on how $350 billion in American Rescue Plan funding could be used by state and local governments. Of the $1.9 trillion made available through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, just over $18 billion is available to Michigan through various federal revenue streams.

This includes $6.5 billion in direct assistance for the State of Michigan, which is $800 million more than initially expected, $1.93 billion for the state's counties, $2.4 billion for the state's local governments, and $3.9 billion for Michigan's K-12 schools among other revenue streams.

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+4 Oakland County communities receiving millions in federal aid from American Rescue Plan The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan will soon deliver billions in much needed financial assistance directly to local governments of all pop

Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury Secretary, said this state and local government funding will help "communities hit hard by COVID-19 be able to return to a semblance of normalcy."

According to the updated guidance, there is some broad flexibility in how communities can utilize these incoming dollars to further meet their needs. This includes being able to use the funding to address revenue shortfalls experienced as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligible uses include:

Support public health expenditures: For example, funding COVID-19 mitigation efforts, medical expenses, behavioral healthcare, and certain public health and safety staff

For example, funding COVID-19 mitigation efforts, medical expenses, behavioral healthcare, and certain public health and safety staff Address negative economic impacts caused by the public health emergency: This includes economic harms to workers, households, small businesses, impacted industries, and the public sector

This includes economic harms to workers, households, small businesses, impacted industries, and the public sector Replace lost public sector revenue : Using this funding to provide government services to the extent of the reduction in revenue experienced due to the pandemic

: Using this funding to provide government services to the extent of the reduction in revenue experienced due to the pandemic Provide premium pay for essential workers: Offering additional support to those who have and will bear the greatest health risks because of their service in critical infrastructure sectors

Offering additional support to those who have and will bear the greatest health risks because of their service in critical infrastructure sectors Invest in water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure: Making necessary investments to improve access to clean drinking water, support vital wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, and to expand access to broadband internet

Dave Coulter reconvenes task force to leverage $244 million in federal aid A group of business and community leaders will advise Oakland County Executive Dave Coulter and his team on how to best leverage $244 million 

Here are the American Rescue Plan allocations for the State of Michigan, its counties, and local governments:

State of Michigan: $6.54 billion

Michigan counties: $1.93 billion

Michigan metropolitan communities (over 50,000 residents): $1.82 billion

Michigan non-entitlement communities (under 50,000 residents): $644.29 million

Here are the numbers broken down for Oakland County:

Oakland County: $244.2 million

Oakland County metropolitan communities (Farmington Hills, Novi, Pontiac, Rochester Hills, Royal Oak, Southfield, Troy, Waterford, and West Bloomfield): $119 million

Oakland County K-12 schools: $257 million

Under the American Rescue Plan, public and private colleges and universities will also receive direct assistance. In Oakland County, that includes the Cranbrook Academy of Art ($89,258), Lawrence Technological University ($4.1 million), Rochester University ($2.5 million), Oakland Community College ($28.7 million), and Oakland University ($39.4 million).

According to the updated allocation totals, Pontiac is slated to receive around $37.7 million in direct assistance, which is $31.8 million more than initially expected back in March ($5.87 million).

States, counties, and metropolitan cities will receive their allocated dollars directly from the federal government. The non-entitlement communities will receive their funding from the State of Michigan.

Local governments will receive funding in two phases, with 50% of the allocation being provided this month and the remaining balance delivered approximately 12 months later. States that have experienced a net increase in the unemployment rate of more than 2 percent from February 2020 to the latest available data (March 2021) will receive their full allocation of funds in a single payment. All other states will receive their allocation funds in two phases.

State allocations were based on the average number of unemployed individuals over the three-month period ending with December 2020. The county and non-entitlement community allocations were based solely on population while metropolitan community allocations were based on population and existing federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) formulas involving poverty and housing stability.

Oakland County COVID vaccinations top 60%, among best in state Oakland County is among the best in the state at administering the COVID-19 vaccine.

COVID cases in children spike as decision nears on Pfizer vaccine for ages 12-15 With the recent spike in COVID-19 cases among children, the potential of having the Pfizer vaccine available as soon as next week for 12-15 ye
In the weeks after George Floyds death in Minnesota, Southfields mayor was flooded with calls and emails, filled with frustration and anger.

One theme consistent was to defund the police.

During this time, the city also saw about 20 protests of varying sizes, every one of them peaceful, Mayor Ken Siver recalled Tuesday.

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The protests were peaceful, he said, because the police stood with the protesters, not carrying shields; instead, they were there mingling and talking to the people who came out.

And when it came to those calls to defund, Siver said his message was simple.

We are not defunding the police in the city of Southfield, Siver said. We need our police and we expect a lot of them. Its a very difficult job. We will put our money into training, equipment, and into community outreach.

The remarks came Tuesday, May 11, as the city unveiled its new Southfield Police Memorial wall, with 2021 marking 50 years since the killing of Officer James W. McMahan, who died while on duty Jan. 23, 1971, being struck by a drunk driver just two months after joining the department.

The city and police department also remembered and thanked Officer Donald L. Harding, 27, who died on Aug. 5, 1962, while in pursuit of drag racers.

Besides the two Southfield officers, the event also honored all fallen police officers. Families of the pair of local officers received police pins as well as watching the unveiling of a special plaque.

Southfield Police Chief Elvin Barron said one of the reasons the department values high standards is they owe it to the fallen officers.

The commitment Im going to make to the families here, because your loved ones paid the ultimate sacrifice, its very important that the agency that they sacrificed their lives for maintains their high standards, so their sacrifice is not in vain, Barron said.

Two of the key aspects of this professionalism are accountability and ensuring training is top notch, the chief said.

Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald was on hand as well, saying she and her office were dedicated to working with and supporting law enforcement.

McDonald said it was inspiring to see the community and police department work together.

The mayor said the police department succeeds when it works with residents.

We have a wonderful community policing staff that diffuses situations rather than escalates, Siver said. That is part of modern policing.

Photos and reporting by Roy Akers / For MediaNews Group.
@MarkCavitt on Twitter

Mark Cavitt is a multimedia journalist at The Oakland Press and MediaNews Group in Michigan. His beat includes all Oakland County government offices, departments, boards, commissions and committees.
Brits fined B6,000 in Phuket for illegal family gathering of six

PHUKET: Two British nationals in Phuket have been fined B6,000 each for holding an illegal gathering by having a total of only six people at a family gathering at a private home in Baan Layan, Cherng Talay, on Phukets west coast.

COVID-19Coronavirushealthpolice

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Tuesday 11 May 2021, 11:49AM

The illegal family gathering that saw two British nationals arrested for holding a party. Photo: Cherng Talay Police

Cherng Talay Police, under command of Chief Col Pirachart Pombunmee and led by Capt Prasan Ketsaro, raided the home at about 5pm Sunday (May 9).

The raid was conducted after a tip-off by local residents, said the report by Capt Prasan.

The name of the informant was not revealed.

Also present during the raid were the Cherng Talay subdistrict chief (Kamnan) Jirayut Jirasunthornkul and the village chief (Phu Yai Baan) for Moo 6 Cherng Talay Suchart Yuyen and his assistant Yongyut Khononghai.

The two were arrested at the house* and charged for acting against the Communicable Diseases Act, B.E. 2558 (2015) and the Phuket Provincial Order No. 2284/2564 Section 5, Capt Prasan wrote in his report.

Section 5 of Phuket Provincial Order No. 2284/2564 was issued by Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew on Apr 28. The section mandates: For social activities, all people must refrain gathering for celebration, such as birthday parties, welcome or farewell parties, or others, except traditional events, such as funerals, weddings, or ordination. If the event cannot be postponed, the organiser must strictly follow the disease control measure to reduce the risk to spread the disease.

While the report by Capt Prasan did not explain what penalty the two will face, Col Pirachart of the Cherng Talay Police confirmed to The Phuket News this morning (May 11) that both British nationals were taken to Cherng Talay Police Station and fined B6,000 each.

We are calling for the other four foreigners present at the house on that day to come to the police station and face a charge, Col Pirachart said.

* The Phuket News is withholding the names of the two British nationals arrested at their request, but notes that the names have been widely published in Thai news reports in English, as provided by the police.
Sinovac jabs safe for over 60s, says China study

THAILAND: Senior citizens have no need to worry about getting inoculated with Sinovacs COVID-19 vaccine, as a study carried out in China has confirmed its suitability for use in adults over the age 60, said Sophon Mekhton, assistant to the Public Health Minister and chairman of the COVID-19 vaccine management sub-committee, yesterday (May 10).

ChineseCoronavirusCOVID-19healthVaccine

By Bangkok Post

Tuesday 11 May 2021, 09:57AM

A medical worker prepares a dose of COVID-19 vaccine yesterday for injection at an old warehouse in Klong Toey, Bangkok, which has been converted into a mass inoculation venue. The site, located near the Port Authority of Thailands head office, is the third to be set up in response to the growing number of infections in the capitals crowded districts. Photo: Wichan Charoenkiatpakul.

The results of the independent study, Dr Sophon said, should dispel any remaining doubts about the safety of Sinovac jabs for senior citizens, which stemmed from a lack of empirical data for the age group after the vaccine was rolled out.

Dr Sophon said many have received Sinovac jabs across the world and the vaccine was found to be safe.

The study found the companys vaccine, which uses culture-grown virus particles to stimulate the bodys immune response, is effective and safe, which is reassuring, he added.

Responding to the World Health Organizations (WHO) previous statements regarding Sinovacs vaccine, Dr Sophon urged the public to not cling on to old information.

The WHO had earlier said that an independent assessment of Sinovac jabs showed the vaccine poses a low risk of serious adverse effects for adults over 60.

The same study, however, backed Sinovacs claims that two doses of the jabs can effectively and safely prevent virus transmission in other age groups.

The AstraZeneca vaccine, which will be ready in about a month, will ultimately be the primary COVID-19 vaccine for individuals over the age of 60. AstraZeneca has been the vaccine of choice for senior citizens in Thailand, although the lack of supplies has prompted a switch to Sinovac.

Last Friday, the national communicable diseases committee approved the use of Sinovacs COVID-19 vaccine for people over 60.

Dr Sophon said all vaccines have a chance of causing negative side-effects, although the likelihoods are very slim, before assuring the government has a plan in place in case senior citizens vaccinated with the Sinovac vaccine develop unwanted side-effects.

Thailand has imported 3.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from Sinovac to date. A further 500,000 doses donated by China will arrive this week, while the two million bought by the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation will be delivered later this month.

Meanwhile, Anusorn Tamajai, former dean of the Faculty of Economics at Rangsit University, said the government should offer B8-12 million to each family whose member is proven to have died after being vaccinated against COVID-19.

The scheme will boost peoples confidence in the vaccine, he said, adding public health workers should be paid more for their hard work, sacrifice and danger they face from the virus.
South Asian ban widens

THAILAND: Thailand has widened an entry ban to cover non-Thai travellers from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal to guard against the spread of the highly contagious COVID-19 variant first detected in India.

CoronavirusCOVID-19healthVaccineimmigration

By Bangkok Post

Tuesday 11 May 2021, 08:51AM

Yaksa statues at Suvarnabhumi airport are adorned with face masks to remind the public to remain vigilant during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Foreign Ministry yesterday widened its ban on issuing certificates of entry (COE) for Indian nationals wanting to come from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal. Photo: Varuth Hirunyatheb.

The entry ban includes foreigners departing from these countries and in transit in other countries and those travelling in or passing through them.

Travellers arriving here from overseas need to first produce a certificate of entry (COE) as part of the kingdoms COVID-19 measures.

The Thai embassy in New Delhi had already decided late last month to cancel all COEs issued to non-Thais from India due to the virus spike there.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs decided yesterday (May 10) to stop issuing COEs to non-Thai nationals travelling from the three other South Asian countries which are experiencing widespread transmissions of the variant.

Ministry spokesman Tanee Sangrat said the decision was made at the request of the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) following the discovery of the fast-spreading variant in travellers from Pakistan.

The CCSA has confirmed reports that one traveller from Pakistan into Thailand has been infected by the COVID-19 variant first detected in India, said Mr Tanee.

The CCSA meeting therefore requested the MFA to temporarily suspend the issuance of COEs to all foreigners travelling from countries which have widespread transmission of the said variant.

In response to this, the MFA will comply with the CCSAs recommendations and temporarily suspend the issuance of COEs to all foreign nationals travelling from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal into Thailand.

Mr Tanee stressed that the suspension of COEs was a temporary and precautionary measure against the spread of the variant and did not affect Thai nationals travelling from those countries.

Thai nationals, diplomats on mission in Thailand and their families and permanent residents travelling from these countries are still able to return to Thailand if they so wish, he said.

Apisamai Srirangson, an assistant spokeswoman for the CCSA, reported the discovery of the new variant in a Thai woman and her young son who arrived from Pakistan last month.

The woman and her three sons, aged four, six and eight, arrived in Thailand from Pakistan via Dubai on April 24.

All were in a state-arranged state quarantine facility after their arrival and the first tests found the mother and her youngest son were positive, while the other children were not infected.

A whole-genome sequencing test conducted at Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital on Sunday confirmed the virus detected on them was B.1.617.1.

These were the first detections of the variant in the country, Dr Apisamai said.

The B.1.617.1 variant was recorded for the first time in India in October before spreading to other countries including Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. The UK, Germany, Singapore, Japan and Bahrain have also detected this version of the virus.

The CCSA is concerned about the new version and the possibility of the virus mutating here and has asked all agencies to heighten their surveillance, she said.

According to Dr Apisamai, Thailand has barred entry to non-Thai travellers from India and the latest flight on May 8 brought home 74 Thai citizens who are now in state quarantine (SQ) and alternative state quarantine (ASQ) venues.

The next scheduled flights for Thai nationals from India are on May 15 and May 22  passengers will be closely monitored and tested for the variant while being quarantined, she added.

Thiravat Hemachudha, director of the Health Science Centre of Emerging Diseases at Chulalongkorn Universitys faculty of medicine, yesterday urged the country to be on high alert.

Dr Thiravat said the new variant was even causing concern in Israel, noting that four people who had been fully vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine were among those infected with it.

Thailand must be vigilant even if we can achieve our vaccination target by year-end, he wrote. If there is a mutated version that can evade vaccines, the problem will remain.
Thailand inks pre-Brexit export quota deal with EU

THAILAND: Thailand and the European Union (EU) have signed a new tariff rate quota deal, under which a predetermined number of the kingdoms goods can be exported to the bloc at pre-Brexit tax rates.



By Bangkok Post

Tuesday 11 May 2021, 09:18AM

The trade agreement comes into effect next month. Photo: Bangkok Post file.

The agreement, which replaces a similar agreement that had to be renegotiated following the United Kingdoms departure from the economic bloc on Jan 1, will come into force next month.

Pimchanok Pitfield, Thailands permanent representative to the World Trade Organization (WTO), said she signed the agreement with Jose Fernando Costa Pereira, Portugals ambassador and permanent representative to the EUs Political and Security Committee (PSC) in Brussels, Belgium recently.

Products covered in the agreement include rice, poultry and fishery products, which Thailand will still be able to export to the EU with the same trade privileges extended before Brexit, she said.

This agreement, however, only deals with quotas for goods which had been regulated under a previous agreement. Export duty reductions will be sought in separate trade negotiations which will be held between Thailand and the EU, as well as the United Kingdom, she said.

The Commerce Ministry will negotiate for higher quotas and lower duty rates for agricultural and fishery product exports from Thailand to the EU and Britain, she said.

Since 2019, the Department of Foreign Trade has been acting as Thailands main negotiating body in talks with both the EU and Britain, in a bid to  at the very least  secure the same export quotas and privileges which Thailand used to receive from both parties before Brexit, she said.

Between 2017 and last year, the value of two-way trade between Thailand and the EU had averaged between B1.4 trillion each year, in which Thailand imported products worth B656 billion from the EU per year and exported products worth B744bn per year to the EU.
Two Sent to Hospital After Caldwell Rollover Crash

By West Kentucky Star Staff

CALDWELL COUNTY - A rollover crash in Caldwell County Monday afternoon sent two people to the hospital.The accident happened on Highway 903. Nineteen-year-old Jose Daniel Mijes of Princeton told Caldwell County sheriff's deputies that he swerved to miss an oncoming vehicle close to the center line. His vehicle dropped off the road and struck the face of a bridge.A passenger in the vehicle, 19-year-old Daniel Trujillo, of Chicago, IL, was trapped between the drivers side door and the roadway, and had to be freed by mechanical means. He was airlifted to Deaconess Hospital in Evansville, IN for treatment of his injuries.Mijes was transported to Caldwell County Medical Center.
Southern Pines, NC (28387)

Today

Mostly cloudy skies this morning followed by thunderstorms during the afternoon. High 86F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Scattered showers and thunderstorms. Low 71F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
WASHINGTON (AP)  For 50 years the Minuteman missile has been armed and ready, day and night, for nuclear war on a moment's notice. It has never been launched into combat from its underground silo, but this year it became the prime target in a wider political battle over the condition and cost of the nation's nuclear arsenal.

Minuteman was not intended to last half a century, so it's overdue to be replaced or refurbished. Some see this as a moment to push for scrapping it altogether, abandoning one leg of the traditional nuclear triad  weapons that can be launched from land, sea and air. Most in Congress favor keeping the land-based leg by replacing Minuteman with a new missile; President Joe Biden's position is not yet clear.

The outcome of the fight likely will steer nuclear policy and strategy for decades to come. It could influence how U.S. allies in Europe and Asia view the reliability of America's nuclear umbrella  the security net that has allowed most of them to forgo developing nuclear weapons of their own. Some argue that it could make the difference between war and peace in an era of rising Chinese military power.

Navy Adm. Charles Richard, who as head of U.S. Strategic Command is in charge of nuclear warfighting plans, says Minuteman is so old that Air Force technicians have had to perform magic to keep it fully functional while coping with severely limited spares for components such as missile launch switches.

I'm afraid there's a point where they won't be able to pull the rabbit out of the hat and the system won't work, he told a House hearing April 21. Asked later by a reporter if he meant Minuteman had become unreliable, Richard said it's safe and dependable for now but with no more margin for delay in replacing it.

Stephen Schwartz, a nonresident senior fellow at the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, says Richard's statements are reminiscent of alarming claims made during the Cold War about needing new weapons.

Time and again, officials have warned us the sky is falling, and it is never true, Schwartz said. "Congress should critically examine the historical record and apply some healthy skepticism to such testimony.

Richard applauds a bipartisan push in Congress to preserve and modernize the entire nuclear arsenal at a cost, depending on how you define it, of more than $1 trillion. Opponents include a former defense secretary, William Perry, who has become an outspoken critic of Minuteman. The Pentagon's current leader, Lloyd Austin, has been publicly noncommittal on Minuteman but favors preserving the nuclear triad.

The consensus in Congress is that age is eroding the three main pillars of U.S. nuclear strength  long-range bomber aircraft like the 1960s-era B-52, submarines armed with Trident ballistic missiles, and the Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missiles, or ICBMs. Relatively few oppose building new-generation bombers and submarines. The most contentious debate is over whether, when and how to replace Minuteman.

Arguments over Minuteman boil down to this: Given its age and the nuclear challenges posed by Russia and China, should it be phased out in favor of a new-generation ICBM? Or should it be refurbished at lesser cost, to be replaced later? Or should it be phased out, period, with no replacement?

The debate reveals a longstanding American divide. On one side is the view that ICBMs are indispensable to the strategy for deterring any adversary from attempting a nuclear attack upon the United States or its allies. A key piece of the argument is that ICBMs in their 400 underground silos in five Great Plains states act as a warhead sink, or sponge, to absorb the first blow in a nuclear war; the argument is that an attacker would need to expend so many weapons destroying these silos that he would see little chance of winning and thus would be deterred from attacking in the first place.

The opposing view is that ICBMs are overkill, given the large amount of firepower in the more elusive sea- and air-based segments of the nuclear arsenal, and that ICBMs make nuclear conflict more likely because an American president might feel compelled to launch one upon a warning of attack that turned out to be a false alarm. Once its launched from its silo, an ICBM cannot be recalled.

These differences are more stark in light of expected stagnant defense budgets.

Among those eager to build a successor to Minuteman, some see political opportunity in its occasional slipups. For example, when a routine flight test was aborted shortly before launch last week, Rep. Don Bacon tweeted that the incident was evidence that Minuteman must be modernized before its too late, although the Air Force has yet to determine what triggered the abort. Bacon is a Republican from Nebraska  home to Strategic Command headquarters and to some Minuteman silos.

Biden has not publicly addressed the issue. In March the White House released interim national security guidance promising to take steps to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in our national security strategy but offering no details.

As a candidate in 2019, Biden said he believed the nuclear arsenal could be modernized for less than the projected $1 trillion price tag, but was not specific. Some interpreted this as him doubting the need for new ICBMs, but thus far his administration has given no indication of abandoning the plan it inherited to replace Minuteman with a successor dubbed the Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent, starting in 2029.

Last September, Northrop Grumman won a $13.3 billion contract to develop the successor. The estimated cost of fielding the full system is $95 billion, rising to $264 billion counting sustainment costs over the weapon's expected lifetime into the 2070s.

Signs of the Biden administration's nuclear path may emerge in the 2022 budget to be presented to Congress soon. The Pentagon also plans a formal review of its nuclear posture, which likely will affirm the need for nuclear modernization but might not decide certain details.

Rep. John Garamendi, a California Democrat, is unconvinced by arguments that Minuteman is just too old to undergo a life extension  a refurbishment to keep it in service for decades to come.

I need a new one, Richard, the Strategic Command chief, retorted in a heated exchange with Garamendi last month.

Richard says there is no room for delay. But a new report by the Government Accountability Office suggests delays are almost inevitable. It concluded that every part of nuclear modernization faces the prospect of delays due to limitations in the workforce, infrastructure and supply chain.
To the Editor:

Recently, Donald Trump was quoted as saying  ... this was a rigged election, everybody knows it.

This was not the first time the former president has called the 2020 presidential election rigged. Apparently, he didnt read the Dec. 1, 2020 report from former Attorney General William Barr stating that the United States Justice Department had found no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the election. Nor has he acknowledged the more than 50 lawsuits throughout the country claiming fraud or irregularities that were thrown out due to lack of evidence. But none of that stops the former president from repeating what is now known as The Big Lie.

I am curious where Ridgefields Republican leaders stand on this issue. Throughout Trumps presidency I waited for our Republican representatives to speak out on his numerous egregious statements and actions; I waited for them to stand up to his countless lies; I waited for them to say enough is enough; I waited in vain.

But I am tired of waiting, so now I am asking outright. I am calling on John Frey, Bob Hebert, Kim Healy and Jonathan Riddle to each respond to Trumps continued claim that the election was rigged.

Do you believe Trump or Barr? Do you believe the election was rigged? Ill save the question of whether or not you believe the former president was responsible for inciting the mob on Jan. 6 for another time.

Carol Mark, Ridgefield
I sat down to write this pre-holidays column, but before I did, I went through my emails one last time before I entered writing mode. It doesnt pay to get too far behind when it comes to email. Anyway, one of the emails was about a recently released book that promises to explain how to thr
Photo shows Cheng Lijin, a 24-year-old youth from Guilin, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, along with a group of her students. [yangtse.com]

Stories of a compassionate Chinese youth making full use of her summer and winter vacations to volunteer and provide educational assistance to local children in less affluent communities in countries abroad over the past four years, including in Tanzania, Kenya, Thailand and India, have recently touched the heartstrings of many netizens.

Cheng Lijin, a 24-year-old youth from Guilin, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, came up with the idea of volunteering as a teacher in 2016 based on the influence of a movie entitled Desert Flower.

"My undergraduate major was related to film. After watching Desert Flower, I wanted to see what Africa looked like with my own eyes," recalled the young woman, who is now a postgraduate student in the U.K.

In December 2016, Cheng was finally provided with a four-month opportunity to volunteer in Mwanza, Tanzania's second-largest city, along with Nairobi, the capital and largest city in Kenya, having received a monthly subsidy of 8,500 yuan ($1,315).

Teaching English, science and technology as well as fine arts classes for fourth and sixth graders at a primary school in Mwanza, Cheng not only brought hope to her impoverished students, but also befriended many outstanding young people during the course of her volunteer work.

When Cheng arrived in Africa for the first time, she still continued to use chopsticks when eating food rather than using her bare hands as the locals did. However, in order to avoid any misunderstanding, she decided to set aside the dining habits she grew up with in her own country and instead got accustomed to the traditional local way of eating. "All that the others knew about me was that I came from China, so I wanted to do my best to be a good ambassador for Chinese youth," said the young woman.

In addition to the language barrier, the most challenging part of local life for Cheng was not having access to a hot shower. "Since there was no tap water available, I couldn't access a hot shower at all. Only on special occasions was I able to take a long trip to the downtown areas of the city and purchase running water for a bath," Cheng recalled.

In the face of an unfamiliar environment and difficult circumstances, many quit their post, including a volunteer teacher who chose to return back home during just the second week after arriving. Nevertheless, Cheng continued to hang on. "I also thought about giving up, but I believed this was not a good idea, since I had made a promise to the local children. If I chose to leave so suddenly, that would have been totally irresponsible," she explained.

In March 2017, when Cheng arrived at an orphanage in a Nairobi slum, she was shocked by the deep level of poverty the local children were subjected to, especially in one instance when she discovered that there were seven children sharing only one pencil stub. Responding to what she saw, Cheng launched a fundraising campaign in an attempt to raise money to purchase daily necessities and study materials for the orphans.

Thanks to her relentless efforts, Cheng successfully raised more than 20,000 yuan within three days.

"When I was leaving the school at the end of the program, all the kids in my class were crying next to the doorsteps," Cheng said. The innocence and lovely nature of the children left an indelible impression on Cheng, while the gratitude they showed made her more determined than ever to organize and participate in additional volunteer activities in the future.

After Cheng's volunteering stories went viral on the Internet, a few netizens doubted her intentions. "Why didn't you be a volunteer teacher at home?" one questioned.

In her retort, Cheng explained that international communication is also of great importance. She would like to become a kind of messenger to show the outside world the excellent spirit of Chinese youth. Moreover, during the process of engaging with and seeing the wider world, the love she has for her motherland has also become all the more deeper over time.

After graduating in the U.K. from her postgraduate program in October this year, Cheng planned to return back to her native Guangxi and become a teacher there. "I want to continue to teach what I have learned, as there are many poor and backward areas around my hometown in Guangxi and many young children who have a thirst for knowledge," the young woman disclosed.

Photo shows Cheng Lijin sitting together with a group of her students. [yangtse.com]

Photo shows Cheng Lijin preparing food for the children. [yangtse.com]

Photo shows Cheng Lijin along with two African girls. [yangtse.com]

Photo shows Cheng Lijin along with her students. [yangtse.com]

(Source: People's Daily Online)
Today

Plentiful sunshine. High 94F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph.

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Gusty winds during the evening. Low 46F. Winds NW at 25 to 35 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 50 mph.

Tomorrow

Mostly sunny skies. High 77F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph.
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Today

Scattered thunderstorms during the morning becoming more widespread this afternoon. High 87F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms. Low 71F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%.

Tomorrow

Widely scattered showers or a thunderstorm early. Then partly cloudy. High around 90F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.
WEST FRANKFORT  Centerstone, a national leader in behavioral health care, will host a free, virtual High in Plain Sight presentation by Jermaine Tall Cop Galloway on May 14 from 1-3 p.m. via Zoom. CEUs and CPDUs are available.

Tall Cop will provide a free, wraparound-type training that will provide education, prevention and enforcement to address the concerns with underage drinking and drug problems within our communities. This training will help participants detect alcohol and drug problems and fight them within our communities as a whole. Jermaine will discuss designer drugs, stash clothing, and alcohol and drugs concerns with our youth in rural areas.
WOOD RIVER  Madison Countys Emergency Management Agency (EMA) picked its volunteer of the year.

On May 2, Andy McKellar, a longtime volunteer for EMA was presented with the agencys inaugural award. EMA held its first dinner to thank the agencys team of 35 registered volunteers and honored McKellar for his service and dedication.

Andy has been with us since the volunteer team began, Director of Madison County EMA Tony Falconio said. The team has changed a lot in the last few years and we rely on our volunteers heavily to respond to incidents and deploy equipment. We couldnt do all that we do without them and Andy is a prime example.

In 2009, McKellar signed up for his first emergency management class with then EMA Director Larry Ringering

At the end of the class, Larry invited me to join the Madison County Incident Management Team, McKellar said. The following year I helped him at another class which led me to become an instructor myself.

Since then, McKellar has become a certified instructor and has taught about 300 people across 18 Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) classes throughout the county. During the classes, which are free to residents, the program educates volunteers about disaster preparedness for the hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations.

I truly enjoy seeing people get involved after attending CERT classes, McKellar said. When I first began teaching CERT classes, I was the only instructor; now three former students are also certified instructors and six former CERT students are on the EMA volunteer team.

In addition to his volunteerism in Madison County, McKellar also puts in time with the Methodist Church Illinois Great River Conference Early Response Team and has been involved in recovery efforts in Joplin, Missouri, and Haiti among others.

Visit https://www.co.madison.il.us/departments/emergency_management to learn more about the countys CERT team and other volunteer programs.
EDWARDSVILLE  Southern Illinois University Edwardsvilles Jason Stacy, PhD, professor in the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) Department of History, has been named the 2021 Paul Simon Outstanding Teacher-Scholar Award recipient.

The highly competitive award is annually presented by the SIUE Graduate School to a faculty member who has a proven record of combining scholarship and teaching. The recognition demonstrates the belief that to be a good teacher, one must also be a good scholar. Award recipients have made significant contributions to original research or creative activities, and have successfully integrated those contributions into their teaching practices.

I am honored to receive this award, shared Stacy. I started my career as a high school history teacher and pursued graduate work because it enhanced my teaching. As I moved forward with my doctoral work, I discovered that research contributed to my history lessons and that my years as a teacher provided a broad contextual foundation on which to build my research. The Paul Simon Award recognizes this cross-fertilization which teachers and scholars experience throughout their careers.

Stacys research interests include the U.S antebellum period, social science pedagogy and Walt Whitmans journalism. Since joining the SIUE faculty, he has published four books, four book-length editions on historical and pedagogical topics, and five digital editions of Walt Whitmans journalism for the Walt Whitman Archive.

Dr. Stacy is one of the foremost scholars of Whitmans literary and journalistic writing in the United States, and an expert on antebellum intellectual and social history, wrote Allison Thomason, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of History. His inspiration and involvement with many of our masters and cooperative PhD students is also exceptional. Dr. Stacy models scholarly activity for his students with his own work, while also offering intellectual and practical guidance that allows our graduate students to earn their degrees in a timely manner.

Last fall, Stacy joined the University of Nebraska-Lincolns (UNL) Walt Whitman Archive as an editor contributing to a three-year, $250,000 National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) grant-funded initiative, entitled Walt Whitmans Journalism: Finding the Poet in the Brooklyn Daily Times. Stacy has worked on numerous projects for the Walt Whitman Archive, which has received 1.2 million-page views and nearly 500,000 unique users from approximately 220 countries.

In 2016, Stacy and colleagues received a grant from the Madison County Regional Office of Education to start an online encyclopedia and digital archive for Madison County. He has since worked with numerous undergraduate and graduate students to compile, edit and present information via Madison Historical: The Online Encyclopedia and Digital Archive of Madison County, Illinois.

At SIUE, Stacy has taught courses on antebellum U.S. history, U.S. intellectual history, social science pedagogy and applied historical methods. He includes students in his research projects as an Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (URCA) mentor, and is a key member of many doctoral students research projects and committees.

While being a great educator and researcher is at the crux of this award, it is important to note that Dr. Stacy applies these skills toward the professional development of his students, wrote Nichol Allen, PhD candidate in SIUE/SIUCs cooperative doctoral program. He applies his experiences, research, knowledge and education towards the advancement of students from all walks of life, and openly shares the techniques, resources and tools of his craft to help propel them further.

Stacys most recent book, Spoon River America: Edgar Lee Masters and the Myth of the American Small Town, was published in May. His work comments on Edgar Lee Masters Spoon River Anthology, a collection of poems that became a bedrock myth of life in small-town America. Stacy discusses the ways readers embraced, debated, and reshaped Masters work in literary controversies and culture war skirmishes. He also analyzes Spoon River Anthology as the source of three archetypespopulist, elite and exilethat endure across the landscape of American culture in the 21st century. This month, Stacy discussed his motivations for writing the book on the presss blog.

As the Paul Simon Outstanding Teacher-Scholar Awardee, Stacy will present to graduate students and faculty on his integration of research and teaching during the Graduate Schools Fall Awards Ceremony.
Lifting rules on the use of face coverings in school under active consideration in Wales

A move to relax the requirement for masks to be worn by children in secondary schools in Wales is under active consideration.

Experts are collecting all evidence and an informed assessment will be made on the non-use of face coverings in schools in Wales, Dr Giri Shankar from Public Health Wales has said.

Pupils in England will no longer be required to wear face masks in school from next week, Boris Johnson announced on Monday.

Face coverings will also no longer be recommended for staff in classrooms in England from May 17.





School staff and other adults will still have to wear face coverings in situations where social distancing is not possible, including corridors and communal areas.

Boris Johnson told a Downing Street briefing that from next Monday, the UK government will no longer require face coverings in classrooms, or for students in communal areas in secondary schools and colleges.

The move follows a review of the latest data on infection and vaccination rates.

The UKs chief medical officers announced on Monday announced the UK wide Covid-19 alert level will be lowered from level 4 to level 3.

In a joint statement, the CMOs said: Following advice from the Joint Biosecurity Centre and in the light of the most recent data, the UK Chief Medical Officers and NHS England National Medical Director agree that the UK alert level should move from level 4 to level 3.

Thanks to the efforts of the UK public in social distancing and the impact we are starting to see from the vaccination programme, case numbers, deaths and COVID hospital pressures have fallen consistently.

However COVID is still circulating with people catching and spreading the virus every day so we all need to continue to be vigilant.

The Welsh government cabinet met on Monday afternoon to discuss which restrictions can be lifted as part of the three-week review period.

Those measures will be revealed towards the end of the week.

Dr Giri Shanker told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast this morning that is an issue of facemasks in classrooms is under active consideration in the technical advisory group and colleagues are collecting all evidence including inputs on Public Health Wales.

He said: We will be able to make an informed assessment of whether we can move to non-use of face coverings in school straight away, or we do need some more evidence to accumulate.

Clearly we know that the school-age population hasnt yet been vaccinated and therefore are still at risk of catching and spreading Coronavirus.

We have to consider all possible measures that can still remain in place to protect such cohorts of people.

Following Mondays announcement from the prime minister, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the school leaders union NAHT, said:

Creating the confidence that this next step is the right thing to do is essential to avoid an unnecessary shock to a system in recovery.

Parents, pupils and staff will want to understand why removing the requirement for face coverings in classrooms is considered appropriate when it is not for other enclosed spaces.

Geoff Barton, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: We recognise that there are arguments both for and against pupils wearing face masks in classrooms.

It is therefore doubly important that any decision over their continued use should be based firmly upon scientific advice.

However, the (UK) governments decision to relax the rules around face masks in secondary schools and colleges (in England) is hard to reconcile with evidence published by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies on Friday.

This evidence quite clearly said that it was important to maintain the current mitigation measures in schools, including mask wearing, in the coming months.

It is obviously better for communication and learning if masks arent required in classrooms, but any decision to this effect must follow the scientific advice, and it is very worrying that the (UK) governments decision appears to contradict the published evidence.

Mark Drakeford is expected to hold a press conference on Friday, May 14 where he will set out the next set of changes likely to come into force in Wales on Monday, May 17.
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Dalindyebo Shabalala, University of Dayton

(THE CONVERSATION) The U.S. and Europe are debating waiving patent rights for COVID-19 vaccines, a move that could allow more companies to produce the vaccine around the world. But its not as simple as it might sound.

When the U.S. announced on May 5, 2021, that it supported the idea of a temporary waiver, the statement was vague. Some European countries still oppose even a narrow waiver.

Any agreement will take weeks of negotiation among the World Trade Organizations 164 members, and then months more for production to begin.

That long timeline wont solve the immediate problem. Many poor countries have vaccinated less than 1% of their populations, while 44% of the vaccine doses have gone to Europe and North America, where wealthy countries secured large vaccine contracts. At the same time, the disease is spreading quickly in South Asia, and new variants are raising the risks around the world.

The idea of temporarily waiving World Trade Organization rules on intellectual property rights for the COVID-19 vaccines was first proposed by South Africa and India in late 2020. The original proposal was broad, covering patents, copyrights, trade secrets and industrial designs related to the prevention, containment or treatment of COVID-19.

The U.S. is suggesting a much narrower approach, but exactly what that would look like isnt yet clear.

Some European countries with vaccine industries, including Germany, argue that waiving intellectual property rights would pose a danger to future vaccine innovation and is unnecessary. Others pointed out that most countries in need lack the facilities, technology and skilled technicians to produce the vaccines even if patent rights were waived, and said the bigger problem was countries like the U.S. and Britain preventing their vaccines and ingredients from being exported to the rest of the world.

Critics are correct that, by itself, a temporary waiver is not sufficient to address the gap in production. They are correct that vaccine ingredients and other supplies remain a major blockage.

But it is also clear that vaccine makers are not voluntarily licensing their vaccines at the scale needed to expand production enough to stop the pandemic.

The UNICEF COVID Dashboard shows that Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech, which both use new mRNA technology in their vaccines, have licensed to few other companies. Moderna had voluntarily agreed not to enforce its patents but has not shared trade secrets or know-how. Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca have primarily licensed to companies with which they carried out national clinical trials, and these may be limited just to production for export for existing developed country contracts or purely domestic supply. Refusals to license to experienced drug manufacturers such a Biolyse in Canada or Teva in Israel present a serious problem.

I have worked on legal issues related to access to medicines since 2004 and have been involved in these debates at the WTO and the World Intellectual Property Organization. I believe that U.S. support of the waiver proposal can lead to an effective outcome if minimum criteria are met: The vaccine makers will have to give up some control, and the countries must ensure those companies are appropriately compensated.

The waiver could build on the existing system for compulsory licensing of patents and extend that to trade secrets and knowledge. The negotiations around access to HIV/AIDS medicines in the 1990s ended up with a similar framework.

How to make compulsory licenses work for vaccines

When a country approves a patent, it gives the patent holder a monopoly for a limited term, usually 20 years, for new and highly inventive ideas. The key phrase is limited time. This makes sure that once a patent runs out, others can make the product. Generic drugs are an example.

For emergencies, the patent system has safety valves that allow governments to intervene before that limited time is up. Based on public needs  including health emergencies  a government can allow others to make the product, usually with a reasonable royalty, or fee, paid to the patent owner. This is known as a compulsory license.

Today, any country that has issued a patent to a COVID-19 vaccine maker can use that patent simply by issuing a compulsory license to enable production by its own companies.

The problem is that many countries dont have vaccine production facilities within their borders  they need to rely on imports. But under Article 31 of the WTOs Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property, or TRIPS, compulsory licenses cant be used to produce vaccines for exporting to other countries. That means countries like China and the Philippines that have thriving pharmaceutical industries cant use compulsory licenses to send vaccines to Africa, for example.

There have been several attempts to solve this problem, including a change to the TRIPS Agreement approved in 2005. But only one country  Rwanda  has used that system to access drugs, and it was deemed too difficult to use. Rwanda was able to import 7 million doses from Canada, but it took almost two years, and the Canadian generic producer declared the system economically unsustainable for a private company.

The technologies in COVID-19 vaccines, especially those based on mRNA vaccines, are complex and involve multiple patents, trade secrets and know-how. The TRIPS Agreement requires countries to provide protection for trade secrets. Some countries laws, such as the U.S. Defense Production Act, allow for requiring such technology transfer, but many countries dont want to violate the agreement.

To successfully expand vaccine production, countries need a relatively seamless system. The waiver must lift the TRIPS limitations on exports and allow countries to require sharing of trade secrets and know-how. This would let a country like the Philippines issue a blanket license for COVID-19 technologies, allow its companies to produce vaccines developed elsewhere and export those vaccines to countries that lack their own manufacturing capacity.

Lifting those restrictions could help ensure that the world is not still in the same position in 2022. And that is what the proposal is truly aimed at.

How soon could the world see results?

Both the threat of the waiver and its actual implementation could accomplish several things.

First, they increase the incentive for companies to voluntarily license their vaccines and transfer knowledge to trusted partners in other countries. Provided there is pressure to do so, they could allow production for export to additional countries.

Second, they increase the leverage developing country companies and governments have in negotiations with vaccine makers for licenses, like the production agreement between Merck and Johnson & Johnson brokered by the Biden administration.

Finally, if implemented, the waiver would ensure that pharmaceutical companies are compensated for their work in developing vaccines while ensuring that they cannot prevent wider production.

This is an international emergency that requires extraordinary measures, as U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai noted. These measures do not need to be taken at the cost of either innovation or access.

This article updates a version published April 14, 2021.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/us-support-for-waiving-covid-19-vaccine-patent-rights-puts-pressure-on-drugmakers-but-what-would-a-waiver-actually-look-like-160582.
More people can gather at temporary indoor and outdoor events starting Monday, Gov. Tom Wolf said.

Citing increases in COVID-19 vaccinations, maximum occupancy on indoor events and gatherings will double to 50% and will rise to 75% from 50% on outdoor events, Wolf said Tuesday.

A Wolf administration news release defined events and gatherings as people congregating for hours or a few days, including festivals, concerts and shows.

As more Pennsylvania adults get vaccinated and guidance from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) evolves, we can continue to move forward with the commonwealths reopening efforts, Wolf said in a statement.

Mask requirements remain.

We recognize the significant strain businesses have faced during COVID-19 mitigation efforts, Wolf said. Throughout the last year and half, we have seen businesses continue to put the safety of their patrons first and I believe they will continue to do so even with this capacity increase.

All occupancy limits on restaurants, bars and other venues are set to end Memorial Day.

The administration also cautioned Tuesday that one more step remains before Pfizer-BioNTech vaccinations against COVID-19 can begin for children 12 to 15 years old.

The Food and Drug Administration authorized the vaccinations of younger people Monday, but the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices must still recommend its usage, a step expected to happen today.

No one younger than 16 may get a vaccination now. Making 12- to 15-year-olds eligible will add about 750,000 to the list of eligible residents in Pennsylvania.

Nurse practitioner Allyson Favuzza, co-owner of Hometown Health Care of NEPA, hopes to begin inoculating younger students with the Pfizer vaccine at a clinic today at Scranton High School, but isnt sure when shell be able to do that. The clinic is set for 3 to 6 p.m., and about 200 students and their family members 16 and older have signed up, she said. The CDC advisory committee meeting is scheduled to start just before her clinic, she said.

She plans to watch the meeting on her cellphone and start vaccinating younger students who show up as soon as the committee votes its approval.

We know what the outcome will be, Favuzza said. We dont know when the outcome will happen.

She only vaccinates students younger than 18 with parental consent, she said.

State officials hope permission to vaccinate younger people will slow a trend.

The Department of Health released age data Tuesday that shows 34% of new cases so far in May occurred in people 24 and younger, compared to 22.5% in January.

Conversely, the percentage of new cases among people 50 and older dropped to 28.1% from 40% in January.

The percentage among people 25 to 49 years old stayed about the same  38.1% this month, 37.5% in January.

Long-term trends in new virus cases and deaths continued to improve Tuesday with two-week counts in cases down again statewide and across the seven-county northeast region and the two-week count of new deaths down statewide. Regionally, the two-week death count ticked up by one.

The region includes Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne and Wyoming counties.

Those counties added 199 cases in the last day for 75,793 total. Seven new deaths ended a three-day streak with none and increased the total to 1,814.

Statewide, the Department of Health recorded another 2,385 cases and seven deaths, increasing the totals to 1,177,072 cases and 26,607 deaths.

By county:

Lackawanna added 42 cases for 18,087 total, including 2,795 probable. Three new deaths increased the total to 464.

Luzerne added 81 cases for 31,055 total, including 2,467 probable. Two new deaths raised the total to 800.

Monroe added 40 cases for 14,369 total, including 437 probable. Two new deaths raised the total to 307.

Pike added six cases for 3,869 total, including 403 probable, and remained at 54 deaths.

Susquehanna added 17 cases for 2,542 total, including 319 probable, and remained at 61 deaths.

Wayne added 10 cases for 3,993 total, including 411 probable, and remained at 80 deaths.

Wyoming added three cases for 1,878 total, including 331 probable, and remained at 48 deaths.
Almost 34,000 Lackawanna County voters applied for a mail-in or absentee ballot in the primary election a year ago, and the number swelled to near 50,000 for last falls general election.

The final tally for the May 18 primary is not even close.

As of Tuesdays 5 p.m. deadline to request a mail-in or absentee ballot for the primary, 14,165 county voters had applied, elections Director Beth Hopkins said.

Part of the decline can be attributed to easing fears over the COVID-19 pandemic as more and more county residents are vaccinated and new case numbers wane, which presumably will mean more primary voters casting their ballots in person.

But its also the nature of the election itself, Hopkins said. Last year was a presidential election year; 2021 isnt.

Its a municipal primary, she said. More people always vote in the federal or general election for president. Historically, that is just the way it is.

Some other area counties experienced comparable drops in requests for mail-in ballots.

Wyoming County received 1,198 applications through midday Tuesday. That compares to 3,327 requests for last years primary and 4,776 for the general election in November.

There is no way to know what to expect, said Florence Kellett, the countys director of elections.

Wayne County had about 5,700 requests for mail-in ballots during the 2020 primary and 10,100 for the general election, Director of Elections Cindy Furman said. For this months primary, the number on Tuesday stood at 2,734.

Its hard to tell if its in the ballpark or not because this is all new to us, Furman said.

In Lackawanna County, more than 6,100 mail-in and absentee ballots have already been returned, Hopkins said.

The ballots must be received by the Department of Elections by 8 p.m. on Election Day in order to count.

Voters can return a ballot by mail but may wish to deposit it in one of the countys six secure ballot drop boxes to ensure it arrives on time.

Drop boxes are located in the vestibule of the county government center, 123 Wyoming Ave., Scranton, as well as Carbondale City Hall, the Clarks Summit, Dickson City and Moosic borough buildings, and the Roaring Brook Twp. Municipal Building. The government center drop box will remain in place until 8 p.m. on Election Day. The other five will be removed from their respective locations after Friday, Hopkins said.

More than 100 voters took advantage of the option to vote early in person by mail-in or absentee ballot at the Department of Elections office in the government center, she said. Tuesday was the last day for early voting.

Every day there was a steady flow of people coming in, she said, adding the number was still far fewer than voted early in the fall election.

Thanks to the special election for state Senate in the 22nd District and four statewide ballot questions, all of the countys 144,313 registered voters will be eligible to cast ballots in the primary. The breakdown includes 82,851 Democrats, 45,605 Republicans and 15,857 people registered to other parties or as nonaffiliated.

Nonaffiliated voters and other people who are not registered to one of the major parties typically dont turn out in large numbers in primaries just to vote on ballot questions, but Hopkins said the Senate contest could be a draw.

I will say a lot of people have contacted the office asking questions about the special election and whether they are permitted to vote in the special election, which is encouraging, she said.

As it did in the November general election, the county plans to count the mail-in ballots on Election Day. The operation will begin at 7:30 a.m., with the goal of having results that can be merged with the in-person poll tallies by the end of the night, Hopkins said.

If we were able to complete the presidential election in November with 40,000-some ballots, well certainly be able to do it, barring any unforeseen circumstances, she said.
May 11, 1931

Two suspected purse snatchers in custody

Joseph Biggs and Arthur Duffy, jailed in Lackawanna County since April, were snitched on by Joseph Walsh as the purse snatchers who were robbing women in Scranton for months.

Walsh was arrested by New York City police. When he was returned to Scranton, he promptly informed Scranton police Detective Capt. Ben Gilbert that Biggs and Duffy were the purse snatchers.

Biggs and Duffy had been in county lockup since April after being arrested for kidnapping, holding up three grocery stores and eight charges of highway robbery. Walsh was also part of the crime spree.

Walsh provided Gilbert details about one of the purse snatchings that involved Detective James Henshaws wife, who had her purse stolen as she walked out of a drugstore.

After speaking with Walsh, Gilbert had Biggs and Duffy escorted from the jail to police headquarters, where he confronted them with information provided by Walsh.

Both men denied being purse snatchers.

Gilbert said they would have some of the women who had their purses stolen come to police headquarters to see if they could identify Biggs and Duffy as the perpetrators who attacked them.

Gilbert said since the pair had been in county jail, there had not been reports of purses pilfered in the same manner as when Biggs and Duffy were free. The alleged purse snatchers would punch the women who put up a fight when their purses were being stolen.

On May 25, Duffy, Biggs and Walsh pleaded guilty to holding up the grocery stores and the kidnapping of A&P store collector Harry Kenny. On June 1, county Judge William Lewis sentenced Biggs and Duffy to three to six years at Eastern Penitentiary, and Walsh was sentenced to two to four years at Eastern Penitentiary.

Shopping list

Porterhouse steaks were 35 cents per pound, lamb chops were 19 cents per pound, two bunches of carrots were 13 cents, four bunches of radishes were 10 cents, four boxes of elbow macaroni were 25 cents, a can of applesauce was 10 cents, a pound of dried peaches was 15 cents and store-made walnut loaf cakes were 9 cents.
Super students

Rochester Institute of Technology student Connor Chernesky, of Archbald, was initiated into the honor society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nations oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society.

Chernesky is among around 30,000 students, faculty, professional staff and alumni to be initiated into Phi Kappa Phi each year. Membership is by invitation only and requires nomination and approval by a chapter. Only the top 10% of seniors and 7.5% of juniors are eligible for membership.

Phi Kappa Phi was founded in 1897 and recognizes excellence in all academic disciplines.

University of Scranton students from the area were among 35 inducted into Sigma Theta Tau, the international honor society of nursing.

The students inducted, all pursuing nursing degrees, included Anna Totsky of Fell Twp., senior; Cara Farnham of Hop Bottom, senior; Matthew Farrell of Clarks Summit, senior; Amelia Prezkop of Mountain Top, senior; Glen Johnson of Scranton, senior; Jesse Kabana of Wilkes-Barre, graduate student; Perry Langbein of Milford, graduate student; Kelle Lach of Roaring Brook Twp., graduate student; Sara Stafford of Jefferson Twp., graduate student; Stephanie Walsh of Moscow, graduate student; Desirae Santarsiero of Jefferson Twp., graduate student; and Victoria Ditchkus of Scranton, who is pursuing a doctor of nurse practice degree.

For induction into the honor society, students must have completed one half of the nursing curriculum, demonstrated ability in nursing, have a grade point average of 3.0 and rank in the upper third of the class, according to the university, whose honor society was founded in 1922.

University of Scranton students from the area were among the 15 people inducted into Omicron Delta Epsilon, the international honor society in economics.

Students inducted included Collin Ennis of Pleasant Mount, a junior; Jai-Jacob Hoover of Mountain Top, a senior; and Justin Thomas of Olyphant, a senior.

The universitys chapter of the honor society was established in 1969.

Local residents were among 16 University of Scranton students inducted into Pi Gamma Mu, the international honor society in social science.

Students inducted include Jenna Carmen of Lake Ariel, a junior political science major; Jaclyn Cordaro of Clarks Summit, a senior psychology major; Simon Peter of Wilkes-Barre, a senior political science major; Abigail Pietrowski of Clarks Summit, a junior political science and history major; and Casey Welby of Scranton, a senior classical languages and history major.

For induction into the honor society, students must be of junior academic standing, maintain an overall grade point average of 3.4 or higher, and have completed at least 21 credits in the disciplines of economics, human services, psychology, sociology, political science or history, according to the university, whose chapter was established in 1971.
An attorney for two property owners seeking to force Lackawanna County to reassess properties is asking a judge to rule in their favor, citing an experts report they say clearly shows some owners are being over-assessed while others are under-assessed.

Properties in the North Pocono, Carbondale and Scranton school districts are among the most over-assessed, while properties the Mid Valley School District are under-assessed, according to a report.

There also are wide discrepancies between municipalities, with property owners in Covington Twp., Thornhurst Twp. and Vandling being assessed at a higher percentage of their market value than those who own property in Benton Twp., according to the report.

The report, prepared by Robert C. Denne, a former employee of the International Association of Assessing Officers, is the key evidence in a recent motion filed in county court that asks a judge to rule on the merits of a 2018 lawsuit filed by residents Brian Skotch and Ronald Monroe. A third plaintiff, Annette Holmes, died.

The county has not reassessed properties since 1968. The suit filed by attorney Marielle Macher of the Community Justice Project, a nonprofit civil legal assistance organization, alleges thats resulted in a disproportionate tax burden because properties appreciate at different rates. It contends the county is violating the Uniformity Clause of the Pennsylvania Constitution and the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Lackawanna Countys reliance on this incredibly outdated base year has resulted in massive property tax assessment non-uniformity ... far exceeding industry standards, Macher wrote in the motion.

The county continues to fight the lawsuit. The resolution of the case will ultimately boil down to an analysis of complex formulas utilized to judge assessed values compared to sales prices and whether that data proves taxation is not uniform.

Denne analyzed data from 2015 to February 2020. He utilized four metrics, each of which revealed significant variations between school districts and individual municipalities. He also found wide disparities between high and low market value properties, with lower value properties owners paying a grossly disproportionate share of the countys tax burden.

The nonuniformity in Lackawanna County is systemic, and in fact, so widespread that only a complete reassessment will be capable of remedying the problems, Macher wrote in the motion.

In a reply to the motion, the countys attorney, John Dean, does not challenge Dennes calculations. He instead focuses on the common level ratio factor  a statistic used to approximate market values to take into account the outdated assessed values.

The state calculates the CLR each year. In 2021, Lackawanna Countys CLR is 10.75%. That means the median property assessment in the county is 10.75% of current market value.

The countys assessment expert, Joseph Fisher of Fisher and Fisher Appraisals, contends the county is not violating the uniformity clause because the process to determine the CLR figure is the same across all municipalities.

In her motion, Macher said the CLR calculation is irrelevant because it has no bearing on the amount of taxes a property owner pays except in cases where they are appealing their assessment as being too high  a fact Fisher acknowledges in his report.

The real issue is that the result of Lackawanna County relying on the 1968 base year is a starkly non-uniform taxation, Macher says. Lackawanna County does not and cannot contest this basic fact.

Macher also notes prior appellate courts already rejected the countys argument in similar cases filed in Allegheny and Beaver counties. Both of those counties were court ordered to conduct a reassessment.

A judge will take the motion and countys reply under advisement and issue a ruling at a later date.
SCRANTON  With the wreath of blue carnations and white chrysanthemums in place, city Police Chief Leonard Namiotka and Mayor Paige Gebhardt Cognetti raised their right hands in a slow salute.

They, along with police and other city officials, on Tuesday honored the 13 officers who died in the line of duty  their names etched in granite on the Samuel W. Pennypacker Police Memorial on the lawn of the departments South Washington Avenue headquarters.

Its important to realize were a great big family, Namiotka said. Their memory did not die with them.

For the second year, the annual memorial was held with a sparse crowd as a safeguard against COVID-19. Namiotka said larger and more involved memorials will be planned as the virus eases its grip.

The ceremony was streamed live to the departments Facebook page Be Part of the Solution, and was recorded by ECTV. Part of National Police Week, Namiotka said the flag outside the headquarters will fly at half-staff Saturday.

Retired Sgt. Michael Cammerota read the names of the fallen officers, a list spanning 126 years that ends with Patrolman John Wilding, who died from injuries he suffered in July 2015, while helping apprehend three robbery suspects.

We rededicate this memorial in memory of the members of the Scranton Police Department who gave their lives protecting the residents of the city of Scranton, he said.
WASHINGTON  I miss torturing Liz Cheney.

But it must be said that the petite blonde from Wyoming suddenly seems like a Valkyrie amid halflings.

She is willing to sacrifice her leadership post  and risk her political career  to continue calling out Donald Trumps Big Lie. She has decided that if the price of her job is being as unctuous to Trump as Kevin McCarthy is, it isnt worth it, because McCarthy is totally disgracing himself.

It has been a dizzying fall for the scion of one of the most powerful political families in the land, a conservative chip off the old block who was once talked about as a comer, someone who could be the first woman president.

How naive I was to think that Republicans would be eager to change the channel after Trump cost them the Senate and the White House and unleashed a mob on them.

I thought the Donald would evaporate in a poof of orange smoke, ending a supremely screwed-up period of history. But the loudest mouth is not shutting up. And Republicans continue to listen, clinging to the idea that the dinosaur is the future. We cant grow without him, Lindsey Graham said.

Denied Twitter, Trump is focusing on his other favorite blood sport: hunting down dynasties. Whether its the Cheneys, the Bushes or the lesser bloodlines  such as the Romneys or the Murkowskis  Trump has been relentless in his efforts to force them to bend the knee, David Siders wrote in Politico.

Yet an unbowed Cheney didnt mince words when, in a Washington Post op-ed a few days ago, she implored the stooges in her caucus to steer away from the dangerous and anti-democratic Trump cult of personality.

That trademark Cheney bluntness made her the toast of MSNBC and CNN, where chatterers praised her as an avatar of the venerable fact-based Republican Party decimated by Trump.

But if Cheney wants to be in the business of speaking truth to power, shes going to have to dig a little deeper.

Lets acknowledge who created the template for Trumps Big Lie.

It was her father, Dick Cheney, whose Big Lie about the Iraq War led to the worst mistake in the history of American foreign policy. Liz Cheney, who was the captain of her high school cheerleading team and titled her college thesis The Evolution of Presidential War Powers, cheered on her dad as he spread fear, propaganda and warped intelligence.

From her patronage perch in the State Department during the Bush-Cheney years, she bolstered her fathers trumped-up case for an invasion of Iraq. Even after no weapons of mass destruction were found, she continued to believe the invasion was the right thing to do.

She almost thrives in an atmosphere where the overall philosophy is discredited and she is a lonely voice, a State Department official who worked with her told Joe Hagan for a 2010 New York magazine profile of the younger Cheney on her way up.

She was a staunch defender of the torture program. Well, it wasnt torture, Norah, so thats not the right way to lay out the argument, she instructed Norah ODonnell in 2009, looking on the bright side of waterboarding.

She backed the futile, 20-year occupation of the feudal Afghanistan. (Even Bob Gates thinks we should have left in 2002.) Last month, when President Joe Biden announced plans to pull out, Cheney  who wrote a book with her father that accused Barack Obama of abandoning Iraq and making America weaker  slapped back: We know that this kind of pullback is reckless. Its dangerous.

For many years, she had no trouble swimming in Fox News bile. Given the chance to denounce the Obama birther conspiracy, she demurred, interpreting it live on air as people being uncomfortable with having for the first time ever, I think, a president who seems so reluctant to defend the nation overseas.

Thanks to that kind of reasoning, we ended up with a president who fomented an attack on the nation at home.

In her Post piece, Cheney wrote that her party is at a turning point and that Republicans must decide whether we are going to choose truth and fidelity to the Constitution.

Sage prose from someone who was a lieutenant to her father when he assaulted checks and balances, shredding Americas Constitution even as he imposed one on Iraq.

Because of 9/11, Dick Cheney thought he could suspend the Constitution, attack nations preemptively and trample civil liberties in the name of the war on terror. (And for his own political survival.)

Keeping Americans afraid was a small price to pay for engorging executive power, which the former Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford aide thought had been watered down too much after Watergate.

By his second term, W. had come around to his parents opinion that Cheney had overreached, and the vice president became increasingly isolated.

Liberals responded to Trumps derangements by bathing the Bush-Cheney crowd in a flattering nostalgic light.

So, shockingly, the Republicans who eroded Americas moral authority  selling us the Iraq War, torture, a prolonged Afghanistan occupation and Sarah Palin  became the new guardians of Americas moral authority. Complete with bloated TV and book contracts.

Trump built a movement based on lies. The Cheneys showed him how its done.

MAUREEN DOWD writes for The New York Times.
Paige Gebhardt Cognetti is Scrantons first woman mayor, which is historically significant. But in the contexts of traditional Scranton politics and governance, the more important aspect of Cognettis background is that she is not a Scranton native.

Cognetti, an Oregon native who ran as an independent in 2019, handily won a special election to replace Scranton native and Democrat Bill Courtright, who had to resign due to a federal corruption conviction. In a city where candidates city neighborhoods of origin often have been major factors in mayoral elections, Cognettis election represented Scrantonians widely embracing the prospect for change.

The Times-Tribune editorial board also embraces that prospect in endorsing Cognetti for the Democratic mayoral nomination.

Her opponent is City Controller John Murray, a competent manager who had been a longtime employee of the state Office of Auditor General.

Murray has not attacked much of Cognettis agenda and has not proposed much of one himself, which is not unusual in a primary. Such elections often are more about the party than the government, and Murray clearly appeals to the old-school faction of city Democrats.

His campaign theme is that he is a native Scrantonian and lifelong Democrat. He insists that he has stressed his Scranton roots only to express his commitment to the city. But amid the citys changing racial and ethnic demographics and culture, it also has unsavory overtones of exclusionary politics.

Cognetti has demonstrated that her politics are the opposite of that  the politics of the citys future rather than its past. Outreach to disparate groups throughout the city has been a hallmark of her brief tenure.

The mayor also has used her experience in the federal and state governments in a semi-successful attempt to modernize Scrantons hidebound operations  a work in progress that should continue.

Although former interim Mayor Wayne Evans did a good job of calming the waters after Courtrights conviction, Cognetti still had to deal with the aftermath of that corruption, and with the COVID-19 pandemic that adversely affected city operations and revenue soon after she took office.

Scrantons future lies with Cognettis progressive approach. City Democrats would be wise to put her in position for a full term.
Since the beginning of the debate over net neutrality  the question of whether the federal government should regulate the internet to ensure equal access  massive internet service providers have argued that they would not abuse their vast powers if given greater control.

The Federal Communications Commission swallowed that Kool-Aid in 2017, overturning the Obama administrations rules that had maintained equal internet access.

Now, the New York attorney generals office has issued a report alleging that the broadband industry disproved its own case by manipulating the regulatory process that upended net neutrality.

When the FCC issues a rule, it solicits public comments. Because this case involved the internet, the agency received millions of fake comments. One 19-year-old who favored net neutrality, for example, set up a program that submitted 7.7 million comments under fake, randomly generated names.

But the report alleges something far more egregious. It contends that an industry trade group that includes Comcast, Charter, AT&T, Cox and CenturyLink paid $8.2 million to a company that generated 8.5 million comments against net neutrality, using the names of real people without their consent.

The report said that the companies themselves were not aware of the companys alleged cheating, in that it was contracted by the trade association.

Yet the industry demonstrated that there is no reason to believe that ISPs will treat consumers fairly, and that net neutrality is the preferable standard.
University staff and students investigate double murder mystery in virtual crime scene day

Staff and students from a range of courses recently teamed up make this yearsWrexham Glyndwr University Crime Scene Day a success, despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Plas Coch campus usually sees a crime played out and then investigated on site. But this year, the event moved online and focussed on a double murder at a wedding on Ynys Owain, a fictional island off the coast of North Wales.

Lecturer Andrew Crawford supervised BSc (Hons) Professional Policing students alongside DCI Alun Oldfield, who has led many major investigations for North Wales Police.

Andrew said that the university was determined to keep the Crime Scene Day going despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, because it forms an integral part of three degree assessments.





The Crime Scene Day offers students a valuable insight into how investigations are conducted, and holding the event online enabled us to provide that experience to students  albeit in a different setting, explained Andrew.

Its a cross-faculty event with everyone on the different courses working as one, and it shows how you can all work together to enhance the student experience.

Andrew praised the universitys BS (Hons) Performing Arts course for their authentic portrayals of potential suspects.

He said: I was really impressed by the standard of acting by the students. Every single one of them gave a fantastic performance and it really added to the atmosphere on the day.

Policing and Criminology students logged on to Microsoft Teams where they could view suspects giving their accounts of events and submit questions to be asked in interview.

Dr Caroline Gorden and Dr Sarah Dubberley, academics from WGUs Criminology and Criminal Justice programme posed questions and debates around motive, opportunity and other criminological theories throughout.

Forensic science students investigated a 3-D virtual crime scene, where they could walk around and interact with the environment.

There was also an online headquarters, where students could view the evidence and interact with each other as if they were working in an office.

The WGU Criminology Society held a reveal the offender meeting on-line that evening where the identity of the killer was revealed and the students who correctly guessed the culprit won a prize donated by the Students Union.

Amy Rattenbury, Senior Lecturer in Forensic Science at Wrexham Glyndwr University, said: Were trying to reflect that professional working environment, where all the information is stored in specific locations like it would be in a crime scene unit or a forensic lab, but in a virtual space.

Amy outlined how students benefit from taking part in the Crime Scene Day.

I think the biggest thing is seeing the journey of a case and the fact that its very reflective of what they would be expected to do in the industry, she said.

They can write the best essays in the world, they can give the best presentations, but theyre not necessarily the things that a forensic scientist or a crime scene investigator are expected to do once they get out into the real world.

Reviewing documentation from old crime scenes, requesting analysis, putting together reports, answering questions in a courtroom setting  theyre the skills the students need to be successful in their careers, on top of their forensic knowledge; so I think its a real opportunity for them to do a meaningful and authentic assessment.

Forensic science students will continue to use the virtual platform as part of their studies ahead of their assessments in May.

The university aims to package the interactive features and videos for use in colleges and secondary schools.

Students from the universitys B.A. (Hons) Theatre, TV and Performance course portrayed the suspects.

Elen Mai Nefydd Programme Leader for Theatre, Television and Performance, said: For our students, their work and performances as corporate role-play actors, where they build up a situation following a brief from the policing lecturers, is crucial to the success of the day.

This year the concept had to transfer to an online platform  this enabled our students, through the Active Learning Framework, to prepare, rehearse and perform on a digital platform and to keep the standard which has been set in previous years.

It was a successful day and a fantastic experience for our actors in training.
Editor: I find myself discouraged when reading information from the Republican Party.

It has issues with transgender children participating in sports, has enacted unfair voting restrictions and wants to reduce governors powers  especially Democratic ones. In short, its no-holds-barred because it cannot accept losses and the wishes of the voters.

It has become the party of hate, at least in my eyes. There is no word on anything positive Republicans want to do for their constituents, just a longer list of restrictions. Its laughable that they use the word radical to describe the left after Republicans were on board to make rich people richer and separate children from their parents at the border. They still promote such lies as voter fraud in trying to justify increased voter restrictions.

Our democracy was assaulted on Jan. 6 because of these reckless lies. They will do anything to retain and increase power.

Arent these some of the reasons why we formed our democracy in the first place? Isnt this why we were appalled when we discovered the atrocities Nazi Germany perpetuated against its own people?

Yet, here we are at a crossroads. Is it OK for democracy itself to be attacked when one party doesnt win? Our democracy mercilessly has been chipped away at over the past four years. It is up to all of us to make an effort to search for the truth and the facts. No one should rely on one radio or television program for all their information.

Look for the information that is omitted as well as what is given. The only way to keep our democracy is to continually make a conscious effort to fight for it. Its more fragile than you think.

MARY JO SEARFOSS

PITTSTON TWP.

Editor: Lately, I see and hear Republicans claiming that Democrats push too much costly action without their input.

Unfortunately, many in Congress put politics ahead of progress. Compromise is possible. President Biden and many Democrats see important action that needs to be taken quickly, with the help of conservatives if possible, but without them if necessary. The future is at stake and in our hands now.

RUTH WARBURTON

TUNKHANNOCK

Editor: A total ruse is offered by state Republicans with their constitutional amendments.

They want to limit the power of Gov. Tom Wolf, even though he has used his emergency power to control COVID-19 perhaps better than any other state government. Also, they may be thinking that Republicans arent likely to win the gubernatorial election in 2022.

So, that may be a reason they push so hard for Lackawanna County Commissioner Chris Chermak for state Senate in the May 18 special election. He has done a serviceable job as minority commissioner, especially when compared to his predecessor, former Commissioner Laureen Cummings. But to say he has paid his dues would be a stretch.

Rep. Marty Flynn, the Democratic Senate nominee, has experience and that is the reason I believe he was selected by Democrats.

We need to elect non-Republicans to the General Assembly if there is ever going to be a reduction in size of that bloated body. Republicans wont do it; they dont produce meaningful legislation. That is why we are stuck as a nation. The solution may be, with help from the cartoonist and the editorial board, to vote for the third-party candidate, Marlene Sebastianelli, who will push back on landfill expansion.

No one has been more heroic than President Joe Biden in his first 100 days in office. Lets get moving again.

RICHARD J. YOST

SOUTH ABINGTON TWP.

Editor: Joan Heller (Reject emergency power amendments, April 15) says proposed state constitutional amendments would take the power to declare an emergency away from the governor and give it to the Legislature, which may not be in session when such a declaration is needed.

The governor would be able to declare an emergency and continue it for 21 days, after which it would have to be confirmed by the Legislature, a much more representative body than a single person. In a true emergency, the Legislature can surely go into session over the 21-day period.

So if we are to avoid an interminable lockdown of businesses, schools and events, such as Gov. Tom Wolf imposed on Pennsylvania, vote yes on the four amendments on the May 18 primary election ballot.

JOHN KAMEEN

FOREST CITY

Editor: There are three constitutional amendments on the ballot. Two of them are to limit the emergency powers of the elected governor, and the last one is to provide antidiscrimination protection due to race or ethnicity.

The voters elected their chief executive to lead. In an emergency, do we want a body of 253 members to be debating emergency actions?

The governor has the power to ask federal agencies to join with state agencies to address immediate concerns. If an emergency declaration expires in 21 days, it would disrupt all joint federal-state assistance. Food stamps is one example.

These amendments have little to do with emergencies. They are a thinly veiled vendetta by state legislators who were unhappy that Gov. Tom Wolf chose public health concerns over commerce during the pandemic. It was a case of pay now, or pay more later, which is why I am glad he did so.

Please consider voting no, no, and yes (anti-discrimination) on the amendments.

LASSIE MacDONALD

State College

Editor: What is wrong with people who oversee this city?

We are anything but financially secure; I dont care what the Pennsylvania Economy League says. Let them speak to people paying for everything.

Any consideration for a multimillion-dollar Nay Aug Park pool project is asinine. If council is so concerned about future youth, why create more needless debt?

A crew emptied, cleaned, repaired and filled the pool at Weston Park last year and had it ready for use. It was never opened and never used and it was ready and appeared perfect. I walk my puppy there often and I saw this waste of tax dollars. This is another example of this administrations shameful incompetence.

This pool could be ready again at a fraction of the expense of Nay Aug. City officials dont mind spending money foolishly. Thats our mayor looking out for us.

RON ELLMAN

SCRANTON
London, KY (40741)

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Cloudy early with scattered thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High near 80F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

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Showers this evening then scattered thunderstorms developing overnight. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%.
MARISSA BERGEL, Wheeler softball, senior: Bergel hit a two-out, two-run single in the seventh inning to lift Wheeler past Holy Cross, 9-7, in the Class S state tournament. The hit was part of a five-run rally in the inning.

JOEY GUARNIERI, Westerly track & field, senior: Guarnieri placed first in two sprints at the Southern Division championships. He won the 100 (11.19) and the 200 (22.73).

JOSH MOONEY, Stonington track & field, sophomore: Mooney placed first in the 110 hurdles at the Class M state meet in 14.65. He also finished second in the 300 hurdles (39.87) and second in the javelin (160-0).

MARGARET WEEDEN, Chariho track & field, junior: Weeden finished first in the high jump at the Southern Division championships. Weeden cleared 5-1 and also placed sixth in the triple jump at 31-5.

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Tackle shop Angling Direct returned to profit last year as the pandemic triggered a surge in popularity for fishing across Britain.

As more anglers splashed out on their socially-distanced pursuit, Angling Direct's annual revenues climbed to record levels, growing 27.1 per cent to 67.6million in the 12 months to the end of January.

Within that, Angling Direct joined the digital pandemic winners, with online sales up 40 per cent and store sales rising 15.5 per cent to 32.3million, despite losing more than 30 per cent of store trading days to closure.

Angling Direct's chairman Martyn Page: 'The large pent-up demand built up whilst fishing was prohibited released with a flood of business from mid-June when stores reopened'

The group even opened four new stores in England during the year in towns such as Warrington and Northampton and has launched another two since then in Redditch and Sittingbourne.

It turned a 1.5million pre-tax loss in the previous financial year to a 2.6million profit last year, and it has restored its guidance for the 2022 financial year of being on track to meet current market expectations.

The return to profit came as more than 100,000 new fishing licences were taken out by Britons looking for new activities away from the crowds.

In just four weeks after angling restrictions were relaxed on May 13 2020, more than 335,000 rod licences were issued in England, according to the Environment Agency - a 230 per cent rise on the first three months of that year.

Chairman Martyn Page said the firm's high retail sales were due to customers clicking and collecting orders and substantial demand for its goods following the reopening of its stores when the first national lockdown ended.

'The large pent-up demand built up whilst fishing was prohibited released with a flood of business from mid-June when stores reopened, whilst our online business continued to grow at pace,' he remarked.

'This proved that demand for well-located physical experiential stores, manned by trained enthusiastic colleagues, remains strong in our sector.'

Away day: Over 100,000 new fishing licences were also taken out by Britons in the 12 months to January 31 as many looked for new activities away from crowds and metropolitan areas

The company added that it was 'well placed' to foster profitable revenue growth as long as no other lockdowns occur, though it warned growth would happen at a more moderate rate than last year.

Angling Direct also revealed that first-quarter sales in the present fiscal year were up 54 per cent on the previous year, with year-on-year store sales and digital sales 75 per cent and 42 per cent greater, respectively.

However, these figures partly measure against a period in 2020 when the pandemic was at its worst, all stores were shut, and Britons were confined to their homes.





It is nonetheless eyeing expansion in five European countries: France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and Germany, which it estimates has a combined angling market worth up to 1.9billion.





'As the UK market leader, Angling Direct is uniquely placed to deliver further profitable growth within the thriving European fishing tackle market as an increasing number of people of all ages discover the restorative pleasure, challenge and wellbeing benefits of angling,' chief executive Andy Torrance stated.





He also said: 'With the UK emerging from the pandemic, I am cautiously optimistic when I look to the future: the strong foundations we have put in place through 2020 will ensure the group is able to take advantage of the numerous opportunities that will arise through the remainder of 2021 and beyond.'








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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-10 15:25:22|Editor: huaxia

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The miraculous development of China's Tibet Autonomous Region since its peaceful liberation in 1951 is a remarkable achievement of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese people, a Pakistani political and strategic analyst has said.

Due to its high altitude, complex topography and harsh environment, Tibet was thought to be a place where economic growth could only materialize with "Herculean efforts," Sultan Mehmood Hali, who visited Tibet in 2019, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

In his eyes, "Tibet is one of the toughest battlegrounds for fighting poverty," while the CPC and the Chinese government had managed to eradicate absolute poverty in the region, fulfilling a seemingly impossible task, which manifested the resolve of the Chinses leadership.

The Chinese government has adopted a multi-pronged strategy to lift the Tibetan people out of poverty, said the Pakistani expert.

"They have been relocated in houses, which have the best of facilities, including running water, heating, gas for cooking, as well as Internet facilities ... Besides their residences, they have been provided with pastoral grounds, where the horses and cattle can graze, and where they can build their tents and invite tourists, so that they can earn a little bit of extra revenue," he said.

During his visit to Tibet, Hali said, he had witnessed and experienced the careful protection of traditional culture and the religious freedom people enjoy there, which contrasted sharply with what was sometimes being said about Tibet in the West.

"I saw by visiting different temples, that the rituals were not only being practiced, but they were being preached. And it is a sight for tourists, but also for local Tibetans to come and practice their religion, and there are no restrictions on them. In fact, they're encouraged," Hali said.

The culture and traditions including traditional Tibetan medicine have been well-preserved and developed, he said.

Over the remarkable development in the last seven decades, "Tibet is connected not only to the world through a massive array of roads and railways, but also through the Internet, which is available to the local people, and for the world to connect and see for themselves what has been achieved by the CPC and the Chinese government," he added.

Produced by Xinhua Global Service


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Thomasville, GA (31792)

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Mainly sunny to start, then a few afternoon clouds. High 93F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph..

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@rachelravina on Twitter

Rachel Ravina is a journalist covering news and lifestyle features in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. She grew up in Blue Bell and graduated from Penn State. She's also a news enthusiast who is passionate about covering topics people want to read.
The Times News has teamed up with area clergy to share Words of Comfort daily in our print edition and online at TimesNews.Net. Any member of the clergy whod like to get involved can contact Carmen Musick at cmusick@timesnews.net.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-10 23:09:53|Editor: huaxia

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Since 1919, thousands of young Chinese, as part of the Work-Study Movement, traveled across the ocean to France, in order to find a way to rebuild and empower their motherland.

Many of them became pioneers and leaders of the Chinese revolution.

Produced by Xinhua Global Service 
Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired rockets toward the Jerusalem area and southern Israel on Monday, carrying out a threat to punish Israel for violent confrontations with Palestinians in Jerusalem.

The Gaza health ministry said nine Palestinians, including three children, were killed in a series of strikes in northern Gaza. It did not explicitly blame Israel for the deaths, in an area that has been a staging ground for militants cross-border rocket attacks.

Rocket sirens sounded in Jerusalem, in nearby towns and in communities near Gaza minutes after the expiry of an ultimatum from the enclaves ruling Hamas Islamist group demanding Israel stand down forces in the al Aqsa mosque compound and another flashpoint in the holy city.

As Israel celebrated Jerusalem Day earlier on Monday, marking its capture of eastern sections of the holy city in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, violence erupted at the mosque, Islams third most sacred site.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said more than 300 Palestinians were injured in clashes with police who fired rubber bullets, stun grenades and tear gas in the compound, which is also revered by Jews at the site of biblical temples.

The skirmishes, in which police said 21 officers were also hurt, at al Aqsa had died down by the 6 p.m. (1500 GMT) deadline Hamas had set.

Rockets fired from Gaza last hit the Jerusalem area during a 2014 war between Israel and Palestinian militants in the territory.

The terrorist organisations crossed a red line on Jerusalem Day and attacked us, on the outskirts of Jerusalem, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a speech.

Israel will respond very forcefully. We will not tolerate attacks on our territory, our capital, our citizens and our soldiers. Whoever strikes us will pay a heavy price, he said.

International efforts to stem the violence appeared to have already begun. A Palestinian official told Reuters that Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations, which have mediated truces between Israel and Hamas in the past, were in contact with the groups leader Ismail Haniyeh.

Israeli Lieutenant-Colonel Jonathan Conricus said that on Monday, at least six of the 45 rockets fired from Gaza were launched towards Jerusalems outskirts, where a house was hit. No casualties were reported.

We have started to attack Hamas military targets, Conricus said in a briefing to foreign reporters, putting no timeframe on any Israeli offensive. Hamas will pay a heavy price.

He said Israel had carried out an air strike in northern Gaza against Hamas militants and was looking into reports that children were killed.

We had multiple events of rockets fired by Gaza terrorists falling short. This might be the same, Conricus said.

Along the fortified Gaza-Israeli border, a Palestinian anti-tank missile fired from the tiny coastal territory struck a civilian vehicle, injuring one Israeli, he said.

Hamas and the smaller Islamic Jihad militant group claimed responsibility for the rocket attacks.

This is a message the enemy should understand well, said Abu Ubaida, a spokesman for Hamass armed wing.

VIOLENCE AROUND AL AQSA MOSQUE

The hostilities caught Netanyahu at an awkward time, as opponents negotiate the formation of a governing coalition to unseat him after an inconclusive March 23 election.

For Hamas, some commentators said, its challenge to Israel was a sign to Palestinians, whose own elections have been postponed by President Mahmoud Abbas, that it was now calling the shots in holding Israel accountable for events in Jerusalem.

Recent clashes in Jerusalem have raised international concern about wider conflict, and the White House called on Israel to ensure calm during Jerusalem Day.

The Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in East Jerusalem has also been a focal point of Palestinian protests during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Several Palestinian families face eviction, under Israeli court order, from homes claimed by Jewish settlers in a long-running legal case.

In an effort to defuse tensions, police changed the route of a traditional Jerusalem Day march, in which thousands of Israeli flag-waving Jewish youth walk through the Old City. They entered through Jaffa Gate, bypassing the Damascus Gate outside the Muslim quarter, which has been a flashpoint in recent weeks.

Police rushed the marchers to cover at Jaffa Gate after the sirens went off.

Israel views all of Jerusalem as its capital, including the eastern part that it annexed after the 1967 war in a move that has not won international recognition. Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of a state they seek in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

SOURCE: REUTERS
Ted's Fish Fry will close its seven locations on Sundays. The reason? It can't find enough workers.

Candidates "aren't even coming in," said one manager. "They're giving them all the money to stay home," he said, referring to the $300 supplemental benefits the federal government pays on top of the state's unemployment benefit check.

In Lake George, "we've had some restaurants talk about going to five days a week," said Gina Mintzer, who heads the Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce. "They lack the staff."

The nation's economy is coming back to life after more than a year of lockdown. But some of the hardest hit sectors during the pandemic were leisure and hospitality, and accommodation and food services. In the five-county Albany metro, the number of jobs in the two sectors were down over the year by 19.2 percent and 20.8 percent, respectively, according to state Labor Department figures. Together, they represent the loss of 13,700 jobs locally.

Nationwide, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday that there were 8.1 million job openings across the country at the end of March, the highest figure in records going back to December 2000.

Early in the pandemic, employers furloughed a large share of the workforce as leisure travel ground to a halt and retail businesses and workplaces closed their doors. There were few jobs to be had, and people who weren't in essential occupations were told to stay home.

But with vaccines becoming widely available and business conditions returning to normal, critics say continuing supplemental federal unemployment benefits may be slowing the recovery.

U.S. Labor Secretary Martin Walsh, in a conference call Tuesday afternoon with reporters, argued against that notion.

"Are businesses saying this $300 prevents them from being successful? Walsh asked. "I don't see it. The President doesn't see it."

Walsh said the administration had done much to help restaurants and other businesses. "Most Americans would rather be working," he added.

"Any worker in America, if they turn down a suitable job, they can lose their unemployment benefits," Walsh said. A suitable job, he said, would be one that matches a worker's skills and work experience, and provides a safe workplace.

"They can't just arbitrarily turn down the work," Walsh added.

The state Labor Department agreed. A spokesperson said recipients of unemployment benefits must certify that they must be available to work, they're actively looking, and that they have a search plan. The Labor Department also maintains a database of job openings that currently has more than 152,000 positions. The Jobs Express website may be found at https://statistics.labor.ny.gov/career-zone/jobs-express.shtml

Even some of the region's largest employers have struggled to fill positions. Six Flags Great Escape theme park in Queensbury still has a number of openings despite virtual and drive-through job fairs, and weeks of online recruiting. It had 1,500 positions to fill.

"(W)e have yet to meet our hiring goal for this season, but with our excellent hiring incentives and easy application process, we hope to be the employer of choice," spokesman Jason Lee said Tuesday. Two drive-through job fairs drew a total of 21 applicants.

Six Flags continues to recruit, and applicants can visit sixflagsjobs.com to apply.

Lee said Great Escape was looking for job candidates at all experience levels, from college students to senior citizens. Its Work & Travel program, meanwhile, is bringing in 100 students from overseas under the J-1 visa program.

But the restaurant business has, perhaps, been hit hardest, first with lengthy shutdowns, then with sharp limits on occupancy and the risks of Covid-19.

"The restaurants suffered through the pandemic," the Ted's Fish Fry manager said. "Now, they're suffering because they can't find workers."
ALBANY  A lawsuit filed last year by Albany Nanotech founder Alain Kaloyeros against the SUNY Research Foundation over one of his computer chip inventions is moving forward after a state Supreme Court judge in Albany denied the foundation's attempt to have the case dismissed.

Kaloyeros, who was removed from his job as president of SUNY Polytechnic Institute and head of Albany Nanotech in the fall of 2016 amid charges of bid-rigging, has been seeking lost compensation for a patent covering computer chip technology he invented two decades ago when he was a physics professor at the University at Albany.

The invention, which involved the use of cobalt to connect transistors in microchips, received a patent in 2002. Kaloyeros claims that in 2018 he discovered his cobalt invention had been in use by chip makers for at least two years  suddenly making the patent potentially worth tens of millions of dollars.

Kaloyeros alleges that the Research Foundation, which oversees research grants and intellectual property rights for the State University of New York system, failed to monetize the patent even after he notified the Research Foundation of its use by the chip industry.

Although the lawsuit doesn't specify which companies have been using cobalt in their chips, many of the world's top chip makers have adopted cobalt in chips. However, they too have have been granted their own patents covering cobalt technology.

Kaloyeros, who is free on appeal after being found guilty in 2018 of wire fraud and wire fraud conspiracy in federal court in Manhattan, created and grew Albany Nanotech into one of the premier semiconductor research labs in the country through joint investments by the state and the world's top chip makers and their manufacturing suppliers. Tenants include IBM, Intel, Samsung and others, as well as SUNY Poly, the nanoscience school Kaloyeros spun off from UAlbany.

Ana Londergan, a former PhD student under Kaloyeros, is also listed as a plaintiff in the case along with Gelest, a Philadelphia-area tech firm that Kaloyeros partnered with on the cobalt invention and others. Londergan now works for the chip design company Qualcomm in California.

Scientists patent their inventions to protect their exclusive right to either use the technology or license it other companies. They are usually required to assign the patent in the name of their employer, which provided them the means and equipment to do the research.

In academic settings, the university, or in this case the Research Foundation, shares a portion of any revenue stream from the patent with the inventor, although making money is expensive, requiring the hiring of intellectual property firms to market licenses.

What often happens is that a company will use a certain technology or even a method of manufacturing already covered by a patent  either knowingly or not  and the patent-holder must hire attorneys to demand licensing fees or sue the company.

"Despite being put on notice by the plaintiffs that third parties are infringing the patent associated with the invention, the defendants have failed to enforce the patent or to negotiate a license with the infringing parties," Kaloyeros' attorney Michael Miller of Steptoe & Johnson in New York City argued in the lawsuit, which was filed in February 2020 in Albany.

The cobalt patent that Kaloyeros and Londergan assigned to the Research Foundation actually expired earlier this year, about a year after the lawsuit was filed. Therefore they would have to be compensated on the potential licensing fees they would have earned during the lifetime of the patent, which would have to be proved in court.

Miller argued against the Research Foundation's motion to dismiss the case on April 7 during virtual oral arguments before Acting State Supreme Court Justice Richard Platkin.

The Research Foundation argued that it didn't have a contractual obligation to commercialize the patent. Platkin decided, though, that Kaloyeros' case has a "viable claim" and that the lawsuit should proceed against the Research Foundation.

We are looking forward to moving ahead with the next stage of this important litigation, including obtaining relevant documents from SUNY and the Research Foundation and obtaining testimony from the key decision makers at those organizations, Miller said.

Research Foundation spokesman Peter Taubkin declined comment but noted that Platkin did dismiss two minor claims that were originally part of the lawsuit.

In late, 2018, a federal court judge sentenced Kaloyeros to 3 years in prison, saying he steered $855 million in bids for state contracts to contributors of Gov. Andrew Cuomo in order to score "brownie points" with the governor to maintain his status as one of the highest-compensated employees in the state.

Kaloyeros, of Slingerlands, and several business executives from around upstate were convicted of wire fraud and wire fraud conspiracy.

Miller, who represented Kaloyeros in his criminal case, declined to comment Tuesday on the status or potential outcome of Kaloyeros' appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Manhattan, which was argued 14 months ago.

Kaloyeros could not be reached for comment.
ALBANY  Wednesday marks the deadline for companies bidding on a major transmission line to feed the future green energy needs of the New York City area, and at least two proposals would run lines in the Hudson River through the Capital Region.

The final proposals to the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority are due at 3 p.m. The Authority is expected to pick the final awards during the third quarter, or this summer.

NYSERDA wont name all the potential bidders until the process is completed. And several of the companies known to be interested didnt respond to a call on Tuesday.

But one bidder said 14 potential bidders expressed an interest during a recent webinar on the process.

Were anticipating its going to be a very competitive situation, said Clint Plummer, CEO of Rise Light and Power, one of the expected bidders.

Rise is proposing a Catskills Renewable Connector, which would bring solar and wind power from across upstate to the city via a line that would enter the Hudson River in Greene or southern Albany County.

Its one of at least two proposals that would place a power transmission line of up to 3,600 megawatts in the Hudson River running down to New York City.

Another is the proposed Champlain Hudson Power Express proposed by Transmission DeveIopers Inc. That line would carry hydroelectric power generated in northern Quebec down through Lake Champlain and then under the Hudson River to the city.

Also in the running is Avangrid, a Spanish-based company that owns several U.S. utilities including New York State Electric and Gas. They are looking to use state Department of Transportation rights of way for a buried line running downstate. They stress that their line won't go in the Hudson, which has sparked concerns among some environmentalists.

"Avangrid Networks' Excelsior Connect underground clean energy superhighway will bring needed wind and solar power generated in upstate New York to New York City, while respecting communities and protecting the Hudson River by largely following existing rights of way," said Sebastian Libonatti, the company's vice president for business development.

Other proposals have talked about bringing in power from other states as well.

Either way, this transmission line aims to solve a longstanding energy dilemma in New York State. Most of the clean power including nuclear, hydroelectric or newly developed solar and wind  is generated upstate where it isnt needed.

Downstate, with its population density, needs the power. Much of that currently comes from dirty, older gas plants. Due to the 2019 Climate Action and Community Protection Act, the state aims to get 70 percent of its power from green or carbon-free sources.

Because of that, a line is needed to carry this green power from upstate to downstate.

The concept of using Canadian hydropower has been mentioned several times by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The electricity generated at a series of Canadian dams is clean and the hydroelectric plants are up and running.

On the other hand, New York State power producers as well as labor unions believe the power should be produced in the state in order to create jobs and boost the upstate economy.

The Rise project points to that as a plus on their side since they want to move power from across the upstate region, once the solar and wind plants are built.

These projects are being bid under NYSERDA's Tier 4, which is the rate and regulatory category for relatively new renewable energy sources.
One of the countrys largest oil and gas pipelines running from Texas to New Jersey was forced to shut down on Friday after a cybersecurity attack - and the Northeast could experience increasing gas prices after the pipelines operator, Colonial Pipeline, immediately shut down the pipeline to contain the threat.

While small segments of the pipeline have opened up, four of the operators main lines remained closed on Monday. The operator said the pipeline wont be substantially restored until the end of the week, in a statement released Monday.

Gas prices have increased six cents this week and are projected to climb higher as a result of the pipeline which delivers 45 percent of all fuel to the East Coast being shut down, according to a statement from AAA on Monday.

Cyberattacks are becoming more common and impacting people's daily lives, including some recent incidents in the Capital Region. The City of Albany suffered a ransomware attack that wiped away the police departments digital internal affairs files from 2018, and some of 2017. Last month, the Guilderland School District suffered an attack that forced all high school students to learn remotely. Currently, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has been shut down for the fourth day in a row because of a cybersecurity attack which has caused students exams and final term papers to be canceled and confusion on how administrators, faculty, and students can communicate with each other.

In 2020, the country saw an uptick in cyberattacks as hackers got more sophisticated at attacking, and many more people were working from home during the pandemic. Yet the attack to the Colonial Pipelines data might have the most real-world effect on Capital Region residents to date.

Gasoline futures rose quickly on Monday until about 1 p.m. when Colonial Pipeline announced it hopes to have the lines restored by the end of the week. At that time, gas prices for June which were predicted to increase 4.2 percent lowered to 0.3 percent, the New York Times reported Monday afternoon.

Airports across the country might also be affected. But so far at Albany International Airport, there has been no impact yet, according to Doug Myers, spokesperson for the Albany International Airport. We are not going to know about any fuel price increase until tomorrow, said Myers, I would anticipate we will see some increase, probably a slight increase, but we will have to see.

While the impact of cyberattacks might be new for some, it is not for technology experts - who worry about the lack of preparedness for cyber crime that can range in scale from inconvenient, to threatening the country's essential infrastructure.

When I heard about it and I was not surprised at all, quite honestly I think the business community at large and probably state and local governments havent put enough thought and resources into this in general, said Dave Vener, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at TAG solutions, a computer support company in Menands that specializes in cybersecurity. We are seeing it all over the place. We probably get a call every other week in the local community who have had breaches.

Critical infrastructure in the Capital Region includes everything from small dams along the Hudson River, to National Grid's system, to the LED streetlights installed in Albany, said Sanjay Goel, a cybersecurity professor at University at Albany.

This is just the tip of the iceberg, said Goel, about the threat to critical infrastructure in the U.S. A lot of nation states have been probing into the critical infrastructure of the U.S. and other countries in order find any vulnerabilities.

Oil, gas, water, we are still using old technology and it is not very well protected, Goel said. When these things get connected onto networks it gives a fair chance for criminals or nation states to come in and probe them.

Experts advise always creating proper backups of data and testing those backups to make sure they work properly and efficiently before you are under attack. They also advise doing the normal system updates on devices as soon as they are available to protect against attacks. For businesses, employers should implement awareness training for their employees. Installing virus protection or malware is not usually comprehensive enough to protect against all attacks, Vener said.

This is a systemic problem we need to address in the long term, Goel said. Do we build resilience into our systems? Do we take them completely off the grid? There is always a compromise between more efficiency, better operations, and making them vulnerable to cyberattacks, but we need to figure out where we need to go with that.
A February report from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) confirmed what most Lyme disease experts who track and research the condition in the U.S. already knew  there are a lot more cases than are officially confirmed.

Every year about 30,000 to 40,000 cases are reported to the CDC, but those numbers are widely believed to be underrepresenting the true caseload nationwide. After working with IBMs Watson MarketScan to analyze health insurance claims, the CDC estimates that from 2010-2018 there were actually about 476,000 annual cases nationwide.

The northeast, especially the Hudson Valley, has long been a hotspot for Lyme disease incidence. More accurate estimates of the case numbers influence how public health officials prepare prevention measures and treat the illness because early diagnoses are key to treatment.

CDC officials have long known that published numbers of cases are lower than the actual number of Lyme patients.

In 2018 (the most recent data set posted by the CDC), New York state reported 2,446 confirmed and another 1,192 probable cases of Lyme disease. Yet, determining specific region case numbers  both confirmed and probable  is difficult from year-to-year.

The most recent CDC estimates of underreporting, based on insurance claims, suggest that actual cases are more than 10 times greater than reported cases, said Dr. Richard S. Ostfeld, disease ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies. But one should probably not assume that the same degree of underreporting occurs everywhere in the country. It is probably not accurate to assume the same correction factor everywhere.

In the Hudson Valley, it can be hard to quantify the level of underreporting precisely because some counties such as Dutchess use a different method of reporting cases to reduce the workload for local health officials, which can impact true numbers. To add to the murkiness, Lyme disease is well known here, so patients are typically well educated about Lyme, and physicians are often comfortable prescribing antibiotics for a credible case of Lyme without ordering a test or doing other diagnostics that could convert that into a case for the CDC.

Passive surveillance of Lyme disease

OK-Photography/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Through the Cary Institute, Ostfeld is working on a series of Lyme disease research projects that attempt to answer how a changing climate and ecosystems affect the spread of tick-borne illnesses. One project, The Tick Project, is a five-year study taking place in Dutchess County that examines neighborhoods where the spread of Lyme disease-carrying ticks could possibly be prevented in residential areas.

Lyme disease is a notifiable disease, meaning state health departments are required to report to the CDC how many cases are confirmed within the state. This reporting is done by a passive system where county health officials compile data given to them from clinics, laboratories, and health care providers. At times this can leave a lot of cases misreported and accurate estimates become harder on a year-to-year basis.

The surveillance disclosure on the CDC website even says that under-reporting is more likely to occur in highly endemic areas, whereas over-reporting is more likely to occur in non-endemic areas.

Active surveillance of Lyme disease would be more accurate because health departments could work closer with centralized health systems to find more cases. But this would also be more expensive, requiring additional personnel which seems unlikely right now with budgets stretched.

If we underestimate the nature of the threat, then we're not going to apply adequate resources to either understanding it or solving it. And that has been the history of Lyme, Ostfeld said. More accurate representations of the magnitude of the threat help us allocate research dollars to control methods, diagnostic methods, prevention, and cures.

Understanding the caseload helps prevention programs

Bulat Silvia/Getty Images/iStockphoto

For now, Lyme disease prevention is the main focus of public health officials because ticks carrying the disease are not leaving areas like the Hudson Valley. In fact, the disease has been continuing to inch slowly north, said Andrew Evans Jr., coordinator of communicable disease at the Dutchess County Department of Behavioral & Community Health.

In Dutchess County, where Lyme disease has been prevalent for a long time, healthcare providers and the general public are very aware of the risks, Evans said. People know that when you get bit by a tick or have certain symptoms, you go to the doctor and get treated for it.

The problem is that people need prevention education to know when they might be at risk of contraction. Dutchess County has a couple of tools to aid in keeping the public informed of the risks of tick-borne illnesses; including presentations, warnings at outdoor recreational areas, and tick-removal kits with educational materials.

People need to practice safe behaviors and do tick checks themselves to increase early detection, Evans said. We're sort of trained, in this day and age, to go get a test and find out if you have it or not. Lyme disease has never been that straightforward.

Testing for Lyme disease is not as definitive as other illnesses. Antibody-detecting ELISA and Western blot tests are both indirect ways to determine if someone has contracted the disease, but these tests can be insensitive, especially early on in the disease course, said Dr. Shannon Delaney, director of Child and Adolescent Evaluation at the Lyme and Tick-borne Diseases Research Center at Columbia University.

Many of Delaneys patients never recall having had a tick attachment, erythema migrans (EM) rash  commonly known as a bullseye rash  or history of a flu-like illness. Early detection and treatment are important because Lyme disease can progress to migrating joint pains or arthritis, neurological symptoms, cognitive problems, or psychiatric problems such as anxiety and depression, Delaney said.

Late-stage Lyme disease is often harder to diagnose because symptoms can affect multiple organ systems and often present as a complicated and smoldering type of a process, Delaney said. The longer someone goes without a diagnosis and proper treatment, the more dangerous it can be.

Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has stretched CDC resources and Lyme disease will probably not be a top-line concern for federal public health officials.

As people spend more time outdoors due to the prolonged pandemic lockdown, local officials like Andrew Evans hope that people are still aware of the continued risk of ticks and will continue to practice safe habits in the Hudson Valley.

Were not saying everybody, but people could have become a little more relaxed about checking for ticks because theyre thinking more about COVID, he said.
Though Lyme disease has historically been blamed upon the overabundant white-tailed deer that host so-called deer ticks, a much smaller mammal scampering around your yard plays an outsized role in the spread of Lyme.

White-footed mice are one of the most important determinants for how many ticks there are in the environment  and how many infected ticks there are, says Dr. Richard Ostfeld, who studies the ecology of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, one of the worlds premier centers for ecological research.

Mice are the main carriers of the Borrelia burgdorferi bacterium that initially infects blacklegged ticks and turns them into transmitters of a disease that infects nearly half a million Americans annually. And they are just one of the many vectors in an interconnected web of wildlife and global warming trends that have influenced the rise of this pathogen, often in ways that run counter to popular belief.

A warm winter, for instance, does not impact the tick population as many people think.

People are fooled into thinking that if it's warmer over the winter then maybe fewer of the ticks will perish and therefore there might be more of them [in the spring], and that is not demonstrated by scientific study, said Ostfeld.

What does happen in a warmer winter is that ticks come out of their hibernation-like state early, which could be mistaken for a surge in tick activity.

Predicting how bad a year may be for Lyme infections has nothing to do with a particularly snowy winter, either. In analyzing tick population and Lyme disease patterns for roughly 30 years, Ostfeld and his team have seen no signal at all from weather fluctuations.

Acorns on the other hand? They are an unlikely but surefire bellwether.

The size of the acorn crop in the fall determines how many mice there are going to be the next summer, says Ostfeld of this super nutritious, long-lasting mouse food. The mice, in a good acorn year, they have a ton to eat during the winter and they get a jump start on breeding and they reach a population peak the next summer. And that's important because the mice are a really good host for the baby ticks.

Vicki Jauron, Babylon and Beyond/Getty Images

Breakfast of champions for baby ticks

The lifespan of the blacklegged tick  which is an arachnid like a spider, not an insect  is two years. Over that time, they eat just three times  once when they are babies, or larvae; once when they are teens, or nymphs, and again when they are adults. Ostfeld likens their meals to the breakfast, lunch and dinner of their lives  95 percent of the time theyre starving, he said.

When baby ticks hatch in summer, they're not infected with the Lyme bacteria. Where they get infected predominantly is by feeding on a white-footed mouse, says Ostfeld of this first meal that infects the tick when they latch onto their first host.

By the following spring, the baby ticks have grown into poppy-seed sized nymphs. Teen ticks are indiscriminate about who they snack on  humans, mice, chipmunks, squirrels, raccoons, foxes, songbirds like robins and catbirds, skunks, deer. But when they feed upon humans is how the majority of Lyme cases are transmitted, says Ostfeld.

That's the stage that is just coming active at this time of year  May, June, [and] into early July  and that's when most cases of Lyme disease occur, he said.

Adult ticks primarily feed  and mate  upon deer in the fall, typically late October through early December, when people are less active outdoors, says Ostfeld. The lower likelihood of encountering these now sesame-sized ticks lessens the risk of becoming infected by an adult, compared to a nymph.

This last stage may be of less consequence to humans but it is key to the ticks progeny. As the females feed upon the deer, males wander around looking to mate them. Once the females have been fertilized and have their fill of blood, they drop off the deer, digest their last supper for a month, lay about 1000 to 2000 eggs, and die. The eggs hatch the next summer into the baby larvae and the cycle starts anew.

There are some scientists who think that the abundance of deer is the most important factor determining the abundance of ticks later on, said Ostfeld. We don't find that in our studies. Over 30 years, in the Hudson Valley, we do not find a signal from the deer population, but we do find a strong signal from the mouse population, he said.

Alex Jahn at Indiana University

Lyme disease spreading further afield

Dr. Brian Leydet, a vector-borne disease biologist at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry who has been studying tick-borne diseases since 2007, is among the scientists who see deer as a key player in the life cycle of ticks and Lyme infections. They need deer to feed on  to then lay the eggs, said Leydet.

Research supports the linchpin role deer play in the spread of Lyme. In 1988, scientists revisited Great Island off of Cape Cod two years after a significant drop in the number of deer and found that nymphal infestation on rodents was reduced by 70 percent, as compared with a control island. In their study, the scientists concluded that the presence of deer is a precondition for dense infestations of [blacklegged ticks] and hence for intense transmission of Lyme disease and human babesiosis, another tick borne disease.

One of Dr. Leydets areas of research involves studying how climate change helps the spread of Lyme disease. He likens the impact of global warming to the germination of a seed. The higher the average daily temperature in a region, the better off a plant  or a blacklegged tick  will do. The impact is felt most in regions that were previously too cold for ticks to thrive.

Canada is definitely seeing a northern spread of this tick, he said, adding that blacklegged ticks are spreading about 28 miles to the north each year.

Certain birds, like robins, are also thought to be superspreaders of Lyme disease.

In terms of the percentage of ticks that a single robin can infect, it is the same as mice, says Dr. Daniel Becker, a biologist at the University of Indiana at Bloomington, who studies how human development has shifted bird migration and the spread of pathogens.

Guillaume Seguin/Getty Images

They may not be the superhost that mice have been proven to be for Lyme, but, says Becker, They are a lot more mobile and have this potential to not just infect the ticks but carry the ticks to new places. The very act of migration itself, and the physiological changes that happen as birds prepare for the journey could even make them more infectious.

Whether birds, climate change or a combination of these factors and others are contributing to the spread of Lyme disease, its clear that the blacklegged tick population is growing. Between 1998 and 2016, the number of counties in America where the ticks have become established has more than doubled, mainly in the north-central and northeastern U.S.

Our own suburban sprawl can also be blamed for leaving the ticks no other choice than to feed upon the best carriers of the disease.

As you get these more fragmented suburban areas, says Becker, you lose some of the larger mammals that dont transmit the pathogen as well to the ticks. The result is a preponderance of Lyme-transmitting mice and chipmunks, and fewer predatory mammals like coyotes or foxes to feast upon them.

Dont try to gather ye acorns, but do check for ticks

yourmap/Getty Images

At this point, there is little that can be done to turn back the clock on the spread of Lyme. The number of acorns that fall between one year and the next is largely cyclical, and not weather dependent.

Gathering all the acorns you see in the fall to drive down the white-footed mouse population in the spring will not help; mice will find other sustenance and survive. There will be mice  no matter how many acorns there are, says Ostfeld.

The best way to protect against Lyme disease is to be vigilant for signs of infection particularly this year, given that 2019 was a big year for acorns  which in turn boosted mice populations in 2020. That mouse population increase makes them more plentiful for larval ticks to hop onto and feed upon until their nymphal stage, which is now.

There's a risk of contracting Lyme any year, says Ostfeld. There are no good years really.

But Ostfeld is predicting that Lyme disease infections will be higher than normal this year because of the increase in acorns and mice. And when a bad year coincides with a time where more people are spending time outdoors because of the pandemic  that concerns me, he says, particularly now that more people have been reluctant to go to the doctor's office or a clinic during the pandemic.

There are many ways to prevent against a tick bite and to ward off infection, starting with regular tick checks. If you suspect youve been bitten or infected, says Ostfeld, Go get medical attention, because it's much, much easier to treat early than it is later on.

Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that blacklegged ticks are born without any pathogen. They can be born with one, Borrelia miyamotoi, which can cause tickborne relapsing fever.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-10 23:21:18|Editor: huaxia

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A visitor observes ship models on display at the 2021 China Brand Day events in Shanghai, May 10, 2021. (Xinhua/Fang Zhe)

SHANGHAI, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The 2021 China Brand Day events began in Shanghai on Monday.

Activities took place both online and offline on the premise of strictly implementing regular epidemic prevention and control.

Authorities will hold an international forum on China brand development and an expo on indigenous China brands, the organizer said.

The events aim to promote the new achievements of China's domestic brands and contribute to the forming of a massive domestic market, the National Development and Reform Commission said.

Established in 2017, China Brand Day occurs on May 10 every year. 
NEW ORLEANS (AP)  A Louisiana man whose seriously ill son gained fame in New Orleans for his devotion to the Saints football team was sentenced to eight years in prison Tuesday for drug trafficking and for fraudulently capitalizing on his son's illness with a phony charity.

Jordy Robertson, 37, was sentenced Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Wendy Vitter, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Robertson is the father of Jarrius Robertson, whose boisterous enthusiasm for the Saints and unbridled optimism while fighting a rare liver disease, won the hearts of team members and fans.

Jarrius has been often described as a Saints super fan in local media. Amid the publicity, which included an appearance at the ESPYs, Jordy Robertson established a charity to raise money for his sons liver transplant. But prosecutors said the childs expenses had been covered by Medicaid and the hospital.

Prosecutors said Jordy Robertson also continued to raise money through his It Takes Lives to Save Lives charity, purportedly to raise awareness about organ transplants for children. But he used the money for himself.

Jordy Robertson pleaded guilty in 2019 to wire fraud and drug trafficking charges. In addition to the prison sentence, he was ordered to pay $116,216 in restitution to people who made donations.

A federal complaint filed in 2019 said the investigation of Jordan began in 2017 when the Drug Enforcement Administration was tipped that Robertson was involved in cocaine trafficking in Garyville, a community west of New Orleans.

Mr. Robertsons criminal activities showed a blatant disregard for the generosity of others," U.S. Attorney Duane Evans said in a statement Tuesday.

Jarrius Robertson, who was 17 by the time his father entered his plea in 2019, has never been implicated in wrongdoing. Then-U.S. Attorney Peter Strasser said Jarrius was a victim.

Think about the emotional toll it has to take on him to see his own father use him to commit a crime, Strasser told reporters outside the federal courthouse in September 2019.
ALBANY  The county legislature replaced former legislator George Langdon IV, who resigned last month after making anti-gay remarks, with the man he defeated in the 2019 election.

Richard Touchette was appointed Monday night by the Democrat-majority legislature to fill the District 37 seat, which represents Coeymans. Touchette, a Democrat, holds the seat until Dec. 31. An election will be held in November to determine who will fulfill the rest of Langdon's term, which ends in 2023.

I want to welcome Mr. Touchette back to the Albany County Legislature. It's my hope that Rick will continue to reflect the fiscally sound, innovative ideals of our body, as he did when he served with us previously," Legislature Chairman Andrew Joyce said in a statement. "We will continue to drive bold, progressive and sound public policy that recognizes the importance of all our residents including the LGBTQ+ community, women and our Black and brown communities. It is our responsibility to build a sustainable future and create an inclusive environment for all of our residents and for future generations.

Langdon, a Republican, resigned after a video of a "liberty" seminar held at Camp Pinnacle in the town of New Scotland on March 27 was posted to YouTube. Langdon spoke at the seminar.

Everything God does is sustainable, it's sustainable. Its perpetual. ... Sorry, when you have homosexual relationships, its not perpetual. Give them an island, theyll be gone in 40 years. Because God created us this way," Langdon said at the seminar.

The legislature was moving to censure Langdon, which was not a removal, when he decided to resign.

"I again express my sincerest apologies to all those who were hurt by my rash and thoughtless statements," Langdon said in a statement April 5. "It was never my intention to single-out or target anyone. I truly believe every individual should have the right to life and liberty in their pursuit of happiness."

Touchette served on the legislature from 2015 to 2019, and was a supporter of environmental policy that led to a Clean Air Law that prohibits waste burning and a law that instituted a countywide ban on polystyrene.

Both Touchette and Langdon also previously served on the Coeymans Town Board.

Touchette is the executive director of the Catholic Cemeteries of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany.
Paul Buckowski/Albany Times Union

ALBANY - A 77-year-old woman is in critical condition after she was pushed to the ground Tuesday morning by another woman during a disagreement in a parking lot, Albany police said.

The 36-year-old suspect from Albany was charged with second-degree assault after the 8:15 a.m. incident that took place on the 200 block of Central Avenue just east of North Lake Avenue, police said.
ALBANY  The absence of change tends to be uninteresting, which is why you read few news stories about things that are exactly the same as they were before.

Alas, little in the plight of the historic, Tudor-style houses along Holland Avenue in Albany has changed since I wrote about them in 2018. They remain vacant. They are still owned by Picotte Cos., a local developer. They continue to decay, slowly and steadily, with no apparent hope or future. Demolition seems their destiny.

A sad and depressing story, for sure, but an unvarying and predictable one.

The back story: The six houses at 100-112 Holland Ave. were built in the 1930s, and, despite their deterioration, they remain lovely, with stained-glass windows and intricate detail. They sit on a rise above the busy roadway, behind sloping lawn and mature trees. They remain part of Albany's rich architectural history.

The homes were built by Jesse Leonard, a developer responsible for large swaths of the city. The house at 100 Holland Ave. was his retirement home, built with a tiled indoor fountain and elaborately designed plaster reliefs, and Leonard lived there until he died in 1956.

Picotte, the developer of the Corporate Woods office park, emptied the houses more than a decade ago and subsequently moved, successfully, to have they city reduce their assessed value. The company has made it clear it sees no future for the houses at the site, which is in a largely commercial area near Albany Medical Center.

I still receive emails about the houses, though. In recent days, a resident who walks his dog by them has contacted me about the missing windows and other signs of neglect at the apparently endangered Tudors. Why, he asked, is this being allowed to happen? What's the plan? Good questions!

When I last wrote about the Tudors, the chief operating officer at Picotte, Nancy Carey Cassidy, said the company would donate any one of the houses to anyone willing to relocate them. That hasn't happened, obviously.

"I have nothing new to share, because there is nothing new since last we talked," Cassidy told me Monday, adding that the houses are registered with the city as the law requires and are regularly inspected.

What does the future hold for the homes or their land?

"There's no plan right now," Cassidy said. "That's all I can say."

See what I mean? Nothing as changed. Same old, same old.

Yet that's not entirely true. While the houses haven't changed much, save for their continued decay, the world around them has changed dramatically.

The assumption behind Picotte's neglect of the homes was that they weren't the highest and best use for land that could be redeveloped as an office complex, medical offices especially. Chris Spencer, the city's former planning commissioner, agreed and argues they had no plausible residential future.

"They're kind of an island," Spencer said in 2018. "The surroundings are not all that conducive to single-family housing."

Judging by my inbox, there are plenty of people who would happily occupy the houses. But I could understand why the city might want to see the site redeveloped with offices, given the property tax revenue and economic activity such a project might generate.

But that was then, before the coronavirus pandemic radically altered the commercial real estate market, perhaps permanently. As companies remake workplace strategies with more employees working remotely, demand for commercial space and new office construction is low and likely to remain that way for years.

That suggests no end to the limbo faced by the Holland Avenue houses. Even if they are razed, little more than a surface parking lot seems likely to replace them. Is the city OK with that? (Mayor Kathy Sheehan's office did not respond to a request for comment Monday.)

There is another trend worth noting: The housing market is red hot. In Albany, median home prices are up 22 percent just from a year ago, with steep competition for homes in more popular neighborhoods. What could that mean for the Tudors?

"There would be a bidding war to have just one of the six," said Kim Alvarez, a historic preservation consultant and an Historic Albany Foundation board member. "People love those buildings."

Imagine if the houses were renovated as part of a larger residential development, with, say, townhomes built on the large parking lot behind them. Such a development, noted Alvarez, who lives nearby, could fill a gap between the Park South, Helderberg and Delaware Avenue neighborhoods.

"The homes have been described as sitting in no-man's land," she said. "But the land could be a bridge between different areas. It's all in how you look at it."

Alvarez admitted to pessimism about the future of the houses and frustration that Picotte and the city seem uninterested in their rescue. She's not alone on both fronts, I can assure you.

cchurchill@timesunion.com  518-454-5442  @chris_churchill
ALBANY  Vaccinations against COVID-19 for adolescents as young as 12 could begin as soon as Thursday in New York, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said Tuesday.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine for emergency use in adolescents as young as 12 on Monday, after a clinical trial found the vaccine to be extremely effective with mild to no side effects in participants between the ages of 12 and 15.

The Centers for Disease Control and Preventions Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is holding an emergency meeting Wednesday to review the data and is expected to vote in the afternoon on whether to recommend vaccination for this age group.

On Tuesday, Cuomo said the states own Clinical Advisory Task Force would meet following the CDC review and also make a final recommendation on whether to expand New Yorks vaccine eligibility to the 12-to-15-year-old age group. Those age 16 and over are currently eligible for the vaccine in New York and across the country.

"As we have with the authorization of each COVID-19 vaccine and subsequent changes, we will use science and data to determine the safest path forward for New Yorkers, he said.

Based on the timeline for review, Cuomo said full authorization for adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15 could start as early as Thursday in New York.



"The COVID-19 vaccine is our best weapon to defeat the virus, and we're taking all the appropriate precautions to ensure the safety and effectiveness of our vaccine program, he said.

More than 2,200 people between the ages of 12 and 15 enrolled in Pfizer's clinical trial based in the U.S., with half receiving the vaccine and half receiving a placebo. Participants were then followed for safety for at least two months following the second dose.

Those who received the real shot developed a robust immune response and none developed COVID-19, scientists found. Some of the participants reported similar side effects as adults who've been vaccinated, including pain at the injection site, fatigue, headache, chills, muscle pain, fever and joint pain. Some reported no side effects.

Clinical trials are currently underway to determine vaccine efficacy and safety in even younger age groups, and Pfizer has said its vaccine could be available for children as young as 2 by this fall  dependent, of course, on the outcomes of those trials and government recommendations.

Counties prepare

Albany County Executive Dan McCoy praised the FDAs decision to expand eligibility to adolescents as young as 12, and said Tuesday that the county is waiting for a recommendation from the CDC and further guidance from the state before it moves forward with vaccinating that population.

With that being said, I continue to urge those who are currently eligible to roll up their sleeves and get the shot at any of our (clinics) coming up, he said, noting that a female resident in her 50s had been confirmed dead from COVID-19 overnight.

County Health Commissioner Dr. Elizabeth Whalen urged pediatricians and school districts last week to prepare for the expanded authorization to 12- to 15-year-olds, and said pediatricians who are not currently certified to administer vaccine should seek that approval now.

She also said the county was tentatively planning to open its vaccination clinic planned for this Thursday to the younger age group if authorization was granted in time. That clinic is scheduled for 4 to 7 p.m. at the Albany Capital Center at 55 Eagle St.

The county is also offering daily vaccinations at its Department of Health site at 175 Green St. from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and weekly clinics on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Emmanuel Baptist Church, at 275 State St. in Albany, in partnership with CDPHP and Focus Churches of Albany.

Appointments are not required at any of the sites.
TROY  FBI and State Police cyber squads are investigating a malware attack that has paralyzed Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's computers systems since last week.

Since it was detected on Friday, the cyberattack has disrupted nearly all of the world-famous engineering and research schools operations, officials confirmed.

"There was an attack. They took the systems offline. They're slowly going through it," said faculty members who spoke Tuesday about the situation but only with a guarantee of no attribution. "It's day five. We're still offline."

Students, faculty and staff have been scrambling for the last five days to establish alternative lines of communication with RPIs internet, email, instant communications and telephone services disabled. During the tech blackout they've turned to Facebook, Reddit, Slack, Instagram, private emails and personal cellphones.

Richie C. Hunter, vice president, Strategic Communications and External Relations for RPI, said the school temporarily suspended access to the network, as it works with law enforcement and cyber security experts to determine the extent of the trespass.

"Accommodations have been provided to students with online exams impacted by the suspended access to the network. We will provide updates, to the extent we are able, as information becomes available," Hunter said in response to Times Union inquiries.

But faculty, staff and students said they have received no information about exactly what is happening. As of Tuesday afternoon, they said they've only seen the original announcement of the attack and two announcements about final exams and projects being cancelled for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. RPI has advised employees not to log into the system to avoid any infection of non-university computers, university community members said.

Many RPI students have been taking classes online this year during the pandemic. The loss of access to the service made it impossible for students to log on for courses and related work. Those in the dorms have been left without university wifi access and there have been reports of difficulty accessing buildings.

The faculty has been taking steps to ease students' anxieties about completing courses and qualifying to graduate for the May 22 in-person commencement. "(We're) here to make sure our students get the help and information they need," one faculty member said. Another added that RPI's departments and their faculty members have been coordinating efforts to reassure students, are taking special steps to deal with grading and watching out for them.

For years, cyberattacks have caused damage to governments, companies, universities and other organizations. Drivers expected to pay higher fuel prices after an attack last week that shut down oil and gas pipelines running from Texas to New Jersey. The pipelines supply fuel to much of the Eastern Seaboard.

Such attacks are becoming more common and impacting people's daily lives, including some recent incidents in the Capital Region. The city of Albany suffered a ransomware attack that wiped away the police departments digital internal affairs files from 2018, and some of 2017. Last month, the Guilderland School District suffered an attack that forced all high school students to learn remotely.

RPI has been quiet about whether its a ransomware or malware assault thats knocked out its normal day-to-day operations. As the name implies, ransomware attacks usually come with a demand for payment from attackers.

I can confirm our office was contacted by RPI regarding a potential cyberattack, and we are assisting them as necessary. Due to the ongoing nature, I'm not able to provide any additional information, said Sarah Ruane, a spokeswoman for the FBIs Albany office.

Federal and state investigators apparently joined the investigation as it quickly became apparent that it was widespread and significant. The FBI is the lead agency in the investigation with the State Police assisting, said Beau Duffy, a spokesman for the Division of State Police.

Limited access to the Rensselaer network has impacted final exams, research, and other academic activities, RPI said in a statement posted on its homepage at RPI.edu.

RPI has not said how or if the attack may have impacted the $104 million in research contracts carried out by RPI professors and scientists. RPI affiliates have contracts with research offices of the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the Defense Department's research arm. A Defense Department spokesman was not immediately available to contact on the situation Tuesday.

The attack is disrupting faculty members who are applying for federal grants, which are usually done online and have strict application deadlines.

RPI suspended a portion of its COVID-19 testing program Monday during the outage. Routine surveillance testing will resume when the campus network has been restored. No one will be penalized for missing a regular COVID test due to the network outage, the universitys student life office said on Reddit RPI.

COVID-19 testing was held Monday for students with symptoms, who believed they were exposed, and varsity athletes who recently traveled and students who needed to be tested before going home for the summer. RPI held scheduled administration of Pfizer second doses Monday.

The Rensselaer County Health Department has not been contacted by RPI but is prepared to step in to provide assistance, said Richard Crist, the countys director of operations.

The situation developed during RPIs final exam period. Over the weekend, the university canceled final exams and projects due Monday and Tuesday. The school announced Monday night that it had canceled final exams and projects for Wednesday too.
LONDON (AP)  Hopes faded Monday for a young minke whale who became trapped in the River Thames near London, authorities said.

Rescuers trying to recapture the whale said that by 5 p.m. (1600 GMT; 12 p.m. EDT) its condition had deteriorated rapidly and it would soon be stranded by the dropping tide near Teddington in southwest London.

Once the whale is beached a veterinary team will be on stand by to euthanize the animal to end its suffering, the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) said in a statement.

The BDMLR said the injured and drained calf would struggle to swim even if it managed to get back into deeper water.

Crews had already worked for hours before being able to free the whale early Monday from a perilous stranding on a lock near Richmond, a few miles downstream of Teddington.

But as the mammal was being taken for further health checks on an inflatable pontoon, it slipped back into the water.

This animal is very, very lost, Port of London Authority spokesman Martin Garside said. Its like seeing a camel at the North Pole.

Garside said a whale had never been seen this far up the Thames before, 95 miles (150 kilometers) along the river from its mouth, with the sheer distance making the whale's route back to safety extremely difficult.

The whale, which measured about four meters (13 feet) long, was first seen lying on the locks boat rollers Sunday night. Hundreds of people gathered along the banks of the Thames to watch the rescue operation as night fell. The area is known for wide tidal swings that easily reach over 5.5 meters (18 feet) high.

Port staff were joined by firefighters, coast guard members and marine animal rescue divers.

Minke whales, which are more typically found in the northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, can grow to a size of nine meters (30 feet).

Meanwhile, in Spain, a marine wildlife group was working to make sure that a gray whale found near Spains northeastern Mediterranean coast, far from its usual northern Pacific migration routes, doesn't get stranded.

Maritime rescuers, firefighters and other authorities worked with conservationists over the weekend to keep a whale nicknamed Wally from venturing into shallow water and ports near Barcelona.

The maritime group said the whale entered the Mediterranean Sea through the Strait of Gibraltar and has been spotted since March in the vicinity of Morocco, Algeria, Italy and France.

In an aerial video released by the group, the whale could be seen very close to a seawall near one of Barcelonas main beaches.

___

Aritz Parra contributed to this report from Madrid.
TEHRAN, Iran (AP)  Iran opened registration Tuesday for potential candidates in the country's June presidential election, kicking off the race as uncertainty looms over Tehran's tattered nuclear deal with world powers and tensions remain high with the West.

President Hassan Rouhani can not run again due to term limits, yet with the poll just a month away no immediate favorite has emerged among the many rumored candidates. There also appears to be little interest in the vote by a public crushed by sanctions and the coronavirus pandemic.

Nevertheless, many view the country's hard-liners as ascendant  even as the U.S. under President Joe Biden tries to find a way to re-enter the atomic accord.

Whoever wins the June 18 vote will take over from Rouhani, a relative moderate within the Islamic Republic whose two four-year terms began with Iran reaching the nuclear deal. His time in office now draws to a close with the accord unraveled after the U.S. unilaterally withdrew from it under President Donald Trump in 2018.

The collapse of the deal, which saw Iran limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for sanctions relief, has seen Iran abandon those restrictions and enrich uranium to its highest levels ever. Weeks of talks in Vienna on Iran and the U.S. returning to the deal have yet to make major progress, something that grows less likely as Rouhani's time in office runs out.

Within Iran, candidates exist on a political spectrum that broadly includes hard-liners who want to expand Irans nuclear program and confront the world, moderates who hold onto the status quo and reformists who want to change the theocracy from within.

Those calling for radical change find themselves blocked from even running for office by the Guardian Council, a 12-member panel that vets and approves candidates under the watch of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The nuclear deal's collapse has seen hard-liners take control of Iran's parliament. Some have gone as far as to call for a former military officer to take over the country  something that has not happened since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution and the purge of the armed forces that followed.

Already, several possible candidates have emerged from Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard, a paramilitary force with vast economic interests that answers only to Khamenei. They include Mohsen Rezaei, an outspoken former top commander; Hossein Dehghan, an adviser to Khamenei; Rostam Ghasemi, a former oil minister; and Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, the speaker of Irans parliament known for his support of a bloody crackdown on students in 1999.

Dehghan registered his candidacy on Tuesday, saying he had initially supported the nuclear agreement, which was jointly decided on by Iran's ruling system.

But there were, and there still are problems," he said of the deal. If I take the helm, I will strongly continue the negotiations based on (Iranian) national rights and interests.

A young generation of Guard leaders is in the mix as well, led by 53-year-old Saeed Mohammad, who once headed the paramilitary force's Khatam al-Anbiya Construction Headquarters, which is one of Irans biggest business conglomerates.

Later on Tuesday Mohammad supported nuclear talks while appearing in the registration center to file his application .

Definitely we will welcome negotiations and interactions, and will continue down this path," said Mohammad, suggesting the talks accelerate would lead to better ties with world. "Then, the Islamic republic is interested in working with the entire world.

Outside of the Guard, hard-line judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi has had his name mentioned as well. Raisi ran unsuccessfully against Rouhani in 2017 despite winning 15.8 million votes, but the cleric remains popular among many as he's led a publicized anti-corruption push. Former parliament speaker and special China envoy Ali Larijani also has been suggested as a candidate.

Among the reformists, however, a clear candidate has yet to emerge. Some have mentioned Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, though he now finds himself embroiled in a scandal over a leaked recording in which he offered frank criticism of the Guard and the limits of the civilian government's power. Zarif himself has said he doesn't seek the presidency, while at the same time once saying those criticizing him only encouraged him to consider running.

Even before the registration, the process has seen candidates blocked from running. A Guardian Council decision said a candidate needed to be older than 40, effectively barring Telecommunications Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, who has gained a following among young people. Rouhani has urged Iran's Interior Ministry, which runs the elections, to still register younger candidates.

Then there's former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who ignored a warning from Khamenei in 2017 not to run and registered anyway. The Guardian Council ultimately disqualified him.

Questions also remain over voter enthusiasm. Iran's 2020 parliamentary vote saw only a 42.5% turnout, the lowest ever since 1979. Official surveys suggest June's vote may see only a 39% turnout. Iran's 2017 presidential election saw a 73% turnout. Total legitimate voters will be 59.3 million on the day of election in the 84 million populations nation.

The vote comes at a crucial period for Iran. A return to the nuclear deal remains uncertain. Tensions remain high with the West. Also, Khamenei, now 82, grows older, raising the possibility Iran will choose a new supreme leader in the coming years.

Registration ends on Saturday. The Guardian Council will announce a final list of candidates by May 27, and a 20-day campaign season begins the following day. State TV called the election an opportunity for change.

___

Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
ALBANY  Rob Astorino, the former Westchester County executive and 2014 GOP candidate for governor, said Tuesday that he's running in the Republican primary for the 2022 governor's race.

Although there's a long way to the primary  which will take place in June of 2022  Astorino is late at being early.

He had publicly flirted with jumping in the race for weeks, appearing before GOP party leaders last month to discuss his potential candidacy.

He joins U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin of Long Island as a candidate, who jumped into the race early, and Lewis County Sheriff Mike Carpinelli. Several prominent Republicans are still considering runs, including Andrew Giuliani, the son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro, who was defeated by Cuomo in 2018. Many had speculated that U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Schuylerville, was also considering a run for governor, but she has refocused her attention recently on ascending to the number three spot in U.S. House leadership  a vote which could occur as early as Wednesday evening.

Zeldin has raised millions of dollars and gobbled up enough endorsements from Conservative party leaders in the state to earn designation from that party. State GOP Party Chair Nick Langworthy referred to Zeldin as "the front-runner" last month.

Were still in the first inning of the first game of a doubleheader. And theres some in the establishment who dont want anybody to take the field," Astorino said in a Tuesday phone interview with the Times Union. "I love being the underdog, if thats the case, because its more exciting to win that way. But again, we are at the very first step in a long process. The convention, the primary, the election, its not this year, its next year.

Astorino's pitch is that New York is heading in exactly the wrong direction under Cuomo, whom he contends is corrupt, divisive and abusive.

Astorino wants to lower taxes to make New York a more affordable place to live, and to make the state more business-friendly. He said that his experience winning two races as Westchester County executive demonstrate an ability to win in Democratic-leaning areas of the state where Republicans will need to succeed to compete statewide against the Democrats. He also said record as county executive shows his ability to work across the aisle and achieve bipartisan policy wins. He has worked for CNN the last few years, he said, so he has experience communicating with a more left-leaning audience.

If Zeldin wins the primary, Astorino said he will support him, and that he expects that Zeldin would do the same thing. But, Astorino said, he feels his experience as county executive in Westchester sets him up to be more electable in 2022 than Zeldin.

Support for former President Donald J. Trump and his unsupported claims of widespread election fraud in 2020, as well as his actions during the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol have become a dividing line in the Republican party. U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, of Wyoming, was a rising Republican star whose status as House GOP leader is being challenged due to her opposition to Trump. Stefanik  a loyal defender of Trump  is seeking to succeed Cheney in that role.

The extent of support for the former president will be an important issue for New York Republican gubernatorial candidates, who will need to walk a tight line between garnering support from the Republican base without alienating Democratic and independent voters in the state who have deep antipathy toward Trump.

Astorino is a longtime friend of Trump's, who owns property in Westchester County. Astorino said he stays in touch with the former president and with members of his family.

"My style is very different than his, clearly," Astorino said, adding that he supports a majority of Trump's policies. I think most people, even his biggest supporters, wished he wouldnt tweet as much as he did  but Cuomo is the last person who should be screaming about Donald Trump. I mean look in the mirror. I think we can do much better in New York.

Zeldin voted Jan. 6 along with Stefanik to reject electoral college results, a step that Astorino said he would not have taken.

People are going to have to judge whether the Jan. 6 vote that Lee took is right or wrong. I would not have voted that way on that day, but I do think there are issues in the election that are worth examining because there were irregularities. I know that," Astorino said. "Whether or not the election would have been overturned, I dont know that. But obviously I recognize Joe Biden as the president."
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 00:04:05|Editor: huaxia

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Romanian President Klaus Iohannis (L) and his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda review an honor guard during a welcoming ceremony at Cotroceni Presidential Palace in Bucharest, Romania, May 10, 2021. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua)

BUCHAREST, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The presidents of Romania and Poland said here Monday that their countries will work to strengthen security in the Black Sea region and the entire eastern flank of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization).

"Our countries will continue to support the consolidation of NATO's deterrence and defence posture on the Eastern flank, its cohesion, as well as the NATO 2030 process," Romanian President Klaus Iohannis told a joint press conference with his visiting Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda after their official talks.

Strengthening regional cooperation under the Three Seas Initiative is a focus of their talks, with an emphasis on the implementation of strategic regional interconnection projects, he said.

Duda, for his part, expressed hope that bilateral defence cooperation could improve, referring to the modernization of the armed forces of the two countries.

He also stressed the importance of investment in infrastructure, such as the Via Carpathia road project, which will boost national economies and strengthen their securities by making it possible to relocate armed forces not only by air but also by land. The highway project will connect Central and Eastern European nations from north to south.

The Polish president's visit took place amidst the 100th anniversary of the conclusion of a Defensive Alliance Convention between the two countries in 1921.

Later on Monday, Iohannis and Duda will host a virtual summit of the Bucharest Nine (B9) format, an initiative launched by the two presidents, in which all NATO members of the eastern flank participate, including Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia. The first B9 Summit was held in Bucharest in 2015.

U.S. President Joe Biden, along with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, as well as NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will also take part in the B9 Summit via video-link. Enditem
ALBANY  As a child growing up in Brooklyns Marcy Projects in the 1950s, Yusuf Burgess would slip away to Prospect Park, where he would collect tadpoles.

He hid his love of nature as a child because it was "unmanly.

Now seven decades later, a new trail winding through a slice of urban wilderness in Albany bears the name of the late environmental activist and youth mentor whose slogan was no children left inside.

He had a passion, said his son, Yusuf Burgess, Jr., and he just followed his passion.

State and local officials gathered at Tivoli Lake Preserve in the city's West Hill neighborhood on Tuesday to dedicate a new trail named after Burgess, who dedicated his life to opening up the natural world to youngsters, primarily those in underserved urban neighborhoods.

Burgess, who was known as "Brother Yusuf," advocated for outdoor programming for years, ferrying kids to the Catskills and the Adirondacks through his work with his Youth Ed-Venture and Nature Network and later, the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

His whole technique was to take a group of kids into nature  its like gambling, his son said.

Two might love it out of 100.

But thats OK. And then you take those two kids and nurture that embryonic interest, hopefully finessing it into a lifelong love.

Brother Yusuf died unexpectedly in 2014 at the age of 64.

"Great men aren't born," said Burgess, Jr. "They become great."

Damel Burgess recalled his grandfathers lessons and reminders that the world was increasingly embracing more sustainable policies, including clean energy and wind power, advancements the state is now firmly embracing.

He was definitely ahead of his time, Damel said.

Harun Russell, another of Brother Yusuf's five sons, said the trips to the Adirondacks had a therapeutic effect on kids once they returned to Albany.

The children were calmer, more focused. They would help old ladies across the street and open doors for them.

Its a beautiful thing, Russell said of the new Brother Yusuf Burgess Trail, a 1-mile path curling through the city-owned preserve, which encompasses wetlands, the preserves namesake lake and other forms of wildlife  including sheep tasked with gnawing away the invasive species that once consumed the site.

Beginning at the corner of Livingston Avenue and Judson Street, the trail winds downhill deep into the preserve, the site of heavy investments and renewal over the decades.

The effort, part of broader investments to rejuvenate one of the largest urban preserves in the state behind Central Park and the city's own Normanskill Farm, was made possible through a $1.5 million grant from the DEC and extensive community outreach.

Now officials hope neighborhood residents will carry on Brother Yusufs legacy and become stewards of the 80-acre landscape, continuing the work he left unfinished.

He was a true advocate for youth and the importance of bringing people outdoors, said Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan. It transformed how he saw himself.

Officials see the trail as the beginning of a crystallization of a broader trail system, linking to secondary trails at the site. Previous restoration work sought to push back invasive species that gobbled up 50 percent of the parks capacity and clean up the formerly polluted Patroon Creek.

City Councilman Jahmel Robinson grew up across the street and recalled gazing into the natural landscape.

The Tivoli Preserve has always been a place of mystery and observation, Robinson said.

Burgess helped to unlock that for him.

DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos called Brother Yusuf a trailblazer and said his influence stretched far beyond simply kindling an appreciation of nature in youth.

His mission was to expose people to nature, help them to become bigger stewards and to find that solace in nature that we all need in our daily lives, and help us bring that into a new way of living, Seggos said.

Burgess, a Vietnam vet, served as coordinator of the DEC's Capital District Campership Diversity Program at the time of his death and previously worked at Green Tech High Charter School and the Albany Boys and Girls Club. He also founded a nonprofit group that helped former prison inmates re-enter society.

Dignitaries delivered comments as the first dandelions began to push their way through the rolling landscape.

Before the delegation trundled into the woods to plant a tree in Brother Yusufs memory, Kim Tateo, executive director and farm manager of Friends of Tivoli Lake Preserve and Farm, asked the group to close their eyes, take a breath and try to focus on a specific bird out of the medley of birdsong.

The world, she said, can be a maddening place sometimes.

Id like to believe his spirit is still with us.
In the five months since allegations of sexual harassment surfaced against him, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has undergone a transformation. The makeover isnt pretty.

The governor has gone from acknowledging his accusers pain and urging people to let the investigatory process play out  while professing his innocence  to attacking Attorney General Letitia James.

Its the kind of strategy, calculated to cast doubt on the integrity of the attorney general and her office, that wed expect more from Donald Trump than Andrew Cuomo. And the longer this drags on, the more the publics faith in state government is endangered.

Seeking to foster an investigation above reproach, Ms. James hired outside attorneys to look into the allegations of sexual harassment from what is now nearly a dozen women. The accusations range from inappropriate flirting to unwelcome touching and kissing to, by one womans account, groping.

Mr. Cuomo started out soberly enough, saying that his interactions may have been insensitive or too personal and that some of my comments, given my position, made others feel in ways I never intended. He called Ms. James very competent, urged the public to be patient, and predicted he would be vindicated.

Thats all changed as the accusations have accumulated. Between Ms. James office, the Assembly Judiciary Committee and the Senate Committee on Investigations and Government Operations, there are open investigations of the alleged harassment; a cover-up of data on COVID-19 deaths among nursing home residents; reports of faulty bolts on the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge; revelations that members of Mr. Cuomos family were given preferential treatment for COVID-19 tests; and claims the governor violated ethics rules and laws by having staffers help with his multi-million memoir deal last year.

Now we hear Mr. Cuomo saying recently, Im not telling anyone to have faith in anything when it comes to Ms. James investigation. And theres a senior adviser, Rich Azzopardi, sneering at credible ethical questions as jumping the shark and saying Ms. James is out to further political self-interest.

If Mr. Cuomo needs a reminder of the perils of this political scorched-earth tactic, he need only look at the turmoil in national politics that Mr. Trump stoked and thrived on before, during and after his presidency, from casting doubt on the Russia probe to attacking whistleblowers in the Ukraine scandal to lately conjuring conspiracy theories to explain away his resounding defeat to President Joe Biden. The Pew Research Center finds Americans more likely these days to say most politicians are corrupt and that their political system needs a major overhaul.

Those investigating Mr. Cuomo need to be mindful of the political realities Mr. Cuomo understands all too well  its far easier for the public to digest a quick, cynical sound bite about political agendas than to sort through a deluge of evidence and findings. Ms. James and the Legislature should consider releasing conclusions on discrete aspects of their investigations as they come.

As for Mr. Cuomo, surely a suspicious, disillusioned populace isnt the legacy hed like to be remembered for. If he wont resign, as we and so many others have urged, the least he could do is not take New Yorkers faith in government down with him.
The following editorial appeared in the New York Daily News:

A supermajority of the New York state Senates 63 members rarely agree on anything, but there are 44 senators (and growing) who are sponsoring a necessary bill to exempt jobless folks from having to pay income tax on the unemployment benefits they collected when COVID threw millions out of work last year.

Four million New Yorkers received unemployment compensation during 2020. Congress and President Joe Biden correctly exempted $10,200 of those funds from taxation, and normally the New York tax law would have automatically changed to match the federal rule. But COVID times arent normal, so it fell to Albany to act.

That Albany didnt act in passing the state budget was partly due to uncertainty at the time if states accepting the $350 billion in federal COVID relief could cut taxes, but the Treasury Department has since said it is fine.

Which is why a majority of the state Senates ruling Democrats, along with just about every Republican, have now signed on the bill authored by Sen. Simcha Felder. Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins should heed the wishes of her conference and put the measure on the floor. We bet it would get 63 votes.

The estimated $1.4 billion cost isnt nothing, but tax revenues are coming in much higher than projected, and finding a way to make this work is why these people are in the Senate. Or would these elected politicians prefer to send a tax invoice for hundreds of bucks each to 4 million jobless New Yorkers, many of whom are also voters?

The COVID-delayed Tax Day is Monday, May 17. Meanwhile, the number of senators sponsoring the bill is climbing and climbing. Stewart-Cousins and her colleagues must lead by bringing along Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Gov. Andrew Cuomo to get this done.

No senator lost a paycheck during COVID, but plenty of their constituents sure did. Failure to follow Congress and exempting the benefits means people are going to have to pay. And they should blame the Legislature.
Masu welcomed the visitors and gave an overview of the Institute. In the context of the Tokyo Tech response to COVID-19, Takada introduced online and hybrid exchange programs developed for Tokyo Tech students and their counterparts abroad.

Speaking Japanese, Ambassador Alfaheem thanked Masu for hosting the visit. The ambassador then switched to English and spoke of the relationship between UAE and Japan. Mentioning that 2022 marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, Ambassador Alfaheem expressed interest in various forms of cooperation going forward.

Following the meeting, the ambassador and his colleague became the first international visitors to tour Hisao & Hiroko Taki Plaza, the Institute's new hub for international exchange.
Jesse and Willow Andrusky eat dandelions in Oil Creek State Park. The two took part in Thursdays Spring Wild Edibles and Medicines Program, learning how to safely and legally forage for food.
The remains of two Indiana brothers who were killed in the 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor have been identified by U.S. military scientists
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 00:29:53|Editor: huaxia

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DOHA, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The Qatari Health Ministry on Monday announced 397 new COVID-19 infections, raising the total number of confirmed cases in the Gulf state to 211,389, the official Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported.

Meanwhile, 1,022 more recovered from the virus, bringing the overall recoveries to 202,552, while the fatalities increased by four to 512, according to a ministry statement quoted by QNA.

A total of 1,949,350 persons in Qatar have taken lab tests for COVID-19 so far, while the total number of vaccine doses administered is 1,844,658. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] 85% of UK Consumers Would Boycott Favourite Brands if Ads Appeared Near COVID-19 Conspiracies

LONDON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 85% of UK consumers would reduce or stop purchasing products they buy on-the-regular if they discovered an ad for that product had run next to COVID-19 conspiracy theories or misinformation, according to the 2021 TAG/BSI UK Brand Safety Survey, conducted by the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) and Brand Safety Institute (BSI). In addition, most consumers said they would curtail purchases from a favourite brand that advertised near hate speech (89%), malware (92%), illegal content (89%), or terrorist recruiting materials (93%). A significant majority of respondents (89%) said that hate speech had increased online over the last year. Highlighting the brand safety risk of such content, 72% of respondents felt hate speech should be blocked by advertisers, one of the two highest responses for blocked categories. The majority of respondents also said advertisers should block pornographic content (73%), violent content (68%), illegal drug-related content (66%), and unsafe or hacked websites (59%). "The past year has brought forth the four horsemen of toxic content into the advertising ecosystem: death, lies, political poison, and hate speech," said Mike Zaneis, CEO of TAG. "As brand safety threats quickly evolve, UK consumers are looking to advertising industry leaders to identify and address those types of unsafe and inappropriate content in real time. TAG's Brand Safety Certification sets a rigorous global standard for brand safety across all supply chain participants, while providing the flexibility to adapt to new and emerging challenges." In the survey, four in five consumers said they were more aware of brand safety issues than 12 months ago. An overwhelming majority of respondents (91%) said that it was important for advertisers to make sure their ads are not placed near dangerous, offensive, or inappropriate content. Despite broad concerns over unsafe content, many UK consumers felt that news was generally safe for ads, with 36% saying they felt it was appropriate to advertise with any news content, and less than half of respondents opposed to specific news topics such as drug abuse and overdose (42%), violent protests and riots (37%), and COVID-19 deaths and tragedies (33%). "The tragic and momentous events of the last year have elevated not only the importance of high brand safety standards, but the need to focus on consumer expectations, not conventional wisdom," said Jules Kendrick, TAG MD of UK and Europe. "This research shows that consumers believe that brand safety should be a top-tier priority and a shared responsibility across the industry, which is why TAG has built a global cross-industry certification program to support those efforts." From a responsibility perspective, UK consumers believe that the industry as a whole should be working together to improve brand safety. Respondents to the survey said that brand safety responsibility lies roughly equally across all of the major players in the industry, including advertisers (52%), agencies (56%), technology providers (47%), and publihers (54%).



"The results of this survey underscore how transformative the last year plus have been in digital advertising," said Neal Thurman, Co-founder of the Brand Safety Institute and Director of the Coalition for Better Ads. "The issues that marketers face in brand safety have gone from beingly largely a business-to-business concern among members of the digital advertising supply chain to entering the consumer consciousness. High profile issues like COVID misinformation, treatment of Black Lives Matter and the George Floyd killing, and the series of events surrounding the US election in November have put marketers and the impact and perception of their digital spending front and center with consumers." In September, TAG launched the industry's first global brand safety certification programme, TAG Brand Safety Certified, with more than 110 major companies participating at launch, including Amazon, Conde Nast, Facebook, Google, GroupM, Havas, OpenX, Samsung, Sky, The Trade Desk, Twitter and Xandr. The programme is designed to significantly reduce the risk of the misplacement of advertising on digital media of all types. Working in collaboration with trade bodies, industry initiatives and leaders, the global guidelines have been developed to help parties within the supply chain address and prevent potential brand safety issues.

The results of this year's survey are consistent with findings from a similar survey conducted among US consumers on similar topics by TAG and BSI late last year. The full results of the 2021 TAG/BSI UK Brand Safety Survey can be found here. Industry Reaction Phil Smith, Director General, ISBA: "Addressing misinformation and disinformation around Covid-19 and the impact it could have on brands and their customers was one of the first issues ISBA addressed at the beginning of the pandemic. Through working with TAG and other stakeholders we have been able to give our members much needed guidance to ensure their brands are not inadvertently validating or supporting this type of harmful content."

Richard Reeves, Managing Director, Association of Online Publishers: "When it comes to tackling industry challenges, collaborative action is often the most powerful. As an industry we need to stand together to recognise and address issues around brand safety, while understanding the complex nuances that exist in a shared ecosystem. There needs to be less finger pointing and more collective responsibility to ensure regulations and standards are relevant, transparent and applicable across every aspect of the supply chain." Tina Lakhani, Head of Ad Tech, IAB UK: "Improving brand safety within the digital advertising ecosystem is a key priority for us at IAB UK and this survey underlines the importance of this issue for consumers. As the results indicate, people see brand safety as the responsibility of the whole industry and a collaborative approach is essential to ensure that brands have the tools and the techniques they need to not only execute a successful brand safe and brand suitable strategy, but to also proactively support the quality news content that is so essential to our society. We are committed to continue working with TAG and the wider industry to achieve that." Nigel Gwilliam, Director of Media Affairs, IPA: "As our media consumption diversifies and news headlines become even more unpredictable, we need to ensure that our brand safety and security protocols are robust enough to withstand the heat." Methodology The survey of 802 adults in the United Kingdom was conducted via SurveyMonkey from April 4-6, 2021. The survey had a margin of error of +/-3 percent at a 95 percent confidence interval. About the Trustworthy Accountability Group The Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) is the leading global certification program fighting criminal activity and increasing trust in the digital advertising industry. TAG advances its mission of eliminating fraudulent traffic, facilitating the sharing of threat intelligence, and promoting brand safety by connecting industry leaders, analyzing threats, and sharing best practices worldwide. The 600+ member TAG community include the world's largest and most influential brands, agencies, publishers, and ad tech providers. TAG is the first and only Information Sharing and Analysis Organization (ISAO) for the digital advertising industry. This U.S. Department of Homeland Security designation means TAG is the primary forum for sharing threat intelligence in our industry. For more information on TAG, please visit tagtoday.net .

About the Brand Safety Institute The Brand Safety Institute is a digital advertising industry initiative to professionalize the work of brand protection. Through its research, education, and certification programs, the Brand Safety Institute gives ad industry executives the expertise and skills they need to minimize brand risks and capitalize on brand opportunities in the digital advertising supply chain. Through its Brand Safety Officer certification program, the Brand Safety Institute helps leaders set the highest standards for brand protection, learn new and emerging best practices, and build an industry-wide community of brand safety peers. More information about the Brand Safety Institute can be found at brandsafetyinstitute.com . Contact:

Andrew Weinstein

202-667-4967

309703@email4pr.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/85-of-uk-consumers-would-boycott-favourite-brands-if-ads-appeared-near-covid-19-conspiracies-301288830.html SOURCE Trustworthy Accountability Group; Brand Safety Institute

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[May 11, 2021] ABN AMRO Private Banking Selects TransPerfect to Facilitate Launch of Three Localized Websites

NEW YORK and AMSTERDAM, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- TransPerfect, the world's largest provider of language and technology solutions for global business, today announced the launch of three websites with an aligned content approach for ABN AMRO Private Banking. Based in the Netherlands, ABN AMRO Private Banking serves clients both domestically and in Northwest Europe with a full range of products and financial services for private banking customers. In an effort to streamline brand continuity across regions, they undertook a full web refresh and centralized content publishing with the goal of being able to deploy and update relevant financial content to Dutch, English, French, and German. Brand guidelines specific to each market that detail corporate requirements for tone and terminology were developed using TransPerfect's global networks of copywriters and native-speaking linguists. TransPerfect collaborated closely with both ABN AMRO Private Banking's central content team and local language reviewers to provide localized website content with brand voice continuity. Linde van Loenen, Digital Marketing Strategist from ABN AMRO Private Banking, commented, "The assignment was a eal challenge with a big deadline. We needed a lot of new content for different countries, provided by local experts with their own style and vision. Every piece of content was related to our complex financial services, in a high demanding niche market. TransPerfect did a great job and delivered everything on time, with high qualitya powerful start for a new long-term partnership."



TransPerfect President and CEO Phil Shawe stated, "As ABN AMRO Private Banking continues to operate in various markets across Europe, we are proud to stand alongside them and help create meaningful customer interactions through localized websites." About ABN AMRO Private Banking

Today's ABN AMRO Private Banking offers a full range of products and services to retail, private, commercial, and merchant banking clients. ABN AMRO Private Banking is one of the leading banks in the Netherlands. With a main focus on Northwest Europe, they provide loans, mortgages, and other banking services and solutions to companies and individuals.

About TransPerfect

TransPerfect is the world's largest provider of language and technology solutions for global business. From offices in over 100 cities on six continents, TransPerfect offers a full range of services in 170+ languages to clients worldwide. More than 5,000 global organizations employ TransPerfect's GlobalLink technology to simplify management of multilingual content. With an unparalleled commitment to quality and client service, TransPerfect is fully ISO 9001 and ISO 17100 certified. TransPerfect has global headquarters in New York, with regional headquarters in London and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit our website at www.transperfect.com. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/abn-amro-private-banking-selects-transperfect-to-facilitate-launch-of-three-localized-websites-301288080.html SOURCE TransPerfect

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[May 11, 2021] Accenture Announces Intent to Acquire Linkbynet, A Leading French Cloud Services Provider

Accenture (News - Alert) (NYSE: ACN) has announced its intent to acquire Linkbynet, a leading French cloud services provider specializing in cloud optimization and managed services, cloud transformation and cloud security. Financial terms of the transaction are not being disclosed. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005353/en/ Accenture to acquire Linkbynet (Graphic: Business Wire) Founded in 2000, Linkbynet is a cloud-native solutions provider based in Saint-Denis, France, with additional offices in Belgium, Canada, China, France, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Singapore and Vietnam. The addition of the company's team of more than 900 highly skilled professionals, who hold 400 certifications from major cloud providers such as Alibaba, Amazon, Google and Microsoft (News - Alert) , would further enhance the global capabilities of Accenture Cloud First. "Acquiring Linkbynet would be another strategic step in strengthening our Accenture Cloud First capabilities," said Karthik Narain, global lead, Accenture Cloud First. "Linkbynet's talented team would bring deep cloud and engineering specialization, managed services, sophisticated technology tools and cybersecurity intelligence." Backed by a $3 billion investment over three years, Accenture Cloud First is a multi-service group of 70,000 cloud professionals offering an unmatched depth and breadth of cloud expertise, industry cloud solutions, ecosystem partner capabilities and assets to help clients realize greater value from cloud at speed and scale. Olivier Girard, market unit lead for Accenture France & Benelux, said, "Entire industries have been challenged to not only reinvent their customer experience, but also their core offerings, while imagining new business models for the future. With advisory and digital transformation experience across cloud implementation, security, management and optimization, the Linkbynet team brings critical skills that would help Accenture clients adopt emerging technologies and scale them across their enterprise for strategic agility in a challenging business environment." Patrick and Stephane Aisenberg, co-founders of Linkbynet said, "We are proud to be one of the first French cloud-native players and a pioneer in the synergistic models between technological transformation (cloud adoption), security and cloud managed services. The combination of Accenture's and Linkbynet's unique working culture, values, and technical expertise would enable us to better support our customers' digital projects across multiple sectors while providing their organizations with the same exceptional levels of service and resilience they've come to expect. We are excited about the opportunity to join Accenture in helping companies reimagine their business and rebuild differently for the benefit of all - fom their customers and people to society at large."



Over the past 24 months, Accenture has made a number of strategic investments to expand and enhance its cloud services capabilities. These include in France the acquisition of Gekko in June 2020 and Cirruseo in June 2019 and more recently in Europe the acquisition of Edenhouse (UK), Infinity (UK) and Cygni (Sweden). Accenture invested nearly $1.5 billion globally on 34 acquisitions in its 2020 fiscal year to acquire critical skills and capabilities in strategic, high-growth areas of the market.

The acquisition requires prior consultation with the relevant works councils and approvals from the relevant authorities and would be subject to customary closing conditions. About Accenture Accenture is a global professional services company with leading capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries, we offer Strategy and Consulting, Interactive, Technology and Operations services - all powered by the world's largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. Our 537,000 people deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity every day, serving clients in more than 120 countries. We embrace the power of change to create value and shared success for our clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at www.accenture.com Forward-Looking Statements Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "may," "will," "should," "likely," "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "projects," "believes," "estimates," "positioned," "outlook" and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. Many of the following risks, uncertainties and other factors identified below are, and will be, amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. These risks include, without limitation, risks that: Accenture and Linkbynet will not be able to close the transaction in the time period anticipated, or at all, which is dependent on the parties' ability to satisfy certain closing conditions; the transaction might not achieve the anticipated benefits for Accenture; Accenture's results of operations have been significantly adversely affected and could in the future be materially adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; Accenture's results of operations have been, and may in the future be, adversely affected by volatile, negative or uncertain economic and political conditions and the effects of these conditions on the company's clients' businesses and levels of business activity; Accenture's business depends on generating and maintaining ongoing, profitable client demand for the company's services and solutions including through the adaptation and expansion of its services and solutions in response to ongoing changes in technology and offerings, and a significant reduction in such demand or an inability to respond to the evolving technological environment could materially affect the company's results of operations; if Accenture is unable to keep its supply of skills and resources in balance with client demand around the world and attract and retain professionals with strong leadership skills, the company's business, the utilization rate of the company's professionals and the company's results of operations may be materially adversely affected; Accenture could face legal, reputational and financial risks if the company fails to protect client and/or company data from security incidents or cyberattacks; the markets in which Accenture operates are highly competitive, and Accenture might not be able to compete effectively; Accenture's profitability could materially suffer if the company is unable to obtain favorable pricing for its services and solutions, if the company is unable to remain competitive, if its cost-management strategies are unsuccessful or if it experiences delivery inefficiencies or fail to satisfy certain agreed-upon targets or specific service levels; changes in Accenture's level of taxes, as well as audits, investigations and tax proceedings, or changes in tax laws or in their interpretation or enforcement, could have a material adverse effect on the company's effective tax rate, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition; Accenture's ability to attract and retain business and employees may depend on its reputation in the marketplace; as a result of Accenture's geographically diverse operations and its growth strategy to continue to expand in its key markets around the world, the company is more susceptible to certain risks; Accenture's business could be materially adversely affected if the company incurs legal liability; Accenture's work with government clients exposes the company to additional risks inherent in the government contracting environment; Accenture's results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; if Accenture is unable to manage the organizational challenges associated with its size, the company might be unable to achieve its business objectives; if Accenture does not successfully manage and develop its relationships with key alliance partners or fails to anticipate and establish new alliances in new technologies, the company's results of operations could be adversely affected; Accenture might not be successful at acquiring, investing in or integrating businesses, entering into joint ventures or divesting businesses; if Accenture is unable to protect or enforce its intellectual property rights or if Accenture's services or solutions infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others or the company loses its ability to utilize the intellectual property of others, its business could be adversely affected; Accenture's results of operations and share price could be adversely affected if it is unable to maintain effective internal controls; changes to accounting standards or in the estimates and assumptions Accenture makes in connection with the preparation of its consolidated financial statements could adversely affect its financial results; Accenture might be unable to access additional capital on favorable terms or at all and if the company raises equity capital, it may dilute its shareholders' ownership interest in the company; Accenture may be subject to criticism and negative publicity related to its incorporation in Ireland; as well as the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed under the "Risk Factors" heading in Accenture plc's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and other documents filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this news release speak only as of the date they were made, and Accenture undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made in this news release or to conform such statements to actual results or changes in Accenture's expectations. Copyright 2021 Accenture. All rights reserved. Accenture and its logo are registered trademarks of Accenture. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005353/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Accordion Announces Strategic Acquisition of Turnaround and Restructuring Firm, Mackinac Partners

Accordion, a private equity-focused financial consulting and technology firm, today announced that it has acquired Mackinac Partners, a leading financial advisory, restructuring, and operational turnaround firm. Accordion has experienced tremendous organic growth, underscored by private equity's focus on the role of value creation in a successful investment strategy, and accelerated by the firm's 2018 investment from FFL Partners. As part of its ambitions to further scale and expand its scope of offerings, the Mackinac acquisition will enable Accordion to more meaningfully provide current and potential clients the kind of value stabilization and turnaround services that are critical to navigating economic uncertainty and industry disruption. It also expands Accordion's reach beyond its current portfolio of over 200 fund sponsors and their portfolio companies, into the broader private capital marketplace. "We believe the need for experienced turnaround, restructuring, and interim management expertise is no longer as cyclical as it's been in the past," said Nick Leopard, Founder and CEO of Accordion. "Value creation and value stabilization now go hand-in-hand during economic curves of every size and shape, and companies need to be well-positioned to respond to industry disruption and transformation. Our acquisition of Mackinac not only fortifies our business through volatile economic cycles, but it's also inherently customer-centric at its core. The ability to provide unparalleled turnaround and restructuring services will mean support for clients through all phases - the highs and the lows - of their commercial lifecycle." Continued Leopard: "Equally important to what we provide, is how we provide it. More than a merger of complementary services, this acquisition represents the marriage of shared perspective. This deal combines two 'non-consulting' firms - organizations who put as much emphasis on hands-on, results-oriented execution, as we do unrivaled expertise. The acquisition of Mackinac not only makes Accordion bigger, but better - the better go-to-partner for the private capital community." Mackinac's expertise in managing complex financial restructurings, business turnarounds, and providing interim mnagement services will enhance Accordion's existing Performance Improvement practice and its additional service areas: operational and technical accounting, strategic financial planning and analysis, transaction execution, and public company readiness, all of which are rooted in Accordion's legacy expertise within the office of the CFO, and supported by a team of practitioners well-versed in CFO-specific technology and finance transformation.



Jim Weissenborn, Mackinac's Founder, will remain its Managing Partner and serve as President of Accordion's Turnaround and Restructuring practice. He said of the acquisition: "They say deals where everyone wins are a rare breed - this one seems the rarest. It's a win for our clients and their management teams who now have expertise at their disposal beyond the red turnaround phase into the yellow and green of value creation and growth acceleration. It's a win for Accordion's clients who are experiencing a period of disruption in their growth trajectory. It's a win for our team who is joining a company with a unique culture, focused on a better way to work in finance. And, it's a win for me personally, to work alongside a team that shares a passion for driving lasting change across the private capital industry." The acquisition will add 40 professionals to Accordion's growing team of experts in finance, operations, and technology. Headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, Mackinac brings Accordion's total number of offices to nine, including: Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and South Florida.

About Accordion Accordion is a private equity-focused financial consulting and technology firm that provides operational prowess and an execution-oriented approach to maximize value. Rooted in a heritage of serving the office of the CFO, Accordion works at the intersection of sponsors and management teams within the private capital market. The firm's core services include: operational and technical accounting, strategic financial planning and analysis, transaction execution, public company readiness, performance improvement, and, following its 2021 acquisition of Mackinac Partners, now also include CRO and restructuring advisory, and turnaround and interim management. Across all of Accordion's services, clients are supported by deep expertise in CFO-specific technology and finance-led transformations. Accordion is headquartered in New York and has nine offices including those located in Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and South Florida. www.accordion.com About Mackinac, An Accordion Company Founded in 1999, Mackinac Partners is a nationally recognized turnaround and restructuring firm. With specialties in CRO, restructuring and M&A advisory, and turnaround and interim management, Mackinac's team of seasoned professionals have deep expertise working collaboratively with management and capital providers to overcome liquidity and operational challenges, maximize value, improve company performance, drive growth, and reduce risk. In 2021, Mackinac Partners was acquired by Accordion, the private equity-focused financial consulting and technology firm, expanding its combined geographic footprint to nine offices including Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and South Florida. www.mackinacpartners.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005117/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Acepodia Appoints Thorsten Graef, M.D., Ph.D., as Chief Medical Officer and Michael Brock as Chief Strategy Officer

SAN MATEO, Calif., May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Acepodia , a biotechnology company developing next generation solid tumor and hematologic cancer cell therapies, today announced the appointments of Thorsten Graef, M.D., Ph.D., as chief medical officer and Michael Brock as chief strategy officer. These key executive hires add to Acepodias growing management team, which comprises a deep bench of leading industry experts. Both Dr. Graef and Mr. Brock will be based at the companys headquarters in San Mateo, California.

These experienced and accomplished industry executives add to the strategic expansion of our world class leadership team and will play pivotal roles in the companys development as we continue to pioneer next generation natural killer cell therapies, said Sonny Hsiao, Ph.D., co-founder and chief executive officer of Acepodia. Dr. Graefs strong expertise in clinical drug development and knowledge of global regulatory environments will be invaluable as we advance our pipeline of novel antibody cell conjugation investigational therapies, and Mr. Brocks decades of experience guiding public and private biopharmaceutical companies, financially and operationally, will be an asset to the company as we develop, focus, and execute on overall strategy. As Acepodia progresses toward corporate and clinical development milestones this year, we are committed to building a strong infrastructure of top people and key capabilities on which we will continue to grow the business, said Patrick Yang, Ph.D., co-founder and executive chairman of Acepodia. Thorsten Graef, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Graef brings to Acepodia more than a decade of experience as a global drug development leader across top-tier public life sciences companies building and overseeing broad clinical development organizations, global multidisciplinary groups and cross-functional teams. Most recently, Dr. Graef served as vice president of Oncology Early Development at AbbVie, Inc., overseeing clinical activities, including the development and regulatory preparations of 20+ clinical assets. In addition, he held a series of senior leadership roles at Pharmacyclics LLC prior to AbbVie, Inc.s acquisition of the company in May of 2015, and also served as medical director of Merck Research Lab, Oncology at Merck & Co., Inc. Prior to his time i the life sciences industry, Dr. Graef was an attending physician in the hematology, oncology and immunology department at the University Hospital of Dusseldorf in Germany. He received his M.D. in internal medicine and his Ph.D. in molecular medicines from Heinrich-Heine University Medical School in Dusseldorf and completed his postdoctoral research fellowship at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Graef has published more than 50 original peer-reviewed publications, including in top journals such as NEJM, Lancet, Blood, PNAS and Journal of Experimental Medicine.



Michael Brock, Chief Strategy Officer Mr. Brock brings to Acepodia more than 20 years of strategic healthcare investment banking experience and leadership, including expertise in industry capital raising, M&A, business development, and strategic analysis. For the past decade, Mr. Brock was a managing director in Wells Fargo Securities Healthcare Investment Banking group, where he was responsible for the coverage of public and private biopharmaceutical companies. Prior to that, he was a director in Bank of America Merrill Lynchs Healthcare Investment Banking group, and he held a series of roles of increasing responsibility and leadership within the department, which followed his time as an associate in Healthcare Investment Banking at SG Cowen Securities Corporation. Mr. Brock received his Bachelors of Science degree from Clemson University and his Masters of Business Administration degree from the Mason School of Business at the College of William & Mary.

Acepodia previously announced the appointment of Jimmy Lai as chief financial officer. Anita Kawatra recently joined the company as an advisor on corporate affairs. These four individuals join the companys strong and experienced management team , including Mark Gilbert, M.D., executive vice president of Research & Development, Joe McCracken, D.V.M., senior vice president of Business Development, Bill Mackin, Ph.D., vice president of Regulatory Affairs and Michael Kurman, M.D., vice president of Clinical Operations. About Acepodia Acepodia is a privately held biotechnology company focused on eradicating cancers with potent and targeted first-in-class cell therapies. The companys next generation allogeneic, off-the-shelf natural killer (NK) cell therapies are based on a proprietary NK cell line (oNK) and NK-like gamma delta T cells that have been selected for their potent anti-tumor activity. Acepodias flexible drug development platform is designed to supercharge immune effector cells tumor affinity through its unique Antibody-Cell Conjugation (ACC) technology that links tumor-targeting antibodies to the surface proteins of immune effector cells. Its lead product candidate, ACE1702, is the first antibody-conjugated NK cell therapy in clinical development for the treatment of HER2-expressing solid tumors. For more information, visit https://www.acepodia.com. Acepodia Contact

Spike Lo

Acepodia

(415) 366-7822

spike@acepodiabio.com Media Contact

Cammy Duong

Westwicke, an ICR company

(203) 682-8380

Cammy.Duong@westwicke.com Investor Contact

Peter Vozzo

Westwicke, an ICR company

(443) 377-4767

Peter.Vozzo@westwicke.com



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[May 11, 2021] Aetion Closes $110M Series C Funding Round Led by Warburg Pincus

BOSTON and NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Health care technology company Aetion announced today a $110 million Series C fundraise, led by Warburg Pincus, a leading global growth equity firm, with additional investments from B Capital and Foresite Capital. Aetion's existing backers New Enterprise Associates (NEA) and Flare Capital Partners also joined the round. Aetion has raised a total of $212 million to date. The capital infusion supports Aetion's continued growth and industry leadership in the real-world evidence (RWE) space. In the last year alone, Aetion nearly doubled revenue and secured 100 percent of customer renewals while establishing valuable industry collaborations. Aetion became the first RWE company to establish an FDA COVID-19 research collaboration agreement and was selected by ICER as its preferred RWE partner and platform. "In a post-COVID era, we have an imperative to use rapid, rigorous evidence to inform health care decisions," said Aetion CEO, Carolyn Magill. "This investment reinforces Aetion's position as an RWE leader and our potential for future growth as we enable our customers to generate regulatory-grade evidence at scale." The company will use the new funds to extend the capabilities of its Aetion Evidence Platform, expand its European and Asian-Pacific footprint, and grow its commercial team in order to serve the growing demand from biopharma, payer, and medical device / diagnostics customers. Just a few years after its launch, the Aetion Evidence Platform is used by the majority of the top global biopharma firms, leading payers, and regulatory and HTA agencies to inform decisions on the safety, effectiveness, and value of medical products. Warburg Pincus is a leading investor in health care and technology, with significant expertise in venture capital and growth investing. Since its inception, the firm has invested in excess of $12 billion and $22 billion into health care and technology companies, respectively. Current health care and health care IT investments include, Alignment Healthcare, Experity, Intelligent Medical Objects, Modernizing Medicine, Outset Medical, Qualifacts, Quantum Health, SOCTelemed, Summit Health, and WebPT.



"Aetion has shown incredible growth over the last year, scaling its platform and forming industry-leading partnerships. As the use of real-world evidence expands globally, we believe our investment will help advance Aetion's technology and further inflect its growth," said T.J. Carella, Managing Director and Head of Healthcare at Warburg Pincus. "We are excited to back this excellent management team and platform to further accelerate the use of data in healthcare," added Amr Kronfol, Managing Director at Warburg Pincus. Aetion's growth has been accompanied by recognition of its status as a premier talent destination. Last year, the company was named to Fast Company's top 10 Best Workplaces for Innovators and BuiltIn's Best Places to Work in New York City and Boston; Aetion CEO Carolyn Magill was named to Rock Health 's 2021 Top 50 in Digital Health ; and Co-Founder, President, and Chief Science Officer, Jeremy Rassen, was cited among FiercePharma's Most Influential People in the Fight Against COVID-19 . Also in 2020, Cathy Polinsky, technology leader at Shopify and former StichFix CTO, joined Aetion's board of directors.

About Aetion

Aetion delivers real-world evidence for the manufacturers, purchasers, and regulators of medical treatments and technologies. The Aetion Evidence Platform analyzes data from the real world to produce transparent, rapid, and scientifically validated answers on safety, effectiveness, and value. Founded by Harvard Medical School faculty members with decades of experience in epidemiology and health outcomes research, Aetion informs health care's most critical decisionswhat works best, for whom, and whento guide product development, commercialization, and payment innovation. Aetion is based in New York City and backed by investors including New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Warburg Pincus, Flare Capital Partners, Greenspring Associates, Lakestar, B Capital, Foresite Capital, Town Hall Ventures, McKesson Ventures, Sanofi Ventures, EDBI, Johnson & Johnson InnovationJJDC, Inc., UCB, Amgen Ventures, and Horizon Health Services, Inc. Learn more at aetion.com and follow us at @aetioninc . About Warburg Pincus

Warburg Pincus LLC is a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing. The firm has more than $60 billion in private equity assets under management. The firm's active portfolio of more than 200 companies is highly diversified by stage, sector, and geography. Warburg Pincus is an experienced partner to management teams seeking to build durable companies with sustainable value. Founded in 1966, Warburg Pincus has raised 19 private equity funds, which have invested more than $90 billion in over 930 companies in more than 40 countries. The firm is headquartered in New York with offices in Amsterdam, Beijing, Berlin, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Mauritius, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, and Singapore. For more information please visit www.warburgpincus.com . View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aetion-closes-110m-series-c-funding-round-led-by-warburg-pincus-301288091.html SOURCE Aetion

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[May 11, 2021] Anritsu and Orolia Form Strategic Partnership to Launch 5G Assisted GPS CAT Solutions for North American Carrier Acceptance Testing

Two Companies Partner to Create A-GPS CAT Test Solutions that Support North American Operator Test Requirements ALLEN, Texas, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Anritsu Corporation and Orolia announce immediate support of Assisted GPS (A-GPS) test functionality to meet 5G New Radio (NR) Carrier Acceptance Testing (CAT) requirements for multiple North American operators on the Anritsu ME7834NR 5G Mobile Device Test Platform. As part of the strategic partnership between the two companies, Anritsu leverages Orolia's industry-leading GNSS simulation capabilities to deliver A-GPS CAT testing platforms featuring the new Orolia GSG-SKY-ANR solution. The Anritsu MR7834NR supports A-GPS, FR1, FR2, FR1+FR2 NSA and SA US operator signaling requirements on the same platform. The A-GPS simulation component of Anritsu's ME7834NR-based test solution leverages Orolia's GSG-SKY-ANR simulation platform. The GSG-SKY-ANR is powered by Orolia's award-winning SKYDEL simulation engine, which delivers flexible, scalable, and efficient GNSS/GPS simulation solutions. The GSG-SKY-ANR GNSS simulator is exclusively available to Anritsu ME7834NR customers. Anritsu ME7834NR A-GPS-enabled solutions for 5G NR CAT requirements are available immediately. The test solutions support the rollout of nationwide 5G networks by helping to ensure device compliance and optimum operability. "Anritsu continues to address the needs of our customers globally. By partnering with Orolia, a worldwide leader in GPS simulation technology, we are introducing a reliable, accurate, and cost-effective A-GPS CAT solution that conforms to operator requirements and delivers repeaable results. We remain committed to provide the validation tools necessary for mobile operators, device makers, chipset manufacturers, and test houses to verify designs and ensure product performance. This benefits everyone in the mobile ecosystem," said Shinya Ajiro, General Manager of Anritsu Corporation.





"Orolia is proud to support North American operators through our partnership with Anritsu," said Lisa Perdue, Simulation Director at Orolia. "Our resilient GPS simulation solutions deliver proven high-end capabilities for critical technology challenges such as the implementation of 5G."

About Orolia

Orolia is the world leader in Resilient Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) solutions that improve the reliability, performance and safety of critical, remote or high-risk operations, even in GNSS denied environments. With a global presence, Orolia provides virtually fail-safe GNSS and PNT solutions for military and commercial applications worldwide. www.orolia.com About Anritsu

Anritsu is a provider of innovative communications test and measurement solutions. Anritsu engages customers as true partners to help develop wireless, optical, microwave/RF, and digital solutions for R&D, manufacturing, installation, and maintenance applications, as well as multidimensional service assurance solutions for network monitoring and optimization. Anritsu also provides precision microwave/RF components, optical devices, and high-speed electrical devices for communication products and systems. The company develops advanced solutions for emerging and legacy wireline and wireless technologies used in commercial, private, military/aerospace, government, and other markets. To learn more visit www.anritsu.com and follow Anritsu on Facebook , LinkedIn , Twitter , and YouTube . Anritsu Contact:

Laura Edwards

Senior Manager, Americas Marketing

Laura.edwards@anritsu.com Orolia Contact:

Erik Oehler

Marketing Director

(585) 439-4780

erik.oehler@orolia.com Agency Contact:

Patrick Brightman

3E Public Relations

pbrightman@3epr.com

973.263.5475 Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/840852/Orolia_Logo.jpg

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[May 11, 2021] Ario Technologies Inc. Wins Frontline Innovator Award 2021 at Frontline Future by Beekeeper

OAKLAND, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ario Technologies Inc., a software-as-a-service company that delivers augmented reality (AR) technology to the industrial workforce, is excited to announce that it has won the inaugural Frontline Innovator Award at the 2021 Frontline Future event by Beekeeper. Ario was recognized for its workforce empowerment technology, the Ario Platform, that enables frontline workers to share critical knowledge when and where it's needed. In addition to being the recipient, Ario will participate in the Beekeeper acceleration program, receiving guidance from their team of analysts and engaging with the Beekeeper Marketplace to introduce the Ario Platform to over 1,000 companies across the globe. "Ario is honored to receive the 2021 Frontline Future Innovator Award and we would like to express our admiration for the innovative startups who were shortlisted," said Nate Fender, CEO of Ario. "Beekeeper's mission to transform the frontline by digitally connecting critical workers aligns directly with our mission to revolutionize frontline knowledge-sharing. We look forward to collaborating with Beekeeper so we may offer Ario's empowering workflow tools t essential employees during this pivotal year."



"I really appreciate that Ario's solution applies augmented reality in a real life situation, helping frontline workers to do their job more efficiently and safely," explains Kees de Vos, Chief Product Officer at Beekeeper. "I very much look forward to working with the Ario team and jointly discovering solutions to really support the frontline worker." The Frontline Innovator Award 2021 was presented virtually during the Frontline Future event on May 6th. For more information, please go to https://www.frontlinefuture.io/.

About Beekeeper

Beekeeper's mobile platform is the single point of contact for your frontline workforce. With all communications and tools in one place, teams can improve business agility, productivity, and safety. Teams can resolve issues faster and manage non-routine work more efficiently, thanks to an intuitive employee experience and seamless integrations. Fro more information, visit www.beekeeper.io About Ario Technologies

Ario Technologies Inc. delivers augmented reality software to the industrial workforce enabling immediate, easy access to knowledge and resources. The Ario Platform, accompanied by Ario Connect, addresses equipment maintenance pain points as well as skill inadequacies within a labor force through digital solutions that improve knowledge retention, reduce human error, and boost operational excellence. Founded in 2016, Ario is a fast-growing firm based in Norfolk, Virginia, with customers across the country, from Fortune 500 companies to the United States Air Force. For more information, please visit: https://www.ario.com/ View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ario-technologies-inc-wins-frontline-innovator-award-2021-at-frontline-future-by-beekeeper-301288028.html SOURCE Beekeeper

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 01:21:19|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

KATHMANDU, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Nepal on Monday reported 139 deaths from COVID-19, the highest number of deaths ever logged in the country.

It is the first time that more than 100 patients were confirmed dead at one time in Nepal since the country was first hit by the pandemic early last year.

The Ministry of Health and Population did not confirm whether all the new deaths occurred in the past 24 hours.

""I cannot say whether all of them died in the last 24 hours. It is the figure of deaths reported in the last 24 hours. A few of them might have died in earlier days too," Sameer Adhikari, joint spokesperson at the ministry, told Xinhua.

According to the ministry, the latest fatalities have brought the total deaths to 3,859 in the country.

The death toll grew at a time when hospitals are complaining about the shortage of oxygen and beds. Several hospitals in the country have stopped admitting new COVID-19 patients, while social media platforms have been flooded with desperate calls for oxygen and intensive care unit beds for patients.

"Oxygen shortage also might have contributed to significant rise in deaths," said Adhikari.

Meanwhile, Nepal reported a record high of 9,127 new infections on Monday, taking the total cases to 403,794. It is the sixth day in a row that the country has seen over 8,000 new cases in a day. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] ASC20-21 Student Supercomputer Challenge Announce AWS Support

The 2020-2021 ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge (ASC20-21) announced support from Amazon Web Services (News - Alert) (AWS). AWS provides the online cloud platform for ASC20-21 Virtual Student Supercomputer Challenge. The ASC20-21 Student Supercomputer Challenge has attracted over 300 university teams from around the world, and 28 teams have advanced to the finals. They include Monash University, University of Warsaw, Tsinghua University, and University of Science and Technology of China. For the first time the finals include both on-site and virtual participations: From May 8 to 12, the Top21 teams from the Chinese mainland joined the finals on-site at Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, China. The Top 7 teams outside of the Chinese mainland participated online using the AWS as their cloud computing platform. All teams faced challenging tasks, including pulsar search, language exam, quantum computing simulation, high performance benchmarks HPL & HPCG, group competition, and a mystery application. Vangel Bojaxhi, Executive Director of Asia Supercomputer Community and member of ASC20-21 Organizing Committee, said, " ASC (News - Alert) is thrilled to have the AWS sponsorship for this year's Student Supercomputer Challenge. AWS provides the largest public cloud platform to young talents from all over the world to compete on challenging tasks in astronomy, AI, quantum computing, and other frontier applications. They are making this event memorable to the Asia Supercomputer Community and supercomputing enthusiasts at large. We are glad to see that AWS public cloud and ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge, being both the world's largest in their respecive categories, are joining forces to deliver such an exciting event".



Ian Colle from AWS said, "Millions of AWS users are benefiting from the rapid AWS Cloud innovations every day, and now our state-of-the-art HPC solutions will be delivered through the ASC competition, putting students in a better position to develop their talents, and embark in new explorations in the world of science and technology. We genuinely believe it is an important, and highly anticipated opportunity for both sides." About ASC

The ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge is the world's largest student supercomputer competition, sponsored and organized by Asia Supercomputer Community and supported by Asian, European, and American experts and institutions. The main objectives of ASC are to encourage exchange and training of young supercomputing talent from different countries, improve supercomputing applications and R&D capacity, boost the development of supercomputing, and promote technical and industrial innovation. The first ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge was held in 2012 and since has attracted nearly 10,000 undergraduates from all over the world. The ASC20-21 Student Supercomputer Challenge is jointly organized by Asia Supercomputer Community and Southern University of Science and Technology. Learn more for ASC at http://asc-events.org/. About AWS: Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the world's most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform, offering over 200 fully featured services from data centers globally. Millions of customers-including the fastest-growing startups, largest enterprises, and leading government agencies-are using AWS to lower costs, become more agile, and innovate faster. AWS provides the most elastic and scalable cloud infrastructure to run your HPC applications. With virtually unlimited capacity, engineers, researchers, and HPC system owners can innovate beyond the limitations of on-premises HPC infrastructure. AWS delivers an integrated suite of services that provides everything needed to quickly and easily build and manage HPC clusters in the cloud to run the most compute intensive workloads across various industry verticals. To learn more about running HPC workloads on AWS, please visit this page. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005548/en/

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Behavox Names Prominent Technology Industry Veteran to Board of Directors as Company Accelerates Next Stage of Growth

Behavox, which uses AI to enable enterprises to organize and refine their data into actionable information that protects and promotes business growth, today announced the appointment of industry veteran Tom Schodorf to its Board of Directors.

"Tom is a tremendous addition to our board. His extensive background in building, leading, and expanding sales operations at technology companies will play a crucial role in our continued growth and development," said Erkin Adylov, Founder and CEO of Behavox. "Tom will be critical to advising our business on driving opportunities that help customers organize and make useful all of their enterprise communications data."

Schodorf has more than 30 years experience as an operator for software and SaaS (News - Alert) companies. He serves on a number of public and private company boards and provides consultation services in the tech industry. Most recently he was the CRO of Splunk (News - Alert) , Inc., where he grew bookings more than 20-fold in five years while helping the company IPO and generate more than $10 billion in market value. Prior to Splunk, he had long tenures at BMC Software (News - Alert) and IBM, where he held a number of positions in sales and ran business units.

"What attracts me most to Behavox is our common belief that what is right for the customer and the shareholder leads to the best decisions," Schodorf said. "I am a proponent of transformational leadership that aggressively builds for the long term while getting short-term results, and I look forward to working with Erkin and Behavox in helping them achieve similar goals."

Schodorf's vast experience in running complex, go-to-customer operations in the United States, Asia, and Europe led him to co-author, "The Success Cadence," which underscores the special responsibility and importance that a high-performing sales function has in achieving hyper growth.







Behavox is an enterprise data company that uses AI and machine learning to enable enterprises to organize and refine their data into actionable information that protects and promotes business growth.

A trusted regulatory expert, Behavox provides Compliance, Conduct, and Archiving solutions that help global enterprises and financial firms generate valuable insights from internal communications like voice, email, text, social media, chat, and collaboration. Behavox covers more than 150 data types of corporate and non-traditional applications, including Microsoft Teams, Twitter, WeChat, WhatsApp, and Zoom, across multiple languages, conduct scenarios, and risk categories.

Founded in 2014, Behavox is headquartered in New York City and has offices in Montreal, London, San Francisco, Seattle, Singapore, Tokyo, Dallas, and Abu Dhabi. More information about the company is available at www.behavox.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005399/en/
[May 11, 2021] Budapest based tech company, Vircontech, brings local Governments, local businesses, and citizens on a common platform to revive districts

BUDAPEST, Hungary, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In participation with local several Governments, Mayors, Townhalls, and local business and trade associations, Vircontech, Budapest, has developed an innovative solution to boost the local economy, generate employment and increase district tax collections. Harnessing the power of tested technologies  3D modeling, VR, AR, AI, and Marketplace Analytics, packaged in user friendly apps for specific user groups it is a first comprehensive tech solution specifically created to revive our cities. The solution breathes fresh hope to cities and small towns faced with business closures and unemployment arising from increased online spending and reduced footfalls due to the pandemic. "Our solution has been developed in answer to the requirements of each of the stakeholders vested in the welfar of the district," says the Director of Consumer Insights at Vircontech, "It is literally for the people, by the people."



Key benefits include: Local governments can offer solutions and access real-time data and metrics on resources available, helping them make governance decisions ,optimize resources and creation of employment opportunities are a few tangible benefits.

Local businesses are empowered via a dedicated city-level app offering marketing and promotion opportunities, optimized with AI-based personalization.

Every citizen can be gainfully involved in the development through a dedicated, feature rich Social Media app with increased levels of security.

Carbon footprint and pollution levels are reduced due to a more efficient execution of the 'Grow local, Buy local' approach and macro level optimisation of logistics and distribution.

The modular approach enables high levels of customization to address any unique local issues. Starting at the district level, the solution can be seamlessly integrated with other districts, cities and scaled to offer a county and country-level solution. Bringing together the power of tested technologies from across different application areas onto a common platform, the solution is ready to deploy and the company is already in talks with senior officials in various countries.

Boiler Plate: Virtual Concept Technologies  Vircontech is a Budapest based technology startup with domain specialists in the fields of Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), Analytics including forecasting and trend analysis, 3D modeling, and global marketing. Vircontech is wholly owned by Barthelemy Advisors with proven credentials for having developed projects in various domains worldwide. press@vircontech.com Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1505986/Vircontech_Logo.jpg

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[May 11, 2021] Converge Technology Solutions Corp. Wins Five IBM Awards Including Top North America National Sell Business Partner of the Year

Converge also takes home the Top North America IBM & Red Hat Synergy Partner of the Year, the Data and AI Excellence Award for Cloud Pak for Data, the Protect: Digital Trust Excellence Award, and the previously announced IBM Beacon Award for Outstanding Technology Support Services Solution. TORONTO and GATINEAU, QC, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - Converge Technology Solutions Corp. ("Converge" or "the Company") (TSX: CTS) (FSE: 0ZB) (OTCQX: CTSDF) a software-enabled IT & Cloud Solutions provider, is honored to be the recipient of five IBM Awards. In addition to winning a 2021 IBM Beacon Award, Converge has been named the Top North America Sell Business Partner of the Year (Geography Excellence), the Top North America IBM and Red Hat Synergy Partner of the Year (Geography Excellence), the winner of the IBM Data and AI Business Unit Excellence Award for Cloud Pak for Data, and the winner of the IBM Business Unit Excellence Award for Protect: Digital Trust. The IBM Excellence Awards recognize the stellar performance of IBM Business Partners who have demonstrated excellence and driven exceptional client experiences and business growth. Converge is the only North American partner to receive two Geography Excellence Awards. Converge has built four key practice areas that align to IBM and Red Hat solutions: Advancd Analytics, Cybersecurity, Hybrid & Public Cloud, and Digital Infrastructure. The synergy and continued partnership between IBM, Red Hat, and Converge has strengthened these key offerings, with IBM being one of Converge's largest partners today. Additionally, Converge deeply understands the IBM portfolio and places an emphasis on IBM skills and capabilities being built into an organization's DNA when adding to the Company's portfolio of companies.



Converge remains committed to expanding our reach and driving growth & value with our business and clients. The IBM Awards demonstrate our ongoing commitment to solving our clients' unique business challenges through successful implementations focused on IBM's portfolio of solutions. "The past few years have been ones of great transformation, both in technology and the world we live in," stated Shaun Maine, CEO of Converge. "Coming off years of such change, especially this past one, winning five key IBM Awards, including the Top North America Sell Partner Award, validates our performance and commitment to the IBM & Red Hat partnership and are significant honors & achievements for Converge."

For more information on the 2021 IBM Geography Excellence Awards and 2021 IBM Business Unit Excellence Awards, including a detailed list of winners, please visit here. About Converge

Converge Technology Solutions Corp. is a software-enabled IT & Cloud Solutions provider focused on delivering industry-leading solutions and services. Converge's regional sales and services organizations deliver advanced analytics, cloud, and cybersecurity offerings to clients across various industries. The Company supports these solutions with managed services, digital infrastructure, and talent expertise offerings across all major IT vendors in the marketplace. This multi-faceted approach enables Converge to address the unique business and technology requirements for all clients in the public and private sectors. For more information, visit convergetp.com. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/converge-technology-solutions-corp-wins-five-ibm-awards-including-top-north-america-national-sell-business-partner-of-the-year-301288680.html SOURCE Converge Technology Solutions Corp.

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[May 11, 2021] Despite Disinformation Attempt, Antitrust Case Against IQVIA Moves Forward and Report of FTC Investigation of IQVIA Comes to Light

IQVIA continues unethical tactics to divert attention from industry-wide issue: IQVIA monopoly abuse harms life sciences companies and patients BARCELONA, Spain, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Consistent with its history of deceptive and unethical behavior, IQVIA (NYSE: IQV) yesterday issued a press release that mischaracterizes the nature of a recent procedural e-discovery ruling in Veeva Systems (NYSE: VEEV) antitrust case against IQVIA. The release is another IQVIA attempt to divert attention from the core issue  IQVIA's unlawful tactics to retain monopoly control of data crucial to the life sciences industry and use that position to extend its monopoly into the software market. The Facts IQVIA's press release portrays the recent ruling as a final determination of issues key to the case. This is false and intentionally misleading. Only the jury can make a final determination of fact. The ruling was issued by a special master appointed to supervise discovery disputes and only deals with technical legal matters. It does not decide any key issue that will come before the jury in the case. Veeva disagrees with many of the special master's discovery conclusions and is appealing the ruling to the trial judge.

All of Veeva's antitrust claims against IQVIA still stand and are proceeding to trial. No new facts have been introduced as a result of the ruling. In its last major ruling, the court supported Veeva's case, upholding all of Veeva's claims over IQVIA's motion to dismiss. After COVID-related court delays, the case is estimated to go to a jury trial in early 2023. Veeva is confident in its case, which has widespread industry support as life sciences companies want the freedom to use the software and data prodcts of their choice.

It has also been reported in a Capitol Forum article, "IQVIA: FTC Investigating Allegations of Tying, Withholding Data from Drugmakers," that the Federal Trade Commission is investigating IQVIA's anti-competitive behavior, a positive development in light of the magnitude of harm IQVIA is causing the industry and patients.



Josh Faddis , general counsel at Veeva Systems. "Despite its attempts to misdirect, the fact is IQVIA's abusive and anti-competitive practices block customer choice, competition, and innovation, which ultimately harms patients." To stay up-to-date on the status of Veeva's antitrust lawsuit against IQVIA, visit veeva.com/NoDataRestrictions.

Additional Details Discovery Dispute Relates to Minor, Isolated Data Leak in Legacy AMS Database IQVIA's arguments to the special master focused primarily on a minor data leak in 2015 that involved an insignificant number of IQVIA records being processed within the legacy database of AMS, a company Veeva acquired in 2013. The legacy AMS data processing project was authorized by IQVIA. Veeva took steps to resolve the data leak after it was discovered, and the same data processing project with the same IQVIA data for the same joint customer continues to this day with IQVIA's authorization and without issue. The special master's opinion held, in part, that Veeva should have begun preserving all documents after the AMS data leak was discovered in 2015, rather than once IQVIA filed suit in 2017, on the theory that Veeva should have anticipated litigation would follow from the AMS data leak. Veeva disagrees that it should have anticipated litigation would arise from a minor data issue and the company plans to appeal the special master's ruling. The decision does not call into question Veeva's extraordinary company-wide efforts to preserve and share relevant evidence in the litigation beginning in 2017. About Veeva Systems Veeva is the global leader in cloud software for the life sciences industry. Committed to innovation, product excellence, and customer success, Veeva serves more than 975 customers, ranging from the world's largest pharmaceutical companies to emerging biotechs. As a Public Benefit Corporation, Veeva is committed to balancing the interests of all stakeholders, including customers, employees, shareholders, and the industries it serves. For more information, visit veeva.com/eu. Forward-looking Statements This release contains forward-looking statements, including the quotations from management. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based upon Veeva's current plans and expectations as of the date of this press release and are not a representation that such plans or expectations will occur. Subsequent events may cause these expectations to change, and Veeva disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking statements in the future. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual plans to differ materially, including those set forth under the captions "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," in the company's filing on Form 10-K for the period ended January 31, 2021.This is available on the company's website at veeva.com under the Investors section and on the SEC's website at sec.gov. Further information on potential risks that could affect actual results will be included in other filings Veeva makes with the SEC from time to time. Contact: Deivis Mercado

Veeva Systems

925-226-8821

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[May 11, 2021] Dovetale Launches Shopify App and Pays Out More Than $1 Million to Creators in 3-Month Beta

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Dovetale, a leading U.S. marketing automation technology company, announced today they have closed an undisclosed seed round and launched their new Shopify App out of beta. In 2021, the company has grown revenue 100% month over month, onboarded over 20,000 creators with some making as much as ~$10,000, and top brands earning over $250,000 in sales via their community. Expa Capital, founded by Uber founder Garrett Camp, led the round. The new financing follows a year of tremendous growth for e-commerce, influencer marketing, and the Dovetale team. Dovetale's marketing suite offers tools for influencer marketing covering capabilities for large enterprises and now small businesses built on Shopify. The new capital will be used to establish a leadership position for the firm across the Shopify e-commerce customer base. "The net promoter score across influencer marketing tools available to marketers  specifically Shopify merchants  is horrible. We're ringing the world's best solution to a market that has been underserved," said Mike Schmidt, Dovetale Founder. "Building products that help merchants lower their customer acquisition costs while providing monetary rewards to creators is our primary focus. Our vision is to increase economic opportunity for the internet's middle class, whether they are a merchant selling on Shopify or a creator working with a brand. The Dovetale platform is uniquely positioned to solve both of these problems and will become clearer as we continue to build out our expansive roadmap."



"The Dovetale team has patiently waited for the right tailwinds to present themselves," said Milun Tesovic, Expa Partner. "We have been impressed with the team's ability to execute while ignoring extraneous market signals and competitors. We see modern e-commerce changing rapidly and Dovetale becoming the 'plumbing' for a fundamental component of the modern stack." About Dovetale

Dovetale is a leading U.S. marketing automation technology company serving marketing professionals, creators, influencers, and affiliates. The company offers an enterprise SaaS suite used by some of the largest organizations in the world such as Procter & Gamble, Uber, Samsung, Hello Fresh, and more. The company also offers an SMB SaaS tool for Shopify merchants to help them grow sales with creators. Dovetale is backed by Expa Capital, including Garrett Camp, Sir Richard Branson, Meg Whitman, SV Angel, and others.

Media Contact:

Press

pr@dovetale.com Related Images dovetale-for-shopify.png

Dovetale for Shopify

Get started for free with Shopify on Dovetale View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dovetale-launches-shopify-app-and-pays-out-more-than-1-million-to-creators-in-3-month-beta-301288756.html SOURCE Dovetale

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[May 11, 2021] EC Infosystems Successfully Migrates Community Energy for Billing/EDI Services

EC Infosystems, a leader in Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Billing/Customer Information Solutions (CIS) for companies in the deregulated energy industry, has announced the successful implementation of renewable energy leader Community Energy's billing and EDI services for its utility clean energy programs. The rapid implementation included an accelerated parallel utility testing and certification process, comprehensive billing platform education, and a swift migration of Community Energy's customer meters onto the UtiliBill billing/CIS platform. Throughout the onboarding process, teams from both companies worked arduously to ensure aggressive target timelines were met. "As established energy companies consider a migration of their core back-office technology, they must weigh the risks and rewards of such a decision," says EC Infosystems' President and CEO, Mohan Wanchoo. "Throughout our 24-year history, EC Infosystems has successfully implemented a significant number of clients which has led to a streamlined and intelligent approach to new migrations." "We have been impressed with the EC Infosystems' team and their ability to seamlessly move our companythrough the conversion process," explains Amy Lobel, Director of Sales and Marketing Operations at Community Energy. "EC Infosystems understood our needs and made real-time adjustments to ensure their platform would work for us."



In conjunction with the EDI and UtiliBill billing/CIS offering, EC Infosystems' client services team provides assistance necessary to Community Energy's retail programs, including market-based functions such as consolidated utility rate management. "While our industry-leading EDI and billing/CIS services will ultimately streamline Community Energy's retail program management, we are able to go above and beyond the standard vendor partnership with our enhanced service offering," says Ananda Goswami, EC Infosystems' Chief Revenue Officer

Pennsylvania-based, Community Energy offers clean energy products to customers in New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island through utility-partnered Renewable Energy Credit (REC) programs. ?Community Energy is a leading renewable energy developer and has developed over 2,600 MW of wind and solar projects across the country at the scale necessary to meet energy demands of large electric customers, utilities, cities and communities. Visit www.communityenergyinc.com for more information. "The successful implementation of Community Energy signifies our commitment to diversifying the EC Infosystems' client base beyond utilities and retail energy providers," says Aileen Currier, EC Infosystems' Director of Market Strategy. "We look forward to broadening the scope of our services to meet the dynamic demands of an evolving energy industry." About EC Infosystems

EC Infosystems is a market-leading Software as a Service provider ( SaaS (News - Alert) ) of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and UtiliBill (Billing/Customer Information Solutions (CIS)), serving more than 300 clients in the deregulated energy industry across the United States, Canada, Mexico and Europe. The company's sophisticated software platform is user friendly, improves efficiency and operating performance, and provides clients with a strong competitive advantage. For more information, visit www.ecinfosystems.com About Community Energy

Community Energy has developed and financed 2.6 GW of renewable energy projects across the country, including 1.9 GW of solar power. Community Energy anticipates, originates and develops competitively advantaged solar plus storage projects and has been a leading renewable energy developer for over 20 years, developing many of the first and largest wind and solar projects in the United States. Community Energy has offices in Radnor, PA and Boulder, CO. For more information, please visit https://www.communityenergyinc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005193/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Everspring and Yeshiva University Expand Fully Digital Experience to MBA Program

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Everspring Inc., a leading provider of education technology and services to universities seeking to build or expand their online capabilities, announced today it has significantly expanded its relationship with Yeshiva University to include the Sy Syms School of Business. The expansion includes taking the highly respected Sy Syms MBA program fully digital. Sy Syms is the fourth school at Yeshiva to entrust its digital presence to Everspring. The other partner schools include the Wurzweiler School of Social Work, the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, and the Katz School of Science and Health. Built on Everspring's best-in-class learning management technology platform, Sy Syms' comprehensive online MBA program is custom-configured to replicate the vibrant, collaborative community of students and faculty that is a hallmark of the on-campus MBA program. "We are excited to see Yeshiva University embrace online education as a core priority," said Beth Hollenberg, president of Everspring. "The fact that the University is partnering with us to deliver excellence markedly expands the impact of what we can achieve together." People-Centered for a Distinctive Business Education "To stand out in the increasingly crowded field of excellent online learning, we knew we had to focus first and foremost on the people who make our MBA program great," said Mark Finkel, clinical associate professor of management and director of the MBA program. "All facets of our online course experience have been designed to position our faculty to teach efectively and our students to grow as open, collaborative professionals."



At 42 credits in length, the online MBA program combines core courses on essential business competencies with subject-specific electives to help students expand their entrepreneurial vision, enhance their fluency with data analytics and its applications, and lead from an ethical foundation. It also offers a unique opportunity for online students to complete a capstone project with the YU Innovation Lab, a business accelerator housed within the university that flexes the strength of YU's global network to put students to work in an international startup organization. "Innovation is the beating heart of our education at Sy Syms, the core of everything we do," said Dr. Noam Wasserman, dean of the Sy Syms School of Business. "Everspring is a strong partner who drives innovation in their field, ensuring that we will maximize our students' ability to develop the skills and creativity needed to confidently lead in their own ventures."

About Yeshiva University Founded in 1886, Yeshiva University http://www.yu.edu/ brings together the ancient traditions of Jewish law and life and the heritage of Western civilization. More than 7,600 undergraduate and graduate students study at YU's four New York City campuses: the Wilf Campus, Israel Henry Beren Campus, Brookdale Center, and Jack and Pearl Resnick Campus. YU's three undergraduate schoolsYeshiva College, Stern College for Women and Sy Syms School of Businessoffer a unique dual program comprised of Jewish studies and liberal arts courses. Its graduate and affiliate schools include Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Wurzweiler School of Social Work, Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies, and Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary. YU is ranked among the nation's leading academic research institutions. About Everspring Everspring is a leading provider of education technology and services for higher education. Our advanced technology, proven marketing approach, and robust faculty support and instructional design services deliver outstanding outcomes for our university partners, powering their success and rising rankings. From on-campus to hybrid to online, Everspring offers a range of full-service turnkey solutions, standalone fee-for-service offerings, and innovative self-service products that enable universities to establish themselves as leaders in the digital delivery of higher education. Based in Chicago and named one of the "Best Places to Work" Everspring serves a growing number of colleges and universities, nationwide. Visit www.everspringpartners.com for more information. Don't just go digital. BE DIGITAL. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/everspring-and-yeshiva-university-expand-fully-digital-experience-to-mba-program-301288825.html SOURCE Everspring

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[May 11, 2021] FS Financial Departs Wirehouse for Independent Channel With Commonwealth

Commonwealth Financial Network, a national firm dedicated to providing advisor-focused business solutions, announces the addition of FS Financial of Southington, Connecticut, to its network of independent financial advisors. Formerly affiliated with Wells Fargo (News - Alert) , financial advisors Aaron Sehl and Vincent Feijoo, a CFP professional, founded the independent firm in April 2021, bringing with them veteran support staff member Michele Molitor. The dually registered firm will be responsible for $200 million in assets under management, with close to 75 percent fee-based business. FS Financial will focus on the traditional pillars of investment, retirement, insurance, and estate planning. Sehl and Feijoo plan to continue to nurture and grow their relationships with their longstanding clients, as well as prospect for new clients who will appreciate the newly formed practice's commitment to responsive, caring service. The team's decision to leave the wirehouse environment also puts their clients' interests first-partnering with Commonwealth will let them concentrate on helping their long-term clients their way without worrying about corporate interests. To learn more about the central Connecticut practice, visit www.FSFinances.com.



"We chose Commonwealth because of its independence and private ownership," says Sehl. "Their business is our business, and it's personal-it felt like home." "Service is everything," says Feijoo. "Their team stands ready to help support us, and that's exactly the level of personal guidance our clients expect from us. As a boutique firm, you really do get to know your team and ownership, just like we get to know our clients and they get to know and trust us as their advisors."

Sehl and Feijoo are excited to work with Commonwealth's Advanced Planning specialists, turnkey marketing platforms, and intuitive technology platform. "We're looking forward to being in control of how we want to run our business as it evolves, helping the people we want to help, and partnering with a firm that's supportive of the way we want to run our business," adds Sehl. "We are deeply appreciative of the trust that FS Financial has bestowed on Commonwealth as they take their first steps as an independent firm," said Andrew Daniels, Commonwealth's managing principal, business development. "Because our core values around service align so closely, we know that our partnership will empower the team now and in the future." About Commonwealth Financial Network Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser, provides a suite of business solutions that empowers more than 2,000 independent financial advisors nationwide. J.D. Power ranks Commonwealth "#1 in Independent Advisor Satisfaction Among Financial Investment Firms, Seven Times in a Row." Privately held since 1979, the firm has headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts, and San Diego, California. Learn more about Commonwealth by visiting www.commonwealth.com. Commonwealth received the highest score in the independent advisor segment of the J.D. Power 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018, 2019, and 2020 Financial Advisor Satisfaction Studies of customers' satisfaction among financial advisors. Visit jdpower.com/awards. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005222/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Great Valley Advisor Group Acquires U.S. Financial Advisors

Great Valley Advisor Group ("GVA"), a technology-driven full-service registered investment adviser ("RIA"), has acquired U.S. Financial Advisors ("USFA"). The acquisition expands GVA's presence in the Greater Boston, Massachusetts, region and adds to its overall wealth and investment management capabilities for high-net-worth ("HNW") individuals. Based in Braintree, Mass., USFA is a full-service RIA that provides comprehensive and customized investment, insurance and wealth management services for its clients. Under the leadership of President and Chief Executive Officer John Napolitano, CFP, CPA, USFA has grown to over $725 million in assets under management and has a network of advisors across the county. The full USFA team is joining GVA. Napolitano will lead GVA's dedicated HNW practice, which will maintain the USFA branding and offer family office services. The HNW practice will include five additional advisors. "John and his team have built a strong reputation of excellence in the industry," said Ryan C. Todd, CPA, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of GVA. "Their experience and expertise in serving the HNW base aligns with our focus on elevating our offering and positioning us for future growth. We are excited to integrate the USFA team with our GVA community." Napolitano added: "The team at GVA shares our approach to client srvice, our passion for wealth management and the dedication to growing our advisors' careers. Our partnership with GVA and the resources its leadership team offer will support our focus on building a dedicated HNW practice and providing the integrated and comprehensive support this specific client group needs."



"Our focus is on empowering and supporting advisors to grow their businesses, and the relationship we have built with John and his team is a perfect example of this philosophy in action," said James J. Spinelli, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director at GVA. "John is clear in his vision and where he intends to make the most impact in the next phase of his career. We are thrilled he is aligning with GVA to make this vision a reality." GVA has focused on growth in recent years, strategically adding resources that will benefit the advisors in its network. The firm introduced its dedicated asset management arm, Valor Asset Management in 2016 and has expanded its in-house technology resources and tools for advisors in the last five years. GVA has completed several successful acquisitions in its history and has built a network of nearly 100 advisors across the country. The firm was supported by LPL Financial's M&A Solutions new premium buyer program in completing the USFA transaction.

"The GVA team has been strategic in its development, building the right capabilities and structure to support a deal of this magnitude," said Jeremy Holly, LPL Senior Vice President and head of Advisor Financial Solutions. "Our M&A Solutions team supported GVA and USFA throughout a formal sales process, positioning GVA as a qualified and value-added buyer and ensuring the firms were a good fit. We believe this acquisition will be a true benefit to their current and future clients." The acquisition closed on May 10, 2021, and will increase GVA's assets under management by over $725 million. GVA was advised by Stradley Ronon. Financial and legal terms of the deal were not disclosed. About Great Valley Advisor Group Great Valley Advisor Group ("GVA") is a technology-driven full-service registered investment adviser. GVA partners with select independent financial advisors by providing customized technology, investment strategies, compliance, and proprietary compensation tools to help them grow their businesses. Our advisors have the choice and flexibility to run their businesses the way they want. GVA provides advisors with support to get started and technology to help the firm thrive. For more information, visit greatvalleyadvisors.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005715/en/

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 02:24:11|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken from the Gaza Strip on May 10, 2021 shows rockets being fired toward Israel. Over 45 rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel on Monday evening, mostly landing in open areas on the border with Gaza in the south of the country, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Jonathan Conricus said. The attack from Gaza, which also included six rockets fired toward Jerusalem, intensified an already tension in the region in recent days, as Palestinians in Jerusalem have confronted Israeli security forces in violent demonstrations in past weeks. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

JERUSALEM, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Over 45 rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel on Monday evening, mostly landing in open areas on the border with Gaza in the south of the country, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Jonathan Conricus said.

The attack from Gaza, which also included six rockets fired toward Jerusalem, intensified an already tension in the region in recent days, as Palestinians in Jerusalem have confronted Israeli security forces in violent demonstrations in past weeks.

"This is a very severe assault on Israel by Hamas that will not go unanswered," said Conricus in a video briefing for foreign journalists.

"We have made preparations for various scenarios, including high intensity ones," he said. "We asses that Hamas will get the message and will understand they are the ones facing severe consequences from us."

It is worth noting that a major war drill planned by the IDF for the coming days has been cancelled.

Earlier in the day, Israeli police clashed with Palestinians in Jerusalem. Palestinian protesters say Israel has been invading the holy site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and evicting Palestinians from homes in Jerusalem in order to make room for Jewish settlers.

Hundreds of Palestinians and dozens of Israeli troops have been injured in the recent clashes.

Hamas, an Islamic militant group that rules the Gaza Strip, has fought three major wars with Israel. The last time rockets were fired by Palestinian militants toward Jerusalem was during the last war between Hamas and Israel in 2014.

According to media reports, the Israeli security cabinet that convened to discuss the response to the evening attacks approved the widening of the air offensive against militants in the Gaza Strip. Both Israeli and Palestinian media reported the IDF targeting senior militant commanders in Gaza in surgical strikes on Monday evening.

"We have the capabilities, the authority and the intention to deliver a severe blow to Hamas, because of the blatant attack against Israel, the fire toward Jerusalem and the massive rocket fire against southern Israel," said Conricus.

The IDF home front command announced that schools in southern Israel bordering with the Gaza Strip will be closed on Tuesday with large gatherings cancelled, as the escalation is expected to continue in the coming days. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] Japanese Megabank Works with Oracle to Modernize Accounting Systems

AUSTIN, Texas, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. (SMBC Group) has selected Oracle Fusion Cloud Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) to consolidate accounting functions as part of its efforts to streamline business processes. SMBC Group will implement its shared services across its group companies. "We decided to modernize accounting operations as part of our business and IT transformation to further accelerate efficiencies and enhance group management. This is a very complex project, but we believe that we can make it a success by utilizing the superior functionality and scalability of Oracle Cloud ERP. We expect this system will make a significant contribution to our management infrastructure; strengthen the corporate value of the SMBC Group companies and make us more competitive as a group," said Shoji Masuda, Senior Managing Corporate Executive Officer, Group CIO, SMBC Group. Previously, each SMBC Group company had operated separate accounting systems with inconsistent processes. The group needed a single accounting platform that would support the requirements of all its companies and continue evolving with the business to enable the latest innovations in finance. Ater reviewing a number of cloud ERP offerings, SMBC Group chose to standardize on Oracle Cloud ERP, which includes Oracle Fusion Cloud Procurement and Oracle Fusion Cloud Enterprise Performance Management (EPM), which runs on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure.



Oracle Cloud ERP and Oracle Cloud Procurement will help to increase productivity, reduce costs and improve controls. The addition of Oracle Cloud EPM will help the finance team manage budgets and profitability, build business strategies, and make the right decisions for the entire group. Oracle Fusion Applications' quarterly update cycle will give SMBC Group access to continuous innovation as new features are added every 90 days, without downtime or business disruption. "Establishing a robust and flexible organization, with continually updating business models is essential for companies to navigate changes in the business environment. We are honored to provide technological support for SMBC Group's next phase of growth. With Oracle Cloud ERP, SMBC Group will benefit from streamlined processes and continuous innovation as the group strengthens its business foundation for long-term success," said Toshimitsu Misawa, Corporate Executive Officer, President, Oracle Corporation Japan.

Oracle Cloud ERP helps organizations automate core business processes, integrate disparate systems, and streamline financial business processes and technology requirements. This enables customers to rapidly adapt to changing business demands and achieve a competitive advantage by increasing productivity, reducing costs, creating a single source of the truth, and driving end-to-end business innovation. For additional information, visit Oracle.com/erp or the Modern Finance Leader blog. The implementation at SMBC group companies will be supported by Oracle Japan's Consulting Services and will be completed in multiple phases. About Oracle

Oracle offers suites of integrated applications plus secure, autonomous infrastructure in the Oracle Cloud. For more information about Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), please visit us at oracle.com. Trademarks

Oracle, Java, and MySQL are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/japanese-megabank-works-with-oracle-to-modernize-accounting-systems-301288638.html SOURCE Oracle

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[May 11, 2021] LiveEO Enters Strategic Partnership with Planet, Setting Preconditions for Rapid Expansion

Earth observation company LiveEO has today announced its partnership with Planet, the leading provider of global, daily satellite imagery and insights. The strategic move empowers LiveEO to massively scale its infrastructure monitoring operations around the globe, avoiding friction in the procurement of satellite imagery. During the past 12 months, LiveEO has been able to quadruple its customer base by establishing more client relationships outside of Europe, especially in the United States and Australia. In order to accommodate its growing customer base, LiveEO doubled the size of its engineering team and significantly strengthened its infrastructure, with the new partnership being a central component of this effort. Different from the traditional reseller model prevalent in the satellite data industry, as a part of the Powered by Planet program, LiveEO is able to purchase satellite imagery up front, with n predefined areas of interest (AOIs). Allowing the data usage to be freely and seamlessly adjusted to current customer needs.



"From day one we developed our tech stack with a clear focus on scalability", says Daniel Seidel, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of LiveEO. Since every newly onboarded customer entails vast amounts of data to be acquired and processed, and with quick turnaround times being one of LiveEO value propositions, velocity is key. "To build scalable applications, we need great APIs to purchase data on a recurring basis without human interaction. In this regard, we consider Planet a role model for other satellite operators in the industry, which at times still handle the ordering process via email." concludes Seidel. About LiveEO

LiveEO is bringing Earth Observation to enterprise customers starting in the infrastructure sector. LiveEO utilizes satellite technology to monitor large infrastructure networks globally and empowers the operators to save operational expenses by observing dangers from external threats. By using AI the start-up is generating overviews of thousands of kilometres for decisions on the management level as well as information for the worker on the ground via a front-end and mobile app. LiveEO's goal is to monitor every major infrastructure grid until 2025. The company has around 50 employees and has offices in Berlin, Germany, and New York, USA.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005514/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Lone Wolf acquires LionDesk and HomeSpotter, expanding real estate's leading end-to-end technology suite

CAMBRIDGE, ON and DALLAS, Texas, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Lone Wolf Technologies ("Lone Wolf") is excited to announce the acquisitions of two leading real estate technology companies, LionDesk and HomeSpotter. With these acquisitions, Lone Wolf's end-to-end technology suite now encompasses digital marketing, lead generation, customer relationship management (CRM), showings, comparative market analysis (CMA), digital forms and signatures, transaction management, back office and accounting, business insights, and recruiting. These solutions form the most comprehensive digital technology suite for agents, brokers, MLSs, and associations in real estate today. The most comprehensive digital technology suite for agents, brokers, MLSs, and associations in real estate today. "We're thrilled to welcome LionDesk and HomeSpotter into the fold today," said Jimmy Kelly, CEO of Lone Wolf "These acquisitions embody our mission to simplify real estate. We're bringing the best technology together to dramatically simplify the work that agents and brokers do every day. But this is more than just connecting the dots. From lead to close to commission, we're helping agents and brokers get a leading edge in a competitive marketplace and elevate the real estate experience they provide to buyers and sellers today." LionDesk is used by over 165,000 real estate professionals in the U.S. The company's intelligent CRM software makes it easier for agents to engage with clients by consolidating several communication channels, including video, email, text, calls, and AI-enabled lead follow-up, into one intelligent system. Lone Wolf will integrate LionDesk into its Agent Cloud, Broker Cloud, and MLS/Association Cloud to provide a critical CRM component. "We're incredibly excited to join Lone Wolf today," said David Anderson, CEO and founder of LionDesk. "Like Lone Wolf, LionDesk is committed to creating an ecosystem of the best technology to convert leads into lifelong clients. Combined with Lone Wolf's leading tools for CMA and transactions, our CRM will allow agents, teams, and brokers across the continent to serve their buyers and sellers with an unmatched client experience."



HomeSpotter integrates with over 300 MLSs and reaches over 500,000 real estate agents across North America. The company offers three solutions, Connect, Boost, and Spacio, to provide agents with automated digital marketing for listings and open houses, a modern MLS front-end mobile app, and an online client collaboration platform. HomeSpotter adds essential digital marketing, lead generation, and relationship nurturing components to Lone Wolf's technology suite, as well as the opportunity to begin applying predictive ROI analysis by connecting to Back Office and leveraging Lone Wolf's data science capabilities. Lone Wolf will connect both LionDesk and HomeSpotter, and also invest in HomeSpotter's open house and showings solution, Spacio, to expand and enhance its functionality. "This a great moment for real estate agents, brokerages, and MLSs," said Aaron Kardell, CEO and founder of HomeSpotter. "Digital technology is more important than ever, and HomeSpotter's mobile tools allow agents and consumers to collaborate in a way that feels natural and effortless. Together with Lone Wolf, our solutions will prove to be a game changer for agents and MLSs everywhere, helping agents and brokerages generate more leads and increase productivity on the go to ensure they remain the central source for real estate listings."

These acquisitions follow several recent moves from Lone Wolf, as the company seeks to lead the evolution of real estate technology to incorporate consumer tools, connected experiences, and smart technologies like AI and machine learning. In February, Lone Wolf released Digital Title Orders in Lone Wolf Transactions in collaboration with several leading title insurance companies in the U.S. In April, Lone Wolf released the new broker edition of Cloud CMA, featuring visually stunning CMAs and a two-way integration with Lone Wolf Transactions (zipForm Edition and TransactionDesk Edition). In early May, the company also released real estate's first AI-powered recruiting solution, Recruit, helping brokers find the best agentswho are also the best fit for their brokeragethrough its data-driven 'fit score'. Each of these innovations puts modern, connected, and consumer-friendly tools in the hands of real estate professionals at a time when they're needed the most. "Consumer expectations are rapidly evolving," said Matt Keenan, CRO of Lone Wolf. "With these acquisitions and innovations, we're helping real estate respond. Our goal is to provide the real estate world with the kind of intelligent and modern tech it needs to not only meet these new expectations but surpass them. So real estate professionals everywhere can amaze their buyers and sellers and stay at the center of the transaction in a digital era."

About Lone Wolf Technologies

Lone Wolf Technologies is the North American leader in residential real estate software, serving over 1.5 million real estate professionals across Canada and the U.S. With cloud solutions for agents, brokers, franchises, MLSs and associations alike, the company provides the entire real estate industry with the tools they need to amaze clients, build their business, and improve profitsfrom CMA and transactions to back office, insights, and more, all in one place. Lone Wolf's head offices are located in Cambridge, ON and Dallas, TX. About LionDesk

LionDesk is the intelligent CRM (customer relationship management) platform of choice for over 165,000 real estate, mortgage and small business professionals. Known for ease of use, affordability and customization, LionDesk leads the way in innovation with features such as video emailing, texting and an AI (artificial intelligence) lead follow up system. About HomeSpotter

HomeSpotter is the industry-leading software product suite for real estate agents, brokers, and MLS providers to build and strengthen customer relationships. Boost automates digital marketing at scale, enabling agents to expand their spheres and impress sellers. Connect gives buyers amazing, branded search and agent collaboration tools to carry in their pocket. Spacio's intelligent open house and showings solution streamlines outdated real estate processes and captures every opportunity. Media Contact:

Nick Gaede | Industry Relations

E: ngaede@lwolf.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lone-wolf-acquires-liondesk-and-homespotter-expanding-real-estates-leading-end-to-end-technology-suite-301288265.html SOURCE Lone Wolf Technologies

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[May 11, 2021] Maptician Secures $1.7 Million of Seed Round Funding

ATLANTA, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Maptician, the premier provider of intelligent space and occupancy management technology, announced today it has received an investment of $1.7 Million in funding led by Nelnet (NYSE:NNI). Maptician's solution includes an interactive smart-map technology to visually manage the workplace and its occupants. The company also welcomes Bryson Koehler, current Equifax Chief Technology Officer, as an independent strategic investor. The new influx of capital will be instrumental to further product development, as Maptician's unique hybrid workplace technology has been in greater demand due to the Covid-19 pandemic and its impacts on business. "We firmly believe Maptician's smart map and occupancy management technology is one of the most timely and relevant offerings in market today," said Nick Eurek, president of Maptician. "With this investment and the addition of a stellar new strategic investor in Bryson Koehler, we will further accelerate our outreach and continue to develop our software platform which supports the new hybrid workplace, allowing companies of all sizes to offer and manage the flexibility of when and where their employees work." Nelnet was joined by Invest Nebraska and the Nebraska Angels to complete the $1.7M round of funding. Nelnet is a publicly traded investment-grade company offering a diverse set of services across a wide range of markets and industries. Invest Nebraska is a statewide venture development organization focused on growing Nebraska's economy by providing operational assistance and seed capital to entrepreneurial start-up companies with high growth potential. Nebrasa Angels is a network of accredited investors who support local economic development and build up the entrepreneurial community.



"As an early customer and now an investor, we firmly believe Maptician is poised to disrupt the market for workplace and capacity management technology," said Al Davis, Nelnet executive director of Enterprise Risk Management and leader of the company's pandemic response team. "Companies continue to grapple with how to bring employees back to the workplace safely and effectively. Maptician's technology helps solve these problems by offering interactive distancing tools and system-wide contact tracing, as well as an agile approach to a new hybrid work model with employees working a combination from home and in the office. Maptician is an essential component of our return-to-work strategy and post-pandemic future." Additionally, Bryson Koehler brings his years of technology, strategic insights, as well as data and analytics expertise as a strategic investor for Maptician. Koehler, who is widely considered an authority in artificial intelligence and machine learning, currently serves as Chief Technology Officer at Equifax. Previously, he was Chief Technology Officer for IBM Watson and Cloud Platform. He also led technology at The Weather Channel Companies as CIO, and headed product development for Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG).

Leveraging the additional capital, Maptician plans to hire technology, product, sales, and marketing positions in the Lincoln, Nebraska, and metro Atlanta markets. Maptician is a 2019 graduate of Tech Alpharetta and attributes a strong start and early success to its time with the incubator. For more information on Maptician's technology, please visit www.maptician.com. About Nelnet Nelnet (NYSE: NNI) is a diversified and innovative company focused on offering educational services, technology solutions, professional services, telecommunications, and asset management. Nelnet helps students and families plan and pay for their education and makes the administrative processes for schools more efficient with student loan servicing, tuition payment processing, and school administration software. Through its investment in ALLO Communications, Nelnet offers fiber optic services directly to homes and businesses for ultra-fast internet and superior telephone and television services. The company also makes investments in real estate and early-stage and emerging growth companies. For more information, visit NelnetInc.com . About Maptician Maptician is a cloud-based Intelligent Space and Occupancy Management Solution that helps companies streamline their safe return-to-office and helps shift to a post-Covid hybrid or agile workplace model. Maptician provides organizations with cost savings related to their use of office space and equips them to use their space in a more intentional way, allowing employees to self-manage their work schedules and workplaces using Maptician's mobile reservation and scheduling features. Maptician's platform also includes interactive social distancing tools, system-wide contact tracing, and pre-screen health surveys. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/maptician-secures-1-7-million-of-seed-round-funding-301288750.html SOURCE Maptician

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[May 11, 2021] Marelli and PUNCH Motive International join forces to develop and manufacture electric vehicle e-axles

STRASBOURG, France, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Marelli, a leading global automotive supplier, and PUNCH, a supplier for the development, integration and manufacturing of driveline and powertrain solutions, have reached an agreement to form a joint venture focused on e-axle solutions. Both companies combine their extensive expertise in the area of electric powertrains to offer integrated systems for electric vehicles. The joint venture  which is to be majority owned by Marelli  will be focused on a system approach for optimized integrated e-axle solutions. The company will develop and assemble e-axle systems and be targeted specifically toward the markets in Europe and the Americas. The new enterprise, Marelli Electric Powertrain Strasbourg (France) SAS, will be headquartered at PUNCH's site in Strasbourg, France, in proximity to major European vehicle makers. The joint venture will have a facility for production, prototyping and tsting on-site.



E-axles are a key system of electric vehicles. While Marelli will supply electric motors and inverters including software for the e-axles, PUNCH will contribute gearbox components and development as well as manufacturing expertise. "PUNCH's and Marelli's strengths in the field of electric powertrains are a great match. The joint venture is an important milestone in Marelli's e-mobility growth strategy," said Hannes Prenn, Executive Vice President and CEO of Marelli's Electric Powertrain business. "With this cooperation, we further expand our unique offering as a full system provider for electric powertrains which is complemented by our thermal and battery management solutions."

"PUNCH wants to be a major player for reducers as part of complete e-axles, representing one of the key components for electric mobility. The partnership with Marelli is an enabler for us to accelerate and execute our long-term strategy from fossil to electric and ultimately clean hydrogen powertrain systems," said Guido Dumarey, founder and CEO PUNCH. About Marelli MARELLI is one of the world's leading global independent suppliers to the automotive sector. With a strong and established track record in innovation and manufacturing excellence, our mission is to transform the future of mobility through working with customers and partners to create a safer, greener and better-connected world. With around 58,000 employees worldwide, the MARELLI footprint includes 170 facilities and R&D centers across Asia, the Americas, Europe, and Africa, generating revenues of 1,266 Billion JPY (10.4 Billion EUR) in 2020. marelli.com About PUNCH PUNCH is an independent supplier for the development, integration and manufacturing of competitive driveline and powertrain solutions, ranging from transmissions (PUNCH Powerglide), engines (PUNCH Torino), kinetic energy recuperation and storage systems (PUNCH Flybrid) to forged aluminum chassis parts (PUNCH Precision). The Group employs 1,750 employees at 7 locations across Europe and Asia with an annual turnover exceeding half a billion Euros. punch-group.com Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1507749/MARELLI_and_PUNCH.jpg View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/marelli-and-punch-motive-international-join-forces-to-develop-and-manufacture-electric-vehicle-e-axles-301288631.html SOURCE Marelli

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[May 11, 2021] Mitchell | Genex | Coventry Signs Agreement to Acquire QualCare Alliance Networks Inc.

Mitchell | Genex | Coventry, a leader in cost containment technology, provider networks, clinical services, pharmacy benefit management (PBM), and disability management, announced today it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire QualCare Alliance Networks Inc. (QANI), one of the largest managed care organizations serving the New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York tri-state area. This acquisition allows Mitchell | Genex |Coventry to strengthen its position as a market leader in provider network access, care management and workers' compensation services. QANI will become part of the Coventry organization, expanding its network footprint in that region. "Both Coventry and QANI have proud traditions of maintaining ecellent provider networks," said Art Lynch, Coventry President. "Our long-standing relationship over the past decade confirms why QANI is a good fit for Coventry both from a geographic and talent acquisition perspective. This opportunity demonstrates the combined organizations' commitment to deliver the right solutions to our clients in terms of market presence and product offerings."



Headquartered in Piscataway and Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, QANI, owned by Cigna Corp., contracts with over 100 acute, specialty and rehabilitation hospitals, as well as 40,000 professional providers. Additionally, QANI provides clinical management services that will complement similar programs offered by Coventry and Genex. Alice Herron Lihou, president of QANI, will continue in her role and report to Lynch. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions. About Mitchell | Genex | Coventry

Mitchell, Genex, and Coventry recently combined their joint industry expertise and advanced technology solutions into one organization to simplify and optimize property, casualty, and disability claims processes and services. Coventry offers workers' compensation, auto and disability care and cost-management solutions for employers, insurance carriers and third-party administrators. With roots in both clinical and network services, Coventry leverages more than 40 years of industry experience, knowledge, and data analytics. About QANI QualCare Alliance Networks, Inc. (QANI) was founded in 1993 to serve as the parent organization to QualCare, Inc. and Qual-Lynx. QualCare provides Health and Workers' Compensation Preferred Provider Network services to its clients, and Qual-Lynx, through its partnership with QualCare, offers full service Managed Care, Administrative, and Claims Management services for its Property and Casualty business. QANI is among New Jersey's largest managed care organizations with a Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) comprised of over 100 acute, specialty and rehabilitation hospitals, as well as over 40,000 physicians and other ancillary providers across New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York. For more information, visit www.qualcareinc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005205/en/

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[May 11, 2021] NACD Board Of Directors Adds New Members With Financial, Marketing, Technology Experience

WASHINGTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), the authority on boardroom practices representing more than 21,000 board members, today announced that the NACD board of directors will welcome four new board members, two in July 2021, and two in January 2022. Together, these directors bring deep expertise in governance practices and strategy; innovation; effective marketing principles and techniques; financial management to drive efficient growth, and C-suite experience that makes them uniquely equipped to help tackle the challenges that companies, and their boards, face today. With the addition of these highly qualified directors, the NACD board will be majority female and comprised of five diverse members, reflecting the organization's deep commitment to advancing diversity as a means of creating long-term value. "The responsibilities of being a board member today are more challenging than ever," said William "Bill" McCracken, NACD board chair. "The people who serve on the NACD board are dedicated leaders who help to further NACD's goal of improving the performance of all boards, and we are thrilled to welcome such a talented and widely respected group of new members." NACD's newest board members: - Jocelyn Carter-Miller, the president of TechEdVentures and SoulTranSync entrepreneurial ventures, specializes in developing and marketing high performance educational and personal/community empowerment programming. She currently serves on the corporate boards of Principal Financial Group Inc., InterPublic Group Inc., and Arlo Technologies Inc., and served on the Netgear Inc. board until August 2018. Recently, she joined the private board of Backblaze Inc., a cloud storage and data backup company, and she serves on several nonprofit boards, including the boards of the NACD Florida Chapter and the League of Women Voters of Broward County. She has successfully taken three companies public through the IPO process. Previously, she has served as executive vice president - chief marketing officer for Office Depot Inc.; corporate vice president - chief marketing officer for Motorola Inc.; general manager for Motorola network operations in Latin America and Europe, the Middle East, and Africa; and vice president - Marketing and Product Development for Mattel Inc. Carter-Miller is an NACD Directorship 100 honoree; a Savoy Magazine Power 300: Most Influential Black Corporate Directors honoree; a Directors & Boards Director to Watch; and was listed among Women Inc.'s Most Influential Corporate Board Directors. She earned her MBA in Finance and Marketing from the University of Chicago an a BS in Accounting from the University of Illinois. Carter-Miller will begin her term in January 2022.



- Nora M. Denzel is a retired Silicon Valley technology executive. Before transitioning to full time board work, she was the interim CEO of Redbox (Outerwall) and held several key C-Suite positions in technology companies encompassing leading Big Data, Consulting, Enterprise Software, and Storage businesses. As a seven-time public board member, her expertise is applying technology to transform companies, achieving innovation at scale, and turning technical concepts into narratives and strategies that everyone can understand. She currently serves on the corporate boards of LM Ericsson, AMD, Talend SA, and NortonLifeLock. Previously, Denzel, who began her career with a long tenure at IBM, has served as interim CEO for Outerwall Inc.; senior vice president, Big Data, and senior vice president, QuickBooks Payroll Division, for Intuit; senior vice president and senior technology general manager for HP Enterprise; and senior vice president Product Operations for Legato Systems. Denzel serves on the boards of both the NACD Florida Chapter and the NACD Northern California Chapters and is among the inaugural class to achieve NACD Directorship Certification. She is an NACD Directorship 100 honoree; listed among the 10 leading women in tech by CIO Magazine; listed among the top 25 women engineers by Business Insider; and as a Woman of Vision by the San Jose Business Journal. She earned her MBA from Santa Clara University and BS in Computer Science from the State University of New York. Denzel begins her term in July 2021. - Sandra A. J. Lawrence is a seasoned public company director whose diverse experiences include utilities, medical devices, and financial services. She currently serves on the corporate boards of Evergy Inc. and American Shared Hospital Services; the trust board of Ivy and Waddell and Reed (transitioning to Delaware by Macquarie); the NACD Heartland Chapter; the Hall (Hallmark) Family Foundation; and the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Previously, she has served as chief administrative officer, chief financial officer, and executive vice president for Children's Mercy Hospitals and Clinics; senior vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer for the Midwest Research Institute; interim CEO for Frontier Medical Research; president/CEO for Global Packing Solutions; and vice president for Gateway Inc. She is an NACD Directorship 100 honoree; listed among Ingram's 250 Most Powerful Business Leaders in Greater Kansas City; listed among Women Inc.'s Most Influential Corporate Board Directors; in the Black Enterprise Registry of Corporate Directors; appears among Savoy Magazine's Top 100 Corporate Directors; and is listed as one of Directors & Boards' Directors to Watch. Lawrence is an NACD Board Leadership Fellow. She earned her MBA from Harvard University; Master of Architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and BA in Psychology from Vassar College. Lawrence begins her term in January 2022.

- Mary A. Winston is an accomplished corporate board member and financial executive with experience serving as an SEC financial expert on large, global, public company boards. She has served as interim CEO for Bed Bath & Beyond Inc., as well as executive vice president and chief financial officer for three large, industry-leading corporations. Having served on several large public boards, she brings valuable experience in shareholder activism, mergers and acquisitions, corporate strategy, CEO succession, business transformation, corporate risk assessments, and broad corporate governance matters. She combines this experience with her current role as president and CEO of WinsCo Enterprises, which provides financial and board advisory consulting services to large corporations, CEOs, and their boards of directors. She has received the following honors: listed among the Ebony Power 100: Most Powerful Leaders in America; listed among Women Inc.'s Most Influential Corporate Directors; appears in the Black Enterprise Magazine Fortune 300 Corp Director Registry; named a Directors & Boards Directors to Watch; and is listed among the Savoy Magazine Most Influential Black Corporate Directors. She earned her MBA in Finance, International Business, and Marketing from Northwestern University and her BBA in Accounting and Management Information Systems from the University of Wisconsin. Winston begins her term in July 2021. "These outstanding directors will add significant value to NACD's board, as well as to the NACD mission to elevate all boards," said Peter R. Gleason, NACD CEO. "NACD board members play an important role in the governance world. Not only do they provide critical oversight to our 21,000-member organization, but they serve as a beacon to the entire profession of directorship. Their dedication to elevating all boards sends an important signal to directors nationwide." About NACD

The National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) empowers more than 21,000 directors to lead with confidence in the boardroom. As the recognized authority on leading boardroom practices, NACD helps boards strengthen investor trust and public confidence by ensuring that today's directors are well prepared for tomorrow's challenges. World-class boards join NACD to elevate performance, gain foresight, and instill confidence. Fostering collaboration among directors, investors, and corporate governance stakeholders, NACD has been setting the standard for responsible board leadership for 40 years. To learn more about NACD, visit www.NACDonline.org. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nacd-board-of-directors-adds-new-members-with-financial-marketing-technology-experience-301288779.html SOURCE National Association of Corporate Directors

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[May 11, 2021] National Interstate Insurance Company Promotes Christopher E. Mikolay and Daniel M. Keenan

National Interstate Insurance Company is pleased to announce the promotions of Christopher (Chris) E. Mikolay to Senior Vice President, Specialty Division and Daniel (Dan) M. Keenan to Vice President, National Accounts. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005122/en/ Christopher E. Mikolay has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Specialty Division at National Interstate Insurance Company. (Photo: Business Wire) Mr. Mikolay will assume leadership responsibility for National Interstate's Specialty Division and Hawaii office. The Specialty Division consists of insurance programs in industries including waste operations, fleet towing and recovery, heavy haul and crane, ambulance, energy and environmental, and rental car. Mr. Mikolay joined National Interstate in 200 as a Product Manager and has held various positions of increasing responsibility. After leading and launching several captive programs within the Alternative Products Division, he held the position of Director of Sales and Marketing for National Interstate. For the last several years, Mr. Mikolay has been instrumental in the formation, management and growth of the National Accounts Division and managed the Truck Captive programs and Business Development team.



Mr. Keenan will assume leadership of the National Accounts Division, which insures some of the company's largest and most complex risks. Mr. Keenan joined National Interstate in 2006, holding key management positions in several divisions. From 2011 - 2015 he was Director of Business Development at the Vanliner Division, where he was instrumental in the formation and growth of several captive insurance programs for the moving and storage industry. Most recently, Mr. Keenan has served as Assistant Vice President in the Specialty Division.

"We are fortunate to have such talented individuals in our organization, and I am thrilled for Chris and Dan. At National Interstate we are focused on serving the unique needs of our niche customer groups; this change and increase in each of their responsibilities allows us to leverage their broad skills to do so," commented Shawn Los, Executive Vice President, National Interstate. About National Interstate An Insurance Experience Built Around You National Interstate Insurance Company offers insurance products and services, including alternative risk transfer programs, focused on the transportation industry. National Interstate and its insurance subsidiaries, Vanliner Insurance Company, National Interstate Insurance Company of Hawaii, Inc., and Triumphe Casualty Company, are rated "A+" (Superior) by A.M. Best (rating affirmed October 28, 2020). National Interstate is a member of Great American Insurance Group. The members of Great American Insurance Group are subsidiaries of American Financial Group, Inc. (AFG). AFG's common stock is listed and traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol AFG. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005122/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Netsmart and Ohio's Hospice Expand 10-Year Innovation Partnership to Advance Hospice Models of Care

Netsmart and Ohio's Hospice are announcing a 10-year innovation partnership to advance hospice models of care supported by the industry-leading Netsmart CareFabric platform. This partnership will bring to market new technology capabilities to support value-based care programs, leverage the CareFabric platform to support all post-acute service lines on a single platform and advance the next-generation of palliative care capabilities. In addition, Netsmart and Ohio's Hospice will work together on solutions to help solve staffing challenges, support closed-loop referrals and bridge gaps of care. Netsmart and Ohio's Hospice first expanded their partnership in 2018 to extend a robust technology platform to Ohio's Hospice's associate and affiliate members in a move to allow providers to share information securely and seamlessly with other healthcare providers. Ohio's Hospice and Netsmart then expanded their relationship again to members of National Hospice Cooperative. National Hospice Cooperative was established by Ohio's Hospice to provide world-class business support services to community-based, not-for-profit hospice providers around the nation. This membership allows them to gain access to support services and technology that allows them to dedicate more dollars directly to their clinical mission and patient care. As Ohio's Hospice has grown, the organization is committed as ever to delivering superior hospice care and services and expanding this superior care and services into its palliative care services through the implementation of myUnity. "Since first partnering with Netsmart, our organization has grown and now provides more care to more patients and families throughout our expanding service areas," said Kent Anderson, CEO of Ohio's Hospice. "Netsmart is the right partner for us, as we work side by side to manage and adapt quickly to the rapidly evolving healthcare environment. Together, we have collaborated to bring new innovations to the market, which are vital to providing superior care and superior services to each patient and family we have the privilege to serve wherever they call home - at home, assisted living or skilled nursing facilities, our Hospice Houses, or inpatient care centers." As staffing continues to be a challenge for many organizations, this partnership has already furthered technology innovation and development. Netsmart collaborated with Ohio's Hospice to enhance the capabilities of a care logistics tool for proactive workforce management. Through this unique collaboration, Netsmart will drive capabilities including route optimization, call center management, schedule visibility for providers, shift bidding, electronic visit verification (EVV) and integration through the electronic health record (EHR)platform.



"Ohio's Hospice is seen in the industry as a key thought leader. This is purely a case of both organizations seeing the future state in a very similar fashion and creating a working partnership model that will ultimately accelerate both of our journeys," said Mike Valentine, CEO of Netsmart. "We are incredibly proud to be able to join forces with this team to address some of healthcare's most important challenges." The partnership aligns Netsmart and Ohio's Hospice as thought leaders and innovators committed to leading the transformation of the existing healthcare ecosystem to put the patient at the center of healthcare and emphasize value over volume. To support this effort, the partnership will focus on delivering innovations that support home care and hospice, inclusive of family and member engagement, meaningful clinical decision support, insightful analytics and advanced billing automation.

About Ohio's Hospice Ohio's Hospice is a partnership of mission-driven, not-for-profit hospices committed to a shared vision of strengthening and preserving community-based hospices. Members of Ohio's Hospice share the values of: Providing a patient atmosphere of hospitality, respect and caring

Attending to the social, physical and spiritual needs of each person we are privileged to serve

Preserving and enhancing patient dignity

Celebrating the life of each individual we serve

Reducing unnecessary suffering in the communities we serve Affiliates of Ohio's Hospice serve 37 counties across the state of Ohio. Affiliates of Ohio's Hospice include: Community Care Hospice, Ohio's Community Mercy Hospice, Ohio's Hospice at United Church Homes, Ohio's Hospice LifeCare, Ohio's Hospice Loving Care, Ohio's Hospice of Butler & Warren Counties, Ohio's Hospice of Central Ohio, Ohio's Hospice of Dayton, Ohio's Hospice of Fayette County and Ohio's Hospice of Miami County. Associate Members of Ohio's Hospice include: Community Hospice and Valley Hospice. About Netsmart Netsmart, a leading provider of Software as a Service ( SaaS (News - Alert) ) technology and services solutions, designs, builds and delivers electronic health records (EHRs), health information exchanges (HIEs), analytics and telehealth solutions and services that are powerful, intuitive and easy-to-use. Our platform provides accurate, up-to-date information that is easily accessible to care team members in the human services and post-acute care (which is comprised of home care and hospice and senior living) markets. We make the complex simple and personalized so our clients can concentrate on what they do best: provide services and treatment that support whole-person care. By leveraging the powerful Netsmart network, care providers can seamlessly and securely integrate information across communities, collaborate on the most effective treatments and improve outcomes for those in their care. Our streamlined systems and personalized workflows put relevant information at the fingertips of users when and where they need it. For more than 50 years, Netsmart has been committed to providing a common platform to integrate care. SIMPLE. PERSONAL. POWERFUL. Our more than 2,300 associates work hand-in-hand with our 680,000+ users at our clients across the U.S. to develop and deploy technology that automates and coordinates everything from clinical to financial to administrative. Learn more about how Netsmart is changing the face of healthcare today. Visit www.ntst.com, call 1-800-472-5509, follow us on our CareThreads Blog, LinkedIn and Twitter, like us on Facebook or visit us on YouTube. Netsmart is pleased to support the EveryDayMatters Foundation, which was established for behavioral health, home care, senior living and social services organizations to learn from each other and share their causes and stories. About National Hospice Cooperative National Hospice Cooperative is a nonprofit organization that provides world-class business support services to community-based, not-for-profit hospice providers. Through the cooperative, not-for-profit hospices can dedicate more dollars directly to their clinical mission while benefiting from a unique shared infrastructure to broaden purchasing power, employ efficient indirect services, and utilize financial management, which are all designed to support their mission while minimizing costs. National Hospice Cooperative, a direct affiliate of Ohio's Hospice, is based in Dayton, Ohio. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005202/en/

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[May 11, 2021] New Research Finds Political and Social Factors are Driving 2021 Financial Plans

OneStream Software, a leader in corporate performance management (CPM) solutions for the world's leading enterprises, has announced the results of its "Enterprise Financial Decision-Making 2021 - North America" survey. The study, conducted by Hanover Research, targeted finance leaders across North America and identified the factors driving their budgets and technology adoption plans for 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic created a heightened need for agile forecasting, predictive planning and digital transformation. With vaccine rollouts happening across North America, many finance executives are evaluating their workforce and supply chain needs for a post-pandemic reality. However, the political and social landscape have also heavily impacted investment decisions, leading executives to prioritize sustainability and diversity initiatives as well. When asked about key business drivers and plans for 2021, CFOs and other finance leaders were focused on several areas: Political and Social Initiatives are Dominating the 2021 Investment Landscape

Despite many companies deferring investments until after the election, over half of the finance leaders surveyed report that the election positively impacted their investment decisions for 2021. However, the Biden Administration's proposed legislation may cause additional business disruption. Most companies surveyed (86 percent) will need to change their financial forecasts in the event of a tax change by the new presidential administration. Similarly, most companies (89 percent) have already made plans to change hiring and staffing to accommodate potential wage increases. In addition to political impact, social and environmental investments are high on the agenda for 2021. The majority of financial executives surveyed are increasing, or are planning to increase, investments in Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) management and reporting systems (85 percent), as well as Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) training (86 percent). Of note, financial executives working in IT (65 percent) and finance (77 percent) industries are significantly more likely to be currently investing in DEI training than other industries (52 percent). Return to Office Investments are Underway, with Data Privacy Tools Coming to the Forefront





Finance is Embracing New Tech to Support Pandemic Impacts and a Dispersed Workforce

Since the COVID-19 pandemic started, the ability to quickly reforecast budgets and shift workflows has become essential. The rapid adoption of next-generation and predictive analytics to support these needs started last year: OneStream's 2020 Enterprise Financial Decision-Making Report found that less than half (46 percent) of the finance executives reported using cloud-based solutions regularly, while less than a quarter used machine learning (21 percent) and artificial intelligence (20 percent) solutions. Less than a year later, our 2021 report found that finance executives have significantly increased their data analysis tool investments and usage. Specifically, companies most commonly invested in artificial intelligence (59 percent) and increased their use of cloud-based planning and reporting solutions (65 percent). Additionally, most companies already use (69 percent) or plan to use (18 percent) low-code development platforms.

"Planning and forecasting has never been as critical to businesses as it is today," said Tom Shea, CEO of OneStream. "The pandemic demonstrated the importance of enterprises being able to shift quickly via the use of widely accessible data-backed insights to meet changing needs at a moment's notice. These findings reinforce that while the pandemic may have caused the initial acceleration in adoption of these technologies, these solutions are here to stay." About the survey:

The commissioned study, conducted by Hanover Research in April of 2021, sourced insights from 340 finance decision makers in the United States, Canada and Mexico. All individuals hold management position (C-level executive (CFO), VP, Director, Controller) in finance. Respondents work at companies across numerous industries and varying revenues, with 24 percent employed by companies with over $1 billion in annual revenue. For the full findings of the research, please visit www.onestreamsoftware.com/resources/lp-hanover-research-enterprise-financial-decision-making-2021/ About OneStream Software

OneStream Software provides a market-leading intelligent finance platform that reduces the complexity of financial operations. OneStream unleashes the power of finance by unifying corporate performance management (CPM) processes such as planning, financial close & consolidation, reporting and analytics through a single, extensible solution. We empower the enterprise with financial and operational insights to support faster and more informed decision-making. All in a cloud platform designed to continually evolve and scale with your organization. OneStream is an independent software company backed by private equity investors KKR, D1 Capital Partners, Tiger Global and IGSB. With over 700 customers, 200 implementation partners and over 800 employees our primary mission is to deliver 100% customer success, which we've done successfully since our inception. To learn more visit www.onestreamsoftware.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005723/en/

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 02:41:18|Editor: huaxia

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BAGHDAD, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi health authorities said on Monday that Iraqi laboratories don't have the ability to identify the double mutant coronavirus variant detected in India until a new testing lab is erected.

Riyadh Abdul-Amir, head of the ministry's Public Health Department, told the official Iraqi News Agency that the coronavirus variant detected in India cannot be identified until the building of the new genetic testing laboratory for viruses is completed in two months.

"We still do not know whether the vaccines are effective, but taking vaccines is still the best option for citizens," Abdul-Amir noted.

Meanwhile, a statement by the Iraqi Ministry of Health reported 4,902 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total nationwide number to 1,117,627.

The ministry also reported 29 new COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 15,800, while the total recoveries in Iraq climbed by 6,237 to 1,011,606.

A total of 9,707,527 tests have been carried out across the country since the outbreak of the disease in February 2020, with 34,315 done during the day.

Iraq has been pushing forward its vaccination drive after its drug authority approved the emergency use of China's Sinopharm vaccines and other COVID-19 vaccines.

Since the early stage of the pandemic in 2020, the Chinese government has sent medical aid to Iraq and donated two shipments of Sinopharm vaccines to the country to help combat the pandemic. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] New York Life Donates $300,000 to Help Fight India's COVID-19 Crisis

New York Life, America's largest and most admired1 mutual life insurer, announced today that it has donated $150,000 to Project Hope and $150,000 to American-India Foundation (AIF) to support COVID-19 relief efforts in India. "COVID-19 has negatively impacted all people globally and we are proud to support efforts aimed at stopping the further spread of this terrible virus," said Ted Mathas, Chairman and CEO. "As a mutual life insurer, one of our core values is to act with humanity and we hope these contributions help ease the suffering of the people of India." Project HOPE is working with local partners and government officials in India to facilitate the rapid procurement and distribution of PPE, oxygen supplies, ICU equipment, ventilators, and other critical items to support the country's overwhelmed health care system. Initial plans target five states in India, coordinating with government officials to get supplies to hospitals and clinics where they are needed most. New York Life has made two prior COVID-19-related donations to Project HOPE - for PPE in the U.S. at the start of the pandemic, and more recently to support COVID-19 vaccination efforts in the Navajo Nation. AIF has provided protective gear to more than 500,000 Indians, and prepared meals and ration kits to around 900,000 individuals, during the first phase of the pandemic in 2020. Through its mass awareness and prevention drive, AIF is now working to shore up supplies of medical oxygen amid rising demand for beds. Since the pandemic began, New York Life and the New York Life Foundation have provided over $34 million to support COVID-19 programs and relief efforts. This includes more than $27 million to the Brave of Heart Fund and a $1 million donation to the Ad Council to support the COVID Collaborative, a bipartisan group of cross-sector partners on a massive communications campaign to educate the public about the COVID vaccine, with a particular focus on diverse populations.



In 2020, New York Life and the Foundation provided nearly $68 million in charitable contributions including nearly $35 million in response to the pandemic and other natural disasters to support communities across the country. About New York Life

New York Life Insurance Company (www.newyorklife.com), a Fortune 100 company founded in 1845, is the largest mutual life insurance company in the United States* and one of the largest life insurers in the world. Headquartered in New York City, New York Life's family of companies offers life insurance, retirement income, investments and long-term care insurance. New York Life has the highest financial strength ratings currently awarded to any U.S. life insurer from all four of the major credit rating agencies**.

New York Life Group Benefit Solutions products and services are provided exclusively by or through Life Insurance Company of North America ("LINA") or Cigna Life Insurance Company of New York (New York, NY) ("CLICNY"), or by or through affiliates or subsidiaries of Cigna Corporation and reinsured by LINA. LINA and CLICNY are responsible for their own financial condition and contractual obligations. LINA is not authorized in New York and does not conduct insurance business in New York. *Based on revenue as reported by "Fortune 500 ranked within Industries, Insurance: Life, Health (Mutual)," Fortune magazine, 5/18/2020. For methodology, please see http://fortune.com/fortune500/.

**Individual independent rating agency commentary as of 10/15/2020: A.M. Best (A++), Fitch (AAA), Moody's Investors Service (Aaa), Standard & Poor's (AA+). 1 As reported by "Fortune 2021 World's Most Admired Companies ranking within Insurance (Life and Health)," Fortune magazine, 2/1/2021. For methodology, please see https://fortune.com/franchise-list-page/methodology-worlds-most-admired-companies-2021/. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005161/en/

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[May 11, 2021] New York Tween Brothers Spend Pandemic Building Family Friendly Vacation App to Enhance 'Disney Magic'

PLAINVIEW, N.Y., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- One year ago, with the pandemic looming and all vacation plans dashed and summer camp cancelled, one tech savvy dad coupled some much-needed family fun with technology. Adam Bellow, a serial entrepreneur and father of two creative boys, encouraged them to marry their love for all things Disney with a community focused purpose. Pulling on memories of their frequent vacations at their beloved theme parks, the imaginative duo put their heads together to build the ultimate Disney Theme Park planning tool - Best Disney Day (MyBDD). Reid (10) and Hunter (12) spearheaded the project, drawing on their experiences at the Happiest Place on Earth. The precocious tweens made the best of the pandemic shutdown by building a sleek, family friendly app with colorful graphics, descriptions of each ride, including the height requirements, the duration of the ride, and up to the minute wait times. The goal was simple  create an app that would help families et the most out of their favorite vacation spots  Disney World and the recently reopened Disneyland.



They dreamt up features that allow changes in weather or a change in your GPS coordinates to customize plans based on your preferences and "maximize your park time." Users can personalize their adventures by choosing a theme, such as pirates or princesses, and the MyBDD app will guide you to the right attraction to make the most of your day. The app even allows you to invite others to plan the day as a group. The intuitive siblings know family members may like different types of rides, so they programmed the app to notify the group when one member of the party does not like a particular ride or simply isn't tall enough for the attraction. The Bellow brothers know how to make the best of Disney including adding a camera spotter to the app which tells users where cameras are on the rides so they know the right time to say cheese.

Park goers should know Disneyland has 45 rides and a slew of attractions, while Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, boasts over 53 rides and shows, four theme parks, two water parks, and 27 resort themed hotels. This 25,000-acre landscape can be quite dizzying for first timers, so MyBDD comes to the rescue offering an interactive guided tour of the parks in the palm of your hand. The MyBDD app is now available as a free download on Google Play and Apple App Store. There is a one-time upgrade fee that unlocks the Magic when in the parks and 25 percent of any proceeds go to support the March of Dimes and Make-A-Wish foundation  two of the Bellow family's favorite charities. What started as a fun project between two siblings, is now a powerful digital tool helping thousands of families enjoy their Best Disney Day! Press Contact: Adam Bellow

308778@email4pr.com

?(516) 234-0272 View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-york-tween-brothers-spend-pandemic-building-family-friendly-vacation-app-to-enhance-disney-magic-301288307.html SOURCE MyBDD, LLC

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[May 11, 2021] Odgers Berndtson Launches Blockchain Practice

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Odgers Berndtson, the world's sixth largest global executive search firm, is launching a Blockchain Practice in the United States. "Distribute ledger-enabled technologies are impacting the corporate world across the industry spectrum," said Steve Potter, CEO of Odgers Berndtson U.S. "They're changing the way companies edit and sign contracts; they're bringing unprecedented levels of visibility into supply chains; and they're poised to drastically restructure our financial system. As our clients grapple to find and implement novel uses for blockchainor to react to the disruptions resulting from itwe felt it was important to step formally into the space and help bring clarity to the evolving talent landscape." Odgers Berndtson's announcement comes just days after the launch of OBDynamicsa proprietary AI-enabled talent platform and analytics service that allows Odgers Berndtson to provide highly detailed mapping and analytics services alongside C-level executive and middle market search. The firm intends to bring a data-driven approach to the blockchain talent market. "Across nearly all industries, the workplace is becoming more distributed, faster paced, and increasingly consists of both full-time and gig workers," said Odgers Berndtson Partner, Richard Pooley, who will lead the Blockchain Practice in the United States. "This blended workforce requires organizations to adopt a new kind of 'liquid' talent strategy tailored to their short-term and long-term hiring needs and can provide their business areas with fluid resources to quickly scale up or down as needed."



"This is why OBDynamics will be such a central part of our blockchain recruiting offering," continued Pooley. "Underpinning the platform is a proprietary machine learning data lake ingesting and resolving thousands of data sources which continually update and enrich our database of people and companies. For instance, we are working with clients to rapidly build geographical maps of particular talent types, highlighting location and diversity density and illustrating how compensation fluctuates across geographies and sectors." Pooley also noted that the nature of blockchain talent is maturing alongside the technology.

"Companies developing or adopting blockchain technologies are increasingly looking to hire a kind of 'hybrid' senior individual who has deep distributed ledger technical expertise combined with the executive presence and organizational sophistication to be able to act as a 'bridge' between a company's blockchain engineers and its senior leadership team." Reflecting the technology's wide base of applications, Odgers Berndtson's Blockchain Practice will not be limited to financial services and/or technology applications and will instead work closely with clients across a broad range of industries. About Odgers Berndtson For more than 50 years, Odgers Berndtson has delivered executive search, leadership assessment, and development strategies to the world's biggest and best organizations. Odgers Berndtson's 250+ partners cover more than 50 sectors and operate out of more than 30 countries. The U.S. wing of the firm launched in 2011 and is one of the fastest growing search firms in the Americas. Odgers Berndtson currently has U.S. offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, San Francisco, and Washington DC. CONTACT

Steve Potter

Richard Pooley

Richard.pooley@odgersberndtson.com

steve.potter@odgersberndtson.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/odgers-berndtson-launches-blockchain-practice-301288823.html SOURCE Odgers Berndtson

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[May 11, 2021] OncoResponse Appoints Chris Russell as Chief Financial Officer

SEATTLE, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OncoResponse, a biotechnology company harnessing the power of the human immune system to identify and develop novel monoclonal antibodies to immunosuppressive myeloid targets for cancer immunotherapy, today announced the appointment of Chris Russell as Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Russell previously served as financial advisor to OncoResponse and now joins the Companys senior leadership.

We are thrilled to have Chris join our strong team to help us oversee our path to IPO and the public markets, said Clifford Stocks, Chief Executive Officer of OncoResponse. Chris has a diverse background with experience across several functions. He will be a great asset to our company as we expand and advance our pipeline of cancer immunotherapies into the clinic. Mr. Russell brings to OncoResponse over 30 years of experience as a growth company executive and entrepreneur. He served as President of Oracle Corp.s online division, where he launched their on-demand offerings, now a multi-billion-dollar business. Mr. Russell has also helped lead and grow numerous successful new companies and products. He was on the team who conceived and funded ArcSight, which completed a successful IPO and was acquired by HP for $1.5 billion. He led product and marketing at WageWorks, who completed an IPO and was later acquired by HealthEquity for $2 billion. As foundingCOO, he helped fund and grow TrustArc, the leader in internet data privacy. Earlier in his career, Mr. Russell was a strategy consultant at Booz Allen and an auditor and CPA at both EY and PwC.



Mr. Russell holds a degree in Accounting from the University of Washington and an M.B.A with honors from the University of Chicago, Booth Graduate School of Business. Im pleased to join OncoResponse at this exciting point in their growth, said Mr. Russell. The Company has developed important insights into new ways to combat cancer and is now advancing those discoveries into clinical therapies with wonderful potential to improve the lives of patients and their families. I am delighted to join their talented team and contribute to the financial and operational performance of the Company.

ABOUT ONCORESPONSE

OncoResponse, Inc., an immuno-oncology focused biotech company, in a broad strategic alliance with MD Anderson Cancer Center uses a proprietary B-cell technology platform to mine the immune system of cancer patients who have responded to cancer immunotherapy to discover novel targets and antibodies, and develop therapeutic monoclonal antibodies to treat cancer. OncoResponse has several antibodies directed at modulating immunosuppression of the tumor microenvironment in pre-clinical development and a CD163 targeting antibody entering clinical studies summer 2021. OncoResponse, Inc. is a privately held company backed by investment from MD Anderson Cancer Center, Rivervest Venture Partners, Redmile Group, Magnetar Group, Yonjin Venture, Bering Capital, ARCH Venture Partners, Helsinn Investment Fund, Canaan Partners, GreatPoint Ventures, Takeda Ventures, Buchang Pharma, Alexandria Real Estate Equities and William Marsh Rice University. For more information please visit: www.oncoresponseinc.com INVESTOR CONTACT: John Graziano

Solebury Trout

+1 646-378-2942

jgraziano@soleburytrout.com



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[May 11, 2021] Payscale Wins Software Category of Fast Company's 2021 World Changing Ideas Awards

SEATTLE, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Payscale Inc., a modern compensation management company, is the winner of the software category in Fast Companys 2021 World Changing Ideas Awards for its Peer compensation technology product. The winners of Fast Companys 2021 World Changing Ideas Awards honor businesses, policies, projects, and concepts that are actively engaged and deeply committed to pursuing innovation when it comes to solving health and climate crises, social injustice, or economic inequality.

Payscale, which recently merged with Payfactors, helps organizations set fair compensation by providing on-demand access to continuously updated salary data. Where traditional salary data is collected via a survey process and takes half a year to validate and distribute, the Peer product enables organizations to exchange salary data in real time with segmentation by industry and differentials for location and skills. The Peer platform saw its customer base boom in 2020, with an average of 40 new companies joining each month for 32% year-over-year growth. Now in its fifth year, the World Changing Ideas Awards showcase 33 winners, more than 400 finalists, and more than 800 honorable mentionswith Health and Wellness, AI & Data among the most popular categories. A panel of eminent Fast Company editors and reporters selected winners and finalists from a pool of more than 4,000 entries across transportation, education, food, politics, technology, and more. The pandemic really highlighted the need for accurate data, and I think it accelerated the need for having these really strategic conversations around compensation, said Sarah Kalogerakis,vice president of Peer. With the shift to remote working and the social justice issues, it really shined a big spotlight on compensation and getting pay right.



Think LinkedIn, but for compensation  in that it facilitates direct connections, Payscale chief strategy officer Jeff Laliberte wrote about Peer at its launch. With these direct connections, you get access to living, dynamic markets. You can securely exchange compensation data within closed, highly relevant groups in near-real-time. And the data you exchange and the frequency it refreshes is completely up to you. I like the ability to get market values in real time with Peer, said Erin Stoloff, senior manager of human capital solutions with PetSmart, a customer of Payscale. For some jobs, the data is continually changing, and it can be hard to get these recent changes from traditional surveys. We can always find a benchmark in Peer.

For employers, compensation strategy has become critical. The labor market has been changing swiftly during the COVID-19 pandemic, with positions such as contact tracer or social distancing ambassador appearing in 2020 that didnt exist the year before, as well as rapid growth in pay for the hottest jobs. To adapt, organizations have needed to develop an agile approach to compensation management. According to Payscales 2021 Compensation Best Practices Report, 65.3% of orgs said that given the events of 2020, changing their compensation strategy is important in the next 12-18 months. There is no question our society and planet are facing deeply troubling times. So, its important to recognize organizations that are using their ingenuity, impact, design, scalability, and passion to solve these problems, says Stephanie Mehta, editor-in-chief of Fast Company. Our journalists, under the leadership of senior editor Morgan Clendaniel, have discovered some of the most groundbreaking projects that have launched since the start of 2020. About the World Changing Ideas Awards: World Changing Ideas is one of Fast Companys major annual awards programs and is focused on social good, seeking to elevate finished products and brave concepts that make the world better. A panel of judges from across sectors choose winners, finalists, and honorable mentions based on feasibility and the potential for impact. With the goals of awarding ingenuity and fostering innovation, Fast Company draws attention to ideas with great potential and helps them expand their reach to inspire more people to start working on solving the problems that affect us all. About Payscale: As the industry leader in compensation data and technology, Payscale helps organizations #getpayright. Payscale is the only technology solution for managing compensation that provides multiple streams of transparently curated, and validated market salary data. Combined with modeling engines that learn continuously and generate recommendations and insight, Payscale empowers HR to price jobs and adjust compensation to reflect near real-time changes in the market  all on one trusted data platform. With Payscales Adaptive Compensation Advantage, teams operate with efficiency, focused on outcomes rather than manual data management. To learn how companies like The Washington Post, Perry Ellis International, United Healthcare and The New York Times rely on Payscale to attract and retain top talent, motivate and engage employees, and plan their future workforce, visit payscale.com. Contact:

Max Thon

press@payscale.com



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[May 11, 2021] ROCSYS raises $6.3M to strengthen its leadership position in robotic EV charging solutions

DELFT, Netherlands, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ROCSYS, the global leader in robotic EV charging solutions, has raised 6.3 million dollars (5.25 million Euros) in a round led by Forward.One. The investment provides a solid basis to scale up activities throughout Europe, and launch a North-American business unit, now that robotics starts to enter the global EV charging domain. "The coming period will be pivotal for our business. We will move from technology development and commercial pilots to serial deployment. We are ready for the future, and are very well positioned to engage the full market potential," said Crijn Bouman, CEO of ROCSYS. "Automation brings EV charging to the next level of reliability and performance. This is crucial to the success of EVs in large professional operations, for example operations depending on fleets. With the investment and support of our great investors, we will make that happen." The entire investment is done by ROCSYS' existing investors: Forward.One and Superangel. To date, ROCSYS has raised a total of $9 million (7.5 million) since its founding in 2019, which includes additional funding by UNIIQ and grants. Frederik Gerner, partner at Forward.One, said: "We are truly impressed with the speed and professionalism of the ROCSYS team. Within record time, ROCSYS managed to bring very advanced technology to a marketable solution, while signing partnerships with several of the largest brands in the industry. The simplicity of their solution, using industry-standard vehicle connectors, makes it an obvious choice for major vehicle OEMs. This is why we decided to increase our stake, and to lead this second investment round." Enabling scalable operations with EVs

The highly-experienced entrepreneurial team addresses a key challeng in the booming EV ecosystem. ROCSYS' robotics and site automation services make EV charging truly seamless. This enables unprecedented performance for professional operations, and the best imaginable experience for drivers and operators.



ROCSYS supports large vehicle OEMs in their electrification efforts, as an optimal EV-charging operation is a key factor in making the use of EVs a winning proposition. The crucial points herein are throughput, reliability, cost efficiency and safety. ROCSYS addresses these points with its products. Additionally, as the automotive world steadily moves towards self-parking and self-driving, automation of charging becomes inevitable for the globally installed base of EV chargers. ROCSYS' patented soft-robotics technology and AI-based computer vision allow for safe and cost-efficient automation of the standard EV-charging connection. Its products can automate existing fast chargers up to 350kW and MW-capable chargers in the near future, allowing electric vehicles of all types to be charged automatically within minutes. Together with a suite of site-automation services, remote support, and API integration, operators can move to truly unmanned charging operations. This unlocks unprecedented functionality, performance, and ROI of their charging- and EV assets, while simultaneously getting prepared for the era of self-parking and self-driving.

"We have been supporting ROCSYS from the start with full confidence in its team, who have earned their credits in the EV and robotics space. They are working with the major players in the market, and are leading the development of the robotic charging ecosystem. They are really in the driver's seat everywhere, including the international standardization committees about robotic charging," said Veljo Otsasson, partner at Superangel. About ROCSYS ROCSYS aims to accelerate the energy transition by automating the charging process of electric vehicles. We automate all physical handling related to EV charging through soft-robotics and site automation services, unlocking next-level EV-charging performance for professional operations. We enable viable business cases with EVs and support vehicle manufacturers' roadmaps toward autonomous driving. ROCSYS solutions are truly smart and use advanced robotics to automate the standard charging connections present on vehicles. Therefore, our solutions require minimal physical integration efforts for vehicle manufacturers. Our site automation services offer seamless integration into any professional infrastructure operation. As a leading player in automated charging, we drive standardization of robotic charging and aim for a future where every charger in the world is automated.

http://www.rocsys.com About FORWARD.one

FORWARD.one is a VC fund focussed on investing in high-tech start-ups and scale-ups. With a team of financial professionals and technology entrepreneurs, FORWARD.one actively supports their portfolio companies to achieve their goals and ambitions. After successfully deploying the first fund, FORWARD.one has started raising its second fund and keeps on investing in promising high-tech entrepreneurs and their companies.

https://www.forward.one/ About Superangel

Superangel is an early stage investment fund based in Estonia, created by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs. As a syndicate of company builders, the Superangel team helps founders reach their next major milestone, providing expertise in go-to-market strategy, customer and business development, recruiting, sales, marketing, and product development.

www.superangel.io View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rocsys-raises-6-3m-to-strengthen-its-leadership-position-in-robotic-ev-charging-solutions-301288259.html SOURCE Rocsys B.V.

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[May 11, 2021] SALT to Partner with iConnections on Networking Solutions for New York Event

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- SALT, a global thought leadership forum, will partner with iConnections, a technology platform, to provide networking solutions for SALT New York, which will take place September 13-15, 2021 at the new Javits Center Expansion. SALT will use the proprietary iConnections platform to connect asset allocators, investment managers and entrepreneurs, both at the live event and virtually. The new SALT-iConnections partnership will bring industry-leading events, focused on both premier insights and networking opportunities, to the alternative investment community. SALT, founded in 2009, has hosted prestigious forums in Singapore, Tokyo and Abu Dhabi, in addition to its flagship annual U.S. event. iConnections' Global Alternative Investment Conference, launching in January 2022, is a new event at the Fontainebleau Hotel Miami Beach during hedge fund week. iConnections co-founder and CEO Ron Biscardi previously co-founded and served as the CEO of Context Summits. "iConnections has built tremendous technology that brings investor networking into the modern era," said Anthony Scaramucci, founder and chairman of SALT. "We're thrilled to partner with Ron and his team to make SALT events more productive and efficient for investors and founders in our community." SALT delegates will gain access to the iConnections platform, where Limited Partners (LPs) can perform research, schedule meetings and teleconference with General Partners (GPs), who can upload detailed company information. Users will have extended access to the platform before and after SALT New York and will be able to manage their personal event agenda. iConnections launched ts purpose-built platform in 2020 with Funds4Food, a cap intro-style virtual event that brought together thousands to benefit global charities addressing food insecurity.



"SALT brings together the most influential investors and entrepreneurs in the world and is one of the must-attend events on the annual calendar," said Ron Biscardi, CEO of iConnections. "We're excited to combine our technology and meetings expertise with SALT's premier thought leadership to foster high-level collaboration." SALT New York will be one of the first major thought leadership events in the post-COVID era. While SALT anticipates a large in-person presence, organizers are excited to offer a robust virtual participation option for those unable to travel to the event. Remote delegates will be able to watch select content and network with fellow attendees on the iConnections platform. The Javits Center Expansion will have a variety of advanced safety protocols in place, and SALT will continue to consult public health officials regarding event best practices.

To learn more about SALT New York, request an invitation, or inquire about sponsorship opportunities, please visit salt.org. About SALT SALT is a global thought leadership forum dedicated to empowering big ideas across finance, technology and policy. Founded in 2009, SALT's flagship annual conference brings together the world's foremost investors, creators, and thinkers for three days of collaboration and networking. Visit salt.org to learn more or connect with SALT on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram. About iConnections iConnections is a software-powered community connecting the investment management industry. On the platform, managers securely share company information with allocators, who can seamlessly evaluate and engage with relevant managers. The scalable technology powering iConnections can be used for all types of bespoke investor events. In an increasingly digital world, iConnections has reimagined how the investment industry connects. Visit https://iconnections.io to learn more. Contact: Jami Schlicher

JConnelly

973-850-7309

jschlicher@jconnelly.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/salt-to-partner-with-iconnections-on-networking-solutions-for-new-york-event-301288730.html SOURCE SALT

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[May 11, 2021] Seasonal Slide: CoreLogic Reports U.S. Mortgage Delinquency Rates Level Off in February

CoreLogic (NYSE: CLGX), a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, today released its monthly Loan Performance Insights Report for February 2021. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005273/en/ CoreLogic National Overview of Mortgage Loan Performance, featuring February 2021 Data (Graphic: Business Wire) For the month of February, 5.7% of all mortgages in the U.S. were in some stage of delinquency (30 days or more past due, including those in foreclosure), representing a 2.1-percentage point increase in the overall delinquency rates compared to February 2020. The slight (0.1 percentage point) increase over January 2021 marks the first uptick in month-to-month national delinquency since August 2020. To gain an accurate view of the mortgage market and loan performance health, CoreLogic examines all stages of delinquency. In February 2021, the U.S. delinquency and transition rates, and their year-over-year changes, were as follows: Early-Stage Delinquencies (30 to 59 days past due): 1.5%, down from 1.8% in February 2020.

(30 to 59 days past due): 1.5%, down from 1.8% in February 2020. Adverse Delinquency (60 to 89 days past due): 0.5%, down from 0.6% in February 2020.

(60 to 89 days past due): 0.5%, down from 0.6% in February 2020. Serious Delinquency (90 days or more past due, including loans in foreclosure): 3.7%, up from 1.2% in February.

(90 days or more past due, including loans in foreclosure): 3.7%, up from 1.2% in February. Foreclosure Inventory Rate (the share of mortgages in some stage of the foreclosure process): 0.3%, down from 0.4% in February 2020.

(the share of mortgages in some stage of the foreclosure process): 0.3%, down from 0.4% in February 2020. Transition Rate (the share of mortgages that transitioned from current to 30 days past due): 0.9%, unchanged from February 2020. Government support throughout the pandemic, and improving mployment rates, have enabled more borrowers to remain current on their mortgages than would otherwise have occurred. With a more optimistic economic outlook, consumer sentiment has improved. In fact, according to a recent CoreLogic consumer survey, 8 in 10 respondents indicated they were unlikely to fall behind on their mortgage payment based on their current financial situation.



"Overall delinquency ticked up slightly in February, but the serious delinquency and foreclosure rates continued a sequential monthly decline that began in August," said Frank Martell, president and CEO of CoreLogic. "Consumer confidence continues to rise as the economy roars back to life. These factors bode well for housing fundamentals in 2021 and as far as the eye can see." "Some families that had overspent during the year-end holiday season, and then faced financial stress in the new year, may slip behind on a mortgage payment by February," said Dr. Frank Nothaft, chief economist at CoreLogic. "During each of the last five years, the 30-day delinquency rate moved higher from January to February. With economic conditions improving, we expect delinquency rates to move lower in coming months."

State and Metro Takeaways: All U.S. states and nearly all metro areas logged increases in annual overall delinquency rates in February.

Hawaii and Nevada (both up 4 percentage points) again logged the largest annual increase in overall delinquency rates in February.

Among metros, Odessa, Texas, still recovering from job losses in the oil industry, had the largest annual overall delinquency increase with 9.9 percentage points.

Other metro areas with significant overall delinquency increases included Midland, Texas (up 7.7 percentage points); Kahului, Hawaii (up 6.5 percentage points); and Lake Charles, Louisiana (up 6.2 percentage points). The next CoreLogic Loan Performance Insights Report will be released on June 8, 2021, featuring data for March 2021. For ongoing housing trends and data, visit the CoreLogic Insights Blog: www.corelogic.com/insights. Methodology The data in The CoreLogic LPI (News - Alert) report represents foreclosure and delinquency activity reported through February 2021. The data in this report accounts for only first liens against a property and does not include secondary liens. The delinquency, transition and foreclosure rates are measured only against homes that have an outstanding mortgage. Homes without mortgage liens are not subject to foreclosure and are, therefore, excluded from the analysis. CoreLogic has approximately 75% coverage of U.S. foreclosure data. About the CoreLogic Consumer Housing Sentiment Study 3,000+ consumers were surveyed by CoreLogic via Qualtrics. The study is an annual pulse of U.S. housing market dynamics concentrated on consumers looking to purchase a home, consumers not looking to purchase a home, and current mortgage holder. The survey was conducted in April 2021 and hosted on Qualtrics. The survey has a sampling error of ~3% at the total respondent level with a 95% confidence level. Source (News - Alert) : CoreLogic The data provided is for use only by the primary recipient or the primary recipient's publication or broadcast. This data may not be re-sold, republished or licensed to any other source, including publications and sources owned by the primary recipient's parent company without prior written permission from CoreLogic. Any CoreLogic data used for publication or broadcast, in whole or in part, must be sourced as coming from CoreLogic, a data and analytics company. For use with broadcast or web content, the citation must directly accompany first reference of the data. If the data is illustrated with maps, charts, graphs or other visual elements, the CoreLogic logo must be included on screen or website. For questions, analysis or interpretation of the data, contact Amy Brennan at newsmedia@corelogic.com. Data provided may not be modified without the prior written permission of CoreLogic. Do not use the data in any unlawful manner. This data is compiled from public records, contributory databases and proprietary analytics, and its accuracy is dependent upon these sources. About CoreLogic CoreLogic (NYSE: CLGX), the leading provider of property insights and solutions, promotes a healthy housing market and thriving communities. Through its enhanced property data solutions, services and technologies, CoreLogic enables real estate professionals, financial institutions, insurance carriers, government agencies and other housing market participants to help millions of people find, buy and protect their homes. For more information, please visit www.corelogic.com. CORELOGIC and the CoreLogic logo are trademarks of CoreLogic, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005273/en/

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[May 11, 2021] SecureLink Acquires Leading Data Governance Company Maize Analytics

AUSTIN, Texas, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, SecureLink , a leader in third-party remote access and security, has acquired Maize Analytics , a leading provider of data governance solutions, to tackle organizations largest security risks and bring compliance innovation to the market.

By combining SecureLinks unique third-party security features with Maize Analytics innovative machine learning capabilities to secure insider access, we are extending our solutions for our customers - one that covers both employee and third-party access to the most mission critical and sensitive systems, said Joe Devine, CEO of SecureLink. Maize Analytics technology identifies non-compliant or risky behavior within the systems to which SecureLink currently controls access. This creates a holistic solution for the highest risk areas in regulated industries, whether it be medical records in healthcare, mission critical industrial control systems in utilities and manufacturing, or sensitive data such as citizen or criminal records in state and local government. The combination of Maize with SecureLink creates tremendous opportunities to serve our customers with market leading security and compliance solutions. SecureLink brings world class tehnology including third-party identity management, zero trust network access, and detailed video recording and keystroke logs of third-party activity. Bringing these technologies together with Maize's artificial intelligence and audit review capabilities allows us to tackle new challenges in security, privacy, and compliance, said Daniel Fabbri, CEO, and Founder of Maize Analytics.



The combined solution is available to customers across multiple industries. The healthcare sector, in particular, will reap the benefits as both companies have significant expertise in this space. SecureLink currently serves over 1,000 U.S. based hospitals and Maize Analytics is the Best in KLAS as the leading provider of Electronic Health Record access monitoring, enabling compliance and privacy officers to quickly audit medical record accesses and identify suspicious behavior. SecureLink continues to grow rapidly, increasing revenue by 86% over the last two years - a result of organizations prioritizing securing their networks against vulnerabilities while ensuring compliance requirements. The need is highlighted by a recent report conducted by SecureLink and Ponemon Institute revealing that remote access is becoming an organizations weakest attack surface. Findings show that 44% of organizations have experienced a breach within the last 12 months, with 74% saying it was the result of giving too much privileged access to third parties.

Brentwood Capital Advisors LLC served as exclusive financial advisor, and Bodman PLC served as legal advisor to Maize Analytics. Choate, Hall & Stewart LLP acted as legal advisors to SecureLink. AB Private Credit Investors and Antares Capital provided financing for the transaction. About SecureLink

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, SecureLink is the leader in third-party security, providing secure third-party remote access for both highly regulated enterprise organizations and technology vendors. SecureLink solves and secures the greatest point of risk in the third-party lifecycle for more than 30,000 organizations worldwide, providing companies across multiple industries, including healthcare, manufacturing, government, legal, and gaming, with secure remote access with identity management, access controls, audit, and compliance assurance. Contact

Codeword for SecureLink

securelink@codewordagency.com

415-370-0716



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[May 11, 2021] SOS Subsidiaries Receive MSB Licenses from US and Canada

QINGDAO, China, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- SOS Limited (NYSE: SOS) (the "Company" or "SOS") announced today that its US and Canadian subsidiaries obtained money services business, or MSB, licenses from, the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Department of the Treasury, and the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre (FINTRAC), respectively. The US MSB license issued by FinCEN allows SOS subsidiary to act as a foreign exchange dealer, money transfer agent and seller of money orders. The Canadian MSB license issued by FINTRAC, allows SOS to conduct money transfers, and be a dealer for foreign exchange, as well as virtual currencies. Mr. Yandai Wang, CEO of SOS, commented, "The overall plan of SOS' digital currency business is systematically designed around blockchain technology. The set up of a digital currency exchange is a key component. We anticipate this exchange will be operated via US XX Exchange Ltd, our U.S. subsidiary, Canada XX Exchange Ltd, our Canadian subsidiary, or subsidiaries in other select jurisdictions. Receipt of the two MSB licenses is a major milestone in our compliance efforts. We are continuing work on the other licenses and permits required to launch the exchange and expect to begin discussions with third party service providers in the near future. We remain optimistic about the development of block-chain technology. The mutual promotion of mining and exchange businesses will provide us with multi-faceted experience and progress towards the commercialization of block-chain technology. " About SOS Limited SOS is an emerging marketing and solution provider based on blockchain and big data drive. It has about 20 million members in China. In July 2020, the headquarters of SOS moved from Gui'an new area to Qingdao West Coast new area. Recently, SOS has outlined its strategy in blockchain and cryptocurrency, including a series of measures to expand its business to cryptocurrncy mining, cryptocurrency security and insurance and digital asset exchange. The core infrastructure of SOS' marketing data, technology and solutions to insurance and emergency rescue services is built on big data, blockchain-based technology, cloud computing, AI, satellite, and 5G network, etc. SOS has created a cloud "software as a service (SaaS)" platform for emergency rescue services, with three major product categories: basic cloud, cooperative cloud, and information cloud. This system provides innovative marketing solutions to clients such as insurance companies, financial institutions, medical institutions, healthcare providers, auto manufacturers, security providers, senior living assistance providers, and other service providers in the emergency rescue services industry.



SOS has obtained a national high-tech enterprise certification and the title of "Big Data Star Enterprise," awarded by Gui'an New District Government. Staying on the forefront of digital technology innovation, the Company has registered 99 software copyrights and 3 patents. For more information, please visit: http://www.sosyun.com/ . Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including, but not limited to, our expectations for future financial performance, business strategies or expectations for our business. These statements constitute projections, forecasts and forward-looking statements, and are not guarantees of performance. SOS cautions that forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, which change over time. Words such as "may," "can," "should," "will," "estimate," "plan," "project," "forecast," "intend," "expect," "anticipate," "believe," "seek," "target," "look" or similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on information available as of the date of this press release and our management's current expectations, forecasts and assumptions, and involve a number of judgments, risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but not are limited to, the risk factors described by SOS in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). These risk factors and those identified elsewhere in this press release, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from historical performance. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date, and you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements in deciding whether to invest in our securities. We do not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. Additional information concerning these and other factors that may impact our expectations and projections can be found in our periodic filings with the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020. SOS's SEC filings are available publicly on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. SOS disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sos-subsidiaries-receive-msb-licenses-from-us-and-canada-301288457.html SOURCE SOS Limited

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 04:00:24|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (L) welcomes Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez at Greek Prime Minister's Office in Athens, Greece, on May 10, 2021. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visited Greece on Monday to attend the 6th Delphi Economic Forum. (Photo by Michalis Karayannis/Xinhua)

ATHENS, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday called for waiving intellectual property rights protected by patents for COVID-19 vaccines in order to speed up production to assist countries in need.

"The health crisis has highlighted more than anything the need for joint action to address threats," Mitsotakis said following a meeting with his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez in Athens.

"The main issue today is how we will allow, using all the means at our disposal, the production of more vaccines and export them without hindrance to the countries in need," Greek national broadcaster ERT quoted him as saying.

"Thanks to vaccination we can feel more optimistic about the pandemic," the Spanish leader said, adding that the vaccinations are opening the road to economic recovery.

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, vaccination is underway in an increasing number of countries with already-authorized coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, 280 candidate vaccines are still being developed worldwide -- 97 of them in clinical trials -- in countries including Germany, China, Russia, Britain, and the United States, according to the World Health Organization.

Mitsotakis and Sanchez, as well as Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa who also visited the Greek capital on Monday, expressed their strong support for the Digital Green Certificate, introduced by the European Commission and expected to be implemented from June to help ease restrictions on non-essential travels to the European Union (EU).

The "green pass" will be given to EU residents who can prove they have been vaccinated and to those who have a recent negative test result, or can prove they have recovered from the infection.

The three prime ministers, along with other leaders, participated in the Delphi Economic Forum VI that takes place in Athens and online from Monday until Saturday.

Over 1,000 guest speakers from some 40 countries are expected to take part in the discussions on themes such as global economy, climate change, technology and health. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] Statement by Minister O'Regan Regarding Line 5

OTTAWA, ON, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - Today, the Honourable Seamus O'Regan Jr., Minister of Natural Resources, released the following statement on the filing of an amicus curiae brief regarding the Line 5 pipeline in United States federal court: "Energy security, economic prosperity and supporting energy workers are top priorities for the Government of Canada. "Line 5 is essential to our energy security. The Government of Canada has continuously advocated for and raised the importance of Line 5. We've worked in close collaboration with provinces, industry and labour and have raised Line 5 directly with the U.S. Administration. It has been  and continues to be  a Team Canada approach. Line 5 does not just affect one province or one region  it supports our entire country. "Today, Canada filed an amicus curiae brief in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michian. This brief supports the continued mediation between Enbridge and the State of Michigan, underlines that Line 5 is a critical energy and economic link between Canada and the United States, and conveys Canada's belief that the U.S. federal court is the proper jurisdiction to hear the case between Michigan and Enbridge.



"Line 5 is a vital piece of infrastructure for Canada and the United States and has safely operated at the Straits of Mackinac for 68 years. It remains the safest, most efficient way to transport fuel to refineries and markets and is a reliable source of energy for Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Ontario and Quebec. This pipeline is as important to Canada as it is to the U.S. It heats both Canadian and American homes. It supports both Canadian and American jobs. "Under the federal court's order, Enbridge and Michigan have entered into a mediation process and are meeting regularly. We remain confident this will lead to a solution. In filing this amicus brief, we worked with the governments of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Quebec. We are continuing to work together to defend Line 5, leaving no stone unturned in defending Canada's energy security and the workers who built this country."

LINK TO AMICUS SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

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[May 11, 2021] Surna Reports Q1 2021 Results

Announces $11.6 million in Backlog, second highest in Company history, and 37% higher than previous quarter Boulder, Colorado, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Surna Inc. (OTCQB: SRNA), operating as Surna Cultivation Technologies, announced today operating and financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2021. We will be hosting an investor conference call to discuss our Q1 2021 financial results and to provide updates on our recent business developments and our strategic growth plan. The call will be held on Thursday, May 13, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. To access the investor call via telephone: Dial-In Number: 1-973-528-0008 Access Code: 755823 To access the investor call via the Internet: Webcast URL: https://www.webcaster4.com/Webcast/Page/2020/41253 Interested parties, with contact information supplied, may submit questions to the Company prior to the call to investor@surna.com. These questions, along with all live questions, will be answered in the time available. For those unable to participate in the investor conference call at that time, a replay will be available on the investor relations section of our website at https://surna.com/investor-relations/ beginning on May 14, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time (and will remain available until July 1, 2021). Financial Highlights ? Our Q1 2021 revenue was $2.4 million, which represents a 31% increase compared to Q1 2020 revenue. ? For Q1 2021, our operating loss and net loss was $686,000 and $793,000, respectively. This compares to a Q1 2020 operating loss and net loss of $946,000 and $938,000, respectively. ? Our Q1 2021 adjusted net loss[1] was $650,000, compared to a Q1 2020 adjusted net loss of $718,000. ? Our Q1 2021 gross profit margin was 14.6% compared to 25.2% for Q1 2020, a decrease of 10.7 percentage points. ? As of March 31, 2021, our cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash was $3,271,000, compared to $2,285,000 as of December 31, 2020. We generated $484,000 in cash flow from our operating activities during Q1 2021. Our working capital deficit was $2,349,000 as of March 31, 2021, compared to a working capital deficit of $2,220,00 as of December 31, 2020. [1] Adjusted net income (loss) means our GAAP net income (loss), after adjustment for non-cash equity compensation expense, other non-cash equity expense, debt-related items, and depreciation expense. Recent Sales Contract and Backlog Growth; Production and Vendor Delays During the first quarter of 2021 we entered into new sales contracts totaling approximately $5.5 million. Our backlog grew to $11.6 million, which is the second highest in our history. However, our recognized revenue was hampered by production and shipping delays from certain suppliers. COVID-19 is disrupting shipping around the U.S. and globally. Shipping companies are operating with reduced personnel and there are strict screening actions in U.S. ports causing a backup of imported parts deliveries. While we believe this is a temporary issue, the reduction in revenue caused a lower gross margin as compared to Q4 2020, primarily due to the lack of absorption of our fixed costs. For the quarter ended March 31, 2020 June 30, 2020 September 30, 2020 December 31, 2020 March 31, 2021 Backlog, beginning balance $ 9,558,000 $ 8,875,000 $ 5,592,000 $ 8,198,000 $ 8,448,000 Net bookings, current period $ 1,127,000 $ (1,601,000 ) $ 4,241,000 $ 3,637,000 $ 5,497,000 Recognized revenue, current period $ 1,810,000 $ 1,682,000 $ 1,635,000 $ 3,387,000 $ 2,367,000 Backlog, ending balance $ 8,875,000 $ 5,592,000 $ 8,198,000 $ 8,448,000 $ 11,578,000 Organic Growth Strategy Update As we noted in our press release of May 4, 2021, we have updated our organic growth strategy to include addressing new markets, adding new products and services, and adopting a new trade name, Surna Cultivation Technologies. We encourage readers to see the MD&A section of our Form 10-Q dated and filed today, for further explanation of this and our corporate strategy. Tony McDonald, CEO, commented: Q1 2021 saw the second-best quarter of new project bookings in our history as well as our largest single project ever. Our project backlog is now at the second highest level ever and is 37% higher than where we finished Q4 2020. Our cash position is also nearly $1 million higher than where we ended 2020. Unfortunately, our revenues and therefore gross margins were hampered by production and shipping delays from certain vendors, but we are confident that these will be caught up in Q2 and Q3 2021. We believe that the sales momentum that has been built during the last three quarters will only be accelerated by our newly-announced organic growth strategy and our partnership with RSX Enterprises. Pandemic Impact and Recovery During fiscal year 2020, the Company took measures to adjust its operations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These actions included measures to cut costs and preserve cash, and encompassed downsizing our workforce, compensation reductions, and reduced hours worked. As the Company gained new contracts, bank funding became available, and the overall business climate improved, we were able to restore our workforce and compensation. The Company continues to actively monitor its operations and sales efforts in light of the continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and will make adjustments to its operations as necessary. About Surna Inc. Surna Inc. (www.surna.com), operating under the tradename, Surna Cultivation Technologies, designs, engineers and sells cultivation technologies for controlled environment agriculture including: (i) liquid-based process cooling systems and other climate control systems, (ii) air handling equipment and systems, (iii) a full-service engineering package for designing and engineering commercial scale thermodynamic systems specific to cannabis cultivation facilities, and (iv) automation and control devices, systems and technologies used for environmental, lighting and climate control. Our customers include commercial, state- and provincial-regulated cannabis growers in the U.S. and Canada as well as other international locations, including those growers building new facilities and those expanding or retrofitting existing facilities. Currently, our revenue stream is derived primarily from supplying our products, services and technologies to commercial indoor and hybrid sealed greenhouse facilities ranging from several thousand to more than 100,000 square feet. Headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, we leverage our experience in this space to bring value-added climate control solutions to our customers that help improve their overall crop quality and yield, optimize energy and water efficiency, and satisfy the evolving state and local codes, permitting and regulatory requirements. Although our customers do, we neither produce nor sell cannabis. Forward Looking Statements This press release may contain statements of a forward-looking nature relating to future events. These forward-looking statements are subject to the inherent uncertainties in predicting future results and conditions. These statements reflect our current beliefs, and a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in this press release, including the factors set forth in Risk Factors set forth in our annual and quarterly reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and subsequent filings with the SEC. Please refer to our SEC filings for a more detailed discussion of the risks and uncertainties associated with our business, including but not limited to the risks and uncertainties associated with our business prospects and the prospects of our existing and prospective customers; the inherent uncertainty of product development; regulatory, legislative and judicial developments, especially those related to changes in, and the enforcement of, cannabis laws; increasing competitive pressures in our industry; and relationships with our customers and suppliers. Except as required by the federal securities laws, we undertake no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The reference to Surnas website has been provided as a convenience, and the information contained on such website is not incorporated by reference into this press release. Non-GAAP Financial Measures To supplement our financial results on U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) basis, we use non-GAAP measures including net bookings and backlog, as well as other significant non-cash expenses such as stock-based compensation and depreciation expenses. We believe these non-GAAP measures are helpful in understanding our past performance and are intended to aid in evaluating our potential future results. The presentation of these non-GAAP measures should be considered in addition to our GAAP results and are not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for financial information prepared or presented in accordance with GAAP. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures reflect an additional way to view aspects of our operations that, when viewed with our GAAP results, provide a more complete understanding of factors and trends affecting our business. Surna Marketing Jamie English Vice President, Marketing Communications jamie.english@surna.com (303) 993-5271 Surna Inc.

Consolidated Balance Sheets March 31, December 31, 2021 2020 (Unaudited) ASSETS Current Assets Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash $ 3,271,128 $ 2,284,881 Accounts receivable (net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $165,098 and $165,098, respectively) 26,732 33,480 Inventory, net 519,159 327,109 Prepaid expenses and other 2,064,588 1,037,823 Total Current Assets 5,881,607 3,683,293 Noncurrent Assets Property and equipment, net 141,825 147,732 Goodwill 631,064 631,064 Intangible assets, net 7,082 7,227 Deposits 8,061 - Operating lease right-of-use asset 294,900 343,950 Total Noncurrent Assets 1,082,932 1,129,973 TOTAL ASSETS $ 6,964,539 $ 4,813,266 LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS DEFICIT CURRENT LIABILITIES Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 1,790,315 $ 1,784,961 Deferred revenue 6,087,093 3,724,189 Accrued equity compensation 52,794 128,434 Other liabilities 37,078 - Current portion of operating lease liability 263,662 266,105 Total Current Liabilities 8,230,942 5,903,689 NONCURRENT LIABILITIES Note payable and accrued interest 514,918 - Other liabilities 37,078 74,156 Operating lease liability, net of current portion 106,891 169,119 Total Noncurrent Liabilities 658,887 243,275 TOTAL LIABILITIES 8,889,829 6,146,964 Commitments and Contingencies (Note 7) - - SHAREHOLDERS DEFICIT Preferred stock, $0.00001 par value; 150,000,000 shares authorized; 42,030,331 shares issued and outstanding 420 420 Common stock, $0.00001 par value; 350,000,000 shares authorized; 236,526,638 and 236,526,638 shares issued and outstanding, respectively 2,366 2,366 Common stock, $0.00001 par value; 1,000,000 shares to be issued 67,000 - Additional paid in capital 26,241,935 26,107,159 Accumulated deficit (28,237,011 ) (27,443,643 ) Total Shareholders Deficit (1,925,290 ) (1,333,698 ) TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS DEFICIT $ 6,964,539 $ 4,813,266



Surna Inc.

Consolidated Statements of Operations

Unaudited For the Three Months Ended March 31, 2021 2020 Revenue, net $ 2,366,529 $ 1,809,925 Cost of revenue 2,021,923 1,353,401 Gross profit 344,606 456,524 Operating expenses: Advertising and marketing expenses 177,145 148,921 Product development costs 112,638 144,948 Selling, general and administrative expenses 740,473 1,108,993 Total operating expenses 1,030,256 1,402,862 Operating loss (685,650 ) (946,338 ) Other income (expense): Other income (expense), net (107,000 ) 14,320 Interest expense (718 ) (6,295 ) Total other income (expense) (107,718 ) 8,025 Loss before provision for income taxes (793,368 ) (938,313 ) Income taxes - - Net loss $ (793,368 ) $ (938,313 ) Loss per common share  basic and dilutive $ (0.00 ) $ (0.00 ) Weighted average number of common shares outstanding, basic and dilutive 236,526,638 231,062,462 Surna Inc.

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

Unaudited

For the Three Months Ended March 31, 2021 2020 Cash Flows From Operating Activities: Net loss $ (793,368 ) $ (938,313 ) Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities: Depreciation and intangible asset amortization expense 18,377 30,735 Share-based compensation 6,342 154,426 Other share-based expense 67,000 - Provision for excess and obsolete inventory (4,371 ) (11,657 ) Loss on disposal of assets - 4,124 Amortization of ROU asset 49,051 46,666 Changes in operating assets and liabilities: Accounts receivable 6,748 688 Inventory (187,679 ) (71,279 ) Prepaid expenses and other (1,026,765 ) 74,924 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities 5,354 289,289 Deferred revenue 2,362,905 (291,104 ) Accrued interest 718 - Lease deposit (8,061 ) - Operating lease liability, net (64,672 ) (52,849 ) Accrued equity compensation 52,794 36,463 Net cash provided by operating activities 484,373 (727,887 ) Cash Flows From Investing Activities Purchases of property and equipment (12,326 ) - Net cash used in investing activities (12,326 ) - Cash Flows From Financing Activities Proceeds from issuance of note payable 514,200 - Net cash provided by financing activities 514,200 - Net change in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash 986,247 (727,887 ) Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning of period 2,284,881 922,177 Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, end of period $ 3,271,128 $ 194,290 Supplemental cash flow information: Interest paid $ - $ - Income taxes paid $ - $ -



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[May 11, 2021] ThermalPass is Looked Upon in K-12 Education Market as First Line of Defense to Reduce the Spread of Covid-19

CDC recommends schools and businesses protect their students/employees including health monitoring and screening to avoid liability if contracting the virus. TORONTO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Predictiv AI Inc. (TSXV: PAI) (OTC: INOTF) (FSE: 71TA) ("Predictiv AI" or the "Company"), www.predictiv.ai, a software and solutions provider in the artificial intelligence markets, is pleased to announce its contactless temperature scanning system, ThermalPass www.thermalpass.com, is experiencing an increase in interest and demand from school districts across North America, due to the successful installation of the system at one of North Carolina's largest school districts, Iredell-Statesville Schools, which is home to more than 20,000 students. Administrators at Iredell-Statesville Schools are calling the ThermalPass a "game changer" when it comes to building confidence and getting students back in class. School officials are also turning to ThermalPass because it is non-invasive and compliant with social distancing protocols. Watch ThermalPass at Iredell-Statesville Schools: https://bit.ly/333qsQi The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended that schools and businesses not only protect their students and employees but also monitor employee health regularly. Legal experts assert that entities that fail to maintain minimum standards, including health monitoring and screening, could later be subject to liability or workman's compensation issues if teachers, students, service employees or visitors contract coronavirus. "No matter what happens in the future with vaccines, teachers and students recognize that temperature scanning devices like ThermalPass will remain a simple, common sense way to autonomously identify and avoid having people with elevated temperatures enter the more than 130,000 schools across the US," said Michael Lende, CEO of ThermalPass. "Our outreach to school districts directly and through our distributors has generated increased interest from administrators struggling to find a mass screening device that is accurate, easy to use and offers a painless layer of extra protection to keep schools open and safe." President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief package is helping state agencies and school districts across the US reopen and sustain the safe operation of schools. In addition, the CDC is giving states $10 billion for COVID-19 screening and testing supplies for K-12 teachers, staff, and students, which is also helping to draw more awareness to the benefits of the ThermalPass as a first-line-of-defense tool to flag those with elevated body temperature, a major symptom of Covid-19. According to The New York Times, some states, especially on the East Coast, continue to struggle to make any progress in reducing coronavirus cases. At the same time, governors are starting to relax restrictions on businesses like bars, indoor gyms and casinos, and many Americans are dining in newly reopened restaurants and booking summer vacations. Predictiv AI is not making any express or implied claims that its product has the ability to eliminate, cure, or contain the COVID-19 (or SARS-2 coronavirus) at this time. ThermalPass is manufactured by SMRT Labs Inc., a company jointly owned by AI Labs Inc., a subsidiary of Predictiv AI Inc. and Commersive Solutions Corp. For more information on Predictiv AI or ThermalPass, visit: www.predictiv.ai and follow Predictive AI on: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PredictivAI/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/predictivai

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/predictivai/







* National Center for Education Statistics (NCES): https://admissionsly.com/how-many-schools-are-there/#:~:text=There%20are%20approximately%20130%2C930%20K,the%201980%2C%20which%20was%20106%2C746 * The New York Times, Covid-19: U.S. Vaccinations Increase, but Virus Continues to Spread : https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/03/19/world/covid-vaccine-coronavirus-cases * CDC/FDA; recommend employees be screened for fever before starting work: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/general-business-faq.html

About Predictiv AI Inc.

Predictiv AI Inc. www.predictiv.ai is a technology company which helps businesses and organizations make smarter decisions using advanced artificial intelligence, deep machine learning and data science techniques. Its Weather Telematics Inc. subsidiary uses patented air quality monitoring sensors to provide predictive weather risk information to the insurance, logistics, fleet management and public safety sectors. The Company's R&D division, AI Labs Inc., develops new products that solve real-world business problems. The joint venture with Commersive Solutions Corp. is developing innovative technologies for use in various public spaces, starting with the ThermalPass temperature scanning system. Cautionary and Forward-Looking Statements

Statements contained in this news release, which are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements that involve risk, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. All forward-looking statements included in this news release are based on information available to the Company on the date hereof. Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results of the Company to differ materially from the conclusion, forecast or projection stated in such forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to, ThermalPass achieving the commercial results anticipated by the Company, market demand for ThermalPass and other factors referenced in the Company's other continuous disclosure filings, which are available at sedar.com. Readers should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable securities laws. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/thermalpass-is-looked-upon-in-k-12-education-market-as-first-line-of-defense-to-reduce-the-spread-of-covid-19-301288067.html SOURCE Predictiv AI Inc.

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[May 11, 2021] US Navy unmanned aircraft program to utilize MPU5 radios

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Persistent Systems, LLC ("Persistent"), a leader in mobile ad hoc networking (MANET) solutions, announced today that it will be supplying Martin UAV, an industry partner whose V-BAT VTOL unmanned aircraft system was just selected for the Navy's Mi2 program, with MPU5 and Embedded Module networking devices over the coming years. The Mi2 program seeks to supplement systems currently used by the Navy with an expeditionary platform that has a smaller logistical footprint and quicker set-up time. Martin UAV's V-BAT was chosen as this next-generation Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) replacement following an Mi2 live demonstration conducted in November-December at Yuma Proving Ground, in Arizona. "We are very excited to have our MPU5 MANET radios serve as both the command-and-control and payload data link for Mi2," said Eric Waldo, Persistent's UAS Program Manager. "In keeping with the program's expeditionary focus, our technology will help warfighters operate the V-BAT in the most austere environments, without the need for satellite links." In addition to Wave Relay's exceptional range and throughput capabilities, Waldo added that Persistent Systems solution is also resilient against electronic warfare (EW) threats without having to sacrifice performance or scalability and was the first MANET solution validated by the U.S. Army's Electronic Warfare Laboratory. Pioneered by Martin UAV, the V-BAT is a ducted fan VTOL unmanned aircraft system that takes off like a helicopter and flies as a fixed-winged platform for longer endurance Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) misions. Over the years, Martin UAV developed a line of three V-BAT models: the latest, V-BAT 128 has a flight endurance of 11 hours; the V-BAT 118, which can stay aloft for 8+ hours; and the electric-powered eV-BAT which is still in Research and Development testing with the latest in battery technology.



Martin UAV is a long-standing member of Persistent's Wave Relay Ecosystem, a coalition of sensors and unmanned system companies that all utilize the Wave Relay MANET. The Mi2 program will be managed as an Other Transaction (OT) prototype project under the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2371b. Persistent Systems expects to begin delivery of MPU5s in support of Mi2 in the next fiscal quarter.

About Persistent Systems, LLC

Headquartered in New York City since 2007, Persistent Systems, LLC is a global communications technology company that develops and manufactures a patented and secure Mobile Ad hoc Networking (MANET) system: Wave Relay. Wave Relay transmits and receives data, video, voice and other applications under the most difficult conditions. Their suite of products is utilized in Commercial, Military, Government, Industrial, Agriculture, Robotics, and Unmanned Systems markets. Please visit http://www.persistentsystems.com to learn more. Follow Persistent Systems on Twitter to get updates on the latest developments @pswaverelay. About Martin UAV:

Martin UAV is a private, advanced high-technology company based in Plano, TX. The company specializes in building wholly-unique, unmanned aircraft systems and associated flight control software. The company's systems are commercially developed to fill critical operational needs in tactical & confined operational environments. Its V-BAT series aircraft is the only single-engine ducted fan VTOL UAV with up to 11 Hours of endurance, Hover & Stare capability, and autonomous launch & recovery from moving platforms. For more information visit: martinuav.com . NAVAIR Public Release 2021-286. Distribution Statement A - Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited

04/27/2021 CONTACT:

Erik Schechter

eschechter@persistentsystems.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/us-navy-unmanned-aircraft-program-to-utilize-mpu5-radios-301288475.html SOURCE Persistent Systems, LLC

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[May 11, 2021] ventureLAB Announces New Participants, Broadening Canada's Hardware Catalyst Initiative

Today, ventureLAB announced new participants in its Hardware Catalyst Initiative, Canada's only lab and incubator for hardware and semiconductor companies. The announcement comes on the heels of an additional $4.7 million investment made by the Federal Economic Development Agency of Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) on March 5, bringing the total government investment to $9.7 million. The new participants signal the growing importance of Canada's hardware and semiconductor industry, as demand for chips and sensors continues to surge, causing global shortages and production disruptions. Joining the Hardware Catalyst's growing partner network are: Dell Canada, one of the world's leading technology companies that helps organizations and individuals build their digital future and transform how they work, live and play;

Dassault Systemes, who provides business and people with collaborative virtual environments to imagine sustainable innovations; and

NeuronicWorks, a top Canadian engineering design house, helps companies develop innovative engineering solutions for their businesses and new products that reflect the realities and future of technological progress. The three new participants join a global network of experts and industry leaders, including Silicon Catalyst, TSMC, Arm, and Nuvia. Together with founding partners AMD, Synopsys (News - Alert) , and others, Hardware Catalyst Initiative partners have committed over $15 million in resources, equipment, expertise, and mentorship for the participating companies. "The global partner network of the Hardware Catalyst Initiative in combination with our team's deep experience as leaders and entrepreneurs in this sector demonstrates the importance of our state-f-the-art lab for hardware and semiconductor companies in Canada and around the world," said Melissa Chee, President and CEO, ventureLAB. "As technologies become smarter and more advanced, there is a significantly heightened demand for hardware and semiconductor solutions, and this demand is impacting the global production and supply of consumer electronics, automobiles, and a range of other crucial technologies that are a must for the new innovation economy."



Globally, the semiconductor industry is part of a $7-trillion market that drives technology development and innovation in next-generation products like electric vehicles, robotics in precision agriculture, and 5G communication in mobiles devices. The industry is also a major driver of employment and economic recovery, generating nearly five new technology jobs for every one semiconductor job created. "These new partnerships are great news for ventureLAB and for Canadian businesses. The global demand for microchips has provided an opportunity for Canada's hardware and semiconductor industry to grow and expand. Our government's investment in ventureLAB's Hardware Catalyst Initiative (HCI) is a testament to our commitment to supporting the success of Canadian businesses and the growth of our economy. With the help of the HCI, businesses in the industry are well-positioned for a sustainable economic recovery and competitive future." - The Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade and MP for Markham-Thornhill.

Canada has a valuable and integral role to play in the global semiconductor supply chain. As a nation, Canada has gained significant momentum as a leader in the global semiconductor and tech ecosystem through the Hardware Catalyst Initiative. Together with its growing network, the Hardware Catalyst Initiative is accelerating commercialization and time to market for Canadian companies who will benefit from this surging chip demand as global leaders in this priority sector for Canada and leading nations around the world. "Entrepreneurship is in our DNA at Dell (News - Alert) Canada, so supporting emerging innovations and startups in Canada is a natural fit for us," said Pam Pelletier, Canada Sales Leader and Country Manager, Dell Canada. "Semiconductors are vital to many products that are essential to pandemic response, such as IT systems for vaccine deployment, digital learning for students and teachers, and work from home solutions across Canada. The data center lab will feature end-to-end technology solutions from Dell Canada ranging from PCs to servers and storage. This will help ventureLAB's customers tap into some of the best and brightest talent in Canada, who are building our products of tomorrow." To learn more about the Hardware Catalyst Initiative, visit www.venturelab.ca/HCI. About Hardware Catalyst Initiative

ventureLAB's Hardware Catalyst Initiative is Canada's only lab and incubator for founders building hardware and semiconductor-focused products, enabling the creation of transformative technologies that will power our products of tomorrow - including healthcare technology, consumer electronics, telecommunications, smart energy, connected transportation, and more. Funded in part by the Government of Canada, through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), the Hardware Catalyst helps tech companies accelerate their time to market in a sector that normally incurs lengthy entry and scale times, enabling Canadian hardware and semiconductor companies to grow and scale locally, and compete globally. About ventureLAB

ventureLAB is a leading global founder community for hardware technology and enterprise software companies in Canada. Located at the heart of Ontario's innovation corridor in York Region, ventureLAB is part of one of the biggest and most diverse tech communities in Canada. Our initiatives focused on raising capital, talent retention, commercializing technology and IP, and customer acquisition have enabled thousands of companies to create over 4,000 jobs and raise over $200 million in investment capital. At ventureLAB, we grow globally competitive tech titans that build-to-scale in Canada, for global markets. About FedDev Ontario

For nearly 12 years, FedDev Ontario has actively worked to advance and diversify the southern Ontario economy through funding opportunities and business services that support innovation and growth in Canada's most populous region. The Agency has delivered impressive results, which can be seen in southern Ontario businesses that are creating innovative technologies, improving their productivity, growing their revenues, and in the economic advancement of communities across the region. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005091/en/

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[May 10, 2021] SME property development lending boost with launch of non-bank alternative CrowdProperty

SYDNEY, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Australia's small-to-medium property development sector today received a lending boost with the launch of specialist non-bank lending alternative CrowdProperty. A fintech / proptech hybrid, CrowdProperty matches investors -- wholesale investors, SMSFs, institutional lending groups -- with developers of high quality, small-to-medium-sized residential property projects via its bespoke platform and in-house property development expertise. As a marketplace or peer-to-peer lending platform, it offers property developers access to fast, transparent funds, and investors a simple way to earn up to seven percent target interest returns* on short term investments secured by first mortgage, typically paying back in 12 to 18 months. CrowdProperty UK co-founder and CEO Mike Bristow said the model they've proven with great success in the UK was a perfect fit for the Australian market. "We're a company founded by people who have long experience developing property and working in the finance sector," Mr. Bristow said. "We've built the business entirely around the customer. We intimately know the pain developers experience when trying to fund projects and have built a lending business to deliver speed, ease and certainty of funding for these developers, who can spend up to a third of their time working to source project finance. "At the heart of the business is a technology platform for efficiency, and property finance and development expertise for effectiveness. We deliver a better deal for all, including the economy, by unlocking more housebuilding. "Since launching in the UK, we've lent over 112 million ($200m) to property developers, funded the construction of over 1,150 homes worth over 220 million ($400m), and delivered a 100 percent capital and interest payback to investors over six years of lending. CrowdProperty UK is the UK's leading specialist property project online lending platform and we see even greater potential here in Australia. Property development and investment is a national obsession in Australia, and rightly so. Our job is simply to serve this passion by making it easier to develop and invest in property." CrowdProperty Australia co-founder and CEO David Ingram said the opportunity for Austraian savers to invest in a fund providing development project loans was significant.



"Australia's projected population growth means we have to build over 32 thousand houses per year for the next 20 years," Mr. Ingram said. "Our solution matches investor capital more directly to the developer using it to add value, enabling greater returns, meeting the major needs of both sides of the marketplace."

Launching with its first development project already fully funded -- a development of two premium co-living boarding houses in Melbourne's Glenroy -- property developer Cheryl Leong said the CrowdProperty lending model was much faster than bank lending and felt more like a partnership. "Co-living developments are a fast-growing opportunity in Australia," Ms. Leong said. "Despite that, it's not necessarily a project that traditional lenders are interested in or understand, or at least not with an affordable LVR," she said. "The CrowdProperty borrowing team assessed the project directly and funded it within weeks of us joining the platform. They were able to bring wholesale investors together in a way small developers can't always do, and provide finance at an agreeable rate. "CrowdProperty is in partnership with us to see us succeed for their investors' return. I can see this being a sustainable community of investors and developers as it grows, funding high quality homes across Australia." Founded in the UK in 2013, CrowdProperty has launched in Australia through a locally funded joint venture. CrowdProperty Australia's launch is funded by a select group of domain-experienced investors ranging from property development, property professionals, financial services, lending, fintech, technology, and marketing. The Australian company will raise a further seed round of funds in the second quarter of 2021. *Target returns, not forecast returns. For wholesale investors only. Terms, conditions and risks apply. Disclaimer: The CrowdProperty Investment Trust (the Trust) is an unregistered managed investment scheme. The Trust is only available to investors that are wholesale clients as defined in s761G of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). Investors pledge their funds in the Trust which makes first mortgage secured loans to SME property developers. Withdrawals can only be made when the Investor funds are in Cash Interests in the Trust. Refer to the Information Memorandum (IM) for more information. CrowdProperty Pty Ltd (ACN 633 516 195) is the investment manager of the Trust (Investment Manager). The Investment Manager is a corporate authorised representative (No. 001285637) of Quay Wholesale Fund Services Pty Ltd AFSL No. 528 526, ACN 647 044 602. The Investment Manager's authority under its Corporate Authorised Representative Agreement with Quay Wholesale Fund Services Pty Ltd is limited to general product advice regarding the Trust only. Quay Wholesale Fund Services Pty Ltd is the trustee of the Trust and the issuer of its IM (Trustee). The contents of this document are not intended as financial product advice and have been prepared without taking into account your personal circumstances, investment objectives or particular needs. You should read the Information Memorandum for the Trust in full to consider whether an investment is appropriate for you. Neither the Investment Manager, Quay Wholesale Fund Services Pty Ltd, nor the Trustee guarantee the repayment of capital, the performance of any investment or the rate of return for the Trust. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future performance. An investment in the Trust is not a bank deposit and is subject to greater risk than cash investment products including loans of income and part or all of the capital itself. We strongly suggest that you seek your own professional financial or legal advice prior to any investment decisions. About CrowdProperty Australia: CrowdProperty is a leading provider of specialist finance for property projects and provides an opportunity for wholesale investors to invest in a trust offering loans to property developers in an online marketplace. We invite investors -- wholesale and professional investors, SMSFs -- to invest in the CrowdProperty platform so we can provide project loans to SME property developers to do what they do best -- build and renovate homes for Australians. www.crowdproperty.com.au SOURCE CrowdProperty Australia

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[May 10, 2021] Toshiba America Energy Systems Corporation Signs Asset Purchase Agreement with GP Strategies Corporation to Acquire EtaPRO Business

Toshiba (News - Alert) America Energy Systems Corporation ("TAES"), an affiliate of Kawasaki, Japan-based Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation ("Toshiba ESS"), has reached agreement with GP Strategies Corporation (NYSE: GPX), a global provider of workforce transformation solutions, to acquire its EtaPRO business. TAES will acquire the rights to the EtaPRO name and brand as well as the entirety of GP Strategies' interests in the EtaPRO software platform pursuant to an asset purchase agreement. The purchase includes the EtaPRO trademarks and intellectual property rights, all customer contracts related to EtaPRO, and all of its related services such as maintenance and remote monitoring. Upon closing, TAES will integrate EtaPRO employees into its operations and will continue operating existing EtaPRO office locations. As a long-time partner of GP Strategies, Toshiba ESS has been deploying EtaPRO technology to many of its power generation customers. Toshiba ESS understands the value of EtaPRO technology and is eager to incorporate EtaPRO into its global cyber-physical systems and digital transformation strategy. "EtaPRO is a perfect complement to our product portfolio and we're thrilled to welcome them to our team," said Takao Konishi, Director and Senior Vice President at Toshiba ESS. "By bringing Toshiba ESS and EtaPRO together, we'll significantly expand our suite of power generation services and digital solutions to our clients worldwide." "Joining with Toshiba will enable the EtaPRO business to innovate faster and more globally," said Richard DesJardins, GP Strategies Senior Vice President and EtaPRO business leader. "This improves the scalability and functionality of the EtaPRO platform across both traditional and renewable power generating technologies." "This transaction reaffirms GP Strategies' commitment to strategic deals that position all involved parties for future success," said GP Strategies' CEO Adam Stedham. "I am confident this deal will be very positive and generate significant value for EtaPRO employees and clients, Toshiba and GP Strategies." Toshiba Group is currently in Phase 2 of its strategic "Toshiba Next Plan," which emphasizes strong growth through infrastructure services. This acquisition will enable TAES and Toshiba ESS to provide one-stop solutions with greater service efficiency to its customers through the integration of digital technologies from the EtaPRO platform. This new offering will enhance Toshiba's current servicing and maintenance solutions for turbines and equipment for power generation.



Closing of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including a review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), and is anticipated to occur by the third quarter of 2021. This news release contains forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the capabilities and expertise the acquisition brings and the timing of completion of the acquisition. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause TAES' results to differ materially from management's current expectations. Forward-looking statements are based upon the beliefs and assumptions of TAES' management and on currently available information. TAES undertakes no responsibility to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements.

About Toshiba America Energy Systems Corporation Toshiba America Energy Systems Corporation (TAES), headquartered in West Allis, Wisconsin, with a large manufacturing and service shop, provides turbine/generator equipment and services for the energy industry in the Americas, including thermal, hydro and nuclear power plants. Part of the Energy Systems & Solutions Company within Toshiba Corporation, TAES is proud to provide high-quality, reliable and cost-effective products and services that address current and future power generation needs. For more information please visit http://www.toshiba.com/taes. About Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation is a leading supplier of integrated energy solutions. With its long experience and expertise in wide range of power generating and transmitting systems and energy management technology, the company delivers innovative, reliable and efficient energy solutions across the globe. Split off from Toshiba Corporation (TOKYO: 6502) in October 2017. https://www.toshiba-energy.com/en/index.htm About GP Strategies GP Strategies Corporation (NYSE: GPX) is a global workforce transformation provider of organizational and technical performance solutions. GP Strategies' solutions improve the effectiveness of organizations by delivering innovative and superior training, consulting, and business improvement services customized to meet the specific needs of its clients. Clients include Fortune 500 companies, automotive, financial services, technology, aerospace and defense industries, and other commercial and government customers. Additional information can be found at gpstrategies.com. About EtaPRO EtaPRO is a real-time digital platform for improving the efficiency and reliability of power generating assets through empirical and physics-based digital twin technology combined with traditional vibration frequency analysis for detecting and diagnosing equipment deterioration or operating abnormalities in their earliest stages. EtaPRO is adapted to customer-specific requirements and is used by the global power industry on nearly 700 GW of generation in 40 countries, including thermal, geothermal, hydro, wind, and solar generating technologies. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210510005691/en/

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[May 10, 2021] Kingston sets to inspire people with the power of memories and its new ''Kingston Is With You'' campaign

TAIPEI, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Accelerating the vision of preserving memories with its memory and storage products, Kingston Technology, a world leader of memory products and technology solutions, today announced its "Kingston Is With You" campaign. With the new brand positioning message, "Kingston Is With You," Kingston aims to bring alive the invincible impact of memories in our lives and emphasizes that memories not only exist in the past, but can also be the driving force that motivates one to move forward in life. A series of "Kingston Is With You" themed online and offline activities begin today, kicking off with the premiere of the micro-film, Memories Empower, which unveils a self-recovery journey through memories. In addition, Kingston specially designed a limited-edition gift box that connects memories with the five senses. The gift box comes with "7-Day Memory Challenge" cards, assigning 7 mini-tasks to recipients, helping them relive their most precious moments and provide a chance to win heartwarming gifts. Retail channels will also run promotional activities for customers to preserve their meaningful moments and experience the strength in memory with Kingston's products. Kevin Wu, Sales/Marketing and Business Development Vice President of APAC region, Kingston, said, "Kingston has always been a leader in enabling people to preserve their memories through our most reliable and high-performing memory and storage solutions products for business, creative and daily settings. We staunchly believe in the power of memories and its unlimited impact. During these times, we want to bring inspiration and strength to people with a promise that 'Kingston Is With You.' We strive o stand alongside all our customers, to celebrate cherished moments and be there with them during tough times. We would also like to express our deepest admiration and respect, and pay homage to those who show courage, resilience and strength during these testing times."



Brand New Micro-film Brings Memories From the Past to Future Kingston believes that video is one of the best ways to tell a story. The previously released A Memory to Remember Trilogy micro-film series centered around the significance of past memories and has touched the hearts of millions. This year, to show how "Kingston Is With You," Kingston has brought back celebrated advertising director Lo Ging-zim to direct its latest micro-film. Mr. Lo also directed Kingston's three previous micro-films.

While the A Memory to Remember Trilogy micro-film series focused on the memorable past, Memories Empower expands time and space to the present and future. The story depicts a young girl's encounters after an abrupt change in life and exploring the theme that memories not only connect people to their past, but it also provides the courage to continue moving forward. Kingston invites viewers to embark on this journey of self-recovery through this micro-film. Experience the Power of Memories with Kingston's Limited-edition Giftbox Extending its credo of Memories Empower further, Kingston has specially designed a limited-edition memory gift box that stimulates the five senses: sight, touch, taste, hearing and smell. Cards for each day of the 7 memory-related challenges, along with a Kingston x CSD face mask are included in the gift box, encouraging people to revisit small but treasured moments and rediscover the happiness of little things in life. From May 14-18, Kingston will recruit its users to participate in the 7-Day Memory Challenge. Participants selected will be announced on Kingston's Facebook Fan Page on May 20. Those who share their challenges online will have a chance to win an iPhone 12 and other exciting gifts. Please visit Kingston's Facebook for more information. "Kingston Is With You" Promotion will start from now to May 31. Customer will get the chance to win up to $500 voucher with any purchase of eligible Kingston SSD or HyperX RAM. From cherishing memorable moments of the past to continuing the journey forward, Kingston Is With You. Kingston Is With You Campaign Site: http://kings.tn/PR_KingstonIsWithYou

Watch the Memories Empower micro-film here: https://youtu.be/JeHRCuy_Lo0 Kingston can be found on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KingstonAPAC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/KingstonAPAC About Kingston Technology From big data, to laptops and PCs, to IoT-based devices like smart and wearable technology, to design-in and contract manufacturing, Kingston helps deliver the solutions used to live, work and play. The world's largest PC makers and cloud-hosting companies depend on Kingston for their manufacturing needs, and our passion fuels the technology the world uses every day. We strive beyond our products to see the bigger picture, to meet the needs of our customers and offer solutions that make a difference. To learn more about how Kingston Is With You, visit Kingston.com. Kingston and the Kingston logo are registered trademarks of Kingston Technology Corporation. IronKey is a registered trademark of Kingston Digital, Inc. All rights reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. SOURCE Kingston Technology

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[May 10, 2021] 5N Plus Reports Financial Results for the First Quarter Ended March 31, 2021

Company delivers healthy results and remains focused on pursuing sustainable profitability realized through expansion, strategic transformation and headline acquisition All amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars unless otherwise stated. MONTREAL, May 10, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - 5N Plus Inc. (TSX: VNP) ("5N Plus" or the "Company"), a leading global producer of specialty semiconductors and performance materials, today announced its operating and financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021. 5N Plus began 2021 with a focus on its strategic transformation, supported by a strong balance sheet and healthy performance from its core business. The Company cemented key partnerships aligned with 5N Plus's long-term growth objectives, having entered into a strategic agreement with Microbion Corporation aimed at expanding 5N Plus's portfolio of active pharmaceutical ingredients. The Company also announced its intent to acquire Germany's AZUR SPACE Solar Power GmbH ("AZUR"), having entered into an agreement pursuant to which 5N Plus would acquire all the issued and outstanding shares of AZUR. "Our company's recent activities with respect to the acquisition of AZUR and a strategic investment in a new class of active pharmaceutical materials are well aligned with our plan to utilize external means to expedite growth and gain access to larger markets," said Arjang Roshan, President and Chief Executive Officer of 5N Plus. "These initiatives will not only enhance our company's position as a key supplier of critical materials to specialty semiconductor and pharmaceutical industries but will also enable future growth in larger markets within these industries." First Quarter Highlights: Revenue in the first quarter of 2021 reached $46.9 million compared to $50.0 million for the same period last year, impacted by a less favorable mix of products within Electronic Materials along with global challenges associated with sea freight logistics affecting the supply chain in both segments.





compared to for the same period last year, impacted by a less favorable mix of products within Electronic Materials along with global challenges associated with sea freight logistics affecting the supply chain in both segments. Adjusted EBITDA 1 for the first quarter of 2021 reached $6.3 million compared to $6.9 million in the same period last year, impacted by revenue and product sales mix under Electronic Materials. EBITDA 1 for the first quarter of 2021 reached $5.7 million compared to $6.2 million in the same period last year.





for the first quarter of 2021 reached compared to in the same period last year, impacted by revenue and product sales mix under Electronic Materials. EBITDA for the first quarter of 2021 reached compared to in the same period last year. Backlog 1 represented 195 days of annualized revenue, higher than the previous quarter (189 days) and Q1 2020 (188 days). Bookings 1 in Q1 2021 reached 100 days compared to 62 days in Q1 2020.





represented 195 days of annualized revenue, higher than the previous quarter (189 days) and Q1 2020 (188 days). Bookings in Q1 2021 reached 100 days compared to 62 days in Q1 2020. Net earnings for the first quarter of 2021 were $0.8 million or $0.01 per share compared to $0.6 million or $0.01 in the same period last year.





or per share compared to or in the same period last year. Annualized Return on Capital Employed ("ROCE") 1 reached 13.1% in 2021 compared to 14.4% at the end of 2020.





reached 13.1% in 2021 compared to 14.4% at the end of 2020. Net debt 1 reduced to $9.6 million due to repayment of long-term debt of $5.1 million using cash generated by operating activities.





reduced to due to repayment of long-term debt of using cash generated by operating activities. As approved by the Toronto Stock Exchange, and under the terms of the normal course issuer bid program, 5N Plus purchased and canceled from March 9, 2020 to March 8, 2021 , the full intended sum of 2,000,000 of the Company's common shares.





to , the full intended sum of 2,000,000 of the Company's common shares. On March 24, 2021 , 5N Plus announced the renewal of its $79.0 million senior secured multicurrency, revolving and syndicated credit facility. The agreement includes a contingent option to expand the facility to $124.0 million . In addition to its contingent option, 5N Plus can exercise a $30.0 million accordion feature, increasing the facility's total size to $154.0 million , subject to lender approval.





, 5N Plus announced the renewal of its senior secured multicurrency, revolving and syndicated credit facility. The agreement includes a contingent option to expand the facility to . In addition to its contingent option, 5N Plus can exercise a accordion feature, increasing the facility's total size to , subject to lender approval. Guidance for the Adjusted EBITDA1 post-consolidation of AZUR in 2021 is estimated to be in the range of $25.0 million to $30.0 million . Two factors within segment Electronic Materials contributed to the decrease in Adjusted EBITDA in Q1 2021 as compared to the same period last year. In late 2020, 5N Plus announced that it had secured a series of multi-year contracts in its renewable energy business with asymmetrical revenue contributions favoring the latter period of the contracts' terms. This expectation materialized and the revenue in Q1 2021 was lower than the same period last year. Also, in recent communications, the Company highlighted strong performance from its medical imaging business, driven by the Company's new generation of medical imaging semiconductor detector chips used in the fleet build-up of medical imaging devices undergoing regulatory and customer qualifications. 5N Plus anticipates lower demand from this activity throughout 2021 as the fleet of devices undergo evaluation. During the quarter, segment Eco-Friendly Materials delivered strong results with Adjusted EBITDA margins1 reaching record levels. Over the recent years, 5N Plus has been developing Eco-Friendly Materials along higher margin businesses, reducing the segment's exposure to commodity prices and improving its operational efficiency. The first quarter results in 2021 reflect the culmination of these actions working in concert with a stellar performance from operating activities resulting in significant improvement in the segment's margins. The guidance for the Adjusted EBITDA incorporates the two factors driven by Electronic Materials and pending timing of the Azur transaction following regulatory approvals. In addition, recent speculative activities devoid of sustained demand are inflating tellurium prices  a metal used by 5N Plus as a consumable in its products, some of which are sold based on fixed pricing. The guidance proactively incorporates the impact from risk mitigation measures, assuming this short-term tellurium speculation continues. When we consider the low end of the guidance, gross margin1 is still expected to remain at about 25%. It is worth noting the surge in the Electronic Materials backlog1, which is well above the same period last year and last quarter's level. This increased our overall backlog and is a clear indication of strong demand for our products in the months ahead. "Increasingly, the 5N Plus story is one of both value and growth. Optimized for margin expansion, our core business is a source of value and notable cash generation. This supports our company's strong balance sheet which allows for investments in future growth initiatives. These initiatives, while still in early stages, continue to march toward profitability. Given this dynamic, we expect a certain degree of ebb and flow in the short-term financial performance of the Company. We are resolute in our belief that 5N Plus's medium and long-term trajectory complemented by the critical nature of our business and beyond anticipated quarterly perturbations, will deliver compelling growth and value for our shareholders," concluded Mr. Roshan. Conference Call 5N Plus will host a conference call on Tuesday, May 11, 2021 at 8:00 am Eastern Standard Time to discuss results of the first quarter ended March 31, 2021. All interested parties are invited to participate in the live broadcast on the Company's website at www.5nplus.com. To participate in the conference call: Toronto area: 4167648659

area: 4167648659 TollFree: 18886646392

Enter access code: 09260209 A replay of the webcast and a recording of the Q&A will be available until May 18, 2021. To access the recording, please dial at 18883900541 and enter access code 260209. About 5N Plus Inc.

5N Plus is a leading global producer of specialty semiconductors and performance materials. The Company's ultrapure materials often form the core element of its customer products. These customers rely on 5N Plus's products to enable performance and sustainability in their own products. 5N Plus deploys a range of proprietary and proven technologies to develop and manufacture its products. The Company's products enable various applications in a number of key industries including renewable energy, security, space, pharmaceutical, medical imaging, and industrial and additive manufacturing. Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, 5N Plus operates R&D, manufacturing and commercial centers in strategically located facilities around the world including Europe, North America and Asia. The Company's mission is to be critical to its customers, valued by its employees and trusted by its shareholders. The Company's core values focus on integrity, commitment and customer development along with emphasis on sustainable development, continuous improvement, health and safety. www.5nplus.com. NonIFRS Measures

Backlog represents the expected orders we have received but have not yet executed and that are expected to translate into sales within the next twelve months expressed in number of days. Bookings represent orders received during the period considered, expressed in days, and are calculated by adding revenues to the increase or decrease in backlog for the period considered divided by annualized year revenues. We use backlog to provide an indication of expected future revenues in days, and bookings to determine its ability to sustain and increase its revenues. EBITDA means net earnings before interest expenses, income taxes, depreciation and amortization. We use EBITDA because we believe it is a meaningful measure of the operating performance of our ongoing business without the effects of certain expenses. The definition of this non-IFRS measure used by the Company may differ from that used by other companies. EBITDA margin is defined as EBITDA divided by revenues. Adjusted EBITDA means EBITDA as defined above before impairment of inventories, share-based compensation expense, impairment of non-current assets, litigation and restructuring costs (income), gain on disposal of property, plant and equipment, foreign exchange and derivatives loss (gain). We use adjusted EBITDA because we believe it is a meaningful measure of the operating performance of our ongoing business without the effects of certain expenses. The definition of this non-IFRS measure used by the Company may differ from that used by other companies. Adjusted EBITDA margin is defined as Adjusted EBITDA divided by revenues. Adjusted operating expenses means operating charges before impairment of inventories, shared-based compensation expense, impairment of non-current assets, litigation and restructuring costs (income), gain on disposal on property, plant and equipment and depreciation and amortization. We use adjusted operating expenses to calculate the Adjusted EBITDA. We believe it is a meaningful measure of the operating performance of its ongoing business. The definition of this non-IFRS measure used by the Company may differ from that used by other companies. Net debt is calculated as total debt less cash and cash equivalents. Any introduced IFRS 16 reporting measures in reference to lease liabilities are excluded from the calculation. We use this measure as an indicator of its overall financial position. Gross margin is a measure used to monitor the sales contribution after paying cost of sales, excluding depreciation and impairment inventory charge. We also express this measure in percentage of revenues by dividing the gross margin value by the total revenue. Return on Capital Employed ("ROCE") is a non-IFRS financial measure, calculated by dividing the annualized Adjusted EBIT by capital employed at the end of the period. Adjusted EBIT is calculated as the Adjusted EBITDA less depreciation of PPE and amortization of intangible assets (adjusted for accelerated depreciation charge, if any). Capital employed is the sum of the accounts receivable, the inventory, the PPE, the goodwill and intangibles less trade and accrued liabilities (adjusted for exceptional items). We use ROCE to measure the return on capital employed, whether the financing is through equity or debt. In our view, this measure provides useful information to determine if capital invested in the Company yields competitive returns. The usefulness of ROCE is limited by the fact that it is a ratio and not providing information as to the absolute amount of its net income, debt or equity. It also excludes certain items from the calculation and other companies may use a similar measure but calculate it differently. ForwardLooking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may be forwardlooking within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forwardlooking information and statements are based on the best estimates available to the Company at the time and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties or other factors that may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forwardlooking statements. A description of the risks affecting the Company's business and activities appears under the heading "Risk and Uncertainties" of the 5N Plus 2020 MD&A dated February 23, 2021, available on www.sedar.com. Forwardlooking statements can generally be identified by the use of terms such as "may", "should", "would", "believe", "expect", the negative of these terms, variations of them or any similar terms. No assurance can be given that any events anticipated by the forwardlooking information in this press release will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so, what benefits that 5N Plus will derive therefrom. In particular, no assurance can be given as to the future financial performance of 5N Plus. The forwardlooking information contained in this press release is made as of the date hereof and the Company has no obligation to publicly update such forwardlooking information to reflect new information, subsequent or otherwise, unless required by applicable securities laws. The reader is warned against placing undue reliance on these forwardlooking statements.









5N PLUS INC. INTERIM CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EARNINGS For the three-month periods ended March 31 (in thousands of United States dollars, except per share information) (unaudited)













2021 2020

$ $





Revenue 46,876 49,954 Cost of sales 37,417 40,460 Selling, general and administrative expenses 4,976 4,891 Other expenses (income), net 2,229 1,015

44,622 46,366 Operating earnings 2,254 3,588





Financial (income) expense



Interest on long-term debt 634 682 Imputed interest and other interest expense 106 217 Foreign exchange and derivative (gain) loss (859) 449

(119) 1,348 Earnings before income taxes 2,373 2,240 Income tax expense



Current 756 1,337 Deferred 854 311

1,610 1,648 Net earnings 763 592





Attributable to:



Equity holders of 5N Plus Inc 763 592

763 592





Earnings per share attributable to equity holders of 5N Plus Inc 0.01 0.01 Basic earnings per share 0.01 0.01 Diluted earnings per share 0.01 0.01

5N PLUS INC INTERIM CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL POSITION (in thousands of United States dollars) (unaudited)













March 31

2021 December 31

2020

$ $





Assets



Current



Cash and cash equivalents 35,386 39,950 Accounts receivable 29,711 30,110 Inventories 67,930 67,139 Income tax receivable 5,474 5,440 Other current assets 11,627 8,256 Total current assets 150,128 150,895 Property, plant and equipment 52,352 53,191 Right-of-use assets 4,760 5,047 Intangible assets 9,358 9,668 Deferred tax assets 5,707 6,789 Other assets 3,125 1,088 Total non-current assets 75,302 75,783 Total assets 225,430 226,678 Liabilities



Current



Trade and accrued liabilities 37,030 31,671 Income tax payable 3,624 3,328 Current portion of long-term debt - 109 Current portion of lease liabilities 1,295 1,442 Total current liabilities 41,949 36,550 Long-term debt 45,000 50,000 Employee benefit plan obligation 15,588 17,202 Derivative financial liabilities 354 439 Lease liabilities 3,766 3,916 Other liabilities 195 195 Total non-current liabilities 64,903 71,752 Total liabilities 106,852 108,302





Equity 118,578 118,376 Total liabilities and equity 225,430 226,678



5N PLUS INC For the three-month periods ended March 31 (in thousands of United States dollars, except per share information) (unaudited)











Revenue by Segment and Gross Margin Q1 2021 Q1 2020

$ $ Electronic Materials 18,814 19,784 Eco-Friendly Materials 28,062 30,170 Total revenue 46,876 49,954 Cost of sales (37,417) (40,460) Depreciation included in cost of sales 2,235 2,685 Gross margin1 11,694 12,179 Gross margin percentage1 24.9% 24.4%











Adjusted EBITDA and EBITDA Q1 2021 Q1 2020

$ $ Revenue 46,876 49,954 Adjusted operating expenses1 * (40,596) (43,097) Adjusted EBITDA1 6,280 6,857 Impairment of inventory - - Share-based compensation expense (1,396) (170) Foreign exchange and derivative loss 859 (449) EBITDA1 5,743 6,238 Interest on long-term debt, imputed interest and other interest expense 740 899 Depreciation and amortization 2,630 3,099 Earnings before income taxes 2,373 2,240 Income tax expense



Current 756 1,337 Deferred 854 311

1,610 1,648 Net earnings (loss) 763 592





Basic earnings (loss) per share $0.01 $0.01 Diluted earnings (loss) per share $0.01 $0.01 *Excluding share-based compensation expense, impairment of inventory and depreciation and amortization











Net Debt As at March 31, 2021 As at December 31, 2020

$ $ Bank indebtedness - - Long-term debt including current portion 45,000 50,109 Total Debt1 45,000 50,109 Cash and cash equivalents (35,386) (39,950) Net Debt1 9,614 10,159

1 See Non-IFRS Measures SOURCE 5N Plus Inc.

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[May 10, 2021] Accenture and Shiseido Establish Joint Venture to Accelerate Shiseido's Digital Transformation

Accenture (News - Alert) (NYSE: ACN) and Shiseido are establishing a joint venture to accelerate Shiseido's digital transformation as part of the strategic partnership the two companies announced on Feb. 9. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210510006019/en/ Shiseido Interactive Beauty (Graphic: Business Wire) The joint venture, called Shiseido Interactive Beauty, will include approximately 250 digital, information technology (IT) and other skilled resources from both Shiseido and Accenture. Accenture will also provide training to help the venture's employees enhance their digital skills. Providing Shiseido with digital and innovation capabilities more quickly than Shiseido could develop on its own, the venture will also help Shiseido migrate its information technology (IT) infrastructure to the cloud, enabling Shiseido to increase the efficiency of its IT capabilities while reducing maintenance costs. The digital transformation is part of Shiseido's new "WIN 2023and Beyond" corporate strategy, which is focused on promoting structural reforms and strengthening its financial base while continuing to aggressively invest in areas that will become the foundation for long-term growth, including branding, innovation, supply chain, and the future workforce.



Masahiko Uotani, Shiseido's representative director, president and CEO, said, "As Shiseido strives to realize a better world through the power of beauty, digital transformation has become an essential element for Shiseido to respond quickly to ever-changing customers and markets. I believe that working with Accenture, a company with a proven track record in delivering global digital services and, above all, one that shares our corporate philosophy and values, will create a great opportunity for Shiseido to make a leap forward. I am confident that together with Accenture, we can create new beauty experiences that customers have never experienced before and transform the beauty industry." The joint venture will use data and advanced technology to create new beauty experiences through enhanced digital marketing. Key to this effort will be leveraging consumers' browsing and purchase histories - whether via their interactions on Shiseido's digital platforms or in stores - as well as other activity such as skin or make-up diagnoses, using augmented reality and other digital technologies to propose new products and services, including personalized consultations.

"We are honored to help Shiseido accelerate its bold mission to deliver 'Beauty Innovations for a Better World' and meet the holistic needs of consumers," said Julie Sweet, CEO of Accenture. "Our partnership is based on our shared values, focusing not only on creating incredible experiences for Shiseido's consumers and more value for its business and retail partners, but also investing in digital skills for Shiseido's employees, enhancing inclusion and diversity and putting sustainability at the heart of its products and operations-transforming to create value for all." Shiseido Interactive Beauty, which is majority-owned by Shiseido, is expected to begin operations in July. About Accenture Accenture is a global professional services company with leading capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries, we offer Strategy and Consulting, Interactive, Technology and Operations services - all powered by the world's largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. Our 537,000 people deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity every day, serving clients in more than 120 countries. We embrace the power of change to create value and shared success for our clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at www.accenture.com. Copyright 2021 Accenture. All rights reserved. Accenture and its logo are registered trademarks of Accenture. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210510006019/en/

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 04:38:37|Editor: huaxia

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BRUSSELS, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The negotiations in Vienna to revitalize the Iran nuclear deal are progressing, the top diplomat of the European Union (EU) said on Monday, as he expressed cautious optimism for an agreement to be reached.

Josep Borrell, the EU's high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, told a press conference after a meeting of foreign ministers of the EU member states, that he hoped there will be "non-stop" talks in Vienna to try to clinch a breakthrough on bringing the United States back to the nuclear deal with Iran.

"This remains an extremely delicate and intense diplomatic process. I dare to say that I am optimistic. There is a window of opportunity that will stay open for a couple of weeks until the end of the month, but a lot of work is needed, time is limited," Borrell said, adding that he hoped "that the negotiations will enter in a phase of non-stop" in Vienna.

He said the full implementation of the deal by all parties is the best way to ensure the exclusively peaceful nature of the Iran nuclear program. "What I can say is that these talks have been constructive and there has been some moderate progress."

Indirect talks between the United States and Iran in Vienna have been ongoing on how to revive the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The JCPOA was reached in 2015 between Iran and the P5+1 -- United States, Britain, Russia, France, China, plus Germany together with the EU. Tehran agreed to roll back parts of its nuclear weapons program in exchange for decreased economic sanctions.

Iran gradually stopped implementing parts of its commitments in May 2019, one year after the previous U.S. administration led by Donald Trump unilaterally abandoned the agreement and re-imposed sanctions on Tehran. Enditem
[May 10, 2021] Conversational AI start-up AskSid completes prestigious Techstars Accelerator Program in Abu Dhabi

BANGALORE, India, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- AskSid, an AI startup serving global marquee retail and consumer goods clients with live implementations across 23 countries, announced their successful graduation from the prestigious and coveted Techstars Hub71 Accelerator program in Abu Dhabi. Techstars is a global platform for investment and innovation that helps entrepreneurs scale their business into international brands. The three month program focused on strategy, execution, fundraising, and helping entrepreneurs build their networks. Techstars also had 9 other promising startups along with AskSid in its class of 2021. Techstars is globally recognized for its mentorship-driven accelerator. It gives startups and founders a unique opportunity to receive hands-on mentorship and guidance from more than 100 global industry leaders, accessed from Techstars worldwide network. The Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, Mubadala Investment Company, has partnered with Techstars to run its program at Hub71, the fast growing global technology hub based in Abu Dhabi. The founder and CEO of AskSid, Sanjoy Roy, says that the Techstars Hub71 program has not only transformed the company's growth trajectory, but has also helped the company get funding ready. AskSid is currently raising a seed round of $1M, which it is confident to close within the next 3-6 months.



"Less than 2% of the total applicants received worldwide made it through to the Techstars program. Which is why AskSid's acceptance was a great validation that we offer a differentiated product within an overcrowded AI space that can win in the global marketplace on its own merit. Our pipeline has grown 3X in the last 3 months, with active discussions with several global retail and CPG brands across USA, EU, ME and APAC'', said Roy. Abu Dhabi's Techstars Hub71 Accelerator programme is confident of raising $15M from investors for this year's cohort of 10 startups, despite the market disruptions caused by Covid-19.

"Our first batch of startups raised $15M last year and we are aiming to raise in the same range this year as well," said Vijay Tirathrai, managing director of Techstars. Techstars has worked with more than 2,000 startups, totalling $11.4B in overall funding since 2006. About AskSid With e-commerce booming and a big influx of first time online buyers, retail and consumer brands have a massive opportunity to boost conversions, only if they can provide expert guidance anytime and anywhere for online shoppers. That's where AskSid comes in - A digital shopping assistant that helps retail brands sell more faster. Verticalized for retail and with connectors to leading e-commerce engines, AskSid helps brands build a retail AI brain - a knowledge base of Q&As, tags and intents from existing data, that power impactful shopping experiences, while extracting deep consumer insights from conversation transcripts, leading brands to all new business opportunities. Live in 23 countries, supporting 100+ languages, global clients such as AkzoNobel, Danone, and Wolford have deployed the solution across channels such as websites, Facebook, WhatsApp and more. Natural Language is going to be the new user interface of retail e-commerce, and AskSid's vision is to disrupt not just the way retail brands engage with their consumers across channels, but also the way these brands have ever got to read their consumers mind, through advanced AI analytics on Natural Language data. About Techstars The Techstars worldwide network helps entrepreneurs succeed. Founded in 2006, Techstars began with three simple ideas: entrepreneurs create a better future for everyone, collaboration drives innovation, and great ideas can come from anywhere. Techstars is on a mission to enable every person on the planet to contribute to, and benefit from, the success of entrepreneurs. Techstars has invested in more than 2,200 companies that today have a combined market cap valuation of $29B. Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1506502/AskSid_Logo.jpg

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[May 11, 2021] ADA Announces Strategic Investment of USD 60 million from SoftBank Corp.

ADA receives USD 60 million investment from SoftBank Corp.

SoftBank Corp. as a strategic investor will form business alliance to make ADA the core of its digital and data marketing arm in Southeast Asia

New investment will be used to enhance ADA's data and AI offering, and marketing solutions to brands and enterprises KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ADA, the largest independent analytics, data, and AI digital marketing business in the region across 9 markets in South and Southeast Asia announces USD 60 million investment from SoftBank Corp. (SoftBank), a Fortune 500 telecommunications company with a strong investment portfolio headquartered in Japan. Established in 2018, ADA has seen tremendous growth in its services in designing and executing integrated analytics, data, and AI digital marketing solutions, serving over 1,300 clients in the region. ADA's differentiating factor lies in its proprietary technology IP in data processing, data ingestion, and consumer AI models; gleaned from 375 million consumer profiles on monthly basis. Supporting this is ADA's diverse talent pool of over 600 data scientists, digital media gurus, industry experts, and management consultants. SoftBank will make ADA a core to its digital and data marketing arm, and leverage their network of portfolio companies, creating huge synergy globally. This alliance allows SoftBank to expand their footprint in the region by bringing its customer data platform (CDP), "Treasure Data", and the consumer base of its communication app, 'LINE' for the benefit of brands and marketers. With this funding, ADA will continue its development of AI models, with primary focus on precision targeting for the marketing industry; invest in content analytics and automation of content creation; and also create data platforms to deliver consumer insights, predict consumer mindset, and help business decisioning. Srinivas?Gattamneni, Chief Executive Officer of ADA, said, "The post-COVID-19 norm is a 'digital-first' economy, which ADA has been successfully building towards. We are very excited to welcome SoftBank Corp. as a valuable partner in our next phase of growth. The capital and business alliance with SoftBank Corp. will further propel ADA's analytics, data, and AI digital marketing solutions for the benefit of our customers across the region." Daichi Nozaki, Vice President and Head of the Enterprise Business Unit's Global Business Division, SoftBank Corp., said: "We believe this alliance between SoftBank and ADA will reshape the digital marketing and data landscape in the Asia-Pacific region. This move is part of our Beyond Carrier growth strategy as we seek to expand beyond the traditional telecommunications business; and by combining our diversified solutions and technologies with ADA's expertise in the areas of analytics, data, and AI digital marketing, we expect we can both generate significant synergies." Mohd Khairil Abdullah, Chairman of ADA, said: "We welcome the investment by SoftBank Corp., which brings tremendous growth opportunities to ADA. It also marks a significant milestone, especially with Southeast Asia's digital market poised to potentially become one of the world's top five digital economies[1]. The investment from SoftBank Corp. is recognition of ADA as the vehicle to capture the ensuing growth." After the investment, SoftBank will own a 23.07% shareholding in ADA, establishing ADA's valuation at USD 260 million.







[1] https://asean.usmission.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/77/IGNITE-Digital-Economy-fact-sheet-Aug2020.pdf

About ADA ADA is a data and artificial intelligence company that designs and executes integrated digital, analytics, and marketing solutions. Operating across nine markets in South and Southeast Asia, ADA partners with leading brands to drive their digital and data maturity, and achieve their business goals. We are anchored on the following main services: Providing business insights, data enrichment, and advanced analytics

Understanding the consumer mindset and designing data-driven creative marketing strategies

Executing end-to-end digital marketing solutions for growth hacking, funnel optimisation, and goal optimisation ADA complements its unique digital expertise with deep proprietary data of 375 Million consumers. About SoftBank Corp. Guided by the SoftBank Group's corporate philosophy, "Information Revolution  Happiness for everyone," SoftBank Corp. (TOKYO: 9434) combines telecommunications services with cutting-edge technologies to create and operate new businesses. SoftBank Corp. serves more than 45 million mobile consumer and enterprise subscribers in Japan, and as part of its "Beyond Carrier" strategy, is redefining industries by leveraging its unique strengths as a network operator to fully harness the power of 5G, big data, AI, IoT, robotics and other key technologies. To learn more, please visit www.softbank.jp/en SOURCE ADA

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[May 11, 2021] Sequana Medical Announces Strong Top-Line Results from RED DESERT alfapump DSR Study and Expansion of DSR Development Programme

RED DESERT data of all patients confirm:



alfa pump DSR is highly effective at managing fluid and sodium balance in diuretic-resistant heart failure patients without need for loop diuretics restoration of diuretic response and improvement in cardio-renal function improvement in diuretic response maintained in long-term follow-up

SAHARA DESERT study in heart failure patients with residual congestion to start in Q2 2021

Expanding DSR development programme with short-term DSR therapy

Evaluating opportunity for DSR therapy for fluid and sodium removal in renal disease

Conference call with live webcast today at 15:00 CEST / 09:00 am EDT



GHENT, Belgium, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sequana Medical NV (Euronext Brussels: SEQUA), an innovator in the treatment of diuretic-resistant fluid overload in liver disease, malignant ascites and heart failure, today announces positive top-line results from the RED DESERT study with repeated dose alfapump DSR (Direct Sodium Removal) therapy in diuretic-resistant heart failure patients. SAHARA DESERT, the study of the alfapump DSR in diuretic-resistant heart failure patients with residual congestion is on track to start before the end of this quarter, with interim results expected before year-end and top-line results expected in H2 2022. In addition, Sequana Medical announces that it will expand its DSR development program with the addition of short-term DSR therapy. Short-term DSR is expected to achieve faster adoption of DSR therapy by the clinical community, support alfapump DSR market entry, expand the potential market opportunity and target earlier entry into the U.S. market. MOJAVE DESERT, the first U.S. feasibility study of short-term DSR therapy, is planned to start in H2 2022. Based on FDA feedback, SONORAN DESERT, the U.S. efficacy study of alfapump DSR therapy, is now planned to commence in mid-2023 to allow completion of long-term pre-clinical studies. Fluid and sodium overload is an important clinical problem in renal disease / hemodialysis and Sequana Medical is evaluating the opportunity for DSR therapy to improve clinical outcomes and is supporting the clinical work of Dr. McIntyre of Lawson Health Research Institute, Ontario, Canada. Ian Crosbie, Chief Executive Officer at Sequana Medical, commented: These RED DESERT results are very exciting and further confirm the potential clinical benefits of our alfapump DSR therapy. Repeated alfapump DSR therapy not only managed the fluid and sodium balance throughout the study without the need of any loop diuretics but crucially it also restored patients diuretic response and overall cardio-renal status. We are very encouraged by the durability of the reduction in loop diuretics and believe our novel alfapump DSR therapy has the potential to transform the treatment of this large and growing patient group. In light of the success of RED DESERT, we have concluded the study at eight patients so that we can move on to the SAHARA DESERT study as soon as possible, where we will be treating our anticipated patient population. We are expanding our DSR development programme into short-term DSR treatment, complementing our long-term alfapump DSR treatment. We believe that short-term DSR therapy plays a crucial role in establishing this breakthrough treatment and enhances the market opportunity for alfapump DSR therapy. This combined strategy of short-term and long-term DSR therapy will reinforce our leadership role in addressing diuretic-resistant fluid overload. Strong top-line results from RED DESERT Eight patients diagnosed with stable chronic heart failure on high dose oral diuretics (mean furosemide equivalent dose of 323 mg/day) were implanted with the alfapump DSR system and underwent up to six weeks of DSR therapy whilst their loop diuretic treatment was withheld. The heart failure patients enrolled in the study had an overall high disease severity at baseline, including a mean left ventricular ejection fraction of 24% and mean NT-proBNP of 4,589 pg/mL. During the course of the six-week therapy, none of the patients required any loop diuretics, demonstrating the ability of repeated alfapump DSR therapy to effectively manage their fluid and sodium balance. After the six-week study, the mean response to a standard diuretic challenge (40 mg intravenous furosemide) improved by more than 250% (p<0.001 vs baseline, N=7) as measured by the six-hour excretion of sodium. This improvement of diuretic efficiency was maintained with a 79% reduction of average loop diuretic dose at a median of 10 months post-study versus baseline and all patients were receiving less than or equal to 50% of their baseline diuretic dose (maximum follow-up post-study is 12.5 months). The results clearly show a significant benefit to the cardio-renal function of these patients with a mean 30% reduction in NT-proBNP (p<0.001 vs baseline, N=7), mean 22% improvement in estimated glomerular filtration rate (p<0.001 vs baseline, N=7) and mean 22% reduction in creatinine (p<0.001 vs baseline, N=7). Typically, managing the fluid balance in these patients through aggressive diuretic use would be associated with declining cardio-renal function, whilst RED DESERT showed that both of these functions were improved following repeated alfapump DSR therapy. In all patients, there were no clinically relevant changes in serum sodium levels or progressive hyponatremia. There were two serious adverse events in two of the last three patients, both having advanced heart failure. There was one transient ischemic attack (fully recovered) and one sudden cardiac death. The Data Monitoring Committee (DMC) assessed both events as possibly related to the study therapy or procedure but unlikely to be related to the device. The site Principal Investigator assessed that neither event was related to the study therapy, procedure or device. Dr. Jozef Bartunek, Interventional Cardiologist at Onze-Lieve-Vrouw Hospital in Aalst (Belgium) and Pincipal Investigator of the RED DESERT study, commented: These results confirm that alfapump DSR therapy is well tolerated and manages to quickly maintain a neutral sodium balance and stable body weight over six weeks, despite complete withdrawal of loop diuretics. The substantial improvement in diuretic response together with the meaningful improvement in NT-proBNP and renal function could be a potential game-changer.



Dr. Jeffrey Testani, Associate Professor at Yale University and Heart Failure Scientific Advisor of Sequana Medical, added: There is a significant need for novel therapies for sodium and fluid removal in heart failure, given the toxicity of loop diuretics and the high prevalence of resistance to these agents. The simultaneous normalisation of diuretic response and improvement in cardio-renal status of the RED DESERT patients is a never before seen treatment effect and could translate into important long-term clinical benefits in heart failure patients. I am looking forward to further clinical research to better understand the cardio-renal benefits of alfapump DSR therapy and its application to heart failure patients in urgent need of improved treatment options. SAHARA DESERT on track to start before end Q2 2021  Interim results end 2021, Top-line results H2 2022

The SAHARA DESERT study will build on the learnings from RED DESERT and moves into sicker heart failure patients - those with residual congestion and for whom oral diuretics are no longer effective at preventing fluid overload. The study in 20 patients will evaluate the treatment algorithm and the ability of alfapump DSR therapy to eliminate the residual congestion and restore the correct fluid status (euvolemia) for up to 22 weeks. Interim results are expected before end 2021 with top-line results planned for H2 2022. Expanding DSR development programme with short-term as well as long-term DSR therapy As a result of the positive results from RED DESERT, the DSR development programme is being expanded into short-term DSR therapy to complement long-term alfapump DSR therapy. The intention is to enable faster adoption of DSR therapy by the clinical community by reducing barriers to adoption, support alfapump DSR market entry, expand the potential market opportunity and target earlier entry into the U.S. market. A key element of the DSR programme is the development of DSR Infusate 2.0, Sequana Medicals proprietary DSR Infusate. The intention is to deliver an infusate with a superior therapeutic profile as well as a high margin recurring revenue flow to accompany alfapump sales. Pre-clinical development work on DSR Infusate 2.0 is ongoing and preparations are being made for Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls (CMC) activities. Short-term DSR therapy will involve repeated DSR treatment for approximately 2 weeks, using DSR Infusate 2.0 in combination with a peritoneal catheter (instead of the alfapump). MOJAVE DESERT, the U.S. proof-of-concept study of short-term DSR therapy is scheduled to start in H2 2022. The study design will leverage the learnings from SAHARA DESERT as well as the anticipated superior therapeutic profile of DSR Infusate 2.0. The use of short-term DSR therapy without the alfapump has been enabled by the fundamental DSR patents that have been granted in the U.S. and Europe, and are under review elsewhere in the world. Following discussions with the FDA, SONORAN DESERT, the U.S. controlled efficacy study of alfapump DSR is now planned to commence in mid-2023 to enable completion of long-term pre-clinical studies prior to study commencement. Evaluating opportunity for DSR therapy in fluid and sodium overload in renal disease / hemodialysis The effective management of fluid and sodium overload is a significant problem in renal disease / hemodialysis. Sequana Medical is evaluating the opportunity for DSR therapy to address this poorly met clinical need and is supporting the work of Dr. Chris McIntyre of the Lawson Health Research Institute, Ontario, Canada who is evaluating the use of DSR therapy in effective volume management and sodium removal in prevalent hemodialysis patients (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04603014). Results of this work will be shared in due course. Conference Call and Webcast



Sequana Medical will host a conference call with live webcast presentation today at 15:00 CEST / 09:00 EDT.

Registration webcast: please click here

Registration conference call (only if you wish to participate in the Q&A): please click here. Once registered, you will receive dial-in numbers and a confirmation code. The webcast and conference call will be conducted in English and a replay will be available on Sequana Medicals website shortly after. For more information, please contact: Sequana Medical

Lies Vanneste

Director Investor Relations

Tel: +32 498 05 35 79

Email: IR@sequanamedical.com LifeSci Advisors

Guillaume van Renterghem

Tel: +41 76 735 01 31

Email: gvanrenterghem@lifesciadvisors.com About RED DESERT study design RED DESERT is a prospective, single-arm, first-in-human study to evaluate the safety and feasibility of alfapump DSR. Eight patients diagnosed with stable chronic heart failure on high doses of oral diuretics were implanted with the alfapump DSR system (alfapump and implanted surgical port). Following implantation, patients underwent a standardised diuretic challenge (40 mg intravenous furosemide) to quantify their response to diuretics, and this was repeated at specific time points throughout the study. At the start of the study treatment, patients were admitted for a 14-day in-patient period in which diuretics were withheld and patients were treated with DSR D10% infusate on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Following the 14-day in-patient period, diuretics continued to be withheld and patients came into the clinic for their DSR treatment over the subsequent four weeks. The primary safety endpoints include rate of device, procedure and/or therapy related serious adverse events through day 14 and through day 42. Secondary feasibility endpoints include the ability of alfapump DSR to maintain a neutral sodium balance in the absence of diuretic treatment and the sustained effect of DSR to maintain euvolemia through week six. Additional exploratory endpoints include the potential impact of DSR to restore response to diuretics following DSR treatment. For more information about the study, please visit clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04116034). About Sequana Medical Sequana Medical is a commercial stage medical device company utilizing its proprietary alfapump and DSR (Direct Sodium Removal) technologies to develop innovative treatments for fluid overload in liver disease, malignant ascites and heart failure where diuretics are no longer effective. Fluid overload is a frequent complication of many large diseases including advanced liver disease driven by NASH (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis)-related cirrhosis and heart failure, with diuretic resistance being widespread. The U.S. market for the alfapump resulting from NASH-related cirrhosis is forecast to exceed 3 billion annually within the next 10-20 years. The heart failure market for DSR and the alfapump DSR is estimated to be over 5 billion annually in the U.S. and EU5 by 2026. The alfapump is a unique, fully implanted wireless device that automatically pumps fluid from the abdominal cavity into the bladder, where it is naturally eliminated through urination. DSR is Sequana Medicals proprietary approach to managing sodium and fluid overload through use of a sodium-free infusate administered into the abdominal cavity. In the U.S., the Company's key growth market, the alfapump has been granted breakthrough device designation by the FDA for recurrent or refractory ascites due to liver cirrhosis. Interim data from the ongoing North American pivotal study (POSEIDON) showed positive outcomes against all primary endpoints of the study. This study is intended to support a future marketing application of the alfapump in the U.S. and Canada. In Europe, the alfapump is CE-marked for the management of refractory ascites due to liver cirrhosis and malignant ascites and is included in key clinical practice guidelines. Over 850 alfapump systems have been implanted to date. Sequana Medical has combined its proven alfapump and proprietary DSR therapy, and is developing the alfapump DSR, a breakthrough approach to fluid overload due to heart failure. RED DESERT, the repeated dose alfapump DSR study in diuretic-resistant heart failure patients has demonstrated that repeated DSR therapy is able to both manage the fluid and sodium balance of these patients as well as restore their diuretic response and cardio-renal status. Sequana Medical is headquartered in Ghent, Belgium. For further information, please visit www.sequanamedical.com . Important Regulatory Disclaimers The alfapump system is not currently approved in the United States or Canada. In the United States and Canada, the alfapump system is currently under clinical investigation (POSEIDON Study) and is being studied in adult patients with refractory or recurrent ascites due to cirrhosis. For more information regarding the POSEIDON clinical study see www.poseidonstudy.com. The DSR therapy is still in development and it should be noted that any statements regarding safety and efficacy arise from ongoing pre-clinical and clinical investigations which have yet to be completed. The DSR therapy is not currently approved for clinical research in the United States or Canada. There is no link between the DSR therapy and ongoing investigations with the alfapump system in Europe, the United States or Canada. Note: alfapump is a registered trademark. DSR and alfapump DSR are registered trademarks in the Benelux. Forward-looking statements This press release may contain predictions, estimates or other information that might be considered forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. These forward-looking statements represent the current judgment of Sequana Medical on what the future holds, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. Sequana Medical expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements in this press release, except if specifically required to do so by law or regulation. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which reflect the opinions of Sequana Medical only as of the date of this press release.



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[May 11, 2021] Leclanche to Provide Advanced Battery Technology for Canadian Pacific's Hydrogen-powered Locomotive Project

Leclanche to supply its proprietary lithium-ion batteries and energy management software to be integrated with the fuel cell modules The breakthrough project is an entry into the freight-rail market that includes more than 45,000 diesel locomotives in North America and G5 European countries Testing will take place along Canadian Pacific's rail network in Canada YVERDON-LES-BAINS, Switzerland and ANDERSON, Indiana, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Leclanche SA (SIX: LECN) will provide its proprietary battery technology to Canadian Pacific (TSX: CP) (NYSE: CP) for its innovative Hydrogen Locomotive Program. The CP hydrogen-powered locomotive pioneering project, first announced in December 2020, will retrofit a line-haul diesel freight locomotive with hydrogen fuel cells and Leclanche's European manufactured lithium-ion batteries to power the locomotive's electric traction motors. Leclanche will also provide its proprietary energy management software for optimum integration. The project is designed to evaluate the combined technologies' readiness for the freight rail sector. Once the locomotive is operational, CP will conduct rail service trials and qualification testing. CP operates a 21,000-km (13,000-mile) rail network across Canada and the U.S. that serves deep-water ports on the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The market for freight rail is large and growing across the world. In 2018, year-over-year, Canada's freight rail sector's workload, measured by gross ton-miles, increased by 6.2%, and increased 10.1% compared with the five-year average. The distance travelled by Canada's freight trains, measured by freight train-miles, increased by 5.4% to 68.6 million in 2018 versus 2017.



"Leclanche is pleased to have been chosen by Canadian Pacific for inclusion in its hydrogen locomotive, zero emission freight train program," said Anil Srivastava, CEO, Leclanche. "This project further expands our addressable market to include electrification of the freight rail sector representing a major global opportunity for the reduction of greenhouse gases." "Our battery systems and energy management software solution significantly increase the total energy efficiency compared to standalone fuel cell modules, reducing the total cost of ownership. In addition to North America, we are currently looking at the freight train market in Europe, Australia, Brazil and South Africa  all of which are ideally suited for the transformation of their current diesel stock," said Srivastava.

Leclanche's eTransport Solutions business serves the needs of the medium and heavy transportation industry through the supply of a broad range of solutions based on 100% inhouse technologies from lithium cells, battery modules, battery management system and battery packs to energy management software. Leclanche has delivered/commissioned more than 430 high-capacity marine racks and commercial vehicle battery packs to customers since the start of commercial operations in 2019. These customers include global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the passenger rail, maritime, bus, truck and specialized vehicles sectors. About Leclanche

Headquartered in Switzerland, Leclanche SA is a leading provider of high-quality energy storage solutions designed to accelerate our progress towards a clean energy future. Leclanche's history and heritage is rooted in over 100 years of battery and energy storage innovation and the Company is a trusted provider of energy storage solutions globally. This coupled with the Company's culture of German engineering and Swiss precision and quality, continues to make Leclanche the partner of choice for both disruptors, established companies and governments who are pioneering positive changes in how energy is produced, distributed and consumed around the world. The energy transition is being driven primarily by changes in the management of our electricity networks and the electrification of transport, and these two end markets form the backbone of our strategy and business model. Leclanche is at the heart of the convergence of the electrification of transport and the changes in the distribution network. Leclanche is the only listed pure play energy storage company in the world, organised along three business units: stationary storage solutions, e-Transport solutions and specialty batteries systems. Leclanche is listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange (SIX: LECN). SIX Swiss Exchange: ticker symbol LECN | ISIN CH 011 030 311 9 Disclaimer

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements relating to Leclanche's business, which can be identified by terminology such as "strategic", "proposes", "to introduce", "will", "planned", "expected", "commitment", "expects", "set", "preparing", "plans", "estimates", "aims", "would", "potential", "awaiting", "estimated", "proposal", or similar expressions, or by expressed or implied discussions regarding the ramp up of Leclanche's production capacity, potential applications for existing products, or regarding potential future revenues from any such products, or potential future sales or earnings of Leclanche or any of its business units. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Such forward-looking statements reflect the current views of Leclanche regarding future events, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. There can be no guarantee that Leclanche's products will achieve any particular revenue levels. Nor can there be any guarantee that Leclanche, or any of the business units, will achieve any particular financial results. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1506982/INTEG_39.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/711940/Leclanche_Logo.jpg

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[May 11, 2021] Global Multi-functional Printer Market- Canon Inc., Eastman Kodak Co., Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP, among others to contribute to the market growth | Technavio

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The multi-functional printer market is poised to grow by USD 4.92 billion during 2021-2025, progressing at a CAGR of 4% during the forecast period. View our Exclusive report on Market scenarios, Estimates, the impact of lockdown, and Customer Behaviour. Download FREE Sample Report! The report on the multi-functional printer market provides a holistic update, market size and forecast, trends, growth drivers, and challenges, as well as vendor analysis. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current global market scenario and the overall market environment. The market is driven by increasing demand for MFPs from the healthcare sector and MFPs gaining popularity among price-sensitive end-users. The multi-functional printer market analysis includes Technology and Geography. This study identifies the evolving documentation needs of businesses as one of the prime reasons driving the multi-functional printer market growth during the next few years. This report presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources by an analysis of key parameters. The multi-functional printer market covers the following areas: Multi-functional Printer Market Sizing

Multi-functional Printer Market Forecast

Multi-functional Printer Market Analysis

Companies Mentioned Canon Inc.

Eastman Kodak Co.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP

KYOCERA Corp.

Panasonic Corp.

Ricoh Co. Ltd.

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

Seiko Epson Corp.

Sharp Corp.

Xerox Corp. Related Reports on Information Technology include: Printers Market by Type, Technology, and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2021-2025: The printers market has the potential to grow by USD 6.01 billion during 2021-2025, according to Technavio. Download PDF Sample Production rinter Market by Technology, Application, and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2021-2025: The production printer market size has the potential to grow by USD 690.03 million during 2021-2025, according to Technavio. Download PDF Sample



Key Topics Covered: Executive Summary

Market Landscape Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis Market Sizing Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2020

Market outlook: Forecast for 2020 - 2025

Impact of COVID-19 Five Forces Analysis Five Forces Analysis

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition Market Segmentation by Technology Market segments

Comparison by Technology

Inkjet - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Laser - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by Technology Customer landscape Customer landscape Geographic Landscape Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Europe - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 North America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 MEA - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

South America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market drivers

Market challenges

Market trends Vendor Landscape Vendor landscape

Vendor overview

Landscape disruption Vendor Analysis Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

Canon Inc.

Eastman Kodak Co.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP

KYOCERA Corp.

Panasonic Corp.

Ricoh Co. Ltd.

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

Seiko Epson Corp.

Sharp Corp.

Xerox Corp. Appendix Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Technavio's in-depth research has direct and indirect COVID-19 impacted market research reports.

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Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Report: https://www.technavio.com/report/multi-functional-printer-market-industry-analysis View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-multi-functional-printer-market--canon-inc-eastman-kodak-co-hewlett-packard-enterprise-development-lp-among-others-to-contribute-to-the-market-growth--technavio-301287245.html SOURCE Technavio

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[May 11, 2021] Umbria announces alpha version of its Layer 2 DEX

LONDON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The DeFi protocol's trading platform is fully functional with asset swaps and liquidity provision both successfully tested. Umbria - https://umbria.network/ -, which was recently mapped on Polygon (formerly Matic), will enable its users to benefit from fast, fractional cost transactions when using its developing suite of features. On testing, the transaction fees for swapping ERC20 tokens were less than $0.001. The Layer 2 DEX is a modified version of SushiSwap with extra governance features. The Umbria token list, which includes the ERC20 assets that users will be able to swap and provide liquidity for on Umbria DEX, can be viewed here. The development team is currently building out the user interface with asset swapping on the Umbria DEX and official liquidity pools (that will provide bonus UMBR for liquidity providers) scheduled for Q3 of 2021, which is in line with its roadmap. The next farm - https://farm.umbria.network/ - on the Umbria platform will be on Polygon chain and will be for the UMBR-MATIC liquidity pair. It will work in a similar way to Umbria's existing Ethereum farm but fees to enter and exit will be much lower. The team will continue creating farms with the most favourable APY possible. "We're very pleased with the liquidity we're seeing for UMBR-ETH and we will enable people to esily migrate this liquidity directly from Uniswap onto the Umbria DEX," said Oscar Chambers, Co-lead developer of Umbria. "There are many developments and features in the pipeline, which will get our community excited. Fast, low-cost transactions and attractive APY are key for the project."



See the latest data on UMBR on CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko: https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/umbria-network/news/

https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/umbria-network Head over to the Umbria Discord channel, Telegram , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook or LinkedIn to find out more about the project. Become part of the journey. About Umbria https://umbria.network/ Umbria is a decentralized protocol, which enables DeFi (Decentralised Finance) applications on the Ethereum blockchain. It aims to demystify and simplify DeFi and get people earning income on their crypto. Using cutting edge-layer two technology developed by Polygon, Umbria is developing a suite of popular DeFi features at fractional on-chain cost of many current DeFi platforms with greater transaction speed (while maintaining all the cryptographic security provided by Ethereum). Umbria is available on Uniswap and users can add liquidity to earn fees. The first Umbria Farm went live on March 26th, 2021. A user of Umbria will soon be able to swap tokens and earn interest on their cryptocurrency positions on the Umbria website with other facilities coming online (via developers and community initiatives) which will utilise the Umbria protocol and its governance token. One of the initial features of Umbria is that it will allow users to deposit cryptocurrency as liquidity in AMM (automated market making) pools to earn fees from token swapping and earn additional Umbria as an incentive for providing liquidity. The Umbria governance token will also enable users in the network to take control over decision-making and have voting power over the development and governance of Umbria's protocol. UK-publicly listed Online Blockchain plc (LSE:OBC) is acting as Umbria's coordinator, administrator and advisor. Contacts: Francesca De Franco francescad@advfnplc.com +44 794 125 3135. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/umbria-announces-alpha-version-of-its-layer-2-dex-301287782.html SOURCE Online Blockchain plc

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[May 11, 2021] ADVA adds encryption to flagship 10G edge device

ADVA (News - Alert) (FSE: ADV) today launched its FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH), addressing urgent enterprise demand for high-bandwidth connectivity with robust security. The new member of the ADVA FSP 150 programmable demarcation and edge compute portfolio supports 10Gbit/s MEF (News - Alert) 3.0 Carrier Ethernet and IP services, provides precise synchronization capabilities and now features hardware-based encryption. With its comprehensive MACsec security, the ADVA FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) enables business data to pass safely and seamlessly across untrusted public networks and empowers communication service providers (CSPs) to offer fully encrypted bandwidth services. What's more, like ADVA's FSP 3000 transport solution, the ADVA FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) is ready to run post-quantum cryptographic (PQC) algorithms. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005059/en/ ADVA's new FSP 150 will prove key for businesses seeking ultimate security for high-capacity Carrier Ethernet services (Photo: Business Wire) "Our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) provides a simple and affordable route to high-capacity Carrier Ethernet connectivity with the highest levels of data protection. Unique in our industry, this compact and cost-efficient device combines demarcation, edge compute, synchronization and encrption," said James Buchanan, GM, Edge Cloud, ADVA. "No other single solution offers all the features of our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH). Straight out of the box, it delivers data encryption compliant with the strictest standards in the industry, including FIPS 140-3. Our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) has multi-layer demarcation capabilities as well as precise synchronization delivery. What's more, its edge computing capabilities and open SDN control make it a key component for industrial IoT applications."



The ADVA FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) combines 10Gbit/s MEF 3.0 Carrier Ethernet and IP service demarcation and aggregation with a rich set of programmability, synchronization and security features. For the first time, CSPs and businesses can deploy a compact and power-efficient solution with next-generation synchronization delivery, NFV-hosting capabilities and robust data protection. The FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) features precise clock technology based on Synchronous Ethernet and hardware processing of IEEE (News - Alert) 1588 timestamps. Its fully open architecture supports ADVA's Ensemble Connector and other virtual network function infrastructure. And, based on an enhanced version of MACsec able to encrypt across multiple domains and service provider networks, it provides end-to-end security across MEF Layer 2 cloud networks. "Our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) supports a smooth and simple transition from 1Gbit/s to 10Gbit/s services while meeting the very highest security requirements. Now there's a simple and affordable way to achieve the safe and assured connectivity that businesses need for peace of mind and compliance with stringent regulations. The solutions also enables CSPs to roll out tailored encryption-as-a-service offerings," commented Eli Angel, VP, product line management, ADVA. "Our FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH) shares the same security framework as our optical products. Its cryptographic techniques, including dynamic key exchange and hardware tamper protection, ensure the safety of the most sensitive data. And, like our FSP 3000, it's ready to support quantum-safe key exchange via a simple software upgrade."

Watch this video for more information on the new FSP 150-XG118Pro (CSH): https://youtu.be/efdEFASaue8. Further details are also available in these slides: https://adva.li/fsp-150-xg118pro-csh-slides. About ADVA ADVA is a company founded on innovation and focused on helping our customers succeed. Our technology forms the building blocks of a shared digital future and empowers networks across the globe. We're continually developing breakthrough hardware and software that leads the networking industry and creates new business opportunities. It's these open connectivity solutions that enable our customers to deliver the cloud and mobile services that are vital to today's society and for imagining new tomorrows. Together, we're building a truly connected and sustainable future. For more information on how we can help you, please visit us at www.adva.com. Published by:

ADVA Optical Networking (News - Alert) SE, Munich, Germany

www.adva.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005059/en/

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[May 11, 2021] MetricNet to Present New Research on AI and ESM at Service Management World

INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- MetricNet is pleased to announce that Jeff Rumburg, Managing Partner of MetricNet, has been invited to present MetricNet's latest research on Enterprise Service Management (ESM) as well as Artificial Intelligence (AI) in IT Service and Support at the 2021 Service Management World Digital Conference. Powered by HDI, the leading organization dedicated to elevating service and support across the enterprise, Service Management World 2021 will take place July 21-22. Mr. Rumburg will be presenting Session 302: "How an Enterprise Service Desk Can Improve All Aspects of Customer Care" on Wednesday, July 21 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time and Session 403: "AI in Service and Support: The Future is Now" on Thursday, July 22 at 1:00 p.m. In Session 302, Mr. Rumburg will discuss how 50 years of ITSM experience can be leveraged to drive dramatic performance improvements for non-IT services, and enable them to achieve a level of maturity in weeks or months that took IT decades of incremental, trial-and-error effort to achieve. And in Session 403, he will share how one FORTUNE company leveraged AI to shift left, improve the custome experience, and dramatically reduce their Total Cost of Ownership. All those involved in the planning, delivery and support of IT services, and the fundamental concepts behind service management, are encouraged to attend.



"Massive computing power, combined with data science, has allowed the discovery of insights that would otherwise escape even the most experienced IT support professional," said Jeff Rumburg of AI. "All the data that has been sitting, largely unused, for years or even decades in ITSM systems, knowledge bases, phone systems, remote control tools, and other technologies can now be unlocked by data science to produce actionable insights that yield the long-awaited benefits of AI!" Mr. Rumburg is the winner of the Ron Muns Lifetime Achievement Award, was named to HDI's Top 25 Thought Leaders list for four consecutive years and has served on HDI's Strategic Advisory Board. He is co-founder and Managing Partner of MetricNet, LLC, where he is responsible for global strategy, product development, and client engagement delivery. As a leading expert in benchmarking and re-engineering, Mr. Rumburg authored a best-selling book on benchmarking and has been retained as a benchmarking expert by such iconic companies as American Express, USAA, Coca-Cola, and Emory Healthcare.

If you would like more information about benchmarking your service and support functions, please visit http://www.metricnet.com or e-mail MetricNet at info(at)metricnet(dot)com. About MetricNet

MetricNet is the global leader in IT service and support benchmarking. More than half of the FORTUNE 500 rely on MetricNet benchmarks to improve and optimize their performance. MetricNet is the first, and still the only company to offer downloadable service desk and desktop support benchmarks from their website. With a global benchmarking database of nearly 4,000 IT service and support benchmarks, MetricNet has the most comprehensive database of process and performance metrics in the industry. Related Images

metricnet-logo.png

MetricNet Logo View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/metricnet-to-present-new-research-on-ai-and-esm-at-service-management-world-301288113.html SOURCE MetricNet, LLC

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[May 11, 2021] Reachdesk Announces Appointment of Temy Mancusi-Ungaro as CEO

Reachdesk, the leading global direct mail and corporate gifting company has announced the appointment of Temy Mancusi-Ungaro as Chief Executive Officer. With offices in New York and London, Reachdesk empowers B2B companies to deliver moments that matter at scale, globally, throughout the entire customer lifecycle. The company powers some of the world's leading businesses, including Hootsuite, Sendbird and Zscaler to deliver direct mail and egifts, at the click of the button, while giving the ability to gain a clear ROI. Reachdesk was founded in 2018 and in 2020 raised $6 million in funding, saw over 300% growth and is recognized as one of the top 5 fastest growing companies on G2 (News - Alert) Crowd. The business is focused on investing in their customers and people, as well as expanding further around the globe, with a large focus on the US. Reachdesk plans to increase their existing headcount from 80 to over 200 employees globally by the end of the year. "Reachdesk has experienced immense growth under the current co-founders leadership and I'm dlighted to join a team like this, where the opportunity is huge and the business has come so far in just two years!" said Mancusi-Ungaro "Reachdesk is changing the way businesses communicate with prospects, customers and employees, the possibilities are endless and I look forward to taking this company to the next level of growth."



Mancusi-Ungaro is a marketing technology leader with over 14 years' experience scaling businesses, having most recently served as Chief Customer Officer at Electric AI, Inc., where he oversaw all post-sale operations including implementation, support, customer success, and professional services. Prior to this Temy served as SVP of Client Delivery and Operations at Yext, as well as Senior Director of CityGrid. "I'm delighted for the opportunity to work with Temy who has overseen phenomenal growth in numerous companies and has had great success in the marketing technology space." commented Alex Olley, Co-Founder and CRO, he continued "this is the next chapter for us and we're ready for Temy to take us to the next level with his people-first, customer-centric approach and aligned aspirations to grow our talented team, support our amazing customers and take the helm of the Reachdesk Rocketship!"

About Reachdesk Reachdesk enables companies to deliver moments that matter at scale, globally, throughout the entire customer lifecycle. Through Reachdesk companies can deliver gifts and direct mail that build deeper connections with customers, prospects and employees at the click of a button. Our integrations to your tech stack power a clear and quantifiable ROI; the direct channel is no longer a guessing game. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005211/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Exciting insights in how artificial intelligence will set new quality benchmarks in human fertility treatment

SINGAPORE, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The 10th Congress of the Asia Pacific Initiative on Reproduction (ASPIRE) has provided exciting insights into likely developments and future possibilities in assisted reproductive technology including artificial intelligence. Since the first IVF baby was born in 1978, more than eight million babies have been delivered as a result of the assisted reproductive technique. In that time, there have been amazing advances in technology and treatment protocols to help the one in six couples living with infertility to fulfil their dreams of parenthood. One child in every 20 born today is an IVF baby, and another five per cent of babies around the world are conceived with the help of fertility drugs. The Congress itself, which has just concluded, represented a quantum leap in information technology. Because of on-going concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic, the Congress was presented in virtual format  https://aspire2021.cme-congresses.com  to 3,285 fertility specialists i over 100 countries to share information on addressing the growing demand for assisted conception.



Artificial intelligence (AI) was highlighted at the Congress as one of the emerging revolutions with the increasing likelihood of advanced machines playing vital roles in fertility treatment. Dr Haroon Latif Khan, a sexual health specialist from Pakistan, provided fascinating details on how AI is being adopted in fertility clinics for more stringent quality control measures aimed at increasing pregnancy and live birth success rates.

Based at the Lahore Institute of Fertility and Endocrinology, Dr Haroon is also a founder member of the Pakistan Society of Andrology and Sexual Medicine, General Secretary of the IVF Society of Pakistan and as Board member of ASPIRE. "As we are living through a technological revolution, AI is being integrated into all aspects of our lives," he said. "The live birth rate is the ultimate key performance indicator in assisted reproductive technology, and we are seeing AI being embraced for management of performance, quality and risk," he said. "The main targets of this total quality management are in the areas of ovarian stimulation, oocyte retrieval, sperm preparation, embryo development and grading, cryopreservation of gametes and embryos, and pre-implantation genetic testing (PGT) of embryos. "Computers as an adjunct in assisted reproduction have been in use for many years for techniques including quick and accurate sperm analysis and electronic monitoring of quality control procedures and protocols. "PGT has become the norm in fertility clinics for testing embryos for any genetic abnormalities before they are implanted, and this is now fully automated for high accuracy. Vitrification also now relies on AI to enhance survival of gametes, embryos and reproductive tissue. "In the future, I believe we will see AI increasingly applied to predict the viability of embryos for implantation and in the next generation of reproductive genetics. "Eventually, every step of an assisted reproductive cycle will be automated resulting in reduced costs, greater work efficiency, and minimised human subjectivity and variability. "This will result in assisted reproduction being more accessible and the number of IVF cycles will consequently skyrocket." However, Dr Haroon insists that "robots" will not take over fertility clinics. "We will still need the human touch to run our laboratories, and the future looks very exciting as we all strive to ensure patient safety remains at the forefront of accessibility and treatment." The Asia Pacific Initiative on Reproduction (ASPIRE) is a unique task force of clinicians and scientists involved in the management of fertility and assisted reproductive technology throughout the region. SOURCE ASPIRE 2021 Virtual Congress

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 06:24:19|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

The patrol boat United States Coast Guard Cutter Maui navigates through the Arabian Gulf on Jan. 24, 2019. (Photo credit: U.S. Naval Forces Central Command)



The Iranian boats approached the U.S. formation at high speed, closing in as close as 150 yards, and the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Maui fired about 30 warning shots from a machine gun before the Iranian boats left, the Pentagon said.

WASHINGTON, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The Pentagon said on Monday that a U.S. Coast Guard ship fired warning shots during a close encounter with Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) fast boats in the Strait of Hormuz earlier in the day.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a daily briefing that six U.S. Navy vessels escorting USS Georgia, a guided missile submarine, encountered 13 IRGCN fast attack boats while transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

He said the Iranian boats approached the U.S. formation at high speed, closing in as close as 150 yards (about 137 meters), and the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Maui fired about 30 warning shots from a machine gun before the Iranian boats left.

Iranian soldiers patrol the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran, April 30, 2019. (Xinhua/Ahmad Halabisaz)

It was the second such encounter in two weeks. In late April, a U.S. Navy patrol ship fired warning shots as IRGCN vessels approached to an "unnecessarily close range" in international waters of the northern Persian Gulf.

The incident came days after the U.S. Navy seized an illicit shipment of weapons, including thousands of small arms and dozens of anti-tank guided missiles, from a stateless dhow in the North Arabian Sea. An anonymous official told U.S. media that the Navy's initial investigation indicated the vessel came from Iran.

The incident also came amid indirect talks between the United States and Iran in Vienna to revive the Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. 
[May 11, 2021]

Neoway Technology 5G+C-V2X Full-function Automotive-grade Module A590 Officially Released

SHENZHEN, China, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 7, 2021, at the Automotive Aftermarket Industry and Tuning Trade Fair, Neoway Technology (Shanghai:688159) officially released the 5G+C-V2X full-function automotive-grade module A590. This further enriches the 5G series products of Neoway Technology, and helps the smart connected vehicle industry accelerate into the 5G era.

"With its advantages of large bandwidth and low latency, and with C-V2X's PC5 direct communication technology, 5G technology can collaboratively implement rich smart driving scenarios such as V2V, V2I, V2P, and V2N, providing drivers with optimal smart mobility experience," said Felix, vice president of Neoway Technology.

Neoway Technology 5G+C-V2X full-function automotive-grade module A590 has outstanding performance in product performance, communications stability and reliability, size of cellular modules and many other aspects.

Automotive-grade: A590 is developed based on the Qualcom automotive-grade chip SA515M. It is a true automotive-grade module that complies with IATF 16949 and ACE-Q100 standards, and can operate in the range of -40C to +85C.







Small size, but powerful functions: A590 has a size of only 52 mm  52 mm, but it has very powerful functions. It fully supports 5G, C-V2X, eCall, dual SIM dual active (DSDA), and multi-frequency multi-satellite GNSS. It can well meet the needs of products with high size requirements, such as shark fin smart antennas.

High-precision positioning: A590 supports a full range of positioning systems such as GPS and BDS. It can implement high-precision positioning, by using RTK and QDR, regardless of whether in open spaces, or special scenarios such as tunnels and basements.

DSDA: A590 supports simultaneous working of two cards, and can keep the data services of two operators online at the same time. This reduces network coverage blind areas exponentially, guarantees the online rate, and improves the safety of smart driving. By using a unique bandwidth aggregation/balancing mechanism and link quality prediction algorithm, A590 can guarantee the data quality of high-priority services, implementing more stable wireless communications and safer driving experience.

High security: A590 provides a seamless combination of software and hardware security solutions in aspects including startup security, system security, and communications security.

A590 can be used in a variety of smart connected vehicle scenarios, such as T-BOX, smart antenna, OBU, RSU, smart cockpit, and vehicle central control, providing strong support for safe driving of smart vehicles and even autonomous driving.

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

SOURCE Neoway Technology
[May 11, 2021] Digital Edge Doubles Down in North Asia with the Addition of Two Data Centers in Japan

HONG KONG, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Digital Edge (Singapore) Holdings Pte. Ltd. ("Digital Edge" or the "Company"), which aims to transform Asia's digital infrastructure by building and operating state-of-the-art, energy-efficient, connectivity-rich data centers, today announced the addition of two data centers in Tokyo Japan. The Company has signed agreements to acquire ComSpace I and ComSpace II  two fully-operational data centers located in downtown Nihonbashi and Shinjuku respectively  from Japan's ARTERIA Networks Corporation ("ARTERIA"). Representing Digital Edge's third project in Japan and fourth in North Asia since its inception in 2020, the acquisition will boost the Company's regional footprint to a total of six data centers in four key metros. This footprint includes three data centers in Tokyo, one in Seoul, one in Busan, and the development of a 12MW facility in Osaka that is scheduled to open in Q1 2022. Upon the completion of all transactions in Japan and the opening of the Osaka facility, Digital Edge will have invested in excess of US$200 million to offer customers more than 5,300 cabinets of data center capacity. "Our goal is simple: to build an exceptional data center platform that enables customers to easily, efficiently and economically deploy their infrastructure to capture the business opportunities that Asia offers. We are thrilled to have achieved so much, in so short a time and in such strategic markets as Japan and Korea. I look forward to a long and successful partnership with ARTERIA, and to continuing to identify other opportunities to expand in line with market demands and better support our customers in their digital transformation journey," said Samuel Lee, Chief Executive Officer of Digital Edge. Analysts project Japan's public cloud sevices market will grow by nearly 18.7% annually between 2019 and 2024 to approximately US$26.4 billion, due to direct private and public investment in ICT infrastructure and the Japanese government's commitment to cloud services. Recognized as one of the world's largest data center markets, with value of approximately US$12 billion in fiscal year 2019 and an estimated CAGR of 3.7% from 2021 to 2026, Japan is expected to see a growing need for cloud computing and digital transformation, further fueled by the recent COVID-19 pandemic.



Digital Edge's strategic partnership with ARTERIA to acquire ComSpace I and ComSpace II aims to enable the Company to better address the needs of customers in light of these market trends. The facilities are recognized as two of the most network-dense data centers in the Tokyo market. Digital Edge is actively evaluating a number of additional investments and potential partnerships to further expand its digital infrastructure platform in Japan. "Forming a partnership with Digital Edge makes perfect business sense for ARTERIA. Transferring two of our data centers leaves ARTERIA free to focus on providing our customers with core communications services and enjoy its growth by partnership with Digital Edge. It will be exciting to see Digital Edge leverage its expertise in data center development and operations to create an even stronger platform that enables customers to embrace opportunities today and unlock growth potential tomorrow," said Koji Kabumoto, Representative Director, President & CEO of ARTERIA Networks Corporation.

"Digital Edge is committed to accelerating cloud adoption and digital transformation in Japan by building an exceptional in-country platform in key Japanese metros, such as Tokyo and Osaka  the two prime locations for data centers in Japan. As part of the company's ongoing commitment to expanding its platform footprint, the partnership with ARTERIA gives us access to additional inventory and a strategic, carrier-dense location. Consequently, it will enable global and Japanese businesses to leverage our platform to increase their footprint in the country and enjoy the network diversity provided by world-class data center assets," said Kei Furuta, President of Digital Edge. The transactions are expected to close in two phases. The first is already completed and the second phase closing expected in the second quarter of 2021, subject to customary closing conditions. About Digital Edge Headquartered in Singapore, Digital Edge is a trusted and forward-looking data center platform company, established to transform digital infrastructure in Asia. Through building and operating state-of-the-art, energy-efficient data centers rich with connectivity options, Digital Edge aims to bring new colocation and interconnect options to the Asian market, making infrastructure deployment in the region easy, efficient and economical. Digital Edge was founded by a seasoned senior management team with decades of industry experience and an established track record of value creation in the data center, cloud and telecommunications industries in the Asia-Pacific region. Backed by Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners, Digital Edge has in excess of US$1 billion in committed capital to establish and drive its data center platform in Asia. About Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners (www.stonepeakpartners.com) is an infrastructure-focused private equity firm headquartered in New York that manages US$31.3 billion of capital for its investors (as of February, 2021). Stonepeak invests in long-lived, hard-asset businesses and projects that provide essential services to customers, and seeks to actively partner with high-quality management teams, facilitate operational improvements, and provide capital for growth initiatives. SOURCE Digital Edge

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[May 11, 2021] FlowForma To Host Panel With Leading Construction Firms At London Build Online 2021, May 19th

DUBLIN, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- FlowForma, the leading provider of Process Automation tools for Microsoft Office 365, today announced its participation at London Build Online 2021, the UK's largest virtual event for digital construction, hosted by Digital Construction Online. As the Coronavirus pandemic continues to accelerate the need for process automation across all industries, the Construction sector has seen a steady increase in demand for the digitization of manual paper-based processes, to aid remote workers and remove bottlenecks causing delays on important infrastructure projects. Throughout this five-day event, the depths of the global digital construction market will be explored, with exclusive insights on future trends, key drivers, and the global response to digital transformation the key topics for discussion. On day three, FlowForma's Product Strategist, Paul Stone, will be participating in a panel discussion on May 19 at 3:30 pm BST / 10:30 am EDT, alongside a leading global international infrastructure group and FlowForma customer, along with global construction influencer, Andrew Gamblin, Digital Manager at Willmott Dixon, where the panel will share real world insights into how construction organizations are finding new digital fixes for day-to-day construction processes. Attendees of this session will also hear first-hand from our panellists about the importance of digitization and how best to support a distributed workforce by digitizing manual processes. Additionally, FlowForma's customer will reveal their top tips to overcome common processes challenges, such as poor visibility, BIM compliance (ISO 19650) and project overruns. A short demonstration of the award winning, 100% no code, FlowFora Process Automation tool will give attendees a further understanding of how quickly and seamlessly these processes can be digitized.



Additionally, FlowForma will exclusively reveal its new Construction Process Accelerators, consisting of popular construction process templates, ready for customers to adapt and deploy with speed. These fully customizable and accessible process accelerators include: Field Change Request, Concrete Pre-Pour Check Sheet, Labour Requisition, Materials Requisition and more. Paul Stone, Product Strategist, FlowForma commented: "We are delighted to participate at London Build Online 2021, in what promises to be an interesting event discussing all things digital process automation in the Construction sector. It is an industry which traditionally has had a heavy reliance on paper but is now quickly embracing digital solutions to automate processes at scale site-wide, to eradicate paper delays on distributed sites, engage external users, and drive project efficiency and rapid ROI."

Supporting Resources: To find out how the FlowForma Process Automation tool works visit:

www.flowforma.com/how-it-works

Learn how FlowForma Process Automation accelerates process digitization in construction: www.flowforma.com/construction-infographic

T o download a free 14-day trial of FlowForma Process Automation visit:

www.flowforma.com/start-your-flowforma-trial

To learn more about FlowForma Process Automation, book a demo with one of our experts:

www.flowforma.com/book-a-demo

To find out how FlowForma Process Automation compares against its peers visit:

www.g2crowd.com/products/flowforma-process-automation/reviews About FlowForma FlowForma, the leading provider of Process Automation tools for Microsoft Office 365 has been revolutionizing the traditional BPM space with an innovative approach to developing award winning products that empower users to create and streamline processes smarter and faster, utilizing the familiar SharePoint platform, without any coding. FlowForma has emerged as a leading process automation provider in the construction industry, servicing top construction companies in the UK and others such as Maverick Corporation, Reliable Contractors, and the joint venture of Costain, VINCI Construction Grands Projects and Bachy Soletanche building the east section of the Thames Tideway Tunnel. FlowForma is a Gold Microsoft Partner, with over 200,000 users across Europe, America, and Asia. The company is headquartered in Dublin with offices in London and Boston and is motivated by its values to innovate, evolve, and achieve with employees, customers, and partners. For further information or a 14-day free trial, visit www.flowforma.com Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1506918/FlowForma_Paul_Stone.jpg Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/715823/FlowForma_Logo.jpg

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[May 11, 2021] Bangladesh and China keep cooperating on marine spatial planning during COVID-19 pandemic

DHAKA, Bangladesh and BEIJING, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A commentary article from Teng Xin, Head of the Secretariat of the Marine Spatial Planning Academy supported by China Oceanic Development Foundation: Despite enormous challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, Bangladesh and China haven't stopped cooperation in marine spatial planning. Through the cooperative project of remote sensing interpretation of human activities, focused on the protection and utilization of Bangladeshi coastal zone, the two countries have completed a series of research reports on coastal resource exploitation, urban development and industrial layout. These scientific findings will significantly promote the Blue Economy of Bangladesh, building a good foundation for the realization of Bangladesh's Vision 2041. Bangladesh has one of the most intricate coastlines in the world, with rich fishery resources and mangrove forests, most of which remain unexplored. The developed part is dominated by energy-intensive industries with heavy pollution. Shipbreaking industry, for instance, poses a huge threat to the sustainability of marine economic development due to its massive dust and engine oil emission. Thus, balancing the relationship between human activities and environmental protection is of great significance for Bangladesh. As a critical tool of scientific management of marine resources, marine spatial planning has received great recognition and investment from the country's government. Bangladesh values the "capacity building and technical assistance to the developing countries, ensuring inclusivity that no one is left behind" on marine scientific research, Rabab Fatima, ambassador and permanent reprsentative of Bangladesh to the United Nations in New York, told United News of Bangladesh.



Bangladesh and China began international cooperation on marine spatial planning in 2017. Scientists from the two countries have jointly carried out a series of activities, including organizing technical seminars, launching training programs, and completing on-site investigations from Chattogram to Cox's Bazar. "With cooperation, Bangladesh can make the progress that China made in the past 30 years in significantly less time, " said Teng Xin, Head of the Secretariat of the Marine Spatial Planning Academy supported by China Oceanic Development Foundation.

In June, 2018, Chinese scientists from National Ocean Technology Center were invited to attend the international seminar on the theme "Marine Legal System and Sustainable Marine Resource Management for Blue Economy" in Dhaka. In the following year, the administration of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Maritime University paid a visit to the Center. During the joint field researches, Chinese researchers have also brought multi parameter water quality monitor meters and quadrat frames to examine water quality and biodiversity in Bangladesh. The achievements of these activities have contributed to the restoration of the marine ecosystem and the urban development in Bangladesh. Recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought great challenges to the cooperation between Bangladesh and China, suspending previous regular field surveys and academic exchanges. Through trial and error, the two countries figured a way out  focusing on the remote sensing interpretation of human activities for the protection and utilization of Bangladeshi coastal zone. This endeavor mainly relied on the manual decoding of remote sensing images provided by satellites and was thus less restricted by the pandemic. This project will provide a better knowledge of the distribution of natural resources as well as the geographical layout of existing industries along Bangladeshi coasts. With this knowledge, researchers from two countries planned to design a system which lists the dos and don'ts for marine resource management in each specific area. "Bangladeshi government can refer to these advices to make scientific decisions on how to manage marine resources and develop blue economy," said Teng Xin. Polluting enterprises such as furniture factories and steel plants, which need not be built near the coastline, will be given more careful consideration, while nuclear power plants, which are environmentally friendly and rely on sea water for condensation, will be encouraged to locate along the coasts in the future, according to Teng. Combining research with economic development is the primary goal of Bangladesh-China cooperation on marine spatial planning. Researchers from the two countries have also looked into the investment plans of about 50 Chinese enterprises that are interested in the Bangladeshi market. These companies, if located as designed, will help Bangladesh optimize the allocation and utilization of resources, upgrading its industrial structure and developing marine economies, which will finally enhance the well-being of local people. Bangladesh is a key hub connecting East Asia and South Asia, occupying a strategic position in Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor. Its biggest port city, Chattogram, is also a significant node for Chinese Belt and Road Initiative. With the determination to scientifically manage marine resources, Bangladesh considers its cooperation with China in marine spatial planning to be beneficial for the developments of blue economy conducive to both Bangladesh's long-term goal of becoming a developed country in 2041 and China's Belt and Road Initiative. This win-win cooperation will also benefit the economic development in Asia in general as well. SOURCE China Oceanic Development Foundation

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[May 11, 2021] Guild Holdings Company Strategically Expands Into Northeast With Acquisition of Residential Mortgage Services Holdings

Guild Holdings Company ("Guild" or the "Company") (NYSE: GHLD), a growth-oriented mortgage company that employs a relationship-based loan sourcing strategy to execute on its mission of delivering the promise of homeownership, and Residential Mortgage Services Holdings, Inc. ("RMS") today announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement under which Guild will acquire RMS. Guild expects the transaction to be accretive to 2021 earnings per share and to close in the third quarter of 2021, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. The addition of RMS, a fast growing retail originator focused in the Northeast, will extend Guild's presence into new geographies and create growth opportunities as Guild continues to build market share across the United States. With RMS' strength in the retail, purchase market, Guild will leverage its core competencies to drive near and long-term growth. Based on 2020 loan originations, the combined company would have been the seventh largest non-bank retail lender in the country1. "We have a history of growing through targeted acquisitions, and the transaction with RMS supports our strategy to expand into the Northeast," said Mary Ann McGarry, Chief Executive Officer of Guild. "Our close cultural alignment and commitment to strong values across both organizations, combined with a retail and purchase market focus provide us with confidence that this acquisition will contribute to our ongoing success. With both teams dedicated to providing exceptional customer service, and the many synergies between our products, sales tools, and servicing teams, this is a natural fit. We expect the combination will result in an even stronger platform that will continue to deliver profitable sustained growth, as we create long-term value for all our stakeholders. We look forward to welcoming RMS to the Guild team." Founded in 1991, RMS has 70 offices across 14 New England and Mid-Atlantic states. The RMS management team averages more than 30 years of industry experience and like Guild, specializes in conventional and government lending. In 2020, RMS generated $8.5 billion of loan originations, achieving a compounded annual growth rate of 26% since 2010. Over the last 11 years, RMS averaged 70% purchase originations, which is 23% higher than the market average1. "We are excited to join forces with Guild Mortgage to drive continued growth for our respective stakeholders," said Jim Seely, President and CEO of RMS. "Guild and RMS share a similar entrepreneurial culture - one that places a high value on market expertise, efficiency and productivity. This transaction is a natural next step to build on our success and take our business to the next level by partnering with a national powerhouse in the residential mortgage market. Leveraging Guild's technology, in-house servicing platform and enhanced access to the capital markets will enable us to further expand our value to our customers, provide new opportunities for our employees and continue growing our market share in the Northeast." Transaction Highlights: Complementary geographic footprint: RMS' existing footprint in the Northeast will provide Guild with immediate access to valuable new geographies and a strong baseline from which Guild can further grow its brand.

RMS' existing footprint in the Northeast will provide Guild with immediate access to valuable new geographies and a strong baseline from which Guild can further grow its brand. Retail and purchase focused strategies: Guild and RMS have generated 22% and 23%, more purchase mix than the broader market since 2010 1 , respectively, positioning Guild to continue generating durable volume and margins post close. Similarity in strategy and a client-centric approach will allow Guild to provide clients with a consistent experience across the United States and efficiently integrate RMS.

Guild and RMS have generated 22% and 23%, more purchase mix than the broader market since 2010 , respectively, positioning Guild to continue generating durable volume and margins post close. Similarity in strategy and a client-centric approach will allow Guild to provide clients with a consistent experience across the United States and efficiently integrate RMS. Financially compelling: Guild expects the transaction to be accretive to 2021 earnings per share. With this transaction, Guild continues to execute on its successful long-term growth strategy by acquiring a strong foothold in the Northeast that enhances the Company's near- and lon-term growth profile.

Guild expects the transaction to be accretive to 2021 earnings per share. With this transaction, Guild continues to execute on its successful long-term growth strategy by acquiring a strong foothold in the Northeast that enhances the Company's near- and lon-term growth profile. Attractive return on capital: Accretive opportunity to invest a large portion of excess cash generated by historic levels of growth in the past year.

Accretive opportunity to invest a large portion of excess cash generated by historic levels of growth in the past year. Continuation of Guild's proven and disciplined acquisition strategy: Guild has a proven track record of growing through a combination of targeted acquisitions and organic growth. This transaction marks the Company's seventh successful acquisition since 2008. Similar to previous transactions, Guild expects to work with RMS to enhance gain-on-sale margins and realize select expense synergies.

Guild has a proven track record of growing through a combination of targeted acquisitions and organic growth. This transaction marks the Company's seventh successful acquisition since 2008. Similar to previous transactions, Guild expects to work with RMS to enhance gain-on-sale margins and realize select expense synergies. Leverages in-house technology and servicing platform: Guild's internally-developed technology and servicing expertise will position RMS to capture additional repeat business and build clients for life.



Following the transaction, the RMS management team will continue to manage the business.

Wells Fargo (News - Alert) Securities, LLC served as lead financial advisor and STRATMOR Group served as financial advisor to Guild. Mayer Brown LLP served as legal counsel to Guild. Houlihan Lokey served as financial advisor to RMS. Winston & Strawn LLP served as legal counsel to RMS. Buckley LLP served as regulatory counsel to RMS. Webcast and Conference call The Company will host a webcast and conference call on Tuesday, May 11, 2021 at 8:00 am ET to discuss the Company's results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021. The conference call will be available on the Company's website at https://ir.guildmortgage.com/. To listen to a live broadcast, go to the site at least 15 minutes prior to the scheduled start time in order to register. The conference call can also be accessed by the following dial-in information: 1-855-327-6837 (Domestic)

1-631-891-4304 (International) Replay A replay of the call will be available on the Company's website approximately two hours after the live call through May 25, 2021 on the investors section of the Company's website at https://ir.guildmortgage.com/. The replay is also available by dialing 1-844-512-2921 (United States) or 1-412-317-6671 (international). The replay pin number is 10014469. About Guild Holdings Company Guild Holdings Company (NYSE: GHLD) is a growth-oriented mortgage company headquartered in San Diego, California. Guild leverages a relationship-based loan sourcing strategy to execute on its mission of delivering the promise of homeownership in neighborhoods and communities across the United States. Guild's business model is centered on providing a personalized mortgage-borrowing experience, collaborating with clients to provide the services and products best-suited to their needs and preferences from the first contact and through every step of the loan origination and servicing process. Guild was established in 1960 and is one of the longest-operating seller-servicers in the U.S. About RMS Residential Mortgage Services, headquartered in South Portland, Maine, was founded in 1991. Currently, RMS employs more than 850 employees companywide, with approximately 250 loan officers and is a licensed lender in 23 states and the District of Columbia. RMS offers a wide range of mortgage products including conventional purchase and refinance home loans, as well as VA, FHA, USDA-RD and many state-sponsored loan programs. Forward Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to, among other things, future events and our financial performance. These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as "may," "should," "could," "predict," "potential," "believe," "will likely result," "expect," "continue," "will," "anticipate," "seek," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "projection," "would" and "outlook," or the negative version of those words or other comparable words or phrases of a future or forward-looking nature. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts and are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management's beliefs and certain assumptions made by management, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and beyond our control. Accordingly, we caution you that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, assumptions and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable as of the date made, actual results may prove to be materially different from the results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those indicated in these forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the risk factors set forth under Item IA. - Risk Factors and all other disclosures appearing in Guild's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, as well as other documents Guild files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read together with the cautionary statements included in this press release. If one or more events related to these or other risks or uncertainties materialize, or if our underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, actual results may differ materially from what we anticipate. Many of the important factors that will determine these results are beyond our ability to control or predict. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and, except as otherwise required by law, we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict which will arise. In addition, we cannot assess the impact of each factor on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. 1 Source (News - Alert) : Inside Mortgage Finance Publications, Inc. Copyright  2021. Used with permission. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005376/en/

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[May 11, 2021] GWM Listed Among 2021 BrandZ Top 50 Chinese Global Brand Builders for the First Time

BAODING, China, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ -- On May 10, Google and Kantar jointly released the "2021 BrandZ Top 50 Chinese Global Brand Builders", and GWM was listed among other brands for the first time. Meanwhile, GWM was also listed among "2021 BrandZ Top 20 Rising Stars". GWM has once again drawn the attention of global users with its manufacturing strength and steady growth after Auto Shanghai 2021. BrandZ is an international and authoritative large brand building platform and the one and only brand value list that take consumers' opinions into account. Since 2017, Google had joined with Kantar to collect data on the Google research platform and assess the growth of Chinese Global Brands with the globally recognized BrandZ brand value model developed by Kantar and based on the search volume on Google. The "2021 BrandZ Top 50 Chinese Global Brand" was released by Kantar along with Google. The research covered more than 860,000 consumers from 11 market places. The Top 50 list was based on scores of the significance, differentiation and high-lighting, and was selected from 1,662 candidates in 15 categories. According to IMF, the global economy has dropped by 3.5% due to the pandemic. However, many Chinese brands including GWM have shown the resolution to promote the brand establishment and boost overseas business growth facing the "black swan" incident.



In the last month, GWM has officially launched five brands at Auto Shanghai 2021, i.e. HAVAL, WEY, ORA, Pickup, and TANK in order to steadily promote their global expansion. As the major brand under the SUV category of GWM, HAVAL had won the first place among automobile brands on the 2020 "BrandZ Top 50 Chinese Global Brand". In the first half of 2021, JOLION and 3rd Gen HAVAL H6 have been launched successively in core markets such as Saudi Arabia, Australia and South Africa. While the previously launched GWM POER has become the first Chinese pickup brand entering several countries. With overall layout in the global market, GWM will certainly solidify its leadership in the industry. As one of the BrandZ Top 50 Chinese Global Brand Builders, GWM has formed its global sales network in major markets such as the Middle East, South America, Australia, South Africa and Russia, comprising more than 500 distributors. Its overseas sales cover more than 60 countries around the world. In the next five years, GWM will invest more than RMB 30 billion in global R&D and introduce more than 400 global automotive engineers and IT experts. Meanwhile, it will cooperate with global tech giants including Intel, Google and Apple to develop the most super-advanced technologies, and provide global users with more intelligent, high-tech and high-quality products.

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/gwm-listed-among-2021-brandz-top-50-chinese-global-brand-builders-for-the-first-time-301288321.html SOURCE GWM

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[May 11, 2021] OpsRamp Accelerates Adoption of Cloud and Cloud Native Infrastructure with Scalable Monitoring and Real-Time Alerting

SAN JOSE, Calif., May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OpsRamp , a modern digital operations management platform for hybrid infrastructure observability and AI-driven event management, today announced self-service onboarding for faster migration to the public cloud, powerful and customizable dashboards for visualization of hybrid infrastructure performance, and Prometheus metrics ingestion for using homegrown monitoring data within the OpsRamp platform.

Cloud infrastructure adoption is showing no signs of slowing down in 2021, with global enterprises expected to spend more than $300 billion on public cloud services . As CIOs ramp up on cloud investments to accelerate digital transformation, OpsRamps latest release helps cloud operators achieve faster time-to-value and greater return on investment for their cloud modernization initiatives. The OpsRamp Spring 2021 Release also introduces new monitoring integrations for Microsoft Azure and Cisco HyperFlex along with enhanced platform navigation for easy access to key product capabilities. Highlights of the OpsRamp Spring 2021 Release include: Rapid Onboarding. OpsRamp's hybrid cloud wizard delivers a self-contained guide for discovering and monitoring multi-cloud and cloud native infrastructure. Once IT teams provide their cloud infrastructure details, OpsRamp auto-monitoring onboards cloud resources and displays performance metrics within minutes. The platform currently supports auto-monitoring for Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP) cloud services along with Kubernetes distributions such as OpenShift and K3s as well as popular Linux distributions.



Cloud Native Metrics Observability. Kubernetes admins can now ingest Prometheus metrics into OpsRamp for holistic visibility and faster troubleshooing across cloud native infrastructure. Our pull-based mechanism for scraping Prometheus metrics across Kubernetes clusters ensures faster visualization, data federation, and long-term retention of Prometheus insights.







Data-Driven Insights for Hybrid IT Management. OpsRamps new dashboarding model allows cloud operators to visualize any data with a flexible querying framework. Dashboards 2.0 are customizable widgets powered by Prometheus Query Language (PromQL) with the ability to import/export dashboards and customize color palettes and fonts along with out-of-the-box support for a growing number of cloud services.



Flexible and Centralized Alerting. New alert definition models offer greater flexibility for setting alerts along with streamlined mechanisms to alert on metric data collected by OpsRamp. CloudOps teams can centrally set thresholds to generate alerts for auto-monitored resources and then use relevant insights to keep their IT services up and running.





Comprehensive Cloud Monitoring. OpsRamp currently offers more than 160 monitoring integrations across leading public cloud providers such as AWS , Azure , and GCP . The OpsRamp Spring 2021 Release offers expanded coverage for Microsoft Azure with metrics support for Blob Storage, Table Storage, File Storage, BatchAI Workspaces, BlockChain, Databox Edge, Logic Integration Service Environment, and Kusto Clusters.



HyperConverged Infrastructure Monitoring. OpsRamp can not only discover and monitor Cisco HyperFlex components such as cluster nodes, hosts, datastores, and virtual machines but also ingest HyperFlex events into the OpsRamp AIOps platform for faster root cause diagnostics. The platform also supports the discovery and monitoring of physical components of Dell EMC VxRail appliances along with ingestion of VxRail software and hardware events.

CloudOps teams are shackled by legacy IT operations tools that were never designed to handle the dynamic and ephemeral nature of public cloud infrastructure, said Ciaran Byrne, VP of Product Management at OpsRamp. OpsRamp's digital operations management platform enables faster discovery and monitoring of production workloads across multi-cloud environments along with data-driven insights for managing the health and performance of a distributed infrastructure ecosystem. Learn more about the OpsRamp Spring 2021 Release at www.OpsRamp.com/whatsnew About OpsRamp OpsRamp is a digital operations management software company whose SaaS platform is used by enterprise IT teams to monitor and manage their cloud and on-premises infrastructure. Key capabilities of the OpsRamp platform include hybrid infrastructure discovery and monitoring, event and incident management, and remediation and automation, all of which are powered by artificial intelligence. OpsRamp investors include Sapphire Ventures, Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital and HPE. For more information, visit www.opsramp.com . Visit the OpsRamp Newsroom for all media coverage and press releases. Visit the OpsRamp Blog . OpsRamp on Twitter: https://twitter.com/OpsRamp OpsRamp on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/opsramp Media contact:

Kevin Wolf

TGPR

kevin@tgprllc.com



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[May 11, 2021] Engageli Raises $33 Million Series A to Transform Digital Learning in Higher Education

PALO ALTO, Calif., May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Engageli , a purpose-built digital learning platform designed to provide superior learning experiences for students and instructors across higher education, today announced a $33 million Series A funding round, co-led by Maveron and Corner Ventures. Additional investors include Good Friends, Educapital, and several prominent individual technology executives. All of the venture capital firms that invested in Engagelis seed round also participated in the Series A. The new capital will be used to further scale Engagelis product development and fuel its continued growth. This round of funding brings Engagelis total financing to more than $47 million.

Engageli was designed from the ground up by educators to offer an inclusive, engaging platform for students and to enable modern pedagogical best practices that drive student success. Its many features include flexible table groups, student note-taking, Q&A, chat functions, and student-instructor feedback loops, all designed to enhance the teaching and learning experience. Students can easily interact with their peers and their instructors during and after class as well as collaborate on course projects and materials in real time and between classes. Engageli is reimagining digital education. We built Engageli to deliver exceptional student experiences that are personal, engaging, and rooted in learning outcomes, said Dan Avida, co-founder and CEO of Engageli. Higher education institutions, instructors, and students are looking towards a future where multiple modalities for learning exist in parallel  in person teaching, synchronous and asynchronous online education, as well as hybrid models. Engagelis platform is designed to support and enhance all these modalities. Maveron, Corner Ventures, and Good Friends have a proven track record of building successful consumer companies, and we look forward to partnering with them to bild a platform that is beloved by students and instructors.



As a result of the rapid adoption of online learning solutions, higher education institutions are increasingly embracing a hybrid approach to teaching in order to meet the needs of the entire student body. Whether students are learning in-person on campus, attending classes online, pursuing an education later in life, or working full- or part-time, Engageli provides them with an engaging, intuitive platform designed to enhance their learning experience. Dan Avida and his team at Engageli, that includes professors, talented technologists, and accomplished ed-tech executives, are uniquely suited to building a digital education solution that actually feels like a classroom and functions even better than some in-person courses, said Jason Stoffer, Partner at Maveron. Pandemic or not, every school needs Engageli to drive better outcomes for students, whether theyre taking remote classes full time or opt to tune in digitally when they need the flexibility. Were passionate about leveling the playing field in higher education, and Engagelis unique platform will help institutions reach and support the needs of every type of student.

Its hard to go back once you raise the bar on engagement. With Engageli, I felt the experience was the most like a real classroom. Students are sitting at tables, I can quickly see what they are doing, they can ask others at their table questions, they are chatting and interacting, said Dr. Theodora Christou, a professor at Queen Mary University of London. I finally have an easy way to lead meaningful group work and case studies online. I would choose Engageli over any other existing tool that my university offers. Engageli also announced the spring release of its platform, which includes key features like attendance tracking, LMS integration, a speaker panel, and co-instructor capabilities. Over the past several months, the company welcomed Adam Spivak, Senior Vice President, North America Partnerships; Giovanni Dubois, Senior Vice President, Global Partner Success and International Partnerships; and Talia Kolodny, Director, EMEA Partnerships to its executive team. These executives bring extensive experience from successful edtech companies such as Coursera, General Assembly, and 2U/Trilogy Education Services. The company was recently named an Honorable Mention in Fast Companys World Changing Ideas awards. To learn more about becoming a university partner with Engageli, visit https://www.engageli.com/join . About Engageli

Engageli is a digital learning platform optimized for student success and that delivers engaging teaching and learning experiences across a broad spectrum of needs for higher education. The company was founded in 2020 by a team that includes Dan Avida, Serge Plotkin, and Daphne Koller. Engageli has raised over $47 million in funding. About Maveron

Maveron is a venture capital firm that exclusively invests in consumer companies. Founded in 1998 by Dan Levitan and Howard Schultz, representative Maveron investments include Allbirds, Eargo, CourseHero, Imperfect Foods, General Assembly, Trupanion, Lovevery, Pacaso, eBay, Zulily, and many more. For more information about Maveron, visit www.maveron.com, follow on Twitter @maveron or connect on LinkedIn. Contact:

engageli@launchsquad.com

https://www.engageli.com



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[May 11, 2021] Neurotechnology Releases New Version of StockGeist.ai Platform for Real-Time Monitoring of Publicly Traded Companies

VILNIUS, Lithuania, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Neurotechnology, a developer of state-of-the-art deep learning-based solutions, today announced the release of a new version of its AI-powered StockGeist.ai platform for monitoring publicly traded companies in real-time. This release includes a newly developed REST API for developers who wish to harness the full power of StockGeist's data and integrate it into their own projects. It also includes a number of dashboard performance upgrades and delivers continuous updates to the list of stocks covered by StockGeist.ai, including the healthcare and technology sectors as well as the S&P 500 list. Users can now register their accounts and set up personal profiles, and the newly introduced scheme of user tiers supports flexible pricing tailored to everyone's needs. "With StockGeist.ai, you can quickly feel the spirit of the most recent developments in the business world." StockGeis is a web-based platform that uses deep learning models to provide a convenient, real-time monitor of the sentiment and context behind developments in the stock market as reflected in the media and social media. StockGeist.ai's intuitive interface lets users quickly build customized watchlists with companies of interest to observe the dynamics in their rankings and track other up-to-date information.



"With StockGeist.ai, you can quickly feel the spirit of the most recent developments in the business world," said Dr. Vytautas Abramavicius, StockGeist.ai team lead from Neurotechnology. "Our web platform aggregates a tremendous amount of data from various media and social media sources. Using modern deep learning-based NLP (Natural Language Processing) models, StockGeist.ai allows users to derive meaningful insights from noisy data. It reflects our best efforts to bring this information to investors and traders in an intuitive and efficient way, so they can make faster decisions regarding stocks of interest," Abramavicius added. StockGeist.ai was first released as a free-to-use platform on October 7, 2020. Since then, a number of new features have been added:

Account registration and personal profile. The original version of StockGeist.ai did not support personal profiles. Now users can create an account, control their purchases and personal information and keep their personal watchlist synchronized across all devices.

The original version of StockGeist.ai did not support personal profiles. Now users can create an account, control their purchases and personal information and keep their personal watchlist synchronized across all devices. User tiers and flexible pricing. With this release, StockGeist.ai introduces a new scheme of user tiers that allow users to pay only for the features they really need, such as the interactive dashboard or the REST API. Users can also choose between three different tiers for accessing the dashboard. For the API calls, StockGeist.ai now has a credit-based pricing system that enables users to easily calculate their actual querying costs in credits and purchase the necessary amount.

With this release, StockGeist.ai introduces a new scheme of user tiers that allow users to pay only for the features they really need, such as the interactive dashboard or the REST API. Users can also choose between three different tiers for accessing the dashboard. For the API calls, StockGeist.ai now has a credit-based pricing system that enables users to easily calculate their actual querying costs in credits and purchase the necessary amount. Constantly updated list of healthcare, technology and S&P 500 stocks. Originally, StockGeist.ai had a fixed list of the stocks being tracked. Now, in order to better track the rapidly changing landscape of the technology, healthcare and biotechnology sectors, the new version updates stock lists every day, with delisted companies removed and new companies added after IPO.

Originally, StockGeist.ai had a fixed list of the stocks being tracked. Now, in order to better track the rapidly changing landscape of the technology, healthcare and biotechnology sectors, the new version updates stock lists every day, with delisted companies removed and new companies added after IPO. REST API for developers who wish to harness the full power of StockGeist.ai data. With algorithmic trading getting more and more popular, Neurotechnology has given developers an opportunity to access StockGeist's data programmatically through their REST API. Now developers can obtain comprehensive sentiment data about their favorite stocks and much more by querying the API and can easily incorporate this information into their own projects.

With algorithmic trading getting more and more popular, Neurotechnology has given developers an opportunity to access StockGeist's data programmatically through their REST API. Now developers can obtain comprehensive sentiment data about their favorite stocks and much more by querying the API and can easily incorporate this information into their own projects. Updated and faster dashboard. Behind the scenes, the company has also greatly improved the reliability and speed of the StockGeist.ai dashboard to improve the interactive user experience. For more information about StockGeist.ai, please visit: www.stockgeist.ai. About Neurotechnology

Neurotechnology is a developer of high-precision algorithms and software based on deep neural networks and other AI-related technologies. The company was launched in 1990 in Vilnius, Lithuania, with the key idea of using neural networks for various applications, such as biometric person identification, computer vision, robotics and artificial intelligence. Since the first release of its fingerprint identification system in 1991, the company has delivered more than 200 products and version upgrades. More than 3,000 system integrators, security companies and hardware providers in more than 140 countries integrate Neurotechnology's algorithms into their products. The company's algorithms have achieved top results in independent technology evaluations, including NIST MINEX, PFT, FRVT, IREX and FVC-onGoing. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/neurotechnology-releases-new-version-of-stockgeistai-platform-for-real-time-monitoring-of-publicly-traded-companies-301288170.html SOURCE Neurotechnology

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[May 11, 2021] Vubiq Networks Collaborates with Ganpat University and Cal Poly Pomona to Promote Student Education and R&D in Millimeter Wave Wireless Telecommunications Technology

Vubiq Networks, Inc., the innovation leader in millimeter wave wireless broadband technology and solutions, today announced that it is partnering with Ganpat University (GUNI) in India and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly (News - Alert) Pomona) to educate students about innovative millimeter wave wireless technology, and foster research and development into extremely high frequency (EHF) telecommunications applications. Vubiq Networks has donated a pair of HaulPass V10g low-latency millimeter wave radios - the very first and only 10Gbps V-Band wireless link in the industry - to India's Ganpat University, as well as a pair of HaulPass E10g low-latency 10Gbps E-Band radios to Cal Poly Pomona. Both wireless installations are now live and very successfully operating at 10Gbps. "Ganpat University and Cal Poly Pomona have issued a memorandum of understanding, recognizing that universities need to operate in a global environment of cooperation in the development of educational and technology initiatives for engineering students, faculties and R&D," said John Dilworth, CEO of Vubiq Networks. "We are proud and excited to be collaborating with these prestigious universities to help educate engineering students on the importance of millimeter wave wireless technology in advancing the state of the art in emerging fields such as 5G telecommunications backhaul." "India is making rapid strides towards establishing country-wide, high-speed networks to realize the Government of India's ambitious vision through the Digital India initiative," said Dr. Mahendra Sharma, Pro-Chancellor, Ganpat University. "GUNI's partnership with Vubiq is extremely crucial at this stage, considering it is national priority. This will enable us to create greater opportunities for the industry to test products/services in a high-speed, next-generation network environment. Students can learn advanced technology and the government with gain validation datapoints of this technology in an Indian environment. R&D carried out by this test bed facility will also be helpful to other tropical countries." GUNI is the only academic institution in India to have been issued an experimental license for testing millimeter wave technology from the Department of Telecommunication of the Government of India. GUNI has also been invited to contribute to the policy framing of the Indian Prime Minister's initiative PM WANI (Wi-Fi Access Network Interface), which is an initiative meant to increase Wi-Fi access throughout India. In California, the HaulPass E10g millimeter wave wireless link at Cal Poly Pomona connects the university's main campus to the Lanterman Campus South, traversing 2.3 km. Dan Montplaisir, Vice President of Advancement at Cal Poly Pomona, stated, "As a recognized leader n STEM education, Cal Poly Pomona is delighted to partner with Vubiq Networks and Ganpat University in exploring the latest technologies that will influence our digital future. We have a responsibility to expose our students to the ideas and trends that will drive innovation and opportunity for the next generation of scientists and engineers, and Vubiq Networks is allowing us to do that."



Millimeter Wave Wireless Backhaul Enables Global 5G Success V-Band and E-Band millimeter wave technology can provide a practical and low-cost wireless backhaul solution for 5G mobile communications networks in India, California and around the world. In order to expand 5G wireless network coverage and provide more data capacity for customers, wireless carriers and governments are rapidly upgrading from to 5G technology and installing additional small base stations (known as small cells) to extend their reach.

Small cells can be cost-effectively mounted on utility poles and buildings. However, they still need high-speed broadband backhaul networks to communicate with one another and with base stations. However, running physical fiber-optic cable is not cost justified or even feasible - which is especially true in India. As a result, wireless carriers and governments are now looking to deploy millimeter wave broadband wireless backhaul solutions. The future worldwide growth of 5G mobile communications will require much higher density and smaller base stations. The fact that millimeter wave is the most interference resistant spectrum is yet another reason that carriers are moving towards V-Band and E-Band wireless broadband for the badly needed short-range backhaul links. "Wireless mobile backhaul is one of the primary reasons that Vubiq Networks has created our unique wireless broadband solutions that rely on the unlicensed V-Band and lightly licensed E-Band millimeter wave spectrums to deliver 10Gpbs, full-duplex, low-latency wireless bandwidth," said Mr. Dilworth. "Our innovative HaulPass radios have evolved from years of development and are protected by a broad patent portfolio. We've combined this innovation with comprehensive networking features to meet the needs of today's bandwidth-hungry world." About Ganpat University Ganpat University, located in western India, is one of the most respected not-for-profit universities in the country. GUNI has successfully implemented a strong industry-academia linked higher education model and empowered its students through hands-on learning, exposure to industry, and enhanced employability. The university offers diploma, ug, pg, and research programs in various academic disciplines. GUNI is known as the socially responsible university by its actions. For further information, visit www.ganpatuniversity.ac.in. Dr. Ganpat (Pat) Patel is the founder and president of GUNI. Dr Patel is an alumnus of Cal Poly Pomona and has worked to make this collaboration possible at both universities. About Cal Poly Pomona California State Polytechnic University, Pomona is among the best public universities in the west and is nationally ranked for helping students achieve economic success. As an inclusive polytechnic institution, the university cultivates success through experiential learning, discovery and innovation. Cal Poly Pomona utilizes a technology-enhanced, learn-by-doing approach to education. Students enjoy endless opportunities for involvement in a vibrant and diverse community. For further information, visit www.cpp.edu. About Vubiq Networks Vubiq Networks, Inc. is a privately held millimeter wave innovation company headquartered in Irvine, California. With over 15 years of experience in telecommunications and extremely high frequency applications, the company continues to expand its global reach into cutting-edge markets such as 5G connectivity, wireless fabric architecture, chipless RFID data tag (News - Alert) hyperimaging, IoT smart sensors, EHF medical applications, and more. The company currently offers the HaulPass V10g millimeter wave radio, the first and only 10Gbps V-Band wireless link in the industry, as well as the HaulPass E10g 10Gbps E-Band radio. For further information, visit www.vubiqnetworks.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005308/en/

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New research outlines a critical driver in an immune cell's defense against melanoma

SALT LAKE CITY - Today in Nature Communications, researchers at Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah report critical new insights into how cells mount an attack against melanoma tumors.

Melanoma is an aggressive type of skin cancer that can arise from excess exposure to sun, frequent sunburns, genetics, and other environmental factors. Melanoma, like all cancers, begins within cells. Specially designed and refined over billions of years, cells are experts at working to root out and fix routine errors that arise. A tumor begins when a cell makes faulty copies of itself over and over again. If left unchecked, these faulty cell copies continue to grow into complex ecosystems that become tumors. Some tumors, like melanomas, can go on to develop mechanisms to sustain themselves with blood flow and oxygen. They can also send the cancerous cells through the body to proliferate in other organs, which ultimately causes death.

Immunotherapy, which trains the immune system to fight cancer cells, can sometimes be effective in treating melanomas. Some patients experience a long-lasting and durable response to immunotherapies. Yet many patients' tumors soon learn how to outsmart the drugs.

Understanding how cells mount a defense against an aggressive tumor like melanoma piqued the curiosity of Ryan O'Connell, PhD, a cancer researcher at HCI and professor of pathology at the University of Utah Health. His lab works to understand how immune cells and cancer cells interface. He wants to better understand the sophisticated metabolic processes within and around cells and to use those insights to develop more effective cancer therapies.

In this study, O'Connell and his team uncovered a key metabolic "switch" driven by an enzyme, nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase, or NAMPT. They learned how NAMPT plays an important role in how certain immune cells fight melanoma tumors.

"We were interested in better understanding NAMPT because it is increased in specific immune cells within tumors, called macrophages, in response to a substance secreted by other immune cells, called interferon, which is known to be important for effective antitumor responses," says O'Connell. O'Connell and his team used next-generation RNA sequencing to determine which metabolic genes increase within immune cells in response to different tumor processes.

"NAMPT was a top hit," says O'Connell. The research team found that a specific inflammatory signaling pathway triggers NAMPT. They discovered that when this inducible NAMPT pathway is disrupted, the antitumor function of cells was also impaired.

The study was co-led by Warren Voth, PhD, a research assistant professor and member of the O'Connell Lab. Voth helped design and conduct the experiments to study the role of Nampt and also mentored lab trainees who worked on the project. Using studies of cells in a laboratory setting, Voth helped to understand how NAMPT is induced in immune cells and what happens if the immune cells block NAMPT induction. The research team then created an experiment using a mouse model system and found the same NAMPT pathway was required for the mouse cells to initiate antitumor activity. Next, the team studied data from human tumors using The Cancer Genome Atlas, a federal cancer genomics program that molecularly characterized more than 20,000 primary cancer and matched normal samples across 33 cancer types. The critical role of the NAMPT pathway was also a factor in the genomic data they analyzed.

"Based on this work, we want to understand whether novel therapies that enhance the NAMPT pathway in immune cells in patient tumors could result in improved outcomes," says O'Connell. He hopes the next step will be to understand whether therapies that strengthen this pathway in certain immune cells could be the foundation for more effective treatments. He also wants to understand whether high levels of NAMPT in tumors may predict whether a patient will respond well to some immunotherapies that have inconsistent outcomes.

This work adds to the body of evidence that the metabolic state of tumors, immune cells, and the tumor microenvironment as a whole can have profound impacts on the course of disease by controlling the identity and functionality of immune cells that either fight to destroy the tumor or act to promote cancer growth. O'Connell's team also found strong evidence that this study has applications to other cancer types.

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This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute including P30 CA042014, and Huntsman Cancer Foundation via a pilot grant from the Melanoma Disease Center at HCI. O'Connell and Voth acknowledge the critical work of the entire research team, particularly study authors Thomas Huffaker, Atakan Ekiz, and Cindy Barba.

Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah is the official cancer center of Utah. The cancer campus includes a state-of-the-art cancer specialty hospital as well as two buildings dedicated to cancer research. HCI treats patients with all forms of cancer and is recognized among the best cancer hospitals in the country by U.S. News and World Report. As the only National Cancer Institute (NCI)-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in the Mountain West, HCI serves the largest geographic region in the country, drawing patients from Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana. More genes for inherited cancers have been discovered at HCI than at any other cancer center in the world, including genes responsible for hereditary breast, ovarian, colon, head, and neck cancers, along with melanoma. HCI manages the Utah Population Database, the largest genetic database in the world, with information on more than 11 million people linked to genealogies, health records, and vital statistics. HCI was founded by Jon M. and Karen Huntsman.

This story has been published on: 2021-05-11. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 06:43:08|Editor: huaxia

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Romania's President Klaus Iohannis (R) and Polish President Andrzej Duda hold a press conference after the virtual Summit of the Bucharest Nine (B9) format in Bucharest, Romania, May 10, 2021. The virtual Summit of the Bucharest Nine (B9) format closed late Monday with a joint declaration, expressing the expectation and support of the participating countries for the upcoming NATO Summit to take substantive and forward-looking decisions to strengthen the alliance's deterrence and defense architecture. (Romanian Presidency/Handout via Xinhua)

BUCHAREST, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The virtual Summit of the Bucharest Nine (B9) format closed late Monday with a joint declaration, expressing the expectation and support of the participating countries for the upcoming NATO Summit to take substantive and forward-looking decisions to strengthen the alliance's deterrence and defense architecture.

"We endorse the recently adopted strategic military concepts for strengthening deterrence and defense of our Alliance and commit to their full implementation," the participants of the summit stated in the joint declaration, adding that allies should commit to modernizing the NATO Force Structure.

According to the declaration, the heads of state of the nine countries reiterated their commitment to NATO's Open Door policy, stressing that NATO's door should remain open to all willing and able to join the community.

The summit was hosted by Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and his visiting Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda in Bucharest. Leaders of the other seven member states as well as U.S. President Joe Biden and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg joined the event via video link.

The B9 is an initiative launched by the presidents of Romania and Poland, joining a group of European countries on the eastern edge of NATO -- Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.

The first B9 summit was held in Bucharest in 2015. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] Daqo New Energy Hosts Site Visit at Xinjiang Production Facility

SHIHEZI, China, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE: DQ) ("Daqo New Energy", the "Company" or "we"), a leading manufacturer of high-purity polysilicon for the global solar PV industry, today hosted a field trip to its polysilicon facility in Shihezi City, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region for institutional investors and solar industry analysts. Solar industry analysts from Credit Suisse, CICC, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, JP Morgan and seven institutional investors joined the in-person tour of the Company's state-of-the-art facilities. Journalists from various media including Bloomberg, Financial Times and China's Global Times were also present. The Company has scheduled a similar field trip for another group of 35 solar industry investors and analysts from domestic Chinese institutions on May 12. Visitors joining today's field trip were able to witness all major process in the Company's highly technical polysilicon manufacturing complex. Daqo's management team was on site to answer questions and provid technical explanations.



"We have always been transparent and welcoming to visitors to our Xinjiang facilities," commented Mr. Longgen Zhang, Chief Executive Officer of Daqo. "As stated repeatedly, we do not condone the use of forced labor under any circumstances. Furthermore, our visitors were able to see that our chemical process, which is highly automated, digitalized, technology-intensive, is not conducive to employing unskilled labor. Our visitors today were able to take away direct impressions of our facility as well as the quality of its management and workforce." The event is now available for viewing for investors who could not travel due to Covid-19 restrictions here: https://m.inmuu.com/v1/live/news/1026538

About Daqo New Energy Corp Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE: DQ) ("Daqo" or the "Company") is a leading manufacturer of high-purity polysilicon for the global solar PV industry. Founded in 2007, the Company is one of the world's lowest cost producers of high-purity polysilicon. It has a total annual capacity of 70,000 metric tons of high-purity polysilicon, with another 35,000 metric tons polysilicon capacity under construction expected to reach full capacity by the end of first quarter of 2022. For more information, please visit www.dqsolar.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/daqo-new-energy-hosts-site-visit-at-xinjiang-production-facility-301288364.html SOURCE Daqo New Energy Corp.

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[May 11, 2021] Performance Above All -- GIGABYTE Released New Laptops with Intel's 11th-gen High-performance Processors

TAIPEI, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- GIGABYTE released their brand-new laptops powered by Intel's latest 11th-gen Tiger Lake-H series high-performance processors, including the gaming-oriented AORUS series and the creator-focused AERO series. Aside from the latest processors inside, the AORUS and AERO series laptops each have a handful of selling points to elevate the overall user experience further as well. These new laptops are expected to trigger a big wave of upgrades as mobile gamers and creative professionals seek to boost their laptops to the latest CPU generation.



Performance is the key to both immersive gameplay and smooth workflow, and GIGABYTE has taken performance above all else with this generation's AORUS gaming laptops and the AERO creator laptops. In addition to the new CPU, the biggest highlight of the AORUS series laptops is the full-power implementation of their discrete GPUs. Different from other similar models that only adopt 80W of graphics power, the entire AORUS series lineup delivers up to 130 watts of GPU power, which in turn is able boost gaming performance by 13% when compared to a down-tuned 80W variant. This gap makes all the difference in gaming experience on the go.

Designed for content creators, the AERO series laptops not only exhibit a serious performance jump with the latest Intel processor, but also come with the best-in-class 4K OLED panel which is factory calibrated and certified with the world-renowned X-Rite Pantone. This exclusive technology enables perfect color accuracy and a wider color spectrum for creative professionals who need a powerful yet a dependable laptop they can rely on. The AERO series laptops also feature the Thunderbolt 4, which allows users to connect devices such as external hard drives or 5K screens for ultra-fast transfer speed for much enhanced productivity. To learn more about how GIGABYTE yet gain puts performance above all on the latest-gen laptops, please visit: https://www.aorus.com/laptops/gaming/ SOURCE GIGABYTE

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[May 11, 2021] AgJunction Reports First Quarter 2021 Earnings Results

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AgJunction Inc. (TSX: AJX) ("AgJunction" or the "Company") is reporting financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021. All currency amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars.

First Quarter 2021 Financial Summary vs. First Quarter 2020 Revenue was $2.5 million compared to $5.2 million

Gross margin was 40.2% compared to 56.6%

Operating expenses improved to $3.4 million compared to $3.5 million

Net loss was $(2.4) million or $(0.02) per share, compared to a net loss of $(0.5) million or nil per share

EBITDA was $(1.6) million compared to $0.7 million

Management Commentary Continued investment in research and development has led to great progress with our autonomous modules, WhirlTM cloud, and has increased our software subscriptions, said Dr. M. Brett McMickell, president and CEO of AgJunction. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to delays in new vehicle launches by OEMs; however, we continue to onboard new OEM customers as a result of strong performance of our modular product portfolio. Recently, we announced a joint project with the worlds largest tractor manufacturer by volume, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (Mahindra). The project is making solid progress as our automation solution is performing well in the field testing in Turkey. We will build upon our relationship with Mahindra, while also continuing to work to onboard additional OEM partners. For our VAR business, we worked to reset this channel in the first quarter by strategically restructuring our partnerships focusing on larger VARs across the globe to create regional hubs. Regional hubs provide strong distribution, customer support, and repair capabilities. While we just launched this new structure, we have already noticed improvements as we leverage our VAR partners to expand the global reach of our products. Our direct channel has seen momentum fueled by a favorable agricultural environment with strong commodity pricing. This aspect of our business grew 174% year-over-year in North America with an increasing number of customers purchasing our more advanced offerings, the Wheelman Pro HP and Wheelman Flex HP, along with our subscription offering. Not only are sales increasing, but we are also seeing a year-over-year increase in the average revenue per user. We expect this trend to continue, especially with the recent launch in Australia, where we have already had a steady flow of pre-orders, and we look forward to announcing further geographic expansion of this business. As 2021 progresses, our team is busy working to onboard new OEM customers, realize increased revenue from our new VAR hub and spoke structure, and looking for ways to further accelerate growth in our subscription and e-commerce businesses. We are taking the right steps on our path to recovery and believe we have a solid foundation to build from. First Quarter 2021 Financial Results Total revenue in the first quarter of 2021 was $2.5 million compared to $5.2 million in the first quarter of 2020. The decrease is primarily due to the reduced volume from a North American VAR customer that allegedly breached a supply agreement with AgJunction and infringed certain of its patents. Gross profit in the first quarter of 2021 was $1.0 million compared to $2.9 million in the first quarter of 2020. Gross margin was 40.2% compared to 56.6% in the first quarter of 2020. The reduction in margin was primarily attributable to a higher percentage of fixed costs relative to a lower revenue base and the reduced volume from the North American VAR customer that had a higher margin. Total operating expenses in the first quarter of 2021 improved to $3.4 million compared to $3.5 million in the first quarter of 2020. The slight improvement was attributed to a reduction in variable costs. Net loss in the first quarter of 2021 was $(2.4) million or $(0.02) per share, compared to a net loss of $(0.5) million or nil per share in the first quarter of 2020. The decline was primarily a result of the aforementioned revenue decline. EBITDA in the first quarter of 2021 was $(1.6) million compared to $0.7 million in the first quarter of 2020. Cash and cash equivalents at March 31, 2021, totaled $7.3 million compared to $6.8 million at the end of 2020. Working capital was $13.1 million at March 31, 2021 as compared to $13.7 million at the end of 2020. The Company operates with limited debt of $1.5 million from an outstanding paycheck protection program loan at March 31, 2021 and has an undrawn $3.5 million line of credit. Conference Call AgJunction will hold a conference call today at 11:00 a.m. Eastern time to discuss its first quarter 2021 results, followed by a question and answer period. Date: Tuesday, May 11, 2021

Time: 11:00 a.m. Eastern time (8:00 a.m. Pacific time)

Toll-free dial-in number: 1-877-573-5992

International dial-in number: 1-270-215-9903

Conference ID: 1959849 Please call the conference telephone number 5-10 minutes prior to the start time. An operator will register your name and organization. If you have any difficulty connecting with the conference call, please contact Gateway Investor Relations at 1-949-574-3860. The conference call will be broadcast live and available for replay here and via the investor center section of the companys website at AgJunction.com. A replay of the conference call will be available after 2:00 p.m. Eastern time on the same day through May 25, 2021. Toll-free replay number: 1-855-859-2056

International replay number: 1-404-537-3406

Replay ID: 1959849 About AgJunction AgJunction Inc. is a global leader of advanced guidance and autosteering solutions for precision agriculture applications. Its technologies are critical components in over 30 of the worlds leading precision Ag manufacturers and solution providers and it holds over 200 patents and patents pending. AgJunction markets its solutions under leading brand names including Novariant, Wheelman, Whirl and Handsfreefarm and is committed to advancing its vision by bringing affordable hands-free farming to every farm, regardless of terrain or size. AgJunction is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, and is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the symbol AJX. For more information, please go to AgJunction.com. Non-IFRS Measures This press release uses EBITDA, which is a financial measure that does not have any standardized meaning prescribed under International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"). EBITDA is defined as net income before interest, income tax, depreciation and amortization. The Company believes that this non-IFRS measure provides useful information to both management and investors in measuring financial performance. As this measure, does not have a standard meaning prescribed by IFRS, it may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other publicly traded companies, and should not be construed as an alternative to other financial measures determined in accordance with IFRS. This non-IFRS measure is provided as additional information to complement IFRS measures by providing further understanding of operations from managements perspective. Accordingly, non-IFRS measures should never be considered in isolation nor as a substitute to using net income as a measure of profitability or as an alternative to the IFRS consolidated statements of income or other IFRS statements. See "Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) Reconciliation" herein for additional information. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements (collectively, "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable securities laws and is based on the expectations, estimates and projections of management of AgJunction as of the date of this news release, unless otherwise stated. The use of any of the words "expect", "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "objective", "ongoing", "may", "will", "project", "should", "believe", "plans", "intends" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking information. These statements are only predictions and actual events or results may differ materially. Although the Companys management believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot guarantee future results, performance or achievement since such expectations are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive and political uncertainties and contingencies. In particular, forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to statements with respect to: the Companys plans, and priorities working to onboard new OEM partners; expected trend with product sales; and ability to increase revenue from new VAR partnership structure. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking information contained in this press release.



In respect of the forward-looking information, AgJunction has provided such information in reliance on certain assumptions that it believes are reasonable at this time, including, but not limited to, the sufficiency of budgeted capital expenditures in carrying out planned activities; impact (and duration thereof) that the COVID-19 pandemic will have on the Companys business, including on demand for the Companys products; effects of regulation by governmental agencies; that AgJunction's future results of operations will be consistent with management expectations in relation thereto; availability of key supplies, components, services, networks and developments; the impact of increasing competition; conditions in general economic, agricultural and financial markets; demand for the Company's products; and the continuity of existing business relationships.



Since forward-looking information addresses future events and conditions, such information by its very nature involves inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks. These include, but are not limited to the risks associated with the industries in which AgJunction operates, the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts on the Company including our products; our supply chain and our ability to receive products on a timely basis from our global suppliers; a prolonged economic downturn from the negative effects of COVID-19 pandemic may result in reduction of revenue, cashflows and negatively affect our profitability; competition; inability to introduce new technology and new products in a timely manner; legal claims for the infringement of intellectual property and other claims; negative conditions in general economic, agricultural and financial markets; and reduced demand for the Company's products. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. Additional information on other factors that could affect the Company's operations or financial results, are included in reports of AgJunction on file with applicable securities regulatory authorities, including but not limited to, AgJunction's Annual Information Form which may be accessed on its SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. The forward-looking information contained in this press release is made as of the date hereof and AgJunction undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws. Contact: Media

press@agjunction.com Investor Relations

Gateway Investor Relations

Cody Slach or Cody Cree

1-949-574-3860

AJX@gatewayir.com





AgJunction Inc. Consolidated Statements of Financial Position (Expressed in U.S. thousand dollars) March 31 December 31, 2021 2020 (unaudited) Assets Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 7,284 $ 6,773 Accounts receivable, net 1,023 2,051 Current portion of notes receivable, net 320 320 Inventories 8,849 8,694 Contract assets, net - 7 Prepaid expenses and deposits 740 781 18,216 18,626 Notes receivable, less current portion, net 935 1,002 Property, plant and equipment, net 894 950 Right-of-use assets 572 661 Intangible assets, net 9,654 9,957 Goodwill 143 143 $ 30,414 $ 31,339 Liabilities and Shareholders Equity Current liabilities: Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 3,325 $ 2,901 Provisions (note 5) 77 352 Current portion of lease liability (note 6) 347 368 Current portion of deferred revenue 1,392 1,288 5,141 4,909 Deferred revenue, less current portion 2,192 2,425 Lease liability, net of current portion (note 6) 265 334 Paycheck Protection Program Loan (note 8) 1,466 - Total liabilities 9,064 7,668 Shareholders equity: Share capital (note 3) 23,495 23,495 Equity reserve 5,202 5,103 Accumulated deficit (7,347 ) (4,927 ) 21,350 23,671 $ 30,414 $ 31,339









AgJunction Inc. Consolidated Statements of Profit or Loss Three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 (Unaudited -expressed in U.S. thousand dollars) March 31, March 31, 2021 2020 Revenue (note 4) $ 2,456 $ 5,201 Cost of sales 1,470 2,258 Gross Profit 986 2,943 40.2 % 56.6 % Expenses: Research and development 1,310 1,054 Sales and marketing 526 840 General and administrative 1,566 1,601 Total Operating Expenses 3,402 3,495 Operating (loss) income (2,416 ) (552 ) Interest and other income (5 ) (59 ) Foreign exchange (gain) loss, net 9 28 Total Other (Income) Expenses 4 (31 ) Net (loss) income $ (2,420 ) $ (521 ) Loss per share $ (0.02 ) $ - See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated interim financial statements.



AgJunction Inc. Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows Three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 (Unaudited - expressed in U.S. thousand dollars) 2021 2020 Cash flows used in operating activities: Net (loss) income (2,420 ) $ (521 ) Items not involving cash: Depreciation 159 819 Amortization 645 440 Share-based payment transactions 99 13 Allowance loss on trade receivables - 3 Recovery (write down) of reserve for slow moving and obsolete inventories - 7 Change in operating working capital: Accounts receivable 1,028 (1,267 ) Inventories (155 ) 192 Contract assets 7 - Prepaid expenses and deposits 41 170 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities 424 (110 ) Provisions (note 5) (275 ) 90 Deferred revenue (129 ) (223 ) Cash flows (used in) operating activities: (576 ) (387 ) Cash flows used in financing activities: Interest payments on lease liabilities (note 6) (8 ) (13 ) Principal payments on lease liabilities (note 6) (82 ) (113 ) Paycheck Protection Program Loan proceeds 1,466 - Cash flows provided by (used in) financing activities: 1,376 (126 ) Cash flows used in investing activities: Principal payments received on notes receivable 67 67 Purchase of property, plant and equipment (14 ) (641 ) Intangible asset addition, net (342 ) (513 ) Cash flows (used in) investing activities: (289 ) (1,087 ) Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 511 (1,600 ) Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period 6,773 17,248 Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $ 7,284 $ 15,648



AgJunction Inc. Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) Reconciliation Three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 (unaudited - expressed in U.S. thousand dollars) Three months ended March 31, 2021 2020 Net income (loss) $ (2,420 ) $ (521 ) Interest (income) (5 ) (59 ) Depreciation 159 819 Amortization 645 440 EBITDA $ (1,621 ) $ 679



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[May 11, 2021] Navidea Biopharmaceuticals Announces NIH Grant Award to UC San Diego for Clinical Study Evaluating Tc99m Tilmanocept as a Kidney Imaging Agent

Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE American: NAVB) ("Navidea" or the "Company"), a company focused on the development of precision immunodiagnostic agents and immunotherapeutics, today announced the granting of a National Institutes of Health ("NIH") award to the University of California San Diego School of Medicine for the proposal entitled, "Renal Molecular Imaging of Mesangial Cell Function with Tc-99m-Tilmanocept." The award (Project Number: 1R01DK127201-01), from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the NIH, was granted to Co-Principal Investigators UC San Diego faculty Carl Hoh, MD and David Vera, PhD, of the Department of Radiology, and Charles Ginsberg, MD, MAS, of the Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology. The worldwide prevalence of diabetes is expected to increase to 642 million within two decades. Approximately 40% of people with diabetes will go on to develop diabetic nephropathy ("DN") - a form of chronic kidney disease ("CKD"). Typically, diabetic nephropathy develops relatively slowly over the course of decades, as indicated by slow increases in certain serum and urine markers over time. The current standard-of-care for monitoring the development of CKD is periodic assessment of these aforementioned markers. However, twenty percent of diabetic patients who develop CKD experience a more rapid development of DN. Consequently, there is an unmet medical need for routine surveillance during the first decade of CKD. In this Phase 1 clinical study being conducted at UC San Diego Health, Tc99m tilmanocept will be used as an imaging agent to evaluate a key component of the kidneys, the mesangial cells, as a biomarker for diabetic nephropathy. The molecular target for Tc99m tilmanocept, CD206, is expressed on these mesangial cells of the kidney. The expansion of mesangial cells is an early hallmark of diabetic nephropathy, and the ability to reliably image them noninvasively could provide an important tool for physicians to evaluate diabetic patients for early signs of the disease. This trial will be an open-label study investigating the biodistribution at two dose levels (2.0 and 20 nmol) of Tc99m tilmanocept. Four groups of patients at each dose (10 subjects each), will be studied: 1) No CKD, 2) early CKD, 3) moderate CKD, and 4) advanced CKD. Within each group, 50% of participants will have diabetes. Expected results include kidney image sets and biodistribution of Tc99m tilmanocept that reflects pathology. This study is a necessary step toward FDA approval of Tc99m tilmanocept as a kidney imaging agent. From the proposal's Public Health Relevance Statement: "This proposal will use kidney SPECT/CT of Tc-99m-tilmanocept to evaluate the mesangial changes seen in diabetics across the spectrum of kidney disease as well as persons with hypertensive kidney disease, the next most common cause of kidney disease in patients with diabetes. We aim to demonstrate that these different disease types and stages can be differentiated with Tc-99m-tilmanocept SPECT/CT and can thus be used for future trials evaluating early diagnosis and treatment of diabetic nephropathy." Dr. David Vera, Co-Principal Investigator, said, "Ou goal is a simple 'first-line' diagnostic tool for nephrologists to determine which of their patients with diabetes are at risk of chronic kidney disease." Dr. Hoh added, "an additional potential benefit to a Tc-99m-tilmanocept kidney imaging study may be an additional modality for screening of renal cancer." Dr. Ginsberg stated, "considering the increasing armament of drugs to combat diabetic nephropathy, an imaging study that can diagnose this disease early in its course has tremendous therapeutic implications."



Dr. Michael Rosol, Chief Medical Officer for Navidea, said, "We are pleased that the NIH has funded this important Phase 1 study at UC San Diego, run in part by the inventor of tilmanocept, Dr. David Vera." Dr. Rosol continued, "Navidea has had a long and productive relationship with Dr. Vera and his collaborators at UC San Diego, and we will be keenly watching for the results of this study addressing this area of large unmet clinical need. Today's announcement exemplifies the broad reach of our tilmanocept platform. The development pipeline remains robust and we are excited to continue developing new and valuable applications for our core technology." Dr. Vera, together with Drs Anne Wallace and Carl Hoh, developed Tc99m tilmanocept at UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center as an agent to help detect and map cancers that have reached the lymph nodes. Cancer clinical trials showed that it better detected cancer and provided more accurate staging.

About Navidea Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE American: NAVB) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of precision immunodiagnostic agents and immunotherapeutics. Navidea is developing multiple precision-targeted products based on its Manocept platform to enhance patient care by identifying the sites and pathways of disease and enable better diagnostic accuracy, clinical decision-making, and targeted treatment. Navidea's Manocept platform is predicated on the ability to specifically target the CD206 mannose receptor expressed on activated macrophages. The Manocept platform serves as the molecular backbone of Tc99m tilmanocept, the first product developed and commercialized by Navidea based on the platform. Navidea's strategy is to deliver superior growth and shareholder return by bringing to market novel products and advancing the Company's pipeline through global partnering and commercialization efforts. For more information, please visit www.navidea.com. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends affecting the financial condition of our business. Forward-looking statements include our expectations regarding pending litigation and other matters. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including, among other things: our history of operating losses and uncertainty of future profitability; the final outcome of any pending litigation; our ability to successfully complete research and further development of our drug candidates; the timing, cost and uncertainty of obtaining regulatory approvals of our drug candidates; our ability to successfully commercialize our drug candidates; dependence on royalties and grant revenue; our ability to implement our growth strategy; anticipated trends in our business; our limited product line and distribution channels; advances in technologies and development of new competitive products; our ability to comply with the NYSE American continued listing standards; our ability to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting; the impact of the current coronavirus pandemic; and other risk factors detailed in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and other SEC (News - Alert) filings. You are urged to carefully review and consider the disclosures found in our SEC filings, which are available at http://www.sec.gov or at http://ir.navidea.com. Investors are urged to consider statements that include the words "will," "may," "could," "should," "plan," "continue," "designed," "goal," "forecast," "future," "believe," "intend," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "project," and similar expressions, as well as the negatives of those words or other comparable words, to be uncertain forward-looking statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, any of which could turn out to be incorrect. We undertake no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise after the date of this report. In light of these risks and uncertainties, the forward-looking events and circumstances discussed in this report may not occur and actual results could differ materially from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005201/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Bridge Monitoring System Market is anticipated to grow around 13% annually through the period of 2021 to 2031 - Persistence Market Research

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Governments of different countries are focusing on sustainability of structures and spending millions of dollars on bridge monitoring systems. Thus, high capital investments in bridge monitoring systems by governments is anticipated to be a major factor driving market growth over the coming years. Due to loss of lives and capital from catastrophic failure of infrastructure in recent years, high capital investment in structural health monitoring is resulting in superior benefits for transportation. Costly repairs and minimizing downtime for the lifetime of a new bridge can be avoided with the help of one-time high capital investment in structural health monitoring across various industries. The global bridge monitoring system market is anticipated to grow around 13% annually through the period of 2021 to 2031, as there has been an increase in high capital investments in bridge monitoring systems in the past years. Key Takeaways from Market Study Several infrastructural companies and governments are adopting bridge monitoring technologies to reduce expenses involved in dealing with infrastructural repairs, and this is creating new opportunities for vendors.

Easy accessibility and maintenance through wireless technology and wide availability of software after deployment over cloud are expected to support growth of the wireless segment throughout the forecast period.

The United States was the dominant country in 2020 in terms of value for bridge monitoring systems. Over the coming years, the United Kingdom is expected to be one of the key markets for sustainable revenue generation from bridge monitoring systems, owing to increasing adoption of advanced and wireless technologies in this country.

was the dominant country in 2020 in terms of value for bridge monitoring systems. Over the coming years, the is expected to be one of the key markets for sustainable revenue generation from bridge monitoring systems, owing to increasing adoption of advanced and wireless technologies in this country. The European region is expected to remain a key market for bridge monitoring systems and solutions, as increasing investments in smart city development in the region is anticipated to create lucrative opportunities for stakeholders. Request for sample PDF of report: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/24487



"Many key players are focusing on developing cost-efficient bridge monitoring solutions in which electrical, magnetic, thermal, and other physical variables, chemical variables, and several technologies are integrated to offer more accurate results, which is likely to increase adoption of integrated bridge monitoring systems," says a Persistence Market Research analyst. COVID-19 Pandemic Impact Analysis

The bridge monitoring system market experienced a decline in growth in the first three quarters of 2020, owing to the severe impact on the construction industry during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. Depending on the severity of the public health crisis, as well as the timing and strictness of confinement measures, lockdowns impacting the construction sector have varied widely by location and project type, and containment measures involved total or partial shutdowns of construction sites. Know the methodology of report by asking an expert: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/ask-an-expert/24487 Companies providing bridge monitoring systems have witnessed decrease in demand for monitoring devices due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Major companies operating in the market have been negatively impacted during the first half of 2020.However, the trend toward the automation of processes along with remote working solutions has been increasing since the start of 2021.Standardization and automation of maintenance and repair is expected to increase gradually. Thus, the market is anticipated to gain back its momentum by the second half of 2021. Get full access of report: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/checkout/24487 Find More Valuable Insights Persistence Market Research puts forward an unbiased analysis of the global market for bridge monitoring systems, providing historical demand data (2016-2020) and forecast statistics for the period 2021-2031. To understand the opportunities in the market,it has segmented on the basis of component (hardware, structural health monitoring software, and services), technology (wired and wireless), and application (railway bridges and road bridges/overpasses), across seven major regions of the world. Browse Research Release at: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-reports.asp Browse End-to-end Market: IT and Telecommunication Related Reports: Night Vision Driver Monitoring System Market: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/night-vision-driver-monitoring-system-market.asp

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/night-vision-driver-monitoring-system-market.asp Synthetic Monitoring Market: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/synthetic-monitoring-market.asp About Persistence Market Research Overview: Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance. To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes. Contact Rajendra Singh

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[May 11, 2021] IQHQ Demonstrates its Commitment to Sustainable Development with Strategic Hire of Director of Sustainability and Environmental, Social and Governance

IQHQ, Inc., a premier life sciences real estate development company, today announced that Jenny Whitson has joined the company in its newly-created role of Director of Sustainability and ESG. Whitson brings more than 15 years of experience developing corporate-wide sustainability programs. Whitson will manage the overall mission, strategy and execution of IQHQ's sustainability and ESG program with the goal to achieve net-zero emissions across the company's 5.5 million square feet of premier, state-of-the art life science developments in Boston, San Francisco and San Diego. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005260/en/ As Director of Sustainability and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), proven sustainability leader and industry veteran Jenny Whitson will spearhead IQHQ's sustainability goals and ESG program across the company's growing portfolio of premier life science properties (Photo: Business Wire) "Jenny Whitson is a true pioneer when it comes to sustainability and ESG, and it is a privilege to welcome her to our growing team, said Stephen A. Rosetta, Chief Executive Officer of IQHQ. "We are confident that she will advance our company's commitment to sustainability leading to well-managed, highly-efficient properties that enhance the societal and environmental elements of our portfolio and company, while maximizing returns to our various stakeholders."



In her new role, Whitson will develop a plan to meet IQHQ's sustainability goals and target of achieving carbon neutrality across the company's growing portfolio of premier life science properties. To meet these goals, Whitson will work closely with CodeGreen, which is a leading national sustainability and energy efficiency consulting firm that IQHQ retained last year to track energy, water, waste, and carbon emissions across all of the company's properties. As she implements IQHQ's overall ESG strategy, she will work across the business functions of the entire company related to design, construction, facility operations, procurement, and corporate operations. "IQHQ's vision to build premier sustainable buildings across its growing portfolio makes it one of the most dynamic life science commercial real estate developers in the industry," said Whitson. "I'm proud to be joining a leadership team with such a strong commitment to ESG, and I look forward to working with them to operationalize the practice across the company."

Whitson comes to IQHQ from Vanir Construction Management, Inc., one of the nation's leading, privately-held full-service program, project, and construction management firms. At Vanir, she served as the company's corporate-wide Sustainability Manager for public and private sector clients, providing sustainability certification, compliance, and renewable energy consulting for commercial building owners. Whitson also served in prominent sustainability roles with Parsons (News - Alert) , Gensler and SDA Architects & Designers, and she holds multiple LEED AP Credentials and is an active Board Member for the Los Angeles chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council. About IQHQ IQHQ is giving progress a home, empowering the life science community to thrive and succeed by creating and developing environments that inspire innovation and drive progress and growth. IQHQ's focus is to acquire, develop and operate life science properties in the innovation hubs of San Francisco, San Diego and Boston in the United States, and the Golden Triangle in the United Kingdom. IQHQ has offices in San Diego and Boston. To learn more, visit www.iqhqreit.com or follow us on LinkedIn or Instagram. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005260/en/

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[May 11, 2021] SAIC Wins $200 Million Contract with DIA for Laboratory Operations and Support

Science Applications International Corp. (NYSE: SAIC) was awarded an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract to continue to provide laboratory operations and support to the Defense Intelligence Agency. Work will be performed in Huntsville, Alabama, with an expected completion date of March 29, 2031. This single-award contract has an estimated ceiling value of approximately $200 million. "Our legacy of support to DIA for this important work dates back more than 30 years. As foreign threats to our country and allies continue to evolve, our transformative solutions and innovation will continue to support DIA as a trusted partner," said Michael LaRouche, president of SAIC's (News - Alert) National Security and Space sector. "We are proud to continue our work delivering essential assessments and analysis to DIA, the Department of Defense and the intelligence community so that we are well-equipped to protect our warfighters with the necessary information to mitigate foreign threat systems." The DIA provides warfighters, weapons developers, policy makers, and homeland security with intelligence assessments on foreign weapons systems. They use scientific and technical methods to evaluate intelligence data to determine the characteristics, performance, operations, and vulnerabilities of foreign weapons systems. About SAIC SAIC is a premier Fortune 500 technology integrator driving our nation's technology transformation. Our robust portfolio of offerings across the defense, space civilian, and intelligence markets includes secure high-end solutions in engineering, digital, artificial intelligence, and mission solutions. Using our expertise and understanding of existing and emerging technologies, we integrate the best components from our own portfolio and our partner ecosystem to deliver innovative, effective, and efficient solutions that are critical to achieving our customers' missions.



We are more than 26,000 strong; driven by mission, united by purpose, and inspired by opportunities. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, SAIC has annual revenues of approximately $7.1 billion.???? For more information, visit saic.com. For ongoing news, please visit our newsroom. Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this release contain or are based on "forward-looking" information within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by words such as "expects," "intends," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "guidance," and similar words or phrases. Forward-looking statements in this release may include, among others, estimates of future revenues, operating income, earnings, earnings per share, charges, total contract value, backlog, outstanding shares and cash flows, as well as statements about future dividends, share repurchases and other capital deployment plans. Such statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risk, uncertainties and assumptions, and actual results may differ materially from the guidance and other forward-looking statements made in this release as a result of various factors. Risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause or contribute to these material differences include those discussed in the "Risk Factors," "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and "Legal Proceedings" sections of our Annual Report on Form 10-K, as updated in any subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other filings with the SEC (News - Alert) , which may be viewed or obtained through the Investor Relations section of our website at saic.com or on the SEC's website at sec.gov. Due to such risks, uncertainties and assumptions you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. SAIC expressly disclaims any duty to update any forward-looking statement provided in this release to reflect subsequent events, actual results or changes in SAIC's expectations. SAIC also disclaims any duty to comment upon or correct information that may be contained in reports published by investment analysts or others. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005648/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Oculis Announces Positive Data from Two Proof-of-Concept Phase 2 Trials with OCS-02, a Novel Topical TNF alpha Antagonist, in Dry Eye Disease and Acute Anterior Uveitis, Presented at ARVO 2021

Positive Phase 2a data, presented for the first time, highlights the potential of OCS-02 to become a new treatment in moderate to severe DED and potentially the first personalized therapy in this disease.



Data also highlight the opportunity for OCS-02 to become a novel non-steroidal anti-inflammatory treatment for Anterior Uveitis. LAUSANNE, Switzerland, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Oculis S.A., (Oculis) a late-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing transformative ophthalmic treatments to improve the sight and lives of patients, today announces positive data from two clinical proof of concept Phase 2 trials with OCS-02, its novel, topical anti-TNF alpha antibody fragment candidate, in Dry Eye Disease (DED) and Acute Anterior Uveitis (AAU). The data were presented for the first time at ARVO 2021, the annual meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, which took place virtually from May 1-7, 2021. Riad Sherif, M.D. Chief Executive Officer of Oculis said: We are very excited to present these data for the first time at ARVO 2021. The data from these two Phase 2 trials highlight the potential of OCS-02 in key indications that affect the anterior segment of the eye and have serious implications for the sight and well-being of patients. The progression of OCS-02 clinical development further strengthens our pipeline. Marcia de Souza Lima, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of Oculis, added: OCS-02 is a promising product candidate as it combines the proven anti-inflammatory effects and safety of anti-TNF alpha biologics, as seen with currently approved systemic treatments, with the convenience of topical delivery. For OCS-02 in Dry Eye Disease Abstract # 3543422

Title: Variant in the TNFRl gene associated with response to topical anti-TNFa antibody fragment OCS-02 in patients with dry eye disease

Authors: Victor L. Perez, M.D., on behalf of the OCS-02 DED PoC Phase 2 study group

Clinicaltrial.gov identifier code: NCT02365519 (OCS-02 was previously known as LME636)

A video recording of the presentation can be found in the Pipeline section of www.oculis.com

In the Phase 2, multicenter, randomized, vehicle-controlled, double masked, prospective study, OCS-02 was found to be significantly more effective than vehicle n relieving severe ocular discomfort associated with DED (p=0.041). A pre-specified exploratory pharmacogenetics analysis demonstrated a statistically significant association between response to OCS-02 in patients with DED and a genetic biomarker (p<0.0001). Additional studies are needed to better understand the role of unique gene variants in DED and susceptibility to anti-TNFa therapies. The aim of the next clinical study will be to validate the role of OCS-02 as a new anti-inflammatory treatment for DED and the biomarker, which could enable OCS-02 to become the first personalized treatment in this indication.



Victor L. Perez, M.D., Stephen and Frances Foster Distinguished Professor of Ocular Immunology and Inflammation, Duke University School of Medicine, said: The results presented are very encouraging and we were intrigued to see a correlation between a genetic variant and improved response to OCS-02 treatment. I believe it could be very helpful in clinical practice to be able to predict response to treatment, especially in dry eye given the heterogeneous population affected by this disease. If confirmed in other clinical trials, this could become a novel and potentially highly impactful approach to treat DED in patients with the highest need. For OCS-02 in Uveitis

Abstract # 3522243

Title: Efficacy and Safety of OCS-02 a novel, potent, topical TNFa antibody in acute anterior uveitis (AAU): a phase 2 study

Authors: Anat Galor, MSPH, on behalf of the OCS-02 Acute Anterior Uveitis Phase 2 study group

Clinicaltrial.gov identifier code: NCT02482129 (OCS-02 was previously known as LME636)

A video recording of the presentation can be found in the Pipeline section of www.oculis.com

In this Phase 2, multicenter, randomized, parallel-group, double-masked, active-controlled study of patients with Acute Anterior Uveitis, the administration of OCS-02 demonstrated efficacy, in accordance with the pre-specified criteria, in resolving ocular inflammation. OCS-02 was well tolerated without steroid-type side effects or eye irritation. Anat Galor, M.D., Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Miami Health System, said: There is a clear unmet medical need for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory therapies for Uveitis. This is particularly important for patients who require longer-term anti-inflammatory treatment given that long-term steroid treatment is not optimal due to the associated side effect profile. The positive results presented at ARVO demonstrate the potential of OCS-02 as a topical, non-steroidal therapy for Non-Infectious Anterior Uveitis and have been crucial to inform the planned clinical trials for OCS-02 as a steroid-sparing treatment for patients with recurring or chronic Anterior Uveitis, where its unique profile may offer the greatest benefit to patients. About Oculis Headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland with global operations in Europe and the U.S., Oculis is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing transformative innovative ophthalmic treatments to improve the sight and lives of patients. Oculis has a robust and expansive development portfolio including late-stage novel topical (eye drop) treatments, which are non-invasive and represent an unprecedented technical advance for patients with retinal edema and front-of-the-eye diseases. In addition, Oculis formulation discovery focus and capabilities enable the development of a pipeline of topical drugs targeting sight-threatening eye diseases that affect both the anterior and posterior segments of the eye. To learn more, please visit www.oculis.com Contacts Oculis

Dr. Riad Sherif, CEO

riad.sherif@oculis.com

Sylvia Cheung, CFO

sylvia.cheung@oculis.com

Louie-Anne Gauthier, VP, Strategic Marketing and BD&L

louie-anne.gauthier@oculis.com Media Relations Citigate Dewe Rogerson

Mark Swallow / Sylvie Berrebi

oculis@citigatedewerogerson.com

+44 (0)20 7638 9571



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[May 11, 2021] Industry Innovator Strive Health Selects Colorado for Headquarters Expansion

Strive Health has selected Colorado for its long-term headquarters expansion. The Denver-based startup has grown its employee base by more than 600% in the last year and today's announcement includes the addition of 250 new Colorado jobs that support the company's expansion in roles that include clinical, technical, data management, operations, and strategy. "As we kick off National Economic Development Week, it is fitting that we announce the continued growth and expansion of a Denver-based startup right here in Colorado," said Governor Jared Polis. "These high-quality jobs are a great benefit to Colorado as Strive Health continues to solidify Colorado's reputation for healthcare and health tech innovation." Strive Health's explosive growth can be traced to a data-driven model that employs purpose-built analytics to reimagine the kidney care treatment paradigm. Strive's programs are designed to provide the right care at the right time and have dramatically improved care quality while cutting total healthcare spend by nearly one-third. "Colorado's central location, vibrant workforce, and quality educational institutions make it an ideal home and place to expand Strive Health," said Chris Riopelle, CEO of Strive Health. "We are impressed with the direction in which Governor Polis and the Office of Economic Development are leading the state, including taking an active role in strengthening local businesses, affordable housing, and education for the next generation of innovators. Governor Polis has also done a fantastic job managing the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This collaboration will help us significantly grow our footprint and continue to build a destination for top talent." Strive Health received a performance-based Job Growth Incentive Tax Credit award from Colorado's Economic Development Commission last month for the creation of 250 net new jobs with an average annual wage of $131,572, which is 183% of Denver County's average annual wage. "We're proud to see Strive Health's success continue in our region with this exciting expansion decision," said Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock. "Strive Health has proven that they can grow quickly and deliver excellent-paying career opportunities. As we move to setting our city up for a sustainable economic recovery, this kind of announcement confirms the foundations of our local economy, supported by our competitive workforce talent pool, remain strong and ready to come back." Colorado competed wih Michigan and Utah for the headquarters expansion project, where Strive Health has existing company offices as well as major market presences.



Visit the Strive Health website for more information. About Strive Health

Strive Health is the national leader in value-based kidney care and partner of choice for innovative healthcare payors and providers. Strive's model uses a unique combination of high-touch care teams, predictive analytics, advanced technology, seamless integration with local providers, and next-generation dialysis services to form an integrated care delivery system that supports the entire patient journey from chronic kidney disease (CKD) to end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). Strive partners with commercial and Medicare Advantage payors, Medicare, health systems, and physicians through flexible value-based payment arrangements, including risk-based programs. Backed by New Enterprise Associates, CapitalG, Redpoint, Town Hall Ventures, Echo Health Ventures, and Ascension Ventures, Strive delivers compassionate kidney care the way it should be done. For more information, visit us on Twitter, LinkedIn or at www.strivehealth.com, or email info@strivehealth.com. About Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade The Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) works with partners to create a positive business climate that encourages dynamic economic development and sustainable job growth. Under the leadership of Governor Jared Polis, we strive to advance the State's economy through financial and technical assistance that fosters local and regional economic development activities throughout Colorado. OEDIT offers a host of programs and services tailored to support business development at every level including business retention services, business relocation services, and business funding and incentives. Our office includes the Global Business Development division; Colorado Tourism Office; Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office; Colorado Creative Industries; Business Financing & Incentives division; the Colorado Small Business Development Network; Colorado Office of Film, TV & Media; the Minority Business Office; Employee Ownership Office; and Rural Opportunity Office. Learn more at oedit.colorado.gov. About Denver Economic Development & Opportunity Denver Economic Development & Opportunity is leading an inclusive and innovative economy for all Denver residents, businesses, and neighborhoods. By supporting local and global business development, workforce development programs, and stabilization efforts in Denver's diverse neighborhoods, we are creating an economy that works for everyone. Learn more at www.denvergov.org/economicdevelopment. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005608/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Global Commercial Drones Market- 3D Robotics Inc., AeroVironment Inc., Autel Robotics, among others to contribute to the market growth

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The commercial drones market is poised to grow by USD 28.53 bn during 2021-2025, progressing at a CAGR of almost 37% during the forecast period. View our Exclusive report on Market scenarios, Estimates, the impact of lockdown, and Customer Behaviour. Download FREE Sample Report! The report on the commercial drones market provides a holistic update, market size and forecast, trends, growth drivers, and challenges, as well as vendor analysis. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current global market scenario and the overall market environment. The market is driven by the rise in applications of drones, the rise in funding for UAV manufacturers, and the increase in legal acceptance of drone operations for commercial applications. The commercial drones market analysis includes Product, End-user, and Geographic Landscape. This study identifies the rising developments and launches of commercial drones, a growing number of acquisitions and partnerships, and surging technological advances in commercial drones as the prime reasons driving the commercial drones market growth during the next few years. This report presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources by an analysis of key parameters. The commercial drones market covers the following areas: Commercial Drones Market Sizing

Commercial Drones Market Forecast

Commercial Drones Market Analysis Companies Mentioned 3D Robotics Inc.

AeroVironment Inc.

Autel Robotics

FLIR Systems Inc.

Intel Corp.

Parrot Drones SAS

Remote Monitored Systems plc

SZ DJI Technology Co. Ltd.

Trimble Inc.

Yuneec International Co. Ltd. Related Reports on Industrials Include: Tethered Drones Market by End-user and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2020-2024: The tethered drones market size will likely grow by USD 193.67 million during 2020-2024, according to Technavio. Download PDF Sample



Drone Data Link System Market by End-user and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2020-2024: The drone data link system market size has the potential to grow by USD 3.07 billion during 2020-2024, according to Technavio. Download PDF Sample





Key Topics Covered: Executive Summary Market Landscape Market ecosystem

Recovery phase

Value chain analysis Market Sizing Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2020

Market outlook: Forecast for 2020 - 2025 Five Forces Analysis Five forces summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition Market Segmentation by Product Market segments

Comparison by Product

Software and services - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Hardware - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by Product Market Segmentation by End-user Market segments

Comparison by End-user

Infrastructure - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Agriculture - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Public safety - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Energy - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Others - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by End-user Customer landscape Customer landscape Geographic Landscape Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

North America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 Europe - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 APAC - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

South America - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

- Market size and forecast 2020-2025 MEA - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market drivers

Market challenges

Market trends Vendor Landscape Overview

Landscape disruption Vendor Analysis Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

3D Robotics Inc.

AeroVironment Inc.

Autel Robotics

FLIR Systems Inc.

Intel Corp.

Parrot Drones SAS

Remote Monitored Systems plc

SZ DJI Technology Co. Ltd.

Trimble Inc.

Yuneec International Co. Ltd. Appendix Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Technavio's in-depth research has direct and indirect COVID-19 impacted market research reports.

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Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contact

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Report: https://www.technavio.com/report/commercial-drones-market-industry-analysis View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-commercial-drones-market--3d-robotics-inc-aerovironment-inc-autel-robotics-among-others-to-contribute-to-the-market-growth-301287256.html SOURCE Technavio

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 08:46:38|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese mainland on Monday reported 14 new COVID-19 cases, all of which were imported, the National Health Commission said in its daily report on Tuesday.

Of them, four each were reported in Shanghai and Sichuan, two in Fujian, and one each in Hunan, Guangdong, Chongqing and Shaanxi, according to the commission.

One new suspected case arriving from outside the mainland was reported in Inner Mongolia. No new deaths related to COVID-19 were reported on Monday, it added. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] EVERFI Tackles Inequality in Nation's Healthcare System with Introduction of First Healthcare Literacy Course for Students

EVERFI Inc., the leading Impact-as-a-Service TM education innovator, announced the development of the nation's first healthcare literacy course designed for high school students. This new digital program will empower students across the country with the knowledge to navigate a complex healthcare system, advocate for medical care, and make good financial decisions to manage their healthcare needs. The program will be available to all high schools nationwide at no cost during the fall 2021 academic term. EVERFI will work with its strategic partners to focus on reaching students in underserved, high-risk communities in an effort to drive ecosystems of change. Although a lack of healthcare literacy disproportionately affects lower socioeconomic and minority groups, it is a widespread concern across the country regardless of age, education level, income, or race. More than 88 percent of adults in the U.S. have a low level of health literacy, lacking the skills necessary to fully manage their healthcare and prevent disease and nearly 46 million Americans say they would struggle to afford quality healthcare. Other studies suggest adolescents have a low level of healthcare literacy and struggle with reading health-related words and describing symptoms, particularly as they begin to take ownership of their health and medical needs. "Systemic inequality in our healthcare system has taken a heavy toll on disadvantaged communities," said Tom Davidson, CEO and founder of EVERFI. "This is not just a health problem. This is a financial problem. We can no longer sit back and hope that individuals learn how to effectively use our healthcare system. The negative impact on individuals and their families can be devastating financially and may put someone's health - or life - at risk. This critical knowledge needs to exist in every high school in America." EVERFI's health literacy course will use real-world scenarios to teach students how to make wise health-related decisions that promote well-being and financial stability over their lifetime. Students will learn critical thinking skills related to deciphering and interpreting health-related information and analyzing how personal choices and community-related factors can impact personal health and finances. The course will guide students on how to navigate healthcare institutions and advocate for good, quality care. Students will learn how medical care plays an important role for themselves and their family members and how to pay for it through insurance and personal finances in an effort to reduce debt. Medical debt affects people with health insurance. Almost a quarter of adult Americans have chosen to skip medical care due to costs and almost half of all Americans fear bankruptcy due to a medical emergency. In 2019, over $88 billion was borrowed to pay for medical costs and these were not necessarily related to lack of health insurance. The costs of medical care can be hard to understand as well as not entirely clear before care is administered. A study conducted by the National Bureau of Economic Statistics also found disparities in the quality of care. Black patients tend to receive care at lower-performing hospitals than white patients, even when they live in the same hospital community.



"In Alabama we are trying to tackle a number of issues through education to give our students a leg up when they enter their next phase of life," said Dr. Jacqueline Brooks, superintendent of Alabama's Macon County Schools. "Teaching students how to navigate the healthcare system is one that holds important promise for our community. Learning how to use medical services and understanding insurance and the financial accountability that goes with healthcare decisions positions students and their families for long-term success." High school students have a growing capacity for processing information, thinking more about abstract ideas, and using reasoning skills. This, coupled with adolescents beginning to take control of their own healthcare needs, makes it the right time to introduce the critical concepts of healthcare literacy.

"The healthcare system in America is confusing, complex and ever-changing. There is a need for one trusted, dynamic and centralized source of education that students, their families, and teachers can rely on," said Davidson. "EVERFI will fill this missing learning layer. Understanding personal healthcare needs and how to effectively fund medical expenses are two key components to building solid foundations for thriving communities for all." EVERFI's health literacy course uses Bloom's taxonomy framework of hierarchical learning and assessment and is aligned with National Health Education Standards (NHES) , Common Career Technical Core (CCTC) and Jump$tart Coalition's National Standards for K-12 Personal Finance Education. The course will be deployed to schools and students through EVERFI's long-established relationships with school districts across the country and through the work of its on-the-ground team of school managers. To learn more about the course or to request it for your school visit everfi.com. About EVERFI, Inc.

EVERFI is an international technology company driving social change through education to address the most challenging issues affecting society ranging from financial wellness to prescription drug safety to workplace conduct and other critical topics. Founded in 2008, EVERFI is fueled by its Software-as-a-Service ( SaaS (News - Alert) ) community engagement platform and has reached more than 41 million learners globally. In 2020, the company was recognized as one of the World's Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company and was featured on Fortune Magazine's Impact 20 list. Some of America's leading CEOs and venture capital firms are EVERFI investors including Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt, Twitter founder Evan Williams (News - Alert) , as well as Advance, Rethink Education, Rethink Impact, The Rise Fund, and TPG Growth. To learn more about EVERFI and how you can #answerthecall please visit everfi.com or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Twitter @EVERFI. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005397/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Advanced Analytics Company Othot Releases Predictive Platform to Retain At-Risk College Students

Othot, a Liaison Company-used by colleges and universities to make more informed decisions using advanced analytics-has released a new more affordable Student Success Essential offering for higher education institutions. This newest Othot analytics platform gives student success directors and institutional research analysts powerful analytical capabilities to identify students at risk of "stopping out," then provide those students with the supports that will keep them enrolled and on track to complete their college education. Student Success Essential is the newest product in the Othot Student Success product line. Tweet this news. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005152/en/ Othot's newest product release, Student Success Essential, gives colleges a powerful analytics platform to identify students at-risk and select interventions that are most likely to keep students retained and on track to graduation. (Graphic: Business Wire) Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) used Student Success Premier-which is the first student success product launched by Othot in March 2020. IUP ran qualitative research on at-risk populations an identified factors that differed between students who returned to the University and those who did not. With that data, IUP gave those at-risk students extra support and in the end, 50 of them stayed enrolled when otherwise it was very likely they would not have persisted.



Student Success Essential is designed to help colleges who may be limited by funding or access to data, to still have access to a powerful analytics platform at a lower cost and with a quick-start implementation. Even using a limited data set, significant progress can be made in improving retention. "There are patterns and indicators for why students drop out of college that can be identified but without advanced analytics, college enrollment managers are operating in the dark," said Fred Weiss, CEO of Othot. "We are offering 'Student Success Essential' as a lighter solution because while not every college has the capability to utilize all the deep capabilities of our Premier offering, nearly every college can benefit from Othot's unique machine learning and AI analysis of several basic data points."

Mr Weiss added, "Othot is the solution that makes data visible, so that it informs administrator decisions and students can receive the support they need. Our team of data scientists and success managers are partners with the institution to ensure that universities have measurable success such as what IUP experienced between the fall and spring semester." Chris Kitas is IUP's Executive Director of Institutional Research Planning & Assessment. When asked how Othot helped them he said, "Othot's platform provides the types of real-time, in-depth AI that helps affect change. For instance, why would a student with a 3.5 GPA leave? What was wrong? I had my hypotheses. The platform opened my eyes and provided answers to some of the questions that we had. It gives us all a better sense of where we're going with our students, and how we can make sure they're retained and graduate." The Othot Student Success Essential platform make successes like this happen by enabling institutions to: Identify At-Risk Students - Know which students are at-risk and the reasons why to gain a better understanding of retention on campus

Know which students are at-risk and the reasons why to gain a better understanding of retention on campus Recognize Impactful Interventions - Optimize student success resources, identifying which interventions will meaningfully improve retention on your campus

Optimize student success resources, identifying which interventions will meaningfully improve retention on your campus Manage Advisor Priorities - Use institution data to strengthen relationships between advisors and their students

Use institution data to strengthen relationships between advisors and their students Guide Graduation with Reasonable Debt - Monitor changes in student financial needs over the academic year, matching their needs with available financial aid resources

Monitor changes in student financial needs over the academic year, matching their needs with available financial aid resources Secure Transfer Student Retention - Personalize transfer student retention strategies, knowing which interventions are most impactful on this population Othot is offering this new Student Success Essential analytics product at an affordable price with a rapid-launch sequence to quickly ramp up at a time of pandemic-constrained budgets. Othot provides analytics tools so that institutions of higher education can make better informed decisions to maximize student enrollment, success, and advancement. At a time when colleges face several challenges from the pandemic's effect to the projections of significant drops in enrollment (see Futureproofing Institutions Against the Demographic Cliff, analyzing enrollment trends and institution-level data from more than 450 four-year colleges and universities), the ability to more deeply analyze and understand data is increasingly important. At IUP, university administrators were interested in understanding barriers to retention and persistence, especially in light of increasing challenges in recruiting new students due to college-aged population declines. "We were anticipating some [adjustments] as demographics changed, of course, but what we started to see was that our market share of students really began to decline," noted Patricia McCarthy, Ph.D., vice president for enrollment management at IUP where Othot is in use. "When I analyzed the retention numbers, I recognized that there was a strategic opportunity to regain ground. The Othot tool is a critical part of our overall long-term strategy, and we're seeing positive results and a solid return on our investment." Watch an introductory video of Othot's Student Success Essential Platform here. About Othot, Inc. Othot, a Liaison Company, is the leader in advanced analytics and artificial intelligence solutions for higher education institutions across the United States. Together, Othot and its partner schools focus on each institution's specific enrollment, student success, and advancement goals. Othot's cloud-based solution provides continuous intelligence in real time and empowers schools to engage each prospective, current, and former student with the right tactic at the right time. Othot is higher intelligence for higher education. Othot.com @OthotInc View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005152/en/

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[May 11, 2021]

Golden Leaf to Present at Canaccord Genuity's Virtual Conference

PORTLAND, Ore., May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Golden Leaf Holdings Ltd. (CSE: GLH) (OTCQB: GLDFF) (Golden Leaf or the Company), operating as Chalice Brands, a premier, consumer-driven cannabis company specializing in retail, production, processing, wholesale, and distribution, is pleased to announce that the President & CEO, Jeff Yapp and Executive Chairman, John Varghese, will present live at Canaccord Genuitys 2021 Virtual Cannabis Conference on Tuesday, May 11, 2021 at 3:30 p.m. EDT (12:30 p.m. PDT). You can register for the conference, below:



Date: May 11th, 2021

Time: 3:30 p.m. EDT (12:30 p.m. PDT)

Register: https://wsw.com/webcast/canaccord55/chal/2411712







About Golden Leaf Holdings

Golden Leaf Holdings is a premier consumer-driven cannabis company specializing in production, processing, wholesale, distribution and retail, with seven dispensaries in Portland, Oregon. The Company is committed to developing a dynamic portfolio built around the recognized brands of Chalice Farms, with a focus on health and wellness. GLH operates nationally through Fifth and Root and has operations in Oregon and California. Visit http://www.glhmonthly.com for regular updates.

Investor Relations:

John Varghese

Executive Chairman

Golden Leaf Holdings Ltd.

971-371-2685

ir@goldenxtrx.com

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
[May 11, 2021] mPhase Technologies Inc. Announces $3 Million Financing

- Funds Expected to Accelerate the Companys Near-Term Growth Initiatives - Gaithersburg, MD, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- mPhase Technologies, Inc. (OTC: XDSL) (mPhase or the Company), a leading technology driven development company that creates and commercializes solutions that impact everyday people, today announced it has entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with two accredited investors raising over $3 million for the company. Per the terms of the agreement, the capital was raised via a convertible promissory note with a fixed conversion price of $0.20 per share with two new accredited investors. The note matures on May 5, 2022 and bears interest at the rate of 5% per annum. Full terms of the note are available in the Companys Form 8-K dated May 11, 2021 as filed with the SEC. Anshu Bhatnagar, Chief Executive Officer of mPhase commented, The investors who participated in this round are our first institutional investors. The note was specifically crafted so that it should not, in our view, impede a future listing to a national securities exchange. The note includes provisions for a forced conversion upon a Qualified Uplist with up to 90% of the related shares subject to a 180-day lock up period after the Companys listing on a national exchange. We are very pleased to have our first strategic institutional investors as we embark on what we believe will be a transformative growth stage for our company. The additional capital will ensure a rapid start to the current multi-year plan, which includes creating a consumer engagement ecosystem that is gaining traction with potential partners in retail, transportation and government. About mPhase Technologies mPhase is a technology driven, innovative development copany that creates and commercializes products and applications that impact everyday people. The Company is assembling industry-leading teams specializing in artificial intelligence, machine learning, software, consumer engagement, and other advanced technologies. Additional information can be found at the mPhase website, www.mphasetech.com. Please follow us on twitter: @mPhase_Tech for the latest updates.



Safe Harbor Statement This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are identified by the use of the words could, believe, anticipate, intend, estimate, expect, may, continue, predict, potential, project and similar expressions that are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Although we believe that our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions reflected in or suggested by the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give no assurance that these plans, objectives, expectations or intentions will be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical experience and present expectations or projections. Actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements and the trading price for our common stock may fluctuate significantly. Forward-looking statements also are affected by the risk factors described in the Companys filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Company Contact

301-329-2700

info@mPhaseTech.com Investor Contact

Brian M. Prenoveau, CFA

MZ Group - MZ North America

561-489-5315

XDSL@mzgroup.us

www.mzgroup.us



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[May 11, 2021] Logiq Announces Initial Public Offering of Units in Canada

NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Logiq, Inc. (Logiq or the Company) (OTCQX: LGIQ), a global provider of award-winning eCommerce and fintech solutions, has filed an amended and restated preliminary prospectus (the Preliminary Prospectus) for a proposed initial public offering (the Offering) of units of the Company (the Units) in Canada. Each Unit will consist of one share of common stock of the Company (a Unit Share) and one purchase warrant of the Company (each, a Warrant). Each Warrant is exercisable to acquire one share of common stock of the Company (a Warrant Share). The number of Units to be sold, the offering price of the Units and the terms of the Warrants (including the exercise price and expiry term) will be determined in the context of the market. The Offering is being conducted by Research Capital Corporation as the lead agent and sole bookrunner (the Agent). The Preliminary Prospectus has been filed with the securities regulatory authorities in each of the provinces of Canada (other than Quebec). The Company has granted the Agent an option (the  Over-Allotment Option ) to cover over-allotments and for market stabilization purposes, exercisable in whole or in part at the sole discretion of the Agent, at any time up to 30 days from the closing of the Offering, to increase the size of the Offering by up to 15% of the number of Units (and/or the components thereof) sold pursuant to the Offering, on the same terms and conditions of the Offering. The net proceeds of the Offering will be used for development of additional data analytics tools, sales generation and marketing, and for working capital requirements and other general corporate purposes. The closing of the Offering is currently expected to be on or about the week of June 7, 2021, or on such date as the Agent and the Company may agree upon, and is subject to certain conditions including, but not limited to the execution of an agency agreement and the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals including the approval of the NEO Exchange (the NEO) in Canada. The Company has received conditional approval to list its common stock, including the Unit Shares being distributed under the prospectus, the Warrant Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants, any common stock and Warrant Shares issued upon exercise of the Over-Allotment Option and upon exercise of the Agents compensation options, on the NEO under the symbol LGIQ. Upon listing on the NEO after meeting all listing conditions, Logiqs common stock would continue to be traded in the U.S. on the OTCQX Market as LGIQ. We are fortunate to have the assistance of Research Capitals experienced and capable team as we take this major step towards completing our NEO listing process, stated Logiqs executive chairman and president, Brent Suen. As a senior exchange, the NEO platform exemplifies how state-of-the-art exchange trading technology can help increase investor confidence, improve liquidity, and elevate a companys global profile. Our customer relationships now range from hundreds of thousands of SMBs around the world to publicly raded Fortune 1000 companies. Among our notable customers are QuinStreet (a marketing technology company), Purple (the creator of the renowned Purple mattress) and Sunrun (a solar company).



The Preliminary Prospectus contains important information relating to Logiq and the Units. The Preliminary Prospectus remains subject to completion or amendment. There will not be any sale or any acceptance of an offer to buy the Units until a receipt for the final prospectus has been issued by the relevant securities regulatory authorities in Canada. A copy of the Preliminary Prospectus can be obtained under Logiqs corporate profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. There can be no assurance that Logiq will satisfy all applicable requirements for listing its common stock on the NEO, that its application for listing will be approved or that a receipt for its final prospectus will be issued. About Logiq

Logiq, Inc. (OTCQX: LGIQ) is a U.S.-based leading global provider of eCommerce, mCommerce, and fintech business enablement solutions. Its DataLogiq subsidiary provides a data-driven, end-to-end eCommerce marketing solution for enterprises and major U.S. brands, including Home Advisor, QuinStreet and Sunrun. Its AI-powered LogiqX data engine delivers valuable consumer insights that enhance the ROI of online marketing spend. The companys Fixel technology offers simplified online marketing with critical privacy features. Logiqs AppLogiq platform-as-a-service enables small- and medium-sized businesses worldwide to easily create and deploy a native mobile app for their business without technical knowledge or background. AppLogiq empowers businesses to reach more customers, increase sales, manage logistics, and promote their products and services in an easy, affordable, and highly efficient way. AppLogiq is offered in 14 languages across 10 countries and three continents, including some of the fastest-growing emerging markets in Southeast Asia. The companys PayLogiq  offers mobile payments, and GoLogiq  offers hyper-local food delivery services. For more information about Logiq, go to Logiq.com .



Forward-Looking Disclaimer This press release contains certain forward-looking statements and information, as defined within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and is subject to the Safe Harbor created by those sections. This news release also contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation that relate to Logiqs current expectations and views of future events. Any statements that express, or involve discussions as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, through the use of words or phrases such as "will likely result", "are expected to", "expects", "will continue", "is anticipated", "anticipates", "believes", "estimated", "intends", "plans", "forecast", "projection", "strategy", "objective" and "outlook") are not historical facts and may be forward-looking statements and may involve estimates, assumptions and uncertainties which could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in such forward-looking statements. No assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements included in this news release should not be unduly relied upon. These statements speak only as of the date of this news release. In particular and without limitation, this news release contains forward-looking statements regarding Logiqs proposed NEO listing and its initial public offering of Units. Forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Logiqs control, which could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, failure to complete the initial public offering, the impact and progression of the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors set forth under Forward-Looking Statements" and Risk Factors in the Preliminary Prospectus, as well as other risks described in Logiqs prior press releases and in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including under the heading "Risk Factors" in Logiqs Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent filings with the SEC. Logiq undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for Logiq to predict all of them, or assess the impact of each such factor or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. Any forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Company Contact

Brent Suen, President

Logiq, Inc.

Email contact Media & Investor Contact

Ronald Both or Grant Stude

CMA Investor & Media Relations

Tel (949) 432-7566

Email contact



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[May 11, 2021] Prime Engineering Announces Strategic Investment from Godspeed Capital

Prime Engineering, Inc. ("Prime Engineering" or the "Company") a premier architecture, engineering, and surveying firm, today announced that it has received a strategic investment from Godspeed Capital Management LP ("Godspeed Capital") a lower middle-market Defense & Government services, solutions, and technology focused private equity firm. The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005679/en/ Founded in 1990, Prime Engineering provides architecture, engineering, surveying, and construction management services to a variety of public, private, and government clients across the United States. Over the past seven years, Prime Engineering has achieved annual double-digit growth and is a nationally recognized leader in the Industrial, Transportation, and Infrastructure markets. The Company has been recognized by the Zweig Group as one of the Best Firms to Work For as well as by Forbes as a Certified Great Place to Work. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Prime Engineering employs over 75 employees across four offices nationwide. Following the transaction, Prime Engineering's President, Thomas Gambino, will continue to lead the Company as it accelerates client and service expansion with Godspeed Capital's support. "We are proud to be partnering with Godspeed Capital, whose seasoned and collaborative investment approach will help to guide our business through its next stage of growth," said Mr. Gambino. He further added, "Prime Engineering is proud of the entreprneurial culture that we have built, and we will continue to focus on maintaining a high degree of employee engagement, a cornerstone of the Company model moving forward. The future is incredibly bright for Prime Engineering clients and employees, and I look forward to sharing our continued story of success."



Douglas T. Lake, Jr., Founder & Managing Partner of Godspeed Capital said, "Prime Engineering fits seamlessly with Godspeed Capital's strategy of partnering with talented management teams and investing in companies offering innovative services and solutions, that are well-positioned in attractive markets, and poised for continued growth." Mr. Lake continued, "Prime Engineering is spearheaded by an experienced leadership team, a highly trained workforce, and operates at the highest level of ethical standards to provide its customers with exceptional service. We look forward to further building on Prime Engineering's distinguished track record in the Industrial, Transportation, and Infrastructure markets." Prime Engineering was advised by PSMJ Resources, Inc. with legal support provided by Donahue Fitzgerald Attorneys. Godspeed Capital was advised by AEC Advisors LLC.

About Prime Engineering Prime Engineering provides architecture, engineering, surveying, and construction management services to a variety of public, private, and government clients across the United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Prime Engineering employs over 75 employees across four offices nationwide. Prime Engineering is proud of its entrepreneurial culture that fosters a high degree of employee engagement. These distinguishing characteristics will remain cornerstones of the Prime Engineering model going forward. Prime Engineering's areas of practice include Air Transportation, Air and Ground Freight Logistics, Food, Beverage and Consumer Products, Petroleum and Chemical, Manufacturing, and Infrastructure. For more information, please visit https://www.prime-eng.com. About Godspeed Capital Godspeed Capital is a lower middle-market Defense & Government services, solutions, and technology focused private equity firm investing alongside forward-thinking management teams that seek an experienced and innovative investment partner with unique sector expertise, operational insight, and flexible capital for growth. For more information, please visit Godspeed Capital's website at www.godspeedcm.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005679/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Clean Energy Ventures Launches Open Access Tool to Identify the Climate Technologies Worth Investor Attention

BOSTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Clean Energy Ventures announced today the launch of an open-access calculator to estimate a climate tech innovation's potential impact on climate change. The Simple Emissions Reduction Calculator (SERC), which Clean Energy Ventures developed to help evaluate climate tech startups seeking funding, will be used by partners including Cleantech Open, Cleantech Scandinavia, and by any climate tech startups that are looking to validate their carbon emissions reduction potential. The open accessibility of SERC represents a first for clean energy and climate tech venture capital investors. "Many startups and founders have large ambitions for mitigating GHGs, yet the task of estimating their company's emissions reduction potential can seem overwhelming," said Shanbor Gupta, Investment Manager at Clean Energy Ventures who helped build SERC. "The Simple Emissions Reduction Calculator was developed to fix this problem and provide a baseline for startups and investors to build on during investment discussions." With this calculator, startups and investors can estimate the number of tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2 e) a technology can prevent. Clean Energy Ventures has been using the tool as the first step in the investment screening process to ensure that every startup they evaluate is able to mitigate a minimum of 2.5 billion tons of CO 2/sub>e by 2050, an investment requirement. CEV is now offering the tool to the wider clean energy and climate tech community to fill a gap in the current solutions landscape and support organizations' efforts to reach ESG goals.



Cleantech Open, Cleantech Scandinavia, among other climate tech industry investors and accelerators, are now utilizing the SERC tool for education, screening and/or diligence. "The explosive growth of climate-focused investment means more entrepreneurs are being asked to quantify their current and potential impact on climate change to receive funding," said Beth Zonis, Director of Cleantech Open Northeast. "Empowering our entrepreneurs to quantify their CO 2 e impact should help them not only secure funding, but also attract customers, partners and employees. We have decided to incorporate the SERC tool into our curriculum this year to give the startups a boost as they launch and scale their businesses."

"So many investors are looking into throwing their hat in the ring for climate investments and SERC can provide a standardized, measurable way to evaluate a company's potential," said David Miller, Managing Director and Co-founder at Clean Energy Ventures. "We want every entrepreneur focused on solving climate change to have an accessible, reliable method for calculating their emissions reduction potential and to standardize the process by which companies can share that data with potential investors, customers, employees and the public. Over 140 startups have already used the SERC tool." About Clean Energy Ventures

Clean Energy Ventures is a $110m venture capital firm investing in early-stage climate tech companies who can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2.5 gigatons of CO 2 e each between now and 2050, while providing venture-grade returns to our investors. Learn more at cleanenergyventures.com . View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/clean-energy-ventures-launches-open-access-tool-to-identify-the-climate-technologies-worth-investor-attention-301288602.html SOURCE Clean Energy Ventures

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[May 11, 2021] Meet & Engage Supports 2021 Talent Board Candidate Experience Awards as Gold Sponsor

SAN FRANCISCO, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Talent Board , a non-profit organization focused on the elevation and promotion of a quality candidate experience through its annual recruiting and hiring industry benchmark research, today announced Meet & Engage , an award-winning candidate experience technology for employers, has returned as a Gold sponsor for this year's 2021 Candidate Experience (CandE) Awards global benchmark research program . "We're excited to have Meet & Engage return as a Gold sponsor this year. Their commitment to improving candidate experiences resonates from their conversational recruiting technology," said Kevin Grossman, Talent Board president. "Meet & Engage's support enables us to grow our benchmarking program to reach more employers and we're excited they're sponsoring the CandEs again this year!" The annual Talent Board recruiting and candidate experience benchmarking and awards program offer employers in North America; Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA); Asia-Pacific (APAC); and Latin America, a risk-free and confidential opportunity to learn how an organization's candidate experience practices compare to those of their pees while obtaining anonymous feedback from their candidates. Employers will also gain insight into the latest tools and strategies for optimizing the recruiting process.



The largest study of its kind, the Talent Board benchmark research program has evaluated responses from over 1,000 global employers and 1 million job seekers since 2011. To participate and qualify, each company has to commit to a statistically significant candidate response, and the proportion of respondents not hired also had to exceed a set standard. Registration for the 2021 CandE Benchmark Research Program is now open . "We're super proud to partner with the Talent Board as a Gold Sponsor for this year's Candidate Experience Awards. At Meet & Engage, our technology solutions are designed to help employers elevate their candidate experience and deliver on the promise of their employer brand. As such, we actively support any initiatives that seek to better understand how candidates think and feel about the modern hiring journey. We look forward to reviewing the latest findings and results," said Ali Hackett, Founder & CEO at Meet & Engage.

Additional information about the 2021 Talent Board Candidate Experience Awards Benchmark Research Program can be accessed here . About Meet & Engage Meet & Engage is a suite of conversational recruiting technology with a mission to make it easier for employers to connect with candidates at every stage of the hiring process  from attraction, to selection, to onboarding. We work with organisations in North America, Europe, UK and around the world  names like Amazon, Deloitte, Deutsche Bank and Virgin Media  to improve the candidate experience. At Meet & Engage, we have a team of recruitment experts and award-winning software to solve real-life hiring and engagement challenges. We offer three products to help employers execute their virtual events strategies: Inspire & Nurture, Chatbots and Timeline. Learn more here . About Talent Board Founded in 2011, Talent Board and the Candidate Experience Awards is the first non-profit research organization focused on the elevation and promotion of a quality candidate experience. Talent Board delivers annual recruiting and hiring industry benchmark research that highlights accountability, fairness and the business impact of candidate experience. More information can be found at https://www.thetalentboard.org . Media Contact

Kevin Grossman

831-419-6810

309566@email4pr.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/meet--engage-supports-2021-talent-board-candidate-experience-awards-as-gold-sponsor-301288476.html SOURCE Talent Board

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[May 11, 2021] Pakistan Blocks US Youth Group's Website

SILVER SPRING, Md., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Government of Pakistan has targeted and banned the website of America's largest men's Muslim youth organization, escalating its decades-long persecution of members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community who believe that His Holiness Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was the long-awaited messiah who came to revive Islam's true teachings. On March 30, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association (AMYA) received notice from Pakistan's "Web Analysis Division" stating that AMYA's website violated Pakistani law. This ban took effect on April 9, after which mkausa.org was blocked from access in Pakistan. Late last year, Pakistan also threatened criminal enforcement against the operators of the official website of AMYA's affiliate, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, and has since banned Ahmadi websites in the U.K., Canada and Australia. "Unfortunately, Pakistan continues to persecute a community who are the antithesis of extremism," said Madeel Abdullah, President of AMYA USA. "For decades, our Muslim youth have upheld Prophet Muhammad's honor through logging hundreds of thousands of hours organizing blood drives, volunteering in disaster relief efforts, cleaning roads, and feeding the needy - images and videos which are on our website. It is heartbreaking that Pakistani youth can no longer look at our examples in America and use them to better their own communities." The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is a dynamic, reformist and fast-growing international movement within Islam. Founded in 1889, the Community spans 213 countries with tens of millions of members. Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, established in 1920, is the oldest American-Muslim organization. Since the 1970s, the Pakistani government has created laws to ban Ahmadi Muslims from practicing their faith. These unjust laws continue to embolden extremists in Pakistan to persecute Ahmadi Muslims and other reigious minorities such that the US State Department has labeled Pakistan as "a safe haven for certain regionally focused terrorist groups."



This systemic persecution of Ahmadi Muslims has led to mass murder , grave desecration , expulsion of school children for their faith, and a complete lockdown of all religious practice. Pakistan has faced repeated condemnation from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom ( USCIRF ) stating , "Religious freedom conditions across Pakistan continue to trend negatively." While Pakistan may block our website, AMYA will continue moving forward to uphold Islam's honor. AMYA intends to challenge this order and will exercise all available legal options through its U.S. counsel.

About AMYA:

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association (AMYA) is a nationwide youth group that works with young Muslim men and boys around the country. AMYA serves as the young men and boys auxiliary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. Officially established in the United States in 1939, AMYA is one of the earliest Muslim Youth organizations in the United States. AMYA is a dynamic and vibrant association serving not only the needs of its members but of its local communities and nation. The association is comprised of more than 5,000 men and boys aged 7 to 40, spread across 70 local chapters. Previous members of AMYA include Grammy Award winning artists and Pulitzer Prize winning journalists. AMYA is headquartered in Silver Spring, MD. Media Contact:

Salaam Bhatti

717.608.3837

309635@email4pr.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pakistan-blocks-us-youth-groups-website-301288534.html SOURCE Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association USA

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[May 11, 2021]

STACK INFRASTRUCTURE Continues Record Growth With 72MW Expansion In Northern Virginia

DENVER, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- STACK INFRASTRUCTURE (STACK or the Company), the digital infrastructure partner to the worlds most innovative companies, today announced plans to expand its North American footprint with an additional 25 acres in Manassas, Northern Virginia, adjacent to an ongoing data center development that is already fully leased. This land acquisition will make room for as many as two 36MW facilities and add additional capacity at its massive 125-acre multiphase development in Prince William County.



Northern Virginia continues to lead the nation and the world in data center development. Cushman and Wakefield estimates 288MW of active construction projects in 2020, more than the next four markets combined. Data center development has exploded in Prince William County specifically, with over $7.5 billion in active projects, and plenty of robust fiber and power creating a favorable climate for mission-critical digital infrastructure.

When we talk to our marquee clients about their development plans, Northern Virginia inevitably comes up, said Brian Cox, Chief Executive Officer of STACK. The access to power, network infrastructure, and an educated workforce is second-to-none, so it makes sense for us to deliver as much capacity as possible to meet this growing demand. Were expediting growth in many new, emerging markets, but Northern Virginia will always be an enduring STACK destination.

To fund these efforts as well many new, client-focused initiatives, in March, STACK announced the issuance of $400 million of securitized notes at an industry-leading rate. The Company also offers several other opportunities in key regions throughout the United States, including:

An 84MW campus in Portland, with plans to deliver 24MW in Q3 of 2021.

A 400-acre hyperscale data center campus with 400MW potential critical capacity in AllianceTexas, a master-planned development in Fort Worth, Texas, in partnership with Hillwood.

A New Albany, Ohio 42MW data center campus with immediately available and build-to-suit expansion opportunities.

A new 79-acre hyperscale data center campus in Avondale, Arizona with 150MW of potential critical capacity.

Build-to-suit opportunities in Atlanta, including a potential 12MW in Alpharetta and a 48MW campus in nearby Lithia Springs.







STACK provides both the digital infrastructure and end-to-end client experience required to scale the worlds most innovative companies. The Companys offering includes hyperscale campuses and build-to-suit data centers ( HYPER STACK ), immediately available wholesale colocation and private data suites ( READY STACK ), and powered shell options ( POWER STACK ).

For more information about STACK, please visit: www.stackinfra.com .

ABOUT STACK INFRASTRUCTURE

STACK provides digital infrastructure to scale the worlds most innovative companies. With a client-first approach, the Company delivers a comprehensive suite of wholesale build-to-suit, colocation, and powered shell solutions in nine markets today: Atlanta, Georgia ; Chicago, Illinois ; Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas ; New Albany, Ohio ; Northern Virginia ; Portland, Oregon ; Phoenix, Arizona ; Toronto ; and Silicon Valley, California . Its offerings include hyperscale campuses and build-to-suit data centers ( HYPER STACK ), immediately available wholesale commissioned capacity ( READY STACK ), and powered shell options ( POWER STACK ).

With unparalleled existing and flexible expansion capacity in the leading availability zones, STACK offers the scale and geographic reach that rapidly growing hyperscale and enterprise companies need. The world runs on data. And data runs on STACK.

For more information, visit www.stackinfra.com , or follow us on LinkedIn .

Media contact:

Kevin Wolf

TGPR

kevin@tgprllc.com
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 09:29:59|Editor: huaxia

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Trucks wait at the Kazungula border between Botswana and Zambia on May 10, 2021. Botswana and Zambia on Monday jointly opened the Kazungula bridge, which is composed of a roadway and a rail track over the Zambezi river that connects the two countries, as well as a one-stop border post. (Photo by Tshekiso Tebalo/Xinhua)

GABORONE, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Botswana and Zambia on Monday jointly opened the Kazungula bridge, which is composed of a roadway and a rail track over the Zambezi river that connects the two countries as well as a one-stop border post.

The 259.3-million-U.S.-dollar bridge, which is 923 meters long, is expected to facilitate access to international markets through connectivity with major seaports and to improve the efficiency of the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

Botswanan President Mokgweetsi Masisi said the Kazungula bridge will pave the way for trade improvement, job creation and economic diversification in SADC countries. "By and large, that will significantly accelerate the SADC's regional integration process, which we are vigorously pursuing."

Zambian President Edgar Lungu said the bridge demonstrated excellent relations between the two countries.

"The Kazungula bridge project was worth the effort, (and) the transit traffic through Kazungula will greatly improve due to reduced transit time as well as improved trade facilitation measures and border management operations because of the inclusion of the one-stop border post," he said.

Lungu further acknowledged financial support from the governments of China, South Korea, Japan and the African Development Bank.

The Kazungula project started in 2014 and the border post facility is expected to operate 22 hours per day. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] Growers, Preparing For New Product Launch, Announces Rebrand

Growers, a technology company focused on making it easier to do business with farmers, is preparing for the commercial launch of their flagship product this summer and has completed an entirely new rebranding initiative. The complete revamp of www.growers.ag, new logo, visuals, and messaging are designed to create distinction and differentiation amongst the sea of agtech look-alikes. With a new brand and set to launch their new product, Growers. RALLY this summer, the company is positioning itself as the leading sales engagement platform for frontline salespeople in agriculture retail. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005230/en/ Growers offers a unique solution to ag retail sales representatives when many in the industry are pushing toward a more transactional relationship between the farmer and retailer. "Today, it's becoming increasingly tricky for ag retailers to differentiate their products and services. The retailers that are successfully overcoming this challenge are doing so by differentiating their selling experience to farmers-essentially offering incredible amounts of value and insight while also being easier to do business with. Our technology is the catalyst that allows tha to happen," said Steven Valencsin, CEO of Growers.



Early in Q3, the company plans to launch RALLY, currently in a limited release with select ag retailers nationwide. RALLY is in a category of its own in agriculture; a sales engagement platform that helps ag retailers foster relationships with farmers by offering tools and insights that make it easier to create and share custom crop plans, make important purchasing decisions, manage inventory, and deliver exceptional value. Users can run what-if analyses, quote prices, and track team progress without being bogged down by boundary mapping and shapefile sharing or other barriers that make most agronomic software too cumbersome to use. "We've taken our years of experience servicing farmers directly and applied those learnings into building technology. RALLY is an easy-to-use platform that has only what sellers need and none of what they don't. It's helping our partners grow sales, save time, and strengthen relationships. We've been consistent in our commitment to providing technology solutions that drive outcomes, visibility, and better relationships-and doing so with simplicity. With this rebrand, we're aligning our verbal and visual identity with our business and product strategy," adds Valencsin.

Growers develops solutions that make it easier for the ag retailer to do business with their farmer customers. Our platform includes tools for managing relationships and communications, planning, planting, fertilizing, and treating growing fields. Headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, Growers employs a team of engineers, developers, agronomists, and product specialists serving a rapidly growing customer base across the U.S. Engage with Growers on social media: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005230/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Knowledge 2021 Opens Today, Showcasing How the World Works With ServiceNow

ServiceNow (News - Alert) (NYSE: NOW), the leading digital workflow company that makes work, work better for people, today kicks off Knowledge 2021, the company's flagship digital experience for its customers, partners, and developer community. With more than 40,000 people registered worldwide, Knowledge 21 takes place May 11-20, 2021. Two weeks of live, interactive, and on-demand programming features more than 260 sessions across 12 content channels. Customers are at the center of Knowledge 21, with more than 145 hours of customer-led content by PepsiCo, Under Armour, Subway, the State of Kansas, Levi Strauss, and hundreds of other companies implementing digital workflows to grow their business, become more resilient, and reshape their industries. CEO Bill McDermott and other company leaders kick off Knowledge 21 with a broadcast showcasing the power of the Now Platform to make the world of work, work better for people - and to workflow a better world. The opening broadcast will include customer stories of how ServiceNow is helping to positively impact lives around the world and is the strategic authority for digital transformation across industries and geographies. "ServiceNow is the strategic authority for digital transformation," said Bill McDermott, president and CEO of ServiceNow. "We are at the epicenter of the workflow revolution, enabling enterprises worldwide to create 21st century digital businesses and deliver great experiences for people. We're solving the greatest workflow challenge of our time, turning vaccines into vaccinations. We're helping people safely return to their offices. Across every industry, the Now Platform is workflowing solutions that make work and life better for people. The world works with ServiceNow." New Innovations Support New Workflows At Knowledge 2021, ServiceNow announced new solutions, innovations, and strategic moves to extend the transformational power of digital workflows to solve some of the greatest challenges businesses and society face today and into the future, including: Expanding into manufacturing and healthcare and life sciences industries with new solutions Operational Technology Management helps leading manufacturing companies like Siemens (News - Alert) Energy make operations more efficient and secure while enhancing the employee experience. Healthcare and Life Sciences Service Management will connect cross-functional health teams and simplify how people engage with their healthcare providers, payers, pharmaceutical, and medical device organizations to improve the patient experience.

Accelerating global vaccination efforts New capabilities to ServiceNow's Vaccine Administration Management (VAM) solution enhance scheduling and inventory management to make COVID-19 vaccines more accessible, especially for individuals who lack internet access, eliminating key barriers to vaccine distribution. ServiceNow is supporting the delivery of millions of COVID-19 vaccinations around the world, including helping the State of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany to register 120,000 people for vaccination appointments within hours of launching.

Helping organizations safely return to the workplace New features in ServiceNow's Workplace Service Delivery solution and Safe Workplace Suite help businesses safely return employees to the workplace and navigate the new era of work, including a new planning tool in the Safe Workplace Dashboard and new "Neighborhoods" for Workplace Service Delivery to help organizations make informed decisions about bringing employees back to the workplace to prevent overcrowding. ServiceNow has seen an over 45 percent increase in Safe Workplace and Workplace Service Delivery usage since the beginning of 2021, with companies like BankUnited , Uber , and ENMAX using the Now Platform to plan their return to workplace.

Improving the development of cloud-native applications with insight-driven, action-oriented workflows ServiceNow's acquisition of Lightstep announced this week combines next-generation observability with the world's leading enterprise digital workflow platform. With Lightstep, an emerging pioneer in next generation application monitoring and observability, ServiceNow will help software developers build, deploy, run, and monitor state-of-the-art, cloud-native applications with insight-driven, action-oriented workflows.





Participating in Knowledge 2021 Knowledge 21 features keynotes on ServiceNow's IT, Employee, Customer, and Creator Workflow products and the Now Platform, as well as exclusive sessions for media and analysts:

ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott's Knowledge 21 keynote presentation will take place at 9:00 a.m. PDT on May 11. The on-demand broadcast will provide deeper insight into the power of digital workflows to change the world. Sign up here. Live press and analyst Q&A session with Bill McDermott and Chief Product Officer CJ Desai will take place at 8:30 a.m. PDT on May 12. Bill and CJ will provide a business update and discuss how companies are relying on ServiceNow to help create great experiences for the new era of work. Media and analysts can sign?up?here. Live press and analyst session with the City of Santa Monica, Michigan Medicine, and Capita Software, moderated by ServiceNow Chief Innovation Officer Dave Wright, will take place at 8:30 a.m. PDT on May 19. The discussion will address how companies are accelerating their digital transformation efforts to transform their business models during the COVID economy. Media and analysts can sign up?here.? Use of Forward-Looking Statements This release contains "forward-looking statements" about the expectations, beliefs, plans, and intentions relating to new capabilities. Such forward-looking statements include statements regarding expected performance and benefits of such capabilities. Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on potentially inaccurate assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expected or implied by the forward-looking statements. If any such risks or uncertainties materialize or if any of the assumptions prove incorrect, our results could differ materially from the results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements we make. We undertake no obligation, and do not intend, to update the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those in any forward-looking statements include, without limitation: delays and unexpected difficulties and expenses in making available additional capabilities; changes in the regulatory landscape related to vaccine development and distribution and the availability of vaccines; changes in the duration or severity of the COVID-19 pandemic; assimilating or integrating Lightstep's technology into our platform; the inability to retain key employees of Lightstep after the transaction closes; unanticipated expenses related to Lightstep's acquired technology; potential adverse tax consequences; disruption to our business and diversion of management attention and other resources; and potential unknown liabilities associated with Lightstep's business. Further information on factors that could affect our financial and other results is included in the filings we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. About ServiceNow ServiceNow (NYSE: NOW) is making the world of work, work better for people. Our cloud-based platform and solutions deliver digital workflows that create great experiences and unlock productivity for employees and the enterprise. For more information, visit: www.servicenow.com.  2021 ServiceNow, Inc. All rights reserved. ServiceNow, the ServiceNow logo, Now, and other ServiceNow marks are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of ServiceNow, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Other company names, product names, and logos may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005406/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Primis Launches Sellers.guide, a New Initiative Designed to Bring Greater Transparency to the Digital Media Industry

TEL AVIV, Israel, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Primis, the leading Video Discovery platform for global publishers, today announced the launch of Sellers.guide (https://sellers.guide), an industry-wide initiative designed to bring a heightened level of transparency to the ad tech ecosystem.

The state of transparency in ad tech has categorically improved over the last few years, with initiatives such as ads.txt and sellers.json providing a healthy step in the right direction. While much of the industry growth is due to those tools, they remain overwhelming and inaccessible to many. Sellers.guide is an automated tool that compares ads.txt files with sellers.json and provides simple and useful feedback to help publishers and buyers gain insights into who is really buying and selling inventory in any domain. Weve been a part of this industry for a long time. Long enough to feel that it is an integral part of who we are. Transparency is paramount for the success of our industry. And yet, the tools created to promote it are hard to grasp, said Rotem Shaul, Co-CEO of Primis. Our aim is to simplify, explain, elucidate, illuminate and help members of the ad industry navigate their way through the technological complexity on their journey to transparency. Sellers.guide automatically cross-references ads.txt files with sellers.json files so that publishers can better understand how they can optimize their ads.txt files. Publishers can use Sellers.guide to recognize the obfuscation that exists behind those DIRECT/RESELLER labels - and avoid unauthorized reselling, domain spoofing, latency and revenue loss. A recent survey of publishers by Primis revealed there is a significant gap between reality and perception among many publishers. When asked How Many Sellers Currently Sell your Inventory? 56% of respondents said 2-13 and 25% said 14-34. Based on an examination of Ads.txt files those numbers do not reflect reality. Most publishers have 90% more sellers than they realize, continued Shaul. The reason for this gap is that publishers are not properly maintaining their ads.txt ile. When code is reviewed, they will find so many more sellers than they realized, including many resellers posing as direct sellers. Most publishers have no idea this is going on, and its a huge problem for the industry.



Today, publishers have widely adopted ads.txt to reduce the risk of counterfeit inventory and establish an honorable digital programmatic supply chain. The challenge today is that maintaining an ads.txt file is a manual and technically challenging process that most publishers don't fully understand. Despite the great adoption of ads.txt files, if they are not maintained, they cant fulfill their mission and eventually further complicate the issue.

Sellers.guide has four primary features: Analyze domain - A tool for publishers or potential buyers to search and get a complete analysis of specific domains. This analysis includes a transparency score, flags that point to common problems, and actionable insights on how to fix them. Also included is a complete list of the seller domains that have access to selling the inventory. Validate seller - Copy and paste ads.txt lines in bulk to analyze existing or potential vendors. This tool helps build trust between publishers and vendors, especially with new relationships. Industry highlights - Every week, Sellers.guide scans 116K domains and creates industry benchmarks so that every publisher can see how they are doing compared to the industry. Resources - Blogs, wikis and FAQs about ads.txt and sellers.json to make it more accessible and understandable. Sellers.guide was built to serve and improve all parties in the ad tech industry. The initiative is being offered free of charge and is open to collaboration from all members of the ad tech industry. About Primis, Video Discovery

Primis is a global Video Discovery platform that increases revenue for publishers by helping their users discover high-quality video content. Our video discovery technology is used by 100s of digital publishers, empowering 200M uniques with an engagement-based video experience that recommends video content they love, automatically skipping content they dont interact with. Primis is owned by Universal McCann and The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE: IPG) holding itself to the highest standards in digital advertising. Website: www.sellers.guide , www.primis.tech

Twitter: @Sellers.guide, Primis ltd

LinkedIn: Sellers.guide, Primis UM Twitter: https://twitter.com/sellers_guide

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/70959060/ Media Contact: Kyle Kuhnel

Broadsheet Communications for Primis

kyle@broadsheetcomms.com



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[May 11, 2021] WebCareHealth Partners with Iowa Heart Center to Reduce Heart Failure Associated Hospitalizations

ANKENY, Iowa, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- WebCareHealth, a leading remote patient monitoring platform for heart failure and other chronic conditions, is working with MercyOne Iowa Heart Center, one of the premier cardiology, vascular and cardiovascular surgery practices in the nation, to reduce heart failure associated hospitalizations as part of a 30-60-90-day study. One-hundred and fifty patients were enrolled in the study to evaluate WebCareHealth platform's impact on reducing hospitalizations and readmissions in contrast to Iowa Heart's current standard of care for heart failure. Preliminary study results show improvements in hospitalization and readmission reductions, and increased use of WebCareHealth's optimized guideline-directed therapies for treatment. "Our partnership with WebCareHealth confirms our commitment to improving the lives of patients with heart failure. With WebCareHealth, we're incorporating remote patient monitoring as a key management tool for reducing hospitalizations and readmissions by delivering optimal therapy for our patients," said Rachel Robinson, Director of Quality and Risk Management for MercyOne Iowa Heart Center. According to the CDC, nearly 5 million Americans are living with heart failure with an estimated 550,000 new cases diagnosed each year.1 Heart failure affects people of all ages, from children to young adults to middle-aged and the elderly. Heart failure is responsible for 11 million physician visits each year, and more hospitalizations than all forms of cancer combined, and contributes to approximately 287,000 deaths each year. "Our partnership is significant as we have the opportunity to demonstrate our value in addressing the growing heart failure epidemic in Iowa and across the country, through better management of patients with chronic and complex diseases like heart failure," said Teresa Sieck, Chief Medical Officer and Co-Founder of WebCareHealth. WebCareHealth's platform for heart failure, HFMgr, allows hospitals, health systems and physician practices to remotely monitor heart failure patients on a regular basis, without them having to leave their home. Patients are provided with physiological monitoring devices and digital connectivity that allows for seamless transition of their health data to their provider. WebCareHealth's software solution enables doctors to collaborate with patients remotely by capturing real-time patient data and accessing the platform's optimized guideline-directed therapies to make actionable decisions for treatment. "WebCareHealth understands the unique challenges care teams face in managing patients with heart failure. Their platform allows us to get a more complete view of the patient with real-time data and treatment recommendations so we can prevent adverse events," said Marc Silver, MD, an international leader in the research and treatment of heart failure, and WebCareHealth advisor. In 2014-2016, WebCareHealth announced a separate study in collaboration with MercyOne Iowa Heart Center, which showed that by using its remote patient monitoring platform for anticoagulation management, WebCareHealth delivered improvements in clinical outcomes, patient engagement, and reduction of adverse events. The study demonstrated significant cost savings in comparison to its standard approach for anticoagulation management. About WebCareHealth

Founded in 2014 WCH develops innovative cloud-based software solutions that enable healthcare providers to remotely monitor the health of patients managing chronic illnesses. Patients with Afib, heart failure, anticoagulation, hypertension, diabetes, and and chronic pain receive close monitoring and care through WCH's partnership with 20 healthcare systems representing over 100 facilities across the U.S. For more information, visit www.webcarehealth.com About MercyOne Iowa Heart Center

MercyOne Iowa Heart Center currently operates 11 offices and serves more than 25 outreach clinics across the state, making it the largest cardiovascular program in Iowa. Their 90 providers work together to provide high quality, comprehensive cardiovascular care and advanced treatment options to patients and their families. Iowa Heart Center is dedicated to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart and vascular diseases. For more information, visit www.iowaheart.com













1 https://www.emoryhealthcare.org/heart-vascular/wellness/heart-failure-statistics.html

Media Contact:

John Gonda

JGonda@sage-growth.com

616-309-4888 View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/webcarehealth-partners-with-iowa-heart-center-to-reduce-heart-failure-associated-hospitalizations-301287501.html SOURCE WebCareHealth

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[May 11, 2021] Car Capital Appoints Company Advisors, John Binnie and Kirk Shryoc

GRAPEVINE, Texas, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Car Capital, an automotive FinTech company that provides their dealer partners with the ability to make 24/7 instant auto loan decisions, is happy to announce the appointment of two company advisers, John Binnie and Kirk Shryoc. Binnie was most recently Vice Chairman of Corporate and Investment Banking at Bank of America, and previously a partner at Moelis & Company, Head of Diversified Financials Group at Morgan Stanley, and Co-head of the Bank and Diversified Financial Services Group at Salomon Smith Barney. Shryoc is Managing Partner at Hard Right Solutions LLC and Co-founder of Mobility Financial Management, LLC. Shryoc is also a board member of several private companies and previously VP and Assistant Treasurer of The Hertz Corporation. Binnie and Shryoc are also investors in Car Capital and bring a wealth of experience and ideas to contribute to Car Capital's upward trajectory of tremendous growth since they launched operations earlier this year. John Binnie and Kirk Shryoc as company advisors. Justin Tisler, CEO at Car Capital.



"We are thrilled to welcome John Binnie and Kirk Shryoc as company advisors," said Justin Tisler, Co-founder and CEO at Car Capital. "Their broad experience will be invaluable to Car Capital as we continue to build the company, expand into additional markets and pursue future fundraising and strategic initiatives." With 100% automated instant approvals available to their dealer partners through their propriety web-based platform, Dealer Electronic Auto Loan System (DEALS), Car Capital makes it possible for any driver regardless of credit history to feel confident in the ability to purchase a vehicle when entering the dealership.

"I'm excited to work with Justin and the team at Car Capital to help develop this exceptional company into a sector-leading organization," said John Binnie, former Vice Chairman of Corporate and Investment Banking at Bank of America. "With their innovative technology that benefits both dealers and consumers, they are on track to make a significant impact on the retail auto industry in the best way." "As an investor and now advisor to Car Capital, I'm looking forward to supporting the company's growth and their unique strategy to provide consumers with the opportunity to buy a car no matter their credit situation," said Kirk Shryoc, Managing Partner at Hard Right Solutions LLC. About Car Capital

Car Capital, a wholly owned subsidiary of Car Capital Technologies, Inc., was founded to provide dealers with capital and advanced technology to help all consumers buy the cars they need. The executive leadership team, each with decades of experience in the industry, and all their talented associates have joined together to create an exceptional company to make car buying better for everyone. For more information, contact Car Capital at press@carcapital.com or visit carcapital.com. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/car-capital-appoints-company-advisors-john-binnie-and-kirk-shryoc-301288573.html SOURCE Car Capital

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[May 11, 2021] Horizon Controls Group Partners With Verve Industrial

CHICAGO, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Horizon Controls Group, a global digital process automation solutions and consultancy company, today announced a formal agreement with Verve Industrial, a leader in operational technology and industrial control systems (OT/ICS) cyber security technology and consulting solutions. This partnership allows both companies to expand collaboratively into new areas of highly sophisticated service and technology delivery engagements with manufacturing and research organizations in pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, and other life sciences.

The increased publicity and attention to the unprecedented achievements of the pharmaceutical industry during the global pandemic have significantly increased the potential cyber-related threats to this critical infrastructure. While energy and other utilities such as water treatment have historically been targets of advanced persistent threats (APTs) from highly resourced, nation-state, or terrorist-backed organizations, the value of the pharmaceutical sector is increasingly apparent and, in many cases, lags the security posture that has developed in these other industries. Verve Industrials OT/ICS cyber security products and support services were selected by Horizon Controls Group as a powerful, targeted, and holistic solution to manage the sprawling ecosystem of myriad automation applications employed at any given pharmaceutical facility.



Horizon Controls Group provides consultation, design, execution, and support for the full project life cycle of automation process control systems (PCS), building automation systems (BAS), manufacturing execution systems (MES), and process historians, using industry standards and best practices, said Youssef El-Bahtimy, Automation Information & Systems Manager at Horizon Controls Group. Our team integrates data integrity, resiliency, manageability, and security principles into every project, not as an afterthought, bolt-on, or cost adder, but in a proactive quality by design (QbD) manner. El-Bahtimy continued: We believe this is the new standard for a modern systems integrator, and a key differentiator to becoming more than just a service provider  being the trusted adviser that our clients require. We see the Verve Security Center (VSC) and the expertise of Verve Industrials team as an invaluable and versatile way to solve the challenges posed by the unique security, situational awareness, and manageability environment of the OT space.

We are quite excited to join forces with Horizon Controls Group, said Rick Kaun, VP of Solutions at Verve Industrial. Their trusted adviser status within their client base combined with their deep OT systems control abilities are a perfect match for the power and insight provided by our industry-leading VSC platform. About Horizon Controls Group

Horizon Controls Group is a full-service digital process automation company offering solutions including engineering design, systems integration, cyber security, and customized training. With corporate headquarters in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, its European subsidiary is based in Cork, Ireland. Further information is available at www.horizon-controls.com. About Verve Industrial

Verve Industrial Protection has ensured reliable and secure industrial control systems for 25 years. Its principal offering, the Verve Security Center, is a unique, vendor-agnostic OT endpoint management platform that provides IT-OT asset inventory, vulnerability management, and the ability to remediate threats and vulnerabilities from its orchestration platform. Verve Industrial's Design-4-Defense professional services support clients in ensuring their OT environments are designed and operated in a secure manner. To learn more about Verve Industrial, please visit us at www.verveindustrial.com. Contact:

Claire Mutty

CHEN PR for Verve Industrial

cmutty@chenpr.com

781.672.3113



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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 09:33:57|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese mainland on Monday reported 14 new COVID-19 cases, all of which were imported, the National Health Commission said in its daily report on Tuesday.

Of them, four each were reported in Shanghai and Sichuan, two in Fujian, and one each in Hunan, Guangdong, Chongqing and Shaanxi, according to the commission.

One new suspected case arriving from outside the mainland was reported in Inner Mongolia. No new deaths related to COVID-19 were reported on Monday, it added.

A total of 5,785 imported cases had been reported on the mainland by the end of Monday. Among them, 5,506 had been discharged from hospitals following recovery, and 279 remained hospitalized. No deaths had been reported among the imported cases.

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases on the mainland reached 90,783 by Monday, including 302 patients still receiving treatment, none of whom was in severe condition.

A total of 85,845 patients had been discharged following recovery on the mainland, and 4,636 had died as a result of the virus.

There were two suspected COVID-19 cases on the mainland on Monday.

A total of 25 asymptomatic cases were newly reported, all arriving from outside the mainland. There were a total of 318 asymptomatic cases, of whom 312 were imported, under medical observation on Monday.

By the end of Monday, 11,811 confirmed COVID-19 cases, including 210 deaths, had been reported in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), while 49 cases had been reported in the Macao SAR, and 1,199 cases, including 12 deaths, had been reported in Taiwan.

A total of 11,496 COVID-19 patients in the Hong Kong SAR had been discharged from hospitals following recovery, while 49 had been discharged in the Macao SAR, and 1,089 had been discharged in Taiwan. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] CRN Names Three Women From Code42 to 2021 Women of the Channel List

Code42, the Insider Risk Management leader, today announced that CRN, a brand of The Channel Company, has named Melissa Caress, Sara Monaco and Lindsay Seymour to the highly respected Women of the Channel list for 2021. This annual list recognizes the unique strengths, vision and achievements of female leaders in the IT channel. The 2021 Women of the Channel list acknowledges women from all over the IT channel, including vendors, distributors and solution providers. Since launching its Accelerate channel partner program, Code42 has grown its channel business by 170%, increased its partner sales and technical certifications by 300% and experienced a 200% increase in partners joining the program. Caress, Monaco and Seymour all played a critical role in this momentum as Code42 takes Insider Risk Management mainstream through its Code42 Incydr data risk detection and response product. The women honored on this year's list pushed forward with comprehensive business plans, marketing initiatives and other innovative ideas to support their partners and customers, helping them through the uncertainty brought on by the global COVID-19 pandemic. CRN celebrates these exceptional women for their leadership, dedication and channel advocacy. "CRN's 2021 Women of the Channel list acknowledges accomplished, influential women whose dedication, hard work and leadership accelerte channel growth," said Blaine Raddon, CEO of The Channel Company. "We are proud to honor them for their many accomplishments and look forward to their continued contributions to the IT channel."



Melissa Caress has been working in the channel for over 20 years. Her passion for channel marketing has helped her establish a strong network of partners within the channel that have fueled the growth of Code42's Accelerate partner program. As national channel account manager, Caress works to expand Code42's network of VAR partners and educate the company's sales team on best practices for working with the channel. Sara Monaco has spent the last eight years of her career in the channel with a sole focus on cybersecurity. As the East enterprise channel account manager, Monaco has helped build Code42's strategic partner relationships in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Southeast.

Lindsay Seymour brings 13+ years of experience working in B2B, technology and partner marketing programs to Code42. As senior product marketing manager, she's responsible for the strategy, launch, messaging and go-to-market programs within Code42's partner ecosystem. During her time at Code42, Seymour led the launch of the company's first partner portal and developed Code42's first set of virtual proprietary partner events. "Our channel program has experienced tremendous growth since our shift in go-to-market strategy in late 2020," said Faraz Siraj, vice president of channel sales at Code42. "This early success wouldn't be possible without the tireless dedication of Melissa, Sara and Lindsay. Their work is pivotal to our ongoing growth as we help the industry recognize the importance of Insider Risk Management." The 2021 Women of the Channel list will be featured in CRN Magazine on May 10 and online at www.CRN.com/WOTC. To learn more about Code42's Accelerate partner program, please visit: https://www.code42.com/partner/ About Code42 Code42 is the Insider Risk Management leader. Native to the cloud, the Code42 Incydr solution rapidly detects data loss, leak, theft and sabotage as well as speeds incident response - all without lengthy deployments, complex policy management or blocking employee productivity. With Code42, security professionals can protect corporate data and reduce insider threats while fostering an open and collaborative culture for employees. Backed by security best practices and control requirements, Code42's insider risk solution can be configured for GDPR, HIPAA, PCI (News - Alert) and other regulatory frameworks. More than 50,000 organizations worldwide, including the most recognized brands in business and education, rely on Code42 to safeguard their ideas. Founded in 2001, the company is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and backed by Accel Partners (News - Alert) , JMI Equity and Split Rock Partners. Code42 was recognized by Inc. magazine as one of America's best workplaces in 2020. For more information, visit code42.com. About The Channel Company The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers, and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequalled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. www.thechannelcompany.com Follow The Channel Company: Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.  2021 Code42 Software, Inc. All rights reserved. Code42, the Code42 logo and Incydr are registered trademarks or trademarks of Code42 Software, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. All other marks are properties of their respective owners. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005819/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Seiler LLP Again Recognized as One of the Bay Area's "Best Places to Work"

Seiler LLP, one of the nation's leading advisory, tax, and accounting firms in the high-net-worth and closely held business space, has been honored by the Silicon Valley Business Journal and San Francisco Business Times as one of the "2021 Bay Area Best Places to Work." It is the third time the firm has received the prestigious award since 2017. "This recognition is profoundly meaningful to us as it reflects the firm's tireless efforts during a pandemic that was one of the most tumultuous and disruptive periods in our country's history," said George D. Marinos, Seiler's Chief Executive Officer. "We determined from the outset that we needed to act with intention to continue to make our employees and their well-being the top priority. Our Seiler family never wavered, and I'm proud beyond measure at what we were able to accomplish." Seiler's inclusion on the annual list is based directly on feedback from its 270 employees, who completed confidential questionnaires administered by a third party assessing the firm on such values as trust in leadership, collaborative culture, personal engagement, and satisfaction of compensation, benefits, and other perks. The firm ranked #19 among 25 companies-up from #21 last year-in the Large Companies category (200-499 employees), and wa one of just three accounting firms to receive the accolade. A total of 125 Northern California employers across five size categories were named to the 2021 list.



"Seiler is committed to fostering a workplace culture that not only serves to benefit our clients, but that supports and celebrates the diverse talents and contributions of every team member," said Chief People Officer Lupita McLane. "Since transitioning to a remote workforce more than a year ago, we've learned a great deal about how to maintain the vibrant and connected community that has long been a Seiler hallmark, as well as the high degree of transparency we're committed to firmwide. I couldn't be prouder of what our team members have accomplished as individuals and collectively. This award is truly theirs." Seiler was previously recognized as a "Best Place to Work" in 2017 and 2020. Other recent accolades it has received include being named a "Top 100 Firm" for 2021 by Accounting Today; nationally, the firm ranked #68 overall, up from #74 in 2020, and #8 among firms on the West Coast.

Recipients of the 2021 Bay Area Best Places to Work award were honored at a virtual reception on May 6, 2021. You can view the Best Places to Work 2021 rankings here. About Seiler LLP For over 60 years, Seiler LLP has provided advisory, tax, and accounting services to some of the world's most affluent individuals, families, privately held businesses, and non-profit organizations. Our clients include prominent businesses, community and philanthropic leaders, as well as high-net-worth, multi-generational families and successful entrepreneurs. Based in Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area, we are an independent member of HLB, the global advisory and accounting network. We deliver the sophisticated solutions, innovative thinking, global capabilities, and highly personalized service our clients require to navigate the complexities of their financial worlds, not only for today but for many years to come View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005439/en/

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[May 11, 2021] VoxNeuro Empowers Americans to Take Control of Their Brain Health

VoxNeuro announces the release of their software as a medical device, the Cognitive Health Assessment Management Platform (CHAMP), as they pave their way to the US market. With successful registration with the FDA as a Medical Device Establishment for the distribution of the CHAMP software, a Class II Exempt Medical Device, VoxNeuro is on plan to globally change the way brain health is managed and treated. CHAMP works in tandem with VoxNeuro's Cognitive Health AssessmentTM to proactively track cognitive health throughout aging, and to evaluate cognitive function when a brain disorder or symptoms related to cognitive dysfunction are suspected. Types of brain disorders that can impact cognitive function include concussion, traumatic brain injury, dementia or neurological impacts of COVID-19. Common symptoms tied to cognitive dysfunction include fatigue, memory loss or brain fog. By analyzing electroencephalographic event-related potential (ERP) data gathered during the 15-minute assessment, CHAMP provides rapid, objective and actionable scores of four key cognitive functions: memory, information processing, attention & concentration. The data assists clinicians in the diagnostic process, helping them make more accurate diagnoses faster. Clinicians also use the data to inform customized treatments and track how well treatments are working over time, thus helping to ensure the best possible outcomes for patients. "This is a great day for people suffering from neurological disorders and the dedicated clinicians who are always searching for better ways to evaluate them," said Dr. John F. Connolly, Chief Science Officer and Co-Founder of VoxNeuro. "Clinicians will have more certainty, with more objective information about how a patient's brain is functioning. That certainty will help facilitate faster and better diagnoses and more effective treatments for patients." The FDA registration enables VoxNeuro to expand the distribution of its technology from where it was developed, the research-intensive McMaster University, across the United States. "Simply put, this technology will empower Americans to take control of their brain health," Connolly added. VoxNeuro has worked closely with the Principle of Western New York Medical Imaging Group over the past year on market entrance strategy. "VoxNeuro's technology is the breakthrough the medical field has been looking for, for decades. No other neuroimaging tool can quantify cognitive function with the speed and precision provided byVoxNeuro." said Dr. Joseph Serghany, Diagnostic Radiology Specialist. "This milestone is the trigger to activate our plans to use VoxNeuro across our practice. We're very excited by the impact VoxNeuro's technology will have on our industry and our ability to better serve our patients and our network with the most accurate information available on cognitive function."



"I have enjoyed working with the VoxNeuro team to identify the various options of commercializing their new medical device. FDA registration represents the first step to market in the US and I look forward to continuing to work with VoxNeuro to develop and commercialize future generations of the Company's technology," said Michael Drues, Ph.D., VoxNeuro Regulatory Consultant. Ty J. Shattuck, Chief Executive Officer of McMaster Innovation Park (MIP) where VoxNeuro is headquartered, said VoxNeuro is a prime example to highlight how MIP is positioned to help innovation flourish.

"VoxNeuro's accomplishment is evidence that our ecosystem is leveraging the right resources for our Tenant Ventures," said Mr. Shattuck who acted as a catalyst for the VoxNeuro team by connecting them with expert industry players at MIP. "Our goal is to drive new collaborations and we rely on the expertise of our advisors and investors who are pivotal in the continued success of MIP's thriving ecosystem. The team at VoxNeuro is exceptional to work with. They are focused on their mission and receptive to the recommendations we provide. All of MIP is celebrating with them on reaching such an exciting milestone." Last September, VoxNeuro was selected by a panel of venture capitalists and leaders in the digital health ecosystem as 1 of 11 companies to participate in the Canadian Technology Accelerators (CTA) Digital Health program. The bi-coastal program was led by the Consulate General of Canada in New York and San Francisco, connecting VoxNeuro with key players and resources to facilitate US expansion. "VoxNeuro was selected as one of Canada's most promising early-stage digital health start-ups based on their potential for growth and market impact. It has been a pleasure to witness VoxNeuro's trajectory and see the impact of the expertise offered by the Canadian Technology Accelerator program in action. The program supported VoxNeuro's introduction to key experts that assisted with their US go-to-market and billing strategy and opened the door to large prospective strategic partners" said Molly Rafelson, Trade Commissioner, Canadian Technology Accelerator. "We look forward to watching VoxNeuro continue to scale into new markets on their journey to improving healthcare globally." About VoxNeuro - Give the brain a voice VoxNeuro is positioned to globally change the way brain health is managed and treated. Backed by more than 30 years of peer-reviewed scientific research, the neurotechnology scores multiple core cognitive functions to support proactive brain health, informed clinical decision-making and customized care. By analyzing the electrical activity of the brain, VoxNeuro scores its cognitive performance in memory, information processing, attention & concentration. VoxNeuro is headquartered at McMaster Innovation Park in Hamilton, ON (News - Alert) , Canada. For more information visit www.voxneuro.com Available at VoxNeuro Test Centers. To learn more, follow VoxNeuro on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005877/en/

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HighRadius Launches the GBS Masterminds Podcast Featuring Insights from Industry Leaders from PepsiCo, Kellogg Company, Kimberly-Clark and more

HighRadius, the Artificial Intelligence-powered Order-to-Cash and Treasury Management software leader, today announced the launch of GBS Masterminds, a new podcast for Global Business Services leaders featuring insights on innovation strategy and digital transformation.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005879/en/

GBS Masterminds Podcast. (Photo: Business Wire)

The first episode of the podcast is available now. It features PepsiCo's Senior VP, Strategy and Transformation, Europe, Caroline Basyn, discussing "The Six Million-Dollar Questions That Every GBS Leader Wants to Know." New episodes will be available every two weeks.

GBS Masterminds will feature the likes of Richard Dobbs (Vice President, Global Business Services at Kimberly-Clark), Deanna Adler (Vice President, Global Business Services at Kellogg Company), Tony Saldanha (Co-Founder at Inixia and Former VP of GBS at P&G), and many more. (View the list of upcoming masterminds here.)







"We've designed GBS Masterminds to deliver short and crisp 18-minute conversations," said HighRadius CEO and podcast host Sashi Narahari. "I look forward to having candid conversations with highly successful GBS leaders to hear their stories, learnings and to understand their most pressing problems today."

Follow the podcast here. GBS Masterminds is available now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts.

About HighRadius Corporation

HighRadius is a Fintech enterprise Software-as-a-Service ( SaaS (News - Alert) ) company that leverages Artificial Intelligence-based Autonomous Systems to help 600+ industry-leading companies automate their Accounts Receivable and Treasury processes. The HighRadius Integrated Receivables platform reduces cycle times in your order-to-cash process through automation of receivables and payments processes across credit, electronic billing and payment processing, cash application, deductions, and collections. The HighRadius RadiusOne A/R Suite offers a pocket-friendly platform for hundreds of midsized businesses to enable faster A/R processing and enhance their working capital. HighRadius Treasury Management Applications help teams achieve touchless cash management and accurate cash forecasting. Powered by the Rivana Artificial Intelligence Engine and Freeda Digital Assistant for order-to-cash teams, HighRadius enables teams to leverage machine learning to predict future outcomes and automate routine labor-intensive tasks. Processing over $2.23 trillion in receivables transactions annually, HighRadius solutions have a proven track record of optimizing cash flow, reducing days sales outstanding (DSO) and bad debt, and increasing operational efficiency so that companies may achieve strong ROI in just a few months. HighRadius is the industry's most preferred solution for Accounts Receivable & Treasury and has been named a Leader by IDC (News - Alert) MarketScape twice in a row. To learn more, please visit www.highradius.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005879/en/
CircleCI Reaches $1.7 Billion Valuation with $100 Million in New Financing

CircleCI, the leading continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) platform, today announced it has closed $100 million in Series F financing. CircleCI has raised $315.5 million since 2011, with this latest round bringing the company's valuation to $1.7 billion.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005782/en/

Jim Rose, CircleCI, CEO (Photo: Business Wire)

This round was led by Greenspring Associates with participation from Eleven Prime, IVP, Sapphire Ventures, Top Tier Capital Partners, Baseline Ventures, Threshold Ventures, Scale Venture Partners, Owl Rock Capital, and Next Equity Partners.

"This new capital will allow us to double down on our focus: offering a best-in-class CI/CD platform to increase developer productivity," said Jim Rose, CEO, CircleCI. "It also opens doors for business growth opportunities in three areas that we see as the next frontier of software development: continuous validation, data and insights, and managing software complexity."

Research proves that software tools like CircleCI - those that enable greater productivity, visibility, and coordination, are the top contributor to business success. CircleCI helps one million developers and growing to rapidly release code they trust by automating the build, test, and delivery process. As nearly every company in every industry becomes software-based, the pace of change is set to increase.

"CircleCI's leading CI/CD platform addresses a critical need for business success in today's digital-first world. Nobody knows developers quite like CircleCI does, and their ability to empower developers to validate change in increasingly complex software delivery environments is unmatched," said John Avirett, General Partner, Greenspring Associates. "We invest in leading-edge companies that help their customers work better and deliver value faster and are thrilled to be part of CircleCI's next phase of growth."

Stacey Epstein, known for her involvement in iconic Software-as-a-Service brands, will also join CircleCI's board of directors.

"I've been in the enterprise software industry for years and can tell what makes a winning company at this stage. CircleCI has that special combination of massive opportunity and an incredibly strong leadership team that can execute," said Stacey Epstein, CMO, Freshworks, and newest member of CircleCI's board of directors. "With experienced veterans from Netflix, SAP (News - Alert) , RetailNext, and others - CircleCI is well-positioned to continue on its impressive trajectory, and I look forward to helping make an impact."

The round comes at the same time as CircleCI's acquisition of release orchestration platform, Vamp, further propelling the leading CI/CD provider to help the world's engineering teams automate software delivery at scale.







Since CircleCI's $100 million Series E in April 2020, the company has demonstrated strong momentum including:

For more information, read this blog and visit: www.circleci.com.

About CircleCI

CircleCI is the leading continuous integration and delivery platform for software innovation at scale. With intelligent automation and delivery tools, CircleCI is used by the world's best engineering teams to radically reduce the time from idea to execution. The company has been recognized as an innovative leader in cloud-native continuous integration by independent research firms and industry awards like the DEVIES, Forbes' Best Startup Employers of the Year, and Deloitte's (News - Alert) Technology Fast 500.

Founded in 2011 and headquartered in downtown San Francisco with a global, remote workforce, CircleCI is venture-backed by Greenspring Associates, Eleven Prime, IVP, Sapphire Ventures, Top Tier Capital Partners, Baseline Ventures, Threshold Ventures, Scale Venture Partners, Owl Rock Capital, Next Equity Partners, Heavybit and Harrison Metal Capital. Learn more at https://circleci.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005782/en/
[May 11, 2021] MNJ Drives Diversity and Inclusion, Empowers Women in Tech with Key Promotions, CRN? Awards

BUFFALO GROVE, Ill., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- MNJ Technologies, a midmarket-focused IT and Digital Transformation Provider today announced that three female leaders, including founder and CEO Susan Kozak, have received top industry honors from CRN?, and three female MNJ team members have been promoted at the company. The company also recently added a newly hired female Controller as well. Kozak has been chosen for the distinguished 2021 CRN? Women of the Channel Power 60 Solution Providers Award, a highly exclusive honor awarded to exemplary executives who continue to drive professional success through significant influence, leadership and dedication to their own organizations and the entire IT channel. MNJ Director of Human Resources Kristy Malatia and Senior Director of Marketing Jamie Porter have been named to the 2021 CRN? Women of the Channel list, an annual accolade that recognizes top female leaders in the IT channel for innovative vision, thought leadership, strategy and channel advocacy. A women-led company passionate about diversity and inclusion, MNJ has also recently hired Pam Baly as Controller and has promoted several industry eading, female executives, effective immediately, including:



Jamie Porter  Senior Director of Marketing

 Senior Director of Marketing Diane Reid  Director of Strategic Sourcing

 Director of Strategic Sourcing Dasha Stepp  Director of Service Delivery Founded in 2002 by Susan and Paul Kozak, MNJ provides a range of IT systems, solutions and services that support hundreds of companies across the country, including networking, security, cloud services, and more. In addition to the recent industry recognition of its female executives announced today, the company received its 8th consecutive CRN? Tech Elite 250 honor and outperformed the VAR market for four consecutive years in 2021, as well as ranked #2 on the NextGen 101 List of Diversified Managed Service Providers in December 2020. "We are proud to honor our women in tech at MNJ and share the news of our recently promoted female team members, as well as those given 2021 Women of the Channel awards," said Kozak. "As a woman-founded and led company, we're passionate about empowering everyone at MNJ. Congratulations to all of our talented, incredible women."

About MNJ Technologies

MNJ Technologies is a technology and managed services provider that focuses on helping midmarket companies increase productivity, simplify IT systems and reduce costs through best-in-class vendor-agnostic solutions and services. The company's certified solution consultants and engineers help clients optimize operations through the use of SD-WAN, unified communications, networking, security, cloud and other technologies. MNJ was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in suburban Chicago. For more information, visit www.mnjtech.com About The Channel Company

The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers, and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequaled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-changing challenges in the technology marketplace. www.thechannelcompany.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mnj-drives-diversity-and-inclusion-empowers-women-in-tech-with-key-promotions-crn-awards-301288909.html SOURCE MNJ Technologies

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[May 11, 2021] Azul Expands Product Portfolio, Updates Pricing and Packaging, and Launches New Brand Identity to Deliver World's Best Supported Java Platform for the Modern Cloud Enterprise

Azul today announced new products and pricing for customers and partners who rely on Azul for the Java that they love. The effort is aimed at accelerating Azul's position in the modern cloud enterprise, a new paradigm where the cloud intersects with software development and deployment, by prioritizing customers' success, maintaining unwavering commitment to innovation and excellence, and advancing Java through community leadership. Capitalizing on the $2.5B Java market opportunity for Azul1, which the company highlighted in May 2020, the company is introducing the Azul Platform which includes Azul Platform Core, Azul Platform Prime and Azul Intelligence Cloud. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005446/en/ (Photo: Business Wire) "This is an important milestone for the company, and one that we think will make it easier and more compelling for Java developers to engage with Azul," said Scott Sellers, co-founder, president and CEO, Azul. "When companies adopt the Azul Platform based on OpenJDK, they dramatically reduce their Java infrastructure and support costs, improve application performance, and enable development teams to focus on innovation rather than troubleshooting. We hear this over and over again, and it's why we continue to gain momentum." Today's digital transformation requires embracing software and leveraging the cloud as the key drivers of competitive advantage. And while the modern cloud enterprise creates incredible possibilities for business, it also exposes new issues around stability, security, performance, and cost. With over a third of today's business applications built using Java as well as the proliferation of Java-based technologies (Cassandra, Kafka, Solr, Elasticsearch, Hadoop/Hbase, Spark, Ignite, Hazelcast, Tomcat, JBoss, ZooKeeper, etc.) used to run and support modern, big data applications and analytics, all deployed on a mix of public, private and hybrid clouds, the modern cloud enterprise is top of mind-and Azul is uniquely positioned to support companies along this journey. "We're the only company that is 100% focused on Java," said Gil Tene, co-founder and CTO, Azul. "This is our business. This is the only thing we do. And it's what we excel at. We participate in all aspects of the Java industry, we listen to our customers, and we bend over backwards to make it work for them. That's what we're knownfor."



"When you provide 3 billion web pages a day, you need a whole lot of servers," says Ariel Pizetsky vice president of IT, Taboola. "The less servers you have, the better the economics work. My IT footprint has a huge impact on my hosting costs, my running costs, and my ability to serve recommendations. Azul's performance improvements translate into huge infrastructure savings and simplification by having less servers." The Azul Platform: The Java Platform for the Modern Cloud Enterprise

The Azul platform is a set of products that enable Java teams to deliver, optimize, manage, and develop Java applications in multi-cloud enterprises with the certainty of highest performance, security, and value. At the base of the platform is Azul Zulu builds of OpenJDK. All Azul products are built on OpenJDK, roughly 8+ million lines of code, which are curated, tested and certified to provide customers the most complete, dependable and secure builds of OpenJDK. Some Zulu builds of OpenJDK are made freely available and are downloaded and used by the Java community. Azul delivers maximum security to protect Java applications from malicious attacks, and ensures users can access the latest features and functions safely and with confidence. Azul establishes secure and consistent performance across all environments-on-prem, cloud, embedded, IoT-and provides the broadest platform support in the industry with compatibility certifications for a broad range of platforms, deployment architectures, JDK versions, and hardware. The Azul Platform is comprised of three commercial offerings: Azul Platform Core (formerly Zulu Enterprise/Embedded) contains commercially supported Azul Zulu Builds of OpenJDK, delivering dependable security and stability. Azul Platform Core is backed by the industry's best support and maintenance offering and reduces Java support and licensing costs by as much as 90%. Azul Platform Prime (formerly Zing) extends Azul Platform Core, enhancing performance, scalability, and consistency. Azul Platform Prime, powered by Azul Zulu Prime Builds of OpenJDK, delivers added scale, performance, and efficiency to your Java applications, and can reduce cloud infrastructure costs by as much as 50%. Azul Intelligence Cloud The Azul Platform includes the new Azul Intelligence Cloud which enables better visibility, management, security, stability, efficiency, optimization and operational intelligence across entire Java estates. Available in the second half of 2021, the Azul Intelligence Cloud consists of: Connected Runtime Services (CRS) - servicesbetween Azul runtimes to facilitate communication with the analytics platform and optimization engines.

Azul Analytics Suite - an analytics platform which provides actionable operational intelligence in the areas of artifact & inventory management, security, and anomaly detection.

Azul Optimizer Suite - optimization modules for Azul's builds of OpenJDK which enable increased levels of performance and throughput completely transparent to the application code. The Azul Platform is backed by Azul's highly skilled, globally distributed Support team which provides 24x7x365 Technical Support services for commercial customers with SLAs appropriate for demanding production applications. Azul also offers Product Training and Migration Services for those Azul customers that need help migrating to the Azul Platform products. Pricing & Packaging As part of Azul's transition to the Azul Platform, the company has delivered new pricing and packaging for Azul Platform Core and Azul Platform Prime fully bundled with its best in class builds of OpenJDK and support offerings. This new pricing model is based on virtual cores (vCores) and desktops to accommodate the various customer deployment scenarios across public and private clouds as well as the consolidation of server infrastructures on virtualized deployments. Bolstering Its Go-to-Market Strategy Today, Azul launched a completely revamped website that makes it easier for visitors to learn the value of Azul's products and services. In addition to a more engaging experience, prospects can search for a wide range of use cases and Java technologies to learn how other customers have leveraged Azul to maximize business and IT value. Visitors can now view the entire Azul Platform at a glance, making it easier to know which products are best suited for various Java workloads and applications. About Azul Azul, provider of the Java platform for the modern cloud enterprise, is the only company 100% focused on Java. Millions of Java developers, hundreds of millions of devices, and the world's most highly regarded businesses trust Azul to power their applications with exceptional capabilities, performance, security, value and success. Azul's customers include 27% of the Fortune 100, 50% of Forbes Top 10 World's Most Valuable Brands, all 10 of the world's Top 10 financial trading companies and leading brands like Avaya, Bazaarvoice, BMW, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Telekom (News - Alert) , LG, Mastercard, Mizuho, Priceline, Salesforce, Software AG, and Workday. Learn more at azul.com and follow us on Twitter (News - Alert) @azulsystems. The Azul logo and other Azul marks are trademarks of Azul Systems (News - Alert) , Inc. Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others. 1 Press Release: Azul Systems' Addressable Market Opportunity Increases to $2.5B as Oracle (News - Alert) Moves Away from Free Java Support and Updates, Says Independent Analysthttps://bit.ly/3vD1a7K View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005446/en/

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[May 11, 2021] C3 Announces Immediate Availability of C3PBX with Cisco Webex

Cloud Computing Concepts, an award-winning provider of technology, communications, and information security services, is proud to announce that it has fully integrated the full suite of Cisco (News - Alert) Webex's video, messaging, and collaboration tools with its acclaimed Hosted PBX, Unified Communications, and Contact Center solutions. C3's partners and clients will appreciate the fresh, all-in-one collaboration solution that C3PBX with Cisco Webex delivers. Customers can choose from several flexible packages that range from basic softphone to premium meetings, allowing for up to 1000 participants in a single meeting and C3's (News - Alert) white glove service team is available to assist every step of the way. "C3PBX with Webex represents a significant step forward for us, our partners, and our clients," remarked C3 CEO Rick Mancinelli. "As the work-from-home model will continue to play a significant role in the future, this announcement bolsters our ability to provide remote workers with robust, secure, and reliable communications." "Building on our mutual vision to delight the small to medium business customer, Cisco is thrilled to join with C3 to deliver C3PBX with Cisco Webex. With fully integrated Webex technology, C3's users will experience a modern, all-in-one collaboration tool that delivers simple, flexible, communications, making their businesses more productive and more secure, with any device from anywhere," commented Tony Lopresti - Drector Product Management, Webex.



Users of C3PBX with Webex will enjoy features such as direct and team chats, screen sharing, emojis and GIPHYS, easy-to-join meetings, and simple file sharing just to name a few. Additionally, clients will gain access to hundreds of pre-built integrations available for third-party applications such as Google, Salesforce, Microsoft (News - Alert) and more. Launched in June of 2019 out of its MIA1 based facility in Miami, and recently extended to include the LAS1 based facility in Las Vegas, the C3PBX platform has been engineered to the highest standards. Cisco's BroadWorks, a globally deployed carrier-grade software platform utilized by 25 of the top 30 service providers steadfastly anchors the solution while Cisco UCS Compute, Nexus 9K Switching and ASR 9K routing combine to provide C3's clients with the maximum reliability they demand.

C3 is currently reviewing new Channel Partner (News - Alert) requests. Interested parties should reach out to Dino Morra, VP of Sales, at 561-939-4021 or via email at dmorra@c3cloud.com. About C3 C3 is an award-winning provider of technology, communications and information security services to organizations throughout North America. The company currently owns and operates a geo-diverse VMware Cloud Verified infrastructure that provides high performance, secure, and compliant Infrastructure, Virtual Desktops, Backup, and Disaster recovery solutions. C3 also operates a state of the art Cisco BroadWorks powered Hosted PBX (News - Alert) , UCaaS and CCaaS platform as well as a nationwide SD-WAN network based on VMware's industry leading technologies. C3 maintains an extensive list of wholesale carrier relationships for private, internet and wireless connectivity, and also has a broad portfolio of technology related authorizations and certifications. C3's expert team of certified network engineers design and implement complex solutions and its bilingual service center is available for support 247. Additional information about C3 is available online at http://www.c3cloud.com or by calling 561-939-4000. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005953/en/

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[May 11, 2021] The Connectivity Standards Alliance Unveils Matter, Formerly Known as Project CHIP

The Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA), formerly known as the Zigbee Alliance, an organization of hundreds of companies creating, maintaining, and delivering open, global standards for the Internet of Things (IoT), today announced Matter - the interoperable, secure connectivity standard for the future of the smart home. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005928/en/ The proliferation of connected objects continues to change the way we live, work and play. From homes to offices, factories to hospitals, connected objects enable us to experience our environments in cohesive, interactive ways. Yet, for too long, disconnected platforms and disparate development paths have caused confusion for consumers and complicated processes for developers and innovators. Smart objects should be reliable, secure, and work together - this is the shared vision behind Project Connected Home over IP (CHIP), now known as the new standard, Matter. Amazon, Apple, Comcast, Google (News - Alert) , SmartThings, and the Connectivity Standards Alliance came together in 2019 to develop and promote this new standard, joined by fellow Alliance board member companies IKEA, Legrand, NXP Semiconductors, Resideo, Schneider Electric (News - Alert) , Signify, Silicon Labs, Somfy and Wulian. Now, there are more than 180 Member organizations of all sizes, across a range of business categories, and over 1,700 Member individuals participating in bringing the Matter specification, reference implementations, testing tools and certification programs to life. Matter is the unified IP-based connectivity protocol built on proven technologies, helping connect and build reliable, secure IoT ecosystems. This new technology and royalty-free connectivity standard enables communications among a wide range of smart devices. Matter is also a seal of approval, assuring that any object built on this standard is reliable by nature, secure by design, and compatible at scale. "We create marks of trust, and Matter is an important milestone for users in our long history of delivering unifying, secure, reliable and trustworthy standards for the IoT," said Tobin Richardson (News - Alert) , President and CEO of the Connectivity Standards Alliance. "I'm very excited to unveil Matter as a foundational element in delivering a truly connected world." Key technology attributes Matter makes it easier for device manufacturers to build devices, and to ensure they are compatible with smart home and voice services such as Amazon's Alexa, Apple's (News - Alert) HomeKit with Siri, Google's Assistant, SmartThings, and others. The first specification release of the Matter protocol will run on existing networking technologies such as Ethernet (802.3), Wi-Fi (802.11), and Thread (802.15.4) and for ease of commissioning, Bluetooth Low Energy. Other key attributes include: Simplicity - Easy to purchase and use. Simplifying connected experiences.

Interoperability - Devices from multiple brands work natively together. Providing greater compatibility.

Reliability - Consistent and responsive local connectivity.

Security - Maintaining secure connections. Robust and streamlined for developers and users.

Flexibility - Matter makes it easy for users to set up and control their devices with multiple ecosystems simultaneously. Consumers, businesses and developers win with Matter Breakthrough connectivity is built on Matter, providing greater benefit and value for developers, and those who live or work in a smart home or business. Consumers get increased choice, compatibility, and more control of their experience. Developers get lower development and operational cost via a single SKU and more time for innovation. Retailers get reduced complexity in-store to create a more simplified purchasing experience, leading to fewer returns for compatibility issues. With Matter, consumers and businesses can choose the brands they want in their smart home or commercial building and be confident they will work seamlessly. Homeowners, and especially those living in a smart home with multiple devices like smart locks, thermostats or smart speakers, can easily add new devices with a Matter mark using a simple setup code to connect their home as one. Businesses, particularly those that rely on connectivity, can count on one network to keep their operations running smoothly. Key for developers is that Matter isn't only a specification - it also offers an open-source reference implementation in parallel. This drives tangible benefits for developers including: faster time to market, reduced reliance on single-vendor stacks, improved quality since they can access multiple use cases to test against, and increased security with full transparency into the community's ability to identify and commit patches. The new symbol of connectivity Products with the Matter mark connect securely with more devices, more reliably than ever. The Matter mark will serve as a seal of approval, taking the guesswork out of the purchasing process and allowing businesses and consumers alike to choose from a wider array of brands to create secure and connected homes and buildings. The new symbol and wordmark of Matter tell its story of connectivity. The name was selected for its foundational nature. Matter is a building block for life, and now also for the IoT. The three arrow forms meeting in the Matter symbol communicate the brand promise of convergence and connectivity in its most distilled visual form. Its geometric construction and triangular nature express security and utility. The badge on product and packaging, with the Matter symbol and wordmark, notes that a product is Matter certified. The two-color visual identity has been simplified to represent Day and Night with gradients evocative of dynamic connections between products. The new Matter brandmark was developed in partnership with Interbrand, one of the world's leading brand consultancies. Support from Member companies "Today, millions of customers around the world rely on Alexa as their favorite way to control more than 140,000 Alexa-compatble smart home products, and we are committed to continuing to make smart home connections easier for customers," said David Shearer, Vice President, Amazon Smart Home. "With Matter, smart home devices built on technologies like Wi-Fi will be more interoperable, making them simpler for manufacturers to develop and certify, and delivering more value for customers."



"As we focus on delivering the best connected experiences to our customers, Matter represents an important step forward in the global effort to make connected home technologies easier to use and more secure, with a high degree of interoperability. We've been honored to work with our industry peers on Matter from the beginning and are excited to be part of its role in shaping the future of IoT," said Jim Kitchen, Vice President Product, Connected Home and IoT Devices, Comcast (News - Alert) . "Matter will be a leap forward in interoperability. It also demonstrates the power of the collaborative and open-source process within the Alliance that embraces the full IoT value chain and yields results. We are convinced that Matter is a great opportunity, therefore Legrand supports the project since the beginning notably by involving engineers and by participating in test events," said Bruno Vulcano, R&D Manager at Legrand and Chair of the Board at the Connectivity Standards Alliance.

"Signify, the world leader in lighting and a long-term leader in the Alliance, is excited to be a driving force in the creation and adoption of Matter. We believe this multi-brand interoperability in the smart home will catalyze the benefit and value of smart lighting worldwide via both Philips Hue and WiZ smart lighting," said George Yianni, Head of Technology Philips Hue, on behalf of Signify. "We believe that a universal standard in connectivity is critical for the industry and Matter is the key that will fully unlock the connected home for consumers. We are proud to lend our historical expertise in IoT and be part of the pioneering team to develop this revolutionary protocol," said Samantha Osborne, Vice President of Marketing and Business Operations at SmartThings. "Over the past year we've doubled down on our technology to enhance our ecosystem to not only welcome future Matter products, but to ensure that they work seamlessly with the thousands of products already within our ecosystem." "As an open IoT development platform provider, Tuya is dedicated to providing diverse options to power our IoT developer ecosystem. Matter is important to us and our developers because it enables even easier interoperability between brands and simplifies connections between people and our connected objects. When we can securely and easily connect everything, the possibilities of what we can do with those connections are limitless," said Alex Yang, Co-Founder and COO, Tuya Smart. Availability In early May, the feature-complete base specification was approved by the Matter Working Group. Reaching this milestone gives Members a definition of the major features to build out the open-source implementation and test the specification. With this, the project is currently on track to see first devices through certification in late 2021, depending on manufacturer go-to-market plans. Devices targeted for launch include lighting and electrical (e.g., light bulbs, luminaires, controls, plugs, outlets), HVAC controls (e.g., thermostats, AC units), access controls (e.g., door locks, garage doors), safety and security (e.g., sensors, detectors, security systems), window coverings/shades, TVs, access points, bridges and others. Members poised to be early adopters of Matter include: Amazon, ASSA ABLOY, Comcast, Espressif Systems, Eve Systems, Google, Grundfos Holding A/S, Huawei, Infineon Technologies, LEEDARSON, Legrand, Nanoleaf, Nordic Semiconductor, NXP Semiconductors, Qorvo, Resideo, Schlage, Schneider Electric, Signify, Silicon Labs, SmartThings, Somfy, STMicroelectronics, Texas Instruments, Tuya Smart, ubisys, Wulian, and Zumtobel Group. Companies interested in accessing the specification and building devices with Matter can join the Connectivity Standards Alliance. About the Connectivity Standards Alliance The Connectivity Standards Alliance, formerly the Zigbee Alliance, is the foundation and future of the Internet of Things (IoT). Established in 2002, its wide-ranging global membership collaborates to create and evolve universal open standards for the products transforming the way we live, work and play. With its Members' deep and diverse expertise, robust certification programs, and a full suite of open IoT solutions, the Alliance is leading the movement toward a more intuitive, imaginative, and useful world. The Connectivity Standards Alliance board of directors is comprised of executives from Amazon, Apple, ASSA ABLOY, Comcast, Google, Huawei, IKEA, The Kroger Co., LEEDARSON, Legrand, Lutron Electronics, NXP Semiconductors, Resideo, Schneider Electric, Signify (formerly Philips Lighting), Silicon Labs, SmartThings, Somfy, STMicroelectronics, Texas Instruments, Tuya, and Wulian. Find out more about the Alliance at www.csa-iot.org, and about Matter at www.buildwithmatter.com. Newsroom: https://zigbeealliance.org/about/newsroom/ View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005928/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Customers Bank Ramps Up National Expansion

Customers Bank, a digital forward financial institution with approximately $18.8 billion in assets that provides exceptional banking experiences to consumer and commercial clients, is building upon its national recognition for providing innovative banking products and services to commercial clients to advance its national expansion. The next phase of the expansion includes opening a new office in Orlando, Florida, as well as a new office in Dallas, Texas and extending the bank's existing presence in the Midwest, based in Chicago. Joseph Nowland, Senior Vice President, Banking Group Head at Customers Bank, will be responsible for directing the local banking team's efforts to provide exceptional service and value through the bank's unique high-tech/high-touch, single-point-of-contact banking model that delivers greater customer experiences. Nowland will rely upon his extensive industry experience that spans 24 years working in financial services in numerous staff and executive positions in several locations throughout the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions of the U.S. "Customers Bank has been nationally recognized for its success assisting businesses throughout the U.S., as well as for introducing new innovative financial products and services," stated Nowland. "Now we are excited to strengthen our presence in the local market by expanding our team with seasoned commercial bankers that will introduce our unique high-tech/high-touch, single point of contact banking model to clients and prospects in Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville, Sarasota and the surrounding region." Brian Buck has joined the Customers Bank's local commercial banking team as vice president, commercial banking relationship manager. Buck will rely on the extensive relationships he has built within the region throughout his 20-year career working for regional and community banking institutions. Buck will focus on growing the bank's recognition in the Orlando market with Homeowner's Associations, Property Management Companies, Medical and Dental businesses and the Manufacturing sector. Dr. Shalonda Warren joins the bank's commercial banking team as vice president, commercial relationship manager. Dr. Warren will use her 14 years of experience focusing on high-net-worth industries, including manufacturing, wholesale distribution, medical fields and technology, to deliver the bank's unique customer-first banking model to commercial clientswith revenue of $5 million and above. She will also manage an existing book of business to provide banking services and products to assist businesses and their principals with business growth, asset management and operational needs.



Robert Frederick has joined the local commercial banking team as vice president, relationship manager, Tampa team lead. Frederick has 10 years of commercial banking industry experience and will focus on understanding clients' goals to provide them with the best financial products and services to help them achieve success. Frederick's ability to work through problems with clients and uncover opportunities to help grow their business has made him a sought-after and trusted partner to many organizations throughout the region. The opening of the Orlando commercial banking office is the latest step in Customers Bank's expansion to continue providing best-in-class banking services nationally. With an initial focus in Florida and Georgia, Customers Bank will expand its unique high-tech, high-touch, single point of contact banking model in several large metropolitan markets, including Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville and Sarasota.

Deploying teams of seasoned commercial bankers throughout these markets will allow the bank to successfully serve the needs of privately owned business with revenue ranging between $10 million and $100 million seeking assistance in working capital financing, owner-occupied mortgage financing or investment real estate financing, as well as companies needing sophisticated treasury management solutions for their cash management needs. The local banking team will also be able to assist different business segments and industries throughout the Southeast as the team expands relationships within the financial and investment management sector, property management and related associations, medical industry, private schools and colleges, and transportation and logistics. Customers Bank's depth of expertise in the real estate, financial services, and technology and its "customer first" approach allows its clients to be served by a team of bankers focused on assisting the customer achieve success. This model serves businesses and their principals of all sizes, placing the emphasis on the relationship between the banking team and the client, rather than the size and complexity of a business to determine how the customer is best served by the bank. Customers Bank provides financial services to businesses, professionals, individuals and families through its network of branch locations, digital platforms and commercial offices. It offers deposit, commercial lending, specialty lending and consumer lending products. The bank also offers wire transfers, electronic bill payment, lockbox, remote deposit capture, courier services, merchant processing, cash vault, controlled disbursements, positive pay services and more. The cash management services include account reconciliation, collections and sweep accounts. To learn more about Customers Bank and its products and services, visit www.customersbank.com. About Customers Bank Customers Bank, a subsidiary of Customers Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:CUBI) a bank holding company, is a full-service super-community bank with assets of approximately $18.8 billion at March 31, 2021. A member of the Federal Reserve System with deposits insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Customers Bank is an equal opportunity lender that provides a range of banking and lending services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, individuals and families. Services and products are available wherever permitted by law through digital-first apps, online portals, and a network of offices and branches. Additional information can be found on the company's website, www.customersbank.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005992/en/

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 10:31:01|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Gender ratio of China's mainland population reached 105.07 males to 100 females, according to data of the latest national population census released Tuesday.

It was slightly down from 105.2 in 2010 when the previous census was conducted. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] Orbita Releases New Patient Outreach Features Powered by Conversational AI

BOSTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Orbita, the leading provider of HIPAA-compliant conversational voice and chatbot solutions for healthcare, announces the release of a new communication module that integrates proactive messaging with intelligent virtual assistants to automate outreach for patient education, notification, scheduling, and more. Part of Orbita's award-winning conversational AI platform, the modules adds communication features that deliver intelligent, bot-powered virtual healthcare assistance proactively over text message, email, and automated phone calls. Among the advances are the ability to automatically "cascade" through communication channels to ensure patients are reached on their preferred device. When used for integrated, multi-channel outreach campaigns, Orbita's communication module maximizes patient engagement while automating key workflows to free up overworked staff. "Through the pandemic, we saw the need to 'go beyond the bot' by introducing features that can proactively engage and support healthcare consumers at scale," said Orbita's CEO, Bill Rogers. "With our new integrated communication module, we're now able to support multi-channel messaging that can reach patients where they are, on their preferred device, and with the natural, intuitive experience of an Orbita-powered virtual assistant." Healthcae organizations have deployed Orbita solutions during the COVID-19 pandemic for symptom monitoring, vaccine eligibility screening, and vaccine scheduling.



"COVID-19 has completely altered the healthcare landscape, and the vaccine rollout has added a new set of rapidly evolving patient communication challenges", says Chelsea Biel, Orbita's Senior Director of Customer Success and Clinical Informatics. "Orbita's proactive communication features have increased patient response from 30% to over 70%, while significantly reducing call center volume." Hear Chelsea Biel present "Using Virtual Assistants to Proactively Bring Patients Back and Boost Post-COVID Revenue" at MGMA Medical Practice Excellence: Pathways Conference ( May 13 th , 10:30 AM ET ).

present at MGMA Medical Practice Excellence: Pathways Conference ( , ). See also Orbita's whitepaper on driving patient engagement with proactive, omni-channel outreach. About Orbita

Orbita's award-winning, HIPAA-compliant conversational AI platform powers voice and chatbot solutions for healthcare and life sciences organizations that improve patient engagement, increase clinical efficiency and improve outcomes. Customers include innovative healthcare and life science organizations, including Medstar Health, Novartis, Mass General Brigham, KKI, Mayo Clinic, Amwell, Janssen, Roche, Yale New Haven Hospital, Bristol Myers Squibb, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, and others. Find us at orbita.ai or contact us at hello@orbita.ai .

CONTACT:

Chad Van Alstin,

cvanalstin@mergeworld.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/orbita-releases-new-patient-outreach-features-powered-by-conversational-ai-301288969.html SOURCE Orbita, Inc.

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[May 11, 2021] Code Corporation Adds Blake Christensen as New VP of Finance

Code Corporation, a global leader in barcode scanning and data capture technologies, today announced it has hired industry veteran Blake Christensen as its new vice president of finance. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006021/en/ Blake Christensen Joins Code Corporation as its new vice president of finance. (Photo: Business Wire) "We are pleased to welcome Blake as a significant member of our leadership team," said Kent Hansen, CEO of Code Corporation. "His successful track record and extensive experience in leading the financial operations of technology and life science busiesses are proof points of his skillset. We look forward to his strategic input and impact as we manage global market challenges and position Code for the future."



Christensen comes to Code with more than 20 years of strategic finance and accounting experience, most recently servicing companies in the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. As the VP of Finance, Christensen will lead Code's finance strategy as it capitalizes on the forecasted rapid growth and expands into new markets and opportunities. Furthermore, because of his technical background and leadership, the IT team at Code will report to him as well.

Christensen launched his career in public accounting spending four years with two regional CPA firms in Salt Lake City, Utah after earning two Bachelors of Arts degrees in Finance and Accounting and a Master's Degree of Professional Accountancy from the University of Utah. From there, he went on to secure senior finance positions with technology companies including SaaS (News - Alert) and Enterprise software companies in Natural Language Processing (NLP), Data Analytics, and Online Backup/Storage. From there, he transitioned to the pharmaceutical and medical device space where, for the last few years, he has focused on corporate controllership and strategic planning. About Code Corporation For more than 20 years, Code Corporation has been an industry pioneer, leader, and champion for data capture innovation and has garnered more than 100 patents. By crafting and continuing to perfect its unique decoding algorithms, Code and its line of image-based scanning and decoding technology consistently deliver unparalleled performance companies around the world depend on every day. Code designs and manufactures a complete line of market-leading hardware and software data capture solutions. Code products are not only valued for providing a consistent level of workflow efficiency year after year, but also for their ergonomic design, durability, ease of customization, and seamless integration. Code is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah with offices in Boston and Amsterdam. For more, please visit www.codecorp.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006021/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Esri and IBM Team Up to Take on Climate Change with Call for Code

Esri, the global leader in location intelligence, today announced it is joining the fourth annual Call for Code Global Challenge. Created by David Clark Cause and launched in partnership with IBM, United Nations Human Rights, and the Linux Foundation (News - Alert) , Call for Code is designed to make an immediate and lasting global impact on humanitarian issues, using open-source-powered technology. In this year's competition, software developers and innovators around the world will take on climate change with open-source software, including Red Hat (News - Alert) OpenShift, IBM Cloud, IBM Watson, IBM Blockchain, and data from The Weather Company. Since Call for Code was launched in 2018, more than 400,000 developers and problem solvers across 179 nations have participated, creating more than 15,000 applications. This year's competition focuses on three sub-themes related to combating climate change: water availability and consumption, food production and delivery, and economic production and consumption. The winning team will receive $200,000 and support from the IBM (News - Alert) Service Corps, technical experts, and partners-to develop their technology, make their code available for anyone to use in open-source, and deploy their solution on the ground in communities around the world. For its role in the Call for Code Global Challenge, Esri has made its geospatial analytics software and resources available to each participant, including the following: A free ArcGIS Platform developer account.

A $100 voucher applied to the participant's ArcGIS account, allowing them to kick-start their solution with cloud hosting, analytical processing, and location services (This is available to the first 100 participants.)

Access to dedicated community support where participants can connect with mentors that can help them accelerate app development. "Esri has just released a location platform as a service product that makes it easy for software developers to access geospatial technology," said David Cardella, Product Manager-Developer Technologies, Esri. "Some of the most exciting ways users are putting our software to work is in creating apps that help meet challenges related to climate change. We are excited to introduce our flexible, scalable location services that make content and capabilities available to developers who are building the next generation of geospatial solutions." For more information and to learn how to get started on the Call for Code Global Challenge with Esri'soffer, visit the ArcGIS Blog. Watch Kareem Yusuf, General Manager, AI Applications and Blockchain, IBM and Jack Dangermond, Founder and President, Esri, discuss their partnership and the importance of technology to address climate change here.



"We are excited to work with Esri and our global ecosystem throughout the 2021 Call for Code Global Challenge to drive, incubate, and deploy solutions that will combat climate change," said Willie M. Tejada, IBM Chief Developer Advocate and General Manager ISV/Build Ecosystem. "Climate change is a monumental challenge and demands the participation of world-renowned humanitarian experts, business leaders, and technology partners like Esri to have an immediate and lasting effect." What makes Call for Code unique is the impact it is making on the ground through deployments in communities around the world. Last year's winning solution, Agrolly, was designed to support small farmers by providing climate and crop predictions and recommendations. The agriculture industry is one of the most vulnerable to climate change due to its dependence on rainfall and temperature. Since October, the Agrolly team has expanded the solution to new markets and provided hands-on training to more than 500 rural farmers in Mongolia, India, and Brazil, who are testing and using the app to fight the effects of climate change.

About Esri Esri, the global market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, location intelligence, and mapping, helps customers unlock the full potential of data to improve operational and business results. Founded in 1969 in Redlands, California, USA, Esri software is deployed in more than 350,000 organizations globally and in over 200,000 institutions in the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, including Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, nonprofits, and universities. Esri has regional offices, international distributors, and partners providing local support in over 100 countries on six continents. With its pioneering commitment to geospatial information technology, Esri engineers the most innovative solutions for digital transformation, the Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics. Visit us at esri.com. Copyright  2021 Esri. All rights reserved. Esri, the Esri globe logo, ArcGIS, The Science of Where, esri.com, and @esri.com are trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of Esri in the United States, the European Community, or certain other jurisdictions. Other companies and products or services mentioned herein may be trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of their respective mark owners. About Call for Code Global Challenge Developers have revolutionized the way people live and interact with virtually everyone and everything. Where most people see challenges, developers see possibilities. That's why David Clark, the CEO of David Clark Cause, created Call for Code in 2018, and launched it alongside Founding Partner IBM and Charitable Partner UN Human rights. Since then, Call for Code has scaled to include an annual University Challenge in addition to regional prizes and the creation of Call for Code for Racial Justice. This multi-year global initiative is a rallying cry to developers to use their mastery of the latest technologies to drive positive and long-lasting change across the world through code. Call for Code Global Challenge winning solutions are further developed, incubated, and deployed as sustainable open source projects to ensure they can drive positive change. To learn more about past winners and their progress, visit IBM Developer. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006031/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Texas-Based Affiliated Bank Changes Name to Susser Bank, Pledges Personalized Service, Fast Decision Making and Sound Advice

Texas-based Affiliated Bank, N.A., has changed its name to Susser Bank to better reflect its ambitious growth strategy. Since 2018, the Bank has operated under the ownership and direction of Susser Banc Holdings Corporation, led by fifth-generation Texas entrepreneur Sam L. Susser. Susser Bank will cater to business leaders who seek timely, personalized support from a responsive banking team. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006063/en/ Sam L. Susser, Chairman of Susser Bank and President of Susser Holdings II, L.P., a private investment company. (Photo: Business Wire) "Texans deserve a long-term, collaborative partner that has their best interests at heart," says Chairman Sa L. Susser. "Our personalized, transparent approach is dedicated to serving entrepreneurs, professionals, and privately-held companies. Our single-minded purpose is to create outstanding financial solutions that benefit our clients, team members and the communities where we operate."



A diversified bank with robust capital, liquidity and leading-edge technology, Susser Bank creates positive experiences for customers and team members while offering a full suite of personal and commercial banking solutions. "Our name change is more than just cosmetic," adds President and Chief Executive Officer, Jeff Schmid. "The Susser Bank name reflects the bank's values, entrepreneurial spirit and reinvigorated focus on the customer experience. At Susser, we have empowered our team to access the information and resources they need to efficiently serve our clients."

Exceptional service and a community-focused culture are primary market differentiators for Susser Bank. "Susser Bank is built to last, not to sell," according to Sam L. Susser. "This gives our clients and team members peace of mind as the pace of consolidation in banking continues to accelerate." "Our reputation is everything," Susser continues. "Our clients tell us our number one strength is the extraordinary customer experience our team delivers. We are leveraging that strength to build relationships in the communities we serve. Texans can count on Susser Bank for decades to come." While the name change legally went into effect December 31, 2020, Susser Bank recently introduced a new logo, website, social media updates and core marketing materials. Schmid noted Susser Bank is taking a vigilant, proactive approach to meeting clients' needs in the greater Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio and Round Rock markets. Susser Bank is for entrepreneurs who need a banking team that can deliver results. Susser Bank is a Dallas-based company offering a full suite of personal and commercial banking solutions serving clients in Dallas, Arlington, Bedford, Fort Worth, Garland, San Antonio and Round Rock. Led by the Susser family and a legacy of six generations of Texas entrepreneurs, Susser Bank is dedicated to maintaining long-term client relationships and providing outstanding financial solutions that make Texas stronger. More information is available at susserbank.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006063/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Law&Crime Network Selected as Sole Pool Camera for Robert Durst Murder Trial

Law&Crime, the leading live true crime trial network, has been selected by Los Angeles Superior Court to provide video footage from inside the courtroom of the Robert Durst murder trial for all of the national, international and local media covering the high profile trial. Live gavel-to-gavel trial coverage will begin on May 17 on the Law&Crime Network. The trial was suspended last winter because of COVID-19 precautions, several weeks into what could be a 6-month trial. Jury selection lasted nearly a month, opening statements took four days and jurors heard an additional two days of witness testimony before the pandemic brought proceedings to a halt. Testimony will pick up where it left off after an abridged version of opening statements. Law&Crime will have the only camera in the courtroom for the proceedings. Robert Durst, heir to a New York real estate empire, is accused of killing his friend Susan Berman in her Los Angeles home in 2000. Prosecutors argue that the murder was an attempt to silence Berman shortly after authorities questioned her about the unsolved 1982 disappearance of Durst's wife. While Durst has never been charged in that case, he was acquitted of a murder charge in the death of his neighbor Morris Black, whose dismembered body was found in Galveston Bay in 2001. /p>



Also beginning on May 17 on the Law&Crime Network is the controversial Cristhian Rivera murder trial. Rivera, an undocumented immigrant, faces life in prison for the murder of college student Mollie Tibbetts. Tibbetts was reported missing in July 2018, sparking a month-long search for the 20-year-old University of Iowa student. Rivera, who was arrested with the help of home security footage, eventually led authorities to the cornfield where her body was hidden. The case received national attention based, in part, on the fact that the defendant had not been in the country legally.

Viewers can watch the full coverage of both trials on expanded hours of live coverage on Law&Crime from 9:00 a.m - 8:00pm ET each weekday. ABOUT LAW&CRIME From the highest profile cases to the most compelling local trials, Law&Crime is the leading network offering daily live trial coverage and expert legal commentary and analysis. Created by TV's top legal commentator and attorney, Dan Abrams, and backed by A+E Networks, Law&Crime is dedicated to exploring the always intriguing world of the law while also offering original true crime stories and legal programs to a broad, multi-platform audience. Law&Crime is available on most major OTT services including Peacock, fuboTV, Sling, Philo, Vidgo, Xfinity, XUMO and TV Plus as well as on basic cable packages in most states in the country. A complete list of ways to watch the Law&Crime Network are listed HERE. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006078/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Gimmal releases Documentum to SharePoint migration tool

HOUSTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Gimmal LLC, a leading provider of information governance software solutions, has announced the official release of its Documentum to SharePoint migration tool. With this addition to the Gimmal Migrate product, users will be able to achieve an effective and efficient migration from Documentum to Microsoft 365. Users will be able to achieve an effective and efficient migration from Documentum to Microsoft 365. To learn more about Gimmal Migrate, visit www.gimmal.com/gimmalmigrate The newly release Documentum to SharePoint migration tool gives client: The ability to achieve "full-fidelity" migration t preserve elements such as versions, metadata, created dates, and user information for information and records management purposes

The ability to easily decommission Documentum, consolidating your legacy systems to achieve significant cost savings with a modern platform

Conduct compliant migrations with automated legal chain of custody and detailed proof of migration



Patrick Wong . This news comes in the wake of many recent initiatives and accomplishments of the company, including:

The acquisition of e-discovery and data governance company, Sherpa Software

The expansion of Gimmal's leadership team

The release of Drop Zones for Microsoft Teams About Gimmal Gimmal's information governance solutions have been helping clients take control of their information for over 18 years by combating risks associated with critical business information and enabling the ability to control content sprawl, reduce high infrastructure costs, and locate appropriate information when needed. Gimmal's software helps streamline discovery, migration, governance, and compliance of information without impacting end users. Learn more about Gimmal's information governance offerings at http://www.gimmal.com

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/gimmal-releases-documentum-to-sharepoint-migration-tool-301289056.html SOURCE Gimmal, LLC

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[May 11, 2021] Santander Bank Expands Its Signature Cultivate Small Business Program To Help Early-Stage Food Entrepreneurs Strengthen Their Businesses

Santander Bank, N.A. ("Santander Bank," "Santander" or "the Bank") today announced it is expanding its Cultivate Small Business program beyond Massachusetts to include small businesses in northern and southern New Jersey. Now in its fourth session, Cultivate Small Business is Santander's signature philanthropic small business initiative. The program helps early-stage entrepreneurs in food-related industries build and sustain their businesses, with a focus on women, minority and immigrant-owned businesses in low-and moderate-income neighborhoods. "Entrepreneurs play a critical role in creating jobs and strengthening the communities where they do business," said Patrick Smith, Head of Small Business Lending at Santander Bank. "We are proud that, along with our program partners, we can help entrepreneurs and small business owners who traditionally lack the necessary resources to grow their businesses with the skills and guidance to build their companies and take them to the next level." Cultivate Small Business connects early-stage entrepreneurs with some of the key ingredients needed to succeed in the food business, including food-service related business management skills, technical assistance, and access to a local network of established food-industry experts. Santander partners with Babson College, CommonWealth Kitchen, the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City ("ICIC") and the Latin American Economic Development Association ("LAEDA") on the initiative. Santander Bank funds the program, providing up to $12,500 in capital grants to eligible participants who met specific program goals. In 2021, Santander tripled the number of Cultivate Small Business participants from 30 to over 90. Out of this year's cohort, 73 percent (73%) represent female-owned businesses, 85 percent (85%) qualify as low- to moderate-income or area-median income and 65 percent (65%) self-identify as people of color. Throughout the month of May, Santander is recognizing the contributions small bsinesses make in driving the U.S. economy by celebrating through its Small Business Month, which centers around the theme: "The Start of Something Big." During the month the bank's Business First content hub will feature special resources to help small business owners grow, manage and develop their businesses. In addition, Head of Small Business Banking Patrick Smith will host a webinar on May 26 with a panel of business owners to discuss how they managed their businesses during the pandemic.



"The past year has been extremely challenging for business owners as they had to adapt to new ways of doing business to continue serving their customers, employing their staff and keeping their businesses running during the pandemic," said Smith. "Santander remains committed to providing small business owners the tools and resources needed to thrive." For more information about Santander Bank's Small Business Month, please visit www.santanderbank.com/sbm.

To register for the small business webinar, please visit https://businesshub.santanderbank.com/webinar-registration/. For more information about Cultivate Small Business, as well as to apply, please visit https://www.santanderus.com/cultivate-small-business/. Santander Bank, N.A. is one of the country's largest retail and commercial banks with $89.5 billion in assets. With its corporate offices in Boston, the Bank's approximately 9,200 employees and more than 2 million customers are principally located in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware. The Bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Madrid-based Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE: SAN) - one of the most respected banking groups in the world with more than 148 million customers in the U.S., Europe, and Latin America. It is overseen by Santander Holdings USA, Inc., Banco Santander's intermediate holding company in the U.S. For more information on Santander Bank, please visit www.santanderbank.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006103/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Motorsport Network to acquire duPont Registry

MIAMI, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Motorsport Network, the integrated digital platform with a global monthly reach of 56 million automotive and racing fans, has agreed to acquire the prestigious duPont Registry, a market leader in the luxury automotive marketplace for over 36 years, dedicated to connecting affluent buyers with high-end exotic cars and luxury brands. For over three decades, duPont Registry has held the stakeholder position as the premier platform for the wealthy elite to buy and sell classic, luxury and exotic cars. duPont Registry's brand authority, publication and digital properties lead the luxury automotive marketplace, and with an impressive reach of nearly 10 million followers in social media, the business has captivated a highly exclusive and influential audience. Motorsport Network will strategically seat duPont Registry as the nexus of its newly created Driven Lifestyle division, harnessing the culture, community and commerce of the world's luxury and classic automotive lifestyle in one ecosystem. The Driven Lifestyle portfolio features Canossa Events, synonymous with excellence in road touring, that organizes nearly 270+ marquee experiences per year for driving enthusiasts. Part of Canossa Events, Cavallino is a preeminent media and concours events company, hosting landmark events for high-end automotive collectors and admirers such as the 30th Annual Palm Beach Cavallino Classic. In community, FerrariChat is a leading global social platform and foremost voice on Ferrari, with 20+ years of experience connecting 200K engaged registered members. Dedicated to the artform of luxury vehicles, Amalgam Collection, founded in 1985, occupies a unique place in the history of fine car models, fashioning unrivalled examples of the world's most iconic and luxurious cars at scale. With fast-growing global classic, luxury and exotic car markets and the acceleration of automotive digital retailing, the Driven Lifestyle portfolio will continue to expand Motorsport Network's existing infrastructure internationally. As the center of this powerful network, duPont Registry is poised for a digital transformation, further extending its leadership position as the most influential, innovative and sophisticated ultra-luxury and exotic automotive marketplace, providing an exceptional experience for the affluent consumer dedicated to a driven lifestyle. Established in 1985, duPont Registry is the pioneer of the luxury and exotic automotive marketplace. Founders Thomas L. duPont and Steven B. Chapman had a shared vision of publishing a four-color glossy magazine for the luxury autmotive market connecting affluent buyers with high-end brands.



Once the acquisition of the duPont Registry is completed, Steven B. Chapman will be retiring as CEO / President of duPont Publishing. Steve's sons will remain shareholders and hold the following titles of: William Chapman as CEO and Steven Chapman Jr. as President. Leveraging Motorsport Network's advanced technology capabilities, the Chapman brothers will oversee duPont Registry's digital transformation, elevating the platform as an ambassador of integrated business solutions for clients. Steven B. Chapman, CEO / President duPont Publishing said: "When we started the duPont Registry 37 years ago, I couldn't fathom the impact our brand would have on the luxury and exotic car marketplace as well as the affluent lifestyle segment.

As amazing as it has been building this company with so many incredible people, it has been an experience of a lifetime being able to involve my sons from such an early age. It has been my dream that one day they would run the business and continue the duPont Registry legacy. The duPont Registry has been my life since I was 23 years old. Although I have received many unsolicited offers over the years, we never imagined selling this great company. Knowing that my sons would remain shareholders and be heavily involved in running the business with the resources and support of the Motorsport Network, I cannot wait to see what the future holds." Ben Block, CEO Motorsport Network said: "We are incredibly honoured to be adding this prestigious property to our new Driven Lifestyle division. duPont Registry was first to market in its segment and with its authority built a bond of trust with its discerning audience. Utilizing Motorsport Network's technology acumen and international reach, our goal is to elevate the user experience, offer clients more innovative solutions and grow the business globally." Download media assets here. About Motorsport Network

Every month over 56 million dedicated users visit a Motorsport Network digital property, to buy, to learn, to be entertained, or simply to feed their passion for cars and racing. We sit at the heart of the Racing and Automotive industries and provide authoritative thought leadership as well as unique experiences to our customers. We take them on a customer journey that encompasses news and insights, events, tickets, games and esports, so we leverage the network effect to add value to their experience. We use our in-house technology and modern data tools to continuously test, learn and improve. Our processes, content creation and products are constantly evolving to better serve our audience. To read all Motorsport Network announcements, please click here. Forward-Looking and Other Cautionary Statements Completion of the transactions in Motorsport Network's definitive written agreement to acquire duPont Registry, which is expected to close in 2021, are subject to customary conditions. Any statements contained in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed forward-looking statements. Words such as "continue," "will," "may," "could," "should," "expect," "expected," "plans," "intend," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential," and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements, many of which are generally outside the control of Motorsport Network and are difficult to predict. Examples of such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, whether all conditions precedent in Motorsport Network's definitive agreements to acquire duPont Registry will be satisfied, whether the closing of such acquisition will occur, what the ultimate impact of the ongoing and prolonged COVID-19 pandemic will have on Motorsport Network and its results of operations and financial condition and whether Motorsport Network will achieve its goals, including as to: (i) its future business growth globally; (ii) its plans to continue to expand its existing infrastructure internationally; and (iii) its belief that duPont Registry is poised for a digital transformation, further extending its market leader position as the most influential, innovative and sophisticated ultra-luxury and exotic automotive marketplace. Additional examples of such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to (i) Motorsport Network's ability (or inability) to maintain and/or expand the Drive Lifestyle portfolio; (ii) Motorsport Network's ability to successfully manage and integrate any joint ventures, acquisitions of businesses, solutions or technologies; (iii) unanticipated operating costs, transaction costs and actual or contingent liabilities; (iv) the ability to attract and retain qualified employees and key personnel; (v) adverse effects of increased competition on Motorsport Network's business; (vi) the risk that changes in consumer behavior could adversely affect Motorsport Network's business, results of operations and/or financial condition; (vii) Motorsport Network's ability to protect its intellectual property; and (viii) local, industry and general business and economic conditions. Factors other than those referred to above could also cause Motorsport Network's results to differ materially from expected results. Motorsport Network anticipates that subsequent events and developments may cause its plans, intentions and expectations to change. Motorsport Network assumes no obligation, and it specifically disclaims any intention or obligation, to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by law. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and should not be relied upon as representing Motorsport Network's plans and expectations as of any subsequent date. Additionally, the business and financial materials and any other statement or disclosure on, or made available through, Motorsport Network's or duPont Registry's websites or any other websites referenced or linked to this press release shall not be incorporated by reference into this press release. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/motorsport-network-to-acquire-dupont-registry-301289131.html SOURCE Motorsport Network

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[May 11, 2021] Converge Technology Solutions Reports First Quarter 2021 Financial Results

TORONTO and GATINEAU, QC, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - Converge Technology Solutions Corp. ("Converge" or "the Company") (TSX: CTS) (FSE:0ZB) (OTCQX:CTSDF) is pleased to provide its financial results for the three month period ended March 31, 2021. All figures are in CAD dollars unless otherwise stated. Q121 Highlights First quarter revenue increased 28% over last year to $310.2 million

Gross profit increased 24% over last year to $67.8 million

Adjusted EBITDA increased to $18.8 million from $11.0 million last year

from last year Net income was $3.7 million compared to a loss of $1.4 million last year

compared to a loss of last year Closed $86.5 million equity financing at $4.85 per common share in January 2021

equity financing at per common share in Graduated to the TSX from the TSX Venture Exchange on February 11 th , 2021

, 2021 Expanded ABL credit facility from $140 million to $190 million on March 22 nd , 2021

to on , 2021 Completed the acquisitions of CarpeDatum LLC. and Accudata Systems, Inc., adding key capabilities around analytics, networking, and security Subsequent to Quarter Achieved Five Key 2021 IBM Awards including: the Beacon Award; Top North America Sell Business Partner of the Year; Top North America IBM and Red Hat Synergy Partner of the Year; IBM Data and AI Business Unit Excellence Award for Cloud Pak for Data; and, IBM Business Unit Excellence Award for Protect: Digital Trust

Announced partnership with Lucira Health to provide first single-use PCR quality over the counter COVID 19 at-home test kit

Completed acquisition of Dasher Technologies, Inc., a leading Silicon Valley-based IT solution provider "Converge has attained yet another historic Q1 earnings and I am pleased to witness our 2020 momentum carry us successfully into the new year, despite the challenges we continue to face around the globe. I am especially honored that our team is partnering with Lucira Health to help enable the safe re-opening of our communities and economies, while also showing the unique combination of capabilities that Converge offers its customers", said Shaun Maine, CEO of Converge. "Converge and all of its employees have continued to work extremely hard through the quarter executing on milestones such as the TSX graduation, the additional $86.5 million equity financing, the expansion of our ABL credit facility, our recent acquisitions and being recognized as both IBM and RedHat's partners of the Year." First Quarter Conference Call The Company will host a conference call featuring management's quarterly remarks and follow-up question and answer period. A recording of the call will be available and posted on the Company's website. Dial-in details can be found below. A live audio webcast and archive of the conference call will be available by visiting the Company's website at https://convergetp.com/investor-relations/. Please connect at least 15 minutes prior to the conference call to ensure time for any software download that may be needed to hear the webcast. Conference Call Details: Date: Tuesday, May 11th, 2021

Time: 5:00 PM Eastern Time Participant Dial-in Numbers:

Local  Toronto (+1) 416 764 8609

Toll Free  North America (+1) 888 390 0605

Germany  08007240293

United Kingdom - 08006522435

Conference ID: 09152198 Recording Playback Numbers:

Toronto (+1) 416 764 8677

Toll Free  North America (+1) 888 390 0541

Passcode: 152198 #

Expiry Date: May 18th, 2021 Summary of Consolidated Statements of Financial Position

(expressed in thousands of dollars)









March 31, 2021 December 31, 2020 Assets



Current assets





Cash $ 68,432 $ 64,767

Restricted cash 49,671 -

Trade and other receivables 345,239 364,308

Inventories 51,710 37,868

Prepaid expenses and other assets 10,397 10,376



525,449 477,319 Long-term assets





Property, equipment, and right-of-use assets, net 25,509 23,558

Intangible assets, net 113,066 108,926

Goodwill 121,447 110,068

Other non-current assets 2,023 749



$ 787,494 $ 720,620







Liabilities and shareholders' equity



Current liabilities





Trade and other payables $ 370,030 $ 398,003

Borrowings 141,316 133,281

Other financial liabilities 19,952 22,125

Deferred revenue and other liabilities 20,885 17,376

Income taxes payable 1,461 764



553,644 571,549 Long-term liabilities





Other financial liabilities 30,403 28,858

Borrowings 895 5,882

Deferred tax liability 14,527 12,584



$ 599,469 $ 618,873







Shareholders' equity





Common shares 217,907 135,354

Exchange rights 5,115 4,853

Foreign exchange translation reserve 614 817

Deficit (35,611) (39,277)



188,025 101,747



$ 787,494 $ 720,620

Summary of Consolidated Statements of Income (Loss) and Comprehensive Income (Loss)

(expressed in thousands of dollars) For the three months ended March 31, 2021 2020









Revenues







Product $ 252,507 $ 190,383 Service

57,695

51,142 Total revenue

310,202

241,525 Cost of sales

242,405

186,690 Gross profit

67,797

54,835 Selling, general and administrative expenses

49,643

45,204 Income before the following

18,154

9,631 Depreciation and amortization

6,488

5,401 Finance expense, net

2,420

5,499 Special charges

3,051

1,939 Other expense (income)

1,093

(1,619) Income (loss) before income taxes

5,102

(1,589) Income tax expense (recovery)

1,436

(173) Net income (loss) $ 3,666 $ (1,416) Other comprehensive loss







Exchange loss on translation of foreign operations

203

1,699 Comprehensive income (loss) $ 3,463 $ (3,115)









Adjusted EBITDA $ 18,768 $ 11,044 Adjusted EBITDA (Non-IFRS Financial Measurement) Adjusted EBITDA represents net loss or income adjusted to exclude amortization, depreciation, interest expense and finance costs, foreign exchange gains and losses, income tax expense, and special charges. Special charges consist primarily of restructuring related expenses for employee terminations, lease terminations, and restructuring of acquired companies, as well as certain legal fees or provisions related to acquired companies. From time to time, it may also include adjustments in the fair value of contingent consideration, and other such non-recurring costs related to restructuring, financing, and acquisitions. The Company uses Adjusted EBITDA to provide investors with a supplemental measure of its operating performance and thus highlight trends in its core business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on IFRS financial measures. The Company believes that securities analysts, investors and other interested parties frequently use non-IFRS measures in the evaluation of issuers. Management also uses non-IFRS measures in order to facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period, prepare annual operating budgets and assess the ability to meet capital expenditure and working capital requirements. Adjusted EBITDA is not a recognized, defined or standardized measure under IFRS. The Company's definition of Adjusted EBITDA will likely differ from that used by other companies and therefore comparability may be limited. Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered a substitute for or in isolation from measures prepared in accordance with IFRS. Investors are encouraged to review the Company's financial statements and disclosures in their entirety and are cautioned not to put undue reliance on non-IFRS measures and view them in conjunction with the most comparable IFRS financial measures. The Company has reconciled Adjusted EBITDA to the most comparable IFRS financial measure as follows:

For the three months

ended March 31,

2021 2020 Net income (loss) before taxes $ 5,102 $ (1,589) Finance expense 2,420 5,499 Depreciation and amortization 6,488 5,401 Depreciation included in cost of sales 695 1,434 Foreign exchange loss (gain) 1,012 (1,640) Special charges 3,051 1,939 Adjusted EBITDA $ 18,768 $ 11,044 About Converge Converge Technology Solutions Corp. is a software-enabled IT & Cloud Solutions provider focused on delivering industry-leading solutions and services. Converge's regional sales and services organizations deliver advanced analytics, cloud, and cybersecurity offerings to clients across various industries. The Company supports these solutions with managed services, digital infrastructure, and talent expertise offerings across all major IT vendors in the marketplace. This multi-faceted approach enables Converge to address the unique business and technology requirements for all clients in the public and private sectors. For more information, visit convergetp.com. Forward-Looking Information This press release contains certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation regarding Converge and its business. Any statement that involves discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance (often but not always using phrases such as "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected" "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", "plans", "budget", "scheduled", "forecasts". "estimates", "believes" or intends" or variations of such words and phrases or stating that certain actions, events or results "may" or "could, "would", "might" or "will" be taken to occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, Converge assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements of beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. For a detailed description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's filings statement available on SEDAR under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com including its most recent Annual Information Form, its Management Discussion and Analysis and its Annual and Quarterly Financial Statements. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/converge-technology-solutions-reports-first-quarter-2021-financial-results-301289003.html SOURCE Converge Technology Solutions Corp.

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[May 11, 2021] Caris Life Sciences Raises $830 Million in Growth Equity Capital to Continue to Expand its Precision Medicine Platform

IRVING, Texas, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Caris Life Sciences, a leading innovator in molecular science and artificial intelligence (AI) focused on fulfilling the promise of precision medicine, announced an $830 million growth equity round at a post-money valuation of $7.83 billion. With this investment, Caris has raised approximately $1.3 billion in external financing since 2018. This financing represents one of the largest capital raises in precision medicine and includes a diverse syndicate of leading investors. The round was led by Sixth Street, a leading global investment firm making its third investment in Caris since 2018. Funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., Silver Lake, Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC, and Coatue were significant participants in the round. Additional investors included Columbia Threadneedle Investments, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Millennium Management, Neuberger Berman Funds, Highland Capital Management, Rock Springs Capital, OrbiMed, ClearBridge Investments, Tudor Investment Corporation, Eaton Vance Equity (Morgan Stanley), Pura Vida Investments and First Light Asset Management. All existing investors from the 2020 financing participated in this deal along with a number of new investors. The Caris Molecular Intelligence approach allows oncologists to assess all 22,000 genes in both DNA and RNA, utilizing whole exome sequencing, whole transcriptome sequencing, protein analysis, and proprietary AI models and signatures. This powerful combination delivers the most comprehensive and clinically relevant profiling available on the market. As demand for personalized cancer care is expanding worldwide, patients and physicians seek to better understand their specific cancers to develop customized treatment plans that ultimately lead to better outcomes. This financing provides Caris with strategic capital for continued commercial expansion and investment toward delivering a first-in-class liquid biopsy platform with high concordance to tissue across different modalities including therapy selection, recurrence monitoring and early screening across all cancer types. "Caris puts the patient at the center of everything we do. This recent raise will help us bring our market-leading science and technologies to as many patients as possible, ultimately reinventing cancer care," said David D. Halbert, Chairman and CEO of Caris Life Sciences. "We plan to unlock the full potential of precision medicine through comprehensive interrogation of cancer at the molecular level. This will allow the delivery of transformative applications of molecular science, including the launch of our early detection (stage 1 and stage 2) blood-based pan-cancer test, providing results for every patient with no non-shedders." This financing represents the third notable investment by Sixth Street in support of Caris' vision and growth. In 2018, Sixth Street invested $150 million in the form of growth debt. In 2020, Sixth Street participated in the $235 million equit raise and invested an additional $75 million in growth debt financing. With commercial and research progress that demonstrated future growth potential, Sixth Street led this round with a significant equity commitment.



"Since our original investment in 2018, Caris has steadily advanced its position as the market-leading precision medicine company by continuing to advance innovative product development and pursuing new initiatives in blood-based molecular science profiling, while expanding the application of its artificial intelligence platform," said Vijay Mohan, Co-founding Partner at Sixth Street and Caris Board Member. "We are proud to continue to support Caris' growth, as we believe Caris is the highest-quality platform in this revolutionary sector." "The strong participation of all our existing, as well as new investors, is a testament to the promise of the Caris platform and supports our leading position as the most innovative company in the precision medicine space," said Brian J. Brille, Vice Chairman of Caris Life Sciences. "We are very appreciative of the high quality and diversity of this syndicate of investors which includes leading mutual funds, healthcare specialist funds, technology-focused funds, sovereign wealth and pension funds and family offices."

About Caris Life Sciences

Caris Life Sciences is a leading innovator in molecular science and artificial intelligence focused on fulfilling the promise of precision medicine through quality and innovation. The company's suite of market-leading molecular profiling offerings assesses DNA, RNA and proteins to reveal a molecular blueprint that helps physicians and cancer patients make more precise and personalized treatment decisions. MI Exome whole exome sequencing with 22,000 DNA genes, and MI Transcriptome whole transcriptome sequencing with 22,000 RNA genes along with cancer-related pathogens, bacteria, viruses and fungi analysis run on every patient provides the most comprehensive and clinically relevant DNA and RNA profiling available on the market. Caris is also advancing precision medicine with Caris Artificial Intelligence, combining its market leading service offering, Caris Molecular Intelligence with its proprietary artificial intelligence analytics engine, DEAN, to analyze the whole exome, whole transcriptome and complete cancer proteome. This information, coupled with mature clinical outcomes on thousands of patients, provides unmatched molecular solutions for patients, physicians, payers and biopharmaceutical organizations. Caris Pharmatech is changing the paradigm and streamlines the clinical trial process by connecting biopharma companies with research-ready oncology sites for clinical trials. With over 420 research sites within the Caris Pharmatech Just-In-Time (JIT) Oncology Network, biopharma companies can identify and enroll more patients, faster. Caris Pharmatech Just-In-Time Clinical Trial Solutions focus on rapid site activation and patient enrollment to streamline the drug development process. By implementing Caris' Just-In-Time Trial-Matching System, Caris will automatically match patients to clinical trials and sites can be activated and eligible to enroll patients within one week. Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Caris Life Sciences has offices in Phoenix, Denver, New York, and Basel, Switzerland. Caris provides services throughout the U.S., Europe, Asia and other international markets. To learn more, please visit CarisLifeSciences.com or follow us on Twitter (@CarisLS). About Sixth Street

Sixth Street is a global investment firm with over $50 billion in assets under management and committed capital. The Sixth Street Healthcare and Life Sciences team provides strategic growth capital tailored to healthcare and pharma business timelines including to develop or launch new medicines, make asset acquisitions and fund strategic projects. Select current and past representative Sixth Street Healthcare and Life Sciences investments include Biohaven, Caris Life Sciences, Clovis, DrFirst, Immunogen, Ironwood, MDLIVE and Nektar. Sixth Street's long-term oriented, highly flexible capital base and "One Team" cultural philosophy allow the firm to invest thematically across sectors, geographies and asset classes. Founded in 2009, Sixth Street has more than 320 team members including over 145 investment professionals operating from nine locations around the world. For more information, visit www.sixthstreet.com or follow us on LinkedIn. Media and Investor Relations Contact:

Argot Partners

caris@argotpartners.com

212-600-1902 Corporate Development Contact:

Narendra Chokshi

Caris Life Sciences

nchokshi@carisls.com

917-689-3511 General Media Contact:

Lindsey Bailys

GCI Health

lindsey.bailys@gcihealth.com

212-798-9884 View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/caris-life-sciences-raises-830-million-in-growth-equity-capital-to-continue-to-expand-its-precision-medicine-platform-301289078.html SOURCE Caris Life Sciences

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 12:11:15|Editor: huaxia

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JERUSALEM, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Israel carried out airstrikes against the Gaza Strip after rockets were fired Monday from the territory toward Jerusalem.

After hundreds of Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli police in East Jerusalem on Monday morning, Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, launched rocket attacks against Jerusalem in the afternoon.

The international community has voiced deep concerns over the surging tensions and violence in the region, calling on all sides to exercise maximum restraint and take immediate actions toward de-escalation.

SOARING TENSIONS

An Israeli military spokesperson said in a statement that Israeli fighter jets struck an offensive tunnel belonging to Hamas. According to Israeli media, several militants inside the tunnel were killed in the attack.

The Israeli air force struck additional sites belonging to Hamas, including two rocket launchers and two military posts.

The Hamas-run health ministry in the Gaza Strip said in a statement that 20 people were killed, including nine children, and 65 others wounded on Monday evening in explosions in the town of Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza Strip.

However, the Hamas statement did not explicitly blame Israeli airstrikes for the deaths.

The sharp escalation began at 6 p.m. local time (1500 GMT) after Hamas set an ultimatum for Israel to withdraw its forces from the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem, where Israeli police injured hundreds of Palestinians in clashes earlier on Monday.

After the deadline, Hamas launched seven rockets at Jerusalem, said the Israeli army, adding over 100 rockets have been fired against southern Israel.

CONTROVERSIAL EVICTION PLAN

Confrontations at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City have been intensified following a court ruling that tried to evict several Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem.

With tensions running high, the Israeli Justice Ministry said on Sunday that it would postpone a court hearing over the possible eviction in Sheikh Jarrah.

"In light of all the circumstances and the attorney general's request, the regular hearing for tomorrow, May 10, 2021 (is) cancelled," it said in a statement, adding that a new hearing would be scheduled within 30 days.

Earlier this year, a district court ruled in favour of Jewish settlers who claimed the property of land in the Sheikh Jarrah district. The decision was seen by Palestinians as part of an Israeli campaign to drive them from traditional Arab neighborhoods.

The Israeli government has downplayed the Sheikh Jarrah controversy and denied any government's involvement in the dispute. The Israeli Foreign Ministry said on Friday that it was a "real estate dispute between private parties."

In the 1967 Six-Day War, East Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza Strip, was captured by Israel. The Palestinian people seek all three areas for a future state, with East Jerusalem as their capital.

CALL FOR DE-ESCALATION

The rising tensions between the two sides have drawn concerns from the international community, which is calling for an immediate de-escalation.

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, on Monday expounded China's position on the situation in East Jerusalem during emergency closed-door consultations of the Security Council, according to the Chinese mission.

China is deeply concerned about the escalating tensions and violence in East Jerusalem. The serious clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians in the past days are disturbing. China condemns the violence against civilians, calls on all sides to exercise restraint and refrain from provocative actions and rhetoric, and encourages immediate actions toward de-escalation, said Zhang.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday urged all sides to de-escalate Israeli-Palestinian clashes while recognizing Israel's right to self-defense in the face of rocket attacks.

"We're very focused on the situation in Israel, West Bank, Gaza, very deeply concerned about the rocket attacks ... that need to stop and need to stop immediately," Blinken said.

Blinken welcomed Israel's decision to reroute an annual nationalist flag parade and postpone the decision on the eviction of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem.

"It's imperative that all sides take steps to de-escalate and calm the situation," he stressed.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday expressed deep concern over the continuing violence in the region, urging Israel to "exercise maximum restraint."

"Israeli authorities must exercise maximum restraint and respect the right to freedom of peaceful assembly. All leaders have a responsibility to act against extremists and to speak out against all acts of violence and incitement," Guterres said in a statement.

Middle East countries, including Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, and Iran, as well as the Arab League, have condemned the Israeli actions against the Palestinian people in East Jerusalem. Enditem
[May 11, 2021] Johns Hopkins University And Bloomberg Philanthropies Announce The Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative, A $150 Million Effort To Fuel Diversity In STEM Fields

BALTIMORE and NEW YORK, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg Philanthropies announced the launch of the Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative devoted to addressing historic underrepresentation in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields, and preparing a new, more diverse generation of researchers and scholars to assume leadership roles in tackling some of the world's greatest challenges. The $150 million effort funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies will be endowed to create additional pathways for students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) to pursue and receive PhDs in STEM fields. "STEM fields play an increasingly important role in developing innovative solutions to a wide range of pressing challenges, yet STEM PhD programs don't reflect the broad diversity of our country. So creating more equitable opportunities for more students is critical to our country's future in so many ways," said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies and 108th mayor of New York City. "By supporting JHU's world-class STEM program, and by partnering with historically Black and minority-serving schools that have a strong record of educating students who go on to get STEM PhDs, we will help increase diversity in industries that will pioneer advances we have not yet even imagined, and shape the lives of generations to come." Studies have shown that STEM PhD programs do not reflect the broad diversity of talent and perspectives that other fields of study have cultivated, nor have they effectively recruited scholars matriculating from diverse undergraduate institutions. National Science Foundation data show that in 2019, there were more than 30 fields of science  including multiple disciplines in biology, chemistry, physics, math, and engineering  in which fewer than five PhDs were awarded to Black or Latinx students in the United States. While Black Americans comprise 13 percent of the U.S. population and Latinx people 18 percent, in 2019 they received just three and seven percent, respectively, of new engineering, math, physical sciences and computer science PhDs, according to the NSF. The deficits in STEM diversity extend beyond Black and Latinx students; the percentage of science or engineering PhDs awarded to Native American, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander students has been stagnant at about a third of their share of the population for a decade. "Scientific discovery that continually advances human flourishing and creates a healthier, safer world must be fueled by the expertise and insights of people of differing perspectives and ideas. Yet, decades of data and our own experience show the persistent truth that PhD programs, particularly in the STEM fields, do not reflect the full spectrum of available talent," said Ronald J. Daniels, president of Johns Hopkins University. "We cannot hope to produce the best science nor ensure that our faculties are truly representative until we increase the diversity of our PhD programs. Through the Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative, Johns Hopkins now has the opportunity and imperative to invest ambitiously, think ambitiously, and act ambitiously to begin correcting the longstanding inequity in PhD education." Although Johns Hopkins has increased the diversity of its undergraduate student body in recent years, historically under-represented minorities make up 11 percent of students in Johns Hopkins' STEM PhD programs, a slightly higher rate than the average of 9 percent its private research university peers report to the Department of Education's Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System but still far from representative of the overall population. Through the Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative, the university will dramatically scale up its efforts to diversify its STEM PhD programs and graduate more diverse PhD recipients to help bring sorely needed new voices and backgrounds to STEM industries and workforces. The PhD students recruited through this program will be known as the Vivien Thomas Scholars, in recognition of one of Johns Hopkins' most celebrated figures. Thomas was a Black surgical laboratory supervisor who is best known for his work to develop a cardiac surgery technique to treat "blue baby syndrome" (Blalock-Taussig shunt) at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in the 1940s  a life-saving advance for which he did not receive credit for decades. Thomas, who grew up in the Jim Crow South, enrolled as a premedical student at Tennessee Agricultural and Industrial College, an HBCU n Nashville, but was forced to drop out due to the Great Depression and was never able to enroll in medical school. Despite his lack of an advanced degree, Thomas spent his career as a pioneering research and surgical assistant. In 1976 Thomas was awarded an honorary doctorate by Johns Hopkins University and named instructor of surgery in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.



The initiative will provide permanent funding to add a sustained cohort of approximately 100 new slots for diverse PhD students in JHU's more than 30 STEM programs, representing disciplines ranging from neuroscience to physics to engineering. The initiative will engage in active outreach to applicants matriculating from HBCU and MSI institutions  encompassing more than 450 four-year colleges and universities nationwide. More than a third of Black STEM PhD holders earned their undergraduate degrees at HBCUs, reflecting those institutions' generations of leadership in supporting the talent of outstanding and diverse scholars. This gift will support up to six years of stipend, health insurance and travel funding, along with significant mentorship, research and professional development opportunities. Up to six years of tuition for each PhD student will be supported by the PhD programs, departments, or schools. Initial pathway programs will begin this summer, with the first cohort of Vivien Thomas Scholars entering Johns Hopkins PhD programs in the fall of 2022. More than $15 million in funding will be dedicated to strengthening pathways for talented undergraduates to pursue STEM PhDs at Johns Hopkins and elsewhere. Those efforts will begin with direct funding of programs at an initial cohort of partner HBCUs and MSIs with an exceptional record of accomplishment in graduating students who advance to STEM PhD careers. Each Inaugural Partner will receive flexible funding, to be used at the institution's strategic direction to continue to attract and prepare their undergraduate students for STEM graduate training and STEM careers. Inaugural partners will be critical in advising the Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative as a whole, engaging additional MSIs, and identifying the optimal programming for scholars participating in the initiative.

The Inaugural Partner institutions are Howard University; Morehouse College; Morgan State University; Prairie View A&M; Spelman College; and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. "Spelman is eager to develop the partnership with Johns Hopkins, one of the world's great research universities," said Mary Schmidt Campbell, PhD, president of Spelman College. "The goals of the Vivien Thomas Scholars initiative align completely with our own and that is to continue to increase the number of underrepresented minorities who earn PhDs in STEM fields. With Spelman graduating more black women who obtain doctorates in STEM than any other college or university in the country, per the National Science Foundation, we believe that our faculty have a great deal to contribute in terms of recognizing the assets that our students bring and, with effective pedagogical strategies, building effectively on their strengths." "I commend Mayor Bloomberg and President Daniels for making this commitment to diversity in STEM graduate education," said Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. "We know that transformational philanthropy can produce more STEM researchers from underrepresented groups. The Meyerhoff Scholars Program, established with a visionary gift from Baltimore philanthropist Robert Meyerhoff in 1988, has resulted in UMBC becoming the top U.S. producer of African American graduates going on to earn MD/PhD degrees, including STEM professionals and researchers around the country." The funding will also support the establishment of new and expanded undergraduate summer and post-baccalaureate experiences for talented, diverse undergraduates to build connections with Johns Hopkins faculty and students, and provide exposure to the university's research and scholarship, building on the success of existing pathways programs at Hopkins. All summer pathways programming will be fully funded, including housing and stipends for participants. "Over the past decade, and through the enduring support of Mike Bloomberg's philanthropy, Johns Hopkins has been intentional about building one of the most diverse and academically talented undergraduate student bodies in the country," Daniels said. "We must take a similarly expansive approach to moving the needle in PhD education. We need such diverse leadership in all spheres of endeavor, and especially in our universities where bold ideas take shape and are brought to bear on the world's great challenges. We are truly grateful for Mike Bloomberg's vision and commitment in pushing us to new heights." Mike Bloomberg has long focused on increasing equitable access and opportunity across higher education and last year launched the Greenwood Initiative at Bloomberg Philanthropies, an effort to accelerate the pace of Black wealth accumulation in the United States and address decades of systemic underinvestment in Black communities. The Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative is the third investment made by Bloomberg Philanthropies' Greenwood Initiative since its launch in September 2020. The first investment was a $100 million partnership with the nation's four historically Black medical schools to help ease the debt burden of approximately 800 Black medical students . The second investment was more than $6 million to those four schools to increase their mobile unit COVID-19 vaccination efforts and help ensure equitable access to vaccines within Black communities disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Mr. Bloomberg, a Johns Hopkins alumnus, changed the lives of countless current and future undergraduates at Johns Hopkins University with his historic $1.8 billion gift for undergraduate financial aid in 2018. In the short time since the gift was implemented, Johns Hopkins has seen marked increases in the diversity and excellence of its undergraduate programs. With 32.5 percent self-identifying as a member of a racial or ethnic group that is historically underrepresented at the institution, Hopkins' most recent entering class is the most diverse in the university's history and also among the most highly talented in the nation in terms of grade point averages and standardized test scores. "Capturing diverse talent in STEM is critical to maximizing the creativity, excellence, and innovation necessary to create the best science and to apply that science to improve the human condition for all. We believe there is a wealth of untapped talent out there, and that through sustained outreach and support, we can encourage more students from diverse backgrounds to seek PhDs in these fields and become the next generation of transformational leaders in STEM," said Dr. Damani Arnold Piggott, Assistant Dean for Graduate Biomedical Education and Graduate Student Diversity at Johns Hopkins University, who has been tapped to lead the institution's new effort as the inaugural Associate Vice Provost for Graduate Diversity and Partnerships. "We are going to be privileged to have this cohort of scholars spend time with us on their journeys, and to be able to contribute in some small way to the amazing things they are going to do for the betterment of our society." About Bloomberg Philanthropies:

Bloomberg Philanthropies invests in 810 cities and 170 countries around the world to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on five key areas for creating lasting change: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation, and Public Health. Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg's giving, including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a pro bono consultancy that works in cities around the world. In 2020, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $1.6 billion. For more information, please visit bloomberg.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, and TikTok. About Johns Hopkins University:

Johns Hopkins is America's first research university. For more than 140 years Johns Hopkins has been a world leader in both teaching and research, with nine academic divisions  the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, the Whiting School of Engineering, the Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Carey Business School, the Peabody Institute, the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, and the schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Education  plus the Applied Physics Laboratory, a nonacademic division that supports national security and pursues space science. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/johns-hopkins-university-and-bloomberg-philanthropies-announce-the-vivien-thomas-scholars-initiative-a-150-million-effort-to-fuel-diversity-in-stem-fields-301289136.html SOURCE Johns Hopkins University

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[May 11, 2021] TransAct Mourns Death of Longtime Board Member, Thomas R. Schwarz

TransAct Technologies is saddened to announce the passing of longtime Board Member, Thomas R. Schwarz. "Tom was not just a Board Member here at TransAct, he was an incredible mentor, a lifelong friend, and a true leader of the company. Tom served on the Board over 24 years as an independent director, and leaves behind a legacy of driving innovation and transformation here at TransAct that saw us through some of our most complex business challenges. We cannot be more thankful to him for his service to the company and he will be greatly missed by the TransAct family. Tom was an incredible teacher to me, and I am forever grateful to have had the opportunity to have known and learned from him," stated Bart Shuldman, Chairman and CEO of TransAct. Tom had been on the Board of Directors at TransAct for over 24 years. Previously, Tom held the position of Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Grossmans, a leading retailer of building materials in the Northeastern United States. Prior to that, Tom held a number of senior leadership positions including Chief Operating Officer & Director of Dunkin' Donuts.



About TransAct Technologies (News - Alert) Incorporated TransAct Technologies Incorporated is a global leader in developing software-driven technology and printing solutions for high-growth markets including food service, casino and gaming, POS automation, , and oil and gas. The Company's solutions are designed from the ground up based on customer requirements and are sold under the BOHA!, AccuDate, EPICENTRAL, Epic, Ithaca and Printrex brands. TransAct has sold over 3.3 million printers and terminals around the world and is committed to providing world-class service, spare parts and accessories to support its installed product base. Through the TransAct Services Group, the Company also provides customers with a complete range of supplies and consumable items both online at http://www.transactsupplies.com and through its direct sales team. TransAct is headquartered in Hamden, CT. For more information, please visit http://www.transact-tech.com or call (203) 859-6800.

BOHA! is a trademark of TRANSACT Technologies Incorporated. 2021 TRANSACT Technologies Incorporated. All rights reserved. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006181/en/

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[May 11, 2021] VIA optronics Announces Date of First Quarter 2021 Financial Results Conference Call

VIA (News - Alert) optronics AG (NYSE: VIAO) ("VIA"), a leading supplier of interactive display systems and solutions, today announced that it will report its first quarter 2021 financial results before the opening of the US financial markets on Tuesday, May 18, 2021. VIA will host a conference call to discuss its results and will provide a corporate update at 2:30 p.m. Central European Time / 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time the same day. The dial-in numbers for the call are +1 631-302-6547 (USA), +44 203-059-8128 (UK), or +49 695-660-36000 (Germany). Please ask to be connected to the VIA optronics AG call. The live webcast of the call can be accessed at the VIA Investor Relations website at https://investors.via-optronics.com, along with the company's earnings press release. An archived version of the webcast will be available on the VIA Investor Relations website for 90 days.



About VIA:

VIA is a leading provider of interactive display systems and solutions for multiple end-markets in which superior functionality or durability is a critical differentiating factor. Its customizable technology is well-suited for high-end markets with unique specifications as well as demanding environments that pose technical and optical challenges for displays, such as bright ambient light, vibration and shock, extreme temperatures and condensation. VIA's interactive display systems combine system design, interactive displays, software functionality, cameras and other hardware components. VIA's intellectual property portfolio, process know-how, and optical bonding and metal mesh touch sensor and camera module technologies provide enhanced display solutions that are built to meet the specific needs of its customers.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511006136/en/

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[May 11, 2021] Protect Our Power Seeks Federal Funding for States, Electric Utilities to Harden U.S. Electric Grid Against Cyberattacks

WASHINGTON, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Following the disabling cyberattack on a major U.S. pipeline, Protect Our Power today renewed its call for the Administration and Congress to make the security and resilience of the U.S. electric grid a top priority in pending infrastructure legislation. "We've been warned repeatedly during the last several years by major U.S intelligence agencies that a crippling cyberattack on our critical infrastructure was not a question of if, but when," said Jim Cunningham, executive director of grid advocacy group Protect Our Power. "The Colonial pipeline cyberattack, on the heels of the SolarWinds attack, makes it clear that our electric infrastructure is vulnerable and in need of significant security upgrades. The devastating weather-related power outages in Texas in February demonstrates the financial and social costs of losing power even for a short period of time." Protect Our Power, the nation's leading organization dedicated to making the electric grid more secure and resilient, has outlined a set of grid-oriented funding priorities for consideration as Congress prepares to take up a major infrastructure improvement package. "The Administration has pledged to make further hardening our nation's electric grid against cyberattacks a key part of comprehensive infrastructure legislation," Cunningha said. "Timing is now more urgent than ever for the federal government, the utility industry, and the states to come together and provide a national solution to address this looming national problem."



Protect Our Power proposes a comprehensive grid security funding plan focused on known, short-term vulnerabilities, as identified in work that has been conducted by the electric power industry, government regulatory and oversight agencies, and independent experts. Protect Our Power recommends that approximately $22 billion be provided over five years to: Provide funding to municipal power companies and rural electric utilities to offset the cost impact on consumers that would be incurred by dramatically improving grid resilience programs in the near term. $12 billion

Build separate and more secure communications systems that control actual power system operations. $5 billion

Upgrade the quality and availability of financial and intellectual resources needed by government officials and state regulators to conduct the prudent oversight necessary to assure reliable electric power distribution systems. $3 billion

Provide funding for regional power grid operators to upgrade their systems to prevent, mitigate, and recover from cyberattacks. $1 billion

Promote, facilitate, and provide incentives for developing a "Made in America" power industry supply chain. $500 million Protect Our Power also suggests providing funding for programs such as testing centers to ensure the integrity of critical grid hardware and software components prior to installation, facilitate the rapid tech transfer of government-developed cyber protection technologies to electric utilities for commercial implementation, and to establish a supply chain protocol and provide seed money to create a quasi-governmental oversight entity to ensure that the products and services used to build and maintain a reliable electric grid and related systems are not intentionally infected by foreign suppliers.

"We look forward to working with the Administration and Congress to craft an infrastructure bill that has electric grid resilience and security as a priority, and to having Congress pass a comprehensive measure that protects our nation's electric grid from ever-increasing cyberattacks," Cunningham said. Protect Our Power is a non-partisan, non-profit group, staffed by industry experts and advised by an active panel of advisors with extensive national security, military, utility and regulatory experience. The organization is focused on improving electric grid security and has been working with all aspects of the electric power industry since 2016 to build consensus on what needs to be done and how to finance a plan for upgrading our electric grid. The group has worked with key stakeholders, including power companies and federal and state officials, to drive needed physical and regulatory improvements and advocate for a national policy to address this national threat. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/protect-our-power-seeks-federal-funding-for-states-electric-utilities-to-harden-us-electric-grid-against-cyberattacks-301289177.html SOURCE Protect Our Power

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[May 11, 2021] Wi-Fi Analytics Market to Reach US$ 30.7 Billion by 2026 Globally |CAGR: 28.5%| UnivDatos Market Insights

NOIDA, India, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A comprehensive overview of Wi-Fi Analytics is recently added by UnivDatos Market Insights to its humongous database. The Wi-Fi Analytics report has been aggregated by collecting informative data of various dynamics such as market drivers, restraints, and opportunities. This innovative report makes use of several analyses to get a closer outlook on the Wi-Fi Analytics market. The Wi-Fi Analytics report offers a detailed analysis of the latest industry developments and trending factors in the market that are influencing the market growth. Furthermore, this statistical market research repository examines and estimates Wi-Fi Analytics at the global and regional levels. Global Wi-Fi Analytics Market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 28.5% from 2021-2026 to reach US$ 30.7 billion by 2026. Market Overview A rise in internet penetration, escalating adoption of connected devices, and deployment of public Wi-Fi coupled with rising adoption of smartphones are some of the key factors contributing to the growth of the Wi-fi analytics market. As per Cisco, connected devices will be 3x the global population by 2023. Also, 71% of the global population will be mobile subscribers by 2023. Furthermore, the number of smartphone users around the globe was around 3.6 billion in 2020, which is expected to reach 4.3 billion by 2023. Also, more than 60% of the global population uses the internet and as of April 2021, 72 billion people use the internet, globally. Moreover, internet users are currently growing at an annual rate of 7.6%, equating to an average of more than 900,000 new users every day. In addition, the benefits of wi-fi analytics such as improving operations, track campaign results, and trigger marketing are acting as a growth catalyst to the industry. Wi-Fi analytics facilitates consumers to use the information available through the wireless network to make better decisions about a physical space. Moreover, the increasing deployment of data analytics across numerous brick and mortar businesses, along with rising competition between online and offline retail businesses is further expected to propel the Wi-Fi analytics market, globally. Request Sample Copy of this Report @ https://univdatos.com/report/global-wi-fi-analytics-market-current-analysis-and-forecast-2020-2026 COVID-19 Impact The breathtaking speed and scale of the COVID-19 crisis have put tremendous levels of stress on analytics/models. The global ongoing trend of work-from-home and online classes has increased the new connections and devices. As per a network solution provider Esprim Systems, the company is unable to provide for the 60% surge in demand for new connections and devices. Moreover, the offering of cheaper data plans coupled with the rising need for cloud-based web conferencing solutions is resulting in the greater demand for Wi-fi analytics. Moreover, the useof Wi-Fi for several purposes for COVID-related precautions and queries is also mounting the demand for Wi-fi analytics. For instance: The University of California (UCI) announced to explore the use of its wireless network as part of a COVID-19 contract tracing application that Uses Campus Wi-Fi to Test the COVID-19 Contact Tracing App. This kind of initiative has impacted the growth of Wi-Fi analytics during the COVID pandemic.



Ask for Price & Discounts @ https://univdatos.com/report/global-wi-fi-analytics-market-current-analysis-and-forecast-2020-2026 Wi-Fi Analytics Market report is studied thoroughly with several aspects that would help stakeholders in making their decisions more curated.

By Component, the market is primarily bifurcated into Solutions

Services The solution segment dominated the component segment and gathered 74.6% of the Wi-Fi Analytics Market in 2019. Moreover, the market is expected to grow at a 27.1% CAGR to reach US$ 21.2 billion by the year 2026. By Deployment Type, the market is primarily segmented into On-Premise

Cloud The on-premise segment generated revenue of US$ 3.5 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 26.5% during the forecast period. However, the cloud segment is expected to witness a robust CAGR of 31.6% during the forecast period of 2021-26. By Application Type, the market is primarily segmented into Footfall Analytics

Customer Engagement

Customer Experience Management

Customer Behaviour Analytics

Customer Loyalty Management Amongst application types, the Customer Loyalty Management segment accounted for the largest share and grabbed 34.2% in the global wi-fi analytics market. However, Customer Experience Management is expected to witness the highest CAGR during the upcoming years to reach the market valuation of US$3.9 billion by 2026. By End-User Type, the market is primarily segmented into Smart Infrastructure

Retail

Sports & Leisure

Hospitality

Others Amongst End-Users, the Retail segment of the Wi-Fi Analytics market was valued at US$ 2.5 billion in 2019 and is likely to reach US$ 12.5 billion by 2027 growing at a CAGR of 26.1% from 2021-2026. Wi-Fi Analytics Geographical Segmentation Includes: North America

Europe

Asia-Pacific

Rest of the World Based on the estimation, the North America region dominated the Wi-Fi Analytics Market with almost US$ 2.2 billion in revenue in 2019. At the same time, the Asia-Pacific region is expected to grow remarkably with a CAGR of 32.2% over the forecast period. Ask for Report Customization @ https://univdatos.com/report/global-wi-fi-analytics-market-current-analysis-and-forecast-2020-2026 The major players targeting the market includes Cisco Systems Inc

Zebra Technologies

Ruckus Wireless

Aruba Networks, Inc.

Purple Wi-Fi Ltd

Cloud4wi

Fortinet Inc.

SkyFii Limited

Euclid Analytics

Hughes Network Systems LLC Competitive Landscape The degree of competition among prominent global companies has been elaborated by analyzing several leading key players operating worldwide. The specialist team of research analysts sheds light on various traits such as global market competition, market share, most recent industry advancements, innovative product launches, partnerships, mergers, or acquisitions by leading companies in the Wi-Fi Analytics Market. The leading players have been analyzed by using research methodologies for getting insight views on global competition. Key questions resolved through this analytical market research report include: What are the latest trends, new patterns, and technological advancements in t the Wi-Fi Analytics Market?

Which factors are influencing the Wi-Fi Analytics Market over the forecast period?

What are the global challenges, threats, and risks in the Wi-Fi analytics market?

Which factors are propelling and restraining the Wi-Fi Analytics Market?

What are the demanding global regions of the Wi-Fi analytics market?

What will be the global market size in the upcoming years?

What are the crucial market acquisition strategies and policies applied by global companies? We understand the requirement of different businesses, regions, and countries, we offer customized reports as per your requirements of business nature and geography. Please let us know If you have any custom needs. For more informative information, please visit us @ https://univdatos.com/report/global-wi-fi-analytics-market-current-analysis-and-forecast-2020-2026 About UnivDatos Market Insights UnivDatos Market Insights (UMI) is a passionate market research firm and a subsidiary of Universal Data Solutions. We believe in delivering insights through Market Intelligence Reports, Customized Business Research, and Primary Research. Our research studies are spread across topics across the world, we cover markets in over 100 countries using smart research techniques and agile methodologies. We offer in-depth studies, detailed analysis, and customized reports that help shape winning business strategies for our clients. Contact UnivDatos Market Insights

Pawnendra Pawan

Client Development Lead

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[May 11, 2021] LAZ Partners With Applico To Help Lead The Digital Transformation Of The Parking Industry

HARTFORD, Conn., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- LAZ Parking announced today that it has partnered with leading platform advisory and investment firm, Applico, Inc., to support the digital transformation of its services and the parking industry. Applico will help LAZ incorporate "proximity on-demand" services or PODS into its traditional parking operations. PODS is a proprietary platform of adjacent products and services that allows parking lot owners and landlords to enhance customer loyalty and unlock new revenue streams by delivering high-value, real-time services to customers. LAZ Partners With Applico To Help Lead The Digital Transformation Of The Parking Industry Applico is based in New York and has offices in San Francisco. It partners with industry leaders like LAZ to build viable platform businesses by adopting technologies, products, or services. It creates value by enabling direct and frequent interactions between customers and producers. LAZ Parking s one of the nation's largest parking companies. It operates over 1.3 million parking spaces in 35 states and 439 cities across the United States and is ideally suited to deliver on this model. LAZ's PODS strategy leverages its network of parking garages and other facilities to introduce technologies that enhance existing services or introduce entirely new ones. Examples include a hands-free parking experience or electric vehicle charging stations. Possible new services include ghost kitchens, rooftop solar panels, and lots for urban farming, micro warehouses, same-day delivery, last-block delivery, and other last or "LAZ" mile delivery solutions.



Applico will facilitate LAZ Parking's investment in this space and dramatically accelerate partnerships with technology providers, startups, and enterprises over the next 12-24 months. Distribution and staging, logistics, delivery, electric vehicle deployment, and storage are among the initial areas of research and investment. "We chose Applico to partner with us on this journey because they are innovative, creative, and effective at helping enterprises capture new, tech-enabled business models," said Alan Lazowski, Chairman and CEO of LAZ Parking. "We intend to remake LAZ into America's most digital parking operator. The future of parking lies in deploying these technologies in ways that transform traditional parking locations into logistics hubs serving the needs of a diversified, increasingly digital economy. We see a huge opportunity for partnerships across the entire spectrum of technology and economy; players large and small."

Applico's team of tech entrepreneurs and finance professionals will engage on behalf of LAZ with startups, technology providers, and enterprises across a range of verticals. These partnerships will initially serve LAZ's network of parking partners but ultimately can be sold as a service to others in the parking industry. "Because of their size, reach and reputation, LAZ is well positioned to broaden its array of services for both enterprises and consumers," said Applico CEO. Alex Moazed. "By embracing strategic partnerships, LAZ can use its national scale to provide Proximity on Demand services that will transform the industry for the next 20 years." About LAZ Parking

LAZ Parking, founded in Hartford, CT, in 1981, is one of the largest and fastest-growing parking companies in the United States, operating over 1.3 million parking spaces across the country in over 3,128 locations in 35 states and 439 cities. With four decades of experience providing parking management, transportation, and mobility services, LAZ works seamlessly across a variety of market segments, including hospitality and valet, office buildings, medical, airport and transportation, campus, government and municipal, retail, events, residential buildings, and shuttle services. Additional information can be found at www.lazparking.com . View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/laz-partners-with-applico-to-help-lead-the-digital-transformation-of-the-parking-industry-301289151.html SOURCE LAZ Parking

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[May 11, 2021] TeraGo Reports First Quarter 2021 Financial Results

TORONTO, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - TeraGo Inc. ("TeraGo" or the "Company") (TSX: TGO) ( www.terago.ca ), today reported financial and operating results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021. First Quarter 2021 and Recent Operational Developments Chosen by Ducks Unlimited Canada to provide Managed SD-WAN (Software-Defined Wide Area Networking) services for its operating locations.





Selected by Pure Storage as its first Canadian elite managed service provider partner.





Closed a $14.7 million private placement in support of the Company's proposed launch of 5G fixed wireless services in Canada .





private placement in support of the Company's proposed launch of 5G fixed wireless services in . Expanded product portfolio with managed networking services for business customers.





Appointed TeraGo's former Chair of the Board, Matthew Gerber as new Chief Executive Officer.





as new Chief Executive Officer. Advanced 5G fixed wireless technical trials and experienced improved through-put speeds, increasing current results to approximately 1.5 gigabits per second ("Gbps").





Selected as the national Managed SD-WAN service provider for a large Canadian healthcare provider. First Quarter 2021 Financial Highlights Total revenue for the first quarter of 2021 decreased 1% to $10.8 million compared to $10.9 million in the previous quarter and decreased from $11.6 million for the same period in 2020. The year over year decrease in total revenue was driven by lower connectivity revenue.





compared to in the previous quarter and decreased from for the same period in 2020. The year over year decrease in total revenue was driven by lower connectivity revenue. Connectivity revenue for the first quarter of 2021 was $6.5 million which was consistent with $6.5 million for the previous quarter and decreased from $7.3 million for the same period in 2020. The year over year decrease in connectivity revenue was primarily due to churn exceeding customer provisioning.





which was consistent with for the previous quarter and decreased from for the same period in 2020. The year over year decrease in connectivity revenue was primarily due to churn exceeding customer provisioning. Cloud and colocation revenue for the first quarter of 2021 decreased 2% to $4.3 million from $4.4 million for the previous quarter and was consistent with $4.3 million for the same period in 2020. The consistent cloud and colocation revenue was primarily driven by new customer provisioning offset by customer churn.





from for the previous quarter and was consistent with for the same period in 2020. The consistent cloud and colocation revenue was primarily driven by new customer provisioning offset by customer churn. Net loss for the first quarter of 2021 totaled $2.2 million which was consistent with $2.2 million in the prior quarter and $2.2 million for the same period in 2020. Net loss was held flat despite the decline in revenues due to lower operating expenses and finance costs.





which was consistent with in the prior quarter and for the same period in 2020. Net loss was held flat despite the decline in revenues due to lower operating expenses and finance costs. Adjusted EBITDA(1)(2) for the first quarter of 2021 was $3.2 million compared to $3.7 million in the prior quarter and decreased from $3.6 million in the same period in 2020. The decrease was driven primarily by the decrease in revenue. Management Commentary "Our performance the past few months continues to reinforce our view that we are turning a corner," said TeraGo CEO Matthew Gerber. "We have consistently seen new bookings surpass churn and have built momentum across every facet of our business. With the recent financing that bolstered our balance sheet, we are now equipped to capitalize on growth opportunities across all fronts. In particular, this investment gives us the ability to further develop our 5G fixed wireless business and will facilitate our strategic growth plan of becoming one of Canada's first 5G fixed wireless operators. As we approach the second half of this year, we will continue to enhance our product portfolio, expand partnerships, and demonstrate our commitment to deliver industry leading services as evidenced by our strong Net Promoter Score of 74, all of which provide us with a competitive edge."







_________________ (1) Adjusted EBITDA is a Non-GAAP measure. See "Non-IFRS Measures" below. (2) See "Adjusted EBITDA" below for a reconciliation of net loss to Adjusted EBITDA.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS Comparison of the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020

(in thousands of dollars, except with respect to gross profit margin, earnings per share, Backlog MRR, and ARPU)





Three months ended

March 31





2021 2020 Financial







Cloud and Colocation Revenue $

4,296 4,299 Connectivity Revenue $

6,533 7,318 Total Revenue $

10,829 11,617 Cost of Services1 $

2,514 2,259 Selling, General, & Administrative Costs $

5,904 6,187 Gross profit margin1



76.8% 80.6% Adjusted EBITDA1, 2 $

3,233 3,622 Net loss $

(2,166) (2,203) Basic loss per share $

(0.13) (0.13) Diluted loss per share $

(0.13) (0.13) Operating







Backlog MRR 1







Connectivity $

131,078 89,296 Cloud & Colocation $

34,518 18,225 Churn Rate 1







Connectivity



1.3% 1.5% Cloud & Colocation



1.6% 1.0% ARPU 1







Connectivity $

1,008 1,033 Cloud & Colocation $

3,623 3,240 (1) See "Non-IFRS Measures" below. (2) See "Adjusted EBITDA" below for a reconciliation of net loss to Adjusted EBITDA. First Quarter 2021 Operating Highlights Backlog Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)(1) Connectivity backlog MRR was $131,078 as of March 31, 2021 , compared to $89,296 as of March 31, 2020 . The increase in backlog MRR was driven primarily by higher sales volume from both the direct sales team and the channel team compared to the prior year period.





as of , compared to as of . The increase in backlog MRR was driven primarily by higher sales volume from both the direct sales team and the channel team compared to the prior year period. Cloud and colocation backlog MRR was $34,518 as of March 31, 2021 compared to $18,225 as of March 31, 2020 . The increase in backlog MRR was driven higher sales volume compared to the prior year. Average Revenue per User (ARPU)(1) For the three months ended March 31, 2021 connectivity ARPU was $1,008 compared to $1,033 for the same period in 2020. The slight decrease in ARPU was due to customer contract renewals at lower rates.





connectivity ARPU was compared to for the same period in 2020. The slight decrease in ARPU was due to customer contract renewals at lower rates. For the three months ended March 31, 2021 cloud and colocation ARPU was $3,623 compared to $3,240 for the same period in 2020. The increase was due to customer upgrades and cross-selling activities as well as the churn of lower ARPU customers. Churn(1) For the three months ended March 31, 2021 , connectivity churn was 1.3% compared to 1.5% for the same period in 2020. The decrease was due to ongoing customer retention initiatives and the increasing mix of mid-market and enterprise customers in the Company's customer base.





, connectivity churn was 1.3% compared to 1.5% for the same period in 2020. The decrease was due to ongoing customer retention initiatives and the increasing mix of mid-market and enterprise customers in the Company's customer base. For the three months ended March 31, 2021 , cloud and colocation churn was 1.6% compared to 1.0% for the same period in 2020. Churn in the three months ended March 31, 2021 increased due to a higher churn of low ARPU small business customers. (1) See "Non-IFRS Measures" below. Conference Call Management will host a conference call on Wednesday, May 12, 2021, at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time to discuss these results. To access the conference call, please dial 647-427-2311 or 866-521-4909. Please call the conference telephone number 15 minutes prior to the start time so that you are in the queue for an operator to assist in registering and patching you through. The Financial Statements and Management's Discussion & Analysis for the quarter and fiscal year ended March 31, 2021, along with a presentation in connection with the conference call will be made available on the Company's website at https://terago.ca/company/investor-relations/. An archived recording of the conference call will be available until May 19, 2021. To listen to the recording, call 416-621-4642 or 800-585-8367 and enter passcode 3895674. (1) Non-IFRS Measures This press release contains references to "Cost of Services", "Gross Profit Margin", "Adjusted EBITDA", "Backlog MRR", "ARPU", and "churn" which are not measures prescribed by International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Cost of Services consists of expenses related to delivering service to customers and servicing the operations of our networks. These expenses include costs for the lease of intercity facilities to connect our cities, internet transit and peering costs paid to other carriers, network real estate lease expense, spectrum lease expenses and lease and utility expenses for the data centres and salaries and related costs of staff directly associated with the cost of services. Gross Profit Margin % consists of gross profit margin divided by revenue where gross profit margin is revenue less cost of services. Adjusted EBITDA - The Company believes that Adjusted EBITDA is useful additional information to management, the Board and investors as it provides an indication of the operational results generated by its business activities prior to taking into consideration how those activities are financed and taxed and also prior to taking into consideration asset depreciation and amortization and it excludes items that could affect the comparability of our operational results and could potentially alter the trends analysis in business performance. Excluding these items does not necessarily imply they are non-recurring, infrequent or unusual. Adjusted EBITDA is also used by some investors and analysts for the purpose of valuing a company. The Company calculates Adjusted EBITDA as earnings before deducting interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, foreign exchange gain or loss, finance costs, finance income, gain or loss on disposal of network assets, property and equipment, impairment of property, plant, & equipment and intangible assets, stock-based compensation and restructuring, acquisition-related and integration costs. Investors are cautioned that Adjusted EBITDA should not be construed as an alternative to operating earnings (losses) or net earnings (losses) determined in accordance with IFRS as an indicator of our financial performance or as a measure of our liquidity and cash flows. Adjusted EBITDA does not take into account the impact of working capital changes, capital expenditures, debt principal reductions and other sources and uses of cash, which are disclosed in the consolidated statements of cash flows. A reconciliation of net loss to Adjusted EBITDA is found below and in the MD&A for the three months ended March 31, 2021. Adjusted EBITDA does not have any standardized meaning under IFRS/GAAP. TeraGo's method of calculating Adjusted EBITDA may differ from other issuers and, accordingly, Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. The table below reconciles net loss to Adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020. (in thousands of dollars)



Three months ended

March 31





2021 2020 Net earnings (loss) for the period $

(2,166) (2,203) Foreign exchange loss (gain)



(21) 121 Finance costs



1,003 1,516 Finance income



(12) (55) Earnings (loss) from operations



(1,196) (621) Add:







Depreciation of network assets, property and equipment and amortization of intangible assets



3,607 3,792 Loss on disposal of network assets



6 45 Impairment of Assets and Related Charges



157 68 Stock-based Compensation Expense (Recovery)



229 347 Restructuring, acquisition-related, integration costs and other



430 (9) Adjusted EBITDA $

3,233 3,622 Backlog MRR - The term "Backlog MRR" is a measure of contracted monthly recurring revenue (MRR) from customers that have not yet been provisioned. The Company believes backlog MRR is useful additional information as it provides an indication of future revenue. Backlog MRR is not a recognized measure under IFRS and may not translate into future revenue, and accordingly, investors are cautioned in using it. The Company calculates backlog MRR by summing the MRR of new customer contracts and upgrades that are signed but not yet provisioned, as at the end of the period. TeraGo's method of calculating backlog MRR may differ from other issuers and, accordingly, backlog MRR may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. ARPU - The term "ARPU" refers to the Company's average revenue per customer per month in the period. The Company believes that ARPU is useful supplemental information as it provides an indication of our revenue from an individual customer on a per month basis. ARPU is not a recognized measure under IFRS and, accordingly, investors are cautioned that ARPU should not be construed as an alternative to revenue determined in accordance with IFRS as an indicator of our financial performance. The Company calculates ARPU by dividing our total revenue before revenue from early terminations by the number of customers in service during the period and we express ARPU as a rate per month. TeraGo's method of calculating ARPU has changed from the Company's past disclosures to exclude revenue from early termination fees, where ARPU was previously calculated as revenue divided by the number of customers in service during the period. TeraGo's method may differ from other issuers, and accordingly, ARPU may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. Churn - The term "churn" or "churn rate" is a measure, expressed as a percentage, of customer cancellations in a particular month. The Company calculates churn by dividing the number of customer cancellations during a month by the total number of customers at the end of the month before cancellations. The information is presented as the average monthly churn rate during the period. The Company believes that the churn rate is useful supplemental information as it provides an indication of future revenue decline and is a measure of how well the business is able to renew and keep existing customers on their existing service offerings. Churn and churn rate are not recognized measures under IFRS and, accordingly, investors are cautioned in using it. TeraGo's method of calculating churn and churn rate may differ from other issuers and, accordingly, churn may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. About TeraGo

TeraGo owns a national spectrum portfolio of exclusive 24 GHz and 38 GHz wide-area spectrum licenses including 2,120 MHz of spectrum across Canada's 6 largest cities. TeraGo provides businesses across Canada with cloud, colocation and connectivity services. TeraGo manages over 3,000 cloud workloads, operates five data centres in the Greater Toronto Area, the Greater Vancouver Area, and Kelowna, and owns and manages its own IP network. The Company serves business customers in major markets across Canada including Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, Ottawa and Winnipeg. For more information about TeraGo, please visit www.terago.ca. Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain forward-looking statements that are made as of the date hereof. Such forward-looking statements may include but are not limited to statements regarding further developing our 5G Fixed Wireless Access program, facilitate strategic growth plan of becoming one of Canada's first 5G fixed wireless operators, being equipped to capitalize on growth opportunities, turning a corner on financial performance, enhancing product portfolio, expanding partnerships and Net Promoter Score and the 5G fixed wireless trials being conducted by the Company. All such statements constitute "forward-looking information" as defined under, applicable Canadian securities laws. Any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical facts constitute forward-looking information. The forward-looking statements reflect the Company's views with respect to future events and is subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including those risks set forth in the "Risk Factors" sections in the annual MD&A of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2020 and the MD&A of the Company for the three months ended March 31, 2021, each available on www.sedar.com under the Company's corporate profile. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially include the inability to complete successful 5G technical trials, the impacts and restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic are prolonged which may further delay customer trials and/or cause a negative impact on future financial results of the Company, TeraGo's Pandemic Response Plan may not mitigate all impacts of COVID-19, the results of the 5G trials not being satisfactory to TeraGo or any of its technology partners, regulatory requirements may delay or inhibit the trial, the economic viability of any potential services that may result from the trial, the ability for TeraGo to further finance and support any new market opportunities that may present itself, and industry competitors who may have superior technology or are quicker to take advantage of 5G technology. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as several factors could cause actual future results, conditions, actions or events to differ materially from the targets, expectations, estimates or intentions expressed with the forward-looking statements. Except as may be required by applicable Canadian securities laws, TeraGo does not intend, and disclaims any obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether in words, oral or written as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. SOURCE TeraGo Inc.

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NASHVILLE  An Illinois woman is charged with TennCare fraud for allegedly falsely reporting a Tennessee residence to obtain healthcare insurance benefits through the states TennCare program.

The Office of Inspector General (OIG), in a joint effort with the McMinn County, Tennessee sheriffs department today announced the arrest of Tonya Rhodes-Brown, 43, of Windsor, Illinois. She is charged with TennCare fraud and theft of services, which are each class D felonies. Investigators allege that by reporting a Tennessee address in documents filed with the state, TennCare paid more than $5,700.00 in fees and claims on behalf of Rhodes-Brown.

We truly value our partners in local law enforcement, Inspector General Kim Harmon said. Working together, we protect both state and federal tax dollars of Tennesseans by bringing to justice those who choose to abuse TennCare.

The case is being prosecuted by District Attorney General Stephen D. Crump of McMinn County.

The OIG, which is separate from TennCare, began full operation in February 2005 and has investigated more than 5,760 criminal cases leading to more than $10.8 million being repaid to TennCare, with a total estimated cost avoidance of more than $163.6 million for TennCare, according to latest figures. To date, 3,114 people have been charged with TennCare fraud. The TennCare program is supported by 35 percent state funds and 65 percent federal funds.

The OIGs most wanted for TennCare fraud are posted online at https://www.tn.gov/finance/fa-oig/fa-oig-most-wanted.html. Anyone with information about their whereabouts is urged to use the contact information on the page.

Through the OIG Cash for Tips Program established by the Legislature, Tennesseans can get cash rewards for TennCare fraud tips that lead to convictions. Anyone can report suspected TennCare fraud by calling 1-800-433-3982, toll-free or by logging on to www.tn.gov/oig/ and following the prompts that read Report TennCare fraud.
DeStefanis Failed to Pay Sales Tax on Vehicles Purchased by His Montana LLC

LEBANON, Tenn. - Christopher DeStefanis, 69, pleaded no contest to one count of attempted tax evasion in a Wilson County Criminal Court last week. Judge Brody Kane sentenced DeStefanis to 11 months and 29 days probation for attempted tax evasion. A restitution hearing was set for a later date.

DeStefanis, who was previously indicted by a Wilson County Grand Jury for tax evasion, violated Tennessee law by failing to pay sales tax on vehicles purchased by his Montana LLC, and signing a sworn affidavit that the vehicles would be removed from the state within three days of purchase.

The Department of Revenue has always been committed to making sure Tennessees tax laws and procedures are applied uniformly to ensure fairness, Revenue Commissioner David Gerregano said. We can never allow individuals engaged in fraudulent tax activity to not be held accountable."

We want Tennesseans to know that individuals cannot evade sales tax by falsifying registration documents and failing to register vehicles as the law requires, Special Investigations Director Tommy Sneed said. Tennessee citizens who engage in this type of activity will be held accountable.

The department pursued this criminal case in cooperation with District Attorney Jason Lawsons office. Citizens who suspect violations of Tennessee's revenue laws should call the toll-free tax fraud hot line at (800) FRAUDTX (372-8389).

The Department of Revenue is responsible for the administration of state tax laws and motor vehicle title and registration laws, and the collection of taxes and fees associated with those laws. The department collects around 87 percent of total state revenue. During the 2020 fiscal year, it collected $15.1 billion in state taxes and fees and more than $3.2 billion in taxes and fees for local governments. To learn more about the department, visit www.tn.gov/revenue.

###
Recently, the so-called Kansas City paper-of-record hits up readers for more cash with the promise to abandon journalistic objectivity and, instead, push a constantly evolving progressive narrative regarding the pandemic.



The main part of their pitch . . .



"Your support will help us strengthen our reporting on COVID-19, the vaccination campaign, and fight misinformation that will keep our community from getting back on its feet."



This is cringe-y stuff to watch JOURNALISTS beseech readers for cash in a manner that's far more brazen then any Instagram THOT who will at least have the decency to show a bit of skin rather than simply regurgitate content people already pay for via cable news punditry.

Real talk . . .

If folks MUST listen to pandemic lecturing both Anderson Cooper & Chris Cuomo are far more entertaining and even most conservatives admit that Rachel Maddow is an exceptionally smart dude.



One of the most KICK-ASS TKC readers sent this our way with a simple and elegant message . . .

"Now they are begging for donations. Sad."



Take a look . . .



You decide . . .
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 12:36:26|Editor: huaxia

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The State Council Information Office holds a press conference on the data of the seventh national population census in Beijing, capital of China, on May 11, 2021. (Xinhua/Cai Yang)

BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- China's population will stay above 1.4 billion "for a certain period in future," said Ning Jizhe, head of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), at a press conference on Tuesday.

"China's population will peak in future, but there remains uncertainty as to when specifically it will happen," Ning said.

Based on the demographical trend in recent years, China's population growth will continue to slow down, he said.

He noted that the growth will also be affected by such factors as the age structure, people's ideas on having children, government's population policies, the cost of childbearing and parenting, medical service and health conditions of the people.

China's population on the mainland reached 1.41178 billion, growing 0.53 percent annually on average in the past decade, according to data from the latest national census, conducted in 2020, released by the NBS on Tuesday.

The rate was slightly lower than the average annual growth of 0.57 percent from 2000 to 2010, according to the NBS.

"Data shows that China's population has continued to maintain slow growth in the past decade," Ning said. Enditem
Now that the old school institution is under the control of a private equity organization, they're probably correct to worry about more rigid demands.

HOWEVER, the reality is that dead-tree media is no longer vital to local democracy and a great deal of what the paper reports no longer drives the local conversation.

Still, here's the progressive and upbeat angle . . .
Uptick in local violence also impacts the other side of the state line.

Read more . . .

KANSAS CITY, KS (KCTV) -- The Kansas City, Kansas Police Department is investigating a double shooting that happened on Monday evening. According to the police, the shooting happened just after 6:30 p.m. in the area of N. 51st Street and Georgia Avenue. When officers arrived, they found multiple casings, as well as damaged homes and vehicles.
There's no greater evidence that rural Missouri conservatives absolutely despise Kansas City than a sketchy proposal to move cops out of town.



It's a horrible idea without absolutely no merit or incentive other than to worsen relations betwixt community and police.



The upside . . . There's anecdotal chatter about recruitment and the opportunity for police to send their youngsters to other school districts -- Both of these talking points have been quickly debunked.

To be fair, KCPS is a disaster but they're just one of MORE THAN A DOZEN SCHOOL DISTRICTS INSIDE KCMO.



Overall, this is a reactionary effort that seemingly hopes to aggravate what is already a tense relationship between police and the community they serve.

Read more . . .

Kansas City, Missouri, mayor among those opposed to KCPD residency requirement bill A bill to ban Kansas City's residency requirement for KCPD is set for a conference committee in front of lawmakers Tuesday morning in Jefferson City. It would still require personnel to live within 30 miles of the city limits and in Missouri.
The Jackson County Prosecutor "Mean" Jean Peters Baker has been in an all-out rhetorical war with the Kansas City Police Department for at least three years and during that time the KCMO homicide count has continued to escalate at a historic pace.

The latest chapter in the saga . . .

CRITICS CALL OUT AN EPIC "YELLOW SHEET" CASE DROP BY MEAN JEAN THAT FAILS TO PROSECUTE SUSPECTS AS KC VIOLENCE STARTS TO RAMP UP!!!



Accordingly . . .

Here is an EXCEPTIONALLY informed perspective and a glimpse at insiders frustrated with a progressive political agenda hampering law enforcement arrest efforts . . .

Jackson County Prosecutor "Yellow Sheeting" Cases

Last week, Jackson County Prosecutor's Office returned approximately 180 cases to the Kansas City Missouri Police Department in what is called a yellow sheet. A yellow sheet means the prosecutor's office declined to file charges on that case. These cases include crimes for possession of heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, property crimes such as stealing, burglary, among others. The reason most of these cases are not being prosecuted is because the Jackson County Prosecutor's Office has deemed those that the cases were against, posed no threat of violence and they do not pose a community concern.



So, hey Jackson County residents, how do you like Peters-Baker now? Or what her office is doing? Basically if you get caught with drugs or commit property crimes but don't have a violent record you can walk free with no consequences.



Let's not forget, Peters-Baker is the same Prosecutor who refused to charge an officer in a bad shooting back in 2016/2017 because she didn't feel she could get a conviction. Fast Forward to 2020/2021 she charges police officers for much less.



Developing . . .
To be fair, we're certain these officials had legitimate concerns and we don't question efforts to protect their safety.

However, over the long term we notice that elected officials seem more comfortable dealing with the public over social media and by way of Zoom calls that can easily be muted.

Read more . . .
@IsaacAvilucea on Twitter

Isaac Avilucea is The Trentonians main municipal scribe. A two-time prior restraint winner and testicular cancer survivor, he relishes his reputation as the "Mean Girls" reporter that followed his 18-day stay at the now-defunct North Adams Transcript.
Johnstown, PA (15901)

Today

Mostly cloudy this morning with showers developing this afternoon. High 81F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Mostly cloudy with showers and a few thunderstorms. Low 66F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 13:24:47|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, May 11 (Xinhua) -- India's COVID-19 tally rose to 22,992,517 on Tuesday after 329,942 new cases were registered in the past 24 hours, while active cases fell for the first time in a few weeks, said the federal health ministry.

Meanwhile, 3,876 COVID-19-related deaths took place since Monday morning, taking the total death toll to 249,992.

There are still 3,715,221 active cases in the country, down 30,016 from the previous day. A total of 19,027,304 people have been cured and discharged from hospitals so far across the country.

The COVID-19 figures continue to peak in the country, but the federal government has ruled out imposing a complete lockdown. Some states have imposed night curfews or partial lockdowns, while the capital Delhi has been put under a third successive lockdown till May 17.

So far, over 172 million vaccination doses have been administered in India since the country started the nationwide inoculation drive in January. The third phase of vaccination for people aged above 18 began on May 1.

Meanwhile, over 305 million COVID-19 tests have been conducted across the country till Monday, out of which 1,850,110 tests were conducted on Monday alone, according to the latest data issued by the Indian Council of Medical Research on Tuesday.

Principal Scientific Advisor to India's Federal Government K. Vijay Raghavan said earlier this month that a third wave of outbreak was "inevitable" in India given the higher levels of the circulating virus, though "it is not clear on what time scale this phase three will occur." Enditem
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Sponsored By: Dorsett Automotive
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 13:28:24|Editor: huaxia

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The State Council Information Office holds a press conference on the data of the seventh national population census in Beijing, capital of China, on May 11, 2021. (Xinhua/Cai Yang)

BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Gender ratio of China's mainland population continued to improve, with the male-to-female ratio hitting a record low of 105.07, according to the seventh national census data released Tuesday.

It was slightly down from 105.2 in 2010 when the sixth census was conducted and the most balanced gender ratio since the first census in 1953.

Of the 1.41178 billion people on the Chinese mainland, male population stood at 723.34 million, accounting for 51.24 percent, while female population came in at 688.44 million, making up 48.76 percent, according to data of the census released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Gender ratio at birth fell to 111.3 from the 2010 figure of 118.1, NBS data showed. Enditem
Canton, GA (30114)

Today

A few showers in the morning with thunderstorms developing for the afternoon. High around 80F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%..

Tonight

Considerable cloudiness with occasional rain showers. Low 69F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 13:45:29|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken from the Gaza Strip on May 10, 2021 shows rockets being fired toward Israel. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday expressed deep concern over the continuing violence in the region, urging Israel to "exercise maximum restraint."



JERUSALEM, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Israel carried out airstrikes against the Gaza Strip after rockets were fired Monday from the territory toward Jerusalem.

After hundreds of Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli police in East Jerusalem on Monday morning, Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, launched rocket attacks against Jerusalem in the afternoon.

The international community has voiced deep concerns over the surging tensions and violence in the region, calling on all sides to exercise maximum restraint and take immediate actions toward de-escalation.

Palestinian protesters gather around burning tires during an anti-Israel protest against the violence in Jerusalem, on the Gaza-Israel border in Khuza'a, east of southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, on May 9, 2021. (Photo by Yasser Qudih/Xinhua)

SOARING TENSIONS

An Israeli military spokesperson said in a statement that Israeli fighter jets struck an offensive tunnel belonging to Hamas. According to Israeli media, several militants inside the tunnel were killed in the attack.

The Israeli air force struck additional sites belonging to Hamas, including two rocket launchers and two military posts.

The Hamas-run health ministry in the Gaza Strip said in a statement that 20 people were killed, including nine children, and 65 others wounded on Monday evening in explosions in the town of Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza Strip.

However, the Hamas statement did not explicitly blame Israeli airstrikes for the deaths.

The sharp escalation began at 6 p.m. local time (1500 GMT) after Hamas set an ultimatum for Israel to withdraw its forces from the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem, where Israeli police injured hundreds of Palestinians in clashes earlier on Monday.

After the deadline, Hamas launched seven rockets at Jerusalem, said the Israeli army, adding over 100 rockets have been fired against southern Israel.

Palestinian protesters are seen at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem on May 10, 2021. (Photo by Muammar Awad/Xinhua)

CONTROVERSIAL EVICTION PLAN

Confrontations at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City have been intensified following a court ruling that tried to evict several Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem.

With tensions running high, the Israeli Justice Ministry said on Sunday that it would postpone a court hearing over the possible eviction in Sheikh Jarrah.

"In light of all the circumstances and the attorney general's request, the regular hearing for tomorrow, May 10, 2021 (is) cancelled," it said in a statement, adding that a new hearing would be scheduled within 30 days.

Earlier this year, a district court ruled in favour of Jewish settlers who claimed the property of land in the Sheikh Jarrah district. The decision was seen by Palestinians as part of an Israeli campaign to drive them from traditional Arab neighborhoods.

The Israeli government has downplayed the Sheikh Jarrah controversy and denied any government's involvement in the dispute. The Israeli Foreign Ministry said on Friday that it was a "real estate dispute between private parties."

In the 1967 Six-Day War, East Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza Strip, was captured by Israel. The Palestinian people seek all three areas for a future state, with East Jerusalem as their capital.

Israeli police arrest a Palestinian protester near the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem on May 10, 2021. (JINI via Xinhua)

CALL FOR DE-ESCALATION

The rising tensions between the two sides have drawn concerns from the international community, which is calling for an immediate de-escalation.

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, on Monday expounded China's position on the situation in East Jerusalem during emergency closed-door consultations of the Security Council, according to the Chinese mission.

China is deeply concerned about the escalating tensions and violence in East Jerusalem. The serious clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians in the past days are disturbing. China condemns the violence against civilians, calls on all sides to exercise restraint and refrain from provocative actions and rhetoric, and encourages immediate actions toward de-escalation, said Zhang.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday urged all sides to de-escalate Israeli-Palestinian clashes while recognizing Israel's right to self-defense in the face of rocket attacks.

"We're very focused on the situation in Israel, West Bank, Gaza, very deeply concerned about the rocket attacks ... that need to stop and need to stop immediately," Blinken said.

A Palestinian man mourns his relatives who were killed in an Israeli airstrike at a hospital morgue in the northern Gaza Strip, on May 10, 2021. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

Blinken welcomed Israel's decision to reroute an annual nationalist flag parade and postpone the decision on the eviction of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem.

"It's imperative that all sides take steps to de-escalate and calm the situation," he stressed.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday expressed deep concern over the continuing violence in the region, urging Israel to "exercise maximum restraint."

"Israeli authorities must exercise maximum restraint and respect the right to freedom of peaceful assembly. All leaders have a responsibility to act against extremists and to speak out against all acts of violence and incitement," Guterres said in a statement.

Middle East countries, including Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, and Iran, as well as the Arab League, have condemned the Israeli actions against the Palestinian people in East Jerusalem. 
Compliance Training Market For Financial Institutions Market In US- Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists LLC, Bank Administration Institute, Edcomm Inc., among others to contribute to the market growth
TRUMBULL  Three major building projects, enhanced education and emergency response departments, and a low tax rate were the highlights of an ambitious agenda laid out by First Selectman Vicki Tesoro Monday night as she announced her candidacy for a third term in office.

Tesoro, a Democrat, said the town has made strides in the previous four years, but there is still work to do.

We have unfinished business and we have the team to get it done, Tesoro said while joined by Treasurer Anthony Musto and Town Clerk Mary Markham, who are also seeking re-election. We have a great team who have earned another term.

Tesoro dedicated the bulk of her announcement speech to recounting the previous four years, and contrasting them with the four years before that when Trumbull was under Republican control. She pointed out that the average tax increase over the past four years has been about 1.5 percent.

Our opponents said, if elected, we would drastically raise taxes. We said we would keep taxes in check, and we did. And we did it better than they did, she said. The average tax increase in our four years in office is 1.5 percent increase, while their last four years averaged 2.3 percent.

The town also had no tax increase last year, she said.

This decision did not come without sacrifices, but it was the right thing to do, she said.

Tesoro also touted her support for schools.

In our four years, we will have provided an additional $12 million in school funding, she said. In their last 4 years they provided $7.5 million.

Other accomplishments Tesoro mentioned included a decision to return the 21-member town council to seven districts with three members from each district. Currently the council is divided into four districts, with District 4 about 20 percent larger than the other three districts.

The change will reduce the potential majority any party can hold to 14-7 from the current 17-4. This can be important because several council actions, such as overriding vetoes and approving some commission appointments, require two-thirds majorities.

As a matter of principle, we said that a government that is balanced, and where all points of view are represented, is far better than one sided government, no matter who is in the majority, Tesoro said. I cannot recall where any political party, with the kind of super-majority we enjoy, willingly gave up seats to the opposition. We did it because it is the right thing to do for our community.

Trumbull Republican Chairman Chris Bandecchi issued a brief statement on behalf of the local GOP, congratulating Tesoro on entering the 2021 race, and promising a spirited fall campaign.

The Trumbull GOP will field a qualified and diverse slate of candidates who will provide strong leadership and clear direction to the town by focusing on local issues that really matter to Trumbull voters, he said. We look forward to discussing Vickis proposed budget and record with Trumbull residents.

In particular, Bandecchi said the party would focus on a fully funded education system; a balanced budget without the use of one time gimmicks and funding cliffs that will result in significant future tax increases; and keeping Trumbull residents safe.

Should she win a third term, Tesoro said she hoped to restart work on a new senior center and aquatics center, and continue to advance the Veterans and First Responders Center recently approved by the town council.

We may not be able to do everything but we should do the work so our citizens have the information they need to make good decisions, she said.

She also committed to continued investment in schools and emergency services, and promised to keep taxes stable. Her vision of Trumbull is that of a safe, fiscally conservative community with a strong school system. She also specifically mentioned that Trumbull should be a community that welcomes all and cited the recent influx of new residents as evidence of solid leadership.

There are plenty of communities from which to choose, but these people chose Trumbull, she said.

deng@trumbulltimes.com
Tullahoma, TN (37388)

Today

Cloudy skies this morning followed by thunderstorms during the afternoon. High 81F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

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Variable clouds with showers and scattered thunderstorms. Low 68F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.
A Rio Claro farmer will be giving away bags of cassava, over the weekend.

It's for people struggling to feed their families.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 14:14:13|Editor: huaxia

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People wave Palestine flags and shout slogans during a rally supporting Palestine, in Rabat, Morocco, on May 10, 2021. Hundreds of demonstrators on Monday voiced their solidarity with the Palestinian people. (Xinhua)
Finance Minister Colm Imbert defended the Government's decision to increase expenditure for fiscal 2021 by $2.9 billion. The Minister also touched on relief grants, the energy sector and revealed supplementation of $267 million for the Ministry of Health.

We were joined by Dr. Roger Hosein- Economist and Mariano Browne Economist & Former Gov't Minister.
Humanitarian aid is facing a budget problem. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCH) 2020 report on aid requirements included a staggering $28.8 billion funding request[1]. There is a massive funding gap, with only $15.96 billion received of its $29.7 billion request last year.

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Instead of struggling and failing to meet these rising humanitarian aid costs year after year, we need to rethink how we approach disaster response, targeting the root causes of disaster rather than responding to the disaster after the fact with humanitarian relief. Studies show that every $1 spent on disaster risk reduction and prevention can save $15 in post-disaster recovery efforts[2]. Despite this, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) received less than $36 million in funding 2019, just .2% of UNOCH funding for the same year. The lack of attention paid to disaster prevention is driving a long-term increase in humanitarian relief needs.

The locust swarms terrorizing the Horn of Africa and Yemen this year illustrate this problem. The region has been experiencing historic swarms: Kenyas worst in 70 years and the worst for Ethiopia and Somalia in 25 years[3]. The impacts of these swarms can be devastating: A swarm measuring just 1km2 can eat the same amount as 35,000 people daily. In February, local Kenyan news reported a swarm of 2400km2.

These swarms exacerbate already alarming levels of food insecurity in the region, with over 27 million people in East Africa classified as Crisis level or worse[4], along with another 3.2 million of this designation in Yemen[5]. The combination of these factors will lead to a spike in emergency humanitarian relief costs, but more importantly in the loss of countless lives.

The economic costs of waiting until disaster strikes are stark: In West Africa and the Sahel region, which is at high risk of swarm spreads but not currently in crisis, the UN Food and Agricultural Organization has estimated a $50-70 million requirement to curb the spread of locusts, safeguard livelihoods, and build coordination and preparedness in 20204. For the same efforts in the Horn of Africa and Yemen region, that required amount has risen to over $231 million. These costs do not include that of crop and livestock loss, nor the wider economic impacts of population loss and rising agricultural prices on the world market. While the World Bank has estimated that potential damage to crops and livestock could reach $8.5 billion[6], there is in general a dearth of hard data on the levels of destruction, direct or indirect, being caused by these locust swarms.

It doesnt have to be this way. By February 2020, the FAO had only received $52 million after its appeal for $138 million to deal with the locust problem.[7] If organizations and donors focus their efforts on adequately funding disaster prevention measures, they will have to spend far less on humanitarian aid in the future. Emphasis needs to be placed on disaster-prevention research as well. The only current viable means of locust prevention involves the use of pesticides, which themselves have a myriad of negative environmental and human impacts[8]. Further funding of research into alternative prevention methods such as biological control could more efficiently manage locust populations while lessening the need for harmful pesticides. This need for disaster prevention research is applicable to a wide variety of issues, not just locus swarms. Finally, sufficiently funded mechanisms to gather data, provide early warnings, and facilitate cooperation across borders are crucial to managing problems before they devolve into disaster. The lack of precise information about the sizes of locust swarms and the damage they are causing makes it even more difficult to deal with the disaster.

Humanitarian aid will always have an important role to play. Given the massive funding gap for humanitarian aid and the unlikeliness of new consistent funding sources, however, we need to pursue alternative ways to close that gap. Funneling time and investment toward disaster prevention and research can achieve that goal.

Bibliography

Appeal for More Funds to Control Locusts. BBC News, February 26, 2020, sec. Africa. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51561719.

Brader, L, H Djibo, F G Faye, S Ghaout, M Lazar, P N Luzietoso, and M A Ould Babah. Towards a More Effective Response to Desert Locusts and Their Impacts on Food Security, Livelihoods and Poverty Multilateral Evaluation of the 200305 Desert Locust Campaign, n.d., 96.

Desert Locust Upsurge | Global Response Plan, JanuaryDecember 2020, n.d., 16.

Funding. Accessed October 16, 2020. https://www.undrr.org/about-undrr/funding.

GHO-2020_Abridged_EN.Pdf. Accessed October 16, 2020. https://www.unocha.org/sites/unocha/files/GHO-2020_Abridged_EN.pdf.

Team, Visual Journalism. How a Single Locust Becomes a Plague. BBC News. Accessed October 16, 2020. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-84994842-8967-4dfd-9490-10f805de9f68.

World Bank. The Locust Crisis: The World Banks Response. Text/HTML. Accessed October 17, 2020. https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/factsheet/2020/04/27/the-locust-crisis-the-world-banks-response.

ReliefWeb. Yemen: Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Snapshot (February - December 2020) (Issued July 2020) - Yemen. Accessed October 16, 2020. https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-integrated-food-security-phase-classification-snapshot-february-december-2020.

[1] GHO-2020_Abridged_EN.Pdf, 2, accessed October 16, 2020, https://www.unocha.org/sites/unocha/files/GHO-2020_Abridged_EN.pdf.

[2] Funding, accessed October 16, 2020, https://www.undrr.org/about-undrr/funding.

[3] Visual Journalism Team, How a Single Locust Becomes a Plague, BBC News, accessed October 16, 2020, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-84994842-8967-4dfd-9490-10f805de9f68.

[4] Desert Locust Upsurge | Global Response Plan, JanuaryDecember 2020, n.d., 16.

[5] Yemen: Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Snapshot (February - December 2020) (Issued July 2020) - Yemen, ReliefWeb, accessed October 16, 2020, https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-integrated-food-security-phase-classification-snapshot-february-december-2020.

[6] The Locust Crisis: The World Banks Response, Text/HTML, World Bank, accessed October 17, 2020, https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/factsheet/2020/04/27/the-locust-crisis-the-world-banks-response.

[7] Appeal for More Funds to Control Locusts, BBC News, February 26, 2020, sec. Africa, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51561719.

[8] L Brader et al., Towards a More Effective Response to Desert Locusts and Their Impacts on Food Security, Livelihoods and Poverty Multilateral Evaluation of the 200305 Desert Locust Campaign, n.d., 96.
I will start this paper with an explanation of who the Rohingya are as a nationality, I will then discuss what the humanitarian crisis is and how it began, I will then discuss some of the NGOs that are assisting in this crisis and some of the ways they are helping, then I will come to a conclusion with the effectiveness of the handling of this crisis by those who are in positions of authority.

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Rohingya roots are traced back as far as the fifteenth century when the region was known as the Arakan Kingdom. During and after the early twentieth century, starting with the period that Rakhine was governed by colonial rule as part of British India and even sine while the country was known as Burma, the Rohingya have been treated quite unfairly. As an ethnic minority Muslim society, the Rohingya, practice a Sufi-inflected variation of Sunni Islam. Although they were not living un harassed, before August of 2017, an estimated one million Rohingya were living in the Rakhine State, where they accounted for nearly a third of the population. They differ from Myanmars dominant Buddhist groups ethnically, linguistically, and religiously.

Deadly clashes, since 2012, that have occurred between Buddhists and minority Muslims in Rakhine State have driven hundreds of thousands of families from their homes. However, an estimated number of 100,000 and more are surviving in camps on the outskirts of Sittwe, which happens to be the state capital. Not surprising most of these people are Muslims who call themselves Rohingya. According to reports from the UN there is evidence that they discovered that Myanmars military engages in incitement to religious intolerance, including summary executions, enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions and torture. (euronews 2017) Going back as far as the late 1970s discriminatory policies of the Myanmars government has been guilty of forcing hundreds of thousands of Muslim Rohingya to escape the injustices and persecutions and flee from the predominantly Buddhist country. Many travelled by land into Bangladesh although others travelled by sea fixated on the destinations of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand.

In August of 2017 the Rohingya crisis really began, the equipped Myanmar military unleashed what was referred to as a clearance campaign in the Rakhine State this assault was in response to a raid by a Rohingya insurgent group that was immediately labeled as terrorist. The affects of these military strikes led to an evacuation of the Rohingya to Bangladesh and to complaints that security forces had committed mass rapes and killings and burned thousands of homes. The security forces of Myanmar asserted they were carrying out a crusade to reinstate stability in the countrys western region. However even with this assertion, the United Nations observed that the Myanmar forces exhibited genocidal intent, and at that time the international pressure on the countrys elected leaders to end the tyranny continues to rise among other countries and NGOs.

The security forces of Myanmar have been accused of killings, rape and torture against the Rohingya. Even with these allegations the Myanmar civilian government still fought against any fact-finding mission that were requested by the UN and at the same time the government also denied journalist and more importantly aid groups to Rakhine. This humanitarian crisis created because of the violence that flare up in August of 2017, had evolved into an atrocity, by May of 2018 there were more than 900,000 refugees that had immigrated to Coxs Bazar. The atrocity wasnt just the number of refugees, but also the fact that it became the fastest increasing refugee crisis in the world forcing this area in Bangladesh to become one of the densest areas in the world with mostly traumatized women and children.

More than two years after the ferocious acts of violence, there are more than 740,000 Rohingya that have been forced to flee the country of Myanmar, but more horrible than this is the fact that almost one million men, women, and children are living in perilous conditions in Bangladesh in what is considered the worlds largest refugee camp. The International Rescue Committee and other international aid organizations working in Rakhine have strongly denounced the continuing violence and encouraged unrestricted access to safely deliver lifesaving essential services in all affected communities. The IRC is one of the largest health care providers in Rakhine, now offering more than just health care the IRC expanded their services to include reproductive healthcare, hygiene services, clean water, and protection of female members. Another NGO that is working tirelessly in Myanmar is Save the Children, they work with UNICEF on the Myanmar Education in Emergencies Sector to address the education component of the humanitarian crisis affecting the Rohingya, but only in Myanmar. Malnutrition is a terrible problem especially for children and unfortunately it is getting worse, sixty percent of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh are children. More troubling than this statistic, according to the United Nations Children Fund, Unicef, about twenty-one percent of children below age five will suffer from malnutrition despite the humanitarian aid that they provide. The last NGO that I will talk about is Doctors Without Borders. The Doctors Without Borders different teams conducted more than 1.3 million medical consultations between August of 2017 and June of 2019 while they are ongoing with their treatment of ten of thousands a month. These teams are also in addition working to improve water and sanitary services while they are also making 193 million liters of chlorinated water available to around 78,000 people who didnt have it.

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It could be argued that the Rohingya people are one of the most persecuted minority groups in the world. In a move that many around the world thought to be correct, The United Nations General Assembly approved a resolution that strongly condemned Rohingya Muslims rights abuses along with other minority groups in Myanmar, including arbitrary arrests, torture, rape and deaths in detention.

The General Assembly also went as far as to approve a resolution, which also calls on Myanmars government to take pressing measures to tackle incitement of hatred against the Rohingya and other minorities in the states of Rakhine, Kachin and Shan. Although, General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, they do often reflect the opinion of the world. The sad commentary and where I feel that the international community totally missed the mark is because even though there has been widespread condemnation of the Myanmar government's actions there have been no actions to sanction the country even in the instance where the UN Security Council placed an appeal to Myanmar to stop the violence still no sanctions were imposed. I believe that there will be no foreseeable solution for the plight of the Rohingya, first because any workable resolution to the Rohingya crisis will require speak to the root causes of the crisis, which would have to include acknowledgement of Rohingya citizenship in Myanmar and of the basic rights of the Rohingya people. These are steps that must be taken by the authorities in Myanmar. The international communities will also have to hold the military of Myanmar responsible for their actions and the government will have to allow the UN the ability to check on the city of Rakhine.

Work Cited:
According to the data of the Security Service of Ukraine, the combat and numerical strength of the Russian strike group on the border with Ukraine is about 100,000 troops now.

To date, the combat and numerical strength of the strike group of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, which is deployed along the border of Ukraine and in the occupied territory of Crimea, reaches about 100,000 people. These are tanks, warplanes, ships, battalion tactical groups, and groups of missile troops and artillery, Chief of the Security Service of Ukraine Ivan Bakanov said during the All-Ukrainian Forum Ukraine 30. National Security, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

He stressed that Russia used Ukraine as a testing ground in the implementation of some kind of its incredible plans.

According to the SBU chief, the situation has somewhat stabilized, but it is necessary to realize that Russia has withdrawn only part of the army, the threat has not disappeared.

Bakanov also noted that one should not forget about Belarus, which is a potential ally of Russia if Russia implements a plan to invade Ukraine. According to him, this is evidenced by the recent joint exercises by Belarus and Russia.

According to the chief of the Security Service of Ukraine, 65 percent of the Ukrainian border is vulnerable, and the remaining 35 percent in the western direction also require close attention. After all, the Russian Federation actively feeds and uses nationalist movements in these countries to influence the situation in Ukraine. The example of Hungary clearly proves this," Bakanov said.

As reported, Russia announced the withdrawal of its troops from Ukraines borders under the pretext of successful completion of exercises, but at the same time leaves its military presence and technical equipment near Ukraines borders and in the temporarily occupied territories of eastern Ukraine and Crimea.

Earlier, the Russian Federation amassed a group of about 110,000 troops near the eastern borders of Ukraine and in the occupied Crimea, raising concerns of the Ukrainian authorities and Western partners.

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In April 2021, the Ukrainian State Air Traffic Services Enterprise (UkSATSE) provided air navigation services to 13,661 flights, UkSATSE wrote on Facebook.

In April 2021, the number of flights increased by 476.4% compared to April 2020, when quarantine restrictions were in force in Ukraine and civil aviation flights were suspended.

"However, the comparison with the corresponding period of the pre-crisis 2019 shows realistic dynamics - air traffic this April is 43.4% lower," the company said.

Thus, Ukrainian airlines performed 5,062 flights (down 40.8% than in the pre-crisis April 2019), foreign airlines - 8,599 flights (down 44.9%).

Air traffic distribution by flight types in April 2021 was as follows: 1,945 domestic flights (24.6% less than in April 2019), 6,875 international flights (46.1% less), and 4,841 transit flights (45% less).

As Ukrinform reported, in March 2020, Ukraine suspended air services due to coronavirus lockdown. Ukraine resumed domestic flights on June 5, 2020, international flights on June 15, 2020.

The number of flights in the Ukrainian airspace in 2020 amounted to 142,047 flights in 2020, which is 57.6% less than in 2019.

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Ukraines strategic goal is to acquire full-fledged membership in the European Union and NATO.

"The strategic goal of the state is to acquire full-fledged membership of Ukraine in the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. We must also ensure strengthening special partnership with NATO and acquiring full membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization," President Volodymyr Zelensky said during the All-Ukrainian Forum "Ukraine 30. National Security", an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

For this purpose, it is planned to achieve sufficient interoperability of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other components of the security and defense sector with the relevant structures of the Allies in the shortest possible time and to receive an invitation to NATO MAP, Zelensky added.

On Monday, a virtual summit of the Bucharest Nine, a group of the easternmost members of NATO  Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Bulgaria  was held.

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Ukraine does not want a war, yet continues to increase its combat potential to have a powerful and capable army.

"We continue to deter Russian aggression and increase our combat potential. Like any civilized country, Ukraine does not want a war, but for peace, as paradoxical as it may sound, it must have a powerful and capable army. After all, it is a guarantee of stability, a guarantee of peace, and that no one will think of taking something from our state easily and without a single shot," President Volodymyr Zelensky said during the All-Ukrainian Forum "Ukraine 30. National Security", the press service of the Head of State informs.

He noted that the National Security and Defense Strategy of Ukraine had been approved in September 2020. The Strategy is based on the highest social values: a person, human life, health, honor, dignity, inviolability and security, and the highest priority of the state is to restore peace, territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine within internationally recognized borders.

According to the Head of State, the strategy is based on three main principles: containment, resilience and interaction, on which Ukraine's efforts and resources are focused.

The President stressed that strengthening defense and security capabilities, international support, political, economic and legal pressure on the aggressor were among the priorities of the National Security Strategy.

Zelensky also announced the finalization of the Concept of National Resilience System, which provides for the fulfillment of the basic requirements of NATO, in particular regarding the continuity of governance and the provision of critical public services, sustainable energy supply, effective response to the uncontrolled movement of a large number of people; sustainable resources for water and food supply; reaction to mass losses; sustainable systems of civil communication and civil transport.

"To be effective and achieve these goals, we have a close cooperation with the NATO Mission to Ukraine," the President said.

"We are completing the development of other strategic planning documents on energy, information, environmental, economic, foreign policy and cyber security of Ukraine," he added.

On September 14, 2020, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree to enact the decision of the National Security and Defense Council and endorse the National Security Strategy of Ukraine.

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The European Union is learning from Ukraine not only how to withstand Russia militarily, but also how to counter disinformation campaigns and cyberattacks, EU Ambassador to Ukraine Matti Maasikas has said.

He stated this at the forum "Ukraine 30. National Security" in Kyiv on Tuesday, May 11, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

Maasikas noted that international support for Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within internationally recognized borders was strong and that it was based on shared fundamentals principles, the European security order and international law.

"Our cooperation, between the EU and Ukraine, is not a one-way street. It's not the EU assisting [Ukraine] and Ukraine receiving this assistance. [] The EU stands to learn from Ukraine as well, from Ukrainian experience, not only on the war itself, but how to withstand hybrid aggression, disinformation campaigns that are constant, ongoing, and cyberattacks. It is no coincidence that Ukraine is among only six countries in the world with which the European Union has a thorough cybersecurity dialogue," Maasikas said.

He added that the EU was doing its utmost to support Ukraine at the economic and political level. In this context, the diplomat recalled that the European Union had linked its policy towards Russia to the implementation of the Minsk agreements by Russia and added that the sanctions would remain in place until Russia fully implements the agreements.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 14:19:02|Editor: huaxia

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BOGOTA, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Colombian President Ivan Duque on Monday warned that protests could lead to a rise in COVID-19 cases, shortly before sitting down to talks with members of the National Strike Committee in a bid to end days of chaos.

"We have seen an increase in movement in many parts of the country, with much interaction between citizens in recent days amid a third peak (in infections), and I must send the message that we must all take care of ourselves," Duque said at the government headquarters.

"This call to take care is important because the pandemic is not over," he said, with a worry over "the ability to respond at the ICUs" as the demonstrations could result in more infections.

The Ministry of Health on Monday reported a total of 3,015,301 COVID-19 infections in the past 14 months and 78,342 deaths from the disease.

Colombian demonstrators began to take to the street at the end of last month against proposed tax reforms and deteriorating living conditions of some workers. Enditem
Ukraine expects to receive 20 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in 2021, Minister of Health Maksym Stepanov has said.

Due to the efforts of the Ministry of Health, with the full support of President Volodymyr Zelensky, we have managed to double the supplies of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine this calendar year. That is, instead of 10 million doses, we will receive 20 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine in 2021, Stepanov said at a briefing, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

According to Stepanov, in total, the Ministry of Health has contracted 42 million doses of vaccines to be delivered in 2021. This is 8 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine under the COVAX Facility, 32 million doses under direct contracts between manufacturers and Ukraine. Of these, 20 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, 10 million doses of the U.S. Novavax vaccine, which will be produced at the Serum Institute of India, the AstraZeneca vaccine under direct contracts and the COVAX Facility, and the Chinese Sinovac's CoronaVac vaccine.

Stepanov stressed that this amount of COVID-19 vaccines will be enough to vaccinate the majority of the adult population of Ukraine in 2021. However, according to the minister, the government intends to increase the supplies of coronavirus vaccines up to 48 million doses for the vaccination of 70% of the adult population of Ukraine

He reminded that the Ukraine and the Serum Institute of India reached an agreement to increase the supplies of COVID-19 vaccine from 10 to 15 million doses, as well as an agreement with Sinovac to increase the supply of CoronaVac vaccine.

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05/10/2021

By Ed Brennen

Photo by TEC During a public forum on the Pawtucket Greenway project last semester, TEC officials shared this rendering of the proposed shared path for pedestrians and bicyclists.

Photo by Ed Brennen Graduate student Jenna Howard says the Pawtucket Greenway project is the "most meaningful work I've done."

Its a challenge that has befuddled campus planners for years: How to make the half-mile stretch of Pawtucket Street that connects South Campus to the rest of the university more inviting for pedestrians and bicyclists.A UMass Lowell student is hard at work on a solution.Jenna Howard 19, a part-timegraduate student, also works full time as a transportation infrastructure designer for a local civil engineering firm called The Engineering Corp (TEC). Last year, the university hired TEC to design the  Pawtucket Greenway , thanks to a $57,000 MassTrails grant from the states Department of Conservation and Recreation.Howard, who joined TEC in 2019 after completing her bachelors degree in civil engineering , is leading the project design.Its so exciting to be a part of this, the Newton, Massachusetts, native says. UMass Lowell has empowered me with this education, and its such an honor to be able to give back to the university in this way.A collaboration between UML and city of Lowell, the goal of the Pawtucket Greenway project is to create a consistent, shared path for pedestrians and bicyclists from Wilder Street on South Campus to Aiken Street on East Campus. It is a key component of UMLsWhile some sections of the corridor are wide enough to provide ample separation between a shared path and cars, other areas are more narrow and confined by private residences, retail storefronts and historic features such as granite walls and cast iron fences.There are a few pinch points, especially during peak-hour traffic at the Salem Street and School Street intersections, Howard says. Were working on improving those traffic conditions and also maximizing the sidewalk on either side to hopefully get people out of their cars and onto these paths.Howard knows the campus streets as well as anyone. While an undergraduate student, she drove campus shuttle busses for two years forI was super familiar with Pawtucket Street and some of the traffic and transportation issues, driving it myself all the time, she says. Living on campus for three years, it was essentially my home.Howard transferred to UML from MassBay Community College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, where she searched for an academic lane that was right for her.I studied law, psychology, business, trying to figure out what I wanted to do, she says.She discovered she liked her math courses and was encouraged by several of her female faculty members to pursue the STEM fields.They pulled me outside of class and said, Hey, you need to do something in STEM. Youre good at this, Howard recalls. I felt like that was a sign, especially with the lack of women  and women of color, in particular  in STEM fields. I really wanted to see if I could be a part of the change that we hope to see.In the Francis College of Engineering , Howard has found similar mentorship from Civil and Environment Engineering Asst. Prof.She teaches traffic courses, and she has been very inspirational to me as a woman and engineer, says Howard, who gave presentations about her Pawtucket Greenway work to two transportation engineering graduate classes this spring.I thought it would be cool to share what were doing with students and give them that real-life application, she says.Howard has worked with Lowell Department of Public Works Commissioner  and fellow civil engineering alum 06 on the project, as well as Adam Baacke , UMLs executive director of planning, design and construction.The Pawtucket Greenway is a project that is very important to the university, and also a tremendous opportunity for the city, Baacke said during a virtual public forum about the project last semester. Its a complicated exercise that involves a lot of different partners  the university cant just address this by itself  and weve been really pleased by the degree to which the city has embraced this idea.Howard, who is based out of TECs Andover, Massachusetts, office, is currently working on the conceptual design phase of the project, which is scheduled to be completed in June. From there, the university and city will petition the Massachusetts Department of Transportation to initiate a state or federally funded construction project.While tangible results are probably several years away, Howard is happy to apply what she has learned  and is still learning  to help improve life on campus.Its truly been incredible, she says. This has been the most meaningful work Ive done.
MISSOULA  Noah Grabe and Taylor Gregory met on the second floor of Knowles Hall at the University of Montana their freshman year.

They made a connection over a shared passion for the outdoors, international diplomacy and an interest in the humanities. Both had enrolled in UMs Davidson Honors College.

Fast forward four years, with a global pandemic in between, and the two friends are preparing to embark on an adventure they never imagined: serving for eight months as Fulbright Fellows in Madrid through the Fulbright English Teaching Assistant Program beginning in September 2021.

Receiving a Fulbright fellowship is a prestigious distinction alone. Grabe and Gregory each individually receiving a Fulbright award  from the same institution to the same country to the same city  is rarer. Their awards bring UMs total Fulbright Fellows to 107. On any given year, there are about 2,000 Fulbright scholarships awarded to U.S. students, with an acceptance rate of about 23%, all depending on the number of applicants for a certain country.

Its very uncommon for two students from the same university to be placed in the same country, in the same city, for the same award, said Kylla Benes, UM director of prestigious scholarships and fellowships. Noah and Taylor will have a wonderful opportunity to support each other as they work as English teaching assistants and explore Madrid. I am proud to have them represent the University and the state of Montana as Fulbrighters abroad.

Grabe, from Portland and Gregory, from Lolo, will graduate from UM in May. Having both majored in political science and international relations and serving as officers in Montana Model United Nations, the friends created individual academic paths that converged throughout their time as Grizzlies.

Im still kind of bewildered about it all, Grabe said. There are so few placements in each country, and to have two placements in the same place, both from UM, is amazing. If you told me my college experience would culminate with an experience like this, I never would have believed it.

Grabe and Gregory both interned at UMs Education Abroad office, studied overseas opposite semesters (Gregory in Brussels and Grabe in Barcelona, though his time was cut short by the pandemic last year) and visited New York together for a Model UN competition. Both also found themselves spending years in UM Spanish language and Latin American history classes. Grabe describes former UM Spanish instructor Caroline Lonski as one of the absolute best language teachers Ive ever had, with really high expectations.

Gregory leaned into advocating for students, eventually becoming president of the Associated Students of UM. He minored in European studies, completed UMs Franke Global Leadership Initiative and focused on increasing internationalization at UM.

There are so many incredible paths to take at UM, Gregory said. For me, I didnt know I would fall in love with higher education and develop a passion for understanding how to make education more accessible and affordable. I know the Fulbright in Spain will provide a deeper opportunity to understand another countrys education system. And its even better that I get to share that experience with my friend.

Grabe developed an appreciation and curiosity of foreign cultures after taking UM communication Professor Stephen Yoshimuras faculty-led study abroad class on human strength and virtue, which took the class across central Europe. The popular class is housed in the Department of Communication Studies in UMs College of Humanities & Sciences. Grabe said he eventually wants to work for UNESCO helping craft international policy.

Gregory and Grabe  without knowing it  even shared similar sentiments in their induvial application essays for the Fulbright, informed by the rich experiences UM offered, they said.

Its true what everyone says, said Grabe. A UM education is exactly what you make of it. You get back what you put into it, and Im thrilled about this next step.

The Fulbright Program provides U.S. students an opportunity to study, conduct research or teach English abroad. The legacy of the Fulbright includes a mission to fund the promotion of international good will through the exchange of students in the fields of education, culture and science.

That goal is particularly meaningful for both Grabe and Gregory, who plan to fully absorb the Spanish language and culture through a lens of collaboration.

Im most interested in embracing the role of teaching assistant after being a UM student, so that I can understand education from that point of view, Gregory said.

Grabe said he wants to embody a positive representation of an American abroad.

Another shared value between the friends is a deep sense of gratitude for UM faculty who were too many to name for their expertise and guidance that both say is a cornerstone to their academic success and personal growth.

In particular, both wish to thank Eva-Maria Maggi, visiting assistant professor in the Department of Political Science, and Karen Adams, professor of political science, for their incredible amount of mentorship and support. Both students also wish to thank Tim Nichols, dean of the UM Davidson Honors College, for being one of the most caring and energizing people Ive met, Grabe said. Finally, both students wish to thank UM Education Abroad Coordinator Marja Unkuri-Chaudhry for inspiring their journey in international education.

Before both friends depart UM and begin to close this chapter in their lives, they plan to hike the M Trail once more, visit Big Dipper Ice Cream and pick up authentic Montana huckleberry gifts for their host families in Madrid.



Im really glad that I focused on my journey at UM, not just the destination, Gregory said. If you focus too much on the end-result, you miss the beauty of the process.

###

Contact: Kylla Benes, UM director of prestigious scholarships, 406-243-5241, kylla.benes@umontana.edu.
MISSOULA  Three University of Montana rising seniors were named as national finalists for the prestigious Truman Scholarship, the nations premier graduate fellowship for those pursuing careers as public service leaders.

UM undergraduate students Gold Moua, from Frenchtown, Lindsey Roosa, from Missoula, and Augusta Reinhart from Bozeman are among a small percentage of U.S. students who were selected as Truman Scholarship finalists.

Each found a distinct academic path at UM and all share a robust and dedicated passion for civic service, international diplomacy and social equity.

Kylla Benes, UM director of prestigious scholarships and fellowships, said being named a Truman finalist is an impressive and significant mark in a young life.

Gold, Augusta and Lindsey should each feel extremely proud of being named a Truman finalist, more so for their impressive academic careers at UM and their dedication to change the world for the better, Benes said. Each represent the best of UM and each of these young women will contribute a meaningful and needed impact on improving lives across the world.

Awarding up to three years of graduate education and an award of $30,000, the Truman Scholarship is a highly competitive national scholarship. The Truman Foundation receives more than 600 applications for about 55 to 65 scholarships annually. Institutions can nominate four applicants each year.

Named after President Harry Truman, the scholarship is a living memorial to Trumans values of service, according to the Truman Foundation. The scholarship nurtures and supports future generations who answer the call to public service leadership.

Gold Moua

Gold Moua

Moua enrolled at UM as a transfer student from the University of Portland in 2019 and quickly immersed herself in the campus and Missoula community. As a minority in UMs pre-medicine undergraduate program and majoring in human biology, Moua sought outside opportunities for professional development. Moua, who is Hmong, represents less than 1% of Montanas largely white population.

She enrolled at the University of Washingtons Summer Health Professions Education Program and shortly thereafter was offered a position on the organizations board. While in the program, Moua developed a keen understanding of the positive impacts robust pre-health programs can have on minority students as they progress to and through medical school.

Moua later developed the first UM chapter of the Minority Association of Pre-Health Students at UM, or MAPS, creating professional development and mentoring opportunities for UM health science students. UMs Diversity Council awarded Moua with a student diversity award this year for her efforts with MAPS.

As the pandemic took hold at UM, Moua joined the Griz COVID-19 response team and supported campus efforts to mitigate the pandemic.

After gaining more clinical experience, Moua plans to pursue medical school and hopes to improve health care and health policy for underserved communities.

I am thrilled to be a Truman finalist, Moua said. Not only did the application process enable me to clarify my career goals, but it also challenged me to think in different ways about health policies, medicine and the changes I aim to make. Fortunately, my mentors at UM provided me guidance as I worked through these areas.



Lindsey Roosa

Lindsey Roosa

Double majoring in political science and Japanese, Roosa plans to work as a foreign service officer for the U.S. Department of State. A Presidential Leadership Scholar, Roosa developed a passion for cultures and foreign languages at UM and won scholarships to study abroad in Tokyo and spend a summer in Amman, Jordan for an intensive study abroad course in Arabic. In four out of six semesters at UM, Roosa participated in either national or international study exchanges crafting language skills and cultural comprehension.

Developing a proficiency in both Arabic and Japanese, Roosa has deeply explored conflicts in the Middle East as a significant driver for a surge of refugees while researching Japans strict immigrant and refugee policies. She hopes one day to serve in posts in both regions to understand and craft policy and programs that can address root causes of resettlement and displacement support.

Roosa has canvassed for the Montana Public Interest Research Group, volunteered for the Lifelong Learning Center in Missoula and enjoyed rock-climbing at UMs gym and around Montana. She also has been an international program coordinator and served on the advisory council for the UM Mansfield Center. To help students build international connections despite the pandemic, she developed and led a Japanese-English conversation club at the University.

"Applying for the Truman Scholarship was an incredible opportunity, Roosa said. Not only have I been able to reflect on my own experiences and goals, but I have met incredible people along the way. I truly appreciate all the support and encouragement I have received throughout the application process and I look forward to continuing to grow as a student and friend."



Augusta Reinhart

Augusta Reinhart

Reinhart plans to one day pursue a career with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, particularly within a capacity that supports global refugees and international policy. She developed a passion for supporting refuges while volunteering for Missoulas International Rescue Committee, working closely alongside a Congolese family and aiding their transition to life in Missoula.

Double majoring in political science and French, Reinhart has participated in UMs Franke Global Leadership Initiative and served on the board for the Mike and Maureen Mansfield Center to direct and support international exchange. Her passion for international exchange and commitment to racial and social justice has taken her to the far corners of the world, in addition to local grassroots organizations working for social and racial equity.

At UM, she received the Universitys most prestigious political science award, the Kain-McKay Scholarship and the premier honors award, the Presidential Leadership Scholarship. She was granted a Killam Fellowship, Fulbright Canadas undergraduate award, to study in Montreal, Canada in fall 2019. She was also awarded the 2020 Baucus Institute China Summer Program Scholarship for climate policy studies at Hangzhou Wanxiang Polytechnic University and was accepted for a year abroad of study at the Universite Jean Moulin in Lyon, France.

"It is a true honor to be named as a Truman finalist and Im proud to be able to represent the state where I have been born, raised and educated with two other powerful women by my side, Reinhart said. This was a challenging yet fruitful opportunity to think so deeply about my own experiences and aspirations, and I especially appreciate all of the guidance that Kylla and many other faculty members so kindly provided me. I am looking forward to using this process as a jumping off point for future endeavors at UM and beyond, especially in a world that is in desperate need of service leadership."

###

Contact: Kylla Benes, UM director of prestigious scholarships, 406-243-5241 kylla.benes@umontana.edu.
Vaccine providers in Dane County, across the state

Area pharmacies

Prepare to join wait lists at local pharmacies or schedule your appointment a few weeks in advance.

 Fitchburg Family Pharmacy, 3050 Cahill Main, Suite No. 6, Fitchburg: Join the online waitlist at whatagreatpharmacy.wordpress.com

 Hometown Pharmacy, in Verona, Oregon, Belleville, Madison, Waunakee, Sun Prairie, outside of Dane County: Register online at hometownpharmacyrx.com

 McGlynn Pharmacy, 100 E. Main St., Stoughton: Join waitlist online at mcglynnrx.com

 Walgreens, various locations in and out of Dane County: Register online

 Walmart, various locations in and out of Dane County: Register online

Community-based vaccination clinics (all outside Dane County)

Register online with the Wisconsin COVID-19 Vaccine Registry or call 1-844-684-1064.

 Douglas County: UW-Superior Wessman Arena, Superior

 La Crosse County: UW-La Crosse, La Crosse

 Marathon County: Northcentral Technical College, Wausau

 Racine County: Regency Mall, Racine

 Rock County: Blackhawk Technical College, Janesville

Health care providers

Some healthcare providers will vaccinate you, even if you are not a current patient.

 Access Community Health Centers: Patients only; call (608) 443-5480

 Group Health Cooperative: Sign up through GHCs MyChart app or fill out online interest form at ghcscw.com

 SSM Health: Call (608) 250-1222 for appointments or schedule online

 Stoughton Health: Join the waiting list at stoughtonhealth.com

 UW Health: Call (608) 720-5295 or schedule online at coronavirus.uwhealth.org

Mass vaccination clinics

Online registration available at: vaccinate.wi.gov/en-US/

 Alliant Energy Center, 1919 Alliant Energy Center Way, Madison: Call 1-844-684-1064 or register online

 Wisconsin Center, 400 W. Wisconsin Ave., Milwaukee: Call 1-414-286-6800 or register online

 University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Zorn Arena, 121 Garfield Ave., Eau Claire, register online
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 19:20:28|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on March 22, 2021 shows a sculpture of a group of Chinese revolutionaries to mark the centennial of the Work-Study Movement, in front of railway station of Montargis, France. Starting in 1919, thousands of progressive young Chinese went to France, where they worked in factories in Paris, Lyon and Montargis to pay for their studies in the European country. (Xinhua/Gao Jing)
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 17:29:59|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- China's population maintained slow growth over the past decade, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Tuesday, citing data from the seventh national census.

The census showed that the country's population on the mainland has reached 1.41178 billion, up 5.38 percent from 2010. That means China still has the world's largest population. Its population will stay above 1.4 billion for a certain period in future, and the advantages of its super-large market will exist for a long time to come. With a working-age population of 880 million, China has abundant labor force. As the population's education level continues to improve, the new advantages of the country's talent pool will gradually emerge.

As China is the world's most populous country, the Chinese government bears heavier responsibilities in economic and social development than many others. Having eradicated absolute poverty with arduous efforts, China is continuously improving the living standards of its citizens and is eyeing more substantial progress in common prosperity.

China needs to cope with challenges brought by its demographic shifts. The country's working-age population is slowly declining, while its aging population is increasing in proportion. The accelerated clustering of the population and increased employment pressure on college graduates require consistent efforts to adjust the country's economic structure and bring new opportunities.

According to the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) for National Economic and Social Development and the Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035, China will formulate long-term population development strategies, optimize fertility policies, improve its population service system with a focus on children and the elderly, and promote long-term balanced population development.

Any specific policies that China rolls out will be directed toward the realization, protection and development of the fundamental interests of the greatest possible majority of the Chinese people. They will guarantee and improve the wellbeing of the Chinese people, and share the fruits of reform with all in a fair manner.

China's population growth is also of great significance to the world. With 400 million middle-income earners, China will further unlock its market potential and create greater demand for other countries. It will take a more active role in the international division of labor and share more opportunities for common development. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 17:49:05|Editor: huaxia

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AUCKLAND, New Zealand, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The New Zealand China Trade Association (NZCTA) on Tuesday welcomed the signing of the New Zealand-China free trade agreement (FTA) upgrade.

Delivering his keynote speech at a forum on the New Zealand-China FTA upgrade and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area development opportunity in Auckland, Martin Thomson, chair of the NZCTA, said "The recent signing of the FTA upgrade has been welcomed by businesses in both countries. It is a strong signal of the commitment by both governments to grow the economic relationship between the two countries, build on the success of the original FTA, which led to China becoming New Zealand's largest trading partner."

Thomson believed that China's recovery from the COVID-19 is creating greater opportunities for New Zealand businesses.

"China and New Zealand have both responded well to the pandemic. Both have managed to contain the spread and put measures in place to react effectively to what are now isolated outbreaks. China's economy has rebounded very strongly, which has resulted in ongoing opportunities for New Zealand businesses trading with China."

According to Thomson, although COVID-19 has resulted in significant challenges and disruptions to trade and investment, it has also resulted in increased business for some sectors, opened up new opportunities for others and led to the adoption of new business models and the introduction of different products and services in response to the pandemic.

Thomson thus highlighted several key sectors for deeper bilateral trade and economic cooperation.

"New Zealand's health and wellbeing exporters have had success in China due to increasing demand from Chinese consumers for their products and services. Our dairy and horticultural exports to China have grown and, despite a decline, our forestry, meat and seafood exports have held up well, while some of our niche food and beverage exporters to China have gained a foothold in the market."

"Here in New Zealand there has been increased demand for manufactured products from China. The digital economy has become increasingly important as a channel to market for many companies and it is pleasing to see that the FTA upgrade incorporates changes for e-Commerce," said Thomson.

Thomson was not unfamiliar with the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao-Greater Bay Area, which has for a long time been a very significant contributor to New Zealand's economic relationship with China.

"The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao-Greater Bay Area is a significant source of imports, and tourists and students prior to the effect of COVID-19, and a recipient of a large proportion of New Zealand's exports to China," said Thomson.

He was looking forward to learning more about the New Zealand-Guangdong Commodity Exhibition Centre and the Online Trading Platform that was launched at the Forum, and how these platforms will contribute to a strengthening of the economic relationship between the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao-Greater Bay Area and New Zealand.

The NZCTA is celebrating its 40th anniversary of establishment. The organization is committed to supporting and representing New Zealand and Chinese companies in bilateral trade to grow the economic relationship between the two countries.

In 2008, China signed the FTA with New Zealand, the first FTA between China and a developed country. The two countries signed a protocol on upgrading the FTA in January this year.

China and New Zealand's two-way trade quadrupled from around 4.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2008 to over 18.1 billion U.S. dollars in 2020, according to official figures from China's Commerce Ministry. Since 2017 China has been New Zealand's top trading partner. Enditem
In the history of the world there have been some very bad ideas: Screen doors on submarines. New Coke. Eliminating nearly 22 child protective social worker positions at the NH Division for Children, Youth and Families. While the first idea is a joke and the second idea a marketing failure, t
Milledgeville, GA (31061)

Today

A mix of clouds and sun early followed by cloudy skies this afternoon. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 91F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low 72F. Winds light and variable.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 18:00:21|Editor: huaxia

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An Israeli military vehicle fires tear gas canisters at Palestinian protesters during an anti-Israel protest against the violence in Jerusalem, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, on May 10, 2021. (Photo by Luay Sababa/Xinhua)

To de-escalate tensions, both Israel and the Palestinians should remain somber to the fact that violence will only fuel more violence and calm is needed to avoid more civilian casualties.

Both sides should also refrain from provocative actions and rhetoric, and have the prudence not to worsen the situation with threats, strikes and revenge.



JERUSALEM, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Israeli-Palestinian tensions have been further inflamed as both Israel and Hamas carried out military actions on Monday, making it "one of the bloodiest days" between the two sides as some media have described.

During Monday's clashes at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, holy to both Muslims and Jews, Israeli forces fired stun grenades, injuring at least 305 Palestinians, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.

On the same day, over 150 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip towards Israel. In response, Israel launched airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, killing at least 20 people, including nine children.

The escalation came after days of tensions over Israeli restrictions on Palestinian Muslims during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and a plan to evict some Palestinian families from neighborhoods in East Jerusalem.

Israeli police patrol around the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem on May 10, 2021. (JINI via Xinhua)

The latest military actions have raised concerns about growing tensions in the Middle East, which has long been suffering from chaos, violence and conflicts.

The international community has called on Israel to respect the freedom of peaceful demonstrations and cease its eviction plan.

Compromise has been made as the Israeli Justice Ministry decided to postpone a court hearing over the plan in Sheikh Jarrah, which indicated a possible further step for Israel to cease the eviction plan.

To de-escalate tensions, both Israel and the Palestinians should remain somber to the fact that violence will only fuel more violence and calm is needed to avoid more civilian casualties.

Both sides should also refrain from provocative actions and rhetoric, and have the prudence not to worsen the situation with threats, strikes and revenge.

Palestinians run to take cover from tear gas canisters fired by Israeli troops during a protest against the violence in Jerusalem, on the Gaza-Israel border east of southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, on May 9, 2021. (Photo by Khaled Omar/Xinhua)

Threats have already come with conflicts. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Monday "whoever attacks us will pay a heavy price" and warned that the fighting could "continue for some time" after Israel's retaliatory strikes.

The new flare-up of tensions has underscored the importance for both sides to exercise self-restraint and for relevant parties to make concerted efforts to resume dialogue urgently to calm the situation and deal with the impasse.

The status of Jerusalem lies at the core of the dispute between Israelis and Palestinians.

History has shown that the issue can only be solved politically through dialogue, and the current military actions will only repeat previous bloody conflicts without achieving any desired results.

Under the Oslo peace accords signed between Israel and Palestinians in 1993, Jerusalem's status should be decided in the Israeli-Palestinian final-status talks. The Palestinians insist that they will establish an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital in the final settlement.

Palestinian protesters take part in an anti-Israel protest in the West Bank city of Hebron, on May 10, 2021. (Photo by Mamoun Wazwaz/Xinhua)

All the facts that are recognized and respected by the international community should not be ignored by Israel.

The Israeli-Palestinian peace process has been halted since 2014 when negotiations collapsed. No one expects the two sides to settle a series of thorny issues and reach a peace agreement overnight, but returning to the negotiation table instead of battlefields is the only way to realize peace between Israelis and Palestinians and in the whole Middle East region.

People in this war-torn land are in dire need of peace instead of hatred and conflicts. For the peace talks to jump out of the vicious circle of hope-to-despair, all parties involved need to show sincerity to break the deadlock and move the peace process forward. 
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp on Tuesday signed an executive order that temporarily suspends gas taxes in the state to prevent a hike in fuel prices in the aftermath of the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th May, 2021) Georgia Governor Brian Kemp on Tuesday signed an executive order that temporarily suspends gas taxes in the state to prevent a hike in fuel prices in the aftermath of the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack.

"Today Governor Brian P. Kemp signed an executive order to temporarily suspend gas in Georgia in light of the Colonial Pipeline cyber attack," the executive order said. "The order further prohibits price gauging by bad actors looking to exploit the situation."

The order also increases the weight limits for trucks transporting fuel to provide more supply for stations as they receive deliveries.

The governor said the measure would be temporary, since the Colonial Pipeline is expected to resume its operations later this week, the release accompanying the order said.

Colonial Pipeline said on Friday that it halted all pipeline operations and took some systems offline to contain the threat from the cyberattack. The pipeline runs the largest refined products pipeline system, transporting more than 100 million gallons of fuel daily from Houston in Texas to the New York Harbor.
Johannesburg, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th May, 2021 ) :South African President Cyril Ramaphosa this week will make his second appearance before a panel investigating the alleged looting of state coffers under his scandal-tainted predecessor Jacob Zuma.

The commission, tasked with uncovering the full extent of official corruption, will make recommendations to prosecutors when it wraps up 34 months of hearings at the end of June.

Here is key background to the panel and its work: - The genesis - Zuma appointed a fact-finding panel after a 2016 report by South Africa's anti-graft watchdog identified him as a kingpin of patronage and malfeasance.

He said the commission would prove his innocence and erase public doubt over the government's commitment to eradicating "all forms of corruption".

Setting up the judicial commission in January 2018, Zuma asked it to investigate allegations of fraud known as "state capture" by special interests, appointing deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo as its chair.

One month later, the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party forced Zuma to step down as allegations piled up and his popularity plummeted.

Ramaphosa came to power vowing to fight corruption, and the panel that Zuma commissioned launched hearings in August 2018.

- Revelations - More than 270 witnesses, including politicians, business people, civil servants and anonymous state security agents, have testified.

Many referred to a wealthy Indian immigrant family headed by three brothers -- Ajay, Atul and Rajesh Gupta -- who are accused of having wielded undue influence over Zuma.

The brothers are at the centre of the 2016 graft report, which claims they paid bribes to influence ministerial appointments and plunder state organs.

They fled South Africa shortly after the commission started, and their whereabouts are unknown.

One witness described bags bulging with cash, sometimes totalling as much as six million rand ($427 million) in a month, being delivered to ANC bigwigs during secret meetings in upmarket hotels, in exchange for the awarding of lucrative contracts to one private company.

Several witnesses detailed an audit for a major asbestos roof removal project in central Free State province. The project was never completed, yet $10 million went missing. This led to the indictment and suspension of ANC secretary general Ace Magashule, the provincial governor at the time.

Some witnesses and whistleblowers, including some who remained anonymous, have reported receiving death threats since they testified.

- The Zuma quagmire - Zuma first appeared before the commission in July 2019, denying any wrongdoing. He withdrew two days later, complaining of being "treated as someone who was accused". The former president has since ducked all calls to testify.

Exasperated, Zondo petitioned the Constitutional Court, which ordered Zuma to testify in January. But he refused, saying he would "rather face jail" and that "no amount of intimidation or blackmail" would change his mind.

The commission has since asked the top court to jail Zuma for two years for contempt of court.

To date, the anti-graft panel has cost South African taxpayers over 800 million rand ($57 million).

Ramaphosa, who was Zuma's deputy president, first testified as head of the ANC in April. He alleged that "rot" and graft had riddled the party under Zuma.

The president will testify again on Thursday and Friday in his capacity as head of state.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Washington, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th May, 2021 ) :The United States on Monday authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for children aged 12 to 15 years old, while the devastating outbreak in India raged on.

The US food and Drug Administration previously had granted an emergency use authorization for the jab to individuals aged 16 and older.

"This is a promising development in our fight against the virus," said President Joe Biden.

But the World Health Organization in Geneva warned the B.1.617 variant spreading in India appears to be more contagious, classifying it as a "variant of concern at the global level." The virus is still surging in many countries and the pandemic has killed close to 3.3 million people worldwide since late 2019, upending normal life and causing global economic chaos.

Rapid vaccination programs, however, have allowed a number of wealthy nations to start taking steps towards normality.

The head of the European Medicines Agency said Monday that BioNTech/Pfizer's jab against Covid-19 soon could be approved for 12- to 15-year-olds in the EU, as well, perhaps as early as this month.

Ireland on Monday lifted domestic travel restrictions and began a phased reopening of non-essential retailers, while Greece opened nursery, elementary and middle schools ahead of kicking off the tourist season from May 14.

Tourism might get a shot in the arm from the European Union, which said it was "fully on track" to ensure a Covid health pass would be ready in June to boost travel.

Britain, which has the highest Covid-19 death toll in Europe, announced the reopening of indoor seating in pubs and restaurants in England from next week.

This easing came as the country reported no daily virus deaths for the first time in over a year following a successful vaccination campaign - Act 'responsibly' - Spain, which at the weekend lifted a six-month state of emergency and allowed travel between regions, sounded a note of caution after joyful crowds celebrated in the streets without masks or social distancing.

"The virus threat still exists," Justice Minister Juan Carlos Campo wrote in El Pais, urging Spaniards to behave "responsibly." Cyprus on Monday exited a third partial lockdown with a new coronavirus "safety pass" system to allow people to move freely.

In Milan, the legendary La Scala opera house triumphantly reopened after six months of pandemic-imposed closure.

"I hope this is a new beginning and that we won't stop again after these sad months of silence," said first violinist Laura Marzadori, smiling broadly.

And in Germany, people fully vaccinated against Covid-19 were exempt from many restrictions from Sunday after the government passed new legislation.

Berlin also opened access to the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine to all adults on Monday, lifting a priority system.

But in Norway, an expert government committee recommended the Johnson & Johnson and the AstraZeneca jabs be dropped over the risks of rare but serious side effects.

Meanwhile, German firm BioNTech, which developed a vaccine with US pharma giant Pfizer, announced a $200 million joint venture with China's Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical to produce up to one billion jabs a year and said it was building its own Southeast Asia manufacturing site in Singapore.

- India variant worries - India, suffering from one of the worst outbreaks in the world, reported nearly 370,000 fresh infections and more than 3,700 new deaths on Monday.

The devastating wave has overwhelmed India's healthcare system, and experts have said official figures for cases and fatalities are much lower than the actual numbers.

BioNTech on Monday sought to allay fears around the mutation in India, saying that "to date, there is no evidence" that the jab needs to be adapted to fight the emerging variants.

The outbreak has spread to some of India's neighbors, including Nepal.

China announced plans to set up a "separation line" on the summit of Mount Everest -- which straddles the China-Nepal border -- to avoid infections by climbers from Nepal, where dozens have been taken ill at base camp, state media reported.

- Glimpse of the future? - The world got a glimpse of post-pandemic life as Tokyo hosted a test event ahead of the Summer Olympic Games.

But International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach was forced to postpone a visit to Japan after a coronavirus state of emergency was extended.

The United States remains the worst-hit nation in the world, with the highest number of known fatalities and infections.

But the real death toll may be higher than the official figure of 581,000, with a University of Washington study released last week estimating deaths at more than 900,000.

New infections have come down since January as more than 114 million people have been fully vaccinated through the country's ambitious vaccine rollout.

But US biotech firm Novavax said Monday it had delayed plans to seek authorization for its Covid vaccine candidate, a setback for developing countries hoping the injection would soon be available through the Covax program.
(@FahadShabbir)

The kingdom of Saudi Arabia's commitment for provision of $500 (Rs 75.50 b) million funds will help develop infrastructure,hydropower projects and water resources in Pakistan

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th May, 2021 ) :The kingdom of Saudi Arabia's commitment for provision of $500 (Rs 75.50 b) million funds will help develop infrastructure,hydropower projects and water resources in Pakistan.

Talking to a delegation of women entrepreneurs led by Dr Ayesha Tahir, comprising Mehwish and Rea Haeen, President SAARC Chamber and Commerce Iftikhar Ali Malik said here on Tuesday that under one of the seven MOUs signed between two Muslim brotherly countries Saudi Arabia will finance energy,infrastructure,water,transportation and communication projects in Pakistan.

He said as a result of successful visit of Prime Minister Imran Khan, Saudi Arabia decided to allocate major chunk of 10 millions workers to hire from Pakistan it needed for the next 10 years in the light of Saudia Arabia's vision 2030 which he added will help prove ample job opportunities to Pakistanis,besides earning foreign exchange.

He said this decision was a major breakthrough for unemployed skilled and unskilled Pakistani youths.

He said Pakistan always affirmed its everlasting strong durable ties with Saudi Arabia as its most "important and bilateral partnership" ,working and seeking to develop closer and deep relations with Saudi Arabia, the largest country on the Arabian peninsula.

Iftikhar Ali Malik said bilateral trade between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia was on the rise for last few years and balance of trade was in favour of Saudi Arabia as Pakistan imports its most of oil from this country.He lamented that India Saudi Arabia bilateral trade stood at approximately more than $30 b annually compared to Pakistan $1.79 b in 2019 which was negligible and that needed to be improved considerably with active role of Pakistan private sector.

He said Pak private sector should take benefit from Prime Minister Imran Khan visit and net all opportunities offered to Pakistan.
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Pakistan Navy has started distribution of rations in rural and urban areas of Pasni Tehsil of Gwadar District on the coast of Balochistan

QUETTA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th May, 2021 ) :Pakistan Navy has started distribution of rations in rural and urban areas of Pasni Tehsil of Gwadar District on the coast of Balochistan.

According to official sources, On the special direction of Commander West Pakistan Navy under the supervision of Lieutenant Commander Furqan Shaukat ration bags were distributed among hundreds of deserving families in rural areas on the second day as well. The ration bag contained flour, rice, lentils, spices, salt, leaves, dates, spirits, etc.

So far, thousands of families have benefited from the Pakistan Navy's charitable work.

It is to be noted that in Gwadar City yesterday, under the supervision of Commanding Officer third FPF Protection Battalion Capt Abid Hussain, people of different areas of the city were provided by Pakistan Navy with the help of Mir Arshad Kalmati and other social personalities.

The rations included rice, ghee, flour, dates, pulses and other food items.

On the occasion,CO of Pakistan Navy, Capt Abid Hussain said that Pakistan Navy is a family force for the people of Gwadar saying that apart from occasional medical camps and other social work in Gwadar, the Pakistan Navy is also distributing rations to the citizens throughout the month of Ramazan.

So far, rations have been distributed to hundreds of families in Gwadar, Pasni, Kapaar and other areas and Pakistan Navy will continue its public service work, he concluded.
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Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi Tuesday said Pakistan would welcome the third-party facilitation by Saudi Arabia or any other country for resumption of talks with India

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th May, 2021 ) :Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi Tuesday said Pakistan would welcome the third-party facilitation by Saudi Arabia or any other country for resumption of talks with India.

"Pakistan is ready for third-party facilitation. It is India that has always shied away from it," he said in a press conference held here at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Qureshi said Saudi Arabia was the friend of Pakistan and also had business ties with India, which was a big importer of Saudi oil.

"If Saudi Arabia wants to play a role (in facilitating talks), we will welcome," he said.

He recalled that the ceasefire agreement between Pakistan and India was welcomed by the world including Saudi Arabia.

The foreign minister confirmed that there were "no formal talks" at the moment with India, however said if India wanted it to make it happen, it "must take the first step forward".

"If India wants a meaningful dialogue with Pakistan, it has to review its policy on Kashmir and undo the revocation of their special status," he said.

He called upon India to give relief to the Kashmiri people, who were suffering the 19-month-long military siege and the search and cordon operations, and thus "pave way for a conducive environment for talks".

To a question regarding his recent statement on Article-370 of the India constitution, he said Pakistan was firm on its stance that "Kashmir is not an internal matter of India".

"Pakistan has not taken any U-turn and will never do so. The dispute, which is at the agenda of United Nations Security Council with several resolutions on it, cannot be an internal matter of India," he categorically said.

"There is no ambiguity and Pakistan will continue highlighting the plight of Kashmiris at all international fora," he added.

By revoking Article 35-A, he said, India was distorting the demography of the Valley and denying the Kashmiris their identity.

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BUENOS AIRES (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th May, 2021) The Argentine health ministry said on Monday that three travelers had tested positive for highly contagious coronavirus strains, including two infected with Indian subtypes and one with the South African strain.

"Since we started genomic sequencing surveillance of travelers, we have identified so-called priority variants in almost 50% of positive cases, but this is the first time that we have found variants B.1.617.2 and B.1.617.1 (originally isolated in India) and B.1.351 (originally isolated in South Africa)," chief epidemiologist Analia Rearte said.

All three travelers  two minors returning from Paris and a 58-year-old passenger returning from Spain  entered the country on April 24 and were quarantined at a Buenos Aires hotel.

The "double-mutant" B.1.617 strain was first found in India in October, while its B.1.617.2 subtype was detected earlier this year and has already become the dominant strain that is driving India's unprecedented coronavirus surge. South Africa's B.1.351 was likewise detected in October.
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Costa Rica is buying an additional 2 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in order to accelerate its immunization campaign, President Carlos Alvarado Quesada said on Monday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th May, 2021) Costa Rica is buying an additional 2 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in order to accelerate its immunization campaign, President Carlos Alvarado Quesada said on Monday.

"These will be added to the seven million doses that we have already secured via contracts," Alvarado said on Twitter.

This is the second addendum to the contract that Costa Rica signed with Pfizer. The initial contract for 3 million doses was first updated with an additional 1 million doses in March, and now 2 million doses will be purchased at an estimated price of $12 per dose, the president said.

The head of the National Emergency Commission (CNE), Alexander Solis, explained that the purchase was authorized by the CNE board of Directors in order to accelerate the vaccination of people aged from 18 to 58 with risk factors, or the so-called Group 3.

Solis commented that the doses will begin to arrive in July and will be delivered during 2021.

Costa Rica also signed a contract with AstraZeneca for 1 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine, however, none have arrived to date. Likewise, the country became part of the COVAX mechanism to receive 2 million doses, but only 43,200 doses have arrived through the WHO-led facility so far.

Overall, Costa Rica has contracted over 9 million doses of vaccines, which enough to fully immunize 4.5 million people.
MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th May, 2021) The European Commission has launched a second lawsuit against UK-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca over the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines, Stefan De Keersmaecker, a spokesperson or the EU executive, said on Tuesday.

During a press briefing, De Keersmaecker said that the second case, which follows an initial lawsuit launched in late April, was about assessing the "merits" and "substance" of the ongoing legal action covering AstraZeneca's alleged violations of its advance purchase agreement with the European Union.

"We want the court to order the company to deliver 90 million additional doses, in addition to the 30 million already delivered in the first quarter," De Keersmaecker said.

The European Commission spokesperson stated that the bloc's objective was to ensure the on-time delivery of vaccine doses, adding that the EU was not seeking to impose punitive measures on the pharmaceutical company.

AstraZeneca was expected to deliver 180 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to the European Union in the second quarter of 2021, according to the terms of the advance purchase agreement.

The company admitted in March that it would only be able to deliver 70 million of these doses.
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Britain's parliamentary standards watchdog confirmed Monday it is investigating Prime Minister Boris Johnson over how he paid for a luxury Caribbean holiday, the latest of multiple probes into his conduct

London, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 10th May, 2021 ) :Britain's parliamentary standards watchdog confirmed Monday it is investigating Prime Minister Boris Johnson over how he paid for a luxury Caribbean holiday, the latest of multiple probes into his conduct.

Kathryn Stone, the current Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, is looking into the controversial trip to the privately owned island of Mustique over Christmas 2019 by the UK leader and his fiancee Carrie Symonds.

Johnson, who was buoyed by successful local election results in England last week, has long been dogged by questions about the holiday.

In the register of MPs' interests, he claimed the 15,000 ($21,200, 17,400 Euros) trip was provided by David Ross, a businessman and donor to his ruling Conservative party.

However there was confusion after Ross initially denied handing over any money, and later clarified that it was a "benefit in kind".

Johnson's spokesman reiterated Monday that the British premier had followed the rules throughout.

"The prime minister transparently declared this benefit in kind in the Commons register of interests," he said.

"Clearly the rules are set out and it's important that everyone abides by them." Meanwhile a spokesman for Ross said in a statement he had "facilitated accommodation" for Johnson on Mustique which was valued at 15,000.

"Therefore this is a benefit in kind from Mr Ross to Mr Johnson, and Mr Johnson's declaration to the House of Commons is correct.

" - 'Lavish lifestyle' - The luxury trip is one of a host of controversies swirling around the British leader that have sparked multiple investigations by watchdogs and scrutiny agencies.

They include a probe by the Electoral Commission, which regulates the accounts of political parties, into who initially footed the bill for a reported 200,000 (230,000 euros) refurbishment of Johnson's Downing Street flat.

The parliamentary commissioner -- an independent figure -- investigates allegations that MPs have breached parliamentary code of conduct rules, which include correctly declaring financial interests and gifts.

Stone, who confirmed the Johnson probe is one of nine current investigations into lawmakers for possible breaches, can refer serious offences to parliament's Committee on Standards for sanctioning.

The main opposition Labour Party -- which is still reeling from a disappointing performance in last Thursday's local elections -- seized on the latest probe as further evidence of "sleaze" within Johnson's government.

"We need to know what these donors were promised or expected in return for their generosity," said Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner.

"Boris Johnson needs to stop using the office of Prime Minister as an opportunity to fund his lavish lifestyle and enrich his mates."
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 18:26:20|Editor: huaxia

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Anti-epidemic supplies including 100 oxygen concentrators and 40 ventilators donated by China's Red Cross arrived in India on Sunday.

The shipment by a Chinese cargo flight from China's southwestern city of Chengdu was the first batch of anti-epidemic supplies donated by the RCSC to India, according to the ambassador.

The Red Cross Society of China has also decided to provide 1 million U.S. dollars in cash in assistance to the Indian Red Cross Society through the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to help India fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

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The United Nations rights office said Tuesday it was "deeply concerned" at the escalation of violence in the occupied Palestinian territories, east Jerusalem and Israel

Geneva, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th May, 2021 ) :The United Nations rights office said Tuesday it was "deeply concerned" at the escalation of violence in the occupied Palestinian territories, east Jerusalem and Israel.

"We condemn all violence and all incitement to violence and ethnic division and provocations," spokesman Rupert Colville told reporters in Geneva.
US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to maintain dialogue on strategic stability issues, such as arms control and emerging security issues, Ambassador Robert A. Wood, the US permanent representative to the Conference on Disarmament, said on Tuesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th May, 2021) US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to maintain dialogue on strategic stability issues, such as arms control and emerging security issues, Ambassador Robert A. Wood, the US permanent representative to the Conference on Disarmament, said on Tuesday.

"President Biden and President Putin have agreed to explore strategic stability discussions on a range of arms control and emerging security issues. We are in the process of preparing for these discussions," Wood said at the Conference on Disarmament Plenary Thematic Debate.

Biden said last week that a tentative meeting between him and Putin was being arranged for June.

The White House has recently announced that Biden invited Putin to meet in a European country. Earlier in May, Biden said that he was hoping to meet with Putin in June. The Kremlin reported that a possible date for the meeting is being discussed.
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The US military and the Estonian Defense Forces have signed a deal creating an Estonian liaison officer position aimed at helping coordinate planning between the two sides, United States European Command (USEUCOM) announced on Tuesday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th May, 2021) The US military and the Estonian Defense Forces have signed a deal creating an Estonian liaison officer position aimed at helping coordinate planning between the two sides, United States European Command (USEUCOM) announced on Tuesday.

"US European Command (USEUCOM) and the Estonian Defense Forces will enjoy greater integration following a virtual signing ceremony today establishing an Estonian liaison officer on the USEUCOM headquarters staff," the command said in a press release.

"Liaison officers serve an important role at the command and help synchronize planning efforts between USEUCOM and their home nations."

USEUCOM said the Estonian officer is expected to arrive this summer and join liaison officers from 11 other nations in the command's Multinational Coordination Cell.

The release noted that Estonia is currently hosting parts of the Fires Shock series of exercises, as well as portions of the multinational Swift Response 21, which are part of the DEFENDER-Europe 21 drills.
The Bishops of Canada launch a new national, bilingual service for reporting situations of sexual abuse, either committed or covered-up by a Bishop, furthering their commitment to protect minors and vulnerable persons.

By Lisa Zengarini

The New Canadian Reporting System for Bishops operates on a confidential, secure platform - ClearView ConnectsTM - that can be accessed by individuals online (BishopReportingSystem.ca) or via a toll-free number (1-866-892-3737) from anywhere in Canada, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in English or French.

The system was developed by ClearView Strategic Partners, a Canadian provider of an independent ethics reporting and whistleblowing platform. It is designed to receive and transmit to the proper Church authorities reports of sexual abuse, sexual misconduct or cover-up by a Catholic Bishop.

The platform allows anyone wanting to make such a report to remain anonymous if he/she chooses so, and ensures that all communications are documented and preserved.

Increasing accountability

The new initiative is a direct response to the 2019 Apostolic Letter Vos estis lux mundi (You are the light of the world), in which Pope Francis calls on dioceses and eparchies throughout the world to establish one or more public, stable and easily accessible systems for submission of reports, indicating the procedures to be followed in the Universal Church when allegations are made against a Bishop.

According to the Catholic Bishops Conference of Canada (CCCB) website, the reporting system for Bishops introduces an additional level of accountability for Church leadership in Canada, alongside the existing diocesan/eparchial protocols for reporting and responding to sexual abuse or other sexual misconduct by priests, deacons, religious, and mandated lay pastoral personnel.

Dr. Delphine Collin-Vezina, PhD, Director of the Centre for Research on Children and Families, and Director of the Canadian Consortium on Child & Youth Trauma, has welcomed the move.

She says it is an important step forward towards creating a climate of safety where the abuse of children and vulnerable people is not tolerated and their support is paramount.

This system is rooted in a victim-first approach and aims to remove the multiple barriers that prevent disclosure, Dr Collin-Vezina said.

She added that these abuses have been silenced and covered up for too long, leaving victims and survivors unheard. I applaud this initiative led by the Bishops of Canada, which will hopefully facilitate healing and recovery for those who were abused.

Canadian Bishops, on their part, have reiterated their full commitment against the sin and crime of sexual abuse and to reach out and accompany victims-survivors along the path that restores justice and promotes healing, expressing, once again, their deep regret for the suffering inflicted on them by offending Bishops, priests, deacons, religious, and laity.

"With this reporting system," they point out, "the Bishops make themselves accountable to live with integrity and to address reports of sexual abuse according to Church and civil law."
Over 100 Catholic churches in Germany are holding public religious ceremonies with a "blessing for lovers", especially on Monday. The celebrations are also expressly open to same-sex couples.

By Vatican News staff writer

The initiative follows a response to a dubium published on 15 March by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF).

The CDF affirmed that the Church does not have the power to impart a blessing for same-sex unions, stressing, therefore, that it is not licit for priests to bless same-sex couples who have asked for some sort of religious recognition of their union.

According to the president of the German Bishops' Conference, Bishop Georg Batzing, the initiative of the German priests is not a useful sign or a way forward." The liturgies of blessing, he said, are "not a suitable tool for political-ecclesial demonstrations or acts of protest."

However, Bishop Batzing criticizes the response of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, noting that there is a need for "a re-evaluation of homosexual unions and a further development of the Church's sexual morality."

Proponents of the blessing ceremonies, held under the title "Love wins", include priests, deacons and members of the laity.

"We will continue to accompany people who engage in a binding union and bless their relationship," explained Burkhard Hose, a chaplain at Wurzburg University, who launched the campaign in March. "We celebrate the diversity of people's different life plans and love stories, and ask for God's blessing. Without any secrecy," reads a website dedicated to the initiative. Most of the blessing services take place in the Frankfurt area and northwest Germany.

The response of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on the question of the permissibility of blessings for same-sex couples has provoked mixed reactions in the Church. Critical statements have come from Germany and Belgium, in particular. Elsewhere, disagreement was expressed regarding the form rather than the content. In Africa, expressions of appreciation were voiced for the Vatican's clarification.

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith made it clear that its declaration does not concern only homosexual couples, but all unions that involve the exercise of sexuality outside of marriage, while individuals with homosexual inclinations can request a blessing, just like anyone who manifests the will to live according to God's revealed plans.
The "Candles of Stritennya" is an initiative, carried out by the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church's Office for Ecology in the effort to provide aid to poor people in the Eastern European nation. It stems from the wish to care for Creation in line with Pope Francis Encyclical "Laudato si".

By Svitlana Dukhovych - Vatican City

Since February last, the light of Candlemas has continued to burn in the homes of Ukrainians. Thanks to the "Candles of Stritennya" the hearts of many poor people, whose conditions have worsened due to the hardships caused by the pandemic, have been lifted. In Ukraine, the feast of the Presentation of the Lord is amongst the most important observances of the liturgical year, for both Orthodox and Greek Catholics who celebrate it on 15 February, according to the Julian calendar."

In Ukrainian, this feast is called "Stritennya", which means "meeting" because it recalls the Gospel event in which Simeon meets Jesus in the Temple and recognizes him as the light of the world, a "light for revelation to the people". The symbol of this solemnity is a candle that the faithful bring to church to be blessed during the Divine Liturgy: the "Stritennya candle" is then kept at home almost throughout the year.

The initiative

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Churchs Office for Ecology launched the initiative entitled: "Warm the poor with the light of the Stritennya candle" which saw the organization of several candle-making workshops using only natural wax. The candles were then taken to various parishes where the faithful were able to buy them and have them blessed on the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. The money raised from the sales was given to the Caritas Ivano-Frankivsk soup kitchen in Western Ukraine.

The workshop

In the beginning, it was mostly people who worked at the Ecology Office or at the local Caritas who attended the workshops. Then several local Caritas offices in other cities such as Ternopil, Chernivtsi and Khmelnytskyi decided to participate in the initiative.

Reaching out to the poor

Volodymyr Sheremeta, Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) Bureau for Environmental Issues, explains that This initiative was inspired by Pope Francis' encyclical Laudato si' and by the letter released in October 2020 by the Synod of Greek Catholic Bishops entitled You will be left with one thing: what you gave to the poor!. Thanks to this letter, another initiative was also launched at the national level: Feed the poor. Our purpose is to see the other and extend our hands in solidarity with the poor, and at the same time promote a culture of responsibility towards creation". "Some candles, Professor Sheremeta says, have been decorated with flowers made of cotton threads, each of which is an original design and will remain as a beautiful reminder of our love for our neighbour. Others are decorated using hibiscus seeds which can be planted, thus contributing to the restoration of the beauty and harmony of our world."

Decorated Stritennya candles

Ecological Awareness

"Warm the poor with the flame of the Stritennya candle" is one of the many initiatives launched by the Office for Ecology, through which the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church raises awareness of the importance of caring for creation. This awareness has its roots in the 1930s-40s when the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church of the time, Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, established protected natural areas that later became the first national park in the Eastern European nation. Even then, the need for a responsible attitude toward nature was part of the pastoral ministry of the Church. After the period during which the Church had to go underground, Ukrainian Greek Catholics were able to put into practice concretely and publicly the Churchs teaching regarding care for Creation, in the footsteps of their predecessors. Through the Office for Ecology, founded in 2007, the UGCC seeks to promote the believers' responsible attitude towards creation and to cultivate ecological awareness in society through information, educational activities and practical projects. This very office has edited the translation of Pope Francis' encyclical Laudato si' and organizes several events to make it known to the faithful.

A concrete sign of solidarity

"'The cry of the earth and the cry of the poor can wait no longer," the Pontiff had stressed in his video message for the Laudato si' Week initiative in 2020, on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of the encyclical from which the Special Year sprang. His words also reached Ukraine. The initiative "Warm the poor with the light of the candle of Stritennya" becomes a concrete sign of solidarity with the needy, remembering also the gifts of creation.

The Caritas soup kitchen

"Thanks to this candle we have been able to restore hope to people in difficult conditions, to show them everything that the candle symbolizes: light, hope, affection, warmth," says Fr Volodymyr Chorniy, director of Caritas Ivano-Frankivsk. "Thanks to this initiative we managed to raise funds for the Caritas Ivano-Frankivsk soup kitchen. With this money we will be able to cover the cost of 2,300 meals, thats eight days of activity in our canteen providing food for some 300 to 350 people daily".
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 18:48:43|Editor: huaxia

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*** Highlights:

More than 1,000 workers are stepping up efforts in constructing a high-speed railway linking Panzhou and Xingyi in southwest China's Guizhou Province.

The ratio of viaducts and tunnels on the 98.3-kilometer railway reaches 90.66 percent.

An 861.5-meter mega-bridge and a 2,713-meter tunnel are two challenging projects for workers on the railway due to Guizhou's complex topography.

With a designed speed of 250 km per hour and an investment of nearly 14 billion yuan (2.2 billion U.S. dollars), the Panzhou-Xingyi high-speed rail is set to be put into operation in 2024.

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Overtime hours and regulations refer to time worked in excess of regular working hours in Vietnam

Understanding overtime can be of critical importance for calculating costs for businesses operating in the country.

Vietnam Briefing briefly discusses the laws and compensation that regulate overtime hours as well as a comparison with Vietnams neighboring countries.

When companies turn to Vietnam to establish their manufacturing operations, it is important to not only consider the laws on regular wages, but also the policies on overtime that will be applicable to the workforce and style of a given operation. One of the benefits of Vietnam is that wages are low in comparison to the rest of the region, particularly China.

Overtime and night work policies in the socialist republic are essentially the same as those currently employed in China. The Vietnamese government enumerates all of these regulations in the new Labor Law of 2019 (Law No. 45/2019/QH14) and Decree 145/2020/ND-CP. Understanding how these laws and guidance shape costs is of utmost importance for investors seeking to maximize Vietnams potential as a low-cost destination for manufacturing.

Triggering overtime

The first consideration that an employer must make is to ensure a thorough understanding of when overtime is applied. Understanding this threshold will allow for the optimization of production targets to customers cost and time constraints.

Pursuant to the regulations mentioned above, regular working hours cannot exceed eight hours a day, 48 hours a week. For employees working in heavy or hazardous conditions, the law stipulates that employers are responsible for limiting their working limit due to exposure to dangerous substances or chemicals as per the national technical regulations and relevant laws. If a worker exceeds these limits, overtime compensation will be applied.

In addition to working beyond a set threshold of hours, overtime compensation may be triggered and influenced by the time and date that employees are engaged. Key triggers of overtime beyond hours worked include weekends, public holidays, and night hours  defined as between 22:00 and 6:00.

Overtime compensation

In the event that a company triggers overtime, they will be obligated to compensate employees beyond the wages that are outlined in their contract. This is applicable to all employees regardless of the wages that are offered. The following are the percentages in excess of standard that are to be applied in the event that certain work-related thresholds are crossed.

Note: there are limitations on the number of overtime hours an employee is allowed to work. As per the new labor code, overtime hours cannot exceed 40 hours per month from the previous 30. The new labor code also supplements cases where employers are permitted to organize overtime work for up to 300 hours per year these include  manufacturing and export of electric and electronic products as well work requiring high technical qualifications.

In cases where an employee works extra hours at night, they are paid extra in accordance to the applicable regulations. Further, employees who are given time off in compensation for working extra hours will need to be paid the difference between their wages during normal working hours and overtime work. Finally, employees who work night shifts should be paid at least 30 percent higher than normal.

Pregnant women, women with babies, and minor employees

Women that are in their 7th month of pregnancy and women with babies under 12 months are not allowed to work overtime, work at night, or take long-distance business trips. Further, pregnant women that are performing heavy work, must either be transferred to lighter work or decrease daily work time by an hour, while maintaining the same total pay.

The Vietnam Labor Code also establishes strict regulations for minor employees, which are workers under the age of 18. They are prohibited from working in dangerous conditions or with potential exposure to toxic substances. The Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) also establishes a limit on which industries and what kind of work minors can undertake.

Minor employees between the ages of 15 and 18 can work a maximum of eight hours a day and 40 hours a week. They are only permitted to do overtime and night work in certain industries, as specified by the Ministry. For workers under the age of 15, regulations establish maximum hours at four hours a day and 20 a week, with no overtime or night work permitted. Working hours for those under 13 years of age is further reduced to one hour per day.

Vietnam vs China

The Labour Law of China establishes similar regulations for their employees. Employees working overtime must be paid at a rate of at least 150 percent; for work done during rest day/weekend, 200 percent; for work during a holiday, 300 percent. China has stricter rules regarding the amount of overtime work than Vietnam. Chinese workers are limited to only an hour of overtime work per day and three hours if it is a special circumstance. The monthly limit is 36 hours.

As Chinese wages continue to rise and the economy transitions towards a more efficiency-based structure of production, Vietnam and the wider ASEAN region has increasingly been tapped as the next factory of the world. Those looking to explore opportunities in ASEANs growing manufacturing base must be aware of the nuances found within the region and tailor their operations accordingly.

Note: This article was first published in August 2016 and has been updated to include the latest developments
Experts point out that dependence on coal will harm attempts to reach emissions targets. Photo: Le Toan

President Moon Jae-in at the Leaders Summit on Climate on April 22 announced that his country, South Korea, would stop investing in coal power abroad. Meanwhile, Vietnam is considering expanding coal-fired power projects in its most recent Power Development Plan 8 (PDP8).

South Korea, along with China and Japan, are the biggest sources of financing for coal-fired power projects in Vietnam. From 2008 to 2018, the former provided approximately $10 billion for coal-fired thermal power projects abroad, including for Vietnamese projects like Mong Duong 2, Long Phu 1, Vinh Tan 4, and Nghi Son 2, according to the countrys non-profit organisation Solutions for Our Climate (SFOC).

Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco) last October invested $189 million in a 40-per-cent stake in the Vung Ang 2 thermal power project in the central province of Ha Tinh, with the financial backing of the Export-Import Bank of Korea. A related pre-feasibility study of the Korea Development Institute showed that the project caused Kepco a loss of $84 million.

Lack of funding

Kepcos move was met with opposition from the international community as it ran counter to the South Korean governments new Green Growth Policy. Under pressure from environmental activists, on October 28, Kepco officially announced that it would stop investing in overseas coal power projects after the Vung Ang 2 project.

South Koreas decision to exit the coal-fired market is expected to have an impact on projects and emission reductions in Vietnam. According to Sejong Youn, head of SFOC, the termination of his countrys overseas coal-power investments is a signal that the low prices for coal in Asia are coming to an end.

The Vietnamese government should review its coal power development plan as these projects are becoming less financially viable, recommended Youn. With the Vung Ang 2 thermal power project in the start-up phase, the South Korean and Vietnamese governments should work together to convert this project into a renewable energy project, as this will bring benefits to both countries in achieving their climate goals.

Japan is also being criticised for providing low-interest loans to coal-fired power projects in Indonesia and Vietnam through the Japan Bank for International Cooperation. Last July, Japan tightened lending terms for overseas coal power projects, accepting loans only for projects in countries that plan to reduce emissions or have no possible replacement resolutions.

Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide announced an increase in Japans Nationally Determined Contributions that by 2030, the country would reduce emissions by 46-50 per cent compared to 2013 levels.

The plan to put the Vinh Tan 3 coal-fired power plant in Vietnams south-central province of Binh Thuan into operation in 2024 was voided as Mitsubishi Corporation withdrew from this project despite participating with a 49-per-cent stake. With the total investment of about $2 billion, Vinh Tan 3 was considered the largest coal power project in Vinh Tan Power Centre. Some major banks had poured capital into Vinh Tan 3, including Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Standard Chartered, and HSBC, which has already withdrawn its capital from the project.

Up to this point, the Japanese government has not made any official commitment to stop financing overseas coal power. Meanwhile, Yuki Tanabe, programme coordinator of the Japan Center for A Sustainable Environment and Society, said that his country needs to announce such a commitment.

Affordable financing

On February 21, Quang Tri Peoples Committee announced on its portal that the prime minister had approved the investment policy of the Quang Trach II thermal power plant project. The project under the management of Electricity of Vietnam in Hon La Economic Zone has a capacity of 1,200MW with the total preliminary investment of $2.09 billion. The plant is expected to commercially operate its first unit by 2028, with the second going online a year thereafter.

As of now, coal-fired power remains the preferred energy type of Vietnam  the fastest-growing coal-fired power market in the region. Since 2015, more than half of the existing capacity (10.7GW) has been added, with the current capacity amounting to 20.4GW, accounting for about 30 per cent of the national power generation structure. According to PDP8, by 2030 another nearly 17GW of coal power will be added.

The Vung Ang 2 thermal power project with a capacity of 1.2GW, if built, is expected to emit 6.6 million tonnes of greenhouse gas per year and up to 200 million tonnes over a 30-year-long operating life.

Vietnams expansion in coal-fired thermal power is facing much criticism for going against the countrys plan to reduce its carbon emissions and fulfil its commitment to achieving the 9-per-cent emission reduction target by 2030, said Nguy Thi Khanh, director of the Green Innovation and Development Centre.

Khanh worried that the plan will also prevent Vietnam from implementing the climate goals of the Paris Agreement. Environmental problems will not be completely resolved when new coal power plants are set up and continue to operate at least until 2050, even until 2070. Total emissions could then increase continuously from 9,500 tonnes per year in 2020 to over 42,000 tonnes by 2035, thus about four times, she said.

Khanh warned that shortcomings similar to the previous PDP7 may recur with the newest itineration, including difficulties in capital mobilisation and disapproval of locals and authorities  the main reasons for delaying coal projects since 2016. Even in 2020, there was only one unit with 0.6GW put into operation, resulting in only about 57.6 per cent of the plan being achieved under the revised PDP7.

Data from many sources shows that Vietnam is dependent on outside coal supply. According to Jakob Stenby Lundsager, a long-term advisor to the Vietnam-Denmark Energy Partnership Programme, Vietnam has imported coal since 2015 and there is a trend that these imports will triple by 2030 and increase eight times by 2050.

If developing coal power according to the PDP8, 86 per cent of new coal capacity must use imported fuel, while these imports are forecast to face many difficulties. Nguyen Tuan Anh, head of the Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Development Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), confirmed that coal resources depend on imports and a new port must be built to import coal.

Ngo Duc Lam, former deputy director of the Electricity and Renewable Energy Authority under the MoIT commented, In power development strategies and plans, policymakers still focus heavily on coal imports, while the potential for renewables is an opportunity to change Vietnams mindset towards one of an energy-exporting country.

The oil crisis of the 1970s startled European nations into realising their dependence. Denmark, when it was still one of the import-dependent countries, implemented a robust energy transition in which it reviewed and analysed its policies before the country became an exporter of energy as it is today.

Vietnam needs to change perceptions and learn from Denmarks experience in converting its energy sources, Lam said.

However, South Koreas decision to move out of the coal-fired investment market will impact domestic emissions and coal-fired power projects in Vietnam. While such divestment trends are increasingly strong in the world, Vietnam may use the opportunity to accelerate the complete transition from fossil fuels to clean energy.
How have the perceptions of Vietnamese enterprises on the role of brands changed since doi moi?

Van Nguyen spoke to Vu Ba Phu, director general of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade

Before 1986, the Vietnamese economy was one with two forms of ownership and the two main types of economic entities were state-owned enterprises and collectives, with only a few individual entities present in the economy but no private and foreign-invested companies.

Thus, the states economy accounted for a large proportion, with tens of thousands of state-owned enterprises all managed by the state. The collectives made up most of the non-state sector with thousands of cooperatives in all sectors, with their input materials mainly supplying products purchased by the state. Therefore, in this period, the concept of brand names almost did not exist as there was also no competition in the market.

Between 1986-1995 was the first stage of the renovation process, aiming to develop a multi-component commodity economy, operating under the socialist-oriented market mechanism. Nevertheless, at this time, the role of brands was also neglected as businesses mainly focused on the domestic market.

Since 1995, however, the awareness of the Vietnamese business community has made remarkable changes. Especially, the prime minister approved the Vietnam Value Programme with Decision No.253/2003/QD-TTg in 2003 as the only programme of the government to assign the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) to be the regular body responsible for the implementation of the programme. This is an unique and long-term trade promotion program which aims to build Vietnams image as a country home to high-quality products and services, as well as to increase the pride and attraction of the Vietnamese country and people, and to boost foreign trade and national competitiveness.

In addition, the fact that Vietnam officially became the 150th member of the World Trade Organization also marked an important milestone, contributing to the countrys economic integration into the region and the world. These opportunities for goods and services export, as well as deep integration with the global economy through bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, also creates more competitive pressure in the domestic market.

Which results have proven the success of the programme?

One of the most concrete examples is that, while in the early 2000s, the Vietnamese brands did not appear in the rankings of international organisations, by 2020 the total brand value of the Forbes 50 Vietnam reached more than $12.6 billion, especially many enterprises with products honoured Vietnam Value such as Viettel, Vietnam Airlines, Vinamilk, MobiFone, and Vietcombank, among many others.

According to the Brand Finance report, in 2020 Vietnam was one of the countries with the fastest growth in national brand value in the world, up to $319 billion, increasing 29 per cent compared to 2019. As a result, Vietnams national brand value has increased nine ranks, reaching 33rd in the Top 100 most valuable national brands in the world.

While participating in the Vietnam Value Programme, many Vietnamese corporations have become aware of the important role of brands as the key to increasing product and corporate value. Enterprises have gradually built, developed, and managed their brands, and the number of them who have products recognised as national brands has steadily increased over the last 13 years. By 2020, the Vietnam Value Programme honoured 124 enterprises with 283 products, including many that have resonated within the regional and international markets.

Compared to many other programmes and activities to honour Vietnamese businesses, what are the differences to the Vietnam Value Programme?

The long-term and unique trade promotion programme of the government has a different approach and brings value to enterprises. The programme was approved by the prime minister and carried out by the MoIT and related ministries and sectors, so the level of prestige is very high, and the products even reach recognition in the National Assembly of Vietnam. Participating companies must go through a strict and transparent selection process according to the administrative procedures specified in the prime ministers Decision No.30/2019/QD-TTg from 2019 and the criteria system of the MoIT.

The programme is not only an award but also a selection of products which make enterprises become partners of the programme. The state does not act for businesses but will stand out to sponsor quality and reputable brands, so that Vietnamese enterprises can create a strong foothold in the domestic market and promote brand development on the global stage.

How can Vietnamese enterprises and the government inherit the achievements from the previous period to continue to develop and elevate brands?

Firstly, Vietnam is famous for a long-lasting history, unique culture, and a multi-ethnic country. Vietnam also imprints in the eyes of international friends as a country with peace-loving people, and an indomitable spirit to gain glorious victories. Those are extremely meaningful inheritance values that not all nations have.

Fuelled by remarkable achievements in the innovation process and in the socioeconomic development, Vietnam has become a destination of choice for foreign investors and trading partners throughout the world. The countrys image and reputation have been increasingly enhanced in the international arena, and so have its national brands.

Today, development of national brands not only includes products and services but also covers broader connotations associated with the national image and hard power factors like infrastructure, strategic location, asset concepts, economic stability, productivity, attraction policy, and cost-effectiveness, as well as soft power factors such as quality of life, workforce expertise, human relations, entrepreneurship, and professionalism in market and business communication.

Besides that, many countries around the world need to build their brands and position themselves differently from other countries on a global scale. Therefore, Vietnam can take its advantage off its image of rich national identity and peace-loving core as our nations distinctiveness.

Moreover, production is increasingly focusing on the foundation of advanced science and technology, so more of the global added value can be exploited and make it will be easier to access global markets than ever before. This means that all countries need to develop national brands by attracting knowledge and skilled human resources to live, work, and settle in the country.

As a result, the MoIT-management agency of the Vietnam Value Programme, has been marketing and promoting the programme and encouraging those enterprises to participate who share and pursue the core values of the programme, which are quality, innovation, and leadership.

With these companies, it will be possible to continue building the image of Vietnam as a reputable country with high-quality goods and services as well as increasing the pride and attractiveness of the country and its people, while contributing to promote the development of foreign trade and enhance the competitiveness of Vietnamese brands in the international arena.
Vietnam has made great efforts to simplify specialised inspection (SI) procedures in recent years. What are the top improvements you have seen?

Greg Leon, director of the Economic Growth Office at USAID Vietnam

In the past six years, SI reform has been a top priority in Vietnam with initiatives on improving the business environment and enhancing national competitiveness. Since then, Vietnam has made great improvements in the management and administrative procedures for such inspection.

For example, many related procedures been have moved from pre-clearance at the border to post-clearance inspection; the rate of imported shipments subject to SI has been reduced from 25 per cent in 2015 to 19.1 per cent in 2019; and 80 per cent of the procedures have been digitalised on the National Single Window.

With Resolution No.99/NQ-CP, the Ministry of Finance and the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC) were assigned to develop a new model to reform SI where the customs will be the focal point to conduct SI on imports at the border. The scheme to reform quality and food safety inspection was later approved by the prime minister in Decision No.38/QD-TTg. With the new model, SI procedures are expected to be further simplified, therefore cutting time and reducing costs for businesses in trading across borders.

What are the challenges ahead to improve the inspections in Vietnam, and what should be done to make further advances?

There are still challenges to radically reforming SI procedures. Firstly, the root cause of these challenges is the outdated legal system. Most laws on SI were developed more than 10 years ago. Besides that, the laws were developed when the next generation of free trade agreements were not yet negotiated or entered into force. The laws, therefore, do not reflect the current situation or requirements for SI on international trade.

Secondly, the problem lies in the management style of some state agencies/ministries who believe they must inspect 100 per cent of goods versus using a statistically-driven targeting system which has been shown to be just as effective and consumes fewer staff hours.

Third, the World Trade Organization recommends that countries designate a coordinating ministry on trade facilitation matters. Vietnam has yet to identify a single state agency as a focal point for SI. This leads to overlap and obstructions in implementation of such inspection among different parties.

Lastly, incompatible IT systems for the process ultimately increases the time and cost of trade. Although the government of Vietnam frequently highlights the importance of IT and digital transformation, and has invested significantly in IT infrastructure, the systems of different state agencies are not compatible, interconnected, or interoperable, which leads to problematic SI management.

Therefore, immediate actions are recommended to address these challenges including the revision of old or outdated laws; establishing a multi-agency risk management centre to better serve the process; authorising customs to conduct SI on behalf of other state agencies; and addressing IT problems to improve the compatibility and interoperability of IT systems among various agencies.

How do other countries deal with these issues?

It is difficult to select only one best practice, as Vietnam can learn from the numerous experiences of other countries in dealing with SI issues. However, one practice from the United States and other developed economies is to create institutional changes that shift responsibility for SI at the border to a single government agency. The United States did this with the creation of US Customs and Border Protection in 2003, consolidating the inspections functions of customs, agriculture, and immigration into one agency.

Other best practices include the assessment of the quality of goods and conformity with standards based on a businesses level of voluntary compliance. In general, SI should be conducted based on risk assessment, drawing on information and evidence. More focused inspections can be carried out, based partly on the nature of the goods and the risks presented by the importer or exporter.

Vietnam can increase the role and importance of coordinated border management where agencies actively coordinate actions at ports of entry/borders. One way to do so would be to establish an integrated multi-agency targeting centre or risk management centre for customs and SI agencies.

USAID has identified SI reform as one of the key pillars for trade facilitation and improving national competitiveness since 2015. Through the USAID Trade Facilitation Programme, launched in 2018, and the previous Governance for Inclusive Growth Programme, USAID has supported different government agencies on reform.

USAID has and continues to provide technical assistance to GDVC including international and local experts to develop the new Scheme for SI Reform, to design and develop the associated government decree and to support further legal review working groups.

USAID is also providing technical assistance to other line ministries such as the Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Industry and Trade, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to develop and implement reforms in their respective technical areas.
Pham Hoang Hai - Executive director of ICHAM Vietnam First of all, I'd say we partially agree with the scope of Decree 152 which has just been circulated by Vietnamese authorities. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many economies around the world are struggling to get out of the crisis and to recover. In order to do so, one of the main issues is to reduce the unemployment rate. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese economy is integrating deeper into the global economy and the inflow of foreign workers  experts, investors, staff and senior staff, among others  coming into Vietnam is also increasing. So how can Vietnam filter out unqualified workforce to help the local HR market solidify and be more competitive? We believe Decree 152 was made to resolve this. However, we do not agree completely. The world economy is changing so fast and along with it the labour force. There are many new businesses and industries that do not have a track record of the required few years. It is especially true for the IT industry and the digital economy. How could an expert  no matter how successful  of a new business have an academic degree for an industry that has not existed until 2-3 years ago? We believe the local authorities should be flexible enough to resolve this dilemma and we would suggest a few points. If the employer can demonstrate that the foreign person they intend to hire possesses competence/expertise that is necessary for the job and which Vietnamese staff can "barely" satisfy, there should be no difficulty in employing them. Vietnam should open up its labour market to countries which accept Vietnamese workers without technical barriers. We are aware that this is still ambiguous, but given the times we live in, we think it is the most practical and efficient way. Hoang Thi Na Huong - CEO, Protec The definition and standards of qualifications for expert positions are difficult for enterprises to apply, especially those in the manufacturing sector like Protec. In Vietnam, we are one of the few pioneering factories of bicycle helmet production to develop a global share for Vietnamese products. It is difficult to find technicians with knowledge and experience to professionally operation machinery and manufacturing processes in Vietnam, so recruiting foreigner experts must often be considered for solution. It is difficult to invite them to work in Vietnam, but it is even more difficult to follow/secure the required papers according to Decree 152. Due to the pandemic, difficulties are even more burdensome on enterprises when the application for approval must be submitted to the Peoples Committee of the province where it is registered. The government should encourage enterprises to make decisions for their own human resources because they are the ones to bear the costs. They understand deeply the needs and effectiveness for this essential recruitment. We cannot pay an expert 5-6 times and more than a local worker unless they are indispensable. The problem of cost is always put on the table for business leaders to balance the operation, but aside from that, we also have too many burdens to meet the management requirements of the government. In the current context, it really puts a lot of pressure on enterprises that need to employ foreign experts. Federico Vasoli - Managing partner, dMTV Global Decree 152, which in essence raises the bar for the employment of foreigners in Vietnam, follows a regional  if not global  trend aimed at ensuring that domestic talents feel more empowered by their country, especially with the job losses caused by COVID-19. I welcome similar measures because, at least in Vietnam, they do not harm high-added value companies that should employ the best people, whether Vietnamese or foreign, and restrict the number of improvised ventures that thrive on asymmetries and inefficiencies. A professional firm, for instance, should only collaborate with the most qualified talents available. One is welcome to come to Vietnam, as long as one is fit for its challenges. Perhaps a degree and a polished CV do not reflect the true value that a person represents, given the complexity of each individual, but they are the accepted tangible standard for these policies. What is essential is that measures do not jeopardise the role of certain hubs, including Vietnams largest cities, and preserve cultural enrichment. In an ever tenser world, geographical and physical mobility of all classes  including students and retirees, not just high level employees  is vital in preserving peace and cooperation. David Salt - COO, LOGIVAN Technologies Whilst the government should work to ensure that every foreign person entering the country brings value to Vietnam, I dont believe this update is a positive step towards that goal. For technical personnel in academia or the sciences, a persons education and technical qualifications can be a very good indicator of the level and nature of their expertise in a field of work. But for many business roles, the persons skills and abilities are unlikely to be well represented by their undergraduate degree, and their previous role in a foreign country is likely to be different to the position they will hold when in Vietnam. In this situation, market forces are able to deliver a good result for Vietnam and complicated legislation is not necessary. Businesses have a deeper understanding of the requirements for each role than a government agency can have, and are naturally incentivised to select the best person for each position. Hiring foreign workers is usually complicated and expensive. Moreover, local workers have a number of distinct advantages, including familiarity with local customs and knowledge of the Vietnamese language that few foreign people are fluent in. Therefore, if a business chooses to hire a foreign worker over a local one, it is strong evidence that the person is indeed highly skilled in the relevant areas, and I feel it is not necessary to add further barriers to the process.
Bayer Vietnam and the Vietnam Administration Medical Service are pleased to launch the website dotquy.kcb.vn, and the Phong chong ot quy fan page and YouTube channel

The launching ceremony for Stroke was held at the Ministry of Health with the attendance of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Luong Ngoc Khue, head of the Medical Examination and Treatment Department of the Ministry of Health, the vice head of the Non-Communicable Diseases Control Department and professional associations, hospital staff from across the country, and news agencies. The digital platform is testament to the efforts being made by VAMS and Bayer to accurately raise public awareness of stroke prevention.

Speaking at the ceremony, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Luong Ngoc Khue emphasized that: Strokes are one of the biggest threats to public health in Vietnam with 200,000 new cases each year, half of which are fatal. Those who survive a stroke still have to live with ongoing disabilities that may leave them unable to work, with their families and society often left to pick up the pieces.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Luong Ngoc Khue, head of the Medical Examination and Treatment Department of the Ministry of Health, delivered a speech at the launch of the digital multi-platform about stroke

He highlighted that it is crucial to raise awareness among patients and the community and educate each individual to proactively participate in stroke prevention and treatment.

The Stroke portal is directly linked to the VAMS website, providing people with accurate, objective, useful, practical, and easy-to-understand knowledge about strokes, including causes, symptoms, treatment, and recommendations on prevention such as lifestyle changes, as well as treatment compliance. The forum section is a place to share, connect and listen to stories of patients and caregivers; especially through online exchanges with leading doctors, people can ask and get answer from healthcare experts.

All content in the portal is contributed by experienced doctors from leading hospitals across the country, and has been reviewed and approved by an editorial team made up of leading experts in cardiology and neurology. The content will be regularly updated to provide essential and diverse information in understandable and accessible forms for the community.

MD. MBA Tran Thi Lan Huong, medical director of the Pharmaceutical Divison, Bayer Vietnam discussing the meaning of the digital multi-platform about stroke

Bayer has made significant achievements in cardiovascular disease management, but we recognise there is still a lot of work to be done to address the growing burden of strokes in Vietnam. We believe that cooperation plays an important role and that is why Bayer is honoured to be partnering VAMS to implement the Stroke digital multi-platform project. The active participation of patients and their families in stroke prevention and treatment is a key factor in improving the quality of medical examination and treatment around the world as well as in Vietnam, said Dr. Tran Thi Lan Huong, Medical Director of the Pharmaceutical Division, Bayer Vietnam.

The community can find useful and accurate information about stroke at dotquy.kcb.vn, as well as the fan page and YouTube channels Phong chong ot quy

With digitalization penetrating and transforming Vietnam's healthcare system quickly and dynamically, Stroke will make a practical contribution to the quality of counseling between health workers and patients and help to connect healthcare personnel to the community.

In addition to the Stroke portal, which can be accessed at dotquy.kcb.vn, the VAMS has also created a Facebook page: Phong chong ot quy and a Youtube channel: Phong chong ot quy to further amplify and spread information about stroke prevention within the community.
Increased vigilance is neccessary to stave off the pandemic

Last week, the Ministry of Health announced that Vietnam will extend its quarantine measures from 14 to 21 days for both foreign arrivals and those who come into contact with COVID-19 patients. The move was made following the resurgence of coronavirus cases of several individuals who had completed the 14-day quarantine and tested negative two or even three times.

Le Bich Loan, deputy director of Saigon Hi-tech Park Management Authority, said that the government has made the right decision to keep the wider community safe during the global health crisis. However, she worries that businesses will face more difficulties due to a lack of foreign experts being able to enter the country.

Companies have to find alternative local sources for foreign employees or communicate with overseas experts through online meetings to address operation issues. However, they still need some key non-Vietnamese experts to work on-site who have experience to deploy high technology and provide training to locals, Loan explained.

She believes the extension to 21 days will be too time-consuming and costly for companies as they now have to wait for foreign experts finishing the mandatory quarantine. If possible, the government can consider classifying the groups of foreign arrivals to Vietnam. Foreign experts who have vaccine passports should be facilitated to enter the country, she said.

According to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids, and Social Affairs, there are nearly 8,500 highly-skilled foreign workers on a priority list to enter Vietnam. They involve some 2,000 employees of key national projects that use new technologies.

Vietnams early action, targeted testing, extensive contact tracing, effective government communication, and widespread public compliance has helped to mitigate the damage from the virus since it emerged at the tail-end of 2019.

Commenting on the governments efforts, Adam Sitkoff, executive director of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hanoi said, It is important to recognise that in-bound travel brings in foreign experts and businesspeople necessary to facilitate new investment, efficient operations, key infrastructure, education of Vietnamese children, and more. We also must recognise the hardships that the travel, tourism, transportation, and hospitality sectors have sustained during the pandemic period.

Locking people inside a room for many weeks might seem like a good idea today, Sitkoff added, but Vietnamese policymakers will need to think seriously about a safe and simple system of documentation that will facilitate international arrivals here. To stay competitive and grow the economy, creative thinking and leadership are both required, Sitkoff concluded.
Wide coverage in revamped Labour Code provisions, illustration photo

Foreigners working in Vietnam

Under Article 3 of Decree 152, a foreign worker who has a document certifying that he/she is an expert of an overseas agency, organisation, or enterprise is no longer considered as a foreign expert.

Instead, a foreign expert means a non-Vietnamese worker who has a university degree or higher or the equivalent, and has at least three years of working experience in the specialty in which he/she was trained in conformity with his/her expected working position in Vietnam (same with previous regulations); or has at least five years working experience and a practicing certificate in conformity with his/her expected working position in Vietnam.

Article 3 of Decree 152 also adds having at least five years working experience suitable for his/her expected working position in Vietnam as a new circumstance under which a foreign employee would be eligible to be recognised as a technician.

Moreover, a foreign worker who comes to work in Vietnam as an expert, a technician, and so on in the form of performing an intra-company transfer programme has to be recruited by the foreign company for at least 12 consecutive months before the transfer date instead of 12 months as previously regulated.

Under the previous regulations, the owners or the capital contributing members of a limited liability company and the members of the board of management (BOM) of a joint-stock company are exempted from work permit requirements. The new Labour Code adds the condition that these persons must have a capital contribution value as stated by government (Article 154). Decree 152 clarified the capital contribution value as VND3 billion ($130,400) or more (Article 7).

Besides that, according to previous regulations, a foreigner who comes to Vietnam to work as an expert, manager, chief executive director, or technician for under 30 days and for a total accumulated working period under 90 days per year is exempted from permit requirements. However, Decree 152 further limits the number of times those foreigners can enter Vietnam, to no more than three times per year (Article 7).

In principle, foreign workers who are not required to have a work permit with some exemptions must be confirmed by a competent authority for the exemption. The exemptions include those who stay in Vietnam for under three months to offer services for sale; those who enter Vietnam to hold the positions of experts, managers, chief executive officers, or technicians for under 30 days and an accumulated working period of under 90 days per year; those who stay in Vietnam for under three months to deal with complicated technical or technological problems; and relatives of members who are executing their functions in foreign missions in Vietnam upon the approval of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Decree 152 sets out certain new situations under which foreigners working in Vietnam are not requested to apply for a confirmation of work permit exemption. This can be a foreign lawyer issued with a certificate to practice in Vietnam under the Law on Lawyers; a non-national who is married to a Vietnamese person and living in the territory of Vietnam; a foreigner who is an owner or capital contributing member of a limited liability company with a capital contribution of VND3 billion ($130,400) or more; and someone who is chairperson of a BOM, or BOM member of a joint-stock company with capital contribution of VND3 billion or more.

Article 155 of the new Labour Code adds a new procedure called extension of the work permit. Decree 152 clarifies its applicable circumstances and dossiers. Accordingly, if a foreigner continues to work in Vietnam after the expiration of the two-year of the permit, he/she must extend the permit instead of applying for a re-issue. It can be extended for one time for a maximum period of two years, which means that after four years working in Vietnam, foreign workers must apply for a new work permit via the normal issuance procedure.

Workplace sexual harassment

Under the new Labour Code, sexual harassment at the workplace shall be subjected to dismissal and the internal labour regulations must have provisions dealing with sexual harassment at the workplace. However, with the definition of sexual harassment in Article 3.9 of the new Labour Code, it is difficult to verify whether an act is considered sexual harassment or not.

Article 84 of Decree 145 provides a more clear concept that sexual harassment may occur in form of a request, demand, suggestion, threat, use of force to have sex in exchange for any work-related interests; or any sexual acts that thus creates an insecure and uncomfortable work environment and affects the mental, physical health, performance, and life of the harassed person.

Sexual harassment at the workplace includes actions, gestures, and physical contact with the body of a sexual or suggestive nature; verbal sexual harassment in the form of sexual or suggestive comments in person, by phone, or through electronic media; and non-verbal sexual harassment in the form of body language, display, or description of sex or sexual activities whether directly or through electronic media.

Annual leave

Decree 145 adds several new regulations relating to calculating annual leave days and salary during annual leave and other paid leave days that are more favorable for employees.

Under Decree 145, a working period of less than one month is also used as a basis for calculating annual leave. Article 66.2 of Decree 145 states that if an employee has an incomplete month of work, it will be considered a complete month if the total working days and paid leave days make up of at least half of the normal working days of the month.

Article 113.3 of the new Labour Code states that employees shall be paid in compensation for the unused annual leave days in case of employment termination or job loss. Article 67 of Decree 145 stipulates the basis for paying salary for unused annual leave days.

Instead of paying the average salary according to the labour contract of the preceding six months before employment termination or job loss (if the employee has been working for full 06 months) or the average salary according to the labour contract of the whole working time (if the employee has been working for less than six months), the salary as the basis for paying for unused annual leave days is the salary written in his/her labour contract of the month preceding the month in which the employee retires or loses his/her job.

Benefits for female employees

Similar to previous regulations, the new Labour Code stipulates that a female employee in her menstruation period is entitled to a 30-minute break every working day, and a female employee nursing a child under 12 months of age is entitled to a 60-minute break in every working day with full wage as stated in the labour contract.

Decree 145 adds more favorable regulations for female workers; accordingly, if the female employee does not need to rest and the employer allows her to work, she will be entitled to, in addition to the salary mentioned above, an extra salary that corresponds to the amount of work done by her during the rest period to which she is entitled.

Moreover, Decree 145 has a regulation that encourages employers to provide dedicated rooms for milking and breastmilk storage in the workplace if possible. If the employer has 1000 female employees or more, a room for milking and breast-milk storage is mandatory.
A small town Alaskan couple is concerned about the future of the United States after the Federal Bureau of Investigation raided their home in search of House Speaker Nancy Pelosis stolen laptop, but came up empty in what the couple says is a case of obviously mistaken identity.

On April 28, the FBI raided the home of Paul and Marilyn Huepers in Homer, Alaska, a town with a population of approximately 5,700 people, in search of the device, which was stolen during the Jan. 6 Capitol riots and has not been recovered. According to a May 6 NBC report, agents only told Marilyn Heupers Were looking for Nancy Pelosis laptop after restraining her with handcuffs.

NBC says the couple first came to officials attention when Alaska Airlines in February banned the couple for refusing to wear masks on a flight.

In the warrant, which was obtained April 22 against the couple, who run an inn and spa in the Homer, the first 15 pages are devoted to narrating the general storyline of the Jan. 6 events in the same hyperbolic way Democrat House Managers conflated the actions of thugs to the actions of former President Donald Trump without evidence during his second impeachment trial.

On Page 16, under the section Facts Specific to this Application, the Huepers are mentioned for the first time. However, the opening paragraph has nothing to do with either the riots or Pelosis laptop. Instead, it states on February 17 the couple were identified as non-compliant passengers because they refused to follow mask regulations and were banned from flying with Alaska Airlines.

In the Warrant, the FBI said they were contacted by Witness 1, who notified them of the Alaska Airlines ban. The informant provided agents with an Instagram photo of Heupers, which was claimed in the Warrant by the agent responsible, whose name is redacted from the unsealed document, to be matching the exact description of the woman wanted for the theft

The FBIs raid resulted in iPads, cellphones, and a personal laptop being seized by the FBI.

Heupers noted FBI agents also took a personal sized copy of the Declaration of Independence the couple kept.

Confidence in democracy shaken

In a post on Facebook the same day as the raid, Heupers posted a side-by-side photo of her on Jan. 6 against the file photo released by the FBI on the unidentified suspect. Heupers bears a similarity to the woman in that she is wearing a similar black down jacket, has a similar hairstyle, is of a similar age, and is also a white female. However, Heupers is wearing a different sweater, no earrings, no eye shadow, and her hair is parted on a different side.

Paul Heupers told the Epoch Times, Surely the FBI could see that, unless their investigative work is just that weak that they cant pick up these small things, adding that neither of them entered the Capitol and were more than 100 yards away when the riots broke out.

They had a very similar jacket, but the other woman had this really ugly Christmas sweater on, and Marilyn was just wearing a white, red, and pinstripe blue shirt, mostly white.

In their coverage, NBC said Marilyn looks strikingly similar to the thief.

Marilyn said in reference to the seizure of their copy of the Declaration of Independence that it felt like the FBI was trying to say something or trying to intimidate.

Paul Heupers told ET his confidence in America was greatly shaken after the experience, Its just really frightening, seeing our government weaponize different facets of these different agenciesthe FBI, IRS, CIA, and so forthagainst American citizens. This is the stuff of police state legends.

This is where the USSR got formed and where Venezuela got formed and Cuba, and on and on down the lineSo Americans dont really realize where this police state tactic kind of government is leading us, and I dont care if youre Democrat, Republican, if youre independent, if youre Libertarianwake up Americans, your rights are getting taken away and they are slipping away fast.

If we dont take a stand as the people and stop depending on the governmentif we as the people dont wake up and take a stand, and take a loud stand, were going to wave goodbye to the lives that weve built them to be and the freedoms that weve enjoyed, said Heupers.

The pair also dispute refusing to comply with masking regulations on their Alaskan Airlines flight. Marilyn says she took her mask off to eat and drink, while Paul kept his on the entire time. The airline did not reply to Epoch Times for comment.
The United Nations warns Somalia faces a perilous future as drought followed by torrential rains have destroyed this years planting season.

Somalia is one of the countries in the world most prone to the erratic and calamitous impacts of climate change. It has been hit by a double climate disaster for more than two weeks that is likely to worsen its already acute situation of food insecurity.

The drought, which was declared on April 25 was soon followed by torrential rains that caused flash floods and rivers to overflow. The U.N. organization for the coordination of humanitarian affairs reports the rains came too late for the planting season.

OCHA spokesman Jens Laerke said floods have killed at least 25 people in various parts of the country. The victims include nine children who died when their house flooded in the Benadir region, in the capital, Mogadishu.

The Juba River has burst its banks, houses have been washed away and livestock have perished. There are also reports of flooding in the north of the country and there are continuous flash flood warnings across Somalia, especially for people living in low lying areas. In flooded areas, local communities are struggling to prevent further flooding by placing sandbags, poles and other materials to reinforce riverbanks," he said.

The World Food Program reports 2.7 million Somalis are short of food, with more than half-a-million on the brink of famine. An estimated 300,000 children under age five are malnourished, including 48,000 who are severely malnourished and at high risk of disease and death.

OCHA spokesman Laerke warned the combined impact of drought and floods is likely to worsen this critical situation.

Both climate shocks cause displacement, jeopardize access to safe water, increase waterborne diseases and impact peoples livelihoods. Despite increasing humanitarian needs, the funding forecast for 2021 is the worst in six years. This years Somalia Humanitarian Response Plan requires $1 billion to assist four million people. As of today, the plan is only 19 percent funded," he said.

Laerke said OCHA and partners are using the limited funds at their disposal to step up operations in drought-affected areas and reach at least 353,000 people with aid. Urgent efforts, he adds also are under way to respond to the flash flooding.

The World Food Program reports it has distributed food to more than 20,000 people in Jowhar city, one of the areas hardest hit by flooding in central Somalia.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 19:22:28|Editor: huaxia

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XIAMEN, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Israeli entrepreneur Gal Goren was busy introducing his product -- a robot named Temi -- to his Chinese counterparts at a high-tech forum in east China's Xiamen city Tuesday.

Currently, more than 1,000 Temi robots are being used by Chinese companies in retail, education, security and health care, and the number could grow exponentially in the future given China's vast market, Goren said at the inaugural Xiamen-Israel Cooperation Forum on Technological Innovation.

Four years ago, Goren moved his start-up to Shenzhen, an innovation hub in southern China, to tap more opportunities. Now the company has more than 70 Chinese employees.

"China is leading the world in the digital and smart-service sector. There is no better place to make such complex products than the great market in China," Goren said.

Israeli company Bermad, which focuses on providing water control solutions to businesses, entered the Chinese market 25 years ago and has set up offices in cities such as Xiamen, Shanghai and Chengdu, according to its general manager Dan Leshem.

"Israel's market is small. China has rich water resources and its agricultural irrigation market is such a huge space for us," Leshem said.

At Tuesday's forum, Peleg Lewi, Consul General of Israel in Southern China, expressed the hope that more Israeli companies would bring their technologies to the prosperous Chinese market.

"Israeli companies cooperate with Chinese companies in technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, modern and digital agriculture and new ways of education," Lewi said. "What Israel is capable of doing is to bring innovative ideas to solve problems in the production system, to enlarge the win-win situation."

Businessmen from more than 20 Israeli companies and over 70 Chinese firms based in Xiamen attended the forum. Enditem
The World Health Organization said Monday that a variant of the coronavirus circulating in India is of global concern.



"We classify it as a variant of concern at a global level," Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead on COVID-19, told a briefing. "There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility."



Indias daily COVID statistics are down slightly but remain high. The health ministry said Monday there were 366,161 new infections and 3,754 deaths caused by the coronavirus in the previous 24-hour period. Public health experts say they believe the new cases and deaths are undercounted.

India has 22.6 million COVID cases so far, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. Only the U.S. has more infections, accounting for 32.7 million of the worlds 158.3 million COVID cases, the center reported.



There is growing concern in India about a fungal infection affecting COVID patients and people who have recovered from the disease. Mucormycosis is caused by mold and can affect a persons facial structure and in some cases cause blindness. COVID patients with diabetes are particularly susceptible to mucormycosis, medical experts said.



Nepal, struggling to combat an outbreak of the pandemic, is running short of oxygen and oxygen tanks. The Himalayan country has asked Mount Everest climbers and guides not to abandon their oxygen cylinders on the mountain and instead bring them back down so that medical facilities can fill them to give to COVID patients.



Kul Bahadur Gurung, a senior official with the Nepal Mountaineering Association, told Reuters, We appeal to climbers and Sherpas [Himalayan people living around Nepal and Tibet, well known for climbing mountains] to bring back their empty bottles wherever possible as they can be refilled and used for the treatment of the coronavirus patients who are in dire needs.



A Nepal health ministry official said the country needs 25,000 oxygen tanks immediately, speaking to Reuters.



EU summit, U.S. criticism



On the second day of a summit in Portugal on Saturday, the European Union approved a contract extension with Pfizer-BioNTech to provide up to 1.8 billion additional doses of its vaccine through 2023.



Pfizer has already provided the EU with 600 million doses, as required in the initial contract.



Also at the summit, the U.S. faced mounting criticism from EU leaders over President Joe Bidens surprise endorsement last week of lifting COVID-19 vaccine patents to make more doses available to poorer countries.



We dont think, in the short term, that its the magic bullet, said EU Council President Charles Michel.



Michel and other EU leaders said the U.S. should, instead, start boosting vaccine exports to have maximum impact on the global pandemic.



Im very clearly urging the U.S. to put an end to the ban on exports of vaccines and on components of vaccines that are preventing them being produced, French President Emmanuel Macron said.



The U.S., like Britain, has limited exports of domestically developed vaccines so it can inoculate its population first. The EU has become the worlds leading vaccine provider, distributing about 200 million doses to the 27-nation bloc and roughly an equal number to nearly 90 countries around the world.



Pope Francis said that he supports the temporary suspension of vaccine patents, according to news reports. He added that market forces, as they relate to vaccines, must not predominate.
Cameroonian convict Jacques Calvin Eyafa has been bound to a wheelchair at the Yaounde maximum security prison for the past two years. But authorities say that hasnt stopped him from continuing to steal money from people over the phone.

Police in Cameroon say they have charged Eyafa with impersonating African presidents over the phone to defraud victims, including the government of Niger.



Judicial police officer Vincent De Paul Meva says Eyafa is accused of using a smuggled mobile phone to impersonate officials, including Cameroons President Paul Biya.



Meva said Eyafas skills are so good, he managed to con Nigers embassy in Cameroon last year out of an undisclosed sum of money before he was caught.



Meva said in March 2020, the office of the president of the republic of Cameroon reported that someone was impersonating Biya and his cabinet director, Mvondo Ayollo. He said the impostor called Nigers then-President Mahamadou Issoufou on the phone several times. He said Issoufou alerted Biya of the suspicious calls and Biya asked the police to open investigations and track the calls.



Meva said the search led to the prison and Eyafa, who is serving a three-year sentence for running a fake employment agency that promised jobs for a fee.



Police say Eyafa mimicked Biyas voice in calls where he vowed to rally Nigeriens in Cameroon to vote for Issoufou in Decembers election  for a price.



Nigers embassy in Yaounde confirmed that people they believed were Biya and other state officials called them and made some inquiries but declined to go into detail.



Meva said Eyafa got the embassy to give him the personal telephone number of Nigers President Issoufou.



He said Eyafa is suspected of cheating or attempting to cheat several French-speaking African leaders, international aid groups, and private companies.



Meva would not disclose the amount of money Eyafa allegedly received by mobile money transfer from Niger or name any other victims.



Catherine Penda, who owns a road construction company called Construct Cameroon, said Eyafa duped her out of what she called a huge amount of money.



She said she never for a second suspected that Eyafa was an impostor. Penda said she doesn't want to disclose the amount of money Eyafa extorted after promising to give her contracts to build roads in Cameroon. But she said Eyafa did not act alone and pleads with Cameroons and Nigers police to track his network, which according to her is well organized.



Cameroon police say they are investigating a network of impostors, allegedly led by Eyafa, who impersonate and cheat high-ranking state officials and investors in central African states.



Germain Ntono Tsimi, a lecturer of law at the University of Yaounde, said Eyafa could get up to 40 more years in prison if found guilty.
South African officials say two highly contagious variants of coronavirus are now present in the country, as Africas worst-hit nation prepares for a possible new onslaught of cases.

Officials from the National Institute for Communicable Diseases announced late Sunday that they have detected the B.1.617.2 and B.1.1.7 variants among the South African population.

With just under 1.6 million confirmed cases, South Africa leads the continent in coronavirus infections. Of those, nearly 55,000 people have died.

It is not surprising that new variants have been detected in South Africa, said Adrian Puren, the institutes acting director. We would like to assure the public that the institute is focusing their resources and research efforts towards understanding the variants and what the potential implications are for South Africa.

The first variant, B.1.617.2, has been detected in four positive cases, the institute said. Two of those are in Gauteng, the most populous province, and home to Johannesburg and Pretoria.

South African officials said in a statement that all four known cases of this variant have been isolated and managed. and that contract tracing was underway.

B.1.617.2 is among the variants currently circulating in India, where the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center says 22.6 million COVID-19 cases have been reported -- though health experts have warned that they believe both cases and deaths are being underreported in India.

Officials with the institute said they are now giving higher priority to positive samples from travelers entering South Africa, especially those coming from India.

In rare but expected development, a small number of people have developed COVID-19 after being vaccinated

The second variant, B.1.1.7, has been detected in 11 cases, South African officials said. This highly transmissible variant was initially detected in the U.K.

Officials urged South Africans to be vigilant, as the nation battles to secure enough vaccines to achieve herd immunity. The nations vaccination campaign has moved slowly so far, and to date, just over 382,000 people -- all of them health workers -- have been vaccinated.

The next phase of vaccinations is set to begin next week.

We understand that many are suffering from COVID-19 fatigue, and becoming lax in exercising preventative measures, Puren said. But for the sake of yourselves and your loved ones, wash or sanitize your hands, wear your masks and maintain physical distance of 1.5 meters from others. Remember to hold gatherings outdoors, or in well ventilated areas and roll up your sleeve once the COVID-19 vaccine becomes available to you.
Ugandan security operations have ramped up around the capital ahead of Wednesday's inauguration of President Yoweri Museveni. That includes tight security around the home of opposition leader Bobi Wine, who accused the government of fraud in Januarys election. The security measures seem to be a warning to the opposition from authorities.



Its a beehive of activity for security personnel ahead of Wednesdays swearing-in ceremony for Museveni. Kampala streets are guarded by foot patrols of soldiers, rooftop snipers, artillery pieces, armored vehicles and riot police.



Authorities are also intent on containing opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, better known as Bobi Wine.



Joel Ssenyonyi, the National Unity Platform party spokesperson, says Wines house has been heavily surrounded by security.



In fact, today they deployed some more [security forces]. We dont know whether their intention is to hold him under house arrest. Honorable Kyagulanyi has not written to them to ask for security. Today, at our party headquarters in Kamwokya, the military sent war tankers (tanks). But for us, all this is panic. Panic by Mr. Museveni and his regime, because they are afraid of Ugandans. Simply because they know they stole the victory of Ugandans, Ssenyonyi said.



Colonel Deo Akiiki, the deputy army spokesperson, says stepped up security at Wines home is because of his status in the country.



Police spokesperson Fred Enanga says officials have intelligence that Wine was planning a parallel inauguration ceremony.

We are already aware of plans by one of the former presidential candidates, who lost the recent presidential election, and is having plans of holding a parallel and illegitimate swearing-in ceremony, in one of the hotels in Iganga. We want to remind him and his supporters that the voice of the electorate were clearly heard, Enanga said.



Museveni and his National Resistance Movement party were declared the winner of the January 14 elections with 58.6% of the vote. Wine and his National Unity Platform, which came in second with 34%, say the vote was rigged.



While ordinary Ugandans are continuing their normal business, 55-year-old Henry Kisule, a casual laborer, moving on his bicycle says theres nothing exciting about the inauguration.



He said when Museveni took power in 1986, he was completing his primary education. He has now lived under Museveni for 35 years, and said it is time for change.



The years hes been in power are so many. Do we want to see him collapse? He should have ended with the fifth term. And even the little happiness that we had, because the children he would have propelled into power, hes just torturing them. Things arent good, we are not happy, Kisule said.



According to the State House, six African presidents have confirmed they will attend the inauguration, while another six will be represented.



Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, more than 4,000 guests are expected to gather for the outdoor ceremony.
The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum has filed an urgent court application seeking an order compelling Chief Justice Luke Malaba to retire within the next three days.

In a statement, Forum director, Musa Kika, said keeping Malaba in office is unconstitutional as the Constitution Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 2) Act signed into law a few days ago by President Emmerson Mnangagwa violates some provisions of the countrys supreme law adopted in 2013.

According to Kika, Malaba turns 70 on 15 May, 2021, and is due to go on retirement in terms of the provisions of the original 2013 Constitution.

He argues that the provisions under which Malaba would benefit from are also expected to extend the terms of office of his deputy as well as Constitutional and Supreme Court judges.

Kika claims that the amendment of Section 328(7) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe is null and void as a referendum is needed to limit or extend the terms of office of judges and their subordinates.

Section 328(7) also makes it clear that any amendment to a term-limit provision does not apply to any person who held or occupied that office at the time before the amendment.

Kika is seeking to have any purported extension of Malabas term of office after May 15, 2021, to be declared null and void. "... And anything Malaba attempts to do after 15 May, 2021, be equally declared to be null and void.

Pending the appointment of a substantive Chief Justice to replace Malaba, Kika seeks to have the current deputy Chief Justice Elizabeth Gwaunza fill the vacancy in an acting capacity while the third most senior judge, Justice Paddington Garwe, becomes acting Deputy Chief Justice.

Respondents include the Minister of Justice and all 17 Constitutional and Supreme Court judges.

Responding to the application, attorneys representing the judges, Kantor/Immerman, wrote a letter to the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum director, saying we place it on record that the application is opposed in its entirety on various grounds.

In the letter, dated May 11 and signed by a senior Kantor/Immerman partner identified as ABC Chinake, Kika is asked to serve copies of the court application to all cited judges in their personal capacities.

The Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment Act (No.2) allows the president to appoint and extend terms of office of senior judges. Critics say this would result in the president manipulating the judiciary to pursue his own political agenda.
Columbus Mavhunga

In much of Africa, including Zimbabwe, women struggling to have children often face stigma and ridicule. To help overcome the problem, two Zimbabwean doctors in 2017 re-opened the country's only in vitro fertilization clinic.

Since the clinic re-opened in 2017, several years after its previous owner retired, IVF Zimbabwe says it has helped about 120 women have babies through in vitro fertilization.

Dr. Sydney Farayi, who runs the clinic with Dr. Tinovimba Mhlanga, said some couples struggle to have children and turn to the wrong sources for help.

"The most hindering obstacle people from seeking assistance is lack of knowledge.... Imagine how many people have stayed together for one year and still failing to conceive, but do not know where to go and get assistance. People are not sure where to go. Normally people will turn to go to traditional, faith healers which are cheap or easy to get but without any good outcomes from there," said Farayi.

Farayi said she and Mhlanga are happy when they help couples reach their goal.

The value is really seen in the happiness and joy which we are bringing to sub-fertile couples in terms of assisting them to conceive and having a baby. The joy is real and its something which is touching, personally affecting also us, as individuals and clinicians, so basically assisting couples to conceive is helping marriages to continue, the unions to continue and also bringing livelihoods to peoples lives, said the doctor.

One of those who have benefitted from IVF Zimbabwe is a 30-year-old woman who is expecting to deliver next month. Her first marriage collapsed after seven years of failing to conceive. As she narrates her ordeal with in-laws and community, she does not want to be identified.

The blame would always come to us women. Maybe there is something that you did. Or maybe you didnt grow well. To be honest it was a lot of negativity coming from the backstab, she said.

The United Nations World Health Organization says failure to conceive in Africa is largely blamed on women, although half of all infertility cases can be traced back to men.

Dr. Nancy Kidula  from the WHOs regional office for Africa - said infertility problems are common and can be overcome. Via a messaging application, Kidula said in Africa, many governments are more focused on health problems like epidemics, infectious diseases and malnutrition.

Therefore, infertility will turn to fall quite low on the priority list. Fertility treatment is also very expensive to the extent that even insurance companies are reluctant to fund fertility management," she said.

Patients at IVF Zimbabwe say they pay around $4,000 for treatment  a huge sum for the average person in Zimbabwe.

But to clients ready to welcome their first child after a long wait, the investment is worth it.
MEMORIAL DAY PARADE AND CEREMONY ONE TO REMEMBER: On a beautiful day, May 31, Our Town watched the parade along Washington and attended a meaningful ceremony at city hall that honored our fallen heroes. The gathering was among the largest in memory for this important day in Our Town. First, 
Funeral Announcements A daily list of current funeral annoucements as heard on KXRA 1490 AM/100.3 FM

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(UPDATED INFORMATION) An infant taken by her non-custodial parents is located in Iowa and is safely in protective custody. South Carolina authorities say little Dakota Ray was taken on April 15th by William and Jessica Ray, who are believed to be heavy meth users. The three were recently captured on surveillance video on Monday at an Iowa hospital. They were also spotted in Marshall, Minnesota. The parents are in custody on unrelated charges.

(EARLIER REPORT) May 17, 3018

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children along with the Camden Police Department in South Carolina are asking for the public's assistance to locate a missing 2 year-old child.

Dakota Ray was taken on April 15, 2018 by her parents William and Jessica Ray. According to law enforcement both William and Jessica are believed to be heavy methamphetamine users and law enforcement is concerned for the childs well being.

The child and her parents were captured in surveillance images on Monday, May 14, 2018 at a hospital in Iowa. Law enforcement then received information that they may now be in Minnesota.

The child and companions are traveling in a 1996 gold Ford Aerostar van and may be frequently changing the license plate on the vehicle.

According to Camden Police Department It is possible that they may be begging or asking strangers for money. The child and companions are also believed to be sleeping in their vehicle.

 Dakota is 2 years old. She is 2 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 25 pounds and has blonde hair and blue eyes

 Jessica is 36 years old. She is 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighs 112 pounds and has long light brown hair and blue eyes.

 William is 44 years old. He is 6 feet 1 inches tall and weighs 340 pounds and has light brown hair and brown eyes.

If anyone has seen Dakota, William or Jessica Ray contact the Camden Police Department at 1-888-CRIMESC (1-888-274-6372) or the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 19:55:08|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- China on Tuesday signed joint statements with Afghanistan and Pakistan concerning cooperation on the Asian Initiative for Cultural Heritage Conservation.

The country will cooperate with Afghanistan and Pakistan on archaeological projects, the restoration of monuments and sites, nominations for World Heritage sites, academic research into museum collections, cultural exhibitions, the prevention of cultural artifact trafficking, and personnel training, according to the statements signed between China's National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA) and the Ministry of Information and Culture of Afghanistan as well as the National Heritage and Culture Division of Pakistan.

The joint statements signed in Beijing are not only the latest achievements of bilateral cooperation among the three countries, but also show that initiative has been translated into action, said NCHA chief Li Qun.

The joint statements are the first bilateral agreements signed between Asian countries under the framework of the Asian Initiative for Cultural Heritage Conservation, according to the NCHA. Enditem
Moderate mag. 4.8 earthquake - Kastoria, Greece, 24 km southeast of Korce, Albania, on 12 May 12:31 am (GMT +3) -

Moderate magnitude 4.8 earthquake at 7 km depth

11 May 21:33 UTC: First to report: GFZ after 2 minutes.

11 May 21:37: Now using data updates from NOA

... [show all] ... 11 May 21:39: Magnitude recalculated from 4.9 to 4.8. Epicenter location corrected by 1.2 km (0.7 mi) towards W.

11 May 21:53: Magnitude recalculated from 4.8 to 4.7. Hypocenter depth recalculated from 5.0 to 7.2 km (from 3.1 to 4.5 mi). Epicenter location corrected by 5.8 km (3.6 mi) towards SW.

11 May 22:04: Magnitude recalculated from 4.7 to 4.8.

Update Tue, 11 May 2021, 21:39

4.9 quake 12 May 12:31 am (GMT +3)



Our monitoring service identified a second report from the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) which listed the quake at magnitude 4.6. A third agency, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), reported the same quake at magnitude 5.2.

Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should have been widely felt by almost everyone in the area of the epicenter. It might have caused light to moderate damage.

Moderate shaking probably occurred in Pteria (pop. 110) located 0 km from the epicenter.

In Kastoria (pop. 13,400) located 18 km from the epicenter, Argos Orestiko (pop. 7,500) 18 km away, and Korce (pop. 58,300) 26 km away, the quake should have been felt as light shaking.

Weak shaking might have been felt in Florina (pop. 17,700) located 43 km from the epicenter, Ptolemaida (pop. 30,000) 53 km away, Kozani (pop. 36,500) 66 km away, Ioannina (pop. 65,600) 95 km away, and Veroia (pop. 44,500) 97 km away.

VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you're in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either A magnitude 4.9 earthquake near Florina, West Macedonia, Greece, was reported only 8 minutes ago by the National Observatory of Athens (NOA), considered the main national agency that monitors seismic activity in Greece. The earthquake occurred at a very shallow depth of 5 km beneath the epicenter after midnight on Wednesday 12 May 2021 at 12:31 am local time. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.Our monitoring service identified a second report from the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) which listed the quake at magnitude 4.6. A third agency, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), reported the same quake at magnitude 5.2.Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should have been widely felt by almost everyone in the area of the epicenter. It might have caused light to moderate damage.Moderate shaking probably occurred in Pteria (pop. 110) located 0 km from the epicenter.In Kastoria (pop. 13,400) located 18 km from the epicenter, Argos Orestiko (pop. 7,500) 18 km away, and Korce (pop. 58,300) 26 km away, the quake should have been felt as light shaking.Weak shaking might have been felt in Florina (pop. 17,700) located 43 km from the epicenter, Ptolemaida (pop. 30,000) 53 km away, Kozani (pop. 36,500) 66 km away, Ioannina (pop. 65,600) 95 km away, and Veroia (pop. 44,500) 97 km away.VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you're in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app . This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.

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Also if you did NOT feel the quake although you were in the area, please report it ! Your contribution is valuable also to earthquake science and earthquake hazard analysis and mitigation efforts. You can use your device location or the map to indicate where you were during the earthquake. Thank you! If you felt this quake (or if you were near the epicenter),Other users would love to hear about it!Alsoalthough you were in the area, please! Your contribution is valuable also to earthquake science and earthquake hazard analysis and mitigation efforts. You can use your device location or the map to indicate where you were during the earthquake. Thank you!

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Magnitude Depth Location Source 4.8 7.2 km 19 Km W From Kastoria, Greece NOA unspecified n/a Near Skopje, Grad Skopje, North Macedonia VolcanoDiscovery 4.7 10 km GREECE EMSC 4.6 10 km Greece GFZ 5.4 171 km Greece BMKG 4.8 20 km Confine Grecia-Albania (GRECIA, ALBANIA) INGV 4.9 10 km 10 Km S of Bilisht, Albania USGS 4.7 10 km Kastoria / Griechenland, Greece ZAMG

User reports for this quake (169) User reports estimate the perceived ground shaking intensity according to the MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity) scale Contribute:

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Send your own user report! Agia Kyriaki, Kastoria (12.2 km ENE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 20-30 s : Very disturbing, noisy, rattling. Really near my home and I am totally freaked right now | 2 users found this interesting. Mesopotamia / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s : Lag im Bett, horte ein komisches Gerausch und der Schlafzimmer Schrank konnte man horen! War schon bereit meine Kinder zu wecken und aus dem Haus zu gehen! Hielt schon lange an. 1:24 Uhr bis jetzt noch kein Nachbeben! Ohrid, (78 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s : Im steel afraid I was watching a movie and l feel everything shaking. Its terrible. | One user found this interesting. 173 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) Bitola Macedonia (68.7 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 2-5 s Bitola N. Macedonia (69.2 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s 65.5 km W of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 15-20 s 68.2 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s 77.7 km W of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) Prilep (107.7 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / single lateral shake / 1-2 s  (67.3 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 10-15 s (reported through our app / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 10-15 s 120.4 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Struga (82.1 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging : Scar Bitola (67.8 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) Bitola, North Macedonia (68.9 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / 5-10 s Ohrid (74 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s 77.7 km W of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) 72.9 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s Kozani Greece / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s : Felt building shaking on the thutd floor. It wS short duration with few waves passing through. Hanging lights did not move during or after the earthquake. 1.7 km SE of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Ohrid (74 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 5-10 s Bitola / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 5-10 s Sudlich von Korca (28.9 km W of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 s : Wir lagen im Bett im Wohnmobil. Es war, als hatte jemand kraftig am Fahrzeug geruttelt. Wir dachten gleich an ein Erdbeben, weil die Erschutterungen ohne andere Gerausche erfolgten. Bitola / Weak shaking (MMI III) / very short Malta (764.7 km SW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s 55.4 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / not felt (reported through our app / not felt Sitting at a table / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s Korce / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 20-30 s : The Albanian Flag Evil Flag Korce Albania / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / 10-15 s : E shkundi mire Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 2-5 s Bitola, North Macedonia (68.4 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 2-5 s Veroia (103.6 km E of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s 138.9 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s Bitola, North Macedonia / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 s : I thought it is a warning before strong shaking after it. Vlora (127.7 km W of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s Felt on 7th floor. Lights swung and walls popped and made noise (reported through (reported through our app / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s Bitola, North Macedonia / Weak shaking (MMI III) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 2-5 s 68.9 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 s Bitola / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single lateral shake / 1-2 s Pogradec, Albania / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s 68.4 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 5-10 s : Unpleasant, shaking Korce / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 2-5 s Florina (48.8 km NE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s Macedonia / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single vertical bump / 2-5 s Bitola / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single lateral shake / very short bitola / Very weak shaking (MMI II) Korce, Albania (23.8 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s Bitola / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging Pogradec Albania / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 2-5 s : Weak tremor, in the 4th floor of a 9 storey RC bldg. Maybe intensity 3-4 (Merkali scale) skopje / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / 1-2 s Kastoria, Ntoltso / Light shaking (MMI IV) / simple rolling (tilting sideways along one direction) / very short : I was sleeping with a strange dream and woke up from trembling Bitola Municipality, Macedonia / Light shaking (MMI IV) Bitola / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 s Bitola (64.4 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 s Skopje / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Brindisi / Weak shaking (MMI III) / complex motion difficult to describe / 10-15 s Pogradec (52.8 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / very short Bitola Macedonia (151.7 km N of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s Bitola / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 15-20 s Maliq/korce / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / single lateral shake / 2-5 s Korce (23.9 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s : Building shaking. Cupboard doors rattling. Ohrid,North Macedonia / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s Bitola / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s Korce (23.6 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 2-5 s Light shaking (reported through (reported through our app / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 2-5 s Bitola / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s 84.7 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s Ohrid Trpejca / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Korce / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 s Bitola (67.2 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / single lateral shake / 5-10 s skopje (172.4 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s 68.3 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s Bitola (67.3 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s (reported through our app / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s Kichevo / Weak shaking (MMI III) Skopje / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Saranda, Albania / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s Bitola / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s Tirana / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single lateral shake Saranda, Albania / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s Bitola / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / single lateral shake / 5-10 s bitola / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s Sarande, Albania / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s Bitola, Macedonia / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s Bitola N. Macedonia (70.9 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s 169.4 km N of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) Prilep / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Bilisht ,Albania / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s Skopje (172.6 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 2-5 s skopje / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Skopje / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s Ohrid, North Macedonia (73.3 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 s 67.5 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Bitola (61.1 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s Korce / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vibration and rolling / 2-5 s Bitola (108.6 km NE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / complex motion difficult to describe / 10-15 s Bitola (67.8 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 s Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 5-10 s Bitola (67.1 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s 157.4 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single vertical bump / 2-5 s Tirane (136.4 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Korce (24 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s 34 km S of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / very short 128.7 km W of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s 99 km N of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Bitola, North Macedonia / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Korce / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 2-5 s Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Bilisht Albania / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 5-10 s Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single vertical bump / very short Resen (68.2 km N of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 5-10 s Ohrid / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single lateral shake / 1-2 s 173.4 km N of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Skopje (170.3 km N of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / 2-5 s 76.5 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 2-5 s : strashno FLORINA / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 2-5 s Ohrid / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 2-5 s 31 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) Bitola / Moderate shaking (MMI V) Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s : Long shaking Ohrid / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 s Bitola / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / single lateral shake / very short : 6th floor Tepelene / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / 1-2 s Skopje (170.6 km N of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating : Felt while stationary on 5th floor of apartment building. Mild shaking. Most people did not feel it. 102.5 km E of epicenter [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) Korce / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s : It wasnt too bad but you could definitely feel it Skopje (171.8 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 s Korce Albania / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 2-5 s Pogradec, Albania / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 30-60 s 49.5 km NE of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s Sitting at a table / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s bitola / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s SKOPJE (173.4 km N of epicenter) [ Map ] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s : Felt on upper floors, lights swinging mildly, lasted ~20 seconds. Bitola / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 20-30 s Bitola, North Macedonia / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s 69.8 km ESE of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s (reported through our app / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Korce albania / Light shaking (MMI IV) : Scared..korce albania sttong 172.2 km N of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Bitola, North Macedonia / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s 82.2 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s Prilep (107.3 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / very short Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) 92.7 km NNE of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Ohrid (74 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 5-10 s Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Struga, Republic of Macedonia (82.4 km NNW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / simple rolling (tilting sideways along one direction) / 15-20 s 72.8 km NNW of epicenter [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s Bitola, North Macedonia / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 1-2 s Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 5-10 s 138.9 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) Is strong (reported through (reported through our app / Weak shaking (MMI III) Tirana / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 5-10 s 8.7 km N of epicenter [ Map ] / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s tirana albania / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s 139.4 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single lateral shake / 2-5 s : My chandalier moved and also i felt my bed TYRNAVOS (137.5 km SE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) (reported through our app / Light shaking (MMI IV) Bitola / Strong shaking (MMI VI) / complex motion difficult to describe / 5-10 s Prilep / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 2-5 s 167.6 km N of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Bitola / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Prilep, North Macedonia / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s Vlore, albania (126.9 km W of epicenter) [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) Korce (23.9 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 10-15 s MALIQ (35.8 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / 1-2 s Macedonia Prilep (108.1 km NNE of epicenter) [ Map ] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 20-30 s Petrinja (671.8 km NW of epicenter) [ Map ] / not felt (reported through our app / not felt 137.6 km NW of epicenter [ Map ] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / simple rolling (tilting sideways along one direction) / 2-5 s (reported through our app / Weak shaking (MMI III) / simple rolling (tilting sideways along one direction) / 2-5 s

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Army of the Dead. Photo: Clay Enos/Netflix

Zack Snyders Army of the Dead begins exactly how a Vegas heist movie set during a zombie apocalypse should: with a guy getting a blow job while driving his car in the Nevada desert, accidentally ramming into a top-secret military convoy, and unleashing the sinister results of a clandestine government project. Then comes exactly the right opening-credits sequence: Over a Richard Cheese and Alison Crowe cover of Viva Las Vegas, swarms of zombie showgirls, pageant queens, Elvis impersonators, and hotel maids feast on the people of Sin City. As the music continues, the mayhem accelerates and expands (in slow motion, of course, because Zack Snyder) as we are introduced to our main characters escaping the undead, blowing away zombies, and sacrificing loved ones. The military tries to take control and fails. (My favorite image: a paratrooper desperately firing away at the slavering throng of monsters below as his parachute lands him ever so gently in their midst, whereupon he is consumed.) Then, Vegas is bombed, an improvised cordon of giant shipping containers is stacked around it, and the city is ceded to the undead.

End opening credits. This is the first 15 or so minutes of Army of the Dead, and it is basically perfect.

The next hour or so is quite engaging, too. Scott Ward (Dave Bautista), a mercenary behemoth now working a grill in a dead-end diner, is enlisted by a mysterious billionaire (Hiroyuki Sanada) to go back into Zombie Vegas, break into a vault under a casino, and retrieve the fortune stashed there. One added complication: The U.S. military has decided to nuke the city on the upcoming Fourth of July holiday, so Scott and whomever he brings along basically have one day to accomplish all this. So, Scott and his old pal Cruz (Ana de la Reguera) start assembling a team, Dirty Dozen/Seven Samuraistyle. The group includes, among others, a traumatized, buzzsaw-toting badass (Omari Hardwick); a brilliant but inexperienced German safecracker (Matthias Schweighofer); a wisecracking helicopter pilot (Tig Notaro); a YouTube star (Raul Castillo) famous for his zombie-killing videos; and a stoic French coyote (Nora Arnezeder) who has experience leading groups of renegades back into and out of the undead city. Joining in at the last minute are a corporate overseer (Garret Dillahunt) and Kate (Ella Purnell), Scotts semi-estranged daughter, with whom he still has unresolved issues over that time he stabbed her zombie mother in the brain.

The initial scenes of the gangs entry into Las Vegas offer promise as well, with Snyder concocting interesting spins on familiar zombie tropes. Surrounding Vegas is a quarantine area, filled with refugees living in tents who seem to be stuck in a bureaucratic no-mans-land, preyed upon by craven guards. Once were inside Vegas proper, we see an undead version of one of Siegfried and Roys tigers roaming the devastated streets. Giant piles of desiccated zombies clutter the place. They got left in the sun too long, but were told theyll come back to life if it rains.

Vegas, it seems, is controlled by a hierarchy of the undead: The shamblers who make up the mindless cannon-fodder swarms are ruled by a group of alphas who are smarter, faster, and (I cant believe I am writing this word) hotter than your average brain-eating animated corpse. The alphas can be kept at a distance, somewhat, by making them a human offering. An early scene of the characters gingerly navigating a building filled with hibernating zombies (who sleep standing up) is wonderfully tense. The two towers of the casino they have to rob are called Sodom and Gomorrah. The impenetrable safe they must crack is called Gotterdammerung and was built by a guy named Wagner. Never have the Snyderisms come so relentlessly, and never have they felt more welcome.

And then, it all somehow goes south. Once the zombie killing starts in earnest, Army of the Dead becomes profoundly less interesting and more predictable. Its a tale of two Zack Snyders: Gone is his flair for the mythic and the perverse, replaced by his baffling fondness for generic action spectacle. It doesnt help that the script (credited to Snyder, Joby Harold, and Shay Hatten) appears to have borrowed most of its story beats from James Camerons Aliens  from the inevitable double cross, to the lost civilian who must be saved, to several other late-movie plot twists that I wont reveal here. As a result, many of the story developments that should ideally keep us watching instead feel played out before they even occur: Were constantly one step ahead, easily anticipating each big moment because, frankly, weve seen it before, in a better film.

Snyder is the kind of action auteur whose sensibilities can start wars among viewers. And maybe even among studio execs: Is there any other filmmaker out there who is repeatedly given so much power, only to have it pulled back at the last minute? With the March release of the so-called Snyder Cut of his Justice League, the director managed to make many of his critics (including yours truly) think twice: His four-hour version of that superhero epic, while certainly overstuffed and indulgent, was far more rewarding and moving than the compromised theatrical version. You took the good with the bad, because the good far outweighed the bad.

While the suits who cut up Justice League have now been semi-canceled and proven wrong, the idea that Zack Snyder movies are sometimes maybe  just maybe  too long and a little too self-important remains a notion worth exploring. Netflix, notorious (and beloved) for giving its A-list auteurs all the freedom in the world, seems in some ways an ideal place for the director to land, far from corporate bean counters and cutting-room busybodies. And at first, the match seems made in heaven: Theres a great movie in here somewhere, and for a while, were watching it.

But those opening credits, mixing Vegas kitsch and color with gritty zombie-picture shlock, and those opening scenes, mixing action-movie character development with welcome bits of deadpan humor delivered by a game cast, set up an experience Snyder seems increasingly less interested in delivering over the course of this film. Army of the Dead  which, let me reiterate, is a Vegas heist flick set during a zombie apocalypse  should be a lot more fun than it is. Or maybe more accurately, it should be as fun in the middle and toward the end as it is at the beginning. It starts off great. But then it goes on. And on. And on. And takes itself ever more seriously at each turn. By the end, any buoyancy has disappeared into a familiar wasteland piled high with corpses and exploding heads.
A Fort Payne man died Tuesday in a two-vehicle crash in DeKalb County.

Cranston James Noojin, 59, was fatally injured when the 2001 Nissan Frontier he was driving didnt yield at a stop sign and was struck by a 2004 Kia Optima, according to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency.

Noojin was pronounced dead at the scene.

The crash occurred about 4:15 a.m. Tuesday on DeKalb County 483 near DeKalb County 51, about six miles south of Fort Payne.

Troopers continue to investigate.
An Alabama State Trooper is on mandatory leave after his arrest and charge of third-degree assault and sexual misconduct.

Trooper Jason William Fox, 47, was arrested and taken into custody by the Huntsville Police Department.

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said late Mondaty that Huntsville police turned over the investigation to the Alabama Attorney Generals Office.
A recent graduate from the Calhoun Community College nursing program experienced first hand all that nurses do when she contracted coronavirus last march.

Elizabeth Ovalle has always wanted to help others.

"Ever since I was a child, I've wanted to get into something that would help people out, so the first thing that I always thought of when I was a kid was to be a nurse," says Ovalle.

As an Athens native, Elizabeth enrolled in Calhoun immediately after high school back in 2017. She said, "once I'm dedicated with something, I want to keep going, you know, as long as I try."

But her dedication to nursing was put to the test last year.

"March of last year is when I started having difficulties with my breathing and up until the point where I couldn't really take it any more is when I decided to go to the ER," explains Ovalle.

She was diagnosed with coronavirus and put on a ventilator for two weeks. When she woke up, her first reaction: "I was like wow, so two weeks that I've missed school."

After her initial reaction, her patient care gave her more grim news.

"He told me that my mom was only a couple rooms down from where my room was and I could actually see the tubing and stuff outside of her room," said Ovalle.

Her mother was also on a ventilator only a couple rooms away. With that in mind, she was determined to keep up with her school work.

"I thought of my mom and how she was always encouraging me to do all the things that I want to do," says Ovalle.

Seeing how the nurses treated both her and her mother strengthened Elizabeth's call towards nursing.

"Just to be part of that workforce. I realized that nurses really do so much for the community and I wanted to be part of something that, you know, helps the community out," she said.

Elizabeth's symptoms relapsed about two months after her diagnosis and she had to go back on the ventilator for one week. However, now Elizabeth and her mother are both doing well. In fact, Elizabeth graduated from Calhoun back in December and is now a registered nurse at Huntsville Hospital for Women and Children. She received the Most Outstanding Student award from Calhoun nursing faculty for her dedication and commitment to nursing.
Decatur, IL (62521)

Today

Mostly sunny early then increasing clouds with some scattered thunderstorms this afternoon. High 87F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Low 69F. Winds light and variable.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 20:51:32|Editor: huaxia

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KAMPALA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- European Council President Charles Michel has hailed Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni for his efforts to promote regional integration and promoting pan-Africanism.

According to a State House statement issued here Tuesday, Michel in his congratulatory message to Museveni said the European Union (EU) will work with Uganda in ensuring the integration of the East African Community (EAC), a regional bloc that groups Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, South Sudan, Rwanda and Burundi.

"The EU remains fully engaged as regards the implementation of the Economic Partnership Agreement with the EAC and I hope the Agreement will be taken forward, building on the conclusions of the recent EAC Summit," Michel said. "Uganda and the EU have a longstanding partnership for peace in the region and economic development, and we stand ready to further work together, including on environmental protection and fighting climate change.'

President Museveni is scheduled to be sworn-in for another term of office Wednesday after he won the country's Jan. 14 presidential elections.

According to the statement, 12 heads of state have confirmed attendance of the event that will be held in the capital of Kampala amid strict COVID-19 prevention measures. Enditem
A list of the most important examples of contemporary architecture in Rome.

There has been some impressive architecture in Rome in the last couple of decades. With so much else to see, contemporary buildings in Rome are often overlooked. But a number of impressive new structures by world-known architects have been inaugurated in various parts of the city in the last three decades. All of them have caused controversy both before and during construction and have taken longer than anticipated to complete. Most of them have also run into funding difficulties.

The Mosque

The Mosque in Parioli was designed by Paolo Portoghese. After much discussion with the Vatican about whether or not a mosque should be built in Rome, the first stone was laid in 1984 in the Acqua Acetosa area and it was inaugurated in 1995. It was founded by the late Afghan Prince Hasan, who was living in exile in Rome at the time, and financed by the Saudi royal family. It is also the centre of the Associazione Culturale Islamica in Italy. Viale della Moschea.

The Mosque

MACRO

MACRO, Museo d'Arte Contemporanea di Roma. The city's two contemporary art galleries were transformed out of two decommissioned industrial buildings: the old Peroni beer factory in the Porta Pia area of Rome and the old slaughter house in Testaccio. Construction began in 1989, the first part was opened in 1999 and then officially inaugurated in 2002. French architect Odile Decq was commissioned to design an extension to the Porta Pia site, which was opened in 2010. Via Nizza 138 and Mattatoio, Piazza Orazio Giustiniani.

MACRO, Via Nizza

Auditorium Parco della Musica

The Auditorium Parco della Musica was designed by Renzo Piano. It was inaugurated in 2002 after decades of discussion and difficulties. An important ancient Roman farm complex was discovered soon after ground-breaking, which delayed work for several years while it was excavated. Parts of the remains were then incorporated into the new structure and they are visible under glass in the main foyer. Via Pietro de Coubertin 30.

Auditorium Parco della Musica

Chiesa Dio Padre Misericordioso

Chiesa Dio Padre Misericordioso designed by Richard Meier in the Tor Tre Testa suburb. The church, which was meant to open as part of the millennium celebrations in Rome, ran into engineering difficulties thanks to the revolutionary design of the three curved structures, known as the sails, that are cleverly incorporated into the main body of the church. The first stone was laid in 1998 and the church was opened in 2003. Piazza Terzo Millennio 8.

Chiesa Dio Padre Misericordioso

Ara Pacis

Ara Pacis. The new covering of the Altar of Peace, which dates back to 9 BC, was designed by Richard Meier and inaugurated in 2006 after seven years' work. The altar was dedicated to the goddess of peace on the return of the emperor Augustus to Rome after three years in Spain and Gaul. The design of its contemporary glass protective cover, which replaced the crumbling 1930s structure designed by Vittorio Morpurgo, was originally meant to be part of the remodelling of the whole square by Meier. However this never materialised because of fierce opposition from conservative politicians and art critics. Piazza Augusto Imperatore, which was pulled apart by Mussolini in the 1930s, is now a multi-layered mix of ancient Roman, baroque, fascist and contemporary styles. Piazza Augusto Imperatore.

Ara Pacis

MAXXI

MAXXI, the Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo, was designed by the late Zaha Hadid, who won the international competition in 1999. It was constructed out of an unused military barracks in the Flaminia area and was inaugurated in 2010. Via Guido Reni 4.

MAXXI

La Nuvola

La Nuvola by Massimiliano Fuksas. Rome's futurist conference centre, was finally opened in December 2016 after years of controversy and financial overruns. Via Cristoforo Colombo and Viale Asia, EUR.

La Nuvola

By Mary wilsey

This article was published in the December 2016 edition of Wanted in Rome magazine.

Top ph: Fabio Pagani / Shutterstock.com
GPs and pharmacies in Lazio region to administer covid vaccines.

Family doctors in Rome and the Lazio region will be able to administer covid-19 vaccines to frail patients as well as people aged over 40 from Monday 17 May, reports Italian news agency ANSA.

The online booking system will allow over-40s to be vaccinated at the clinic of their family doctor but only with the AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson vaccine, with frail and elderly patients to receive the Pfizer jab.

"Otherwise, the over-40s will have to wait until the booking system opens up to their age group," at one of the covid vaccination centres in the Lazio region, reads the statement from the federation of general practioners (FIMMG).

Bookings to receive the vaccine from family doctors will be possible using the online booking system on the Lazio region website, from 17 May. Reservations at vaccination hubs in the Lazio region are currently open to those aged over 54.

Later this month pharmacies in the Lazio region will also be able to administer the single-dose J&J vaccine to the under-50s, reports news agency Adnkronos, with bookings open from 20 May and vaccinations beginning on 24 May.

In most cases pharmacies will administer the vaccines in gazebos outside, as is currently the case for covid tests, however some may use indoor spaces, Federfarma vice president Alfredo Procaccini told Adnkronos.

The news was announced today, 11 May, following a meeting between the Lazio region and the regional branch of FIMMG.

Last month Italy's Superior Health Institute (ISS) recommended AstraZeneca only for people aged over 60, after a brief suspension of the vaccine to allow an investigation into possible links to very rare incidents of blood clots.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) subsequently concluded that the vaccine's benefits far outweigh the risks of side-effects.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 21:47:09|Editor: huaxia

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JERUSALEM, May 11 (Xinhua) -- After weeks of tension in Jerusalem, the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians has spilled over to other areas as the two sides exchange fire in and around the Gaza Strip.

For decades, the dispute over Jerusalem has fueled wider regional conflicts. Although usually contained, it occasionally spirals into a larger clash which reverberates across the region.

The recent violence began when Israel decided to block Palestinian gatherings in the Old City of Jerusalem throughout the Muslim month of Ramadan.

The restrictions were lifted after violent confrontations between police and Arab residents. Shortly afterwards, plans to evict Palestinian residents from a neighborhood in East Jerusalem reignited the sparks.

Then a series of video posts on social media showing violence incited youngsters on both sides to take to the streets.

On Monday, while Israelis celebrated Jerusalem Day, the day that marks the capture of East Jerusalem during the 1967 Mideast War, Arabs demonstrated in the city.

Policemen and demonstrators were injured in the scuffles. The Hamas organization which rules the Gaza Strip on Israel's southern border threatened to retaliate and swiftly delivered by firing rockets at the Jerusalem area.

The majority of the international community does not recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Jews born in annexed East Jerusalem are granted full citizenship, while Arabs are residents without voting rights in Israel. The discriminatory policy has been a major cause to the conflict there.

"The young people who take to the streets want hope, and want to feel like they belong. They feel like stepsons of the Palestinian Authority, Hamas and Israel," said Ronit Marzan, a researcher of Palestinian society and politics from the University of Haifa. "They want a better life."

The rocket attack on Jerusalem came after years that the contested city was off-limits in the conflict between the two sides. Last time Jerusalem was targeted was in 2014 during a major war between Hamas and Israel.

After the attack on Jerusalem, Hamas fired hundreds of rockets at southern Israel. The Israeli military responded with over 100 airstrikes on Gaza. Palestinians have reported over 20 deaths in the Israeli offensive.

"The terrorist organizations in Gaza have crossed a red line," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the rocket attack on Jerusalem. "Israel will respond with great force."

Marzan said if Hamas doesn't answer the calls to help the Palestinians in Jerusalem, it will lose its legitimacy amongst the Palestinians and supremacy over other organizations.

But if Hamas drags Gaza into a major war against Israel, "that will cause a heavy price, and Hamas will be under harsh public criticism," he added.

The violence comes at a time of political instability on both sides.

Earlier this month, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas postponed legislative elections supposed to be held on May 22 for the first time in 15 years.

The decision was made over questions on the right of Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem to vote. Hamas said Israel is responsible for the cancellation of the election.

In Israel, negotiations on the formation of a new government after an election two months ago are underway with the attention of the politicians distracted from properly managing the current escalation.

But also, the regional political climate has changed. Just months after Israel normalized relations with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, Morocco and Oman, this escalation will be a major test as to the strength of these new ties.

While Israeli military action could risk the peace, these countries could use their influence on the Jewish state to broker a cease-fire. In addition, it is still unclear how the U.S. administration will handle the crisis.

"Since 2014, similar explosive situations were avoided through international intervention," said Nimrod Goren, head of the Israeli Institute for Regional Foreign Policies.

"There is still room on both sides to make diplomatic and political moves to de-escalate the situation as soon as they have the will to take such action and there will be the presence of an international actor able to deliver," Goren added.

As long as Jerusalem remains tense, it will be difficult to reinstate calm in other areas. It will be up to all sides to act responsibly in order to avoid a further escalation. International intervention will, as always, be critical in reducing the tension. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 22:48:32|Editor: huaxia

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An Israeli tries to extinguish a fire caused by a rocket from the Gaza Strip near southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, May 11, 2021. (Tomer Neuberg/JINI via Xinhua)

Tensions between Israelis and Palestinians have been flaring over the past few days due to escalated clashes in East Jerusalem, endangering regional stability.

JERUSALEM, May 11 (Xinhua) -- After weeks of tension in Jerusalem, the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians has spilled over to other areas as the two sides exchange fire in and around the Gaza Strip.

For decades, the dispute over Jerusalem has fueled wider regional conflicts. Although usually contained, it occasionally spirals into a larger clash which reverberates across the region.

The recent violence began when Israel decided to block Palestinian gatherings in the Old City of Jerusalem throughout the Muslim month of Ramadan.

The restrictions were lifted after violent confrontations between police and Arab residents. Shortly afterwards, plans to evict Palestinian residents from a neighborhood in East Jerusalem reignited the sparks.

Then a series of video posts on social media showing violence incited youngsters on both sides to take to the streets.

On Monday, while Israelis celebrated Jerusalem Day, the day that marks the capture of East Jerusalem during the 1967 Mideast War, Arabs demonstrated in the city.

Policemen and demonstrators were injured in the scuffles. The Hamas organization which rules the Gaza Strip on Israel's southern border threatened to retaliate and swiftly delivered by firing rockets at the Jerusalem area.

Palestinian protesters take part in an anti-Israel protest in the West Bank city of Hebron, on May 10, 2021. (Photo by Mamoun Wazwaz/Xinhua)

The majority of the international community does not recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Jews born in annexed East Jerusalem are granted full citizenship, while Arabs are residents without voting rights in Israel. The discriminatory policy has been a major cause to the conflict there.

"The young people who take to the streets want hope, and want to feel like they belong. They feel like stepsons of the Palestinian Authority, Hamas and Israel," said Ronit Marzan, a researcher of Palestinian society and politics from the University of Haifa. "They want a better life."

The rocket attack on Jerusalem came after years that the contested city was off-limits in the conflict between the two sides. Last time Jerusalem was targeted was in 2014 during a major war between Hamas and Israel.

After the attack on Jerusalem, Hamas fired hundreds of rockets at southern Israel. The Israeli military responded with over 100 airstrikes on Gaza. Palestinians have reported over 20 deaths in the Israeli offensive.

"The terrorist organizations in Gaza have crossed a red line," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the rocket attack on Jerusalem. "Israel will respond with great force."

Marzan said if Hamas doesn't answer the calls to help the Palestinians in Jerusalem, it will lose its legitimacy amongst the Palestinians and supremacy over other organizations.

But if Hamas drags Gaza into a major war against Israel, "that will cause a heavy price, and Hamas will be under harsh public criticism," he added.

Photo taken on May 11, 2021 shows explosions following Israeli airstrikes in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis. (Photo by Yasser Qudih/Xinhua)

The violence comes at a time of political instability on both sides.

Earlier this month, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas postponed legislative elections supposed to be held on May 22 for the first time in 15 years.

The decision was made over questions on the right of Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem to vote. Hamas said Israel is responsible for the cancellation of the election.

In Israel, negotiations on the formation of a new government after an election two months ago are underway with the attention of the politicians distracted from properly managing the current escalation.

But also, the regional political climate has changed. Just months after Israel normalized relations with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, Morocco and Oman, this escalation will be a major test as to the strength of these new ties.

While Israeli military action could risk the peace, these countries could use their influence on the Jewish state to broker a cease-fire. In addition, it is still unclear how the U.S. administration will handle the crisis.

A protester burns tires during clashes with Israeli soldiers at Huwwara checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, on May 10, 2021. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

"Since 2014, similar explosive situations were avoided through international intervention," said Nimrod Goren, head of the Israeli Institute for Regional Foreign Policies.

"There is still room on both sides to make diplomatic and political moves to de-escalate the situation as soon as they have the will to take such action and there will be the presence of an international actor able to deliver," Goren added.

As long as Jerusalem remains tense, it will be difficult to reinstate calm in other areas. It will be up to all sides to act responsibly in order to avoid a further escalation. International intervention will, as always, be critical in reducing the tension. 
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 22:50:15|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, May 11 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday strongly condemned Monday's attack against a temporary position of the UN peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which resulted in the death of one Malawian blue helmet.

Guterres expressed his deepest condolences to the family of the deceased peacekeeper, as well as to the government and people of Malawi, said Stephane Dujarric, Guterres' spokesman, in a statement.

The secretary-general said that attacks against UN peacekeepers may constitute a war crime and called for investigation into this incident.

Guterres reaffirmed that the United Nations will continue to support the Congolese government and people in their efforts to bring about peace and stability in the east of the country.

Monday's attack on the peacekeeping mission in the DRC, known by its French acronym as MONUSCO, occurred in Beni territory, North Kivu province, by suspected members of the Allied Democratic Forces, according to media reports.

The UN Security Council condemned the attack and stressed the importance of MONUSCO having the necessary capacities to fulfill its mandate and promote the safety and security of the peacekeepers. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-12 00:01:08|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- A mainland spokesperson Tuesday slammed Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authority for its latest attempt to hype up the "Taiwan independence" narrative in the international community.

Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, pushed back against the DPP authority in response to a query on Tsai Ing-wen's remarks at the "Copenhagen Democracy Summit 2021."

Swindling the international community under the guise of "democracy" has been the DPP authority's stock-in-trade, said Zhu, noting the nature of the move is to seek "Taiwan independence."

"This will not change the fact that Taiwan is a part of China's territory," said Zhu.

She urged relevant countries to abide by the one-China principle and not provide a stage for the DPP authority's political farce. Enditem
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.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-12 00:10:06|Editor: huaxia

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by Xinhua writers Ma Yujie, Yu Pei, Tan Yuanbin, Rao Rao, Xiao Yijiu, Ji Xiaozhuang

-- The freshwater porpoise with no dorsal fin is native to China and has lived here for 25 million years. They are the only freshwater subspecies of the finless porpoise family and pulse through the middle and lower main streams of the Yangtze River.

-- Before 2015, only two to three finless porpoises had been spotted in the Yichang section, but scenes of the rare mammals popping out and gulping for air are becoming more common in recent years.

-- On Feb. 4, 2021, China revised its list of endangered wild animals, elevating the conservation of 65 types of wild animals, including the Yangtze finless porpoise, to the strictest level-one protection from second-highest.

Aerial photo taken on May 11, 2021 shows two Yangtze finless porpoises swimming in the Yichang section of the Yangtze River, central China's Hubei Province. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

WUHAN, May 11 (Xinhua) -- A pod of the Yangtze finless porpoise has been seen spyhopping above the silvery surface of the Yangtze River, China's longest river, attracting shutterbugs and nearby residents who want to catch a glimpse of these beautiful creatures.

The freshwater porpoise with no dorsal fin is native to China and has lived here for 25 million years. They are the only freshwater subspecies of the finless porpoise family and pulse through the middle and lower main streams of the Yangtze River.

With its mouth fixed in a permanent grin, the rotund finless porpoise is known in China as a "smiling angel."

"The finless porpoise we saw Monday afternoon here in Yichang might belong to one or two groups. The porpoise tend to chase after schools of fish, so the areas they appear in must be rich in fish and other aquatic resources," said Zou Li with the bureau of agriculture and rural affairs in the city of Yichang, central China's Hubei Province.

"Before 2015, only two to three finless porpoises had been spotted in the Yichang section, but scenes of the rare mammals popping out and gulping for air are becoming more common in recent years," said Zou. "The fundamental reason for the increase in sightings is more plentiful fish stock in the whole Yichang section of the Yangtze River."

Aerial photo taken on May 11, 2021 shows a Yangtze finless porpoise swimming in the Yichang section of the Yangtze River, central China's Hubei Province. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

The population of the aquatic mammal experienced a sharp decrease over the past decades due to overfishing and excessive human activities.

The latest research on finless porpoise conducted by the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs in 2017 showed that there was a wild population of just 1,012 still navigating the twists and turns of the longest river in Asia, even fewer than the giant panda.

The annual decline of its population was 13.7 percent in the 2006-2012 period, while the drop slowed to 10 percent between 2012-2017.



Two Yangtze finless porpoises are seen at the Yichang section of the Yangtze River, central China's Hubei Province, May 10, 2021. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

"However, the species is still extremely endangered at present, and the country needs to enhance protection for Yangtze finless porpoises," said Yu Kangzhen, vice minister of agricultural and rural affairs at the press conference of the 2017 survey, citing measures including regular inspections, promoting ex situ conservation and researching artificial breeding.

In January 2018, a fishing ban was implemented in 83 aquatic nature reserves across Hubei to restore the ecological environment and protect the endangered species in the Yangtze River basin.

Members of a finless porpoise protection team patrol on the Yangtze River in Anqing, east China's Anhui Province, Dec. 16, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhou Mu)

To further preserve biodiversity along the river, China in January 2020 implemented a full fishing ban in 332 conservation areas in the Yangtze River basin. The move has later been expanded to a 10-year moratorium for the river's main streams and major tributaries from Jan. 1, 2021.

On Feb. 4, 2021, China revised its list of endangered wild animals, elevating the conservation of 65 types of wild animals, including the Yangtze finless porpoise, to the strictest level-one protection from second-highest.

A Yangtze finless porpoise is seen at the Yichang section of the Yangtze River, central China's Hubei Province, May 11, 2021. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

The slew of measures has brought the "smiling angels" back into the limelight. Staff at the local fishery administration in Yichang even filmed footage of the finless porpoise hunting fish shoal recently, the first such scene they have ever shot.

"Such a scene indicates that the population of finless porpoise is recovering," said a staffer.

(Video reporters: Rao Rao, Xiao Yijiu, Yu Pei, Ji Xiaozhuang; Video editor: Zhang Qiru; Cartoonist: Xiao Mengfan)
The head of NSWs gambling regulator has thrown cold water on US private equity giant Blackstones claims it will have probity clearance to take over James Packers Crown Resorts by October, saying the process will be exhaustive and take as long as necessary.

The battle for the beleaguered Crown and its casinos in Melbourne, Perth and Sydney heated up on Monday when its main rival The Star Entertainment confirmed a proposed $12 billion merger between the two gambling and hospitality groups.

The bidding war for Crown is heating up. Credit:Nick Moir

The New York-based Blackstone has been stalking Crown for months and over the weekend increased its takeover bid from $11.85 per share to $12.35 - valuing it at about $8.3 billion - and told Crown it expected to have approval from gambling regulators in NSW, Victoria and WA by October.

However, NSW Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA) chair Philip Crawford said the regulators process would be complex, thorough and would take what it takes.
About halfway through Breathe, a new musical created by bestselling novelist Jodi Picoult and veteran playwright Timothy Allen McDonald, a fed-up, locked-down father of three sums up the challenges of the pandemic in a two-word refrain: Its brutal!

Adam, played by Colin Donnell, is lamenting the challenge of shoehorning virtual kindergarten alongside two demanding careers  Donnells partner-in-exhaustion is his real-life wife, Patti Murin  but he speaks for all of us who have been crowded and alone, enraged and bereft, at various points in the past year.

Before we get to the logistics of writing, staging and filming a musical in the midst of a pandemic, lets address the elephant in the Zoom: Why would anyone want to watch a 90-minute theatrical production about COVID-19  especially one with scenes named after symptoms many of us have experienced firsthand? (They are: Fever, Aches, Swelling & Irritation, Fatigue and Shortness of Breath.)

Daniel Yearwood, Josh Davis and T. Oliver Reid filming the Fatigue section of the new musical Breathe in an empty New York theatre. Credit:The New York Times

I know there are going to be people who arent ready for this and maybe never will be, Picoult said in a phone interview from her home in New Hampshire. That said, I think there are some very funny moments in Breathe. You laugh more than you might expect to.
Filming the lynching sequence, Jenkins notes, was the only time he has walked off a set in his career. The way I filmed all these scenes was, what is the least amount of coverage I need? What is the least amount of time we need to spend on this to communicate it to the audience? he says. But yeah, I walked off set. I walked off set, didnt say anything to anybody. I just walked off. Our conversation comes just days after the conviction of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for the murder and manslaughter of George Floyd. Floyds death, after Chauvin pinned him to the pavement with a knee on his neck, triggered waves of protest around the world and has pushed America deeper into an uncomfortable examination of its heavy-handed and racist policing culture. Am I causing more harm than good by going back into this period? Barry Jenkins As a country and culture examined its conscience, one side was already closing down the other by insisting that tempers were too hot to properly and objectively examine the issues. Its too soon, is the common refrain. But, in an echo of the circular argument around gun control in the wake of mass shootings that has choked change in an ideological bottleneck, it begged the question: if not now, when? I can only speak about myself in this case, which is that I almost didnt make the show, Jenkins says. And it wasnt for reasons of craft or aesthetic. It was reasons of, does anyone want to see this? Are there people who actively do not want to see this? Am I causing more harm than good by going back into this period, un-earthing some of these bridges? I think to get past that point, I had to understand what I was doing.

For me, it was about the very political conversation were having, the four years that I worked with this project, the Make America Great Again slogan which you heard most often, Jenkins says. When I hear that phrase, it makes me realise that there is a cavity, theres a vacuum, to peoples understanding of America. Because if were speaking to this idea of the good old times of America then clearly youre erasing experiences of my ancestors. Central to Americas examination of its own history in the context of black slavery is a deep discomfort with the images that serve now as the surviving record of it. And looking at those images is hard, Jenkins says. Tougher still is going to those real-life locations where black lives were enslaved, broken and in many cases destroyed, and trying to frame artistic images as a storyteller. Chase Dillon as Homer and Joel Edgerton as Ridgeway in The Underground Railroad. Credit:Amazon As a filmmaker, in the moment I can feel certain things, but I know that its a work of art, and I also know that things Im seeing dont have a certain level of veracity, Jenkins says. But I do know the history rooted in truth. I remember watching Roots and I cant even remember what it was I felt. You know, standing in a cotton field, where it is very, very clear that my ancestors were born and died there, and by talking about history in intellectual terms, this is history in very emotional terms, he says. Its so incredibly visceral, and I think I set out to make a piece  whether its completely a picture or somewhat fact  Im hoping to create that same visceral experience. To make history not a thing that is apart from us, but that is a part of us.

One of the underlying issues with modern Americas reckoning of its own history is the slipshod manner in which it is taught. As with Australias teaching of Indigenous history, school textbooks are often inadequate. In the directors notes for the series, Jenkins said black history is taught pithily, shoddily and heinously in American schools. Director Barry Jenkins walked off the set during a particularly harrowing scene in The Underground Railroad. Significantly, Jenkins saw television as an educational tool with infinitely greater potential than a textbook. And with that in mind he hoped that The Underground Railroad might open a window to understanding for a generation of students whose conversations are taking place in digital spaces. People are watching more than theyre reading these days. Its unfortunate, but they are, Jenkins says. Its not just my job to fill in the vacuum of the American education system. But I do know some kids are more likely to encounter these images than they are to encounter very detailed accounts of American history in a textbook. So, a key reminder for the uncertain: there was no underground railroad in the literal sense. It might seem absurd to make that point so bluntly, but Jenkins admits he was slightly worried that some segments of the audience might interpret the shows use of the railroad as a narrative device as a literal re-telling of history.

I was talking with Colson Whitehead, and he put it so beautifully, he said: what is the difference between fact and truth? And he was speaking about the adaptation from the book to the show, Jenkins says. Colson said, you havent taken every detail from the book, thatll be taking all the facts. But you have taken the essence of every element of the book, that will be the truth. What that does then is it gives he and I the freedom to pull from all these different moments in American history and we can speak to many Black folk thatve had this very tense, this very antagonistic relationship  not through our choosing  with America throughout Americas history, Jenkins says. And we can then speak to almost a larger experience of Black folks in America. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Jenkins significance as a filmmaker lies not just in his body of work: the Oscar best picture-winning Moonlight, the acclaimed Netflix television series Dear White People and the Oscar and Golden Globe-winning film adaptation of James Baldwins novel If Beale Street Could Talk. Of those projects, however, Moonlight remains significant for the manner in which it fundamentally changed how black skin is lit and photographed in cinema. I dont think Moonlight was the first film, it certainly wasnt the first film to treat black skin this way; it just landed in such a very loud, visible place that it was see-able, Jenkins says.

Jenkins credits cinematographer James Laxton  who is a filmmaker, he says, we both grew up as film students  and also the work of ground-breaking cinematographers such as Malik Hassan Sayeed, who shot Clockers for director Spike Lee, and Cesar Charlone, who shot City of God for co-directors Fernando Meirelles and Katia Lund. James and I, when we were film students, we were being taught in a camera and lighting class, and we would start making our films and wed be saying, but this doesnt look good, this doesnt look good at all, Jenkins says. But when wed go back and wed watch Clockers or wed watch City of God, wed be like, no, I want our shit to look like that. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video They did not get their chance, Jenkins says, until Moonlight, a film based on Tarell Alvin McCraneys unpublished semi-autobiographical play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue, for just $US1.5 million. Which feels like nothing, but hell, we were making feature films for $15,000, says Jenkins, laughing. It was either take this depiction of black skin that I grew up with in my life, or maybe we have just enough resources to try and fix it. And fix it they did. Laxtons lens captures Pierre in streaks of sunlight and surrounds him with a beautifully warm brown-gold halo. Mbedu is shot in either beautiful caramel light or a haunting blue-grey, as the film lurches from fantasy to outright horror.

For the 116-day shoot, Jenkins says he had to let the different elements of the production, led by Laxton, Friedberg and Eselin, build their own micro-productions. The fear behind the scale is that the individual moments dont get the attention they deserve, Jenkins says. Prepping a show like this is by far the most difficult part of the task. You just cant prep the entire show. At a certain point, youre going to lose a thread, and youre going to be scrambling to catch up to it. Caesar (Aaron Pierre) and Cora (Thuso Mbedu) in The Underground Railroad. Credit:Amazon I dont think you can apply an auteur-ist theory to a show like this, its just too much damn material for any one person to control, he says. There was just no way to hold an idea from point A to point Z every step of the way. James [Laxton] had to take it from D to F and then Caroline [Eselin] had to take it from N to Q and so on. It was a really beautiful process. In the third episode of the series, Martin (Australian Damon Herriman), who gives shelter to Cora, speaks of the savagery that man is capable of when he believes his cause to be just. That one line seems to encapsulate both the story of The Underground Railroad and its larger themes: that this is not just about slavery, but also about immigration injustice, and war crimes, genocide, and the Holocaust.

The history of Africans in America is such a clear example, such a clear investigation or excavation of the words that Damon says in that scene, Jenkins says. This is what makes the show in some ways universal. There are people all over the world who have been disenfranchised. There have been genocides committed against people all over the world. And I think theres a common theme to those genocides. Sheila Atim plays Coras mother, Mabel, in The Underground Railroad. Credit:Amazon And I think, too, of the lies that man is capable of telling when they believe the results of their cause to be right, Jenkins adds. I think thats why these vacuums in American history have existed. For me, the show is not necessarily about the encapsulation of blackness but when I read the book what stuck out for me was this notion of parenting, something I hadnt seen in stories of American slavery. Loading Cora is sort of running for her freedom, but trying to vanquish slavery is not the goal of the show; shes trying to understand why her mother abandoned her, shes trying to fill this hole in her heart, he says. To me, this was about re-contextualising my ancestors who I think are responsible for one of the greatest acts of collective parenting the world has ever seen.
The AFL has been collecting contact details from every person who attends matches so it can reach every ticket-holder with this kind of information. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Anyone who travelled on the 5.28pm Craigieburn to Southern Cross service or the Flinders Street to Craigieburn departing at 10.20pm on Friday night has been asked to get tested urgently and isolate until receiving a negative test result. The service is considered a tier-two exposure site. We are working with AFL clubs to reach their members in what we expect to be many hundreds of people on that train, Mr Foley said. Victoria has recorded no further cases of coronavirus in the past day. The Wollert man is counted in Wednesdays numbers as a case acquired interstate.

Health officials are still waiting to find out what strain of COVID-19 the man has contracted. Curry Vault restaurant in the CBD. Credit:Eddie Jim Authorities are calling on people who were at listed exposure sites to get tested and isolate, amid concerns not everyone was using the QR code check-in system at the city restaurant the infected man visited. Testing commander Jeroen Weimar said the new case was a wake-up call for Victorians to abide by the very few basic coronavirus restrictions left.

Wear a mask on public transport, and in taxis and when you cant isolate, [and] use the QR system wherever you go. Its pretty simple, and thats what we need to retain all these privileges that we have. Loading The government is relying on people who attended exposure sites and did not sign in to come forward for testing. The Health Department has increased testing capacity at 20 sites. There are four tier-one exposure sites, including the TIC group office in Altona North (where the man worked), a Woolworths supermarket and the India Gates Spices and Groceries in Epping, and the Curry Vault Indian Restaurant in Melbournes CBD. The sites were being deep cleaned on Tuesday evening.

Late on Tuesday night, the Health Department added the two Metro train services to tier-two exposure sites. Anyone who caught the Craigieburn to Southern Cross service departing 5.28pm and arriving at 6.07pm on Friday, or the Flinders Street to Craigieburn service departing 10.20pm and arriving 11.05pm, is advised to get tested and isolate until they receive a negative result. The other tier-two sites are the TIC back warehouse in Altona North and the 7-Eleven on the corner of High and Cooper streets in Epping (between 6.30pm and 7pm on Thursday and between 11.10am and 11.40am on Saturday). Pact Group said workers had been advised to self-isolate and get tested and that its Altona North site had been deep cleaned and was temporarily closed as a precaution.

The Wollert man tested positive for coronavirus a week after he had returned to his home from Adelaide, where he had been quarantining in a CBD hotel after departing India via the Maldives and Singapore. The Victorian government wants the federal government to reconsider funding its proposed medical quarantine facility at Mickleham in Melbournes north, after Tuesdays federal budget contained no financial support for it. Mr Foley pointed to a similar facility at Howard Springs in the Northern Territory as an example of why Mickleham should also be funded. We are disappointed that the Commonwealth didnt take the opportunity to fund a medical facility, Mr Foley said.

If we want to have a safe system that protects us from this raging pandemic, as the Prime Minister described last night, it is going to be by having the best possible quarantine system in place that requires a partnership between the states and the Commonwealth. The Mickleham proposal is the best partnership model going around. South Australia has become the latest state to announce border restrictions in response to the new case in Victoria. SA Police Commissioner Grant Stevens signed a new direction on Wednesday restricting the arrival of anyone who had visited the exposure sites used by the Wollert man before he tested positive and went into quarantine. Mr Stevens also said authorities had launched a seven-day crackdown on venue check-in avoidance in the state, with police being sent to businesses to warn and potentially fine patrons and owners who dont use QR codes. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video

Its a stark reminder to us that COVID-19 is in our community. We are currently containing it within many hotels, but there was no guarantee that we wont have an outbreak in the future, so we need the capacity to be able to quickly trace anyone whos been possibly exposed, Mr Stevens said. Loading Anyone travelling from Melbourne to NSW is required to complete a declaration form confirming they have not attended any venues of concern linked to a new COVID-19 case. The new rule came into effect on Wednesday and applies to anyone who has been in greater Melbourne in the previous 14 days. Victorians travelling to Queensland will be forced to quarantine if theyve attended one of the Melbourne exposure sites, and Western Australia is requiring anyone arriving from Victoria who visited exposure sites at the specified times to get tested immediately for COVID-19 and quarantine for 14 days from the date of exposure. You can find your nearest COVID-19 testing site here.
COVID cash back The Commonwealth has committed $400,000 to reimburse the WA government for some of the costs it incurred providing self-isolation facilities for the duration of the remote travel restrictions in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. A racehorse goanna explores one of the tiles in the Murchison Widefield Array, a precursor project to the Square Kilometre Array. Credit:Trevor Collens Treasurer Josh Frydenbergs third budget assumes Australias international borders will remain closed until mid-2022. Regional cash splash

There is plenty of cash flying around that will land in WAs mining and agricultural regions, including $100 million to extend the Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive to encourage exploration and development of new mineral deposits. More than $9 million will be spent over five years on a pilot program in four Northern Australian locations including from Broome to Kununurra to Darwin. The Regions of Growth program will target investment to the strengths of each region and help identify future geographical areas of economic potential. The push for hydrogen will also see $71.2 million pumped into commercial-scale renewable hydrogen projects in WA by ATCO and fertiliser company Yara Pilbara. About $500,000 will also be spent on improving cattle supply chains in northern WA.

Natural disasters The Commonwealth has set aside $9.1 million in 2021-22 for a bushfire community recovery and resilience fund to support those affected by the Wooroloo and related bushfires in February. The budget also noted that as of May 4 2021 Services Australia had processed just under 270,000 claims and paid out over $327 million in assistance relating to the New South Wales floods and Tropical Cyclone Seroja in WAs Mid West. The government will also provide $3.9 million in 2021-22 to extend the take home Naloxone Program trial to help people in WA at risk of an opioid overdose or adverse reaction. More ore for sure

This years budget recognised WAs iron ore sector as a key driver of the countrys 3 per cent GDP growth. The recent strength in key commodity prices, particularly iron ore, has seen a significant resurgence in Australias terms of trade and has supported profitability in the mining sector, the benefits of which will flow through to the broader economy, the budget papers said. As a result, nominal GDP is expected to grow by 3.75 per cent in 2020-21, by a further 3.5 per cent in 2021-22 and by 2 per cent in 2022-23. Loading The surging iron ore price has also translated to significant tax receipts for the government.

Upgrades to the forecast for resources sector profits, largely due to ongoing elevated iron ore prices, are supporting an improved outlook for company profits. Since the 2020-21 budget, company tax forecasts have been revised up by $11.8 billion over the four years to 2023-24, the budget said. Despite the iron ore price cracking US$215 a tonne this week the budget still assumes it will crash back down to US$55 a tonne by March next year, three quarters later than assumed in last years budget. Iron ore prices have remained elevated at around US$160 per tonne since mid-December 2020, due to strong Chinese demand and unresolved supply disruptions in Brazil, it said. Treasurys industry liaison suggests that in the near term, global iron ore supply is not expected to recover rapidly and the sustained demand for steel production is expected to drive iron ore demand. Previous announcements
Is Apple abusing a monopoly over how over a billion iPhone owners download their apps? The question seems to be one that serves mainly to lead to more questions.

Last week, Epic Games, the video game developer behind the hugely popular title Fortnite, kicked off what is expected to be a three-week trial, hoping to prove that Apple is using its grip over the iPhone for unfair profit.

The first week of the trial has at times resembled an undergraduate philosophy seminar as some of the worlds finest corporate lawyers dedicated hours to questions such as what, exactly, an iPhone is. Credit:Bloomberg

The company says Apples refusal to allow alternatives to its iPhone App Store, and its insistence that apps use a payment system that takes fees of up to 30 per cent, is an illegal use of monopoly. It has asked a US judge to order Apple to allow alternative app stores and payment systems.

The first week of the trial has at times resembled an undergraduate philosophy seminar as some of the worlds finest corporate lawyers dedicated hours to questions such as what, exactly, an iPhone is.
An Israeli police water cannon is deployed near the Damascus Gate to the Old City of Jerusalem as a fire burns during clashes between police and Palestinian protesters on Monday. Credit:AP What clashes have erupted in Jerusalem in recent days? Monday began with more than 300 Palestinians - who had come to pray at al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalems Old City during the holy month of Ramadan - injured in clashes with Israeli forces, who fired rubber bullets, tear gas and stun grenades. Confrontations between Israeli police, Palestinian protesters and far-right Jewish Israelis continued throughout the day. The city remained tense ahead of a contentious march by ultra-nationalist Jews, which was set to pass through Palestinian neighbourhoods as part of a flag-waving Israeli holiday, Jerusalem Day. The route was to include Damascus Gate, one of the few centres of Palestinian life in the contested city. In recent weeks, Israeli forces and Palestinians have clashed over Israeli restrictions on nightly gatherings there after the Ramadan fast. Soon before the march was due to proceed, Israeli authorities ordered it rerouted from the Damascus Gate area. Organisers called it off in protest but said participants should still gather at the Western Wall, the holiest site in the city for Jews, situated below al-Aqsa Mosque, which Jews call the Temple Mount compound.

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound on Monday. Credit:AP That was around the same time that Hamas, an Islamist group that controls the Gaza Strip, announced that it would fire rockets if Israeli settlers did not withdraw from al-Aqsa Mosque and Sheikh Jarrah, a predominantly Palestinian neighbourhood in occupied East Jerusalem. Thats where Arab families are facing evictions after years of court battles waged by Israeli settlers. The area has seen nightly confrontations between Palestinians and Israeli far-right nationalists. On Monday morning, more than a dozen tear gas canisters and stun grenades landed in the mosque, as police and protesters faced off inside the walled compound that surrounds it. Smoke rose in front of the mosque and the iconic golden-domed shrine on the site, and rocks littered the nearby plaza. Inside one area of the compound, shoes and debris lay scattered over ornate carpets. On Monday evening (Tuesday AEST), Hamas fired more than 200 rockets towards Jerusalem and southern Israel. Israel responded with air strikes. Whats behind the escalation?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is fighting for his political survival after four recent deadlocked elections that have left Israel in political turmoil. He is at the helm of a caretaker government as he fights corruption charges, while opposition parties struggle to form a viable alternative government. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ran out of time to form a new government last week. He is now in caretaker mode. Credit:AP The Prime Minister has aligned himself with far-right politicians. Among them are Itamar Ben-Gvir, head of the extremist Jewish Power party, who has been part of the confrontations in Sheikh Jarrah and around the Temple Mount. Netanyahus critics say tensions have in part been permitted to escalate because he was distracted by these other affairs. Reports of violence targeting Jewish Israelis and soldiers have dominated Israeli media in recent days. For Palestinians, several recent developments have stoked fears and frustrations over the future of their demands for sovereignty and rights in Jerusalem.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, 85, has postponed what were supposed to be the first Palestinian elections in 15 years. Credit:AP In late April, President Mahmoud Abbas, head of the Palestinian Authority, which has control over some parts of the West Bank, announced he was postponing what were supposed to be the first Palestinian elections in 15 years. In theory, the elections were to take place in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem. But Abbas is at odds with Hamas, which rules in Gaza, and Israel has barred the Palestinian Authority from operating in East Jerusalem, where most Palestinians are not Israeli citizens. Abbas, who was lagging in polls, blamed the cancellation on Israel, saying it had not agreed to a mechanism for East Jerusalemites to vote. Hamas, which won the last elections in 2006, has fought three wars with Israel and has sought to fill the political void. The shadowy leader of its armed wing issued his first public statement in nearly seven years last week, warning Israel would pay a heavy price if it evicted Palestinians from their homes in East Jerusalem.

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalems Old City. Credit:AP Mohammed Deif has been in hiding for more than two decades and is believed to be paralysed after surviving multiple assassination attempts. The most recent was during the 2014 Gaza war, when an Israeli air strike killed his wife and infant son, according to Hamas. Hamas is also facing its own pressures in the Gaza Strip, which is beset by multiple humanitarian crises 14 years into a siege coordinated by Israel and Egypt. Against that backdrop, Israeli restrictions around access to the Damascus Gate and al-Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam, became flash points as many Palestinians gathered there to observe the holy month of Ramadan. The odour of putrid-smelling skunk water sprayed by Israeli security forces has lingered in parts of East Jerusalem for weeks.

Conflicts around the mosque have frequently flared up before, igniting tensions around the Middle East, but in recent days international attention has also increased around the decades-old legal battle in Sheikh Jarrah, where a group of Israelis is trying to evict mostly refugee Palestinian families from homes theyve lived in for decades. A final ruling by the Supreme Court was originally set for Monday - but it was postponed by Israels Attorney-General in an effort to de-escalate tensions. What could happen next? Events continue to develop swiftly on the ground but much more slowly elsewhere. Loading

The UN Security Council held emergency consultations on Monday (Tuesday AEST) on the escalating violence and was considering a proposed statement calling on Israel to cease evictions and or restraint. Irelands UN ambassador Geraldine Byrne Nason said the Security Council should urgently speak out. Netanyahu said the fighting could last a while. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said it would keep fighting as long as the Occupation [Israel] does not end all forms of aggression and terrorism in Jerusalem and al-Asqa mosque. Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip were indiscriminate and irresponsible. He said that Israel was responsible for a dangerous escalation in Jerusalem, and called on the international community to act immediately to stop the violence. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the rocket attacks from Gaza against Israel should stop immediately and urged all sides to take steps to reduce tensions.
New building ownership forced Old New Castle's Sonora out of its previous location in the middle of the pandemic, but it didn't take long for restaurateur Melissa Ferraro to find a new home, and even COVID-19 couldn't slow her down from getting the doors back open.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-12 00:30:32|Editor: huaxia

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-- China released the results of the seventh national census on Tuesday.

-- The country's population on the mainland maintained steady growth, reaching 1.41178 billion in 2020, an increase of 5.38 percent from 2010, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Tuesday.

-- Ning Jizhe, head of the NBS, expects China's population to stay above 1.4 billion "for a certain period in the future."

BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- China's most recent national census data have revealed the demographic changes and trends of the world's most populous country, offering strong statistical support for its efforts in advancing high-quality development.

China's population on the mainland maintained steady growth, reaching 1.41178 billion in 2020, an increase of 5.38 percent from 2010, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Tuesday.

Between 2010 and 2020, the education level of China's citizens improved continuously, the gender ratio became more balanced, changes in family-planning policy led to a rebound of new births, population mobility increased and the urbanization rate further elevated, the census data show.

Ning Jizhe, head of the NBS, told a press conference that such major changes reflect the historical course of economic, social and demographic development, but the census data also point to challenges that the country will be actively addressing.

POSITIVE CHANGES

China maintains its position as the most populous country on the planet, with its population on the mainland accounting for about 18 percent of the world's total.

"China's advantage as a super-large domestic market will exist for a long time," said Ning.

He attributed the basically steady growth over the past decade to China's large population base, which has ensured more than 10 million newborn babies every year, as well as a shift to the two-child policy, which resulted in a rebound in the number of births.

A man holding his newly-born second child poses for a group photo with his wife and his first son, who shows the medical certificate of birth of his little sister. (Xinhua/Ji Chunpeng)

In 2020, China's population aged between zero and 14 hit 253.38 million, an increase of 30.92 million from 10 years ago, or 1.35 percentage points in proportion to the total population.

The country saw the male-to-female ratio hit a record low of 105.07 in 2020, the most balanced gender ratio since the first census in 1953.

Over the past decade, China accomplished positive achievements in vigorously developing higher education and eliminating illiteracy among young adults.

The number of people who had received or were receiving college-level education reached 218.36 million in 2020, while the illiteracy rate declined to 2.67 percent from 4.08 percent in 2010.

"Talent dividends will gradually emerge following the improved education level," said Ning.

The country also made steady progress in promoting new urbanization, with 901.99 million people living in urban areas on the mainland, accounting for 63.89 percent of the total population.

There were also changes in the data-collection methods used in the census last year.

Electronic data collection was adopted for the first time, allowing real-time reporting. Residents were also allowed to document their information online themselves.

Big data and cloud technology, services and applications were used in data processing, improving the efficiency and quality of the census.

Census takers prepare door-to-door visits at a community in Fengtai District of Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 10, 2020. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

LOOKING FORWARD

As China enters the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), the country has to cope with various issues in order to achieve high-quality growth, including a slower rate of population growth and an increasing elderly population.

The average annual population growth rate from 2010 to 2020 stood at 0.53 percent, slightly lower than the 0.57 percent recorded from 2000 to 2010, according to the NBS.

Ning said the slight decrease in the annual growth rate was due to a mix of factors, including a continued drop in the number of women of childbearing age, couples delaying having children, and the rising cost of childbearing and parenting.

"This is an objective outcome of China's economic development, particularly as the country's industrialization and urbanization reaches a certain stage," he said, noting that it is a universal issue and particularly evident in developed countries.

He expects China's population to stay above 1.4 billion "for a certain period in the future," citing positive factors that will continue to support future growth.

"China's population will peak in the future, but there remains uncertainty as to exactly when it will happen," Ning said.

According to the latest census data, Chinese people aged 60 or above accounted for 18.7 percent of the country's total population in 2020, 5.44 percentage points higher than in 2010.

An aging population is an important trend of social development, and it will be China's basic national condition for a long time, said Ning.

He said China's increasing elderly population will reduce supply in the labor force, while increasing the burden on families' elderly care and the pressure on the supply of basic public services.

But it can also promote the development of the "silver economy," expand the consumption of products and services for the elderly, and boost technical advances, he said.

China will make overall plans and take specific measures to address its aging population as a major national strategy now and for a period of time in the future, said Ning, adding that in-depth data analysis will be carried out to provide statistical support for policy-making.

(Video reporter and editor: Peng Ying)
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-12 00:31:34|Editor: huaxia

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BEIRUT, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese President Michel Aoun urged on Tuesday the international community to intervene and put an end to Israel's aggression against Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood and attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem.

"There is no peace without justice, and no justice without respecting rights," the president said in a statement released by Lebanon's Presidency.

Aoun also saluted the steadfastness of the Palestinian people while adding that "adopting the principles of tyranny, displacement and deprivation of rights will only lead to more violence, persistence in injustice, and violation of international laws and decisions related to the Palestinian right of establishing an independent state." Enditem
Reporter

I cover a range of stories for WDRB, but really enjoy tracking what's going on at our State Capitol. I grew up on military bases all over the world, but am a Kentuckian at heart. I'm an EKU alum, and have lived in Louisville for 30 years.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-12 03:17:19|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Torrential rains in parts of Somalia triggered flash flooding, killing at least 25 people about two weeks after a drought was declared in the country, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned the combined effects of drought and flooding may worsen the humanitarian situation in Somalia, where more than 2.7 million people are food insecure.

Seasonal rains started in parts of the country in late April and early May as more than 80 percent of Somalia faced moderate to severe drought conditions, said OCHA.

"At least 25 people have died in various parts of the country due to the floods, among them 9 children who lost their lives after their house flooded in the Banadir region on Friday," OCHA said. Belet Weyne in the Hiiran region may see unprecedented levels of flooding in the next 24 to 48 hours. The Juba River burst its banks, it said.

The United Nations and partners have reached at least 353,000 people in drought-affected areas with assistance. Urgent efforts are under way to respond to the flash flooding.

The UN 2021 humanitarian response plan for Somalia seeks 1 billion U.S. dollars to help 4 million people, OCHA said. It is only 19 percent funded.

In 2019, floods killed at least 17 people and displaced more than 370,000 others in Somalia. Enditem
ZZ Top is headed to Louisville to play at Waterfront Park on July 18, 2021. Image courtesy ZZ Top on Facebook.


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Bill Burt and George Bremer discuss the NFL schedule and Tom Brady's return to New England; Elton Hayes and Kevin Brockway reflect on Coach K's retirement; and Clay Horning breaks down the worst defensive play in baseball in recent memory.
WENATCHEE  The dental industry has undergone a dramatic transformation as providers in the valley and across the state financially recover from the COVID-19 pandemic under new protocols and expectations.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-12 05:02:34|Editor: huaxia

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QUITO, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Ecuador reported on Tuesday 535 new COVID-19 infections and 38 more deaths in 24 hours, bringing the tally to 402,595 cases and 14,054 deaths, the Ministry of Public Health said.

The Andean province of Pichincha recorded 254 new daily cases, with 237 corresponding to Quito, the capital and epicenter of the pandemic in the country.

Since April 23, 16 of the country's 24 provinces with a high incidence of infections have been under a state of emergency decreed by the government to curb the rise in cases and prevent the collapse of the health system.

The measure, which will be in force until May 20, includes a night curfew and weekend lockdown.

Next weekend will be the fourth and final lockdown, after which the government will have to decide what other measures to implement to contain the pandemic and the spread of new and more contagious variants of the virus circulating in the South American country.

Vice Minister of Health Salomon Proano told reporters on Tuesday that the weekend quarantine has helped reduce the list of patients waiting for an intensive care unit bed in hospitals nationwide from 463 to 282.

Meanwhile, according to the government's vaccination plan portal, 1,289,962 people had been vaccinated, with 1,024,121 receiving their first dose and 265,841 their second. Enditem
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HONOLULU (AP)  Scientists in Hawaii have started to introduce native damselflies into the wild on Oahu's North Shore to help repopulate the insect and potentially save the species from extinction.

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources has been releasing orange-black Hawaiian damselflies to an area near Dillingham Air Field, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) northwest of Honolulu, Hawaii New Now reported Saturday.

Department officials said in a statement that the only other wild population of the insects is in Tripler Army Medical Center, but that the location is not ideal for population growth.

Kapua Kawelo, manager for the U.S. Armys Natural Resources Program, said the state department's invertebrate program partnered with the Army to raise the endangered species in a breeding facility for introduction to the wild.

Crews have been releasing up to 120 damselflies every week for nearly a year and scientists said they are starting to see promising results. William Haines, a researcher with the states invertebrate program, said last year there were only 100 damselflies and now there are about 4,000.

Were starting to see individuals emerging from the stream that are not marked, which means they are wild born, Haines said. Thats really encouraging to see theyre completing their entire life cycles in the wild.

Haines added that they were able to document the progress because all the released damselflies have a small number marked on their wings.

Hawaiian damselflies are threatened by mosquito fish, which were introduced in the early 1900s to control mosquitos but are now causing damselfly populations to decline. The insects are found in small populations on Oahu, Hawaii Island, Maui and Molokai. The species is extinct on Lanai.

Researchers have said that damselflies can help control mosquito and fly populations.

They are an important part of the Hawaiian ecosystem. We used to have about 25 species of Hawaiian damselflies that are all endemic, so theyre only found in Hawaii, Haines said. Theyre important predators of other insects.
SMYRNA, Del. (AP)  An inmate attacked and fatally stabbed his cellmate at Delawares largest prison, police said Tuesday.

Delaware State Police troopers were called to the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in Smyrna on Monday morning for a report of a homicide, according to a news release. Investigators determined that a 55-year-old inmate attacked his cellmate, a 69-year-old man, who was stabbed and pronounced dead at the scene.

Officials said the Division of Forensic Science would perform an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of the inmate's death. Officials aren't releasing the victim's name, pending notification of next of kin.

The suspect remains in custody of the Department of Correction pending charges and the execution of an arrest warrant, police said.
LAS VEGAS (AP)  A federal judge acknowledged Monday that with the proposed date for Nevadas first execution in 15 years to be scheduled for late July, hell have time to review the states unannounced lethal injection plan and decide what information about it should be made public.

We still need to move quickly because of the proposed date, U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware II.

An execution date is expected to be set for convicted mass murderer Zane Michael Floyd by a state judge on Friday.

Floyd, 45, is fighting his execution for the 1999 shotgun killings of four people and the wounding of a fifth at a Las Vegas supermarket. He lost federal appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to take his case.

Boulware told attorneys for Floyd, the state and the Las Vegas Review-Journal that he was inclined to grant a stay of execution so he can review the execution process, called a protocol. But the judge said no decision-making can take place until state officials supply details about the protocol.

Were waiting for a key piece of evidence that is central to all this inquiry to be finalized, Boulware said.

Nevada Department of Corrections Director Charles Daniels testified last Thursday that he has not finalized the execution plan  including the drugs that would be used. Daniels said hed like to be given up 120 days to do so.

Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson had wanted to seek Floyds execution in early June. Last Friday, prosecutor Alexander Chen said Judge Michael Villani will be asked this week to set Floyds execution date during the last week of July. Nevada would join Texas, Idaho and Pennsylvania as the only U.S. states with executions scheduled.

State prison officials want to keep secret their records about the drugs that would be used, how they are obtained and the names of the manufacturers.

The last execution in Nevada was of Daryl Mack in 2006. He was convicted in a 1988 rape and murder in Reno and asked for his lethal injection to be carried out.

The court fight over Floyd's execution is shadowed by delays of an execution that was scheduled twice  in 2017 and 2018  for convicted killer Scott Dozier.

Dozier pleaded with the state to put him to death, but his lethal injection was called off twice by court fights over the protocol, the never-before-used combination of drugs and the unwillingness of pharmaceutical companies to let their products be used. Dozier killed himself in prison in January 2019.

Death penalty opponents want the Legislature to repeal capital punishment in Nevada. They have said the process is expensive and unwieldy and that the 64 people currently on the state's death row should have their sentences commuted to life in prison without parole.

The state Assembly approved a repeal bill in April, but leaders in the state Senate have not indicated whether theyll take up the measure before the Legislature adjourns next month. Gov. Steve Sisolak, a Democrat, opposes it.

Leaders of civil rights and Black community groups held a virtual news conference Monday to describe what they called inequities in Nevadas capital punishment law and to call for the repeal bill to get a Senate hearing.

Why, I ask you, are we wasting money on killing people? Why? asked Ender Austin III, a regional leader of Faith in Action Nevada. He said millions of dollars spent on death penalty case investigations, trials and appeals could be better spent educating children.

Boulware set another hearing about Floyd's case for May 20.
On the national scene, politics is in turmoil. Four years of a tear-the-country-apart presidential administration has been followed not by a return to normal, but by ongoing claims that the president was not legitimately elected. Fully 70 percent of Republicans, pollsters say, believe that to be true, despite no shred of supporting evidence. Meanwhile, across the land, state legislators debate  and pass  bills restricting access to the ballot box, on no basis beyond repeated lies.

Razor-thin margins in both houses of Congress  plus arcane rules, gerrymandered districts, and partisan state legislatures mirroring the national scene  helped create a political landscape that resembles a war zone. Neither side trusts the other. No one talks across the aisle. So the gulf widens, rather than narrows.

Hartford is a bit better than Washington. There are divides, for sure  blue versus red, urban versus suburban versus rural, the rest of the state versus Fairfield County  but our legislature is not gridlocked. Action is taken. Things get done. And though only one of Westports four representatives, Tony Hwang, is a Republican, he often joins Will Haskell, Jonathan Steinberg and Stephanie Thomas to discuss, advocate for and solve issues affecting this area. (Its a diverse one, including the city of Norwalk.)

But even state politics can seem like a cage match, compared to Westport. Earlier this month, the Representative Town Meeting passed the town and Board of Education budgets with barely a peep. Our mill rate has stayed remarkably steady for years, without charges that we either spend too much or skimp on essential services. Our Board of Selectmen  two Republicans, one Democrat, in a town in which Democratic voters substantially outnumber Republicans  works harmoniously, with people who seem to genuinely like each other.

Whats going on here?

It was not always this way. In the 1950s, Republicans ran the show. First Selectman Herb Baldwins kitchen cabinet met upstairs at what was then the Clam Box restaurant (now Shearwater Coffee and Ignazios Pizza), where they decided how Westport would run. That helps explains how the town purchased a failing private club called Longshore, and turned it into the first municipally owned country club in the country, in just 19 days. Thats right: In less than three weeks, every town board from zoning to finance approved a then-eye-popping $1.925 million purchase.

Old Yankee Republicans responded to changing times. As postwar baby boom families flooded into Westport  changing its makeup dramatically  town fathers appropriated funds for several new schools: Coleytown Elementary and Junior High, Burr Farms and Hillspoint Elementary, Long Lots Junior High. They also approved the move of Staples High School from Riverside Avenue (now Saugatuck Elementary) to a modern campus on North Avenue.

Compromises were made, of course. Construction was done as cheaply as possible. The 2010s mold problem at Coleytown Middle dates back to 1965; $400,000 saved by not burying Staples heating pipes deeply enough cost many times that over the next five decades.

The 60s and 70s were fraught with political disputes. Some mirrored national events. A brutal battle over Project Concern  a program to bring Bridgeport youngsters into the Westport schools  led to a recall campaign against Board of Education chairman Joan Schine. Every year, the school budget came under intense attack. The Taxpayers Party, and its second incarnation, the Tax Watchers, combed through every proposal, line by line. Caricatures were drawn  greedy teachers versus anti-education residents  and bitter feelings lingered for years.

Even the non-partisan RTM waded into battle. A 17 to 15 vote in 1969 urging President Nixon to withdraw from Vietnam drew national headlines, and a raucous town debate over the role of our governing body, past, present and future.

That future is now. Nationally, politics are white-hot. No issue  from climate change, vaccines and judgeships to transgender athletes, Dr. Seuss and the First Ladys doctorate  is too big or too small for debate.

Meanwhile, here in Westport, we have not had a knock-down, drag-out fight in years. Sure, weve had issues  apartments and affordable housing, for example  and more loom on the horizon (dont forget the Cribari Bridge!).

But somehow, some way, we get things done. A Democratic town has elected Republican first and second selectmen twice in a row, and may will do so again in November. Democrats control town boards, and  though Planning and Zoning has had some turmoil  generally play well in the sandbox with their Republican colleagues.

Have we done something right to create such comity, in the midst of what is a national black comedy? Have we merely been lucky? Is Westport that different from the rest of the country, and if so, can we teach everyone else how to behave?

I have no idea. But I keep my fingers crossed. Its nice while it lasts, for sure.

Dan Woog is a Westport writer, and his Woog's World appears each Friday. He can be reached at dwoog@optonline.net. His personal blog is danwoog06880.com.
Today

Partly sunny, more seasonable, and turning less humid; a spotty morning shower, especially south of the Lehigh Valley.

Tonight

Becoming partly to mostly cloudy; more comfortable.

Tomorrow

Mostly cloudy and much cooler with a shower possible, especially farther south of the Lehigh Valley. More sun towards the Poconos.
Texas flags wave in the wind as they sit on display in the Main Plaza for Texas Independence Day on Tuesday, March 2, 2021. MIKALA COMPTON | Herald-Zeitung
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-12 05:50:22|Editor: huaxia

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Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system launches interception missiles to shoot down rockets fired from the Gaza Strip, leaving marks in the sky over the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, on May 11, 2021. (Tomer Neuberg/JINI via Xinhua)

Israel and Palestinian militant groups in Gaza threaten to further escalate the violence as the casualties on both sides keep rising.

GAZA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The tit-for-tat trade of fire between militant groups in the Gaza Strip and Israel has been mounting on Tuesday, leaving 28 Palestinians and three Israelis killed and dozens of others wounded from both sides.

Palestinian militant groups, including the armed wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), fired hundreds of rockets from the besieged coastal enclave at Israeli towns and cities in southern and central Israel.

In response, Israeli fighter jets and drones bombed military posts and facilities belonging to Hamas and the Islamic Jihad militants. The fighter jets also destroyed apartments and high-rise buildings that belong to the two groups in the Gaza Strip.

Photo taken on May 11, 2021 shows explosions following Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

The tension between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza started when the militants fired a barrage of rockets at Jerusalem in response to the clashes that broke out at al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli police forces.

Since Monday, the buzz of the Israeli fighter jets and drones mixed with the sounds of the bombs were heard all over the Gaza Strip, as gray and black smokes could be easily seen billowing into the sky as result of the Israeli bombings or the firing of rockets by Gaza militants.

The current wave of violence between Israel and Gaza militant groups is the first of its kind since the last large-scale air and ground offensive that Israel waged on the Palestinian enclave for 50 days in 2014.

Palestinians inspect the rubble of a 12-storey tower destroyed by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City, on May 11, 2021. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

Hamas spokesman in Gaza Fawzi Barhoum said in a press statement that Hamas is determined not to pull back from the equation of escalation.

"If Israel strikes, the armed resistance strikes back," he vowed.

On Tuesday, Israeli fighter jets struck a 14-floor high-rise building in western Gaza city after the Israeli army asked its inhabitants to evacuate. However, Hamas warned Israel against targeting populated houses and buildings.

A burnt-out car hit by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip is seen in southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, on May 11, 2021. (Tomer Neuberg/JINI via Xinhua)

After destroying the building, the al-Qassam Brigades, the Hamas' armed wing, claimed responsibility for firing 130 rockets from the Gaza Strip at Tel Aviv and other cities in central Israel.

The group said in a short text message that firing the rockets was in response to Israel's targeting of the high-rise building and many other apartments in the Gaza Strip.

"Targeting homes and buildings on purpose expressed how brutal the criminal occupation is," Barhoum said, adding that the Palestinian armed resistance "will protect the Palestinian people and will keep defending them."

An Israeli injured by a rocket fired from the Gaza strip is evacuated in central Israeli city of Holon, on May 11, 2021. (Gideon Markowicz/JINI via Xinhua)
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-12 06:45:51|Editor: huaxia

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BUENOS AIRES, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Argentina reported 25,976 new COVID-19 infections and 490 deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the total to 3,191,097 cases and 68,311 deaths, the Ministry of Health reported on Tuesday.

Of the total number of accumulated cases, 2,854,364 people have recovered and 268,422 are active cases.

Hospital bed occupancy at the national level stood at 69.4 percent, while in the City of Buenos Aires and its periphery it was 75.7 percent.

Meanwhile, 11,373,871 vaccines have been distributed, of which 9,346,346 have been administered, according to official data.

Minister of Health Carla Vizzotti announced on Tuesday during a meeting with provincial ministers that the South American country will receive 3,960,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine in May as part of a total of 22.4 million doses purchased by Argentina.

"Undoubtedly, this is the beginning of a new stage after all the efforts made by the national government to obtain the vaccines and to be able to continue administering both first and second doses," Vizzotti said.

Argentina remains under a social, preventive and compulsory distancing measure until May 21. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-10 13:45:38|Editor: huaxia

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Magdy Saber, Chairman of the Cairo Opera House, receives an interview with Xinhua in Cairo, Egypt, on May 4, 2021. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)

by Mahmoud Fouly

CAIRO, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Cultural cooperation between Egypt and China has been fruitful in recent years, Chairman of the Cairo Opera House Magdy Saber recently told Xinhua.

"China is one of the most important and largest countries that we deal with in the Opera House, through exchanging cultures, troupes, and expertise," said Saber, adding that the Cairo Opera House has close cooperation with the China Cultural Center in Cairo.

Saber made the remarks as Egypt and China are celebrating this year the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.

Egypt-China cultural cooperation continued despite the COVID-19 pandemic, he said, referring to a number of joint online performances held on different occasions.

The Cairo Opera House hosted in February a joint online concert displaying performances of Egyptian and Chinese music and art academies to celebrate the Spring Festival, or the Chinese Lunar New Year.

In May 2020, Egyptian and Chinese musicians staged a virtual performance of the Triumphal March from the world-famous opera Aida. A month later, Egyptian and Chinese orchestras held a joint online concert to mark the 64th anniversary of the establishment of China-Egypt diplomatic relations.

"They were so successful ... that they were encouraged and praised by Egyptian Culture Minister Inas Abdel-Dayem," Saber told Xinhua.

Saber said that he took part in the arrangements of the opening ceremony of the China-Egypt Culture Year in 2016.

The celebration, featuring Egyptian and Chinese stage performances, was also held to mark the 60th anniversary of bilateral ties.

"We as the opera house presented various performances including operatic and ballet singing and Egyptian arts. The Chinese side also performed very unique ballet and arts of China," Saber said. "It was a ceremony that combined both antiquities and history."

"We are happy with the Egyptian-Chinese friendship, and I hope it will grow further in the coming years," he said.

He also commended China's efforts to promote the development of global cultural exchanges.

"What brings peoples together the most are culture, art, and sports. Hence, there must be cooperation between different cultures and civilizations," Saber said.

He recalled his visit to China when he was in charge of the Opera House ballet company that presented performances in Shanghai then.

"That trip was more than wonderful and I enjoyed it very much," he said.

"Based on my work and our cultural and artistic exchange with China, I see that our cooperation is more than successful and there is a real friendship between us," he added. Enditem
HARTFORD, CT (WFSB) - State tax officials warned residents that the tax deadline is fast-approaching.

The Connecticut Department of Revenue Services sought to remind taxpayers that the deadline to file their 2020 returns is May 17.

"While many taxpayers have already filed their 2020 income tax returns, the professionals at DRS will continue to offer the highest-quality customer service up to, and through, the May 17 extended deadline," said Mark Boughton, revenue services commissioner. Those who file and pay the full amount of tax due on or before May 17, 2021 will not be subject to any penalties or interest for not paying their state income taxes by the due date. As always, we strongly encourage electronic filing, and urge taxpayers to call DRS with their tax questions. We are here to help.

DRS pushes state tax filing date to May 17 HARTFORD (WFSB) - The state Department of Revenue Services announced Thursday it was pushing the date to file state taxes to May17.

Boughton said taxpayers who are experiencing financial difficulties in paying the amount due are encouraged to contact DRS. It will work with taxpayers to assist them in understanding their tax liabilities and in making payment arrangements.

He also said that taxpayers who need additional time to file beyond the May 17 deadline can request an extension of time to file until Oct. 15, 2021 by filing Form CT-1040EXT, Application for Extension of Time to File Connecticut Income Tax Return for Individuals by May 17.

Taxpayers can visit portal.ct.gov/drs to electronically file Form CT-1040EXT.
Theatres in Scotland will be able to reopen from 17 May, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has revealed.

While a major step forwards for the arts world in the north, the news was dampened somewhat by the revelation that audience members must adhere to a two-metre social distancing system, more severe than England's "one -metre-plus" rule.

In fact, 11 of Scotland's leading arts venues, as well as the Federation of Scottish Theatre, has called for a review of the requirements, saying the "current 2m+ requirement makes presenting and producing work financially unviable in almost all contexts", with 96 per cent of members unable to operate in an economically viable way.

They have also criticised the government for "continued uncertainty in the sector, which has no clear route-map of when social distancing requirements might be lifted." This is a different situation to English theatres, who are hoping to have non-capped audiences from 21 June at the earliest.

Fiona Sturgeon Shea, chief executive of the FST, said: "FST now represents a network of 260 professional performing arts organisations and individuals throughout Scotland

"Every part of that network has been damaged by the impact of COVID, yet is keen and poised to move forward to recovery. We have worked carefully and collaboratively to ensure that the sector is ready to begin making, producing and presenting work for public audiences and participants in as safe and accessible a way as possible.

"With the right regulations, and package of support, the sector will be able to continue making its significant contribution to the cultural, social and economic life of Scotland, as well as health and wellbeing, as part of its recovery and beyond."

The Edinburgh International Festival is set to go ahead with outdoor productions, while the Edinburgh Festival Fringe is looking to operate a hybrid mix of in-situ and streamed shows.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 00:35:46|Editor: huaxia

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DAR ES SALAAM, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Two Tanzanian prisoners who were released last month on presidential amnesty have been killed by an angry mob after they were found in possession of various stolen items in Kibaha district of Coast region, police said on Monday.

The two prisoners were among 5,001 inmates who were pardoned last month by President Samia Suluhu Hassan to mark the 57th Anniversary of the Union between Tanganyika and Zanzibar that formed the United Republic of Tanzania.

Wankyo Nyigesa, Coast regional police commander, told a news conference that the two pardoned prisoners were killed on Saturday after an angry mob attacked them with stones, machetes and sticks.

He said the duo was found in possession of various items, including television sets and mobile phones that they stole from various homes.

"Both victims were serving jail terms at Mkuza prison before they secured the presidential amnesty," said Nyigesa. Enditem
Willmar, MN (56201)

Today

Sunshine and a few afternoon clouds. Hot and humid. High 99F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

A few clouds. Low near 75F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.
The Wilton Public Schools Board of Education unanimously approved the school district Superintendent Kevin Smiths recommendation to appoint James Jory Higgins as principal and Nicole Querze as dean of students of Middlebrook School, the school district said in a recent release.

The administrators are well known to students, and families, having served in these roles on an interim basis since the start of the 2020-21 academic year and having had a proven record of success in the Wilton Public Schools prior to this school year, according to the district.

Higgins, a Wilton resident, joined the Wilton Public Schools in 1995 as a third grade teacher at Ina E. Driscoll School, later becoming a dean of students at Middlebrook Middle School in 1999. He served in that role for 21 years, working closely with students, staff, and families and establishing himself as a highly collaborative, student-centered educator that the district values greatly.

Higgins chaired numerous committees during this time, including the Student Assistance Team, the Pupil Study Team and the Emergency Operations Committee.

He also served as a building liaison to the Parent Advisory Board and was a founding member of the Task Force to Combat Underage Substance Abuse and served on the communitys Security Task Force.

Mr. Higgins has done an exemplary job as interim principal of Middlebrook School during the 2020-21 school year. In the past eight months, Mr. Higgins has led the school through a period of unprecedented transition, navigating the pandemic, the shift through multiple learning models, and the resignations of both the previous and interim principals. As anticipated, he has been a unifying and calming force during a period of global uncertainty, and his unwavering commitment to doing what is best for students has been reaffirmed repeatedly, the school district said in the release. Higgins holds a bachelors degree from Wheeling Jesuit College, a masters degree from Sacred Heart University, and a Sixth Year Certificate from the University of Connecticut.

Nicole Querze has been employed by the Wilton Public Schools since 2012.

Querze began her tenure in Wilton as a special education teacher, going on to assume additional responsibilities including: crisis management district trainer, special education instructional leader and club advisor. Prior to joining the Wilton Public Schools, Querze served as an autism and inclusion specialist for the Darien Public Schools, a special education teacher for Cooperative Education Services and an early childhood interventionist in California.

She holds a bachelors degree from James Madison University, a masters degree from Southern Connecticut State University and a Sixth Year Certificate from Sacred Heart University.

During her time as a dean of students at Middlebrook School, Querze assumed a myriad of responsibilities, including Emergency Operations Committee Chair, oversight of special services and STRIDE subjects and working closely with various teams and grade levels across the building. Her insight into how students develop in their learning process and grow, coupled with her organizational skills, have made her a valuable asset to the building-based and district leadership teams.

Jory and Nicole possess an impressive skill set that has served the Middlebrook community tremendously well during this chaotic and uncertain time, Smith said of the appointments. Observing their work this year, it was clear that no further search to fill these positions was necessary. I could not be more proud of their efforts and have complete confidence they will continue to provide outstanding leadership.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Legislature passed bills Tuesday that would make it more difficult to vote absentee  proposals that were all but certain to be vetoed by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers but that GOP lawmakers said were needed to address issues that arose during last year's presidential election.

The measures are part of a national push by Republicans to change voting laws following former President Donald Trump's defeat in November and his bogus claims that there was widespread fraud and abuse. Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden by about 20,600 votes in Wisconsin, an outcome that withstood a partial recount and numerous state and federal lawsuits.

Democratic Sen. Jeff Smith decried the bills as a continuation of the big lie from Trump.

What is going on in this country when it comes to elections is shameful and a terrible risk that we run in not only making our democracy weaker but dismantling democracy.

Republicans said their intent was to improve election security and confidence in elections, not to perpetuate conspiracy theories.

Republican Sen. Duey Stroebel, a key sponsor of the legislation, said he was trying to create some reasonable, transparent, consistent rules.

Wisconsin Republican lawmakers have introduced more than a dozen bills that would change the state's election laws. Evers has signaled that he would veto any that reach his desk, meaning none of them would take effect.

The Senate passed a bill that would prohibit local elections officials from filling out missing voter information on the absentee ballot certificate, which also serves as the envelope, that voters use to return ballots.

Trump sought to disqualify about 5,500 absentee ballots in Democratic-leaning Dane and Milwaukee counties where election clerks filled in missing address information on the certification envelope.

Clerks had been filling in missing information on the certification envelopes for a dozen elections prior to November's, based in part on guidance from the Wisconsin Elections Commission. After Trump lost, Republicans questioned the legality of the practice since state law doesnt specifically allow it.

Under the bill, any absentee ballot missing information would be returned to the voter to fix. Officials who fill in the missing information would be committing election fraud, which is punishable by up to a $10,000 fine and three years in prison.

Another bill the Senate passed would disallow ballot collection events any earlier than two weeks before an election. They would also have to be located near the local clerk's office and staffed by workers from there.

That change is in response to the Democracy in the Park event held in Madison city parks last year where volunteers collected absentee ballots before the early voting period started two weeks prior to the election.

The bill also would prohibit someone other than a member of the voters immediate family or a legal guardian from returning a completed absentee ballot for another person. Violators would be guilty of a felony.

Trump argued in a lawsuit that no ballots should be counted that were collected at the Democracy in the Park events, or where election officials added missing information. On both of those claims, the Wisconsin Supreme Court said Trump had raised the issues too late and that his claims lacked evidence to back them up.

Three dissenting conservative justices said the laws need to be clarified, leading to the bills up for a Senate vote.

The Assembly passed a bill that would generally prohibit counties and municipalities from accepting grants or donations from private entities to help run elections. If the state elections commission received a private grant, it would have to award it to each municipality in the state on a per capita basis.

That bill comes after the nonprofit Center for Tech and Civic Life awarded more than $6 million to five Wisconsin cities to help with the November election. The nonprofits $250 million in grants awarded nationwide were funded by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife. Conservatives sued to stop the funding in Wisconsin, but they lost in federal court.

Republicans have raised particular concerns with how the money was used in Green Bay. State lawmakers have ordered a state audit of the election, including what happened in Green Bay, but it is expected to take months to complete. The Wisconsin Assembly also ordered an investigation.

The measure passed with all Republicans in support and Democrats against. It now heads to the Senate, which passed a similar version earlier. The two bills passed by the Senate now go to the Assembly.

Other Republican-controlled states, including Georgia, Iowa, Texas, Florida and Arizona, have passed laws largely targeting mail-in voting. Republicans in other states have defended the moves as bolstering security and trust in elections, while critics have said they are perpetuating a lie and trying to tamp down turnout of Democrats.

___

Associated Press writer Todd Richmond contributed to this report.


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JERUSALEM (AP)  Israel on Tuesday stepped up its attacks on the Gaza Strip, flattening a high-rise building used by the Hamas militant group and killing at least three militants in their hideouts as Palestinian rockets rained down almost nonstop on parts of Israel.

A Palestinian man inspects the rubble of a partially destroyed residential building after it was hit by Israeli missile strikes, at the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, early Tuesday, May. 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

JERUSALEM (AP)  Israel on Tuesday stepped up its attacks on the Gaza Strip, flattening a high-rise building used by the Hamas militant group and killing at least three militants in their hideouts as Palestinian rockets rained down almost nonstop on parts of Israel.

It was the heaviest fighting between the two bitter enemies since 2014, and it showed no signs of slowing.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to expand the offensive, while Gaza militants unleashed a fierce late-night barrage of rockets that set off air-raid sirens and explosions throughout the densely populated Tel Aviv metropolitan area.

Three women in Israel were killed by rocket fire, and dozens of people wounded. The death toll in Gaza rose to 35 Palestinians, including 10 children, according to the Health Ministry. Over 200 people were wounded.

In another sign of widening unrest, demonstrations erupted in Arab communities across Israel, where protesters set dozens of vehicles on fire in confrontations with police.

A Palestinian searches for survivors under the rubble of a destroyed rooftop of a residential building which was hit by Israeli missile strikes, at the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, early Tuesday, May. 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

The fighting between Israel and Hamas was the most intense since a 50-day war in the summer of 2014. In just over 24 hours, the current round of violence, sparked by religious tensions in the contested city of Jerusalem, increasingly resembled that devastating war.

The booms of Israeli airstrikes and hisses of outgoing rocket fire could be heard in Gaza throughout the day, and large plumes of smoke from targeted buildings rose into the air. Israel resumed a policy of airstrikes aimed at killing wanted militants and began to take down entire buildings -- a tactic that drew heavy international criticism in 2014.

In Israel, the nonstop barrages of rocket fire left long streaks of white smoke in their wake, while the explosions of anti-rocket interceptors boomed overhead. Air-raid sirens wailed throughout the day, sending panicked residents scurrying for cover.

Relatives of 11-year-old Hussain Hamad, who was killed by an explosion during the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, mourn during his funeral in the family home in Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

In a nationally televised address, Netanyahu said that Hamas and the smaller Islamic Jihad militant groups have paid, and I tell you here, will pay a heavy price for their aggression.

He claimed that Israel had killed dozens of militants and inflicted heavy damage on hundreds of targets.

This campaign will take time, he said. With determination, unity and strength, we will restore security to the citizens of Israel.

Mourners chant Islamic slogans while they carry the body of Amira Soboh, and her 19-year-old disabled son Abdelrahman, who were killed in Israeli airstrikes at their apartment building, during their funeral at the Shati refugee camp, in Gaza City, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

He stood alongside Defense Minister Benny Gantz, a political rival, in a show of unity. There are lots of targets lined up. This is only the beginning, Gantz said. The military said it was activating some 5,000 reservists and sending troop reinforcements to the Gaza border.

The current violence has coincided with the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, a time of heightened religious sentiments.

Critics say heavy-handed Israeli police measures in and around Jerusalems Old City helped stoke nightly unrest. Another flashpoint has been the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where dozens of Palestinians are under threat of eviction by Jewish settlers.

An Israeli firefighter walks next to cars hit by a missile fired from Gaza Strip, in the southern Israeli town of Ashkelon, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Confrontations erupted last weekend at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, which is the third-holiest site in Islam and the holiest site in Judaism. Over four days, Israeli police fired tear gas and stun grenades at Palestinians in the compound who hurled stones and chairs at the forces. At times, police fired stun grenades into the carpeted mosque.

On Monday evening, Hamas began firing rockets from Gaza. From there on, the escalation was rapid.

In a televised address, Hamas exiled leader, Ismail Haniyeh, said Israel bore responsibility. Its the Israeli occupation that set Jerusalem on fire, and the flames reached Gaza, he said.

A man inspects the heavily damaged house after it was hit by a missile fired from the Gaza Strip, in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Palestinian health officials gave no breakdown on the death toll in Gaza, but Islamic Jihad confirmed that three senior commanders were killed in a strike on their hideout in a Gaza City apartment building. The Health Ministry said 10 children and a woman were also killed.

Netanyahu said Israel had attacked hundreds of targets. The fiercest attack was a set of airstrikes that brought down an entire 12-story building. The building housed important Hamas offices, as well as a gym and some start-up businesses. Israel fired a series of warning shots before demolishing the building, allowing people to flee and there were no casualties.

Israeli aircraft heavily damaged another Gaza City building early Wednesday. The nine-story structure housed residential apartments, medical companies and a dental clinic. A drone fired five warning rockets before the bombing.

Israeli firefighters take cover as a siren sounds a warning of incoming rockets fired from the Gaza strip, in the southern Israeli town of Ashkelon, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Fighter jets struck the building again after journalists and rescuers had gathered around. There was no immediate word on casualties. The high-rise stood 200 meters (650 feet) away from the Associated Press bureau in Gaza City, and smoke and debris reached the office.

Soon after the bombing, Hamas announced that it would resume its attacks and aimed 100 rockets at the Israeli desert town of Beer-Sheva. Hamas said the renewed barrage was in response to the strike on the building.

The Israeli military said hundreds of rockets were launched toward Israel. Two women, including an Indian caregiver, were killed in separate rocket strikes in the southern city of Ashkelon.

Israeli soldiers take cover as a siren sounds warning of incoming rockets fired from the Gaza Strip, in the southern Israeli town of Ashkelon, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Then, late at night, Hamas said it unleashed a barrage of 130 rockets toward Tel Aviv in response to the destruction of the high-rise. As the rockets rose into the skies, mosques across Gaza blared with chants of God is great, victory to Islam and resistance.

One rocket killed a woman in the city of Rishon LeZion, and another struck a bus in the nearby city of Holon, wounding three people, including a young girl.

The violence was beginning to spill over to Israels own Arab population, where angry demonstrations erupted across the country.

Israeli security forces take positions during clashes with Palestinians in front of the Dome of the Rock Mosque at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 10, 2021. Israeli police clashed with Palestinian protesters at a flashpoint Jerusalem holy site on Monday, the latest in a series of confrontations that is pushing the contested city to the brink of eruption. Palestinian medics said at least 180 Palestinians were hurt in the violence at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, including 80 who were hospitalized. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

In the central city of Lod, thousands of mourners joined a funeral for an Arab man killed by a suspected Jewish gunman the previous night. The crowd clashed with police, and set a synagogue and some 30 vehicles, including a police car, on fire, Israeli media reported. Paramedics said a 56-year-old man was seriously hurt after his car was pelted with stones.

The citys mayor, Yair Revivo, described the situation in the mixed Jewish-Arab city as civil war, and the government ordered a deployment of paramilitary border guards from the West Bank to Lod.

In neighboring Ramle, ultra-nationalist Jewish demonstrators were filmed attacking cars belonging to Arabs. In the norther port town of Acre, protesters torched a Jewish-owned restaurant and hotel. Police arrested dozens of others at Arab protests in other towns.

Jewish nationalist demonstrators look at a barrage of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip toward central Israel, in the Israeli town of Ramla, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. The protesters had gathered in an attempted show of strength in a predominantly Arab neighborhood. (AP Photo/Heidi Levine)

Diplomats sought to intervene, with Qatar, Egypt and the United Nations working to deliver a cease-fire. All three serve as mediators between Israel and Hamas.

The U.N. Security Council planned to hold its second closed emergency meeting in three days Wednesday on the escalating violence, an indication of growing international concern. Council diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity because discussions have been private, said the U.N.s most powerful body did not issue a statement because of U.S. concerns that it could escalate tensions.

The escalation comes at a time of political limbo in Israel.

Oil tank is on fire near the town of Ashkelon, Israel, after it was hit by a rocket fire from Gaza Strip, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov)

Netanyahu has been caretaker prime minister since an inconclusive parliamentary election in March. After failing to form a coalition government by a deadline last week, his political rivals have now been given the opportunity.

The support of an Arab-backed party with Islamist roots is key for the anti-Netanyahu bloc. But the current tensions might deter the partys leader, Mansour Abbas, from joining a coalition with Jewish parties, at least for the time being.

The sides have three more weeks to reach a deal. If they fail, Israel would likely be plunged into an unprecedented fifth election campaign in just over two years.

Akram reported from Gaza City, Gaza Strip. Associated Press Writer Ilan Ben Zion also contributed to this report.
BENI, Congo (AP)  When Shekinah was working as a nurses aide in northeastern Congo in January 2019, she said, she was offered a job from a World Health Organization doctor at double her salary  in exchange for sex.

Anifa holds her phone displaying a photo of former World Health Organization doctor Boubacar Diallo, of Canada, during an interview in the eastern Congo town of Goma on Friday, March 5, 2021. In 2019, Diallo met her when she was working in an Ebola treatment center in Beni, eastern Congo. She said Diallo told her: How can a beautiful girl like you work here, testing peoples temperatures and washing their hands? Thats terrible. She said he offered her another job at five times more than her current salary where the conditions were very simple, according to him. She rejected Diallos offer, saying that if he hires me after sleeping with him...I would be a sex slave, not a WHO employee. Diallo rejected those claims outright. (AP Photo/Kudra Maliro)

BENI, Congo (AP)  When Shekinah was working as a nurses aide in northeastern Congo in January 2019, she said, she was offered a job from a World Health Organization doctor at double her salary  in exchange for sex.

Given the financial difficulties of my family  I accepted, said Shekinah, 25, who asked that only her first name be used for fear of repercussions. She said the Canadian doctor, Boubacar Diallo, who often bragged about his connections to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, made the same proposition to several of her friends.

When a staffer and three Ebola experts working in Congo informed WHO management about sex abuse concerns regarding Diallo, they were told not to take the matter further, The Associated Press has found.

Anifa stands in her home in the eastern Congo town of Goma on Friday, March 5, 2021. In 2019, World Health Organization Dr. Boubacar Diallo, of Canada, met her when she was working in an Ebola treatment center in Beni, eastern Congo. She said Diallo told her: How can a beautiful girl like you work here, testing peoples temperatures and washing their hands? Thats terrible. She said he offered her another job at five times more than her current salary where the conditions were very simple, according to him. She rejected Diallos offer, saying that if he hires me after sleeping with him...I would be a sex slave, not a WHO employee. Diallo rejected those claims outright. (AP Photo/Kudra Maliro)

WHO has been facing widespread public allegations of systemic abuse of women by unnamed staffers, to which Tedros declared outrage and emergencies director Dr. Michael Ryan said, We have no more information than you have. However, an AP investigation has now found that despite its public denial of knowledge, senior WHO management wasn't only informed of alleged sexual misconduct in 2019 but was asked how to handle it.

The AP has also for the first time tracked down the names of two doctors accused of sexual misconduct, Diallo and Dr. Jean-Paul Ngandu, both of whom were reported to WHO.

Ngandu was accused by a young woman of impregnating her. In a notarized contract obtained by the AP, two WHO staffers, including a manager, signed as witnesses to an agreement for Ngandu to pay the young woman, cover her health costs and buy her land. The deal was made to protect the integrity and reputation of WHO, Ngandu said.

When reached by the AP, both Diallo and Ngandu denied wrongdoing. The investigation was based on interviews with dozens of WHO staffers, Ebola officials in Congo, private emails, legal documents and recordings of internal meetings obtained by the AP.

FILE - In this Saturday, June 15, 2019 file photo, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrives by helicopter at Ruhenda airport in Butembo, eastern Congo, to visit operations aimed at preventing the spread of Ebola and treating its victims. As WHO faces allegations that unnamed staffers were involved in the systemic sexual abuse of women, Tedros has declared he was outraged, and emergencies director Dr. Michael Ryan said, We have no more information than you have. But an AP investigation has found that senior WHO management was not only informed of specific cases of alleged sexual misconduct in 2019, but was asked how to handle them. (AP Photo/Kudra Maliro)

Eight top officials privately acknowledged WHO failed to effectively tackle sex abuse during the Ebola outbreak, emails, recordings of internal meetings, legal documents and interviews with dozens of aid workers and WHO staffers show. WHO declined to comment on any specific sex abuse allegations or how they were managed and said it had taken steps to address the problem.

We are aware that more work is needed to achieve our vision of emergency operations that serve the vulnerable while protecting them from all forms of abuse, WHO spokeswoman Marcia Poole said in an email.

WHO emergencies chief Dr. Michael Ryan acknowledged in internal meetings that sexual abuse problems during the agencys outbreak responses were unlikely to be exceptional.

You cant just pin this and say you have one field operation that went badly wrong, he said. This is in some sense the tip of an iceberg.

FILE - In this Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020 file photo, Dr. Michael Ryan, executive director of the World Health Organization's Health Emergencies program, speaks during a news conference at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. At right is WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. As WHO faces allegations that unnamed staffers were involved in the systemic sexual abuse of women, Tedros has declared he was outraged, and Ryan said, We have no more information than you have. But an AP investigation has found that senior WHO management was not only informed of specific cases of alleged sexual misconduct in 2019, but was asked how to handle them. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP)

As WHO struggled to control spiraling Ebola cases in Congo in early 2019, emergency operations manager Dr. Michel Yao received an email with the subject line: Private. Chat.

We cannot afford to have people tarnishing the sweat and effort of individuals sacrificing themselves thru (sic) inappropriate sexual harassment and bullying, the staffer wrote, saying he was concerned about Diallo.

Yao responded that the matter would be handled, but the staffer said his concerns were dismissed. An internal WHO investigation failed to corroborate the charges, but those who complained about Diallo were not interviewed.

Diallo was described as a charismatic manager with connections to WHOs senior leaders, including director-general Tedros. On WHOs website, Tedros, Yao and Diallo are pictured smiling and bumping elbows during one of Tedros 14 trips to Congo during the outbreak.

This image provided by Dr. Jean-Paul Ngandu shows an April 29, 2019 contract between him and a Congolese woman he allegedly impregnated. The notarized document contains the signatures of two World Health Organization staff members, including a manager, as witnesses to the agreement. Ngandu promised to pay her a monthly stipend, cover the woman's pregnancy-related health costs and to buy her a plot of land. The deal was made to protect the integrity and reputation of the organization," said Ngandu, who headed the WHO infection control team in Beni. The names of the woman and two other witnesses have been redacted to protect their privacy. (Courtesy Dr. Jean-Paul Ngandu via AP)

Diallo rejected claims of sexual misconduct.

I have never offered a woman a job in exchange for sex and I have never sexually harassed a woman in my life, he told the AP.

In April 2019, Yao received another email detailing more alleged sexual misconduct, this time about the other doctor the AP tracked down, Ngandu.

I hereby inform you that we have a colleague who has impregnated a girl from Beni, outbreak manager Mory Keita wrote to Yao. Keita told Yao a young woman and her aunt had come to Benis Hotel Okapi looking for WHO managers, with two armed police officers. The womans aunt said the young woman had been having an affair with Ngandu and was now pregnant.

Reby hangs laundry outside her home in Beni, eastern Congo, on Saturday, May 1, 2021. In 2019, she met World Health Organization Dr. Boubacar Diallo, of Canada, when he came into a mobile phone shop where she was working. He asked her to talk about important things with him in a hotel and gave her $100 for transport costs, she told the AP. My God, a beautiful girl like you who gets $60 a month is not enough, he said, according to Reby. You are a big girl and if you sleep with me, you are going to be a high-ranking member of the Ebola response in Beni and you are going to receive around $800 a month. She said she refused Diallos offer, but continued to see him when he came into her shop. From that day on, he always called me the difficult girl, she said. (AP Photo/Kudra Maliro)

They asked WHO to cover the cost of the womans medical costs and for money to buy land, given that Dr. Jean-Paul will abandon the girl and she will be obliged to raise her child alone.

Keita said he felt that Yao should be informed so that you would give us your directions for how to better manage this problem.

One week after the email was sent, Ngandu signed a notarized contract confirming he would pay the young woman $100 a month until her baby was born, cover her pregnancy costs and buy her a plot of land. Keita and Achile Mboko, a WHO human resources staffer, signed as witnesses.

Ngandu said he wasn't the father of the baby and the deal was a private matter. He said he agreed to it after his WHO colleagues, including Keita, advised me to settle out of court to avoid sullying the reputation of the organization and myself. The young woman declined to talk to the AP.

It is unclear if Yao reported the abuse allegations to his superiors, as required by WHO protocol. He has since been promoted to be director of WHO Genevas Strategic Health Operations Department.

On Oct. 15, Tedros appointed an independent panel to investigate sex abuse during the Ebola outbreak in Congo; no findings are expected until the end of August. At a town hall meeting in November, Ryan acknowledged sex abuse issues had been neglected for years.

Many WHO staffers, especially women, were unconvinced.

This is not good enough, said Maria Van Kerkhove, WHOs technical lead on COVID-19, at the same meeting. We know in every situation we go in, were at risk.

Back in Congo, Shekinah said she couldnt count how many times she had slept with WHOs Diallo after accepting a job for which she was not qualified.

I wanted to quit. But because of my financial problems, I endured it, she said. Even after they separated, Shekinah said he continued to message her, asking her to send him nude pictures.

Diallo should be punished for his sexual abuse of all those girls in Beni as a lesson to these international organizations that this should not happen again, she said. I would like justice to be done.

Maria Cheng reported from London. Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report.
SALEM, Ore.  Oregon lawmakers have passed a bill to give tenants who are struggling with financial hardships due to the pandemic more time to pay past-due rent.

People take their seats at La Scala opera house Monday, May 10, 2021. Milan's famed La Scala opera house reopened Monday following the ease of coronavirus restrictions. (Claudio Furlan/LaPresse via AP)

SALEM, Ore.  Oregon lawmakers have passed a bill to give tenants who are struggling with financial hardships due to the pandemic more time to pay past-due rent.

Currently tenants have until July, but the legislation will extend the deadline to next Feb. 28. The bill already passed the Senate and now goes to the governor.

The measure protects renters from the long-term impact of not making payments on time by barring such information from being reported to consumer credit agencies or being used in consideration of future rental applications. The measure also bars landlords from screening out applicants based on pandemic-era evictions.

In March, more than 17% of Oregon renters in a U.S. Census survey reported being behind on rent payments.

THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

Mumbai has more than 2,000 beds, most of them full

WHO official strongly denies making false statements to Italian prosecutors about U.N. report into Italys virus response

FILE - In this April 10, 2021, file photo, registered nurse Ashleigh Velasco, left, administers the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine to Rosemene Lordeus, right, at a clinic held by Healthcare Network in Immokalee, Fla. Fewer Americans are reluctant to get a COVID-19 vaccine than just a few months ago, but questions about side effects and how the shots were tested still hold some back, according to a new poll that highlights the challenges at a pivotal moment in the U.S. vaccination campaign. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)

Argentina's doctors adapt, more learn intensive-care techniques as COVID-19 puts younger patients in hospitals

Russia is having production problems with its Sputnik V vaccine; Russia denies the report.

US mobilize to support India during its virus surge

https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine

HERES WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

COLUMBIA, South Carolina  South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster has issued an executive order allowing parents to opt their children out of wearing masks in public schools.

In his announcement Tuesday, the governor cited the widespread access to coronavirus vaccines for adults across the state.

McMasters statement says that it goes against all logic to continue to force our children  especially our youngest children  to wear masks against their parents wishes.

FILE - In this Feb. 11, 2021, file photo, Kizzmekia Corbett, an immunologist with the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) looks on at the Viral Pathogenesis Laboratory at the NIH in Bethesda, Md. Fewer Americans are reluctant to get a COVID-19 vaccine than just a few months ago, but questions about side effects and how the shots were tested still hold some back, according to a new poll that highlights the challenges at a pivotal moment in the U.S. vaccination campaign. Corbett helped lead development of the Moderna shot, and she spends hours giving plain-spoken answers to questions from Americans  especially Black Americans like her  to counter misinformation about the three vaccines used in the U.S. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

The order also bars state and local government agencies from requiring people to show proof of vaccination in order to receive government services or access public buildings and facilities.

The governors order also limits local governments from issuing mask ordinances based on his prior emergency declarations related to the pandemic. Those governments will have to find justification for such mask rules within their own ordinances.

SALEM, Ore.  Oregons government has set vaccination targets that officials hope will lead to the reopening of the states economy.

Gov. Kate Brown said Tuesday most statewide pandemic restrictions will be lifted when 70% of Oregons residents 16 and older get the first coronavirus vaccine dose. In addition, individual counties can move into the lower risk category for restrictions once 65% of the areas eligible population is vaccinated.

Currently, 35% of Oregons people are fully vaccinated.

Brown cautions that Oregon may continue to require the use of masks and physical distancing.

Just last month, the governor put 15 Oregon counties into the extreme risk category that bans indoor dining and significantly reduces gym and indoor entertainment capacities due to increasing COVID-19 cases.

HARTFORD, Conn.  Connecticut education and health officials are working to organize clinics that will give children between 12 and 15 years of age access to Pfizers coronavirus vaccine as soon as the federal government gives final approval for that age group.

FILE - In this April 8, 2021, file photo, a Northwell Health registered nurse fills a syringe with the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at a pop up vaccination site inside the Albanian Islamic Cultural Center in the Staten Island borough of New York. Fewer Americans are reluctant to get a COVID-19 vaccine than just a few months ago, but questions about side effects and how the shots were tested still hold some back, according to a new poll that highlights the challenges at a pivotal moment in the U.S. vaccination campaign. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

The Department of Education said Tuesday that clinics have already been held at schools in more than 30 districts for youngers 16 to 18 year old.

Clinics are now being planned that could be expanded to vaccinate younger students. But the department says some local districts may opt instead for bus trips to mass vaccination sites or work with local providers to schedule vaccinations.

MONTPELIER, Vt.  Vermont says it is ready to begin providing the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine to adolescents between the ages of 12 to 15 within days of its use being authorized by the federal government,.

Vermont's state health commission said Tuesday that vaccinations could begin being administered to adolescents soon after approval, which is widely expected to come Wednesday.

Vaccination clinics are being planned for more than 40 schools, and adolescents will be able to get the vaccine at any location that offers the Pfizer vaccine. There are about 27,000 Vermonters in the 12-15 age group.

TORONTO  Canadas largest province says it will stop giving out first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine due to concerns over blood clots.

Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams says the decision has been made out of an abundance of caution because of increased instances of a rare blood clotting disorder linked to the shot.

AstraZeneca is restricted in some European countries because of a potential link to extremely rare blood clots. In Canada, at least 12 cases have been confirmed out of more than two million doses given and three women have died.

Surrounded by a plastic barrier to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, senior Jose Solano-Hernandez studies with classmates on the first day of in-person learning at Wyandotte High School in Kansas City, Kan., Wednesday, March 30, 2021. Solano-Hernandez, feared he might not graduate after a year of disrupted learning left him missing assignments in most of his classes as he struggled to learn virtually. The school, like other schools nationwide, has made extra efforts to keep kids at risk of dropping out engaged as classes went virtual due to the pandemic. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Ontario says it has 49,280 doses of the shot remaining in the province out of over 707,000 received. Health officials are awaiting results of a clinical trial in the United Kingdom looking at giving a different vaccine for the second dose. That would allow people who got AstraZeneca first to be given Pfizer or Moderna for their second dose.

LAS VEGAS -- Health officials in Nevada have said Clark County might not be vaccinating people fast enough to reach the states goal to remove capacity limits and social distancing requirements next month.

Southern Nevada Health District Chief Health Officer Dr. Fermin Leguen said about 50% of eligible residents 16 and older, or about 919,000 people, had received at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccines as of Friday.

Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak set a state goal to reduce restrictions by June 1. But Clark County, which includes Las Vegas, set a threshold to vaccinate 60% of its population, or more than a million people, before fully reopening.

PHOENIX -- Arizona health officials announced Tuesday the the seven state-run COVID-19 vaccination sites are poised to begin offering shots to children ages 12 to 15 starting Thursday.

The Department of Health Services made its announcement a day after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave emergency-use authorization for the administration of Pfizers vaccine to the 12 to 15 age group.

A federal advisory committee and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are expected to follow suit on Wednesday. Arizona has state-run vaccination sites in metro Phoenix, Tucson, Yuma and Flagstaff.

Arizona on Tuesday reported 683 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases and 19 more deaths.

Health workers attend to a patient at the BKC jumbo field hospital, one of the largest COVID-19 facilities in Mumbai, India, Thursday, May 6, 2021.(AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

PARIS  French Health Minister Olivier Veran, a neurologist, has administrated vaccine shots to several people himself in the Paris southern suburb of Montrouge, as France seeks to speed up its COVID-19 vaccination program.

On Tuesday, authorities allowed all people over 18 to get access to vaccines if some appointments remain available for the following day. All people over 50 and those with specific health issues can book in advance.

As the country is gradually reopening, the French government expect 20 million people, or 38% of the adult population, will have received at least one dose at mid-May. At the current speed, between 2.5 million and 3 million people are vaccinated every week.

Terrasses of cafes and restaurants, museums and non essential shops are set to reopen on May 19.

Numbers of daily infections have started decreasing in recent weeks. Over 4,700 COVID-19 patients were still in intensive care units on Tuesday.

France has reported almost 107,000 virus-related deaths.

BANGKOK  Buddhist monks in Thailand held a national prayer event Tuesday evening to boost the nations morale as the country struggles to curb a surge of COVID-19 cases.

The governments National Office of Buddhism ordered all temples nationwide to hold the prayer event, and issued a handbook with several pages of ceremonial chants used to banish danger and disease during Buddhas era. The office said it was taking action because the countrys third wave of the coronavirus was affecting the minds and bodies of monks and other Buddhists,

Afghan people wait to receive the Indian version of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine at a hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Thailands Supreme Patriarch, Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong  head of the countrys Buddhist clergy  led a prayer session lasting about an hour from his temple in the Thai capital Bangkok, which was broadcast live by the governments television station. The words to the chants were shown onscreen for viewers who want to pray along from home.

Thai health authorities earlier Tuesday announced 1,919 new confirmed cases of the disease, bringing the total to 86,924 since January last year. They also announced 31 new deaths, bringing the total fatalities to 452.

The third wave of the coronavirus, which is deemed to have begun on April 1, has accounted for 58,061 of Thailands total cases, and 358 of its total deaths.

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- The city of Long Beach, California, is offering tickets to the Aquarium of the Pacific as an incentive to overcome resistance to COVID-19 vaccinations.

The Aquarium of the Pacific is one of the Los Angeles regions major attractions, drawing about 1.7 million visitors annually.

Long Beach will give two aquarium tickets to anyone receiving their first dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or a single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at any city-run vaccination site, the city said Tuesday. The offer runs through May 15.

While we have made tremendous strides in vaccinating 60% of eligible Long Beach residents and 96% of our seniors, we know that vaccine hesitancy for some is real, Mayor Robert Garcia said in a statement. We are going to do everything we can to encourage folks to get vaccinated, and that includes incentives.

City Health and Human Services Director Kelly Colopy said the recent slowdown in vaccinations in California includes Long Beach.

NEW YORK  Vaccination rates for retirement-age Americans have been lowest in states in the South, according to a new government study.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers sought to figure out if places with lower vaccination rates for that age group had anything in common. They found lower vaccination rates in counties where fewer older adults have a computer or Internet access, and in counties where more people 65 and live alone or in poverty.

The CDC released the report Tuesday. CDC researchers looked at vaccination data from mid-December, when coronavirus vaccine first became available, through April 10.

The researchers found that, overall, 79% of people age 65 and older had received at least one dose of vaccine. But vaccination rates were more than 99% of seniors in New Hampshire, and as low as 69% in Alabama, Mississippi and West Virginia.

The percentage of people age 65 to 74 who were vaccinated was higher than the percentage of people 75 and older who got a shot. Also, vaccinations were a bit more common in men than in women.

OTTAWA, Ontario  Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says almost 50% of eligible adults in Canada have received at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccine.

Trudeau says by the summer, Canada will have enough vaccines so that every eligible resident will have gotten their first dose, and by September, it will have enough doses for everyone to be fully vaccinated.

He says we can have a better, one-dose summer, as long as restrictions remain in place for case numbers to go down and more than 75% of Canadians get their first dose. He says a one-dose summer sets us up for a two-dose fall, when Canadians will be able to talk about going back to school, back to work, and back to more normality.

OMAHA, Neb.  The pace of coronavirus vaccinations in Nebraska has slowed significantly over the past month.

The state said 49,016 vaccine doses were administered in Nebraska last week. That continues the steady decline seen in recent weeks when roughly 70,000 and 93,000 doses were administered. The latest weekly total of vaccine doses is less than one-quarter of the mid-April peak of 211,057 doses in a single week.

Health officials said 49.9% of the states population over the age of 16 has now been vaccinated and 1.55 million doses have been administered statewide since December. But demand for the shots has weakened across the state.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 10:14:54|Editor: huaxia

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OUAGADOUGOU, May 11 (Xinhua) -- About 20 terrorists have been killed and four terror bases destroyed by an ongoing anti-terrorism operation in Burkina Faso since May 5, official news agency AIB reported on Monday.

The Burkina Faso army said the crackdown operation, named Houne, meaning dignity in local language, is being conducted in the terrorist attack prone northern and the Sahel regions of the country.

"About 20 terrorists have been neutralized, four bases destroyed and various equipment seized," the report said.

According to an internal note of the army, the operation aimed to "neutralize the armed terrorist groups" which have been active in the area.

It also targeted at "securing and reassuring the populations as well as reasserting the State's authority," according to the note.

Since 2015, Burkina Faso has been facing deteriorating security situation with terrorist attacks that claimed over 1,000 lives and displaced over a million. Enditem
ATLANTA (AP)  A man accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses was indicted Tuesday on murder charges by two separate grand juries, and one prosecutor filed notice that shell also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty.

FILE-In this Wednesday, March 17, 2021 file photo, A make-shift memorial is seen outside a business where a multiple fatal shooting occurred on Tuesday, in Acworth, Ga. Robert Aaron Long, 22, accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses was indicted Tuesday, May 11, 2021, on murder charges, and a prosecutor filed notice that she'll also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)

ATLANTA (AP)  A man accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses was indicted Tuesday on murder charges by two separate grand juries, and one prosecutor filed notice that shell also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty.

A Fulton County grand jury indicted Robert Aaron Long, 22, in the March 16 slayings of Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; and Yong Ae Yue, 63. A separate grand jury in Cherokee County indicted Long for a separate shooting there that resulted in the killings of Xiaojie Emily Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Delaina Yaun, 33; and Paul Michels, 54.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis also filed notice that she intends to seek a hate crime sentence enhancement and the death penalty against Long, who is white. The hate crime charges are based on the actual or perceived race, national origin, sex and gender of the four women killed, the notice says.

FILE-In this Tuesday, March 16, 2021, file photo, officials stand in front of a massage parlor after a shooting, in Atlanta. Robert Aaron Long, 22, accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses was indicted Tuesday, May 11, 2021, on murder charges, and a prosecutor filed notice that she'll also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

The charges and the decisions to seek the death penalty and a sentencing enhancement under the hate crime law send a message that everyone within this community is valued, Willis said during a news conference Tuesday.

Today we have taken another step forward in seeking justice for the victims of this crime and for their family members, Cherokee County District Attorney Shannon Wallace said in a news release.

Wallace said she will make a decision on whether to seek the death penalty before Long's arraignment, which has not yet been scheduled.

Georgias new hate crimes law does not provide for a stand-alone hate crime. After a person is convicted of an underlying crime, a jury must determine whether its motivated by bias, which carries an additional penalty.

FILE- In this Tuesday, March 16, 2021 file photo, a body is taken away from Gold Spa massage parlor after a shooting, in Atlanta. Robert Aaron Long, 22, accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses was indicted Tuesday, May 11, 2021, on murder charges, and a prosecutor filed notice that she'll also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

The 19-count Fulton County indictment includes charges of murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and domestic terrorism.

The domestic terrorism charge says Long committed a series of illegal acts which were interrelated by distinguishing characteristics, with the intent to cause serious bodily harm and to kill individuals and groups of individuals, and with the intent to intimidate the civilian population of this state and of its political subdivisions.

Four aggravated assault charges have to do with the shootings of the four victims who died. For a fifth, the indictment says Long pointed a gun at another woman, causing her reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving a violent injury.

The charges in the 23-count Cherokee County indictment are related to the shooting at a spa near suburban Woodstock in which four were killed and one person was wounded. Six other people were inside the spa when the shooting happened, Wallace said. The Cherokee County charges include malice murder, felony murder, attempt to commit murder and aggravated assault.

FILE - This March 16, 2021 booking photo provided by the Crisp County, Ga., Sheriff's Office shows Robert Aaron Long, 22, accused of killing eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, in shootings at three Atlanta-area massage businesses. Long was indicted Tuesday, May 11, 2021, on murder charges, and a prosecutor filed notice that she'll also seek hate crime charges and the death penalty. (Crisp County Sheriff's Office via AP, File)

Willis decision to seek the death penalty is a departure from her stance during her campaign to be district attorney last year.

During a 2020 candidate forum, Willis answered yes when asked: Will you commit to refuse to seek the death penalty?

Last year I told the voters of Fulton County that I could not imagine a circumstance where I would seek (the death penalty), Willis said during the news conference. Unfortunately, a case has arisen ... that I believe warrants the ultimate penalty and we shall seek it.

the victims, Willis notice of intent says. Each killing was also outrageously or wantonly vile, horrible, or inhuman in that it involved depravity of mind and was committed during an act of domestic terrorism, the notice says.

Police have said Long shot and killed four people, three of them women and two of Asian descent, at Youngs Asian Massage near Woodstock just before 5 p.m. on March 16. He also shot and wounded a fifth person, investigators said.

He then drove about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south to Atlanta, where he shot and killed three women at Gold Spa before going across the the street to Aromatherapy Spa and fatally shooting another woman, police have said. All of the Atlanta victims were women of Asian descent.

After the shootings at the two Atlanta spas, Long got back into his car and headed south on the interstate, police said.

Longs parents called authorities to help after recognizing their son in still images from security video that the Cherokee County Sheriffs Office posted on social media. They provided cellphone information that allowed authorities to track their son to rural Crisp County, about 140 miles (225 kilometers) south of Atlanta.

State troopers and sheriffs deputies spotted his SUV on Interstate 75, and one of them forced Long to spin to a stop by bumping his vehicle. Long then surrendered to authorities.

outrage and widespread skepticism given the races of the victims.
U.S. highways will be far busier over the Memorial Day holiday weekend than last year, but traffic still won't reach pre-pandemic levels, according to a forecast by the AAA auto club.

FILE - In this March 31, 2021 file photo, traffic moves along the Interstate 76 highway in Philadelphia. If you're traveling over the Memorial Day weekend, expect lots of company. The AAA auto club said Tuesday, May 11, that more than 37 million Americans plan to travel at least 50 miles from home over the holiday weekend. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

U.S. highways will be far busier over the Memorial Day holiday weekend than last year, but traffic still won't reach pre-pandemic levels, according to a forecast by the AAA auto club.

AAA officials say travel will increase because more Americans have been vaccinated against COVID-19  about one-third of U.S. adults  and consumer confidence is growing.

The auto club and insurance company said Tuesday it expects more than 37 million people to travel at least 50 miles from home during the holiday weekend, up 60% from last year, which was the lowest since AAA began keeping records in 2000.

If the AAA forecast is right, however, it would still be 6 million people, or 13%, fewer than left home over Memorial Day in 2019.

AAA said 34 million Americans plan driving trips between May 27 and May 31, a 52% increase over last year, and nearly 2.5 million will take plane trips, nearly six times more than the same period in 2020. A small number will take buses or trains.

So far in May, nearly 1.5 million people per day have gone through U.S. airport checkpoints, according to the Transportation Security Administration. AAA said its air-travel forecast seems low because it counts each traveler once, while TSA counts somebody twice if they take a round-trip flight.
LONDON (AP)  The U.K. government sought to capitalize on its electoral strength Tuesday, outlining a sweeping legislative agenda to bolster the economy after the COVID-19 pandemic, defuse tensions that threaten the countrys unity and combat social issues ranging from housing to care for older adults.

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, left, Black Rod Sarah Clarke, Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle and Leader of the Opposition Kier Starmer, right, listen as Queen Elizabeth II delivers a speech in the House of Lords at the Palace of Westminster in London, Tuesday May 11, 2021. (Aaron Chown/Pool via AP)

LONDON (AP)  The U.K. government sought to capitalize on its electoral strength Tuesday, outlining a sweeping legislative agenda to bolster the economy after the COVID-19 pandemic, defuse tensions that threaten the countrys unity and combat social issues ranging from housing to care for older adults.

The package of about 30 bills was unveiled by Queen Elizabeth II in the annual Queens Speech, in which the monarch reads out the governments legislative priorities at the ceremonial start of the new parliamentary session.

The event, pared down for pandemic times, was the queens first major public appearance since the funeral of her husband, Prince Philip, last month. A single throne was placed beneath the gold canopy for the monarch. In times past, there were a pair of thrones  one for the queen and another for her consort.

My governments priority is to deliver a national recovery from the pandemic that makes the United Kingdom stronger, healthier and more prosperous than before, the queen said in the House of Lords.

The queen, who did not wear a mask, was escorted into the chamber by her son, Prince Charles. She delivered the speech slowly and deliberately before a socially distanced audience, all of whom needed to have a negative COVID test in order to attend.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II leaves Buckingham Palace by car to attend the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster in London, Tuesday May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

The queen did not wear her crown. Instead, it was carried into the chamber ahead of her on a cushion.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Cabinet put together the list of proposals after a year of lockdowns and COVID-19 restrictions triggered the U.K.s deepest economic slump in three centuries. The government is also facing renewed calls for Scottish independence and unrest in Northern Ireland fueled by Britains departure from the European Union.

Johnson will pursue the agenda from a position of strength, with his Conservative Party holding 365 of the 650 seats in the House of Commons. That electoral power was underscored last week, when the Conservatives dominated local elections in England.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II delivers a speech in the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster in London, Tuesday May 11, 2021. (Chris Jackson/Pool via AP)

Ahead of the speech, Johnson announced plans to give all adults access to four years of university or job training throughout their lifetimes as part of an effort to ensure workers have the skills employers need in a changing economy. The government also plans to revamp planning laws to speed up construction of new homes.

These new laws are the rocket fuel that we need to level up this country and ensure equal opportunities for all, Johnson said in a statement released ahead of the speech. We know that having the right skills and training is the route to better, well-paid jobs.

The opposition Labour Party said the government must also come up with a plan to create jobs if the training program is to have any meaning. Labour has previously criticized the government for boosting job creation figures with part-time and low paying jobs.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, with Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, prior to delivering a speech in the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster in London, Tuesday May 11, 2021. (Chris Jackson/Pool via AP)

Its great to hear that they want people to be able to retrain, but where are the jobs that people need, the good-quality jobs, not just the jobs, but the good-quality jobs that allow people to earn decent money to look after their families? Lisa Nandy, Labours spokeswoman on foreign affairs, told the BBC.

The legislative program also includes plans for a summit meeting between leaders of the U.K. government and the devolved administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to discuss issues caused by the pandemic. The government also said it would invest in transport links between the U.K.s four nations and reiterated a commitment that all parts of the country would benefit from a 4.8 billion pound fund to improve town centers and local transport projects.

In addition, the government plans to require voters to show a photo ID before they cast their ballots and ban so-called gay-conversion therapy. Though the government pledged to restrict the prosecution of soldiers who served during the conflict in Northern Ireland, it didn't offer legislation to implement the promise.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II prior to delivering a speech in the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster in London, Tuesday May 11, 2021. (Chris Jackson/Pool via AP)

One of the most controversial elements of the governments program is a crime bill that stalled in the last parliament amid concern that it gave police too much power to restrict public protests.

Police were criticized for being too lenient after environmental protesters shut down central London last year and for being too heavy handed in March when they broke up a vigil for a young woman who was murdered after being kidnapped in the capital.

The government also promised to bring forward proposals to reform the social care system, which provides in-home and nursing home services for older people. That fell short of demands from advocates for concrete proposals to resolve the long-running problem.

The issue has vexed government for more than a decade as rising costs squeeze local governments, which are required to provide care for those who cant afford it, and leave wealthier families in fear of losing their homes as they struggle to pay for the care of aging relatives.

In comments later in the House of Commons, Johnson committed to holding an inquiry into the governments handling of the COVID-19 pandemic amid public pressure to investigate lapses in hopes that they are not repeated. Johnson has previously resisted the idea, saying an inquiry would be a distraction to officials tackling the pandemic.

Johnson told the House of Commons that the inquiry would take place within the new session of Parliament, which opened Tuesday. Parliamentary sessions typically last a year.

I can certainly say that we will do that within this session, Johnson told lawmakers. I have made that clear before."
SAN DIEGO (AP)  Buoyed by a large budget surplus and swimming in federal pandemic recovery money, California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday proposed $12 billion to get more people experiencing homelessness off the streets and into homes of their own.

FILE - In this May 21, 2020, file photo, rectangle areas designed to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus by encouraging social distancing line a city-sanctioned homeless encampment at San Francisco's Civic Center. California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a $12 billion plan Tuesday, May 11, 2021, to confront the state's homelessness crisis. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

SAN DIEGO (AP)  Buoyed by a large budget surplus and swimming in federal pandemic recovery money, California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday proposed $12 billion to get more people experiencing homelessness off the streets and into homes of their own.

Newsoms proposal includes $8.75 billion over two years to create an estimated 46,000 housing units, expanding on a program he launched last year to convert motels and other properties into housing. Nearly half the money would go toward housing in places where people with mental health and other behavioral issues can get services onsite.

Newsom also proposed spending $3.5 billion on rental subsidies, new housing and shelter resources with the aim of ending family homelessness within five years. It would help families with minors avoid losing their homes in the first place or help them get sheltered without spending days, weeks or months on a waitlist.

As governor I actually want to get something done. I dont want to talk about this for a decade, Newsom said in a news conference at a former San Diego Residence Inn that has been converted into housing for 177 previously homeless people.

A trashed punching bag is left at a homeless encampment is seen on the side of the CA-101 highway in Echo Park neighborhood in Los Angeles Tuesday, May 11, 2021. California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday proposed $12 billion in new funding to get more people experiencing homelessness in the state into housing and to functionally end family homelessness within five years. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Whats happening on our streets and sidewalks is unacceptable," he said.

The Democratic governor, who faces a recall election this year, seized on the twin issues of homelessness and housing affordability early on in his first term as governor. The nations most populous state has an estimated 161,000 people experiencing homelessness, more than any other state. Advocates say they can't house people quickly enough with a shortage of units and high rents.

The largest concentration of homelessness is in Los Angeles, where Mayor Eric Garcetti last month vowed to spend nearly $1 billion to move some of the 61,000 homeless people in Los Angeles County off the streets. Rows of tents, cardboard shelters, battered RVs and makeshift plywood structures have now expanded beyond the notorious Skid Row throughout the nations second-most populous city.

During the pandemic, Newsom launched projects Roomkey and Homekey" using federal money to house homeless residents in hotels and helping cities, counties and other local entities buy and convert motels and other properties into housing. Newsom officials said $800 million spent on the Homekey program created 6,000 more housing units, providing shelter for 8,200 people.

One of them is Lindsey Prescott, who made an unplanned appearance at Newsom's news conference after her 18-month-old daughter Mia waved at the governor when he arrived at a converted Residence Inn operated by Father Joe's Villages.

Lindsey Prescott looks at her 18-month-old daughter, Mia, as she giggles on Tuesday, May 11, 2021 in San Diego. Prescott moved into a converted San Diego hotel that Gov. Gavin Newsom visited Tuesday to announce a $12 billion program to get people like Prescott off the streets. (AP Photo/Julie Watson)

Prescott said she was homeless for five years, struggling with addiction after her mother died, and lost her daughter to foster care. She said she got Mia back in May after she stopped using drugs and was selected to move into the former hotel.

I feel normal, said Prescott, as Mia darted around an interior patio next to a tennis court. Im a mom. I have my daughter. She has her crib next to my bed. I go to the grocery store. I cook.

Prescott expects to stay at the converted hotel for two years, then move to an apartment or house. There is no limit to how long people can stay at Father Joe's, and some may choose to live permanently.

Nan Roman, president and CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, called Newsom's hotel and motel programs gamechangers that took advantage of the pandemic to make real changes. A topsy-turvy real estate market and the federal government throwing money at local governments make it an ideal time to expand housing, she said, but lots of coordination is needed on things such as rental subsidies and ongoing care to make sure people don't end up back on the streets.

Advocates cheered the governors proposal. But they voiced concerns about California's decades-old resistance to building new homes: long-term funding issues, neighborhood opposition and political jockeying.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom joins a cleanup effort Tuesday, May 11, 2021, in Los Angeles. Newsom on Tuesday proposed $12 billion in new funding to get more people experiencing homelessness in the state into housing and to "functionally end family homelessness" within five years. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

If we couple it with actually taking steps to close our affordable housing gap, it could be good," said Dr. Margot Kushel, director of the Center for Vulnerable Populations at the University of California, San Francisco. The people who are homeless right now do need a response today, and not five years from now.

Focusing on homelessness could prove politically helpful for Newsom in the recall campaign. Republican challengers, including John Cox and former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, issued statements calling Newsom ineffective.

Later Tuesday, Newsom traveled to a trash-strewn lot adjacent to a homeless encampment on a freeway overpass near downtown Los Angeles, where he announced a $1.5 billion program to clean up garbage and spruce up neighborhoods around the state.

With a bank of TV cameras tracking him, Newsom pulled on a pair of gloves and grabbed a garbage picker, stuffing plastic bags with debris. from an old high-heeled shoe to a discarded sleeping bag and tent.

He vowed that he'll make sure the state has sustained funding for homelessness while he's governor, but he sounded dubious about establishing a dedicated funding stream, saying it could create a financial shackle that might prevent the state from meeting other needs.

Advocates for the homeless expressed concern over the proposed clean-up money, saying they hope its not an excuse for encampment sweeps.

If Newsoms plan wins support from the Legislature, its implementation would depend heavily on the willingness of local governments and communities to go along, which is often a significant barrier.

Every community group that you go to demands that you solve the problem of homelessness, and then in the exact same meeting theyll demand you dont solve it anywhere near them, said San Diego County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher, a fellow Democrat who appeared with Newsom.

The governor's proposal is part of a $100 billion pandemic recovery plan Newsom is rolling out this week, thanks to an astounding $76 billion budget surplus and $27 billion in new funding from the federal governments coronavirus spending bill.

new state database shows that nearly 250,000 people sought housing services in 2020. Of that number, 117,000 people are still waiting for help while nearly 92,000 people found housing.

Har reported from San Francisco. Associated Press writers Kathleen Ronayne in Sacramento, California, and Christopher Weber and Michael R. Blood in Los Angeles contributed to this story.
Paper Excellence is expanding into the U.S. with a deal to buy Domtar Corp. in an agreement with an enterprise value of about US$3 billion.

Domtar president and CEO John Williams arrives at the paper company's annual meeting, Wednesday, April 30, 2014 in Montreal. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson

Paper Excellence is expanding into the U.S. with a deal to buy Domtar Corp. in an agreement with an enterprise value of about US$3 billion.

The Richmond, B.C.-based company will pay US$55 per Domtar share in cash, a 37 per cent premium from May 3 when a media report disclosed a possible transaction.

"This marks a major step in our global strategy of identifying well-positioned assets and positioning them for growth," said Joe Ragan, Paper Excellence's global chief financial officer.

"We are enthusiastic about entering the American market as we continually improve Paper Excellences ability to serve its expanding blue-chip customer base.

Paper Excellence, a global diversified manufacturer of pulp and specialty, printing, writing, and packaging papers, operates seven mills in Canada producing and shipping over 2.8 million tonnes of product annually with a workforce of more than 2,800.

Montreal and South Carolina-based Domtar is an integrated manufacturer and marketer of uncoated freesheet paper in North America and one of the largest manufacturers of pulp in the world. It has 13 pulp and paper mills and 10 manufacturing and converting facilities in Canada and the United States.

Ragan said Paper Excellence, which acquired Catalyst Paper Corp. in 2019, said it will invest in Domtar's assets for long-term growth.

The companies say Paper Excellence intends to continue the operations of Domtar as a stand-alone entity. They say it will be led by its management team and Paper Excellence plans to keep its corporate and production locations.

Domtar CEO John Williams said the Paper Excellence transaction allows its shareholders to realize cash value at a significant premium.

This transaction validates our long-term strategic plan for our leading paper and pulp businesses, and for our continued expansion into packaging, he said in the news release.

Domtar's board unanimously approved the agreement which is expected to close in the second half of the year, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.

Shares in Domtar climbed to a two-year high by gaining C$9.68 or 16.9 per cent to C$66.96 on the Toronto Stock Exchange Tuesday.

The transaction follows West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd.'s $4-billion purchase of Norbord Inc, which closed in February.

Analyst Paul Quinn of RBC Capital Markets said the deal is not surprising given recent reports.

"While the valuation is a bit below comparable transactions, we expect there to be fewer synergies in this deal given that Domtar will continue to operate on a stand-alone basis and therefore view the price as fair," he wrote in a report.

A key question for Quinn is what does the new owner do about Domtar's plans to convert up to four paper machines to containerboard.

"While we think that it is likely too late to turn back on the Kingsport conversion, the conversions at Ashdown, Marlboro, and Hawesville have not been started."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.

Companies in this story: (TSX:UFS)
TORONTO - Darrell Wellington heads a growing tech company that used to do almost all its employee recruitment in person, except for a few overseas candidates  until last year.

Darrell Wellington of Syntronic poses for a photo in Ottawa on Saturday, April 3, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Patrick Doyle

TORONTO - Darrell Wellington heads a growing tech company that used to do almost all its employee recruitment in person, except for a few overseas candidates  until last year.

"All of our (in-person) interviews went to remote interviews at the beginning of COVID," Wellington says. "Now we do that for pretty much everybody."

Wellington says he was the first Canadian employee hired by Syntronic, based in Sweden, when opened an office in Ottawa seven years ago.

Now as senior vice-president, Wellington heads the Canadian operation and it wants to add 150 to 200 people over the next two years  mostly junior engineers out of university who will work with more experienced Syntronic employees.

"And we can't hire them fast enough," Wellington said.

He says that means the switch to remote hiring using Zoom or more specialized video platforms "really aligns with our focus right now" and notes that it's much easier to schedule virtual meetings than in-person meetings.

Syntronic isn't alone in seeing the advantage of using virtual platforms to recruit co-op students and recent graduates

Private sector business groups such as the Kanata North Technology Association in Ottawa and Communitech in Ontario's Waterloo region have long worked to help member companies work with universities.

Originally, Kanata North packed its travelling recruiting event into a bus and set up meetings in a more traditional "job fair" approach where member companies would go to university campuses to meet with potential candidates.

Wellington says Kanata North's first-ever "TechNata Virtual Road Show" events in March and April were very helpful for Syntronic.

"(Syntronic) made many quality connections to candidates we would otherwise not have reached and much bigger brand recognition that is hard to quantify," Wellington says.

Communitech, which promotes and assists companies in the high-tech area around Waterloo, Ont., has also converted its regular Tech Jam recruiting events into "Tech Jam From Home."

Arctic Wolf, a Communitech member that has its largest employee base in Waterloo and offices in the United States, has had success with its post-pandemic switch to virtual recruitment of co-op students.

"We transitioned very quickly, when we converted to work-from-home," says Judy Hutchison, director of recruiting for the cybersecurity provider.

Before the switch, she says, Arctic Wolf rarely used video or virtual recruiting, unless a candidate was overseas. Now nearly 100 per cent of Arctic Wolf recruits  especially co-op students  are reached virtually.

Hutchison says there are some limitations to virtual encounters  including technical features like internet speed and social factors like judging body language.

But many of the in-person features of job interviews  for instance physical white boards to demonstrate how a process works  can be done with virtual whiteboards included with many video platforms, Hutchison says.

Norah McRae, University of Waterloo's associate provost for co-operative and experiential education, says it's vital for the university to connect employers with co-op students and new graduates.

As a result, it took just three days in March 2020 to make virtual recruiting a reality amid the pandemic.

"We took what at that point was going to be 1,200 in-person interviews by employers coming to our campus. We turned all of those into remote and virtual interviews for recruiting students," says McRae.

Since that beginning, University of Waterloo has supported a total of more than 18,000 of these virtual recruitments for placements all over the world, she says.

"Doing this online is  a great way to prepare our students for the future of work in a global talent base," McRae says

The shift to virtual recruiting from universities requires adjustments for both students and employers, says Angela Tsuei-Strause, executive director of the Vandiver Center for Career Development in Charlotte, N.C.

In pre-pandemic times, employers in the Charlotte area would host students at their locations so prospective recruits could see the work spaces personally, she says.

"But now, in the days of not even shaking hands, what we did was do these events virtually," she says.

That sometimes meant using the video camera on a phone to conduct workplace tours, with followup conversations with students just as they would in person, Tsuei-Strause says.

The Vandiver Center, on campus at Queen's University in Charlotte, was able to benefit from the university's experience by providing online classes and working with various digital platforms.

"Because we'd also been working with our students in some hybrid courses, where they would meet online once a week and then in person once a week, they were really able to make the transition into a more virtual internship workplace."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.
NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania (AP)  Mauritania's authorities placed former President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz under house arrest Tuesday as they investigate allegations of corruption, embezzlement and money laundering made against the West African country's last leader.

NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania (AP)  Mauritania's authorities placed former President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz under house arrest Tuesday as they investigate allegations of corruption, embezzlement and money laundering made against the West African country's last leader.

Aziz served as president from 2008 to 2019, handing over power to Mohamed Ould Cheikh Ghazouani in what became Mauritania's first peaceful transfer of power since independence from France in 1960.

The 65-year-old former head of state will only be able to leave his Nouakchott home to pray or seek medical care. All requests must be approved by judges.

The former president is unjustly being placed under house arrest, even though the judicial supervision to which he has been subject since his indictment last March has not been violated by our client," lawyer Mohameden Ichidou said.

Aziz has refused to cooperate with the investigation, citing immunity as a former president and calling the prosecution illegal.

The former president had backed the 2019 candidacy of Ghazouani, his former defense minister and one-time friend. However, the two had a subsequent falling out over the control of their ruling Union for the Republic (UPR) party.

The dispute triggered a parliamentary inquiry in the former president, and a parliamentary commission found that Aziz was responsible for misappropriations during his time in power.

Mauritania, a moderate Islamic republic, has suffered five coups since independence in 1960 and was led by military rulers for much of that time.
CLEMMONS, N.C. (AP)  The nation's largest fuel pipeline restarted operations Wednesday, days after it was forced to shut down by a gang of hackers.

Seth Wenig / The Associated Press

CLEMMONS, N.C. (AP)  The nation's largest fuel pipeline restarted operations Wednesday, days after it was forced to shut down by a gang of hackers.

The disruption of Colonial Pipeline caused long lines at gas stations in the Southeast due to distribution problems and panic-buying, draining supplies at thousands of gas stations.

Colonial initiated the restart of pipeline operations late Wednesday, saying in a statement that all lines, including those lateral lines that have been running manually, will return to normal operations.

But it will take several days for deliveries to return to normal, the company said.

In the meantime, drivers have been finding gas stations with little or no gas in some Southeast states.

Drivers fill their tanks at the Speedway in East Ridge, Tenn., on Tuesday, May 11, 2021. The concern over the ransomware attack on the Colonial Pipeline has sparked lines at gas stations and empty pumps in the Chattanooga Area. (Matt Hamilton /Chattanooga Times Free Press via AP)

hit on Friday with a cyberattack by hackers who lock up computer systems and demand a ransom to release them. The hackers didn't take control of the pipeline operations, but Colonial shut the pipeline down to contain the damage.

vulnerability of the nations critical infrastructure.

What youre feeling is not a lack of supply or a supply issue. What we have is a transportation issue, said Jeanette McGee, spokeswoman for the AAA auto club. There is ample supply to fuel the United States for the summer, but what were having is an issue with is getting it to those gas stations" because the pipeline is down.

A sign marking the location of the Colonial Pipeline is posted on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, in Charlotte, N.C. Gasoline futures are ticking higher following a cyberextortion attempt on the Colonial Pipeline, a vital U.S. pipeline that carries fuel from the Gulf Coast to the Northeast. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

The pipeline runs from the Gulf Coast to the New York metropolitan region, but states in the Southeast are more reliant on it. Other parts of the country have more sources to tap. For example, a substantial amount of fuel is delivered to states in the Northeast by massive tankers.

Jamar Gatison, 36, was filling up his tank in Norfolk, Virginia, Wednesday before a doctors appointment.

Im about to run out of gas, so I have no choice, the construction worker said while waiting in line at a 7-Eleven.

A customer helps pumping gas at Costco, as other wait in line, on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, in Charlotte, N.C. Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a cyberattack that it said had affected some of its systems. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Im also an Uber Eats driver. I also need gas for that, said Gatison, who added he probably wont deliver food Wednesday night because he doesnt want to wait in line again while the shortage continues.

In North Carolina, more than half of gas stations were out of fuel, according to Gasbuddy.com, a technology firm that tracks real-time fuel prices across the country. Just outside Raleigh, two people were charged with assault after fighting and spitting in each others faces while arguing over their spots in line Tuesday at a Marathon gas station, authorities said.

North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper urged people Wednesday to only buy gas if their tank is low, and to report any instances of price gouging.

A Colonial Pipeline station is seen, Tuesday, May 11, 2021, in Smyrna, Ga., near Atlanta. Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a cyberattack that it said had affected some of its systems. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

This news is another reason people do not need to panic buy gas right now unless they really need it, he tweeted after Colonial announced it was restarting the pipeline.

Georgians and Virginians were also getting squeezed, with about half of stations there out of gas, according to Gasbuddy.com.

Along the Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine through some of the most rugged and remote terrain in the Southeast, hikers depend on car and van shuttles to ferry them to and from the trail and get them back to civilization.

A man leaves a Murrphy Oil gas station as pumps are seen out of gas, Tuesday, May 11, 2021, in Kennesaw, Ga. Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a cyberattack that it said had affected some of its systems.(AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

If I dont have the gas, Im not running, said Ron Brown of Ellijay, Georgia, who operates Rons Appalachian Trail Shuttles and often takes hikers on hourslong trips from Atlantas airport into the north Georgia mountains, and to and from many points along the trail.

Mary Goldburg, 60, of Norfolk, Virginia, waited more than 20 minutes for a slow-operating pump at a 7-Eleven to fill up her tank on Wednesday. Her job includes delivering T-shirts for events and other promotional products.

I cant get paid until my customers get their products, Goldburg said.

Numerous vehicles line up for gasoline at Costco on Wendover Avenue in Greensboro, N.C., on Tuesday, May 11, 2021. As the shutdown of a major fuel pipeline entered into its fifth day, efforts are under way to stave off potential fuel shortages, though no widespread disruptions were evident. The Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, was hit by a cyberattack on Friday. (Woody Marshall/News & Record via AP)

The disruption is taking place at the time of year when Americans begin to become more mobile, especially as the nation emerges from the pandemic.

Four to five cars were lined up at each pump at a Circle K in Clemmons, North Carolina. Several people said they had driven to multiple gas stations to find one that had gas. Across the street, gas stations were out of fuel.

Mair Martinez, who works in landscaping, was filling up his lawn equipment and truck after checking several other gas stations without luck.

Drivers line up for fuel at a Shell Gas Station attached to Moore's Country Store on Boonsboro Road in Lynchburg, Va., Tuesday, May 11, 2021. More than 1,000 gas stations in the Southeast reported running out of fuel, primarily because of what analysts say is unwarranted panic-buying among drivers, as the shutdown of a major pipeline by hackers entered its fifth day. In response, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency. (Kendall Warner/The News & Advance via AP)

Thats why weve come in today, to fill up everything, he said.

Johnathan King, who works for an area towing company, was filling up his tow truck. He said he typically does 10 to 12 service calls a day, driving between several area cities.

Its going to be very hard for us. Hopefully well be able to get through it, he said.

Cars line up on Pine Plaza Drive for gas at the Costco in Apex, N.C., Wednesday, May 12, 2021. Several gas stations in the Southeast reported running out of fuel, primarily because of what analysts say is unwarranted panic-buying among drivers, as the shutdown of a major pipeline by hackers entered its fifth day. (Ethan Hyman/The News & Observer via AP)

Multiple U.S. agencies coordinated to relax rules and enable fuel to be shipped faster using trucks, trains or ships, but those changes had little impact Wednesday.

The White House said the Department of Transportation is now allowing states served by the pipeline to use interstate highways to transport overweight loads of gasoline and other fuels. But theres a national trucker shortage, so the industry isnt able to put many more trucks on the road.

Nationwide there are about 121,000 convenience stores that sell about 5,300 gallons per day of gasoline, accounting for about 80% of retail fuel sales. At many stores demand has been two to five times the normal amount, said Jeff Lenard of the National Association of Convenience Stores, in a conference call with reporters. Retailers were even running out of fuel in parts of Florida that are not dependent on the pipeline, he said.

Drivers line up for fuel at a Shell Gas Station on Old Forest Road in Lynchburg, Va., Tuesday, May 11, 2021. More than 1,000 gas stations in the Southeast reported running out of fuel, primarily because of what analysts say is unwarranted panic-buying among drivers, as the shutdown of a major pipeline by hackers entered its fifth day. In response, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency. (Kendall Warner/The News & Advance via AP)

Rationing has been imposed after some natural disasters, including Hurricane Sandy in 2012, but there could be resistance to that this time, especially if it looks like the pipeline could return to normal operation in a few days.

It could also backfire. Once rationing occurs, more panic buying ensues, said Ryan McNutt, CEO of the Society of Independent Gasoline Marketers of America.

The national average price for a gallon of gasoline ticked above $3 for the first time since 2016 Wednesday, according to the AAA. Prices begin to rise around this time every year and the auto club said Wednesday that the average price hit $3.008 nationally.

You go to some states, and youre going to see much higher increases, especially in the South, because thats where youre seeing the largest impact in terms of strain of gasoline, or strain of people, McGee said.

Bussewitz reported from New York and Finley reported from Norfolk, Virginia. Associated Press Writers Frank Bajak in Boston, Jeff Martin in Marietta, Georgia, David Koenig in Dallas and Julie Walker in New York contributed to this report.
BENI, Congo (AP)  When Shekinah was working as a nurses aide in northeastern Congo in January 2019, she said, a World Health Organization doctor offered her a job investigating Ebola cases at double her previous salary  with a catch.

Anifa holds her phone displaying a photo of former World Health Organization doctor Boubacar Diallo, of Canada, during an interview in the eastern Congo town of Goma on Friday, March 5, 2021. In 2019, Diallo met her when she was working in an Ebola treatment center in Beni, eastern Congo. She said Diallo told her: How can a beautiful girl like you work here, testing peoples temperatures and washing their hands? Thats terrible. She said he offered her another job at five times more than her current salary where the conditions were very simple, according to him. She rejected Diallos offer, saying that if he hires me after sleeping with him...I would be a sex slave, not a WHO employee. Diallo rejected those claims outright. (AP Photo/Kudra Maliro)

BENI, Congo (AP)  When Shekinah was working as a nurses aide in northeastern Congo in January 2019, she said, a World Health Organization doctor offered her a job investigating Ebola cases at double her previous salary  with a catch.

When he asked me to sleep with him, given the financial difficulties of my family . I accepted, said Shekinah, 25, who asked that only her first name be used for fear of repercussions. She added that the doctor, Boubacar Diallo, who often bragged about his connections to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, also offered several of her friends jobs in return for sex.

A WHO staffer and three Ebola experts working in Congo during the outbreak separately told management about general sex abuse concerns around Diallo, The Associated Press has learned. They said they were told not to take the matter further.

WHO has been facing widespread public allegations of systemic abuse of women by unnamed staffers, to which Tedros declared outrage and emergencies director Dr. Michael Ryan said, We have no more information than you have. But an AP investigation has now found that despite its public denial of knowledge, senior WHO management was not only informed of alleged sexual misconduct in 2019 but was asked how to handle it.

The AP has also for the first time tracked down the names of two doctors accused of sexual misconduct, Diallo and Dr. Jean-Paul Ngandu, both of whom were reported to WHO.

Ngandu was accused by a young woman of impregnating her. In a notarized contract obtained by the AP, two WHO staffers, including a manager, signed as witnesses to an agreement for Ngandu to pay the young woman, cover her health costs and buy her land. The deal was made to protect the integrity and reputation of WHO, Ngandu said.

When reached by the AP, both Diallo and Ngandu denied wrongdoing. The investigation was based on interviews with dozens of WHO staffers, Ebola officials in Congo, private emails, legal documents and recordings of internal meetings obtained by the AP.

A senior manager, Dr. Michel Yao, received emailed complaints about both men. Yao didn't fire Ngandu despite the reported misconduct. Yao didn't have the power to terminate Diallo, a Canadian, who was on a different kind of contract, but neither he nor any other WHO managers put Diallo on administrative leave.

The AP was unable to ascertain whether Yao forwarded either complaint to his superiors or the agencys internal investigators, as required by WHO protocol. Yao has since been promoted to be director of Genevas Strategic Health Operations Department.

Anifa stands in her home in the eastern Congo town of Goma on Friday, March 5, 2021. In 2019, World Health Organization Dr. Boubacar Diallo, of Canada, met her when she was working in an Ebola treatment center in Beni, eastern Congo. She said Diallo told her: How can a beautiful girl like you work here, testing peoples temperatures and washing their hands? Thats terrible. She said he offered her another job at five times more than her current salary where the conditions were very simple, according to him. She rejected Diallos offer, saying that if he hires me after sleeping with him...I would be a sex slave, not a WHO employee. Diallo rejected those claims outright. (AP Photo/Kudra Maliro)

Eight top officials privately acknowledged that WHO had failed to effectively tackle sexual exploitation during the Ebola outbreak and that the problem was systemic, recordings of internal meetings show. The revelations come at a time when the U.N. health agency is winding down its response to two recent Ebola epidemics in Congo and Guinea, and is already under pressure for its management of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

WHO declined to comment on specific sex abuse allegations, and none of the 12 WHO officials contacted responded to repeated requests for comment. Spokeswoman Marcia Poole noted that Tedros announced an independent investigation of sex abuse in Congo after media reports came out in October. Findings are due at earliest in August, investigators have said.

Once we have these, we will review them carefully and take appropriate additional actions, Poole said. We are aware that more work is needed to achieve our vision of emergency operations that serve the vulnerable while protecting them from all forms of abuse.

WHOs code of conduct for staffers says they are never to engage in acts of sexual exploitation and to avoid any action that could be perceived as an abuse of privileges, reflecting the unequal power dynamic between visiting doctors and economically vulnerable women. But an internal WHO audit last year found some aid workers weren't required to complete the agencys training on sex abuse prevention before starting work during Ebola.

All of us may have been suspecting for as long as the Ebola response was taking (place) that something like this would be possible, said Andreas Mlitzke, director of WHOs office of compliance, risk management and ethics, during an internal meeting in November. Mlitzke likened WHO officials in Congo to an invading force and said, Things like this have historically happened in wartime.

Mlitzke said during the meeting that WHO typically takes the passive approach in its investigations, and that it couldn't be expected to uncover wrongdoing among staffers.

What prevents us from doing something proactive is our own psychology, he said.

Ryan, meanwhile, said the sexual harassment incidents were unlikely to be exceptional.

You cant just pin this and say you have one field operation that went badly wrong, he told his colleagues in an internal meeting. It does reflect a culture as well  This is in some sense the tip of an iceberg.

Internal emails from November 2019 show WHO directors were alarmed enough by the abuse complaints that they drafted a strategy to prevent sexual exploitation and appointed two focal points to liaise with colleagues in Congo and elsewhere. Directors also ordered confidential probes into sexual abuse problems more broadly and U.N training on how to prevent sexual harassment, along with the independent investigation announced last year.

FILE - In this Saturday, June 15, 2019 file photo, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrives by helicopter at Ruhenda airport in Butembo, eastern Congo, to visit operations aimed at preventing the spread of Ebola and treating its victims. As WHO faces allegations that unnamed staffers were involved in the systemic sexual abuse of women, Tedros has declared he was outraged, and emergencies director Dr. Michael Ryan said, We have no more information than you have. But an AP investigation has found that senior WHO management was not only informed of specific cases of alleged sexual misconduct in 2019, but was asked how to handle them. (AP Photo/Kudra Maliro)

But staffers remain concerned that not enough has been done. At a WHO meeting in January to address sex abuse, Dr. Renee Van de Weerdt, chief of emergency management and support, told colleagues that the risk remains high across our operations and that more robust supervision was needed.

Dr. Gaya Gamhewage, head of WHOs learning and capacity development, said at an internal WHO discussion on sex abuse that the impunity with which we have operated is leading to this. She warned, Training is not going to solve this problem.

Shortly after Ebola was identified in eastern Congo in 2018, WHOs Swiss headquarters gave the outbreak its most serious emergency designation, allowing Geneva to take control from its Africa office. WHO chief Tedros traveled to Congo 14 times during the epidemic to personally oversee the response, and his emergencies chief, Ryan, made at least seven visits.

Over 2018 and 2019, three Ebola experts, including two who worked for WHO at the time, told the AP they raised concerns about sex abuse in general, and Diallo in particular, with senior managers. But they said they were told that controlling the Ebola outbreak was more important, and two said Diallo was considered untouchable because of his relationship with Tedros.

Complaints about Diallo were also raised with emergency operations manager Yao, who was responsible for leading WHOs overall Ebola response in Congo, with hundreds of staff, under Ryans supervision. On Feb. 22, 2019, Yao received an email from the WHO outbreak team leader in North Kivu with the subject line, Private. Chat.

Chief, please lets have a Private chat tomorrow, the staffer emailed, saying he wanted to discuss Diallo, then an outbreak manager in North Kivu. The staffer didn't want to be identified by the AP for fear of losing his job.

We cannot afford to have people tarnishing the sweat and effort of individuals sacrificing themselves thru (sic) inappropriate sexual harassment and bullying, the staffer wrote. I will fill you in (in) private.

Yao responded the next morning: Ok we shall talk. The staffer said that Yao told him the matter would be handled, but he didnt believe his concerns were taken seriously and was very upset. He added that he was sidelined for complaining about Diallo.

Two WHO officials with knowledge of the situation said the agency investigated complaints that Diallo acted unprofessionally, including an alleged sexual assault, and there was insufficient evidence to corroborate the charges. But investigators failed to interview any of the women involved or the whistleblowers who flagged the harassment claims, according to a senior WHO official who didn't want to be identified for fear of losing his job. Diallo continued to work for WHO months after concerns were raised about him.

Diallo was described as a charismatic, outgoing leader with connections to some of WHOs top managers, including Tedros. In a speech in January 2019, Tedros singled out Diallo among the Ebola responders working under heavy gunfire in Beni.

FILE - In this Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020 file photo, Dr. Michael Ryan, executive director of the World Health Organization's Health Emergencies program, speaks during a news conference at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. At right is WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. As WHO faces allegations that unnamed staffers were involved in the systemic sexual abuse of women, Tedros has declared he was outraged, and Ryan said, We have no more information than you have. But an AP investigation has found that senior WHO management was not only informed of specific cases of alleged sexual misconduct in 2019, but was asked how to handle them. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP)

On WHOs website, Diallo, Tedros and Yao are pictured smiling and bumping elbows during Tedros June 2019 trip to Congo. On Diallos Facebook page, he appears in more than a dozen photos with Tedros.

Several months after Tedros visit, Diallo met Anifa, a young Congolese woman working in an Ebola treatment center in Beni. She said Diallo told her: How can a beautiful girl like you work here, testing peoples temperatures and washing their hands? Thats terrible. She said he offered her another job at five times more than her current salary where the conditions were very simple, according to him.

He wanted me to sleep with him, she told the AP, noting that Diallo frequently wore a badge with VIP inscribed in red, attached to his dark blue WHO vest. Anifa declined to share her full name, fearing it could harm her future job prospects. The AP doesn't identify victims of sexual abuse.

I told him I studied hard to be employed by the treatment center, Anifa said. She rejected Diallos offer, saying that if he hires me after sleeping with him ... I would be a sex slave, not a WHO employee.

Diallo denied the claims outright.

I have never offered a woman a job in exchange for sex and I have never sexually harassed a woman in my life, he told the AP in an email. He said he was never informed of any complaints about his behavior at WHO or disciplined for misconduct, and his relationship with Tedros was purely professional.

Diallo said his contract for WHO finished at the end of July and he hasn't worked for the agency since.

The same manager, Yao, was also told of alleged sexual misconduct by the other doctor, Ngandu, in an email obtained by the AP dated April 23, 2019, with the subject line, Urgent need for your guidance. Outbreak manager Mory Keita wrote in French: I hereby inform you that we have a colleague who has impregnated a girl from Beni.

Keita told Yao that a young woman and her aunt had come to the Hotel Okapi in Beni with two armed police officers, looking for senior WHO staff. They said the young woman had been having an affair with Ngandu, and the hospital had confirmed she was now pregnant. Ngandu was avoiding them, the aunt said, so they went to the police to find him.

Keita told Yao that when confronted, Ngandu acknowledged a relationship with the girl but said it was only for two weeks. The womans aunt, however, said her niece first spent the night with him about a month and a half ago, and at the time he gave her $100, a detail that Ngandu could not deny, the email noted.

This image provided by Dr. Jean-Paul Ngandu shows an April 29, 2019 contract between him and a Congolese woman he allegedly impregnated. The notarized document contains the signatures of two World Health Organization staff members, including a manager, as witnesses to the agreement. Ngandu promised to pay her a monthly stipend, cover the woman's pregnancy-related health costs and to buy her a plot of land. The deal was made to protect the integrity and reputation of the organization," said Ngandu, who headed the WHO infection control team in Beni. The names of the woman and two other witnesses have been redacted to protect their privacy. (Courtesy Dr. Jean-Paul Ngandu via AP)

The two women demanded payment for all medications and hospital treatment during pregnancy and the purchase of land for the child, given that Dr. Jean-Paul will abandon the girl and she will be obliged to raise her child alone.

We have asked Jean-Paul to honor the request from the family of the girl and the aunt and try to find some common ground, Keita said. (Ngandu) suggested that we manage the situation here at our level here in Beni and not inform the hierarchy, but I felt ... you should be informed so that you would tell us your directions for how to better manage this problem.

Less than one week later, Ngandu and the young woman signed a notarized contract in which he agreed to pay her $100 a month until her baby was delivered, to provide all necessary health care, and to buy her a plot of land in Beni. Four witnesses signed the document, including two from WHO, Keita and Achile Mboko, a human resources officer. Keita didn't respond to requests for comment, and Mboko acknowledged his signature and presence.

Two handwritten contracts signed by the young woman and Ngandu confirmed he paid $2,800 for land with a house in a Beni neighborhood and transferred ownership rights to her in August 2019.

This was a private matter and did not implicate WHO, Ngandu told the AP. Ngandu said he wasn't the father of the baby and that he agreed to the settlement after WHO colleagues, including Keita, advised me to settle out of court to avoid sullying the reputation of the organization and myself.

Ngandu, who is from Congo, said he wasn't disciplined by WHO and continued to work until his contract ended in June 2019. Ngandu is now based in Namibia and said he is in talks with WHO for potential future employment. The young woman declined to talk to the AP.

Paula Donovan, co-director of the Code Blue Campaign, which is campaigning to end sexual exploitation by U.N. peacekeepers, said WHOs attempt to effectively silence the victim was beyond concerning.

Its a perversion of justice that WHO thinks they could take the law into their own hands and resolve a case without going to the proper authorities, Donovan said. If this is how they treated one case, how are they treating all the others?

In May 2019, Yao was told of yet another unrelated sexual harassment complaint in Bunia, roughly 200 kilometers (125 miles) north of Beni. Two women told the World Bank they were refused jobs at WHO because they declined to sleep with the recruiting officer, in an email seen by an Ebola aid worker. The aid worker, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals, told the AP that the World Bank alerted Yao, but nothing was done.

Throughout the summer, Yao was praised for his leadership of the Ebola response. He was named in a July 17 tweet from Ebba Kalondo, a spokesperson for the African Union, as one of WHOs exceptional men and was pictured alongside colleagues, including Diallo. Kalondo urged her followers: Know their names. Write about them.

Reby hangs laundry outside her home in Beni, eastern Congo, on Saturday, May 1, 2021. In 2019, she met World Health Organization Dr. Boubacar Diallo, of Canada, when he came into a mobile phone shop where she was working. He asked her to talk about important things with him in a hotel and gave her $100 for transport costs, she told the AP. My God, a beautiful girl like you who gets $60 a month is not enough, he said, according to Reby. You are a big girl and if you sleep with me, you are going to be a high-ranking member of the Ebola response in Beni and you are going to receive around $800 a month. She said she refused Diallos offer, but continued to see him when he came into her shop. From that day on, he always called me the difficult girl, she said. (AP Photo/Kudra Maliro)

Two months later, a young Congolese woman named Reby, then 20, met Diallo when he came into the Vodacom shop where she was working. He gave her $100 for transport costs to meet him at a hotel and asked her how much she made in the telecommunications job, she told the AP.

My God, a beautiful girl like you who gets $60 a month is not enough, he said, according to Reby. If you sleep with me, you are going to be a high-ranking member of the Ebola response in Beni and you are going to receive around $800 a month.

Reby declined to use her full name for fear of retribution. She said she refused Diallos offer, but continued to see him when he came into her shop. From that day on, he always called me the difficult girl, she said.

In a confidential slide presentation in January 2020, WHO officials reported that an internal U.N. review of the Ebola response in Congo had found a need for safe-guarding mechanisms for preventing sexual exploitation. All staff were to complete training on harassment and other issues.

_____

The publication of general sex abuse allegations in Congo in the media last fall set off a flurry of responses from WHO.

Yao said in an internal meeting in September that despite U.N. protocols to prevent sexual abuse, it looks like this system is not working at the grassroots level. He added that a recent U.N. assessment hadn't revealed any problems, so we were surprised about a case happening.

WHO director-general Tedros called the allegations a shocking betrayal in an email to staff and promised serious consequences, including immediate dismissal and referral to local authorities.

At a town hall meeting in November, emergencies chief Ryan said sexual abuse issues had been neglected for years and apologized to his staff.

There are behaviors here that are not acceptable, he said.

WHO staffers, especially women, were unconvinced.

Quite frankly, I think this is not good enough, said Maria Van Kerkhove, WHOs technical lead on COVID-19, at the same meeting. We know in every situation we go in, were at risk.

Staffers also worried that problems persisted in the agencys response to another Ebola outbreak in Congo last year.

We still do not have a robust (sexual abuse prevention) program in place, Geneva-based project officer Jessica Kolmer said during a meeting in November. She said donors told them their new measures, including posting flyers in their offices and establishing a sexual abuse prevention committee, were not sufficient.

Back in Congo, Anifa said she was deeply disturbed that WHO staffers hadn't been disciplined for their treatment of women.

I condemn WHO for not sanctioning Dr. Boubacar Diallo because I know already they have complaints against him, she said. I asked myself, Why did the people who came to help us, to fight Ebola here at home, why do they want to destroy our lives?

Shekinah said she couldnt count how many times she slept with Diallo. She said she knew about a dozen other women in Beni whom he had similarly victimized.

I wanted to quit, she said. But because of my financial problems, I endured it.

Shekinah said she was often paid in cash or mobile credit, with little paperwork. Even after she and Diallo separated, she said, he continued to ask for nude pictures or video calls while she was naked.

Diallo should be punished for his sexual abuse of all those girls in Beni as a lesson to these international organizations that this should not happen again, she said. I would like justice to be done.

____

Maria Cheng reported from London. Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report.
DALLAS (AP)  A federal judge dismissed the National Rifle Associations bankruptcy case Tuesday, leaving the powerful gun-rights group to face a New York state lawsuit that accuses it of financial abuses and aims to put it out of business.

FILE - In this Feb. 29, 2020, file photo, National Rifle Association Executive Vice President and CEO Wayne LaPierre speaks at Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC 2020, in Oxon Hill, Md. Federal Judge Harlin Hale announced his decision Tuesday, May 11, 2021, to dismiss the National Rifle Association's bankruptcy case over whether the powerful gun-rights group should be allowed to incorporate in Texas instead of New York, after 11 days of testimony and arguments. Lawyers for New York and the NRA's former advertising agency grilled the group's embattled top executive, LaPierre, who acknowledged putting the NRA into Chapter 11 bankruptcy without the knowledge or assent of most of its board and other top officers. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

DALLAS (AP)  A federal judge dismissed the National Rifle Associations bankruptcy case Tuesday, leaving the powerful gun-rights group to face a New York state lawsuit that accuses it of financial abuses and aims to put it out of business.

The judge was tasked with deciding whether the NRA should be allowed to incorporate in Texas instead of New York, where the state is suing in an effort to disband the group. Though headquartered in Virginia, the NRA was chartered as a nonprofit in New York in 1871 and is incorporated in the state.

Judge Harlin Hale said in a written order that he was dismissing the case because he found the bankruptcy was not filed in good faith.

The Court believes the NRAs purpose in filing bankruptcy is less like a traditional bankruptcy case in which a debtor is faced with financial difficulties or a judgment that it cannot satisfy and more like cases in which courts have found bankruptcy was filed to gain an unfair advantage in litigation or to avoid a regulatory scheme," Hale wrote.

without the knowledge or assent of most of its board and other top officers.

Excluding so many people from the process of deciding to file for bankruptcy, including the vast majority of the board of directors, the chief financial officer, and the general counsel, is nothing less than shocking, the judge added.

Phillip Journey, an NRA board member and Kansas judge who had sought to have an examiner appointed to investigate the groups leadership, was concise about Hale's judgment: 1 word, disappointed, he wrote in a text message.

LaPierre pledged in a statement to continue to fight for gun rights.

Although we are disappointed in some aspects of the decision, there is no change in the overall direction of our Association, its programs, or its Second Amendment advocacy, LaPierre said via the NRA's Twitter account. Today is ultimately about our members  those who stand courageously with the NRA in defense of constitutional freedom. We remain an independent organization that can chart its own course, even as we remain in New York to confront our adversaries.

Lawyers for New York Attorney General Letitia James argued that the case was an attempt by NRA leadership to escape accountability for using the groups coffers as their personal piggybank. But the NRAs attorneys said it was a legitimate effort to avoid a political attack by James, who is a Democrat.

LaPierre testified that he kept the bankruptcy largely secret to prevent leaks from the groups 76-member board, which is divided in its support for him.

Hale dismissed the NRAs case without prejudice, meaning the group can refile it. However, he warned that in doing so the NRAs leaders would risk losing control.

The judge wrote that if the case is refiled, he would immediately take up concerns about disclosure, transparency, secrecy, conflicts of interest between NRA officials and their bankruptcy legal team. He said that the lawyers unusual involvement in the NRAs affairs raised concerns that the group could not fulfill the fiduciary duty and might lead him to appoint a trustee to oversee it.

Hale noted the NRA could still pursue other legal steps to incorporate in Texas, but James said such a move would require her approval  and that seems unlikely.

In a tweet, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said: Texas stands with the @NRA and we look forward to working with the Association on their plans to move to Texas.

sued seeking its dissolution following allegations that executives illegally diverted tens of millions of dollars for lavish personal trips, no-show contracts and other questionable expenditures.

James is New York's chief law enforcement officer and has regulatory power over nonprofit organizations incorporated in the state. She sued the NRA last August, saying at the time that the breadth and the depth of the corruption and the illegality at the NRA justified its closure. James took similar action to force the closure of former President Donald Trumps charitable foundation after alleging he used it to advance business and political interests.

During a news conference after the ruling, James said she read transcripts of LaPierre's testimony, which was filled with contradictions. She reiterated that she intends to see the NRA dissolved, which ultimately would be decided by a judge, not the attorney general. The discovery process in her lawsuit is ongoing, James said, and she expects a trial to happen sometime in 2022.

There are individuals and officers who are using the NRA as their personal piggy bank and they need to be held accountable," James said.

Shannon Watts, who founded Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, said in a series of tweets that the bankruptcy dismissal comes at the worst possible time for the NRA: right as background checks are being debated in the Senate.

It will be onerous if not impossible for the NRA to effectively oppose gun safety and lobby lawmakers while simultaneously fighting court battles and mounting debt, said Watts, whose organization is part of the Michael Bloomberg-backed Everytown for Gun Safety.

The NRA's financial standing has been upended by the coronavirus pandemic, but there was consensus during the bankruptcy trial that it remains financially sound

laid off dozens of employees, canceled its national convention and scuttled fundraising. The NRA's bankruptcy filing listed between $100 million and $500 million in assets and the same range in liabilities. In announcing the case, it trumpeted being in its strongest financial condition in years.

Adam Skaggs, chief counsel at the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, said that even a weakened NRA will likely continue to shape America's gun debates.

I think the question is, despite those self-inflicted wounds and despite the fact that theyre in some ways a shadow of their former self, can they continue to exert influence and try and keep the opponents of even the most modest reforms to increase gun safety toeing the line? he said.

Sisak reported from New York. Associated Press writer Terry Wallace in Dallas contributed reporting.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 17:25:49|Editor: huaxia

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NAIROBI, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's aviation authorities on Tuesday suspended all flights to and from Somalia in the latest diplomatic spat between the two neighbouring countries.

The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) said in a notice that only humanitarian flights involving Medevac and UN will be exempted from the directive.

Kenya did not give reasons for the drastic action which comes after Somalia refused to lift a ban which was imposed in 2020 on Kenya's khat (miraa) flights despite Mogadishu restoring diplomatic relations with Nairobi last week after five months following mediation by Qatar led by Emir Sheikh Tamim Al Thani.

Somali Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA) said on Sunday it will not lift the ban on khat from Kenya despite restoring diplomatic relations with Nairobi.

SCAA director-general Ahmed Moallim Hassan told the operators that ferrying khat or miraa to Somalia is still prohibited, saying the government's policy has not changed regarding the transportation of khat to Somalia airports.

Hassan warned that transporting the khat without clearance from SCAA will be considered an unlawful act and violation of Somali airspace. Enditem
A year after an agreement to sell Victorias Secret fell apart as the pandemic emptied malls nationwide, the chain will be spun off by its owner to become a separate company.

This Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021 photo shows the entrance to a Victoria's Secret store at a shopping mall in Pittsburgh. Brands plans to spin off Victorias Secret to shareholders in a move that will make the lingerie and beauty products business a separate, public company. L Brands previously announced that it had been evaluating the possibility of either a spinoff or sale of Victorias Secret. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

A year after an agreement to sell Victorias Secret fell apart as the pandemic emptied malls nationwide, the chain will be spun off by its owner to become a separate company.

L Brands, based in Columbus, Ohio, has been shopping the struggling chain elsewhere since the collapse of that deal and said it had held talks with a number of potential buyers, but it appears it could not come to an agreement on price.

sold to Sycamore Partners last year for about $525 million, but the private equity firm sued to get out of the deal citing the coronavirus pandemic. At that point, Victoria's Secret was forced to close stores and sales, which had been falling as the brand fell out of favor, evaporated.

Victoria's Secret has been trying to turn its business around, with an eye on changing the corporate culture, reinventing fashions and redesigning stores. While the brand had been known for its sexy style, women have increasingly shifted toward more comfortable options, particularly during the pandemic when many have spent most of their time at home.

But Victorias Secret had a long unparalleled run of success. The brand was founded by the late Roy Larson Raymond in the late 1970s after he felt embarrassed about purchasing lingerie for his wife. Les Wexner, founder of the then Limited Stores Inc., purchased Victorias Secret in 1982 and turned it into a powerful retail force. By the mid-1990s, Victorias Secret lit up runways and later filled the internet with its supermodels and an annual television special that mixed fashion, beauty and music.

Failing to adapt to changing tastes saw sales tumble, and its annual show was canceled in 2019. There's also been increased competition. Rivals like Adore Me and ThirdLove, which have sprouted up online and marketed themselves heavily on social media platforms like Instagram, have focused on fit and comfort while offering more options for different body types. Meanwhile, American Eagles Aerie lingerie chain, which partners with women activists like Manuela Baron, has also lured customers away from Victorias Secret.

With the decision announced Tuesday, L Brands created two independent, publicly traded companies, the other being Bath & Body Works.

Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData, said that the spinoff means Victoria's Secret will have to stand on its own.

Its numbers will no longer be flattered by the contribution of Bath & Body Works, and its management team will be fully accountable to investors," he said.

The split becomes official in August if approved by the board at L Brands. Shares of the company fell 2.8% in early trading on Tuesday.
SINGAPORE (AP)  Shares in Meituan, Chinas largest food delivery platform, have tumbled after its CEO posted and then deleted  an ancient poem in a move widely seen as possible criticism of the Chinese government.

FILE - In this April 30, 2021, file photo, workers walk by the logo of Meituan during an Internet Technology Expo in Beijing. Shares in Meituan, Chinas largest food delivery platform, have tumbled Tuesday, May 11, 2021 after its CEO posted -and then deleted - an ancient poem in a move widely seen as criticism of the Chinese government. Authorities are investigating the company over allegations of anti-monopolistic behavior, part of a wider crackdown on technology companies. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan, File)

SINGAPORE (AP)  Shares in Meituan, Chinas largest food delivery platform, have tumbled after its CEO posted and then deleted  an ancient poem in a move widely seen as possible criticism of the Chinese government.

Authorities are investigating the company over allegations of anti-monopolistic behavior, part of a wider crackdown on technology companies.

Meituans stock price lost 5.3% on Tuesday and plunged as much as 9.8% on Monday after its CEO Wang Xing posted the classical Tang dynasty poem, which criticized Emperor Qin Shi Huang for silencing his critics by burning books.

Wang's post was seen as a veiled comparison of the ruthless ancient emperor and Chinas current authoritarian government. Investors worried over how Chinese authorities might react have been selling their holdings of Meituans stock.

Wang posted the classical poem, The Book Burning Pit by Tang dynasty poet Zhang Jie to the social media platform Fanfou, according to Chinese media reports. He later deleted the post, saying it was meant to refer to fierce competition in the e-commerce industry, where the most dangerous competitors are often unexpected.

The Qin emperor is revered as the founder of a modern, unified China but considered a brutal and ruthless ruler who killed scholars who dared to defy him.

Under President Xi Jinping, China has imposed ever tighter controls in an already repressive political landscape and on the Chinese media. The ruling Communist Party has scant tolerance for public dissent.

The internet sector has come under intense scrutiny in recent months as Beijing expressed concern over the growing influence of companies like e-commerce giant Alibaba and others.

Regulators ordered Alibaba to pay a record $2.8 billion fine for abusing its market position and quashed plans for a massive initial public offering by its affiliate Ant Group.

Other technology companies including gaming giant Tencent and search engine giant Baidu were fined for failing to disclose investments and acquisitions. Regulators also have summoned companies to warn them against anti-competitive behavior.

Alibaba troubles surfaced after its founder Jack Ma publicly accused financial regulators of being behind-the-times at a conference in November.

Alibabas stock price has fallen nearly 17% since regulators announced in late December that they were investigating the company.
MEXICO CITY (AP)  Russian authorities have been having so many problems producing second doses of their Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine that Russia probably will be unable to supply enough to people who already got the first dose, Mexican officials said Monday.

FILE - In this Feb. 24, 2021 file photo, a medical worker holds up a vial of the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, as the city health department conducts a mass vaccination campaign for Mexicans over age 60, at Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City. Mexico will begin bottling and packaging the Russian vaccine, Mexico Foreign Affairs Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said Wednesday, April 28, 2021, during a visit to Russia. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)

MEXICO CITY (AP)  Russian authorities have been having so many problems producing second doses of their Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine that Russia probably will be unable to supply enough to people who already got the first dose, Mexican officials said Monday.

It's the latest account of production problems for Sputnik V, which the Russian government has been promising to other countries but has not been able to supply in sufficient quantities.

Sputnik is unusual among coronavirus vaccines in that the two doses are different and not interchangeable.

The Russian vaccine uses a modified version of the common cold-causing adenovirus to carry genes for the spike protein in the coronavirus as a way to prime the body to react if COVID-19 comes along.

That is a similar technology to the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University. But unlike AstraZenecas two-dose vaccine, the Russian approach uses a slightly different adenovirus for the second booster shot.

Mexicos assistant health secretary, Hugo Lopez-Gatell, said the Russians have found that the first adenovirus grows much more quickly than the second.

Lopez-Gatell said Russian scientists are now suggesting abandoning the idea of giving the two separate Sputnik V shots several weeks apart and instead giving a second booster shot six months later.

Over the course of months, the quantity of first doses they managed to produce got out of alignment with the quantity of second doses they were able to produce, Lopez-Gatell said.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund, Russias sovereign wealth fund which has bankrolled Sputnik V and is in charge of marketing it abroad, denied the Mexican reports.

The comments made by Mexican authorities regarding the production of the second dose of the Sputnik V vaccine are not true," the Fund's press office said in a statement. The manufacturing of both components of Sputnik V is being upscaled in Russia and abroad to fully meet the rising demand for the vaccine internationally.

Mexico has so far received only 1.9 million Sputnik V doses, out of a total of 24 million it has signed a contract for. It has been forced to rely more on the Pfizer vaccine, of which it has received 10.6 million doses, as well as about 10 million doses of two Chinese vaccines. It also received about 4.6 million doses from AstraZeneca.

Mexico has recorded over 219,000 test-confirmed COVID-19 deaths, but the country does so little testing that the governments own estimates of probable deaths now amounts to around 347,000.

It is the latest in a series of setbacks for the Russian vaccine.

In April, regulatory authorities in Slovakia said they have not received enough information about the Sputnik vaccine from its producer to be able to assess its benefits and risks.

Slovakias State Institute for Drug Control said about 80% of the requested data had not been provided. It said the vaccine delivered to Slovakia was different from the original, two-dose Sputnik V vaccine that is considered 91% effective, according to a study in the medical journal Lancet.

The official Twitter account of the Sputnik V vaccine lashed out, claiming that Slovakias drug regulator has launched a disinformation campaign against Sputnik V.

However, after the vaccine was successfully tested in a lab in Hungary, Slovakias government appeared set to discuss the possible use of the vaccine again. Health Minister Vladimir Lengvarsky said last week he will talk with his countrys experts and the Russian side about further developments on this issue.

The RDIF welcomed the results of the Hungarian tests and said it asked the Slovak drug regulator to apologize for spreading incorrect information about Sputnik V.

On Monday, Deputy Prime Minister Igor Matovic promised to roll out Sputnik V in the coming days.

Slovakia announced Tuesday it is halting the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine after the country's drug control institute concluded last week that the death of a 47-year-old woman who received the AstraZeneca jab was likely linked to the vaccine.

Also in April, Brazils health regulator cited safety concerns while rejecting several states requests to import almost 30 million doses of Sputnik V.

Russia has been actively marketing Sputnik V abroad despite the comparatively slow rollout at home and limited production capacities. Dozens of countries have approved the use of Sputnik V, and many signed deals with the Russian Direct Investment Fund to get shipments of the shot.

https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine
WASHINGTON - Shutting down the Line 5 pipeline in Michigan would deal a "massive and potentially permanent" blow to Canada's economy and energy security and risk lasting damage to relations with the United States, the federal government argues in court documents released Tuesday.

In this June 8, 2017, file photo, fresh nuts, bolts and fittings are ready to be added to the east leg of the pipeline near St. Ignace, Mich., as Enbridge prepares to test the east and west sides of the Line 5 pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac in Mackinaw City, Mich. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Dale G Young/Detroit News via AP, File

WASHINGTON - Shutting down the Line 5 pipeline in Michigan would deal a "massive and potentially permanent" blow to Canada's economy and energy security and risk lasting damage to relations with the United States, the federal government argues in court documents released Tuesday.

The documents mark Canada's formal entry into the legal dispute between Michigan and the pipeline's owner and operator, Calgary-based Enbridge Inc., which comes on the eve of the deadline imposed last November by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

They make largely the same argument Canada has been making for months: that Line 5 comprises a vital artery of North America's energy infrastructure, and cutting it would be calamitous for both countries.

But they also raise the ante significantly by warning of the potential risk to the relationship between Canada and the U.S. if the pipeline ceases to operate.

"The proposed shutdown would cause a massive and potentially permanent disruption to Canada's economy and energy security," say the documents, known in legal parlance as an amicus brief.

If allowed to stand, Michigan's "unilateral action" would foster doubt about any foreign-policy commitments the U.S. might choose to make if any one state can so easily undermine them, the brief says.

"A hastily and unduly imposed shutdown would undermine the confidence in reciprocal, enforceable commitments and cross-border co-operation that lies at the heart of the United States-Canada relationship."

Whitmer originally gave Enbridge until Wednesday to shut down the pipeline, a demand the company says it has no plans to meet. But with a court-appointed mediator scheduled to meet with the two sides again on May 18, it's not clear whether anything will happen before then.

Enbridge officials pointed to a statement from Monday when asked whether the pipeline would continue to operate past Wednesday.

"We will not stop operating the pipeline unless we are ordered by a court or our regulator to do so, which we view as highly unlikely," the statement read.

"Line 5 is operating safely, reliably and is in compliance with the law."

Canada's Natural Resources Minister Seamus O'Regan echoed that sentiment and said in an interview it's "very unlikely" a shutdown would be ordered while the parties are in mediation.

In the absence of a court order, this pipeline operates.

The dispute first erupted in November when Whitmer  citing the risk of an environmental catastrophe in the Straits of Mackinac, the waterway where Line 5 traverses the Great Lakes  revoked the easement that had allowed the line to operate since 1953.

Enbridge insists the pipeline is safe, and has already received the state's approval for a $500-million effort to dig a tunnel beneath the straits that would house the line's twin pipes and protect them from anchor strikes.

O'Regan has said Line 5 delivers more than half the propane and home heating oil consumed in Michigan, and is a vital source of energy for Ohio and Pennsylvania as well, to say nothing of Ontario and Quebec.

Molecules will get from Point A to Point B, energy gets to where it needs to get, but the alternative is not pretty, he said.

It would be incredibly messy, incredibly polluting, incredibly expensive and nowhere near as safe. Thousands of 18-wheelers clogging up the 401 and the 403.

U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, herself a former Michigan governor, refused to take a position on the dispute Tuesday, citing the fact that it remains before the courts.

"We don't wade in on that," Granholm said. "It will be decided in court."

Instead, Granholm was preoccupied with the fallout from a different pipeline problem: the massive Colonial line, a delivery system for nearly half the fuel consumed on the U.S. East Coast, which has been shut down since Thursday following a devastating cyberattack from overseas.

As a result, Tuesday's White House briefing was dominated by talk of rising gasoline prices, fuel hoarding and the environmental impact of having to use trucks and trains  all likely consequences of a Line 5 shutdown as well.

O'Regan said the fight is between Michigan and Enbridge and doesn't expect the administration to get involved, or believe it would help.

"This is very much a legal proceeding right now, not a political one."

Proponents of Line 5 say closure would mean immediate gasoline shortages and price spikes, as well as an estimated 800 more oil-laden rail cars and 2,000 tanker trucks per day on railways and highways throughout Central Canada and the U.S. Midwest.

Canada's brief leans extensively on the close ties between the two countries, noting that they have successfully negotiated a bilateral agreement for protecting the Great Lakes, the original NAFTA and its recent successor, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

There's also Norad, the shared continental defence network, "under which a Canadian general gave the order to scramble jets to protect the United States on Sept. 11, 2001," the brief notes.

The documents urge the court to prevent a "unilateral compelled shutdown" on the grounds that the pipeline is specifically covered by a 1977 treaty that deals specifically with cross-border pipelines.

It is for the two national governments, under the terms of that treaty, to sort out the dispute, the documents argue.

Line 5 "is a tangible symbol of a traditionally strong relationship between Canada and the U.S. and pivotal to North American energy security," said Saskatchewan Energy Minister Bronwyn Eyre, whose province depends on the line for some 70 per cent of its energy exports.

Sonya Savage, Eyre's Alberta counterpart, warned of the potential for a lingering chill if Whitmer is successful.

"What is the most concerning to us in Alberta  as it should be for everyone  is the dangerous precedent that a shutdown of a safely operating pipeline would set for future oil and gas infrastructure projects."

Not everyone in Canada, however, opposes Whitmer's efforts. A number of Indigenous groups in Ontario support a shutdown, as does Green party Leader Annamie Paul.

Michiganders remember well an Enbridge spill in 2010 that dumped more than 3.3 million litres of diluted bitumen into the Kalamazoo River, fouling more than 40 kilometres of shoreline, Paul said.

"It is understandable that the people of Michigan are extremely sensitive to the dangerous consequences of a potential spill from Line 5, and chose to elect a governor who explicitly campaigned on the promise to shut down the line."

 with files from Stephanie Taylor

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. An earlier version said the Department of Natural Resources filed the court documents.
Business owner Jeremy Regan woke up angry and dejected Monday  yet another day when his barbershop had been forced to shutter again by the Manitoba government without any evidence about why it needed to happen, more than 14 months into the COVID-19 pandemic.

Business owner Jeremy Regan woke up angry and dejected Monday  yet another day when his barbershop had been forced to shutter again by the Manitoba government without any evidence about why it needed to happen, more than 14 months into the COVID-19 pandemic.

This time, Regan is frustrated for his storefront not even because it had to close. "But Im just absolutely confused and irritated that public-health officials and Premier Brian Pallister lied to us for weeks leading up to this," the Hunter & Gunn owner told the Free Press.

"We wouldve all been OK with these type of circuit-breaker closures, but its completely ruthless that they get a free pass on doing this, when all they did was tell us that the virus wasnt coming from businesses and that we were doing a good job... When Pallister said the same things about us today, while telling us we still had to close, I just sighed so loudly. I literally wanted to yell."

Regan is not the only such business owner expressing this kind of discontent.

In fact, stakeholders like the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce insist the provincial government has "completely flip-flopped" on its messaging leading up to new restrictions that came into effect Sunday, just before further measures were announced for schools and educators.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Jeremy Regan, owner of Hunter & Gunn, poses for a portrait in front of the shuttered barbershop in Winnipeg on Monday, May 10, 2021. For Temur story. Winnipeg Free Press 2020.

"We simply dont have the rationale, data or any such evidence provided to us right now for why this happened," said Chuck Davidson, president and chief executive officer for the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce.

"It seems businesses are bearing that brunt certainly, not because theyre the cause of the soaring cases, but because theyre lumped into helping turn down the dial on transmission overall at other places  mostly gatherings which the province isnt enforcing to its full capacity," said Loren Remillard of the Winnipeg Chamber.

On Monday, Premier Pallister announced new grants, after a weekend of outrage from the business community. Pallister failed to provide such supports earlier at a press conference announcing the restrictions, which he also did not attend.

The Manitoba Bridge Grant, which will dole out $5,000 a pop, is expected to be automatically provided to small- and medium-sized business owners who had qualified for its previous three iterations by the end of this week.

"Were grateful for this grant because, yes, wed been asking for this for weeks," said Davidson. "Is it going to be enough? I dont think $20,000 will ever be enough when youve been basically closed for well over a year."

Pressed Monday, Pallister would not answer why the Tory government changed its tune about imposing new restrictions that required these grants in the first place. And Pallister also refused to say how this "tough decision" was made without any modelling or contact tracing data showing they were needed.

MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES Premier Brian Pallister said Monday the government would make a fourth round of $5,000 payments to eligible small- and medium-sized businesses under the Manitoba Bridge Grant program.

"Im not going to apologize. We had to act. We chose to act," Pallister told reporters at a news conference, about his "unapologetic" demeanour for imposing restrictions that he admitted were "done out of a sense of urgency without a lot of advance notice."

The premier acknowledged restaurants, in particular, were "caught off guard" by the Mothers Day measure. "So, this is a thank-you to them," he said of a new top-up for eateries on top of the bridge grant for their plight.

"We continue to offer the most generous programs and supports in the country," said Pallister inaccurately, when asked about assistance for workers, who will lose hours or be stuck without pay altogether due to the new provincial measures. He touted a new provincial pandemic sick leave program that provides workers $600 for up to five full days, but only if its related to COVID-19 and if theyre taking time off completely  not if they lose hours because of the new measures.

Last week, chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin announced more than a dozen new measures, as coronavirus infections reached a level not seen since the peak of the second wave in November. The new orders will last at least until May 30.

"I think its a valid question to ask why businesses are being closed when all weve heard is cases are coming from elsewhere," said Jonathan Alward, Prairies director for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, on Monday. "That said, I know for a lot of people this grant extension will definitely be very helpful as they deal with that."

The CFIB, Retail Council of Canada (Prairies), and the Winnipeg and Manitoba Chambers of Commerce all expect future closures and layoffs as a result of the new restrictions.

temur.durrani@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @temurdur
The Manitoba government is looking to create a business reopening roadmap similar to neighbouring Saskatchewan, despite saying the exact opposite less than one week ago.

The Manitoba government is looking to create a business reopening roadmap similar to neighbouring Saskatchewan, despite saying the exact opposite less than one week ago.

On Monday, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister told reporters he "liked Saskatchewans forward-looking approach," and will soon announce a "project like that, thats been underway for some time."

"Its going to put some hope in people," said Pallister. "And its going to keep us on the defensive with Team Manitoba."

It remains to be seen how Manitoba had been working on this kind of roadmap for "some time" when the province said they were not interested in such a plan earlier.

This past Wednesday, the province told the Free Press Saskatchewans three-pronged approach  which hinges on vaccination levels for different age groups and would allow that province to lift public-health restrictions using a targeted timeline this summer  is "just an one-page infographic (sic)."

"In August of 2020, Manitoba launched the #RestartMB Pandemic Response System  the first of its kind in Canada  an online public health toolkit to provide detailed, timely and localized information about the current risk of COVID-19 and the specific measures being taken to reduce its spread and protect Manitobans. This system provides a guideline as to what can be open," Pallisters spokeswoman wrote on his behalf in an email.

"In January 2021, Manitoba began its cautious and careful reopening process  which was covered by your paper."

Pallisters spokeswoman touted Manitobas "most generous" emergency support programs, and said the Tories are in constant talks with the business community about "creating an environment for a sustained reopening of our economy, so our business community can safely re-open, and stay open."

She wrote, "We have been, and will continue to work side-by-side with all Manitoba businesses to help them do what they do best: employ Manitobans, and offer services Manitobans rely on."

Manitoba has not yet announced a date or timeline for its own version of a reopening roadmap.

 Temur Durrani
MONTREAL - Quebec's Labour Minister says he is concerned about the economic repercussions of a strike involving 2,500 ArcelorMittal workers announced Monday evening.

Quebec Labour Minister Jean Boulet speaks during a news conference in Montreal, Sunday, March, 21, 2021. Boulet says he is concerned about the economic repercussions of a strike involving 2,500 ArcelorMittal workers announced Monday evening. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

MONTREAL - Quebec's Labour Minister says he is concerned about the economic repercussions of a strike involving 2,500 ArcelorMittal workers announced Monday evening.

Jean Boulet said today in a statement a prolonged strike could have a significant impact on the Cote-Nord region and the province's economy.

The 2,500 unionized workers are members of the United Steelworkers union and are affiliated with the Quebec Federation of Labour; they went on strike Monday evening after rejecting the employer's offer.

Workers had already rejected a previous offer in April, after a tentative agreement.

The workers are employed at several of the company's work sites including the Mont-Wright mining complex and Fire Lake mine in the Cote-Nord region, and at a pelletizing plant in Port-Cartier, Que., about 575 kilometres northeast of Quebec City.

Boulet urged both sides to return to the negotiating table with conciliators from the Labour Department.

The company said in a statement today it is ready to return to talks.

Nicolas Lapierre, regional coordinator of the United Steelworkers, said today in a statement he was ready to return to the negotiating table too, but invited ArcelorMittal to improve its offer, as members had already rejected two offers  the last one was rejected by 97 per cent of voting members.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.
MADRID (AP)  Spain approved a pioneering law Tuesday that gives delivery platforms a mid-August deadline to hire workers currently freelancing for them and that requires transparency of artificial intelligence used to manage workforces.

A delivery worker rides his bike in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Spain has approved a pioneering law that gives delivery platforms a mid-August deadline to hire the workers currently freelancing for them and that requires transparency of artificial intelligence to manage workforces. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

MADRID (AP)  Spain approved a pioneering law Tuesday that gives delivery platforms a mid-August deadline to hire workers currently freelancing for them and that requires transparency of artificial intelligence used to manage workforces.

The royal decree passed by the center-left ruling coalition immediately affects some 30,000 couriers. It comes in the wake of a ruling by Spains top court last year and at a time when other countries in Europe and elsewhere are deciding on a labor model for the so-called gig economy, which is often blamed for precarious jobs and low salaries.

That's because, until now, gig and other contractor workers had to pay social security fees from their own pockets if they wanted to receive benefits including unemployment subsidies and a public pension.

App-based food delivery businesses say that the law threatens a 700-million-euro ($851 million) industry in Spain, and some of the couriers took to the streets on Tuesday in different cities because they say that remaining self-employed benefits them.

Francisco Lopez, 37, said he was making 2,400 euros ($2,900) per month working an average of seven hours every seven days of the week, more than he could have made at his previous job at Barcelona.

A lot of us have families and children. By working for more than one company we can adjust our schedule. The rates are currently not the best, but they do offer us an economic cushion, said Lopez, who has managed to send remittances to his relatives in Colombia during the pandemic.

But Labor Minister Yolanda Diaz said Spain was at the vanguard in taking legislation on the relationship between delivery platforms and their workforce.

The world is looking at us, Diaz told reporters following a weekly Cabinet meeting and adding that it reflected the new winds that, across the world, deliver welfare to citizens.

A delivery worker protests in front of the Spanish Parliament in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Spain has approved a pioneering law that gives delivery platforms a mid-August deadline to hire the workers currently freelancing for them and that requires transparency of artificial intelligence to manage workforces. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

In the United States, Joe Bidens government has rolled back on a rule from his predecessors administration that would have made it easier to classify workers as independent contractors, blocking a change supported by delivery and ride-hailing services. The executive branch of the European Union is also currently consulting with the public on potential rules that could be applied across the bloc.

The Spanish governments decree doesn't need parliamentary approval and is the result of an agreement with the countrys main workers unions and industry associations, although smaller groups representing the interests of the food delivery platforms claim they have been sidelined in the negotiations.

APS, which groups on-demand service providers Deliveroo, Stuart, Glovo and Uber Eats, the main players in the food delivery market, condemned the government's move.

While Spain claims to be a start-up nation, this is the first law in Europe that forces a technological company to disclose its algorithms, said APS in a statement.

During negotiations, the government agreed to initially restrict the need for work contracts to delivery companies operating digital platforms. That leaves out the domestic care and cleaning services industries where the gig work model is also spreading.

The law makes mandatory for all businesses the ground-breaking requirement of having to hand over to the workers legal representatives information about how algorithms and artificial intelligence systems function in assigning jobs and assessing performance, among other aspects.

Workers cannot lose their soul on the keyboard of our laptops or on electronic gadgets, Diaz said.

Uber said that the regulation would hurt the couriers "who use food delivery apps for much-needed flexible earning opportunities and also the restaurant industry in Spain which, amid the coronavirus pandemic, is increasingly relying on delivery to make ends meet.

We want to be a long-term partner to Spain and are exploring different options to adapt our delivery business to the new regulation, the company said in an e-mailed statement.

Some of the associations representing independent couriers wrote to the European Unions Job Commissioner Nicolas Schmit calling for the Spanish law to be paused until the bloc has come up with a standardized framework.

Four of the associations said that a model that requires companies to give them contracts could lead to the loss of 23,000 of some 30,000 existing jobs.

But the general secretary of UGT, one of Spains main workers unions, said the riders protesting against the law were controlled by the platforms and that the law was meant to protect labor rights across the board.

With the law, Pepe Alvarez told public broadcaster TVE, workers are going to win, the social security system is going to win and the country is going to win."

Diaz also dismissed the criticism: Just as workers shouldn't fear advances in technology, companies shouldn't fear labor rights," the minister said when asked at a press briefing following the weekly Cabinet meeting.

Spains Supreme Court ruling last year said that there was a presumed work relationship between a delivery worker and Glovo. The ruling sent ripples across the industry, with the judges concluding that the platform couldnt be deemed just as an intermediary.

Dani Gutierrez, a 29-year-old member of the Ridersxrights association who has failed to receive work from food delivery platforms after striking and protesting against their labor conditions, welcomed the new law but said that it lacked ambition.

It should have gone much further, beyond the riders, because the working class is being pushed to precarious conditions through this type of collaborative economy, with fake freelancers and so on," Gutierrez said.

__

AP journalist Renata Brito reported from Barcelona, Spain.
STOWE, Vt. (AP)  Eduardo Rovetto is hoping the state of Vermont's reinstated requirement that people who are collecting unemployment benefits must seek work to qualify will help him hire enough staff for his restaurant in the resort town of Stowe.

Crystal Dvorak shops at WinCo Foods, Saturday, May, 7, 2021, in Billings, Mont. Dvorak recently lost her job as an audiologist. The day Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte announced the $300 benefit would end June 27 was Dvoraks second day of unemployment. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)

STOWE, Vt. (AP)  Eduardo Rovetto is hoping the state of Vermont's reinstated requirement that people who are collecting unemployment benefits must seek work to qualify will help him hire enough staff for his restaurant in the resort town of Stowe.

After more than a year of coronavirus restrictions on his business, Piecasso Pizzeria & Lounge, he's expecting a breakout summer tourism season. But like employers across the country, he's worried he won't have enough workers.

Weve been getting many excuses as to why not to return, said Rovetto, who is offering a signing bonus of up to $600 to try to add 15 to 20 employees who agree to stay through the middle of October. Obviously, it was a legitimate one with COVID, but, you know, I think thats getting used less and less now. The vaccines are free; they are out there for anyone.

Many employers are telling similar stories. Fourteen months after COVID-19 put hundreds of thousands of people out of work, the U.S. economy is rebounding and employers are desperate for workers.

The challenge was highlighted Friday when employers nationwide added 266,000 jobs, far fewer than expected, and businesses reported they couldnt find people to fill the openings they have to keep up with the rapidly strengthening economic rebound.

To encourage people to return to work, more states are making it harder for people to stay on unemployment. Many blame the easy benefits that followed the pandemic, including what is now a $300-a-week supplemental federal payment on top of state benefits. The argument is that people make more money staying home than going back to work.

Several states have begun requiring those receiving unemployment benefits to show they are actively searching for work, and a few will stop providing the additional federal supplement.

It's not just the hospitality sector that is scrambling to fill positions. Alene Candles, based in Milford, New Hampshire, is looking to fill 1,500 positions for its facility there and another in New Albany, Ohio, to meet demand for the holiday season. Company representatives will be participating in a number of virtual job fairs this month.

We have had more than 100 positions open since the start of the year, and just recently we increased sign-on bonuses to $1,200 for hourly positions - in-part because we are competing with an entity that can print its own money - the federal government - and its $300 per week additional unemployment benefit," said CEO Rod Harl. I would love to welcome those searching for work to join our team.

On Monday, the state of New Hampshire reopened its job centers for the first time since the pandemic hit to help people looking for work, but only a handful showed up in the first few hours at the largest one in Manchester.

Labor experts say the shortage is not just about the $300 payment. Some unemployed people also have been reluctant to look for work because they fear catching the virus. Others have found new occupations rather than return to their old jobs. And many women, especially working mothers, have had to leave the workforce to care for children.

The details and the timing of the state-led efforts to get people back to work differ, but they are coming from states led by both Republicans and Democrats.

In addition to Vermont, states reinstating the work-search requirement include Arizona, Maine, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island and South Carolina. Lawmakers are advancing work-search legislation in Pennsylvania.

As President Reagan said, the best social program is a job, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, said when announcing the resumption of the work-search requirement. This statement rings true today. Unemployment benefits are still available to Arizonans who need them, but now that plenty of jobs are available, those receiving the benefits should be actively looking for work.

Arkansas, Mississippi, Montana and South Carolina are planning to stop accepting the $300 benefit.

In announcing last week that unemployed workers will no longer receive the additional benefit beginning June 27, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, a Republican, said it was doing more harm than good.

Rachel Mata, an area manager for a Fayetteville, North Carolina-based staffing company, said its been increasingly difficult to find people for positions since the passage of the latest federal COVID-19 relief bill.

We get candidates who will mention, Hey, you know, why would I go to work when I get paid more on unemployment to sit at home? said Mata.

At a recent job fair, only one candidate showed up, said Mata, whose company, Mega Force Staffing Group Inc., mainly focuses on manufacturing jobs. In other cases, candidates have gone through the staffing companys onboarding process, only to not show up on their start date.

In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, the heart of the states $20 billion tourism industry, restaurants and resorts are scrambling for summer help. Angelo Verdone, an assistant general manager at Seaside Resorts, said hotels are so short-staffed that managers are working double duty, cleaning rooms and doing maintenance. He is working some front desk shifts.

Some applicants have responded to ads but failed to attend the interviews; others have gotten offers but did not show up to the job itself.

Though the company has offered a $500 sign-on bonus for its $11-an-hour housekeeping role, it got no takers.

Its not like theyre bad jobs, Verdone said. Most years, people are beating down the front door for the front desk jobs.

William Spriggs, an economist at Howard University and the chief economist for the AFL-CIO, said the issue isn't as simple as the unemployed being able to receive more benefits. He says the economy has changed.

He said he didn't think the job-search requirement is bad, but it won't solve the labor shortage.

Matching workers to employers isnt as easy as people think, which is what some of these employers are finding out," Spriggs said.

There might be a lot of jobs available, but in some cases they don't fit for the unemployed with specialized work skills.

I am a master technician with 30 years experience. You think I am going to go work in a pet store?" said Harry Chaikin, an out-of-work stagehand from Burlington, Vermont, who lost his job last year when the theater where he works stopped offering performances.

Chaikin says he is eager to return to work when theaters resume normal performances. He's receiving unemployment, including the $300 supplemental benefit, but he's still months behind in his rent.

The sense of optimism I feel is that human nature being what it is, I know that sooner or later people are going to gather again in big groups to be entertained. And when that happens, I will have work," he said.

And people are still losing their jobs.

Crystal Dvorak, 41, an audiologist in Billings, Montana, who has two teenage daughters, weathered a furlough early in the pandemic and had to dip deep into her savings. Last month, she found out she would lose her job when the clinic where she worked for nearly nine years had been sold.

When the governor announced the $300 supplemental benefit would end, it was Dvorak's second day of unemployment.

It had me in tears, she said.

The state plans to launch a new program to give one-time $1,200 bonuses to unemployed workers who return to work. Dvorak has begun applying for waitressing jobs, even though it could complicate her search for positions in her field.

Knowing that change is coming, Im having to be open to other positions, she said. I have shown interest in more jobs in the last week than I have applied for my entire 25 years of working.

Associated Press writers Michelle Liu in Columbia, S.C.; Kathy McCormack in Manchester, New Hampshire; Sarah Rankin in Richmond, Virginia; Iris Samuels in Helena, Montana, and statehouse reporters across the country contributed.
FBI agents were at a large Hindu temple in New Jersey on Tuesday as a new lawsuit claimed it was built by workers from marginalized communities in India who were lured to the U.S. and forced to work long hours for just a few dollars per day.

People stand near the entrance to the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Robbinsville Township, N.J., Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Workers from marginalized communities in India were lured to the U.S. and forced to work long hours for just a few dollars per day to help build the Hindu temple in New Jersey, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday, May 11, 2021. The lawsuit filed in federal court accuses the leaders of the Hindu organization known as Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, or BAPS, of human trafficking and wage law violations. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

FBI agents were at a large Hindu temple in New Jersey on Tuesday as a new lawsuit claimed it was built by workers from marginalized communities in India who were lured to the U.S. and forced to work long hours for just a few dollars per day.

The lawsuit accuses the leaders of the Hindu organization known as Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, or BAPS, of human trafficking and wage law violations.

An FBI spokesperson confirmed that agents were at the temple on court-authorized law enforcement activity, but wouldn't elaborate. One of the attorneys who filed the suit said some workers had been removed from the site Tuesday.

The lawsuit says more than 200 workers  many or all of whom don't speak English  were coerced into signing employment agreements in India. They traveled to New Jersey under R-1 visas, which are meant for those who minister, or work in religious vocations or occupations, according to the lawsuit.

People stand near the entrance to the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Robbinsville Township, N.J., Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Workers from marginalized communities in India were lured to the U.S. and forced to work long hours for just a few dollars per day to help build the Hindu temple in New Jersey, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday, May 11, 2021. The lawsuit, filed in federal court, accuses the leaders of the Hindu organization known as Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, or BAPS, of human trafficking and wage law violations. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

When they arrived, the lawsuit says, their passports were taken away and they were forced to work at the temple from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. with few days off, for about $450 per month a rate that the suit said came out to around $1.20 per hour. Of that, the workers allegedly only received $50 in cash per month, with the rest deposited into their accounts in India.

were Dalits  members of the lowest step of South Asia's caste hierarchy.

An attorney representing several of the workers, Daniel Werner, called it shocking that this happens in our backyard.

It is even more disturbing that it has gone on for years in New Jersey behind the temples walls, Werner, of Decatur, Georgia, said Tuesday outside the gates of the complex. He said some workers were on the site for a year, two years or even longer, and were not allowed to leave unless accompanied by somebody from BAPS.

told The New York Times, I respectfully disagree with the wage claim.

A large crane stands over the under construction BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Robbinsville Township, N.J., Tuesday, May 11, 2021. A lawsuit claims workers from marginalized communities in India were lured to New Jersey and forced to work more than 12 hours per day at slave wages to help build a Hindu temple. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

A spokesperson for the organization, Matthew Frankel, told The Associated Press that BAPS was first made aware of the accusations early Tuesday morning.

We are taking them very seriously and thoroughly reviewing the issues raised, he said.

The ornate temple, known as a mandir, is made of Italian and Indian marble, and sits on 162 acres (65 hectares) in Robbinsville, outside Trenton.

The lawsuit said workers lived in a fenced-in compound where their movements were monitored by cameras and guards. They were told that if they left, police would arrest them because they didn't have their passports, the suit said.

The lawsuit names Patel and several individuals described as having supervised the workers. It seeks unpaid wages and unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.

A view of the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Robbinsville Township, N.J., Tuesday, May 11, 2021. A lawsuit claims workers from marginalized communities in India were lured to New Jersey and forced to work more than 12 hours per day at slave wages to help build a Hindu temple. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

D.B. Sagar, president of the Washington-based International Commission for Dalit Rights, told The Associated Press that Dalits are an easy target for exploitation because theyre the poorest people in India.

They need something to survive, to protect their family, Sagar  a Dalit himself  said, adding that if the allegations in the lawsuit are true, they amount to modern-day slavery.

BAPS is a global sect of Hinduism founded in the early 20th century and aims to preserve Indian culture and the Hindu ideals of faith, unity, and selfless service, according to its website. The organization says it has built more than 1,100 mandirs  often large complexes that essentially function as community centers.

in Ayodhya, built on the site of a mosque demolished by Hindu nationalists.

right-wing prime minister, Narendra Modi, has close ties to the organization and one of its transformative leaders, Pramukh Swami Maharaj, who died in 2016.

The ongoing construction on the mandir in Robbinsville began in 2010, and the site has caught the attention of state and federal authorities in recent years.

Last month, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development issued a stop-work order against a Newark-based construction company whose projects included the BAPS temple in Robbinsville.

An investigation found the company, Cunha Construction, was paying workers in cash off the books and didnt have workers compensation insurance, according to a release. A phone listed for the company rang unanswered Tuesday. Its not named in the lawsuit.

killed in a fall while volunteering at the site.

According to the website for the Robbinsville mandir, its construction is the epitome of volunteerism.

Volunteers of all ages have devoted their time and resources from the beginning: assisting in the construction work, cleaning up around the site, preparing food for all the artisans on a daily basis and helping with other tasks, the website says. A total of 4.7 million man hours were required by craftsman and volunteers to complete the Mandir.

Associated Press writer Mike Catalini contributed to this report.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 23:19:42|Editor: huaxia

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MOGADISHU, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The Somali government on Tuesday regretted Kenya's decision to suspend commercial flights to and from Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.

Somali Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation Duran Farah said the decision by Nairobi will jeopardize the recently restored diplomatic relations between the two neighboring countries.

Farah told Radio Mogadishu that there was no direct communication between Mogadishu and Nairobi on the latter's decision to suspend all chartered and scheduled flights to and from Somalia.

According to the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA), only medical and humanitarian flights will be allowed.

The Somali minister said that the government will state its position on Kenya's suspension of all commercial flights at an appropriate time.

Kenya's decision came a day after Somalia announced Sunday it would continue the ban on imports of khat, a traditional herbal stimulant, from Kenya despite a resumption of diplomatic ties.

Somali Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA) said in a statement to all operators that the government's ban on stimulant drugs was still in force. Enditem
EDMONTON - Albertas justice minister says he was wrong to accuse Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus government, Albertas Opposition N-D-P, and the media of rooting for COVID-19 to buckle his provinces health system.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a press conference in Ottawa on Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Trudeau is rejecting accusations from Albertas justice minister that his federal government is part of a trio rooting for that provinces health system to collapse due to COVID-19. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

EDMONTON - Albertas justice minister says he was wrong to accuse Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus government, Albertas Opposition N-D-P, and the media of rooting for COVID-19 to buckle his provinces health system.

"I would like to offer an apology for my recent comments on my personal Facebook account," Kaycee Madu wrote on Twitter Tuesday night.

"Alberta is facing an unprecedented public health crisis. My comments were wrong, as all Canadians want this global pandemic to end as soon as possible.

"I fully support the premiers recent call to avoid the divisive political rhetoric during what we all hope is the final period of this pandemic and will continue the important work of government in protecting Albertans from this virus."

The apology came a day after Madus spokesman, Blaise Boehmer, told reporters in a statement that Madu was standing by his accusations, adding, "The minister wont apologize for stating the obvious."

Earlier Tuesday, prior to Madus apology, Trudeau rejected the accusations.

"Its a shame to see people pointing fingers and laying blame and suggesting that anyone in Canada wants anything else than to get through this pandemic as safely as possible everywhere," Trudeau said in Ottawa.

Premier Jason Kenney, also asked about Madus comments prior to the apology, said he hadnt seen them but said, "COVID has caused us a lot of us at various times to say things we regret, and I just encourage everybody  whatever side of the political spectrum theyre on  to give each other a break right now."

Trudeau noted he reached out to Kenney and Alberta's big city mayors last week to offer further support if called upon. Kenney declined the offer.

"Every step of the way the federal government has been there to support Canadians, with $8 out of every $10 in pandemic support coming from the federal government," said Trudeau.

The issues of blame and responsibility have recently been at the centre of debate in Alberta. Kenneys government has been criticized for waiting weeks to respond with tighter health restrictions to the current third wave that now threatens to overrun the health system if left unchecked.

Alberta has recently had COVID-19 case rates that are the highest in North America.

Kenney acted with renewed rules a week ago, closing schools and introducing sharper limits on businesses and worship services.

He also stressed now is not the time to lay blame. Prior to that, Kenney and his ministers had repeatedly accused Trudeau's government of hamstringing the relief effort with a slow vaccine rollout. As late as April 29, Kenney blamed Alberta's entire third wave on Ottawa.

Last Friday, Madu, in a Facebook post, wrote that the province couldnt risk giving the COVID-19 virus a chance to "overwhelm our health-care system.

"That's what the NDP, the media and the federal Liberals were looking for and want," he wrote.

NDP Leader Rachel Notley said her caucus has done its job as the Official Opposition.

She said theyve pushed Kenneys government to enact rules to reduce the spread of the virus, while giving businesses financial aid to survive and workers support to allow them to isolate but still provide for their families.

Notley added, "You dont tend to see that sort of incendiary, thoughtless messaging or tone from someone who takes on the role of justice minister."

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the chief medical officer of health, reported 24,998 active COVID-19 cases Tuesday. There are 705 people in hospital with the illness, 163 of them in intensive care  the highest since the pandemic began.

Hinshaw confirmed the province won't give out more first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine for the time being.

Based on global supply challenges, we do not know when Canada, and in turn Alberta, will receive additional doses, said Hinshaw.

There are 8,400 doses left, which will be used for second shots.

Hinshaw also said they will wait at least 12 weeks between AstraZeneca doses, given current research is showing that the interval delivers the best protection.

Alberta has administered more than 255,000 first doses of AstraZeneca.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.
The nations largest doctors group Tuesday released a comprehensive plan aimed at dismantling structural racism inside its own ranks and within the U.S. medical establishment.

FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2012 file photo, a doctor wears a stethoscope around his neck as he tends to patients in his office in Illinois. On Tuesday, May 11, 2021, the American Medical Association released a comprehensive plan aimed at dismantling structural racism inside its own ranks and within the U.S. medical establishment. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

The nations largest doctors group Tuesday released a comprehensive plan aimed at dismantling structural racism inside its own ranks and within the U.S. medical establishment.

American Medical Association's plan has been in the works for more than a year. The group's leaders said health inequities highlighted by the pandemic, ongoing police brutality and recent race-based crimes have given the effort a sense of urgency.

Were working very hard at AMA to increase not just diversity in the health care work force but in understanding of health inequities, said Dr. Gerald Harmon, who becomes AMA president next month.

All people deserve equitable health care and it has long been known that people of color do better when their health care is delivered by providers of color, Harmon said.

FILE - This Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2015 file photo shows Dr. Raymond Givens at the Columbia University Medical Center in New York. On Tuesday, May 11, 2021, the American Medical Association released a comprehensive plan to dismantle structural racism inside its own ranks and within the U.S. medical establishment. People are dying on a daily basis from the same structural racism that they are now acknowledging, Givens says. Given that, theres a need to act as quickly as is responsible. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

U.S. physicians are overwhelmingly white and AMA membership tends to reflect that. Most of the groups 21 trustees are white. With roughly 270,000 members, the group represents a little more than a quarter of U.S. doctors.

The AMA plan calls for more than diversifying its staff and adding members who are from Black, Hispanic, Indigenous and LGBTQ communities. It aims to embed anti-racist activities and education at every level of the organization.

Were going to be holding ourselves accountable, said Dr. Aletha Maybank, AMAs chief health equity officer.

The influential advocacy group also plans to use its clout to advocate for health equity government policies and to create and deliver anti-racist training for medical students, doctors and health systems.

In recent years, the AMA has publicly acknowledged its racist history, including efforts to bar Black physicians from joining and fighting against desegregating U.S. hospitals. Last November, it declared racism a public health threat.

Dr. David Ansell, a senior vice president for community health equity at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, called it a landmark document for the usually conservative AMA and a road map for others to follow.

It really should be taught widely across medicine because it's language that has not been central to the organization or the practice of medicine in the United States and needs to be, said Ansell.

Dr. Brittani James, an anti-racism activist from Chicago, called the AMA plan a great first step and said its goals are impressive.

A frequent AMA critic from New York, Dr. Raymond Givens, said the groups slow response to a mishandled February podcast doesnt offer much hope for its broader plans. The flap began with a tweet from its flagship medical journal, questioning whether structural racism or racist doctors exist. A deputy editor at the Journal of the American Medical Association resigned and the journals chief editor was suspended; an oversight committees review is still ongoing.

People are dying on a daily basis from the same structural racism that they are now acknowledging, he said. Given that, theres a need to act as quickly as is responsible.

Follow AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner at @LindseyTanner

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
MISSION, Kan. (AP)  Parents, schools and vaccine clinics rushed to begin inoculating younger adolescents Tuesday after U.S. regulators endorsed Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine for children as young as 12, a decision seen as a breakthrough in allowing classroom instruction to resume safely around the country.

Jane Ellen Norman, 12, poses for a photo outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Jane Ellen and her 14-year-old brother Owen were vaccinated Tuesday morning, after U.S. regulators expanded use of Pfizer's COVID-19 shot to those as young as 12. (AP Photo/Angie Wang)

MISSION, Kan. (AP)  Parents, schools and vaccine clinics rushed to begin inoculating younger adolescents Tuesday after U.S. regulators endorsed Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine for children as young as 12, a decision seen as a breakthrough in allowing classroom instruction to resume safely around the country.

A handful of cities started offering shots to children ages 12 to 15 less than a day after the Food and Drug Administration gave the vaccine emergency use authorization for that age group. Most communities were waiting for a federal advisory committee that meets Wednesday to sign off on the move, while anxious families called clinics and pharmacies to ask about the soonest appointments.

In Atlanta, 12-year-old Jane Ellen Norman got her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Tuesday morning. The girl said she looked forward to having a little bit more freedom.

the vaccine safe for the nearly 17 million 12- to 15-year-olds in the U.S. Now, the entire family  including Norman's husband, a physician, and their 17-year-old son  has begun the vaccination process.

Were five for five, the 52-year-old artist said.

Meg Edwards, left, of Flourtown, Pa., comforts her daughter, Kate Edwards, 15, as she receives a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination from registered nurse Philene Moore at a Montgomery County, Pa. Office of Public Health vaccination clinic at the King of Prussia Mall, Tuesday, May 11, 2021, in King of Prussia, Pa. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Most COVID-19 vaccines worldwide have been authorized for adults. Pfizers vaccine is being used in multiple countries for teens as young as 16, and Canada recently became the first to expand use to children 12 and up. Parents, school administrators and public health officials elsewhere have eagerly awaited approval for the shot to be made available to more young people.

The official sign-off on the vaccine's use in the 12-15 age group will not occur until at least Wednesday, when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention committee meets. Local governments that began offering shots right away viewed the FDA decision on Monday as enough of a green light to start the process.

Under all relevant legal authority, once the FDA gives approval, a prescriber is permitted to prescribe the vaccine, Kelly Cofrancisco, a spokesperson for Pennsylvania's Montgomery County, said as shots for residents 12 and up started Tuesday.

In the Kansas City area, Childrens Mercy Hospital has run vaccine clinics for 16- to 21-year-olds since last month and plans to expand them to cover the younger ages soon. Dr. Ryan McDonough, a pediatrician who oversees the COVID-19 vaccine clinics, said he has been deluged with calls from patients and texts from friends and relatives wanting to sign up their kids.

It is about getting back to normal, McDonough said. It is about getting their kid in school five days a week. It is about going to see grandma and grandpa. It is about getting back to sports. It is all about normalcy, and people just want to get back to pre-pandemic life.

The Iowa-based grocery store chain Hy-Vee, which has 278 stores in eight Midwestern states, was looking to begin offering the vaccine to younger adolescents as soon as Thursday. Interest has been strong among parents, who deluged stores with calls and emails after the FDA signed off on the vaccine, Hy-Vee spokesperson Christina Gayman said.

Nawaf Albarakati, 17, of Narberth, Pa., reacts as he receives a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination from registered nurse Alicia Jimenez at a Montgomery County, Pa., Office of Public Health vaccination clinic at the King of Prussia Mall, Tuesday, May 11, 2021, in King of Prussia., Pa.(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Some people tried to go ahead and go online and make an appointment, she said. But we at this time have let those individuals know, Hey, we cannot vaccinate that age group just yet.

Chicago, meanwhile, said it was ready to begin vaccinating people between 12 and 15 but would wait until Thursday to start administering shots. The city's public health commissioner, Dr. Allison Arwady, noted that the communities with the lowest vaccination rates continue to have the highest numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases and rates of hospitalization and death  even in teens and young adults.

Help us increase vaccine uptake and get past COVID by bringing your whole family to get vaccinated together, Arwady urged in a news release.

Fifteen-year-old Elizabeth Goluszka was ready. For more than a year, she and her friends have celebrated birthdays and holidays at a distance. The teenagers left gifts outside each other's homes as a replacement for the parties they planned and then canceled as the pandemic wore on. Elizabeth said she also missed dance competitions and chatting with friends over lunch at Batavia High School in Chicagos western suburbs.

Im just so looking forward to getting back to a sort of normal high school experience, like having the homecoming dance and being able to have lunch with friends, she said.

Dr. Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez said her son, Nicolas, had hoped to be part of the clinical trials for the Pfizer but they were no longer signing up participants by the boy's 12th birthday. The family relocated this summer to San Antonio when Verduzco-Gutierrez accepted a new job and its been difficult for Nicolas to make friends or explore much.

Attending classes in person helped, but theres not much time to socialize at school. Masks and social distancing dont make it any easier either, he said, and he's looking forward to getting vaccinated.

"It will be really nice to be able to say, Hey, want to go get ice cream or something? Nicolas said.

The regulators' decision was good news to education officials in Massachusetts, where all high schools must resume in-person classes five days a week by Monday. Two-thirds already are doing so.

I think it is a great opportunity, obviously, to create even more safety in our schools for our students and our staff and getting closer to herd immunity, said Russell Johnston, senior associate commissioner at the states Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. I think it is really important.

But not everyone is eager. Polling by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that just 3 in 10 parents of children ages 12 to 15 say they would get their child vaccinated as soon as possible. One-quarter said they would wait a while to see how the vaccine is working.

Indianapolis parent Inna Ekhaus said it was a no-brainer for her and her husband to get vaccinated to curb the spread of COVID-19 and to protect themselves. But after doing a risk-benefit analysis, she does not plan to take the couple's two sons, ages 13 and 10, to get inoculated.

Ekhaus said her boys, who are otherwise healthy, got COVID-19 in October and reported only minor symptoms.

For the kids, I dont think the due diligence has been done to show the long-term effects, and childrens bodies are still developing, said the 38-year-old tech worker.

Foody and Tareen reported from Chicago. Associated Press Writer Angie Wang in Atlanta also contributed to this report.
VICTORIA - Workers affected by COVID-19 in British Columbia will qualify for up to three days of paid sick leave under proposed legislation that Premier John Horgan says will plug holes in a federal plan and lay the groundwork for a permanent program.

Labour Minister Harry Bains arrives at B.C. Legislature in Victoria, B.C., on Monday, June 26, 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito

VICTORIA - Workers affected by COVID-19 in British Columbia will qualify for up to three days of paid sick leave under proposed legislation that Premier John Horgan says will plug holes in a federal plan and lay the groundwork for a permanent program.

Horgan said Tuesday that the pay would bridge the gap for workers between the time they first feel sick and when they can access the federal benefit, a pledge that some critics say doesn't go far enough.

"No one should have to make the difficult decision between staying home when they're sick and going into work because they have an economic imperative to do so," Horgan said.

"Today we're making that choice a little bit easier."

Labour Minister Harry Bains introduced amendments Tuesday to the Employment Standards Act that he said would be effective until Dec. 31 and apply to anyone who shows COVID-19 symptoms, self-isolates or gets tested.

Employers will be required to pay workers their full wages and those without an existing sick leave program will be reimbursed by the government $200 per day for each worker.

WorkSafeBC, the provincial injury prevention and safety agency, will begin administering the program next month and employers will be required to cover the difference for those workers who earn more than $200 a day.

Bains also said a permanent entitlement to paid personal injury and illness leave would take effect Jan. 1, 2022, although the number of entitlement days would be determined through consultation in the coming months.

"Having paid sick leave is good for businesses, good for workers, good for our communities and will help our economy recover faster," Bains said in the legislature on Tuesday.

About half of B.C. employees do not currently have access to paid sick leave, according to government estimates.

British Columbia's proposed legislation closely matches the program introduced in Ontario, which has come under heavy criticism for falling short of what's needed to curb the spread of COVID-19, although the B.C. program doesn't expire in September.

Horgan said last month the province was considering its own sick-leave program after the federal government failed to bring in a national plan that would fill in the gaps of the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit.

Critics have said workers who qualify for the federal benefit have faced delays getting the money and often get a pay cut, obstacles that push people to go to work even when they're not feeling well.

The federal program covers lost wages of $450 a week after taxes, which is less than B.C.'s minimum wage.

Horgan said he's been disappointed that the federal government has allocated $2.6 billion to the program but only managed to get $400 million out the door.

"That doesn't speak to the lack of need for the program, that speaks to the inadequacy of construction," he said.

Neither he nor Bains could say how quickly the provincial funds would reach employees, but they said WorkSafeBC's existing relationship with employers will make it flow more quickly than programs created from scratch, such as some of the province's lagging pandemic relief for businesses.

Alex Hemingway, senior economist with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, warned that workers could find a new gap in support between the federal and B.C. programs.

Workers can apply to the federal program one week after they've been off work and on the condition they didn't receive employer-paid sick pay, Hemingway said. That means a worker who receives B.C. sick pay Monday to Wednesday may not qualify for federal support for the rest of that week, he said.

Two major union groups welcomed the news of a permanent paid sick leave program on the horizon, while saying the temporary COVID-19 measure is lacking.

"Although three days per calendar year is inadequate, today's announcement opens the door for future expansion," Jerry Dias, national president of Unifor, said in a statement on Tuesday.

The B.C. Federation of Labour said it will advocate for up to 10 days of paid leave per year, as a basic public health protection and employment right for all. At the same time, it expressed concern with the limited temporary COVID-19 measure when sick workers face potential financial devastation from lost pay.

Ensuring workers dont have to make the untenable decision between staying home with symptoms or working sick to put food on the table and pay the rent is critical during this deadly race between variants and vaccines," president Laird Cronk said in a statement.

Horgan defended three days as "sufficient" time to get tested and then workers can access other support programs, including the federal benefit or workers' compensation for those who catch COVID-19 at work.

The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade said in a statement government-funded sick pay is appropriate during a global pandemic and it is critical that the program provides quick reimbursement to small businesses.

The Surrey Board of Trade said paid sick leave is about reducing transmission of COVID-19 and getting on the other side of the pandemic.

"Businesses in the hardest hit industries will finally get the support that they need," president Anita Huberman said in a statement.

 By Amy Smart in Vancouver.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.
A second round of $1,500 city grants could help cover pandemic losses for Winnipeg businesses and non-profit organizations, though some fear that alone wont be enough to save them.

A second round of $1,500 city grants could help cover pandemic losses for Winnipeg businesses and non-profit organizations, though some fear that alone wont be enough to save them.

Coun. Scott Gillingham, councils finance chairman, is lobbying his council colleagues to devote $3 million to provide 2,000 grants, echoing a previous city grant program.

Gillingham (St. James) said he saw a clear need for more assistance, after the province announced Friday it would once again shut down in-person business at restaurants, bars, salons, gyms and other companies.

"I just knew that when those health orders came into place, it would devastate many businesses and non-profit organizations, whove been struggling to survive through COVID-19  We need to do all we can as a city to protect jobs and to protect household incomes," he said.

The strict new measures, which took effect Sunday, are meant to help curb the spread of COVID-19.

On Monday, the province announced a fourth round of Manitoba bridge grants, which provide payments of up to $5,000 to businesses affected by COVID-19 public health orders, and promised an additional $2,000 top-up for restaurants.

While a local restaurant owner stressed "every dime" of support is welcome, he fears the city subsidy may not be enough to keep many business from shutting down for good.

"Does $1,500 help? Absolutely. It helps me kind of survive a little bit more  but in a year to a year-and-a-half, I dont know where Im going to be and I dont know where my industry is going to be," said Chris Graves, owner of the Kings Head Pub.

Graves said his business has endured "six-figure" losses and many businesses are taking on debt to get by, which could trigger closures a year from now.

"Thats when you are actually going to start seeing the actual true devastation of whats happened because thats when were really going to have to figure out (how to pay) back our loans  Every time we get shutdown, my first phone call is to the bank," said Graves.

Scott Jocelyn, president of the Manitoba Hotel Association, said hotels also need, and appreciate, help from every level of government, as travel continues to be discouraged.

"Theres no curbside (option) for staying in guest rooms. Even though the guest rooms arent closed, theres nobody travelling yet," said Jocelyn.

While he didnt question the health orders, Jocelyn also fears some hotels wont recover from their pandemic losses.

"Its no ones fault but the damage is deep," he said.

Graves said he had hoped for some property and/or business tax relief from the city, since those levies are based on a customer capacity that wasnt allowed throughout most of 2020.

"For 5.5 months last year  I couldnt even have anybody in (the restaurant) as a patron," he said.

Gillingham said the city simply cant afford to waive its property and business tax revenue, due to its own pandemic losses.

"The City of Winnipeg is experiencing significant revenue losses in areas like transit, (the) parking authority, revenues related to fees on our recreation facilities  So we have to carefully manage the citys finances," he said.

Winnipeg finance officials estimated that lost revenues and increased costs from COVID-19 would drain about $61.2 million from its original budget for 2021. That forced significant revisions during a financial update late last year.

Gillingham hopes a second potential round of COVID-19 relief grants can be funded by city savings, or, failing that, through the citys rainy day fund.

If council approves the grants, businesses would be apply for them until July 31.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga
CRITICS and supporters shared their views on a proposed bill that would enable the province to rebate 25 per cent of the value of education taxes to residential and farm property owners in 2021.

CRITICS and supporters shared their views on a proposed bill that would enable the province to rebate 25 per cent of the value of education taxes to residential and farm property owners in 2021.

Bill 71 (Education Property Tax Reduction Act), which has already received second reading, went before a standing committee of the legislature for comment Monday night.

The Progressive Conservative government has said it needs to pass before the planned mail-out of rebate cheques worth $248 million to an estimated 658,000 property owners.

The average Winnipeg homeowner is expected to receive a rebate of $481 this year, Finance Minister Scott Fielding said.

The plan was announced in the April 7 budget, which vowed to rebate 50 per cent of the current education tax to property owners over the next two years  with no details of how the province would make up for that loss of revenue.

"The government is cutting education funding and has zero plan to replace it," Alan Campbell, president of the Manitoba School Board Association, said in an interview.

"That should be alarming to every Manitoban," said the trustee with the Interlake School Division, who appeared virtually at Mondays committee meeting.

"In effect, what Bill 71 proposes, means halving the total school taxation revenue base  cutting it in half," Campbell told the committee.

"It is the equivalent of removing funding for nearly two out of the current nine months of the school year" and is only "the start of the governments decade-long commitment to phase out school property taxes in their entirety."

Bill 71 disproportionately favours the well-off, said Molly McCracken, director of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives  Manitoba.

"We are opposed to the Education Property Tax Reduction Act, as property taxes are related to wealth and are an acceptable way to bring in money to general revenue for public services," McCracken said before the meeting.

"This act favours the financial position of the vast majority of property owners who have the income to pay this tax, and will result in higher costs for low and moderate income renters," she said.

"Passing this act means a loss of $384 million annually by 2022, on top of previous government tax cuts, which will result in service cuts at a time when economists agree governments should invest public dollars strategically to address the COVID-19 recession."

However, Keystone Agricultural Producers say the current education funding system isnt fair, because farmers contribute a disproportionate amount of education funding in Manitoba through their property tax.

Bill 71 addresses that disparity, KAP president Bill Campbell told the committee.

Undue pressure is put on farmers, who are expected to shoulder increasing tax bills when many have seen their income declining, Campbell said.

Campbell said he personally had no revenue from crop production in 2011, but still had to pay his $20,000 property tax bill  $10,000 of which was education taxes  or his land would have been taken away.

"Manitoba remains the last province in Canada where school boards have the sole authority to set property tax rates without a plebiscite," said Lorne Weiss, chairman of the Manitoba Real Estate Associations political action committee.

It is a system of taxation thats undemocratic, outdated and disproportionate, Weiss said.

Weiss said he doesnt buy the argument removing the education property tax disproportionately helps the well-off.

"Sixty-six per cent of Manitobans own their own property, and not all are wealthy," said Weiss.

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca
MANITOBA has provided no data showing faith-based gatherings are a significant source for spreading COVID-19, a former chief provincial medical health officer says.

MANITOBA has provided no data showing faith-based gatherings are a significant source for spreading COVID-19, a former chief provincial medical health officer says.

Data collected by the province show less than one per cent of all reported COVID-19 cases have been associated with a faith-based gathering, Dr. Joel Kettner said in an affidavit report provided to a judge hearing a court challenge by seven Manitoba churches.

The churches allege pandemic restrictions imposed by the province violate their right to assembly and association. The hearing at a Winnipeg courtroom entered its second week Monday.

"It is reasonable to estimate that for people that attend (church) services four times the average Manitoban, less than one per cent of their awake time is spent in a place of worship," Kettner wrote.

"Without a clear and reasonable protocol to determine the likeliest source of exposure, the probability that transmission happen elsewhere  such as a retail outlet, educational setting, or restaurant, is, by exposure proportion, more likely."

Kettner was chief medical health officer for the province from 1999 to 2012, during which time he led the provinces response to both the SARS outbreak and the H1N1 pandemic.

"Technically, I saw a pandemic every year during my tenure as chief medical health officer," Kettner wrote. "It was called influenza."

For many years, the health system was taxed in the same way provincial officials say COVID-19 is taxing the system now, Kettner wrote.

Kettner argued the province has provided no accurate information as to its intensive care unit capacity or the degree to which it has been "overwhelmed" due to COVID-19.

"During flu seasons, most ICU patients have been diagnosed with influenza, and elective surgery and other procedures have been delayed for weeks," Kettner wrote. "As has been demonstrated many times in the past, the capacity of Manitobas health-care system to provide acute care may be stretched, but has not been exceeded."

The province has provided the public with no clear plan or strategy for fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, and no adequate support for the many restrictions it has imposed in the past 15 months, Kettner said.

Kettner has been an advocate of what has been called "focused protection," which targets measures at those considered at greatest risk.

"In clinical medicine, it is important that the treatment should not be worse than the disease," he wrote. "In public health, it is important that a prevention strategy is not worse than the disease."

Kettner was the last witness to testify at the hearing.

It resumes Wednesday for closing arguments.

Manitoba has recorded more than 2,000 new cases of COVID-19 over the past four days.

On Friday, chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin announced a new round of restrictive measures, including a move back to remote learning for all Winnipeg and Brandon schools, and the suspension of restaurant dine-in services.

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca
As the provinces COVID-19 crisis deepens, just seven per cent of cases in the past week involved people who were vaccinated  with even fewer immunized Manitobans requiring hospital care.

As the provinces COVID-19 crisis deepens, just seven per cent of cases in the past week involved people who were vaccinated  with even fewer immunized Manitobans requiring hospital care.

"To get that protection from the vaccine, it takes two to three weeks," chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin said Monday.

"So when we look at the amount of what wed call breakthrough infections  infections after that first two weeks  were seeing a very, very minimal amount of these cases."

Following requests by the Free Press, the Manitoba government provided data on the number of COVID-19 infections in people who have been immunized with at least one dose of the vaccine for 14 days or more.

Since the vaccine rollout began in mid-December, a total of 410 people partially immunized with one dose became infected with COVID-19, two weeks or more after receiving their shot, as of May 10.

Among those fully immunized with two shots, a total of 75 infections have been reported.

For most people, it takes at least 14 days for the body to build up an immune response following vaccination. When an infection does occur after the 14-day period, its called vaccine "breakthrough."

"If you look at the breakthrough cases, certainly, the minority of new cases are in those who have been vaccinated and even fewer that have severe outcomes," Roussin said.

Of the 410 partially vaccinated Manitobans who caught COVID-19, a total of 26 required hospital care, and seven died. Of the people who died, all were at least 65 years old, the province said.

No Manitobans who have been fully immunized have died from COVID-19, according to the province; just four fully vaccinated individuals have been admitted to hospital.

"Its very clear that the vaccine is protective, and you can see it in our health-care system with people admitted to hospital, were seeing less and less of the older age groups and thats very likely due to the large vaccine uptake," Roussin said.

For those who become sick with COVID-19 within 14 days of receiving the vaccine, medical experts agree they were likely infected with the novel coronavirus prior to their immunization, or were infected before the body had a chance to develop immunity.

The province did not provide data on the number of infections among people vaccinated less than 14 days before their symptoms appeared.

In the past week, Manitoba has seen some of its highest case numbers throughout the pandemic, but a significant portion of the population has also received a single dose of the vaccine.

Overall, 481,119 Manitobans have received at least one dose, and 485 of them have been infected (0.10 per cent).

"The number of infections that were seeing in these people who have been immunized, and thats after one dose, is extremely low," said Jason Kindrachuk, a University of Manitoba virologist.

"It tells us, frankly, that vaccination works. But we have to keep in mind, when we think about vaccination as whole, and one dose versus two doses; first of all, vaccines are not 100 per cent protective against infection."

However, the likelihood of becoming severely ill after immunization is drastically decreased and most people have a mild illness, Kindrachuk said.

Data from the United Kingdom, where a large proportion of the population has been vaccinated, also suggests the ability to transmit the virus is decreased post-immunization, he noted.

"In England today, it was the first time in over a year theyve had zero (COVID) deaths, that to me is where you look at the power of vaccination," Kindrachuk said.

Between May 3-10, Manitoba notched 2,654 COVID-19 infections.

Of those, 158 people had been vaccinated with a single dose (or 5.9 per cent) and 29 were fully vaccinated, based on week-over-week data provided by the provincial government. Eleven were admitted to hospital, including three who were fully vaccinated.

The week prior, there were 1,689 infections reported in Manitoba. Provincial data show 57 infections were in partially immunized people (or 3.38 per cent).

"Its a tough time in Manitoba, its been four days now of high numbers now, and certainly everybody is exhausted," Kindrachuk said. "Were not going to be able to immunize enough people by tomorrow that by Wednesday everything turns around.

"Its going to be a period of some slow gains for us. But were getting there."

He said the data also underscores the necessity for second doses.

"Generally, what were seeing is immunization works. We need to get people that second dose, because the first dose gives you good immune protection, but its not going to give you the best bang for your buck," he said.

So far, provincial public health officials say the number of post-immunization infections are in line with expectations of a successful vaccination program.

Dr. Joss Reimer, medical lead for the provinces COVID-19 vaccine task force, was unavailable for an interview Monday.

danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca
The University of Manitoba graduated 510 Indigenous students on Saturday, the largest cohort in its history.

The University of Manitoba graduated 510 Indigenous students on Saturday, the largest cohort in its history.

Comparatively, in 2011  the year I started teaching at the U of M  there were 158.

Thats more than three times as many and one of the highest numbers in North America (University of Saskatchewan hasnt released this year's numbers yet but it is often slightly higher than the U of M).

This means we will have more Indigenous professionals entering the workforce than ever before, and its a number that has been increasing every year for a decade.

More Indigenous professionals mean nothing but good things for Manitoba. Indigenous young people are our provinces fastest-growing population. Having them fully invested in our economy, society and culture is good for everything and everyone.

This years incredible number of graduates are essentially students who started at the beginning of Brian Pallisters reign as premier five years ago.

SUBMITTED Indigenous graduation scarves, a treasured symbol of pride and honour within the Indigenous community. The University of Manitoba graduated 510 Indigenous students on Saturday, the largest cohort in its history.

These are the last students created out of the investments and programs (such as the long-standing tuition freeze) created during the previous NDP government.

Pallister and his cabinet, of course, have had their own vision for education since  but more on that in a moment.

Many in this years crop of Indigenous graduates are finishing with degrees in science, education, engineering and social work.

Theres a pretty decent number graduating from the Asper School of Business, too.

By far, though, the largest group is in arts, in fields such as psychology, history and political studies.

In the Native Studies program alone, we have approximately 600 students enrolled a year, nearly a quarter of all Indigenous students.

In other words, Indigenous students are, most often, enrolled in the humanities and social sciences, fields that produce teachers, nurses and social workers, along with people who land somewhere in the non-profit, creative or political sectors.

Indigenous students are, most often, enrolled in the humanities and social sciences, fields that produce teachers, nurses and social workers, along with people who land somewhere in the nonprofit, creative or political sectors.

Not coincidentally, those are the fields that have had the most conflict with the current provincial government.

Nurses and social workers have been calling for help as emergency rooms close. The province claws back federal child-welfare money for Indigenous children. Wages have been frozen under the Public Service Sustainability Act.

I dont have to tell you the situation teachers face under the government's proposed Bill 64  the Education Modernization Act  which not only eliminates local control of education and threatens the independence of teachers, but eliminates administrators from protections provided under the Manitoba Teachers' Society.

In Bill 57  the Protection of Critical Infrastructure Act  Pallister and his government have already let Manitobans know what will happen if anyone "interferes" (according to the legislation) with pipelines, dams, hospitals, courthouses and roads:

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Advanced Education, Skills and Immigration Minister, Wayne Ewasko.

Arrest, charges and, eventually, jail.

Which fields of study do you think are graduating the people who "interfere"? Hint: it isnt business. Its the humanities and the social sciences.

So, as the government prepares to pass Bill 33  the Advanced Education Administration Act (who makes these terribly offensive titles for legislation, anyway ?  which fields do you think will be targeted?

The proposed legislation gives the provincial government the power to administer tuition for university programs.

It means, essentially, that Minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Immigration Wayne Ewasko will dictate to Manitoba universities what programs students must pay more to study and what programs will cost less, according to whatever market interests the provincial government has.

Or, perhaps, politicized fields that produce critical thinking and independent leaders. Native Studies, I admit, fits this definition exactly, but so does Womens and Gender Studies, education and the arts.

What was it Louis Riel said about the artists waking up the people?

When announcing the bill, Ewasko promised it was in the interests of making tuition accessible and affordable.

MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES Manitoba premier Brian Pallister.

Thats completely absurd, considering this government has removed caps on tuition, cut funding to post-secondary institutions by 13 per cent and overseen an 18 per cent hike in tuition since taking office in 2016.

This decision alone has, arguably, already resulted in a reduction in Indigenous enrolment. This year at the University of Manitoba, while total undergraduate enrolment increased by 2.4 per cent, Indigenous enrolment was down 1.4 per cent.

Simply put, fewer Indigenous students means fewer graduates five years from now.

This government has made it clear that cuts are the order of the day in education, health and the non-profit sector  three of the areas where Indigenous students have had a significant impact.

Pallister has also made clear that his provincial government demands obedience and passivity; no one dare protest his decisions.

Speaking on behalf of Indigenous peoples, we arent so good with any of those things.

With Bill 33, its conceivable that the next decade of Indigenous graduate classes will be smaller than what we are seeing now.

This means a less-progressive, representative and efficient Manitoba with fewer Indigenous professionals.

And, worst of all, an incredible opportunity wasted.

niigaan.sinclair@freepress.mb.ca
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 23:21:16|Editor: huaxia

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HARARE, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The Zimbabwean government, through the central bank, has put in place an incremental export incentive scheme to boost the country's exports.

This comes as the country has started implementing the National Development Strategy 2021-2025 which seeks to make exports one of the major drivers of economic development, among other objectives.

"Going forward, as we pursue the ideals of Vision 2030, and the objectives of the NDS1, export growth will play a major role in the economic development of Zimbabwe.

"Higher exports will earn foreign currency remittances; create higher quality and higher productivity jobs; and lower the current account deficit, hence improving the country's overall economic growth.

"In this regard, the government is now putting in place incentives to motivate exporters and investors to stimulate incremental exports," Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube was quoted as saying by the Herald newspaper on Tuesday.

Under the new incremental export incentive scheme, all exporters currently retaining 60 percent of their foreign currency receipts will have their retention threshold increased to 80 percent.

Exporters licensed under the Special Economic Zones currently retaining 60 percent now have their threshold increased to 100 percent, the same as exporters listed on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange.

Ncube said to encourage gold production and deliveries to Fidelity Printers and Refiners (FPR), gold producers who deliver gold quantities above their average monthly deliveries shall be entitled to a retention level of 80 percent on the incremental portion of the gold delivered to FPR.

The government, the minister added, is also putting in place measures to rejuvenate the gold sector through putting in place a Statutory Instrument that recognizes artisanal gold miners and ensure they enhance gold production.

Gold is one of Zimbabwe's major foreign currency earners alongside tobacco leaf and platinum.

Ncube said the government had also put in place several fiscal incentives to promote exports and investment, which include tax holidays, duty-free importation schemes, export drawback schemes and inward processing rebate schemes, among others.

He said the government had also digitalized export documentation to assist exporters to mitigate against the risks associated with the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. Enditem
Manitoba's top doctor was voted top doctor by his peers.

Chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin has been awarded the title "physician of the year" by Doctors Manitoba.

He was nominated and selected by his peers,"recognizing his truly exceptional contribution to the medical community and to the people of Manitoba over the last year," the organization said in a press release Monday.

"He has been the most regular, public face of the profession during the pandemic as he leads the fight against COVID-19." it said. "All physicians are trained to weigh risks and benefit with patients at an individual level, and Dr. Roussin has had to do this for our province's whole population for over a year now."

He was one of a group of "extraordinary specialists and family physicians" honoured by Doctors Manitoba for delivering exceptional care to Manitobans.

"In this pandemic year, we are celebrating doctors who have helped protect us from COVID-19, and others who have continued to care for their patients despite the disruptions and uncertainty the pandemic has caused," Dr. Kristjan Thompson, president of Doctors Manitoba said in the press release.

A celebration of their achievements will be held in the fall.
Seven students and a teacher were killed and more than 20 people were injured when a gunman attacked a school in Kazan, Russia.

Michael Hutchinson, a co-host of CTV Morning Live Winnipeg, has apologized to viewers for opening Mondays show by saying he broke the law a little bit by violating pandemic restrictions this weekend. The show's co-hosts did not speak about Hutchinsons statement before or after it was shown.
Opinion

"Fear is the mind-killer."

I thought of this phrase as I watched the latest round of pandemic-fueled choices in Manitoba, from anti-mask rallies to churches suing the government to overturn public-health guidelines.

It is part of a litany against fear used by the Bene Gesserit religious order in Frank Herberts classic science fiction series Dune.

Perhaps Herbert was inspired by Shakespeare, whose Julius Caesar observed: "Cowards die many times before their deaths, the valiant never taste of death but once. " Or perhaps his inspiration was any number of religious texts, in which fear is a sign of spiritual weakness or philosophical failure  or both.

Whatever the source, Herberts phrase sounds so much better than simply saying "frightened people do stupid things."

We live in a time when more and more people are frightened about what is going on, or what could happen. The combined existential threats of pandemic infection, framed by a planet in ecological crisis and teetering on the brink of nuclear war, are quite enough to scare anyone who actually thinks about the world beyond Netflix these days.

Of course, some people plug their ears, close their eyes and pretend their bubble of personal privilege can insulate them from the world. The rest of us want to make a difference, but often dont know where to start. And when the usual leadership of our society is missing in action or seems to have no clue what to do, thats when trouble brews.

Using fear to whip up  and therefore control  a crowd is an age-old tactic. If our ancestral memory, embedded in our reptilian brain, urges us instinctively to choose "fight or flight," fear is a spark that can ignite either choice.

Of course, our social brain is evidence of how far we have evolved past that reptilian reflex response. But it also explains why Herberts Bene Gesserit believed that "fear is the mind-killer": fear short-circuits normal human thought, and reduces us from rational, thinking and caring individuals into frightened and volatile elements of a frenzied mob.

Group-think  where the group determines the thoughts (and choices) of individuals, instead of allowing people to think and choose for themselves  is always dangerous. When the group is led by people who put their own self-interest first, or who are fuelled by their own fear instead of wisdom and sound judgment, however, it can quickly become dangerous.

Evidence becomes irrelevant, because conclusions are predetermined by leaders intent on controlling the group. Critical thinking is forbidden, and anyone who steps out of line can expect a hostile response.

(There are lots of political examples of this, though the ongoing ethical implosion of the Republican Party in the United States is an obvious one.)

In Manitoba, both the anti-mask demonstrations and legal challenges from some churches against public-health guidelines are examples of how fear can short-circuit our brains and lead us to make bad decisions.

We live in anxious times, for sure, but people before us lived in anxious times, too, without turning off their brains out of fear. My grandmother survived the Spanish flu, tuberculosis, the Great Depression, the end of empires, two World Wars and the Cold-War threat of nuclear annihilation.

The average person back then did just as she did: kept calm, and carried on. Do what you can about the problems you have right now, hope tomorrow will be better, and make sure that your choices today are guided by wisdom, not driven by fear.

Today, I am in awe of those health-care workers and others providing essential services, who face their own fears every day and go to work, vaccinated or not  including teachers. My heart also goes out to students, who are still studying (at home or at school) despite all the challenges they face.

So when I first heard about the anti-mask rallies and legal challenges, I confess my immediate response was anger and incredulity, wondering how so many people could be so stupid, together.

Then I realized these incidents were not really about stupidity. "Fear is the mind-killer," after all. Groups of frightened people, without good leaders, can be led to believe and do anything.

Granted, missteps by the provincial government havent helped the situation, especially when public-health decisions appear to be yo-yoed by politics, every week. Yet by consistently following those public-health guidelines, most Manitoban religious groups (including most Christian churches) have been demonstrating wise leadership in their communities, often at considerable cost.

The foolish protests of a few other fringe Christian groups arent evidence of their spiritual strength, therefore, but of their spiritual weakness.

Driven by overwhelming fear, not by an abundance of faith, these groups have utterly failed to demonstrate the humility, love and compassion for others that their Christian tradition expects of its followers. Their example deserves pity, not applause  along with more tickets and fewer headlines.

Peter Denton is an activist, author and scholar, working from home in rural Manitoba.
Heart-rending scenes of illness and death in India compel Canadians to look for ways to help rescue Indias people from the cruel upsurge of COVID-19. Hospitals are turning deathly-ill patients away for lack of oxygen to give them. Crematoriums are unable to handle the accumulating bodies of the deceased.

Heart-rending scenes of illness and death in India compel Canadians to look for ways to help rescue Indias people from the cruel upsurge of COVID-19. Hospitals are turning deathly-ill patients away for lack of oxygen to give them. Crematoriums are unable to handle the accumulating bodies of the deceased.

Canada might be able to help by joining the Biden administration in Washington in seeking to break the monopoly power of drug manufacturers so generic drug makers would be legally free to produce vaccines that are now protected by patent. It is not yet clear, however, what good that would do in the circumstances; nor is it clear what price Canadians would pay for such a gesture.

At the Davos World Economic Forum in January, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi boasted that his government had defeated the pandemic by locking down the economy. He had scarcely finished speaking when Indias COVID-19 numbers started increasing once again. The pandemic now rages out of control all across India.

Despite the obvious risk of virus transmission, Mr. Modi focused the efforts of his Hindu-nationalist government on campaigning for the late-March elections in West Bengal, holding huge election rallies to advance his anti-Muslim program. He allowed hundreds of thousands of Hindu devotees in an April religious festival to gather and bathe in the Ganges River with no masks and no social distancing.

In the end, his party was soundly defeated in the West Bengal elections and the pandemic surged to new heights. The problem now for Indias friends and supporters around the world is how to help the country past these desperate difficulties when its own prime ministers attention seems to be elsewhere.

India and South Africa have been urging the member countries of the World Trade Organization to temporarily waive patent protection for COVID-19 vaccines so generic makers could produce them to increase the supply and reduce the price. Governments of the leading industrial countries opposed that idea, as did drug innovators. President Joe Biden now supports the idea; meanwhile, Canadas Liberal government has been thinking about it.

Bikas Das, File / The Associated Press Files Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses an election rally on March 7.

Part of Canadas difficulty is that the drug manufacturers have us over a barrel. The government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been begging vaccine producers to deliver more doses to Canada so provincial governments can step up their immunization efforts and save the federal drug-buyers from seeming lame and ineffective. In these circumstances, Canada is poorly placed to talk tough to the drug-makers.

Canada has for decades manipulated patent protection periods for pharmaceuticals in order to keep prices down. If it really wanted to win drug company co-operation on vaccine supply to Third World countries, Canada might have to give them more of a free hand to crank up the prices charged to Canadian drug consumers. A deal along those lines would be hard to explain to the Canadian public  not a strong plank to add to an election platform.

India is a leading vaccine manufacturing country, so Canada should listen sympathetically to appeals for help from India. It should, however, look for sound reasons for thinking that waiving patent protection would help matters. It should also take care not to blow up the drug pricing system that currently protects Canadians from the much higher drug prices that prevail in the United States.
Heather Costley was thrilled to hear her 12-year-old son would soon be eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine, giving the Nova Scotia mother hope that a return to normalcy isn't as far off as she initially believed.

Heather Costley was thrilled to hear her 12-year-old son would soon be eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine, giving the Nova Scotia mother hope that a return to normalcy isn't as far off as she initially believed.

While Costley doesn't expect Koen's life to change drastically once he's vaccinated, she says it will open the door to socializing with his classmates, and bring the family a step closer to rebooking a trip to Disney World they had to cancel last year.

Heather Costley and her son Koen are shown in this handout image at Queensland Beach, Nova Scotia. Costley was thrilled to hear that 12-year-old Koen would soon be eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine, giving the Nova Scotia mother hope that a return to normalcy isn't as far off as she initially believed. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Heather Costley*MANDATORY CREDIT*

"He was like: 'Yay, great. I can hang out with my friends again,'" Costley said of her son's reaction to news last week that Health Canada had authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech jab for children 12- to 15-years-old.

"So he's aware of how important (the vaccine) is."

Koen, who's been learning virtually as COVID-19 cases surge near his Halifax-area community, attends a private school for kids with learning disabilities. While the online atmosphere can be tough, Costley says the small class size has helped Koen do relatively well.

She knows, however, that many his age have been strongly impacted by the pandemic, and she hopes there's a push to vaccinate teens before September.

If that means making COVID-19 vaccines mandatory before students can return to in-person learning, Costley is all for it.

"I think it's a necessity," she said. "There's a lot of misinformation out there about vaccines ... and maybe it has to be regulated, maybe that's the answer."

Provinces have not said whether they're considering mandatory COVID-19 vaccines for youth, a contentious issue likely to cause debate over the next few months.

There is precedent, however, for provinces to mandate vaccines for kids in public schools  though exemptions can be offered for various reasons.

Ontario and New Brunswick make some immunizations, including measles, diphtheria, tetanus, polio and rubella, compulsory for school-aged children. Other provinces treat those vaccinations as voluntary.

In Ontario, mandatory vaccines are part of the Immunization of School Pupils Act of 1990, which Western University health law expert Jacob Shelley says can theoretically be modified to add a new required vaccine without passing an additional law.

Provinces that don't already have mandatory vaccines for school-aged children could introduce them through new laws, Shelley says, though that usually takes time. He adds, however, that enacting emergency orders could speed up the process.

But having the ability to make vaccines mandatory for teens doesn't mean it will happen.

"The question is going to be a political one more than a legal one, in my mind, whether or not jurisdictions are going to be interested in navigating what may end up proving to be a contentious issue," Shelley said. "But it's certainly possible."

Dr. Anna Banerji, an infectious disease pediatrician with the University of Toronto, says it's reasonable to believe a COVID-19 vaccine could be added to the list of mandatory inoculations in some provinces.

She says children, while less likely to suffer severe outcomes from COVID-19 infections, can get sick  they've represented roughly 20 per cent of Canadian cases  and they can spread the virus to others.

Banerji adds there's "huge stress" and mental health implications on children and parents facing constant closures and re-openings of schools.

"So if this can happen before they go back (in September), and you have teachers vaccinated, custodians vaccinated and kids vaccinated, those schools become a much safer place," she said.

Still, Banerji adds, some will resist the notion of mandating COVID-19 vaccines for in-person learning.

Francoise Baylis, a health ethics researcher at Dalhousie University, says there are plenty of factors for jurisdictions to consider when making that decision, including ensuring anyone impacted by a potential vaccine mandate has access to the jabs.

She expects some to adopt a hybrid learning agreement, where vaccinated students can return in person and those who aren't continue to learn online. But, Baylis says, that's not a perfect fix, since quality of education often suffers in an online environment.

While a mandate would help ensure most kids are inoculated before returning to class, Baylis says there's a chance it backfires and increases hesitancy in some.

"People could experience it as a type of coercion," she said. "So I think there's value in having a respectful, informed conversation (with parents and kids).... If you take that approach, you get a lot more buy-in."

Some jurisdictions, including Alberta and the Northwest Territories, have already opened up booking to the 12-and-older cohort, leading some to wonder whether there's an urgency to vaccinate that group.

Dr. Zain Chagla, an infectious disease expert in Hamilton, says high schools can act "like any other adult workplace" in spreading the virus. So inoculating teenagers will curb transmission.

Still, he doesn't see the rush to vaccinate them right away. And younger kids, unless they have medical conditions that make severe cases more likely, can probably wait longer.

Chagla pointed to data from Israel that shows how positivity rates in unvaccinated youth dropped after adults around them were immunized.

He says vaccinating teens later in the summer, or even after school begins  perhaps adding COVID-19 vaccines to existing in-school inoculation programs  could work. In the meantime, he says, priority should be on getting high-risk individuals their second doses.

"If you have a large portion of the (adult) population, including kids' parents, vaccinated heading into the school year... I think we can live with that," he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.
These are just a few issues of H.R.1 seizing control of elections from states by the Federal government. The Democrats have brought this bill forward every time they have control of the House and its nothing but a greedy power grab as is D.C. and Porto Rico statehood. Shame on them.
A devastating ransomware attack on a critical fuel pipeline in the United States has highlighted the growing threat that cyber criminals pose to the world's largest corporations and strategic infrastructure.

It also raises a thorny question: should companies held to ransom yield to extortionists or resist making payments? Often it's a choice between regaining access to IT systems for a fee so that operations can be restored, or running the risk of continued disruption that could have huge repercussions for employees, shareholders, customers, the economy and even national security.

In the case of Colonial Pipeline, which has yet to fully restore its operations, a lot is at stake. The pipeline delivers nearly half the diesel and gasoline consumed on the East Coast, and it provides jet fuel to major airports, many of which hold limited supplies on site. A growing number of gas stations are without fuel as anxious drivers rush to fill their tanks and American Airlines has been forced to add fuel stops on a couple of longer routes.

But paying the attackers risks encouraging even more ransomware assaults by demonstrating just how lucrative the business model can be. The FBI confirmed on Monday that the pipeline hackers are a criminal group originating in Russia named DarkSide.

One of the ways to discourage cybercrime and ransomware attacks is to 'make it a less profitable endeavor,' according to Josephine Wolff, assistant professor of cybersecurity policy at The Fletcher School at Tufts University. 'These groups will not continue to [launch attacks] if it's not a viable business model,' she added.

DarkSide has already posted a notice on the dark web that their motivation was 'only to make money,' according to Binary Defense, a cyber counterintelligence firm. The group offers 'ransomware as a service,' said Wolff.

'They essentially sell ransomware attacks to customers,' she explained. 'That's a pretty strong signal that this is a profitable business.'

A thriving industry

The world has had plenty of warning. Four years ago, an unprecedented wave of ransomware attacks hit companies and organizations around the globe. In the United Kingdom, some hospitals were forced to cancel outpatient appointments and tell people to stay away from emergency departments.

And it will take a lot more than a handful of companies refusing extortion payments to deter cyber criminals.

'They'll find another victim, another way of making money,' said Peter Yapp, the former deputy director of the UK National Cyber Security Centre and now a partner at Schillings.

'What will stop this is much higher levels of [cyber] security,' he told CNN Business. 'Instead of putting money into paying people after the event, we should be putting money in ahead of the event and making sure we batten down the hatches,' he added.

Losses from cybercrime have surged in recent years. A report last year from the Center for Strategic and International Studies and software security firm McAfee put the worldwide cost of cybercrime at almost $1 trillion between 2018 and 2020.

'Cybercrime appears unstoppable ... The risk of cybercrime to operations and profits continues to grow for many organizations,' it added.

That's become a growing opportunity for insurance companies, with global cyber insurance premiums expected to increase from around $2.5 billion today to $7.5 billion by the end of the decade, according to PwC.

Cyber insurance policies typically cover ransom payments where they are legally permissible and if no sanctioned entities, such as terrorist organizations, are involved. But there are signs that this may be changing.

AXA recently stopped offering ransom reimbursement as part of new cyber insurance policies in France in response to concerns raised by French cybersecurity officials.

In a statement, the insurer said that it is 'waiting for the decision of the public authorities.'

'The subject of ransom reimbursement has become a key issue for cyber insurance ... It is essential that the public authorities give concrete expression to their position on this subject in order to enable all market players to harmonize their practices,' the company added.

Speaking at a cybercrime conference in Germany on Monday, Thomas Sepp, chief claims officer at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty, said that the insurer advises its policyholders to work with authorities at an early stage and avoid paying ransoms if possible, 'so as not to create further incentives for the commercial business model of hacker groups.'

'Of course, this has its limits when peoples' lives and health are at risk,' he added.

How governments can help

While the US and UK governments provide advice and guidance to companies on how to handle cyberattacks, there is no official policy when it comes to ransomware payments.

For example, the FBI's standing guidance is that victims should not pay a ransom in response to an attack in order to discourage perpetrators from targeting more victims. But multiple sources have previously told CNN that the FBI will, at times, privately tell targets that they understand if they feel the need to pay.

Asked on Monday whether Colonial had paid a ransom, senior White House officials demurred.

'That is a private sector decision, and the administration has not offered further advice at this time. Given the rise in ransomware, that is one area we're looking at now to say what should be the government's approach to ransomware actors and to ransoms overall,' said Anne Neuberger, the top official responsible for cybersecurity on the National Security Council.

According to Wolff of Tufts, governments need to provide greater clarity to businesses on what kind of resources and assistance is available to them if they don't pay a ransom.

In extreme cases, companies could go under if they don't pay a ransom and the wider impact on the economy could be huge. That's why it's not enough for law enforcement to simply say, 'don't pay ... you're fueling an industry,' added Yapp.

While it is not the job of governments to look after commercial entities, the growing wave of ransomware attacks suggests it may be time for law enforcement officials to step up efforts to go after cyber criminals, Yapp said.

'Commercially, it is having a huge drain on companies right across the world,' he added. The threat of 'being found out and prosecuted' could in itself act as a strong deterrent, he said.

As critical national infrastructure networks become increasingly connected with other devices and systems over the internet, the danger posed by these attacks will only increase.

'Attacks targeting operational technology  the industrial control systems on the production line or plant floor  are becoming more frequent,' Algirde Pipikaite, cyber strategy lead at the World Economic Forum's Centre for Cybersecurity, said in a statement.

'Unless cybersecurity measures are embedded in a technology's development phase, we are likely to see more frequent attacks on industrial systems like oil and gas pipelines or water treatment plants,' she added.

 Zachary Cohen, Geneva Sands and Matt Egan contributed reporting.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 10:56:11|Editor: huaxia

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SEOUL, May 11 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's export kept a double-digit growth for the first 10 days of this month due to the continued recovery in global demand, customs office data showed Tuesday.

Export, which accounts for around half of the South Korean economy, amounted to 12.48 billion U.S. dollars during the May 1-10 period, up 81.2 percent from the same period of last year, according to Korea Customs Service.

The daily average export, which excludes the working-day effect, surged 64.7 percent in the 10-day period.

The outbound shipment jumped 41.1 percent in April on a yearly basis, continuing to expand for six straight months since November last year.

It indicated a global demand recovery from the economic turmoil, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Export to China, South Korea's biggest trading partner, soared 45.5 percent for the first 10 days of May, and those to the United States and the European Union (EU) more than doubled in the period.

Semiconductor export spiked 51.9 percent, and shipment of telecommunication devices such as smartphone nearly doubled. Export for automobiles and auto parts more than quadrupled in the 10-day period.

Import increased 51.5 percent over the year to 14.64 billion dollars in the May 1-10 period, sending the trade deficit to 2.16 billion dollars.

Import for automobiles and crude oil more than tripled, and semiconductor import expanded in double figures.

Import from the United States and the Middle East more than doubled in the 10-day period, and those from China and the EU gained in double digits. Enditem
If youre thinking about taking a vacation, or would like to just get out and explore a new place, you might want to consider doing it in New York State. Over 300,000 tourism related jobs have been lost during the pandemic, and staying local will help bring them back. The Oneida County Tourism Director of Communications Sarah Foster says a new campaign called Roam the Empire is aimed at revitalizing the tourism industry.

"When we as locals are out spending our money, were automatically revitalizing our communities. Were helping the small businesses, the larger businesses, the restaurants, hotels, attractions," said Foster.

Tourism is the third largest industry in the State totaling over $9 billion in tax revenue in 2019. Since the pandemic, the State has seen a 45% drop in tax revenues, and that impacts everyone.

"We definitely believe that by doing something like this and encouraging it. You know posting it on social media, letting people know what were doing, that it will revitalize these communities and hopefully start bringing everything back to life," she said.

The Roam the Empire campaign is primarily being promoted through social media and tourism websites, because those platforms can specifically target the message to New Yorkers.

"That could be everywhere from Long Island and New York City to the Adirondacks, the Catskills, to Niagara Falls, obviously Oneida County, everywhere in between because I think that these businesses: the hotels, the restaurants, the shops, everyone appreciates it, and we will directly impact our state, and that will help us moving forward," said Foster.

If you would like to Roam the Empire, you can discover a wide variety of destinations at OneidaCountyTourism.com, or visit them on Facebook.
DEERFIELD, NY  New York GOP Gubernatorial candidate Mike Carpinelli made a stop in Oneida County Monday evening.

The Lewis County Sheriff, who announced his candidacy for New York State Governor last June, spoke at a meeting of the Shooter's Committee on Political Education or "SCOPE" in Deerfield. The meeting was held at the Fraternal Order of Eagles Club on Cosby Manor Road.

He told the crowd what inspired him to run for the highest office in the state and how he plans to deal with a fully democrat state assembly and senate. He also took the time to answer questions from the crowd on the second amendment, vaccine passports, jobs, and what they'd like to see from him as a candidate.

"What I got from the people here tonight is that they are yearning for someone who is going to stand up and be a leader. Not a follower, said Carpinelli. Someone who is not going to legislate from the desk in the governor's office, but listen to the people. Don't stand there and make it a political platform. We have to get New York moving again. We have to get people back into jobs. We have to get the schools back opened up. They want their lives back."

Carpinelli says the best thing about campaigning so far has been getting the opportunity to get out and talk to the people.
ONEONTA, NY  Last November, the Oneonta Common Council passed an ordinance stating that masks must be worn at all times in public spaces in downtown Oneonta and whenever social distancing was not possible due to the covid-19 pandemic. The ordinance basically followed New York States own guidelines.

As more and more people are being vaccinated and the number of positive covid cases are dropping, is that ordinance still necessary?

Members of Oneonta's Common Council Legislative Committee took up that question at their regularly scheduled meeting Monday. evening

New York State has adopted new CDC guidelines," said Mayor Gary Herzig. Adding that "masks are only required outdoors by those who cant social distance and are not vaccinated.

3rd Ward Councilperson David Rissberger said he would be "in favor of removing the (mask) requirement, but then what do we do about parades?

Mayor Herzig pointed out that the new State guidelines have exceptions for large gatherings so people attending parades would still need to wear a mask.

City Attorney Dave Merzig recommended that the committee draft a new ordinance if they want to change things and present those changes to the full common council at their next meeting.
NEW HARTFORD, N.Y. -- A family of four is safe thanks to two sanitation workers, following an early morning fire at their New Hartford home.

According to New Hartford Fire Chief Scott Nicotera, the fire first broke out shortly after 4 a.m. on Tuesday in a garage located at 2 Mapledale Road.

Keith Hunt // WKTV Keith Hunt // WKTV

Chief Nicotera says his crews arrived to find heavy flames in the garage. The fire quickly spread to the adjoining home, then to its attic space.

Before crews got to the scene, the two adults and two children who lived in the home were escorted out by two Marshal Przyluke Inc. employees, Shawn Reesch and Joe Phillips.

"As I'm running down the road, I call 911. Went in, tried to put the fire out with the extinguisher. Had to back out of the garage, just from the smoke - meanwhile, he was knocking on the door trying to wake somebody up," said Reesch. "Said she had two small children. Told them to go grab them. They grabbed them. I took one of them, the gentleman I work with took the other one - we got them all out to the road to make sure they were safe and away from the fire and about that time the new hartford police and fire department came."

The home is currently not liveable and the garage is destroyed.

The family displaced by the fire are staying with relatives.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. Nicotera says there are no signs it was suspicious.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI)  The Tippecanoe County Coroner needs more money to keep pace with a rising number of autopsies.

As News 18 previously reported, the number of deaths investigated by the coroner's office this year is on the rise. As a result, the office has burned through most of the money budgeted this year for autopsies.

The Tippecanoe County Council on Tuesday approved $120,000 in appropriations to make up the difference.

Coroner Carrie Costello says she's seen 77% more cases compared to last year. But she notes there isn't one single reason for the rise in cases.

Part of the problem is the county's growing population, she says. The pandemic is also a factor. And as News 18 previously reported, suicides are also more prevalent this year than the past.

Costello says since taking office she's also worked with local hospitals to adjust how deaths are reported to the coroner. She says those facilities are now reporting deaths they wouldn't have in the past.

"We have gone out and educated and worked with area agencies that do normally report to make sure they understood what the law is and if it has changed since they've had policies in place and we've worked for that ... it's an educational opportunity that we took so they understood what has be reported to the coroner," she says.

A spokesperson for one local hospital says its complying with the new procedures.

"If there's a fall prior to coming into the hospital and then they pass away, if there's some other medical history, even though there was a fall at home, that could turn into an accident which could have caused the death so that would be reported to us," Costello says.

The coroner's autopsy fund is now below $30,000 but keeping up with the case load costs about $40,000 a month, Costello says, noting she expects to ask for more money from the council later this year.

She says her next budget proposal will include additional full-time staff. Her current staff members, she notes, are drowning in paperwork.

She'd also like a pay raise for herself, adding that she's among the lowest-paid coroners in the state although the office sees about the third largest case load in Indiana.
New Braunfels, TX (78130)

Today

Cloudy early with peeks of sunshine expected late. Hot and humid. High 93F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Mainly clear. Low 74F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 13:49:46|Editor: huaxia

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ULAN BATOR, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia confirmed 477 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the lowest since April 3, making the tally at 45,936, the National Center for Communicable Diseases (NCCD) said Tuesday.

The NCCD said that 7,560 samples were tested in the last 24 hours across the country.

Meanwhile, nine more deaths and 1,570 more recoveries were reported, taking the respective totals to 191 and 34,230, said the center.

The number of daily COVID-19 infections has gradually decreased in the country as a result of a recent month-long national coronavirus lockdown, and a mass vaccination against the virus, according to the country's authorities.

Since the start of the national vaccination campaign against the virus on Feb. 23, a total of more than 1,643,000 Mongolians have so far received their first dose and over 628,000 have fully vaccinated.

The Asian country is planning to vaccinate at least 60 percent of its population of 3.3 million against COVID-19. Enditem
SABIC, KraussMaffei HighPerformance AG will partner at KraussMaffei's thin-wall packaging application center in Nafels, Switzerland, the site of KraussMaffei's Swiss subsidiary and manufacturer of high-performance injection molding systems known under the NETSTAL brand.

SITTARD, THE NETHERLANDS: Sabic announced its collaboration with KraussMaffei HighPerformance AGs subsidiary and manufacturer of high-performance injection molding systems known under the Netstal brand. The partnership aims towards further advancement of the existing application center for thin-wall packaging at the Netstal plant in Nafels, Switzerland.

The Application Center will enable innovative application, material and processing solutions in the thin-wall packaging industry through closer collaboration across the segment's entire value chain.

"This significant milestone underscores our continuous investment in innovation, collaboration and sustainability to help our customers achieve their goals and drive the industry forward," said Abdullah Al-Otaibi, SABIC general manager engineering Thermoplastics Business & Market Solutions, Petrochemicals.

The application center will allow close engagement with customers and OEM's proactively to strengthen collaborations in the thin-wall packaging industry. Sabic will be using the application center in collaboration with customers and third parties to develop material solutions that can add value in terms of enhanced mechanical performance, more efficient processability and greater sustainability value.

The Netstal injection molding portfolio for packaging applications can be further optimized with improved material and process insights.

"With the future knowledge gained from this valuable collaboration, we will further improve our injection molding technology in terms of usability, process control and performance. In addition, through the close branch exchange of our know-how, we will develop new processes for sustainable packaging solutions together with SABIC," said Dr. Christina Harter, head of application technology Netstal at KraussMaffei HighPerformance AG.

In addition to Netstal's state-of-the-art injection molding, in-mold labeling and part handling capabilities, the application center provides advanced tooling and testing equipment. First new systems installed by Sabic include molding equipment designed to investigate injection compression molding options and test the mechanical properties of thin-wall packaging applications.

"We have a long history of innovation in thin-wall injection molding and welcome the collaboration with Sabic. Together, we will leverage our synergies to stimulate value chain interaction, identify new leads and help our customers succeed, said Renzo Davatz, CEO of KraussMaffei High Performance AG.

"The joint Application Center brings new momentum in how we grow and implement our expertise in polymer science and processing from a more collaborative approach," said Waleed Al Shalfan, Sabic vice president technology & innovation for polymers.

 Worldofchemicals News
President Joe Biden is set to announce additional steps toward promoting vaccine accessibility, including free rides on Uber and Lyft to vaccination sites, to help meet the administration's goal of 70% of adults getting at least one coronavirus shot by July 4.
NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) - A pregnant woman shot at an Antioch apartment complex by her ex-boyfriend last month has died, Metro Police said Tuesday.

Laquisha Terrell, 23, died on Tuesday as a result of the shooting.

Brian T. Mitchell, 23, will face criminal homicide charges now. He had been charged with three counts of attempted murder.

Nashville man arrested in Wednesday night shooting of pregnant ex-girlfriend The Metro Nashville Police Department said a man has been arrested for the Wednesday night shooting of his pregnant ex-girlfriend and her current boyfriend.

Terrell was found with wounds to her chest, abdomen and legs. An emergency Caesarean section was performed to deliver her child. Terrells boyfriend, Michael D. Stewart, 28, was also shot.

Terrell told officers when they responded to the Cedar Pointe Apartments at 10:51 p.m. on April 28 that Mitchell had shot them.

Mitchell was arrested on April 29.
Alberta had the highest per capita number of active COVID-19 cases of any region in North America last week, reaching 562 cases per 100,000 residents. If Alberta were a country, it would have the second-highest infection rate in the G20 behind only Argentina.

In this Thursday, April 29, 2021, photo, Sherry Cross Child, a Canadian resident of Stand Off, Alberta, receives a COVID-19 vaccine at the Piegan-Carway border crossing near Babb, Mont. (AP Photo/Iris Samuels)

The rapid increase in infection rates across the province is part of Canadas surging third wave. In Ontario, the number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care (ICU), currently close to 900, is more than double the upper limit set by the provincial government for providing regular levels of care. Manitoba has emerged over the past week as the jurisdiction with the third-highest infection rate in North America, behind only Alberta and Michigan. On Saturday, Manitoba reported the death of a woman in her 20s.

The main source of COVID-19 spread in Alberta, as across Canada, is workplaces. Many of the new infections are being registered in the provinces tar sands oil operations around Fort McMurray. This is a direct product of the hard right United Conservative Partys open economy policy. Since the outset of the pandemic, Premier Jason Kenney has stridently refused to impose any restrictions on the activities of Albertas oil corporations and related industries, with the result that growing numbers of young, otherwise healthy working-age people are being laid low by more infectious and deadly COVID-19 variants.

Newfoundland and Labrador is a major source of migrant labour for Albertas energy sector. As of May 4, the Newfoundland government warned on its COVID-19 website of outbreaks at numerous worksites in northern Alberta. These included: CNRL Albian Oil Sands Site, CNRL Jackfish, Cenovus Foster Creek, Cenovus Sunrise Lodge, CNOOC Long Lake Lodge, IOL Kearl Wapasu Oil Sands Site, Canadian Natural Resources Horizon Oil Sands Site, Syncrude Aurora, Syncrude Mildred Lake Oil Sands Site, Suncor Base Plant, Suncor Firebag, Suncor Fort Hills, Suncor MacKay River, Michels Canada, Oilsands Industrial Lodge, and Grand Prairie Royal Camp Services. Media outlets in Alberta have not reported these outbreaks.

The Kenney governments profits before lives strategy, which is identical to that pursued by Ontarios hard-right Premier Doug Ford and British Columbias New Democrat Premier John Horgan, is aimed at protecting the multi-billion profits of the provinces energy, mining and meatpacking sectors at the expense of the health and lives of working people and their families. Reports have emerged that medical staff at the provinces hospitals have been briefed on the triage protocol, which is when doctors and nurses have to take decisions about who should receive and be denied care based on their likelihood of survival.

Dr. Darren Markland, of the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Edmonton, told CHED 630 News, there is truly a problem with imposing appropriate scientific measures to control health policy. The people we are seeing are young. They look like us or our children. And there is nothing else wrong with them, other than they are essential workers who have been put into pretty untenable circumstances. This is clearly a failure of political will.

Markland was one of many doctors and pediatricians who signed an open letter to Kenny last week. The letter warned of a projection of between 300-320 COVID-19 patients in ICU by the end of May. This whole concept of 450 ICU beds is really not a sustainable number because it cant be staffed and even if it could the level of care we deliver would probably not be our normal standard of care, he said.

The mounting health care crisis was illustrated April 30 when Lisa Stonehouse, a healthy 52-year-old widow, died of blood clots to her brain after being turned away by the Grey Nuns Hospital emergency room in Edmonton, several days earlier. Lisas teenaged daughter insisted she seek medical care when she suffered persistent headaches immediately after getting her first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine. Albertas chief medical officer of health, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, said the death was confirmed to be linked to vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT).

Kenney and his government have responded to the deepening crisis by slandering the population for its alleged non-compliance with COVID-19 restrictions. It is as astounding as it is aggravating, the premier told a May 3 press conference, that 14 months into this, more than 2,000 deaths in Alberta alone, that we still have many people in the province who dont even believe that COVID is real, who think that its a big government conspiracy or hoax. The reason we are at this critical stage of the pandemic in Alberta, with record high daily case counts and intensive care numbers, is precisely because, for whatever reason, too many Albertans are ignoring the rules we have in place.

This is rich coming from Kenney, who spent the first months of the pandemic describing COVID-19 as no worse than the flu; has systematically ruled out any effort to stop the spread of the virus in workplaces; and permitted far-right UCP members, who make up about a quarter of his parliamentary caucus, to agitate against any COVID-19 restrictions whatsoever.

Contrary to the portrayal of Kenney by the trade union bureaucracy and its pseudo-left hangers-on like Fightback as the single source of Albertas problems, the UCP governments policy of mass infection and death is being carried out in close collaboration with the federal Liberal government. Last Wednesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Kenney spoke on the situation in the province, with Trudeau stressing the necessity for close federal-provincial collaboration on the vaccine rollout and managing the impacts of the third wave in the province. Trudeau, whose government has fronted the Canadian ruling elites back-to-work/back-to-school policy and insisted in last Septembers Throne Speech that any future lockdowns should be localized and short, said nothing about the mass infections in the energy sector or Kenneys blaming working people for spreading the virus.

The unions have also played a central role in enforcing Kenneys open economy policies. While the Alberta Federation of Labour has sharply denounced Kenney for his mishandling of the pandemic, this has not stopped the union bureaucracy from issuing pathetic appeals to the hard-right UCP government to protect workers. They have refused point blank to organize any industrial action to safeguard the health and very lives of the workers they claim to represent. On the odd occasion when walkouts and protests do occur, such as the one-day wildcat strike launched by health care workers last fall, the unions submit to the suppression of these struggles through the labour relations system, which victimizes the strikers by imposing fines and other individual penalties.

This suppression of worker opposition has given the UCP government a free hand to prioritize corporate profits over the protection of human lives. Kenneys government relaxed public-health measures beginning in February, after a devastating second wave had grudgingly forced it to impose limited restrictions. It permitted restaurants to open, expanded capacity for retailers and churches, opened salons, and allowed more activities in gyms. Despite warnings that a third wave was imminent, and pressure from teachers and parents, he refused to close schools. As predicted, when the rules were relaxed, infections skyrocketed. In early April, the province finally closed indoor dining, yet allowed patios to remain open.

Last week, in part due to the public outcry over the sudden death of a healthy 17-year-old girl in Calgary from COVID-19, the government shifted classes for junior and high school students to online learning and closed indoor fitness activities in hot spot areas.

Despite rising case counts, restrictions on community care and senior facilities were relaxed yesterday to allow indoor visits of up to four people and outdoor visits of up to five people. Residents are allowed to have up to four designated support people, as opposed to two, that visit to help staff care for them.

In an attempt to bolster public opinion, Kenney announced that anyone born on or before 2009 would be eligible to sign up for a first vaccine dose May 10, after weeks of rejecting the idea of giving students and school staff any priority for vaccinations. Kenney has focused on rolling out vaccines in his recent press releases, claiming they will give Albertans the best summer ever. Vaccines are, in fact, in short supply. On Monday, May 3, some first-dose vaccine appointments for immune-compromised individuals in Edmonton known personally by this author were cancelled on short notice due to lack of vaccine availability.

It is the same story in Calgary, where pharmacy owners cancelled hundreds of appointments. Some weeks we dont know when well be receiving the vaccine or we dont know how many vaccines well be getting until weeks, sometimes days, before we receive [them]. Its been a little challenging. Our phones just dont stop ringing all day, Crowfoot Medicine Shoppe Pharmacy owner Randy Howden told Global News. At Britannia Pharmacy, owner Susan Elzein cancelled hundreds of appointments when shipments were cancelled two out of the last three weeks. She told Global, I had no choice but to cancel 150 people that I had and then the phones started ringing off the hook. People started dropping by the pharmacy angry at us. She has asked people to redirect their frustration to the provincial government.
A Bangladeshi high court last week ordered the S. Alam group, a major Bangladeshi conglomerate, to pay compensation to the family of workers killed when police brutally attacked a protest at the SS Power Plant construction site at Banshkhali in Chittagong. The Chinese-funded project is being built by S. Alam.

Bangladesh police (Nahid Sultan/Wikimedia Commons)

On April 17, local police opened fire on 2,000 protesting workers at the site, killing five young workers on the spot and injuring at least 21 others, some critically. Another worker succumbed to his injuries on the same day and one more four days later. Human rights groups have said about 50 people were injured in the police attack.

According to the media, those killed were Shuvo (23), Rahat (24), Ahmad Reza (19), Raihan (17), Rony Hussain (22), Shimul Ahmed (19), Rajeul Islam (25). They are among the hundreds of thousands of young workers who have migrated from rural areas to urban centres where they are harshly exploited in the construction, garment and other industries.

Police violence against workers and the poor in Bangladesh is escalating under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasinas increasingly authoritarian government.

Yesterday evening, the Bangladeshi media reported that police shot and injured eight garment workers at Ha-Meem Group in Gazipur near Dhaka who were demonstrating to demand a 10-day Ramadan holiday.

Last weeks ruling against the S. Alam Group was made after the high court heard two petitions from human rights groups. It ordered the conglomerate to pay 500,000 taka ($US5,900) compensation within 45 days to each of the families of the seven dead workers.

While the court declared that $3,600 offered by the S. Alam was inadequate, the amount it ordered was also grossly inadequate. The human rights groups petitioning the court had called for $353,000 compensation to each of the families of the deceased. They also demanded the punishment of the police killers and the withdrawal of all cases filed against the workers.

The high court, however, simply asked for all reports on the incident to be forwarded to the committees now investigating the incident and ordered the state to respond within six weeks. One committee is headed by the police and other is being conducted by the local administration.

The SS Power Plant construction workers were protesting over unpaid wages, unscheduled cuts in their working hours and for a Ramadan holiday and reduced hours during the religious festival. Some reports indicated that workers have not been paid for about three months in a situation.

Company management, the regional administration and the police are now conducting a witch-hunt against construction workers involved in the protest.

Two separate cases have been lodged with Banshkhali police station falsely accusing more 3,500 workers over the demonstration. The regional administration has also filed separate cases. Sub-contracting companies that hire the construction workers have told the media and human rights groups that their employees, fearing more police harassment, have gone into hiding.

Living conditions for workers at the power plant site are inhumane, with accommodation overcrowded and unhealthy, toilets unhygienic and adjacent drains overflowing with human waste.

Construction worker Abdul Gani explained to the media how employees are exploited by the subcontracting companies. A syndicate takes 5,000 taka ($59) in advance for the workers job, 2,000 taka for clothing and 10 percent of the monthly salary of each worker

Before the [COVID-19] lockdown, we worked for 12 hours without any overtime and the salary was 18,000 taka for two shifts. After lockdown work hours were reduced to 10 hours, but no overtime [paid].

Speaking to the media, villagers living near the massive building site have denounced previous cover-ups of police assaults in the area. In April 2016, four villagers were killed by police and another in February 2017 after they protested against the forcible acquisition of their land for the 3,000-acre project.

Two family membersone who lost two of his brothers and another who lost her husbandpreviously filed murder cases against the police. But as a New Age editorial noted on April 30, The police investigation, conducted over more than three years, could not identify any of the killers.

The mass demonstration at the SS Power Plant project erupted amid rising anger amongst Bangladeshi workers over the worsening COVID-19 pandemic. The grossly understated official death toll from the coronavirus is nearing 12,000 with the total number reported infections surpassing 775,000 as of Monday.

While the Hasina government has declared a limited lockdown, starting on April 5 and until May 16, all big businesses are still operating, putting profits ahead of human life.

The Daily Star noted on April 23, that police intelligence and other state authorities are expecting strikes and demonstrations. It reported that in Chittagong alone, two government regulatory bodies have apprehended that 67 garment factories may face labour unrest over payment of salaries and [religious] festival bonuses.

Police told the newspaper that they were coordinating with companies and workers to avoid the unrest. The brutal crackdown yesterday on protesting Ha-Meem Group garment workers in Gazipur makes clear how the state and big business will deal with the unrest.

The reaction of the Bangladeshi Stalinists and the trade unions to the bloody police attack on protesting construction workers last month has further exposed the treacherous role of these organisations.

The Communist Party of Bangladesh-led left party alliance, the unions they control and several garment workers unions initially demonstrated against the police shooting, calling for a judicial inquiry and compensation to the victims.

These protests were designed to dissipate workers anger and foster illusions that the government could be pressured to defend basic democratic rights. Almost four weeks since the SS Power Plant construction site killings, the Stalinists and the unions are now silent.
US Capitol Police (USCP) Inspector General Michael Bolton testified Monday before the Committee on House Administration, reviewing the contents of his third flash report, ostensibly dedicated to identifying deficiencies in Capitol Police threat assessment and counter-surveillance operations, before and during the attempted January 6 coup.

Trump supporters scaling the wall of the Capitol on January 6, 2021. (Flickr.com/Blink O'fanaye)

The hearing confirmed that on January 6, 2021, the two main missions of the Capitol Police department were to give fascists and Trump supporters carte blanche to swarm the Capitol and to avoid arresting anyone who participated in the assault. The aim of the attackers was to delay the certification of the Electoral College vote to help Trumps plot to overturn his election defeat by Joe Biden.

The hearing also revealed that the Capitol Police have been purposefully falsifying reports, including the official January 6 timeline, in order to cover up their direct involvement in facilitating the attack on Congress.

The most damning revelations came near the conclusion of the hearing. In response to questions from Chairperson Zoe Lofgren (Democrat-California) regarding the official police timeline provided by the USCP, which noted that an estimated 200 Proud Boys had gathered at Garfield Circle and moved towards the Senate end of the Capitol at 10:59 a.m., Bolton confirmed that no counter-surveillance teams were dispatched to monitor the fascist militia.

Bolton further confirmed that besides the one entry in the timeline, the presence of hundreds of Proud Boy fascists near or on Capitol grounds was not documented the rest of the day and that the Proud Boys, one of the main spearheads of the attack, were not monitored by police.

Instead, Bolton confirmed that USCP personnel were deployed at 11:24 a.m. to monitor 34 counter demonstrators (i.e., anti-Trump protesters) who were apparently setting up props on Third Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.

Legislators from both parties, in this hearing as in the previous ones, have pontificated on the supposed lack of resources and training that led to the events of January 6, but no one at Mondays hearing could explain why police were unconcerned about the presence of hundreds of Proud Boys marching towards the Capitol.

An incredulous Lofgren questioned Bolton as to who was responsible for assigning counter-surveillance agents to monitor 34 counter-demonstrators, but not the violent Proud Boys. Bolton refused to name the officer responsible, but admitted to Lofgren that we have a lot of concerns and a lot of questions about the accuracy of the timeline, implying that it has either been falsified or key details have been purposely omitted.

Bolton followed-up by reiterating a comment he made after his opening statement, advising that in light of the discrepancies in the timeline and in order to conduct interviews with police personnel, the next flash report to be delivered in June, contrary to what had been previously planned, would deal with command and control and radio communications.

Testifying to the extreme indifference the USCP leadership took towards defending Congress from militia members, white supremacists and neo-Nazis, Bolton also revealed that even if the counter-surveillance officers had been deployed to monitor the Proud Boys, there is no guarantee that the intelligence gathered would have been acted upon.

Boltons report stated, and he confirmed in his testimony, that USCP counter-surveillance officers had no formalized process to pass on information to the intelligence operations section and there was also no process in place to ensure that the information gathered would make it to commanding officers.

Further underscoring the fact that police participated in deliberate stand-down, Bolton confirmed to Pennsylvania Democratic Representative Mary Gay Scanlon that despite the well-documented threats against Congress, the USCP intelligence operations section had not developed a plan of action for deploying officers on January 6. There was no actual plan for the counter-surveillance units and what they were going to do, he said.

The information unearthed in the hearing adds to the already voluminous evidence directly implicating the US Capitol Police commanders in then President Trumps attempted coup, which was supported by a majority of the congressional Republicans and substantial sections of the financial oligarchy and police, military and intelligence agencies.

Bolton confirmed that on January 6 the USCP did not adequately document, collect, and analyze PD-76 USCP Stop or Contact Reports. In response to questions from Scanlon, Bolton explained that these reports would typically be used to document suspicious activity and be forwarded to command staff. Once analyzed these reports would be used to provide intelligence to the rank-and-file police regarding suspicious groups or individuals, which one would presume would include Oath Keeper militia members wearing body armor, fascist Q-Anon adherents covered in face paint and wielding spears, or perhaps several hundred Proud Boys marching in formation towards the Capitol.

Instead, Bolton confirmed to Gay Scanlon that only three of these reports were produced on January 6, the first one being at 2:18 a.m., followed by two more at 6:19 and 6:20 a.m. Apparently no USCP officers witnessed any other suspicious activity outside the Capitol on January 6.

In a severe understatement Bolton admitted that after reviewing a little bit of the radio communications on January 6 there should have been many more such reports.

The lack of communication between rank-and-file police and the leadership of the department during the siege was further revealed in an article by CQ Roll Call, posted the morning of the hearing. Three unnamed USCP officers described to the Capitol Hill publication the useless directives they were given by police leadership in response to how to handle suspected armed protesters, including the Proud Boys on January 6.

Referring to their police captain, one cop told CQ Roll Call, he was told to take appropriate police action, which the officer explained is their catchall for Do whatever you think is right or We dont know what to do.

That scared me, the officer said. Another cop said that, We needed direction that day, we had zero direction.

The three cops confirmed to CQ that despite warnings of armed attacks on the Capitol:

a Capitol Police SWAT team was not scheduled to report until the afternoon of January 6

department leaders abstained from issuing commands as the attack was underway

police with previously scheduled days off were not recalled

house Division officers who had completed their morning shift were allowed to go home

Describing the leadership provided by USCP intelligence chief Yogananda Pittman (now the acting chief) during the siege, one cop told CQ, From a birds-eye view of the campus, she was watching us getting our asses kicked.

Confirming multiple aspects of Boltons report, police interviewed by CQ confirmed that we had no clue what was going on, and that they were told, it was just gonna be a regular day, we were going to have to come in early and work the demonstration. Nothing different.

Another cop verified that police were told that pretty much the only intel they had that day was to watch out for counter-demonstrators [i.e., antifa or other anti-Trump protesters]. Thats what were told.

As the attack began, officers recalled that there were several opportunities for police leadership to get on the radio and issue calls for a tactical retreat which would have allowed the police to reform their lines and possibly hold back the mob.

There was definitely an opportunity there for them to maybe do something, but I just remember hearing, Oh, weve got to think about, like, a tactical retreat. And then they waited 40 minutes, the officer said.

The police officer in charge of the Civil Disturbance Units, (CDU) at the time of the attack was Eric Waldow. The highest-ranking commander on the ground during the attack, Waldow was previously identified as the cop who warned on-the-ground police prior to the pro-Trump mob storming the Capitol to look for  any anti-Trump counter-protesters.

Waldow was observed fighting alongside officers against the mob during the attack, however, because he was engaged with the mob, he was not able to give directives over the radio, and no other commander stepped up to fill the leadership void.

You had Deputy Chief Waldow out there throwing fists, a third officer told CQ. In my opinion, is that where he should be? No, he should be commanding these people. CQ noted that Capitol Police refused to answer questions from CQ as to why Waldow was combating rioters instead of issuing commands. Waldow was among several leaders in the department to receive a no-confidence vote from the rank-and-file police following the attack on the Capitol.
A gunman walked into a birthday party in Colorado Springs, Colorado just after midnight on Saturday and opened fire. He killed six people before taking his own life, according to police investigators.

Victims of the shooting. Top: Melvin Perez, Mayra Perez, Joana Cruz. Bottom: Jose Gutierrez, Sandra Ibarra, Jose Ibarra. (Facebook)

The Denver Post reported that one of the guests, who attended the birthday party and left before the shooting, said that all the victims were members of the same extended family. The Post also reported that Freddy Marquez told reporters that his family had gathered to celebrate the birthdays of his wife and her brother.

While the shooter has not been identified publicly at the time of this writing, the police reported that he was the boyfriend of a woman who attended the birthday party celebration at Canterbury Mobile Home Park in Colorado Springs, a largely Latino residential community located about 70 miles south of Denver.

When the police arrived at the scene, they found six dead adults and a man with serious injuries who later died in the hospital. The police said that none of the children at the birthday party were harmed and they were in the custody of relatives.

By Monday morning, all of the victims of the mass shooting had been identified. A report in Colorado Springs the Gazette said, The party celebrated the birthdays of Nubia Marquez, 28, and her brother, Melvin Perez, who would have turned 31 this week, as well as their mother, Joana Cruz, who would have turned 54 this week. ...

The Gazette report went on, Both Melvin Perez and Joana Cruz were killed. Also among the deceased were Nubia Marquezs other brother, Jose Guttierez, 21; Melvin Perezs wife, Mayra Perez, 32; and Mayra Perezs sister Sandra Ibarra and brother Jose Ibarra.

Coming in the early morning hours of Mothers Day, the shooting is one of the deadliest mass killings in Colorado Springs history. In 2015, a gunman shot and killed three people at random before being killed himself in a shootout with police in Colorado Springs on Halloween. Less than a month later, a man killed three people, including a police officer, and injured nine others in a shooting at a Planned Parenthood clinic in the city. The previous deadliest Colorado Springs gun mass killing appears to have occurred May 17, 1986, when five people were shot execution-style during two business robberies. The alleged shooter killed himself when confronted by law enforcement the next day. On September 20, 1911, six individuals were killed with axes in Colorado Springs and the murderer was never identified.

The deadliest shooting in the state of Colorado occurred in 1999 during the massacre at Columbine High School, when two armed students killed 12 of their classmates and one teacher, wounding more than twenty others during a shooting spree. The teenaged shootersEric Harris and Dylan Kleboldcommitted suicide in the high school library.

This was followed in 2012 by the deadly shooting at an Aurora, Colorado movie theater in which James Holmes killed 12 people and injured 70 others during the screening of the film The Dark Knight Rises. After setting off tear gas canisters and firing multiple firearms into the theater audience, Holmes later surrendered to police.

The Mothers Day Colorado Springs mass shooting follows by seven weeks the March 22 shooting at the south Boulder, Colorado King Soopers grocery store, in which 10 people were killed, including a police officer. The shooter21-year-old Ahmad Al Aliwi Al-Issawas apprehended and awaits trial.

According to a survey published by the Gun Violence Archive, there have been an average of 10 mass shootings every week in the US so far in 2021. This staggering number is based on a reported total of 194 instances of shootings where four or more people were killed.

Other mass shootings that took place on Mothers Day occurred in Newark, New Jersey (four people shot on the street and in stable condition at the hospital), Phoenix, Arizona (one man killed and seven others injured at a hotel), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (two people dead and three injured in a neighborhood) and Citrus Heights, California (four injured in gunfire at a bar).

At a loss to explain the events in Colorado Springs and the ongoing wave of mass shootings across the US, Democratic Party Colorado Governor Jared Polis said it was devastating, especially as many of us are spending the day celebrating the women in our lives who have made us the people we are today.

With each episode of mass shootings in the US, the Democratic Party renews its paltry and narrow gun control agenda while seeking to block any public discussion of the brutal and violent character of capitalist society which gives rise to mass shootings, especially its deadly wars and repressive state apparatus.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 14:06:08|Editor: huaxia

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ULAN BATOR, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia has decided not to publicly celebrate the upcoming International Children's Day due to the COVID-19 pandemic, local media reported Tuesday, citing the country's State Emergency Commission.

The decision made by the commission is part of the country's efforts to prevent a further spread of the pandemic, as gatherings during the holiday could lead to surging infections.

International Children's Day was established in 1949 by the Women's International Democratic Federation to safeguard the rights and interests of children. Currently, many countries annually celebrate the day on June 1.

In 1996, Mongolia officially designated the day as an official public holiday. Enditem
Last year, when the disease was running rampant in New York City, thousands of victims were placed in temporary storage when the medical and funerary systems were overwhelmed. Approximately 32,800 New Yorkers are recorded as having died of COVID-19 in the city since last March, though this is likely a significant undercount.

Workers move bodies to a refrigerated truck from the Andrew T. Cleckley Funeral Home in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Wednesday, April 29, 2020. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

Many families were unable to cope financially and emotionally with the burden of putting their relatives to rest, not to speak of the destitute and homeless who were dying in large numbers. News accounts reported cases of funeral homes storing bodies in unrefrigerated trucks in the street.

While the intensity of the pandemic has somewhat abated in New York, for the moment, the legacy of mass deaths remains. The bodies of hundreds of COVID-19 victims who died during the height of the pandemic last year, when more than 800 New Yorkers were dying every day from the virus, remain temporarily stored by the city in refrigerated trucks at a site on the Brooklyn waterfront. At its height, up to 2,000 bodies were held there. Currently, approximately 750 bodies are still being kept at this location.

Many of the victims families have requested that they be buried on Hart Island, the citys cemetery for the poor and unclaimed dead. The city has lost touch with others, some of whom may themselves have also died of the disease. Many families are likely to have been overwhelmed by the price of a funeral, which typically runs into the multiple thousands of dollars, while suffering economic devastation due to the pandemic. The city provides a burial subsidy of only $1,700, up from $900 prior to the pandemic. Even this puts the cost of a funeral out of reach for many of the citys working class.

FEMA now offers a grant of up to $9,000 for funeral expenses to families who have lost someone to the disease and have so far received over 17,000 applications nationwide. But there is a complicated application process, which includes the requirement for a death certificate that specifically cites COVID-19 as the cause of deathgiven the undercount of deaths this will exclude many in needand excludes applicants who are not US citizens or legal residents, which bars a significant portion of workers in the city.

Others resist having their loved ones buried on Hart Island, due to its perceived stigma as a paupers cemetery. In the past, convict labor had been used to bury the dead on Hart Island. At the height of the pandemic, the city switched to the use of a private contractor to conduct the interments.

Hart Island, located at the western end of Long Island Sound in waters off of the Bronx, is the largest public cemetery in the nation, with more than a million interments. It has been the citys paupers cemetery for 150 years. In 2020, 2,666 people were buried on Hart Island, more than twice the previous yearly average, representing one telling gauge of the pandemics impact. A recent study by the Columbia Journalism Schools Stabile Center of Investigative Journalism and a nonprofit news website, The City, reports that one in 10 New Yorkers who died of COVID-19 in 2020 are buried on Hart Island.

Given the utter failure of the capitalist ruling class to mount an effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic, placing the drive to protect profits over any consideration of the health and safety of the vast majority of the population, and the repeat appearance of new and more deadly variants of the virus, wave after wave of the disease is certain to occur across the globe, exacting an ever-increasing toll of death and debility.

Vaccination alone, without the systematic employment of standard public health measuresclosing of schools and nonessential workplaces, along with testing, contact tracing, and quarantining of infected individuals, with full financial support to them and their familieswill not stop the pandemic.

The horrific scenes of mass deaths currently taking place in India due to COVID-19 are a stark reminder of similar episodes of devastation that already have and will continue to occur around the world as the pandemic is allowed to rage out of control due to the criminal herd immunity policy pursued by the ruling elites in nearly every country.

As long as the response to the pandemic remains under control of the capitalist ruling class, conditions of mass deaths which occurred during earlier waves of the disease and being experienced at the present most sharply in India will become the new normal. More refrigerated trucks and mass graves will ensue.

This existential threat to humanity can only be averted by the determined, united action of the working class to overturn capitalism and implement a socialist program to use the vast resources now monopolized by the wealthy elite to put an end to the disease.
On Sunday evening, French neo-fascist magazine Valeurs actuelles ( Current Values ) published a new letter signed by up to 2,000 active-duty military personnel. Denouncing Muslims and Frances working class suburbs, it endorses an April 21 coup threat in Valeurs actuelles issued by 23 retired generals and also confirms that active-duty officers support such a coup.

A soldier stands guard under the Eiffel Tower as France marks the end of a two-year state of emergency, Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2017 in Paris. (Christian Hartman, Pool via AP)

The April 21 letter demanded President Emmanuel Macron act to stop an alleged Islamization of France and threatened a coup. Inaction, it said, would lead to an explosion and the intervention of our active-duty comrades in a perilous mission to protect our civilizations values and safeguard our compatriots on the national territory. In such a civil war, the April 21 letter added, the deaths, for which you will be responsible, will number in the thousands.

The May 9 letter, also addressed to Macron and the government, declares: Yes, our superiors are correct in the content of their letter, in its entirety. We can see violence in our cities and towns. We see communalism growing in public areas, in the public debate. We see hatred of France and of its history becoming the norm.

Warning of a coming civil insurrection in France, it asserts that the army will follow the governments orders to fire on the people: Yes, if civil war breaks out, the army will maintain order on its own soil, because it will be asked to do so. That is even the definition of civil war. No one can desire such a terrible situation, neither our superiors nor ourselves, but yes, again, civil war is being prepared in France and you know this perfectly well.

This letter must be taken as a warning to the working class in France, across the NATO alliance, and internationally. World capitalism faces its deepest social and economic crisis since the 1930s due to the pandemic and mounting working class anger after governments calls to live with the virus have led to millions of deaths. The threat that far-right networks in NATOs tightly integrated armed forces could organize coups and set up bloody dictatorships is deadly serious.

It comes not only after Donald Trumps historically unprecedented attempt to organize a coup on January 6 in Washington, to halt the certification of his election defeat, but after a six-month campaign of coup threats by fascist officers in the Spanish army. These officers began their coup plotting after strikes in Spain, Italy and across Europe compelled European governments to organize a hard lock-down in the initial months of the pandemic last year.

A campaign is clearly underway in French military and neo-fascist circles to prepare a coup. On April 17, far-right politician Philippe de Villiers published a hysterical, fascistic appeal in Valeurs actuelles titled I call for an insurrection, blaming among others the Communist Manifesto, identity politics and Swiss bankers for the pandemic.

Four days lateron the 60th anniversary of the failed April 21, 1961 Algiers putsch by generals hoping to prevent Algerian independence from France, a putsch that de Villiers father supportedthe first coup threat appeared.

On May 7, Le Parisien reported that Valeurs actuelles was contacting active-duty personnel to publish a new letter, which appeared two days later. The magazines director, Geoffroy Lejeune, told the Le Parisien the new letter had been widely circulated in the army and received between several hundred and 2,000 signatures. Unlike the April 21 letter, none of its authors or signatories have been identified.

Significantly, the authors of the May 9 letter declare that their willingness to open fire on the French people comes from their deployments both in neo-colonial wars abroad and in policing operations at home. We are those that the newspapers have called the generation of fire, it states, adding that in Afghanistan, Mali, the Central African Republic or elsewhere, a certain number of us have seen enemy fire. Some have lost comrades. They gave their lives to destroy the Islamism to which you are making concessions on our soil.

Almost all of us have experienced Operation Sentinel, it adds, referring to former Socialist Party President Francois Hollandes deployment of 10,000 troops inside France after the January 2015 Charlie Hebdo terror attacks: We have seen our suburbs abandoned, accommodation to crime. We have suffered attempts to exploit us by numerous religious communities, for whom France signifies nothingnothing but an object of sarcasm, contempt, even hatred.

The letter also denounces Macron as a traitor, claiming that it is resisting collaboration with Islam as Resistance fighters opposed the French governments collaboration with the 1940-1944 Nazi occupation of France during World War II. The warning cry of our superiors echoes earlier events. Our elders are Resistance fighters of 1940 whom, often, people like you called traitors while legalists, out of cowardice, cut deals with evil to limit the damage, they write.

This equation between Nazi rule and the presence of millions of Muslims who work and live peacefully in France is an odious political lie. It is a further warning that this letter, published in the far-right press, is a fascistic conspiracy against the working class. It is urgent that workers be politically alerted and organized to oppose the risk of a bloody, far-right coup.

The task of mobilizing opposition to plans for a coup and a dictatorship cannot be left to the state authorities or established political parties, which are complicit in the coup plot.

Since the April 21 letter appeared, Macron has maintained a deafening silence on the coup threat. His government worked to downplay its significance, noting that the first letter was issued by retired officers. This is despite the well-known fact that retired officers maintain connections to their active-duty counterparts and are used to make political statements in such situations. Since then, the government has been forced to admit that it found at least 18 active-duty personnel among the signatories of the April 21 letter.

Unsubmissive France leader Jean-Luc Melenchon insisted that the letter had little support in the army and appealed to Macron to investigate the letter, trying to promote illusions that the Macron government itself would fight the coup threat.

The latest letter by active-duty soldiers explodes such arguments, making clear the April 21 letter has significant support within the military brass. It is apparent that the governments weak response to the earlier letter is emboldening the far-right officers to accelerate their coup plotting.

This trend continued yesterday. Defence Minister Florence Parly spoke briefly on the latest letter during a visit to a French airbase in Creil, stating, this column uses the tone and references of the far-right with the aim of dividing our nation.

Melenchon criticized the May 9 letter for dividing the army and its authors as cowards for remaining anonymous. Objecting to the letter on the nationalist grounds that it weakens the armys ability to wage war around the world, Melenchon stated that the strength of the army is its cohesion. For it to be coherent, we must proscribe not only political disputes in its ranks, but also divisive views that invite soldiers to turn against the population.

Such comments only encourage the coup plotters, who know very well that, especially amid the pandemic, Macron and Melenchon are far more afraid of working class opposition than of a coup and rely on the security forces against the population.

Macron has systematically built up the police powers of the state. After hailing Nazi-collaborationist dictator Philippe Petain to encourage riot police attacking yellow vests in November 2018, he deployed the army in March 2019 for policing operations in Paris. These troops were authorized to open fire. Now, he is passing a global security law to ban filming of police.

Both the April 21 and May 9 letters, in their denunciations of Islamization, echo Macrons reactionary anti-separatist law, premised on the lie that France is threatened by a mass separatist Islamic movement.

The danger of military-authoritarian rule in France and across Europe is rapidly growing. The critical task is to politically alert and mobilize the working class, and for this to build the Parti de legalite socialiste, the French section of the International Committee of the Fourth International, and its sister parties across Europe and internationally.
Since last Monday, high school students have been mobilising against the Macron government, which wants to proceed with final-year high school exams in classrooms despite the pandemic. The students are demanding the cancellation of the examinations and the certification of high school diplomas via continuous assessment throughout the year.

Students arrive at school in Versailles, west of Paris, Monday, May 3, 2021. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

The Macron government has begun the ending of the limited lockdown announced at the end of March, including the reopening of schools over the last two weeks despite the large number of COVID-19 cases each day. These protests are part of an international wave of strikes and demonstrations by youth. The year 2020 saw a wave of mobilisations in Greece and Poland against in-person studies, and a wave of strikes to demand a halt to work in non-essential industries. This movement is continuing and intensifying.

Many high schools were blocked last week in France, including in the Paris region, Toulouse, Grenoble, Annecy, Bordeaux and Bayonne. The main entrances to the schools were blocked with fences, rubbish bins and pieces of wood, with students organising on social media. The blockades continue this week, with 200 high schools blocked across France. The government has responded by sending in the police to crack down on the students.

In front of a number of high schools, signs read Continuous examinations and Precarity kills.

On Friday, high school students organised protests outside the Charlemagne, Sophie-Germain and Victor-Hugo high schools in Paris. According to actu.fr, clashes broke out at the Victor-Hugo high school, when the police intervened to remove the students who were blocking the school with bins. Tear gas, shields and truncheons were used to repel the students.

In Seine-Saint-Denis, the dAlembert high school in Aubervilliers, the Jacques-Feyder high school in Epinay-sur-Seine and the Flora Tristan high school in Noisy-Le-Grand saw student protests.

Were not ready, we havent had enough classes, either online or face-to-face, said Adam, a student at Flora Tristan high school in his second-last year. In terms of continuous assessment, most of us have a really good average, whereas if we are put in front of a test, from one day to the next, we will not be ready to answer a question...

In other big cities, blockades have been organised in front of schools. The Bagatelle high school in Saint-Gaudens was blocked on Monday 3 May. The next day, it was still blocked, as was Pierre dAragon in Muret and the Paul Mathou high school in Gourdan-Polignan, said Paolo Carbonnel, federal leader of the National Union of High School Students (UNL) in Toulouse.

A joint statement from the UNL and the National Student Movement (MNL) said: For 14 months now, we have been studying in calamitous conditions with online learning, class cancellations and a lack of teachers. ... The epidemic reinforces the inequalities that have already been present for years within the schools of the Republic. For months, the government has been  taking decisions from day to day, from week to week. They demand the total cancellation of the tests for all high school students.

Last Wednesday, the high school and teachers unions organised a demonstration in front of the National Assembly, on the initiative, in particular, of the Federation of Parents Councils (FCPE). On the same day, the Minister of Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer, received unions to discuss possible additional arrangements.

At the end of the meeting, Blanquer announced that the grand oral test, the flagship test that is to be held for the first time this year, would be maintained as planned. However, for the philosophy test, the continuous assessment mark will be retained if it is better than that of the written test.

For their part, the unions said the government was not providing real solutions and called for a mobilisation of high school students on Monday. The movement will continue, will grow. On Friday, there were 210 high schools blocked, despite all the repression. We are calling for a mobilisation of high school students on Monday, said Antonin Nouvian, secretary-general of the National High School Movement (MNL) on Saturday morning on Europe1.

By negotiating with Macron, the trade union apparatuses want to prevent the movement from gaining momentum and turning into a workers struggle against the murderous policy of living with the virus advocated by Macron and the ruling class. They are doing everything to control the movement, focusing on the sole question of the final-year exam, in order to isolate the movement within France and cut it off from the working class. Moreover, they are not calling for the closure of schools to prevent the spread of the virus.

The student movement, on the other hand, is a manifestation of broader anger rising across Europe and internationally at the ruling class criminal policy in response to the pandemic. The unions are working closely with the state to end lockdown measures, having negotiated trillions of euros in bank and corporate bailouts.

This policy, deliberately pursued by the capitalist states to defend the interests of banks and big business at the expense of human lives, has already killed millions, including over a million in Europe.

In recent months, many countries in Europe and around the world have seen strikes by workers, teachers and students. Teachers, including in France, England and the United States, have objected to keeping schools open while the virus is spreading.

Last autumn, Greek students supported by teachers and parents occupied schools across Greece to protest against the dangerous return to classrooms amid a resurgence of the virus in the country. Students in Poland also mobilised against the reopening of schools amid a spread of the virus.

The current school protest comes as the number of cases remains high throughout France, with hospitals still struggling with large numbers of cases. Despite warnings from several epidemiologists that new variants are circulating and pose a great risk, Macron is preparing to lift restrictions in order to continue his policy of herd immunity.

Refusing to close businesses and schools to contain the virus, Macron repeatedly said that the country must live with the virus. Society must take into account the consequences of measures stop the virus, including on the economy.

As high school students express their anger against Macron, it is a matter of turning this anger into a political struggle against the Macron government and the European Union. To lead it, a turn must be made to the working class and a broad coordination of struggles against Macrons policy of living with the virus.

In this context, the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI) emphasises the political tasks for workers and youth. The ICFI has announced the formation of the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-file Committees, as part of the fight for its perspective of international socialist revolution. This struggle requires the mobilisation of youth and workers on a global scale based on a socialist revolutionary perspective, to put an end to capitalism and advance the health measures necessary to eradicate the pandemic.

The aim of this global initiative is to develop a genuine rank-and-file workers movement internationally and provide a framework for the working class to break the shackles of the existing pro-capitalist and state-controlled union apparatuses.
Israel launched air strikes against Gaza, the besieged Palestinian enclave, killing 24 people including children.

Militants had earlier fired a few rockets at southern Israel and the Jerusalem area, in a day characterized by massive violence against the Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem.

Israels military announced it had beefed up its forces on its border with Gaza and was suspending a major drill to prepare for a possible escalation.

Palestinians evacuate a wounded man during clashes with Israeli security forces at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City Monday, May 10, 2021. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

Earlier in the morning, 1,000 security forces stormed the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem as worshippers were praying, firing stun grenades, tear gas and rubber bullets, while snipers took up positions on rooftops, injuring more than 330 Palestinians. More than 700 Palestinians have been injured in just a few days by Israeli security forces in Jerusalem and across the West Bank.

Police locked hundreds of worshippers inside the mosque, prevented doctors and medical teams from entering the compound and attacked and beat up those who sought to help the injured. They forced their way into the compounds health clinic, where they sprayed pepper gas and lobbed stun grenades at those receiving treatment there.

The storming of the mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, provoked angry demonstrations around the country, including in the northern Arab city of Umm al-Fahm and the nearby Wadi Ara, as well as in Jaffa which has witnessed protests over the past week against plans to take over Palestinian-owned houses for a Jewish yeshiva.

The crackdown on Jerusalem Daythe anniversary of Israels illegal annexation of East Jerusalem, captured from Jordan in the 1967 Warahead of the planned Flags March by Israels settler groups and far right forces through Arab neighbourhoods, was another provocation designed to precipitate a war with the Palestinians.

It was by far the most violent crackdown in the weeks of mounting tensions and bloody repression by Israels security forces since the start of Ramadan on April 12, amid protests against land grabs by Israeli settlers, settlement expansion, and the planned eviction of scores of Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah, north of Jerusalems Old City. A factor in the explosive state of social relations has been the impact of the pandemic that has left thousands of young people without work.

The planned eviction is part of the governments broader process of making it impossible for the Palestinians to ever set up their own mini-state with some part of East Jerusalem as its capital. Far right legislators, including Religious Zionism chairman Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir of Jewish Power have led their supporters through Sheikh Jarrah, taunting the Palestinians, chanting death to Arabs. Smotrich called on the right-wing parties in talks with opposition leader Yair Lapid, who heads Yesh Atid and is trying to cobble together a coalition to replace Netanyahu, to halt all talks with Mansour Abbas and his United Arab List, denouncing him as a terror supporter.

On Thursday night, more than 100 Palestinians were wounded, with 21 needing hospitalization, after hundreds of far right Jewish Israelis marched through Jerusalems streets and confronted Palestinians. On Friday night, more than 200 Palestinians were injured, of whom 88 had to be taken to hospital, after several hundred riot police stormed the al-Aqsa mosque compound, provoking bloody confrontations with worshippers. There were violent clashes at Sheikh Jarrah as several hundred worshippers went to show their solidarity with residents.

On Saturday night, 80 people were injured, including a one-year-old, when clashes erupted outside the Old City, while on Sunday, 14 people had to be treated for injuries after riot police attacked Palestinians protesting the Sheikh Jarrah evictions.

There have also been demonstrations against Israels brutal crackdown in East Jerusalem and in support of the Sheikh Jarrah families in a number of Arab towns and villages in Israel, as well as in the port city of Haifa and the northern city of Nazareth, and in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank that were met with heavy handed repression.

These demonstrations in the last few days of mainly young Palestinians mark an unprecedented involvement of Israels Palestinian citizens in anti-government protests. It is a spontaneous movement, increasingly alienated from its traditional leadersthe Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority, Hamas in Gaza and the Arab leaders in Israel.

On Sunday, flatly rejecting international condemnation of the planned evictions of Palestinians from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah, Netanyahu declared Israel firmly rejects pressure not to build in Jerusalem. Turning truth on its head, he proclaimed that Israel would not allow any extremist elementmeaning the Palestiniansto undermine peace in Jerusalem, We will impose law and order aggressively and responsibly. We will continue to safeguard freedom of worship for all religions but will not allow violent riots. I say to the terror groups: Israel will respond with force to any act of aggression from the Gaza Strip, he added.

He refused multiple entreaties from international figures as well as his own security officials to postpone the Jerusalem Day Flags March, limit the number of participants and change the route, so as not to enter the al-Aqsa compound. He and Public Security Minister Amir Ohana insisted on letting the march go ahead without any changes to the route, with the police offering thousands of officers to escort the march. Netanyahu defended the security forces, praising their just struggle and commending the steadfastness that the Israeli police and our security forces are currently displaying.

On Monday afternoon, barely an hour before the march was due to start, the organisers announced they were calling it off telling the police they were ceding responsibility to them even as thousands of religious and ultra-nationalist youth were assembling. This came shortly after the authorities, reportedly in response to an order from Netanyahu, decided to reroute the march away from the Old City, including Damascus Gate and the Muslim Quarter, in Palestinian East Jerusalem.

It was at this time that Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated group that controls Gaza, which has been subject since 2007 to an illegal blockade by Israel and latterly by Egypt, issued an ultimatum until 6pm to Israel to withdraw its security forces from the al-Aqsa mosque compound and Sheikh Jarrah. As the ultimatum expired, the Israeli military activated sirens, the Knesset was evacuated, and the Flags March dispersed after reports of rocket fire in the Jerusalem area.

Netanyahu called for a national security cabinet meeting in preparation for increasing turmoil ahead of Eid al-Fitr that marks the end of Ramadan on Wednesday evening, May 12.
An agreement between New York City and the Metropolitan Labor Committee (MLC), a coalition of city trade unions, will transfer health care benefits from Medicare to Medicare Advantage, a privately run, for-profit plan, for over 250,000 retired city workers and their dependents. Workers affected include teachers, faculty and staff of the City University of New York (CUNY), sanitation workers, housing, parks, and administrative workers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and retired workers from many other job categories.

Global history instructor Alis Anasal prepares to leave West Brooklyn Community High School after the schools principal announced to students, teachers and staff that the school would be closing until further notice in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2020.(AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

Last month, the online newspaper The City reported that the cost-cutting measures, which were agreed upon in principle by the city and MLC in 2018, were close to being finalized and retirees would now be switched to Medicare Advantage. Currently the city and unions are deciding which insurance conglomerate, Aetna or Empire BlueCross BlueShield, will manage the plan.

Medicare Advantagewhich hands over management of Medicare to private insurers, is part of a bipartisan effort to privatize health care in the US. The legislation to implement it was enacted by the Democratic Clinton Administration in 1997. In 2019, then-President Trump signed an executive order that loosened requirements for corporations to sign up with Medicare Advantage. Nearly one-third of American employers now use the program.

Retirees from city agencies are currently insured by Medicare, the US governments program for people over 65, but that is supplemented by payments for outpatient procedures and a city-funded Medigap program, which pays for services not covered by Medicare. The change in plan is expected to save the city $600 million as part of a total 2018 goal of $1.1 billion in savings for the city for 2019-2021 negotiated by the MLC.

Most analysts agree that under Medicare Advantage it is likely that retirees will have significantly fewer doctors to choose from and will pay out-of-pocket expenses, as much as $6,000 annually for each retiree, according to The City. Many more procedures and services may have to be pre-approved, including ambulance and mental health treatment.

The new plan has sparked anger among retirees. Three hundred and twenty members of the retirees chapter of the Professional Staff Congress (PSC), which negotiates with the city on behalf of employees of CUNY, attended an online meeting on April 5.

The meeting passed a resolution calling on the PSC to seek a moratorium on any agreement between NYC and the MLC to move retiree healthcare coverage from Medicare/Senior Care to Medicare Advantage.

The Council of Municipal Retiree Organizations (COMRO) of New York City issued an open letter to Democratic Mayor Bill de Blasio and the MLC, which stated, The lack of transparency in your rush to change this program is both insulting and frightening to those of us who have collectively worked millions of years serving the people of New York City. How can we trust our very health to a back-room deal based on a dubious assumption of cost avoidance?

COMRO has also addressed a petition to de Blasio and the MLC, titled, Preserve Medicare Part B for NYC Retirees, which now has over 11,000 signatures.

A meeting of Retiree Advocates, a caucus of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT), attracted over 300 people on May 3, resolving to call on the UFT to keep its members apprised of proposed changes in Medicare Part B.

Since the issue has become public, the unions have been working at damage control, falsely claiming that retirees and in-service workers will receive the best medical care possible. In a meeting of the UFT retirees chapter on May 4, UFT president Michael Mulgrew told members that there would be no downside to switching to Medicare and that the unions in the MLC were telling insurance companies we have 250,000 [retirees] in plan and we want to know what you will do for us.

Mulgrews remarks echo the lies of the city administration. In an interview with The Chief, a newspaper that focuses on New York labor issues, Renee Campion, the City Labor Commissioner, said, We are committed to our retirees and making sure any new program will increase quality and benefits while reducing costs to the city.

The messaging is the same because both the city and the unions represent the same ruling-class political organizationthe Democratic Partyand its goals of forcing austerity on the working class.

There is widespread distrust towards the unions among teachers and other city workers. In an online report of the UFT meeting, one anonymous teacher commented, I dont believe one solitary word out of Mulgrews lying mouth, and neither should anyone else. Hell eventually screw the retirees and say the UFT had no choice but to accept this as part of the 2018 contract that stipulated undisclosed health cost savings.

In a comment on COMROs petition to the MLC, one signer wrote, I am a NYC teacher who watched my mother and father struggle to afford medical care in their elder years. We work our whole lives for the betterment of children and the world, our thanks should not be youre on your own for medical coverage after retirement.

Another wrote, This is a betrayal of promises made to me as a New York City teacher. These changes could literally be life-threatening for some of us. The whole process has been deceptively secretive. None of this is acceptable.

Betrayal is the operative word. The anger and suspicion directed at Mulgrew and the MLC by retirees and in-service city workers is entirely justified because they are the face of the unions, which are deeply discredited and function to make deals that benefit private health care and the city at the expense of their memberships.

This is certainly the understanding that big business has of these organizations. In an article written during the budget crisis brought about by the pandemic last year, a report of the pro-business Citizens Budget Commission noted, The Citys municipal labor unions have been integral to the management of prior fiscal crises; union leaders have made concessions or signed agreements generating savings in every recession or crisis since the 1970s.

The unions have demonstrated during the pandemic that they will acquiesce to massive budget cuts made by the city, as $800 million was slashed from the citys education budget by the Democrats last year without a whimper of protest from the UFT or any other member union of the MLC. This is at a time when New York states 125 billionaires vastly increased their net worth. The wealthiest man in the state, former Mayor Michael Bloomberg added $11 billion to his 2020 net worth of $59 billion.

As the WSWS noted during last years education budget cuts, Michael Mulgrew, the president of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT), has accepted the budget cuts in principle. He has merely disputed where the cuts are to come from and suggested that the unions should be involved in budget-cutting decisions.

How the UFT and other city unions care for the health of its membersand particularly its seniorsas well as the rest of the population was seen in the close collaboration they played and continue to play in opening schools and other non-essential businesses before the pandemic has been contained. No one who understands this can believe that these organizations will lift a finger to safeguard health care insurance for retirees, or, for that matter, in-service members. The UFT, in fact, negotiated away health care plan choice for new educators in 2018.

The trade unions as instruments of ruling class policy will do nothing to safeguard or advance the right of workers to decent and affordable health care. That is readily apparent in the two struggles by graduate student workers at New York University and Columbia University in the last few weeks, where the United Auto Workers (UAW) has dropped any comprehensive demands to improve grad worker medical care.

The anti-working class character of the unions will soon become apparent to hundreds of thousands of active and retired city workers as the unions capitulate to an austerity budget now being prepared for contract negotiations this year.

The pandemic has vastly accelerated the class struggle. Wall Street and the Democratic Party depend on the unions to suppress growing opposition in the working class to conditions of a continuing pandemic, austerity and war. To carry out a genuine struggle in its own interests, the international working class must fight to build new organizations that are politically independent of the capitalist parties and the unions, rank-and-file committees democratically controlled by the workers themselves. On May Day this year, the International Committee of the Fourth International initiated the call for the building of a global network of such committees through the International Workers Association of Rank-and-File Committees.

Since August, the New York City Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee has taken up a struggle among educators in the city for a new perspective and new organization. This struggle must be expanded to sanitation workers, health care workers, city administrative staff and faculty at CUNY, and all other sections of the working class, to create the broadest possible unification of the working class. We urge all municipal workers in New York City to sign up today to build a rank-and-file committee in your workplace or sector.
The Pennsylvania Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee supports the call for the formation of an International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC). The pandemic has demonstrated the ever-greater need for workers to organize in every industry and to connect their struggles across the globe.

In supporting this call, we offer our full support to all striking workers around the world and encourage them to join this movement.

Pennsylvania classroom with in-person instruction (Credit: Conestoga Valley School District Facebook page)

In the United States, several major struggles have erupted in the past two months. In Worcester, Massachusetts, 700 nurses are on strike demanding more staff to safely care for patients. In multiple states 1,300 workers for Allegheny Technologies Inc. and 1,100 Alabama coal miners at Warrior Met are striking against layoffs and cuts to benefits. In New River Valley, Virginia, 3,000 Volvo workers are fighting against a contract that would increase health care costs and retain the hated tier system.

These expanding strikes are affecting students and educators as well. In New York City, thousands of graduate school workers at Columbia University and New York University are on strike demanding wages that reflect the cost of living and a reduction in police presence on campus.

Internationally, 300 workers for British coffee maker Jacob Douwe Egbert are being threatened with termination if they refuse to accept major cuts in pay and benefits. In Istanbul, 2,000 electricity workers have gone on a wildcat strike in defiance of a ban on strikes in the electricity sector. And in Seoul, Korea, 1,900 Renault Samsung Motors workers have been locked out by the company.

In the most explosive expression of this rise in the class struggle, hundreds of thousands of people in Colombia have taken to the streets to protest the governments failure to contain the pandemic. Nearly 77,000 people have died of COVID-19, and hundreds of thousands have lost their jobs with almost no financial support from the state. As the working class protests these policies, the government has turned to police repression while the unions seek to reach a miserable agreement with the government to end the protests as quickly as possible.

We strongly condemn the violence of the Colombian regime, which has resulted in at least 37 deaths and 379 disappearances, as well as the support for it by the Biden administration which has only called for moderation in the violence.

Educators empathize with these struggles and understand the necessity of joining our struggles. We have faced the consequences of austerity for years. Benefits have been cut, funding for smaller class sizes and additional staff has been slashed, and jobs have been eliminated. Just last month, Mitchell High School in Colorado Springs eliminated over 100 teacher and staff positions.

We also understand that a common thread through all these struggles is their betrayal by the trade unions. Throughout the pandemic, the teachers unions in the US, above all, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and National Education Association (NEA), have consistently bowed to the demands of the bosses and the government, and the same is happening in every country.

Nurses, steel workers and coal miners are all being isolated by their unions, which have done everything to shut down their strikes and force through contracts that would accept cuts to benefits. Volvo workers have been sent back on the job by the United Auto Workers (UAW) without being shown the contract. Leaked details show that it would cut health benefits and retain the tier system, which is designed to divide workers and cut wages.

We fully support the newly-formed Volvo Workers Rank-and-File Committee, which is fighting to win the leadership of the strike and oppose this union-backed sellout contract.

The UAW has also worked to suppress the strikes of graduate student workers in New York City. Despite being part of the same UAW local, New York University grad students did not begin their strike until almost a month after Columbia University grad students began their strike, and the UAW has done everything possible to sell out both strikes.

All of these experiences demonstrate that workers need new forms of organization. The unions are no longer labor organizations that fight for workers rights but are more concerned with protecting the pay of their bureaucrats and their multimillion- and billion-dollar investment funds.

In response, we call on all workers to join us in building the IWA-RFC, free from the political deathtraps of the procapitalist parties and the trade union bureaucracies. Only through an international and politically independent mass mobilization of the working class can we fight together against austerity, war, and police violence and for the expansion of our rights and living standards.
India, home to more than one-sixth of the worlds population, is now engulfed by a health and social catastrophe that was both foreseeable and foreseen.

A health worker takes a mouth swab sample of a Kashmiri boy to test for COVID-19 in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, May 8, 2021. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Just in the past five days, India officially recorded 2 million new COVID-19 infections and 20,928 deaths. Since Monday, April 12, Indias COVID-19 cases have risen by 8.99 million, or more than 65 percent, bringing its total infections since the pandemic began to 22.6 million. During the same four-week period, the novel coronavirus killed 75,213 Indians, more people than it has killed in all but 11 countries throughout the entire pandemic.

Harrowing as these figures are, they represent a mere fraction of Indias true number of infections and deaths, as is conceded by all but the most inveterate defenders of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his far-right Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government.

Union Health Ministry data shows COVID-19 test positivity rates currently running at more than 20 percent in 301 of Indias 718 districts, and more than 30 percent in Delhi, Indias national capital and largest urban agglomeration. The World Health Organization (WHO) has long insisted a positivity rate of 5 percent or higher indicates a serious undercount of infections.

Prior to the pandemic, Indias ramshackle, chronically underfunded health care system recorded the medical cause of only a quarter of all deaths, with many deaths in rural India not even registered. Studies and surveys in recent weeks by health experts and journalists have shown that many times more people are being cremated and buried under COVID-19 protocols than are reported in the authorities death counts. To cite one example, a daily newspaper in Modis home state of Gujarat, Sandesh, has found that just one in 10 COVID-19 deaths in the states major urban centers is officially being attributed to the pandemic. In Rajkot, a city of 2 million, the official statistics showed 220 people had died of COVID-19 in the latter half of April. However, during that same period just one of the citys seven coronavirus-only crematoriums handled 673 corpses.

Across India and around the world people have been shocked and angered by the media reports of desperately ill people in Delhi, Mumbai and other major cities unable to gain admittance to overwhelmed health care facilities, of scores of patients dying from asphyxiation after their hospital ran out of medical oxygen, and of a burgeoning black market in oxygen cylinders and drugs, like Remdesivir, that are in short supply.

In rural India, where two-thirds of the countrys population lives and where public health care facilities are largely non-existent, the catastrophe threatens to be greater still. In 15 rural districts, most or all with a population of a million or more, the COVID-19 test positivity rate is currently higher than 50 percent.

Indias venal capitalist eliteled by the Hindu supremacist, would-be authoritarian strongman Modiis impervious to the carnage the pandemic is exacting on the lives and livelihoods of working people.

In a nationwide address April 20, Modi proclaimed that his governments overriding objective is to save this country from lockdownthat is to prop up the fortunes and profits of Indias billionaires and corporate elite, not to fight the virus and save lives. He went on to urge even the states hardest-hit by COVID-19 to eschew lockdowns in favour of so-called micro-containment zones.

After millions more cases and tens of thousands more deaths, this remains state policy.

Declaring life is more precious than the economy, the Indian Medical Association (IMA), the countrys largest organisation of doctors, denounced the BJP governments failure to impose a national lockdown to halt the virus deadly surge and allow health infrastructure to recoup in a statement issued last Saturday. We are astonished, said the IMA, to see the extreme lethargy and inappropriate actions from the Health Ministry in combating the agonising crisis born out of the devastating second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Noting that it has been pressing for a national lockdown for the past three weeks, the IMA charged the Modi government with filing the requests that it and other scientific experts have made into the dust bin, and taking decisions without realizing the ground realities. This has resulted in the number of COVID-stricken patients rising beyond four lakh (400,000) every day and moderate to severe cases swelling to nearly 40 percent.

The second wave of Indias pandemic began in mid-February and shortly thereafter medical experts began issuing ever more emphatic and dire warnings that India was completely unprepared for COVID-19s resurgence. All the more so, since everything indicated the virus spread was being fuelled by more contagious and lethal variants, including the B.1.1.7 variant first identified in Britain, and Indias own double mutant strain. In early March a team of medical experts that reports directly to Modi explicitly warned about the threat of an impending medical oxygen shortage.

Yet the government, acting at the behest of corporate India, cavalierly dismissed all this. With the aim of projecting Indias return to normalcy, it pressed forward with jettisoning the few remaining COVID-19 restrictions, including by greenlighting mass state election rallies and the worlds largest religious festival (the Kumbh Melah). In so far as it conceded the pandemic remained a threat this was to be dealt with through a world-leading vaccination campaigna campaign that is now in a shambles due to vaccine shortages. To date, less than 10 percent of Indians have received a first shot and barely 2.5 percent of the population is fully vaccinated.

The Congress Party and other opposition parties are now making timid criticisms of the Modi governments ruinous mishandling of the pandemic. But they are no less criminally culpable. All state governments, including those led by the opposition, implemented Modis homicidal open economy policy. In recent days, as public anger over the disaster mounts, some, such as the governments of Maharashtra and Delhi, have announced lockdowns, but these only perpetuate the prioritizing of profit over lives. First, virtually all production, from manufacturing to construction is excluded; and second, at most, famine-style relief is being provided to the day-labourers, service sector workers, hawkers and artisans who are directly impacted by the lockdown measures. This under conditions where the central governments ill-prepared lockdown of last Marchwhich robbed a hundred million people of their livelihood overnight with no meaningful provision for social supportpushed a further 230 million Indians below the national poverty line of 375 rupees (US $5) a day.

The Indian ruling class herd immunity policy, its calculated decision to let the virus rip through the population so as not to disrupt profit-making, is the cutting edge of its drive to dramatically intensify the exploitation of the working class and rural toilers. To enthusiastic applause from big business, Modi in the name of reviving the economy has implemented a raft of pro-investor policies over the past 12 months, from a fire-sale of public assets to a battery of pro-agribusiness laws and a reform of the labour code under which most worker job action would be illegal.

This class-war assault is encountering mass opposition from the working class and rural poor. If the BJP, including the Hindu supremacist thug Modi appointed as chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, have lashed out with arrests and censorship to suppress the public outcry over bed and oxygen shortages, it is because they fear it will further fuel and intersect with the growing challenge from the working class.

India is a historically oppressed country, blighted by poverty and squalor. Nevertheless, it has advanced production facilities, including in the pharmaceutical sector; and pockets of vast wealth, beginning with the fortunes of its 130 billionaires, whose holdings nearly doubled to $594 billion last year. Moreover, the Indian state commands immense resources, enough to make it, at $72.9 billion, the worlds third largest military spender.

Yet not even a tiny fraction of these resources can be mobilized to protect the lives and livelihoods of the Indian people. Even now, the government refuses to fund, at an estimated cost of just $6.7 billion, the free inoculation of all adult Indians against COVID-19.

From London, where he had been invited to attend a G7 meeting, Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar found himself forced to concede last week two incontrovertible facts: for decades, irrespective of whether the BJP or Congress has led the central government the Indian state has spent a miniscule 1.5 percent of GDP on health care, and the pandemic has exposed the utter failure of Indias health care system. He then bleated, Its very easy to say today that we should have put in more money. Now that I am in government  I can say it is not as easy as it sounds.

Jaishankars apologia only serves to underscore that capitalism is in irreconcilable conflict with the needs of society. The pandemic has spelled this out in flesh and bloodbut the same conflict pervades every aspect of socioeconomic life, from the misery and social anxiety caused by poverty and economic insecurity amid unprecedented global abundance, to environmental devastation and imperialist aggression and war.

Indias horrific second wave is a global threat. It has already spilled over into Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Moreover, in so far as the virus is not eradicated, it threatens to develop strains that are resistant to existing vaccines.

The Indian catastrophe has the fingerprints of the imperialist powers, beginning with Washington, all over it. Not only did the American ruling class spearhead the herd immunity strategy under the New York Times coined tagline, The cure must not be worse than the disease. It, along with Canada and the EU powers, has refused to waive vaccine patent rights, and during the critical weeks in March and April when COVID-19 infections were exploding in India, the Biden administration even blocked the export of raw materials critical to Indias manufacture of vaccines. Last but not least, Washington, whether under Trump or Biden, has spent much of the last year seeking to incite India against China, with the aim of further integrating it into US imperialisms incendiary military-strategic offensive against Beijing. The implementation of a rational, science-based plan to protect lives and livelihoods requires the independent political intervention of the working class and its mobilization as a global force.

The immediate shut-down of all non-essential businesses and in-class instruction, the provision of full wages to all affected workers, a vast expansion of the public health systemall of the essential measures that are needed to halt the virus spread are in irreconcilable conflict with the profit and geopolitical imperatives of the rival national capitalist elites.

The fight against the pandemic must, therefore, be animated by a socialist perspective and advance through the building of new organizations of working class struggle, in opposition to the pro-capitalist unions, which in India as around the world have enforced the ruling class back-to-work/back-to-school policy. Toward this end, and as an inseparable part of its struggle to politically educate and mobilize the working class for world socialist revolution, the International Committee of the Fourth International and its affiliated Socialist Equality Parties have initiated the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees.
Peter Symonds is a member of the International Editorial Board of the World Socialist Web Site and the national editor of the WSWS in Australia. He writes regularly on political and social developments in Asia, Australia and the South Pacific and has lectured on the history of Trotskyism in Asia and the Chinese revolutions of the 20th century. He gave this report to the 2021 International May Day Online Rally held by the WSWS and the ICFI on May 1.

Speech delivered by Peter Symonds to the 2021 International May Day Online Rally

The coronavirus pandemic has not only brought immense social distress to working people around the world, but it has dramatically intensified the danger of a catastrophic world war, driven above all by the determination of American imperialism to arrest its historic decline at any cost.

While the Stalinist Chinese Communist Party is certainly guilty of the abuse of democratic rights, particularly of the working class, the American posturing on human rights is completely hypocritical. It condemns China over the Uyghurs, but, to cite just one example of many, it defends Israels decades-long abuse of the democratic rights of the Palestinians.

The US accuses China of aggression and expansionism, but it has engaged in three decades of illegal wars in the Middle East, Central Asia and North Africa on the basis of lies and fabrications. The bombing of Serbia in 1999 was justified as necessary to stop the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of Kosovars, which proved completely false. It invaded and laid waste to Iraq on the basis of lies about weapons of mass destruction.

Now the criminals in the White House are demonising China. Biden, following Trump, has taken the Big Lie to a new level, blaming China for the pandemic, despite all scientific evidence to the contrary. Whatever the limitations of Beijings response, they pale into insignificance in comparison to the criminally irresponsible policies of governments in the US, Europe, Brazil, India and elsewhere. After all, China has, in its own bureaucratic fashion, largely contained the virus for now.

Unlike Trump who alienated US allies, Biden is strengthening alliances, holding the first summit of the Quad, a quasimilitary alliance, with the leaders of Japan, India and Australia. The Australian government is now openly discussing the prospect of an American conflict with China and is further strengthening the integration of the Australian military into the Pentagons war plans, putting the countrys population on the frontlines.

There is, however, nothing progressive about Beijings response to Washingtons warmongering. On the one hand, it is engaged in a desperate arms race with American imperialism, which spends three times what Beijing spends and has a host of military bases and allies encircling China. On the other, the Chinese Communist Party is still holding out the vain hope of a compromise. But Washington wants nothing less than the complete subordination of China to what it calls the international rules-based orderthat is, the post-World War II structures, which it dominates and where it sets the rules.

A war between the US and Chinathe worlds two largest economieswould inevitably involve the use of nuclear weapons and draw in the rest of the world. It is a false hope to imagine that the ruling classes would pull back from nuclear war because the consequences for humanity would be too terrible. Already the Pentagons thinktanks are again thinking the unthinkablethe phrase used by the nuclear strategists of the Cold War. The pandemic has already demonstrated that governments are willing to sacrifice millions of lives to boost corporate profits. American imperialism, which dropped two atomic bombs on Japans civilian population in 1945, will not hesitate to wage nuclear war if that is the only means to maintain its global dominance.

The Pentagon is preparing for war with a timeframe of years, not decades. The outgoing head of the Indo-Pacific Command, Admiral Phil Davidson, warned of war with China over Taiwan within five years. Military planning is proceeding accordingly.

The international working class alone is capable of halting the drive to war, as it is the only social force able to overthrow capitalism and its outmoded system of rival nation-states. To do so, it needs to unify and build an international antiwar movement independently of the establishment parties and trade unions that are all lining up for war.

It is essential for workers to reject the poisonous nationalism that is being whipped up around the world as the ruling classes seek to divide the working class and turn the immense social tensions generated by the pandemic outwards against an external enemy. The Chinese Communist Party, which rules on behalf of the superrich elite created by decades of capitalist restoration, is no exception. Having largely abandoned its socialist phrase-mongering, the Stalinist regime is incapable of making any appeal to the working class and seeks to counter Washingtons propaganda with the reactionary nationalism of its own.

A terrible nuclear conflagration is not inevitable. The same crisis of capitalism that is generating immense geopolitical tensions is accelerating the resurgence of the class struggle. Just as workers are starting to stand up against governments determined to drive them back into unsafe factories and workplaces, so workers and youth will oppose the descent into a nuclear nightmare.

In 2003, the largest international antiwar protests in history took place against the criminal US-led invasion of Iraq. Yet the war went ahead anyway. The critical lesson from that experience is not that it is impossible to halt war, but rather that it is impossible to stop war with impotent pacifist appeals to the United Nations and capitalist governments. What is necessary is nothing less than the revolutionary struggle to abolish capitalism. In 1917, after three years of terrible trench warfare in World War I, it was the Russian Revolution and the creation of the first workers state that brought an end to the conflict. The workers of the world today can and must put an end to capitalism before nuclear weapons are unleashed.

On this May Day, the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI) has issued a call for the formation of the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees to develop a global counteroffensive against the homicidal policies of governments in response to the pandemic. Likewise, the international working class can only oppose the war drive by unifying and mobilising its independent political strength.

The ICFIs call in 2016 for the formation of an international antiwar movement of the working class based on the fight for a socialist future takes on a burning urgency today. We appeal to workers in every country to take up these tasks, to contact the ICFI, and to join and build it as the political leadership necessary to lead the revolutionary struggles ahead.
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTHI) - The Indiana Legislature has voted to override Governor Holcombs veto of Senate Bill 5. This happened on Monday during a legislative session at the Indiana Statehouse.

Basically, this means local health leaders will have to consult with other officials before enacting certain health measures. This isnt the first time the legislature and Governor have disagreed.

Senate Bill 5 deals with local and state health departments and public health emergencies. State Representative for District 42 Alan Morrison was one of the many sponsors of the bill. He says its main goal is accountability.

The aim is to put a structure in place that makes health departments get approval from a county or city body before they can put stricter measures in place.

We want our officials to have to answer to the citizens, Morrison said, When were dealing with health departments that are not elected, we have to somehow figure out a way to hold them accountable and thats through our elected officials. Thats the main thrust of what this bill does.

Senate Bill 5 originally passed through the legislature; however, Governor Holcomb vetoed the bill last week. Monday, the state legislature voted to override the Governors veto. State Representative Tonya Pfaff of District 43 was in opposition of the override. She reacted to News 10 in a statement that reads:

I dont think this bill was necessary. I think during the past 14 months our local health officer has done a great job managing the complex issues that this pandemic has created. This bill could end up harming the public and causing delays in emergency situations.

The final count from the Indiana Senate vote was 36 to 10 in favor of the override. The Indiana house final count was 59 to 30 in favor of the override. The bill goes into effect immediately so all local mandates are now null and void.

Governor Holcomb released the following statement:

As I said last week, Indiana is in an economically enviable position due in large part to the heroic local response to the pandemic that was permitted by a system rewarding speed, collaboration and medical expertise in a time of health emergency. In most cases, the cooperation between local elected officials and local health officials was superb.

I would have hoped that such sweeping change could wait until we gathered all the relevant experts and stakeholders to strike the right balance regarding local health authority during emergencies and avoid discouraging laudable service in the field of public health, especially knowing that its locally elected officials who appoint the local department of health board that hires the local health director in the first place.

My administration will do just that over the coming months to supply the legislature with up-to-date data before the next regular session.
VIGO COUNTY, IND. (WTHI)

Currently, four out of every five school districts in Indiana are losing enrollment. Now, one school district in the Wabash Valley says it's taking action. At tonight's meeting, the Vigo County School Board addressed the issue of declining enrollment by introducing three potential programs that could be added to the district's strategic plan.

The first program is a "flex school." The goal of this program is to increase engagement with younger students by incorporating more hands-on activities and individualized learning opportunities. Additionally, after-school care, mentorship, and tutoring will be available until 8 PM.

The second program is known as the FITE campus. This stands for Fabrication, Innovation, Technology, and Engineering. This program is intended to help prepare high school students for future careers. This will include different entrepreneurial endeavors for students with different interests.

Finally, the third program is a commercial online school. This will give students across the state the chance to enroll in the Vigo County School Corporation and take classes online. This comes at a time when the demand for online learning is rising. VCSC teachers would develop an online curriculum to benefit students beyond Vigo County.

School leaders hope all of these new programs will create learning opportunities for a wider range of students.

"It's something that sets us apart," Bill Riley, the Director of Communications for the Vigo County School Board, said. "It's something that people can point to and say Vigo County is doing something a little different, and that helps with attraction and retention."

This was only the introduction of the proposal. Superintendent Dr. Rob Haworth says he hopes to be back in front of the board with more details, including a potential timeline and costs before the end of the summer.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 15:49:38|Editor: huaxia

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SEOUL, May 11 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's intelligence agency chief left for Japan Tuesday morning to meet with his Japanese and U.S. counterparts, according to Yonhap news agency.

Park Ji-won, director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), will reportedly hold a trilateral meeting in Japan with U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and Hiroaki Takizawa, director of Japan's cabinet intelligence.

It is forecast that the officials will discuss situations in Northeast Asia and the new U.S. policy towards the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden recently announced that it had completed the review of its DPRK policy.

Separately, Park will meet Toshihiro Nikai, secretary general of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, according to Yonhap.

In November last year, Park visited Japan to meet Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and deliver South Korean President Moon Jae-in's intention to improve the bilateral relations.

The Seoul-Tokyo ties have been frosty for the past years over historical issues, such as the forced labor and the sex slavery during the 1910-45 Japanese colonization of the Korean Peninsula. Enditem
WABASH VALLEY (WTHI) - A Terre Haute man will face charges after police said he led them on a multi-county, multi-state chase.

It happened Monday night.

According to the Parke County Sheriff's Office, deputies tried to pull over a man they later identified as 27-year-old Robert Bealmear near Montezuma.

Bealmear allegedly refused to pull over. Hitting speeds of over 100 miles per hour on US 36, Bealmear entered Vermillion County. After that, he allegedly led cops to Route 1 into Paris, Illinois.

After Bealmear entered Paris, he allegedly crashed and ran on foot. Police later found him outside of a Paris business.

He was arrested and will face charges of resisting law enforcement, reckless driving, and outstanding warrants.
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTHI) - Terre Haute and Vigo County leaders are looking forward now that the Indiana Legislature voted to override Governor Eric Holcomb's veto of Senate Bill 5.

Vigo County Commissioner, Chris Switzer, told News 10 he thinks the law is a good idea.

Mandates are already lifted in Vigo County. With this, there will not be a need to reinstate any orders.

Switzer added that the health department has a say in addressing any future health emergencies.

In reality, it just puts more players at the table instead of allowing one group to make a decision for the whole county, it puts the commissioners and everybody involved, so ultimately, I think it's a good decision, Switzer said.

News 10 asked Commissioner Switzer if he believes the result in Vigo County would be different if this law were in place a year ago. He says not much would have changed.
TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) - Fallen law enforcement officers from Northeast Mississippi were honored tonight during the Northeast Mississippi Law Enforcement Memorial Service.

I think it's very special. We're all a member of a club that we didn't want to be a member of. We weren't given a choice," said Debi Pearson, mother of fallen officer Dylan Pickle.

Fallen law enforcement officers Fallen law enforcement officers

Pearson wears an image of Pickles Monroe County deputy badge on a chain. He was one of several law enforcement officers honored at tonights memorial service in Tupelo.

Pickle was killed last summer while on duty.

Founder of the Wives of Warriors support group, Kim Rushing, said this is the 22nd year organizers have held the memorial service for fallen law officers.

We don't want them to ever be forgotten. We want their family members to be able to come together and remember them as a group," said Rushing.

Pearson said that's exactly what the memorial service did for her and her family.

When we all come together like this, we can lean on each other. We have someone that knows exactly what we're going through," said Pearson. "To have somebody that understands, literally understands, means the world.

The service is held annually during National Police Week.
JACKSON, Miss. (WTVA) - Mississippi does not face a gas shortage due to the Colonial Pipeline disruption, Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson said Tuesday.

The pipeline, a major transporter of fuel along the East Coast, was the victim of a cyberattack last week.



Andy Gipson serves as Mississippis eighth Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce. | Source: Mississippi House of Representatives Andy Gipson serves as Mississippis eighth Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce. | Source: Mississippi House of Representatives

Colonial Pipeline Company, the largest U.S. refined products pipeline system and can carry more than 3 million barrels of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel between the U.S. Gulf Coast and the New York Harbor area., Photo Date: Undated Colonial Pipeline Company, the largest U.S. refined products pipeline system and can carry more than 3 million barrels of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel between the U.S. Gulf Coast and the New York Harbor area., Photo Date: Undated

Read More - Pipeline officials hope most service will be back by weekend

Gipson urges the public to avoid panic buying of fuel. This could exhaust supplies at gas stations.

In the meantime, Gipson suggests Mississippians limit unnecessary travel and purchase fuel only as needed.

He shared the following statement on Tuesday.

Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson encourages the public across Mississippi to refrain from panic buying fuel due to the halted operations of the Colonial Pipeline. Colonial Pipeline expects to restore operations by the end of this week.

In the meantime, Commissioner Gipson suggests, the best things we can do are: 1) limit unnecessary travel; and 2) purchase fuel only as needed.

I want to encourage the public across the state to purchase the fuel they need, but not over buy or panic purchase fuel. Mississippi does not face a gas shortage due to the pipeline disruption, but panic buying could exhaust, and in some cases has already exhausted some local station supplies. The Departments Regulatory Services Bureau is closely monitoring this situation, said Commissioner Gipson.

Commissioner Gipson continued, The East Coast and landlocked states without refineries may see disruptions. Youll see it on the news, Im sure. But the Colonial Pipeline supplies less than 30 percent of the fuel in Mississippi. Our river terminals at Vicksburg, Greenville and Aberdeen are continuing to receive an abundant supply of product  increased, even, because of the the delay in shipping on the pipeline. Our land terminals are continuing to fill orders. The Plantation Pipeline is increasing supply and the Pascagoula Chevron Refinery is operating without disruption.

The Plantation Pipeline, an additional pipeline running through the state, is working to accommodate added supply on its pipeline. The Chevron Pascagoula Refinery, one of the largest refining operations in the country located on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, is unaffected due to the outage of the Colonial Pipeline. The Chevron Pascagoula Refinery is continuing to supply its customer network along the U.S. East Coast and is managing fuel supply chain disruptions caused by the outage of the Colonial Pipeline.

Due to additional labor shortage pressure in the fuel transportation industry, the U.S. Department of Transportation has issued a waiver allowing for longer service hours by motor carriers and drivers providing direct assistance in affected states, including Mississippi.

I recommend Mississippians limit travel as possible, but if traveling for work or pleasure this week to be mindful of their fuel needs. You should call ahead to the chamber of commerce or local tourism office at your destination to inquire about local fuel supplies. Unfortunately, gas prices have been on the rise, and we expect this will further contribute to price increases at the pump. However, we anticipate any local price increases felt by consumers will not be the result of lack of supply, but rather are related to additional shipping costs incurred with picking up product in markets outside of the routine contract area due to the disruption, said Commissioner Gipson.

Commissioner Gipson concluded, In summary, Mississippians should travel as necessary and purchase only the fuel they need. Panic buying is counterproductive, and there is no need to panic.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  Mississippi legislators are not in session now, so it could be months before they start deciding how to spend $1.8 billion in the latest round of pandemic relief from the federal government.

Mississippi will receive part of the money this year and the rest next year.

The U.S. Treasury Department on Monday released details about how much money state and local governments are receiving under the American Rescue Plan signed into law by President Joe Biden, and how the money may be spent.

I think it's going to take some time to fully inspect and understand what's included, Mississippi Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Briggs Hopson told The Associated Press on Monday.

The Treasury Department said state and local governments may use the federal money for public health, including efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. They may use it to address economic problems that the pandemic has caused for workers, households, small businesses, industries and government. They also may use some of the money to replace tax revenue that was lost because of the pandemic and to provide extra pay for essential workers.

Other acceptable uses are for improvements to water and sewer systems and expansion of broadband access, the Treasury Department said.

States are not allowed to use the money to cut taxes, shore up pension funds or rainy day funds, make payments on long-term debt or pay off legal settlements, under the Treasury rules.

Some states can receive their full share of federal relief money this year and others will receive it in two payments a year apart. The 20 states receiving the full share this year have unemployment rates at least 2 percentage points higher now than in February 2020. Mississippi is among the 30 states with an unemployment rate that has not climbed to that level, so it will receive its money over two years.

Mississippi legislators' next regular session begins in January. Republican Gov. Tate Reeves could call them into special session, if he wants, to decide how to spend the federal money.

Hopson, a Republican from Vicksburg, said Monday that he does not know whether the governor will call a special session.

Payments to cities and counties will be split into two batches  some this year and some next year.

In addition to the $1.8 billion that is going to Mississippi state government, Mississippi is receiving $268 million that will be split among cities and towns with fewer than 50,000 residents. During their 2021 session, legislators created a state fund where this money will be sent. The state will distribute the money to those communities.

The federal government on Monday also released information about money going to larger Mississippi cities. Jackson will receive $42.1 million; Gulfport, $19.5 million; Hattiesburg, $12.9 million; Biloxi, $11.1 million; Southaven, $7.6 million; Pascagoula, $5.2 million; and Moss Point, $2.7 million.

Counties are receiving money based on population. Mississippis largest county, Hinds, is receiving $45 million. The only Mississippi counties receiving less than $1 million are both sparsely populated. Issaquena will receive $257,754 and Sharkey, $839,304.
TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) - Police provided suspect information about Monday's shooting outside a bank in Tupelo.

The incident happened at noon at the Renasant Bank on South Veterans Boulevard.



The incident happened on May 10, 2021, at the Renasant Bank on South Veterans Boulevard in Tupelo. The incident happened on May 10, 2021, at the Renasant Bank on South Veterans Boulevard in Tupelo.

On Monday police said someone reportedly fired a shot in the parking lot. Police reported no injuries.

Read More - No injuries in noontime shooting in Tupelo

Tupelo Police Capt. Chuck McDougald identified the suspect as Wesley Kuykendall, 52, of Tupelo.

Investigators charged Kuykendall with robbery and shooting into a motor vehicle.

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP)  The city of Huntsville says a police officer convicted of murder in a shooting has been taken off duty following the verdict but will continue to be paid.

News outlets report that a city spokeswoman says Officer William Darby cant continue working as an officer because of the conviction but he'll remain on paid leave as the city works through its personnel procedures.

Darby is free on $100,000 bond after being convicted Friday in the killing of Jeffrey Parker in 2018.

Evidence showed Darby killed the man as Parker held a gun to his own head.

Jurors rejected defense claims that the shooting was justified.
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 16:42:08|Editor: huaxia

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SUVA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Fiji reported on Tuesday night 12 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 to 152 in the island nation.

According to the Health Ministry, the new cases were all related to the woman who tested positive for COVID-19 in the capital city of Suva on Monday.

Permanent Secretary for Health Ministry James Fong urged Fijians to stay at home as much as possible amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

He did not rule out a lockdown in Fiji's main island of Viti Levu, saying that he has been working on scenario plans, including the possibility of a full lockdown in Viti Levu, which would mean suspending all non-essential outdoor activities.

In Suva, three supermarkets were closed for disinfection on Tuesday.

Fiji has reported 101 recoveries and three deaths from the coronavirus epidemic since the island nation recorded its first confirmed case of COVID-19 in March last year.

Fiji has maintained a nationwide curfew from 11:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. since March last year. Enditem
Charleston, WV (25301)

Today

A few showers in the morning with thunderstorms developing for the afternoon. High 82F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Variable clouds with scattered thunderstorms. Low 68F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 16:56:21|Editor: huaxia

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MANILA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) confirmed on Tuesday its first two cases of the new COVID-19 variant first detected in India.

Alethea De Guzman of the DOH Epidemiology Bureau said the B.1.617 variant was detected from samples taken from two seafarers who arrived in the country from Oman on April 10 and the United Arab Emirates on April 19.

De Guzman said the two, who had no travel history from India, have already recovered. She added that the two were immediately quarantined upon arrival, so they did not have any close contacts.

The DOH also reported on Tuesday 4,734 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the Southeast Asian country to 1,113,547.

The death toll climbed to 18,620 after 59 more patients died from the viral disease, the DOH said.

The Philippines, which has about 110 million population, has tested over 11 million people since the outbreak in January 2020.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque said that the Philippines is gaining momentum in the fight against the COVID-19 as the country is put at low risk with the drop in the two-week growth rate of COVID-19 infections.

Despite the overall improving condition, Duque said there is no room for complacency because there are still areas with positive two-week growth rates, adding that Metro Manila and four other regions still have a high average daily infection rate. Enditem
breaking top story

Judge Kleeh about victims: To a man, they were good and decent people, who served their country honorably

Nursing assistant who injected insulin that wasn't needed at Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center in Clarksburg West Virginia
Morgantown, WV (26505)

Today

Considerable cloudiness. Occasional rain showers this afternoon. High 79F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low 68F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.
Charleston, WV (25311)

Today

Cloudy this morning with thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 79F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Isolated thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Clarksburg, WV (26301)

Today

Rain showers in the morning with thunderstorms developing for the afternoon. High 81F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%..

Tonight

Isolated thunderstorms early, then mainly cloudy overnight with thunderstorms likely. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 18:10:43|Editor: huaxia

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VIENTIANE, May 11 (Xinhua) -- There have been 203,045 tests for the COVID-19 infection conducted in Laos since January 2020, said a report released Tuesday by the Center of Information and Education for Health under the Lao Health Ministry.

Of the tested people in the Southeast Asian country, 1,362 were found COVID-19 positive, said the report.

Laos has been carrying out tests on a daily basis to detect the COVID-19 infections.

So far in Laos, 297 COVID-19 patients have recovered from the pandemic and been discharged from hospitals, the report said.

To prevent the spread of COVID-19, the Lao government has continued to implement preventive measures and carefully monitored arrivals in the country.

The health ministry urged the Lao people and all relevant authorities to continue strictly abiding by the health guidelines and rules set by the Lao government.

Laos reported its first two confirmed cases of COVID-19 on March 24 last year. Enditem
Weather Alert

...HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM THIS MORNING TO MIDNIGHT MDT TONIGHT... * WHAT...West to southwest winds 35 to 45 mph with gusts up to 65 mph expected. * WHERE...Lower elevations of Carbon and Albany counties. This includes but is not limited to Rawlins, Saratoga, Elk Mountain, Laramie, and Shirley Basin. * WHEN...From 10 AM this morning to Midnight MDT tonight. * IMPACTS...Mainly to transportation. Strong crosswinds will be hazardous to light weight and high profile vehicles, including campers and tractor trailers. In addition, strong winds combined with very warm and dry conditions will lead to critical fire weather conditions. Any new fires could spread rapidly. Burning of any kind of strongly discouraged. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A High Wind Warning means a hazardous high wind event is expected or occurring. Sustained wind speeds of at least 40 mph or gusts of 58 mph or more can lead to property damage. &&
CLARKSBURG, W.Va.  A former nursing assistant who confessed to using insulin to murder seven elderly patients at a VA hospital will spend the rest of her life in prison.

During a hearing Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Thomas Kleeh called Reta Mays, 46, a monster of the "worst kind. You are the monster no one sees coming." He delivered a life sentence for each murder victim, plus 20 years for an eighth victim she tried to kill.

Mays sobbed as Kleeh sentenced her. When a U.S. marshal approached her after the hearing, she sat down and buried her head in her hands, crying. She got up, and she was handcuffed and led out of the courtroom.

Mays is not eligible for probation for the seven life sentences, Kleeh said. She was ordered to pay restitution to the victims' families.

The victims ranged in age from 81 to 96 and served in the Army, Navy and Air Force during World War II and wars in Korea and Vietnam. They died at the hands of the same person, at the same place, in the same way.

Mays pleaded guilty last year to murdering the seven veterans and to assaulting an eighth with intent to murder. The killings occurred at the Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center from July 2017 to June 2018.

"Something always happens when I'm in the room, and I don't know why," Mays said while sitting in a hospital room as staff tried to save one of her victims, according to Assistant U.S Attorney Jarod Douglas as he argued for a stiff sentence.

Reta Mays, a former nursing assistant at the Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center in Clarksburg, W.Va., was sentenced to seven life terms in prison.

After the hearing, the inspector general at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs released the results of an investigation concluding that serious, pervasive, and deep-rooted clinical and administrative failures at the hospital allowed the killings to go undetected for nearly a year.

While responsibility for these criminal acts clearly lies with Ms. Mays, the OIG found inattention and missed opportunities at several junctures, which, if handled differently, might have allowed earlier detection of Ms. Mays actions or possibly averted them altogether, the inspector general's office concluded.

Story continues

Nurses who kill: Medical murderers and the mystery of the Clarksburg VA hospital in West Virginia

Relatives of five of Mays' victims spoke during the hearing, some appearing via video recordings and others addressing a crowded federal courtroom. They honored their loved ones, reflected on their lives and expressed grief and anger over their loss. None said they were ready to forgive Mays.

William Edge, a son of the first victim, Robert Edge Sr., said the sentence finally delivered justice to victims' families. There will never be closure, he said at the steps of the courthouse. But I dont feel cheated or anything. This is finally justice.

'Why should you ever be let out of prison to enjoy freedom?'

Robert Kozul "loved to dance, to sing and to play his harmonica," Becky Kozul, his daughter-in-law, said. "He loved life."

She said he cried when he learned on Christmas in 2017 that he would be a great-grandfather. He never got to meet the child. "You took all that away from him," Becky said.

Mays "confessed to killing seven men and ruining seven families by robbing us of our loved ones," Becky said. "Why should you ever be let out of prison to enjoy freedom?"

In a video statement, Norma Shaw, the widow of George Shaw, said her husband was "trapped in his own body" when Mays gave the Air Force veteran, who wasnt diabetic, a lethal dose of insulin.

Air Force veteran George Shaw died on April 10, 2018, at the VA hospital in Clarksburg, W.Va. He was 81.

"I don't know why Reta did what she did. I don't know if we'll ever know. But she took my life away from me," Norma Shaw said.

She met her eventual husband in 1959. Their first date was on Valentine's Day at the Florida State Fair. They married months later in June.

Shaw said they were married almost 59 years. They had three children, nine grandchildren, 23 great-grandchildren and five great-great grandchildren by marriage.

Shaw said she struggled with whether she could forgive Mays. Maybe one day.

Robert Edge Jr., another son of Robert Edge Sr., said he couldn't.

"Growing up, he was my hero," Edge said. "He took care of me when I was little, and when it was time for me to take care of him, you took that away from me."

In a short, tearful statement, Mays said she wouldn't ask for forgiveness "because I don't think I could forgive anyone who'd do what I did."

"There are no words I can say," Mays said. "I can only say that I'm sorry for the pain that I caused the families and my family."

Judge: 'You are not special'

Jay T. McCamic, Mays' defense lawyer, argued for a 30-year prison sentence, the low end of sentencing guidelines. He said Mays had a history of mental health issues, including post-traumatic stress disorder and sexual trauma, tied to her military service and other events.

Kleeh said Mays' mental health diagnoses and traumatic experiences weren't that severe or uncommon, especially among veterans. "None of these other folks are killers, let alone serial killers," he said. "You are not special."

Mays lied to investigators three times about her role in the men's deaths, Kleeh said. She watched a Netflix show called "Nurses Who Kill," used her work computer to search "female serial killers" and compared her tally with others', Kleeh said.

The judge made a point of noting the victims' service records.

"They were good and decent men loved not only by their families but by their communities, and to whom this country owes to each and every one of them a tremendous debt," Kleeh said.

Prosecutor: 'This was all about control'

Douglas argued for a life sentence for each murder victim because Mays showed "extraordinary callousness" and acted in a calculated manner.

"This was all about control," Douglas said. "These actions gave the defendant a sense of control."

He dismissed any notion that the killings showed mercy to the ailing veterans, as he suggested Mays had claimed.

"Giving someone insulin that's not prescribed to them is not merciful," Douglas said. He described the painful effects the men felt as their blood sugar levels dropped. Edge was "thrashing around." Shaw was agitated, sweating and had an elevated heart rate. A nurse found Felix McDermott "with moist sheets, cold and clammy."

Mays on several occasions told staff that the men were in distress and participated in lifesaving efforts, Douglas said.

She performed chest compressions on one victim for more than half an hour, Douglas said. She then called her husband, who was incarcerated, and complained that her arms "felt like rubber" after doing compressions for so long. Mays complained in Facebook messages about having to deliver medication that prolonged Shaw's life, Douglas said.

Inspector general: Staff could have detected killing spree earlier

Mays was assigned to work overnight shifts on Ward 3A, the hospital's medical surgical unit, in July 2017 when patients began suffering mysterious, acute drops in blood sugar.

A USA TODAY investigation in 2019 found that a string of oversights at the hospital may have cost veterans lives. Insulin wasnt adequately tracked, and there were no surveillance cameras on Ward 3A. Staff didnt conduct tests to figure out why patients experienced severe episodes of low blood sugar. Nor did they file reports that could have triggered investigations.

The inspector generals investigation echoed those findings. It described oversights during Mays' background check, shoddy medication tracking and a lack of follow-up when the patients suffered deadly drops in blood sugar. There were communication problems among caregivers, and the hospital's culture did not encourage staff to question care and report potential patient harm.

The inspector general's report said the VA's failures began with Mays hiring in June 2015 and didnt stop until long after the string of deaths was discovered in June 2018.

Mays had been accused of using excessive force while working as a correctional officer at the West Virginia Department of Corrections from 2005 to 2012, but theres no evidence that VA hospital staff reviewed those employment records.

The federal Office of Personnel Management conducted a background check and flagged issues that could have disqualified her from being hired at the VA, but hospital staff did not document any follow-up, the inspector general's office said.

Had they done so, it is possible that based on her conduct at the jail, she would not have been hired for, or retained in, a position at the facility that involved patient care, the inspector generals office concluded.

A 'spontaneous' decision to kill with unsecured insulin

Insulin can be crucial in keeping diabetics blood sugar in check, but for non-diabetics and those who arent prescribed the medication, it can be deadly, driving blood sugar too low.

Mays told investigators she took insulin from the hospital ward, where it wasnt properly tracked, and put it into saline mixtures that were used to flush patients intravenous lines. In one case, she provided a nurse with a syringe of saline tainted with insulin, which the nurse unwittingly administered to a patient.

Mays claimed that it was a spontaneous decision with each victim, that securing the insulin was not difficult, and that none of her supervisors or colleagues asked questions or otherwise appeared to be suspicious about her activities, investigators from the inspector generals office wrote.

Insulin was stored in an unlocked refrigerator and left on carts in hallways, according to the inspector general's office.

After hospital leaders started to figure out in June 2018 what Mays had done, investigators visiting the hospital still found medication wasnt properly secured. That prompted additional warnings to staff about drug security.

Hospital staff didn't investigate rash of unexplained low blood sugar

Robert Edge Sr. was the first patient to experience a deadly drop in blood sugar when Mays worked the overnight shift in July 2017. Then the pace quickened. Seven patients died after severe, unexplained low blood sugar in the first six months of 2018.

By comparison, over four years, only one patient per year suffered acute hypoglycemia and died within a month of discharge.

In spring 2018, four of the hypoglycemic events occurred within three weeks. "That should have set off major alarm bells. Somebody should be asking the question and looking into it. They did not do so," VA Inspector General Michael Missal said at a news conference after the sentencing.

In Shaw's case, doctors ordered a test, but it was the wrong one and the sample was taken at the wrong time  after nurses had given him glucose to stabilize his blood sugar.

Some of the doctors didn't seem to know about applicable lab tests, and they did not consult endocrinologists, who specialize in diabetes and blood sugar.

The absence of follow-up was exacerbated by a lack of coordination between caregivers. Doctors assigned to the ward alternated weeks, and daily meetings typically focused on discharge planning.

Had staff members used meetings and forums to discuss patient outcomes, or had staff consistently taken the initiative to communicate concerns to leaders, it is possible that the emerging pattern of events would have been discovered sooner, the investigators wrote.

No patient safety reports

Hospital staff did not file required incident reports that could have triggered a deeper review and revealed Mays' killings. The inspector generals office found doctors and nurses didnt know what to report and when.

Even as the ward ran out of glucose as nurses frantically tried to raise patients blood sugar in a cluster of cases, staff didnt flag any potential problems.

By the time doctors alerted supervisors in June 2018 to the string of suspicious deaths, eight patients had died. They notified an associate chief of staff who asked quality managers to do further testing and review what might have happened. The hospital director  since replaced  was on leave when he was notified and asked that the review continue until he could be briefed when he returned.

At the end of June 2018, the director called officials at headquarters, who notified the inspector general that there was a potential angel of death at the Clarksburg VA.

VA pledges improvements

The Department of Veterans Affairs said in a statement last week that the agency has made a number of improvements in response to the investigation by the inspector general, an independent watchdog. They include steps to increase care coordination between medical providers, bolster endocrinology referrals and evaluations and better train nursing staff on diabetes.

What happened was unacceptable, and we want to ensure veterans and families know we are determined to restore their trust in the facility, the agency said.

The Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center in Clarksburg, W.Va., serves 70,000 veterans.

The Clarksburg VA draws patients from across the region, serving about 70,000 veterans in north-central West Virginia and nearby Maryland, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

In December, the VA replaced the hospital director and chief nursing executive and retrained staff on critical incident reporting. The hospital conducted a safety stand-down in which noncritical patients weren't admitted for several weeks.

People are satisfied now, said John Aloi, senior vice commander of VFW Post 573 in Clarksburg.

Wearing a black "United We Stand" mask after wrapping up a Monday night meeting at the post, Aloi said veterans wanted a measure of justice from the court hearing. Equally important, he said, are safety reforms at the VA hospital.

But the real test is how things go in the future, he said. Once you lose trust, its hard to get it back."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Serial killer Reta Mays sentenced in VA hospital murders
The home Bill and Melinda Gates share in Seattle is the most mega of mansions  so when the couple announced their decision to part ways last week after 27 years of marriage, it left many wondering what may happen to the palatial pad.

Nicknamed "Xanadu 2.0"  a reference to the massive, fictional estate in the movie Citizen Kane  the Gates family mansion is a 66,000-square-foot compound in the suburbs of Seattle, Washington. Though this property is their most notable, the pair have also bought multiple homes together over the years, including, most recently, a $43 million home in Del Mar, California, in April 2020, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Sprawling along the Lake Washington waterfront, their main home is worth an estimated $131 million, according to the New York Times, and the billionaire Microsoft co-founder, 65, and the philanthropist and former general manager at Microsoft, 56, own several parcels of land surrounding the property to keep it invisible to onlookers.

The Gateses have rarely shown or discussed their home over the years  but there are a few facts that have been documented or the couple themselves have let slip.

Bill Gates, Melinda Gates

A 2008 profile of Melinda in Fortune (her first solo profile ever), revealed that Bill had been working on designing the home prior to their relationship, and it was far more of a tech-focused bachelor pad than a family home before she entered his life.

RELATED: 'Combo of Things' Led to Bill & Melinda Gates' Divorce, But 'Nobody' Wants 'More Scrutiny': Source

Construction on the home  a series of pavilions designed by architects James Cutler and Peter Bohlin  was even temporarily halted for six months for the pair to determine if it was a place they would be able to comfortably share and raise a family, according to the publication. Melinda eventually hired interior designer Thierry Despont to help make it more livable.

Story continues

According to a 1995 story from the New York Times, published when the couple was putting the finishing touches on the property, the house includes a 60-foot pool, 20-car garage, reception hall for 150 people, gym lined with rock from the Pacific Northwest, trampoline room, and a spa.

There have been no updates from the Gateses on how they've changed or updated the home since then.

In 2007, a Microsoft intern shared a few more details about the home after having the chance to attend "one of the four annual intern BBQs" hosted by Bill, which the intern wrote about on a Microsoft blog.

According to his post, he and 265 other interns were bused to Xanadu 2.0 from the Microsoft campus and were allowed to explore the property when they arrived. He describes "getting screened airport-style" to ensure no one had a camera or phones before checking out the elaborate landscaping, dock, boat, hot tub and beach (with sand imported from Hawaii) in the backyard. Inside, he recalls seeing a movie theater and "a room that looked to be completely filled with couches and pillows."

Despite having opened their doors to company interns  as well as friends and family  a peek inside the home is coveted enough that, in 2009, a tour of the home sold for $35,000 at a charity auction, TechCrunch reported.

RELATED: Bill and Melinda Gates File for Divorce  What's Now at Stake for the Billionaires

Gates Archive

Now that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation co-founders have announced their decision to end their marriage, it's unclear what will happen to their family home. The pair share three children: son Rory John, 21, and daughters Phoebe Adele, 18, and Jennifer Katharine, 25.

In a 2019 interview with the New York Times, Melinda indicated that she would be happy to move out of the home, and that she and Bill would likely be making some "lifestyle changes"  including moving into a smaller home  when their youngest, Phoebe, went off to college.

"With the foundation in Seattle, we will be here for at least six months out of the year. But I assure you, if we decide to spend six months somewhere else it will be in a smaller house," she told the publication at the time.

When discussing the morality of owning a multi-million dollar home, Melinda said: "We certainly spend money on ourselves. You see it in the house that we built. We won't have that house forever, though." She continued: "Anyway, just to be clear, the house was being built before I came on the scene. But I take responsibility for it."

Melinda also suggested she didn't think of the expansive property as her forever home: "I'm actually really looking forward to the day that Bill and I live in a 1,500-square-foot house."

RELATED VIDEO: Melinda Gates Calls Marriage to Bill 'Irretrievably Broken,' Declines Spousal Support Despite No Prenup

On May 3, Bill and Melinda shared a joint statement on Twitter, announcing their separation.

"After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage. Over the last 27 years, we have raised three incredible children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all people to lead healthy, productive lives," they said, referring to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which they founded in 2000 and is now worth over $40 billion.

"We continue to share a belief in that mission and will continue our work together at the foundation, but we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives. We ask for space and privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life," they concluded in the statement.

A source tells PEOPLE that a "combo of things" led them to end the relationship after 27 years of marriage and that the recent timing reflects the fact that Phoebe is now an adult.

"It's absolutely because their youngest child is graduating from high school, and the idea was that they stayed together through that," the source says. "They limped through until their kids were out of school like a lot of people."

RELATED: Melinda Gates Talks About Reflecting on 'Your Own Resilience' on Mother's Day amid Divorce from Bill Gates

JEFF CHRISTENSEN/Getty Bill and Melinda Gates

Melinda filed for divorce in documents that indicate she and Bill have a separation agreement in place  something the source says is likely part of a plan to keep things as civil and private as possible between the former couple, who have said they still plan to work together at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

"Nobody is going to want to invite more scrutiny because it'll hurt their credibility," the source says. "I don't think they're so angry that anybody wants to take each other down, like you sometimes see. [Melinda is] not incentivized for that."

In Melinda's court documents, which were obtained by PEOPLE, the philanthropist said her marriage was "irretrievably broken," and that she was not requesting spousal support or child support  only that the court reinforce their separation contract.

Their split comes nearly three decades after they tied the knot on New Year's Day in Lanai, Hawaii after first meeting at Microsoft after she began working there in 1987.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 18:55:06|Editor: huaxia

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KABUL, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Taliban militants in Afghanistan have intensified activities ahead of Eid al-Fitr, the end of Muslims' fasting month Ramadan, as more than 80 fighters were killed over the past 24 hours in the militancy-battered country, officials said Tuesday.

In the latest waves of violent incident, the militants opened fire on police in the southern Kandahar city on Tuesday, killing one policeman and injuring another, police spokesman Jamal Barikzai said.

The armed insurgents on Monday gunned down a police officer in eastern Logar province, police confirmed.

At least 48 militants were killed and 18 others injured as fighting planes from the government forces struck Taliban hideouts in Dawlat Shah district of eastern Laghman province on Monday, said the Defense Ministry in a statement.

According to officials, more than 30 militants were killed in Herat, Badakhshan, Wardak, Baghlan and Balkh provinces over the past 24 hours.

A Taliban purported spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has rejected the claims without providing information on the possible casualties of government security forces and the insurgents.

Confirming increase in fighting, spokesman for the Defense Ministry Fawad Aman told media on Tuesday that the armed group had increased violent incidents, noting the security forces are capable enough to foil Taliban attempts.

Fighting has increased as Afghans are preparing to celebrate Eid al-Fitr -- the end of Muslims' fasting month Ramadan, observed Wednesday or Thursday depending on moon sight.

In the meantime, the Taliban group announced a three-day ceasefire during the three-day holiday of Eid al-Fitr, a step that has been welcomed by Afghans.

Chairman of the Afghan High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah welcomed the three-day truce in a statement, stressing that "Solution to Afghanistan's crisis is to accelerate negotiations, declare permanent ceasefire and to end the war permanently."

In a message to congratulate Eid al-Fitr on Twitter, Taliban's supreme leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada called for implementation of Doha agreement and warned of dire consequences if the United States violates the agreement.

In the message, the Taliban leader also said the Islamic Emirate (name of ousted Taliban regime) assures that Afghanistan's soil won't be used against any country and won't allow anyone to interfere in Afghanistan's internal affairs. Enditem
Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit and Concert Tour  both trained by Bob Baffert  will be allowed to run in Saturdays Preakness at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, according to Baffert's lawyer.

Craig Robertson, Bafferts lawyer, confirmed the agreement in an email.

In a letter to Alan Rifkin, an attorney for the Maryland Jockey Club, Robertson wrote Baffert consented to blood testing, monitoring and medical record reviews for Medina Spirit, Concert Tour and Beautiful Gift. The latter is entered in Fridays Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico.

Robertson wrote the three horses were tested upon arrival at Pimlico and would be tested later Tuesday, with blood samples handled by a lab chosen by the Maryland Jockey Club.

Bob Baffert spoke with the media in front of his barn on the backside of Churchill Downs the day after his seventh victory in the Kentucky Derby with Medina Spirit. May 2, 2021

If any of the three horses test positive for a banned substance, or at a level for a permitted therapeutic substance which is above the designated limit, or if reasonable conditions warrant after MJCs review of the medical or administrative records, Mr. Baffert, or MJC on his behalf, will scratch that horse from the upcoming race in which that horse is entered this weekend at Pimlico, Robertson wrote. Mr. Baffert has given these consents to further the interests of horse racing and the public.

The Preakness draw is set for Tuesday afternoon.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Bob Baffert's lawyer says Medina Spirit can enter Preakness
Image via Getty/NASA

On Monday, a NASA spacecraft filled with asteroid rubble, called Osiris-REx, started its journey back to Earth. It should be here in *checks watch* roughly two-and-a-half years.

Osiris-REx first got to asteroid Bennu in 2018. For two years it flew near/around it. Then it touched down and collected debris. Its estimated to be holding somewhere between half a pound to a full pound of tiny chunks of the asteroid. That seemingly dinky amount is actually a lot, as the original goal was to collect just two ounces.

The Associated Press writes that the haul will be the biggest for the U.S. since the Apollo crew(s) returned with moon rocks in the late 60s/early 70s. This also marks the first time that NASA has acquired pieces of an asteroid. Prior to this Japan had done it twice, but did so in very small amounts.

Ive been working on getting a sample back from an asteroid since my daughter was in diapers and now shes graduating from high school, so its been a long journey, said Jason Dworkin, a project scientist for the space agency.

Adding onto that, the principal scientist for the operation, Dante Lauretta, said We have gotten used to being at Bennu and seeing new and exciting images and data coming back to us here on Earth.

This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it.

Scientists are hopeful that the cosmic loot will help them learn some of the solar systems secrets. Bennu is about 1,600 feet wide, and is believed to be 4.5 billion years old. Its thought that it broke off from a bigger asteroid. The pieces of it coming back to Earth could provide info on how planets formed and how life emerged on Earth. Scientists think asteroids smashed into Earth as it formed, bringing with them elements like water.

As for Osiris-Rex, at this time its about 291 million miles from Earth. Its journey back is going to be considerably lengthier (1.4 billion miles) and will involve it twice circling the sun before, ideally, arriving in a Utah desert on September 24, 2023.

Story continues

It first launched in 2016 from Cape Canaveral.

Though none of them include plans for sample returns, other planned asteroid projects include a spacecraft named Lucy, which will launch in October and head towards swarms of asteroids by Jupiter. Another craft, known as Dart (standing for Double Asteroid Redirection Test), will head out in November to try and alter the course of an asteroid as a test-run for planetary protection. Finally, next year, a spacecraft called Psyche will be aimed towards a metallic asteroid that shares its name.

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Workers from marginalized communities in India were lured to the U.S. and forced to work long hours for just a few dollars per day to help build a Hindu temple in New Jersey, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday.

An FBI spokesperson confirmed Tuesday that agents were at the temple on court-authorized law enforcement activity.

The lawsuit filed in federal court accuses the leaders of the Hindu organization known as Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, or BAPS, of human trafficking and wage law violations.

The lawsuit says more than 200 workers  many or all of whom don't speak or understand English  were coerced into signing employment agreements in India to work at the Hindu temple in Robbinsville, outside Trenton. They traveled under R-1 visas, which are meant for those who minister, or work in religious vocations or occupations, according to the lawsuit.

When they arrived, the lawsuit says, their passports were taken away and they were forced to work at the temple from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. with few days off, for about $450 per month. That wage works out to roughly $1.20 per hour.

Of the $450, the workers allegedly only received $50 in cash per month, with the rest deposited into their accounts in India.

The workers lived in a fenced-in compound where their movements were monitored by cameras and guards, according to the lawsuit, and they were told that if they left, police would arrest them because they didn't have their passports.

Messages were left Tuesday at telephone numbers listed for BAPS in New Jersey. BAPS CEO Kanu Patel, who is named as a defendant in the lawsuit, told The New York Times: I respectfully disagree with the wage claim.

A spokesperson for the organization, Lenin Joshi, disputed the allegations.

We are naturally shaken by this turn of events and are sure that once the full facts come out, we will be able to provide answers and show that these accusations and allegations are without merit, Joshi told the Times.

The lawsuit also names BAPS and several individuals described as having supervised the workers. It seeks unpaid wages and unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.

Daniel Werner, an attorney in Decatur, Georgia, who was among a group of lawyers who sued on behalf of the workers, called it a horrific case of worker exploitation.

"It is even more disturbing that it has gone on for years in New Jersey behind the temples walls, Werner said. These workers were coerced through lies to come to the United States to work and then suffered tremendously. They were basically forced into servitude.



Associated Press writer Mike Catalini contributed to this report.
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 19:36:41|Editor: huaxia

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Bouquets of flowers are placed on desks to mourn victims of the recent terror attacks on a girl school in Kabul, Afghanistan, May 11, 2021. The government of Afghanistan declared Tuesday as a national mourning day to pay tribute to the victims of the recent terror attacks on a girl school in Kabul and on a group of students in eastern Logar province. (Xinhua/Rahmatullah Alizadah)

KABUL, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The government of Afghanistan declared Tuesday as a national mourning day to pay tribute to the victims of the recent terror attacks on a girl school in Kabul and on a group of students in eastern Logar province.

Three consecutive blasts including a car bomb struck a girl school in Dasht-e-Barchi locality of PD 13 in Kabul city on Saturday, killing more than 60 pupils and injuring more than 100 others, with all the victims being civilians, police have confirmed.

In late April, an explosives-laden car targeted a guest house in Pul-e-Alam city, capital of eastern Logar province, killing 30 persons with majority of them being students.

To pay homage to the victims of the terrorist attacks, the government announced Tuesday as a national mourning day, during which the country's national flag remains half-hoisted.

President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani in a statement, besides condemning the attacks on school in the strongest term, said "Taliban by increasing coward act of terrorism once again demonstrated that the group doesn't believe in political solution to the country's crisis and rather sabotaging the peace process."

The Taliban outfit, which claimed responsibility for the deadly car bomb attack in Logar province, has rejected its involvement in attack on the girl school in Kabul. Enditem
Greensboro, NC (27407)

Today

Rain showers this morning with numerous thunderstorms developing during the afternoon hours. High around 80F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely this evening. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low 69F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
Arizona News

Phoenix, Arizona - Governor Doug Ducey Tuesday signed legislation allowing community colleges to offer four-year degrees, paving the way for Arizonas current and future workforces and expanding opportunities for populations that are historically underrepresented in higher education.

Arizonas community colleges play a critical role in supporting students of all ages and equipping our workforce with skills and resources, said Governor Ducey. Arizona is a school choice state, and todays action is school choice for higher education. This is Opportunity for All in action. It will allow students even more opportunities as they strengthen their education and expand their employment opportunities. Thank you to Senator Paul Boyer and Representative Becky Nutt for leading on legislation that supports Arizonas higher education students and our talented workforce.



As the state moves forward from the pandemic, Senate Bill 1453 is an important and timely shift to reskill and upskill Arizonas workforce to meet the needs of the growing economy and provide a pathway to economic prosperity for more Arizonans.



As more and more jobs come to Arizona, we need to make sure our workforce is ready to meet the demand, said Senator Paul Boyer. Community colleges equip students with much-needed skills, and expanding their degree programs will benefit adult students of all ages and strengthen Arizonas workforce. It will also draw more talented students and diverse employers to our state. Thank you, Governor Ducey, for signing Senate Bill 1453.



Research suggests that these degrees may play an important role in better serving a racially and economically diverse student population. The students are typically adult learners who are working, often full-time, and who have considerable work experience that they do not want to abandon for full-time study toward the baccalaureate degree.



Todays legislation will help people in every corner of our state, said Representative Becky Nutt, who helped spearhead these efforts. Arizona has been a national leader in school choice for many years, and allowing community colleges to offer four-year degrees will take a step further in meeting the needs of adult students.



The legislation will align Arizona with 23 other states, including all neighboring states, to allow community colleges to offer four-year degrees in limited circumstances.



We are committed to helping our students connect with programs that fit their needs and prepare them for job opportunities, said Yavapai College President Dr. Lisa Rhine. There are a wide range of jobs available all across the state, and we are preparing our students to meet that demand and reach their goals. Allowing community colleges like Yavapai College to offer four-year degrees will save students money, draw more students to our school and build up our workforce. My thanks to the legislators who supported Senate Bill 1453, Governor Ducey for signing it, and everyone who supported this important reform.



Under the legislation, community colleges opting to offer baccalaureate degrees must approve each program based on specific criteria, including workforce need, a financial and administrative analysis of the feasibility of offering the program, and mitigating duplication.



At Eastern Arizona College, were ready to support and work with students who want to get a higher education and build a career, said Eastern Arizona College President Todd Haynie. The legislation signed by Governor Ducey provides an accessible way for Arizona students to continue their education and build a brighter future for themselves and their loved ones. When community colleges offer four-year degrees, it opens up opportunities for more students of all ages and backgrounds. Thank you to everyone who supported this bill.



Enabling Arizonas community colleges to offer baccalaureate degrees will be very beneficial to San Carlos Apache College students by increasing the amount and diversity of choices available to them locally and throughout the State, if not the country, for pursuing their baccalaureate and higher-level degrees, said San Carlos Apache Tribe Chairman Terry Rambler. A more educated and skilled Arizona workforce will also increase business and personal income, grow revenues for the state to invest in other critical needs, and decrease dependency on social safety nets.



This is great news for Sierra Vista, home to one of the best community colleges in the nation. Our citizens will benefit from expanded educational opportunities, said Sierra Vista Mayor Rick Mueller. It will aid our ability to develop and maintain a skilled local workforce qualified to work high tech and medical jobs we have, which will bolster Sierra Vistas economic development efforts and benefit our surrounding rural communities.



"This legislation enhances school choice in our state by expanding access to affordable baccalaureate degrees and supports our economy by building a skilled workforce in the highest need areas, such as health care, information technology, police and fire science, and education, Maricopa Community College District Interim Chancellor Dr. Steven Gonzales said in a letter.



"Community colleges offer our veterans quality education at affordable prices, allowing our community access to higher education and college completion, Maricopa Veterans Education Taskforce President Calvin DeVoll said in a letter.



"...I am a busy mom of 9 active children, and it has not been easy to balance my personal, professional and academic life. However, having a supportive community college has been extremely instrumental in my journey to achieving my academic goals. I would be excited at the opportunity to stay at my current community college and save the money that I will need for the masters level work that I plan to pursue, Rio Salado Community College student Antonette Pearson said in a letter.
Arizona News

Phoenix, Arizona - Governor Doug Ducey Tuesday issued a proclamation recognizing May 5, 2021 as Arizona State Employee Recognition Day to thank state employees for their hard work and dedication to serving Arizonans.

State employees have dedicated countless hours to help support Arizonans and ensure their needs are met, said Governor Ducey. When the pandemic hit, they stepped up to lead, support and provide information to Arizonans all across the state. Their work does not go unnoticed, and I am thankful for all that they do.



View a PDF of the proclamation HERE.
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 20:40:12|Editor: huaxia

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KATHMANDU, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The first shipment of China-donated oxygen cylinders and ventilators arrived in Nepal on Tuesday, which Nepali officials say are helpful in reducing the shortage of oxygen for COVID-19 patients in the country.

A Nepal Airlines plane landed at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu at 16:00 local time with oxygen cylinders, ventilators and oxygen concentrators from Beijing, said Dim Prasad Poudel, managing director of the airline.

According to Nepal's Finance Ministry which has been coordinating with the Chinese side for the assistance, there is an agreement with China for the delivery.

D.B. Chhetri, under secretary at the ministry, told Xinhua that the Chinese side would deliver the remaining oxygen cylinders in the next few weeks.

Citing the lack of oxygen, several hospitals have announced in recent days that they would not admit new patients.

"The cylinders arrived from China will not be sufficient but helpful to ease the oxygen crisis to some extent," Jageshwor Gautam, spokesperson at Nepal's Ministry of Health and Population, told Xinhua.

He said most of the China-donated cylinders would be distributed to large government-run hospitals in the Kathmandu Valley and a few would be sent to the crisis-hit provinces in southwestern and far-western Nepal respectively.

On Monday, Nepal recorded a record high of 9,127 new infections, taking the total cases to 403,794 in the country, while 139 deaths were reported the same day, the highest death toll ever seen in the country.

Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli again called for international support to Nepal on Monday, referring to vaccines, diagnostic tools, oxygen kits, critical care medicines and equipment in particular.

At a recent video conference of the foreign ministers of China, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka on COVID-19, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi announced that China would provide Nepal with a new batch of anti-epidemic supplies. Enditem
YORK  Klara Domena, 41, of New Brighton, Penn., has been charged with six felonies after allegedly being caught with 25 pounds of high grade marijuana on a country road in York County.

Court documents indicate a ruse checkpoint was being conducted at the Bradshaw exit on Interstate 80 when a deputy with the York County Sheriffs Department saw an eastbound Florida vehicle suddenly exit and turn right onto County Road H without first signaling.

A traffic stop was initiated.

The deputy says Domena was alone in the rental vehicle.

The deputys affidavit says he asked if everything was alright and Domena responded that her GPS had quit working so she decided to exit the interstate.

The deputy became suspicious when Domena told him she was coming from Illinois and heading to Iowa  plus she never mentioned any locations west of that point (as she had been traveling eastbound). She also gave him a Pennsylvania drivers license.

I pointed out that both Iowa and Illinois are in the direction in which she was traveling, the deputy says in his affidavit.
YORK  In celebration of National Travel and Tourism Week, Nebraska Tourism recognized five outstanding frontline tourism employees from all across the state  and Sue Ann Romohr was one of them.

The Outstanding Frontline Employee Award recognizes individuals that go above and beyond while interacting with travelers and locals. They strive to enhance visitors experiences and demonstrate high levels of customer service and pride in their destination. Nebraska tourism industry members were encouraged to submit nominations for outstanding frontline employees in their community, explained officials with Nebraska Tourism.

The Nebraska tourism industry relies on frontline employees since theyre the ones interacting with travelers while they are here, said John Ricks, Nebraska Tourism executive director. We are lucky to have so many dedicated frontline workers in Nebraska and Im pleased to recognize some of them for their hard work in creating a positive experience for visitors.
YORK  Two registered sex offenders in York County have been accused of non-compliance and are facing felony charges.

A few weeks ago, the York County Attorneys office announced they would be joining forces with the York County Sheriffs Department and the Nebraska State Patrol in cracking down on local registered sex offenders who do not comply with the reporting requirements that come with being on the statewide sex offender registry.

Since that time, numerous registered sex offenders have been charged in York County, for failing to comply.

Now, two more are being accused of doing the same.

Seth Miller, 22, of York is charged with failure to register his residency information with the sheriffs department, which is a Class 3A felony. Miller was convicted of third degree sexual assault in York County on June 21, 2018.

If found guilty of this latest charge, he could be facing a possible maximum sentence of three years in prison with 18 months of post-release supervision.
Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has ordered an inquiry into the death of 11 COVID-19 patients at Ruia Hospital in Andhra Pradesh`s Tirupati on Monday. The patients, who were on ventilator support, died due to low pressure in the medical oxygen supply at the hospital, according to Chittoor District Collector Harinarayan.

Expressing grief over the incident, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister ordered a probe and sought a detailed report from concerned officials, said an ANI report. Jaganmohan Reddy on Tuesday announced Rs 10 lakhs ex-gratia for the families of those who died at Ruia Hospital, Tirupati last night.

"Reasons for the incident must be identified and steps should be taken to ensure that no such incidents occur again," CM Reddy is quoted by ANI as saying. The Andhra CM further ordered to monitor the situation at every hospital in the state round the clock, directing officials to give special focus on the management of oxygen systems in hospitals besides oxygen collection and supply.

"This mishap took place due to the reduction of pressure in the oxygen supply. 11 patients who were on ventilators lost their lives," Hospital Superintendent Dr Bharati told ANI.

Soon after getting information about the incident, the District Collector and Superintendent of Police rushed to the spot.

Speaking to media persons, the Chittoor District Collector said, "As of now, the death of 11 patients has been confirmed. Treatment is going on for the remaining patients at the hospital. The incident took place at around 8.30 pm due to low pressure in the medical oxygen supply. Several COVID patients are on ventilators there. The pressure was reduced for hardly five minutes. Meanwhile, an oxygen tanker came but before the hospital authorities could set it up, we lost 11 patients."

"There is adequate oxygen in the hospital. Almost 1,000 patients are getting treatment here. The hospital has 700 oxygen beds and the remaining 300 are regular beds. Around 30 doctors are working on a war footing. Tomorrow more oxygen will come. The oxygen tanker has to come from Chennai. It got delayed by some time. An investigation, including police inquiry, will be taken up," Harinarayan added.

(With Agency Inputs)
Mumbai: Suspended Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Waze, arrested by the NIA in the case of an explosives-laden SUV found near the Antilia building at Mumbai's Cumballa Hill and the murder of businessman Mansukh Hiran, was on Tuesday (May 11) dismissed from police service.

Sachin Waze was known as an 'encounter cop'

The order terminating Waze's service was issued by Mumbai Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale, PTI quoted a spokesperson of the city police as saying. A 1990-batch officer of the Maharashtra cadre, Waze (49), also known as an 'encounter cop', was suspended after his arrest by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the SUV-cum-murder case on March 13.

"API Sachin Hindurao Waze has been dismissed from police service. Order has been issued today under Provision of 311(2)(B) Constitution of India by Commissioner of Police, Greater Mumbai," a top official said. Article 311 of the Constitution and related sub-sections deal with "dismissal, removal or reduction in rank of persons employed in civil capacities under the Union or a State on certain grounds.

He was earlier suspended for 16 years in alleged custodial death of Khwaja Yunus

Waze, now lodged in jail, was reinstated in the Mumbai police in June 2020 after being suspended for 16 years in a case related to alleged custodial death of Khwaja Yunus, an accused in the Ghatkopar bomb blast of 2002. Post-reinstatement, he was appointed the head of the Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU), an elite branch of the Mumbai Crime Branch. As the CIU head, he was handling a slew of high- profile cases, including the fake TRP case, fake social media followers case, the DC car finance scam and the Antilia bomba scare case (in which he is now an accused), the official said.

The SUV with explosives was found near Antilia building in south Mumbai on February 25. Hiran, a Thane-based businessman who was in possession of the SUV, was found dead in a creek in Thane on March 5. Waze had allegedly played a key role in both the incidents (now being treated as one case), the official said. The Maharashtra ATS (Anti-Terrorism Squad) was handling the case before it was handed over to the NIA.

In her statement to the ATS, Hiran's wife Vimla had said she suspected Waze's involvement in the killing of her husband. Accordingly, a case of murder was registered against unidentified persons. By that time, Waze was transferred from the Crime Branch to the Special Branch of the Mumbai police. After his alleged involvement surfaced in the crime, the Special Branch had sought details of the case from the ATS and a report was submitted to the Mumbai Police Commissioner. Accordingly, the Mumbai police chief issued orders terminating Waze's service, the official said.

The NIA has so far arrested nearly half a dozen persons in connection with the SUV-cum-murder case, including Waze, API Riyazuddin Kazi, who worked with Waze in the CIU, and Crime Branch senior inspector Sunil Mane.

(With PTI inputs)

Live TV
Patna: The wife of a COVID-19 patient, who succumbed in a private hospital in Patna on May 8, has alleged that a doctor there had molested her, while the hospital administration deliberately switched off the oxygen supply in the ICU, to force people to buy oxygen cylinders, and this caused her husband`s death.

Sharing her plight, the woman said that the entire family, living in Noida, came to Bhagalpur to celebrate Holi, and decided to stay back as coronavirus cases began to increase across the country.

"On April 9, the health of my husband Raushan Chandra deteriorated and we conducted his RT-PCR test which came negative. As his health condition was not improving, we got him admitted to a private hospital in Bhagalpur. He underwent RT-PCR tests twice again which came negative. As doctors were not attending to him properly, we consulted a doctor in Noida. During a video chat, he suggested my husband undergo a CT-scan of his chest. When we did the CT-scan, 60 per cent of infections were found in his lung. Soon after the report, we consulted the doctors of the hospital, who referred him to a hospital in Mayaganj in Bhagalpur for better treatment.

"My husband was admitted in ICU of the hospital in Mayaganj. He was not in a position to interact with anyone. He was on oxygen support in ICU and only communicated through signals. Whenever he made a missed call, it was his way of informing us whenever he wanted something," she said.

The woman also claimed that the situation was extremely shocking in the ICU as the staff did not even change the bed sheet, and patients forced to stay on their beds soiled with urine and stools.

"My husband also stayed there for 6 to 7 hours and they neither changed the bedcover nor allow us to change it," she said.

"One day, his health deteriorated and he informed me through a missed call, and when I forcibly entered the ICU, I found that the pipe of the oxygen mask was not attached. I shouted for help, then doctors came and connected the pipe with a mask. That incident created fear in my husband`s mind. When I complained to a senior doctor, he threatened me to tear my eyes out. A ward boy snatched my dupatta in front of my husband in the ICU and put his hand in my hip," she said.

"When I was sitting on a bench in the corridor outside the ICU, Jyoti came and made inappropriate remarks," she said.

The woman also said as her husband`s health did not improve, she managed to obtain a Remdesvir injection at a higher price and gave it to the doctor, but he only injected half and kept the other half with himself.

"When I complained that it was a life-saving drug and not easy to obtain apart from its high cost, that doctor and other medical staff threatened me with dire consequences. I became silent as I was scared that they might kill my husband," she said.

She stated that they eventually decided to take him away from that Mayaganj hospital, and had contacted several hospitals in Noida but were unable to find a bed there.

"Then, we decided to take him to a hospital in Patna and admitted him in the ICU on April 26. However, doctors of the hospital did not even visit the ICU. A doctor inappropriately touched me several times during his visit to the ICU. I did not dare to shout as I suspected that they might do `wrong treatment` of my husband," she said.

The woman alleged that the hospital administration deliberately stopped the oxygen supply of the ICU in a bid to force patients to purchase oxygen cylinders privately at high prices.

"The doctors gave us an excuse about limited oxygen supply leading to non-regular supply in the ICU. Hence, we purchased an oxygen cylinder for him in case of an emergency. The hospital administration regularly stops the oxygen supply in the ICU. This practice has taken the life of my husband on May 8," she said.

"I don`t know where I should go to complain against the hospitals of Bhagalpur and Patna. I request Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and (state) Health Minister Mangal Pandey to take cognizance of wrongdoing with me and my husband. I also appeal to the Bihar, Delhi and national women commissions to investigate," she said.


New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday (May 12) will hear the plea seeking direction to stop or suspend all construction activity of the Central Vista Avenue Redevelopment Project in compliance with orders issued by the Delhi Disaster Management Authority in view of the rising number of coronavirus cases, an ANI report said.

According to the report, the plea states that at a time when the city of Delhi is grappling with a devastating coronavirus outbreak and when all efforts, particularly and more so by the state and its agencies, have to be towards controlling the spiralling situation, the impugned acts of the Respondents, will nullify and negate all those efforts.

The matter was mentioned by senior advocate Siddharth Luthra for preponement of the date of hearing as it was earlier listed for May 17 for a detailed hearing.

The bench of Justice DN Patel and Justice Jasmeet Singh on Monday asked him to file an application and said they will hear the matter tomorrow (Tuesday). Senior Advocate Sidharth Luthra also informed the bench about the Supreme Court's direction in this regard.

Earlier on May 7, the Supreme Court urged Delhi High Court to consider the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by petitioner Anya Malhotra seeking a stay in construction work of the Central Vista project in New Delhi amid the prevailing condition of coronavirus cases across the country. The top court asked the High Court to issue orders related to the matter.

Petitioners Anya Malhotra and Sohail Hashmi were represented by senior advocate Sidharth Luthra in the matter who stated that the petition is concerned with the ongoing construction activity in the part of the Central Vista Redevelopment Project designated as 'Central Vista Avenue Redevelopment Project' and is challenging the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development and CPWD's relentless, unmindful and reckless act of carrying on this project in a manner that poses a threat to the lives of the citizens of Delhi and beyond.

Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma, who appeared for the Union of India, had opposed the plea and said that the petition is of doubtful credentials.

Central Vista Development Project

The Central Vista Development Project envisages the construction of a new Parliament building, a common secretariat for central government offices, the Prime Minister's office and residence, the Special Protection Group building and the Vice-President Enclave.

The construction work for the project is being carried out since January 5, 2021, after the Supreme Court dismissed Petitions challenging the project. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the project in December 2020.

The Project intends to revamp 86 acres of land in Delhi, which includes Rajpath, Parliament House, Rashtrapati Bhavan, India Gate, North Block and South Block, Shastri Bhavan, India Gate, and Udyog Bhavan.

(With Agency Inputs)
New Delhi: Owing to the surge in COVID-19 cases in the state, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday (May 11) wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking an increase in liquid medical oxygen (LMO) allocation to 910 tonnes.

Reddy said that oxygen allocation was 480 tonnes as of April 24, which was revised to 590 tonnes on May 8 but that was not sufficient to meet the demand in hospitals.

The revised allocation is not at all commensurate with the increasing active (COVID-19) cases. On May 10, oxygen supplies from Chennai and Karnataka were delayed and led to the unfortunate incident wherein 11 persons died due to lack of oxygen in Tirupati, the letter read.

I request your intervention to increase the LMO allocation to 910 tonnes and also allot 20 LMO tankers so as to ensure oxygen supplies to all hospitals to take care of the current patient load, he added.

Earlier, Reddy ordered an inquiry into the death of 11 COVID-19 patients at Ruia Hospital in Tirupati. The patients, who were on ventilator support, died due to low pressure in the medical oxygen supply at the hospital.

In his letter to Modi, Reddy pointed out that the oxygen allocation from Karnataka and Odisha can be increased.

The allocation from JSW plant at Bellary in Karnataka has to be increased from 20 to 150 tonnes as it has enhanced its capacity recently, he wrote. He added that supply from Odisha should be increased from 210 to 400 tonnes.

"In addition, 20 LMO tankers may be allotted to the state to transport this extra allocation from Odisha using the Oxygen Express methodology, duly tying up with the Indian Railways, he said further.

Live TV
New Delhi: In view of the second wave of coronavirus in the country, the University Grants Commission (UGC) on Monday (May 10, 2021) wrote to the Vice-Chancellors of all Universities and Principals of all colleges and said that everyone should stay together to overcome this crisis.

He urged them to continue their efforts and reinforce support to students, teachers, staff, officers and other stakeholders to keep people in good health, safe and informed in these difficult times.

"These challenging times demand that we remain sensitive to the problems and needs of our stakeholders and extend our best possible support and help to overcome such unprecedented situation," UGC Chairman DP Singh wrote.

The letter comes after several faculty members reportedly succumbed to COVID-19 in various Universities including Aligarh Muslim University and Delhi University.

He also reiterated the following measures to be undertaken by all the HEIs in the 'present times for a better tomorrow':

 Constituting COVID Task Force and help lines.

 Promoting COVID appropriate behaviour including sanitization, wearing a mask, washing hands with soap repeatedly, maintaining social distancing, testing tracing of suspected cases and appropriate treatment.

 Arranging for Counsellors and Mentors for mental health, psychosocial support and well-being of all stakeholders.

 Motivating everyone to engage in activities for physical and mental fitness while staying at home.

 Encouraging stakeholders to participate in vaccination drives to protect themselves, their friends and family.

 Creating a team of well-informed trained volunteers in life skills including NCC and NSS, for extending help and support.

 Taking suitable welfare measures for students, teachers, staff. officers and other stakeholders.

 Ensuring that the initiatives must seek to reach those at greatest risk of being left behind -- people in emergencies and crises. and those who are differently-abled.

"We must come forward and stand firmly united against COVID-19 Pandemic with a strong sense of responsibility and collectively help the people in distress," Singh wrote.
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday granted three weeks interim bail to Pinjra Tod activist Natasha Narwal after her father passed away due to COVID-19.

A Bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Anup Jairam Bhambani granted interim bail for three weeks to Natasha Narwal asking her to furnish a personal bond of Rs 50,000.

The court has directed Narwal to provide her telephone number to the Special Cell of Delhi Police and to the concerned SHO, where her address is and to keep the provided phone number operational.

The court also directed Narwal not to speak or post anything on social media about the pending case or issue. The court has directed Narwal to wear a PPE kit at the time of the cremation and to undergo a RT-PCR test at the time of surrender.

Natasha Narwal was presently in judicial custody in the larger conspiracy case relating to the North East Delhi violence case under stringent provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.Narwal was named an accused by the Delhi Police in three FIRs registered in connection with the protest during the violence in northeast Delhi.

Narwal was arrested on March 23, 2020, in connection with a case related to anti-CAA protests in Jafrabad of northeast Delhi but was granted bail thereafter.

However, soon after getting bail, she was again arrested by Delhi Police on March 24, 2020, in another case and is now under judicial custody. She was also arrested in a third case related to her role in north-east Delhi violence matter.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 20:42:38|Editor: huaxia

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People wait to receive COVID-19 vaccines in Kolkata, India, on May 11, 2021. (Str/Xinhua)

HONG KONG, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread in Asia-Pacific countries as India reported nearly 330,000 new cases on Tuesday while the Philippines registered 4,734 new infections.

India's COVID-19 tally rose to 22,992,517 after 329,942 new cases were registered in the past 24 hours, while active cases fell for the first time in a few weeks, said the federal health ministry.

Meanwhile, 3,876 COVID-19-related deaths took place since Monday morning, taking the total death toll to 249,992.

There are still 3,715,221 active cases in the country, down 30,016 from the previous day. A total of 19,027,304 people have been cured and discharged from hospitals so far across the country.

The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) confirmed its first two cases of the new COVID-19 variant first detected in India.

Alethea De Guzman of the DOH Epidemiology Bureau said the B.1.617 variant was detected from samples taken from two seafarers who arrived in the country from Oman on April 10 and the United Arab Emirates on April 19.

The DOH also reported on Tuesday 4,734 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the Southeast Asian country to 1,113,547.

The death toll climbed to 18,620 after 59 more patients died from the viral disease, the DOH said.

Thailand reported 1,919 new cases of COVID-19 and 31 new fatalities, according to the Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) spokesperson Taweesin Visanuyothin.

The infections brought the total number of confirmed cases to 86,924 in the Southeast Asian country, with more than 50,000 of them detected since the third wave of COVID-19 started in early April.

The additional 31 deaths from the pandemic reported Tuesday took the death toll to 452, according to Taweesin.

The Maldives has recorded 1,204 new cases of COVID-19, raising the total number of cases to 37,019, local media citing the Health Protection Agency (HPA) reported Tuesday.

The total number of active cases stood at 10,376, and 244 remained hospitalized.

South Korea reported 511 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Monday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 128,283.

The daily caseload was up from 463 the previous day, but it stayed relatively low due to the effect of fewer virus tests. The daily average number of confirmed cases for the past week stood at 573.

Four more deaths were confirmed, leaving the death toll at 1,879. The total fatality rate stood at 1.46 percent.

Fiji reported on Tuesday night 12 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 to 152 in the island nation.

According to the Health Ministry, the new cases were all related to the woman who tested positive for COVID-19 in the capital city of Suva on Monday.

Fiji has reported 101 recoveries and three deaths from the coronavirus epidemic since the island nation recorded its first confirmed case of COVID-19 in March last year. Enditem
New Delhi: India witnessed a decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases today. A total of 2,29,942 new cases were registered on May 10. It was the first time in this month that the number of cases in a day has been so low. Hence, many are considering this to be a good sign.

Zee News Editor-in-Chief Sudhir Chaudhary on Tuesday (May 11) discussed the decreasing trend of COVID cases and the need for vaccines for children.

Whenever the number of coronavirus cases decreases, there is an apprehension that maybe the number of tests was reduced. That is, due to fewer tests, there was a reduction in new cases. But it was not the case this time.

On May 6, for the first time, as many as 4.14 lakh new cases were recorded in a single day. That day the total number of tests conducted stood at 18.26 lakh across the country. On May 10, the number of new cases was 3.29 lakh out of 18.50 lakh tests.

This means that the number of tests has not decreased but the number of new patients has come down. Therefore, it can be considered to be a good sign.

However, it would be only good as long as this trend is not limited to just one day and continues in the days to come.

Need for vaccines for children

In Canada, children between 12 and 18 years of age have started getting vaccinated. The country is administering Pfizer's vaccine for this purpose.

America has also approved the emergency use of this vaccine on children between 12 and 15 years.

The question is, when will the vaccine be available for children in India?

About 30 percent of Indias population is under 18 years of age. The population of children between 11 and 17 years of age is 17.5 crore. Doctors predict that children of this age group will be most vulnerable to the third wave of coronavirus. This means 17.5 crore children will be at risk of infection. It is, therefore, necessary to vaccinate them.

The Serum Institute of India has said it will make vaccines for children by October. Bharat Biotech has said it will make available vaccines for children between the age of 12 to 18 years by May-June. But so far these vaccines are in trial stages only. The Pfizer vaccine is not likely to be available in India any time soon.

What is worrying is that the WHO estimates that in the first wave only 8 percent of the children were affected and most of them recovered without going to the hospital. But in the second wave, some children needed to go to the hospital. In the third wave, it is being said that the new variant of the virus would mainly attack the children.

Therefore, it is very important to have vaccines for children before the third wave strikes.

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Bengaluru: Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached Rs 76.67 crore lying in various bank accounts and payment gateways pertaining to Chinese loan app companies and their Indian associates.

The provisional attachment order was issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).

The agency initiated an investigation on the basis of various FIRs registered by CID, Bengaluru on the complaints received from various customers who had availed loan and faced harassment from the recovery agents of the money lending companies.

The amount attached by ED pertains to seven companies out of which three are Fintech companies namely Mad Elephant Network Technology Private Limited, Baryonyx Technology Private Limited and Cloud Atlas Future Technology Private Limited which are controlled by the Chinese nationals and three NBFCs registered with RBI namely X10 Financial Services Private Limited, Track Fin-ed Private Limited and JamnadasMorarjee Finance Private Limited.

The Fintech companies have an agreement with respective NBFCs for disbursement of loans through digital lending apps.

The amount attached by ED also includes the amount of fee charged by Razorpay Software Private Limited to the extent of Rs 86.44 lakhs for not conducting due diligence in case of one company enrolled with it for disbursement and collection of loans.

Money laundering investigation by ED revealed that these Chinese loan apps offered loans to individuals and levied a usurious rate of interest and processing fees.

The loan apps through their recovery agents resorted to systematic abuse, harassment and threatening to the defaulters through the call centers for coercive recovery of the loans by obtaining sensitive data of the user stored on mobile such as contacts, photographs and using them to defame or blackmail to the borrower.

They even threatened the borrowers by sending fake legal notices to their relatives and family members.

The investigation further revealed these companies are not authorized under any law and the NBFCs knowingly let these fintech companies to use their names for the sake of getting commission. The same is also violation of the Fair Practices Code of RBI.

Also Read: ED files prosecution complaint against three persons in money laundering case in Goa
Geneva: As India is in the grasp of a devastating second wave of COVID-19, World Health Organisation (WHO) Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan on Monday termed the rate of infections and deaths in the country as "worrying" and called on governments to boost exercises on reporting actual numbers.

In an exclusive interview with ANI, Swaminathan said that the projections of one million deaths by August projected by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) are based on models and available data, which are not predictions of the future and can be changed.

"I would say that at this point in time, the situation is very worrying, the daily number of cases and deaths that we are seeing today in India and other countries in the Southeast area region is a big concern for us and we also realise that these are underestimates. Every country in the world, in fact, the number of cases and deaths has been underestimated to its true number," she told ANI, adding that governments should boost exercises to report actual numbers.

The WHO on Monday said that the coronavirus variant first identified in India last year was being classified as a variant of global concern, with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily. "We are classifying this as a variant of concern at a global level," Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead on COVID-19, told a briefing.

The B.1.617 variant is the fourth variant to be designated as being of "global concern" and requiring heightened tracking and analysis and data collection must be done in a transparent way, the Chief Scientist added.

"It should be done and we should be aware because the better the data, the better the policies can be directed towards what is happening. Let's remember, people are not just dying of COVID, people are also dying of other illnesses for which they are not able to access healthcare," Dr Swaminathan asserted.

Indian coronavirus infections and deaths held close to record daily highs on Monday, increasing calls for the Indian government to lock down the world's second-most populous country.

Soumya Swaminathan said studies were underway in India to examine the variant's transmissibility, the severity of the disease it causes, and the response of antibodies in people who have been vaccinated. The WHO scientist called for more genome sequencing in India to get a full picture of what is going on in different parts of the country, while saying that it should be hand-in-hand with clinical epidemiological studies.

"Sequencing does not give you the full picture. You do not know whether it is more transmissible, whether it causes more severe disease, or what impact it has on your diagnostics," she said.

While replying to a query on travel amid the pandemic, Swaminathan said that the Review Committee on International Health Regulations (IHR) has said that vaccine passports should not be a pre-condition for travel.

"The scientific reason is that just because you are vaccinated does not mean you cannot get infected. You can see infection or you could be asymptomatic but when you travel you may infect others. The ethical argument is that not everyone has access to vaccinations now," she said while advocating safe travel with precautions.

She also said that the double mutant - B.1.617 - is highly transmissible and a WHO committee has classified it as a 'variant of concern'.

"For now, the message is that it will be more transmissible, but it behaves the same way as other viral strains replicate the same proportions. Vaccines are still very effective against every variant in the world in protecting against severe disease and hospitalisations," she informed.

Swaminathan also called on countries to continuously update policies regarding the pandemic, which should be based on science and data.

"We have to continue to adapt our policies. We cannot become stagnant. What is needed first is to call strong leadership which is based on science and data at public health principles. That needs to be updated from time to time even if you take treatment," Swaminathan added. The WHO scientist also urged data transparency in different countries and that people should be explained why certain decisions are being made and the rationale behind them.

Earlier today, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the WHO Foundation was launching a "Together for India" appeal to raise funds to purchase oxygen, medicines and protective equipment for health workers.

India is currently battling a deadly second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is believed to being led by the 'double mutant'. The current wave has strained the country's health infrastructure and overburdened frontline medical workers.

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Kupwara: In a joint operation, the Territorial Army and the police on Tuesday (May 11) arrested a terror associate in Jammu and Kashmirs Kupwara district.

The security officials recovered ten grenades and 182 rounds of AK-47 rifle from the accused who has been identified as Abdul Ahad Lone.

Lone was nabbed in Kralpora area in the district after the officials acted on specific information.

Territorial Army and SOG Kralpora arrested the militant associate Abdul Ahad Lone based on specific information, the officials said.

10 grenades and 182 AK-47 rounds have been recovered from his possession, they added.

They further said that the middle-aged man was formerly associated with Al-Badr. The police are investigating the case further.

Earlier today, at least three Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) terrorists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir.

The police recovered arms and ammunition including 1 AK-47 rifle, 2 pistols and incriminating materials from the site of encounter.

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Srinagar: At a time when thousands of COVID-19 positive patients in India are gasping for oxygen, A Kashmiri innovator has made a prototype of an Oxygen Concentrator.

Muhammad Ismail Mir from north Kashmir's Bandipora has been working on this for months and finally he says the prototype is ready. He is now waiting for an expert opinion and value addition to his innovation.

''I made this oxygen concentrator as there is immense demand for it due to COVID. We need to pre plan to deal with COVID and our preparations are not upto the mark. So I thought that when it's imported from China, it takes a lot of time and if some company starts making it here, it will be beneficial. I have made a prototype, said Muhammad Ismail Mir, innovator.

Mir says that his prototype is a cheaper version of what is available in the market. He says if given a go ahead, it would be affordable and people who find concentrators in the market expensive would be able to buy it. It might cost around 15 thousand Rupees.

''I have made a similar prototype with same technology but this one is going to be very cheap so that it can be used in hospitals and homes also. '' he said.

Mir is a High School dropout and stopped pursuing his studies after 12th grade and since then he has been making new innovations.

During the pandemic time he has made a Disinfectant tunnel, he also made a touchless sanitising machine and later went on to make a ventilator.

He says that the Government has not helped him as much as he deserved. His friends have decided to set up a lab worth 5 lakh rupees at his house to help him innovate new ways to help humanity.

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New Delhi: Chief Minister Shri Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday urged the Centre to allow more companies in India to manufacture doses share COVID-19 vaccine formulas with more than the allotted companies so that more and more people in India are inoculated as soon as possible before the third wave of Corona strikes.

He said that the Centre should formulate a national policy to vaccinate every person within the next few months by increasing the production. He said that not just 2, but multiple companies should be engaged in vaccine production, and the Central Government should take the formula for producing the vaccine from these two companies and give it to all those companies which can safely make the vaccines. India houses some of the greatest industrialists and some of the biggest pharma companies in the world. We have world-renowned scientists. If they are given the opportunity, they will do everything to serve the nation, he added. He thanked the school staff and frontline workers who are engaged in the vaccination process.

Kejriwal said, The cases of Coronavirus are reducing in Delhi. The second wave of the Coronavirus is also subsiding. The lockdown was also successful because of everyones support. In the past few days, we have also increased the Oxygen beds. Yesterday itself we installed beds in the Ramlila Grounds, in front of the GTB Hospital.

He said, The vaccination drive has gained full momentum in Delhi. There is great excitement. I went to some of the Delhi Government schools where the vaccination drive was being conducted and talked to the people. The people are very happy and getting their vaccination done properly. I want to thank my school staff and frontline workers who are engaged in the vaccination process. Right now we are administering 1.25 Lakh doses every day. Soon we will start administering these vaccines to more than 3 Lakh people every day. It is our aim that in the upcoming 3 months, all the people of Delhi get inoculated. But a major problem that is being faced is that of shortage of vaccines. We have only a few days of vaccine left in Delhi and this problem is being faced countrywide. There is a shortage of supply of vaccines in the entire country. There are some states where because of the scarcity of vaccines, the vaccination process has not even started as yet.

The CM said, The scarcity of vaccines has now become a major challenge for the country. Today, only two companies are making the vaccine. These two together make only 6-7 crore vaccines per month. In this sense, vaccinating the entire country will take more than 2 years. Till then we dont even know how many waves will come about and how much destruction we will have to face. Thus we must increase the production of vaccines in India on insurmountable levels and formulate a national policy to vaccinate every person within the next few months. Unless everyone is vaccinated, the battle cannot be won

He said, Today I want to give a suggestion. The Vaccine production work should not just be carried by two companies only. Many companies should be engaged in vaccine production. The Central Government should take the formula for producing the vaccine from these two companies and give it to all those companies which can safely make the vaccines. In these difficult times, the Central Government has the power that it can execute this. It can make the vaccine-producing formula publically available to the companies that want to make the vaccines. It should be ensured that whichever plants are successful in making the vaccine in India, vaccines should be produced in all of them and every Indian should be vaccinated. This is the only way by which we can vaccinate all the Indians rapidly .

He further said, If you remember, when we faced the first wave there was such shortage for the PPE kits in our country, one had to struggle so much to get a PPE kit. Imagine if at that time only two companies were given the rights to make the PPE kits, would the PPE kits be available today in the country? But this did not happen. Today, many Indian companies are making the PPE kit. That is why we are not dependent upon others for PPE kits. India houses some of the greatest industrialists. We have some of the biggest pharma companies in the world. We have world-renowned scientists. I can say this with a guarantee that if they are given the opportunity, then they will provide full support. A part of the benefit received by the vaccine-producing companies can be given out as royalty to those companies which discovered the original formula. I have full faith that in this manner we will be able to provide protection to every citizen of India, before the next wave. My only goal is to think as to how to save each and every Indian from the wrath of the Coronavirus .

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New Delhi: Major Muslim organizations in the country have appealed to Muslims to celebrate Eid with great simplicity in view of the raging COVID-19 pandemic. They also asked them not to gather in large numbers on the auspicious day of Eid and follow the official guidelines.

Shahi Imam of Delhi's Fatehpuri mosque, Dr Mufti Mohd Mukarram Ahmed, on Tuesday, urged Muslims to offer Eid prayers at home. Shahi Imam also informed that Eid ul-Fitr would be celebrated on May 13-14.

Meanwhile, the Bengal Imams Association on Sunday urged Muslims not to hold Eid prayers in large groups in view of the spike in COVID-19 cases.

Chairman of the association, which represents over 26,000 mosques in Bengal, Mohammed Yahiya, told reporters that prayers should be held in very small groups and in adherence to COVID-19 protocols.

"As the entire healthcare system in the country is under severe stress due to the emerging situation, we should be careful not to allow assembly of people during prayers. "If we can exercise restraint and follow every necessary restriction required to stop the spread, we will avert the third wave," he was quoted by PTI as saying.
New Delhi: Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Monday inspected a COVID Care Centre at the Ramlila Ground near GTB hospital. Kejriwal said that by 11th May, 500 ICU beds will be ready for use here and near LNJP at the main Ramlila Ground too, 500 ICU beds will be set up in some days. These 1,000 beds are expected to reduce the scarcity of ICU beds in the city.

The Chief Minister said that the Delhi government is also increasing the number of oxygen beds and there will be no scarcity of beds. He further said that the Delhi government is working on developing appropriate COVID infrastructure in the Capital and is well aware of the real possibility of a third wave. Delhis current infrastructure can manage 30,000 cases per day.

Kejriwal said that the citys vaccine supply is acute, with stocks that would last for just 3-4 days. He appealed to the Centre to send the required amount of vaccines to Delhi as soon as possible.

CM Kejriwal had tweeted, 500 ICU beds have been constructed in 2 weeks at Ramlila Maidan opp. GTB hospital. Patients will be admitted from tomorrow. My heartfelt gratitude to all the engineers who made it happen in record time.

Kejriwal said, Were at the Ramlila Ground, in front of the GTB Hospital, where weve set up a 500-bed ICU Centre within 10 dats. We know how dangerous the second wave has been -- which has seen several people being affected, it has seen several deaths, the infection spread on a massive level. There has been a great need for ICU beds. Since Delhi saw a shortage of ICU beds, 500 such beds have been set up here. Only monitors are left to be set up, which too will be made available by tonight. Starting tomorrow, these 500 ICU beds, attached with the GTB Hospital will become functional.

He further said, A similar 500-bed ICU centre will be set up at the Ramlila Maidan in front of LNJP Hospital within 2-3 days. It is hoped that these 1,000 operational ICU beds will meet the needs of Delhi. We are also increasing the number of oxygen beds. By this evening, we are expected to receive 1,000 oxygen cylinders, and in the next 3-4 days we expect additional oxygen cylinders to arrive. We are creating new oxygen beds across the city, and hope that Delhi will no longer see any shortage of beds.

Kejriwal said, Oxygen tanks have been installed outside and are to expend 22MT oxygen, which is expected to reduce the scarcity of oxygen.

On the question of the possibility of a third wave, Kejriwal said, We should certainly prepare for the third wave, for which we will have to further expand our infrastructure. Delhi witnessed a wave in November when 8,500 cases emerged, which we had successfully managed. With this wave, we touched a maximum of 28,000 cases, which brought our entire infrastructure under duress. However, the scale at which we are preparing our infrastructure, and the scale at which we are executing the same, even if 30,000 cases are to come up in the next wave, we are ready to deal with it.

He said, I hope the peak has passed, I hope the cases reduce in the coming days but after being in the Government and as the Chief Minister of Delhi, I would not want to give any concessions. From my end, Id like complete preparations in place, should the cases suddenly begin to increase from tomorrow. Nobody can predict anything about this. If the cases begin to increase, we are prepared and the people need not be worried.

Kejriwal added, Delhi is left with vaccines that will last only 3-4 days. Today, we are giving out 1-1.25 lakh doses, and will take it to 3 lakh doses in the next few days. Therefore, if we are to give 3 lakh doses per day, we can give 90 lakh doses in 1 month. We can vaccinate the entire Delhi in the next 3 months. Experts all around the world believe that in the UK, the US, where cases declined, vaccines have played a major role. If we can vaccinate our people on a large scale, then probably we can be saved from the Third Wave.

The Delhi CM said, There is a paucity of supply. We have placed orders with the company, but we believe that the Central Government is responsible for allotment because we receive letters from the Central government pertaining to an allotment. It is my humble request to the Central government to give us as many vaccines as possible. This is not a time for politics, but to help everyone by working together.

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New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not physically attend the G7 summit in June this year due to the prevailing COVID situation, a spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs said on Tuesday (May 11).

Modi was slated to attend the summit which will be held in Cornwall on the invitation of the UKs Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

"While appreciating the invitation to the Prime Minister by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to attend the G7 Summit as a Special Invitee, given the prevailing COVID situation, it has been decided that the Prime Minister will not attend the G7 Summit in person, said the MEA spokesperson in response to media queries.

It will be the 47th edition of the summit. The G7 members include the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the USA and the EU.

Earlier this year, the UK PMs visit to India was also cancelled due to the COVID situation.

The two countries did hold a virtual meeting this month to launch plans for a transformed India-U.K. relationship.

The two leaders launched an Enhanced Trade Partnership, adopted 'Roadmap 2030', discussed the current COVID-19 situation and exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest, including cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, and G7.

The 'Roadmap 2030' was adopted at the Summit to elevate bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

According to the Indian Prime Minister's Office, the Roadmap will pave the way for a deeper and stronger engagement over the next ten years in the key areas of people-to-people contacts, trade and economy, defence and security, climate action and health.
Prayagraj: After the verbal order in Prayagraj, all the liquor stores have opened on Tuesday (May 11) and since morning, crowds of people have been seen forming lines outside the liquor shops.

The people at the liquor strores have disregarded the COVID-19 protocol amid surge in the daily number of cases testing positive for COVID-19.

Liquor shops will open in Taj city, Agra, will be open today from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm. Liquor shops including bars and canteens will also be closed on liquor contracts for not following COVID-19 protocol.

Meanwhile in Gautam Buddha Nagar, all shops will open from 10 am to 7 pm from May 11 onwards.

Liquor shops in Varanasi have opened today as well. As per the official orders, they are allowed to operate from 7 am to 1 pm.

Earlier, the Liquor Welfare Association in Uttar Pradesh had written to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath seeking the opening of the liquor shops during the COVID-19-induced partial lockdown in the state.

The General Secretary of the Association, Kanhaiyalal Maurya, stated that they are incurring a daily loss of over Rs 100 crore due to the closure of liquor shops in the state.

In Maharashtra as well, restaurants and liquor vends will be allowed from 7 am to 12 noon and 5 pm to 7 pm. No customers will be allowed at all these establishments.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 21:49:44|Editor: huaxia

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A staff member transfers a batch of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines at the Phnom Penh International Airport in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia, May 11, 2021. A plane carrying a third batch of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine that Cambodia acquired from Chinese biopharmaceutical company arrived in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia, on Tuesday. (Photo by Phearum/Xinhua)

PHNOM PENH, May 11 (Xinhua) -- A plane carrying a third batch of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine that Cambodia acquired from Chinese biopharmaceutical company arrived in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia, on Tuesday.

"The vaccine's arrival today is another testament to the unbreakable iron-clad friendship between our two countries," Cambodia's Health Ministry secretary of state Yok Sambath told reporters while receiving the vaccine at the Phnom Penh International Airport.

Sambath expressed her profound thanks to China for providing the vaccine to Cambodia timely, saying that both China's Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines are very safe and effective.

The Southeast Asian nation has received COVID-19 vaccines from China and the WHO's COVAX Facility.

The country launched an anti-COVID-19 inoculation drive on Feb. 10. To date, more than 1.82 million out of the country's 16 million population had been vaccinated against the virus, a government report said.

The kingdom logged 480 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, pushing the national case total to 20,223, with 131 deaths and 8,170 recoveries, the Ministry of Health said. Enditem
New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National President JP Nadda on Tuesday (May 11) slammed Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi for her comments on the Centre`s handling of COVID-19 at the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting.

In a letter to the Congress interim chief, Nadda said, "Saddened but not surprised by the conduct of Congress during these times. While there are a few members of your party doing commendable work in helping people, their hard work gets eclipsed by negativity spread by senior members of the party."

The BJP chief said, "States with BJP/NDA govt have announced resolve to help the poor and underprivileged by providing vaccines for free. I'm sure that Congress govts in various states also feel strongly for the poor. Can they also come out with similar decision to provide vaccines for free?"

"One would wish that while India is fighting COVID-19 with utmost courage, the top echelons of Congress would stop misleading people, creating false panic and even contradicting their stands just based on political considerations," the BJP chief said.

Targeting Rahul Gandhi for his "duplicity and pettiness", Nadda said, "In this fight against the pandemic, the conduct of the topmost Congress leaders including former Congress President Rahul Gandhi will be remembered for duplicity and pettiness."

He also pointed out that the Congress` stand on political rallies in recently concluded assembly polls was nothing but grandstanding.

"Your party, under your leadership, is doing no favours to itself by opposing lockdowns and then demanding for the same, ignoring the Centre`s advisories on the second wave of COVID and then saying they did not get any information, holding massive election rallies in Kerala causing a spike in COVID cases while grandstanding about election rallies elsewhere, supporting protests but speaking about following COVID guidelines," Nadda said.

The BJP chief said, "Even when the second wave was on the rise, your party leaders were happier being seen in super spreader political events in North India, where there was no regard for masks or social distancing," adding that this is not the era when such information can be erased from public memory.

He further said, "There are other aspects that also need greater thought. For instance, the data from February and March would reveal which states failed to track the rising cases. Why are mortality rates in states such as Punjab so high? These are questions you must ask your own Chief Ministers."

"I am writing this letter with a deep sense of pain. I would never have written such a letter. But, looking at the confusion being created by members of the Congress Party, including Chief Ministers belonging to the party, I am compelled to pen my thoughts. One would wish that while India is fighting COVID-19 with utmost courage, the top echelons of the Congress would stop misleading people, creating false panic and even contradicting their stands just based on political considerations," he added.

Attacking the comments made at the Congress meeting, Nadda added that the Congress Working Committee talks about the Modi government "abdicating" its responsibility on vaccination. "Is there so much of a communication gap between the Congress party and the states it shares power in? In April itself, topmost Congress leaders were calling for `decentralisation of vaccination`," he said.

He pointed that the Government of India has already ensured that considerable coverage has been achieved in priority groups by providing over 16 crore vaccines to states in the first few phases. Even now, it continues to give 50 per cent of the total vaccines, free of cost, he added.

Giving details about the Covid vaccination drive initiated by the Centre, he added, "Throughout last year when our scientists, doctors and innovators were racing against time to find a vaccine, your party leaders left no opportunity to mock these efforts. A vaccine that is made in India should be a matter of national pride. Instead, Congress leaders tried to ridicule it and create doubts in the minds of people."

"Even a Chief Minister belonging to your party indulged in such antics. In a nation that has almost no recent history of vaccine hesitancy, your party has the dubious record of trying to actively create it, that too, in the middle of a once-in-a-century pandemic, " the BJP chief added.

(With Agency Inputs)

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New Delhi: Three dedicated Covid Care Centers (CCC), setting up of an oxygen plant, import of oxygen concentrators from Russia and efforts to import over 500 oxygen concentrators and Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine from the USA is what the Sikhs single largest representative body Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) is dong to tackle the Covid challenge against all odds with the sheer dedication to winning the fight against the deadly pandemic and providing treatment to Covid 19 patients from all walks of life.

Zee News talked to SGPC president Bibi Jagir Kaur who proudly acclaims to have thrown all resources of SGPC for the Sangat during the trying times and vows to continue their fight against the eradication of Covid.

We have opened a 25 bed CCC at Gurdwara Sri Manji Sahib, Alamgir, Ludhiana, 50 bed CCC at Bhai Dal Singh Diwan Hall, Takht Sri Damdama Sahib, Bathinda, and another 25 bed CCC at Bholath, Kapurthala where Covid 19 patients are provided preliminary medical aid and medicines as well as oxygen, said Kaur with a glimmer in her eyes as she compares the government facilities with that of SGPCs.

These facilities are in addition to an already running dedicated 100-bed hospital for the treatment of Covid-19 patients at Sri Guru Ramdas Charitable Hospital, Amritsar.

Nearly 100 Covid 19 patients are receiving treatment at Alamgir CCC out of which 55 have recovered and gone home while 12 serious patients were rushed to different hospitals after preliminary examination at the centre Kaur says while giving an example of one of the CCC.

Though the SGPCs earnings from the offerings received at gurdwaras have considerably come down due to poor footfall of devotees owing to the coronavirus pandemic yet the same is not any deterrent in Covid care mission of SGPC who has also diverted the medical staff of its Sri Guru Ram Das University of Health Sciences to run these facilities.

Despite being a religious organization, Kaur says the SGPC has covered all three regions of Punjab namely Majha, Malwa and Doaba in providing Covid care to the patients.

To fulfil the need for lifesaving gas Oxygen, the shortage of which has cost several lives across the nation, Jagir Kaur says they had imported oxygen concentrators from Russia besides SGPCs teams was working round the clock to get around 500 oxygen concentrators from the USA.

SGPC is all set to install its oxygen generation plat in Sri Guru Ram Das University of Health Sciences for uninterrupted oxygen langar.

The SGPC had also been holding free Covid 19 vaccination camps. We have sought permission from the Center government to allow us to import Pfizers Covid 19 vaccine from the USA so that we could begin a mass Covid vaccination campaign across the state,  said Kaur.

The SGPC had also shot off letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan

And if the SGPC gets the Center governments nod, it will be the first organization to import the Covid vaccine and begin vaccination camps.

The SGPC has also installed two sanitization tunnels at the entrance of the Golden Temple to disinfect the devotees before entering the holiest shrine.

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New Delhi: At least three Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) terrorists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday (May 11), police said. The police recovered arms and ammunition including 1 AK-47 rifle, 2 pistols and incriminating materials from the site of encounter. All the recovered materials have been taken into case records for further investigation and to probe their complicity in other terror crimes.

Security forces launched a cordon and search operation at Vailoo in Komernag area of the district early on Tuesday following information about presence of militants there, a police official said. "During the search operation, as the presence of terrorists got ascertained they were given an opportunity to surrender. However, they fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party which was retaliated leading to an encounter," the official said.

He said the joint teams of security forces also rescued all the civilians trapped in the gunfire and halted the operation for the time to ensure safe evacuation of people from the area of gunfight. "After ensuring all civilians are safe, the operation was resumed and all the terrorists were eliminated in the ensuing encounter. Bodies of the killed terrorists were retrieved from the site of encounter," the official said.

The slain terrorists were identified as Ilyas Ahmad Dar alias Sameer, Ubaid Shafi alias Abdullah and Aqib Ahmad Lone alias Sahil. "As per police records, all the killed terrorists were linked with proscribed terror outfit LeT and part of the groups involved in several terror crime cases including attacks on security forces and security establishments," he added.

Terrorist involved in attack on BJP leader's house killed in Anantnag encounter

One of three terrorists killed in the encounter was involved in the Aari Bagh terror attack on the house of a BJP leader last month. The terrorist has been identified as Ubaid Shafi. "One of the killed terrorists Ubaid Shafi was involved in Aari Bagh terror attack which was carried out by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) on the house of a BJP leader on April 1. In that attack, J&K Police cop Rameez Raja was martyred," the police said.

The encounter between terrorists and security forces had broken out in the early hours of Tuesday at Vailoo in Kokernag area. All three terrorists of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) outfit were killed.

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Kolkata: Unidentified gunmen shot and injured a Trinamool Congress leader in West Bengal's Hooghly district on Tuesday (May 11), as sporadic violence continued to take place in the state after the party returned to power in a landslide victory on May 2.

The TMC accused the BJP of being involved in the attack, a charge denied by the saffron party.

A police officer said that Aditya Niyogi, former vice-chairman of Bansberia Municipality, was shot at when he was buying vegetables at a local market.

The TMC leader was initially taken to a nearby hospital, from where doctors referred him to a medical facility in Kolkata, he said.

At least 16 people, mainly from the BJP and the TMC, have been killed in post-poll violence in West Bengal and most of the killings were reported till May 3 when the law and order was under the Election Commission, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on May 6.

The state government on Monday told the Calcutta High Court that there has been no post-poll political violence in the state since May 9.

"BJP workers attacked Niyogi. They were aided by a group of traitors from within the TMC, who have been exposed after the assembly elections," local TMC MLA Tapan Dasgupta said.

Saffron party leaders, however, claimed that the incident was the fallout of a factional feud within the TMC.

Political clashes left a number of people dead and injured in the state since the results of the assembly elections were announced in the state.

The Ministry of Home Affairs had sent a team of officials to West Bengal to take stock of the situation. Banerjee took exception to the central team's visit "within 24 hours of the swearing-in", alleging that it is visiting homes of the BJP supporters only.

The CM had said that incidents of violence occurred mostly in Cooch Behar district and in those places where the BJP has won the election.

Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Tuesday said he will visit areas affected by post-poll violence in Cooch Behar district on Thursday.

The Left parties and the Congress have also alleged their supporters and party offices came under the attack of TMC activists.

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Kolkata: With the second wave of COVID-19 still raging, West Bengal Board of Secondary Education on Tuesday said it is yet to arrive at a final decision on whether to go ahead with the Class 10 examinations scheduled in June or postpone the tests. Board President Kalyanmoy Ganguly said no decision has been taken yet on postponement or cancellation of the exams. "I cannot say anything on the issue at present," he said.

A senior board official told PTI that the school education department has been asked to look at ways to evaluate answer sheets and allot marks to candidates amid the pandemic situation. "We are yet to make any formal decision with regard to holding the exams," he said.

With around 4,000 exam centres in readiness, including adhering to COVID-19 protocols, the board had taken all necessary steps before the second wave of the contagion struck, officials said. This year, the board examinations for Class 10 were scheduled to begin from June 1 and continue till June 10.

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New Delhi: A day after Goa's Health Minister Vishwajit Rane recommended Ivermectin to all above 18 to combat Covid in the state, the World Health Organisation on Tuesday has warned against its use.

`Safety and efficacy are important when using any drug for a new indication. @WHO recommends against the use of ivermectin for #COVID19 except within clinical trials,` Soumya Swaminathan, the global health body`s chief scientist, said in a tweet.



Safety and efficacy are important when using any drug for a new indication. @WHO recommends against the use of ivermectin for #COVID19 except within clinical trials https://t.co/dSbDiW5tCW  Soumya Swaminathan (@doctorsoumya) May 10, 2021

The Goa state government on Monday (May 11) cleared a new Covid treatment protocol which recommends all residents above the age of 18 to take five tablets of the ivermectin drug, in order to prevent the steep and sometimes fatal viral fever, which accompanies a Covid-19 infection.

Rane, while speaking to reporters, said that the ivermectin drug would be made available at all health centres in the state and should be taken by all residents, irrespective of whether they have Covid-19 symptoms or otherwise.

Last week, peer-reviewed research had claimed that global ivermectin use can end the Covid-19 pandemic, as the medicine significantly reduces the risk of contracting the deadly respiratory disease when used regularly.

The peer review, which included three US government senior scientists and was published in the American Journal of Therapeutics, touted the common anti-parasitic ivermectin as a miracle cure for Covid-19 by doctors and campaigners the world over.

In her tweet, Swaminathan also attached a warning issued by the German health care and life sciences giant Merck.

`Scientists continue to carefully examine the findings of all available and emerging studies of ivermectin for the treatment of Covid-19,` read the statement from Merck.

`...to-date, our analysis has identified: No scientific basis for a potential therapeutic effect against Covid-19 from pre-clinical studies; No meaningful evidence for a clinical activity or clinical efficacy in patients with Covid-19 disease, and; A concerning lack of safety data in the majority of studies,` the statement added.

The WHO had, in March, issued a similar warning against the use of ivermectin in treating Covid patients.

The global health agency said that there was a `very low certainty of evidence` on ivermectin`s effects on mortality, hospital admission and getting rid of the virus from the body.

Rane also stated that expert panels from the UK, Italy, Spain and Japan, found a large, statistically significant reduction in mortality, time to recovery and viral clearance in Covid-19 patients treated with ivermectin.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had also, in April last year, recommended against the use of ivermectin in treating Covid patients. Besides, the Union ministry of health and family welfare had also reportedly opted out from including Ivermectin in its official Clinical Management Protocol for Covid-19 last year.

(inputs from agency)

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New Delhi: Bollywood actor Arjun Kapoor shared a late Mother's Day post on Instagram on Monday (May 10) along with a throwback picture of him and his late mother Mona Shourie Kapoor. The 'Ki & Ka' actor penned an emotional note in the caption expressing that he still feels lost without his mother.

He wrote, "Yesterday was Mother's Day I hated every bit of it...Tomorrow is 9 years of me being an actor but I'm still lost without you Mom. Just like in this picture I hope ur smiling watching over me and u got my back".

The photo, it appears, was taken before Arjun had lost weight and joined the film industry. The actor was seen dressed in a suit, looking at his side, lost in thought, while his mother is seen standing behind him smiling at the cameras.

Have a look at the photo:

In a recent episode of the Discovery+ show 'StarVsFood', Arjun Kapoor opened up on battling weight issues.

He attributed his weight gain to the time his parents - producer Boney Kapoor and late wife Mona Kapoor separated. "When my parents split up, I looked at food for comfort. I got caught up in the way I felt emotionally so I started eating and then I really enjoyed eating," he said.

On the work front, Arjun Kapoor's 'Sardar Ka Grandson' is scheduled to release on May 18, 2021, on Netflix. The film features Neena Gupta, Rakulpreet Singh, Kanlwajit Singh, John Abraham, Aditi Rao Hydari, and Kumud Mishra. It is helmed by Kaashvi Nair.
New Delhi: As our country grapples with the second wave of deadly COVID-19 crisis, attempts are being made by everyone including Bollywood celebrities to step forward for help.

Bollywood actor Huma Qureshi and Hollywood director Zack Snyder have stepped forward and are trying their bit to extend help amid COVID-19 pandemic which has badly affected India in its ongoing second wave.

The duo collaborated with Save the Children India (Bal Raksha Bharat), a global organisation working for the protection of child rights. It is all set to launch a 100-bed hospital facility and an oxygen plant in the national capital.

Taking to the micro-blogging site Twitter, Huma wrote, Ive joined hands with @stc_india to help Delhi fight the pandemic.

We are working to build a temporary hospital facility in Delhi, that will have 100 beds along with an oxygen plant. Please support us.. #BreathofLife

http://savethechildren.in/huma-for-delhi..

Ive joined hands with @stc_india help Delhi fight the pandemic.

We are working to build a temporary hospital facility in Delhi, that will have a 100 beds along with an oxygen plant. Please support us #BreathofLife https://t.co/5RuMP0u0NG pic.twitter.com/bgRuOgfGKq  Huma S Qureshi (@humasqureshi) May 10, 2021

Zack also took to his Twitter handle and wrote, Ive joined hands with Save The Children to help Delhi fight the pandemic. They are working to build a temporary hospital facility in Delhi with 100 beds along with an oxygen plant. Please support.. #BreathofLife

@humasqureshi

International donors:

Ive joined hands with Save The Children to help Delhi fight the pandemic. They are working to build a temporary hospital facility in Delhi with 100 beds along with an oxygen plant. Please support #BreathofLife @humasqureshi

International donors: https://t.co/9ZbOQuzwQ0  Zack Snyder (@ZackSnyder) May 10, 2021

On the work front, Huma will be next seen in Zack's Army of the Dead. The film is slated to release on May 21 on Netflix.
New Delhi: Veteran actor Mukesh Khanna on Tuesday (May 11) refuted rumours of his death due to COVID-19 that suddenly started doing rounds on social media. Quashing the fake report about his health, Khanna said his phone was constantly ringing with people enquiring about his well-being.

The 'Shaktimaan' actor took to Facebook and shared a video along with a note stating that he was 'perfectly alright.' Dismissing rumours that suggested he was no more, Khanna also hit out at those behind spreading false rumours about him, stating, 'this is the problem with social media.'

"With your blessings, I am completely healthy and safe. I dont have COVID-19 and I was not admitted to any hospital. I dont know who created this rumour and I dont know what is the intention of those who spread such rumours. They tamper with people's emotions with such false news," the veteran actor wrote in a post along with a video.

"What should be the treatment for such mentally unstable people? Who will punish their misdeeds? Enough is enough. Now it is too much. There should be a stop on such fake news," he concluded.

Mukesh Khanna became a household name with 'Shaktimaan'. The show aired during the late 1990s on Doordarshan. He also gained also known for playing the role of Bhishma Pitamah on BR Chopras serial 'Mahabharat'.
Thiruvananthapuram: Ace scriptwriter Dennis Joseph, who wrote for several superhit films in the eighties and nineties that made actors Mammootty and Mohanlal superstars, passed away after suffering a cardiac arrest on Monday night (May 10), industry sources said.

Joseph, who began his career in the early eighties as a journalist with a film magazine, later started writing scripts. He penned scripts for 45 films besides directing five movies, of which `Manu Uncle` fetched him the national award for best children's film in 1988.

Joseph wrote the script for ace director Priyadarshans film Geethanjali in 2013. He was planning another script, which was in the pipeline.

On Monday night, Joseph collapsed at his house in Kottayam and was rushed to a hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.

Among the all-time Malayalam hits, Joseph had written the script for the blockbuster New Delhi, a film which gave a new lease of life to Mammootty`s career in 1987.

Whenever Joseph and director Joshy got together, they scripted some of the biggest success stories in the Malayalam film industry.

Mohanlals career took an upward surge following the 1986 hit movie Rajavinte Makhan, which was scripted by Joseph and directed by Thampi Kannanthanam.

When he wrote No. 20 Madras Mail, it saw both Mammootty and Mohanlal acting together in the Joshy directorial.

Reacting to the demise of Joseph, Mohanlal said that "no doubt it was he who made me".

"Take any character that I played, I owe it to him. And the big films of yesteryears were also made in other languages just because of the power of his script. The dialogues of Rajavinte Makhan continue to reverberate even now and that says everything. Never felt he would go this fast," said Mohanlal.

Another superstar Suresh Gopi, presently a member of the Rajya Sabha whose role in New Delhi also catapulted his film career, said that he was shocked to hear this extremely sad news.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 01:14:59|Editor: huaxia

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SOFIA, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Traditionally, the peak summer months are crucial to Bulgaria's tourism industry, and the Balkan country is getting ready to welcome visitors again, but expectations are muted this year.

The pandemic has had a devastating effect on the country's tourism sector, Prof. Stoyan Marinov, board member of the Varna Chamber of Tourism, said in a recent interview with Xinhua.

International tourist arrivals and expenditure both dropped by about 60 percent in 2020 compared to 2019.

SLOW RECOVERY

The ethnographic village of Etar located near the town of Gabrovo in Bulgaria. Etar has been famous for its crafts since the 18th century. In 1964, the village was transformed into Bulgaria's first open-air architectural and ethnographic museum. Due to the pandemic, the museum had to stay closed for several months, and it reopened only before this year's Easter holidays.

Visitors are trickling back, but the site is still far from a full recovery.

Kirisov, who operates a wood products workshop, is worried. "The number of tourists has not recovered to the level before the epidemic, and our sales figures are even worse. There are days when we sell but a few of our products only."

The number of tourists visiting Etar during this year's Easter holidays slightly increased over the previous months, but the local craftsmen's sales were still lagging way behind the pre-pandemic levels. "On normal weekdays, we welcome only a few tourists to Etar. Since the Easter holidays, their number has increased significantly, but our sales figures have not followed suit," commented Martin, the owner of a silver jewelry store in Etar.

He explained that the pandemic had eroded the tourists' purchasing power, and this, coupled with the mandatory closure of the village's workshops during the lockdown, had left him with a large unsold inventory.

The month of May was likewise "lost" for the beachside resorts on the Black Sea, which according to Marinov normally cater for 70 percent of all tourists visiting Bulgaria. June will likewise fall victim to the pandemic, he said, because there are still no incoming flights from the country's key tourist markets, such as the United Kingdom or Germany.

This month, Bulgaria's seaside resorts reopened mostly to local tourists, but from June the country expects visitors from Romania and Poland to return by the busload, said Marinov, adding that regular charter flights may also restart in early July.

COVID-19 SAFETY KEY

Since the start of the pandemic, the Bulgarian state has implemented a host of measures to tackle the pandemic. Among others, it has adopted COVID-19 safety protocols for tourist destinations, based on which the country joined the World Travel & Tourism Council's global safety and hygiene stamp initiative known as "Safe Travels."

"In early March, the Ministry of Tourism adopted uniform anti-epidemic and sanitary measures for tourist sites (hotels, restaurants, vehicles, beaches, swimming pools, spas), which sent a positive message that we are a safe and secure destination," Marinov said.

Another decision, although a little belated, was the priority COVID-19 vaccination of people employed at Bulgaria's seaside resorts.

According to a survey conducted by Bulgaria's National Statistical Institute in April, 43 percent of hotel managers across the country plan to continue their business this summer, and 42 percent foresee minor cutbacks only. Eleven percent of respondents said they will have to suspend their activity temporarily and only 2.8 percent predicted closure.

MARKETING MATTERS

Obviously, much depends on the trend of new coronavirus infections and on the population's vaccination status, but the need is also there for a powerful marketing campaign to show the world that Bulgaria is a safe destination, Marinov said.

The country has to compete with the attraction of the Greek and Spanish islands, which feature high on the offers of western Europe's major tour operators. "Bulgaria is somewhere behind. This puts us in a bad competitive position, and we have to be much more active in this respect to see improvements in July and August," Marinov said.

Asked about his forecast for this season, Marinov said he expected a slight improvement compared to 2020. "We cannot do miracles," he said. "In 2022, in my opinion, we will fall 30 percent compared to 2019, and in 2023 things will return to the level of 2019 -- provided that this pandemic subsides and there are no fourth, fifth or sixth waves." Enditem
In what may come across as the most surprising incident, Chinese billionaire and Meituan's CEO Wang Xing's net worth witnessed a loss of $2.5 billion (over Rs 18,365 crore) drop after he shared verses from a 1,100-year-old Chinese poem on social media.

The poem, posted on May 6 by Chairman and CEO Wang Xing on a small social media site that he founded, criticises the emperor of the Qin dynasty, who burnt books to suppress intellectual dissidents, only for it to be overthrown by illiterates.

While many on Chinese social media interpreted the posting as an allusion to the anti-monopoly campaign backed by Xi, Wang on Sunday said he was referring to business rivals, saying that "the most dangerous opponents are often unexpected ones".

The original posting has been removed.

Shares of Chinese food delivery giant Meituan slumped further in a sell-off precipitated by the social media posting by its chairman of an ancient poem that was perceived by some as criticising the government and President Xi Jinping.

The company, which recently raised $10 billion, has lost $30 billion in market value over two days amid a broader drop in Chinese tech shares as investors remain jittery over a regulatory clampdown that last month ensnared Meituan.

Adding to investor concerns, the Shanghai Consumer Council told Reuters that it had summoned Meituan and e-commerce firm Pinduoduo, accusing them of violating consumer rights. On Tuesday, Meituan shares tumbled 5.3% to a seven-month low.

"I think mainland investors paid more attention to the poem, but international investors are more worried about the rising cost of employing riders of the company," said Fred Wong, chief investment officer at Hong Kong-based eFusion Capital.

He was referring to social media criticism of Meituan and other industry players` treatment of delivery riders, most of whom are not covered by basic social and medical insurance.

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#mute
New Delhi: The World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday (May 10, 2021) said that the COVID-19 cases and deaths are plateauing globally, with declines in most regions including the two worst-affected regions, the Americas and Europe.

However, the WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that the world has been here before.

"Any decline is welcome, but we have been here before. Over the past year, many countries have experienced a declining trend in cases and deaths, have relaxed public health and social measures too quickly, and individuals have let down their guard, only for those hard-won gains to be lost," he said during a press briefing.

"But its an unacceptably high plateau, with more than 5.4 million reported #COVID19 cases and almost 90 thousand deaths last week"-@DrTedros https://t.co/ocxv23djWl  World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) May 10, 2021

He added that coronavirus cases and deaths are still increasing rapidly in WHO's South-East Asia region, and there are countries in every region with increasing trends.

The WHO chief stated that globally, we are still in a perilous situation and the spread of variants, increased social mixing, the relaxation of public health and social measures and inequitable vaccination are all driving transmission.

"Yes, vaccines are reducing severe disease and death in countries that are fortunate enough to have them in sufficient quantities, and early results suggest that vaccines might also drive down transmission," he added.

The spread of variants, increased social mixing, the relaxation of public health and social measures and inequitable vaccination are all driving #COVID19 transmission. Therefore, we need to use every tool at our disposal to drive transmission down, right now. pic.twitter.com/47wje5w5LO  Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) May 10, 2021

He also said that there will come a time when we can all take off our masks when we no longer have to keep our distance from each other when we can once again go safely to concerts, sporting events, rallies and restaurants, but for most of the world's population who are not yet vaccinated, 'we're not there yet'.


New Delhi: "The light at the end of the tunnel is growing, and today it got a little brighter," said President Joe Biden on Monday (May 10, 2021) after the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) expanded the Emergency Use Authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to include adolescents.

This, notably, is the first COVID-19 vaccine to be authorized in the US for ages 12 to 15.

Biden has asked states to make the vaccine available to younger adolescents immediately and expressed, "This is a promising development in our fight against the virus."

"If you are a parent who wants to protect your child, or a teenager who is interested in getting vaccinated, today's decision is a step closer to that goal," the US President added.

Biden also stated that millions of 16- and 17-year-olds have been safely vaccinated, and as more and more Americans get vaccinated, COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths continue to fall.

"The safe and effective vaccines are curbing the spread of the virus, saving thousands of lives, and allowing millions of Americans to start returning to a closer to normal life," he said.

Peter Marks, director of the US Food and Drug Administration's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, told Reuters that states will likely be able to begin vaccinating 12- to 15-year-olds after an advisory committee of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers the expansion on Wednesday.

Pfizer's vaccine is the only one authorized for 16- and 17- year-olds in the United States and around 2 million people in that age group have so far received at least one shot.

Meanwhile, Pfizer has said that it expects to have safety and efficacy data on the vaccine for children ages 2 to 11 in September when it plans to ask for that age group to be included in the emergency authorization.

The United States is the worst coronavirus-hit country in the world and has recorded over 3.27 crore infections including 5.81 lakh deaths.

(With inputs from agencies)


Islamabad: Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Tuesday (May 11) that Pakistan would not hold talks with India until New Delhi reverses its decision of scrapping the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

India abrogated the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 on August 5, 2019 and bifurcated it into two Union territories.

"Unless India retreats from the steps taken on August 5, the Pakistani government will not talk to India at all," Khan said while responding to questions from the public during a live broadcast session.

Earlier in the day, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that no talks presently were taking place with India but parleys could be held if New Delhi revisited its policy regarding Kashmir and provided relief to the people of Kashmir.

"Jammu and Kashmir cannot be an internal issue of India as it is on the agenda of the UN and there are several Security Council resolutions on it,? he said while addressing a news conference in Islamabad.

India has repeatedly said Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and the country is capable of solving its own problems.

New Delhi has told Islamabad that it desires normal neighbourly relations with it in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.

Indo-Pak relations deteriorated after India announced withdrawing special powers of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcation of the state into two union territories in August, 2019. India has maintained that issue related to Article 370 of the

Indian Constitution was entirely an internal matter of the country.

However, lately, there has been some improvement when the two countries agreed in February to restore peace on the Line of Control. It is said that the rival officials have been interacting through backchannel diplomacy to ease tension.

Khan also responded to several questions about domestic issues and defended the performance of his government which came to power in August 2018.

(inputs from PTI)

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Dhaka: China has warned Bangladesh against joining the US-led Quad alliance, saying that Dhaka's participation in the anti-Beijing "club" would result in "substantial damage" to bilateral relations.

The unusual warning from Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Li Jiming came weeks after visiting Chinese Defence Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe emphasied to Bangladesh President Abdul Hamid that Beijing and Dhaka should make joint efforts against powers from outside the region establishing a "military alliance" in South Asia and practising "hegemonism".

"Obviously it will not be a good idea for Bangladesh to participate in this small club of four (Quad) because it will substantially damage our bilateral relationship, Ambassador Li said at a virtual meeting organised by the Diplomatic Correspondents Association, Bangladesh on Monday.

Reacting to the Chinese envoy's controversial remarks, Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said Dhaka maintains a non-aligned and balanced foreign policy and it will decide what to do according to those principles.

"We're an independent and sovereign state. We decide our foreign policy. But yes, any country can uphold its position," he told reporters on Tuesday.

"Naturally, he (Chinese ambassador) represents a country. They can say what they want. Maybe they don't want it (Bangladesh joining the Quad)," Momen said, adding that no one from the Quad has approached Bangladesh yet.

The comment has been preemptive, the United News of Bangladesh (UNB) news agency reported, quoting said the foreign minister as saying.

Initiated in 2007, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, Quad for short, is an informal grouping of India, the US, Australia and Japan.

Quad is a small group of elites working against China, Ambassador Li said.

Quad says it is only for economic purposes and security and so on. But that's not true. We know that Quad is aimed at China, the envoy was quoted as saying by BDNews24.Com news portal and other newspapers.

Japan, together with the US, has stated it very clearly that they are participating in (Quad) because of China, Li said.

Li described the Quad as a "narrow-purposed" geopolitical clique, and Bangladesh should not join it as the country will not derive any benefit from the initiative.

"History has proved again and again such partnership surely damages our neighbours' own social, economic development and people's well-being," Li was quoted as saying by the UNB news agency.

Chinese Defence Minister Gen Wei, who visited Dhaka on April 27 had said that to jointly maintain regional peace and stability, China and Bangladesh "should make joint efforts against powers outside the region setting up military alliance in South Asia and practising hegemonism."

China has vehemently opposed the formation of the Quad with a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman emphasising in March that exchanges and cooperation between countries should help expand mutual understanding and trust, instead of targeting or harming the interests of third parties.

The four Quad member countries have resolved to uphold a rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific amid growing Chinese assertiveness in the strategically vital region.

The first summit of the Quad leaders was hosted by US President Joe Biden on March 12 and the virtual meeting was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

The four Quad leaders have vowed to strive for an Indo-Pacific region that is free, open, inclusive, healthy, anchored by democratic values, and unconstrained by coercion, sending a clear message to China against its aggressive actions in the region.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 17:59:09|Editor: huaxia

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MOSCOW, May 11 (Xinhua) -- All educational institutions in Russia's Republic of Tatarstan will be inspected after two gunmen attacked a school in its capital city of Kazan on Tuesday.

Classes will be canceled in all schools in Kazan on Wednesday, according to the press service of the republic's head. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 19:08:25|Editor: huaxia

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SOFIA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Bulgarian President Rumen Radev has signed a decree on the holding of parliamentary elections on July 11, his press office said in a statement on Tuesday.

Radev dissolved, through the same decree, the National Assembly with effect from Wednesday, said the statement.

Meanwhile, the president appointed Security and Defense Secretary Stefan Yanev as caretaker prime minister, it added.

The composition and structure of the caretaker government will be announced on Wednesday, when the caretaker government takes office.

Radev made the move after the parliamentary parties failed to form a new cabinet after elections, which were held on April 4. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 19:37:32|Editor: huaxia

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People are seen in downtown Nicosia, Cyprus on May 10, 2021. The Health Ministry of Cyprus issued a decree Monday, easing most coronavirus-related restrictions and introducing a SafePass for shops, restaurants and crowded events as well as on buses. (Photo by George Christophorou/Xinhua)
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 20:56:12|Editor: huaxia

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British Queen Elizabeth II travels by car to the House of Parliament in London, Britain, on May 11, 2021. British Queen Elizabeth II on Tuesday announced a series of bills as the British government pledged to "level up" the country while recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Ray Tang/Xinhua)

LONDON, May 11 (Xinhua) -- British Queen Elizabeth II on Tuesday announced a series of bills as the British government pledged to "level up" the country while recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speaking from the House of Lords, the upper house of the British Parliament, the Queen said in her speech that the British government's priority is to "deliver a recovery from the pandemic" which will "level up opportunities across all parts of the United Kingdom, supporting jobs, businesses and economic growth."

The Queen's Speech was meant to set out the government's legislative agenda for new parliamentary session.

The government will "deliver a national recovery from the pandemic that makes the United Kingdom stronger, healthier and more prosperous than before," she said.

She also said the government will "strengthen the economic ties across the union, investing in and improving national infrastructure."

Meanwhile, the Queen announced that proposals will be taken forward to transform connectivity by rail and bus with the High Speed Rail Bill.

Legislation will be introduced to support a "lifetime skills guarantee" to enable people to access to high quality education and training throughout their lives, she said.

The Queen said the government will provide additional funding to support the National Health Service (NHS), bringing forward legislation to allow the NHS to "innovate and embrace technology".

Patients will receive more tailored and preventative care closer to home, she added.

On the environment, the Queen said the government will invest in new green industries to create jobs.

She reiterated Britain's commitment to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Britain will host the United Nations climate change conference in Glasgow in November.

The Queen also introduced other bills covering such issues as education, women's rights, social care and mental health.

Earlier Tuesday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said his government's plans will put "rocket boosters" under its "levelling up" agenda.

However, the main opposition Labour Party has urged the government to deliver "action" rather than "rhetoric".

The Queen's Speech is part of the normally grand State Opening of Parliament, but some ceremonial aspects of the event have been scaled back this year due to COVID-19 restrictions. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 22:13:27|Editor: huaxia

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LISBON, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said on Tuesday that the proposal to waive COVID-19 vaccine patents was "clearly insufficient" and "does not solve the problem" of the slow vaccine supply in Europe.

"We are in a race against the clock, so we have to make sure that those who are already producing (the vaccines) do so much more and export them. Only then can the problem be solved in time," he told reporters during his visit to the city of Braga in northern Portugal.

According to the president, it is necessary to get to the "bottom" of the problem. It is not enough to simply suspend the intellectual property protections for those who have researched and produced the COVID-19 vaccines.

"There must be universal and equal access" to the vaccines, he said. "We also need to guarantee the quality of the vaccines."

During the two-day social summit of the European Union (EU) held in the Portuguese city of Porto over the weekend, leaders of the EU countries understand that there are "more pressing issues" than patent waiver on vaccines against COVID-19.

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen told reporters on Saturday at the end of the social summit that the topic "is important," but will be discussed "in the long term, not in the short or medium term."

According to her, Europe should not "lose sight of the main urgencies," which are "production of vaccines as soon as possible and how they will be distributed in a fair and equitable way."

The EU executive stressed that up to Saturday, 400 million doses of vaccines have been produced in the EU, and 50 percent of them have been exported to 90 different countries in the world.

"This is the best way, in the short term, to address bottlenecks and lack of vaccines worldwide," she said, adding "close to 160 million Europeans now have already received a first shot of the vaccine, that's over 25 percent of the EU population."

At the summit, French President Emmanuel Macron said he is "available to debate the proposal (of vaccine patent waiver), but that this is not the solution" to speed up vaccination.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi also noted on Saturday that the U.S. proposal to suspend patents on COVID-19 vaccines "will not guarantee an increase in the supply of vaccines."

On Tuesday, Portugal's vaccination drive hit a milestone as the authorities reported that four million people -- about 41 percent of the country's population -- had already received at least one vaccine dose.

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, vaccination is underway in an increasing number of countries with already-authorized coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, 280 candidate vaccines -- including 97 in clinical trials -- are being developed worldwide, including in Germany, Britain, China, United States, and Russia, according to data provided by the World Health Organization on May 7. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 23:08:31|Editor: huaxia

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BAKU, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday said Russia welcomes the initiative by the United States for holding a summit between U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin in June.

Lavrov, who arrived in Azerbaijan on Monday for a two-day visit, made the remarks at a joint press conference following a meeting with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov.

Lavrov said that as two nuclear powers, Russia and the United States shoulder special responsibility for the stability of the world.

He also said that considering the U.S. withdrawal from many arms control treaties, the question of arm control and global strategic stability should be the main topics for the expected summit.

On the Nagorno-Karabakh region, Lavrov stressed that the statement signed on Nov. 10 last year by the top leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia should be observed in order to keep the peace and stability in the region.

Bayramov, for his part, elaborated his stance on the relevant issues, indicating that Azerbaijan is interested in normalizing of the relations with Armenia on the basis of respecting international law and each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

The two ministers also exchanged views on the promotion of unblocking regional communications, the acceleration of resolving the issue of maps of minefields in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-12 00:05:48|Editor: huaxia

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NICOSIA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Air traffic has picked up in Cyprus in the first few days of May, Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos said on Tuesday.

Karousos said in a tweet that in the first nine days of May, air passenger traffic accounted for 59 percent of that for the whole of April.

Air flights in the first nine days of May reached 43.6 percent of those for the whole of April, he said.

"With steady steps and good omens, we are entering the summer season with increased flights and strong interest from airlines. As we improve our epidemiological picture, our air connectivity and tourism will also see the benefits," Karousos said.

Tourism in Cyprus took a beating as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, with statistics showing a decrease of over 93 percent in tourist arrivals for the first three months of this year.

Deputy Tourism Minister Savvas Perdios said there has been a flow of tourists from Sweden in the past few days, on top of steady arrivals from Russia, the second largest tourist market for Cyprus.

He said that more tourists from northern European countries are expected these days, but added that the stakes are on the UK market, the main source of tourists visiting the eastern Mediterranean island.

Hermes Airports, the operators of the island's two international airports at Larnaca and Paphos, said a total of 220 flights are expected this week, compared with about 35 flights a week in April.

Maria Kouroupi, a senior official with Hermes, said flights from the UK are expected to pick up in June as various airlines, including British Airways, began adding flights to their schedules.

Cyprus counts on tourism for the restart of its economy, as the tourism and travel sectors contribute about 25 percent to the country's annual economy. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-11 03:39:04|Editor: huaxia

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HAVANA, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Cuba expects to complete the necessary doses to immunize all its 11.2 million residents with vaccines against COVID-19 developed in the country, the official newspaper Granma announced on Monday.

The most advanced candidates, Soberana-02 and Abdala, will be used in the mass immunization, although Cuba has three others, Soberana-01 and Soberana Plus, as well as Mambisa, in different phases of clinical trials, Granma reported.

President of the state-owned company BioCubaFarma Eduardo Martinez explained that Soberana-02 and Abdala have their own production systems "so as not to compete" and "to be able to manufacture many vaccines in a short period of time," according to the newspaper.

"We are increasingly reaching industrial stability. We have manufactured batches of vaccines, which passed a rigorous evaluation process, to start the health intervention," Martinez added.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Public Health will start on Wednesday a mass vaccination campaign in seven of Havana's municipalities, which will continue in the second half of May in the western provinces of Pinar del Rio and Matanzas, as well as Santiago de Cuba and the Special Municipality of Isla de la Juventud. Enditem
Partners Capital Announces Expansion of Office of the CIO with Two Internal Appointments
Justin E. H. Smith in his Substack Newsletter:

On arriving in Paris in 2013, I went to open a bank account. The personal banker assigned to me, who would remain with me for a few years after that, was a Senegalese immigrant, a proud professional, and most of all a proud Frenchwoman. When I showed her my immigration papers and my confirmation of employment by the University of Paris, she said something like, Oh, sure, youre one of the good immigrants. I thought she had meant to speak damningly of the hypocrisy of her adoptive country, and I started to say, You mean because Im. But before I got to that color-coding adjective I wrongly presumed she had in mind, she completed her thought: Youre one of the good immigrants, like me. Youve got diplomas, youve got a job. Then she pointed to the family of Roma people encamped on a styrofoam mattress on the sidewalk right outside: Not like them, she said, they dont want to work. Its easier to just sit there and make people feel sorry for you.

More here.
This May, the African Development Bank Group is launching a call for proposals for projects enhancing the viability and sustainability of women entrepreneurship enablers.

Women's business associations, incubators, accelerators, and cooperatives that advance women's entrepreneurship, can apply for funding for innovative projects or programs to bolster the skills of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) owned and run by women across Africa, the Bank announced.

Entrepreneurship enablers, which include business associations and civil society organizations, play an important role in empowering women to establish bankable SMEs and other businesses. However, the enablers themselves often face challenges, such as long-term growth plans and lack of financing, which reduce their reach, impact and sustainability.

"Women business enablers are critical to creating a viable enabling environment in which women entrepreneurs can grow and create businesses that generate jobs for the continent. Through the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa initiative, the Bank is committed to supporting enablers to strengthen the business and financial skills as well as wealth-creating capacity of their members," said Esther Dassanou, manager of the program, also known as AFAWA.

The Bank will assess applicants' track record in supporting women SMEs, innovation and strong development impact, as well as their capacity to mobilize other sources of funding. Eligible organizations may request funding of between $100,000 and $250,000, provided through the Bank's Gender Equality Trust Fund.

Applications must be received by midnight on 30 May 2021.

"This call for proposals is an opportunity for direct and concrete support for women entrepreneurship enablers to scale up their growth and impact, and advance women's financial inclusion on the continent," said Vanessa Moungar, Bank Director for Gender, Women and Civil Society.

While all countries will be considered, proposals from the following countries that already align with the ongoing AFAWA Guarantee for Growth Program pipeline are strongly encouraged to apply: Cameroon, Congo-Brazzaville, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Morocco, Mozambique, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Rwanda and Zambia.

For more details on the process and to access the proposal application click here.

AFAWA aims to unlock $5 billion in financing for small and medium enterprises owned and managed by women by 2026. AFAWA is supported by the Bank's partners and donors, the Group of Seven (G7) countries as well as the Netherlands and Sweden, and the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi). The funding, which aims to strengthen the ecosystem for women's entrepreneurship, is in line with the Bank's agenda to further gender equality and women's empowerment.
Addis Abeba  Government media quoted the General Secretary of the Ethiopian Orthodox Twahdo Church Holy Synod and Archbishop of Sidama and Gedeo Dioceses, His Holiness Abune Yoseph, as saying that the remarks made by His Holiness Abune Mathias I, Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC), were that of His Holiness' and were not approved by the Holy Synod, the highest assembly of the Church

Although throughout the 14 minutes video the Patriarch didn't allude to his remarks being the decision of that of the Holy Synod, state broadcater EBC qouted His Holiness Abune Yoseph as saying that the remarks by the Patriarch were given outside the established framework of the Holy Synod and that the head of the Church cannot unilaterally provide statements on behalf of the Synod.

In the video which was privately recorded by Dennis Wadley, international director of Bridges of Hope, and was published online on May 07 His Holiness Abune Mathias I addressed Ethiopians "inside and outside the country" that he had "repeatedly tried" to plea to put a stop to "what's happening in Ethiopia today, especially the barbarism taking place in Tigray," but has not been successful because "a permission was not granted." He also appealed to the "Churches around the world" to help the "grotesque deed" happening on the people Tigray, which he described as a "genocide."

His Holiness Abune Yoseph is quoted by state owned and state affiliated media this afternoon that previous statements from the Church are released by His Holiness Abune Mathias I after they are approved by the Holy Synod and its permanent members.

The issue will be one topic of agenda during the next assembly of the Holy Synod, according to the report.

Meanwhile, The US embassy in Addis Abeba said this afternoon that Ambassador Geeta Pasi hosted the Patriarch at her residence where "the two discussed the current situation in Ethiopia and specifically the humanitarian crisis in Tigray, including his recent public message.

The Embassy further said Ambassador Geeta has "invited the Patriarch to attend future inter-faith community meetings at the Embassy to further explore and continue their conversation." AS
Addis Abeba  A Grand Iftar event organized by the Ethiopian-Muslim community of Addis Abeba, in collaboration with Halal Promotion Plc., was violently dispersed when security forces prevented thousands Muslims who descended on Meskel Square, a public space in the center of the city on May 9, 2021

Videos and photos showing chaotic scenes from the event and the crackdown including security forces firing teargas at crowds flooded social media outlets overnight causing an frustration and critique from several leading Muslim activists and clerics.

The Reactions to the events ranged from strongly worded condemnations to anger to demands of swift actions by the government. One such reaction is the reaction of Ahemdin Jebel, a prominent Muslim cleric and a close ally of PM Abiy Ahmed who also was one of the key leaders of the Muslim protests of 2011 took to social media to express his concerns and anger over the incident. In one post he said, "Muslims refuse anything less than equality and will not accept being second class citizens." In another post, he explained that the road to complete equality is filled with struggle while he urged Muslims, "For now, go home and be safe."

Yassin Nuru, another prominent Muslim cleric was present at the event and took to social media after the standoff disclosing that 100,000 people have participated in the event but adding, "It would have been a brilliant story for Ethiopia if these people were to have a peaceful event as planned. People wanted to pray for peace in the country, and share a meal with their Christian brothers." He concluded his statement by demanding answers, " We want to see all those involved in this historic incident held accountable."

Halal Promotion Plc, one of the organizers of the event issued a statement explaining what unfolded. "Halal promotion and Nejashi humanitarian organization secured the required permission to hold the Grand Street Iftar in Ethiopia," the statement, said further adding that the coordinators of the event were asked by unidentified bodies in the government structure to change the venue of the event. The statement also highlighted that coordinators of the event explained that they will not hold the event at a different venue. "We are telling the event goers that we were forced to cancel the event," the statement read, adding "We believe that the government should understand the peacefulness of the event and rethink their decision. We will continue our preparation hoping it will change."

Prior to the event the Addis Abeba city government peace and security administration bureau issued a letter requesting the limitation of the number of participants to 5,000.

A statement subsequently released by Addis Abeba city administration challenged the organizers account of the events while commending the organizers of the event. The statement explained that the city administration reached a consensus with the event organizers as well as the bodies who exchanged 'inappropriate letters' considering the ongoing construction work at the venue, the current peace and security situation of the country, the space limitation where the event was set to take place, as well as the number of the event goers. The city administration said it was decided that the event should take place in the same venue but with limited space allocated to it. In the statement the city administration pointed out that the organizers of the event cancelled the event because they didn't agree to the proposed limited space of the venue.

The disagreement and the communication that ensued between authorities of the city administration and event organizers was complicated when a letter issued by the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) dated May, 6 , 2021 and addressed to Addis Abeba Peace and Security administration bureau started heavily circulating social media platforms. In the letter the EOTC suggested that the Iftar event be held at the stadium (Abebe Bikila Stadium) as it was the custom and explained its request as an attempt to maintain both the unity and peace of the country and avoid unnecessary conflict.

According to Ustaz Abubeker Ahmed, representatives of the organizers have tried to raise their concerns that "prior letters from the Church were taking the matter into unhealthy direction and that the government needed to discharge its responsibilities by keeping the balance. If this wasn't possible, it was better to cancel the event for limiting the space and prevention would lead to historic mistakes. The discussion ended without agreement."

Although there was an understanding that some individuals and institutions were agitating through social media to divert the matter from its intended purposes, and that many have taken the understanding that Iftar wasn't beyond the country, the complaint among the community has shifted the issues from that of related to Iftar to the issues of rights, which led to many to descend to the venue, Ustaz Abubeker said.

Ustaz Abubeker concluded his statement by calling for gaps in administration to be filled and the participation of all sections of the society in the peace building process. He said, "What we have observed on this occasion is that here is a need for a government, people and religious institutions that are committed to work hand in hand to fill the gap and participate in the nation building process. He added addressing the Muslim community, "The people should follow the law and the instructions of the security forces and conduct themselves peacefully."

Addis Standard spoke to multiple participants who attended the event like Othman Hamid who said, , "Here is what you need to understand, the organizers have secured all the permission needed to hold the event but at the last minute they received orders to limit the number of attendees which practically couldn't be done since people started flooding the location of the event." He explained that police might have acted in a rushed and used unnecessary force but added, "There are those within government structure that think we (Ethiopian Muslims) are a security threat. Our loyalties are questioned and our just demands are challenged and this incident is just an example."

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Abdulrahman, is another source who was present at the Iftar event and spoke to Addis Standard about the events that led to the disbandment of the event. He said, "I honestly don't know how the trouble started. Since we entered the premises, we noticed the heavy presence of both federal and city police," he added, "We left once we heard there was trouble and the police were firing tear gas at the gathering."

In a bid to calm critiques following Sunday's crackdown, Adanech Abiebie, the deputy mayor of Addis Abeba, issued a statement where she explained that the square is public and is for all Ethiopians. The mayor's statement dived into the details of the agreement between the city administration and the event organizers and blamed the entire situation on what she described as 'Social Media agitators'. The mayor also explained that police actions fall under the umbrella of the precautionary measures and after commending the peaceful nature of the event, offered an apology to the Muslim Community of the city saying, "On behalf of myself and the city, I apologize for what happened yesterday." AS
The newspaper vendors are accused of circulating newspapers that promote the activities of IPOB.

The Inspector General of Police (IG) Intelligent Response Team (IRT) on Monday arrested five newspaper vendors in Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria's South-east, for allegedly promoting activities of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

When contacted, the Commissioner of Police in Imo State, Abutu Yaro, confirmed the arrest but said the operatives were not from his command.

One of the arrested vendors, Onyebuchi Iwundu, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at a police station that the IRT operatives arrested them at Rotibi Street, a popular newspaper circulation street, off Douglas Road in the early hours of Monday.

Mr Iwundu said they were accused of circulating newspapers that promote the activities of IPOB.

He said he and others were manhandled before being taken to the police station for detention.

The vendor said the operatives confiscated their papers and money, adding that they had been warned not to circulate newspapers that promote IPOB activities.

Other vendors arrested have been identified as Isinwa Blessing, Nelson, Micheal and Sakatan.

NAN reported that the circulation manager of New Telegraph newspaper, Chuck Ugwuibe, was arrested on Tuesday at Banana junction Orlu and has been in police custody.

Eastern Security Network, a security arm of IPOB, appears to have a strong presence in Imo.

Besides the Boko Haram insurgency in the North-east, the perennial conflicts between farmers and herders, and the abduction for ransom in various parts of Nigeria, there has been a spate of deadly attacks on security agencies in the South-east and South-south geopolitical zones, which has compounded the security challenges in the two regions.
The seat had been vacant since May 7, 2018 when its last occupant, Isyaku Rabiu, died

The controversy surrounding the appointment of the former Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, as the leader of the Tijjaniyya Islamic Movement in Nigeria was put to rest on Sunday at the global headquarters of the movement in Senegal.

The Supreme Leader of the sect, Mahi Nyass, confirmed the appointment when he received the former emir on a Ramadan visit on Saturday.

PREMIUM TIMES gathered that Mr Sanusi II was invited to Senegal by Mr Nyass to confer the title of the Khalifah of the sect in Nigeria on him.

In a video obtained by PREMIUM TIMES, Mr Nyass, who spoke in Arabic, prayed for Mr Sanusi and charged him to unite members of the sect in Nigeria and lead with the fear of Allah.

"Sanusi is hereby appointed as the Khalifah of Late Sheikh Ibrahim Inyas and the leader of the Tijjaniya sect in Nigeria. We pray Allah should guide him. Amin," he said.

He also tasked the former emir to be a good ambassador of the sect in Nigeria.

The seat had been vacant since May 7, 2018 when its last occupant, Isyaku Rabiu, died.

Late Mr Rabiu had succeeded Mr Sanusi's grandfather who was also an Emir of Kano and the first leader of the sect in Nigeria, Muhammadu Sanusi I.

However, Mr Rabiu's leadership was opposed by a popular Islamic scholar, Dahiru Usman-Bauchi, who ran a parallel headquarters of the sect in Nigeria.

Sanusi's earlier appointment

On March 13, Mr Sanusi was appointed by some members of the Tijjaniyya leadership when he visited Sokoto State to participate in this years' Maulid celebrations.

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But the Dahiru-Bauchi faction of the sect rejected the appointment, saying the representative of the sect leader was misquoted.

Ibrahim Dahiru-Bauchi, one of the sons of Mr Dahiru-Bauchi who interpreted the submission of the sect's leader, described the report of Mr Sanusi's appointment as propaganda.

"The junior brother of Grand Leader, Sheikh Makey Nyass, was quoted out of context in the report. What he said was that Sanusi has been following the footsteps of his late grandfather, Muhammadu Sanusi I.

"Nyass only tried to compare the life experiences of Sanusi and that of his late grandfather after being deposed from throne," Mr Dahiru-Bauchi said.

With the recent confirmation by the Supreme Leader of the sect, however, the dispute has been laid to rest.

Meanwhile, Mr Dahiru-Bauchi could not be reached as of the time of writing this report. But a prominent member of the movement in Kaduna said although he was aware of the appointment by the global leader of the sect, but insisted that Mr Dahiru-Bauchi is their spiritual leader in Nigeria.

"Even when Sheikh Isiyaka Rabiu was alive, we followed Dahiru-Bauchi and some of our sect members followed late Rabiu's faction. It does not affect us. So for me, it will be the same now. This is what I think," the member, Rabiu Hassan, said.

The Tijaniyya Islamic sect has a huge following across Africa. It was founded by an Algerian, Ahmad al Tijani Hasani, in the late 18th century.

But the teaching of the Tijjaniyya sect is being challenged by the radical 'Sunni' sect, popularly called the Izala, in Northern Nigeria.
Abdulsalami Abubakar says some online media had falsely linked him to an helicopter said to have been sighted supplying arms and food items to bandits in Niger State

A former military Head of State, Abdulsalami Abubakar, on Sunday, denied online media reports linking him to armed banditry and insurgency in Nigeria.

The retired army general described the reports as "false, unfounded" and fake news.

Many residents of Kagara in Rafi local government areas of Mr Abubakar's home Niger State had claimed sighting an helicopter supplying arms and food items to the armed bandits terrorising the area.

Mr Abubakar's media aide, Yakubu Suleiman, in a statement, said some online media had linked him to the said helicopter.

Mr Abubakar decried being associated with such "a heinous crime that is unbecoming of any patriotic citizen."

He said he would have ignored the spurious reports but decided to set the record straight.

"This kind of fake news has the potential of aggravating the already tense security situation in the country and should not be condoned," he said.

He expressed regret that individuals could peddle such news and smear the image and character of people.

"I urge Nigerians to ignore such treacherous acts and to be careful with the kind of information they dish out and share on Social Media."

He also urged Nigerians to continue to work and pray for enduring peace in Nigeria, saying that no nation can attain greatness without peace and security of lives and property.
The minister congratulated Muslims and called on all Nigerians to use the period of this year's Eid-el-Fitr celebration to pray for peace.

The federal government has declared Wednesday and Thursday, May 12 and 13, as public holidays to mark this year's Eid-el-Fitr celebration.

This was disclosed in a statement by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Interior, Shuaib Belgore, on Monday.

The statement quoted the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, as making the declaration on behalf of the federal government in Abuja.

According to the statement, the minister congratulated Muslims and called on all Nigerians to use the period of this year's Eid-el-Fitr celebration to pray for peace, stability and economic transformation in the country.

"Aregbesola who believes that development cannot thrive in a rancorous atmosphere, urged all Nigerians to be law-abiding and embrace the spirit of love, self-discipline, kindness and tolerance, as taught by the Holy Prophet Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him)," it said.

"He called on all security agencies in the country to be more courageous and patriotic to surmount the ongoing battle against resurging insecurity and activities of criminal elements in Nigeria," the official said.

He assured of the resolve of President Muhammadu Buhari to end the scourge of crime and criminality in the country and restore peace to every nook and cranny.

"This administration will not be deterred in its efforts, until every Nigerian and resident of the country, is free to move around without fear of any threat to his/her life and property. We are therefore putting necessary measures and strategies in place to strengthen the stability of the country as well as ensuring economic prosperity of our dear nation," he said.
Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos announced this during a security townhall meeting on Monday.

The Lagos state government on Monday disclosed plans to completely get rid of motorcycles and tricycles from the state, with "last-mile" buses provided as alternatives.

Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos, announced this during a security town hall meeting on Monday.

Commercial motorcycles and tricycles, popularly called Okada and Keke respectively, are the means of transportation to inner streets for many Lagosians.

Mr Sanwo-Olu said the government has identified the dangers motorcycles and tricycles pose on Lagos road and plans are underway to eradicate them.

The governor also announced the roll-out of 500 'last-mile buses' to service people to the inner routes instead of motorcycles and tricycles.

The announcement came on the day the police chief in the state blamed the Okada riders for the high crime across the metropolis.

PREMIUM TIMES reported the earlier ban of motorcycles and tricycles in 15 local government areas in the state and on all highways.

The enforcement of the ban, which commenced on February 1, 2020, saw many riders and operators laments its impact.

Several motorcycles and tricycles were impounded by law enforcement agents during the period.

However, the enforcement was short-lived as many motorcycles and tricycles and back to the previously restricted areas.

Giving update on the position of the state government on the operation of motorcycles and tricycles within the state, Mr Sanwo-Olu said his administration was set to completely eradicate them in all parts of the states.

He said a new transport system is set to be launched in the state.

Jubril Gawat, special adviser to the governor on social media, also posted on Twitter Monday that about 500 'last-mile' buses would be rolled out to serve as alternatives to tricycles and motorcycles in the first phase.

He added that the state will keep rolling out the mini buses till about 5,000 of them are spread within the state.
Nigeria remains one of the 30 countries globally with the highest burden of TB.

Health experts in Nigeria have urged the federal government to improve its domestic funding for Tuberculosis (TB) in order to reduce its burden in the country.

The call was made on Monday in Abuja at an advocacy workshop on Drug-Resistance TB (DR-TB) organised by the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control Programme (NTBLCP), in collaboration with the Stop TB Partnership Nigeria and the Treatment Action Group (TAG) New York.

Speaking at the event, the National Coordinator, NTBLCP, Chukwuma Anyaike, said the funding gap of TB in the country currently stands at 70 per cent.

Mr Anyaike said the country can only boast of 30 per cent funding out of which 23 per cent is from international donors and other partners.

He said; "We need support, especially financial support to be able to breach this gap and eradicate the disease."

Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis is a contagious disease that is caused by a bacterium (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) that often affects the lungs.

Nigeria remains one of the 30 countries globally with the highest burden of TB. She ranks first in Africa with the number of undetected cases.

Although TB is one of the vaccine-preventable diseases which is also curable, statistics from the WHO show that every year, around 245,000 Nigerians die from TB, and about 590,000 new cases occur (of these, around 140,000 are also HIV-positive).

Data released by 'Stop TB Partnership' in March shows that global treatment and diagnosis of TB cases witnessed a drastic decline in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic which has infected millions of people worldwide.

The report also indicates that disruptions in services caused by the pandemic have led to further setbacks in progress already made against the disease.

Drug resistance TB

Mr Anyaike said the country has only treated 11 per cent of people with drug resistant TB, leaving a gap of 89 per cent.

He said data show that one case of TB that is left untreated can infect 10 to 15 people in a year depending on the environmental position of such a person.

"We have 440,000 new cases of TB in this country and the highest number of cases we notified was in 2020. If compared with our estimation, you will find out we have above 300,000 cases still missing," he said.

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He explained that between 2010 and 2020, 13,407 DR-TB cases have been notified while 9,337 have been placed on treatment.

He, however, said awareness of TB is still very low as only 27 per cent of Nigerians know about the disease.

"Furthermore, worthy of note is the gap between diagnosis and enrollment of DR-TB cases which has been largely due to a myriad of factors.

"One of which is the lack of demand for the diagnostic services due to lack of awareness of Tuberculosis amongst the population, stigma, and ignorance of the people in the community about the disease," he said.

He noted that the NTBLCP through the support and collaboration of partners and donor agencies have taken laudable steps in reducing the prevalence of the disease through ensuring Universal Health Coverage for DR-TB patients.

"Nigeria adopted the Gene Xpert technology in 2013 for rapid diagnosis of DR-TB with the capacity to diagnose a case within 100 minutes.

"Currently, 403 of these Gene Xpert machines have been procured and deployed across the country to ensure accessibility to rapid molecular diagnosis of presumptive DR-TB," he said.

In his remarks, the executive secretary of StopTB partnership, Mayowa Joel, said there are ongoing efforts to eradicate drug-resistant TB which is still high in the country.

He said the dialogue aims to get new recommendations to improve TB case finding and treatments for drug resistance TB in the country.
The Federal Government has announced a nationwide 12am to 4am curfew as part of fresh restrictions to mitigate the resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.The nationwide curfew will be in force until further notice.

The National Incident Manager (NIM), Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) on COVID-19, Dr. Mukhtar Muhammad on Monday announced the restrictions contained in the Phase Four of ease of guidelines.

He said that there would be no limitation to intra-state travel outside the curfew period.

The new guidelines which take effect from 0001 hours on Tuesday is limiting mass gatherings in public spaces to not more than 50 people at any given time.

Muktah added that access to government institutions would also be denied to anyone not wearing a face mask while government meetings and travels have been limited to the virtual platform.

Civil servants below GL 12 will also continue to work from home while the Federal Government has also directed that bars and nightclubs are to remain closed.

More to follow...
The curfew, which will be from 12a.m to 4a.m, would take effect from midnight on Monday, May 10, 2021

The Federal Government has imposed a nationwide curfew to further limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

The National Incident Manager, Mukhtar Mohammed, made this known at the Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) on COVID-19 briefing on Monday.

Mr Mohammed said the curfew, which will be from 12 a.m. to 4 a.m., would take effect from midnight on Monday, May 10, 2021.

He said night clubs, gyms and others would remain closed till further notice.

He noted that gatherings of religious groups and weddings, among others, have been reduced to 50 per cent attendance, while official engagements, meetings, and conferences should continue to hold virtually.

New restrictions

Announcing the new restrictions, Mr Mohammed said: "for gathering including wedding, parties meetings; we are expanding the limit to 50 people preferably Outdoors not in enclosed spaces and attendees must wear face masks and they must ensure proper sanitization of their hands and maintaining physical distance.

"For land and rail transport, there are no limitations anymore on inter and intrastate travel but service providers must abide by status stipulations from the Federal Ministry of Transport and ensure that PPEs are used and where applicable physical distancing is observed."

"For the public sector, we are maintaining the restriction and encouraging the work-at-home policy for staff below the level of grade level 12. Those at grade level 12 and above will be allowed to come to work.

"For the hospitality and entertainment industry, hotels will continue to remain open but observing all non-pharmaceutical interventions."

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He said amusement parks, gyms and cinemas "can open but at half capacity", adding that event centres that provide outdoor spaces can open but not indoor event centres.

"Eateries and restaurants can only open for outdoor services and we will make sure this is complied with. Bars and nightclubs to remain closed until further notice. Each of authority within the state can provide additional guidelines for minimising risk in the state as it relates to these facilities and industries," he said.

As of Sunday evening, Nigeria has recorded 165,419 COVID-19 infections according to an update published by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). The virus has killed 2,065 persons in the country.

To ensure no imported cases from countries experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases, Nigeria recently banned travels from Brazil, India and Turkey.

The Nigerian government said non-Nigerians who had travelled to any of the three countries in the previous 14 days would not be allowed into Nigeria.

While working to prevent imported COVID-19 cases, Nigeria is also continuing with its vaccination programme with over 1.6 million Nigerians receiving their first of two shots of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.

Meanwhile, at the briefing, the Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), said the PSC has approved the commencement of the second dose of the vaccination in all states of the federation and the FCT.

Nigeria has, so far, received about 4.4 million doses of the vaccine.
Governor Udom Emmanuel announced a donation of N60 million to the families of the slain officers.

The police authorities in Akwa Ibom State said they have so far lost 21 officers due to gun attacks in the state.

The commissioner of police in the state, Amiengheme Andrew, disclosed this on Monday while briefing Governor Udom Emmanuel who visited the police headquarters in the state to condole with the families of the slain officers and the police over the loss.

Mr Andrew also informed the governor that the police in the state lost 11 vehicles and seven firearms in the various attacks.

Mr Emmanuel, who visited the police headquarters immediately after the State Executive Council meeting, announced a donation of N60 million to the families of the slain officers.

Besides meeting with the police commissioner in his office, Mr Emmanuel met with officers inside a hall where he thanked them for dedicating their lives to the security of lives and properties in the state.

Mr Andrew thanked the governor for the visit and the donation. He said the visit was a morale booster to police officers in the state, and promised that the command will continue to do its best to secure the state.

Hours before Governor Emmanuel's visit to the police headquarters, there were unconfirmed reports of fresh disturbances by hoodlums in Essien Udim Local Government Area of the state.

A police officer was killed on Sunday in Essien Udim during an attack by hoodlums.

The attack occurred simultaneously with a similar attack in another area - Abak Local Government Area - in the state.

The police spokesperson in the state, Odiko MacDon, identified the slain officer as Obadia Eli, who was attached to MOPOL 57 Ukana.

The officer was on his way to his beat when he was accosted and killed by the hoodlums, Mr MacDon, a superintendent of police, said in a statement on Monday.

Besides the Boko Haram insurgency in the North-east, the perennial conflicts between farmers and herders, and the abduction for ransom in various parts of Nigeria, there has been a spate of deadly attacks on security agencies in the South-east and South-south geopolitical zones, which has compounded the security challenges in the two regions.
analysis

South Africa's economic policies have been moving to the right, embracing big business and ignoring workers and jobless people. Why does no organised voice speak out against this?

There is something missing in South African politics and public debate today - a loud and organised voice campaigning against poverty and inequality.

This absence is particularly surprising at the moment. Of course, poverty and inequality here are not new. The disparities between huge wealth and grinding poverty have been a feature of South Africa at least since the late 19th century when super-rich Randlords (mine owners) lived in mansions while working people risked their lives underground for very little pay. But the problem is particularly stark right now.

When Covid-19 reached this country, we heard confident predictions that economic and social life would have to change for the better because the pandemic had shown how costly this country's economic inequities are. But, if there has been change, it has been in the opposite direction - life has become even harder for most.

The evidence shows that the economic costs of the virus have been largely borne by the usual victims, people who are already worse off. As the economist Neva Makgetla pointed out last week: "Less skilled workers lost more livelihoods; small businesses were more likely to close down; and government cuts to services disproportionately hurt low-income households and communities." The most recent budget shows that the government has no intention right now of helping out people living in poverty. Its priority is attracting investment and it believes it can do this only by cutting spending on social needs. This threatens to reverse policy since 1994 which did recognise that fighting poverty should be a priority.

The absence of resistance to these shifts is stark. Except for a few newspaper columns or comments on digital media, there are no mass campaigns demanding that policy begin to take seriously the economic needs of the majority. There was a time in this country when inequities were greeted by marches, stayaways and boycotts - today they attract a newspaper column or two and a few rants on digital media.

One sign of this absence is that public-sector trade unions reacted to the only pay freeze since 1994 by going to court and hoping for the best, not by mobilising. While there is talk of a strike this year, the government would have to offer a very small increase to avert it. The revealing point is that the reason union strategists are prepared to accept very little is that they believe public opinion is against them. Since the majority of the public are people living in poverty, this either means that unions believe that most poor people don't support their demands or they believe that people living in poverty are not part of the public.

No strong voice against poverty

The governing party is paying no great price at the polls for any of this. By-elections since Covid-19 arrived - the most recent were in mid-April - show that some ANC voters may be staying away but not enough to prevent it winning wards from its opponents. If current trends continue, the ANC is set to do as well in October's local elections as in 2016 - or better.

So, at a time when millions in townships, shack settlements and on farms probably need support more than ever, the lack of opposition means that current policies are sure to continue and that the pandemic will leave most people worse off than before. Why is this? Why in a country in which the language of social justice and criticism of economic-power holders is common political currency, and in which movements which campaigned against poverty and inequality have been part of the landscape for over a century, is there no strong voice demanding that the economic needs of most people become a priority?

The most obvious reason is a huge gap between those who claim to speak for the poor and marginalised and the people on whose behalf they aim to speak. Some grassroots movements do speak for people in poverty in their areas but they are not strong enough to launch national campaigns. With this exception, people who bear the brunt of poverty are not organised and none of the political parties and non-governmental organisations who claim to speak for the poor have ever put down the sort of roots in areas where most of the people live, which would make that claim credible.

Perhaps the only movement in the country's recent history that has spoken for an organised national following of people in poverty is the trade union movement. But the unions always only spoke for people who had jobs and, despite much talk about linking up with the jobless, there was little action. And, over the past few years, unions have been severely weakened, mainly by a reality in which the gap between the lifestyles of the leadership and those of members has grown as many of the leaders have become part of the problem they were meant to fight.

But this may be merely a symptom of two deeper problems. The first is the country's continued division into insiders and outsiders and the reality that the outsiders monopolise politics, in parties and in citizens' organisations. The second is that the country's racial divisions continue to shape its politics.

One important feature of the country's politics is that, despite glaring poverty and huge inequalities, there is no strong party here to the ANC's left. The SA Communist Party and the Economic Freedom Fighters would no doubt claim this role but they are both, in different ways, part of the nationalist family which is designed to act against racial inequality but not the gap between rich and poor. The most recent attempt to organise a left party here, by the National Union of Metalworkers, made no headway.

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The country's racial past and present ensures that, despite its decline, the ANC is still the dominant force among most voters and there is no sign of this ending. Only a party which seems to come from within the broad traditions of the ANC will win mass support. The ANC is not only central to most voters - it is also why social justice activism is so removed from the grassroots. While most activists reject the ANC, they are often fixated on it, more concerned with why it does not listen to them than with organising people.

Nor is there much history here, outside the union movement, of effective campaigns for greater economic or social equality in which race is not a central issue. There is a history of boycotts, mass rallies and stay-aways in areas where the poor live. But they have all been part of the fight for racial equality. So, what is now missing - a campaign against poverty rather than against racial injustice - has always been missing.

The strange gap in this country's politics is deeply rooted in history, which is why it is so hard to change. But that does not mean it can never be changed. That most people have never been able to be heard on economic issues does not mean they must be ignored forever. When and how these realities will change is unclear. But, as long as the economic debate remains the preserve of a few, progress to a fairer society will be very limited indeed.
Blog

The health security of a nation comprises the activities that lessen adverse public health incidents and ensures a healthy and productive population. It is vital to developing strong and resilient health systems that can prevent, detect, and respond to infectious disease threats, wherever they occur. Nigeria has experienced outbreaks of infectious diseases such as Lassa fever, cerebrospinal meningitis, Ebola, COVID-19 and resurgences of yellow fever and monkeypox. The Ebola outbreak in the West African Democratic Republic of Congo was described as the second-largest outbreak of the strain. Likewise, in the wake of its unprecedented impact on human health and economies, COVID-19 is considered one of the most important global health crises of our time.

It may never be possible to address every infectious disease outbreak that surfaces but there are certain things that nations and communities can do to reduce the likelihood of occurrence of epidemics. This is known as Emergency preparedness, a programme of long-term development activities whose goals are to strengthen the overall capacity and capability of a country to manage efficiently all types of emergency and to bring about an orderly transition from relief through recovery and back to sustainable development.

Epidemic preparedness enables government and its health agencies from the national to communities to detect, contain, respond and stop disease outbreaks effectively. The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the ways in which epidemic preparedness and response are under-prioritised and under-resourced.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is Nigeria's national public health institute with the mandate to protect Nigerians from the impact of communicable diseases of public health significance, amongst other responsibilities. As part of her mandate, the NCDC supports states in responding to small outbreaks, and leads in the response to large disease outbreaks. Prior to the confirmation of the first COVID-19 case in Nigeria, the NCDC put the National Emergency Operation Centre (EOC), on high alert mode; monitoring the spread in other countries, carrying out risk assessments and strengthening Nigeria's preparedness.

Nigeria is a Federal Republic with a Presidential system. The constitution provides for separation of powers among the three tiers of government, which are the federal, states and local governments. So, this means that states have the responsibility to cater for the health of their citizens especially as health is on the concurrent legislative list. Therefore every state is directly responsible for the preparedness and response efforts to curb infectious disease outbreaks in its domain. However, despite Nigeria's high burden of epidemic-prone diseases and many outbreaks, the preparedness and response approach and resources at the state level have differed considerably from one state to another.

"There is a great need for us to prioritise healthcare across all levels in Nigeria. When this is done, then we will see more commitment to the health system and the country's health system will improve", Dr Muktar Mohammed, National Incident Manager, Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 said, speaking at a multisectoral forum on Epidemic Preparedness and Response Financing (EPR) in Nigeria organised by the Legislative Advocacy Initiative for Sustainable Development Goals (LISDEL).

Advocacy as a Tool for Effecting Change

Kano state reported its first COVID-19 case on 11th April 2020 and soon became an area of concern in Nigeria's COVID-19 because of increased cases of unexplained deaths in the state. The state has a history of dealing with certain endemic diseases such as meningitis and other seasonal outbreaks.

The existence of these issues informed the selection of Kano State by the Legislative Advocacy Initiative for Sustainable Development Goals (LISDEL) supported by Global Health Advocacy Incubator as a focus state to advocate for budgeting for epidemic preparedness at the state level, under the Prevent Epidemics project which is being implemented by Nigeria Health Watch, BudgIT and LISDEL.

Although Kano State recorded successes in dealing with these outbreaks, the emergence of COVID-19 posed a huge threat to the state. This was reiterated in comments made by Abdullahi Hamza, Kano State Coordinator for the Prevent Epidemics project. "When COVID came, there was a lot of confusion because the response mechanisms were the conventional ones that were been used to handle other outbreaks and at that time, the infectious disease hospitals were not functioning at an optimal level," he said.

LISDEL with support from Global Health Advocacy Initiative (GHAI), started advocating for the creation of a budget line for epidemic preparedness in Kano State in 2020. According to Julianna Aribo-Abude, Executive Director, LISDEL, "At the beginning of the project, we conducted a stakeholder analysis to know who the key players were in improving domestic financing. Then we also carried out an analysis on budgets and budget trends. All these informed the stakeholder engagement".

LISDEL leveraged the existing state budget process and actively engaged with the Commissioner for Health, members of the state legislature and the Executive Governor of Kano State.

Hamza also reiterated that the next step of the advocacy process, was the sensitization of the different stakeholders on the importance of state budgeting for epidemic preparedness.

The need to secure the 'buy-in' of stakeholders was key in the advocacy because a number of stakeholders did not initially understand the need and importance for states budgeting for epidemic preparedness. "Why are you calling for it? COVID has come and God has helped us to overcome it. Don't you know that's inviting trouble for yourself?" said one of the stakeholders during the sensitization meetings. This necessitated more advocacy to ensure that each stakeholder understood the importance of state taking charge and budgeting for epidemic preparedness.

On February 25, 2021, LISDEL hosted a multisectoral forum on Epidemic Preparedness and Response Financing. In attendance were some key stakeholders that they had been engaging with in Kano State.

In his address at the forum, the Kano State Honourable Commissioner for Health, Dr Aminu Ibrahim Tsanyawa, said the state created a budget line of NGN300 million in the 2021 budget for epidemic preparedness and an additional NGN2 million per Local Government Area was allocated for epidemic preparedness. He also emphasised the importance of financing health security. "If there is anything we have learnt from this COVID-19 era, it is the importance of preparedness and the importance of health financing for health security", he said.

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This was made possible by Civil Society Organisations who actively engaged with the government as well as the Commissioner for Health, members of the state legislature and the Executive Governor of Kano State who all took ownership at different stages of the project.

Crucial Next Steps for Advocates and the Government of Kano State

It is one thing to allocate the funds in the budget and another thing for the funds to be released and utilised properly. The release of these budgeted funds for epidemic preparedness activities must be advocated for alongside accountability in the appropriation of the released funds.

The creation of a legal framework for the sustainability of funding for epidemic preparedness is important for not only Kano State but other states that should follow Kano State's lead. Good implementation, monitoring and evaluation are important processes that must be initiated to promote accountability of budgeted funds and provide justification for increased investments. There private sector should also be involved for sustained funding for epidemic preparedness at the state level because COVID-19 has shown the impact that disease outbreaks can have on the economy and businesses.

COVID-19 has also shown that "without health, we have nothing" and disease outbreaks affect health systems and economies negatively. Kano State's decision to create a budget line for epidemic preparedness is an example that other states should emulate. The anticipated cumulative actions by states would improve Nigeria's preparedness to detect, prevent and respond to infectious disease outbreaks.
A Former Head of State, General Abdulsalami A. Abubakar (rtd), has denied having any link with armed bandits and any other terrorists group in Niger State, describing reports linking him with their activities as "false, unfounded" and fake news.

According to a statement by Abdulsalami in Minna, signed by his media aide, Dr Yakubu Suleiman, alleged that some selected online media had linked him to a purported arrested helicopter supplying food and weapons to bandits in parts of the state.

The General in the statement disassociated himself from such "a heinous crime that is unbecoming of any patriotic citizen", stressing that ordinarily, he would have ignored such spurious reports but has to set the record straight.

"This kind of fake news has the potential of aggravating the already tense security situation in the country and should not be condoned," he said.

He, however, expressed regret how individuals could peddle such news and smear the image and character of people, adding that "I urge Nigerians to ignore such treacherous acts and to be careful with the kind of information they dish out and share on Social Media".

He also urged Nigerians to continue to work and pray for enduring peace in Nigeria, saying that no nation could attain greatness without peace and security of lives and property.

Prayer session over insecurity

Meanwhile, the Niger State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello, has declared a special weekly prayer session across the eight emirate councils in the State to seek God's intervention to end insecurity in the State.

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Bello, who flagged off the special prayers session which had in attendance, Islamic scholars, state government officials, traditional leaders as well as other stakeholders at the central mosque in Minna, said there was an urgent need to seek God's intervention in the security situation in the state, and country in general.

The special prayer led by the Chief Imam of Minna Central Mosque, Mallam Ibrahim Isah Fari, also featured recitation of some verses from the Holy Qur'an and supplications for God's intervention in security challenges

confronting the Nation.

Speaking to journalists shortly after the prayers, Governor Bello reiterated the need for all and sundry not to relent in fervent prayers to God Almighty even as he disclosed that the state and federal governments were not leaving any stone unturned towards ending security challenges in the state.

The Governor noted that significant progress was being achieved in restoring normalcy to some troubled areas in the state, explaining that the prayer session would continue even after Ramadan fast.
Amid a raging storm on the attempt to rob Professor Ibrahim Gambari, Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Malam Garba Shehu, presidential spokesman, deleted a tweet on the details of the move to burgle the residence of another Aso Rock official.

About an hour after he commented on what he described as a "foolish attempt" to burgle Gambari's residence, Shehu tweeted on a similar incident on the residence of Abdullahi Maikano, an official at the presidency.

An online platform had reported that both Gambari and Maikano were robbed inside the presidential villa.

According to the report, which has been trending online, armed robbers invaded Aso Rock and emptied the residences of Gambari and Maikano.

But Shehu had dismissed the report, commenting only on the attempt on Gambari's residence, which he said is outside the seat of power.

"The Chief of Staff, Professor Ibrahim Gambari has confirmed that there "was a foolish attempt" to burgle his residence at 3:00am this morning but it turned out to be unsuccessful.

"Professor Gambari, whose house is on a street next to the Villa has assured that there is nothing to worry about from the incident," he had said in a terse statement.

But moments later, he tweeted on the attempt to burgle the residence of Maikano.

The presidential spokesman had said the suspect behind the incident was captured on Closed Circuit Television (CCTV), adding that the police were on his trail.

But surprisingly, he deleted the tweet which had been retweeted over 200 times and posted a fresh one which had no information on the CCTV part.

It is unclear if Shehu expunged that part because he felt it could hamper investigation which he said was ongoing.

Shehu's initial tweet no longer available

Below is what he replaced the deleted tweet with.

The police, in a related development is searching for a suspected burglar who unsuccessfully attempted to break into the house of Maikano Abdullahi on Thursday, last week. Maikano lives on the same street with the Chief of Staff, close to the Villa.

-- Garba Shehu (@GarShehu) May 10, 2021
Jalingo, Taraba State capital, came to stand still on Monday as Hajiya Aisha Jummai Alhassan, former Minister of Women Affairs and Child Welfare, popularly known as 'Mama Taraba', was buried.

Her corpse arrived Jalingo airport at about 5.15pm and was taken to her father's house located close to her personal residence at GRA, Jalingo.

Late Jummai Alhassan body was brought to the palace of Emir of Muri at about 6.46 pm and the chief Imam of Jalingo Central Mosque, Imam Nuru Dinga, led thousands people for the funeral prayer.

Shortly after the funeral, the body of late Alhassan was moved to Jeka da fari burial ground in an ambulance and she was laid to rest there.

The funeral prayer was attended by Deputy Governor of Taraba, Haruna Manu, serving and former senators, members House of Representatives, members of the Taraba house of Assembly, emirs and chiefs as well as thousands of sympathisers.

The Jeka da fari burial ground was besieged by thousands of her sympathisers, and political associates from within and outside the state.

Aged 61, the late Alhassan was survived by her father, three children and 13 grand children.

She was said to have born on a Friday, got married on a Friday and died on a Friday.

Earlier, Alhaji Ismaila Yakawada led a delegation of family members to Professor Ango Abdullahi, her former husband, whom she had her three children for.
Abuja  The United Kingdom (UK) has secured the commitment of G7 action plan to help save millions of lives from famine and humanitarian crises, including 276 million for NorthzEast Nigeria.

This was disclosed on Monday in a statement issued by the British High Commission in Abuja, stressing that G7 has agreed on landmark collective action to significantly increase early action, supporting the UN to more than double its plans to tackle droughts, epidemics and other catastrophes before they strike.

At the meeting, which took place in London, G7 countries agreed action to protect the most vulnerable people around the world from climate-related disasters, help millions of people at imminent risk of famine, humanitarian crises and ensure equitable access to life-saving COVID-19 vaccines.

According to the statement, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing said, "I welcome the G7's commitment of 276 million for North East Nigeria. It is vital we act now to avert further deterioration in the food security situation of millions of people affected by the conflict.

"Just as the UK is working with Nigerian partners to find solutions to the crisis in the North East, the G7 are working together to find global solutions to global problems and protect those hardest hit by these challenges. Together we can shape a better future."

The triple threat of conflict, COVID-19 and climate change has meant the risk of famine is now a devastating reality many countries face. Millions of people in Yemen, South Sudan and North East Nigeria are already in crisis, the statement said.

The crisis in North-East Nigeria is more than a decade old. According to UN OCHA, there are 8.7 million people in need of humanitarian assistance there. 1.9 million People have been displaced from their homes and one million people are in areas outside humanitarian access.

"In North East Nigeria, 4.36 million people are projected to be in crisis and emergency levels of food security this lean season (June-August). The UK is seriously concerned about the status of civilians living in the inaccessible areas, over 800,000 people of whom are reaching critical levels of food insecurity and have extremely limited access to basic services such as healthcare," the statement added.

The UK is driving co-ordinated action to tackle shared global challenges of COVID-19, famine and climate change, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab announced on 5th May 2021 as he wrapped up the G7 Foreign and Development Ministers meeting.
Abuja  A sub-national Audit Efficacy Index 2020 has revealed that 18 States of the federation operate without Audit Law.

They are Adamawa, Kano, Kebbi, Kogi, Plateau, Benue, Kwara, Nasarawa, Sokoto, Taraba, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Abia, Ebonyi, Imo, Oyo, Bayelsa and Enugu states. They are with the least potent audit mechanisms in the country having scored below 50 per cent.

The report by Paradigm Leadership Support Initiative (PLSI), a civic organisation fostering accountability in Nigeria, assessed all 36 states of the federation against public finance management practices and accountability mechanisms leveraging on the role of public audit as a potent tool for improving efficiency, effectiveness, and economy of public spending.

Recall that in 2015, the federal government approved the sum of $2.1bn to provide an intervention package to help bankrupt states in Nigeria pay salaries. While there has been increasing agitation for and against resource control, not much attention has been given to public finance management practices and accountability mechanisms in state and local levels.

Also, it would be recalled that some Nigerian states were unable to access a $700 million grant from the World Bank as they failed to publish their budget online.

Related: Nigeria Needs New Audit Law

The World Bank grants are non-repayable funds disbursed or given by one party, often a government department, corporation, foundation or trust, to a recipient, often (but not always) a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual.

Basically, public audit no doubt plays a significant role in improving government's spending and revenue capacity by limiting fiscal behaviors that result in waste, misallocation or misappropriation and corruption. It is important to recognize the impact of sub-national audit which is aimed at strengthening public finance management and accountability structures at state and local levels as is the practice at the national level.

Sub-national audit and other public finance accountability measures are not only crucial for good governance and development but particularly important to the fiscal health condition of state and local governments.

The inability of public audit to yield intended benefit as provided for in section 125 of the 1999 constitution as amended cannot be separated from the maximum control of the executive arm over the legislature and judiciary at sub-national level.

It is therefore important to allow democratic institutions at state and local levels to function effectively so that public resources can be adequately accounted for.

Addressing a virtual press briefing on Monday on sub-national Audit Efficacy Index 2020, the communications associate, PLSI, Adebisi Adeshakin, said the inability of State Assemblies' Public Accounts Committees (PACs) to issue recommendations based on their review of reports of auditor-general's is negatively impacting the public audit eco-system particularly at sub-national level which in turn hindering accountability in the management of public funds.

The report highlighted "twelve states including Delta, Jigawa, Kaduna, Lagos, Niger, and Rivers as states with the most potent audit process in Nigeria having scored 70/100. Also, Anambra, Borno, Yobe, Katsina and Gombe occupied 13th position with 60/100 as their score while the 2020 index ranked Oyo, Sokoto, Imo, Benue among others 25th with 40 per cent score point and Enugu as a state with the least potent audit mechanisms having scored 20/100 and ranked 36th."

The report said the lack of independence of the legislative arm of government at sub-national level is a cause for concern and this is evident by the recent call for legislative and judicial autonomy across the 36 States of the federation.

Similarly, it said the failure on the part of sub-national audit institutions to allow for citizens' participation in the audit process renders audit functions inadequate and unable to facilitate sustainable development.

It lamented that it was disappointing to know that 50 per cent of states including Sokoto, ImoOsun, Benue, and Anambra do not have modern audit laws that should guarantee independence of the auditor-general in their states and enhance effective stakeholder involvement in their audit process.

The report, however, noted that some states including Zamfara, Delta, Kano and Edo are showing progress, having enacted modern audit laws and should be encouraged to do more.

Also, Delta state is among the very few if not the only state that has published an audit report on COVID-19 interventions.

In the report, Enugu State has the least potent audit mechanisms having scored 20/100 and ranked 36th.

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Presenting the latest report during a virtual briefing, PLSI executive director, Olusegun Elemo, explained the methodology adopted in the assessment exercise.

He said that "PLSI undertook data integrity exercises to ensure that information used in assessing efficacy of public audit in each state were drawn from reliable sources. certain evaluation criteria were employed in arriving at the SAE index 2020 and data used fulfilled certain conditions to qualify as a valid data."

"The SAE index 2020 was assessed using each sub-national entity's fiscal information, legal framework, and stakeholder involvement in the public audit cycle. We standardized data sources to a scale of 0-100 where 0 equals the lowest level and 100 equals the highest level of audit capacity to produce the intended result of ensuring that public funds are adequately accounted for.

"This standardization was done by aggregating scores due from all stages of assessment which include availability (publicly) of financial statement/audited financial statement/audit report, operationalization of a modern or obsolete audit legal framework, legislative involvement in the audit process, executive actions on audit recommendations, and level of citizens participation in the audit process."
Foreign liaison officers (FLOs) assigned to Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) visited the U.S. Africa Command Headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany Oct. 30-31, 2018. During the visit, FLOs from Burundi, Comoros, Kenya, Uganda, Italy, and South Korea met with AFRICOM staff members and received briefings about the command.

analysis

Nigeria's president, Muhammadu Buhari, has asked the United States to move its military headquarters overseeing Africa to the continent, from Germany. This is to better tackle growing armed violence in the region. The Conversation Africa's Wale Fatade asked peace and security expert Kester Onor about the implications of this request.

What do you think of President Buhari's request that the US should move its Africa Command headquarters to the continent?

The request that the US should relocate AFRICOM headquarters to Africa contradicts the previous position taken by most African heads of governments when it was created. AFRICOM was formed in 2007. It was formed as a structure devoted to Africa (excluding Egypt) as part of US national security strategy. It became operational in 2008.

African policy makers, scholars and media resisted putting the command headquarters in Africa. They said it would undermine the precarious human security situation on the continent. They cited previous US military forays in Africa which led to a disproportionate development of military institutions relative to instruments of civilian rule.

Others saw AFRICOM as a naked attempt to exert American control over African resources. African leaders argued that Washington's concern about African development was just a cover for asserting power.

Buhari's request for AFRICOM's assistance in tackling the country's current security challenges may seem good in some aspects. These include providing technical assistance, intelligence gathering and logistics to Nigerian troops engaged in different operations locally.

But asking it to put boots on the ground may be detrimental to Africans. AFRICOM is a component of the US Department of Defense and State Department. The US Defence department places emphasis on traditional security imperatives that secure the state - guns and wars - rather than the principles of human security. The general fear is that highly centralised states with dictatorial leaders may further be militarised. This will be to the detriment of citizens.

Nigeria initially rejected the US setting up a military base in the country and in West Africa. Now insurgency, banditry and terrorism have escalated beyond manageable proportions due to acute deprivation and inability of the ruling class to allocate available resources equitably.

This is seen in lack of political will to confront and address the pathology of insecurity in Nigeria. Previous administrations were pragmatic in handling national issues. President Olusegun Obasanjo banned a radical Yoruba organisation, Odua Peoples Congress, even though it was formed by his own Yoruba people.

President Umaru Yar'Adua also offered an unconditional pardon to Niger Delta militants who agreed to lay down arms and assemble at screening centres. There was also cohesion among the security personnel in previous governments and superb inter-agency collaboration.

The US has not said whether the request will be granted or not. But I suspect it will, as this has always been its desire.

What are the implications of AFRICOM headquarters moving to Africa?

The implications are far-reaching.

We are in a multipolar world with China, US, Russia, India and France struggling to expand their spheres of influence. Just like China established its first overseas base in Djibouti, other foreign powers will likely follow the same direction, thereby making the continent a war zone.

The United States military has intervened in many countries, thereby creating enemies. Examples are Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya and Mali. The relocation of AFRICOM headquarters to Africa will expose the continent to attacks from several fronts. Islamic fundamentalists might attack in ways perceived to inflict pain on US government and citizens. An example is the 1998 bombing of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. African countries could be caught in proxy wars between the US and its enemies.

African governments will tend to be influenced in decision-making. This can happen through application of hard and soft power instruments. This may lead to securitisation and militarisation of policy whereby scarce resources which should be directed to critical sectors may be diverted to military spending. The American large military industrial complex might lobby its government to create instability in Africa to enable them market its arsenals. We've seen this in Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates.

The establishment of a large American military institution on the continent may truncate Africa's nascent democracies. It undermines the establishment and growth of civil society. It also creates avenues for military incursion in politics. The Command will involve military training and this can encourage coups.

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Considering the growing security challenges in West and Central Africa, Gulf of Guinea, Lake Chad region and the Sahel, weighing heavily on Africa, is the relocation an answer to these challenges?

It will not ameliorate or eradicate insecurity bedevilling Africa. The present insecurity in Africa is the consequence of misrule, corruption and endemic poverty. Also, bad governance, gross marginalisation and political exclusion.

These cannot be resolved by mere relocation of a military institution to Africa. They are challenges caused by underdevelopment.

Insecurity causes are multifaceted, therefore, the solution lies in structural reformation of African society. The plural nature of African states demands structural reforms. Reforms that will entrench constitutionalism, the rule of law, and political inclusion.

Kester Onor, Lecturer, Department of Political Science and International Relations, Covenant University
analysis

Yoweri Museveni's less-than-stellar democratic and human rights record has caused increasing anger abroad. But allies in the West seem loath to upset a regime which has contributed toward stabilization in the region.

Yoweri Museveni, 76, is scheduled to be sworn in as Uganda's head of state for a sixth five-year term on Wednesday.

He is not expected to change the autocratic style he has developed over the last 35 years, nor the system of patronage and corruption which has been crucial to enabling his longevity in power.

By hijacking state institutions to serve his own ends, Museveni managed to have Parliament twice alter the constitution to allow him to run for president, first removing a two-term limit in 2005 and then abolishing the age limit of 75 in 2017.

The president seized power in 1986, after a five-year guerrilla struggle. At the time, he was enthusiastically welcomed by a population weary of bloodshed, successive despots and ineffectual military juntas.

Elected president 10 years later, Museveni gained the West's trust by stabilizing a country prone to coups and conflict since independence in 1962.

He invited the Asian minority -- expelled by Idi Amin a decade earlier -- back into the country and put in place a mixed-economy model, which helped promote growth. This opened the door to substantial foreign assistance which has flowed in ever since, and which has helped consolidate growth, in turn stabilizing Museveni's regime.

Museveni will 'remain in power' with military support

Teddy Atim, who was born in 1986, has only ever known a country ruled by Museveni. She told DW that she voted for him because she hoped to benefit from the government's business startup capital fund, Emyooga.

"I know that in the next five years we are going to benefit from planned government projects," Atim said.

Mwambutsya Mwebesa, a historian at Makerere University, is skeptical of the president's promises.

"Uganda is a very poor country. He [Museveni] found it a least developing country and it is still a least developing country now," he told DW.

The government projects were the right card to play though, he added, because "poor people do not always struggle for human rights issues or even political rights issues. They normally pursue survival rights issues."

Asked if he could discern a possible successor for Museveni, he said the president "will remain in power for as long as the military is behind him."

Opposition leader Bobi Wine calls out persecution of opposition

A politicized security apparatus has been a key factor of Museveni's survival in power for more than three decades. It was effectively deployed in the run-up to the presidential election in January against restless urban youth, who were enthralled by the promise of renewal. This was represented by charismatic opposition politician Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, a musician who goes by the artistic name Bobi Wine.

Himself a target of persecution on the eve and in the wake of the polls, Wine has called attention to the suffering of Museveni's political opponents.

"Hundreds of young people, young men and women supporting the People Power Movement and the National Unity Platform, the movement and party which I lead, have been abducted by the government. Many have been murdered in detention," said Wine.

Several others were brutally tortured, Wine told DW in an exclusive interview on Monday.

In November, at least 54 people were killed in a protest that erupted after Wine was detained while campaigning. The ruthlessness shown by security forces led to protests from the West.

In April, Uganda's main donor, the United States, announced visa bans on government officials accused of human rights violations and repressive acts.

In February, the European Parliament called on member states to enact similar sanctions, although none were forthcoming.

'Darling of the West'

Washington is not planning to cut to the development aid of around $970 million (780 million) it provides yearly, almost half of the total donated to Kampala by all OECD members. That's without counting military aid.

The US visa bans have been largely met with indifference. "We are not going to lose sleep over this," said Uganda's state minister for foreign affairs, Okello Oryem, on April 16.

Nevertheless, in the grip of major economic and debt crises, Kampala has increasingly turned to China for financial help that is more free of criticism.

Western donors are unlikely to put too much pressure on Museveni's regime in view of Uganda's generous refugee policies. After all, the country has welcomed more than 1.4 million people from such conflict-ravaged countries as Congo and South Sudan.

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Donors will likely turn a blind eye to Uganda's crucial role in attempts to appease the Great Lakes region and its significant contribution in the fight against terrorism in Somalia.

"This has made him a darling of the West," said analyst Mwebesa.

An uncertain future

The discovery if oil in the Albertine Rift Basin in the western part of the country in 2006, which will likely make Uganda the fourth largest sub-Saharan producer in until the end of the decade, is unlikely to encourage a global will to rein in Museveni's despotic tendencies.

Aware that Museveni will not relinquish power voluntarily anytime soon, opposition leader Bobbi Wine places his hopes for change on Uganda's youth. The official youth unemployment rate of around 13% does not take into account underemployment, precarious work and wages too low to secure a living. Measures like the recent introduction of a 12% tax on internet data - mostly seen as another repressive measure, like the ban on access to the social media platform Facebook - are bound to increase dissatisfaction among the urban young.

"We continue pushing on, knowing it is not going to be an overnight thing. But ultimately, we will get there," Wine told DW.

Frank Yiga and Liz Shoo contributed to this article
At least nine counties could be targeted in the upcoming Covid-19 vaccine recall by the national government.

This is based on the latest immunisation report showing that the said counties have used less than half of the doses they received.

According to the latest Covid-19 immunisation report dated May 7, Garissa, Marsabit, Lamu, Mandera, Turkana, Wajir, Kwale, Isiolo, and Tana River counties have used less than 60 per cent of the doses they received two months ago.

For instance, Wajir received 6,000 doses but has used up 2,160 only.

Similarly, Marsabit, which received 2,760 doses has utilised 674, while Mandera with 6,000 doses has administered only 2,411.

Redistribute jabs

On Friday, the Ministry of Health announced the plan to recall the jabs and redistribute them to prevent expiry and wastage.

"We are going to take back vaccines that are lying idle in counties due to slow uptake and distribution. We cannot afford to have the jabs expire in our stores," Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said Friday, adding that they will be dispatched to other counties.

Mr Kagwe, however, did not disclose when the recall will happen but most of the vaccines are scheduled to expire in June.

While some counties have used less than half of the vaccines allocated to them, others have reportedly held on their stocks to administer the second dose.

WHO modelling

The World Health Organisation (WHO) modelling suggests that vaccinating more people in the highest priority population groups with one dose as opposed to vaccinating half that number with two doses will substantially reduce death rates.

"We know that there are some counties holding onto the second doses," Dr Willis Akhwale, chairman of the Covid-19 vaccines deployment and vaccination task force told the Nation Sunday.

The total number of people vaccinated to date is 915,968, with the majority (56 per cent) being male.

Since the start of the vaccination in March 8 to date, Nairobi region has received 393,000 doses, Eldoret 129,000, Nakuru 117,000, Kisumu 108,000, Nyeri 84,000, Kakamega 81,000, Mombasa 66,000, Meru 39,000, Garissa and Mandera 25,000, KDF 48,000 and Afya House 9,000 doses.

According to data on vaccine deployment, about 1,099,000 doses had been distributed by May 7, with a balance of 21,000 doses at the Kitengela central store.

However, despite using 75 per cent of the vaccines, 278,100 doses remained unused across the country, the MoH Covid-19 immunisation report shows.

Like many countries dependent on the United Nations backed Covax facility whose supply has been dogged by vaccine nationalism and hoarding, Kenyan officials do not know when or where the next shipment of doses will come from.

Covax

"We have not yet signed any bilateral agreement with any manufacturer. It's important to note that costs under bilateral agreements may be much higher than through Covax. We look forward to their local registration and availability through Covax and AU mechanisms," said Dr Akhwale.

Kenya is among 192 countries signed up to Covax, which aims to supply doses for at least 20 per cent of countries' populations.

The country was to receive 3.6 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccines between February and May.

However, the ongoing Covid-19 crisis in India has hampered production and export of doses from the Serum Institute of India (SII), the world's largest manufacturer.

WHO Friday announced authorisation of emergency use of a Covid-19 vaccine made by China's Sinopharm.

This made it the first non-Western vaccine to gain WHO emergency use approval.

"This afternoon, WHO gave an emergency use listing to sign off on Beijing's Covid-19 vaccine, making it the sixth vaccine to receive WHO validation for safety, efficacy and quality," Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

The WHO had already given such approval to vaccines developed by BioNTech-Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Moderna.

The Sinopharm vaccine is produced by Beijing Bio-Institute of Biological Products Co Ltd, subsidiary of China National Biotec Group (CNBG).

Accelerate vaccine access

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"The addition of this vaccine has the potential to rapidly accelerate Covid-19 vaccine access for countries seeking to protect health workers and populations at risk," said Dr Mariangela Simao, WHO Assistant-Director General for Access to Health Products.

"We urge the manufacturer to participate in the Covax facility and contribute to the goal of more equitable vaccine distribution."

The WHO listing means the Sinopharm vaccine could eventually be included into the Covax initiative in the coming weeks or months and provided to poorer countries through the UN mechanism.

"This expands the list of vaccines that Covax can buy and gives countries confidence to expedite their own regulatory approval and to import and administer a vaccine."

Reported prices for the inoculation from the Chinese government-backed company Sinopharm range from Sh1,960 ($18.50) per shot in Senegal to Sh4,739 ($44) inside China to up to Sh7,681 ($72.50) a dose.

WHO's Emergency Use Listing (EUL) is a prerequisite for Covax facility vaccine supply. It also allows countries to expedite their own regulatory approval to import and administer Covid-19 vaccines.

emerab@ke.nationmedia.com
Police in Embu have launched investigations into the death of a secondary school principal who died under unclear circumstances.

The Maviani Mixed Secondary School principal, Julius Mweu collapsed in his rental house at Gategi Market on Sunday after he developed breathing problems.

He was rushed to the WhiteRose private hospital at the neighbouring Kirinyaga county but died while being treated.

According to the Riakanau location senior chief Kimeu Musyimi, neighbours heard the principal groaning and forced their way into his room, only to find him gasping for air and took him to the hospital but sadly he passed away.

"We have lost a principal who was so good," said the administrator.

Neighbours narrated how the principal arrived at the market on Saturday evening and went straight to the bar where he took a few drinks before proceeding to his house.

However, the neighbours were shocked when the principal fell sick at the wee hours of Sunday.

Investigations commenced

Mbeere South Sub-County police boss, Gregory Mutiso said investigations were commenced immediately the principal was pronounced dead.

He told relatives to be patient and wait for the police to complete their investigations.

"We want to establish the actual cause of death of the principal and relatives should be patient enough," he said.

Mr Mutiso said the principal was put on oxygen on arrival at the hospital but did not survive.
Fishermen affected by the dredging activities at the new Lamu Port have threatened to disrupt the commissioning of the port slated for May 30 this year.

The fishermen accused the government of failing to pay them Sh1.76 billion in compensation.

Led by their Beach Management Units (BMU) representatives, the fishermen issued a 14-day ultimatum for the government to resolve the matter lest they hold protests.

BMU networks chairman Mohamed Somo alleged the project has been marred by many injustices, particularly failure to compensate the local fishermen.

President Uhuru Kenyatta is set to commission the port on May 30.

Compensation package

"We hereby put it on record that we will oppose the plan by the state to open the Lamu Port until the court order to have the Lamu fishermen affected by Lapsset compensated is effected. As Lamu fishermen and BMUs, we strongly urge the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) to ensure the Sh1.76 billion compensation owed is fully distributed to us before the Lamu Port is launched," said Mr Somo.

In May 2018, the Malindi High Court awarded the compensation package of Sh1.76 billion to the Lamu fishermen after they were displaced by the new port at Kililana.

The 4,734 fishermen had sought legal redress, arguing that they would no longer be able to carry on with their venture due to the dredging activities at the new port.

"Over three years down the line, we are still waiting while port construction and dredging of the sea continue. Lamu Port has disrupted our ability to fish and earn our livelihoods. We deserve urgent compensation," said Mr Somo.

In the past week, there have been meetings between the fishermen representatives, KPA and the county government of Lamu where genuine fishermen have been screened and a list submitted to the national government as requested.

The original list, with 4,734 fishermen, was determined in the 2018 Malindi High Court ruling.

However, the current number of fishermen in Lamu is close to 6,000.

Livelihoods

"It is our understanding that 80 percent of the Sh1.76 billion compensation specified will be distributed to fishermen as direct cash payments, which is more transparent, faster and more useful. The remaining 20 percent will go to the development of fishing infrastructure. As BMUs, we are pushing to have even those fishermen not directly receiving cash compensation receive support for their livelihoods," said Mr Somo.

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Save Lamu Organisation chairman Mohamed Athman, who was among the key petitioners to have the rights of the local community respected as the government implements the Lamu Port, insisted that every fisherman affected by Lamu Port deserves compensation.

"We demand that the fishing community be compensated before the official opening of the Lamu Port this month. We also want inclusivity in every process for the compensation to reach the right people whose fishing activities have been greatly affected," said Mr Athman.

Their sentiments come just a day after the National Treasury and Planning CS Ukur Yatani visited the Lamu Port and announced that it will be opened on May 30 with the first ship expected to dock at the first Lamu Port berth in Kililana on May 20th this year.

Mr Yatani also assured the fishermen that they would be paid before the port is operationalised.

"All agreements on the compensation of fishermen affected by the Lamu Port's development have been finalised. Money has already been released from the Treasury and we expect the fishermen to be paid in a few days before the port launching date," said Mr Yatani.
Overzealous miraa traders are staring at losses estimated to be close to Sh5 million after the Somali Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA) warned that the herb remains illegal in the country.

Excited by the latest restoration of diplomatic relations between Kenya and Somalia, the traders had ordered about 12 tonnes of miraa destined for Somalia via Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) on Sunday night.

But SCAA Director-General Ahmed Hassan, in a letter addressed to cargo operators on Sunday, said the Federal Government of Somalia's policy on transportation of miraa to the country's airports had not changed.

"Transporting miraa without clearance from SCAA shall be considered unlawful and a violation of the Somali airspace...Operators are advised against transporting miraa to Somalia until further notice," the letter reads.

Farmers paid

However, according to Mr James Mithika, a politician from Igembe Central and who has been following the developments, farmers who had supplied the miraa are safe as they had been paid upfront.

"It is expected that the exporters had cleared with the Somali Civil Aviation Authority. The supply delivered by our farmers and local traders has been fully paid. Beyond that, it is now up to the exporter," Mr Mithika said.

But Nyambene Miraa Traders Association (Nyamita) spokesman Kimathi Munjuri said the miraa cargo was still lying at JKIA by Monday morning.

"We would wish to see the cargo being transported but unfortunately the miraa is still at JKIA. I don't see the chance of being allowed after SCAA stated its position yesterday. We are on the lookout for any change of status in the next couple of hours," Mr Munjuri said.

The Nyamita spokesman accused a section of residents and traders of acting on propaganda to resume trade.

Sources within the miraa trade networks said the traders are now considering using alternative routes to have the khat delivered to Somalia.

Nyamita now wants the government to speed talks with Somalia to reopen the key market which they lost a year ago.
For seven sisters in Trans Nzoia County, the adage, justice delayed is justice denied has come to acquire a special - if painful - meaning.

For 30 gruelling years, the siblings have been up and down the corridors of justice, waiting for the legitimate ownership of more than 400 acres of land to be determined.

The 458-acre land is part of the estate of their father, the late Clement Munga Muna. Four of them have since died, meaning they will never get to know the verdict on the property ownership dispute pitting them against their brother, Mr Solomon Muna, who was granted letters of administration to the estate.

According to Ann Njoki - the second last born daughter, a letter of administration intestate was made to Milka Mwihaki - their mother, Solomon and Samuel Ng'ang'a (other brother) on November 12, 1992 and confirmed on December 3, 1996.

However, as she puts it, her brother Solomon bestowed himself as sole administrator immediately after their mother's death, leaving out Samuel and not involving his sisters. He also went ahead to change his names from Solomon Muna to Solomon Clement Munga Muna (adding their father's names).

Furthermore, he shared the property and land amongst the boys, denying his sisters inheritance left by their father.

Family attempts to call for a meeting to resolve the matter proved futile since he either could not be reached or turned them away.

Inheritance dispute

"When our mother died, there was no family meeting to discuss her replacement as an administrator. As daughters, we felt it could have been one amongst us," Ms Njoki recalls.

The inheritance dispute began in 1992, when the seven sisters (all were alive) moved to court after their brother Solomon denied them a share of the land.

Their father died on July 27, 1990 followed by their mother on May 1, 1993.The seven daughters filed a petition with the Land Dispute Tribunal, which ruled in their favour.

However, the High Court in Eldoret overturned that finding in judicial review proceedings - Eldoret Miscellaneous Application No. 76 of 1995.

Unfortunately, Mary Muthoni - the eighth born who was at least more educated, while pursuing the case in Nairobi, died mysteriously.

Her death was a blow to her sisters who were engulfed with fear, forcing them not to pursue the case further.

To make it worse, other sisters; Peninah Wanjiku, Naomi Wairimu and Loise Wangui died of different illnesses due to hardships in life.

When the Nation.Africa visited the three remaining sisters - Elizabeth Waceke (84), Priscilla Wangechi (80) and Anne Njoki (62) at Gutongoria village, they recalled how their father came to own property in Trans Nzoia.

According to Ms Wangechi, their father and his brother Appollos Mwangi having acquired wealth after working at Kijabe Missionary as a masonry and a former Mau Mau fighter respectively, moved from Kijabe village in Kiambu in 1963, and bought the land jointly after selling their property.

"The family was so united when our father was alive. I could oversee the sale of maize harvest and my eldest sister, Elizabeth, made sure surveyors got food during the land subdivision process (between their father and his brother) while my brother Solomon, oversaw the exercise," narrates Ms Wangechi.

Thereafter, their father established himself as a prominent seed maize and dairy farmer in Trans Nzoia.

Jane Wangechi (51) - the only daughter of Elizabeth Waceke - recalls how her grandfather would slaughter a bull for his family to enjoy during Christmas celebrations.

"Us being kids, we would always cherish to visit our grandfather during festive season. He would slaughter a bull and share among family members," she tells The Voice at her grandfather's home in Gutongoria.

She, however, says the family that was always the weight that kept them grounded and their beacon in the storm, became detached with sons and daughters of her late grandfather pulling different directions.

For the dejected grandchildren of the deceased, it has been pain and suffering for the past 30 years waiting for justice on behalf of their mothers.

Dorcas Waceke, 39, explains how her mother (late Mary Muthoni) died mysteriously while pursuing the inheritance case in Nairobi forcing her and her sister to terminate their education to take care of their young siblings.

"I was born in a family of eight, one boy and seven girls. When my mother died, I was to join Form One. Our last born was three years old then, so I quit school to join my eldest sister who had already left school to take care of our siblings," she narrates in tears.

Moreover, their uncle Solomon, who was supposed to assist them went ahead to evict them from the land (a plot their grandfather gave to their mother) they were staying on, rendering them homeless.

She wishes her mother was alive, they could have gotten education and probably had good jobs.

Naomi and Monica were also unable to go to school after their father died and their mother (late Loise Wangui) was ill suffering from diabetes and blood pressure.

The family is calling on the government to intervene and help them get justice since the case has been in court for a long period of time.

However, Solomon has since denied his sisters claims and insists that before their father died, he made sure everyone had his own share of inheritance.

Surviving sisters

"Our father gave out land to each one of us before he died. Some chose to sell their portions and are now demanding a share of what I was given," Solomon said when he spoke to us on phone from Nairobi.

Solomon's brothers are, however, in support of the sisters saying the girls were given a share of the land as inheritance.

The three surviving sisters have filed a fresh petition challenging the management of the property.

This was after Justice Wanjiru Karanja of the Court of Appeal dismissed another appeal they had filed on technicalities, giving an upper hand to their brother, whom they accuse of disinheriting them.

"It's unfortunate the case was dismissed on technicalities based on gender inequalities. The Constitution asserts gender and women inheritance rights. We have a right to a fair hearing," says Ms Njoki, the last-born of the sisters.

She wonders why her brother Solomon would use their father's name in his ID, making it look like the sisters are suing their own father.

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She expresses frustration with the courts for dragging the case for more than three decades.

They have petitioned acting Chief Justice Philemona Mwilu to intervene and have the matter concluded within the shortest time possible.

"We have been seeking justice for the past 30 years, but the case has dragged on for too long and it is high time a ruling was issued," says Ms Wangechi.

They have also petitioned Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Noordin Haji, to help them unravel the reasons behind the delay of the case determination.

The sisters express fear for their lives after unknown people vandalised the roof of their late father's house, where they live.

Furthermore, Ms Njoki says she cannot put the land into use because of a letter her sister-in-law (wife to her brother) wrote stopping her from using the land, despite having a status quo from the High Court directing her to stay there.

On January 4, 2017, the sisters, through Ms Njoki, applied for revocation of the grant in the High Court in Nairobi - Succession No.857 of 1992.

On December 10, 2018, Justice Aggrey Muchelule delivered a ruling on the application. The court dismissed the application, terming it an abuse of the court process.

The judge further said the judicial review decision was similar to the application before court, shutting the door on the seven daughters.

Aggrieved by the decision, the appellant filed a notice of appeal at the Court of Appeal in Nairobi on December 20, 2018.
Samburu government has started training farmers on pasture production in a bid to boost dairy farming in the semi-arid county.

Samburu Deputy Governor Julius Leseeto said that the move will ensure food security in the county, which almost entirely depends on livestock rearing.

Data from the Kenya Dairy Board indicates that Samburu County has more than 184,666 head of cattle, 387,698 sheep, 32,824 goats and 26,822 camels.

Mr Leseeto, who flagged off the distribution of Boma Rhodes seeds in Samburu, noted that many pastoralists in the region are embracing improved livestock breeds over the indigenous ones.

"Samburu has the potential to reap good products from dairy farming and we are working to help farmers transform from indigenous livestock to improved breeds," he said.

Samburu County is mainly a semi-arid region; a majority of the farmers in the region are nomadic pastoralists who move their animals daily in search of greener pastures and water.

Produce hay for their livestock and sale

Mr Leseeto said the move by the county government will help farmers in lowland areas produce hay for their livestock and sale.

"Improved breeds are doing well in Samburu and we want to largely invest in them to satisfy the high milk demand in the county," he added.

According to Vincent Learaman, the County Executive for Agriculture, improved breeds will help pastoralists avoid constant disputes over grazing fields that other herders experience in Samburu.

"It is not easy to drive away grade breeds of cattle as compared to indigenous ones, which can walk longer distances. By embracing dairy farming, farmers will reduce insecurity and cattle rustling," said Mr Learaman.

In a bid to help farmers market milk products, the county has also set up a dairy cooperative in Maralal town with over 30 registered members.
A parliamentary committee has summoned the management of the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) to explain why it has not refunded Sh200 million meant for a police insurance cover to the ministry of Interior as required by law.

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the National Assembly wants NHIF Chief Executive Officer, Dr Peter Kamunyo, to explain why the refund is taking ages.

The delay was flagged by Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu in her report on the accounts of the Interior ministry for the 2018/19 financial year.

Interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho, while appearing before the committee on Monday over the ministry's audit queries for the period under review, said that efforts to have the money recovered from NHIF had hit a brick wall.

This forced PAC chairman Opiyo Wandayi to order Dr Kamunyo to appear before the committee.

"The NHIF CEO must appear before this committee to explain where the money is. This is public money and the PAC is committed to ensuring that public funds are used prudently," Mr Wandayi, the Ugunja MP, said.

The Sh200 million is in addition to the Sh4.79 billion for a comprehensive medical insurance cover awarded to NHIF on September 26, 2017 so as to cushion the members of the National Police Service who might exhaust their limits.

The insurance cover was for a two-year period - from October 1, 2017 to September 30, 2019.

Although the amount was refundable at the end of the contract period, Ms Gathungu, in the audit report before the PAC, noted that it was yet to be refunded.

"It was not possible to determine whether the National Police Service got value for money that was due for refund at the end of the comprehensive medical cover contract," Ms Gathungu says in the audit report.

Threat to stop payments

On Monday, Mr Kibicho threatened to withhold further payment of insurance premiums to the NHIF until the money is refunded.

"As a ministry we have written to NHIF but it has completely refused to respond to our inquiries," he told the watchdog committee.

"In the meantime, we will use other measures including withholding the Sh200 million premium due to them until they respond."

Mr Kibicho however, told the committee that the ministry will have no problem if NHIF provides evidence to show how the money was used as stated in the contract document.

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Previously, NHIF was not allowed to engage in the provision of commercial insurance services to public entities and private companies as provided for under section 19 of the Insurance Act.

However, through a Gazette notice of April 17, 2020, Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yattani exempted NHIF from the provisions of the law, effectively allowing the public insurer to engage in the insurance business.

Section 19 of the Insurance Act provides that any insurance provider operating in the country must be registered with the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA), the industry regulator. NHIF is not a member of the IRA.

In 2012, the government-mandated NHIF to provide medical cover to civil servants and members of the disciplined services - the police and prison officers.

The government cited the high cost of private insurance and lack of structures to provide a medical cover of such a magnitude.
The 2020 KCSE was marked by 25,135 examiners employed by Kenya National Examination Council (Knec).

Knec chief executive officer Mercy Karogo disclosed this as the agency celebrated synergy with various arms of government for the delivery of the exam results.

In 2019, some 26,580 teachers marked the exams.

"The marking of 2020 KCSE candidate's answer scripts was successfully undertaken by a dedicated team of 25,135 examiners; thereafter, a committed team of Knec officers closed results of the examination candidates culminating in their release today," said Dr Karogo.

Speaking during the release of KCSE results on Monday at Mitihani House, Dr Karogo attributed the success of the 2020 examination process to a multi-agency team drawn from the Ministry of Education, Knec, Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and Ministry of Interior.

Good administration

"The success of good administration and conduct of the 2020 KCSE at school level was supported by a team of dedicated of 10,943 supervisors, 42,574 invigilators, 2,634 drivers, 23,226 security officers, (and) 10,438 centre managers, among other members of the school community who supported the candidates on a day-to-day basis when the examination was in progress," she said.

"The management and distribution of examination materials on the field was coordinated by a team of dedicated field officers at county and sub-county levels. These include county commissioners, Assistant County Commissioners (ACC) and their security teams."

According to Dr Karogo, the team also worked hand-in-hand with the Ministry of Education regional directors, county directors, sub-county directors as well as a team of other education officials from TSC.

Some 747,061 candidates registered for the 2020 KCSE exam in 10,567 examination centres countrywide.

The candidates registered for 31 subjects which were tested in 77 papers.
Nine new large-scale works of art have been installed around downtown as part of the next installation of the Kokomo Sculpture Walk.

The juried, on-loan exhibit that features artists from around the country will be displayed until March 2023 and comes as round two of the sculpture walk. Susan Alexander, manager of downtown initiatives with the Kokomo Downtown Association, said shes pleased with the sculptures that were chosen from a pool of 118 applicants.

As great as the exhibit was last time, this is even better, said Alexander. We have sculptors in this exhibit from California, Vermont, Michigan, Illinois, and Minnesota. The variety is great from bronzes and aluminum to concrete and steel. We have a little bit of everything.

The downtown association put a call-out earlier this year for sculptors from around the country who would be willing to loan their art for a two years for a $2,000 honorarium. More artists applied this year than when the walk started in 2019, and Alexander hopes it will continue to build momentum.

A panel of four jury members blindly selected the pieces, meaning their decisions were based solely on photos of the sculptures. IU Kokomo art and philosophy professor Gregory Steel was one of the jury members, and he said he essentially was looking for pieces that were nice to look at, engineered well, and constructed from quality materials.

I think arts gotten a bad name because contemporary art, frankly, its crazy and confusing and sometimes really stupid, but it doesnt have to be is the point. Art can be something that people can relate to directly and understand, Steel said.

Two sculptors had two pieces chosen for the walk. Artist Ray Katz from Pontiac, Mich., had his pieces "Excelerator" and Ring Walker chosen, while sculptor Michael Young from Chicago had Terning and Reel Life selected

Katz said those two pieces were some of his favorite creations, and theyre also favorites of others throughout the country. Excelerator just finished an exhibit in Liberty, Mo., and Katz just brought Ring Walker back from the Yokna Sculpture Trail in Oxford, Miss., where it was on loan.

The sculptor said he was happy now to have his work be a part of the Kokomo Sculpture Walk.

Im very happy with the sites. The site for Ring Walker on the walking trail is really beautiful, and I really like it a lot. It looks really good here, and Im also very happy with the piece thats downtown. Its very beautifully situated on the corner. Overall, Im really pleased with the installation, Katz said.

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Katzs primary focus is large-scale public art. Public art, he said, makes art more accessible.

Public sculpture gives people the opportunity to experience art in a public space where theyre more likely to see it than go to an art museum where they have to intentionally make a trip to it  where public art is on the street. They walk by it. They run by it. They skate by it. They drive their car by it. They walk their dog by it, he said. Its there to be seen and enjoyed, and I think whether they like it or not its intellectually challenging for people and raises their level of cultural awareness.

Excelerator is located on the Industrial Heritage Trail and Mulberry Street, and Ring Walker is located at the Kokomo Riverwalk and Apperson Way. Katz pieces can be purchased for $45,000 and $25,000, respectively.

Young also said he appreciated public art and the exposure it gives people to it. Young fabricates his own work to ensure quality and craftsmanship and also withstand harsh weather.

Reel Life, he said, was inspired by his niece whos an ice skater, and it exemplifies a skater spinning on the ice. The piece is located at Kokomo Riverwalk and Apperson Way. His other piece, Terning, is reminiscent of a sea eagle that has a distinct day-to-night presence. Its located at Kokomo Riverwalk and Main Street. The pieces can be purchased for $40,000 and $35,000, respectively.

The piece that made the longest journey to Kokomo was Turn Around by Georgianna Krieger of Oakland, Calif., located on the Industrial Heritage Trail and Madison Street. The large bronze piece depicts a life-sized little girl looking up at the sky and spinning.

She is giddy joy and a spirit of hope and the sadness of change and loss along the way. She is spinning in the past, spinning in the present, spinning in the future. As the sweep of her arms billows out in the wind, items from her past and future fall into the weeds around her, wrote Krieger in her artist statement about the piece.

The piece has a $24,000 price tag.

The other sculptures on the walk are Mobile Home by Andrew Arvanetes from DeKalb, Ill., located at the Industrial Heritage Trail and Monroe Street ($16,500); Salude by John Adduci from Chicago, located at the Industrial Heritage Trail and Sycamore Street ($18,000); After Hide by Andrew Hellmund of St. Peter, Minn., located at the Industrial Heritage Train and Superior Street ($7,500); and Patrol the Pigeon by Justin Kenney of Battleboro, Vt., located on the Kokomo Riverwalk and Kokomo Municipal Stadium ($6,800).

An interactive map of the Kokomo Sculpture Walk, which shows where the pieces are located and offers more details on the artists and sculptures, can be found on the Kokomo, IN app and also online at www.greaterkokomo.com/downtown/kokomo-sculpture-walk.
An aerial view of Patel dam in Solai, Nakuru County. The dam collapsed on May 9, 2018 killing more than 40 people (file photo).

At the Solai -Nyakinyua trading center in Subukia sub-county, life appears to be normal as residents are engaged in a bee hive of activities under the sun in a bid to achieve their different goals.

Boda boda operators are busy ferrying passengers to different destinations, traders are attending to customers while numerous vehicles are seen cruising the newly tarmacked Bahati-Solai - Subukia road.

Just like any other trading center, men and women both young and old are focused on meeting their own objectives before the day ends.

However, beneath this normalcy lies a wound whose pain is shared by almost every member of the small society.

The memories of a horrific disaster that befell the community three years ago, which led to the death of 48 people, displacement of hundreds of families and destruction of property worth millions of shillings is the hallmark of agony in the lives of the community's members.

Read: Dark day as Solai dam victims left to lick their wounds

Also read: Uproar as court sets free owner of killer dam and eight others

It is the infamous Solai dam tragedy that now describes the region which was initially defined by its agricultural economic background.

The disaster occurred on May 9, 2018 when Patel dam broke its banks and let its waters flow downstream sweeping across three villages of Energy, Solai and Nyakinya.

Normal life was disrupted and the aftermath of the tragedy created friction between the community members and the dam owner Patel Mansukh after they differed on how to handle the mess.

In a bid to push for justice, a number of cases both civil and criminal were entertained before courts in which some have already been determined while others are still pending

Violent demonstrations also rocked the area as the victims protested what they claimed to be unfair actions from the police and administrators in handling the affairs of the victims.

Little achieved

However, three years down the line, very little has been achieved in terms of compensation and restoration of the victims lives.

After years of fight, the victims now appearing either defeated by the justice process or simply a change of heart seem to be slowly taking a reconciliatory path.

Mr Joseph Gathogo, who is one of the victims, for instance, only wants to see his life back again.

After losing four children in the tragedy, Mr Gathogo says he is ready to move on with life provided he is compensated accordingly.

Speaking to Nation, Mr Gathogo who was a bodaboda operator narrated how life has been tough for him and his family for the last three years as they struggled to survive while at the same time pushing for justice.

The push for justice has not been a smooth ride while the developments in courts have not been encouraging. Some cases are being dismissed while others taking long to start.

After the tragedy, Mr Gathogo wanted the dam owner to be held liable for deaths of his children and compensation for his lost property.

"I had built a semi-permanent house where I lived with my four children aged 8, 6, 3years and one month respectively. The tragedy took away everything I had worked for and loved in life and left me with nothing," said Mr Gathogo.

The man narrowly escaped death after he climbed a tree only to see his house and children being swept by waters. His wife was rescued from drowning by the locals.

The house which he was built by the church and the Kenya Red cross still stands unoccupied on his bare  an acre parcel of land in Nyakinyua village.

"My wife could not stand living in this house as it gives her nightmares and painful memories so we went to live at my father's compound," said Mr Gathogo

Determined to start over again, Mr Gathogo rented a motorbike so as to sustain his family which now has an additional member.

He said the case in court has taken a toll on him and his hopes of getting justice through the courts are diminishing by day.

According to him, the government should intervene to ensure that the victims are compensated so as to continue with their normal lives.

"Let the government work with Mr Patel on ways to compensate us so that we can move on with our lives," said Mr Gathogo.

Long court battle

John Maina Mwangi, a retired teacher on the other hand, lost his wife in the tragedy. He has been in the forefront in the fight for compensation in court.

However, he claims there has been a lot of interference in the court process to a point that he sees no hope in the outcome.

Mr Mwangi said the victims are ready to negotiate with Patel on an out of court settlement provided the process is undertaken in an open and transparent manner.

"I am almost giving up in this case. As you can see my age is fast advancing and the case seems to be punishing us more. We have tried reaching out to Mr Patel to find out how the matter can be settled out of court but our efforts have been unsuccessful," said Mr Mwangi.

He noted that the victims have incurred a lot of expenses in terms of medication for those who were injured in the tragedy and endured a lot of psychological trauma in the fight for justice.

"There is a good number of our members who have died after they could not afford medication and proper care. Apart from housing all other constitutional rights relating to the victims have been denied," said Mr Mwangi.

Veronica Wanjiku, 71, whose house was swept by the waters during the tragedy is trying to re-establish herself by trying out farming on the ground which was left swept bare by the waters.

She has decided to try out planting some crops on a small part of the farm which she managed to dig as the rest is rocky.

The waters had also left huge gulleys in the farm which are still widening and almost eating away the house she was built by the Kenya Red cross.

"What I want is to be given my service benefits after working for Patel for close to 30 years. I want my farm rehabilitated so that I can continue cultivating it," she stated

Similar stories are shared by the majority of the victims who seek to move on with life.

Out-of-court settlement

Kabazi ward Member of County Assembly Peter Mbae in his statement noted that the tragedy victims are ready to settle the matter peacefully out of court.

He explained that it is the company which should take the first action of formally making the application in court.

"The victims have made their stand known that they are ready for an out of court settlement with him if he formally requests for one in the compensation case. such an arrangement should involve the director of Public prosecution in Naivasha criminal case. all that the victims want is fairness, justice and compensation," said Dr Mbae

Dr Mbae noted that the over 400 hundred victims are yet to get their justice three years on as efforts to settle the matter amicably with the Patel family being unsuccessful.

The Tindress Patel Coffee estates, the company operating the dams through farm manager Vinoj Kumar on their part also expressed the company's willingness to have the matter concluded.

Mr Kumar said the company's wish is to have the lives of the community improved as well as have a working relation as before.

The manager further said the company has lined up a number of programs aimed at helping the victims and the community at large to rebuild their lives.

"As a company we know we cannot exist without the community and for years we have established a symbiotic relationship with them. they are our people and we have to take care of them," said Mr Kumar.

He explained that the numerous cases filed in court have negatively affected the operations of the company as well as ruined the good relationship between the community and the company.

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Role of rights groups

According to Mr Kumar, outsiders operating as human rights groups and other organizations have complicated the matters for them.

"we would be so glad to have the matter out of court but our hands are tied in court, there are many organizations which have sued us claiming to act for different victims. We are not sure about some these organizations," said Mr Kumar.

He however, explained that the company has done whatever it can to help the community especially during the Covid-19 pandemic where he said the company took in more than 1000 locals so as to offer them employment to be able to sustain their lives.

"We added these employees despite the company not doing very well due to the pandemic. We also continued with our feeding program in a school where over 1000 pupils got their meals daily," he said.

The manager dismissed claims that the company was in plans to refill the two dams which were decommissioned by the court.

"Even though we are facing a serious challenge of water shortage, we have not stepped there since the area is still a crime scene. We shall only do as directed by the court," said Mr Kumar.

Mr Kumar, his boss Perry Mansukh and seven others are battling 48 charges of manslaughter following the tragedy.

The case which was dropped last year is set to begin afresh after the DPP successfully challenged the judgement by Chief magistrate Kennedy Bidali at the high court.

A case filed by Dr Peter Mbae which was seeking restoration of the environment that was degraded by the May 9, 2018 Solai dam tragedy was dismissed by the Lands court last year for lack of jurisdiction.

Early this year, the 400 victims, through the human rights commission, have filed another case seeking compensation for the loss of life and property.

as they mark the third year anniversary since the tragedy the victims hopes that the matters resolved amicably so that to continue with their lives
Several families in Nyanza region have been displaced from their homes by floods caused by the heavy rains being witnessed in the region.

In Homa Bay County, more than 170 families have fled their homes after floods wreaked havoc in the last three days.

County Commissioner Moses Lilan said homes in lower parts of the county have been flooded by water from rivers that have burst their banks.

Affected families are from Rachuonyo North Sub-county, lower parts of Kochia ward in Rangwe Sub-county, Lambwe in Mbita and Shauri Yako slum within Homa Bay Town.

"We have advised families in these areas to move to safer grounds to avoid being harmed. We will continue monitoring the situation and advise the families accordingly," he said.

Learning disrupted

Learning at Simbi primary school in Rachuonyo North Sub-County was disrupted and learners were left stranded as classrooms were flooded after River Awach Tende burst its banks.

The headteacher, Mr Washington Akuno said the learners could not report to school on Monday because they could not wade through the water.

"We were expecting to receive 356 learners. But only 108 pupils had reported to school by 11am. The learners were unable to access their classrooms, which were swamped by water," said Mr Akuno.

Simbi Primary School has in the past been used as a rescue centre for families affected by floods when their homes are submerged in water.

"We are in a dilemma because we have also become victims of floods. In the past when schools were closed, families would seek refuge here because of the floods," said Mr Akuno.

Toilets in the school have collapsed after being swamped by floodwaters.

"We are in a crisis as learners cannot relieve themselves. We are in urgent need of new toilets or risk disease infections. We call on well-wishers and the government to come to our aid," he said.

In Kogembo sub-location, floods also occurred after River Awach burst its banks.

Some families in the area left their homes to seek shelter at various rescue centres.

Kogembo assistant chief Hezekiah Owino said some of the affected houses have become inhabitable.

Children and expectant women are some of the most affected people.

Mr Owino said that affected families were to be moved to Simbi SDA Church.

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At Nyapuodi village in Kanam A location, several homes and roads were flooded.

Floods also affected families in Ndhiwa after River Kuja burst its banks.

Displaced families appealed to the government for humanitarian assistance.

Livestock swept away

In Kisumu County, families in Kakola-Ombaka spent the night in the cold after their homes were flooded with the waters of River Nyando.

The most affected areas include Kasiwidhi South, Kaloo South and Kanyipola South as well as Kasambula Kosawa.

Leonard Ogola, a resident of Kasiwidhi, is counting losses after losing his livestock, which were swept away by the floods.

"I have lost my chicken and goats in the floods. We have been forced to move to higher ground for safety," said Mr Ogola.

Kakola-Ombaka assistant chief Jacob Ong'udi said close to 380 families have been forced to integrate with relatives in higher grounds.

"The floods started on Sunday in the evening and as the rains keep pouring more people will be affected," he said.
Kenyan editors on Monday celebrated the life of late veteran journalist, Philip Ochieng, by launching the Philip Ochieng Annual Lecture on journalism.

Speaking during the inaugural lecture to celebrate the professional life of the late Ochieng, Kenya Editors Guild (KEG) President, Mr Churchill Otieno, said the day will be celebrated every second Friday of May from 2022 in honour of the late columnist.

"Kenya Editors Guild will use this platform to promote excellence in media and journalism that Philip Ochieng stood for. I celebrate him for having the courage to be different because in the current world, that is what most people are afraid of. We should all celebrate Philip's knowledge, service and commitment to journalism," he said.

PO, as he was commonly known, died two weeks ago at Migori hospital at the age of 83. He had practiced journalism for over five decades.

Other speakers, majority of them drawn from different media houses in the country, highlighted the veteran editor and long-serving Nation columnist's contribution to media.

Standard Group's former Editorial Director, Joseph Odindo, said Mr Ochieng exemplified that journalism without knowledge is an empty vessel. Secretary General Kenya Union of Journalists (KUJ) and a journalist with Nation Media Group, Eric Oduor, said: "From Philip's story, we learn that as a leader, you must display behaviour that is likely to inspire people, like he did."

Short-lived Uganda career

Ugandan author and veteran journalist, Charles Onyango-Obbo, noted that he was of the post independence Africa radical political and intellectual tradition.

"He was the most short-lived editor in Uganda's history, losing his job at the Sunday Times in three weeks after he was hired from Nairobi to run the paper in 1981. It also bought him a trip to the cooler. He just couldn't help wielding his sharp pen," he said in an audio tribute.

Charles Onyango-Obbo's tribute to Philip Ochieng. #CelebratingPO pic.twitter.com/S3WomUguJK

- Kenya Editors' Guild (@KenyaEditors) May 10, 2021

Mr Ochieng rose from a cub reporter to scale the heights of Kenya's media industry, becoming a managing editor (Nation Media Group) and editor-in-chief (Kenya Times) at different points of his career. He also worked in both Uganda and Tanzania.

Kenyan writer and academic, Ngugi wa Thiong'o, said that he was very shocked and sad to hear of the passing on of Phillip Ochieng.

"He and I were classmates at Alliance High School 1955-1958," the celebrated author said.

Great influence

KBC Managing Director Naim Bilal said: "He was a man who influenced journalism and politics in a very significant way."

Joe Ageyo, Editorial Director at Royal Media Services, said Mr Ochieng was an enigmatic and mystical figure that most young journalists heard of when they came to newsrooms.

"Philip was many things, he was intellectual and journalistic," said Mr Ageyo.

Ochieng Rapuro, Editor in Chief at Standard Media Group, praised the late scribe's mastery of the language.

"If Kenya had its version of Pulitzer Awards, Ochieng would have bagged many - for his incisiveness, sheer bravery, high-mindedness, mastery of the English language and fidelity to all things journalism."

"My experience and readings through the years on Philip's personal life, led me to the conclusion that we had a colossus of a man in our midst as members of the Fourth Estate. Ochieng was arguably one of the most well-read human beings within the boundaries of Kenya," Mr Rapuro added.

He said that from his pen came thoughtful, deep, and purposeful works not only served in the finesse of the English language, anchored in history and literature, but also spiced with ideology and conviction.

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PesaCheck Editor, Ms Rose Lukalo, said journalists must strive for perfection and have a sense of duty in newsrooms again.

"Just like Philip did. He challenged us to be more, more than what we could be."

Years after leaving the newsroom, former President Mwai Kibaki conferred him with the Order of the Burning Spear (OBS) for his objectivity in his Sunday Nation column.

Mr Ochieng's daughter, Lucy Ochieng, celebrated him, saying: "Our dad spoilt us with so much love to a fault. We never thought that daddy could go even at his age."

The family confirmed that the veteran journalist succumbed to pneumonia on April 27 after being rushed to hospital.

In a bid to give Ochieng a befitting sendoff on April 14, the celebrated journalist's family and friends have launched a Paybill account as they seek to raise funds.

Those in a position to help can send their contributions to Paybill number 8040695 with the account name being Philip.
Years back, the Kwekwe or Eagle police squad evoked fear among members of the Mungiki sect and other suspects of crime. There was no doubt about it; if you were in the police squad's list, you would surely be eliminated.

The dreaded squad was implicated in enforced disappearance and extrajudicial execution of civilians, human rights crusaders and even fellow police officers.

And then in a twist, all the officers who were in the squad died under mysterious circumstances. Some just disappeared.

The squad consisted of Zebedeo Maina -- who was allegedly shot dead by his juniors during an operation to rescue an abducted child, Chief Inspector John Kariuki, Sergeant John Gitahi, Bernard Kiriinya and the former head of the Flying Squad Reche Nyagah, all of whom died mysteriously, and Richard Katola, who suffered a stroke. Three others disappeared and have never been found.

Before his death in 2010, Kiriinya confessed in a videotape that he was a member of the death squad, which, he said, had strangled, shot and hacked to death 60 people. He handed the tape to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) days before he was shot dead in Nairobi's Westlands.

Elimination of suspects

Eleven years after the killings, a leaked conversation extracted from a Telegram group points to the existence of a well-structured execution squad within the National Police Service (NPS) charged with the elimination of crime suspects.

The leaked conversation that Nation.Africa accessed on April 21 revealed a well-planned ambush conducted after an analysis of the suspects' routine. Although the language used in the conversation is coded, Nation could tell that one of the targeted suspects had, on April 8, travelled to Lukoi in Busia County, as revealed by an officer who goes by the name Rogers.

Screenshots shared in the group revealed the suspect's conversation with another suspect the officers identified as Bob, who lives in Kayole, but who had been on the run and was suspected to be in Dandora or Huruma.

The officers in the conversation mentioned that three suspects had been killed and that two were yet to be found. The conversation pointed to a team determined to kill, not arrest.

A report by several human rights groups, the Missing Voices annual report, indicated that 167 people were killed or disappeared by the police in 2020. Out of this, 157 were as a result of police killings and 10 disappeared while in police custody.

Several police officers interviewed by the Nation on condition of anonymity said there were several 'companies' within the service tasked with eliminating hard-core criminals and suspects of terrorism.

"They work with informants -- most of whom are also members of the gangs. Snitches are always criminals themselves. The bosses know and the instruction is usually to eliminate the hard-core criminals because when they are taken to court, they are bailed out and they come back and pose a threat to the people and the police.

"But these same police officers get entangled in the ring and then eliminate their accomplices after the deals are sealed, to short-change or silence them," the officer revealed.

Switch from bullets to strangulation

He also revealed a variation in the manner in which police officers eliminate suspects. Unlike in the past, when bullets were used, the killer officers now abduct and either strangle or poison the people targeted for elimination.

This, he said was because the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (Ipoa) and some human rights groups have been intensifying investigations into the killings and when bullets are involved, it is easy to extract ballistic evidence and prosecute the police officers concerned.

Another police officer revealed that in cases where police officers use their guns for the elimination of the target, the scene is tampered with to justify the killing.

"I always see the media taking pictures of guns that have been planted on the suspect that has been killed and wonder why you guys never question why the gun is always a home-made gun. Also, why do you not ask why only one home-made gun was recovered, yet sometimes up to five people have been killed in what our bosses usually refer to as a fierce shoot-out?" he asked.

He revealed that the home-made guns and genuine guns with obliterated serial numbers are preferred in this case because they cannot be traced by ballistic examiners.

Blessing of bosses

Nation.Africa has learnt that the current hit squads, among them Radiation Squad, the Alternating Current, or simply AC, which later came to be known as Hessy, have the blessings of the NPS.

The legion of killer cops under the AC squad -- Hessy wa Kayole, Hessy wa Dandora, Hessy wa Eastlando and other Hessys, have been using social media to warn the suspects before they are killed.

Officers operating in the death squads have also been eliminating one another over betrayal, offering a glimpse into what might have happened among the Eagle Squad members.

In the affidavit handed to the KNCHR, Kiriinya gave the names of victims, locations of killings and instances he had witnessed.

A KNCHR report titled Cry of Blood, mainly compiled from Kiriinya's confessions, had been released before his killing. The report indicated that the Kenya Police was complicit in extrajudicial killings between June and October 2007. It said bodies were dumped in far-flung mortuaries, garbage sites, dams, forests and rivers, among other places.

Wikileaks letter

"All the non-commissioned officers in our squad were given Sh15,000 each and the constables were given Sh10,000 each as a sign of appreciation," Kiriinya had said in his confession.

In June 2020, Wikileaks released a letter from a Kenya policeman who claimed that a senior state official and a retired police commissioner had ordered the killings of prominent politicians.

He said the police unit was the defunct Kwekwe Squad, and that they were paid Sh25,000 every week in allowances, and Sh150,000 each to carry out the assassinations. In killing Mungiki members, police deployed the same tactics the proscribed gang used.

According to the letter, the bodies of victims were dumped in Tsavo West National park to be eaten by hyenas, and in the Ruai Sewage treatment plant, where bodies were dumped in the dead of the night.

Police squads have been implicated in several gangland executions, disappearance and deaths of some Kenyans, among them Abubakar Shariff alias Makaburi, Sheikh Aboud Rogo, Sheikh Ibrahim Omar, Lawyer Willie Kimani and two others, the Baringo Six, the Kitengela Four, among others.

In a visit to Kayole in December 2019, Director of Criminal Investigations George Kinoti came face to face with the reality of police killings and after listening to testimonies from families, he said he would investigate the squads.

"I am saying no-one will ever cover for a police officer who kills under my watch" Mr Kinoti said. In January 2020, he disbanded the Flying Squad Unit, replacing it with the Special Service Unit (SSU).

However, the SSU has not been spared the accusations of extrajudicial killings and executions, because, even though the unit shed its name, the DCI retained some of the trigger-happy police officers.

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Just last week, human rights groups urged Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i and Inspector-General of Police Hilary Mutyambai, to publicly denounce the spiralling killings of crime suspects and innocent people in the country. Their statement came in the wake of the abduction, torture and killing of four men in Murang'a and another resident of Mathare.

During the release of the Missing Voices report, the human rights organisations piled pressure on Mr Mutyambai to stop the rising cases of extra-judicial killings and enforced disappearances. The Nation did not get a comment from Mr Mutyambai despite several calls and texts to his phone.

The Police Reforms Working Group (PRWG) says the Constitution guarantees the right to life, security of citizens, rights of the arrested person, fair trial, freedom from torture, and human dignity.

"The narrative that if you are alleged to have committed a crime then you are subject to execution is worrying. It means none of us is safe," said Mr Peter Kiama, the director of the Independent Medical-Legal unit.

Security analysts say the extrajudicial executions in the country happen with the knowledge of the top brass in the Interior Ministry.

One of the analysts, Mr Kiyo Ng'ang'a, says the Police, being part of the formal Criminal Justice System, should be process criminals through the right channel.

"Vigilante-kind of justice should not be allowed to exist within the National Police Service".

He urged the Internal Affairs Unit (IAU) to investigate and arrest the complaints. The IAU, which was formed a few years back, was given the mandate to investigate and deal with such issues internally,
President Uhuru Kenyatta with Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed attend the Kenya-Ethiopia Trade and Investment Forum in Addis Ababa on March 1, 2019.

The planned security meeting between Kenya and Ethiopia over the fast-deteriorating relationship between Garre and Degodia clans in Mandera has been postponed.

The meeting was scheduled for Sunday before being moved to Monday but the Ethiopian delegation sent a message that heavy downpour on their side had hampered movement.

"We have not been able to hold a security meeting with our Ethiopian counterparts due to heavy rains on their side that has rendered roads impassable," Mandera County Commissioner Onesmus Kyatha said.

The meeting was called after counter attacks by suspected clan militias that left at least two dead and three others injured in Banisa Sub-county.

"We wanted to agree on ending the animosity between these two clans that reside in both countries. We shall still engage Ethiopian authorities on the same once the situation normalises," Mr Kyatha added.

Banisa Sub-county security committee was to meet the Mubarak District security committee to discuss the feud that started in Ethiopia.

What happened

It is reported that two members of the Garre clan were killed inside Ethiopia by suspected militia from the Degodia clan early last week. The killing forced herders from the Degodia clan to return home but along the way, they were ambushed and one of them killed.

The events in Ethiopia spilled over to Kenya and two people were killed within the last week and on Friday, three others sustained gunshot wounds. The three are admitted at Mandera County Referral Hospital.

"We have deployed enough security personnel on our side of the border to defuse the tension as we continue to hold peace meetings locally," the Mandera County security committee chairman said.

Mr Kyatha said security agencies are holding three motorcycles believed to have been used by attackers in the Friday morning incident at Guba Ward.

"We have crucial information on the people behind these attacks and we shall soon be arraigning them in a court of law," he said.

He said the national government shall continue to utilise local peace committees in deescalating inter-clan skirmishes.

According to Mr Kyatha, Ethiopian authorities have shown their commitment to ending bad blood between the Garre and Degodia clans.
A man has been charged with giving police false information that led to the ouster of Unaitas Sacco chairman Joseph Ngaai Kabugu.

Mr Alexander Irungu Wanjiru was taken to the Milimani chief magistrate's court on Monday and charged with lying to police in a bid to cause them to arrest and investigate Mr Kabugu on allegations of falsifying his academic credentials.

Court papers indicate that Mr Irungu reported the matter at the Serious Crimes Unit of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).

The court heard that the accused told Sergeant Sevelina Kalunge that Mr Kiburu forged a document for the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams so as to gain admission to Shinners Technical College in Murang'a County to pursue a certificate course.

Chief Magistrate Francis Andayi heard that by furnishing the law enforcers with the false information, Mr Irungu intended to cause the police officer to investigate, arrest and charge Mr Kabugu.

Claims untrue

However, investigations established that the allegations were not true, leading to Mr Irungu's arrest and the criminal case that started on Monday.

He committed the offence on November 28, 2019 at the DCI headquarters in Nairobi.

Mr Irungu denied the charge and sought to be released on reasonable bond terms.

"I have not been in employment for some time due to the Covid-19 pandemic that has [affected] the economic status of the majority of companies the world over," he said.

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The court allowed his application and granted him a Sh30,000 bond in the case that will be mentioned on May 24 for directions on the hearing to be given.

NHIF case

Mr Irungu is also the petitioner in a matter at the Senate where he is challenging the decision of the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) board to allegedly handpick Peter Kamunyo as the new chief executive officer (CEO).

He claims Dr Kamunyo's appointment did not follow due process because there was no competitive recruitment.

Mr Irungu stated that the NHIF board refused to appoint a CEO from among the persons who emerged the best in interviews held earlier, despite provisions of the Constitution and statutes which require competitive recruitment for jobs at State corporations.
Governors eyeing the presidency in the 2022 General Election will not have to resign, the High Court has ruled in a Constitution interpretation dispute that has split two judges.

Justice Anthony Mrima, in a judgment contradictory to another delivered by his colleague Weldon Korir last year, has said a sitting President, Member of Parliament (MP) governor or member of county assembly (MCA), who intends to vie for any position that year does not have to vacate the current position.

Justice Korir had said the governors and MCAs harbouring presidential ambitions should resign after nominations so as to attain eligibility to vie for the presidency.

The judge, in the judgment dated October 7, 2020, had said the only holders of political office who can stand in a presidential election without relinquishing office are the President, the Deputy President and MPs.

But justice Mrima has said that a sitting President, MP, governor or MCA does not have to resign so as to qualify to vie for another seat in a General Election.

Justice Mrima said it is only the other State and public officers who should resign within 14 days of the issuance of the notice of a General Election by the Independent Elections and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), or any time before political party nominations are held, whichever comes first.

"A sitting President, MP, governor or MCA who intends to vie for any position in the General Election, upon the expiry of the current electoral cycle, need not resign before the General Election," declared justice Mrima.

MCAs and parliamentary posts

The judge also contradicted his colleague on the interpretation of the Constitution on whether sitting MCAs are qualified to vie for parliamentary seats.

The contradictory rulings have resulted in Gatundu North MP Wanjiku Kibe losing her 2017 victory, although she lodged an appeal, and 11 others retaining their seats.

Ms Kibe's election was overturned on grounds that she was not qualified to vie because she had not resigned as an MCA in Kiambu County.

Her election was nullified by justice Korir, who stated that for an MCA to vie for an MP seat, he or she must resign in order to be cleared by the IEBC.

But Justice Mrima, while dealing with a similar petition seeking nullification of the election of 11 other MPs who were also MCAs prior to their 2017 election, said they were qualified.

He said an MCA who intends to vie for MP in the next General Election does not have to resign either before the party nominations or at all.

The judge said that an interpretation of Article 99(2)(a) and (d) of the Constitution, which calls for MCAs who aspire to vie for other positions in 2022 to resign before party nomination, breeds absurdity.

"That cannot have been the intention of the drafters of the Constitution and the law,"stated justice Mrima.

The MPs who have retained their seats as a result of justice Mrima's ruling include Mary Wamaua (Maragua), Susan Kihika (Nakuru senator), Catherine Waruguru (Laikipia woman rep), Cleophas Malala (Kakamega senator) and Patrick Mariru (Laikipia West MP).

Others are Joyce Korir (Bomet woman rep), Joash Nyamoko (North Mugirango MP), Asha Hussein Mohammed (Mombasa woman rep), Ouda Fred (MP kisumu Central), Mutai Japheth Kiplangat (MP Bureti) and George Sunkunyia Risa (Kajiado West).

He stated that in a scenario where the majority of MCAs aspire to win other seats and are required to resign, it will mean that the county assembly will lack quorum and not be able to discharge its constitutional mandate for the remainder of its term.

"Allowing such an interpretation to prevail will be contrary to the presumption against unworkable or impracticable result, which, in principle, calls for a court to avoid a construction which produces unworkable or impracticable result," said justice Mrima.

"It will also be against the grain on the presumption against anomalous or illogical result. The principle calls for a court to find against a construction that creates an anomaly or otherwise produces an irrational or illogical result."

Practicalities

He observed the trend in the term of office for the President, MPs governors and MCAs is five years and that elections to those offices are held on the second Tuesday of August every fifth year.

"Inevitably, by operation of the law, the President, MPs, governors and MCAs relinquish their political positions on the date of the next General Election," said the judge.

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He said this means that they do not have to explicitly resign as the law renders them out of office on the second Tuesday of August every fifth year, of course except for the President during the temporary incumbency under Article 134 of the Constitution.

The judge further explained that except for the President, the other elected leaders do not hold their offices on the day of the general election.

He added that Article 101(4) and (5) of the Constitution) prohibit holding of a by-election for an MP seat three months before a General Election and that this should also apply when a vacancy occurs at the county assembly.

One of the reasons for not conducting a by-election three months to a General Election is that going by the various timelines and processes involved, it is not practical.

The other reason has to do with the cost of conducting a by-election alongside a General Election.

The judge said the reasons, among others, are plausible.

"The foregoing reasons must, hence, find room in respect to a by-election in a county assembly, which is to be held three months to a General Election," he said.
Three directors of a Kisumu-based miller were Monday charged with fraud over a Sh79.4million sugar deal said to have taken place six years ago.

Mr Sunil Narshi Shah, Mr Kamal Narshi Punja Shah and Magnesh Kumar Verma of United Millers Limited are accused of defrauding businessman B N Kotecha & Sons Limited of Sh79,471,000 in the deal.

Defence lawyer Ibrahim Stanley Ogejo applied to have the accused released on similar bail terms as United Millers General Manager Henry Munywoki Kavita, who was charged on April 27.

State prosecutor Evelyn Onunga did not oppose their plea to be freed on bail, saying they complied with a court order for an appearance in order to plead to seven counts.

Ms Onunga had informed the court that the plea-taking was to take place on June 3, 2020.

She said the three were freed on a Sh70,000 police bond by the Muthaiga Police Station commander when they appeared for interrogation.

Although the State did not raise any opposition, lawyers Tom Ojienda and Meso Ogada, for B N Kotecha & Sons, said stringent bail terms should be imposed since the accused have been taking the court round in circles since June 3 last year.

Mr Ogada told the magistrate although the accused informed the court that they had been advised to stay in isolation by doctors at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital, they had not been to the hospital.

But Mr Andayi informed Mr Ogada that medical issues were addressed when Mr Kavita was arraigned.

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Mr Ogejo had been asked to produce the directors in court as soon as they obtained clearance to interact with others.

Mr Andayi released each of the accused on a cash bail of Sh400,000 or a bond of Sh1 million until May 24, when they will appear in court for the fixing of hearing dates.

The directors were also warned against travelling outside the jurisdiction of the court without permission.

The three directors and Mr Kavita are charged that on April 2, 2015, they jointly conspired with intent to defraud B N Kotecha & Sons of Sh79.4million.

The four allegedly pretended they had lost business, as United Millers, to their clients through failure to supply sugar.

They are charged with defeating the course of justice by filing Kisumu High Court Civil Suit Number 38 of 2015 allegedly using falsified documents.

United Millers Limited sued B N Kotecha & Sons Limited, Hemal Kishor Kotecha and Harshil Kishore Kotecha.

Mr Kavita was separately charged with forging a local purchase order, number 106 of April 15, 2015, for Alysam Stores and presenting it as genuine.
When Francis Mutune Kyalo scored 420 marks in KCPE four years ago, he was was upbeat. But now he feels assured that his academic stars are lining up in his favour after news emerged on Monday that he was among this year's top KCSE stars.

He scored an A- with a mean grade of 78 aggregate points, joining the small club of 37 boys who scored A- grades and above, according to Mr Albert Musyimi, the deputy principal at Makueni Boys High School.

Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha lauded the wheelchair-bound young man who was ranked among top ten performers nationally in the category of students with special needs.

His family's home in Mithanga village, Machakos County was a beehive of activity when Nation.Africa visited. Friends, relatives and neighbors trooped into the compound to celebrate the KCSE star.

The 21-year-old said that he expected the good performance, which he attributed to putting in long study hours, working closely with teachers and his classmates, as well as the support he got from his parents and staff at the school.

"All the students, teachers and support staff at the school were my friends. They used to help me move from one point to another whenever necessary," he told Nation.Africa in an interview.

"I am planning to study aeronautical engineering at the Technical University of Kenya," he added.

His mother Jane Kyalo celebrated his good performance.

"We used to guide him properly to ensure that he completed his homework on time," she said.

The school attributed his performance to hard work and discipline.
Abuja, Nigeria  Two women are among five individuals arrested on suspicion of being a drug trafficking cartel selling the illicit substances disguised as food in Nigeria.

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) arrested the suspects in the capital, Abuja, the capita of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Substances suspected to be drugs, weighing over 75 kilogrammes, have been confiscated.

They suspects have allegedly been selling drugged cookies, cakes, brownies and some other unnamed illicit substances to local residents and beyond, using the internet.

The suspects have been identified as Habila Musa, Chika Nvene, Queen Nvene, Collins Ozoemena and Samson Peter.

"The group specialises in clandestine production of drug based cookies, brownies and other edibles; markets and sells same online, through their Twitter and Instagram handles," said Femi Babafemi spokesperson of the NDLEA.

He said the suspected syndicate also markets and sells all marijuana and other illicit drugs known as Arizona, Colorado and Loud.

"Their arrest followed online orders of drug-based edibles by undercover agents," Babafemi said.

Retired Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa, the NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, commended officers for the breakthrough.

"I'm particularly impressed with the speed with which the officers of our FCT Command disrupted the online drug trafficking cartel that has been ravaging the nation's capital for over three years," Marwa said.
Rooting the bacterial tree of life

Scientists now better understand early bacterial evolution, thanks to new research featuring University of Queensland researchers.

Bacteria comprise a very diverse domain of single-celled organisms that are thought to have evolved from a common ancestor that lived more than three billion years ago.

Professor Phil Hugenholtz, from the Australian Centre for Ecogenomics in UQ's School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, said the root of the bacterial tree, which would reveal the nature of the last common ancestor, is not agreed upon.

"There's great debate about the root of this bacterial tree of life and indeed whether bacterial evolution should even be described as a tree has been contested," Professor Hugenholtz said.

"This is in large part because genes are not just shared 'vertically' from parents to offspring, but also 'horizontally' between distant family members.

"We've all inherited certain traits from our parents, but imagine going to a family BBQ and suddenly inheriting your third cousin's red hair.

"As baffling as it sounds, that's exactly what happens in the bacterial world, as bacteria can frequently transfer and reconfigure genes horizontally across populations quite easily.

"This might be useful for bacteria but makes it challenging to reconstruct bacterial evolution."

For the bacterial world, many researchers have suggested throwing the 'tree of life' concept out the window and replacing it with a network that reflects horizontal movement of genes.

"However, by integrating vertical and horizontal gene transmission, we found that bacterial genes travel vertically most of the time - on average two-thirds of the time - suggesting that a tree is still an apt representation of bacterial evolution," Professor Hugenholtz said.

"The analysis also revealed that the root of the tree lies between two supergroups of bacteria, those with one cell membrane and those with two.

"Their common ancestor was already complex, predicted to have two membranes, the ability to swim, sense its environment, and defend itself against viruses."

The University of Bristol's Dr Tom Williams said this fact led to another big question.

"Given the common ancestor of all living bacteria already had two membranes, we now need to understand how did single-membrane cells evolve from double-membraned cells, and whether this occurred once or on multiple occasions," Dr Williams said.

"We believe that our approach to integrating vertical and horizontal gene transmission will answer these and many other open questions in evolutionary biology."

The research was a collaboration between UQ, the University of Bristol in the UK, Eotvos Lorand University in Hungary, and NIOZ in the Netherlands, and has been published in Science (DOI: 10.1126/science.abe5011).

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This story has been published on: 2021-05-11. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
As vaccination rates slow down in Howard County, health officials plan to close the mass COVID-19 vaccine clinic at the Event & Conference Center at the end of the month.

According to Howard County Health Department Administrator James Vest, starting next month the vaccinations will be given at the Jeff Stout Government Center. The departments reasoning, Vest said, was a decline in vaccinations.

Unfortunately, we have a lot of openings for appointments for first-time doses, and we're just not seeing those appointments filled, Vest said. Its dropped off a lot in the last month, and that's unfortunate that we really try to get the word out that everybody needs to get vaccinated  We had the mass vaccine clinic a couple of weeks ago with Moderna. Two weeks prior to that, it was with Johnson and Johnson. So we've got a lot of people that wanted it taken care of at the time. But it just seems like we're getting to the point where everybody that wants it has had it.

As of last Wednesday, 22,435 Howard County residents were fully vaccinated, and 25,356 had a first dose of a vaccine, according to the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH).

As of that same date, the seven-day average vaccination rate in Howard County was 312 doses administered, which mirrored averages seen in early February. The average peaked on April 15 with 637 daily doses of vaccine being administered. Since, the average has tricked into the 300-range.

Breakthrough cases

The ISDH and Howard County Health Department continue to monitor breakthrough cases in which fully-vaccinated people test positive for COVID-19. In Howard County, there have been nine breakthrough cases.

Howard County Health Department Public Health Project Coordinator Cauthern said that, of the breakthrough cases she has investigated, their ages ranged across the board, but that she has not seen it in younger individuals simply because they havent had their vaccinations for very long.

She said some of the breakthrough cases occurred soon after vaccination, while others tested positive sometimes months after being fully inoculated.

Variants

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The health departments also continue track COVID-19 variants. In Indiana, 1,703 variant cases have been detected. The most common variant has been the B.1.1.7 variant that originally was identified in the UK. There have been 1,354 cases of that variant in Indiana.

According to the ISDH, some of the spreading variants are concerning because they can be spread much more easily than other strains and can cause more severe infections. If the variant is different enough from the current COVID-19 vaccines, the vaccine may not give good immunity, according to the ISDH.

Currently available vaccines are effective against the variants of concern that have been detected in Indiana. As more people get vaccinated and become immune, communities will have more protection against variants. Viruses cannot multiply or mutate in people who are immune, so variants will not emerge or spread. Vaccination prevents mutation, so get vaccinated as soon as you can, read information from the ISDH.

In Howard County, six variants have been detected.

Vaccinating

younger Hoosiers

As the Food and Drug Administration considers opening up vaccinations to those younger than 16 years old, Cauthern said it will be a new challenge in trying to encourage the younger generation to get vaccinated.

Its important that we get as much of the population vaccinated as we can, especially as were starting to see an increase in the variant strains because we know the variant strains are affecting the young people more than other populations, said Cauthern. That young population, they arent eligible for vaccines yet. So we need to protect them by having more of the population that can get the vaccine, vaccinated. And not only are the variant strains these people are getting more transmissible to younger people, but it also causes more severe illness.

So we really need to make sure that were protecting our young folks as well by getting vaccinated and still protecting as much of our community as we can by everyone getting this vaccine, as well as allowing us to get back to our normal, daily lives that were accustomed to and would like to stay accustomed to.

According to the ISDH, the majority of individuals receiving vaccines are ages 55 and older. Of Hoosiers who are fully vaccinated, 13.4 percent of vaccines were administered to those ages 60 to 64, while only 1.1 percent of vaccines were administered to ages 16 to 19. Those age groups also make up the highest and lowest demographics for those receiving a first dose, at 12.4 percent for ages 65 to 69 and 2.5 percent for ages 16 to 19.
Brahim Ghali, the leader of the Polisario Front, at the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Solidarity Conference with the Western Sahara held in Pretoria in 2019.

Madrid  A diplomatic dispute between Morocco and Spain over Madrid's decision to host a leader of the Western Saharan independence movement has soured what had been improving relations across the Mediterranean Sea.

Brahim Ghali, the leader of the Polisario Front, which wants for independence of the Sahrawi people in Western Sahara, is being treated at a hospital in Logrono in northern Spain, after he was infected with COVID-19.

His presence in Spain has angered Morocco which has accused the leftist government in Madrid of endangering relations with Rabat.

The Polisario Front fought a long war against Morocco to win the independence of the disputed Western Saharan territory. Despite a truce in 1991, both sides have been at loggerheads for years.

The United Nations classifies Western Sahara, a Spanish colony until 1975 with a population of one million people, as a "non-self-governing territory."

The Polisario Front has demanded an independence referendum while Rabat claims the territory as part of Morocco.

Spain has tried to appear neutral on the Western Sahara issue, but analysts suggest that Morocco will use the diplomatic dispute between Rabat and Madrid over the presence of Ghali in Spain to exert pressure on Spain to change its policy.

Rabat complains

Moroccan Foreign Minister Naser Burita asked whether Spain wanted to "sacrifice relations with Morocco" by failing to inform Rabat of Ghali's presence in Spain.

"Why doesn't Spain consider it should have to inform Morocco of the presence of Ghali? Would they rather consort with the enemies of Morocco? This is a test of our relationship," Burita said in an interview at the weekend with EFE, the Spanish state news agency.

Burita was referring to Algeria when he mentioned Morocco's enemies as the neighboring North African state champions the cause of the Polisario Front.

The minister said Morocco had supported Spain when former Catalan regional president Carles Puigdemont staged a failed independence declaration in 2017, plunging Spain into its worst political crisis for decades.

Morocco last month summoned Ricardo Diez-Hochleitner, the Spanish ambassador to Rabat, to complain about Ghali's presence in Spain.

Rabat also accused Madrid of allowing Ghali to enter Spain with a false passport and identity, adding that there are several complaints against Ghali in Spain for allegations of "war crimes and human rights violations."

Ghali has been accused by a dissident Polisario Front group based in Spain called ASADEDH, who accuse him of torture and crimes against humanity, charges that Spanish authorities are investigating.

The dissidents claim members the Western Saharan independence movement held them in camps in Algeria against their will.

Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya told journalists Spain admitted Ghali for "strictly humanitarian" reasons, saying he was recovering from coronavirus.

Spain's National Court, which deals with serious cases of terrorism and fraud, has summoned the militia leader to appear on June 1 to answer allegations of torture made by Polisario Front dissidents.

"Ghali has been summoned to appear on June 1 if he is well enough to attend the hearing," a court spokesman told VOA.

Gonzalez said Spain's justice system would deal with any allegations against the Polisario leader but it had nothing to do with the Spanish government.

"If the justice system believes Ghali must answer to the justice system, then he will appear before the court," she added during a press conference last week.

"It will not be the government that intervenes in the independent and free operation of justice in our country. Justice will do what it has to do and the government will fully respect it as it cannot be otherwise in a democratic country."

Spanish media reported that Ghali had given a false name and used an Algerian diplomatic passport to enter Spain.

Ignacio Cembrero, a Spanish journalist who has written widely about Morocco, said Rabat will try to use the Ghali row to change Spain's policy on Western Sahara.

Spain under pressure

At present, Spain maintains a solution to the issue can only come from an agreement brokered by the United Nations but, Cembrero contends, Morocco may try to push Spain to change this stance to one more sympathetic to Rabat.

"In public Spain would never admit that it had changed its policy," Cembrero told VOA.

"However, in private Spain may act more favorably towards Morocco's ambitions to rule Western Sahara. Over the years, Spain has quietly helped Morocco by aiding it at the United Nations and in its legal battles at the European Court of Justice."

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Spain has sought to distance itself over international disputes over Western Sahara, conscious of the possible effect this could have on trade and security relations between the close neighbors, experts said.

Last week, a fresh disagreement erupted between Morocco and Germany over the disputed territory, with Rabat recalling its ambassador in Berlin.

Morocco accused Germany of "distancing itself from the spirit of constructive solution with a destructive attitude on the issue of the Moroccan Sahara," the Moroccan Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

After the U.S. recognized the Moroccan right to control over Western Sahara in January, Germany called for a closed-door UN Security Council meeting to discuss the issue.

The German government said it was "surprised" by Morocco's move to recall its ambassador.

"We are all the more surprised by this measure as we are working with the Moroccan side in a constructive way to resolve this crisis," the German Foreign Ministry said.
Bangui  "A change is underway in the Central African Republic. The armed rebels who had entered the cities have left them and are in the forests. It remains to be seen whether this is real or just temporary peace. Now it is important that there is a awareness among people. It is crucial to create a sense of peace in people in order to disarm hearts. Not only the rebels, but society as a whole must find a balance and pave the way to peace". Cardinal Nzapalainga, Archbishop of Bangui, speaking to Agenzia Fides sees a glimmer of hope in the future of his troubled Country, despite months of resurgence of the conflict and the ongoing flight of tens of thousands of people to neighboring countries.

The Cardinal told Fides: "For many people there is relative calm again. However, most of them have lost their homes, possessions, and even family or friends. Of course, mass crimes have decreased and this gives us hope for a better future. But there is no certainty because the rebels still exist and are armed on the outskirts of the city. However, the present moment must be used to create the conditions for reconciliation in society. We must try to envision their gradual integration into the social fabric so that they can return to decent work and forget about weapons once and for all. Without this change, it will be difficult to achieve peace. It is important to speak from the heart, with an awareness of the good of the country, so that everyone can overcome their own interests and have the common good in mind". The situation in the Central African Republic was also discussed at the second summit of the Regional Conference of the Great Lakes (Cirgl), which was recently held in Angola. This initiative and the simultaneous liberation of the cities from the rebels is seen as further progress for peace.

"I hope that the intentions are sincere - continued the Archbishop of Bangui - and that there is a real desire for peace because our country needs stability. The government has received help from Russia and Rwanda in the fight against the rebels, and the first finding is that at least 75% of the country's territory is under State control. Now we need to face the social drama of the population and encourage radical change. Change must come from the heart because not having weapons is not enough: A peaceful heart will undoubtedly lead to the fact that one no longer takes up arms "... The Cardinal recalled the tensions following the elections in December and March. President Faustin Touadera, he notes, was re-elected primarily because the people wanted peace and stability. "We strongly recommend that the new executive be made up of competent women and men", says the Cardinal. The Church has always played an important role in peace work and it is primarily about dialogue with Muslims, which is what the building of a new Central African society revolves around: "The Church - explains the Cardinal - helps all her children and promotes the protection of human life, making every effort so that those in favor of war and those who come from outside our Country with a desire to harm us may change their hearts.

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The solution cannot only be military, and that mediation and support from the international community are required. Specifically, we always seek dialogue in a special way. Meanwhile, in late April, the President initiated deliberations and asked the Church to contribute. We will also be able to guarantee this thanks to informal work by parishes and movements. "Last December, Imam Omar Kobine Lamaya, President of the Higher Islamic Council of the Central African Republic and a great friend of the Cardinal, passed away. In the years of greatest need for Central Africa, the two became together protagonists of gestures of peace and mutual acceptance of communities, which made them symbols of genuine fraternity in the country and around the world, for they were a sign of real dialogue that is not limited to theory. Cardinal Nzapalainga recounts: "There is a dialogue of life that is very important. I recently visited the new imam and those responsible for Islam and those in charge of the Islamic community on the occasion of the beginning of Ramadan, and we brought them food to take with them at the end of the day. I believe that the dialogue between our two communities has really changed the mentality in our society: there are no more neighborhoods where only Muslims or only Christians live. When the rebels occupied the cities of Bangassou and Boua, the Imam, I, and a Protestant pastor went to meet them and said that human life comes first and that it is important to respect its holiness. This had a positive effect because the rebels saw and realized that men of God had come to meet them. We walked 7 km to go into the forest and speak to them directly to reduce the level of violence".
Kinshasa  As of yesterday, May 6, the state of siege in the provinces of North Kivu and Ituri, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, has entered into force, proclaimed on May 3 by President Felix Tshisekedi. In the order, the Head of State appointed a military governor and a deputy police governor who will assume the powers of the civil authorities for a period of 30 days.

President Tshisekedi made this decision "after hearing the cries of anguish of our population and the pains felt by our mothers, by our sisters, by our daughters in these provinces devastated by barbarism". The east of the country has been ravaged by armed conflict for decades. The dramatic situation in eastern DRC has been the subject of a report prepared by the Association of Bishops' Conferences of Central Africa (ACEAC) and the National Episcopal Conference of the Congo (CENCO), which sent a joint delegation to the area (see Fides, 9/4/2021). The report was delivered on May 3 to the President of the National Assembly by Father Donatien N'Shole, National Secretary of CENCO. "The member bishops of CENCO are committed to supporting state institutions for the well-being of the population. And Parliament is one of the great institutions that deserves the support of our fathers, the bishops, who, without being political, look after the same people for whom the deputies are responsible", Fr. N'Shole told reporters. "We can't sleep until things change over there. We learned that a religious was killed there, he is a Muslim. Tomorrow it will be a Catholic, a Protestant ... So we are all worried", said the National Secretary of CENCO, referring to the murder of Cheikh Ali Amin, president of the Islamic community and head of worship in the city of Beni, a Muslim religious who preached peace and reconciliation (see Fides, 4/5/2021). Fr. N'Shole then praised the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry appointed by the National Assembly on the situation in the East: "We are pleased with the impetus given by the President of the National Assembly, to launch a parliamentary inquiry into the eastern part of the country", underlining that "already before that, ACEAC and CENCO had launched a mission of encouragement and solidarity in this area". Some armed groups active in the Lubero and Walikale territories (North Kivu) have announced their willingness to abandon the armed struggle and work for peace and stability in the province, said on May 6 the coordinator of the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration process of the community (DDRC) in the provinces of North and South Kivu, Jacques Katembo, according to whom the President's decision to proclaim a state of siege was welcomed by the majority of the population.
Shire  Thousands of refugees from neighboring areas have fled the fury of the fighting in recent months. They gather in the city's state schools, where they are monitored and assisted by some international organizations, but are deprived of all basic necessities. "There is a lack of food, water, sanitation and blankets due to the cold rainy season that is now imminent", the Sisters of Charity of Saint Johanna Antida present in Shire told Fides.

"There are fears of the spread of epidemics, in addition to Covid, whose contagion is increasing in Ethiopia, and of other diseases linked to these serious shortages". They express their concern about the difficult situation that the people of Tigray and, in particular, of Shire continue to experience. "It is important - the sisters tell us - to keep our attention on the humanitarian situation in the region and to continue to pray for this troubled land". Tens of thousands of dead, almost two million displaced people, 4.5 million people in need of humanitarian aid, 5 thousand minors separated from their parents, forced to live in crowded together with unknown adults, without protection, exposed to violence of all kinds. This is the scenario 6 months after the beginning of the armed conflict in Tigray (see Agenzia Fides, 14/12/2020).
Nairobi  A Nairobi Chief Magistrate's Court has cancelled the Sh300,000 cash bail issued on former rugby player Alex Olaba, after the prosecution said he had committed an offense of conspiracy to murder while he was still face a change of gang rape.

Trial Magistrate Zainab Abdul said the accused committed the offense while he was out on bond and proceeded to threaten the complainant in the case.

Olaba will remain in custody until the two cases are heard and determined. He wull be back in court on June 3 for purposes of taking a hearing date.

The former Kenya Sevens and Kenya Harlequins player was arrested last month by detectives for allegedly trying to hatch a plot to kill witnesses in the case.

At the same time, the Court has also barred the media from publishing images of the complainant and directed that the matter will be heard in camera.

Olaba was previously charged with Frank wanyama with an offense of gang rape in 2019. They had been found gulty and sentenced to 15 years in jail. They however appealed against the sentence and the same was quashed by the High Court on a technicality.

The duo was later arrested in 2020 and charged afresh

When the matter came up for mention in April 22nd the suspect mulamba did not appear virtually instead he told the court that he was away in Bungoma, but according to the investigating officer he lied to the court he was in Nairobi.
The bandits who abducted some students of Greenfield University, Kaduna State, have reached out to their parents to make fresh demands.

They had initially demanded a ransom of N800 million which the parents could not afford.

Following the failure of the parents to pay N800 million, five of the students were killed within the first week of their abduction.

But last week Monday, the mastermind of the attack, Sani Idris Jalingo, aka Baleri, demanded N100 million and 10 motorcycles, threatening to kill the remaining students the following day if their parents or government failed to meet his demands.

Although the deadline issued by Baleri has since expired, Daily Trust gathered that they reached to the parents individually on Monday and demanded that they each pay N10million.

"They called us today (Monday) and told me that if I pay N10 million today, my sister will be released today," said a family member of one of the victims.

Daily Trust gathered after the bandits threatened to kill the remaining students, one of the parents negotiated and paid N20 million for her son to regain freedom.

Sources told our correspondent that the mother had resisted any attempts by security agents to debrief her son after he was released by the bandits.

The Kaduna State Police Command through the Public Relations Officer, ASP Mohammed Jalige, however, said the police was not resting on its oars as all efforts to see to the release of the remaining students are being considered.
The Kano state government on Monday confirmed that six persons died of a strange disease in Minjibir Local Government Area of the state.

The Commissioner for Health of the state, Dr Aminu Ibrahim-Tsanyawa, who confirmed this, said 46 other affected persons had been hospitalised.

Ibrahim-Tsanyawa said the disease broke out in Gandun Koya village on May 7, and spread to adjourning communities.

"The cause of the outbreak can be attributed to open defacation and poor sanitation in the communities.

"The patients presented symptoms of diarrhea and vomiting.

"Six persons died of the disease, 28 were discharged and 18 others are still on admission," he said.

Ibrahim-Tsanyawa said the ministry had begun investigation to unravel the cause of the disease.

While reiterating the commitment of the state government to awareness creation and preventive tips, Ibrahim-Tsanyawa, urged the people to keep a clean environment and maintain personal hygiene to control the disease. (NAN)
The Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, says some officers of the Nigerian Correctional Service smuggle prohibited items to inmates, help them run criminal operations in custody, take them out to unapproved locations and wittingly or unwittingly facilitate jailbreak for them.

He stated this in Abuja yesterday during the decoration of Haliru Nababa as the Controller-General of NCoS.

The minister said those officers should be fished out as their nefarious activities endangered the nation, other staff and inmates.

"There should be no place for them. There should be zero tolerance for them in the service," he said.

According to him, when inmates break free from custody, the security of lives and property is in jeopardy.

Aregbesola said there would be an influx of inmates into the custodial centres across Nigeria following the current insecurity.

"The implication of this is that the custodial facilities will be bursting at the seams with the influx of inmates awaiting trials or convicts serving terms and awaiting execution.

"This poses a special challenge in that some of the inmates belong to organisations that'll deem themselves to be fighting ethno-religious and political causes. Therefore, their members outside will be planning to break into the facilities to free their members.

"There are also sophisticated criminal organisations whose members are either serving terms or awaiting trials and are now using the security situation in the country as an opportunity to attack our custodial centres and obtain their freedom," he said.
The Lagos State Police Command has alerted the residents of the state of a plot by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) to attack soft targets in the state.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Hakeem Odumosu, disclosed this in Lagos yesterday while delivering a paper on 'Appraisal of Security Situation in Lagos State', at a security meeting.

The CP said the threat by the IPOB had been put on the radar of the command's intelligence gathering and other security services in the state.

Odumosu also revealed that the command had equally taken note of threats by agitators of Oodua Republic and other Yoruba separatist groups.

He said 24 of these groups had been identified and were being closely monitored, assuring that strategies were being put in place to neutralize their activities.

He, therefore, asked all and sundry to be vigilant at all times and report any suspicious person or movement to security agencies.

"Let us adopt the slogan of 'when you see something, say something'," he said.

The CP said another major security challenge being faced by the command was the use of motorcycle as a means of transportation in the state.

He said: "The government's good intention of providing additional means of land transportation and creating jobs for the teeming unemployed youths, has been negated by the atrocities being perpetrated by the okada operators in the state.

"This includes the use of okada as a veritable tool to commit crime and get away with it by hoodlums; disrespect to traffic rules and regulations; the okada operators becoming nuisance and reckless on our roads, resulting into avoidable accidents with attendant consequences on human life".

The event was attended by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, security chiefs and members of the public.

Discussants at the meeting said shanties, uncompleted and abandoned buildings, undeveloped plots of land and hotels had become homes to hoodlums, cultists, armed robbers and other criminals; while abandoned vehicles were used to store arms and ammunition.

It was agreed that the state government take over uncompleted buildings immediately and take control of abandoned vehicles in all parts of the state.
analysis

It's heads you lose, tails you lose for the ANC's suspended secretary-general as President Cyril Ramaphosa finally gets tough.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has read the party's suspended secretary-general Ace Magashule the riot act for sowing chaos when he leaked a letter claiming he was suspending the party president.

Magashule wrote the letter purporting to suspend Ramaphosa on Wednesday 5 May and caused a day of chaos which was quickly nipped in the bud, as he did not have the authority to do so. His action caused even his supporters in the party's NEC to say he had gone a step too far.

Magashule found himself isolated at the weekend NEC meeting with a substantial majority of the 86-member body lined up against him. He was also prevented from joining the meeting, in line with the conditions of his suspension.

In addition to being suspended for failing to adhere to the step-aside rule, Magashule faces additional disciplinary charges if he does not publicly apologise to Ramaphosa and to the general body of 1.4 million ANC members. The two together create grounds for expulsion as they bring the ANC into disrepute, the same charges used to expel...
A man recently arrested in Lafayette on a bevy of charges involving the kidnapping of a 9-year-old girl, and who is being investigated in relation to the still-unsolved 2017 murders of two Delphi teens, previously lived and worked in the City of Firsts.

James Brian Chadwell II, 42, was arrested on April 19 after authorities in Lafayette charged him with luring a 9-year-old girl into his house and beating and sexually assaulting her. After his arrest, Carroll County Sheriff Tobe Leazenby told media officials that Chadwell was being investigated in connection to the 2017 murders of Liberty Libby German and Abigail Abby Williams in Delphi.

Arrest records indicated that Chadwell lived in Kokomo as recently as 2016 on the 1000 block of North Apperson Way. He was arrested that year on a drunk driving charge. Chadwell was hired at Moon Fabricating in Kokomo in December 2017, according to an executive at the company. His maternal aunt and Kokomo resident Peggy Gist confirmed that information.

According to Gist, she last saw her nephew in the summer of 2020 at a family function in Kokomo. She said Chadwell was intoxicated at the time.

When hes not drinking, hes the sweetest guy, Gist said. I mean, hes just really sweet. He has some problems because he lost his mother. Hes been in prison, of course, and I dont know. He just has problems because of that.

Chadwells late mother, Laura Mae Chadwell, died on April 25, 2009. Her son was incarcerated in South Dakota at the time on a myriad of charges, including aggravated assault.

According to Gist, Chadwell always would act out around the time of his mothers death.

On April 19, Chadwell was arrested most recently in Lafayette. According to the probable cause affidavit from the arrest, officers were notified of a missing child and soon made contact with Chadwell, who told investigators that the child had been at his residence previously but had left.

Authorities later returned to Chadwells residence where they searched for and found the missing girl in the basement of the home, which was secured with a chain lock. Officers found the girl visibly injured with her clothing on the floor beside her.

The affidavit detailed that the girl was inside his house playing with Chadwells dogs when he hit her and beat her before forcing her to perform oral sex on him. The girl had multiple wounds, including strangulation marks and broken blood vessels. She was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

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Chadwell was charged for attempted murder, child molesting, attempted child molesting, kidnapping, criminal confinement, battery resulting in serious bodily injury, and strangulation.

On Facebook, Chadwell had various check-ins at Kokomo businesses, such as the Hi-Mark Restaurant and Lounge, Trinity House, and the city of Kokomo. Chadwells most recent check-in to Kokomo was last month on April 6.

Gist said that Chadwells family abandoned him, referencing an Inside Edition report where journalists interviewed Chadwells stepfather and brother, James Chadwell and Ashley Chadwell. Ashley told Inside Edition that Chadwell was a monster and absolutely capable of the kinds of crimes Chadwell stands accused of. James reciprocated the claims, saying he thought his stepson was capable of committing the Delphi murders.

Gist said she has received threats of violence for being related to Chadwell.

[Our family is doing] terrible, Gist said. Were all getting threats and everything. Some guy messaged me and told me he was going to find me and rape me and kill me just because we were friends on Facebook, me and Brian.

Initially, Gist said she had a hard time believing that Chadwell was capable of doing the crimes he stands accused of.

I love Brian, and I know he did wrong. And I wish things were different. I didnt believe it at first until he went to court, Gist said. I dont know. I didnt think he was [capable]. Thats why I denied it for a while. I was like, No, he didnt do it. He didnt do that. But I dont know. He must be guilty, or he would say hes not. So I dont know.

Chadwell is being held at the Tippecanoe County jail on a $50,000 cash bond.

The two Delphi teens, German and Williams, were abducted and murdered on Feb. 13, 2017. The case remains unsolved.

Individuals with information about the Delphi murders are encouraged to contact law enforcement by email at abbyandlibbytip@cacoshrf.com or by phone at 844-459-5786.
NMB bank has donated 250 desks and 170 galvanised sheets all worth 30m/- to address a situation of students sitting down in classes in six primary schools in Tanga Region.

The schools listed as Msambiazi (the only institution that also got iron sheets), Kwakombo all in Korogwe Town Council also included Mwisho wa Shamba, Mkata, Manga and Zavuza in Handeni District Council.

Speaking at two separate handover ceremonies held at Kwakombo Primary School in Korogwe District and Mkata Primary School, Handeni District, NMB Northern Region Manager Aikansia Muro, said the donations they make to the community, are part of the one per cent annual benefit they also accrue from to the same community.

"As government, we are aware that the efforts you are making are huge in improving the education sector. But the sector has many challenges. And education is the foundation of life. NMB as a stakeholder recognizes the government's efforts, and we have seen fit to join the government in making our contribution and every year NMB allocates one percent of its profits, and this is the eighth in a row."

On his part, Kwamsisi County Councilor in Korogwe Town Council Mohamed Hassan thanked NMB Bank for the support of Kwakombo Primary School saying before that its more than 250 students used to be sitting on the ground.

Commenting, Korogwe District Commissioner Kissa Kasongwa said: "And if the Government gets stakeholders like NMB supports, several challenges in the education sector will end."

In response, Acting Executive Director of Handeni District Council Edna Katalaiya said they are grateful to the bank for providing desks that was not forthcoming, because of the parents' poor contributions towards their purchase.

Handeni District Commissioner Toba Nguvila said NMB has been doing a good job in many areas, noting: "What you are doing to contribute to the development of the people, you have realized the importance of your customers."

NMB has been lending to traders and farmers including tractors that will help increase the economy of the individual, thus boosting individual income, and increasing NMB customers."
analysis

The decisions of the ANC NEC, as announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday, appear to mark a crucial defeat for the party's suspended Secretary-General Ace Magashule.

The ANC's suspended Secretary-General Ace Magashule may now be caught in a trap after the National Executive Committee (NEC) decided he must apologise for his actions of the last week. At the same time, his allies might be in further trouble after the decision by the NEC to investigate who is responsible for the leaks of its meeting over the past few days.

Magashule could now be in more danger than he was before this meeting, with his suspension merely an opening gambit. He can't blame others as the predicament he finds himself in appears to be the result of his own actions, bad strategy and avoidable mistakes.

Ramaphosa was calm, measured and appeared every inch presidential in his address on Monday. Reading from his iPad (from which a charging cable dangled off his desk and presumably went into a charger) he slowly went through the NEC statement. There was no sense of triumphalism -- he was careful not to appear to enjoy what must have been a great political moment.

It...
Luanda  The minister of Mineral Resources, Petroleum and Gas, Diamantino Azevedo, Monday in Luanda called on Belgian businesses to invest in the country's diamond industry and thus help boost the sector.

Diamantino Azevedo, who was speaking to about 20 visiting Belgian business people with the Antwerp World Diamond Center (AWDC), said the call is meant to lure investments into the diamond market, in view of Angola's current dynamics.

The minister on the occasion reaffirmed Angola's plan to create a stock market for the sector, and said the country is open to cooperate with the AWDC on a partnership that will come into experimental operation next year.

"Let's work together to boost the sector, as the Angolan people could benefit from the diamonds, through the increment of their value, creation of jobs and, as a result, increase of revenues for the national treasury," he said.

The first Angola Diamond Stock Market, which is expected to come into experimental action in 2022, is meant to bring the diamond flow into the same umbrella for sale through auctions.

The Angola Diamond Stock Market is also to include a Gems Academy and a Technological Research Centre, intended to operate as a free trade area.

Diamantino Azevedo stressed that the Stock Market will bring more business opportunities, both for the local and the world diamond industries.

For his part, the Belgian ambassador to Angola, Jozef Smets, stressed the will of his country's companies to set up strong partnerships with local counterparts in the diamond industry.

He added his country's business people are willing to set up good contacts and do good businesses with the Angolan government as they know the country's potential.

Angola is the world's fourth diamond producing country, with an average annual output of about nine million carat, until 2019.

According to figures recently released by the country's diamond firm Endiama, Angola's revenue in the first quarter of this year stood at Usd 220,3 million, from the sale of 1,178 million carat. This is 26 percent higher than the revenue of corresponding period of last year.

Antwerp, Belgium's second largest city, is the world's major diamond polishing and trade centre, handling about 84 percent of the world's raw diamonds.

Diamantino Azevedo, who was speaking to about 20 visiting Belgian business people with the Antwerp World Diamond Center (AWDC), said the call is meant to lure investments into the diamond market, in view of Angola's current dynamics.

The minister on the occasion reaffirmed Angola's plan to create a stock market for the sector, and said the country is open to cooperate with the AWDC on a partnership that will come into experimental operation next year.

"Let's work together to boost the sector, as the Angolan people could benefit from the diamonds, through the increment of their value, creation of jobs and, as a result, increase of revenues for the national treasury," he said.

The first Angola Diamond Stock Market, which is expected to come into experimental action in 2022, is meant to bring the diamond flow into the same umbrella for sale through auctions.

The Angola Diamond Stock Market is also to include a Gems Academy and a Technological Research Centre, intended to operate as a free trade area.

Diamantino Azevedo stressed that the Stock Market will bring more business opportunities, both for the local and the world diamond industries.

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For his part, the Belgian ambassador to Angola, Jozef Smets, stressed the will of his country's companies to set up strong partnerships with local counterparts in the diamond industry.

He added his country's business people are willing to set up good contacts and do good businesses with the Angolan government as they know the country's potential.

Angola is the world's fourth diamond producing country, with an average annual output of about nine million carat, until 2019.

According to figures recently released by the country's diamond firm Endiama, Angola's revenue in the first quarter of this year stood at Usd 220,3 million, from the sale of 1,178 million carat. This is 26 percent higher than the revenue of corresponding period of last year.

Antwerp, Belgium's second largest city, is the world's major diamond polishing and trade centre, handling about 84 percent of the world's raw diamonds.
The police have received eight brand new bikes that will be used by the traffic officers to escort heads of state that will attend President Museveni's sixth inauguration that will take place at Kololo independence grounds on May 12, 2021.

Over 4,000 guests, including 11 heads of state, have been invited to attend Mr Museveni's inauguration ceremony as he embarks on another five-year term that will see him rule Uganda for four decades.

The technical person for Nile Fishing Company that imported the bikes, Mr Grace Kigenyi, while addressing journalists after handing over the new bikes to police said the Yamaha -FJR1300P-A -bikes will support the work of traffic officers on the said day.

The Yamaha safety riding instructor, Mr Arthur Blick Junior said police officers were taken through mandatory skill training on how to maneuver the motorcycles.

"A few course series of training, breaking, cornering which will help them with the balance of these motorcycles which are bigger, heavier and maintenance will be much easier and cheaper in the long run of their activities of police patrol and elite patrol," he said.

Police confirmed their traffic squad had received the new motorcycles for the inauguration but couldn't divulge details on their prices since the procurement information is deemed confidential.
By Tonny Abet

It is a misconception to assume that Uganda's public debt is unsustainable, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), one of the country's leading creditors.

The IMF Resident Representative for Uganda, Ms Izabela Karpowicz, whose institution has so far lent Uganda about $491.5 million (Shs1.7 trillion), noted that the country's public debt levels are still within a manageable threshold in the long term.

She said: "We used to rate Uganda at low risk and now it will be moving to a medium risk and this is due to Covid-19... "

She added: "... It is not correct to say the debt is not sustainable over the medium and long term."

Ms Karpowicz was speaking last Thursday on the sidelines of a policy dialogue on Uganda's economy, which was organised by the Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE) and the Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group (CSBAG).

According to Ms Karpowicz, what should cause Ugandans sleepless nights is how "resources that are being borrowed now and in the future" will be deployed productively and not the "debt level issues."

As long as the borrowed funds can spur growth, the IMF Representative in Uganda believes, "Uganda will naturally grow out of the debt."

To navigate through the tough economic situation occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic, the IMF chief in Uganda said: "We would like to see strong budget allocation in social sector going forward."

She says spending in the social sector has decreased, asking government to spend more on education and health, saying investment in these segments of the economy will not only trigger but drive the recovery processes.

Speaking as a panelist at the policy dialogue whose theme was 'Economic Recovery and Re-engineering Economic Growth' , Ms Karpowicz called for a balance between infrastructure and social development, saying this has a potential to put back the economy on a sustainable growth path.

Debt situation

There are varied opinions regarding the magnitude of the country's public debt.

While some believe that the country is already in debt distress, others such as Mr Stephen Kaboyo, the chief executive officer of Alpha Capital Partners and a former central bank technocrat, is convinced that government is playing with fire as it is quickly sliding into debt distress.

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Officially, Uganda's stock of public debt grew by 21 per cent to $15.27 billion over one year (June 2019 to June 2020). This is equivalent to 41 per cent of the annual GDP and 31.8 per cent in present value terms.

The external debt constitutes $10.45 billion (68.4 per cent) while domestic debt is $4.82 billion (31.6 per cent).

Critics using government official figures say the public debt is expected to rise to 49.9 per cent of GDP by the end of 2021 and 54.1 per cent in 2022.

The key driver for the projected increase in debt is the need for extra borrowing to cover revenue short falls, Covid-19 related expenditure as well as support for economic recovery.

However, late last month, Finance minister Matia Kasaija disclosed that government would seek to reschedule payments, 24 hours after this newspaper revealed each Ugandan now owed Shs1.5 million in debt contracted by the government.

In an interview with Reuters news agency, Mr Kasaija revealed that repayments of the debt, now at $17.96 billion (Shs66 trillion) if domestic debt is included, might have to be renegotiated with major creditors, including China, the World Bank and IMF.
The project Coordinator Support Sustainable Fisheries Development project at the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal industries and Fisheries (MAAIF), Mr Alfred Akankwasa has said a Shs 500 million speed boat secured by government will help the ministry in the process of tackling the floating islands that resulted from increased water levels in Lake Victoria.

"We will move around the lake in identified hotspot areas especially Masaka, Mayuge and jinja areas where the islands come from, the ministry together with other government agencies are able to break the floating islands from their origin so that they don't affect normal activities on the lake," he said.

Mr Akankwasa made the remarks while addressing journalists in Entebbe after receiving the boat from officials of Nile Fishing Company that was contracted to deliver the boat.

"Due to the increased water levels there was a problem of floating islands which at one point affected electricity generation at Kiira dam in Jinja and delayed transportation across the lake, the floating islands affected fishing and also led to fish deaths" he said.

Mr Akankwasa said the boat is the first of a kind bought specifically to monitor the movement of the floating islands and other water weeds affecting activities on the lake.

"Prior to this, we were challenged to get the quickest means of transport to the hotspot areas since we had to look for a speed boat to move around the lake which was tedious and expensive" he said.

The company's executive director, Mr Christopher Saazi said the boat, a Yamaha model UA-MJX-BST01-10PAX-2021, has a seating capacity of 15 people with powerful four stroke engines and can easily be maintained during the course of breaking the floating islands on the lake.

"In the past, boats used to consume a lot of fuel using two stroke engines but with these new four stroke engine models which use less fuel, which makes it easier for the ministry to plan for the usage of the boat," he said.
By Franklin Draku

Uganda is unable to exclusively finance its ambitious infrastructure projects from domestic revenues due to a narrow tax base.

Officials said the tax revenues are lower than 16 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the average for African countries.

Part of the problem, according to experts, is the government's failure to effectively tax and collect revenues from the informal sector that roughly accounts for half of Uganda's economy.

The result: overburdened formal employees.

This newspaper's investigation reveals that the government's plan to finance up to 80 per cent of its budget from local revenue has failed because of its inability to generate sufficient domestic revenues.

To plug the financial hole, the country has increased its borrowing from both external and domestic creditors, plunging the country to near debt distress.

From 2017/2018 to 2021/2022 Financial Year, which is barely two months away, the government has spent slightly above Shs6.8t of locally-generated revenues on social projects, particularly education, health, and water development.

This is in addition to more than Shs15.8t spent over the same period on mainly designs of projects, constructions of some infrastructure and compensations.

For example, the design of the 238-kilometre Kyenjonjo-Hoima-Masindi-Kigumba road cost Shs43.3b and was paid for by the government of Uganda from local revenue. And over the past five financial years, Shs1.6t of taxpayers' money was spent on compensation alone.

In the previous five financial years (2015/2016 to 2019/2020), Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) had a target to collect a cumulative Shs76.5t, which proved to be a tall order as evidenced by the Shs4.8t shortfall.

This is an equivalent of about seven times the budget allocated to agriculture sector over past five years.

Save for the FY 2018/19 when URA recorded Shs258b surplus, the other four financial years within the period under consideration, show revenue deficits.

While analysing the shortfalls, Mr Julius Mukunda, the Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group (CSBAG) executive director, in a report noted that the failure by URA to generate sufficient domestic revenue led to fiscal deficits over time.

This, Mr Mukunda said, prompted the government to explore alternative funding sources to cover the income-and-expenditure gap, hence borrowing to finance infrastructure projects.

As a result, the country's public debt stock increased by 98 per cent to Shs56.5t over the 5-year National Development Plan (NDP) II period that started in 2015/16 Financial Year.

Sixty-eight per cent of the cumulative loan is external debt, exerting fiscal pressures not only on the national budget but also on the economy.

A seperate study by Makerere University College of Business and Management Sciences and Economic Policy Research Centre, among others, have found that despite the tax body's innovations, only a small percentage of Ugandans pay tax.

The researchers also found out that only a number of commodities in Uganda are taxed due to what President Museveni describes as "slackness" among tax officials and policymakers.

For decades now, the country's tax-to-GDP ratio has hovered around 12.5 to 13 per cent, resulting in a five-year domestic revenue mobilisation strategy to up the ratio to at least 16 per cent by 2023.

Experts say Uganda has the potential to drive its tax revenue collection to 23 per cent of its GDP if it closes tax revenue leaks.

However, MP Amos Lugoolobi, the chairperson of Parliament's Budget Committee, told Daily Monitor in interview that there is no way the government can fully finance its projects without borrowing.

"Revenues collected domestically is always below the total budget required. [In] the next financial year, URA will be tasked to collect Shs21 trillion yet the entire budget is about Shs44.7 trillion. So, inevitably, [the] government has to borrow to raise the other half of the budget. A fiscal deficit must be filled," he said.

The lawmaker said the government should maintain its heavy investment in infrastructure projects including for the nascent oil sector, meaning local revenue will remain insufficient for such grand projects.

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He suggested cutting down on the increasing public expenditure, saying the cost of public administration and governance is overburdening.

Ms Regina Navuga, the in-charge for Financing for Development Programme at Southern and Eastern Africa Trade, Information and Negotiations Institute (SEATINI-Uganda), in a separate interview, said Uganda is not the only country facing fiscal deficit.

She faulted the government for running a budget beyond its means, and argued that excessive leaks deprive the government much-needed revenue.

"Although taxation is one of the most sustainable ways of mobilising revenue, the government of Uganda is still facing a number of challenges ranging from capacity gap to laws with loopholes that facilitate tax evasion and avoidance, let alone a large informal sector that all compel government to continue borrowing in order to finance the budget," Ms Navuga said.

She urged the government to broaden the tax base in a "fair and just way".
THE Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office responsible for Policy, Parliament Affairs, Labour, Youth, Employment and Persons with Disability Jenista Mhagama has expressed a concern for the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) to extend its effort and coverage to reach people in the informal sector.

Opening the 47 Fund's newly elected Workers Council, in Morogoro over the weekend, Ms Mhagama pointed out that there is a job to be done by the Fund to register more members from the informal sector.

This comes after the Fund has set a goal to register and increase members to reach 1,200,016 for the financial year 2021/2022 compared to the last year's target to register 144,531 members.

"I know you have set a target for the coming New Year to register more members in the Fund, I want this new elected Worker's Council to focus on the informal sector," she said.

Mhagama made very clear that the Fund can attract large members turn out if informal sector is given special impetus because it constitutes a considerable number of the majority.

She went on calling the Fund's employees to double the effort, be innovative and maintain the high standards to ensure that Fund attain its intended core functions on registering members, collecting contribution, investing and payment of benefit to members.

Mhagama emphasised that, for the years now NSSF has been receiving good certificate from Auditor and Controller General (GAG) and it is the duty of the Fund to keep and maintain that reputation standard.

"There is an amazing job that has been done by the previous team and I want this new Workers Council to maintain that image and even going beyond that standard," She said.

She also went on stressing that NSSF Management under the current Director General Masha Mshomba to work hard to improve worker's welfare and other fringe benefits that will create unshakable morale and motivate the employees to undertake their duties accordingly and fulfill their responsibilities.
THE Tanzania Police School (TPS) celebrated the institution's Centenary of its existence this year, in style after it produced an all university graduate Sergeant Officers during a colourful event held at the TPS grounds, recently.

During the occasion the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Simon Sirro urged members of the Police Force in the country to adhere to ethics, while fulfilling their responsibilities.

In a speech read on his behalf by the Commissioner of Operations and Training, Commissioner of Police (CP) Libaretus Sabas, IGP Sirro told the graduates that the good results of their training would be evaluated by the opinion of the people who they were going to serve.

"Your professionalism in the workplace will be valued by the people you serve... you must adhere to ethics, so as to protect the dignity of the police force that has lasted for many years," he said.

He added: "After this occasion, you will return to join your colleagues in serving the nation in the work you will be assigned, the biggest challenge here is not what you encountered during the training but how you will serve the people in accordance with their expectations and that of the nation as a whole."

Earlier, the Tanzania Police School (TPS) Commandant, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police (SACP) Ramadhan Mungi, said a total of 1,703 students graduated from the course which was dubbed the Special Sergeants course.

"This course was given the special name of the Special Sergeant course due to the fact that all the officials who graduated today have a university degree. Twenty seven of them have a Master's Degree which they were conferred after completing their respective university courses," he said.

He continued to say that during their Sergeant training course, the officials were given various securities related educational training, which he said would enable them to deal with the challenges of global crimes.
Emotions run high in Agora Village in Soroti District on Friday afternoon as two wives were reunited with their husband, assumed dead for the past 51 years.

Mr Vincent Obodo, the personal overseer of late President Milton Obote's security and family, went into exile in January 1971 after the late Idi Amin toppled his boss while in Singapore.

That was the last time his wives Josephine Ariamo, 76, and Anna Loyce Ideta, 71, set eyes on their husband.

The duo, their children, relatives, and Obodo's agemates sobbed and yelled as the UNHCR staff vehicle strolled through Agora to bring back a man, who was struggling in Tanzania after failing to come to terms with the overthrow of his former boss.

Ms Ariamo, the elder wife, says they thought their husband was dead because there had never been any communication nor any clue of his whereabouts since 1971.

"In the earlier days when he went missing, we consulted with other UPC (Uganda Peoples Congress) stalwarts, but to no avail until last month when we received a call from the Soroti City West MP-elect (Jonathan Ebwalu) that our husband is alive, and United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) was making arrangements of settling him home," she told Daily Monitor at their home in Agora.

Ms Ariamo says when UNHCR communicated, it raised their anxiety when they remembered a man, who in his youthful days, was a breadwinner, a companion and a comforter.

"He equally loved us, he was a jolly man and passionately spoke great things about his former boss Obote. I believe coming to terms with the overthrow of his boss broke him, we thank God he is back," she says. Obodo,81, is one of late Obote's strongmen to return home alive.

Ms Ideta, his second wife, says the reunion brings back the memories of their heydays as a young couple.

"It is hard to believe, but he is here, we thank those who have enabled him to arrive home," Ms Ideta says.

She adds that while he was away, they produced other children with other men but never moved out of the marital home.

"It shouldn't have been so if those political dynamics, which set our husband to flee for his life, had never happened," Ms Ideta says.

Mr John Ekoyu, his son, says when he was contacted about the arrangements, he sought help in Tanzania since he knew his father had already died.

"The call came on April 14 when I broke the news to my mothers, brothers and sisters, they never took me seriously, they claimed I was reawakening the bad memories of my father's death," the 56-year-old recalls.

Mr Ekoyu says after the government okayed the UN flight for Obodo to return home, he recognised his father.

"His colour complexion, the eyes and head resembled those of his cousins, so I knew that the person I was receiving was my biological father," Mr Ekoyu says.

He adds that his father's absence has been tormenting.

"I started being the head of the home at 10 years, building on resilience and undertaking the role of being a breadwinner for both my mothers during the most difficult times of insurgency in Teso. I thank the Almighty Lord for His grace that has enabled us see our father," Mr Ekoyu says. Mr Ebwalu says it is a day of joy that one of the former Teso greats has returned home alive.

"Having served as an assistant commissioner under Bukedi District, it is our request that government advances him some support for his resettlement," he says.

Recalling how he ended up in Tanzania, Mr Obodo says Obote never heeded to intelligence reports about the coup plot, and insisted on proceeding with his flight to Singapore. The next day, the government was toppled.

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Mr Obodo says he ensured his boss landed safely in Kenya before president Julius Nyerere of Tanzania called his counterpart to immediately leave, citing security threats to Obote's life.

"I arranged to whisk my boss to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for asylum in Tanzania. That is how I found myself in Tanzania," he says.

Mr Obodo says when Obote regained power, he remained his emissary in Tanzania until he was overthrown.

"Life in exile has been a thicket of thorns," he says, adding that it denied him the opportunity to do things that he should have had he been home.

The reunion was marked with a thanksgiving ceremony.

UNHCR says

Ms Carol Kibuka Musoke, UNHCR Protection Associate, says the resettlement was made possible after work by both the government of Uganda and Tanzania. She says UNHCR continues to carry out voluntary repatriation of refugees to their countries of origin.
A new drop-in center that could give law enforcement another option to incarceration passed its first major hurdle.

Last week, the Kokomo Board of Zoning Appeals approved a special exception for a Turning Point drop-in center, which is planned to be located at 1234 N. Courtland Ave., the former Columbian School. The building will not only serve as a drop-in center where individuals struggling with addiction can be taken to instead of jail but also as Turning Points new headquarters.

According to Turning Point Board President Paul Wyman, the drop-in center will serve as a waypoint of sorts for individuals before they are transferred to long-term care centers, such as the newly-opened Wabash Recovery sober living facility. Individuals could stay at the drop-in center for a few days, work with navigators at the facility, and get connected to treatment options.

The facility will be operated 24/7, complete with medical staff and security on hand. The drop-in center can hold 10 to 15 individuals at a time, Wyman said, and will be a place for individuals to begin their recovery journey.

In addition, the Fellowship of Hope Club, a nonprofit that hosts addiction services like Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous, is nearby.

But perhaps the most important aspect of the new facility will be that it gives a second option to law enforcement officials when dealing with addicted individuals in distress.

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Oftentimes law enforcement will get a call down to a situation, and they'll get there and realize that this situation isn't something where somebody needs to go to jail. And you don't want to take them to the emergency room because the emergency rooms are already full, Wyman said. This gives law enforcement an option because this person doesn't belong in jail, but this person needs some help.

According to Wyman, the decision on whether to bring an individual to the drop-in center depends on if there is room available and if the individual truly is seeking help. Problematic drug users who may be unruly or violent would not be taken to the drop-in center.

The building was formerly an elementary school owned by Kokomo School Corporation, though it closed in 2009. The Kokomo Crossing School of Business and Entrepreneurship was the last user of the building, though The Crossings operations moved in 2019 before closing last year. The building still is owned by Kokomo School Corporation.

A more than $1 million investment will go into rehabbing the building, paid for entirely by a $4,986,515 grant through the seventh phase of Lilly Endowment Inc.s Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow (GIFT VII) initiative. The grant was awarded to the Community Foundation Serving Howard, Clinton, and Carroll Counties.

Drop-in sister locations will be located in the other two counties, effectively creating a regional system of care.

Wyman expected the drop-in center to open late this year or early 2022.
Luanda  Angola's Oil Firm Sonangol said that it has signed an agreement with South Korean company Hyunday Sambo Heavy Industry (HSHI) to build two oil tankers, as part of a process of renewal of its fleet.

The 158,000 gross tones vessels, with capacity to carry about one million barrels of crude oil, will reinforce the international fleet of Sonangol, currently restricted to nine ships.

In its newspaper "Pacaca", reached Angop, Sonangol announced the delivery of the first ship for the first quarter of 2023, while the second vessel will be handed over in the following quarter of the same year.

The renewal of the oil fleet is based on the acquisition of the transport fleet of the Suezmax line, with 20 year lifespan.

Sonangol seal the maintenance of a shipping business that guarantees the delivery of the oil to the requested destination by the buyers without any necessity to resort to the chartering of the third parties.

The investment, funded at the own expense by business

self-sufficiency assures the vitality and renewal of the means that sustains a strong business.

The 158,000 gross tones vessels, with capacity to carry about one million barrels of crude oil, will reinforce the international fleet of Sonangol, currently restricted to nine ships.

In its newspaper "Pacaca", reached Angop, Sonangol announced the delivery of the first ship for the first quarter of 2023, while the second vessel will be handed over in the following quarter of the same year.

The renewal of the oil fleet is based on the acquisition of the transport fleet of the Suezmax line, with 20 year lifespan.

Sonangol seal the maintenance of a shipping business that guarantees the delivery of the oil to the requested destination by the buyers without any necessity to resort to the chartering of the third parties.

The investment, funded at the own expense by business

self-sufficiency assures the vitality and renewal of the means that sustains a strong business.
As government prepares the budget for the next financial year, it will need to appropriate funds to the most productive sectors of the economy placed in a chokehold by the Covid-19 pandemic.

With soaring unemployment, foreclosures on property later sold at the fall of the hammer and the collapse of small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs), government will need to craft a budget that can resuscitate ailing businesses.

But as government seeks to plug a budget deficit driven by falling tax collections and provide funds in empty escrow accounts that are used to service rising interest on debt, Daily Monitor newspaper has learnt that government plans to table a supplementary budget worth Shs700b in Parliament early next week.

In a March 11 letter from the Finance minister Matia Kasaija and copied to the Speaker of Parliament, the Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) is seeking Shs481b 'to facilitate the company to sign off investment decisions on projects under oil and gas-related to the oil refinery and pipeline that necessitated preparation of supplementary schedule 5.'

The other items on the supplementary budget are a Shs28b State House vote, Shs101b for the Uganda National Roads Authority (Unra). The funds if approved will plug wage shortfalls for various central and local government, which has a Shs69b vote and the Finance ministry will receive Shs2.6b.

But economists are warning that this could distort the budget processing and could create a culture of 'retrospective accountability' where funds are spent and government reverts to Parliament to rubber-stamp the approval.

"It is important that you are disciplined and that's what the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) sought to cure, how do we ensure that we are disciplined? A budget is as good as your ability to stick to it," Mr John Walugembe, an economist, argues.

Mr Walugembe says there are times when it is inevitable to seek a supplementary but 'sometimes asking for supplementary budgets is an indictment on the process itself through which the budget is developed, it could mean that the process is not consultative enough and therefore its not able to sufficiently foresee what government will need to spend on.'

Mr Abubaker Mayanja, another economist, says supplementary budgets can take away money from productive to non-productive sectors.

This comes at the time when there is a spike in government's borrowing from commercial banks.

In March, the Auditor General, Mr John Muwanga, warned government to step back from heavily borrowing from commercial banks, saying it presents a risk to growth and access to private sector credit.

In a report for the period ended June 2020, the Auditor General indicated that government's non-concessional loans borrowed from commercial banks had spiked over the past three-years, growing from just Shs192.6b in the 2017/2018 Financial Year to Shs2.8 trillion for the period ended June 2020.

"We are borrowing domestically and we are crowding out the private sector. It means small businesses find it harder to borrow, they are risky. Ultimately government is sabotaging its long-term goal of generating sufficient domestic revenue," Mr Walugembe argues.

"It also impacts on how government is able to collect its own taxes, the other secondary effect that is related with the first is the issue of liquidity within businesses," he said.

Fitch's credit rating for Uganda was last reported at B+ with negative outlook. In general, a credit rating is used by sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and other investors to gauge the credit worthiness of a country thus having a big impact on the country's borrowing costs.

It is what analysts fear is driving the government to borrow less from Bretton Woods institutions such as the World Bank by resorting to local commercial banks.

"After Covid-19, growth has slowed down by more than 50 per cent from an average of 6 per cent to 3 per cent. The risks are for example more than 33 per cent going into debt repayment as borrowing has grown by $ 2b and when you look at domestic revenue of about Shs25 trillion, it leaves you wondering whether we are approaching a fiscal cliff," Mr Abubakar Mayanja, an economist, warns.

Largely two school of thoughts are emerging with how countries with the Covid-19 economic slump. One of them involves offering a stimuli to propel aggregate demand.

For low developed countries like Uganda, which have a constrained fiscal space, they have struggled to offer a comprehensive stimulus package to drive aggregate demand, a Keynesian rule of thumb largely adopted in Western countries like America, which is directly placing funds in the hands of families.

"That's why in the US they are writing cheques, expenditure is the engine of the economy," Mr Walugembe argues.

"There is one [school of thought] that says government's role is to regulate ----the challenge is how do you rein in capitalistic kind of tendencies, this is the kind of school of thought that tends to go for austerity, there is another school of thought that focuses on government spending during times of crisis, in fact this school of thought is more widely accepted but it matters on what you spend but in our context we seem to be spending on the wrong things," Mr Walugembe argues.

Government continues to create new districts and cities and a growing bureaucracy, which has led to soaring public administration costs. Largely anchored on the clientele-patronage politics, the policy of creating new administrative units has faced flak from policy wonks keen on running a lean government.

Mr Mayanja, who is an advocate of fiscal discipline and lean governments, argues: "Bloated government takes away money for productive infrastructure and the fiscal room to create an enabling tax environment to grow the demand side. On the contrary, if your expenditure is going to bureaucracies, it takes away the freedom to make the investments you have made in developing the processing sector, which is absolutely necessary to backstop the investments you are making in the rural economy."

"You need to invest in the productive sectors of the economy through which money will get to businesses and households. The cost of public administration is rising, in time of crisis we need to save this money and plough it back into other sectors that will kick-start the economy and create jobs, this should be coupled with austerity for non-essential expenditure," Mr Walugembe argues.

Mr Mayanja reveals that government can create fiscal room by reining in on government expenditure and limiting borrowing.

"The debt to tax revenue ratio and debt to GDP ratio are about to hit the ceiling," he argues.

In the budget framework paper for the next financial year, which has been prepared by the Finance ministry, government plans to create fiscal room by enforcing better macro-management. But beyond the text in the policy document, how will government offer pragmatism to improve macro-management?

As a method of recovering from the slump, government has committed to clear outstanding domestic arrears of nearly Shs600b owed to local investors to revive the manufacturing sector and hence improve tax collection. Uganda has one of the lowest tax-to-GDP ratios in the region.

As a way out of this rut, Mr Mayanja recommends tax policies that encourage SMEs to grow and become more formal.

"I have seen places where the tax tiers or corporate tax changes are in sync with gross revenues, you can qualify for lower tax rates if you have $100,000 to allow you to expand and that kind of policy can make us create medium enterprises out of small enterprises," Mr Mayanja opines.

In March, the International Monetary Fund highlighted the example of Georgia, which was able to enforce sweeping reforms to improve its tax-to-GDP ratio.

Among the progressive reforms, the country adopted a revised tax code, which simplified the tax system, rates were reduced, and local taxes that were generating little revenue were phased out.

Progressive personal income tax rates were replaced with a flat rate of 20 per cent, and the social security contribution tax rate was first reduced from 33 per cent to 20 per cent and then eliminated altogether. Corporate income was taxed at a flat rate of 15 per cent, and the value-added tax (VAT) was reduced from 20 per cent to 18 per cent.

The revenue lost from lower tax rates was made up through a broader tax base, better compliance, and stricter enforcement. URA has of recent adopted stringent enforcement methods and tried to halt leakages by introducing the Electronic Fiscal Receipting and Invoicing Solution.

"This makes a strong assumption that people are not paying what they should be paying," Mr Walugembe argues, who is an exponent of a broadened tax base.

"You can use the carrot which is the incentive or you can use the stick which is enforcement, but ultimately we must ensure that our tax rates are low enough to de-incentivise anyone who wants to dodge tax, at the moment our tax rates are rising every other year, and that's the problem you can't broaden the tax base that way," Mr Walugembe opines.

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Taxes

Mr Mayanja says government should desist from enforcing taxes that are retrogressive and create an imbalance.

"Most of the output from the rural areas has to be consumed in urban centres for the economic system to be complete in order not to have an imbalance. So when you create a system where the tax is going to be mainly incidental on urban areas without necessary fiscal initiatives to create room for SMEs to grow, then that creates a bigger risk to the economy."

Mr Mayanja suggests that government should offer tax incentives to SMEs to spur growth that will automatically transform the rural backwaters that supply agro-products to urban dwellers.

The Covid-19 pandemic has amplified the digital economy but restrictive taxes on data seem to have knocked the sting out of relying on this versatile space.

Mr Mayanja proffers that cyberspace offers a value chain linked to the global market, which is placed at the doorstep.

"The youth in urban areas and SMEs are relying on these global platforms and digital platforms to integrate in the global economy which will have a knock-on effect on the service exports, but when you put tax on data and these digital platforms then its creates limitation, if you look at the top 10 countries at NYSE [in the past] they were brick and mortar companies now they are tech companies," he says.

Mr Walugembe adds that: "We have many young people educated and they are not going to work in the agriculture space, so government needs to look at the service space and look at how do we support the young people to create an enabling environment. Government needs to make it easier, it needs to reduce taxes, some of the measures are self-defeating about 12 per cent of data, we have high youth unemployment."

They may be no specific economic antidotes to uplift Uganda's wobbly economy but a number of measures enforced by an austere bureaucracy that favours fiscal discipline in the place of wasteful expenditure could be the saving grace.
Parliament has approved a Shs44.7 trillion budget for the approaching financial year 2021/2022, following one month's debate on ammendments by the parliamentary committee.

The new budget is down from this financial year's Shs45.6 trillion, with a difference of Shs900 billion.

The Budget was approved on Friday evening after presentation of the Budget committee report by the chairman, Mr Amos Lugoloobi.

"The Committee has established that there is a notable decrease in the resource envelope by Shs879.4 billion in comparison to the resource envelope as per the approved NBFP of FY2021 /22. This reduction is largely attributed to a projected decrease in external borrowing by Shs1.3trillion," he said.

In the approved budget, Shs28.8 trillion is available for spending while Shs15.9trillion will finance the country's distressing debt and accumulated interest.

The country's public debt (Domestic and External) has accumulated to Shs65 trillion as of December 2020, according to government. This is an increase from Shs49 trillion in 2019.

In the new budget that takes effect on July 1, Agro-industrialization comes in the third position with Shs1.6 trillion followed by Regional Development with Shs1.2 trillion.

Other programmes include sustainable Energy Development (Shs1.1 trillion), Development Plan Implementation (Shs1.1 trillion), Legislature (Shs831b) and Judiciary, (Shs370b), among others.

On the debt component, Shs8.5 trillion has been allocated for domestic refinancing and Shs5 trillion for interest repayment.

Government has also allocated Shs6.8 trillion for Interest payment and External Debt Repayments (Amortisation).

A total of Shs400b has been allocated to domestic arrears. Commenting on the budget, however, the State minister for Finance in charge of Planning, Mr David Bahati, assured Parliament that Uganda's debt is sustainable and that the money borrowed is being invested in projects that will grow the economy.

"The increase in debt is on account of increased borrowing to address the socio-economic impact of Covid-19 to mitigate the negative effects of the pandemic," he said, projecting that the debt is expected to rise to 51.9 per cent to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the next financial year.

He said the debt will surpass the threshold of 50 per cent in the next financial year.

"But it is projected to decline thereafter on account of increased domestic revenue," he stressed.

Mr Lugoloobi said Shs200b will be drawn from the Petroleum Fund to specifically finance oil road infrastructure during the FY 2021 /22.

Domestic and External Financing will constitute 76.7per cent and 23.3per cent of the total resource envelope, respectively. Out of the Shs44.7 trillion budget, Shs22.6trillion will be realised from the domestic revenue, out of which Shs20.8 trillion will come from taxes projected to be collected by the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA).

Parliament this month approved about seven new taxes, with a 12 per cent tax on data to replace over-the-top (OTT) tax, 25 per cent or Shs250 tax on locally made alcohol, Shs70, 000 on fish maw, and 30 per cent tax on all rental income, among others, as part of the revenue for the FY2021/2022 Budget.

Government plans to get Shs11.4 trillion from domestic borrowing and Shs9 trillion from external borrowing.

Mr Lugoloobi said using resource allocations to proxy prioritisation is evident that the governance and security, human capital, development and Integrated Transport Infrastructure and services programmes are prioritised as per the proposed annual budget estimates for the FY2021/2022.

He noted that the third National Development plan (NDP III) prioritises governance and security, Human Capital Development and regional development.

Mr Lugoloobi said inconsistencies in the share of the budget allocations in regards to productive sectors such as Mineral Development, Manufacturing, and Tourism programmes that are proposed to receive a meager 0.2 per cent, 0.2 per cent and 0.6per cent respectively; yet the NDP III proposes 1.4 per cent, 1.3 per cent and 1.7 per cent share of the Budget respectively.

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Recommendations

Committee members recommended that in order to reduce the pace of debt accumulation, especially in relation to budget support, the government should halt creation of administrative units and expedite the merger of institutions to eliminate duplications and wasteful expenditure, thereby reducing the need to borrow for budget support.

"Borrowing should be limited to development projects that have undergone proper project appraisals to ascertain that the projects have good economic rates of return, so that budget support borrowing is limited to exclusive periods of economic shocks where countercyclical fiscal policy is required to boost economic recoveries," Mr Lugoloobi advised.

Mr Fredrick Angura (Tororo South) said government should always first compensate people to create way for construction of huge projects before looking for developers. He said compensation is dragging construction thus attracting huge interest in loans.
The 2021 Nedbank Kapana Cook  Off Competition was launched on Friday, 07 May to once again provide a once in a lifetime business opportunity for the overall winner, in the form of prizes that amount to N$100,000 which includes a fully furnished mobile food trailer.

The competition which is in its 7th year, is open to Namibians from across the country. Preliminary rounds will be held at the Coast on Saturday, 29 May, in the North on Saturday, 26 June, and in Windhoek on Saturday, 10 July.

Finalists from these rounds will then battle it out at the final, which is scheduled for Saturday, 7 August, where the winner of the Nedbank Kapana Cook-Off Competition 2021 will be crowned.

This year the winner will once again walk away with an SME package which will jumpstart their entrepreneurial journey. The entry level winners will walk away with; 1st place, Mobile/Trailer Kapana Kitchen, Nedbank account with N$10 000, Bakpro Vetkoek voucher to the value of N$5 000; 2nd place, Nedbank account with N$7 000, Bakpro Vetkoek voucher to the value of N$3 000; and 3rd place, Nedbank account with N$3 000, Bakpro Vetkoek voucher to the value of N$2 000.

Nedbank Namibia's Manager for Communication and PR, Selma Kaulinge, noted that the competition is one which is embedded in the Nedbank culture, but encompasses elevation of business and employment creation.

"The Nedbank Kapana Cook-Off Competition speaks to entrepreneurship and job creation. Past winners of this competition have gone on to become successful business owners. With many Namibians finding themselves out of work and desperate for a source of income, the Nedbank Kapana Cook-Off Competition provides an opportunity for the winner to establish and grow a successful business," she said.

Bakpro, a subsidiary of Namib Mills, is once again a co-sponsor of the Nedbank Kapana Cook-Off. To date, Nedbank Namibia has invested over N$3 000 000 in hosting this flagship national competition in support of small businesses and celebrating our true Namibian cuisine.

Entries for 2021 Nedbank Kapana Cook-Off Competition are officially and available at all Nedbank Namibia branches country-wide as well as on the Nedbank Namibia website.

The four-event series commenced with a media launch which saw 14 Namibian media houses experience the thrill of the Nedbank Kapana Cook-Off, as they competed amongst each other in an unofficial competition to make their version of a Kapana dish.
By Arney Tjaronda

BBA Student: Banking & Finance Major at the University of Namibia

Over the course of years, Hedge funds has been a driving force for the Johannesburg Securities Exchange (JSE) market. They have been nicknamed the miracle boy of the JSE due to its performance, so much so that in 2020 alone- despite the pandemic-the Single Manager Composite Index was +6.19% (HedgeNews Africa, January 18, 2021). How is that so? Before answering that question, I will define what hedge funds are.

Definition of hedge funds

According to Fernando (January 24, 2021), hedge funds are alternative investment funds designed to protect investment portfolio from market uncertainty, while generating positive returns in both the ups and downs of the markets. This goal is achieved through different investment strategies to hedge while maximizing their performance. The first hedge fund was launched by Alfred Winslow in 1949. He was inspired to manage money through investment schemes and further set forth to try to minimize the risk in holding long-term stock positions by short selling other stocks. This investing innovation is now regarded to as the classic long/short equities model. Jones also employed leverage to enhance returns.

Understanding hedge funds

To understand hedge funds better, one has to look at the type of entity, structure and how they make money. They are formed through offshore corporations, limited partnership or limited liability entities with incentive fees as compensation for fund managers for managing investor's capital. They are not Unit Trust funds. In most cases, hedge funds are limited to certain individual who has minimum or above N$ 1 million dollars. Hence, there are a lot of barriers to entry not only for potential investors, but for hedge funds too. Hedge funds are highly regulated in every country to protect investors and to prevent unethical practices like insider's trading, stock market manipulation and any other fraudulent activities that may arise from unethical individuals.

Regulation of hedge funds in South Africa

Hedge funds provide lucrative investment opportunities. All they require to be operational is a well- regulated environment. Hedge funds in South Africa were launched in 1995, however the regulations of the first pool of hedge funds only came in 2003. During that period between 1995 to 2003, the industry had grown to R 2.3 billion and that is when the Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) SA chapter was formed due to an increase in hedge funds. Over the years hedge funds where not regulated up until in 2015, when they fell under the Collective Investment Control Act 45 of 2002 ("CISCA").

Additionally, hedge fund managers were regulated under the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act 37 of 2002 ("FAIS"). Stakeholders hoped that regulating hedge funds will introduce a flow of new assets into the industry, but the opposite happened. The regulatory burden was costly for many without the compensation of additional asset flow. The Financial Service Board ("FSB") stepped to relax certain provisions that were in place. (Kopke, January 5, 2018)

Under CISSCA, hedge funds needed to be approved and registered in two categories:

Retail hedge funds- these were marketed by any person

Qualifying investor hedge funds (QUIFs)- these could only be marketed to a person who:

i) invest a minimum investment amount of ZAR 1 million per hedge fund as stated earlier.

ii) has demonstrable knowledge and experience in financial and business matters which would enable the investor to assess the merits and risks of a hedge fund investment, or has appointed a financial services provider who has demonstrable and experience to advise the investor regarding the merits and risks of a hedge fund investment.

Hedge funds typically have a manager who is responsible for all aspects of the management and administration of the scheme. Those that does not permit members of the public to invest are usually not regulated, however their investment managers and fund administrators of hedge funds still require authorization under the FAIS Act.

Nonetheless, for further understanding of how hedge funds are regulated. It is best to consult CISCA and the Government Notice 141 of 2015 and Board Notice 52 of March 2015 (both published in accordance with the CISCA).

Performance of hedge funds on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange (JSE)

The main goal of hedge fund is to outperform the stock market while maximizing profits for their investors. Assuming that there is a positive relationship between hedge funds and the JSE.

Before my free trail expired, I was fortunate enough to gather information on their performance from HedgeNews Africa over the years (2015-2020)

2015:

The South African Funds of Funds Composite ended the year at 9.78%. The South African Single-Manager Composite was 11.8%, while the South African All Bond Index was down 3.93% for that same year.

2016:

The South African Funds of Funds ended the year at 1.28%. The South African Single-Manager Composite was 5.27% while the South African All Bond Index returned 15.4% for that year.

2017:

The South African Funds of Funds ended the year at 4.53%. The South African Single-Manager Composite added the 5.89% for the year, while the South African All Bond Index returned 10.22% for that year.

2018:

The South African Funds of Funds ended the year at 2.47%. The South African Single-Manager Composite added the 5.18% for the year, while the South African All Bond Index returned 7.69% for that year.

2019:

The South African Funds of Funds ended the year at 9.21%. The South African Single-Manager Composite added the 7.89% for the year, while the South African All Bond Index returned 10.17% for that year.

2020:

The South African Funds of Funds ended the year at 5.95%. The South African Single-Manager Composite added the 6.19% for the year, while the South African All Bond Index returned 8.63% for that year.

We used the South African Bond Index because we assume that the economy is declining slowly and because they have potential for profit. Hedge funds usually purchase distressed debt (in form of bonds) at a very low percentage of par value. For example, if a company is distressed due to bankruptcy, a hedge fund can sell the company's bonds for a considerably higher price. This is how they get higher returns. Such strategies are often very attractive to hedge funds.

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Where hedge funds can help Namibia's situation

The Namibian Stock Exchange ("NSX") is the only stock exchange in Namibia, with a total market capitalization of US$ 145 billion as at end 2014, making it the second biggest exchange in Africa in those terms (Source: NSX).

Being the second biggest exchange is an achievement but it is just sad that Namibia does not have hedge funds. Sure, one would argue that we have Asset Management firms, but the question is, are they enough and do they provide a solution to the NSX has? For those who don't know the Namibian Stock Exchange is very illiquid. Illiquid in a sense that even the smallest trade can have a huge effect on the stock market.

Traditional form of asset management is a long-only strategy designed to offer various levels of equity exposure in certain industries, this leads to an overshooting of prices on the NSX. Additionally, the problem with asset management is that they do not have various strategies to combat risk.

Unlike traditional asset management, hedge funds are much more flexible, have more aggressive investment strategies, they can long or short sell. With strategies like that, hedge funds can help bring prices back into equilibrium. Hedge funds have the ability to add diversification and also reduce risks.

While traditional asset management might turn over their portfolio by 50% in a year, a hedge fund can turn over theirs countless of times. Hedge funds focus on small caps, distressed securities and help emerging markets like the Namibian Stock Exchange.

In conclusion, I strongly believe that with proper regulation by NAMFISA and implementation of hedge funds the Namibian Stock Exchange will be a whole lot better. But again, Its only one man's opinion.
Nedbank Namibia has announced the appointment of Taschiona Gawaxab as the head of Information Technology (IT) effective 01 May 2021.

Before joining Nedbank, she held a senior IT role in the banking industry leading a team of 42 people in her department.

She was born in Windhoek and attended St Paul's College before working in the United Kingdom at an IT company in Networking and Systems Administration, Gawaxab is excited and humbled by this new opportunity.

"I have a passion to help the company achieve its strategic objectives, to drive and exceed expectations and to get things done through others. It is about innovating and creating new value and experiences for Nedbank and its customers. It is not about tech, but about people. So, to get people to embrace changes and partner businesses to achieve their objectives, we create value for shareholders and customers and we provide peace of mind to regulators," she said.

One of her objectives is to rally employees around the vision of Nedbank, driving a high- performance culture, prioritising what gets done and inspiring and motivating people.

This will be made possible through people management - "how we recruit them, train them, reward, develop and retain them. When we recruit we need to bring in top talent, develop them and make it worthwhile for them to stay with us. It's fine to let go of under-performers because it allows us to bring in new blood and talent. "

Gawaxab described information, communication and technology as the heart and centre of the business, where she will manage data and process to create value for the company. It is about gaining efficiency, eliminating redundancies and de-risking the business by automating manual processes and partnering business units to achieve their objectives.

However, ICT is male-dominated and there are many cultural biases. Women have to work twice as hard as men to prove themselves, which has been the most significant barrier in Gawaxab's career.

Her advice to other young women who want to join the industry is that they need to move fast and learn to embrace change "and not to play catch up all the time". One of her inspirations is an American businesswoman and investor, Marissa Ann Mayer, who became president and CEO of Yahoo in 2012 at the age of 37s.

While analyzing and assessing the impact of the Coronavirus on businesses and the economy, Gawaxab says this is the new normal, as the pandemic has accelerated the adoption of technology. Many manual jobs will be automated and people need to upskill and re-skill to remain relevant. For those in the IT sector, the picture looks different, as data analysts, scientists, software developers and people able to 'code' and write algorithms, are in huge demand.

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Her motto: "Failure is never permanent. So, it is a mindset. It is not about what went wrong, but about learning from what went wrong and applying those lessons in the next project. Only people who do nothing don't make mistakes. Mistakes are part and parcel of learning. Just don't make stupid mistakes."

Gawaxab has vast experience in the IT sector and is a Microsoft Certified Solutions Associate (MCSA), Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE), Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS), Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) and Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP).

She is also skilled in Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology (COBIT), Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), Agile software management and development, and CIO Digital-Certified.
File photo: Duom Deng Biar is part of a farmers group in Twic East in Jonglei, South Sudan, where a poor harvest has led to widespread hunger. If I feel hungry, it is okay, but the children should not, said Duom. We are feeling hungry. What we have cultivated, we have finished, she said. The family tried to get a second harvest, but the lack of rain meant that the seeds dried off. I have a lot of challenges. One son is still in school, and I have to sell our chickens, so that I can pay the school fees, she said.

opinion

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia  Producers and consumers seem helpless as food all over the world comes under fast growing corporate control. Such changes have also been worsening environmental collapse, social dislocation and the human condition.

Longer term perspective

The recent joint report - by the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food) and the ETC Action Group on Erosion, Technology and Concentration - is ominous, to say the least.

A Long Food Movement, principally authored by Pat Mooney with a team including IPES-Food Director Nick Jacobs, analyses how food systems are likely to evolve over the next quarter century with technological and other changes.

The report notes that 'hi-tech', data processing and asset management corporations have joined established agribusinesses in reshaping world food supply chains.

If current trends continue, the food system will be increasingly controlled by large transnational corporations (TNCs) at the expense of billions of farmers and consumers.

Big Ag weds Big Data

The Davos World Economic Forum's (WEF) much touted 'Fourth Industrial Revolution' (IR4.0), promoting digitisation, is transforming food systems, accelerating concentration in corporate hands.

New apps enable better tracking across supply chains, while 'precision farming' now includes using drones to spray pesticides on targeted crops, reducing inputs and, potentially, farming costs. Agriculture is now second only to the military in drone use.

Digital giants are working with other TNCs to extend enabling 'cloud computing' infrastructure. Spreading as quickly as the infrastructure allows, new 'digital ag' technologies have been displacing farm labour.

Meanwhile, food data have become more commercially valuable, e.g., to meet consumer demand, Big Ag profits have also grown by creating 'new needs'. Big data are already being used to manipulate consumer preferences.

With the pandemic, e-retail and food delivery services have grown even faster. Thus, e-commerce platforms have quickly become the world's top retailers.

New 'digital ag' technologies are also undermining diverse, ecologically more appropriate food agriculture in favour of unsustainable monocropping. The threat is great as family farms still feed more than two-thirds of the world's population.

IR4.0 not benign

Meanwhile, hi-tech and asset management firms have acquired significant shareholdings in food giants. Powerful conglomerates are integrating different business lines, increasing concentration while invoking competition and 'creative disruption'.

The IPES-ETC study highlights new threats to farming and food security as IR4.0 proponents exert increasing influence. The report warns that giving Big Ag the 'keys of the food system' worsens food insecurity and other existential threats.

Powerful corporations will increase control of most world food supplies. Big Ag controlled supply chains will also be more vulnerable as great power rivalry and competition continue to displace multilateral cooperation.

There is no alternative?

But the report also presents a more optimistic vision for the next quarter century. In this alternative scenario, collaborative efforts, from the grassroots to the global level, empower social movements and civil society to resist.

New technologies are part of this vision, from small-scale drones for field monitoring to consumer apps for food safety and nutrient verification. But they would be cooperatively owned, open access and well regulated.

The report includes pragmatic strategies to cut three quarters of agriculture's greenhouse gas emissions and shift US$4 trillion from Big Ag to agroecology and food sovereignty. These include "$720 billion in subsidies" and "$1.6 trillion in healthcare savings" due to malnutrition.

IPES-ETC also recommends taxing junk food, toxins, carbon emissions and TNC profits. It also urges criminal prosecution of those responsible for famine, malnutrition and environmental degradation.

Food security protocols are needed to supercede trade and intellectual property law, and not only for emergencies. But with food systems under growing stress, Big Ag solutions have proved attractive to worried policymakers who see no other way out.

Last chance to change course

Historically, natural resources were commonly or publicly shared. Water and land have long been sustainably used by farmers, fisherfolk and pastoralists. But market value has grown with 'property rights', especially with corporate acquisition.

Touted as the best means to achieve food security, corporate investments in recent decades have instead undermined remaining 'traditional' agrarian ecosystems.

Big Ag claims that the food, ecological and climate crises has to be addressed with its superior new technologies harnessing the finance, entrepreneurship and innovation only they can offer.

But in fact, they have failed, instead triggering more problems in their pursuit of profit. As the new food system and corporate trends consolidate, it will become increasingly difficult to change course. Very timely, A Long Food Movement is an urgent call to action for the long haul.

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Food systems summit

According to Marchmont Communications, "writing on behalf of the UN Food Systems Summit secretariat", the "Summit was originally announced on 16 October 2019 by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and was conceived following conversations with the joint leadership of the three Rome-based United Nations agencies... at the High-level Political Forum in July 2019".

On 12 June 2019, 'Inspiration Speaker' David Nabarro announced to the annual EAT Stockholm conference that a World Food Systems Summit (WFSS) would be held in 2021. The following day, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the Office of the UN Secretary-General.

It stirred up so much controversy that the MOU was later removed from the website of the WEF, hardly reputed for its modesty. Unsurprisingly, many believe that the WEF "pressed the Summit onto a reluctant UN Secretary-General", and can be traced to its Food Systems Initiative.

Apparently, initial arrangements had bypassed the Rome-based UN food agencies, the Food and Agriculture Organization, the International Fund for Agricultural Development and the World Food Programme. Their heads were then consulted and brought on board in July 2019.

With so much at stake, representatives of food producers and consumers need to act urgently to prevent governments from allowing a UN sanctioned corporate takeover of global governance of food systems.
The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Nigeria has disclosed that 2.9 million Nigerians are currently being displaced by violent crises in northern part of the country.

Assistant Private Sector Partnership Officer, UNHCR, Mr. Lanre Odunlami, who spoke on Arise News Channel, a THISDAY sister broadcast station, noted that the huge number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) were still facing several threats, including the incessant movement from one location to another.

He stated that the organisation has faced multiple crises in several countries which have displaced people, noting that the UNHCR has been striving to provide basic amenities like healthcare, support provision of education and non-food items.

With presence in over 135 countries, Odunlami stated that 90 per cent of the UN body's workforce is in conflict areas to ensure that refugees have dignified lives.

He stated that in Nigeria, the UNHCR has 16 offices and most of them are in the conflict areas in Borno state, Bama, Ngala, Maiduguri, Monguno, Damasak, Yobe, where the organisation is providing the necessary assistance to refugees, IDPs, asylum seekers and stateless people.

Odunlami stated that as at today, there are close to 80 million refugees globally, adding that of this number, almost 26 million people are refugees who are actually displaced.

"Half of these 26 million people are under 18 years, meaning that half of displaced population are children. In Africa, there are over 33 million Africans who are actually displaced.

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"Coming back to Nigeria, the crisis which started about 2009, now in its 12th year, has led to loss of livelihoods, wreaked havoc on people's lives and since these displacements, government is continuing its efforts, humanitarian organisations are also making sure these efforts lead to the needed assistance.

"Currently there are 2.9 million people that are displaced in Nigeria. These are just the figures from the northeast, northwest and north central. So putting the whole region together about 2.9 people are currently displaced," he stated.

In his comments, Regional Representative, UNHCR, Mr. Khaled Khalifa, who spoke on the humanitarian relief organisation's Zakat Fund, noted that more than 50 per cent of displaced persons come from Muslim countries and communities.

He stated that UNHCR was bridging the gap between the rich and those who do not have, explaining that that informed the floating of the zakat programme which has been expanded to benefit 2.1 million persons in the last few years.

UNHCR's zakat fund, he said, was set up to provide emergency relief items and does not charge any administrative fees on collection and implementation of Zakat activities as 100 per cent of contribution goes to those in need.
opinion

Brussels / Rome  The news of the Biden Administration's willingness to lift intellectual property rights protections in the case of the Covid-19 pandemic has sent the world into turmoil, even though in recent days this willingness had become increasingly airy.

Big step forward? Victory for the "South" and the movements that have been fighting for this (including, for more than a year, the Agora of the Earth's Inhabitants - agora-humanite.org - even though from the beginning we considered that the provisional suspension was a "par defaut" solution)?

Are we experiencing humanitarian compassion and confirmed dominance of the rich over the poor?

Interesting aspects

The position taken by Biden constitutes the change expected by the world. The media pressure on Biden and on the Democratic representatives in Congress was so strong that a negative or uncertain response would have cost Biden a great deal in terms of his global image. The language and form were also good, in total contrast to the previous administration. Biden did not disappoint.

Second point. He has given a breath of hope and credibility back to the 'international community' in a dramatic phase for the entire world population. We are still a long way from the "All Brothers" of Pope Francis, but the Catholic Biden has not failed to wink at his Pope's public incitement

Finally, he forced the EU to follow suit. Yesterday, for the first time in many years of rejection, the EU also declared itself willing to discuss it.

Crucial aspects

The fact is that on the substance the change is not so evident.

Why? Let us examine carefully the statement of Katherine Tai, the US Trade Representative at the World Trade Organisation (WTO)

1. The statement begins with yet another statement of faith on the protection of intellectual property rights. "This is a global health crisis, and the extraordinary circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic call for extraordinary measures. The Administration believes strongly in intellectual property protections, but in services of ending this pandemic, supports the waiver of those protections for Covid-19 vaccines".

No dissociation from the founding principles of the dominant economy, nor a clear and open contrast with the world of business and the pharmaceutical industry, especially American. Moreover, the support given is rather restrictive, limited only to anti-Covid-19 vaccines. By introducing such a restriction in a very complex scientific and technological field (the production of basic materials indispensable to vaccine production, for example, is excluded), the effective possibilities of suspending protection are considerably reduced.

2. Article 31 of the WTO-TRIPS treaties provides for the possibility of waiving the protection of intellectual property in the event of serious needs and for public intervention. We mention in particular the "compulsory licence", which authorises a State to allow the "local" production of all therapeutic tools (tests/diagnoses, medicines, vaccines... ) without the consent of the companies holding the patents. In fact, this is the first time that the United States has not been generous but has shown that it accepts the respect of those WTO-Trips rules that it had always, since 1995, fought against because they were considered contrary to its interests.

In other words, the important 'political' change is that the United States, from being disrespectful of international treaties that do not suit them, has become a state that is willing, in the case of Covid-19 vaccines, to discuss how to apply the existing rules. The treaties, moreover, already specify the conditions under which exceptions to the protection of intellectual property can be applied. If one adds the above-mentioned restriction, one has to admit that the US position is rather tortuous and bizarre. But why do they do it?

3. A possible answer is given in the official statement. The US does not commit itself to anything specific. They say "We will actively participate in text-based negotiations at the WTO need to make that happen", and correctly state that "These negotiations will take time given the consensus-based nature of the institution and the complexity of the issues involved". That is, the US does not say, "well, as of tomorrow we will apply the rules of provisional suspension according to the conditions mentioned in the Treaties". No, the statement insists that the negotiations will take a long time. How long? Three months, a year, three years? According to experts in the field, it will take, if all goes well, almost a year to rewrite the rules. And in the meantime?

4. It is clear from this that the real strategy of the US is to prioritise logistical and financial solutions concerning essentially the production of vaccines, their distribution and marketing at affordable prices, especially for the 92 low-income countries and other middle-income countries in increasing economic difficulty. The statement says "The Administration's aim is to get as many safe and effective vaccines to as many people as fast as possible.

As our vaccines supply for the American people is secured, the Administration will continue to rump up its efforts - working with the private sector and all possible partners - to expand a vaccine manufacturing and distribution. It will also work to increase the raw materials needed to produce these vaccines".

Considering the problem and solutions of the health crisis as a problem of production, supply and purchase, market prices and consumer solvency is typically an American/capitalist approach.

As is the appeal that since the security of supply of vaccines for the American people has been guaranteed, the US will increase its efforts to increase the production and distribution of vaccines at affordable prices paid for by the public authorities. Well, we have some difficulty in assessing this as a major step forward.

A mainly public health policy and solutions to the dramatic pandemic go beyond the processes of vaccine production and consumption. No opening is made for a public vision of the pharmaceutical industry and the world health system.

Vaccines, and first and foremost knowledge/science/, remain private under patent ownership. The market remains the principle and the fundamental regulatory mechanism. The financial imperatives of the market dictate the choices of the public authorities.

Hence the absence of any mention of the fact that the central axis of world health policy must shift from the rules on trade (WTO) to the rules on universal rights to health and the health system under the responsibility of public international bodies such as WHO, UNICEF, UNDP, UNEP, UNESCO... ).

According to the American government, states are there to ensure the proper functioning of health markets, and to defend the security of their citizens in the context of a 'world economic governance' dominated by the rules of the WTO and the World Bank. The richer states have the task of helping the poorer ones. See the role of Covax and its probable financial strengthening.

We remain in the midst of the structural dualism of "rich and poor" and the logic of the inevitability of aid and the domination of the "North" over the future of the peoples of the "South" and the planet.

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The oxygen crisis in India is a major example of the consequence of the inadmissible commodification and privatisation of oxygen for therapeutic purposes that has been going on for several decades.

Forget health as a universal human right, a common good, a public good! Forget 'public health policy'.

In conclusion

The US position is new, but in some ways, it goes in a direction that is not necessarily better. It is also important that the US forced the EU, however recalcitrant, to state yesterday that Europe is also willing to negotiate.

No one can say what the outcome of the negotiations will be. In the meantime, putting the emphasis on increased vaccine production ("now that the American people are safe... .") means that the fundamental, structural premises unfortunately remain unchanged.

Of course, the fact that the 'good' emperor has finally listened to the cry of the people is not to be dismissed. But is this enough to sing victory? Whose victory?

Why should the peoples of the Earth thank the USA for the step taken?

In order to hope that the symbolic value of the change made by Biden will be transformed into an effective process in favour of the right to health and life of all the inhabitants of the Earth, other changes are objectively necessary.

The compassion of the powerful is only an illusory remedy.

*Riccardo Petrella is Professor Emeritus of the Catholic University of Louvain (B) and Roberto Savio is President of Other News; co-founders of the Agora of Earth's Inhabitants.

Follow @IPSNewsUNBureau
Introduction

Dr. Isa Ali Pantami, is the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy. He is also known as Sheikh Pantami. He was born on the 20th day of October, 1972, in Pantami Ward, Gombe State, Nigeria.

Many Nigerians (including my humble self) have since called for Pantami's resignation or his removal as a Minister by President Muhammadu Buhari, based on some of his incendiary religious statements made sometime between 2000 and 2006, as an Islamic scholar. In the highly inflammatory speeches, he had expressed allegiance to and support for (including sympathy with) the Taliban, Al-Qaeda and Boko Haram terrorist groups. These are three of the world's deadliest terrorist groups. Dr Pantami, on the other hand, has since acknowledged that he made those statements. In his words, pleading adolescence and transfiguration:

"Some of the comments I made some years ago that are generating controversies now were based on my understanding of religious issues at the time, and I have changed several positions taken in the past based on new evidence and maturity".

Do Pantami's statements constitute terrorist acts?

Meaning of Terrorism

Terrorism is commonly understood to refer to acts of violence that target civilians in the pursuit of political or ideological aims. The crucial aspect of the offence of terrorism is the creation of intense fear and anxiety, both physical and psychological, in the minds of members of the public, which have the effect of coercing, forcing or intimidating them to do, or abstain from doing, any act, or to adopt or abandon a particular view, policy or position to act according to certain principles (Abdulmumini v FRN (2017) LPELR-43726 (SC) 29).

In the case of KARUMI v FRN (2016) LPELR-40473(CA), the Court of Appeal, Per JOSEPH SHAGBAOR IKYEGH, JCA (Pp 25 - 25 Paras A - D) noted that:

"... The gravity of the offence of terrorism which involves the use of violence or force to achieve something, be it political or religious, is a grave affront to the peace of society with attendant unsalutary psychological effect on innocent and peaceful members of the society who may be forced to live in perpetual fear. It is an offence that may even threaten the stability of the State."

Section 46 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Act, 2004 (EFCC Act), is much wider in scope in the definition of terrorism, far beyond its narrow definition in Abdulmumini's case (supra). There, the term "Terrorism" is defined to mean:

a) "any act which is a violation of the Criminal Code or the Penal Code and which may endanger the life, physical integrity or freedom of, or cause serious injury or death to, any person, any number or group of persons or causes or may cause damage to public property, natural resources, environmental or cultural heritage and is calculated or intended to

(i) intimidate, put in fear, force, coerce, or induce any government, body, institution, the general public or any segment thereof, to do or abstain from doing any act or to adopt or abandon a particular standpoint, or to act according to certain principles, or

(ii) disrupt any public service, the delivery of any essential service to the public or to create a public emergency, or

(iii) create general insurrection in a state;

b) any promotion, sponsorship of, contribution to, command, aid incitement, encouragement, attempt threat, conspiracy, organisation or procurement of any person, with the intent to commit any act referred to in paragraph (a) (i), (ii) and (iii)."

In 2011, the Terrorism (Prevention) Act No.10, 2011, came into force to deal with offences relating to conducts carried out, or purposes connected with terrorism. The Act was subsequently amended in 2013 by the Terrorsim (Prevention Amendment) Act 2013. By virtue of Section 4(1) (b) of the Amendment Act, a person who knowingly, in any manner, solicits or renders support for a proscribed organisation or an internationally suspected terrorist group, an offence under this Act and shall on conviction be liable to imprisonment for a maximum term of 20 years. Though, Buhari has unsurprisingly refused to formally proscribe Boko Haram, the terrorist group has, with its sisters, Al-Qaeda and Taliban, been proscribed internationally.

Under subsection 3 of the Section 4, the term "support" is defined to include:

1. Incitement to commit a terrorist act;

2. Offer of material assistance, weapons, including biological, chemical or nuclear weapons, explosives, training, transportation, false documentation or identification;

3. Offer or provision of moral assistance, including invitation to adhere to a proscribed organisation; and

4. The provision of, or making available, such financial or other related services as may be prescribed in this act.

It is under these two Acts, that Pantami's inflammatory speeches may be analysed and viewed.

The Extant Legal Position

Dr. Pantami, as stated above, is not denying making those statements. It is not in doubt, that he made those dangerous statements when he was already an adult (about 33 years and 11 months old). He was not a minor. So, his mind was not impressionable. His lame defence that he has since renounced those views, does not rule out the fact that he had committed a crime by supporting or sympathising with terrorist organisations. However, under what law should he be tried?

There are two Acts mentioned above. The first is the EFCC Act, 2004. The second is the Terrorism Act, 2013 (as amended). Section 46 of the EFCC Act made reference to the Penal Code and the Criminal Code. These Acts shall now be considered.

Terrorism Act

The statements made by Dr. Pantami, pledging allegiance to Al-Qaeda, Taliban and Boko Haram, were made sometime in 2000-2006, while the Terrorism Act came into force on 3rd June, 2011. It is enshrined in Section 36(8) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), that:

"No person shall be held to be guilty of a criminal offence on account of any act or omission that did not, at the time it took place, constitute such an offence, and no penalty shall be imposed for any criminal offence heavier than the penalty in force at the time the offence was committed."

In the case of OGBOMOR v STATE (1985) LPELR-2286(SC), the Supreme Court, Per ADOLPHUS GODWIN KARIBI-WHYTE, J.S.C., had cause to interpret Section 4 of the Criminal Code Act, Sections 33(8) and (12) of the 1979 Constitution, which are similar to Sections 36(8) and (9) of the 1999 Constitution. He noted at pages 14 - 17 that:

"... Section 4 of the Criminal Code Act which is similar and identical in effect, provides - "No person shall be liable to be tried or punished in any Court in Nigeria for an offence except under the express provisions of the code, or some other Act, or some Law, (or of some Order in Council made by her Majesty for Nigeria) or under the express provisions of some statute of the Imperial Parliament which is in force, in, or forms part of the law of Nigeria; Provided that in the case of an offence committed before the commencement of this Act, the offender may be tried and punished either under the law in force when the offence was committed or under the code, provided that the offender shall not be punished to any greater extent than was authorised by the former law. "Section 11 also provides that -"A person cannot be punished for doing or omitting to do an act unless the act or omission constituted an offence under the law in force when it occurred"... These two provisions relate to the immunity from trial and conviction of a person with respect to an act or omission which at the time of its commission or omission did not constitute any offence under the law. - See Aoko v Fagbemi (1961) 1 All N.L.R.15 400. It does not cover the trial and conviction of any person for any criminal offence which is defined, and the penalty thereof is prescribed in a written law. It cannot seriously be contested that, on the facts, the acts alleged to have been committed by the Appellant did not constitute an offence at the time of their commission. Section 33(12) of the Constitution 1979 provides for such cases. For the sake of completeness, I reproduce S.33(12) which is as follows- "Subject as otherwise provided in this Constitution a person shall not be convicted of a criminal offence unless that offence is defined and the penalty therefore, is prescribed in a written law; and in this sub-section, a written law refers to an Act of the National Assembly or a Law of a State, any subsidiary legislation or instrument under the provisions of a law." A combined reading of the provisions of S. 33(8) and S. 33(12) of the Constitution 1979 suggest that whereas, no person can be tried and convicted of an offence which did not exist at the time of its commission, or which is not contained in an existing law, there is no constitutional or other prohibition against trial and conviction of a person for an offence, which is known to the law and is in existence at the time of its commission but the relevant statute of which has been incorrectly stated. Thus, it is clear that a mere misdescription of the law under which a charge has been brought, does not necessarily render the offence charged one not known to the law at the time of its commission. Hence, as long as the offence charged discloses an offence in a written law and such law is in existence at the time of the commission or omission of the act alleged in the charge was done, the information is valid, and is merely defective if there is any misdescription of the law under which the charge was laid".

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Dr. Pantami cannot therefore, be prosecuted under the Terrorism Act, because his alleged terrorist acts occurred prior to the enactment of the Terrorism Act. The Terrorism Act does not have a retroactive or retrospective Act. (To be continued).

THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK

"Anyone who supports terrorism, anyone who sees terrorism as a legitimate means, anyone who uses terrorism to cause the death of innocent people is a terrorist in my eyes". (Milos Zeman)
Elon Musk has revealed he has Aspergers syndrome.

The 49-year-old founder of SpaceX and CEO of Tesla hosted Saturday Night Live this weekend, and during his opening monologue, he claimed to be the first person with Aspergers to host the sketch show.

Aspergers is a neurodevelopmental disorder, which is characterised by significant difficulties in social interaction and nonverbal communication, along with restricted and repetitive patterns of behaviour and interests.

In his monologue, he said: Its an honour to be hosting Saturday Night Live, I mean that. Sometimes after I say something, I have to say I mean that so people really know I mean it. Thats because Ive always had a lot of intonational variation when I speak, which Ive been told makes for great comedy.

Im actually making history tonight as the first person with Aspergers to host SNL. Or at least the first to admit it.

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Although Elon was not entirely correct with his statement, as Dan Aykroyd also has Aspergers and hosted the show in 2003.

Later in his speech, Elon joked about his and Grimes son, X  A-XII, as he said the tots name is pronounced like a cat running across a keyboard.

The business mogul was also joined by his mother, Maye Musk, on the show as it was a Mothers Day special ahead of the holiday in the US on Sunday (09.05.21).

She quipped: ''I'm excited [about] my mother's day gift. I just hope it's not Dogecoin.

And Elon joked back: "It is. It sure is.
Tunis/Tunisia  The number of Tunisian migrants arriving in Italy reached 307 in April 2021, according the report of the Tunisian Social Observatory (OST) under the Tunisian Economic and Social Forum (FTDES).

Tunisian authorities thwarted 42 crossing operations and intercepted 409 migrants in the same month.

Since the beginning of 2021, the Tunisian authorities prevented 3027 migrants from reaching the Italian coast. This figure is up 170%. The number of arrivals has increased with respect to the Tunisians compared to the years 2020 and 2019, but it has decreased by 27% compared to 2018.

The total number of Tunisian minors arriving in Italy irregularly was 208, which is 16.8% of the total number of minors arriving in Italy from different countries.

The participation of minors and women in recent years reflects a gradual shift from a migration plan to a family plan and highlights the weakness of social protection and educational institutions in the environment of these vulnerable groups, the report said.

Many factors affect the intercepted crossing operations and their geographical distribution, such as proximity to Italian coasts, activity of smuggling networks and density of those who wish to migrate. All these factors are collectively concentrated in the governorate of Sfax, which accounted for 40.5% of the overall intercepted crossing operations.

The Tunisian security authorities have registered a record number of intercepted crossing operations and they are increasing every month. However, the security measures taken under the so-called fight against irregular migration affect the freedom of movement of Tunisians in their country of origin and the freedom of movement of migrants within the country, the report added.

The island of Kerkenna has become a fortress difficult to access to non-natives to the island, except for those who have an appearance of material well-being.

April 2021 saw a major humanitarian tragedy on the Tunisian coast, after the sinking of a boat with more than 40 migrants.

This human tragedy was accompanied by a silence from Tunisian officials.

This tragedy highlights the limits of security approaches that have adopted a policy of impunity with networks of smugglers.
Tunis/Tunisia  The Tunisian General Labour Union (French : UGTT) condemned Monday recurrent Zionist crimes in Palestine, saying the latest operation in Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in occupied Al-Quds is a "crime of ethnic cleansing perpetrated in full view of the world.

The UGTT denounced the silence of the majority of Arab regimes in the face of crimes by occupation forces, the latest of which was the attempt by the Zionist entity to evict Palestinian families living in Sheikh Jarrah.

Normalisation with the Zionist entity led to escalation of violence against the Palestinian people, the UGTT further said in a statement.

The labour union reiterated support and solidarity with the Palestinian people who are fighting to recover their legitimate rights and establish an independent state with Al-Quds as capital.

The UGTT renewed commitment to keep on defending the Palestinian people and called on all democratic and trade union forces around the world to mobilise to put an end to Zionist aggression and protect the Palestinian people from the ethnic cleansing policy carried out by the Zionist entity.

The union said it endorses any legislative initiative aimed at criminalising normalisation with the Zionist entity.

President Kais Saied had a telephone econversation Sunday with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

He reaffirmed Tunisia's firm position in support of the just Palestinian cause and its rejection of the continuous Israeli atatcks on Al-Aqsa Mosque in addition to its expansionist policy, and its annexation plans.
Tunis/Tunisia  Protests were recorded in the regional COVID-19 vaccination center in Sfax, in the presence of Health Minister Faouzi Mehdi, who came to inspect the premises, on the opening of a second centre in Chott El Krakna.

Protesters denounced the slowness of the vaccination process and the long waiting hours without getting vaccines despite receiving text messages on their appointment.

They described the situation as catastrophic given the danger the presence of a large number of people in one place without respect for health protocol represents.

They called on the Minister to review the method of distribution in centres of people registered on the evax system.

Mehdi recalled the mobilisation of medics and paramedics to support the efforts of teams already on site and strengthen the vaccination process.

The capacity of the new vaccination center is estimated at 2 thousand vaccines per day. 400 vaccines have already been administered on Monday until 10 am.
HEDA claims that Mr Adoke's allegation that its chair, Mr Suraju, forged an email document tendered in a Milan court is defamatory.

An anti-corruption organisation, Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA), has given a former justice minister, Mohammed Adoke, two weeks to retract an allegation of forgery levelled against its chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju.

HEDA, in a statement signed by Mr Suraju, threatened to sue Mr Adoke in the United Kingdom should he fail to retract the forgery allegation.

The threat comes on the heel of an earlier similar threat by the UK anti-corruption group, Corner House, which is HEDA's partner in respect of the prosecution of Malabu scandal. The UK group threatened legal action in response to Mr Adoke's petition to the police accusing Mr Suraju of forgery.

HEDA in the statement, on Sunday, said Mr Adoke wrongly accused HEDA of forging evidence (in the form of an email, a screenshot of which was reproduced in the article) that had been admitted as evidence by the Milan Court in Italy.

It said the evidence was admitted in the trial of Shell, Eni and other defendants on charges of international corruption relating to the Oil Prospecting License (OPL) 245 transaction of 2011.

It said said the former minister in collaboration with some lawyers had resorted to blackmail in order to subvert the lingering investigations of graft associated with OPL 245.

HEDA accused Adoke and his legal team of exploiting the "fragile state and weak political environment" to launder a string of campaigns to redeem the image of key actors in the series of financial misdeeds linked to the OPL 245 deal.

It added that they issued a press statement titled, 'Lawyers: E-mail evidence tendered against Adoke in Italy was forged," wherein they sought to cast HEDA in bad light.

'Forgery untrue'

The statement read in part, "This is a case of a legal team deliberately distorting facts already accepted globally without blemish.

"It is unprofessional to describe as forged a document tendered and accepted as a legal document by international law courts just to create a safe passage for suspects."

Mr Suraju said the role of HEDA Resource Centre as one of the parties responsible for the petition that led to the OPL 245-related investigations and prosecution in Nigeria is widely known in Nigeria and across the world.

He added that the accusation that it forged the email in question or any other evidence submitted to the courts in Milan or elsewhere is entirely untrue and highly defamatory.

'How email surfaced'

HEDA explained that the email came to light after it was disclosed by JP Morgan Chase to Nigeria as a result of proceedings in the High Court in London.

It added that the Nigerian government is currently suing the bank for damages relating to its handling of funds arising from Shell and Eni's acquisition in 2011 of the OPL 245 oil field in Nigeria.

"In its claim, Nigeria stated that an email had been sent by Adoke on 21 June 2011 to Bayo Osolake, employee at JP Morgan Chase, from the email address "agroupproperties@yahoo.com" and that copies of the Resolution Agreements for the OPL 245 deal were attached to the email. HEDA noted that the Nigerian authorities further stated in court documents that the email address was associated with "the A Group of Nigerian companies controlled by Mr Abubakar Aliyu", a Group Construction, which is part of the network, subsequently received some of the OPL 245 funds which were transferred by JP Morgan to a company named Malabu Oil & Gas.

"Having become aware of the email, which was believed to be relevant to the prosecution in Milan of Royal Dutch Shell, Eni Spa and others, our partners, acting in the public interest, informed the Milan Prosecutor of the FRN's statements to the High Court in London. The Milan Prosecutor issued a European Investigation Order (Ref:54772/13) to the UK, seeking the email from JP Morgan. The UK authorities complied with the request and obtained the email, which was subsequently transmitted by the UK authorities to the Milan Prosecutor," HEDA noted.

According to HEDA, the Milan Tribunal subsequently accepted the email as evidence in the trial and the prosecutor presented it to the court on February 3, 2021.

HEDA said the email was obtained by the Milan prosecutor through a government-to-government request from Italy to the United Kingdom and that the documentation is now part of the public record that the email was obtained from JP Morgan by the UK Serious Fraud Office and transmitted directly to the Milan Prosecutor.

Adoke's petition to police

Mr Adoke had sent a petition to the Inspector General of Police office demanding a probe of email evidence presented against him by prosecutors in Malabu trial in Milan, Italy.

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In his petition dated February 5, Mr Adoke claimed that an email presented at the Italian court and purported to have originated from him, was "forged" and presented in court to "interfere with the course of justice.

The former minister told the police in the petition that those behind the alleged forgery were unknown to him, but urged the police authorities to expose them.

The former attorney-general also later complained to the police that some people, one of whom he suspected to be Mr Suraju, circulated a fake tape purporting it to be that of an interview he had with an Italian journalist admitting that the Malabu transaction was a scam.

He said he granted no such interview but that a tape was concocted and circulated purporting him to have done so.

Both Shell and Eni along with their managers that were the main defendants in the case, were accused of paying bribes to Nigerian officials in respect of the OPL 245 oil block.

But they were recently acquitted by the Milan court in March.

Police in April interrogated Mr Suraju in Abuja but later released him on bail.
Abu Zerega / Delling  People in Abu Zerega in North Darfur blocked the El Fasher-Nyala road on Sunday, demanding a solution to the drinking water crisis in the area. In the Nuba Mountains, South Kordofan, the road linking Delling with the state capital Kadugli was closed as well, in protest against the recurrent shortages of water and electricity in the town.

Several demonstrations moved through the Abu Zerega administrative unit, south of the North Darfur capital El Fasher, yesterday. The participants called for "a speedy solution of the recurrent water shortages in the area".

In South Kordofan, residents of El Tomat neighbourhood in Delling blocked the main road leading to Kadugli on Sunday. They call for the provision of drinking water and electricity, and protest the recent increase in transportation tariffs.

A listener told Radio Dabanga from Delling that people from El Tomat blocked the road since early Sunday morning with burning tyres and stones. He explained that the neighbourhood is suffering from long daily water and power outages. The price of a rickshaw ride increased from SDG100 ($2.47) to SDG150.

In Khartoum, Mohamed El Taayshi, member of the Sovereignty Council, has agreed with the delegation supporting the sit-in in Buram, South Darfur, to form a mechanism to address the protesters' demands for the provision of basic services in the area.

Fakhreldin Osman, spokesman for the delegation, said in a press statement following the meeting that El Taayshi considered their demands legitimate and pledged to find "appropriate solutions".
Scientists are warning that drinking water supplies in parts of rural West Africa are being contaminated b y lead- containing mater ials used in small community water systems such as boreholes with handpumps and public taps.

They analysed scrapings taken from the plumbing of 61 community water supply systems in Ghana, Mali, and Niger. Eighty percent of the tested systems had at least one component that contained le ad in excess of international guidance.





Lead is released into the water when the components corrode.





The study, by a research team from the University of Leeds, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Boston University, also took samples of the water from those 61 water distribution systems, and from a further 200 taps a nd boreholes with hand pumps .





Sixty percent of the samples contained lead - nine percent were at a level that exceeded World Health Organisation guidelines .

T he researchers found that lead contamination was significantly associated with the use of lead-containing components in water systems.





No-known safe level

There is no known safe level of exposure to lead. It accumulates in the body and crosses the blood-brain barrier and can cause irreversible damage to cognitive and neurological development, particularly in children and babies in the womb.





Lead contamination in plumbing systems has been a recognised problem for decades which has been controlled in urban areas served by large, piped water systems by implementing corrosion control and using lead-free or low-lead components, enforced through testing and monitoring, building codes, and regulations.





Evidence shows there is still a problem in higher-income countries with lead contamination in water from private wells and small, piped systems. The picture in low and middle-income countries has been less well studied, although the problem is believed to be widespread - and the potential implications for public health are much greater because of the global scale and the number of people who rely on small community water-supply systems.

In Sub-Sharan Africa alone, it is estimated that 184 million people use boreholes with handpumps to access water and 112 million people use rural piped supplies .





'Opportunity for effective prevention'

Jamie Bartram, Professor of Public Health and Environment at the University of Leeds, who supervised the latest research, s aid the evidence demonstrated the need for coordinated and urgent remedial action.





We have an opportunity for effective prevention and improved water supply practice worldwide. The required actions are overdue and unquestionably beneficial. The cost of ensuring that components are lead-safe is negligible, he said.

Using certified-safe components has multiple benefits, minimizing the risk to other hazardous contaminants. In contrast, delay carries further disease burden, increases the ultimate cost of protecting populations, and accumulates remediation burdens for future generations. 





The study, Occurrence of Lead and other Toxic Metals Derived from Drinking-Water Systems in three West African Countries , is published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives .





The International Plumbing Code (IPC) , from the International Code Council , recommends that lead in a plumbing component should not exceed 0.25 percent, based on weight.





Of the 130 plumbing components tested by the research team, 82 percent had a lead level that exceeded the I PC recommended maximum. Brass components were the most problematic. In fact, the researchers say the use of brass in a water system increased the expected lead concentrations in drinking-water samples by a factor of 3.8.





Where drinking water was contaminated, the mean value of lead in the water was approximately 8 micrograms in a litre of water - where a microgram is one-millionth of a gram. The individual values, the 95 percent confidence limit, ranged from 0.5 micrograms/litre of water to 15 micrograms/litre of water. The World Health Organisation guideline value is 10 micrograms/litre of water .





Dr Michael Fisher, Assistant Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, led the study. He said: It is clear is that lead is present in most tested systems in this study and finds its way into drinking water at levels of concern.





These findings suggest several affordable, feasible, no-regrets opportunities to reduce or prevent this contamination from occurring. Collaboration among multiple stakeholders will be required to achieve rapid success.





Le ad exposure from other sources like pa i nt and petrol ha s been successfully phased out and lead ca n be successfully eliminated from drinking water systems through concerted and collaborative responses.





Need for coordinated action

The scientists say manufacturers could discourage the use of unsuitable components, for example through explicit labelling and engagement in professional networks.

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They write in the paper: This contamination may be readily addressed through cost-effective preventive action, such as consistent use of components and materials compliant with IPC codes. Supply chain improvements with verification of compliance would reduce the availability and use of unsuitable components, such as leaded brass parts, in drinking-water systems.





Governments may develop or update regulations related to lead-free water system components and their implementation, including verification schemes.





The research team says importers and wholesalers should ensure that product suitability and specifications are conspicuous and intelligible. Professional associations should disseminate knowledge and foster understanding and good practices throughout their memberships. Several governments are already taking action .





The United Nations has a Sustainable Development Goal - SDG 6  declaring that everybody should have access to safe and affordable drinking water.





The research was funded by World Vision , an NGO that works to reduce poverty affecting children.
Nairobi  Kenya's COVID-19 positivity rate slowed down to 3.6 percent Monday after weeks of a sustained increase.

On Monday, Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said only 66 new positive cases were logged from 1,833 samples tested since Sunday.

This represents the lowest figure in nearly two months and is below the five percent threshold recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

President Uhuru Kenyatta re-opened the country on May 1 when he lifted a partial lockdown placed on five counties, including the capital Nairobi. The others are Machakos, Kiambu, Nakuru and Kajiado.

He also allowed the resumption of hotels and restaurants for sit-in services while reopening bars which had remained closed since last year. They close at 7pm.

Kagwe said there were 1,122 patients admitted in various health facilities countrywide with 4,783 patients on the Home-Based Isolation and Care program.

Another 134 patients are in the Intensive Care Unit including 23 who are on ventilatory support, 85 on supplemental oxygen, and 26 who are under observation.

"Eighty-nine patients are separately on supplemental oxygen with 83 of them in general wards and 6 n High Dependency Units," Kagwe said in his daily updates on the disease.

He said 917,068 people including 280,876 who are aged 58 years and above, 143,684 teachers, 77,417 security officers had been vaccinated by May 10.

Total confirmed positive cases stood 163,620 out of the 1,721,122 cumulative tests conducted by Monday 10.

Majority of the cases were spread across Nairobi(32), Kisii(11), Meru(5), Uasin Gishu(4) and Nakuru (3).
analysis

South Sudan's Chief Justice, Chan Reec Madut, has been implicated in serious corruption allegations since independence. Some relate to the recruitment process within the judiciary. Others relate to overstepping the bounds of his judicial role by encroaching on the executive's domain.

In 2013, for example, Chief Justice Madut appointed 78 legal assistants, including his daughter, without following the proper recruitment processes. The legal assistants were handpicked, not hired on merit.

These issues of corruption within the judiciary have prompted some judges to resign from office. Justice Clement Kuc was the first to resign in 2013. In his resignation letter (reported by various news outlets), he accused Madut of "nepotism, favouritism, and lack of strategic direction" for the judiciary.

The chief justice also stands accused of blurring the lines between the executive and the judiciary. In 2016, for example, he wrote a congratulatory letter to President Salva Kiir Mayardit, following the president's unconstitutional decision to increase the number of states from 10 to 28 (unconstitutional in the sense that the president lacked power to create more states).

The letter was sent in disregard for the principle of the separation of powers enshrined in the Transitional Constitution - South Sudan's supreme law.

The separation of powers gained prominence in the world in the 18th century. It requires the three branches of government - legislature, executive and judiciary - to exercise different functions, and not to interfere in each other's functions unnecessarily.

It is indispensable to good governance as it helps limit abuses of power. Each branch of government must account for how it exercises its powers, as well as how it carries out its responsibilities. In South Sudan, the national institutions of government - especially the executive - lack the discipline to observe their limits of power. As a consequence, the constitutional lines of power have become blurred.

These blurred lines are, in part, responsible for constitutional failure in South Sudan, which is one of the key findings of my 2021 thesis. Constitutional failure can manifest in many forms. In the case of South Sudan, the Transitional Constitution has failed to provide an effective regulatory framework to ensure the government abides by the rule of law and promotes democratic governance.

The consequences of this are clearly evident in the country. These include a dictatorial government, political disorder, and gross violations of human rights, which occur with alarming frequency.

Role of the chief justice

Under the transitional constitution, Madut's role is administrative - he administers the daily operation of the Supreme Court. This may involve allocating cases for determination, and administering judicial resources (budgets) to ensure public money allocated for the court and its officeholders is spent appropriately.

He can also issue "judicial circulars ... and directives to the courts ... for the proper and efficient administration of justice".

Beyond this, the chief justice, as titular head of the judiciary, has the responsibility to ensure the political branches of government uphold the rule of law. This responsibility is met by adjudicating the constitutionality of laws, as well as ensuring executive actions are lawful.

This is perhaps the most important task for the judiciary. But it has proven difficult to meet in South Sudan for a range of reasons, including the government's dictatorial attitudes, which threaten judicial officers or interfere in their functions.

Perhaps as a result, Madut has pandered to the whims of the executive by ignoring the constitutional boundaries for his office. In 2015, for example, he bypassed the National Judicial Service Commission, which is mandated to recommend judges for appointment, and personally appointed 15 judges to lower courts.

The appointments were made contrary to the transitional constitution and the Judiciary Act 2008. Under these laws, it is only the president of the republic who can appoint judges.

Actions and consequences

The chief justice's actions have many consequences. For example, they undermine the independence, impartiality and competence of the judiciary. This, in turn, erodes public confidence in the judiciary as regards the proper administration of justice and upholding the rule of law. The judiciary must be independent and impartial if it is to earn public confidence.

Chief Justice Madut's actions, especially his assumption of judicial appointment power, arguably constitutes official misconduct. This is a ground for which a judge can be removed from office under the transitional constitution.

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It is clear, however, that the executive and (Parliament) lacks the incentive to enforce the constitution accordingly, and hold judges accountable for their actions. The chief justice will likely continue to engage in these sorts of unlawful practices as long as he remains in office.

In fact, there is uncertainty around the chief justice's tenure of office. The transitional constitution leaves it to parliament to enact a law to provide for judges' tenure. To date, parliament has not enacted such a law, and judges serve in office at the president's pleasure.

All things considered, observing the power boundaries in the constitution remains paramount. This is one way to protect and promote the rule of law in South Sudan.

The disregard of this established constitutional order has led to the blurred lines between the branches of government. Inevitably, this has seen the erosion of the rule of law as a foundational constitutional principle, and the curtailment of citizens' rights and freedoms.

Mark Deng, Sessional Law Lecturer, The University of Queensland
The Kaduna State chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) will embark on a five-day warning strike to protest the sacking of over 4,000 workers by the Kaduna State government.

In a statement issued yesterday in Kaduna, and jointly signed by the state chairman of the NLC, Comrade Ayuba Suleiman and the Secretary, Comrade Christiana Bawa, the body said the warning strike would commenced by midnight on Sunday, May 16, 2021.

The statement said the decision to embark on the warning strike was taken at an emergency meeting held in Kaduna with a delegation from the National Secretariat of the NLC.

The statement insisted that due process was not followed in the recent disengagement of over 4,000 workers from the Local Government Service, State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and the State Primary Health Care Agency

The statement said the warning strike involved total withdrawal of services, adding that it would be monitored by the National President, Mr. Ayuba Waba and the general secretaries of the NLC of all the unions to ensure enforcement.

The statement directed all civil servants in the state to remain at home for five days after which further directive would be given.

It also called on "civil society organisations, journalists, market women and men, Okada riders and well-meaning citizens to support workers in Kaduna State at this trying time."

The state government had embarked on mass sacking of workers, saying that its finances had been severely affected by higher wage bills at a time when revenues from the Federation Account Allocations Committee (FAAC) have not increased.
Police at Jenda in Mzimba district have launched a hunt for a woman who is suspected to have stolen a month old baby boy on Saturday at Jenda Health Centre.

Mother to the baby, Alinafe Kamanga, told Nyasa Times that the suspect is roughly in her late twenties, light in complexion, short and of medium body weight.

Preliminary police investigations indicate that the the child's father was admitted at Jenda Health Centre and Kamanga befriended the suspect who lied to her that she was a patient in the labour ward.

During the material day, the suspect told Kamanga that she was menstruating and asked her to escort her to her house--not far away--so she could have a bath.

When Kamanga was going back to the Health Centre to check on her husband, the suspect asked Kamanga to leave the child with her outside the health facility.

Kamanga left the child with the suspect, and went inside to her husband but when she returned both the suspect and her baby were gone.

Meanwhile, Jenda Police is appealing to members of the general public to report information that may lead to the arrest of the suspect to any nearest police station.
Kokomo, IN (46901)

Today

Clouds and some sun this morning with more clouds for this afternoon. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 84F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Considerable clouds this evening. Some decrease in clouds late. Low 67F. Winds light and variable.
opinion

MTN Rwanda's listing on the Rwanda's Stock Exchange (RSE) last week capped an exciting 12 months for Rwanda's capital markets despite the uncertain economic times brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic.

What are capital markets?

Capital markets are financial market in which capital is raised by selling shares, bonds, treasury bills, and other long-term investments to investors.

The Last 12 months

In the last one year, the majority of stock exchanges in the region have witnessed few new offerings as most companies adopted a wait-and-see approach. Also, several East African stock exchanges especially the Nairobi Stock Exchange have experienced massive losses as a result of heavy dumping of their listed shares by investors.

During the same period, the Rwanda's capital markets has remained resilient. Remarkably, it has also seen the entry of several new players which is a great for the RSE as it marks 10 years since its inception in 2011 and will further boost Rwanda's positioning as an emerging financial hub in the region.

In May 2020 the South African company, RH Bophelo Ltd became the first non-East African company to cross-list on the RSE. Cross-listing is the listing of a company's shares on a different stock exchange than its primary and original stock exchange. All the other cross-listed companies on the RSE are Kenyan; Uchumi Supermarket, Nation Media Group, Equity Bank and KCB.

CIMERWA became the first company to list by introduction on the RSE in August, 2020. MTN Rwanda has since become the second. In this context, a listing by introduction means that no new shares were offered for sale. Rather the companies listed already existing shares. In the case of CIMERWA the listing enabled the minority shareholders to trade their shares on the RSE. While MTN Rwanda's listing enabled Crystal Telecom Ltd (CTL)shareholders to own shares directly in MTN.

All previously listed Rwandan companies that is, BRARILWA, CTL, Bank of Kigali and I&M Bank Rwanda have listed their shares on the RSE through Initial Public Offerings (IPOs). Unlike the listing by introduction, in a typical IPO, a company offers new shares for sale on the stock exchange. The principal aim is normally to raise capital from public investors.

I&M also had rights issue in September, 2020. A rights issue allows the company to raise capital through selling the new shares to its existing shareholders.

In October, 2020 BK Capital launched Aguka Trust Fund. The Fund invests and manage funds on behalf of investors and later distribute interest payments to them regularly.

The government of Rwandan has also continued issuing treasury bills and bonds.

For ordinary Rwandans all the above offer more opportunities to invest their money. Owners of shares in the listed companies derive dividend income from their shares. While owners of units in a trust fund, treasury bills and bonds receive interest payments. In order to incentivize Rwandans to invest in the capital markets, the dividend tax for shares a listed company is only 5% unlike unlisted companies which are taxed at 15%. Also, in case the shares appreciate in value, the owners can sell them and make a profit which is not subject to any capital gains tax unlike shares in unlisted companies which is subject to a capital gains tax of 5%. Interest payments to investors from a unit trust fund and government treasury bills and bonds are not taxed.

Like many of its counterparts in the regions, one of Rwanda capital market's biggest challenge has been liquidity. This is partly due to the fact there is low demand. The low demand is a consequence of a number of factors. The persons who can drive the demand are retail investors ie ordinary Rwandan investors since institutional investors tend to hold the shares long term. However, due to low savings many Rwandans have less income to invest and this reduces the demand for the shares. Also, the level of financial literacy about the capital markets is still not yet where it should be ideally, though it is much better than it used to be at the inception of the RSE 10 years ago. Moreover, with 10 listed companies on the RSE, the pool for investors to choose from is a bit limited. Clearly, more efforts need to be made to sensitize the public about the capital markets.

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The good news is the RSE is in the process of linking to the rest of other East African Stock Exchanges. This will enable Rwandan investors to have a wider market to sell their shares, a larger pool of companies to invest in and speed up the transaction process when trading in shares of listed companies from other East African countries. Also, the RSE has been conducting an investment clinic aimed at identifying Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with potential for raising capital and deliver technical assistance to support them in preparing for the market. With these interventions, the future for Rwanda's capital markets looks promising.

The views expressed in this article are of the author and do not constitute legal advice. Please seek professional advice in relation to any particular matter you may have.

The writer is a Partner at Trust Law Chambers where he heads the Capital Markets and Banking and Finance practice.
Rwanda and Uganda remain at loggerheads after almost three years of strained relations despite diplomatic efforts to resolve the outstanding issues.

Addressing the ruling party's Extended National Executive Committee meeting on May 1, President Paul Kagame described relations with Tanzania and DR Congo as cordial while relations with Burundi are on the mend.

"We want to normalise relations with Burundians and they have proved they are keen on having good relations with us. We are in the process of finding solutions to the existing problems," he said, adding that all Rwanda wants is "to live in peace" with neighbours.

President Kagame, however, expressed frustration at the state of impasse in the relations with Uganda, despite multiple diplomatic efforts.

"The neighbour in the north (Uganda) has a problem with us. I lived there, I worked with them. If you asked me to tell you its (crisis) roots I don't understand. For me, I will roof my house so that I do not get rained on. I will put strong doors so that you cannot intrude and take my property. If you force your way in, I will force you out... " President Kagame said, in a veiled message to Kampala.

Both countries have traded accusations, with Kigali accusing Kampala of supporting armed groups against it, harbouring hostile groups, kidnapping as well as torturing Rwandans in Uganda. It resulted in the closure of the border. Uganda too has accused Rwanda of trying to impose a trade embargo and espionage.

In October 2020, Vincent Biruta, Rwanda's Foreign Affairs Minister, told the Paris-based Africa Report that though Uganda has started releasing Rwandans who were illegally detained, "the politico-military groups operating out of Uganda and behind the October 2019 attack are still active."

"They continue to receive the backing of certain Ugandan officials. As a result, in recent months they have carried out political actions in refugee camps with the support of various security agencies. We're still waiting on concrete action to be taken to end these activities." Mr Biruta said, in response to a question as to whether relations with Uganda were back to normal.

On May 5, Uganda deported 17 Rwandans whom Kigali maintains were illegally detained.

The strained relations between the two countries have undermined free movement of people and led to restrictions on movement of goods.

"My call is that stalled talks between Rwanda and Uganda resume as soon as possible both on bilateral and multilateral levels and the media stop meddling. Uganda is a country of interest because most of us were born or grew up there," said Frank Habineza, a Rwandan member of parliament and Green Party president.
Patrick de Saint-Exupery, a renowned French journalist, has said in his new book, La traversee - une odyssee au cur de l'Afrique, that there were not two genocides in Rwanda, but only one, committed against the Tutsi in 1994.

His book was welcomed by Genocide survivors and scholars for shedding light on the heinous acts of Genocide that was perpetrated against the Tutsi, and debunking the double genocide belief.

He was in Kigali on Monday, May 10, talking about his book during a cafe litteraire - book reading event - that shed light on the 317-page book which also saw different participants including scholars and Genocide survivors exchange views about it.

La Traversee, published by Les Arenes, a French publishing house in March this year, talks about an adventurous journey, through the immense Congolese forest, a journey that started from Kigali in Rwanda to Kinshasa in DR Congo.

As a special correspondent of Le Figaro, a popular French daily newspaper, Saint-Exupery said he witnessed the Genocide in Rwanda. He came to Rwanda in 1990, then returned to France.

He then came back to Rwanda in 1993 and later in 1994, at the height of the Genocide.

Over 26 years after the genocide against Tutsi, the author crossed to DR Congo, on a mission he said was intended to find out the truth about the purported genocide against Hutu who sought refuge in this neighbouring country.

Meanwhile, he said, the questions posed by his country (France)'s engagement with the killers tormented him for years.

"The double genocide theory was more and more frequently reflected in Europe, by thousands of politicians, intellectuals, and others; which kept perturbing me. So I decided to go and inquire about it," he said.

Saint-Exupery said that what happened in DR Congo was a war that took place between 1996 and 1997, pointing out that Kigali decided to attack those who had committed the Genocide and sought refuge in the Congo because, as they said themselves, they wanted to 'finish the job' [to complete the extermination of Tutsi].

"There were deaths due to famine, hunger and thirst, there were killings. But saying that people died does not mean genocide. Genocide is particular, unique in that it entails the intentional complete annihilation of a given population," he said.

"And the final finding was clear: There is only one genocide, that against Tutsi. ... And so this thesis of double genocide is fallacious," he said.

A powerful tool against genocide denial

Jean-Damascene Bizimana, Executive Secretary of National Commission for the Fight against Genocide (CNLG), said that in 2010, a UN Mapping Report was published, accusing Rwandan troops of committing genocide against Hutu refugees in DR Congo.

He said that Saint-Exupery was in Goma and also witnessed the refugees being returned from Congo to Rwanda, adding that he also went back to Congo to track the trail of the refugees.

Also, he said, the author indicated in his book how Rwanda did its best to return them, but some of those who were taken hostage by former soldiers and Interahamwe militia died of diseases and poor living conditions, but that the Government of Rwanda did not have an intent to kill them.

"This book will have a great contribution in exposing and debunking such fallacies because, as a journalist, he conducted an investigation by examining the places said to be the crime scenes and exposed the truth," he said.

Yolande Mukagasana, a survivor and anti-genocide campaigner, said that the book is of great importance to tackling Genocide denial and trivialisation.

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"We are lucky. Genocide denial and minimisation abroad traces its roots in France, and it is the same place from where we have a gotten a weapon to fight it. This is special because the first person to introduce the double genocide theory is Mitterrand [the then President of France]," she said.

"Now, a French national has, independently, showing that there was one Genocide [that against Tutsi]. For me, this is a major weapon to combat genocide denial and minimisation," she said.

Senator Andre Twahirwa called for the popularisation of the book.

"What we should do is to keep the momentum and buy this book once it is available on the market and share its content so that people know the truth - that double genocide theory was made up by Mitterand," he said.

Published in French, the book is available on Amazon, with the paperback going for $44.54.
Kicukiro Primary Court on Monday sent genocide suspect Beatrice Munyenyezi on a 30-day remand, saying there is reasonable ground to suspect her to have committed the crimes for which she is being prosecuted.

Munyenyezi, 51, was deported from the United States after completing a 10-year sentence there, having been convicted of crimes related to immigration fraud.

Last week, Munyenyezi was charged with counts including committing genocide, planning of genocide, complicity in genocide, incitement to commit genocide, extermination as a crime against humanity, and complicity in rape.

Prosecution said that she committed the crimes in Butare Prefecture, which the current Huye district.

The prosecutors noted that Munyenyezi was active at various roadblocks in Butare during the genocide, where she took part in checking identification documents of travelers in order to single out the Tutsi, whom she handed to the Interahamwe to be killed.

The women among them were raped before they were killed.

The prosecutors also said that Munyenyezi herself took part in the killings, and presented a testimony of a witness to pin her to this.

One of the witnesses, as cited by prosecution, pins Munyenyezi on establishing a roadblock in Mukoni area (Butare) near Hotel Ihuriro that was owned by her mother-in-law Pauline Nyiramasuhuko.

According to the witness, one day, a Catholic nun was intercepted at the same roadblock, but Munyenyezi noticed that she was Tutsi and said;

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"I know you, don't waste my time."

Moments later, a car belonging to Nyiramasuhuko showed up, and took the nun away to be killed.

Another witness (cited by prosecution) said they saw Munyenyezi supplying food to the Interahamwe militiamen that were stationed on roadblocks in Butare.

In her defence, she said the accusations against her are fabricated since when the Genocide took place she was new in the Butare and therefore, the people that are testifying against her didn't even know her.

She said that she was born in Byumba Prefecture and it is where she studied from and only moved to Butare when she got married to Arsene Shalom Ntahobari, the son to Nyiramasuhuko.

Her lawyers, Gatera Gashabana and Pierre Celestin Buhuru urged court to release their client on bail urging that there was no reasonable ground for their client to be remanded.

They also urged that she was sick and should therefore be released so she gets medical attention.

However, in a bail ruling held on Monday, May 10, the presiding judge said that there was reasonable ground for her to be suspected of having committed the crimes for which she is being prosecuted.

Thus, she sent her on a 30-day remand as the trial continues.

The judge also dismissed the defendant's claims that she has health issues that would be exacerbated by the prison condition, saying that she did not present evidence to justify this.

Both Munyenyezi's husband Ntahobari and her mother-in-law, Nyiramasuhuko, are serving a 35-year sentence handed to them by the now-closed International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda over genocide crimes.
The Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government has fixed the cost of COVID-19 testing, whether PCR or otherwise, at $50 at all points of entry from May 17, 2021.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Chairman, Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, said this in Abuja yesterday at the briefing of the committee.

He said this was part of measures to ease travel and trade among ECOWAS members' citizens traveling within the sub-region.

He said some returning foreign passengers were violating the mandatory quarantine requirement under the travel advisory protocol by escaping from the quarantine facilities.

Mustapha said the PSC continued to watch with focus and concern the unprecedented rising cases of infection and fatalities caused by variants of concern in a number of jurisdictions around the world.

Executive Director, National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Faisal Shuaib, said the Federal Government had approved the approved the commencement of the second dose administration of the Oxford/Astrazeneca vaccine in all states and the FCT.

He urged Nigerians to continue to cooperate with vaccinators.

He said the government would ensure that only safe and efficacious vaccines were supplied for all phases of the vaccination campaign in the country.

The Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, urged Nigerians to prevent another wave of COVID-19 in the country.

"As we celebrate the sallah days ahead, let us remember this warning and ensure that we avoid all situations that tempt us to forget COVID-19 preventive measures and life-saving non-pharmaceutical measures.

"Above all, we must keep our elderly and vulnerable populations safe, by encouraging them to stay indoors and avoid crowded places, wear their facemasks, ensure physical distancing and observe appropriate hand hygiene. This is good advice for everyone else," Ehanire said.
The Gambia Red Cross Society on Saturday commemorated World Red Cross Day (WRCD), held at their head office in Kanifing.

World Red Cross Day is an annual event commemorated on 8 May globally. The theme for this year's celebration is "UNSTOPPABLE".

Speaking at the ceremony, Jatto Sillah, President of Red Cross Society, said World Red Cross Day is a day set aside to inspire, facilitate and also promote humanitarian activities that are carried out by the Red Cross movement.

"The idea behind this year's celebration is to celebrate the strength and reach of our global network and the contribution of our staff and the around 17million volunteers through the theme unstoppable," he said.

Sillah also said as more and more lives are being ruined, livelihoods affected, the humanitarian needs correspondingly increase. He said it is always the Red Cross volunteers who first respond on the ground when issues arise.

"I therefore encourage all volunteers and staff to sustain the momentum by volunteering new skills to benefit the communities," he said.

Alasan Senghore, Secretary General for Gambia Red Cross Society, said the theme for this year is apt, especially within the context of Covid-19 where lives and livelihoods were affected by Covid-19.

Senghore went on to highlight some of the tremendous achievements they have accomplished during the pandemic.

He said: "Two thousand, three hundred institutions were fumigated. Over nine hundred thousand people got the message of Covid and its precautions."

He added two thousand; two hundred and sixty-one sanitization stations were established across the country. He said their ambulance service transferred eight hundred and thirty-one cases and that they also supported the most vulnerable in the societies.

Senghore also said CRS does not only deliver during Covid-19, but also on development and humanitarian service.

Isatou.M. Bah, Gender focal person CRS, said: "For Gambians, GRSC is just a humanitarian institution that only talks about first aid operation or disaster response not knowing that in our operations we consider gender and diversity."

Bah said they gave their responses based on needs, but they do this by capturing the gender and diversity aspects which is key in terms of humanitarian response.
The Spokesperson of the Gambia Police Force Superintendent Lamin Njie has over the weekend informed this medium that the police have commenced investigation into alleged fraudulent transactions by a staff of the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA).

"Investigation into the matter of alleged fraudulent transactions by Mr. Bai Nyass, a staff of the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA), is in progress," said PRO Njie.

Superintendent Njai said the Police Fraud Investigation Department is conducting an extensive probe into the matter.

"Preliminary investigations found no evidence linking to any crime committed by Mr. Bai Nyass," said Njie.

Superintendent Njie said evidence of financial transactions conducted by him on behalf of family members and businesses belonging to relatives have been discovered.

He said during the investigations, GRA also conducted a robust audit exercise which revealed no financial mismanagement link to his person.

Nonetheless, Njie said the police will continue with their investigations.

Health authorities have over the weekend indicated that twenty-two thousand, eight hundred and thirty-three (22,833) people have been vaccinated against COVID-19 as of 27th April 2021.

So far, two thousand, four hundred and twenty-eight (2,428) Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDT) were conducted at the Airport for travelers as of 3rd May 2021.

Of these, they indicated only two tested positive so far for both RDT and PCR, but were treated and discharged.

The Covax vaccine in town caters for only 20% of the population throughout the country. The allocation according to the Ministry of Health will be able to vaccinate all aged 41 years and above including priority groups summing up to 487, 780 based on projected population census 2013.

Meanwhile, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases as of Monday 26th April 2021 was five thousand, eight hundred and fifty-seven. The total number of deaths rose to one hundred and seventy-three.

The Gambia currently has no one in hotel quarantine, but has two hundred and three (203) active cases.

Over the weekend, no new COVID-19-related death was registered, bringing the total number of deaths since March 2020 to one hundred and seventy-five. Only one COVID-19 patient is currently on oxygen therapy.
Passengers have over the weekend called on the government to engage the Gambia Transport Union and other players in the transport sector with a view to curbing the unregulated transport fares in the country.

Many passengers told these reporters that most commercial vehicles drivers have their own tariff and they used that tariff whenever there is scarcity of vehicles.

The Gambia Government early this year came up with a tariff, but it seems drivers have shunned that tariff and established their own.

Sirreh Sanneh, a resident of Coastal road, has called on the authorities to regulate the transport fares at the car parks especially the Serrekunda/Brikama car park. She said commercial drivers now take advantage of the COVID-19 and increases the fares anyhow they like.

Sanneh, who was paying D10 as fare from the Brikama car park to her home in coastal road, now finds it difficult to get access to vehicles.

"I sometimes pay D25 to D35 for vehicles to take me home. It's unfair," she said.

She said in the past days, she used to pay D25 or D20 to board a vehicle to coastal road. She described this act as "greediness" on the part of drivers.

Sanneh explained that whenever they ask drivers about the reason they increased fares, their responses were because of the hike in the price of fuel. She therefore called on the authorities to urgently look into this matter and address it as soon as possible.

Adama Saidykah, a resident of coastal road, also lamented the same. She said the conduct of drivers was affecting their lives.

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"This is illegal. A driver cannot increase fares without the authority's approval to do so," she said.

She called on both the transport union leaders and the Gambia Police Force to investigate the cause of the fares increment.

Momodou Camara, who drives an 18 passengers van, said the increment in fares is not their fault. He said the government always increases fuel prices whenever they feel like without engaging them.

"There is no price control in all sectors that is why we as drivers are using our own vehicles to exploit the passengers. If the authorities want to stop the exploitation, let there be price control across," he said.

Mr. Camara said in the markets too, there is no price control as vendors sell their good anyhow. Therefore, he said drivers will also continue to charge passengers any amount they deem fit.

Other drivers also shared similar remarks and blamed the government for not taking the lead in regulating all sectors.

Before going to press the president of the Gambia Transport Union was contacted, but he could not be reach for comment.
Many Nigerians in the northeast have fled Boko Haram attacks and now live in refugee camps (file photo).

The senator spoke after a private meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja.

The Buhari-led government is not directly responsible for the insecurity in the country, Kebbi senator, Bala Na'Allah, has said.

It is for this reason, he said, that every responsible Nigerian should assist the federal government in its fight against the menace.

The lawmaker made the statement shortly after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa on Sunday.

He told journalists that he was on a "routine visit" to the president to discuss some issues of national importance.

His visit to the president comes days after the Senate, in a four-hour meeting, discussed insecurity in Nigeria with security chiefs.

It also comes weeks after the Senate resolved to send its leadership to meet with the president to seek ways of mitigating the security challenges bedevilling the country.

Mr Na'Allah did not say if his meeting was on behalf of the Senate.

He simply said he had a frank discussion with the president and assured Nigerians of the government's commitment to boost security.

When asked the reason for the increasing cases of banditry across the country despite government's efforts and investment in the fight against insecurity, the lawmaker said a society evolves with its own problems, depending on its structure.

"Let me give you an example. Boko Haram is predominantly in the Northeast, it's a fact. Banditry is in the Northwest; you can't say it's not correct. These are issues that the previous injustices that we have done to ourselves, collectively and individually, are manifesting.

"It is only unfortunate that they are manifesting now when this government is in place and that is the reason why the government, having not been directly responsible for this situation, should be assisted with whatever assistance from any responsible citizen of this country to ensure that we put this behind us.

"... This country will remain one because the factors that bring the country together are stronger than the ones that seek to divide it and I think that every responsible Nigerian should understand this and give his or her own contribution to ensure that we have a very formidable and resilient country," he said.

Responding to statement by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, with regards to the government losing justification to rule beyond 2023, Mr Na'Allah said the PDP "has equally lost every justification to say that we have not done our best in view of the fact that they brought us to where we are, having ruled the country from the beginning of democracy to where we are today.

"Politicians criss-cross from PDP to APC therefore, depending on what side of the divide they are, they find it convenient to now rundown (the) party in government, but I think that if you look critically at what is happening, you will see that the more the thing changes, the more it remains the same.

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"What we need are patriotic Nigerians, with zeal and commitment, to build a viral nation. That's what we need. Not politicians who are playing to the gallery. How can you call yourself a responsible politician in this country and ride on the platform of lies, to continue to de-market your country to the international community? It doesn't make sense."

Electoral Act

The lawmaker who is a member of the Senate Committee on Electoral Matters, disclosed that progress has been made on the electoral amendment bill. The bill, currently at the committee stage, seeks to alter some parts of the Electoral Act.

Although he did not explicitly say whether or not the bill will be passed before 2023, the senator urged Nigerians to "talk to their representatives" to ensure it is passed.

"That means that every Nigerian has a responsibility to talk to his representatives in the Senate and the House, to accept the fact that he must act patriotically. He must place the nation above his party's interest in the determination of the provisions of the Electoral Act. Once we do this, we don't have a problem.

"I am not sure there is any Nigerian, responsible Nigerian, who is not interested in an electoral law that gives us the comfort of conducting a free, fair and credible election. These three concepts have often been misused by people who don't know, they are distinct and distinguishable and they are mutually repellent. It is one thing for an election to be free, it is another thing for it to be fair, it is another thing for it to be credible. The yardstick for measuring the three concepts are completely different."
President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi, OFR, on his 85th birthday.

President Buhari, in a statement on Monday by his spokesman, Femi Adesina, joined family members and friends to celebrate with designer of the national flag, whose creativity and patriotism, he said, remain remarkable.

Buhari said Akinkunmi, who is an honorary Life Presidential Adviser, upholds the values that every citizen should emulate for nation building, which include humility, selflessness, integrity and a keen interest in seeking greater good for country and humanity.

He prayed that God will grant the octogenarian and retired civil servant longer life, good health and strength to keep serving the nation he loves so much.
March beef and pork exports set records for value, while beef muscle cuts also set an export record.

Beef exports totaled 124,808 metric tons in March, up 8% from a year ago and the second largest in the post-BSE era (since late December 2003), according to an analysis from the U.S. Meat Export Federation.

Beef export values broke the $800 million mark for the first time at $801.9 million, up 14% year-over-year. Beef muscle cut exports set new monthly records for both volume (98,986 mt, up 13% from a year ago) and value ($718.3 million, up 17%). Over the first quarter, beef exports pulled even with last years pace at 333,348 mt, valued at $2.12 billion. For beef muscle cuts, first quarter exports increased 4% to 262,914 mt, valued at $1.9 billion (up 5%).

The USMEF says record beef exports were shipped to China, Honduras and the Philippines in March.

Pork exports for March came in at 294,724 mt, up 1% from last years strong total, and set a new value record at $794.9 million (up 4%). Pork muscle cuts also set new monthly records for both volume (247,660 mt, up 2% from a year ago) and value $689.2 million (up 4%).

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For the first quarter, pork exports were 7% below last years pace in both volume (782,620 mt) and value ($2.07 billion). Pork muscle cuts followed a similar trend at 659,420 mt (down 7%), valued at $1.79 billion (down 8%).

March pork exports were led by strong performances in Japan, Mexico, the Philippines and Central America, including new records in Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Nicaragua. Exports were also record-large to the Dominican Republic for the second consecutive month.

Its very gratifying to see such an outstanding breakout month for U.S. beef and pork exports, says USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom. Exports were off to a respectable start in 2021, considering the logistical and labor challenges the industry is facing and ongoing restrictions on the food service sector in many key markets.

While these obstacles are not totally behind us, the March results show the situation is improving and the export totals better reflect the strong level of global demand for U.S. red meat.

March exports of U.S. lamb were up 54% from a year ago to 1,089 mt, valued at $1.5 million (up 22%). For the first quarter, export volume increased 64% from a year ago to 3,268 mt, but value was down 4% at $4.3 million.
Nyanza District will soon be home to Rwanda's second electric cable manufacturing plant, which is valued at Rwf5 billion, officials have said.

The plant, being built by Mark Cables Factory, a globally renowned manufacturer of cables with headquarters in Dubai, UAE, is expected to begin production under phase one in June, with the second phase slated for August.

Mark Cables Factory is a subsidiary of Milbridge Group, which owns Prime Cement factory that is based in Musanze district.

In an exclusive interview with The New Times on Monday, Eric Rutabana, the East Africa Director of Milbridge Group said that they are currently putting final touches to the factory premises and installing production equipment.

Other works include doing electric power installation, shipment of raw materials, and recruitment of additional staff.

"Mark Cables has experience in quality cable manufacturing and has used this experience to carefully select state-of-the-art equipment and skillset to ensure the best products for the Rwandan market," he added.

With operations set to kick off next month, Rutabana argues that Rwanda has previously relied on import of different varieties of cables, a practice that the plant seeks to reverse.

"With the ambitious target of extending electricity to all Rwandans, we need to have local industries that support this target to ensure that all cables required to extend grid electricity to all parts of the country are sourced locally."

In addition, he pointed out that the impressive growth in the construction sector presents a lot of opportunities in supply of quality electric cables.

"The Made in Rwanda campaign provides an enabling environment to take advantage of all these opportunities in the construction sector. We hope that Mark Cables will provide all the electric cable needed in Rwanda and be able to export to neighboring markets."

Targeting 35,000 tonnes per year

So far, available data indicates that Rwanda spends at least $30 million on cable imports annually with the East African Community accounting for 11 per cent of the country's source of cable imports.

However, Rutabana thinks that local manufacturing of electric cables will bridge the deficit.

"Initially, we target the Rwandan market with different kinds of cable products including AB cable, service (drop) cable, building cable, flexible cable, multicore cable, underground cable, among others."

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He highlighted, "With a targeted production capacity of 55,000km (about 35,000 tons) per year, the plant will be able to export to neighboring markets."

The cable factory in Southern Province becomes the second cable factory in Rwanda.

In 2018, the first $6 million plant by Alpha Cables was launched in the Kigali Special Economic Zone with the capacity to produce more than 600 tonnes of cables annually.

The factory produces 50 tonnes measuring 1,000km of multi-core copper cables every month.

This is in line with the government's ambition as it seeks to increase electricity generation capacity from 238.36 MW to 556 MW by 2024.

Access to electricity by population is set to increase from 56.7 per cent to 100 per cent by 2024.
An American-based Liberian family, is demanding apology from authorities of the COVID-19 Testing Center in Congo Town for delaying test result that caused them to loss their booked flight on Friday, 7 May, incurring US$800.00 extra expense.

Professional and award-winning Liberian Photo-Journalist James Kokulo Fasuekoi and his daughter Younger Fasuekoi have been visiting Monrovia where the latter celebrated her natal day with family members.

But Younger received an urgent call to return to the U.S. and had booked a flight onboard Air France on Friday and when she and her dad arrived at the Roberts International Airport in Margibi County, result of COVID-19 test they had paid (US$75.00) for days earlier, was not available thus, began their nightmare.

Airport security became very aggressive and intimidating, subjecting them to humiliation.

Addressing a news conference in Paynesville Saturday, 08 May, Mr. Fasuekoi narrated in frustration that he had persuaded his daughter, who has been out of Liberia for over a decade, to visit home for the first time only to encounter such an unpleasant experience with airport security that saw her being physically assaulted by one of the officers in his presence.

He said they were prevented from checking in at the airport, and stood for more than three hours. "We arrived at RIA and were informed that we didn't have COVID-19 certificate. We contacted one of the heads of the COVID team why the delay in the result after she had taken the test, they couldn't explain; I was so angry that I pulled the luggage out of the terminal", he explained.

Mr. Fasuekoi took his daughter for a second test at the testing center opposite Sophie in Congo Town after result of the previous test carried out couldn't be accounted for there saying, "I decided to escort my daughter because I couldn't trust her along with them."

Younger narrates: They directed me to Sophie in Congo Town where we paid 100 Liberian dollars each for masks. A man interrogated me and I told him I was traveling on May 7, 2021. The next day we met a lady who gave me a form to fill. She directed me to a red counter and I was told to pay US$75.00, then to the white counter - a man and his family there directed to the window."

"We may request for compensation for the stress imposed on us. We are considering a lawsuit because of the embarrassment we were subjected to. I will be in contact with the Embassy (U.S.) here along with my lawyer", Mr. Fasuekoi disclosed.

In 2020, a Liberian-born American Ms. Skeeter T. Wilson COVID-19 test result was tempered with staffers which led to Lawyer representing the legal interest of Ms Wilson writing authorities of the National Public Health Institute of Liberia on inquiry about his client's COVID-19 status

The scandal led to suspension of at least three officials of the Institute and subsequent investigation and dismissal of the its former director general Dr. Masoka Fallah.

The suspended officials were Amos F. Gborie, Deputy Director, Division of Environmental and Occupational Health; Mr. Fahn Taweh, Deputy Director, National Public Health and Reference Laboratory and Jonathan G. Ender, Chief of Office Staff to Dr. Masoka Fallah.

The trio issued a negative COVID-19 traveler's certificate to Ms. Skeeter T. Wilson, who was bundled out an airplane on Sunday August 2, 2020, by Liberian Immigration Service officials after authorities discovered that the certificate which she was bearing was forged.

According to information gathered by this paper, Ms. Wilson was tested positive and through the Incident Management System (IMS) treatment protocol was informed about her positive results and placed under treatment. In less than a week, a certificate under the signature of Dr. Makosa Fallah was issued to the patient that she's negative.

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But Dr. Fallah who did not deny that his signature was on that certificate claims that it was rather his chief of office staff Jonathan G. Ender who affixed his electronic signature on the document without his knowledge.

"This matter came to my attention on Friday (August 7)." Dr. Fallah told the New Dawn on Sunday August 9. "I never even knew that this was happening under my nose." He added.

A similar situation involved Professor Dr. Alaric Tokpah who was declared COVID-19 positive after he had previously received certificate under the signature of Dr. Fallah informing him that he was negative. Story by Jonathan Browne
Malawi's central government has been accused of contributing towards the poor performance of local governments in the country, this is according to the Malawi Local Government Association (Malga).

The association's Local Authorities Performance Assessment (LAPA) report for the 2019/2020 financial released last month established that the central Government has "ignored" the underlying causes for the poor performance of local councils.

But Malga, an umbrella body for all local governments in Malawi, says it is regrettable that the central government wants to look "smarter" on the under-performance of the assessed local councils by "hiding" its shortcomings in respect of fulfilling its obligations towards the local councils.

The report exposes glaring public finance management gaps in 28 local councils, ranging from inefficiencies in development planning, budgeting and auditing to contract management and implementation.

Government conducted the LAPA for the 2019/2020 financial year as a precursor for the Performance Based Grant (PBG). Results of the assessment to determine eligibility and amount to be given from the PBG.

A statement signed by Malga's leadership, councillor Wild Ndipo and Hadrod Zeru Mkandawire-who are the association's president and acting executive director, respectively says it expected the Central Government to come out and inform Malawians that it has consistently failed to meet its obligations to make the councils more effective.

"Although there has been tremendous progress in the assignment of expenditure responsibilities, MALGA observes that there are still some gaps that need to be addressed. We have observed that the transfers made by the government do not match with the expenditure responsibilities of the councils," the two wrote in the statement.

Malga also notes that the development budgets of the sectors are still being retained by the respective government ministries and that government only transfers funds that cover the recurrent expenditures.

According to the 2019/2020 LAPA report, Balaka District Council has emerged the best performer after scoring 67 percent followed by Lilongwe (62 percent) and Mchinji (61). Kasungu and Rumphi are tied on position four with 59 percent.

Worst performers are M'mbelwa, Mangochi and Phalombe which have scored 25 percent each, Machinga (24) and Chiradzulu with 21 percent. On average, councils nationwide scored 41 percent.

On financial management, the report shows that 20 local authorities, representing 71 percent of the districts, registered below average performance with scores ranging from 18.1 percent to 45.5 percent.

The results follow numerous reports which show that councils are pathetic underperformers in some key governance areas that include finance management.

The report also shows that districts such as Chitipa, Karonga, Nkhotakota, Ntcheu, Dowa, Salima, Mangochi, Machinga, Phalombe, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu and Mwanza performed poorly on development planning and budgeting due to poor record keeping.

The situation is worse in procurement with the report showing that there are normally no procurement files, contracts, offer letters, acceptance letters, and the Internal Procurement and Disposal Committees work without proper mandate.

But Malga, in its statement, adds that all these issues in local councils are due to, among others, high vacancy rates especially in finance and procurement as the Central Government has "failed" to fill these vacancy rates.

"Further, the Decentralization Policy instructs the Central Government to transfer 5% of Net National Revenues (NNR) that is, excluding grants to Local Councils, as General Resource Fund (GRF) or Unconditional Grants. However, this requirement is not met due to a number of factors including lack of political will and lack of enforcement/compliance by treasury, among others," further reads the statement.

It also alleges that all local councils are currently indebted with huge outstanding arrears for utilities, salaries, PAYE and suppliers as the current budgeting system "contradicts" with the matching concept principle and the accruals concept of accounting.

"Some debt herein referred date back 10 years or so thereby raising doubts of the councils abilities to clear the same using the yearly funding and local revenues which are already constrained. This has resulted in increased cases of litigations which are equally difficult and expensive on the part of councils and government. This therefore calls for the need for Government to intervene as a matter of urgency," reads the statement.

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Malga then recommends that central government should consider providing, among other things, a bail-out package for the councils in the 2021/22 financial year to enable them clear long-standing debts such as utility bills in public hospitals.

"Sector budgets and funding should match the devolved functions to councils for effective delivery of services at council level. The principle of funding should be strictly observed. The development budget for the various sectors should be devolved to the councils starting from the 2021/2022 National Budget," adds the statement.

It also calls upon government to increase allocation to District Development Fund (DDF) and Infrastructure Development Fund (IDF) so that councils can implement development projects that are contained in their District Development Plans (DDPs) and Urban Development Plans.
The official says the police team encountered the suspected kidnappers at the Ahor axis of the Benin-Lagos bypass.

The police in Edo State on Monday engaged kidnappers in a gun battle, killing three of them and rescuing seven victims, an official has said.

Kontongs Bello, the Edo police spokesperson, said this in a statement on Monday.

He said the police worked with a local vigilante team to achieve the feat.

He said the security team encountered the suspected kidnappers at the Ahor axis of the Benin-Lagos bypass and engaged them in a fierce gun battle, where three of the suspected kidnappers were killed.

He did not say if the police sustained any casualty in the battle.

Mr Bello said that with the seven rescued victims, and the 13 rescued last Saturday, the total number of victims rescued between Saturday and Monday were now 20.

The latest incident occurs about two weeks after the Edo police engaged a separate set of kidnappers in a shootout during which two kidnap victims were rescued. The police also recovered about N200,000 from the kidnappers during the April 28 incident, an official said.

Edo is one of the Nigerian states where kidnapping for ransom is rampant. Other states include Enugu, Kaduna, Katsina and Akwa Ibom.

On Monday, Mr Bello disclosed that the latest success is a continuation of the forest and bush combing promised by Phillip Ogbadu, the commissioner of police in Edo.

Mr Bello reiterated that the police commissioner had promised to sustain the tempo and would not relent until the state was rid of kidnappers.

He said Mr Ogbadu also sought the collaboration and partnership of stakeholders through information sharing, particularly from those around Ahor community and environs.
-Ambassador Delahousse

The head of the European Union delegation accredited to Liberia, Ambassador Laurent Delahousse says money coming from the EU is meant for achieving success, it is not to be wasted. European finances giving to Liberia and any other countries are coming from the pocket of European Union taxpayers, and it's meant for achieving success and not to be wasted. We account for any cent that are giving to countries, and at such, the European finances must make an impact of success, says Ambassador Delahousse.

He spoke at EU Follow up Mission news conference held over the weekend when he responded to question whether the EU will slow down its support to Liberia, if national government fails to adhere to the EU's 23-count recommendation especially, six priority areas.

Addressing journalists, the former chief observer for EU 2017 election, and now member of the EU parliament Ms. Maria Arena said, the objective of the EU mission is to assess the degree to which recommendations for improving the Liberian election framework from 2017 have been implemented, as well as to discuss ways to achieving further progress on electoral reform.

"Those recommendations were based on impartial assessment of all aspects of the Electoral process guided by regional and international standards for election".

According to her, amongst the priority recommendations, the EU election observers recommended affirmative action for women's participation in election, including implementation of capacity building for prospective female candidates and measures for better integration of women in political parties throughout the electoral cycle.

"I remain hopeful that the Liberian authorities will engage with stakeholders on improving the electoral framework before 2023 and among others, introduce measures to increase participation of female candidates to election and support the 30% female mandatory quota for political party candidates, as proposed by the national elections commission", Ms. Arena added.

According to her, the EU electoral recommendations are a sign of EU's willingness to support democratic elections in Liberia via the movement of the electoral framework, adding that they should be seeing as an indication for possible electoral reform prior to the next general elections.

She said even though there are 23 recommendations, put forth by the EU, but there are six priority ones which authorities must prioritize and they include: (A) the Legislature could initiate a constitutional referendum process for the successful removal of the ethic definition of Liberian citizenship.

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(B) The Legislature might consider undertaking a review of Article 83 of the Constitution in light of the Supreme Court's ruling of November 6, 2017.

(C) Consider progressing towards a passive voter registration system based on a reliable civil register thus, enhancing participation in election and addressing uncertainties inherent to active voter registration.

(D) That the opportunity to vote for all qualified citizens, including, persons turning eighteen between registration and election day, as well as detainees and the hospitalized should be granted.

(E) Modifying legislation consider enacting the affirmative action bill and the national elections commission candidate nomination regulation for enforcement of affirmative action for women's participation and ensure greater representation in decision making roles within the election administration.

Lastly, (F) Consider the extension of domestic observation groups to the whole electoral cycle to reinforce the role and participation of civil society in monitoring and reform of the electoral process, she explained.
document

Ekurhuleni residents have informed the Portfolio Committee on Public Works and Infrastructure that the expropriation of land will effectively reduce poverty, curb the spread of diseases like Covid-19 and prevent dangerous fires in informal settlements.

Residents from various communities in the Gauteng Province told the committee during its public hearings on the Expropriation Bill in Ekurhuleni yesterday that they have been living in shacks prior to democracy without any improvements made to their communities since 1994.

They said ife in informal settlements is unbearable, particularly for the elderly and children and based on that, they called on Parliament to speed up the implementation of the Expropriation Bill and to give them land for housing, farming and economic empowerment.

They further warned Parliament that people living in shacks are unable to implement Covid-19 social distancing and sanitisation regulations due to overcrowding in all settlements throughout Gauteng. Expropriation of land, according to them, was not only about returning land to its rightful owners, but also provides the state with an opportunity to expand social services such as building clinics, hospitals and police stations.

Youth structures again called on Parliament to ensure that projects are implemented to train them to work the land and become economically active through farming. If this is done correctly, the country will also be assured of future food security, they claimed.

Farmers, including small-scale farmers who spoke at the public hearings, confirmed their appreciation and support for the Expropriation Bill. They proposed that a proper expropriation process be adopted. Firstly, land owned by the government must be distributed to the people while land that is expropriated must be used for development of housing, industrial and agricultural farming projects.

Secondly, they proposed that hectares lying idle on land owned by big commercial farmers be expropriated and handed to small-scale farmers who are willing to expand their own farming operations. As they are charged with food security, farmers stated that they are prepared to work closely with Parliament and government to safeguard food security.

Small-scale farmers also asked Parliament through the committee to get rid of the 30-year lease contracts as banks do not recognise these agreements when they approach them for loans. They proposed that government departments hand over title deeds making them land owners and not just small-scale farmers leasing land from the state. In turn, they will also be able to employ more workers.

Farm labourers also asked the committee to investigate how farmers are able to forcefully evict farm workers who have worked and lived on the same farm for 50 years. They believed that the expropriation of land will return the land to them and bring an end to evictions.

Vacant privately owned buildings, unused schools and other deserted government-owned buildings must be handed to residents for accommodation or businesses. Residents also asked Parliament to investigate how foreigners own houses in townships built and meant for South Africans.

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Political party representatives also expressed their views at the public hearings. Democratic Alliance supporters raised concerns over the current property rights of South Africans against the rights given to government in the current draft of the Bill. Economic Freedom Fighters called for land to be expropriated without compensation as the land was taken criminally and forcefully from its rightful owners. They regard the Bill as an "unnecessary obstruction" to giving land back to the people.

African Christian Democratic Party members rejected the Bill in its current form while supporters of the African National Congress supported the Bill and called for the acceleration of its adoption and implementation eventually.

Committee Chairperson, Ms Nolitha Ntobongwana, thanked the residents for attending and participating in the public hearings notwithstanding the increase in Covid-19 infections in the province. She called on the residents to be safe and always adhere to the regulations aimed at reducing the spread of Covid-19. Ms Ntobongwana expressed her appreciation for the manner in which the residents participated and contributed towards the public hearings.
An Election Follow up mission from the European Union was deployed to Liberia on 23 April and headed by Maria Arena, Member of the European Parliament and former Chief Observer for the EU at the 2017 Liberian elections. The main objectives of this mission are to assess the degree to which the EU recommendations for improving the Liberian election framework from 2017 have been implemented in the meantime, as well as to discuss ways to achieve further progress on electoral reform. The recommendations were based on an impartial assessment of all aspects of the electoral process and guided by regional and international standards for elections. The Follow-up Mission met with the President and Vice President of Liberia, the National Elections Commission, the leadership of Senate and House of Representatives, several ministries, chief Justice, political parties, civil society organizations, media and the international community.

Amongst priority recommendations, EU election observers recommended affirmative action for women participation in elections, including implementing capacity building for prospective female candidates and measures for better integration of women in political parties throughout the electoral cycle. "I remain hopeful that the Liberian authorities will engage with stakeholders on improving the electoral framework before the 2023 elections and, among other, introduce measures to increase participation of female candidates to elections and support the 30 per cent female mandatory quota for political party candidates, as proposed by the National Elections Commission" -said Ms. Arena.

Ms. Arena recalled that "The EU electoral recommendations are a sign of EU willingness to support democratic elections in Liberia via the improvement of the electoral framework. They should be seen as an indication for possible electoral reform prior to the next elections".

Even if progress in the implementation of EU EOM recommendations has been limited, certain electoral reforms are being discussed and should be further acted upon. These relate to campaign environment, political finance and electoral dispute resolution mechanism. "We urge all electoral stakeholders to engage in good faith in consultations to build a greater level of public confidence in time for the 2023 election. The European Union will continue to support Liberia in this process." - said Ms. Arena.

A comprehensive final report of the EU Follow-up Mission will be published in the next couple of months and will be used to inform the EU' support for Liberia's democratic institutions.
Nxamasere  Nxamasere Village Development Committee (VDC) has reportedly ventured into brick manufacturing in a bid to generate more income to develop the community.

Chairperson, Mr Ditlhapi Atsowe revealed in a recent interview that the project was the brain child of the current committee, which took over in 2018, after realising that there were no other sources of income except house rentals.

He said the committee had 19 houses, only six of which were occupied, while some needed maintenance, which could not be undertaken due to financial constraints. Mr Atsowe said the committee then took a decision to utilise the little funds in the VDC coffers to venture into brick moulding because there was high demand for bricks in the village and its catchment areas.

He said the project was also targeting council projects such as construction of destitute houses.

He said their plan was to plough back into the community by identifying needy persons and assisting them, but it had been thwarted by the COVID-19 pandemic, as they had to suspend the project for some time, adding that the council also had to halt its project implementation.

Mr Atsowe said the project was doing well prior to the pandemic, even though they experienced challenges of shortage of sand and water, which they had to buy from individuals at a high price.

He explained that the project bounced back after lockdown, but the sales were low, saying he was hopeful that things would improve once the pandemic situation stabilised.

Mr Atsowe acknowledged the council's efforts to provide shelter for the needy, saying it constructed two houses every year.

He also appreciated that the VDC had been tasked with coordination of projects under the Constituency Community Programme (CCP), whose objective was economic empowerment of communities and job creation.

He revealed that the programme had been running smoothly as they managed to modify some of the VDC houses, while some were upgraded to LA2.

He said the connection of water at Nxamasere East was yet another project that was running.

Mr Atsowe said CCP projects for the 2021/22 financial year had been approved, with P200 000 allocated to electrifying VDC houses. "We have benefitted a lot from CCP since its inception and we wish the initiative could continue," he added.

Source : BOPA
Malawi Defence Force (MDF) has announced the death of Lance Corporal Chitenji Kamanga who died Monday afternoon in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) while on a peacekeeping mission.

A statement from the Force said the 28-year-old died after armed rebels attacked an MDF base where she served under the United Nations' Stabilization Mission.

MDF acting spokesman, Major Emmanuel Kelvin Mlelemba, said MDF had lost a courageous, hardworking and disciplined female soldier.

"We express our deep and heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and pray that God give them strength and courage to bear this huge loss," wrote Mlelemba in a statement, adding that her family had been informed accordingly.

The remains of Kamanga, who hailed from Mbayani Village, Traditional Authority Machinjiri in Blantyre District, would--according to Mlelemba--be repatriated to Malawi once UN procedures were completed.

Malawi first contributed troops to UN peacekeeping in 1994. Today, it has over 900 uniformed personnel across several missions in Africa, including in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In 2018, four Malawian soldiers were killed in DRC after coming under attack by rebels. The four were also part of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

In 2019, a Malawian soldier, who gave his life to save a comrade-in-arms in a UN operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in November 2018, was posthumously awarded the highest and most prestigious recognition for UN peacekeeping on Friday.

The Captain Mbaye Diagne Medal for Exceptional Courage was awarded to Private Chancy Chitete.

His family received the medal on his behalf from UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
The spike in India's Covid-19 infections and deaths is a wake-up call for African countries not to let their guard down, the continent's health bodies have warned.

According to both Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (AfricaCDC) and World Health Organisation, Africa region (WHO-Afro), the continent has to act now, collectively and decisively, to avoid being in a similar situation.

With Africa-bound Covid-19 vaccine doses from the Serum Institute of India (SII) delayed for the foreseeable future, slow vaccine rollouts and new variants making inroads, the WHO-Afro warned that the risk of a new wave of infections in Africa remains high.

About 20.2 million of the 37.6 million Covid-19 vaccine doses received in Africa have been administered so far, the AfricaCDC said Thursday.

"This figures corresponds to a coverage rate of 1.14 percent at the continental level, with 0.39 percent of the population having received a full vaccine regimen (up by 0.02 percent points from the previous week). To date, AU member states have used 53.8 percent of the vaccine supply available," reported Dr John Nkengasong, Director of the continent's public health agency.

The fear of the continent being overrun should a resurgence similar to that of India occur is because Africa's health system is weak compared with that of India. As it is, many countries continue to grapple with insufficient numbers of healthcare workers, hospital beds and oxygen supplies. Therefore, if the ongoing Covid-19 surge in the South Asian country was to replicate here, Dr Nkengasong, said it would be even more overwhelming.

"While we call for vaccine equity Africa must also knuckle down and make the best of what we have. We must get all the doses we have into people's arms, "said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, World Health Organisation (WHO) regional director for Africa. "It's a race against time and the virus. Given the limited supply we recommend that countries prioritise giving the first dose to as many high-risk people as possible in the shortest amount of time." The warning comes as the AfricaCDC plans to hold a high level meeting of African Health Ministers to discuss the pandemic situation in the continent. The meeting is set to review the state of the Covid-19 pandemic in Africa and evaluate the implementation of the joint continental strategy, a year after the first cases were reported.

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India is currently fighting its highest surge in Covid-19 cases since the pandemic started. With new variants circulating, low vaccination levels, population fatigue in adhering to preventive measures, and easing of restrictions, the conditions are present for a resurgence.

Experts suspect that the surge is driven by a new variant called B.1.617, which has been confirmed in three African countries: a case in Uganda, five under investigation in Kenya, and a case in Morocco, the AfricaCDC noted. The B1.351 strain, first found in South Africa, is spreading in 23 African countries and the B1.1.7 strain, first found in the United Kingdom, has been found in 20 countries.
(The Center Square)  More children are likely to have increased access to educational options after state legislators across the U.S. advanced a slew of bills this year expanding school choice, according to several state-by-state surveys.

"This is a banner year for the educational choice movement. Hundreds of thousands of children nationwide will now have greater access to educational opportunities," Jason Bedrick, director of policy at Ed Choice, a national nonprofit organization that promotes state-based educational choice programs, told The Center Square.

At least 50 school choice bills have been introduced in 30 states so far, designed to create or expand vouchers, tax-credit scholarships and education savings accounts, among other measures.

To date, 10 states have proposed five new programs and 10 states have expanded existing programs, Bedrick told The Center Square. They include the legislatures of Indiana and Nevada creating Educational Savings Accounts for the first time in their states, as well as Kentucky and Missouri creating tax-credit-funded Education Savings Accounts for the first time in their states.

Kentuckys bill was the first school choice bill ever proposed in its legislature. And the majority of legislators passed the bill twice  first to make it to the governors desk, and second, to override the governors veto, creating the states first school choice program.

Arkansas legislature also created its states first tax scholarship program. In April, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed the bill designed to help low-income families.

Arkansas is now the 20th state in the nation to adopt a tax-credit scholarship program.

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice also signed into law the most expansive school choice program in the country, a nearly universal option for education savings accounts, the Heritage Foundation also reports in its analysis of states legislation.

The events of the last year have demonstrated to many families that public schools are not always the reliable institutions many thought they were, the Heritage Foundation reports. It also opened their eyes to just how powerful the teachers unions are, and as a result, legislatures responded to parents requests by undertaking one of the biggest expansions of school choice in history.

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Critics, particularly teachers unions and their supporters, that school choice programs drain resources from public school systems.

Several states expanded their existing voucher programs this year, including Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, and Maryland. Likewise, several states expanded their tax credit scholarship programs, including Florida, Indiana, Montana and South Dakota.

Notably absent on the list is Texas, whose Republican-controlled legislature has failed to advance school choice legislation.

Most of the Texas bills have been held up by the Calendar Committee Chairman, Chris Paddie, R-Marshall, who by not scheduling bills for committee assignments or votes ensures they never see the light of day.

Unlike Texas, Even in California, hardly a school choice mecca, there is rumbling, the Clarion Institute reports. A revolutionary universal education savings account initiative is in the works for the November 2022 ballot. The ESA would give parents control of the money the state spends on educating their child. The funds would be spent on the school of their choice, and any money not spent would accumulate and could be used for college or vocational training.

In March, a bill was read a second time in the California Assembly, AB 300, and referred to the Committee on Education. It would create a tax-credit funded Education Savings Account under an existing California education program to fund scholarships for private school tuition, online learning programs, tutoring, special needs therapies, transportation, textbooks, testing fees, and computer hardware and software.

And California State Assemblyman Kevin Kiley, R-Rocklin, proposed Cal Grant K-12 earlier this year. The privately funded grant program would help parents who have been forced to pay out-of-pocket expenses to keep up with their childrens remote learning. According to Kileys office, the bill incentivizes individuals and businesses to make donations that will provide eligible students scholarship funds they can use for approved expenses to help reduce pandemic-induced learning loss.

A new study from the University of Arkansas suggests that the more a state provides parents with freedom to choose their childs school, the better the states students score on the National Assessment of Education Outcomes.
The Maize Association of Nigeria (MAAN), has urged the federal government to maintain the ban on the importation of the commodity into the country.

According to them, the policy would further boost local capacity as well as incentivise farmers.

The National President of the association, Dr. Bello Abubakar, made the call during the inauguration of the first National Maize Pyramids and flag off of the 2021 wet season farming in Katsina State.

The event was organised in partnership with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Abubakar stated that maize farmers are currently producing enough to meet up with the demand gap of the commodity.

He said: "We say no to maize importation into Nigeria and we will always support the Central Bank of Nigeria for denying maize importers forex, because the CBN supports President Muhammadu Buhari's agenda of, "eat what we produce and produce what we eat."

He said as far as maize is concerned, "we can produce enough for our consumption and industrial use."

Assessing the impact of the CBN's Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP), he pointed out that the project had assisted smallholder maize farmers to boost quality production as well as lead a sustainable life.

On loan repayment by farmers, Abubakar, appealed to his colleagues to cultivate the habit of repaying their loans in order to ensure the success of the ABP.

According to him: "The success of the Anchor Borrower's Programme lies in our conduct as maize farmers, we therefore, need to be optimistic in our thoughts and in repaying our loans as at when due for the survival of the programme"

"Anchor Borrower's Programme was initiated in the first instance to help link smallholder farmers to processors, thereby creating viable and sustainable money - a word is enough for the wise - please, let us wake up and accept the challenge of repaying our loans."
Hundreds of informal settlement residents marched to the provincial legislature in Cape Town on Monday to hand over a memorandum, demanding basic services.

Residents from various informal settlements across the city established in land occupations during the Covid-19 lockdown ,starting in March 2020, have formed the Intlungu Yasematyotyombeni Movement (IYM) ("the plight of shack dwellers") .

They are demanding water, toilets and electricity.

The march follows a protest in November last year, organised by IYM, where protestors blocked busy Cape Town roads with burning tyres, preventing learners and workers from getting to school and work.

On Monday, organiser Bathandwa Gali said, "That protest was never supposed to be violent, but it was taken over by opportunists. We are not here to fight with anyone. All we want is water, toilets and electricity.

"We want [Western Cape Premier] Alan Winde to come out and address us and clearly tell us what the plan is with providing services to us," said Gali.

He said elections were around the corner. "How will we go and vote when we can't even wash ourselves because there's no water? They need to provide us with services right now before the elections," he said.

Wearing red T-shirts and waving placards with, "We need water, electricity, toilets, waste bins," the marchers sang in front of the steps to the provincial legislature, which had been barricaded by police holding shields.

Nomaswazi Mgebisa, a mother of three from Siyahlala informal settlement in Khayelitsha, said, "We have no toilets, no water, no electricity and our rubbish is never collected. We live with old people who are struggling ... We use buckets to relieve ourselves or you have to walk a distance to an open piece of land. We use heaters to cook and candles for light."

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Andiswa Charlie, from Phumlani informal settlement near Driftsands, said that because they had no services, they were now also being exploited. "We usually go to nearby houses when we need water or the toilet, but now you are charged. For instance you have to pay R10 to fill up a bucket of water, or R10 to use the toilet. We are unemployed, how can we afford that?" asked Charlie.

When Winde did not come out to address them, the group sat down in the road.

Western Cape government director general Harry Malila came out to accept the memo on Winde's behalf. But the group refused to give the memo to Malila.

Malila promised that he would bring the memorandum to Winde's attention, but IYM chairperson Xoliswa Tsholoba said they will "keep coming until Winde takes the memorandum himself".

Tsholoba told Malila, "We are not going to give it to you, we want the Premier. We will keep coming until he gets tired of us. Tell your law enforcement to stop abusing us. They did not build our shacks; we built our own shacks. They must stop demolishing our houses. It might be shacks to them, but they are houses to us."

The marchers left the provincial legislature but vowed to return with an even bigger crowd.
The sacking, in quick succession, of the top management team at Uganda Airlines on April 28 and the entire board a week later, is the climax of a long simmering conflict between the management and government bureaucrats that started even before the first aircraft was bought.

Chief executive Cornwell Muleya, finance director Paul Turacayisenga, safety and compliance director Bruno Oringi, human resources director Paul Ssebowa and ground handling manager Harvey Kalama were sent home to pave the way for an investigation into the airline's operations. Later, Gen Edward Katumba Wamala, Minister for Works and Transport, said they had been forced to take accumulated leave.

On May 5, the entire board, led by Perez Ahabwe, was also sent packing. Although the letter sacking them was written on April 30, it only got to the board in the first week of May.

The developments have sent ripples throughout the industry, with frantic suppliers trying to make sense of the situation.

According to sources, Mr Muleya, who since assuming office has been battling vested interests from politicians and employees who were proxies of powerful figures, felt undermined and tried to reach out to President Yoweri Museveni.

On January 27, he wrote a brief to the president on the conflicted situation at the airline. He delivered the brief to Gen Caleb Akandwanho aka Salim Saleh (Museveni's younger brother) in Gulu, for onward delivery to the president. Feeling that the issues raised could be addressed by the line ministry, Gen Saleh gave the confidential brief to Joy Kabatsi, junior minister for works and immediate supervisor of the airline.

On April 26, the board and management team were shocked to receive a 12-point letter from Ms Kabatsi, raising issues which were a mirror image of the contents of Mr Muleya's brief to the president. The letter gave the board chair an ultimatum to respond to the issues raised by May 7 or risk a sack.

Titled Pertinent Issues Regarding the Management and Operations of Uganda Airlines, the letter questioned the board's role in recruitment and procurement for the airline, supposed delayed certification of the A330 fleet, failure by the technical department to develop operations manuals to the satisfaction of the Ugandan Civil Aviation Authority and delayed establishment of an aircraft maintenance and repair organisation as per the business plan.

Ms Kabatsi also questions what she sees as costly recurrent training in simulators for pilots whose frequency she wants reduced from six months to one year. These are the very issues that were raised by Mr Muleya in the brief. According to Mr Muleya, board members frequently overstepped their roles, involving themselves in recruitment of junior staff and procurement. He also accused them of collusion with managers to cheat the airline through inflated invoices.

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"There is a problem of corruption in the airline. The new entrants are greedy. Sacked employees have teamed up with politicians to generate false intelligence reports to the president about the airline," said a source.

But Mr Muleya's efforts to discipline errant managers were often overridden by the board. For instance, a substandard system for maintaining communication between pilots and dispatchers on the ground was bought. After setup, it was discovered that it had a range of just 80 nautical miles whereas it was supposed to have a global reach. Mr Muleya's efforts to fire the officer were blocked by the board, who told him he had no such powers.

It was not unusual for board members to bypass the chief executive to deal directly with line managers. Ministers and other politicians wanted jobs for their relatives making recruitment of personnel contentious. The board insisted on recruiting junior staff, which was the preserve of management. Despite concluding interviews for the post, the airline does not have a company secretary because members of the board could not agree on whom to give the job.

Contacted, Ms Kabatsi referred us to Gen Wamala. "I wrote a letter raising matters that needed urgent action. But before I could get answers, matters took a different turn," she said.
Abuja  At least 28 people have died and 65 rescued after a boat capsized in Niger State, north central Nigeria.

The State Emergency Management Agency said the boat carrying about 100 people capsized on Saturday at about 6pm.

The passengers were returning from a local market in Zumba, in Shiroro Local Government Area of the state.

Local divers engaged in search and rescue from when the accident occurred, and are still searching for the missing passengers.

The Sarkin Kasuwan (Head of the Market) in Zumba, Mr Adamu Ahmed, said 28 bodies were recovered in the search and rescue operation.

He said the local divers are still working but the search is slow due to lack of logistical support.

"Among the victims were also some returnees who had earlier fled their homes with their children due to bandit attacks," Mr Ahmed said.
-National AIDs Control Program alarms

An official of the National AIDs Control Program in Maryland County has alarmed about low turnout of pregnant women at various health center in the County. The Clinical Method, Faith Bardio, made the observation during a one day EMTCT advocacy meeting in Pleebo, Maryland County Electoral district#2.

The EMTCT advocacy meeting was held at the Pleebo Health Center on Saturday, May 8, 2021. It brought together zonal leaders, religious leaders, including both Muslims and Christians, Community Health Assistants (CHAs), Community Health Volunteers (CHVs), Partner In Health Representative, Pleebo Health Center Administrator, rural women heads, and the media, among others.

Mr. Bardio lauded citizens for the huge turnout, noting that the meeting was intended to dialogue on increased HIV cases despite efforts by the National AIDS Control Program (NACP) to reduce spread of the virus.According to her, the increase cases are mostly being observed due to refusal of pregnant women to visit health centers during early pregnancy.

The clinical method disclosed that several cases of HIV and AIDs these days are mostly from mother to child due, to failure of some pregnant women to know their status.She stressed that the situation is becoming worrisome because the National AIDS Control Program (NACP) has put several measures in place to protect mother- to- child transmission.

She said there are other pregnant women who have visited the health center and were tested of the virus but refused to go for treatment.The added that health workers have been encouraging citizens, mostly pregnant women to always visit health centers in order to know their HIV status.

"We want to encourage you as heads of your various areas, to talk to your people that are refusing to visit the health facilities to stop because the health centers were built for patients", Madam Bardio urged.

She warned those pregnant women who are refusing to go check their health status that it's so risky for their unborn children.She said fear of death shouldn't serve as obstacle for people not visiting health facilities for HIV and AIDS test.

She mentioned that the virus can't kill if one is tested and starts to receive treatment regularly.

The clinical method however used the one day meeting with citizens to call on community dwellers to avoid stigmatizing and discriminating people living with HIV and AIDS.

At the same time she commended other citizens who are always visiting the health facilities for medication and to know their health status.According to her, the National AIDs Control Program has setup a new policy that includes HIV and AIDS compulsory test, once a patient visits the health center.

Rev. Samuel Dennis, Sr of the First Assembly of God Church in Pleebo Sodoken district thanked Madam Faith Bardio and the Ministry of Health for organizing the one day health meeting.He noted the meeting will motivate religious leaders to inform the various congregations about HIV and AIDS.

He stressed that although others are yet to believe the disease exits, but it was spelled out in the Bible so, churches will inform their members about the new policy from the National AIDS Control Program (NACP).

Similarly, the Imam of Pleebo, commended the health team for including Muslims on the awareness.

Imam Bah stressed that it has been difficult for the Muslim community to be involved in activities in the district but now their involvement will help to reduce increase in cases because the information will go across the various mosques.

He then recommended for regular awareness on community radio stations to educate citizens that HIV and AIDS don't kill if one lives on the medication.

Mrs. Bestsy Wallo, President of Maryland Women, said although it's wrong for a pregnant woman to stop visiting the health centers, but health workers should treat them with care.She said it's so frustrating that a pregnant woman will leave her house from the morning hours to come to the health center and later go home without being treated.

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Mrs. Wallo said such thing alone can make a pregnant woman not to even think of returning to the health center but again. However, she encourage her fellow women to always visit the health facilities and "our health workers, please keep our people information as secret", she added.

The Maryland County women president continued that she welcomes the new policy from the National AIDS Control Program but hoped it will help in reducing the increased cases of HIV and AIDS or STD in the country.

Meanwhile, it has been noted that since 1986 when the first case of HIV and AIDS was discovered in Liberia, statistics from Liberia's demographic health survey has shown that about1.5 percent of Liberia's population is HIV-positive, with 60 percent of those being women or girls.
United States Ambassador Michael A. McCarthy, has called for adequate financial support toward the country's Financial Intelligence Unit to enhance the implementation of its duties effectively.

Speaking at the Law Day program organized by the Liberia National Bar Association on Friday, May 7, 2021, Abm. McCarthy, emphasized that the fight against money laundering and countering terrorist financing (AML/CFT) requires adequate and regular financial support from the Liberian Government, void of delay.

According to him, if much priority is given to the Liberia FIU by the three branches of the Liberian Government, it could encourage credible investors to focus on Liberia to execute sustainable investments.

He mentioned that workable laws need to be enacted by the Liberian Legislature to improve AML/CFT laws to international standards, as the Intergovernmental Action Against Money laundering in West Africa (GIABA) prepares to conduct mutual evaluation of Liberia next year (2022).

The US Ambassador said the protection of the financial integrity of Liberia cannot be overly emphasized, as the second mutual evaluation has gained momentum; as evidence by the finalization of the National Risk Assessment Report recently by FIU and other stakeholders.

He wants FIU to distribute the risks and vulnerabilities identified in the National Risk Assessment Report to banks and other financial institutions that need to be in full compliance with the AML/CFT regulations in Liberia.

Ambassador McCarthy also called for full compliance of AML/CFT laws by all actors in every sector, as the second mutual evaluation by GIABA could determine the integrity and credibility of Liberia's financial system.

He added that failure of the Liberian Government to provide financial support and strengthen the AML/ CFT regime, could pose serious threat on the Liberian economy, money transfer and sustainability of investments in Liberia because; the alternative to not prioritize the work of the FIU, could yield unfavorable effects on the country to include Liberia being blacklisted and branded as a safe haven for criminals and their enterprises.
On May 5, Ambassador Michael McCarthy and Deputy Chief of Mission Alyson Grunder visited the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL) complex in Margibi County, formerly known as Liberia Institute for Biomedical Research (LIBR).

According to the U.S. Embassy, the National Reference Laboratory (NRL) currently shares diagnostic and office space in the complex. In addition, Liberia Chimpanzee Rescue and Protection, a non-governmental organization dedicated to bringing abandoned baby and juvenile chimps back to health, has facilities nearby.

The U.S. Government has provided significant support to LIBR and the NRL for decades. The longstanding partnership was critical during the 2014 Ebola outbreak, when LIBR and the NRL were the headquarters for diagnosing the disease. Today, the U.S. Government is constructing additional laboratory space to meet the increased demands for clinical research and diagnostics for systematic public health surveillance and during public health emergencies. In addition, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) is providing operational support to the laboratory and capacity building to NPHIL and the Government of Liberia in public health and clinical research.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the U.S. Department of Defense provide ongoing technical support for improving public health and identifying dangerous pathogens, assistance in obtaining essential laboratory equipment, and training and developing staff.

These partnerships have continued to be effective and proactive in responding to the current COVID-19 pandemic. CDC donated a brand-new PCR machine, the equipment used to determine the outcome of a COVID-19 test, late last year. The NRL staff demonstrated to the Ambassador how the machine works and also cut a ribbon to celebrate the hand off, though NRL has been successfully utilizing it for months to quickly address outbreaks in Liberia and to ensure safety of international travel.

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After touring the LIBR complex, the Ambassador and Deputy Chief of Mission met with Jim and Jenny Desmond of Liberia Chimpanzee Rescue and Protection (LCRP). The non-profit organization provides sanctuary for 55 chimpanzees, most of whom were orphaned after their parents were killed by bushmeat hunters. By coordinating closely with the Forestry Development Authority and the Liberian National Police, and with USAID support, LCRP is contributing to the joint Liberia-U.S. effort to counter wildlife trafficking in the country. LCRP recently constructed a state-of-the-art sanctuary on the Farmington River, which includes a large forest habitat and modern care facilities. They also employee and train a growing number of local community members who have an interest in wildlife preservation and animal care.
Members and leaders of ITF affiliate the Dock Workers' Union of Liberia (DOWUL) were wrongly suspended by APM Terminals in Monrovia, the country's capital.Those wrongful suspensions set in motion more than seven months of struggle, hardship and stress for these brave and determined dockers.

The workers have been supported by unions in Liberia and the wider region, the ITF Dockers' Section and, in the end, the government of the Republic of Liberia itself.

Enraged by the failure of APMT to reinstate the 24 Dockers, a fresh letter from Liberian Minister of Justice, Cllr. Frank Musa Dean, warning APMT to comply immediately and unconditionally with the government's numerous determinations was sent.

On Friday APM Terminals Monrovia finally conceded. The workers have returned.

At the centre of this dispute with global ramifications is Jackie Doe, the strong and principled female leader of the Dock Workers' Union of Liberia.

"I am very happy today. It is a long time coming, and we have endured much to get here. But this is victory, and it is victory shared," said Jackie. "I think what has happened shows all the people, from the multinational corporations to non-union workers at the terminal, the extent of our power when we are together. When we are together - we win. I am telling everyone: this is why all dockers at the terminal should join DOWUL!" Doe said.

Doe thanked the ITF family and the ITF Dockers Section for the unrelenting support offered throughout the dispute.

"Only with the support of the ITF Dockers family," she continued, "have we walked this long road of struggle, back to the terminal gates and back to work."

ITF regional secretary for Africa, Mohammed Dauda Safiyanu, said he was "delighted" for his sisters and brothers in Liberia.

"Injustice has been overcome, and this victory has delivered a very clear message to employers in the region: 'show respect to your employees and work constructively with their unions - or we will not hesitate to defend the rights and jobs of our affiliates and their members," said Safiyanu.

Victory felt globally - Crumlin

ITF Dockers' Section chair and ITF president Paddy Crumlin said it was difficult to overstate how much the victory meant for the 24 workers, their families, and the Liberian trade union movement.

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"This is a victory that will be felt globally."

"Chalk it up to the power of trade unionism. Chalk it up to the power of collectivism, of internationalism. Chalk it up to the pluck and courage and pure bravery of Jackie Doe and her 24 comrades determined to win justice," he said.

Crumlin said the ITF Dockers' Section was fully committed to meaningful dialogue with employers, and he expected to see industrial relations return to normal over time.

"However, and I say this as seriously as possible, we will be keeping an eagle-eye on what transpires at Monrovia regarding these workers. Our dockers family will not hesitate to provide local, regional and international support and solidarity whenever required.

"No operator should attempt to stifle the human rights of dockers to associate, to organise, to collectively bargain, and to stand up for their health and wellbeing."We're not stepping backwards in Monrovia, or anywhere else," said Crumlin.-Press Release

About the ITF: The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) is a democratic, affiliate-led federation recognized as the world's leading transport authority. We fight passionately to improve working lives; connecting trade unions from 147 countries to secure rights, equality and justice for their members. We are the voice for nearly 20 million working women and men in the transport industry across the world.
-Weah describes land fights b/w Sinoe, Rivercess

Greenville, Sinoe County:-President George M. Weah has described as shameful and sad reports of protracted land disputes between the people of Sinoe and Rivercess Counties. Speaking in Juarzon Statutory District, Sinoe County on Saturday President Weah lamented how shameful it is that Liberians are fighting over parcels of land that they don't even know the real owners.

He said the only people that can fight over land are those who register it at the archives.

"We don't need to be fighting and killing each other over something that we can solve. The constant trouble in Sinoe is wrong. Look at the children. If we the elders cannot unit ourselves it is sad," Weah said.

Mr. Weah recounted how during his last county tour in the Southeast, the people of Mayland could not turn him over to the people of Grand Kru because of similar land dispute for which they are still at loggerheads.

"The Last time I left Maryland, am going to Sass Town, the Marylanders could not hand me over to the Sass Town People because of this same land business. Lawmakers from the other side could not cross the boundary. I had to walk through a buffer Zone. How can a President that visiting 15 counties to see what to do to develop the country cannot be turned over to the other county because those lawmakers are making trouble against each other it's sad and is wrong. It's very wrong," he added.

The land dispute between the two counties is reported to have started in 1962 and was reactivated on January 25, 2010 with a letter from Rivercess county former superintendent, Wellington Geevon Smith, now senator, complaining to the central government that Sinoe's then-superintendent Milton Teahjay, also now Senator was causing commotion when he ordered a police checkpoint in the area to be removed because he concluded that it was a part of Sinoe.

As a result, former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf established an inter-ministerial committee with members from key government institutions. The purpose was to calm the tension that had ensued as a result of Teahjay's action.

The committee reported that the act creating Rivercess inferred that the disputed area was within the territorial confines of Rivercess.

Warning Sinoe against trouble

President Weah still speaking in Juarzon warned the people of Sinoe against propagating troubles.

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Weah: "The people of Sinoe, you see when you are looking for trouble and you have not seen the trouble, you don't know how bad the trouble can be. We need to be peaceful and we need to dialogue. We are trying to develop our country, to build our roads and you are still fighting over land. So when we building the road the land you are fighting over should we jump over it?

Sinoe people your wake up. This is an era of peace. The Government of Liberia will not work with anyone that try to bring trouble in this country.

We need to continue the peace. So you see those little issues about land, we need to resolve it so that it may not affect our country.

I listened to my Uncle Zarzar, (he says) the land they put some people behind the river, they put some people on the land, it's the same place; nobody wants to put you outside of Liberia. So let us resole this land issue the right way.

You see politics, my people, my family, politicians have their own interest. It might not be the general interest of everyone. So those that come to you with the general interest of all of us, your need to listen to them. Some people believe that where they will have 10,000 votes they are taking it from them of course they will raise alarm, but why will they want to sacrifice you for their own benefit-think twice especially you young people. Do not allow anyone to drag you into land dispute problem. You have a future; you need to be at tentative. We should not be fighting about land business." By Othello B. Garblah
Oxfam in Liberia has announced a cheque of US$6,964.00 to pay gender students' registration fees, to facilitate two fundraising activities and to support in curricula review and the purchasing of few equipment for the Honors College of Gender Studies and Research at the University of Liberia (UL).

Launching the fundraiser for the construction of proposed facilities for the Honors College on Friday, 7 May on UL Capitol Hill Campus, Mr. Eugene Beleto, Oxfam Liberia Acting Country Representative said Oxfam is happy to join the efforts of UL and partners to be part of the fundraising program geared towards mobilizing resources for the construction of a college facility.

"So towards the effort of this new academic program, and on behalf of Oxfam in Liberia including its Executive Affiliate - OGB, and its Partner Affiliate - ODK with funding from the Danish Government (Danida), Oxfam has a cheque of $6,964.00 USD," Mr. Beleto said.

Mr. Beleto indicated that the US$6,964.00 cheque is intended to be used to pay gender students' registration fees, to facilitate two fundraising activities and to support in curricula review and the purchasing of few equipment for the college.

Mr. Beleto explained that Oxfam works with partners and other stakeholders to promote women's empowerment and gender equality, so that women can claim their rights and participate equally in decision making, promoting active citizenship to change policy and practices across cutting all Oxfam's areas of invention in Liberia.

According to Mr. Beleto, women in Liberia are still extremely affected by poverty and they are grossly underrepresented at all levels of politics, adding that gender - based violence is yet and a lot affecting them in common, including sexual assault and domestic violence.

"Today we are here to recognize the efforts of the college of Research and Gender Studies in Liberia and it is no doubt that you have contributed to the sustained growth of gender improvement in the country," he added.

Additionally, Mr. Beleto suggested that the Honors College of Research and Gender Studies of UL is an integral part of the university that must be supported to ensure that gender equity and women economic empowerment are not downplayed.

Oxfam's announcement of the US$6,964.00 cheque came over the weekend as the University of Liberia launched the first fundraiser for the construction of proposed facilities for the Honors College of Research and Gender Studies at the university.

The targeted facilities to be constructed are the academic complex, four faculty housing units to lodge those playing key roles in the college and students dormitories.

The project is estimated at a grand total of US$2.2m which is divided into four categories to include US$51,228 as general mobilization or materials needed for construction; US$1.6m for an academic complex; US$154,980 for faculty housing and US$340,116 for dormitories.

Mr. Amenjor Senegbah of the College of Engineering at the University of Liberia, said the proposed academic complex contains a ground floor and two floors up which have 14 offices, 16 classes, research laboratories, advocacy center, IT Center, eight bathrooms, two conference rooms, students' common room, teachers' lounge and two outstanding rooms for future use.

According to Mr. Senegbah, the proposed facilities also include two sets of students' dormitories for males and females which contain 15 rooms each, and that each of the rooms is designed to accommodate two students.

UL Vice President for Academic Affairs Prof. Dr. Moses Zinnah who represented UL President Rev. Dr. Julius Sarwolo Nelson said the Honors College of Gender Studies and Research is making a lot of impact already in terms of its vision.

"I know you will hear a lot about this college but I was reading just the name of this college itself and three things come to mind, that we are here to nurture and to train scholars and honors students," Dr. Zinnah said.

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For her part, Madam Benetta Joko Tarr, UL Vice President for Administration, serving as Guest Speaker said the vision of the Honors College is to create a platform for excellent academic education in interdisciplinary research and gender studies.

She said the college's goal is to empower students with research, knowledge and skills needed to solve critical national issues including gender equality and advocacy.

Mr. Del - Francis Wreh, Executive Director, Liberian Macroeconomic Policy Analysis Capacity Building Project (LIMPAC), Ministry of Finance, said, the Honors College is very critical, revealing that three of the honors graduates that are into the Civil Service Agency as Research Analysts are found to be far excellent when compared with those that were in the agency.

He assured the college of LIMPAC and Finance Minister Samuel Tweah's full support toward research, and further made a commitment for the payment of registration fees for 100 students who are supposed to enter the Honors College but are facing challenges with registration fees.
(The Center Square)  The Indiana General Assembly voted to override Gov. Eric Holcombs veto of a bill that gives county commissioners the ability to stop a local health department from closing a local business or church, or imposing some other punishment.

With the override by both the Indiana House and Senate, no longer will a county health officer have total, unchecked power to fine or close a business during a local or state-declared health emergency, or impose occupancy limits. A business owner will now have the ability to file an appeal to the county commission (or a city commission in the case of a municipal health department.). That commission can put a hold on all enforcement action while it is considering the appeal.

Senate Enrolled Act 5 would have zero effect on those communities experiencing dynamic and fruitful working relationships between these groups, said Sen. Chris Garten, R-Charlestown, who authored the bill. "However, in these communities that are lacking, this legislation would ensure that the local elected officials who are chosen by the people of a particular community to serve, represent and understand the interests of that community would have a seat at the table.

Democrats leapt to the defense of Holcomb, a Republican, and argued against overriding the veto.

Sen. Tim Lanane, D-Anderson, said Holcomb has worked with local officials through the COVID-19 pandemic to do the right thing and said the Indiana General Assembly should give credence to what he'd said in his veto message.

Hes the person who has managed this pandemic," said Lanane. "Hes the person who has managed this once-in-a-lifetime emergency that we hope we will never have to face again  an emergency that has threatened the lives of every citizen in the state of Indiana and has sadly cost tens of thousands of them their lives."

In his letter to the General Assembly announcing the veto, Holcomb had said that local health officers need to be able to exercise discretionary authority and need to act quickly.

It is hard to express the rapidity needed in the early days of the pandemic  particularly on the local level, he wrote. One reason Indiana has weathered the storm so well is due to coordination with local health experts and the flexibility in law to be fast, nimble and targeted. Also, the knowledge that local health officials were able to exercise this discretionary authority greatly informed the states own day-by-day, sometimes hour-by-hour, emergency response.

That letter was sent to the Senate President Rodric Bray on May 4.

Bray and House Speaker Todd Huston wasted little time in calling legislators back to Indianapolis to vote to override the governors veto.

In his defense of the bill, Garten referred to his experience in combat as a member of the U.S. Marine Corps.

Its because of my experience that I would contend that actions and decisions of such magnitude should have a check and balance and that exclusive authority should be under strict scrutiny in these scenarios, he said, talking of local health departments actions during an emergency.

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Local health orders imposing serious punishments on small businesses, he said, should be subject to the approval of a local legislative body.

Senate Enrolled Act 5 is not an attack on our local public health officers or are local public health boards, he said, adding that most have conducted themselves with unparalleled professionalism in "holding the line against an invisible enemy.

That being said, he said, we must be mindful and acknowledge, that when unelected officials are empowered to such a level as to limit religious liberties, shutter houses of worship, choose which businesses may operate, and which must close, and impose fines on Hoosiers for living as free men and women, there must be a structural check and balance in place. Senate Enrolled Act 5 serves as that check and balance...

SEA 5 creates an appeals process for local business owners, churches and other entities that have received an order from their local health department during a local or state declared emergency.

They have seven days to appeal a local health officials order to the county commission. The commission then has 15 days to decide whether to hear the appeal and another 15 days to hold the hearing. And the commissioners are able to allow the business to remain open while the appeal is pending, and to put a hold on all other enforcement action.

The bill also makes the appointment of a new county health officer subject to the approval of the county commission, and allows a county commission to fire a local health officer under certain circumstances.

The override of the governors veto passed the Indiana Senate 36-10, with all Democrats siding with the governor.

Several Republican senators spoke in support of small businesses in their districts that had been forced to close by local health departments, while Walmart and other big box stores were allowed to stay open.

Sen. Mike Gaskill, R-Pendleton, said his local barber was forced to close, as was another salon in his town.

Those folks income went to zero," he said. "I cant tell you how badly we felt for themI bet no one in the Indiana Senate missed a paycheckSo lets not talk so cavalierly, he said.

No one in government, elected or otherwise, should have power that cant be checked by some other part of government," he added. "This is simple, basics, going back to the founding of our country. This is a simple check and balance.

In a response to the override of his veto, Holcomb said in a written statement distributed to the media: "I would have hoped that such sweeping change could wait until we gathered all the relevant experts and stakeholders to strike the right balance regarding local health authority during emergencies and avoid discouraging laudable service in the field of public health, especially knowing that it's locally elected officials who appoint the local department of health board that hires the local health director in the first place. My administration will do just that over the coming months to supply the legislature with up-to-date data before the next regular session."
"Extraordinary times ... call for extraordinary measures", said Katherine Tai, the US Trade Representative, last week as she announced that the Biden administration supports waiving "IP protections on Covid-19 vaccines to help end the pandemic".

Given the hard-line position on IP adopted by previous administrations, regardless of which party was in power, this was quite extraordinary.

But what does it actually mean, and will it make any difference?

IP stands for intellectual property, a broad and controversial term that refers to "intangible creations of the human intellect" that some legal systems have chosen to regard as property. These statutorily-created forms of property, which include (but are not limited to) copyright, patents, and trademarks, confer on their owners the right to exclude others. In other words, they guarantee market exclusivity.

Consider a patent, which applies to inventions. In theory, by guaranteeing a defined period of market exclusivity following its grant, a patent creates an incentive to innovate. Knowing that others will not be able to compete for years, an inventor would be more willing to spend time and money upfront. Of course, today's inventors stand on the shoulders of yesterday's. (And much risky innovation is publicly-funded.)

Historically, countries have decided for themselves if, when, how, and in what form to enact IP protections. But over time, their policy options have narrowed, as international agreements have imposed obligations on minimum standards of protection. When the World Trade Organization (WTO) came into existence in January 1995, so too did the Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, or TRIPS.

By being a member of the WTO, a country has no choice but to comply with its TRIPS obligations. In practical terms, for example, this means enacting legislation that guarantees no less than 20 years' protection for all "inventions, whether products or processes, in all fields of technology, provided that they are new, involve an inventive step and are capable of industrial application."

One of the unintended (but expected) outcomes of patent protection is overpricing. If you hold the patent on a life-saving medicine that no-one else is entitled to produce, you can often charge pretty much what you like for your product. Those who need the medicine will do whatever it takes to buy the medicine, and spend far more than they can afford. Economists call this inelastic demand.

Another unintended (but expected) outcome is limited supply. Where the patent holder has decided not to license others to manufacture the product, demand may exceed supply. This is exactly what is happening right now in respect of Covid-19 vaccines, where many countries' ability to vaccinate their populations is restricted by the availability of supply. South Africa is no exception.

Recognising that IP may well be abused, TRIPS allows countries to adopt public health safeguards and flexibilities. Twenty years ago, following global activism focused on access to treatment for HIV infection, the WTO adopted the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health, which recognises that "the TRIPS Agreement does not and should not prevent Members from taking measures to protect public health".

The years since Doha have seen a significant increase in access to HIV treatments, as patent holders have agreed to license their medicines to generic manufacturers. Some of these agreements came as a result of domestic legal action, as was the case in South Africa in the early 2000s; others have been negotiated by bodies such as the Medicines Patent Pool. All took advantage of the post-Doha space.

But outside of HIV, change remains elusive. For various reasons, including undue bilateral pressure from some of Tai's predecessors, far too few countries have amended their domestic laws to take full advantage of the public health safeguards and flexibilities. Again, South Africa is no exception, with a Patents Act that offers protections way in excess of what TRIPS requires.

But even with full implementation of the Doha Declaration, the steps needed to deal with the current pandemic - on a global level - cannot be taken. What is needed instead is a temporary waiver of the global rules, followed by widespread legislative and executive action to translate the new rules into domestic law. And of course, a ramping up of manufacturing capacity, and the sharing of know-how.

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Will any or all of this happen? It is still too early to tell.

What may happen is that patent holders take proactive steps to increase access to vaccines, either to prevent the waiver from being adopted at all, or to stop countries from taking action to amend and/or implement their domestic laws. These steps could include licensing and technology-transfer agreements, on reasonable terms, with manufacturers across the globe, focused primarily on boosting production and supply.

On its own, a waiver will not solve the problem. But make no mistake: if a waiver along the lines proposed by India and South Africa is adopted, with the support of the US, patent holders will not sit idly by, and wait for others to move. Instead, as history strongly suggests, they will do whatever it takes to increase access, so as to protect their monopolies in other lucrative areas.

Berger is an advocate. He was one of the lawyers responsible for the Treatment Action Campaign's Competition Commission cases against pharmaceutical companies in the 2000s that led to massively lower antiretroviral drug prices.
... ..says Rept. Zarzar said

The Representative for District number three of Sinoe County, Matthew Zarzar said that the performance of president Weah within three years has proven his critics wrong.

He made the statement over the weekend in Juarzon, Sinoe county in a Town Hall meeting where president Weah is on a county tour.

Representative Zarzar said, "Mr. President, when you came here to camping, there were some people who told us that you could not make it. That you were not the right person for us to give this country to."

"But today, Mr. President, what you have done in three years, you have made them shame. Today, some of them do not have the face to look into our faces today."

Mr. Representative Zarzar said based on the level of work done by the president in three years, he has pledged his support to vote for him come 2023. "Mr. president, what you have done for the short time in three years, we have no decided to vote for you come 2023. We therefore want you to run," he added.

He described president Weah as a man who has emancipated Liberians. According to him, president Weah is a man of peace and true emancipator. "From what you have done, I described it as an emancipation. This is total emancipation," he said.

"What you have done in there years, many have not done it. 2023, we will be with you. We call on you. This is total emancipation for us."
Senior Business Reporter

GOVERNMENT would soon meet bankers to address bottlenecks that are hindering the smooth disbursement of the $18 billion Covid-19 stimulus and rescue package to industry.

Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube, said this on Friday in response to concerns by business leaders who said they were facing challenges accessing the facility.

The Government availed the $18 billion Covid-19 stimulus and rescue package last year of which about 72 percent was meant for reviving production and business while 28 percent was for further upgrades of health services.

However, during the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce trade conference held in Bulawayo last Friday, it emerged that businesses were finding it difficult to access the resources under the facility from the banking sector.

Responding to questions from the floor, Prof Ncube, who attended the conference through a virtual platform said the stimulus package was still open and the private sector should come forward and through their banks to request credit support from the facility.

"Government through Treasury will provide a guarantee, so obviously we are going to assess every request to see if the request is within what we think we should be supporting," he said.

"So, please don't give up, l am going to engage banks to see where the blockages are in getting these applications to Treasury.

"I am planning to have a meeting with CEOs (chief executive officers) of banks in the next week or two so that we talk specifically about these issues," said Prof Ncube.

The Covid-19 stimulus and rescue package, which constitutes nine percent of Zimbabwe's Gross Domestic Product, cuts across all productive sectors and seeks to ensure that they get the critical liquidity to kick-start operations and protect jobs.

The social side of the package is aimed at strengthening and expanding existing social safety nets and up-scaling investments in social and economic infrastructure, including recovery of assets destroyed by floods.

The ZWL$18 billion stimulus package was broken down as follows: Agriculture support (ZWL$6,08 billion), Working Capital Fund (ZWL$3,02 billion), Mining Sector Fund (ZWL$1 billion), Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Support Fund (ZWL$500 million), Arts Sector Fund (ZWL$20 million), Liquidity Release from Statutory Reserves (ZWL$2 billion), Health Sector Support Fund (ZWL$1 billion), Broad Relief Measures (ZWL$1,50 billion), Food Grant (ZWL$2,40 billion).

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Prof Ncube said to show Government's commitment towards supporting the productive sectors of the economy, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Monetary Policy Committee has approved the ZWL$500 million SMEs Fund.

"Last week, you saw what the Treasury did working with the Central Bank's Monetary Policy Committee in approving the ZWL$500 million facility for SMEs, which is again available to the banks, so already you can see the initiatives that Government is taking.

"We want to support your businesses right through the Covid-19 period and we all work together towards realising Vision 2030," he said.

Under Vision 2030, the Second Republic envisages an upper middle-income economy status where among positive developments, Zimbabwe will deliver more jobs with employment rate rising to 80 percent and a Gross National Income of US$4 000 per month.

Already the Government has set the tone towards Vision 2030 through restoring macro-economic stability under the Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP), which ran from 2018-2020.

Riding on the gains of the TSP, the Government has launched the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) to anchor the economy from 2021-2025 after which a second five-year National Development Strategy will be rolled out from 2026-2030.
Fungi Kwaramba recently in KAZUNGULA, Botswana

Zimbabwe yesterday joined SADC in witnessing the commissioning of a state of the art Kazungula bridge that links Botswana, Zambia and Africa's hinterland in a development that will enhance intra-regional trade and cooperation.

Zimbabwe, in the fullness of time, will be part of the project after pledging to pay its share of the bridge having been left out due to a diplomatic standoff before the dawn of the Second Republic.

Although the $260 million Kazungula bridge presently links Zambia and Botswana, the two nations have agreed to rope in Zimbabwe as the region moves to improve trade and commerce through interlinking countries that faced difficulties because of infrastructural bottlenecks.

The completion of the project gives impetus to SADC's Regional Development Master Plan -- Vision 2027 -- which envisions well-maintained and operated infrastructure that promotes seamless transport services in the region.

Apart from that, the bridge fits into intra-regional and continental ideals encapsulated in the Africa Agenda 2063 of a more integrated, united, and prosperous continent.

Addressing the gathering on the Zambian side of the border, President Mnangagwa said the commissioning of the bridge comes at a critical juncture when the region is moving towards integration and from being landlocked to landlinked.

"This is indeed a milestone achievement in our region. I wish to sincerely thank my dear brothers and colleagues, His Excellency President of Botswana Masisi, and your Excellency President of Zambia, Cde Edgar Lungu, who extended an invitation to Zimbabwe to be part of this grand project. In the fullness of time Zimbabwe will be part of this project to accelerate our regional integration. My country continues to harness and modernise serious infrastructural development projects to enhance efficient connection with Botswana and Zambia.

"The completion of the Kazungula bridge is therefore timely. I reiterate Zimbabwe's commitment to be part of this project for the benefit of our SADC region," he said.

As part of efforts to benefit from the new bridge, Zimbabwe has already started upgrading the Victoria Falls-Kasane highway. This is on top of other development projects that the Second Republic is conducting locally, which include the US$300 million project to expand Beitbridge Border Post as well as the upgrading the Beitbridge-Chirundu highway to the tune of US$250 million.

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Felix Tshisekedi, Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi, Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi, and Zambian President Lungu were present at the grand occasion that was attended by the SADC executive secretary Stergomena Tax and also a high powered delegation from COMESA.

The Kingdom of Eswatini was represented by acting Prime Minister Senator Themba Masuku while Namibian second vice president Dr Nangolo Mbumba was also in attendance to witness the official opening of the road-rail bridge that will ease freight movement and help decongest other ports of entry in the region.

The 923-metre road and rail bridge offers yet another passageway for the south to north corridor, adding to the already existing Beitbridge outlet.

As well as increasing regional trade, Zimbabwe seeks to consolidate its strategic position as the regional trade hub and improve interpersonal communication.

President Mnangagwa, when he assumed power in 2017, sought to build bridges with all nations culminating in the inclusion of Zimbabwe in the project to make it a tri-national conduit that will ease the flow of transportation and freight.

Contrary to untested and unfounded claims from some quarters that Zimbabwe will lose out, the country is better placed, geographically and in terms of distance to be the route of choice for freight from the south to the north, as the distance that cuts through Zimbabwe, from Beitbridge to Chirundu is 200km shorter.

The Kazungula rail-road bridge complements already existing infrastructure in the region.

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Speaking on the same occasion Botswana President Masisi said Zimbabwe was included in the project in the spirit of integrating the region and invited Namibia to be part of the project.

"I am happy to note that the Republic of Zimbabwe and ourselves with Zambia have agreed in principle to be a partner in this project and our officials are working and will work increasingly faster and harder to complete the remaining works for Zimbabwe," he said.

The commissioning of the bridge comes at a time when the Second Republic is carrying out massive infrastructural development projects including the dualisation of the Harare Beitbridge-Chirundu highway.

This is in line with the country's five-year economic blueprint the National Development Strategy 1 which prioritises infrastructure development as a sine qua non of economic recovery and growth.

The multi-million bridge comprises a bridge across the Zambezi River, and one border post for the two country's sides. Construction started in 2014.
Arts Reporter

Canadian-based Zimbabwean gospel musician, Minister Patience Chigumira, says she is determined to convert many souls to God through music.

In an interview on social media, Minister Chigumira talked about her newly released song called "My Salvation" which is a worship song meant to remind people to worship God in the face of situations.

"Music is my way of communicating with God intimately and I guide others to do the same," she said. "I find that there is a song for every situation in life."

Minister Chigumira developed a passion for music way back during her school days at St David's Girls High School. She indicated that her mission was to reach out to many people out there, worshipping and preaching the word of God. Minister Chigumira commenced his official launch of singles in 2018 which combined God's word with music.

"I'm going to talk about my new song that I have just released called 'My Salvation', in the song I'm magnifying the greatness of God in Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit by combining God's word with music.

"My mission is to go out there and bring people to worship and to the word."

Minister Chigumira grew up in a Christian background and she drew inspiration from the Bible to compose her songs.

"I grew up in a very Christian home. Both my parents are pastors. I grew up in a very supernatural environment. I saw a lot of demons being cast out. I saw a lot of miracles."

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The song "My Salvation" is now found on YouTube and other online platforms.

Apart from this latest single, Minister Chigumira has other singles which include "You are Holy", "Ancient of Days" and "Makanaka."

She indicated that plans were afoot to release the videos of all the four songs as a "mni-series" entitled "Makanaka".

Minister Chigumira said living a sin-free life was the bedrock of the relationship with God. "Living a clean life before God is the foundation of any and every relationship with the God of Abraham," she said. "He requires complete loyalty to him and him alone. From this loyalty breathes faith, righteousness and the fear of God."

Minister Chigumira said her first marriage did not work as she suffered a myriad of challenges, but she has successfully remarried and has four children. "My family just broke apart," she said. "I didn't have a great relationship with my parents. Everything, it was just not right. I was suffering to a point where I finally said to God, "Okay, I'm ready to face these demons," because as much as I know that God is alive, that is just as much as the devil's kingdom is alive as well.

"But at this time, I started to seek God without fear. But knowing that there are definitely two sides. I started reading my Bible, and I started from Genesis. When I got to Exodus, that point where the Israelites are being rescued from Egypt and they're crossing the Red Sea, that just gripped my heart. And I was just like, how is it possible that we have forgotten how great our God is?"
Government is accelerating its drive to extend digital inclusivity to marginalised communities in the country, launching its second Community Information Centre (CIC) in Masvingo Province.

The Containerised Village Information Centre (CVIC) initiative has made it possible for communities in underserved and unserved areas to access information and communication technologies (ICTs).

The Maranda Village Information Centre, which was launched yesterday, comes on the back of the Mashava CIC, which was commissioned last August.

Similar initiatives in the province include the Rutenga and Chikato CICs that have been launched in previous years.

Launching the latest CIC yesterday, Information Communication Technology and Courier Services Minister Jenfan Muswere, said Government is looking to increase initiatives to reduce the digital divide.

"Access to ICTs should no longer continue to be a preserve of those in urban areas. As Government, we remain resolute in our efforts to bridge the digital divide by ensuring that all citizens of the country have access to broadband connectivity, including for rural and low-income communities.

"A number of initiatives have been rolled out to increase access to ICTs among rural communities, thanks to the Universal Service Fund. I want to assure you that the Government will double its efforts in ensuring that access to ICTs continues to improve across the country," said Minister Muswere.

The digital inclusion initiative is in line with the National Development Strategy (NDS1) blueprint, which was launched by President Mnangagwa last November. The first phase of the NDS runs up to 2025, while the last one completes the circle in 2030.

And from a global perspective, the United Nations (UN) and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), ICTs can help accelerate progress towards the attainment of each of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The ICT Minister reiterated the need for localising digital content to ensure effective inclusivity.

"Digital inclusion is also dependant on the availability of content in local languages and dialects.

"The need for the development of local content cannot therefore, be overemphasised if CICs are to make the desired impact among the communities in which they are deployed," he said.

"Like I have always done everywhere we have commissioned a CIC, I call upon the local community of Maranda to start identifying local content that could be digitised and be made available through the Internet for the benefit of the local community."

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Addressing the same event, the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Masvingo Province Ezra Chadzamira, said the province was thankful for the continued initiatives.

"You have connected schools, set up base stations (atinodana kuti mabooster), trained members of the community in basic computer skills, and provided laptops to schools in this province.

"The people of Masvingo Province, thank you for that Honourable Minister. As responsible citizens, we will ensure that the facilities you have availed will not be abused or vandalised," said Minister Chadzamira.

Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (Potraz) director-general Dr Gift Machengete, highlighted other initiatives that the regulator is implementing in the province.

"Zeroing in on Masvingo Province, the authority has erected three shared base station towers in Malipati and Pahlela and Nemashakwe. The Province boasts of 17 Community Information Centres courtesy of Potraz, four of which are containerised units, while eleven were set up at Post Offices. The other three containerised units are in Bikita, Rutenga and Chiredzi," said Dr Machengete.

"A staggering 2267 people have received free training in basic computer skills at the five centres with operational training facilities that is Chikato, Chiredzi, Jerera, Mashava and Mpandawana CICs. The four containerised units are all equipped with training facilities and this will certainly see an increase in these training figures."
Deputy director of political affairs in the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Frederic Billy Malata that getting court injunction against the party's presidential aspirants as well as Secretary General Grelzedar Jeffrey if semblance of order has to return in the party.

Malata told Nyasa Times on Monday that a court injunction against Jeffrey will be to force her to stepdown.

In a phone interview, Malata said court injunctions will not only to bring sanity in the party but will also bring respect to the former ruling party as well as its party president Peter Mutharika.

"These presidential aspirants are acting as if the party's presidency is vacant. No, we still have a president and that's Mutharika. They are the ones bringing confusion in the party," he said.

Apart from that, Malata said he will get another court injunction of forcing the National Executive Committee (NEC) to hold for a meeting where they will call for a convention.

Some quarters within DPP have told Nyasa Times that the former Reserve Bank Governor Dalitso Kabambe, who is also one of the presidential aspirants, is behind the whole plan.

"Malata has been sent by Kabambe who is afraid," claimed one of the aspirants. "He knows that he will not win the elections at the convention. Apart from that, all the delegates are against him."

However, Malata dismissed this saying "I am doing this because I love the party, nothing to do with Kabambe."

Kabambe said he has no knowledge regarding the matter.

"People should stop dragging me in their mud really. If Malata is doing something it is his right, it has nothing to do with me," said Kabambe.
Kenya on Monday suspended flights to and from Somalia in the latest show that relations between the two countries have not thawed as announced last week.

In a Notice to Airmen (Notam), Kenya Civil Aviation Authority said flights departing for or arriving from Somalia will not be allowed for three months.

Only humanitarian deliveries and medical evacuation flights will be allowed into the country, the aviation regulator said.

The authority did not elaborate on reasons but suggested there had been a security directive from the government to restrict air traffic between the two countries. The decision means all chartered and scheduled flights to Somalia will not be allowed. However, flights from Somalia, passing through the Kenyan airspace to another destination will be exempted.

The announcement was made just as Somalias President Mohamed Farmaajo was overflying Kenya on his way to Uganda to attend the inauguration of President Yoweri Museveni.

Also exempted are military flights which are not within the jurisdiction of the KCAA.

The move, dents any latest efforts to revive relations between the two countries. Last week, Qatari special envoy Mutlaq bin Majed al-Qahtani helped broker resumption of relations after Mogadishu announced it was reopening its diplomatic channels it had shut down in December, protesting against Kenyas alleged interference.

Somali officials clarified the resumed relations will not involve lifting the ban on miraa trade nor discussions about the maritime boundary dispute now before the International Court of Justice and awaiting a verdict.

Somalia, however, has not indicated when its ambassador will resume. Mr Mohamud Nur Tarsan was recalled to Mogadishu and Kenyas Lucas Tumbo returned to Nairobi after Mogadishu cut ties in December. Nairobi, however, did not sever the ties.

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This isnt the first time either Nairobi or Mogadishu is suspending flights. Right after the fall of Siad Barres regime, Kenyas then President Daniel Moi suspended flights and closed borders. A petition from humanitarian agencies, however, allowed a special corridor for aid deliveries.

In later years, Kenya had restricted flight arrivals from Somalia to first land in Wajir for security checks before proceeding to any other airport. A discussion between the two sides saw the move lifted in 2019, after Mogadishu agreed to intensify security checks for its departing passengers.

A few months later, Somalia banned flights carrying miraa into Somalia from Kenya, and restricted all other flights to land in Mogadishu before going to any other port. Most of this directive was, however, ignored by the rebellious federal states.
IMPARTING practical knowledge and skills to graduates on financial matters is a fundamental initiative for NMB Bank that may increase efficiency in the banking industry to reach the unbanked population in the country.

This initiative has been made possible through the NMB's Management Trainee Programme and a recent event NMB career fair for which over 1000 students from higher learning institutions from Zanzibar were reached.

For NMB, which is the largest bank in the land, grooming new talents and experts in the banking industry is supporting the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) quest to have all commercial banks recruit highly skilled and ethical staff.

According to the regulator, lack of skilled and ethical experts in the banking sector has in recent years made some banks incurring massive losses in the form of huge bad loans with most of them collapsing. Through these youth programmes, NMB has managed to create its own knowledgeable and skilled experts who have been coming up with innovative banking products to reach the financially underserved people in the community.

For example, NMB Bank recently launched a Mastaboda loan where over 5bn/- set aside for lending bodaboda riders to help youths engage in this business formally and contribute to economic development. This is one of the innovative products that targeted bodaboda riders, a group in society that most lenders consider risky to deal with.

This initiative will benefit bodaboda riders in the country estimated to be more than 2 million in the country. Developing skilled and competent staff has been one of the fundamental factors that may have contributed to the NMB bank's outstanding performances as the most profitable bank, assets and balance sheet.

Commenting on the bank's profit in the first quarter this year that surged by 33 per cent to 65bn/- from 48.7bn/- in the corresponding period, NMB Bank Managing Director Ruth Zaipuna said that the solid performance reflects continued revenue growth momentum, disciplined cost-optimization, and enhanced loan portfolio management.

Through the Management Trainee Programme, more than 50 students have benefitted, talents identified from the higher learning institutions to work with NMB and after two years if they qualify they get employed. NMB is the only financial institution that pays students doing an internship where each year over 300 students get the chance and are given between three to 12 months contract to get more experiences.

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And last month, NMB Bank organised a career fair that brought together more than 1000 students from higher learning institutions in Zanzibar. The NMB career fair initiative focused on imparting skills to youth graduates to penetrate the labour market and discover new talents that will contribute to economic development.

The NMB Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar Zonal Manager, Donatus Richard said that the career fair will be held at the State University of Zanzibar (SUZA) to provide students with practical skills necessary in penetrating the labour market.

"Through the initiative, the bank will provide students with knowledge on financial literacy, various NMB accounts for them to save money to cater for life after completing their studies," he said. The Head of the Human Resource Department at NMB, Joanitha Rwegasira said through the event, they intend to meet more than 1000 students from 10 universities in Zanzibar.

"This is the first time for the bank to organise such a big event that bring together students from higher learning institutions and various experts to provide them guidelines on what to be done to penetrate the labour market," she said.

On his part, the president of Tanzania Employment Services Agency (AISEC), Michael Chacha said such workshops have been important platforms for students to creating self-awareness and also grasping employment opportunities.
The desk will focus on issues of human development including health and education.

As part of its contributions towards solution-driven journalism, Nigeria's leading investigative newspaper, PREMIUM TIMES, has created a development-focused desk.

The newspaper's Managing Editor, Idris Akinbajo, on Monday announced the creation of "Development Desk."

The desk, according to Mr Akinbajo will focus on issues of human development including health and education.

He also announced the appointment of Mojeed Alabi, former deputy head of investigations as the new head of the desk.

Mr Alabi holds a BA Certificate in English from Obafemi Awolowo University and Masters in Diplomacy and Strategic Studies (MDSS), from UNILAG.

He joined the defunct National Mirror Newspapers in 2010 and served as both education correspondent and campus page editor. He later moved to New Telegraph Newspaper in 2014 as correspondent before joining PREMIUM TIMES as deputy head of investigations.

The multiple award winning journalist won the education category of Nigerian Media Merit Award (NMMA) in 2012 and 2017. He won Human Rights Reporter of the Year of the same award in 2018.

Mr Alabi also won the Wole Soyinka Award for Investigative Reporting (Print Category) 2016 and 2018.

He is a recipient of Golden Pen Report of the Year (Sponsored by Nigerian Breweries) 2017 and 2018.

He was a fellow of the World Health Organisation's Road Safety Fellowship at the Road Safety Conference in Brazil in 2015 and also participated in the 2017 Global Investigative Journalism Conference at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.

PREMIUM TIMES in January, as part of a reorganisation to serve its readers more, announced the creation of the National News Desk, which succeeds the Politics Desk. The desk coordinates political and security/law enforcement coverages.

It also created Human Rights, Judiciary & Anti-Corruption Desk, headed by Ade Adesomoju, a veteran judiciary reporter who recently joined the organisation from PUNCH newspapers.
Northwest Indiana motorists planning to travel Interstate 65 through Indianapolis over the next 18 months should instead consider taking I-465 around the state's capital city in most circumstances.

Beginning Saturday, the "North Split" where I-65 and I-70 merge on the northeast side of downtown Indianapolis is closing until late 2022 so the highway and all overpasses can be reconstructed.

Motorists traveling southbound I-65 still can access downtown Indianapolis at West Street or continue onto eastbound I-70. Otherwise, the highway will be entirely closed from the North Split to Washington Street.

WATCH NOW: Riding Shotgun with NWI Cops: Monitoring LaPorte with Specialist Justin Dyer

Similarly, northbound I-65 motorists traveling from southern Indiana will be able to access downtown Indianapolis and westbound I-70 at the South Split, but won't be able to continue northbound beyond Washington Street.

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Travelers using I-465 instead can bypass all the construction and reconnect with I-65, I-70 or I-69 on the other side of Indianapolis.

More information about the project is available online at northsplit.com.

North split closure map

COVID-19: Hoosiers We've Lost
"Our regular staffers are agitating for salary increase, while about 150 others are also asking to be included in the salary structure."

Some staffers of Oke-Ogun Polytechnic, Saki, Oyo State, on Monday, took to the streets to protest alleged casualisation by the institution's management.

The protesting workers, who were armed with placards with various inscriptions, took to major streets in the town as early as 7 a.m., chanting solidarity songs.

They later assembled at the institution's gate at about 10 a.m.

The spokesperson of the workers, Adekunle Lookman, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the protest was staged to press home their demand for regularisation of their appointments.

"Some of us had been recruited since 2011 as casual staffers, with N20,000 monthly salary, which was later increased to N30, 000 before tax deduction.

"We want people to know that the state government is cheating us and they are calling us slaves for working for them.

"About 187 of us (teaching and non-teaching), with families and dependants, taking home less than N30,000 month. It is disgusting.

"Worst still, they have refused to regularise our appointment, even after using for accreditation of some of the courses," he said.

According to Mr Lookman, the protest had become necessary because the government had turned deaf ears to their demands, adding: "they are happy as we continue to suffer."

Another member of the group, Adebayo Samson, said the government had issued a white paper on the regularisation of their appointments, wondering why it had refused to implement it.

"This is a copy of the white paper that was issued in 2019 but up till today, it has not been implemented.

"What is happening to us here is nothing but modern-day slavery and cheating, hence our resolve to embark on this peaceful protest," Mr Samson said.

In his reaction, the institution's Governing Council Chairman, Olusola Ajayi, however, told NAN that it was not true that the white paper had not been implemented, adding that it was only the financial aspect of it that had not been given much attention.

"It is not true that we have not been implementing the while paper. It's only the financial aspect of it that remains to be implemented and we all know what the nation's economy is now," said Mr Ajayi, a professor.

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"The implementation has some financial implications on the government and the institution. Our regular staffers are agitating for salary increase, while about 150 others are also asking to be included in the salary structure.

"I have held several meetings with them, giving them explanations and asking them to be patient with us," he said.

Mr Ajayi added that at the last meeting of the governing council, salary increase option was considered for the affected workers pending the regularisation of their appointments.

"We also thought of absorbing 59 of them for now.

"Since they have decided to demonstrate today (Monday), it is their right to do so. I just want to plead that they should not spoil the progress we are already making on the matter," the governing council chairman said.

Meanwhile, efforts to reach the Commissioner for Education, Olasunkanmi Olaleye, for his reaction did not yield a result, as he declined calls put through to his cell phones.
The Nigerian Army and the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, yesterday, disagreed over the alleged deployment of northern commanders to south-east and south-south with the Igbo group frowning at the shoot-at-sight order given to Nigerian soldiers on Igbo youths.

Ohanaeze warned that Nigerian government should learn a lesson from history by not fighting an unwinnable war against nationalism, advising the Buhari- led government to "seek possible peaceful options that are the only solution that guarantees national unity and peaceful coexistence".

However, the Nigerian Army has denied the allegation even as it reiterated that postings in the force are routine exercises and are based on professional competences of its officers and personnel, adding that the Army does not train, deploy or operate along ethnic, religious, tribal or regional divides.

In a related development, the former national chairman of the People's Democratic Party, PDP, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo, yesterday, said that unknown gunmen killing policemen and vandalizing their facilities in the South East region have chosen a wrong target.

Ohanaeze Ndigbo in its statement noted that "the dream of Nigerian unity is receding and fading fast with violence, crises and conflicts".

In a statement by its spokesman, Alex Ogbonnia, the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Prof. George Obiozor was quoted as being "unequivocal that the current problems confronting Nigeria, example, ethnic militia, agitation for secession, insurgency, etc, are products of sustained orchestrated injustice in governance".

According to the statement: "The attention of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide has been drawn to the the pattern of deployment of northern military officers to the South-East which lends credence to the above report. An online medium revealed that in preparation for its shoot-at-sight order, the Nigerian army has posted Northern Muslims as commanders over its operations and brigades in Anambra, Imo, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Enugu, Benue, Edo, Delta and Rivers States.

"In Anambra State, the Cantonment Commandant of the 302 Artillery Regiment, Onitsha, is Col. Abdulsalam Abubakar Sambo, a Hausa-Fulani Muslim; while in Imo State, the Brigade Commander of 34 Brigade, Obinze, is Brig Gen Ibrahim Tukura, another northerner. In Abia State, the Brigade Commander of 14 Brigade, Ohafia, is Brig General M. Ibrahim, still, a northerner; while in Akwa Ibom State, the Brigade Commander of 2 Brigade, Uyo, is Brig Gen Faruk Mijinyawa, another northerner. This is truly worrisome!

"The Shoot at Sight Order given to the Nigerian soldiers on how to engage the Igbo youths in the oncoming week is worrisome. The Sahara Reporters, May 8, elaborated on the new secret plan which by the grace of God has come to the public domain.

"The report further revealed that the exercise will commence from Orlu in Imo State, South East Nigeria. This is very disturbing.

"The President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Ambassador Prof. George Obiozor, an erudite scholar, seasoned diplomat with diverse experience in governments, has admonished the Nigerian government to "learn a lesson from history by not fighting an unwinnable war against nationalism but seek possible peaceful options that are the only solution that guarantees national unity and peaceful coexistence.

"Obiozor lamented that subnational consciousness or ethno-centric nationalism which is a dangerous form of nationalism to national unity has taken over Nigeria. The dream of Nigeria unity is receding and fading fast with violence, crises and conflicts.

"Ohanaeze Ndigbo is unequivocal that the current problems confronting Nigeria, example, ethnic militia, agitation for secession, insurgency, etc, are products of sustained orchestrated injustice in governance. For instance, Senator Shehu Sani, the former senator for Kaduna Central, vehemently decried that the Igbo have been systematically marginalised since the civil war.

"Speaking in Kaduna at a meeting organised by the Association of Eze-Ndigbo in the Diaspora on Saturday, May 8, 2021, Sani described the marginalisation as a collective punishment.There has been a systemic exclusion and marginalisation of your people, stemming from the historical Biafra war. This is a collective punishment", he declared.

"Every right thinking Nigerian, who loves the corporate existence of Nigeria, should align with Shehu Sani's position. The problem with Nigeria in general and the Igbo in particular is located in injustice and the simple solution lays in manifest dialogue, equity and justice. Ohanaeze Ndigbo warns that Shoot-at- Sight Order to soldiers on Igbo youth is a call for another pogrom and genocide.Ohanaeze asks the federal government to refrain from the use of force in resolving the present national crises.

"History shows that military and violent means to solve the national question is bound to fail as it leads to further national fractionalization, anarchy and eventual or inevitable disintegration, as in all empires or multi-national states or countries".

Army denies allegations

Director of Army Public Relations, Brig Gen Mohammed Yerima who denied the allegation said officers are posted to command units based on their capability and taking into consideration their posting history.

The statement was titled, "Re: Nigerian Army Shuns Southern Officers, Deploy Northern Commanders to Quell Tension in South East".

It read: "The attention of the Nigerian Army (NA) has been drawn to an online publication with the above title.

"Ordinarily, the NA would have ignored this illogical narrative by the online media but for the good of members of the public.

"The NA condemns this report targeted at steering discord and disunity among peace loving Nigerians who have refused to be drawn into supporting the senseless attacks on security apparatus in the South East and South - South geo-political zones of the country.

"The NA being a national body does not promote or post its personnel along ethnic or religious lines.

"Postings in the NA are routine exercises and are based on professional competences not as portrayed by the baseless publication.

"For the records, let it be clear in everyone's mind that the NA does not train, deploy or operate along ethnic, religious, tribal or regional divides.

"Senior officers are posted to command units based on their capability and competence taking into consideration their posting history.

"Furthermore, Officers are the most frequently posted personnel of the NA.

"However, because of the bias and seed of discord that the author of the report wanted to sow, it did not allow him to do a thorough background check of his report.

"Part of the poorly scripted article states that NA's deployment is based on ethical line.

"To put the record straight, while it is true that the General Officer Commanding 82 Division Enugu, Major General Taoreed Lagbaja is from South West, the Commander 34 Brigade Owerri, Brigadier General Raymond Utsaha is from the North Central.

"Major General Gold Chibuisi is of the South East extraction and is also the General Officer Commanding 2 Division Ibadan which is the largest in number of states under command including 4 Brigades in Edo State.

"Equally, Brigadier General Farouk Mijinyawa was never the Commander of 16 Brigade as misrepresented by the writer.

"It is therefore clear that the concocted story lacks everything in terms of credibility and exists only in the pigment of the author's imagination.

"The NA urges the general public to know that in the past months, several subversive elements have attempted to discredit the formidable security network in the South East and the NA in line with her constitutional roles of aiding the civil authority deployed officers and men to checkmate the activities of these bad elements who are bent on wreaking havoc in the region.

"Furthermore, the NA would like to request all peace loving Nigerians to disregard the content of the said article in its entirety as it lacks common logic.

"The NA under the able leadership of the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru remains committed to the defence of the territorial integrity of Nigeria as well as protecting lives and properties of all citizens and residents in Nigeria.

"The NA further solicits for the continuous support of all patriotic Nigerians in stamping out activities of criminals including subversive and divisive elements for a peaceful and prosperous Nigeria."

Unknown gunmen in S'East have chosen wrong target --Nwodo

The former national chairman of the People's Democratic Party, PDP, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo, who said that the perpetrators of violence are making the region insecure by such acts, charged those behind the unholy activities to rechannel their efforts towards fighting gun-wielding herdsmen killing farmers and destroying crops in South East.

He, however, commended the governors of the zone for asking the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, to reconcile all the aggrieved parties in the region, adding that acts of vandalism is not the best approach towards the actualization of Biafra.

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He said "I don't understand these unknown gunmen killing policemen in South East. By the time they distabilize police formations in the zone, nobody would be safe anymore. If policemen have become their number one target, that means everybody in the zone is insecured. Policemen securing us are human beings and wouldn't want to lose their lives. Those behind the attacks have chosen a very wrong target.

"I believe the South East Governors' Forum has done the right thing by asking Ohanaeze Ndigbo to reconcile every aggrieved person in the zone. Before they reached that decision, some of us have come to that conclusion and have started our efforts with those who can reach out to IPoB and MASSoB leadership. We have made efforts to make their leadership understand that this is not the best way to actualise Biafra.

"There are better ways to fight this cause. Let's go to the bush and flush out criminal and gun-wielding herdsmen killing farmers and destroying crops in South East. The herdsmen are equally rapping our women. Killing policemen and vandalizing their facilities in our zone is not our problem now."

Gunmen kill five, set vigilance office, vehicle ablaze in Anambra

Meantime, five persons were feared dead when unidentified gunmen attacked Ozubulu community in Ekwusigo local government area of Anambra State last night.

The office of the local Vigilance outfit in the area and a vehicle were also set ablaze by the gunmen.

Among those killed included a business man who hailed from the community, while the identity of the other casualties could not be immediately ascertained.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Mr.. Ikenga Tochukwu, who confirmed the incident said however that he had not been briefed on the number of casualties.

"Yes, there was an attack in Ozubulu, but not the police station. Rather, it was the Vigilante office in the area.

"They came in Sienna vehicles and motorcycles and attacked the office. Security operatives have been deployed to the area and normalcy has been restored, " PPRO said

According to him, the number of the gunmen must be large, adding that they repeatedly shot in the air thereby scaring the residents.

Vanguard News Nigeria
Patayamatebele  The settlement of Patayamatebele in the North East district, may be small, but it has a rich history.

It is famous for its natural landscapes and rich cultural characteristics of numerous ethnic groups with tens of old gold mine shafts, holy places and an annual attraction for thousands of Catholic pilgrims.

The settlement's name literally translates to 'the passage of the Ndebele' after a group of the Ndebele people who used it as a corridor to cross into nearby Zimbabwe after their defeat by the Batswana and Boer in 1837.

Patayamatebele also hosts the ruins of the first known mining town and the first Catholic Church in Botswana.

The Old Tati graveyard also hosts the tombs of two pioneer Catholic missionary priests, making the place a holy site and the headquarters of the Catholic pilgrims in Botswana.

Every year, around October, on the feast of Our Lady of Fatima, thousands of pilgrims flock to the locality to enjoy prayer moments, stations of the cross, rosary walks and to go on spring tours.

Father Monnamongwe Letsatle of the Holy Family Church in Letlhakane seems to understand the story better as he was one of the committee members, led by Father Gabriel Gaie, the administrator of the Diocese of Francistown, to investigate the story.

He explained that Patayamatebele used to be the A1 road connecting Botswana to Bulawayo in Zimbabwe and South Africa. Father Letsatle recounted that on April 15 1879, a group of 11 Jesuits pioneer missionaries left St Aidan's College in Grahamstown, South Africa, enroute to the interior of Africa, arriving in Shoshong, Botswana in July 1879.

The adventure would see the Catholic Church taking root among the Batswana. He explains that many people believe missionaries came with the Bible and guns, stressing however that the 11 missionaries, from different countries, surely did not come to colonise but to evangelize.

Father Letsatle said the Zambezi missionaries, as they were called, were assigned by the Vatican's ministry for the propagation of faith in 1877, to evangelize Southern Africa, with a Belgian Jesuit, Father Henri Depelchin, who had served the last 18 years in Britain and India, appointed as the Superior of the Zambezi mission.

He explained that on July 23, 1879 they reached Shoshong, the then capital of Bangwato, with a population of about 10 000 people, where they met with Kgosi Khama the Great (Khama Boikanyo or Khama 111) and the brother to Kgamane, sons of Kgosi Sekgoma, the then 36-year-old Christian Chief of Bangwato, the dominant branch of the Batswana.

He said Kgosi Khama, the gentleman of Africa, as he was affectionately called, was to become the only regional chief to give a warm welcome to the missionaries, while many went on to be killed or starved to death by other chiefs.

"Khama was very cool in his reception, certainly due to the influence of the London Missionary Society, and in particular the resident missionary Father James Hepburn, and a certain visiting Father Sykes who were based much further north in Matabeleland," said Father Letsatle

He said Kgosi Khama stated he had no need for additional teachers (meaning the Catholics) as the Jesuits urged and argued that if they were both Christians, why did they have two parties undertaking the same work.

"He also appreciated that the Protestants and Catholics were very antagonistic towards each other, and that the presence of both may bring conflict among his tribe," he added.

Father Letsatle said Kgosi Khama was surprised by the second group of missionaries because he believed that God has to be served by one not many and he refused them land to stay and gave them permission to pass through.

"What surprises me is that Kgosi Khama prophesized long time ago that there should only be one church in the country, not many otherwise they would cause divisions among the tribe," he added.

Father Letsatle said after being disappointed, the 11 missionaries left Shoshong in July the same year and finally arrived at Patayamatebele, which was the former Old Tati, a small gold mine.

He explained that Tati was the last frontier of European settlement to any real extent and it was an important centre, where the roads from the south converged and those northwards diverged.

"As a result it had become an important trading centre from which supplies from the south could be more easily obtained. At the time there were only 19 European and twenty non-white settlers occupying six houses, which were all that remained of the settlement," said Father Letsatle.

He explained that the missionaries then started a mission, which they dedicated to the Immaculate heart of Mary.

These missions served white settlers and a few blacks, who were working on the gold mine and they later started a school which they named "Our Lady of Good Hope" which ran up to 1885, before the mission closed.

He explained that unfortunately, Father Fuchs was the first to die of unknown ailment nine months after leaving for Grahamstown, South Africa for medical attention. Little did the missionaries know that the place (Patayamatebele) was a fever trap because of the Tati river.

Father Letsatle said other missionaries then crossed into Zimbabwe to found other mission stations, whilst others went to Zambia to establish similar missions.

He said Father Anthony de Wet then took over the leadership of the mission in Old Tati, but he died in 1882. In March 1883, he said Father Prestage, the priest in charge of Old Tati mission, recorded in his diary that he had 13 native and two white children, together with three native adults in the mission school.

However, the whole enterprise was deemed not a success and the remaining miners crossed into nearby South Africa to work at the gold mines, which made it difficult to sustain the mission and it was eventually closed in September 1884.

Father Letsatle said Patayamatebele is where the first Motswana from the Catholic church was baptized, according to archeologist, a certain Mr Burret, who also investigated the area.

"This is one of the reasons why each and every year, Catholics gather at the grave to celebrate holy mass and make pilgrimage to the tombs of our ancestor priests, a spiritual journey accompanied by many promises from God associated with those who believe," he added.

Father Letsatle explained that on July 4, 1999, a commemorative plaque was erected at the head of the two priests' graves on behalf of the Jesuit Province of Zimbabwe.

The pilgrimage has strengthened and united the Diocese of Francistown despite its vast geographical reality.

He said there were reports of healings and miracles because this was a Godly place and that Catholics of the Diocese of Francistown consider the place a miraculous place.

"For the past three years that we have been here, we have experienced miracles and healings, be it spiritually, physically or mentally," he added.

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Father Letsatle said the Catholic Church was now working with the Ministry of Environment Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism and the Department of Museums to pursue spiritual tourism, where the locals can benefit from tourism surrounding spiritual activities.

"We do not want the place to be the monopoly of the church, other Christians are welcomed to pray at the place," he added.

He explained that the place was a package for tourism, adding "the place is quiet and offers good retreat and spiritual exercises".

He said the place had a lot of tourism activities because Patayamatebele or Old Tati was the first area of gold mining exploration in Southern Africa, adding that this was the reason why Botswana was regarded as the headquarters of mining in Southern Africa.

Father Letsatle explained that there were also old ruins at the site and at the centre of the ruins is a pyramid, which was now being threatened by weather conditions, lamenting that Botswana was about lose one of its first monuments if action is not taken immediately.

He also stated that there was also a smelter, which was used by miners to smelt gold at the site.

He said, the river (Tati) was also a natural attraction because along it, there are farmers who are also willing to host tourists, adding that the place also had potential for agro tourism.

Father Letsatle said last year, church members could not gather at the place to worship due to COVID-19 but this year, like it or not, the event will go ahead as planned in October, as they have put in place all COVID-19 protocols.

He said the church had applied to be allocated the land, not just to protect it, but to secure it or make it safe for people to pray in the bush.

Source : BOPA
Burundian refugee and chief executive officer (CEO) of Inua Consulting, Innocent Magambi, has asked the Malawi Government to consider reviewing its 1989 Refugee Legislation, arguing the existing laws are too oppressive and retrogressive.

Magambi argues that the current refugee laws do not conform to the United Nations (UN) Convention on Human Rights since they were drafted when the influx of displaced people from Mozambique meant that an estimated 14 percent of people in Malawi where refugees.

The existing laws restrict refugees' freedom of movement, employment, education, healthcare, integration and citizenship, among others.

He has made the sentiments in the article he calls 'My Story' in which he gives a picture of his journey from Burundi to Dzaleka Refugee Camp.

The 41-year-old Magambi was born in a refugee settlement in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from Burundian parents.

He says he was 13 when Burundi held its first democratic elections and a former refugee from his tribe was voted into power.

"I came to Dzaleka refugee camp in Malawi in 2003, I was 23 years old. Living amongst thousands of people all in desperate need for a chance to live a 'normal life' outside of the camp's confines, I was beyond blessed to meet a team from Capital City Baptist Church. They kept in touch with me and later sponsored me to go to Assemblies of God School of Theology in Lilongwe," narrates Magambi in his story.

In his story, Magambi says he came to Malawi with two objectives: to escape forced enrolment in a rebel army and to find a place I could call home.

He says he never knew what God had in store for him such as becoming the Founder and Executive Director of a successful charity that employs dozens of Malawians, publishing an autobiography, meeting President Obama, becoming the CEO of Inua Consulting.

"Malawi is at a turning point, I believe, for the better. We have learnt how to positively exercise the democratic right to influence political action. My being exposed to the teaching and preaching of many Christian leaders, including the now Head of State, President Lazarus Chakwera, opened my horizons; hence, I went to on to found There is Hope, a charity that would support both refugees and Malawians in need," he writes.

Magambi claims that many Malawians are confidently testifying that refugees are not a threat but simply a part of society: they have become spouses and friends, employers and teachers, barbers and business partners.

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He therefore laments that the Malawi Government has not revised its refugee policies since 1989 although there have been positive benefits accruing from the refugees over the decades.

He says there is enough development potential in Malawi for the two communities to thrive together, building on each other's strengths.

Magambi emphasizes that while the Malawi Government is revising bad laws to unlock the development of its people, may they remember refugees who have been living among them for many years.

"The current refugee population in Malawi stands at around 0.2 percent of the total number of people living here. Whereas over the years, refugee laws have not been consistently enforced, the current government is now implementing a hardline re-encampment instead of adopting the already revised refugee laws," reads the article in part.

Magambi adds that as the law stands, Claudine, a 19-year-old Dzaleka-born who wants to go to College of Medicine in Lilongwe, will be required to get a 'refugee conventional passport' from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services before he can apply for a student visa and pay international student fees, which are MK 6,800,000 against MK 550,000 for Malawians.

But in an exclusive interview with CNN last week, President Chakwera said his government is simply enforcing the law.

[END]
Kasane  President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi has described the multi-million Kazungula Bridge as a testimony that Zambia is Botswana's key development partner and of the close bilateral relations between the two countries.

He was speaking yesterday at the commissioning of the project by African Union (AU) chairperson and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) president, Mr Felix Tshisekedi.

President Masisi said the bridge, located at a point where Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia meet, had historical significance to the liberation of southern Africa as it was constructed close to the only safe gateway for refugees.

The bridge, he said, was expected to contribute towards enhancing the livelihoods of citizens and facilitate inter-regional trade.

Dr Masisi noted that Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe governments had agreed in principle to be partners in the bridge revealing that officials were working on the completion of remaining works by Zimbabwe.

He said Botswana was optimistic that the bridge would create jobs as goods from Lesotho, Eswatini, Angola, DRC, South Africa, Namibia, Kenya and other countries beyond would use it.

It was therefore a symbolism of African Free Trade Agreement, he said.

The President said the bridge would provide business opportunities for young people in southern Africa and beyond.

He also informed the gathering that Botswana would in September host the first Forbes Under 30 Summit in Gaborone and Kasane which would attract over 600 young people across the world.

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For his part, President Edgar Lungu of Zambia said the bridge would decongest traffic at Kazungula and contribute to the development of the two countries as well as the SADC region.

Mr Lungu applauded citizens of the two countries for their patience and hard work during the construction of the bridge, which he said would operate 22 hours daily.

According to President Tshisekedi, the bridge was in line with the AU objective of creating an African single market and a response to the continent's vision of infrastructure development.

He commended Botswana and Zambia for the achievement saying it was an inspiration to other African states.

The P1.9 million three-phased project, which commenced in 2014, consists of the bridge and a one-stop border post in each of the two countries.

Source : BOPA
When Fatima went out on April 16th 2016 to protest, it was for demanding Solo Sandeng and other activists "dead or alive". She did not realise it will kick start series of events that will see her in room in a police dormitory in Kanifing, while three ski-masked men took turns to rape her in the dark.

She is now 41. Fatima (not her real name) was a married, middle-aged woman with two sons at the time. A dedicated political activist to the cause of her party in the fight to end dictatorship in The Gambia. After narrating her arrest, detention and rape to her husband, she got divorced and blamed for what she endured at the hands of law enforcement.

Her younger son, then only five, died from asthma. She continues to be steadfast as a single parent. To her, the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparation Commission's search for truth and forging reconciliation would not be complete until perpetrators of such crimes in national uniforms are purged from service and brought to justice.

"The worst feeling is that I continue to suffer psychological trauma from this experience. I am still under medical treatment for spinal problems due to baton beatings, kicking from hard boots and falling over and over while they beat me up like a thing or an animal and I was seeking to run away for safety," she narrated when our reporter visited her house over the weekend.

How it happened

In 2016, Solo Sandeng led a group of political activists to March for electoral reforms in The Gambia. They were met with brutal force. Arrested, beaten, resulting in his death. Two days later, his party leader also led a peaceful march demanding Solo's body, dead or alive.

Again, they were met with force. A lot of the top party executive members, comprising many old aged politicians, got arrested, beaten, injured and charged with various crimes.

On this fateful day, Fatima was among the protestors, demanding Solo's body from NIA custody. After a clash around the Africell-Comium vicinity along Kairaba Avenue, she too got arrested and put into the back of a pick-up car with other women.

"Our party leader gave instructions for all to stay behind him and the executive members, so that when shots are fired, he would be the first victim. We marched on and chanted our demands when a truck full of armed Police Intervention Personnel came upon us. They fired tear gas at us from all corners, while others randomly beat us with batons and gun butts. I fled but I was caught," she narrated.

On this day, she got lucky and was able to jump out and run for cover while others were rounded up and the vehicle was left unguarded.

"What shocked me even more was seeing Baa Ousainou being gun-butted on his head, blood dripping down his body... My heart melted with anger at the same time; my desire for fighting to the end had raised even more. His peers like Dibba, Jammeh, Peters and other youths like Hon Lamin S Darboe, all suffered the same fate. It was The Gambia that made us risk it all," she said, as her voice trembled.

Fatima seemed broken but she is certainly not the giving up type as she explained her story, seated on the sofa in her living room just before the break of fast.

"How did you get raped?"

Fatima never granted an interview to speak about this. It's a taboo in The Gambian culture to discuss sex openly, talk less of your rape experiences. She took comfort in knowing that it would be an end to an ear of oppression, dictatorship and abuse.

"What's at stake was not the freedom of our leaders alone. It was the death of our struggle for freedom from Jammeh; the triumph of our party over dictatorship. It took us twenty years to reach there," she recalled with a dint of pride in her face as she smiled.

When Ousainou Darboe and UDP executive members were charged by the state for that peaceful march as a crime, it was under a law enacted by the colonial British government in the 1940s that became even strengthened by former dictator Jammeh.

In the Second Republic in The Gambia, the government had the same objectives: crush dissent, impose order on the masses and throw outspoken opponents in prison. Jammeh turned out to be worse than the colonialists in this case.

The ensuing trials gave birth to a new revolution organised, headed and driven by women. This was the Kalama (calabash) revolution. Fatima, again, goes to court, each sitting to show solidarity with their leaders. Security was usually tight at the courts and around Banjul. Yet, they were undeterred; their solidarity with their leaders was needed. Another clash would occur.

On another of those trial days, there was a clash with PIU guards at the Court premises: "They were deterring us from entering the premises. They had put up metal bars to keep us at bay. When one of our old-aged supporters got his leg broken after he was pushed by a PIU guard, reactions were tense. Fighting nearly ensued between us and the guards. A female PIU officer also broke her leg in the clash," she narrated.

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This gave rise to another ambush against the women as she alleged that PIU guards laid in wait at the Kanifing barracks when news of the clash reached them. They were armed in riot gears waiting for the women as they marched from Banjul to Westfield on foot.

"Before we knew, troops were dispatched against us and we were being beaten with batons, gun butts and kicked with boots. We ran for safety and I fell. I cried for help as we received multiple baton beatings all around our bodies," she recalled, adding that she got arrested this time and taken into custody.

"At night, they came and took four of us away... one after the other. They wore ski-masks and we did not know their identities. We never saw their faces except commands and threats to subdue me into submission. I fought and screamed with all my energy. I was helpless and cried but tears would not save me. I just laid there and looked at the ceiling... ."
TECHWORLD Oil Company, a Gambian-owned company engaged in oil and gas business last Saturday donated 1000 bags of 50kg rice to various communities where their petrol stations are located.

Various Kabilos in Gunjur received 550 bags of rice while nine other communities where their petrol stations are located received 50 bags of rice each.

The handing over was done at the beneficiary community petrol stations.

The company which currently employs over 300 Gambians and non-Gambians has been operating in the country for over a decade with over fifteen operational service stations across the country.

Yankuba Darboe, Gunjur Masjid Imam expressed appreciation with the gesture which he said came at a time when people needed it.

He added that the gesture was not the first as the company has been really supportive to the community over the years.

Pa Masaw Jobe, Sinchu Alagie Village Development Committee (VDC) Chairman said they really appreciate the generosity which is timely.

Alieu Saine, Village Development Committee (VDC) Chairman for Old Yundum said: "this is a gesture we highly welcome and very much appreciate".

Sanyang village alkalo Ousman Saidy thanked the company for the generosity that he said was the second in a row since the establishment of the company at the community. He said Tech World also supported vulnerable families in the community with cash during the Ramadan.

TECHWORLD's passion is delivering standard quality services for Gambian citizens, thereby creating employment for the masses. The company aims to positively contribute to change the economic conditions of The Gambia.
Hon. Ousman Ceesay of Sabach Sanjal, Fatou Secka, and Marget Touray blamed the ex-commander of the Anti-Crime Unit, Gorgui Mboob for the arrest, detention and tortures of Sabach Njien villagers, which resulted in pregnancy loss of six women.

Testifying before the TRRC yesterday, the villagers insisted that Mboge, who was the officer commanding in Farafenni at the time of the incident, ordered the paramilitaries to beat and arrest all people residing at Sabach Njien.

Hon. Touray explained that during the 2012 councilor elections, he represented NRP and lost, saying he knew the election wasn't fair but he admitted and signed the results.

He said the following day, he prepared a charity in his house and all of a sudden, a police officer came asking for the key of their tractor which he refused. Hon. Touray added that the paramilitaries used force on them and upon their arrival at the village, they clashed with the villagers and Gorgui Mboob sustained some injuries. The witness told the commission that he was taken to Farafenni Police Station and upon arrival; Commander Mboob said they would regret the matter because he had sustained injuries. He said Mboob called for reinforcement to arrest the rest of the villagers.

"About 70 people were arrested from the village and the men were 46. The women were harassed at the station and I didn't like it. The paramilitaries said the women wanted to be warriors, but they would regret it. There was a woman who delivered 3 days before the incident. I told the police to help keep the baby somewhere else but they asked me to shut up."

"Mboge was threatening the women to deal with them. He said if to fight with the government was our aim, we would regret it. We were packed in a tight cell and we were not able to pray. My uncle was among the arrestees and some while after the incident, he died. The women were packed under a mango tree and they suffered there under the sun with mosquitoes beating them."

The witnesses said they spent two nights and a day before being arranged at the Farafenni District Tribunal and subsequently granted bailed. He added that he was denied bail and remanded at Janjanburreh prison but the court agreed for a settlement in order to acquit and discharge the women and the men fined D300.

Fatou Secka, also explained that the security beat them mercilessly, adding some were dragged from their houses and mosques. She said her co wife and husband were dragged from their own houses and taken away.

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"The arrest started from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. At the course of the arrest, I was pregnant for 4 months and carrying a 3-year-old boy. I lost my pregnancy due to the forceful evacuation by the paramilitaries. My 3-year-boy was separated from me in the car. The police didn't charge us, instead they told us to pretend to be warriors."

She testified that Mboge threatened them, saying he must beat them. She continued that food was given to them by their nearby relatives.

"My boy still suffers from sickness. Jarra Njang was wounded by the paramilitaries but she wasn't taken to any hospital."

Maget Touray told the commission that at the time of the arrest, she was pregnant for 5 months but lost it due to the manner in which she was handled, dragged and beaten by the paramilitaries.

"Other six women who were pregnant also lost their pregnancies as a result of the incident. They beat us mercilessly and people were taken from their rooms, and mosques. Most of the pregnant women lost their pregnancies while at the police and others days after the incident."

She confirmed that the police never took any statement from them, saying she has not been well since the incident.
editorial

Mr. President, there is debate on whether former President Yahya Jammeh should be granted amnesty or face justice.

On the other hand, some people believe that you could return Jammeh his properties for him to come back and eventually support your party.

However, the evidence gathered from the Janneh Commission and Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission are clear manifestations that Yahya Jammeh cannot be given any privileges of a retired Head of State. Yahya Jammeh should face the full force of the law for Economic crimes and Murder. Granting him amnesty will be a mockery of the victims and most Gambians. His presence in the country could possibly destabilise the country and even affect the economy of the country especially in the areas of tourism and trade.

Mr. President, during Yahya Jammeh's regime, people lived in fear. Through his instructions, the "junglers" killed innocent people, including West African Migrants mostly Ghanaian citizens. People were detained for several months. Junglers tortured and incarcerated many of them.

How can someone like that be granted amnesty? Many of the people who encouraged Jammeh to stay in power are the ones supporting you. It is best not to believe them, for politics is about interest and not friendship. Many of the people surrounding you now are not your genuine partners.

Mr. President, after the Janneh Commission concluded its findings, people asked the following questions: How many of Jammeh's properties were sold? How much did the government collect from it? What were the monies used for? How many of those properties are unsold? and why the sale of Jammeh's properties were halted. People are waiting for answers.

When former President Yahya Jammeh seized power in 1994, he earned D10 000 per month. When he was elected President in 1996, he earned D170 000 p.a. During the course of his presidency, he acquired 300 properties in The Gambia and one in the United States. He owned 4 aircrafts and 86 Bank Accounts; he sold several rams and cows as well.

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Mr. President, you have been elected by the people. The people voted for you for change, good governance, respect for Human Rights, Rule of Law and to strengthen democracy amongst others.

Therefore, you cannot grant amnesty to Yahya Jammeh, especially not for the aim of getting the support of his political party; APRC. Many people believe this assumption. Gambians will assess your performance and make informed decisions before they elect you or not. No political party can make you win.

Mr. President, your government should not set aside the recommendations of the Janneh Commission and the Constitutional Review Commission. People are still waiting for the proposed security sector reform. The recommendation of the TRRC which is due this July should also be implemented. You take these actions for the Presidential elections; if not, you will have a slim chance of succeeding in the elections. The people want to know why resources were wasted with the Janneh Commission and the Constitutional Review Commission.

Finally Mr. President, it has been widely speculated on social media that The Gambia is about to lose Gam-Petroleum to a foreign business ownership. Mr. President in your independence speech on the 18th February 2021, you vowed that your administration will defend the sovereignty of The Gambia and the freedom and liberties of the people. Gambians will be disappointed if there is a change in this determination. Of worry to Gambians in recent times, is the lack of protection to our water resources, forestry resources, land and transit trade hurdles, etc among others. The future of the country is hanging in the balance unless we act now to stop giving up on protecting the national interest.

Happy Eid in advance to you, our readers and advertisers.

Good day!
Alhagie Saine, proprietor of Kono Enterprise Ltd. has said Gambian people should commend the owner of Jah Group Company limited for investing enormously and for contributing immensely to scaling down the high youth unemployment rate in the country.

Speaking to The Point exclusively, Mr. Saine said "Obviously Gambians should commend the Jah Group for the massive investment it is doing in the country."

He said the proprietor of Jah Group has decided to invest enormously in oil and cement businesses in the country just to put the aforementioned goods at the doorsteps of all Gambians without burden of paying fares from and to commercial centers to purchase these goods.

"Every Jah Oil Petroleum Station in the country has a building materials store includes cement just to ensure people have access to these materials at a reasonable price without travelling far," he reiterated.

Speaking further, he said the Jah Group has nothing less than five hundred workers with good salaries such as mechanical engineers, drivers, salesmen among others.

Saine described Jah as a key development partner to the Gambia government, saying his company is hugely contributing to lowering youth unemployment in the Gambia by creating job opportunities for the youth.

"The owner of Jah Group has been helping the needy and currently sponsoring mosques around the country," he said.

The proprietor of Jah Oil has enormously invested on oil, gases, importation of rice, bakery, cement among other building materials and sell all these items at his petroleum stations across the country.

Consequently, Mr Saine has joined many Gambians' call on him (Jah) to invest in rice production using the river Gambia. He said if this company invests in rice cultivation it will reduce the high cost of rice to the purchasing power of average Gambians.

Saine advised all workers and partners of the Jah Group to demonstrate high sense of honesty while working with him, justifying that Mr. Jah is immensely contributing to national development and helping the poor.

The owner of Kono Enterprise said the Gambia government should recognise the good work of Jah Group and all investors in the country and provide hundred percent support to business people to ensure rapid national development.

In conclusion, he urged the Gambian tycoon to keep the momentum and hasten helping the vulnerable.
The Indiana General Assembly voted May 10 to override Gov. Eric Holcomb veto, which now sets limits on local health departments powers.

Indianas public health officials had warned about unintended consequences in their ability to issue and enforce emergency health orders if changes in Indiana Senate Enrolled Bill 5 went through.

The bill, which was crafted primarily as a check in response to COVID-19 restrictions, stated that a local order regarding an aspect of a declared emergency addressed by an executive order could not exceed the latter. A health order also couldnt go into effect if no executive order on the matter was in place.

"SEA 5 brings important balance with regard to personal freedoms and public health," according to a written statement from Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray. "Since the onset of the pandemic, Gov. Holcomb has relied on his advisors  including his state-level public health officer  to provide him with the information he needs in order to make decisions on how to lead our state. SEA 5 creates the same setup at the local level and allows action to be taken quickly if needed. We fully expect our local leaders to heed the advice of those with expertise around them, including local health officers. However, our local elected officials were elected to lead their communities, just like the governor leads the state, and those local officials are ultimately accountable to the voters."

State Sen. Chris Garten, R-Charlestown, who's also assistant majority caucus chair, released a written statement that read in part, "I appreciate what the appointed local health officers across our state have done in the face of the pandemic, but it's critically important we have elected officials making the final decisions in the communities they serve. When religious liberties are limited, family businesses are being closed and fines are being imposed on Hoosiers for simply living their lives, structural checks and balances need to be in place  SEA 5 is exactly that. I'm confident this policy will improve public accountability by giving elected officials greater oversight in these difficult decisions."

Drew Anderson, spokesman for the Indiana Democratic Party, in anticipation of the veto override, sent out a statement ahead of the General Assembly vote that read, Another day, another moment where the Indiana Republican Party is showing Hoosiers they'd rather prioritize extreme partisanship and their ongoing civil war than actually improve the lives of our state and its families. Hoosiers are looking for responsible government, and Democrats have been delivering for them - starting with the American Rescue Plan. Indiana Democrats will continue to look after the safety and future of Indiana while the Republicans fight with themselves to the detriment of working Hoosiers."

Holcomb, in a May 4 letter to Bray, explained his reasoning for vetoing the measure, including how well economically Indiana has come through the COVID-19 pandemic and stated among his reasons for the veto that local health officials must use localized data to tailor their decisions to their communitys needs. ... One reason Indiana has weathered the storm so well is due to coordination with local health experts and the flexibility in law to be fast, nimble and targeted.

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The bill had among its co-authors State Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne; Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle; Sen. Sue Glick, R-LaGrange; Sen. Dennis Kruse, R-Auburn; Sen. Justin Busch, R-Fort Wayne; and had among its sponsors Rep. Matt Lehman, R-Berne.

The Indiana General Assembly passed the bill before adjourning the last week of April.

Dr. Jeremy Adler, the Tippecanoe County health officer and representative of the Indiana State Association of County and City Health Officials, and Susan Jo Thomas, past president of Indiana Public Health Association and executive director of Covering Kids & Families of Indiana, issued a joint statement that read, We are extremely disappointed in the Indiana Legislatures decision to override Gov. Holcombs veto of Senate Enrolled Act No. 005. This legislation is a dangerous overreaction to life-saving measures taken by local health departments during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Indianas local public health officials must now face even more hurdles to protect the health and safety of their communities. The impact will be immediate and unnecessary lives will be lost. We simply cannot understand why our own legislators would choose to put more Hoosiers in harms way.

"Our states primary problems regarding public health have little to do with decision-making authority. At a foundational level, Indiana lacks the infrastructure necessary to properly carry out its public health functions. We rank 48th in state funding for public health, which leads to a lack of resources, insufficient staffing and less desirable health outcomes for our population.

"We hope that this legislation will be reconsidered in the future. Our 1,300+ local health department employees, as well as thousands of other doctors, nurses, public health professionals and hospital leaders are more than willing to collaborate on meaningful efforts to improve public health in Indiana.
THE police in the Zambezi region are waiting for Namibian Police inspector general Sebastian Ndeitunga to decide the next move after a confrontation between the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) and tourists along the Chobe River.

Zambezi police commander deputy commissioner Evans Simasiku on Monday said a report about the incident has been submitted to Ndeitunga's office.

"We made some consultations this morning [Monday] and interviewed the victims. We forwarded the report to the office of the inspector general for further directives," said Simasiku.

It is alleged that a BDF patrol unit pointed an AK-47 rifle at tourists and Namibians on a boat cruise along the Chobe River over the past weekend.

The Botswana armed unit allegedly brought in a mounted gun and ordered the tourists to vacate the area, saying it is Botswanan territory.

Two cruise boats, carrying 20 passengers and two crewmen, are said to have been ordered out of the waters claimed to be the territory of Botswana.

The incident has been condemned by the Namibian Lives Matter movement, which has accused president Hage Geingob of failing to decisively deal with confrontations along the border between the Zambezi region and Botswana. Incidents on the border have seen Namibians being shot and killed by the BDF.

The shootings have angered Namibians while Geingob and Botswana's president Mokgweetsi Masisi have called for calm while investigations are carried out.
-Provides six (6) Internships to graduates of UL 101st Convocation class

The Ministry of Finance and Development Planning through its research and policy analysis unit, the Liberia Macroeconomic Policy Analysis Center (LIMPAC), has provided internship opportunities to six graduates and duxes of the University of Liberia Economic Department, with average cumulative GPA ranging from 3.00 to 3.58.

At the official program marking the welcoming ceremony of the six (6) interns, Mr. Del- Francis Wreh, Executive Director of LIMPAC speaking on behalf of the Minister of Finance and Development, Samuel D. Tweah, Jr. welcomed the interns and expressed how excited the Minister Tweah and the entire MFDP feel to have them start their profession sojourn within the MFDP at this critical time when Liberia needs more emerging professional in economics and policy analyses. Mr. Wreh expressed his confidence in the ability of interns to diligently and respectfully transform their knowledge into practical work while at LIMPAC and the MFDP. He also expressed his appreciation for three graduates from the UL Honor Scholars Program who are excellently working as payroll analysts at the Civil Servant Agency and challenge the new interns to emulate the hard work and diligence of their colleagues.

The LIMPAC Executive Director also elaborated that MFDP and LIMPAC engagement with the University of Liberia especially the Economics Department is purely academic and capacity building support for deserving students and graduates and as such the internship offer is consistent with the entity functions and responsibilities. This is also fulfilment of Pillar One (1) of the Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD) which supports Human Capital Development under the Liberian Government, Mr. Wreh stressed.

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For her part, Hon. Rebecca Y. Mcgill, Deputy Ministry of Administration, Ministry of Finance & Development Planning urged the interns to be humbled, if they wish to pursue greatness in their professional careers. She further admonished them to respect their authority as they should share respect for each other.

With the supervision of LIMPAC's senior technicians, the interns are to serve in various positions and assignment, ranging from data collection and analyses, policy analyses and research, and report writing for an initial period of 3-months ending June 2021 but for renewable to new contract and permanent employment based on the performance of the interns.

The Liberia Macroeconomic Policy Analysis Center (LIMPAC) is a research Think Tank within the Ministry of Finance & Development Planning. It is charged with the responsibility among other things to conduct research and build capacity across government. Its mission is to foster sustainable and transformative growth and development in Liberia by adequately supporting Public Policy design and its implementation through evidence-based research and analysis.
The Military Police Unit of the Armed Forces Liberia (AFL) has presented a preliminary report to the office of AFL Chief of Staff Maj/Gen. Prince C. Johnson, III, for further actions on the rape allegation brought against Lieutenant Colonel Nyankun E. Williams, one of AFL's senior officers.

The Ministry of Defense in Monrovia says in a release dated 10 May that the investigation however continues because the initial report reveals the absence of the complainant who is yet to arrive in the country from Temporary Duty of the Year (TDY) in Mali.

The Armed Forces of Liberia assures the general public that it remains a "Force for Good" in serving the people of Liberia, as it will continue to update the public on a timely basis. The AFL's High Command last month relieved Lieutenant Colonel Nyankun E. Williams of his post as Commandant of the Armed Forces Training Command (AFTC) on allegation of rape.

In a press release issued Thursday, 29 April by the Ministry of Defense, the authorities said the AFL High Command had forwarded Lieutenant Colonel Williams to the Military Police to face investigation.

The Military Police was due to conclude its investigation on 10 May 2021, and submit its findings to the AFL High Command for further actions.

On 26 April 2021, Sergeant Obento Roberts, presently serving the United Nations Peacekeeping Missions in Mali, formally complained against Lieutenant Colonel Nyankun E. Williams of allegedly having sexual intercourse with his (Roberts') 16 years old daughter.Meanwhile, the Defense Ministry said Sergeant Obento Roberts has been recalled from the peacekeeping mission to aid the Military Police in the investigation.

The AFL High Command assured the public that all recommendations emanating from the investigation will be fully executed. At the same time the AFL assured the public that it will not tolerate any act that has the propensity to undermine the integrity of the Armed Forces of Liberia.
In an effort to buttress government's efforts in the health sector of Liberia, a Liberian based in the United States of America Ms. Patricia Verdier has begun the construction of an 18 - bedroom state of the art clinic in the Thinkers Village Community in Paynesville, Montserrado County.

Liberia is considered one of the low income countries in the world with poor healthcare services.

Addressing reporters over the weekend, the US - based Liberian said the construction project is valued at US$300,000, noting that the project started two years ago and it was her own way of helping the government by giving back to her country with the provision of quality and affordable healthcare services.

The clinic when completed, will cater to the health needs of Liberians most especially children, pregnant women, old folks and others in an effort to provide better and quality health care in the Thinkers Village Community and Montserrado County at large.

The vision of Ms. Verdier came as a result of several medical malpractices at several hospitals, clinics and other health centers across Liberia. She said these medical malpractices lead to death of others while some suffer from medical conditions for life.

Sharing a sad story that pushed her to get involved into constructing the facility, Ms. Verdier explained that it has been two years now since a lady gave birth to a boy at a public hospital in Monrovia and a nurse on duty allegedly tried to draw blood from the child.

She claimed that the nurse tied a glove on the leg of the child, forgot about the glove and it was left on the child's leg for a day or two, thereby preventing the child's blood from flowing through the leg.

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According to her, when the mother noticed that her child's condition was changing and asked the nurse as to what was going on, nobody responded to the mother.

Ms. Verdier continued that later the baby and the mother were transferred to a referral hospital to get better treatment, but after several medical treatments, test and examinations, the baby's leg was amputated just from the nurse's alleged mistake.

Ms. Verdier said because of lack of money to hire a lawyer to seek justice for the child, no one gave the parents any answer as to why the child's leg was amputated. She said this has inspired her a lot to provide quality and better health services to her country, community and people.

"This is what prompted me to get involved in building this clinic which I think will help residents of this community and the country at large," she said.

"It's my community and the people that made me who I am today. I want to put lives first, save lives before money, this is my vision and passion for this work," Ms. Verdier explained.

Also Speaking with reporters at the project site, the project engineer Anthony L. Dogba called on Liberians most especially humanitarians at home and abroad to join Ms. Verdier to complete such a great initiative to provide better health care.-Edited by Winston W. Parley
-Weah throws out the challenge

Dugbe Statutory District, Sinoe County: President George Weah has urged citizens to hold him accountable for developmental promises he has continued to make as he tours the 15 counties across the country.

Speaking Sunday at his 50th town hall meeting in Karquekpo city, Dugbe District, Sinoe County, President Weah reiterated that citizens should hold him accountable for what he says and not what somebody says of him.

"I want you to hold me accountable for what I say, not what somebody says," Mr. Weah said as he concluded his 50th town hall meeting in this year alone.

Since February 12, 2021, President Weah has toured 13 of the 15 counties in the country, telling citizens thank you for voting him in office and at the same time promising to undertake developmental projects in their areas. The President began his tour in Bong County through Nimba, Grand Gedeh, Rivergee, Maryland and Grand Kru Counties on the first leg.

On his second leg, the President toured the western regional counties of Bomi, Gbapolu and Grand Cape Mount before embarking on the just-ended third leg, which includes Margbi, Grand Bassa, Rivercess and Sinoe Counties.

In each of the 13 counties visited and at each of the 50th town hall meetings, President Weah has repeated his message of thank you to the citizens, while committing his government to their developmental needs by promising to construct roads, schools, hospitals, vocational schools, youth and women centers.

He also disclosed soft loans for women and $16 million agriculture loan for farmers, among others and at the same time breaking grounds for new projects such as rural housing units, hydro in Rivergee County, while dedicating other projects.

Mr. Weah has also throughout his tour informed citizens of steps his administration is taking to develop the country saying, "they said we knew nothing and shouldn't have voted us in office, and we that don't know nothing are the ones now developing the country.

President Weah stated that no county will be left behind in his administration's developmental agenda.

"We have planted the seeds of development and you will reap it," the President told citizens at one of his town hall meetings in Grand Bassa.

At his just ended tour in Sinoe, President Weah broke grounds for the construction of health centers, dedicated vocational centers and called for unity in a county polarized with division and in-fighting, coupled with land dispute in neighboring Rivercess County.

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However, he called on local leaders to iron out their differences and work in the interest of their people, while encouraging citizens to keep the peace because without it the work of government will be difficult.

"I don't want anyone to misconstrue what I am about to say. We will help (District #2 Representative Samson Quejue Wiah) to succeed", Weah said as he urged other lawmakers to take advantage of developmental efforts in their districts and villages. Meanwhile, President Weah is expected to visit Lofa County shortly before wrapping up his tour in rural Montserrado.

It is not clear whether the President can fulfill all of the promises he is making across the country, but one thing that is sure is that he has asked citizens to work with their lawmakers to bring them to pass.
-Condemn death threat against Chief Justice

Liberian judges say a recent threat [by Mark Jabateh] to kill Chief Justice Francis S. Korkpor, Sr., and an earlier arson attack against Associate Justice Joseph Nagbe's home by some individuals are a threat to all judges here, condemning the incidents as slowly but surely creeping evil that imposes on the judiciary.

Delivering a charge Monday, 10 May at the opening of the circuit courts in Monrovia, Criminal Court "D" Judge Nelson T. Tokpa, on behalf of his colleagues, said the threatening remarks against Chief Justice Korkpor and any member of the Supreme court Bench "is a threat against all judges."

"Therefore, judges are concerned about the [threatening] remarks made against Chief Justice Francis S. Korkpor, Sr. and the Arson attack made against the home of Associate Justice Joseph N. Nagbe by some individuals," Judge Tokpa said.

He furthered that if he were to select a topic to discuss for the opening of the circuit courts for the May Term, it would be "Current Trend in the Judiciary" and this should be for no other reason than that of showing the slowly but surely creeping evil that imposes on the Judiciary."

Judge Tokpa pleaded for a halt and farewell to what he called a destructive element known as "delay of trial," and in its place, a right turn and forward match for the purpose of reducing or clearing out the dockets in the courts here.

Judge Tokpa's comments on came Monday after a recent threat by Mark Jabateh to kill Liberia's Chief Justice Francis S. Korkpor, Sr. if a single Mandingo man got killed in a land dispute in Nimba County.

"If a single Mandingo man is killed in Nimba County today, some of us will sacrifice our lives because enough is enough! We have been marginalized. We have been marginalized. When Ellen Johnson - Sirleaf came she failed to settle the land dispute in Nimba County, it's continuing," Jabateh stated in an interview with Spoon FM last month.

Jabateh's threat against Chief Justice Korkpor came amidst recent violent clashes in the county that followed a demolition exercise carried out on Monday, 19 April 2021 based on a court eviction order issued by the 8th Judicial Circuit Court in Sanniquellie, Nimba County.

In a video, he had accused Chief Justice Korkpor of allegedly being behind a land dispute in Nimba County. He then claimed that he was mobilizing his brothers and sisters, monitoring the situation in Nimba County and threatened that if there was any attempt by any group of people to kill a single Mandingo man, that means maybe ECOWAS or UN will come in.

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The demolished buildings were situated on disputed land between the Jabateh and Donzo families on one hand and Fred Johnson on the other. Dispute over this parcel of land has been going for a protracted period of time.

Joint security officers including Police and Liberia Immigration Services (LIS), were seen guarding the site on the Dunbar Field around the Saclepea Parking Station.

In May 2019, a case over the same place where stirred the recent violent demonstration in Nimba was filed before the Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and that case was between the Government of Liberia and the members of the Mandingo tribe of Ganta, Nimba County.

The suit in question emanated from a long-standing land dispute, which was offset by the "illegal occupation" of real properties of residents of Ganta, who are mainly the members of the Mandingo tribe, who fled the country during the war.

However, Jabateh, claimed in the interview last week Mandingos are being marginalized in Nimba County because Chief Justice Korkpor has appointed Manor people as judges in the county instead of appointing Vai people from Grand Cape Mount County to serve as judges in Nimba County.He claimed that some ex - fighters were due to carry out an alleged attack on a Mosque in Gnata at night, thereby calling on the police and the army to intervene.

As such, Jabateh vowed that "if a single Mandingo man is killed in Ganata, that means we will kill the Chief Justice of the Republic of Liberia because he is responsible for the land dispute in Nimba County."
The Bulawayo City Council has set its sights towards phasing out brass water meters for plastic ones following continued thefts and vandalism on the former.

The targeting of water meters has seen a lot of households countrywide lose their water meters to thieves.

The meters have a high demand mostly in sprouting illegal settlements in most towns and cities.

During a recent council meeting, Bulawayo councillor Sikhululekile Moyo raised concern over the rampant vandalism of water meters in the city.

In response to Moyo's concerns, City Director of Engineering Services Simela Dube said council was now replacing the brass meters.

"To avoid vandalism of water meters, plastic meters were now being installed instead of the brass type. The replacement of the brass water meters under the Bulawayo Water and Sewerage Services Improvement Project (BSWIPA) programme was being conducted in some areas," reads part of council's latest minutes.

According to the report, the local authority has also been hit by ZESA cable thefts.

"ZESA cable thefts have continued to be a challenge. Manpower shortage affected the repairs on water leaks. Authority had been granted to hire private who were yet to start working on pending acquisition of materials," further read the report.

Town Clerk Christopher Dube advised the councillors that the authority was continuing to engage ZESA regarding load shedding and cable theft.

Mayor Solomon Mguni concurred saying ZESA cable thefts at pump stations had become a major threat which now required government intervention.
A witness in the trial of seven Chinese nationals facing human trafficking and child labour charges has detailed horrific working conditions and human right violations endured by workers in a Johannesburg factory.

In a statement on Monday, Malawi national Fraser Aufi, in the Johannesburg High Court testified that, at the factory, he and his fellow nationals were subjected to long working hours, debt bondage, hazardous working conditions, insults, assaults and violation of basic human rights by the accused.

Aufi, said the department, testified that his dream of becoming an entrepreneur was shattered the day he set his foot at Beautiful City Pty Ltd, the company that employed them.

"His dream when he came into South Africa back in 2017 was to get work and go back home to open and run his own business. However, after being subjected to slavery-like working conditions that dream has now disappeared," said the department.

Aufi was continuing on his testimony detailing the alleged trail of abuse he suffered in the hands of his employer.

Seven Chinese nationals were arrested in November 2019 for alleged human trafficking and violation of the country's labour laws. They are: Kevin Tsao Shu-Uei, Chen Hui, Qin Li, Jiaqing Zhou, Ma Biao, Dai Junying, and Zhang Zhilian.

"The accused are facing schedule six offences. They are charged with 160 counts of crime ranging from contravention of labour laws, human trafficking, kidnapping, contravention of Immigration Act, pointing a firearm, debt bondage, benefitting from the services of a victim of trafficking, conduct that facilitates trafficking, illegally assisting person(s) to remain in South Africa, knowingly employing illegal foreigners, and failure to comply with duties of an employer," reads the statement.

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The accused are out on a bail, with the exception of Zhang Zhilian who is now in custody after she violated her bail conditions by trying to flee the country in February. She was arrested at the OR Tambo International Airport.

The seven accused were arrested for allegedly running an illegal enterprise called Beautiful City Pty Ltd located at Village Deep in Johannesburg after a joint operation by the Department's Inspection and Enforcement Services (IES), together with the South African Police Services (SAPS), Department of Home Affairs and the Hawks Unit.

Aufi told the Court that initially the Chinese refused to open the gates until the police climbed over the gates to free them and how the accused tried to "bribe" the police with food.

The witness had testified earlier that during his stay at the factory he was once injured on a rib while working on a machine and has witnessed a number of injuries suffered by fellow workers including suffering fractures, and chopped fingers by machines. He told the Court that he was never compensated for his injuries.

The accused have pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Aufi testified that except for a few Malawians that have since left most of the Malawians freed from the Chinese factory were now under police care and have been told that their status would be resolved after the Chinese trial.

The trial continues today.
Katsina, Minna  There was outrage among residents of Jibia Local Government Area of Katsina State yesterday as bandits abducted 45 worshippers observing the midnight prayer for Ramadan at Angwan Kwata Mosque in the area.

The marauding bandits, according to residents, stormed the mosque at 1 am and whisked away the victims to an unknown destination.

But the police said they had rescued 35 of the victims while 10 were still with the bandits.

The incidence occurred as a former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, debunked alleged link with terrorists and bandits.

When THISDAY visited Angwan Kwata yesterday, it was gathered that the bandits, during the raid on the mosque, directed the Imam to end the prayer session before kidnapping the people.

However, residents slammed security agencies and the state government, saying the abduction of the congregants raised questions about the capacity of the government and security agents to tackle banditry and other forms of insecurity.

The residents, in separate interviews with THISDAY, accused the security agencies of culpability in the unending banditry and kidnapping in the area, saying security agencies don't respond to distress calls.

A community leader in the area, who craved anonymity, said: "The bandits abducted 45 worshippers and injured many others. Some of the victims are in Jibia General Hospital now receiving treatment."

He accused the state government and security agencies of failing to secure the lives and property of the people.

Zaharadeen Umar, whose younger sister, Halimatu, was among those kidnapped, told THISDAY that the bandits kidnapped no fewer than 45 worshippers and injured two others who were trying to escape.

Umar said: "This morning (Monday) at 1 am, we were praying inside the mosque when bandits came and started shouting that 'every everybody should stand, whoever runs will be killed.' I saw a young boy that is not up to my younger brother's age with AK-47.

"They kidnapped our brothers, wives, and younger ones, including my 20-year-old younger sister, Halimatu. From our findings, the bandits kidnapped 45 people in the mosque. None of the security personnel came to our rescue during the attack till after one hour before they came."

He debunked the police report that they rescued some of the kidnapped victims, saying all the victims are still in captivity.

He, however, said efforts were being made by some residents in synergy with a vigilante group to rescue the abductees.

He added: "The police did not come to this place until 2 am when all the bandits had left with our people. When they came, they entered the mosque and packed the shoes of those kidnapped, and took them to their office. So, they did not even rescue a chicken from this place."

Another worshipper, who survived the attack but sustained injuries on his head and left hand, Muhammadu Bello, said the bandits operated for more than two hours.

He, however, could not ascertain the number of kidnapped victims because he fled the scene.

He said: "The bandits met us in the mosque and asked us to follow them but I told them I will not follow them. So, one of them hit me with his gun on my head. One of them also injured me with something on my left hand; so, I started running to town."

The state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Gambo Isah, a superintendent of police, confirmed the abduction of the 45 worshippers in a telephone interview with THISDAY.

But he said the police, in synergy with other security agencies, had rescued 35 of them.

According to him, efforts are being made to rescue the remaining victims.

He said: "Yes, there was an attack on a Jibia mosque this morning (Monday) and 45 worshippers were kidnapped, but we have rescued 35 of the kidnapped victims. Efforts are also on to rescue the remaining people."

Abdulsalami Debunks Alleged Link with Terrorists, Bandits

Meanwhile, a former Head of State, Gen. Abubakar Abdulsalami, has denied any link with any terrorist or bandit group.

Abubakar, in a statement made available yesterday to journalists in Minna, Niger State, by his media aide, Dr. Yakubu Sulaiman, described

the claim of his having such link as: "false unfounded and fake news."

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His clarification came against the backdrop of a report on the alleged arrest of a helicopter allegedly belonging to him for supplying food and weapons to terrorists and bandits in parts of the country.

Abdulsalami said he did not own such a helicopter.

He disassociated himself from what he described as such "a heinous crime that is unbecoming of any patriotic citizen," saying he would have ignored such spurious reports but had to set the record straight.

"This kind of fake news has the potential of aggravating the already tensed security situation in the country and should not be condoned," he said.

He regretted that individuals could be so "callous to peddle such news and smear the image and character of people."

"I urge Nigerians to ignore such treacherous acts and be careful with the kind of information being dished out and shared on the social media," he stated.

He urged Nigerians to continue to work and pray for enduring peace in Nigeria, stressing that no nation can attain greatness without peace and security of lives and property of its citizens.
Over 145 candidates from 29 political parties are set to contest the by-elections in 40 wards on 19 May 2021, the Electoral Commission announced on Tuesday.

"The 145 candidates, including eight independent candidates, were certified as contestants for the by-elections on 3 May 2021. Of the candidates, 86 (59.31%) are male and 59 (40.69%) are female," the Electoral Commission said in a statement.

The by-elections will be held across seven provinces, and these include seven wards in the Eastern Cape, two wards in the Free State, 16 wards in Gauteng, seven wards in KwaZulu-Natal, and four wards in both Limpopo and Mpumalanga.

A total of 362 965 voters are registered to participate in the by-elections.

"The by-elections will be held under strict new COVID-19 protocols aimed at ensuring the safety of voters, election staff, party agents, observers and other stakeholders. These include implementing strict social distancing practices outside and inside voting stations along with the use of hand sanitisers as voters enter and exit the voting station.

"Voters, election staff and all those entering the voting station will be required to wear a mask at all times. Voters are also encouraged to bring their own pens to mark their ballot papers, although pens will be provided and sanitised after each use," the Commission said.

For more information on upcoming by-elections, voters can contact their local (municipal) IEC office weekdays during office hours.

Contact details for all IEC offices are available on the IEC website at www.elections.org.za.
Tiny, wireless, injectable chips use ultrasound to monitor body processes

New York, NY--May 11, 2021--Widely used to monitor and map biological signals, to support and enhance physiological functions, and to treat diseases, implantable medical devices are transforming healthcare and improving the quality of life for millions of people. Researchers are increasingly interested in designing wireless, miniaturized implantable medical devices for in vivo and in situ physiological monitoring. These devices could be used to monitor physiological conditions, such as temperature, blood pressure, glucose, and respiration for both diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.

To date, conventional implanted electronics have been highly volume-inefficient--they generally require multiple chips, packaging, wires, and external transducers, and batteries are often needed for energy storage. A constant trend in electronics has been tighter integration of electronic components, often moving more and more functions onto the integrated circuit itself.

Researchers at Columbia Engineering report that they have built what they say is the world's smallest single-chip system, consuming a total volume of less than 0.1 mm3. The system is as small as a dust mite and visible only under a microscope. In order to achieve this, the team used ultrasound to both power and communicate with the device wirelessly. The study was published online May 7 in Science Advances.

"We wanted to see how far we could push the limits on how small a functioning chip we could make," said the study's leader Ken Shepard, Lau Family professor of electrical engineering and professor of biomedical engineering. "This is a new idea of 'chip as system'--this is a chip that alone, with nothing else, is a complete functioning electronic system. This should be revolutionary for developing wireless, miniaturized implantable medical devices that can sense different things, be used in clinical applications, and eventually approved for human use."

The team also included Elisa Konofagou, Robert and Margaret Hariri Professor of Biomedical engineering and professor of radiology, as well as Stephen A. Lee, PhD student in the Konofagou lab who assisted in the animal studies.

The design was done by doctoral student Chen Shi, who is the first author of the study. Shi's design is unique in its volumetric efficiency, the amount of function that is contained in a given amount of volume. Traditional RF communications links are not possible for a device this small because the wavelength of the electromagnetic wave is too large relative to the size of the device. Because the wavelengths for ultrasound are much smaller at a given frequency because the speed of sound is so much less than the speed of light, the team used ultrasound to both power and communicate with the device wirelessly. They fabricated the "antenna" for communicating and powering with ultrasound directly on top of the chip.

The chip, which is the entire implantable/injectable mote with no additional packaging, was fabricated at the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company with additional process modifications performed in the Columbia Nano Initiative cleanroom and the City University of New York Advanced Science Research Center (ASRC) Nanofabrication Facility.

Shepard commented, "This is a nice example of 'more than Moore' technology--we introduced new materials onto standard complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor to provide new function. In this case, we added piezoelectric materials directly onto the integrated circuit to transducer acoustic energy to electrical energy."

Konofagou added, "Ultrasound is continuing to grow in clinical importance as new tools and techniques become available. This work continues this trend."

The team's goal is to develop chips that can be injected into the body with a hypodermic needle and then communicate back out of the body using ultrasound, providing information about something they measure locally. The current devices measure body temperature, but there are many more possibilities the team is working on.

###

About the Study

The study is titled "Application of a sub-0.1-mm3 implantable mote for in vivo real-time wireless temperature sensing."

Authors are: Chen Shi1, Victoria Andino-Pavlovsky1, Stephen A. Lee2, Tiago Costa1,3, Jeffrey Elloian1, Elisa E. Konofagou2,4, Kenneth L. Shepard1,2

1 Department of Electrical Engineering, Columbia University

2Department of Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University

3Department of Microelectronics, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands

4Department of Radiology, Columbia University

The study was supported in part by a grant from the W. M. Keck Foundation and by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) under Contract HR0011-15-2-0054 and Cooperative Agreement D20AC00004.

Chen Shi and Kenneth L. Shepard are listed as inventors on a provisional patent filed by Columbia University (Patent Application No. 15/911,973). The other authors declare no competing interests.

LINKS:

Paper: https:/ / advances. sciencemag. org/ content/ 7/ 19/ eabf6312

DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abf6312

http://engineering. columbia. edu/

http://advances. sciencemag. org/

https:/ / engineering. columbia. edu/ faculty/ ken-shepard

http://www. ee. columbia. edu/

http://bme. columbia. edu/

http://cni. columbia. edu/ cni

Columbia Engineering

Columbia Engineering, based in New York City, is one of the top engineering schools in the U.S. and one of the oldest in the nation. Also known as The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, the School expands knowledge and advances technology through the pioneering research of its more than 220 faculty, while educating undergraduate and graduate students in a collaborative environment to become leaders informed by a firm foundation in engineering. The School's faculty are at the center of the University's cross-disciplinary research, contributing to the Data Science Institute, Earth Institute, Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Precision Medicine Initiative, and the Columbia Nano Initiative. Guided by its strategic vision, "Columbia Engineering for Humanity," the School aims to translate ideas into innovations that foster a sustainable, healthy, secure, connected, and creative humanity.

This story has been published on: 2021-05-11. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Local health officers across the Hoosier State have lost their independent authority to impose emergency disease prevention measures on individuals and businesses that are more stringent than state rules.

On Monday, the Republican-controlled Indiana Senate voted 36-10, and the Republican-controlled House 59-30, to put Senate Enrolled Act 5 into effect immediately, notwithstanding Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb's May 4 veto of the proposal.

The new law mandates the local governing body overseeing a county or city health officer approve any health order whose provisions go beyond state requirements during an emergency, such as continuing a face mask mandate or business capacity restrictions amid the COVID-19 pandemic now that the governors directives on those issues have expired.

The measure will have little effect in Northwest Indiana where the health officers in Lake and Porter counties, along with the city health officers in East Chicago and Gary, largely have aligned their COVID-19 prevention policies with the state's measures.

But in other areas of northern Indiana, particularly Elkhart County, the county commissioners have said they intend to immediately rescind the face mask requirement and capacity restrictions imposed by Dr. Bethany Wait, the county health officer, in response to a surging number of COVID-19 cases and widespread vaccine hesitancy.

WATCH NOW: 2,000 shots available seven days a week starting April 7 at Gary mass vaccination site

State Sen. Chris Garten, R-Charlestown, the sponsor of the new law, believes that's exactly how things should be working in all 92 Indiana counties.

Garten said an appointed local health officer should not have the power to impose restrictions, close businesses, endanger livelihoods, or limit personal freedom without first obtaining the consent and support of local elected officials.

"Senate Enrolled Act 5 serves as that critical check and balance," Garten said. "Local health officers right now have unparalleled authority."

State Sen. Mike Gaskill, R-Anderson, agreed. He said allowing one person to set COVID-19 prevention policies, even if that person is a doctor, ignores the insights others might contribute.

"We're not taking away local control. We're involving more people in the decision, and we're more likely to get a better result," Gaskill said.

"Do doctors know more than us on medical issues? Yes, I'll grant you that. But doctors are not perfect, otherwise they'd live forever."

The new law also provides that any enforcement action by a health officer during an emergency, such as a citation or business closure, can be appealed to the relevant governing body, which now has the power to stay the enforcement action until the appeal is resolved.

That appeal opportunity, however, does not apply to non-emergency operations or the day-to-day citations issued to restaurants and other businesses by local health officers.

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The strongest support for sustaining the governor's veto came from Democratic members of the House and Senate.

Only three GOP legislators total backed the veto issued by their party's governor, including state Rep. Hal Slager, R-Schererville.

Holcomb said the heroic efforts of local health officers over the past year are, in large part, the reason why Indiana is in an economically enviable position coming out the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I would have hoped that such sweeping change could wait until we gathered all the relevant experts and stakeholders to strike the right balance regarding local health authority during emergencies and avoid discouraging laudable service in the field of public health, especially knowing that it's locally elected officials who appoint the local department of health board that hires the local health director in the first place," Holcomb said.

Statehouse Democratic likewise questioned the need for the General Assembly to immediately vote to override the governor's veto when lawmakers could have waited to act until the redistricting session in the fall when the COVID-19 emergency may be over.

"This legislation is yet another example of the supermajority taking away local control," said state Sen. Eddie Melton, D-Gary.

"Health experts have the training and expertise to make decisions in the best interest of public health during emergencies, and they shouldn't be restricted or delayed by the General Assembly from doing what they know is best. Putting up bureaucratic red tape, requiring health professionals to go through a legislative body before they can move forward with safety measures, is a dangerous roadblock that will likely result in a delay in action and lives lost."

WATCH NOW: Riding Shotgun with NWI Cops: Monitoring LaPorte with Specialist Justin Dyer

This is the third gubernatorial veto overriden by the Republican-controlled General Assembly so far this year.

It also enacted House Enrolled Act 1123, allowing the Legislature to call itself into session without the governor's consent during an emergency, and Senate Enrolled Act 148 (2020) invalidating all local landlord-tenant regulations and speeding residential evictions.

At the same time, state lawmakers did not consider during their one-day meeting overriding Holcomb's veto of Senate Enrolled Act 303, requiring enhanced labeling of gas pumps dispensing fuel blends containing 10% to 15% ethanol.

They have until the end of the 2022 legislative session to enact the measure notwithstanding the governor's objections by a simple majority vote in each chamber  the same number of votes needed to pass it the first place.

Separately, the House and Senate on Monday overwhelmingly approved Senate Enrolled Act 421, making technical corrections to various new laws before they take effect July 1.

Meet the 2021 Northwest Indiana legislative delegation
The Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation has underlined the strategic importance of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) for the socio-economic prospects of both Lesotho and South Africa.

The committee made the remarks, as it concludes its week-long oversight visit to the LHWP.

Committee Chairperson Machwene Semenya said the purpose of the oversight visit was to assess progress on the project, challenges and strengthen oversight over the project, and also meet the Lesotho committee responsible for water.

"The committee felt it was necessary for its oversight work to visit Lesotho and assess progress, especially considering the economic importance of the project to the sustainability of Gauteng, which is our country's economic hub and seat of the executive," said Committee Chairperson, Machwene Semenya in a statement on Monday.

The LHWP is a bi-national water transfer and hydroelectricity generation project between the Kingdom of Lesotho and the Republic of South Africa, established through a treaty signed in 1986.

The project generates hydroelectricity for the sole benefit of Lesotho citizens, while water is transferred to meet the water needs of South Africans. It satisfies 60% of Gauteng's water demand.

The project is a flagship of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Revised Protocol, which is premised on regional economic integration for peace and prosperity. It is a water and energy security bilateral agreement.

It also enables South Africa to meet some of its international commitments, including global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly six which concerns the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, as it involves the implementation of the integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation.

Another such commitment is the African Union Agenda 2063 on Socio-Economic Integration pertaining to trade and the movement of people.

As part of its programme, Semenya said the committee met with the Natural Resources Cluster Committee of the National Assembly of Lesotho, where they focussed on oversight of the LHWP and its benefits to both countries.

The committees agreed on a collaborative oversight effort over the project to ensure the maximisation of benefits of the project for both countries, and also to share knowledge and learn from each other going forward.

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"The meeting recommended that the Treaty between Lesotho and South Africa needs to be reviewed in its entirety, as the 2011 amendment only focussed on Phase 2 of the project and does not cater for the current state of affairs in both countries. Above all, the joint committees concurred that the LHWP is too important to fail.

"The committee received briefings from the South African High Commission, the Lesotho Highlands Water Authority and the Lesotho Highlands Water Commission.

"It also visited Katse and Polihali (under construction) dams and the Muela Hydropower Plant. The committee was impressed with the quality of the dam and associated structures and the overall management and operations of the LHWP," Semenya said.

Despite the success of the LHWP, the committee however, identified various challenges needing urgent attention from both countries.

These include compensation of resettled communities; capacity-building and skills transfer between the two countries; and funding of the project.

"Nevertheless, the project implementers assured the delegation that these challenges are not insurmountable with plans already in place to arrest them. The committee has emphasised the need to speed up implementation of phase 2 of the project to ensure that both countries explore maximum benefits from the project.

"The committee resolved that it would assist by collaborating with its Lesotho counterparts on conducting oversight and amending laws, and advocating for improved funding allocations where necessary," Semenya said.
analysis

What will happen in schools and education globally if another pandemic strikes or if Covid-19 spirals out of control with more aggressive variants? The reality is that even though we have made gains during the pandemic our education system has not been future-proofed. However, we now have the best picture of what needs to be done to achieve this.

Leon Roets is Head of the Department of Physical Sciences at Redhill School in Sandton, and is completing his Master's in Educational Management and Leadership from the University of Johannesburg. He also teaches International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme Chemistry and Advanced Programme Physics. The views expressed here are his own.

Bill Gates, the World Health Organization (WHO), and epidemiologists globally warn that Covid-19 will not be the last pandemic that we will face. As before Covid-19, Gates has warned global leaders once more that they should not only be fighting the current pandemic, but should be preparing for the next.

One of the facets of society that was hardest hit by the pandemic and is still experiencing repercussions is education. In 2020, no country's educational system was left untouched, as has been reported by Alma Harris of the Swansea University School of...
The Minister of Transportation, Mr. Chibuike Amaechi, yesterday charged the members of the panel set up to investigate the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) from 2016 to date to be transparent and diligent in carrying out the assignment.

Amaechi who disclosed this in Abuja, pointed out that there is nothing wrong in setting up a panel of inquiry, and that it does not mean that anyone is indicted, rather it is a management tool used to inquire about procurement processes, budgetary procedures, how money is spent and how much revenue has been generated for the government.

He, therefore, pleaded with the public to allow the panel do the job assigned to them by the president, adding that they should feel free to invite anyone in the course of the investigation, even himself if need be.

In her contribution, the Minister of State for Transportation, Senator Gbemisola Saraki, stated that it is part of the purview of the Ministry of Transportation to supervise any agency under it, and these supervisory roles include: "Looking, asking and ensuring that things follow due process."

Responding, the Chairman of the panel, who is a Director, Maritime Services, Ministry of Transportation, Mr. Suleiman Auwalu, on behalf of the panel members assured the minister that they shall be honest and fair in carrying out their duties, and that they would do it in the interest of the ministry and the country.

The panel consists of 11 members, five from the ministry of transportation and six from the office of the Head of Service of the Federation (OHCSF). They are Mr. Suleiman Auwalu, director Maritime Services, chairman; Ben Omogo, director Organisation Design and Development (OHCSF), co-chairman; Dr. Hussaini Adamu, director Procurement, member; Mrs. Mercy Ilori, director, Transport Planning Coordination, member.

Others are Mr. Muhiy-deen Awwal, director, Human Resources Management, member; Mrs. Blessing Azorbo, director Legal (OHCSF), member; Mohammed K. Usma, director Finance and Accounting (OHCSF), member; Mohammed Lawal Garba, director Audit (OHSCF), member; Mrs. Rose Olaniyi, deputy director, Administration (OHACF), member; Dauda Ismail, assistant director, Procurement (OHSCF), member, and Mr. Gabriel Fan, deputy director, Legal Services, secretary

The panel, however, has not been given with a time frame to carry out its assignment, this, according to the minister, is to ensure diligence in the course of the investigations.
Kampala, Uganda  Hours after Uganda Police Spokesperson CP Fred Enanga warned against parallel swearing-in ceremonies, and stated his forces readiness ahead of the swearing in of President Yoweri Museveni due Wednesday, a mysterious fire incident and case of a petrol bomb being hurled, have been reported.

Kampala media houses reported Monday night of an incident where controversial former Jinja RDC Eric Sakwa's car was petrol bombed by unknown assailants at Nakulabye, on the outskirts of the city. He survived the incident but his car was destroyed.

Fire Incident at our Office Parking Lot

We have had an unfortunate incident of a fire outbreak at our office parking lot on Plot 5, Georgian House.

The Police & Fire Brigade are on ground handling the situation.

5

We will communicate more details once we have all the facts.

-- Uganda Registration Services Bureau (@URSBHQ) May 10, 2021

3 vehicles were burnt in the @URSBHQ parking lot.@PoliceUg are treating it as suspected arson.

It is alleged that someone hurled an object containing flammable liquid onto the cars.@URSBHQ is near Central Police Station Kampala.

Video Credit: Courtesy. pic.twitter.com/b3joEGruJp

-- Andrew Bagala (@andrewbagala) May 10, 2021

Hours later, media reported a fire at the Uganda Registration Services Bureau that is 500 metres from Kampala's Central Police station (CPS).

Reports indicate that three vehicles were burnt in the parking lot. It is alleged that someone hurled an object containing flammable liquid onto the cars.

Police earlier warned troublemakers in two statements below.

****

POLICE ARE READY

As you are all aware, we have entered a very crucial week in the democratic process of our country, where we shall be witnessing the swearing-in of the President-Elect, H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Tibuhaburwa Museveni on the 12.05.2021. And as is always the case, our security posture at the national event is multi-layered, with several perimeters from the outermost to the innermost, jointly coordinated by all security agencies. These comprise of the UPF, UPDF, SFC, JIC, UPS and other agencies that form part of security.

Although our levels of preparedness are robust and advanced, we continue to assess our security plans, for hotspots and other high risk targets, with various tactical response teams in place. We have conducted massive drills on how to counter all forms of threats and vulnerabilities. These include; drills on how to counter armed attacks, massive demonstrations, aggressive and provocative behaviours against security personnel, acts of sabotage like blocking roads with logs, boulders and stones, burning tyres, deflating tyres, blocking VIP convoys and radical youth groups.

In addition, our cybercrime teams are monitoring and trolling social media for any acts of cyber harassment, misinformation and disinformation campaigns. For instance, we are aware of plans to falsely declare "as dead" some of the cultural leaders, and opposition politicians to purposely incite the public. We are also tracking down negative elements, rallying disgruntled supporters and fans, on social media and inviting them into disruptive behaviours, towards the swearing-in. We want to warn all perpetrators of violence that their criminal acts will definitely attract sanctions and consequences.

So far our task teams have 41 suspects in custody for inciting violence and holding unlawful assemblies in Kabalagala. They are set to appear in court. Therefore, all persons who are hinged on promoting acts of violence are asked to desist from such ill-intentions, to avoid the full wrath of the law.

To all invited persons, we would like them to know that there are very stringent procedures for accessing the venue, for safety and security reasons. They should expect rigorous search processes from head to toe. We further urge them to carry along their invitation and accreditation cards with them; and maximumly cooperate with our task teams and follow the protocols.

In addition, the fact that it a scientific event, we discourage members of the public from coming to Kololo Independence grounds for the swearing-in, because of the many checkpoints and security perimeters in place. We urge them to participate virtually from their respective homes, to help safeguard themselves from the dangers of COVID-19. We further urge them to avoid lining up along the roads, to avoid acts of congestion that can easily be taken advantage of.

We want to thank all Ugandans and visitors who have come out to condemn all protests and related acts of violence. We commend the business communities like KACITA, the transport industry for their commitment to public safety. In addition, we do applaud some of the previously disgruntled supporters from the opposition, who withdrew their intentions to participate in acts of violence. These are very encouraging signs, since the use of violence in politics to achieve goals is unacceptable.

At this stage, therefore, we feel we are well prepared, but our security threat assessment remains active and continuous, and like we delivered a very successful election to all Ugandans and visitors to our country, we pledge to deliver a very peaceful and secure swearing-in ceremony for the President Elect.

CP Fred Enanga

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Police Spokesperson

****

THERE WILL BE NO PARALLEL SWEARING IN

The Joint Task Force is aware of plans by Former Presidential Candidate, who lost the recent Presidential Election, to hold a parallel and illegitimate swearing-in ceremony, in one of the Hotels in Iganga. The Candidate continues together with some of his supporters to declare himself as the President-Elect. We want to remind him and his supporters that the voices of the electorate were clearly heard. He is therefore, not the legitimate or duly Elected President of the People of Uganda. As a potential leader, we urge him to play his politics with full respect for the rule of law.

We know that such Kangaroo inaugurations are not uncommon with runners up in the previous Presidential Elections. It simply remains symbolic without the accompanying entitlements and privileges of a legitimate Head of State.

Therefore, any judicial officer, organiser and or media house that will participate in covering the illegitimate parallel swearing-in in Iganga or any other place, should prepare to face the consequences. Such acts of impunity must stop in exchange for rule of law. It is illegal and treasonous.

CP Fred Enanga

Police Spokesperson
The Management of GCB Bank Ltd and Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) have resolved to foster stronger alliance in the interest of the two institutions and to help propel national growth.

While operating in different sectors of the national economy, the management of the two institutions agree that collaboration will help lubricate the engine of growth in the strategic interest of Ghana.

This point was reiterated when the Managing Director (MD) of GCB Bank, Mr Kofi Adomakoh, paid a working visit to the Managing Director of the GCGL, Mr Ato Afful, in Accra.

"Partnerships like this would be very useful. You are the most dominant media institution in the country and I think, we coming from the same mother, it is important that we cooperate and collaborate in business and social events," Mr Adomakoh stated.

Mr Adomakoh's visit was to introduce himself as the new MD of GCB Bank and to share ideas on how best Ghanaian companies could collaborate to build businesses of international character and magnitude.

He acknowledged that both the banking and the media industries have been evolving, very fast, adding, strategies are needed to take businesses to the next level and see how we can support each other.

"We want to play a role in making sure that you get there. More importantly, there are also things that we can look at together and you can also help us disseminate what GCB wants to do along our various businesses," he said.

"The disruption with COVID-19 and what has happened forced banks to get more digital to reach their customers. So those days when we had armchair bankers who sat in the office and waited for the customer to queue outside are long gone and it will even change more in the coming years," he explained.

He said that was one of the reasons why he was reaching out to the GCGL, which was one of its customers, to find out how the Bank could be of help to the company in the coming years.

Mr Afful on his part said the GCGL had enjoyed a fantastic relationship with GCB Bank over the decades, with the bank being immensely helpful.

"As an ongoing relationship, we will obviously be looking at upping the ante on both sides. We appreciate the services that you have rendered to us over the decades," he said.

Mr Afful said the GCGL recognised the fact that times had changed and, therefore, the company had rolled out several initiatives to ensure that the business remained sustainable.

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"Graphic is now doing thought leadership programmes in partnership with other stakeholders. Additionally, because of the traditional base of print, the leaders of this business over time saw it fit to venture into the printing, publishing and packaging business which led to the establishment of the subsidiary company GPAK," he said.

He said the GCGL also partnered another company to establish a courier services company that was into nationwide delivery.

"The company also, through partnership, has renovated and expanded its clinic which used to serve only staff and family to now serve the entire public," he stated.

Furthermore, he said the company had some physical assets that it intends to develop and was therefore in discussion with some partners in that regard.

Mr Adomakoh was accompanied by Mr John Adamah, Mr Kojo Kwarteng and Mr Linus Kumi, Heads of Consumer Banking, Corporate Affairs and Corporate Banking Departments of GCB.
Suhyen  The Minister of Roads and Highways, Akwesi Amoako-Atta, has directed the Ghana Highways Authority (GHA) to demolish all illegal speed humps along the country's highways.

He also tasked the Regional Ministers to provide the necessary security for the implementation of the directive within two weeks.

Mr Amoako-Atta gave the directive when the team chanced upon an illegal speed rump at Suhyen-Jumapo near Oyoko in the Eastern Region that nearly caught the dispatch riders of the Ministers convoy off guard, during his tour of the area.

At the scene, saloon cars and other smaller vehicles could not climb over the rumps which were constructed with freshly dug-out sand and stones without warning signs which pose serious danger to motorists.

But the Minister, who would not entertain such lawlessness tasked the GHA to immediately demolish them as it pose great risk to motorists and other road users.

According to Mr Amoako-Atta, the country would not countenance such illegal acts as such must be removed immediately.

"These illegal rumps are potential death traps and sources of accidents and must be removed without further delay," he added.

He warned residents along the highways to notify the GHA on activities of high speeding drivers to enable the authority to provide them with appropriate rumps instead of taking the law into their own hands and construct unapproved rumps that eventually damage the roads.

The Minister warned of dire consequences for individuals and communities caught erecting such rumps as they would be surcharged to repair any damage done to such portions of the road.

Mr Amoako-Atta, stated that the ministry was ready to construct approved speed rumps for every community that needed it and charged the various assemblies to undertake a total audit of their needs along the country's highways for the necessary action to be taken.

The Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Seth Kwame Acheampong assured the Minister of taking immediate steps to have all such humps removed.
The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) have met to seek ways to boost revenues from the country's gas resources, following the federal government's renewed interest in the sector.

Members of the gas monitoring committee of the RMAFC who paid a courtesy visit to the Director/ Chief Executive Officer of the DPR, Mr. Sarki Auwalu, noted that the partnership would assist in refocusing both organisations on areas they can work together.

The team led by its Chairman, Mrs. Maria Aniobi, informed the director that the visit was to complement government's revenue generation efforts in the area of gas utilisation.

The delegation reiterated its commitment to collaborate with DPR to achieve the president's policy aspiration to take over 100 million Nigerians out of poverty using gas resources as a framework to leverage for actualisation of the promise to Nigerians.

Auwalu, on his part, explained DPR's processes and procedures from well-head to consumers and how gas is produced, metered, transported and eventually sold to consumers creating revenue for government and stakeholders alike.

He outlined how the gas expansion programme of government has impacted in enabling business and creating opportunities for investments and facilities development in the gas value chain.

The DPR boss further informed the delegation that collaborative efforts were underway with other agencies of government and critical stakeholders to improve domestic gas supply obligation.

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He noted that this includes gas based industries, gas to power, gas to people, autogas, LPG penetration to complement the federal government's "Decade of Gas" policy.

Auwalu reassured the RMAFC commissioners of DPR's continued support and commitment in the areas of information, reconciliation and data sharing.

Meanwhile, the department has said it is deepening information dissemination on its activities with the return of its television programme to the screen.

It stated that the programme which will feature on all Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) channels, DSTV 251, STARTIMES 104 and GOTV, parts of African countries and Europe, started airing on May 3.

The 13 episode programme slated to air at 6.00pm, it said, was designed to deepen stakeholders understanding of the roles and responsibilities of DPR as well as provide update on global oil and gas industry matters to viewers.

The DPR stated that the programme would showcase how the department has continued to use its service instruments of licences, permits and approvals to enable business and create opportunities for investors and stakeholders in the oil and gas industry in Nigeria .

"The department will continue to guarantee investments, enable participation and authorise activities in the oil and gas industry in alignment with the aspirations of government to provide energy security for the nation and create jobs for Nigerians," it stated.
Chaos broke out on Friday afternoon at Omafo village in the Ohangwena region after thieves broke into a parked vehicle and got away with more than N$200 000 cash.

An employee of the Ehafo Group of Stores Alfred Haufiku (33) had the surprise of his life after he collected money from one of the group's stores, which he was to use at Oshakati.

Ohangwena police regional commander Elizabeth Sibolile confirmed the incident. She said Haufiku was coming from depositing some of the money at a bank in Oshikango when he stopped at his house in Omafo.

"He stopped by his house and had allegedly locked the vehicle, not realising that it was jammed. In fact, he didn't notice that he was being followed. When he returned to his vehicle, he noticed a man carrying a bag like his entering a smaller vehicle parked nearby," confirmed Sibolile.

Upon entering his vehicle, Haufiku noticed his bag was missing. He chased the smaller vehicle as it sped away.

"He pursued the vehicle and along the way he fired some shots, hitting the rear screen and also hitting the passenger on the rear left in the rib," added Sibolile.

Haufiku continued chasing the vehicle and fired more shots at its tyres, causing it to veer off the road and hit a tree.

The occupants of the fleeing vehicle ran off on foot, as community members, along with the police, pursued them.

Five suspects were involved in the robbery. Two of the suspects were later captured in the Ohangwena region while one was injured and was found at Okahao in the Omusati region, several kilometres from the scene of crime.

"How he got to Okahao, we don't know. But he was captured and is admitted to the Oshakati hospital. Two are still at large and about N$88 000. Haufiku's phone and one suspect' phones were recovered in the vehicle," reported Sibolile.
AS Tanzania and Kenya ink gas pipeline deal during the subsequent President Samia Suluhu Hassan two days state visit to Kenya, many might be speculating where all begun and whether the construction of a gas pipeline from Dar es Salaam to Mombasa would bring more prosperity to these two nations and not to further business competition.

In my view, signing a joint communique is just the starting of a long-term project aimed at sharing energy resources, but a key question remains, is the project timely?

Why wished-for project whereabouts and discussion was put on hold for eleven years? For those of you who will recall, a discussion about gas pipeline appeared at the 3rd East African Community Development Strategy 2006-2010.

It was from this strategy, the need for a natural gas pipeline from Dar es Salaam to Tanga and Mombasa was acknowledged and the need to supply natural gas to Kenya for power generation and other industrial uses, both in Mombasa-Kenya and Tanga- Tanzania and along the route emerged.

Much as I am not differing the construction of the pipeline to Kenya, I am of the view on few things that need thoughtful consideration on our part as key performers and resource-rich region.

The accomplishment of the gas pipeline and economic benefits thereafter in my opinion hinges on unfinished business still on the table. A monetary union expected to have been operational by 2012 is still unfinished business.

Likewise, a free trade zone, purportedly to have been fully operational by 2015 continues to be affected by what has led to recently boarder controversial that President Kenyatta in his speech at investor's discussion, presided by President Samia Suluhu, gave two weeks challenge for Ministers answerable to work on issues linked covid-19 tests and track flow logistics ended.

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It is well known that the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC was signed in Arusha on 30th November 1999 and was inaugurated in January 2001.

In 2005 a customs union was established, and in November 2009 the member states signed a common market protocol to create a larger market and more attractive single investment area to provide the opportunity to the region to be more competitive and more open to effective participation in the global economy.

To what extent has issues contained in the customs union accomplished? To what extent duty-free regional trade has been achieved including identical tax applied to imports from outside the union.

Much as the Tanzanian government will receive a considerable income in royalties and other benefits over the lifetime of the gas pipe project, would it be economically and costly possible to add value to the gas instead of transporting gas as raw material? Is Tanzania not exporting its jobs opportunity instead of creating opportunity in Tanzania?

While I am open to criticism, I am of the view, with its strategic location and well-established business infrastructure projected as an industrial city Tanga could be curved into a major trading centre and busiest commercial seaport linked to cement factories, related industries, textile and engineering to attract a labour force from the entire nation instead of carrying across jobs.

Much as analysis may indicate that an expansion of the gas pipeline system to reach Mombasa-Kenya via Tanga may be an economically feasible project both financially and economically even with what I can term as a middle-of-the-road low growth demand, as Tanzanians we need to think of the future generation and competitiveness that would place Tanzania in world map.
AFRICA'S largest music streaming and downloading service providers in Tanzania, Boomplay marked this year Mother's Day commemorations by donating medical supplies to Mwananyamala Hospital.

The company offered its hand by donating basic needs to support the hospital's efforts in implementing safe and reliable maternal health in the country.

The hospital, which is a major referral hospital in Dar es Salaam over the weekend, caters to an average of 900-1,400 expectant mothers monthly.

Speaking during the handover ceremony held at the hospital premises in Dar es Salaam over the weekend, Boomplay Tanzania General Manager, Natasha Stambuli said the donation is part of an on-going rollout of sustainable initiatives aimed at supporting the local communities.

"We are happy to serve our community especially on Mother's Day. We do understand the contribution and the hardship that mothers go through during motherhood in the community.

To celebrate them, we are happy to donate and hope to do more in the community in future," Stambuli said. Her sentiments were echoed by Mwananyamala Hospital Medical Officer in charge Zavery Benela, who lauded the company for its support, adding that it came at a crucial time when the world is grappling with a healthcare crisis.

"On behalf of the entire hospital, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Boomplay for the sentimental donation. We are certain that their contribution will go a long way in ensuring our maternal services remain uninterrupted, Zavery Benela said.

"I encourage other companies to emulate this noble gesture, to complement our efforts in ensuring that mothers and their newborns receive the utmost care and treatment," he stated.

The initiative is the beginning of many other community projects that Boomplay intends on launching in the near future. "As a company, we remain committed to playing our part in the society, with the aim of creating impact and leaving a mark in the lives of many," Stambuli concluded
Press Release

May 11, 2021 De Lima chides Duterte over fake 'jet ski' promise Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima has chided Mr. Duterte for fooling the Filipino people by using his deceptive tricks to win the 2016 election, particularly his promise to ride a jet ski to the Spratly Islands and plant a Philippine flag which he recently claimed as a "pure campaign joke." De Lima, the staunchest critic of the current regime's crooked policies, said such kind of campaign tactic which has won Duterte the presidency is among the culprits for the inept and chaotic governance of the country five years into his administration. "Duterte's recent remark only affirmed what we already know: That he really has no plans to invoke our sovereign rights over the West Philippine Sea. Joke lang para kay Duterte ang napaka-importanteng isyu sa bansa kaya patuloy ang pagkamkam ng Tsina sa ating teritoryo at pagnakaw sa kabuhayan ng mga mangingisdang Pilipino," she said. "Duterte's campaign in the 2016 elections was waged on pure gimmickry with no solid program of government on which to anchor his outlandish promises that's why all we can hear now are his excuses why he cannot execute. And he even has the gall to call those who believe in his campaign promise as stupid. Classic Duterte! Isa siyang napakalaking joke na nangyari sa bansa na hindi nakakatawa," she added. During a televised address last May 10, Duterte claimed that his supposed election promise to ride a jet ski to challenge Chinese incursion in Philippine waters was a "pure joke" and that those believed it were "stupid." "Panahon sa kampanya 'yan at saka iyong biro na 'yon, we call it bravado," Duterte said of his statement five years ago wherein he said that he would ride a jet ski to the Spratlys in the West Philippine Sea, plant the Philippine flag in a Chinese airport on reclaimed land there, and tell Beijing, "This is ours." Duterte even said that he bought a secondhand jet ski, but spare parts for it have not arrived, adding that there would be no gasoline station for the jet ski in the middle of the sea, and that waves would be as high as ships. De Lima, a former justice secretary, said Duterte's reckless remark should remind Filipinos to choose worthy leaders who will prioritize the common good over their selfish interests in the next election. "One year from now, we will be electing a new president and set of leaders. Let us not be fooled again by politicians like Duterte who are like empty shells that have nothing to show how to fulfill their mandate to the people," she added.
In 2018, the Senate had a summit on security and another was held 14 months later in 2019.

An ad-hoc committee of the House of Representatives on national security has called for the submission of memoranda on a planned security summit. The four-day summit has been scheduled for May 24 to 28.

According to a statement by the Clerk of the House of Representatives, Chinedu Akubueze, the deadline for submission is May 20.

The Special Ad Hoc Committee on National Security was constituted by the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, on March 17.

According to the statement, memoranda should be solution-focused with emphasis on "local and community level security options, strategic kinetic national security, and non-military and non-kinetic security."

Interested entities are to send their recommendations to the committee secretariat at the National Assembly complex.

Past security summits by lawmakers

This is not the first time lawmakers will be holding security summits in the administration of President Muhamadu Buhari.

In 2018, the Senate had a summit on security and another was held 14 months later in 2019.

This latest is coming amidst an increase in killings and general insecurity across the country. Last month, the lower chamber asked the president to declare a state-of-emergency on security, while the lawmakers also made 11 other resolutions on security.

Buhari's fate on the balance

An opposition lawmaker, Dachung Bagos (PDP, Plateau), had said the lawmakers will consider the option of impeachment if nothing changes after the summit.

However, the possibility of impeaching the president is low because the ruling party, All Progressives Congress (APC), controls both chambers of the National Assembly. Also, past threats of impeachment failed to yield any action.

In 2020, the PDP caucus, under the leadership of Kingsley Chinda (PDP, Rivers) threatened to commence an impeachment process over insecurity and corruption in the country. It never did.

The four-day summit will hold from May 24 to 28.
Life in Solai-Nyakinyua in Subukia Sub-county, just like any small trading centre, moves in fits and starts.

It's the quintessential backwater; intermittent drones of boda boda taxis, the exchange of money and goods at the market and the occasional vehicle cruising past on the newly tarmacked Bahati-Solai-Subukia road.

However, beneath this facade of normality lies a wound whose pain is shared by almost every member of the small society. They all suffer painful memories of a horrific disaster that befell the community three years ago and which led to the death of 48 people, displacement of hundreds of families and destruction of property worth millions of shillings. It is the infamous Solai dam tragedy that occurred on May 9, 2018 when Patel Dam broke its banks and let its waters flow downstream, sweeping across three villages -- Energy, Solai and Nyakinya.

Normal life was disrupted and the aftermath of the tragedy created friction between residents and the dam owner, Mr Patel Mansukh, after they differed on how to handle the tragedy.

In a bid to push for justice, civil and criminal cases were filed in the courts. Violent demonstrations also rocked the area as the victims protested what they claimed to be unfair actions from the police and administrators in handling their affairs.

Compensation

Three years down the line, little has been achieved in terms of compensation and restoration of victims' lives. Mr Joseph Gathogo, after losing four children in the tragedy, says he's ready to move on with his life provided he is compensated.

A bodaboda operator, Mr Gathogo, narrated how life has been tough for him and his family over the past three years.

"I'd built a semi-permanent house where I lived with my wife and four children. The tragedy took away everything I'd worked for and loved and left me with nothing," he said.

He narrowly escaped death by climbing a tree. He saw his house and children being swept by the waters. His wife was rescued. A house built for him by the local church and the Kenya Red cross still stands unoccupied on his bare quarter-acre plot in Nyakinyua village.

"My wife could not stand living in this house as it gives her nightmares, so we went to live in my father's compound," Mr Gathogo said

Start life afresh

Determined to start life afresh, Mr Gathogo rented a motorbike to sustain his family. The couple has since been blessed with a child.

"Let the government work with Mr Patel on ways to compensate us so that we can move on with our lives," he said.

Mr John Maina Mwangi, a retired teacher, lost his wife. He has been in and out of court fighting for compensation, but his hopes for justice are fast fading away.

"I'm almost giving up. I'm getting old. We've tried reaching out to Mr Patel for an out-of-court settlement, but our efforts have been unsuccessful," he said.

Ms Veronica Wanjiku, 71, who lost her home, is eking out a living from farming on a small patch of her land that is still fertile as the rest is rocky. The raging waters dug huge gullies, which are widening and almost claiming the house that Kenya Red Cross built for her.

Fairness

"What I want is to be given my benefits after working for Mr Patel for close to 30 years. I also want my farm rehabilitated," she says.

Kabazi MCA Peter Mbae noted that the victims are ready to settle the matter out of court and has urged the company to take the first action by formally making an application in court.

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"All that the over 400 victims want is fairness, justice and compensation," Dr Mbae said

Tindress Patel Coffee Estates farm manager Vinoj Kumar also expressed the company's willingness to have the matter concluded. He blames human rights groups for complicating matters.

"We'd be so glad to have the matter out of court, but our hands are tied. There are so many organisations that have sued us claiming to act for different victims," Mr Kumar said.

The company had done all it could to help the community, he said, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mr Kumar revealed that the company hired more than 1,000 area residents during the pandemic so as to offer them a means of livelihood.
Akure  One of the four suspected kidnappers arrested by the Ondo state security outfit, Amotekun, Usman Garuba has explained that the four persons abducted by them were not their target.

Garuba, Yaman Muhammed, Umar Ali, and Abubakar Sidiku were paraded by the Amotekun in Akure for allegedly abducting four persons at Oda road in the state capital.

He said that they missed their target, a businessman living around Oda road area in the metropolis but resorted to abducting four persons who were taking shelter from the rain at a bus stop in the area.

Vanguard gathered that two of the victims were rescued but the kidnappers reportedly changed location and held on to the remaining victim demanding ransom payment.

It was in the course of collecting ransom that Garuba was arrested by Amotekun operatives.

Garuba aged 37, took security operatives to their hideouts where others were arrested and the remaining female victim was rescued.

In an interview with vanguard, Garuba said he was introduced by his master who promised to give him a job.

According to him, it was Mohammed that raped their victim while Sanni beat up a woman who refused to offer to pay us ransom.

"It was my oga that brought me and told me there was a job for me. He went to a man and collected N100,000 after threatening to kidnap him.

"We miss out target. They told us the person has money and described the house but we didn't meet the target. It was on our way back that we kidnapped these people. I came to Akure for a job

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"They promised to give me work and I was introduced to one man who I followed to the first kidnap job. We kidnapped the man and three of us realized N100,000 from the job.

"We are working with some Yoruba people who usually bring jobs for us. The man told us that our target is rich and we planned to kidnap him but we didn't see him and described the house to us.

"He told us to go to the man and that he could not follow us because they know him in the area, but when we are coming it was raining and we met those four people at the bus stop and we kidnapped them so that we will not go back empty-handed.

"l want to beg for forgiveness and I promise not to go near this kidnapping business again, I know it's not good but I was introduced to the business because I needed to work and make money to feed myself. I never knew they are into kidnapping.

Parading the suspects, the Commander, Chief Adetunji Adeleye, said other security agencies joined in the rescue operation.

Adeleye said "We were able to rescue two victims that same day but the kidnappers held onto one.

"We sold a decoy to them of ransom payment and in the course of that we were able to nab one of them who led us to their hideouts and we arrested others.

The commander said that "Umar Garuba has confessed to carrying out other kidnapping activities."

Adeleye said the suspects would soon be handed over to the police for further interrogation and prosecution.
As part of moves towards eradicating the menace of commercial motorcyclists, popularly called "Okada riders"Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said his administration has concluded plans to review the 2012 Lagos Traffic Law guiding their operations, as well as keeping Lagos safe, secure and peaceful.

Sanwo-Olu stated this on Monday, at the Stakeholders' Meeting on Security, held in Alausa, Ikeja, organized by the state government.

The stakeholders' meeting was aimed at putting the security agencies, communities and entire stakeholders at alert, towards making the state safer for residents to live and carry out daily activities within ambits of the law without any apprehension or fear.

According to him, "We have noted with dismay the fact that Okada riders are disregarding and flouting the restrictions we imposed on their activities in certain areas of the metropolis. In this same vein, we have also observed with dismay the ongoing war between commercial motorcyclists and our law enforcement agencies.

"This propensity for lawlessness is not who we are as Lagosians. The Lagos State Road Traffic Law, enacted in 2012 to safeguard the lives of people and to maintain law and order on our roads, is the legal backbone for the restrictions put in place early last year and designed to curb the Okada menace in the State.

"As part of the restrictions put in place, we banned the activities of Okada and tricycle operators on key roads, highways, and Local Government Areas. Sadly, many Okada and tricycle operators have continued to flagrantly disobey the law and, in some cases, resist enforcement by engaging in organised attacks on law enforcement agencies.

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"We have also observed a worrying trend in which criminals have found commercial motorcycles a useful and enabling tool with which to perpetrate heinous crimes, with the motorcycles acting as quick-getaway vehicles.

"As we all know, no society can make progress amid such haughty display of lawlessness and criminality. Ladies and gentlemen, let me reiterate our commitment as a government to the maintenance of law and order in society. Our mission of attaining a Greater Lagos can only be achieved when we all resolve to live in an orderly manner.

"Consequently, and based on all that we have seen and experienced in the past couple of weeks, as well as the increasing threat posed by the activities of commercial motorcycle operators to the safety and security of lives, we will in the coming days be announcing further changes to the parameters of motorcycle and tricycle operations in the state."
Abuja  Against the backdrop of financial infractions allegedly perpetrated by Hadiza Bala-Usman, the suspended Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, Monday, inaugurated an 11-man panel to investigate the activities of the agency from 2016 till date.

Vanguard reports that on May 6, President Muhammadu Buhari approved the recommendations of Amaechi to set up an administrative panel of inquiry to investigate the management of the NPA under the stewardship of Hadiza.

Inaugurating the panel on Monday, the Minister charged the members to be diligent in order to do a thorough job.

The committee's terms of reference, include examining and investigating the administrative policies and strategies adopted by NPA's Managing Director, Hadiza Usman, and confirm compliance with extant laws and rules from 2016 till date.

Others include "examine and investigate issues leading to the termination of other contracts of NPA and confirm compliance with the terms of the respective contracts, court ruling and presidential directives.

"Examine and investigate compliance with communication channels, as obtained in the public service.

"Examine and investigate the procurement of contracts from 2016 to date.

"Come up with suggestions and advice that would strengthen the operations of NPA and forestall such occurrences in the future.

"And any other matter that may be necessary for the course of the assignment."

In his brief remarks, Amaechi noted that the decision to take a look at the books of the agency is in furtherance of the mandate of the ministry to oversee the activities of agencies and parastatals under its supervision.

He said: "This is in the discharge of our responsibility as a ministry and I don't see why anybody is complaining.

"What is wrong in looking at what is happening in NPA? I don't see what is wrong in that. As the Minister of Transportation for four years, I hardly know what is happening and I want to know now.

"The president agrees with me that it's my responsibility as minister to find out what is going on

"It worries me that people are saying we should not ask questions. Nobody has been indicted.

"Can we know what is going on in NPA? That's the question.

"If everything is right, why do we have to bother at the end of the day?

"When you have completed your assignment, we will be glad to pass on the report to the President, but don't forget your assignment will include activities of procurement and its processes from 2016 till date.

"And that is why you do not have a time limit. So, it will take you some time. You are not auditing, but finding out the processes.

"Please be diligent, invite anybody you want to invite, including the minister, if there are infractions you need me to clarify," he said.

According to Amaechi, NPA is an agency that manages maritime trading activities in Nigeria which is expected to generate huge resources for the government to run the country.

Also speaking, Minister of State (Transportation), Senator Gbemisola Saraki said the investigation was within the purview of the ministry.

"This is why the ministry supervises and part of that role is looking, asking questions, and ensuring that things are done with due process.

"For the panel, there is so much noise, so it's best you block your ears. Keep your head down and do what is in the interest of the entire country," Saraki said.

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Responding, Chairman of the committee, Suleiman Auwalu, who doubles as Director of Maritime Services of the ministry pledged the commitment of other members to diligently carry out the duties assigned to them.

"I assure you that we are going to work; we are going, to be honest, and fair in the discharge of this responsibility.

"At the end of the day, we want to turn up a report that will be true and it will be in the interest of the country.

"So, we are seeking God's guidance for us to do the right thing at the right time," Auwalu said.

The 11-man committee is made up of five directors from the Ministry while the remaining six, including the co-chairman, Ben Omogo, are drawn from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.

It would be recalled that President Buhari last week, directed Hadiza Bala-Usman to step aside for the entire duration of the Investigation while directing Mohammed Koko (Director, Finance and Administration of NPA) to step in an acting capacity.
Monrovia  Leading Child Rights advocacy groups including the Liberia Child Rights NGO Coalition, Liberia Children Forum and members of the National Children and Youth Advisory Board have called on the Government of Liberia to ban the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

In a joint statement issued recently in Monrovia, the rights groups called on the government to develop a legal framework in the Penal Code that explicitly criminalizes the practice of FGM including specific penalties.

The groups, in the statement read by the Executive Director of Defence for Children International (DCI), Atty. Foday M. Kawah also called for prioritizing the Strategy for the Protection of Girls against Child Marriage (2016) in conformity with the 2063 Agenda of the African Union and criminalize FGM.

In addition, the rights groups called for the Intensification of efforts to prevent and respond to SGBV, as well as to criminalize FGM in all circumstances and ultimately eradicate the practice.

In the process, they want the existing public awareness campaigns against FGM and other harmful traditional practices to be expanded to all the counties.

FGM involves the partial or total removal of external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. It is widely practiced in Liberia, and most young girls under 18 are the victims.

Anti- FGM campaigners have called for the total ban of the practice they say has no health benefits but a plethora of health implications.

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In 2006, a study published by the World Health Organization show that women who have had FGM are significantly more likely to experience difficulties during childbirth and that their babies are more likely to die as a result of the practice.

Other long-term consequences include anemia, the formation of swelling and sores, keloid scar formation, damage to the urethra resulting in urinary incontinence, dyspareunia (painful sexual intercourse), sexual dysfunction, hypersensitivity of the genital area and increased risk of HIV.

But Many practitioners believe that the procedure is dictated by tradition and is necessary to ensure marriage. It is sometimes stated that the purpose of female genital mutilation is to control women's sexuality to ensure premarital virginity and marital fidelity.

Despite huge pressure on the government from rights groups over the ban of the practice, the government stills lack the political will. It was only compelled to place a stay order on the practice through series of executive orders.
DEVELOPMENT partners have reiterated their commitment towards support Tanzania's development programmes as the government insisted on engaging them more on sectors that positively impact many Tanzanians, including agriculture, livestock and fisheries.

The United Nations (UN) revealed yesterday during the official opening of a two-day strategic dialogue meeting that it has completed formulating a cooperation framework for Tanzania for the next five years.

"We will focus on supporting the five-year national development plan and expand engagement at all levels," UN resident coordinator Mr Zlitan Milisc said.

Milisic, who was speaking on behalf of other development partners, added that the UN backs up the idea of inclusive dialogue, which is an essential tool for development in Tanzania.

He added that development partners were appreciating the government for involving them in the country's development plans, and therefore, they were ready to work with President Samia Suluhu Hassan in the development endeavors.

"Discussion is a tool for a thriving partnership as it will unleash areas of engagement where development partners may be engaged at different levels, including technical and sectoral level in line with the government programmes," the UN official insisted.

With the Covid-19 outbreak affecting economies around the globe, Mr Milisc affirmed development partners' commitment to supporting Tanzania's response to the pandemic and its consequences on the country's economy.

He praised the government for strong performance in investing and realizing long-term sustainable development infrastructure projects.

The government vowed to increase partnership as per the Development Cooperation Framework (DCF), while also pledging to facilitate engagement with a wide range of development stakeholders.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Planning, Mr Emmanuel Tutuba said as partners, they needed each other.

"We should strive to work together to build mutual responsibility for the future engagement," he said, noting that the strategic dialogue meeting took place at an opportune time when the Parliament sitting for the 2021/2022 budget continues in the capital city, Dodoma.

Mr Tutuba said the government has sustained macroeconomic stability with focus on policies and reforms to accelerate economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve socioeconomic welfare of the people.

The government, added Tutuba, will focus on attracting both foreign and local investments by improving the business environment through policy, legal and regulatory framework reforms.

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According to the Permanent Secretary, the government will prioritize enhancing productivity in sectors which involve a big number of citizens like agriculture, livestock and fisheries.

In the next five years, the government will also emphasize on manufacturing to ensure a reliable market for domestically produced raw materials and also value addition.

Other priorities include development of industrial parks, strengthening domestic revenue mobilization by creating friendly tax collection systems and increasing compliance.

"The government will also keep improving the mining regime; promote tourism; transport infrastructure such as Roads, Railway - SGR, ports and dry ports, air transport and ferries, ICT and Energy infrastructure," he added.

He said all priorities of the 6th Phase Government are well aligned with the Five-Year Development Plan Phase III, which will be launched in June 2021 with the theme 'Realizing Competitiveness and Industrialization for Human Development'.

The PS expressed gratitude to the development partners for continuously extending their support to the government, noting that the latter have contributed about 2tri/- in the government budget, an equivalent to 5per cent. "We value their contribution and we will spend it on the agreed priorities," said Mr Tutuba.

He said development stakeholders' support has helped bring the government to where it is now and will continue to use donor's funds for the intended purposes in order to bring envisaged impacts.
SHANTA Gold Mining in Ikungi District, Singida region, has spent more than 22.5m/- on financing various social development activities in the area.

Speaking at the handover ceremony, where 183 chairs and 183 desks worth 11.52m/- were donated to Mang'onyi Shanta Secondary School in the village, Shanta Mining Singida project Manager, Mr Jiten Divecha said the support was one of his company's responsibilities in ensuring that communities surrounding them benefit from their presence.

"The main purpose of this programme is to improve the environment of various schools in Ikungi district and ensure that students join Form One and make them enjoy better learning environment," explained Mr Divecha

He added:"Recognizing the importance of having good infrastructure in our schools is to increase the effectiveness of education for our youth, therefore, the Shanta Mining has set aside over 10.98m/- for the renovation of five classrooms in this school."

Receiving the donation, Ikungi District Commissioner, Edward Mpogolo thanked the Company's management for its efforts to serve the surrounding communities and other residents in the district.

"I know at this particular time, you are constructing a gold refinery plant and this is the period when you are really busy, but still you have found time to donate desks and chairs to this school as well as renovating its five classrooms.

Thank you so much for caring. "Your efforts offer students more opportunity for quality education and teachers are motivated imparting knowledge in a well-equipped classroom," the DC said.

Elaborating, he emphasized on the importance of good relations between the gold mine management and the surrounding community members saying good relationship normally usher in real development and positive change to people in the respective area.
ZANZIBAR has in the past nine months approved 30 investment projects, which will inject 172.13 million US dollars (over 400bn/-) in the economy and create 1,886 jobs for the islanders.

The Minister of State, President's Office, Labour, Economy and Investment, Mudrik Ramadhan Soraga told the House of Representatives here yesterday that the government through Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority (ZIPA) is determined to attract huge private capitals in the Isles.

Moving his office's 2021/2022 budget estimates, the minister said investment promotion campaigns were this financial year focused on Malaysia, Philippine, Singapore, Indonesia, Sweden, South Africa, Abudhabi, Zimbabwe and Dubai with an eye on the industrial sector.

ZIPA had between July 2020 and March 2021 received 35 prospective investment projects in various sectors of the economy. Through thorough scrutiny, 30 projects were approved and issued with investment permits, said the minister.

Determined to strengthen the investment sector under the public private partnership (PPP), the government has reviewed tender documents for 13 PPP projects to get the appropriate investors.

Mr Soraga revealed that his ministry is currently holding negotiations prior to signing of the agreements with six potential investors under PPP.

The major anticipated projects are in fishery, construction of convention centre, construction of Pemba airport, redevelopment of Bwawani hotel and construction of Zanzibar Domino Tower.

The minister told the house further that the cooperative management and development programme, which envisages transforming the cooperative unions in the Indian Ocean semiautonomous archipelagos to make them strong and sustainable, will in the next fiscal year register 400 societies, audit the financial accounts of 350 others and provide guidelines to 1,000 cooperative societies.

During the current year, the programme has registered 318 societies-155 and 163 in Unguja and Pemba, respectively-bringing to 4,877 the total number of registered cooperatives.

Through the Labour Commission, the minister said, a total of 1,129 foreigners from Italy, India, China, UK and East Africa were given work permits to work in the islands' hospitality, higher learning, health and construction sectors.

He further said the commission will in the 2021/2022 fiscal year inspect 600 institutions, approve employment contracts for 5,000 Zanzibaris; inspect 15 employers and employees' associations and give education on labour laws to 40 institutions.

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The minister asked the house to approve 34.9bn/- for the ministry's recurrent and development projects.

The House's Economic Standing Committee Chairperson, Mr Shaaban Ali Othman, presenting the committee's outlook on the budget, expressed doubts on the possibility of creating 300,000 jobs by 2025 as per Chama Cha Mapinduzi's 2020/2025 election manifesto.

He described as too minimal to meet the ruling party's target the envisaged 1,700 jobs in the private sector in the 2021/2022 fiscal year, proposing more innovation in creating more employment opportunities in the country.

Mr Othman further belittled the 850m/-, which the ministry anticipates as fees from inspections, blaming the problem on a weak and poorly equipped inspection unit in the ministry.
PRESIDENT Samia Suluhu Hassan yesterday received diplomatic credentials from five diplomats, as she stressed the need on fostering economic diplomacy.

Since coming into power in March, this year, President Samia has been active in making Tanzania more attached to other nations, as the country is pursuing benefits of economic diplomacy.

Yesterday, the Head of State received credentials from diplomatic representatives of Namibia, Ireland, Turkey, Italy and Mozambique at the State House in Dar es Salaam, once again vowing to strengthen foreign relations.

The diplomats who presented their credentials to the President were Lebbius Taneni Tobias (Namibia), Ms Mary O'Nell (Ireland), Dr Mehmet Gulluoglu (Turkey), Mr Marco Lombardi (Italy) and Mr Ricardo Ambrosia Sampio Mtumbuida (Mozambique).

The first to present his credentials to the President was Mr Tobias of Namibia who arrived at the State House at around 10am, followed by Ms O'Nell of Ireland and Turkey's diplomat Dr Gulluoglu.

The diplomats were welcomed with the national anthem at the State House grounds before they proceeded inside for signing the guest book and holding a conversation with the President During her talks with the ambassadors, Ms Samia welcomed them to Tanzania and assured them that the country was ready to cooperate with their respective nations in strengthening and increasing more relations, particularly in matters of economic and social wellbeing.

Ms Samia added that Tanzania has abundant investment opportunities in different sectors including agriculture, industries, tourism, livestock and fisheries.

She therefore asked the new ambassadors to convince investors in their countries to cooperate with Tanzanians in using those opportunities for the betterment between Tanzania and their countries.

She went on asking the ambassador to send her gratitude to their Presidents in the countries they represent, and guaranteed them that she was ready to cooperate at any time.

On their part, the new ambassadors thanked President Samia for receiving their credentials and her readiness to foster more relations and cooperation with their countries.

The ambassadors also promised the President that they would accord enough cooperation in enabling realization of her expectations, particularly economic relations.

Tanzania-Ireland diplomatic relations were established in 1979. In that year, a development cooperation office was opened in Dar es Salaam when Ireland launched its development programme.

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The office was upgraded to an Embassy in 2006 when Ireland's first Ambassador to Tanzania was appointed.

Tanzania's bilateral relations with Turkey gained momentum with the visit of the former President of the Republic of Turkey, Abdullah Gul to in 2009 and the re-opening of the Turkish Embassy in Dar es Salaam in the same year.

On other hand, Mozambique and Tanzania have had cordial relations since Mozambique got its independence from Portugal. After independence, civil war broke out between the ruling party, Front for Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO) and Mozambique Resistance Movement (RENAMO), who were backed by Rhodesia and South Africa.

It is the same with Namibia as the two countries have historically enjoyed closer ties even before independence, Tanzania being one of the frontline states that supported the freedomfighting struggle.

Recently, Tanzania opened an embassy in Windhoek, Namibia as the two countries committed to foster bilateral relations in an endeavour to deepen economic ties.

Before the opening of the embassy, Namibia and Tanzania diplomatic services were available through Pretoria, South Africa.

During his visit to Namibia in 2019, the late President John Magufuli pledged before his Namibian counterpart that Tanzania will open the embassy in Windhoek to facilitate diplomatic and economic relations between the two countries.
Press Release

May 11, 2021 Lacson: President's 'Joking' Statements No Laughing Matter

More at: https://pinglacson.net/2021/05/11/lacson-presidents-joking-statements-no-laughing-matter/ What President Rodrigo Duterte may consider a "joke" could be no laughing matter for Filipinos especially when it involves key issues like our territory in the West Philippine Sea, Sen. Panfilo M. Lacson said Tuesday. Lacson said this after the President said Monday night that he was only joking when he said during the 2016 campaign that he would ride a jet ski to the Spratlys. "It's very hard to read his mind. He may be sending mixed signals such that we don't know if he's serious or joking. His spokesperson would say he is joking, but there are times he seems serious in his statements. We don't know anymore. We have a very big problem in our hand," Lacson said in an interview on ANC. "When he addresses the nation, we don't know when he is joking or serious. Is it up to us to understand which is which? It's really hard for Filipinos," he added. With such confusing statements - including Mr. Duterte's claim that only stupid people would believe his jet ski claim - Lacson said it is time we learn as an electorate and be more discerning of those running in elections - not only for President but also for other posts, including lawmakers. In the meantime, Lacson lamented that while Filipinos - including our own armed forces - are confused on the President's statements, China continues to make incursions into our territory in the West Philippine Sea. "In the meantime, our fishermen are harassed in our own Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). We cannot fish and we're losing billions and that affects our economy. China has become of late very aggressive to the point they rammed a commercial fishing vessel owned by Filipinos though of course they compensated," he said. "We buy galunggong from China but the fish came from our waters. Isn't it an irony we own the fish we are buying?" he added. He reiterated it is time the Philippines strengthen its ties with its natural allies such as the United States, Japan, Australia and European countries. In the case of some European countries, he said they want to ensure there is a balance of power in the WPS, as they fear that if China takes control of the maritime lanes, it would charge fees from passing vessels, including their own. "Each country works in its own interest. We should take advantage of that, that they have their own national interest to pursue in the WPS," he said.
RUKWA Region plans to draft some bylaws that would allow parents or guardians to contribute food for meals of students in public schools during class hours.

The move, once comes into effect, is expected to be one of strategies of preventing teenage pregnancies and early marriages that are still high in the region.

According to the Tanzania Demographic Health and Malaria Indicators Survey (TDHMIS) of 2015/16, a total of 29 per cent of teen girls aged between 15 and 19 years old in Rukwa Region either have been impregnated or given birth, which is above the national rate of 27 per cent.

Rukwa Regional Commissioner (RC) Mr Joachim Wangabo told the 'Daily News' during an exclusive interview that all four councils in the region have been directed to craft bylaws to make parents or guardians to contribute food to (Primary and Secondary) public schools during class hours.

He further said the drafted bylaws will then be forwarded to the Minister of State- President Office (Regional Administration and Local Government) for further steps.

According to the RC, though contribution of meals is still a voluntary thing for parents or guardians, it would help in enticing students to stay in school healthy, instead of going to back home for meals during lunch breaks.

"Providing meals to children during class hours is of paramount strategy to either eliminating or preventing teens from becoming pregnant, hence shuttering their dreams... unfortunately most parents in the region still do not see its essence," pointed the RC.

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However, he argued that providing meals to students in schools will also improve their academic performance, because majority will be concentrating in classes.

On his part the Kalambo District Council (KDC) Mr Daud Sichone explained that council's full council meeting has approved to draft the bylaws and have been submitted the issue to the Minister of State- President Office ( Regional Administration and Local Government)- for further consideration.

A cross-section of students who were interviewed separately confessed that staying at schools without getting food during lunch time,, caused some of them to drop out and others becoming chronic absentees. Rukwa Regional Medical Officer (RMO) Dr Boniface Kasululu noted that Rukwa Region has officially launched Five Year Strategic Plan (July 2020 - June 2025 being a concerted effort to eliminate early pregnancy and forced marriage coming 2025.

Dr Kasululu, who chaired a team of experts which drafted that strategic plan noted that latest statistics show that during a period of three years (2017 to August 2019 ) a total of 722 students dropped out of schools after being impregnated, among them, 171 were in Primary Schools and 551 from Secondary section.
Nairobi  Kenya Power has partnered with Community Based Organisations (CBOs) in Mathare, Mukuru and Kibera in efforts to enhance service delivery and stem electricity theft.

This innovative partnership, which is in line with the Company's wider commercial losses reduction strategy, will enlist the support and ownership of the local community whilst enabling Kenya Power to bring its services closer to its customers.

Kenya Power will also open offices in each of the three communities of Mathare, Mukuru and Kibera to effectively and efficiently address customer issues such as power outages, bill queries, and new connections among others.

The Company plans to recover at least KSh 2 billion in the three informal settlements through this collaboration.

"Under the partnership, the CBOs will act as the Company's ambassadors and report issues to teams based in the new offices. Kenya Power will continue to carry out network maintenance and ensure that all customers in informal settlements are properly metered,"said Managing Director and CEO, Bernard Ngugi.

"We are confident that through this collaborative effort, we will achieve our goal to provide quality, reliable and safe power in informal settlements," added Ngugi.

According to the CEO, the national grid has expanded significantly over the last five years, with high and medium voltage network growing from a total of 56,611 kilometres in circuit length to 84,681 kilometres as at end of June 2020. Over the same period, the customer base has increased from 2.3 million to 8.1 million.

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In the Financial Year ending June 2020, total system losses stood at 24.7%. System losses are divided into technical losses which occur when energy is dissipated through the network, and commercial losses that happen majorly due to electricity theft.

The war on losses is one of the Company's key cogs in its turnaround strategy, and in addition to the CBO approach, the Company, in the last financial year, rolled out a devolved county structure so as to increase its field presence and enhance accountability among staff.

Further to this, it is currently implementing a smart meter programme under which 6,623 large power consumers and 55,000 SMEs will have benefitted by 30th June this year.

The combined benefits of error-free data, prompt network problem identification, and audit of energy consumption will go a long way in enhancing service delivery to customers in the business sector.

The Company is also rolling out boundary metering and the goal is to install 302 meters within regional and county boundaries this year.

In addition to improving system efficiency by reducing losses, the Company's turnaround strategy is premised on enhancing customer responsiveness, increasing sales, improving revenue collection, and managing costs.

This approach has begun to bear fruit, with the Company posting a profit before tax of KShs.332 million for the half-year period ended 31 December, 2020.
Nairobi  The High Court will on Thursday render its judgment on the consolidated petitions against the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Bill that was passed by Members of the National Assembly last week.

The Senate was set to vote on the Bill Tuesday.

The High Court had in February issued a temporary conservatory order restraining the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) from subjecting the Constitutional Amendment Bill 2020 popularly known as BBI Bill to a referendum.

A 5-judge bench presided by Justice Joel Ngugi issued the order pending hearing and determination of the petition as consolidated by Turkana County Assembly, Thirdway Alliance and with six others.

On Thursday last week, 235 out of the 320 members of the National Assembly who participated in the voting exercise on the Second Reading of the Bill supported it against 83 who rejected while two abstained.

The vote was largely divided along MPs allied to President Uhuru Kenyatta and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga against those loyal to Deputy President William Ruto who had vowed to shoot down the bill, following a series of meetings at his official residence in Karen and during countrywide political rallies.

Some eleven MPs, including Bahati's Kimani Ngunjiri, however voted in its favour despite having vowed to shoot it down.

The House then proceeded to plenary where a vote on the Bill's Third Reading was taken. 224 MPs voted yes, 63 rejected and 2 abstained.

The vote that lasted four hours was conducted through a roll call as others voted virtually.

The Speaker of the National Assembly Justin Muturi will retreat to embark on the correction of typographical errors in the Bill before transmitting it to President Uhuru Kenyatta for assent.

Before assenting to the Bill, President Kenyatta shall request IEBC to conduct, within ninety days, a national referendum for approval of the Bill, subject to the determination of pending court cases challenging the Bill's constitutionality which was due on Thursday.

Once the court gives the electoral body the green light to prepare the national referendum, within thirty days after IEBC Chairperson Wafula Chebukati confirms to the President that the Bill has been approved in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, the President shall assent to the Bill and cause it to be published.
press release

A witness in the trial of seven Chinese nationals facing human trafficking and child labour charges has detailed a web of abuse he and fellow nationals were subjected to including being subjected to long working hours, debt bondage, hazardous working conditions, insults, assaults and violation of basic human rights.

Fraser Aufi, a Malawian national, testified in the Johannesburg High Court today (May 10). He also told the court that his dream of becoming an entrepreneur was shattered the day he set his foot at Beautiful City Pty Ltd, the company that employed them.

His dream when he came into South Africa back in 2017 was to get work and go back home to open and run his own business. However, after being subjected to slavery-like working conditions that dream has now disappeared.

Aufi was continuing on his testimony detailing the alleged trail of abuse he suffered in the hands of his employer.

Seven Chinese nationals were arrested in November 2019 for alleged human trafficking and violation of the country's labour laws. They are: Kevin Tsao Shu-Uei, Chen Hui, Qin Li, Jiaqing Zhou, Ma Biao, Dai Junying, and Zhang Zhilian.

The accused are facing schedule six offences. They are charged with 160 counts of crime ranging from contravention of labour laws, human trafficking, kidnapping, contravention of Immigration Act, pointing a firearm, debt bondage, benefitting from the services of a victim of trafficking, conduct that facilitates trafficking, illegally assisting person(s) to remain in South Africa, knowingly employing illegal foreigners, and failure to comply with duties of an employer.

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They are out on a bail, except for accused number seven Zhang Zhilian who is now held in custody because on 24 February 2021 violated her bail conditions by trying flee the country. She was arrested at the OR Tambo International Airport.

The seven accused were arrested for allegedly running an illegal enterprise called Beautiful City Pty Ltd located at Village Deep in Johannesburg after a joint operation by the Department's Inspection and Enforcement Services (IES, together with the South African Police Services (SAPS), Department of Home Affairs and the Hawks Unit.

Aufi told the Court that initially the Chinese refused to open the gates until the police climbed over the gates to free them and how the accused tried to "bribe" the police with food.

The witness had testified earlier that during his stay at the factory he was once injured on a rib while working on a machine and has witnessed a number of injuries suffered by fellow workers including suffering fractures, and being chopped fingers by machines. He told the Court that he was never compensated for his injuries.

The accused have pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

The witness further testified that: "if things were well in Malawi I would never have come to South Africa".

Aufi testified that except for a few Malawians that have since left most of the Malawians freed from the Chinese factory were now under the police care and have been told that their status would be resolved after the Chinese trial.

The trial continues tomorrow (May 11).
As construction workers landscaped the field where the maternity ward at Kabgayi Hospital in Muhanga District, they discovered remains of victims of the Genocide against the Tutsi.

This was on May 2, and this was a surprise to many, for remains to be concealed for over 27 years since the victims were killed.

Ibuka, the umbrella body for associations of Genocide survivors is particularly riled, with officials wondering how no resident had disclosed the whereabouts of these remains after such a long time.

"Yet there are people who lived there during 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and are still here while others were convicted for genocide crimes. All these have been quiet," wonders Naphtal Ahishakiye the Executive Secretary of Ibuka.

According to Ahishakiye, every day since May 2, they have been exhuming remains from this construction site.

"Even this Monday (May 10), over 20 remains were exhumed. The activity continues," he told The New Times, adding that so far, remains of at least 235 Genocide victims have been discovered.

He said that during 1994 genocide, many Tutsi from different areas had fled to the area as thousands of them sought refuge in classrooms at the nearby school.

"Interahamwe-militia and military personnel killed many Tutsi in Kabgayi and they had established many roadblocks around the area from where Tutsi were intercepted and killed," he explained.

Ahishakiye said that they have tried to map out the exact locations where the roadblocks were mounted in that vicinity.

"We have engaged investigators to probe the matter. It seems that people concealed information which they really had. We request that those who will be found culpable be punished. Investigation is underway," he noted.

In 2009, details about the 1994 killings at the Kabgayi Catholic Diocese in Muhanga district were released in a report that was compiled by a team of 18 Gacaca judges from former Gitarama Province - who since October 2008 had been collecting various testimonies from Kabgayi survivors wherever they are across the country.

When the Genocide broke out, thousands of Tutsi fled to Kabgayi for sanctuary since it is considered the cradle of the Catholic Church in Rwanda, hence seen as sacred.

The fleeing Tutsi gathered in the church, classrooms and in structures near the hospital, but the Interahamwe militia found them and killed them.

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According to the report by the judges, more than 64,000 Rwandans who had sought refuge at Kabgayi Diocese grounds were killed.

"As we mark 27th commemoration of 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, more remains of genocide victims are still being discovered simply because perpetrators hid information of their whereabouts," Ahishakiye added.

Concealing information about genocide remains is punished according to the law n 59/2018 of 22/8/2018 on the Crime of Genocide Ideology and Related Crimes.

Articles 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10, prohibits any actions that are aimed at denying, undermining or trivializing the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

Any person who commits the said offence, upon conviction, he/she is liable to imprisonment for a term of not less than five (5) years and not more than seven (7) years, with a fine of not less than Rwf500,000 and not more than Rwf1,000,000.
The panel has also recommended the engagement of consultants to join a new joint council and senate selection committee to be inaugurated by the university's governing council.

The controversies over the appointment of 9th substantive vice-chancellor at the Lagos State University (LASU), Ojo, may yet be far from being over as the visitation panel appointed by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has recommended jettisoning of the report of the second selection process, PREMIUM TIMES can exclusively report.

The panel, headed by the Pro-Chancellor of the Ekiti State University and former Vice Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Bamitale Omole, on Monday submitted a three-volume report to Mr Sanwo-Olu containing its recommendations on ways towards resolving the lingering crisis over the appointment, among other pertinent issues.

According to reliable sources who are privy to the details of the documents but who do not want to be named, they said the panel has also recommended the engagement of consultants to join a new joint council and senate selection committee to be inaugurated by the university's governing council.

It is, however, not clear whether the Adebayo Ninalowo-led governing council of the university is recommended for dissolution or not.

But strong indications have emerged that whether recommended for dissolution or not, some members of the council have resolved to resign for the council if the panel's recommendation is adopted by the governor.

Earlier, some stakeholders had kicked against the choice of Mr Omole as the chairman of the special visitation panel, citing the succession crisis witnessed during his administration at OAU which led to his unceremonious exit from the university, as a valid reason.

Inside LASU's crisis

After rejecting the first nominations by the university's governing council earlier in the year due largely to complaints by some applicants and others, Mr Sanwo-Olu ordered a fresh process by the same selection committee of the governing council.

The council had recommended a professor of public health and director of the university's research and innovation unit, Olumuyiwa Odusanya, a former chairperson of the university's branch of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), who was later appointed dean of students' affairs, Kabir Akinyemi, and a former deputy vice-chancellor, Sena Bakre.

While Mr Odusanya scored 90 per cent to rank first, Ms Bakre came second with 72.5 per cent. Mr Akinyemi, who ranked third on the list, scored 68.8 per cent. The wife of the state's commissioner for the environment, Mr Olatunji Bello, Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello was ranked 4th with 68.0 per cent, and was followed by Omotayo Awofolu from the Namibia University of Science and Technology, who scored 66.5 per cent.

Also, following the expiration of the tenure of the university's 8th substantive vice-chancellor, Olanrewaju Fagbhun, on January 11, the university's senate also elected the then deputy vice-chancellor in charge of administration, Oyindamola Oke, as acting vice-chancellor.

However, in March, after another round of rigorous selection processes, a fresh recommendation was made to the governor with the best three as Mr Odusanya, who scored 87.94 per cent; a professor of public health at Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto, Mohammed Ibrahim, who scored 80.95 per cent, and a professor of public mental health and incumbent acting provost of the university's college of medicine, Abiodun Adewuya, with 76.61 per cent, taking first, second and third positions respectively.

The incumbent deputy vice-chancellor in charge of academics, Elias Wahab, was ranked 4th with 76.61 per cent, while Olawunmi Badejo scored 71.99 per cent to be ranked 5th.

Others are Akinyemi in 6th position with 69.01 per cent; Olatunji-Bello ranking 7th with 68.95 per cent, and Sena Bakre with 66.4 per cent, ranking 8th. Awofolu, whose name also appeared on the list could not be graded as he was said to be absent from the interview.

Meanwhile, worried by the flood of petitions and complaints by interested parties, especially against the new list, the governor, on March 30, inaugurated a six-man special visitation panel.

The panel, which is chaired by Mr Omole, has as other members, former vice-chancellor of University of Port Harcourt, Joseph Ajienka; a renowned political scientist, Ayo Olukotun; former Lagos Solicitor-General, Lawal Pedro; former Registrar of University of Ibadan (UI), Olujimi Olukoya, and a director in the state's public service, Funmilola Olajide, who functioned as the panel's Secretary.

Panel submits report

After about five weeks of interactions and reading through voluminous memoranda submitted to it, the panel on Monday submitted its recommendations to the governor.

According to a statement issued by the governor's spokesman, Gboyega Akosile, Mr Omole while presenting the report said; said: "Without a scintilla of equivocation in our findings, observations and recommendations are based on the memoranda submitted to us, the face-to-face interactions and interviews that we had with many of the people who held opposing and disparate position on the matter of the appointment of the 9th VC.

"Individuals, groups, associations, unions, guild, the academia and traditional rulers who submitted memoranda were given ample opportunities to present their submissions. The documents we are submitting to the Visitor of the university are final products of the careful and punctilious exercise for official consideration."

He said the governor pledged that the report would be well utilised and its recommendations fully implemented in the appointment of the university's new vice-chancellor.

He also said: "Today, I received reports of the special visitation panel on the Vice Chancellorship of LASU, which looked into the issues surrounding the appointment of the 9th Vice Chancellor, especially the remote causes of the impasse into the selection process and procedures for the appointment.

"This effort is geared towards ensuring that there is equality, fairness, transparency, openness and level playground for all in the process of selection and to ensure that the best and the most qualified person that will drive the established vision of the school's founding fathers emerges at the end of the process."

Report

While the details of the report are yet to be made public by the governor, PREMIUM TIMES has gained insight into some of the key recommendations by the panel.

Reliable sources who are privy to the contents of the three-volume report but who do not want to be named since they are not authorised to speak on the matter, have confided in our reporters that key among the issues is the jettisoning of the second lists submitted to the governor so far.

PREMIUM TIMES is yet to authenticate the claim.

The sources also added that the panel has recommended the engagement of consultants "to join hands" with the selection committee of the governing council during a new selection process to be put in place soon.

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"The panel has also mischievously indicted the university's registrar claiming he did not guide the selection committee properly. It is part of the ploy to justify its recommendation for the cancellation of the second process," one of the sources said.

Not yet Uhuru

Meanwhile, the Education Rights Campaign (ERC), a civil society group had earlier kicked against the nomination of Mr Omole as the chairman of the panel.

A statement issued by the group and signed by its deputy national coordinator, Ogunjimi Ayobami, and the national mobilisation officer, Michael Lenin, said Nigerians should not await any positive outcome from the panel.

The statement reads in part; "Without any intention to second guess the findings of the Lagos State University (LASU) visitation panel 2021 set up by the Lagos State government to look into the Vice Chancellorship selection crisis rocking the University, the Education Rights Campaign (ERC) feels it incumbent to sound a note of warning that there is the likelihood that the panel's objective may be derailed and justice not served due to the anti-worker and anti-student pedigree of the panel's Chairman, Prof. Bamitale Omole."

It added that; "As he exited the University after the expiration of his tenure, Prof. Bamitale Omole orchestrated an illegal imposition of an acting Vice-Chancellor to succeed him which led to a crisis for months. His imposition of Prof. Salami in contravention of processes and precedents was only stopped by protest and strikes of workers (NASU and SSANU especially) which had the school shut for months. It took a federal government intervention for the crisis to be resolved which led to the appointment of Prof. Elujoba as Acting Vice-Chancellor."
Bien-Aime Baraza, one-fourth member of the award-winning group Sauti Sol, has disclosed how much rapper Khaligraph Jones paid him for their 2020 hit collabo "Yes Bana".

While appearing on Cleaning the Airwaves (CTA) with Richard Njau alias A-Star, Bien explained that the money was just a token of appreciation from the "Me Siogopi" hit-maker.

"OG is the first artist to send me Sh300,000 via mobile money. He called me and said he would send the cash from the revenues which it had earned," said Bien.

But he also took a dig at Papa Jones over how he sent the money, likening him to cunning Kenyans who send money in multiple transactions to save on transaction fees.

"He is such a Kenyan stereotype so he sent the money from his phone. He asked for my account number and wired it in batches of Sh50,000. He is like those debtors that pay you in hundreds," he added.

The hit song has done incredibly well, even being selected for a marketing campaign by one of the leading telcos in the county and earned millions in licensing fees.

This was not the first time the two had worked together, they had earlier hit the booth with Sauti Sol on their Rewind hit record three years ago.

Since then, Khaligraph Jones has also worked with Bien on Nviiri the Storyteller's hit record Birthday Song that features his band.

During the interview, Bien likened music to real estate property, explaining that every song released is like a rental house which earns him 'rent' every time someone listens or uses it for commercial purposes.

He said that sometimes certain songs earn small residual income over long periods, while others become hits songs and fall off in the same manner.

"In the 100 million+ streams that we have for Midnight Train, Suzzana has a good 42 million, it is the song that pays the bills but there are other songs that ink deals here and there. As a musician, your real estate and wealth are in your intellectual property. Understand it and put out a lot of art," he added.
We fled the violence in our hometown and we have nothing, we dont even have the money to treat ourselves, tells Zalle Ramata during her visit to MSFs mobile clinic in Sirfou, a village in Burkina Fasos North region. Zalle brought two of her children to the clinic to receive treatment, after theyve fallen sick last night. We are grateful for this service; not only its free, but it is being delivered in our village. I neither have to worry about the consultations fees nor the transportation fees, she adds.

Burkina Faso's North region hosts more than 100,000 internally displaced people who have fled recurring violence in this part of the country.

Since January 2021, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) has sent mobile teams offering healthcare to displaced people in the villages of Sirfou, Todiame, Rounga and Ouindigui, where access to healthcare and other basic services is severely limited.

"We have nothing left, since we fled the conflict," says Zalle Ramata, a displaced woman living in the village of Sirfou. "We don't even have money to pay for treatment."

Zalle brought two of her children to receive free medical assistance from MSF teams who have been regularly visiting Sirfou since January 2021.

"They weren't feeling well," says Zalle. "They spent last night throwing up until the morning."

These mobile clinics complement MSF's medical services in the town of Titao, to provide free healthcare in an area where thousands of displaced people have settled, fleeing a cycle of violence that for years has pitted armed groups against the military, as well as intercommunal clashes.

Out of 23 health centres in the district of Titao, 15 are not operating at full capacity and another three have shut down due to the conflict. Added to the difficulty in movement due to long distances, the insecurity and the lack of means of transportation, the situation makes access to basic health services in Titao's district almost impossible. Our mobile teams also regularly visit Sirfou's neighbouring villages of Todiame, Rounga and Ouindigui.

"These villages are located several kilometres from the nearest health centre," says Monique Diarra, an MSF nurse. "In Sirfou for example, where we are today, the nearest health centre is seven kilometres away. The majority of the displaced people have neither the means of transportation nor the money to get there."

These villages are located several kilometres from the nearest health centre... The majority of the displaced people have neither the means of transportation nor the money to get there. Monique Diarra, MSF Nurse

"Our main objective is to provide healthcare services to both displaced people and host communities that have no access to them and already suffered a lot because of the widespread violence," she adds.

Every week, an MSF team of five travels several dozen kilometres to reach these villages, often on very poor roads. The journey is relatively easier in the dry season but becomes longer and more difficult when the rains start falling. The region's chronic insecurity adds to the difficulties in the team's movements; it took months for the conditions to allow our teams to leave the town of Titao and reach these villages on the outskirts.

"We provide primary healthcare services that include treatment for common diseases such as malaria, diarrhoea and respiratory infections," says Diarra. "Recently, we started providing treatment for chronic diseases and mental health support."

Between January and March 2021, MSF provided more than 1,600 medical consultations to host and displaced communities in an area where around 15,000 people live.

By the end of 2020, many displaced people who had settled in Titao decided to come back to their area of origin, but the local health centres are still closed.

With the rainy season approaching, and thus the peak of malaria cases, our teams are concerned about the likely increase in people's needs in a remote area with few services available. The risk of malaria is higher because mosquitoes reproduce in stagnant water.

"Our medical work base in Titao is a short-term solution we launched this year to respond to the needs of people who were recently displaced," says Dr Diallo Alpha Amadou, MSF's medical coordinator in Burkina Faso.

MSF teams also support five health facilities in the district of Titao to help them regain their full working capacity, as a more long-term solution.

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"When these health centres are ready to admit patients again, we will move our mobile clinics towards other villages," says Dr Alpha.

MSF medical teams also support local health authorities with mass vaccination campaigns against diseases common among the displaced people.

Our logistics teams rehabilitate old boreholes or build new ones to increase access to clean water. With the waves of displaced people, poor living conditions, and the lack of clean water, diseases can easily spread.

"We receive many patients suffering from diseases they caught by drinking polluted or dirty water. In many areas in the North region, just like in other areas of the country where displaced people settled, access to clean water remains a challenge for thousands," says Dr Alpha. "The lack of water access points and their bad quality are reasons behind different parasitic infections and other water-borne diseases such as cholera and diarrhoea."
The Federal Government has taken delivery of 656,752 prepaid meters, under the phase 0 of the Central Bank of Nigeria-funded National Mass Metering Programme, NMMP.

This represents almost 85 percent of the one million meters to be provided to Nigerians, whose bills are still based on estimation.

However, of the 656,752 prepaid meters, 305,962 have already been installed for consumers, according to the Special Adviser to the President on Infrastructure, Mr. Ahmad Zakari.

In an interview with Vanguard, weekend, he said: "The major problem faced by the indigenous producers and Meter Asset Providers, MAPs is the pace of ramp-up of available personnel for installation. Another problem is the lack of a vital plastic component as one of the two major global suppliers (based in Germany) had shut down during the Coronavirus pandemic, resulting in pressure to the value chain.

"However, disbursement has been made for 656,752 meters, with the Discos already in receipt of almost 85% of the funded meters. Based on the current trend, all Phase 0 installations should be completed by the end of June, 2021."

According to him, the nation would start its phase one and later phase two of the NMMP.

Previously, the Chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, Engr. Sanusi Garba, had said in an interview with

Vanguard that, "The Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry, NESI, had what we call the Meter Asset Provider, MAP. That scheme was a regulation we issued in 2018 and it took effect in 2019, involving third-party businessmen.

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"We gave them permits, and they went to the DisCos and got contracts to supply, install and maintain meters for them.

"So, they are the ones that have a responsibility to install meters for every DisCo in Nigeria. That system is still working as we speak.

However, what happened was that when we gave the permits to those MAPs, and then they got the contract with the Disco's, each of them was given quantities of meters to supply."

"In our regulation, we stated that each MAP must get at least 30 per cent of his meters from a local manufacturer, because we want to encourage local production, but 70 per cent, they can import. So, they started, some importing, others buying locally to install the meters.

"Along the line, the government had a new policy, introducing an additional levy of 35 per cent import levy on imported meters, which affected the MAP because at the time we agreed on the price of meters, the levy was about 10 per cent.

Vanguard News Nigeria
Kenya on Monday suspended flights from Somalia in the latest show that relations between the two sides have not thawed as announced last week.

A Notice to Airmen (Notam) on Monday indicated that flights departing for or arriving from Somalia will not be allowed for three months from May 11 to August 9 this year. Only humanitarian deliveries and medical evacuation flights will be allowed into the country, according to a notice by the aviation regulator, the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).

The Authority did not elaborate on reasons but suggested there had been a security directive from the government to restrict air traffic between the two countries. The decision means all chartered and scheduled flights to Somalia will not be allowed.

However, flights from Somalia passing through the Kenyan airspace to another destination will be exempted. The announcement was made just as Somalia's President Mohamed Farmaajo was flying over Kenya to Uganda for the inauguration of President Yoweri Museveni for the fifth term.

Also exempted are military flights which are not within the jurisdiction of the KCAA.

The move, however, dents any latest efforts to revive relations between the two countries.

Last week, Qatari special envoy Mutlaq bin Majed al-Qahtani helped broker resumption of relations and Mogadishu announced it was reopening its diplomatic channels with Nairobi that it had shut down in December 2020, protesting against Kenya's alleged interference in Somalia's internal matters.

But Somali officials clarified that the resumed relations will not involve lifting the ban on miraa trade or discussions about the maritime boundary dispute that is awaiting a verdict at the International Court of Justice.

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Somalia, however, has not indicated when its ambassador will resume his post in Kenya. Mr Mohamud Nur Tarsan was recalled to Mogadishu and Kenya's Lucas Tumbo asked to return to Nairobi after Mogadishu cut ties in December last year. Nairobi, however, did not sever the ties.

This isn't the first time either Nairobi or Mogadishu is banning flights.

Right after the fall of Siad Barre's regime, Kenya's then President Daniel Moi suspended flights and closed its borders with Somalia. A petition from humanitarian agencies, however, allowed a special corridor for aid deliveries.

In later years, Kenya had restricted flight arrivals from Somalia, asking them to first land in Wajir for security checks before proceeding to any other port of call. A discussion between the two sides saw the move lifted in 2019, after Mogadishu agreed to intensify security checks for its departing passengers.

A few months later, Somalia banned flights from Kenya carrying miraa into Somalia, and restricted all other flights to land in Mogadishu before going to any other port of call. This directive was, however, ignored by rebellious federal states in Somalia.
Press Release

May 11, 2021 Villanueva: 'State of calamity' declaration vs ASF a big win for hard-hit local hog industry Senator Joel Villanueva today lauded Malacanang's declaration of a state of calamity for the entire nation over the ravaging effects of the African Swine Fever, adding that the Department of Agriculture should now focus on concrete measures to eradicate the disease that has severely crippled the local hog industry. "Now the real work begins. This is the declaration of war against ASF that pig farmers have long been waiting for. Recognizing that there is a calamity is one thing, ending it is another," Villanueva, chair of the Senate labor committee, said. "Hopefully, this declaration will prompt the government to move as one, marshal all resources available, and work on a timetable that results in quick victory," he added The Palace on Monday, through Proclamation No. 1143, placed the country under a state of calamity, citing the billions worth of losses suffered by the industry due to the ASF. The proclamation also gave government agencies a wide latitude to utilize funds to contain the outbreak. Villanueva called on the DA and other government agencies to come up with a "game plan" on how they intend to carry out the objectives or "spirit" of the proclamation, which not only involves the eradication of the ASF, but also the rehabilitation of the local hog industry. "The DA should now regularly update the public on what interventions are being done pursuant to this declaration. If the local hog industry were a patient in the ICU, it is then the duty of the DA to display the patient's chart so the country would know if progress is being made and recovery is underway," Villanueva explained. "Ang deklarasyon ay isang mainam na reseta laban sa isang karamdaman. Ang mahalaga ay ipatupad kung ano ang nasa reseta upang agarang gumaling ang maysakit," Villanueva said.
The Onikotun of Ikotun, Oba Azeez Gbadabiu Asiwaju has commended the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu for awarding the construction of deplorable Abaranje Road in Igando-Ikotun Local Council Development Area, LCDA of the state.

Asiwaju gave the commendation while briefing the media o the activities lined up for commemoration of his 20 years anniversary on tge throne.

However, like Oliver Twist, the monarch, appealed to the governor to order back to work contractor of the abandoned Ijedodo- Abule Ado link road construction project in the interest of the monitoring public.

Similarly, the oba appealed to the Governor to also come to the rescue of residents of Gafaru road and adjourning streets in Ikotun,by giving consideration and approval for construction of the road, which has been in a very deplorable condition for over 25 years.

The monarch added that Gafaru road is a major link road that will reduce the perennial traffic bottle neck often experienced at Ikotun roundabout junction and old garage,as motorists going to Egbe,Isolo,Mushin, Mainland and the Island will pass through the road to get to their destinations.He submitted that,Gafaru road construction will permanently solve the problem of traffic logjam at Ikotun roundabout junction.

He commended Sanwo-Olu for approving the construction of Abaranje Road which had been long overdue for reconstruction.

"Onbehalf of myself and the entire people in the Kingdom of Igando-Ikotun, LCDA of Lagos State to express our profound gratitude to our God-sent Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, for approving the construction of the deplorable Abaranje Road which had been ignored and neglected by successive administration despite several complaints and appeals sent to govrnment.

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"This has come on the heel of my 20 years anniversary with series of events, which will witness prayer session over insecurity in the country and peace in Lagos and Ikotunland.

According to the monarch, when completed, the Ijedodo- Abule Ado link road construction project will relieve chaotic traffic on the ever busy Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, as motorists going to Badagry axis and FESTAC area, can join the Lagos-Badagry Expressway from the link road.

"We do immensely appreciate Your Excellency, Sanwo-Olu for this project and as a people we will continue to be eternally grateful to you and support you in whatever way possible," Asiwaju stated.

Speaking on the activities lined up for the anniversary, Asiwaju said it will kick off on May 15, with traditional rites at Ikotun Shrines for prayers among other rites.

The highlights of the anniversary are Indigene Day "Omo ilu" on May 18, while Indigene Chieftaincy conferment "Oye omo ilu," comes up on May 19, with Iwuye ceremony of Rabiu Abiodun Hassan, Chief Public Affairs Officer with the Lagos State Government, as Chief Balogun of Ikotun Land, Alimosho Local Government Area, Lagos State at Oba's

Palace, Ikotun.

The anniversary celebration is slated for May 23 where the popular ace Fuji musician, king Wasiu Ayinde Marshall, KWAM1, will entertain guests at Igando-Ikotun LCDA, Secretariat, Ikotun.

While the grandfinale comes up on May 30, with Thanksgiving Service.
Lobito  Sonamet company has trained 1,500 technicians since 2010, including welders and boilers, with a view to reducing the number of expatriates from the Philippines, India and Pakistan in the Angolan oil sector, ANGOP learned.

The information was released to the press by Francisco Vontade, coordinator of the training center at Sonamet, a company that manufactures metal structures for prospecting and producing oil, adding that the training actions that lasted, on average, six months.

"We have the capacity to train 80 students in each course, but, due to Covid-19, we train between 10 and 20 percent of that number," he explained.

According to the coordinator, after the training, the technicians are also qualified to work in other similar companies.

On the other hand, the projects "Clov 2" and "Kaombo", started in 2018, and "Zinha" and "Dalia", which will start this year, all belonging to Total, are underway at Sonamet, according to engineer Antonio Alfredo, member of the company's management.

Sonamet, created in 1998 and located in Lobito, coastal Benguela province, manufactures platforms for offshore, jackets, buoys, towers, manifolds, decks for helicopters, among other equipment for the oil prospecting and production industry.

Recently, the Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, visited the Sonamet facilities, having considered that the metallic structures for the gas project in Cabinda, under construction in Lobito, correspond to expectations.

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The information was released to the press by Francisco Vontade, coordinator of the training center at Sonamet, a company that manufactures metal structures for prospecting and producing oil, adding that the training actions that lasted, on average, six months.

"We have the capacity to train 80 students in each course, but, due to Covid-19, we train between 10 and 20 percent of that number," he explained.

According to the coordinator, after the training, the technicians are also qualified to work in other similar companies.

On the other hand, the projects "Clov 2" and "Kaombo", started in 2018, and "Zinha" and "Dalia", which will start this year, all belonging to Total, are underway at Sonamet, according to engineer Antonio Alfredo, member of the company's management.

Sonamet, created in 1998 and located in Lobito, coastal Benguela province, manufactures platforms for offshore, jackets, buoys, towers, manifolds, decks for helicopters, among other equipment for the oil prospecting and production industry.

Recently, the Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, visited the Sonamet facilities, having considered that the metallic structures for the gas project in Cabinda, under construction in Lobito, correspond to expectations.
Murang'a Boys High School was started in 1964 with only two teachers through the Catholic Diocese of Nyeri, at the time under Bishop Caesar Gatimu.

In 2014 it was elevated to a national school.

The school sitting on 31-acre land also hosts St Mary's Primary School.

The pioneer class had 35 boys admitted using quota system to cover Kangema, Kigumo and Kandara. These regions were allocated five slots each while Kiharu as the host grabbed 20.

In 1996, the Bishop appealed to the Government to take over the daily running of the school. Most of its infrastructure was financed in a partnership between the government and USAid.

"This school has strived hard to shed off the image of just a normal school and in its place rejuvenated itself to a family where the bond is so special to a point all of us are as though related by blood," says the school's principal, Willie Kuria.

"Our motto sounds like a military drill maxim--Discipline Order Determination (DOD)," he adds.

Some of the prominent names that have schooled in the school, popularly known as Muhae, are former Murang'a Senator Kembi Gitura, Dr James Gichuru of the Mt Kenya University, renowned Cardiologist, Christopher Maina and author John Kiriamiti of the My Life in Crime fame.

"We are currently implementing an agenda that seeks to mould a wholesome package of a person who is desirable, knowledgeable, has inbuilt values, with positive attitudes and with leadership skills," Mr Kuria says.

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Murang'a East Director of Education Mr Richard Ng'ang'a says the school is "our model and pride as it has become proactive in going beyond pursuing academic milestone to also include inculcation of team work and patriotism in its core values."

He says yesterday's achievement of producing the top boy in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exam has fuelled the dream of transforming the fortunes of the school.

The graduates included, the school has a population of 1,254 boys, 56 teachers and 30 non-teaching staff.

Deputy Principal Charles Karanja says what has proved crucial for the school is an ingrained drive founded on will power.

"As a fraternity, we have been making bold steps up to this far because a majority have embraced teamwork. Our goals as an organisation are well set thus enabling us to focus on where we are going," he said.
The Israeli security forces have used repeated, unwarranted and excessive force against Palestinian protesters in occupied East Jerusalem Amnesty International said today as it called on United Nations Security Council members to convene an open session.

The call follows four days of violence in which 840 Palestinians have been injured. At least 21 Israeli police officers and seven Israeli civilians were also injured, according to Israeli police.

Amnesty is also calling on the Israeli authorities to immediately halt forced evictions in the neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah and end the ongoing forced displacement of Palestinians from East Jerusalem.

In the latest escalation, Palestinian armed groups have today fired rockets and missiles into Israel injuring at least one Israeli and there have been reports of several people killed in Gaza from retaliatory attacks by Israel. Amnesty calls on all parties to respect international humanitarian law and take all feasible precautions to avoid harming civilians.

Saleh Higazi, Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International, said:

"The latest violence brings into sharp focus Israel's sustained campaign to expand illegal Israeli settlements and step-up forced evictions of Palestinian residents - such as those in Sheikh Jarrah - to make way for Israeli settlers. These forced evictions are part of a continuing pattern in Sheikh Jarrah, they flagrantly violate international law and would amount to war crimes.

"Israel must not be allowed to continue its rampage against Palestinians who are simply defending their right to exist and protesting against their forced displacement.

"As an immediate step we call on the United Nations Security Council members to convene an open session and for the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process to brief member states."

Eyewitness testimonies - as well as videos and photographs taken by Amnesty's researchers on the ground in East Jerusalem - show how Israeli forces have repeatedly deployed disproportionate and unlawful force to disperse protesters during violent raids on al-Aqsa mosque and have carried out unprovoked attacks on peaceful demonstrators in Sheikh Jarrah.

Unlawful use of force

Tensions reached boiling point on Friday, when more than 170 Palestinians were injured as Israeli forces stormed the al-Aqsa mosque compound dispersing worshippers along with protesters, firing firing 40mm kinetic impact projectiles (KIPs) and concussion grenades into crowds gathered there for prayers on the last Friday of Ramadan.

A Palestinian journalist present at the scene described how Israeli forces went on the rampage firing projectiles and tear gas. He also said they stormed the clinic at the mosque and beat protesters. He told Amnesty International:

"I've been covering events taking place in Jerusalem for the past 10 years... and I've never been this scared in my life. Everyone was a target, I want to say that the shooting was random, but that would be a lie. They knew exactly who and where they were aiming their bullets and grenades at. Most of the people were targeted in their upper bodies (eyes, face, and chest)."

Today more than 300 Palestinian protesters were injured when Israeli forces stormed the al-Aqsa compound for the second time. A Red Crescent spokesperson told Amnesty that the violence led to the hospitalisation of at least 250 Palestinians, with seven in a critical condition.

One eyewitness said Israeli forces began breaking windows and firing tear gas and stun grenades, leaving many people inside struggling to breathe. A witness told Amnesty:

"They kept moving in pushing people into al-Aqsa mosque, locking [the doors] with metal chains... and then breaking a window to throw in tear gas at people literally locked up with not much room to breathe or get medical assistance... on top of it they started to shoot rubber bullets at worshippers inside."

Sheikh Jarrah

Over the past week Palestinians in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood have held nightly demonstrations in response to the imminent threat of forced eviction. Amnesty has documented arbitrary arrests of peaceful demonstrators, the use of excessive force, arbitrary use of sound and stun grenades as well as the arbitrary spraying of maloderant (skunk) water canons at demonstrators and homes in Sheikh Jarrah.

Four Palestinian families in the neighbourhood are under imminent threat of forced eviction after a Jerusalem court rejected their appeal against an eviction order. Nahalat Shimon International, a settler company, has filed lawsuits to seize the homes of dozens of families in Sheikh Jarrah using inherently discriminatory laws.

Yesterday, Amnesty researchers witnessed an unprovoked attack by Israeli forces against a group of peaceful demonstrators in Sheikh Jarrah. Israeli forces arrived shortly before iftar, the evening Ramadan meal. After the meal peaceful protesters formed a circle and began chanting against the imminent plans to evict Palestinian families from their homes. The demonstrators were at least 10 metres away from the Israeli forces who were stationed by a nearby Israeli settlers' home. A short while later Israeli forces launched a coordinated attack to disperse the crowd of Palestinian protesters. Israeli forces on horseback began to sprint towards the crowd. One man limping in pain said he was trampled on by police horses as he tried to run away from the area. Residents were pushed into the walls of their homes and five men were arbitrarily arrested.

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Israeli forces began to shove and hit the group -including an Amnesty researcher observing the protest. At around 10pm they brought the skunk water canons and sound grenades and began to arbitrarily fire at demonstrators.

Nabil el-Kurd, one of the residents under threat of forced eviction in Sheikh Jarrah, told Amnesty:

"Sheikh Jarrah is sending a message to the whole world, including the US Congress, the UK Parliament, the French Parliament, the EU Parliament, the International Criminal Court, that what is happening to us is a war crime. It is not just an eviction, but a war crime. Remember that. I do not know why the entire world is watching what is happening and letting Israel get away with it."
MINISTER of public enterprises Leon Jooste says the government has struck a deal with American aircraft lessor Castlelake to reduce the N$2,5 billion debt owed by the now-defunct Air Namibia.

Although Jooste could not give the actual discount agreed on by the two parties, he revealed they are in the final phase of making the arrangement.

The liquidated airline's debt stemmed from renting two Airbus A330 aircraft before cancelling the deal prematurely due to the unviability of the company.

"We have been negotiating with the lessor for several weeks and will finalise the lease termination agreement soon," Jooste yesterday said.

The lease agreement showed that Air Namibia had to pay roughly N$16 million per aircraft on a monthly basis.

The minister said the government has managed to pay out N$139 million in salaries to the airline's over 600 workers.

This is half of the N$278 million payment made around March or April.

Employees will receive the remaining N$139 million in July this year.

Jooste maintained that the government will be paying full salaries.

"The N$278 million is paid in two installments. Half has been paid," he said.

He said the airline's liquidators, Ian McLaren and David Bruni, indicated they paid workers' severance packages by the end of April.

Namibian Sun on Friday reported that this amount equates N$105 million.

"The liquidators are responsible for the severance pay, not the government," Jooste said in response to some workers claiming they have not received their severance packages.

According to a 2019 discussion paper drafted by the former board of directors, N$2,4 billion needs to be paid to foreign owners.

In addition to paying the lease, Air Namibia may forfeit the security deposit currently sitting with the lessor, amounting to N$94 million.

DEBTS

The government as sole shareholder of Air Namibia on 22 February passed a special resolution for the voluntary winding up of the airline in terms of the Companies Act.

The special resolution was lodged and registered with the Business and Intellectual Property Authority (Bipa) on 24 February. The winding up was confirmed on 26 March this year.

According to a statement filed at Bipa, Air Namibia's assets are worth N$1,04 billion and its liabilities amount to nearly N$5,4 billion.

Air Namibia's single biggest liability amounts to N$2,5 billion, which is the cost of terminating the 12-year lease agreement with Castlelake, the statement says.
THE United States of America has advised Namibia to prioritise fighting corruption by enacting an access to information law and fully implementing whistleblower protections.

The recommendations were made during the 38th session of the working group on the third Universal Periodic Review (UPR) for Namibia. Namibia's first and second UPR reviews took place in January 2011 and January 2016, respectively.

Although Namibia is ranked the fourth least corrupt country in Africa by the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), it is yet to establish a whistleblower protection office despite a law having been passed almost four years ago.

The working group added that Namibia must empower and adequately fund the Anti-Corruption Commission to fulfil its mandate.

It further recommended for the establishment of a sexual offender registry programme and review the effectiveness of sentencing laws and educational curriculum concerning gender-based violence.

The working group also recommended the protection of same-sex couples in reforms and proposed amendments to the Combating of Domestic Violence Act.

"We recommend continued efforts to curb gender-based violence, and especially domestic violence. We believe it is important that Namibia increase public transparency and fully enforce laws that provide accountability for acts of corruption," read the recommendation.

The working group commended Namibia's record, of protecting human rights and recognize the country's Tier 1 status for minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking.

ON A SEPARATE PATH

The Minister of Justice Yvonne Dausab headed the Namibian delegation to the virtual high-level segment, the 46th session of the Human Rights Council.

In her statement she did not mention how Namibians intend to fight corruption but blamed the Covid-19 pandemic for many countries' failure to commit to human rights obligations.

"It is not easy to ensure that states continuously recommit to their human rights obligations when many are focused on keeping their inhabitants alive and safe from the scourge of the Covid-19 pandemic," she said.

Dausab instead called for equitable regional representation in the structures of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

She added Namibia's concern about the slow progress in global efforts to promote and protect the human rights of persons with disabilities and that of persons with albinism.

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"We cannot ensure the promotion and protection of the rights of persons with disabilities if we continue to exclude them from political decision-making positions at the national level," said Dausab.

Although local civic movements and organisations have called for the establishment of a sexual offender register, Dausab did not mention it.

"We acknowledge that societal reform is necessary to denounce and eliminate harmful patriarchal and cultural practices which diminish the rights of women and girls. Namibia welcomes cooperative engagements on effective interventions and good practices from member states and international organisations to address the alarming scourge of violence against women and girls," she said.

Namibia is currently working on amending the combating of domestic violence and combating rape laws.

According to the minister, Namibia strongly condemned systematic inequality, racist and extremist practices that divide people on the basis of colour and ethnic origin. The statement made no reference to the protection of same-sex couples.

The Universal Periodic Review is a process that involves a periodic review of the human rights records of all 193 UN member states.

During the third review cycle, countries are expected to spell out steps they have taken to implement recommendations from their previous reviews, as well as to highlight recent human rights developments in the country.
Eight water tanks for 500 households in Dubai were last filled in February

For the past two months, eight jojo tanks have been dry in Dubai, a temporary housing settlement of 500 structures meant for elderly, disabled and vulnerable people from ward 45 in Kariega.

The R30-million Dubai project was also part of a de-densification programme to reduce overcrowding in informal settlements in wards in the Zola Nqini Cluster because of Covid-19.

Ward 45 Councillor Siphiwo Plaatjies said underground pipes had been vandalised and broken, which is why they had put in the jojo tanks as a temporary arrangement. He said it was news to him that the tanks were dry.

Resident Bukelwa Dloto says she regrets moving to Dubai. "I arrived here in December, but I am not happy because I have been denied a basic right and that is water ... No one communicates with us."

"One of the young men in this settlement charges R30 a trip by trolley to fetch water for me," she said. "I even owe him some money."

Nontombi Sam said she arrived in the settlement with her husband, Kwenzekile, in February. She said, "We used to stay in the rented house with our seven children and we relocated here, but only to be ... struggling to get water day after day."

She said the water in the tanks tasted salty and they complained. The water was replaced but that was at the end of February.

She said they sometimes hire a vehicle to fetch water from neighbouring wards.

Blondie Manziya, who uses a wheelchair, said his aunt has to push a wheelbarrow to fetch water on R Alexander Street.

Manziya said, "It is better where I was staying in a shack than here in a bush in a bungalow because water taps were closer."

Ward 45 committee member for human settlements Mthuthuzeli Ciki, who walks with crutches, said he has repeatedly reported the matter to the directorate.

"This [Nelson Mandela Bay] municipality is busy sprinkling water on roads such as Bantom Road as they are building tarred roads whilst the elderly and persons with disabilities are in need of water in Kariega," said Ciki.
Nigerian airlines that are IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) compliant can become attractive to foreign carriers for code-share and other partnerships.

Operators in the aviation industry made this recommendation, among others recently at the Aviation Safety Roundtable Initiative (ASRTI) quarterly conference held virtually.

IOSA was created in 2003 by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to assess the operational management and control systems of an airline.

While over 30 foreign airlines fly to Nigeria, none of them have commercial partnerships like code-share agreement with local carriers to ensure distribution of their passengers locally.

However, at the webinar, operators called for a new approach by domestic carriers to be positioned for profit-driven commercial pacts.

In the communique signed by Olumide Ohunayo, they stressed the need for the endorsement by the regulatory body, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).

The operators also urged airlines to adopt the Nigerian banking system model of shared systems aimed at easing the convenience of their customers.
Police say the suspects were arrested following a missing person report filed by the father of the victim.

The police in Ogun State say they have rescued a 13-year-old from a kidnappers' den and arrested four members of the syndicate for allegedly kidnapping the teenager and demanding a N500, 000 ransom from her father.

The incident happened last week Thursday in the Onipanu area of Ado-Odo Ota local government area.

The <a target="_blank" href="https://www.facebook.com/NigeriaPoliceForceOgunStateCommand/">Ogun police</a> spokesperson, Abimbola Oyeyemi, said the suspects were arrested following a missing person report filed by the father of the victim.

The 13-year-old victim was also rescued from a room owned by one of the suspects.

"A complaint (was) lodged at Onipanu divisional headquarters, by one Adejunwon Odunowo, who reported that, her (his) 13yrs old daughter, Susan Odunowo, was sent on an errand by her mother at about 6:30 p.m. of 6th of May 2021, but didn't return home.

"He stated further that, he later received an anonymous phone call, demanding for the sum of #500,000 as ransom, if he ever wants to see his daughter again," the police said.

Mr Oyeyemi said following the report, the DPO of the division, Bamidele Job, detailed his detectives to embark on intelligence and technical based investigation, in order to unravel those behind the devilish act.

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"On the 8th of May 2021, the detectives successfully traced one of the suspects to Cele area of Ota, where he was arrested. His arrest led to the apprehension of two other members of the gang at a factory in Ota. It was then discovered that the victim was being kept in a room, owned by Adekunle Basit. Detectives swiftly moved in there, and rescued the victim unhurt," the police spokesperson said.

Four members of a kidnap syndicate, including the leader of the gang, were arrested.

The suspects are John Nelson, 21; Adeleke Ayotunde, 29; Adekunle Basit 20 and the leader of the gang, Abey Fagbemi 20.

Mr Oyeyemi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, said the victim of the kidnap has since been reunited with her family.

Speaking on the incident, the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Edward Awolowo, commended the quick response of the police officers to the incident.

The police boss directed an immediate transfer of the suspects to the anti-kidnapping section of the state criminal investigation and intelligence department, for discreet investigation and prosecution.

He also appealed to members of the public, to adhere strictly to various security advice given by the command, in order not to fall victim of kidnap syndicates.
Minister of labour, industrial relations and employment creation Utoni Nujoma has been accused of irregularly appointing a relative, Kyllikki Sihlahla, as the new deputy labour commissioner.

According to an internal memo leaked to The Namibian, Nujoma appointed Sihlahla on 1 May this year - a day after long-serving deputy labour commissioner Tuuliki Shikongo retired.

Sources within the ministry, however, say the minister does not have the authority to appoint the deputy labour commissioner without interviews being conducted.

However, Section 120 (1) of the Labour Act, quoted by the minister, states that "the minister must, subject to the laws governing the public service, appoint a labour commissioner and a deputy commissioner ...".

"The position should have been advertised so that those interested could have applied and so that interviews could have taken place," a source says.

Another source says they were taken by surprise at Sihlahla's appointment as she was in the process of doing her articles at the office of the Government Attorney.

"She has abandoned her attachment and went to the office. She was supposed to be there for nine months, but she has only been there for two months," the source says.

Contacted for comment last week, Sihlahla referred The Namibian to the ministry's public relations department.

However, her husband, Emanuel, on Sunday defended her appointment.

He said the minister has the power to appoint a deputy commissioner, and that those who are complaining are jealous.

"They don't want others to climb. My wife studied. She was offered a job at TransNamib recently," he said.

He said Sihlahla is taking part in the Justice Training Centre programme and that she has completed the theoretical component of the programme.

She did her practical hours with government attorneys to be admitted as a legal practitioner, he said.

"She was recalled because no one was capable of running the office in the absence of the labour commissioner. She has been a chief arbitrator from 2008 to 30 September 2014, and was a deputy director from 1 October 2014 to 30 April 2021. Who would then say she does not qualify for this?" Emanuel asked.

"It's just a coincidence that the minister was appointed last year to the ministry. If related, does it mean my wife must be disadvantaged?" he asked.

Emanuel, however, yesterday admitted that Sihlahla and Nujoma are related, but did not specify in what way.

According to her husband she has an LLB degree from Unisa, a master's degree in human resources from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology and a postgraduate diploma in law, specialising in conciliation and arbitration from the University of Namibia.

Nujoma on Friday said the act makes provision for the appointment of a deputy labour commissioner.

He said the act does not, however, provide for the position to be advertised.

"The minister has the power vested in him to appoint a suitable person to the position," he said.

Shikongo, when contacted for comment, accused Sihlahla and executive director Bro-Matthew Shinguadja of treating the ministry as their "backyard kambashu".

"They have been bypassing my office. I reported this to the minister of labour and his deputy minister, but nothing has been done. Shinguadja never wanted me to be deputy labour commissioner," she said.

Shinguadja allegedly retired last year in May, but is still working as the ministry's executive director.

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He is rumoured to be incoming special adviser to the minister, replacing Vicki ya Toivo, Nujoma's current special adviser.

"Am I the only one who is above 60 in the public service?" Shinguadja asked when contacted for comment.

He also signed off a ministerial response stating the ministry is not aware of the fact that Sihlahla is related to Nujoma.

Markus Kampungu, chairperson of the Public Service Commission, yesterday referred The Namibian to the Office of the Attorney General.

Attorney general Festus Mbandeka said the matter resorts under the labour ministry.

"I therefore cannot comment on the matter," he said.

Private lawyer Eben de Klerk yesterday said the minister has full discretion to make appointments.

"I don't believe the Public Service Commission needs to be consulted. The conditions of the Public Service Act must, however, be complied with," he said.
In what was, so far, the best baseball game of the week, the Jaguars pulled their 33rd win out of the fire and salvaged a gem of a start from their star pitcher.
Nairobi  National Police Spokesperson, Charles Owino has been moved to the Kenya National Focal Point on Small Arms and Light Weapons, in a surprise move by Inspector General of Police Hilary Mityambai.

Sources confirmed that Owino has been on leave was re-deployed to the department as a Deputy Director.

"He is nolonger the Police Spokesman," a senior police officer told Capital FM News, "he has been moved to the small arms department."

There was no immediate reason provided for the move and no statement was issued by Police Headquarters on the changes that observers linked to Owino's intent to pursue a political seat in 2022.

Owino has served in the position for more than 10 years, but has lately went quiet with statements from police headquarters often sent directly to newsrooms but the IG's office.

Owino has declared on local Luo radio stations that he will vie for the gubernatorial seat in Siaya next year, a move that has put him in the odds given the position he holds in the police.

People close to him say he is planning to resign from the police service later this year, but he has not formally confirmed the information.
Kapsabet Boys had two candidates ranked among the top 15 students nationally in the 2020 KCSE exam.

The Nandi County-based school, which had produced the top student in the 2019 Kenya Secondary School Education (KCSE) examination, had its best candidate Kenneth Oranga ranked seventh nationally with a mean score of 87.049. His classmate Pile Ron George was ranked 12th. Kapsabet also produced the third best -- 16-year-old Mutabari Frank Mugambi -- who posted a performance index of 85.83.

By the time of going to the press, Kapsabet Boy's had 61 students scoring A as compared to 49 in 2019; 134 A- compared to 138 in 2019, and 92 B+, according to a preliminary list by the school.

"We are impressed with the results so far and it is expected to be remarkable as compared to previous years," said Kipchumba Maiyo, school principal.

In 2019, the school registered a mean grade of 10.2 with 379 candidates sitting for the examination as compared to 352 candidates in 2020. But as Kapsabet celebrated its impressive results, yesteryears' academic giants of the Rift Valley region, including Moi High School, Kabarak, Moi Girls High School, Eldoret, Nakuru Girls High School, Moi Forces Academy and Bahati Girls' High School, had muted celebrations.

Nationally, Kenya High School topped the 2020 KCSE examination with a dominant presence on the list of the top 15 candidates nationally, maintaining a legacy of stellar performance even as some traditional giants missed from the list.

The school had six candidates on the list, and also produced the top girl nationally.

The best overall candidate, however, was Simiyu Robin Wanjala from Murang'a High School, who scored straight As with a tally of 87.334 points. He was followed by Wasonga Allan Udoma of Agoro Sare, who scored 87.173 points.

Top girl

Sharon Chepng'eno of Kenya High School emerged the top girl in the country with 87.173 points.

"I thank God for this. We always put God first but also work hard. We received a lot of support from our teachers, who are very committed to duty, non-teaching staff and parents. We also have a chaplain to guide the students," Kenya High School principal, Flora Mulatya, told the Nation. Tears of joy freely rolled down her cheeks as Education CS George Magoha read the list of top performers. The school had 294 candidates.

The examinations, which were rescheduled from last year, were the first high school final tests to be administered under the Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic notwithstanding, more candidates qualified for university admission than in 2019.

There was also an increase in the number of the top grade achievers.

The results, which were released by Prof Magoha at the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) headquarters in Nairobi, showed that 893 (0.12 per cent) of the candidates scored a mean grade of A compared to the 627 (0.09 per cent) candidates in the 2019 examinations.

"Their battle was fought with resilience and won with grace," Prof Magoha said.

In a marked improvement from 2019, more candidates made the cut for university admission after 143,140 (19.03 per cent) scored the minimum C+ (plus) and above.

Among the qualifiers for university are 223 candidates with special needs. The top candidate with special needs is Kipkemoi Miriam Chepleting, who scored an A plain of 84.8 points. She was a student at Moi Girls High School Eldoret and was followed by Getugi Edgar Omoke (83.566) from Kisii High and Nebet Nyariki Ongubo (81.414) from Nyambaria High School.

KCSE giants

The other top 15 candidates are: Moriasi Bob B. Ongare ( 87.139) Alliance High, Mbugua Esther Wachuchu (87.113) Kenya High, Mark Kogo (87.106) Alliance High, Kenneth Oranga (87.049) Kapsabet Boys, Henry Madaga (87.046) Maranda High, Chepkorir Patience (87.046) Kenya High, Musomba Edith Kithei ( 87.013) Machakos Girls, Lesley Loise Wanjiku (86.999) Kenya High, Pile Ron George (86.970) Kapsabet Boys, Kiprono Howard (86.949) Maranda High, Njelimo Debrah (86.947) Kenya High, Buluma Daizy Nerima (86.939) Kenya High.

The list of top performers, however, missed some of the KCSE giants of yesteryears and some much sought-after national schools. There was no place in the list for schools like Starehe Boys' Centre, Precious Blood Riruta, Pangani Girls' High School, Moi High Kabarak and Sunshine School, which have in the past topped the national charts.

The Education CS observed that the Form Four leavers will join universities and other tertiary level institutions as earlier anticipated before Covid-19 disrupted the school calendar.

Universities will admit the students in September. He instructed the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service to start placement of the students immediately, while promising that the Higher Education Loans Board will be ready to advance loans to the students.

A total of 747,161 candidates sat the 2020 KCSE examination against a registration of 752,602, meaning that 5,441 did not sit the test. The high number of dropouts was anticipated as many candidates fell off the way after staying for seven months out of school due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Thousands of girls got pregnant while others got married.

Prof Magoha revealed that 652 candidates sat their examinations from maternity wards after delivering. In the 2019 examinations, a total of 282 female candidates sat their KCSE examination in hospitals.

"The number of candidates sitting exams (while pregnant) was the highest in history. We must get to the root cause of the problem," said Prof Magoha, while blaming parents for neglecting their responsibilities when the students were at home.

Counties with the highest cases of pregnant candidates included Bungoma (43), Meru (38), Nakuru (36), Kisii (36) and Nandi (31).

Boys were reported to have engaged in drug and substance abuse, with others reported to have opted for informal businesses like boda bodas.

Some 380,327 of the candidates were male, representing 50.90 per cent while 366,834 were female, representing 49.10 per cent of the total. In the 2019 examination, 697,222 candidates sat the exams.

Female candidates

Prof Magoha said 15 counties had more female candidates than male examinees. They include Taita Taveta, Kwale, Nyandarua, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Murang'a, Kiambu, Machakos, Kitui, Meru, Nandi, Elgeyo Marakwet, Kakamega, Vihiga and Kisumu.

"The counties with high gender disparity in favour of male candidates during the 2020 KCSE examination included Mandera, Wajir, Garissa, Turkana and Homa Bay," said Prof Magoha.

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The CS also noted that Turkana County had the highest percentage of over-age candidates (1,603) or 0.213 per cent while Bungoma County had the highest percentage of under-age candidates (1,344; 0.179 per cent).

Significant improvement in performance was recorded in 19 subjects compared to 16 subjects in 2019.

Knec acting CEO Mercy Karogo said the candidates sat the examinations in 10,565 examination centres while 25,135 examiners were involved in the marking, which was concluded last week. Knec staff worked round-the-clock over the weekend analysing and processing the results.

Whereas Prof Magoha said that no results for schools were cancelled, 287 candidates will not receive their results after having been adjudged to have been involved in examination irregularities.

The CS, however, fired a warning that more results might be recalled after conclusion of ongoing forensic investigations.

The Teachers Service Commission CEO Nancy Macharia said tutors involved in examination cheating will be removed from the teachers' register if found guilty.

"We will act decisively and conclusively on errant teachers while upholding the rules of natural justice and the principle of due process as stipulated in the Code of Regulations for Teachers," said Ms Macharia.

She announced that the commission will launch a biometric system to collect data of teachers in all schools to ensure that teachers involved in malpractices are punished.

Reported by Tom Matoke, Barnabas Bii, Onyango K'Onyango, Florah Koech, Gerald Bwisa, Oscar Kakai, Francis Mureithi, Stella Cherono, Joseph Openda, David Muchunguh and Faith Nyamai
The leadership of the National Fishing Corporation of Namibia (Fishcor) is divided on who should lead the corruption-tainted organisation as chief executive officer (CEO) amid concerns that the recruitment process is at risk of being 'cooked'.

The new Fishcor CEO would replace Mike Nghipunya, who is currently in jail awaiting trial on charges of money laundering, fraud and corruption of more than N$75 million as part of the Fishrot scandal.

Sources say the current acting CEO of Fishcor and board member Ruth Herunga is questioning the legitimacy of the leading candidate's academic records.

Another bone of contention unfolding at Fishcor is the double role of Herunga, whose short-term appointment lapsed last week.

She was appointed from 6 April to 6 May 2021 and is still acting.

Herunga's acting allowance is around N$68 000 per month after tax has been deducted.

Fishcor said they would decide this week whether Herunga's term as interim boss of the state-owned fishing company would be extended.

Information seen by The Namibian shows that the CEO of the Fisheries Observer Agency (FOA), Stanley Ndara, emerged as the leading candidate from interviews for the Fishcor top job with 71,8%.

He declined to comment yesterday, saying he could not comment on a recruitment process.

Ndara was followed by the Namibia Institute of Public Administration and Management (Nipam) finance and administration director Beatus Amadhila, who scored 59,5%, while Tunacor CEO Peya Hitula came third with 55,4%.

Hitula runs Tunacor, a fishing consortium that is highly politically connected.

Its owners include children and family members of two Namibian presidents - president Hage Geingob and former president Hifikepunye Pohamba.

The Namibian has in the past reported that some Fishcor board members preferred Hitula.

Magdalena Nawases came fourth with 50,4%.

Whoever takes over as Fishcor boss would have the huge task of reforming the corruption-tainted organisation that has been used as a conduit for crooked deals for decades - especially during former minister of fisheries and marine resources Bernhard Esau's reign.

Fishcor is a key puzzle in the Fishrot corruption scandal.

The new boss could also be key in determining some opaque partnership between Fishcor and private companies.

Sources say the board was ready to meet with minister of public enterprises Leon Jooste on their recommendation yesterday, but the meeting was called off.

Among the reasons for the delays is the lack of consensus among board members.

Fishcor board chairperson Heinrich Mihe Gaomab II yesterday said the board would meet this week "to assess the situation as a collective and resolve conclusively on the way forward".

"Due to the management vacuum and the need to ensure control, direction and to attend to urgent operational and pertinent matters, the board thought in its wisdom to request Ms Ruth Herunga to caretake for a defined period," he said.

Gaomab said they aim to submit the CEO recruitment report on the conclusion of the process on the board's part to Jooste.

People familiar with this matter say the majority of the board is leaning towards appointing Ndara, but Herunga appears to be poking holes in Ndara's academic qualifications, including the legitimacy of his master's degree.

Herunga declined to comment on key details of the "verification" process.

She said verifying qualifications depends on the board.

"I cannot comment on who was the leading candidate either, since it's an ongoing process which has not been concluded. What I can say though is that the duty to verify the qualifications of all candidates and due diligence was assigned to me by the board," she said yesterday.

She said: "As a board or panel member there is a legal and ethical duty to be objective regarding all candidates. I consider myself bound by that duty."

Some at Fishcor say disqualifying Ndara could leave the door open for Tunacor's Hitula to compete for the job.

Hitula refused to comment on the matter.

Herunga denied any wrongdoing.

"I received a salary of N$68 000 after tax. The position was offered to me with a housing benefit only. The rest I had to pay myself. I used my vehicle to drive up and down, since at times I was requested to be in Windhoek," she said.

Herunga claims she spent "thousands" on her vehicle, including on a breakdown.

"Serving Fishcor at the moment is a sacrifice I decided to make, and not a financial benefit," she said.

Her leadership role at Fishcor has been under the microscope since she was appointed in the position last year.

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One of the public concerns is her proximity to State House.

Herunga is a member of the Swapo think tank that serves as a research arm of the party on policy formulation.

The Fishrot scandal largely implicates Swapo. It also includes a secret scheme that was allegedly used to keep Geingob in power. The president has in the past denied any wrongdoing.

To some, such as the Affirmative Repositioning movement, Herunga is compromised.

Last year, AR leader Job Amupanda blasted the decision to shortlist her for the prosecutor general position.

The position is key in investigating the Fishrot scandal.

Amupanda described Herunga as "a friend of State House and a person who is a functionary of the Swapo machinery".

Asked whether she was interested in the Fishcor job, Herunga said: "The position of CEO was advertised. I did not apply for it."

According to her, she provided plenty of information to the Bank of Namibia and the Financial Intelligence Centre in the spirit of absolute transparency and the commitment to root out any form of corruption.

"I am currently still gathering more information they requested, apart from dealing with the day-to-day operations of the company, which is much needed under the circumstances," she said.
The oil spillage in the Niger Delta region has left most parts of the region inhabitable. To this end, stakeholders met recently to deliberate on the way forward. ANAYO ONUKWUGHA writes on the deliberations.

Oil spillage and its devastating effects on the Niger Delta region is better imagined than seen. To address this challenge, the federal government created the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) in the year 2000 with the sole mandate of developing the oil-rich Niger Delta region of Nigeria.

One of the core mandates of the agency is to train and educate the youths of the oil rich Niger Delta region to curb hostilities and militancy, while developing key infrastructure to promote diversification and productivity.

In view of this, NDDC recently organised a three-day strategic capacity building workshop/retreat for its directors in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

The three-day event, which attracted members of the National Assembly, traditional rulers and chiefs, oil and gas host communities, the international oil companies, youth groups and non-governmental organisations, from across the Niger Delta region, was anchored on the theme: "NDDC - Collaborating, Planning and Re-Strategising for a Better Niger Delta Region."

Declaring the retreat open, interim administrator of NDDC, Mr Effiong Akwa, said with continual consultation and collaboration with stakeholders, the agency was poised to fast track the development of the Niger Delta region.

Akwa said: "The NDDC is born again and the core of our new personae is continual consultations and collaboration with stakeholders to create commonalities for effective development of the Niger Delta region."

The NDDC boss harped on the need to review the development template of the region as captured in the Niger Delta Regional Development Master Plan, which he noted, expired in 2020.

He expressed confident that the retreat would bring changes in the processes of the commission and help it to build a strong institution that would provide better service to the people of the Niger Delta region.

Akwa, who stated that changes and periodic reviews of processes were necessary for any developmental agency that wished to make progress, said the retreat was in furtherance of the on-going consultations with stakeholders of the NDDC.

To the minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, the efforts of the NDDC to restore collaboration among stakeholders would help in fashioning a common roadmap for the development of the region.

Akpabio stated that the retreat was a family meeting called to rub minds and to find ways to help the NDDC to fulfill its vision of offering lasting solution to the socio-economic difficulties of the Niger Delta region.

The minister, who observed that the theme of the retreat was very apt, said the three-day retreat was meant to challenge NDDC to interrogate and define, as well as prescribe a viable and formidable pathway towards the sustainable development of the Niger Delta region.

Akpabio called attention to the Niger Delta Master Plan, which was activated in 2005, but expired in 2020, saying "There should be discussions of renewing the plan with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals incorporated in the new plan.

"It would also be healthy for the commission to consider adopting some or all of the 10 principles of the United Nations Global Compact for carrying out business.

"Such institutional support would help budgeting, planning and implementation processes to achieve effective and efficient service delivery," he pointed out.

For the chairman, Senate Committee on NDDC, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, it was crucial to get stakeholders to work together to ensure that the Niger Delta moves forward.

Nwaoboshi commended the NDDC interim administrator for realising the need for cooperation between the National Assembly and the commission.

He said: "In the past, we had assisted the NDDC, to get the oil and gas companies to meet their statutory obligations to the commission. We amended the law and today the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) is paying its dues to NDDC. We must always work towards cooperation and discussion for the good of every one."

Also speaking, chairman of House of Representatives' Committee on NDDC, Hon Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, stated that the cordial relationship with the NDDC had facilitated some progress in amending the NDDC Act.

Tunji-Ojo, who also called for the review of the Niger Delta Master Plan, stated that the NDDC should also think of generating income for the commission.

He further stated that one of the best things that had happened to the NDDC was the setting up of the forensic audit, which he said would help to clean up the Niger Delta.

The minister of state for Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Omotayo Alasoadura, said the decision by the NDDC to embark on a journey of re-awakening and renewal was a welcome development.

He said the retreat provided an opportunity for the ministry and the NDDC to create a new trajectory for the commission and the Niger Delta region.

He said it was heart-warming that the NDDC, as part of its strategic planning, was rubbing minds with traditional rulers, civil society organisations and the leadership of the National Assembly to fashion out ways to deliver its mandate more effectively.

The minister said: "I am aware that many stakeholders of the NDDC have not been satisfied with its performance over the years. You have been accused of not carrying them along. Given this background, I am happy that you have chosen 'Collaborating, Planning and Re-strategising for a Better Niger Delta Region' as the theme for this retreat."

Permanent secretary, Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, Dr. Babayo Ardo, said the overall objective of the retreat should be to reposition the NDDC for effective service delivery as an interventionist agency created to accelerate the development of the Niger Delta region.

Ardo noted that the retreat was germane, especially as it came at a time when both the ministry and the NDDC were trying to see how they could come together and reposition the commission.

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He affirmed that the forensic audit of the commission, which had entered another phase of physical inspection, point to the fact that things would not remain the same again in NDDC.

Ardo observed that for some of the deficiencies identified in the NDDC to be corrected, there was need for a review of some sections of the Act establishing the commission.

In his presentation at the retreat, an expert in budget and public finance management, Dr Greg Ezeilo, underlined the important of meeting stakeholders and having an effective handshake with them.

Ezeilo, anchored his paper on the topic: "Fiscal Transparency, Parliamentary Oversight and Budget Monitoring and Tracking", said: "The bulk of the NDDC expenditure lies with them. Fiscal transparency requires documentation and openness to the public. As such, data should be reliable and the publication of the budget plans and outcomes should be done from the outset. There should be open contracting largely to support public disclosure and accountability for tax payers' moneys."

He identified the four pillars of fiscal transparency as clarity of roles and responsibility; open budget process; public availability of information and assurance of integrity, saying that "promoting transparency involves rigorous engagement of the public in the budget tracking process."

Ezeilo said that government must commit itself to ensuring that fiscal transparency was not in doubt by ensuring that legal frameworks and institutional capacities were strengthened.
A trans woman, who was recently arrested at Outjo, claims she was subjected to transphobic harassment and police brutality while in custody, including having her wig pulled off, being forced to strip and bite off her nail and toe tips.

Patrick Bowe (25), who prefers to be referred to as Quinn and identifies as trans, says at the time of her arrest on 3 April, she was visiting her family at Outjo, her hometown, for the Easter weekend.

Bowe says she was initially put in a holding cell at Outjo Police Station for a number of hours without being informed why she was detained.

"They took me to the police station without telling me why I was being arrested, and when we got to the police station, they couldn't also explain what was going on," she says.

She claims she had to wait several hours for the investigating officer to arrive.

"My family came and also asked if a case was opened, and yes, a case was opened. We asked for the case registration number, but they couldn't give us that," Bowe says.

She says she was stripped of items such as shoelaces, and her handbag and cellphone at the police station.

She was then transferred to the Otjiwarongo Police Station's holding cells, she says, where she discovered her employer, Shoprite Otjiwarongo, opened a case of theft against her for allegedly stealing N$4 000 from the store before resigning in October.

Bowe denies the allegations, saying she resigned from the job because she was made to work shifts of 10 to 15 hour shifts of which only four hours were paid.

Additionally, she was not entitled to days off or back pay, she says.

Furthermore, she says the allegations come as a surprise as, to her knowledge, there were no accusations in the months after her resignation.

Bowe claims she was accused of faking her identity in an attempt to avoid prosecution at the Otjiwarongo Police Station.

"... that's when the assault started. They were saying I'm forging myself as a woman. while I'm a man. I had to remove my clothes that I had on as a trans woman and they put me into other clothes. That's when they started pulling off my wig and the mink eyelashes I had," she says.

Bowe says she was also forced to wash off her make-up with hand sanitiser and to bite off her nail tips on both her hands and feet.

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"I also wore red pants of which the waistband could not come off. They took out a big steel knife, I don't know from where, and just cut it off," she says.

Thereafter, transphobic slurs were allegedly hurled at her.

"They threw me into a cell with about seven men who were shouting 'moffie' and saying 'there's a new girl in the house for us'," Bowe says.

When The Namibian contacted Shoprite Otjiwarongo, staff members acknowledged the incident, however, refused to provide further details.

The store manager refused to comment.

Otjozondjupa regional police spokesperson inspector Maureen Mbeha yesterday confirmed that Bowe was arrested on 3 April on a charge of theft.

She said the case was registered in October 2020, but Bowe was arrested over the long weekend because she was slated to appear in court on Tuesday, 6 April.

Mbeha said Bowe was instructed to hand over her valuable items for safekeeping.

This included cash, jewellery, a belt, wig, shoelaces and other items.

"He (sic) handed them over. He (sic) was then escorted to the cells pending his (sic) court appearance. He (sic) was granted bail and his (sic) case was postponed to 19 May," she said.

Mbeha could not confirm the alleged transphobic harassment, but said Bowe could lay a charge against the involved officers.

"With regard to further allegations of mistreatment by the police officers, Patrick Bowe is at liberty to visit the internal investigations office, or get in touch with me personally and lay a charge so that investigations can be conducted," she said.

Bowe says she plans to take legal action against the Namibian Police.
South African demonstrators march to Parliament to protest against Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip.

Grand Imam of Al Azhar Sheikh Ahmed el Tayyeb denounced on Monday continued attacks by Israeli occupation forces against Palestinians in Al Quds and at Al Aqsa Mosque and the international silence at these crimes.

"The world remains disgracefully silent towards the callous Zionist terrorism and the violations committed against Al Aqsa Mosque and our brothers in Palestine," Sheikh Tayyeb tweeted on social media.

"Palestine will forever remain steadfast, and its people will continue their struggle to defend their land, honor and the Al Aqsa Mosque, the first Qibla and third holiest site in Islam. I humbly salute these oppressed people. O Allah the Most Merciful, grant the oppressed people of Palestine victory and envelop them with your protection and care," he added.

Earlier, Al Azhar strongly condemned flagrant Israeli violations against residents of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem following demonstrations organized by Palestinians to protest Israeli occupation authorities' forced evacuation attempts.

Many Palestinians were wounded in the protests.

In a statement on Thursday, Al Azhar expressed full solidarity with residents of Sheikh Jarrah in their legitimate strife against colonial Israeli policies, urging the international community to condemn such barbaric acts, stand by Palestinians and end flagrant Israeli crimes.

Honest Palestinians will continue defending their cause, stressing that Israeli terrorism will not undermine Palestinians' steadfastness but on the contrary will make them more determined to defend their cause.

Palestine is Arab and will remain Arab, God Willing, and the Israeli occupation will end even if after a while, Al Azhar said.

Violence in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem erupted after an Israeli court ruled in favor of Jewish settlers against an appeal by Palestinian families regarding housing ownership.

Violence escalated on Friday when Israeli forces confronted Palestinians at Al-Aqsa Mosque and took steps to disperse them using rubber bullets, water-cannoned armored vehicles, and stun grenades. At least 205 Palestinians and 17 Israeli officers were injured at Al Aqsa and around East Jerusalem, notably at Sheikh Jarrah.
Awka, Abeokuta, Calabar  There is a furore in Anambra State following the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to relocate 1,112 polling units from shrines, royal fathers' houses, churches and houses of political office holders among others in the state.

The Anambra State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Mr. Mkpachukwu Orji, disclosed on Monday during a stakeholders' meeting on expansion of voters access to polling units in Anambra, held in Awka, the state capital, that the 1112 polling units would be relocated to provide legitimacy to the electoral process.

But the announcement has received heavy bashing from the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state and the special adviser to the state governor on Political Matters, Mr. Ifatu Obiokoye.

Orji argued that polling units situated in inappropriate places hinder electorate's access to voting during elections.

"Those polling units in such inappropriate places are not good for our elections. Most times, people see them as personal polling units. We want to make the polling units accessible to all voters," he said.

Orji said that the commission would also increase the number of polling units in the state from 4,608 to 5,720 to give access to more voters.

The REC lamented that less than 30 percent of registered voters in the state cast their votes in the last general election and called on the stakeholders in the state to mobilise voters to actively participate in the forthcoming governorship election in the state.

But reacting, chairman of the Anambra State chapter of the People's Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Ndubisi Nwobu, and Special Adviser to Governor Willie Obiano on Political Matters, Mr. Ifatu Obiokoye, berated INEC, saying the decision was taken without seeking inputs from stakeholders in the state.

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They argued that if INEC had consulted them, they would have made useful inputs since they were active partners in the electoral process.

Creates additional polling units in Ogun, C/River

INEC has also said it created additional 1832 polling units in Ogun State as part of the commission's voter access expansion.

The addition with the already existing 3,210 polling units now brings the total polling units in the state to 5,042.

The State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Prof. Abdulganiy Raji, disclosed this on Monday, in Abeokuta, at a stakeholders' meeting.

Similarly, the commission has increased the total number of polling units in Cross River State to 3281.

This was disclosed by the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Emmanuel Hart, when he met with election stakeholders in the state yesterday.
Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu's two-day State visit to Kenya last week heralds brighter days ahead for the business community, which had seen its fortunes suffer over the past few years.

During their talks, President Suluhu and her host, President Uhuru Kenyatta, agreed to eliminate barriers hindering smooth flow of trade and people between the two East African nations.

The pair instructed their respective officials to initiate and conclude trade talks within a fortnight in an attempt to bridge significant differences between the two countries.

"First, we noted that trade between Kenya and Tanzania is facing some administrative challenges. They include non-tariff barriers and other restrictions, which are frustrating investment between our two countries," President Kenyatta said.

The tiffs have threatened to slow down trade between the two countries, which amounts to Sh61.5 billion ($576 million) every year.

A joint team of experts will be set up to address the disjointed enforcement of cross-border Covid-19 containment protocols, one of the most pronounced non-tariff trade barriers between the two nations.

Covid-19 test results

The two leaders said Kenya and Tanzania need to develop modalities for mutual recognition of Covid-19 test results, noting that lack of harmonised protocols has hampered free flow of goods and people.

"We have agreed that our Health ministers need to sit down and come up with a structured system of testing our people at the border points to allow easy movement of our people so as to do their businesses," President Suluhu told the media at State House, Nairobi.

There were early wins from the talks even as business communities from Tanzania and Kenya await further ironing out of thorny issues.

For starters, President Samia welcomed Kenyan traders to invest in Tanzania, saying the neighbouring country is ready and open for business.

She cited ongoing reforms on tariffs and non-tariff barriers such as issuance of permits to foreign expatriates, roll out of one stop facilitation centre for investment, removal of nuisance user taxes, levies and other charges, as well as rationalisation of tax administration in Tanzania.

Her government is also fighting corruption, promoting construction of industrial parks, and investing in mega-infrastructure projects to reduce cost of doing business while creating an enabling business environment under the country's blueprint of regulatory reforms, she said.

"You are fortunate that our two countries on the one hand are free to do business and on the other a solution to removing trade barriers," President Suluhu told the business forum.

Signing of a deal for construction of liquefied natural gas pipeline to Mombasa, represents another early win for the two countries. The two leaders did not provide timelines but the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Natural Gas Transportation means the countries' Energy ministries could start negotiating the design, cost and other logistics needs for the project.

Sh63 billion pipeline

The LNG project comes a decade later after initial plans, which valued the pipeline at Sh63 billion, failed to take off.

Another early win for Tanzania saw Kenya scrap work visa and permit requirements for Tanzanian nationals in an effort to boost trade and tourism between the two nations, fast-tracking implementation of East African Common Market Protocol allowing workers to move freely in the region.

"We would like to see many investors from Tanzania coming to do business in Kenya. And I want to say this, Tanzanian investors are free to come and do business in Kenya. The only thing you will be required to do is to follow the laid down regulations and the laws that are in place," said President Kenyatta.

Speaking at the forum, Equity Group CEO James Mwangi expressed his optimism about the talks to abolish barriers hindering the smooth flow of trade and people between our two neighbouring countries.

"We welcome the efforts by His Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta and Her Excellency President Samia Suluhu Hassan to form a joint team of experts to address the cross-border non-tariff, physical trade barriers and other restrictions which are an impediment to facilitating trade and investment between the two nations. The commitment to improve connectivity through new roads, aviation, and maritime transport to hasten economic growth is also laudable. This is well in line with EAC Protocol as it enhances our AfCFTA ambition and will help build better post-Covid-19 by creating employment opportunities, and markets for goods and services," said Dr Mwangi.

According to Kenya Association of Manufacturers KAM) chief executive Phyllis Wakiaga, discriminatory treatment of products including imposition of excise duty on Kenyan manufactured products as well as import charges on Kenya's animal and animal products needs to be addressed.

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Ms Wakiaga has also identified lack of recognition of product's standardisation marks resulting in restrictions and retesting of food products as well as lack of preferential treatment and market access for some Kenyan manufactured motor vehicles and edible oil products as other impediments Kenyan businesspeople have had to grapple with. She recommends high level interventions at political level to address long-standing and arising trade barriers.

Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) chief executive Carole Kariuki has meanwhile called for speedy resolutions of trade disputes, harmonisation of tax regimes to attract cross border trade as well as diversification of industries in the region of nearly 200 million people.

Ms Kariuki said the business lobby has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Tanzania Private Sector Federation to deepen bilateral trade co-operation, pursue joint advocacy and organize business to business forums.

The expected reforms she argued will boost trade between the two countries.
South African demonstrators march to Parliament to protest against Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip.

analysis

The international monitoring body has accused Israel of committing crimes against humanity, of apartheid and of persecution against Palestinians in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory and has called on the International Criminal Court and individual nations to investigate and prosecute those responsible.

New York-based Human Rights Watch says "Israeli authorities have deprived millions of people of their basic rights by virtue of their identity as Palestinians".

Conversely they "methodically privilege" Jewish Israelis, including settlers on the West Bank.

And so Israel has violated both the 1973 International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid ("Apartheid Convention") and the 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Human Rights Watch concludes in a detailed 217-page report, titled A Threshold Crossed; Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution.

Many of Israel's critics, including some in South Africa, label it as an "apartheid state". But Human Rights Watch explains that "the report does not set out to compare Israel with South Africa under apartheid or to determine whether Israel is an 'apartheid state' -- a concept that is not defined in international law".

Instead, the report concludes that specific acts and policies carried out by Israeli...
A child walks in the rubble after an armed confrontation in Alindao in Central African Republic (file image)

A Frenchman has been arrested in the Central African Republic after police discovered a "very large arsenal" of weapons in his home.

A spokesman for the government told the French news agency AFP the man, who claimed to be a journalist, was detained in the capital, Bangui, on Monday.

Humanitarian sources said the man had worked as a bodyguard for several organisations in the CAR, which is fighting a major armed rebellion seeking to overthrow the government.

Centrafrique : arrestation d'un Francais detenant un important arsenal de guerre https://t.co/O0cmml2RxW

Valery Zakharov, the Russian national security advisor to President Faustin Archange Touadera, said on Twitter the man had been detained with "huge amounts of weapons and ammunition".

Russia has deployed hundreds of paramilitaries from the private security companies to the CAR to support government forces.

Chad army claims victory against northern rebels after lengthy battle

Photos shared on social media showed a man with his hands tied, surrounded by police officers on the steps of a police station, with weapons, ammunition and military equipment at his feet.

A diplomatic source told AFP the man had done "a short stint" in the army during his youth.

Continued unrest

Although Touadera was re-elected in polls held in December, opposition parties supported by former president Francois Bozize have rejected the results.

Rebels groups seized a series of towns in the north and west of the CAR, and reached the outskirts of the capital in January - cutting off food supplies to Bangui.

French journalist kidnapped in Mali appeals for help in jihadist video

With the help of Russian and Rwandan forces, CAR troops were able to drive the rebels back and retake many of towns.

More than 276,000 people have been displaced in the CAR since mid-December, with the UN estimating some 1.8 million people are in need of urgent help.
Irans foreign ministry Monday summoned the Iraqi envoy to the Islamic Republic to protest against attacks against the Iranian consulate in Karbala, central Iraq.

The Iraqi envoy, Middle East Monitor (MEMO) reports citing the foreign ministry was handed a letter of protest against the Saturday attacks.

Dozens of Iraqi demonstrators reportedly set fire to trailers belonging to Irans consulate in reaction against the killing of Ihab Al-Wazni, a vocal opponent of Irans influence in Iraq and Tehran-linked armed groups in the country.

The Deputy Governor of Karbala according to Islamic Republic News Agency blamed certain regional countries led by some Western states for the killing of some personalities to create tension in the Iraqi province.

Saeed Khatibzadeh, spokesman of the ministry, called on Baghdad to protect diplomatic facilities including Iranian diplomatic missions in the country.

It is the international duty of the Iraqi government to protect diplomatic facilities in the country, he requested.
Twenty-two trucks that are said to have been ferrying 'unsafe' maize into Kenya from Uganda were on Tuesday evening seized in Kapenguria town in West Pokot County.

One driver was arrested while the rest escaped after a security team laid a racket at Kacheliba in Makutano town where the lorries coming Uganda load off maize. The impounded trucks were taken to Kapenguria police station.

On March 5, 2021, the Kenyan Government - through the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) - banned importation of maize from Uganda and Tanzania.

Police had a difficult time dealing with traders who claimed that the maize was from Pokot and not Uganda.

According to the West Pokot County Commissioner Apollo Okello, unscrupulous businessmen tried to sneak in maize through non-gazetted border points.

He said surveillance has been heightened across all border points warning that those found contravening the government directive will be arrested and charged in court.

"We got information that bags of maize were being sneaked into the country through non-gazetted border points. We have impounded the trucks and we shall take the drivers to court tomorrow to face the law. Those engaging in maize importation are doing it illegally," he said.

Aflatoxin

According to Mr Apollo, the ban was introduced based on the findings of a survey conducted which found that maize from Uganda was unfit for human consumption as it had aflatoxin.

"We don't have border posts at Kacheliba to check imported goods. We have put in place measures and we shall ensure that nothing passes through the Asilong panya route. People importing goods should pass through the Suam custom duty point," he said.

Mr Apollo noted that the Kenya Bureau of Statistics (KEBS)will inspect the impounded maize.

Mr Apollo also issued warnings to government officers colluding with traders in Kacheliba.

However, maize traders in Kapenguria protested over the move by the security team to impound the maize they claimed was from West Pokot and not Uganda.

They said that it was wrong for the security team to seize their maize 170 kilometers away from the Uganda border.

Led by West Pokot maize traders' chairman Phillip Achekichek, the traders accused the government of economic sabotage.

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The traders insisted that the maize was not from Uganda calling on the government to release the maize.

"They are frustrating us. This is uncalled for. Maize is grown in Siyoi, Sekerr, Sook and Trans-Nzoia and not imported from Uganda. We get revenue from selling maize but now we will have to close our businesses. Where will parents get money to pay for fees for their children once schools reopen? Mr Achekchek asked.

Human rights activist Kibet Abraham blamed the government for making traders incur huge losses and affecting many livelihoods.

"West Pokot County produces maize from Korokou, Chepareria, Kiwawa, Sekerr and Chepareria areas. You cannot come and impound maize 170 kilometres away from the Uganda border and claim it is from Uganda. Uganda has closed its border because of the coronavirus pandemic. We wonder how the maize passed through the border," he said.

He faulted cartels and millers for having a scheme to compel residents to buy maize flour from them said that corruption was killing the West Pokot economy.
In 2018, the then Kikuyu Principle Magistrate D N Musyoka recognised muratina as part of the Kikuyu traditional customs and ruled that brewing and drinking Muratina during traditional ceremonies was not illegal.

Now King'ori Wambaki, an Othaya-born Kenyan has carved out a niche in the United Kingdom from selling the local brew Muratina, which he markets as wine spiced with honey under the name Muratelia.

The alcohol concentration of 12 percent is sold in the UK to customers under the age of 35.

Kenya's High Commissioner to the UK Manoah Esipisu on Sunday confirmed in a tweet that the alcoholic drink is now available for sale in London.

"The central Kenyan traditional alcoholic drink 'Muratina' is now available on UK supermarket shelves, bottled in the UK by Othaya-born businessman King'ori Wambaki, now of Cheshunt, north of London, who is targeting the expansion of Kenyan products in the UK market," he said on Twitter.

#FromKenyaToTheWorld Now available on UK supermarket shelves is the central Kenya traditional alcoholic drink 'Muratina', bottled in the UK by Othaya-born businessman King'ori Wambaki, now of Cheshunt, north of London, who is targeting expansion of Kenyan products in  market. pic.twitter.com/YUcoICnIDN

- Amb Manoah Esipisu MBS (@MEsipisu) May 9, 2021

In his ruling, the magistrate added that the constitution has a mandate to protect the cultures of all tribes in Kenya and no law created can infringe upon those cultural practices.

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"They have to celebrate their traditional rites of passage through various ways and muratina (Agikuyu traditional brew) must form part of the celebrations," Mr Musyoka said in his judgment.

The big debate in all this was the legality of the traditional brews of the various communities that make up the citizenry of the country.

It is important to note that the court made no mention on the commercial sale of muratina.

The magistrate restricted his judgement only for the purposes of traditional ceremonies such as payment of dowry, marriage and initiation into adulthood.

In UK, the drink comes in a beautiful black and gold champagne-like bottle and is described as a refreshing beverage that pairs with red meat and salad to offer a sweetened velvet sensation of exotic fruits and honey, according to an inscription on the bottle.

Wambaki told a UK-based blog that the drink- made with UK-sourced ingredients and condiments has been well-received in the European market.

"Cheshunt is a town outside of London. We used ingredients that were readily available in the UK because we had not yet reached the point where we could import products from Kenya," said Wambaki.

The wine retails at an equivalent of between Sh1,500 and Sh3,800.
Kenya has added travellers from five countries to its 14-day mandatory quarantine list.

Travellers from Brunei, Thailand, Kuwait, the Czech Republic and Pakistan will now be required to quarantine for two weeks at their own cost on arrival, the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) has said.

The notice took effect on May 8, with the countries joining the United Kingdom on the list.

Pakistan borders India, whose travellers have been banned and is dealing with a devastating second wave of Covid-19.

"Travellers are required to have a negative PCR-based Covid-19 test result conducted within 96 hours before travel and should not display any flu-like symptoms upon arrival," the notice states. They should also provide evidence of booking into a quarantine location 24 hours before boarding.

Those arriving from the UK are required to have a valid Covid-19 vaccination certificate and a negative PCR test and "must self-isolate on arrival for seven days," KCAA states.

PCR test

"All UK citizens and residents travelling to Kenya from UK, irrespective of their route of travel to Kenya, and who do not have a valid Covid-19 negative PCR test certificate shall be subject to 14 days' mandatory quarantine on arrival at a government facility at their own cost," the notice reads. According to KCAA, Kenyan citizens only require a negative PCR test to travel, but the government will allow travellers below 18 years into the country as long as they have a negative PCR test result.

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Brazil, whose Covid-19 cases still remain high after recording 63,430 new cases on Saturday, is on the list of countries whose travellers are exempt from quarantine effective May 8. The government has exempted from the new restrictions all African countries, as well as travellers from the United States of America.

Quarantine

The government was recently criticised for allowing travellers from India into the country without requiring them to quarantine despite a high number of cases and deaths being reported in the South Asian nation.

As a result, at least five cases of the Indian variant of Covid-19 have been recorded in the country and more suspected cases are being investigated. The travellers jetted into the country on the day the Ministry of Health banned passenger flights from India for 14 days on April 29.

Covid-19 cases and deaths in Kenya continue to drop.

Yesterday, 316 new cases were recorded from a sample of 4,251 -- a positivity rate of 7.4 per cent, but this may rise if public health measures are not taken seriously.

According to a statement from MoH, there were 1,099 patients admitted in hospitals, 133 being in the Intensive Care Unit and six in the High Dependency Unit.

As of yesterday, 916,800 people had been vaccinated in Kenya.
ODM leader Raila Odinga yesterday hosted perceived party renegades Siaya senator James Orengo, Kakamega governor Wycliffe Oparanya and Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo as he sought to calm growing tension in the party ahead of today's Senate vote on the BBI Bill.

The meeting that was also attended by Kitui governor Charity Ngilu came in the backdrop of a litany of allegations levelled against the trio that they were hostile to the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI).

Sources familiar with the discussions yesterday told Nation that Mr Orengo and Mr Oparanya were the first to arrive at Mr Odinga's Karen home before they were joined by Ms Ngilu and Mr Amollo was later called in.

Nation gathered that Ms Ngilu brokered the talks between Mr Odinga and the trio and could have played an active role in securing a date for the leaders with the former premier a day after they held talks in Western.

Other sources, however, revealed that it was Mr Oparanya who booked an appointment with Mr Odinga.

Covid-19 situation

"We discussed a number of issues ranging from BBI, politics to the current Covid-19 situation in the country. We agreed that there is an urgent need to remain united as we have a bigger enemy ahead of us," Ms Ngilu told Nation on the phone after the meeting.

She went on: "I was privileged to be among them because all of us want to take this country to the same direction and want the best for Kenyans."

Mr Oparanya said the talks revolved around BBI even as Nation established that they pledged their loyalty to the ODM leader amid growing tension.

"Our meeting should dispel rumours of rebellion in ODM as this are wishful thinking of our political detractors. I thank our sister H.E Ngilu for her support," said Mr Oparanya.

BBI, he noted, dominated the discussions "as we assured the former PM of our commitment to the passage of the document."

Sources revealed that Ms Ngilu, however, excused herself from the meeting which "was turning tense" as Mr Odinga sought answers over alleged DP Ruto link to the trio.

"It was a very tense meeting. Mama Ngilu left them there as they discussed pertinent issues in ODM that border on loyalty and claims the trio were fast dripping to the DP's camp which has been critical of the BBI Bill," the source revealed.

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Mr Odinga is said to have taken issue with Mr Orengo's sentiments on the floor of the House on Thursday last week where he appeared to dare him and President Uhuru Kenyatta over his stance on the BBI Bill.

"I can never be intimated in my political life because I have seen many people come and go, I have seen many powerful people come and go," he said last Thursday.

He found himself in trouble with ODM leadership for criticising provisions of the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2020.

Yesterday, insiders in Mr Odinga's camp revealed that the ODM leader was not convinced by the trio on their political operandi, following Mr Oparanya's recent overtures to the DP.

"Oparanya is said to be worried about his political future both in ODM and Western Kenya."

"Orengo on the other hand is seen to be driven by anger that he is not really at the table where Raila and Uhuru make critical decisions with regard to their plans and also fear of where he belongs in the post 2022 formations," said the source in Mr Odinga's camp.

Mr Odinga is said to have told Mr Orengo to support the BBI Bill.
The Kenya Editors' Guild on Monday celebrated the late Philip Ochieng by launching the Philip Ochieng Annual Lecture on Journalism.

Speaking during the inaugural lecture to hail the professional life of the late Ochieng, KEG President Churchill Otieno said the day will be marked every second Friday of May from 2022.

"Kenya Editors Guild will use this platform to promote excellence in media and journalism that Philip Ochieng stood for. I celebrate him for having the courage to be different because in the current world, that is what most people are afraid of. We should all celebrate Philip's knowledge, service and commitment to journalism," said Mr Otieno.

PO, as he was commonly known, died two weeks ago at a hospital in Migori at the age of 83 after practicing journalism for more than five decades.

Other speakers, majority of them drawn from different media houses in the country, highlighted the contributions of the veteran editor and long-serving Nation columnist to the media industry.

Standard Group Group Editorial Director Joseph Odindo said that Ochieng exemplified to them that journalism without knowledge was like an empty vessel.

Kenya Union of Journalists (KUJ) Secretary General Eric Oduor of Nation Media Group said that, "from Philip's story, we learn that as a leader, you must display behaviour that is likely to inspire people, like he did."

Ochieng rose from a cab reporter scaling the heights to be a managing editor and chief editor and also worked in Uganda and Tanzania during his long career in journalism.

Kenyan writer and academic Ngugi wa Thiong'o said he was shocked and sad to hear of the passing on of Ochieng. "He and I were classmates at the Alliance High School 1955-1958."

KBC Managing Director Naim Bilal said: "He was a man who influenced journalism and politics in a very significant way."

"Philip was an enigmatic and mystical figure that most of us heard of when we came to newsrooms. Philip was many things, he was intellectual and journalistic," said Joe Ageyo, Editorial Director at Royal Media Services.

"If Kenya had its version of Pulitzer Awards, Ochieng would have bagged many - for his incisiveness, sheer bravery, high-mindedness, mastery of the English language and fidelity to all things journalism," said Ochieng Rapuro, Editor in Chief at the Standard Media Group.

Adding: "My experience and readings through the years on Philip's personal life, led me to the conclusion that we had a colossus of a man in our midst as members of the Fourth Estate. Ochieng was arguably one of the most well-read human beings within the boundaries of Kenya."

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He said that from his pen came thoughtful, deep, and purposeful works, not only served in the finesse of the English language, anchored in history and literature but also spiced with ideology and conviction.

PesaCheck editor Ms Rose Lukalo said that we must strive for the sense of perfection and the sense of duty in newsrooms again, "just like Philip did. He challenged us to be more, more than what we could be in the newsrooms.

Philip's daughter Lucy Ochieng, said "Our dad spoilt us with so much love to a fault. We never thought that daddy could go even at his age."

The family confirmed that the veteran journalist had succumbed to pneumonia on April 27 after being rushed to hospital.

In a bid to give Ochieng a befitting sendoff on 14 April, the celebrated journalist's family and friends have launched a paybill as they seek to raise funds.

"Following the passing away of veteran journalist Philip Ochieng, family and friends request your contributions in order to accord him the befitting send-off," read a message from the family.

Those in a position to help can send in their contributions to PayBill number 8040695 with the account name being Philip.
Washington  The United States said it "strongly supports democratization in Ethiopia" as it nears a national election June 5, while noting a "free, fair, and credible election" can happen only with a conducive electoral environment.

The statement comes amid a humanitarian crisis and conflict in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken had pressed for Ethiopia's and Eritrea's commitments to withdraw Eritrean troops from Tigray "immediately, in full, and in a verifiable manner." Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said in late March that Eritrea had agreed to withdraw its forces from Tigray. Abiy Ahmed then traveled to Eritrea and met with President Isaias Afwerki, but despite assurances from Abiy that Eritrea would withdraw U.S. officials said there is no evidence to date that such a withdrawal has occurred.

Ethiopia has struggled to prepare for the June 5 general elections because of difficulties in registering voters. The general elections have been delayed since August because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Administrative elections for the cities of Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa are scheduled for June 12.

"If that (a conducive electoral environment) is to be achieved, the government of Ethiopia must respect the freedom of assembly, the freedom of speech, political participation, and access to internet and information," said State Department spokesperson Ned Price Monday during a briefing. "Political parties, we know, should discourage violence, and state security forces must demonstrate restraint in the use of force and partisan tactics."

"We're also working closely with international partners to promote community-based dialogue to minimize violence surrounding the elections," Price added, in response to questions posed by VOA.

The State Department did not say whether it believes the elections will go forward as planned under the circumstances.

Former U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia David Shinn told VOA it is not possible to have an election in the Tigray region, adding "there are some real concerns as to the viability of an election on June 5th" in Ethiopia, outside of Tigray.

The unrest and restrictions on outside observers have led some to question the electoral process. On May 3, the European Union High Representative Josep Borrell issued a statement announcing the cancellation of an election observation mission to Ethiopia. Borrell cited disagreement "on key parameters" for an EU Electoral Observation Mission. "As conditions are not fulfilled, the deployment of the mission has to be cancelled," the statement added.

'Deep concerns'

On Monday, a bipartisan U.S. congressional statement expressed deep concerns for the continued presence of Eritrean forces in Tigray.

"The only viable path toward a durable cessation of hostilities and inclusive political dialogue will not be found through military action. The continued presence of Eritrean forces, who have been credibly implicated in gross violations of human rights in Tigray, is a major impediment to resolving this conflict," said congressmen Gregory Meeks, the chairman of House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and Michael McCaul, the ranking member of the committee.

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The U.S. will continue to pause non-humanitarian assistance to Ethiopia to pressure Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government to do more to end atrocities in Tigray. But the State Department will continue other humanitarian aid to the country.

"As we consider our aid to Ethiopia, we want to make sure that in the first instance, we're not doing anything that would place a further burden on the people of Tigray, who are in such humanitarian plight," said Price.

"We want to make sure that as we consider any future steps that we continue to do all we can to support them," he added.

The Tigray crisis was among issues discussed at last week's G-7 foreign ministerial meetings in London.

In a communique, foreign ministers called on "all parties to cease hostilities immediately, ensure the protection of civilians and respect human rights and international law as well as media freedom and access, and hold those responsible for human rights violations and abuses, including sexual violence, accountable."
The Kenya High School topped the 2020 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination with a dominant presence on the list of the top 15 candidates across the country, maintaining a legacy of stellar performance even as some traditional giants missed from the list.

The school had six candidates on the list, and also produced the top girl in the country.

The best overall candidate, however, was Simiyu Robin Wanjala from Murang'a High School, who scored straight As with a tally of 87.334 points. He was followed by Wasonga Allan Udoma of Agoro Sare, who scored 87.173 points.

Sharon Chepng'eno of The Kenya High School was the top girl in the country with 87.173 points.

"I thank God for this. We always put God first but also work very hard. We received a lot of support from our teachers who are very committed to duty, non-teaching staff and parents.

"We also have a chaplain to guide the students," Kenya High School principal, Flora Mulatya, told the Nation.

Tears of joy freely rolled down her cheeks as Education Secretary George Magoha read the list of top performers. The school had 294 candidates.

The examinations, which were rescheduled from last year, were the first high school final tests to be administered under the Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic notwithstanding, more candidates qualified for university admission than in 2019.

Fought with resilience

There was also an increase in the number of the top grade achievers.

The results, which were released by Prof Magoha at the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) headquarters in Nairobi, showed that 893 (0.12%) of the candidates scored a mean grade of A compared to the 627 (0.09%) candidates in the 2019 examinations.

"Their battle was fought with resilience and won with grace," Prof Magoha said.

In a marked improvement from 2019, more candidates made the cut for university admission after 143,140 (19.03%) scored the minimum C+ (plus) and above.

Among the qualifiers for university are 223 candidates with special needs.

The top candidate with special needs is Kipkemoi Miriam Chepleting, who scored an A plain of 84.8 points.

She was a student at Moi Girls High School Eldoret and was followed by Getugi Edgar Omoke (83.566) from Kisii High and Nebet Nyariki Ongubo (81.414) from Nyambaria High School.

The other top 15 candidates are Bob B. Ongare Moriasi ( 87.139) Alliance High, Esther Wachuchu Mbugua (87.113) Kenya High, Mark Kogo (87.106) Alliance High, Kenneth Oranga (87.049) Kapsabet Boys, Henry Madaga (87.046) Maranda High, Patience Chepkorir (87.046) Kenya High, Edith Kithei Musomba ( 87.013) Machakos Girls', Lesley Loise Wanjiku (86.999) Kenya High, Ron George Pile (86.970) Kapsabet Boys, Kiprono Howard (86.949) Maranda High, Debrah Njelimo (86.947) The Kenya High, and Daizy Nerima Buluma (86.939) Kenya High.

The list of top performers, however, missed some of the KCSE giants of yesteryear and some much sought-after national schools.

No place

There was no place in the list for schools like Starehe Boys' Centre, Precious Blood Riruta, Pangani Girls' High School, Moi High Kabarak or Sunshine School, which have in the past topped the national charts.

The Education CS observed that the Form Four leavers will join universities and other tertiary level institutions as earlier anticipated before Covid-19 disrupted the school calendar.

Universities will admit the students in September.

He instructed the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service to start placement of the students immediately, while promising that the Higher Education Loans Board will be ready to advance cash to the students.

A total of 747,161 candidates sat the 2020 KCSE exam against a registration of 752,602, meaning that 5,441 did not sit the test.

The high number of dropouts was anticipated, as many candidates fell off the way after staying for seven months out of school due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Thousands of girls got pregnant while others were married off.

Maternity wards

Prof Magoha revealed that 652 candidates sat their examinations from hospital maternity wards after delivering.

In the 2019 examinations, a total of 282 female candidates sat their KCSE Examination in hospitals.

"The number of candidates sitting Exams (while pregnant) was the highest in history. We must get to the root cause of the problem," said Prof Magoha.

At the same time, he blaming parents for neglecting their responsibilities when the students were at home.

Counties with the highest cases of pregnant candidates included Bungoma (43), Meru (38), Nakuru (36), Kisii (36) and Nandi (31).

Boys were reported to have engaged in drug and substance abuse, with others reported to have opted for informal businesses like bodaboda riding.

A total of 380,327 candidates were male, representing 50.90 per cent while 366,834 were female, representing 49.10 per cent of the total.

In the 2019 examination, 697,222 candidates sat the exams.

Prof Magoha said 15 counties had more female candidates than male examinees.

They include, Taita Taveta, Kwale, Nyandarua, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Murang'a, Kiambu, Machakos, Kitui, Meru, Nandi, Elgeyo Marakwet, Kakamega, Vihiga and Kisumu.

"The counties with high gender disparity in favour of male candidates during the 2020 KCSE examination included Mandera, Wajir, Garissa, Turkana and Homa Bay," said Prof Magoha.

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The CS also noted that Turkana County had the highest percentage of overage candidates (1,603) or 0.213 per cent while Bungoma County had the highest percentage of under-age candidates (1,344; 0.179 percent).

Significant improvement in performance was recorded in 19 subjects, compared to 16 subjects in 2019.

Knec acting CEO Mercy Karogo said the candidates sat for the examinations in 10,565 examination centres while 25,135 examiners were involved in the marking, which was concluded last week.

Knec staff worked round-the-clock over the weekend analysing and processing the results.

Whereas Prof Magoha said that no results for schools were cancelled, 287 candidates will not receive their results after having been adjudged to have been involved in examination irregularities.

The CS, however, warned that more results might be recalled after conclusion of the ongoing forensic investigations.

Teachers' register

The Teachers Service Commission chief executive Nancy Macharia said that tutors involved in examination cheating will be removed from the teachers' register, if found guilty.

"We will act decisively and conclusively on errant teachers while upholding the rules of natural justice and the principle of due process as stipulated in the Code of Regulations for Teachers," she said.

Ms Macharia announced that the TSC will launch a biometric system to collect teachers' data in all schools to ensure that teachers involved in malpractices are punished.
Coulson Girls Secondary School in Gilgil, Nakuru County has been thrown into mourning after two teachers perished in a road crash on Friday night.

The two, Joseph Njeka and his wife Mercy Wangari, died alongside their five-year-old daughter after their saloon car collided head on with two other vehicles in Soysambu.

A senior teacher at the school described the couple as a pillar and an inspiration to others.

"They were liked by all the teachers, non-teachers and members of the support staff. The atmosphere is gloomy as everyone is trying to come to terms with the tragic news," said the teacher.

Counsel students

And as students report back today, the schools administration has made arrangements on how to break the sad news to them.

"We have counsellors who are tasked to handle the heart-breaking situation and offer the necessary psychological support," said the teacher.

Mr Njeka was the first tutor to be recruited by the Teachers Service Commission(TSC) in the school in 2012 while his wife was hired two years later.

"They both got married while teaching here. Ms Wangari was first employed by the board of governors before she was absorbed by TSC," said the teacher.

Their fried, George Kimani Pentagon, was also in grief, terming Mr Njeka as "a personal and dedicated friend".

"He was a very amiable person who had the interest of the school at heart. He will be missed by all," Mr Pentagon told the Nation.

Gilgil Sub-County Police Commander John Onditi said the Friday accident involved three vehicles.

He said investigations were still ongoing to establish what transpired prior to the grisly crash.
Three subcontractors at Khorixas Vocational Training Centre (KVTC) had their contracts terminated last Friday due to underpaying their workers.

"The subcontractors knew they were underpaying people. We cannot continue employing people who break the law," Michael Bizabani, project manager for Adaptive Land Building Construction said on Saturday.

According to Bizabani, they held numerous meetings with the subcontractors in the past few months to discuss underpayment of workers but nothing changed, and their contracts were terminated.

"If workers are underpaid, we cannot continue working with such subcontractors," Bizabani said.

A few months ago, Adaptive Land Building Construction took over underpaid workers from the subcontractors.

"Adaptive have people at heart. We cannot let others be oppressed," Bizabani added.

One subcontractor who refused to be identified, said Adaptive Land Building Construction had not kept its promise to add 15% to the N$70 rate that was signed with subcontractors at the end of April.

"We wanted to go on strike before the end of April but Adaptive Land Building Construction told us not to go on strike as month end was close," the subcontractor claimed.

The subcontractors asked why their contracts were terminated after the workers' strike last week.

The subcontractor said the termination of the contracts will leave many people at Khorixas jobless.

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Another subcontractor said they will barricade the gates of KVTC to block any person from outside Khorixas from entering the premises to do work.

Bizabani said that Adaptive Land Building Construction spent an extra N$10 000 from their pockets to pay the underpaid workers last month.

"Even if they (subcontractors) are given the 15% increment they will still underpay the workers. They forget they signed a contract with us. We wonder what they pay their workers," a concerned Bizabani said.

The Namibian was shown a contract by a sub contractor which stipulates that they (subcontractors) have to build up to roof height. "We were supposed to build until the roof. So why are the contracts terminated. Adaptive must pay us at least three or four months in advance as per the labour act," the sub contractor said.

However, Bizabani said that the company will not pay the subcontractors for extra months since the contract which was signed with subcontractors has a clause that clearly states that the contract can be terminated anytime.

Bizabani denied there was a strike last week, adding that they had ordered the subcontractor workers to stop work until the issues were resolved. "There was no strike as reported in the media. We ordered them not to work as issues such as underpayment needed to be dealt with."

Most bricklayers The Namibian spoke to said they were paid between N$400 and N$1 000.

Gideon /Huiseb, deputy mayor of Khorixas who was part of local councillors dealing with workers issues at KVTC said he was not aware of what is happening at the building site.
An unemployed mother of three says she lives with the constant pain of having to face a child who was born without eyes as she tries to make the best of life every day.

Martha Namweya (31) says she was gutted when she gave birth to Saara Ndakevondja, who has a rare condition called anophthalmia, which refers to the absence of one or both eyes.

Namweya, who stays with her mother and siblings at Olyavahenge village in the Omusati region, says she experienced abnormal symptoms during her pregnancy, which left her concerned for the welfare of her unborn child.

"When I was pregnant with Saara I would get abnormal bumps on both my eyes, my head and underarms, but it never came to me that she has a condition," says Namweya.

She says she will never be able to forget the moment one of the nurses present during Saara's birth told her she has given birth to a blind baby.

Namweya says she has made peace with the fact that her daughter will never be able to see.

"I have never seen anybody suffer from this condition before. It was a shock not only to myself, but my family as well," she says.

Namweya says she does not know how to help her daughter.

She says being unemployed and staying at a remote village is not easy.

"I did not attend all the screenings during pregnancy, because I could not afford to go to the hospital all the time, and Saara's father was unemployed at the time," Namweya says.

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Tangeni Ndakevondja, the baby's father, says elders in his family told him his grandmother's sister was also born with no eyeballs.

"This was something so new to me ... I have made peace with it and am accepting my daughter for who she is," he says.

Ndakevondja says when his daughter arrived home from the hospital, he hoped she would open her eyes like other babies.

Ophthalmologist Helena Ndume says anophthalmia is a genetic condition which causes the arrested development of the eye.

"This condition is normally caused by certain medication, radiation, X-rays and viruses," she says.

Ndume says the condition is rare and it is impossible for a person with it to have eyesight.

Ndume advises pregnant women, especially in the early stages of pregnancy, to avoid medication, radiation and X-rays.

"From the day the egg is fertilised at least up to 10 to 15 weeks women have to be careful, because it is a critical time of development," she says.
An arrest warrant has been issued for Goldenscape CEO Peter Wangai who is accused of defrauding Kenyans out of millions of shillings through the collapsed greenhouse business.

A Nairobi court gave police the green light to hunt down Mr Wangai after he failed to appear in court on Monday morning.

This was the second time Wangai skipped a court date; he had earlier been scheduled to appear in court on March 24.

At the time, his lawyer told the court his client had contracted the novel coronavirus and requested that the plea be postponed.

On Monday, the chief magistrate was supposed to examine the Goldenscape founders medical report and rule whether he was fit to take a plea.

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) intends to charge Wangai with 360 criminal charges, which are contained in 18 separate files.

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) alleges that Wangai obtained varying amounts of money from various individuals between 2019 and 2020, promising them handsome returns on their investments.

His defense team argued that Wangai was not to blame for the loss of Sh19 million worth of investors cash because he was only a director at the company.

The matter will come up for mention on May 17.
Small Business Development Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni says the department is in talks with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition to designate more products under the 100% local content category to support SMMEs in the local manufacturing sector.

The Minister said this when Ministers in the economics sector replied to oral questions in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on Tuesday.

Ntshavheni said South Africa runs an open economy, which means it competes internationally and products are allowed to be in the country.

However, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition designates certain products for 100% local content, which means that products that are produced in other countries in certain categories cannot be allowed into South Africa because the products that must be in the country are those products that are produced locally.

"For instance, we are working with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition to designate more products for 100% or 80% local content to minimize the entrance of other products in the country.

"In addition, we are working with SA Revenue Service and customs to make sure that those products that are designated for 100% local content are not allowed in our shores to protect local companies."

She said the department's primary responsibility as a department is to ensure that SMMEs in this country who are operating in the manufacturing space can produce products that are of good quality which are also competitive in terms of pricing to ensure that products that are made outside of the country do not find traction with our consumers.

Support for youth, women-owned SMMEs in manufacturing

The Minister said, meanwhile, that the Department of Small Business Development has been supporting SMMEs in manufacturing through the SMME-Focused Localisation Framework.

This includes the Small Enterprise Manufacturing Support Programme, which is aimed at providing financial and business development support to small enterprises in the manufacturing industries sub sectors.

She said through the Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA), the department supports a total of 23 manufacturing-based incubators in the chemicals, steel and stainless steel-based metals, aluminum which has metal fabrication, biofuels, clothing, footwear and leather, food, bakery and confectionary, tech hardware and furniture manufacturing.

"These manufacturing incubators, for the period under review, have supported 737 manufacturing SMMEs that generated 267 886 172 in total revenue and sustained 527 manufacturing-based jobs and created 1 364 new jobs.

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"To ensure that SMME manufacturers continuously produce high quality products, the SEDA Conformity Assessment Programme supported a total of 207 manufacturers for product testing, certification, design and quality management and different national SANS [national standards] and international standards organization compliance."

Ntshavheni said the SEDA Technical Assistance Progrogramme supported a total of 684 manufacturers with product and process technology to the value of R15 million.

From the 2019/20 financial year to date, the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (SEFA) has disbursed R68 million to youth-owned enterprises and disbursed R167 million to women-owned enterprises in the manufacturing sector alone.

"Cooperatives operating within the manufacturing sector produced clothing and textiles, bricks and blocks, ice, toilet papers, bakery and confectionary products, cosmetics, steel, arts and crafts.

"Through the Cooperatives Incentive Scheme, a total of 118 cooperatives with 77 majority-women beneficiaries and 18 majority-youth beneficiaries were supported to the value of R34.5 million."
The Namibian government is yet to touch base with tax authorities on the Faroe Islands to repatriate the N$43 million the islands' authorities believe belongs to Namibia.

Last Friday Eyun Mrkre, the chief executive officer of Taks (the Faroe Islands' tax authorities), in an interview on the islands' local TV station, said they have not been contacted by the Namibian or Icelandic governments.

The Faroe Islands' tax authorities recently filed a police report, stating they suspected that the Icelandic fishing giant Samherji falsely used the islands' international ship registry to evade paying income tax for about 14 of their employees who were working in Namibia in 2016.

It is suspected that the employees were registered as cargo vessel employees of Samherji's subsidiary on the Faroe Islands.

In the process, Samherji wrongfully received N$43 million in tax returns.

Samhejri has since repaid the money to islands' tax authorities.

The police are reportedly still deciding where charges should be pressed.

Mrkre said they are not sure who the money belongs to, but could end up keeping the money if Namibia and Iceland do not contact them.

"It is easy enough to get in touch with the Icelandic authorities, but we have no prior experience with tax claims from countries as far away as Namibia. Perhaps the country in question is going after their tax claims through the fishermen in question, and if so, then a larger international investigation is perhaps what is called for, but that is very unlikely and unusual," he said.

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Mrkre said his department has completed internal discussions as the matter at hand is statute-barred, according to Faroese law, which states that the authorities do not investigate or correct taxes after three years.

"This matter is very unusual, and therefore we have not come to any conclusion on what to do. If we come to the conclusion that we want to correct the tax matters anyhow, the fishermen, who paid the taxes to us originally, will get a tax return, and then they have to pay their taxes to the relevant countries," he said.

Neither the Ministry of Finance nor the Anti-Corruption Commission responded to questions sent to them at the time of going to print.

The Namibian enquired whether they have had contact with the Faroe Islands' government, and whether Namibia can claim the money.
analysis

A waiver would not be a global answer to the pandemic but would be a step in the right direction. It would remove the legal barriers that prevent cross-border cooperation in generic manufacturing of Covid-19 medical products as well as cross-border manufacturing capacity building - both long-term considerations. In the short and medium term a waiver would facilitate generic export to members in need (with limited and no manufacturing capacity, eg African countries) and simplify and potentially speed up generic production (for those with manufacturing capacity such as India).

Franziska Sucker is associate professor at the School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand

On 5 May 2021, following enormous pressure, ambassador Katherine Tai announced the US government's support for waiving intellectual property (IP) protection for Covid-19 vaccines. The following morning, Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, declared the EU ready to discuss the "US proposal" even while some European governments, especially Germany, vehemently opposed the idea.

This happened in response to the October 2020 joint waiver request made by South Africa and India. They proposed a waiver allowing World Trade Organization (WTO) members to suspend their obligations to apply several (not all) provisions of the WTO Agreement on...
analysis

Former Prasa chief executive Lucky Montana was supposed to answer questions about property transactions, but he ended up making allegations that witnesses were threatened to testify.

The former chief executive of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) Lucky Montana returned to the State Capture Inquiry on Monday to answer questions about his property transactions. But at the end of the day, his testimony was described as "running around in circles".

Montana told the inquiry that he "rejects with contempt" suggestions that he used Prasa money to buy property through his property development partner.

Previous testimony before the inquiry alleged that Montana would view properties, and these would then be paid for by Riaan van der Walt through a company called Precise Trade and Invest 02. Van der Walt, through Precise Trade, is alleged to have settled Montana's bond for a property in Tshwane, among other transactions, as revealed by Daily Maverick.

Montana confirmed he had a relationship with Van der Walt, whom he described as "a great legal mind" and an "Afrikaner who was committed to South Africa". Montana claimed the allegations had "destroyed" Van der Walt, who has since relocated to Texas...
Since October 2017, the northern province of Mozambique, Cabo Delgado has been suffering violent attacks from a Non-State Armed Group. Over 2020, these attacks grew in strength and brutality  leaving a tremendous psychological impact on communities. The recent attacks in Palma are illustrative of the violence that the people have been exposed to during the conflict in Cabo Delgado, which has been increasing in intensity and spreading over the last year.

In Palma, as in many previous attacks, violence-hit members of the community, including women and children, and thousands of people were forced to flee for their lives while others remained trapped in the settlements nearby the Afungi gas compound (Quitonda and Maganja). Those who have returned to Palma city continue to face insecurity.

An armed conflict is raging in Northern Mozambique. Homes, health centres and schools have been destroyed, says Brice de la Vingne, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) Emergency Pool Co-ordinator. The latest attack to take place in Palma has displaced thousands without warning. They fled into the bush, walking days on foot to safety  some still in hiding. Others fled by boat, further south down the coast."





The UN estimates that nearly 700,000 people have already been displaced and are in dire need of humanitarian assistance. While the needs are growing exponentially, ongoing insecurity and bureaucratic constraints continue to hinder international organisations capacity to scale up much needed humanitarian aid.

Most internally displaced people stay in homes of family and friends. This is adding pressure to many villages and towns in Cabo Delgado. While humanitarian assistance is largely targeting Internally Displaced People in temporary resettlement camps, host communities that offer shelter to displaced families struggle to meet their basic needs, including food, water, sanitation, protection, and healthcare, and they often live in precarious, overcrowded and unhygienic conditions that create the perfect environment for the spread of diseases.

Internally Displaced People seeking shelter in the reallocation sites have often to wait for weeks in transit areas until they are allocated a space. The growing demand for assistance has outpaced the capacity of local government services and civil society organisations in Cabo Delgado. It is crucial to urgently scale up the provision of aid.

Most of the displaced people that arrive are coming to host families. The government is trying to allocate them, following a different concept which is that they receive a piece land, says Aitor Zabalgogeazkoa, MSF emergency coordinator in the Montepuez region.



But they need to build their own houses.They need help with food; they need help with tools; they need help with more essential things because a lot of people fled with only with clothes they had on. But at the same time, the situation is very crowded. I mean, a lot of people are living in the same house. Twenty, 30, even up to 40 people in a house that was built for a small family of five or six.

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On the other hand, critical national health programmes have been disrupted threatening the life and the medical condition of thousands. HIV, TB, malaria, antenatal and routine and cholera vaccinations have been affected.

We have been working in Mozambique since 1984. For more than 30 years, our teams have been responding to health and humanitarian emergencies countrywide. In Cabo Delgado, we continue to fill gaps in healthcare and respond to emergencies in both the host population and the growing displaced communities, often in collaboration with health authorities and other partners.

Today our MSF teams are working in Metuge, Montepuez, Nangade, Mueda and Macomia with temporary activities in Namuno, Balama, Ancuabe, Meluco and Pemba. We provide healthcare, including mental health, to the people displaced by the conflict and to the host communities by supporting health centres and cholera treatment centres and by running mobile clinics. We have also distributed Non-Food Items (such as plastic sheets for shelter, mosquito nets, hygienic sets, cooking sets and tools for farming) for people living in temporary settlements who have escaped from their villages with nothing but their clothes.

While we have expanded our capacity over the last months, our presence is still limited and only addresses a fraction of the needs. There is an urgent need to scale up the overall response in Cabo Delgado.
Three exponents of Arabic script reflect on the meaning, spirituality and activism of their craft and how they use it to celebrate faith and practise everyday compassion.

After years of working and volunteering as an international solidarity activist in occupied Palestine, and as an environmentalist and education-rights activist in South Africa, artist Fatima Gabru from Azaadville in Gauteng is one of a growing number of Muslims who have turned to the calligraphy pen to express the connection between social justice and Islam.

She crafts the calligraphy pens, known as qalams, herself from bamboo that she harvests at a friend's house. Before the Covid-19 enforced lockdown, Gabru exhibited her work at forums like the Lenasia Art Exhibition in 2019. She has since turned to selling her work and qalams on Instagram and teaching introductory Arabic calligraphy to small groups.

"I work in acrylics mostly, and sometimes watercolours or gouache for the backgrounds. For the lettering, I use acrylic paint as well as different inks. I use lots of Arabic words and phrases that have universal appeal and are key concepts in Islam, such as salaam (peace), hub (love), As-Salaamu-Alaikum (Peace be unto you). It is an enjoyable practice and it is meditative because when I practise it, I am repeating the phrase all the time. Now that it is Ramadan, calligraphy is even more tied to my spirituality and it is an expression of beauty about faith," says Gabru.

As an activist, Gabru contemplated whether there was a direct link between activism and her new passion for Arabic calligraphy. "I would say my current work is not deeply connected to social justice yet, because I am only a beginner in what is a life-long practice. But when I practise longer phrases from the Quran, I often choose phrases of social justice that speak to the equality of human beings," she says.

Gabru hopes one day to reach the level required to study under a master calligrapher, which would require much more intense practising. She is inspired by Muhammad Hobe, who is from Zigudu village near Cofimvaba in the Eastern Cape.

Arabic script in a Xhosa hand

Hobe was born in a shack at Zigudu village near Cofimvaba in 1981, during apartheid. He became a Muslim at the age of 10 after his father reverted to Islam. Because he was praised for his beautiful handwriting, he took up the art of Arabic calligraphy and moved to Turkey in 2009 where he now practices as a master calligrapher and was granted Turkish citizenship for his services to Islamic arts.

Currently in his 10th year of study under eminent Turkish Arabic calligrapher Hasan Celebi, Hobe achieved his diploma in Arabic calligraphy and has plans to return to South Africa and bring the art to townships. He usually conducts yearly workshops in South Africa but has not been able to return since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out.

"After gaining the skills from my teacher, my hope is to train the youth in South Africa in various traditional art forms such as paper marbling, Arabic calligraphy and Islamic geometry so that they become fully equipped to be recognised internationally," he says.

"I would hope to run workshops in the townships because that is where most of the youth are jobless. The calligraphy and arts will help the youth, so the townships are a must," Hobe says.

It is possible to make a living from Arabic calligraphy, Hobe says. "I teach calligraphy and am a full time calligrapher. I am often commissioned - currently I am working on a commission from the prime minister of Malaysia."

Reflecting on his work during Ramadan, Hobe says Arabic calligraphy "requires one to be disciplined and forces one to attain qualities like patience, humility and perseverance. There are many examples of the link between spirituality and Arabic calligraphy, but this is what I think of now - that you gain these qualities over time."

An American in the Arab world

American artist Everitte Barbee learnt Arabic and moved to Lebanon. He uses Arabic calligraphy to highlight oppression and injustice. Although he is not Muslim, Barbee often illustrates chapters from the Quran, called surahs, to combat Islamophobia. For Ramadan, Barbee has used Arabic calligraphy to illustrate Surah 83 - the entire chapter - as part of his ongoing project to rewrite the whole Quran by hand, in picture form.

"At this time of fasting and contemplation I hope we can remember to be more generous. Even as the chaos of Covid and economic collapse here make it harder to see security in our future, only our compassion, generosity and caring for those around us will protect us going forward into such unknown times," Barbee said when he released Surah 83 on 1 May.

Barbee is also known for using Arabic calligraphy to craft the writings of historic and contemporary Middle Eastern poets such as the 13th century Iraqi poet Bahai Al-Din Zuhair and Palestine's national poet, the late Mahmoud Darwish, into images of hearts, women, animals and geometric shapes.

Perhaps drawing inspiration from one of Palestine's most prominent writers, Ghassan Kanafani, Barbee's work includes a map of 1948 Palestine, before it was colonised by Israel, entirely illustrated by the names of the Palestinian towns and villages that were ravaged by the newly established state of Israel during the Nakba (the Palestinian catastrophe of 1948, in which many villages were destroyed, history erased and people displaced).

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Haidar Eid, associate professor of English literature at the Al-Aqsa University in the Gaza Strip, says Kanafani, who was also the spokesperson for the socialist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, popularised Arabic calligraphy in the struggle with his iconic 1970 calligraphy work of the word "Falasteen" (Palestine). "He was also an artist and he wrote the word Falasteen in fantastic calligraphy that was also used by so many Palestinian revolutionary magazines and also as a poster by the Palestinian revolution ever since," says Eid.

Like Kanafani, Barbee has used Arabic calligraphy to mould these important words of liberation into an iconic image - this time of unarmed Palestinians throwing stones at heavily armed Israeli soldiers:

We do not throw these rocks with hate.

We throw these rocks with love,

Love for a murdered brother,

Love for a sick grandmother without medicine,

Love for a family we cannot visit,

Love for a world we will never travel,

Love for a freedom we will never experience,

Love for an ancient people.

We throw these rocks with love for Palestine.
Somali president, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed also known as Farmaajo, his Burundian counterpart, Evariste Ndayishimiye and South Sudan's Salva Kiir arrived Tuesday in Uganda ahead of President Yoweri Museveni's inauguration ceremony which will take place tomorrow.

The three presidents were received by Uganda's State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Henry Oryem Okello at Entebbe Airport ahead of President Museveni's swearing-in ceremony for his sixth-elective term of office at Kololo Independence Grounds.

Mr Museveni was declared winner of the January elections with 58 per cent of the votes cast while his closest contender, musician turned politician, Mr Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine got 35 per cent, according to the Electoral Commission.

In addition to the three African heads of state already in Uganda, Sudanese vice president, Malik Agar Eyr, South Africa's minister of international relations and cooperation, Naledi Pandor and the executive secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), Joao Samuel Caholo, arrived in Uganda on Tuesday afternoon to witness the swearing in ceremony of Mr Museveni, 76, slated for Wednesday May 12th.

Salva Kiir arrived at Entebbe on Tuesday evening accompanied by Minister of presidential affairs, Dr Barnaba Marial Benjamin and the minister of foreign affairs and internal cooperation Beatrice Khamisa Wani.

Five more heads of state and representatives of other governments are among the more than 4,000 guests expected to attend the event which members of Uganda's Opposition have shunned following what they described as a sham election.

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"Foreign "guests" who come to attend such an imposition of a Junta become accomplices to the NRM/Museveni Junta crimes. Lenders to such a regime must know that Ugandans aren't bound by such debts," tweeted four-time presidential contender Dr Kizza Besigye who is out of the country. The homes of Dr Besigye and and Bobi Wine are currently surrounded by security operatives as a "preventive measure" following intelligence information that some members of opposition were allegedly planning to disrupt the swearing-in ceremony, according to the UPDF deputy spokesperson, Col Deo Akiiki.

Police and the army also said there was heightened security in Kampala and surrounding areas to contain any criminal activities and to ensure Mr Museveni's swearing is a success as he embarks on another term to mark four decades in power.

Relatedly, police spokesperson, Mr Fred Enanga said the Force had taken a deliberate decision to enhance their enforcement measures on motorists, outside the essential category, who fail to comply with curfew hours.

WATCH: Military trucks seen patrolling Kamwokya

"We are going to impound all motorcycles/boda bodas beyond the 6pm restricted timing, and motor vehicles beyond the 9pm restricted timing. Additional sanctions will include arrests, fines and penalties irrespective of whether you are a driver, rider, passenger or occupant. In addition, all proprietors of fuel stations who continue to park motor vehicles and motorcycles, will be subjected to further investigations, on parking authorisations, as we arrange to impound all motor vehicles and motorcycles parked at respective fuel stations," CP Enanga said in a statement issued Tuesday afternoon.
The multidisciplinary artist, whose novel was recently longlisted for the prestigious Sunday Times CNA Literary Awards, leaves behind a unique body of work to explore, and an ethos to inspire others.

Phumlani Pikoli, who died on 11 April aged 33, described writing as "an obsession". While musing on his portfolio for the Mail & Guardian, he demonstrated his commitment to his craft through the lyrical quality of his voice. "My stories eat me from the inside out and, by the time I'm sitting down to write any of them, it's been a long time coming. They start as tiny fractures of glass underfoot, constantly pricking while remaining invisible to the eye. Then they grow into larger chunks, ready to be placed. Often, they'll haunt my showers, falling through the steamed rivulets and clearing the path for themselves to be written. By the time I get to the desk, it's already been decided which medium I'll be writing in."

The young multidisciplinary artist, rapper, filmmaker, journalist and novelist leaves behind many works created over a short period of time. Pikoli was one of the brightest minds of his generation. His fearless and honest writing describes the postapartheid experience. When asked in an interview what he loves about writing, he said, "That you get to imagine and create worlds without restriction. I think that's the best part about it." Through every medium with which he engaged, he explored this world-making.

The news of his death sent shockwaves through the South African arts and literary community. Pikoli was warm and funny while being a firm advocate for social justice. The tributes to him bear testament not only to his talent, but also to how he was a beloved friend, collaborator and respected cultural worker.

Born in Zimbabwe to parents in exile, Pikoli later moved with his family to South Africa. His youth was spent walking the streets of Pretoria, experimenting with music, zines, skateboarding and art. Later he moved into theatre, writing and filmmaking - sometimes all at the same time. He created with a feverish, rare energy. He was also interested in sports. Many encountered Pikoli through his brother, artist Lisolomzi, also known as Fuzzy Slippers. The pair were frequent collaborators. Pikoli surrounded himself with writers, artists and musicians.

From dreams to debut

"The second print run would always be overshadowed by the feeling of seeing that first batch of books, once a dream, manifest into reality," he wrote in the foreword of The Fatuous State of Severity, his first book, published in 2016.

The anthology of short stories was written while in psychiatric care for depression, which Pikoli spoke about openly. Initially self-published, the book deals with mental health, class and race. His dream became reality when Pan Macmillan South Africa published the work. Pikoli later turned the book into a short film and adapted it into a multisensory exhibition in Johannesburg.

His debut novel, Born Freeloaders, followed in 2019. The coming-of-age story about teens born on the cusp of democracy, as Pikoli noted, had not been told before from the perspective of young people in Pretoria. At the time of his death, he was working on a screen adaption of the novel with Kagiso Lediga's Diprente Films.

In early 2020 he was selected as one of the Mail & Guardian's Top 200 Young South Africans, and in November, he was awarded the K Sello Duiker Memorial Award at the South African Literary Awards.

Pikoli's ebullience made those who encountered him feel special - as the words of those whose lives he touched, gathered here, demonstrate.

A unique authorial voice

Andrea Nattrass from Pan Macmillan worked with Pikoli on the publication of both his books. She recalls receiving a self-published collection of short stories from him in May 2017. "As I read the stories, I was immediately struck by his unique authorial voice, which was raw and authentic, and by his knack of catching the reader off guard."

Describing him as hardworking, she says, "Our conversations ranged from the profound to the silly - often in the space of a few minutes. I will miss his big ideas and dreams and his endearing grin. I have described him elsewhere as a bright light gone too soon, and I regret that we did not have the opportunity to see his literary career develop further as I have no doubt that brilliant new work still lay ahead of him."

Katlego Tapala, the editor for Born Freeloaders, met Pikoli through his publisher. "His writing was always unexpected. You could never predict where the narrative would go, and it's amazing how he could express one project over so many formats, constantly reinventing and reinterpreting a single story. Phumlani was incredible at coming up with stories, or telling stories that many wouldn't bother to tell," she says.

Abundant close connections

Pikoli had an extensive social circle and cultivated friendships through his many collaborations. Close friend Andile Mbete connected with Pikoli at university over things they both loved, including music, movies and skateboarding. "It was cool to discover another weird Black kid with a similar life story," he says. "We had that intensity, love and protectiveness that you find in sibling bonds. The unique thing about Phumlani is that he shared that exact status with our entire friendship circle. He had an incredible ability to build close and strong connections with the people he loved."

About Pikoli's legacy, Mbete says, "Phumlani's creative career and life reflected a lot of the blessings and anxieties of middle-class Black kids living in the shadow of the postapartheid South African experiment. He was the spokesperson for many of us and it's sad to no longer have someone like that in our corner."

Loving language and hip-hop

Another close friend, Alvhin Adendorff, echoes these sentiments. He met Pikoli as part of the Cape Town music scene. "We bonded over our love for language and hip-hop. I specifically remember us geeking out over the Black Thought's Funkmaster Flex freestyle and marvelling at its technical prowess and biting cultural commentary.

"The most distinctive feature for me about his writing is its honesty and fearlessness. He wrote the way he would speak to you, with an audacity of spirit and with the courage to challenge your views as a reader. In particular, I found Born Freeloaders to be a refreshing and unique take on a particular kind of Black experience that I had not seen reflected anywhere else.

"I will miss his remarkable sense of humour. He had an ability to bring laughter and mirth to topics that could otherwise be depressing or uncomfortable to discuss."

Kindred spirits

Writer, photographer and filmmaker Tseliso Monaheng met Pikoli while working for online culture platform Mahala. The pair collaborated on various works, one of them a short film about The Fatuous State of Severity, in which people read passages from Pikoli's book. They also created a music video for Mx Blouses' song Ukufa.

"He was a great director, a visionary and he had a load of ideas," Monaheng says. "When we filmed the Mx Blouse video, everything was so detailed. There was no wondering how a certain scene was going to be executed or what the ultimate product is going to look like because he had it down to the tee."

Monaheng admired Pikoli's ability "to weave narrative ... to show you what is happening", rather than to tell, which he attributes to Pikoli's background as a theatre practitioner. "I'll remember him for being a truth speaker and not being one of those people who turns weird when you're honest with them," Monaheng adds. "We had a lot of honest exchanges between us. I'd like him to be remembered as someone who really cared about his people."

Creating intimacy

Filmmaker Lebo Rasethaba bonded with Pikoli over their love for film. "Phumlani knew how to escalate intimacy. I can't remember the moment I met him but I remember the feeling he gave me whenever we hung out, like I had known him my whole life. We worked together on my films. We developed a few script ideas. We sent millions of WhatsApps." He remembers Pikoli "always pushed me to be honest and reminded me that being cool wasn't important".

About his approach to filmmaking, Rasethaba says: "Phumlani exuded a natural brilliance and, in a sense, it made him insecure. He didn't know how to quite deal with it. In a film I directed, he appeared and spoke brilliantly and naturally about a difficult topic. He forgot to be shy about being great".

Speaking about his writing, he adds: "He was a rare talent - incisive commentary, funny, witty and charming. There was darkness; there was beauty. His work was packed full of everything the sun touches."

Kind, inquisitive, restless

Journalist and editor Katy Katopodis worked with Pikoli while they were both at Eyewitness News, when he joined their online team. "He immediately struck me as a kind, inquisitive ... restless soul who wanted to tell stories and also to push boundaries," she says.

Later the pair crossed paths again when the author approached Katopodis to interview him at his launch for Born Freeloaders. "I was beyond honoured because I love Phumlani as a writer. To be able to go on that journey with him in front of an audience, where we were able to interrogate his thinking, his characters, his plot and the pure essence of the book was amazing.

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"I'm deeply saddened that the world has lost such a powerful literary voice, such a beautiful heart and a beautiful storyteller. I can say with absolute certainty that Phumlani Pikoli left a huge impact on South African media and literature. His legacy will be one that we can find in his books, in his storytelling, in his journalism... and he will definitely be missed by so many."

Creativity through connection

Writer and friend Megan Ross met Pikoli when they appeared on a panel together in 2019. Her first impression of him was that he exuded warmth. As writers, they would share first drafts and provide feedback and criticism of each others' work. "Every conversation with him felt like you were building something ... and you always knew that it could turn into an exhibition, a short film, a series of illustrations or a book," she says.

"I think his fearlessness and taking ideas forward is something we can all learn from. His wanton disregard for rules. Each project of his was like a cat with nine lives, it just lived on and on. He was just able to sit and create these things and put them out into the world. And he did it for all of us."

One of his defining qualities was helping to bring to fruition the work of friends and fellow artists. "He wanted everyone to collide and he just created this amazing mosaic of people ... I think his enduring legacy will be his desire for connecting people and bringing people from multiple disciplines together, to create something new."

Adendorff echoed this after Pikoli's memorial. "While listening to so many people talk about how Phumlani was planting seeds with them and pushing them to express their creativity, something occurred to me. He had a distinct voice, yes, but what he was building at the same time was a choir ... He wanted a chorus of voices ringing out with him in harmony. He had found his voice but subtly he was nudging so many of us to find ours and join him in expressing ourselves to the fullest. My feeling is that he left the notes for us, he left us our parts, he left us his song. It is up to us to find our voices and sing. We may find some solace in that. I know I do."
Authorities in Kigezi Sub-region have raised the red flag over the rising killings in the area.

Kigezi is comprised of Kabale, Kisoro, Kanungu, Rubanda, Rukiga, and Rukungiri districts.

The 25 murder cases were registered at various police stations in the sub-region between April 1 and May 7.

The police spokesperson for Kigezi Sub-region, Mr Elly Maate, told Daily Monitor at the weekend that the murder cases are becoming a security threat.

"People have started to take the law in their hands. We are lucky that all the suspects in the recorded murder cases were arrested and they are currently being prosecuted in different courts of law," Mr Maate said.

He attributed the killings to land wrangles, stress and domestic violence.

He cited the May 7 incident in which Furaha Karuhanga, 36, a resident of Nyamihanga Village in Bukinda Sub-county, Rukiga District, committed suicide after allegedly killing his aunt, Savius Bakahebwa, 49, following a land wrangle.

On the same day, a 73-year-old resident of Kibunda Village, Buyanja Sub-county in Rukungiri District, was killed by unknown people as he milked his cows. On the same day, Alex Mubangizi Kiiza, 34, a resident of Kyogo Village, Bukimbiri Sub-county, Kisoro District, was killed by Owen Abaasa, 35, who later handed himself to Bukimbiri Police Post. He accused the deceased of having a love affair with his wife.

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What leaders say

The Kisoro District chairperson, Mr Abel Bizimana, called for stakeholder engagement to end crime in the area.

"There is too much stress among our community members and, therefore, a need for counselling because people commit crime well knowing the repercussions. There is a need for the government to employ counsellors at sub- county level," Mr Bizimana said.

The Rukiga District vice chairperson, Mr Michael Mbareba, attributed the rising killings to moral decay, and called on religious leaders to join local and opinion leaders to sensitise the masses.

"Suspects in murder cases should not be given police bond or court bail. There should be no political interference in such criminal acts," the Rubanda District vice chairperson, Mr Pastoli Twinomuhangi, said.

The Kabale District vice chairperson, Ms Bridget Asinga, said joblessness and increased consumption of crude waragi have also led to increased crime in the area. She called on the police to revive community policing.

"The police and its sister security organisations should investigate deeply why body parts of murdered victims are cut off and taken away," Ms Asinga said.
Tourists from Sweden will return to Seychelles as soon as the Scandanavian country's population has been vaccinated against COVID-19, said the newly accredited Swedish ambassador.

Caroline Vicini spoke after presenting her letter of accreditation to President Wavel Ramkalawan on Tuesday at State House.

"We are lagging behind in terms of vaccinating our people against COVID-19. Certainly, there is a pent-up demand to move around in the world again. Seychelles is a beautiful country that people would always want to come and visit," said Vicini.

Tourism, the top pillar of the Seychelles' economy, has been badly hit by the global pandemic which halted the operation of many businesses.

Aside from tourism, the discussion between the Swedish ambassador and the head of state touched on the fisheries sector, the second top contributor to the island nation's economy.

Vicini commended Seychelles on the publication of its first report to the Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI).

"It is an important transparency measure which will enable us to also get a hold of what is happening to our seas, fish stock and how we can better manage it in a more responsible way. We are very grateful that Seychelles is at the forefront and it should be a collective and global effort," she said.

The report, which was launched in April, summarises key status information on Seychelles' fisheries sector to increase public understanding and appreciation of the sector. It also assesses Seychelles' level of compliance against the 12 transparency requirements of the FiTI Standard.

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The Swedish ambassador also congratulated Ramkalawan on his election and said that it was a historical event to have a change in power in Seychelles.

Vicini also met with the Vice-President, Ahmed Afif, and discussions touched mainly on economic issues.

"We had a long discussion on how to gradually relaunch the economy through tourism and types of airlines flying to Seychelles. We also discussed what the visitors are looking for. Swedish holidaymakers are interested in the environment, sailing, snorkeling and the island nation offers just that and more than that," said the Swedish ambassador.

She extended an invitation to the Seychelles' government for a conference in Stockholm in June next year to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first environment conference which took place in Sweden in the early 1970s.

Vicini will be based in Nairobi, Kenya for a five-year mandate.
The top student in the just-released 2020 KCSE results was too nervous to eat when Education CS Prof George Magoha was announcing the exam results in a live television broadcast on Monday.

Simiyu Robinson Wanjala, who completed his secondary education at Muranga High School, said he did not expect to be the countrys top performer.

I was nervous and tried to avoid the TV as much as possible. We were having lunch with my family but I could not eat. When CS Magoha mentioned my name, I rushed to the TV to check if it was a mistakeI was elated and filled with tears of joy, Simiyu told Citizen TV.

Simiyu Robinson attributed his exemplary performance to God and hard work. He noted that after the Covid-19 pandemic struck the country, he experienced difficulties accessing academic materials online but he kept the faith.

There were a lot of challenges, especially in Form Four. When corona came, I prayed to God and asked him to repay me for all the hard work I had put in, he said.

Adding: The experience through the first year was tough but I thank the school. There are quite many issues when accessing education online.

Simiyus father, Mr Wanjala, described his son as focused and hardworking.

Robin has been a very focused boy fresh from Primary. He came from Gachie Primary all the way to Muranga High School. Robin was so focused on what he wanted to achieve, said the proud father who was smiling from ear to ear.

Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, my son has done exceptionally well, and we are very excited as a family, Wanjala said, adding that although he expected his son to be in the top ten, he did not expect him to be the top performer.

Simiyus mother, on the other hand, said she expected him to be the best performer.

I had prayed to God for my son when the results were being announced, and I knew he would be announced as the top candidate, she said.

Simiyu Robinson Wanjala is eyeing a career in medicine as a surgeon before later specialising in cancer treatment and management.

I chose engineering and medicine, and I now hope to study medicine at the University of Nairobi, Robinson said.

His parting shot? My advice to everyone is to stick to their dream. Let no one tell them it is impossible. Continue working and pray to God, he said.
Six heads of state arrived in Uganda Tuesday to witness the swearing-in ceremony of President Yoweri Museveni who has been in power since 1986.

They are Evariste Ndayishimiye (Burundi), Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed (Somalia), Emmerson Mnangagwa (Zimbabwe), Salva Kiir (South Sudan), Hage Gottfried Geingob (Namibia) and Alpha Conde (Guinea).

The six presidents were received by Uganda's State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Henry Oryem Okello at Entebbe Airport ahead of President Museveni's swearing-in ceremony for his sixth-elective term of office at Kololo Independence Grounds.

Mr Museveni was declared winner of the January elections with 58 per cent of the votes cast while his closest contender, musician turned politician, Mr Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine got 35 per cent, according to the Electoral Commission.

In addition to the six African heads of state already in Uganda, Sudanese vice president, Malik Agar Eyr, South Africa's minister of international relations and cooperation, Naledi Pandor and the executive secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), Joao Samuel Caholo, arrived in Uganda on Tuesday afternoon to witness the swearing in ceremony of Mr Museveni, 76, slated for Wednesday May 12th.

Salva Kiir arrived at Entebbe on Tuesday evening accompanied by Minister of presidential affairs, Dr Barnaba Marial Benjamin and the minister of foreign affairs and internal cooperation Beatrice Khamisa Wani.

More heads of state and representatives of other governments are among the more than 4,000 guests expected to attend the event which members of Uganda's Opposition have shunned following what they described as a sham election.

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"Foreign "guests" who come to attend such an imposition of a Junta become accomplices to the NRM/Museveni Junta crimes. Lenders to such a regime must know that Ugandans aren't bound by such debts," tweeted four-time presidential contender Dr Kizza Besigye who is out of the country. The homes of Dr Besigye and and Bobi Wine are currently surrounded by security operatives as a "preventive measure" following intelligence information that some members of opposition were allegedly planning to disrupt the swearing-in ceremony, according to the UPDF deputy spokesperson, Col Deo Akiiki.

Police and the army also said there was heightened security in Kampala and surrounding areas to contain any criminal activities and to ensure Mr Museveni's swearing is a success as he embarks on another term to mark four decades in power.

Relatedly, police spokesperson, Mr Fred Enanga said the Force had taken a deliberate decision to enhance their enforcement measures on motorists, outside the essential category, who fail to comply with curfew hours.

"We are going to impound all motorcycles/boda bodas beyond the 6pm restricted timing, and motor vehicles beyond the 9pm restricted timing. Additional sanctions will include arrests, fines and penalties irrespective of whether you are a driver, rider, passenger or occupant. In addition, all proprietors of fuel stations who continue to park motor vehicles and motorcycles, will be subjected to further investigations, on parking authorisations, as we arrange to impound all motor vehicles and motorcycles parked at respective fuel stations," CP Enanga said in a statement issued Tuesday afternoon.
"The silence of the NLC on these allegations is deafening"

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) has entered the public debate on corruption and mismanagement at the "dysfunctional" National Lotteries Commission (NLC), calling for a public audit of all NLC funding programmes and for lifestyle audits of NLC board members. The union federation said the silence of the NLC on allegations of corruption was "deafening and potentially revealing".

COSATU's announcement comes after Judge Norman Davis in the Gauteng High Court overturned the appointment of Zandile Brown as acting chair of the NLC board by Ebrahim Patel, the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition. The action was brought by current members of the NLC board who are resisting Minister Patel's anti-corruption efforts. One member, Advocate William Huma, received R5 million towards his house by an organisation that received a substantial NLC grant.

On 8 May, the Economic Freedom Fighters released a statement in which they hailed Judge Davis's ruling, and accused Minister Patel of attempting to "manipulate and corrupt the lottery license processes."

COSATU has called on Minister Patel to appeal the ruling, as "the court has failed to clarify what should happen in the event of the Chairpersonship becoming vacant."

GroundUp has been reporting a series of corruption allegations at the NLC since 2018. On 10 May GroundUp revealed that the NLC had irregularly given R500,000 to fund a concert by pop star Simphiwe Dana, after the concert had been held, and only weeks after Dana's company, Black Carrot, had been founded.

COSATU's 11 May statement voices support for Minister Patel, and the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) that has been investigating and acting against the NLC. The union federation urged rapid action against the NLC corruption accused, saying that "looted assets should be attached".

COSATU also called on Parliament to swiftly appoint a permanent chair and to amend the National Lotteries Act to clarify the procedures required to appoint acting chairs of the NLC.
South African demonstrators march to Parliament to protest against Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip.

Protesters demand South Africa boycott, divest and impose sanctions on Israel

About 300 people marched to Parliament on Tuesday afternoon to protest against the recent deadly Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip.

Chanting "Allahu Akbar" (God is great), the protesters waved Palestinian flags. Some protesters wore T-shirts with "Free Gaza, free Palestine", and carried placards that read: "Stop Israel genocide of Palestine" and "Zionism - a menace to peace".

Riaaz Khan said he joined the protest because of the "atrocities being perpetrated" in Palestine. "Innocent women and young children are being killed by the Israeli government and the occupiers of Gaza," he said.

"They [the South Africa government] must take our message out to the global community," he said.

Athlone resident Gadija de Vries said, "When I see young children and mothers being killed it makes me cry as a mother." She said she hoped the protest would help stop the killing of women and children.

At the gates to Parliament, Martin Jansen, Palestine Solidarity Cape Town branch chairperson, delivered a memorandum to the Department of International Relations and Cooperation.

He said the protesters were "expressing our frustration with the South African government for not doing anything meaningful in support of Palestinian liberation", and "we are calling on the South African government to adopt boycott, divestment and sanctions legislation that will prohibit and prevent all South Africans from doing business ... with Israel. Whether it is academic relations, cultural, sport, [or] especially political relations, [it] must come to an end".

DIRCO spokesperson Lunga Ngqengelele said his department will study the memo and "engage" with other departments.
Maputo  The Mozambican Health Ministry told reporters on Monday that the new strains of the coronavirus that cause the Covid-19 respiratory disease, which are circulating in India and Brazil, have not yet been diagnosed in Mozambique.

Speaking at a Maputo press conference, the director of surveys in the National Health Institute (INS), Sergio Chicumbe, said "we have not yet detected circulation of the Indian or Brazilian variant".

But that was no reason for anyone to let down their guard. Chicumbe said that, in its epidemiological surveillance, the Health Ministry depends on collaboration with the reference laboratory of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in South Africa.

"In this collaboration, we have a quota of samples that can be analysed in a week", he explained, "and we make every effort to ensure that the samples are both random and representative of our territory. In this activity, we have not detected the Indian or the Brazilian strain.

But Chicumbe recognized that these strains pose a real risk for Mozambique, given its close ties with South Africa, where cases of the Indian strain have been detected.

The Deputy National Director of Public Health, Benigna Matsinhe, told the reporters that the appearance of the Indian strain, regarded as more virulent, more easily transmitted and thus potentially more lethal, than the original coronavirus, should serve as a warning bell for Mozambicans to make greater efforts in the implementation of preventive measures.

"The fact that this strain has already been detected in South Africa, a country which is also recording a slight increase in new cases and in deaths, should alert each one of us to individually redouble our efforts at prevention", she stressed.

The occurrence of new strains of the virus, and the fact that the number of new cases diagnosed in Mozambique is fluctuating, sometime dropping to levels recorded at the beginning of the pandemic, but on other days rising considerably, "shows us that Covid-19 should be regarded as a pathology that will be with us for an unknown time into the future", said Matsinhe.

She guaranteed that the Mozambican health authorities are attentive to the latest developments in the evolution of the pandemic, "and will continue to draw up strategies for collective action to minimize as far as possible the impact of the disease in all social and economic aspects".

"We all know how many people we have lost because of this disease", added Matsinhe. "We all know how much our country has suffered in social and economic terms. That's why, in the fight against Covid-19, we must continue to invest in what has been proven to give positive results - namely scrupulous compliance with preventive measures, including the correct wearing of face masks, frequent washing of hands, social distancing and avoidance of crowds. Added to these actions is vaccination to reduce the chances of contracting the most serious forms of infection".

Matsinhe reported two further deaths from Covid-19 and 24 new cases of the disease. The latest victims were two Mozambican men, aged 61 and 84, who both died in Maputo city. This brings the total Covid-19 death toll in Mozambique to 825.

Since the start of the pandemic, 528,677 people have been tested for the coronavirus, 322 of them in the previous 24 hours. Almost all of these tests were from Maputo city (225) and Maputo province (65). There were also 19 cases in Nampula, seven in Zambezia, four in Tete, one in Niassa and one in Sofala. No tests were reported from Cabo Delgado, Manica, Inhambane or Gaza.

298 of the tests yielded negative results, and 24 tested positive for the coronavirus. This brings the total number of Covid-19 cases diagnosed in Mozambique to 70,240.

Matsinhe said that all 24 new cases were Mozambican citizens. 17 were men or boys and six were women or girls. Only one was a child under the age of 15, and two were over 65 years old.

21 of the cases (87.5 per cent) were from Maputo city and province. The other three cases were from Nampula.

The positivity rate (the proportion of those tested found to be infected) for this 24 hour period was 7.5 per cent - a substantial increase on the rates reported on Sunday (3.1 per cent), Saturday (two per cent), or Friday (2.3 per cent). But the sample is so small, and restricted almost entirely to the Maputo area, that it would be difficult to draw any firm conclusions.

Over the same 24 hour period, five Covid-19 patients were discharged from hospital (four in Maputo and one in Niassa), but five new cases were admitted (three in Maputo and two in Nampula).

As of Monday, said Matsinhe, 29 people were under medical care in the Covid-19 treatment centres (down from 31 on Sunday). 20 of these patients (69 per cent) were in Maputo. There were also four in Nampula, two in Zambezia, two in Tete and one in Inhambane. Nobody was hospitalised in the Covid-19 units in the other six provinces.

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Of those hospitalised, 21 are men and eight are women. 15 are aged 60 or above, and nine are aged between 45 and 59. Matsinhe described the clinical condition of 14 of the patients as "moderate", while 12 are seriously ill and three are in a critical state. Those three are on ventilators in intensive care units, and 23 patients are receiving supplementary oxygen.

Matsinhe said that on Monday a further 14 people were declared fully recovered from Covid-19 (12 in Cabo Delgado and two in Niassa). This brings the total number of recoveries to 67,799, or 96.5 per cent of all those ever diagnosed with Covid-19 in Mozambique.

The number of active Covid-19 cases rose slightly on Monday, to 1,610 (up from 1,600 on Sunday). The geographical distribution of these cases was as follows: Maputo province, 775 (48.1 per cent of the total); Sofala, 304; Maputo city, 283; Zambezia, 121; Nampula, 30; Niassa, 29; Gaza, 28; Inhambane, 13; Manica, 12; Tete, nine; and Cabo Delgado, six.
Maputo  Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi declared on Monday that the Kazungula Bridge, over the Zambezi River, linking Zambia and Botswana, will remove physical barriers in the SADC (Southern African Development Community) region, and will consolidate regional cooperation.

Nyusi, who is the current chairperson of SADC, was speaking at the inauguration of the 923 metre long road and rail bridge, which cost 230 million dollars, financed by the Zambian and Botswanan governments, the African Development Bank (ADB) and the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

Cited in a statement released by his office, Nyusi stressed that SADC member countries have been building national economic and technological infrastructures which have an impact on regional integration, in order to facilitate interconnections between the members, in line with the vision expressed in the regional integration master plan.

The Kazangula Bridge is a key link in SADC's north-south corridor. It will allow countries in the northern part of the region to reach South African and Namibian ports without going through Zimbabwe.

Previously the link between Zambia and Botswana was only guaranteed by two ferry boats. The bridge will clearly generate much greater levels of traffic. Gone will be the days when queues of trucks built up to use the ferries. It is expected that transit time will be reduced from 36 hours to two hours.

Nyusi said that, in addition to its economic and social value, the bridge could lead to security gains, such as mitigating smuggling and drug trafficking in the region. But care had to be taken to ensure that the bridge is not used by criminals themselves.

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"We have to remain vigilant against those who, taking advantage of the ease of circulation, promote organized crime, such as illegal migration, contraband, trafficking in human beings and terrorism", he warned.

"From this bridge, we can reach any port in SADC", Nyusi added, "such as Beira. Nacala, Walvis Bay and Durban, among others. This implements the dream of connectivity of southern Africa and of Africa in general".

He believed the bridge could contribute to an increase in the region's Gross Domestic Product, and an increase in its imports and exports, as well as generating employment.

For the co-host of the ceremony, Zambian President Edgar Lungu, the one-stop border post built at the bridge will reduce red tape, and guarantee strengthening of the SADC regional market.

The other co-host, the President of Botswana, Mokgweetsi Masisi, claimed that, in the near future, the bridge would also allow a connection with Zimbabwe, by facilitating movement from the counties on the Atlantic side of SADC, to the Indian Ocean coastline.

In fact, the bridge avoids Zimbabwean territory altogether. Zimbabwe will only become part of the project once it pays a share of the costs.
Gold Theft in Zimbabwe - a Huge Problem But Is It Getting Worse?

Tashinga Nyasha Masimire, the 33-year-old man arrested for allegedly attempting to smuggle 23 pieces of gold worth R11 million (U.S.$784,238) into South Africa from Zimbabwe, has been granted bail. Masimire was arrested after landing at OR Tambo International Airport.

In 2020, the first family distanced itself from an attempt to smuggle 6kg of gold out of the country. In a statement, First Lady Auxilia Mnangagwa said: "I do not engage in illegal narrow-minded pursuits like gold smuggling." The gold was found in the possession of miners' federation boss, Henrietta Rushwaya. At the time of her arrest, she and co-accused Gift Karanda said the gold belonged to the Zimbabwe first lady, Auxilia Mnangagwa and her son, Collins Mnangagwa. When he came into office, President Emmerson Mnangagwa vowed to tackle corruption but his administration has been accused of shielding the real culprits while using less powerful people as scapegoats.
Jobs at Risk as Climate Change Threatens Kenya's Tea Sector

Climate change is set to ravage tea production in Kenya, the biggest global supplier of the brew, threatening the livelihoods of millions of plantation workers, a report by British charity Christian Aid has warned. The report looked at how shifting temperatures and rainfall patterns in tea-growing regions in Kenya, India, Sri Lanka and China could affect the quality and yield of the world's most popular beverage. Tea is one of Kenya's top foreign currency earners, along with tourism and remittances, employing about three million people. But the East African country - which produces almost half the tea consumed in Britain - is likely to see the areas with optimal and medium tea-growing conditions shrink by about 25% and 40% respectively by 2050, the report has said. Kenya is highly vulnerable to climate change, with projections suggesting its average annual temperature will rise by up to 2.5 C between 2000 and 2050, the report said.
Call for Easing of Ethiopia-Sudan Border Tensions

On May 4, 2021 Ethiopia issued a statement accusing Sudan of "increasingly bellicose propaganda" regarding their border and negotiations over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). It criticised Sudan's May 1, 2021 claim of sovereignty over Ethiopia's Benishangul-Gumuz region, where the dam is being constructed. This is an escalation of the border dispute between Sudan and Ethiopia that started in November 2020 over al-Fashaga, an area between Sudan's eastern province of Al Qadarif and Ethiopia's Amhara and Tigray regional states. It also points to the growing intersection of the border dispute with the stalled negotiations between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan over the GERD. A potential border war threatening to destabilise the two countries and the entire region. How the issue is handled will also have severe consequences for political transitions in both countries. Ultimately the two must reach a political accord that can pave the way for technical negotiations. This means gaining internal support for talks, which may be difficult considering both countries' domestic problems. In the short term, tensions must be eased to prevent the conflict becoming another destabilising factor in Ethiopia, Sudan and the region writes Shewit Woldemichael for the Institute for Security Studies.
Ministro @PePeElice: Se ha intervenido a 11 615 personas por incumplir las medidas por pandemia en operativos realizados a nivel nacional durante el ultimo domingo de inmovilizacion social obligatoria.

???Mas informacion: https://t.co/7tDehU6Siq pic.twitter.com/0ykHon2tGo
President Uhuru Kenyatta yesterday at State House, Nairobi received results of the 2020 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations ahead of their release to the public.

The results were presented to the Head of State by Education CS Prof George Magoha at a briefing attended by Head of Public Service Dr Joseph Kinyua, Early Learning and Basic Education PS Dr Julius Jwan, and TSC CEO Nancy Macharia and her KNEC counterpart Mercy Karogo.

President Kenyatta congratulated the 2020 KCSE candidates for a great performance despite the challenges posed by Covid-19 and thanked the education sector stakeholders for the smooth administration of the examinations.

At the same event, the President witnessed the swearing-in of Prof Fatuma Chege as the Principal Secretary of the new State Department for Implementation of Curriculum Reforms within the Ministry of Education.

The Head of State expressed confidence in Prof Cheges ability to steer the ongoing rollout of the new curriculum.

You have been at the forefront in the development of this curriculum. You know what needs to be done, the President tasked Prof Chege.
"As you can see, this is enough to vaccinate the entire population, that is, 24.5 million people, according to data provided by the Ministry of Health, meaning those over 18 years of age," Wagner stated.

"This diversified basket is made up of vaccines from Pfizer (32,501,910 doses), AstraZeneca (14,040,000 doses), and Sinopharm (1,500,000 doses), of which Peru has already received one million in February, and we have just purchased an additional 500,000 doses , which will arrive in the next few days," he explained.
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS. Education authorities say 2021 will see significant work in the direction of introducing universal inclusive education system in Armenian preschools. The transition will be phased, according to the deputy education minister Zhanna Andreasyan.

The training of preschool employees, development of modules and relevant toolbox, as well as awareness campaigns will take place this year, and starting from 2022 the universal inclusive principle will be launched in the provinces of Syunik, Lori, Tavush and in Yerevan. The other remaining provinces will shift to the new system in 2023.

The important part here is for the preschools to be attached to the regional pedagogical-psychological support centers so that its clear which centers are working with the preschools. Therefore, we are also going to change the funding procedure of these centers taking into account that they are going to render services to the preschools. The new procedure is in the final stage of circulation and is submitted to the prime ministers office, Zhanna Andreasyan, the Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport told ARMENPRESS.

Since the law envisages funding increase for including children with special needs to preschools, the education authorities have also developed and introduced a new funding procedure, which is already submitted to the prime ministers office as well.

These changes will enable to improve the conditions on one hand from professional perspective and on the other in terms of infrastructure. I attach much importance to awareness campaigns. We must ensure broad public awareness so that citizens get informed and benefit from these opportunities. Training of preschool employees is also important, annually at least 1/5th of the employees must undergo training and this is going to be a mandatory component in the inclusive system, Andreasyan said.

Andreasyan reiterated that the governments policy in this sector is to raise and enhance the quality of preschools. She mentioned the recent Cabinet decision which authorized the construction of 10 modular kindergartens with modern infrastructures in full compliance with needs of children. Andreasyan says the 21 preschools which were opened across Armenia in 2020 are all equipped to meet the needs of children with special needs.

We must have the kind of conditions that parents of children with special needs have the opportunity to take their child to any kindergarten they want. The same goes for schools.

Speaking about stereotypes regarding inclusiveness among the society, Andreasyan says some change is observed in the recent years, albeit insufficient.

Reporting by Anna Gziryan

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS. Caretaker Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan today met with the families of servicemen who have died in non-combat conditions, Pashinyans Office told Armenpress.

The first consulting conclusion made by a working group formed by the PMs 2020 August 3 decision was presented during the meeting.

We met several months ago and reached agreements. At that time the war and the developments well known to you took place, but the work has moved on, and we have the first summary. The first case which has been examined relates to the criminal case launched over the death of Tigran Ohanjanyan, Pashinyan said.

Thereafter, his assistant Anna Vardapetyan briefed the consulting conclusion which has been formed as a result of the investigation conducted by the working group. She informed that the working group has outlined several violations in the consulting conclusion, which mainly relate to investigative actions.

Pashinyan asked Gohar Sargsyan, the legal successor of the victim, how she assesses the results of the examination. In response Mrs. Sargsyan said the death case of her son took place in 2007 and for 14 years she has been voicing her concerns about the causes of the death. She added that she agrees with the consulting conclusion and is ready to continue the cooperation over future steps.

The issue of starting the investigation of the next case was discussed during the meeting. The second case will be that relating to the death of Valerik Muradyan.

During the exchange of views caretaker PM Pashinyan listened to the notifications of the parents of servicemen and answered to their questions.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS. Armenias foreign ministry has extended condolences over a shooting incident in one of the schools of Kazan, which claimed several lives.

We express our deepest condolences to the families and relatives of the victims of the tragic incident that took place in N175 school in Kazan. We wish speedy recovery to all those injured, the Armenian MFA said in a statement.

Nine people have died, including eight children and a teacher, in a school shooting in Kazan, in Russias Tatarstan Region. At least 32 people were injured. The first signal from a panic button at the school came in at 09:25, and the shooting began at 09:20. At the time, there were 714 children and about 70 employees at the school, including 52 teachers, TASS reported.

Editing by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS. The Central Electoral Commission (CEC) is working to install video cameras for live transmission in at least 1500 polling stations at the snap election of parliament scheduled for June 20, the CEC Chairman Tigran Mukuchyan said when asked by reporters on the issue.

Work is underway at this phase. The installation of cameras during elections is done through an organization selected by the government. We are aware that at this phase works are being done, he said.

Mukuchyan said that during the last election cameras were installed in 1500 out of 2009 polling stations where the overwhelming majority of voters cast their ballots.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS. Armenias foreign ministry has expressed its deepest concerns over the ongoing clashes in Jerusalem.

We are deeply concerned about the ongoing clashes in Jerusalem. We call on all parties involved to exercise restraint in order to reduce tensions and prevent further civilian casualties, the MFA said in a statement on social media.

Tensions in East Jerusalem started growing since mid-April. On May 7, clashes between the Israeli border police in Palestinians started near the Temple Mount and in Sheikh Jarrah district, where law enforcement officers perform eviction of several Arab families under the decision of the Israeli court, which accompanied by protest actions of the local population and fierce clashes, TASS reported.

Editing by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS. Armenia will be represented at an international tourism expo in Dubai scheduled for May 16-19, the Tourism Committees PR and Digital Marketing specialist Gayane Aivazian said at a news conference.

This is a very good chance to have more active cooperation in this direction. The Middle Eastern markets are of interest to us and have big potential. When presenting Armenia at international exhibitions we take into account the specificities of the given market, she said, adding that the presented products will be gastro, adventure, cultural tourism.

In another project aimed at promoting tourism, Aivazian said they plan a visit of Russian bloggers and journalists to Armenia. In addition, two major Russian TV channels, NTV and Rossiya 1, will soon air travel programs about Armenia, she said.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS. Caretaker Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan sent a letter of condolences to Russian President Vladimir Putin over the fatal shooting incident in one of the schools in Kazan, Pashinyans Office told Armenpress.

The letter reads:

Dear Mr. President,

I am deeply shocked by the news about the tragedy that took place in N175 school in Kazan on May 11. Its in particular painful that most of the victims are children.

Please convey my sincere condolences and support to the families, relatives of the victims and wish a speedy recovery to all those injured.

Nine people have died, including eight children and a teacher, in a school shooting in Kazan, in Russias Tatarstan Region. At least 32 people were injured. The first signal from a panic button at the school came in at 09:25, and the shooting began at 09:20. At the time, there were 714 children and about 70 employees at the school, including 52 teachers, TASS reported.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, 11 MAY, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 11 May, USD exchange rate down by 0.27 drams to 522.10 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 0.23 drams to 635.08 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate stood at 7.06 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 1.81 drams to 737.78 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price up by 49.53 drams to 30893.62 drams. Silver price up by 5.81 drams to 465.56 drams. Platinum price up by 375.28 drams to 21267.74 drams.
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS. A stable operational situation with no incidents has been maintained along the Armenian-Azerbaijani line of contact of the Armenian state border overnight May 10-11, the Defense Ministry of Armenia told ARMENPRESS.

According to the information provided by the Armenian National Security Service, no border incidents were registered in Vorotan-Davit Bek section of the Goris-Kapan inter-state road which is under the responsibility of the NSS border troops.

The Armed Forces of Armenia and the NSS border troops confidently control the border situation along the entire borderline.
The United States has been the worlds leading innovator in financial technology (or FinTech) for over sixty years. China, on the other hand, has risen to the top of the global financial inclusion race in the last decade, thanks to smartphones and social media applications that have enabled remote payments and the digitization of money management. However, it is unlikely to be the leader for long. African countries such as Nigeria and Kenya have recently emerged as FinTech hotbeds, using low-cost, easily available technology to mobilize customers in previously unseen ways. To remain competitive, American banks and FinTech firms must research the reasons that allow these achievements abroad and find out how to keep up.

Popularity of Fintech

Simply put, FinTech is the use of technologies and creativity to meet the financial needs of both customers and businesses, considering payment cards, internet banking, and blockchain-based cryptocurrency. FinTech was one of the most explosive sectors of the last decade, despite being arguably just the newest addition of the millennia-old evolution of credit, contracts, and banking.

The massive acceleration of its development was aided by venture investors, conventional financial companies, states, and even ordinary smartphone users. Remote orders, app-based stock trades, and electronic insurance claims have all become standard. During the first half of the decade, over $50 billion was spent in the industry, with triple-digit year-over-year growth being the norm.

New FinTech, on the other hand, has a much longer history than a few decades. Three large waves of the invention have occurred, each focused on a major area at a specific time. While the United States led the first big wave of disruption in this sector, it has since fallen behind as businesses and customers have reached the point that good enough is no longer enough. However, by researching where FinTech has been and is heading, American businesses will also keep up.

Fintech In Kenya

Kenya is the shining example. Mobile adoption rates in the world have skyrocketed, with subscribers exceeding the overall population by 12%, and FinTech technologies have followed. Safaricom, the countrys largest telecommunications company, contributes 5% of the countrys GDP. M-Pesa blends Safaricoms network system with an agent model; customers balances are stored by Safaricom, and they can conduct purchases in person at one of the countrys 110,000 agents. The whole scheme is based on text message technologies and has spread to seven countries. Not everyone would imagine that the crypto market and demand for the Forex brokers in Kenya would increase this much. Equitel, a prepaid virtual network provider that competes with Safaricoms M-Pesa, is driving financial inclusion even further by providing a comprehensive range of banking services on mobile devices. Equitel is a modern form of hybrid business, a telecommunications business born of a bank, that was conceived equally by imagination and necessity.

Equity Bank, the parent firm, teamed up with Airtel, a multinational telco, to provide customers a network from two long-standing firms. To demonstrate use, it dispatched agents around the world, including to places where no other banks or telcos had ventured. Equitel used a locally based approach to gain 22 percent of the mobile money market in just five years.

These businesses have significantly increased the countrys financial inclusion. In 2006, only 26% of Kenyans had access to financial services; currently, 83 percent of the population has access to at least basic financial services. Ses technologies have not only been exported but also models for other African countries. Following Kenyas example, twenty-four countries have committed to a Digital Economy Blueprint.

Fintech Century

The first generation of modern FinTech created innovations that have changed the way we use money today, with the majority of the invention taking place in the United States. The introduction of modern credit in the United States in the early 1950s, with the Diners Club Card, was a watershed moment: it represented a much more convenient form of payment and often doubled as a streamlined way to extend new credit to customers.

The Bankograph, an electronic envelope deposit system, and the first prototypical ATM were built for the City Bank of New York in the 1960s. With the growth of the internet and the birth of online banking, the United States maintained its leadership in the FinTech space, followed by the banking sector and other conventional financial institutions.

The second wave of new FinTech, which began in the 2000s and is now cresting, originated from Asia, specifically China, and generated a slew of widely accepted technologies. With a large population for whom physical banking was formerly unavailable, the countrys advancements were made via mobile applications.

However, the focus of FinTech disruption seems to be changing once more, this time to Africa. This wave is characterized by its inclusive mobile banking systems, which are united by the abundance of mobile phones, even in the absence of internet-capable phones. According to the United Nations, Africa is home to 33 of the worlds 47 least developed countries. Infrastructure for widespread mobile and Internet use, which took decades to develop in the United States and China, is still in its infancy. What would be a bane in other regions is a blessing for FinTech, which will make it leapfrog well ahead.
'Where are our children?' demand mothers of Mexico's missing Mothers of people missing in Mexico march in the capital demanding answers about their children's fate

Thousands of mothers of people missing in Mexico protested Monday to demand the authorities find their children, victims of the violence and impunity that plagues the country.

"There's nothing to celebrate. Where are our children?" said Yolanda Moran, who attended the Mother's Day march in Mexico City in her wheelchair.

"We mothers have come to remind the authorities that they need to look for them," the 77-year-old said.

She carried a large photograph of her son, Dan Jeremeel Fernandez, who disappeared on December 19, 2008 in the northern city of Torreon at the age of 35.

Dressed in white and with a rose of the same color in her hand, she said the mothers of Mexico's missing were exhausted by their ordeal.

"We do not live. We survive. Every year we are older, more tired, sicker," she said.

"Narco, military, prosecutor, the same filth!" read a banner carried by an elderly woman dressed in black.

More than 80,000 people have gone missing in Mexico since the government deployed the military in the war on powerful drug cartels in 2006, according to official figures.

Around 300,000 more have been murdered over the same period, according to the authorities, who say most of the killings are linked to gang violence.

The dead include three siblings aged 24, 29 and 32 whose bodies were found in a suburb of the western city of Guadalajara, prosecutors said on Monday.

They had been missing since Friday night when they were taken from their home by suspected drug cartel members for reasons that are unclear, according to the authorities.

- 'Worn out' -

In the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, "we have at least 100 people go missing every day, but not all are reported out of fear," said Miriam Cabrera, the mother of Romel Cabrera, who vanished on June 28, 2015.

Patricia Springton brought photographs of her son, her husband, her sister-in-law and her niece, who were last seen on July 14, 2010 when they traveled to Nuevo Laredo in Tamaulipas.

Story continues

"We spend our lives worn out, yes, with fear, but we're not going to stop" searching, she said, fighting back tears.

Mexico has almost a hundred organizations of relatives of the missing who want prosecutors to create a national forensic data bank.

According to official figures, there are at least 38,500 unidentified bodies with the forensic services.

Next to a carpet of photographs of the missing, 54-year-old Marisa Trejo accused the Mexican authorities of "indifference."

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador "made many campaign promises of support and has never really followed up on them," she said.

"My heart is broken in two because the day they took my son, they also took my life," added Trejo, mother of Francisco Albabera, who disappeared on March 6, 2012, aged 22, on the way to university.

jg/dr/mdl
Check out one way experts say you can cut your risk of depression, how you can start using cryptocurrency as rewards on your credit card, and 
"Their latest failure comes in the form of HALT, a law that is based on a complete fabrication, concocted by advocacy groups and passed by a state Legislature who the majority have zero regard for the lives and wellbeing of our members," said Mark Deburgomaster, NYSCOPBA's western region vice president.

Jerome Wright, a statewide organizer with the #HALTsolitary Campaign, said assaults on incarcerated individuals or staff are "unacceptable." But he said the question is "how does the state prevent and reduce violence" in prisons.

"Simply put, solitary confinement is torture," Wright continued. "It's not only harmful and deadly itself, but also leads to violence as people deteriorate.

"The HALT Solitary Confinement Act will protect people from the terrible harms of long-term solitary, including severe psychosis and suicide, while still allowing (DOCCS) to separate people for extended periods of time in secure environments with therapeutic programming proven to actually address dangerous behaviors."

For NYSCOPBA President Michael Powers, his main concern is what he views as a deteriorating situation in prisons. Even as the prison population declines, there are more assaults on staff and inmates in state correctional facilities.
Appointments for vaccinations can be made online starting at 8 a.m. Thursday, the Department of Health Services said, adding that appointments aren't necessary but they help save time at the site by taking care of registration beforehand,

The department said a parent or guardian must accompany the child and sign a consent form in person, including an attestation that the child is at least 12 years old. No identification is required for the child, the department said.

In another development, the state on Tuesday reported 683 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases and 19 more deaths amid a slowing of the rate of additional cases.

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The pandemic totals rose to 870,155 cases and 17,428 deaths, according to the dashboard.

Coconino County added 12 positive cases and zero deaths in Tuesday's reports, bringing its totals to 17,693 cases and 309 deaths.

COVID-19-related hospitalizations hovered below 600 for the third straight day, with 577 patients occupying inpatient beds as of Monday, after ranging above 600 for nearly two weeks, according to the dashboard.
The coronavirus was discovered after a lot of investment by China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) and was intentionally released from a lab as a bio-weapon, Chinese virologist Dr Le-Meng Yan said.

Yan, who was previously a post-doctoral fellow at Hong Kong University, fled to United States in April last year. In a paper published in September last year, she claimed that coronavirus was created by China in a research lab.

"...this document is one of the 'smoking gun' that can prove China has a long-term programme of non-traditional bio-weapons and (plans) to use it to conquer the whole world," Yan told India Today in an interview. She was referring to the leaked documents sourced by the US State Department which said Chinese military scientists investigated weaponising coronaviruses five years before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Yan said China's objective is to deny the allegations and use misinformation to mislead the world when people realise the virus has come from a lab.

Also read: Chinese military probed weaponising coronavirus in 2015, claim leaked documents

"I started telling people via YouTube anonymously from last January that this virus came from the PLA lab and that they discovered coronavirus after a lot of investment. They finally got a human-target virus and it was intentionally released. Also, the Chinese government knows it and that's why they immediately had a response after the waiting hours," she claimed.

Yan said the leaked documents show that genetic engineering of viruses in 2015 is not the beginning of China's study of contemporary bio-weapons, but is just one step in study of bio-weapons of which there is evidence now.

"But after that, they have also modified a lot and they have recruited a lot of labs under the cover of silo labs, under the cover of international labs, and working with the military to develop it. So they have better knowledge and experience after five-six years and that's what made COVID-19 happen," the virologist said.

US officials allegedly obtained papers, written in 2015 by military scientists and senior Chinese public health officials, as part of their own investigation into the origins of COVID-19.

In the papers, Chinese scientists described SARS coronaviruses - of which COVID is one example - as presenting a "new era of genetic weapons".

Also read: Another false hope in battle against Covid-19...What is Ivermectin?
The White House is moving forward judiciously in pursuing President Joe Bidens goal of conserving 30% of the nations land, fresh water and ocean areas by 2030. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland delivered her report on the 30x30 initiative at the end of April. A statement of core principles followed, signed by the four Cabinet members charged with fulfilling the conservation vision of the president. While we dont know specifics, Haalands report surely includes significant recommendations for Utahs red rock country.

If America is truly committed to 30x30, well need to protect vast portions of the Colorado Plateau, the canyon country spanning the Four Corners between the Rockies and the Southwest deserts. In southern Utah, park planners have recognized the worthiness and wildness of these one-of-a-kind canyonlands ever since they proposed a gigantic Escalante National Monument in the 1930s.

That dream failed, but our elected leaders have since vindicated its boldness by establishing preserve after preserve within the expanse of the original proposal: Capitol Reef and Canyonlands national parks, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Labyrinth Canyon Wilderness, and Grand Staircase-Escalante and Bears Ears national monuments. Few places on Earth have such interconnected extraordinary scenery, cultural history, barely tapped scientific research potential and healthy ecosystems.
The statement further noted that students were able to have school in-person and participate in activities, something other schools in other states and in the metro areas of Nebraska were not able to do.

The statement said that school districts were also caught off guard by the proposed health education standards from the Nebraska Department of Education.

The public needs to know that the health standards will go through several reviews and drafts prior to their adoption, the statement notes. Most curriculum standards are approved in the fall of the school year to give school districts time to unpack them and alter their curriculums for the following school year. We anticipate the final draft to be completed in September.

The statement notes that health education standards cover more than just sex education, and that the district does not agree with many of the standards in its draft form.
Many factors affect corn growth and development, especially early in the growing season. A common question this time of year after corn is planted and some fields have emerged while others have not is, How many Growing Degree Days (GDD) does it take for my corn to emerge? Since corn emergence is directly related to soil temperature (and of course soil moisture), the days to emergence vary especially when one compares early planting dates to later planting dates.

The general assumption is 120 Growing Degree Days, abbreviated GDD, for corn to emerge under favorable conditions. However, we know that some planting practices and environmental conditions can decrease or increase the amount of GDD needed for corn to emerge. We use the GDD calculation for air temperature to estimate how long it will take corn to emerge even though soil temperature is the driving factor.
What becomes more and more concerning as time goes on is if these populations dont rebound from changes in the ocean, he said.

Michael Tehann, assistant regional administrator for NOAA fisheries, said while the data is concerning, the fish have displayed remarkable ability to bounce back from previous low abundance. He also said the agency is looking for additional measures to help the fish.

Earlier this year, scientists with the agencys Northwest Fisheries Science Center published a paper projecting that climate change could cause already low survival rates for Snake River spring chinook to plummet by 90% and the fish could face extinction by 2060. The study, led by Lisa Crozier, said urgent actions are needed to counteract the fish-killing effects of warming oceans and reduced river flows brought on by climate change.

The tribes analysis included a chart of the downward trend predicted by the federal scientists with the addition of actual spring chinook returns from 2019 for reference.

So as grim as her (Croziers) projections look, we are saying we are already starting that decline and we are already there at the quasi-extinction threshold, Hesse said. I think it adds urgency that this is going to continue.
Bail was set at $100,000 on Tuesday for a former Lockwood school board member charged with raping and sexually assaulting a child.

Yellowstone County District Judge Jessica Fehr said the bail amount was appropriate because Joseph Leonard Borgstrom has a lot at stake with the charges and likely has the means to flee the area if he chose to. She said statements Borgstrom had made caused her to worry about the safety of the 12-year-old victim and the community, although she did not specify what those statements were.

Borgstrom, who resigned from his Lockwood Schools board of trustees position on Friday, turned himself in, according to Assistant Public Defender Gregory Tomicich, who represented Borgstrom for the hearing.

Tomicich said higher bail amounts were reflexively set in cases with charges like Borgstroms and argued for him to be released on his own recognizance, saying he owned a business with full-time employees and had ties to the community that would deter him from fleeing.

Deputy Yellowstone County Attorney Paul Vestal had requested the $100,000 bail amount, saying that although Borgstrom had no criminal history, the amount was necessary to ensure victim safety.
A man who has served on the Lockwood Schools Board of Trustees is being held in the county jail on a rape charge.

Joseph Leonard Borgstrom, 61, faces charges of sexual intercourse without consent and sexual assault. Arraigned is set in Yellowstone County District Court on Tuesday.

Borgstrom is accused of raping and assaulting a 12-year-old. He was booked into the Yellowstone County Detention Facility on Friday.

Borgstrom is listed on the Lockwood Schools website as a trustee. Superintendent Tobin Novasio said Borgstrom verbally resigned on Friday, but that he lost his re-election bid and his seat was already set to change hands on Tuesday.

The news was first reported by KTVQ.

According to charges, Borgstrom waived his Miranda rights and gave investigators a statement confirming the allegations of rape and sexual assault.

Novasio said after learning about Borgstrom's charges, the district asked the Montana School Boards Association to audit Lockwood's policies and procedures to recommend any needed changes regarding student safety.
With as many votes that came in, and as many votes that each candidate got, I think it's very probable that there were people that voted twice or more or people who are deceased and someone voted for them, Knapp said.

There has been no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election, despite repeated claims by Trump that President Joe Bidens win was fraudulent. Trumps assertions have been contradicted by multiple recounts, audits and the outcome of dozens of court cases.

Knapps relationship with the Cheney family dates back further than this campaign, however. Then-Rep. Dick Cheney appointed Knapp to the United States Air Force Academy as a student at Campbell County High School.

Mr. Cheney and Knapp have not corresponded about the 2022 campaign.

I have great respect for the Cheney family and the public service that they've had. Its only the last year that Liz has betrayed the state, he said.
At least 11 Covid-19 patients died due to a problem in oxygen supply inside the ICU in Government-run Ruia Hospital here late on Monday night, Chittoor district Collector M Hari Narayanan said.

There was a five-minute lag in reloading the oxygen cylinder that caused the pressure to drop, resulting in the deaths, he said.

"The oxygen supply was restored within five minutes and everything is now normal. Because of this we could prevent more casualties," Hari Narayanan added.

About 30 doctors were immediately rushed into the ICU to attend to the patients.

The Collector said there was no scarcity of oxygen in the hospital and adequate supply was in place.

In all, about 700 Covid-19 patients were undergoing treatment in the ICU and oxygen beds in Ruia while another 300 were in normal wards.

Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy expressed grief over the incident.

He spoke to the district collector and directed that a detailed investigation be conducted into the incident.

Jagan directed the officials to ensure that such incidents did not recur.

Also read: Can inoculate Mumbai in 3 weeks if state can import COVID-19 vaccines, says Aditya Thackeray
Jurors in the trial of a Moffit man charged in the death of a Mandan man were asked Monday to decide if the stabbing was murder or self-defense.

Arthur Funk, 48, was charged in connection with the June 2020 death of Kevin Stockert, 53. Authorities say the dispute centered around the return of a car belonging to Stockert's girlfriend. Funk allegedly had been staying with her and had taken her car and not returned it.

Stockert was stabbed numerous times in the side and back and left to die alone by a garbage can, Assistant Burleigh County States Attorney Chase Lingle said in his opening statement to jurors who had been seated earlier Monday.

The force from one of the stabs broke one of Stockerts ribs, and Funk left him there and made no attempt to call for medical help, according to the prosecutor. Funk then allegedly hid out at numerous residences, destroyed his cellphone to hide any evidence on it, and made plans to discard the knife. It was only after law enforcement found Funk later that day that he said he had stabbed Stockert in self-defense, Lingle said.
Three more people with COVID-19 have died in North Dakota, pushing the state's pandemic death toll past 1,500.

Meanwhile, active virus cases on Tuesday dropped below 800 for the first time in nearly two months, to 778, according to the state's COVID-19 dashboard. There were 187 active cases in Burleigh-Morton counties, the lowest two-county total in more than a month. None of the three new deaths was in the two counties.

There were 128 newly confirmed virus cases, from 3,397 tests processed Monday. The state calculated a positivity rate of 4.83%.

Since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020, there have been 108,652 confirmed virus cases in North Dakota, with 106,372 recoveries, 1,502 deaths and 4,192 hospitalizations. Thirty-six COVID-19 patients remained in a hospital Tuesday, the lowest total in 10 days.

Vaccine update

About 562,100 total doses of the three available COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in North Dakota, with about 83,500 doses in Burleigh-Morton counties, according to the state's vaccine dashboard.
"You work so hard to do what you can to help the district and get hung up on these party issues, and it doesn't make sense to me," Brandenburg said.

Erbele links the censures to "out-of-state activists that are Libertarian in nature, and they're trying to take over the Republican Party without calling themselves Libertarian, and so they're forcing the Republican Party to implode upon itself by their actions."

He called the censure "very vague" and without specifics. He attributed it mainly to constituents' discontent over him and Brandenburg not running with Magrum in 2020, but cited Magrum's behavior at the 2019 meeting in "verbally abusing" Brandenburg and not apologizing.

"It's the same arrogance that Luke Simons showed in being unapologetic, and if either one of these two individuals would have used the three words saying, 'I am sorry,' the expulsion wouldn't have happened and the separation of District 28 wouldn't have happened," Erbele said. "It's more important for me to stand with my friend, Rep. Brandenburg, than to support bad politics."

Brandenburg said he doesn't regret his vote to expel Simons, that "my mother and my father taught me that you treat women as equals, and I stand beside that."
Take up space. Sometimes Im embarrassed that I have that written on a Post-it prominently displayed in my office. Its ridiculous that at 41 years old I need a reminder to take up space in my own life. At my own job -- which I do from a desk in my own house. If Im not taking up space in this environment, who is?

Ive mostly kept these thoughts to myself, but I know Im far from alone. Recently, I was helping conduct mock interviews for young women applying for scholarships. On more than one occasion, we mock judges had to remind these young ladies of their own awesomeness. These are students who write and perform their own music. Students who pleasure read books on world religion. Students who have traveled to nearly every U.S. state and a good number of foreign countries. We had to remind them that they are awesome. The youngest applicant so eloquently put it this way, I love to be myself, but sometimes it is really hard. On the one hand, I feel you, girl. And on the other, what is this?

How are we conducting ourselves as a society if people with as many accomplishments as these students have dont feel comfortable owning them? And how are we encouraging each other to overcome that self-doubt?
North Dakotans brace themselves for Judge Boasbergs decision on the illegal DAPL pipeline. I fear for loss of jobs of our newest citizens who work in the oil industry as did I in Wyoming, Louisiana. I fear for the Standing Rock Sioux who endured revived Talk Radio hostility and attack. There are two ingredients to a practical and respectful compromise.

2. Kelcy Warrens DAPL, North Dakota and the Three Affiliated Tribes should compensate the Sovereign Sioux Nation for the trespass. Let that number be established by an arbitration panel. And pay a transit fee determined by Intergovernmental and Host Government Agreements on oil and gas transit pipelines. In 2010 the International Oil Industry developed the Energy Charter Model Agreements on Cross-border Pipelines.

It was predictable that the U.S. Congress would dishonor its Fifth Amendment obligation to pay for the taking of ancestral lands of the Great Sioux Nations. The DAPL burdens lands recognized as belonging to the Sioux by the 1968 Ft. Laramie Treaty. The treaty was dishonored in retribution for their defeat of Custers attack on July 4, 1876, the 100th birthday of our nation. The lands we know as Morton and Emmons County were taken from the Sioux without compensation in violation of the 5th and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. It was also predictable that the Army Corps would breach its Indian Trust Duties. North Dakota whites preferred the crossing be down river. Sierra Club, Brother Warren, Chairman, Governor and Dakotans, this treaty requires humility not typical of U.S. Army Generals.
Ive recently read a few letters to the editor regarding a new initiated measure from a group called Protect North Dakotas Constitution. The word grassroots was frequently used in their letters to the editor, but not correctly.

According to Susan Rice, A true grassroots movement isnt organized by political forces  instead, a grassroots movement springs up spontaneously due to some pressing issue that a community feels needs to be changed or enhanced.

We all know that our legislators have tried hard to push through measures that would limit the voice of the people by changing the rules on what it would take for citizens to sponsor measures and amend the North Dakota Constitution.

Protect North Dakotas Constitution is the establishment pushing an agenda on us voters. Its well-known that the state Chamber of Commerce runs to the establishments rescue every few years when they feel threatened. All of PNDC's funding so far has come from the Greater North Dakota Chamber of Commerce. Protect North Dakotas Constitution has even hired the states most partisan advertising firm to spin their extreme agenda. So, their claim that its a grassroots initiative is just false. Its a top-down, rather than bottom-up movement.
The first phase includes 200 residential apartments  10% dedicated for affordable housing  and 4,500 square feet of commercial space, with a combination of a restaurant or cafe, a research and development lab and ground-floor retail. The parking ramp itself  which would be retained  would also be expanded to 800 parking spaces.

The second phase would add another 400 new apartments at two Simon properties adjacent to the ramp, with 10% of the units for affordable housing.

"It's a natural tie-in, between the Simon properties and the Mohawk Ramp," he said.

He noted the streetscape and infrastructure improvements planned for Ellicott Street, and the Race for Place initiative championed by Buffalo Mayor Byron W. Brown.

"If you just did the Mohawk by itself, you just did another building. One place doesn't make a place. It has to be a community."

Jemal said the Simon component was already in the works before the city even put the Mohawk Ramp into play late last year. He said it fits into his overall strategy to create a critical mass of new apartments and other activities in downtown Buffalo, luring more people into the city.

"It was always my objective to make it a living downtown," he said. "If that's not a race for place, I don't know what is."

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Farmers markets are an opportunity to enjoy fresh air through a mask and stock up on fresh produce and local goods. Even as restrictions loosen and more events are held, these markets  already underway in some communities  haven't lost their luster as worthy ventures.

Much is new this year: Eden joins the list of community farmers markets, while a Meatless Mondays Farmers Market has risen in Tonawanda and West Shore Market gets off the ground in Clarence. Logistical changes, like Elmwood-Bidwell's decision to move across Elmwood Avenue, to the Caffe Aroma side of Bidwell Park, and a new collaborative effort in West Seneca between the town and the chamber of commerce, also greet the new market season.

Other markets, such as the Hamburg Farmers Market  which moved from the heart of the village to the Moose Lodge last year  are encouraged by a surge of momentum from last summer.

"Our attendance tripled  which also could be in part due to people just needing to get out, but we gained a lot of new followers and new customers that discovered us for the first time," said Jamie Decker, market manager in Hamburg.
Cordier said the Epistemix software builds simulations that anticipate scenarios based on virus history, social distancing rules, vaccination rates, hesitancy, supplies and duration of immunity. It looked at how the disease is spreading not only in Erie County, but in surrounding areas.

"It would be safe to have the event, and there would not be an excess of infections because of the level of immunity that exists in Erie County, the forecast that exists at the time of the fair," Cordier said.

He said that contrasts with similar events that are held indoors.

Jessica Underberg, CEO and Erie County Fair manager, said two weeks ago that she wants to have the fair this year and that the fairgrounds would comply with all social distancing and other requirements.

"At some point, it comes down to personal responsibility," she said. "It's important to know that 70% of our guests come with the family that lives in their household."

She said representatives of the fair and Epistemix plan to meet Tuesday with state Health Department representatives, and have asked to meet with Erie County Health Department officials.
Nachman said the study will help researchers learn how often asymptomatic infection occurs, both in adults who have vaccinated and those who have not. It will also help researchers understand how long those people are infectious, whether they are spreading the virus to others, and shed light on the differences between asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic infection. Are they actually asymptomatic, or did they say that they had a headache or, Oh, I felt a little unwell, or something like that? Nachman said. That will also help us further define asymptomatic infection.

How do we keep our guard up?

Differentiate thought from action, and frustration from precaution.

Leah Ranke, a health law attorney who is of counsel at Colligan Law, has noted a pair of common fallacies of reasoning that help explain why many people are less guarded against Covid-19 than basic science suggests they should be:

 Whatever Ive been doing has been working so far. While applying past practice may work in many settings, it doesnt necessarily fit in a battle against a virus that sets its own rules. Just because you have taken chances in the past, doesnt mean it is smart to continue to take chances, Ranke said.

 Im getting tired of these precautions and I want to get back to some sense of normalcy. People get angry at Covid. They get exhausted by it. All understandable feelings, but they carry the practical applicability of yelling at your grass to grow. Your lawn gets green from sunlight and water; Covid, which isnt capable of reasoning with you, goes away when there is nobody to infect. We cant personify Covid, Ranke said. It doesnt give you credit for your feelings. It doesnt punish you if it thinks youre scared of it and it doesnt avoid you if it thinks you deserve to get back to normalcy or if you talk tough to it.

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A 23-year-old woman in Italy was given six doses of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine due to a mistake by the health worker administering the vaccine. The woman, an intern in psychology department of Noa hospital in Tuscany where she was administered the shot, was kept under observation for 24 hours and discharged on Monday.

The woman is in "good health" with no underlying conditions and will be monitored by doctors, CNN quoted hospital spokesperson Daniella Gianelli as saying.

A health worker filled the syringe with entire bottle of vaccine which had six doses and realised her mistake only after administering the shot. "She saw five empty syringes and realised her mistake," the publication quoted Gianelli as saying.

Also read: Can inoculate Mumbai in 3 weeks if state can import COVID-19 vaccines, says Aditya Thackeray

The hospital has started an internal investigation on the issue, Gianelli said, adding that it "maybe just human error, definitively not on purpose".

A order by the Italian government in April to make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory for health and pharmacy workers made the woman eligible for vaccination before other people of her age group.

Italy has reported 41 lakh COVID-19 cases till Monday since the outbreak of the pandemic, while over 1,23,000 people have lost their lives because of the infection.

Also read: WHO classifies B.1.1.617 variant as a 'variant of global concern'
Phil Oliva, an Astorino spokesman, said Tuesday that the new candidate has no organizational support at this point, but is not averse to running in a primary.

"Rob is committed and will look forward to a primary, which we don't think would be a bad thing," he said. "We respect the party, but are not worried about the party apparatus. There's a long way to go."

Erie County Republican Chairman Karl J. Simmeth Jr., who has emerged as an early Zeldin backer, said Astorino's announcement has not changed his mind.

"Rob is a great guy, but we've tried him in the past and he failed," Simmeth said. "I've made an informed decision that says Lee Zeldin is the strongest candidate by far."

Meanwhile, state Chairman Nicholas A. Langworthy, who has remained officially neutral, welcomed the new candidate.

"Rob Astorino was an excellent county executive who cut taxes and reformed Westchester's out-of-control spending, something we desperately need at the state level." Langworthy said. "We welcome him to the race and look forward to a vigorous process that will yield the strongest Republican ticket since 1994."
ALBANY  The state university system has no plans to mandate Covid-19 vaccines for faculty and staffers this fall, even as it proceeds on a requirement that every returning student get a vaccine if they want to be on campus this fall semester.

While Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo over the months routinely dismissed the notion of mandating the vaccine for anyone, he said Monday that the State University of New York will launch the vaccine requirement for all students wishing to go back to campuses this fall.

State looks to require SUNY students to get vaccinated against Covid-19 All state university students will be required to be vaccinated in order to return to the 64-campus system this fall, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced Monday.

On Monday, Cuomos office would not answer a question whether the edict will apply to tens of thousand of SUNY employees. But on Tuesday, a SUNY spokeswoman replied to The Buffalo News and said there are no plans to force SUNY employees to get vaccinated.

The directive is focused on students. SUNY is developing a plan per the directive announced yesterday," said Holly Liapis, the SUNY spokeswoman. She did not answer a question about possible exemptions to the requirement, such as for medical reasons, nor did she elaborate when asked why only students were being included for the 64-campus system mandate.

One SUNY student said if officials really want to reduce exposure on campuses by forcing students to get vaccinated, then all segments of the higher education community should be required to get a jab.

+3 Should Covid-19 vaccines be required on Buffalo-area campuses? Not yet, colleges say Many students already have had at least one shot, despite having access to it only for the past few weeks, according to local higher education administrators.
More than $200 million is pouring into Western New York colleges and universities under the American Rescue Plan approved by Congress and signed into law by President Biden earlier this year.

The areas largest institution, the University at Buffalo, will get $63.8 million, followed by SUNY Buffalo State at $30.4 million and Erie Community College at $25.5 million, according to Rep. Brian Higgins, D-Buffalo, who announced the figures in a press release Tuesday afternoon.

At least half the monies awarded to the colleges and universities will go to students as financial aid.

Continuing access to education throughout the pandemic hasnt been easy but it is so important, said Higgins. This funding will help keep students safe, learning and on a path to graduation.

Other area colleges and universities will receive the following amounts under the American Rescue Plan, which set aside nearly $40 billion for higher education institutions nationwide:
It would be an understatement to say that this school year has been challenging for many parents and children in Western New York and throughout the country. There are countless stories in the news of students falling behind due to inadequate learning resources or limited support systems at home.

Other stories have highlighted issues such as the lack of socialization opportunities or concerns about food insecurity. These are real stressors that families in our community face.

Though this unconventional school year has caused disruption for families, there is good news for the summer. On Feb. 17, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomos office announced that day and overnight camps in New York can begin to plan for reopening. Seeing how the pandemic has negatively affected our communitys youth, the YMCA is excited to provide critical camp programs designed to support the social-emotional growth, cognitive development and physical well-being of kids this summer.

Research shows that without access to out-of-school physical and learning activities, kids fall behind academically and increase their likelihood of gaining weight over the summer. That is why summer camp programs are so critically important.
Recently the president was criticized for his actions after a rocket attack overseas. He was criticized for not acting quickly and when he reacted with air strikes, he was criticized again. This is what is called a no-win situation.

The scenario is sad. Many of these so-called patriots are what they accuse our president of: lifelong politicians. Yet they are quick to lodge accusations regarding the presidents military outcomes.

Again, many of these politicians in their 60s and 70s are so quick to chime in on military decisions from the White House. Remember, many generals give input on these decisions.

Now for the sad part. These naysayers are the same politicians who, for the most part, were no-shows back in the 1960s and 1970s when they had a chance to serve. Whether it was bone spurs or other fake physical ailments, these phonies hid and refused to serve.

As a teenager in Vietnam I proudly served my country as did millions of others. I walked the walk. I was there and I witnessed death and destruction. These phonies who criticize have no clue and no room to criticize on military decisions. They had their chance to be accountable and they disappeared.

So in the future when these military decisions are made, do all those who served a favor and go hide again.
Highlights Airtel and Jio are at odds over the 5G standard 5Gi network citing the costs of the network.

While Airtel has noted that the 5Gi network will increase costs, Jio has noted that it will support anything indigenous.

DoT has encouraged the telecom service providers (TSP)s to use the 5Gi technology, in the ongoing 5G trials.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has directed the Cellular Operations Authority of India (COAI) to assess the homegrown 5G standard or 5Gi and to lay out its pros and cons. The COAI has also been directed to assess the acceptability of the Indian standard by telcos as well as original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), according to an online report.

The 5Gi network is developed by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and telecom giants Airtel and Jio are at odds over it. Airtel has opposed the 5Gi network arguing that the homegrown 5G standard will increase the costs of network and mobile devices, and will seriously impact the interoperability between networks based on two different network technologies, Business Standard reported. Airtel is pushing for the global standard of 3GPP to be implemented for the 5G network. Jio noted that it will not compromise on quality and increase costs and noted that it supports any indigenous technology. Jio will also be conducting 5G trials using its own indigenous technology.

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) earlier this month gave a go-ahead to telecom companies to undertake 5G trials in India. DoT has encouraged the telecom service providers (TSP)s to use the 5Gi technology, in the ongoing 5G trials. The 5Gi technology has been approved by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) in the past. The DoT noted that the 5Gi technology is known to facilitate a much larger reach of the 5G towers and radio networks. The 5Gi is said to be capable of providing broadband connectivity in rural areas using ultra-long-range cell sites.

The duration of the trials, at present, is for a period of 6 months, which includes a time period of 2 months for procurement and setting up of the equipment. The department noted that each eligible TSP will also have to conduct trials in rural and semi-urban settings in addition to urban settings so that the benefit of 5G Technology is not confined to urban areas. DoT asserted that the trials will be isolated and not connected with the existing networks of TSPs. It has also emphasised that the 5G trials will be on a non-commercial basis.




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New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2021) - Enerkon Solar International Inc. (OTC Pink: ENKS) announces today its first Contingent Order for the SARS2 COVID19 15 second "Insta Test" as produced by Graphene Leaders Canada with Co sales via KrowdX and Coviklear Holdings (an ENKS wholly owned division).





Enerkon Solar International Inc.



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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Mr. Benjamin Ballout, ENKS CEO stated: "KrowdX, with support from Coviklear, has received an order contingent upon FDA EUA - for the device, for a minimum of 500 Units per Month for an annual period,"

"In USD terms, the contingent order value is $28,000,000 per month based on the $55.00 biosensor and plunger sets, and taking into account that only enough base units will be purchased to cover the estimated 2000 tests per base unit calculation per month, rather than 500K base units for clarity,"

"This is a great start for the new company acquisition of Coviklear Holdings Intl (UK) and its CO Sales Partner KrowdX in Canada, the main distributor with Graphene leaders and equated to about $320 Million annually - This order was placed by an NGO operating in the Dominican Republic with a Major Medical Foundation."





Graphene Leaders Canada



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"Coviklear is due 20% of all order revenue presented through its sales network - therefore the gross revenue would be $62 Million USD annually, subject to the EUA approval at the FDA, which the company expects to be approved very soon."

"Additional orders are due to be received this week from several countries - one of whom may waive the EUA authorization altogether and allow sales in their country as is - since the device is noninvasive."

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Lastly, in other news:

"The company is hiring survey and other outsource for the New Land purchase in the closing process at Pennsylvania - supporting the companies 122 acre solar array and Hydrogen Production Plans for Carbon County PA, bringing in many jobs and economic benefits to the State, while being safe for the community - due to the protective precautions which shall be implemented once the project is fully operational."







ENKS - 122 acres of commercial land to establish the planned 20 MW Solar and Hydrogen Plant facility



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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H2



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ENKS - USA Based Utility Scale Solar Power and Hydrogen Production Project



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The foregoing statements are forward-looking statements, and as such, they may or may not reflect the results which could transpire in the future which should be negative or not transpire at all due to circumstances or other reasons and investors, shareholders, or others should not rely on these forward-looking statements to ascertain any value if any of ENKS or to make any investment decisions and to take note that this is not an offer to buy or sell securities or an endorsement of ENKS for investment purposes as all investment carry a risk of loss sometimes a total loss of your investment in Micro cap shares markets or any market and therefore such statements or plans should not be relied upon for any business decisions of any kind - Approval and permissions required by federal regulations may or may not be approved and if not approved may result in the loss of all value and all investments in products requiring such regulatory permissions to market and sell. These statements are made as forward-looking statements for educational purposes only in accordance with the rules and regulations which pertain to the same.

Enerkon Solar International Inc.

www.enerkoninternational.com

info@enerkoninternational.com

New HQ Address in New York at:

Enerkon Solar International Inc

477 Madison Avenue

New York, NY 10022 USA

Tel. +1 (877) 573-7797

Tel. +1 (718) 709-7889

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83637
The Church of Scotland has called on the UK Government to scrap any policy that exploits peoples fears of the outsider.

Very Rev Susan Brown, convener of the Faith Impact Forum, spoke out ahead of the announcement of a new Sovereign Borders Bill in the Queens Speech.

The proposals, set out in a consultation paper called the New Plan for Immigration, is expected to overhaul the asylum system in an attempt to deter migrants from crossing the Channel.

Home Secretary Priti Patel previously vowed to tackle illegal migration head-on and insisted the plan will be fair but firm.

But ahead of the speech, Dr Brown said: Our congregations and communities across Scotland are enriched by the contribution and presence of people from all over the world, including asylum seekers and refugees.

As a Church, we proclaim a message that all are welcome and that it is important that those who are in a position to offer assistance and sanctuary to fellow human beings in need should do so.

We also know that the encounter and friendship that can develop between people of different cultures, languages and backgrounds brings benefit to receiving communities as well as to New Scots.

It is why we are urging the Government to think again and listen to asylum seekers and refugees, organisations that support them and people in receiving communities working to provide welcome and friendship.

The Kirk also gave its backing to a new campaign called Together With Refugees, which was launched by the Asylum Reform Initiative on Monday.

Coalition partners including Asylum Matters, British Red Cross, Freedom from Torture, Refugee Action, the Scottish Refugee Council and more are calling for a reformed asylum system which is effective, fair and humane.

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Dr Brown added: It is a sad fact that in our broken world forced migration is a reality.

UK Government ministers might wish for people to stop trying to cross the English Channel but when there is still conflict and injustice in the world then there will always be those wanting to seek sanctuary from war and suffering.

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We cannot close the door and instead we need to call out this policy for what it is  xenophobic populism which exploits peoples fears of the outsider.

What we need is political leadership which acknowledges and allays peoples concerns and promotes the importance of human life and dignity.

This means giving asylum seekers the right to work, ending the use of barracks and hotels for accommodation.

Establishing safe passage routes or humanitarian corridors to the UK for those that need sanctuary, putting a time limit of 28 days for how long someone can be held in immigration detention and increasing support for individuals to alleviate destitution and poverty.

Minister for Immigration Compliance and Justice Chris Philp (House of Commons/PA)

Minister for Immigration Compliance and Justice Chris Philp said: With each day that passes, more vulnerable people are falling prey to organised crime gangs and risk dying in the back of lorries and at sea.

Journeys across the Channel are not only dangerous and illegal, but also unnecessary, as France is a safe country.

We have a responsibility to put the New Plan for Immigration into action so that we can fix the broken asylum system, helping people based on need, not the ability to pay people smugglers.

Just this month, thanks to our world-leading safe and legal routes, we have been resettling refugees from countries including Iraq, Turkey, Egypt and Lebanon so that the most vulnerable people in the world can rebuild their lives in the UK.

Our New Plan for Immigration will allow us to continue this essential work.
Snowman, the small studio behind award-winning iOS games Alto's Adventure, Alto's Odyssey, Skate City and others, is spinning out a new company, Pok Pok, that will focus on educational children's entertainment. Later this month, Pok Pok will debut its first title, Pok Pok Playroom, aimed at inspiring creative thinking through play for the preschool crowd.

The launch takes Snowman back to its roots as an app maker, not a games studio.

In fact, the company's first iOS app, Checkmark, had been in the productivity space, offering location-based reminders to iPhone users. But Snowman later shifted to making games, tapping into the demand for mobile games with early launches like Circles and Super Squares. But it wasn't until Alto's Adventure came out that Snowman really kicked off its foray into gaming.

"We've never really considered Snowman to be a video game studio," explains Snowman co-founder and creative director Ryan Cash. "A lot of people would assume that because it's really all that we're known for at the moment. It's kind of our core business. But we like to think of ourselves more as like a team of tinkerers who like working on creative stuff. And for now, it happens to be video games, but you never know kind of what might be around the corner," he says.

Image Credits: Snowman

Pok Pok actually emerged from Snowman's culture of tinkering.

Snowman employees Mathijs Demaeght and Esther Huybreghts, now Pok Pok design director and creative director, respectively, went looking for an app to entertain their young son James when he was a toddler. They soon found that there weren't many options that fit what they had been hoping to find.

They had wanted something that wouldn't rile him up, something that wasn't too technical and something that wasn't gamified, Esther explains.

When they later had their second son, Jack, they decided to just build the app they wanted for themselves. After showing a rough prototype to Ryan, he saw the potential and told them to run with it.

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Ryan's sister, Melissa Cash, whose background was in developing products at Disney for babies and toddlers, had been helping with the Alto's Odyssey launch at the time. When she saw what Esther and Mathijs were working on, she was impressed.

Image Credits: Snowman

"I've worked in the kid space for five years, and I've never seen anything that's even remotely like this. And then, I just knew this is what I wanted to work on for the next 20 years," she says. Melissa became involved with the project and is now CEO of the Pok Pok spinout.

Although legally a distinctive entity, Pok Pok remains closely tied to Snowman.

"We've been incubating the company within Snowman. We moved desks to a corner and we all work together as mentor, colleagues, and collaborate as a group," Melissa notes. Ryan is still involved, as well. "Ryan is everything -- our advisor, our helper -- we haven't even come up with a title for him," she adds.

Today, the Pok Pok team is six full-time employees, but works with contractors and educators on its projects. Snowman, meanwhile, is over 20 people, mostly in Toronto. However, some Snowman employees spend 30% to 50% of their time on Pok Pok, Ryan says.

For the time being, Pok Pok is self-funded thanks to Snowman's success on other fronts, which not only includes the Alto's series, but also Apple Arcade's Where Cards Fall and Skate City, both of which are now expanding to PC and console. The company is also working on DISTANT, a collaboration with Slingshot and Satchel.

Pok Pok Playroom, which is aimed at kids ages two to six, will be the first title to go live from Pok Pok, arriving on May 20. The app itself will initially contain six "digital toys," so to speak, which encourage kids to creatively play. These toys also grow with the child as they age up.

For example, a stacking blocks toy could appeal to toddlers who just want to move the shapes around, but an older child might build a town with them. A drawing toy can encourage scribbles at younger ages or become a real canvas for art when the child is older. There's also a calming toy called "musical blobs" that's sort of like a lava lamp with differently shaped blobs that bounce around and respond to touches.

All the toys are designed to be open-ended -- there's no right or wrong way to use them. And Pok Pok Playroom is not a game. There are no levels to beat or objectives to achieve. There's nothing to buy.

What is different about Pok Pok Playroom, compared with games and "digital toys" from rivals like Toca Boca, for example, is that it's designed to be more educational and realistic.

"We take a more educational approach, and we still plan to do that for future apps and for whatever Pok Pok Playroom will grow into after launch," says Esther. "For example, we have no unicorns or no wizards in Pok Pok Playroom. Everything is grounded in reality. I think we want to explore with children what the world looks like and how it works. We have tons of ideas for taking a more education-based approach for all the children, as well, that isn't necessarily the ABCs, 1,2,3's pedagogical, so to speak."

Image Credits: Snowman

Pok Pok also won't use talking animals or fantasy characters in order to avoid the subject of diversity. Instead, its apps will features all races, all genders, all family constructs, all different sorts of abilities and disabilities, as they're built.

"I think it's very important to us to have kids be able to recognize themselves, and family members and friends in the app," says Esther. "It's really important to our entire team that everyone feels respected in who they are and what their family looks like, and... I think that's still really lacking in the kid space right now. We want to be the front-runner there," she notes.

The new app, which has been in development for nearly three years, will be priced on a subscription basis, with more "digital toys" added over time.

Though Pok Pok will aim more at the preschool crowd, the company envisions a future where it designs creative projects for the next age group up and for other types of learning.

Pok Pok Playroom has been beta tested with around 250 families ahead of its launch.

It will be available on iPhone and iPad starting on May 20 at 9 a.m. ET, with a 14-day free trial. It will then be priced at $3.99 per month or $29.99 per year, and will not feature in-app purchases.
Looking for more beauty tips, trends and editor-approved tricks and recommendations? Sign up for Yahoo Lifestyle Canadas newsletter!

Tarte's top-rated Shape Tape Concealer is finally available in Canada. Image courtesy of Sephora.

Yahoo Lifestyle Canada is committed to finding you the best products at the best prices. We may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page. Pricing and availability are subject to change.

Beauty lovers, the wait is over! Tartes iconic Shape Tape Concealer is finally available to shop in Canada, and youre not going to want to miss out on the launch.

Retailing for $38 at Sephora, Canadians will now be able to get their hands on the number one concealer brand in the United States  in fact, Shape Tape is so popular that one tube is sold every 12 seconds.

Shape Tape offers 35 shades of vegan, full coverage, flawless matte concealer, and its also formulated with Tartes exclusive tape technology, which is made up of smoothing ingredients to give skin a firmer, lifted, more youthful look. Its waterproof formula also features plant butters to smooth and hydrate, plus licorice root extract to brighten dull skin and dark circles.

Shape Tape Concealer. Image via Sephora.

SHOP IT: Sephora, $38

Why shoppers love it

Thanks to its full coverage finish and lightweight feel, its no wonder that Shape Tape has become a staple of beauty bloggers and influencers alike. Backed by more than 21,000 customer reviews on the Tarte website, the brands Shape Tape Concealer has racked up an incredible 4.8 star rating.

ALSO SEE: 10 of the best sweat-busting deodorants, starting at just $6

Ive been using this concealer ever since it came out and I cannot seem to use anything else. It doesnt crease and no need to set it with powder, which is amazing since I dont like powder products on my skin, shared one five-star reviewer.

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I first tried Shape Tape to see what the hype was, but quickly fell in love and now it is a staple in my makeup routine. Shape Tape is so lightweight and my go-to concealer. Sometimes, I just put it on my t-zone and under my eyes and call it a day. It can cover up any little blemishes or 'maskne.' I also love using a little dab of it as an eyeshadow primer. And the most amazing thing is that it lasts all day and feels as if it's not even there, shared another.

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Videos of Shape Tape covering up tattoos have even gone viral on TikTok, in case you needed more proof of its flawless concealing finish.

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Shape Tape IRL

Ahead of its Canadian launch, I had a chance to put the cult classic concealer to the test, and its safe to say that it lives up to its hype.

I struggle with dark under-eye circles due to genetics, and found that just a few dabs of Shape Tape were enough to fake a full eight hours of beauty sleep. Like the reviews said, it feels incredibly light on the skin, but I wasnt one of the lucky few who didnt experience any creasing.

Before and after applying Tarte Shape Tape in shade 29N. Images courtesy of Kate Mendonca.

Simply due to the shape of my features and the more matte finish of the concealer, I did find that it creased under my eyes, but a primer did help slightly with the end result. It also lasted throughout the day, even after getting trapped in the rain while walking my dog.

ALSO SEE: 'Three beauties': Fans are losing it over Christie Brinkley's new mother-daughter denim campaign

Since I'm still working from home and opting for lighter makeup in my daily routine, I probably won't be reaching for Shape Tape every day. That said, it's definitely worth investing in if you're someone who is still rocking a full face of makeup  something I'm looking forward to doing for my next special event.

In addition to the top-rated Shape Tape Concealer, Canadians will also be able to shop a whole family of long-wear products packed with good-for-you ingredients. Shop them below!

Shape Tape Glow Wand. Image via Sephora.

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Grants

USDA Grants to Support Distance Learning and Telemedicine

The United States Department of Agriculture is awarding grants ranging from $50,000 to $1 million to institutions supporting distance learning and telemedicine in rural communities. The deadline for this competitive grant program is June 4.

The USDA Distance Learning & Telemedicine Grant Program (DLT) is designed to serve communities of 20,000 residents or fewer. In addition, the agency is encouraging applicants "to consider projects that will promote equity and economic opportunity in rural America, specifically those that advance the following key priorities:

Containing the COVID-19 pandemic;

Ensuring racial equity;

Rebuilding our rural economy; and

Addressing the climate crisis."

Funds are to be used for broadband, networking hardware, computers/devices, AV equipment, software, instructional programming and support related to installing and procuring the tools to support distance learning and telemedicine. A 15 percent match is required.

Eligible organizations include most state and local governmental entities, federally recognized Tribes, nonprofits, for-profit businesses and consortia of eligible entities. A PDF fact sheet can be found here. Further details can be found at rd.usda.gov.
With federal authorization for Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine extended to adolescents ages 12 to 15 Monday and an advisory committee expected to take up a recommendation for the age group Wednesday, about 300,000 more youth in Wisconsin may be able to get immunized as early as this week.

The age group, which includes an estimated 25,000 to 30,000 people in Dane County, is mostly expected to get the injection at the same places adults do: community clinics such as the Alliant Energy Center, pharmacies and doctors offices. Some schools may offer shots or bus students to community sites, Julie Willems Van Dijk, deputy director for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, said last week.
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This split and timing does not necessarily reflect the urgency or the level of need that many businesses, families, workers, and community organizations have right now, Baldwin and Evers wrote. Over the past year, we have been clear that our response to the pandemic must be robust and it must be flexible to meet the specific needs that our state faces.

The governor has sole discretion over the use of federal funds, and Evers has vetoed multiple attempts by state Republicans, who control the Legislature, to use those dollars, including a package of 11 bills that would have used those funds to pay down state debt, provide $200 million in assistance for small businesses and provide $500 million for broadband expansion, among other things.

Rep. Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, co-chair of the states budget committee, on Tuesday again called for a meeting with Evers on the use of federal funds.

Regardless of the exact amount, theres a lot of federal money coming into the state, and we would love to have a discussion with the governor on how that is going to be spent, Born said.
Other acceptable uses of the funds include providing premium pay to eligible workers performing essential work during the pandemic. It also can be used to pay for government services that were cut due to the pandemics effect on revenues and on water, sewer or broadband infrastructure.

Late last month, Evers said his priority was to release the funding as soon as possible after receiving guidance from Treasury.

Republicans have complained about a lack of specifics on how Evers wants to use the funding. They recently asked to meet with Evers to discuss his plans for the funding, saying that the use of those dollars could factor into the budget process.

As we have said, we need to know where the federal funds are going so that we can direct state funds where we need them, Republican leaders wrote.

Sole discretion
It is a new year and we have new Foxfire teams across Africa, ready to joyfully and wholeheartedly serve God.

In Malawi the Foxfires were patiently waiting for the schools to open up on the 22nd of February so they can start reaching out to schools and youth groups. The Foxfires in South Africa have started a social media initiative called Lets talk where they share a one minute video each week, speaking Gods truth and encouraging youth through the platform they prefer.

When COVID-19 forced everyone into lockdown, our 4 Foxfire teams were reaching out to friends, family and neighbours during lockdown. Supporting and encouraging others through the difficult time. Not only does Foxfires have a lasting impact on the youth that they reach out to, but being a Foxfire impacts the life of each young adult enrolled in the program.

Precious Owoko recently shared the impact being a Foxfire had on her life. She was a part of the Kenya Foxfires Youth Empowerment Program back in 2018.

I am Precious Owoko a student currently at Laikipia University in Nyahururu, Kenya, pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and Media. Today I take a short reflection of my tenure during the Foxfires Youth Empowerment Program in 2018 and the impact it has had in my life. I am glad that I gave part of my life to serve my fellow youth. I was effectively prepared to become a better person today. I am never the same!!

Foxfires program prepares one for the youth related ministry within the year and life after the program. Its an important bridge that greatly equipped me for life in campus. The program fortified me with relevant skills that have enabled me to be focused in life and aim at the goals that I set while serving with AE. My leadership skills were enhanced, fine-tuned and refocused. I was able to discover amazing leadership abilities that I had not thought of. Today I serve the students as the class representative for the communication and media group. I am representing more than 300 students on the relevant meetings. I know that the confidence I portray was cemented in me during the foxfires program.

Foxfires made me esteem the ministry of young people. Once I enrolled in campus, I joined the Christian Union Movement (C.U). I wanted to serve and reach many with the Gospel. The skills of evangelism and discipleship have helped me to be involved in person to person witnessing and other missions aimed at reaching the student leaders. I have also helped in the rebranding of the arts department as a tool of reaching out the youth with skits, drama and dancing. This has greatly helped the Christian union to attract more students thus coming to experience Christ. Today, I am greatly honoured that I am serving the Christian Union as the secretary, a position that I only serve by Gods grace. There were many students who could have been elected to this position but I was favoured by God. My exposure during FYEP, to different youth ministry across Kenya has greatly improved my performance. Communication skills was a critical course in Foxfires that has helped me become better in handling the CU related communication. Recently, I was chosen by different Christian Unions within the Kenyan Central region as the secretary general of consortium of 11 Christian Unions. I can only attribute such as this achievement to AE FYEP.

The daily devotions that involved the reading of the word of God and prayers created in me a discipline of prayer and bible study. Some ask how I manage to keep track of my devotional life, I only share with them my experience in the FYEP.

I have been able to help others who have been in difficult life related issues. The knowledge gained in Foxfires has been a source of wealth that I have constantly used to walk with others. I am happy that I can continue with the ministry of Foxfires even in campus. I am still setting the youth ablaze for Christ!

Today I know how to deal with peer pressure, handle relationships, financial management and saving skills, conflict management, balance between academic and my other roles and other courses handled while in FYEP.

I am proud to have been a Foxfire and to be continuing with the theme of Once a Foxfire, Always a Foxfire. I know supporting FYEP program is making a difference in many. Its transforming the young people during the tenure and after the program. Its never in vain.

God bless the Foxfires Youth Empowerment Program.

Thank you for supporting our Foxfire teams in Africa and for impacting the lives of many young adults.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  DMCI Holdings saw its earnings surge in the first quarter of 2021, it reported to the local bourse on Tuesday.

The diversified engineering conglomerate disclosed to the Philippine Stock Exchange a net income of 4.3 billion from January to March, way up from the 616 million it reported the same period last year.

"We had a better-than-expected Q1 because of higher construction accomplishments and better coal sales," Isidro Consunji, chairman and president of DMCI Holdings, stated in the disclosure.

"With the exception of Maynilad, all of our businesses also did very well," he added.

Real estate arm DMCI Homes posted a 1.6 billion net income during the period, reversing the 197 million net loss it tallied the year prior, primarily attributing it to higher construction accomplishments and recognition of downpayment from new accounts.

Energy business Semirara Mining and Power also performed strongly in the first quarter of 2021. It contributed 1.3 billion to the conglomerate's total earnings for the period, way up from the 623 million it remitted in 2020.

DMCI Mining, meanwhile, had a net income contribution of 415 million during the quarter from the 26 million it provided last year. This comes as the mining firm saw a "combined effect of higher production, shipment, nickel grade and average selling price."

Higher construction accomplishments and minimal COVID-19-related expenses drove construction arm D.M. Consunji's income to 342 million during the period from its 170 million figure from January to March 2020.

DMCI Power also supplied 118 million in its parent company's total earnings, up from the 97 million it contributed in the same quarter in 2020 owing to higher electricity sales and lower fuel costs due to its 15-megawatt Masbate thermal plant operations.

Maynilad, however, remitted lower contributions at 287 million from the 379 million a year ago as the water concessionaire dealt with weaken billed volume due to quarantine restrictions and its average effective tariff.

"Our performance in the next quarters will largely depend on how the prices of coal, nickel and electricity will hold up," said Consunji. "We also expect some operational headwinds for SMPC given the abnormal water seepages at Molave North Block 7 and the forced plant outages."

DMCI Holdings shares closed at 5.42 apiece on Tuesday, up 0.37% from yesterday's close.

Fellow listed conglomerate LT Group also saw earnings go up during the first quarter of 2021.

In a separate disclosure, the Tan-led company reported 6.49 billion in attributable net income. This is equal to a 4.5% increase from its earnings during the same period in 2020.

The Philippine National Bank earned 1.83 billion in the first three months of the year under the pooling method, higher than the 455 million it raked in last year. LT Group cited its lower provisions for credit losses for the period.

Tanduay Distillers also saw net income rise to 235 million from the 199 million from January to March 2020 with the 5% jump in liquor sale volume and higher "rectified" alcohol sales. Asia Brewery likewise logged higher earnings at 211 million, from last year's 74 million.

This is "largely due to the absence of losses from the AB Heineken joint venture as the partnership transitions starting 2021 to the engagement of ABI to brew and distribute Heineken and Tiger beers in the Philippines," said the conglomerate.

LT Group's tobacco business logged a net income of 5.03 billion in the first quarter of 2021, higher from the 5.01 billion it posted a year ago.

Eton Properties Philippines, meanwhile, saw earnings fall to 150 million during the period from last year's 169 million. LT Group attributed this to the drop in residential unit sales and lower leasing income.

Stocks of LT Group also closed higher on Tuesday at 13 apiece, 0.78% higher than Monday's close.
It is the local zine communitys best-kept secret that some of the countrys most personal writing  the raw, imperfect, exhilarating kind  are self-published by young artists and writers content in a modest readership and whose works, exploring taboo topics and hard emotions, often can be subversive. Zine fairs, which have popped up in different cities in the past decade or so, facilitate these seemingly illicit reader-artist or artist-artist exchanges, thereby nourishing an ecosystem bursting with printed volumes of art, poetry, writing constructed in different colors, sizes, and formats, with a line-up of voices as equally eclectic; the floodgates of culture wide open.

One reason may be that anyone can make a zine. The methodology and tools involved in zine-making seem antithetical to preciousness  often evoking crude, pure, and undiluted stylistic choices that remind us of scruffy, homemade little pamphlets, as characterized by Stephen Duncombe in Notes from Underground: Zines and the Politics of Alternative Culture. They are loosely considered cultural treasures cheaply made out of the most rudimentary materials or in millennial-speak, the bare minimum:

scrap papers

old newspapers

magazines

scissors

coloring pens

pencils

adhesives

The first recorded fanzine in the Philippines was created by Tommy Tanchangco called Herald X. Published in 1987, it featured the major bands of the first Philippine punk wave such as Urban Bandits, Betrayed, Wuds, Dead Ends, G.I. & The Idiots, Third World Chaos. They leaned on the D.I.Y. ethic, a stance that rejected most commercial media. In the post-Marcos administration, it was Filipino punk rock that magnetized people and fanzines the instinctual consequence of that devotion. The zine community became a venerable institution in the 2000s, bearing a comparable and undeniable anti-establishment ethos, christening themselves as zinesters.

A personal affair

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, a style of writing emerged, popularized by poets such as Robert Lowell, Sylvia Plath, and Anne Sexton called confessional poetry or the poetry of the personal or "I." Considered a revolution in poetic style, confessional poets wrote in direct and informal language, using imagery that alluded to intense psychological experiences. A similar shift took place in the zine community when in the '90s, zines expanded scope from mere fanzines to those of a personal nature.

A stuffy blog with an early web aesthetic (see: clip-art and HTML frames), Filipino Zinergy provides an almost rabbit hole-like documentation of the history of fanzines in the Philippines. Without any photographic trace online, we are told that in March 1996, Wendi Castro released W.R.I.N.G, described as the zinesters very own diary  the very first of its kind. Later on touted by scholars as personal zines, or perzines, much like the style of confessional poetry, it gives readers an unfiltered glimpse into the thoughts and feelings of its makers, drawing from the intimate narrative conventions of letters, diaries, and the personal essay. Adam David, the co-founder of Better Living Through Xeroxography, a semiannual small press expo, once heralded zines as manifesto, an expression of your inner truth.

Inspired by her encounter with the zine community, the author self-published her own zine Strange Intimacies: Essays on Dressing Up and Consumption with illustrations by Beyza Durmus. Photos by JL JAVIER

I recall my own experience when a friend and I went to the 8th BLTX in Cubao X  eight years since David started it with Conchitina Cruz in 2010 at Ilyongs, a videoke bar along Kalantiaw, Project Four. It was a few hours after we got there that a canopy was finally set up in the parking lot, monoblock tables lined in neat, tight rows where the sellers began setting up their merchandise. We killed time by grabbing cold Pale Pilsens at an outdoor bar just right across the street.

My friend and I waited for two other people she had also invited to come who, she explained, were writer fellows she met at a workshop in Dumaguete the year before. I didnt know it then but as I settled in their company and the night stretched on, it bore heavy with the revelation that it was rather becoming like an initiation for me. We left the expo, each with our assortment of zines, and drove to her friends house in White Plains where we were joined for dinner by another guy hours later whose arrival was greeted with pats on the back and pleasant teasing for winning a prestigious literary award.

Throughout the night, I listened to them talk about their fellowship experience  an intriguing confab of literary world gossip, grants and awards politics, and post-workshop jadedness. I was most surprised by how deeply they knew each others works. In low and measured voices, they alluded to each others essays, short stories, and poetry to convey the manner and style in which they wrote, characters and elements that recurred in their writing, and possessed an almost consummate understanding of the form that demonstrated the others virtuosity. Perhaps it was a natural consequence of being sequestered for three weeks in a small town in Negros Oriental to critique each others works; the writers retreat being the hermetic facet of a writers life. I longed to inhabit that kind of time-nurtured familiarity, but I told myself I was lucky enough to just have a seat at the table.

Once we finished the bottle of Prosecco we went up to the hosts bedroom to acquaint ourselves with her collection of books. She came up to me and held out a copy of her zine (or chapbook, as it was more sophisticatedly called). This is for you. Id love for you to have it. I had to write it for my college thesis as a requirement. I took the object from her hand; the thick feel of cardstock with her name printed in upper-case serif at the bottom: the words an invitation; despite having already entered her home, partook of the dinner prepared by her mother, and leafed through the placid Jane Austens on her desk. She then prodded, Do you have one yourself? It was the moment I realized that your writing, in a form of a zine or chapbook, is currency between other writers. An exchange.

That same year, I visited Gandang-Ganda sa Sariling Gawa! (GGSSG!), an annual all-women art fair organized by Gantala Press and conceptualized with the Cultural Center of the Philippines Intertextual Division to support my friend Katrina Tankeh, maker of "The Female Dilemma"  a zine that attempts to create a cartography of the dilemmas through a womans existence (woman vs. birth, man, society, politics, war, love, self, and finally, death).

Katrina Tankeh's "The Female Dilemma" is a zine that attempts to create a cartography of the dilemmas through a womans existence (woman vs. birth, man, society, politics, war, love, self, and finally, death). Photos by JL JAVIER

She details the process of creating her first zine on Modern Filipina, The beauty in zine-making is the cut-and-paste aspect of it. She leafed through old magazines and cut portraits of flowers (conveying a Georgia O'Keeffe sensuality) and glued them together with old photographs of the women in her life: her mother, sisters, aunts, and grandmother. The zine, as you get to the final pages, becomes a eulogy to Tankehs mother who died of cancer, Just like the powerful women who have kept the foundation of our kind afloat, my mother was a warrior. The poison blossomed in her cervix then climbed her body like grapevines. Here she exposes her grief and turns it over to the light.

This fortuitous order of events set the conditions for a new artistic consciousness in me. Buoyed by the inspiration from these two encounters, by September last year I had self-published a small batch of my zine, Strange Intimacies: Essays on Dressing Up and Consumption. I wrote for four months, collaborating with a young and brown-eyed female artist from Turkey for the illustrations. We punctuated our email correspondence with Love, and encouraged each other when ideas became muddled or vanished as quickly as they appeared. Ultimately, the visual aspect of it was her own interpretation that at times I felt divorced from my own work, though in the end, the result was the opposite of estrangement. I will always consider her a friend, albeit on the opposite side of this continent. I adorned the black japanese paper I wrapped the copies with with gem stickers I purchased online from a store in Binondo, tying it all neatly in a purple jute strings.

Alchemizing the uncomfortable

Ushered in part by the internet, zinesters have been publishing their work without the aid of gatekeepers, primarily because zines exist outside, or on the fringes of, the mainstream, indifferent to market trends and pressures. You're doing the writing, drawing, layouting, printing, binding, selling. There usually isn't any intervention from a publisher or editor, Elle Shivers, the artist and writer behind the comics zine Cicatrix (which is about hypochondria), shares. Having that full control over your work, usually without the profit incentive, allows for more interesting work to be made.

It can also be really vulnerable. People always tell me that my work is sad, said Jamie Cabatit, creator of the zine Crybaby  7 black-and-white pages of faces contorting in pain, tears as thick as syrup. But I am trying to make it the kind of sad that makes you feel a little better after reading it. In Crybaby, she wrote out thoughts that even she wouldnt share with friends: My mother cried when I was born. Who could blame her? I came out ass first. Then it was my turn to cry.

On writing Crybaby, Jamie Cabatit explains, I just chose whatever hurtful thoughts were bothering me at that particular time and decided to reflect on that and write about that, then draw images around it afterward. Photos by JL JAVIER

Shivers, for their part, wrote from the feeling of guilt, I feel that emotional experience is a prominent fixture in my life, signified by a rust-orange spherical lump that shrinks and expands throughout the pages. We notice it grow to the size of an outstretched palm, filling the page, when they reveal that a cousin is the chief engineer at a defense contractor for the U.S. military. They ruminate about the implications of that profession, an enterprise of war and suffering. I have talked to some people who found the whole thing to be kind of uncomfortable to read when they commiserate with the main character.

In this, Shivers acknowledged that their trans identity led to a predilection for honesty in their work. This isn't to say that all my work is about that aspect of myself explicitly or singularly, but I've found it extremely freeing to make art about the cringier aspects of myself because of this understanding of myself Zine-making can become a mindful act of self-affirmation by exposing those parts of ourselves and sharing it with others.

I always start with a script or outline, and I actually have no idea how it'll look until it's actually done, Elle Shivers describes their process of writing Cicatrix. Photo by JL JAVIER

This is in contrast to what they saw as the scrubbing in mainstream media. Mainstream media has a certain unspoken expectation that queer people especially need to be scrubbed down to their most inoffensive state to be palatable, to be able to assimilate into cisheteronormative society, they reflected. A lot of candor and honesty are lost in that degradation.

I think of the ripples of emotion from publishing my own zine: the post-publishing high, an unavoidable feeling of penitence that Ive dared to write myself as unlikeable or flawed, and the unexpected relief when strangers offered a few kind words online.

Its still completely terrifying. I have those micro-moments of complete dread thinking about all the possible consequences of bearing parts of myself for people to see, but also a sense of relief. Cabatit said it well, The negative feelings that once just lived in my head are now made real. This vulnerability has also been a process of learning to surrender to the creative force, to the cathartic experience of finally letting go of something made real by processing it into a zine, while also realizing that this mostly selfish and personal pursuit of mine might just document parts of history and culture.

These personal confessions, involving the hyper-specific details of our respective lives, offer such stories made indiscernible by what traditional publishing avenues have deemed only sellable and palatable to the wider public. We can finally say: on the contrary. Who knew that there are those who would read about wretchedness, a particular kind of guilt, a 20-somethings relentless critical self-examination  about the many ways we split ourselves open into an incoherent, less reliable whole?

It is the imperfection and complication in our works that beget intimacy, mostly through the zine communitys porous structure: that because of the tactile and unbounded nature of zines, albeit skirting the peripheries of culture, there exists a space reconnecting us to our bodies, and to each other.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The dry season does not only bring hot and humid weather but also a host of health problems.

The common illnesses or conditions to watch out for during the dry season include sunburn, sore eyes, diarrhea, skin diseases, cough and colds, and dog bite infection, infectious disease specialist Dr. Eric Tayag told Newsroom Ngayon on Tuesday.

Tayag said sunburn could lead to heatstroke, a life-threatening heat illness.

"Ang heatstroke ay isang emergency sapagkat ang temperature ng isang taong nagkakaroon ng heatstroke ay 40 degrees [Celsius] pataas at meron nang altered mental state -- pwedeng confusion, pwedeng agitation. Pwedeng magkaroon ng seizures o kaya naman mauwi 'yan sa coma," he explained.

[Translation: Heatstroke is an emergency because people experiencing this will have a body temperature of 40 degrees [Celsius] and above, and an altered mental state -- which can be confusion or agitation. Seizures are possible or worse, they can lead to a coma.]

Those having heatstroke symptoms should immediately seek medical attention, he said. While waiting for medical help, first aid includes removal of excess clothing and cooling the person with whatever is available, such as ice.

Tayag advised people to avoid prolonged sun exposure and intense physical activity in hot weather.

"Kailangan ang lahat ay mayroong 'lilim break' para nang sa ganun ay hindi nabibilad ng mahabang oras," he added.

[Translation: Everyone has to have a "shade break" so they are not exposed to the sun for extended periods.]

As for those who may have sore eyes, they must not scratch their eyes or use eye drops without a doctor's advice, Tayag said.

Meanwhile, he said those who have been bitten by a dog must get a rabies vaccine immediately.

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said if a person does not receive the appropriate medical care after a possible exposure to the rabies virus, it can cause disease in the brain, resulting in death.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 10)  President Rodrigo Duterte claims he is not afraid of facing retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio regarding the West Philippine Sea issue, despite withdrawing from the debate he himself initiated.

"Hindi ako takot sa iyo. Ang problema, hindi ko naalala na hindi ikaw ang presidente," Duterte said during his national address on Monday.

[Translation: I'm not afraid of you. The problem is I forgot that you are not the president.]

Duterte added that if he went through with the debate against Carpio, his words might bind future government actions in resolving issues in the West Philippine Sea.

In his last national address on May 5, Duterte accused Carpio of having a role in the withdrawal of Philippine ships during a standoff with Chinese vessels in Scarborough Shoal, and dared Carpio to a debate on issues regarding the West Philippine Sea.

The challenge was "gladly accepted" by Carpio, with the Philippine Bar Association later offering to host the debate.

But on May 7, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque announced he was tapped to face Carpio instead since Duterte was advised by members of his Cabinet not to push through with the debate.

Over the past few weeks, Duterte repeatedly criticized Carpio and former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario for their hard stance against China regarding the disputed waters.

"Sino ang nagbigay ng possession sa China sa West Philippine Sea? Sila, kung hindi sila umalis, wala sanang problema," the President said.

[Translation: Who gave away the possession to China in the West Philippine Sea? They did, because if they hadnt left, there would have been no problems.]

Current Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr., in a rare appearance at the President's national address, emphasized that Manila "lost possession" of Scarborough Shoal when its navy ships pulled out of the area.

"If your government at that time believes that that is yours, why will you withdraw?" said Locsin.

The Philippines, under the Benigno Aquino III administration, had a standoff with China in April 2012, after Chinese fishermen were spotted in the area. Philippine Navy vessels retreated from the shoal two months later in June because of Typhoon Butchoy and were not able to return.

Manila decided to file an arbitration case against Beijing, winning the landmark ruling in 2016 invalidating China's so-called "nine-dash" maritime claims which covered some parts of the West Philippine Sea and within the country's 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone.

China has not recognized the ruling made by the Permanent Court of Arbitration. Among the Chinese activities in the West Philippine Sea are the building of man-made islands in some reefs and swarming of militia vessels to intimidate Filipino fishermen.

When he assumed presidency in June 2016, Duterte chose not to enforce the ruling and opting instead for a softer diplomatic approach in dealing with China and the West Philippine Sea issue.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday appealed to local officials in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) to help his administration control rebels in the region to avoid an "all-out offensive."

"Nagmamakaawa ako sa inyo tulungan niyo ko (I am begging you to help me). Because otherwise, if I give out an order for an all-out offensive, it will be bloody and it will be sad. Iyon ang ayaw ko (I do not want that)," Duterte said in a speech before BARMM officials in Maguindanao.

"If I give the order, I will no longer withdraw it," he added.

The President said the conflict "cannot go on," adding it will "cost innocent lives."

His remarks came after some members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) - a breakaway group from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) - stormed a town in Maguindanao. The MILF is leading the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), the interim government of the BARMM.

On May 8, government troops clashed with a number of BIFF gunmen who caused a stir at a public market in Datu Paglas, prompting residents to evacuate, officials said.

No deaths and property damage were reported. But Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Cirilito Sobejana said at least four BIFF members were injured.

Sobejana also said the commotion could be a diversionary tactic from the military's focus on other areas in Maguindanao.

Duterte slammed the BIFF for its continued attacks.

"But the monkey wrench of the whole situation now is the BIFF... They continue to burn, ambush, detonate bombs. Talagang (It's really) full-blown terrorism," he said.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The government failed to implement on time the travel restrictions on Filipinos returning from India, according to Health Undersecretary and Treatment Czar Leopoldo Vega.

"Definitely that was kinda late, in terms of the implementation of the travel ban," Vega told CNN Philippines' News Night on Tuesday.

His remarks came after the Philippines confirmed its first two cases of the B.1617 variant first detected in India. However, the two cases had no travel history to the South Asian nation, according to the Department of Health.

The first case from arrived on April 10 from Oman. He tested positive for COVID-19 on April 15 and completed isolation in a hotel in Metro Manila on April 26. He tested negative after another swab test on May 3. He is now in his hometown in Soccsksargen, the DOH reported.

The second patient is a 58-year-old seafarer from the United Arab Emirates who landed in the country on April 19. He was isolated in Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga and was tagged as recovered on May 6. He has since returned home to the Bicol Region, the department added.

The government only imposed travel restrictions on India on April 29. But Vega said it's important to point out that the two patients have already recovered, and health protocols were enforced.

"There was a good policy in terms of the quarantine and the protocols were set in terms of returning Filipinos coming from India or the Middle East," he said.

Vega added that the close contacts of the two Filipinos during their flight to the Philippines had been traced.

However, there are still travelers from India who have yet to be checked for the presence of any variant. Of the five travelers who tested positive for COVID-19 upon arrival in the Philippines, only one is eligible to be sent to the genome center. As for the 12 seafarers onboard the coronavirus-stricken MV Athens Bridge, 11 samples will be reviewed this week.

Vega said authorities should focus on tightening border controls and the strict implementation of the 14-day quarantine. Vaccination should also be ramped up, he added.
(CNN) -- A Delta flight was forced to return to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Sunday night "after coming in contact with birds during takeoff," the airline said.

Delta Flight 2281, which was headed to Washington, DC, returned to the airport at 10:36 p.m., 47 minutes after it took off, according to information from flight data tracking platform FlightAware.

The flight turned around after its crew reported a bird strike had cracked a windshield on the Airbus A320.

In a statement to CNN, Delta Air Lines said maintenance personnel were evaluating the aircraft as the airline worked "to reaccommodate customers on an alternate aircraft to Washington D.C."

Flight 2281 was originally scheduled to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, but due to airport restrictions, was rescheduled to land at Washington Dulles International Airport.

No passengers or crew were injured during the incident, a spokesperson for Delta told CNN.

There are around 15,000 bird strikes reported every year, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. About 5% of them result in damage to the aircraft.

In 2009, pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger III successfully landed US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River in New York after its engines were knocked out by birds shortly after taking off from LaGuardia Airport.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Bird strike forces Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta to turn around"
(CNN)  Bill and Melinda Gates have been in the process of getting divorced for two years, according to The Wall Street Journal.

On Sunday, the Journal reported that one factor in the demise of the Gateses' 25-year marriage was revelations that Bill Gates had spent time with Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex trafficker of minors, according to people familiar with the matter and a former employee of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Melinda Gates had concerns about her husband's relationship with Epstein as far back as 2013, the former employee told the Journal. She met with divorce lawyers in 2019, saying at the time that her marriage was "irretrievably broken," according to the Journal's sources and documents that the newspaper reviewed.

CNN Business contacted representatives for both Melinda and Bill Gates on Monday, seeking comment about the Journal's report, but did not immediately receive responses.

The couple officially announced their split on social media on May 3, saying, "We no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives."

The Journal had asked Bill Gates about his relationship with Epstein in a September 2019 interview. He said, "I met him. I didn't have any business relationship or friendship with him."

On Friday, Bill Gates' spokeswoman told the Journal that he stands by that 2019 statement and declined to comment further. Melinda Gates' spokeswoman did not respond to the newspaper's questions about her reasons for seeking divorce, it said.

Melinda Gates and her legal advisers held several calls in October 2019 after The New York Times reported that Bill Gates had met with Jeffrey Epstein on several occasions, according to documents reviewed by the Journal.

That New York Times article said that "beginning in 2011, Bill Gates met with Jeffrey Epstein on numerous occasions  including at least three times at Epstein's Manhattan townhouse, and at least once staying late into the night," according to interviews with more than a dozen people familiar with the relationship and documents reviewed by the Times.

Commenting for that article, Bill Gates' spokeswoman told the Times that the pair had met to discuss philanthropy. "Bill Gates regrets ever meeting with Epstein and recognizes it was an error in judgment to do so," the spokeswoman said.

While Melinda Gates officially filed for divorce in the state of Washington last week, there is already a separation contract in place. That type of agreement is typical in divorces involving couples of high net worth.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The government is changing course and says it will distribute the over 2 million AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines that arrived this week, giving it first those who already had their first shot.

"In view of the resumption of AstraZeneca vaccination and arrival of 2,030,400 AstraZeneca doses, priority will be given to those who will be receiving the second dose," said the Department of Health in a statement Tuesday afternoon.

It added that the remaining doses will be used as a first dose to all eligible patients from priority groups A1 to A3, which are healthcare workers, senior citizens and people with comorbidities.

The statement comes after Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a briefing that the shipment will be solely used as first dose since 1.5 million of them will be expiring in June and the rest in July.

She assured that the vaccines sent by COVAX are not substandard since all available COVID-19 vaccines have a maximum shelf life of six months. The business transaction and transportation of the shipment should also be considered, she said.

Meanwhile, the 193,000 doses of Pfizer vaccines that were also donated by COVAX on Sunday will be distributed to parts of Metro Manila, Quirino, Cebu City, and Davao City that have ultra-low temperature freezers.

Pfizer's vaccine needs to be stored in ultra-cold freezers with temperatures of about minus 70 degrees Celsius or below, which are not yet widely available nationwide. Adhering to the temperature requirements during storage and distribution is crucial in ensuring the vaccines' efficacy.

UNICEF Philippines Deputy Representative for Programmes Behzad Noubary said this batch of Pfizer vaccines have different expiration dates so they need to work closely with the DOH and the WHO to ensure that the doses will be used up before they expire.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  Former senator and defeated vice presidential candidate Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr, filed on Monday a motion for reconsideration asking the Presidential Electoral Tribunal to set aside its decision that junked his poll protest against Vice President Leni Robredo.

"It is most respectfully prayed that the honorable Tribunal set aside the decision dated 16 February 2021...conduct another preliminary conference for the third cause of action; and thereafter proceed with the presentation of evidence for the third cause of action," Marcos said in the motion filed on May 6.

Marcos wants the PET to proceed with his third cause of action  the annulment of election results in Lanao Del Sur, Maguindanao, and Basilan.

Marcos said the PET made a mistake when it junked the third cause of action as it was separate and independent from the second because which was to revise and recount votes. He added the application of Rule 65 of the PET was wrong in his case.

Rule 65 of the Tribunal Rules mandates the dismissal of a protest when the results of the revision and appreciation of ballots in the pilot provinces do not support the allegations of fraud or irregularities.

Commenting on Marcos' statement, Robredo's lead counsel, Romulo Macalintal, said, "Mr. Marcos would be the luckiest man in the world if he could reverse the unanimous decision by merely repeating the same issues and arguments already decided by the entire Presidential Electoral Tribunal."

In April the PET released its full decision on its dismissal of Marcos' poll protest, saying he failed to prove his claims and that his "allegations appeared bare, laden with generic and repetitious allegations and lacked critical information" regarding the alleged irregularities.

"If, indeed, protestant was convinced of his claims in Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, and Basilan, then he should have indicated those three as his pilot provinces. But he did not, to no fault of this Tribunal," the PET added in the decision.

READ: Supreme Court unanimously junks Marcos' VP poll protest vs Robredo

After the dismissal of his protest, Marcos said he would still continue to fight.

"So long as there is a ray of hope, I will continue to fight... At the end of the day, the true will of the electorate must prevail," he said in April.

CNN Philippines correspondent Anjo Alimario contributed to this report.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  President Rodrigo Duterte has placed the entire country under a state of calamity as it deals with the impact of the African Swine Fever outbreak, spokesman Harry Roque confirmed on Tuesday.

Nilagdaan kahapon May 10 ang Proclamation No. 1143 na nagdedeklara ng nasabing state of calamity sa buong bansa sa loob ng isang taon unless earlier lifted or extended as circumstances may warrant, said Roque during his regular press briefing.

[Translation: Signed yesterday, May 10, was Proclamation No. 1143 declaring a nationwide state of calamity for one year unless earlier lifted or extended as circumstances may warrant.]

Senators have been calling for the declaration as early as March, as Filipinos deal with plummeting hog supply and rising pork prices.

In a separate briefing, Agriculture Department Spokesperson Noel Reyes emphasized how the declaration allows local governments to use their Quick Response Fund in efforts to mitigate the spread of the hog disease.

"Malaking bagay po ito. Hindi lamang po ang national agency, ang DA, ang gagastos kundi po ang local government units with this declaration of calamity," said Reyes.

[Translation: This is a major move. Not only will the national agency, the Department of Agriculture, be spending (to address ASF) but also local government units with this declaration of (state of) calamity.]

Roque also announced the Presidents signing of Executive Order No. 133, which increases the minimum access volume (MAV) for pork imports to 254,210 metric tons for 2021 from the previous 54,210 MT.

Iyan po ay bahagi po ng kompromiso sa panig ng ehekutibo at Senado pagdating sa usaping MAV, Roque said.

[Translation: This is part of the compromise between the executive and Senate regarding MAV issues.]

RELATED: Senate, DA agree on proposal to reduce MAV for pork imports at higher tariffs

The Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) welcomed these measures, calling them "another moral victory" for the local hog industry and the agriculture sector in general.

"Another slap in the face of pro-importation and anti-local producer Agriculture Secretary William Dar!" wrote the group.

SINAG likewise thanked the Senate for its efforts, and requested that legislators remain vigilant to ensure ASF-affected entities will be compensated and that realigned funds will indeed go to the industry's rehabilitation.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc. (PAMPI) noted Duterte's declaration "effectively freezes" proposed adjustments in their selling prices despite the three-fold jump in imported raw material costs.

"Nevertheless, we will need to tighten our belts further until we can get relief by the middle of this year just to help ensure that inflation will not rise any further," said PAMPI, noting meat products are major drivers of inflation.

With this, the organization says it is in the best interest not only of the industry but also of consumers and the economy in general to keep their product prices as stable for as long as possible.

PAMPI likewise said market forces will eventually decide if the new MAV for pork imports is enough to address the country's pork shortage.

"If there is still a shortfall after exhausting the MAV, out-quota importations at the reduced tariff of 20% for 3 months and 25% for 9 months should help stabilize the supply situation," it added.

While National Federation of Hog Farmers chairman and president Chester Tan appreciates the state of calamity declaration, he said he thinks it 'came a bit too late' particularly for ASF-affected commercial and backyard farms especially in North Luzon.

"[W]ithout (the) suggestion coming from Senator Kiko Pangilinan, (Agriculture) Sec. Dar will not even think about asking the President for this," commented Tan.

Similar to SINAG, the hog farmer group expressed hopes the funding will not be used in purchasing freezers or other steps that will only help swine importers.

Tan called for the proper usage of the concerned funds, particularly the indemnification of those affected by the outbreak and utilizing these in the implementation of the DA's Bantay ASF program especially on community biosecurity improvements and protocols.

CNN Philippines correspondent Melissa Lopez contributed to this report.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  President Rodrigo Duterte said that his 2016 remark to go to the West Philippine Sea on a jet ski to assert the countrys rights in the disputed waters was a pure campaign joke.

Panahon sa kampanya iyan, at tsaka iyong biro na iyon, we call it bravado. Iyong bravado ko was just a pure campaign joke, he said during his weekly address, even calling those who believed stupid.

[Translation: That was the time of campaign and that joke we call it bravado. My bravado was just a pure campaign joke.]

Nagyabang ako na pupunta ako sa Spratly, magdala ako ng flag na sakay ako ng jet ski, Duterte also said.

[Translation: I bragged that I will go to Spratly, bring a flag by riding a jet ski.]

In his May 3 address, Duterte emphasized that he never promised to retake the West Philippine Sea from China.

This was contrary to his statement back in 2016 during the campaign for national elections when he said he would ride a jet ski to plant a Philippine flag on man-made islands occupied by China. He also mentioned during the CNN Philippines Town Hall meeting in February 2016 that he would stop Chinas expansion activities in the area.

READ: Duterte: Retaking West Philippine Sea was never a campaign promise

For the past months, Philippine maritime authorities have been spotting the presence of Chinese vessels in the disputed waters that led to increasing tensions between the two sides. The Department of Foreign Affairs has also fired several diplomatic protests regarding this and on the illegal activities Chinese boats are conducting in the area.

These incursions also go against the Philippines 2016 arbitral victory against Beijings maritime claims that covered some areas in the West Philippine Sea and within the country's 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone, a ruling that the latter has consistently refused to recognize. Recently, Duterte also called the ruling a mere piece of paper that he can throw away in a trash bin. The remark immediately drew flak from his critics.

The country's chief executive has also repeatedly blamed officials from the previous administration regarding developments in the West Philippine Sea, even challenging former Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio to a debate, a dare which he later withdrew.

RELATED: Duterte to Carpio after debate withdrawal: I'm not afraid of you
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The World Health Organization has classified the COVID-19 variant first discovered in India as a variant of global concern.

The B.1617 variant has been under investigation since it was found in the South Asian nation in October 2020. But it was only named a "variant of concern" after some preliminary studies show that it spreads more easily.

WHO technical lead on COVID-19, Maria Van Kerkhove, said the decision was based on the findings of its Virus Evolution Working Group and several other experts based on the genomic sequencing samples from India and other nations that have confirmed cases of the B.1617 variant.

"There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility of B.1617... As such, we are classifying this as a variant of concern at the global level," she said in a media briefing on Monday.

The WHO defines a "variant of concern" as one found to have increase in transmissibility or detrimental change in COVID-19 epidemiology; increase in virulence; or decrease in effectiveness of public health measures, medicine, or vaccines.

Kerkhove stressed there is no data yet to suggest the variant discovered in India makes available COVID-19 vaccines less effective.

She added that the current minimum public health standards, such as physical distancing, wearing of masks, and avoiding crowded and encloses spaces, is still effective against the new variant. She said efforts to follow these rules should be increased to ensure they are observed at all times.

"So far, from the information that we have, the public health and social measures work, but we need to work that much harder to control virus variants that have demonstrated increased transmissibility," Kerkhove said.

The health official said the B.1617 variant has three sub-lineages, adding the full official report will be released on Tuesday.

The Philippines has yet to record a case of the B.1.617 variant.

The Department of Health expects the genome sequencing results of five passengers who tested positive for COVID-19 after arriving in the Philippines from India to be available on Tuesday. The samples of Filipino seafarers who made a stop in India were also sent to the Philippine Genome Center.

The country has imposed an entry ban until May 14 on inbound passengers who traveled to India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Pakistan to prevent the entry of the B.1617 variant.

India has been recording the world's highest number of new daily COVID-19 cases in its catastrophic second wave of infections. The country's cases have soared to over 22.6 million, while more than 246,000 people have lost their lives, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. It's not yet clear how many infections have been linked to this double mutant variant.

The Philippines has hundreds of confirmed cases of the variants first found in United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil  all classified as variants of concern. The Philippines also has 157 cases of the P.3 variant, the variant first detected in the country that is still under investigation.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  Experts may take into account the presence of the India COVID-19 variant when they make their recommendation for succeeding quarantine levels.

"We are strengthening or tightening our restrictions right now because we would like to prevent further spread of these kinds of variants," Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a media briefing on Tuesday.

"If in a specific place we can see there is increasing number of cases and there is this specific variant of concern, then that's part of the factors that we will be considering," she added, referring to the B.1617 variant from India.

The Greater Manila area's current status - modified enhanced community quarantine - ends on Friday. Several mayors favor shifting to general community quarantine by May 15.

Vergeire, who leads the COVID-19 variant task force, added they are studying the impact of the B.1617 variant to help them decide if the entry ban on travelers from India and other South Asian nations must be extended.

The Philippines previously imposed a 14-day entry ban on inbound passengers who traveled to India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. However, the Department of Health on Tuesday confirmed two cases of the B.1617 variant - returning Filipinos who did not have any travel history from these countries. The two Filipino seafarers arrived in the Philippines from Oman and the United Arab Emirates in April.

"The virus and variant do not respect borders. We've seen that it's travel that facilitates the spread of the virus. The surge is because of the high transmissibility brought about by the mutations," said Dr. Marissa Alejandria, a member of the DOH-Technical Advisory Group.

The variant task force is set to forward its recommendation to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF), which will then send its recommendation to President Rodrigo Duterte, who will make the final decision.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The World Health Organization believes the much-awaited arrival of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in the Philippines may help boost Filipinos' confidence in vaccines.

WHO Country Representative Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe on Monday said people who have apprehensions about getting a COVID-19 shots will be more open to getting a shot using the Pfizer vaccine.

We believe that with the introduction of the Pfizer vaccine, people who had some degree of hesitancy would have confidence because the Pfizer vaccines have a good track record, he told reporters during the arrival of vaccines. We believe those sections of people who have some apprehensions about receiving COVID vaccine will be confident enough to accept the Pfizer vaccine.

Abeyasinghe was referring to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines reported efficacy rate. The DOH said the Pfizer vaccine is 95% effective against symptomatic COVID-19 seven days after the second dose.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, in a statement, thanked the COVAX facility for the donations, saying the government will continue to boost public confidence in our national vaccination program.

Health workers will be among the first to receive the vaccine, followed by senior citizens and those with comorbidities. Since these are donated doses, government will have to follow prioritization listings to ensure the country retains its COVAX allocations. Metro Manila, Cebu, and Davao will be the first recipients of the initial batch containing 193,050 doses of Pfizer vaccines.

Abeyasinghe also said achieving full herd immunity for the Philippines remains a challenge, considering the limited global supply of the vaccines. Despite this, he said a combined effort of bringing both COVAX and procured vaccines may help the government reach its target of vaccinating 70 million Filipinos by the end of 2021.

Whether we can achieve that within this year, maybe a challenge. So, we are looking at probably into next year by the time we achieve full herd immunity because although we have planned for large quantities of vaccines to come, we have seen challenges on the global supply chain," the WHO representative said.

UNICEF Philippines Deputy Representative for Programmes Behzad Noubary pointed out that the Pfizer vaccines that arrived in the country have different expiration dates so they will work closely with the DOH and WHO to ensure that the doses will be used up before they expire.

Meanwhile, Vince Dizon, the National Task Force vs COVID-19 deputy chief implementer, gave assurance the Philippine government will indemnify people who may experience adverse events following immunization. This is pursuant to Section 10 of Republic Act 11525 or the COVID-19 Vaccination Program Act of 2021.

WHO said another batch of 2.3 million Pfizer doses from the COVAX facility is expected in the next two months.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The Philippines will begin exporting okra to South Korea from the 2021-to-2022 harvest season as soon as supply requirements set by both countries are complied with, the Department of Agriculture announced on Monday.

After the resumption of okra exports to Japan last year, we are opening yet another market access for our okra, this time with the huge Korean food market," Agriculture Secretary William Dar said in a statement.

"The Philippine government has been requesting market access of okra to Korea since 2014 and finally, it was granted," Dar said. "This is a milestone for us considering we are still in the midst of the global pandemic.

One of South Korea's conditions is an inspection report on okra farms in Tarlac, where the exports will be initially sourced, the department noted.

The DA said some Koreans eat okra as banchan or side dish.

It said fresh okra is only available in "small volumes" during the summer season, while the processed ones are imported from China.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11) The private sector expects the first batch of COVID-19 vaccines being imported from American firm Moderna to arrive by "the week of June 21."

"We did order Moderna [vaccine] together with the national government. That's 20 million [doses] total for 10 million people," business tycoon Enrique Razon said in an exclusive interview with CNN Philippines' News.PH.

"The first batch is scheduled to arrive the week of June 21," he pointed out.

The Philippines in March signed a tripartite agreement with Moderna for 20 million doses of its vaccine with 13 million doses secured by the government while the remaining seven million were ordered by the private sector.

Philippine Ambassador to the United States Babe Romualdez also earlier said the first deliveries of the Moderna vaccine may arrive by mid-year.

The Food and Drug Administration approved last week the Moderna vaccine for emergency use in the country.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The Food and Drug Administration reiterated that it has not yet officially approved remdesivir and ivermectin for COVID-19 treatment, but both drugs can be used for limited permits in several hospitals.

Speaking to CNN Philippines' The Source, FDA Director General Eric Domingo said the antiviral drug remdesivir is also classified as an investigational product, which can be used by hospitals that were granted compassionate special permits.

"The FDA gives compassionate permits for drugs like remdesivir," Domingo explained. "Ivermectin has also been granted a compassionate special permit in several hospitals. These are products that are not registered."

"Hindi sila approved ng (They are not approved by the) FDA, only based on the request of the doctors and hospitals do we allow it to be imported for that particular use," he said.

Domingo confirmed that some 50 hospitals have been allowed to use remdesivir to date, while at least six hospitals have a special permit to use human-grade ivermectin.

Some lawmakers have been pushing for the use of ivermectin to treat and prevent COVID-19 despite insufficient proof of the anti-parasitic drug's effectiveness.

Anakalusugan Party-list Rep. Michael Defensor, a staunch ivermectin advocate, earlier warned the Health Department of possibly facing graft charges for purchasing remdesivir for COVID-19 patients.

The DOH refuted Defensor's claim, saying it does not purchase experimental drugs without a certificate for product registration.

READ: DOH refutes solon: We don't buy remdesivir

According to Domingo, it is the call of the physician and the patient whether they can proceed with the use of remdesivir to try it for COVID-19 treatment.

"This is an individual physician-patient decision," Domingo pointed out. "I believe when the doctors make this decision, they ask their patients kung anong mapagkasunduan na gamot na susubukan sa kanya (what drug could be used for treatment), then they ask for permit to import this medicine that is not registered here."

"Thats more of a clinical decision made by the doctors," he added.

The DOH previously said there are local studies showing evidence that remdesivir can help prevent the progression of a COVID-19 patient's condition.

This comes after the World Health Organization recommended against its use in hospitalized patients as there is currently no evidence that it improves survival and other outcomes in these patients.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Tuesday claimed Julian Felipe Reef, where around 200 Chinese ships were sighted in March, is not part of the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, going against statements made by the Defense and Foreign Affairs departments.

"All we're saying is we were never in possession of that area...Ni hindi po 'yan kabahagi ng ating EEZ ha, 'yung Julian Felipe. Labas po 'yan, ganyan po kalayo 'yan [It's not even part of our EEZ. Julian Felipe reef is outside that zone, that's how far it is]," Roque said in a Palace briefing.

This is contrary to the strongly worded statements against China issued earlier by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Both have maintained that the reef - also known as Whitsun Reef and located approximately 175 nautical miles west of Bataraza, Palawan - is within the Philippines' EEZ, where Filipinos have the sole right to resources under international law and the ruling by a Hague tribunal.

Both have also demanded China to promptly withdraw its vessels, which later in March spread out to different areas in the West Philippine Sea. The DFA vowed to fire off a diplomatic protest for every day of delay.

While the reef is within 200 nautical miles of the EEZ, Roque said it forms part of the territorial sea generated by two high tide elevations (HTEs) currently occupied by China and Vietnam. But the Philippines has a claim on the reef by the virtue of Presidential Decree 1596 issued in 1978 by then president Ferdinand Marcos.

Per the 2016 SCS Arbitral Award, these HTEs generate a territorial sea, which is prior to an EEZ under the UNCLOS [United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea], he said in a separate statement. Felipe Reef, together with the two HTEs that generated the territorial sea, has never been in actual physical possession of the Philippines, albeit made part of the province of Palawan through PD 1596 (1978).

At the very least, Julian Felipe Reef should be delimited under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) given the overlaps of maritime zones, Roque said.

Moreover, Roque claimed it was President Rodrigo Duterte's critics who made a big issue out of the swarming of the Chinese vessels in the area. He also questioned demands for a strong response from the chief executive when, according to him, it is Vietnam and China primarily laying claims to the reef.

"Ang totoong nag-aagawan dyan sa area na 'yan ay Vietnam tsaka ang China. Eh bakit Pilipinas? Bakit si President Duterte ang tinatanong kung anong gagawin niya dyan? Remember, we're not the only claimants there," he said.

[Translation: In truth, the nations fighting over the reef are Vietnam and China. Then why the Philippines? Why ask President Duterte what he's going to do about it? Remember, we're not the only claimants there.]

Aside from the Philippines, ASEAN member states Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei, and self-governing Taiwan, have competing claims in the resource-rich South China Sea.

But Roque said that the country will still continue to pursue its claim.

It is in our countrys interest to continuously pursue our claim through diplomacy or in the future, by submitting it to the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice, said Roque in a statement.

'PH-China ties enjoying renaissance under Duterte Admin'

Despite growing tensions over territories, Roque said there has been a rebirth in the bilateral relations between the Philippines and China under the Duterte administration.

"We are now enjoying the renaissance as far as Philippine-Chinese relations is concerned. Hindi po nagkakaroon ng banta sa ating territorial integrity [There have been no threats to our territorial integrity]," he said.

If it weren't for this "warm friendship," Roque said, the East Asian giant may have already driven away the Philippines from all the areas it is claiming in the disputed waters.

Duterte has remained friendly towards Chinese President Xi Jinping, saying Manila owes Beijing a huge debt and that he "wouldn't want trouble with them." In a past briefing, however, Roque said there are limits to the friendly ties, and Duterte will be deploying the country's "gray ships" once Beijing begins oil drilling activities inside Manila's EEZ.

China has repeatedly rejected the 2016 landmark ruling which recognized the Philippines' sovereign rights within its EEZ. Despite raising the arbitration award at the United Nations General Assembly in 2020, Duterte himself also recently downplayed this victory as a "mere scrap of paper," which can be thrown in a wastebasket.
(CNN)  It's the claim that's suddenly everywhere: The COVID-19 vaccine is going to make women infertile.

"No! You don't know the science!" one woman posted on Twitter in response to naysayers. "The vaccine creates an immune response to the placenta and renders a woman sterile! They know this and this is the objective! It's a shifty world sterilisation programme."

As it turns out, this unfounded fear isn't new, said vaccine expert and pediatrician Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, the chief of Stanford University School of Medicine's division of pediatric infectious diseases, who is currently leading vaccine trials in children younger than 12.

"Oh my goodness, people have been saying this about every vaccine since I can remember," said Maldonado, who also chairs the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases. "There is no evidence that this vaccine will affect development or fertility."

Even those who do not consider themselves anti-vaxxers are expressing worry. As one woman shared on social media, "The protein that the covid vaccine codes for is similar to a protein on the placenta, so ppl worry it could cause infertility."

Parents are expressing concern as well, as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers approving the Covid-19 vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds this week.

To set the record straight, CNN reached out to Dr. Richard Beigi, who sits on the Immunization, Infectious Disease, and Public Health Preparedness Expert Work Group of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

The conversation has been lightly edited for clarity.

CNN: Some people are worried that the Covid-19 vaccines could be associated with fertility issues for adult women and also for teenagers -- when the vaccine for ages 12 to 15 becomes available.

Dr. Richard Beigi: There's never been any vaccine that's been linked with infertility.

There is no clear scientific reason to think the new vaccine would cause fertility problems in adults. Likewise, there's no scientific reason to believe it would cause fertility problems in teenagers. Those are the facts, regardless of how old the person is.

It is a new mRNA vaccine technology being used in the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, so I can understand theoretically how that would be unnerving to some people. But I think the more information we get, the more it shows that these new technologies are extremely effective. And in terms of vaccines, they're quite safe.

Pregnancy is now clearly considered a high-risk category for the Covid-19 infection, as it is for other respiratory infections like influenza.

One has to weigh the risk of getting an infection versus the risk of taking the vaccine, and in in my estimation, these theoretical vaccine risks are getting weaker and weaker as we get more data.

CNN: Often people mention the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, or VAERS, showing five examples of pregnancies connected to premature separation of the placenta that occurred in the same time frame as a Covid-19 vaccine.

Beigi: VAERS is basically a system where you report anything that happens to you after a vaccine. Just like getting the flu after a flu shot, these events were very likely to have already been under way when women received the vaccines, and then they became clinically recognized after the vaccine was given.

There's zero reason to believe any of these stories are related to the vaccine or caused by the vaccine.

If you read these reports in isolation, you would potentially be very scared. But these VAERS reports are not causal -- they're just coincidental. Here's how we know.

Pregnant women weren't part of the original clinical trials, but this year over 100,000 pregnant women have received one of the vaccines -- mostly the mRNA vaccines of Moderna and Pfizer, but also some women have gotten the J&J vaccine.

We know this because 106,000 women who received the vaccine and signed up with government's v-safe program said they were pregnant. Nearly 5,000 of those are being closely monitored via the CDC's Vaccine Pregnancy Registry.

Sometimes pregnancies end in miscarriage or preeclampsia or abruption, and we know that. That's why we're looking at bigger groups of pregnant women who have taken the vaccine and comparing them to what we already know happens to pregnant women -- and at what rates -- before we had these vaccines.

As the data comes out, what we're now seeing in these thousands of women who took the vaccine is that their pregnancy outcomes are no different than the population of pregnant women who did not get one of the vaccines.

This is very powerful because it doesn't show any sign there's a major issue and continues to validate what we thought -- which was there's no theoretical reason to believe these vaccines would be harmful.

CNN: Some people have posted concerns that the spike protein on the novel coronavirus will attach itself to similar receptors on the placenta and cause infertility.

Beigi: I fully understand that if people read a comment like that it could make them nervous. That's fine, we respect that, and it's why we talk to our patients about their concerns and counsel them.

The clinical data that continues to come out, doesn't validate that issue as a concern. And that's on top of the fact that, scientifically, it doesn't make sense.

The placenta forms after conception -- it actually comes from the baby's tissue. So by definition, if you have formed a placenta, you are pregnant, you are not infertile.

It's a new vaccine, it's a scary disease, and people read these things online, which is all very understandable. I would think that hearing that thousands of pregnant women who have taken this vaccine and there are no signs of problems -- I would hope for some people with concerns, that would be reassuring.

CNN: Many parents have said online that 'It's one thing for me as an adult to go out and get a shot in my arm but when I think about taking my child, that's a whole other set of fears. I have to be super positive there's nothing in any of these vaccines that's going to harm my child's future." What's your message to these parents?

Beigi: I fully understand being overly concerned about the future of your child. I have two teenage girls myself. And I am undoubtedly going to get my two teenage girls immunized when the vaccine is available in my area.

My message to parents is this: You have to weigh the risk of getting the Covid-19 infection versus the safety of the vaccines. The US Food and Drug Administration would not issue authorization for teens if there were major signs of problems. There was absolutely no reason to think there's going to be new problems in this age group.
(CNN) -- Queen Elizabeth II carried out her first major engagement since the funeral of her husband Prince Philip on Tuesday, unveiling the UK government's legislative agenda and confirming plans to ban LGBTQ conversion therapy in a formal ceremony at the Houses of Parliament.

The Queen opened a new session of Parliament and read aloud UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's priorities, in a ceremonial event that until a few years ago she had routinely attended with Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh.

Announcements in the Queen's Speech -- which is written by the government, usually each spring or after an election -- included the reintroduction of a controversial bill to increase police powers, legally binding environmental targets, and changes to the UK's health and social services sector.

The speech is one of the 95-year-old monarch's most important symbolic duties and forms the centerpiece of the State Opening of Parliament ceremony. Accompanied by her son and heir, Prince Charles, it took around 10 minutes for the Queen to read the speech from the throne in the House of Lords chamber.

It was her first official engagement outside of Windsor Castle since the Duke of Edinburgh died aged 99 last month.

Also referenced in the speech was a contentious plan to require voters to provide proof of their identity when taking part in elections. The government has said the move would reduce voter fraud, but critics from across the political spectrum have said such fraud is virtually non-existent and that the move would make it harder for poorer people to vote.

And the Queen confirmed that Johnson's government is planning to ban so-called conversion therapy, the pseudoscientific practice of attempting to change a person's sexuality or gender identity. The same intention was announced by Johnson's predecessor Theresa May three years ago, and campaigners have grown frustrated that it has not yet been enacted.

Queen appears in stripped-down ceremony

The Queen's Speech is a significant event in both the royal and political calendars. The monarch's appearance gave Britons an early glance of their Queen in her role since she became a widow. The actual contents of her speech, by contrast, set out the government's vision and are fiercely debated by lawmakers for days afterwards.

The affair is usually an especially flamboyant one but was scaled back in light of the pandemic; the horse-drawn carriage the monarch usually rides from Buckingham Palace was scrapped, and she did not wear the royal Robe of State.

Nonetheless, the ceremony was littered with much of its traditional pomp and pageantry. The Queen walked alongside her hefty Imperial State Crown, and Black Rod -- who acts as the monarch's representative in Parliament -- had the door to the Commons chamber slammed in her face as a gesture representing the independence of lawmakers.

Prince Charles once again accompanied the Queen to the event, as he has done since Philip's retirement in 2017.

Politically, the focus of the speech was Johnson's pledge to "deliver a national recovery" from the Covid-19 pandemic, including pledges to boost research, improve education and accelerate the creation of housing.

But much of the debate focused on plans to bring in a photo ID requirement at the ballot box. The Queen said the government would work to "renew democracy and the constitution" and "ensure the integrity of elections" through new legislation.

But Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour Party's shadow minister for mental health, said the measure was "unjust" and "will only make our country even more unequal." Conservative backbencher David Davis told The Independent earlier that it was an "illiberal solution in pursuit of a non-existent problem."

Johnson's agenda was unveiled after his Conservative party enjoyed a set of convincing results at local elections across the UK last week. The party won a parliamentary by-election -- a rare feat after 11 years in government -- and picked up council seats around England.

His major challenge, however, may be keeping the UK together and batting back growing calls from Scotland for an indepedence referendum. "My ministers will promote the strength and integrity of the union," the Queen told Parliament, also promising moves to "address the legacy of the past" in Northern Ireland.

A couple of hours after the speech is delivered, lawmakers begin to debate its contents in what is known as the "Humble Address," which usually lasts several days. Following the discussion, a vote is held -- but that process will be essentially symbolic given Johnson's healthy parliamentary majority.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "The Queen opens UK Parliament in her first major event since Philip's death"
(CNN) -- A young whale trapped in London's River Thames was euthanized after becoming stranded for a second time on a river embankment Monday evening.

The minke whale's condition had deteriorated throughout the day as it struggled in the unfamiliar environment, and it was "humanely put to sleep" by veterinary experts, the British Divers Marine Life Rescue said in a statement.

"Medics used inflatable pontoons to prevent the animal from slipping back into the river, which allowed the veterinary team from the Zoological Society of London to further assess the animal and end its suffering," the statement read.

The whale had likely swum hundreds of miles before it was spotted around 7 p.m. local time on Sunday, stuck near Richmond Lock. Once freed, the whale slipped away under cover of darkness before rescuers could take further action, a spokesperson for the Port of London Authority told CNN.

The rescue team "managed to get a special inflatable pontoon around (the whale), and then floated it out onto the main river," Port of London Authority spokesperson Martin Garside told CNN. "At that point, the whale made its own decision and swam from the pontoon into the main river."

The whale was found again on Monday morning against the river wall, raising concerns it would become beached again.

The whale, estimated to be about 10 to 13 feet long, ended up far from its natural habitat. A post mortem examination will be carried out to try to establish how the whale came to be in "poor condition and lost in the river."

"This species lives in the northern North Sea, so it's very lost," Garside said. "It's a very young whale and it's in a very dicey situation and its life is hanging in the balance."

Minke whales can grow to weigh around 20,000 pounds and typically live for about 50 years, according to the United States' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Garside said his organization tends to whales in the Thames around once a year, but no whale had ever swum so far west up the Thames.

The rescue team included officers from the Port of London Authority, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and the London Fire Brigade.

Spectator Daniel Magee, who recorded several videos of the whale, said he initially assumed it was a seal.

"As we got closer I saw a fin and realized it was a whale," Magee told CNN on Sunday. "Some lock keepers hosing him down and it looked like the tide was going up so he could turn around. I realized that the whale might be injured as it started rolling on its side and thrashing about."

Another spectator, David Korsaks, told CNN he was surprised to see anything other than birds in the area.

"It was almost disbelief and shock to see a whale where you would normally only see ducks and swans," Korsaks said. "My next thoughts were I hope it's ok and manages to swim free."

Sophie Milner told CNN she took video of the whale after seeing people gathered at the scene.

"We just saw a crowd of people looking at the whale. It was being looked after by some specialists by the time we got there," she said.

It is unusual, but not unprecedented, for whales to enter the Thames and require rescuing.

In 2018, a Beluga whale was found in the river.

And in 2006, a bottlenose whale was spotted in central London, sparking a massive operation to return her to safety. Rescuers used a crane to lift her out of the river and onto a barge. But the whale died on the barge hours later, before it could be returned to deeper water.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Young whale trapped in London's River Thames euthanized"
Seniors this year stayed dedicated to their studies and activities, even though that often meant early mornings and late nights at school, Rusher noted. The graduating class remained faithful to each other and God, she said, and never let COVID-19 ruin their last year of high school.

As a class, we truly value our friendships, Rusher said. We've always gotten along, even though our friend groups have changed over time. Our class has a relationship with each other that will bond for a lifetime and I'm very grateful  Remember one thing: We all take different paths, but no matter where we go, we take a little of each other.

Father Mike Swanton of St. Bonaventure Catholic Church also spoke on friendship, saying that its important graduates surround themselves with people who share the same values.

Hanging around with friends who share your values  we're going to have a hard enough time in life anyway, with so many people who are very anti-Christian in our culture, in our society, Swanton said. Surround yourself with friends who share your faith and values."

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Swantons other advice for graduates was to always think about the consequences of their actions, always remain grateful for everything they have in life and remember that life passes quickly.
MINDEN  A former Minden Public Schools Board of Education member repeatedly was asked to leave before its meeting Monday night.

Former board member Katie Sinsel was seated at the boards table and was not wearing a mask. Superintendent James Widdifield repeatedly asked Sinsel to put on a mask or to leave the building.

Sinsel told Widdifield that she was a school board member, but he told her she was voted off the school board at the last meeting. Widdifield told Sinsel she was trespassing, and he made a call asking for a police officer to come to the school to address the situation.

Sinsel then told Widdifield that she wanted to hear from Board of Education President Rusty Rhynalds if he wanted her to leave. Rhynalds asked Sinsel to put on a mask. Sinsel gathered her things, but before leaving the table she asked Rhynalds for the record if he wanted her to leave. Rhynalds once again asked Sinsel to wear a mask.

Sinsel left the board meeting of her own accord, although an officer from the Minden Police Department did arrive at the school after Sinsel had left the room.

At a special meeting April 26, Minden Board of Education members approved a resolution to remove Sinsel. Widdifield said she was removed because of consecutive unexcused absences at board meetings.
Bradford County District Attorney Chad Salsman admitted guilt and resigned from office three months after claiming he had committed no crimes and hinting he was the victim of a political smear by the states top prosecutor.
Dear Editor:

Carlisle has been my home for over 40 years. Growing up in this community has taught me about the importance of advocating for others to ensure that the current and next generations have the chance to reach their goals and make a positive impact.

Because of this deeply rooted feeling, I strive to create opportunities for Black entrepreneurs to develop successful businesses. Carlisle will only know its true potential when we tap into the talents of all our residents. Cultivating Black peoples business dreams will release a reservoir of new and great possibilities for our community.

Through my work as the executive director of Hope Station, a nonprofit organization that serves low-income families, I have seen firsthand the needs of the most vulnerable amongst us. Sewn into the fabric of my being are the stories of countless women, children, people of color, Black people, resettlers, people living with mental illness, the unhoused, those experiencing poverty, the unemployed and underemployed, and members of our community who have returned to us from incarceration. As a result, it has become my mission to work with Borough Council to instigate change and provide this underserved population with the assistance they need to succeed.
The Nagol is Back! VTOs guide to this years Nagol, plus where to stay and play in south, central and north Pentecost.
Teachers and other school employees in the city are represented by the Charlottesville Education Association, which is in a similar phase of the process.

So far, Liechti said the key issues for teachers are small class sizes, compensation for teachers who substitute and more time for planning.

Through the bargaining process is where we basically have everybodys attention, and basically let them know that this is what the majority of what your workforce wants, he said. This is something that can really help us be better educators that can basically help keep your employees, who ultimately want to do a good job in your school division.

A contract would provide clarity about the roles and responsibilities for teachers and help with recruitment and retention of employees, he said.

We want to make sure that teachers are looking out for themselves, that theyre feeling comfortable in their positions, that they feel like they are doing what theyre supposed to be doing, and wed like to have that in writing in the contract so that way we know what were signing up for, he said.

Liechti said AEA representatives feel that everybody wins when teachers have a seat at the table.
Excluding so many people from the process of deciding to file for bankruptcy, including the vast majority of the board of directors, the chief financial officer, and the general counsel, is nothing less than shocking, the judge added.

Phillip Journey, an NRA board member and Kansas judge who had sought to have an examiner appointed to investigate the groups leadership, was concise about Hale's judgment: 1 word, disappointed, he wrote in a text message.

LaPierre pledged in a statement to continue to fight for gun rights.

Although we are disappointed in some aspects of the decision, there is no change in the overall direction of our Association, its programs, or its Second Amendment advocacy, LaPierre said via the NRA's Twitter account. Today is ultimately about our members  those who stand courageously with the NRA in defense of constitutional freedom. We remain an independent organization that can chart its own course, even as we remain in New York to confront our adversaries.

Lawyers for New York Attorney General Letitia James argued that the case was an attempt by NRA leadership to escape accountability for using the groups coffers as their personal piggybank. But the NRAs attorneys said it was a legitimate effort to avoid a political attack by James, who is a Democrat.
Investigators launch case over fatal school shooting in Russias Tatarstan

 AGN Moskva

12:34 11/05/2021

MOSCOW, May 11 (RAPSI)  Investigators launched probe into the shooting attack in a school bulding in Kazan, the capital of Russias Republic of Tatarstan, on Tuesday, the Investigative Committees press service reports.

A case is opened over murder of two and more people, the statement reads.

According to preliminary information, an unknown man entered an education institution and started shooting. About 10 people including minors were killed and nearly 20 persons were injured as a result of the assault.
Lawyers for Tanios and Khater argued they don't deserve to be locked up while they fight the case, noting that some other similarly situated defendants have been released.

An attorney for Tanios  who operated a greasy spoon called Sandwich U in Morgantown, home of West Virginia University said there was no advance planning and that her client had bought the chemical sprays only for self protection in the event of violence against Trump supporters.

"His only plans were to attend this rally," said Tanios' attorney, Beth Gross. "The intent wasnt to go to a riot, the intent was to go to a rally to support their president."

Sicknick and other officers were standing guard behind metal bicycle racks as the mob descended on the Capitol.

Give me that bear shit, Khater said before he reached into Tanios backpack, according to court papers. Tanios told Khater not yet because it was still early, but Khater responded they just f---ing sprayed me. Khater was then seen holding a can of chemical spray, prosecutors say.
He added that Youngkins limited time in the public limelight will serve as a shield from attacks. In modern political American life, it really helps to have no record.

Snyder also presented himself as a political outsider and made the reopening of schools a key campaign message.

Chase could not be reached for comment Monday night. Shayne Snavely, one of Chases campaign observers, said: Were going dark for a couple of days and assessing our options.

Coxs exit

Coxs downfall early in Mondays count appears to close his political career; aides have said for months that the 63-year-old is not likely to run again for elected office.

Cox will not seek re-election this fall in the 68th House district, in which he was reelected in 2019 after court-mandated redistricting increased the number of Democrat-leaning voters in the district. It was a bittersweet win for Cox, who on the same night watched his party lose control of the Senate, the House of Delegates and his speakers gavel.
Virginia has already begun planning for the widened vaccine availability and is working to ensure students receive a second dose before going home for the summer. Avula has said success is tied to executed on-site vaccinations at schools, as they are reachable access points for families.

Adolescents, with the consent and accompaniment of a parent, also will be able to receive a dose at any location currently offering vaccinations such as federal retail pharmacies; health care providers; local health department clinics; and pediatricians.

Once the CDC gives the OK, vaccinations could theoretically start immediately but its unclear when school districts will advise parents on their options. Plans will differ with each locality.

And just as they arent for adults, vaccinations for children are not mandated and will not be in Virginia.

While theyre less likely to get sick from the virus, children can still spread the disease and contribute to community transmission, Avula said last week. He added that Michigan and Minnesota have had surging case counts in the past month in large part due to high school and college students.
Henrico County-based GPM Investments LLC, the parent company of the Fas Mart convenience store chain and hundreds of others across the country, said Tuesday that it has had spot outages of gasoline.

As of this morning, we have spot outages in certain areas but nothing widespread at this time, said Arie Kotler, chairman, president and CEO of Arko Corp. the parent company of GPM. We are mostly branded fuel and have many brands and supply relationships, so we are able to pull resources from other markets.

Sheetz, another major convenience store chain, said Tuesday that it is not experiencing any widespread gasoline outages.

As the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline continues, our teams at Sheetz are working to address any supply issues at our store locations, the chain said. As of now, there are no widespread outages at our stores, although certain grades of gasoline could be temporarily unavailable while our fueling teams replenish supplies. We apologize for any inconvenience caused to our customers and thank them for their patience while we navigate this situation.

AAA said it forecasts gas prices to climb this week in reaction to the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, which runs from Texas to New York City.

This shutdown will have implications on both gasoline supply and prices, but the impact will vary regionally, said Jeanette McGee, a AAA spokesperson. Areas including Mississippi, Tennessee and the East Coast from Georgia into Delaware are most likely to experience limited fuel availability and price increases. These states may see prices increase three to seven cents this week.
Maharashtra: Livelihoods of Worli's Koli community, impacted by coastal infra projects, further battered by COVID-19 crisis

May 11,2021 | Source: First Post

At Mumbais Worli coast, 130 motor boats go out to the sea from the Worli bateri (canal) and over 200 smaller boats from two more jetties in the vicinity. The boats belong to members of Worli Koliwada Nakhawa Machhimaar Society and Worli Koliwada Sarvoday Society, the two fishers societies functioning in Worli. The term nakhawa in the local language means boat owner. A Koliwada is an indigenous coastal village of fishers. The Nakhawa Society at Worli has 465 members, both boat owners and non-boat owners. Over the years, fishers at Worli have been coming back from the sea with lesser and lesser catch. The 2021 Netflix documentary Seaspiracy, directed by Ali Tabrizi, posits the blame of disappearing marine species in certain parts of the world on overfishing. But, according to Worlis Kolis, disappearing fish is the direct result of the citys coastal infrastructure projects and climate change, rather than unsustainable fishing. While the western environmentalist film suggests that its viewers simply give up seafood, indigenous fishers on this coast say they cannot stop catching fish from the sea. The Koli, Agri and Bhandari fisher communities on the western coast of India have for centuries depended on the sea for their livelihoods, and the local population largely depends on these communities for its seafood.



In most discourses against coastal development projects, the environment and its non-human life takes a center seat with no mention of indigenous humans who live in co-dependence with the environment. For years, artisanal Kolis at Worli have been coping with environmental and community endangerment from coastal development projects. When the Bandra-Worli Sea Link was built for the western suburbs 12 years ago, its columns not only replaced the generational fishing spots, but also affected the fish population beneath the Sea Link. Road projects at Worli seem to be constant agoniser for the coastal community. Even in its construction phase, the 22-km coastal road project is proving to be the biggest threat to the fisher community. Adding to the woes of the fishing community, the country in March 2020 went under complete lockdown in light of the COVID-19 crisis. Restrictions were imposed on fishing activities in Mumbai without warning, leaving fishers with unsorted, unsold and rotting fish. Fishermen at Worli said that the Mumbai police beat them up for if they tried to go to sea. So, some of them took a more discreet route out to sea before dawn. It was reported in April 2020 that the government of India will be compensating fishers in the country for the losses incurred through direct benefit transfer to bank accounts.



But even after a two-month curfew on fishing activities, not one family at Worli Koliwada has received any benefits from the government, said fishermen. They added that the distribution of this state compensation was haphazard and overdue. With COVID restrictions re-imposed by the Maharashtra government in April 2021, transportation and sale of seafood and storing ice have taken a hit again. With fewer restaurants and hotels running and more people buying fish online now, prices have also taken a dip. But before taking the annual monsoon break from June to August, fishers must make the most of what they catch in May without catching more than they can sell.

 2021. Firstpost
Bangladesh: Mobile fisheries, livestock sales boom in April

May 11,2021 | Source: Salaam Gateway

Mobile sales of fisheries and livestock products have reached more than Tk 2.04 billion in the past month until May 04 during the coronavirus lockdown. With an eye to mitigating farmers' losses and meeting the demand for nutrient, fisheries and livestock ministry have been selling fish, meat, egg and dairy products countrywide since April 05. In addition to sales at mobile outlets, fish worth around Tk 30 million has been sold online in 30 days, disclosed data available with the ministry. During the period, a total of 17,954 mobile outlets sold the products under the campaign.



Milk was sold at Tk 50-60 per litre as the price varies in different parts of the country. Besides, egg retailed at Tk 6.0 each, beef at Tk 500 and mutton at Tk 700 per kilo, Sonali chicken at Tk 200-220 per kilo and broiler at Tk 119-130 per kilo. Under the campaign, marginal farmers in the fisheries and livestock sector have easily been able to sell their products through marketing at fair prices. On the other hand, consumers have been able to easily meet their demand through buying fish, meat, milk, egg and dairy products. Mobile sales activities in all 64 districts are being coordinated and monitored through one control room under fisheries department and another under livestock services department. Fisheries and livestock minister SM Rezaul Karim and secretary Rawnak Mahmud have been monitoring production, transportation, supply and marketing of this campaign regularly to strengthen sales.
Sri Lanka: Number of Indian poachers increasing, say local fishers

by Dinasena Ratugamage

More than 20 Indian fishing vessels poaching in the Sri Lankan waters off Kachchathiv Island on Wednesday evening had fled when the Navy arrived, Jaffna fishing association said yesterday. About 100 fishermen were in those vessels. On Tuesday (04) the navy chased away about 80 fishermen that came in 11 boats. However, the Indian fishermen continue to poach in our waters, a representative of the Jaffna fishing association said. He said that there were many allegations that Sri Lankan fishermen were involved in various smuggling activities with the help of their Indian counterparts and that had increased the chances of deadly Indian Coronavirus variants coming into the country. Those involved in smuggling and other activities are just a fraction of our fishermen. We are concerned about our safety and willing to work with the navy, he said. There was a high risk of the deadly Indian COVID-19 variant spreading into Sri Lanka, Chief Epidemiologist of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Sudath Samaraweera told the media on Wednesday in Colombo.



Dr. Samaraweera said that Sri Lankan fishermen continued to interact with their Indian counterparts in mid-sea and therefore it was only a matter of time before the Indian variant entered the country. We must be extremely vigilant. We have seen the devastation caused by this variant in India. These mid-sea interactions by the fishing community must be stopped, he said. Navy Spokesman Captain Indika de Silva said the Navy had increased patrolling of the north and north western seas to prevent illegal migration. The Navy Spokesman said they had moved several additional vessels to stations in the north and northwest to patrol the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) between Sri Lanka and India to prevent illegal immigration across the Palk Strait. Capt. De Silva added that four Indian fishing vessels along with 21 Indian nationals had been taken into custody last week for smuggling in Sri Lankan waters. The vessels and suspected smugglers had been sent back to Indian waters due to the COVID-19 situation.

 The Island Online
Andaman and Nicobar Islands: Indian Coast Guard rescues five fishermen in Andaman

May 11,2021 | Source: United News of India

The Indian Coast Guard rescued five fishermen from fishing boat MFV Kalamma, which was in distress off Bomilla Creek near Hut Bay region of Little Andaman Island. The Indian Coast Guard Regional Headquarters at Port Blair received an unregistered DAT (Distress Alert Transmitter) alert from DAT ID-85068 at around 1100 hrs on Sunday. On receipt of information, Indian Coast Guard promptly launched Search and Rescue operation and sailed out Coast Guard Ship C-412fromHutbayat 1200 hrs for investigation and assistance. Since the alert was activated from an unregistered DAT, the details of the boat and its owner was not available with the Indian Coast Guard. The information was immediately shared with Fisheries authorities with a request to provide the details of person/boat issued with said DAT. Braving rough seas and strong winds, at around 1430 hrs, the Coast Guard Ship successfully located the distressed boat and provided the boat crew with basic necessities and first aid. During preliminary investigation, the boat crew informed that they sailed from Juglighat region of Port Blair city, South Andaman on May 3 last for fishing. While fishing in Bomilla Creek, during the night on May 8, the boat got toppled due to high swell and inclement weather and its engine got damaged due to ingress of saltwater. The boat crew managed to upright the boat and tried to operationalize the engine, however, the engine failed to start and the boat was adrift. Subsequently, the crew activated DAT to alert authorities for assistance.



The technical team of CG ship tried to repair the engine; however, the defect could not be rectified view non-availability of engine specific spares. Understanding the criticality of situation in prevailing inclement weather, the boat was taken under tow by Coast Guard Ship C-412and was brought to Hut Bay at around 1945 hrs on May 9. All five boat crew are reported to be safe and healthy. The boat along with its crew was handed over to local police at Hut Bay region of Little Andaman for further formalities. The Coast Guard Spokesperson said, The instant case highlights the importance of carriage of DATs by fishing boats and its effectiveness in saving lives at sea. Further, Indian Coast Guard, at various forums, has not only reiterated the importance of carrying DAT by Indian fishermen but also highlighted the significance of registration of DATs by fishermen for effective SAR response. Such a successful Search and Rescue (SAR) mission reinforces the trust and confidence of our fishermen on Indian Coast Guard as a leading SAR agency. This SAR operation, has once again proved professional acumen and unabated commitment of Indian Coast Guard towards safeguarding precious lives at sea in all spheres of operations.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on May 11, 2021

2021/05/11

Shenzhen TV: Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said at the Lower House Budget Committee that according to a written answer approved by the cabinet which decides that the term "military comfort women" is inappropriate, the word will be replaced by "comfort women" in textbooks. Suga said the Japanese side will stand by the position on "comfort women" in the Kono Statement of August 1993. Do you have any response to that?

Hua Chunying: China's position on the "comfort women" issue is consistent and clear. The forced recruitment of "comfort women" is a grave crime against humanity committed by the Japanese militarism. It is an undeniable historical fact with iron-clad evidence. The Kono Statement contains the findings of Japanese government investigation into the forced recruitment of "comfort women" during WWII, which admitted the historical fact that it was carried out by the Japanese military against the will of the victims by force or lure during the war.

The Japanese side on the one hand juggles with words to blur the fact and downplay their guilt and responsibility, and on the other hand said they will stand by the Kono Statement. This clumsy self-contradictory show is put on stage as part of the effort to deny and whitewash its history of aggression in a step-by-step manner. This is despicable and the people of the victimized countries will never allow it.

We once again urge the Japanese side to own up to and show remorse over its history of aggression honestly, make a clear break with militarism, handle the issues left from the past, including the "comfort women" issue in an honest and responsible manner, and win the trust of its Asian neighbors and the international community with concrete actions.

Beijing Youth Daily: On May 10, a GAVI spokesperson said that "GAVI, on behalf of the COVAX Facility, is in dialogue with several manufacturers, including Sinopharm, to expand and diversify the portfolio further and secure access to additional doses". We also noted that lately the US has been calling for waiving intellectual property protection for COVID-19 vaccines while expressing concern that other countries might obtain its sensitive bio-pharmacy technology. Does China have any comment?

Hua Chunying: Vaccines are important weapons to defeat the pandemic. Actions speak louder than words. A Barmecide feast doesn't really help anyone. Vaccines are what developing countries need most urgently.

China was the first to pledge to make COVID-19 vaccines a global public good and it has been honoring this commitment. Back in May last year, China announced that China's vaccines, once developed and deployed, will be made a global public good to contribute to realizing the accessibility and affordability of COVID vaccines in developing countries. That's what we promised and what we've delivered. We've provided vaccine assistance to over 80 developing countries and exported doses to more than 50 countries. We are also working with developing countries through technology transfer and joint production. We would applaud it if other capable nations could race to provide vaccines to developing countries to help the world defeat the virus at an early date.

Xinhua News Agency: Chas W Freeman Jr, former US assistant secretary of defense and a veteran diplomat, published an article on the website of East Asia Forum titled "Washington is playing a losing game with China". He wrote in the article that the US tried to cripple and contain China with an escalating campaign of "maximum pressure". There are US aircraft and ships aggressively patrolling China's borders, but no Chinese aircraft and ships off America's coast. US bases ring China. There are no Chinese bases near America. If the United States persists in confrontation, it will find itself increasingly isolated. The United States must renew its competitive capacity and build a demonstrably better governed, better educated, more egalitarian, more open, more innovative, healthier, and freer society. Obliviously cooperation rather than confrontation is the viable way to this vision. What's your comment?

Hua Chunying: Many people have noted this article by Mr. Chas Freeman. He aptly laid out some basic facts, facts that we know for certain but some in the US deliberately ignore or disregard. In short, China is not a threat to the United States. Instead, the threat is within the United States itself. The US, for quite some time, especially since the previous administration, has been doing everything it can to resort to the threat of force, political isolation, economic sanctions and technological blockade against China, interferes in China's internal affairs on issues related to Hong Kong, Taiwan and Xinjiang and intimidates and beguiles other countries into forming an anti-China clique. Such practice is illegal and immoral, and will not succeed. It will only harm the interests of the US and its people in the end.

The US now begins every conversation with competition and eyes China as a major strategic competitor. As a leading sporting nation and a major Olympic player, the US should have a deep understanding of the Olympic spirit of "faster, higher and stronger". The pursuit of athletes is to constantly improve themselves, outperform themselves and achieve better results, rather than to undercut or maliciously disrupt others, otherwise they will only be sent off for breaking the rules.

China's strategic intent has been open and transparent. We never aim to overtake the US. Instead, our goal is to constantly improve and go beyond ourselves, make sure that Chinese people can live a better life, and that China will contribute more to world peace and development through its own development.

As the world's largest economies, China and the US have highly intertwined interests, and we stand for mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation. Such cooperation calls for mutual accommodation to achieve reciprocal benefit, where there is no room for one to unilaterally impose a list of conditions or requests on another. China will not shy away from competition. However, the competition should be fair and just, and market rules should be followed, instead of depriving other countries of their normal and legitimate right to development by backstabbing or force.

I think Mr. Freeman put it very well. The US should focus on improving its own competitiveness, which can only be achieved through cooperation. We hope that the US government will listen to the just views of visionary people at home and from the international community.

Beijing Youth Daily: We noticed that at a high-level meeting under the theme of "upholding multilateralism and the UN-centered international system" at the UN Security Council, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken acknowledged that US actions in recent years have undermined the rules-based order, adding that the US has already and will continue to engage in multilateral institutions. Do you have any comment?

Hua Chunying: As emphasized by State Councilor Wang Yi at the high-level Security Council meeting, in practicing true multilateralism, we should engage in win-win cooperation, not zero-sum games; pursue equity and justice, not bullying or hegemony; focus on action rather than rhetoric; and respect diversity instead of seeking one's own supremacy. This is the common aspiration of the international community and conforms to the trend of our times.

In the past years, the US followed an "America first" approach, withdrawing from deals and organizations. This has severely undermined multilateralism and undercut UN-centered international system. As admitted by the US State Secretary at the meeting, some of US actions in recent years have undermined the rules-based order and led others to question whether the US is still committed to it.

Recently, the US has said on many occasions it is ready to come back to multilateral institutions and agreements, and fulfill multilateral obligations. However, what we are seeing is the US seeking hegemonism in the name of multilateralism. We hope it can honor words with deeds. Instead of being obsessed with bloc politics and forming exclusive cliques, the US should earnestly fulfill its solemn commitment to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, uphold UN-centered international system and safeguard international order based on international law and honestly practice multilateralism.

The Paper: At the Copenhagen Democracy Summit 2021 held from May 10 to 11, Danish foreign minister denounced as "deplorable" recent sanctions imposed by China against the EU. The event also invited those supporting independence for Taiwan and Hong Kong. Does China have a comment?

Hua Chunying: The so-called Copenhagen Democracy Summit is nothing short of a political farce filled with ideological bias. Its organizer, the Alliance for Democracies Foundation, was sanctioned by China for gravely undermining China's sovereignty and interests through its longtime efforts to spread malicious lies and disinformation. Relevant measures taken by China is necessitated by the need to uphold its interests and come as a necessary, legitimate and just response to unilateral sanctions imposed by the European side against relevant Chinese individuals and entities.

The Taiwan question and matters concerning Hong Kong are purely China's domestic affairs where no foreign government, organization or individual has any right to meddle. We urge relevant countries, organizations and politicians to earnestly respect China's sovereignty and refrain from sending wrong signals to "Taiwan-independence" and "Hong Kong independence" forces.

Since the event is called a "democracy summit", I would like to spend some time talking about democracy. Democracy is a common value of humanity. There are various ways to realize democracy. True democracy must be rooted in the realities of a country and serve its people. The socialist democracy practiced by China is a whole-process democracy and the most representative democracy. It embodies the will of the people, fits the country's realities and is thus endorsed by the people.

The Chinese government puts people front and center. In the face of the sudden onslaught of COVID-19, it put people's life and health first, took the most rigorous control measures and first brought the epidemic under control, making it possible for people to carry on with their life and work as normal. I saw media reports that after going through the epidemic, the Chinese people's trust in the government increased to 98 percent. This is true democracy.

China works to ensure that development outcomes benefit all the people in a more equitable manner. The CPC and the Chinese government serve the Chinese people heart and soul and take people's happiness and satisfaction as their pursuit and the yardstick to measure their work. After over seven decades of relentless efforts, the 1.4 billion Chinese people all shirked off poverty, with no one left behind. All have access to means of subsistence, housing, education and health care. People are able to lead fulfilling lives free from the sufferings of war, conflict, poverty and hunger. This is true democracy.

The Chinese government always solicits people's needs, relies on their wisdom, and enables them to be their own masters. When drafting the 14th five-year plan, the Chinese government, taking into full consideration the role of the Internet today, collected a large number of comments and recommendations from online channels, allowing people to voice their will and appeals. People's affairs are handled by themselves through consultation. This is true democracy.

Democracy is not about throwing a summit and putting forward some slogans, still less should it be used as a political tool to suppress other countries. We hope a handful of European politicians can honor the spirit of democracy and do something real for their people's safety and welfare.

Bloomberg: The AmCham China annual white paper calls on the Chinese government to abandon the use of implicit, unpublished, or internal guidance to replace foreign-made products and services with domestically-made equivalents. Does the foreign ministry have any comment?

Hua Chunying: What you referred to is American Business in China White Paper released by the American Chamber of Commerce in China not long ago. You focus on only one point in this White Paper, but I do think that we should have a holistic view of it.

Let me cite some other points illustrated in this White Paper worthy of attention. China-based US companies see China as among the largest and fastest growing markets in the world and an important market for US products and services, with many leading American companies deriving a substantial portion of their revenue from the China market. China is a key source and supplier of a vast number of quality products and components at low cost, delivering tangible benefits to US producers and consumers. The member enterprises of American Chamber of Commerce in general hold a positive attitude towards China's market growth potential, profit potential and business environment, with 75% American enterprises optimistic about China's economic recovery in the next two years. More than half of them believe that domestic growth of consumption and the rise of well-off middle class in China bring the greatest business opportunity, which is boosted by economic growth and market reform in China. 85% of the American businesses do not plan to move their production of procurement out of China, and two thirds intend to increase investment to China in 2021. 61% believe China will continue to open its market to foreign investment, and half of the companies surveyed point out that business environment in China is improving.

Moreover, the white paper expresses AmCham's opposition to any effort at outright decoupling of the US-China relationship, because the costs of decoupling from losing trade and foreign investment benefits for both countries would be significant and are unlikely to generate clear winners. The American Chamber welcomes China's legislation efforts in Intellectual Property Protection, and deems that China's success in pandemic prevention and control played a significant role in helping the American companies to restore normal operation. In addition, it is the aspiration of more than half of American companies in China that the US Government should stop taking aggressive and tit-for-tat action against China, impose technology export restrictions based on global accessibility and importance of technology only after consulting relevant American and Chinese enterprises, and support and strengthen current protection of the multilateral trade regime to avert protectionism.

You mentioned that AmCham China called on the Chinese government not to replace foreign products with Chinese-made ones. I want to tell you, China has conducted government procurement in accordance with relevant laws and regulations. As long as these laws and regulations are complied with, all producers are treated equally in the procurement processes in accordance with law. All parties are welcome to provide products and services that meet requirements. I would also like to say that China never sets restrictions against any particular country or company, unlike a certain country that abuses the concept of national security and take protectionist and discriminatory measures against certain countries and companies.

I think you may have noticed the just-concluded inaugural China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE). There were 1505 enterprises from 70 countries and regions participating in the expo. The expo's international exhibition area accounted for 75 percent of the total venue area, which covers 80,000 square meters. I think China's successful hosting of the expo under the current circumstances in itself demonstrates our firm determination to further promote high-level opening-up. We welcome foreign companies, including American ones, to explore new opportunities for growth and cooperation in China.

HRTN: It is reported that a ground-breaking ceremony was held recently for the China-assisted 2023 Pacific Games stadium project in Solomon Islands. Can you tell us more about it?

Hua Chunying: On May 5, the China-assisted 2023 Pacific Games stadium project in Solomon Islands marked a ground-breaking ceremony. Solomon Islands' Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Home Affairs and other senior officials attended the ceremony. The stadium is the first large-scale complete plant project to be built through cooperation since the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Solomon Islands. Against the backdrop of COVID-19, China overcame many difficulties including those caused by the suspended transportation, worked actively to find solutions, and managed to kick-start the project in a smooth manner as scheduled. After completion, the project will act as a strong guarantee to the 2023 Pacific Games to be hosted by Solomon Islands, and play a positive role in promoting local economic and social development.

Since the establishment of diplomatic ties in September 2019, under the guidance of the important common understanding between the two leaders, China-Solomon Islands relations witnessed rapid growth, with increasing political trust, booming communication and exchanges across the board, and deepening friendship between the peoples. This project is a vivid epitome to show how the rapidly growing bilateral ties are delivering benefits to the local people. This concrete outcome shows that the establishment of diplomatic ties serve the fundamental and long-term interests of the two countries and two peoples.

China Review News: The New York Times recently published an article saying that China is creating an alternative to a global news media dominated by outlets like the BBC and CNN, and to insert Chinese money, power and perspective into the media in almost every country in the world. The article cited a report that is set to be released on May 12 by the International Federation of Journalists saying that "as the pandemic started to spread, Beijing used its media infrastructure globally to seed positive narratives about China in national media, as well as mobilizing more novel tactics such as disinformation." The article also accused China of cracking down on foreign correspondents inside its borders, denying visas to American reporters. Do you have any response?

Hua Chunying: I saw this NYT article. The report it cited hasn't been released, so I will refrain from detailed comments. But the part concerning positive narratives about China sounds like recognition for Chinese media workers.

Based on what you mentioned about the NYT report, I will make some initial responses.

First, the world is a diverse and colorful place. In the media sector, instead of having CNN and BBC only, countries should all have their own voices. China has an uninterrupted civilization that dates back over 5000 years ago. Today, China is the world's second largest economy and the biggest developing country with 1.4 billion people, nearly one fifth of the world's total. Of course we should have and we deserve a place in the international media landscape.

Second, by abusing discourse hegemony, the US has launched a disinformation attack on China under the pretext of media freedom. In the meantime, the US is letting ideology override the principles of objectivity and authenticity and justifying its political manipulation of cracking down on Chinese media through denigration. Such moves are barely-veiled media hegemony or discourse hegemony. In the face of lies and rumors to smear and attack China, it is only natural to make our own voices heard. China explained truth and facts on many important issues including COVID-19 to leave an objective and right collective narrative and memory for mankind. This is what we call a responsible attitude from a responsible country.

Third, the Chinese people honor credibility, which is important to who you are and what you do. We also believe that people should not do to others what they do not want others to do to themselves. Chinese media make coverage in an objective and never concoct or disseminate disinformation targeting other countries. I have noted that the US Senate Foreign Affairs Committee passed the Strategic Competition Act of 2021, which authorizes $300 million to be appropriated for each fiscal year to "counter the malign influence of the Chinese Communist Party globally". If you bear this figure in mind, then the anti-epidemic supplies China offered to some media agencies are basically nothing, not even bordering influence, infiltration or propaganda.

Fourth, due to difference in systems, media outlets in different countries operate in different ways. When evaluating whether a media organization is professional, the most important thing to refer to is whether it abides by journalism ethics of being objective and just in its reporting. The Xinhua News Agency is a world-renowned agency with nearly 90 years of history. Following customary operation rules, it provides authoritative and professional news service to global users. Its cooperation with other news agencies is no different from that of AP, Reuters, AFP, Kyodo with others. No one can deprive Chinese media like Xinhua their right to exchange and cooperation just because it is from China, a socialist country. Accusing Xinhua of engaging in exchange and cooperation with other agencies based on this alone is some sort of ideological bias and political discrimination.

Following the logic in the report, Chinese media including like Xinhua and China Daily are owned by the Chinese government and serve the interest of the 1.4 billion Chinese people. Then, perhaps CNN and other media owned by monopoly private capital serve the interest of a few or interest groups. Can we come to this conclusion?

German author reveals the relationship between Western media, governments and capital in a recent book The Hypocritical Superpower: Why we need to step out of the United States shadow. You will find it a good read.

The NYT article mentioned that China provides reports in Italian to Italian media and others. Translation is provided to help foreigners including journalists better understand what's said in Chinese and to facilitate communication. We use simultaneous interpretation at our regular press conferences here. And we often send replies in English via WeChat and Fax to foreign correspondents at their request, which they always welcome. If the governments of the US, the UK and other countries are willing to provide responses and reports in Chinese, we would certainly welcome it instead of seeing it as infiltration, propaganda or influence.

Fifth, it is a complete distortion of facts to accuse China of suppressing foreign media and denying US journalists visa. The fact is that since 2018, the US has indefinitely delayed or denied visa approval for 20 Chinese journalists. It designated US-based Chinese media as "foreign agents" and "foreign missions", expelled 60 Chinese journalists in all but name, and limited visas for Chinese journalists to a maximum 90-day stay. That means they have to apply for an extension every three months and pay $490 for it each time. The visa extension applications submitted by Xinhua New Agency's and People's Daily's correspondents in early November 2020 haven't been approved yet. Following the US rules, they have stopped working since early February. The Xinhua correspondent was forced to return to China on May 1. Besides, many Chinese journalists whose applications were finally approved found that when the notice came, the validity period was almost up, which means they had to start a new round of application right away. All these have put US-based Chinese journalists in great uncertainty and severely affected their work and life. You may ask yourselves, how have you been treated in China? If China were to treat foreign journalists like the US, how would you feel?

China has no other choice but to make necessary and legitimate responses to the wanton US suppression. We exercised the utmost restraint and has not yet retaliated against the US measure to slash Chinese journalists' visa stay to a maximum of 90 days. After the outbreak of COVID-19, we did what we could to overcome difficulties and help China-based American journalists and their families stranded overseas to return to China. Even though the US refuses to grant Chinese journalists visa extension, we still offer support and assistance to American journalists working in China like all foreign journalists. Their reporting here has not been affected at all. On the visa issue, the overwhelming majority of the nearly 500 foreign journalists in China hold press cards with a validity period of one year. The facts are crystal clear and I hope relevant journalists can all look at this rationally.

Associated Press of Pakistan: According to Indian media reports, last week, Indian authorities seized over 7kg radioactive uranium in Maharashtra Pradesh. They also arrested a man who was trying to illegally sell uranium. I wonder if you have any comment on that?

Hua Chunying: Nuclear terrorism is a real security challenge faced by the international community. Governments have the responsibility to step up regulation on nuclear materials, combat nuclear smuggling and ensure nuclear security. We call on all countries that are not members to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) to join it, subject nuclear materials to IAEA safeguards, in order to enhance nuclear security, prevent proliferation, and make due contributions to international peace and security.

HRTN: On May 10, Iran's Foreign Ministry confirmed for the first time that Iran and Saudi Arabia held talks. Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said at a daily briefing that the talks are aimed at discussing bilateral and regional relations. What's you comment?

Hua Chunying: We welcome this. China is happy to see relevant countries have communication and dialogue to improve relations, which is conducive to regional peace and stability.

Phoenix TV: As WHA registration closed yesterday, Taiwan said it didn't get an invitation and claimed that suppression by the mainland led to the result. Taiwan's foreign affairs authority called the mainland's position on proper arrangement for Taiwan's participation in WHO a lie and accused the mainland of misquoting UNSCR 2758 and relevant WHO resolution. Does the foreign ministry have any comment? My second question is, the Central American country Honduras that has no diplomatic ties with China is planning to acquire Chinese vaccines through neighboring El Salvador, which established diplomatic ties with China in 2018. Do you have any comment?

Hua Chunying: On your first question regarding Taiwan not receiving an invitation to the 74th session of the WHA. There is only one China in the world. The participation of China's Taiwan region in activities of international organizations, including the WHO, must be handled in accordance with the one-China principle. This is a key principle established by UNGA Resolution 2758 and WHA Resolution 25.1. The DPP authority, since coming to power in 2016, has been insisting on the "Taiwan-independence" separatist position and refusing to acknowledge that the mainland and Taiwan belong to the same China, which has depleted the political foundation for the region's participation in the WHA. The DPP authority knows only too well that it caused the current situation where Taiwan couldn't attend the WHA.

Taiwan compatriots are our siblings. The Central Government of China takes all necessary measures to guarantee the health and welfare of our compatriots in Taiwan. After COVID-19 broke out, the Central Government of China invited health experts from the Taiwan region, before inviting anyone else outside the mainland, to visit Wuhan, Hubei Province to see the situation on the ground. We shared 52 epidemic-prevention documents with Taiwan in 13 batches and updated it on the latest information for multiple times, including information on Taiwan residents infected in the mainland. We also notified it in particular of the information of the genome sequencing and routes to obtain relevant genome sequencing that the mainland shared with WHO. By May 10, the Central Government had given the Taiwan region 259 updates about the COVID-19 outbreak. In March this year, a cross-strait virtual seminar on prevention policies and experience-sharing was held to share technical experience.

Based on the one-China principle, the Central Government of China has made appropriate arrangements for Taiwan's participation in global health affairs. According to incomplete statistics, since 2020, health experts in Taiwan have participated in 16 WHO technical activities. There is an International Health Regulations Contact Point in the Taiwan region. Taiwan also has an account to log onto the WHO event information website and has timely access to WHO information on public health emergencies through the website and the daily updates. It can also report incidents to the WHO in a timely manner. With the approval of China's Central Government, the WHO Secretariat notified health experts in Taiwan three times of information about COVID-19. Taiwan has also joined COVAX. Experts in the region attended multiple times WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization meetings and got timely and full access to COVID-related information.

The DPP authority hypes up the so-called WHA participation issue with the true intention of seeking independence by taking advantage of the epidemic. We firmly reject it. As has been proven time and again, the one-China principle is the overwhelming trend of the international community with broad support. The DPP authority's attempts will never succeed. We advise it to stop using the pandemic to engage in political manipulation and stop further humiliating itself.

As to the "misquotation" of UNGA Resolution 2758, how could it be? UNGA Resolution 2758 recognizes the representatives of the government of the People's Republic of China as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations. There is only one China in the world and the Taiwan region is part of China. China's representation at the UN certainly covers the Taiwan region.

Now, coming to your second question. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, China has upheld the vision of building a global community of health for all, and done its best to provide help, support and vaccines to developing countries including El Salvador. The anti-epidemic cooperation between China and El Salvador serves as a model in the region, demonstrating that the one-China principle conforms to international justice and trend of our times. On the basis of the one-China principle, China will continue to conduct practical cooperation across the board with El Salvador and other Central American countries. We are glad to see our vaccines help relevant countries fight the epidemic and protect the life and health of local people.

Bloomberg: Reuters has just reported that Tesla has halted plans to buy land to expand its Shanghai plant and make it an export hub, according to people familiar with the matter, due to uncertainty created by US-China tensions. Does the foreign ministry have any comment?

Hua Chunying: I am not aware of the situation you mentioned.
I hereby inform you that we have a colleague who has impregnated a girl from Beni, outbreak manager Mory Keita wrote to Yao. Keita told Yao a young woman and her aunt had come to Benis Hotel Okapi looking for WHO managers, with two armed police officers. The womans aunt said the young woman had been having an affair with Ngandu and was now pregnant.

They asked WHO to cover the cost of the womans medical costs and for money to buy land, given that Dr. Jean-Paul will abandon the girl and she will be obliged to raise her child alone.

Keita said he felt that Yao should be informed so that you would give us your directions for how to better manage this problem.

One week after the email was sent, Ngandu signed a notarized contract confirming he would pay the young woman $100 a month until her baby was born, cover her pregnancy costs and buy her a plot of land. Keita and Achile Mboko, a WHO human resources staffer, signed as witnesses.

Ngandu said he wasn't the father of the baby and the deal was a private matter. He said he agreed to it after his WHO colleagues, including Keita, advised me to settle out of court to avoid sullying the reputation of the organization and myself. The young woman declined to talk to the AP.
In a few days, the UN General Assembly will issue its annual gesture of support for Castroism, as the overwhelming majority of the body will, again, approve the document that the Cuban Government regularly presents to condemn the "Yankee blockade."

This diplomatic condemnation would lack importance if it were not for the fact that it does bolster the Cuban regimes claims that the misery on the island (wrought by its economic model, and the suppression of the people's political and economic rights) is due to the fact that it is "under siege."

This posture of victimhood is advantageous to Castroism, even though the arguments that support its propaganda are as facile as the minds at which they are directed, the fundamental theses being: it is a blockade, it is illegal, and it is immoral.

Blocking: etymologically, to block is to prevent the normal functioning of something by placing obstacles impeding it. Thus, any obstacle to trade and emigration could be considered a "blockade", in which case, as all the countries around the world have controls on trade and emigration, it would follow that all are both blockade victims and blockade imposers.

Of course, no one questions the right of a country to regulate its relationship with others. Selective border controls based on the nationality of the people arriving, and tariffs directed against a specific nation, or a given product, are standard practices. It is the sovereign competence of each country to define the extent to which it wishes to interact with others.

Despite this, the Cuban government claims to suffer from a qualitatively different situation, alleging that the United States has it surrounded.

Cuba did suffer a siege, but that was in 1962, when Fidel Castro turned the island into the equivalent of a Soviet nuclear aircraft carrier. A fleet with American and Latin American ships then blockaded it, isolating it from the world by air and sea until achieving the withdrawal of the missiles installed by the Communist power.

Of the more than 22,000 days that Castroism has endured, only those historic 13 days in October featured a blockade/siege - barely 0.057% of its existence. It hardly seems that this infinitesimal period can justify the current country's current ruin.

The reasons for how Washington regulates its relationship with Havana aside, the real question is whether it has the right to maintain a good relationship with the country, or no relationship at all. Castroism itself has severed all relations with various countries on more than one occasion.

In reality, Cuba trades with the whole world, including the United States, without any siege preventing it from doing so. Of course, in each case it must follow the rules imposed by its counterpart, which is only natural. What blockade are they talking about, then?

Illegal: the first thing to understand is that the set of laws that make up "the blockade" does not prohibit Cuba from doing anything. Rather, the laws limit the relationships that US companies and nationals can have with the country. Thus, in any case, it would be up to the Americans to determine the legality of those laws.

The fact that Americans cannot travel to Cuba without a special permit is not a blockade. When Cubans could not travel anywhere in the world without a permit from the Castro government - which still prevents many citizens from travelling - it never occurred to anyone to claim that Cubans were blocked from the world.

The reality is that the huge corporations that have received multimillion-dollar fines for breaking these laws, even with the best law firms at their disposal, have never argued in their defense that they are illegal or unconstitutional. This is, clearly, de facto recognition of their legality.

In any case, if Cuba really believes that these laws unfairly affect it, why doesn't it file a complaint directly against the US Government? It could appeal to a local court using one of the many agents it has living within the monster. It could also go to the International Criminal Court, as Venezuela and Iran recently did. Why does Cuba only turn to the UN General Assembly, where the legality of these laws is not discussed at all? Does Cuba fear that a real legal verdict would take the wind out of the sails of its media circus and spurious justifications?

Immoral: the argument must not be ruled out, a priori. There may be something immoral about the American legislation, which seeks to affect an enemy government by having a direct impact on the country's population. It is particularly problematic when the enemy government is a dictatorship, such that the population - at least the vast majority - is a victim, and not an accomplice of it.

But Washington faces a dilemma: refuse to collaborate with a dictatorship to accelerate its fall, even if the people suffer as a result, thus seeking the long-term good; or think in the short term and, to alleviate the people's current situation just a little, collaborate with that dictatorship and, thus, probably, perpetuate it in power.

Both options can be morally condemned, but they can also be morally justified. But, what justification does Castroism have for being a dictatorship?

What is inadmissible is that the party that is directly responsible for the appalling situation of the Cuban people accuses on that, in any case, might be indirectly responsible.

But, for the sake of argument, let's place ourselves in Castroisms shoes and accept that "the blockade" is a form of political blackmail that seeks to break Cuba's will.

It is obvious that "Cuba" does not have will; only the people have will. Those who govern each country are those who have will; in the Cuban case, as it is Castroism that governs, the blackmail is not against Cuba, but rather against Castroism.

And it is not a blackmail of the type that says "do what I tell you or I will torture you" (as those who rule Cuba do not suffer, even minimally, the ravages of the "blockade"), but rather "do what I tell you or I will torture your children."

To what extent does responsibility lie, then, with the blackmailer, and to what does it lie with the intransigent "father?" At what point did Castroism's saving face become more important than Cubans' well-being?

By its own logic, Castroism has decided to allow the Americans to torture the Cuban people, for 62 years.

The final conclusion is simple: there is no blockade. Cuba trades with whoever it wants to, just like any other country around the world.

Indeed, there is a set of laws in the US, a sovereign country, tending to regulate its relationship with another country, but these laws do not attack Cuba. Rather, they only prevent it from benefiting from US assets, which is something completely different. And the legality of these laws has never even been questioned, even by Castroism.

The morality of a relationship between a democracy and a dictatorship is always questionable, being based exclusively on mutual interest. The United States decided that it can live without Cuba, and it is not its fault that, after 62 years of Castroist nationalism, the island today needs the United States more than ever.
Formidable, warm and empathetic, Dr Marie Cassidy's face is well-known to us all after two decades as State Pathologist. In the first instalment of 'Dr Cassidy's Casebook' on Monday night, we were treated to a behind-the-scenes look at her career via three cases of murder that required forensic detective work to reveal the truth.

Dolores McCrea

The difficult cases often proved the most difficult and disturbing. In 2004, the body of Dolores McCrea was discovered after a fire at her home in Donegal. The fire had burned the body so badly that the cause of death could not be established. "A good pathologist knows when they are out of their depth and need help," says Cassidy.

Help arrived in the form of Lorraine Buckley, Forensic Anthropologist. Buckley pieced the bone fragments that were found at the scene together "like a jigsaw". The fragments enabled a forensic dentist to formally identify the body as Dolores McCrea, and tar on her pelvis indicated that the body had been put into the fire, rather than it happening accidentally.

Buckley says that she felt she was doing a service for O'Shea in her work. "As I was putting her back together I felt that I was restoring some dignity back to her."

After working with such horror every day, Cassidy says that she learned coping mechanisms. Filling her head with 'nonsense' like Coronation Street every evening, and a book before bed, enabled her to remove reminders of her working day and allow her to sleep.

I was always the only female in the room



What an exceptional woman.



Thank you Dr Cassidy. #DrCassidy pic.twitter.com/xAg60yH7qF  Linda  (@lindaosull88) May 10, 2021

What's clear throughout Dr Cassidy's Casebook is that being female is not what Cassidy wants to be on her epitaph. "I was often the only woman in the room," she says, but she did not feel put upon. It has always been about the job and doing it well. "It matters not a whit to me, who did it and why they did it. thats for someone else to make that decision. I want to know who this person is and what they died of."

Sharon, Zara and Nadia Whelan

While Dr Cassidy now lives in London with her husband in order to be as close to her grown-up children as possible, the weight of the job dictated that she juggled work and home life significantly.

She dedicated her recent memoir to her family, saying "This might explain all those times when I was not there. Sorry."

Speaking openly in the programme, she says that the only thing she struggled with in terms of the role of State Pathologist was being on-call because receiving a telephone call always meant bad news.

On Christmas Day 2008, Cassidy was alerted of the deaths of Sharon Whelan and her daughters Zara (7) and Nadia (2) in a fire at their homes in Kilkenny. What was initially considered a terrible accident soon became a murder investigation.

"I remember going 'oh' and nobody likes it when I go 'oh'. When I stop smiling, there are problems."

Sharon Whelan had been strangled by her husband and her daughters had died of carbon monoxide poisoning. Cassidy is teary-eyed as she remembers the case.

"How on earth could you ever be justified in killing two little children?"

Manuela Riedo

17-year-old Swiss student Manuela Riedo was raped and murdered in Galway in 2007. "It was obviously very clear, because of the state of the body and the state of undress, that this was a sexual crime - and that was going to be of prime importance because again sexual crimes leave traces."

From the discovery of Manuela's body, the emphasis for Cassidy and her team was on the preservation of the scene. Cassidy outlines in detail the steps taken to ensure a swift cause of death and as a resulting profile of what kind of a person could have committed this crime.

For two weeks Manuela's parents sat in court listening to the evidence that would eventually convict Gerald Barry of the rape and murder of their daughter. "To sit and listen to the details of what happened to your beautiful daughter, it must be like a knife through their heart... I'm always taken aback by families because I always think, what state would I be in if it were my daughter?"

This is worth watching for many reasons, but especially for Dr. Cassidy & her team's balance of professionalism, humanity & respect towards the parents of the late Manuela Riedo #DrCassidy https://t.co/xrVxm2f8AO  Gerry Hoban (@ramblinghobo) May 10, 2021

Dr Cassidy's Casebook is compelling viewing. There is an obvious draw for fans of crime novels and forensic psychology, but for the rest of us, it gives reassurance that these people who act as caretakers for those of us who meet our end in dire circumstances do so with kindness and empathy. Manuela Riedo's parents gifted Cassidy with a porcelain figurine to remind her of 'their angel.'

"When I'm working and I'm focused, I'm contained. But once you see the effect that a death has had on the family, I'm just like everyone else. you just want to give them a hug and say 'there, there, there."
[May 11, 2021] TPG Invests in Ideal Image, North America's Leading Aesthetics Brand

TPG Growth, the middle market and growth equity platform of alternative asset firm TPG, today announced that it acquired a significant minority stake in Ideal Image, North America's leading aesthetics brand that is making personal aesthetic and wellness services more affordable, accessible, and effective than ever before. Ideal Image will continue to be majority owned by L Catterton, the world's largest consumer growth investor. Additional terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Ideal Image is a direct-to-consumer aesthetic brand with a mission to help people look and feel their best. Powered by its national tele-consultation platform, clients can conduct free virtual consultations from anywhere and receive services at any of Ideal Image's national point of care centers across its rapidly growing network in North America. Ideal Image's team of over 800 specialists are committed to delivering clients real life-changing results by offering a variety of FDA-cleared aesthetic treatments, including laser hair removal, body sculpting, Botox, anti-aging services and medical grade skin care. Ideal Image is a division of Steiner Leisure Limited. "We are proud to have the backing of industry leading growth investors," said David Prokupek, CEO of Ideal Image. "We continue to enjoy the unwavering support of our partners at L Catterton and are excited to welcome TPG Growth's deep capabilities and expertise in the consumer and healthcare sectors. We believe we are transforming the aesthetics and wellness category, and with the support of our existing and new investors, we are moving aggressively to make it more accessible than ever for consumers who want to look and feel their best." "Personal care and beauty services continue to be thematic focuses for TPG Growth, and we are excited to back the leading aesthetics brand in the space," said Heather Smith Thorne, Partner at TP Growth. "Ideal Image's unique tele-consultation experience and broad point of care offering has proven to resonate incredibly well with clients. We can see from the performance of the business that Ideal Image's clients are not only successfully achieving their personal care goals but are also frequently returning to take advantage of the company's other aesthetic and wellness services."



"We are delighted to be joined by TPG Growth at this exciting time for Ideal Image," said Marc Magliacano, a Managing Partner in L Catterton's Flagship Fund. "Ideal Image is disrupting the wellness and aesthetics category as the only scaled national brand and is bringing its medically led solutions to the home in addition to servicing their guests across the largest point of care network in North America. We look forward to collaborating with TPG Growth to advance these growth initiatives." TPG Growth's investment in Ideal Image builds on the team's strategy to invest behind strong brands that create elevated, highly personalized experiences for consumers. Across platforms, select current and past investments by TPG's consumer team include Anastasia Beverly Hills, Beautycounter, Crunch Fitness, e.l.f. Cosmetics, Life Time Fitness, Mendocino Farms, and SmartSweets.

North Point acted as financial advisor to Ideal Image in relation to this transaction. About TPG Growth TPG Growth is the middle market and growth equity investment platform of TPG, the global alternative asset firm. With over $12 billion of assets under management, TPG Growth targets investments in a broad range of industries and geographies. TPG Growth has the deep sector knowledge, operational resources, and global experience to drive value creation, and help companies reach their full potential. The platform is backed by the resources of TPG, which has more than $91 billion of assets under management. For more information, please visit www.tpg.com or on Twitter (News - Alert) @TPG. About Ideal Image Ideal Image is North America's #1 aesthetics' brand, making personal aesthetics and wellness services more affordable, accessible, and effective than ever before. Ideal Image believes "confidence changes everything," and its mission is to help people look and feel their best by taking a holistic, personalized approach to health and wellness that works from the inside out. Ideal Image offers a full suite of FDA cleared medical aesthetic and wellness treatments, all backed by a Lifetime Guarantee Membership. With an industry-leading national telehealth platform, consumers receive free virtual consultations seven days a week from 9am to 9pm and treatments at any of Ideal Image's rapidly growing point of care network across North America. Ideal Image's team of 800+ Medical Professionals deliver real life-changing results, having performed over 20 million FDA cleared aesthetic treatments including laser hair removal, body sculpting, Botox and fillers, medical-grade skincare, and skin rejuvenation services. The company is headquartered in Tampa, Florida. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005738/en/

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A hot potato: The 5,500-mile Colonial Pipeline has been offline for the last four days, after a ransomware attack compromised its computer network. DarkSide, an Eastern European group of cybercriminals believed to be the authors of the attack, posted a statement on the dark web noting that its sole goal is money, with no connection to geopolitical interests and no intention of "creating problems for society."

Recently, the main fuel supply line serving the US East Coast was shut down after its operator suffered a security breach in its digital infrastructure. The Colonial Pipeline stretches for over 5,500 miles to provide around 45 percent of the fuel needs of the region, which makes this potentially the largest successful cyberattack on US infrastructure to date.

The company says it shut down the main part of the pipeline as a precaution, while it only brought "smaller lateral lines between terminals and delivery points" back up. A third party security firm was hired to investigate the incident, and preliminary findings point out to ransomware attack that affected Colonial's business computer systems. The attackers have encrypted almost 100 gigabytes of data from the Georgia-based company and are threatening to release it to the public if it doesn't pay the ransom.

Today, the FBI confirmed suspicions that a group of Eastern European cybercriminals calling itself DarkSide is behind the attack, noting "we continue to work with the company and our government partners on the investigation." At the same time, the hacker group posted a statement on the dark web explaining that its one and only goal is to make money, and that it's not tied to a "defined" government or political entity.

Interestingly, the group also explained that it has no intention of "creating problems for society," which is an understatement of the ruckus created through the disruption of almost half the supply of gasoline and diesel fuel to the US East Coast.

And while it wouldn't say how much it demanded in ransom money from Colonial, it did claim that it has breached more than 80 companies since August 2020, after previously extracting millions from individuals.

The most peculiar part of DarkSide's statement is where the group promises to introduce a moderation process into its workflow in order to "avoid social consequences in the future."

Boston-based security firm Cybereason told CNBC that DarkSide is a "ransomware as a service" provider that tries to project the image of being ethical, with clear rules of conduct that are against attacking medical and educational institutions, government agencies, and even non-profit organizations -- especially if they're located in former member countries of the Soviet bloc. The group even claims to donate portion of its profits to charity.

Colonial doesn't say if it will pay the ransom, but the company is optimistic about its goal to "substantially restore operational service by the end of the week." The Biden administration has issued an emergency declaration in 17 states and Washington DC in an effort to keep deliveries going and help Colonial return to normal operations as soon as possible.

In other news, Axa SA, one of the biggest insurance companies in Europe, announced that it will stop offering policies that cover ransomware payments in France, which could encourage more insurance companies to follow suit.

This probably shouldn't surprise anyone, considering the recent surge in ransomware attacks on companies big and small, including computer manufacturer Acer and game publisher CD Projekt Red. It's estimated that in 2020, over 41 percent of cyber insurance claims came from ransomware, with damages totaling more than $20 billion, almost double the amount estimated for 2019.

The number of ransomware attacks has increased by an order of magnitude in the last twelve months, but at least there's been a decrease in ransomware payments as more victims refuse to pay. Today's news is, perhaps, the best reminder to always create multiple backups of your important files and exercise maximum caution when receiving suspicious emails or invitation links on messaging platforms.
The Dragon Again four-year-old horse Gray Dragon, in career form, gained into a :26.2 last quarter to overhaul 2019 Meadowlands Pace winner Best In Show in 1:49.2 in one of three $15,300 featured contests Tuesday afternoon at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono.

Mark MacDonald sent Gray Dragon right to the lead early, encouraging other leavers to tuck. He then ceded command to favoured Best In Shadow when that one, favoured in his 2021 debut, brushed to command past the :27 quarter. Best In Show (whose dam, Put On A Show, was in the news today as she was sold after being bred to Tall Dark Stranger to a Hunterton Farms-based group) put up good mid-race fractions of :54.4 and 1:23, and then really turned on the afterburners in the lane. Gray Dragon had an even higher gear, coming his last eighth likely better than :13 to go by the pacesetter by a half-length. John Butenschoen, the hottest of trainers at Pocono lately, has found the key to this one for Emerald Highlands Farm.

In the feature event for distaff pacers, Marsala Hanover, a winner of over $275,000 at two, made a successful seasonal bow for driver Scott Zeron and trainer Linda Toscano with a 1:52.2 victory. The daughter of Captaintreacherous came uncovered past a soft half, but she paced her own back half in :55 to win impressively for the Let It Ride Stable Inc., Bottom Line Racing LLC, South Mountain Stables, and Little E LLC.

In the trotting section of the days features, Papi Hanover was hard-used to make the lead, but then had a great view from the two-hole as Rose Run Vincent went by and hung favoured Cant Say No in a vicious duel. Papi Hanover then came back in the Pocono Pike for driver Fern Paquet Jr. to win a five-horse blanket finish in 1:54.3, a new mark. The altered son of Explosive Matter scored the 18-1 upset for trainer Karen Fread, who is also co-owner with Randy and Michael Toth and James Mims Jr.

A huge early-season clash among the horses in the sports glamour division, the three-year-old colt pacers, will take place at Pocono on Sundays twilight card, with three divisions of Pennsylvania Sire Stakes action and seven sections of Stallion Series racing. Among the stars coming to Pocono are the undefeated Perfect Sting, last years two-year-old champion making his seasonal debut here; Summa Cum Laude, who dead-heated for the win with Perfect Sting in the Breeders Crown last year; Southwind Gendry, a head behind the dead-heaters and a 1:49.4 winner in the first Sire Stakes prelim at The Meadows; and One Eight Hundred and Gamblin Mo, both of whom won in 1:50.1 here in Pennsylvania All-Stars action this past Saturday.

(PHHA / Pocono)
The Texas House on Thursday voted to financially penalize the state's largest cities if they cut their police budgets.

House Bill 1900 comes after a year of civil rights advocates calling on cities to reduce what they spend on policing and to reform police behavior. Those calls were spurred by high-profile deaths at the hands of police like George Floyds in Minneapolis and Mike Ramos in Austin.

READ MORE: Houston police department has new reform policies. Here's what they entail.

Among Texas' largest cities, only Austin cut its law enforcement funding last year, though almost all of that decrease came from an accounting shift of money that still allows traditional police duties to remain funded, but potentially in different city departments. Still, the city's response to some activists' calls to "defund the police" prompted harsh and immediate backlash from Republican state leaders, who have pointed to fast-rising homicide rates throughout the state and country as a reason to maintain police funding levels.

Gov. Greg Abbott became laser-focused on Austins budget and backing the blue, making legislation to punish cities that decrease police funding one of his emergency items this year.

On Thursday, after two hours of heated debate, HB 1900 was preliminarily approved on a 91-55 vote. It still needs a final vote on the House floor before it can move to the Senate. The Senate's related bill, which would require an election before cities could decrease police funding, passed out of the upper chamber last month.

HB 1900 was authored by Republican state Reps. Craig Goldman, Will Metcalf, Greg Bonnen and Angie Chen Button and Democrat Richard Pena Raymond. If a city with more than 250,000 residents was determined by the governor's office to have cut police funding, the bill would allow the state to appropriate part of a citys sales taxes and use that money to pay expenses for the Texas Department of Public Safety. Such cities would also be banned from increasing property taxes or utility rates, which could have been used to compensate for the reapportioned sales taxes.

The bill does allow cities to cut police department budgets if such a decrease is proportionally equal to an overall city budget decrease. Cities can also get approval to cut police budgets if expenses for one year were higher because of capital expenditures or disaster response. The bill would also let neighborhoods annexed in the last 30 years to vote to deannex themselves from a city that has decreased funding to its police department.

As municipalities across this nation are defunding their police departments, are taking money away from the police budgets and putting them elsewhere in their city budgets, this bill makes sure that in the state of Texas, that is not going to be allowed, Goldman, a Fort Worth Republican, said on the House floor Thursday.

State Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, however, argued that lawmakers speaking about the bill had failed to address "the elephant in the room."

"This summer we saw protests in the streets, we also saw elected officials decide to make decisions because of police brutality," she cried. "We refuse to improve policing in this state. Instead, we attack those who are trying to take care of our citizens."

READ ALSO: Texas officials say murder conviction for George Floyd's death 'is only one step' in police reform

She denounced the Legislature for failing to move the Texas George Floyd Act, a sweeping set of reforms on police behavior and accountability which has stalled. The House and Senate have each passed standalone bills on individual proposals within the omnibus bill, like restricting police chokeholds and barring arrests for fine-only traffic offenses.

Several other Democrats offered amendments to add exceptions for when a city could cut police department funding. State Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer of San Antonio offered leniency so city council members wouldn't opt against a necessary increase in police funding for fear they could not turn it back the next year. Last week, Austin's state Rep. Eddie Rodriguez moved to eliminate the 250,000 population bar which Democrats argued only punished larger, more liberal cities. And state Rep. Jarvis Johnson of Houston filed multiple amendments, including to not punish cities for cutting civilian positions within law enforcement agencies. He said Houston Police Department has more than 1,200 civilian jobs, including janitors and other positions he listed off.

At any given time that Houston Police Department decides we no longer need a car attendant, we no longer need a car attendant supervisor, we no longer need a truck driver, we no longer need a typist, that does not mean that the city of Houston has decided to defund the police, he said.

The amendments failed, as the Democrats denounced what they called partisan rhetoric and a move for state control over large cities.

Raymond, however, the Democrat joint author on the bill from Laredo, defended HB 1900. He said raising funds is how we improve other functions, like education and health care.

"You invest more in training our law enforcement officers, not less," he said. "Thats how you make it better."

Leaders from some of Texas biggest cities have declared that they are against the bills, including Austin interim Police Chief Joseph Chacon. He said there are instances where local governments need to increase funding on other services or initiatives and that wont always negatively impact police departments.

These decisions must be made at the local level by our community when and to the degree needed to help build and maintain trust, Chacon said at the bills committee hearing.

In Austin, the police departments total funds were slashed by a third last year, but only about 7%, or $31 million, was cut immediately and instead put toward other public services, like housing and mental health. The rest of the money was put into transitionary funds to shift some police duties into civilian city jobs and evaluate if more responsibilities could be transferred in the future. Since then, the City Council has moved the citys crime lab, along with its funds, out of the police department.

GOODBYE: Farewell to Art Acevedo, the LeBron James of performative self-promotion

Republican lawmakers have linked Austins policies to an increase in crimes, but experts have pointed out that during the last year crime rates have increased across the country, including in some Texas cities like Fort Worth which have increased police budgets. And Austin police officials have noted that rising homicide rates started before any budget discussions, similar to nationwide crime trends.

Two weeks ago, the Senate approved Senate Bill 23, authored by state Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, which would require cities or counties to hold an election before reducing police funding. That bill was first heard, but not voted on, in the House State Affairs Committee Thursday morning. Civil rights advocates and city leaders have criticized the proposals, arguing that local governments should be in charge of these budgetary decisions.

Nick Hudson, policy and advocacy strategist with American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, argues that HB 1900 is the most aggressive of bills proposed against cities and that it would leave the power to penalize local governments on an office directly under supervision of the governor, rather than with voters, like SB 23 does.

The measures related to annexation and tax rates are really some of the most punitive among the bills that seek to punish cities for reducing law enforcement budgets, Hudson said. It is unusual that Texas House would want to give the governor more power, after they expressed concern about the governor's handling of federal COVID relief money.

Police union leaders have supported the bill, saying that reducing funding makes their work more difficult.

What you're actually doing is causing officers to do twice as much or a lot more than what they were doing before, Chris Jones with the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas said during the committee hearing of the bill. I know this is kind of a controversial topic, but we think it's important to understand that there's going to be crime and there's going to continue to be needs  You're not going to have a civilian be able to go in and break a bar room fight.

Jones also supported the idea of putting this to a vote, as SB 23 proposes, saying that it will allow citizens to have a say.

The Texas Tribune is a nonpartisan, nonprofit media organization that informs Texans  and engages with them  about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.
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Delivered strong results with an Adjusted EBITDA improvement of 9% year-over-year

HOLLYWOOD, FL, May 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Healthier Choices Management Corp. (OTC Pink: HCMC) today announced its financial results for the three-month period ended March 31, 2021.

First Quarter 2021 Results and Highlights:

Net sales from operations amounted to approximately $3.5 million, down 14% from the same period last year; a significant portion of the decline related to last Marchs COVID-19 sales surge in the grocery segment.





Total operating expense was approximately $2.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2021; a decrease of 15%.





Net loss from operations was approximately $696,000; a 1% decline from the prior year.





Adjusted EBITDA loss amounted to $394,000, an improvement of approximately 9% when compared to the same period last year.





Jeffrey Holman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Healthier Choices Management Corp., said, We are pleased with our first quarter results which reflect the normalizing of sales and the increasingly improving momentum of our operating cost reductions.

Mr. Holman concluded, We continue with our commitment to better the fundamentals of our operations. The progress made is largely attributable to simplifying our structure and sharpening our focus, and we believe that the our businesses are well poised to continue delivering operational improvement.

About Healthier Choices Management Corp.

Healthier Choices Management Corp. (www.healthiercmc.com) is a holding company focused on providing consumers with healthier daily choices with respect to nutrition and other lifestyle alternatives. Through its wholly owned subsidiary HCMC Intellectual Property Holdings, LLC, the Company manages and intends to expand on its intellectual property portfolio. The Company currently operates eight retail vape stores in the Southeast region of the United States, through which it offers e-liquids, vaporizers and related products. The Company also operates Adas Natural Market, a natural and organic grocery store, through its wholly owned subsidiary Healthy Choice Markets, Inc. and Paradise Health and Nutrition, stores that offer fresh produce, bulk foods, vitamins and supplements, packaged groceries, meat and seafood, deli, baked goods, dairy products, frozen foods, health & beauty products and natural household items through its wholly owned subsidiary Healthy Choice Markets 2, LLC. The Company also sells vitamins and supplements on its website TheVitaminStore.com. The Company markets its Q-Cup technology under the vape segment. This patented technology is based on a small, quartz cup called the Q-Cup, which a customer can purchase already filled by a third party in some regions, or can partially fill themselves with either cannabis or CBD concentrate (approximately 50mg), also purchased from a third party. The Q-Cup can then be inserted into the patented Q-Unit, which heats the cup from the outside without coming in direct contact with the solid concentrate. This Q-Cup and Q-Unit technology provides significantly more efficiency and an on the go solution for consumers who prefer to vape concentrates either medicinally or recreationally. The Q-Cup can also be used in other devices as a convenient micro-dosing system. These products are available on the Companys website at www.TheQcup.com.

Forward Looking Statements.

This press release contains forward looking statements within the meaning of that term in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934). Additional written or oral forward looking statements may be made by the Company from time to time in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or otherwise. Statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts are forward looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and are based on management's estimates, assumptions and projections and are not guarantees of future performance. The Company assumes no obligation to update these statements. Forward looking statements may include, but are not limited to, projections or estimates of revenue, income or loss, exit costs, cash flow needs and capital expenditures, statements regarding future operations, expansion or restructuring plans, including our recent exit from and winding down of our wholesale distribution operations. In addition, when used in this release, the words "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "expects," "intends," and "plans" and variations thereof and similar expressions are intended to identify forward looking statements.

Factors that may affect our future results of operations and financial condition include, but are not limited to, fluctuations in demand for our products, the introduction of new products, our ability to maintain customer and strategic business relationships, the impact of competitive products and pricing, growth in targeted markets, the adequacy of our liquidity and financial strength to support its growth, and other information that may be detailed from time-to-time in our filings with the SEC.

Contact Information:

Healthier Choices Management Corp.

3800 North 28th Way, #1

Hollywood, FL 33020

Office: 305-600-5004 / Fax: 954-272-7773

Website: www.HealthierCMC.com

Email: ir@hcmc1.com



Results of Operations

The following table sets forth our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three-months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020:

HEALTHIER CHOICES MANAGEMENT CORP.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(UNAUDITED)

Three Months Ended March 31, 2021 2020 Total sales, net $ 3,465,753 $ 4,036,171 Total cost of sales 1,975,043 2,328,280 GROSS PROFIT 1,490,710 1,707,891 Total operating expenses 2,022,883 2,372,381 LOSS FROM OPERATIONS (532,173 ) (664,490 ) Total other expense, net (164,085 ) (26,804 ) NET LOSS FROM CONTINUING OPERATIONS $ (696,258 ) $ (691,294 )

See non-GAAP financial measure discussion

Three Months Ended March 31, 2021 2020 Adjusted EBITDA Loss from operations $ (532,173 ) $ (664,490 ) Depreciation and amortization 136,597 147,834 Stock compensation 1,875 81,944 Adjusted EBITDA $ (393,701 ) $ (434,712 )





Consolidated Balance Sheets



The following table sets forth our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets for the periods ended March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020:

HEALTHIER CHOICES MANAGEMENT CORP.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

March 31, 2021 December 31, 2020 (UNAUDITED) ASSETS CURRENT ASSETS Cash and cash equivalents $ 5,316,169 $ 925,475 Other current assets 2,044,226 2,081,717 TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS 7,360,395 3,007,192 Other assets 6,625,142 8,867,801 TOTAL ASSETS $ 13,985,537 $ 11,874,993 LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY CURRENT LIABILITIES Other current liabilities $ 2,157,750 $ 5,654,096 TOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES 2,157,750 5,654,096 Other liabilities 3,779,746 3,963,529 TOTAL LIABILITIES 5,937,496 9,617,625 TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY 8,048,041 2,257,368 TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY $ 13,985,537 $ 11,874,993

Non-GAAP  Financial Measure

The following discussion and analysis contains a non-GAAP financial measure. Generally, a non-GAAP financial measure is a numerical measure of a companys performance, financial position or cash flows that either excludes or includes amounts that are not normally included or excluded in the most directly comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Non-GAAP financial measures should be viewed as supplemental to, and should not be considered as alternative to, net income, operating income, and cash flow from operating activities, liquidity or any other financial measures. Non-GAAP financial measures may not be indicative of the historical operating results of the Company nor are they intended to be predictive of potential future financial results. Investors should not consider non-GAAP financial measures in isolation or as substitutes for performance measures calculated in accordance with GAAP.

Management believes stockholders benefit from referring to the Adjusted EBITDA in planning, forecasting, and analyzing future periods. Management uses this non-GAAP financial measure in evaluating its financial and operational decision making and as a means of evaluating period to period comparison.

We define Adjusted EBITDA as net loss from operations adjusted for non-cash charges from depreciation and amortization and stock compensation. Management believes Adjusted EBITDA is an important measure of our operating performance because it allows management, investor and analysts to evaluate and assess our core operating results from period to period after removing the impact of significant non-cash charges that effect comparability between reporting periods. Our management recognizes that Adjusted EBITDA has inherent limitations because of the excluded items.

We have included a reconciliation of our non-GAAP financial measure to loss from operations as calculated in accordance with GAAP. We believe that providing the non-GAAP financial measure, together with the reconciliation to GAAP, helps investors make comparisons between the Company and other companies. In making any comparisons to other companies, investors need to be aware that companies use different non-GAAP measures to evaluate their financial performance. Investors should pay close attention to specific definition being used and to the reconciliation between such measures and the corresponding GAAP measure provided by each company under applicable rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Denton, TX (76205)

Today

Cloudy skies with periods of rain late. Thunder possible. Low 69F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies with periods of rain late. Thunder possible. Low 69F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%.
Italian fishing boat attacked by Turkish vessel Rocks hurled at the Italian boat in international waters

(ANSA) - ROME, MAY 11 - An Italian fishing boat based in the Sicilian port of Mazara del Vallo came under attack from a Turkish vessel in international waters some 27 miles off the Turkish coast, the owner told ANSA on Tuesday.



The boat came under a barrage of rocks and other objects, said the owner, Luciano Giacalone, who went to the Italian authorities to report the attack after being in contact with the captain The incident comes after the captain of another Italian fishing boat was injured last week when the vessel came under fire from the Libyan coast guard while in the southern Mediterranean.



"The European Union must tell us once and for all where we should go and fish," Giacalone said.



"We are ruined". (ANSA).




Health workers and volunteers in personal protective suits wait to receive patients outside a COVID-19 hospital set up at a Sikh Gurdwara in New Delhi, May 10. AP-Yonhap



A COVID-19 variant spreading in India, which is facing an explosive outbreak, appears to be more contagious and has been classified as being "of concern", the World Health Organization said Monday.



The UN health agency said the B.1.617 variant of COVID-19 first found in India last October seemed to be transmitting more easily.



"There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility of the B.1.617," Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO's lead on COVID-19, told reporters.



"As such, we are classifying this as a variant of concern at the global level," she said.



She also pointed to early studies "suggesting that there is some reduced neutralization", meaning that antibodies appeared to have less impact on the variant in small-sample lab studies.



The WHO insisted though that it was far too early to interpret this to mean that the variant might have more resistance to vaccine protections.



"Based on current data, the COVID-19 vaccines remain effective at preventing disease and death in people infected with this variant," it said in a statement.



More details would be provided about the variant in the WHO's weekly epidemiological update on Tuesday, Van Kerkhove said.



India, suffering from one of the worst outbreaks in the world, reported nearly 370,000 fresh infections and more than 3,700 new deaths on Monday.



The devastating wave has overwhelmed India's healthcare system, and experts have said the official figures for cases and fatalities are much lower than the actual numbers.



It has for some time been feared that B.1.617  which counts several sub-lineages with slightly different mutations and characteristics  might be contributing to the alarming spread.



But until now, WHO has listed it merely as a "variant of interest".





Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organization's (WHO) lead on COVID-19, attends a news conference organized by Geneva Association of United Nations Correspondents amid the pandemic at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, July 3, 2020. Reuters-Yonhap
May I suggest putting the subject of relationships and sexuality education online with the emphasis on follow-up class discussion, debate, and conclusion? The main block with this subject is the level of secrecy and lack of opportunity for current, open discussion in society generally about these private topics  consent, relationships, pornography.

If there were an online programme designed per class year (as is being done through Covid times for every other subject) by the Department of Education in consultation with other concerned professionals, one that teachers could easily access, it might help normalise the content and ensure all students in the country get the same best practice based on best available knowledge at this time. And later, follow up with regular reviewing and updating, year on year.

Most parents, never mind teachers, are not up to date with best practice so why should it be put on the teachers lap to teach something in school that is happening in society at large and not in the actual school itself?

The content is well-intended  knowledge is power, forewarned is forearmed, or can be  but is relying on the academic setting of the school the best place/context to set this subject in? It has always been such a hot potato in regards to timing vs maturity. There is no easy answer, of course, but standardising the presentation, in my opinion, would be a start. There are many excellent young actors who could get the message across in a speedy, targeted, and direct way.

I wonder how other European countries go about teaching it? Which European country, or any country worldwide, does it best? Could a panel of students be involved in compiling this data to help revise and drag the curriculum into a more effective and efficient sense of focus? Why should there be so much nervousness and drama about this subject when a well-designed online course presentation could cut out all the heart palpitations on teachers parts when they reach that time of the year in their plan.

Normalising the discussion on these topics needs and deserves a seismic change in leadership and my hope would be that all students in this country would feel they are getting the same standard of education in this topic as their European counterparts. Enabling students to feel empowered to talk openly about their feelings, both positive and negative, regarding relationships, sexuality, and the mostly negative impact of porn would be equipping them with the best education possible for their lifelong emotional lives and their mental health generally.

I would like to see non-teachers making the online course in consultation with teachers  for example, trustworthy media personalities to whom pupils can relate.

But the real deal is getting to the point beyond where the students learn best practice and get a chance to discuss it, finding and using their own voice as an empowering, decision-making part of their integrated identity. Firm boundaries are only established by open discussion.I think the theory on these subjects is straightforward enough but to help equip students with finding their voice to talk about it.

Cultural change is hugely difficult and slow and perception is more powerful than truth.

Why cant Ireland be the best country in Europe or globally to teach relationships and sexuality education? And as the saying goes, why cant we all generally grow up and get over ourselves? The answers for this one lie with the students. It is their world they are growing up into, and their challenges, not ours  the least we can do is provide the space for moving on the cultural context of a discussion on this subject. Ask them! Mol an oige!

Lucia Sweeney

Adelaide Square

Whitefriar St.

Dublin 8

Vaccine process does the jab!

Having successfully received my two anti-Covid jabs at CIT in recent months, I feel it necessary, and a pleasure, to say congratulations to the HSE for the sheer quality of the planning, organisation, and implementation of the process.

The car parking attendants were helpful and happy in their work, and made everybody feel good before entering the hall to face the needles. These are members of our society who are rarely, if ever, up in lights.

Entering the Inner Sanctum of De Jab, one was treated again to courtesy and smiles before we met our fate in the arms at the hands of the best GPs in the world.

The caring staff in the waiting zone helped elderly people, like myself into and out of our chairs, and wished us good health.

The happy car park attendants were still on duty and waved me on my way.

Ray Cawley

Douglas

Cork.

SF housing minister is very impressive

It has been positively sad reading the correspondence from young people killing themselves to buy a home . The simplistic solution would be massive support for Sinn Fein whose housing minister is very impressive in opposition. The Kenny report (1973) recommended a cap on the value of land acquired for housing  a max of 25% above the agricultural price. That and building on government land and including NAMA holdings would be a start and affordable houses could be produced at cost irrespective of who builds them. Before I would be prepared to vote for Sinn Fein, I would need an assurance that they would immediately introduce the recommendations in the Kenny report, commandeer all State land, and start building on day one. If they cant, I would have reservation about how any of their proposals would actually work.

Michael Foley

Rathmines

Dublin

Afghan men bury a victim of a bombing on Saturday near a school, west of Kabul, Afghanistan. The Interior Ministry said the death toll in the horrific bombing at the entrance to a girls' school in the Afghan capital has soared to some 50 people, many of them pupils between 11 and 15 years old. Picture: AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib

There are no borders

A few days ago at least 50 people were killed by a car bomb in Afghanistan, most young female students.

It hardly made the headlines. If this was the US or England, there would be uproar. But its just Afghanistan and thats life, we think.

Look at the horror in India with Covid.

Isnt it time we all wake up to violence in this world, to both humans and animals?

Donate, volunteer, email, march.

I know many do. But the majority tend to just complain  about the weather, queues, traffic, work.

It is vital we all become more positive, present, and loving.

It all starts with ourselves. Change yourself, and you change the World. There are no borders.

We are all one.

Ted Cronin

Ballinorig

Tralee.

Please be for accessibility

Access to toilets is no trivial matter (Corks English Market traders kick up stink over public toilet plans, Eoin English, Irish Examiner, May 10). In fact, it can make all the difference to people trying to live a full, active life, accessing goods and services in their locality or just being able to meet friends and interact socially.

Cork city centre has been bereft of a public toilet since the demise of the Grand Parade facilities several years ago. This is thankfully being prioritised by our council now.

As a mother and a person with ulcerative colitis, I would ask my fellow Leesiders to support the work of the council in finding solutions to our citys toilet challenges.

If you are thinking of opposing these actions, I would like you to ask yourself a few questions: Are you for disabled people?

Because the lack of toilets in the city disables people. Are you for families and older people visiting the city and your business?

Because some people must go when they need to go: they cant wait.

Are you for businesses? Because the lack of toilets, coupled with Covid-19 and queueing, means people are planning their trips around not drinking fluids and racing back home to their own toilet. If they cant spend a penny, they wont be spending a cent in your establishment or any others.

Out-of-town shopping centres offer these essential facilities, our city-centre does not.

Decrying the death of the high street while opposing services that make it accessible and attractive, rings hollow.

Please be for something, please be for accessibility and public toilets, at the very least. After all, it is in your own interest as a business.

Orla Burke

South Parish

Cork City

Looking forward to hugging it out

I am so glad our vaccine rollout is coming on track, at last, otherwise, I would have to emigrate for a hug.

Eve Parnell

James Street

Dublin 8
The family of MLA Martina Anderson have launched a stinging attack on Sinn Fein on social media for "publicly humiliating" her.

Ms Anderson, a former IRA prisoner and current MLA for Foyle, was asked to stand aside from her role in the party last month alongside fellow MLA Karen Mullan. Both women have confirmed they will not seek re-election.

The party instigated a long investigation into election success and governance in the local comhairle ceantar last year, which culminated in the entire leadership of the group being asked to stand aside.

The news came as a "body blow" to Ms Anderson, she said, confirming the story last week.

Tonight, a Facebook post, penned by Ms Anderson's sister, with 36 others tagged in the post, many of whom are relatives of the women, called on Sinn Fein to reverse the decision.

"For the Sinn Feins national leadership to carry out a review in Derry and to listen to the views of some people, and then to conclude that a lifelong republican who has, we believed, made a difference in Derry .. not to forget the fact that shes someone who has given everything that is possible to give to the struggle other than her life, should stand down for problems that were not of her making, is a far cry from the ethos of republicanism," the post reads.

Martin McGuinness

"We Andersons believe if Martin Mc Guinness had been alive he would never have allowed this disgraceful tactic to be deployed.

"We believe Martina and Karen are being sacrificed by the party, used by this SF leadership because Martina and Karen are the public face and are being castigated in an attempt to win back support.

The Facebook post went on: "This SF National leadership Review that was done in Derry resulted in a massive miscarriage of justice: they came into Derry to fix problems and left creating more.. as people are rightly disgusted at seeing a life long dedicated republican being thrown under a bus for problems that she had neither art nor part in.

"The Anderson Family is calling on our wider republican family in Derry and indeed beyond to reject the way this SF leadership has publicly humiliating our sister Martina and Karen."

Sources in Derry Sinn Fein have confirmed there has been much division within membership over the decision to remove the women, specifically Ms Anderson, who was previously seen as "untouchable" to republicans.

A Sinn Fein spokesperson said: Sinn Fein carried out a party review in the Foyle constituency. An electoral strategy group is now overseeing preparations for the Assembly elections. Karen Mullan and Martina Anderson have indicated that they will not be running again for re-election.

Martina Anderson has been asked to comment.
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A doctor with apparent ties to Clovis is among those facing charges in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Kenneth Kelly, 58, made his first federal appearance in front of a federal judge April 21 after turning himself in. He faces charges of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.

Prosecutors did not ask U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia M. Faruqui to detain Kelly, who was released on his own recognizance.

His next hearing is set for Monday morning via Zoom before U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly.

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There is no specific information in the charging documents that identify Kelly as a doctor who served the Clovis area, but an online search of email addresses listed for Kelly in the charging documents leads to profiles describing Kelly as an internal medicine specialist in Clovis with affiliation to Plains Regional Medical Center in Clovis and Trigg Memorial Hospital in Tucumcari.

In response to an inquiry from The News about Kelly, PRMC Administrator Jorge Cruz said, Plains Regional Medical Center uses a vendor for some clinical services in our emergency department. This physician was an employee of that vendor, and the last date he worked was in March 2020.

A representative for Presbyterian Healthcare Services declined to say whether Kelly, the former Clovis doctor, is the same person charged in the Capitol attack.

An email sent by The News to the address in the charging documents was not returned.

According to court documents:

The FBI National Threat Operations Center received a tip from a relative of Kelly alleging he broke into the Capitol on Jan. 6 and drove from his home in Florida to Washington, D.C., knowing full well they were going to break in. The informant did not believe Kelly participated in violent acts, and there is no allegation of such activity in the charging documents.

Subsequent interviews resulted in screen captures of photos of Kelly in the Capitol building and text messages noting, Inside White house via breaking in windows, and, Tree of liberty was watered today!

Another screen capture showed a picture with the text, Patriots stormed the White House, broke in while Senate was debating Arizonas presidential election results. The(y) were hiding under their desks. Forced into recess. Patriots took back our capital today.

A Jan. 21 review of closed-circuit television footage provided by U.S. Capitol Police showed a man resembling Kelly entering the Senate Wing Door about 3 p.m. Jan. 6.

A search warrant served on Google for a device associated with Kellys email address showed presence in the Capitol between 2:56 p.m. and 3:09 p.m. The Google account associated with the email address had a recovery phone number matching one provided to the FBI by the relative.
A murder suspect in Texas who was out on bail has been taken back into custody after neighbours called the police to alert them to a pet tiger wandering around a Houston neighbourhood.

When officers arrived on Sunday, the man put the Bengal tiger in an SUV, and drove off, police said.

Victor Hugo Cuevas, 26, now faces a separate charge of evading arrest, police said.

The tiger is still on the loose.

Footage shared on social media appeared to show a tiger on the leafy suburban streets.

Houston Police confirmed that Mr Cuevas had been arrested for evading arrest - but added that they did not know where the tiger was.

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Police Commander Ron Borza told reporters on Monday that the main concern had been finding both Mr Cuevas and the animal: "We have plenty of places we can take that tiger and keep it safe, and give it a home for the rest of its life.

"A lot of time, people get desperate and do silly things. We want to get him and get the tiger to a safe place."

Mr Cuevas' lawyer, Michael Elliott, said his client was not the owner of the tiger or taking care of the animal. He said his client was not guilty of any crime.

Tigers are not allowed within Houston city limits unless the handler, such as a zoo, is licensed to have exotic animals, police said.

Mr Borza said residents should not have such animals because they can be unpredictable.

"If that tiger was to get out and start doing some damage yesterday [on Sunday], I'm sure one of these citizens would have shot the tiger. We have plenty of neighbours out here with guns, and we don't want to see that.

"It's not the animal's fault. It's the breeder's fault. It's unacceptable," he said.

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The operator of a former pharmacy in southern West Virginia has agreed to pay a $250,000 fine to settle federal allegations that it illegally filled prescriptions of controlled substances
Sicilian cultural festival Le Vie dei Tesori returns Weekends in September and October, 400 places to rediscover

(ANSAmed) - PALERMO, 11 MAG - The programme for this year's "Le Vie dei Tesori" Sicilian festival of cultural heritage is nearing completion, with eight weekends across September and October for rediscovering the beauty, culture and history of the island.



This year, the festival enters its 15th edition, and the dates of the festival were announced on May 10 as part of a meeting at the BIT international tourism trade fair in Milan, which took place this year in a virtual edition, as last year.



Participants in the virtual meeting on May 10 included Sicily regional tourism councillor Manlio Messina, education councillor Roberto Lagalla and cultural heritage councillor Alberto Samona; as well as the Le Vie dei Tesori Foundation President Laura Anello and some administrators from cities that will participate in the festival.



"Le Vie dei Tesori has managed to defy Covid and is our hope for the future, for the relaunch of tourism," Messina said. "We are expecting many tourists this summer, and Le Vie dei Tesori will be one of the initiatives that we will focus on the most," he said.



"Culture means development and economy, to rethink our urban centres and our parks, in view of growth and planning," said Samona.



"Once again this year thousands of high school and university students will be able to collaborate in the great and colourful experience of the Vie dei Tesori," Lagalla said.



"For them it will be a growth opportunity and a look towards the future for those who wish to work in tourism," he said.



"Le Vie dei Tesori has always been the demonstration of a community that is taking back its heritage, getting to know its history through places and experiences," Anello said.



"We are certain this year can truly be an occasion for collective revival," she said.



This year's festival will include more than 400 places. During the three weekends September 11-26, featured locations include Bagheria, Termini Imerese, Trapani, Mazara del Vallo, Marsala, Enna, Caltanissetta and Noto.



Across five weekends from October 1-31, featured locations include Palermo, Catania, Ragusa, Scicli and Sciacca. (ANSAmed).




Wildlife violations reduced in Hue, Quang Nam and Danang

At least 86 per cent of advertisements for illegal wildlife products in hotels, restaurants, bars, pet shops and herbal medicine shops in Thua Thien-Hue, a Nang and Quang Nam were removed by local authorities in 2019 and 2020.













An expert from a Nang-based Douc Langur Foundation and local rangers release an Asian water monitor to nature after being rescued from captivity.  Photo courtesy of Douc Langur Foundation

A survey from the Education for Nature Vietnam (ENV) was recently released from a wildlife violation reduction campaign that took place at 1,369 sites in the three localities in 2019 and 2020.



ENV said a Nang had the highest rate with 94 per cent of violation cases successfully dealt with, while Thua Thien-Hue and Quang Nam followed with 88 per and 77 per cent, respectively.



It said 81 restaurants and herbal medicine shops out of 1,369 sites had made wildlife-related violations, 5.9 per cent, lower than the figures in Hanoi (11 per cent) and HCM City (8 per cent).



Wildlife-related crimes agencies in the three central localities had effectively punished and seized wildlife products in 23 of total 38 violation cases, saving 27 living animals from restaurants and pet shops.



ENV also said wildlife-related crime agencies had received 51 calls from local residents on wildlife violations in the localities in 2019 and 2020 and 49 cases were then arrested or destroyed, saving living animals in 22 of 38 cases.



The successful prevention of wildlife violations in the region resulted from the efforts of wildlife-related crime agencies during the two-year campaign.

a Nang was the first city in central Vietnam to launch the campaign Say No to wildlife consumption.



a Nang's location and traffic connections make it a hub of wildlife trafficking routes from the Central Highlands region to northern provinces.



Thua Thien-Hue, a Nang and Quang Nam are the richest biodiversity sites in Vietnam with two conservation centres of saola  the Vu Quang ox, spindlehorn, or Asian bicorn, the saola  one of the worlds rarest large mammals found only in the Truong Son Mountain Range of Vietnam and Laos.



The region is home to the national parks Bach Ma in Thua Thien-Hue and Song Thanh in Quang Nam Province, while a Nang has Son Tra and Ba Na-Nui Chua reserves with the largest population of the endangered red-shanked douc langur in Vietnam.
Local News, Crime, Press Releases

By Chris Boyle Published: May 11 2021

Defendant arrested by SCPD in sting operation after traveling to victims house in Suffolk County.

Suffolk County District Attorney Timothy D. Sini and the Suffolk County Police Department have announced the indictment of a Texas man for allegedly stalking an East Islip woman he met online and for the criminal possession of a loaded weapon upon his arrest.

This is a highly disturbing case, and it highlights a common thread we see in many of our cases in which offenders initiate contact with victims over social media under the guise of friendship and end up causing them harm in some way  whether its through harassment, like in this case; sextortion; or even rape, District Attorney Sini said. This is a good reminder that people need to be extremely cautious about the people they are communicating with online, and I urge any residents receiving threatening or concerning messages to report it to law enforcement. Thankfully that is exactly what the victim in this case did and the Suffolk County Police Department was able to intervene and apprehend this individual.

I would like to commend the departments Third Precinct Crime Section and the District Attorneys Office for this arrest that finally put an end to the months-long daily harassment by Khan, Suffolk County Police Commissioner Geraldine Hart said. Thankfully, during a meeting Kahn thought he was having with the victim, he instead met with our officers who seized a loaded firearm from his vehicle.

Adil Khan, 25, of Austin, Texas, is charged with Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, a class C violent felony; Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree, a class D violent felony; Aggravated Harassment in the Second Degree, a class A misdemeanor; and Stalking in the Fourth Degree, a class B misdemeanor.

Khan initially contacted the victim via Instagram in August 2019 and communicated with her over social media as well as on the phone until December 2019, at which time the victim asked him to stop contacting her. Khan allegedly continued to contact the victim until his arrest on April 3, 2021, sending hundreds of messages a day to her using fictitious accounts on various social media apps and frequently sending her more than 100 text messages in a single day. On one occasion, the victim allegedly received approximately 50,000 social media and text notifications in a single day from Khan.

Khan allegedly sent her numerous messages including statements telling the victim to kill herself, as well as messages purportedly from other individuals that she had caused Khan to die by suicide.

After the victim changed her phone number in 2020, Khan allegedly used social media to contact the victims friends and family members and offer them up to $500 in exchange for her new phone number.

On April 3, 2021, the victims mother found a handwritten note on the victims car, which was parked in the driveway of her home in East Islip, that said Do I have your attention now? Khan then sent the victim a message on Instagram that said, Did you get the card on your windshield wiper? He later sent another message asking the victim if she would like to meet in person.

The victim contacted the Suffolk County Police Departments Third Precinct, whose Crime Section organized a sting operation in which Khan believed he was meeting the victim at the parking lot of a Boston Market located in East Islip. Khan was arrested upon his arrival at the arranged location and law enforcement recovered a loaded 9 mm handgun, a loaded high-capacity magazine, and a box containing additional ammunition for the handgun in his vehicle.

Khan was arraigned on the indictment by Suffolk County Supreme Court Justice Richard Horowitz and bail was set at $25,000 cash, $50,000 bond, or $100,000 partially-secured bond. The Court also imposed GPS monitoring and ordered Khan not to return to New York except for court dates, if he posts bail. Khan is being represented by Paul DEmilia and is due back in court on June 7.

If convicted of the top count, Khan faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Anne E. Oh, of the Enhanced Prosecution Bureau.


Marine Life Center Representative PT 15 hours a week $14/HR. Closes 5/31/21 at 8AM BASIC FUNCTION: Assist with daily operations and maintenance of the Ports Marine Life Center. Support animal care, display collection and educational programs. Schedule and host community groups for tours and educational opportunities. The Manager of Marinas or the Community Outreach Supervisor will approve recommended operating and staffing procedures. ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE, but are not limited to: a) Provide quality customer service to Marine Life Center patrons and community members by providing regular and dependable center hours. b) Maintain a clean and safe environment for customers and wildlife. c) Accurately complete related paperwork and steps for facility operations. d) Duties include ensuring that center equipment for the facility is available and in good working order. e) Maintain animal display collection by (but not limited to): a) Species targeting and collection b) Reintroduction of the display animals to the native environment c) Exhibit and habitat maintenance d) Display (tank) maintenance f) Provide a high level of overall customer experience by providing visitor greeting and informational services, assist in developing visual learning displays and designing exhibits. g) Support mobile education outreach presentations to enhance community outreach. h) Continually strive to operate the Marine Life center in a way that enhances the Ports budget neutral financial goal, protects port equipment/facilities, & maximizes the potential for successful events. i) Other duties as assigned. May be asked to rotate as back up to other facility coordinators in the Community Outreach Department. Qualifications EDUCATION AND TRAINING AA degree in an applicable field preferred. Equivalent experience and education may be considered. EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS Two years of experience providing excellent customer service. Requires the ability to successfully work with a high degree of flexibility and patience, as well as, the ability to work with individuals from diverse backgrounds. Requires excellent skills in public relations and handling complaints. Communicate effectively and represent the port in public relations/liaison capacity on matters relating to community outreach. Must be self-motivated and be able to effectively work in a self-managed work team environment. Center hours and community outreach events are often scheduled nights and weekends. Must be willing to work flexible hours. Must be able to lift and move some equipment. Miscellaneous Information APPLICATION PROCESS Application materials are available at www.portofbellingham.com, or by contacting the Port of Bellingham at 1801 Roeder Avenue, Bellingham, WA. All application materials are due at 8:00 a.m. May 31, 2021. Interested individuals must complete the standard application form. Applicants are also encouraged to submit a letter of interest and/or resume which highlights the nature and extent of relevant education/training, employment history, and specific examples of job related experience. All applicants will be reviewed and evaluated against the requirements of the position and the field of candidates. The top-qualifying candidates will be called for further evaluation and/or interview. The Port of Bellingham is an Equal Opportunity Employer. GENERAL INFORMATION: The provisions of this bulletin do not constitute an expressed or implied contract. Any provision contained herein may be modified and/or revoked without notice. The Port of Bellingham is an "At-Will" employer. Filing of Application: Carefully read the announcement bulletin on the first page (attached); note the minimum qualifications required and application instructions (e.g., resume, cover letter, supplemental application). It is to your advantage to show all relevant education and experience. An application form is required, personal resumes may be attached to the employment application but will not be considered in lieu of the application. Closing Date: Applications may be filed in person, by mail or on-line. If mailed, they must be received by the closing date shown on the announcement. Postmarks will not be accepted. All applications must be returned to the Port of Bellingham, 1801 Roeder Ave., Bellingham, WA 98225 by 5:00 p.m. January 20, 2020. Applicants with Disabilities: As provided for under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), the Port will provide reasonable accommodation during an examination or testing process to candidates who request assistance. To request assistance, contact the Human Resources Department at 360-676-2500. EMPLOYEE BENEFITS Paid Leave: PTO and holiday provisions are provided through Port policy. Currently, regular Port employees receive 10 paid holidays per year. PTO accrual rates are increased at regular intervals based on length of Port service. Retirement: Regular full time employees of the Port are mandatory members of the State of Washington Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS). Employees and the Port contribute jointly to the plan. The Port also offers a 457 deferred compensation plan for interested employees. Group Insurance: Regular full-time employees and their eligible dependents are covered by medical/dental/life & long-term disability insurance plans. Premium expenses are shared by the Port and the employee. Employees are covered by the State Industrial Insurance Act. EMPLOYMENT Hours of Work: The normal workweek is 40 hours, Monday through Friday; however, some positions require weekend, shift, holiday and/or overtime work. The Port of Bellingham is committed to a smoke free environment. Job candidates must be able to operate effectively in this work environment. Applicants who are offered employment will be required to provide proof of U.S. citizenship, permanent residence status or employment authorization, and proof of identification (photo I.D.). This requirement is the result of the Federal Immigration Reform and Control Act.

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MADRID - The Superior Justice Court of Navarra, a region in the north of Spain, rejected the application of a nightly curfew for health reasons, judging the restriction "disproportionate", said Spanish media. The regional administration of Navarra said the measure was needed to keep a curfew in place after the national state of emergency expired on May 9.



Other regional courts in Spain made similar decisions.



The nightly curfew is still in place only in the Balearic Islands and in the Valencian Community, following judges' approval.


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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.

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Its great to hear that they want people to be able to retrain, but where are the jobs that people need, the good-quality jobs, not just the jobs, but the good-quality jobs that allow people to earn decent money to look after their families? Lisa Nandy, Labours spokeswoman on foreign affairs, told the BBC.

The legislative program also includes plans for a summit meeting between leaders of the U.K. government and the devolved administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to discuss issues caused by the pandemic. The government also said it would invest in transport links between the U.K.s four nations and reiterated a commitment that all parts of the country would benefit from a 4.8 billion pound fund to improve town centers and local transport projects.

In addition, the government plans to require voters to show a photo ID before they cast their ballots and ban so-called gay-conversion therapy. Though the government pledged to restrict the prosecution of soldiers who served during the conflict in Northern Ireland, it didn't offer legislation to implement the promise.

One of the most controversial elements of the governments program is a crime bill that stalled in the last parliament amid concern that it gave police too much power to restrict public protests.
[May 11, 2021] The IRS Selects TaxBit as Software Partner

SALT LAKE CITY, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The IRS recently selected TaxBit, subcontracting under DPI Inc., to provide data analysis and tax calculation support for taxpayers with cryptocurrency. TaxBit provides tax automation software to enterprises, consumers, and government entities. The IRS Selects TaxBit as Software Partner. TaxBit automates all aspects of cryptocurrency tax compliance and accounting "This is a milestone moment for the cryptocurrency industry. It indicates regulators are embracing the asset class, but doing so in a way that ensures a straightforward approach to conform with existing regulations. We believe this is an important step for the enablement of widespread cryptocurrency adoption." Austin Woodward, Co-Founder and CEO of TaxBit. TaxBit's platform has produced and helped customers file millions of tax forms across the market verticals it serves. TaxBit Enterprise and TaxBit Consumer transform the cumbersome experience of cryptocurrency tax reporting in a way that not only ensures compliance with tax law but also helps users actively tax optimize their investments and use of cryptocurrency.



Tax compliance isn't the only focal point of the company. Working hand-in-hand with several of the leading cryptocurrency platforms, TaxBit is also developing the industry's first Big Four & SEC grade accounting ERP solution that will publicly launch later this year, along with plans for international expansion in 2021. ABOUT TAXBIT

Founded in 2018 by CPAs, tax attorneys and software developers TaxBit automates all aspects of cryptocurrency tax compliance and accounting. Working across multiple market verticals, TaxBit Enterprise , TaxBit Consumer and soon to launch TaxBit ERP transforms the previously cumbersome experience of cryptocurrency tax reporting and accounting in a way that not only ensures compliance with tax law but also helps consumers optimize their investments and use cryptocurrency. TaxBit is located in Salt Lake City, UT. To learn more visit: www.taxbit.com , Twitter , LinkedIn .

CONTACT:

TaxBit

801-332-9105

media@taxbit.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-irs-selects-taxbit-as-software-partner-301288491.html SOURCE TaxBit

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Brattleboro, VT (05301)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms in the morning becoming more widespread in the afternoon. High 89F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms in the evening, then mainly cloudy overnight with thunderstorms likely. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
GAZA - Two Islamic Jihad commanders were killed in an Israeli air force attack on an apartment in a large building in the Rimal neighbourhood of Gaza.



The armed wing of Islamic Jihad identified the victims as Kamel Kuraika and Sameh al-Mamluk.



With them another Islamic Jihad commander, Muhammad abu al-Atta, was seriously wounded.



Atta is the brother of Baha abu al-Atta, who was an Islamic Jihad military leader in the northern Gaza Strip and was killed by Israel in 2019.



Meanwhile the military wing of Hamas confirmed that it suffered casualties in another Israeli attack south of Gaza.

The updated victim toll in Gaza after a day of repeated Israeli attacks is 28 dead and 152 wounded, said the local health ministry.



In response to strikes, Hamas and Islamic Jihad increased attacks against Israel, launching a great volley of rockets towards Ashdod, about 40 km north of Gaza, said Israeli media. They said the city was hit by a veritable barrage of Grad rockets, about 40, in the span of just a few minutes. A building was hit, and the Israeli national emergency service Magen David Adom said two people were injured and five others are in a state of shock. The local population was ordered to go to safe rooms. Thus far there are no reports of victims.

Meanwhile two women died and one elderly man was seriously injured after rockets were launched on the nearby city of Ashkelon, where two buildings were hit, said Army Radio. These are the first Israeli victims since the start of attacks by Hamas.



Israel has called up 5,000 military reservists.



Defence Minister Benny Gantz gave the army the green light for many units, including the Southern Command, the one in direct contact with the Gaza Strip.



"This is to continue Operation Guardian of the Walls and to strengthen the interior front," Gantz said.
Syracuse, NY  A Cicero man seemed to spare an 11-year-old rape victim the trauma of testifying in court when he took a plea deal in 2018 that sent him to prison for 13 years.

But then Paul Meeks, 27, decided to appeal his guilty plea. And he won.

Now, Onondaga County prosecutors say theyre ready to move forward on the case again, unless he pleads guilty for a second time.

County Court Judge Stephen Dougherty -- who presided over the first overturned plea -- expressed confusion as to what Meeks was trying to do.

The whole point of Meekss plea deal was to get a favorable sentence. If he plans to fight the charges, he winds up risking a much longer prison sentence, the judge noted.

RELATED: Cicero rapist gets 1 year in prison for every year victim has been alive

Not only could Meeks face 25 years in prison after trial on a first-degree rape charge, but there were allegations of two rapes, the judge noted. If proven at trial, each rape count could be added up, sending Meeks to prison for up to 50 years.

Prosecutor Megan Peter said the victim and her family were ready to relitigate the case. The first stop would be a grand jury, where the now-teenage girl would have to testify before at least 16 strangers. After that point, prosecutors and judges typically seek a higher punishment if theres a plea.

If the case goes to trial, Meeks could face the maximum 25-year sentence per rape charge, if proven.

The first time around, Meeks -- somewhat reluctantly -- pleaded guilty before a grand jury or trial. Thats why the judge sentenced him to 13 years in prison, far lower than the possible 25-year prison sentence for rape.

An appellate court overturned Meekss first plea on a technicality. The paperwork did not specify which of the alleged rapes he was pleading guilty to, making it insufficient under the law, the court ruled.

On Tuesday, Meekss defense lawyer asked the judge to set bail lower than it had been before his first conviction. Peter, the prosecutor, asked for the same bail as in 2018: $50,000 cash or $100,000 bond.

Dougherty expressed surprise that prosecutors werent asking for even higher bail, considering Meeks first guilty plea and what the judge knew from hearing the case two years ago.

After setting the bail requested by the prosecutor, the judge indicated it would be up to Meeks how he planned to proceed.

Staff writer Douglass Dowty can be reached at ddowty@syracuse.com or 315-470-6070.
The Indian variant of SARS-CoV-2 (B1.617) causes worse lung disease in hamsters than earlier versions of the coronavirus, the Indian Council of Medical Research has said in a new study days after the Union Health Ministry described it as a variant of concern.

Carried out on hamsters, the ICMR study shows maximal body weight loss and higher viral load in animals infected with B1.617, causing pronounced lung lesions in hamsters compared to the B1 variant.

This demonstrates the pathogenic or disease-causing potential of B1.617 in an animal model as the virus has been reported from human samples in at least 17 states and union territories with a significant presence in Maharashtra, West Bengal, Karnataka, Delhi and Gujarat.

Also Read | How to protect yourself against more Covid-19 waves in future

Scientists at the National Institute of Virology, Pune, ICMR headquarters and a couple of other institutes studied the effects of B1.617 variants which have been associated with a surge of cases spreading rapidly not only in Maharashtra but in other states and abroad too.

The variant became known as the double mutant because of two genetic mutations (L452R and E484Q) but subsequently, a third mutation (P681R) was also seen. The tiny genetic changes possibly enhance the virus's transmissibility with the likelihood of escaping the immunity.

The scientists inoculated two groups of Syrian golden hamsters (nine each) intranasally with SARS CoV-2 isolates, B1 (D614G) and B1.617 respectively. The animals were monitored daily for the clinical signs and body weight.

The hamsters infected with B1.617 demonstrated increased body weight loss compared to the B1 variant. Also, they displayed pronounced lung lesions and haemorrhage.

Also Read | India logs over 4,000 new Covid deaths for second day in a row; over 4 lakh new infections

"This study demonstrates B1.617's higher pathogenicity in hamsters, which is evident with reduced body weight, higher viral load in lungs and pronounced lung lesions as compared to B1 variant. It caused pronounced lung lesions demonstrating the pathogenic potential, the ICMR team reported in a paper, which is yet to be peer-reviewed and appeared in a preprint server.

The study comes a day after Public Health England also classified B1.617 as a variant of concern because it was more transmissible. Last week the health ministry too described it as a variant of concern nearly two months after Indian scientists flagged how it was driving the second surge in Maharashtra.

"In some of the districts, B1.617 comprises nearly 60% of all cases, said Shahid Jameel, a senior virologist and head of the Trivedi School of Biosciences at Ashoka University who was not associated with the Indian SARS-CoV-2 genetic sequencing initiative.

Out of the 18,000 plus genetic sequencing of the virus carried out till May 4 by a consortium of 10 science laboratories (INSACOG), more than 1,500 samples carried the double mutation variant.
Amid several countries coming in support of India in this dire time, the neighbouring country of Bhutan has come in support amid COVID-19 crisis. On Tuesday, the PMO stated that a telephonic conversation took place between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bhutanese counterpart, Lotay Tshering and the latter has shown solidarity as India fights the virus battle. Even though Bhutan is dependent on India for resources, the country has assured assistance in this time of need.

India's support to Bhutan in COVID-19 crisis

Earlier in March, India had assisted Bhutan with 4 Lakh Doses Of Covid Vaccine. Bhutan Prime Minister Lotay Tshering, at that time, had expressed gratitude to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi for making the nationwide rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination program available for the Himalayan country.

India has provided nearly 361.94 lakh doses of anti-Covid vials to more than 70 countries. As soon as the vaccine rollout began in India, the country equally supported the international community to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Other countries include Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, South Africa, and Canada. Moreover, Pakistan was also assisted with made-in-India vaccines through Covax.

Around the world support for India

Countries such as the US, UK, France, Canada, Germany, EU had initially announced their plans to assist India in its fight with COVID-19. The UK, in its first shipment, sent 100 ventilators & 95 oxygen concentrators. Moreover, the search engine giant Google and top tech company Microsoft also spoke about helping India with COVID supplies. World organizations such as WHO, UNICEF also dispatched COVID relief materials for India. Meanwhile, Russia, Ireland, and Afghanistan have also announced to help India in the time of need. Canada sent $10 Million To Indian Red Cross to support the COVID fight and more such deployment is expected in the future. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and China had also expressed solidarity with India and offered to support the country fight the crisis. United Nations General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir had described India as the country that did so much for the world and announced to stand in solidarity.

India COVID-19 condition

The second wave of COVID-19 has proved to be deadlier with a shortage of important equipment and rising cases of infection. However, on Monday, after a long period of 2 months, India witnessed a drop in fresh cases with 366,161 fresh infections.
Although the 2022 general election is 19 months away, the battle for one of the least secure seats in Congress has already begun.
[May 11, 2021] Wine Space Creators CellArt Launch World's Most Advanced Wine Space Monitoring System

Named after the 100-eyed, all-seeing giant of Greek mythology, ARGOS, the new wine space surveillance system from CellArt is true to its namesake and the ultimate guardian of wine space collections. Every oenophile knows that the greatest challenge they face is providing the perfect, consistent environment for their wines. Sudden variations in storage conditions can quickly devastate a valuable and treasured lifetime's collection. These changes can be so small they go unnoticed. Following over 7 years of research and development, ARGOS is the ultimate solution for uninterrupted monitoring and the world's most comprehensive wine space surveillance system currently on the market. An aging record and oenophile's guard system, CellArt's ARGOS secured solution is a cloud based mobile internet platform and central hub that controls, protects, monitors, and cherishes your wine space collection. Each ARGOS system has up to 15 independent sensors that constantly monitor he stability of your collection and feed information back to a team of experts and our Master Sommelier, John Szabo. From sound disturbances and earth tremors, to humidity and floods, any outside influence that could possibly affect the well-being of your collection is observed. The slightest change in environment and you will be alerted - wherever you are in the world. Annual reports provide a health check for your collection and ongoing suggestions for adjustments to ensure its safety, always.



A universal remedy that offers complete peace of mind, no system out performs the watchful eyes of ARGOS in preserving the full potential of your wines' splendor and safeguarding its enjoyment for generations to come. Founded in 2013, CellArt is the wine enthusiast's ultimate playground. From the design and manufacturing of dream wine spaces, extraordinary wine cellars, and tasting rooms, to the creation of unprecedented art pieces, limited-edition wine objects, and exclusive and visionary wine events, CellArt is inspired by the very best of what nature and human creativity have to offer. Driven by a passion for Wine and Art, CellArt opens up an exciting new world for the Wine enthusiast and presents a seamless narrative between the two traditions.

Click here to explore the world of CellArt. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210511005666/en/

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Solar Panels are one of the innovations that are being focused on to help reduce energy consumption across the globe. This technology allows people to convert sunlight into electric energy. However, some of the current solar cell products have limitations that prevent its people to use their full potential.

And now, some Australian researchers revealed that the next-gen solar panels can solve the key challenges of operating in high temperatures. They claimed that through new solar cell designs and manufacturing methods, this technology can produce more useful electric energy and have longer life spans.

"The economic value of a photovoltaic installation depends upon both its lifespan and power conversion efficiency," said the involved researchers.

"Progress toward the latter includes mechanisms to circumvent the ShockleyQueisser limit, such as tandem designs and multiple exciton generation (MEG)," they added.

How Efficient are the New Solar Panels?

In the new study titled "Singlet Fission and tandem solar cells reduce thermal degradation and enhance lifespan," which was published by the Progress in Photovoltaics journal, the UNSW Sydney researchers explained that the new solar panels could achieve lower operating temperatures.

Also Read: Turning Sahara Into a Massive Solar Farm May Not be Good for the Earth, Scientists Find Evidence

This capability allows the solar panels to maintain higher efficiencies and reduce heat-related degradation.

Thanks to this innovation, the new solar panels are expected to last longer than the current solar cells offered by various manufacturers.

The Australian scientists explained that they were able to do this after creating a combination of two features. These are specifically the so-called singlet fission technique and the tandem solar cell production.

What are Tandem Solar Cells?

According to Renew Economy's latest report, tandem solar cells consist of two different kinds of solar cells. They are positioned on top of each other. A common example of this technology is the new perovskite solar cells.

These solar panels are layered on top of a conventional silicon solar cell. Experts said that combining two types of solar panels could convert more sunlight spectrum into electric energy. They added that this method could also boost the entire efficiency of the energy converter technology.

You can click here for more details.

For more news updates about next-gen solar panels and other new related technologies, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.

Related Article: Experts Claim Perovskite Solar Cell Innovation Could Lead to More Efficient and Cheaper Solar Panels

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Written by: Griffin Davis

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Breakthrough Leader: Jay Pinckney

Marine science professor Jay Pinckney has spent his career doing what he loves

Growing up in Orangeburg, South Carolina, Jay Pinckney spent a lot of time in the outdoors, hunting and fishing with his father. By the time he was in the eighth grade he knew he wanted to be a marine biologist, part of the generation fascinated by Jacques Cousteaus undersea adventures.

But his ties to the sea go back even further; he is the 13th generation of Pinckneys to grow up in South Carolina. The first Pinckney to settle in the Carolinas was a pirate, arriving in 1692.

Pinckney, a biological sciences professor in the College of Arts and Sciences and director of the Belle W. Baruch Institute for Marine and Coastal Sciences, has kept that connection to the ocean alive as a researcher, teacher and mentor. His has spent his career understanding the complexities of coastal and marine environments.

I have been gifted with the tools and freedom to follow whatever Im interested in. I think thats what makes this job a lot different from everybody elses, Pinckney says. Very few people have true freedom to pursue their interests. Thats what this occupation allows. And Ive really enjoyed it."

After earning his undergraduate and masters degrees at the College of Charleston, Pinckney begin his doctoral work in the late 1980s at the University of South Carolina, spending some of his research time at the Baruch lab on North Inlet, near Georgetown, South Carolina. He remembers visiting the site in the days after Hurricane Hugo struck the coast in September 1989.

Pursue your dreams. Its not always an easy road. But ultimately, youll be a happier and more fulfilled person if you can do that. Jay Pinckney, biological sciences and marine science professor

Anything that was human-built was devastated. But I had never seen the marsh look prettier than it did after that storm. The high water had washed all the mud off the Spartina grass. Everything was a bright green. All the animals were swimming around. It was life as normal, he says. Then you turn your head around to see the lab. It was flattened. Thats a picture that has stuck with me a long time. It was an impressionable moment. Nature has adapted to these events, and we havent.

Hes focused his research on the working of coastal ecosystems, with much of his work in the Lowcountry and Grand Strand of South Carolina, where the Baruch Institute offers the ideal venue for marine scientists to work in a relatively undisturbed ecosystem at North Inlet.

How ecosystems work is interesting from a variety of perspectives. One of those is How do ecosystems respond when you disturb them? (A person) catches a cold and your body responds; the same is true for ecosystems. And understanding those responses is fascinating to me, he says.

The Baruch Institute has been fundamental to Pinckneys career, offering the opportunity to research the healthy North Inlet ecosystem. Seeing what a healthy ecosystem looks like, he says, offers a baseline and lets researchers better understand what happens to a sick ecosystem.

It also has given him the opportunity to work with and mentor students and fellow scientists.

I like for science to be fun. I enjoy assembling a group of really good people who I want to work with who are doing really cool stuff, Pinckney says. Thats a real positive in this job; I have the freedom to do that.

He also enjoys collaborating with other faculty members around the university, including a project he is working on with faculty members Alicia Wilson and Susan Lang. Wilson, director of the School of Earth, Ocean and the Environment, is a hydrogeologist who studies groundwater transport. Lang is a geochemist who studies hydrothermal vents in the deep ocean.

I know nothing about those areas, but the three of us put our heads together and came up with a proposal to look at groundwater inputs on the continental shelf off Charleston. We were able to bring together three disparate disciplines to address an ecological question. That was a lot of fun.

For Pinckney, his childhood dream to become a marine biologist did come true  and it informs his message to others: Pursue your dreams. Its not always an easy road. But ultimately, youll be a happier and more fulfilled person if you can do that. I cant tell you how many people ask me what I do. And when I tell them they say, I thought about doing that. Or I wish I had done that. You should have. You should be out there doing what you love to do.

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New cases of COVID-19 in B.C. have fallen back to levels not seen since last October, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry, shown here in a file photo, announced Monday.
Migrants: Libya rescues another 143 off coast Interior ministry said five women

(ANSAmed) - CAIRO, MAY 11 - The Libyan Interior Ministry said in a message on its Facebook page that the Libyan General Administration for Coastal Security, with patrol boat P301, rescued at sea 143 undocumented migrants of various nationalities, including five women.



It said the migrants disembarked "at the base in Tripoli where they received necessary medical care and then were handed over to the system for the fight against undocumented migration".(ANSAmed).




ANNE Barry, nee Tracy, grew up in the The Nook bar on Main Street, Youghal, which is celebrating 120 years this year.

Now Anne has moved back from London with her husband Emmet and their twin boys, Sean and Eoin, aged eight, to the town she loves so well  to help run the family business.

It was always a part of my life, says Anne, who worked in finance in London before relocating home. She is now looking forward to working behind the counter at the family pub close to Youghals Raleigh quarter, suggesting The Nook dates beyond the 1560s.

I have great memories of my childhood growing up in Youghal, and of my grandmother Maureen, who was a popular figure in the town and who had a great relationship with her regular customers. I remember the lads coming in for a pint and walking across the strand to Redbarn to the dance afterwards.

The Nook was a lively spot back in the day. The bar was bought by Youghal farmer Michael Tracy, who then purchased four adjoining cottages, and when Michael died in the 1940s his son Joe took over.

Joe installed a lounge and dance floor, says Anne.

The Nook was a place where you got goods from a needle to an anchor.

Joe changed the grocery to an off-licence in the 1980s and his wife Maureen managed the bar when Joe passed away in the 70s.

She really was amazing, says Anne, speaking of her late grandmother during the halcyon days of the ballroom of romance in the 80s booming with economic hope and vibrancy.

The dance area in the bar was christened the ballroom of romance.

Granny Maureen and her four sons (Mark, Barry, Richard and Michael "Mick") taken a few years ago

Lots of love flourished on the dance floor in The Nook on 20, Main Street. Marriages were made there.

Some of the children and grandchildren of those couples worked here! says Anne laughing.

Maureen, who had four sons, was a huge presence behind the bar and in the town until her death four years ago at the age of 89.

My dad, Michael, was raised here in the Nook, says Anne.

Soon after Maureen passed away, we decided to come home with the boys and make our home here. I went to the Gaelscoil in Youghal and now Eoin and Sean are pupils at the same school!

Have they a cockney accent or the cupla focal?

A bit of both! says Anne, who has a sister, Julie. They have Irish/English accents. The boys love meeting up with their Irish cousins and having the family support is wonderful.

Anne decided to trade a banking career in London for a bar career working with her dad in the town they loved so well.

There was always a great buzz in the town from the 60s to the 80s, says Anne.

Youghal was thriving in those years, offering local employment. In its heyday it was fantastic. It was sad seeing the factories closing.

But new buildings opened up.

The Regal Cinema in Youghal is amazing, says Anne.

And there is a great variety of shops in the town for customers.

Michael served his customers with the same dedication as his mother did. And he is still involved in the business.

Anne says: He never stops! He loves the pub. It is hard sometimes to imagine that the Tracey family are here 120 years.

Good times will roll again in hostelries across Ireland when the time is right.

Hopefully, our bar doors wont be closed to customers too long more!

Anne, working with her dad, wants to bring back the buzz and the bit of craic that The Nook was always famous for.

Im loving the thought of opening up the bar for business again. The pub is vital for social interaction.

She had a happy time in England.

I loved living in London, says Anne, who studied Commerce and German in UCC and who worked in a high-powered job.

It was a very different scene. Emmet and I were both studying in Cork and we went to London together. There were great opportunities in finance. I was dealing in loans in the region of hundreds of millions. Living and working in London was very different to the life I left behind.

She left a close-knit family network behind.

We lived in a flat in central London, says Anne.

It could be a lonely lifestyle at times. When the kids were small we had a child-minder for 10 hours a day, four days a week. That was the norm in London.

Property is expensive in London too.

Houses with any space were not within commuting distance to London; wed have to move three quarters of an hour away. Property in London is expensive.

Anne spotted a beautiful house for sale on the front strand in Youghal, near her old stomping ground, when she was home for Christmas.

I used to swim in the front strand every day as a child, she recalls.

The tide turned when the couple knew the house on the front strand could be theirs.

We could afford to buy the house and still have a good lifestyle, says Anne.

I thought about the boys starting Gaelscoil and the seed was planted. Moving home to mum and dad, taking over the business, seemed like a good idea.

Emmet is a home-grown Cork native too.

Hes from Ballyhooley! says Anne. And he was happy to relocate back home. He works as a locksmith. and used to work as an under-cover policeman. Emmet loved his career. Coming home, we realised it didnt have to be forever but we were happy to give it a go.

Anne, a people person like her grandmother and mother before her, did some more training for the job.

I took some time out and did the 12 week cookery course at Ballymaloe Cookery School. The plan was to get up to speed myself and a plan for expanding the pub to a premises next door is on the cards. For now, its on the long finger.

Team Tracy are raring to go.

Ive an incredible team working with me, says Anne.

May McDermot is a mainstay who is with us 60 years. May is an incredible woman.

Will Anne find it different taking money behind the bar instead of managing it?

I always loved helping behind the bar at home, says Anne.

It will be very different now Id say.

Anne is optimistic.

I think there will be less paper-work to deal with! And less administration.

The camaraderie and the company in the pub was always great. Having chats with people; youre never short of company. So many of our customers are larger than life.

Now that Anne and Emmet have their place on the front strand overlooking Youghal Bay, life is sweet.

Its good to be back, says Anne, who loves home sweet home.
Local News, Health & Wellness, Press Releases, Politics

By Chris Boyle Published: May 11 2021

School districts will assign student vaccine ambassadors who will receive a training from the Nassau County Dept. of Health.

Nassau County Executive Laura Curran announced an upcoming Student Vaccination Initiative in partnership with Northwell Health -- a four-day High School vaccination event in the Nassau Community College gym from May 13 to 16. The initiative will be geared towards students aged 16 to 18 and will aim to vaccinate 500 teens a day.

As part of the Student Vaccination Initiative, school districts will assign student vaccine ambassadors who will receive a training from the Nassau County Dept. of Health, and encourage their peers to roll up their sleeve. Students who are vaccinated as part of the initiative will receive 6 hours of community service credit. The Pfizer vaccine, which is currently authorized for those 16+ up will be used.

County Executive Curran and Health Commissioner Eisenstein will host a Facebook Town Hall May 12 at 6pm on Facebook on the Student Vaccination Initiative where live questions will be taken.

Nassau County is leading the way in getting residents vaccinated, and Im proud that weve now gotten 73% of our adult population vaccinated. However, in order to soundly defeat this pandemic and return to normal life, we need as many people as possible to roll up their sleeves  including young people. In partnership with young leaders in our communities, we will keep up our incredible vaccination pace so we can get Nassau back to normal, said Nassau County Executive Laura Curran.


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LONDON, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- According to The Business Research Companys research report on the mining machinery and equipment market, Asia-Pacific has the largest mining equipment market share, accounting for 52.9% of the total in 2020. It is followed by Western Europe, North America and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the mining machinery and equipment market will be the Middle East and South America, where growth will be at CAGRs of 20.8% and 17.5% respectively during 2020-2025. These will be followed by Africa and Eastern Europe, where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 17.4% and 13.1% respectively.



The global mining equipment market size is expected to grow from $24.99 billion in 2020 to $27.07 billion in 2021 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.36%. The growth is mainly due to the companies resuming their operations and adapting to the new normal while recovering from the COVID-19 impact, which had earlier led to restrictive containment measures involving social distancing, remote working, and the closure of commercial activities that resulted in operational challenges. The market is expected to reach $41.49 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 11.26%.

The Business Research Companys report titled Mining Machinery And Equipment Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Growth And Change covers major mining machinery and equipment companies, mining machinery and equipment market share by company, mining machinery and equipment manufacturers, mining machinery and equipment market size, and mining machinery and equipment market forecasts. The report also covers the global mining machinery and equipment market and its segments.

Request For A Sample Of The Global Mining Machinery And Equipment Market Report:

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Asia-Pacific is the largest and most populated region in the world. According to the IMF, Asia-Pacifics total GDP was $31.0 trillion in 2020, accounting for 37.1% of $83.7 trillion global GDP. China, India, Japan, Australia are the major countries in this region, which otherwise consists of a large number of small countries. Asia-Pacific accounts for around 55.5% of the global population.

The market size in the region can be attributed to the huge presence of metal, mineral and coal mines in countries such as China, India, and Indonesia, significant presence of government initiatives, and policies towards exploration of new mines and modernization of existing mines with technologically advanced mining equipment which advertised high safety and productivity.

Government initiatives help in development of the construction and mining equipment market. In 2020, the government of India had proposed structural reforms in the mining sector, including legal amendments to boost the mining economy. The proposed changes aim to increase participation of the private sector in mineral exploration, clearly defined illegal mining, removed the distinction between captive and non-captive mines, resolved legal issues, move towards auction the only regime, develop a national mineral index. In 2019, the Australian government provided over $4 million in funding for eight projects in the mining equipment, technology, and services (METS) sector.

Mining industry analysis shows Telcon (Hitachi), L&T Komatsu, Bharat Earth Movers Limited, JCB India, Caterpillar India Ltd, Essel Mining, Steel Authority of India, Australian Mining Equipment Pty Ltd, Hawk Machinery, Joy Global Australia Holding Company Pty Ltd, Bradken Pty Limited, Construction & Mining Equipment Industry Group (CMEIG) to be the major players in the mining machinery and equipment market in Asia-Pacific.

Mining Machinery And Equipment Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Growth And Change is one of a series of new reports from The Business Research Company that provide market overviews, analyze and forecast market size and growth for the whole market, segments and geographies, trends, drivers, restraints, leading competitors revenues, profiles and market shares in over 1,000 industry reports, covering over 2,500 market segments and 60 geographies. The report also gives in-depth analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on the market. The reports draw on 150,000 datasets, extensive secondary research, and exclusive insights from interviews with industry leaders. A highly experienced and expert team of analysts and modelers provides market analysis and forecasts. The reports identify top countries and segments for opportunities and strategies based on market trends and leading competitors approaches.

Here Is A List Of Similar Reports By The Business Research Company:

Support Activities For Mining Global Market Report 2020-30: COVID-19 Impact and Recovery

General Mineral Mining Global Market Report 2020-30: COVID-19 Impact and Recovery

Agriculture, Construction, And Mining Machinery Manufacturing Global Market Report 2020

Interested to know more about The Business Research Company?

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Senior Statistician (Project Coordinator GSAR II), Rome, Italy

Organization: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Country: Italy

City: Rome, Italy

Office: FAO Rome

Closing date: Friday, 28 May 2021

2101377

Senior Statistician (Project Coordinator GSAR II)

Job Posting: 07/May/2021

Closure Date: 28/May/2021, 9:59:00 PM

Organizational Unit : Statistics Division, ESS

Job Type: Staff position

Type of Requisition : Professional Project

Grade Level : P-5

Primary Location: Italy-Rome

Duration : Fixed-term: one year with possibility of extension

Post Number : 2008485

CCOG Code : 1M02

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal device The length of appointment for internal FAO candidates will be established in accordance with applicable policies pertaining to the extension of appointments

FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture

Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented member nations and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply

Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold our values. FAO has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and FAO, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination.

All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks

All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality

The incumbent may be re-assigned to different activities and/or duty stations depending on the evolving needs of the Organization.

Organizational Setting The Statistics Division (ESS) develops, and advocates for the implementation of methodologies and standards for data collection, validation, processing and analysis of food and agriculture statistics. In these statistical domains, it also plays a vital role in the compilation, processing and dissemination of internationally comparable data, and provides essential capacity building support to member countries. In addition, the Division disseminates many publications, working papers and statistical yearbooks, that cover agricultural and food security relevant statistics (including prices, investments, production, trade and agri-environmental statistical data). The incumbent will be part of the Statistics Division (ESS), hosting the Secretariat of the Global Strategy to improve Agricultural and Rural Statistics (GSARS) through a Global Office (GO). The GSARS, following a decision of the United Nations Statistical Commission, was designed as a 15-year, multi-phase process to provide a framework for national and international statistical systems enabling developing countries to produce, and to apply, the basic data and information needed in the 21st Century. The second phase of the GSARS (GSARS II, 2020-2025), starting in 2021 is focusing on the applying methodologies and approaches developed in the framework of the first phase and on strengthening statistical capacities of countries through the provision of training and technical assistance at national, regional and global level. Support is mainly provided through the provision of training and technical assistance at national, regional and global level in the following areas: i) assistance in the design of strategic plans for agricultural statistics; ii) training in agricultural statistics and provision of scholarships; and iii) technical assistance and training on tools, methodologies for data collection, data analysis, dissemination and use. The work of the GSARS will be interlinked with the activities of the 50x2030 initiative to close the agricultural data gap, in particular the data production component managed by ESS. The incumbent will lead the implementation of GSARS II and will work in close coordination with ESS division, other FAO services, national counterparts, donors, other implementing agencies and stakeholders.

The post is located in Rome, Italy

Reporting Lines The Senior Statistician reports to the ESS Director.

Technical Focus As coordinator of the Global Office (GO) coordinates, manages and implements the GSARS II programme, ensuring that outputs and products are delivered as described in the programmes result framework and engaging GSARS II team and other implementing partners in effective technical assistance and training at country and regional levels.

Key Results Leadership and conceptual thinking for the development and implementation of comprehensive technical, statistical and/or analytical frameworks to support the programme of work and related products, projects and services in accordance with the FAOs Strategic Framework.

Key Functions

Leads and manages highly specialized or multidisciplinary teams and short term working groups, providing strategic vision and technical leadership; coordinates and/or participates in divisional teams, Organization-wide committees, project teams, and working groups and/or provides leadership/secretariat services on international technical networks and or technical policy and standard setting bodies;

Analyses global and country specific requirements as well as agricultural, economic, social, environmental factors to provide critical input into the FAOs Strategic Framework, Programme of Work as well as Detailed Work Plans and the supporting budgets and/or resourcing strategies;

Designs, implements and monitors work programmes including the conception and development of comprehensive short, medium and long term plans and strategies for the development of statistics and/or analytical frameworks;

Leads the design development of edge tools, methods, systems and databases, the conception and implementation of critical indicators, and/or policy models;

Leads and reviews the research, data collection, validation, analysis and/or reporting to support the development of technical standards, international instruments, innovative tools and methodologies to be used within the Organization or by external stakeholders;

Leads the production of a variety of technical reports and oversees the provision of inputs for flagship publications, technical documents, divisional publications and/or web pages;

Leads and provides response to requests and provides technical/policy advice, assistance and solutions to Regional, Subregional, and Country Offices including technical backstopping to field projects;

Leads, organizes and participates in the provision of capacity development services, which include the planning and organization of training workshops and seminars, and oversees the preparation of related information, materials, online tools and information kits;

Represents the Organization at international/inter-governmental meetings and conferences, advocates strategic partnerships, best practices, and increased policy dialogue and develops and negotiates effective working relationships/consensus and agreements with international and national partners;

Leads and/or participates in resource mobilization activities in accordance with Corporate strategies and Divisional plans.

Specific Functions

Leads and coordinates the Global Office, as the operational coordinating unit of the project, responsible for providing strategic direction in operationalizing and implementing the programme objectives, serving the Global Steering Committee, engaging with countries, coordinating partnerships, mobilizing resources, ensuring the efficient management of resources monitoring the implementation of activities, communicating impact and knowledge from the project;

Acts as secretary of the GSC by (i) convening and organizing face-to-face or virtual meetings of the GSC or organizing written consultations; ii) drafting the Annual Work Plans/Budgets and project progress reports; (iii) drafting the GSARS II final narrative and financial reports as well as any other reports required by the GSC and iv) planning and organising the mid-term and final evaluations of the project.

Plans and organizes the specific drafting of work plans/budgets and progress reports for each donor according to the existing signed agreements with FAO;

Facilitates the setting-up and convening of Regional Technical Advisory Boards (RATB) as consultative boards providing technical advice to the GSC;

Ensures the overall technical coordination of all investments under the umbrella of the GSARS II: leading, coordinating, guiding and supervising all the methodological and technical activities carried out by FAO and other partner institutions;

Ensures the GSARS II contributes to build sustainable agricultural statistical systems and strengthen capacities at country level for responding to national policy needs and matching international requirements (SDGs or other regional frameworks such as CAADP);

Establishes partnerships for implementing activities where there is a clear advantage to jointly deliver development results on the basis of jointly defined and shared objectives;

Establishes contacts and seeks collaboration with other initiatives and activities within and outside FAO that are relevant to the programme and its objectives, in particular with the 50x2030 initiative;

Develops and maintains effective working relationships with senior officials from national governments, development partners and donors, regional organizations, project partner institutions;

Represents the project at critical regional and international fora and at specific coordinating bodies put in place by GSARS II donors for their other related investments;

Mobilises additional resources to support and expand the activities of the project, particularly in relation to building and institutionalization of capacity in regions not yet covered by the programme;

Develops and implements an advocacy, outreach and communications strategy for GSARS II to build awareness of the activities and impacts of the GSARS II using innovative and engaging approaches, giving room to outreach, dissemination, visibility and partnership efforts;

Performs other related duties as required.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

Advanced university degree in statistics, mathematics, economics, agricultural economics, or a related field;

Ten years of relevant experience in the management of large-scale statistical coordination projects in national or international organizations;

Working knowledge of English and limited knowledge of another FAO official language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).

Competencies

Results Focus

Leading, Engaging and Empowering Others

Communication

Partnering and Advocating

Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Strategic Thinking

Technical/Functional Skills

Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions is essential;

Strong command of statistical methods including: data presentation, analysis and descriptive statistics; main continuous and discrete random variables (binomial, normal, standard normal, log-normal) and their properties; probability distributions; conditional probability, probabilities of intersections of events, Bayes theorem; correlation and rank correlation; sampling and sample size: simple, stratified, and multistage random sampling; Inference, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing and significance; linear regression (single and multiple) comparison of population means and variances, ANOVA; Chi-square and goodness of fit tests; nonlinear models: maximum likelihood estimation; elements of survey and questionnaire design;

Extent and relevance of experience and knowledge of agricultural statistics and national agricultural systems;

Extent and relevance of experience in planning and implementation of programmes related to capacity development in agricultural statistics;

Track record of experience in effective coordination of activities in a multiframework environment with various stakeholders, partners and donors and ability to collaborate across institutions and organizations;

Track record of ability to mobilise resources;

Extent and relevance of experience in organizing international meetings, seminars and training courses.

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency. GENERAL INFORMATION

FAO reserves the right not to make an appointment

Extension of fixed term appointments is based on certification of performance and availability of funds CONDITIONS OF SERVICE

A competitive compensation and benefits package is offered. For information on UN salaries, allowances and benefits, click on the following link: http://www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/salaries allowances/salary.htm Other benefits, subject to eligibility, include:

Dependency allowances

Rental subsidy

Education grant for children

Home leave travel

30 working days of annual leave per year

Pension fund entitlements under the UN Joint Staff Pension Fund

International health insurance; optional life insurance

Disability protection

FAO encourages a positive workplace culture to increase inclusivity and diversity within its workforce. FAO applies measures in which all staff members contribute equally and in full to the work and development of the Organization. This includes:

elements of family-friendly policies

flexible working arrangements

standards of conduct

HOW TO APPLY

To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete and includes your employment records, academic qualifications and language skills;

Candidates are requested to attach a letter of motivation to the online profile;

Once your profile is completed, please apply and submit your application;

Your application will be screened based on the information provided on your online profile;

Please note that FAO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at http://www.whed.net/

Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications;

Incomplete applications will not be considered;

Only applications received through the FAO recruitment portal will be considered;

We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date.

Link to the organizations job offer: https://unjobs.org/vacancies/1620594434656
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Taoiseach Micheal Martin has said there should be no restrictions on partners attending maternity services, despite several hospitals refusing access.

It comes following a series of protests that have taken place outside maternity hospitals across the country demanding better services for women.

In the Dail, Labour leader Alan Kelly pointed out that husbands and partners can go to Penneys this week but they cannot attend maternity services.

He pointed out the Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan, said there is no good reason for maternity hospitals to restrict visits from partners.

Who is in charge? I often hear the Taoiseach say that clinical decisions override everything else, and I say it myself at times, but this is barbaric and wrong, he said.

When will we have consistency across the board in all maternity services, with partners and husbands being allowed in at critical moments, as well as for the birth? he asked.

In response, Mr Martin said: I agree 100% that there is no need for these restrictions now at all. I said that last week in this House.

The Chief Medical Officer has said that, given the success of the vaccination programme, particularly within healthcare settings, the suppression of the virus among front-line healthcare workers and the high level of vaccination across the country, women's partners should be with them, with proper precautions, he said.

Mr Kelly asked: Then why is it not happening?

The Taoiseach said he will engage again with the HSE.

I have already spoken to the CEO of the HSE about telling both the national clinical directors and clinical directors across all hospitals to facilitate such access, he said.

Meanwhile, the Association for Improvements in Maternity Services (AIMS) staged a series of protests today at Holles Street and the Coombe in Dublin, as well as hospitals in Donegal and Louth.

The group says they have taken action not just in protest at Covid restrictions that exclude partners from attending hospital with expectant mothers, but at the standard of maternity services in the country generally.

A protest outside the National Maternity Hospital in Dublin (Niall Carson/PA)

Despite a HSE circular calling on hospitals to facilitate partners to attend visits, in many instances restrictions are being kept in place at local level.

AIMS spokesperson Krysia Lynch said: Its 15 months on. I can go to Penneys tomorrow. I can go and book a facial in Arnotts.

But I cant take my partner with me for an induction that might take 48 hours. Which means Im going to be left alone.

The fabulous midwives who have enough work to do can never give me the attention that my partner would give me.

We know that the induction rate in Ireland is about 38%. We know that so many people are going through early labour, which is worrying and frightening. And theyre doing it on their own.

The protest was against a ban on birthing partners as well as maternity services in general (Niall Carson/PA)

Ms Lynch said that she has been inundated with calls from parents unable to attend hospitals with their partners who have been traumatised by the situation.

Dr Gosia Stack protested outside Holles Street on Tuesday.

She said the problems with maternity services in Ireland go well beyond the pandemic restrictions.

Im here today because maternity care services have been forgotten by the Government for decades, she told the PA news agency.

We have a national maternity strategy and the funding for it was cut. We were promised to have midwifery-led units  none were built since the strategy was announced.

It feels like we are just forgetting women and the needs that they have in childbirth. We have a huge dissatisfaction with maternity services.

Its not about Covid, its about again and again forgetting womens needs.

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said the advice to maternity hospitals is that access for partners should be expanded, but local considerations, such as where there are Covid outbreaks, must also be considered.

He said: I think the HSE probably has the balance right, in terms of reiterating the fact that there does need to be broad access, but acknowledging that there are local considerations.

We do need, if there are local conditions, we really do feel it is necessary for time-limited period because of local considerations. Thats something I think we need to we need to respect.

Mr Donnelly said hospitals which depart from the HSE circular must inform the health board in writing, outlining their reasons for doing so.

However, he said there would be no intervention by the Department of Health in cases where hospitals depart from the advice.

Certainly the Department of Health would not be getting involved in local clinical decisions in terms of infection prevention and control.

They are operational matter for the HSE. But as the HSE have said themselves, the expectation is that visitation occurs.

If by exception a local unit deems it unsafe for a time limited period, they can then submit that. Obviously that can be reviewed by the HSE centrally.

There would be an ongoing consideration there. But generally these things would happen by collaboration.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)  The country on Tuesday confirmed its first two cases of the new COVID-19 variant first detected in pandemic-ravaged India.

The Department of Health said the two cases found with the B.1617 variant  described as a double mutant and believed to be more transmissible  are returning overseas Filipinos who have no travel history from India. Both patients are now asymptomatic and tagged as recovered.

The first case is a 37-year-old seafarer who arrived in the Philippines from Oman on April 10. He tested positive for COVID-19 on April 15 and completed his isolation in a hotel in Metro Manila on April 26. He tested negative after another swab test on May 3. He is now in his hometown in Soccsksargen, the DOH said.

The second patient is a 58-year-old seafarer from the United Arab Emirates who landed in the country on April 19. He isolated in Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga and was tagged as recovered on May 6. He has returned home to the Bicol Region, according to the DOH.

DOH Epidemiology Bureau Director Dr. Thea de Guzman said there are no identified close contacts since the two patients were quarantined and isolated from their arrival until their recovery. The DOH is confirming if the other passengers in their flights have completed their 14-day quarantine.

"Wala tayong nakitang close contacts after they arrived here, put in a quarantine, and then finished their quarantine and isolation," she said in a media briefing.

[Translation: We did not identify any close contacts after they arrived here, put on quarantine, and finished it.]

The World Health Organization on Monday classified the B.1617 variant as one "of concern at the global level" after some preliminary studies showed that it spreads more easily.

Meanwhile, the samples of travelers and seafarers who have travel history from India have yet to be checked for the presence of any variant. Of the five travelers from India who tested positive for COVID-19 upon arrival in the Philippines, only one is eligible to be sent to the genome center. As for the 12 seafarers onboard the COVID-stricken MV Athens Bridge, 11 samples will be reviewed this week.

The Philippines has imposed an entry ban until Friday, May 14, on inbound passengers who traveled to India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Pakistan to prevent the entry of the B.1617 variant. Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the variant task force has to check if cases are rising or hospitals are getting filled up due to the B.1617 before they issue a recommendation on whether the ban should be extended or expanded to cover other countries.

For Dr. Jose Rene De Grano, president of the Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines, an extension of another week would suffice to bring down average daily cases from currently 5,000 to 6,000 to the February-level of 2,000 to 3,000.

India has been recording the world's highest number of new daily COVID-19 cases in its catastrophic second wave of infections. The country's cases have soared to over 22.6 million, while more than 246,000 people have lost their lives, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. It's not yet clear how many infections have been linked to this double mutant variant

In the Philippines, De Grano said the country's private hospitals are ready in case COVID-19 infections surge again in the coming days with the entry of the India variant.

"We can probably manage it right now as long as we can control the spread of the disease. If we stick to our minimum health practice protocols then probably we'll be able to control the spread of the disease," he told CNN Philippines' The Final Word.

De Grano also said they have enough supply of oxygen tanks, facilities have been decongested for the past weeks, and there are no more patients lining up just to get a hospital bed. New supplies of medication are also expected to arrive, he added.

Based on latest government data, the country has an average of 47% bed occupancy rate. Of the total 1,270 facilities nationwide, 838 are at the safe level, 91 at moderate level, 113 at high-risk level, and 158 at critical level.
The EU must stop punishing Northern Ireland over Brexit, the region's economy minister has said.

Diane Dodds highlighted the continuing difficulties businesses in the region were having bringing in goods from Great Britain as a consequences of new red tape required under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol.

The protocol, which was incorporated into the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement to help avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland, has left Northern Ireland tied to a range of EU customs and regulatory rules.

The UK and EU are at loggerheads on efforts to reduce some of bureaucracy the arrangements have created on the movement of goods from Great Britain into Northern Ireland.

Mrs Dodds was responding to an Assembly question from Caoimhe Archibald who had urged the minister to develop a strategy to enable the region to maximise the opportunities offered by the protocol, in particular the unique ability to trade freely into the UK internal market and EU single market.

Sinn Fein MLA Ms Archibald highlighted that Invest NI had highlighted 30 new inward investment opportunities since the beginning of the year.

However, in her reply, DUP minister Mrs Dodds emphasised the problems the protocol had created.

Graffiti on a wall in the Waterside of Derry City (Liam McBurney/PA)

In relation to the protocol, we must absolutely sort out the damage that the protocol is doing to those supply chains and those businesses that I write weekly to Lord Frost (Cabinet Office minister) about and the difficulties they are encountering with their trade from GB to NI, she said.

Mrs Dodds added: Many of the difficulties that businesses encounter are not because of Brexit, they are actually because of the protocol, and theyre because parties in this House voted and have stridently asked for the rigorous implementation of that protocol.

So we really do need to look at the whole picture for investment in Northern Ireland and we need to offer people a holistic view of what Northern Ireland has to offer.

And I do hope that government is listening and will listen and indeed that the EU will stop on this stubborn trajectory of punishing Northern Ireland, and not helping it, as it claimed so many times in the past it was willing to do.
Covid-19 cases increased abnormally in Telangana state, especially the districts of Kamareddy and Nizamabad which border Maharashtra

Private laboratories owners are collecting Rs 1,100 to Rs 1400 per RT-PCR test and the result is available in three to four days. The delay is causing worry among the disease suspects. PTI

NIZAMABAD: The Telangana state government on Monday finally closed the border with Maharashtra, which has been severely affected by the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Sangareddy-Nanded-Akola (SNA) National Highway was closed at Salabathpur in Madnoor mandal of Kamareddy district. Police and revenue officials set up barricades on the highway and prevented vehicle movement.

Covid-19 cases have surged in the neighbouring Nanded district of Maharashtra for the last two months. Covid-19 cases increased abnormally in Telangana state, especially the districts of Kamareddy and Nizamabad which border Maharashtra. However, movement between the two states continued unhindered.

On the other hand, an abnormal delay in Covid-19 tests results is worrying the people. Covid-19 tests in Government hospitals and primary health centres decreased since last week of April. Covid-19 suspects forced to approach private laboratories for the less-reliable Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) and the gold standard RT-PCR test.

Private laboratories owners are collecting Rs 1,100 to Rs 1400 per RT-PCR test and the result is available in three to four days. The delay is causing worry among the disease suspects. In the latest Covid-19 protocol, the government suggested people to take medication for Covid-19 if they experience symptoms and not wait for the test results.

There are a lot of doubts among people over medication.

A few people sought test results to start the medication and others followed the government advice.

Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, Kiran Kumar lab technician said that there is a huge rush for Covid-19 tests and reports were delayed. It is better to adopt the HD Rapid test to get immediate results, he said. The RT-PCR test is required for a few patients.

Meanwhile, of the 2,650 Covid-19 tests conducted on Monday, 1,847 (70 per cent) were conducted in 47 centres and five mobile testing centres. In these, 236 persons tested positive for Covid-19. In addition, 59 RT-PCR tests were conducted at Government General Hospital in Nizamabad.
THE national financial system is in a state of disarray, with banks leaving the market and others closing offices throughout the country.

Peoples confidence in the Irish banking system has been rocked and they are beginning to look at their options. Credit unions are rooted in the communities they serve and provide members with a credible alternative.

All credit unions are member-owned, each member gets a voice in how it is run. As credit unions are not for profit, rates and fees are designed to reinvest directly in services to their members, not line the pockets of outside investors.

An ever-growing number of Cork Credit Unions now offer their members mortgages, current accounts, agricultural loans, Business Loans, online banking, and much more. The introduction of mortgages by credit unions was seen as a major step but there are restrictions there that hamper credit unions capacity to partake fully in the Irish market.

Surely it is time for a local, welcoming institution not powered by short-term profit but by its members long-term interests.

This institution is not only committed to its members but practices an ethos that makes people a priority while putting its profits back into improving its services and the local community.

Credit unions have remained open throughout the Covid-19 pandemic as an essential service, supporting the communities they serve, in many cases going above and beyond, guaranteeing that peoples and communities financial needs are met.

Cork credit unions ensure communities are financially backed and have the room to be entrepreneurial, to innovate, and to spend within their local economies.

As of the financial year-end September, 2020, the total loans outstanding for Cork Credit Unions was 651 million. The vast majority of this is spent within Cork communities. The group has even more available to lend, with a total of 1.2bn there for Cork.

There is room for Corks credit unions to do even more.

Credit unions are continuing to develop their range of services and with the right regulatory reform can further meet peoples financial needs. There has been much discussion and deliberation on credit unions, translating into minimal policy changes, very few of which are sufficiently forward-thinking to enable credit unions to develop in the manner many now wish to do.

Legislation must be underpinned by the need to unlock the full potential of credit unions in the delivery of services and facilities that meet member needs.

Thankfully, we have representatives in government who see the potential of Credit Unions. A key part of this is to fill a void now left in the Irish mortgage market.

Michael Creed (TD) recently stated: I believe our credit unions are a sleeping giant with the potential to overhaul the Irish mortgage market. With 326 branches and 3.6 million members across the country, Ireland has one of the highest numbers of credit union members per head of population. Yet there is untapped potential. There is a total of circa 14.8bn savings in our credit unions, but just circa 4.9 bn in loans.

Deputy Creed pointed out that integrating credit unions into the mortgage market could also allow a community banking sector to flourish.

The services Cork Credit Unions offer are all provided by real people in more than 30 offices serving every inch of Cork.

Credit Unions are one of only two brands to have maintained a Top 10 position since the CXi awards began in 2015, which is a phenomenal achievement, particularly as they have widened the gap in scores between themselves and the second-placed brand.

A key factor is their relentless focus on understanding what matters most to members and being able to deliver it in the experiences they give them. This is a global first and a testament to the person-focused approach that credit unions take to their services.

From supporting local businesses to launching local sustainability projects and giving communities financial support  Cork credit unions are doing what they do best: helping people.

Cork Credit Unions is a county-wide initiative among the many credit unions in Cork, combining their resources to work as one in several areas. One such initiative is the sponsorship of Cork City FCs Academy, an expression of working together and investing in local. Cork Credit Unions have come together to establish stronger relationships with Cork-focused initiatives. This collaboration between Credit Unions is a key philosophy by which we operate, helping us to provide award-winning service.

As co-operatives, they share the same ethos as the members of Cork City FC, helping to make this partnership such a great fit.

Alongside major collective sponsorships, individual credit unions make numerous contributions in each of their communities, from supporting local community groups to the local GAA team. Cork credit unions are community-focused always because we are the people we serve.

In conclusion, Cork Credit Unions are member-owned, not for profit financial co-operatives that will be there for the people of Cork always. They have been there for people since the very beginning, providing access to finance. Your credit union has never been this connected to members or offered as many services.
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LANCASTER, Texas  Officers in a Dallas suburb fatally shot a man firing a gun in a home Monday, hours after he was released from a hospital where he had a mental health evaluation.

Officers were dispatched to a home in Lancaster on Sunday night after receiving a report of a man refusing to let a woman leave. They found Kalon J. Horton, 29, who appeared to be intoxicated and in an altered mental state. He was taken to a hospital for evaluation and was later released, according to a police statement.

On Monday morning, police in the city about 16 miles (26 kilometers) south of downtown Dallas received a shooting report and arrived to find Horton firing a gun in a different home occupied by two children, police stated.

Police Chief Samuel Urbanski said officers confronted and shot Horton, who was later pronounced dead at a hospital. He said the others in the home were not injured.

Urbanski said the shooting remained under investigation.

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MADISON, Wis. (AP)  Wisconsin will receive $700 million less than initially expected in federal coronavirus relief money and it will arrive in two payments a year apart, news that Gov. Tony Evers and U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin said Tuesday was problematic.

The state was informed Monday of the split in payments, and the total it would receive. Evers and Baldwin asked U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday to reconsider breaking the funding into two.

This will significantly reduce the funding that will be available for Wisconsins current pandemic response operations and to continue to meet immediate needs and restore economic well-being, Baldwin and Evers wrote.

Evers has emphasized wanting to spend the money quickly to help those most hurt by the pandemic. He has cited that desire for speed in vetoing Republican-authored bills that dictated how the money would be spent. The governor has sole authority in deciding how to spend the money.

Republicans who control the Legislature have called on Evers to meet with them to discuss how the money should be spent. Rep. Mark Born, co-chairman of the Legislature's budget committee, renewed that call on Tuesday.

Regardless of the exact amount, theres still a lot of federal money coming into this state," he said. Right now, thats all within the governors decision making and we hope he will include us in that soon.

Evers has announced generally how he wants to spend the money, while holding off on details pending federal guidance. The U.S. Treasury Department sent guidelines Monday about how the money can be spent and the application process for states to begin receiving the money.

The Congressional Research Office initially estimated that Wisconsin would receive $3.2 billion, but the Treasury Department now says the state will receive $2.5 billion.

Evers had said he wanted to spend $2.5 billion on economic relief for families, tourism, workers and small-business owners, as well as $500 million on the continued pandemic response and $200 million on infrastructure, including broadband.

Evers has not said how the states reduced payment will affect his spending plans.

Wisconsin will get its money in two payments because the states unemployment rate of 3.8% in March was not more than 2 points higher than it was in February 2020, when it stood at 3.5%. Thirty states were getting their money in two batches, while 20 others had worsened unemployment rates that allowed them to get it all at once.

Evers and Baldwin wrote that the split in funding does not necessarily reflect the urgency or the level of need that many businesses, families, workers, and community organizations have right now. ... A delay of up to a year in being able to access these funds in Wisconsin risks slowing our economic relief and the successful recovery progress weve made to date.

States have wide latitude to use the federal money to make up for revenue losses during the coronavirus pandemic. Among other things, they also can put the money toward public health and mental health care; aid to small businesses, the unemployed or households; water, sewer and high-speed internet infrastructure; or extra pay for a broad range of essential workers, including teachers, janitors, truck drivers and those in health care, food and public safety jobs.

Federal guidelines prohibit the money from being used to pay off debt, cut taxes or set aside in a reserve fund.
EBRD invests RON 53 million (11 million equivalent) in Romanias pioneering green bond

Raiffeisen Bank Romania accesses capital markets to fund climate projects

Promoting green transition and developing capital markets among EBRDs top priorities

Reinforcing its position as a leader in green finance and a strong supporter of capital markets, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has invested RON 53 million (11 million equivalent) in a senior preferred green bond issued by Raiffeisen Bank Romania, a subsidiary of the Austria-based group Raiffeisen Bank International.

Thanks to healthy demand, Raiffeisen raised RON 400 million (81 million equivalent) to finance climate and environmental projects. The bonds have a five-year maturity and are expected to be listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and on the Bucharest Stock Exchange. The issuance was 1.6 times oversubscribed.

Mark Davis, EBRD Regional Director for Romania and Bulgaria, said: The EBRD remains at the forefront of efforts to strengthen Romanias capital markets. Today we are pleased to back the countrys first green bonds. This pioneering move by Raiffeisen will pave the way for the creation of more securities intended to support sustainability, as the strong market reaction indicates.

The EBRD aims to become a majority green bank and dedicate more than half of its work to climate finance by 2025.

Through this issue, we want to reaffirm our commitment to contributing to the development of sustainable and prosperous communities by mobilising resources for projects that generate value for society as a whole and have a positive societal and environmental impact, said Steven van Groningen, President and CEO of Raiffeisen Bank Romania.

The EBRDs investment in Raiffeisens issuance builds on the Banks strong commitment to the development of Romanias capital markets. In the past five years the Bank has subscribed to 11 bond issuances for more than 530 million and participated in three initial and secondary public offerings in transactions worth over 80 million.

The EBRDs overall investment stands at almost 9 billion in Romania to date, with 76 per cent of that in the private sector. The Bankss focus in the country is on financing infrastructure, especially in less-developed regions, boosting private-sector productivity and further developing the financial sector and capital markets.
Batavia, NY (14020)

Today

Rain showers in the morning with thunderstorms developing in the afternoon. High 78F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Mostly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 66F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.
CALGARY, Alberta, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Quorum Information Technologies Inc. (TSX Venture: QIS) ("Quorum"), a leading provider of SaaS-based software technology to the automotive industry, announced today that the Government of Canada, through the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), is providing a $500,000 interest free, repayable investment to assist Quorum in pursuing new business partnerships, mergers and acquisitions.

Maury Marks, Quorums President and CEO stated, Quorum has grown both organically and through partnerships and acquisitions. Having completed 3 acquisitions in the last 4 years, Quorum now delivers its products to over 1,000 North American automotive dealerships and 30% of the Canadian franchised dealerships have at least one Quorum product installed in their dealership. With the support of the Government of Canada, we can continue to enhance our leadership position in the automotive software market.

Innovative companies that provide tech-based solutions support business growth across all sectors of our economy. Strategic investments in companies such as Quorum Information Systems help them accelerate growth and contribute to a strong, resilient Atlantic Canadian economy, stated the Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages and Minister responsible for ACOA.

The tech industry in Newfoundland and Labrador is creative, innovative, and determined to grow even bigger. Investing in Quorum supports growth, creates jobs, and shows, once again, that were ready to take on the world, stated the Honourable Seamus ORegan, Minister of Natural Resources and Member of Parliament for St. Johns South-Mount Pearl.

About Quorum Information Technologies Inc.

Quorum is a North American company focused on developing, marketing, implementing and supporting its portfolio of software and services for automotive dealerships that includes:

XSellerator, a Dealership Management System (DMS) that automates, integrates and streamlines key processes across departments in a dealership, and emphasizes revenue generation and customer satisfaction.

DealerMine CRM, a sales and service Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system and set of Business Development Centre services that drives revenue into the critical sales and service departments in a dealership.

Autovance, a modern retailing platform that helps dealerships attract more business through Digital Retailing, improve in-store profits and closing rates through its desking tool and maximize their efficiency and CSI through Autovances F&I menu solution.

Advantage, a full showroom system for independent dealerships and a management system that also includes in-house leasing, inventory management, and accounting.

Quorum Information Technologies Inc. is traded on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol QIS.

For additional information please go to www.QuorumInformationSystems.com.

Forward-Looking Information

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information ("forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "intend", "objective", "continuous", "ongoing", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "project", "should" or similar words suggesting future outcomes. Quorum believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking information are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking information should not be unduly relied upon.

Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and involves a number of risks and uncertainties some of which are described herein. Such forward-looking information necessarily involves known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause Quorum's actual performance and financial results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking information.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its regulation services provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) has reviewed this release and neither accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

PDF available: http://ml.globenewswire.com/Resource/Download/98a894da-8165-439e-8a29-5632c5557cac
Migrants: Libya, 42 rescued from rubber dinghy, one dead Libyan Coast Guard says two others in 'bad condition'

(ANSAmed) - CAIRO, MAY 11 - The Libyan Coast Guard rescued 42 migrants of "African nationality" aboard a rubber dinghy on which one person was dead and two others were in "bad condition", said the Facebook page of the Libyan Navy Chief of Staff late Monday evening.



It said the migrants disembarked in Tripoli and 40 "were taken into the system for the fight against undocumented migration ahead of repatriation to their countries of origin".



The Facebook post did not specify the specific Libyan coastal city off of which the boat was rescued.



Although it didn't specify as such, the post provided details of the rescue operation already reported on Monday by UNHCR and in which 23 people went missing.(ANSAmed).






Description

Req #15744 Monday, May 10, 2021 Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is a subscription-led and digitally focused media and marketing solutions company committed to empowering communities to thrive. With an unmatched reach at the national and local level, Gannett touches the lives of millions with our Pulitzer-Prize winning content, consumer experiences and benefits, and advertiser products and services.



Our current portfolio of media assets includes USA TODAY, local media organizations in 46 states in the U.S., and Newsquest, a wholly owned subsidiary operating in the United Kingdom with more than 120 local news media brands. Gannett also owns the digital marketing services companies ReachLocal, Inc., UpCurve, Inc., and WordStream, Inc., which are marketed under the LOCALiQ brand, and runs the largest media-owned events business in the U.S., USA TODAY NETWORK Ventures.



To connect with us, visit www.gannett.com. Operations Coordinator

The Springfield News-Leader

Gannett Publishing Company



GannettPublishing Services, located in Springfield, MO at The Springfield News-Leader, is recruiting for a part-time,Operations Coordinatorfor our Newspaper Distribution Center working 20-29 hours per week.This individual provides general support for a Distribution center performing a variety of tasks and responsibilities within home delivery including delivery of newspapers. Position requires flexibility to work varied days and hours including weekends and holidays as needed. Distribution and handling of daily and non-daily products to carriers, haulers, retailers and consumers.

Unload and load trucks containing various print publications.

Open the Distribution Center and prepare for the independent contractor arrival by printing, preparing and distributing specified reports and paperwork.

Utilize industry specific software to handle required reporting for center.

General housekeeping of distribution center

Complete required documentation and reports for center as needed.

Assist with delivering newspapers,

Respond to and resolve subscriber service issues

Maintain and repair news racks throughout the designated distribution area.

Assist with training Product Handlers or Product Coordinators as needed. Requirements: Valid drivers license, satisfactory motor vehicle record, dependable automobile, and liability insurance required.Strong organizational and communication skills required for a fast-paced environment.Good computer skills including Microsoft office.Good time management skills.Good verbal and written communication skills.Must be able to push and pull carts loaded with newspapers weighing up to 500 pounds with assistance and repetitively lift newspaper bundles weighing up to 25 pounds. Education: GED/High School Diploma

RelatedExperience: Previous newspaper or distribution/warehouse experience preferred. Gannett Co., Inc.is a proud equal opportunity employer. We are a drug free, EEO employer committed to a diverse workforce. We will consider all qualified candidates regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity, family responsibilities, disability, education, political affiliation, or veteran status. Job Family Operations

Job Function Marketing Solutions

Pay Type Hourly Other details

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Requirements

None




Govt-and-politics

topical alert

CORRECTIONS

NY correctional officers union leaders visit Auburn, announce lawsuit against state

Robert Harding / Robert Harding, The Citizen NYSCOPBA President Michael Powers speaks at a press conference Monday in Auburn. Auburn Correctional Facility can be seen in the background.

AUBURN  Citing the potential for more violence in prisons, the union representing New York correctional officers is suing to stop the implementation of a solitary confinement reform law Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed in April.

The New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association filed the lawsuit in federal court on Monday. While the main focus is on stopping the changes to solitary confinement protocols, the union is also accusing the defendants, including Cuomo and the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, of civil rights violations. Those allegations stem from injuries sustained by individual plaintiffs  correctional officers who were attacked while working in prisons.

NYSCOPBA has long criticized state leaders for not doing enough to address violence in prisons. According to DOCCS, inmate assaults on staff have increased each of the last four years. There were 799 reported assaults on staff in 2017. Last year, there were 1,047.

But the union's frustration reached a new level when the state Legislature passed and Cuomo signed the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement Act. The main provision of the law, which won't take effect until April 2022, is that incarcerated individuals can't be placed in segregated confinement for more than 15 days.

NYSCOPBA leaders, who held a press conference near Auburn Correctional Facility after filing the lawsuit on Monday, said elected officials have failed their members.

"Their latest failure comes in the form of HALT, a law that is based on a complete fabrication, concocted by advocacy groups and passed by a state Legislature who the majority have zero regard for the lives and wellbeing of our members," said Mark Deburgomaster, NYSCOPBA's western region vice president.

Jerome Wright, a statewide organizer with the #HALTsolitary Campaign, said assaults on incarcerated individuals or staff are "unacceptable." But he said the question is "how does the state prevent and reduce violence" in prisons.

"Simply put, solitary confinement is torture," Wright continued. "It's not only harmful and deadly itself, but also leads to violence as people deteriorate.

"The HALT Solitary Confinement Act will protect people from the terrible harms of long-term solitary, including severe psychosis and suicide, while still allowing (DOCCS) to separate people for extended periods of time in secure environments with therapeutic programming proven to actually address dangerous behaviors."

For NYSCOPBA President Michael Powers, his main concern is what he views as a deteriorating situation in prisons. Even as the prison population declines, there are more assaults on staff and inmates in state correctional facilities.

The state, Powers said, has "turned its back on the brave men and women of NYSCOPBA." He accused DOCCS and state legislators of siding with the criminals and enacting policies that "cater to individuals who can't conform to the rules of society."

A DOCCS spokesperson didn't comment on the lawsuit, but noted that the department has a zero-tolerance policy for "violence in our facilities and pursues both disciplinary charges and criminal prosecution for any assault." They added that a new felony conviction would lead to a consecutive prison sentence.

The department is working on a plan to implement the solitary confinement reform law, which the spokesperson added "still provides for segregated housing for acts of violence against officers and other incarcerated persons."

But to NYSCOPBA, the solitary confinement reform law is the latest in a series of policies the union's leadership believes has contributed to violence in prisons. Powers claimed it would cost "tens of millions of dollars" to implement the new law, which would apply to a small number of inmates who face disciplinary action.

"In essence, HALT forgives violence," Powers said. "A simple slap on the wrist for a violent offense. The predators that lurk in our prison system basically now have a free pass to prey on whoever they want, consequence-free. Cater to the criminal and the violence spikes."
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BILLINGS, Mont.  The Biden administration announced Tuesday it will consider a ban on new mining on large expanses of public lands in Western states to protect a struggling bird species, the greater sage grouse.

The Interior Department review comes in response to a federal court order and is expected to cover millions of acres of sage brush habitat considered crucial to the birds long-term survival.

A temporary ban on mining was imposed under former President Barack Obama but dropped by the Trump administration. The affected lands totaled 10 million acres (4 million hectares) in Idaho, Nevada, Montana, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming.

Millions of sage grouse once roamed the West. Development, livestock grazing and an invasive grass that encourages wildfires reduced the species population to fewer than 500,000. The quirky birds with long, pointed tail feathers are known for the males elaborate courtship display in which air sacs in the neck are inflated to make a popping sound.

Scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey said last month that greater sage grouse numbers across 11 Western states are down 65% since 1986.

The Obama administration in 2015 declined to place the bird under the protection of the Endangered Species Act, citing the mining withdrawal and plans to prevent development in the most important areas for sage grouse.

Under Trump, Interior officials said mining or grazing would not pose a significant threat to sage grouse.

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................................................................

U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill said in February that the Trump administration ignored prior science on the issue, including a 2017 government study that concluded restrictions on new mining would avoid impacts to hundreds of sage grouse breeding areas.

Michael Saul with the Center for Biological Diversity, which challenged the Trump decision, said the Biden administration needs to move quickly to avoid a rush of mining claims in the affected areas that could lock in future development.

The danger is immediate, he said.

The National Mining Association has said blocking mining across such a large area would be unreasonable and that the science used by the Trump administration was correct. Spokesperson Conor Bernstein said the courts order does not ultimately mean that the BLM will move forward with the withdrawal.

We believe the scientific evidence on sage grouse conservation and public policy considerations regarding the need for domestic minerals to shore up the supply chains for our nations energy future will prevail, he said.
2021 Toyota 4Runner 4x4 TRAIL V6 - Review by David Colman +VIDEO

Toyota sticks with a tried and true success

By David Colman

Special Correspondent to THE AUTO CHANNEL

Last week I had two SUVs at my disposal for evaluation. One cost twice as much as the other. I preferred the one that cost half as much because it fit me like an old pair of slippers. The other one looked flashier, like a fancy pair of dress shoes, but pinched me with a vengeance whenever I took a step. The importance of the comfort factor cannot be overestimated. With that in mind, it's hard to beat Toyota's rugged 4Runner, which still combines excellent highway driving manners with serious off-road chops. In order to cook the perfect souffle you need to assemble the right ingredients, and Toyota has done just that with their latest 2021 Trail Edition of the legendary 4Runner.

To build the Trail Edition, Toyota uses the body-on-frame design of the SR5 4Runner. The company claims that this method of assembly is essential to the DNA of any SUV with serious off-road aspirations. You can select either 2 or 4 wheel drive for your Trail model. Our test model was equipped with 4WD at a base price of $40,190. Toyota will make only 4,000 4Runner Trail Editions for 2021. They will be available in just four color schemes - army green, midnight black, super white and cement (the fetching shade of our test vehicle). In all color schemes, exterior nameplates are tinted flat black to match the special darkened front and rear body cladding peculiar to this model. Inside the cabin, black fabric seating is enlivened with tan stitched inserts, and all-weather rubber floor liners carry prominent 4Runner logos. The Trail Edition adds a highly conspicuous Yakima roof top cargo basket (called the "LoadWarrior"), and finishes off the custom look with a sparkling set of 17x7.5J dark grey alloy wheels which look particularly good against the cement bodywork.

The most ingenious addition to the Trail portfolio is the inclusion of a slide-out rear loading platform that is ideal for inserting or removing heavy objects. This slider is designed to withstand loads of 440 pounds, so it can easily serve as a tailgate seat for 1 or 2 adults. But Toyota further enhances the functionality of this slider by equipping it with a 40 quart cooler, custom made in the USA for the Trail model, This "4Runner" emblazoned unit, finished in cement regardless of exterior color choice, features a flat top which can also serve as a seating surface when the cooler is removed from the 4Runner. The unit features 2 heavy duty latches with integrated bottle openers, a pair of ergonomic carry handles, freezer grade gaskets, and a large built-in drain plug with lanyard. "Trail" decorated tie-down straps secure the cooler to the slide-out table. Tailgating has never been made so inviting.

Neither has thumping along badly paved roads or unpaved dirt trails. We took the 4RunnerTrail for an extended run along levee-top Sacramento Delta paths that varied from perfect pavement to decrepit cow paths to rutted dirt all within the space of a few miles. If ever a vehicle were perfectly designed for such unpredictable diversity, it's the 4Runner Trail edition. With its sizeable Bridgestone mud and snow rated Dueler H/T tires (265/70R17) thumping along rhythmically, the 4Runner scoffed at bad pavement, sneered at potholes, and laughed off dramatic terrain changes that would have stymied a less stout SUV. Toyota provides hefty skid plates under the engine, front suspension, transfer case and fuel tank to ensure maximum protection against terrain intrusion.

When we returned from the lunar levee landscape to terra firma, the 4Runner's torquey 4.0 liter V6 blasted us from a stop sign to 60mph traffic flow in just 7.7 seconds. This SUV will run the quarter-mile in a very respectable 16 seconds flat at 88mph, so lack of power is never an issue with the 4Runner. Neither is towing prowess. The Trail Edition is fitted with a receiver style tow hitch and 4 and 7 pin electrical connections. Maximum tow load is 5,000 pounds. And speaking of interior load capacity, with the second row seats in use, you can still carry 47.7 cubic feet of cargo inside that hulking shell. You can also drop the second row seats flat without removing the attached headrests. Doing so produces a vast interior space good for 89.7 cubic feet of locked and protected interior storage. An optional third seating row is also available.

While the evergreen 4Runner may lack some of the tepid refinements commonly found on more citified, fancy pants SUVs, this Toyota sticks steadfastly close to the original formula that has long made this brand such a rousing sale success.

2021 TOYOTA 4RUNNER 4x4 TRAIL V6



ENGINE: 4.0 liter DOHC, 24 valve V6 with dual independent VVT-i

HORSEPOWER: 270hp@5600rpm

TORQUE: 278lb-ft.@4400rpm

FUEL CONSUMPTION: 16MPG City/19MPG Highway

PRICE AS TESTED: $43,126

HYPES: The Formula for Success Perfected Yet Again

GRIPES: A Little Long In The Tooth

STAR RATING: 10 stars out of 10
English Dutch French

Wereldhave Belgium NV announces the resignation of Mr. Cedric Biquet as Chief Financial Officer of the Company.

Attachment
By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 05/10/2021



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Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.

star Colt Johnson and his girlfriend Vanessa Guerra's engagement is finally public.Colt, who was previously married to his Season 6 co-star Larissa Dos Santos Lima , proposed marriage to Vanessa after only a month of dating during the finale of 90 Day: The Single Life that streamed Sunday night on Discovery's new discovery+ service.Colt was spotted filming his marriage proposal to Vanessa on November 26, 2020, just one day after her divorce from her ex-husband True Maudsley was finalized.On 90 Day: The Single Life, Colt was shown talking to Vanessa on a dock at Big Bear Lake in Southern California after the pair had just enjoyed a romantic picnic.Colt began his speech by saying he and Vanessa clearly had problems -- such as trust issues, on her part -- but he loved her a lot."And I can't imagine my life without you in it," Colt said, before getting down on one knee.Vanessa giggled and questioned what Colt was doing before he casually asked, "Want to get married?"Vanessa hesitated and didn't say anything, which prompted Colt to repeat, "Will you marry me, Vanessa?"Colt placed the ring on Vanessa's finger. She said it was "a little tight" but then exclaimed, "Oh my God, seriously?!"Vanessa pointed out she and Colt had so many problems, adding, "Is this the right time for you to ask?"Colt explained to Vanessa they were going to have problems throughout their entire life but he promised they could work through them, communicate and overcome challenges together."I love you, darling," Colt said."It's beautiful! I wasn't expecting it! I don't know what to say!" Vanessa said."Say 'yes' that you'll be my wife and spend the rest of your life with me," Colt urged.Colt insisted he was ready to be a husband again and felt closer to Vanessa than he ever felt to his ex-wife. Vanessa admitted the proposal came a little soon and she didn't quite feel ready to get married again."I refuse to go through a divorce again. I don't want to do it... I want to marry you someday, but that doesn't mean I'm going to," Vanessa explained."That's why there's an engagement," Colt pointed out.Vanessa asked if Colt would be willing to wait a year or so to get married. She wanted to make sure he'd be consistent and not mess around with other women."You're worth it," Colt replied. "I love you. You're my fiancee now if you say 'yes.'""Yes! I'll be your fiancee," Vanessa finally responded before hugging and kissing Colt. "Holy f-ck! Seriously?! No f-cking way!"Vanessa called her ring "beautiful" and noted it's prettier than what he had given to Larissa, but she told the cameras that she needed to see change in Colt in order for him to be her "Mr. Right" forever.Colt, now engaged, said in a confessional he loved and respected Vanessa and would do his best to show her that every day.Colt filed for divorce from his first wife, Larissa -- with whom he also starred on Season 4 of : Happily Ever After? -- in January 2019 after an explosive fight in his Las Vegas home.Colt and Larissa's divorce was finalized in April 2019. Larissa moved on with her rumored fiance Eric Nichols, and Colt, who said he was best friends with Vanessa at the time, struck up a romance with Jessica Caroline after his divorce.Colt and Jess starred on Season 5 of : Happily Ever After?."After my divorce from Larissa, I wanted to date Vanessa immediately. I was like, 'Hey, want to try it?' And she wasn't interested," Colt explained on the Tell-All special of the TLC spinoff's fifth season.Vanessa then shared, "He did ask me to be his girlfriend, and I said, 'No,' and then I kind of started dating somebody else and he got upset."Vanessa reportedly said at the time Colt was not her type and she likes "bearded tattooed men." She supposedly couldn't see past Colt's looks, and so Colt decided to date Jess instead.Colt admitted on the show he had sex with Vanessa one time but didn't tell Jess, who never trusted Vanessa during her short-lived romance with Colt. Jess believed Colt had been cheating on her before they split in October 2019."Okay, after I came back from Brazil, I cheated on Jess with Vanessa. I'm sorry, Jess," Colt confessed on the Happily Ever After? Tell-All, later adding, "And then after we broke up, [Jess], I slept with [Vanessa] some more."Jess asked Colt why he started dating her when he clearly loved Vanessa all along, and Colt replied, "Because Vanessa said, 'No.' If she said, 'Yes,' I would've dated her in a second. I'm sorry that you were in a sh-tty relationship with me. It was a summer fling."Vanessa said on the Tell-All she liked Colt only "as a best friend" because she "wouldn't trust him as a boyfriend." Colt, however, insisted he had never cheated on Larissa.Although Colt and Vanessa insisted they were just friends for months, the pair were photographed walking hand-in-hand down a Las Vegas street in September 2020.Jess went on to wed a man named Brian Hanvey, and Larissa and Eric engagement rumors sparked in late March.Want more spoilers or couples updates? Click here to visit our homepage!
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Please note that Figure 1 was modified.

TORONTO, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dore Copper Mining Corp. (the "Corporation" or "Dore Copper") (TSXV: DCMC; OTCQX: DRCMF; FRA: DCM) is pleased to announce that it has completed an option agreement with VanadiumCorp Resource Inc. (VanadiumCorp) and has earned a 100% interest in the Cornerback Property, which totals 2,100 hectares and surrounds the Companys flagship Corner Bay high-grade copper-gold project located in the southern portion of the Chibougamau mining camp, Quebec.



Ernest Mast, President and CEO, commented, The Cornerback option agreement was the first transaction the Corporation completed after establishing itself in the Chibougamau mining camp as a private company in September 2017. It is a significant land position that surrounds our key Corner Bay asset. The Company is currently completing a 16,500-meter drilling program at the Corner Bay deposit, which is indicating additional exploration potential to the south. This acquisition is consistent with our strategy of consolidating the Lac Dore/Chibougamau mining camp and creating a profitable hub-and-spoke operation model with our Copper Rand centralized mill.

Adriaan Bakker, President and CEO of VanadiumCorp, added, We are proud to work with Dore Copper as they revitalize the Chibougamau Mining District once an integral producer of copper and gold in Canada. Dore Copper has assisted VanadiumCorp in realizing value from our Cu-Au mining claims, allowing us to prioritize development of our nearby vanadium mineral resource and to develop our patented and proprietary vanadium technologies. Our companies are aligned in recognizing the regions vast geological potential within the politically stable and mining-friendly jurisdiction of Quebec, Canada.

Cornerback Option Agreement

The Cornerback option agreement was signed with VanadiumCorp on September 6, 2017. The Cornerback Property comprises 48 claims covering approximately 2,100 hectares and surrounds the Corporations Corner Bay project and is adjacent to the Corporations Devlin copper project to the west (Figure 1).

The terms of the option agreement to acquire the Cornerback Property were $250,000 in cash payments (five annual payments of $50,000). The Corporation has decided to make the final payment of $50,000 in advance of the due date of September 6, 2021. In addition, VanadiumCorp retains a 2% NSR royalty, of which 50% or 1% can be bought back for $1,000,000, and upon commencement of commercial production on the Cornerback Property, Dore Copper would make a $250,000 cash payment.

The Cornerback Property has a number of exploration and geophysical targets, including the potential southern extension of the Corner Bay main deposit. The claims have favorable geology being located on the southern flank of the Chibougamau pluton with a gabbroic anorthosite sequence.

Andrey Rinta, P.Geo., Exploration Manager of Dore Copper and a "Qualified Person" within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release.

Figure 1 accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d0887981-c08a-4051-9968-1707463d4171

About Dore Copper Mining Corp.

Dore Copper Mining Corp. is a copper-gold explorer and developer in the Chibougamau area of Quebec, Canada. The Corporation is focussed on implementing its hub-and-spoke development strategy by advancing its key high-grade copper-gold brownfield projects towards a restart of operations. Our goal is to achieve an annual production of 60 M lbs of copper equivalent (or 100,000 oz gold equivalent).

The Corporation has consolidated a large land package in the prolific Lac Dore/Chibougamau and Joe Mann mining camps that has produced 1.6 B lbs of copper and 4.4 M oz of gold. The land package includes 13 former producing mines, deposits and resource target areas within a 60-kilometre radius of the Companys 2,700 tpd mill (Copper Rand Mill).

Dore Copper plans to deliver a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) of its hub-and-spoke model in late 2021. Currently, the Corporation is completing a 16,500-metre drilling program at its Corner Bay (Cu-Au) project which will lead to an updated mineral resource estimate for mid-2021. In addition, Dore Copper is expected to have a maiden mineral resource estimate for the former producing Joe Mann mine (Au-Cu) by end of June 2021.

For further information, please visit the Corporation's website at www.dorecopper.com or refer to Dore Copper's SEDAR filings at www.sedar.com or contact:

Ernest Mast Laurie Gaborit President and Chief Executive Officer Vice President, Investor Relations Phone: (416) 792-2229 Phone: (416) 219-2049 Email: emast@dorecopper.com Email: lgaborit@dorecopper.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements include predictions, projections and forecasts and are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "forecast", "expect", "potential", "project", "target", "schedule", "budget" and "intend" and statements that an event or result "may", "will", "should", "could" or "might" occur or be achieved and other similar expressions and includes the negatives thereof. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding the timing and ability of the Corporation to receive necessary regulatory approvals, and the plans, operations and prospects of the Corporation and its properties are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to, actual exploration results, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, future metal prices, availability of capital and financing on acceptable terms, general economic, market or business conditions, uninsured risks, regulatory changes, delays or inability to receive required regulatory approvals, health emergencies, pandemics and other exploration or other risks detailed herein and from time to time in the filings made by the Corporation with securities regulators. Although the Corporation has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause such actions, events or results to differ materially from those anticipated. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Corporation disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
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Home security camera footage shows that the owner of a Tesla got into the drivers seat of the car shortly before a deadly crash in suburban Houston


Description

Req #15807 Monday, May 10, 2021 Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is a subscription-led and digitally focused media and marketing solutions company committed to empowering communities to thrive. With an unmatched reach at the national and local level, Gannett touches the lives of millions with our Pulitzer-Prize winning content, consumer experiences and benefits, and advertiser products and services.



Our current portfolio of media assets includes USA TODAY, local media organizations in 46 states in the U.S., and Newsquest, a wholly owned subsidiary operating in the United Kingdom with more than 120 local news media brands. Gannett also owns the digital marketing services companies ReachLocal, Inc., UpCurve, Inc., and WordStream, Inc., which are marketed under the LOCALiQ brand, and runs the largest media-owned events business in the U.S., USA TODAY NETWORK Ventures.



To connect with us, visit www.gannett.com. Gannett Publishing Services, located in Springfield, IL, is recruiting for a part-time Product Handler forThe State Journal Registerworking 20-29 hours per week.This individual provides distribution and handling of daily and non-daily products to our contractors while performing a variety of tasks and responsibilities.Position requires flexibility to work varied days and hours including weekends and holidays as needed.This is an evening / early morning position. Distribution and handling of daily and non-daily products to carriers, haulers, retailers and consumers.

Unload and load trucks containing various print publications.

Open the distribution center and prepare for the independent contractor arrival by preparing and distributing specified reports and paperwork.

Utilize industry-specific software to handle required reporting for center.

General housekeeping of distribution center.

Complete required documentation and reports for center as needed.

Maintain and audit store returns from contractors. Requirements: Strong organizational and communication skills required for a fast-paced environment.Good computer skills including Microsoft Office.Good time management skills.Good verbal and written communication skills.Must be able to push and pull carts loaded with newspapers weighing up to 500 pounds with assistance and repetitively lift newspaper bundles weighing up to 50 pounds. Gannett Co., Inc.is a proud equal opportunity employer. We are a drug free, EEO employer committed to a diverse workforce. We will consider all qualified candidates regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity, family responsibilities, disability, education, political affiliation, or veteran status. Job Family GateHouse Media

Pay Type Hourly Other details

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Serco takes on 'price fighter' role

Serco Inc. will continue to provide a variety of analytical support to the price fighters department at the Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support.

Serco first won the contract in 2015, according to Deltek, and bested two other bidders in the recompete awarded this week.

Under the $14.1 million contract, Serco will provide engineering-based cost analysis, logistics support, training, and technical services, according to the Defense Department posting.

All task orders placed under this contract have a firm-fixed-price structure. Three-fourths of the work will be done in Herndon, Virginia and the rest in Norfolk.

Among the tasks to be completed include should cost analysis of spare parts, technical data package development and review, and cost analysis of weapons systems, repairs and logistics. Serco also will support price challenges by investigating excessive prices increases, source development, and market research.
PARIS - France kicked off a nearly 10-million-euro campaign on Tuesday to relaunch the tourism sector, hoping to compete against the giants of Italy, Greece and Spain in an attempt to recover the 90 million tourists that visited France in 2019, prior to the coronavirus pandemic.



French Secretary of State for Tourism, Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, has repeatedly said he wants a "bleu-blanc-rouge" summer, in reference to the blue, white and red colours of French flag.



The campaign 'Atout France', with the hashtag #ExploreFrance, aims to attract tourists from the "ten nearby European markets": Italy, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Denmark, Sweden and Austria.



"It's important to show that there's a political willingness to roll out the red carpet to our European neighbours," Lemoyne said in an interview with France Presse.



"Our European clientele makes up three-fourths of our international clientele," he said.



In France, tourism generated 57 billion euros of revenue in 2019, 7.5% of the country's GDP, and created 2.87 million jobs.



In 2020, due to the Covid pandemic, revenues were down by half.
What just happened? The ongoing semiconductor shortage has prompted a bevy of companies that make and use chips to form a new lobbying group tasked with pressing the government for federal funding that would be used to advance chip research and manufacturing in the US.

The Semiconductors in America Coalition (SIAC) is a cross-sector alliance of companies that are putting their differences aside for the greater good. Members include Apple, Cisco, Dell, Google, Microsoft, AMD, Intel, IBM, Nvidia, Qualcomm and Samsung, just to name a few.

The extensive list of members can be found over on SIACs website, but in short, virtually every major tech company has signed on.

On its website, the coalition said it urges Congress and President Biden to provide $50 billion for the bipartisan CHIPS for America Act. A press release on the matter dated May 11, 2021, reads in part:

The current shortage of semiconductors is impacting a broad range of industries throughout the economy. To address this problem in the short term, government should refrain from intervening as industry works to correct the current supply-demand imbalance causing the shortage. But for the longer term, robust funding of the CHIPS Act would help America build the additional capacity necessary to have more resilient supply chains to ensure critical technologies will be there when we need them.

SIAC further notes that the share of global semiconductor manufacturing capacity in the US has fallen from 37 percent in 1990 to just 12 percent today, largely due to substantial subsidies offered by other countries. Federal investment in semiconductor research has also fallen flat as a share of GDP, the coalition said, while other governments are investing heavily to strengthen their own semiconductor capabilities.

Image credit Marco photo, Stratos Brilakis
ONE hundred years after the British Forces pulled out of what was then Victoria Barracks in Cork, a new documentary called Cork Through the Barracks, will be broadcast on Cork Community Television on Tuesday, May 18 at 8pm.

This documentary tells the story of Collins Barracks in Cork and what a key role it has played in all of the major historic events in Cork over the past two centuries.

It will outline the part that the barracks played during the revolutionary period in Cork and in the formation of a new Ireland.

The documentary features serving and retired members of the Irish Defence Forces and in particular Gerry White who is a retired Army Company Quartermaster Sergeant who had 43 years of service in the Irish Army. He has a huge interest in military history and has written several books on the subject, including co-writing one on the history of the Barracks.

From its construction at the start of the nineteenth century following the French Revolutionary wars, its connection with historical figures such as the Duke of Wellington, through to WWI, the War of Independence and subsequent Civil War, the Emergency years, right up to the peacekeeping missions around the world, Collins Barracks has played a key role in of all these events.





Back row left to right: Emma Bowell, Neil Hurley and Eddie Noonan of Frameworks Films. Seated: Cpl James White & CQMS Gerry White (Retd)

However Cork through the Barracks is not just about the historical events that occurred at the barracks. It is also about the people who served there and the documentary will also feature serving members of the garrison today, including some of the first women to join the army.

Although Collins Barracks has been in Cork for over two hundred years, many of those living in Cork are unaware of its rich history. This documentary aims to enable the people of Cork to see just how strong the relationship is between the barracks and the city.

As we continue the Decade of Centenaries, it will also add to the body of knowledge about that period of history and show the part that Collins Barracks has played in the twists and turns of Irish history.

The documentary will be broadcast at 8pm on Cork Community Television, available on Channel 803 on Virgin Medias digital cable package.

It will also be streamed live on Cork Community TV and will be premiered on Frameworks Films YouTube Channel, which can be accessed via Framework Films.
DALLAS, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Slalom, the modern consulting firm focused on strategy, technology, and business transformation, today announced a plan to significantly expand its Texas presence in 2021 and beyond.



With current offices in Dallas, Houston, Austin, and Fort Worth, Slalom will add over 200 software development, experience design, strategy, organizational effectiveness, data, and Salesforce jobs across Texas. This increased investment is in response to client demand from companies in Texas and surrounding areas for more support and expertise to strengthen and optimize their business. This growth is being driven across the diverse industries that have made Texas such a compelling home for some of the worlds leading brands.

Creating innovative ways to delight customers and employees has been a trend in recent years and has really escalated in terms of priority in the past year, said Brian Jacobsen, South Central General Manager. New ways of doing business and engaging humans, supported by emerging digital and technology solutions, are creating a wave of change for everyone. Slalom is excited to be at the center of it with our clients and our people by making this continued investment in Texas.

As part of its multi-year growth plan, Slalom has already hit the ground running in the region; the company is at the forefront of establishing new ways of working and collaborating. The Fort Worth office launched in early 2020 and this cow town is already in high growth mode. Austin opened new office space early last year, just blocks from the state capitol on Congress Ave. Dallas is expanding its footprint later this year to support the rise in client demand. Houston has quickly become the go-to for natural resources expertise while expanding other industry verticals. Slalom has also increased investment in the public sector across the statessupporting cities, counties, school districts, and first responders in serving the community.

The increase in demand is also driving investment in jobs for Slalom Build (Slaloms scalable and flexible approach to efficient software product design and development) and experienced skills supporting deep relationships with key partners such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft (MSFT), Salesforce, and Google Cloud.

Recognition of Slalom talent has come from those partners as well. Slalom has recently achieved Partner of the Year or Innovation Excellence Awards from Tableau, Boomi, AWS Security Competency, MSFT Power BI, Snowflake, Salesforce Partner in Healthcare and Life Sciences, and HRD for human resources, and was named one of the Top 21 Companies at the Forefront of Tech Innovation.

Aiding its successful expansion and attraction for top talent is Slaloms unique culture. Slalom has been listed in the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For in its sixth consecutive year, as well as Best Place to Work for LGBTQ+ Equality and Best Workplaces for Women and Parents.

Slalom launched its initial Texas presence in Dallas in 2007, expanding into the rest of the state over time. The company has its sights set on contributing to the future growth and commerce rooted in the Lone Star State.

About Slalom

Slalom is a modern consulting firm focused on strategy, technology, and business transformation. In 40 markets around the world, Slaloms teams have autonomy to move fast and do whats right. They are backed by regional innovation hubs, a global culture of collaboration, and partnerships with the worlds top technology providers. Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Seattle, Slalom has organically grown to over 9,000 employees. Learn more at slalom.com.

Media contact: Kelly Roberts | kellyr@slalom.com
MADRID - The world of Spanish culture is celebrating after the award for Opera Company of the Year went to the Teatro Real of Madrid at the 2021 International Opera Awards, the Oscars of opera.



"Pure emotion, thanks to everyone!" the opera house tweeted on its official profile. Recognition also came from the country's political institutions.



"Spain has the best opera in the world," tweeted the Spanish Royal House.



"Congratulations to the entire team at the Teatro Real".



"We are very proud," tweeted Spanish Culture Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Uribe, retweeted by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.



Celebration also came from Spanish media, for example in the headline of Spanish daily El Pais: "Teatro Real is in the Olympus of opera".



Teatro Real reopened its doors on July 1, 2020, after the forced break due to the pandemic, and it hasn't closed since.



"Thanks to everyone who every day, with determination, professionalism and enthusiasm, manages to raise the curtain," said the opera house's artistic director Joan Matabosch after the award.
NORWOOD, Mass., May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The ALS Association Massachusetts Chapter is encouraging local leadership to get soaked for a great cause. On Thursday, June 10, the organization will host its first-ever CEO Soak at Rings Fountain on the Rose Kennedy Greenway in downtown Boston, with an option to soak remotely at the office or home. The events $100,000 fundraising goal helps continue providing vital care services for local families living with ALS, while raising awareness for the incurable neurodegenerative disease.



This past year proved to be challenging for many, but even more so for isolated families battling ALS, said John Hedstrom, JD, Executive Director of The ALS Association Massachusetts Chapter. Although the namesake event notes C-level executives, all businesses  especially small businesses who serve as the backbone of our communities  are welcome to participate. In addition to our chapters annual fall walk and ride initiatives, we believe the CEO Soak has the potential to serve as a mainstay event to help bolster yearly fundraising efforts, because ALS doesnt stop so neither can we.

The 2021 Massachusetts CEO Soak builds on the legacy of the Ice Bucket Challenge, which drove massive awareness for ALS education. In addition to the actual soak, a socially-distanced networking event will be held nearby at Granary Tavern prior to the event, serving as a resource to businesses of all sizes. To date, Stop & Shop, Biogen, Apic Bio, Wave Life Sciences, Massachusetts Pirates, Worcester Red Sox, E.L. Harvey Waste Removal, SBLI and HomeBase Fitness all plan to get soaked with new participants added daily. Amylyx is serving as both a co-chair and sponsor for the event.



We are honored to support a partner that fights for and supports Massachusetts families living with ALS every day, said Joshua Cohen, Co-CEO, Chairman and Co-Founder of Amylyx. Justin Klee, Co-CEO and Co-Founder added, There is no better time than May  ALS Awareness Month  for local businesses to come together now, sign up for the event and advocate for better care and treatments for ALS.

Visit CEOSoakMA.org for more information and follow The ALS Association Massachusetts Chapter on social media: Facebook @ALSMASS, Instagram @alsa_ma and Twitter @ALSAMA.

About The ALS Association Massachusetts Chapter

The Massachusetts Chapter of the ALS Association was founded on January 27, 1990 to build and empower the community through continuous engagement with family, friends and neighbors. We are the only ALS organization with central focuses on all three major pillars of care services, research and advocacy for local families living with ALS, which aligns with our local chapter slogan: "Providing care today. Supporting hope for tomorrow." Learn more at als-ma.org

Media Contact: Christina Teves, Say Sorbet

Phone: (508) 726-6183

Email: christina@saysorbet.com




PALERMO - Over 200 migrants who had remained on the Favaloro pier on the island of Lampedusa, where they would have had to spend the night, were transferred before sunrise to the hotspot.



A strong levant wind is blowing on the island, which on Tuesday morning prevented the arrival of the ferry that was supposed to transfer some of the more than 1,000 migrants at the reception centre to Porto Empedocle.



The wind is preventing the quarantine ship "Allegra" to dock at Cala Pisana, while a group of 17 migrants was intercepted off the coast of Lampedusa by the Italian Coast Guard, which is escorting the vessel to the port.



At the current time the Lampedusa hotspot guarantees lodging and assistance to 1,725 people.



The prefecture of Agrigento has planned the transfer of 80 migrants on Tuesday evening with the commercial ferry Cossydra, which will reach Porto Empedocle at sunrise Wednesday.



Depending on sea conditions in the Strait of Sicily, another 200 migrants are scheduled to be transferred on Wednesday morning with the ferry Sansovino.



The quarantine ship "Azzurra" is in the harbour of Lampedusa, with 600 places available, but is blocked in the harbour due to the rough sea.



It isn't clear whether it will be able to dock at Cala Pisana in the coming hours.



The prefecture of Agrigento is coordinating all of the operations and initiatives, together with law enforcement, to face the emergency tied to the new wave of migrant landings on the island.

Italian Interior Minister calls on the EU for structural solution

ROME - Italian Interior Minister Luciana Lamorgese on Tuesday called on the EU to find a long-term structural solution on how to manage asylum seekers after thousands arrived on the southern Italian island of Lampedusa in recent days.

Earlier on Thursday a European Commission spokesperson said that, so far, there had been no firm commitments from member States for the relocation of these asylum seekers.

"It is necessary to carry out structural interventions in the system of managing the phenomenon inside the European Union with the activation of concrete, solid solidarity mechanisms... as well as a shared strategy to fight the trafficking of human beings and illegal immigration," Lamorgese told a Lisbon conference organized by the Portuguese duty presidency of the EU.
Israel: Ashkelon, two women killed by rockets from Gaza Man in life-threatening condition. First Israeli victims

(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, MAY 11 - Two Israeli women were killed Tuesday in the southern Israeli town of Ashkelon when the buildings they were in were hit by Hamas rockets fired from Gaza, said Army Radio.



An elderly man is in life-threatening condition.



These are the first deaths in Israel since the start of attacks by Hamas.



(ANSAmed).




National Professional Officer (Sub-Tropical Fruits Breeder), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Organization: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Country: Saudi Arabia

City: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Office: FAO Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Closing date: Friday, 18 June 2021

CALL FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST - VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT : 2000909

National Professional Officer (Sub-Tropical Fruits Breeder)

Job Posting: 07/May/2021

Closure Date: 18/Jun/2021, 9:59:00 PM

Organizational Unit : RNE

Job Type: Staff position

Type of Requisition : NPO (National Professional Officer)

Grade Level : N-4

Primary Location: Saudi Arabia-Riyadh

Duration : Fixed-term: one year with possibility of extension

Post Number : 2007846

CCOG Code : 1H01

Important Notice - Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal device

The length of appointment for internal FAO candidates will be established in accordance with applicable policies pertaining to the extension of appointments

FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender and nationality

People with disabilities are protected from any type of discrimination during any stage of employment, including the recruitment phase

All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality

The incumbent may be re-assigned to different activities and/or duty stations depending on the evolving needs of the Organization

Organizational Setting

The Programme Management Unit (PMU) of the FAO-Saudi Technical Cooperation Programme (2019-2025) facilitates, coordinates and manages all technical and advisory services to be provided by FAO to the Saudi Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture (MoEWA). The project UTF/SAU/051/SAU Strengthening MoEWAs Capacity to Implement the Sustainable Rural Agricultural Development Programme is the first project that has been approved within the framework of FAO-Saudi Technical Cooperation Programme (2019-2025). The project will provide technical and advisory assistance to the MoEWA in implementing its flagship sustainable rural agricultural development programme that has recently been approved within the context of the National Transformation Programme of the Saudi Vision 2030. The project expected results will be achieved through implementation of nine project components: 1) Development of coffee Arabica production, processing and marketing; 2) Development of beekeeping and honey production; 3) Development of rose production and trade; 4) Development of subtropical fruits production, processing and marketing; 5) Strengthening capacity of small-scale fishermen and fish farmers; 6) Strengthening capacity of small-scale livestock herders; 7) Development of rain-fed cereals production; 8) Enhancing value addition from smallholdings and rural activities; and 9) Strengthening MoEWAs capacity in sustainable management of rangelands, forests and natural resources to support rural livelihoods.

The incumbent will be part of the Programme Management Unit of the FAO-Saudi Technical Cooperation Programme in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Reporting Lines

The National Professional Officer reports directly to the FAO Programme Coordinator in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in consultation with the Chief Technical Adviser (CTA) of the project and in collaboration with the Chief Technical Adviser of the Sustainable Rural Agricultural Development Programme.

Technical Focus

Programme development and management, coordination and operational support based on the knowledge of the local conditions, culture, language, and institutions of Saudi Arabia.

Key Results

Effective and efficient management and coordination of the technical and operational support of the programme and project.

Key Functions

Participates in policy dialogue and advises government authorities, local, national and international institutions in the areas of FAOs activities and liaises with other UN agencies. Represents FAO at inter-agency meetings;

Promotes the image of FAO through advocacy of the Organizations mandate, programmes, national priorities and activities including the coordination of development and maintenance of communication tools such as website, press releases and publications, and supports the implementation of FAOs regulatory frameworks (Codex Alimentarius, Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, Safe Use of Pesticides, etc.) in the country;

Coordinates and manages the maintenance of country data on food, crops, livestock, forestry and fisheries, including information on external aid in FAOs corporate systems and monitors and communicates changes in national policies affecting the agricultural sector;

Takes the lead in producing technical, economic and policy studies as well as developing country level development frameworks such as the Country Programming Framework (CPF) and the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF);

Identifies, formulates and coordinates the preparation of programme and project proposals, monitors FAO field programme implementation, ensuring that all operational activities are carried out in line with the work plan and the project document, and makes recommendations on how to improve results and increase efficiency;

Briefs, trains and supervises lower grade level programme staff regarding all aspects of the job. Ensures adherence to procedures and work requirements and accuracy and diligence of the work provided.

Specific Functions

Advises and coordinates with the FAO Programme Coordinator , liaises with the PMU and the MoEWA to ensure the flow of cooperation and coordination in the planning, implementation, and monitoring of progress of the project component in accordance with the project document;

Works in close collaboration with and ensures timely and full coordination with the Project Focal Points to facilitate the implementation of the Project, prepare periodical reports, for organization of the Regional Steering Committee meetings, and acts as reporter in during the meetings, and ensures timely preparation of the Committee minutes and their distribution;

Co-leads comprehensive review of subtropical fruits value chain; production, processing and marketing and the organization of diagnostic studies to give direction to the sustainable development of the sector;

Contributes to the identification, pilot testing and promotion of sustainable good agricultural practices including efficient fertilization, pruning and harvesting practices among subtropical fruits growers and assessment of crop water requirements for crops grown under the various farming systems;

Contributes to the development of a catalogue of major subtropical fruits diseases, pests and weeds in the target regions, and to the development and implementation of an IPM programme for prevention and control of subtropical fruit pests and diseases to ensure access of their growers to pests and diseases control services;

Ensures the provision of technical support and pilot testing of sound irrigation systems and small rain water harvesting structures and technologies in selected areas and facilitates the development and adoption of improved post-harvest interventions covering all aspects of the subtropical fruits production value chain;

Assists the establishment and operation of modern subtropical fruits nursery and tissue culture units; identifies, produces, distributes and promotes healthy, drought and pest resistance high yielding fruits varieties seedlings;

Co-leads and/or supervises preparation and dissemination of various written project component outputs, e.g. background papers, sector reviews, technical reports, sections of reports and studies, manuals, guidelines and checklists and knowledge products;

Co-leads development of demand driven and responsive partnerships to benefit Saudi Arabia from proven innovation and good practices in the south and north for subtropical fruit production, processing and marketing.

Co-leads the development of post-harvest technologies and infrastructure, marketing strategies and value chain analysis for subtropical fruits agrifood incubation programme;

Contributes in situation analysis of existing small subtropical fruit farmers agricultural cooperatives and associations in the target regions and develop pilot business model for them;

Assists in the development of an appropriate contract farming models and other direct marketing strategies for small-scale subtropical fruit growers;

Assesses and develops a needs-based training and capacity development programme to strengthen skills of small subtropical fruit producers and food chain actors;

Contributes to the identification and promotes adoption of appropriate farm mechanization and technologies as well as irrigation scheduling for subtropical fruits production;

Coordinates with SRAD National Director and national stakeholders to ensure close working relations with MoEWA branches and other organisations, institutions and local authorities, to ensure timely conducting of country activities, including contractual arrangements, and inform the CTA of problems and obstacles that need attention and specific assistance.

Provides support in the design and organization of social, qualitative and quantitative studies including but not limited to gender mainstreaming, productive family issues, entrepreneurship, internal migration and with respect to rural people and youth participation and opinion considerations;

Ensures that SRADP investment and supported components including the provision of equipment, construction water harvesting, nurseries, extension centers and others include marketing facilities are timely completed.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

National of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia;

Advanced University degree in horticulture, plant breeding or any other related field;

Seven years of relevant experience in development of subtropical fruits production, processing and marketing and/or project management in the field of sustainable rural agricultural development in Saudi Arabia;

Working knowledge (Level C) of Arabic and limited knowledge (Level B) of English.

Competencies

Results Focus

Teamwork

Communication

Building Effective Relationships

Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions is desirable;

Extent and relevance of experience in development of subtropical fruits production, processing and marketing;

Demonstrated understanding of the purpose and functions of the technical programme, operational guidelines and project/programme management procedures, preferably those adopted by the United Nations or FAO;

Extent and relevance of experience in the field of policy analysis relating to food and nutrition security, agriculture and rural development;

Extent and relevance of experience in the collection of country data on food, crops, livestock, forestry and fisheries;

Extent and relevance of experience in the identification, formulation and preparation of programme and project proposals as well as programme/project implementation, monitoring and reviewed;

Extent and relevance of experience in Saudi Arabia is considered a strong asset.

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency. GENERAL INFORMATION

Staff members in this category are recruited locally and paid according to a local salary scale. Salary scales are reviewed periodically on the basis of comprehensive surveys of the best prevailing conditions of employment in the locality.

FAO reserves the right not to make an appointment, to make an appointment at a lower grade, or to make an appointment with a modified job description.

CONDITIONS OF SERVICE A competitive compensation and benefits package is offered. For information on UN salaries, allowances and benefits, click on the following link: https://icsc.un.org/Resources/SAD/Booklets/sabeng.pdf FAO encourages a positive workplace culture to increase inclusivity and diversity within its workforce. FAO applies measures in which all staff members contribute equally and in full to the work and development of the Organization. This includes:

elements of family-friendly policies

flexible working arrangements

standards of conduct

HOW TO APPLY

To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete and includes your employment records, academic qualifications and language skills;

Candidates are requested to attach a letter of motivation to the online profile;

Once your profile is completed, please apply and submit your application;

Your application will be screened based on the information provided on your online profile;

Please note that FAO will only consider academic credentials or degrees obtained from an educational institution recognized in the IAU/UNESCO list;

Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications;

Incomplete applications will not be considered;

Only applications received through the FAO recruitment portal will be considered;

We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date.

If you need help, or have queries, please contact: Careers@fao.org FAO IS A NON-SMOKING ENVIRONMENT

Link to the organizations job offer: https://unjobs.org/vacancies/1620594360679
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Midland, TX, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:NGS) (the "Company" or "NGS"), a leading provider of gas compression equipment and services to the natural gas and oil industry, announced today that Micah C. Foster has been appointed Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary.

Mr. Foster has over 17 years of professional experience in the energy industry and public accounting. Prior to joining the Company Mr. Foster served as the Chief Accounting Officer of Legacy Reserves Inc and its predecessor Legacy Reserves LP, a publicly traded oil and natural gas company, from April 2012 until April 2020. Prior to his appointment as Chief Accounting Officer in April 2012, Mr. Foster served in various roles for Legacy ranging from Financial Accountant to Corporate Controller. Prior to joining Legacy, Mr. Foster worked as staff auditor and then senior auditor at Ernst & Young, LLP from July 2003 to January 2006. Mr. Foster holds a BBA in Accounting and Finance from Abilene Christian University and is a Certified Public Accountant. Legacy Reserves Inc. filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the federal bankruptcy code in July, 2019 and emerged from bankruptcy in December 2019.

We are delighted that Micah has joined the NGS team as our Chief Financial Officer, said Stephen C. Taylor, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. He has served as our interim Controller since January and brings a wealth of experience both as an auditor and in public company finance and accounting to the NGS team. Moreover, his experience in the oil and gas industry will be a meaningful asset to our company. We welcome Micah to the NGS team and look forward to his immediate contribution to our financial and accounting team.

Mr. Foster takes the place of G. Larry Lawrence who has served as our Interim Chief Financial Officer since January after returning to the Company from retirement.

I want to thank Larry for his return to service as our Chief Financial Officer in January, added Taylor. After retiring, Larrys selfless return allowed us to continue our financial operations without missing a step upon an unexpected officer resignation. Larrys contributions to the company have been significant and his loyalty to the company exceptional. I treasure his counsel and friendship and we wish him well as he, once again, retires.

A Current Report detailing Mr. Fosters employment with the Company is being filed concurrent with this press release with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NGS):

NGS is a leading provider of gas compression equipment and services to the energy industry. The Company manufactures, fabricates, rents, sells and maintains natural gas compressors and combustion systems for oil and natural gas production and plant facilities. NGS is headquartered in Midland, Texas, with fabrication facilities located in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Midland, Texas, and service facilities located in major oil and natural gas producing basins in the U.S. Additional information can be found at www.ngsgi.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

Except for historical information contained herein, the statements in this release are forward-looking and made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause NGS's actual results in future periods to differ materially from forecasted results. Those risks include, among other things, the loss of market share through competition or otherwise; the introduction of competing technologies by other companies; a prolonged, substantial reduction in oil and gas prices which could cause a decline in the demand for NGS's products and services; and new governmental safety, health and environmental regulations and social initiatives which could require NGS to make significant capital expenditures or reduce our customers' demand for our products and services. Any forward-looking statements included in this press release are only made as of the date of this press release, and NGS undertakes no obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. A discussion of these factors is included in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.




An online meeting of the North River Toastmasters Club / Courtesy of Peter Kim





By Jon Dunbar







Toastmasters International, founded almost a century ago in 1924, has 364,000 dues-paying members in over 16,200 clubs in 145 countries. There are over 70 Toastmasters clubs already in Korea, offering get-togethers on various days of the week in locales across the country in a variety of languages, including Korean, Chinese and English. There are also bilingual clubs and even a trilingual Korean-Spanish-English club.









One of the newest clubs,

(NRTC), was chartered on Jan. 20 this year amid the pandemic, and events are only held online for now.







"NRTM didn't want to start an online club, but it ended up being that way because of the coronavirus pandemic," NRTC President Peter Kim told The Korea Times. "Although everyone prefers having offline meetings, we nonetheless decided to start a club because there are more clubs in southern Seoul than northern Seoul. More importantly, we believe that having online club meetings and other NRTM activities are important as ways to engage with each other, but also to support and encourage each other through these challenging times. We also believe that when we finally meet offline that everyone will continue to sustain the club for continued growth and success."







The new club holds meetings online in English inviting people of all fluency and experience levels to sharpen their communication and leadership skills in a supportive environment. The organization also holds events like speech contests and publishes a magazine, as well as providing fellowship and friendship, which are increasingly vital in the pandemic era.







"There are many benefits of becoming a Toastmasters member!" Kim said, adding that he is concentrating on "Innovative Planning" and "Engaging Humor," two of the 11 paths of Toastmasters' education program, Pathways, which covers 300 competencies.







According to Kim, the fledgling club's membership represents Korea as well as the U.S., Nepal, Canada, Laos, South Africa, Cambodia and Saudi Arabia, making it one of the most diverse Toastmasters clubs in Korea. "Such diversity provides not only variety in terms of where people are from but also what they bring into an NRTC meeting and also to Toastmasters itself," he said.







The club's meetings "provide fun, education and structure," according to Kim.







For each meeting, someone is selected as the "Toastmaster" to offer a theme and ask a question for others to answer. These are usually broad, general knowledge topics that are easily approachable to anyone and conducive to engaging, directed talks. Past questions of NRTC have included, "What is your favorite tree?" and "When you think of green, what comes to mind?" (held on St. Patrick's Day).







The next meeting, held May 12 on Zoom, starting at 7:30 p.m., is themed on dreams and asks, "What is your wildest dream?"







The meetings have a "Table Topics Session" intended to help people sharpen their impromptu speaking skills, as well as a "Prepared Speech" session. Each speaker is assigned an evaluator, who works in consultation with five role takers  the general evaluator, grammarian, timer, review master and ah-counter. The ah-counter's job is to note any overused words or other unnecessary "pause filler" sounds such as "um" or "uh" that hamper the effectiveness of any speeches given during the meeting.











Membership in the club costs a one-time $20 new member fee and $45 in membership dues which lasts for six months.









Visit toastmasters.org for more information about the organization and its many clubs, or search Facebook for "North River Toastmasters Club" to find out about this new club and its meeting. To join or get more information, send a message to the Facebook page or email

.


WESTMINSTER, Colo., April 13, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- We are developing the infrastructure of a global zoonotic infectious diseases alert shield (ZIDAS) able to successfully manage and control the COVID-19 pandemic; and ultimately prevent future pandemics from developing. This alert shield will operate like a nuclear shield, designed to detect incoming nuclear warheads and destroy them before they can be deployed. A global network of AI controlled laboratory robotic systems, capable of collecting, storing and analyzing data, will be able to perform such a task.

We envision two types of laboratory settings:

The first, stationary integrated robotic lab facilities designed for ultra high throughput, capable to processing 100,000-200,000 samples/lab/day. Samples will be collected from the general population and sent to the labs to be tested. These facilities will be also focus on growing viral strains for R&D and new anti-viral therapeutics development for SARS-CoV-2 and other potential pandemic viruses

Mobile integrated robotic lab units will be designed as a scaled- down version of the ultra-high throughput platform described above. Each mobile unit will be equipped with an integrated robotic system capable to perform 2,000-4,000 samples/units/day. Electric vehicles represent the ideal solution to the development of this network of mobile labs designed to test wastewater from reclamation plants.

Dr. Tony Milici, Chairman & CEO of GeneThera (OTC: GTHR), commented: We believe that the implementation of SMART TESTING TECHNOLOGY (STT) could change the course of the COVID pandemic and predict future pandemic before they developed. It is quite clear that performing massive number of testing using unreliable or non standardized technology does not control the virus or provide scientists the information needed to understand the spread of the virus and the insurgence of new potentially dangerous strains. It is still unclear whether or not vaccines will be able to stop the COVID. https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2021/04/05/246-vaccinated-residents-diagnosed-covid-3-dead-michigan/7100759002/



Additionally mass vaccination is creating a false sense of safety within the general population in part due widespread media misinformation among other variables. As result, the number of tests being performed is declining. Consequentially wastewater testing has became even more important to detect the rate of viral infection in the human population and specific communities. Presently most diagnostic and university labs are only capable of processing a low number of wastewater samples daily. GeneTheras plan to deploy mobile robotic laboratories units capable of processing on location, thousand of wastewater samples using Smart Testing Technology will be a critical component of our ZIDAS surveillance system platform. This technology should be able to analyze the spread of the virus within communities and discover the presence of new viral variances before they would infect the general population. Our ultimate goal is to deploy tens of thousands of mobile lab units capable of processing thousand of samples worldwide using vehicles that can last for decades with extraordinary little maintenance.

About GeneThera, Inc.



GeneThera is a biotechnology company developing molecular robotic/AI diagnostics and therapeutics in an effort to control and eradicate zoonotic diseases. GeneThera developed molecular assays for BSE and Mycobacterium Avium Paratuberculosis (MAP). MAP is an infectious organism causing Paratuberculosis in dairy cows that is also linked to Crohns Disease in humans. We utilize these technologies to minimize the spread of animal infectious organisms such as SARS-CoV-2 to humans. Management and prevention of zoonotic diseases is crucial to human and animal health on a global scale.



This press release contains forward-looking statements, which are made pursuant to the Safe-Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "intends," "believes," and similar expressions reflecting something other than historical fact are intended to identify forward-looking statements, but are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including the timely development and market acceptance of products and technologies, the ability to secure additional sources of finance, the ability to reduce operating expenses, and other factors described in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The actual results that the Company achieves may differ materially from any forward-looking statement due to such risks and uncertainties. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements in order to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this release.



For further information please contact:



Tony Milici MD, Ph.D.

GeneThera Inc.

720 587-5100
Angola, IN (46703)

Today

Rain showers in the morning with scattered thunderstorms arriving in the afternoon. High 82F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

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Scattered thunderstorms during the evening followed by occasional showers overnight. Low around 65F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%.
Pune, India, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dermal Fillers Market Size| 2021 Covid-19 Impact On Automotive Industry Global Analysis By Size, Trends, Growth, Share, Business, Key Players, Merger, Statistics, Competitive Landscape, And Regional Forecast To 2027 is latest study published by Fortune Business Insights. The global dermal fillers market size is likely to reach USD 6.64 billion by 2027, registering a CAGR of 9.3% during the forecast period. Dermal fillers are used to regain the volume and bounce of facial skin. They are gel-like substances that are injected into the skin in cosmetic procedures. Fortune Business Insights has presented this information in an upcoming report titled, Dermal Fillers Market, 2020-2027. The market size stood at USD 3.73 billion in 2019.

The report divulges the several factors influencing the market growth. For instance, the rising awareness amongst the geriatric population for minimal meddling techniques is significantly fueling the demand filler market growth. Since 2000, the number of minimal meddling cosmetic procedures has risen by almost 200%, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons data.

COVID-19 Impact-

The global pandemic has dismantled the operational infrastructure of several industries and markets, including the Dermal Fillers Market. Hindered by the lockdowns, social distancing norms, and curfews, the massive disturbances in the operations and the supply chain networks can be witnessed hampering the markets growth. The global impact of the COVID-19 crisis is expected to gradually fade away as economies are trying to wade their way through the pandemic. Due to virtual consultations, the cosmetology, and dermatology sectors, the market is slowly gaining traction. It is uncertain to say how long the situation may persist this way. Nonetheless, our research reports in-depth analysis will help you gain valuable insights into this niche market.

Key Players in the Global Dermal Fillers Market:

Anika Therapeutics Inc. (Massachusetts, U.S.)

Suneva Medical (California, U.S.)

Prollenium Medical Technologies (Toronto, Canada)

DR. Korman (Kiryat Bialik, Isreal)

SCULPT Luxury Dermal Fillers LTD. (U.K)

Bioxis Pharmaceuticals (Lyon, France)

BIOPLUS CO. LTD. (South Korea)

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (Mumbai, India)

Sinclair Pharma (London, U.K.)

Galderma (Lausanne, Switzerland)

Merz Pharma (Frankfurt, Germany)

Revance Therapeutics Inc. (California, U.S.)

ALLERGAN (Dublin, Ireland)





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Global Dermal Fillers Market Highlights:

The Dermal Fillers Market report offers an in-depth analysis of the Dermal Fillers industry and the demand drivers by highlighting information on several aspects of the market. Prudent Markets addresses all these aspects and provides the latest scoop and detailed eye-opening study on all major & emerging business segments. In addition to this, the report sheds light on the industry developments by key players, which are contributing to the expansion of this industry. The development scope, feasibility study, Dermal Fillers market concentration, and maturity analysis is elaborated in this report.

Information given in the research report pertains to different technological advancements introduced in recent years, which allows for a meticulous analysis of the industry and offers a more comprehensive understanding to the readers.

Segmentation-

On the basis of material, the market segments into calcium hydroxylapatite, hyaluronic acid, poly-L-Lactic acid, fat fillers, PMMA (Polymethyl Methacrylate), etc. On the basis of product, the market bifurcates into non-biodegradable and biodegradable. On the basis of its application, the market divides into lip enhancement, scar treatment, restoration of volume/fullness, wrinkle correction treatment, etc. On the basis of its end-user, the market segments into hospital & clinics, specialty & dermatology clinics, etc. Geographically, the market is categorized into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa.

The outbreak of covid-19 in the global market has made companies uncertain about their future scenario as the prolonged lock-down finds a serious economic slump. The latest survey on COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Dermal Fillers Market is conducted to provide hidden gems performance analysis. Essential growth factors and study of Basis points [BPS] have been discussed in the following report. Research Report explains a detailed overview of market dynamics, segmentation, product portfolio, business plans, and the latest development in the industry.

Report Coverage-

The report is based on historical data and follows top-down and bottom-up approaches for an infallible forecast of the market. The report incorporates Porters five Forces Analysis for a precise prediction. The report contains data gathered through interviews with multiple stakeholders at global, regional, and country levels. The report also studies the political, social, economic, technological, and environmental factors promoting the growth of the market in several regions. The report also contains information on the competitive landscape of the prospected market, including the data on new product launches, key market trends, alliances, acquisitions, mergers, etc.

This report focuses on Dermal Fillers Global Market, especially in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East and Africa. This report categorizes the market based on manufacturers, regions, type and application. Regional analysis is another highly comprehensive part of the research and analysis study of the global market presented in the report. This section sheds light on the sales growth of different regional and country-level markets. For the historical and forecast period to 2026, it provides detailed and accurate country-wise volume analysis and region-wise market size analysis of the global market.





Click here to get the short-term and long-term impact of COVID-19 on this Dermal Fillers Market.

Please visit: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/dermal-fillers-market-100939





Drivers & Restraints-

Escalating Demand for Painless and Easy Cosmetic Procedures to Propel Market Growth

People are getting more conscious about their youthful appearance. They are seeking easy and painless methods like filler injections, botulinum toxin injections, etc., to appear youthful and healthier. The demand for these minimally invasive methods and cosmetic surgeries has escalated drastically over the past few years. The escalating demand has urged manufactures and industrialists to launch new products. For instance, Revance Therapeutics signed a distribution agreement with TEOXANE SA. This will help Revance Therapeutics cater to the demand for RHA fillers. These factors are expected to fuel the Dermal Fillers Market growth in the forthcoming years.

However, the high cost of filler injections and their side effects are expected to act as a hindrance to market growth.





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Regional Insights-

Asia Pacific to Exhibit the Highest Growth Rate

North America is anticipated to dominate the global dermal fillers market growth due to multiple factors. The regional population is financially strong and is well acquainted with these cosmetic procedures. The region also accounts for a comparatively high number of these procedures. These factors are expected to augment the market growth in North America.

Escalating R&D expenditure, rising senior population, and an increasing number of individuals coming in for these filler procedures are expected to help Europe attain the second-highest rate of market growth.

Increasing awareness regarding the enhancement of their physical appearance amongst individuals in Asian countries, health infrastructure progress, and the growing senior population is amongst the key factors that are expected to help the Asia Pacific exhibit the highest CAGR in the forecast period.

Expanding health tourism is expected to help the Middle East & Africa, and Latin America witness moderate growth in the forthcoming years.





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Competitive Landscape-

New Product Launches and Expansions to Intensify Competition

The Dermal Fillers Market is fairly competitive and features three companies that possess the majority of shares in the worldwide facial filler market. The three companies, i.e., Allergan (AbbVie), Merz Pharma, and Galderma, have created a strong market presence. These companies are expected to significantly bolster market growth with their strategic moves. For instance, a new R&D-focused plant in Ireland was inaugurated by Allergan in January 2020.

Industry Developments-

August 2020: Revance Therapeutics Inc. launched the first and the only dermal filler approved by FDA. Known as the RHA Dermal Filler Line, these fillers will facilitate facial wrinkle correction.

Revance Therapeutics Inc. launched the first and the only dermal filler approved by FDA. Known as the RHA Dermal Filler Line, these fillers will facilitate facial wrinkle correction. February 2020: BioScience GmbH introduced their new injectable line named Hyaprof combines polydensified and monodensified fillers.





Table of Content from Dermal Fillers Market:

Introduction Research Scope Market Segmentation Research Methodology Definitions and Assumptions

Executive Summary

Market Dynamics Market Drivers Market Restraints Market Opportunities

Key Insights Overview of the Number of Dermal Fillers Procedures by Key Countries Overview of Price Analysis of Types of Dermal Fillers Overview of Regulatory Scenario by Key Countries Overview of Reimbursement Scenario by Key Countries New Product Launches Pipeline Analysis

Global Dermal Fillers Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast, 2015-2026 Key Findings / Summary Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast  By Ingredient Hyaluronic Acid Calcium Hydroxylapatite Poly-L-lactic Acid PMMA (Poly(methyl methacrylate)) Fat Fillers Others Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast  By Product Biodegradable Non-Biodegradable Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast  By Application Scar Treatment Wrinkle Correction Treatment Lip Enhancement Restoration of Volume/ Fullness Others Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast  By End User Specialty & Dermatology Clinics Hospitals & Clinics Others Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast  By Region North America Europe Asia Pacific Latin America Middle East & Africa

North America Dermal Fillers Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast, 2015-2026 Key Findings / Summary Market Analysis  By Ingredient Hyaluronic Acid Calcium Hydroxylapatite Poly-L-lactic Acid PMMA (Poly(methyl methacrylate)) Fat Fillers Others Market Analysis  By Product Biodegradable Non-Biodegradable Market Analysis  By Application Scar Treatment Wrinkle Correction Treatment Lip Enhancement Restoration of Volume/ Fullness Others Market Analysis  By End User Specialty & Dermatology Clinics Hospitals & Clinics Others Market Analysis  By Country U.S. Canada



TOC Continued





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EIGHT-YEAR-OLD Eoghan Timmins is calling on the people of Cork to take part in the Climb Every Mountain Challenge in aid of childrens charity, Barretstown.

Barretstown offers free, specially designed camps for children and their families living with serious illness.

The childrens charity relies on the public to provide 98% of funds and due to Covid-19, they have had to cancel many of their key fundraising initiatives.

As a result, in 2020 the charity suffered an income shortfall of 1,000,000 but there are still over 10,700 children and family members waiting to be served through Barretstown.

Cork native and Barretstown camper, Eoghan is urging the people of Cork to take on the Climb Every Mountain Challenge.

Now in its second year, the challenge asks supporters to climb a mountain during the months of May and June, as an individual, team or a company.

Climbers have a choice of mountains ranging in height so there is something for all ages and fitness abilities. Participants can pick a target mountain or distance, taking the challenge outside or even completing it at home.

Eoghan Timmins (8) is urging people to take on this year's challenge for Barretstown who have been forced to cancel and postpone all of their key fundraising initiatives as a result of Covid-19.

Speaking on the fundraiser, Dee Ahearn, Chief Executive at Barretstown, said that the charity is doing everything it can to continue to support vulnerable children during this very challenging time.

"The Covid-19 crisis has meant that children with a serious illness, like those who come to Barretstown, who are immune compromised, are even more isolated. They need Barretstowns therapeutic programmes now more than ever."

"The Climb Every Mountain Challenge is now in its second year and it has proved an extremely popular fundraising event for the organisation. It is always a memorable and wonderful experience for everyone involved.

"I would like to thank and applaud all those who have taken part and continue to take part. Your support is so appreciated," added Dee Ahearn.

For more information or to register for the event, contact fundraising@barretstown.org or click here.
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TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP)  Two amateur computer coders taken by police from their Beijing homes last year were standing trial Tuesday in a case that illustrates the Chinese government's growing online censorship and heightened sensitivity to any deviation from the official narrative on its COVID-19 response.

Authorities have not said specifically why Chen Mei, 28, and Cai Wei, 27, were arrested, so friends and relatives can only guess. They believe it was because the two men had set up an online archive to store articles deleted by censors and a related forum where users could skirt real-name registration requirements to chat anonymously.

The case is being tried at Wenyuhe People's Court in the northeastern outskirts of Beijing. Chens mother and Cais father were allowed in shortly before the trial was due to begin at 9 a.m. The families were previously told that only one family member could attend.

Started in 2018, the archive kept hundreds of censored articles and the forum saw discussions on sensitive issues including the anti-government protests in Hong Kong and complaints about the ruling Communist Party. But what got them in trouble with authorities appears to be archiving articles showing an alternative to Chinas official narrative about its pandemic response just as the country started facing questions over its handling of the initial outbreak.

In keeping the censored articles and providing a place for them to be discussed, the two run afoul of increasingly strict regulations in an already stifling online environment under President Xi Jinping. Just last year hundreds were prosecuted for online speech.

Chen and Cai are being prosecuted under a catch-all charge of stirring up trouble and picking quarrels.

In January 2020, the two began archiving articles about a mysterious new illness circulating in Wuhan. For Cai, who is from the area and could not go home to see his family for the Lunar New Year holiday, the news was particularly upsetting.

A lot of things happened in China then that made us very upset, and he may have been affected by that, said his girlfriend, Tang Hongbo. She was also detained but released after 23 days when it became clear she didnt know much about the project. Every day we were looking at the internet, and we were all in this tragic mindset.

Xi has made cyberspace governance a priority, and under his direction, the government created its own model to manage the challenges and opportunities of the internet. China eliminated online anonymity by requiring people to register under what is known as the real name system starting in 2016. Social media accounts are linked to a mobile phone number, which is tied to an individuals national ID number.

A Chinese activist, using court and government records and media reports, tallied more than 750 prosecutions for web speech in 2020 in an online database and posted on a Twitter account named SpeechFreedomCN. He said he runs the database anonymously out of fear of retribution.

A friend of Cai, who declined to be named out of fear of retribution, said Cai had grown frustrated with the censorship regime. In response, he and Chen launched the Terminus2049 archive and 2049bbs forum in 2018 as a public platform of free exchange, Cai wrote in a welcome post.

Its not just the real name system  the deletions of posts, the bans, have reached a point thats really shocking domestically, Cai wrote in another 2018 post. When you have to worry about whether you have touched a sensitive keyword in any post you write, how can you really have the brave desire to express yourself?

On the forum, Cai wrote about movies, music and books he liked. Others discussed mores sensitive topics. It was a place to speak without worrying about having posts deleted or getting ones account banned. It didnt require a phone number to register, or even an email address.

Chen was more low-key but similarly chafed against the censorship system.

He wants information to flow. He wants quality information to flow freely, said Chen Kun, his older brother. We have this type of value deep in our bones, the independence of discourse on the internet and the free transmission of information.

Cai and Chen met in 2011 at a summer camp hosted by Liren College, a socially conscious educational program. Both self-taught coders, they first started cooperating on a project to archive all the lectures and information from the summer camps, said a friend of both, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear of retribution. Authorities shut down Liren in 2014.

Terminus2049 primarily housed articles that had been deleted from WeChat and Weibo, popular social media platforms that are subject to regular algorithmic and human censorship. While similar databases existed, most were blocked in China. Terminus2049 was available on Github, a code sharing platform that is not blocked.

The topics the archived articles touched on were broad, but they shared a focus on social issues. One was concerned about the expulsion of migrant workers from Beijing after a fire, while another shared questions about a company that falsified data on rabies vaccines.

It was only after Cai and Chen got arrested in April last year that their families found out from friends and peers what the two had been working on. They suspect that pandemic-related content triggered the arrests, in part because in the weeks before and after their detention, police questioned acquaintances about what the two had done during the outbreak.

They were told that Chen Mei has family members abroad, has provided foreign organizations with information about the pandemic and is basically handing a knife over to the enemy, said Chen Kun, who now lives in France.

Police in Beijing did not respond to a faxed request for comment and court-appointed lawyers did not respond to phone calls.

Citizen journalist Zhang Zhan also fell afoul of the law after reporting from Wuhan in the early days of the outbreak. She received a four-year sentence in December.

The 2049bbs forum, which never had major reach, is now blocked in China. Yet the discussions continue and the records of the forum live on in a site called 2047, set up by a self-described person who walks the same path and some members of the old forum.

Cais father, who hasn't seen his son in more than a year, still cant understand how his son ran afoul of the authorities.

He didnt say anything bad. He didnt try to organize some protests," Cai Jianli said. "How did this become picking quarrels and stirring up trouble?

___

Associated Press video journalist Sam McNeil and news assistant Caroline Chen in Beijing contributed to this story.


GIS Senior Project Manager (ITP-A, Exempt) Salary: $48.49 - $72.74 Hourly Location: Seattle, WA Job Type Temporary - Benefit Eligible Department: Seattle Information Technology Job Number 2021-00644 Closing 5/25/2021 4:00 PM Pacific Position Description The City of Seattle is seeking candidates for a Term-Limited-Temporary Geographic Information System (GIS) Senior Project Manager with the Applications Division in Seattle Information Technology (Seattle IT). This assignment is anticipated to last two years. As a city, Seattle is known as a progressive leader in technology, innovation and the environment. As an employer, the City of Seattle is leading local government in environmental stewardship and social justice amongst other things, making our City what it is today and shaping our exciting future. The organizations workforce plays a critical role in making this possible. Seattle IT is the technology backbone of the City of Seattles complex operations and its ability to deliver a wide array of services for the residents of Seattle. The 600+ strong professionals in Seattle IT are involved in the full spectrum of a modern IT enterprise offering many dynamic career opportunities. Our vision is simple: be a Best-in-Class digital services delivery team and set best practices for others to follow. Job Responsibilities Position Overview: Note: This is a term limited temporary position anticipated to last two years. In this role you will use your leadership and technical skills to manage critical, highly complex, cross functional, medium to large-scale projects primarily focused on public utility and municipal applications. You will oversee technology implementations of GIS focused projects that may involve spatial analysis, software development, vendor product configuration, data development and manipulation, and map creation. Assigned projects range in duration from small six-month efforts to larger multi-year projects. Working closely with Seattle ITs GIS team, you will be responsible for leading these projects through the project management lifecycle (PMLC) and the software development lifecycle (SDLC) from concept to completion (or to the end of your term). Heres more of what youll be doing: Delivering full scope of projects on time and within budget.

Applying project management skills including direction, monitoring, and general oversight for project teams, vendors, contractors, consultants and staff.

Developing detailed project plans containing a well-defined work breakdown structure, activities & tasks, dependencies, a resource-loaded schedule and resource plan.

Utilizing a risk management workshop, identify project risks and maintain risk log with clear and manageable risk mitigation strategies with contingencies.

Developing and maintaining the procurement plan and track actual expenses and forecast for budgeting to meet financial reporting standards.

Managing the vendor engagements, tracking deliverables to schedule.

Defining and documenting processes required for deployments including changes to operational business processes and operational support plans.

Supervising execution activities such as monitoring and controlling overall plan and deliverables; report to stakeholders and management on status of schedule, cost, quality, change, risks & issues, readiness, and acceptance.

Ensuring business analysis activities demonstrate requirements are developed, maintained, and traced.

Scheduling and conduct Steering Committee meetings and all other key stakeholder meetings.

Following Citywide CITP processes, standards and Project Stage Gate reviews throughout the lifecycle of the project including system stabilization and project close out.

Conducting project closeout activities including lessons learned, requirement/scope validations, schedule and budget performance, the handover to O&M (operations and maintenance), and closeout of all contracts and financial reporting.

Reviewing technical documentation including architectural impacts, data models, integration plans, etc. Qualifications NOTE: Equivalent combinations of education/experience/training will be considered for the required qualifications except where specifically noted. Required Qualifications: Minimum of five (5) years experience managing projects with increasingly responsibility, size, and complexity as reflected in the size of project, cost of the project, size of project team, depth and breadth of project manager role & responsibility, span of project impact (i.e., enterprise-wide, multi-departmental, or having a major market or external impact).

Experience managing projects using both Agile and Waterfall methodologies.

Experience managing project budgets over $1M (including labor costs).

Experience with GIS technologies or implementation of GIS related projects (similar knowledge will be considered).

Experience with business systems and database integrations.

Excellent written and oral communications skills and the ability to communicate effectively with technical teams, executives, business teams and external agencies.

Excellent skills and ability to influence stakeholders, and drive decisions to closure; adept at moving executive and senior management to action.

Strong analytical and critical thinking skills

Process oriented with strong attention to detail

Proficiency using Microsoft Project, Visio, SharePoint, and Office products.

Ability to quickly adapt to changes in technology tools used for daily productivity.

Demonstrated success working in a matrixed reporting structure.

Excellent leadership and political awareness within a government/public environment. Desired Qualifications: BA or advanced degree relevant to Management Information Systems, Systems Development, Project Management, or equivalent alternative.

Project Management Professional (PMP) certification or Masters degree with Project Management specialization.

Experience and/or knowledge of civil engineering, mapping, or spatial systems

Experience with public sector and/or public utilities

Experience with process mapping/documentation

Agile project management methodology

Experience writing request for proposal (RFPs) and working with third party vendors in the acquisition or development of solutions.

Experience with procurement, contracting, negotiating vendor statements of work and managing vendor teams.

Experience employing organizational change management practices within technology implementation projects. Special Conditions: Ability to work non-business hours.

Occasional travel to offsite facilities and remote locations may be necessary. Additional Information How to Apply: Please submit the following with your online application to https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/seattle/: A resume of your educational and professional work experience.

Optional: A cover letter in which you clearly describe how your knowledge, skills, and abilities prepare you for the job responsibilities and qualifications outlined in the job announcement. Seattle IT is in the midst of a transformation as it pivots to become a best-in-class digital service delivery team. Chief Technology Officer Saad Bashir is leading the change through talent and development, investing in employees, collaborating with clients, and adapting modern workplace tools. Click here to learn more. The successful candidate must reside in Washington State on their first day of employment. Relocation will be at the candidate's expense. This position is open to all candidates who meet the minimum qualifications. The Seattle Information Technology Department values diverse perspectives and life experiences. Applicants will be considered regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, marital status, disability, religious or political affiliation, age, sexual orientation, or gender identity. ITD encourages people of all backgrounds to apply. NOTE: Employment contingent upon successful completion of comprehensive background investigation in compliance with Seattles Fair Change Employment Ordinance SMC 14.17. Background investigation may include CJIS certification conducted under the purview of Seattle Police Department.

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ROME - Rockets continue to be launched from Gaza on Israel after a night of fighting between Israel and Hamas.

The Israeli military said alarm sirens sounded again in the city of Ashkelon, one of the hardest hit, and in the Israeli areas around the Gaza Strip. The Israeli air force hit 130 military targets in Gaza. Palestinian sources said there were at least 24 killed and dozens injured.

Meanwhile, eight companies of Israeli Border Guard reservists were called into action to cope with the widespread disorder in Arab towns in Israel.

The Israeli military has named the operations that began Monday between Hamas and Israel "Operation Guardian of the Walls".

Military officials said they expect operations to continue for days.

In Gaza, Palestinian militias set up a common operations centre.

In Palestinian media, the launch of rockets on Israel is called "Operation Sword of Jerusalem".

In a video released online, the military wing of Hamas said, "Jerusalem called, Gaza responded".

According to the military spokesman, on Monday over 250 rockets were launched on Israel from the Gaza Strip.

The launches continued on Tuesday morning, with an attack on Ashkelon. At least six people were injured by rockets that hit an apartment building. Media said in one family, a father was seriously injured while his wife and two children were slightly wounded, and two people were injured in another apartment.

Military spokesman Itay Silberman said air strikes on Monday in Gaza killed 15 Hamas militants.

Incidents between Palestinian protesters and Israeli police took place in East Jerusalem. Protests also took place in Arab towns within Israel.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

Virgin Galactics Unity spaceship is ready to fly, but the mothership VMS Eve may first need some maintenance before the passenger rocket can hitch another ride part way to space.

Engineers have fully repaired a glitch in the Unity passenger rocket that forced its two pilots to abort their last attempt to shoot to the edge of space in December, the company said during a first-quarter earnings conference call with investors Monday afternoon. But following a test flight last week with the mothership Eve, technicians found a maintenance issue that could briefly ground that vehicle, potentially delaying Unitys next effort to reach suborbit.

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................................................................

Virgin Galactic uses Eve to carry Unity on its underbelly to about 50,000 feet, at which point the spaceship breaks away from Eve and fires up its rocket motors to shoot into space at 50 miles up.

The company had already scheduled a four-month period starting in the fall for upgrades and maintenance on Eve, which has flown nearly 300 times since its first flight in 2008, said Mike Moses, president of Virgin Galactic space missions and safety. But the issue that appeared last week may need to be addressed sooner rather than later.

The company didnt identify the issue. But engineers are assessing it now, and the company plans to announce next week whether the needed modifications will be done immediately or postponed until the fall.

We did three flights with the VMS Eve over the past two weeks, Moses told investors. Following the last post-flight inspection, we found a wear-and-tear issue that were analyzing to see if anything more needs to be done now.

If maintenance cant be postponed, it could impact Unitys test-flight schedule, Moses said.

The passenger rocket, however, is fully ready to fly, following upgrades to reduce electromagnetic interference on the spaceship that forced the pilots to abort their last flight in December. That interference caused the spaceships computer system to reboot just after Unity broke away from Eve. That, in turn, triggered a safety mechanism that automatically shut down Unitys rocket motors, at which point the pilots glided the spaceship back down to Earth.

That incident has set Virgin Galactics test-flight program back by several months.

Had the December flight succeeded, the company planned to conduct a second motor-powered test flight to space in February with a team of technicians in the passenger cabin, followed by a third flight with company founder Sir Richard Branson in late March.

Successful completion of all those flights will open the gates to commercial service, whereby Virgin Galactic plans to regularly fly paying passengers in Unitys six-seat cabin for a 90-minute round-trip to suborbit from Spaceport America in southern New Mexico. About 600 customers who already reserved seats have been waiting for years for the tourist flights to begin.

In February, however, the company said it would postpone Unitys next test flight until May  and the following two flights with team members and then with Branson until the summer  to fully address the electromagnetic interference issue.

Thats now been corrected, with the interference reduced to a minimum at about 90% below the levels that caused the computer problem in December, Moses said.

The upcoming test flights may well proceed as scheduled, depending on whether maintenance on the mothership can wait until the fall. But the company must first finish assessing the issues with Eve before announcing the next Unity flight, said Virgin Galactic CEO Michael Colglazier.

Its too early to say yet whether we need to do the maintenance now, Colglazier told investors.  Were looking forward to coming back next week to give an update.

Still, the issues with both Eve and Unity are a normal part of the test-flight program, which aims to fully identify all technical concerns and completely address them before initiating commercial service, Colglazier said.

Were in flight tests, and this is what you should expect to see in a flight-test program, he said.

Even if the test flights stay on schedule, commercial service for paying passengers wont begin until early 2022, after completing the four-month maintenance period scheduled for the fall for Eve, Unity and a second passenger rocket that the company rolled out in March.

The company does expect to fly a four-member team from the Italian Air Force to space in early fall before the maintenance period begins. Thats part of Virgin Galactics business plan to offer services to institutional customers for experiments in micro gravity and to provide professional training in space for future astronauts.

The company is focused on safety before all else, to ensure that all its vehicles are fully ready to fly customers safely and reliably before allowing passenger service to begin. But it needs to launch commercial service to start generating revenue.

Its still well positioned financially, with $617 million in cash and cash equivalents as of March 31, said Chief Financial Officer Doug Ahrens.

But with no revenue flow, Virgin Galactic continues to bleed liquidity every quarter. The company reported another $130 million net loss for the three-month period from January-March.

And with continued delays in the flight-test program, Virgin Galactics stock price has plummeted in recent months from a high of more than $62 per share on the New York Stock Exchange in February to $17.95 a share as of close of business on Monday.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

Utilities run by Connecticut-based energy giant Avangrid have faced about $25 million in fines over the past 16 months by regulators in three Northeastern states because of customer service problems and other concerns.

Now, New Mexico Public Regulation Commission hearing examiner Ashley Schannauer wants Avangrid to address concerns before he decides on next steps in public hearings on Avangrids proposed merger with PNM Resources.

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If the deal is approved by the PRC, Avangrid will acquire PNMR and its two utility subsidiaries  Public Service Company of New Mexico and Texas New Mexico Power  in an all-cash transaction valued at $4.3 billion.

Schannauer raised the Avangrid utility issues Tuesday morning in a status conference with lawyers representing 22 parties involved in the merger case. He originally convened the meeting to decide whether forthcoming public hearings should focus on a settlement agreement that PNMR and Avangrid have reached with half of the intervening parties, or instead discard the settlement and focus on a broader examination of whether the proposed merger is in the public interest.

Schannauer said that parties in the case havent addressed issues raised by regulators in the Northeastern states where Avangrid utilities now operate and that they need to before deciding how to proceed with merger hearings.

I dont recall seeing anything about these matters in this case, Ashley told conference participants. Its clearly relevant. Will there be similar problems in New Mexico if this merger is approved?

Schannauer cited a May 6 decision by Connecticut regulators to fine Avangrids electric subsidiary, United Illuminating Co., $2.1 million for failing to adequately prepare for and respond to Hurricane Isaias, which left hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses without power for days last August.

Connecticuts Public Utilities Regulatory Authority also ordered a $1.3 million reduction in profit allowances for UI, which serves 340,000 local electric customers, plus a management audit of the utility by independent firms, according to local news reports.

After reading about the fine on UI, Schannauer said, he researched U.S. Securities Exchange Commission filings and found a host of other regulatory actions against three other Avangrid utilities in Maine and New York totaling about $23 million in penalties and disallowances for cost recovery imposed over the past year and a half.

Thats $25 million in penalties and disallowances for poor service, Schannauer said.  All of this is news to me.

Some parties in the PNMR-Avangrid merger case have cited low customer satisfaction ratings for one Avangrid electric subsidiary, Central Maine Power Co. But theres been no mention of enforcement actions against Avangrid utilities in written filings by parties in the PRC hearings, Schannauer said.

The poor ratings come from national market research firm J.D. Power, which has published an annual study for more than two decades on business customer satisfaction for nearly 90 utilities across the U.S. CMP has received the lowest ranking in the survey for three years in a row, achieving a score of 692 on the studys 1,000-point scale in the last survey published, in November.

A Journal search of online news reports confirmed two other large fines against three Avangrid utilities in Maine and New York since 2019.

That includes a $10.5 million settlement between two Avangrid subsidiaries  New York State Electric & Gas and Rochester Gas & Electric in upstate New York  with the states Public Service Commission. That settlement, announced in December 2019, emerged from a commission investigation that determined the companies failed to comply with state-mandated emergency response plans during two storms that hit the Northeast in March 2018.

Also in 2019, the Maine Public Utilities Commission fined Avangrid subsidiary CMP $10 million for mishandling of its billing system and customer service, according to the Natural Resources Council of Maine. The fine was reportedly the highest ever imposed by the PUC against a utility.

The commission has not in recent history  and probably never before  seen complaints against a utility reach the numbers they have here, nor the kind of public skepticism of customers utility bills that has been raised against CMP in the last two years, PUC staff said at the time, according to the Natural Resources Council.

Schannauer said he would order Avangrid and PNMR to address the Northeastern utility issues in a written filing, followed by written responses on those matters from other parties in the merger case, before overseeing another status conference to decide on how to proceed with public hearings. Am I the only one troubled by this? Schannauer asked the participating parties.

PNMR attorney Rick Alvidrez said Avangrid has provided lengthy explanations in response to discovery questions about the issues raised by other parties in the case.

The parties were satisfied with those explanations, Alvidrez told Schannauer. They didnt include them as issues in (written) testimony.

Avangrid attorney Brian Haverly said he has responded to all inquiries by intervening parties.

Ive given lots of discovery about other utilities that Avangrid owns, Haverly told Schannauer. We have nothing to hide. Tell us what you want to know, and we will give the answers you would like.

However, in his written order Tuesday afternoon instructing the companies to address the issues raised, Schannauer said their failure to previously disclose Avangrids regulatory penalties show theyve been less than forthcoming in their application for merger approval.

The joint applicants failure to disclose this information to the commission in this proceeding is troubling and is also relevant to the credibility of their witnesses testimony and transparency by which Avangrid and PNM would conduct their business in New Mexico if the merger is approved, Schannauer wrote in the order.
The Indian variant of the coronavirus has not been found yet in Pakistan, a senior minister in-charge of the coronavirus task force has said, rejecting reports that the Indian strain of the virus reached Thailand from the country.

According to reports, health authorities in Thailand on Monday confirmed the country's first cases of the Indian variant of the coronavirus, in a Thai woman and her 4-year-old son who have been in state quarantine since arriving from Pakistan.

The finding comes amid Thailand battling a new wave of the coronavirus.

Reacting to the reports, Minister of Planning Asad Umar, who also heads the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) -- a centralised body set up to coordinate the national Covid-19 response -- on Monday said it is not possible that two Thai nationals had contracted the Indian coronavirus variant from Pakistan as it is not yet present in the country.

Some of the variants such as UK, Brazilian and South African were reported in the country, but not a single case of Indian variant has been reported yet, he was quoted as saying by the Dawn newspaper.

Also Read | Mosques full despite Pakistan's Covid third wave

The Indian variant -- officially known as B.1.617 -- was first detected in the state of Maharashtra in October last year. The strain has reportedly been spotted in at least 21 countries.

It was quite possible that the woman had contracted the virus from Thailand or somewhere else as the virus was not reported in Pakistan, Umar said.

Thailand has banned travellers from India, other than Thai citizens, starting on May 1 to prevent the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

It extended the entry ban to foreigners visiting from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal on Monday in an effort to keep the Indian variant from spreading, Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tanee Sangrat said.

Meanwhile, Pakistan's coronavirus death toll reached 19,106 on Tuesday with 113 succumbing to the viral infection in the last 24 hours, health officials said.

The nationwide confirmed cases now stand at 864,557 with 3,684 new cases, they said
Auburn, IN (46706)

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Rain showers in the morning with scattered thunderstorms arriving in the afternoon. High 83F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..

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Mostly cloudy with showers and a few thunderstorms. Low near 65F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Richwood, TX (77531)

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Cloudy skies this evening followed by thunderstorms late. Low 76F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

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Cloudy skies this evening followed by thunderstorms late. Low 76F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%.
[May 11, 2021] BlueToad Announces Strategic Partnership with Omeda Holdings LLC

ORLANDO, Fla., May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BlueToad , a leading content delivery platform, today announces it has acquired Omedas Mozaic digital edition customer base, allowing the audience management company to focus on its core business.

BlueToad and Omeda have previously worked together with mutual customers and collaborated on certain audience management integrations, making this strategic partnership the obvious next step in the relationship. Mozaic customers will now receive digital magazine editions from BlueToad, which is committed to meeting the evolving content expectations of publishers and their readers. This partnership with Omeda makes total sense for both companies. Omeda can continue to grow its powerful audience management tools, while trusting BlueToad with the digital publishing needs of their customers, said BlueToad CEO, Paul DeHart. And we can work together to make sure we have integrated offerings that can meet the complex needs of todays professional publisher. As a leader in the digital edition and content industry, BlueToad has partnered with the majoity of the largest commercial magazine and journal printers in the U.S. The company currently works with thousands of active publishers. The BlueToad platform was developed to handle the diverse needs of the publishing and media industry and focuses on emerging technologies like mobile editions, responsive web content, audio articles and topical content offerings.



After working with BlueToad and reviewing their robust platform, we knew it was the right choice for our Mozaic clients, said James Capo, COO at Omeda. This partnership will strengthen our synergy with BlueToad and offer our customers the best opportunities for both audience management and content delivery. For more information on BlueToad, please visit www.bluetoad.com .

About BlueToad

BlueToad was launched in 2007 and provides publishers of all types a content experience platform for creating beautifully responsive digital editions and web content. It is a proud partner of some of the largest printers in the world and trusted to handle the important content of thousands of content creators across the globe. The companys goal is to make it easy for partners and customers to upload their content for a digital experience that works on all modern phones, tablets, and desktops. About Omeda Holdings LLC

Headquartered in downtown Chicago, Omeda is the leading audience relationship management platform built for media professionals allowing you to acquire, unify, manage, and activate your data. Omeda provides a real-time, single view of your audience through 24/7 data storage, data management, data matching, and data activation. Offering everything from subscription fulfillment, email marketing, CDP web behavioral and activation services, Omeda delivers a full suite of customizable services to best meet the needs of any media company. Through the development of rich behavioral audience profiles, Omeda delivers deep business insights and analytics while also providing new, data driven, revenue opportunities. Media Contact

Alyssa Cohen

Uproar PR for BlueToad

acohen@uproarpr.com

(321) 236-0102 x233



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Ryan Allard, this is Ancil Dennis. I am forming a Recovery Committee for Tobago and would like you to be the vice-chairman.

This was how my phone call started on an otherwise typical Saturday evening in May 2020, a few months into the pandemic.
Ontario, Canada, May 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Following a swift global expansion, vLex is growing its Canadian team. Tom Atkinson, previously part of the Justis Publishing group, will head the new division to build and expand key operations and support a growing audience of Canadian customers. Tom will work with domestic markets to further develop products and content offerings. He will present at the CALL/ACBD virtual conference on the 3rd of June, introducing vLexs most recent updates and content.

The introduction of Toms position as Head of Business for Canada is a significant milestone in the expansion of vLex and our international presence, stated Aidan Hawes, Head of Commercial Development. Canada has always been recognised as a key common law market for vLex and an obvious place to provide a domestic presence. As someone who understands the product, the market and the region, Tom is the ideal candidate to lead the expansion of our team across Canada.

vLex provides access to a comprehensive collection of legal information from over 130 jurisdictions. Founded over 20 years ago, vLex provides a first-class and comprehensive service for thousands of lawyers, law firms, government departments and law schools around the world. vLex acquired Justis Publishing in March 2019, and have integrated their content and features into the flagship vLex platform.

Their team of over 170 lawyers, engineers and editorial experts continually strive to deliver up-to-date legal information and industry-leading AI-powered legal technology.

For enquiries, please contact press_vlex@customers.prdistribution.org

For more information on vLexs new Canadian Head of Business or any enquiries, call vLex on +44 (0) 20 7284 8080 or email us at hello_vlex@customers.prdistribution.org.

For the original news story, please visit https://www.prdistribution.com/news/vlex-invests-in-canada.html
September trial set for Minnesota man charged with vehicular homicide

A September trial has been set in a case connected to a fatal crash in Watertown from 2019.
Roseburg, OR (97470)

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Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low 44F. Winds light and variable..

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Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low 44F. Winds light and variable.
Jerusalem: Arab League says Israeli strikes irresponsible Abul-Gheit says demonstration of strength on Gaza hurts children

(ANSAmed) - CAIRO, MAY 11 - Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Abul-Gheit, in a statement released in Cairo, condemned Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip that have caused deaths including children, and called the strikes "blind and irresponsible".



He said the strikes are "motivated by the desire for revenge and by internal political calculations", that they are a "miserable demonstration of force at the expense of children's blood", and that Israel is responsible "for this dangerous escalation".



Abul-Gheit said the current situation was created "due to Israeli violence in Jerusalem and the government's tolerance for Jewish extremists hostile to Palestinians and Arabs".



He called on the international community "to act immediately to stop this Israeli aggression against Jerusalem, Gaza and all occupied Palestinian territories".



"Israeli provocations continue in Jerusalem in a challenge to the feelings of Muslims around the world," he said.



"The violence at Al-Asqa Mosque regards all Muslims," he said.



The Arab League statement said that a video conference will be held Tuesday with the foreign ministers of Arab League countries to review the latest developments in the situation in Jerusalem.(ANSAmed).




Murdered Melbourne mother Ellie Price told her family she had feared her boyfriend would kill her when he allegedly tried to strangle her on a holiday.

The body of the 26-year-old was found with fatal stab wounds in her South Melbourne home on May 4 last year, but it's believed she might have died as early as April 28.

Boyfriend Ricardo Barbaro, 34, is charged with her murder and is facing court in Melbourne.

On Tuesday Ms Price's mother Tracey Gangell said she only met Barbaro once, in February 2020, after the couple had taken a trip to Cairns and Port Douglas.

She said Ms Price told her that during that Queensland trip - on Valentines Day - Barbaro had choked her.

"She thought he was going to kill her. She thought she was going to die," she told Melbourne Magistrates Court.

Ms Gangell said Barbaro had also called her after the incident, asking her to "speak to your daughter" about what had happened, but said she never asked him about the allegation.

"I didn't want to ask him and then him turn around and say 'why did you tell your mum that' or something like that and go off at her," she said.

"I was more concerned for her safety."

Ms Gangell said her daughter told her that in an earlier, separate, incident Barbaro had forced her head into a car dashboard, causing a split above her eye that needed stitches.

Ms Price had gone to police but Ms Gangell said she also spoke about withdrawing her complaint over claims Barbaro had threatened herself and her family.

Ms Gangell said she tried to encourage Ms Price to end her relationship with Barbaro, but her daughter had felt sorry for him.

"He was going to see someone about his anger. He told her, I guess, that he was going to change," she said.

"And that's when I said leopards don't change their spots."

Barbaro's lawyers say Ms Price was still alive when he saw her last and another person killed her.

Story continues

The court heard Ms Price worked as a dancer in Melbourne after returning from Tasmania following the birth of her son.

"She didn't want to sit around on Centrelink," her sister Danielle Cross said.

"She wanted to earn her money and potentially buy a house."

A crime scene investigator who attended Ms Price's home after her death said she found glue-on fingernails in the garage and on the floor near Ms Price's body.

Senior Constable Heather Robinson noted two round holes in the wall in the master bedroom may have been caused during an assault.

Light coloured hairs were found in plaster remnants on the floor below, she said.

She told the court she had looked around the apartment for a knife that may have caused Ms Price's stab wounds, but nothing was seized.

The hearing is set to continue on Wednesday.
Your research as a private individual is better than professionals @WSJ!



Data logs recovered so far show Autopilot was not enabled & this car did not purchase FSD.



Moreover, standard Autopilot would require lane lines to turn on, which this street did not have.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 19, 2021

Read: Autopilot misuse had caused another crash. Thats how most people chose to interpret the initial and subsequent statements from the police: if no one was behind the wheel at the moment of impact, it must mean the car was on Autopilot. That was backed by eyewitness accounts, saying that the two men had set off to test the cars self-driving capabilities.Three days after the crash, Tesla CEO Elon Musk addressed it on Twitter. He said Autopilot had not and could not have been engaged at the time for a variety of reasons, including safeguards that limit its use to certain roads. It was, yet again, another human-caused accident that everyone was quick to pin on technology, specifically Teslas Autopilot. He didnt say this last part, but it was implied.The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released the preliminary report into the investigation, and it contradicts what the police have been telling the mediaand backs Musk. Surveillance footage from the owners house shows him getting into the drivers seat of the Model S , with the passenger on his right. The car drove onto the roadway and sped out of sight: the report has determined that it traveled for about 550 feet (167 meters) before careening off the road at a curve, jumping a curb, and hitting a tree.The NTSB used an examplar car to replicate the short drive and learned that, while they were able to activate Traffic Aware Cruise Control, they could not activate Autosteer. Both systems have to be activated to go in Autopilot mode. In other words, what Musk said was right : the Model S did have Autopilot, but it was not enabled at the time of the crash because Autopilot doesnt work in residential areas, on unmarked roads.That said, the NTSB notes that these are just preliminary findings that are subject to change and, as such, cant help form conclusions regarding the cause of the crash. The investigation is ongoing.
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Most doting parents have grand ambitions for their children, like the mother who was asked about her two kids in elementary school and answered: The doctor is in the third grade, and the lawyer is in the first!

Thats what came to my mind recently while listening to Paige Brydon at a press conference in Raleigh, North Carolina. Brydon spoke in favor of proposed legislation in the Tarheel state that would ban elective abortions based on sex, race, or the presumption an unborn child has Down Syndrome.

Brydon said that at age 24, she became pregnant, and the father didnt want anything to do with her or her baby. She knew she was without the kind of support she needed to keep the child. So, with great anguish, she terminated her pregnancy.

A few years later, she happily married and became pregnant again with her first child, a boy!

We were so excited! Surely, we were going to have the next President of IBM! said Brydon. But upon his delivery, we discovered Miller [the boys name] had Down Syndrome. We were floored. In my heart, I thought it was Gods retribution for the abortion.

But Brydon said as Miller grew, her love and appreciation for him daily intensified as she observed this amazingly sweet, funny, albeit slow little fella. Miller was so full of life. She added:

He has danced at the White House, lapped the NASCAR track, has been on magazine covers, made numerous television appearances, and now is a part of Bear Food  a gourmet peanut butter business, which was developed by Millers brother, Mac, to provide job skills to special needs adults.

Then Brydon shared a story about Miller, which I thought, had profound significance. She told it so marvelously well; Ill share it here with you just as she did with the press. She said:

Rewind with me to a Christmas pageant held at our church several years ago. Miller was around 20-21 years old  a young adult. As usual, during one portion of the Christmas pageant, the little children of the church appeared dressed as angels to sing Christmas carols. As they were singing, a rough-looking homeless man walked into the sanctuary. Clearly, he had not bathed or changed clothes for quite a while, but was proclaiming now he was drug-free. All of the adults were thinking maybe for about 3 hours  Yet as he watched these precious children sing and heard the heavenly sound of their voices, he started weeping  hard weeping  and started shouting, Its so beautiful! Its so beautiful! He then fell face down in the front of the church, crying so hard his body shook.

The congregation and pastors were stunned. Certainly, we werent going to kick him out, but something needed to be done. I could also see uncertainty and fear rising in the children. I closed my eyes and earnestly prayed, Oh Lord, please send someone forward who will know what to do. Please, Lord

When I opened my eyes, I saw Miller, and in all of what screams, brokenness moving toward the man. He knelt on the floor beside him, placed one hand in the air, praying, and with the other hand, started gently rubbing the mans back.

Miller wasnt rattled; he wasnt afraid. He didnt back up or back off.

He was kind, and gentle, tender, and exhibited a rare form of love and acceptance that we hardly ever see these days.

The gentleman slowly quieted down, took some deep breaths, and a wonderful peace came over his body. There was a pause, and then the normal people moved in.

We were stunned! That day, I became acutely aware of Millers purpose on this earth so much more than mine.

See, I thought God had sent me a special needs child, so I could teach him how to live. The truth is, I was the one with special needs, so God sent Miller to teach me how to live.

As the kids were growing up, how many times has a harried mother or father said to them, I hope you have a child just like you. Of course, the statement is always made in the negative.

Nevertheless, if we are judicious about the matter and see our children through Gods eyes, we would understand that a child is an unspeakable gift no matter the circumstances. I would suggest that whats wrapped up in the package of a child is so remarkable; we mustnt ever disregard it in any way or situation.

Our expectations for how things ought to be, even our dreams for our childrens futures, are not always what God has planned. His designs are so much better and superior to our own. He can do far more than we could ever think or imagine. Moreover, our child should be so fortunate to have a child just like the one weve been given.

Parents must seek to faithfully raise their children in the ways of God, love them unconditionally, pray for them regularly, and leave the rest to Him. And Mom or Dad, while youre doing this, be careful to listen for the voice of God. You might learn something important about yourself.
CALGARY, AB, May 11, 2021 /CNW/ - Pan Orient Energy Corp. ("Pan Orient" or the "Company") (TSXV: POE) is pleased to provide an update on the drilling program in Thailand.

THAILAND

Concession L53 Onshore (Pan Orient Energy (Siam) Ltd., in which Pan Orient has 50.01% ownership)

On March 18, 2021 the Company reported that a two to three well appraisal drilling program had commenced with the L53-DD10 well which had just completed drilling, and that it would be followed by the L53-DD12 well, and possibly a L53-DD11 well. It was also reported that the L53-DD10 well had encountered approximately 38 meters of combined net oil pay within the AA, BB, CC and EE sands.

The Company finished drilling of L53-DD12 and L53-DD11, and the perforation of L53-DD11 on April 26th and then began completion operations on L53-DD10 and L53-DD12. In addition, there is a workover program on L53-DD2 (just completed), L53-DD3 (underway) and L53-DD7. Of note, in anticipation of Thailand interprovincial Covid restrictions due to the recent wave of infections, the decision was made to utilize the drilling rig for the well completions and workovers at a day rate cost that was reduced by the drilling contractor to the same rate as a service rig.

L53-DD10 Appraisal Well

L53-DD10 has averaged 702 BOPD (351 BOPD net to Pan Orient's 50.01% equity interest) from the CC sand since May 3rd with a water cut of 55.0%. The well will remain on long-term production. Test results are not necessarily indicative of long-term performance or ultimate recovery.

L53-DD11 Appraisal Well

L53-DD11 encountered a total net oil pay of approximately 32.1 meters within the AA, CC, BB and DD sands. The well was perforated in the CC sand and has averaged 1,087 BOPD (544 BOPD net to Pan Orient's 50.01% equity interest) with a water cut of 7.5% since April 29th. The well is currently on long-term production. Test results are not necessarily indicative of long-term performance or ultimate recovery.

L53-DD12 Appraisal Well

L53-DD12 encountered approximately six meters of oil pay above the oil water contact within the CC sand in a structural position approximately 20 meters structurally lower than the L53-DD6ST2 well, which is approximately 220 meters to the north. Given the water disposal constraints at the L53-DD field, the high cost of trucking water and the ability to provide pressure support to the up-dip L53-DD6ST2 well, the decision was made to forego the completion in the CC sand and convert L53-DD12 to water injection. Water injection commenced on May 10th with anticipated maximum capacity of approximately 7,200 barrels of water per day, approximately the same as at the existing water disposal well L53-DD8. This will make for a combined water disposal capacity of 14,400 barrels of water per day at the L53-DD field site and negate the need for water trucking for quite some time.

L53-DD Well Workover Program

A workover was completed at L53-DD2 during the period of May 2nd to May 8th. A workover on L53-DD7 has commenced and will be followed by a workover on L53-DD3. The aim of the program is to optimize and increase production.

Concession L53 Production

Concession L53 oil sales (on a 100% basis) averaged 2,846 BOPD in February, 2,351 BOPD in March, 2,431 BOPD in April, and 3,445 BOPD from May 1st to May 9th. Net to Pan Orient's 50.01% equity interest, oil sales averaged 1,423 BOPD in February, 1,176 BOPD in March, 1,216 BOPD in April, and 1,723 BOPD from May 1st to May 9th.

In addition to the approximately 200 BOPD (on a 100% basis) that has been shut-in since May 2nd when the L53-DD2 well workover commenced, and approximately 170 BOPD (on a 100% basis) when the L53-DD3 workover commenced on May 7th, there has been production disruption for a number of additional wells in order to facilitate the rig moves from well to well.

As is the case with fields possessing significant aquifer support (water drive), the key to L53-DD oil field production optimization will be the ability to handle significant quantities of water, which will increase substantially over the life of the field, at low cost. The economic threshold of each well is highly sensitive to the operating costs experienced in the "tail" of the oil decline curve, where a large portion of the ultimately recoverable reserves are produced. In the case of offshore production, the operating costs are substantially higher than the very low operating costs the Company has managed at the L53-DD field.

Oil Sales Pricing

The realized oil price for the first quarter of 2021 was US$57.65 per barrel, a substantial increase over the 2020 first quarter average of US$47.02 per barrel. Management notes that the April 30, 2021 escalated price forecast of Sproule and Associates for the Brent crude oil reference price indicates an average for 2021 approximately 23% higher than the December 31, 2020 escalated price forecast used in the December 31, 2020 reserve report for Pan Orient Energy (Siam) Ltd.

COVID-19 Coronavirus

The operations in Thailand of Pan Orient Energy (Siam) Ltd. ("POS") continue to be somewhat affected by the worldwide COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The Thailand government imposed a state of emergency in late March 2020, giving it wide-ranging powers to address the crisis. Domestic travel restrictions have now been eased but a travel ban on most foreigners entering Thailand remains in effect. Prudent measures have been taken by POS to help protect the health and safety of staff, which are of paramount importance. Fortunately, POS in Thailand has been able to complete its initial three well 2021 appraisal drilling program. POS and Pan Orient are well-positioned to withstand these unprecedented events. The Company is optimistic about a return to normal operations and less volatile market conditions but the outlook for world oil prices remains somewhat uncertain.

Pan Orient is a Calgary, Alberta based oil and gas exploration and production company with operations currently located onshore Thailand and Western Canada.

This news release contains forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is generally identifiable by the terminology used, such as "expect", "believe", "estimate", "should", "anticipate" and "potential" or other similar wording. Forward-looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, references express or implied to; well drilling programs and drilling and testing plans and information on future production. By their very nature, the forward-looking statements contained in this news release require Pan Orient and its management to make assumptions that may not materialize or that may not be accurate. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors, which could cause actual results, expectations, achievements or performance to differ materially, including without limitation: imprecision of reserves estimates and estimates of recoverable quantities of oil, changes in project schedules, operating and reservoir performance, the effects of weather and climate change, the results of exploration and development drilling and related activities, supply, demand and resulting prices for oil and gas, the impact of the COVID-19 coronavirus; commercial negotiations, other technical and economic factors or revisions and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of Pan Orient. Although Pan Orient believes that the expectations reflected in its forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that the expectations of any forward-looking statements will prove to be correct.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE Pan Orient Energy Corp.

For further information: Pan Orient Energy Corp., Jeff Chisholm, President and CEO (located in Bangkok, Thailand), Email: [email protected] - or - Bill Ostlund, Vice President Finance and CFO, Telephone: (403) 294-1770, Extension 233

Related Links

http://www.panorient.ca


The recent decision by the Biden administrations to stop opposing a proposed Covid-19 waiver of certain intellectual property (IP) rights under World Trade Organization rules is a welcome move.

The US Trade Representative acknowledges that the extraordinary circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic call for extraordinary measures.

While affirming that it believes strongly in intellectual property protections, the Biden administration, in service of ending this pandemic, supports the waiver of those protections for Covid-19 vaccines.

Already, the US decision may be persuading other rich country holdouts in Europe and elsewhere to follow suit. While the rapid development of Covid-19 vaccines was a truly impressive achievement, it has been tarnished by constraints on global vaccine supply and the related inequities in distribution.

As of May 4, less than 8% of the worlds population had received even one dose of any Covid-19 vaccine, while just 10 rich countries accounted for 80% of all vaccinations. The reason is not just that rich countries have been buying up all available doses; it is also that there simply have not been enough doses to go around.

But this scarcity itself is largely artificial. Vaccine production has been limited by pharmaceutical companies refusal to share knowledge and technology. Though the companies producing the approved vaccines have benefited from public subsidies and publicly funded research, they nonetheless have taken advantage of patent protections to maintain a monopoly, limiting production to their own factories and a select few other companies to whom they have granted licenses.

A waiver has become all the more urgent with the coronavirus on the rampage across South America and India, where a near-complete breakdown of overstretched health services is resulting in a catastrophic loss of life. Photo: AP/Rajanish Kakade

These patents are enshrined and enforced internationally through the WTOs Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which allows for action to be taken against countries that provide compulsory licenses allowing someone else to produce a patented product or process without the consent of the patent owner.

It is this threat of legal action that led a majority of WTO members to propose a temporary waiver for Covid-19 drugs, vaccines, diagnostics, and other technologies needed to fight the pandemic. And yet, even this minor step has been blocked in the WTO TRIPS Council, because (mostly) rich countries have been prioritizing big pharmaceutical companies interests over global health.

A waiver has become all the more urgent with the coronavirus on the rampage across South America and India, where a near-complete breakdown of overstretched health services is resulting in a catastrophic loss of life. Worse, the rapid spread of the virus has already given rise to dangerous new variants.

We absolutely must vaccinate as many people as possible before vaccine-resistant variants emerge.

Temporarily waiving IP rights is essential, but it is only the first step. A waiver agreement would address the previously insurmountable legal side of the problem. But much more will need to be done to make a Peoples Vaccine universally available as soon as possible.

The next step is to push for concrete measures to facilitate the transfer of knowledge and technology. From Canada to Bangladesh, many potential vaccine producers with the required facilities have so far been denied the licenses and technical know-how to proceed.

Not a single pharmaceutical company has joined the World Health Organizations voluntary facility for sharing technology, the Covid-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP).

Governments in the United States, Europe, and elsewhere, having given large subsidies to develop the approved vaccines, can and should pressure the companies to share the knowledge that public money helped provide. We know this can be done, because the Biden administration has already persuaded Johnson & Johnson to share its technology with Merck to boost domestic production of its single-dose vaccine.

The recent decision by the Biden administrations to stop opposing a proposed Covid-19 waiver of certain intellectual property (IP) rights under World Trade Organization rules is a welcome move. Photo: AP/Evan Vucci

Surely the other companies that have benefited from public support could be pressured to do the same with producers around the world.

In the meantime, the TRIPS waiver could increase vaccine production in other ways as well. Moderna, which relied almost completely on US government funding, has already declared that it will not enforce its patent. But its mRNA vaccine uses some knowledge that it has licensed (and paid for) from other companies, which could in turn sue any other producer using the same technology.

The TRIPS waiver would eliminate this possibility, allowing production to be scaled up rapidly. With Moderna now indicating that it will produce three billion doses in 2022 alone, the mRNA vaccines are apparently quite amenable to expanded production. They are also said to be easily adapted to account for new variants.

The case for public production of such vaccines is clear.

Read More Michael Clifford: Who knew Joe Biden would be a radical president

For less than the US government spends on the Covid-19 response daily, notes the health advocacy organization PrEP4All, it can build a facility to produce enough mRNA vaccine manufacturing capacity to vaccinate the entire world in one year, with each dose costing only $2.

To win the race against the virus, we must build and deploy public manufacturing capacities. And when Covid-19 is brought to heel, these facilities should be maintained for future pandemics.

The world desperately needs the TRIPS waiver and stronger measures to ensure the transfer of knowledge and technology to produce Covid-19 vaccines. But we also need to start preparing for equally exceptional circumstances in the future.

The knowledge on which our health and prosperity depend must be both publicly funded and publicly disseminated.

Jayati Ghosh, Executive Secretary of International Development Economics Associates, is Professor of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a member of the Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation.

Copyright: Project Syndicate.
About

The 16th edition of the Summer School in Cinema Human Rights and Advocacy is a training initiative jointly developed by the Global Campus of Human Rights (GC) and Picture People. The School is aimed at young professionals wishing to broaden their understanding on the connections between human rights, films, digital media and video advocacy, and learn how to use film as a tool for social change. The 10-day programme provides a safe, culturally rich and collaborative environment where diversity and inclusivity are embraced, original and critical thinking is encouraged, skills are honed, creativity is unleashed and networking with experts from the human rights arena and professionals from the film industry at the 78th Venice international Film Festival is supported.

This years programme is focusing on delivering social change to children and young people in the broader framework of human rights protection and promotion. The school is designed to appeal to young professionals from diverse backgrounds and experiences.

This year the Summer School programme will be delivered in a blended format with online and in presence sessions in Venice Lido, both at the Global Campus and the Venice International Film Festival venues.

The Global Campus of Human Rights launched the summer school programme in 2005. It was meant to be a one-off event; nevertheless, given its success, the summer school ran for another four years in Venice before moving in 2010 to the Huston School of Film & Digital Media (part of the National University of Ireland in Galway), where it flourished for additional six years. Since 2017, the Summer School is back to its birthplace in Venice Lido.


Maintenance Assistant About Tulsa Community College

Tulsa Community College is committed to creating equitable and inclusive work environments to support the success of the full range of our employees.



We believe that employees who feel valued and respected will create policies, programs, practices and services to effectively meet the needs and exceed the expectations of our increasingly diverse student populations.



We encourage candidates to apply who have demonstrated capacity to create inclusive work environments, to work effectively on increasingly diverse teams, and to serve the increasingly diverse college community.



We are committed to hiring and retaining a racially diverse, culturally competent staff at all levels of the organization who not only reflect the demographics of our students, but also continue to deepen their skills and competencies to serve the full range of our community.



Job Summary:

Perform minor maintenance activities such as light bulb changes, filter replacements and drain cleaning; maintain equipment lubrication and perform minor fabrications. Assist in the maintenance and/or repair of various plumbing and electrical systems.



Campus: Southeast

Classification: Staff

Position Type: Full-time

Curricular:

If Faculty, Contract Length:

Job Code Number: 3651F-4-21

Minimum Qualifications:

Requires mechanical aptitude, with education, training or experience related to large A/C or boilers including general maintenance and electrical systems preferred.



Ability to work on one's own initiative with general supervision.



Ability to interact effectively with others.



Demonstrated ability to move heavy (50 pounds) objects.



Preferred Qualifications:

Starting Salary Range: $12.23/hr - $13.80/hour

Work Schedule:

TBD but regular 10 hour shifts at 40hr/week.



Posting Date: 04/21/2021

Closing Date:

Open Until Filled: Yes

Special Instructions to Applicants:

Advertised Department: Facilities

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The results add pressure on Beijing to boost measures for couples to have more babies

China's population grew at its slowest pace in decades, according to government data released on Tuesday.

The average annual growth rate was 0.53% over the past 10 years, down from a rate of 0.57% between 2000 and 2010 - bringing the population to 1.41bn.

The results add pressure on Beijing to boost measures for couples to have more babies and avert a population decline.

The results were announced in a once-a-decade census, which was originally expected to be released in April.

The census was conducted in late 2020 where some seven million census takers had gone door-to-door to collect information from Chinese households.

Given the sheer number of people surveyed, it is considered the most comprehensive resource on China's population, which is important for future planning.

What do we know about China's birth rate?

Ning Jizhe, head of the National Bureau of Statistics revealed that 12 million babies were born last year - a significant decrease from the 18 million newborns in 2016.

However he added that it was "still a considerable number".

Graph showing China's falling birth rate

Mr Ning added that a lower fertility rate is a natural result of China's social and economic development.

As countries become more developed, birth rates tend to fall due to education or other priorities such as careers.

Its neighbouring countries Japan and South Korea, for example, have also seen birth rates fall to record lows in recent years despite various government incentives for couples to have more children.

Last year, South Korea recorded more deaths than births for the first time in history, raising fresh alarm in a country which already has the world's lowest birth rate.

Shrinking populations are problematic due to the inverted age structure, with more old people than the young.

graph showing China's population by age group

When that happens, there won't be enough workers in the future to support the elderly, and there may be an increased demand for health and social care.

Story continues

Hasn't China already been trying to improve this?

Yes. In 2016, the government ended a controversial one-child policy and allowed couples to have two children.

But the reform failed to reverse the country's falling birth rate despite a two-year increase immediately afterwards.

Ms Yue Su, principal economist from The Economist Intelligence Unit, said: "While the second-child policy had a positive impact on the birth rate, it proved short-term in nature."

There had been expectations that China might scrap the family planning policy altogether along with the new census results, but this did not happen.

A report by the Financial Times in April also quoted people familiar with the matter as saying the census would reveal a population decline.

This did not happen with the 2020 report but experts have told various media outlets that it could still happen over the next few years.

"It will in 2021 or 2022, or very soon," Huang Wenzhang, a demography expert at the Centre for China and Globalisation told Reuters.

An ageing China may mean that there won't be enough workers in the future to support the elderly

China's population trends have over the years been largely shaped by the one-child policy, which was introduced in 1979 to slow population growth.

Families that violated the rules faced fines, loss of employment and sometimes forced abortions.

What else have we learnt?

China's working-age population - which it defines as people aged between 16 and 59 - has also declined by 40 million as compared to the last census in 2010. But chief methodologist Zeng Yuping said that the total size "remains big" with 880 million.

"We still have an abundant labour force," he said.

However, economist Ms Yue warned that going forward, continued drops in the labour force "will place a cap on China's potential economic growth."

She added: "The demographic dividend that propelled the country's economic rise over recent decades is set to dissipate quickly."

Analysis box by Robin Brant, Shanghai correspondent

After a few extra weeks in which officials were reportedly working to "prepare" the numbers and help to "set the agenda" the bottom line is the number of Chinese in China is growing - just.

Most of that is people getting older - and staying older. There was a small increase in the number of under 14s, a vindication of the decision to end the one-child policy in 2015, according to the government's census chief.

But state media is already talking about the population beginning to fall next year.

This is not a demographic change unique to China, but with the biggest population in the world and an economy that it's trying to make more reliant on domestic consumption, this is a particularly salient issue.

China's Communist leaders have already said retirement age will need to go up to deal with those demands and costs. This could mean more work to come for the country's workers.

Experts warned that any impact on China's population, such as a decline, could have a vast effect on other parts of the world.

Dr Yi Fuxian, a scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said: "China's economy has grown very quickly, and many industries in the world rely on China. The scope of the impact of a population decline would be very wide."

Additional reporting by the BBC's Yip Wai Yee
New York, NY, May 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- DiversityInc announced the nations top companies that hire, retain, and promote women, minorities, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+, and veterans at their 20th annual event held virtually on Thursday, May 6, 2021. Launched in 2001, the survey is the most comprehensive, data-driven D&I analysis of some of the largest U.S. employers. The assessment collects data across six key areas: Leadership Accountability, Human Capital Diversity Metrics, Talent Programs, Workforce Practices, Supplier Diversity, and Philanthropy.

In an era of reckoning, there is no way around standardized measurement to remain competitive and identify gaps impacting a companys ability to attract, retain, develop and engage diverse talent, says Carolynn Johnson, DiversityInc Chief Executive Officer. For twenty years, major U.S. employers have trusted our extensive research to measure their progress, provide actionable insights, validate their progress, and identify opportunities.

The 2021 top companies for Diversity are:

Hilton Accenture Eli Lilly and Company Abbott Mastercard Comcast NBCUniversal Toyota Motor North America ADP TIAA The Hershey Company

To view the entire Top 50 list and specialty lists, visit http://www.diversityinc.com/top50 or follow the conversation on social media using hashtag #DITop50

The 2021 survey Cronbach Alpha reliability score for the overall model was .88. Twenty-eight companies moved up, fourteen companies fell, three companies had no change, five newcomers, and five companies fell off the 2021 list. Forty-One companies were listed as noteworthy.

On behalf of our entire Hilton family, its truly an honor to be recognized as the #1 Company on the 2021 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity list, and as a Top Company on a record twelve specialty lists, said Chris Nassetta, president and CEO, Hilton. Our company was founded on the belief that travel could be a bridge to world peace, and thanks to the inclusive workplace our Team Members have built together with us, our hospitality continues to create greater understanding and unite communities all around the world.

More than 1,400 professionals, including c-suite executives from 28 industries representing more than 7 million U.S. employees, were in attendance. This years event theme, Data Transparency in the Age of Understanding included eight learning sessions with diversity and inclusion experts. In these sessions, top talent development, human resources, and diversity and inclusion professionals will share how they prioritize diversity data in their respective corporations.

Highlights from the 20th annual Top 50 event included a CEO roundtable with Greg A. Adams, Chair & CEO, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., and Hospitals, and Chris Nassetta, President and CEO of Hilton. A fireside chat with Carole Huntsman, North America Head of Sanofi Genzyme; David Cordani, President and CEO at Cigna; and producer and The Daily Show correspondent, Roy Wood. Jr. Musical performances by Asian-American Classical Hip-Hop pianist Chloe Flower and visually impaired Latin band, Los Ciegos Del Barrio.

The 2021 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity is made possible thanks to the following sponsors: Abbott, Abbvie, Accenture, ADP, AT&T, BASF, Boeing, Capital One, Cigna, Comcast NBCUniversal, Cox Communications, Dow, EY, Hershey, Hilton, Humana, Johnson & Johnson, Kaiser Permanente, KeyBank, KPMG, Marriott International, Mastercard, Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi, Southern Company, Target, TD Bank, TIAA, Toyota and Wells Fargo.

About DiversityInc: The mission of DiversityInc is to bring education and clarity to the business benefits of diversity. The DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity list began in 2001 when many corporations were beginning to understand the business value of diversity-management initiatives. DiversityInc is a VA-certified veteran-owned business and a USBLN certified business owned by a person with a disability. For more information, visit www.diversityinc.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn @DiversityInc.

Attachment
Why it matters: New cryptocurrency Chia positions itself as an eco-friendly alternative to Bitcoinwhich uses more energy each year than the whole of Swedenthanks to its use of storage space rather than computing power. But its green-friendly credentials are looking shaky. Not only are we starting to see signs of HDD and SSD shortages, but it also vastly reduces the lifespan of these drives.

To recap, Chia uses a 'proof of space and time' model instead of 'proof of work' (Bitcoin) or 'proof of stake' (Etherium 2.0), which essentially means farmersit prefers the term to mining/minerscan earn the currency by allocating their unused disk space.

While manufacturers are already experiencing a boost in sales, some, including Galax, advise buyers that using their products to farm Chia will void the warranties. Now, a new report reveals why.

According to Chinese site Fast Technology (via Hardware Times), constantly farming Chia on a 512GB SSD, which usually lasts anywhere from five to ten years, can reduce its life to just 40 daysthe result of writing 256TB of data during that time.

Drives with more storage space last longer, but the wear and tear still significantly reduces their lifespans: a 1TB SSD lasts around 80 days, while Chia farming will kill a 2TB SSD in 160 days. While the make and model of these drives aren't specified, the report illustrates how quickly they can be worn out.

Chia's price since launching last week (CoinMarketCap)

The low price of SSDs means Chia framers could simply throw away their worn-out drives and buy new ones, which isn't exactly good for the environment. Alternatively, they could purchase an "ultra durable" NVMe SSD from TeamGroup designed for mining/farming crypto. It comes with a 12,000 TBW (terabytes written) endurance level and a 12-year warranty, but the $800 price (2TB model) is likely to put people off.

Chia hasn't had the best of times since it launched last Monday. XCH peaked at $1,800 per unit when it debuted but fell to around $600 a few days later. It has rebounded slightly and is now hovering around $1,100.

Image credit: P_galasso2289
Migrants: Italy calls for structural solution Thousands of asylum seekers have landed in recent days

(ANSAmed) - ROME, MAY 11 - Italian Interior Minister Luciana Lamorgese on Tuesday called on the EU to find a long-term structural solution on how to manage asylum seekers after thousands arrived on the southern Italian island of Lampedusa in recent days.



Earlier on Thursday a European Commission spokesperson said that, so far, there had been no firm commitments from member States for the relocation of these asylum seekers.



"It is necessary to carry out structural interventions in the system of managing the phenomenon inside the European Union with the activation of concrete, solid solidarity mechanisms... as well as a shared strategy to fight the trafficking of human beings and illegal immigration," Lamorgese told a Lisbon conference organized by the Portuguese duty presidency of the EU.(ANSAmed). (ANSA).








ING PROFILE



ING is a global financial institution with a strong European base, offering banking services through its operating company ING Bank. The purpose of ING Bank is empowering people to stay a step ahead in life and in business. ING Banks more than 57,000 employees offer retail and wholesale banking services to customers in over 40 countries.



ING Group shares are listed on the exchanges of Amsterdam (INGA NA, INGA.AS), Brussels and on the New York Stock Exchange (ADRs: ING US, ING.N).



Sustainability forms an integral part of INGs strategy, evidenced by INGs leading position in sector benchmarks by Sustainalytics and MSCI and our A-list rating by CDP. ING Group shares are included in major sustainability and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) index products of leading providers STOXX, Morningstar and FTSE Russell. In January 2021, ING received an ESG evaluation score of 83 ('strong') from S&P Global Ratings.







IMPORTANT LEGAL INFORMATION



Elements of this press release contain or may contain information about ING Groep N.V. and/ or ING Bank N.V. within the meaning of Article 7(1) to (4) of EU Regulation No 596/2014.



Certain of the statements contained herein are not historical facts, including, without limitation, certain statements made of future expectations and other forward-looking statements that are based on managements current views and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Actual results, performance or events may differ materially from those in such statements due to a number of factors, including, without limitation: (1) changes in general economic conditions, in particular economic conditions in INGs core markets, including changes affecting currency exchange rates, (2) the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and related response measures, including lockdowns and travel restrictions, on economic conditions in countries in which ING operates, on INGs business and operations and on INGs employees, customers and counterparties, (3) changes affecting interest rate levels, (4) any default of a major market participant and related market disruption, (5) changes in performance of financial markets, including in Europe and developing markets, (6) political instability and fiscal uncertainty in Europe and the United States, (7) discontinuation of or changes in benchmark indices, (8) inflation and deflation in our principal markets, (9) changes in conditions in the credit and capital markets generally, including changes in borrower and counterparty creditworthiness, (10) failures of banks falling under the scope of state compensation schemes, (11) non-compliance with or changes in laws and regulations, including those financial services and tax laws, and the interpretation and application thereof, (12) geopolitical risks, political instabilities and policies and actions of governmental and regulatory authorities, (13) legal and regulatory risks in certain countries with less developed legal and regulatory frameworks, (14) prudential supervision and regulations, including in relation to stress tests and regulatory restrictions on dividends and distributions,, (also among members of the group), (15) regulatory consequences of the United Kingdoms withdrawal from the European Union, including authorizations and equivalence decisions, (16) INGs ability to meet minimum capital and other prudential regulatory requirements, (17) changes in regulation of US commodities and derivatives businesses of ING and its customers, (18) application of bank recovery and resolution regimes, including write-down and conversion powers in relation to our securities, (19) outcome of current and future litigation, enforcement proceedings, investigations or other regulatory actions, including claims by customers who feel mislead and other conduct issues, (20) changes in tax laws and regulations and risks of non-compliance or investigation in connection with tax laws, including FATCA, (21) operational risks, such as system disruptions or failures, breaches of security, cyber-attacks, human error, changes in operational practices or inadequate controls including in respect of third parties with which we do business, (22) risks and challenges related to cybercrime including the effects of cyber-attacks and changes in legislation and regulation related to cybersecurity and data privacy, (23) changes in general competitive factors, including ability to increase or maintain market share, (24) the inability to protect our intellectual property and infringement claims by third parties, (25) inability of counterparties to meet financial obligations or ability to enforce rights against such counterparties, (26) changes in credit ratings, (27) business, operational, regulatory, reputation and other risks and challenges in connection with climate change, (28) inability to attract and retain key personnel, (29) future liabilities under defined benefit retirement plans, (30) failure to manage business risks, including in connection with use of models, use of derivatives, or maintaining appropriate policies and guidelines, (31) changes in capital and credit markets, including interbank funding, as well as customer deposits, which provide the liquidity and capital required to fund our operations, and (32) the other risks and uncertainties detailed in the most recent annual report of ING Groep N.V. (including the Risk Factors contained therein) and INGs more recent disclosures, including press releases, which are available on www.ING.com.



This document may contain inactive textual addresses to internet websites operated by us and third parties. Reference to such websites is made for information purposes only, and information found at such websites is not incorporated by reference into this annual report. ING does not make any representation or warranty with respect to the accuracy or completeness of, or take any responsibility for, any information found at any websites operated by third parties. ING specifically disclaims any liability with respect to any information found at websites operated by third parties. ING cannot guarantee that websites operated by third parties remain available following the filing of this document or that any information found at such websites will not change following the filing of this document. Many of those factors are beyond INGs control.



Any forward looking statements made by or on behalf of ING speak only as of the date they are made, and ING assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information or for any other reason.



This document does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to purchase, any securities in the United States or any other jurisdiction.










Description

Req #14363 Monday, May 10, 2021 Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is a subscription-led and digitally focused media and marketing solutions company committed to empowering communities to thrive. With an unmatched reach at the national and local level, Gannett touches the lives of millions with our Pulitzer-Prize winning content, consumer experiences and benefits, and advertiser products and services.



Our current portfolio of media assets includes USA TODAY, local media organizations in 46 states in the U.S., and Newsquest, a wholly owned subsidiary operating in the United Kingdom with more than 120 local news media brands. Gannett also owns the digital marketing services companies ReachLocal, Inc., UpCurve, Inc., and WordStream, Inc., which are marketed under the LOCALiQ brand, and runs the largest media-owned events business in the U.S., USA TODAY NETWORK Ventures.



To connect with us, visit www.gannett.com. Gannetts world-class suite of newsroom tools, including our proprietary CMS, Presto, is maintained by our Content Engineering team. Within that team, we are seeking a software developer to join our authoring development group. As a member of our group, youll help maintain the primary content authoring tool for over 4,000 journalists across the nation, and youll be joining at an exciting time, as well expect you to contribute to our ongoing re-imagining and re-envisioning of the whole suite from top to bottom.

We are looking for a skilled developer who can help maintain our authoring system, but more importantly we are looking for a developer who is eager to learn new disciplines, sharpen their skills, and work collaboratively.



Responsibilities Work collaboratively within our team, with stakeholders, and with outside development groups, to create and maintain both core functionality and user-facing features of a world-class content management system.

Be a part of our autonomous, devops-style team culture, helping take responsibility for front-end, back-end, infrastructure, and testing.

Work with senior members of our team to plan and execute on solutions for a wide array of coding challenges across the front-end, back-end and infrastructure that comprise our CMS stack

Consistently follow and continue to help improve our processes including source control, deployment and issue tracking

Document solutions to institutionalize knowledge for the development, operational, support, and end user communities

Qualifications

As we are constantly reconsidering the makeup of our technology stack, experience in the group of technologies we currently use is encouraged but absolutely not required. These technologies include: Web Standards (HTML/CSS/JS), Node.JS, Continuous Integration (GitHub Actions, Jenkins), Testing Frameworks (Mocha, Karma, Cypress), Docker, Kubernetes, Couchbase, RabbitMQ, Infrastructure as Code (Terraform), Google Cloud Platform (Storage, Pub/Sub, Spanner, Functions, Stackdriver), and more.

Most importantly to us, an ideal candidate has an interest in full-stack technology and although everyone has an area or two of special interest, our ideal candidate does not want to work in a silo. Additionally, though not required, we would love to see: Demonstrated professional development experience developing and consuming APIs and web services

Exposure to databases

Experience debugging and analyzing issues in a complex, service orientated environment

Practical knowledge of software development methodologies

Bachelors degree expected in a technical discipline, but compensating experience may be considered.



Additional Considerations We'd be delighted if you also had experience with any of the following: JIRA and Confluence

Build automation

Automated test tools

Developing and deploying applications hosted in cloud environments

Working with and developing for media related web sites Gannett Co., Inc.is a proud equal opportunity employer. We are a drug free, EEO employer committed to a diverse workforce. We will consider all qualified candidates regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity, family responsibilities, disability, education, political affiliation, or veteran status. Job Family Development & Engineering

Job Function Product

Pay Type Salary Other details

recblid 8gp77efrdadviuaybdetqy8h7o51jy







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None




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Next-gen stock dilemmas: Console enthusiasts have been desperately trying to get their hands on one of Sony and Microsoft's next-gen devices for months, but with limited success. When stock is available, it sells out almost immediately to auto-purchase bots and scalpers. However, if you're willing to stick with the Green Team this generation, Microsoft might have a better purchasing solution for you now -- so long as you're an Xbox One Insider.

Microsoft's Xbox Insider Twitter account today announced something it's calling the "Console Purchase Pilot". The Pilot is a test program that aims to help dedicated Xbox fans get their hands on one of Microsoft's newest consoles with minimal competition.

So, how does this work, and how can you become eligible for the Pilot? For starters, you'll need an Xbox One -- any model will do. If you already own one, the next step is heading to the Microsoft Store to download the free Xbox Insider bundle. This bundle includes both the Xbox Insider Hub and the "Report a problem" app.

Today we're introducing the Console Purchase Pilot, allowing US #XboxInsiders on Xbox One to register for a chance to reserve an Xbox Series X|S console. Check the Xbox Insider Hub on Xbox One for details. Limited space is available and not all who register will be selected. pic.twitter.com/MBkQmbSDWc  Xbox Insider (@xboxinsider) May 11, 2021

Next, just boot up the Insider Hub app and agree to the Terms and Conditions to become an Xbox Insider. Voila -- that's all you need to do. If you're lucky, Microsoft will shoot you an invite to reserve an Xbox Series S or X directly from your device... sort of. In reality, you'll be sent an invite to register for the opportunity to reserve one of the consoles. Even following these steps, you aren't guaranteed to get one; stock just isn't plentiful enough for that.

However, your odds of success definitely go up with this tactic versus trying your luck on Walmart, Amazon, or any other bot-ridden online storefront. Furthermore, since Microsoft calls this a "Pilot," we assume the program could be expanded in the future if it's received well. We certainly hope so, anyway: though our own Cal Jeffrey was lucky enough to get his hands on a PS5 earlier this year, some of our other staff members (not to mention our readers) haven't been so lucky.

Masthead credit: TechRadar
Dublin, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Agricultural Biologicals Market - Forecasts from 2021 to 2026" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The agricultural biologicals market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 11.02% over the analyzed period to reach a market size of US$19,699.792 million in 2026 from US$9,477.038 million in 2019. Agricultural biologicals are a distinctive group of natural products, derived from naturally occurring micro-organisms, beneficial insects, plant extracts, and other organic matters.

Biological products, such as agricultural biologicals, are the fastest-growing segments in the agricultural input market. the key developer of this industry is the growing demand for eco-friendly, chemical-free products for better yield. Chemical fertilizers and pesticides do increase yield, at the cost of the quality of the crop. The chemicals may end in the end product, harming the health of the consumers. Agricultural Biologicals, on the other hand, do not contain chemicals and make the plant and yield more nutritious and healthier. Bio-stimulants helps in increasing plant metabolic and enzymatic process, thus improving the production level and the crop quality. Bio-pesticides protects the plant from incest and other microbes attack, saving the yield.



The market growth is driven by many factors which include R&D and innovation to meet the growing food demand as a result of the surging global population. Further, consumer interest in organic products will also drive the market. Furthermore, insects and weed resistance towards chemicals used in agriculture accompanied with rising environmental concerns will have a positive impact on the agricultural biologicals market.



Rapid Urbanization and Industrialization, along with growing disposable income will have a positive impact on the market, driving the demand further.



The prime driver of growth in the agricultural biologicals market is anticipated to be the growing demand for food owing to booming population growth. The World population is expected to increase to 9.8 billion by end of 2050, from 7.8 billion in 2019. This growth will increase the demand for food products. Further, rapid industrialization and urbanization, especially in developing countries, will decrease the arable land available for cultivation. Hence, intense pressure will be on agricultural lands to increase yield. Farmers will turn towards agricultural biologicals which helps in increasing yield. Moreover, growing disposable income will also boost the market. growth in disposable income redefines a better standard of living. Along with this, consumers are becoming more health-conscious and are demanding natural, organic products. To meet this demand, farmers are employing bio-products. These factors combined will boost the market for agricultural biologicals.



Constraints facing agricultural biologicals market.



Major hindrances faced by the agricultural biologicals market are its low shelf life and lack of awareness.



Agricultural biologicals are plant-based or bio-based with minimum or no involvement of chemicals. In repercussion, biologicals product has a lower shelf life, i.e., same cannot be used for a longer period. Hence, it cannot be stocked and stored by farmers. Moreover, these products are less adaptive and cannot be transferred easily from one container to another. Lack of awareness of these products s another constraint facing the market.



Soil Treatment and Foliar Spray to hold significant market share.



By Application, the market is segmented into Soil treatment, Seed treatment, and Foliar Sprays. Of these, soil treatment and foliar sprays are anticipated to hold a significant market share due to awareness and non-technical usage. The seed treatment segment of the market will also hold a noteworthy share and is anticipated to increase at a considerable rate with growing awareness.



Based on the source of agricultural biologicals, the market is classified into biochemicals, microbials, and others.



The Asia Pacific region is anticipated to grow at the fastest pace.



Based on geography, the market is segmented into North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and the Asia Pacific regions. The Asia Pacific region is predicted to grow at the fastest rate during the forecasted period, owing to rapid urbanization and growing industrialization. The region will also encounter a population boom in the coming years, especially India and China, which will become the first and second most populated countries, respectively. Moreover, growing disposable income in the area and raised standard of living have increased the demand for natural products. Surging health concerns has also significantly influenced demand for organic products. The governments, as well, are supporting the use of agricultural biologicals for sustainability and health. The government of India, for instance, made it compulsory for farmers, in August 2020, to purchase a bag of bio-fertilizers with every bag purchase of urea. The government intends to promote the use of bio-fertilizers, along with discouraging the use of chemical fertilizers, with this regulation.



The North American region is also estimated to employ a noteworthy market share, owning to their state-of-art infrastructure. Education and awareness also play a significant role in the promotion of agricultural biologicals in the region.



COVID pandemic and Agricultural Biologicals industry.



The coronavirus pandemic had a positive impact on the Agricultural Biologicals industry. The pandemic forced the governments to scrutinize their policies and employ sustainable means to reduce human carbon footprint. Further, raised safety and security standards have encouraged the consumption of healthy, natural, and organic products for better immunity and health.



Key Developments

March 2021, Arizona-based, Gowan company announced its acquisition of all shares of Piemme S.R.L., from its shareholders and Giorgio Basile.

March 2021, Bayer AG has announced that it will be launching Vanity Citrus, a bio-pesticide that targets citrus farm pests. The company claims that its Vanity Citrus does not generate resistance or any residue in harvest or the environment.

October 2020, Kerala state inaugurated its first bio-fertilizers and organic manure quality control laboratory in Pattambi. The laboratory would enable farmers to resolve issues regulating their bio-products along with understanding government policies.

August 2020, the government of India mandated the purchase of bio-fertilizers along with the purchase of urea. The government regulation states that for each bag of urea purchased, the farmer has to purchase a bag of bio-fertilizer. The intention behind implementing this rule is to encourage the use of biofertilizers over chemical fertilizers.

Key Topics Covered:



1. Introduction

1.1. Market Definition

1.2. Market Segmentation



2. Research Methodology

2.1. Research Data

2.2. Assumptions



3. Executive Summary

3.1. Research Highlights



4. Market Dynamics

4.1. Market Drivers

4.2. Market Restraints

4.3. Porters Five Forces Analysis

4.3.1. Bargaining Power of Suppliers

4.3.2. Bargaining Powers of Buyers

4.3.3. Threat of Substitutes

4.3.4. Threat of New Entrants

4.3.5. Competitive Rivalry in Industry

4.4. Industry Value Chain Analysis



5. Agricultural Biologicals Market, by Type

5.1. Introduction

5.2. Biofertilizers

5.3. Biopesticides

5.4. Biostimulants



6. Agricultural Biologicals Market, by Application

6.1. Introduction

6.2. Soil Treatment

6.3. Seed Treatment

6.4. Foliar Sprays



7. Agricultural Biologicals Market, by Source

7.1. Introduction

7.2. Biochemicals

7.3. Microbials

7.4. Others



8. Agricultural Biologicals Market, by Geography

8.1. Introduction

8.2. North Americas

8.2.1. North America Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Type

8.2.2. North America Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Source

8.2.3. North America Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Application

8.2.4. By Country

8.2.4.1. United States

8.2.4.2. Canada

8.2.4.3. Mexico

8.3. South America

8.3.1. South America Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Type

8.3.2. South America Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Source

8.3.3. South America Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Application

8.3.4. By Country

8.3.4.1. Brazil

8.3.4.2. Argentina

8.3.4.3. Others

8.4. Europe

8.4.1. Europe Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Type

8.4.2. Europe Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Source

8.4.3. Europe Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Application

8.4.4. By Country

8.4.4.1. Germany

8.4.4.2. France

8.4.4.3. United Kingdom

8.4.4.4. Spain

8.4.4.5. Others

8.5. The Middle East and Africa

8.5.1. The Middle East and Africa Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Type

8.5.2. The Middle East and Africa Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Source

8.5.3. The Middle East and Africa Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Application

8.5.4. By Country

8.5.4.1. Saudi Arabia

8.5.4.2. South Africa

8.5.4.3. Others

8.6. Asia Pacific

8.6.1. Asia Pacific Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Type

8.6.2. Asia Pacific Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Source

8.6.3. Asia Pacific Agricultural Biologicals Market Analysis, By Application

8.6.4. By Country

8.6.4.1. China

8.6.4.2. India

8.6.4.3. South Korea

8.6.4.4. Japan

8.6.4.5. Others



9. Competitive Environment and Analysis

9.1. Major Players and Strategy Analysis

9.2. Emerging Players and Market Lucrative

9.3. Mergers, Acquisition, Agreements, and Collaborations

9.4. Vendor Competitiveness Matrix



10. Company Profiles

10.1. Biolchim SPA

10.2. Marrone Bio Innovations

10.3. BASF SE

10.4. Valent BioScience

10.5. Syngenta

10.6. Isagro

10.7. Arysta LifeSceince

10.8. Koppert Biological Solutions

10.9. Certius USA L.L.C.

10.10. Agricen



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/bdgzma
An Apple iPhone displaying the Apple logo is laid on top of a Macbook keyboard

Millions of Apple's UK customers should be compensated for breaches of competition law, a legal action claims.

The case, filed with the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT), alleges Apple's 30% commission on app sales is an abuse of dominance and unlawful.

Organisers are aiming to include nearly 20 million UK users in the collective action, if it is approved.

Those behind the claim say they intend to seek damages of up to 1.5bn. Apple said the legal action was "meritless".

Collective action

While the UK does not have the same kind of class-action legal structure as the US, so-called "optout" claims have been allowed in the CAT since 2015, meaning all affected people could be covered unless they decide to exclude themselves.

And anyone in the UK who has bought paid apps, paid subscriptions, or other in-app purchases on an iPhone or iPad since October 2015 is included in the claim.

However, such a collective action needs to be approved by the tribunal before proceeding.

While the 30% Apple cut on sales is already facing challenges from other companies, the group behind this claim say it is customers who have ultimately paid the fee.

It alleges:

Apple deliberately shuts out potential competition

it requires ordinary users to use Apple's own payment-processing system

doing so generates "unlawfully excessive levels of profit"

the charges are "an unlawful raid on Apple's customers' purses"

King's College London digital-economy lecturer Dr Rachael Kent, who is taking the case to the tribunal and representing all those affected, said Apple "charges entry and usage fees that are completely unjustified".

"This is the behaviour of a monopolist and is unacceptable," she said.

Apple's estimates of its costs for running the App Store were "just $100m" (71m) - but it had made $15bn (10.6bn) last year.

"Apple achieves this by slapping unjustified charges on its users," Dr Kent said.

Story continues

"It would not be able to impose these exorbitant charges if competitor platforms and payment systems were allowed to compete."

The rest of the team behind the case includes law firm Hausfeld and Co and Vannin Capital.

Vannin would be paid - a proportion of the total compensation, from "damages that are left unclaimed" - only if the case succeeded, the group said, "putting their money at risk for a lengthy legal battle with one of the wealthiest corporations in the world".

"Claimants will not lose out," the group added.

In a statement, Apple said: "We believe this lawsuit is meritless and welcome the opportunity to discuss with the court our unwavering commitment to consumers and the many benefits the App Store has delivered to the UK's innovation economy."

It highlighted that the 30% cut is "very much in the mainstream of those charged by all other digital marketplaces", and said 84% of apps on its App Store were free - so developers paid nothing. It also argued that the "vast majority" of developers paid a commission of 15%, in an apparent reference to its recent decision to cut rates on the first $1m.

Legal battle

Apple's competitor Google also charges a 30% fee, along with several other digital platforms.

But the group said it was "not in a position to comment on Google at the moment".

Apple has faced a backlash from several developers in the past year, along with scrutiny from an EU competition investigation and the House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee in the US.

It is embroiled in a major US-based legal battle with Epic Games, which says Apple's policies prevent it competing on price.

And earlier this year, the competition tribunal rejected Epic's attempt to bring that case into the UK, while allowing a similar one against Google to proceed.
A manhunt is underway for an armed robber who allegedly held up a Wollongong bank and post office.

Police were called to the Bendigo Bank branch in Fairy Meadow around 2:30pm on Tuesday after reports of an armed robbery.

The man, carrying a firearm, allegedly threatened two tellers and demanded cash.

A short time later, police also responded to reports post office employees were threatened in Woonona.

The man allegedly made off with cash from the post office, but police say it is not known what was stolen from the bank.

The man has been described as Caucasian with a heavy build and light blond scruffy hair.

He was wearing a red beanie and a black face mask, a blue check flannelette shirt, grey trackpants, white socks and white Nike slides.

Police are appealing for anyone with information, dashcam footage or CCTV to contact them.
Government defends move, says it is to incentivise vaccine makers

Any overzealous, though well-meaning judicial intervention may lead to unforeseen and unintended consequences in absence of any expert advice, the Centre told the top court.  AFP

New Delhi: The Centre has justified differential Covid vaccine pricing, telling the Supreme Court that the three-slab liberalised, market driven rates for the Centre, states and private hospitals will incentivise demand, lead to higher production, competition and attract overseas investors. While it did not explain why the Centre was procuring the vaccines at one rate and states have to buy the same vaccines for double or more, it emphasised that citizens of all age groups will get free vaccination throughout the country.

The Centre also told the Supreme Court in no uncertain terms to stay away from the vaccination issue that squarely falls within the executive domain, adding that judicial intervention may have serious consequences.

Standing firm on the differential pricing of the two vaccines it has negotiated, the Centre told the top court in an affidavit submitted late on Sunday that differential pricing would incentivised demand for the private vaccine manufacturers and added that its vaccination policy  response and strategy  is completely driven by expert medical and scientific opinion, leaving little room for judicial interference.

Any overzealous, though well-meaning judicial intervention may lead to unforeseen and unintended consequences in absence of any expert advice, the Centre told the top court, adding that in such a grave and unprecedented crisis, the wisdom of the executive should be trusted.

In its April 30, 2021, judgment, the Supreme Court had asked the government to revisit differential pricing of the Covid vaccines it had negotiated. It had also asked the Centre to opt for centralised procurement and decentralised distribution of Covid vaccine while noting that the existing policy, which burdens states to individually source the vaccine, may lead to chaotic situations.

The Serum Institute on India, which is producing Covishield, is selling it to the Central government for Rs 150 a shot. But state governments are paying Rs 300 a shot, and private hospitals Rs 600 a shot.

Bharat Biotech, which is also selling each shot of Covaxin to the Centre for Rs 150, is charging state governments 400 for a dose, while private hospitals have to pay Rs 1,200 for each dose.

In its 218-page affidavit, including annexures, the Centre has said that differential pricing will not impact people in the age group of 18-44 as all of them will be vaccinated free of cost.

while it is ensured that the two vaccine manufacturers are not unduly enriched from out of public money, the citizens are not supposed to make any payment for getting both doses of the vaccine, the Centre said in its affidavit.

It also told the court that in its informal consultations with vaccine manufacturers it ensured that the price of vaccine is uniform for all the states so as to avoid any disparity resulting from one state ending up buying the vaccine at a higher price than the other. It added that based on the number of persons in the 18-44 age group in each state, the Centre has fixed the limit of the vaccines that each state can procure.

The Centre also told the court that those who choose and can pay the price, can go to private hospitals to be vaccinated. Vaccination through the private sector would facilitate better access and will reduce the operational stress on the government vaccination facilities, it said.

While ruling out door-to-door vaccination as not feasible, the Centre also declined to project the availability of vaccines for the next six months. It said that everything would depend on the successful augmentation in existing manufacturing capacity by two vaccine manufacturers by July and procurement of other vaccines from other countries and its quantity.

In its affidavit, the Centre also addressed the issue of the allocation of Remdesivir injection to states/Union Territories, pricing of essential drugs, their sale on inflated prices and fakes.
Watertown, NY (13601)

Today

Rain showers early with overcast skies later in the day. Thunder possible. High 76F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low around 65F. Winds light and variable.
ATHENS - Greece's Ministry of Immigration and Asylum has dispatched a special unit of investigators to the island of Chios following the recent deaths of two migrants who were staying at the VIAL refugee camp, it announced on Monday.

A 51-year-old Iraqi man died on Sunday evening, following closely the death of a 28-year-old Somalian father-of-five who passed away on May 3.

Both men died due to pathological causes, according to the government, which also took the opportunity to criticise earlier media reports that the Somalian man had died as a result of rodent bites.

"The administration of the VIAL reception and identification center will brief in detail a special unit from the Ministry of Immigration and Asylum, which has left for Chios, concerning the two deaths that have taken place due to pathological causes," said the statement.

The statement added: "We would like to point out that the 28-year-old Somalian man died from respiratory failure (after intoxication), and not from mouse bites as it has been written and reported in recent days in an obvious and condemnable attempt to create controversy and exploit his death, while the 51-year-old Iraqi man died of heart failure. It was known to national health officials that he suffered from coronary heart disease." The migration ministry also announced that it has demanded explanations from the NGO ARSIS, active on the Greek island of Chios, after a pregnant Somali woman who was in the organisation's care gave birth outside the refugee camp of VIAL on the North East Aegean Island, while the government also announced that two recent deaths at the same camp were due to "pathological causes".

"A somali refugee, who lived in an apartment in the city of Chios as part of the ESTIA program, gave birth this morning outside the VIAL Center in Chios; both the mother and the baby are in the hospital of Chios and are in good health," said a government statement from the migration ministry.

"It's noted that the NGO "ARSIS", which has the apartment where the 25-year-old Somali woman lived under its supervision, has already been called to give explanations, as it was and is responsible for her care, but which, according to the facts, the organisation did not provide diligently." According to the government, the 25-year-old woman was systematically monitored by the local national health service throughout her pregnancy. On April 27, 2021, doctors had informed her that the day of the birth was approaching and in case of contractions, she would have to go directly to the hospital located in the city. Her next appointment had been scheduled for May 5, 2021, but she did not attend.

On Monday morning she arrived outside of the VIAL camp by taxi, after her pains of contractions had already begun.

According to the statement, the midwives of the center came out and helped her to give birth to her sixth baby, without any complications, and she was then transported by ambulance to the hospital.

The woman had been transferred from the VIAL camp to an apartment in the city of Chios on November 24, 2020, while another 64 pregnant women have been transferred since the beginning of 2021, to ESTIA program apartments on the mainland.

In response to the government's statement on Monday, the human rights group Chios Solidarity Initiative, accused the state of treating migrants like "human garbage".

"This incident has reminded us of the miserable conditions refugees and migrants endure in these so-called "reception centers" on the islands which are hidden away as much as possible," said the organisation in a media statement.

The statement added: "It reaffirms that the unacceptable conditions which prevail that do not match the reduced flows of migrants coming in. There is a complete lack of hygiene and cleanliness, the complete devaluation of public health and disease transmission. People are abandoned to their fate and we wonder how it is possible for them to be exposed to such dangers, for the state to become deaf, to say other words and for the incident to pass as almost expected and normal." "It turns out that the only thing the government is interested in is the creation of huge prison camps, devaluing also the local communities and neglecting the residents at the camps at the same time. Given that a merciless and dogmatic government treats people like human rubbish, while in view of the tourist season they invest so much, they have already secured the best advertisement for the traditional Greek hospitality." "We at the Chios Solidarity Initiative have stressed many times that the conditions in the camp are tragic, and the management of the refugee issue by the government is perfectly in line with its persistent ideological policy that wants to have some people invisible, without rights and forgotten."
Arts & Culture

By Long Island Published: May 11 2021

Andy Warhol: A Life in Pop is now on view at the Nassau County Museum of Art.

Pop into the Nassau County Museum of Art in Roslyn for the Andy Warhol Portfolios: A Life in Pop | Works from the Bank of America Collection running through November 7. The exhibit features more than 100 works from the groundbreaking artist. It spans from his earliest paintings to his later screenprints, including two of his most iconic works, the silkscreen paintings of Marilyn Monroe and Campbell's Soup Cans (1962).

Warhols use of silk screening, printmaking, and photography combined with subject matter drawn from the world of advertising, celebrity, and other pop culture references made him a leader in the Pop art movement. According to the Nassau County Museum of Arts website, the exhibit is a deep dive into his career and an opportunity to become acquainted with a more personal genius.

The exhibit is being held on the second floor of The Mansion. Hours are Tuesday - Sunday, 11 a.m. - 4:45 p.m. Docent-led tours are offered at 2 p.m. Admission is $15 for adults, $10 for seniors (62 and above) and $5 for students and children (4 to12). Advance timed ticket entry is required to visit the museums indoor exhibitions, including the Andy Warhol exhibit.

The Nassau County Museum of Art is located at One Museum Drive in Roslyn Harbor. Visit the Nassau County Museum of Art website or call (516) 484-9338 for more information.
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Dog Guides Canada Lends a Paw to Dogs with Wings - Canadian Assistance Dogs Schools Need Public's Support Tweet this

DWW, also an Assistance Dogs International (ADI) accredited organization in Edmonton, Alberta, finds themselves with clients waiting to be matched with a certified dog, but no dogs to match them with due to COVID restrictions limiting their ability to access dogs through the ADI breeding cooperative. Like LFCDG, DWW focuses on assisting Canadians with a disability by providing Assistance Dogs at no cost.

"We are thrilled to provide DWW 8-10 dogs so they can continue to assist those that need an Assistance Dog to feel inclusive and independent", says Beverly Crandell, CEO of LFCDG. "The dogs will be transferred after travel restrictions have been lifted. Their skilled instructors will then train them and match them to clients on their wait list. In exchange, DWW have offered to assist any of our LFCDG graduates within the province who need support." Kim Zahara, Interim Executive Director for DWW shared, "This collaboration exemplifies how through working together, we are able to transform the way people with disabilities live. Receiving a life changing Assistance Dog allows clients to navigate the world on their terms. DWW is so thankful we were able to collaborate with LFCDG to assist our clients in western Canada."

LFCDG is a national charity that provides Dog Guides in seven programs. During these difficult times, LFCDG needs support from the public in order to continue to provide life-changing dogs. During the month of May, the foundation is hosting the Pet Valu Virtual Walk for Dog Guides, an event that relies on Canadians to join and donate to create awareness and fundraise for the organization that receives zero government funding. With each Dog Guide team costing approximately $35,000, LFCDG needs all the help they can get. The event has no registration fee thanks to its national sponsor, Pet Valu. Those interested in participating can do so by visiting www.walkfordogguides.com

By joining the Pet Valu Virtual Walk, Canadians will assist someone like Kristen receive a Dog Guide like Ivor.

Kristen & Ivor

At 26 years old, Kristen wanted her independence but being blind made that very difficult that is until Ivor came into her life in the midst of the pandemic." Being blind made it very hard to get around on my own. I wasn't able to leave my house unless I had someone with me to hold on to. Even travelling within my home was difficult as I have no peripheral vision. Ivor has changed my life by giving me independence and freedom, indoors and outdoors. This last year has been tough but with Ivor as my guide, I have been able to get through it."

About Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides:

LFCDG is the only accredited ADI and IGDF organization in the world that provides Dog Guides in seven programs: Canine Vision, Hearing, Service, Seizure Response, Autism Assistance, Diabetic Alert and Facility Support. Located in Oakville, ON, the foundation provides highly trained dogs across Canada and relies on public support to match Dog Guides teams at no cost. Each Dog Guide takes approximately $35,000 to breed, train and place with qualified Canadians with a medical or physical disability. To learn more about Dog Guides and their fundraising initiatives, please visit www.dogguides.com

About Dogs with Wings Assistance Dog Society:

DWW is a leader in the international community of assistance dog training schools. Their mission is to foster integration and independence for individuals with disabilities by providing them with highly trained assistance dogs and aftercare. This year, DWW is celebrating their 25th Anniversary of providing excellence, service and impact to western Canada. Together, they are changing lives . . . one dog at a time. To learn more about DWW and support the organization, visit www.dogswithwings.ca

About the Pet Valu Virtual Walk for Dog Guides:

The Pet Valu Walk for Dog Guides is a national fundraising walk for LFDCG that under normal circumstances would be held in approximately 300 communities across Canada. It raises funds to help train Dog Guides for Canadians with visual, hearing, medical or physical disabilities. Each walk is organized by local volunteers with support from LFCDG. To date, the walk has raised more than $19 million!

This year, to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the walk has gone virtual! Visit www.walkfordogguides.com to learn more, donate or register.

SOURCE Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides

For further information: For Media: Maria Galindo, Communications Manager, LFCDG, [email protected]; Kim Zahara, Interim Executive Director, DWW, [email protected]

Related Links

www.dogguides.com


Dublin, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Agricultural Microbial Market - Forecasts from 2021 to 2026" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.





The global agricultural microbial market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 12.61% over the forecast period to reach a market size of US$9,087.791 million in 2026 from US$3,956.654 million in 2019.



Agricultural microbial refers to the microorganisms used in agriculture to enhance crop productivity and quality of yield. Microbial inoculants used in agriculture have target specific functions, and thus are suitable for use in various crops. They consist of microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, and viruses that are beneficial for assisting various agricultural practices such as crop protection and soil improvement. Microbes act as an important active ingredient in various biostimulants that help improve crop yields. In recent times, they have emerged as an effective substitute for synthetic agrochemicals. Moreover, they have functional superiority that encourages crop development by complementing the soil microbiota by enhancing nutrient uptake and increasing soil fertility.

The growing trend of adopting organic farming as an alternative to conventional farming practices to achieve sustainability and lower the negative impact on the environment has contributed to driving the market growth. The promising growth potential of organic agriculture practices is anticipated to complement the growth of the agricultural type of microbial. This is also expected to drive natural plant growth regulators and crop protection products in the forthcoming years. According to a 2019 Organic Survey by the National Agricultural Statistics Service, there has been a rise of 17% in the certified organic farms in the U.S. between 2016 and 2019. The strong emphasis of the government to adopt organic farming has led to increased acceptance of such microbial globally.



However, the major factors hampering the market growth and adoption of agricultural microbial are the high application cost and delayed effects of microbial inoculants as compared to conventional chemical agrochemicals. Manufacturers are witnessing several challenges in their growth due to the presence of several counterfeit products in the market and the implementation of government regulations.



Growth Factors.

Rising population and increasing demand for food security

The growing need to feed an ever-growing global population, coupled with the increasing demand for sustainable agricultural practices and the concern of the general public over environmental safety is one of the leading drivers for the agricultural microbial market. An increase in urbanization and less availability of arable land are motivating farmers to adopt efficient crop-protection techniques. There has been a broader acceptance and recognition of the increasing benefits of microbial. With the amount of arable land per person declining and the expansion of population, global crop yields must increase to meet the food production needs. As a result, an increase in the demand for microbial products and agricultural production is being witnessed. Along with this, the high demand for microbial to achieve sustainable crop intensification is expected to favor market growth. This has boosted their popularity and demand as a biological source to improve production, and their incorporation in integrated farming practices is likely to narrow the yield gaps.

Increasing awareness regarding the harmful effects of synthetic chemicals

The use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers has shown various detrimental effects on the environment and human health. According to the United Nations and the Food and Agriculture Organization, synthetic fertilizers account for 13% of the total agricultural greenhouse gas (GIG) emissions. There have been numerous efforts to improve agricultural management practices as synthetic fertilizers cause widespread damage to the ecology. The prominent players in the market and various government and non-government organizations support sustainable agricultural practices by providing funds and subsidies on agricultural microbial. They help mitigate the efforts and act as a valuable ingredient for enabling sustainable agriculture practices.

Restraints.

Low Adoption

Besides the various benefits of agricultural microbial, it is witnessed to have relatively low adoption rates than synthetic chemicals. This is mainly due to the lack of awareness and low commercialization of biologicals. Along with this, there are considerable challenges with the utilization of microbes and their mode of application. For instance, the microbial culture used for seed treatment o impairs the convenience of sowing seeds. Furthermore, the storage-stability of microbial hinders their effective utilization as they have low on-seed survival rates. Hence, the farmers often refrain from using microbes.



Key Developments

April 2020 - Sumitomo Chemicals Company successfully acquired four South American subsidiaries of Nufarm Limited - in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, and Colombia, respectively - to expand its global footprint in the crop protection business in various regions around the world.

April 2020 - Sumitomo Chemicals invested USD 30 million into a joint venture with Conagen, a US biotechnology company. Through this, the company aimed to promote its strategic business alliance with Conagen further and develop innovative high functional products and processes by way of innovative use of biologicals.

March 2020 - a new automated greenhouse facility was developed in Marana, Arizona, US, by Bayer CropScience, for providing growers with the most innovative, sustainable, and technically advanced agricultural solutions, focusing on crop protection solutions.

January 2020 - BASF SE, for its Agricultural Solutions business in Singapore, developed a multipurpose facility designed to handle six different formulation technologies and supply the company's patented crop protection products to farmers across the fast-growing Asia Pacific region.

October 2019 - Bayer CropScience launched its latest biological innovations, collectively known by the brand name, Biologicals, by Bayer at 2019 Annual Biocontrol Industry Meeting (ABIM).

Impact of COVID - 19.



The COVID - 19 pandemic is expected to hurt the growth of the agricultural microbial market as due to the pandemic, supply chains around the globe were disrupted leading to an inadequate supply of microbial to farmers in need. Moreover, restrictions imposed on the movement and gathering of people led to a decline in agricultural activities, thus, reducing the demand for microbial.



Competitive Insights



Prominent/major key market players in the global agricultural microbial market include Certis USA, BASF SE, Novozymes, Sumitomo Chemical, and Bayer CropScience among others. The players are implementing various growth strategies to gain a competitive advantage over their competitors in this market. Major market players in the market have been covered along with their relative competitive strategies and the report also mentions recent deals and investments of different market players over the last few years. The company profiles section details the business overview, financial performance (public companies) for the past few years, key products and services being offered along with the recent deals and investments of these important players in the Global Agricultural Microbial Market.



Key Topics Covered:



1. Introduction

1.1. Market Definition

1.2. Market Segmentation



2. Research Methodology

2.1. Research Data

2.2. Assumptions



3. Executive Summary

3.1. Research Highlights



4. Market Dynamics

4.1. Market Drivers

4.2. Market Restraints

4.3. Porters Five Forces Analysis

4.3.1. Bargaining Power of Suppliers

4.3.2. Bargaining Power of Buyers

4.3.3. Threat of New Entrants

4.3.4. Threat of Substitutes

4.3.5. Competitive Rivalry in the Function

4.4. Function Value Chain Analysis



5. Global Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Type

5.1. Introduction

5.2. Bacteria

5.3. Protozoa

5.4. Viruses

5.5. Fungi



6. Global Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Crop Type

6.1. Introduction

6.2. Cereals and Grains

6.3. Fruits and Vegetables

6.4. Oilseeds and Pulses

6.5. Others



7. Global Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Function

7.1. Introduction

7.2. Crop Protection

7.3. Soil Amendment



8. Global Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Mode of Application

8.1. Introduction

8.2. Soil Treatment

8.3. Seed Treatment

8.4. Foliar Spray



9. Global Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Formulation

9.1. Introduction

9.2. Dry Formulation

9.3. Liquid Formulation



10. Global Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Geography

10.1. Introduction

10.2. North America

10.2.1. North America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Type

10.2.2. North America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Crop Type

10.2.3. North America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Function

10.2.4. North America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Mode of Application

10.2.5. North America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Formulation

10.2.6. By Country

10.2.6.1. United States

10.2.6.2. Canada

10.2.6.3. Mexico

10.3. South America

10.3.1. South America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Type

10.3.2. South America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Crop Type

10.3.3. South America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Function

10.3.4. South America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Mode of Application

10.3.5. South America Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Formulation

10.3.6. By Country

10.3.6.1. Brazil

10.3.6.2. Argentina

10.3.6.3. Others

10.4. Europe

10.4.1. Europe Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Type

10.4.2. Europe Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Crop Type

10.4.3. Europe Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Function

10.4.4. Europe Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Mode of Application

10.4.5. Europe Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Formulation

10.4.6. By Country

10.4.6.1. Germany

10.4.6.2. United Kingdom

10.4.6.3. France

10.4.6.4. Others

10.5. Middle East and Africa

10.5.1. Middle East and Africa Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Type

10.5.2. Middle East and Africa Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Crop Type

10.5.3. Middle East and Africa Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Function

10.5.4. Middle East and Africa Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Mode of Application

10.5.5. Middle East and Africa Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Formulation

10.5.6. By Country

10.5.6.1. Saudi Arabia

10.5.6.2. South Africa

10.5.6.3. Others

10.6. Asia Pacific

10.6.1. Asia Pacific Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Type

10.6.2. Asia Pacific Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Crop Type

10.6.3. Asia Pacific Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Function

10.6.4. Asia Pacific Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Mode of Application

10.6.5. Asia Pacific Agricultural Microbial Market Analysis, By Formulation

10.6.6. By Country

10.6.6.1. China

10.6.6.2. Japan

10.6.6.3. India

10.6.6.4. South Korea

10.6.6.5. Others



11. Competitive Environment and Analysis

11.1. Major Players and Strategy Analysis

11.2. Emerging Players and Market Lucrativeness

11.3. Mergers, Acquisitions, Agreements, and Collaborations

11.4. Vendor Competitiveness Matrix



12. Company Profiles.

12.1. Certis USA

12.2. BASF SE

12.3. Novozymes

12.4. Sumitomo Chemical

12.5. Bayer CropScience

12.6. Queensland Agricultural Seeds

12.7. Syngenta AG

12.8. Dow AgroSciences

12.9. Novagreen Inc.

12.10. XiteBio Technologies



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/hquj72
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When he came to the U.S. from Ecuador at 6 years old, Agustin Leon-Saenz was scared and apprehensive. He didnt speak any English and didnt know what to expect.

A little more than a decade later, the anticipated valedictorian at Albuquerque High School is headed to Harvard.

At just 17, Agustin is already an overachiever. Hes made the most of his education  starting with learning English, taking AP classes, joining numerous school clubs and earning a scholarship to one of the most prestigious universities.

Agustin and all the rest of New Mexicos graduates deserve congratulations  for powering through high school courses, doing it in a challenging distance-learning pandemic, and moving on to the next step in their journey, be it a university, a job, a trade school or a community college.

So way to go, class of 2021, whether you will enter/continue to advance in the workforce and/or start coursework at a higher education institution  be it in state or elsewhere.

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You are our states future and an inspiration.

This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.
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TEMPE, Ariz.  NortonLifeLock Inc. (NLOK) on Monday reported fiscal fourth-quarter net income of $194 million.

On a per-share basis, the Tempe, Arizona-based company said it had net income of 33 cents. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, came to 40 cents per share.

The results topped Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of three analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 37 cents per share.

The security software maker posted revenue of $672 million in the period. Its adjusted revenue was $677 million.

For the year, the company reported profit of $554 million, or 92 cents per share. Revenue was reported as $2.56 billion.

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For the current quarter ending in July, NortonLifeLock expects its per-share earnings to range from 40 cents to 42 cents.

The company said it expects revenue in the range of $680 million to $690 million for the fiscal first quarter.

NortonLifeLock shares have risen slightly more than 1% since the beginning of the year. In the final minutes of trading on Monday, shares hit $21.08, a fall of roughly 1% in the last 12 months.

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This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on NLOK at https://www.zacks.com/ap/NLOK
WASHINGTON, May 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FTI Consulting, Inc. (NYSE: FCN) today announced the appointment of Gustavo Galizzi as a Senior Managing Director in the Risk & Investigations practice within the Forensic and Litigation Consulting segment, based in Sao Paulo.



Mr. Galizzi has over 15 years of experience with top-tier law firms representing clients on legal and reputational issues involving mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, private equity transactions, capital markets, investigations, corporate disputes and arbitration. At FTI Consulting, he will lead the Forensic and Litigation Consulting segment in Brazil and will focus on complex investigations, disputes and regulatory matters, including situations involving anti-bribery and anti-corruption legislation like the Brazil Clean Company Act and the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Latin America continues to see investment from international markets, making it imperative that companies have the tools to gather actionable intelligence, manage due diligence for investments and acquisitions and resolve disputes, said Gavin Parrish, a Managing Director in the Risk & Investigations practice at FTI Consulting. Gustavo has built a career advising clients in Brazil and understands the unique challenges and opportunities in the local market. His appointment continues our commitment to providing clients with talent and resources in jurisdictions where they do business.

Prior to his appointment, Mr. Galizzi worked in the Sao Paulo office of Barbosa Mussnich & Aragao Advogados. He also was the founding partner of Candido, Martins & Galizzi  CM&G, a legal boutique in Sao Paulo.

Gustavos experience advising clients on transactional and dispute matters in Brazil is an ideal fit for our Risk & Investigations practice, said Christopher DeSa, a Managing Director in the Risk & Investigations practice at FTI Consulting. His combination of business and legal insights will complement our existing expertise as we support investors and companies analyzing opportunities and navigating challenges and crises in Brazil.

Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Galizzi said, FTI Consultings team of professionals supports clients through their most complex investigations, disputes and regulatory challenges. I look forward to working alongside this talented group of experts in Latin America and around the world particularly when they face serious allegations requiring internal investigations or expert work in high-stakes litigation to protect and enhance their enterprise value.

The appointment of Mr. Galizzi continues FTI Consultings investment in Brazil and across Latin America. In 2020, Michael Cullen joined the Risk & Investigations practice in Bogota, Colombia, where he manages a team operating across the region in complex, cross-border investigations, deals, disputes and arbitrations in Latin America. Since joining FTI Consulting, Mr. Cullen has overseen growth of the team in Colombia, including senior hires Alejandro Hristodulopulos and Pablo Amaya.

About FTI Consulting

FTI Consulting, Inc. is a global business advisory firm dedicated to helping organizations manage change, mitigate risk and resolve disputes: financial, legal, operational, political & regulatory, reputational and transactional. With more than 6,400 employees located in 29 countries, FTI Consulting professionals work closely with clients to anticipate, illuminate and overcome complex business challenges and make the most of opportunities. The Company generated $2.46 billion in revenues during fiscal year 2020. For more information, visit www.fticonsulting.com and connect with us on Twitter (@FTIConsulting), Facebook and LinkedIn.

FTI Consulting, Inc.

555 12th Street NW

Washington, DC 20004

+1.202.312.9100

Investor Contact:

Mollie Hawkes

+1.617.747.1791

mollie.hawkes@fticonsulting.com

Media Contact:

Matthew Bashalany

+1.617.897.1545

matthew.bashalany@fticonsulting.com
AS we are locked in and under strict curfew for at least the next month, there are thousands of families in our own country living in poverty and going hungry in this pandemic period.

How are we helping struggling families in Trinidad and Tobago during this time, one may ask?
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Press Release

Nokia selected by Movistar Chile for commercial 5G network launch

Movistar Chiles commercial 5G network to launch with Nokias AirScale technology

The deal upgrades Telefonicas 4G and 4G+ network across several Chilean cities; option for a seamless upgrade to 5G services in the future

This high-speed mobile technology will be supported by Movistar Chile's fiber optics, which will allow the different mobile antennas deployed in cities to be interconnected

May 10, 2021

Espoo, Finland  Nokia has today announced that it has been chosen by Telefonicas Latin America brand, Movistar Chile to provide equipment from its AirScale portfolio to launch the operators 5G network in the country. This milestone deployment will enable 5G services for Movistar customers. In addition, Nokia will upgrade Movistars 4G and 4G+ networks to strengthen the critical network backbone across Chiles key markets.

To meet the demands from consumers and businesses for improved speeds and enhanced services, Movistar has turned to Nokia to modernize its mobile networks and support its growth ambitions. The upgraded network, which will operate across Movistars recently won spectrum in Chiles 5G auction in the 3.5GHz band, will leverage Nokias AirScale Radio Access portfolio to deliver ultra-low latency, huge connectivity and extreme capacity, offering both consumers and small to medium-sized business a path to 5G in Chile for the first time. Nokias AirScale portfolio can be seamlessly upgraded from 4G/LTE to 5G/NR via a software-based upgrade to enable a smooth evolution towards 5G deployments.

In addition to delivering upgraded mobile data services to consumers, the 5G network will offer Movistars business customers access to 5G use cases, including support for Industry 4.0, public sector and health innovations, and private wireless. This high-speed mobile technology will be supported by Movistar Chile's fiber optics, which will allow the different mobile antennas deployed in cities to be interconnected.

Chile is the first country in Latin America to have a 5G auction, which is the first step towards launching a commercial network. Movistar Chile acquired 50 MHz in the 3.5Ghz band, which will support enhanced mobile broadband services in Chile. 5G is an evolution in mobile networks. Telefonica Hispanoamerica is evaluating the right circumstances for deployment in each market, taking steps towards the evolution of the network in several countries.

Antonio Bueno, Head of Technology at Movistar Chile, said: We believe that 5G will bring enormous potential to the country, both for people and for the vertical sectors. It is in this last area where the fifth generation will also be able to make the Connected Industry and the Internet of Things (IoT) a reality, thanks to its low latency, high speeds, and the ability to connect thousands of devices. From our company, and together with Nokia, we will continue to accelerate the developments and innovations that Chile needs, also adding universities, startups, entrepreneurs, and other actors in the economy.

Osvaldo Di Campli, Head of Latin America at Nokia, said: Latin America has a diverse mix of emerging markets and more established economies, yet this melting pot of business and consumer potential has so far not been able to experience the benefits of 5G. Chile epitomizes the regions hunger for growth and innovation, so we are excited to work with Telefonica on its 5G commercial network in Chile to bring next-generation connectivity to enterprises and end-users.

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About Nokia

We create technology that helps the world act together.

As a trusted partner for critical networks, we are committed to innovation and technology leadership across mobile, fixed and cloud networks. We create value with intellectual property and long-term research, led by the award-winning Nokia Bell Labs.

Adhering to the highest standards of integrity and security, we help build the capabilities needed for a more productive, sustainable and inclusive world.

Media Inquiries

Communications

Phone: +358 10 448 4900

E-mail: press.services@nokia.com

Media Relations Latin America

Lygia Torelli


Newspaper Delivery Be Your Own Boss Make extra cash with morning newspaper home delivery (using your own vehicle). NO experience necessary. Must be able to deliver mornings, 5 days a week (Monday-Friday) starting at 6:00 a.m. Must be dependable, able to read a map, follow a route list with delivery instructions and have the ability to get in and out of your car for limited porch deliveries. Routes average 1.5 to 3 hours daily. Ability to expand route subscribership and make more money. Current driver's license and insurance required. No collections, not temp work, offering long term contracts. Retirees, stay at home moms/dads, veterans, college students are encouraged to apply. Newspaper delivery route(s) available in the following city: Moses Lake Newspaper delivery Route SUB needed to fill in for carrier vacations, emergencies, etc (using your own vehicle). This position would entail delivery to cities/towns in Grant County. Delivery of mail to post office(s), home delivery or single copy racks and retailers. Must be dependable, able to read a map, follow a route list with delivery instructions and have the ability to get in and out of your car for limited porch deliveries. Routes average 1.5 to 3 hours daily. Current driver's license and insurance required. The circulation ROUTE SUB works on an as needed basis. The Columbia Basin Herald is an Equal Opportunity Employer

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AUSTIN, Texas  SailPoint Technologies Holdings Inc. (SAIL) on Monday reported a loss of $15.3 million in its first quarter.

The Austin, Texas-based company said it had a loss of 17 cents per share. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, came to less than 1 cent on a per-share basis.

The average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was also breakeven on a per-share basis.

The identity governance software developer posted revenue of $90.8 million in the period, which did not meet Street forecasts. Five analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $91.6 million.

For the current quarter ending in July, SailPoint Technologies expects its results to range from a loss of 7 cents per share to a loss of 5 cents per share.

The company said it expects revenue in the range of $98 million to $100 million for the fiscal second quarter.

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SailPoint Technologies expects full-year results to range from a loss of 13 cents per share to a loss of 5 cents per share, with revenue ranging from $404 million to $412 million.

SailPoint Technologies shares have decreased 17% since the beginning of the year. In the final minutes of trading on Monday, shares hit $44.30, more than doubling in the last 12 months.

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This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on SAIL at https://www.zacks.com/ap/SAIL
More than 100 Boeing 737 Max aircraft were grounded in April following discovery of a potential electrical problem

Little more than six months after Boeing's 737 Max was cleared to fly again by US regulators, the aircraft finds itself under intense scrutiny once again.

The discovery of a potential electrical problem last month led to the renewed grounding of more than 100 aeroplanes, belonging to 24 airlines around the world.

Deliveries of many more new aircraft have been suspended. Boeing and the US regulator, the Federal Aviation Administration say they are working closely to address the issue.

But the affair has given new energy to critics who claim the 737 Max was allowed back into service prematurely - and that issues which could have contributed to two fatal crashes have not been fully analysed or addressed.

Those critics include a high profile whistle-blower, Ed Pierson, who has already sought to link allegedly poor production standards at the 737 factory with electrical defects on the crashed planes, which he claims may have been implicated in both accidents.

According to Boeing and the FAA, the problem first became apparent during testing of a newly manufactured 737 Max 8, which had yet to be delivered to its owner. It was found that electrical power systems on the aircraft were not working correctly.

The fault was traced to poor electrical bonding, where panel assemblies that were also intended to conduct electricity and form part of a connection with the frame of the aircraft were not doing so effectively.

This meant that some components on the plane, including the pilots' main instrument panel and a standby power control unit, were improperly grounded, or earthed.

According to the FAA, this could potentially "affect the operation of certain systems, including engine ice protection, and result in loss of critical functions and/or multiple simultaneous flight deck effects, which may prevent continued safe flight and landing".

Story continues

The flaw, then, was a dangerous one. The FAA was worried that over time other aircraft, which were already in service, could develop the same condition. It issued an Airworthiness Directive on 30 April stipulating that affected aircraft should be modified before being permitted to fly again.

The FAA says affected aircraft must be modified before being permitted to fly again

On the face of it, there is nothing to link these flaws with the errant flight control software - known as MCAS - that triggered the loss of two planes, in Indonesia and Ethiopia, claiming the lives of 346 people.

In each of those accidents, flawed data from a faulty sensor prompted MCAS to force the nose of the aircraft down repeatedly, when the pilots were trying to gain height, ultimately pushing it into a catastrophic dive.

According to Chris Brady, a pilot who runs a website and a video channel devoted to technical aspects of the 737, "the problem is unrelated to MCAS or any other previous Max problem".

It occurred, he says, because in early 2019, Boeing changed the way panels were attached on parts of the plane. It was seen as a very minor change, so it was not notified to regulators.

"There was nothing, let's say, unethical about that", he explains. "Prima facie, this appears to be an honest mistake, the implications of which have just been unearthed".

But for Mr Pierson, a former senior manager on the 737 production line, the new electrical issues are a symptom of something more serious.

Ed Pierson at a House Transportation Committee Hearing on 11 December 2019

During congressional hearings into the crashes involving the Max, he claimed that in 2018 the factory in Renton, near Seattle had become "dysfunctional" and "chaotic", as pressure increased to produce new aircraft as quickly as possible.

Earlier this year, he published a report that explicitly linked alleged production pressures with electrical anomalies and flight control system problems that occurred on both crashed aircraft prior to the accidents.

He suggested that defects in the wiring of both aircraft could have contributed to the erroneous deployment of the MCAS software, alongside sensor failures already implicated in the crashes.

He now says the disclosure of new problems reinforces his case.

"Yes, MCAS caused the airplanes to pitch down and crash", he explains. "But it was an electrical system malfunction that likely caused the angle of attack sensor to send faulty data to MCAS".

Infographic of the Boeing 737 Max 8

Mr Pierson believes that the 20-month recertification process which cleared the 737 Max to fly again focused on software design and pilot training, but failed to address the impact of production standards at the factory.

As a result, he says, it is "no surprise that new discoveries linked to 737 Max production defects continue to come to light" on an aircraft described by the FAA's Administrator Steve Dickson as "the most scrutinised transport aircraft in history".

Mr Pierson says he has written to the US Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, requesting a meeting to outline his concerns, but has not heard back.

Boeing emphatically denies any connection between production standards in the 737 factory and the two accidents involving the 737 Max.

It says: "The Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines accidents have been reviewed by numerous governmental and regulatory entities, and none of those reviews has found that production conditions in the factory contributed to the accidents."

Boeing insiders dismiss the latest allegation

Dai Whittingham is chief executive of the UK Flight Safety Committee, a group of organisations, including airlines and regulators, which promotes safety in commercial aviation.

He says that a direct link between the two accidents and the recently-discovered electrical flaws is "a hard connection to make".

But on one key point he appears to agree with Mr Pierson. "These issues are separate in how they've arisen", he explains, "but they may well have stemmed from the same corporate culture, with a focus on saving time and keeping costs down over maintaining quality".

The allegation that Boeing prioritised profit over safety in the run up to the two accidents is not new - and indeed was made by prosecutors when announcing a $2.5bn settlement with the aerospace giant earlier this year.

The company says it has learned many lessons as a result of the Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302 and Lion Air 610 accidents. It says it has "made fundamental changes" and continues "to look for ways to improve".

"Boeing is committed to restore trust, and we'll do it one airplane at a time," it said.

People within the company insist the changes which led to the current problems were not motivated by time or cost savings.

It's not clear how long the affected aircraft will remain grounded. The actual modifications required are expected to be relatively simple and are only expected to cost about $2,250 (1,600) per aircraft. But the FAA is understood to be asking for detailed analysis to be sure all potential concerns have been dealt with.

With the scrutiny the 737 Max is under, neither Boeing, nor the FAA, can afford to make a mistake.
UN condemns violence in Palestinian territories and Israel 'Also ethnic divisions and provocations'

(ANSAmed) - GENEVA, MAY 11 - The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on Tuesday condemned "all violence" and violations of international law as part of tensions and incidents in Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip in recent days.



"We are deeply concerned at the escalation of violence in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel in the past days," said Rupert Colville, spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, in Geneva.



"We condemn all violence and all incitement to violence and ethnic division and provocations," he said.(ANSAmed).




TUNIS - US Ambassador to Libya Richard Norland has been appointed US special envoy for Libya, said the US State Department in a statement.

"In his role as US special envoy, Ambassador Norland will lead US diplomatic efforts to promote international support for a Libyan-led, inclusive, and negotiated political solution to the conflict, facilitated through the UN," it said.

"Norland has served as chief of mission at the Libya External Office in Tunis since August 2019," it said.

It said the new appointment "signifies the importance the United States attaches to focused, high-level diplomatic outreach in support of the Libyan political process culminating in elections on December 24, 2021".

Norland "will work closely with key partners to strengthen efforts to keep the political process on track and ensure the removal of foreign forces from Libya", the statement said.
Fewer renters than expected are applying for pandemic assistance in Pennsylvania, alarming state officials who urged tenants who are behind on rent to submit their applications now in light of a judge's recent decision striking down a national eviction moratorium.

The ruling has been put on hold while the Biden administration appeals. But the uncertainty around the moratorium prompted the Department of Human Services, which runs the state's rental assistance program, to plead with renters to take advantage of the program.

I'm extremely concerned that people are not moving quickly to pursue this assistance because the moratorium was expected to be in place, Meg Snead, the acting DHS secretary, said Tuesday. And I'm extremely concerned about what may occur, and circumstances people will be in, if the ruling stands.

Snead said the program is meant to help Pennsylvania avoid a wave of evictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Pennsylvania's 67 counties received about $847 million in federal relief to help tenants pay rent and utilities. The state's rent relief program launched in March.

Early indications are that it has been slow to get off the ground. Only about 8,000 applications for rental assistance have been submitted through a state portal, representing two-thirds of Pennsylvania counties. The average benefit has been about $4,000 per applicant.

More complete numbers are expected next week.

We do not want to leave funds unspent when we know there is likely an incredible need across Pennsylvania, Snead said.

Pennsylvania had similar problems last year, spending just $54 million on rental assistance out of $150 million allocated in an earlier relief package. The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Authority returned the rest, some of which went to the state corrections department.

A primary roadblock to landlords' willingness to participate in last year's program  a $750 cap on monthly payments  does not apply this year.

In other coronavirus-related developments in Pennsylvania on Tuesday:

GATHERING LIMITS RELAXED

Pennsylvania is allowing more people at indoor and outdoor events.

Beginning Monday, occupancy limits will be increased to 50% of capacity for indoor events, up from 25%, and to 75% for outdoor events, up from 50%.

As more Pennsylvania adults get vaccinated and guidance from the CDC evolves, we can continue to move forward with the commonwealths reopening efforts, Gov. Tom Wolf said in a statement Tuesday.

The state has previously announced that nearly all COVID restrictions will go away on Memorial Day, including capacity limits on bars, restaurants and other businesses, as well as indoor and outdoor event gathering limits. The state's mask mandate will remain until 75% of adults are fully vaccinated. Statewide, about 45.6% of people aged 18 and older have been fully vaccinated as of Tuesday, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In Philadelphia, meanwhile, city officials announced pandemic restrictions will be eased beginning later this month, and will go away almost entirely on June 11.

Starting May 21, retail stores and offices will no longer have to operate at reduced capacity, and the city is lifting its rule that bars and restaurants can only serve alcohol with food. Capacity limits on gyms, exercise classes and theaters will be eased, as well as limits on outdoor and indoor catered events.

The city plans to lift all restrictions under its Safer at Home initiative on June 11, though its masking requirement will remain for the foreseeable future.

The health commissioner, Dr. Thomas Farley, said hes keeping the mask mandate in place to make sure the dip in cases and the positivity rate is not just a seasonal phenomenon.

Its not a big deal. Its a light thing. Were not asking people to carry a piano, said Mayor Jim Kenney, adding he planned to wear his mask through the winter.

The Philadelphia Eagles said they were excited to welcome fans back to Lincoln Financial Field.

As we look ahead to a full stadium, we encourage our community to get vaccinated, team President Don Smolenski said in a statement.

___

VAX FOR YOUNGER TEENS

Younger teens in the Philadelphia suburbs lined up to get vaccinated Tuesday after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration expanded the use of the two-dose vaccine to 12- to 15-year-olds.

About 750,000 Pennsylvania children are eligible for Pfizers COVID-19 shot after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration expanded the use of the two-dose vaccine to 12- to 15-year-olds, according to state health officials.

The Montgomery County Office of Public Health began administering the shots to kids in that age group on Tuesday, even though the state Health Department asserted that providers need to wait until a federal vaccine advisory committee signs off, which is expected to happen Wednesday.

Under all relevant legal authority, once the FDA gives approval, a prescriber is permitted to prescribe the vaccine, said Montgomery County spokesperson Kelly Cofrancisco. Since the vaccine committee does not have any role in determining whether we begin administering the Pfizer vaccine to those 12 and up starting today, we chose to move ahead.

About 300 people between the ages of 12 and 15 signed up to get the shot, not including walk-ups, according to Cofrancisco,

The state Health Department later softened its language, saying it was exercising an abundance of caution in recommending that vaccine providers wait until the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices gives the go-ahead.

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Associated Press reporter Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia contributed to this story.